#I love how Pat the family man is continuously honoured by his family

[herestoburiedsecrets]

One of the things I really love about Pat's character is the way that in both the episodes that centre him (1x3 - Happy Death Day and 4x7 - It's Behind You) focus on the way that Pat is honoured and loved through Daley and the rest of his family. We see a lot of instances throughout the show of that being a father is a core part of Pat's personality, and by putting an emphasis on the ways that Pat lives on through his family the show further highlights this. Daley seems to show this the most, which is not that surprising given Carol was cheating on Pat for most of the marriage. The fact that they all visit Button House on Pat's death day and the way Daley mimics his dad in the home video is genuinely so heartwrenchingly beautiful, and I love it so much. It is so fitting for the character, and a really beautiful way to explore Pat's past!

[sunshinechay]

If we keep with the Pride and Prejudice parallels, this episode really cemented for that Put is the closest thing we’re going to get to Mr Wickham. I’m not here to say he’s as awful as Wickham or an irredeemable a-hole or anything like that. Ultimately, Put is a much more sympathetic character…at least so far and I’m hoping it stays that way as I really don’t think the show needs that kind of angsts and drama when it has enough already.

What I mean by this is that, in the original Pride and Prejudice, Darcy and Wickham served partly as parallels and partly as foils. They are both men with similar backgrounds that come from respectable families (Wickham’s family wasn’t gentry but it is still made obvious that Mr Wickham senior was a good man who worked well and honourably, much like Mr Darcy senior). However, they went on wildly different paths due to their very different personalities.

Darcy is awkward and quiet but underneath that is a man who treats his people well, is honourable about all things and above all, learns from what Lizzie has to tell him. While Wickham is charming and friendly, he is ultimately a man who is completely out for himself with very little regard for anyone who might be hurt or suffer in the pursuit of him getting what he wants.

Most importantly, both feed into the narrative that being prejudice for or against someone can be very bad. Again, Wickham is presented as charming and friendly, someone Lizzie gets on well with almost immediately, while Darcy is almost the exact opposite. He and Lizze butt heads almost immediately due to their differences in lived experience and world view. Wickham’s charm hide his insidious nature, while Darcy’s awkwardness hinders his ability to relate to other people and often renders him as that guy at a party that others tolerate because he is rich and they don’t want to be on the outs with the rich guy.

How does all this connect to Step by Step…well, Jeng and Put basically are these two archetypes. Jeng is that awkward guy that people tolerate because he’s rich (the son of the company president, the one you don’t want to piss off if you want to have success) who is ultimately a good person, who wants to continue learning how to be a better person while Put is the charming and friendly guy that everyone loves but isn’t all that he appears to be.

To reiterate, I’m not saying Put is a bad person, or a bad character. He is a much better person than Wickham, that much has already been shown. He genuinely cares about Pat, but ultimately he is not going to win the battle for Pat’s heart, because while he loves Pat and wants to be with him, he doesn’t want to be with Pat at the same time. He wants Pat, but he wants the idealized version of Pat that he spend the years since their breakup pining over. But that isn’t the Pat that exists today. I find it very interesting that much of flashbacks we’ve seen of their relationship, have been on Put’s end. They’ve been obviously rose tinted from the beginning and present a version of Put to the audience that looks like he is just a guy who loves Pat and wants to get back with him and who is sorry for what he has done in the past to cause their break up (you know, the part where he ghosted Pat).

One only needs to look at his initial interacts with Pat after Pat comes back to Thailand and they meet again. He is so focused on Pat and their past that he can’t seem to see that he is making Pat uncomfortable. Or at least, if he does notice, he doesn’t care. He shows up at Pat’s apartment, possibly drunk and proceeds to ask questions that are definitely not his business (asking who Pat got a ride home with and seems upset that Pat would accept a ride from another man). He ignores Pat’s feelings at almost every possible turn until Pat has to almost yell at him to stop because it’s making him uncomfortable and he’s trying to do his job…and then once again asks him on a date.

This episode just kind of made it all worse. Even if we didn’t have the scene with Jeng to parallel, his reaction to Pat making him dinner is lacklustre to say the least. He almost completely ignores Pat for most of the evening, too concerned with his job (I’m not saying his being concerned about his job is a bad thing, it’s not). I get the feeling that his being so concerned with his job was a major issue in their relationship in past. One that Pat never had the confidence to bring up, and probably still doesn’t. Pat seems like he has just accepted that this comes with a relationship with Put. He is always going to have to put his job before Pat.

The longer time goes on, the less likeable he becomes. He clearly cares for Pat and isn’t a bad person, but it’s becoming more and more obvious that he also clearly hasn’t thought about all of the ways their relationship likely wasn’t working before. Pat’s first impression of him before ended up not working out for him. His first impression this time seems to be working out even worse. Has Put changed? Yes. Has he changed for the better? I’m not so sure about that.

This is all made even more interesting when I think about it in the context of the broader message the show is trying to make about the BL industry as a whole. So often, actors have to act a certain way in public. They have to be a nice, more charismatic, open and personable version of themselves. They have to hide their flaws and only showcase the good things about them. Any time Put is shown to be around people who are not in his private life, Put acts exactly like that. He is more friendly, more open, more charming, more everything. In private, it is not like he isn’t still those things, but he has also been shown to be selfish, manipulative, smug and even uncaring (or at the very least, unobservate about the feelings of others, especially Pat). None of these traits make him a bad person, not even all of them together. But they do make for a person who is very different from the way he acts on a stage, so to speak. It also speaks to his emotionally immaturity. Self admittedly Put broke up with Pat because he needed to come to terms with a lot of things about who he was as it related to job and how some part of him are incompatible with his chosen profession. The part I don’t think he spent nearly as much on, is the emotional maturity required order to have the kind of relationship that Pat wanted to have with him.

One of this shows central thesis’s seems to be (to me at least) that the way a person presents themselves in public is not the full story, especially for a BL actor (I mean, most of them are straight guys who are being paid to pretend to be with their screen partner, both on and off screen in some cases). In Pride and Prejudice, besides Darcy, Wickham is the most obvious example of this. His first impression is fantastic and his initial relationship with Lizzie one of ease and that of two people of a similar mind getting to know each other, even if Lizzie never truly considers him a suitor. As the novel goes on, this impression gets worse and worse until it is ruined beyond repair, when Wickham convinces Lydia to run away with him. The same looks like it’s happening with Put. While his initial impression to the audience isn’t a great one, through the tiny POVs we get from him, we see that he is not a bad person. He is sad and heart broken and utterly aware that he has no one but himself to blame for feeling that way. He is overall, a sympathetic character that the audience can root for, as any good second lead love interest should be. As time as gone on, we are seeing more and more of the unflattering character traits that he has. We are seeing more and more the reasons why him and Pat wouldn’t have worked in the long run, even if they hadn’t broken up before.

In fairness to Put though, the show clearly doesn’t want anyone to be overly invested in his relationship with Pat, since it tells us from the get go (the pilot trailer) that this show is, at it’s core, the love story of Pat and Jeng. One can only hope they don’t have Put completely crash and burn and become utterly irredeemable like Wickham is by the end of Pride and Prejudice. If they did that, I definitely feel like it would be a disservice to both the character and the message the show is trying to send.

[hoist-the-colours]

The Performance of Theo Sharpe’s Life

The young man was not only skilled at his trade, but skilled with his words. A persuasive and charming player of the good ol’ verbiage.  

The disgraced old Baron MacUmber, with his 200 year old lineage to the highlands still held against him. Dirty gael. The pirate. The radical. The heartbreaker. The day he finally left the Ton was the most relieving day of his life.  

Theo and him got on well when the Baron was about town, ranting about classism and eating the rich from his soap box, buying his fellow radicals food and wine with the money he made from his own businesses. Other than treating his good friends and lovers, and their good friends and lovers, he detests lavishness just for the sake of it.

Theo finds him in the perfect spirits to explain, “I have found the love of my life, and I need your help to get into a Masquerade ball...”  

The Baron’s eyes light up-

“...on Mayfair.” Theo finishes.

“What?!” The Baron bursts out in his horse-laugh. “What are you doing trying to court a girl on Mayfair?”  

“Losing my mind, sir.” Theo admits, with a soft humour.

“Rightly so...” The Baron sits there, waiting to find out that he is being jested with, but Theo’s face only gets more serious, and he continues to explain:   “I just want to have one evening in which I can walk into a ball, surrounded by nobility, and have none of it matter outside our masks. I want to walk through a crowd toward her, and ask for the honour of a dance with her...”  

The Baron’s horse-laugh bursts from him once again, interrupting Theo’s romantic rambling.  

“What’s the name, kid? Of her family. I need to know before I make the decision, because if they’re a group of cunts then absolutely not, but-”

“It’s Bridgerton...”

“HA. HAHA. HAHAHAHA. Fine.” The Baron agrees.  

---

The drunk Viscount Bridgerton and his drunk artist brother have found a very compfy, drunk home on a velvet couch, people-watching the party they only have the capacity to view from the side. But they are having great fun regardless.  

They see a young man, strange to them, even besides the mask.  

“I wonder who’s heart that tall, dark fellow is on his way to break...” Benedict comments.

“Or steal,” Anthony, still high on an extended honeymoon-phase with his own ladylove, says with an uplifting tone. “He is on quite a mission, isn’t he?”  

“Let’s see what happens.”  

-

[your choice of background music for this part]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCBbBfZKFxM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XeUEoDEc00

-

Theo Sharpe can see Eloise Bridgerton through the crowd, and his heart feels like it is dropping and uplifting and beating out of his chest at the same time. He takes a glass of champagne, and downs the entire thing in one gulp.  

Anthony and Benedict cackle from their couch.  

Theo wades through the crowd of flailing drunk nobility and their many fabrics. With his final few steps towards her he breaks through into his new character, ready to give the performance of his life, projecting the temperament and manners of the most Lordly Lord of Lordington.  

Anthony and Benedict are finding the journey of this stranger riveting, holding their breaths, ready for him to face an embarrassing rejection from their infamous sister.  

“Good evening, Ladies,” Theo interjects, softly, but still so suddenly that Eloise almost chokes on her drink and begins coughing. Daphne pats her back, but Francesca is curious about the boy... “Are you alright, miss?” Theo asks Eloise, as if he did not know her.

She is horrified and astounded and full of ecstatic joy. “Yes, yes, I am alright, how are you? What... are you...” She has no idea what to say to him. She must not already know him, but she also must not reject him.  

“Theodor MacUmber, my Lady, and I have travelled from far away, across the room, from over there, to come over to here, to ask you if I may have the honour of knowing your name, and perhaps a dance as well, if you would like.” He offers his hand to her, in the most Lordly of movements.  

Eloise is speechless, staring at him, unable to believe that this is really happening. When his letter read something along the lines of, “Do not be surprised if one day I find you at one of those obnoxious balls and ask you for the honour of a dance with you...” she thought he was joking.

Daphne and Francesca’s mouths are open and their eyes are widened at how awestruck their sister is.

Eloise snaps out of her state suddenly, falling all over herself to put her hand in his and say, “Eloise Bridgerton, my name, it is... sooo nice to meet you-” This comes out much more flirtatious than she intends.  

“-Mr....” Eloise leans in towards him, with questioning eyes, trying to remember the fake name he gave her.

Her sisters are trying to not screech at each other.

“MacUmber, son of the Baron MacUmber.” Theo gestures to the Baron across the room, who is explaining to some confused young people that the royal family are actually lizards.  

Anthony and Benedict have found this journey took a turn they did not expect, as they watch Eloise be.... into him?  

Eloise leads Theo to the dance floor, and then she is thrilled as he lovingly pulls her to him, holding her firmly in his lead, as they begin a rather messy, perfectly imperfect waltz.  

Daphne and Francesca run off to their Mother. They apologize for interrupting a conversation, but it is of the upmost importance, as she must witness Eloise happily dancing with a man she visibly fancies. 

A gallery of Bridgertons gather to bear witness. They are blinded by their delight in seeing her smiling, laughing, and dancing with a young man. From their perspective, it seems to be love-at-first-sight for the both of them. Like two people who have been in love for years, meeting for the first time.  

They do not know about the year of pining, the letters that were pages of words that never said enough to truly satisfied either of them the way his skilled hand on her waist and the gleeful squeeze of her hand on his shoulder are...

Eloise finds their eyes on them is embarrassing, but Theo tries to distract her with jokes and conversation. They are hyper-aware of their hands... modestly on each other, and actively trying to not pull in closer, or creep around too scandalously. They conclude that as long as they keep dancing, song after song, then nothing else had to matter, until they decided to stop.

[cherrycheridarling]

"that was painfully sexist" | t.h.

marvel cast x actress!reader

warnings: sexism and swearing

summary: at a panel for the new avenger's film, the questions differ drastically between the female and male actors on stage.

wc: 1.4k

"Okay, a microphone is coming your way, sir."

"Hi! I'm Leonard with Pop Times Blog. My question is for Y/N." your eyes found the bearded man who stood amongst the crowd of reporters.

You nodded, signalling for him to continue, "Playing Silk or Cindy Moon must've came with a lot of challenges. One of them being the costume you are in for most of the film. Can you speak about that and how it fit?" he paused at your skeptical expression, "Like, we all know the suit is skin tight, so did you eat anything special or workout a lot and are you able to wear anything underneath it? Or do you wear a thong and no bra?"

You let out an unenthusiastic chuckle at his question. Beside you, you could hear your cast mates scoffing under their breath. It was common for the women of the MCU to get asked such questions and it saddened you that people normalized such a thing.

Leaning forward, you clasped your hands together and smiled before Robert reached behind Tom Holland and tapped your shoulder, "Would you like me to say something?"

You shook your head, but gave him a grateful grin before returning to the 'man' that asked you such a question, while maintaining eye contact you spoke, "Well, I think the most difficult part about wearing the Silk costume is taking it off after a long day because of how sweaty I get after shooting," you began to fan yourself dramatically, "It all just clings to my body like a second skin and since I am completely nude underneath, it just adds to the problem." sarcasm dripped from your lips as your cast mates snickered at your words.

You quietly laughed to yourself, "I'm only kidding. That question seemed like such a joke that I presumed you expected a joking answer." you cleared your throat, "In all seriousness, it's an honour wearing the suit and I did visit the gym and do some physical fitness regularly to prepare for the role, as did all my cast mates. As for what I wore underneath," you grinned cheekily, having too much fun messing with the reporter, "A Spider-Man onesie was my go-to."

The whole room let out laughs at your words as Tom grabbed your hand and gave you a small squeeze, feeling sorry that you had to answer such absurd questions.

"I hope everyone doesn't sexualize Cindy Moon. She's only a teenager in the film, so keep it in your pants people. That shit is illegal." Anthony pointed an accusing finger at the crowd.

"Thank you for your thoughtful question, Leonard!" Scarlett spoke up, "I hope you got the answer you were looking for."

"Okay, next person."

You sat back in your seat and fiddled with Tom's fingers as the questions were asked towards your cast mates.

"You handled that impressively well, love." Tom whispered in your ear.

You gave him a smile and a shrug before your name got called again, "My question is for Y/N and Tom Holland." a lady with curly blonde hair stood up, "Since Silk and Spider-Man's abilities are very similar, did you two bond over that during shooting or did it cause some rivalry between your characters due to the similarities?"

You felt a wave of relief at the question, thankful that it wasn't another sexist one. Tom looked at you before answering.

"Yeah, yeah. We bonded a lot over that fact and I don't think it caused any rivalry between us. I hope not." he chuckled before you leaned towards the mic.

"No, no. No rivalry. Just a lot of banter about whose character is stronger and who swings around better. It's a lot of fun having someone on set whose stunts are basically the same as yours. And Tom and I have both agreed that Silk is faster and better than Spider-Man." you said that last part quickly drawing laughs and a gasp from Tom.

He looked at you incredulously, "Not true! Spider-Man's suit is so much cooler than Silk's." he huffed like a child.

You smirked, "Who makes their webbing in a high school chemistry class and who has organic silk coming out of her fingertips that she also used to create her own suit?"

Your friends laughed at the banter beside you before Sebastian started to speak, "I have to agree with Y/N on this one. Silk also has that cool ass eidetic memory."

Chris Evans agreed, "And her Silk Sense is a thousand times stronger than Spider-Man's Spidey Sense."

"Isn't she able to know who an attacker is before she even sees them?" Hemsworth asked to which everyone nodded.

"Sorry, Spidey. Silk's just a top tier hero." Robert patted his shoulder as Tom sulked.

The questions began again as the laughter died down. You leaned over to Tom's ear, "Still love the actor who plays Spider-Man even if his character is inferior to mine." he shook his head with a smile at your words.

Questions ranged from the generic ones of the funniest moments on set to who's most likely to become a villain. Your nerves died down as no incompetent person asked another sexist question. Until one did.

"I have a question for Y/N." she was short with jet black hair, "Being around all these attractive men must be a challenge for you as a young female adult. It couldn't have been easy to control yourself around them. Have you had any sexual relationships with any of them or thought about engaging in any?"

Your jaw hung open at her words and before you could muster up a retort, Tom let his anger get the best of him. Was it his anger, his jealousy or his protectiveness? A mix of all three.

"That was painfully sexist." he spoke into the microphone. "I don't see how any of that is relevant to the film. Y/N is an outstanding actress and it's outrageous that you decide to focus on who she fucks rather than her talent."

"What in the actual fuck did she just ask?" Sebastian added, making you laugh.

Chris Evans spoke up next, "Indeed. I thought this was a promotion for the movie not a real life dating app."

Benedict chuckled, "I fail to see how Y/N's private life holds any relevancy to this panel or the film itself."

"It's twenty-nineteen, people! Leave your sexist ass shit at home!" Anthony exclaimed drawing claps from the cast.

Elizabeth shook her head, "I've had my fair share of inappropriate questions, but nothing as horrid as that."

"First y'all ask about her underwear, now you ask about her sex life? Jesus Christ." Scarlett pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Seriously, she's like a daughter to me. That was incredibly disrespectful." Robert added with a disappointed head shake.

Similar comments were added by the rest of the cast as you felt an overwhelming amount of love wash over you. You were so unimaginably grateful for the people next to you.

"You don't have to answer that." Paul Bettany reminded you.

You shook your head and cleared your throat, "Thank you, guys." you looked to your cast mates, "But I'll answer. No, I have not. This cast is my second family and I've grown greatly as a person with them. I'm immensely thankful for the opportunity to call them my friends. And I agree, these men sitting up here with me are undoubtedly attractive, but they are also a great pain in the ass at times," everyone laughed at your choice of words, "And have I thought about having sex with any of them? Nope. Just Scar, Zoe and Liz." you finished with a wink as the room clapped for you.

You couldn't help but to feel a slight bit of sympathy for the woman. Her question was, without a doubt, uncalled for and unbelievably sexist, but the comments from the cast must've made this her most embarassing moment.

"I'm sure you meant no harm with your question. But a little heads up for next time; most actors prefer to talk about their career and their films rather than who they are laying in bed with. But thank you for coming out. I hope you enjoy the rest of your day." you gave her a genuine smile as she cowered back into her seat.

Robert once again reached over and gave your shoulder a squeeze, proud of how you handled the situation.

Tom interlaced your fingers with his and rubbed small circles on your knuckles.

You really were at home with these people and you couldn't have asked for a better family.

[lameghost]

Scream blue murder.

Bonten! x yakuza! leader [part 3]

word count - 2,538

💿 - deathwish by poutyface, to the bone by j.t machinima

Warnings❕- angst + fluff+ suggestive. Mentions of death, sewer slide, drugs, physical and mental abuse.(slight hints of ptsd) Mentions of Izana x reader and others. Spoilers! Bonten arc. Blood and gore. (pinky cutting and mentions of gas poisoning, mass murder.) reader goes berserk! putting a knife in each other's throat? reader is freaky fugg. and also apparently, an expert at chemistry.

[part 1] [part 2]

“So, 12 years… You were gone, just like that and you aren’t gonna say anything, huh? Saying ‘I love you’ like that, ain’t fucking fair, y/n. I missed you for all those years. I searched for you like a madman. Fuck, you didn’t even come by to look for me or shit. You know how fucking miserable I was, after Izana was gone and you too!” Everyone flinched at the sight of the usually calm Kakucho raising his voice. You were surprised too, but you kept on an indifferent facade as you looked down, guilt overwhelmed you.

Kakucho takes a few steps towards you, “I wanna hate you for it but I can’t. You’re too fucking precious to me. The last one I have here, and I thought you were fucking dead.” You did no such attempt to avoid the slap which landed on your face as tears flowed down Kakucho’s face. You heard the faint gasp from all the executives of Bonten. You just kept quiet.

“Hug me, god fucking damn it. I missed you.” With no hesitation, you engulfed him in a hug, basking in his warmth which came into contact with your bare skin. You smiled, relishing the memories of your childhood.

“Fucking hell that was touching as shit.” Sanzu fake cries, deep down he still felt bad since he knew that you were as important to Kakucho as Mikey was to him. Losing you would have meant losing his entire world. In reply, you lifted your middle finger, sticking out your pierced tongue at the pink-haired male. He chuckles slowly.

“Holy shit, yer got piercings, that’s hot, dude.” You nodded at Rindou’s question .

“Show us, I mean your tattoos and piercings.”

“That’s a pretty specific kink you have, Sir Mikey. I mean, I know I look hot as shit but.” He snickered, signalling that he only wants your full identification.

“If you insist, your honour.” You fake sighed as you turned around and began explaining your tattoos.

“29 piercings and last I checked, around 18 or 19 tattoos. Got my first tattoo at 13, illegally. Thank god I didn’t die of infection or some shit. Dude was a nice guy, he even taught me how to take care of a  new tat.” They all gasped, ‘doesn’t that shit hurt you?’. Ran and Rindou who were basically half covered in tattoos were also surprised by your ability to withstand the pain.

“Which one hurt the most though? Your tits or sumn?” Sanzu bluntly asks as he touches the tattoo on your left arm.

“Oh well, yer wanna see? Better pay money though.” You smirked and sent him a wink as you gave him a slight teaser of your tattoo, he blushed. Welp, you broke the dope peddler.

“You’re quite a mystery, aren’t you?” Mikey says, his voice dark and screechy, almost like he has been straining it.

“Your back. That ain’t a tattoo. Someone carved those characters into you.” He traces the Chinese characters on your back. You slightly flinched at the sudden cold touch of his finger. “Only the top brass of Yakuza has this, yeah? Which means, you’re the current hidden leader of the Yakuza. Working for them quietly backstage, is that fun? Don’t you wanna take the credit?” He was inches away from your face, you tilted your head slightly at his demise.

“Take credit? Pftt. Observant but dumb aren’t yer, pretty boy?” You cupped his jaw between your gloved fingers. “I fucking love it when people worship me, bow to me and praise me for all my work but I wouldn’t want my pets to go unrecognised do I? Plus, isn’t it harder to keep myself lowkey from the police that way? I have my plans, baby and I don’t like it when people question me.” You smiled and let go of his jaw, never in his life has he been this stunned by someone’s actions and indifference. This was a first.

“This carving was done by my dad. I was the only child who was able to take over the family business so, here I am. Healthier than ever!” You smiled, highlighting the dimples which brightened your eyes even more under the light which shone above you.

“So, you’ve taken a blood oath?” Kokonoi asks, curious.

“Oh that’s fucken bullshit. We don’t do those. We’re just old delinquents who don’t wanna follow laws, we don’t sacrifice ourselves. I mean that does sound cool though. The most we do is cut our pinky. I’ve cut 12 as of this week,” You sat back down, nonchalantly telling them. You put your suit back on, adjusting the tie.

Bang! A loud gunshot was heard from behind you, in one swift movement, you swooped Ran and Sanzu who were directly in front of you. ‘Top criminal organisers but can’t see a bullet coming their way? Great, fucking idiots.’ You looked down, the bullet grazed by your shoulder slightly. Thank god for that. You picked up the shell and the bullet which landed not far from it. You analysed the bullet, standing up immediately after recognising it. ‘Mauser C96. 0.45 ACP. Made in Germany. Oh fuck, why are they here?’

“Oi, you twinks. Came here to save me or something?” One by one, your members peeked their heads out from behind the oil tanks. Number 2, Tanaka Ryu. This kid has been behind you since juvie days. Once he got out, he looked for you and followed you till the very end even if it meant jumping into hellfire for you.

“If I couldn’t fight, I would have died to these hot dudes, you know? Do we need to practice again? Should I drill it into your brains?” All the members, a good 25 of them, stood at attention, weapons dropped to the floor with their hands behind their back.

“No, your honour!” In unison, their voices echoed one another. Bonten was too stunned to say a thing. Their mouths merely shut tight as your dominant aura overflowed through the entire warehouse.

“Good, and Tanaka, don’t mind, okay? Small mistake. I’m fine, n’ways.”

“Apologies, your honour. Take my pin-” You shushed him as you signalled everyone to get down and ready their weapons. Bonten, who was behind you, followed your command. You gestured for Mikey to come to your side, he slowly strides towards you.

“Mikey, listen. Now, your turf is being infiltrated. You heard that gunshot? Nagant M1895. That strong shit is only used by the Yakuza traitors. Those fuckers have been on my back for the last few months and I need a few extra hands so that I can alert my turf. After that, I’ll help yer. There should be at least 230 of them. 2 top heads and the other 8 executives. The rest are all their lackeys, bad fighting skills but good spirits. Now, we separate, I’ll alert your members too.”

You and Mikey, the leaders, moved into positions immediately. Working together for the first time but it almost seemed as if you’ve worked together for the past 10 years. You stationed Sanzu and your number 3, Haruto, right in front of you. These two are wild and have a few screws loose in their brains, so they make a good pair. They can slaughter some while you make a few alerts to your guards in your territories. You wanted to get it over and done with fast even if it meant, murder. So, you analysed whatever you had in your reach.

“Y/n-chan. What are you doing? I wanna smoke.” Sanzu said, questioning what you were looking at.

“Shush, let me think of a way to get rid of evidence fast and simple.” Haruto drags Sanzu back to their station as they both chat away, swinging the bloodied weapons in their hands. Psychos, I swear.

‘Benzoyl peroxide, TNT, fire extinguisher, bleach, ammonia and diesel.’ Fucking hell, they were making this a bit too easy isn’t it? You called Sanzu and Haruto over to help you. You took the empty tank, putting on your mask before starting and gesturing the two males to do the same. You poured the bleach into the empty tank followed by ammonia.

‘Do you think what you’re doing is right?’ The tiny voice in your head asks. ‘Well these people mass murdered 226 of the Yakuza members, isn’t it only fair?, ‘Of course, but can’t the police punish them?’. ‘What. They hurt me, not the police, I’ll make them save me a seat in hell. Especially that blabbermouth oldie.’, ‘I guess there’s no stopping you, y/n l/n. You’re a murderer after all.’ Wait, what the fuck? I’m not! They did it first, why is it me? Why am I to blame? Fuck, fuck you. ‘You’re a murderer by nature, y/n. That’s why your Mom and Dad passed this onto you.’ Shut up. They’re dead, they are just ashes, seeping into earth or maybe being swallowed by maggots. Those 2 are dead to me. ‘Your mom isn’t dead. Not yet.’ Well, I want her dead. ‘You gonna kill her, too? Like what you did to your old man? You’re naive, a pretty soul, one that I would kill to dirty but you already did it yourself.’

You halted your movements, Sanzu and Haruto stared wide-eyed at your face. Your face contorted with rage, aura screaming murder at them. This brings Sanzu back to 12 years ago when- nevermind. ���Earth to y/n, we gonna continue?”

“Haruchiyo. Katana. Haruto, pass him your pistol, I’ll be right back.” ‘You’re gonna regret it, y/n.’

“SHUT UP! HOLY FUCK SHUT THE FUCK UP! UGH!” You let out an indignant roar, making Kakucho and Mikey halt their movements as they continued throwing punches to the opposing team. Kakucho ran towards you, covered in blood which did not belong to him.

“Hey, y/n. Hey, look at me.” You looked at him, tears of anger welling up in your eyes. (You can only cry when you’re angry but not when you’re sad.) He pats your back, telling you to kick some ass to relieve your anger. Well, that was your green light.

You swung the Katana out from your back which had a strap, tailor made for you to store katanas. As always, pecking the handle beforehand, showing respect. ‘About 104 left, gonna be easy.’ The rest of your members and Bonten members along with the executives gathered, wanting to watch you fight. It was almost like a playback of 12 years ago.

You dropped the katana to the floor, jumping onto the first person you see, hanging from the shoulder. You swung around, possibly breaking his spine and picked up two other men by their collars. Swinging them towards the tower of diesel tanks, you made your way to your next victims.

“So, pick yer death.” You smirked, but your eyes were empty and lifeless. Your bloodthirsty aura engulfed the entire warehouse, stripping the audience off any form of excitement. The male approached you, in a split second, he was inches from your face.

“HAHAHAAHA, you’re fast but you lack experience, sweetheart.” You caressed his face, voice coated full of sinister but in his ears, it was like honey. It gave his brain whiplash how contrasting your voice was to your actions. Without batting an eye or even giving him room to recover from your touch, your left leg flew forward. Landing directly onto the wound of his temple, plunging onto the floor. You took the chance to take a seat on his back.

You rummaged through his pockets, stopping when you found his phone. You dialed a number, the others stared at you curious. “I need about, uhh, 7, no, 8 ambulances, for the Shibuya area. The warehouse down the second turn. Thank yer!” You smiled and threw the phone across the room.

“Now, there’s only… let me see… 3 of you left. Rock, paper, scissors. Winner gets to pick the lucky one.” You signaled them to start playing, with trembling figures, the 3 males began playing. You placed the lit cigarette in between your lip, enjoying others misery.

“She’s kinda hot, though.” You heard Sanzu whistling and howling from behind you as you exhaled the smoke and took off your blazer, rolling up your sleeves. You sent a kiss his way as you made your way to the poor male - a prisoner of his own bad luck.

“Hey, mister. Long time no see. I’m bigger now, if you can’t clearly see.” You subtly flaunt, towering over the male before you. You bent lower so you could make direct eye contact with him. The eye contact sent cold shivers down his spine which made him froze, his lips quivered as you moved your gloved finger, gliding down his tattooed back.

“Oi, mister. I’m talking to you, it’s rude to not reply to your master, y’know? It kinda hurts my feelings,” You faked your sadness, pretending to sob into his shoulders. If he wasn’t already stiff, he is now officially the statue of liberty.

“Y-yes, your honour!”

“Good pet. Now, let me get my work done. You know what happens to traitors, don’t you? Perverted old man.” You removed the kunai which was secured tightly in the pocketed garter which hung from your thigh. You simpered, looking pleased at the amount of fear you could elicit from the pathetic man.

“AHHHHHHHH!” He writhed in pain, screaming blue murder.

“Okay, that was the last one! 12 plus 10 equals 22! 22 pinkies!” You giggled, cracking a smile from your scarred mouth. A horrifying sight, it was.

“Fuck, didn’t know you were capable of such cruel shit.” Ran sends a surprised look, scanning you up and down as you wiped the blood off your gloves and chuckled.

“Born and bred to do this shit.”

You knew you were done but there was some unsettling feeling that irked your senses, but what was it? Could it be you forgot something-

“We’ll take over from here, as an apology and a thank you for not murdering us.” Mikey said, a small smile on his face.

“Oh no, it was great working with you, Sir Mikey.”

“Don’t call me that, on god, I’ll put a knife in your throat.”

“Do it then, it’s not a threat Mikey. ” Your little bicker was put to a stop when Kokonoi seemingly  ‘cleared his throat’ loudly.

“So, you’re a professional torturer, a sugar mommy, free show stripper, yakuza leader, a mass murderer, chemist and now, a hooker. What else do we not know about you?” Kokonoi asked, voice laced with curiosity. His eyebrows raised as his eyes searched for answers in yours.

“Oh darling, I’m a walking unsolved mystery. Yer wanna find out? Yer gotta dig deep into the layers of this earth. Yer wanna solve me still?”

“Yeah, I do.” The short, purple haired spoke up. (You forgot his name.)

“Oh then, put on a raincoat. This year’s theme is bloody halloween. Wouldn’t want blood staining yer expensive suits.” You stuck out your tongue, making a move as sirens filled the quiet warehouse. 

‘Roppongi, Don Quijote, 31st October, 9 P.M. Be there or else you owe me candy.’ The boys chuckled, making a run as the police broke in.

[darkdevasofdestruction]

My Beloved Cherry Blossom ~ Yamaoka Kazan/The Oni x Fem!Reader

Note: Since Kazan lived in the feudal era, and died there, his S/O would be someone from that time, so, just like him, she'd be dead, so the shock of seeing the dead back alive would be great for him...Who also died in a painful death. Haha.

"My son, you reached the age when you have to marry and ensure the continuation of our bloodline. Since you haven't bothered looking for a potential wife, I took the liberty of finding you a pretty girl. She is the daughter of a respectable samurai who guards the Emperor, and her father ensured she is a very capable, smart and understanding woman, so she will be able to deal with your...Temper." Kazan's father sat down with his son, who scowled, offended at what he heard, but despite all this, he was well aware of this bother he had to deal with. "...Yes, father." he muttered, sharply looking down at the floor. "We will go to meet her tomorrow, at her home, an in less than a month, we will have the marriage. I know you are not the type to care about families and women...But you have to do anything in your power to ensure the honor and survivability of the Yamaoka bloodline." yes, of course, his father just had to sigh in disappointment. "I understand, father. I will make you proud." Kazan answered before leaving the room to train, as a way to let out the pent up rage.

Who needed women and a family? He certainly didn't care about that. They were a nuisance. A weakness, at best. Father is too much of a sentimental, even for a samurai. What a ridiculous charade...

And his displeasure continued even the next day, as he dressed in a rich, official kimono, to show off his heritage, but at the same time, his long hair was put in a disheveled ponytail, rebel strands flying with the wind, and the neck of his outfit was lowered down enough to show his outlaw-ish predisposition. Needless to say, his father was angered by this side of his son - Surely, he taught him better! - But it was far too late, and they had already arrived at the L/N estate.

Just outside the big, beautiful house, a petite young woman, her long dark hair shining like ebony, her skin as white as snow...She looked so frail that she'd almost resemble a snowdrop. And she was delicately playing a soft, yet sorrowful tune on her bamboo flute, while her father put a pink flower in her hair, looking at her with nostalgia and love.

Kazan look at his own father, before glancing back at the girl whom he found out was named Y/N, and realised how big of a difference it was to was a son, compared to having a daughter. The difference in the two men's behaviour was huge.

He once heard a samurai, whose wife had just given birth to his daughter, "Treat your daughter the way you wish her husband would treat her." He didn't care at first, obviously - Kazan's mind was never on marriage - But now he was beginning to understand the meaning of his words, for they were wiser than anticipated.

Her father was tender, and treating her as if she was the soft petal of a cherry blossom, and his voice was low, loving and respectful, not wanting to startle her in any way...He was talking as if he was trying to keep the zen equilibirum intact at all costs.

The love between a man and a woman is supposed to be like Yin and Yang...

But how could Kazan possibly behave in such a way, when all he knew was to be a rageful brute who would destroy everything in his path in the loudest, brashest way possible?

"Ah, Yamaoka-san, you have arrived. And you brought your son with you. It's an honour finally meeting you, Kazan. Here, this is my daughter, Y/N. Y/N, dear, why don't you go prepare some osmanthus tea for our tired travelers, while I guide them to our table in the cherry blossom garden?" her father pat her hair, and in return, she bowed slightly at the guests, offering them a gentle smile, that would put all of Spring's flowers to shame. "Yes, right away, father. I hope you will like our flower garden. Papa had them all planted in honour of my mama. They are all her favourite kinds and colours." ah, yes, of course. Women have a special kind of bond with their mother - That was something he would never be able to fully comprehend, Kazan realised very easily, by the way the girl was close to shining as soon as she talked about her birth-giver.

The son of the Yamaoka family obvious saw women before - He wasn't an idiot - And he had enough experience with them...But there was something different about this one. She was...So...Innocent? She seemed to naive and not from this world, almost as if she had no idea of the terrors of the world outside of her residence.

It was such an endearing thing, almost exciting - But the young samurai wasn't sure if he wanted to protect this innocent ignorance at all costs...Or if he wanted to shatter it into pieces and taint it completely.

But that question was easily answered as soon as she came back and started pouring tea for him. And then later in their marriage, the way she behaved so gently with him, it was so weird, so foreign to him, and yet, it made him feel something else...Something completely different from the bubbling, infernal rage he could feel in his chest all the time.

It was soothing, mending his soul completely, for some reason that he couldn't comprehend at all.

But why should he, anyway? He was content just having her by his side whenever he was home. Only she was able of taming the storm that clouded his mind and soul.

His little cherry blossom.

And only the Gods knew how many men he had to kill to make sure she isn't harmed, or prayed upon. He never realised how many desperate, disgusting, dishonorable and lecherous men could be, but Kazan wasn't going to let her see anything other than the honour of a samurai - Like him, his father, and her own father.

However, not even her gentle soul would be able to contain his rage whenever he'd hear that dreadful, shameful nickname they would call him.

"Oni-Yamaoka"

Why was he an Ogre, all of a sudden? Because he brought justice upon the fakes who made a mockery of the code of the samurai? Because he wanted to protect the sole person he cared for in this life? Even his father was against the aggressiveness he displayed on the battlefield, and in the actions he took...It almost felt like even his father was agreeing with that stupid nickname!

"Here, Kazan, lay your head on my lap and forget about your worries, at least for tonight." Y/N pat her lap with a sweet smile, her eyes gleaming with love and benevolence as she reached out her other hand to reach out to him, and as if possessed, he followed her lead absent-mindedly. "Y/N." Kazan called out after a few minutes of having his eyes closed, feeling himself relaxing as her fingers were soothingly playing with his long, untameable hair. "Why do you always tell me to lay on your lap, whenever I'm angry?" "Do you not like it, darling?" she asked, but the passive smile on her face showed that she knew that wasn't the case at all. "I do. I was just wondering why." he grumbled in a lower voice, which made her muse, her smile shaping into an almost kitten-like one. "My mama always did that to papa. She said that the best place for a man to relax is on a girl's thighs. I don't think she was wrong." oh, what a sweet giggle she had. It sounded crystalline, like a river of diamonds going through the forest. "...I won't comment on that." the man closed his eyes, not wanting to give in to the flushed sensation he felt hearing something so embarrassing. "You do not have to be embarrassed, my dear. We are man and wife. There is nothing we could do or say that would be worth or deemed as embarrassing." she reassured him with an amused tone, as her small hand touched his bare chest, just where his heart would be. "Why are you not afraid of me, like the rest of them? You are nothing more than a frail woman. You have the eyes of a baby fawn, and the frail bones of a rabbit. You are nothing more than a flower in comparison to me. I could snap your neck like a twig if I'm not careful touching you. And yet, you allow yourself to be vulnerable around me, and while at it, you encourage me to be the same as well. I will never understand the complexity of women and their thinking." the samurai sighed, grumbling in faux annoyance. "My, my, was that what was on your mind? How lovely of you to be concerned about me. Well, I will tell you a little secret, since you are so curious, but make sure it stays between the two of us, alright?" she giggle softly, almost like a little child kissing her crush on the cheek, and it made Kazan's heart flutter. Was she truly trusting him with a secret? What did he do so worthy to her that she deemed him the perfect candidate as a secret-keeper? "I would not dare tell your secret even to the Emperor himself, or my father." came the samurai's vow with such seriousness, that made the girl grin. "You see, women aren't physically strong like men are, but what we lack physical prowess, we make up for our incredible emotional strength. So, I believe that, at least in these times of war and bloodshed, a man's role is to protect the physical body of the woman, while the woman's role is to protect her man's heart and soul. Without balance, there is no future and no happiness, wouldn't you agree? If we don't make the best out of this life, and look at the beauty of the world...Then have we even lived at all?" there was wisdom in the words that Kazan deemed rather naive, and yet...What she said wasn't wrong, per se. In fact, it was true. He was well aware that, with his body, the best he could do was protect her, but he would never be able to sooth her broken heart the same way she does to him...And likewise, he remembered the mirthful laugh he let out when she tried lifting his weapon from the ground.

However, he wasn't going to say anything out loud, and decided that, instead of voicing his opinions, he'd rather grunt and close his eyes, letting sleep take over him, his head still resting on her soft thighs.

Maybe having a wife wasn't as bad as he once thought...

But times change fast - Years pass, lives pass, the river passes...And yet, only one thing doesn't pass, and that is Yamaoka Kazan's rage, which only grew stronger and stronger with each day, and each time he heard himself getting called "The Oni".

He was desperately angry, and not even Y/N's loving touch or sweet voice could save his soul, so much, that in fear of accidentally hurting her, he decided to stay out and train or go on and kill more and more samurai impersonators, hoping to somehow release all his anger and be able to return home.

He knew Y/N would be worrying for him, but she needn't do such a thing, it would only hurt her heart, and that was the last thing he wanted. He was strong, and feared - Who would dare go against Yamaoka Kazan, anyway?

The days away from home multiplied, and he was away for a stupefying month...Y/N must be crying, worried sick. He wasn't afraid of anything physical in this world, yet the thought of her doe eyes shedding tears...It was something he was terrified of, especially if he was the cause of that.

But on the way home, he found a pink lotus flower, and he thought she would love it, so he gently took it with him back home. It was raining, and an ominous feeling crept into Kazan's heart, and he realised there seemed to be an almost dark aura around his home.

It wasn't yet sleeping time, so why were there no candles lit? There was no sign of any living being there? Where were the servants? Where was his beloved Y/N, waiting for him on the porch, playing the flute the way she always did?

Something was not right...

The man rushed inside the house, and as soon as he slammed open the sliding door, he was met with nothing that he expected - Pools of blood on the floor, while the otherwise neutral-coloured walls were splattered with the red liquid, and the corpses of the servants were brutally mangled and thrown around as if they were defect ragdolls.

It wasn't the horrifying sight that scared him, but the fate of his wife - So he made haste and ran to their shared room...And there she was.

In more pieces than she should be in.

Her hair was a mess, her kimono was a mess, her make up was a mess...And she had been tortured, from the way her wounds, slashes and cuts looked on her body.

Who...? Who could do something so...So...Disgusting...To a defenseless woman who had no means of fighting back? Where was the honour in defeating a weak civilian, such as her? What was the purpose of this massacre?! Was it to anger him? To bring out the Ogre from him? Is it what they all wanted? To see The Oni they feared and hated so much? They got revenge on a small woman, just to get to him?!

"Ah, Kazan, finally. Took you quite a while to return home...I thought her body would rot away and get swarmed with maggots by the time you'd return. And what's that in your hand? A flower? Did you want to apologise to her with a stupid flower? You have caused my daughter immense distress, and yet, she loved you to the very end. You should have seen her cry out your name, praying for you to come back home and save her...But, alas, the Ogre is never home! He is so busy killing, that he didn't realise he killed his own wife! Hahaha! Yamaoka Kazan, you are a pathetic excuse of a man, you could never come close to her strength! I tried everything to get her to tell me your secrets...But she didn't say a word. She ignored me. In the end, she came to hate me, her own father, who cared and loved her since she was born...And she loved you, some spineless monster who knows nothing but carnage!" what...? What was this man saying...? Is he truly implying that he tortured his own daughter to death, for...Information...On him...? "What...Did you do...?!" red was the only thing he could see, as he couldn't help but stare deep into her dead eyes that still held the fright and agony they last felt when she was still alive. "I KILLED HER! I KILLED MY OWN DAUGHTER, Y/N! This whole marriage was meant to bring down your stupid family of brutes and uncontrollable monsters! It was meant to kill YOU! But she was stupid! Nothing more than a sentimental woman! She LOVED you, a monster who knows only bloodlust! It's YOUR fault that she is dead, Kazan! YOU killed her! YOU!" her father yelled at him only meaningless gibberish.

In fact, Kazan couldn't comprehend words anymore. Instead, he could only hear whispers - They were soft and feminine...They sounded like Y/N...Could her ghost be talking to him? Was she trying to calm him down one more time, from beyond this world?

Yes, you were a saint, truly...It was a pity you had to meet him...If you hadn't, you'd have still been alive...And your beautiful flute song would still resound around the forest, along with the thrill of the birds.

"I am sorry, Y/N" was the last thing Kazan thought...

As The Oni took over completely, and went on the greatest blood shed known to mankind at that time...

------

What am I doing here...? What is this strange place...? It looks nothing like the beautiful flower garden Kazan made for me...So where am I?

The girl looked around like a confused meerkat, asking herself a limitless amount of questions, only to look down and realise her beautiful pink kimono was dirty with mud, and she gasped in shock. How could she let that happen! She can't let Kazan see her like this, what would he think?!

Ah, yes, that's it, just look around for Kazan, he'll surely know what's going on!

However, instead of finding her strong samurai, she saw three other people, all looking of a different race than her, and wearing such strange clothes...

Was she behind fashion, and she had no idea? She was sure she was buying only the best kimonos there were...!

"What are you just standing around for?! Run! We have to repair the generators!" a girl with unnatural coloured hair yelled at her before she sprinted the hell out of there.

Generators...? What are...Generators...? And why is this place so creepy...?

Hold up...This paper wall maze...This was from her home! Yes, that means she was close to home!

She ran through the little maze with a smile on her face, only to see one of the man working very focused on some kind of contraption, and he urged her to help him out. She sheepishly crouched opposite of him, frightened, but she carefully tried to do something, but instead, a loud noise and sparks came out, and she shrieked in fear, shielding her face as she fell on her back.

"What kind of sorcery is this?!" she cried out, her eyes watering. "What the hell is wrong with you?! Do you want to die that badly?! Get a grip and do something useful for once!" the man screamed in her face, before running the hell out of there.

Why were they all so rude to her...?

She was so used to her family, her servants, friends and Kazan to be nice with her, that she didn't realise people like these existed too.

A bit shaky, Y/N got up, trying to pat away the dust from her dirty kimono, and continued to look the estate...Only to find her home...But why was it in such a deplorable state...? Surely, she wouldn't allow her beloved home to end up like this...!

As Y/N made her way inside the home, she noticed the scary amount of blood splattered all over the place...Almost as if there was more red than colours of walls an the floor. It was so frightening...And confusing.

Who died here? And how in the world...I mean...She was sleeping, and then...

Oh.

Oh.

No.

She wasn't sleeping...

As soon as she stepped into her room, she didn't notice the blood on the floor, but the discarded pink lotus that laid on her pillow. As she crouched to take the flower in her room, she got a sudden flashback of her memories from the night she died...

She waited for Kazan, and the elderly servant woman was comforting her, pouring her tea and patting her back, as she played the same flute song she did when she first met beloved.

But then, her father paid her a visit...And a true hell was unleashed...

Her own father did something so atrocious...Such a betrayal was nothing she could ever phantom in her own life, and yet, her life was ended not by a stranger, but by her own kin.

As silent tears escaped her eyes and streamed down her delicate cheeks, a loud roar shook the whole estate, and the brusque blurting in the room of a huge man was enough to fright her to fall on the ground with a startled yelp.

And yet...

The raised weapon, the samurai garments he wore...And that Oni mask... There was only one person in the world who could look like this.

"Kazan...?" her voice came out weaker than a whisper, and she wasn't sure if he even heard her calling out his name. For a split second, she was terrified of the thought of that horribly enormous weapon striking her down where she stood, in her own bed, for the second time...And yet...

The monstrously big man dropped his weapon and slowly crouched in front of her, picking up the flower and putting it in her hair, pinning it away from her gorgeous face.

"Y/N...It really is you..." his voice came out as a dark grunt, in fact, in very much sounded like a demon, and yet, his moves and actions seemed more delicate than even this lotus flower.

The girl started laughing from happiness, allowing more tears to escape her eyes, being reunited with the love of her life, and she threw herself in her arms, feeling safer than she ever did in her life.

"I missed you so much, my dear Kazan...I missed you so...I can't believe such things happened to us...And yet, here we are, together again, even in death, even in hell." as she said that, she slowly took away his mask, and revealing his rugged face, obviously one of a man seasoned in war and tortured to death - She put her hand on his cheek, just as he used to do with her, and caressing him, she leaned in to plant a kiss on his forehead.

It was meant not only as a lucky charm, but as a 'home sweet home' as well, for there was no home without Kazan's arms wrapped around her protectively...

And there was no home without the petite body of his beloved S/O in his strong embrace, watching her fall asleep.

"I promise you never leave you again, my beloved cherry blossom." he said so, and yet, having been in this Hell longer than her, he knew of the atrocities she, as a Survivor, would have to endure, and the hell the Entity would put on the both of them.

And yet...

If anyone even dares to look at her the wrong way, The Oni would make sure that, no matter how immortal the Killer might be, he would bring an end to them.

He already lost her once, and he's not going to let a tragedy befall her ever again.

[starshipsofstarlord]

Jim and Jody - Bucky Barnes x reader

Summary; it was one of the biggest decisions of your life, but will you change your mind before your future is sealed?

Warnings; angst, mentions of abortion (everyone is permitted to do what they want with their body, in this imagine the reader wants to keep the baby, but pro choice, as everyone deserves control over their bodies and all 🤍), brief mention of sex and threats

Masterlist Link

To see him so relaxed, so completely and utterly himself was a paradise all on its own. There was a heaviness aboard your shoulders, but as you watched him goof tirelessly about, you had no other concerns, not even as you subconsciously raised your hand over your stomach. You shook your head at the sentiment, the two of you had already made the decision to abort this child, it was unknown how the poor fellow would turn out to be; with the combination of your powers and his super everything, it was sure to be quite the complication, and not one that you supposed was to be an easy course.

A smile pried at your face, simply from viewing him with the pack of children, the wind from the docks swept your hair into your face, and in turn, you swept the locks out and away from your vision, so that you had further access to watch the man that you loved in his absolute element. Through the years, past and recent, he had lost so much, and this child was just to be another mantle on the wall of memorial in his mind, it was sad really. If the two of you were normal, with average and lives that had perceptions with no regards of being heroic, there’d be no query about it, you’d keep the baby.

That life though, to your grave misfortune, did not exist, it was merely a fantasy living painfully inside of your mind, haunting you whenever you closed your eyes, with the flashing images of a resolution and end to the errors in your lifestyle. There’d be a big house, yet nothing to prissy, just enough room for the pair of you and few children of your own, a grand garden with a swing set and sand pit, where the infants could grow up and play in once they were older. Then there’d also be a shed for Bucky to work on small projects, such as attaining some love and care to his motor bike, as well as storing the supplies that he’d need to do so.

All that is a universe away, muffled from possibility by the stars expediting through the gorgeous veil of the galaxy, corrupting the possibilities of ever gaining access to such... peace. That was the one thing that the pair of you wanted, however catching a break was rather rare within your predicament. A stifled laugh reeled from the conjunction of your lips as you simply and endearingly surveyed how the boys, specifically Sam’s nephews hung from the vibranium branch of his arm. It was all your attention was focused on, until an extra person took a seat on the picnic table beside you, his sweet yet musky scent detailing whom it was. “If your not going to eat that, I’m sure Barnes Junior might want an opinion on that.”

The underlining of the words caused an abstract grimace to forlorn your features, as you stared not at the speaker of whom you were close with, but instead the slather of cake that was planted on a paper plate before you, the icing beginning to become slightly sick from the beating of the viable son. “You’re glowing, you know? Motherhood is a good look on you y/n/n, I wouldn’t be so soon to let that go.” Your fingers pried at the dismantled crumbs off your section of desert as you looked to your new captain, a resonating conformation fo bridled suffering and hopelessness clouding your view of his attempt at making you atone before you made a sin that you’d forever regret.

He, like many others, knew that the family life was what you wanted; you wanted to be your child’s hero, tending to their each necessary (and unnecessary) need, them being your main focus and project and life. Instead, you had been handed your options on a short stick, and thus, your decision, albeit somewhat of a sensible one, didn’t make it hurt any less. “Sam.” You spoke his name, observing from the corner of your eye how Bucky paraded around the dock with Jim and Jody. It’d be nice to give him a slice of this kinda life, he was thriving as an adult around children, you could only imagine him in the case of this one being birthed into the world. “It’s not that easy.”

“No one said it was going to be easy.” Sam responded quickly, affirming your fears to your nerve wrecked face. “I get it, I do. People will be after this kid, and that is no way to live, but you two aren’t alone in any of this, nor will you be in that. You have me, along with many other old friends of ours, hell even the Wakandan’s. Do you really want to sacrifice this one life so you can continue living this one? You and Bucky have both lost so much, you don’t have to force yourself to willingly give away something else. The decision can be changed the last minute, it’s a lot to take in, I get that, but I see the way Buck is with my nephews, and how you watch them when you think nobody’s looking over at you. With your state pardon, you two can retire, and go far away, and abandon everything for this one little guy or gal, because I know that if you do, no matter what, they’ll be worth it.”

Bucky wailed a warrior’s shout as Jim and Jody playfully struck him down, his unsheathed metal hand grasping at the cloth that was tightly aboard his addictive chest. He rolled on the ground as the children ran to retrieve their toy lightsabers, leaving him to be expendable against their weapons. There was a giddy and fitting smile smouldering his usual stoic expression. It was no wander why he found calm in visiting Sam and his sister’s small, and accepting family. The kids brought out another side of him, which he had been tortured to refrain from showing, but you had seen, and were contemplating many things within your mind. You were lapping up the image, as though you were dehydrated and the sight of him appeased by the company of young ones was a source of water.

Sam was right, he always was and had been. “The decision was on both of our parts, you don’t think Buck’ll change his mind, or do you?” You were invested in getting a responsive answer, yet the man spluttered a laugh at your confused expense. He heaved for a moment, bracing his hands on his knees as he caught his breath. There was nothing stopping him from gaining it back, unlike Bucky whom had grabbed a saber of his own and lightly began to paddle against the one that was directed against him, other than another round of hysterics that abandoned him. A reasonable smile resonated a comfortable position upon the former falcon’s face, as he tentatively patted your knee, watching as you broke off a small rupture of cake and popped it in your mouth, feeding not only yourself but the inmate within your womb.

“There isn’t really much for me to say, it’s easy, look at him. He will be fine with whatever decision that the pair of you succumb to, after all, it’s your body, but it will pain him like nothing else ever has if you go through with the abortion, and if not, then trust me, we’ve both seen how hard he fights; think of that but ten times the mass in consideration of this baby, because I am certain that he’d do anything for them. He lost his entire family when he awoke from his mode of hydra assassin, this could be him getting it back. Different members, but a family all the same.” He stole a little of your cake, making you lightly elbow him as a smirk rendered a beauty upon his face.

“What’s that going to make you, the patriotic uncle who just can’t keep himself from flashing his shield?” Now it was his turn to retaliate, he lightly scuffed your ankle with a feather light tap of the toe of his shoe, causing you to promiscuously roll your eyes. “I’m joking, that was Steve’s aesthetic, this new version of cap is your baby, I have great faith in you to make this world a better and safer place. The funny thing is, when you finally accepted that shield was yours, that’s when my mind shifted to the possibility of keeping this kid. It was and has always been a sign of hope and protection to Bucky, maybe it could be the same for our little one. It was just a thought, I’m not meaning to put pressure on your or anything bu-“

“I get it, and I’m honoured. And if that is how it seems, then I want you to know that I’ll be there to protect them too. The main bump in the road for now is for you to talk to that grumpy ass boyfriend of yours and figure this sperm plus egg equation out, send Jim and Jody over here, I got somethin’ to show those two anyway.” With a nod and a grateful pat upon your friend’s head, you slowly plodded over to where Bucky was being cornered against the side of the truck by the boys. His blue orbs danced around their small and imaginative beings, until they landed on you, it was as though his pupils were calling out for help, begging for you to spare some mercy upon him.

“Jim, Jody, your uncle Sammy has something for you two to see.” They groaned lightly, having been pulled away from the narrative of their play time, but nevertheless their faces were clean slates as they expressed hyper smiles, and bolted their route towards their mother’s sibling, carrying their lightsaber replicas along with them. “Two kids beat an infamous, deadly badass with a metal arm. I think you might be getting too old for these kinda battles Buck, you were losing, and quite terribly if I say so myself.” Crossing your arms, as he came to an upright stand, hoisting himself off the ground, so that he could be more level with you.

“Yeah, yeah, rub it in. Thought you were supposed to be supportive of me and all that, as you said to Zemo, you’d quite happily cut his dick off if he compared me to the shadow that I used to be.” His brow raised, as he reminisced on the thought of you threatening Zemo; it was hot, and certainly had gotten him going, which had shortly left you in this predicament, trying to save the world and execute the one last thing that exhumed hope to either one of you. The baby. It was almost a certain and solid fact that the little one inside of you had been procreated on the Baron’s private jet, more specifically, the small and clean bathroom that had became dirty with your primal sins.

“And I still regret not doing that, he’d have had much less leverage in any sense of the word of phallic if he had it sectioned off.” Silence emitted between the two of you, although a humoured smirk tantalised upon Bucky’s graceful face. For a change, he was not prompting the expression of a grumpy cat that was refused its nip, no, instead he could be compared to a future - actually, he already was a father to the bean held in the shield of your body, having been an ample ingredient in bringing the small person into being. “So, you having fun with Sarah’s kids, sure looks like you were quite in your element before I cut in.”

“I’m always in my element when you’re around doll.” He smiled, wrapping his uncoordinated hands around the oval of your waist, and tugging you sentimentally closer, your hips bumped with his, as your eyes ogled infatuatedly up at him. “They’re great kids, makes me realise exactly what we’re gonna be missing out on.” Bucky gulped, sparks of emotion taunted the behind of his eyes, like saucers of resentful fire. “You’d be the perfect mother, you know that right? After all you’ve done for me, you’ve nurtured me close to the man that I once was, the only difference is that I want to settle, but I don’t know how to go about dropping everything. This kid is killing me, he’s making me question everything.”

“That’s what kids are supposed to do, unborn, or very much avidly attacking grown men with false lightsabers.” Bucky deeply into your frustrated and corresponding eyes, your hands reaching up to play defiantly with the smooth dip in his chin that could be seen through the shading of his light stubble. “What if we did have a Jim and Jody of our own some day? We could keep him or her, they’d be our greatest concern, we don’t have to go down this painful and longing, rusted road. We could bring something good into this world, protect them against all forces that threaten to disrupt their life, I want this with you Bucky. We could move far far away, or go somewhere close to home.”

“Brooklyn.” He stated, causing a line to crease gently in the plain of his forehead. “I want to call them Brooklyn, if I am to fight the rest of my life for something, I want it to be my home. Last time I had to leave there, but it’s my amends to never leave this child of ours, if we’re going to do this, we need to put them in front of everything, and I mean everything.” He spoke, in reference to the other avengers and other aliases that you had stood by for so long. Bleakly you nodded, grasping his jaw down for an amorous kiss, humming against the palette of his lips, as your hands entwined behind his neck, pulling his face closer to your own, prompting his tongue to travel deeper within the realm of your mouth.

“Brooklyn is a nice name. How about Brooklyn Margaret Barnes? I think that has quite the ring to it.” You offered, and he hardly reacted, instead quickly appraising a pleasant smile onto the canvas of his work of art face, as he ducked his head down, conjoining the pair of you into a passionate and meaningful collide of your lips. Sam smiled as he watched the pair of you, pointing at you two from afar, as his nephews from afar. He was giving them a man to men talk, offering them advice that they would have valuable usage of in the future.

“Now that is love. You don’t give up for the one thing that connects you, and those two, well Bucky and y/n have been through a hell of a lot. They deserve this, and when you meet a woman when you’re older, and your mum is watching on towards the two of you, I want you to make her proud by treating your girl like a princess, willing to sacrifice everything simply to create the future that she wishes for you.” He emotionally wiped his eyes, rushing to stand before he grasped a lightsaber, leaving the other to spare for one of them. “Now Jim and Jody, which one of you will be my padawan?”

[aewhore]

Like Old Times ~ Christian Cage x reader

Request by @heatherdawn82 (Hope you love it) 

Summary: Reader and Christian had a casual fling back in TNA and even though they both wanted more neither said anything, so when Christian left for WWE they lost contact, now they’re both in AEW, Fluff ensues! 

Working as a makeup artist for AEW was insane, making these larger than life characters TV-ready was an honour. You would usually be jetting across the country with AEW but due to the pandemic, you were stationed in Daily’s Place and honestly you couldn’t be happier. You were currently doing Britt Baker’s iconic red eye look as you listen to her (lovingly) rant about her boyfriend. “...and so obviously he did eat the last brownie but he refuses to admit it, He’s also blaming the dog! as if that’ll work, can you believe it?” you laugh at Britt’s snack related problems. “I can not believe it! Although I’d love to hear more of your relationship problems, you’re all done, honey.” Britt rolls her eyes at your sarcasm. “Girl when you get yourself a man, you’ll understand.” Britt patted you on the back before walking past you to get back to her locker room. You let out a sign at Britt’s reminder of how single you truly were. You turn back to your make up station to tidy up your brushes and such.  

You were almost finished when you heard the door behind you open. “Oh hey Riho, You can take a seat there and-” You were interrupted when you felt a pair of hands rest around your waist. You look up into the mirror in front of you to see the one and only Christian Cage standing behind you. You immediately turn on your heels to face him. “Hello, beautiful” A smile creeps onto your face hearing that nickname he always used to call you. “Christian, what- You’re here? What are you doing here?” You were completely shocked to see your former lover standing before you. “I’m debuting here tonight and I thought I'd catch up with my favourite lady before I go out there.” He pulled you in closer to him. You were completely shocked, You and Christian had a fling back when you both were in TNA  you had always wanted it to be more than a fling but when he left to go back to WWE, you lost contact but seeing him here in the flesh brought back those same butterflies in your stomach. “You’re debuting tonight? Here? As in AEW?” You couldn’t hide your shock,  You were sure he was going to be in WWE for the rest of his career. Christian laughed at your bewilderment. “Yes, sweetheart I am debuting here, like right out there.” You roll your eyes at Christian’s teasing. “WWE wasn’t cutting it huh?” You were dying to know. “WWE wasn’t going to treat me like the star I have proven myself to be.” You felt for Christian, they never treated him like the star he truly was. You were ready to affirm him in his star quality but a knock at the door interrupts the both of you. “That must be Riho.” “I better get on my way” You and Christian speak over each other. Christian takes his hands off your hips as he turns to walk towards the door, he stops before he reaches the door. “I’ll call you after the show, we can catch up properly.” You smile at his request, excited at the idea of being able to see him again. “I’d like that.” he returns with his million-dollar smile before nodding at you and walking out the door. Riho walks through the open door looking between you and Christian’s now retreating figure, giving you a curious look. “Don’t start.” You jokingly warn before starting to glam up Riho. 

The anxiety of whether Christian would call or not slowly built and built throughout the night. Even after all this time you always saved his number on every phone you had. The night was coming to a close and you were cleaning up your station, unconsciously going slower than usual. You were disappointed however when you finished packing your things but still nothing from Christian, You tried not to let it bother you, it was his debut night he probably just forgot or maybe he’s busy with media stuff. You make your way out of the building and into the car park towards your little mini cooper that you’ve been driving for at least 10 years by now and you’ll continue to drive it till one of you gives out. As you were about to lift your last, heaviest suitcase into the boot of the car you were interrupted. “Hey let me help you with that.” It was him.  

He showed up. You couldn’t stop the smile that broke out. You allowed him to take the case out of your hands and lift it in your boot (even though you could have done it yourself) “Jeez what do you have in this thing? Rocks?” Christian joked after closing your boot. “Thanks Chris. You looked amazing out there.” You had to give the man his dues. “I went to your station but you were gone, I was worried you had left but I came out here to check and-” “And here I am.” There was a comfort that radiated off of Christian. “Here you are. I’m surprised to see this guy still trucking.” Christian laughed as he kicked one of your car’s rear wheels. “Hey, don’t kick my baby! She’s never failed me yet.” You joked back with Christian. You both had been unconsciously moving closer and closer to one another as the conversation flowed between the two of you. It was only after a natural lull in the conversation that you realized that he had covered your hand with his own, giving it small squeezes as he spoke. He had been holding your hand and you hadn’t even noticed, it had just felt so natural like that’s where his hand belonged. 

It seemed when Christian noticed what was distracting you, he moved to pull his hand back. “Oh sorry, I didn’t mean to overstep” You didn’t allow him to pull his hand away however, you kept your grip. “It’s ok, I don’t mind, it’s nice.” he looks slightly taken back but a gentle smile washes over his face as he settles his hand back into yours. “You know I promised you a proper catch-up, I know a fantastic little family-owned restaurant down the street I think it’s called Mcdonalds, How about I drive you up there and we can eat in the car like how we used to do after the TNA shows?” You laugh at Christian’s idea of a fancy restaurant. “Are you really asking me for a catch-up or are you perhaps asking me on a date?” You were teasing him because you wanted to hear him properly ask you. “Y/N you know what I meant but if you need to hear it, Y/N may I have the honour of taking you on a date?” You giggle at Christians reluctance to be romantic, Men never change. “Why of course Mr Cage, I would be honoured.” You put on a southern belle accent to make Christian laugh and you were successful. “Gimme your keys, I’ll drive us.” You give Christian a side-eye before digging through your jacket pocket to get your keys, before handing him your keys you had to warn him. “I don’t just let anyone drive my car, by the way, you better treat her right.” You place your keys into Christian’s hand before getting into the front seat. It felt strange to be in the passenger seat but seeing Christian settling into the front seat gave you a sense of ease you hadn’t felt in a long time, a sense of ease you could see yourself getting used to.

[lunnybunny12]

Sandor Clegane X reader (Rory)

MODERN AU

A/N: This is a modern AU based off of this headcanon. 

Word count: 2036

Warnings: Swearing, alcohol, mentions of death

Master List

As an Infantry Soldier, Sandor served in the field, working to defend his country against any threats on the ground. He'd capture, destroy, and deter enemy forces, assist in reconnaissance, and help mobilize troops and weaponry to support the mission as the ground combat force. He'd seen good people get murdered, shot, hanged, killed. People with families to get back to and friends who would miss them. Sandor had neither, and yet he was allowed to return.

He took a large gulp of his drink and looked at his surroundings. Sandor had been to the bar many times before and the familiar hum of other patrons as they'd pull frothing glasses of beer to their lips was there like always. He heard the occasional clicks from the back where the pool-tables were placed. The smell of alcohol, snow and pine-scented air freshener drifted through the air as you dragged a damp rag across the bar.

"Oi Barkeep. Beer." Sandor called, fiddling some change from his pocket.

"Keys first, Dogface. Then you can drink," You retorted, not moving from your place at the bar. (Dogface- A nick-name for Infantrymen because they sleep in "Pup-tents" and hide in "dugouts")

Sandor sighed in annoyance and paused to look at you. It hadn't been the first time you had told him this, he never understood why but he knew full well that you weren't joking with him.

"Again?"

"Yes, again. now hand them over."

He begrudgingly did as he was told and slid the car keys across the bar, avoiding your outstretched hand completely. You snatched them away and placed them in your pocket, with a fake glare.

"Good boy. They'll be in the same place when you come to pick them up tomorrow." You said popping of the cap of a beer and sliding it towards him and going back to cleaning the bar.

"You're lucky you're one of the few people I can stand in this town" He grumbled.

"Oh I feel so honoured" you joked and rolled your eyes.

Since there were other customers to attend to you couldn't talk long, but it's not like he'd say much to you anyway. The community he had found himself in was quite tight-knit. Everyone knew everyone and it was tricky to not run into someone who had something to talk about. Sandor however was a very quiet individual who often kept to himself making him stand out to many of the residents.

As the night continued and other staff started their shifts, Sandor found himself looking at you from time to time. He watched you collect glasses, chat to customers, tell jokes and take orders. He found himself doing it allot recently and he didn't understand why. At some points, he had even begun te eavesdrop on your conversations since he had nothing better to do.

"Ah (y/n) hows Rory? Heard the lad had an accident" A customer asked as you took their order.

Sandor's ears pricked up. He'd never heard of a Rory before at least not from you, and from what he knew there wasn't a Rory in the village.

"Yeah, the silly thing fell down the stairs and hurt his leg. He's upstairs having a lie-down. he should be up and about in a few days though," You chuckled.

You had changed so much since he was dragged off to the army. You weren't a crazy teenager anymore but a grown woman, with a proper paying job and a life outside of work. Yet you were still the same when it came to your personality: humerus, silly, carefree, cheerful and stupid... my god were you stupid, you had to have been to be his friend.

"Right, consider me.. clocked out" You smiled to yourself and looked at Sandor.

"Why do you need to clock out? You own the bloody place." Sandor said.

"Yes, but its this new fangled technology thing that Mr Ray insisted I use, and you know what he's like. 'His town his rules.' Plus it helps me keep tabs on whos working."

"At least you understand half of the tripe you just said." Sandor joked taking another sip of his drink.

You rolled your eyes and patted his shoulder as you headed towards the door. "Goodnight everyone!" You yelled earning a cheer of goodnights.

Everything was different when Sandor went away. One day he was there and the next he wasn't, no warning, just a letter that said that he had been accepted into the army and to not expect him back for a long time, that was if he came back at all.

When he did eventually return he had also changed. His personality remained the same, as you expected but he had changed physically. He was taller, broader and stronger and his hair had been cut making his burn a more prominent feature.

If it was up to you, you would've stayed away from him but since yours was the only bar in town, he would come for a drink. Out of politeness you talked to him and sent the occasional harmless jab his way and in return he was civil. You were still angry that he hadn't said goodbye but you still cared, you must have done to take his keys.

It was misty that morning. All mornings were misty since the Autumn season rolled around. You loved Autumn. You loved the feeling of the wind rushing past your face and how the leaves crunched beneath your boots. Your favourite place to walk was at the park and since Rory had stopped limping around your apartment, you thought the park was a good idea.

Rory was a large thing. The hound was easily half your height when stood on all fours and towered above you when on his hind. In his youth, he would have been jet black and full of energy but as he aged, the fur around his snout and paws had dimmed to a light grey and he had mellowed out.

As you walked along the wet grass a sudden yelp bit through the air.

"Someone get their fucking dog!"

You immediately ran to the voice to see Sandor, on the ground with your dog licking his face.

"Rory! come here. You silly thing" you laughed as you latched the lead onto the dog's collar and pulled him away from Sandor.

The man looked awful. His hair was a mess and he was covered in dirt. The shirt he wore was the same as the day prior and he seemed half asleep.

"Were you sleeping in the bush?"

"Oh yes, I'm fine thanks for asking" Sandor huffed as he pulled himself off of the grass.

He was in a mood and in all honesty, you would be too if you were sleeping in a bush.

"What kind of dog is that? Looks like a living mop"

"He's a wolfhound and I can guarantee he's cleaner than you."

"Well, you try and stay clean when you've been sleeping in the park for 5 days," Sandor growled, dusting off some leaves from his pants.

"5 days?" you asked. "You've been sleeping here for 5 DAYS! What happened to your apartment?"

"No money to pay for an apartment."

"What about your job?"

"Why do you care?" Sandor asked, bending down to grab the blanket that was hidden in the shrubbery. He was about to walk away until you stood in front of him with a serious look.

"I care because we were friends once and I'll be dumbed if I let my friend sleep in the cold. So I will ask again... What about your job?"

The look Sandor gave you wasn't out of shock or surprise. It was a look of familiarity. A look of relaxed friendliness that you hadn't seen since before he left.

Sandor sighed and scratched his neck. " My job fired me a few weeks ago. Said that 'I have talents that could be useful elsewhere.'"

"They fired you without reason?"

"I stacked boxes (Y/n) and that's all I did."

"Load of cunts," you sighed. "Right you're coming home with me, you're gonna get a shower and we can talk about a job later."

"I didn't ask for your help."

"No, but you're getting it anyway. Follow me Dogface."

A month had passed since then and things once again changed.

You gave Sandor a job at the bar more suited to his skillset and became the security. The town was a tourist hotspot in the summer months and you would get the occasional rowdy bunch that you nor the rest of the residents liked to deal with. In the other months, Sandor would just hang around, help with any shipments that required heavy lifting and occasionally cover for a staff member. Since you couldn't have him sleeping in his car or in a bush you gave him the spare room in your apartment and when he could afford it he insisted on paying rent and wouldnt take no for an answer.

One day when Sandor came back from his shift, he was met with you, laying on the couch with Rory draped over you with his head on your chest. Rory had done this more than once and you thought it was adorable, whether it was to protect you or because he was cold you didn't know but it was adorable just the same.

"You look comfortable," Sandor said slipping off his shoes at the door.

"Oh, I am. Very much so. I was in the mood for cuddles and since you weren't here Rory stepped up" you joked, petting the sleeping dog.

At the corner of your eye, you saw Sandor's demeanour change. He straightened his posture and took a sharp breath in.

"You alright?

"I'm fine. move your legs." Sandor said sitting on the couch beside you as he leaned to grab the tv remote.

He had been doing that a lot. Whenever you joked about ding something a couple would do, he would shy away or close himself off and to be honest you were only half-joking. It why you were so upset when he left without a word of warning. You liked him but if he liked you was a different story.

"You jealous?" You asked

"Jealous?" Sandor chuffed. "Of Rory? Nah. You wouldn't go for an old dog like him"

"I like old dogs. They have more charm and personality than the younger ones." You answered as you ran your fingers through Rory's fur and kissed him on the head.

Sandor sighed and continued to look at the TV. He looked so handsome to you, he always did. Sure he was rough around the edges but its what drew you to him in the first place.

"I like you too, you know."

"What?" Sandor laughed and looked a you. He thought you were joking like you usually did but by the look on your face, you weren't.

By that point Rory had jumped off of the couch to get some water, allowing you to sit properly.

"I like you, Dogface."

"In what way?"

"In a romantic way... since before you left" a second of silence cut between you when you started laughing at yourself. Like a real laugh. "I don't know why I'm telling you this, it's not like you feel the same anyways."

"How do you know I don't like ya?"

"Look at me, Sandor. The only men in my life  are you, the customers and my dog, I'm not exactly a noble-born am I? Just a daft bar made"

You stood up and walked to the fridge to grab a few beers.

"I like a daft bar made. They're way more entertaining than the smart ones."

"Very funny" you said handing him a bottle and sitting back on the couch with a huff.

"I also like my bar made: brave, and strong, and funny. With... a nice dog and a home of her own. Look, I like you too. I like being around you. I...I like your face."

You laughed and shuffled closer to him and leant your head on his shoulder.

"Cute" you mumbled and leant up to kiss his cheek. " I like your face too"

[oddsnendsfanfics]

It’s the Best Time of The Year

Genre: Fan Fiction (Night Hunter) Pairing: Lt Walter Marshall /Reader Warnings: Pure Fluff! Get your sweet tooth ready! Rating: G Length: Drabble Disclaimer: a strict work of fiction, I own nothing except the original characters and the plot line. In no way am I affiliated to any of it.  

A/N: A little fluffy, okay a lot of fluffy, Christmas-ish Walter. 

Henry Cavill Master List

From outside the house, Walter could hear Holly Jolly Christmas blaring throughout, unlocking the door and trudging inside he kicked the snow off his boots before leaving them on the mat beside the front door. Typically, this would lead to him lecturing you about being aware of your surroundings. Anybody could break in and...he stopped seeing you and his daughter attempting to waltz through the kitchen.

Racks of cookies were littering the counter tops, various sized boxes took up what cookies didn't. Squares, pies, and handmade chocolates took up even more space on the table, spilling into the dining room. Someone had been busy. Blissfully unaware of his presence, you and Faye continued to laugh and dance. Aprons and cheeks covered in flour. Faye's dark hair had splatters of red icing here and there.

Foregoing the lecture, Walter gave in – this once. Watching for a few more seconds before clearing his throat to alert you of his presence.

“Walt!” You exclaim letting go of Faye, the two of you giggling like crazy, “You're home early.” You rush to give him a quick peck.

“Harper forced me out.” His laugh is soft and deep. Eyeing you and his daughter, he raises his brow. “Did I interrupt, ladies?”

“Not at all. We were working on dinner, while finishing up some baking.” You answer happily, smiling wide. The music continues to play, at a lower level, thanks to Faye.

“Hey dad.” The teenager hugs her father tightly. Kissing the top of her head, Walter takes a deep breath resting his chin there for a moment. “So, off early. Did Hell freeze over?”

“Language.” Walter mumbles, nudging her. “And no. I am home early, because I have decided to take a few days off. Harper decided I should start early. Come home and enjoy the chaos.”

“Excuse me?” Faye is wide eyed. “Did I hear that right? You, my father, Walter Marshall, are taking a few days off? Dad, are you dying?”

“No,” Chuckling Walter shakes his head. Sliding his arm around you, he pulls you closer. “I had some time to use and decided to spend Christmas home. Is that a big deal?”

Giggling, you wink at Faye indicating that there is more to this story than her father is telling her. Tapping her foot on the tiled floor, Faye wrinkles her nose. She's not buying it. No where in her memory, did she recall her father taking time off.

“Uh huh. Right, okay.” Rolling her eyes she scoffs.

“Why is that so hard to believe?” Walter glances at you.

“Because you never take time off. Ever.” You answer for Faye.

When Walter had told you that he wanted to take Christmas off, it was startling. He rarely took time off and always worked the holidays. Faye would stay with her mother, while Walter practically lived in his office. “Crime doesn't take Christmas off.” He would fuss. In the four years that you had known Walter, two that you were together, he hardly took time off for anything.  Upon further discovery, it seemed nobody could remember the last time the Detective took more than a day off. A whole week off, including Christmas, this really was some sort of Christmas Miracle.

“Which is why I have decided to take the time. Is it a crime that I want Christmas with my family?”

“No.” Faye shrugged. Stirring the sauce in the pot, Faye sighed. She was not buying whatever her father was selling.

“Why don't you run up, get changed, and we will have dinner nearly ready by then.” You gently pat Walter's chest, giving him another quick kiss. “Go, we can marvel at the impossible when you come back down.” Not missing the chance to tease him.

Shaking his head and muttering about what terrible influences you and Faye were on one another, Walter returned the kiss, before turning on his heel and heading to change out of his office attire. Downstairs you and Faye had reverted back to your antics, tossing a piece of lettuce at her you laughed when she smacked you with the salad spoon. Walter would pretend to ignore it, but you knew that he enjoyed the chaos. He especially loved that you and Faye got on so well.

He would tell you every time she came over, how much he loved that she had decided to love you as much as he did. It was pretty hard not to love her back. When you had started dating Walter, you knew he had a daughter, and an ex-wife. Both, who at times, gave him grief. You had quickly worked out that it wasn't in a malicious intent, they simply worried about him. Especially Faye.

“My god that smells fantastic,” Walter commented walking through the house to rejoin his family.

“Faye made it,” You beamed with pride, arms wrapping around Walter's torso. You loved how warm he always was. Even more so since the winter had once again came. Snuggling into his side, you felt him relax while you watched Faye finish dinner.

“And who made all these?” He gestured to the baking.

“It was a joint effort.” Looking over her shoulder from the stove, Faye answered with a smile. “We're taking some down to the station tomorrow.”

“They will love that,” Walter smiled softly.

“Since you're off for vacation, we could use the extra pair of hands.” Faye winked, sticking out her tongue. “Or if we take you to work, will you end up staying, because crime doesn't take Christmas off.” She did her best impression of her father. You couldn't help but snort a little.

“Hush, you.” Walter bumped you with his hip. “I can go to work and not work.”

“Oh really?” Faye challenged. “Why did you all of a sudden decide to take time off, anyway?”

“Well,” Walter cleared his throat, leaning over you to reach for a snowflake shaped cookie, “I wanted to take some time to celebrate.”

“Should we tell her?” You ask watching Faye's expression. Confusion growing.

“Think she can handle it?” Walter teased.

“Yes!” Faye urged, bouncing on her feet. “Yes, tell me!”

The suspense was going to kill her. There were a million things in her mind. Whatever her imagination was telling her, you could only hope this was going to be as good. Faye was a good kid, you had worked hard all afternoon, worrying that you would let the cat out of the bag. Walter would have been fine with you sharing the surprise, but you wanted him to be there, too.

“Okay, but I want you to know that this changes nothing. I am still going to love you and...”

“Oh my GOD!” Shouting and squealing, Faye waved her hands excitedly. “You're pregnant!”

Wide eyed Walter nearly choked on the second cookie he had swiped. Laughing, you can feel his heart racing like a damn cheetah. Her face was priceless, but it was time to break her poor little heart.

“Uh, no.” You pout and shrug. “No brothers or sisters, yet.”

“Okay, so then what...”

“We're getting married.” Walter announced, unceremoniously. His eyes bright and his smile infectious.

“Dad!” Faye exclaimed, her hands wildly waving in excitement. “You were supposed to let me help you. Holy shit, how bad did he screw this up? Where's your ring? He did buy a ring, right? I told him about the...”

“Faye,” Walter's tone was stern.

“He didn't screw it up, at all.” You pat his chest, beaming. “And there is a ring, but it had to be sized. I'll have it back next week, but I have pictures.”

“Oh my god, I NEED to see them!” Shouting happily, Faye forgot about the dinner she was making. “Let me see! I need to see it! Dad! This is amazing!” tears in her eyes she hugged Walter's neck tightly.

Hugging his daughter, tight, Walter felt a wave of relief. He had assumed that Faye would take the news well, but one could never be too sure in these situations. Letting go of his neck, Faye wiped her eyes quick, before attacking you in her next hug.

Excitedly squealing as she loosened her grip, Faye paused. “Who else knows?”

“Us, you. We wanted to tell you first.” Walter spoke, as he took over dinner.

“How long have you...”

“Four days,” You wipe your own tears. “Oh my god, Faye. It was so perfect and so unexpected. Your old man has charm.” You giggle like a teenager. “I was getting ready for work...”

“You asked her while she was getting ready for work? Dad,” Faye rolled her eyes at him.

Walter shrugged it off. Whatever, you'd said “yes” that was good enough for him.

You had been upstairs in your bathroom, getting ready for work, when you'd walked out to Walter in the hall way. Kissing you, he took a step back, revealing the black box in the palm of his hand. No words. No grand gesture. But you knew exactly what he was asking. Tears, blurring your vision you allowed him to open the box and slide the slightly larger than needed ring on your left hand.

“It was so cute, though.” You defend your fiancé – You can't help but mull the word over. It feels so...odd to think of Walter in such terms.

“Dinner,” Walter announced turning off the gas on the stove. Not that it mattered, the two of you were still talking about how he had proposed and the things you loved, verses what Faye would have had him do differently. Whatever. You two would eat when you were good and ready.

“This is so amazing! This is going to be perfect. Can I come dress shopping with you?”

“I would hope my maid of honour wants to come dress shopping.” Catching Walter's eye, you winked.

“Really? I don't know...wow.” Breathing deeply to steady herself, Faye shook with delight. “Really? You want me?”

“Yes, silly!” You exclaim, hugging her again. Oh god it felt so good to tell Faye the news. Your head would have exploded if you'd had to keep this quiet any longer.

Grabbing your hand, Faye linked her fingers with yours, the two of you twirling around laughing and chattering about weddings. Walter was comfortable to lean against the counter watching the two of you dance around like fools. Dinner would keep, he could heat it in the microwave later. Dancing and singing to It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas, you broke away from Faye, dancing over to Walter.

“May I have this dance?” You wink, pulling his arm.

Unfolding his arms, he allowed you to take his hand. Expertly twirling you around, Walter smiled when Faye whistled. Who knew her dad could dance? Moving you back to him, Walter held you against his chest gently swaying to the time of the music. He had spent a few nights this week dancing happily around the kitchen, living room, hell even the bathroom with you. It was silly, but Walter was beginning to enjoy the laid back approach to life.

“Faye,” Walter furrowed his brow, sighing. Pretending to grump as she recorded the two of you.

“What? You two are adorable. Dad, when did you get those moves?”

“I happen to be a fine dancer,” Walter let go of your hand, grasping Faye's free hand and taking her by surprise. Quickly handing off her phone, Faye carefully followed Walter's lead.

Laughing when Walter spun her around, sending her across the room, Faye caught her balance on the edge of the breakfast table. She could never remember her dad having this much fun or laughing this hard. Dancing around, you laugh when Walter quickly dips you pulling you back up and kissing you softly. Faye's mock retching noises going ignored.

“Thank you,” his lips against your, Walter smiles.

“For?”

“For saying yes and agreeing to marry me. For making me take time to enjoy my family.”

“It's nearly Christmas, Walt. A few days off, a party or two, it won't hurt. You work hard, sweetheart. You need to relax.” You lean into his chest, inhaling the scent of amber and sage.

Clearing her throat, Faye stood with a cookie in her hand, nibbling casually. “Uh, I know that you said I wasn't going to have a sibling, but um...could you not make one right now.”

[tommyspeakycap]

“It’s a couple minutes after midnight and there were already a couple resolutions broken.”

with tommy maybe?

thank you for all your writing. those past two prompts made my first day of 2021 so much more enjoyable, as all your writing helped 2020 (a really shitty year for me personally as well as overall!) you’re an Angel x

that’s so kind of you to say!! i hope this year treats you a lot better x sending love ! x

Tommy nods his head in the direction of his sister after she placed a crystal glass of his favourite expensive whiskey into his hand while he continues his conversation with Arthur. “You can add manners to your fucking list of resolutions, ungrateful bastard.” Ada huffs in response to this, scoffing at her elder brother as she sits down and takes a drink of wine.

“Swear jar!”

Heads turn to the two little boys standing mischievously in the doorway in their pyjamas with huge grins. Ada rolls her eyes playfully at her son and nephew as you appear behind them. “I told them they could stay up a bit longer, behaviour permitting eh boys?” You ruffle both of their hair and feel your son wrap his arms around your leg, “Of course mummy! love you!” His words make you beam, your love for him so obvious in the way that your eyes shine. It makes Tommy smile from across the room.

You walk in carrying a small plate of some homemade shortbread to place on one of the small tables in the large family room that the entire Shelby family was occupying in yours and Tommy’s huge country estate. “Exactly Karl,” Tommy says, pointing at his nephew as he moves the conversation back to the issue of his sisters profanity. “Swear jar, Ada.”

Ada shakes her head, but honours the newly instated Shelby swear jar rule and puts a few coins into the glass begrudgingly. “We were talking about resolutions,” Arthur informs you, “Tom said he’ll cut back on the smokes, right Tom?” You turn to your husband, eyebrows shooting up in surprise as he sits on the couch, one elbow resting over the arm of the couch with that glass of whiskey in his hand and the other arm around your daughter half asleep leaning against his chest . “Really daddy?” Your daughter remarks quietly. You watch him shrug his shoulders. “Course.” He says. “I know how much your mother hates it,” he paused to lean closer to her to whisper, “and i love your mother very very much, so i’ll do it for her,” with a gentle wink. You didn’t hear those words, but watching him with the daughter he loved so much made your heart swell.

“And stop swearing!” Ada chimes, prompting a giggle from you. “Around the kids, at least.” Polly adds as she sips from her champagne glass. Tommy rolls his eyes again, feeling rather under fire from his tipsy family. With your heart fluttering every so slightly in your chest because to the rest of them, the resolutions that the head of their family was attempting were just that, silly resolutions that everyone makes every year. But to you, or rather between you and Tommy, those were changes you had voiced your wish for many times, especially since your daughter had been running around the house shouting “By order of the Peaky Fucking Blinders!” at the top of her lungs with the plastic gun John had gotten her since Christmas.

It was, of course more the smoking that bothered you. You worried constantly about his health, you knew it couldn’t be good at all that he was at the point practically a chain smoker. You wanted him to see his children grow up. You wanted to spent as long with his as you could get with the life you all lived.

“A man after my own heart,” you coo, leaning down to peck his lips, the cheeky nature of your husband kicking in as he slips his tongue between your lips and somehow manages to hook his arm around you and pull you down onto his lap without spilling his drink. You pull back, shaking your head at him playfully with a smile as you lean back against him. You hear John snigger from across the room, “He was going to quit drinking.” He taunts, nodding his head to the amber liquid in Tommy’s glass.

“Not the new year yet, John.” Tommy glares, but you know drinking isn’t going to be likely something that Tommy is going to stop, especially not within the next five minute before the year changes. The only thing that really matters to you is that he’s going to try. Esme hits John’s arm as a means of telling him to shut up and stop teasing his brother. They knew he was trying to make these changes for you.

“Mrs Shelby?” You turn your head to the maid standing cautiously at the door. “The baby is awake.” You nod your head, patting Tommy’s knee to prompt him to release him arm from around your waist. “I’ll get him, thank you Francis.” The maid nods her head and you kiss your husbands cheek. Tommy, as he always does, follows you with his eyes as you leave the room. A twinkle gleaming as he thinks about you and the newest addition to your family. The way you hold the baby boy, glowing with happiness even in the middle of the night reminds him of everything that is good in his world. His family is all that keeps him going and he knows for a fact that he would not be able to survive without you.

“Hello baby,” you coo as you enter the nursery, “Suppose you want to wish everyone a happy new year mister? oh aren’t you just the more gorgeous baby.” As you lift him into your arms to cradle him gently, you find yourself getting lost in time thinking about how much you love your family. You felt blessed to have three happy and healthy children despise everything that you had done and everything that had been done to you in your life. You had suffered a lot and caused suffering in some cases, so you felt as though there was nothing you could have done that would have amounted to you deserving three beautiful little humans who love you unconditionally. You didn’t know you could even love that much until you held your babies in your arms. And the way you got to see Tommy love them and care for them and become the man you had known all those years ago before he was traumatised by the war was the most beautiful thing to you.

Having children made him a better husband and a better man. You counted yourself lucky to get to be the woman who’s hand he holds as you walk together throw the fields behind the house, watching your son and daughter race and tackle each other in the snow or run through the long grass in the winter. For those moments where there was peace from the world, from the dangers and demands of the great Thomas Shelby, everything was made worth the battles.

You’re dragged from your admirational daze when you hear Tommy’s heavy footsteps falling behind you as he walks into the room. He wraps his arms around you from behind, pressing a long kiss against your cheek. “Happy New Year, Mrs Shelby.” You hum contently at his words, “Mm, Happy New Year to you, Mr Shelby.” Tommy gently rubs his finger over the small head of hair on his new son, “And you, sweet baby.” His voice rumbles lowly in your ear as he rests his chin on your shoulder. “What’re you doing up here?” You ask, turning your head to look at him. Tommy averts his eyes, taking a few steps back to sit on the rocking chair by the window. “Might’ve broke a few resolutions.” He murmurs, the awkward embarrassment feeling that he only ever gets with you rises up to flush his cheeks just like it used to when you first got together all those years ago.

You giggle slightly, placing the baby back down in his crib. The carpet is soft beneath your bare feet as you cross to Tommy, reaching out a hand to lift his chin so he’s forced to look up at you. “It’s ten past midnight Tom, what did you do?” You don’t speak with malice or anger, instead a hint of humour leaking through your words. Tommy shakes his head, “Just had a drink. Not important.” He uses his arms again to hook you down onto his lap. This time, you tuck your head under his chin to rest on his chest, closing your eyes softly for a moment. “What is important,” he continues, “Is how much i love you. And our family, so much.” He feels you smiling, “I love you too.”

Tommy rests his chin gently on top of your head. “Love you more.” He feels you laugh slightly this time as it dawns on your he may be fully serious about how much he loves you, but he’s also buttering you up.

“Thomas?” you query, voice raising in pitch every so slightly. “Mhm?” he responds, neither of you moving from your the comfort of your position. “Didnt you say you broke, resolutions? Not just a resolution?” You now sit back so you can look at him as he grimaces at you, “Well, that’s not really-“

Your head snaps between your little girl and your now apolgetically and almost painfully grimacing husband after you hear her adorable little voice practically answering your question for you before words could even leave Tommy’s lips with her sweet voice shouting;

“Daddy! Remember you need to put money in the shitty bastarding swear jar!”

[awanderingdeal]

When a loss isn't really a loss

This is just over 5000 words of O'Darwin smut and general silliness. Enjoy. Some of this I have posted as a live write before on the discord, but it's been heavily edited and added to.

Rating: E

CW: Explicit sex, food talk

Please message me if you I missed any content warnings.

All of these characters come from the fanfic Sweater Weather and Credit for them goes to @lumosinlove

"I'm going to jump in the shower and then I'll be ready to collect payment," Natalie smirked, shaking her ass at her boyfriends as she bent down to peel off her snowy boots at the door.

"Absolutely not," Alex scoffed, smacking her butt, although she couldn't feel much through the padding of her thermals and ski pants "You cheated."

"I made one tiny comment," Natalie argued, setting her boots to the side, and stepping a little further into the cabin to take off her jacket. "It’s not my fault your brain is in your dick."

"Okay, but it's not as if anybody is really losing, is it?" Kasey said pushing past Alex, having mentioned multiple times by now that he was ready to be out of the cold. "Let's be real, eating you out is the real prize here, babe."

"Kiss-ass," Alex grumbled.

"I'll kiss your ass anytime, Al,'' Kasey retorted. Alex muttered something under his breath, but Kasey ignored him, continuing to shrug off his clothes until he was left in only his base layers. "I'll start a fire whilst you hop in the shower, Nat."

“Thanks, love,” Natalie pecked a kiss to Kasey’s cheek, the slight scruff he had decided to sport for the trip was rough against her lips. Alex had finally managed to get his boots off, and joined the two of them in pulling off his skiwear. She drew up onto her tiptoes, not letting the couple of inches of extra height Alex had on her be a deterrent as she ruffled his hair and placed a kiss on his cheek too. “Suck it up, sweetheart.”

“Hey!” Alex protested. “I want a rematch tomorrow!” he called as she retreated from the room, her shoulders shaking with laughter.

The warm water felt wonderful cascading down Natalie’s body, soothing her tired muscles. She could have stayed under it forever; the thought of Alex and Kasey waiting for her in the lounge the only thing motivating her to move through the routine of washing her hair. The coconut scent of her conditioner permeated the room as she stepped out of the shower and piled her hair beneath a towel.

She stepped out into the short hallway, hearing hushed bickering coming from the living room. Rolling her eyes, she yelled to let them know the bathroom was unoccupied. “Boys! The shower is free!” The bickering continued, the topic switching from where the next log should be placed, to which of them should be left to finish the job. Natalie considered interrupting to inform them she could probably do the task quicker than either of them, but she left them to it, heading to the bedroom.

She hummed to herself whilst she rummaged through her suitcase, considering the new lyrics she’d doodled on the flight here, until she felt the slippery material of the satin pyjamas she was looking for.

“Aha.” She gave a satisfied smile, pulling the bralette and shorts on and looked in the mirror. “Damn, Darcy,” Natalie approved, turning to appreciate the way the material clung to her ass in all the right ways. She adjusted the top slightly, gave a satisfied nod and shook her still slightly damp hair from the towel, letting it fall down around her shoulders in loose waves. For a moment, she considered blow drying it, but she preferred the way it looked when it was allowed to dry naturally. If Alex and Kasey wanted to have sex, then they could deal with it.

The lounge was empty when Natalie returned, the logs and fire - lighter abandoned on the ground. She snorted at the tiny tepee that had been built in the grate, imagining Alex lecturing Kasey on the technique, until they decided it was more fun to take a shower together. It was a far too regular occurrence for Alex to remind them he had been a boy scout only to completely fail at the skills he was supposed to have learnt was comical. At this point, she suspected the only useful thing to come out of it were the photos of a small Alex dressed in little shorts, grinning proudly at his badge-covered sash. The organisation could go fuck themselves, but she had to admit the images were adorable.

Natalie gathered the materials, making light work of getting the fire started. Her own skills came from weekend camping trips with her family, her parents having encouraged her to pull her weight alongside her brother. Kasey wasn't one to embrace nature, more inclined towards the comfort of hotel rooms and running water. Still, Natalie was daydreaming about dragging him and Alex on long hikes when the pair of them interrupted it, walking back into the lounge with sheepish expressions.

"In our defence -" Alex started, his sentence ending abruptly when he properly took in Natalie's appearance. "Excuse me, nobody told me we were supposed to be looking hot. I need to go and get changed," he gestured to the pair of joggers sitting loosely on his hips.

Kasey shook his head, quickly grabbing the back of Alex's t-shirt, halting his retreat. "Don't bother, I don't plan on them being on for long."

"Okay, yeah, I could be down with that," Alex agreed. "But fuck, Nat. Warn a guy next time."

Natalie laughed, pushing herself up from the floor and relocating to the sofa, a few steps away. "Where would the fun in that be?"

"It's alright, Al. You could be wearing a bin bag and you'd still be hot," Kasey said, releasing Alex's t-shirt from his grip.

"Aww babe," Alex cooed. His eyes flicked from Kasey to Natalie, pointing his thumb at Kasey. "Can you believe this guy manages to convince people that he's a tough man?"

"Hey, real men talk about their emotions," Kasey shrugged. "We did a whole campaign on it, soon after you joined the Rangers. Remember?"

"I do, the t-shirt they gave you was too fucking small and I swear I nearly combusted,” Alex tipped his back slightly whilst he laughed. Natalie loved watching the two of them interact. There was something light about it, almost as if they seemed to forget the rest of the world was there. "Nat, it was honestly sinful.”

Okay, perhaps they forgot everybody but her. And frankly, Natalie was honoured.

"Sinful huh? I approve of sin," Natalie raised an eyebrow, patting the seat beside her. "Get over here." She didn't have to ask twice, soon flanked on either side by her hockey boys. She nudged her shoulder against Alex's. "So, have you reconsidered that maybe you did actually lose earlier." Alex ran his tongue over his lips, dragging his eyes over her form. "I could be convinced," he murmured, fingers trailing over Natalie's thigh. "I still want another race tomorrow though."

"You know I'm going to win again," Natalie smirked, leaning in to let her breath skim over his ear. "What are you waiting for? I'm ready," she whispered, punctuating her words with a kiss to his jaw, spreading her legs a little further. Alex stumbled a little as dropped to his knees in front of her. Apparently he was excited.

"It really is a shame to take these off, they're so pretty," Alex sighed, grasping the waistband of the shorts, although he didn't seem to be too disappointed to be sliding the silky fabric down her legs.

He kissed a trail up her thighs, each kiss sending a tiny shiver up Natalie's spine. Her body was tight with the anticipation of what was coming. They weren't new to this, Alex spent a lot of time between her legs, but in her opinion, the thrill had only increased. She knew how good he could make her feel now. Alex hooked his hands under her knees and shifted her a little closer to him. Leaning forward, he dragged his tongue through the damp already forming between her legs, tasting her with slow, leisurely licks. Natalie whined, low at the back of her throat, her hips pushing up and legs tightening around Alex as she sought more of his attention. He obliged, pressing his tongue flat against her clit, bringing his fingers to play at it, his beard rough against her skin as he sucked eagerly at her centre.

She let her head tip back, finding Kasey's strong hold behind her. He kissed gently at the exposed skin of her neck, capturing her mouth to swallow her next moan. "Can you tell me what you want next Nat? You're going to come on Al's face, yeah? Then what?"

Natalie managed a nod, her hands flying to tangle in Alex's hair as he dipped his tongue inside her. "Fuck, Alex. Do that again." Alex repeated the precise flick of his tongue, his small chuckle at Natalie's string of expletives, reverberating through her.

"Hey," Kasey's hand gripped her chin carefully, getting her focus. "What next?"

Natalie couldn't think what came next when Alex was working his magic, any coherent thought she managed to form was forced away by the skilful tease of his mouth.

Kasey traced the wildflowers inked around her belly button, his breath hot against her ear. "Do you want me to fuck you?" He snaked his hands upwards, ducking into the cup of her bralette to toy with her nipple. "Or Haz? Or maybe both?"

"Yes," Natalie gasped, rocking her hips against Alex's mouth. "Yes, yes yes." She wanted that. She wanted all of it.

"It's alright, babe. We've got you," Kasey continued to tug at her nipples, each pull sending a shiver down her spine. She writhed under their touch, her body unsure what it wanted more of. Alex pulled back a little, soothing Natalie's whine by replacing his mouth with his fingers, pressing them inside her.

"Please," The cry fell from her lips, guiding Alex's head back down. He followed enthusiastically, fingers still pushing into her as he lapped at her clit, grazing lightly over it with his teeth. She urged his mouth harder against her, the familiar tingle of pleasure playing at the ends of her limbs.

"That's it love, come on him. I can't wait to taste you on him,” Kasey encouraged.

“Fuck Al - I'm so close," she whimpered, her breath coming in quick pants.

A warmth pooled in her stomach, seemingly every muscle in her body tensing as Alex upped his efforts, his face buried in her as he nipped and sucked and licked. Kasey's mouth was back on her, his hands squeezing at her breasts. She couldn't tell where each of her whimpers and mewls started and ended anymore, the sounds melding into a symphony of pleasure; her boys playing her body like a practised instrument.

Natalie let herself voice her pleasure without restraint, enjoying the fact their cabin was nestled into a secluded spot in the forest and nobody would be able to hear them.

"Oh fuck, yes. Right there. Don’t stop. Gonna come." The words fell from her lips rambling and desperate, her hand curling tighter into Alex's hair in warning. Her world narrowed as she came, everything but the intense pleasure searing through her becoming irrelevant in that small moment. The two of them worked her through, coaxing every second of bliss from her they could, until the spasms slowed and she relaxed against Kasey.

"I believe I said something about sharing." Kasey grasped Alex's hand, leaning down to help him close the gap between them. Alex's face was sticky with her come, but Kasey didn't hesitate to crash their mouths together. Natalie watched them kiss above her, the euphoria still making her thoughts a little hazy, but a small excitement told her that she was definitely still horny, despite the fact she had barely recovered from the last orgasm.

Kasey pulled away; the corners of his mouth turned up into a soft smile that didn't quite seem to match the situation. "Messy boy," he chirped, cupping Alex's jaw and gathering the slick onto his fingers. Slipping them between his lips, Kasey sucked them, giving a long moan at the taste.

Alex's back clicked as he clambered back up onto the couch properly. The juxtaposition between the reminder of the reality of human bodies, and the almost pornographic gesture she had just witnessed from Kasey made Natalie snort a laugh. “Are you okay there, old man?" she flashed Alex a grin.

Alex poked her gently in her side, chuckling a laugh against her lips. "Shut up."

Natalie shoved him in the arm playfully. "Thank you, that was awesome. Maybe I'll let you win tomorrow so I can return the favour."

Out of the corner of her eye, Natalie saw Kasey reach down to palm himself through his shorts. She pecked a kiss to Alex's cheek, his face still shiny with her come. "Why don't you go and wash that off before it starts to get itchy. I want all your attention on me when you're fucking me."

Alex let his head drop back against the sofa with a groan, and Natalie laughed as his eyes seemed to glaze over slightly. A filthy comment never failed to get him worked up.

"Okay, Okay, I'm going. Don't do anything too interesting until I get back," Alex pushed off the sofa eagerly, dragging his eyes over Natalie and Kasey before he hurried to the bathroom in a half-jog.

“Bring the lube too!” Natalie called after Alex, swinging her leg over to straddle Kasey’s lap. Kasey smirked as he lifted his head to catch Natalie’s lips with his own, pulling back from the kiss only once their breaths were coming in heavy pants.

“Think that was too interesting?” he murmured, burying his face into her shoulder..

“I don’t know. What do you think about this?” Natalie ground her hips down, drawing a whine from Kasey.

“Definitely too interesting,” Kasey gasped, bucking up into the contact.

“I’m coming, I’m coming,” Alex shouted, his footsteps heavy in the hallway.

“That’s what I’m going to be saying in about two seconds if you don’t stop,” Kasey quipped, setting his hands on Natalie’s waist, his fingers squeezing gently.

“What took you so -” Natalie looked up as Alex hurried into the room, his feet slipping slightly on the hardwood. “Where are your clothes?”

Natalie had to cling onto Kasey's shoulders to avoid being thrown from his lap when he turned his whole body, whipping his head around at the question. God, Kasey was so cool until he wasn't at all.

“Figured I wouldn’t need them for this next part,” Alex smiled. His face was so expressive, the emotion lifting his entire face. He swept his hand through his hair smoothly as if he hadn’t just nearly landed on his ass. “I did bring lube though, and condoms,” he added, showcasing the aforementioned objects. “Still waiting on that second set of results after Philly.”

Two sets of testing. Two weeks apart. The second set at least a month after the event. Plus twice a year routine testing. Those were the rules they had laid out for not using a condom if any of them had sex with somebody outside of them and a few other select people they trusted. It wasn’t fool proof, but it was what the three of them were comfortable with.

"Get over here,” Natalie beckoned. “I was thinking we could have a do-over of Vegas?”

“Vegas?” How Alex managed to make the thoughtful tilt of his head look almost puppyish, sauntering over buck naked, and his hands full of sex paraphernalia, Natalie would never know. He glanced at the cabin door, eyes widening slightly.

“Yep,” Natalie sniggered. “No room service to interrupt here.”

“I think we’ve already established that you are the brains of this relationship, eh?” Kasey prodded her in the side. Natalie was so busy trying to escape the fingers tickling under her last rib that she didn’t hear Alex dropping to his knees behind her, startling as his hair brushed against her cheek. “Stop it,” she laughed, batting away Kasey’s hands, her head tipping back into the kiss Alex was pressing into the curve of her neck.

“Let’s try not to have anybody end up on the floor this time, Kase?” Alex returned the laugh, his steady weight behind her the only thing that was preventing her fall.

“I will bite you,” Kasey lifted a hand from Natalie’s hip to show Alex his middle finger.

“Is that a promise?”

“Do you two want the room to yourself?” Natalie chuckled, pushing her ass back against Alex. She chuckled as his cock twitched in response. “Hmm, I’ll take that as a no. Enough talk then?”

“Fuck, I want to rim you first, please?” Alex groaned lowly, hauling himself from the floor. “And you sir, are wearing too many clothes. Rectify that.” He took the seat next to Kasey, curling his fingers around his jaw and pulling into a needy kiss.

“Oh, he’s bossy today. Better do as he says, Sugar,” Natalie chuckled, sliding from Kasey's lap. He remained seated, his eyes following her every move whilst she quickly dragged one of the armchairs so that it was opposite the sofa. Satisfied, she returned to him, for once being the one to look down at him. She gave him a soft smile, tucking a loose strand of his hair behind his ear. “Come now, There’s a front row seat for you once you’re ready,” she said, hooking her finger into the neckline of the old faded Gryffindor tee he was wearing and urging him to stand.

“And I didn’t even buy tickets,” Kasey laughed lightly, pulling the t-shirt over his head. Natalie shoved him gently, shaking her head at the terrible joke.

Still smiling, Natalie draped herself over the arm of the sofa, her back arched and feet resting on Alex’s thighs. She glanced over her shoulder to find Alex’s gaze fixed past her on Kasey undressing. She couldn’t really blame him, letting herself watch as Kasey shoved his sweatpants down seemingly endless legs. The pants hit the ground with a quiet thud.

“Fuck, I forgot my cell was in there,” Kasey muttered.

“You need to work on your act, babe,” Alex snorted.

The trance-like weight that had filled the room lifted and Natalie dug her toes into Alex’s leg, garnering his attention. “Since you asked so nicely,” she grinned, dancing her fingers over the curve of her ass.

“I did, didn’t I?” Alex hummed, his hand covering Natalie’s. It was warm, and even though his eyes were dark with anticipation, the grasp was gentle. “Just relax, watch Kase,” he said, squeezing their fingers together lightly, nudging her hand away as he let go.

Natalie listened to him, tucking her arms beneath her head and turning to watch Kasey. Alex’s lips were soft against her skin, pressing kisses everywhere from the top of her thighs to the base of her spine. Kasey finished undressing, taking his time to create a meticulously neat stack on the coffee table, leaving only his underwear to the side. She caught his quick look at Alex, but she was too slow to read whatever communication they’d been having, both of their expressions quickly schooled back into innocence. She huffed, any irritation she had felt wiped away by the nip of Alex’s teeth on her ass.

Kasey folded himself into the armchair Natalie had moved, one leg tucked casually beneath the other. The position left his cock exposed and Natalie was about to make a casual quip when Alex let his breath whisper over her asshole. Her whole body tensed, Kasey wrapping his hand around the length of his cock at the same time as Alex let his tongue brush over her sensitive nerve endings. “Fuck, Al,” she whipped her head around, quickly turning to look back at Kasey who was teasing himself with slow strokes. She whimpered, unsure where she wanted to look.

“Sssh,” Alex soothed, “Watch our boy.”

Natalie couldn’t have told you how long it was until Alex shifted again. A few minutes maybe? Perhaps more. That first intense pleasure of his tongue pushing into her slowly morphed into something more relaxing. It was an odd contrast to Kasey getting more and more worked up, his groans escalating until he bucked into his fist one last time, quickly enveloping the head of his cock with his boxers.

“Damn, Snow. Come here,” Alex beckoned Kasey over once he had taken a second to get his body back under his control, his legs still a little wobbly as he made his way over.

Natalie hadn’t even noticed the lazy circles her hips were rubbing into the sofa below her, until Alex stilled them. “Are you ready to take some fingers now, Nat?” he asked, rubbing his thumbs into the back of her thighs in a slow massage.

“So fucking ready.” Natalie rocked back a little to stretch her muscles out. Now that Alex’s tongue wasn’t working her into a euphoric state, she could feel her back protesting the position. “Remind me why we’re doing this here and not in the bedroom again?”

“Something about someone wanting to say they had fucked in front of a fireplace in a cabin,” Kasey drawled.

“Oh yeah, who would that have been?” Natalie gave a small smirk. Perhaps there were easier things they could have done out here, but she was determined to fulfil her fantasy completely.

“You want to switch it up? Kase could lie under you, whilst I prep your booty?”

Natalie laughed, sitting back on her heels to let Kasey lie where she’d been. “I’m officially adding booty to the list of words we don’t say during sex.”

“Such a party pooper," Alex quipped, sticking his tongue out at the eye roll he received from Natalie. He chucked a condom in Kasey’s direction, the latter plucking it from the air with ease. Natalie waited for him to roll it on, and then swung her hips over his. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her down into a kiss.

“Hey,” Kasey grunted.

“Hey to you too, did you enjoy yourself over there?” Natalie mumbled against his lips, content in the security of his hug.

Kasey hummed, “I like watching you two. You’re my favourite people in the world y’know and you’re both incredibly hot.”

“Jesus,” Natalie huffed out a breath. “Do you want me to start crying?” she chuckled, kissing Kasey again, slow and long. Alex muttered something about them being too cute, before she felt the cool drip of lube between her butt cheeks, long fingers chasing it soon after. Alex took his time, adding more lube with each new finger. Kasey’s hands roamed endlessly over her back, his mouth stealing each approving whine from hers. It seemed unclipping her bralette and pulling the material from between them. She shivered as her nipples brushed against his skin, her body taught with anticipation.

“I’m going to come like this if one of you doesn’t fuck me soon,” Natalie gasped, grinding him. She could feel his cock growing harder each time it slipped through the wet slick pooling between her legs and she wanted nothing more than to take charge.

She didn’t have to though, and sometimes, that was just as nice. “I’ve got you babe,” Alex said, pulling his fingers from her, kissing the back of her neck to quiet the small whine she gave at the emptiness. His lips turned up into a smile against her skin and then he was gone.

Somewhere behind her, she heard the familiar tear of Alex opening a condom, but most of her attention was sought by Kasey. “Can’t wait to be inside of you,” he whispered, brushing her hair from the side of her face. “It’s always so good. And Al’s going to be right there as well. I bet I’ll be able to feel him. We’re going to make you feel so good.”

"Big promises, Kasey Winter," she teased, knowing there was nothing but truth behind the words. Even after all these years, things hadn't gotten boring. Sex wasn't the most important thing in their relationship, and if it had to stop tomorrow for some reason they had s0 much more, still it was something they both valued. Not everything new they tried worked out, but they never took each other for granted and they always had fun and she loved it.

Alex wasn't the first person they'd shared their bed with, however it had quickly become clear he was different. She couldn't deny there had been a small niggling part of her that had wondered if it would weaken her and Kasey's relationship. Of course, Alex had proved her wrong, slotting in perfectly. There had been issues, things they needed to work through, and there always would be. Nevertheless, Alex made things better.

"Natalie?" Alex asked, his fingers tapping against the curve of ass. "You with us?"

“Yeah, sorry. I zoned out. Are you ready?”

“Jeez Kase, I leave you with her for two minutes and she’s already bored. Step it up, lover boy,” Alex laughed, both him and Natalie squealing as Kasey sat up to smack Alex in the arm.

“Alex,” Natalie huffed.

“Sorry, sweetheart,” Alex appeased her. “Here, I think this will be easiest if you sit up,” he suggested helping her into a more upright position and taking the spot behind her. “Yeah, like that. And then Kasey can go from this way,” he waved a hand that was vaguely instructional, waiting for a confirmatory nod from Kasey. “ That good, Nat?”

“I’m good,” Natalie affirmed and Alex pushed into her slowly, both of them groaning as she stretched around him. Natalie leaned back into his chest, his arms strong around her waist. She tilted her head back so he could capture her lips in a sloppy kiss, the short thrusts of hips drawing breathy moans from the both. Neither of them seemed to care when their teeth clashed, both of them too eager to be as close as possible. There wasn’t really enough room on the sofa for the three of them, their bodies slotting together at the most awkward angles, yet they made it work.

“One more, Kase,” Alex uttered. She could feel him squeezing his eyes shut against her neck, his breath coming in breathy pants each time she squeezed around him. Kasey obliged, adding a third finger with his next thrust. Between the two of them, Natalie felt full already, but she wanted more. Kasey was dragging his thumb lazily around her clit in a way that made Natalie’s toes curl, never quite where she needed it, just playing along the brink of something spectacular.

“Kase!” Sometimes Natalie enjoyed the slow dance, being teased until she felt like she was going to explode. Today, however, was not one of those days. She wanted Kasey in her, now.

“I hear you loud and clear, love,” Kasey hummed. “What does the boss man think?”

“The boss man? Is that me? Oh, I like that,” Alex said. The low grumble Natalie gave was almost inaudible. Still, Alex must have felt it because he chuckled, brushing his lips over shoulder blade. “Yeah, I think you better get on with it.”

“Holy shit,” Alex groaned, his fingers squeezing hard into the soft flesh around Natalie’s hips when Kasey sunk into her. “That is incredible.” At first the movements were awkward, but eventually they found a rhythm, Alex slipping out as Kasey pushed forward. Low whimpers fell from her lips with each thrust.

“Are you okay?” Kasey squeezed Natalie’s knee, the act managing to maintain a gentleness to it despite everything else.

“It’s a lot, but it’s good,” Natalie nodded jerkily. She grasped at the limbs around her, trying to gain purchase on the sweat slicked bodies. Her own body felt charged, brimming with electricity as they rocked together. Kasey shifted slightly and if Natalie thought it had been good before, it was nothing compared to this. "Oh my God, don't move. Please don't move."

"There you go, baby." Kasey pulled her closer, his hands firm on her hips, letting her rut against him. Behind her, she could tell Alex was getting close, his babbled exclamations becoming more and more incoherent. She knew the words coming out her own mouth were similarly incomprehensible. It was as if she could feel every inch of Alex’s hastening movements in every muscle. It was simultaneously too much and not enough.

Natalie was pretty sure Alex finished first, the warmth of his come seeping through the thin latex. She didn’t get to enjoy the sensation for long, falling into her own orgasm soon after. She does remember Kasey dragging her hips forwards to fuck her through it, tipping himself over the edge too.

“I’m down for doing that again sometime if you two are?” Natalie hummed once their heart rates had settled to something more like normal. She was sandwiched between Kasey and Alex. Now that the endorphins had started to wane, it was becoming rather uncomfortable, the three of them squeezed onto the small sofa. “Maybe somewhere more convenient next time.”

“Sure,” Kasey replied, his words laced with tiredness and a yawn escaping.

“Don’t you dare fall asleep, Winter. You promised we could watch Black Widow tonight,” Alex sat up, poking Kasey in his side. “Come on, it’s not even late.”

“I’m not gonna fall asleep,” Kasey blinked, once, twice, three times, before giving a heavy sigh.

“Nope, everybody up. Up. Shower time,” Alex clapped his hands together.

“See what happens when you let him take charge, Nat. It goes to his head. Look what you’ve created.” Kasey groaned, rubbing the heel of hand into his eyes. He did sit up though, pulling Natalie with him and she resigned herself to the fact they were moving.

“I want popcorn,” Natalie said, her mouth already watering at the thought of freshly popped kernels.

“Yes, good shout,” Alex agreed. “I think we still have pasta left over from last night too.”

It took a while, but eventually the three of them piled back onto the sofa, steaming bowls of popcorn decorated with pretzels and chocolate sauce on their laps. Natalie ran her thumb over the corner of Alex’s lips wiping away remnants of tomato sauce; the pasta hadn’t made it out of the kitchen. She leaned forward to grab the remote, Alex immediately taking the opportunity to feign throwing a piece of popcorn at Kasey.

“Nuh uh, if you’re going to start playing catch then I’m having the first attempt at catching. You two get all competitive and then I never get a turn,” Natalie reprimanded jokingly, already shifting her bowl to the coffee table so she wouldn’t lose it all.

“Okay, whoever catches the least out of ten has to make breakfast in the morning?” Alex agreed.

“Game on.” As Natalie opened her mouth to make her first catch, she felt a wet finger dip into her ear and the popcorn sailed past her into Kasey’s lap. He picked it up and dropped it into his mouth as a smug smirk. “No!” she protested with a laugh. “That’s cheating. That one doesn’t count.”

Kasey raised his hands in surrender, his own laugh bubbling in his chest. “Alright, alright. I’ll play fair, I promise.”

[ijustwant2write]

City Girl-Bonnie Gold x Shelby!Reader

(GIF credit to @pcllygray)

Masterlist

Prompts

Tags: @jenepleurepasbaby @amirahiddleston @bloodorangemoonlight @haphazardhufflepuff @mzcrazy2

Requested by anonymous: 'Hello my love! I hope it’s alright to request. Lately I’ve been an even bigger sucker for Bonnie Gold. Could you maybe do something where the reader is a Shelby, and Bonnie falls for them but has no clue that their brothers are the Peaky and practically his boss. Just something fluffy and fun! Please'

Characters: Bonnie Gold x Shelby!Reader

Meanings: (Y/N)=Your name

Warnings: Swearing, lots of fluff

(A/N: It's long, I got carried away)

                                    *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The wind whipped through my hair and hit my face as I rode my horse, her long legs galloping across the open field. This was my one piece of freedom, the time where it didn’t matter who I was or where I was going. It was just me and my horse, both experiencing the thrill of an adrenaline rush. Slowing down, I let her walk so she wasn’t exhausted, patting her neck graciously.

“Good girl,” I said,“you always know how to make me feel better.”

She reared her head back, shaking it and causing her hair to mess up. I quietly giggled as I brushed it out, continuing to ride her. We had gone a little further than usual today, and if any of my family found out how far away I was, they would not be happy. But I didn’t care. It was my day off, and I needed to be away from the hustle and bustle of Small Heath; as well as experience the tiniest amount of fresh air before heading back to the polluted city. After a few more minutes, I stopped my horse, dismounting her and grabbing her reigns. Her nose nudged me as I rummaged in my bag, knowing that her treats were in there.

“Don’t say I don’t look after you.” I mumbled to her as I produced a couple of sugar cubes.

The tender moment was interrupted when I heard hooves hitting against the ground, fast at first until I saw a man also riding a horse, slowing down as he approached me. My hand reached into my bag again, fingers resting on my gun. I had loaded it this morning, I knew I could whip it out at a moments notice.

“If I didn’t know any better, I would say that’s a very spoilt horse.” he said as he stopped in front of me.

“A girls got to look after her horse, hasn’t she?” I warily said.

“I don’t mean to scare you, but it’s not safe out here.”

“So why are you here?”

He chuckled, glancing away from me for a moment.“I must say, I’ve never seen such a beauty around these parts.”

I smirked.“You talking to me or the horse?”

He smiled again, and I found myself enjoying the view.“I’m Bonnie.”

“(Y/N).”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you (Y/N).”

“Do you own the land?”

“No, but I live on it.”

It clicked in my mind that he was a gypsy, not that I looked down on him now. My family had told me time and time again that we were descended from gypsies, and that we should never forget our roots. 

“You’re right, I’ve never been here before.” I said as I mounted my horse.

“Well, would you like a tour?”

“A tour of a few fields and some trees?”

“That’s what all the city girls say.”

“Oh, so you’ve had a few ‘city girls’ turn up around here?”

Bonnie seemed flustered for a moment, but as I broke out laughing so did he, relief washing over his face. Commanding my horse forward, I was now next to him, having a chance to study his handsome features up close.

“Well, what are we waiting for?”

As expected, Bonnie knew his way around these great outdoors like the back of his hand. He would tell me the names of all the flowers and what they meant, explaining who created the pathways throughout the woods and how his ancestors used every plant and animal to survive. He was so passionate when speaking, and although there was definitely flirting throughout (from both of us), it wasn’t arrogant or cocky. I wasn’t just going to fall for this boy who I met in a field, but he was much more interesting than any lad who had come up to me on a night out. When we returned to the open field, I challenged him to a race, our laughs echoing out, before I triumphantly beat him.

“Please do not say you let me win, because boys have said that to me before.” I breathed out as he caught up to me.

“Oh, so you’ve been hanging around with country boys?”

I rolled my eyes at him, looking over my shoulder to see that the sun was getting low in the sky.“I’ve had a lovely time, but I have to get back home Bonnie.”

“Let me ride with you to the road.”

“Don’t you also need to get back to your family?”

“We’re gypsies, we’re free to roam where we want, when we want.”

As he said, we rode together to the back road, where hardly anyone drove, but it led back to Small Heath. I wasn’t sure if I would see Bonnie again, but unlike other boys that swaggered around or acted as if they were better than anyone else, essentially putting me off them, Bonnie held this charm, there was something about him that intrigued me. And the mystery of ever seeing each other again made me excited. 

“This is where we part ways.” I stated.

“Will you be back? Maybe we could ride together sometime.”

I pretended to think about it, already trotting away from him.“It is a nice area. Perhaps you will see me around these parts.”

He scoffed a laugh.“You won’t even tell me when?”

I called out over my shoulder.“I guess you’ll just have to keep an eye out for me!”

No one had questioned where I had been that day, they knew I had been riding, and there seemed to be a lot of tension as I stepped into the room. Obviously something had happened (which they wouldn’t tell me, not yet anyway), but after my afternoon with Bonnie, I really didn’t care. My family was too caught up in whatever problem Tommy had got us into to ask why I was constantly smiling and day dreaming.

The next day I had been stuck in the shop, repeatedly huffing and making snarky comments at the incompetent men I was stuck working with. However, I knew I was just annoyed that I was working on such a beautiful day. It would have been perfect to go riding, a perfect day to see a certain gypsy boy. When Bonnie and I had gone our separate ways, I hadn’t thought too much about him until I went to bed. He had been on my mind, that bright, wide smile, intriguing eyes and the sound of his voice...that’s when I knew I was already in too deep. When I woke still thinking about him, I wanted to scold myself for being infatuated with a boy I just met, but I couldn’t, and the urge to find out more about him took over.

Watching as my brothers walked out of the shop, not telling me where they were going as usual, I took it as an opportunity to sneak away without any of them asking where I was going on my break. I wouldn’t have time to go all the way out to the field again, but being outside was better than being knocked into again and again by the amount of people in the shop. 

“Where do you think you’re going?” Polly said, catching me before I could step out of the door.

I refrained from sighing.“Just taking my break.”

“It’s the busiest time of day, and you’re going to leave now?”

“Just ten minutes, please Pol? I can’t stand all the noise a moment longer.”

She was the one who sighed.“Fine. But do not be late coming back!”

As soon as she finished her sentence, I was out of there. My pace was quick, not headed to anywhere in particular, just somewhere less crowded. Slowing down, I pondered buying something to eat, buy a treat, I deserved it having to deal with those men. However, I was distracted when someone laid their hand on my shoulder, and being by myself, I went into defence mode; grabbing their arm, I twisted it as I spun around, instantly gasping when I saw who it was.

“Bonnie?!” I let go of him as he winced.“I am so sorry, I just panicked.”

“It’s fine.” he groaned, cradling his hand.“I shouldn’t have been so sneaky.”

“What are you doing here?”

“My dad is dealing with some business. But I spotted you across the street and had to see you.”

“So you’re in my part of the woods now.”

“It seems so.”

“I would offer you a tour, but I’m on break from work.”

“That’s alright. It seems I might be spending a lot more time here.”

“How come?”

“Long story short, I’ve always wanted to be a boxer. Never had much luck seeing as I live on the road, but dad seems to have sealed a deal, and I’m starting my training soon.”

“Bonnie, that’s amazing!”

“Yeah...” his cheeks started to flush pink.“I haven’t secured a match yet but...but I would love it if you could come to my first one.”

I smiled, nodding slightly.“I would be honoured to watch you win.”

“In the mean time, perhaps you could show me around, go for some drinks-”

“Bonnie!” someone shouted, an older man waiting for him. It must have been his father.

“I’ve got to go, but I’ll definitely be seeing you soon.”

Only when he began walking away did I feel how fast my heartbeat was. I was so giddy, an urge to giggle almost every other minute. It was embarrassing.

A few days passed by, and it was agonisingly slow. I had kept an eye out for Bonnie, taking a different route to walk past where some lads were trained to fight, but I saw nothing. I even went out riding to the field again, though he wasn't there either. The horrible, twisting feeling in my stomach made me upset, made me angry, I almost felt humiliated that I got my hopes up over a boy I hardly knew. That all changed when I saw him again in the streets.

"Bonnie!" I smiled as I ran towards him.

He was grinning too, meeting me halfway."(Y/N), I've been looking for you everywhere!"

There was an awkward moment where neither of knew if we should hug, shake hands or just leave it. Bonnie hesitantly pulled me in, but as soon as his arms wrapped around me, it felt right.

"I was actually looking for you too." I admitted as we parted.

"We were probably going around in circles chasing one another."

"Yeah, we must have looked like lunatics."

"I'm sorry I didn't catch you. But, guess what?"

His excited expression made me giggle."What?"

"I have my first boxing match."

"That's great Bonnie! I expect an invite, a car better come pick me up, a glass of champagne at the door-"

"Woah, unfortunately I don't think I can arrange any of that, but I can get you front row seats."

"So now I'll get to watch you win up close."

"No pressure there then."

"I'm not worried. I'll even place a bet on you if they're doing them."

"Good to know I have someone have so much confidence in me. Don't worry, I'll give you a good show."

The night of the match finally arrived. I had used the rest of the week to plan my outfit (a great excuse to go shopping, with Ada giving me opinions on everything), decide what to do with my hair and makeup, as well as what the fuck I was going to say to Bonnie after the fight. Would he be too beaten up to go drinking with? Would he even be able to string a sentence together? It occurred to me that I hadn't even seen him fight, maybe I was about to see a whole different side to him.

"(Y/N), cancel what you're doing Saturday night." Tommy commanded as he waltzed into my room without knocking.

I scoffed as I stopped reading, the book falling into my lap."Why?"

"You're going to a boxing match."

"I was going anyway."

"What?"

"Yeah, Bonnie, the smaller lad who's fighting, he invited me."

"How the fuck do you know Bonnie Gold?"

"W-we met when I was out riding."

"And you didn't think to tell me this?"

"Why would I? Whenever I've mentioned any boy before, you lot threaten and scare them away. Also, he was just a gypsy boy I met."

"I'm in business with his father."

"Well, shit. Small world. But I'm still going, right? I've spent my money on a new dress, I can't let it go to waste-"

"Yes, you're still going. Does he know who you are?"

I shook my head.

Tommy looked up at the ceiling, sighing before he left."Fuck me."

For some reason, my heart sank at the thought of Tommy using Bonnie to his advantage. He wouldn't have arranged this fight over good will or the kindness of his heart, it was covering something up. However, I was still going, I was going for Bonnie.

Following behind the other Shelby women, I tossed my hair back as men gawked at us. We held the power too, and not just because of how gorgeous we all looked that night. We were headed towards our seats, but I was too impatient to wait for Bonnie. Splitting from the group, I glanced around the crowds, spotting where Bonnie could potentially be before the fight. Luckily I was right, waltzing in to see Tommy speaking to Bonnie, as well as his father stood there.

"You're not supposed to be back here (Y/N)." Tommy stated, somehow expecting me to turn around and leave.

"I've come to wish our fighter good luck." I smirked, locking eyes with Bonnie.

His eyes were wide, flickering between my brother and I.

"Fine, I suppose he was the one to invite you."

With that he left, Bonnie's father following, but not before looking me up and down; not in a way that creeper me out, he was sizing me up, seeing if the youngest Shelby was as strong as the others. Once they were gone, I approached Bonnie, who was only in a pair of shorts and a robe.

"You're a Shelby?" he breathed out.

"Yes."

"And you didn't think to mention it?"

"You never asked. And also, does it matter?"

"Yes! Your family are the Peaky Blinders!"

"I just never said anything cause....well if I'm honest, I was too distracted when talking to you to bring it up."

"Distracted by what?"

"Well...You Bonnie."

We shared a smile, and he took another step towards me."Thank you for coming. I was trying to look out for you."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world. Now, you need to concentrate on totally beating the other guy to a pulp."

"You have such a way with words. After I win, I'm taking you out for celebratory drinks."

"Sounds like a plan."

I boldly leaned up on my tiptoes, pecking him lightly on the lips. Opening my eyes, I saw him leaning in again, stopping when he realised I had pulled away.

"Now go out there and win Bonnie. I'll be watching and waiting."

[jaskiersvalley]

Look I knew from things my friend reblogged that you have A Gift but now I'm following you and crying every time you post because it is ALWAYS top quality and I am but a poor little goblin with Feelings. You are my favorite and I love you. (also "oh what a hairy valley it is" is fucking hilarious I laugh every time I read it)

You are my new favourite and I love you too! Especially because you find “oh what a hairy valley it is” funny. As thanks, I hope you like a bit of a twist on the Witcher Wolf Pack and their Bard in a modern setting.

Street life was harsh but the wolves had learned how to play the game over the decades. Witchers had become nothing more than myths and they had died out. Or rather, they faded from visible existence and found ways to get with the times. But nobody really wanted grizzly, musclebound men with facial scars so the wolves of Kaer Morhen were left behind by society. It wasn’t like they could get paperwork and ID needed for work and rent, so they lived on the fringes, accepted the ‘help’ of a sorcerer. It wasn’t much better, living on the streets as wolves most idiots mistook for large dogs. But at least they could slink around relatively undisturbed. They could shift forms as they needed but most of the time, they remained four legged.

They had a whole system worked out, honourable as much as thieves could be. Because they needed to steal, needed food and money to survive. The back alley that they’d pulled blankets and cardboard boxes to had become home. But they couldn’t live off things they fished out of the dumpster all the time. It was how they ended up with a range of schemes and ploys.

Easiest was the sad, scared puppy game. It was one that Lambert excelled at, looking vulnerable. If he rolled in a puddle first, he could look exceptionally pitiful. His scars showed up the least too and, as the youngest, he often got the most response. Some days he would hang around outside a food shop and whimper at those going in. The more generous humans would emerge with their shopping plus a little something for him. When something was thrown his way, Lambert would snatch it out of the air and run, hide the stash until he could haul his trophies home to share.

More elaborate was the teamwork of Vesemir and Eskel. They didn’t pull it off often because it was much more dangerous for them both. At some traffic lights where cars were slowing down, Eskel would step in front of a car and get clipped. He’d perfected the art of just getting a glancing bruise on his shoulder but it sounded impressive enough. Once the car stopped, Vesemir, in his grizzled old glory, would fling himself in front of the car with a whimpering howl. That usually got everyone’s attention, the poor old dog, shaking and quivering on the floor. It was enough of a distraction for Eskel to shift to human form and dive into the car, pulling anything of value out. They had to be so careful, not taking anything from those who obviously were in need. That was on top of the constant worry that Eskel could actually get hurt or Vesemir would get carted off to the pound. But the few times they did it, they often got enough things to pawn or, once, a shopping bag full of party food.

Geralt was too bulky to look sad in front of a shop, he got chased with a broom more often than not. He also didn’t have Eskel’s light fingers to steal from cars or Vesemir’s gravitas to look convincingly injured. What he could do though was pickpocket and steal bags. It was so easy to walk pad through a square, a stray dog nobody paid attention to. A snout in a passing pocket resulted in a mouthful of wallet. And the times someone put a bag down to look at their phone or, rarely, to pet him, he could pick up the bag and trot off without much fuss. The other thing Geralt did was trail buskers. He learned about them, knew those who were busking for fun and those who needed the coins tossed at them. Those who did it for a hobby, Geralt had no qualms about ambling up to and snuffling their things. It usually earned him a pat on the head and a laugh. It meant he could curl up with whoever it was playing and, at the end of their stint, Geralt could snuffled a little more under the pretence of curiosity. Nobody ever thought to look in his mouth to find the coins they could have sworn were there.

It was a great ploy until a new busker turned up. Geralt couldn’t get a read on him. The man looked and acted like a peacock but he smelled tired and hurting. Before Geralt could even approach him to investigate, the man was setting his instrument to the side and reaching out in invitation for Geralt to join him.

“You might need a bit of rest.” The man said and pulled a water bottle from his pack. Shoving his handwritten sign of gratitude from the plastic container, it was filled up with water instead. “It’s a warm day, I doubt there are puddles around for you.”

It turned out, the man chattered a lot when he wasn’t playing. He was called Jaskier, had no real family to speak of and loved singing. There was an art to speaking a lot without saying much and Geralt knew Jaskier was a master. In the evening, when Jaskier packed up, Geralt couldn’t bring himself to take any of his coin.

“If you’re ever in the area, you’ll always have a blanket to rest on with me,” Jaskier promised and waved to Geralt. It was only then that Geralt realised that not once did Jaskier touch him.

Once a week, Geralt sought Jaskier out. It was oddly relaxing and on his third visit, Geralt found he had actually fallen into a deep sleep, trusting this stranger to keep him protected. Of course, the others teased him about it relentlessly. Late at night when they were all sprawled in their alley with a rare treat of beer Eskel had managed to snag, they laughed about Geralt’s crush.

“Fine. You go see if you can do better,” he grumbled.

From then on, the wolves took turns and each came back suitably cowed. Eskel had taken the first chance to go see Jaskier for himself. He’d come back subdued and quiet. “He told be about his White Wolf,” he’d said. “How I must be his brother because I’m just as handsome.”

There was nothing handsome about Eskel, or so he thought. His scarring in wolf and human form had his lip pulled up and, as a wolf, he looked like he was continually snarling, teeth bared.

“He wasn’t scared,” Eskel whispered in wonder.

Unable to believe it all, Lambert went to see Jaskier next. He only came back late at night and refused to say anything. It was only later the next night that he whispered to Eskel that he’d tried to goad Jaskier into hurting him, to prove a point. And he got belly rubs instead. Which were a lot nicer than anything Lambert had experienced in a long time, so he had to slink off and think for a few hours before returning home.

Vesemir still had his doubts. His three pups might have been taken in by the singing stranger but he was suspicious. Determined to get to the bottom of their infatuation, Vesemir set out to spy on Jaskier. It didn’t go as well as planned because he was spotted and beckoned over. Even worse, there were freshly bought treats in Jaskier’s pocket, coming out to appease him.

“You look like you could be their father,” Jaskier prattled, handing over another treat. “The same noble, ancient look they’ve got. Living on the streets is no easy feat and I imagine you’ve done it your whole lives. But your pack seem wonderful. You ought to be proud of your boys.”

Vesemir would have thought it all some great, cunning plan were it not for the fact that he could smell the street on Jaskier. Obviously he’d been sleeping in hostels or the like until recently. And yet there he was with the best treats he could afford for a bunch of stray dogs who he knew to be wolves.

From then on, Jaskier enjoyed the company of a wolf beside him for four of the seven days of the week. Geralt slept on the blanket, running and eating in his sleep. By contrast, Lambert was needy, demanding attention and petting, constantly by Jaskier’s feet. Eskel liked to lie calmly and watch, sometimes he’d howl along and get laughs. Occasionally trotting off and coming back with a snack or a drink for them, clutched carefully in his mouth. The first time he presented Jaskier with a sandwich, he man had looked both scandalised and then blissed out as he bit into it like he was starving. Vesemir was by far the calmest, he watched Jaskier rather than the crowds around them, keeping track of how things changed.

“He sleeps on the streets,” he told his pups one night. “I worry for him.”

They couldn’t find Jaskier though, it was a large city and there were a lot of places to hide. By pure luck, they were settling down into a tangle of limbs, tails and fur when they heard voices.

“Just hand it over and you’ll live.” A menacing voice growled.

“I can’t give you that. It’s how I make what little money I have. I’ve already offered you everything I can!” That was definitely Jaskier.

“Along these parts, our word is law. You’ve not paid your dues and now we’re raising fees.”

There was the soft thump of someone being struck and the smell of blood. The wolves were up on their feet as one, quietly padding closer to investigate. Jaskier was on his knees, guitar behind him along with his usual pack which looked like it had been rifled through already. Opposite him were three men, one of them with a nail studded baseball bat.

“I think you need to be taught a lesson,” the man snarled and raised the bat. It arced through the air and there was the sound of it striking flesh and a sharp whine of a wolf in pain rang through the alley.

“What the fuck?”

Geralt was laid flat on the floor and panting, white fur staining red. The other three wolves were snapping and growling at the attackers while Jaskier knelt and watched in awe. Lambert jumped first, jaw latching around the wrist holding the bat and shaking his head.

In two minutes, the attackers were running, bleeding and cursing and the alley was silent save for the panting of the wolves. Eskel and Vesemir shared a look as they approached Geralt. They shifted, ignoring the gasp of surprise from Jaskier.

“You need to shift, pup,” Vesemir stroked over Geralt’s head. “Let us get a better look.”

It took a moment longer but Geralt was human once again and wheezing.

“Fuck,” he gasped, hands clenched in fists.

“Let them sort it,” Lambert murmured from just behind Jaskier, making him jump. “It’ll be okay. Geralt’s just a drama queen.”

“A drama queen with broken ribs,” Eskel grumbled. “At least the nails didn’t puncture his lung.”

In all of that, Jaskier was quiet and surprisingly unafraid. Puzzled, most definitely but he didn’t panic or run.

“Will he be okay?” he asked, soft and worried.

“He’s a strong one, survived a lot worse.” The reassurance from Vesemir lifted a little of the tension. “Why aren’t you running and screaming?”

“Why should I? You saved my life and you’re the wolves I’ve known for weeks now. It’s nice that you can talk back now.”

That seemed to settle matters somehow. And the wolves got a fourth act in their repertoire. Now, Jaskier sang and busked with the protection of a wolf by his side at all times. And, when he returned back to the alley, he always shared his bounty with the others.

“And when I get famous, you’re all coming with me. We’ll tour the world together,” he promised each night from the centre of the wolf pile. It usually earned at least one tail thump or a chuffed out wolf-y laugh. The wolves might have indulged him in such fantasies but they were the ones who had to eat their words. A talent scout did indeed pick Jaskier up. Along with his four wolves who became his bodyguards.

Part 2 here.

[sjw-publishings]

Dissapointment

“They...rejected me cause they felt like I was too young.”

Jay pouted, both of them were in their 20s. Though Jay was in his earlier years than his older hubby. If Xavier couldn’t make it into Hock Enterprises, he wouldn’t have stood a chance. Not that he had one anyway since he dropped out of college.

“Now don’t say that...”

“They did give me a suit though, as well as a pamphlet. They were told me that they will put in a recommendation on my next job.”

Jay smiled, patting his love on the shoulder and gave him a kiss.

“I’m proud of you...”

Xavier opened the suitcase and grabbed ahold of the pamphlet in it. Turning to the first page, his eyes widened as his body autopilot to the spare guest room and shut the door.

Jay felt that was strange, but maybe his husband just really wanted to get a head start in finding his next job, he always was the studious type.

Speaking of which...look at this suit! You know, even though his husband did not get accepted, he still got a pretty fancy suit-

Wear it on...

Blinking, Jay felt the compulsion to strip down in the living room. Placing his clothes to the side as he grabbed a hold of the full outfit and placing on a table the attire. Picking it up, it was not merely just a suit, but the whole ensemble with accessories, and even a clean XL pair of clean underwear.

Wear it.

He immediately slid on the underwear to his crotch. Adjusting it as he felt powder being applied over on his member and behind. The XL briefs stuck on, as the man grabbed ahold of his package.

“Honour...”

Taking on an accented voice, Jay muttered as he began kneading his manhood. Letting out soft groans as he was completely focused on his tool. Kneading as the bulge certainly tented without hesitation.

Focus.

One hand still grabbing hold, the other reaching for those silky polished grey pants and began sliding up. Only this time, as a wave of testosterone flushed through his thighs, they doubled in size and muscle, which only had eased the process of bringing them upward, fitting perfectly like he had been wearing them for years.

Of course, while he had been a househusband, he did study business alongside his hubby Xavier. Though he could recall being better in his course.

But yes, that’s how they met. Nodding to himself, as he made sure to continue kneading his manhood that was beneath a zip. Bending downward, his freehand fished out for a clean pair of white socks and wore them on his feet.

Giving gentle presses over the soles as they seemed a couple of sizes larger, but that must be because he was almost always in dress shoes. Maturing beyond his late thirties, like the more responsible man he is.

Indeed, you are the head of the household.

STOMP!

Speaking of which, contrary to asian tradition, he grabbed the pair of dark brown polished dress shoes from the table and wore them. The dull clunks to the floor vaporised any idea of being the cook in the house. Sure he stayed at home more often than not, but he was not the cook.

Of course, he could recall a nagging voice informing him not to wear shoes in the house or he won’t get diner, but he reassured it that he always polishes them before entering.

A man of his word.

He had to always be in the right frame of mind, as he sat down on the chair. The computer screen in front of him instantly flicked on.

Welcome, Mr Hock.

His hands immediately typed away on the keyboard, on autopilot as the study table and the chair he was on seemed to be spinning, rearranging as the layout of the one storey house shifted to multiple. Rich furniture replacing the cheap as ornaments and oriental decorations layered the house wealthily with every press of the button.

Yet despite all that, the man only seemed to be focused on his typing. Palms effortlessly typing away as slight wrinkles aged with hard work, trailing down forearms to biceps, ensuring the businessman kept his schedule regimen of keeping fit whilst being devoted to his job.

“If only Xavi understands...”

Glueing his buttocks to the chair, his boyfriend’s constant slacking only further increased his speed, both in typing and in the ‘disciplining’ of his manhood. Groaning angrily with every thought relating to the younger male.

“So dishonourable...”

Jaey Hock spoke, slightly accented due to his asian upbringing...but modernised to a fluent english. Slipping on his dress shirt, buttoning up swiftly as he had tons of work to be done. Clinging tight onto his skin as firm outline of his pectorals and six pack was displayed in the older male.

Honestly, that was where his pride went. Straightening his back to a proud 6ft 2, the right height as his sleek study table adjusted to the Patriarch as his meaty thighs continued to sandwich his raging manhood, the fury with every type thickening the power surging within his nuts and 8 inches.

He hated thinking about that young slacker Avin living in his home. Sure he raised him to be a manly man such as himself, but this is no way for a future manager of the family company to behave!

Sliding on his blue and grey checkered tie with a KNOT! Wincing as a sharp pain jolted from his glued butt, sealing his cheeks from any homosexual practices as he was a married male! He was the man of the house!

Almost done with his work, right hand finishing off the final clicks as he click ‘Send’. The mesmerising loading task bar sending intelligent spirals to the angry businessman, thinking about that younger male...the fury only made him wanna-

“GOTTA DISCIPLINE!”

A loud firm shout came from the early forties, putting on his grey suit jacket as a neat pocket square rested over on his left pec. Hair being spiked to the brim as thick, kissable lips definitely could not resist his oval shaped jawline.

Lips for his wife of course.

Married for over twenty years and raising his rebellious son the best they could, completing his ensemble was his expensive company watch. As he slid it on, he GRABBED and TUGGED his manhood, tension and testosterone sealing the final changes in seconds.

Wedding ring polished to a glimmer as it reflected his new lifestyle and demeanour. With brows furrowing in a natural roughish style, the man narrowed his expectations to simple and high. All in the name of honour-!

*Report fully sent*

“WAHHHHH!”

Mr Jeremy Hock yelled in an oriental bliss. Firing away his former self as new streams of hard work and discipline orientate themselves into his DNA. Built only for reproduction and productivity, like how he would always describe himself to his employees.

“IZ LIT!”

A loud youthful yell came from the room nearby. The 48 year old father immediately got up from his office chair, heading towards the source of that unkempt groan.

*SLAM*

Slamming open, door hitting the wall as what was revealed in the youthful, sport cologne scented room were tossed and turned sheets amidst sets of clothing, and in the middle was a shameful display of his 22 year old son.

He had tasked his son to research, but all he did was fool around with himself and play video games! One hand a game controller, the other hand a playboy magazine for thirsty men who could not control their urges.

Disappointment

His father had taught young, raised his son Vince to be an intelligent and honourable. He was so disappointed to see him turn into a ‘TakTik’ zoomer who keeps jerking off.

He hates doing this to his grown up son, but.

“Son, you’re grounded.”

[rwby-diaries]

Happy birthday Ruby!

Our most adorable shooting star is up! Ruby was born on October 31st (kept from CRWBY canon)! She came into the world just a pink little thing, and she stole everyone’s hearts with just one look. Her family loves her so much and so do we!

Line Art by: @bosiphas

Colour by: @data-plays-viola

Ficlet by: @lameclub

Edited by: @bosiphas @yang-diary @data-plays-viola and @thetopazvulpix

Ficlet under the cut!

“Happy birthday Ruby!’’ Different voices all cry out in unison as Ruby stands there with her eyes big and wide.

“You guys shouldn’t have!’’ She says awkwardly - causing Yang tomorrow her eyes and smirk in her direction.  

“Jaune spilled the beans, didn’t he?’’

Ruby scoffs loudly, “Whaaat? How could you possibly assume that our good, kind-natured friend Jaune--’’

“You don’t have to defend me, Ruby. It’s pretty obvious,’’ Jaune says while scratching the back of his head with an embarrassed smile. Weiss rolls her eyes as she walks over, taking Ruby’s arm and leading her in the other direction.

“You can count yourself out of the next surprise party,’’ Weiss says with a pointed look back at Jaune. Ruby giggles before turning around to better keep up with her friend. They begin to approach a round table not that far from them - causing Ruby to let out a giant gasp.

The table is decorated with many different trays of sweets and baked goods - carefully placed in order of colour and type. Ruby turns back towards her friends.

“You didn’t have to do all of this!’’ she says with a big smile on her face as her eyes well up with tears.

Nora giggles, "Ren spent the last two nights making sure every cupcake was perfect, didn't ya buddy?"

Nora finishes the question with a poke to Ren’s ribcage and a smile. Ren looks down at her with a puzzled look on their face, "You only turn 15 once - I don't see why I should hold back." Yang shakes her head as she leans on their shoulder with a smirk.

“We aren’t making fun of ya bud! No need to be self-conscious about the amount you made.

“Anyways,” Yang adds with an even bigger smirk, “Nora’s bottomless pit she calls a stomach will probably eat half of this in like an hour.”

Ruby giggles as she takes a single cupcake and, without an ounce of hesitation, bites into it. The sweetness burst to life in her mouth, causing them to hum in appreciation. “Oh! This is so good Ren, maybe the best thing I’ve ever eaten!’’ She exclaims as she quickly devours the rest of her sweet.

Yang whistles, “That’s a bold statement - considering we grew up around the self-proclaimed 'Best Cook in all of Remnant' - Uncle Clover.’’

Ruby blinks for a few seconds before she laughs in response. “Listen, both are on the same level as the other - actually this reminds me of my 13th birthday,’’ Ruby says happily as she finds herself becoming more distant and lost in thought.

~~~

"Uncle Qrowwww!" Ruby shouts as she jumps onto his arms; he catches and holds her up with ease. "I can't believe I get to spend my birthday with both you and Uncle Clover!" Her eyes sparkle as her legs dangle back and forth mid-air.

"How was the ferry ride from Patch? Hope it wasn't too scary to travel on your own." Qrow questions with a head tilt which only causes Ruby to scoff in response.

"You're talking to a future huntress here, Uncle Qrow - a little boat ride wasn't gonna scare me," Ruby says with a big smirk on her face before she continues "Besides I barely ever get to see you guys these days and no way was I going to spend my birthday alone!"

Qrow chuckles as he affectionately ruffles their hair. "Oz decided to let me have a free weekend. Coincidentally, Mr. Tin Man  felt the same for Clover," he smiles as she jumps back down to the ground.

"Tin man?"

Before Qrow could respond to her inquiry - the front door swings open and another voice is heard. "So, our favourite lil' whirlwind is here already?" Clover says with a smirk as he leans on the doorframe. Ruby lets out a squeal as she zips across the front lawn and practically leaps into her uncle's chest, knocking the man back a couple of feet.

"Uncle Clover, it's been so long!" Ruby cries out as they hug him tightly and Clover smiles warmly down at her. As she drops back down and takes a step back, she can barely contain her excitement, frantically patting her legs. Clover takes a few seconds to recover from the intensity of Ruby's hug, then looks down at her with a proud smile.

"I swear you've grown an inch or two since I last saw ya!" He exclaims with a short gasp - inspecting them closely.

Ruby giggles, "It's actually just my new boots," she explains as she shows them off proudly which causes Clover to whistle into admiration. Ruby pauses for a moment and gestures for their uncle to come closer, the other doing just that, as they stretch up to his ear in a stealthy fashion.

"But if anyone else asks - I finally had my growth spurt." Ruby whispers.

Clover takes a second to process that before he snorts and stands back up, "Your secret is safe with me munchkin." He finishes with a wink and ruffles their hair.  Ruby let's out a playful grunt as she frantically goes to fix her hair back to the way she liked it just as Qrow approaches from behind them.

"I'm gonna pop these bags up to your room, squirt, and then I hafta check on your birthday surprise," Qrow explains as he easily picks up and carries in her assortment of different backpacks and cases. "Why dontcha join your uncle in the kitchen?" He suggests with a smirk towards Clover - who beams brightly in return. Ruby nods enthusiastically and takes hold of Clover's arm.

"Yesss come on Uncle Clover, time's a wastin!" They cry out as they tug Clover in the direction of the kitchen which has her uncle laughing warmly; allowing for his nibling to drag him in the direction she wanted to go.

"We'll see you soon babe - shoot me a text when everything's ready!"  Clover shouts back towards Qrow and the other nods in agreement.

As the duo separated themselves from Qrow - they enter into the kitchen. The whole room was rather neatly kept - totally unlike Ruby’s kitchen at home, which often fell victim to plates and dishes piling up, especially if it was just Ruby and her dad.

On the table in the middle, there was a variety of different baking utensils and ingredients - all neatly sorted and ready to be used. Ruby gasps loudly as they sprint into the room, admiring her surroundings with great excitement.

Clover trails in not far behind the other and chuckles softly, "I was going to have the cake and everything else ready for you, but I remembered how much you love to bake, so I waited to make the cupcakes."  He tells them while watching the young kid take in the sight before them with big eyes.

"Always! Just because it's my birthday doesn't mean I don't want to make badass cupcakes-" Ruby stops herself when she realises what she let slip past her mouth and clears her throat. "Doesn't mean we can't make awesome cupcakes," they correct themself with an innocent smile. Clover rolls his eyes playfully, choosing to ignore that in favour of wanting Ruby to enjoy her birthday.

"Anyways! We should get started - would you like to do the honours?" Clover says as he passes her the bowl of butter and Ruby nods in a dramatic fashion. As she dumps its contents into the mixing bowl before her, her uncle pours some casting sugar in before presenting Ruby with the whisk.

"Use it wisely, young one." Clover says.

Ruby gasps while taking it carefully and nodding, "I won't let you down good sir." She tries to keep up the serious demeanor but she couldn't contain the giggles that were building up deep down. As they begin to whisk the ingredients together, Ruby starts to ponder on a few things.

She was excited beyond belief about spending her birthday with her uncles - it was a rare sight when both of them could attend. But… there were small things that were nagging at Ruby and refusing to let go. Their sudden quietness immediately catches her uncle's attention, who then turns to face her.

“Something on your mind?” Clover asks in a gentle tone - completely surprising Ruby who lets out a tiny yelp. It didn't take her long to recover from that sudden question as Ruby looks down at the mix and sighs.

“I'm happy to be here with both you and uncle Qrow but… It's my first birthday without Yang.” Ruby speaks very quietly as she slows to a halt and their hair falls onto her face - hiding her true expression. Clover watches with soft eyes as he lowers himself down to her level.

"I know how hard it must be with Yang being on that school trip and your dad being busy," Clover starts in a gentle tone while pushing Ruby's fringe back once more, "but trust me when I say you're going to have a great birthday with the most awesome surprise."  He gives her a big smile as the words seem to do the job of cheering her up. Ruby's expression lights back up and they wipe their eyes

"Thank you Uncle Clover," she says with a lopsided smile. Clover laughs as he kisses her forehead and stands back up - the pair returning to their tasks.

"So uncle Clover - a birthday surprise huh?" She asks with a sly smile.

Clover glances down for a moment before chuckling to himself, "You got that right." He doesn’t elaborate further, simply gesturing for her to stop the whisking for a moment. As he adds a small tablespoon of vanilla extract, while Ruby's curiosity reaches an all time high.

"I wonder what it could be - maybe a mega awesome present-"

Clover laughs, "Ruby I know you have long figured out I'm the weak link when it comes to surprises," he says with a side glance down towards the kid.

Ruby giggles. "Yeah I found out when you accidentally told Yang that dad was considering the motorcycle license-"

Clover hushes them with a small laugh, "Which your dad never ever lets me live down."

"But I promised your uncle I wouldn't breathe a word of it - so will a simple reassurance that you will love it suffice?" Clover asks.

Despite the desire to know brewing deep down within Ruby - she understood this was something super important to keep a secret. With a sigh, she finishes her whisking and nods in agreement. Clover pats her on the head

"Not much longer now," he says while taking the bowl away.

"Now remember - 15 minutes in the oven or you'll burn them!" Ruby calls as Clover goes to fill the pre-prepared cupcake pan with the batter.

Clover scoffs,"You're talking to the 'Best Baker in all of Remnant' here Ruby. I ain't about to let these cupcakes burn on my watch!"

After the batch has been fully cooked and decorated, Clover's scroll finally dings on the counter loudly. Ruby's head perks up.

"Is that Qrow telling us everything is ready?!" They ask while frantically patting the table.

Clover laughs, "Let's see." He walks over and picks the device up. After being silent for a few seconds, the man looks back up and smiles. "We have to head out back."

Ruby follows behind her uncle enthusiastically - as he leads them down the hallway.

Excitement was thrumming all throughout Ruby's body as they got closer and closer to their destination. About a dozen different scenarios were rattling around in their head at once - but they just couldn't come to a solid conclusion. Was it a new cape? Maybe they're getting a super cool motorcycle too?! Clover stops before the backdoor and turns to Ruby.

"Close your eyes buddy," he tells her with a big smile. Ruby did exactly as she was told and soon after did they feel Clover gently take their arm and begin to lead her forward.

Ruby could feel the cool breeze of the outside world as they were continued to be led by her uncle - the shuffling of feet could be heard too. After a few seconds, Clover orders her to stop and she does just that.

"Can I open my eyes now?!" They exclaim, growing more impatient by the second.

Clover laughs, "You can now."Ruby's eyes flutter open. After taking a moment to adjust to the sudden sunlight - Ruby focuses her gaze right ahead of her, letting out a huge gasp at the sight before their eyes.

"Happy birthday Ruby!"

Different voices yell in unison, coming noth only from her Uncle Qrow, but also from her dad and sister, standing next to Qrow with huge matching grins. Ruby begins to bounce on the spot before jetting across the grassy garden.

"Oh my gosh!" They yell, tackling all their family in one swift motion, everyone being knocked to the ground by the force of it. Everyone laughs wildly as Yang and Tai embrace Ruby.

"You said you guys couldn't make it!" They say with tears in her eyes and Yang swiftly wipes them away, a soft smile on her face.

"You didn't think I'd miss your big birthday bash, did ya sib?"

Tai nods, "I decided to get off work early and Yang finished up her Huntsfolk Observation Trip quicker than expected." The trio finally stand back up and Tai his head tilts in Qrow's direction before continuing.

"Qrow managed to pull some strings to make sure we were all here," he says with a smirk.

Yang scoffs, "I had to make sure these old timers were doing your birthday right." She gives both Tai and Qrow a smug grin. Tai playfully jabs his daughter in the ribs and Yang snorts in response.

Ruby's face lit up - not sure how to react. Tai's face softens for a moment as he turns back around to pick up an item he dropped when they fell, picking up a small book with a pink bow neatly placed on top of it.

"I wanted you to have this. We all spent the last week getting all the pictures printed and organized." He explains in a quiet tone while placing the book into Ruby's hands.

Ruby stares at it, seeing the words 'Ruby's Birthday' printed on the top stirred emotions deep down. Everyone crowds around them with supportive looks which encourages Ruby to open the book, letting the pages fall open somewhere around the halfway point.

As Ruby looks down at the page, she could see Yang holding their baby self with the help of Tai, her older sister’s eyes wide with wonder.

"Yang insisted that she held you the moment she laid eyes on you," Qrow chuckles fondly.

Yang gives a quick snicker in response, "I just knew how awesome my baby sibling was the moment I saw them," she says while ruffling Ruby's hair and the other pushes her off with a smile.

"What is it with all this hair ruffling today?!" Ruby asks with giggles sprinkled in between words.

As they flip backwards to the previous page, they see two pages of Qrow and Clover holding them as a baby as well.

"Clover of course, had to make a luck pun," Qrow says with a smirk in his husband's direction and the other stuck his tongue out playfully.

"So nothing much has changed between now and then?" Ruby points out which causes everyone else to laugh alongside them. Ruby turns the page further back towards the front of the book, seeing a picture of Tai.

"I remember when your mother went into labour - I quickly ran back into our room to specifically get that shirt," Tai explains with a short laugh, pointing at the red ‘#1 Dad’ shirt in the picture.

Clover scoffs, "You were planning that gag ever since Summer became pregnant too."

Tai waves him off “I’m the embarrassing father - I have an image to maintain!’’ He laughs and Ruby snorts in response  - looking up at her dad with happy eyes. After a moment, Ruby’s attention once again falls back to the book before them - as they flip to the first page of the book and Ruby finds herself growing silent.

Tai looks down at them with sad eyes as he places his hand on her shoulder "She wasn't scared at all when she was pregnant with you - I was more frightened than her." That comment has Ruby look up to her dad with a sad smile as she let him continue.

"She did everything in her power to make sure you were brought into the world safely and surrounded by love," he explains as everyone around them watched on in a wistful way "Your mom loved you so much Ruby. Every moment she spent with you was everything she could've hoped for."

That was what brought on the tears - as Yang and Ruby both found themselves starting to cry. Everyone  then closed in for a group hug. Nobody moved for a few moments, just choosing to instead enjoy each other's presence in total serenity.

"One last thing," Yang says with a smile as she pulls back and taking out a small camera. "Every year me and Ruby take a picture together for their birthday," she explains as she gestures for everyone to squeeze together "And this is the first time we've all been together in a long long time."

Yang places the camera on the nearby picnic table and sets a timer "Everyone says cheese!" She cries out while rushing over just in time as everyone screams out that word excitedly. The camera clicks with a flash and everyone starts to giggle. Qrow gives Ruby a quick pat on the head.

"Now let's dig into some birthday cake, shall we?" He suggests and Ruby gasps loudly.

"Birthday person gets the first slice!" She exclaims as she zips over in a burst of petals.

~~~

“That’s such a sweet story Ruby,’’ Pyrrha says with a warm smile on her face and placing her hands on top of heart in a fond manner. “Would you like to take a picture with all of us?’’

That question easily catches Ruby’s attention as her eyes go wide, “Oh my gosh yes! I’d love nothing more,’’ they say while jumping on the spot and clasping her hands together. “It’ll show off our awesome costumes too. I dont have one good birthday photo in Halloween costumes, and I’ve almost always had a Halloween birthday.’’

Weiss raises an eyebrow “Ruby, you were born on Halloween, every year is a Halloween birthday." Yang hushes Weiss with a playful push.

“You can survive one night without making a sassy remark Ice Queen,’’ she teases which obviously irritates the other but after a moment, Weiss takes in a deep breath and seemingly composes herself.

“Does anyone have a camera then?’’ Weiss asks.

Everyone looks around at each other before shrugging and Nora groans, “Where’s Velvet when ya need her.” . Blake’s head perks up as she takes out her scroll and gestures to it.

“It’s not as traditional, but I think your scroll could work.’’ She says with a small smile.

Yang’s face lights up “Once again - Blake is here with the big brain,’’ she says with a wink which in turn causes Blake’s cheeks to flush red and she looks down at the floor with a tiny smile. Ruby takes out her device and beams brightly.

"Everybody squeeze in - I’m pretty short,’’ she says loudly and everyone begins to crowd in around them, all trying their best to get in level with the camera. With a bit of effort, Ruby manages to hold the scroll as high she possibly could and she gives a big smile.

“Everyone say cheese!’’ She yells and everyone screams that word at the same time.

A flash on the scroll lights up the room before Ruby lowers it down - inspecting the picture that was taken. As they look at the photo, tears begin to well up in their eyes and she sniffles lightly.

Yang glances down with a fond look on her face and pats Ruby lightly on the head, “All good Rubes?’’ Ruby wipes her eyes and nods frantically.

“It’s everything I could’ve hoped for.’’