#I’m short my mate ditched me at pride

[fuckrealityfictionisbetter]

I never know what to do when people seem pissed off with u/happier talking with someone else (at a party/day out) if you stay you know ur third wheeling/holding someone back from having a good time, if you leave they ask why u left and seem confused

[wonderwomanfantasy]

bound by fate

no one wanted this and I already posted today but it is late o’clock and I’m having a small mental break down so here's a soulmate AU

Shinsou x Reader 

word count: 1,200(about)

Warnings: angst, self-doubt, cursing, mentioned bullying (don’t worry sweet fluffy ending because I can’t with sad endings)

Summary: Shinso didn’t want a soul mate, he didn’t deserve one, but his feelings didn’t matter, he’s got a soul mark branded on him just like everyone else.

People call my quirk Villainous too.

Shinsou hated the inky black words that circled his left bicep, his soul mark. Stained on him since birth, before he even knew what his quirk would be. it was supposed to be a source of pride for him, but it only brought him misery. things were bad enough when he was bullied for his quirk, it was so much worse when people picked on him for his soul mate. he hated the fact that you, were stuck with a villainous quirk like him. he wondered if both of you were doomed to be outcasts, because of your quirks but he didn’t like to think about that. 

Ignoring the soul mark and the first words you would say to him, he didn’t like having a soulmate, it made him feel like his whole life was planned out and he had no say in it. Shinsou also didn’t like how he could feel your emotions. he could only feel them if they were strong, but he still didn’t like the foreign feelings of emotions that weren’t his own, he tried his best to suppress his emotions so that you wouldn’t have to deal with his feelings in your head. 

Despite his best efforts, his days were always better when you were happy, and when you were sad, he always wanted to reach out to you. the hairs on his arms stood up as phantom hands ghosted over his body. well your body. he could just feel it. It felt like was intruding on your thoughts and he hated it. He didn’t want a soul mate, and he certainly didn’t want a soulmate with a quirk like his.  

The day he heard back from UA was a Mixed one. you were giddy, absolutely ecstatic, and he couldn’t help but feel excited because of that, but he couldn’t help but be devastated. this was supposed to be the first step to becoming a Top hero, but he couldn’t do that much. hot angry tears rolled down his face which only made him more upset, he was a man for christ's sake he shouldn’t be crying. and to top it all off you could feel every last bit of shame, anger, and sadness. Shinsou didn’t know why he cared so much he never even met you, but he still wanted to impress you. 

His skin prickled as soon as he entered the doors of UA, a sure sign that his soul mate was close by, but he didn’t do anything to try and find you. if you were really his soul mate then wouldn’t fate bring you together? or better yet you would find someone with a heroic quirk who could take care of you. it was funny, he didn’t know you, not really, but he still wanted better for you. 

then the sports festival came and he found himself filled with hope. the whole thing was exhilarating, Proheros were watching him fight, but maybe more importantly, you were watching him. he still held onto the idea that he didn’t want a soulmate, but it was nice to think you were cheering for him.  

his heart flipped in his chest as he entered the ring with Izuku. he was so close to victory he could almost taste it. but of course, he lost, he wondered if you could feel his bitter sadness. if you could, then you would probably know who he was. where you disappointed knowing you had such a familiar for a soulmate? he walked down the hall making his way back to the stands when he felt a tap on his shoulder. 

he whirled around, startled. he had been so wrapped up in his own thoughts he didn’t even hear you coming. for a split second, he didn’t know who you were then he remembered, he had threatened to kick you out of the hero course this morning. You were a girl from 1-A, your fight was up soon so what were you doing chasing after him? 

“People say my quirk is villainous too,” you said in lew of introduction. he froze in place. he would have preferred you kicked him in the gut. “but I think your quirk is amazing, I’d love to see you in the hero course one day, so um just know you have someone cheering for you,” you said blushing. Shinsou felt like he was short-circuiting, he had made a pretty girl, who happened to be his soulmate, blush. somehow. he didn’t know what to say, whatever he said had to be good after all they had been etched into your skin since the day you were born. he almost wanted to check under your sleeve to see what he was supposed to say.

 “I’m sorry I must be bothering you-” no you weren’t bothering him at all, “I should go,” Fuck, Shinso opened his mouth to get you to stay but you had dropped your eyes tot he floor. “but if you wanted we could train with me sometime?” you offered, flicking your eyes up to meet his. he nodded weakly. 

“Great! so tomorrow after school I’ll see you and we’ll spar okay?” you said excitedly, without thinking you grabbed his hand but just as quickly dropped it. 

“Sorry! anyway, I’ll see you tomorrow, I should go get ready for my match,” you said running off. Shinsou still hadn’t said anything to you. his hand burned where you had touched him. 

you almost felt guilty, you had a soul mate after all but you really liked Shinsou. you were also embarrassed, you had talked his ear off then ran off not giving him the chance to say anything. but that meant there still was a chance he was your soul mate and you just didn’t know it. your fingers burned where you had grabbed him as if his skin was made of fire. 

Shinsou couldn’t sleep, he was busy trying to think up quippy one-liners to say to you tomorrow, but he couldn’t think of anything. not that it mattered that much he was completely tongue-tied when he saw you. you weren’t in the baggy PE uniform instead you were in tight yoga pants and a tank top. 

“Hey, Shinsou! glad you came I was worried that you would ditch me,” you giggled. 

“I think you’re my soul mate,” he blurted without thinking. he wanted to crawl into a hole and die. you looked at him wide-eyed and slack-jawed.  

“I- you-what-we- you,” you spluttered your face turning red.  

“Sorry I didn’t say anything yesterday, you just caught me off guard,” he explained sheepishly. 

“Can I see it, your soul mark I mean.” he lifted up his shirt sleeve and showed you the mark. your fingers grazed his skin lightly as you looked at him, mesmerized. 

“wow, it’s really you,” you breathed softly. suddenly Shinsou felt shy, he pulled away. 

“I’m glad it’s you, now I can train with my soul mate and not just some cute guy from general studies.” you laughed it was his turn to blush. 

“You think I’m cute?” he asked. 

“of course I do,” he wanted to kiss you, you wanted to kiss him, he could feel it. but he didn’t lean in,

“nice to finally meet you, Soulmate,”

[kpopisamood]

Queen’s Clan { 18 }

Summary: y/n is plagued by nightmares. She realizes that the more she runs away, the less frequently they haunt her. However, in running away, she’s also running straight into her ultimate demise. Will she be saved in time by those who would lay down their lives for her, even if they don’t know of each other’s existence?

Monsta X/Reader, Human/Vampire(s), Reverse Harem

Warnings: none

Word count: 2.06k

Tag list: @noonaduck @lovinggalaxies @elenaramos1 @girlwith-thecinder-blockgarden @snowythellama @stargazersara @luvthatleader-nim @jooheonbee @vincent-stargogh @perrshian @kurochan3 @imbxckytrash @joonsgotthejuice @mymymywonderland @2ka-tja2 @qween-of-trash @senpai-creampai

***

12 years ago

An incessant pounding rounded on the door, causing him to tear away from one of his servant’s necks. He was about to dive back in, when the pounding resumed and he growled, shoving the meek body away from him and stalking towards the door before throwing it open.

“What.” He ground out.

The two guards’ eyes widened in panic as they took in their master’s appearance. His shirt was tattered and torn across his chest and sleeve, showcasing fresh lacerations that were rapidly healing underneath. Blood dripped from his mouth, staining his perfectly porcelain teeth with a pinkish hue.

Before he lunged for them for interrupting his meal, the other guard spoke. “Sire, it’s Kihyun.”

Those words were enough for him to run past the two in a blur, leaving them in a stupor.

Kihyun was everything to him. If he was hurt or worse, he wouldn’t be able to live with himself.

The lean man stormed into his room, nearly ripping the door off its hinges to see his Clan Mate in shambles on the ground.

Kihyun was worse for wear. He was shaking and in a cold sweat, mumbling miscellaneous phrases and words that made no sort of sense to him but he knew Kihyun saw a bigger picture. He just couldn’t voice it yet.

“Breathe, Ki. Just breathe with me. Come back to me.” He murmured, overtaking the older boy and holding him against his frame.

He listened to his heart racing, slowly coming down to a normal pace while Kihyun took deeper breaths and counted to himself. It would take approximately 1,200 seconds to come down. Or, 20 minutes to others. But he counted each moment just the same. Every single one precious.

Episodes like these were few and far in between, but were taken as seriously as a heart attack and dealt with only by Hyungwon.

But this episode really shook Kihyun. And anything that caused him this much panic, caused Hyungwon panic.

“What did you see?” Hyungwon prodded while leaning on Kihyun’s shoulder.

“We won’t be alone for long.” He sighed against him.

“Oh?” He questioned, inhaling his intoxicating scent and zeroing in on a pulsating vein.

“A lost Queen will join us.” Kihyun closed his eyes before he felt the younger one’s teeth pierce his flesh once more.

***

Hyungwon was relentless. The man sent gifts upon gifts to your new house, which was conveniently closer to his domain than the boys’ house was, entirely unplanned.

Your new nest had three stories and had a homey vibe, complete with a rustic decor that contained exposed ceiling beams in rooms like the living room and bedrooms with stone fireplaces in the dining room and den area. You’d made sure to ask specifically for a deck where you could escape to every so often and you realized the accounts left in your name were still intact even after spending enough for a lifetime. You didn’t want to seem shallow with your newfound wealth, but your Mates reassured you there were far worse divas that nearly went bankrupt to express their extravagant lifestyles and you wanted to put the rest of your money into savings should anything happen.

The gifts Hyungwon sent weren’t huge or expensive, ranging from a simple chocolate chip to a small orchid, but they were rather annoying to your Mates. One, because it got your attention. Two, because a Queen Killer was getting your attention. They tried desperately to get your mind off of whatever Hyungwon wanted from you and their possessive sides were coming out now more than ever.

But you weren’t going to be pushed around.

Hyungwon could send you all the gifts in the world and try and make you join him. Your Mates could try and boss you around and keep you sheltered.

But you were a Queen.

Not just in that, you’re a strong, independent being phrase but an actual Queen. You had your own land and could set your own rules and no one could tell you what to do.

The testosterone was downright annoying and you needed a break from everyone wanting your attention. So, naturally, you called Sonaelina and Astor for a weekend getaway.

***

“You mean, we’re ditching our Clans?” Astor asked, laughing at the idea of it.

“Taking a break.” Sonaelina corrected. “Y/N needs time to just relax and honestly, so do I.”

“You went on vacation with Jaebum last weekend.” Astor pointed out.

“And do you really think I got time to relax with him? I didn’t think so.” Sonaelina huffed.

Their exchange made you laugh and shake your head. The relationship between the two consisted of bickering but it was all love.

“How did you guys get so close?” You asked, taking a sip of your slightly alcoholic juice. You’d taken the offer Sonaelina had given you up and Astor was already here when you arrived. All three of you now sat outside on Sonaelina’s porch, watching the rain and talking about life.

“Astor was around six years old when we met. She was already Awakened a year prior when I came into my own.” Sonaelina explained, mixing her drink around with a straw and sipping it once more. “I was around thirteen and saw this little shit running around and found her infuriating as hell but somehow couldn’t turn her away whenever she needed help.”

“I’m kind of accident prone,” Astor started, looking off into the downpour that enveloped the space outside the covered porch. “When I first Awakened, I terrified the Elders. They didn’t think I could control my affinities and they were...right.” She smiled sadly. All at once, the temperature dropped and the rain turned into ice flurries.

You almost forgot about the powers.

“‘Ria, Louisiana isn’t supposed to get this much ice.” Sonaelina reprimanded softly before a streak of lightning flashes across the sky and the ice flurries turned back into thick drops of rain, pelting the muddy ground once more.

“They tried locking me up. But when you try cornering a child with no known limits on their affinities, it doesn’t end pretty. Sonaelina was the only one who could get close enough with her gifts that I just had to let her in. Ever since, we’ve been family.” Astor chuckled.

“What do you think about Kings?” You asked.

“I don’t.” Sonaelina laughed before sipping her alcohol again. “I’ve got everything I need right here.” She smiled fondly in a daze, thinking of her Clan and her home. She had a real family dynamic going for her and she wasn’t about to turn things upside down for a King.

“We’ve all been approached by Kings who are deteriorating in status, but why would we want to give up everything for them?” Astor nodded along thoughtfully.

“You’d have to give up everything?” You asked.

“Well, yes. Kings are very prideful. They would never allow a Queen to keep her Clan if they somehow got together with her. Has a King approached you lately, Y/N?” Sonaelina asked tentatively.

“Chae Hyungwon has.” You replied hesitantly. Not exactly knowing if this was something you could trust with the two but wanting to be able to depend on them. There was something so authentic about their relationship and it made you want to open up to them. To have friends like them.

“Ah, the Queen Killer.” Astor nodded, taking a slight sip and wincing.

“Has he killed a Queen before? I’ve heard rumors but do you two know if there’s a factual story behind it?”

“His mother was a Queen and she died giving birth to him. But there are other stories. Long story short it’s just, whenever he’s around a Queen they end up dead in some bizarre way that no one can really explain. I honestly think Kihyun has something to do with it; his Clan mate. Kihyun has the gift of sight and I’m sure Hyungwon uses his gifts to his advantage.” Sonaelina answered solemnly.

“Clan mates can have gifts like we can?”

“Erm-speaking of gifts, what are yours Y/N?” Astor interrupted.

The change of topic wasn’t lost to you but if you were to keep these two as friends, you couldn’t push too much. Not yet. “I’m not too sure about my gifts. I didn’t exactly grow up in this life and I’m still a bit hesitant on the whole blood thing let alone powers.” You stated with a slight frown. Would you be in control of fire and lightning like Sonaelina? Or ice like Astor? You hadn’t given much thought to the powers you could possibly have, but now it bothered you that you hadn’t tried to see exactly which kinds you’d have. Surely, as kids, we all tried to see if we were Telekinetic. That if we stared long and hard enough at our light switches across the room, they’d magically flip to the opposite circuit. Wishful thinking at its best.

But now, checking to see what kind of powers you had wasn’t just an imaginative activity. You could actually have some form of powers and all you had to do was check.

“I’ve got an idea.” Astor smirked before hauling you up and nearly ripping your arm off in the process of cackling at your confused stare. Sonaelina shrugged and walked after you two, in no sort of rush.

Astor had pulled you into a double door studio, complete with a whole wall of mirrors to one side. Sonaelina waltzed in not too long after, drink still in hand as she watched Astor set things up with an amused expression.

“Ah, shit. I forgot. Do you want to try and find your power with us? It’s usually an intimate thing you know before you’re Awakened, but we didn’t think to ask!” Astor sputtered.

“We?” Sonaelina chuckled while Astor sent a glare in her direction.

“I guess we could try a couple things, right? It wouldn’t hurt.” You agreed.

Astor had set on three items on a row of pillows on the ground and she gestured you to come sit across from her. On one pillow was a patch of grass. The next one contained a teacup of water and the last had dark rocks with scraps of material surrounding them.

“All you’re gonna do is focus on each one and we see if it reacts. Nothing too strenuous since these are the basics! Usually, Queens have an affinity for at least one of these elements so I thought to just bring these out and test our luck! Try to focus on the embers! They’re just about put out but maybe you can rekindle them?”

You frowned before turning your attention to the rocks on the far right. You kept thinking of fire as you stared down at the rocks, picturing a massive fire or even a quick flick of flame.

No such luck.

“Bummer, maybe you’re a water hoe?” Sonaelina reassured.

“Hey, there’s nothing wrong with being a water hoe!” Astor admonished before letting you focus on the teacup.

Same result. Nada.

You sighed before massaging your temples, getting slightly frustrated.

“Maybe you’re an earth girl? If not, you could always control more complicated elements! Don’t lose hope.” Astor added.

Each element was not to your liking. Or rather, you weren’t to their liking.

Sonaelina was on the ground with you two now and trying to comfort you as best she could while encouraging you to keep trying, but it was futile. You’d had enough. You huffed and rolled your eyes before asking if you could just go back to hanging out and both girls quickly agreed, not wanting to upset their newfound friend.

The moment all three of you left, activity erupted between the elements simultaneously.

The fire sizzled out, the water dried up, and the grass patch was burnt to a crisp.

Please do NOT repost! All rights reserved!

[arrogance-is-my-middlename]

A Little Bit of Competition

Chapter 2: Act Normal

AO3

“Whoever invented humidity owes me their soul,” Adrien grumbled. “France has the decency to at least be comfortable during the summer.”

“You’re whining,” Kagami chided.

“I’m sweating,” Adrien muttered.

Britain was, suffice it to say, not Adrien’s favorite place. For someone who perpetually liked to wear layers, heavy humidity and high temperatures was a combination made personally to torment him, and Adrien was already looking forward to getting back to France. It certainly didn’t help that he missed Ladybug, or that his anxiety at leaving her without a partner to watch her back was clawing him from the inside out. Even Plagg seemed displeased with the situation, a novelty given that Plagg did his best to act like nothing affected him.

Though, Adrien suspected that it was more than just bad weather and distance from Ladybug’s kwami that was irritating the little god. “Magics don’t mix,” was all Plagg would say on the matter, and pushing any further earned Adrien a resentful call for more camembert. At this point, Adrien wasn’t even surprised; getting such trivialities as clarity from Plagg was about as easy as pulling teeth with nothing but a toothpick.

Kagami, on the other hand, was practically bouncing with excitement. Adrien had always known Kagami to pride herself on her diligence and self-discipline, so to see her smiling brightly and almost chattering was a novel experience.

“You must really like London,” Adrien noted, bemused. “I’ve never seen you this bubbly for anything.”

Kagami blushed (That’s new, Adrien thought), and averted her gaze. “S-sorry. I just. I get very… elevated when tournaments come around. It’s one of the few things I feel I can excel at without having to think about every detail of what comes next.”

“Don’t be sorry! It’s cool. Seeing a friend excited is a good thing, right? Besides, it’s kind of cool to see a new side of you. And,” Adrien added with a Cheshire grin, “it gives me something to tease you about back home.”

“You have no right to tease me after I watched you almost drool after Ladybug stopped that one akuma from dropping a pillar on your head a year back,” Kagami deadpanned.

“That was one time!” Adrien protested. “And besides, you promised not to bring that up!”

“Did I? Hmm. I seem to struggle recalling that particular vow. It might be easier if you stopped teasing me,” Kagami replied with a ghost of a smirk.

“You’re evil,” Adrien grumbled.

“I’ll be sure to bring you tissues as you sob over it.”

“Rude.”

Their banter was cut short as D’Argencourt stopped the team in front of the hotel they were staying at, pausing to give them a lecture on discipline and representing France well. Adrien mostly tuned it out, covertly nudging Plagg pieces of cheese instead. A quick glance told him that Kagami was doing her best to pretend to listen, but the slight glaze over her eyes indicated that she was lost in her thoughts. Adrien couldn’t blame her, if they let him, D’Argencourt could lecture them for hours about pretty much anything. Useful for making sneaky getaways to transform, less useful when Adrien desperately wanted the creature comfort of air conditioning.

D'Argencourt eventually finished up, deigning to hand out the room keys. Adrien had taken the initiative and paid for a single room for himself under the guise that his father would demand nothing less. Truthfully, Adrien wanted Plagg to be able to have some freedom to fly around on his own, and if he needed to transform, having a room mate would prove disastrous. Kagami will probably tease me for it, but it’s not like she can talk,Adrien thought. Her parents actually did demand she have her room, and as a result had paid extra for a single. They were the only two who were on the same floor in the Hotel, the rest of the team was directly below them. D’Argencourt wasn’t pleased about the state of affairs, but he hadn’t been the one to shell out the money, so in the end he kept his misgivings (mostly) to himself.

“The tournament begins tomorrow, so be up at 9:00 a.m., sharp!” D’Argencourt announced briskly. “The rest of the night is yours, do not wander too far from the Hotel, and do try not to get into trouble. I will not hesitate to send you on the first train back to Paris!”

“Blah, blah, blah,” Plagg muttered from Adrien’s pocket. “Who would want to wander around his dump of a city anyways?”

“I don’t like the weather either, but London isn’t terrible,” Adrien whispered. “Besides, I’m gonna try to study here, remember?”

“And you will owe me more camembert than you could possibly pay for because of it!”

“One day you’re gonna tell me why it is you hate Britain so much.”

“What’s to tell? Bad magic, worse casters, lots of messes we had to clean up. Standard fare. There’s just a lot of it here.”

“Great. Anything else I should know about?”

“Don’t use Cataclysm on the bridges here. Trust me, you won’t like what happens next,” Plagg warned.

“And I’m guessing you won’t tell me why?”

“See? You do learn!”

Adrien rolled his eyes and pushed his door open. “Well one of us has to be cooperative.”

“You’re really diligent about this kind of thing, huh?”

Adrien grit his teeth, pushing his arm further down his leg slowly. “Stretching… and keeping myself flexible… is kind of… a necessity!” he grunted.

Plagg watched lazily from on top his neatly folded shirts. “The Miraculous gives you extra flexibility, strength, dexterity, the whole package. Why bother with all the extra work? It’s exhausting.”

The blonde slowly transitioned into a different position, keeping his breathing even and praying his hair didn’t come loose from the black headband he wore when working out. Sweat in his eyes really broke him out of his focus. “Look… the more I train… the more of a baseline I have… to work with… right?”

“Riiiight….”

“Which means,” Adrien continued between breaths. “I get more… out of… the ring!”

Plagg hmph’d and lazily blinked. “Having a physical body sounds taxing.”

Adrien cast a critical eye on his kwami. “I’ve… given you pets before… you have a physical body too, don’t you?”

“I’m a concept. An aspect given form. I’m bound to the ring, my consciousness is allowed a form, and I can use that to cloak you in power.” Plagg toyed with a piece of camembert, tossing into the air before swallowing it in one impossible bite. “But my body is only held by my will. It’s why I can phase in and out of things.”

Standing up, Adrien worked out the kinks in his shoulders and slowly brought his breathing and heartrate down to normal. “So why not just ditch the body when you’re about to be found out?”

“When bound to the Jewel, kwamis can only leave their bodies to coat the Chosen in their power. If I phased my body out for longer than a few seconds, you’d be forced into a transformation, and that would really leave you hanging.”

Adrien chuckled. “Yeah, you’ve got a point there. How did you end up in the r-”

A soft knock on his door interrupted Adrien’s question. He shot a look at Plagg, who dutifully dove into Adrien’s bag, before he opened the door. Kagami stood in front of him in a simple t-shirt and jeans with a brochure clutched in her hands. To her credit, she didn’t make a comment or even flick her eyes down at Adrien’s shirtless (And sweaty, Adrien groaned internally) body, instead easily keeping eye contact. He was used to girls his age clearly checking him out, the strange lack of interest reminded Adrien of his makeup artists at shoots. It was comforting to not have to deal with clear, shallow desire from her, but at the same time it was almost disconcerting how easily she ignored his looks. For once, Adrien felt self-conscious about his body.

“I was about to ask if you were free, but I understand if you’re… busy,” Kagami said, mirth sparkling in her eyes.

Adrien blushed, scratching the back of his head nervously. “I was just, erm, stretching. Yoga, flexibility training, that kind of thing. I just finished up actually, I’m free!”

“Flexibility training, of course. Nothing else happening there at all?” Kagami asked, fixing him with a smirk and a mischievous look.

The implication was not lost on the blonde. “I-I swear! Just training. That’s all!” he stammered out, a blush creeping over his cheeks.

Kagami laughed, shaking her head. “You’re way too easy to fluster- “

“Am not!”

“-but I was about to ask if you wanted to come grab some coffee and a bite to eat with me. There’s a few shops down the street, and it doesn’t seem like the best idea to wander into a city I’ve never been into as it’s about to get dark. Besides, you could get out for once.”

The offer was too good to refuse, and it certainly beat spending the night with a snarky Chaos God. “Yeah, I’d love to! Let me shower real quick first though.”

Kagami nodded, waving a hand dismissively. “Go, go, shower. I’ll be in my room. Just drop by when you’re ready.”

Adrien nodded, closing the door. Turning towards Plagg’s hiding spot, he spoke to his kwami again. “You coming with?”

Plagg peaked out. “I hate this city, and I hate the idea of you wandering around it without me even more. I’m coming with. But if there is even onewhiff of magic in the air, you’re cataclysm-ing everything in a mile radius.”

Adrien chuckled. “Seems a bit extreme, doesn’t it?”

“No,” Plagg replied curtly.

Adrien rushed through his shower and tossed on a simple black t shirt and jeans. An odd sense of trepidation was building in his gut, a feeling he promptly ignored as Kagami opened the door with a small smile.

“Your hair is still wet,” she noted.

“Didn’t want to keep you waiting,” Adrien replied with a toothy grin.

Kagami shook her head in good humored exasperation. “You could have taken the time to blow dry your hair, Adrien.”

“Are my chivalrous efforts not appreciated?” Adrien shot back with mock hurt in his voice.

“Chivalry is not dripping on the carpet when you go to meet up with a friend.”

“I am not ‘dripping’!”

“You, Adrien Agreste, are dripping water down the back and could use at least one more rush through a towel.”

“Well excuse me for not keeping you waiting.”

“Oh, how very polite,” Kagami replied dryly while Adrien chuckled.

“I really am. Anyways. What’s this place you’re taking us to?”

“I just know it has positive reviews, good coffee, and is generally quiet at night. That’s really about it,” Kagami admitted.

Adrien nodded. “How’s your English?”

“Good. I don’t struggle, unless there’s a lot of slang. Yours?”

Adrien grimaced. “Passable. My Mandarin is much better.”

Kagami gave him a quizzical look. “How are you confident in Chinese but not English? Most schools don’t even offer that as an option.”

“Father had me studying Mandarin around the same time he enrolled me in fencing. I picked it up really quickly, and I’ve kept up with my lessons till now. I only started seriously studying English once Father let me enroll in school a couple years back, so I’ve been playing a lot of catch-up.”

Kagami frowned. “That’s… inefficient.”

“You’re telling me. He’s always been like that, though,” Adrien sighed. “He likes to insist on some really random hobbies and pastimes, and honestly I’ve never understood why.” His thoughts turned towards the Miraculous spellbook Adrien found so many years ago. After eliminating his father as a possibility for Hawkmoth, Ladybug had stopped investigations into he Agreste household, but Adrien had kept a close eye on his father. He had always wondered if he would try to harness the power of the Miraculous, or just magic in general, but his father was either an incredibly good liar or simply had no interest in doing anything more than read and understand the texts. Adrien had toyed with the idea that perhaps his father had intended to pass on the knowledge to him, but over the years, the safe had never come up in conversation ever again. Even Nathalie refused to speak on it, and Gorilla was… well, Gorilla. His mute bodyguard was certainly intelligent, but conversations, especially regarding his father, were impossible to pull from the hulking man.

“Strange or not, it gives you plenty of conversation pieces,” Kagami said with a tug on his sleeve, pulling Adrien towards the shop. “I mean, think about it. You’re a fantastic fencer, you speak three different languages with a decent proficiency, one of which is not all exactly common in France, and your face is plastered inside a hundred magazines and even more billboards.”

Adrien frowned. “I’m not sure that makes me interesting.”

“You’re not a normal person,” Kagami replied. “I have money and a legacy to uphold, but people outside of fencing circles don’t know my name. Other than my money, I could pass for most people on the street. You people everywhere know. You have wholly unique experiences, and, let’s face it, you’re not a dick about it. Face it Adrien Agreste: you’re interesting.”

The two paused to order coffee, giving Adrien time to mull over Kagami’s words before he responded. They took a seat in the back corner of the café, watching the few stragglers of the night pass through. “I think,” Adrien said finally. “you might be a little wrong on that one.”

Kagami tilted her head, indicating for him to continue.

“Well, think about it. I’m forced into these things. None of them I chose. Father did. Modeling, Chinese lessons, fencing, even basketball- all of those he chose for me. You know what I chose? Skateboarding. Video games. I like movies, and sometimes anime. Fencing I enjoy, but I never would have chosen it for myself. Chinese is cool, but I’ve had to use it maybe once or twice outside of my lessons, and it’s not like I have a cultural attachment to it-“

The corners of Kagami’s lips twitched as she tried not to laugh. “Really? You, not Chinese? I had no idea.”

“But you see where I’m going with this,” Adrien insisted. “People see what I do and think that makes me interesting, someone to be a fan of. Man, I just want friends. I’m not popular at school, I’m famous. There’s a difference. You have to be a person to be interesting, but how can I be that when I’m not allowed my own agency?”

Kagami nodded, sipping her coffee thoughtfully. “That’s fair. I’m sorry I didn’t think about it from that perspective before.”

Adrien shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. I can’t expect you to see every angle.”

“True,” Kagami conceded. “but it’s easy to forget that money and privilege doesn’t always equate a better life.”

Adrien squirmed uncomfortably at that. “I wouldn’t say I have a terrible life. My life is fine. It’s not perfect, but it’s far from bad. Mostly I just wish people took me at face value, not for what they’ve been told I am by my father.”

“Would you say that I do that? Or Nino?”

“Obviously,” Adrien replied.

“Then you can at least say you’re interesting and nice to be around on your own merit,” Kagami said with a satisfied smirk.

Adrien chuckled. “Alright, alright. I’ll give you that.”

The two spent the rest of the night chatting aimlessly, drifting away from the heavier topics of family to easier to digest conversation pieces. Fencing, hobbies, their days, it all seemed to slip by so quickly as Adrien let himself fall into easy conversation with Kagami.

Elsewhere in the city, Gabriel Agreste arrived at his condo in London where he would be spending his nights when Adrien wasn’t competing. A twinge of regret that this was more than a trip to support his son, but if all went well, this would lead into his victory against Chat Noir and Ladybug. Their conflict had lasted too long already, Adrien had lost the chance to have his mother in his life at an early age. Still, late was better than never, and Gabriel was a very resilient and stubborn man. Even if it took decades, Gabriel would not stop the fight to get his wife back. Accomplishing his goal was all that mattered, no price was too steep for that.

“Why have you summoned me, master?”

Gabriel regarded Nooroo calmly. The years of their unnatural and forced bond had taken their toll on the little god. His high-pitched voice lacked the strength it once had, his eyes had lost the spark of resistance and hope that had once shown so brightly. Gabriel wondered if he would ever pay for this particular sin. “How long before you can summon a second akuma, Nooroo? And what will the toll on my transformation be if I have to maintain two at once?”

“A full 24 hours is the minimum before you can send out another butterfly, master. I must recharge at the very least, but maintaining control and connection to two akuma at once can be difficult. If their will is too strong, you will lose your hold over them and they will run rampant as Robostus did.”

“And removing their power?”

“Assuming they don’t turn on you and strike you down, the akuma’s powers should return to you the second you strip the butterfly from them. The amount of akuma you control has no bearing on this, but keeping track on that many emotions can be difficult.”

“How many could your previous masters maintain?” Gabriel asked. Curiosity was always his fatal flaw, even now the chance to learn more was too tempting for Gabriel to pass up.

“It was dependent on the Master. Some could create only a few, maybe 4 or so, with extreme power to rival the Miraculous. Others could mobilize an army of weaker akuma whose wills were easily bent.”

And there’s no way to find out for certain what the extent of my abilities are before I try them, Gabriel mused. Two hours by train to get here. If I find a quiet akuma, I might be able to make it a day before the second akuma is found. It’ll take time before Chat Noir and Ladybug arrive given the distance. I might be able to overwhelm them with raw brute strength in a single attempt if I’m careful. Gabriel allowed himself one glimpse at the picture of his wife he carried before slipping into his transformation. If it meant getting her back, he could accomplish anything.

Switching off his instinct to keep a wary eye on everyone with a particularly bad attitude was proving harder than Adrien thought. When he was at practice, the team was small enough that Adrien didn’t have to expend that much energy at playing the peace keeper for the sake of keeping akumas at bay, but here at tournament? The task was overwhelming. Historically, Hawkmoth had never made an akuma appear outside of Paris. Adrien knew that the likelihood that Hawkmoth was here in London with him was spectacularly low, and that realistically, he didn’t need to look after the people here. 4 years of habit was a hard thing to break however, and it was costing him.

Victory against opponents that should have been easy were near things, his focus was pulled 30 different directions at once. The stress of habit combined with the high-tension environment of competition was almost certainly causing Adrien to go grey. Father looks good going grey in h is 50s, Adrien mused. Maybe I will too at 17.

“Hey!”

A hard tap on his shoulder forced Adrien out of his head. “W-wha-? Oh, Kagami, what’s-“

“You’re off,” Kagami interrupted sharply. “You’re off and I have no idea why.”

Should’ve figured that she would notice. “It’s really nothing. Just not feeling that great is all.”

“You’ve performed better with a head cold so bad that you couldn’t breathe effectively. If something is going on you can ta-“

“It’s nothing!” Adrien insisted. “I promise. I really just need to-“

Adrien never got to explain what exactly it was he had to do, Kagami’s eyes just widened and without warning she tackled him to the ground. The sounds of a hundred tournament bouts had turned to screams of panic and the whoosh of fencing gear flying through the air. Fear and panic permeated the air, but Adrien couldn’t see a thing past Kagami’s hair and her red shoulder jammed against his face. He didn’t need to see to know what was happening though. Paris in the first year of akuma attacks had reacted the same way. Panic, fear, confusion. London of course never got akuma; Hawkmoth wasn’t here to cause that kind of havoc. But a single look at Kagami’s grim but all-too-calm face told Adrien everything he needed to know before he even turned around.

At the epicenter of all the chaos, laughing in a way that after all this time was almost comical was an akuma.

[wingsofanillyrian]

Listen Here Buddy

One sentence summary: Cassian and Rhys visit a training camp, where Cassian makes a bet with a young warrior-in-training.... A/N: This is set after the events of ACOWAR, but it's (mostly) spoiler free! Enjoy :) ------------------------- Rhysand's POV Cassian and I flew over the steppes in the northern Night Court, relishing the crisp mountain air. I glided through the sky, just below the billowing white clouds and watched Cassian bank and dive and twist, clearly enjoying his newly healed wings. I smiled at the sight, glad he was finally back in his element. "Are you done fooling around?" I called, straining to be heard over the wind. "We do have actual tasks to accomplish, you know." He flashed me a toothy grin as he maneuvered next to me. A few pieces of his dark hair had fallen loose from where it was tied back, making him look even more like a mischievous youngling. "For now at least. I can't speak for when I get back to the House of Wind though, with Nesta there-- what?" His grin grew wider at my grimace. "So you can say all you want to about what you do to pleasure your mate, but I can't?" He did have a point, but I didn't give him another chance to gloat. I shot towards the camp far below in attempt to escape the metal image Cas had planted in my head. I touched down near the mess hall, content to observe the Illyrians complete their daily tasks. To my delight, I noted that the females were indeed in the training ring, practicing combat with the males. Feyre would be glad to hear her first visit to this camp had sufficed in scaring wits into it's commander. As I murmured with those who approached, Cassian landed hard behind me, sending a thundering echo throughout the camp. "You scope out the rest of the camp. I'll check in with Jedrick." Cassian merely grunted at me and stalked off to gather information from his own lieutenants. Despite appearing calm on the surface, his glowing blood red siphons calling his bluff. Being in a training camp set us both on edge, but I schooled my features into a mask of bored indifference. I strode towards the heart of the camp, tucking my wings in to close out the chill. Through the open flap in the commander's tent, I spotted Jedrick discussing the day's plans with a small band of his soldiers. His wings rustled uncomfortably as I walked through the doorway. "What can I do for you, High Lord?" He asked, earning a sigh from me. I just wanted to get this visit over with and get back to Velaris. However, it seemed Jedrick had other plans. He smoothed a hand across his close cropped blond hair and straightened. "Had I known you were flying by, I would have made preparations, please excuse the mess-" I held up a hand to stop him. Opposed to most Illyrians, Jedrick was not nearly as full of himself and was a brown-noser to a fault. "I'm just here for an update. I have many more important things to do, so let's make this quick." His usually tan skin paled at the slight insult, but he wisely turned to lead me through his dinky camp. I tuned out most of what he said, only catching snippets here and there. I nodded along and feigned interest when necessary, attempting to hasten my departure. When I finally escaped Jedrick's droning to grab Cassian and ditch, he was nowhere to be seen. I skirted the camp perimeter, hoping he was waiting nearby. Toward the eastern edge of the forest, I spotted a faint tendril of smoke raising toward the sky. Knowing I would find Cassian there, I let the scent of charred game and the sounds of rich laughter guide me to a clearing seperate from the rest. Small, ramshackle shelters built into the side of the steppes sat in a semicircle, centered around a small fire. Younglings huddled on uneven stumps around it, telling stories and roasting their latest meal. I wasn't suprised to find him here, in the bastard's camp. We both harbored soft spots for them; having lived in one ourselves many years ago I spotted Cassian off to the side, where he stood having a heated discussion with a shadowed figure. Probably arguing about some small detail of one of his historic battles. I advanced through the trees, intending to step in if need be.   I cast a glamour over myself to hide any scent or sight, but I was puzzled by Cassian's loud bark of laughter. "Listen here, buddy. I'm the best at hopscotch player. I ruled that game when I was your age. There's no way you could beat me." He crossed his arms as a cocky smirk rose to his lips. As I crept closer to monitor the exchange, I realized Cassian was conversing with a young Illyrian, no more than 11 years old. Black talons gleamed atop his still growing wings, peeking over his shoulders. The boy's shaggy dark hair swished across his forehead as he shook his head. "Yes, when you were my age. That was what, like, a thousand years ago? I think you're a little out of practice," Cas's jaw slackened at the jab, and I pursed my lips. This kid was something else. I had seen grown men tremble on their knees in fear before Cassian, but this young warrior didn't seem phased in the slightest. "What's your name, kid?" He straightened and puffed out his chest. "Konane. My da was an Illyrian warrior. I'll be like him soon." Cassian's eyes gleamed, seeing a sliver of himself in the boy's will. "I challenge you to a game of hopscotch, so we can settle this feud!" Determination shined in Konane's pale blue eyes as he stared the deadly warrior down. Cassian scratched his chin, considering the boy's words. "Alright Konane, let's do it. And I'll tell you what, if you manage to beat me, I'll even give you this." He held out a short silver dagger that glinted in the rays of the sun. Konane eyed the piece with hunger and he flashed Cassian a wicked grin. "It's a deal. But," he countered, "we play the old way." Cassian's brow furrowed in confusion, and he motioned for Konane to continue. "No wings. You have to balance on your own. If your wings flare even the slightest bit, you loose your turn." I leaned against a tree and let out an impressed huff. He was smart, knowing Cas's training made him completely reliant on his wings. "Fine, I can do that. That's fair." Cassian rotated his shoulders as if preparing for a battle. Confidence exuded from the General as he mentally predicted a swift victory. "Your wings aren't fully grown yet anyway, so yeah. I'll play by your rules, and I'll still win!" ---------------- Within the first five minutes, it was clear Konane would give Cassian a run for his money. Indeed, Cas was out of practice, and his wings betrayed him often. They flared instinctively a few inches each time he landed off center, siphons flickering with frustration. Sweat tracked down his brow as he desperately tried to stifle his instincts. Meanwhile, Konane had no trouble at all and never once stumbled. He gave Cas a lazy grin. "Still so confident, General Commander?" Cassian narrowed his eyes at the child before tossing his rock, which landed just inside the '2' square. "Yes," he grumbled, his expression one of complete concentration. ------------------- I stood within the shadows of the treeline for the better part of an hour, watching the two toss stones into the marked spaces and jump the length of the course. I could barely contain my snickering as I witnessed the mighty General of my armies get his ass handed to him by a youngling. Konane was now only one toss and a few hops away from victory. "This your last chance to redeem yourself, Cas," Konane told him, the easy use of the nickname catching him off gurard. He let out a low growl and made his toss. I rose on my toes in anticipation, the rock sailing smoothly through the air. It smacked the ground with a small thunk, and Cassian sank to a knee and groaned. It had missed it's mark, and landed wide outside of the 4 space. I couldn't contain myself any longer. I let my glamour slip as my laughter echoed through the clearing, making both warriors jump at my sudden appearance. "Rhysand," Cassian remarked, straightening his armor as he stood up. "How long have you been standing there?" Oh, he was embarrased. He had a reputation to uphold, after all. My responding smirk told him what he needed to know. Konane, on the other hand, went slack jawed before bowing deeply. "My lord," he marveled, respect coating his voice. "Rise," I told him, dipping my head in acknowledgement. "I'm very impressed that you were able to best my General, Konane. Perhaps I can make room in the ranks for you, eh?" Matching mischievous smiles rose to our faces at Cassian's bewildered expression. "Cas, I believe you made the boy a deal, yes?" He cut a glare in my direction before turning back to the boy. "Here." He grumbled, shoving the sheathed Illyrian blade in the boy's direction. When Konane reached to take his newly won blade, Cas resisted like the four year old he was. Finally, Konane wrestled it free from his grasp, and pride shone brightly in his face. Cassian gave me one last good-natured glare before stalking off. "Don't ever let him live this down," Konane told me as he beamed at Cassian's retreating back. I winked at him. "Oh, don't worry. The first thing I’m doing when I get home is telling Feyre. He'll hear about this for the next thousand years."

[kiatastic]

Fall

The deep exhales of breath released from my nostrils became visible in the crisp, cold air around me. Tree branches hovered over my head as the sun filtered its beaming rays through hues of green, red and yellow leaves. Each step I took was followed by a crunch – the sound of fallen leaves under my feet. As beautiful as fall is, there is also a harsh reality:

When leaves fall, they die.

Similar to the pruning process autumn brings, there were leaves in my own life that had to fall while transitioning from the dorm room to the boardroom – habits, tendencies and character flaws that had to die if I ever wanted to grow. Moving away from Atlanta to start my career began as the loneliest season of my life. At the same time, it brought new opportunity to experience the Lord for myself, allow Him to change me and experience Him in new ways. Andy Mineo said it best in one of my favorite songs: 

“I was so far from home – and everything that I’ve known. But I got grown in that time alone and that faith became my own.”

I was an anxious college-graduate. Ready to leave those awfully flavored 5-hour energy shots behind me in the KSU Sturgis Library. Eager to box my work within the parameters of 8am – 5pm. Prepared for the ultimate corporate office slay! I was also entirely wrong to believe my most challenging years were behind me. In the words of my late grandfather Charles W. Little, "All your life you are a freshman". I was at the top of my game as a college graduate and at the bottom of the largest learning curve of my life – all at the same time.

Before starting my job I was required to make a pit stop at Indiana University for 3 weeks of training sponsored by the Company known as Immersion I. Think of it as an intense boot camp for rookies in Corporate America. I met all 150 of my colleagues in the Digital Technology Leadership Program from around the world including Brazil, France, India and Egypt – and they were truly the brightest minds I’ve ever met. Each morning began with a quiz on previously reviewed material. The remaining hours were spent in C# building our capstone applications – a language I did not learn in school. I seemed to be the only one starting from ground zero. While many of my colleagues could afford to go out at night after class, I expended several hours in my hotel room learning the very basics. 11:00 pm turned into 2:00 am. 2:00 am turned into 4:00 am. 4:00 am turned into resurfaced doubts as I reflected on all I accomplished in college. From being named a top 5 IS student to winning Miss Alpha South – I started wishing I were back at KSU.

Thoughts and feelings from the previous night lingered in my head the following morning as I talked myself into finally putting my feet on the floor… so much for ditching those artificially grape-flavored 5-hour energy shots. While eating breakfast, an email notification appeared on my phone titled “Short Daily Devotion” – a daily email I receive with a short scripture and word of encouragement. The Lord put my thoughts in check with Isaiah 43:18-19:

“Forget about what’s happened; don’t keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new.”

After all the Lord brought me through in college, I had not really learned to trust Him. It was obvious through my desire to retreat back to a season that presented more comfort – but the only place to fully blossom is in the soil the Lord chooses to plant us. That is where His grace and perfect will reside.

I walked back to my hotel room stiff as a board – the Lord had just snatched my entire life with one scripture. I approached my room and heard a voice singing, “You are the Living Word” by Fred Hammond. It was Rachel – another colleague from my Company. I said to myself “she MUST be a believer!” We ended up going out for Endless Wing Monday at a bar that evening. From that moment to this one Rachel has been one of my closest, dearest friends. I never expected to meet a colleague at work who was also a strong Christian. The Lord orchestrated our friendship in the time I needed it most.

Three weeks passed as boot camp came to a close. Aside from earning an A in my first graduate course, my group was awarded for having the best capstone project out of all 150 colleagues in the class. I reflected back on day 1 and remembered how intimidated I was by everyone around me. Since high school, I have always had an unhealthy habit of comparing myself to others. I habitually convinced myself that I was not smart enough, experienced enough or good enough to be among the best. The problem is – there is no win in comparison. When I compare myself to others and come out on top, it breeds pride. When I compare and come out underneath, it produces false humility. Both are wrong. There is absolutely no competition for your seat at God’s table. Only you are eligible for the plans the Lord has for you.

After leaving Indiana, I flew home to get my car and drove to my new home in Jackson, TN. The commute to work was about an hour. I spent my rotation delivering software solutions to bridge gaps in the manufacturing processes on the shop floor. Fresh out of college, I knew absolutely nothing about engineering or manufacturing IT. I had Google pulled up on every phone call to look up all the terms and acronyms I did not understand. I quickly got up to speed by enrolling in free SAP classes and setting up 1x1 meetings with electrical engineers. A typical day included walking the factory floor in goggles, steel-toed boots and earplugs – so much for that ultimate corporate office slay.

Outside of work, I spent most of my weekends alone. Jackson, TN wasn’t exactly overpopulated with young professionals. Solo movie dates and online shopping became regular weekend pleasantries. I needed to get involved with a church ASAP and find some less expensive hobbies. Upon my first visit to a nearby church the pastor told me Jesus Christ was not my savior because I had not been baptized specifically in their congregation. I left in tears – devastated by the twisted approach they taught on the Word of God. I learned that day how important is to know the Word for myself. That evening I went for a walk around my apartment complex saying “Lord, if you don’t lead me directly to a new church home… I think I’d rather attend Bedside Baptist! I cannot risk experiencing that again and I need your help. Show me what to do.”

The next week I was leaving the factory floor when a man named Andre noticed me. He introduced himself and said, “Hey, I’ve seen you around and heard you’re new in Tennessee.” I looked down and noticed a brochure he was holding in his hand. “I would like to invite you to my church, Historic First Baptist”, he continued. Immediately, I remembered my prayer to the Lord. Overwhelming joy took over my countenance as I replied, “You have no idea how crazy this is. I JUST prayed for a church recommendation on Sunday!” I met Andre and his wife at HFBC that Sunday. It was more traditional than I was used to – but Pastor Watson taught on the foundation of the Bible and that was most important to me. There was no time to waste. I joined THAT Sunday. Throughout my time in Tennessee Andre and his wife, Liakita were my God-sent blessings. They encouraged me to take the New Member’s class and introduced me to so many people there. My circle of friends outside of work was birthed at HFBC. They even encouraged me to grow in my relationship with the Lord. Although I wasn’t perfect with daily quiet time, I did my best to set aside Saturday mornings to pray and read my Bible.

One Saturday in particular, I spent my morning watching a sermon on YouTube recommended by my friend Gabby called “Five Keys to Finding Your Soul Mate.” I had my pen and notepad ready – finding bae was a priority on my to-do list. The pastor, Toure Roberts made an altar call for loneliness at the end of the sermon. To my own frustration and disappointment, what I took away from that sermon had nothing to do with finding bae. Instead, the Lord brought an ugly truth in me to light – a void of loneliness.

I never knew I was lonely because I often “talked” to guys I never had any business considering. To fix that the Lord moved me to a place where I had no choice but to “talk” to Him. There were no longer casual movie dates or “good-morning, beautiful” text messages to fill my void. I began to realize that “trying to fill an infinite hole with a finite thing or person only leaves an insatiable appetite that can never be fully and finally satisfied.” Any attempt to fill a God-sized void with selfish pleasures (no matter how harmless they seem) will fail every time. The Holy Spirit showed me that the part of my life I wanted to control was the part He wanted most. I paused the YouTube video while going into one of the most unorthodox cries I have ever had. For the first time I became aware of God’s relentless pursuit of me – and my half-hearted acknowledgement of His love in return.

“… Every man’s emptiness is nothing more than a hunger for God, masked by temporary pleasures. We always want more and more of it, because it will satisfy us less and less – until soon it does not satisfy us at all.”

I had tried several times to surrender my love life (or lack thereof) to the Lord – but never sincerely meant it. I regretfully acknowledge that He had to strip me of all options to win my undivided attention. “For the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a Jealous God (Exodus 34:14).” In complete vulnerability and transparency with Him, His love ushered me into His perfect peace – a need for no one else but Him.

That same evening I received a FaceTime call from my close friend, Drew. Andrew became my go-to Alpha during my time serving as Miss Black & Gold at KSU. However, we became friends through a Bible study group the Lord led me to start during my junior year of college.  After expressing how much he valued our friendship, he shared that night that he had feelings for me he could not quite put his finger on. Immediately, I said in my head “Lord, you’ve got a serious sense of humor. I know I just cried my eyes out about being single – but this is not what I wanted. Drew is my friend! I can’t date him.” Still, I was pleasantly shocked to be pursued (for the first time) by a God-fearing man. I knew Drew personally as a friend for years. I have even tried to hook him up with a friend in the past! I told him I did not know how to feel about it. He assured me that if I did not feel the same way, he would still love me as a friend. Surely this man was from another planet. Never in my life had a man with such humility and Godly love approached me the way he did.

When it was time to wrap up my first rotation in Tennessee, Drew surprised me by driving to Jackson to help pack up my apartment. I told him my company was paying all the expenses for movers to come pack – but he insisted on coming anyway. He stayed in the hotel across the street and never insinuated wanting anything out of me. I became drawn to the sincerity and Godliness of his heart. Although I thought about him often, I knew the Lord was still working on me. I read a book called “Your Knight and Shining Armor” by P.B. Wilson. At the end of it I concluded I was not ready to date anyone – there were parts of me that needed work first. Drew and I remained friends for the next several months.

Two days before my rotation ended, I pitched out my final results from my rotation to several executives and business leaders. I made friends with so many people in the factory – they even brought in home-cooked dishes on my last day! I was thanked personally by the CIO of the business for going to work alone in a factory without any IT colleagues or mentors. It was an a-typical situation for someone new to the Company, but the Lord was my Source through it all.

In Tennessee, I learned that my weaknesses are the best platforms for God to teach me about His power. In Judges 7, the Lord commanded Gideon to slash his army down to 300 men before going into battle. It wasn’t about terrifying Gideon – it was about stripping away anything that could suggest that God was not the reason for his victory. These are win-win scenarios - the Lord is glorified and our faith is strengthened in the process.

As soon as I started to build my network, understand supply chain IT and become comfortable in my new city… it was time to do it all over again. One rotation down - three left to go. I packed the few remaining valuables from my apartment in my Honda accord and headed to my second rotation in Houston, TX. The autumn leaves had fallen, but a new season was on the way. Bundle up – winter is coming.

[inunanna]

Cheaters

My contribution to @inuyasha-valentines!! I hope all of you had an amazing day full of happiness an love.

Summary:  Everyone in the office knew Kagome and Inuyasha were having a not-so-secret affair. They weren't EXACTLY wrong... (Not a cheating fic)

I was inspired to write this thanks to this post. It was so INUKAG that I just had to.

Already up on FF.net and AO3   :D

Before I start let me inform my lovely friends about this @kuddle-cakes @grapefruitwannabe @keichanz @vividxdreaming @purekagome @mustardyellowsunshine @stoatsandweasels @mmhinman @ryupioupiou @vixenfoxpaws @gypsin @meido-zangetsuha @little-known-artist @inukag-4ever @sakurasubinita  (and as always I know I forgot someone here ugh)

This is my gift for all of you! The amazing people that keep this fandom alive!!

Sango saw her work-friend walking towards the building they worked in. She could have been smiling and calling her to go inside with her, but this time it was not possible. Kagome, the cute, sweet, honest and decent woman that had been her desk mate and best friend from work for the last year was now walking beside him.  

Sango’s big chocolate eyes narrowed as she stared at him. He was not the drop-dead gorgeous type. Neither had he the best character or disposition—that she knew from experience. What did Kagome see in him to betray the man she had loved for more than a decade? A man that—before she met HIM—was the center of her life, along with their two sons.

Shaking her head, Sango saw them stop just before reaching the building’s door. After he whispered something into her ear and she giggled, he pulled her to the bush line until they were hidden by the myriad of green leaves. By the look on his face and the blush on her cheeks, Sango knew what they had been doing.

With a slow burning anger in the name of that great husband that Kagome used to talk about all the time before him, Sango kept walking, leaving them behind without a second look.

They caught up to her as she waited for the elevator. Sango could see them from the corner of her eye, standing way too close for regular coworkers, speaking in hushed tones and giving secret smiles... disgusting.

“Sango!” Kagome called her as she found the time to unwrap herself from her little cheating world.

Sango turned and nodded in acknowledgement, not even bothering with a fake smile. Kagome’s beaming smile faded a little as she tilted her head slightly in confusion and after blinking a couple of time she opened her lips to say something.

“Good thing I found you here! I want to formally introduce you...”

Sango sighed relieved as the elevator bell rang and its doors opened, giving her a believable excuse to avoid becoming an acquaintance of that man.

Interrupting her desk-mate’s words with a sober tone, “Sorry, Kagome. I’m running late,” Sango walked towards the open doors, not caring about the pair behind her.

“If she is running late, so are you. Go ahead.” She heard the man saying with his deep voice, in a much gentler tone than what she had heard from him before.

Sango turned around, already in her spot in the elevator to see Kagome peck his cheek before jogging in her direction. Rolling her eyes Sango reached for the button of their floor.

“Don’t forget about Valentine’s. We are ditching them for the night,” the man said with a lopsided smile and an intensity that in other circumstances Sango would have found attractive.

Kagome gave a soft laugh, and as the door closed she shouted, “But not all night! That would be mean!”

With an increasing rage Sango pulled out her phone and pretended to be engrossed in it as the elevator moved, exiting as soon as it was possible.

As she put distance between her and her shameless cheating and maybe-not-for-much-longer friend, Kagome looked at her thinking that maybe Sango was having a very difficult day. She had been having a mood for the last couple of weeks.

-_-_-_-_-

Miroku looked up from his desk as his friend approached their work station. Arching a brow mockingly as the other man almost skipped from joy in his steps.

“You’re looking happy, my friend”.

The other man schooled his features trying to cover that smile and failing miserably.

“Leave me alone, Miroku. I don’t want you to ruin my good mood with your contagious stupidity” he said with knitted brows.

“Alright, just tell me why the good mood?” Miroku asked with a smirk on his face that developed into a full smile when this time his friend blushed before turning his chair and skillfully keeping his face hidden as he spoke.

“Nothing, just that I finally know what to do for Valentine’s”

Resting his head on his hand and looking very amused, Miroku asked, “Yeah? Whachu doing tomorrow?”

Miroku was pleasantly surprised when instead of getting a ‘fuck off, Miroku’ as usual, his friend actually shared.

“I’m gonna try to get out of here a little earlier to buy some kind of romantic shit Kagome loves. Roses, chocolates, balloons, some kind of crap like that to surprise her and take her somewhere cheesy and have alone time there.”

Miroku’s smile disappeared as his friend shared his plans. It was just wrong... what they were doing was low and disgusting even for him. He knew Kagome from accounting, she was married and had children. Just like him. This affair thing they have was getting too serious, and even if he was not exactly a saint, his conscience was not calm knowing what his friend was doing. It was too shameless, and someone was bound to be hurt.

“...I wanted to book a hotel room, but she said she had promised to do something with the twins that night, so my plans are ruined. Damn runts.”

Miroku winced, it was that kind of thing that bothered him. The way his friend spoke about things that broke the vows he had made to his wife without a single ounce of regret, doubt or shame. He did it even with pride.

Ignoring the rest of the explanation he went back to the first days after he had met the guy. He had been a cranky and foul mouthed man that was remarkably good in what he did. A man that only lost his perpetual scowl when he talked about his wife, a wife that he didn’t see a lot because they used to work on opposite schedules, and even if they didn't see each other often they made their time count. And how happy he was to have landed that job to spend more time with her.

Miroku shrugged mentally. Maybe he had not said it with that many words, but he had understood nonetheless. A couple of weeks later he had met  Kagome and his small comments about how much he wanted to come home and see his wife had stopped to slowly be replaced with things like ‘why the fuck is work not done? Kagome is going home before I can see her’ or ‘I’m gonna have dinner with Kagome before going home’.

He had tried to stay away from the situation for the last couple of months, but this was enough. He would have to choose if he wanted his life with his loving wife and his friendship, or this affair, because he was not going to let his friend do something that would undoubtedly bring him pain in the long run.

Miroku cleared his throat trying to get his friend’s attention, but before he could say something  their coworker Kouga walked in gaining a low growl from his friend. Maybe I can tell him later, it  doesn‘t have to be right now, Miroku thought and after hearing them argue and THE vein appear in his friend’s neck, he added, maybe it doesn’t have to be today.

-_-_-_-_-

Inuyasha was waiting inside their car for his wife to walk out of the building. It had been a long and tiresome day.

First a security guard had given him the evil eye as he walked out of the green area, then that freaking amazon that Kagome had befriended—that apparently hated him—had given him the cold shoulder again. This time going as low as to be rude to Kagome to make him mad.

He had tried to be positive and use their plans for the next day as his reason to let the day go as fast as it could, then that stupid wolf had come along just to mess with him and asked about shipments he was expecting, but hadn’t bothered to notify them—the import/export department—about it.

But before the stupid wolf came to sour his day, Inuyasha had enough time to go all soft and mushy with Miroku. That had apparently spooked the guy, because he had not spoken much after that, and he was a chatter machine. The quiet work moments were the only good thing in this day—well that and his lunch with Kagome, he admitted to himself.

Lunch with Kagome was one of the best things he got from this job, besides working with almost the same schedule and going home before sunset almost every day. And they could even take one car to work once or twice a week.

It was a nice change. He may not get all mushy constantly like Kagome, but he did enjoy their time together. Without their children. It was not that he didn't love them or didn't want to spend time with them, but even after twelve years together he loved spending time with his wife.

Even if that made people around them jealous. Inuyasha let out a short growl. He was not going to hide the fact they were a couple. He didn't care that they had shitty lives, or that they didn't have their spouses as close as his was. It didn't matter if they gave them the evil eye when he beelined to Kagome as soon as he stepped into the cafeteria, or when she waited for him in the small waiting room of his floor. Fuck them—he thought just before she showed up, walking—almost jogging—to the car.

After entering the car and giving him a short peck, she put the seatbelt on and turned to him again as he turned the car on.

“I had the strangest conversation with Sango today,” she said frowning.

“What did she do now?” he asked with a disinterested look on his face, even if his ears were turned to her.

“Okay, so after she totally ignored you this morning...”

“I told you she hated me,” he interrupted her and turned his face in her direction, quickly enough to give her a know-it-all face before looking back at the road.

“I don't like you either, when you interrupt me,” she said with a annoyed voice before going into serious mode again “but yeah, she doesn't like you. Anyways....” Kagome put one hand on his thigh before continuing, and even if he loved it when she touched him, this particular gesture meant she wanted him to keep quiet and listen to her story.

“...after she totally ignored me almost all morning, just before lunch time, she finally looks at me and says, ‘You should be more careful about what you do with him, at least when you're at work’.”

Inuyasha bit back his chuckle as Kagome's voice went lower imitating her friend.

“So I suspect I had my WTH face...”

Inuyasha chuckled this time “You can say ‘what the fuck’ when we are alone in the car, Kagome.”

His wife slapped his thigh softly and gave him a bored look, “I know genius, I just don't like it. But shush and let me finish, okay?”

She didn't say anything else until her husband nodded and agreed “Alright I'll shut my damned mouth.”

“Ookaay” she stretched the word, “I didn’t really get why she was saying all that because even if we are not exactly discreet about it, we haven't done anything improper at work.”

“Yet...” Inuyasha whispered wiggling his eyebrows, and that earned another slap and a grumpy look with her blush face, “Alright, alright. I’ll shut up”.

“I told her we will be careful at work.” Kagome shook her head. “I don't know why, but that seemed to get her even angrier and she didn't speak to me again. We were busy after that, but I could tell she was ignoring me.”

She sounded upset about the whole thing and Inuyasha couldn't even fathom a reason why that crazy amazon woman could be mad at his sweet Kagome.

“Maybe she has issues with happy couples”, was all the insight he could provide about the workings of the female mind.

“I dunno, but I'll ask her tomorrow.”

Inuyasha nodded as they parked in front of Kagome’s mom’s house, and even before walking out of the car the heads of their twins were peeking through the window, waving at them.

-_-_-_-_-_-

It was Valentine’s day and Kagome had soon realized her husband was behaving strangely. He was either too quiet, even for him, or snappy. And that meant one of two things, he had forgotten about today—which was unlikely because yesterday he had reminded her about today's plans— or he had gone out of his way and had a surprise for her and was nervous about how she was going to take it. Kagome was pretty sure it was the latter.

That morning they had not crossed paths with Sango on their way in and Kagome was glad. Another clash between those two when he was that nervous was good for no one.

After leaving him at the entrance, close to her elevator before he walked to the side of the building that had the elevator with access to his office, he had walked away grumpily grumbling about stupid made-up holidays. Kagome smiled as his almost twitching back, knowing today was going to be fun. She couldn't wait to see him again.

That is how Kagura found her, staring at him with longing written all over her face.

“Problems in paradise?” the tall woman asked with her usual tone that always confused Kagome because she couldn't pinpoint if she was being attentive or sarcastic. Being Valentine’s day and not wanting to ruin her own mood, Kagome chose to be positive.

“Not really. He always gets this way when he is trying to hide something,” her smile was almost genuine.

Kagura raised a brow “Then he must be in a bad mood constantly... being with you and all”.

Kagome blinked a couple of times confused by the question. “Ahh, well. I hope not, he doesn't have it in him to hide or lie. He’s mostly doing it for me.”

The other woman let out a soft chuckle before starting to walk away. “I'm impressed...” was all she said before turning around, fanning her long hair on Kagome’s face as she retreated.

“What a weird woman,” Kagome mumbled and heard Kagura chuckle again.

“I’m not the only one, darling,” She said without turning and Kagome blushed embarrassed. She had forgotten about her abilities, damn it.

The embarrassment was still there when she found her way to her work station, beside the very quiet Sango.

“Good morning, Sango” She chirped, trying to stay positive again.

Her friend only nodded without even looking up. Kagome mentally shrugged and started to work. Maybe the other woman would talk to her after her anger subsided, for whatever reasons Sango was mad about.

It was lunch time and Kagome was pleasantly surprised to find Inuyasha waiting for her outside her department’s door pacing. His ears found her before he had the time to announce her presence and he rushed to her.

“Kagome, I’m sorry, but I won’t be able to have lunch with you today...” His golden eyes looking everywhere but her face.

Hiding her smile she tried to use a slightly sad voice, “Ouhh, I have been waiting for lunchtime so I could see you, but don’t worry, we can have lunch together tomorrow.” She offered a small smile before tilting her head with curiosity. “But what happened?”

Inuyasha shifted uncomfortable in his place, almost squirming under her innocent eyes.

“I-I need to do some errands...nothing important, something for the twins,” He added when Kagome frowned, trying to think about what kind of errands he had to do. “I don’t need your nosy presence in all of my business, you know?”

His defiant stand lost its strength when Kagome’s expression didn’t change, and she kept staring at him like he was a puzzle she was trying to solve.

“Alright...” She stretched the word, loving how he looked increasingly uncomfortable—and cute, Kagome had to admit.

“I-I’ll walk you to the cafeteria,” Inuyasha offered as he scratched his head nervously.

Kagome nodded and hooked her arm around his, letting him guide her; enjoying it to the fullest as it was something neither of them got the chance to do often. Their departments were on different floors and the cafeteria was right between them, so the usual arrangement was to meet at the their table.

As they took the elevator, it slowly filled with people from different departments. Some of them were acquaintances, some of them were not, but most of them gave them reprimanding looks before turning and showing them their backs with something close to a theatrical gesture.

After the third and fourth person did something along those lines Inuyasha started to glare at them. By the time the sixth person did the routine he had growled out.

“What? Have something to say?”

By the way his upper lip twitched, Kagome knew he was trying not to snarl. Her free hand darted to his chest in a calming manner. Not one of the people present dared to answer the question and as soon as the doors opened, everyone hurried outside.

“I’m getting tired of their judgemental looks,” he whispered with a long low growl.

Kagome’s eyes warmed as she stroked his chest. “Just give them time” she gave him a small smile. “Maybe the attitude is because of something else, not because of our relationship.”

He gave a rumbling sigh before turning and saying goodbye to her with a serious look on his face. As he waited for the doors to close Kagome put her hands around her lips and shouted.

“Do that thing for your family and come back quick for me!”

Inuyasha smirked and nodded. That was enough for her, making a fool of herself in front of her coworkers if he could feel better. The dirty looks were not important, she barely noticed them anymore by the time she finished buying her food, and it didn't exist in her mind any longer as she emptied her tray.

She was too busy thinking about what these mysterious errands could be that he had to do during their lunch break.

When she came back to her office Sango was already there again, and as she had been doing recently, not a word or acknowledgement came from her. It was tough, losing a friend slowly as the desire of the other person to be close disappeared. What were you supposed to do? Nag them to answer you? Ask things multiple times to see if that earned a reply?

It was almost time to go home, just half an hour more and she would have the afternoon to spend with Inuyasha and later with their kids, but that little prick of sadness was still there.

Kagome did not understand how a friendship of almost a year could be destroyed like that, without knowing the reason why. Because there was no doubt anymore, Sango had a problem with her, she behaved normally with everyone except her deskmate. It couldn't be because she had a relationship with a half youkai, right? She was not one of those purist that thought species should not mingle that way, right?

A soft knock from the door and the mention of her name made her look up. It was a delivery man with something that looked like a bouquet. One of her coworkers called her name and she promptly run there, with a big smile on her face.

“So this was the errand.”  She thought as the man checked her name and made her sign the receipt.

The bouquet was beautiful, and very Inuyasha-like. It had a few flowers, red, yellow and blue as she liked them, and twice as much candy and chocolates than flowers.

Kagome giggled as she walked back to her work station. He was planning on enjoying this bouquet with her.

When she placed it on her desk, she realized the base was not part of the arrangement, it had been glued to it. Kagome felt giddy as she opened the package; not only because it was a present, but because Inuyasha was not a person to usually give physical stuff, he preferred to show how important something was for him through his actions—and he was very good at that. So everytime he went out of his way to think about something to give to her, it was something that he had thought out thoroughly.

She gasped when she found a small card tucked in the bouquet. It has always fascinated her how suck a brash man had such a elegant and stylized handwriting. And it meant a lot to her that he had written something because, in his own words “I fuck things up when I talk, I don’t like to give you permanent evidence of my stupid words”.

Her smile became wider as she read the note:

Kagome, I know you love these kind of sappy things.

Even if I’m not very fond of those shi things I liked this gift.

You’re always nagging me about taking a picture so you can see us all day.

So that you will miss us a little less.

So here it is. I hope you like it.

There is a blank space, not because I forgot, but because I know you want one with all of us together.

You know what I feel, just like I do too.

YOUR HUSBAND.

Kagome laughed as she reread the note. It was the kind of sweet thing he would do, saying all sort of endearing things in his own special way. He absolutely loathed taking pictures—of himself or anyone else—which was the reason why she didn’t have pictures on her desk. She could almost see him trying to say everything carefully so she wouldn’t misunderstand. His brows knitted together, probably THE vein making an appearance as the the the note progressed and he disliked the outcome. His blush starting as a light dusting across his nose and cheeks and ending up covering his entire face and neck. His ears flicking one at a time. In one word, cute.

The package was in her hands ready to be opened, when the sound of several malfunctioning chair’s wheels scratching against the floor drew her attention. Raising her eyes, she found Sango’s accusing glare. Kagome was really tired of that stare, and killing her good mood—again—was something she was not going to let it happen.

Before her friend could say whatever she was planning, Kagome beat her to it with a dry and exasperated tone

“I have to ask, what is your problem?” Even Kagome could hear the hidden ‘the fuck’ between ‘what’ and ‘is’. Inuyasha would have been proud of her in that moment, she was sure.

The dignified look on Sango’s face was replaced by one of confusion, and after an elegant scoff she answered, “MY problem? You are seriously asking what MY problem is, Kagome?”

Kagome only nodded.

“MY problem is that I don't recognize you anymore...” Sango let out a long sigh “I've known you for more than a year and I've always thought of you as an honest person, but now I can’t reconcile that with what I’m seeing.” Sango started to get visibly upset, talking faster with each word and even if her volume didn’t go up, her pitch did. “You were not one to speak of yourself too much, but you never held back talking about how much you loved your husband, and your kids. And now! Now you! You spend all your time with him!” When she didn’t see any reaction from Kagome, she suddenly whispered, “Inuyasha...”

“What?” Was the only thing Kagome could utter after the overly emotional and incredibly confusing speech.

“I am worried seeing you wreck your marriage on a whim!”

Kagome left her package on her lap and raised her hands, “W-w-wait, tell me how exactly am I wrecking my marriage by spending time with him?”

Sango huffed exasperated “You need to think about your husband! About everything you got at home!” She pointed at the bouquet and the note on her desk. “Look at what you could lose!”

After a few blinks and a blank stare, the corners of her lips started to twitch upward, and even the cold stare from the person before her couldn’t stop the laugh that bubbled out of her.

“Wait...” she said between chuckles, “you think I’m cheating ON my husband WITH Inuyasha?”

Sango deadpanned at her. “Yeah...”

When Kagome saw the worry that Sango had on her face, she quietly opened the package on her lap and stared at the photoset. It had a picture of Inuyasha, a not a very skilled selfie but adorable nonetheless. Beside him was a picture of the twins, another selfie with the children sitting on their couch, both of them holding the camera and with the cutest focused expression on their little faces, their ears up and alert and their little tongues peeking out, just like their father did. The last picture was of the three of them, with Inuyasha in the center and one kid under each arm. Just like he said in the note, there was a space without a picture, it was actually the biggest one.

Without saying a thing she handed the frame to Sango, whose face reflected the struggle to put everything together. Trying to help, Kagome offered a “My husband sent me that gift.”

After a couple of moments Sango nodded, handed back the frame, and along with an almost-glowing blushed and contrite face she squeaked an “understood” before she went back to her desk on her scratching chair.

As she walked to the door Kagome said to herself, “This is a really good work story.”

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

“Stop squirming,” Miroku said from his desk with his eyes on his coworker, “Time will not go faster the louder you growl to the clock.”

Inuyasha moved his eyes away from the clock just enough to glare at the other man saying, “Fuck off, Miroku”, expecting to see a mocking smirk, but instead a frown and something a little too soft, yet close to a scowl.

Inuyasha raised his chin in Miroku’s direction “What’s with you? No Valentine’s for today?”

Miroku huffed “I have one. And I’m her only date so that’s better than yours, isn’t it?”

There was something in the man’s tone that bothered the hanyou. He was not very good at decoding hidden intentions but he had caught one there, and that had to mean Miroku was exaggerating for him to understand.

“Stop fucking around. I’m not gonna lose my time with you when I can go pick up Kagome.”

The other man’s hand pointed at Inuyasha accusingly, “That is exactly what I meant.” He stood up and walked towards his coworker’s desk before continued “I cannot understand why you are losing your time with someone who has someone else. I know she is really cute, and sexy, and you cannot stop yourself from having a few ideas about her, but I didn’t think you were one of the sharing kind”.

The next things happened too fast for the human to be able to defend himself or even move. One moment he was sitting on the corner of Inuyasha’s desk with the hanyou looking at him with a tilted head in confusion, and the next he was pinned against the wall by the neck with the snarling face of his friend close enough to hear and feel each breath he took, along with the rumbling growl that escaped each time he breathed.

“Don’t. You. Ever. Talk. About. Her. Like. That. Again.”  Inuyasha didn’t blink as he warned Miroku.

Being as smart as he was, the other man didn’t say a word and only raised his hand in surrender as the taller man released him and walked back to his chair without a word.

Only after Inuyasha was comfortably sitting in his chair and far away from his neck he continued, “Sorry...but if you want to keep doing that you should at least be more discreet, my friend. No need to broadcast your relationship. Be respectful.”

Inuyasha did one of those sudden move-then-stop things that always creeped Miroku out before saying, “Fuck that! I won’t hide my wife just because you don’t like it!”.

Miroku had raised one hand when the other man began talking. “But you just—w-wait, what?”

“I don’t care if your eyes burn when you see us, I won’t hide my relationship with her”.

Miroku was baffled. It was a given that Inuyasha was not a gifted speaker, and some times what he said made no sense. He was used to that, but he had said twice that Kagome was his wife.

“I didn’t know she was your wife...” he whispered more to himself than anything else, but either way Inuyasha answered.

“Duh, what else could she be?” After he said it, a tense silence stretched between them “Wait... you thought she was—”

“Your mistress,” Miroku offered when the half demon struggled to find a word that wasn’t offensive to refer to her, even if it was in a hypothetical way.

“What the fuck, Miroku?” Was the last thing Inuyasha said before Miroku rushed to explain his reasoning.

“Hey! You never speak about yourself! I had to piece things together. And first you talked about your wife and your kids, IT TOOK ME ALMOST A MONTH TO KNOW YOU HAVE TWINS!” He shouted before taking air again and continue “And after I saw you and Kagome eating at the cafeteria you never talked about your wife anymore, and you didn’t introduce me to her! So-so I just assumed that you...”

“Were having an affair with a married woman...” This time Inuyasha finished the sentence.

Miroku was the one squirming now. “I talked about my wife because I thought you didn’t know her. I don’t talk about my life, because it’s nobody’s fucking business AND didn’t introduce Kagome that time because you said you knew her...”

By the time Inuyasha finished, the clock signaled the end of his work day and without looking back he took his jacket and walked outside.

When a “sorry” reached his ears Inuyasha only raised his hand and kept walking. ��Stupid moron” he said to himself.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Kagome reached the entrance of the building first, hugging her gifts. It didn’t take long for Inuyasha to find her and her beaming smile.

He opened his lips to ask about the presents when Kagome blurted, “I loved them! Thank you!”

The frown and the bad taste that the conversation with Miroku had left disappeared as the relief of having done something good replaced them. “Good” he said with a smirk as they walked to their car.

As soon as the car’s doors were closed they turned to each other and both said at the same time, "Guess what someone said to me today.”

The end.

Thank you for reading you beautiful people!!!

[dreamscript]

Word for Word (M)

“Less talking. More fucking. Yeah?”

You swore you’d never sleep with him again, but people change. For better or for worse--who cares? Nobody’s trying to commit, anyways.

    ➟ jungkook x reader

    ➟ college/fratboy/fwb au.

    ➟ 3.4k of collegic glory & newly redacted frat names         ↳ tw: smut.

Jeon Jungkook is a fuckboy through and through. If you look through all his social media photos, all you see are countless images of him sandwiched between two girls, his muscular arms wrapped around their shoulders. Two different girls in each picture, never the same. Most of the photos are dark, dimly lit party scenes with the flash in their eyes, but sometimes there are filter-saturated beach pictures in which Jungkook’s shirtless and hugging girls in bikinis.

(Quite frankly, at times you weren’t really sure who to be jealous of: Jungkook or the girls. Both looked really fucking good. But it’s not like you were really Instagram stalking him and actually cared about his pictures or anything. Totally not.)

His friends aren’t any better. Their entire squad is worshipped by a surprisingly large portion of the male population; your guy friends spend way too much time scrolling through the photos, gushing over the girls, gushing over how much they’d like to be Jeon Jungkook, gushing about any of his friends. And the girls think he’s hot (and, okay, so do you). They flirt and tease, show up at his frat; smiling, giggling. They drink, party, fuck around. Come and go. After all, in this generation...

“...having a fuck buddy used to be such a scandalous thing, you know?” your friend says. “But like now, it’s kind of just like ‘oh, you have a fuck buddy? Is he hot? I bet he’s good in bed. That’s so cool.’ It’s kind of like that kinda thing now. Because it’s basically like having a significant other, but with no strings attached.”

You nod and take a sip of your drink. “Yeah. Commitment’s kinda scary, isn’t it? Having to devote so much of your time to just one person--like hell, I don’t even devote that much time to studying so I can graduate!”

Your friend cackles madly and raises her coffee cup in a mock toast. “Preach, oh my god same.” 

You knock your cup against hers and gulp your drink. “Okay, but speaking of classes, I actually should get going. I’ve a presentation later today and I kinda need to prepare. I wrote the entire script last night. And honestly? I’ve been running on some mystery combo of Monster, Red Bull, and who knows what else that my dormie handed me. She’s quiet but super helpful in her own way.”

“Jealous. Mine never leaves the room and is always blasting kpop or something else of the sort. She’s not bad, but I kinda wish I had a dorm mate who would hand me caffeine-packed, heart-attack-inducing energy drinks,” your friend jokes. 

You give her a tight smile. 

“Yeah, alright, fine.” She makes a dismissive gesture. “You going to the ▒▒▒ party tonight?”

“Yeah.” You stand up, gather your things. “D’you know any of the brothers there? I heard it might be a closed party.”

She makes a face. “Really? I was hoping you knew someone.”

“I mean, I do,” you say, slowly. You think of Jungkook, snapback backwards on his head, wearing a tank that shows off his absurdly toned arms. How he holds his cup high up in the air whilst dancing and shoots all the girls smirks and grins. Including you. You’d been avoiding going to the ▒▒▒ house for a while, but the memories seem fresh in your mind--almost tangible. “But I don’t know him well enough. I’d prefer to get turned away than to call him. A pride thing, I guess. We might have to scout out for other open parties just in case, or head to the bars.”

Your friend pouts. “Aw, come on. Well...fine then. I was hoping I wouldn’t have to bring a jacket because you know how gross those places can get, but whatever. Anyways, what’s your deal with him, though? I thought you guys like...were...a thing. A while ago.”

“We had sex once.”

“Yeah. Was it really that bad?”

“Well, let’s just say it was...not the best experience I’ve had in bed.” You’d promised yourself that it wouldn’t happen again because A, he was actually kinda terrible and B, his snobbish compliments to himself-- “God, I’m so hot, feel these abs girl”--during sex became a little annoying. 

You’d thought that someone as good looking as he was would actually know how to seduce someone effectively, but unfortunately all the good looks only made his head big. Freshman you was not that great at choosing who to have sex with, apparently.

“Really? People tell me he’s hot as hell and like, really good.”

You roll your eyes. “Either they were so wasted they didn’t remember anything and just made shit up, or a miracle happened and Jungkook learned how to actually fuck someone right while keeping his narcissistic comments to himself. For the record, I think the first one is a lot more likely.”

Your friend laughs. “Alright, well, get ready to meet him tonight.”

“Ha ha, so excited.” You mutter, taking your leave.

//

Thirty minutes into your class and you’re standing at the front, positioned in front of the podium, with a powerpoint projected behind you.

“Why do people find the ‘bad boy’ trope so appealing? Psychology Today tells us that women may be attracted towards these ‘Dark Triad’--otherwise known as ‘DT’--men due to two factors: sexual selection and sexual conflict,” you say. The next slide has a graph representing a study relating to the theory, which you go on to explain in great detail.

Your gaze flits across the room as you attempt to find a place to focus on: the wall, the chairs, the table, your peer’s faces. Your eyes catch Jungkook’s and he’s smiling wide, a dark grin on his face. It’s probably because he’s enjoying the presentation. A lot. Because it’s about him. And people--especially those like him--love hearing about themselves.

You curse inwardly when you realize that you’re stroking his ego with this presentation. Then again, you figure that there isn’t much more room for his ego to grow any bigger.

“And finally,” you say, moving onto your final slide. “It is important to keep in mind that many of these studies have been conducted with the younger generations, in which short term flings are popular, thus making the concept of play boys even more appealing.”

“Thank you,” your professor says. She jots down something into her notepad and glances around the small, introductory class. “Any questions?”

There are a couple, nothing particularly alarming or that would make you want to shrink in a hole and die because you have no fucking clue what the answer is. Thank god. You catch Jungkook shrugging on his hoodie, the large, lumpy Greek letters flashing under the light of the room. Insufferable.

You think of tonight’s party. You then think of ditching. And then you start to think of your friend’s look of betrayal, jaw hanging open and eyes wide. She’s going to be wearing a cute top and matching skirt. Her makeup’s going to be on point (for once). You feel bad--maybe you shouldn’t ditch, maybe it won’t be all that bad (after all, there were some incredibly hot, decent guys in the frat). 

Jungkook sees you watching and winks.

If it wasn’t for Jungkook and his cocky, fuckboy attitude...

“If that is all, thank you very much,” the professor says. “Next, let’s have Jeong Inseong present…”

//

You pick up the plastic bottle ungraciously, practically dumping the whole thing of cheap vodka into your cup. It’s been a long night. You’ve spent who knows how long on the dance floor, and have managed to finally find your way to the messed up drinks table, somewhat covered in sticky liquid. You tell yourself that it’s all alcohol as you set the half-empty bottle back down, though you know it could very much well be other things. Because you told yourself the sticky shit in the bathroom of your first-ever frat party was alcohol, only to find out that it was actually--

“I had no idea you’d be here.” 

Oh lord, here he is. Jungkook. You roll your eyes and take a sip. 

“Did you have an invite? I heard they were being really strict out there, even to girls. You could’ve told me you wanted to come from the start, you know.”

“It’s fine. Your bouncers started letting in pretty much any girl after 11, anyways. And I only came because of my friend.” Thankfully--or perhaps, unfortunately--the bus had run late, so you and your friend had arrived later than expected. 

“Well, alright then,” he says, running a hand oh-so-casually along your thigh before resting it on your hip. “Also, I didn’t get to tell you this, but that was a nice presentation today.”

You roll your eyes (again) and turn around. “Thanks, Jeon.” 

He smirks. “It had an especially interesting topic. Care to tell me how you came up with it?”

“While reading Pride and Prejudice, actually,” you reply. It’s true, really. You’d been skimming through the book when a question came up in your mind, which was answered by another question, and another and another until finally you ended up with four tabs of cat videos, one tab blaring 2010 pop songs, and another tab containing an old Buzzfeed article about far-fetched reasons as to why narcissism gets you laid.

Jungkook looks slightly taken aback. “Oh? Really? Why were you reading that book?”

“I had to proofread some high schooler’s essay and decided I needed a bit of a refresher to, you know, spot any blatant bullshitting.” You take a sip of your drink and give him a look. “I went from being a comp lit major to a plain old English major since the last time we talked. As a result, I might have to stay an extra semester, so I took up a side job for the extra money.”

“Ah, I see.” He takes another drink from his cup. Even though it’s a plain old, stereotypical red solo cup, the way he sips from it elegantly has you thinking for a brief second that it could be a sophisticated wine glass. It’s kind of a dumb thought so you blame it on the fact that you’re beginning to feel the buzz of alcohol.

“So, Miss ‘plain old’ English major, do you have anything more to say about that presentation? Hm? Maybe something more sexual in nature?”

It’s such a ridiculous way to come onto someone but Jungkook’s a prime example of a person who can bypass all sorts of typically socially awkward situations simply because he looks really attractive. He presses closer to you, and you can’t deny how fucking hot it makes you feel.

“Well, I can tell you that although women may think bad boys and the like are more attractive--comparatively, of course--it doesn’t necessarily mean that they would be more likely to have sex with them.” You bat your lashes at him and feign a bright smile.

He falters slightly but smirks to cover it up. There it is again: getting past the awkward feeling of being sassed with a simple, killer look. “Really? That’s unfortunate.” He leans in close, whispers into your ear. “But maybe we could change up that statistic?”

You make no move to push him off of you as he begins to mouth at the shell of your ear, instead gripping his waist. “Oh please, is this going to be another replay of freshman year? You were a flop back then,” you tease. The way he’s mouthing you right now is making heat pool at the bottom of your stomach. You’re going to make another mistake and you know it, and you’re struggling to decide whether or not you should care.

Jungkook groans. “Freshman year was freshman year. Times have changed. Drastically.”

“What, did you take sex ed? Shit like that doesn’t make you any better at it. Like standardized test prep.” This time, you push him off slightly, enough so you can smirk at his face and throw back your drink. It burns. It’s bitter. But it gives you all the courage you need to face him again. Intoxicated, but not incapacitated. He grips your hips tightly, with both hands, and brings your bodies together again.

“Then let me prove it to you,” he says, and leans to mouth at your neck, your collarbone. “Let me prove it to you that I’ve gotten better.”

If you accept, you’d be conforming right with most of your presentation’s findings, giving into the pride and cockiness and narcissism of Jungkook. And for a second time. And yet, right now, you’ve decided you could care less, as he tilts your chin up to kiss you, hot, wet, sloppy. The alcohol makes you feel loose and frankly you’d like more of it, but maybe not, because, if anything, Jungkook’s more intoxicating.

“Alright, playboy,” you say, reaching to play with the collar of his shirt. “But you better be as good as the rumors say you are.”

He chuckles darkly as he brings you in for another open-mouthed kiss. You trail your lips over his skin and over to his ear--

“Let’s take this into the bedroom, shall we?”

He complies. He always does.

As soon as the door is shut and locked--because nothing’s more embarrassing than being caught having (tipsy) sex by strangers--Jungkook’s mouth is on yours again.

Hot breath, skin to skin; you moan into his mouth. When the two of you break apart there’s a thin trail of saliva that connects your lips, but neither of you could care less, and it’s actually kind of hot…

You grind your hips against him and he groans, pushes you back against the bed, only to struggle with taking off his pants. You giggle, reaching over to help unbuckle his belt, slide his jeans off. Tease with the hem of his boxers. Slide them down, casually, sensually.

“You’re such a tease,” he murmurs, taking off your bra, throwing it aside. You run a thumb over his collarbone as you lay on the mattress in your panties, and your panties only.

“Oh, I’m the tease? You--ah--”

Jungkook’s roughly shoved a finger inside of you, working it in and out. He chuckles darkly and lifts your hips up slightly, sliding your underwear down your legs and tossing it aside. He returns to his ministrations, now using two fingers and making scissoring motions. You moan.

“Want me to eat you out?”

“Only if you can make me come.”

You don’t even have to lift your head to know that he’s smirking. “Oh, I can do that plenty of times, in more ways than one if that’s what you want.” Before you can snark back at him, he slides down between your legs and all of a sudden your mind’s whirling, your head a hazy, lusty mess of pleasure. You can feel his tongue working inside of you and holy shit it feels so good, and then he kisses your clit and sucks it, roughly. You moan.

“You like that, huh, princess?” He licks at your clit as he shoves his fingers back inside you once more, curling his digits and pumping them in and out. You can’t reply, too breathless for words, as you feel the heat burning and twisting and curling and then there’s this overwhelming sense of pleasure that floods your mind as you orgasm, convulsing around his fingers.

He licks you one last time and pulls himself up to you. His mouth glistens obscenely. Panting, you catch your breath.

“Good boy,” you say, voice a bit hoarse. You sit up and smirk. “Now, my turn.”

He grins. “Does this mean--” he strokes his length and you bite your lip as you take in sight the thick girth of his cock, the precome leaking from the head “--you’d like to suck me off?”

“No,” you reply, crawling over to him. You push him onto the sheets and straddle him. “I’m going to ride you.”

“Oh? For some reason I--”

“Shut it, playboy,” you say, hands splayed across his toned chest, and grind teasingly against the tip of his cock. Jungkook groans and presses his head against the pillow. “Less talking, more fucking, yeah?”

“F-uck,” he bites. He brings his hands to your hips, fingers sliding against sweaty skin. Deftly, you push his hands aside and roll your hips, earning another moan. “Ready, Kookie?”

And Jungkook relents, he gives in, resolve crumbling to nothing. He lets you ride him. You, sinking slowly down onto his length, muscles tightening around him. You, letting out sweet, satisfied moans as you adjust around him and then rub at your own nipples. He bucks his hips up involuntarily at the sight, so turned on and overly eager to get his release.

As you pick up the pace--breasts bouncing, movements getting erratic--Jungkook attempts to match it, bringing his hips upwards in motion with yours. As he senses you nearing your edge, he reaches slightly to rub at your clit roughly.

You squeak in surprise at first and the moan, pressing your hands firmly against his chest. “Jungkook...are you close yet?”

He grunts in response. God, he’s close. He’s right at the edge and it feels so fucking great…

“Cum inside of me if you are. Now.”

He doesn’t need anymore prompting before he releases, riding out the orgasm in rhythm to your hips. You cum soon enough, shuddering slightly and muscles squeezing tightly against his cock. Jungkook continues to rub at your clit to help prolong the orgasm.

“F--uck.”

With all the grace you can muster, you tumble off of him, your tipsy, fucked-out mind still buzzing with the warmth of all the pleasure. Jungkook grunts as he wraps an arm around you and tugs the covers up. You whine.

“Kook, I’m hot.”

“I know,” he says. He nips at your ear and you roll your eyes.

“I meant temperature wise.”

“You’ll be fine.” He doesn’t let go, and lets himself easily drift off into sleep. You snort and follow suit.

//

Skin feeling slightly sticky, throat dry, mind hazy, you fumble around in the sheets and groan upon seeing Jungkook’s sleeping face. Right in front of you, mere centimeters away. He lets out a puff of breath from his nostrils and it’s so utterly adorable it kinda makes you mad. You resist the urge to flick his forehead.

He hisses and immediately moves to cover his forehead. Impulse control is poor. Too bad for him that you don’t regret it, though. Probably wouldn’t ever. “Wha’ wassat fer?” he mumbles, voice thick with sleep. You retract your hand and shrug, propping yourself up on the pillow.

“Dunno. Good morning to you, sleeping beauty.” You hop out of the bed and stumble over to where your clothes are, a crumpled mess, flung about the room. One by one you pick them up whilst running a hand through your hair. It’s probably mess right now, just like you. And not a hot one, either.

“That’s right,” Jungkook says, flopping onto his side. “I’m the most beautiful man there is.”

You roll your eyes as you tug on your panties, clip your bra on. “That was sarcasm, dumbass.”

“No, it was the truth,” he murmurs into the pillow. He then turns his head to the side and manages to open his eyes, blinking them slowly as he watches you dress. You snort.

“Yeah right.”

He makes a whining noise and scrunches his nose in an adorable way. Runs a hand through his bedhead--now that’s a hot mess. You turn away to shrug your shirt on. 

“We should continue this.”

You turn and give him a disbelieving look. 

“I’m serious,” he says, propping himself up on the bed. The cover slides down his body, revealing his toned abdomen. “That was literally the best sex I’ve had in so long.”

“And what makes you think that was the best sex for me?” The emphasis on me comes mostly from the added grunt as you attempt to tug your pants up your kind of damp, alcohol-reeking, (frankly) not exactly appealing body (at least, at the moment).

“I--” he stops and turns his head away, embarrassed.

You laugh. “You’ve improved, Jeon.”

He looks at you shyly now. “Thanks? Uh, so…?”

You shrug. “If it’s just sex, that’s fine with me.” You look at him. “After all, commitment’s kinda scary.”

He looks happy, stares at you kind of mindlessly. A bit offsetting but nothing you can’t get used to. “Yeah,” he breathes. “Commitment’s kinda scary.”

a/n: oops i accidentally deleted the content of this fic when i was revamping my blog, so i re-filled it all in with an older version i had, which i edited. i couldn’t find the old gif so i left things as is!! oops

[cyclinginaskirt-uk]

Question: What’s the longest bike ride you’ve ever been on? I’m talking hours spent in the saddle over the course of a day.

Whilst some of the cycle tours I’ve been on have lasted a few weeks or months I realised the longest time I’d actually spent riding was probably 10-11 hours (with appropriate tea and wee breaks of course). That was until last weekend.

The sign up.

It was another one of those optimistic/slightly drunk sporting entries, you know the ‘I’ve-had-a-glass-of wine-or-two’ kind, when you get that inflated sense of confidence whereby you can take on, and win, some of the great sporting feats on the planet.

Of course I can run a marathon, complete an Ironman, grab an Olympic gold, land on the moon…… So, what did I sign up for this time….. Mountain Mayhem – a 24 hour mountain bike race….easy!

Sanity must have kicked in slightly at the last minute because, instead of entering the solo category, I somehow found the sense/bare-faced cheek to talk a friend into entering with me in the mixed pairs section. That was the only drop of reason though.

Happily, this was months before the event and in the intervening time I managed to mostly forget entirely that I’d entered but, as the weeks crept by there was no avoiding it. This was going to happen. Cue lots of panic training rides.

The event

Fast forward a few weeks to Friday 16th June I’m sat in the middle of a Royal field no-less in the wilds of the Wiltshire countryside. It feels bizarrely like a music festival. Hundreds, if not thousands of people had descended on Gatcombe Park, home to Princess Anne and were now partying in her back garden which was awash with tents, BBQ smoke and loud music. The only slight incongruity is the startling number of very expensive looking bikes as far as the eye can see, tethered to cars, racks and in some case actually in the tents themselves.

“Welcome to the 20th and final Mountain Mayhem” the overhead speakers announce. “The world’s first and longest running 24 hours mountain bike race”.

It seems fitting somehow, if not a little disconcerting, that my first race experience will also be their last.

At the campsite I’ve got enough equipment to break a large elephant, my bike already disappeared under a ton of tinned rice pudding, chocolate, bananas and camping gear. I’ve also managed to bring every piece of cycle clothing I own from summer shorts to rain and winter wear, sun cream and snow gloves. I had less stuff going away for a 4 month bike tour than the next 24 hours, where on earth did it all come from?

Friday evening and there’s the opportunity for a practice lap of the course before racing starts at midday on Saturday. I’m torn between being able to practice the route and terrain and not wanting to add an inch of extra mileage to my legs before the main event. Maybe I’ll just look at the first bit…… 2 hours later and we’re back at the campsite sweating, exhausted and for me at least, very perturbed. Of course we ended up riding the whole route, 7.5 miles of some punishing uphill climbs and some tricky, technical descents. It’s about now I’m seriously starting to have doubts, both about my sanity and the ability to complete one lap of the course let alone 24 hours’ worth. Oh crap. Time for a medicinal gin and tonic before bed!

The next morning – race morning –  and the nerves have intensified to a seething mass of eels in my abdomen. My carefully calculated, highly technical race fuelling strategy, of ‘eat anything and everything available’, is being hampered somewhat by my stomach’s refusal to accept any incoming traffic. I struggle to eat a bite of banana which feels like a lead weight going down.

Shortly after, there’s also the opportunity to bless the relative cleanliness and proximity of the porta-loos as my body spitefully expels anything taken on board in the past millennia. 5 loo stops later as we head for the pre-race briefing I swear I’m starting the day on minus calories.

The race rules are simple, one of your team must be out on the course at all times, when you’ve finished your lap pass through the timing gate and hand over the baton (an armband) to your team mate who is waiting in the transition area. Then grab your bike and go go go, ad infinitum for 24 hours.

Simple!

As midday fast approaches the riders, including my teammate (TM), line up under a blazing sun for the Le Mans style start…. This basically means running a lap of the arena before grabbing your bike and heading out at high speed onto the course.

As the starting claxon sounds hundreds of men and women wearing helmets, hydration packs and cycling cleats surge forward into the sun baked arena. As the first wave passes it becomes clear however that not everyone on the course is quite so super-keen. Once the eager beavers have sprinted off the majority of the field, mindful of the long ride ahead, stroll jauntily along the course to the cheers and whoops of spectators.

The front runners though are now mounted and sprinting away; amongst the field are more than a few professional teams and it’s a real buzz to be able to compete alongside them.

Meanwhile, Bob the full sus mountain bike is waiting patiently in the racking area called transition as I hop around nervously, along with our  FTS – fantastic team support (my mate’s brother who stupidly agreed to help out) for the first change over.

Having ridden the route yesterday we had a rough idea of lap times but nothing definite. My stomach still in knots I try forcing electrolyte drink into it between porta-loo pit stops. The sun by now is merciless, on what subsequently turned out to be one of the hottest days of the year. With temperatures nudging 30 degrees centigrade, keeping cool even in the arena was going to be a challenge.

An hour after the start I spot a familiar cyclist tearing down the course – looks like it’s my turn. In to transition I grab the arm band from TM and with a brief ‘good luck’ wrestled Bob from the racking and head out on the course. My (vague) plan is to ride safely and steadily, the mantra of ‘it’s a marathon not a sprint’ playing on a loop in my head, whilst offering up the universal prayer ‘please don’t let me fall off and break anything again’ (sorry mum)!

The course was as tricky as I remembered but it did help having ridden it once. The mostly shaded forest tracks were also a welcome relief from the blazing sun. Each climb however was just as unforgiving and the downhills as hair raising. Panting up the last monster hill before the home stretch however I realised the technical stuff was now behind me, for this lap at least. Even better was the growing camaraderie with the other competitors, people were so friendly, cheering each other on, joking up hills, giving words of encouragement.

Topping the final hill the track then wound through the massive campsite and the supporters really came in to their own, people cheered and whooped, as you rode through the mass of tents. Even more welcome were the kids (and adults) with water pistols, drenching you as you went by which was heavenly in the blistering heat. Small jump ramps had also been dotted around and I was feeling cocky enough to tackle a few, flying along the last grassy stretch before the wooded path to the arena. Re-entering the ring pedalling like a fury under the timing gate I arrived in a sweaty, overheated heap to hand over the arm band to TM. 2 laps down, 2 hours in, 22 more to go!

And so began a pattern. Finish lap, ride the half a mile to the tent, peel off clothes soaked in sweat and hang to dry. Change (mostly back into half dried sweaty stuff), apply buckets of sun cream, grimly try to force down food, brilliantly prepared by FTS, drink, ride half a mile back to arena. Go back on out on the course. The only things that slowed were the handovers where we quickly ditched the flying changes for a 10 minute chat/rest at the end of each lap. Much more sociable.

Evening definitely brought relief from the relentless heat of the sun but it threw up another issue, riding at night. It’s something I’d done quite a bit of last year, pre-accident, but nothing since then and on such a technical course I wasn’t looking forward to it. TM had graciously offered to try and tackle the majority of the night time laps being the more experienced rider but I still had some to do.

At 11pm I headed out for my first double lap in the pitch black. The course at least had become more familiar by then and I was feeling more confident with its twists and turns, however it’s funny how a landscape can change with darkness. There seemed to be far less riders for a start, sometimes I was completely on my own and I tried not to think too much about the strange, dark shapes flitting between the trees. Bats, it must be?!

Settling in I came to the final and trickiest major descent, the surface was so loose on this one that any real braking meant that the bike skidded out of control so the best approach was a full throttle plunge into the trees and a roller coaster of a ride down. This bit always made me nervous, I debated walking it in the dark but pride said otherwise so, with a deep breath, I sucked down my fear and plunged downwards.

Not an ideal time then for my light to run out of battery. With no chance of stopping I was in complete darkness as I careened through the forest, all I could do was hope the trees were where I remembered them to be.

Somehow I made the bottom in one piece and shakily pulling over to switch to my back-up light. Passing through the campsite I stopped off to grab a quick drink from FTS who was still awake before heading on. There was nothing so soul destroying however as passing through the timing gate and not being able to stop. Exhausted, I could only look wistfully at transition before heading out for another lap.

How the solo riders did it I don’t know, although they could stop and sleep, it takes real mental reserves to keep pedalling alone. By now I realised the teams of 4 or 5 had the right idea, enough riding but with a longer break. In 2-person teams, the riding was relentless, the breaks short lived.

By the time I finished the second lap I was at my lowest point mentally and physically, lack of food, sleep, fear and constant adrenalin gnawed away at confidence. Worse still we were only just half way through. It was a huge relief then to hand the baton over with the knowledge that TM would be taking a double lap and I could finally get a little bit of rest.

Hot food and a short sleep worked wonders and 3.30am I’m back in transition for my next lap. I’m also smiling to myself, listening as riders fly in calling for their team mates, only to be met with a deafening silence. Some people it seems have missed their alarm call and are snoozing in tents whilst their tired team mates make irate calls to them regarding whereabouts.

Out again and what a lap this next one is, I feel restored, there’s even a glimmer of dawn on the horizon, the air is cool, the course is far less dusty and riding well, I’m feeling confident again, we can do this.

TM is also feeling rested and takes another double lap. Time for more sleep and food.

6.45 am and the day is glorious, warm (it’s been a warm night) but fresh. A golden post-dawn light bathes the rolling hills and lily ponds. The woods are cool and fragrant and between the trees are glimpses of the royal estate, including Gatcombe house itself. I wonder if I could pop up there for breakfast. Stern noticeboards and an even sterner security details suggest not.

We’re over ¾ of the way through now. We’re going to do it.

The remaining laps roll by, one on, one off. I’d hoped to be the one riding the final lap but timings meant this honour would fall to TM and well deserved after taking those night time double stints.

10.55am and I’m heading out on Bob for the final time. Tired but energised.  I’d gradually been walking more and more of the big hills as the event wore on, often at a quicker pace than those riding and a good efficiency saving. I try riding a few more this time, after all it’s our final lap. Some great banter and encouragement from all the competitors now who are even noticing my change of skirts. We’re de-mob happy, the end is in sight. I tick off the uphills and their subsequent tricky downs, counting them down by the names over which I’ve had 24 hours to christen them:

Fun big bomb hole down; bast**d grassy climb.

Fun Loamy berm bit; long bast**d stony uphill.

Slippery rooty down; beautiful lake single track, evil climb from hell

No light, supersonic, final downhill.

And that’s it, the last technical descent done all that remains is the long hot slog up to the campsite. Even then I don’t mind, I’m savouring every bit of this final lap and, as I crest the last hill to the shouts and cheers of the spectators, in my head I’m leading the home straight at the world cup. Flying down the grassy track, over the jump ramps, skirt fluttering in the breeze, through the woods and into the arena. My family are there now too as are TM and FTS, my legs are full of adrenalin and pumping like mad. We fly around the last corner and through the timing arch, hand over the baton and…. That’s it.

I’m done and I’ve done it. The adrenalin ebbs, I can’t believe I made it through a whole day and night. A quick wash and change and I’m back to cheer TM over the line at exactly 12.00, 24 hours after we started, riding through intense heat, darkness, spectacular sunsets and sunrises. Through an entire wardrobe of cycle clothing and way too many cans of rice pudding to even contemplate.

The final results, whilst not important to us per se, put us squarely in 4th place in the mixed pairs category. Team ‘Bike and the Mechanics’ clocking up a respectable 22 laps (10 by me, 12 by TM) not bad considering some of the calibre of riders out there.

For me that’s approximately 75 miles of off-road riding plus another 5miles or so commuting to the tent. Trust me it counts.

Celebration is a quiet affair. Half a pint of beer each and we’re rapidly sliding towards comatose but with a huge sense of satisfaction and achievement. Going into this I had no idea if I could make the distance, although determined to do it, short of being carried off the course, it was an unknown quantity in terms of physical and mental endurance. Underlying it is that fact that I still consider myself lucky to be here too. With most of last year written off through injury, even during the hardest hours I wouldn’t have swapped the experience, or the chance to tackle it, for anything.

There was a certain sadness in the air too at the last running of this iconic event (in this format at least) but it was truly a joy to be a part of, brilliantly organised and well honed. As ever though it was the people that made the whole event truly great, from those little jokes and conversations with other riders, the kind words from the spectators and most especially the support from FTS (aka Tim) and TM (aka Andy). Great job guys, I would say see you same time next year but…..

*Lezyne photo credit to Rob Crayton, courtesy of Mounatn Mayhem.

Toughness is in the soul and spirit, not in muscles. Alex Karras Question: What’s the longest bike ride you’ve ever been on? I’m talking hours spent in the saddle over the course of a day.