#Join Me in making masquerade outfits

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

sorry im coping with aus again oopsie daisy. anyway here's my take on a fantasy au

it all started with me rewatching the D&D movie and thinking "hm. what (broad) classes would the neighbors have?"

and after much thinking i came to the conclusion: Barnaby = Bard / Eddie = Paladin / Sally = Sorcerer / Julie = fighter / Frank = monk / Howdy = Artificer / Poppy = Healer / Wally = 'Wizard'

those seem fitting! BUT i don't like restrictions or rules so in this very light worldbuilding for a casual (strongly glaring at myself here) CASUAL au, it's only dnd-esque. not actually dnd yk yk

in my head, they're not technically puppets for this au. they're flesh and blood, they've got bones, etc. they're actual Creatures, though they still look like Them! Julie's still pink w/ candy-corn-horns! Frank is still a gray tube! Barnaby is a big blue dog! they're just... not puppets. it's the same for the other beings in this fantasy world - they all keep the style, but they're all flesh n' blood if that makes sense. a cartoony fantasy world

so they have their little found family adventuring group titled, of course, The Neighborhood. because when they were first forming, Wally went "oh! are we a neighborhood? i've always wanted neighbors!" and it Stuck. so they all lovingly refer to each other as neighbors, even though the closest they get to being actual neighbors is pitching their tents next to each other & staying at an Inn in neighboring rooms

like your classic group of adventurers, they're almost constantly on the move. the longest they stay in one place is a couple of months - the rest of the time they're wandering! they take quests, get roped into general Shenanigans, etc. they adventure! and get into a lot of battles of varying severity

so Barnaby is still kiiiiind of a bard? best i can describe him is jack-of-all-trades moral support! he provides battle music, keeps the mood light, and stands off to the side to offer quips and tips. he prefers not to fight, and only Gets Involved when the others need Backup. even then, he usually takes the role of defending his neighbors. he has a good eye for whether or not physical support is needed - he never needs to be asked when there's a legitimate need for him! unless he's thoroughly distracted from the goings-on. he does have magic, but it's more for show / defense-based

Eddie's still pretty classically a paladin. healing powers, armor, there to be on the front lines and Protect! the group's sword and shield! he technically serves a god but he forgot who <3 he just makes the occasional general offering and mumbles some vague prayer. he's super friendly! super helpful! super willing to dive into the line of fire! Will disregard his own safety without a second thought! his magic is pretty much restricted to healing, and it's weak healing at that (maybe because he can't properly serve his god...), so it's mostly good for quick mid-battle heals and little wounds. temporary fixes!

Sally has innate fire/light magic, and she's very showy with it! she puts Flair and Pizazz into all of her casts and is very dramatic on the battlefield - she manages to turn her fights into a performance. She tag-teams keeping the Neighborhood entertained with Barnaby. he handles the humor/lightheartedness, she handles the escapism/encouragement. she writes scripts & stories in her off-time, and often reads them (or spins a new one) after dinner. when they have weeks / month breaks in one spot, sometimes she'll recruit local thespians to create a play

Frank is all about that hand-to-hand combat babey! he wants to feel bones break under his fists! he wants those split knuckles! he very often starts fights, and even more often finishes them - what he lacks in raw power he makes up for in vicious tenacity. he just Keeps On Going! he seconds as the group's Knowledge Guy. while his hobby is studying insects, he also catalogues/studies monsters and enemies and terrain so that the Neighborhood can always be prepared. the only time he stays out of fights is when he's researching or note-taking. he tries to micromanage the battle from afar anyway

Julie is like... put a druid, a fighter, and a barbarian in a blender. she's got a big sword! she's got seemingly endless energy in battle! she can talk to plants, especially flowers! her flora magic is very minor, so it's not like she's making giant roots burst out of the ground and strangle people. but plants can give her information, and if she asks nicely and they feel like it, sometimes they'll help her out. in battle she's a force to be reckoned with! nothing will stop her and her sword! she's usually the second (closely following Frank, with Eddie hot on her heels) Neighbor charging into battle - but she's the one with the stellar war cry! & where Sally and Barnaby tend to the Neighborhood's emotional wellbeing & entertainment, Julie keeps things fresh with Physical Activities during their downtime!

Poppy is a powerful healer! she draws on an individual's energy (often taps into her own as well) to convert it into healing power. it's draining but it's damn good healing! she also takes the role of the Neighborhood's cook (the others still like to help, especially Frank who is essentially her sous-chef) and makes sure they're all healthy. she hangs back during battles, waiting to (and hoping that she doesn't have to) heal a wounded Neighbor. if one of them is badly hit, she forces herself to run into battle and drag them to safety before working on their injury. she has a tiny bit of illusion magic, which she'll cast from afar to assist her Neighbors. she tries not to use it outside of emergencies - it takes a lot of energy, which she tries to conserve just in case.

Howdy has Zero Magic! none! four hands and none of them are magical! however, he's a damn good inventor & a whiz at potion making. he can Use magical items like there's no tomorrow - he just can't wield it himself. he supplies the group with potions, helpful items, all sorts of goodies - given that they can trade for it with anything he'd accept in-canon. the only exception is when they're mid-battle - he hands stuff out when needed without haggle. he supplies the group with their cash when they're not getting it from looting/quests - he has a magic backpack that can unfold into a fully-stocked merchant stall! he sells at towns, on the road, anywhere he can! In battle he hangs back with Poppy and, yes, supplies items, but he also uses ranged attacks - magical weapons that cast for him, magic 'bombs', that sort of thing! but there's a little secret - he's the Neighborhood's secret weapon. he invented fantasy guns! four magic revolvers that, when the 'second safety' is turned off, multiply into a giant clusterfuck of guns (with ammo ranging from magic 'bullets' to essentially rocket launchers). unfortunately he can only use this setting once & for a limited time before the guns overload & have to be manually repaired. so he either uses them off of the first safety (i.e, they're 'normal'), or not at all. you know shit is Really hitting the fan when he joins a fight

and Wally! Wally Wally Wally... you may have noticed that i put his class 'wizard' in quotes. that's because he says he's a wizard, but he's not! he just says he's one due to the automatic stigma and fear of what he really is - a Warlock! his patron is Home, an eldritch horror that many would classify as a demon. they have a very special, codependent pact that neither of them can live without - Wally wears their 'seal' as a house-shaped pendant on a choker (necklace) hidden under his clothes. Home is extraordinarily powerful, but Wally barely taps into that power. he has a grimoire that Home inscribed with a bunch of sigils that convert into spells when drawn & then cast in the air. the only other powers he uses are seeing-in-the-dark, seeing-magic, and opening teleportation doors! Wally can't sleep, but he can doze - though he's never fully unaware of his surroundings (its kind of like how dolphins only sleep with one half of their brain). he still eats with his eyes, which both feeds him & acts as a form of providing daily energy to Home, since Home can't exactly consume souls every day. If Wally uses too much magic, he has to rest inside of Home's house-form, which is the only time he actually fully sleeps. no one knows about Home, or that Wally is lying about his wizard status.

Home is a lovecraftian being with three forms. the first is the lowest power level - a cute one-room house with Eyes! i.e: Home Classic! Wally's pendant unfolds into it, and it's the main way Wally and Home physically interact & communicate. the second is possession - if Wally explicitly allows it, Home can completely take over his body and kind of 'tuck him away' to have a nice deep nap while Home takes the reins (Home can technically force this, but it's very difficult and would not go over well w/ Wally - it would also be an unstable possession). the third is Home's true form - a massive shadowy eldritch monster made of writhing darkness and nightmares that no one in their right mind would look at, let alone fight. Home has very complicated feelings about Wally & the Neighborhood. they are also, quite literally, Wally's heart - which is part of their pact.

i have some scene ideas & little Plot Concepts (most notably the times the Neighborhood learns two Very Big Secrets about Wally, one of which being the warlock/Home reveal).

but yeah that's moooostly it. basic stuff yk, not very in depth! just fun things to feed my maladaptive daydreaming & escapism

[loveisanimaginarydagger3000]

Kinktober- (19)- Masks

Natasha X Reader 18+

Summary: Natasha convinces you to meet her in the bathroom during a Halloween party

Warnings/Tags: Dirty Talk, Semi-Public Sex, Risky Sex, Dom Natasha/Sub Reader, Fingering, Strap-ons, Halloween Party

Kinktober Masterlist

Securing your white mask, you walked into the party Tony was hosting, the theme being Halloween but with the rule that you must wear a mask. Most people wore masquerade style masks, their outfits fitting into the theme as they deemed other masks too childish and so on, the others wearing the extravagant and crazy masks for children. Your eyes scanned the room for a certain redhead, her fiery red locks nowhere to be seen.

After an hour or so, you were on the dancefloor, body swaying to the music as others joined you, a few a little tipsy. Soon, a body pressed into your back, her perfume invading your senses while her arms wrapped around your waist, pulling you flush against her. A large bulge could be felt as you shifted your hips against hers, a low groan leaving you at the idea of her wearing a strap on under her outfit.

“Want to make a deal with the Devil?” she purrs out, voice sultry in your ear as you tilt your head back to see her, green eyes trying to lure you into her trap. You smiled at her outfit, a red lace masquerade mask over her eyes, devil horns peeking out of her red locks and a crimson dress that was sinfully short hugging her body.

“Now that wouldn’t be very angelic of me,” you whisper back, her eyes racking over your outfit. White and gold covered your body, the white robe you wore teasingly showing off your breasts, a slit on your thigh to expose more skin. “I won’t be tempted by such evil,” you tease, grinning at her while her eyes darken as they continue to take your outfit in.

“Are you sure Dorogaya?” she hums out mouth moving to your neck as she places a hot open-mouthed kiss along the skin. “I’m sure I could tempt you,” her hands pull you against her body, grinding you against the strap on she was wearing.

“And how would you do that?” her hands drift to your front, lowering until her nails scratch against the bare skin on your thigh, moving dangerously close to your core.

“I have a few ideas in mind,” you could feel her smirking against your neck as she hears the small whimper that escaped you, “But first, you need to make the deal with me.”

“What’s the deal?” you sigh out when she grinds into you, the people nearby unaware of what was going on.

“Meet me in the bathroom in five minutes and I’ll make you come so hard around my cock,” at her dirty words, you groan, the idea of her taking you in the bathroom, pounding into you where anyone could walk in, ignites a heat between your legs. With that said, she walks off, you turning back to see her wink at you before strolling towards the bathroom.

Exactly five minutes later, you cautiously open the door to the bathroom, a smile taking over your face when you see her leaning against the sink. Her soft smile soon turns predatory as she stalks towards you, your face flushing under her intense gaze.

“Good girl,” she praises in a husky tone, her fingers gripping your jaw and tilting your head up to look at her, Natasha lowering her face till her lips ghosted yours. “I thought you wouldn’t be tempted by such evil,” she mocks your earlier words, her body still moving, making you step backwards until you hit the wall.

“I had a change of heart,” she chuckles lowly at your words, mouth mere millimetres away from yours now.

“I bet you did,” she mutters out, crashing her lips to your making you moan at how hungry and desperate it was. Her tongue swipes over your bottom lip, seeking entrance that you're willing to give, letting her have complete control over you. Her hands drift down your body swiftly, not wasting any time as you don’t want to get caught, fingers brushing over your clit through your panties. “You’re dripping Dorogaya,” she whispers against your lips in between messy kisses.

“Please,” you whimper out when she slides your panties to the side, fingers running through the abundance of arousal that's gathered between your legs before sliding into your entrance effortlessly. Natasha moans into the kiss at how you clench around her slender digits every time they hit your velvety walls, a broken moan escaping you when she hits your weak spot. “I need your cock,” you groan, pulling back from the kiss and letting your head rest against the tiled wall, her mouth attacking your neck instead.

“I got to get you ready for me first,” she murmurs, teeth scraping the column of your throat sending a shiver down your spine. You can feel her thrusting her fingers into you faster now, curling them beautifully inside you, moans freely tumbling out of your mouth until she presses her free hand over it, muffling the sinful noises. When she deems you’re stretched out enough, she spins you around, your hands flat on the wall as she lines herself up with your soaked entrance.

“I’m not going to be gentle Dorogaya,” is the last thing she rasps out to you before thrusting the whole toy in, a guttural moan being ripped from the back of your throat, pleasure washing through your body. One hand grips your hips as she pulls out so only the tip remains inside you before slamming her hips into you. The sound of skin slapping echoes around the room as she pounds into you from behind, her hand still clamped over your mouth as you practically scream against it. You can feel the toy hitting all your weak spots, your mind clouding with pleasure and euphoria as she fucks you into submission.

“Harder,” you moan out loud enough for her to hear even with her hand over your mouth, her hips snapping into you with more force, your body moving forward with each powerful thrust.

“Fuck, you’re such a slut for me,” she groans out, the hand on your hips moving down to spank your ass, you groan against her palm. “You’re my slut, aren’t you?” You nod your head fervently, a muffled ‘Yes’ echoing around the room. “Are you going to come?” she pants out, finding it harder to thrust into you as you’re clenching around her so much.

“Yes, please let me come,” you moan out, her hand moving her s brief moment before covering your mouth when your body tenses, pussy spasming around her as your orgasm rips through you. Your scream is muffled, legs shaking as she fucks you through your orgasm, letting you ride out your high before pulling out, you whimper in response at feeling so empty.

“Fuck,” you sigh out, turning around and leaning against the wall as you feel your legs tremble and shake, her chuckling at your unsteadiness as she tucks the strap on away so that it won’t show through her dress.

“What’s wrong Dorogaya?” she teases, pressing you further into the wall and supporting your body.

“Don’t,” you grumble at her taunting words, moving your head and pressing a few kisses at the skin.

“Don’t what? Gloat about the fact that I fucked you so hard you can’t stand?” Her words make you flush, an embarrassed noise leaving you.

“Nat-”

“Oh my god guys, get a room,” Carol and Valkyrie comment while walking into the bathroom, seeing Natasha pinning you to the wall and thinking you're just about to fuck. You let out another embarrassed noise, this time the other three women laughing at your flustered and awkward state.

“Come on Dorogaya,” is all Natasha says, ignoring the lewd gestures and teasing comments coming from the others, and guiding you out of the room with one destination on her mind.

Tonight was definitely far from over…

[jakevwebber]

we know better - rigel wilde x fem reader

october 22nd

halloween party

tonight was the halloween party this was the biggest party of the year , everybody enjoyed halloween over any season so we always went out for this party.

only tonight the year above us were coming meaning 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙚𝙡 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙙𝙚 would be there , to sum up about rigel he never dated anybody ever always kept to himself but i began to 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 him the more i saw him around school and decided to let him know that so when he finally realised he decided to keep us a secret .

we aren’t dating nor do we have feelings for each other we just like to fuck on the odd occasion nobody knows right now except for us and it will hopefully be kept that way.

but he’s the year above and we have never been near each other like this outside of school infront of people so hopefully both of us can contain ourselves otherwise the secrets out when we know better.

7:46 pm

i finished getting ready putting on my red lipstick smudging the corner a little bit grabbing my jacket a bat and my bag with random bits.

i called an uber and sat on my front porch waiting for the uber to arrive , while waiting i went on my going onto snapchat snapping all my friends back a picture of me posing .

my best friend fiorélla messaged me asking how long i was going to be and what my outfit turned out like so i messaged back saying i’d be around 20 minutes and then sent her a snap.

my uber finally pulled up and i got inside closing the door and the man set off.

8:11pm

fiorélla was waiting for me on the sidewalk of the house , i got out the uber going up to her hugging her and giving her a kiss telling her how sexy she looked she returned the favour

we walked inside and the music was incredibly loud loads of people dancing by themselves or on each other and drinks in their hand , firoélla was holding my hand to drag me through the crowd to get to the kitchen .

we got to the kitchen i grabbed a red cup for me and her fi added vodka to our cups and i added red bull as a mixer and fi added coca cola.

“have you spotted fuck face yet?” fi asks

my heart dropped

“w-what?”

“fuck face ?” she looks at me confused

my heart gains consciousness again

“ohhhh stella no no i haven’t thank god i don’t want to” i laugh

“who did you think i was on about”

“idk that’s why i was confused”

she nodded and kissed my cheek and walked into the dining room after spotting her boyfriend zacheyo .

i continued finishing my drink and then pouring myself another and walking into the main room where everybody was dancing.

i joined in with the dancing after spotting my two friends vico and aria , whole i was dancing and moving around the round i made eye contact with rigel i didn’t even know he was here yet

i paused for a second then carried on dancing making sure nobody notices i didn’t see directly but i could feel him just staring at me .

i walked away from the dancing to get another drink i walked the other way so i didn’t have to walk past him but he obviously followed me and ended up standing infront of me with the counter in the way.

i got the vodka and cranberry mixing it together and then finally looking at him while i take a sip

then i realise what he’s wearing .

he’s gone as the joker and i’m harley this can’t be a coincidence no way

“how did u know i was harley” i asked

“i didn’t” he said with a smirk

“you must have heard me talk about it because why would u come as joker you don’t even like dressing up unless it’s a masquerade ball we’re it’s only a mask”

“i love that you know so much about me” he smiled

“i’m really not trying to make this obvious because your the one that would get backlash for being with me or fucking me so if you don’t want anybody to know shut up and stop” i say

he walked round the counter to stand closer to me “i don’t really care anymore , i’d been thinking about it and i don’t care”

i looked up at him in shock

“what?” i did a small shocked giggle

“you heard me” he smirked

10:26pm

i was so drunk it was unbelievable fi went home with her boyfriend because she wasn’t well and made sure aria would take me home so i was safe even tho i was gonna be safe either way.

the whole night rigel would go back and forth from the sofa to the kitchen to then dancing with me , to be honest i don’t think anybody noticed me and rigel everyone was probably too drunk.

rigel was now dancing with me and the song hell is round the corner came on.

i immediately looked at rigel laughing and smiling him doing the same , this song would come on slot when we would be having sex which made us now dancing very intimate.

his hands were trailing up and down my waist as my back was leaning against his chest.

he couldn’t hold himself back so he grabbed my hand took me upstairs to an empty room with a lock immediately pushing me onto the bed and then locking to door and then began taking his jacket off and mine.

my back played against the mattress with rigel above me kissing me deeply

he continued the kisses from my mouth to my neck and carried on till he reached my shorts

“can i take these off?” he asked

i nodded and he took my shorts and thong off leaving my bottom half bare

he moved his body back up to near me and took his shirt off and then took mine off throwing both to the floor

rigel made his way up to my bra unhooking the clip at the back revealing my boobs he eagerly moved his hands straight to them kissing them

"rigel please i need you"

"using your words good girl"

he began kissing up my thighs until he reached my clit starting to pleasure me by kissing my clit licking the folds up and down i was out of breath moaning quietly

he stopped kissing me and brought two fingers near my mouth then making me suck on them and bringing them down near my hole teasing me slightly just rubbing them around my hole touching each fold

"plea-se"

"what was that?"

"rigel please i need you”

he shoved his fingers straight into my hole curling his fingers inside then bringing them in and out

my moans were so loud it was echoing through the walls

"words."

"faster rigel"

he somehow got faster making me moan i covered my mouth arching my back

"im gon-gonna cum"

"not yet sexy"

"please"

he wriggled his fingers inside of me curling them again hitting my g-spot making me edge when he realised he took his fingers out of me leaving me empty.

he sat on his knees in between my legs starting to unbuckle his belt , take his jeans off then his boxers his cock sprung up after he brought his boxers down and he began to rub his thumb over his tip before leaning over me he kissed me again

"are u sure you want to carry on baby?"

"yes" i say out of breath

he was looking down at his cock holding onto it before positioning it at my folds sliding in slowly gripping one side of my waist bringing me down onto him faster

"omg ri-rigel"

he was moving faster and faster but it was incredible he moved his hand from my waist to my boob griping onto it squeezing it roughly

"rigel faster please"

"on it baby"

he kept slamming into me making me scream and moan in pleasure and pain

he turned me over so i was now on top of him while he was still inside of me and i began riding him , he was holding both sides of my waist lightly as i was doing the work i was moving backwards and forwards placing my hands on his chest with my boobs in his face

"i can't do it"

"i'll take over don't worry"

he was now gripping my waist slamming me on him going up and down throwing his head back moaning loudly digging his nails into my sides

"y/n please"

i was so close and so was he but he kept going as fast as he could he quickly grabbed both my boobs hoping it would help keep me up right

"i'm gonna cum" he groaned

"let's together"

i started to ride him again and he moved me up and down then we both moaned loudly and finished together.

“that was good” i said out of breath getting off him

“yeah it was , we should keep doing it with no distractions” while saying this he was putting his boxers back on sat on the edge of the bed and me sat the other side putting my panties and bra on

“what does that mean ?”

“i want to be with you , like properly , let everyone know becuase i don’t care anymore and i know you never did” he said smiling at me

“really?”

“yeah”

i walk over to him sitting on his lap my arms around his neck and began kissing him again

“i’ll be your girlfriend then but you have to ask me out properly”

“who said i wasn’t going to do it properly?” he laughed kissing my cheek

————————————————

so sorry guys for how long this took but please give this as much attention as you can !! thank you all for make sure to remind em all the time love you ❤️

i have also not checked this so if there’s a spelling mistake i apologise i do hope you enjoy this 👩🏼‍❤️‍💋‍👩🏼

tag list 🏷️:

@druigss @asunshine15 @langdons-slut @inlovewithscream @alifeinspiredd @fratbrrygf @estr3lladyox1de @xxshadowxxs-blog @venomsvl @sparksthemarauder @theoslove

[wooahaeruby]

Chapter 26: New Perspectives

Chapter Word Count: 5,097

TW

None

I'm having some issues with the tags so I'm sorry if it isn't notifying you!

Master List | Prev | Next

“King,” The door to the office opened and Sona stepped in. Seungcheol sat alone for once in the warehouse as he filed paperwork away. “A letter was dropped off from Psy’s messenger for you…and Mouse.” 

Holding out his hand, Sona approached, placing the cream colored envelope in his hand, standing before his desk, waiting for him to open it. Gazing between the envelope and her, he raised a thick brow, wasting no time in noting King & Mouse SVT was written on the front, no sending or returning address. Flipping it over, he noted the silver wax seal and peeled it off, taking the cream card stock out and running his eyes over the words. 

King & Mouse of SVT, On behalf of the Psy family, We humbly invite you to our annual Masquerade Ball  as the representatives of your group.  We have assigned you the color red and gold for your outfit theme. Please join us on the last Saturday of this month at 8 in the evening at the Manor. And as always,  Leave business at the door.

He noticed Sona leaning over the slightest bit, hands clasped behind her back, trying not to make it too obvious that she was trying to snoop. Placing the invitation down, Seungcheol sat back, resting his chin on his hand. 

“Bring me Loki and Hades .” 

Sona nodded her head and exited swiftly, leaving Seungcheol in the silence by himself. 

Picking up the invitation once more, he let out a long, dragged out sigh.

There was just under three weeks before the event, now he needed another suit and Mouse needed a dress, let alone the masks… He was going to need to call Siyeon, but also actually talk to Mouse sooner rather than later so they weren’t at each other’s throat the entire party. 

It took nearly an hour for Jeonghan and Joshua to walk through the door, laughing about something, sliding up to Seungcheol’s desk. 

“You rang, boss?” Jeonghan snickered, sliding his hands into his pants pockets. “Sona was vague on the phone.” 

“Ohh, what’s this?” Joshua managed to snag the invitation off his desk, dark eyes brightening with curiosity and mischief. “ King & Mous- Wait a minute-” 

Jeonghan grabbed the paper from Joshua’s hands, but the latter leaned in to read it. “You and Mouse…are invited to the ball? Usually it’s Joshua and I.” 

“That’s why I called you both in.” Standing from his desk, Seungcheol winced at the popping and cracking of his joints as he stretched. “And because she is both of your girlfriend.”

“You can’t not go…” Joshua didn’t look pleased but he didn’t voice any opposition. 

“I’ll call Siyeon. Tell her you need a suit and Mouse needs a dress.” 

Jeonghan was already taking his phone out when Seungcheol cleared his throat. Both men raised their eyes to look at him, sharing a quick look between themselves. 

“I…Am going to take Mouse out for dinner tomorrow after she gets out of work…” His voice was riddled with nerves, avoiding their intense gazes. “I’d like to…talk to her about this…and have a normal conversation.” 

Jeonghan stepped around the desk, placing the back of his hand against Seungcheol’s forehead. Flinching back, Seungcheol swatted his hand away. 

“Stop that- Don’t touch me.” 

“Don’t brush me off, I’m trying to see if you have a fever because you aren’t acting like yourself. Who are you and what have you done with my friend?” 

“Nothing! I’m fine, I’m trying to be nice!” 

“I‘m with him on this one,” Joshua crossed his arms, “Who are you and what have you done with our friend?” 

“You? Nice to Mouse? Did you fall and hit your head?” Jeonghan snarked, mirroring Joshua’s crossed arms. 

“You know what, you guys suck, get out.” Pouting, Seungcheol sat back down, pulling himself close to his desk. “And I’m still taking Mouse out.” 

“Ohh~” Jeonghan leaned himself against the desk, smirking. “Asking our girlfriend out on a date, I’d love to be a fly on the wall for that dinner.” 

“Can you record it?” Joshua snickered, “Kinda wanna see how bad she shuts you down.” 

“I really hate you two.” 

“Love you too, boss.”

[Unknown Number 11:49 PM]  Meet me at the Sushi place around the corner from Ruby after work. 

Laying in bed, scrolling through your phone, you frowned at the random number. 

[To Unknown Number 11:51 PM] Who the hell is this? [Unknown Number 11:52 PM]  It’s Cheol. You don’t have my number? 

Switching screens, you checked through your contacts, each member of the group under a different nickname or joke that was easily distinguishable to you. You counted them quickly, noting you really didn’t have the oldest member’s number. Quickly, you added his number. 

[To Lion Cub 11:55 PM] Why am I meeting you there? [Lion Cub 11:58 PM] We need to talk. 

Scratching your head, you continued to frown. 

[To Lion Cub 11:59 PM] Is anyone else gonna be there? [Lion Cub 12:01 AM] No.  I’ll meet you there after your work day. Goodnight.

That was… is weird. Aside from brief meetings with him, you and Seungcheol have never spent proper time as just the two of you. Someone was usually there or you simply avoided interacting with one another. 

Truthfully, if he was asking you to meet privately, it was probably important, not that you still won’t be uncomfortable with the idea. The only two ways you thought the meeting would go was either dead silence after he told you whatever he needed or him being an asshole to you. Neither were particularly how you wanted to spend an evening after work, but maybe you’d convince yourself to be on your best behavior . 

Big maybe there. 

You had mentioned it to Seokmin on your lunch the next day, the latter nearly choking on the sandwich he had delivered to the office. When he asked why, you gave the answer that Seungcheol needed to talk which left Seokmin keeping his eyes low. 

“Min…What do you know?” 

“I- Okay, well, if I told you, he’d kick my ass and I don’t want that.” Giving you a pout, Seokmin munched on his food. “But I heard that Cheol asked Han and Shua to the office last night from Sona so…I don’t know everything if it’s more than what I am thinking.” 

“That isn’t reassuring.” You huffed and he patted your shoulder. 

“Never said it was going to be, but hey, free food.” 

“I get enough of that as is.” Laughing at the thought, you nodded. “Between you, Han, and Shua, I have had so many free meals.” 

“Hey, I have too much money to know what to do with. I enjoy spoiling my friends.” 

“Yeah yeah, nerd. Wish me luck for later.” 

“I should wish him luck so you don’t bite his head off.”

“Rude.” 

“You know it's true.”

But that was how you found yourself parked outside the sushi place, tapping your hand on the wheel, looking around the parking lot for Seungcheol’s car. You had texted him that you were leaving work but got nothing in response. You didn’t see the Rolls Royce when you pulled in, the only car you’ve seen him drive, but you didn’t know if he had more…Especially if he restored cars from what Jihoon told you weeks ago. 

Grabbing your shoulder bag, you stepped out from the car and made your way inside, letting your eyes scan over the interior, taking note Seungcheol wasn’t actually there yet, thank god. You asked the hostess for a table near the back of the restaurant, which she gladly ushered you over to. You paced yourself with you facing the door, waiting patiently for when he would even show. 

And you waited, at first tapping your nails against the polished wooden table top, then moving on to any entertainment your phone could provide. When twenty minutes passed by, you debated on leaving, checking your messages to see if he even read that you left work. You had ordered a drink and a simple salad to at least eat something for waiting so long. 

Five more minutes , you thought, I’ll give him five more minutes. 

Truthfully, you were annoyed, but a small part of you had an uneasy feeling in the pit of your stomach. Maybe the smallest feeling of what if something was wrong . Not like you had to care for Seungcheol. You were lucky if you got a thank you the few times you made dinner for everyone from him. 

“Shit- Fuck-” 

You raised your eyes in time to see Seungcheol running directly into the edge of a support beam in his rush over. He looked flustered, cringing as he unbuttoned his suit jacket, starting to take it off. 

“Sorry-” He sighed, dropping his jacket on the back of the chair across from you and pulled out the seat to sit. “Lost track of time then there was an accident on the way over.” 

“I was beginning to think you were flaking on me.” Pushing the last of the greens around in your bowl, you stared at him curiously. “Honestly once I finished this, if you didn’t show up, I would have left since you didn’t even text me back.” 

You watched as he dropped his head on the table. “And my phone died…the charger at the office was missing.” 

“Sounds like a series of unfortunate events.” 

“That’s what today has been.” Lifting his head, Seungcheol waved a waiter over to bring menus. “Between both jobs, I’m swamped right now and I'm barely sleeping.” Handing the menu over to you, Seungcheol cleared his throat, rolling his neck and shoulders. “Order whatever.” 

“Already the plan, boss man.” You snorted a laugh, looking over the plethora of sushi options. 

In relative quiet, the two of you picked what you wanted before the waiter came back and took the order. When he hurried off, you folded your hands in front of you, tapping one of your nails against the table. It took a moment to muster the courage to speak, clearing your throat to get Seungcheol’s attention.

“So…” You started, “You asked me to meet here….why?” 

Reaching into his jacket, Seungcheol pulled a cream colored card, passing it over to you. Furrowing your brow, you took it from his hands, eyes scanning over the words. 

“Why only the two of us?” Was the first thing to leave you in confusion, flipping the card over like something would actually be on the back before refocusing on the invitation. 

“He invites only two from each group for this event.” Clasping his hands on the table, Seungcheol leaned back in his seat. “Usually it’s Han or Josh but this year I guess it’s…you and me.” 

“Interesting, what are you expecting from me with this?” 

“Between the two of us, I don’t expect anything.” That surprised you. “This event, as far as Han has told me, is just a social event, no business talk. Just food, drinks, and talking with people without the hassle of business.” 

Your eyes flicked from his eyes to the invitation once more. “Will… they be there?” 

“They got banned.” 

Placing the card down on the table, you raised a brow. “Why?” 

“Two years back, another one of them tried to egg on Han and it ended up in a fight since Kihyun didn’t get the reaction he wanted. Ki threw the first punch and Han had a nasty bruise for a few weeks.” 

“Maybe I should have dumped my drink in his face at the gala.” 

“Kinda glad you didn’t.” Cheol scoffed before his lips spread into a conflicted smile, trying to hide it the best he could. “Really didn’t want to turn that gala into a fighting ring. They have a lot of issues with almost all groups there. They only had one ally but that broke up for personal reasons as far as I heard about three years ago.” 

“Damn, I was really hoping for an all out brawl in dresses and suits like in the movies. Who would have come out on top? My bet was on Siyeon.” 

That got him to laugh, loud and unlike any other scoff of a laugh he had given before. The corners of his eyes wrinkled and his nose scrunched up in relaxed amusement. His lips upturned into a wide, gummy smile. His shoulders raised and for a moment, he curled in on himself. It was cute , completely unnatural for you to see since you’ve never seen him relax around you. 

What the fuck . 

“If-” The laughter died down to a giggle and you had a flutter in your stomach you didn’t like. “If a brawl was going to happen, I don’t think we’d even make it to a winner with how Psy runs things.” 

You opened your mouth to maybe say something but not a single thought ran through your head. Lucky for you, the waiter saved the moment, bringing out all the food and leaving the two of you to feast on the meal. 

Eating was relatively quiet once more. You nagged when Cheol took a piece of your sushi so you snatched one of his, seeing him pout at you. 

“Cheol, did you hit your head or something?” You asked rather bluntly, seeing his shoulders drop and that pout get deeper. 

“Why is everyone asking me that!?” He groaned, “I didn’t hit my head.” 

“Then why are you acting…different?” 

“Different-” He sounded offended, but stopped himself, taking a deep breath. “I’m not acting differently, Mouse…”

“Cheol, I heard you giggle . That is different. I’ve never once heard you giggle or seen you flustered. I’ve never seen you pout.” You pointed your chopsticks at him. “You are acting differently to me .” 

For a moment, Seungcheol stared at you, biting the inside of his cheek as far as you could tell. 

“I’m…” Closing his mouth, his brows furrowed together, trying to find the right words. “Everyone has been telling me I need to basically stop being a dick to you…” 

Mentally, you paused. You weren’t expecting that answer, let alone for him to actually do something about it. When you didn’t say anything, he dropped his chopsticks and started to motion around in the air. 

“Like-” He waved a hand around, eyes darting around. “They said that I haven’t been nice to you and Hao didn’t count the car and then I asked Min and-” 

Now you are experiencing Seungcheol rambling, another new sight. 

“He said that I should just talk to you, which is actually a lot more difficult than I expected because I have never really spoken to you like a normal person before.” 

“Cheol-” 

“Oh- and Han and Josh even asked me if I hit my head like assholes-” 

“Seungcheol.” You hit your hand on the table lightly, grabbing his attention enough to watch him drop his arms.

“Sorry…” 

“You are a dick, but I hope you know I don’t actually hate you.” 

“Wait- You don’t hate me?” Seeing him perk up, eyes wide and shining , he sounded hopefully. 

“Do I hate that you use the same threat over and over? Yeah, it is getting annoying because at this point, I’m going to start telling you to do it, no balls , but I don’t hate you specifically.” 

“Oh.” 

“Yeah. Honestly, you are just really fun to annoy the fuck out of and go head to head with. Oh! And thanks for admitting you got the car for me, I've been waiting for that one.” 

“Really? That is what you are focusing on here?”  

“Do you want me to focus on you rambling about wanting to talk to me when in reality you could have just said ‘ Hey, Mouse, can we talk?’ like a normal fucking person?” 

“Fair point…”  

“Back to the event for a minute.” You shoved a piece of sushi into your mouth. “We need outfits and masks.” 

“Han already talked to Siyeon and she said she ‘ has it covered’ .” Which he air quoted, making you scoff. “I think he said something about her calling when she needs us to go in and get fitted properly.”

Humming in response, you dove back into your food, letting a decently comfortable quiet blanket the table. The waiter came back with drink refills but neither of you said more than a thank you. 

Face down on the table, your phone started to buzz and you quickly picked it up. 

“Oh god..” You whispered, a smile breaking out on your face. Your 99 Line Rise chat was suddenly too active but you shouldn’t help yourself from looking over the messages from your friends. Letting out a laugh, you sent a reply back before placing the phone back down. 

“One of your boyfriends?” Seungcheol questioned but you shook your head. 

“99 Line. Chan, Woo, Jun, Bin. They want to go to a karaoke bar Saturday night.” 

“Didn’t know you were friends with all of them.” He muttered, pushing some of the sushi around his plate. He was pouting again… 

“Cheol,” The man looked up through thick eyelashes, “If you want to ask questions about me, you can. But know that starts twenty questions and it’s fair game.” 

“Nah, here is the thing-” You pointed at him across the table. “I want to know why the hell you got me a car.” 

“Can we stop looping back to this?” Exasperated, Seungcheol rolled his eyes, leaning back in his chair. “Pass.” 

“You don’t get to pass! It is a valid question!” 

“It’s pretty simple, you didn’t have a car, I got you a car, done.” 

“You don’t just get someone a car , you got a hundred thousand dollar Corvette that you apparently got custom done!” 

“I’m going to kill him for telling you.” Once more with a roll of his eyes, Seungcheol put his arm over the back of his chair. “I dunno, I just thought, make this easier on everyone and you can stop being a passenger princess.” 

“What if I liked being a passenger princess, asshole?” 

Seungcheol’s head whipped back and he laughed. “With mainly Han and Min as your drivers? Yeah right, Mouse.” 

“Alright, fuck you, you got me there…” You shook your head, a smile on your face. 

Somewhere along the way, you both ordered more food, but you stirred clear from any alcohol since you had to drive home and Cheol had to head back to work later. He had rolled his sleeves up to his elbows and you changed from your heels into some flats after getting them from your car. 

Surprisingly, it was calm talking to Seungcheol. While you were still messing with him, the vibe between the two of you wasn’t hostile as it had been previously. There is actual humor shared between the two of you, nothing too targeted or malicious but still banter. Maybe it even started to feel like talking to the rest of the guys, no pressure. 

“Is sushi one of your favorite things?” Motioning down to the plate between the two of you, you watched as Seungcheol shook his head. 

“Not particularly, I was craving it so I forced you to eat some with me.” He snickered, shoulders shaking in amusement. “If I had to pick something…Maybe Tonkatsu? One of the best things I’ve ever eaten but if I eat it too much I’ll get sick of it. I know you cook a lot, do you have something you consider a favorite?” 

There was a moment where you wanted to lie, knowing you hold the recipe close to your heart, no one really even knew about it, not Jeonghan or Joshua, not even Seokmin. But you smiled more to yourself this time, sighing through your nose. 

“My grandma’s chicken pot pie, I make it for myself every year around my birthday.” 

“Were the two of you close?” 

“Not really. She was my dad’s mom, she didn’t really come around after my dad got involved with drugs.” Meeting Seungcheol’s eyes across the table, they were filled with curiosity and quiet concern. His lips twisted, probably wanting to ask more but not wanting to push any starting limits the two of you were still learning. “You can ask, Cheol.” 

“Your parents…They are dead, right?” Nodding, you snickered. He continued on. “Based on the drugs comment, did one or both of them OD?” Another nod. 

“Foster care sucked since my grandma died of a heart attack before everything settled. My grandpa on my dad’s side wasn’t around and both my mom’s parents were dead. Their siblings didn’t want me. Foster care for twelve-ish years then I moved to the big city. Kinda weird thinking back, it was forever ago yet only a couple years since it all changed for me.” 

“You are making yourself sound old.” 

“With all the shit I’ve been through and all the shit you guys have put me through, I feel a hundred times older.” 

“I second that.” He raised his cup of soda. “But you have to admit, we do have a lot of fun.” 

“Fun?” You laughed, nodding. “Yeah sure, giving me a secret life is so fun.” 

“Yeah yeah, you keep laughing about that.” He waved his other hand around in the air, “Back to these twenty stupid questions. What-” 

“Hey wow! My turn because you asked me a bunch.” You tap your hand on the table to stop him, hearing him scoff, but he didn’t say anything in return. “Okay okay, you guys have a fuck ton of money, but what is the worst gift any of them have given you?” 

The cringe that furrowed Seungcheol’s brows and the pained groan he gave had you leaning forward in interest. “God…Gyu got me this really really ugly sculpture.” 

“Wait- Where is it? How ugly is ugly?” 

“Ugly enough that I hid it in the penthouse under a bunch of jackets?” 

“Cheol! That probably hurts his feelings!” 

Seungcheol averted his eyes, bringing his cup to his lips in a manner to nearly hide himself. “He doesn’t know it’s in the penthouse…or it’s under a pile of clothes…” 

“Cheol!” You threw your head back in laughter, hearing him chuckle along with you. “You are horrible. Where is it in the penthouse?” 

“Oh no, I’m not telling you that at all. You are going to tell him.” 

“I won’t.” 

“You will.” 

Placing your elbow on the table, you held your pinky out to him, nodding your head for him to follow. “Pinky promise.” 

Raising a brow, he snorted at you. “What are you, four?”

“No, I’m five, now I’ll keep my promise if you pinky promise me.” 

With a lot of reluctance and an eye roll, Seungcheol leaned forward, mirrored your position and took hold of your pinky in his. “No fingers crossed?” 

Holding up your other hand, you snapped your fingers and gave him a finger gun. “Nope, now tell me where it is.” 

“It’s in the room at the far end by my office.” 

“Got it, go in there and tell Gyu.” 

“Don’t you dare.” All you did was smirk and he glared at you. “Maybe I should hate you.” 

“Shua and Han would never let you live it down if you did.” 

Really, you were unsure how long the two of you had been sitting there. 

More questions were passed back and forth between the two of you. Seungcheol asked if you liked anime since he and Jihoon watched them together sometimes, even Joshua, but you preferred to read the manga more than anything. You asked if he was more a sports person or a video game person and he said something about being competitive either way but he preferred video games while chilling in bed. 

At one point, both your phone and his were going off, messages from Jeonghan popping up in quick succession that had both of your eyes rolling. You had texted back that you were alive and Seungcheol snickered when he replied back for your boyfriend to leave him the hell alone. When Jeonghan replied back to both of you with a bunch of emojis, letting you know he was annoyed but didn’t actually say anything in response aside from asking you to text him once you got home safe. Seungcheol gagged, you laughed.

“What’s one of your favorite memories?” 

“Ohh, probably when I graduated college.” You picked up your phone and quickly found a photo of yourself dressed in your cap and gown, turning the device for him to see. “It was the first time I did something all on my own through keeping my scholarships, sleepless nights, and way too many parties. Walked that stage by myself and walked straight to Food Truck Friday and had the best night at my apartment.” 

“Sounds like an amazing night.” Seungcheol looked past your phone to you, smiling wide enough to see the full extent of the apples of his cheeks. 

“One of the best, then a few days later I got an email that my application was cleared and accepted for my job.” Turning your phone back towards you, you snickered at the photo, reminiscing on the day. 

It was a long time coming, having fought tooth and nail to get there. Despite your changes in foster homes and some rather shitting situations, you never really let it hold you back from what you wanted to achieve. You wouldn’t lie and say it wasn’t hard, there were plenty of days you wanted to give up and forget about all your hard work but if you did, you wouldn’t be the person you were currently. 

“What about you? What would your favorite memory be?” 

Seungcheol flattened his lips in thought, only to have that same wide smile spread on his face once more. “When I was having the house built, we didn’t really live in it until everyone’s room was painted and set up. Everyone has different aesthetics and wanted it to be a surprise when the entire thing was done. The day that it was really finished and we could go in and actually live there has to be my favorite. At that moment, it was the first time in a long time that almost all of us had a place to call home. We were all so happy that day, and I hope we all still are to some extent.” 

“ So…Your little date with Cheol…” Jeonghan’s voice through the phone had you laughing but you heard Joshua scoff and mutter something you couldn’t hear. 

“It wasn’t a date, Hannie.” 

“ Yeah sure. Anyways, how was it? You guys were there for a while.” The curiosity was thick in his tone. 

“It was fine. We cleared some of the air between us then we just started…chatting? Like normal conversation chatting. It wasn’t bad, it was pleasant if I had to give it a word.” You could hear Jeonghan humming at your words, placing the two of them on speaker as you wiped off your makeup and brushed your hair. “And I got free food out of it.” 

“At least it wasn’t horrible. Here I was thinking that he was going to give you a terrible evening.” 

Though Jeonghan was speaking, you could hear Joshua scoff once more and you huffed. 

“Shua…”

He cleared his throat. “ Mouse…” 

“Can you stop acting like the most jealous boyfriend on the planet?” 

“I’m not-”

“You are one hundred percent acting like a jealous boyfriend, Shua.” 

“I am not acting like a jealous boyfriend…” 

“And now you are sulking-” 

“ I am not!” 

“I can feel the possessiveness from here and I’m not even near him.” 

“Just admit you are jealous and we can move on.” 

“I will not admit to something that isn’t even true.” 

If you and Jeonghan were in the same room currently, you’d both probably be rolling your eyes together. 

“Fine fine~ Admit it, don’t admit it, whatever you want, Shua.” You and Jeonghan both gave a chuckle. “I’m going to get ready for bed, I’ll talk to you both tomorrow.”

“ Goodnight, love.” Jeonghan hummed the words out. 

“ Sleep well, Mouse.” Joshua spoke sweetly and you couldn’t stop the shy smile spread on your lips. 

“Goodnight, Shua, Hannie.” 

You didn’t take too long in showering once the call ended, knowing you had a few things to clean up in the kitchen and a blouse to pick out before you fell asleep. 

Nearly asleep for the night, a knock came to your door, or you thought it was in your tired state. Ignoring the sound, you pulled your comforter up around you tighter, letting your eyes slip closed when yet another knock graced your front door. Letting out a silenced groan, you threw your covers back, grabbing your phone and shuffled your way towards the door as quietly as you could. 

You managed to peer through the peephole, frowning before unlocking the door and pulling it open. 

“For the record, I’m not jealous.” Side stepping you, dressed down in a t-shirt and basketball shorts, Joshua shuffled in, waiting not far past you for you to close the door. 

“And you had to come all the way over here just to repeat that?” Closing and locking the door, you trailed after him once his shoes were kicked off. “I was trying to sleep for work tomorrow, you know.” 

“Then let's go to sleep.” Turning to face you, Joshua tried to fight back a yawn but it overcame him and it ended with you yawning along with him. 

“You are ridiculous, just like Jeonghan.” You took his hand, leading him down the hall to your bedroom and crawled under the covers. 

It took a moment for him to step around to the other side of the bed but it was nearly instant that you were being pulled close to him, his face being pressed into your neck. He was tense, you noticed it when you took his hand prior, and you ran your fingers through his hair.

Joshua shifted to get comfortable, taking deep breaths as his shoulders slowly relaxed and he leaned into your touch against his head. 

“Do you wanna talk about it?” Your voice was barely over a whisper, continuing to massage his scalp and neck gently. 

“Not…really.” There was a new hesitance to his voice that you’ve never heard. “Can we just sleep?” 

Gently, you placed a kiss on his head, grabbing the edge of the comforter and pulling it snugly around the two of you. “We can, Shua. Goodnight.” 

“Goodnight, Mouse.”

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[chrysalis-the-butterfly]

angel dust :3

Send me a character and I’ll list:

Favourite thing about them: "Thing", singular? I can't put just one thing! There are too many things! The humour in his dialogue. The songs he sings. The fact that he's both an ex-mafia member and a femme gay man. The fact that he's got a twin sister in Heaven. The changes we see in his character over the course of Season 1. The bond he forms with Husk. The dynamic he has with Charlie (and the others in the hotel). The angst of his relationship with Valentino. The voice. The hair. The eyes. The arms. The chest fluff. The outfits. The dance moves. I just love him so much.

Least favourite thing about them: Well, the way he acted towards Husk initially was, let's face it, sexual harassment. Just because it was a response to trauma doesn't make it okay. I appreciate that Angel doesn't bother Husk like that after "Masquerade" - he still makes sex jokes, but now they're less about targeting people and making them feel uncomfortable - but I still think it would have been good for Angel to explicitly acknowledge that his behaviour wasn't acceptable and apologise to Husk.

Favourite line: (porn voice) "I've been a bad boy, and I need a big strong daddy to put me in my place..." (regular voice) "...on the path to redemption!"

brOTP: I like the friendship he develops with Charlie. The prequel comic "Dirty Healings" shows that she sees potential in him that he doesn't see at first. He initially only joins the hotel for the free rent and to get away from Valentino, but then he comes to genuinely care about Charlie, as she does for him. That's nice to see.

Also, Angel and Emily haven't interacted yet, but I think they would have a cute friendship if they did!

OTP: Huskerdust! I've seen so much cute fanart and read so many hurt/comfort fics of the two together that I can't help but love this ship. I enjoy thinking about them being together and how they could change each other for the better. Having Husk around to take care of Angel would definitely be good for him.

But Angel's trauma isn't going to go away overnight, so that'll be a lot to deal with. And Husk is also pretty judgemental, so if Angel ever has a relapse and Husk treats him too harshly for it, that could put a rift between them. Angst potential!

Everyone talks about how Husk is changing Angel, helping him to be more honest, but I do think Angel is changing Husk too. Husk certainly seems to drink less after "Masquerade". And if Husk was somehow able to help Angel out of his contract, that would be redemption for his own participation in the cruel Overlord system.

Angel and Husk are not perfect people, but they could be perfect for each other.

nOTP: Any ship that involves pairing Angel with a woman. He's gay. He wouldn't be interested.

As for Valangel ... look, I am interested in exploring the backstory - I want to find out how Angel met Valentino and what led to him signing his soul away. But I definitely do not want Angel to stay with that moth. That pairing is way too toxic.

Random headcanon: Both Anthony and Molly had albinism when they were alive, and that's why they're so pale in the afterlife. Anthony also had a visual impairment, so his demon form overcompensated by giving him extra eyes.

Unpopular opinion: Some fans love seeing Angel with all six arms out and six guns blazing, but I'm not so keen on it. That's a personal thing, really - I just don't like guns and don't think they have any reason to exist. All they do is kill people, and killing people is wrong. If Angel's got all six arms out, he should be using them to give Husk a back massage instead.

Song I associate with them: Besides "Poison"? Then "All You Wanna Do" from SIX: The Musical. They're both super-catchy pop songs about the dark topic of sexual abuse sung by characters associated with the colour pink. I watched the Hazbin Hotel pilot for the first time on the same weekend I went to see SIX: The Musical, so that's a neat coincidence!

Favourite picture of them:

[sinfulspencer]

Enchanting, enchanted

Prompt: Spencer didn’t think he’d meet Rossi’s niece on Mischief Night at his mansion. And he didn’t think she’d be into him anyway. (Spoiler: she is.)

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Fem!Reader

Rating: mature (18+, minors DNI)

Warnings: dom/sub undertones (sub!Spencer, softdom!Reader), adults with age gap (25/36), dirty talking, light degradation, hair pulling, oral sex (female receiving, implied male receiving), breeding kink, unprotected sex

Words:

A.N.: When October started, I had an idea: two Halloween fics with Spencer Reid being a submissive bitch and a dominant whore. @softreidx knows all about this - thank you for editing this piece. Love you.

Hope you enjoy this. x

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It’s not a secret Spencer Reid loves Halloween.

The cool thing about Halloween is that it's a uniquely American holiday. Despite its obvious origins in the Celtic festival of Samhain and the Christian “All Saints’ Day”, it really is a melting pot of various immigrants' traditions and beliefs.

It became a little more commercialized in the 1950 with “trick-or-treat”.

Today it rivals only Christmas in terms of popularity.

He said those notions so many times to the rest of his team-mates and made sure everyone knew how much he loved Halloween.

Spencer follows Emily inside Rossi’s house. “People would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts. Isn’t that cool? How has fire always been a symbol of cleansing? Many people think of fire as an energetic reset button, a force that can burn through anything that no longer serves you or is there to help you!”

Emily takes off her long black coat, revealing a dark red dress she put on because apparently Rossi wanted to throw a masquerade party or something – Spencer was even more excited about that, because he put on his favourite costume.

An Edgar Allan Poe outfit that has been hidden in his closet since forever.

“Spencer, I appreciate your Halloween facts, but tonight I just want to have a drink and not think about ghosts.” – Emily tells him, patting him on the shoulder – “I promise you: tomorrow I’ll be all yours, you can tell me whatever you want.”

Spencer gives her a reassuring smile, nodding his head. “I’ll hold you to that.”

The rest of the team is already in Rossi’s backyard, no matter the low temperatures. Everyone is dressed up as monsters or book characters – Luke didn’t spend that much time thinking about his outfit, mainly because Roxy decided that his Frankenstein mask would be a delicious part of her dinner so he went with a simple vampire outfit.

Penelope, with her orange hair and pointy hat, is dressed up. Matt, with a lot of kids and a quite creative wife, ended up getting dressed as the Slender Man – long white sleeves with long white fingers, a tight black suit and that sparkly red tie around his neck.

Rossi didn’t dress up at all, no matter being the host who actually wanted this kind of party.. which bothered Spencer a little too much.

The young doctor, fixing the hat on top of his head, walks over to the owner of the house.

“Hey, why aren’t you dressed up? I thought we were going to have a Halloween party!”

Rossi looks at him up and down, crossing his arms to his chest. “Because I wouldn’t want to overshadow anyone, Spencer. You know my costume would be the best one here.”

Spencer can’t help, but chuckle at his colleague’s joke. “Ah, it’s a shame. I wanted to see your outfit!”

“Well, not today. I didn’t even come up with this dressed-up party anyway. My niece did.”

Spencer is puzzled. Did Rossi just admit he has a niece?

“Your niece?”

That’s the first time Rossi ever mentions the existence of a niece. At first Spencer thought he was talking about Joy’s children – maybe she had another baby! – but they’re not here, so it can’t be possible.

“Who mentioned me?”

Your voice echoes through the stairs as you climb down, making sure you don’t fall down on your own face. Your heels are high – they’re part of your outfit, which is why you’re not going to take them off unless it’s to go to bed.

However, you hate them right now. And you’re tempted to kick them away.

Spencer turns around and spots you, struggling to walk down while also holding the edge of your skirt so that you don’t trip on your own feet and the dress.

If he forgets how to breathe, it’s not a surprise.

You look absolutely breathtaking with your hair slightly pulled back, dark black makeup around your eyes and lips as red as blood.

Spencer doesn’t know what your outfit is about, but he doesn’t care; as long as he can admire you with it on, and hopefully without it on.

“Yes, niece. You.”

You hum, gripping David’s arm. “Oh, shut up. You told me that you were going to dress up but bailed on me last minute! And Krystall suggested throwing this party, I just sent the texts.”

Rossi rolls his eyes, patting your hand with a smile.

Spencer holds back a laugh, covering his mouth with his own hand. He doesn’t know who you are because he has never seen you before, but he’s definitely starting to like you or at least be slightly interested in you. You are so gorgeous, he’s not going to deny it, but you’re also incredibly bubbly.

And he has just seen you. What are you going to do to him in an hour? Or two?

“Young lady, you’re here because...”

“You missed me too much and you wanted me to come over to meet your team in hope I find myself a partner. I know!” – you exclaim, rolling your eyes before turning your head to look at the young man in front of you – “Ah, you must be Doctor Spencer Reid.”

David puts a hand on his forehead, shaking his head as he walks away. If he stays there, he’s going to witness Spencer melting into your bubbly personality – and he doesn’t really care about witnessing two people flirting with each other.

His plan is already working because he could see how Spencer kept staring at you. And you probably told Rossi that you might have looked up the cute Doctor in his team, which led him to make the decision to invite you over to his mansion to celebrate Halloween.

Maybe...

Maybe Dave’s plan was to actually get you and Spencer to like each other.

After all, he’s the only single in the team.

Luke is with Penelope, Matt is married just like JJ, Emily has a girlfriend and Tara is starting to reconcile with her ex girlfriend. They’re all taken but the young and pretty Doctor Reid – David thinks he’d be perfect for you.

“It’s very nice to meet you, Doctor Reid.” - you say with a huge smile on your face, holding out your hand before pulling it back - “Ah, wait. You don’t like shaking hands. My bad.”

Spencer can feel his cheeks heating up as soon as your eyes meet. David has probably talked to you about him many times - and he had, which made Spencer seem so incredibly attractive and interesting to you.

Usually Spencer is much more nervous around pretty girls like you, but he’s dressed up as Edgar Allan Poe and it’s Halloween night. He feels different, a little more blunt than usual.

Or maybe not, because he keeps fidgeting with his hands.

“I didn’t catch your name, sorry.”

“Y/N. I’m Y/N.”

Spencer bows his head down for a second, taking off his hat. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Y/N. I feel like I should bow to you because of your outfit.”

You giggle.

Spencer’s heart drops in his chest. He made you giggle and that sound was so heavenly, as if a God came down from the sky and caressed his cheeks.

“It’s just a little something I whipped out in a hurry. Unfortunately they lost my luggage at the airport. I had to borrow Krystall’s clothes.” - you mumble, straightening your dark skirt - “They’re comfortable, though! I should dress up like this on a daily basis.”

“They didn’t steal your makeup, though.”

You shake your head, stepping down the last stair. “Exactly! I was so relieved. I’ve spent much more money on makeup than all my clothes. It would’ve been a disaster to lose my beauty bag.”

Spencer stares at you in silence, taking in all of the details of your beauty.

Perfect lips, perfect hair, perfect eye shape, perfect voice, perfect in general.

There’s nothing he doesn’t like about you and it’s weird because he has just met you, but he can’t keep his eyes off you. You don’t mind at all, you like being admired, and you’re definitely hoping Spencer will admire you much closer than this - and not in front of anybody else.

“Wow, everyone is dressed up.” - you whisper, glancing at the rest of David’s team in his backyard - “I can’t believe I was so convincing with that text.”

“You used David’s phone for real?”

You shrug, running your fingers through your hair. “I may have done that. I’ve never celebrated Mischief Night before, so this was my chance to do so. And here we are! Look! You’re dressed as Edgar Allan Poe, I’m dressed as Lilith!”

Spencer doesn’t say anything, but his whole body is reacting positively to your answer. You know who Poe is, you know that Spencer has dressed up like this, you wanted to celebrate Mischief Night - which means you like that holiday, and probably Halloween as well.

Maybe Spencer has found his soulmate.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

Spencer blinks, focusing on your face again. “Huh? Sorry, I was…”

You give him a smile, pointing to the backyard. “Let’s just go, I’m hungry and I want to show off my makeup. I didn’t spend two hours putting this makeup on just to stay locked inside of a room. I need to show it off!”

Each time you move around the living room, either to fill your glass with wine or have a smoke with David in his backyard, Spencer has his eyes on you. No one can blame him because you are absolutely adorable, with all of your interesting and fun anecdotes on your holidays in the Rossi’s mansion with Krystal, Joy and her son.

No one was expecting Rossi to have a “found niece” at all, if they had to be honest.

However you are a beautiful surprise and David is happy that he has finally introduced you to his whole team, because he could see how ecstatic and at ease you were for the whole dinner. You tried your best not to ask them what was the most wicked and naughty thing they saw while working on a case – you were hoping to have this discussion during another moment of the night, and not while you were eating, but you were too excited.

As JJ and Luke spoke about the last most gruesome case, Spencer couldn’t keep his eyes off you the whole time. You looked like you were having so much fun hearing about Emily or David being disgusted in front of remains or blood, because you never thought David was this sensitive over bodily fluids.

Either way, you listened to every single person in the team speaking about their most disgusting moment over the years and you laughed each time with all of them.

You felt like you were a part of this team, as if you knew them for your whole life.

It’s not easy to find people like these, people you can connect with in the blink of an eye. You feel proud of yourself for convincing David to throw this little party, because now you feel incredible.

Maybe it’s the wine...

Anyway, it doesn’t matter.

Penelope has already given you her number, which means you’ll get to hang out with her and gossip every single time about who-knows-what. Luke has found out that you are a dog lover, which means you’ll get to spend a few dinners at his place to play with Roxy and take her out for a walk whenever Luke will ask you to.

And since you love cats as well, Penelope will let you play with Sergio.

Spencer didn’t speak much throughout the dinner. You were expecting him to spit out more interesting facts about every single person’s costume at this table, but he kept his mouth shut and listened to the others talking.

At first you thought it was because of your presence right there at the table, but then Penelope kicked you with her shoes without the others seeing, and you noticed Spencer staring at you as if he was about to eat you.

You’d probably let him.

Before the whole party started, you were getting ready in the bathroom of the guest room when David came by to ask you how you were doing. You showed you all your makeup as he sat on the edge of the bed and you blabbed about how nervous you were to meet his colleagues, but also how excited you were to finally see Doctor Reid.

When David talked about him for the first time, you couldn’t believe a person like that could exist: a lover of nature and books, obsessed with coffee, graduated to a bunch of different things (you don’t know how he managed to study such a disgusting subject as physics!), a professor.

David talked about Spencer as if he was his son, with such a tenderness and kindness that he has shown to you over the years. You and Spencer were like his children, David loves both of you so dearly.

Which is exactly the reason why he thought it was a good idea for you to meet Spencer.

David didn’t tell you that he was planning on making you meet him because he wanted you to be with him, but he didn’t need to say that. He thought you’d be the perfect match for Spencer: no matter your hate for physics, you had a lot of things in common.

Both of you love books.

Both of you are professors.

Both of you are obsessed with Nature.

Both of you have a very dark apartment with books everywhere.

Both of you go stargazing whenever you can.

Both of you spend hours inside of a library just staring at books in order to pick one to take home.

Both of you love lavender scent candles or incense.

Both of you are quiet, but extremely endearing and adorable.

However, you’re an extrovert and Spencer is an introvert. You’re louder and you love going outside to meet new people no matter your quietness, while Spencer would rather stay at home and watch a Russian movie than meeting others.

It’s not like David wanted to change Spencer, absolutely not. He just thought you’d be his better half in a way to complete him, somehow. Everything he doesn’t have, you do. Everything you don’t have, he does.

It’s like the last two pieces of the same puzzle fitting together.

You didn’t know David’s plan at first, but you realised it as soon as you walked down the stairs to meet Spencer Reid’s chocolate eyes. You knew he was going to come over, which is why you made sure to be extra-perfect for the party, but you never thought you’d catch his eyes looking at you or your body the whole night.

Spencer doesn’t know that you were looking at him in the same exact way, with probably the same exact purpose: you want him more than anything and you’re determined to have him. It doesn’t matter where or when, you know you’ll have him however you want and wherever you want.

Maybe not tonight, maybe not tomorrow but you will someday.

“Why did you convince Dave to throw a little party the day before Halloween?”

Spencer’s smooth voice captures your attention, forcing you to turn around. You’re met with a pair of chocolate eyes that leave you completely breathless: he looks so fucking hot like this, with the first three buttons of his white shirt completely opened and the hat long forgotten.

His unruly curls look so soft, you wonder how it would feel to run your fingers through them.

He’s lingering on the doorstep, watching the grey smoke from your cigarette vanishing into thin air. You shrug with a little smile over your lips, putting your free hand over your hip.

“It’s Mischief Night, Spencer!”

His eyes brighten up. “You know what it is?”

You widen your eyes, nodding. “Of course I do! I don’t really celebrate it, but I thought it’d be nice to switch things up for me.”

“Did you know that the term ‘Mischief Night’ was first used in Britain and not here in the US? It didn’t mean October 30, it was actually the day before May Day. – Spencer explains, taking a step further and closing the door behind his back – Young people played practical jokes, such as switching shop signs, overturning water tubs and trapping people inside their houses.”

You let out a low chuckle, inhaling through your cigarette before blowing the grey smoke out. “That’s very interesting, Spencer. I used to play pranks on people all the time when I was a child. It wasn’t really a tradition for me, I thought it was normal because all the kids in my neighbourhood would do it.”

His eyes are not leaving yours. “Pranks?”

“Hm, yes. I used to throw eggs at my neighbour’s car, even though that wasn’t really a prank. I hated that man with every fibre in my body because his kid stole my dolls. I had to get back at him somehow, but then his kid moved away while the neighbour stayed behind.”

“Ouch, that’s pretty sad.” – the young doctor mumbles, pointing to the chair underneath the gazebo – How about we sit there?”

You don’t answer him, simply walking through the plastic curtains before sitting down on one of the chairs that were previously occupied by you and David.

“I wasn’t really nice at the time, it’s long gone.”

“I bet you’re not nice either now.”

You raise your brow, smirking. “Oh, I’m definitely still a bad girl.”

Spencer chuckles, shaking his head. He got you exactly where he was hoping to get you, but he doesn’t know that you’re a much better player than him.

When you want someone, you get them. And you get them begging, whining, moaning, panting, withering underneath you until they’re a weak, pathetic little mess that you love to play with.

You’re excited to see how Spencer will be by the end of the night, if something happens.

“Can’t wait to see that, honestly.”

His words throw you off track because you were not expecting them, and when you turn your head to look at him, you realise that he wasn’t expecting them either. His eyes are widened and his mouth is slightly opened, while his right hand is ready to cover it. You don’t know if he said that and now he’s acting weird because he wants to see your reaction or because he’s really shocked by his own behaviour, but you’re definitely amused.

Ah, this cute little man will be the death of you. You can’t wait.

“So eager to have me in your bed, aren’t you?” you roll your eyes

As much as you’re amused and you’re curious to see what he’s going to do, you want to push him just a little bit. Teasing someone and then leaving them hanging is the best, especially if you get to see their shocked expression on their face as you walk away while they need to cover their little problem.

Tonight you feel nice, though, so maybe you will help this someone with his problem.

“I, uh... I’m sure your bed is much more comfortable than mine.”

You crush the butt of your cigarette inside the ashtray. “Should we try it so we can compare them?”

You can see Spencer gulping, his eyes scanning your face as if he’s trying to understand whether you’re joking or not. You were just teasing him – or maybe not. Definitely not, because you’re quite curious to see how he’d react with your legs spread open just for him and your fingers playing with yourself while waiting for him. After all, you’re a Goddess tonight – which means he will need to worship you, kiss every inch of you and savour the taste of your skin.

“Or we can stay here and look each other in the eyes until someone gives in.”

You put your right hand underneath your chin and lean forward, staring into those beautiful eyes that immediately look away from you. You don’t know if he pulled away because you made him uncomfortable by being so close to him or by your words; either way, you feel bad because this wasn’t your intention. You were just playing, but maybe you played too rough with him.

After all, he’s the “baby genius” of the group – as David always said.

You wonder if Spencer could give you a baby genius.

The thought makes you smile.

“The others will hear me.”

His answer comes as quickly as the quick movements of your eyes on his face. Spencer is thinking about your proposition, which makes you squeeze your legs together.

“They won’t if I keep that sweet little mouth of yours occupied, don’t you think?”

Spencer struggles to look you in the eyes, terrified that you might see the desire flashing behind his and going straight to his groin. He has been trying to hide that little problem for the past hour. He thought that coming out here and talking to you innocently would’ve helped him stop thinking about you riding him, but it didn’t. Nothing helped.

“Do I have a sweet little mouth?”

You hum, chuckling at his blushing cheeks. “Of course you do. You have the prettiest lips I’ve ever seen. I bet they’re soft, too.”

Spencer lowers his eyes, blushing even more at your compliments. How can he react like this just because of a few words? You haven’t even touched him or told him how you’re going to want him to touch you, and he’s like this?

Hard and needy?

You find him adorable, but pathetic as well.

You’re going to break this boy down piece by piece and you’ll love it.

“I’m not going to kiss you right now because I probably won’t be able to stop.” – you mumble, placing a hand over his knee – “I’ll tell David I’m not feeling too well. You know where the guest room is.”

You stand up before he could open his mouth to answer you and you leave him outside, gently approaching your uncle. Placing your hands on his shoulder, you wait until he finishes talking about the last time he went to Italy and ended up taking the wrong train, with no money, no clean clothes.

You’ve heard that story so many times and it’s still so funny, because you were right there with him. You were the other person that lost their luggage on holiday and ended up having to buy everything inside of a supermarket, along with Krystall.

It was weird, but so worth it.

When David is done talking, you tap him on the shoulder and you lean forward. You whisper in his ear that you feel a bit lightheaded because of all the alcohol you have drank the whole night. He touches your hand, looking at you worried.

“I’m sorry, pumpkin. Do you need me to do something? Do you have your medicine?”

You nod your head, smiling softly. “Yes, thank you. I’ll come back when I feel better.”

Kissing his forehead, you tap his shoulders again and then you apologise to the rest of the guests, excusing yourself out of the room.

You don’t like to interrupt a party to announce that you’re not feeling well, especially if it’s a lie, but you’re not going to turn the chance of having Spencer all over you down. It’s what you’ve been waiting for since you saw him at the bottom of the stairs, looking up at you as if you were the most precious creation on Earth.

David glances at Spencer stepping inside the living room with his cheeks totally flushed and his eyes down on the floor. He doesn’t know what happened outside and, honestly, he doesn’t want to know, but he could see how you affected Spencer.

You weren’t the only one who noticed his hungry eyes on you the whole time.

The rest of the team, especially Penelope and David, did.

“Hey kid, are you alright?” Luke calls out

Spencer clears his throat, facing the rest of his team. “Hm? Oh yeah, everything’s fine. I was just looking for some, uh, water. I’m thirsty.”

Penelope holds back a laugh when David glares at her.

There’s no need to embarrass Spencer any further because he’ll be done as soon as he not-so-subtly asks if he can use the bathroom upstairs.

“Are you sure you don’t want a glass of wine?” Emily asks

Spencer shakes his head, heading to the kitchen. “No, I’m good with water. Thank you.”

Luke takes a sip of his wine, leaning against the chair. “What’s going on?”

Spencer ignores his question, opening the fridge inside the kitchen to grab a bottle of water. He needs it because his mouth is so dry due to his nerves. He knows he’s acting weird and the rest of the team probably understood what’s actually going on, while you don’t have a clue.

Upstairs, you’re taking off your shoes.

You wonder what Spencer has told the team to cause this silence and you start to get nervous, because maybe you shouldn’t have been so eager to have Spencer with you. You don’t want anybody to know what’s going to happen in your bedroom if he shows up, so you hope Spencer doesn’t mess things up for you.

You don’t really want David to give you the “you can’t have sex with my colleagues in my house” talk, even though he’ll probably say something tomorrow morning – or in the next few days you’ll stay right there.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Startled by the sound coming from the door, you almost drop your phone on the floor, but you manage to put it on your nightstand. It’s incredible how fast he was, but you don’t blame him: you’re as eager as him.

Straightening the skirt of your black dress, you head to the door. You hoped you’d have enough time to undress.

You open the door.

“Hi.”

Spencer stands in front of you, his eyes not leaving yours. “Hey.”

You grab him by the red tie around his neck, pulling him inside of your bedroom. He closes the door behind his back and his mouth immediately covers yours, making you stumble as you try to get back over to your bed.

Okay, you were definitely not expecting Spencer to be like this.

You were not expecting him to kiss you as soon as you opened the door, but you don’t complain. You wanted to do this when you were outside on the patio, so you’re grateful he has made the first move.

His hands slide down over to your thighs, gripping them as you gasp against his lips.

“We have to be quick, I told them I was going to the bathroom.”

You nod without interrupting the kiss, biting his bottom lip. You will be as quick as you can, hopefully he’ll be as well – you’re not sure if you’re going to have enough time to actually have sex with him right now, but there’s no rush.

“Then, let’s get to it.”

Spencer gets on his knees almost immediately, not giving you the time to enjoy the last kiss he gave you. The sight in front of you is just as hot as you thought it would be.

“Don’t make a sound.”

You roll your eyes, sitting on the edge of the bed. “So bossy.”

His eyes widen at your words, biting his bottom lip. He didn’t mean to make you mad – he’s terrified of you not giving him what he craves the most.

“I’m not, I just... don’t want the others to know what I’m doing.”

You run your fingers through his hair, gripping his curls. “They won’t, but put that mouth to use so it’ll be occupied.”

Spencer looks up at you for a few seconds, his lips parting as you speak to him in a tone of voice that sends shivers down his spine. You can feel and see the flashes of desire behind those beautiful lustful eyes, it’s incredibly hot.

“Go ahead, gorgeous. I’m waiting.”

His fingers slip underneath the skirt of your dress, exploring the soft skin of your thighs. You bite your bottom lip, staring at him as he makes his way under your dress to leave a trace of kisses from your knee up to your thighs.

You raise your leg and put it over his shoulders, keeping your right hand through his soft curls as you tug on them. You knew the sight was going to be delicious as soon as you met him, but this was incredibly hot – even hotter than before, when he was staring at you as if you were a painting.

Spencer is trying his best to not make a single sound, his mouth busy to kiss and worship your thighs.

You can’t really see his face from where you’re sitting so you lift your skirt, just enough to spot those beautiful pairs of eyes staring back at you.

“Hi.”

Spencer leaves another kiss on your inner thigh. “Hello Y/N.”

“Looking good over there.”

He lets out a soft chuckle, his fingers hooking up your panties before sliding them down your legs. You kick them away as soon as they reach your calves and you spread your legs, biting your bottom lip.

“Beautiful. Just as I thought.”

Blushing because of his compliments, you raise an eyebrow. “You thought about me like this?”

“Through the whole dinner.”

Spencer kisses down your inner thighs again, the gentle brush of his stubble against your skin setting it on fire. You know that your thighs will be covered in little nicks by tomorrow morning, but if this is the price to pay... you’re more than willing to spread your legs for him.

“You must have an incredible imagination, Doctor Reid.”

He worships you with his tongue, tracing it up to your inner thigh before sliding it over your clit. The sound that leaves your mouth will be forever imprinted in his mind, replaying over and over each time he’ll think about you.

“Fuck. An incredible tongue, too.” – you struggle to whisper, running your fingers through his curls before tugging on them – “Don’t stop.”

Spencer doesn’t plan to, closing his eyes and allowing his tongue to caress every inch of you and taste the sweetness of your heat. With his head buried between your thighs and your hands pulling his hair, Spencer thinks he just landed in Heaven – or where things are so perfect, a place he doesn’t want to run away from.

Normally, he would keep eye-contact with the person he’s ravishing, but today he knows he can’t do that. You probably wouldn’t mind, but Spencer wouldn’t be able to last at all – your eyes are magnetic.

It’s not even about the colour or the shape, it’s about the desire flashing behind them.

It’s a combination between your attitude, your confidence, your words... a dangerous mix that makes Spencer high alert on everything you do and say.

If he looks at you, he will come untouched. That’s it.

He can’t have that, he doesn’t want to disappoint you and no matter how quick his refractory period is, he doesn’t want to wait. He needs to be inside of you, he needs to orgasm because you want him to, he desperately craves to obey each one of your orders and watch you come undone before doing it himself.

Spencer wraps his lips around your clit, sucking it gently before you grip his hair. He knows you’re holding back those moans – the first one betrayed you, slipping out of your mouth before you could stop it. He wishes he’d be in another bedroom, maybe his; in another house, maybe his.

So you could be loud. So loud his neighbours would knock at his door and beg him to keep it quiet, which would make you and him way louder than you should be.

“Keep your eyes on me, Doctor Reid.” – you whisper, desire oozing from your voice as you move your hips against his face – “I want you to look at me while you eat me out.”

Spencer suppresses a frustrated whine, struggling to open his eyes, but managing to do as you wished. He doesn’t want to look at you, he doesn’t need you to see him completely wrecked just because of your salty taste.

You push a second pillow underneath your head, propping it high just enough so you can admire the amazing work Spencer is doing between your legs. And when you meet those chocolate eyes, you notice something strange.

His left hand is not on the bed.

“What are you doing with that hand, Doctor?”

Spencer stops his movements, pressing a soft kiss right above your clit in hope to distract you from the question you asked.

“Nothing you need to worry about.”

You raise your brow. “Are you touching yourself?”

Spencer doesn’t answer your question, burying his face between your legs again. His tongue delves deeper inside of you, making you shudder at the sensation. Your hands immediately fly right behind his head, pushing him right there where you want him the most.

He knew he was going to distract you.

He hoped so.

“You dirty little slut.” – you manage to speak, your voice broken by the pleasure amplifying more and more through your body – “Does this turn you on, Spencer? Are you hard because you’re eating me out?”

Spencer tightens his grip at the base of his cock, moving his hips slightly forward with his eyes still settled on your face. The hum he gives you in response to your question tells you that yes, he’s indeed turned on by all of this.

You don’t blame him.

Oral sex is one of the best act you could ever give or receive.

“Don’t stop.”

Spencer closes his eyes and savours your taste, gripping your thigh with his left hand and pushing your lower body towards his. You can feel yourself ready to topple over the edge, the pleasure tightening in your stomach as soon as his tongue slides up and down your clit.

You gasp and whimper at his movements, enjoying the wet sounds of his mouth devouring you.

“Spencer..”

You feel the tension snapping within you as you come, gripping his curls and tugging them even harder. Your back is arched and you don’t know for how long you’re going to be able to stay quiet, because this feels too fucking good.

Spencer doesn’t budge at your movements, his tongue relentlessly touching you, stimulating you to the point you can barely breathe.

Every cell in your body is on fire.

Then everything stops.

Spencer pulls away with his mouth and gets up on his feet, using his wet hand to touch himself. You’re dizzy and your legs are shaking because of the pleasure that ran through you, but as soon as you see him moving, you move.

“Do you want to come inside of me, darling?”

Spencer’s eyes snap wide open, staring at you with his parted lips. “Y-Yes.”

“Then fuck me.” - you mumble, gripping his tie - “Fuck me, but be quick. You don’t want the others to know what you’re doing, do you?”

He shakes his head, stroking his cock. “I don’t care.”

You giggle, sitting back up with your legs wide open. “Oh, you don’t? Do you want them to know how naughty you are? How hard are you because you ate my pussy?”

Spencer whines at your words, struggling to keep his eyes on you. “I… Please.”

“Please what, darling?”

“I don’t..” - he bites his bottom lip, pushing the head of his cock against your clit - “I can’t fuck you, I don’t have condoms.”

“Are you clean?”

You’ve never seen such a greedy man in front of you, silently begging you to let him fuck you and just come inside of you. Spencer looks incredibly beautiful, bent over towards you with his lips slightly parted and his right hand stroking his cock.

You feel your mouth water at the sight.

You lean forward, placing a hand underneath his. Spencer gasps.

“Yes! Yes, I’m clean.”

He’s so embarrassingly desperate.

“I’m clean as well.” - you tell him, grabbing his left hand - “Come on, fuck me.”

Spencer obeys, immediately pushing his length inside of you. His eyes close and he throws his head back, a soft moan echoing through the room as he finally feels the warmth of your walls tightening around him.

He didn’t even wait for you to be ready, he just wanted to get inside of you as quickly as possible.

So eager, so desperate.

It turns you on more than it should.

Spencer is glad you let him fuck you, because he wouldn’t have been able to stop thinking about it for the rest of the night. Waiting wouldn’t have been that merciful, now that you think about it.

“You feel so fucking good.”

Spencer moves his hips, lifting yours just enough to allow his cock to slide even deeper inside of you. You take all of him, adjusting to his size as you grip the bed sheets all around you.

“Fuck me, Spencer.”

He blinks, putting his hands underneath your thighs. He pushes your body closer to his, forcing you to close your legs around his waist. He doesn’t lift your whole body off the bed, but he lifts your hips.

And when the angle changes, you swear you’re in Heaven.

Spencer starts thrusting inside of you, his eyes never leaving your face because he wants to see you break down all over again. He needs to see you in pure bliss, he wants to push you off that edge again because that was the hottest thing he has ever seen in his whole life.

He didn’t think you’d let him fuck you right now.

He’ll forever be grateful for that.

“C-Close.”

You feel delicious all around him, tight enough. Spencer will dream about this for days, for weeks, for months - or until the next time he’ll be able to have you like this again.

He hopes it will be very soon.

You run your fingers through his hair, grabbing him by the tie with your other hand in order to have him closer. Spencer whines against your lips, kissing them feverishly.

“Come for me, darling.” - you whisper, the pleasure building rapidly behind your belly button again - “I want you to come inside of me, please. I need it so badly.”

You don’t know if what you’re saying makes sense, you’re too lost in your own pleasure and in the beauty of the man on top of you. The whole world stops as soon as his hands hold you down against the mattress, pinning you to the bed and preventing you from wiggling away.

You can’t do anything besides take all of him inside of you.

You wouldn’t change a thing.

Spencer doesn’t need to be told twice, feeling his tension getting tighter and tighter until it snaps, quick and hard. And he comes, painting your walls with his cum just as you follow off the cliff of pleasure with him.

It was quick, it was rough, but you wouldn’t have it any other way.

Spencer nurses your orgasm with slow thrust, riding his peak as well. Enjoying the tightness of your body all around him, he forces himself to keep his mouth shut when all he wants to do is praise you for being so fucking perfect.

He wants to do this all over again, until you can’t do anything but moan his name.

You’re still shaking because of your orgasm as Spencer collapses on top of you, his mouth attaching to your neck to nibble on it. You can feel his cock twitch inside of you and you wonder what Spencer would do if he saw the mess he has made between your legs.

It would be fun to force him to clean it up.

However, you can’t. Not now, at least.

He got hard because he ate you out, he’d probably get hard again. As much as you’re dying to have him in your mouth, you have to wait until the party's over and you can sneak out of your room to head to Spencer’s place.

Or his car.

You don’t care where you can have him again.

“Good boy, you did so good.” - you mutter in his ear, caressing his curls - “You’re incredible, Spence.”

He doesn’t want to pull away and pull out, he wants to be between your legs for the rest of the night. You feel too good right there, underneath his body with your hands touching him and caressing him.

And you smell so good.

“Thank you. You were so perfect.” - he starts to say - “So, so perfect… Wish I could have you every single day. Fuck, you felt so good.”

He keeps whispering praises to you, how much he loved fucking you and eating you out. You can see how relaxed he is now and you wonder if he’s alright, because you’ve never had someone be so dependent on you after sex.

It’s… interesting.

And fascinating.

“Thank you, darling.” - you tell him, tapping his chin - “Pull out now.”

Spencer obeys your order, immediately taking a step back and pulling out of your body. His come, mixed with your own arousal, drips out of your body, pooling right underneath you.

The sight makes him lick his bottom lip.

“Later, okay?” - you tell him, placing a hand between your legs - “Now go downstairs, yeah?”

Spencer lingers right in front of you for a whole good minute, staring at the mess he has made right between your legs. It’s incredible how just the sight gets him immediately on his knees, but you’re quicker than him.

You snap your fingers and you grab his arm, pushing him back up. “No. Not now, later. Wait for me in your car when all the others will leave, okay? I will find a way to sneak out.”

The young doctor stares at you before grabbing you by the face, immediately attacking his lips to yours. You close your eyes as you wrap your arms around his neck, standing up from the bed and feeling his come dripping down your thighs.

You hope he’s going to make another mess later.

“Okay, okay.” - Spencer says, sliding his hand down to your thighs - “I’ll wait for you.”

You don’t want to pull away from him, but you have to.

Walking him to the door, with your skirt completely raised up to your hip, you give him another peck on the lips. Spencer lingers again with his mouth on yours before opening the door, forcing you to take a step back.

You don’t want the others to see you.

“Clean up your face, darling. You look like someone who just ate some good pussy.”

You wink at him, pushing him out of the door.

It’s true, he had the chance to taste you and now he won’t think about anything else.

He should, because as soon as he gets down to the living room, everyone is looking at him.

Spencer washed his face and fixed his tie, making sure that there’s no trace of you on him. He doesn’t want the others to know that he got on his knees for you, that he buried his face between your legs, that he has just fucked you hard and fast until he had the chance to fill you up.

The thought makes him smile.

You felt so good all around him.

He loved watching you crumble along with him, because you were so tight and...

“Are you alright, Reid? Is Y/N okay?” Penelope asks

David rolls his eyes, lifting his right hand. “I don’t want to hear anything. She’s my niece!”

Spencer keeps his mouth shut, sitting beside Luke. “She’s... She’s really good.”

The party goes on for at least one more hour, then one by one, the rest of the team heads home. Spencer is the last one to leave Rossi’s mansion, not really sure whether to get out of the house and wait for you somewhere on the road or just come clean with David.

He’s a profiler, he knows exactly what is happening between you and Spencer.

Spencer made sure not to mention throughout the night, but he couldn’t stop thinking about how and how hard you kissed him. Everything you did, everything you said was so intoxicating – and it wasn’t just because you are extremely beautiful.

No, it’s just...

Everything.

Spencer can’t pinpoint exactly what he loves the most about you.

“Are you waiting for Y/N?”

Spencer blinks, turning to look at David. “Me? No, I was just...”

“Y/N!”

David calls out your name and Spencer’s heart drops to his chest, shocked by his action. He wasn’t expecting his colleague to yell your name, mostly because he was hoping no one downstairs understood what was happening just a floor up.

Apparently, they all did.

You open the door of your room, your head poking out at the top of the stairs. “Yes?”

“Spencer’s waiting for you.”

You look at him for a split second and Spencer waves at you, clearly embarrassed by what’s happening right now. You don’t blame him, you want to bury yourself with your bed sheets right now because you weren’t exactly planning on going out in the open with Spencer.

You don’t complain.

Hiding would’ve taken you minutes or at least an hour.

And you were starting to miss Spencer.

Hopping down the stairs in nothing, but a sweater and a pair of black leggings, you nod your head. You grab Spencer’s hand and place a kiss on his cheek, turning your head to look at David.

He’s not surprised.

Instead, he smiles.

“Ah, my new favourite couple.” – Krystall chimes in from behind, placing a hand over her heart – “Are you guys going out to celebrate Mischief Night all alone?”

Spencer feels like a guy who just arrived to pick up his girlfriend from prom. It’s not embarrassing, it’s just a bit unsettling so he turns to look at you – and when he does, and your eyes meet, he feels relaxed.

This is not that bad.

“Yes, there’s a Drive-In cinema not too far from here. I think we’ll go there and get to know each other.” – Spencer says, staring at you with a sheepish smile on his face – “Y/N is really interesting.”

You blush at his complement, gripping his elbow. “So charming.”

Krystall coos, nodding her head. “Alright! Have fun, guys. And enjoy Mischief Night! Be careful, there are kids egging cars around this neighbourhood.”

You yank Spencer by the elbow, running outside David’s house in silence. There’s no need to say anything, because if you open your mouth you will probably start laughing until you can even breathe anymore.

You were trying to be so secret... And it didn’t work.

It obviously didn’t work, you’re not as sneaky as you think you are.

Spencer opens the car door for you, closing it before jumping on his own seat.

“Oh my...”

He giggles first, covering his mouth.

You try your best to keep your mouth shut, not wanting to give in. This is not funny, this is quite embarrassing and you know you will never hear the end of it the day after. David’s not going to let you go so easily, and he’ll probably give you the whole speech about safe sex and how young you are compared to Spencer.

Thirteen years are not that much!

“We got caught.”

“I’m not surprised.” – Spencer says, turning to look at you as he leans forward – “I know a place we can go to be alone. No one will bother us, not even kids with their eggs.”

You nod your head, placing a hand on top of his. “So you can be as loud as you want while you watch me suck your pretty cock.”

The young doctor bites his bottom lip at your words, your hand immediately sliding from his to the bulge already forming between his legs.

He’s so easy to work up.

“Take me there.” – you tell him, placing a soft kiss over his lips – “Now.”

Spencer has never driven so fast to a place before in his life, dying to feel your mouth all over him like you just promised. He’s not going to hold back now, enjoying everything you can give him and giving you even more than he could do at David’s house.

If tomorrow your jaw is sore and your thighs are covered in little bite marks, you don’t complain. Maybe heading to that dark place with no one around and having the young doctor have his way with you was the best idea you’ve ever heard.

You hope to celebrate Mischief Night like this every single year.

Please consider liking, reblogging, or commenting on the fic if you are on the taglist. Otherwise, you are essentially asking me to take an extra step to include you while offering me absolutely NOTHING in exchange, which is a pretty shitty feeling.

NSFW taglist: @softreidx @getyoutmoon​ @bookishspencer​ @calm-and-doctor @nazifa94​ @srhxpci @eevee0722 @reichelhache @aperrywilliams @escapingrealities @beepbooptoop​ @alfonsais @lil-stark @muffin-cup @allexthakatt @nomajdetective @gyllord @winterwhore @pauline5525mgg @hotchandspencearedilfs @matthewgraygublerwife @avocadopenguins @reidsmilf @bohemianrhapsody86 @joy-soul-gallery @matthew-gray-gubler-lover @sweetandsunny @starrylang @void-m-stilinski @alexxavicry @addievermore @safespacespence @enchantedengland @baby-reid @xsarcasticwriterx @teenwolfbitches28 @reidsbookclub @this-is-doctor-and-its-calm @lilibet261 @justreadingficsdontmindme @lolalee24 @trishmarieofficial @geekykeen @kbakery @thatsonezesty13 @thehuntresswolf

[6okuto]

Niaaaa //wailing, heaving, rolling around on the floor

I cannot stress enough how much I adore your works and love rereading all of them from time to time

Am here to ask if you have any more touchstarved hcs,, or thoughts,, im dying over here

Literally starved for content

gn!reader | REG!!! //waving both hands, jumping up and down giggling. Thank U. this is an honour and incredible compliment. scary bc my old works are...old... but Thank u. U mean the world 2 Me. i didn't thoroughly check what hcs i've already said so sorry there's repeats orz

i'm not saying the LIs would all go to the barbie movie but if someone does make art of that please let me know and tag me especially if it has the i am kenough shirt

they ruined my life saying kuras doesn't eat how is he going to join my girl dinners now. /j but i'll continue to believe he can appreciate how good a meal looks! & he can still sit with you and try to get his hands on your favourite meals for you to enjoy :-)

that thing where they do push-ups and kiss you when they come down with...leander was the first one i thought of tbh. but if you aren't able to lie underneath him he'd just ask for the same amount once he's done!

leander doing the thing he did in the prologue where he took his glove off with his teeth every so often just to see your reaction. like if you react in an amusing flustered staring at him kind of way. i couldn't relate personally (lying) (liar) (huge lie)

i'm sorry for my leander bias but if one of his favourite things is MASQUERADES and we don't see him at a MASQUERADE well it's so joever like him in a suit and mask and showing off how he knows how to fit in because of his past and also he can waltz now or something I'm dizzy i can't breathe

ais using 0.5 camera on people while they're caught off guard. him asking you to take a video of the fight For him because he's going to be part of it. vere selfie folder. mhin 5 followers no icon no posts gc lurker.

mhin would stick to enough of a routine that they'd have a specific spot to sit at different places,,, like a cafe or the library or bus... corner. it's one of the corners. and when someone's taken the spot they're thrown off then have to walk around for a new one (not happy about this) but take it back once they leave. you spend enough time together and they start keeping the spot next to them open for you

^ also they'd always order the exact same thing at restaurants. wouldn't like going to a new place because now they have to find a new default order. just like me fr

is no one going to talk about the idea that vere doesn't like snow because he's chained outside and it's cold . to be fair it could Totally be for a less sad reason like how it gets his Fur Wet (valid) but i've been thinking about that possible angst

also his gloves are just. like. ? odd. inverse drawing gloves. claws... but why only the 3 fingers.... btw his outfit means a constant thigh holding opportunity

kuras and mhin having long conversations about alchemy and sharing their findings with each other ;; mhin at some point getting just a Little excited about something and kuras choosing not to comment on it but being happy to see them let their walls down a little ;; o(-(

ais coming into your room and wordlessly lying next to you in bed and when asked if he needs something he says no? with a smile. he was just feeling lonely and wanted to find you

saying "you look like you can't swim" or "you are an odd individual" to any and all of them . something about it is amusing to me

if you celebrate christmas or like the idea of kissing underneath some mistletoe,, i think it's a good thought that you hold one over your head and wait for a kiss Or that Some of the LIs would Definitely do that themselves.

who do you guys think has the saddest birthday celebration (/no celebration at all.) who's relating to girls who spend their birthday alone and crying and be honest with me

rambling but i just want to say kuras's monster form looks sick as FUCK and i'm so excited for it. it looks like whatever left the scar on his hand seems to be there.. in his monster form...? i thought it was a claw but the positioning is under/through the hand so like??. do i have to bring up the significance of that if true

also is his outfit (minus his jacket)...like a jumpsuit... or can i just not tell because of his three (?) belts. that's not how you wear belts btw /lh. and is the sheer part Part of the top or is he wearing something sheer underneath the white. his sleeves are also sheer but the neckline means his shoulders are out . take off ur jacket

also mhin !! i want to know how big they get and if the transformation is sickening to watch and if they're still aware of everything around them and !!! THERE IS A SPINE(?) COMING OUT FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE SILHOUETTE THAT I NEED TO SEE NOW! & i'm assuming the senobium is Shit so even if we do get in there and get 'help' there would be another shitty price to pay. possible bad ending...??

scenes with all their monster forms where you're asked if you're scared and you say no / yes but you care about them and they falter because they didn't expect that

true good ending is everyone meeting at the wet wick and making a toast and laughing and saying this truly was our touchstarved before the credits roll

[tessa-liam]

Marabelle

It’s A Dream Come True

– Chapter 7

Choices – The Royal Romance, AU

Series Premise – An American teenager from New York City is introduced to the world of a small European country and its society of royalty, nobility, and commoners. How will her life story be transformed? Will this new adventure bring her happiness...or regret?

Marabelle Series Masterlist

Main Pairing – Prince Liam Rys x F!OC Sophia (Sophie) Taylor

Other Pairings – Maxwell Beaumont x M!OC Daniel (from NYC), Drake Walker x F!OC Melanie Smithson

Most characters belong to Pixelberry.

Series Rating – M*🔞Warnings: this series will have NSFW material, crude language & innuendo.

Not Beta’d - Please excuse all errors.

Category – Alternate universe/on-going series/angst/fluff

Words: 2393

It’s A Dream Come True

Chapter 7

Chapter Summary – It’s the evening of the Masquerade Ball. Bertrand and Maxwell formally introduce Sophie to King Constantine as Lady Sophia of House Beaumont and officially joins the court as a noblewoman. Prince Liam and Sophie spend more time together and reach a milestone.

Music Inspiration:

When You Walk in the Room, Sanne Saomonse

A/N1: Bethany Beaumont, Maxwell’s mother, is originally from the U.S. and is Barthelemy Beaumont’s second wife. Annabelle Beaumont (deceased) is Bertrand’s mother.

A/N2: ‘Social Season’ in this AU series refers to a traditional period in the spring/summer for royalty and members of the court to take part in Balls, dinner parties and charity events.

A/N3: My submission for Choices Flashfics @choicesflashfics, Week #52, prompt 3 - “Well...that was/this is unexpected.”

A/N4: My submission for @choicesseptemberchallenge2023, @midnightmelodiz, Day 4 – Dreams, Day Dream, “I’m in love with you!”

It’s A Dream Come True

Royal Gym, Cordonian Palace

In the heart of the palace, Liam and Drake were in the midst of an intense workout session. The Royal gymnasium was within an imposing chamber with high, vaulted ceilings, adorned with paintings of legendary battles and noble ancestors.

Liam adjusted the weights on the bench press and began to lift, his muscles straining against the resistance. Drake, spotting him, supplied encouragement.

“You’ve got this, Li! Remember, every rep gets you one step closer to looking dashing in that masquerade outfit.” Drake chortled with a grin.

Liam chuckled, grateful for Drake’s support. “I don’t know how I’d manage this without you, my friend. It’s not just about looking good at the ball, though. I want everything to be perfect for Sophie. This is a big night for her.”

Drake nodded, understanding all too well the pomp and circumstance of court events.

“Yeah, I feel you, buddy. Melanie has been talking about this ball non-stop. It’s like the Super Bowl of fancy parties, and I am determined not to embarrass her.”

Their conversation paused momentarily as they continued their workout, their thoughts on their respective relationships. While Drake thought about Melanie and their commitment to each other, Liam’s thoughts went back to his conversation with Sophie after the garden party.

‘Sophie, I’m glad you could make it.’

'Thank you for inviting me, Liam.’

'I hope you don’t mind my asking, but is everything all right? You seemed a little ... disturbed earlier.’

‘I must admit, running into your chest was not exactly how I envisioned starting a conversation today.’

'Nor I, but it was a pleasant surprise nonetheless.’

Sophie opened up about the events that had troubled her that day. She spoke about the pressures of court and the weight of expectations, and her encounter with Madeleine.

Liam knew and understood that the palace and the court can be overwhelming; even at times, for himself. He found that they had ‘common ground in unexpected places.’

This was why he was determined to get to know her better. He felt a connection with her and a shared understanding that went beyond their titles. Liam wanted to find out everything about her.

After finishing their sets, they retreated to the terrace to grab water bottles and fresh fruit. Liam sat down with a towel and wiped sweat from his brow. “Have you chosen your mask for the ball yet?” he asked Drake.

Drake scratched his chin thoughtfully. “Not yet, but I’ve been thinking something mysterious and intriguing. Melanie loves a good mystery, so I want to keep her guessing all night.”

Liam grinned. “All night, Drake? Really?”

“Yeah, maybe not all night,” Drake winked with a grin. Liam laughed taking a swig of water.

The Masquerade Ball

“Awe, Sophie... look at you!” 

Maxwell blurted excitedly, as he twirled her around to appreciate her gorgeous red ball gown.

Sophie blushed at Maxwell’s enthusiastic compliment, feeling a warm flutter of happiness in her chest. Her ball gown, with its intricate lace details and flowing skirt, had taken her hours to choose with Aunt Bethany, but it was worth it to see the delight in Maxwell’s eyes.

“Thank you, Max,” she replied, her voice soft and touched by his admiration. “You don't look too shabby yourself in that dashing suit.”

Maxwell chuckled and gave her a playful wink. “Well, I had to step up my game to match your elegance tonight. Wait until Liam sees you, little blossom,” he teased.

“Are we ready?” Bertrand inquired, stepping beside Sophie and his brother, offering his arm for her to take.

As Sophie slipped her arms with her cousins, Maxwell exclaimed, “let’s do this.”

The doors to the grand ballroom are opened, and the herald announces,

“Lady Sophia Taylor of House Beaumont, accompanied by Duke Bertrand Beaumont of Ramsford with Lord Maxwell Beaumont of House Beaumont.”

The Introductions continued, as each noble or noble couple made their entrance into the ballroom.

King Constantine and Queen Regina, seated on the raised dais, exchanged polite greetings and nods with each noble as they were presented, their regal presence commanding respect and admiration from all in attendance.

As Sophie, Bertrand, and Maxwell approached the royal dais, Sophie executed a graceful curtsy, her gown billowing elegantly as she lowered herself before the King and Queen.

Bertrand and Maxwell, the brothers by her side, performed deep and respectful bows.

King Constantine and Queen Regina acknowledged their gestures with warm smiles and nods of appreciation.

Prince Liam, who was standing to the right of the dais, could not help but smile as he caught Sophie’s eye after she had finished her graceful curtsy as she moved towards him. His smile was warm and friendly, a silent greeting that conveyed his pleasure at seeing her once again.

"My lady, you are a vision of beauty."

Sophie, her cheeks tinged with a subtle blush from his attention, returned Liam’s smile with a gentle one of her own. It was a small, private moment amidst the grandeur of the ballroom, but it spoke volumes of their connection and friendship in the midst of the royal event.

A soft gasp escaped her lips as he gently lifted her hand and pressed a tender kiss to it. Her heart fluttered at his chivalrous act, as she felt a rush of warmth and attraction towards him.

With a charming smile, Liam offered his arm to Sophie in invitation to join him in the ballroom. She gracefully accepted, her hand resting delicately on his arm as they entered the grand hall together, the music and festivities swirling around them.

Melanie, watching the pair stroll into the ballroom, could not take her eyes off them. Their presence captivated her completely.

“Do you want another drink, Mel?” Drake asked, trying to get her attention. His voice broke through Melanie’s trance, and she turned to look at him, momentarily torn between her fascination with Liam and Sophie and the offer of another drink.

“Oh, uh, yeah, sure,” Melanie replied, her gaze reluctantly leaving the couple as she refocused on Drake. “Thanks, Drake.”

As Drake shook his head and started to walk to the bar, Melanie could not help but steal another glance at the couple now across the room. Liam and Sophie looked so comfortable together, their laughter heard from across the hall. It was hard for Melanie to ignore the pang of jealousy that tugged at her heart.

Drake returned with a fresh drink in hand, offering it to Melanie with a warm smile.

“Everything okay?” he asked, concern clear in his eyes.

Melanie forced a smile, trying to shake off her feelings of longing. “Yeah, just lost in thought, I guess. Thanks for the drink, babe.”

He nodded understandingly, his stare lingering on her for a moment longer before he turned to talk with his sister, Savannah. Melanie took a sip of her drink, determined to enjoy the evening despite the twinge of heartache.

Melanie watched as Liam gracefully guided Sophie across the ballroom floor, their waltz a mesmerizing display of elegance. The couple moved with such synchronized grace that it seemed as if they were the only two people in the room. She could not help but feel a pang of envy at their obvious connection.

As they waltzed towards the French doors and stepped out onto the balcony, Melanie’s curiosity got the best of her. She decided to follow discreetly, making her way through the crowd and out onto the balcony as well. The cool night air greeted her, and she saw Liam and Sophie standing at the balcony railing, gazing out at the garden maze.

From her vantage point, Melanie could see the intricate pathways of the garden maze lit by soft, romantic lighting, when she felt a tap on her shoulder.

Startled, Melanie turned to see a royal guard standing behind her. She immediately straightened up and offered a polite smile.

“I’m sorry,” she said apologetically. “I didn't realize. I was just admiring the view.”

The royal guard nodded, his expression stern but professional. “I understand, Miss, but for security reasons, we need to keep this area clear. I’ll have to ask you to return to the main ballroom.”

Melanie nodded in understanding. “Of course, I didn’t mean to intrude. Thank you for letting me know.”  She turned to leave the balcony, casting one last glance at Liam and Sophie, but they were no longer there.

The Garden Maze

Sophie’s laughter echoed through the hedges as she darted around corners. Her gown billowing behind her. The scent of blooming flowers filled the air, and the distant sound of music from the palace mingled with the symphony of nature. Liam pursued her with playful determination, his eyes alight with mischief as he turned a corner.

He found Sophie, cheeks flushed with eyes sparkling, standing at a small clearing where a stone bench rested beneath a canopy of Ivy. Sophie, breathless but with an impish grin hiked up her gown, revealing her shapely legs and slipped off her heels.

“A lady must do what a lady must do,” she declared, her voice teasing. Liam couldn't help but chuckle, charmed by Sophie’s unpretentious spirit. He approached slowly, allowing himself to savor the moment.

“Well, this is unexpected,” Liam remarked, his voice laced with amusement.

Sophie's eyes twinkled mischievously. “You didn't think I let you catch me so easily, did you?”

Liam shook his head, feigning innocence. "Of course not. I just did not expect you to resort to such …  tactics.”

With a playful glint in her eyes. Sophie stepped closer. “Desperate times call for desperate measures, don't they?” She winked.

Their continued banter dissolved into shared laughter, filling the garden with an infectious joy. Liam took a step closer, his fingers lightly brushing against Sophie's as he reached for her.

“Well then, Lady Sophie, I shall have to employ my own tactics.”

As if in response, Sophie took a step back, her eyes dancing with anticipation.

“And what tactics might those be?”

With a sly smile, Liam lunged forward, but Sophie was quicker than he anticipated. She dodged his outstretched hand with a graceful pirouette, her laughter ringing out like a sweet melody.

 Their game of tag continued, each chase and evasion bringing them closer together, the connection between them growing stronger with every shared moment. The palace seemed a distant world, forgotten in the enchantment of their own private garden.

They finally paused, breathless, and flushed from their game of tag.

Liam’s gaze met Sophie's, and in that moment, the world seemed to fade away leaving only the two of them.

Their newfound love, unspoken yet palpable, hung in the air like fragrance of the surrounding flowers. It was a love that was blossoming amidst the twists and turns of the garden maze, a love that had taken root in their hearts.

Without a word, Liam took a step closer, his hand gently cupping Sophie’s cheek. She leaned into his touch, her eyes fluttering closed. Their lips met in a tender, unhurried kiss. Sophie's blue eyes met his as Liam wrapped his other hand around her waist to pull her closer. Their lips met again, this time with an urgency as Liam deepened the kiss; his tongue searching hers.

Beaumont Estate

It was early morning when Sophie awoke in her bedroom at House Beaumont. The dreams she had experienced that night were like fragments of a beautiful story unfolding into reality.

As the soft light filtered through the gauzy curtains, Sophie could not help but smile. She lay in bed, the memories of her adventures with Liam in the garden maze still fresh in her mind. The way he chased her, the laughter they had shared, and the kisses that had ignited a fire within her heart.

With a contented sigh, she pushed back the covers and swung her legs over the side of the bed. She couldn’t linger in bed all day, no matter how tempting it was to stay in bed with her daydreams. ...but she knew Marabelle was waiting for her morning ride.

Sophie picked up a brush and began to brush her long, chestnut hair. Her reflection in the mirror seemed different now – happier, more alive. She remembered the laughter they had shared, the way Liam’s eyes sparkled when he looked at her, and the warmth of his embrace. In her thoughts...Liam, I think, I’m in love with you!

📌@ao719 @txemrn @queenmiarys @sfb123 @twinkleallnight @alj4890 @differenttyphoonwerewolf @harleybeaumont @busywoman @karahalloway @kingliam2019 @imjusthereforliam @lovingchoices14 @kyra75 @tinkie1973 @emkay512 @malblk21 @kristinamae093 @charlotteg234 @irisk12 @walkerdrakewalker @choicesficwriterscreations @midnightmelodiz

[brighteststar707]

Glasses II

Me talking about Saeyoung’s glasses again because Cheritz doesn’t appreciate them enough he has been missing them a lot lately.

This draft has been sitting in its folder since the masquerade opening screen came out. Realistically, I know him not having glasses in most CGs is an artistic choice, but of course I found a reason to make it a character quirk.

The mirror in Saeyoung’s walk-in wardrobe is the biggest in the house, which is why you’ve both decided to squish yourselves in there tonight. You’re both all dressed up for the RFA party, all that’s left are the finishing touches.

Saeyoung stands in front of the mirror, running a comb through his hair for the third time. He knows his efforts are futile, and that the parting will disappear partway through the night, but he’s not going to let it dissuade him. Meanwhile, you’re bustling around the room, looking for the finishing touches to your outfit in the mess of clothes and accessories. He watches you through the reflection, his little whirlwind, and smiles when you finally find what you were looking for and let out a small aha!

You slip on your shoes and join him at the mirror, bumping him with your hip to make room for you.

“Shuffle up, you’re hogging the mirror.”

“I’m just making sure that I look my best for tonight! My hair is staging a rebellion and I’m losing!”

“You’re missing some. Here, let me try.”

He hands you the comb, turns to face you and you help him even out the parting.

He likes to think that he doesn’t get flustered quickly around you anymore, but this small action makes him blush. He loves being spoiled by you.

“There! I think we’ve tamed it.” You turn back to the mirror and take in his full outfit.

He’s pretty sure he’s outdone himself this time. He hasn’t had many chances since knowing you to dress up this nicely, so he put in extra effort just for today. He went shopping with Zen a few weeks ago and found a heavy red and white jacket that he was sure would be a perfect fit.

“You look wonderful, Saeyoung. Except… what is that?” The smooth lines of his silhouette are interrupted by something half-stuffed in his pocket.

“Oh… that’s the box for my glasses.”

“Why do you need a box for your glasses? Are you bringing more than one pair?”

“No, I’ll just be taking these off once we arrive at the party.” He demonstrates by whipping off his glasses and flashing you a smile. “Tada! Saeyoung’s beauty has increased by one hundred percent!”

Your reflection in the mirror is much blurrier than it was a minute ago, but he’s pretty sure you’re not smiling back at him.

“Saeyoung, you can’t see very far without them. How are you going to enjoy the party when you can’t even see anybody’s face?”

“Beauty is worth struggling for! Don’t worry though babe, I’ll always be able to spot you in a crowd, no matter how bad my vision might be!”

Even that comment doesn’t lighten your mood. Your blurry face still looks sad.

“You’ve said that before. About looking better without your glasses, I mean. Do you really take them off for events?”

“For most of the parties and other events where we have to look… presentable. It doesn’t make me look like Zen or anything, but it’s an improvement.” Sure, it was uncomfortable, but he had managed to get by in the past. He’d mostly use Yoosung as his guide to help him recognize people and would put them back on before his eyes hurt too bad. It was all worth it in his mind to feel pretty for one night.

You sigh, take the glasses from his hands and sternly put them back on him. As your face comes back into focus, he notices your expression has gone from sad to a sort of stubborn determined look you often get when he talks negatively about himself.

“I know what I say can’t change your mind or the way you think, but I think you’re very pretty, with or without your glasses. You shouldn’t have to struggle on a night like this.”

You brush away a strand of hair on the wrong side of the parting and your expression softens slightly.

“- also, after all the work I put into decorating, you had better appreciate it to the best of your abilities,” you add with a smirk.

He throws his arms around you and squeezes you close to him.

“How can I possibly miss out on my babe’s work? I’ll make sure to appreciate every last detail in there tonight!” He doesn’t say the rest out loud, but you know him well enough to know that under all his exuberance, he holds onto your small reassurances and compliments like they’re gold.

“Just wait until the others see us, they won’t know what hit them,” he says, admiring your outfits in the mirror. You’re dressed in all black, with slight hints of red, which he’s thrilled about. He already knows that you’re going to be the center of attention tonight, and he can’t wait to see what everyone else has to say. As much as you love giving him compliments and reminding him of his worth, he loves to see you get the recognition that you deserve. There’s only so many times he can tell you just how showstopping you look (not that it dissuades him from showering you in compliments).

“That being said, I think we’re ready, don’t you?”

You agree, and you wiggle out of his arms so you can leave the wardrobe, all the while stepping over all your discarded clothes and accessories.

Before he follows, Saeyoung takes out the box from his pocket and puts it back where it belongs. With one last look towards the mirror, he straightens out his glasses and feels a warmth spreading through his chest.

He plans to enjoy tonight to its fullest potential.

[velvetfoxgames]

Only if it’s not too much trouble- would it be possible to know what the Halloween emails said? Looking forward to the game!

The photo edits of their costumes are a little too cursed to share, but here's the emails in the order they were sent:

BROOKLYN

Greetings.

Halloween is just around the corner. I will be attending a Hallow's Eve ball. It will require masquerade attire, rather than costumes, which is a bit boring. But I’ve coordinated an outfit with a black, gold and white mask. It’s an authentic Italian mask I had delivered from Rome. Besides that, unfortunately I don’t think any of my associates will be dressing up this month for meetings. I’ve decided to wear Halloween-themed ties, and I’ve also designed a few boutonnieres that will use darker colored flowers from the garden. This way I’ll still be keeping with some of the Halloween spirit.

I hope you’ll be engaging in Halloween activities this year. If you’d ever like any costume advice, please feel free to message me. I can recommend some historical ideas. I’d imagine you’d look rather nice in a 1910s Victorian outfit.

Be well and enjoy this month’s festivities.

Yours truly, Brooklyn Hayes

MILO

Hi. It’s almost Halloween. People at my work are dressing up and having a work party. I’ll be wearing a plaid shirt and jeans. So I’ll be a lumberjack.

I’ve never done much on Halloween before. And I haven't been trick or treating. If there’s anything you think I should try to do this year…I might listen. You usually have good suggestions for things. And a corn maze or something wouldn’t be too bad.

At the very least, I hope you do something fun in place of me.

Talk to you later.

-Milo

RORY

Hi. Halloween is in a few days.

I don’t usually do much for it, but someone is making me go trick-or-treating with them at a mall, even though we’re way too old for that

-_-

I’m also being forced to dress up. So I’m going as Eddie Munson from Stranger Things. I even have a wig. But don’t expect any pictures, because I don’t want that immortalized.

If it was up to me, I’d go to this haunted house nearby. It’s supposed to be really good. I’m actually not sure if you like scary things…? I don’t know. But maybe someday…we could go.

Whatever you’re up to, hope you have fun. Be careful.

Rory

ALEXEI

Hello,

Halloween is only a few days away now. I was doing some research on it the other day. Did you know that Irish immigrants helped bring Halloween to the US? And that jack-o-lanterns were originally hollowed turnips with lights in them to ward off spirits? Halloween is a celebration with a very interesting history. I don’t usually do much for it, but someone I work with decided to get me a costume this year. He thought it would be funny if he dressed me up as Chucky from the movie. I’m not sure why he thinks it’s funny. I have not seen that movie. I know a wig will be required.

I’ll be working on Halloween, but maybe I’ll send you a picture of myself, otherwise I don’t think too many people will see me dressed up.

I hope you have a good Halloween and do a lot more than me. I’d maybe like to see a picture of your costume as well.

Talk to you later and take care, Alexei

TOBIAS

BOO!!!

Happy Halloween B)

Well almost Halloween

I’ll be heading out to one of those celebrity costume parties tomorrow. You’ll probably see what I’m dressing up as in the press but maybe I can tell ya now ;)

I’m goin as a cowboy C):)  and let’s just say the vest I’ll be wearing won’t have anything underneath. Are u picturing it? Good B)

I'd like to know what ur going to be. Bet it’s cute. If you were coming with me to the party we could dress in matching outfits. Don’t know if you’d have much fun tho. Those celebrity parties are actually kinda boring. I think Id rather join with whatever ur doing

Don’t get into too much trouble tomorrow. Message me later. If ya can

Adios partner B)

LEO

HAPPY HALLOWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 👻

Hey hey I hope you have a great day today!! Idk if you’re planning to go out or not but either way I hope you dress up or eat lots of candy or watch some scary movies!!! Do something fun because I want you to have the best day possible ^^

My friends and I are having a dnd night at one of their houses. Halloween campaign! We’re dressing up as video game characters lol I’m Link :D

Since we’ll be at a house we can hand out candy. Someday maybe next year I'd like to do something with you? We could go to a pumpkin patch or check out fall colors…just been thinking about it.

Anyway have a good Halloween!!!!!!!!!! Hope I can talk to you later ^^

-Link (Leoooo)

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

LEONA STANS HOW WE FEELING???

Leona looking like he just overthrew Farena on his card sitting on the throne with that pose. I am looking sinfully 👁️👁️. I really appreciate how Leona really looks like he is in his element, definetly he has never looked more princely than he does now. I'm so excited for this event, I really believe we are FINALLY going to meet the Kingscholar big bro!!! We got Felmier grandma, Viper sister, so now I hope Farena makes an appearence. Also more Cheka shenanigans, hopefully!!!! (kinda disappointed Ruggie and Rook are not included tho)

Also I bet Crowley is gonna send us over there with Leona to try and find a way home. Like every time. Sigh.

[Referencing this post!]

👆 Me Y’all right now 😌 Oh, but I’m sure the Leona fans are doing juuust fine… I don’t know if I can say the same for their gems and keys though 💦

bxsvsjwbw NWURrrAajUUYNAUR DONmT lET LEoNA OVERTHROW hiS BRImoThER AnD SiT ON THAT tHRonE 😭 it makes him too sexy hot BUT YEAH, L*ona looks really in his element here 🤡 definitely very powerful, very regal!! Like he knows all the moves you’re going to make and has already calculated ways to counter them…

HNFZhxbbzhababBHHFHHHHGGGGHH JUST LOOK HIm, LOOK At ThE FAcE THIS bASTARD iS MAkI NG I WAnNA JUST. UGHHHHHhHhHHGHH **aggressively shakes him like I’m making a frothy cocktail**

I sure hope we get to meet a member of Leona’s family 👁️ My money’s also on Farena being the most likely person, but I wouldn’t be opposed to meeting Leona’s sister-in-law or even totally new characters twisted from those in The Lion King! (I have a bias for birds, so if there was a new character at all, then I’d want to see twisted!Zazu~) And, of course, hopefully we see the return of Cheka!! Lil’ guy needs more screentime, he’s been sorely missed since his cameo in the first Halloween event 😂

I think it’s still possible that Ruggie and Rook go home with us for the event (they just won’t get new outfits/cards), it depends on the circumstances. For example, Kalim went to Silk City for the Scalding Sands event despite not being one of the characters that got a Yasmina Silk card. Something similar could occur for Ruggie and Rook; maybe they’ve come to spectate in an event or a ceremony but not participate in it themselves (so they wouldn’t get special attire).

I don’t think Crowley will?? There’s only been one major instance of him sending Yuu to a new location to research a way home, and that was Glorious Masquerade. All of the other times when Yuu visited someone’s homeland, it was because they were invited to join for an event (ie Kalim invites them to Silk City’s fireworks festival, Epel invites them for Harveston’s sledding race). Other events like Vargas Camp may have Yuu tagging along for practical purposes (ie helping the teacher). In fact, Crowley sending Yuu away to new places for the purposes of finding a way home is actually a very uncommon excuse used to shoehorn them into exploring Twisted Wonderland, it’s definitely not “like every time”.

[avatarmerida]

Wallflowers

For the first day of @huntlowweek Prompt: Date

(In case it’s not clear, this is prior to them meeting in canon and before Luz comes to the demon realm)

Date (noun): a social engagement between two persons that often has a romantic character

———

Hunter didn’t want to go.

“Why should I waste my time conversing with stupid children? I have more important things to be doing!” He insisted as Darius carefully laid out the outfit he had selected for him on his bed.

“Little prince, I hate to be the barrier of bad new but you are a ‘stupid children,’” Darius sighed as he inspected the suit for lint. “These are your peers.”

“No, they’re students,” griped Hunter, slouching in his chair. “All they do is gossip and read magazines or whatever. I have nothing in common with them.”

“You’ve never even spoken to witches your own age, how could you possibly know that?”

“Because I just do, okay?” He whined. “The Titan has big plans for me and I’m pretty sure they don’t involve drinking warm punch surrounded by tacky streamers a-and photo booths.”

“Look, I was a lot like you when I was your age,” began Darius “I too once thought I was above it all, and to be honest I was and still am, but I can’t deny the importance of attempting to socialize. The children at this event will be joining covens soon enough, and next year you’ll be taking Lillith’s place at Con con seeking out recruits for the Emperor. You don’t want to seem out of touch and embarrass the Emperor’s Coven, do you?”

“Of course not,” Hunter said, hanging his head.

“Good, now I’ll make you a deal: all you have to do is stay at the party for one hour and talk to at least one person and then you can leave.”

“What if there’s not anyone there worth talking to?”

“Well how can you hope to know if you don’t try?” Darius retorted smugly. “Now get changed, I won’t have the Golden Guard’s first social appearance be tarnished by you arriving in the same clothes you’ve been wearing all day.”

“What’s wrong with the clothes I wear?”

“Now that’s a conversation for a later time, we can’t have you being late.”

———

Willow REALLY didn’t want to go.

“You were invited sweetie, it would be rude not to go,” said Gilbert.

“But dad no one wants me there!” Willow insisted.

“Well then why would they invite you?” asked Harvey.

“They invite the whole school, but Gus can’t go this year and without him I’ll have no one to talk to!”

“Well, maybe you’ll meet a new student, have a fresh start,” offered Gilbert. “Besides, you look so wonderful in your new dress it would be a shame if no one got to see you in it.”

“And hiding never accomplished anything sweetpea,” added his husband. “Do you really want to start the new school year shut up in your room?”

“But dad-!”

“Tell you what honey, stay for one hour. If after an hour you’re not having even a little bit of fun, we’ll come pick you up and get eye-scream, no questions asked.”

“Okay, fine,” Willow sighed as she headed upstairs to start getting ready. “But I’m telling you, no one is gonna wanna talk to me.”

———

The Blight manor was a sight to behold. They held the lavish event every year; celebrating the start of the school year and allowing everyone at Hexside to share their summer stories and make sure they were in an established clique for the new semester. It was second only to Grom in popularity, but the Blights elected to use abominations in place of chaperones so in terms of drama it was second to none.

Every year there was a new theme, a tradition started by Ed and Em who used it as a chance to show off their unmatched ability to commit to a bit. Last year had been a black and white gala where they had arrived dressed as chess pieces (Emira the black nigh, Edric the white, and Amity the board) and the year before that the theme had simply been ‘glitter’ and the clean up for the glitter bombs the twins placed nearly everywhere was barely finished in time for the following party. Which brings us to this year’s theme: a masquerade ball.

Hunter appreciated the ability to leave his mask on without it bringing him too much attention. The outfit Darius had selected for him did help him blend in, black pants with a signature golden colored vest and matching tie from his personal collection. He wore one of his satin white shirts and a new pair of gloves, an addition a Hunter had insisted upon. Hunter had wanted a cape, but Darius had deemed it “overkill” and they had settled on a black suit jacket that he draped on his shoulders for the same effect. He lingered outside the door as long as he could, hoping to eat away at his time, but soon people starting asking him where to leave their coats and he retreated inside to find another place to hide. He walked around, picking up pieces of conversations to try and convince Darius he had made an effort to engage. But it was just as he expected: pointless gossip with nothing of value.

He watched as everyone else walked around trying to guess who was behind the mask and they revealed themselves with little hesitation. Hunter couldn’t help but feel it defeated the point of wearing a mask. He noticed though, that he was the only one who elected to cover the entirety of his face as the rest of the attendees donned masks that merely covered their eyes.

He stood at the punch bowl, relatively thirsty but then realized he would have to remove his mask to drink from the cup he had filled. He didn’t want to do that, he knew people were always trying to see his face and he wanted to keep his anonymity. So he just stood at the table and held his punch awkwardly, continuing counting down the hour.

“Oh, I wouldn’t drink that if I were you,” said a small voice suddenly from beside him. “One of the Blight twins usually spikes the punch by now.”

“They put spikes in it?!” He said, looking at the contents of the cup closer.

“No, no,” the girl laughed. “They usually put a truth potion in it when no ones looking to cause drama; everyone starts confessing to crushes or confronting people or admitting embarrassing secrets. One year they didn’t spike it but told everyone that they did, it was chaos.”

Hunter looked at the girl a bit closer, she wore a simple emerald green dress with puffy sleeves that hung off her shoulders and a skirt that fell just past her knees and poofed out with a light yellow petticoat underneath it. It complimented the light green of her eyes that shined even behind her mask which she had decorated with intricate vines and tiny yellow flowers. Her short black hair had a gentle curl to it and was pinned back by a yellow hair clip shaped like a flower. She was pretty, he would do no more than think and she was the only one to approach him... casually. He knew the rest of the party was abuzz with whispers about him, he was used to whispers, but now they made him feel even more out of place. No one stood near him too long or complimented the outfit Darius had selected or asked him how he was. It was clear he came alone and knew no one there, but no one sought to change that. He suspected one of the Blight children would see him off when the time came, for appearances, but no one could be convinced to sacrifice a whole evening to him.

But then, out of nowhere, she came and lingered at his side and made him feel included for a brief moment. And a Hunter didn’t hate it.

“So... you’ve been to a lot of these things then, huh?”

“Yeah I guess,” she sighed. “It’s kind of a tradition, but I usually end up leaving early ever since...”

“Ever since... what?”

“Well, uh I used to come with my friend and we would hang out and dance but then she... found better friends.”

“Well, it seems like her loss, not yours,” said Hunter, dumping his punch back into the bowl. “You don’t seem... entirely unpleasant.”

“Thank you?” Willow laughed. “Well, um I can leave you alone if you want. I’m sure you probably wanna get back to your friends.”

“Oh, uh, yeah,” he said. But some part of him didn’t want her to leave. “Well I would... but it’s my first time at one of these and my friends... aren’t here yet.”

“Oh, well maybe I can show you around until they get here,” offered Willow. “If you want.”

“I think...I’d like that,” said Hunter. “You wouldn’t happen to know where to get an unspikey beverage would you? My throat is a little dry.”

“I think I can arrange something,” she said. “But it might be hard for you to drink with that kind of mask. If you want, I can get you a more beverage friendly option.”

Willow made a circle with her finger to summon a golden flower into her hand, the petals wide and long each with a hole in the middle. She carefully folded the petals so the holes lined up and used a vine to make a strap and hold it all together as she presented it to him. “Here, try this.”

“Is that a wallflower?” he asked.

“What?”

“My... guardian said that I should avoid being a wallflower at a social event,” he said. “It’s a lovely flower but I’m just not familiar with it so I just wanted to make sure-.”

“Oh, no it’s not,” said Willow, understanding. “Uh, a wall flower is like a person who doesn’t really participate a party I guess. But personally I don’t think there’s anything wrong with being one.”

“Oh, I see,” he said as he took it, not fully understanding the definition but trusting her authority as she seemed like an expert in everything the term contained. He wasn’t used to receiving gifts without strings attached, and he looked at her face to see if there was a condition coming. But she just looked happy to help him. He quickly ducked down as he made the switch, noticing the pleasant smell her gift emitted and tucked his Golden Guard mask into the pocket of his coat. He rose to show her the updated feature. “Well, how does it look?”

“Hmm,” she said standing closer to see better. It was dim and a tad blurry but Willow couldn’t help but notice he had a very nice jawline. He smiled nervously at her closeness and she thought he had a charming smile, the gap in his teeth added a touch of character Willow found endearing. She noticed he seemed rathe taken back by her proximity and chuckled as she took a step back. “Sorry, I usually wear glasses but there wasn’t a good way to wear them with the mask so I’m a liiiittle blind.”

“Oh, well... you can wear my original mask if you want,” he said before he realized what he was saying. “It’s a little roomier and should let you wear your glasses with it. But it’s actually kind of hard to see out of normally and it might be kind of sweaty... sorry that’s probably weird.”

“That’s not weird,” she laughed. “That’s sweet of you to offer, thank you. I should be okay, I just might need a little help showing you to the kitchen since it’s kind of dark in here.”

“Well, I would be honored to be your guide,” he offered, offering his arm to her in a very noble manner.

“Sure, I mean if you’re sure...”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Well... you know how I said my friend got better friends?”

He did remember and he didn’t believe her. “Yeah?”

“Well, this is her party,” admitted Willow. “Ever since we... grew apart, my status at school hasn’t been the best. I’m only here because my dads made me come. I usually don’t walk around too much or do anything to draw attention to myself. If you’re looking to avoid wallflowers, I’m kind of the textbook definition. If people saw you hanging out with me it would ruin your reputation at Hexside before it even started.”

“Well... everyone is wearing masks, how could they even tell it’s you?”

“That’s... actually a really good point,” she said with a smile as she took his arm. “Okay then, why not?”

She guided him to the kitchen and they snuck him a glass of water, the staff paying them no mind as they worked on replenishing the plates. Refreshed, Hunter allowed the girl to lead him around the vast room and Hunter narrated everything he saw to Willow who did her best to explain the meaning.

“... and now there’s a few people in the middle of the room dancing but they’re not on beat at all,” he said, his tone flat as though he was doing his normal status report. “The song is upbeat but they’re dancing fairly slow? It’s... weird.”

“Oh, they do that every year,” laughed Willow. “They’re on the bard track and Amity never lets the band play their requests so that’s their way of like protesting I guess. It’s nice though, it makes me feel less self conscious about my own dancing.”

“Oh, uh... did you wanna dance?”

“Oh, no!” laughed Willow. “I just meant like, if I did. Nothing draws more attention than dancing by yourself.”

“But you’re not by yourself.”

“Oh, yeah,” said Willow, shyly. “Would you... wanna dance with me?”

Hunter wasn’t sure if she was asking him or if she was asking him if he was asking but regardless, as he looked around the room it was clear that dancing was one of the events social norms. In his report to Darius, surely having a detailed first hand account of dancing would convince him he had competed the evening successfully. And it didn’t seem all that hard.

“Sure,” he said, knowing little about dancing except that it required music. The song changed to a slower song and the rebel bards adjusted accordingly, jumping wildly now as everyone else had been doing prior. Hunter looked around and saw the majority seemed to be doing what he assumed to be the appropriate motions to the song and finding a partner to sway with. It hardly seemed like ‘dancing’ and more like ‘barely moving’ but who was he to argue? “I mean, we don’t want to be wallflowers do we? Am I using that word right?”

“Yeah,” she giggled.

“So um... is this okay?” Hunter asked as he placed his hand on the girl’s waist as the taller person seemed to be doing in all the pairs that surrounded him.

“Oh, uh yeah,” she said as she stepped closer so he could place his other hand to her side as well. She hesitated for a moment and then brought her arms up towards his neck, hovering for a second before she rested them on his chest. “Is this okay?”

“Uh, yeah sure,” he said trying to sound casual and confident when for some reason he felt dizzy. He didn’t know where to look. He felt looking away would be rude but looking into her eyes seemed... scary but in a good way and he didn’t know why exactly. She looked down at their feet, as though she was concentrating and Hunter took the opportunity to look at her. He wondered how so many people here could think so little of her when she was so witty and wonderful. True, perhaps she was on her best behavior seeing as she was with the Golden Guard, but apart of him hoped his status would rub off on her just a little and people would think twice before treating her unkindly.

“This is nice,” she said quietly after awhile.

“Yeah, I guess it is.”

“Ya know, I really didn’t wanna come tonight but I’m actually having a really nice time with you.”

“Uh, yeah me too.” Hunter said, surprised that he meant it. She was nice to talk to and even the silences with her seemed filed with... something.

“Sorry I’ve been hogging you all night,” she said sheepishly. “I’m sure your friends must be here by now and are wondering where you are.”

“Oh, that’s okay,” he said, almost forgetting it was a part of his cover story. “I think I’d rather spend the rest of the night with you anyway.”

“Oh,” said Willow praying her face wasn’t as red as it felt. “I’d like that too. I guess this night wasn’t a total waste after all.”

“Actually, would you maybe... wanna see each other again?”

“What?”

“Uh never mind it’s stupid,” Hunter quickly sputtered, averting his eyes to the ground in embarrassment. “I mean I’m busy and you’re probably busy too and it’s not like-.”

“Wait, hey!” she said, placing her hand on his cheek to turn his eyes back to her. “I didn’t mean ‘no,’ I just didn’t hear what you said. It’s kinda loud in here.”

“Oh, yeah you’re right,” he said, breathing a little easier. “Here, why don’t we go outside?”

Willow instinctively grabbed back onto his arm as Hunter lead her onto the balcony. The music faded behind them but could still be faintly heard as it mixed with the gentle sound of the wind blowing.

“Ah, much better,” sighed Willow as she rested her elbows on the ledge, squinting at the night sky. As blurry as it was, she could tell it was a beautiful night and the sky was full of stars.

Hunter also thought it was a beautiful night, but for different reasons.

“So how’re you liking your first Blight Bash?” Willow asked brightly.

“Ew, is that seriously what they call it?” He asked.

“Yeah, but I think their energy goes more into the theme than the name,” she laughed. “I swear, it gets bigger and fancier every year. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Emperor himself shows up to one eventually. I mean, I heard the Golden Guard was supposed to come this year.” Hunter turned to her, rightfully surprised thinking that she was must joking or doing a bit. But no, she truthfully had no idea she had spent the whole night with the Golden Guard. How? She had seen his mask when he-

But she hadn’t seen his mask. Because she couldn’t see anything without her glasses. He was a blur to her, not a member of the Emperor’s coven or an authority figure, but a blur of a boy who she thought was new to her school. She wasn’t treating him nicely out of fear or respect for his status, she was testing him nicely because she was nice.

“Oh wow,” said Hunter, trying to not to show his reaction in his voice. “Is that so? That would be... good?” How did she feel about the idea?

“I’m sure Mrs. Blight would love the photo op,” she said with a light chuckle. “And I bet everybody would wanna dance with him.”

She’d lose that bet. “And why is that?”

“Well, I dunno, he’s kind of a like a prince isn’t he?” Said Willow, rocking on her heels. “It would be kinda like a fairy tale, I bet he’s very polite and he’d probably get overwhelmed with all the dance requests.”

“You don’t think he’s... scary?”

“Well, I’ve never met him but I think he’s probably more mysterious than scary,” she said. “This would be the perfect theme for him though, because between you and me I don’t think he wears the mask because he’s unattractive if ya now what I mean.” Willow grinned, nudging his ribs with her elbow.

Hunter wished he was wearing his full mask as he could feel his face getting warm in response to the indirect compliment. Thank the Titan she couldn’t see him very well. “I, uh, think I do. Ha.”!

“I bet he’d probably be working thought huh? He probably wouldn’t get a chance to have much fun being on the clock.”

“Well, I don’t know about that,” said Hunter as he watched her look out at the night sky, twirling a strand of hair around her finger. “I didn’t think I was gonna have fun and then I met you. Stranger things have happened.”

“Thanks,” she said with a smile, enjoying his company as well. But Willow had learned the hard way how fleeting friendship could be. “Hey, um, it’s okay if you don’t talk to me when school starts, by the way. I mean, like I would understand. No hard feelings or anything.”

“Why wouldn’t I talk to you? I like talking to you.” Hunter said. “I’ll even drink the spikey punch and say it again if you don’t believe me.”

“Well it’s just... I know how hard it can be, trying to fit in.” Willow said. “And you’re really nice and cool and I would hate if I was the reason people didn’t see that.”

“Well if they can’t see those things in you then there’s no way they could see them in me,” he said so softly she almost didn’t hear it. But she did. “And frankly, I wouldn’t give much value to the opinion of people who get fooled into drinking contaminated punch every year.”

“You’re funny.” She said with an airy laugh that made Hunter’s chest feel tight.

“Me?” he asked, certain he had misheard her.

“Yeah,” she said with a sigh and Hunter thought she was going to add ‘looking’ at the end as Kikimora often did, but she didn’t. Hunter wondered what she would think of how he looked. He wondered why he cared.

“So, what do you like to-.”

He was interrupted by a sound from her pocket. She looked down as saw it was her scroll receiving a call. “Oh, sorry it’s my dads,” she said, realizing it had been an hour and they were calling to check on her. “I think they’re here to pick me up. Let me see what’s up, I’ll be right back.”

As she stepped away to have some privacy, Hunter realized his hour was up as well and saw Darius approaching below to pick him up. He didn’t want to draw attention to himself but he also didn’t know how to say goodbye to her. He knew he didn’t want to. He didn’t want to say that he actually wouldn’t see her at school and he didn’t know how to say why. He didn’t want to lie again or possibly embarrass her with the truth. He didn’t want to see her peridot eyes lose their light so did the only thing he could think to do and teleported away.

“So they’re on their way to come get me and we’re going out for eye scream and they said you could come if you wanted to, no pressure it could be fun, but it’s so funny when I told them about you I realized I never asked you your-.” Willow returned back to their spot, placing her scroll back in her pocket and looked up to find her escort had vanished. “-name.”

On the railing, he had left the flower mask she had crafted him, carefully balanced so she would find it and it would not fall.

———

“So did you have an absolutely horrid time, little prince?” Darius asked with candor as he met Hunter outside, boarding him into the ship.

“It actually wasn’t that bad,” Hunter said faintly as he passed him.

Darius blinked, genuinely surprised by Hunter’s lack of sarcasm. “So, did you meet anyone worthy of your time?”

“I think... I did.” He said, looking down into his hand as delicately held the small yellow flower that he had picked off the ground as he left. It had fallen from her hair at some point and Hunter had picked it up, knowing that returning it to her would the perfect excuse to see her again. A part of him secretly hoped she had dropped in on purpose.

“And what’s that you have there?”

“Um it’s nothing,” he said, quickly putting the trinket in his pocket. “It’s just uh, a flower that I found that I wanted to hold onto.”

[moonchild-in-blue]

that poto fanart featuring erik in the masquerade costume you rb'ed a few days back combined with some pics on my dash of iii in the fancy ruffled red shirt has me imagining him in that outfit now *_* quite the mental image, gotta say! now i'm just thinking about what kind of costumes the others would wear in that scenario, the possibilities and flair are endless

Omg I love this! POTO mutuals, I know you are out there, please join this convo with ideas!!

I think iv would go for a more subdued version of iii, but still with quite a lot flamboyance~ (totally not inspired by their masks being opposite to each other).

Black and gold filigree embroidery. Or perhaps dark green! I think he would look very baby girl in that. Or PURPLE YEShmmm.

ii I think would show up in a more traditional costume, less feathery and flair, but with the addition of the most beautiful crushed velvet navy cape you have ever seen. There are intricate patter all over it - almost like the night sky!

As for Vessel hmmmm, he's tough to see. Cus that lil bastard is emo af, so all black would be an obvious choice, but then again his stage costume is a bit weird if you think about it. So full black, with a fur coat perhaps? Or a fur draping. Some white accents? A really long satin or silk cape for maximum ~flouncing~?

Yeah, give me a few hours and I'll make a moodboard out of this with better ideas. 🌹🖤

[vampire-exgirlfriend]

I’m leaving this little request in your mailbox with absolutely zero pressure.

Eddie Munson (because I’m nothing if not predictable…)

[REUNITE] and/or [MASK]

You know I’ll soak up everything you write like a sponge, even if it’s for a fandom I’m not part of, so I can’t wait to see what you write whether you write my ask or not! Have fun!! 💕

Oh Jax as if I wasn't going to write whatever you asked me to lol somehow it ended up being 4k words of emotional pain and smut.

Lonely is the Word

Pairing: Eddie Munson x femreader

Words: 4k

Rating: E

Warnings: some angst, smut

masterlist

I saw some graffiti once that said "love is like broken glass." And if that's true, Eddie Munson was the boot that had shattered me, ground me into nothing more than particles.

I couldn't even blame him, not really, not after what he had been through.

So I waited. Time passed and his physical wounds had healed, but Eddie stayed behind, the walls he built growing higher and higher, covering over with brambles and thorns and vines to keep me out, to keep everyone out. As much as I wanted to, I was never able to fit in the spaces he had hallowed out of himself, cutting myself on the jagged edges whenever I tried. So, bloody and bruised, I left.

Not just him, but Hawkins altogether.

As summer faded away, I loaded my things in the trunk of my shitty, hand me down station wagon, and picked up Robin the next morning, driving the two of us to New York where Robin was starting a theater program at NYU. I hadn't even said goodbye to Eddie. I doubt he would have even seen me if I tried.

And now it was January, cold and bleak midwinter. The elevator doors closed and regret clogged up my throat as I saw my reflection in the gleaming metal. The dress Robin had managed to snag for me from the costume department could only be described as decadent - black velvet that clung to my waist and breasts, the neckline a deep v that settled just above my belly button. It fell to the floor in a tumble of fabric, a long slit up the side, the sleeves ending at my wrists. Atop my cheek bones sat a Venetian mask, black and gold and secured by a black ribbon.

I felt beautiful. I felt ridiculous.

A warm hand settled on the small of my back and I turned, giving Robin a wan smile. She had worn a black velvet suit to match my outfit, her hair falling in messy waves around her white and gold mask.

"You look killer, you know," she chirped, trying to bring excitement back to the moment.

And I should be excited, I knew that. This party was going to be insane - invites were incredibly hard to come by and I knew how stoked Robin was for this. So I ticked my smile higher and clutched my friend's hand, squeezing gently.

"You look killer," I answered, swinging our joined hands between us. "Thank you for bringing me."

"There's no one else I'd rather crush some fancy masquerade with."

It hadn't been easy for Robin, watching her oldest friend crumble into ruins at the loss of the love of her young life. But she took it like a champ, doing everything she could to bring some light back to the situation. And when her NYU acceptance letter came in, it was a no-brainer that we go together, that we try and escape the ghosts of that spring.

Nancy had gone to California with Jonathan and Steve...well, someone had to stay with Eddie. So Robin called him most nights and they giggled like idiots until sleep claimed them.

The elevator doors slid open as they reached the penthouse. Robin extended an arm. "M'lady," she teased.

A second set of doors opened and I would have sworn we had walked into another world. Original art in gilded frames covered the walls and waiters in all black, masks included, skirted around the room, trays of champagne and hors d'oeuvres braced on their splayed fingertips. The lights were low and we had to squint to make out the darker corners, the people who had already found their way to them, masks abandoned, bodies and hands occupied.

"Remind me how you got us in here?" I asked, her eyes wide.

"Uh…remember my thing for hot older women?" Robin whisper-yelled.

I nodded, my eyes refusing to settle on any one thing.

"I fooled around with the Dean of Performing Arts."

I turned to her, my mouth falling open. "You did not?!"

"What? She's only like forty." Robin shrugged. "She's insanely hot. And we only live once, kitten. Better make the best of it."

"You're out of your mind!"

All Robin said was "yes" before leading us toward the nearest waiter and snagging two glasses of champagne. It was bubbly, tart on my tongue, and warm as it hit the pit of my gut. My eyes wandered off in search of the hors d'oeuvres, darting over the other guests who were draped in couture designs. I snagged a bacon wrapped fig and then another, flashing the waiter a stupid grin as I chewed. A hand rose from across the room and Robin perked up at the sight of the brunette woman in red, her dress a frothy confection that wrapped around her like a cloud.

"Duty calls," she whispered, leaning in to press a quick kiss to my cheek before abandoning me for who I assumed was the "insanely hot" dean.

There is a feeling that comes with being watched. That feeling only intensifies when being watched by someone who has seen the most vulnerable parts of you. It's a sort of heavy awareness that pushes at all of your defenses.

That feeling descended on me, leaving me feeling hot and cold, bare and vulnerable, like prey. My eyes scanned the room from behind my mask, lingering here and there, but I found no one watching, everyone too engrossed in their drinks or their company or their hidden, wandering hands. I backed through the crowd and found a spot near the doors that led to the balcony, watching transfixed as the music took on a darker tone, the party slowly melting from upscale gathering to bacchanalian revelry. For a moment, it was easy to forget the unease that ate at me as these upper east side yuppies forget their sense of propriety.

And then I felt it, the watching, like hands peeling away the layers of my borrowed dress. This time my eyes landed on familiar chocolate curls and my stomach dropped, landing somewhere near my feet.

No, that was impossible.

They were gone as quickly as they appeared, disappeared into the crowd. I whirled around, trying to find Robin. My eyes darted over the crowd, looking for the white and gold mask, finally landing on her familiar golden hair. But she was too engrossed in her conversation to notice me, to see the panic on my face.

The hair on the back of my neck stood on end, my brain screaming that there was something I was missing, something important, just as a warmth bloomed at my back, a heat so heartbreakingly familiar.

"Hey you."

I knew that voice. I'd heard it a thousand times before in a thousand different ways: soft and intimate near the shell of my ear, shouting at me from across the room, caught in a whine as I touched him, touched him, touched him.

I turned and there he was, his hair pulled back, a black and red mask over the top half of his face. He was here. He was whole. He was…wearing a suit?

"Eddie?"

"Hey, baby," he murmured, and his voice drew me in, dragged me down, like it did every time. For a moment I forgot how angry I still was, how hurt.

But then he grinned and it all came back, crashing over me like a wave against the beach. "What the fuck?" I hissed, looking over my shoulder, looking for escape. I had wanted this so badly, wanted him, but now all I wanted was to run away.

Eddie's face fell, his soft mouth pulling down at the edges. He was quick to straighten it though, holding his hands up in surrender as I pulled away from him. The soft candlelight glinted off the metal of his rings. "I'm sorry," he blurted. "I know that doesn't mean shit and you hate my guts but I just…I couldn't keep it in anymore. I'm so sorry."

"I've been gone for six months, Eddie! And there were five months before that when an 'I'm sorry' would have been way more appropriate." My eyes narrowed and I crossed my arms over my chest. He opened his mouth and I held up a hand to silence him. "I get it, okay. You went through something horrible, something I'll never truly understand. Rob still has nightmares; I know whatever it was was horrible. I wasn't there, so I don't really understand. But you wouldn't let me help you, you wouldn't even let me try to be there for you! I go on a stupid spring break vacation and I come back to my boyfriend on trial for murder and an earthquake that bulldozed my house and you won't even talk to me!" A few heads turned toward the sound of my raised voice.

He shoved his hands in his pockets, scuffing the toe of his shiny dress shoe against the marble tile.

"And where the fuck did you get a suit?"

Eddie snorted a laugh. "Robin."

"She knows you're here?"

"She scored me a ticket."

My eyes flew over the room, landing on my roommate who leaned against a column on the other side of the open space. Robin dropped her gaze when she realized she'd been caught, her smile slipping.

I sighed, shaking my head, buzzing with irritation and resentment and a sadness I thought I had left behind. "You two are unbelievable. I can't believe you, Eddie." I dropped my hands and turned away from him, pushing through the double doors that led to the balcony, goosebumps erupting over my skin as soon as the January night air swept over me. I stomped toward one of the ridiculously fancy fire pits, flames dancing in the dark, the warmth seeping into my bones. So frustrated that I could scream, I stared into the fire, willing my nerves to settle. Footsteps broke my newfound calm and my hands clenched into fists again.

"Jesus Christ, it's freezing out here." Eddie rounded the corner, already pulling the jacket from his shoulders to wrap around me. I fought the urge to snap at him, to shrug off his offering. But it was warm and it smelled like him and oh, god, it was too much. He reached back, untying the ribbon that held his mask to his face and I felt the telltale burn of impending tears when I looked at him for the first time in six months.

Eddie was almost exactly like I remembered. His eyes were still soft, so dark and warm I wanted to drown in them. His plush mouth curved up into an awkward smile that I had memorized almost as soon as I met him. I knew every freckle that lay over his body. I knew just where to touch to make him laugh or to make him moan. I knew what he sounded like just before he came, when my name was a whimper in his mouth. But that Eddie had been a boy. Whoever stood in front of me now was definitely a man. There was a hardness to him that I had never seen before, a hollowness, a haunting.

"What are you doing here, Eddie?" An old softness crept into my voice, the one I saved just for him.

He tossed his mask to the bench tucked into the corner beside us and shoved his hands into his pockets. "I was dead."

My face pinched in confusion. "What?"

"I died down there, in the Upside-down. I was dead." He said it as if it were old news, as if it wasn't earth shattering. "I remember the pain, I remember the blood, I remember Dustin holding me as it all went dark. I don't remember how they got me home. Hell, I barely remember the trial. The lights were on, but no one was home."

I nodded, angling my body toward his. He stared down at his shoes, refusing to meet my eyes. Slowly, gently, as if afraid to scare him off, I reached for him. His dark eyes met mine and it was as if whatever wall lay between us split right down the middle.

"I couldn't stand the sight of myself, so how could I expect you to?"

And just like that, my heart broke all over again. "Eddie, there was never a single moment where I wanted anything but you." Our on again, off again had been in an off period when that Spring Break had come around, but I had genuinely believed it was just another one of our stupid games, a parting meant to make the reunion sweeter, hotter. "I was coming home to you."

He nodded, a sad smile pulling at his lips. "I know. But something broke in me and I had no idea how to fix it. I wasn't gonna let you wait around while I figured it out. It just wasn't fair."

My voice lowered, my festering irritation blooming painfully. "What wasn't fair was you making that choice for me. I get that you had some things to work through that a girlfriend wasn't super conducive to, but we could have had a conversation about that. You could have just dumped me."

Eddie nodded, pursing his lips as he really thought about what I said. But then his eyes met mine and I didn't miss the heat in them, they way they shined in the firelight. He pulled his hands from pockets and stepped forward, grabbing my wrist and tugging me toward a door I hadn't noticed before.

"Eddie, let go of me." I tried to yank my hand back but he didn't give an inch, breathing a soft 'hell yeah' when he found the door wasn't locked, pushing it open and jerking me inside what looked like a small library. Two leather chairs flanked an ornate marble fireplace and a low, plush leather couch sat on the opposite side, its back to the massive built-ins stuffed full of books and sculptures. It was dark, the only light coming from the moon and the lights that had been strung up on the balcony, filtering in softly through the gauzy sheer curtains. The door clicked shut behind us and when Eddie's hand fell to the knob, he slid the lock home.

A familiar spark lit in my belly, a heat that had always promised pleasure, that only took root when he looked at me the way he was now, the way he hadn't in over a year. His eyes were black in the dim room, his face serious as he pinned me with that heavy gaze. And then he was on me, his hands cradling my face, his mouth crushing to mine. My surprised gasp lowered into a moan when he licked into my mouth, nipping at my bottom lip.

"It was never about living without you," he mumbled against my lips. "I just didn't know how to live with myself anymore. But I think I've finally started to figure it out."

"Eddie," I whispered, and it hurt. It broke my heart that he felt that way, that he had lived in a world where he didn't feel like he belonged, even more so than he had when we met, both outcasts and not too eager to change that fact. It hurt even more that it had all played out this way, neither of us able to reach out to the other.

Eddie backed up toward the couch, dropping to splay over the cushions. He pulled me over his lap, my hands finding his hair and tangling in the curls I had managed to free from the hair tie. He sucked at my neck, his mouth hotter than I remembered as his hand slid beneath the slit of my dress. He tugged off my mask before his hands fell, rough fingertips sliding over the skin of my thigh, higher toward the juncture of my legs. I knew if he touched me there, I would forget every reason why this was a bad idea. Yanking at his tie, I wriggled my hands beneath the collar of his shirt, my fingers meeting texture they'd never felt before. Eddie sucked in a breath and I pulled back, my eyes darting over his face.

"You don't have to…," he started, but I cut him off, pressing my lips to his, gentle fingers slowly unbuttoning the top few buttons of his shirt. When I peeled back the stiff white fabric, my eyes fell to the familiar demon head tattoo and then the thick knot of scar tissue below it.

It looked like…a bite. Like something's teeth had torn through him, ripping chunks of his flesh away.

There was really nothing to say. So I leaned forward and planted my lips to the ruined skin, leaving my tongue over the rough texture before kissing a trail up his neck. "I want to though."

His hand slid beneath the band of my underwear and he groaned when he found me wet for him, his middle finger gliding easily between my folds. "Oh Christ," he groaned, pressing lightly. I felt that tremble in his wrist as he held himself back from pressing inside me. "You're always so wet for me," he said, as if it hadn't been a year since he'd touched me like this.

I didn't bother reminding him, just ground down against his hand, searching out that delicious friction. "We're gonna get caught," I panted against his lips, tilting his face back to look up at me. The sight was divine, his mouth parted, his eyes glassy with need.

"Nah, I locked the door," he said, leaning forward in search of my neck.

"Not the other door, dingus," I reminded him.

He chuckled before licking a stripe over my throat, his teeth worrying at my skin. My head fell back on my shoulders. "We'll be quick. And then we'll go back to your place and I'll take my time with you, apologize however you want me to, baby."

When he put it like that, it sounded too good to argue over. All that pain and anger, all the questions, would still be there. Maybe it was better to just take what I needed, what I knew he could give me.

"When do you leave?" I asked, heart already breaking all over again at the idea.

Eddie's hand stilled between my thighs, his free one rising to cradle my jaw as if I were something precious. "I'm here until you send me away." He kissed me once, gently. "My ticket was one way. Harrington's back at your place, in case I needed a getaway driver."

"Okay, good." I tore my hands from his hair and dropped them to his waist, trembling fingers fumbling with his belt, urging him to lift his hips so I could tug his pants over the slight curve of his ass.

"Are you saying I need a getaway driver?" His breath was hot against my neck, his tone teasing.

"Shut up." I felt the familiar chill of his rings against my skin, his thumb brushing a circle over my clit. He was kissing me again, little groans falling from his lips to mine. It was so easy to fall back into him, to pick up where we left off before life turned ugly and tore us apart. One thick finger slipped inside and I cried out at the shock. Eddie's eyes widened, sliding to the unlocked door, before covering my mouth with his palm.

"Don't get us caught, sweetheart," he mumbled, a second finger joining the first. I moaned against his palm, my eyes rolling back as I rode his hand. "That's it, that's good, right?"

I nodded, unable to speak past the fingers that pressed into my mouth. It was good, but it wasn't enough, not after everything, not after the waiting and the wanting. His belt came apart in my hands, the button of his slacks slipping easily from the hole that held it closed, and then he was in my hands, hard and hot. His eyes rolled back when I stroked him, my fingers not quite able to close around the thick of him. He whined and then suddenly I was falling, the hand that had been pressed to my mouth coming to cradle my head as he dropped me to lay back on the couch.

Eddie tugged my underwear down my thighs, shoving the soaked lace in his pocket and hitching my leg over his hip. I felt the blunt head of his cock nudge at me as his hips jerked forward, impatient.

"Shit, I wanna be gentle with you, but I...I don't think..." His voice was hoarse, his forehead coming to rest against mine. His hands held my wrists over my head and it was all I could do to arch my back, to try and get closer.

"There's time for gentle later." It was true and it was all I could say before he pushed forward, burying himself in me.

I had almost forgotten the near impossible stretch, the way my body had to adjust to the size of him. But then he was moving, a long, slow stroke that pulled him nearly all the way out before thrusting forward and stealing my breath. I thought my heart would beat out of my chest in those heavy seconds before he started to thrust in earnest. Slow and controlled melted into deep and hard and I couldn't swallow down the moans that poured from my throat as he fucked me.

"God damn it, sweetheart," he muttered. "Hush." I couldn't, I wouldn't, and I whined again as he hit that spot up high and I saw stars. "Fucking hell." He crashed his mouth to mine, his tongue curling behind my teeth, swallowing down the sounds I made. He tasted like smoke and spearmint gum, he tasted like home.

Eddie rose up, his hands finding my knees, spreading them wide. His eyes darted between my face and the place where he disappeared inside of me, the sounds of labored breathing and wet flesh growing louder. His hair was wild around his face, his bottom lip pulled between his teeth. One hand slid down my inner thigh to where we were joined and began to rub quick circles against my clit. I knew he wouldn't last much longer. I knew I wouldn't either. I palmed at my breasts through the material of my dress, desperate to be naked, to have Eddie's skin pressed to mine, to be able to touch and taste and take our time.

Later.

"Baby," he groaned. "I'm not gonna last. You feel too good, missed you too much. Are you still in the pull?"

I just nodded, a low groan crawling up my throat. It wasn't more than another minute until I felt him bloom within me, that familiar heat uncoiling sticky and deep. Eddie bit out my name from between clenched teeth, his hips stilling. Without a word, he pulled out of me, dropping to his knees on the floor. I moved to sit up, but his large hands found my hips and tugged my ass to the edge of the couch. He winked before ducking beneath the skirt of my dress.

"Oh my god," I choked out at the first pass of his tongue. He slid two fingers forward, their passage eased by the slick of his cum as he pumped them back and forth. My back arched when he pulled my clit between his lips, tiny shocks like lightning pulsing over my skin. Even though he was hidden by the black velvet, the sound of his mouth on my cunt was obscene. Eddie moaned, curling his fingers forward. I felt that clench in my lower belly, the muscles of my legs flexing where he'd draped them over his shoulders. His teeth grazed my clit and I saw stars. When he groaned against me I felt it, all fluttery vibration, and fell apart on his tongue, my back bowing off the couch, a filthy moan of his name falling from my lips.

"I missed that," he murmured, pressing a kiss to my thigh before lifting his head, setting my feet gently against the floor. He tucked himself back in his pants before wiping the back of his hand across his mouth, wet and shining. "I missed you."

He tugged my dress back into place and laid his head in my lap. My fingers threaded through his curls, muscle memory at this point. "I missed you too. I honestly can't believe you're here."

"I don't know where we go from here," Eddie said as he propped his chin against my leg. He reached forward and grabbed my hand, tangling our fingers together. Just then he looked so much like the boy I had loved. "But I couldn't wait anymore to figure it out. And I love you too much to just let you go."

I opened my mouth to respond and the doors that led to the library burst open, giggles and rustling fabric floating into the room. Eddie sat up straight, his eyes going wide. I scooted up the couch, peeking over the back. Robin had herself wrapped around the dean, her hands disappearing beneath her bright red dress. She turned and our eyes met from across the open space, Robin's face flushing hot and red. Just as quickly as they had entered, she wheeled the older woman around awkwardly, backing her out of the room.

"This one's taken," was all she said before flashing two thumbs up and mouthing "hell yes!"

Eddie grinned, his dimples flashing. "At least someone's rooting for us."

I leaned forward, propping my elbow on my knee and resting my chin against my palm. This close I could see the tiny flecks of gold in his dark eyes. I smiled and it was real.

"I'm rooting for us."

[abhainnwhump]

IMYM Chapter 5: Last Minute Preparations: Nightmare

<- Previous Chapter || Masterlist || Next Chapter ->

Nightmare adjusted his shirt collar in the master bathroom's mirror. He wore a gray dress shirt with bishop sleeves, a black suit jacket on his shoulders, and a black cravat. He usually only dressed up this much for business meetings or the few times he’s been to masquerade balls. A date couldn’t have been that different.

Yes, he was five hundred and seven years old and had never been on a date. He’s never had a reason to. Romance was never a focus in his life, not now and likely not ever. He was more focused on taking over the multiverse and spreading negativity. Killer was relentless with the jokes when he found out. Nightmare was inches away from wrapping him in his tendrils and throwing him out the window.

As he was about to grab his pocket watch, he touched a woven bookmark. It was made of dark black fabric with a white X near the top. The string’s knot and two beads kept it from falling, one teal and one purple. A birthday gift from Cross. Along with his childhood crown, Nightmare didn’t know why he kept the damn thing. Nostagila most likely, even if he didn't want to admit it.

If there was one person he hated worse than Dream, it was Cross. He betrayed him not once, but twice. The first was treason, and the second was falling for the enemy. In a way, he did them both on the same day, three years ago.

================================================

Nightmare took the guard in after he murdered his entire AU. He only found out due to Cross venting to him about it. It was an accident, he didn't mean to kill everyone he loved, people betrayed him over and over. He became stuck in the Anti-void, helpless and afraid of losing himself further. He was a fascinating soul, filled with regret and hatred. Cross needed to find a new purpose and Nightmare fancied a new team member. So he offered him a deal. If Cross joined his team, Nightmare would allow him meaning and help with his trauma.

And he was a good member. Resourceful, charismatic, a hard worker, and close friends with the rest of the team. Nightmare enjoyed having him as a subordinate.

But one day, without clear reason, he couldn’t take the killing anymore. He told Nightmare he wanted to quit. He told him he was sorry and grateful for everything he’s done, but he wanted to leave. Nightmare said no. A deal was a deal. They argued for an hour before Cross backed down. He didn’t say anything for a while after that. Less shine in his eye lights, but otherwise he worked as usual. He did become concerned for his mental health though. Was he too harsh? Cross had a habit of hiding both his physical and mental injuries. Especially if someone asked him if he was okay.

The next time they went on a mission, Cross ran away with nothing but an apology note—a weak one at that.

Nightmare canceled the mission and sent the entire team to find the traitor. He couldn't have gone far. They were reluctant but did as their boss asked. As he searched through the minor AU. He caught a strange conversation in the wind.

“Please, I want to help you! I know you’re not evil, and I’m not leaving you to die with a broken leg!”

“Stay away from me! And whatever you’re doing to make me happy, stop it! Happiness is the last thing I want to feel right now.”

“I can’t! It’s my aura! I can’t control it! You feel happy because you’re close to me! I'll leave you alone, but please let me heal your leg.”

The dark king followed the sound until he reached a clearing. Dream kneeled in front of a scuffling Cross, hand hovering with gold magic over his wound. Dream appeared to glow in the dark forest. It was back when he wore teal instead of yellow and a full cape instead of ripped shreds. Cross wore his over-complicated outfit too. A white jacket over a turtleneck and an X-sash. Cross’s right leg was a disaster of chipped bone, purple blood, and torn fabric.

Cross waited until Dream finished to adjust his leg. He seemed shocked over how well it worked. "Thanks, now leave me alone."

Dream’s sighed. “I- okay. Even if you don’t trust me, I want you to have this.”

The guardian reached to his belt and pulled out a gray orb, no larger than a golf ball. It had a small gold star in the center.

Cross scoffed and took the ball. “What is this? Some kind of miniature bomb? Nice try, but it won’t work on me.” He threw it into the forest. Dream gasped and reached out for it, but it was too late.

The orb broke into pieces and blasted a wave of wind and positivity. Nightmare cringed in pain and stifled a scream. It felt like he was burning inside out. The two other skeletons shielded their eye lights from the bright light.

When Nightmare lowered his hand, his eye socket widened. From the orb spouted beams of gold light and a hundred stars. Each star held a positive memory of Cross’s. Nightmare had never seen nor met any of them, but he could tell they were the other monsters from his world. Xtale Papyrus, Undyne, Mettaton, Muffet, he had a sickly sweet love and care for his friends and brother. Yet despite the happiness, sorrow and guilt tainted the memories.

Dream took one of the stars and held it in his hands. He waved his hand over it and smiled, his eye lights turning into stars. “I knew it! You have so many hopes and dreams and happy memories. You loved your friends. You used to be so positive, what ha- Cross?”

Cross failed to hold back his tears. His smile shook as much as his breathing; he struggled to keep quiet to stay strong. He wiped his tears away with one of his dirty sleeves. One of the stars floated by his face and he swatted it away. Then a second, and then a third. He crossed his arms and scowled. His aura was consumed in the guilt and sorrow he repressed for years. "Get rid of them."

“I can't, they will only leave on their own. It takes time. All healing and good things take time.” Dream moved closer, now curious. “Is that the problem? You're scared of what they'll think of you, so you're running away from your past?"

"I'm not running away from it. I tried to save them. I . . . forget it." He closed himself off. "It was a stupid idea in the first place. I should've known I couldn't rip apart other worlds and still expect everything to be normal."

Cross didn’t elaborate and continued to retreat into himself. Dream rubbed the back of his head, opening his mouth and closing it again. He did the one thing he knew to do best. He held him in a protective hug, rubbing his skull and letting him cry on his shoulder. “Shh, it’s okay. You deserve to be happy. If you want . . . I could help you to be happy again. But only if you want me to!"

Nightmare couldn’t hear his response as Cross muttered it, but his aura gained a twinge of comfort. And that’s when the Lord of Negativity decided to make his presence known.

“Well, well, well, I hate to ruin your little bonding moment, but your positivity is sickening.” Nightmare shot a tendril at Dream and tied him up. His brother gasped and struggled. The negativity was too much for him. He lay limp in his tendrils, breathing ragged.

Nightmare turned to Cross, smiling like a proud father. “Cross, you realize that by distracting my brother, you have earned yourself back in my favor. And because of that, I will let you do the honor of killing him.” He lowered Dream and held him spread-eagle style. “Go on, cut into his chest, and take out his soul.”

Cross looked hesitant. Nightmare decided he had to sweeten the deal. He raised his brother in the air behind him. Dream was running out of air. “You will become my first lieutenant and leader of the new army. You will have power you could only dream of.” He laughed at his unintentional pun. “I also won’t punish you for treason as I planned. Do you know how many monsters would take that deal? Many. You’re lucky you-”

A knife blade came down on the base of Dream’s tendril. Nightmare howled in agony. Losing a tendril was worse than a little positivity. He could regrow it within time, but his tendrils contained most of his magic. It would stay weakened until it regrows. But he still had three others.

Dream screamed as he fell. Cross teleported and caught him in midair. He shielded the smaller one with his body as they rolled on the ground. Purple covered his brother's face as he couldn't breathe. His skull lolled back on Cross's shoulder, blinking to refocus.

Nightmare’s eye twitched. “Are you betraying me for him?”

Cross didn’t answer.

Nightmare scowled. “Idiot, don't you see? Dream is messing with your head. He’s making you weak by tricking you into a false sense of empathy. And that’s why I must annihilate him, so no one can feel these emotions again. You still need me. I’m giving you a purpose. Would you rather be alone? Suffering in the guilt you caused yourself?"

Cross stood back up with a firm grip on his magic, claymore-sized knife. “You misunderstand me. I was created to protect people. And Dream . . . people like him are worth protecting. I made a mistake by working for you. I won’t make it again-”

Nightmare stabbed Cross through the chest and arms, yawning.

His tendrils splattered with purple blood as he slow-clapped. “That was beautifully . . . stupid, you should’ve considered being a poet. But I am very disappointed. You had so much potential, only to throw it away for the ‘greater good’. Oh well.” Nightmare thickened his tendrils to snap Cross’s bones. His clothing strained and began to tear. Cross screamed in pain. Snaps broke out. It would’ve gone faster if he had the fourth tendril, but this would do.

“Brother, stop!” Dream stood back up, bow in hand. “L-leave him alone! It’s me you want!”

Nightmare cackled. This was almost too perfect. “Let’s see, should I kill a traitor? Or kill my brother? Oh, decisions, decisions . . .”

He didn’t hear the Gaster Blaster behind him. Cross summoned it with the last of his magic strength. Nightmare barely had time to turn into a puddle, having to drop him in the process. Cross fell with a groan.

He turned to Dream and wiped some of the blood off his face. “Look, sunshine, just get out of here. Leave me, I’ll be fine. I can fight-”

“NO! You have a chance for a happy life! I’m giving you a second chance and there is nothing you can say or do about it!” Dream fixed his sun cape and steadied his breathing. He held up his bow.

Nightmare’s body distorted. He thinned his tendrils out into whips and fired them at Dream and Cross. Dream threw up a shield and defended them. The tendrils stabbed and bounced off the barrier, clanking like hail on a window.

Cross eyed the cracking and breakage. “I got a plan. We need to take cover behind that boulder and then-”

“Oh, Crossy!”

Killer shot a knife from the woods. Cross used his weak state and weight to tackle Dream to the ground. The knife tore off Cross’s already-ruined jacket sleeve.

Cross scowled and grumbled, “Oh, fuck me.”

“If you insist,” Killer taunted. He charged at the two. Dream summoned a wave of positivity and fired it at him. Nightmare’s right hand dashed and teleported, reappearing beside Dream. He slashed a long line down his skull. Dream winced, but focused on keeping Cross out of danger, even with his blood dripping into his eye socket.

“Come on, we need to get out of here,” Cross commanded. “I’ll lend you some happiness for your powers or whatever, but we can’t stay here!”

Dream gave a curt nod before twirling his staff into a portal. “Let’s heal you- um, do you prefer to go by Cross or San-”

“Cross. Never call me Sans.”

Dream tucked his staff into his belt holster. He struggled to carry Cross’s weight. Nightmare’s tendrils flew on their own and tore up Dream’s cape—his most treasured possession. The scraps of fabric fell at his feet.

Dream slowed down looked down, holding the ruined ends. “No! My-my cape!”

“Leave it! We don’t have time!” Cross grabbed the guardian’s arm, wincing at his own injuries. Dream snapped back to his senses. Still crying like a baby, he supported Cross and helped him through the portal. They both fell on the other side and sealed it.

Killer teleported to Nightmare’s side as he reformed properly. “Boss, should I go after them? Give me three hours and I will bring back their skulls.”

Nightmare watched the portal close. “A tempting offer, but no. We’re returning to the castle and reporting the news to the others. From there, I will decide what to do next. Cross is no longer a member of the VSS and that should be clear. He is a target that should suffer as much as the Star Sanses if not more."

“Gotcha.”

================================================

Nightmare banished Cross but didn’t send an immediate search mission. He expected the Star Sanses to take him as a new member. To his shock, Cross stayed neutral. But there was something else, something far worse than that. Error was the one who broke the news to him.

Cross and Dream fell in love.

Love, what a worthless feeling. Well, perhaps worthless wasn’t the right word. It could be exploited, used, and taken advantage of. Pathetic was better. Isn’t that where this idea came from? To make Ink fall in love with him so he could turn him into a living weapon?

These days, Nightmare took the sympathy he had for Cross and burned them until all there was only hate. If he surrendered there and then, Nightmare would have made his death painless. Now, he didn’t care. He wanted to see him severed and hanging.

Nightmare slammed his hands on the marble sink. His fingers clenched, but he managed to take a deep breath. As long as he didn’t think about Cross and/or Dream, he could keep his temper managed. Besides, he couldn’t intimidate Ink on the first date. What was the adage about a frog? If you drop a frog into a pot of boiling water, it will immediately jump out. Drop a frog into a pot of lukewarm water and raise the heat, it will stay until it dies.

It’s a failing metaphor because the frog jumps out no matter how hot the pot is. You would need to lobotomize it first. He snapped a pair of black silk gloves on.

Nightmare finished readying himself and left the bathroom. He had one more stop to make before he could go to the date.

He walked down his finely decorated hallways. Long purple rugs lined the stone floor. Every decoration had a place in his gothic black and purple theme. The left wall held tall windows with moon designs, shining the sunset through them. The right were old oil paintings. Nightmare had an appreciation for old art, especially those depicting misery and pain. The more suffering the better.

One might ask how he landed such exquisite decor. The answer was centuries worth of exchange and thievery. Nightmare never had a problem with stealing. His moral compass was as nonexistent as his skin.

Nightmare walked inside his office and pushed a stack of papers aside with a tendril. He lay Ink’s sash flat, removing each vial and laying them in a straight line. He touched each of the vials’ rainbow, heart-shaped tops. He could sense the emotions radiating from each color. Not as powerful as natural feelings, not even close. It was like holding artificial flavoring. It does the job, but it’s farce compared to the real thing.

Once he removed the yellow one, his smile distorted so it pointed by his eye sockets. The sturdy glass kept it from burning him, but he still felt happiness and positivity inside. Nightmare opened one of his windows and breathed in the cool night air. He looked down into the blue lake and smiled.

He threw the vial into the water below.

The vial flew, yellow against black until it crashed and sunk into the lake below. The darkness sucked it down. Ink wouldn’t be able to weaken him with happiness now. As long as he stayed here, he would be miserable. The pink paint's love would trick him into thinking he feels positive. Love wasn’t a positive or negative emotion, it was neutral as it could work both ways. Love could be selfless or selfish depending on the person. Most of the time, it was the latter.

He touched the breast pocket of his suit. He nestled the bottle of pink and red paint inside. It glowed softly. You couldn’t notice the light unless you were searching for it.

Nightmare ceased touching the vials when a lumbering sound outside caught his attention. He learned how to tell which member of the trio was who based on the sound of their footsteps. "Come in, Horror."

Horror opened the door and peered inside. His red eye was the only thing lighting up his face. Otherwise, he was backlit by the dark gold light of the hall.

Nightmare turned toward the oldest member of the Murder Time Trio. Horror was a few inches taller than he was and more muscular, but Nightmare didn’t mind.

“When Ink gets ’ere . . . can we torture him?”

Nightmare thought about it. “In time. I need to break him in first. Then you, Killer, and Dust can have a field day. I don’t care what you do to him, just keep him functional. Break a few fingers or use him as a test dummy for all I care,” he said. “Remember, he won’t be an equal to us. He’s far less, so don’t feel bad about making him hurt.”

Horror nodded. “So he’s . . . a torture toy with . . . a special excuse?”

“Mm, close enough. You’re in charge while I’m gone; I trust you the most. But if I come back to any pranks, destruction, or Ouija board incidents, you are all cleaning the dungeon. Including the blades and chains. We need to make a good impression on our new member, don't we?”

“Yes, boss.”

With a final nod, Nightmare stepped through the portal to Outertale. It was one of the AUs he was fond of, and the only one he liked that wasn’t negative-centric. The sky was forever dark and covered with stars. The residents were low energy and had little animosity towards anyone. Nightmare stayed in the shadows and out of sight as much as possible. As kind as Outertale was, he still had a reputation and a price on his head. Thank you, Dream.

Nightmare followed the roads until he made it to the restaurant. Tucked between two shops, it was fancier than either of them, looking like it belonged to a different AU. It was made with white pillars and had an old style, like the buildings in ancient mythology books he read as a child.

Nightmare pushed the doors open. The lively atmosphere almost immediately quieted down. It was like a blanket of uncertainty and fear. He couldn’t sense Ink’s artificial aura so that guaranteed he was late.

“Reservations for Nightmare Joku.” He set his hands on the counter, holding a confident cool smile. The worker seemed unnerved, but they gave him a polite smile in return. It turned strained once they looked into his glowing eye light.

“Joku . . . give me one sec.” They flipped through the massive book and scanned through a page. “Ah, found you.”

They set the book down and mumbled to themself. “Mother of the stars, why can’t I ever get the normal customers . . .” They stood up and walked, gesturing for Nightmare to follow. He did. He looked straight ahead but noticed nervous looks and whispers from the other monsters.

The attendant lead him to a spare room saved for events. Nightmare needed the privacy, not just for the view, though that was a bonus. The window showed the white Milky Way against a deep purple sky. He wanted to keep the affair between him and Ink, and them alone.

The attendant looked nervous, messing with their clipboard. “Um . . . would you like any drinks to begin with?”

Nightmare nodded. “I’ll have a pinot noir and my date will have a rosé champagne. He should be here within the next . . . five to ten minutes, roughly. If you see him, please tell him I’m waiting. Oh, and one last request, please. Could you leave me and him alone for, let’s say, twenty minutes? No, make it fifteen. That should be enough time.”

They rubbed their clipboard more, tapping the chained pen against it. The outside suddenly looked very interesting to them. “Apologies, sir. It’s policy to not leave customers alone for too long. It's considered rude.".

Nightmare nonchalantly passed the waiter one hundred gold pieces from his pocket. The waiter stared with eyes as wide as saucers. They also seemed desperate to get out of there. “Well . . . I suppose an exception can be made.”

As soon as he slipped out, Nightmare shook his head. Mortals could be convinced with the simplest bribe. They came back with the glasses of wine and water not long after. Once he left, he activated his plan.

The dark king removed the bottle of love potion from his pocket and poured half of the pink liquid into the wine. He decided it would be safe if he saved some in case the effects failed to work. He wasn’t too concerned though. The main reason he chose Ink as his target was how easily he could be manipulated. Physically, Ink was the strongest member of the Star Sanses. Mentally, he’s the weakest. If only he was as intelligent as he was arrogant.

Nightmare drank his red wine. He was incapable of getting drunk, likely due to his body lacking a solid form. The power from his black apple soul was the only thing keeping it together. Along with the fact he was using a six-year-old skeleton as a, well, skeleton.

The stars entranced and distracted him. He focused his attention on what appeared to be a flaming asteroid. Then he caught a bitter aura. Nightmare couldn’t read minds, but if he could, he could imagine the host thinking vulgar language.

The fire monster at the reception desk peeked in through the curtains. “Your Highness? Your date is here.”

[awokerph]

—— masquerade starters

a collection of masquerade and ballroom themed starters, feel free to adjust to your liking.

"Care to dance?"

"Take off the mask."

"Who are you, really?"

"Doesn't that defeat the purpose of a masquerade ball?"

"That outfit suits you."

"Who tailored that?"

"Stranger, take me home."

"Anyone can dance."

"I saw you sitting at the bar and I couldn't help but join you."

"Do you have anything else planned for tonight?"

"One on the jukebox for (artist), please."

"This is boring."

"It's a formal party. It's not meant to be fun."

"Doesn't this feel strangely calm to you?"

"You're a terrible dancer."

"Ow! You stepped on my foot!"

"The music is too slow."

"How could anybody enjoy this?"

"The wine makes it slightly more bearable."

"You came looking like that?"

"I didn't realise it was you at first."

"You look absolutely stunning."

"I recognise your voice—(name)? Is that you?"

"It's just a simple 1, 2, 3. Try it."

"Dancing not your thing?"

"I didn't think I'd meet someone like you tonight."

"Black is so not your colour."