#Opal sits there in silence for a bit and then quietly says ‘Everything is different now 😦’

[sincerely-sofie]

omg wAIT HOLD UP SPINDLE CONSIDERS TWIG AND ARK AS HIS PARENTS??? that’s actually so adorable but this whole time i really thought he was just like. buddies with them. pals, amigos even

I don’t know that he ever explicitly refers to them as such— he’d feel awkward doing so, and is as wary of rejection as ever— but they’re absolutely Mom and Dad in his eyes after his arc progresses enough. They’re the first adults to ever provide him unconditional love and support. He doesn’t have to hold a tray of scalpels, gauze, and sutures perfectly still at just the right level while ignoring the horrifying sounds of an unwilling surgery for them to acknowledge his existence. If he’s just in line of sight or range of hearing, they’re treating him better than his biological parents would if he did everything they asked and then some with flawless grace and impeccable skill.

He comes into the main room of the house in the morning and they’re instantly greeting him and asking how he slept. He grabs a snack to tide Opal over until mealtime when she starts fussing as Twig is prepping dinner and she thanks him for being such a help. He struggles to sleep at night and goes into the main room to curl up on the settee, and Ark quietly chats with him to distract him from whatever memories refused to rest that night.

After a while, Opal is much older and refers to herself and Spindle collectively as Twig and Ark’s children, and neither of the two correct her— heck, they even continue the conversation without missing a beat, completely unperturbed by Opal’s comment. Suffice it to say Spindle holds this memory close to his heart.

[guiltydumpling]

The Guard: Chapter 2

[KUVIRA X READER ROYAL AU]

Summary: “I called you all here to announce that we have a guest arriving sometime later today. Princess Y/N of the Kingdom of Elysian” The people in the throne room looked at one another confusingly. “Their palace was under sieged and the king had to send the princess away to keep her safe from any assassination attempts. Their kingdom has done a lot for us and has proven to be great allies for generations. She’s come a long way and has been traveling for a week, I expect nothing less than for all of you to treat her as you do a member of the royal family and to attend to everything and anything, she might ask for… This poor child has already been through too much.” There was silence in the throne room for a while, as they let the information sink in. “Dismissed.”

Word Count: 5.5k

A few weeks pass and you start to slowly ease into life in the Kingdom of Zaofu. It was indeed an adjustment, especially whenever you were invited for meals or walks with the Beifongs. Their majesties had 5 children and because of that, there was never a dull moment whenever you were with them. It was refreshing, especially since you grew up in a rather quiet household with only one sister wich whom you got along with really well, and your father.

You started to have a soft spot for Opal. She reminded you a lot of yourself when you were younger, and she tugs at your heartstrings whenever she would do something so wholesome and so pure. You even witnessed her discover her new ability to air bend and you swear to the spirits that your heart wanted to burst out of your chest. You felt yourself silently rooting for her, wishing that everything goes well for her. Spirits know you would have turned out differently if someone rooted for you too. She just reminded you of the time you actually felt happy, and it pains your heart that it’s been such a long time that you couldn’t remember it yourself.

You were always delighted whenever the twins were around. They were skilled benders and they always seemed to break her majesty’s “no bending in the palace rule” and since they discovered Suyin’s sweet spot for you, they always ask you to cover for them, which you reluctantly do so.

Huan was a peculiar kid, “an artist” Kuvira would say with an underlying tone of mockery. Huan saw a sketch you made of Kuvira in one of the books in their library and you swear it was the first time you have ever seen this guy smile. It warmed your heart that you were the cause of it. Huan told the story of how you had talent one night over dinner and you felt your cheeks heat up when Kuvira raised an eyebrow at you. I like sketching Kuvira, big deal.

Bataar Jr. on the other hand was a different story. You found out that he had been courting Kuvira for a while but was rejected repeatedly. You didn’t know how to feel about it so you simply keep your distance from him, besides, he was the heir to the throne, any interaction you made with him could cause a stir around the palace and start marriage rumors. You did not need unnecessary stress, and you had a feeling that it was a mutual concern.

It was a warm glowing morning and you were eating breakfast in the dining hall with the Beifongs. You sat there quietly as you finished your meal when the twins suddenly burst through the doors in their training gear. “Kuvira!” Wing exclaimed bending a piece of metal disc at great speed towards Kuvira who was posed at the other end of the hall, you were about to tell Kuvira to get out of the way but you stop yourself when you see Kuvira effortlessly dodge the disc with ease and bent it back to the twins at a slower pace as to avoid accidents. You hear Suyin raise her voice slightly at the twins reminding them about the no bending in the palace rule but was yet again ignored by the twins. When Wei caught the disc, he decided to keep it in the bag he was carrying. “Good morning to the both of you too” she responded unphased, perhaps it was a common thing in their mornings? You thought watching the scenario play out “You coming to spar with us?” Wing asked and Kuvira nodded “You go ahead, I’ll catch up” she said

“It’s okay. You can go now if you want to, I’ll finish my breakfast and ask another guard to escort me, I’ll be okay.” You tell Kuvira with a gentle smile and before she could answer, Wei, cuts her off, “You should come by the training grounds and watch us! Metal bending can be even more impressive when used in combat” he suggested. And you thought about it for a moment before accepting the invitation earning a cheer from the twins and a smile from Kuvira who was proud of you for making an effort from keeping yourself from sulking in your room as you did when you first arrived. The three metal benders exit the dining hall and you go back to eating your food. “You would think that as an empress I would get some respect around here. And yet I can’t even get my twins to stop bending in the palace” Suyin huffs at her husband and the emperor simply laughs at his wife’s frustration. You silently do too.

~ ~ ~

You finish your breakfast and Opal offers to keep your company to watch them spar which you appreciated. On the way to the training grounds, Opal was telling you about how excited she was about meeting the Avatar. “The Avatar?” you ask curiously “oh yes! Mom insisted on inviting the Avatar to give me proper training. It’s kind of exciting” you feel your heart warm once more for this girl. She really did remind you of who you used to be. So lively and full of hope dreaming of nothing but to become a bender. Except for this time, she actually became one.

“Will that not require you to go back with the Avatar to the mainland?” Opal thought about it for a moment but immediately shook her head. “No, mom would never let me go” she said with a hint of sadness “do you want to?” You asked, “I don’t think that matters” she answers and you two continue walking in silence. “You know in your heart it does Opal” you say, and Opal simply shrugs. “So, how’s Zaofu been treating you?” she asks in an attempt to change the subject.

“It’s been an interesting adjustment. For starters, I was never invited to watch anyone train before” you answered. “I was always kept indoors and was never permitted to wander the grounds unless necessary.” You continued and Opal furrowed her eyebrows “that must have been so boring” she commented which earned a laugh from you. “A little bit, I admit. But I always focused my energy somewhere else. I learned how to play the piano, draw, cook, and I’ve probably read everything about anything” you say somewhat proudly. “You know how to make the best of what you’ve got then” Opal tells you with a smile.

You reach the training grounds and you were greeted by Wing and Wei calling your attention and you wave your hand to acknowledge them. Your eyes land on Kuvira who was out of her usual armor and you couldn’t help but admire her. She wore a white tank top that clung to her torso showing off her fit figure and her arms really well and you couldn’t help but imagine how muscular the captain must be underneath. Her hair was in its usual bun but this time strands were falling from it, framing her face. Her face. It was flushed, which gave her cheeks a rosy and her lips were pinker than usual. The sunbeams bounced off her skin, and your eyes accidentally land on her heaving chest which was glistening from sweat and you swear to the spirits above you felt something warm in the pit of your stomach. That is inappropriate. You were pulled from your thoughts when you felt Opal nudge you to ask if you wanted to take a seat to which you accepted. You took a seat under a gazebo where their bags were placed a few feet away from what was happening in the training grounds. Kuvira locks eyes with you for the first time since you arrived and smiles at you. Shit, there it is again… the warmth. You try to appear composed as you smiled back at her with a wave before they continued with their training.

You were in awe of everything that was happening before you. The twins were like one body as they complemented each other’s combat so perfectly. They used cable wires that were suspended to their waste as an accessory to make their fighting more efficient with a combination of traditional earth bending techniques. Kuvira on the other hand was a different kind of fighter. She moved so fluidly and so gracefully swiftly dodging the boulders that were flying towards her, barely making use of earth but instead of the metal strips, she expertly pulled from her wrists and her belt. It was a technique like you’ve never seen before. By the time the twins were panting to try and catch their breath, Kuvira looked like she was only warmed up. She was sweating a lot but evidently still had energy. Meanwhile, Wing lies down on the ground exhausted from the training and the heat. “Get up Wing! I don’t imagine your highness would simply accept defeat?” Kuvira retorted while bouncing lightly on her toes getting ready for another strike but Wing simply waves her off “How are you not tired yet?!” Wei answers back and Kuvira chuckles “Stamina” she answered.

There it is again… the warmth, but this time you weren’t aware enough to try and hide it because your breath hitched, and Opal noticed. “Are you okay Y/N?” and you simply nod and excused yourself because the heat was starting to get a little too much so she bent a little breeze towards you which to your surprise actually helped. You thanked her and you see the benders walking towards the both of you and you felt the warmth in your stomach again. Shit.

Kuvira sits beside her bag which happened to be across from you and this way you had a full close-up view of her. She took a mini towel from her back and started wiping her sweat off with it and you couldn’t help but follow the movement of the towel that was pressed against her skin. From her forehead to her neck, her chest, her arms, and the way she lifted her tank top to run the towel across her back and stomach just enough to give you a peek of what was under the garment confirming your initial thought of her muscular physique when you were able to catch a glance at her really toned stomach. This caused another surge of warmth in your body and you had to force yourself to look away.

“What kind of physical activities do you do Y/N?” Wing asked you.

“not much since I never had a proper hand in hand combat training but… I’m a pro in archery if I do say so myself” You said with a smile

“Really? But I thought you were discouraged from going outside?” Kuvira asked

“By my father’s advisors yes, father never liked the idea of that and so he would often sneak with me into the throne room at night when the entire court would be asleep and teach me a thing or two about archery until I mastered it eventually” You explained

“Sounds like one hell of a trainer” Wei commented

“He was” you say with a smile and you feel your chest tighten. Spirits I miss him.

“Maybe you can teach us something about archery and we can train you with combat” Kuvira says trying to change the topic when she notices the change in your expression, and you hesitated for a while. Constantly hesitating was starting to become a reflex for you. You were so used to being controlled and told what to do that whenever opportunities would present themselves to you, you couldn’t help but feel like somebody else should take it instead. “I… guess we can arrange something like that” you say a little slowly unconsciously anticipating someone to interject. But nobody did. How refreshing you thought

~ ~ ~

Later in the day, you were quietly sitting in the library, pretending to read a book when you were really just sketching her again, not wanting to forget the image of her this morning as you tried your best to translate in on the paper. Meanwhile, Kuvira was situated in an armchair playing with a piece of metal as she transformed it into different figures. Something you observed Kuvira liked to do when she didn’t have anything on her mind. You finish the sketch a few moments later and was about to actually read a book this time when one of the guards rushed into the library causing Kuvira to stand abruptly to greet the guard. “Report?” she said in an authoritative manner which you found extremely intriguing causing a flash of warmth in your stomach for what felt like the hundredth time today.

“The avatar is here captain” and that got your attention. The guard reported that a huge airship landed on Zaofu only to find out that it was the Avatar and her company, arriving two days earlier than expected. You and Kuvira immediately rushed to the receiving hall and Suyin introduces you to the Avatar and her friends

“Princess Y/N! I would like to introduce you to Avatar Korra” Suyin said and you bow to a woman with mocha skin and blue eyes as she did the same for you too. You were caught a little bit off guard when the Avatar reaches for your hand and says, “I am so sorry for what your kingdom is going through right now.” You felt tears form in your eyes and you quickly blinked them away with a smile. “Thank you” you said gently.

After the Avatar releases your hand Suyin proceeds to introduce you to the Avatar’s friends. You meet Lin, Su’s older sister who you have admired all your life for the stories of her bravery in giving up her title and inheritance to be the chief of security in the mainland. Then you meet Bolin and Mako, who both took your hand and kissed it as a sign of respect and that they shared the same sentiment with the avatar towards your kingdom’s demise. And then you meet Asami, a tall, beautiful woman that you quickly learned was involved with the Avatar when one of the guards stared at her for a little bit too long only to have Korra glare at him and pull Asami by the waist for the indication to back-off. Suffice to say you were surprised. You were not made aware that this kind of relationship was okay around here because back in Elysian it was ultimately frowned upon and discouraged. A taboo, basically. Interesting.

Suyin gave a personal tour around the estate and you decided to join along trailing behind them a little bit when you start to converse with Asami. You learned that she was a Sato which impressed you a lot since you have always been a fan of Future Industries. She tells you the story of how she had to take over an entire company at such a young age after her father was imprisoned because of his involvement with the equalists. She was a strong and smart independent young woman. And you admired her for that.

~ ~ ~

Dinner was great and entertaining as usual. There were more of you than usual and the dinner was meant to celebrate Opal and her new skill for air bending which resulted in Suyin requesting wine to be served. You were raised on wine and so you were really good at tolerating its side effects. The Avatar, on the other hand, was a different story. She was all over the place and was already spilling some on herself and the table, not that any of you minded or if the others even noticed, everyone was pretty much approaching Korra’s level of intoxication, and you were amused. Having cups of sake was a daily practice in Elysian, some nobles taking the drink even in the morning. You were sipping on your fourth glass and sitting poised amidst the chaos and the loud laughter and you lock eyes with Kuvira who was standing by the doorway with amusement in her eyes. She mouthed an “are you okay?” to you and you simply smile and nod as you finish the last drops of your glass before getting up to retire to your chambers.

“Where are you going Princess Y/N” Huan calls out turning the attention of the room towards you. “I’m spent. I will be heading to my chambers now” you say respectfully and Asami whines about the night just getting started which was far from the truth, because, by the looks of everyone, they were about to pass out after two more refills. “Well don’t stop on my account” you say anyway as you continue to walk towards the door but not before stopping in front of Kuvira. “Do you mind escorting me captain?” you say to her and she puts a hand on the small of your back to lead you to your room.

The walk to your room was in comfortable silence and when you reached your chambers you turn to Kuvira and invite her inside. She looks at you quizzically, “Zhu Li is not back yet, I could use some company” you explain and Kuvira accepts. You lead Kuvira to your room and she awkwardly stands there not quite sure what her purpose was. Kuvira never entered your room unless Zhu Li was with you. Usually, when Zhu Li was not with you, it indicates that you simply wanted to be left alone which Kuvira respected. But something was different this time. You were okay. For the first time in a while, you were happy.

You walk towards your vanity before taking a seat and you start to take off your jewelry. “You can take a seat Vee, it’s okay.” You say but Kuvira shakes her head “I’m good right here” she says as she stands awkwardly in the center of the room and you roll your eyes not believing her statement “Suit yourself then” you challenged. “Zhu Li usually helps me get ready for the night, but I gave her the day off so It’s pretty much the first time I’m attending to myself” you say in an attempt to make conversation. “How does it feel?” Kuvira asks

“Liberating” you answer with a smile and Kuvira chuckles in amusement and so did you

“I wasn’t joking” you defended yourself as you sat there still laughing lightly and Kuvira shakes her head at your statement.

“It’s just a very strong word to describe the feeling of preparing yourself before bed your highness” She explains with a smile and you furrow your eyebrows “Well how would you use the word “liberating” then?” you asked. Kuvira thought about it for a while before taking a seat on the ottoman at the edge of your bed before locking eyes with you “Probably when I’m free to do whatever I want, without having to worry about social stigma or the consequences. Libersating” she answers, and you nod your head in understanding still not breaking eye contact with her. You didn’t want to. Kuvira smiles at you and eventually looks away to stare at the moon peeking through your window. This pulls you from your thoughts and you decide to get up and undress in the bathroom.

You managed to get the first layer of your dress off but there were two more layers and you were running out of patience as you discover how difficult it is to remove your dress without somebody there to help you. You let out a deep sigh and you peek your head from the bathroom door to see Kuvira standing over your desk, her back turned towards you. You cleared your throat to catch her attention and she turns around. “Yes princess?” she asks, and you slowly walk out of the bathroom with only the underlayer of your dress and you notice Kuvira tense. You pursed your lips trying to hide your embarrassment. “Can you… um… undress me?” you ask and Kuvira stands there not quite sure what you’re suggesting, and you mentally facepalm yourself. My goodness, that sounded so wrong. “What I meant was… I can’t reach the um… the hooks that keep my dress up and I need you to undo it for me” you try to explain, your cheeks slowly heating up from the embarrassment and Kuvira blinks before gaining her composure back “Turn around” she says

You felt your cheeks burn and you followed. You feel Kuvira’s breath at the back of your ear causing goosebumps to rise in your skin. Fuck. The fact that your hair was up exposing the back of your neck fully proved to be no help at all. You closed your eyes trying to erase the crude images flashing in your mind as you feel Kuvira slowly unclasp the hooks of your dress one by one. She undoes the first layer and it drops to the ground. Now you were practically in your undergarment. No, you were in your undergarment. Kuvira’s fingers skillfully untie the ribbons of the garment that held your breasts up. For every ribbon she unties, your breath was getting heavier and your eyes remain closed trying to keep composure. Kuvira was at the final ribbon and your entire back was exposed now as you held the garment into place, so your chest was still covered. Your breath hitched when you felt Kuvira’s nose touch your ear. Spirits help me, what is she doing? You stopped breathing when she slowly traced her fingers lightly from the back of your neck to the small of your back. What was once an innocent stomach flutter, became a heating sensation between your legs. Fuck. “done” Kuvira whispers in your ear. It took most of your energy to turn back around to face her and say thank you like you weren’t affected in the slightest as she gives you a weak smile and a “no problem.”

You walk back into your bathroom and lightly close the door behind to lean against it, “Shit” you whisper to yourself already knowing what this feeling meant. It wasn’t your first time to desire for somebody you couldn’t. You felt that once a year or two ago with one of your ladies, but with the stigma on those kinds of relationships plus the fact that she was engaged to a nobleman since she was 9… you had to suck it up and move on. You did a damn good job of hiding your desires and your feelings back then, and you can do it again.

You took a look at yourself in the mirror before disregarding the garment you held on to, to wrap a robe securely around your body. You gently wash your face and you mentally prepared yourself to face Kuvira once more. Suck it up Y/N. You said to yourself before pushing the door open to see Kuvira standing over your desk again.

“What’s so interesting about that desk Vee?” you jokingly ask

“I thought Huan was exaggerating your talent when he said you could draw, but… this is truly impressive your highness” Kuvira answered turning to face you with a few sketches you made in hand. You smile at her and mentally thank the spirits that your drawings of Kuvira were in the library and that most of the sketches you kept in your room were more of the palace and some sketches of Zhu Li and the Beifongs, mainly Opal.

“You like Opal?” Kuvira asked with a smirk and your eyes widened

“Not in that way!” You defended and Kuvira gives a hearty laugh

“There’s nothing wrong with it! She is a princess after all… It can work!” She jokes and you shake your head in embarrassment before opening one of the cabinets in the room. You pulled out a bottle of sake and two glasses placing it on your desk, and you filled the glasses half-way. I’m not doing this sober. Kuvira’s laugh falters and looks at you in confusion. “What?” you ask as you hand her a glass. “You keep sake in your room?” she asks with an amused smile before taking it from you. “I am from Elysian after all” you say and you two clink your glasses as you take a sip. Kuvira coughs loudly from the drink and you try to suppress a smile. “What is this?! Gasoline?!” she accuses still recovering from the burn of the liquid. You chuckle at her reaction “Haven’t you ever had whiskey before?” you ask surprised. “I’ve heard of it and its effects, but I would have never guessed that I would encounter it first of with an “indoor” princess” She explains, “It’s disgusting by the way. How could you possibly enjoy this?” she says in disgust

“Give it a few more sips and believe me when I say that the taste will be the last thing on your mind.” You say wickedly as you clink your glasses again forcing Kuvira to drink once more out of respect. You see her nose scrunch up in disgust as you tried to hide your smile behind the glass personally finding this entertaining. Who knew my talent for controlling the effects of sake had its own advantages?

Turns out, Kuvira wasn’t a lightweight after all. You spent the rest of the night sitting across from each other on the large window seat already nearly halfway through the bottle and Kuvira isn’t much of a mess yet. Kuvira drinks the remaining liquid in her glass and refills it once more “You know what… this isn’t actually so bad” she comments, “Didn’t I tell you?” you say with a smile. At this point, your hair was already down and you didn’t bother to change out of your robe while Kuvira bent her armor off and disregarded some of her clothing claiming it was “too much” leaving her in green pants and a white tank top which in all honestly you didn’t mind at all.

You stretched your legs to be more comfortable and Kuvira’s eyes land on the exposed skin before looking back up at you. “You know nearly everything about me…” you start and Kuvira nods her head in agreement “I should, I’m tasked to look after you all” she says “Yes, but I don’t really know much about you except for the fact that you hate reading” you say and Kuvira laughs “I’m being serious!” you say with a pout letting the effects of sake kick in. “okay… what do you want to know princess?” she asks and you pretend to think for a moment

“Everything.” You say with a smile before taking a sip from your drink and Kuvira shakes her head at you “Fine.”

“Well, I wasn’t born here in Zaofu…” She started “My parents decided that they couldn’t take care of me anymore and so they brought me here hoping a rich family would adopt me. They left me outside the Palace and one of the guards brought me in and told me to behave if I wanted the nobles to like me. But I was an extremely disobedient kid you see, so when the guard left, I wandered around the castle and ended up in the throne room and fell asleep on the throne” you gasped at this part, earning a chuckle from Kuvira. The throne was sacred and should never be treated with disrespect. Back home, you were only allowed to stand by the throne only when your father was there. Forget about sitting on it. You would have to be the queen to be able to do that.

“Time passed and I felt somebody nudging me awake and when I opened my eyes a woman was staring at me. It was Empress Suyin with a concerned look on her face. She asked me where my parents were and I told her that I didn’t have parents anymore, so she decided to take me in and let me live in the Palace as an adopted member of the family.” She says “But their advisors were against it. They said that I could never be entitled to anything since I was not a real Beifong. And for a little kid, it was the most confusing thing you could possibly hear. I remember thinking: How am I not a Beifong? Suyin was practically my mother and her kids treated me like a sister” She said with a sad look “Eventually when I turned 8 Suyin brought me to the training grounds to show me the meteorites. Surprisingly enough I was quick to bend the meteorite and Suyin told me it was the fastest she’s ever seen anyone attempt and succeed at metal bending. She called me a protégé. Since that day, she has personally trained me and taught me everything I know today.” Kuvira took another drink from her glass “By the age of 16 I joined the royal family’s guard and told Su that if I couldn’t become a Beifong then I will spend the rest of my lifr protecting the Beifongs, the only family I have ever known. After a few years, I raised above my station until I became a captain. It was Suyin who gave me the title, and no one objected to it because they all knew I worked my ass off everyday to get here” Kuvira finishes.

“You call her majesty by her name because she’s basically your mother” you say in realization and Kuvira nods her head. “She insisted on it.” Kuvira explains.

You leaned forward to grab her hand and looked at her with sorrow in your eyes “I’m sorry about your parents… It must have been hard for you as a kid to suddenly be away from them” you say, and she smiles weakly at you unconsciously leaning forward too. “I’m okay” she says. And none of you talk for a while. You lock eyes with her and once again your head is filled with thoughts that shouldn’t be there, but the liquid courage is giving you the strength to not look away. Kuvira didn’t look away too, she didn’t want to. Your stomach starts to feel the all too familiar warmth and you can’t help but wonder if she felt it too.

Your thoughts were confirmed when she gently placed a palm on your cheek and started caressing it. Suddenly you didn’t want to suck it up anymore. You were no longer in control. As if it were instinct, you leaned into her touch and Kuvira slowly leaned in closer. You didn’t dare move a muscle as you felt her breath against your own. One more inch and the gap between the two of you would be closed. But she stopped moving and it took everything in you to not close the gap yourself. She’s a princess Kuvira thought to herself. She closed her eyes and took a sharp breath “I’m sorry” she mutters before quickly pulling away. It took you a few seconds to process what just happened. “It’s… It’s okay.” You say quietly “We’ve had a lot to drink” you say with a little more volume and Kuvira simply nods and gets up but the sake got the best of her when she accidentally stumbles and she had to hold your arm to keep her balance. You chuckle lightly at this and she smiles at herself in embarrassment.

“That whiskey is no joke” Kuvira comments and you two laugh “…what the fuck just happened?” she says and you two laugh even harder, tears forming in your eyes. Your laughter dies down and Kuvira starts to collect herself again and starts putting her disregarded clothes “I should probably go. I need to get at least a few hours of sleep before the day starts or I might space out the entire day” she says before bending her armor back on expertly. “You could sleep here if you want… The couch is rather comfortable” you offered and Kuvira shakes her head “I’m afraid that would be too much for me to accept. I’ll be heading back to my quarters” She explains, and you couldn’t help but feel the pang of disappointment which you expertly conceal. “okay then. Just don’t stumble on your way back” you jokingly say, earning a light chuckle from Kuvira.

Kuvira head for the door but you call her attention before she does “Hey Vee!” she turns to you “Thank you… For tonight” you say and she smiles softly at you “Good night princess…” she checks the clock on the wall “Or should I say morning” she jokes and your smile widens at her wit and she proceeds to open the door, leaving you alone in your chambers and with your thoughts. You were still sat on the window seat and the smile on your face slowly fades as the events of tonight sank in. She feels it too. You thought and you didn’t know what to do with that information exactly. You ended up sitting there for a little while longer to stare out the window. “Spirits help me” you say out loud.

[feathers-and-fisticuffs]

One Small Cut...

[chapter list here]

Kabu had his bags packed and ready to go, he had done his best to stay quiet, the last thing he needed was his father to find out, who knows what he might say if this was how the Meowth was let out of the bag...

Fear froze his limbs, suddenly, realizing what he was about to do.  Could it really be this easy?  Could he just sneak downstairs, and out the door, and never look back?  Instead, looking to the future with Nanu?  Nanu...

That was all it took to get him moving again, quickly pulling on a hoodie and shoes before grabbing his bags and descending quietly down the stairs.  It was well past midnight, his father would be passed out drunk by now.  He was free, finally free...

“Where do you think you’re going?!”  His father’s voice made him spin around quickly, losing his balance on the stairs.  He had been waiting for him... he had already known...

“D-Dad?”

“You’re no son of mine.”  The words were slurred and filled with venomous anger as the drunken man took a swing, connecting with Kabu’s jaw and sending him hurtling backwards, tumbling down the stairs with a horrible crack.  White hot pain mixed with the black void of nothingness that was his vision, he couldn’t see it but he felt the room spinning quickly.  He couldn’t move... he couldn’t see...

He wondered if Nanu would ever forgive him for making him wait...

“Kabu, how come you’re so good at this?”  He asked through gritted teeth as the old man helped him to stretch his bad leg, just a little further than the last time.

“Hm?  Oh, I’ve had lots of practice.”  He shrugged.  “Started as a hobby, and worked it into my training.  Physical therapy is great for anyone, not just really bad injuries.  It’s good to know how to take care of your body.”

“Yeah but... why?  How’d you get lots of practice?  Who just learns physical therapy as a hobby?  Ow--”  Kabu stopped pushing, but held it there a moment before letting go.

“Good, good job.”  He smiled.  “You’re really getting flexibility back.”

“Kabu, answer the question!”  He huffed.  “Don’t try to change the subject.”

“What, why can’t someone learn it as a hobby?  How do you think actual physical therapists get their job?  They aren’t born knowing....”

Basil gave him the look and he sighed.  

“I was in an accident a long time ago.”  Kabu said, helping stretch Basil’s other leg then.  “Real bad one, and I was in the hospital for a long time.  Got real weak.”

“What happened?”  Basil asked cautiously.

“Got into a fight.”  He lied.  It wasn’t a complete false statement.  “Was attacked, and didn’t get a chance to fight back.”

“How’d you get away?”  Basil wanted to know everything.  “Who attacked you?”

Kabu helped him hold the stretch again.  “Doesn’t really matter, it was so long ago... Nanu saved me, though.”  He felt himself blush.  “I don’t know if I’d be here without him...”

“Bleck.”  Basil wrinkled his nose.  “Quit making kissy faces over him he’s not even that great.”

Kabu let go, chuckling.  “One of these days you’re gonna fall in love then we’ll see how nice I am to you!”

Basil huffed and crossed his arms.  “I guess if he helped you, he’s not that bad...”  He admit eventually.

“You should really try to get along with him.  He really wants you to like him, you know.  He thinks you’re a good kid.”

“Well I still think he’s a jerk.”

Kabu helped him to his feet.  “Give him a chance.  He’s blunt, but he’s not bad.  You could really learn a lot from him.”  

“Hmph.”  Basil stuck his tongue out at the thought.  “Are we done?  I wanna go out.  Hop wants to go to the Wild Area to explore!”

“Just be careful, stay with Hop, he knows the area better than you!  And stay out of the Dynamax dens, you’ll get hurt!”

Basil was already rushing out the door, and Kabu chuckled.  He remembered having that much energy... where did the time go?

He fixed some lunch and brought a plate to Cyrus.  “You doing alright tough guy?”  He changed his bandages, trying to make small talk with him.  As he had since the first day he arrived, Cyrus chose silence.  He didn’t even act as if he had heard Kabu speak.

“You know, one of these days you’re going to have to talk to me.”  Kabu warned.  “Once you’re able to get up and around on your own, you’re gonna have to be civil.  I won’t stand for you acting like this around Basil.  I’ve already warned your little friends if you don’t cooperate with me, I’ll be kicking you out.”

“I am not interested in your help.”  Cyrus’s voice was hoarse as he spoke.  “I didn’t ask them to bring me here.”

“Well you’re here now so suck it up and take the help you’re being given.  Idiot.”

“I can assure you, I’m no idiot.  I’m much smarter than you are.”  He said with no hint of humor.

Kabu rolled his eyes.  “Uh huh.  Smart guy, tough guy, whatever you say.  Doesn’t change the fact that if you don’t let me help you, those kids that brought you here are going to be very upset with me.  And with you.”

That seemed to get his attention, but he went quiet again.

“What do you know, anyway?  Smart guy?”  Kabu asked seriously.  “What makes you so smart anyway?”

Cyrus scoffed humorlessly.  “Why do you want to know?”

“If you’re going to be here, you might as well pull your weight.”  Kabu crossed his arms.  “Why don’t you give Basil some lessons?  He’s a smart kid, I’ll bet he’d enjoy school.  There aren’t any good schools around here, and I don’t want to let him out of my sight just yet.”

“Lessons...?”

“Think about it.”  Kabu stood with a groan.  “Just a though.”

He left Cyrus to his own thoughts then.  Lessons...

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

Bede stood at attention next to Opal as she drank her tea, back straight, waiting for instruction quietly and attentively.  However, she could tell that his mind was wandering.

“What is on your mind, child?”

Her voice cut through the silence, making Bede practically jump out of his skin.

“W-what?!”  He straightened his back again, trying to play it off.

“Bede.  Sit.”

Bede knelt in front of her politely.

“In the chair, dear.”  She smiled faintly, watching him scramble up into the chair at the table.  “Now tell me what you’re thinking about.”

“It’s nothing.”  Bede muttered quietly, looking down at his hands which were folded on the tabletop.

“I might not be psychic but I think I know you well enough to know when you’re lying to me, dear.”

Bede bit his lip.

“Tell me what’s wrong, Bede.”

He gulped and made a small frustrated noise, shaking his head.

“Bede...”

He closed his eyes, trying to keep his emotions in check, feeling them bubble to the surface.

“Why... How come...”  He let out another frustrated noise through gritted teeth.  “Kabu is really nice to Basil.”  He blurted out suddenly.  “He’s really nice and he tucks him in at night and acts like he’s Basil’s dad!”

“Is that so?”

Bede clenched his fists, still keeping them on the table.  “How come you don’t do that to me?”  He forced himself to ask.

Opal tipped her head to the side, tapping a finger to her cheek.  “Did you want that?  I was under the impression you only wanted me to train you.  I was only respecting your wishes.”

Bede slammed his fist on the table.  “I don’t know!  I don’t know I thought I did!  But then I saw how happy Basil was, and I.... I... “  He could feel his carefully guarded emotions quickly spinning out of control.  “I don’t know!”

Opal watched him, curious, not stepping in, letting him grab hold of his own emotions.

“I just... miss Rose.”  He admit finally.  “I miss him.”  He wiped the tears from his cheeks, he couldn’t help sniffling pathetically.  “I miss him so much and it isn’t fair...”

Opal gave him a sad smile, reaching across the table in a rare moment of kindness and venerability.  “You’ve come so far, child.  You’ve done great things, and you’ve done them all on your own.  You’ve done all this, for yourself, by yourself.  It’s not wrong to want companionship.  It’s not wrong to miss him.”  Wise and calm as ever, she always knew just what to say.

“He’s been writing me.”  Bede admit.  “I never write him back, I’m too scared to.”

“Why not?  A letter won’t hurt either of you.”  She promised.

“But he could...”

Opal nodded.  “You’re right.  If you open yourself up to him, he could hurt you.  But that’s only one option among many.  Don’t forget if you go to see him, if you decide to make that connection, that you’re in control.  He doesn’t own you, he can’t control you, you don’t owe him anything.  You can let him in, and you can cut him back out just as easily if he tries to hurt you.”

Bede thought on this a while, and nodded.  “Yeah... you’re right.”

“I know I’m right, boy.  I’m always right.”  She smiled, and Bede smiled back.  “It’s getting late, did you want me to tuck you into bed?”  She teased, only half serious.

Bede blushed and pulled his hand away from hers then, feeling embarrassed.  “Ugh... goodnight miss.”  He gave her a curt bow and rushed to his room.

Opal smiled and watched him go.  She knew that she and Kabu had very different styles when it came to helping the young ones, but she knew that what Bede really needed was to see that he could do things on his own, for himself, without the pressure of Rose, or Kabu, or even her.  He’d get there eventually.  But for now... She stood slowly and wandered to the kitchen.  She was sure he needed some warm tea and honey.  And maybe some cookies.

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

It was late when Basil came home, trying to sneak in without Kabu seeing him.  He was exhausted, and his arm throbbed, the bandage that Hop had tied onto him already soaked with blood.  It wasn’t a bad cut, it just wouldn’t stop bleeding.  Hop had offered to take him to a doctor, but he had refused.  It wasn’t that bad.

“Basil? You’re home late, did you  have fun out there?”  Kabu must have had eyes in the back of his head that could see through walls.  How had he known?

“Uh... Yeah, I’m just tired I’m going to go to bed I think...”  He started moving a little faster.

“Oh, now hold on a moment, will you please bring this plate in to our guest?  It’s dinnertime, aren’t you hungry?”

Basil grit his teeth.  He couldn’t let Kabu see his arm... he took his jacket out of his bag and rushed it on gingerly, wincing as the fabric brushed his injury.  He had to act quick.

“No I’m not hungry I’m okay thanks anyway!”  He grabbed the plate quickly, dipping out of Kabu’s sight as fast as he could, pretending he hadn’t noticed the suspicious look Kabu was giving him.

He nudged open Cyrus’s door, letting out a grunt as he bumped his arm on his way in, and sat the plate down next to Cyrus.

“You look pale.”  Cyrus spoke matter of factly, no concern in his voice.

“Shut up.  I’m fine.”  Basil glared at him and rushed to his room, taking off the coat and causing a new wave of pain to radiate across the gash, looking for something else to wrap around it to stop the bleeding.  His rotom phone buzzed.

<Basil man im sorry i should have listened to you

Basil ignored the text from Hop.  He was going to be in so much trouble...

<you okay?  you didn’t text me to tell me you made it back im worried <B come on mate let me know youre not dead in a ditch somewhere bleeding to death <dont make me call Kabu

Basil grabbed the phone and texted back.

<Im fine.  Dont you dare.

He tossed the phone aside again, gently unwinding the strap of cloth from his arm and feeling queasy at the sight.  He should have listened...

There was a knock at the door that surprised him, and he bumped the wound, barely stiffling a cry.

“Basil?  Are you sure you’re okay?”

He sucked in a sharp breath and exhaled for four seconds, telling himself it was okay, that he was okay.

“I’m just tired Kabu I’m fine.  Please.”

“Leon is blowing up my phone right now saying Hop got hurt in the Wild Area today what happened?”

Basil tensed.  Of course Hop told Leon...

“It happened after I left I don’t know!”

Silence.  He could still sense Kabu outside the door.

Basil’s phone buzzed again.

<RED ALERT RED ALERT LEON CAUGHT ME HES TEXTING KABU GET OUT OF THERE

“Basil... you know I don’t appreciate you lying to me...”

He could barely hear the scolding Kabu was doing outside the door over the roar of his heart in his ears.  He felt so dizzy... 

“Basil did you hear me?  I’m coming in!”  

Basil closed his eyes, and shook his head, which made the spinning worse.  He let out a small noise, before falling into the void.

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

Kabu moved on instinct.  He had heard Basil fall and opened the door, ignoring the sick taste of bile that rose in his throat at the blood, ignoring the selfish need to turn away, instead, rushing to Basil’s side and gathering him up in his arms.

A younger man might have been able to move quickly, but he was not a younger man.  His mind sharp as ever, his body lagged behind, and he struggled to lift Basil without hurting him even more.

“Call Milo!  Call Nessa!”  He was yelling at his Rotom phone, trying to get anyone to answer.  “Cyrus!  I have to go please just stay there I don’t need anyone else getting hurt someone will come make sure you’re okay just stay there!”  He called as he raced for the front door, waiting for either of the two closest gym leaders to answer.

He put Basil in the passenger seat, using his winter coat as an impromptu blanket and bundling him up, before ripping off a chunk of his shirt and wrapping the boys arm again.

The rotom phone beeped.  Leon was calling.

“Kabu is Basil okay?  What’s going on?”  Leon’s voice was taut with worry.

“Send someone to look after my guest I’m going to the hospital with him.”  Kabu couldn’t think straight.  “I don’t know what’s wrong with him, oh Arceus there’s blood everywhere...”  He muttered, feeling numb.

“Kabu?  Where are you?  Are you taking a taxi to the hospital?  Kabu?!”

“I have to go...”  He clicked off the phone and wrapped around the boy in the seat next to him, holding him close, putting pressure on the wound.  This was his fault, he should have never let Basil go off on his own...

[thewarlocksbitch]

ur smut is amazing could you do a malec or pynch fic where they make a sextape?

It was possible that Ronan had come up with the mostbrilliant idea in human history.

Adam disagreed.

Ronan suggested it, nonchalantly and when they were with therest of their friend group so Adam couldn’t outwardly freak out, almost a weekago, a month after Adam had cemented the date he’d be moving into his dorm anda little less than a month after Ronan had come up with the idea. Adam, let’s make a sex tape before youleave.

In that moment, Adam did not react except for a quirkedeyebrow (and perhaps a fair amount of blushing). He was interested, at least.That was enough encouragement for Ronan; throughout the following week hegently wheedled and whined, preaching to Adam his deep interest in the subjectand stoically enduring Adam’s refusals: Youknow I’ll visit often. What if Noah or Gansey sees it? You don’t even know howto use a tv, Ronan.

But he hadn’t yet saidno.

It was Thursday night. Gansey and Blue had gone with Henryto a drive-in movie the local library was hosting, the invitation to whichRonan had turned down with an amount of scorn so lethal Gansey had banned himfrom being within ten feet of Henry until the foreign add-on recovered. Opalwas sleeping over with Noah at Monmouth and Adam was working late, so Ronanspent the evening leisurely and lovingly doing his chores around the barnswhile Chainsaw flapped around him and he later fell asleep on the worn couch inthe dusty moon-lit living room.

He woke to a text from Adam. You up? Ronan’s glaring phone screen told him it was just aftereleven.

Ronan propped his elbows and chin on a pillow and typed outa reply with some difficulty, as his brain was still sleep stupid and his eyesunfocused. Always. you coming to thebarns?

Adam’s reply was instantaneous. do you have that camera with you?

Ronan’s heart surged. Yes, he had the camera.

Adam must have assumed, because Ronan’s phone chimed againbefore he could type a reply. I’m on theway over

 Ronan let the phone slip from his fingers to the floor andhe crushed his face into the pillow. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried tocount the pace of his pulse in his ears. He was awake and alive and alive.

_______

Ronan couldn’t have possibly fallen asleep waiting for Adam;his heart was currently in a state that his brain deemed untrustworthy enoughto not keep conscious watch over. He untangled himself from the old quilt hehad grabbed off an always rocking-rocking chair and got the camera from theBMW. He’d kept it in there for two reasons; firstly, he hadn’t known where he’dbe when Adam agreed to make the tape; secondly, Ronan would never tire ofhaving Adam on top of him in the car, and he’d been half-hoping Adam wouldsuggest they film pressed close in the back seat. Ronan wasn’t going to pushthings, though. He knew Adam preferred the comfort of a couch or bed and he wasmore than happy to give him that.

Ronan made his way back into the house and let the door hangopen behind him; he wanted to smell the nighttime. At night, the barns held adifferent kind of magic, oversaturated by how loudly sounds were heard in thesilence and by the comforting press of shadows. Everything around Ronan feltlike his father, all of it created in the image of his mother. The mismatchedrugs, the chipped mugs that hung by a keychain hook above the sink, theswinging Edison lights and shimmering potted plants.

Ronan surveyed theliving room. It was lit mostly by translucent strips of moonlight that snuckpast the heavy curtains half covering the bay window, and a trivial amount oflighting came from glow in the dark stars stuck to the far wall; those wereMatthew’s. It was okay, Ronan guessed. He knew fuck all about the aesthetics offilming. He checked the grandfather clock ticking quietly in the corner andturned for the stairs.

He took them two at a time to his old/current room to see ifit was the better option. He set the camera down on his dresser and sunk ontothe tiny bed. This was where he and Adam had first kissed. That first kiss, inRonan’s mind, was all light and whimsy, akin to the room it had taken place in.That kiss was as soft as the well-loved blankets that now lay rumpled at thefoot of the bed, as cautious and as strange as the dream objects Ronan hadhidden under it, fearful of what they meant. That kiss was as central to whoRonan was as this room and the entirety of the barns was. That kiss owned thisroom. Also, the bed was almost ridiculously small. And Adam liked to sit on theporch after sex, sometimes. Ronan took the camera and tiptoed back down stairs.

He stopped at the base of the staircase, more startled thanhe usually would be when his heart wasn’t already racing. Adam stood in thedoorway, sliding his thin jacket off and nudging his shoes to the wall with hisheel. He looked across the room at Ronan and smiled. “Too excited to put thatdown?” he asked.

Ronan grinned and closed the distance between them. Hegrabbed Adam by the front of his shirt and pulled him to his mouth. “Come here,shithead,” he said softly. Adam melted against him, his mouth cold from outsidebut quickly warming as he opened it and let Ronan slip his tongue in. His handsfluttered up, one coming to hold the back of Ronan’s neck and the other goingto the waistband of his sweats.

“Wait,” Ronan rasped, reeling away. He scanned the room,trying to remember where he’d left the tripod.

“What?” Adam huffed, sounding just a little annoyed.

“I need to set up the camera.” The tripod was leaningagainst the couch. Of course it was. Ronan grabbed it and stood it up.

“I was just going to take your clothes off!” Adam said, butthere was as much fondness in his voice as there was irritation. He went tostand behind Ronan and hooked his chin over his shoulder.

Ronan secured the camera and clicked it on. “How many actionmovies have you seen that start in the middle of a scene? We need some buildup.” He pressed record and aimed it at the couch.

Adam let out a low breath against Ronan’s neck and slid hishands over his chest, hiking his shirt up slightly. “Do you have anythingespecially kinky planned?” he asked sweetly. The drawl in his words wentstraight to Ronan’s cock.

“Call me a romantic,” Ronan said, embarrassingly shakily,“but I was kind of hoping you would just fuck me into the couch.”

Adam dropped his hands to Ronan’s hips and bit into hisneck. “Can I take your clothes off now?”

“Yes,” Ronanpractically whined, and Adam pushed him onto the couch.

Adam was on him immediately, rubbing his palm hard overRonan’s tented sweats and leaning down to suck at his neck. “When you watch thevideo of us, will you call me?” he asked, and slid his hand under Ronan’s boxers.Ronan gasped at Adam’s hand wrapping around him and jerked his hips up into thetouch. “When you jerk off to it, will you sound this hot for me?”

“I will,” Ronan said, “Adam, I’ll-“

“Let me hear you now,” Adam murmured, Henrietta accent heavyon his tongue. He pushed Ronan’s shirt up high on his chest and kissed down historso, his mouth hot and wet.

Ronan half sat up and pushed a hand into Adam’s hair,staring at the dusty strands pooling over his knuckles. He ran his hand throughit slowly, then caught at it with a gasp when Adam bit down at the indentationof his hip. Adam smirked and pushed Ronan’s sweats down just enough to pull hiscock out. He leaned to the side to give Ronan and unobstructed view of himsmearing precum down the length of the shaft with his thumb, tendons in hiswrist flickering. The light brown freckles dotted across the back of his handwere just visible in the scarce lighting.

“Fuck, Adam,” Ronan mumbled unconsciously, staring at Adam’shand so intently that he didn’t realize what else Adam was doing until he hadgrabbed Ronan round the waist and tugged him further down the couch.

Ronan’s elbow slipped out from under him and he fell back.Adam crawled up to straddle his hips and tugged at Ronan’s shirt. “Take thisoff,” he said, punctuating each word with a slow roll of his hips againstRonan’s. Ronan obeyed as quickly as he could with shaking hands, and then Adamwas on him, fingers curled over Ronan’s jaw and his teeth teasing his bottomlip.

Ronan pushed his hand into Adam’s hair again and tugged hardthis time, making Adam moan into his mouth. Ronan’s heart surged; he couldprobably come just from the noises Adam made alone. He dipped to mouth at theunderside of Adam’s jaw, down his neck, at the base of his throat. He pulledAdam’s head back and pushed as far down into the neckline of his shirt as hecould, feeling the warmth of Adam’s skin against his flushed cheek.

Ronan drug his mouth back to Adam’s lips, biting this time,and he caught Adam’s keen gasp in his mouth. He moved his hands to Adam’s hipsand pulled him down hard against his lap, himself much more affected by themotion than Adam, who was a thousand times less sensitive because of hisclothes.

“Parrish,” Ronan mumbled, his words muffled against Adam’smouth. He slid Adam’s shirt up, gliding his palms over the curve of his stomachand ribs. Adam shivered. “Wanna get your clothes off.”

“No.”

“No?”

Adam put both hands against Ronan’s chest and pushed Ronandown onto his elbows. He leaned down and kissed Ronan with bruising force, justfor a second, and then he was kneeling over Ronan’s thighs and tuggingdeterminedly at his sweatpants. Ronan stared at him. Adam was fully clothed,but the way his cheap white t-shirt clung to his shoulders and rode up on hisstomach and the way his light-wash jeans strained over his thighs left verylittle to imagination. His uncombed hair, released from Ronan’s death grip,stood up in disarray towards the back. Ronan reached forward to brush his bangsaway from his face.

“No hands yet,” Adam said, catching Ronan’s wrist andholding it down against the couch.

Ronan wasn’t going to say something as embarrassing as “Iwas just trying to see your freckles”, especially when he was being recorded,so he merely whined and tried craning his neck to see instead.

Adam’s face became more hidden as he began to kiss theinsides of Ronan’s thighs, Ronan’s sweats and boxers successfully caught aroundone ankle.

“Ah,” Ronan breathed, a little helplessly. Adam’s handtightened around his wrist.

Adam ran his other hand up Ronan’s thigh and pushed it offthe couch; he raised himself up onto his knees as he grabbed Ronan’s other legand carefully placed it over his shoulder.

“Could you hand me that pillow behind you?” Adam askedRonan, releasing his wrist. Ronan did as Adam asked, heart pounding at the heatin Adam’s eyes. “Lift your hips,” Adam said, and he placed the pillow underRonan and gently pushed him down.

“Adam,” Ronan said, and this time Adam understood. He lacedhis fingers through Ronan’s and let Ronan hold their joined hands on hisstomach.

“You’re beautiful, Ronan,” Adam said, and he spread Ronan’sass with his eternally distracting hands, and pushed his mouth between them.

Ronan moaned, loud and unabashed, as Adam flattened histongue against his entrance and squeezed him. Adam slid his hand down to Ronan’sthigh and tugged him closer, making Ronan know without a doubt that if he werestanding up, he would’ve fallen over. Adam slowly began to lick him open, thewet heat of his tongue and the weight of his gaze on Ronan more than enough tomake Ronan completely let go of his self-awareness and press to Adam’s mouth,his hands, pushing into every good feeling Adam gave him.

Adam let go of Ronan’s thigh and reached up to put hispointer and index fingers against Ronan’s lips. He didn’t lift his head to ask;he knew Ronan understood. Ronan sucked Adam’s fingers into his mouth, lovingthe way hollowing out his cheeks made Adam’s wrist twitch. He let his head fallback and he grabbed Adam’s wrist with his free hand, partly to steady himselfbut mostly so that Adam wouldn’t pull away yet.

He licked Adam’s fingers, eyes closed, and Adam moaned, thesound and the shakiness of his mouth sending a chill up Ronan’s spine. Ronangasped and angled his hips up, sucking hard on Adam’s fingers, and Adam pulledhis hand away. Probably it was for the best; the both of them were already tooexcited. Ronan was so hard it hurt.

“I want you in me, Adam, I–” Adam pushed a wet finger intoRonan, still eating him open. He lifted his gaze to Ronan’s face and Ronan felthimself flush from his ears to his toes. Adam curled his finger inside Ronan,watching him, the movement practiced and perfect but not enough. Ronan already felt plenty wet and open, and he wasimpatient enough to moan out, “Three. Put three in.”

Adam quirked a brow but didn’t lift his mouth to sayanything. He pushed another finger in, angling it beneath his tongue.

“Adam,” Ronanwhined, covering his face with both hands and rolling his hips down, “Fuck me.”

A sound like a growl left Adam’s throat and he shoved hisfingers in, hard, letting Ronan arch off the couch. He grabbed Ronan’s thigh tokeep it from crushing his neck, nails digging in and leaving colorless crescentmarks. He turned his head and pressed his cheek against the pale skin of Ronan’sthigh, heaving breaths and staring at his fingers as they pumped in and out ofRonan. “You’re too tight,” he said, but he pushed a third finger in. Ronan’ships jerked and he pressed his palms into his eyes. “Just relax,” Adam said,kissing Ronan’s thigh, his voice soft and his mouth hot; without a visual Ronanwas even more affected than usual; usually he couldn’t help but stare at Adam,but right now he wasn’t sure if he could endure that, too. Adam curled hisfingers inside Ronan slowly, angling them against his prostate for the firsttime. Ronan gave a full body shudder, heat flooding his chest, and Adam’sfingers withdrew almost fully. “Let me make you feel good.”

“Please,” Ronan said, voice hoarse. He pushed himself halfupright and threaded shaking fingers through Adam’s hair; it was pretty tanglednow, thanks to Ronan, but it hadn’t been neat in the first place anyways. Ronanhung his head. He wasn’t past begging, but he couldn’t quite bear looking Adamstraight in the eyes when he was already so ruined. “Adam, just watching thislater is going to kill me. I need you inside me. Please.” The last word wasbarely a breath.

Adam’s fingers slowed. “How?” he asked, voice contemplative.

“What?” Ronan lifted his head. Adam was watching him with aplacid expression, little attention paid to the movements of his wrist. “How-how do you fuck me?”

Adam smiled. “How do you want me to fuck you?” He crawledforward, his fingers completely withdrawing and leaving Ronan feeling empty.Adam placed his other hand over the base of Ronan’s throat and leaned in tomouth at the underside of his jaw. “You can get on all fours and I can take youfrom behind,” He bit down; there’d definitely be bruises later. “Or maybe I’lltie your wrists up and shove your face into the couch. You like that, don’tyou? I know you do.” Ronan reached down and palmed Adam through his jeans,incredibly bothered by the fact that he was still fully clothed. Adam hummedinto Ronan’s skin and pushed into his hand. “But then… I really love having youon your back like this. You look so pretty, and I can get so deep when yourlegs are over my shoulders…” Adam ran his other hand lightly up Ronan’s chest,fingertips grazing over his nipples and raising chills on his skin. Ronanyanked at the button of his jeans, arms straining. Adam let out a shaky breath.“What do you think will be hotter?” he asked. “What do you want to see?”

“Anything,” Ronan rasped. Adam talking to him like that lefthim feeling a little dazed, and getting Adam’s jeans off in this position washard enough. Ronan managed to get the zipper down but gave up there and movedhis attention to Adam’s shirt. “Anything, Adam,” he said again, pulling Adam’sshirt up. “Whatever you want, I’ll–” Adam clamped his hand down over Ronan’smouth, smiling. Ronan could have kept talking, but he went quiet and let Adampush his neck back. Once Ronan’s eyes were trained on the arm of the couchbehind him Adam started to trail his hand down, fingers brushing over his lips,across his jaw, down the line of his throat, barely there. Ronan twisted hisfists in Adam’s shirt, fully aware that he was making embarrassing noises butunable to stop.

“I think I’ll take you like this,” Adam said quietly, hispalm sliding over the span of Ronan’s chest; Ronan’s skin warmed beneath it.“At least at first.”

He got up suddenly, and Ronan raised himself up onto hiselbows to watch him pull his shirt over his head. He stood in the slim spacebetween two planes of moonlight, caught in shadow. The muscles in his back slidunder his skin and flexed in his arms as he bent to push his jeans and boxersdown. A small, distracted part of Ronan’s brain thought to make sure Adam wasin front of the camera, because he’d definitely want to see this again – the dusty frecklesdecorating Adam’s shoulders and back clearly visible, his erection flushed andcurled against his pale stomach, the mess his hair had become falling over hisface and hiding almost all of the redness on his cheeks – the more productiveside of him thought to reach for the lube and box of condoms tucked into hisjacket on the floor.

Adam stepped out of his jeans and then he was on Ronan, histongue in Ronan’s mouth, his hands spread over his thigh and hip. Ronan leanedup into the kiss, sighing into Adam’s mouth, shaking under his hands. Adam wassolid and warm against him. Ronan tore a condom open and wrapped a hand aroundAdam’s cock. Adam hadn’t been touched yet, not really, and the moan he breathedinto Ronan’s mouth was loud and uninhibited. Ronan stroked him a few times,spreading the thick layer of precum down Adam’s shaft and smiling as Adambucked into his hand.

Adam turned and pressed his face into Ronan’s neck. “Put iton,” he gritted out, his fingers digging into Ronan’s skin. Ronan slid it overhim, then jerked Adam with his slick hand for good measure until Adam growledand pulled him farther down on the couch so that he was laid flat on his back,his legs resting on Adam’s thighs and wrists pinned above his head by Adam’shand.

Adam ran his other hand down Ronan’s chest, pressing thebreath out of him. His stare was intent as he trailed his fingers down Ronan’sthigh and spread his legs a bit more.

“Shit,” Ronan said breathlessly, “we could be porn stars.”

Adam pinched his lips between his teeth and nodded,thoughtful. Then his face went still, lips open on a slow breath and his eyesfocused. He let go of Ronan’s thigh and wrapped his hand around himself, andafter a nod from Ronan he leaned on Ronan’s wrists as he slowly slid into him.

Ronan immediately arched up, trying to press himself againstAdam. Adam met him halfway, and Ronan felt himself stretch to accommodate himas he bit at Ronan’s ear and murmured, “You’re definitely pretty enough to beone.”

Ronan let out a shaky breath and closed his eyes. Helistened to Adam, tried to synch his breaths to Adam’s slightly steadier ones.Adam’s weight shifted as he put some of it onto his arm by Ronan’s head, hisother hand still firmly holding Ronan’s wrists down. Adam kissed across histhroat, helping Ronan to relax; Ronan could feel the fast beat of Adam’s heartwhere their chests pressed against each other.

Adam rubbed his thumb along the sensitive inside of Ronan’swrist and nipped at the juncture of his jaw. He rolled his hips a few times,slow, and Ronan moaned. “You okay?” he asked softly.

Ronan made some sort of sound, not wanting to waste hisenergy with words when it felt so much better to pull at Adam’s hold on hiswrists and angle his hips up to meet Adam’s still ones.

“A yes, then,” Adam said, sucking a bruise into his throat.He pulled back, sunk his teeth into Ronan’s neck, and slammed back in.

Adam took advantage of Ronan’s immediate boneless-ness bysliding his hand along Ronan’s thigh and carefully setting it over hisshoulder, then doing the same to the other, all the while slowly rocking intoRonan and sucking at his neck.

He pushed Ronan into the couch, gripping his wrists hard andkeeping himself at just the right angle. Ronan dug his ankles into Adam’s backand happily let himself be folded almost in half; the way Adam was fucking him,he could probably touch Ronan’s knees to his shoulders with just a little moreeffort. Adam kissed Ronan’s flushed cheek and then bit at his swollen lips,teeth teasing. Ronan shivered and he kissed Adam back, closing his eyes andurging Adam on with flighty breaths and moans. He felt himself clench aroundAdam, and the rest of his body reacted; his stomach twisted with heat, hislungs seized, and his eyes rolled to the back of his head. Adam was everywhere.

Adam slowed, and the tide in Ronan sloshed inside him,unable to spill over. He leaned away from Ronan’s mouth, barely kissing him,and Ronan opened his eyes to see Adam’s staring back at him. Ronan struggledfor a moment to clear his mind and focus on Adam. He wasn’t sure if the heat hefelt was from the blood rushing under his skin or just from Adam’s closeness.

Adam smiled at Ronan and went to bite at his neck. He rolledhis hips gently, and one arm pressed down on Ronan’s abdomen to keep him from tryingto meet Adam’s thrusts. Adam smiled into Ronan’s skin. “You’re not gonna comeyet, are you?” he asked, his words drowning in his Henrietta accent. “Hasn’tbeen that long, has it?”

Ronan squeezed his eyes shut. “That’s unfair,” he said,barely more than a whisper. “When you finger me and eat me out like that, youcan’t–” Adam slammed into him hard, lighting up every fuse inside Ronan. Ronangasped out, “You can’t just–”

“Ronan” Adam murmured, and he was back to his slow asmolasses movements, “I think I can.”He kissed Ronan’s racing pulse point and started to move faster, his hipssnapping. Ronan tipped his head back, letting Adam’s mouth drag over his throatand letting Adam bury him in the couch. He dug his ankles into Adam’s back ashard as he could, using the only leverage he could to get Adam impossiblydeeper inside him—

Ronan gasped loudly, the feeling overwhelming him easilybecause he couldn’t do anything with it; his hands were trapped above his head,and Adam’s face was buried in his neck. Ronan twisted under Adam, meeting hisnext thrust and making him moan into Ronan’s neck. Ronan tried straining hisarms again, but Adam held tight. Ronan growled. “Kiss me, you asshole.”

Adam laughed; Ronan was infuriated at how fond he was of thesound, and of the feeling of Adam’s chest shaking against his. Adam pepperedgentle kisses up Ronan’s jaw and settled on his lips with a happy sigh. Ronankissed him with all he had, sliding his tongue along Adam’s and pressinghimself to him as best he could. Adam was holding back still – his thrusts werehard like Ronan liked them, but they were lingering and almost languid, and hislips moved against Ronan’s sweetly instead of pulling back to bite – and Ronanknew Adam was loving every second of it.

The thought of watching this later – of what they lookedlike right now – and seeing himself writhe under Adam while Adam’s beautifulhands held him down and his mouth kept him in check was almost enough to makeRonan concede.

But Ronan had never been a patient person, especially withAdam. His thighs trembled on either side of Adam’s neck.

“Let me ride you,” Ronan whispered to the ceiling.

Adam’s breath stopped, made more noticeable by comparison tohow he had been gasping into Ronan’s mouth two seconds ago; Ronan smirked atfinally breaking Adam’s composure, and he knew Adam felt it.

But Adam didn’t call him out on his deceitfulness. He justlet out a shaky breath and said, “Fuck, okay.” He kissed Ronan hard, lips bruising,every bit of his control thrown out the window. He bit down hard on Ronan’s lipand pressed Ronan hard into the couch, but his hands were gentle as he slidRonan’s legs off his shoulders. He sat up and Ronan followed him; finally givenback his hands as Adam steadied himself, he wrapped them around Adam’s neck andburied his face in it. Adam ran his hands down Ronan’s sides and dug his nailsinto his thighs, his grip decidedly harsh.

Ronan moaned into Adam’s neck and bit at the tender skin ofhis throat, loving the soft noises Adam made. Adam grabbed Ronan’s hips andpulled him down into his lap, and Ronan curved into him as Adam pressed inside.

“God,” Adam said reverently, grazing his fingers up Ronan’sback and then raking his nails down. Ronan unfurled under the touch, rockinginto Adam’s lap. He shifted so that his thighs were more secure on either sideof Adam and began to fuck him in earnest, every part of him shaking. He movedhimself up and down, the insides of his thighs burning, Adam’s tacky skinsticking to his. There was no point in building up speed when they were both alreadywound to the utmost. Adam tipped his head back, his eyes closed, mouth open,and Ronan bit up from his throat to tug at his lower lip.

They really, definitelyweren’t going to last like this.

Adam grabbed Ronan’s hips, his thumbs pressing into Ronan’sabdomen as he directed his movements in a way so purposeful and precise Ronandidn’t think he’d last more than a minute.

“Adam,” he warned, his words slurred and muffled againstAdam’s lips. “I’m–”

“I love it when you ride me like this,” Adam interruptedhim. “The way you feel, and the way you look – Jesus. You should see yourself,” he cupped Ronan’s jaw in one handand kissed him slowly. “I can’t wait until you see the video.”

“Adam,” Ronan said again, unable to properly kiss Adam back.Adam didn’t seem to care; he kissed Ronan even as Ronan’s head fell back inweakness and he shut his eyes against the heat exploding like a supernova inhis stomach.

Adam thrust up into him, hard, and wrapped his hand aroundRonan’s cock, his entire body shaking against Ronan’s. Ronan tightened his armsaround Adam’s neck, trying to keep them both upright. “Come for me,” Adam said,stroking him in pace with his thrusts. He bit at the corner of Ronan’s mouth. “Ronan.”

Ronan’s self-control became nothing. Adam told him to letgo, and that was all he needed to let himself break. Adam stroked him faster ashe came over his hand and onto his stomach, his hand bringing him to the edgeand then still going, taking Ronan past his limits. He gasped into Ronan’smouth as Ronan seized around him, and Ronan pushed both of his hands intoAdam’s hair to yank his head back. He rode Adam harder and kissed him as he came.

Adam’s mouth hung open on a breath he couldn’t take in.Ronan kept riding him, tugging on his hair and pushing him as far as he couldtake him, riding out both of their orgasms until Adam gasped out a weak, “Ronan,you’re killing me.”

“I just love to see you like this,” Ronan said, completelyunapologetic. Adam’s come was dripping down his thighs, and while it was sexierthan almost anything to Ronan, Adam probably wouldn’t appreciate him pointingit out. He discreetly fumbled for a towel he had laid over the back of thecouch to wipe himself and Adam up, then slumped against Adam and ran his handsthrough his sweat damp hair, gently. “Sorry.”

They just breathed for a long time, laying side by side,hands roaming, exchanging the occasional lazy, spent kiss. Adam’s fingerstrailed over every centimeter of Ronan’s tattoo. Ronan kissed the freckles onhis cheeks and ran his hands through his dusty hair until it was free oftangles. He felt Adam’s heart begin to return to its normal pace against him.

“Want to see something?” Ronan asked Adam.

Adam lifted his head. “Sure.”

Ronan led him out to the porch, grabbing a heavy quilt fromthe rocking chair on the way, and Adam sighed happily as Ronan wrapped itaround them both and sat on the steps.

Adam didn’t have to wait long; Ronan’s dream creaturesseemed to always know when he was close.

The white buck stepped out of the trees and into theclearing, his foxy red ears perked, branch-like antlers casting shadows acrosshis face. He trotted towards where Ronan and Adam sat, and no more than a fewseconds passed before his herd – the deer that didn’t belong to Ronan, or atleast they weren’t created by him –came out of hiding and followed. They were all quite tame now, and fond enoughof Ronan to extend their trust to his friends. One doe with spots like Adam’sfreckles tiptoed forward and rested her head in Adam’s outstretched hands.

Adam stroked her long, velvety face with the tips of hisfingers. He tilted his head towards the pale buck. “He’s getting big,” he said.

Another doe came up to Ronan and nibbled at his boxers; hewas glad he’d taken the time to put those on, at least. He fondled her ears andlooked out to the rolling hills of the Barns again. “Yeah, he is. But that’snot what I wanted to show you.” Ronan pointed to a single fawn trotting towardsthem, her spindly legs too long and awkward to allow for how fast she was tryingto go.

Ronan watched Adam’s face to see the second he saw it.

Adam’ mouth dropped open, and Ronan laughed. “You dreamtone,” Adam said, staring at the fawn as it came to stand at the edge of theherd, “with wings?”

The fawn was completely ordinary looking except for thelight brown wings that sprouted from her back. They were like the nighthorrors’, featherless and interrupted by talons and thin, bent bones, but theylooked softer on her. In the dream Ronan took her from, she’d followed him fora long time, head low to the ground, wings stretched out parallel to her back,and Ronan had let her. She was nice to look at, and seemed intent on observinghim, instead of antagonizing him like Opal or Chainsaw. The curiosity in hergaze was just like that in Chainsaw’s, though, and the way she skittered on herhooves and fumbled with herself was so much like Opal. It was instinctive forRonan to snatch her away from the black things in his head when they appeared.

“I thought you’d like her,” Ronan said. He watched as thefawn slowly moved into the midst of the herd, wings flapping every couple ofsteps. It seemed she didn’t know to tuck them into her sides, and she keptstartling the other deer on accident. They would get used to her soon enough,though; it had taken them a short while to love the pale buckling, too.

“I do,” Adam said, still petting the doe absentmindedly. Shenudged her nose into his palm. “I like all of your dream things.”

“Most of them,” Ronan corrected him.

“Most of them,” Adam agreed.

Ronan was silent for a moment. Silence was easy for him,usually, but there had been too much on his mind the past few weeks. He turnedhis head to look at Adam, the quilt around his shoulders coming up to scratchhis neck. “I’m really going to miss you,” He said. “Really fucking miss you.”

“We’ll visit.” Adam said. But he kept his gaze on the doe hewas petting, and his voice was uncertain.

Ronan went on, “I don’t know if our home movie is gonna beenough for me.”

Adam traced the star spiral of hair in the center of thedoes wide forehead. “You’re going to call me when you watch it, remember? Ithink it’ll be enough.”

Ronan gave a dissatisfied snort.

“And I’ll send you nudes,” Adam added. “Way more than Iusually do. And you can send me weird fruit and Opal’s drawings, and, I don’t know,we’ll just do what we always do. We’ll be fine.” He was starting to sound lesslike he was trying to convince Ronan and more like he believed himself.

Ronan rubbed a hand over the back of his shaved head. Hehated how worried he was about Adam leaving. He kind of loved how easily Adamsaw through him. “Want to go for a ride?”

Adam didn’t look at him, but he smiled. “Are you gonna bringyour camera?”

Ronan leaned over and kissed Adam on the cheek. “Yeah, Iam.”