#Shay holds them dearly in his heart

[alotofpockets]

Down the aisle | Leslie Shay x Firefighter!Reader

Where you and Shay go from girlfriend's to wives

Chicago Fire masterlist | Words: 1.6k

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“Kelly Severide, stop laughing at me.” Shay said in frustration. “Why? It’s funny that you have something bad to say about every beautiful ring you see.” Her best friend had been with her in the jewellery store for the past hour, not to mention that it was the fourth jewellery store they had visited in the past week. 

“The ring has to be perfect, Kelly.” He shook his head, “I know, but at this pace there aren’t going to be any rings left in the world. That girl is head over heels for you, and will say yes no matter what ring you pick. “Still I want it to be perfect.” 

They kept looking around at the ring collection this store had until Shay’s eyes fell on the one. “Oh my god, that’s it. That is the ring!” Kelly celebrated quietly behind Shay’s back. He loved his best friend dearly, but was also glad that he would finally be spending his days off somewhere other than in a jewellery store.

For Shay it had been easy to keep her thoughts of wanting to ask for your hand in marriage, but now that she had something physical to do it with, she was anxious you would find out. She had given Kelly the ring for safekeeping, but still she knew that she wouldn’t be able to keep the plan a secret for much longer. So, she changed her original plan a little bit, and decided she was going to ask you on your next date night.

Since you both worked 24 hour shifts at the firehouse, you made sure that you made time for each other on your hours off. One of the things you did to reassure you would have some time set aside was a set date night. It really didn’t matter what you did, the only thing that mattered is that you did it together. 

Today’s date night, you went to the Field Museum of Natural History. They had a dinosaur section, which is exactly why Shay wanted to bring you here. You loved dinosaurs and learning more about them. You thought the museum was amazing, and were running around showing her things like an excited little kid.

When you got back home, you were still talking about the dinosaurs. So much so that you didn’t realise the set up of your living room. Shay looked around, very happy with how her idea had played out. She had asked Kelly and Dawson to set up the “Will you marry me?” sign surrounded by a rose petal heart. It looked absolutely perfect, now you just had to look around. 

The moment that you did, time stood still. You looked at the setup in front of you with your jaw dropped, and eyes widened in surprise. When you turn to look at your girlfriend, she is down on one knee and holds out an open ring box towards you. “Yes, yes, yes!” You say with tears in your eyes. 

“You're not even going to let me ask the question?” She giggles with tears in her own eyes from your excitement. “Oops?” You laugh back. “Please ask me, darling.” 

With a big smile on her face, Shay holds your hand. “You are my best friend, and I want to spend the rest of my life by your side. Y/n Y/l/n, will you marry me?” 

You're now both full on crying, but in the best way. “Yes, I will definitely marry you!” You fall into her arms and sob happy tears into each other's shoulders. 

The rest of the evening was spent in the comfort of your home and each other's arms. It wasn't until the next day that you told people about your engagement. Shay sent Severide a picture with the text “She said yes!” He congratulated the both of you and invited you for a drink at Molly's.

Of course, you should have expected the whole team to be waiting for you inside of Molly’s as you arrived. All of them yelling out “Surprise!” When you walked through the door. It was nice celebrating this step in your relationship with the people closest to you, the people that had become your family over the years.

The next day where the team was back at work, the room buzzed with energy. Everyone was excited about the engagement, and was asking all kinds of questions about your plans for the wedding. Above all else, they were thrilled that the couple they had seen grow over the years, was taking the next step together.

Your day started off calm, but as soon as that first bell rang, you knew it wouldn’t be stopping any time soon. As you expected, the calls began to pile up, and the intensity grew. A handful of car accidents, a heart attack victim, and a kitchen fire kept you busy in just the morning.

There was just enough time to have some lunch, before the bells rang again. All units were called to respond to the scene, so you knew this was going to be a serious one. 

A multi-story building had caught fire, and people were still trapped inside. You rushed into truck 81 and your team raced to the scene. When you got there you realised just how far gone the building was. Flames were shooting out the windows, and thick dark clouds of smoke hung around the tall frame of the building. 

Without hesitation, you all sprang into action. “Y/l/n, you’re going up with me. The rest help Squad.” You put on your mask and ran inside, following close behind Casey. When you got up to the fire floor, there was no time for second-guessing, you had to go before the building would collapse. 

The heat and the thick smoke combined, made it hard to see anything at all. Yet you kept yelling out, until finally you heard voices respond. A family of four was hiding in the bathroom, as most of the room was engulfed in flames. 

You and Casey worked together to get the trapped family into the hall. You stood in the middle of the room, helping them over the flames, while Casey got them into the hallway. The moment that the family was out in the hallway, the ceiling about you gave way. 

One of the beams came crashing down, and pinned you to the floor. “Go, get downstairs!” Casey shouted to the family. The safest for them was to head down and meet another firefighter there, he didn’t want more of the ceiling to collapse while the family was still there.

“Mayday mayday, firefighter down on the sixth floor.” He radio’s in while he makes his way to you. Seconds after Shay’s voice is heard over the radio. “Casey, is y/n okay?” He doesn’t answer, as he doesn’t know the answer himself yet. 

“Casey, come in.” Boden requested as the line was still quiet from your end. “Getting to her now. The ceiling collapsed and she’s trapped under a beam. She’s conscious, but I need help getting it off of her.”

You were conscious and talking to Casey while he was trying to pull the beam off himself, without any luck. Luckily more people arrived to aid him, very quickly. With many hands, cribbing, and the right tools, they were able to get you out from underneath the weight of the beam quickly. 

When you got outside, one arm over Casey’s shoulders and the other over Severides, you finally felt like you could breathe again. Shay ran into your arms. “Are you okay? Let me check you out, please, I need to make sure that you’re okay.” You lift your arms from the boys and hold onto your fianceé. “I’m okay, just going to be really sore tomorrow.”

“I thought I lost you.” You shake your head. “You’re not getting rid of me that easily.” You joke, but you were well aware of how the situation could have ended. “Life is too short. I don’t want to waste any time.” Shay was quick to chime in, “You don’t have to convince me, let’s get married as fast as we can.”

After a long and exhausting shift, the team got together for a small firehouse wedding. It was just quickly thrown together, but you had all you needed. Your bride and your family surrounding you. 

Severide walked Shay down the makeshift aisle, while you were standing in the doors of the apparatus floor with Casey by your side. He was like a brother to you, so there was not even a question on your mind when Shay asked you who you would want to walk you down the aisle. “Are you ready?” He says as he watches your eyes meet Shay’s. “I’ve never been more ready for something in my life.”

You met Shay between Truck 81 and Ambulance 61, a small touch to give even more meaning to this day. Boden stood between you, who better to officiate your wedding than the man that had been like a father figure to the both of you.

The ceremony, while simple, was perfect. It was a day neither one of you would ever forget. After you had said your I do’s and sealed your marriage with a kiss, you carried Shay inside bridal style. 

While the day may be over, your shift was not. But for now the team would rest, and hope to be recharged enough when the next bell rang. For you the day was perfect, just because you had Shay by your side for the rest of your life.

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[rogaire-a]

While I usually headcanon that Shay kept visiting the Finnegans from time to time ( because it makes absolutely no sense that he would just disappear from their lives after what they did for him) he started limiting his visits when he realized that his presence in their lives was just going to put them in danger. The Assassins and their gangs might be losing control over New York, but Shay has got enemies everywhere, and he just doesn’t want to risk their safety.

I also hc that it was Shay to confirm the news of Monro’s death ( because there were speculations about the Colonel’s death but nothing was certain and since he literally died in Shay’s arms he would know if he’s alive or not rip) and after he delivered them the tragic news, he bid them farewell. 

He still kept an eye on them though, but much more subtly.

[ragingbookdragon]

A Christmas Impersonation

A Haytham Kenway x Reader One-Shot

Word Count: 2.9K Warnings: Explicit Language, Sexual Humor

Author’s Note: Since my last Christmas fic was with Shay, I had to give y’all a Haytham one! DAY 11 OF TCF’s! Enjoy! -Thorne

         “This…is an incredibly terrible idea, Shay.” she stated, resisting the urge to direct him away from the doors of the mansion. The music and laughter could be heard all the way outside, and each step only heightened her nerves.

           He chuckled. “Relax, (Y/N).” he smiled at the couple passing them. “No one’s gonna know.”

           “Someone is,” she couldn’t help but retort, heart pounding out of her chest as they walked up to the British officer at the door.

           The man smiled politely at them, but she knew it was a smile that screamed, ‘I hate my life and I certainly hate you as well’.

           “Invitation, please.” He said, and Shay dug inside the coat he wore.

           He handed it over, watching with slight concern as the man looked it over. (Y/N) could feel the sweat drip down her spine, feeling like the man was reading it with suspicion.

           Finally, he looked at them. “Lord and Lady Sheamus O’Kieran?”

           They grinned and Shay murmured, “That’s us.” He rubbed the back of her hand. “It’s been a while since me and the Lady attended a ball. We’ve been traveling.”

           “I understand, sir.” He nodded, handing back the invitation. “A pleasure to have you here tonight.” Turning, the Redcoat gestured inside. “Please enjoy yourselves.”

           (Y/N) and Shay tipped their heads politely and stepped inside, immediately breathing heavy sighs of relief.

           “Oh my god, I was sure we were going to get in trouble there.” She remarked, a hand massaging her chest.

           “I told you we’d be fine.” His coffee eyes scanned the ballroom, taking in the sight of at least a hundred or so people all laughing and drinking. “Is this what upper-class parties are like?”

           She huffed. “This place is boring compared to Callaghan’s on a Friday night.”

           Shay snorted. “Agreed. It seems the people who govern us little ones don’t know how to party.”

           He spied a servant walking past with a tray and grinned, snatching two champagne shoots. “Here you are, Lady O’Kieran.”

           She took the drink. “Thank you, Lord O’Kieran.” Raising her glass to his, she warned, “Now remember, the whole point of tonight isn’t to get piss drunk. We’re here to—”

           She narrowed her gaze as he started drinking. “You’re not even listening to me, are you?”

           Shay eyed her. “I heard, ‘get piss drunk’, and decided to follow the instructions.”

           “You’re a dipshit, Shay.” (Y/N) griped, taking a sip of her own. Her face scrunched up and she inconspicuously spat the champagne back into the glass. A shiver ran through her and she gagged. “Ugh.”

           He chuckled. “It’s surprising that you don’t like that, considering the fact that you drink whiskey.”

           She smacked her lips awkwardly, trying to get the taste out of her mouth. “Yeah, but whiskey actually tastes good.” (Y/N) glared into the shoot. “In the wise words of your dearly departed father, this tastes like horse piss.”

           Shay had to fake a cough to hide his bark of laughter. “He’d be proud of you.”

           They lapsed into silence, simply strolling around, and observing the party and décor. Stopping near one of the giant glass windows, she took to scrutinizing the gentlemen of the party.

           A nudge to her side, followed by a whisper caught her attention. “Lady O’Kieran, you’re supposed to be a married woman. Are you searching for a lover?”

           (Y/N) rolled her eyes and looked at him. “Well, someone has to satisfy a woman’s needs and you’re not.”

           Shay actually seemed offended by that one, placing a hand to his chest. “That hurt.”

           “You’ll live,” she retorted, eyes following the men until she landed on one talking to an older woman. He was handsome, strong facial features, broad shoulders, definitely fit under all those layers, and his eyes. Oh, his eyes were drop dead striking, like gunmetal. And she wanted to know them. Badly.

           She tapped repeatedly at his arm. “That one. I want that one.”

           Shay shoved his face against hers, his facial hair scratching her cheek as he asked, “Which one?”

           (Y/N) nodded at the dark-haired man, taking in the crimson ribbon that neatly tied his hair back. “The one with the tricorn.”

           His face pinched. “You mean the one that screams, ‘I’m a pretentious asshole that has a stick shoved up my arse’? That one.”

           A smirk grew on her lips. “Oh yeah.” She sighed. “I want to climb that man like a tree.”

           He gagged. “Gross.”

           “Are you kidding me, Shay?” she questioned, nodding at the man who’d begun to look around. “Look at his hands. And his thighs. And his really…firm…body. That is a man who knows what a woman wants and how to give it to her.”

           “I’m really glad you’ve finally found someone to break your celibacy vow, but please, please, please, understand that I am not as interested in men as you are.”

           “From what I’ve seen in Portugal, you’re a damn liar,” she countered.

           Shay scowled at her. “I thought we agreed to not bring that up.”

           (Y/N) turned to him. “No, you said, ‘don’t bring this up’ and I nodded.”

           “That means you agreed.”

           “No, I would have to verbally express understanding to agree. I never did.”

           Shay leaned forward, but before he could say anything, someone cleared their throat, making them slap smiles on their faces and turn.

           (Y/N) felt her cheeks warm at the sight of the man they’d been talking about, suddenly standing in front of her.

           His steely gaze was focused on her. “Good evening.”

           The two of them bowed politely. “Good evening, sir.” She replied, Shay following in suit.

           He held out his hand to Shay. “I don’t believe you and I have ever met. Haytham Kenway.”

           She watched Shay take Haytham’s hand, firmly shaking it. “Shay—” (Y/N) elbowed him in the side with a cheery smile and he corrected. “Sheamus. Sheamus O’Kieran.”

           He let go and gestured to (Y/N). “This is my wife—”

           Holding her hand out, she said, “Temperance O’Kieran. A pleasure to meet you.” She giggled as Haytham pressed a kiss to her hand.

           “The pleasure is all mine, Lady O’Kieran.” He murmured, and she could palpably feel Shay rolling his eyes at them.

           Haytham freed her hand and eyed them. “I’ve made a habit of knowing the guests of this party, and while I know the regulars, I’ve never seen the two of you.” His gaze was kind, but she could see the suspicion brewing within. “What do the two of you do?”

           Shay’s mouth opened, but nothing came out and (Y/N) quickly intervened. “We work for a businessman over in New York. He usually attends the parties, but he came down with a cold and asked us to fill in for him.”

           “Rather unusual,” Haytham remarked, but left it alone. “Is this your first time?”

           “It is,” Shay said. “First in a while, that is. We’ve been traveling.”

           “Oh?” It seemed the man’s interest had been piqued. “Where to?” The question was directed at Shay, but his eyes were on (Y/N).

           Her friend rolled his eyes. “My drink is empty. I’m going to get another one.” He looked at (Y/N). “You should stay and talk.”

           Her brows pulled together as she eyed the drink in his hand. “What are you talking about? You have a glass full—”

           She pulled an unimpressed look as Shay tipped his head back and downed the whole thing, before handing her the glass.

           “Look at that, my drink is empty.” He remarked with a smart tone.

           (Y/N) let out an unladylike snort, and though a grin came across her lips, she wheezed, “I hate you, so much.” Shay winked and stalked off, leaving her to turn back to Haytham who wore an amused expression.

           “I take it that Sheamus knows when to have a moment to himself?” he inquired.

           She huffed, fumbling with the two champagne shoots. “Only when I tell him off.”

           Haytham laughed, taking the two glasses from her, though hers was full.

           “Oh wait, I wasn’t—” she started, but he cut her off.

           “You didn’t like it anyways.” He said and she felt her cheeks heat up.

           “You…saw that?”

           He chuckled. “Only the ones who were watching.”

           (Y/N) felt a smirk cross her lips. “Oh? Were you watching me, Haytham?” she tutted at him. “Shame on you for eyeing a married woman.

           He pulled a coy smile, holding out a hand. “May I have this dance?”

           Her heart dropped. “I can’t dance.” She blurted out, and when he cocked a brow, she added, “Well. I can’t dance well.” (Y/N) motioned to his boots. “I’ll step on toes.”

           Haytham took her hand anyway, pulling her to the floor. “Step on them anyway, Temperance.”

           “Ho boy.” She muttered, then upon seeing other couples coming their way, she asked, “What dance are we doing? Please be a Riverdance. Please be a Riverdance.”

           He glanced to the orchestra. “I believe it’s a La Bonne Amité.” Haytham smiled at the anxiety on her face. “Follow my lead.”

           “I’ll try,” (Y/N) ground out.

           Haytham turned sideways, her following and took his hat off, bowing low. She quickly curtsied, then faced him, giving him one as well.

           They tapped opposite hands, and when they came together, he murmured, “Remember to smile.”

***

           By the time they were finished, her feet were killing her, and Haytham knew it, leading her away.

           “Tired you out already?” he teased, causing her to huff.

           “Oh please, dancing is a different type of game than se—running!” she corrected herself, a warmth spreading across her cheeks as she internally cursed herself.

           Haytham chuckled at her. “You’re a curious woman, Temperance.”

           (Y/N) couldn’t help but roll her eyes. “And how many women have you twisted that line to?”

           His steel eyes narrowed. “Just the ones who intrigue me.”

           “Haytham, I hate to make you unhappy, but I’m a marr—”

           “You’re not married,” he abruptly stated, making her go silent, jaw slack. “And your reaction proves it.”

           Before she could say anything, her eyes caught sight of the Redcoat from the door pointing at her and muttering something to the guard next to him.

           Her eyes went wide, and she gulped. “Uh oh.”

           Haytham’s eyes followed hers. “What is it?”

           She didn’t respond, quickly bypassing him. “Time to go.”

           (Y/N) hurried off, searching wildly for Shay, but he was nowhere to be found. “Motherfucker, where is he?” she cursed to herself.

           Darting into the hallway, she was met with a row of doors and she groaned, hurriedly opening them. After the fifth one, she swung open the door and saw Shay bent over a desk, a woman on top of him.

           She blinked at them, then spat, “Hey!” Their heads snapped to him. “You’re supposed to be married, you dumb fucker.”

           Shay scoffed, sitting up as the woman turned her face away. “Way to ruin the moment, (Y/N).”

           She shook her head, running over to him. “Doesn’t matter, we have to go. Now.”

           “Why?” he questioned, and she reached over, snatching him by the ear.

           “Because they know! We have to go now!”

           He batted her hand away, gently lowering the woman to her feet. “I promise if you come to the pub downtown called Callaghan’s, I’ll be there.”

           The woman smiled and (Y/N) leaned over, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Sis, this man is a damn fool, do not trust a word that comes out of his mouth.”

           “HEY!” Shay shouted, but she was too busy, yanking him off.

           “Come on! I do not wanna hang because we impersonated lords and ladies!”

           They stuck their head out the door and saw a pair of Redcoats down the hallway. The woman walked out of the room, ignoring the guards and (Y/N) shut the door.

           “Okay, we need to leave.”

           “Out the window?!” Shay yelped and she nodded.

           “That’s our only option!” She started towards the window but stopped and yanked at her dress. “Shit! I can’t climb in this thing.”

           (Y/N) looked at him. “Do you have a knife on you? I need to get out of this now.”

           Shay shook his head. “No, I don’t have one on me.”

           “Why not?!” she hissed, then shook her head. “It doesn’t matter, I have one.”

           “Where?” he asked, and she fell silent. “(Y/N), where’s the knife?”

           She swallowed thickly, starting to bunch up her dress. “Strapped to my thigh.” Her eyes met his and she waited.

           His face streaked crimson. “I am not crawling under your dress.”

           “Shay Cormac get this knife from my leg or we’re fucked!” she ordered.

           “I can’t believe I’m doing this,” he groaned, kneeling in front of her to feel up her thigh. She felt an uncomfortable feeling welling in her and she looked down at him.

           “Hurry!” she spat. “And don’t stick your hand up my drawers or I’ll bloody your nose.”

           “Not like I haven’t seen anything up there before,” he retorted, then his hand stopped. “I think I’ve got it.”

           However, before he could remove it, the door opened and they turned their gazes to the man entering, afraid it was a Regular. It wasn’t.

           “Haytham?” (Y/N) exclaimed, and his eyes drug over the two. “I swear to God this isn’t what it looks like.” He cocked a brow and she sighed. “I have a knife strapped to my leg and I need it to get the dress off.”

           He hummed. “It seems to me that two Regulars are chasing after a supposed lord and lady.” Crossing over to them, he extended some blade from his wrist and cut the ties on the back of her dress, shirking them down. The skirt fell with it, leaving her in her drawers and bodice.

           If she hadn’t been terrified of being caught, she would’ve been embarrassed. Haytham helped her step out of the fabric and Shay hurried to the window, propping it open.

           “Come on!” he commanded and (Y/N) hesitated, drawing her eyes from Haytham to him.

           “Why aren’t you turning us in?” she questioned, staring him down.

           His eyes narrowed. “Because I’m curious.”

           Before she could say anything, Shay complained, “Hey, Cecilia Celibate, are you done trying to get into his pants yet?”

           She whirled around on him. “As a matter of fact, no! I’m not done yet!” (Y/N) spun and grabbed Haytham by the lapels of his cloak and yanked him forward into a searing kiss.

           Pulling away, she breathed, “God, if you and I ever meet again, I want to bang you like a door in a hurricane.” Haytham choked on his spit and she let him go, chasing after Shay, who’d already descended into the garden.

           (Y/N) winked as she climbed the railing and vaulted over the side.

***

           “So, Shay, tell me about your friend who’s been running with you for some time now.” Haytham’s question was barely audible over the howling of the snowstorm, and Shay had to crane his neck to hear.

           “(Y/N). She’s my best friend sir. The unofficial-official first mate of the Morrigan.”

           “Oh?” The Grandmaster hummed. “I thought Gist was.”

           Shay shrugged his shoulders and grabbed the tavern door handle. “Well, he is, but the crew knows to take her orders as if they were mine.”

           “You trust her quite a lot then.” Haytham surmised.

           “Aye, I do. Especially now that she’s joined me with the Templars.” The Assassin-Hunter held the door for him, following inside after.

           The warmth of the fireplace reached them, a stark contrast from the absolutely frigid temperature outside and Shay nodded to a woman at the counter.

           “That’s her,” he murmured and Haytham looked over, seeing a familiar woman.

***

           (Y/N) tapped the counter, eyes following the old man behind it. “Callaghan, can I get three shots of whiskey? Irish, please.”

           The silver bearded man turned to her, placing the shot glasses down. “Is someone joining you and Shay?”

           She watched as he poured the amber liquid. “Yeah, our boss.”

           “Ah,” Callaghan remembered. “The one Shay’s been under.”

           (Y/N) nodded. “For a while. He’s been running it and working on getting me in. He said that the boss would meet me tonight and decide if I was material for the outfit.”

           “Of course you are lassie. Look at you.” His calloused hands waved at her. “You and the lad would be dead if it wasn’t for you.”

           She smiled and looked down. “Yeah…tell me about it.”

           “(Y/N)!” She glanced over her shoulder, eyes meeting Shay’s, then to the man beside him, and her heart stutter, eyes going wide.

           She blinked, then turned to the bartender, deadpanning, “Callaghan, I’d like to change my order to a large glass of whiskey. Actually, just give me the bottle, because I’m gonna to go dive off a cliff and I don’t want it to hurt so bad.”

           “Recognize him?” the bartender whispered.

           “More than you know.” She replied, immediately grabbing the first shot glass. She downed it, then the other two went with it.

           (Y/N) shuddered, then spun on her seat, grinning at the man. “Haytham. Fancy meeting you again.”

           He smiled knowingly at her. “Merry Christmas…Temperance O’Kieran.”

           She coughed, rubbing the back of her neck. “Actually, me and the feller,” her eyes darted to Shay who wore a shit-eating grin, “divorced.”

           Sticking out her hand, she introduced herself. “(Y/N) (L/N). A pleasure.”

           Haytham took her hand, kissing the back of it. “Pleasure’s all mine.”

[pucking-insane]

Speak Now - Ryder Donovan

Player: Ryder Donovan Word Count: 1866 Warnings: Swearing

Inspired by: “Speak Now” by Taylor Swift

I  am not the kind of girl Who should rudely barging in on a white veil occasion But you Are not the kind the kind of boy Who should be marrying the wrong girl

The invitation was a surprise to say the least. Of course, you knew Ryder was dating, but you weren’t expecting the “save the date” to come. Immediately, you texted Shay, who, even though you and Ryder had broken up years ago, you remained close with. 

It killed you to know that Ryder had moved on. You were happy that he was happy, but you were still in love with him.

Even though you didn’t really want to go to your ex-boyfriend’s wedding, Shay had convinced you to come as his plus one. 

When you got to the wedding venue, you took a deep breath before even opening your car door.

Y/N Shay I can’t do this

Shay Donovan I know it hurts bub But you need closure I’ll see if I can sneak out to your car

Y/N Thank you

Eventually, there was a knock on your car window. You unlocked your car for Shay, who slid into your passenger seat.

“I can��t do this.” You said quietly.

“I know it’s hard and I know it hurts, but he’s happy.” Shay explained. 

“It should be me.” You cried. “I should be getting ready to marry the love of my life. I should have my hair and makeup done and my dress and jewelry should be on. We should be taking pictures right now.”

“Believe me, Y/N,” Shay sighed. “It should be you.”

“You’re not making this any easier, Donovan.”

“Sorry, bubs.” Shay rubbed your back. “I’ll save a dance for you. That is if Cole or Turcs don’t get to you first.”

“They’re here?”

“Of course they are.” Shay smiled and glanced at his watch. “I should probably get going. But find one of them and you’ll be fine.”

I sneak in and see your friends And her snotty little family all dressed in pastel And she is yelling at a bridesmaid Somewhere back inside a room  Wearing a gown shaped like a pastry

Eventually, you willed yourself to leave your car and walk inside. You quickly spotted the familiar head of curly dark hair you had known since college.

“How’s LA treating you Turcs?” You asked as you fell into the natural conversation.

“Great. Thinking of buying a ring for Tori.” He smiled.

“Oh my gosh! That’s amazing!” You gave your friend a congratulatory hug.

“What are you doing here?” Alex asked. “Not that I don’t want to see you, I just thought you wouldn’t want to go to your ex-boyfriend’s wedding.”

“Shay asked me to be his plus one, claimed I needed closure.” 

“And how’s that working out for you?”

“Well. I had a mental breakdown in the car, so I’d say things are going swell.” You replied sassily.

You made small talk with Alex, Cole and some of their college teammates joining you. You laughed about the good old college days, when you and Ryder were dating, after all, you did follow him to Madison. You joked about the TikToks that were created in your dorms and the adventures around campus. The four years you spent at the University of Wisconsin were easily the best four years of your life and you were glad to spend it with your good friends, even though some of them left for their NHL teams before the four years were up.

But talking about your college years with the UW-Madison men’s hockey team brought some sadness. You remembered all of the wonderful memories with Ryder. How many times you fell asleep in his room that he shared with Shay, the number of games you attended at the Kohl Center with “R. Donovan” proudly displayed across your shoulders, the picnic lunches you would have on the quad.

Now, the love of your life was probably fixing up his hair, which you knew he was always particular about, one last time before entering the wedding venue. Those would be his last moments as a free man.

This is Surely not what you thought it would be I Lose myself in a daydream Where i stand and say

“Don’t say yes  run away now I’ll meet you when you're out Of the church at the back door Don’t wait Or say a single vow You need to hear me out And they said ‘speak now’”

When you are all seated, you start to lose yourself in your thoughts. 

What would it have been like at your wedding?

You would’ve gotten married in a church, for starters, and there would be far fewer flowers. Your bridesmaids would have been Ryder’s sisters, your college roommate, and a high school friend or two. The color scheme would have been coral and navy, two colors that complimented Ryder’s olive skin. Your first dance song would’ve been something by Dan + Shay. You would’ve had red velvet cake at your reception.

You would’ve been marrying Ryder.

Alex notices that you’re in your head and puts his hand on your leg, giving a quick squeeze to your thigh for reassurance. 

In a perfect world, you would object when the preacher called for objections. You and Ryder would run away together, go to Vegas, and live happily ever after. 

But it wasn’t a perfect world.

Fond Gestures are exchanged And the organ starts to play a song That sounds like a death march And I Am hiding in the curtains It seems that I was uninvited  By a lovely bride-to-be

She Floats down the aisle  Like a pageant queen But I Know You wish it was me You wish it was me, don't you?

The piano starts to play a nice andante movement as the ushers escort Bill and the bride’s mother down the aisle, and the preacher follows. Next, Ryder walks with his mom, giving her a kiss on the cheek before going to stand next to the preacher. 

Cole, who is seated on your right side, gives you a sad smile, knowing how hard this was going to be for you. 

Ryder stands in a black suit, one you had seen countless times on game day, only this time, he wasn’t wearing his usual beanie and a boutonniere was pinned to his chest. 

You lock eyes with your former love as the wedding march starts to play. The doors open and Ryder’s bride and her father stand ready to walk down the aisle. She looked gorgeous. You looked back at Ryder, who had an empty stare. 

He wished it was you walking towards him, and you knew it.

I hear the preacher say “Speak now or forever hold your peace” There’s a silence There’s my last chance I stand up with shaky hands All eyes on me

Horrified looks from everyone in the room But I'm only looking at you

“Dearly beloved,” The preacher starts. “We are gathered here to join Ryder Donovan and Alyssa Johnson in Holy Matrimony. If anyone has just cause as to why these two should not be wed, speak now or forever hold your peace.”

Your heart races in your chest. Alex and Cole both look at you, making sure you don’t speak, Shay doing the same from next to Ryder. 

You stay quiet. If Ryder was truly happy, then you were happy for him. Eventually, you would find someone to be your happily ever after.

You zone out for the rest of the ceremony. Until the vows.

Alyssa had already said her vows, saying “I do” through her tears.

“Do you, Ryder Donovan, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse,” Ryder glanced in your direction and then back to the preacher and then to Alyssa. “For richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, until death do you part?”

Ryder took a deep breath before speaking. 

I am not the kind of girl Who should be rudely barging in On a white veil occasion But you Are not the kind of boy Who should be marrying the wrong girl

“I don’t.”

Gasps come from everyone in the room. Ryder looks in your direction before turning to Alyssa.

“I’m sorry.” He whispered. “I thought I loved you more than I really did. You deserve the world.”

Ryder pressed a kiss to Alyssa’s cheek before walking back down the aisle. 

Shay runs after him, pulling you with him as he runs past you.

“I told you everything would be fine.” Shay smirked.

You and Shay found Ryder back in the groom’s dressing room. He sat with his head in his hands, sobs rocking his body.

“Hey.” Shay says as he approaches his younger brother.

“I just couldn’t do it, Shay,” Ryder cried. “I just couldn’t.”

“It’s okay.” Shay said as he rubbed Ryder’s back.

“I wish I hadn’t been so goddamn stupid when I left for Vegas. I should never have dumped Y/N. Never.”

“She’s here,” Shay said. “You know.”

Ryder looked up, his cheeks soaked with tears and eyes puffy. 

“Can you give us a minute?” Ryder asked.

“Sure.” Shay said, patting you on the back as he left the room.

“Hey.” You said softly.

“I said ‘I don’t’ because of you.” Ryder said, staring into your eyes. “I saw you with Alex and Cole and then as Alyssa walked down the aisle, I wished it was you.”

“I kept imagining what our wedding would have looked like.” You explained. “How you would cry when you saw me and how we would have red velvet cake with lots of cream cheese frosting because it’s our favorite.”

“I’m so stupid for letting you go.” Ryder sighed, taking your hands in his.

“If you love something, set it free.” You smiled. “And if it’s meant to be, it’ll come back.”

Ryder looked into your eyes before leaning in and kissing you on the lips. The kiss was tender yet passionate. 

And you’ll say “Let’s run away now I’ll meet you when I’m out Of my tux  At the back door Baby I didn’t say my vows So glad you were around  when they said ‘speak now.’”

Two years later, you were at another wedding involving Ryder Donovan. But this time, you were the bride and he was the groom. 

Ryder cried as you walked down the aisle and you had tears in your eyes yourself.

“Do you, Ryder Donovan, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse,” Ryder smiled wide as the preacher spoke. “For richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, until death do you part?”

“I do.” He smiled at you, squeezing your hands.

“By the power vested in me by the state of Minnesota, I now pronounce you husband and wife.” The preacher smiled. “You may kiss the bride.”

Ryder pulled you in for a kiss and whispered in your ear. 

“I’m so glad you were around when they said ‘speak now.’”

[tallisstark]

the courts offer bread and salt to TALLIS STARK of HOUSE STARK. many say that the TWENTY FOUR year old PRINCESS of THE NORTHERN KINGDOM is known to be DARING and LIGHTHEARTED, though ill tongues whisper that she is RECKLESS and UNFORGIVING. when her name is uttered , one is reminded of a thrown knife meeting its target, the smell of well-worn riding leathers, dark hair in elaborate braids. may she blessed and protected in this war of crowns. (fc: Anya Taylor Joy)

Hi all!! I’m Shay. I was in this RP briefly before, but I don’t expect anybody to remember me at all. I am excited to see this back in the tags and can’t wait to get started writing with you all. Under the cut is some more information about Tallis, though I have kept things fairly vague so as not to contradict anything her family may have already written, so this may be altered later. If you’d like to plot, please do drop me a message or like this and I’ll come to you! 

Updated 09/02/2020

Tallis is the daughter of King Brandon Stark and Queen Betha, nee Mooton, one of four children. As well as her siblings, she has three cousins on her mother’s side - the Mooton sisters. She loves her family dearly, and is proud of her lineage. 

From the moment she had been born, Tallis Stark was the apple of her father's eye. A lesser man than King Brandon Stark might have been disappointed that the child was a girl, but not he. She had been born early, smaller than most, with skin thin as paper and eyes too big for her head. She came into the world in the dead of a Winter, and few but King Brandon expected her to survive, until they heard her cry. Nothing with a shriek that loud could ever be weak. 

She was a noisy baby, her wails heard all through Winterfell. Even when she was content, she yelled and gurgled and made herself known. They should have realised that was an omen of things to come, for Tallis Stark had a will as unyielding as valyrian steel, and would never learn to be silent. 

Shrieking babe became wild toddler, wild toddler became feral child. She grew slowly, always dwarfed by others her age, with bones as fragile as a fledgling bird, but Tallis Stark was no bird. She was every inch a direwolf, a true child of the North. Her father delighted in her, and the pair of them were close, rarely away from each other's sides. He celebrated in her passion, his fire of the frost, he called it, and turned a blind eye to her behaviour, amused by antics that only grew bolder over time. 

Queen Betha was not so amused. She despaired over her daughter at times, wringing hands in frustration, knowing not how to turn her wild, willful child into a respectable, Northern lady. She tried to arrange many a plot to foster Tallis, with her family in Maidenpool, to The Vale, the south, but King Brandon would not allow it. He would have missed her too greatly, and in any case, it was only he who had any degree of control over her. He rarely put his foot down, but when he did, she listened. 

To anybody who worked in Winterfell, Tallis Stark was the bane of their existence. She terrorised the servants, the gardeners, the cooks, the squires. Nobody was safe from her unique brand of mischief, and though some were as fond of her as her father was, others would curse her name to delighted laughs from the royal brat.

She was always quick-witted, sharp and bright, but she didn't shine academically. Perhaps she could of, if she had put her mind to it, and she could recite the houses, their sigils and banners from memory. She liked history, but some of the more basic skills were lost to her. She struggled to read, and her penmanship is dreadful, her maths even worse. Eventually, she gave up trying. She grew good at listening and remembering, learning the stories of legend by ear and mimicking them perfectly. She could sew when she concentrated, but cared little for it, and never tried. 

Where she did excel was in all things physical. She was small, but with that she was lithe and nimble, and she moved with a fluid grace that one would not expect from a girl with so much chaos in her soul. She could dance better than anyone, and rode a horse like she was half-centaur. She can hunt, she can climb, and she is fast, and of that she is most proud.

It was perhaps her boisterous nature that led her to seek out the company of the various boys if Winterfell, be they wards or the sons of visiting lords who made regular appearances. There was Eliar Umber, with whom she rode and played and made wishful plans to set off into Westeros in the search of glorious adventure. There was Aeron Greyjoy, who had recognised her warrior's spirit and placed a sword in her hand and an idea in her heart. And there was Rodrik Forrester. Since he had arrived at Winterfell as a ward, Tallis took great delight in his company. 

Most believed Tallis would calm as she grew, and one day make a wonderful wife and mother. They are still waiting for this day to come. As she has got older, Tallis has only become more hedonistic. She does as she pleases with little regard for what it may mean for other people. She’s a drinker, and a gambler, and intensely passionate in her relationships with others. She has trained hard at weaponry, can throw a knife with great accuracy at 100 paces and has grown skilled with a sword. She fights with two now, light, but sharp blades clutched in either hand. Though she has never tasted battle, she is good, more than capable of holding her own. She knows that, though strong for her size, she cannot win a fight on strength and force alone, and so relies on her agility and speed to win, a tactic that serves her well. 

The fire in her can be a beautiful thing, warm and bright and leaving her humming with an energy that comes from deep within her, a passion and a zest for life that can't be touched. She makes a warm and loving friend, but behind that is a danger. She can scorch hot enough to burn, and is prone to jealousy and quick to anger. The temper of Tallis Stark is legendary, and once you have fallen out of your favour, she will hold a grudge that she may never relinquish, her stubborn nature leaving her unforgiving, even long after she has forgotten why she was ever angry. 

She is an animal lover, particularly dogs, birds and horses. She has a collection of birds of prey she is particularly proud of, and is usually in the company of a large, black and white dog. Originally named Kermit, as he grew gigantically big, she lovingly nicknamed him Crackbones after one of her favourite stories of old. 

Tallis is adventurous by nature. She can be incredibly charming and affable when it suits her, and would never intentionally harm somebody without cause, however, she is selfish, even more so as a result of her hedonistic ways, and can often cause unintended hurt to others as a result.

Tallis is proud to be a Stark. For that reason, she doesn’t think she will ever intentionally seek a marriage. She wants to retain her name and her status, and if that means remaining unmarried, then so be it. There was one she would have given it all up for, but it wasn't to be and over time she lost hope. 

At the core of it, she's a girl Who doesn't truly know what she wants. To travel, certainly, and see the world beyond The North, but to stay a woman of Winterfell. She longs to wander, but knows she will always return home, even as she resents being stuck behind stone walls. She isn't one for castle life, would be an awful wife and a worse mother. She loved once, and he was the only man she would ever consider marrying, but he was given to another and her heart was broken. 

Now, she's struggling to find her place, hurting from the loss of her dear father, but knows it's at her brother's side. She harbours dreams of serving as a Northern ambassador, or even as a Kingsguard, anything to give her purpose and open up a part of a world she can only imagine.

[hellosimplylizzie]

Karaoke night at Molly’s. ~Chicago Fire ♡

{OC x Leslie [deceased] & Kelly}

Trigger warning ~ losing a loved one

“Just admit it! You’re not over her...” Kelly’s voice replaying in my head from a fight we had at work the other night, as I stood in front of everyone at Molly’s, 5 drinks in and ready for my karaoke performance. Otis stood behind the bar, laptop and projector ready in hand. The music started and the words appeared on screen. It was now or never. I had to do this and prove to him that I am in this with him, I just needed him to be a little more understanding... The first word in the song became highlighted on the screen. That was my cue.

Took you like a shot / Thought that I could chase you with a cold evening

Let a couple years water down how I’m feeling / About you

And every time we talk  / Every single word builds up to this moment

And I gotta convince myself I don’t want it / Even though I do (Even though I do)

I took a deep breath and saw Kelly in the audience, standing by the other guys on squad, giving me his undivided attention, a beer in his hand as I watched his smile from laughing with the guys, fade into subtle astonishment. I wanted it to feel as if I was singing to and about him. If I could successfully get my feelings across, then maybe, just maybe he could understand why I’m doing this. 

We never got it right / Playing and replaying old conversations

Overthinking every word and I hate it / ‘Cause it’s not me (’Cause it’s not me)

And what’s the point in hiding it? / Everybody knows we got unfinished business

And I’ll regret it if I don’t say / This isn’t what it could be (Isn’t what it could be)

Kelly was smiling softly before he took a swig of his drink. The ,“Back to You” by Selena Gomez, lyrics on the screen vanished and a slideshow of photos presenting Leslie appeared. Kelly nearly choked on his beer once he saw them. I couldn’t think of a better way of showing him what I have been feeling since Leslie’s passing other than by showing him photos of us, together, before it was tragically ripped out from under us both. Kelly stood still, his demeanor quickly becoming solemn.

I wanna hold you when I’m not supposed to / When I’m lying close to someone else

You’re stuck in my head and I can’t get you out of it / If I could do it all again

I know I’d go back to you / I know I’d go back to you

What was there wasn’t sure / But I’d go back to you

I know I’d go back to you...

I turned around, back facing the audience, admiring the pictures full of memories I had with Leslie. Tears filling my eyes as I mentally prepared myself for the next song I had planned to sing, hoping Kelly would stay to hear it. If he attempts to leave, hopefully Hermann would do his part in getting him to stick around. I took a deep breath as the song faded out and “Like To Be You” by Shawn Mendes started playing. The collage on the screen switched over to photos of Kelly and I.

But don’t cry, or do whatever makes you feel / Comfortable

I’m tired, too / There’s nothin’ left to say, let’s call a truce

‘Cause I don’t really wanna go to bed like this / I’m so sorry

We’re still stuck in the middle / I’m so sorry

‘Cause in the moment I-

I sang my heart out, tears sliding down my cheeks as I looked to Kelly in the audience, who stuck around, willingly, to hear me out.

I don’t know what it’s like to be you / I don’t know what it’s like but I’m dying to

If I could put myself in your shoes / Then I know what it’s like to be you

Can I kiss you or not? / ‘Cause I’m not really sure right now of what you want

Are you still mad at me? I’m hopin’ not / ‘Cause maybe we could go to the movies

I know that always cheers us up, hey / Tell me what’s inside of your head

No matter what you say I won’t love you less / And I’d be lying if I said that I do

I continued to sing, turning back around to face the screen once more, taking in the pictures of me and Kelly that I cherished with all my heart, building myself up for the next verse. Memories flooding back of how close we became after Leslie’s death and how we both had each other’s backs after it. Even became a couple, despite the fact I had history with his best friend.

I get worried / I might lose you a little

Every time we / Every time we argue and get caught up in the 

moment

I don’t know what it’s like to be you

I don’t know what it’s like to be you but I’m dying to...

After the music cut off, I dropped my hands to my sides, feeling emotionally drained but trying best to pull myself together. Everyone in Molly’s gave a comforting and supportive round of applause before the crowd dispersed, generously giving Kelly and I a moment to talk and attempt to work things out.

“What are you thinking?” I asked him, after skipping off the tiny platform they set up for the karaoke performers, approaching him anxiously.

“First off, I think you have an amazing voice.” Kelly smirked, making me blush, before grabbing my hand and guided me over to the edge of the bar. He sat down on a stool, wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me in close, letting me rest up against his leg. “Second, I know these past few months have been hard, for the both of us. And we’re coping differently... I understand you loved Shay and obviously still do, and I shouldn’t hold that against you. If it weren’t for what happened, there’s no doubt in my mind that you two would still be together. But shit happens and life keeps going and I know Leslie would want us to to keep living our lives and find happiness in this tragic world. And I for one, can say I’ve never been happier with anyone other than you, and I’m willing to work on us, and be there for you, if this is 100 percent what you want...”

Shedding a few happy-tears, I wrapped my arms around his neck. “Of course, Kelly... 100 percent. I love you.” I hugged him, taking in his very much needed and missed, warm embrace.

“Forever.” He smiled, into my neck.

I let go, and gently cupped his cheeks as I said, “& don’t forget Always”, the term me, Leslie and Kelly held on to so dearly in our hearts, before he leaned in and I kissed him back passionately.

[starlight-matrix]

“Enchanted” Ch. 1 & Only

So. This is my Cinderella Klance AU. I have no idea if it will ever be updated, so please don’t get your hopes up. It’s from Lance’s POV, Lance is Cinderella, a couple other characters are a couple other roles, blahblahblah, enjoy.

“Fate is an interesting thing,” Lance’s father used to say. “We can think we have our lives under control, that everything that happens in life is of our own making. But there will always be moments when we have to realize that we truly don’t have control over anything. Life does what it wants with us, and we simply have to go with the flow. Those who deny fate will only suffer.”

As a child, Lance had swallowed those words like they were the sweetest of candies, treasuring his father’s philosophy as if it were a deity to be prayed to. “There is a lesson to learn from everything that happens in life.” His father would say. His mother would smile, and Lance came to love the phrase because it put meaning to everything in life- a trip and fall would teach him not to run on the rug, a terrible stomachache would teach him not to eat too much before bed.

Even the smallest of moments, a butterfly landing on his outstretched finger or a stranger smiling back to him, was given meaning, and Lance reveled in every little detail of life.

Lance’s father Jaime was his idol, the person he looked up to more than anyone. His father was a kind man, one who loved his family and his trade equally, teaching commoners philosophy and music and literature and everything else that was generally considered a “nobleman’s craft.” Lance was taught to play the piano and sing and read and write and map stars and grow crops and care for animals. He enjoyed everything his father taught him, still enjoys it all, even years later.

Lance’s mother Rosa was just as kind, if not as outspoken. She was quiet, and took comfort in silence, preferring the sounds of wind-rustled leaves and chirping crickets to the chaos of any meaningless conversation. Lance was a different person when he was with her. When he was with his father, he was loud, joking and laughing and singing as terribly as he could just to make his father laugh with him. But when he was with his mother, he was calm, taking in distant noise and helping her knit or sew, nestled into her side like two puzzle pieces fitting together.

And despite the difference in his personality depending on who he was with, Lance never felt like he was trying to be someone else. There were just two parts of him: the loudmouth prankster who loved nothing more than to see someone full-out belly laugh, and the minimalist boy who fell in love with quilting and treasured every small, miniscule happenstance.

Growing up, these were the traits that defined Lance- his love for making people happy, his kind and social nature, his need for affection. He loved his parents and they loved him. He had good friends in the farm animals and the other household staff, and his family was never in lack. So there was no room in his heart for anger or sadness or any other negative emotion.

Sometimes Lance wonders if the only reason those emotions exist now is that some of that happiness and love he’d once treasured had gradually seeped out and left an emptiness behind.

Lance’s first taste of sadness is when his father discovers swollen bumps on his skin, white and painful with the stress of whatever is inside. The doctor comes. Lance and his mother are all but thrown from the room the moment the doctor finishes his exam, and the doctor refuses to let them back in. “He has the plague.” The doctor says. “You cannot go in, for you may fall ill as well.”

Jamie McClain dies the next morning, alone and scared and without any proper farewell from his beloved wife and son. Men come to wrap up the body, and they bury him in the pasture behind the house, blue forget-me-nots covering his grave. Lance and his mother never again enter the room where he had died- there’s too much risk of his illness being on the items in the room.

For months afterward, Lance and his mother are never apart. All of his father’s students come to pay their respects, and Lance holds his mother’s hand in his as they listen to wild stories about his father’s wonderful teaching and funny jokes. Lance knows every word is true, knows he has seen all of what these students have seen and more. But he listens to every story even though he’s heard them all before from his father, because his father is gone, and these students are telling Lance the stories his father can no longer tell himself.

Late at night, when the house staff is asleep and the house is silent aside from the croaking of frogs in the pond outside, Lance and Rosa weep together, curled in each other’s arms to share the grief of losing someone who meant so much to the both of them. Lance will bury his face in his mother’s chest and let the tears soak her nightgown, savoring the feeling of hands running through his hair and rubbing circles on his back. The pillows are always damp when he wakes up, but his mother is always there to help yank them off to be washed, the gentlest of smiles forming on her lips.

“You must always let your tears flow. They can always be washed away after.” She says, taking Lance’s hand in her own and kissing him on the nose and making him giggle like a child.

In the few years after his father’s death, Lance savors his mother’s company more than ever before. He insists she teach him every trick there is to learn about sewing and knitting. They spend hours a day in the sunroom, cuddled up together on the lounge listening to the far-off sounds of honking geese and whinnying horses, embroidering or mending ripped clothes or simply enjoying the warmth of the body pressed into theirs.

To say that Lance is surprised when a carriage suddenly comes flying in through the front gate is the understatement of the century. No one they know is wealthy enough to afford a carriage, so who on Earth could be coming to visit?

Lance is in awe of the man who steps down onto the dirt driveway. Long, snowy-white hair like something out of a fairy tale, a bright violet tunic with silver trim and laced heeled boots that Lance is terribly impressed by (he knew he’ll never be able to walk a foot in heels without falling, likely breaking the shoes and his teeth). Even without the fancy carriage and entourage of personal attendants, the man is still so extravagant Lance wonders if he’s perhaps come to the wrong estate.

“Is this the home of Jaime McClain?” The man asks, looking at the house as if he is both disappointed and mildly impressed at the same time.

Lance nods with a small but genuine smile. “Yes, this is. I’m his son.”

“Ah!” The man’s face lights up then, a wide grin gracing his features. “You are Lance, I assume! Your father has told me much about you! I am Lord Lotor Tremaine, a friend of his.”

“Oh! You’re the man who helped build papa’s school!” Lance is glad to recognize the man, if only in name. Lotor nods sharply and moves up the steps in front of the door.

“May I?” He asks, gesturing toward the door.

Lance hurries to open the door wider, moving out of the way so Lotor can enter. “Of course!”

As Lotor enters the house, Lance gently closes the door behind them, turning toward Shay, the housemaid. “Can you find mama, please? Tell her a friend of papa’s is here.” He asks. Shay nods with a smile that fades once she casts a long glance at Lotor, who is preoccupied with one of the scenery paintings on the wall. Shay disappears, and Lance turns back to Lotor. “We don’t have guests over very often, so I hope you’ll forgive us if our hospitality’s a bit shabby.”

Lotor smiles sympathetically, setting a hand on Lance’s shoulder. He ignores how hard the grip is. “I wouldn’t expect the two of you to be perfectly poised, not when you’ve been in grief,” Lotor says. “Your father was a good and kind man. I’m sure you must miss him dearly.”

Lance smiles back, a tinge of sadness seeping into his features. “Yes, sir, I do.”

Lotor moves to walk further down the front hall, and he makes a passing compliment on the chandelier - a carved crystal piece shaped to resemble three swans joined together by the tips of their wings. A memory floats in Lance’s mind of laying on the rug in the hall with his mother and father on either side, regaling them the story of “The Ugly Duckling” and changing up the ending, saying that when the poor little duckling finally found his family and discovered he was beautiful, the three of them were so happy they turned into the purest of crystals, stuck together forever in time.

The short daydream is broken by his name being called, and Lance turns to see his mother on the stairs, Shay close behind. She smiles at him and he smiles back, and then her gaze is on Lotor, and she hurries down the last few steps to approach him with a polite curtsey.

“Welcome, Lord Tremaine. It’s an honor to meet you in person. My husband treasured the school you helped him build all those years ago, I could never thank enough for that.” She says, folding her hands in front of her. Lance scoots back a few steps to watch their exchange from afar.

Lotor bows low to Rosa, a look in his eyes that Lance can’t place, and then Lotor is looking at him with an expression of partial concern. “Lady McClain, I would greatly appreciate if you and I could speak in private. I have some matters that pertain only to you and I.”

Lance tries not to let his confusion show on his face. His mother glances between him and Lotor as if she wants to go against the man’s wishes and insist her son sit in, but Lance gives her a look that says not to be rude, as much as he wants to hear what Lotor has to say.

“...of course. Please, this way.” She says, gesturing toward the study. Lance stays put in the hall until Shay pulls the study doors shut, turning back to him with a small smile.

“Lance, why don’t you help me prepare some tea for them? Some time in the garden might help keep your mind off whatever it is they’re discussing in there.” Shay says.

Lance nods with a small grin and follows Shay through the house, waving hello to Hunk as they enter the kitchen. He doesn’t stop to make idle conversation like usual, beelining for the back door and hopping down the steps into the greenhouse attached to the kitchen, breathing in the smell of all the spices and herbs growing in neat little rows. This place is Hunk’s pride and joy, passed down to him from his father, who had once been the McClain’s personal chef before retiring.

Lance runs a hand along the glass panes of the wall as he moves carefully between the rows, silently naming off all of the plants as he passes: sage, parsley, basil, oregano, dill, lemongrass, coriander, chives, mint. He plucks a few mint leaves off the plant and heads back into the kitchen, handing the leaves over to Shay who slips them into a small teabag, carefully sewing the top closed so none of the leaves will seep out. Lance takes a seat on a stool off to the side and watches.

Ten minutes pass, and then the kettle is steaming, and Lance hops up off his stool to grab his mother’s favorite tea set off the shelf and hand it over to Shay, who smiles at the silent gesture. He watches her place the tea bags carefully into the pot, pouring the steaming water in after, slow so as not to break the tea bags. He takes the teacups and places them neatly on their saucers on a tray, and Shay places the finished teapot next to them, Hunk adding a plate of cookies and the tiny pitcher of milk. Lance fetches the bowl of sugar cubes, and the ensemble is complete.

“Lance,” Shay says, holding out the tray. “Would you like to take it in?”

Lance hesitates, wanting to say yes, but shakes his head. “No, but thanks. I don’t want Lord Tremaine to think I’m spying on their conversation.”

Shay nods in understanding and leaves the kitchen, maneuvering through the house quickly and with ease despite the weight of the tray in her hands. Lance follows her, but stops at the edge of the hall, out of sight as Shay uses her foot to knock on the study door. A voice Lance can’t understand sounds from inside, and Shay deftly opens the door with her elbow, disappearing inside the room. Lance waits patiently at the end of the hall, shooting Shay an expectant look when she emerges from the study once again.

The worried look on her face mirrors on Lance’s own when he sees Shay, and the two of them speed-walk back to the kitchen, Hunk looking up from where he's planning dinner and raising an eyebrow when they throw the door shut behind them.

“What’s wrong?” Lance asks, his fingers wringing together in silent panic. His mother is in a room with a stranger - a male stranger at that - and Shay’s expression only adds to his paranoia.

“I’m not quite sure, but your mother looked stressed when I went in. Lord Tremaine had his arms crossed as if he were waiting for something, though it didn’t seem as if he was pressuring her at all. I think he was asking your mother to make a decision. She looked troubled.” Shay explains, gaze locked with Lance’s. “Perhaps she doesn’t want to make a decision until she’s talked it over with you?”

Lance says nothing, not knowing what he could say. He knows his mother has never had to make hard decisions on her own- she’d always had his father there to make them for her, or to at least give good advice and comforting words and to accept whatever decision she did make. But now she doesn’t have him to support her, and while Lance knows he’ll support any decision his mother can make about anything, he simply doesn’t have the expertise of an adult.

He can’t help her make a decision about anything that is truly important, and it makes him feel useless.

Lance waits on the stairs for the meeting to be over, picking at a hangnail that eventually bleeds when he pulls a little too hard. He sticks the hurting finger into his mouth and frowns at the taste of iron on his tongue, but then the study doors open again and the pain is shoved aside.

He stands, hiding the wound behind his back, but doesn’t move from his spot as his mother and Lotor exit the study, arms linked as Rosa leads him to the front door. They speak in hushed tones and exchange polite farewells, and Lance’s stomach churns as Lotor leans forward, pressing a kiss to his mother’s temple. There is no love in the kiss, Lance can see it from how Lotor pulls away in a rush and how his mother’s mouth presses into a thin line. Lotor bows again and leaves, Lance’s mother watching from the doorway until Lotor’s carriage is out of sight.

Lance rushes to her side when she turns back to him, and she takes him into her arms and holds him tight, his tall frame dwarfing hers. “Ah, Lance, I’m sorry. You must have been worried.”

“Only a little.” He lies as they pull apart, hands still linked. “Are you alright?”

“Yes, baby, I’m alright. Just tired is all. Come, let’s go sit in the sunroom. I have something to tell you.”

The two of them move through the house in synch, settling onto the lounge in their favorite room, pressed into each other’s sides. Lance slouches low enough in his seat to lean his head on his mother’s shoulder, running his hands over the rings her finger. They’re both beautiful silver bands stacked over each other, the top one with a tiny garnet set into the metal- his mother’s birthstone.

The bottom ring has an emerald instead, and Lance remembers his mother saying she wore it underneath her own because his father’s fingers were so much thicker than her own.

“Lord Tremaine has asked me to marry him.”

His mother blurts out the words without warning, forever ruining Lance’s memory of twirling his father’s wedding ring around her finger.

“And I’ve said yes.”

Lance’s gaze snaps to meet his mother’s, and she looks away, grip tightening on Lance’s hand.

“I’m not marrying him for love, you must know that, but it isn’t a bad thing. Lord Tremaine knows how to manage accounts, how to manage finances. I don’t have a job like your father did, I don’t know how to manage the estate well enough to keep us out of debt in years to come.” She explains.

Her face contorts into an emotion Lance knows all too well: hopelessness. “If I marry him, Lord Tremaine can manage the estate and finances and everything I don’t know how to do. He’s promised to help us keep the house, to make sure we keep the home your father loved. I just...I couldn’t say no, Lance. I can’t bear the thought of losing this place. So I agreed to marry him.”

Lance says nothing for a long moment, simply allowing the words to sink in fully. He understands why his mother agreed to marry Lord Tremaine. He’s someone Lance’s father trusted, someone he had looked up to and respected. He’s also a wealthy man, and obviously an educated man, if he was offering to handle everything about their lives that was even mildly complicated.

She had agreed to marry Lord Tremaine for her husband. To keep the place where she had once spent her life in his arms, happy and healthy and loved.

“I’ll support you. Both of you.” Lance says, voice quiet but sure. “Forever and ever, I promise.”

His mother looks close to tears, and Lance throws his arms around her, letting her sob into his chest. “Do you think your father would be upset if he knew I’m marrying again?”

“Of course not! He’d tell you this is a good idea, that it’s clever to marry like this. Besides, papa trusted Lord Tremaine. He would applaud you for making such a hard decision all on your own.”

Lance feels his mother nod against his chest, and they stay like that for a long while, just holding each other in comfortable silence while shadows trail along the walls with the setting of the sun.

The sun is low enough in the sky to no longer be seen above the treeline when Shay finally comes to fetch them for dinner. They eat with the house staff that night- Shay, Hunk, the gardener and the stablehand. Lance sticks close to his mother’s side as she informs everyone about Lord Tremaine’s proposal. There won’t be a wedding, she says, as their union isn’t for love and shouldn’t be made a bigger deal than it already is. But Lord Tremaine will be moving into the estate afterward, along with his niece and nephew, whom he cares for.

Lance is a bit put-off by the idea of suddenly having stepsiblings, but Hunk and Shay assure him that it can’t be that much different to the relationship he has with the both of them. “Surely they’ll grow on you with time.” They say, both having siblings of their own.

Lance goes to bed that evening with a whirlpool of thoughts swirling about in his head. What will it be like living with strangers? What will his new step-siblings be like? What will Lord Tremaine be like, behind closed doors and apart from the need for courtesy? What if he doesn’t like them all?

What if he likes them too much, and they all disappear, just as his father did?

Eventually, sleep comes, and the thoughts fade into dreams of soaring swans and the lapping of the ocean on a white shore, his father’s distant laughter and the smell of his mother’s perfume. When he wakes the next morning, he can’t help but wish to be back in the dream, back in the place where his father is still alive and smiling and telling wild stories that Lance always believed.

A month later, Lord Lotor Tremaine and Lady Rosa McClain are joined in union, and hardly a week after that, Lord Tremaine’s carriage returns to the estate, overflowing with trunks and bulging suitcases that look like they really shouldn’t be able to stay on top of the carriage without falling off. The carriage door flies open and then a young girl is hopping out, perfectly styled blonde locks floating down over her shoulders and chest. A young man almost identical to her in every way aside from obvious gender steps out alongside her, and Lance decides in but a second that he definitely, definitely wants to be friends with these two.

The girl approaches Lance before he can say anything, smiling sweetly and dragging her brother with her by the hand, curtseying to Lance as her brother bows at her side. Lance bows to the both of them and returns her smile. “Welcome! I’m Lance, it’s nice to meet you both.”

“I’m Nyma, and this is my brother Rolo. It’s nice to meet you too, Lance. Your home is beautiful! I could see the roof from all the way down the road, and the view you have here is gorgeous!” The girl says, introducing herself with a gesture toward her brother as his name is mentioned. Lance watches her spin slowly around as she gazes up at the house and around the front courtyard. Rolo holds a hand out and Lance shakes it, the two of them sharing curt smiles.

“Would you like to see inside? You’re going to be living here from now on, so I could give you both a tour.” Lance offers, enjoying the way Nyma’s eyes light up at the suggestion.

“Oh, would I!” She says, eyes sparkling.

Lance leads them into the house, sparing a glance back at his mother, who is approaching Lotor and speaking to him with a polite smile on her face, one Lance can tell isn’t genuine even from so far away. But then Nyma is saying something about the chandelier in the hall and Lance drags his attention from the two adults and back to his two new step-siblings.

He leads them both throughout the house with a genuine smile, enjoying their cheerful company and active compliments. Nyma takes at least ten seconds to fully admire everything they pass on their way- the flowering branches painted onto the walls, the patterns etched into the wooden floorboards, the carved doors and bay windows and chandeliers. Rolo says little, but takes a keen interest in anything of woodwork, Nyma explaining that it had been their family business long ago.

Lance learns that Nyma and Rolo’s parents also died of bubonic plague, just like his own father. He learns that Lotor was their mother’s brother, and that he took them in without hesitation, raising and teaching them on his own without the help of servants despite being a wealthy lord who surely had better things to do than to deal with two grieving children. Lance tells them about his father, about the stories he would tell and the things he would teach, and how much good he did for the poorer people in the world.

“Your father sounds like a wonderful man,” Nyma says, laying a hand on Lance’s arm.

“He was,” Lance replies. “What about your parents? Do you remember them much?”

“Not really. We were too young when they died to remember more than tiny details. Our father, he was a woodworker, and when I think of our family home I always smell woodchips, no matter where I am. Our mother always smelled like barley tea, and she had the softest hair. We would tangle our hands in it when she carried us and she would just laugh, even though it surely hurt, having us babies pulling on her curls. I can remember our father’s beard, all thick and scratchy.”

Nyma’s expression turns into something fond and distant, and Rolo slips his hand into hers, his sister giving him a small smile as she entwines the fingers of her other hand with Lance’s own.

“We have only just met, Lance McClain, but I can tell we’re going to be very close.” She says, Rolo nodding in agreement. “I’ve always wondered what it would be like to have two brothers.”

Lance and Rolo both laugh at Nyma’s wistful tone, and the three of them continue on their tour of the McClain estate until the sun has set and Shay comes to fetch them for dinner. Nyma and Rolo, as a point of contrast to their uncle, don’t really treat Shay as a servant, but rather as a friend of the family, the way Lance and his mother always have. Nyma and Shay get along like a house on fire and Lance can already tell they’re going to make wonderful friends.

Upon entering the dining room, they find Lotor and Rosa sitting on opposite ends of the table, a picture of stereotypical wealth that has Lance chuckling to himself despite the distant feeling of sadness in the fact that his mother’s husband doesn’t want to be close to her.

Lance takes the seat closest to his mother’s side, and Nyma takes the seat across from him, Rolo at her side. Lotor doesn’t mention how neither of them sit near him, though Lance can see the way he glances to both Nyma and Rolo, a calculating look in his eye. “Well, I’m glad the three of you have had time to mingle and become acquainted. Nyma, Rolo, this is Lady Rosa, your new stepmother. I trust the both of you will treat her as she deserves.”

“Of course we will!” Nyma says, almost sounding offended at her uncle’s implications. “Lady Rosa, I’m honored to live in your beautiful home. And Lance has been so kind to us already, I’m sure you and I will get along just as well.”

Lance’s mother matches Nyma’s smile with one of her own, a small, genuine smile that eases Lance’s nerves and makes his heart swell. “I’m sure we will, darling. I’m glad you feel that way.”

The meal passes with happy conversation, mostly led by Nyma, who chatters on about the decor of the house and the impressive upkeep of the gardens and how nice Shay is. Lance adds in with questions about Nyma’s hair routine and they go on a long tangent about skin care, sharing tips and making Rosa laugh at their antics. Surprisingly, Rolo opens up more a while into the dinner, conversing with Rosa about books and the hand-carved banisters on the stairs. Lotor says little, simply watching the exchanges with a blank expression Lance can’t read.

After dinner finally comes to an end, Lance is exhausted with the energy of meeting new people, and he bids his new siblings good night as Shay leads them to their rooms, chatting with Nyma as they walk down the hall. He hugs his mother right outside her bedroom door, and she whispers in his ear how proud she is that he did so well with the Tremaines. “You were kind,” She says, “and you treated them as you treat me. I’m glad you all get along.”

Lance and his mother share a smile, and she kisses him on the forehead, then on each cheek, before turning back to her husband and disappearing into their room.

For the first time in years, Lance sleeps alone in his own bedroom, cold and just a little bit lonely.

[wlwvoltron]

almost sacred

for @vld-wlw-month!!

day one: flowers

Flowers are rare, almost sacred, on the Balmera.

They grow only occasionally, in little bursts, usually in bright hues of red and pink. They clash with the colors of the planet, but Shay thinks they’re lovely. So does everyone else.

If you are loved very dearly by someone and they give you a flower, it is considered the most permanent and meaningful declaration of love. That’s what Shay’s grandmother had said, sitting by the place Shay slept, all those years ago.

“If you ever meet someone and you know with all your heart that you love them, and will always love them, flowers will grow, just in time for you to give them one,” her grandmother had smiled wistfully, as though she were remembering something. “The Balmera knows if her citizens love. She will bring you flowers.”

Shay had nodded, only half believing her grandmother. She loved her, but Grandma was old and had a tendency to make things up as she saw fit. Still, it was nice to think that her love would grow flowers one day. Just like it was nice to think that a handsome knight would save her planet from the Galra, and a beautiful princess would heal it with her magic, and Shay would live to see the sky.

She had fallen asleep with dreams of a free planet filled with soft pink flowers, flowers that reached all the way up to the sky. They had been the best dreams in her life.

Now, Shay stands on the surface of her planet, out of the caverns, with her family by her side. The paladins of Voltron stand before her, along with the Princess of Altea - Allura.

Shay’s face lights up when she sees them. Hunk grins at her and waves, and Shay does the same.

“What brings you here?” she asks, stepping forward to meet the group.

“We just got off from a big mission, and Allura wanted to say hi to you,” Hunk says. After a small pause, he adds, “I wanted to say hi to you, too, for the record. Not just Allura. I know you two are like, dating and all, but we’re still friends.”

Shay laughs and envelops Hunk in a hug, lifting him off the ground a little. “I am so happy to see you again!” She sets him down and turns to Allura.

Allura’s face breaks out into the brightest smile Shay’s ever seen. It reminds her of the stars (just like everything else about Allura). Shay smiles right back.

Allura takes Shay’s hand, cradling it gently, and looks into her eyes. “I’ve missed you,” she says, almost whispering.

“I’ve missed you, too,” Shay replies in the same almost-whisper as Allura, as if the words are too gentle to say anything but quietly.

They stay like that, holding hands and looking at each other, for a good minute. Eventually, Shay’s grandmother interrupts by enveloping Allura in a hug.

“Ah, my favorite daughter-in-law!” she says.

Shay feels her face heat up and ducks her head a little. When she looks at Allura, her face is red as well.

“We’re not-” Allura starts, but is too embarrassed to finish.

Shay’s grandmother waves a hand. “Eh, it’s all the same to me.” She moves to greet the other paladins, leaving the both of them to blush and try not to look at each other.

“A-allura,” Shay says, finally, “do you and your paladins want to see my new home?”

Allura looks at Shay, a sheepish smile on her face. “Of course we would.”

“Uh, actually,” the small green paladin, Pidge, peeps from over Allura’s shoulder, “I was thinking of exploring the Balmera. Lance, Keith, and Shiro are coming with me.”

“Yeah, and I was going to go and talk to Rax,” Hunk adds. “So…”

“I suppose it’ll just be us, then.” Allura shrugs her shoulders.

“I suppose so.” Shay shrugs her shoulders, too. “Ah, let’s get going!” She takes Allura by the hand and leads her to her home.

Shay’s family’s home is a simple hut, made with crystals and wood like the other houses on the Balmera, but Allura thinks it’s beautiful. (Shay blushes at that. It’s like, in a way, Allura called her beautiful.) Inside, Allura sits down by the small table that Shay’s family eats on, and Shay offers to make her some of her grandmother’s soup.

“I’d love some,” Allura says, smiling. (Shay loves her smile. It’s so warm, and good, and wonderful, and-.)

Shay heats the food up for both of them, setting two bowls of soup down on the table and sitting across from Allura.

“So,” she says, “how have the battles been going?”

Allura’s face lights up at that. (Shay thinks it’s the cutest thing in the world.) “They’re going great! The paladins are truly improving, and Voltron is stronger than ever before. We just took out a big fixture in the Galra empire, one where the sentries are mainly manufactured, and I think if we can push on this victory, than the war will be over in no time,” she talks fast and excitedly, and Shay loves to listen. “Although, I do think having some downtime, as the paladins call it, is necessary. Which is one of the reasons we’re here. Mainly, though...I wanted to see you.”

Shay can’t help but blush at that. She takes Allura’s hand in her own, looking down at them together. “I’m so glad everything is going well,” she says. “And I...have been wanting to see you as well. I know we communicate through that device called a ‘phone’ that Pidge and Hunk made, but seeing you in person is something I do not think I can live without.”

Shay looks up at Allura to see a blush adorn her face. She leans forward over the table and kisses Shay, and it’s soft, gentle, filled with all the longing and love in the world. “I don’t think I could live without seeing you in person, either,” Allura says, pulling away a little.

Just as Shay is about to reply, a flash of color springs up in her peripheral vision. She makes a curious noise and turns to see, right behind Allura, a small little patch of the softest pink flowers in the universe.

Shay can’t help but do a double take. She had always figured those stories about the Balmera bringing flowers once you truly, deeply love someone to be myths, but the timing of the flowers and the love that’s positively overflowing in Shay’s heart cannot be a coincidence.

She stands up and walks to the flowers, earning a confused sound from Allura, who comes to stand next to her.

“Oh, they’re beautiful,” Allura breathes next to her, her voice filled with something akin to wonder. “They remind me of the Junniberries we had on Altea.”

Shay reaches out and gently picks one, bringing it up close to her to examine it. The flower is a lovely pink color that can only be described as “soft,” and while it looks delicate, when Shay pulls at a petal it does not budge. In a way, the flower reminds her of Allura.

“For you,” she says, handing it over to the princess next to her. Allura takes it and presses it to her heart.

“It’s beautiful,” she says.

“You are, too.”

Allura smiles at her, and it’s soft, and gentle, and Shay is so, so glad that she earned that smile. It’s almost sacred.

[shelbertforever]

I Need You {1}

*Hello again, so a little backstory on this. Just so everybody knows I don't know any of these people personally, I have never meet them or anything like that. I'm sure they are all lovely people, but for the story maybe not so much. For everyone's information there may possible be some Mature Content in this story. Whether it be language or anything like that, I just really wanted you to know before you start reading.*           Sharna felt like her breath was being taken away from, she was driving to Peta and Mak's home in New York. She had someone there waiting for her, someone she loved dearly with all of her heart. Yet when she was driving there her fear had finally set in, what if he found them. What if he hurt them? What if he came clear to New York to find them. Peta I need to call her now and let her know what's going on. A few minutes passed before Sharna got the guts to call her best friend, who was she kidding her sister. "Hey Babe, what's up aren't you suppose to be shopping?" Peta questioned her friend wondering why she was calling. "Peta, I.. I..." Sharna couldn't get out the words she was looking for before tears streamed down her cheeks. "Babe, are you okay? Breathe, tell me what's going." Sharna took a deep breath before she spoke "I saw... I saw him." "Saw who babe?" "You know who." Sharna whispered that's when peta realized exactly who she was talking about. "Babe you didn't." "Yes, I can't breathe." "Sharna where are you?" Sharna took another deep breathe in and out before speaking again "I'm ten minutes away from home." Peta sighed thanking the Lord that her best friend had at least gotten away from him. "Okay Shar, focus on driving. Get here safely okay. We are all okay here so don't worry." "Okay, Peta I love you." "I love you too sis." That's when the phone call ended, Sharna focused on driving safely wiping her tears as they fall. How did this happen? Fifteen minutes later Sharna pulled into the drive way of Peta and Maks home she wiped her face again just to make sure her makeup wasn't completely everywhere. She quickly opened her car door and shutting it again making sure it was locked before head in up the stairs to their house. She opened the door letting her self in, she quickly closed the door behind her leaning her body up against it. "Sharna!" Peta yelled as quietly as she could so she wouldn't wake up any of the kids. As soon as Sharna heard Peta say her name walking over to her where she now sat on the ground still leaning against the door. Peta ran to Sharna who had her head in her hands shaking, "Babe, breathe your safe here, Val, Maks come here please." Peta said wrapping her best friend in a hug rocking her back and forth trying to calm her down. "Sharna." Both Chmerkovskiy brothers said seeing their friend wrapped up in Peta arms shaking like a small puppy that got caught in the rain. "Help me get her up, please." Peta said letting go of her friend to stand up as Val gently picked Sharna up leading them into the living room sitting Sharna on their couch, Val rubbed her back gently whispering words into her ear to try to help her calm down. "Serenity, is she okay?" Sharna whispered, Peta quickly nodded "She is sleeping upstairs in her crib, she is safe. Just like you are Shar." Sharna shook her head no, Val sat next to her with his arm wrapped around her "But you are okay Shar, I promise with aren't going to let him to do anything to you or Serenity. He won't lay a hand on either of you ever." Sharna sat in silence with them on looking at her as she thought. "No I can't keep her here anymore, he already knows what my car looks like what if he is searching for us know. I can't stay here, I'm sorry." She cried into her hands, while pets just kept trying to convince her that nothing was going to happen. Sharna stood up from the couch quickly alarming everyone that was next to her "Where are you going?" Val asked looking at someone who is family to him, she is his sister and her daughter is his niece. He would never let him lay a hand on either of them. "Upstairs I just need to see my baby. And think for a moment, I'll be back down in a little bit."She said quickly walking up the stair case and down the hall into her room, he quietly opened the door noticing that Serenity was in fact asleep with her blanket pressed up against her tiny baby face. Sharna had to suppress a laugh before she quickly snapped a photo of her baby. She gently bent over the crib to pick up her eighteen month old baby girl, she gently cuddled her into her chest when she started to whimper. "Shh, sweetie mommy's here." She said whispering gently brushing her fingers through her daughters hair, she stared at her baby girl as she walked them around the room "We will be okay I promise you that..." Sharna said kissing her daughter's forehead "I love you, and I'll love you forever and ever." She said realizing that she had made her decision, so she gently laid Serenity back down into her crib and covering her up with a blanket before leaving the room and heading back downstairs where her friends waited for her.       As she walked downstairs she noticed that they weren't in the living room where she had left them, so she quickly walked towards the kitchen when she heard the three of them talking. "I just want her and  baby Serenity to be safe." Val said only to be interrupted by Peta "We all want that Val, we all want to protect them forever. I just hope that whatever decision she decides to go with that she just thinks it all the way through." "Yea me too." Maks said before Val spoke up again "Doesn't she have a restraining order against him?" He questioned Peta quickly answered "Yea she does but he's isn't the one to listen to rules especially a piece of thin paper." "I wish there was more that we could do." Val said before he heard footsteps coming into the kitchen, he looked over to see Sharna walking in. "I've made my decision." She said quietly looking at everyone giving them a slight smile to try and ease everyone worries even her own.         Two hours later making it almost eight thirty night, Sharna had just finished packing her suitcase. Serenity was downstairs playing with Shai, while she finished packing their suitcase. Sharna was scared to death but she had to leave, she had to keep her daughter safe. She called her mom to let her know what was going and that she and Serenity would be fine that she had this all planned. Her mother was worried just like everyone's mother would have been. They eventually told one another how much they loved each other and to be safe and Lucy to her daughter to call her when she landed to know that her and her granddaughter would be fine. Sharna went back to folding all of Serenity's clothes, packing them into a Suitcase with some of her toys.       "I don't know what I'm going to do without you." Sharna turned around to see Peta standing in the doorway with tears falling from her eyes. "Babe." Sharna said walking over to her best friend wrapping her arms tightly around her "I know it's stupid that I'm crying but your my sister and you've been with us here for over a year and the house is going to be so quite without you two." Sharna tears started to flow from her eyes "You can always come visit us and we will come visit you too as long as I know it's safe. We will FaceTime each other every night and talk on the phone all the time. I love you, your not losing us." Peta nodded listening to Sharna "I love you sister." "I love you too." Sharna said a she hugged her friend again "Help me finish packing?" Sharna asked looking at Peta who now had a smile small on her face "Only because I love you." Peta said sitting on the bed folding more clothes and other items.      It was now nine thirty and it was time for Sharna and Serenity to leave, Peta was a crying mess, Shai, Maks and Peta's four year old son was crying because aunty Shar was leaving. Maks and Val were putting the suitcases into Sharna's trunk. Sharna held a sleepy Serenity in her arms as she hugged Peta again, Shai was holding onto Sharna's legs for dear life. "Don't go aunty Shar please." He begged as tears rolled down his face, Sharna passed Serenity to Peta as she bent down to Shai's level "Shai, baby I'm not leaving forever." She said hugging his little body tight to hers with his arms locked around her neck. "I'll see you again?" He asked with his face buried into her neck "Yes baby, I'll come back to visit and you can come visit me and Serenity all the time okay?" Shai nodded his head still holding tight go Sharna as she stood with him still wrapped in her arms as they walked to the car.        "Baby I've got to go now or Serenity and I are going to miss our flight." Shari started crying again "I love you aunty Shar." "I love you too Shai, more than you'll ever know." Maks came around scooping up shai from Sharna's arms trying to comfort his son. Maks hugged Sharna tightly "Love you Sharna." "I love you to Maks." Sharna turned around to have Val pull her into an even tighter hug "I love you Sharna, your family to all of us. So please call us if you need anything." Sharna nodded into Val's chest "I love you too Val." She said as he kissed her forehead before grabbing baby Serenity from Peta's arms so she could hug her best friend. "Please call us when you get there and let us know that your both safe." "I will." Sharna said still hugging Peta "I love you so much, I can't wait to see you again."  Peta said making Sharna smile "I love you even more and can't wait to see you again too. I've got to go."       Peta nodded hugging her best friend one more time before she grabbed Serenity from Val's arms and buckled her into her carrier making sure she was okay before jumping into the drivers seat. She rolled down the window before she pulled completely out of the drive way "I love you all." They all said I love you too. And with that she pulled out of the driveway that she had pulled into every day and night for over the last year. She took one more look and waved goodbye to everyone.          Sharna now sat in JFK airport waiting for her flight to take off, she had Serenity sleeping on her chest. She was gently rubbing her daughters back in soothing small circles, so she wouldn't wake up while they wanted. Sharna was nervous but at the same time she felt safe, she was getting away from everything that had happened in the last five years. She would make sure that her daughter had a wonderful life with or without a father. She would be there every step of the way, for every milestone, she would be there cheering for her baby girl. Every mistake, every time she fell down she would be there to kiss her tears away and tell her that life gets worse before it gets better it does get worse. Life's a rollercoaster ride enjoy every bite of it even the painful twists and turns.      Sharna was taken away from her thoughts when she heard her phone go off, she quickly grabbed it from her purse looking to see a text message from Peta saying "Be safe, we love you. Call me when you get to a hotel. Shai wanted me to tell you goodnight and that he misses and loves you and Serenity.❤️"  Sharna smiled reading the text message, she really was goon to miss her second family. She quickly texted back "You all be safe too, Serenity and I Love all of you too. Don't worry I'll call you I promise. We love Shai too, tell him we will call him by FaceTime tomorrow and say hello. Goodnight love you, talk to you tomorrow.❤️"         Thirty minutes later Sharna had managed to use the restroom with Serenity still asleep she headed back to the place where she was sitting but stopped at a Starbucks to grab a quick coffee because she was going to need one. About five minutes after Sharna sat back down she heard them call for the flight she was on " The Flight to Toronto Canada is now boarding, Flight to Toronto Canada is now boarding." Sharna quickly grabbed her bag from the ground throwing it over her shoulder, standing with Serenity who was still asleep which honestly shocked Sharna even though it was going on eleven at night she was still slightly surprised. She smiled down kissing the top of her daughters head "That's us baby girl. Let's go start our new lives." She said walking over to where everyone was boarding handing the woman both her and her daughters tickets to board the plane. "Have a safe trip." She said as Sharna said thank you quickly walking onto the plane and finding their seats.         They were about to take off a few minutes later after everyone finished boarding the plane. The flight attendants gave everyone the instructions in case anything were to happen everyone would know what to do. Finally they took of, Sharna watched out the window as the plane lifted off of the ground and into the air, this it her chance to give her daughter the wonderful life she deserved. This is really a new beginning, Canada out of all places Sharna figured Paul would never look their. Sharna thought maybe she could start a dance class and teach their. "I love you, baby girl." She whispered kissing her forehead once again before finally relaxing closing her eyes getting lost in her thoughts. She had almost fallen asleep when her thoughts came across a name of a person she had fallen so deeply in love with over five years ago James, James Hinchcliffe.                * Yay !! The first chapter is done !! I'm really excited for everyone to read this story, I feel like I've been working on it forever. I hope you all enjoy reading it because I loved writing it. Please leave comments and tell me what you thought about it. Thank you all for your love and support! -Tori *

[ragingbookdragon]

I Don’t Think Now Is The Best Time!

A Haytham Kenway x Reader One-Shot

Word Count: 2,420 Warnings: Explicit Language, Angst, Death

Author’s Note: So this is kind of a prequel to the “Enemies To Lovers To Married” One-Shot I did a few days ago. Enjoy! -Thorne

“Why is it?!” she screeched as the wind and rain whipped around her, “that whenever you get involved in a mission you’re not supposed to be on, things go south?!”

Her eyes darted to his figure as he twisted, silver saber sinking into an enemy’s torso, and he countered, “There is no scientific backing to that claim, (Y/N)!”

She snorted and ducked down, narrowly avoiding the gun firing over her head as she thrust her sword out, taking her own opponent down. “Oh fuck off, Haytham! I can’t even count on twenty fingers and toes how many missions you’ve joined that’ve gone sideways!”

Before he could make a remark, a voice interrupted through the howling weather. “Less arguing! More fighting! If we don’t get back control of the ship, we’ll all be swimming with Davy Jones!” The two glanced towards the quarterdeck, watching as Shay parried a saber.

(Y/N) grinned and pulled her sword free, swinging at another assassin coming her way. “So what you’re telling me is that we’re in serious danger of dying, Shay?”

“Aye lass! Going down with the ship is a captain’s duty but I don’t aim to do it now!”

Whatever remark Haytham or she had was cut off as the assassin’s ship slammed against the port, sending her reeling, to the deck. The hit took all the breath from her lungs and she struggled to gain air as she fumbled for the saber that had fallen from her hands. Reaching out, she suddenly jerked back as an axe came down, biting into the deck, narrowly missing her hand. (Y/N) sucked in a breath and crawled backwards with her hands as she tried to avoid his swings. Her back met something hard and she took a look behind her, seeing the railing and the angry sea below her before turning her attention back to the smiling axe man.

She swallowed thickly, trying to unholster the flintlock at her side, but as he raised the axe, she realized her time had run out. Bracing for the hit, her eyes went wide as the man suddenly gasped, dropping down to his knees, and the sight of Haytham behind him almost made her cry with joy.

Shoving the man aside, he held out a hand and she took it, letting him yank her to her feet as he chastised, “Now is not the time to die, (Y/N)!”

A huff escaped her lips as he placed her sword in her hands. “It’s awfully fucking bold of you to assume I will ever die!”

He flashed her a smile, slashing downwards at a woman running his way. The two threw themselves back into the thick of fighting, but with every enemy they cut down, her hope seemed to dwindle. They appeared no closer to defeating the enemy, and the storm worsened with each passing second. Thousands of thoughts ran through her mind, and she suddenly looked to Haytham. She couldn’t claim a childhood friendship, but the year and a half that she’d served under him, through thick and thin, through hell and highwater, she’d seen him at his best just as much as she’d seen his worst, but in an instant, everything she’d ever felt for the man became clear.

(Y/N) reached out, calling, “Haytham! I need to tell you something!”

He grunted as he rolled out of the way of a sword. “It can’t wait until we’re safe?” She shook her head, thrusting her sword into the neck of an oncoming assassin. “I am extremely busy right now!”

(Y/N) slammed her boot down onto the deck, though it made little noise compared to the ruckus around them. “Haytham!” He drew his sword back and she grabbed him, yanking him to her. “I love you!” His steel eyes went wide, and she added, “I wouldn’t tell you this if I was certain I would live to see the light of day tomorrow!”

Haytham’s mouth opened and closed, floundering for words, until all he could say was, “You love me?”

(Y/N) nodded. “I know! I was shocked too!” He scowled. “How could someone as laidback as me love someone as tight-assed as you?” She looked at him. “But I do! I have since the day we met in the tavern! And whether or not you feel the same for me makes no difference!” She twirled them around, slamming the hilt of her saber into a temple before staring him in the eyes and declaring, “I would follow to the end of my days, even if today is my last.”

Haytham’s heart skipped a beat at her proclamation, and he breathed, “I love you too.”

(Y/N)’s face lit up. “Marry me!”

A laugh bubbled in her at the sight of his shocked features, and he yelled, “What?!”

“We know all there is to know about each other! Why court me and do things the proper way when we already know everything there is to know!”

“Because it’s improper! And now is not the best time!”

She huffed a laugh as they danced around one another, swords coming and going with each slash and thrust. “Now might be all we have!” (Y/N) gripped his forearm, voice raised but solemn as she said, “I’ve made my choice! What’s yours!” Steeled eyes searched hers and after a moment, he nodded. Suddenly, she turned to the quarterdeck, shouting, “Shay!” Haytham’s jaw dropped for the other man and she added, “Marry us!”

The Irish templar grunted as he stabbed a man. “I’m a little busy at the moment!”

The two glanced at each other, smiles toying their lips as they split, and Haytham slammed his sword hilt into someone’s jaw. “Cormac! Now!”

Shay growled, kicking an assassin down the steps before climbing the rails. “Fine then!” He jerked his sword down and bellowed, “Dearly beloved, we’re gathered here today!” A man came his way and with a well-placed kick to his chest, he went flying. “To nail your gizzards to the mast, you poxy cur!”

Haytham pulled her arm, sending her behind him as he yelled, “(Y/N) (L/N), do you take me as your husband!”

She grinned as she shoved an assassin over the rails. “I do!” She spun, pulling him backwards to slash the coming enemy. “Haytham Kenway, do you take me as your wife? In sickness and in health? With health being the less likely?”

He grinned. “I do!”

Shay, who’d been listening, offered a grin and shouted, “Then as Captain of The Morrigan, I now pronounce you husband and wife! You may kiss-” He was cut off as someone came running up the stairs, swinging wildly with their saber. Grunting, he blocked it, sending back his own strike. “You may kiss-” Still the enemy persisted, and Shay growled as he whipped out his flintlock and fired a single shot. “Just kiss damnit!”

(Y/N) felt Haytham’s grip on her arm and she let him pull her in. Their lips met and for a moment, the world around them faded, the fighting, the storm, every last nuisance dwindled into embers as they sealed their union.

She pulled away and looked at him, a smile growing across her face, as was his. “I love you, Haytham Kenway.”

He nodded, so sure of himself as he breathed, “I love you, (Y/N) Kenway.” A laugh left her, and they split once more, but this time she felt hopeful for the future.

“If the two of you are finished, there’s still the enemy ship to defeat and the storm to get out of!” The two laughed as Shay yelled at them, and they split once more, (Y/N) going starboard, Haytham to port.

They swung with a vicious precision, taking down enemy after enemy, and soon, the assassins began retreating back to their ship, but the Morrigan’s sailors were just as vicious as (Y/N) and he were, following them over.

He yanked his sword back from the gut of the assassin, grunting as leapt out of the way of another blade. It didn’t feel real, the few moments they shared, but as sure as the screech of steel against steel was, it told him they were real. They’d have to have a real ceremony once they got back to New York, and as he looked over to tell her the idea, his heart leapt into his throat at the sight.

(Y/N) cradled her abdomen with one hand, but he could see the crimson creeping through the fabric of her shirt. Her eyes were wide with a mixture of fear and anger as she raised her sword to block an axe coming her way. She gasped at the strength of the blow, sword arm taking the brute force, and dropped her blade. Haytham’s feet moved underneath him, carrying him to her, but before he could get there, the axe wielder swung his free arm, smacking her across the chest. Her jaw dropped but no sound escaped her other than a pained gasp as she hit the railing, hands clenching the ends of the each side to keep her from falling backwards through the opening.

The enemy raised his axe again and she shoved a hand out, hidden blade engaging into his chest. The axe fell and (Y/N) yanked her hand back and pulled him past her to go over the edge. Haytham appeared in her vision, and she breathed a sigh of relief despite her pain; he smiled, but it dropped when something latched onto the back of her shirt and tugged. She jerked backwards and lost her balance, feet seeming to come out from beneath her.

Her eyes went wide, and she met Haytham’s gaze. He reached for her and her him. “(Y/N)!” His fingers brushed hers, but it wasn’t enough. She sent a heartsick smile his way and fell. A scream tore through Haytham’s throat and he stood over the edge, staring into the deep where she’d gone. “(Y/N)!”

Haytham.

Her voice was in his ears.

Haytham.

She was just there.

Haytham.

How did this happen? Why couldn’t he—

Haytham!

He jolted awake, eyes wide as he sat up straight. His breath came in ragged pants, like he’d breached the surface of the water, and he felt pressure on his shoulders. Someone was holding onto them and he struggled. “Haytham, it’s okay! relax!” Hands gripped his face, turning it towards them. “Haytham, relax.”

Finally, his eyes focused on her in front of him. “(Y/N)?” His voice was barely above a whisper, as if speaking louder would break whatever dream this was.

She nodded, running her thumbs across his face. “That’s the name my mother gave me when I popped out of her.” A frown crossed her lips. “You’ve been wearing it out.”

Though a fond smile crossed his lips, tears filled his eyes and a watery laugh bubbled from him. He gripped her wrists. “You’re here.”

(Y/N) felt her brows furrow. “Yeah, I’m here.” She pulled away and grabbed a rag from off the nightstand. “You were yelling for me in your sleep.” She pressed it to his forehead, dabbing the sweat. “Bad dream?”

Haytham watched her and through a pained voice, he said, “We were on the Morrigan during a battle…you…you fell over.” A sorrowful look crossed her face, and he took her hand, squeezing it. “I couldn’t get to you in time.” Tears filled his eyes once more and he looked down. “It was my fault.”

She laid the rag on the stand and gripped his chin, making him look at her. “Haytham, I’m right here.” She smiled. “You’re out of your fucking mind if you think you can get rid of me that quick. I’m not going anywhere.”

He couldn’t seem to speak for a few moments, but a warm smile eventually crossed his lips. “I love you.” It seemed to come out on its own, but instead of the shock he expected, (Y/N) huffed and cupped his cheek.

“I love you too, Haytham.”

“You…you do?”

“We did get married during the last sea battle.”

His brows furrowed and he finally realized exactly where they were. “Are we…on the Morrigan?”

(Y/N) nodded. “You took a stab to the stomach during the fight and passed out.” She busied herself checking the wound. “You’ve been in and out of a fevered sleep since then.”

Haytham’s jaw went slack. So, it hadn’t been her he imagined being stabbed…it was himself.

“Some few days, maybe a week you’ve been out. We pulled into New York two days ago.” (Y/N) dipped her fingers into the wrap, listening as he hissed. “Shay didn’t think it safe enough to have you moved to a doctor’s clinic nor Fort Arsenal, so we kept you here and had a doctor see to you.” She met his eyes. “We’ve all been worried about you.”

Hundreds of thoughts spun around, but all he managed to blurt out was, “We’re married?”

(Y/N) blinked. “I don’t know if I should treat you like a patient or if I should treat you like Shay and call you a piss-ant. Yes, Haytham, we got married during the naval fight.” She watched him. “You don’t remember any dramatic confessions from both parties? Commanding a snappy captain to marry us? Him acting like a disgruntled pirate? Seriously, I’ve never heard the words, ‘poxy cur’ come out of that fuckers mouth before.” Haytham’s gaped like a fish and she sighed. “Figures I declare my love, get married, and my husband doesn’t remember.” (Y/N) looked out the window. “What the fuck did I do in my past life? Kill a holy nun?”

A bark of laughter turned her attention back to Haytham. He raised a hand to his eyes and fell to pieces. She couldn’t help but laugh with him, and when they calmed, he looked to her and took her hand. “It’ll come back to me soon enough.”

(Y/N) huffed. “It sure as shit better.” She stared into his eyes. “You look like a hot-mess.” A snort sounded from her. “Like me and Shay that time we got shit-faced in Portugal and ended up at a brothel.”

He scoffed. “That’s not very polite to say.”

“I mean this is me we’re talking about. Would you rather me go around grinning like the sun’s shining out my ass?”

Haytham met her gaze. “No.” He smiled. “Because you wouldn’t be the lovely (Y/N) Kenway if you were.”

She huffed. “Cheesy fucker.”

They drifted towards one another when the door to the captain’s cabin slammed to the wall and someone yelled, “Oi! The Grandmaster is—oh shite, sorry!”

[rogaire-a]

@elisexdelaserre sent: ☯ + hope's death 👀 // Send me '☯ + a scene from my characters canon' and I will drabble it from my character's POV. // ACCEPTING

I have to get to Hope

Was all that was in Shay’s mind,

His stomach was turning, his heart beating wildly in his chest as he ran madly for his life, to keep his heart beating. He could feel the pulse of his blood in his ears, each step making it harder for him to breathe, but he couldn’t stop, as much as his whole body protested for the effort it was enduring. He had to get Hope, no matter the cost.

Out of his half-dazed state, Shay saw her figure getting even farther. He tried to call her, but when he opened his mouth, no words came out of it.

He couldn’t let her escape. Determination settled in his mind, adding to his fading strength, and before he even knew it, he was catching it up to her. He couldn’t feel his legs anymore, adrenaline making him momentarily forget the aches of his muscles.

He saw her looking back where he was, maybe expecting to see him passed out on a rooftop, but when she saw him a few feet close to her, he saw how her eyes widened at the sight of him. Clearly, she had underestimated his force of will.

The next moment was a blur. Hope threw down one of her poisonous gas bombs, which Shay managed to dodge just in time, and, taking advantage of the momentary confusion,  pushing every bit of last remaining strength that he had, Shay sprang and finally plunged his hidden blade in her chest.

She let out a startled gasp and elbowed him to the face. Dazed, Shay stumbled back, wheezing. His eyes widened when he saw what she was holding between her hands, and he stumbled his way to her before snatching away from her hands the antidote of the poison that she had poisoned him with.

She fell to the ground, coughing, and Shay followed suit, falling to his knees, groaning in pain as he felt the antidote burn in his throat. He doubled over, catching his head between his hands, before hearing her speak in a ragged gasp;

‘‘ You are late, Shay. ‘‘

Realization of what he had just done dawned on him, and before he even knew what he was doing, he reached out to brush his hand against her cheek. What have I done...

‘‘ Hope...I didn’t want to do this. ‘‘ he gritted out, his own voice breaking. He never wanted to end it like this, but she gave him no choice...

She looked at him, her eyes blazing for a moment before she clenched them shut in pain. ‘’ I TAUGHT you this, I expected nothing less. ‘’

Shay felt as he too has been stabbed in the chest. Expected this ? so she willingly chose to sacrifice herself!

‘‘ But, why---’‘

‘‘ To give Liam and Chevalier time to leave. ‘‘

Now it was Shay’s eyes to blaze but in fury. It was the same fury he’d kept since that night he confronted Achilles. He'd carried it on with him since, and it was what fueled him to continue to stop the Assassins at any cost from finding other precursor's temples.

‘‘ I will stop him. ‘‘

He gritted out through clenched teeth. Chevalier’s hours were running short.

‘‘ He will see you coming. ‘‘ Said Hope, her voice and strength failing. Shay looked away after that, disappointed that she still chose to support Achilles's madness. She was with him when they opened the box for the first time, she saw too how much power that box held, but she didn’t seem to care about the consequences that meddling with these artifacts would cause. He was hoping that she would see to reason, but she was just like Achilles, she was just like the others---

His thoughts came to a halt when she cupped his cheek.

‘‘ Pity..’‘ Shay held his breath, looking back to her, holding the hand dearly to his cheek. ‘‘ You had..so much potential. ‘‘

It looked like she wanted to say something else, but no words came out her mouth besides her last breath, and Shay stared powerlessly as she died before his eyes, her own hand sliding down from his face.

Shay stayed there for a moment, in complete shock, knowing that he had to get a hold of himself before reporting back to the Grand Master

Her last words came back to his mind, and that was what finally convinced Shay to leave.

Someone had to make amends.