#all these years later and kaz is still in love with magic!!!!

[amitassuman]

thinking about how, as a child, kaz’s favorite trick seemed to be watching something disappear, and then he grew up and fell in love with a girl who could vanish into thin air, and how we’re told that when he looks at inej, he feels like a boy again and believes that there’s still magic in the world. imagine loving magic all your life, and then discovering that magic loved you too.

[wraithblogging]

If I could imagine a "happy end" for Inej and Kaz, it would be that after the events of Crooked Kingdom Inej travels the seas, hunting slavers, traveling in and out of Ketterdam, usually without visiting Kaz. Meanwhile, Kaz keeps doing illegal stuff business as usual. Occasionally, they meet, but only briefly. They work on themselves and check in on each other in their own ways.

After a few years, Inej decides to come back to Ketterdam, wondering if Kaz would still want her? Would she still want him? But honestly, there hasn't been anyone else on their minds all this time. Not like this. So they try. They start slowly and let down their guards and catch up. Inej stays at Wylan's and Jesper's place, and they try to start anew. Like they could have a normal relationship. All of that without ignoring their past and trauma.

They start an actual relationship and occasionally visit Inej's parents in Ravka. The parents propose that Kaz and Inej could come live with them, could have their own wagon, and a life away from the troubles of Ketterdam. Inej is pretty sure Kaz would decline politely and immediately, but to her surprise, he says he'll think about it.

They discuss the possibility on their way back to Ketterdam and later come to the conclusion to move. Kaz sells most of his holdings in the Barrell, though he holds on to quite some assets for safety measures.

Kaz and Inej start travelling with Inej's family. Inej performs on the high ropes and does knife tricks. Kaz performs magic tricks and manages the finances of the family. He starts to feel at home quickly after being welcomed with open arms. The feeling of family is so similar but also so different from the Dregs. The relative quiet of the Suli life is at first hard to adjust to. But Kaz realises exactly what Inej had missed.

I would love them to be able to live a more or less regular life after all the hardships they went through. But at the same time, settling down to one place would never be enough. They might become domestic, but it would never be mundane or usual. They would probably also keep working side jobs here and there. But they could finally allow themselves some quiet in their lifes.

[catapparently]

Malina and or Kanej HCs pleaseeeeee

My boos I miss them all ty <333

Kanej Headcanons

I'll do Kanej because despite having read the books, I'm honestly not really familiar with Mal's character and therefore not likely to write something accurate.

Also sorry not sorry this is half angst because it's Kanej

First of all, they both think the other deserves someone better/more suited to them;

Inej knows that Kaz needs someone who'd be willing to be with him despite not being able to touch. He needs someone with patience and who wouldn't mind waiting forever for him.

On the other side, Kaz thinks Inej OVERALL deserves someone better than him, someone who would be able to hold her, comfort her, kiss her...

Despite that, if Inej ever gets approached romantically by another man, Kaz will beat him up later, threaten the dude's mother, then frame him for a murder Kaz committed and get him sent to Hellgate, far far away from Inej

Inej doesn't ever worry or get jealous over Kaz speaking to other girls because she knows he wouldn't be interested in a million years

Ok so we all remember when Inej said “I will have you without armor, Kaz Brekker. Or I will not have you at all.” and Kaz didn't budge, basically a silent painful rejection

Inej said that because she 99.99% knew that Kaz wouldn't instantly take off his "armor" for her

She WANTED him to "reject" her because her goal was to go hunt slavers, far far away from Kaz

Sure, they could send letters, but they could never be genuine in the letters lest someone intercepts them and finds out Kaz's weakness

As long as there wasn't an unspoken "rejection" between them, Inej wouldn't feel completely free to leave after the whole Ice court heist and all

Obviously she will still love him, but she needed a way to let go of that attachment enough to go and follow her dreams

Inej thinks about Kaz every single day since she left him

She's always reminded of him in every single thing she does or thinks;

"That's exactly what Kaz would say/do"

Inej goes to visit Kaz in Ketterdam whenever she passes by with her ship

Whenever she leaves again, Kaz sends her off with a pair of gloves or a coat of his

After the events in Rule of Wolves, when Zoya tasks Kaz with finding the heart of St. Feliks (I think that's the name?), Inej was the first person he asked for intel. Since she travels around so much she surely heard something

Of course, when he's going outside of Ketterdam for jobs or other stuff, Inej is the one who takes him on her ship. He wouldn't trust anyone else

Inej once said a few affectionate words in Suli to him and Kaz immediately searched through all of his contacts for someone to translate it for him

Inej once stole a wealthy slaver's fancy watch and brought it back to Kaz;

Not because Kaz needed yet another one but more as a symbol that she was still what Kaz made her.

When Kaz bought her the ship, he made the captain's room look like a better version of her room at the Slat so that she would always have a reminder of him and the Crows

Because her "magic slippers" got burnt while scaling the incinerator in SoC, Kaz got her a nice pair of more practical boots and commissioned yet another Fabrikator to modify the soles and make them excellent for climbing

Kaz made Wylan work on cannon blueprints until they were perfect and had them installed

He basically went all out with that ship

Inej got a little tattoo that said "the Crow" with "The Wraith" under it on her back despite her issue with branding

She didn't get it as a label, she got it as a reminder of who she was

"the Wraith" was everything the Menagerie's Suli lynx wasn't. For Inej, the tattoo was a symbol of her strength

Kaz didn't know

He found that out when one day, she came to visit him and was wearing a backless top;

He'd gotten (stolen) a necklace for her and she asked him to put it on for her;

At first Kaz was really hesitant but he *GASP* took off his gloves, and gently brushed her hair out of the way and that's when he saw the little tattoo

This man FROZE and didn't even realize his UNGLOVED index finger was tracing her bare skin along the lines of the tattoo

When he realized it he quickly stopped and hurriedly clasped the necklace around her neck

He still isn't over his touch aversion, but he's doing better. He still quickly stepped back though, putting some distance in between them

He noticed the faintest flush on Inej's cheeks and that's how he knew she still loved him, he felt relief in knowing so

These days, amongst Kaz's men, the Wraith is a myth. They don't know that Inej is gone, they think she's always there in the shadows, spying and reporting back to Kaz

Only the OGs know the truth

To Kaz, this was a way of forever having a piece of her within the gang

I hope these are to your liking!!! It's hard to write Kanej without angst

[lilithfreya]

Six of Crows/Shadow and Bone Modern College AU's

Finally the last couple!!!

Kaz:

He's still the country boy we all love, but when his parents died during high school, he and Jordie were "adopted" by Jesper's dad, as the two have been friends for a long time. When Jordie went to the big city to try his luck and earn money so that everyone could have a better life, and in that period Kaz received letters, messages and photos from his brother and one more person in a Suli language, but when he found a man who would be a mentor to him, who later discovers to be Pekka Rollins, he ends up disappearing and leaving behind only a few pieces of information so he begins to draw up his revenge plan and it all starts when he enters the University. There he ends up taking courses in Administration and Economics, he with the money from lending the land of his farms and his investments ends up managing to buy part of "The Crow Club", a famous bar that is frequented mainly by university students but that also hides a lot of illegal business. There Kaz ends up knowing and knowing the secrets of several people and having to save Jes from his addictions, but what no one can understand is how he ended up meeting the captain of the gymnastics team and the cutest person in this world Inej and why they They were always together and she seemed to be the only person he really listened to. Reluctantly he ends up making friends with the rest of the crows, some influenced by Inej, others for his own interest like Wylan and even if he refuses to admit it he is happy to have a family again and they all end up being useful so he can to accomplish his goal of destroying Rollins and Wylan's father Jan Vna Eck and starting to build his money empire alongside his Queen.

Inej:

Inej and Kaz met during the camp they did during childhood and high school, there they both learned about circus life with Kaz training magic tricks and Inej being an acrobrate, thanks to her family, and sometimes working as an assistant to Kaz in the final performances, there she taught Kaz how to read Suli, and they spent the rest of the years talking via letters/postcards from the different places Inej spent with her family and messages. She was one of the first people to know Kaz's feelings about Jordie's death and all his worries and always did her best to advise him, and because of the distance she ended up accepting to be coached by the famous Olympic gymnast Tanten Heleen, however, due to cases of abuse that she ended up suffering there, she asked for Kaz's help to denounce and arrest Tanten, and get financial compensation for all this situation and gave part of that money. Part of the money was given for Kaz to be able to fulfill his dream and be able to go to the same university, I think that during this troubled period they ended up returning to Ravka to be able to stay out of the average time when they turned 18 and ended up getting married in secret. At university, she studied to work as a social worker and continued her gymnast training, as well as starting to do social work at the shelter, which she secretly funds with Kaz's help and the class for the younger children, something she loves most. no one knows is that sometimes Kaz goes there and gives magic presentations. All her friends keep trying to get them to be together but she pretends not to see the schemes and attempts at dates and has a bet with Kaz to find out which of them will be the first to find out everything, besides one of her secret activities for Kaz it's reading and discovering people's secrets so she also knows when Jes and Nina need help with their addictions, what to do to help Wylan to escape his father and help Mla and Alina against the weird teacher and to learn more about your past. And it all culminates in the arts and benevolence ball where all of their lives end up getting on track for the first time in a long time, several secrets are revealed and now they can live their happily ever after with those who chose to live, HAPPY ENDING.

(I think they ended up adopting one of the children that was cared for at the Shelter, a girl of about 3/4 years old who was always in awe of Inej thinking she was Rapunzel and was never afraid of Kaz unlike the other children who had to be conquered, as he thought he was the Prince of Inej.)

Thanks for everyone who had read, see U later ❤❤

If you haven't read the other couples yet, check them out here: Six of Crows/Shadow and Bone Modern College AU’s

[alltheworldsinmyhead]

STILL ON THAT TIGHTROPE

<the night circus magical realism kanej au>

chapter 3: KAZ

*

There are many places where this story could start, all of them magical and exciting: lush, deep Ravkan forests, or endless plains of Novyi Zem, or even frozen Fjerdan deserts where snow sparkles like sand beneath the northern sun. 

But it has its beginning in the most humble surroundings of all - on a small island lost on the True Sea. In a small village, tucked neatly in between rolling hills. On a small farm, in a small family.

With a small, dark-haired boy with eyes like strongly-brewed tea and the most curious mind anyone has ever seen. 

But make no mistakes - the boy might be small and his origins humble. But the sky above him was as endless as his imagination

Maybe we should be more precise. Maybe it doesn’t just start with the boy, but with two boys - two brothers; orphans, leaving their childhood home to be devoured whole by the wide world.

The older brother is bolder, full of ambition and spite. The younger is more timid and cautious, still sweetly naive and terribly trusting. They love each other as deeply as two lost kids who have nothing else to love but each other.

Years later, Kaz will recall that moment when the door of Rietveld farm last closed behind them, and he will think: We have never stood a fucking chance.

It starts with the deck of cards in the little boy’s pocket. All the magic roots itself there and begins to grow. 

*

Ketterdam is a beast.

It is ugly, and dirty, and alive in a way that feels both unnerving and exhilarating. Kaz misses home more and more with every second they spend walking on its streets, and yet he cannot keep his eyes away from  this whole overabundant chaos - of street vendors, merchers, tourists; of colors, sounds, smells, all entirely new and foreign. 

And magicians, especially magicians. Magicians, producing pigeons and bouquets of roses from their hats. Magicians, changing the tips of their wands from white to black and back to white. Magicians, performing card tricks with flicks of their wrists. 

Kaz tries to memorize their exact gestures and repeat them before his brother drags him away from the street performances, but his hands are clumsy and his deck of cards is worn-out and incomplete. Still, he has nothing better to do. He practices, at day and at night, as Jordie appears and disappears, each time promising him that their luck will soon turn. 

Kaz believes him, in his endless childish naivete. And keeps on practicing, trick after trick after trick, until exhaustion pulls him under, and he falls asleep by Jordie’s side only to wake up in the morning and do it all over again.

Jordie’s vision of wealth and prosperity is the first dream he slips into. The first impossible thing he believes.  

------READ MORE ON AO3---------

[averrse]

i'm going to talk a bit about touch aversion as someone who has it myself, and how i'm going to portray kaz's (since i've already seen fandom misunderstand it regularly)

Not all touch is the same.

Touch of necessity (to protect etc) doesn't cause a strong reaction in me. At most, the creepy crawly feeling or slight shivers that go away almost immediately.

Touch that I initiate, have time to prepare for, or give permission for is unsettling, but not as bad as it could be. Might cause weird feelings for a few hours.

Touch from a friend or trusted person can have a day-long effect if I wasn't prepared or asked permission.

Touch from someone I don't know very well can cause a reaction for a day or week, particularly if I wasn't expecting it. This includes bumping into someone on the bus or in a crowd.

Touch from someone I don't trust or don't like can cause an effect that can last from weeks to months. This can include things like handshakes, even if I initiate (I only initiate because I feel social pressure to do so..) or a pat on the shoulder or just brushing by in a crowded space. Sometimes touches from these people can randomly come back to mind years later and cause a reaction as if it just happened.

If I'm already overstimulated by other touch, I am more sensitive to touch in general and can have a bigger reaction to things that might not otherwise bother me. I also have sensory issues separate from my touch aversion, and if I'm overstimulated by sound or movement, my touch aversion also gets worse.

I mentioned social pressure above, and that can cause a lot of shame for me. When I refuse a handshake or hug or do not give physical comfort to people I care about, I feel a lot of shame and also know that many people think I'm uncaring because of it.

The extent to which I care about someone or love someone only slightly affects my reaction to touch, Even with people I'm extremely comfortable with (there have been about... three altogether), I need any amount of touch to be limited and I require them to ask consent regularly. (Note: when I say consent, I'm talking about any touch, not just romantic/sexual intimacy, which I don't particularly like anyway.)

Also, my reaction to touch is MUTED by clothing (such as gloves) but it I am still affected. It's just far less bad than skin-to-skin contact.

Luckily, touch aversion only applies to humans, as evidenced by my cat sprawled over my lap and arms as I type this.

I've reference some of my reactions above, but here is a more complete list all in one place:

"creepy crawly" feelings

shivers/tingles over my skin (similar to asmr reactions but negative)

a repeated, very intense and unpleasant sensation of the touch over and over long after it's gone (can be up to months and can be in the form of a "flashback" even years later)

light-headedness/nausea

a feeling of panic like I'm being trapped and need to escape

So, basically... Whenever I write a reaction to touch for Kaz, this is what I'm pulling from. I've been dealing with it since I was about 12 and no one's magically cured me yet so... This is also how I will write Kaz.

Note: I think the show portrayed this pretty well in s2, especially the way it visualized the sensation of touching dead bodies in the flashbacks and the way Kaz's reaction to Nina touching him when he was already overstimulated was much more intense than usual.

[protectthevulnerable]

tagged by: @jurati tagging: @storyofwhoiam (thirteenth Doctor, Kaz, and Kalinda?), @shcftingpieces (Blair!) & anyone else that wants to do it !

Lena Luthor

—    basics.

▸   is your muse tall/short/average?    average/on the slightly tall side

▸     are they okay with their height?   yeah! They honestly don’t really think about it a whole lot. If she wants to be taller (and she often does) they can just put on heels. She would be content being shorter tho cause than they could be Small in someone’s arms (don’t worry tho, Kara’s taller than them)

▸     what’s their hair like?  dark, thick, and long. Also straightened every day for the sake of Appearances. But! Once they get more comfortable not being “perfect” all the time, they let their hair go natural and curly a lot more!

▸     do they spend a lot of time on their hair/grooming?   oh god, yeah. Everything has to perfect. She has her routine pretty down pat, but she will spend way too much time making sure everything’s just how it should be even if she’s not doing something that requires her to  look put together. In the later years tho, I imagine she spends less time trying to look perfect when going to work/doing work related things but still wants to look “presentable” and she does put a lot less work into their appear when they’re just meeting friends or wtvr

▸     does your muse care about their appearance/what others think? oh big time. She fixates so hard on it that their life honestly revolves around other people. They did grow tired of not being able to meet everyone’s expectations tho and so they def lash out at assholes sometimes (usually in a reserved passive aggressive way). But despite that, she really does try to be put together and proper for others sakes

—    preferences.

▸    indoors or outdoors?  okay so, this is a little complicated! I think she would enjoy the outdoors in the sense of like nature but her instinct is indoors (specifically in her own home) because she feels safe there and able to be herself more

▸    rain or sunshine?     sunshine. Rain is kind of a nuisance and also makes their depression worse

▸    forest or beach?     oooh this is hard. I feel like they’d feel safer and more at ease?? In a forest, but! Beaches are fun! And feel like a place to hang out with friends! So that also means safety and home-y feelings! Lena loves her friends and they’re her family, so beach! Even if there is the con of bathing suits and having your body on display for the world to see

▸    precious metals or gems?     hmm prob precious metals! I feel like Lena is a big fan of metal jewelry and she works with metal a lot!

▸    flowers or perfumes?     maybe flowers? She loves a good perfume for herself but they’re incredibly likely to send someone flowers if they like that person and she love giving things to people she likes

▸    personality or appearance?     personality! They’ve dated for looks in the past and it just doesn’t end well. It is a plus if someone’s cute And not an asshole tho

▸    being alone or in a crowd?  they don’t really like being alone but they kinda hate crowds because they’re overstimulating, so alone

▸    order or anarchy?     order 100%. She’s trying to accept chaos into her life tho

▸    painful truths or white lies?    instinct says white lies because they really Hate being hurt but! Considering their experience with Kara being supergirl and the other painful truths they’ve had to live through: painful truths

▸    science or magic?     bro... BRO. You can’t ask her to choose like that. Her entire character is based around science And magic. And plus they’d probably argue that magic is science because everything is science. But uhhhhh... science? Please don’t make her choose lol

▸    peace or conflict?     Lena prefers peace, but they’re Very often causing conflicts. So peace but that’s not what they get lol

▸    night or day?     night. It’s when they get to unwind

▸    dusk or dawn?     dusk, I guess? Dawn is kinda Stressful because she has to get ready for the day and prepare for all of the stressful situation. But if she gets a day off or in later in life when she’s more chill, it’s comforting to be able to sit and drink a cup of coffee when watching the sunrise

▸    warmth or cold?     warmth. It’s comforting and she runs a bit cold, so it’s nice to snuggle up with a blanket

▸   many acquaintances or a few close friends?     a few close friends. Lena doesn’t easily trust people enough to casually let them into her life. But she does know a lot of people?

▸    reading or playing a game?   reading! They’re a lil nerd. Tho they love a good game night and often times she’s reading about ttrpgs soooo

—    questionnaire.

▸     what are some of your muse’s bad habits? okay so Lena has... a drinking problem. Most days after work they get a little tipsy and whenever they’re Very upset, they get Extremely drunk. They also have a bad habit of cutting people out of their life at the drop of a hat because she has a hardcore black and white thought process and if someone does something she considers bad, that person is now bad and it takes a lot of work (or just a better mood sometimes) for people to regain her trust. She also tends to trust too easily (often even when her brain tells her not to). There’s prob others but those are the ones that affect them the most

▸     has your muse lost anyone close to them? how has it affected them? way too many people. Her mom died when she was four, leaving her to be adopted by an abusive family (her adoptive dad was also her bio dad who cheated on Lillian, his wife and Lena’s adoptive mother, which she didn’t know until adulthood) and it has affected every aspect of her life. She carries herself in a professional and mature way despite only being 22 and has done this for most of her life. She doesn’t know how to cope with her own emotions, so instead she puts them away in little boxes until they come exploding out. She used to dive head first into relationships in an attempt to fill the part of her soul that was missing the love it never received but after many heartbreaks, she’s become way more reserved and distrustful. She’s often unlikely to reveal romantic feelings out of fear of them being used against her. I could literally go on forever about this, but I won’t lmao 

▸     what are some fond memories your muse has?  she has a very specific blurry memory of her and her birth mother playing when she was a kid. It’s one of her first memories. She also has a lot of memories of Lex being there for her and treating her like family when no one else did, but these kind of make them sad now. And honestly a lot of their memories of Kara and the rest of the superfriends make them happy and comfort them looking back on them

▸     is it easy for your muse to kill? if they don’t know the person and are protecting someone they care about/themself, yes. But if they do care about them, it’s extremely hard and they’ll do pretty much anything (often even risking the world) to make sure she doesn’t have to put them at risk

▸     is your muse capable of trusting someone with their life? yes, but it can take a lot of built-up trust and they’re more likely to try to save themself. But she will if she has to, especially if it’s someone they care about

▸     what’s your muse like when they’re in love? Lena is... complicated. She will send the person gifts, take them on little dates, and spend as much time with them as possible. She will fawn over every word they say. But she most likely will not ever tell you she’s in love unless there is absolutely no doubt that the other person feels the same. They keep their feelings close to their chest and doesn’t often let them out. 

[my-gf-is-kazuichi-soda]

As Kazuichi goes through her Princess Phase -Part Two, she experiments in different hairstyles, makeup, and dresses. Sometimes it ends up a little silly or clashing, but that's what experimentation is all about! Also, neither Kaz nor Zoey are fashion experts.

Gushing about Kaz's princess journey, and some plot spoilers for the middle of my upcoming story are below. You have been warned.

Gender roles of toxic masculinity forced Kazuichi to hide and shove away her fantasies about being a magic fairytale princess. But her big sensitive heart never let her forget her dreams. She then met a real-life princess and translated the mix of fantasies and budding sexuality into a heterosexual crush, pushing herself into a role neither she nor the real princess wanted, which caused hurt all around. Still, it was only a bump in the middle her journey to letting go of the forced gender expectations, healing, and coming out as a girl.

Maturing doesn't always mean giving up childhood fantasies, sometimes it means expressing them in harmless, manageable ways that make your life better. She never outgrew her princess fantasies like everyone assumed she would, and possibly never will; instead, she gushes to her girlfriend Zoey everything her brain creates: her eyes light up, she gets this far away look, and Zoey is enchanted by the glimpses she can see of Kaz's fantasy world. A part of it is sad: it's not about riches or power. For Kazuichi, being a princess means being seen, acknowledged, admired, respected. To be protected from cruelties of life like hunger, poverty, danger (at least, nothing dangerous that magic powers and a kind heart couldn't stop). To be beautiful, to be the kindest soul, to brighten everyone's day with your existence and your big, beautiful heart, to be someone whose every characteristic is worth protecting, but also strong enough to protect your kingdom. A powerful, beautiful woman. Magic powers and a strong heart guiding you through a life of adventure. For Kazuichi, to be a princess is to be worthy of love, something she denied herself after others denied it to her.

But not only does she want to be given this love, she wants to give this to others. Despite how those in her past tried to tear up her sensitive heart, it was too big to be destroyed, and she has always had a yearning to help others at every stage in her life, even when she was helpless and drowning in toxic masculinity and almost not sure how to be kind anymore.

But being given the opportunity to be a kind person, and the love and attention she has missed over the years, will help in her path of self-healing. Zoey helps her to realize that Kazuichi IS the princess. Not that she will become a princess later, or have to keep looking for one, but she herself has always been the princess. Her skills in mechanics, fixing, building, creating: she can create enchanting, amazing things around her, which to Zoey is the most magical a real-life person can be. Her messy experimental haircut was beautiful. Her face was beautiful. She has a big kind, loud sensitive heart that cant ever be hidden away, which is so hard to have when society wants you to have a quiet and small heart. But even when she tried to hide this heart, Zoey saw it, and she was determined to get that heart to a healthy beat again. Kazuichi is worthy of love, as she has been at every stage of life, even at the most difficult stage for her and everyone around her.

Kazuichi and Zoey protect each other through perilous adventures, and despite being misunderstood by everyone, they still manage to come out on top with smiles on their faces, holding hands. Zoey helps Kazuichi to remember her heart, and Kazuichi helps Zoey remember hers as well, as Zoey at the same time struggles in loneliness and danger and being afraid to ask for help, and needed Kazuichi's help to climb out of Zoey's own self-prison. Now, their big, kind, loud sensitive hearts can protect each other, and thus they thrive!

[milo-my-beloved]

things we don't say

A continuation of the some other life 'verse.

Playlist 🎵 Buy me a cup of tea ☕

Chapter Four: Kaz and Inej (Favourite Ship)

It takes them two hours to perfect their routine.

A clever combination of Kaz's close-up magic and her acrobatics tells the tale of Sankta Margaretha, Ketterdam's patron saint of thieves and lost children. It's a well-known story, and one the wealthy guests at Van Eck's party will love.

Once they've run through their performance a few times, they migrate into the kitchen. It's late — much later than when she usually cooks for herself — and Nina and Matthias can probably hear her stomach rumbling from the other side of the city.

Kaz opens the fridge, stares at it blankly, and then closes it again. "I don't have any food in."

She knew she should have eaten before coming. "It's fine."

"Pizza?"

"Sounds good," she smiles.

He places the order without having to ask what she wants. He knows all of the important things about her; her favourite kind of chocolate (salted caramel), her favourite flower (geraniums, like her mother), and her favourite pizza topping. It's deceptively easy to fall back into their old routines, even though the people they used to be are long gone now.

"It'll be twenty minutes," he says.

Not enough time to run through their routine again, but too long to stand here making awkward conversation. "Do you want to watch a film?"

Kaz tenses, his hand flexing on the head of his cane. "Do you have a particular one in mind?"

She racks a brain for a film that won't make the situation even more uncomfortable. Not a romance. Nothing serious. They need a comedy or something, but not a rom-com — nothing that will remind them of their failed relationship.

"Have you ever watched Now You See Me?" Inej asks.

Kaz shakes his head.

"You'll love it! It's about a group of magicians doing a heist."

He raises an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced. But he follows her into the living room and hands her the remote without arguing with her choice.

By the time the pizza delivery guy rings the doorbell, Kaz has already pointed out five different magic-related inconsistencies. He passes the spicy meat pizza to Inej without taking his eyes off the screen, and shucks off his gloves to eat his strange anchovy-covered concoction.

If he notices the way Inej's gaze lingers on his bare skin, he doesn't say anything.

She tries to refocus her attention on the TV. Her eyes drift over to Kaz whenever she stops paying attention, delighting in the incredulous expression on his pizza-stained face. Every time he yells at the screen she grins like a fool, only to shut it down a few seconds later.

Papa always says that the heart is like an arrow. On the trapeze, it was easy for her to decide on her trajectory, pinning her focus on the next handhold as she soared through the air.

Now, she just wishes her heart would latch on to someone other than Kaz Brekker.

Continue reading under the cut // Continue reading on AO3.

Inej walked to the nearest hotel, still wearing Kaz's oversized shirt and a pair of black sweatpants she found at the top of her bag. Checking in so late felt like a waste of money, but she didn't care. She needed somewhere to be alone for a while.

The first thing she did upon entering her room was to change out of her clothes. The shirt smelt like him — like burnt coffee and foxgloves — and even when she tossed it onto the patterned carpet floor of the Geldrenner hotel, she couldn't rip her eyes from it.

She fell asleep on top of the mattress with the taste of her salty tears on her lips, wearing a band t-shirt Jesper gave her years ago.

When she woke, she forced her head up from the damp pillow and she strode on shaky legs to the bathroom. She stopped in front of the mirror, staring at her reflection for a while. What could she say to console the broken girl gazing back at her?

There was one thing she knew for certain: Kaz was too stubborn to come running back to her on his own. They were over, and her perfect summer had come to its abrupt end.

"It's going to be alright," she whispered to her reflection. The girl in the mirror didn't believe her, so she repeated the sentiment. "We're going to be alright. We're going to shower and get dressed, we're going home to mama and papa, and you will not wallow in this pain."

The girl in the mirror held her head a little higher.

"You can't force him to open up to you, but you don't have to watch his past swallow him. It's his loss."

Inej nodded once, a jerky movement, and then did exactly as she said she would. She cleaned the salty residue from her cheeks, braided her hair, and dressed herself in her comfiest clothes. By the time she returned her key to the front desk, her posture was as confident as it always is, even if she didn't feel as brave as usual.

On the bus over to her parents' house, the reality of the situation hit her all over again, and she has yet to recover.

*****

As soon as the film ends, Kaz launches into the rant that he's been saving up for the hour and fifty-five minutes they've been sitting there.

"It makes no sense," he grumbles, carrying their empty pizza boxes into the kitchen. "Did they learn any magic before making this?"

"I thought you said all magic is a con," Inej points out. "So's acting."

He rolls his eyes. "You know what I mean."

She smiles, fetching herself a glass from the cupboard above the sink and filling it with cold water from the tap. "I take it you don't want to watch the sequel, then."

"They made a second one? Who on earth asked for that?"

Inej laughs. It's always hard to tell whether Kaz is playing up his reactions — yet another of his cons — or if he just lowers his guard around her. She takes a sip of water, leaning over the counter. Outside, she hears the first drops of early October rain tapping at the window.

Kaz turns his head to watch the heavens open, and Inej knows they're both thinking about the same thing.

"It's late," Kaz says. "Do you want to stay over?"

Inej puts her glass down before she can drop it. "Is that the best idea?"

His neck stays firmly angled towards the window. He's shutting her out again. Why did she expect anything different? They aren't a couple any more. She has no right to his secrets. If he wants to dig his own grave, she won't be there to watch it after Friday.

Still, she can't help but push her luck. "Where would you have me sleep, Kaz? In the bed you threw me out of?"

He faces her then, his dark eyes searching her face. It's the first time either of them has mentioned that night, and Inej nearly regrets the question.

"I didn't throw you out. You left."

"Because you told me to," she corrects. Anger rises up her throat, threatening to spill out all over Kaz's spotless kitchen tiles. "Past three in the morning."

He looks down at his cane, turning the crow's head away from her. At least he looks ashamed, she thinks, but it doesn't bring her any comfort.

"I told you on the first of those double dates Jesper dragged us to — I'm not the man you think I am."

"You're exactly the man I think you are." She sighs. "That's the problem, Kaz. You were perfect for me. But you can't believe that another person can love you back, so you push us all away because of some imagined future wrongdoing."

He swallows, shaking his head slightly.

"I realised that a long time ago, thanks to your regular warnings. And so has Jesper, and Wylan, and all our other friends. But I wanted to stay. I wanted to be the exception to your rule, because I loved you. But you asked me to leave, and I respected that even though it destroyed me in the process."

She dips her head, focusing her gaze on the cup in front of her as she blinks away traitorous tears. She shouldn't have come here. She didn't intend to pour her heart out in his kitchen, unprompted. But at least this finally might give them closure.

"You don't know what you're asking me to confess." Kaz pauses, choosing his words carefully. "All of what you've said is true. You've just laid out all the reasons why you deserve a better man than me."

Inej shakes her head. "You are that better man, Kaz. You just refuse to see it." She finishes her glass of water in three desperate gulps, placing the cup in the sink carefully before turning back to him. "If you're still offering, I'll sleep on the couch."

He nods. They set up the makeshift bed together, moving the furniture back to where it belongs and spreading out Kaz's spare blankets and pillows. The end result is comfier than her own bed.

He hovers in the doorway as she sits down to unbraid her hair.

"Goodnight, Inej."

"Sleep well, Kaz."

He closes the door softly behind him, and a few minutes later, she hears his cane tapping against the hard wood as he climbs upstairs to his bed.

Inej lies down on the sofa, tugging a blanket up to her chin, and she dreams of Margaretha and her demon. As she drifts off, the demon morphs into Kaz's face, and she wonders whether that is how he sees himself; twisted, crooked, wrong, but still the boy she loves.

[lonslibrary]

3 moments between the crow couples during their time at hogwarts

1. an unknown part of wylan and jesper’s somewhat disastrous amortentia story comes moments after jesper pulled wylan in for a kiss by his tie, causing the rest of their classmates to erupt in cheers and applause so loud that professor snape’s “boys! in the hall, now!” went unheard. minutes later, when they had actually been led out of the classroom to wait for their punishment, wylan finally worked up the courage to meet jesper’s eyes, his face almost as red as his hair. jesper’s grin was radiant. “so. butterbeer and my cologne, huh?”

it took all of wylan’s nerve to not sink into the ground where he stood. “i didn’t know today’s lesson was on amortentia,” he muttered, feeling himself flush again.

it took all of jesper’s will not to kiss the younger again right there where he stood with the way the redhead was looking up at him from beneath his long lashes.

“well, what about you?” wylan demanded, rolling his eyes. “let me guess. cards, pumpkin juice, and galleons?”

“no, actually.” jesper replied, spinning his wand in his hand. “i smell grass. gunpowder. and...”

he took a step closer to wylan who stood still, holding his breath. “...and?” the third year asked quietly.

“exploding elixir.”

wylan’s mind shut down.

“the entire room was filled with the same smell from that day we singed snape’s hair,” jesper snorted. “of all things, we had to mess up the potion that smelled like burnt-”

it was wylan who pulled jesper down this time, reaching up on his tippy toes to meet jesper’s soft lips, the ones that had captivated him from the moment he had walked into the potions classroom and saw his new lab partner for the first time.

“fahey, van eck!” snape burst into the hallway. “does it seem possible to keep your hands off of each other?”

“sorry, prof.” jesper winked, eyes still trained on wylan’s mouth. “guess you can say we’ve got...chemistry.”

wylan couldn’t even bring himself to care about detention.

2. nina stifled a laugh, trying to keep a straight face as she watched matthias scan the inside of zonko’s joke shop. she had just gotten matthias to admit that he enjoyed a drink as sweet as butterbeer, hours earlier at the three broomsticks. “you look like you’re inside the shrieking shack, not a joke shop.” nina snickered at the way matthias perked up.

“whatever the shrieking shack is, i think that there’d be more dignity in such a place than...this.” matthias dropped a dungbomb he had picked up like it had personally offended his grandmother.  

“why?” nina giggled. she shook the box in her hand. “not a fan of ton-tongue toffees?”

matthias made a face that looked like he was more than just not a fan. “if it’s anything like those jelly beans you fed me on the train, then no.”

that only made nina laugh harder. “i swear you picked the worst ones! you should’ve seen your face when you tried the rotten egg flavor.”

matthias cracked a smile, relaxing a little amongst the colorful store and his girlfriend’s laughter. he picked up another product, a pink bottle corked at the top. “what does this one do?”

nina lowered her voice, gesturing for matthias to come closer, as if letting him in on a secret. “that one’s a love potion. one drop of it in someone’s drink and they’re yours,” she whispered. “they’ll think about you all day.”

matthias jerked away, putting the bottle back on the shelf. “you can’t be serious. love can’t be made like that!” he sputtered.

“i don’t know, durmstrang,” nina teased. “what if i bought one and slipped some in your pumpkin juice tomorrow at breakfast?”

matthias only crossed his arms, continuing to grimace. “well, that wouldn’t work at all.”

“why not? zonko’s is pretty reliable when it comes to their products.” she said pointedly, looking at the extendable ears on sale.

“because i’m already in love with you.” matthias stated simply.

nina froze, turning to her boyfriend. during her time dating matthias, the hufflepuff had proven to be narrow minded and straightforward as a broom doing any and every thing. it was moments like these she was reminded that this included during his expressions of affection, and nina couldn’t love him more for it.

“i’m in love with you, too.” she declared, slipping her hand into her boyfriend’s. she had always liked...brooms. “now, come on. i want to see if we can get kaz to fall for a trick wand.”

3. all inej had wanted was a quiet place to study that wasn’t the library. she liked to practice with her wand for transfiguration, and magic wasn’t allowed in the library. she had been wandering the school for an empty classroom or quiet corner when the room of requirement had appeared at the end of a hallway, exactly moments before she was about to give up and return to the gryffindor common room. she was only half surprised when she opened the door and saw kaz, but like always, kaz hadn’t seemed surprised at all when she entered. he sat on top of a desk with his cane leaned against it, wand out, in the middle of a silent spell. inej let her eyes trail over his robe perched on a chair, his gloves off and set aside in a rare moment, and his uniform sleeves pulled up to his elbows.

“first time here?” kaz asked, not looking up from the book in his lap. his rough voice echoed slightly in the large room as inej scanned her surroundings. the room was empty besides a couple of desks and chairs in one corner, a cluttered pile of objects in another, and a big wardrobe that looked ages old. a fireplace on the wall kept the room warm, and a small chandelier hung above inej’s head.

“guess i didn’t require much until now.” inej shrugged, pulling a desk and chair of her own towards the center of the room. “you?”

kaz closed his book, finally looking up at inej. “i come and go when i want.”

inej wanted to know more about what had revealed the room to kaz in the first place, but she redirected the question away from kaz himself, knowing it was unlikely he would answer. “get anything out of it?” with kaz, it was all about gain.

kaz drummed his fingers on his desk. inej tried not to stare. “some crying first years with who miss their mums. i think i’ve witnessed a bit of every couple in the school’s snogging.” he pulled out a handful of extendable ears from his robe pocket. “snape’s planning something. don’t know the details yet, but something big.”

inej nodded. part of her expected kaz to leave, speak with his silence as he tended to do, but he continued to sit and look at inej, book in lap. inej knew him well enough to recognize that while it wasn’t exactly an invitation, kaz wasn’t saying no to a conversation. she could’ve started with a less risky question about snape’s plans, or asked for the names of the couples in their year, just to know, but inej was curious about other things.

“and how did you find this place, kaz?”

“the de kappel painting.” he said casually. “i needed a place to hide it.”

inej froze, taken aback by kaz’s answer. or more accurately, his willingness to answer. “so it’s true?” she questioned, hoping her voice didn’t give away her surprise. “the gringotts vault rumor.” she had half believed them to begin with, knowing kaz’s abilities but never his motives. still, kaz had never confirmed it with anyone as far as she had known.

“true enough.” kaz reopened his book, attention back on the page. inej inwardly sighed. the satisfaction of knowing kaz trusted her enough to confirm the gringotts rumor didn’t last long. figures kaz wouldn’t want to talk much about himself.

“but that’s a story for next time.” kaz flipped a page, the slightest start of a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.

next time, inej turned over in her head. she tried not to smile as she opened her own book. she could work with next time.

author’s note (pls read!) this is my first time on tumblr so idk how to use it too well but i’m overwhelmed by all the nice responses so thank you all so, so much. i see everything!! idk if there’s like poll mechanisms and stuff on tumblr (argh help) but i wanted to gauge what everyone would like next—im deciding between six of crows x pjo or shadow and bone x harry potter, so comment below what you’d like to see first (: i’d also love to hear abt any personal requests so my dms (is that what they’re called here?) are open for suggestions. no promises, but lmk if there’s something you want to read. feel free to get as niche as you want, respectfully! ok ik this is super long god bless your soul if u actually read the entire thing but finally, i just wanted to introduce myself—i’m lynn, this is my library and i dabble in most fandoms! my goal is to get at least one piece of writing out every month, so if you’d like to read what i write, follow along! OK im finally done, i swear. thank you again for the tremendous support. unbelievable. happy reading!

[ladydaemon]

LETTERS

kaz brekker x female! reader

A/N: Is this really short? Yes. Is it really cringey? Yes. Did I cry when writing it anyway? Absolutely.

Summary: Kaz rereads an old letter from an old friend

Warnings: mentions of former childhood abuse (and a butt-ton of ✨ sadness ✨) ? wow I don't think I swore in this.

Kaz,

This is my last letter to you.

I do not know if you and Jordie are even alive anymore. Maybe you are alive, but no one can find you, and the postman has simply been dumping my letters in the harbor. It's plausible, I suppose. Somehow I doubt it, which means I am writing to a memory. I find I don't care all that much, because writing to someone that will never read what you are writing seems infinitely easier than writing to someone who can. Because ghosts can't really judge you, can they? Otherwise they wouldn't be ghosts.

I'm getting off topic. Forgive me.

This is my last letter to you, because I'm tired of trying. I don't even know why I'm telling you this. If you are actually alive and you can read this, you probably don't care much, given that you haven't replied to five years' worth of ramblings.

Oh, this sounded much better in my head - I hadn't meant it to sound so accusing. Perhaps there's good reason for your… absence.

Back to my point (my, I love rambling, don't I? I remember you and Jordie teasing me about it).

This is my last letter to you, so I suppose it should be filled with heartfelt farewell.

Though I really don't know what I'm supposed to say. You're probably much different than how I remember you - why, tomorrow is your birthday, isn't it? You'll be turning fifteen (and to think I'd almost forgotten!). Six years since I've last seen you.

You know I've always been sentimental, so I'm going to list all things I remember of nine-year-old Kaz. I wonder how much you've changed.

I remember hair that never stayed in place. Eyes that twinkled mischievously whenever you plotted some elaborate prank. I think I remember you loving pumpkin pie. I definitely remember you standing up to my father defiantly when he had hit me. After that, your family had taken me in. I remember being scared, and confused when no one yelled at me or hit me when I did something wrong - I was so used to my father's cruelty, that I hadn't realized it wasn't normal.

He's dead now, though, so it doesn't do me any good to think about him anymore, does it?

I remember trying to learn Zemeni, giggling when we misgendered the nouns, taking sips of hot cocoa to reward ourselves when we got a sentence right (why were we trying to learn, again? I forgot, and for some reason, the realization saddens me). I remember eating cherries while we climbed on the roof of the barn and watched the sunset in the summer. When we were seven, you got to carve the turkey on Ghezen's Day - your smile that day I don't think I could forget if I tried.

I remember quite a bit, and yet so little, and I'm beginning to realize that I miss you dearly, and by saying goodbye to you in a letter I'll never get a response for seems like giving up on you and Jordie.

I've been writing these letters for so long now, yet I never tire of it, and I think I know why (though maybe not - my emotions are everywhere). At first, I think they were a coping mechanism, trying to deal with everyone around me dying, but I think now that they were a subconscious plea.

To come home.

I know that you've probably forgotten about me, and if you haven't, you're probably trying to, but there's no harm in asking, right? Kaz (Jordie, if you're reading this), I want you to come home - I don't care if you don't talk to me, or you hate me, or you destroy everything I own. I don't care if you come and then leave the next morning, because it's been so long that I've begun to think you were just a figment of my imagination. I don't care if you come back and you don't recognize me, or I don't recognize you.

I just want you to come home.

Oh, who am I kidding. You won't, if you haven't already. I suppose it's one last plea, a desperate last attempt.

Goodbye, Kaz Rietveld (and Jordie, if you're reading this!).

This is my last letter to you.

Oh, how dearly I miss you.

Your former friend,

Y/N L/N

~

Kaz ran his fingers over the worn edges of the letter, dated two years ago. It was beginning to fade, the cheap ink smudging where Y/N had crossed out lines that were barely legible. Coffee stains and frayed, torn edges showed how many times that letter was read, from the first time it had arrived to now.

He had that letter memorized - he could recite it forwards and backwards and in his sleep.

If you are actually alive and you can read this, you probably don't care much, given that you haven't replied to five years' worth of ramblings.

He had every letter she had written him, ever since he had heard the postman complaining about delivering letters from a poor girl to a nonexistent boy. Such things weren't entirely uncommon, but Kaz had been bored and he had inquired as to the name of the nonexistent boy. Afterwards, he had received all her letters, read them, but never replied to Y/N, could never bring himself to.

You're probably much different than how I remember you.

Maybe that was part of the reason he never wrote a letter of his own - because he wanted her to remember him as human, as something with a soul and a heart and a family. Not a monster, with a body count and a limp and a façade of stone and steel.

I think I remember you loving pumpkin pie.

He had loved pumpkin pie, once. His mother had made it for them. But that was when he still had a mother.

He's dead now, though.

Kaz couldn't say he was sorry to hear it - even now, he hated the man with a fierce passion, rivaling that of his hate for Pekka Rollins. He remembered finding out what he had been doing to Y/N, and his tiny chest had filled with white-hot, pulsing rage.

Why were we trying to learn, again? I forgot.

Kaz's father had been trying to haggle with a Zemeni trader one night, but couldn't speak the language. He and Y/N had vowed to learn the language, a promise that had lasted exactly three days before they had realized just how hard it was to learn a new language.

When we were seven, you got to carve the turkey on Ghezen's Day - your smile that day I don't think I could forget if I tried.

It was strange indeed, how similar yet different that same memory was for him - he remembered that night because of how happy she had looked. It had been her first Ghezen's Day without her father, and she had later described the day as magical.

I just want you to come home.

She didn't really, Kaz knew with certainty. She wanted Kaz Rietveld, not Kaz Brekker, and Kaz Rietveld was dead. Y/N wanted the boy who drowned in the harbor with his brother.

[rika90]

Die Reise des Raben

Kaz Brekker x female reader

warnings: violence, death, swearing

word count: 4k

A/N: My first try at writing ever. Feedback is highly appriciated. If you see grammer or spelling mistakes, feel free to message me so I can fix the mistakes. English is not my first language. I really hope you guys enjoy my story!

(Y/N) had only been six years old when it had first happened. She had played hide and seek at her home with a boy from the neighbourhood and, in her humble opinion, found the best hiding spot of all time. In her parents' closet there was a small room behind the back wall. Hardly big enough to squeeze in and completely empty except for two swords. When her eyes fell on the swords, it was as if she could hear a whisper. (Y/N) looked over her shoulder, but she was still alone in her parents' room. She looked back at the swords and examined them more closely. They were not particularly long. The scabbard was made of blood-red wood and covered with black patterns that looked like bird feathers. The hilt was black too and (Y/N) wondered what the rest of the sword would look like. She reached out for one of the swords but hesitated to touch it. (Y/N) had always been fascinated by knives and had started early to always carry one with her when she played outside. The barrel was dangerous – even for children. But her mother, after catching her five-year-old daughter with a knife and bloody hands, had forbidden her to even touch a sharp knife. It wasn't her blood at all, but that of an older boy who had tried to take the few coins from her that she was supposed to use to buy bread from the baker.

'But this wasn't a knife, right?' (Y/N) thought. And even if she wanted to resist – she just couldn't. The two swords seemed to have a magical pull on her. With one last look over her shoulder, (Y/N) grabbed the sword closest to her. As her hand closed around the sword, she felt a shiver run through her. With her other hand she drew the sword from its scabbard. The blade was made of dark curved steel and (Y/N) immediately had the feeling that her and had merged with the handle, like the coldness of the steel seeps into her arm. She closed her eyes. It felt so right.

“Honey, where are you? Peter can't find you anywhere…. Oh my god (Y/N)! Drop that sword immediately!” (Y/N) opened her eyes and saw her completely astonished mother standing in front of her. (Y/N) could see the sheer panic in her eyes. Her father rushed into the room and stopped dead when he saw his daughter. Both parents had their eyes fixed on the arm (Y/N) was holding the sword with. She lowered her gaze and realized what had frightened her parents. Black patterns similar to those on the scabbard ran over her hand and up to the elbow. They would have been reminiscent of tattoos if they hadn't withdrawn in front of their eyes towards the sword.

"(Y/N), put the sword down and come over here," urged her mother. (Y/N) put the sword back into its sheath and carefully placed it on the ground. She didn't really want to let go of it, but the desire to placate mother was stronger.

"I suspected it," (Y/N)'s father mumbled and looked at his wife as she hugged (Y/N). "She has always had an affinity for blades. But that the wakizashi would react so strongly to her..."

"Put these things away," (Y/N)'s mother hissed and led her daughter out of the room.

The rest of the day (Y/N) tried to get her parents to talk to her about what had happened. But her mother made it clear that they would never talk about the swords again and that (Y/N) should forget about them immediately. Her father would sell them at the port tomorrow. (Y/N) shivered at the thought, but she saw no chance of keeping the

swords from being sold.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Everyday life quickly went back to normal, and nobody said a word about the two swords. But (Y/N) could not forget the feeling, the power that flooded her as she held the sword. So, she got herself two wooden sticks, carved them into shape as best she could, and trained. She had no idea how to wield a sword, but she practiced and practiced until her arms got

heavy. Her stamina had improved, but it was far from being called a fighting technique. She found school teaching sword fight in the university district near the 1st port. It was a long way from the barrel, but since her parents were working all day anyway, she had enough time to get there and come back unnoticed. (Y/N) secretly observed the students through a

window. She tried to memorize everything to recreate it later with her makeshift swords.

She hid the wooden swords under a loose floorboard in her room. As she was about to put them away again, her father came into the room to get her for dinner. (Y/N) froze, still one of the swords in hand. Her father looked from his daughter to the sword and back again. Then he closed the door and went up to her. (Y/N) didn't know what to expect, though it was

not the understanding look he gave her.

"You secretly exercise?" It sounded more like a statement than a question.

"Yes, for a while now," (Y/N) answered. Why should she lie?

Her father laughed softly. "I should have guessed. After all, you are the first to whom the wakizashi responded since your great-grandfather."

"What do you mean by that?" (Y/N) asked.

"These swords have been in my family for centuries. Most of the members could wield them like ordinary short swords. For some, however, these patterns appeared. It was as if the swords themselves gave them more power, speed and strength. My grandfather still didn't use them very often. He said he felt like he was losing his soul to the swords. That he felt a darkness dwelling in them. How much of it is true I can't say, but I hope you never have to find out. And now let us go out to eat."

After her father had finished, (Y/N) was left with more questions than answers.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

4 years later

The second time (Y/N) picked up those swords was on the day that changed her life forever.

She woke up when she heard screams from the staircase. The next second her father stormed into the room and pulled her out of her bed and towards her parents' bedroom.

"Dad, what's going on?" (Y/N) asked slightly panicked.

"You have to hide immediately. And no matter what you hear or see - DON'T COME OUT!" her father replied while he opened the door to the closet and pushed (Y/N) into the small room behind the wall unit. It was pitch black in (Y/N)'s hiding place, but she could hear the front door being kicked in and her mother screaming.

"Please excuse our unannounced visit," (Y/N) heard a deep male voice sneer, "But you're far behind with your payment and Bayson has announced what will happen if you can't pay."

"Please, Tom, we've already given Bayson everything we could spare. Please give us a few more weeks - we'll get the money," (Y/N)'s father pleaded.

"No, you had your chance," Tom answered.

"If you kill us, you will never get your money," (Y/N)'s mother whimpered.

(Y/N) sat in her hiding place, frozen with fear. Her parents owed money to some gangsters? Why hadn't they said anything to her? She could have gotten a job. She could have helped. What should she do now? Would these guys really kill her parents? She had to get to them and try to protect them. But she couldn't move, the fear was too strong. And honestly... what could she have done?

"That's true," Tom's voice was cold and void of any emotion, "But you'll be a deterring example to anyone who thinks they can mess with the Blue Moons. And maybe your pretty daughter can bring in a few more Kruge."

"Don't you dare-," (Y/N)'s father began, but before he could end his threat, two shots rang out, followed by two thuds.

"What weaklings, it’s a miracle they survived in the barrel for so long," (Y/N) heard Tom laugh.

(Y/N) had pressed her hands over her mouth to stifle the scream that threatened to break out. Tears sprang to her eyes and rolled down her cheeks.

"Boss, the girl is not here," one of the men reported.

"Doesn't matter. One more orphan in the barrel. She won't survive for long on her own anyway. Let's get out of here," Tom replied and (Y/N) heard steps moving away. She stayed in the room for a while and then forced herself to leave her hiding place.

It was dark in the apartment and only a single candle was still burning in the hallway. (Y/N) forced herself to take the last step into the hallway and saw her parents slumped on the floor.

'Headshot,' thought (Y/N) absentmindedly. At least it had been quick. She felt like she was detached from her body. She sank down in a daze. What should she do now? Get the stadwatch? She snorted at the thought. Nobody cared about two dead people from the barrel. And certainly not about her. At best she would go to an orphanage, at worst she would be sold to someone.

'I should leave while I still can,' she decided.

After throwing a few things into her bag, she went back to her parents' bedroom. She knew that her father kept the old, small family photo album in one of his drawers. He had often looked at it with her in the past. When she was about to put it in her bag, a piece of paper fell out. (Y/N) picked it up and recognized her father's handwriting.

They are not sold. I knew that one day you would need them. I hid them under my mattress. I am sorry that I will no longer be there to protect you. But you are strong, you will live!

Love, Dad.

(Y/N) blinked away the tears and pulled the mattress off the bed to get the swords. She would train until she was strong enough to kill every one of the Blue Moons. They would pay for what they did to their family. They would all die, and she would live.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

4 years later

She had saved Boysen for last. Enjoyed how his panic grew with every member of the Blue Moons found dead and slashed. She had initially intended to kill him right away, but it was better to start with some weaker members first to practice her skills. And Tom had fit perfectly in that category. He had been the first person (Y/N) ever killed. And it had been great. The second she had grabbed the wakizashi to avenge her family, she had felt like she was born to do exactly that. To bring pain and darkness. She had felt the power spreading throughout her body and had welcomed the cold that allowed her to kill without hesitation.

At first, she had planned to wipe out the Blue Moons as soon as possible, but in time she had found a pleasure in watching them first try to find her and later try to hide from her. (Y/N) took more than a year to gradually thin the ranks of the Blue Moons. But tonight, she would end it. There were only Boysen and half a dozen of his men left. He had gathered his best men a while ago and went underground. Left the rest of the gang to their fate.

(Y/N) stood in the shadow of an old house, watching a warehouse on the docks. There she had located the rest of the Blue Moons. Her hood was pulled low over her face, so the raven mask was barely visible. The black tattoos that always appeared as soon as she fought with the swords could already be seen on her hands and arms. She slid noiselessly along the hall. Only one man stood guard. That was done quickly. (Y/N) covered his mouth from behind to stifle his scream as she pierced him with her short sword. (Y/N) let the man fall to the ground and entered the hall through a side entrance. There were four men sitting around a table playing cards. Boysen and another man stood a little further away and seemed to be discussing something.

"Hello guys," (Y/N) said, enjoying the panic breaking out around her. The men almost toppled over each other in a rush to get their weapons.

"How did you find us, Rabe?" Boysen called and aimed his gun at (Y/N) with a trembling hand.

"Oh, I just followed the stink of fear and voila, here you are," (Y/N) said as she looked at the men. She felt the swords literally vibrate in her hands. The urge to kill was almost overwhelming.

'In a moment, a little more patience,' (Y/N) thought.

"We are not afraid of you. You have no chance against all of us," one of the other men replied.

"Is that so?" (Y/N) asked softly and looked at the man with a tilted head, "Well, then I'll teach you fear."

She ran off. Faster than a human should be able to. She felt the power rush through her veins, making her faster and stronger. She was in a frenzy. The first two men were dead before anyone could really process what had happened. The other two at the table opened fire. (Y/N) whirled her swords and fended off the bullets. The men got big eyes and stumbled backwards.

"What the hell are you?" one of them shouted.

"Your end," (Y/N) jumped up to the men and slit them open with two well-aimed blows. Blood spurted from their wounds and in their last seconds the men tried in vain to keep their intestines from oozing out.

She turned away and set about crushing the last two cowardly rats. Boysen and his companion had run away, but they couldn't have been far yet.

(Y/N) ran over the roofs and discovered the two men trying to untie a boat at the harbour.

She knocked the head off the shoulders of the one man without further ado. His body fell into the water with a loud splash. Boysen spun around and fired a pistol. But (Y/N) was prepared for it, ducked away, knocked the weapon out of his hand and held her two swords crossed in the shape of an X in front of his neck.

Boysen was frozen.

"Why me? Why the Blue Moons?” he asked.

"You had my family killed. With others, you may have always gotten away with it. It's just your bad luck that I'm the uncrowned queen here in the barrel when it comes to killing." With these words, (Y/N) slit Boysen’s throat, but only enough to render him helpless. He would bleed to death slowly and painfully. He slumped to the ground and stared up at her. She smiled down at him.

She stayed with him until he took his last breath. She felt nothing, no remorse, no regrets. Only darkness, but at the same time a deep satisfaction that always set in after a fight with her swords. She put the wakizashi back into their sheaths. She knew she had already gone too far.

There was no turning back for her. Her great grandfather might have been strong enough to withstand the call of the swords. But she wasn’t, the rush was too good. So why should she stop?

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1 year later

She strolled along the harbour, the adrenaline still pumping through her veins. The black patterns hadn't completely withdrawn after their last fight and (Y/N) still felt the strength and darkness that came with the use of her wakizashi. It was like a frenzy. Fighting with her swords was like a drug. And (Y/N) was a hopeless junkie. She had long since given up on worrying that the darkness and bloodlust would eventually devour her completely. Because it was bound to happen as long as she wielded the swords. And while she was a good shot and a very passable fighter with her fists – as she had to, to survive this long in the barrel – she was the deadliest with her swords. She had made a name for herself as Der Rabe and was able to keep herself afloat from the jobs she received. At least until she wouldn't be fast enough in a battle, or the swords would drive her crazy. She had lived in the barrel since she was born, at some point the time would just run out, so why worry? What in her life was worth fighting for, except for the next meal? Everyone fought for themselves, others were always a risk. Trusting the wrong people could end badly. Very bad. (Y/N) put one hand over her heart where the faded scar was.

Lost in thought, she almost overheard the voice that seemed to come from the dock. (Y/N) looked over the edge in astonishment. The picture that presented itself should have been disturbing, but she had seen a lot in her time in the barrel. A boy with dark hair, about her age, was hanging on the ladder and muttering to himself. He looked more dead than alive. Not far from him another body was floating in the water. Already rotting and bloated.

It was clear that the dark-haired boy would never make it up the ladder. Any second, he would let go and sink down.

'At least it's over then,' (Y/N) thought and was about to turn away when the boy opened his eyes and looked up at her. (Y/N) caught her breath and a pleasant shiver ran down her spine. His eyes were such a piercing, rich blue that they seemed to glow even in his dirty, sunken face.

When (Y/N) went down the ladder to drag the boy onto the quay wall, she didn't know exactly why she wanted to help him. She had seen many people in need in the barrel and had not wasted a second on them. Perhaps it was the seemingly irrepressible determination in those blue eyes that seemed to call out, "I want to live!"

Somehow, she felt connected to the boy.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I can do it. I have to make it. I can do it," Kaz kept muttering to himself so as not to completely lose consciousness. His whole body ached, and he knew that he wouldn't have long before all his strength would leave him. Kaz blinked up. He just had to climb this incredibly high and steep ladder and then he would be safe. At least safe from drowning. Everything else he would worry about when the time came.

'I can do it ... I just need to rest for a moment,' Kaz closed his eyes and continued muttering to himself. He felt his grip begin to loosen and tears his eyes open. On the quay wall he saw a figure completely clad in black, who seemed to be watching him with their head tilted. They were wearing a knee-length coat and had the hood pulled over their head. Their mouth was covered by a tube scarf and the area around the eyes was covered by some kind of mask. The figure reminded Kaz of a reaper. 'No way, forget it,' Kaz thought, 'You definitely won't get me tonight! Not after all I have endured to get here.'

Kaz stared at the figure stubbornly. But when they swung themself over the quay wall and descended the ladder, fear seized him. What was that supposed to mean? Would they throw him in the water? Why didn't they just move on?

When the figure was only a step above him, they turned and grabbed his arm with one hand still on the ladder. At the touch bile rose up in Kaz' throat and he fought against the looming faint that threatened to overwhelm him. He tried to tear himself away from the hand that was holding him and didn't even notice that the person didn't want to push him away, but rather pull him up.

"Hey, stop fidgeting. I'm trying to save your ass right now and I don't feel like going for a swim," Kaz heard a voice that could hardly be made out through the fabric in front of the mouth. Still, Kaz could hear that the voice sounded feminine and didn't quite match the Reaper Kaz had in front of him. `Why is she whispering?’ Kaz wondered and paused to look at the girl, because that was what she had to be. But through the hood and mask he couldn't see anything except a pair of dark eyes that glared at him angrily.

The girl used the short pause to tighten her grip. She had amazing strength in her arm and managed to pull Kaz onto the ladder. Kaz found support with his foot on the lowest step but was now so close to the girl that he felt the panic collapse over him. Everything went black and he only heard the curse the girl uttered before the darkness completely enveloped him.

"What the hell- ?!" (Y/N) wrapped her arm around the boy's chest to keep him on the ladder, but he sagged completely and dragged her into the water. (Y/N) reappeared with a splutter, still holding the boy.

"Holy shit, is that cold!" she cursed and paddled back to the ladder to grab it with one hand.

"Hey, wake up! Wake up!” she shook him, but he didn't react. She felt for a pulse – why should she bother when he is already dead? With bated breath she waited - and felt a pulse. Alive but unconscious.

"Shit, what now?" she thought. Let go of him? No, that was out of question. (Y/N) looked up and counted the stairs. Seven. She could do seven. She was a good deal taller than him and had a strong upper body from all the sword training. She pulled the boy's arms over her shoulders, so his chest was pressed against her back and tied his wrists with her belt to keep him from slipping off during the ascent. She pulled herself up on the first step. The boy hung on her back like a heavy backpack.

'Thank God he's so emaciated, otherwise this would never work,' (Y/N) thought.

After three steps she had to readjust the boy's arms, her own burning from the effort of lifting herself and easily 45 kilograms of dead weight.

"Why am I doing this to myself again?! For a pair of pretty eyes? I must be completely crazy," (Y/N) grumbled to herself.

After what felt like an eternity, (Y/N) heaved herself and the boy over the quay wall. With her eyes closed she lay on her side panting to catch her breath. She untied the boy's hands and sat up.

'I'll have sore muscles tomorrow,' she thought as she rolled her shoulders to relieve the tension in her cramped joints. She looked at the boy who was still unconscious. She shook his shoulder again to wake him, but again he didn't move.

"Oh, isn't that convenient for you," (Y/N) muttered, "If you think I'll drag you just a meter further, you're wrong."

She looked around, you could already see dawn looming at the horizon, and she really had to hurry to get back to her room and change.

Again, she looked at the dark-haired boy. He was so pale, and his cheekbones were sharp against his face. 'If I leave him here and he dies, the whole effort would be in vain,' she thought. (Y/N) got up with a sigh, fastened her swords – which fortunately were still where she had left them – and grabbed one of his arms.

"So much on the topic 'Not one meter further'," (Y/N) thought. She slung him over her shoulder and pulled and dragged the boy toward the boarding house.

"He’ll be safe there for the time being and can recover. It’s time to look for something new anyway. I just take him there and then I'm really gone," (Y/N) debated quietly to herself.

TBC

[serpenteve]

is it just me who thinks that both versions of the darkling suck at manipulation? it's obvious that show Darkles was just not trying at all because he fell in love pretty much at first sight, but I don't think book Darkles was very good at it either? Alina never really becomes dependent on him at all, he very obviously did not set out to seduce her romantically (despite the retcon in R&R) and even seems to be avoiding her at points. Alina is never convinced at any point that he's into her beyond physically lol. I definitely do not believe book Darkles when he tried to say he wouldn't have collared her if she hadn't run away though - she was going to end up in it eventually no matter what. I think he did a good job of feeding her insecurity around her summoning but beyond that...I mean he couldn't even get her to be loyal to HIM let alone all the Grisha. What are your thoughts?

I don't know what was in the script, but Ben plays the Darkling like a lovesick puppy with TERRIBLE game because he hasn't been on a date in like 300 years ☠️

Like, the whole "darkles manipulated alina" narrative in the show is a fucking joke to me because all I see is fucking idiot who is genuinely like *shocked pikachu face* when Alina hates him for putting that collar on her like "whaaat? She doesn't like that I killed a magical deer for her and used it's antlers to gift her this awesome necklace that gives her a massive power boost??? Why is she yelling at me like that??"

Like, dude. Buy her dinner first 😂

The only time I feel like he actually manipulates her is when he implies they're going to destroy the Fold but then he's like "pfffft why would be destroy it when it's the greatest weapon we have" and she's like "YOU LIED!!" and then Ben has this truly hammy moment where he does this dramatic ass villain turn while his face is obscured by darkness but even then it's like "Yeah, she hates me now but she'll forgive me in t-minus 15 years and then the wedding is back on" 🤡

The story tries so hard to be like "he's pURe EviL!!1" and it's literally just darkles looking at Alina with literal TEARS in his eyes or even bothering to show so much genuine emotion when he doesn't even have to because Alina isn't even in the damn scene to witness it 😂

Like that time he was acting like a heartbroken 15 year old when he gets roasted by Kaz or stands on the other side of the door after Alina left and all you can do is point and laugh at this immortal dumbass like

So maybe there was *an attempt* by Show!Darkling to manipulate Alina at the start but that pretty much went out the window when she first started yelling at him and he immediately decided to plan their immortal married life together like a hopeless dork:

In conclusion: show!Darkling is a hopeless simp whose entire eViL pLaN got derailed because he caught feelings for an angry sunbeam 😌

As for book!Darkling, he at least didn't get his plan derailed until much later and unlike his show counterpart, actively HATED his crush on Alina? Like it was a massive fucking inconvenience to him and he'd be so embarrassed to see the absolute simping clownery that show!Darkling got into that he'd probably fake his death again.

But the other thing about the book is that book!Alina herself is so desperate for approval and a place to belong that she makes it very easy to manipulate and play on her emotions.

The reason book!Darkling comes across as more morally grey is because a lot of his actions always end up serving like two different purposes (one of them working in Alina's favour, and the other self-serving):

He deliberately keeps Mal's letters away from her to try and cut her connections to the past, but this actually ends up being a good thing because even Alina later admits that had he not sabotaged her communications with Mal, there's no way she would have learned to summon her power on her own (In the show, it comes across more like Darkles is low-key jealous that Alina has a strapping boyfriend and he probably cries himself to sleep reading their letters lmao)

He initially stands up to Alina getting railed on by Baghra when her summoning is weak because he doesn't really need her to be a good summoner if he can just strap a collar on her BUT this ends up helping Alina feel better about herself because he's like the only person who ever advocates for her or gently encourages her

He lies to her about destroying the Fold but his plan actually makes a lot more sense, especially looking at the complete clusterfuck Ravka became after the Fold got destroyed lmao 😂

You could argue his first kiss is pure calculation because he wanted Alina to be loyal to him with something other than duty or fear, but his second kiss at the Winter Fete was literally just him losing his cool and he even admits he doesn't want to give in to his "weak" puny mortal emotions, but this implies there is still some humanity left in him

Had Baghra not shown up to warn Alina, it's likely Alina would have worn the stag collar with 100% consent because she was looking forward to it, but she likely would not have consented to him using her powers to expand the Fold so when he says "that was never my intention" with regards to collaring Alina, I think he really means that it was never his intention to collar her without her consent but he decided he was gonna do it anyway once she ran off....however, I think he's being deliberately vague by leaving off the part where he planned on using her power to destroy a village lmao

So while I think book!Darkling definitely manipulates her because he's a man for whom the ends always justify the means, it still leaves me feeling kinda "meh" about the whole thing because had Alina been a more morally grey character herself, they could have literally just taken over the world???? the wasted potential 😭

[southslates]

something wicked this way comes

@grishaversebigbang - it’s been so awesome bringing this six of crows harry potter inspired AU to life!

materialki: @violetfolgi, @spirilium [here], @forgetyourtroubleshappyday, @margot-arts [here], @art-by-me19, @purns-art

summary: Kaz and Inej meet as Hogwarts first years and become fast acquaintances and allies and then something more. A story about falling in love. Slytherin house isn't ready for these two.

ao3 link

prologue (the hogwarts express, year one!) below the cut!:

Inej was always early. She’d slipped into the first open compartment she’d found in the Hogwarts Express, cosying up to the window. She couldn’t stop anyone else from joining her— by the time the late stragglers arrived at the train, she’d probably have to share the room with someone else. 

She sighed at that thought, but decided to sit in silence and stare out the window in solitude for as long as she could. Inej could see the entirety of platform 9¾ from where she was. Her own parents had dropped her off almost half an hour ago, and hadn’t been able to stay. She didn’t blame them; she understood the timeliness required of their profession, and they’d cried over her enough before they left. 

With a quick crack of static, the speaker above her head started to blare. “The train will be leaving in ten minutes,” it said. “We will not stay back for stragglers.”

It was the families of the first years who seemed to be holding up the platform, but Inej saw them slowly start towards the train too. The corridor outside her closed door started up a racket, and she winced. She just wasn’t a fan of loud noise, or of too many people. 

“Ay, you think this one’s free?” she heard, and then the door to her compartment was pushed open. She expected to see a few loud-mouthed fourth years, perhaps even a sixth or seventh year who would force her to leave her blissfully open cabin and walk into the unknown. Instead, she turned her slight head to see a boy who couldn’t be more than a year older than her. 

“It’s full,” he said behind him. His voice was a bit raspy but still pre-pubescent, nothing like anything Inej had heard before.

“Damn it.” Noise dissipated from the corridor, and Inej looked away from the strange boy, tugging her luggage closer to her and staring out the window once more. The platform was empty of children, full of crying parents; almost. She could make out a few stragglers just now coming through the pillar which marked the platform as an in-between. 

“Five minutes,” the speaker rang. 

Inej heard the compartment door slide shut. When she looked to the left again, she saw the boy seated across from her, glaring forward at nothing. She didn’t know what to say to him, so she said nothing, just pulled herself up onto her knees on the seat. A minute or two passed, and the silence switched from slightly uncomfortable to something fitting. Inej was a bit grateful. If she had to sit with someone, at least it wasn’t someone who wanted to make her uncomfortable. 

As the platform grew stagnant, she turned the slightest bit to face the boy, letting her hair fall in front of her face. He was staring straight ahead at the empty seat in front of her, his dark hair falling into his coffee-colored eyes, his mouth in a thin line. He had the chubby cheeks of childhood, the ones she shared, but they looked almost hollow— perhaps they’d look sharp when he grew older. He was wearing a set of wizarding robes, one meant for children— Inej was too, but his were tailored well, and made of a silky fabric she couldn’t name. 

There was a plain black bag at his side that was deceivingly simple; it was made out of a shiny material, too, and rather clean. Inej wondered if he was a member of one of the ancient wizarding families— that seemed likely, though she couldn’t be sure. She scrunched her eyes together and thought she could make out something stitched into the bag’s handle. K. Rotvold? 

“You’re staring,” the boy said, and Inej looked up. She didn’t know how long he’d been watching her trace him. She didn’t say anything. “Who are you?”

“Inej Ghafa,” she whispered after a moment. Her name wouldn’t mean much to anyone— it was her father’s, and it was her mother who was the family wizard. Her father was a muggle; the descendant of squibs, but a muggle nonetheless. 

He nodded and then stared at her, his eyebrows drawn, as though he was doing calculations on her face. He said nothing, so Inej was forced to ask. “And you?”

“Kaz. Kaz Brekker,” he said curtly, his voice rough, like salt. Perhaps that was just puberty. It was an odd sound.

Inej was sure the name on his bag was not Brekker, but she didn’t want to bring that up. She and Kaz met eyes and then both quickly nodded their heads at each other. Then she turned her face back to the window. 

Their quiet existence was interrupted not even a moment later. “The Hogwarts Express is now leaving,” said the announcer. At that moment something suddenly pressed against the compartment door and a girl burst through it, tugging a boy behind her. 

She was tall, far taller than Kaz and Inej and even the boy behind her, and breathing heavily, but smiling. “Told you we’d make it, Jesper!”

The dark-skinned boy, Jesper, let go of her hand and ran it through his hair. “I don’t even know you.”

“We’re friends now,” she turned to him and closed the door behind them just as the train set off, slowly starting to speed out. In a split-second, Kaz scooted down to sit right across from Inej as Jesper fell into the seat next to him and the girl sat down next to Inej. They both clutched their bags tightly to each other.

Inej internally groaned at the intrusion, and when she looked up Kaz was making eye contact with her. His face was stalwart, but she almost felt as though he would be rolling his eyes if he was capable of it. This boy was already an enigma to her. 

“Hi!” the girl on her side said, green eyes shining, bag clutched to her chest. Inej turned to her and gave her a small smile, putting her feet back onto the ground. “I’m Nina! I’m a first year.”

“Hello,” Inej intonated. 

“I’m Jesper, and I’m a first year too,” the boy across from Nina smiled. Then the four of them fell into an awkward silence. 

“I’m Inej,” Inej said. “And this is Kaz. We’re both first years.” At least, she assumed Kaz was.

“Nice to meet you!” Nina said, bending forward to Kaz, as though to shake his hand. He leaned back into his seat and glared at her. “Wow. No need to be like that.”

“Sorry for bursting into your compartment,” Jesper said. “We didn’t mean to interrupt anything.”

“You weren’t—” Inej blushed. “Nothing, there’s no problem.”

“Great!” Nina said. “I’m so excited to get to Hogwarts. I’ve been practicing magic for a bit but going to the school will be so cool. I want to be a—”

“How’ve you been practicing magic?” Kaz asked, suddenly sitting up.

“I’m—” she almost blushed. “I’m part veela, actually, and I was mostly raised at the Little Palace. You must have heard of it—”

“I have,” Kaz interrupted again. “Veela,” he murmurs, almost as if to himself. “You must know your way around a wand.”

“We work more with specific types of magic,” Nina said. “I specialized in blood magic, mostly for healing. But I’m not very good at it— hopefully it’ll be better with a wand.”

“You’re a heartrender,” Kaz said, seeming a bit taken aback. Nina scrunched her brows. 

“You know about the orders? Are you—”

“I like reading,” he said simply.

Nina nodded slowly and leaned back. “What house do you want to get sorted into?” she asked.

Jesper spoke first. “I’m not sure. Don’t really think I’m meant for Slytherin or Ravenclaw, though.”

“How did you two run into each other?” Inej asked quietly. 

Jesper started laughing. “We were both running late outside the station and came in together.”

“Are you also grisha?” Kaz asked suddenly. 

Jesper seemed a bit shocked, but quickly shook his head. “Nopes,” he popped. He nodded to Inej. “What house do you think you’ll get sorted into?”

“I don’t know,” Inej shook her head, letting more of her hair fall into her face. “I don’t really know much about Hogwarts. I wasn’t supposed to come here.”

“Oh,” Jesper said, then leaned in to look at her. “Were you supposed to go to Karmana?”

“Sort of,” Inej said. “My family travels a lot. We were in England when the letters came, so I got sent here.”

“Cool!” Jesper said. “Well, I’m glad we got to meet you. Now we can all be friends.”

“Excuse me?” Kaz said. Jesper turned to him with a bright grin, refusing to falter as he was met with a stalwart glare. Nobody replied to him; Nina asked Inej if she’d bought her robes, and from where, and if she was looking forward to sharing a dorm. 

Nina was loud and boisterous, and Jesper was funny and constantly in motion, and Kaz was quiet and mean— he’d taken to glaring at Jesper as the boy tried to talk to him about brooms. They were a strange group, the four of them, but even Kaz didn’t grumble as they sat, together, in the boats that would take them to see their first real glimpse of the castle. 

[tallyovie]

My favourite book/movie boys in no particular order:

Yes I think almost all of them are black haired or sarcastic

Zachary Goode from the Gallagher Girls series

Spy. Sarcastic. Intelligent. Some rivalry, enemies to lovers vibe. Immaculate. You can tick the following boxes also: trauma in past, dark hair. The one who knows the MC the most but still gets surprised when the dumbass lands herself in dangerous situations.

Loki (not MCU version) in Runelight and The Gospel of Loki by Joanne Harris

If you liked the version of Loki in the Marvel Movies but you want more complex stories this is the one for you. It explores the world of norse mythologies and later on it is set in a different world. In Runelight the main character and Loki have the typical 'I can't trust you but I'm forced to' vibes. Oh and runes, magic, underworld, scheming.

Regulus Black

Refer to my post here. Still can't find good fanfictions about him.

Ash from The Iron King series by Julie Kagawa

If you liked the Cruel Prince this book is the father of it in my opinion. Enemies to lovers. Ash is the son of Mab. The third book was my go to if I wanted to have a good cry. If you don't love the epilogue we can't be friends. The MC goes through realistic feelings so it won't annoy you. They struck a deal and you all know in a fairy settings deals mean a lot.

Percy Jackson

We all knew this was coming. He set my expectations unreasonibly high. Percabeth is a hill I'll die on defending it.

Young Tom Riddle

Well, I never told you there won't be toxic ass motherfuckers. Yes I have good recommendations that don't involve him going through some big character change. Manipulative, addictive, enemies to lovers. Another fic that was my go to when crying.

Grisam Burdock from Fairy Oak

The teen story we all needed but didn't get because it is a book suited for smaller children. Anyways. Perwinka and him set my expectations too high.

Robin de Noir from The Secret of Moonacre movie

Now this man. This. Motherfuckin. Man. Augustus Prew with coal under his eyes is everything. I know he is gay in real life but the tension between Maria and him... You have pretty castles, forests, bandits (he is one of them), an old ancient curse on the families in the valley. And I have the best fanfic recommendation. I need more people to gush over this with. The og enemies to lovers. Dark haired. Bad father, bad example, but in his heart he is good. This is my comfort movie.

Luc from The invisible life of Addie LaRue

A wild, dark god. Enemies. I know the book is slow, but if you are someone who likes that this book is for you. Don't expect him to be someone gentle, his nature refuses restrainment. Do not call on him in the night. If you like history and the joy of life this book is good for that.

Thomas Cresswell from Stalking Jack the Ripper

This man uses his brains and doesn't gaslight you. Accepting and sarcastic. England. Ofc he has secrets, and trauma who do you take me for? Someone who likes boys without trauma? And yes the MC's and his relationship is perfection. Slight rivalry I guess too? Slow burn like almost all books I read.

Gilbert Blythe from Anne of Green Gables

I know I already said og enemies to lovers but mutual pining after being school rivals for years?? Come on. Both the book and the 1985 movie version is chef's kiss. A proper gentleman who is not afraid to tease you and call you out on your bullshit. Nice dresses, nice scenery, nice friendship. Comfort movie yes.

Day from the Legend series

Enemies. To. Lovers. I have to capture you because you killed my brother. Amazing. Biggest crying sessions of my life. Good dynamics, the relationship does not just consist of being happy and having a few sad moments. THE LAST TWO CHAPTERS.

Honorable mentions:

Kaz Brekker (i like my man with a dose of trauma and slow burn or no touch yes) if you have long and good slow burn recs of kanej I am listening

Oliver Wood (the sportswoman in me is thrilled)

Fred Weasley (do I even have to explain? Refer to my masterlist here)

Aiden from Barbie

JUST BECAUSE I AM A CURIUS BISHH I AM TAGGING THESE LOVELY MUTUALS: @bubblegum-and-cherry and @slytherin-chaser no pressure just if you are up to it you can do this or not

[siriuslyblackblog]

Can you do Draco Malfoy fluff? I’m in need to read something soft 💕

Cigarettes And Firewhiskey 》 D. Malfoy

𝑷𝒂𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈: Draco Malfoy x Muggle!Reader 𝑾𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔: cigarettes, alcohol 𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒆: fluff, slight angst 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒔: 1294 𝑺𝒖𝒎𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒚: Draco found a friend in a muggle girl, but over the time, he realises that he doesn't want to use the word friend with her.

⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅

Who in their right mind can love thunder? It's loud, scary and not satisfying at all. How could someone possibly enjoy it? Even look at it?, The girl thought while hiding under a blanket with a book, going through the pages with curious and impatient eyes. Sometimes her eyes would wander to the end of the page, accidentally spoiling the ending. She hated herself for doing that, but excitement swallowed her each time she would take a book in her hands. She just couldn't help it.

Too busy with being mad at Kaz Brekker, she didn't hear the knocking on her door. The blanket over her head and the thunderstorm only made it more difficult to hear. The knocking then became louder and more impatient. Just as she uncovered her head, the room lit up, making her jump and rush to the door so she could open it before it happens again. Seeing lightning from the inside was already scary enough. The girl peeked through the window near the door. A gasp escaped her lips, her hands flew towards the doorknob, then held the heavy body that was previously leaning against the wet wood before it could fall. The man in her arms mumbled, then gently pushed her aside and stumbled towards the couch. He wasn't drunk. He was injured. Very injured.

Her orange couch was not a strange object to him. He would often come over and sleep at night. The small hut in the mountain village was more of a home to him than the empty manor. When it wasn't empty, it was a mess. Narcissa yelled, Lucius yelled, the house elfs ran around in fear, trying to dodge their anger. He found his comfort in someone he would never expect. A muggle girl. She knew about magic, about his family, about Harry Potter and his friends. She disliked him very much. He was the reason why Draco was often in a bad mood. Draco and the girl met at the train station. She was being pulled away by a suspicious couple, and he noticed. He almost missed his train trying to help her. They never heard about those two people again. The police officer only told the kids to be careful and not leave their parent's side. She was only fourteen when that happened. Her parents were hard working people and she wanted to use the train so she could see them after a busy weekend. Before leaving, she promised the grey eyed boy that she would be more careful.

Draco found her two years later. She worked on a book stand on the train station. He was surprised by his own feelings. He felt warmth when he looked at her. She had changed. Her hair wasn't  dark like he remembered. Her cheeks weren't round anymore, her clothes became more tight and her legs longer. The way her fingers arranged the books was so fascinating to him. He wasn't sure if it was because of the colour of her nail polish, which happened to be the same one as his tie and scarf, or because of her soft looking skin.

Since then, both of them became best friends. He would often come to her during holidays. He knew she didn't have anyone left. Even though he always seemed to come injured, she didn't mind taking care of him. This time was worse. He had blood dripping down one side of his face, he held onto his shoulder and his knees were pressed against his chest. He silently laid there, short sighs leaving his lips.

Instead of questioning him, she sat on the couch, gently placing his head in her lap. A sigh of relief was heard, then nothing. The rain was still pouring outside. It made the boy sleepy. But he refused to fall asleep. He wanted to talk to her. Not even talk. He just wanted to listen to her. He waited two weeks to see her. Two very long weeks.

"Do you happen to have firewhiskey?"

His friend rolled her eyes, then went back to combing his hair with her fingers.

"No, I don't have any magic liquid in my house. Will regular whiskey do, Mr Wizard?"

Draco then sat up, pulled out his wand and made a bottle of orange liquid appear on the table, along with a pack of cigarettes. He didn't wait a single second before pouring both of them a glass, then taking a cigarette. As much as she hated them, the sight of Draco Malfoy with his lips wrapped around it was just mesmerizing. His injured fingers played with the lighter, not even caring about the fact that it made his cuts worse. Then, he took her glass and brought it to her lips. She reached for it, but he moved it away and raised his eyebrow. Her eyebrows scrunched with confusion, but she finally understood. She let her hands fall on her lap and Draco smiled with satisfaction. He brought the liquid to her lips again. His eyes never left hers. So much eye contact usually made her uncomfortable, but this was different. Just as she wanted to move away, he raised the glass so that the last drop ended up between her lips.

"More?"

"Yes, please," she breathed out.

"Father made me duel him, you know. So I can get stronger." He explained while pointing towards his face.

The girl kept her mouth shut. She already knew how bad of a father Lucius is. Speaking or asking about him right now wouldn't make Draco feel better. She still drank from his hand, he refused to let her drink on her own. It made him feel protective and it made her look so small and cute.

Only thirty minutes later, more than half of the bottle was gone, and not because of Draco. The boy was surprised to see his close friend drink like that. They didn't talk. They exchanged glances, a few accidental touches and hums as a signal for more drinks. The boy noticed that she was sitting still now. Her glass was placed on the table and her gaze was unfocused. It meant that she really wanted to say something, but couldn't.

"Yes, little one?" He encouraged.

When she didn't answer, he placed his hand under her chin and lifted her head up. Finally, his favorite pair of eyes in the world looked at him.

"I think I love you," she blurted out.

She expected any kind of reaction from him except the one she got. He smirked, picked up his almost burnt cigarette and placed it between her lips. She flinched, but didn't move away. She trusted him. She inhaled, but didn't let it go down her throat. It stayed at the end of her tongue and she was trying her best to fight the tears because of the taste.

"Good job, love."

Then, he got close. So close that it made her stomach ticklish from the inside. His injured hands cupped her face, his lips inched closer towards hers, until they finally touched. The girl relaxed in his arms, and the smoke she kept inside her mouth filled his too. He wished he could witness it from someone's point of view. The kiss was short and sweet. No tongues involved, just soft lips touching. It was heaven. One peck after another, the girl started to feel too comfortable and relaxed. Her body collapsed in his arms. He moved away, then looked at her with confusion. He almost started laughing out loud when he saw her; she fell asleep. Her body wasn't used to alcohol, and it was way past midnight. She just couldn't take it.

"I guess I will be the one to put you in bed tonight."