#although he'll whimper if he's in too much pain and i have to check on him

[theeliampayne]

.

[olivescales3]

The Forgotten Legends of Chima Episode 2

Check out episode 1 [here]!

Laying down on the ground, the lightened gloom strikes at us by the moon, tinting our surroundings with various monochromatic shades of purple. 

No matter how much Cragger counts the stars, or how much we spend time blathering about our lives, the purple moon sits still in the spotlight, stagnant; nighttime has never been this slow and peaceful.

Everything seems serene– it's impossible to not feel refreshed, absorbed by the calm, soothing wind.

I notice Cragger get up, ripping off the grass with his feet. He stands still, stiffening his body into a square, although moving his tail side by side, as he crosses his arm and mumbles.

Unable to hear him properly, I reach out to him in anxiety,

"Hey, Cragger… what's the matter?"

He lifts his lip, exposing his gums, "I want to leave", he replies.

Instinctively, I seize his hand onto mine, out of fear that he rushes away from me, yet, even then, I might lose him– my vision is dim, we don't have enough light near us. The worst part is… that I don't even know where we are.

Cragger… please don't go. You'll hurt yourself.

He growls, rasping his voice in an unusual tone, "Why are you grabbing me? Can't I walk around for a second?"

I try to drag Cragger down, but he agitates his hand, making me lose my grip.

"Please, stay! I don't want you to—"

An unfortunate event happens, as my friend runs towards the unrecognizable horizon.

No… not again! Why can't he stop abandoning me like this?...

I don't want to be alone. I don't.

Why does he need to be so reckless?

…I won't let go of him. This world is too dangerous.

I push my paws forward and sprint with the speed my feeble legs can gather, the wind flies on my fur, everything around me blurs uncontrollably—

Thud!

I crash onto the ground. Cragger's shouts echo out of nowhere, hiding light whimpers of nervousness, blending in with my cries.

The moment we shut our lips, leaves crunch from the distance. I turn around, and for a millisecond I encounter a wolf, with pitch black fur, staring at me, with a long, macabre snarl, as if it's smiling. It pounces at me—

I fling my blanket across the room, gasping for air, as tears flood out of my eyes. Paralyzed, I can't cry for help. I'm alone, afraid. Each word I utter turns out as sobs. My rapid breathing suddenly starts to strangle me. Am I spiraling out of control? 

A gentle touch falls upon my shoulder; my dad, who pants as if he just ran a thousand miles, squeezes me comfortably between his arms.

"My son! What happened? Your hands are cold…", Lagravis whispers.

My ribs clamp, heart pounding stiffly.

Without self control, I end up shouting, "Wolf! The wolf jumped at me!"

Blood pressure skyrockets.

Head feels light.

Pain spreads throughout me. It irks me with its adrenaline.

Dad pets my head, and, despite my panic, his soft paw pads warm my chilling skin. I lean onto him, in for a hug. It feels good.

My breath… is returning back to normal.

Phew– I meditate, breathing in the fresh air in my room. 

…What happened? What? Was that even real?

He looks at me, confused. Of course, he asks if it was a nightmare. It probably was, thank goodness.

There's no need to lash out like this.

"Laval.", he holds my hand, "Was there anyone else in your dream?"

Ohh. No, no, no. No. I don't want to make my dad worried. I don't want to hear about the incident, but lying is not an answer.

"I dreamt about Cragger running away from me."

Dad itches his chin. He's going to piece everything together. He'll take my nightmare seriously.

"I see… It's normal to relive our worst fears during our sleep. Don't fret, my son. I'll take care of everything."

He tucks me on my bed and kisses my forehead.

It is now morning. I look at myself in the mirror to distract myself: my red mane is starting to grow into little tufts, which means that in the near future I will no longer be a cub, but a teenager.

I tidy my sapphire blue tunic and put on my golden belt, locking it with my lion-faced buckle. My pale tan fur, after the nightmare, has become frizzy. Petrified amber eyes highlight the sickly dread on my muzzle. My paws are trembling. 

I relax by the windowless stone arch. The view of our city from the temple is amazing and comforts me a bit; I can observe the forts forming a hexagon shape, the agglomeration of housing glued to its corners, and the tall, spherical towers at each edge. The center of the Lion Temple is bustling with animals from all tribes to visit the monthly Chi Market to sell their products. At this angle, everyone inside our kingdom looks like ants. 

I might as well leave my room and take a breather.

We're sitting on the first step of the Lion Temple's entrance. The sun shines on Cragger's scutes, as the light spreads along the grassy plains, which feeds the plants and makes them grow. Spring is a beautiful season, where Chima blooms with all kinds of colors.

Today's a special day, better than the ones before– an eventful morning like this means that there is going to be a Speedor Race! We're not old enough to race yet, and I unfortunately can't ride my Speedor for fun either, but my buddy has another idea.

"Laval, my papa is going to do something huge today!", he leans near my ear and whispers, "He's been practicing his tricks for this race. Want to see?"

"That's nice. I didn't know your dad went on Speedor Races at such an old age!.."

He stares at me, twitching his jaw hinge a little.

"Uh… Cragger, are you alright?"

He giggles, "I'm aight. It's okay. Don't mind me."

I see… His body is intact. No scratches, no wounds. It's like… nothing ever happened… but I doubt that he forgot about it, speaking such bittersweet words.

After a few hundred steps, we reach our destination, where its horizon is cluttered with Speedorz bolting left and right, in and out of our view. The animals here drift around the scattered obstacles with a tilt so tight that they seem to skim over the earth's surface; at first glance, such skill is admirable and desired by many, although we're quickly reminded that these racers are amateurs– their try-hard tricks backfire in style, as they're thrown out of their bikes.

Heavy rumbling trembles our eardrums and attracts us to a huge stone ramp pointed in our direction. It's too late to do anything now, we've been standing on its track without noticing. The sounds strengthen each passing second, while a vehicle sprints from afar whilst racking up momentum– and, in a matter of seconds, before we were given time to react, our gaze redirects towards the smirk of the scaled driver, as they propel their rectangular Speedor off the ramp, gracefully crossing the sky above us whilst gushing away a streak of dust on top of our heads. Mesmerizing.

I'm unable to take my eyes off this mysterious motorist, though the spectacle ended just as fast as it started. Knowing we're surrounded by nonprofessionals, the first thought that has come to mind was an assumption about this performance being a mere hobbyist's fluke, had the pilot not revealed himself as Crominus.

Yikes. Bold of me to dismiss pure skill as luck. Better than being crushed by a fool's bad attempt at tryharding.

His curved posture might fool you, but, despite the short and fragile appearance, Crominus is a healthy and humble king. He waves at us with a welcoming smile.

"Papa! That was crazy! Would you teach me this trick, please..?", Cragger climbs onto his dad's lap and hugs him.

"Hey… you know you got to wait, eh? At my age, I only got my Speedor when I was an adult.", the father cackles, "You have no clue how much time papa took to get this good! Lucky for you, I'll show you my super-duper secret techniques when you grow up."

They both laugh and crack jokes, untroubled about the incident. I'm glad Cragger is unharmed and continues to be a joyful kid– Crominus doesn't mind his son's lack of manners, nor does he expect maturity from him. 

It's all about his dad now… Hmph. Does he even have a clue about the incident? Speedorz this, Speedorz whatever, biggest race of all time… Haha…

A soft breeze caresses away my soft mane tufts, shoving away the water from my tear ducts, and, standing here, the background blurs beneath the water lacrimating off my eyes– meanwhile, they tussle, one running after the other. In silence, I hold my hands together and tap my toes, awaiting their return.

Enough time has passed, I think, because the area is emptying by the minute, the drivers are rushing at the stronghold as their unicycles whip further down the road in a hurry up to the main gate. until only the three of us remain. Then, a bunch of lion guards start to gather the objects lying everywhere, marching throughout the circuit like ants, skipping to and fro.

Groanings call my attention to an unusually short lion, crouching down in front of a boulder. He manages to latch onto the giant rock, pushing down his tendons to extend his claws, but it seems that the disproportionate size of the object counters the feline's strength. Sometimes, big muscles aren't enough– you'd need another pair.

In between the mass of workers, marches my uncle, who's in charge of the guards in my tribe. He observes his employees' work and compliments each and one of them with pats on the back. He manages to notice the struggling lion; with his much needed help, he comes to the rescue and shoves his claws on the bottom of the rock while chanting a rhythm, as to hint a cue for when the worker should lift.

"C'mon boys, let's do this quick. The race's starting pretty soon.", warns Lavertus after he gets up, signaling with hand claps.

My uncle turns around and our gaze meets– be it joy or worry, he wasn't able to resist ignoring me, though it's not like he would choose to do that anyway; the last time we were able to play with each other was a week ago! I stretch my arms and shut my eyelids in hopes of a hug, a head pat, or any kind of attention I can receive, but I'd really like a hug.

Lavertus!

Come here!...

And yet…

I've only felt the same emptiness as before, of the wind embracing my body and arms, caressing my short fur, only to seep away and roam back to its ephemeral trail.

To spy with my little eye, to witness my uncle's grin dissolving by each step, might've been a mistake.  I turn around, unfortunately Crominus' glee begins to dissipate in synchrony, his posture slouches even further.

Lavertus' tail whips sideways. Crominus' golden teeth shine with the slightest amount of brightness. I imagine their heartbeats gushing at an all time high whilst they fixate their energy into a threatening staredown; no one wants to say anything, intimidated by another one's thoughts. Courage must arise for the silence to be broken.

My uncle has always been outgoing. However, his eyes are now hollowed by… chagrin? No– it's not anger, but displeasure; his well-built chocolate body tenses up in reflex, he sticks out his claws out of his paws in disgrace.

The crocodile king leaves his Speedor, grabs his staff that was tucked on the vehicle, then pushes it down on the ground.

With such qualms seething from the two adults, intoxicating the ambience with distrust, I wonder… What happened between them? Why express such childish attitudes in public?

Actually, why would my uncle have personal issues against the king of the crocodiles?

By coincidence, the guards' work was already done, and they disappear without a trace. Lavertus' time here has ended. He, however, persists still, growling in murmurs.

My toes freeze, my lips shut tight, chills run down my spine. I can't move. Adrenaline paralyzes each of my nerves while it drowns my blood, climbing throughout my veins up to the skull. My head feels light.

The clean blue sky showers the horizon with clouds, which patch shadows on us, sewn decaying light into intricate patterns.

Cold scales touch my hand and clutch my torso. Its soft cold soothes my body, meanwhile I observe the staredown. Thank you, Cragger.

"What are you doing here..? Shouldn't you be elsewhere, Crominus?", Lavertus snarls.

Crominus doesn't reply, doesn't utter a single word, neither does he twitch a muscle. Instead, he seems too immersed in his mind, as if this situation didn't concern him much.

Finally, he lowers his head,

"Yes, I suppose…", he sighs, "Please excuse me. I shall now take my leave."

He pats my head prior to departing, his face drowned in sorrow as he walks to his Speedor, just when Cragger waves at me with his trembling arm, hiding fear under an awkward smile– his mouth lifts a bit, though he's interrupted by the rumbling noises of Crominus' unicycle. He waddles behind his dad at a slow pace, before I'm able to move or react.

Suddenly, Lavertus locks my neck on his arm, then later plays with my hair, showers me with lion kisses; he's laughing without a care in the world, seemingly relieved about the clean, empty space, like a burden was lifted off him.

Despite these distractions, I've witnessed, all by myself, my friends climb up the stairs and merge with the mass of visitors, until they reach the fortress' gate. Afterwards, the sculpted lion head raises high, leaving space for the swarm to be eaten by it as they go through the entrance. 

Lavertus rubs his knuckles on my head with force and laughs. I roar in reflex,

"Ugh! Stop it, you goof!"

He lets go of me, his face miserably attempting to hold his grin.

As he throws his hair backwards with his paws, Lavertus' mane flows out of his head and neck, reaching his shoulder blades; it waves right at the tips, resembling the perfect shape of a sand dune molded by the wind. Even with this disheveled look, he's the opposite of dry, as he's constantly overflowing with personality and character. No wonder my tribe respects my uncle's wit and charm, but sometimes he can go a little too far. Oh– this isn't about the unceasing amount of lionesses who swoon over him. I'm referring to his nonchalant nature, a trait that is something rare among lions, and one that he overuses a lot. To see him tense is beyond improbable.

"Buddy, you're grumpier than I thought...", he whimpers, "Exactly like my brother."

"Why wouldn't I be? Did you even pay attention to your actions? My uncle would never do something like this— "

He pushes air out of his nostrils, forcing his muzzle to fold upwards, "Kiddo, ignore what happened, please. This issue doesn't concern cubs– don't butt in adult matters, okay?"

Really? Does he think he can get away with these kinds of excuses..? Adult this, adult whatever, blah blah, they make me feel like I'm not good enough to be a prince. It's just that… I haven't heard such words bleed out of Lavertus' mouth. Not even once throughout my life.

"Anyway, 'bout your arm…", he murmurs in a sudden change of subject, "I understand how you feel. We couldn't find enough clues about the perpetrator, though I believe you were attacked by a rogue animal."

I sigh, "It's alright, uncle. I won't feel bothered as long as nothing else happens."

He kneels before me, caressing my cheek with one of his paws, subsequently giving me a warm grin.

"Okay, buddy! The race is about to start in a moment, so I'll leave you there."

The Coliseum is huge, its beige color contrasts well with the lush grass that corners it. There are a few gates perforated into this amphitheatre, which are all linked to race tracks that cross every biome in Chima. Although the exterior is quite barren, everything changes up when you're able to rush inside the megastructure: dark granite canopies cover the first few inches of the entrances, with one of them built large enough to support the metal gong behind me, used to signal the end of a race; seats for thousands of animals molded onto the canopies; artificial waterfalls garnish the circuit with blue light reflected from the sun; the floor and it's coherent, exquisite patterns are made out of cobblestone, delicately chiseled to help Speedorz slide and overflow with speed. 

At this height, we can monitor the racers, cornered by more than thousands of spectators, whilst being able to watch the entirety of one of the racetracks.

Cragger and I embrace each other in excitement, hopping in circles. After an entire month of waiting for this moment, we're finally here, inside the Coliseum! We hop, dance, shout and sing, frolicking around the gong and Eris. She crosses her arms while grunting.

Dad stops our happy moment with hoarse coughs, as he lays his back on a stone throne, then rests his head atop his hand– meanwhile, the other paw holds an open book, flipping pages by the thumb. I hear the paper swoosh and my dad grunt under his breath.

Shouts arise from the crowd, catching us in surprise, after Crominus gets off his Speedor, waving at the viewers. The other racers enter the Coliseum seconds later, mounted on their stone bikes.

Before the competition starts, a white eagle flies off to the skies, revealing his famous orange goggles and his loyal blowhorn– that's Equila!

"Why, hello everyone who's watching this amazingly exciting Speedorz Race today! Very glad to see that a lot of animals are gathered here, because—", he dashes towards the participants, "a very special guest is on his way!"

Eris pulls my hand close to her, shaking her tail feathers, beak open wide.

Equila points at a shiny blue Speedor that's far away in the distance and screeches:

"Dom De La Woosh!"

Clapping from all corners of the audience reverberates with the strength of waves hitting the shore; it is as if the folks here witnessed some kind of miracle. I mean, he could be considered one. Dom is the only peacock in Chima and the best Speedorz Racer alive. His bright, flashy feathers and style, in addition to his unique personality from the extinct Peacock Tribe, make him beyond iconic– he's is an image.

The peafowl starts running his unicycle all over the  place, blowing kisses to the crowd, before the event even started.

"Bom dia meus amores!", he says, "I am absolutely flabbergasted to see all of you who came to cheer me on!".

Flowers are tossed at him and he catches all of them in a fell swoop, even placing one on his beak for extra pizzazz. They shower Woosh with confettis, love, attention, as they chant his name in a thunderstorm of excitement; Uncle Lavertus told me once that this kind of hype has always spread like wildfire since the dawn of time.

He almost beat the peacock in a big race once; I doubt he really did that, as he's the only testimony about this great achievement.

Dom returns to the starting line, flashing his attention-grabbing blue and green feathers. Meanwhile, all of the participants are in order, latching onto their Speedorz– some of them are grinning, a few are chit chatting, others seem focused.

As Equila counts down to one, his high-pitched voice leads everyone to jump and shout in excitement. Cragger and I are quite anxious, and I imagine that they also share the same feeling as us. The race feels like it's taking forever to start.

Wait— 

Even with all of the excitement and hype, my gut itches me with an unnerving sensation. Something's wrong, I can feel it; everyone becomes silent in point blank, and Lagravis' page flipping gets louder, before he shuts his book closed.

I turn around to look at the animals around me– Eris is gone!

The crowd's movement and noises explode the area, overwhelming me as I attempt to spot my friend.

I'm finally able to catch a glimpse of someone running towards the racers. As I push Cragger's arm, we both have the same reaction: our mouths drop wide open.

Everyone freezes in silence, again; not all animals have the courage to interfere with an organized event, especially one that's this big.

Equila strips off his goggles of orange tinted lenses, clenches his blowhorn near his beak, and screeches:

"Wait– wait! What are you doing, Eris? Get back here!"

Needless to say, we had already caught on that Eris was missing… but what she's doing right now is absurd!

"Damn it, Phoenixes!", he murmurs in vain, as the megaphone that's hung on his back exposes his frustrated mumblings to all of us, "I– I meant… Eris, stop that, right now! Lagravis is witnessing all of this, you know that!"

Amongst all of the animals watching this mess, Eris is on the racetrack getting her wing signed by Dom de La Woosh himself. Equila swoops down and snatches Eris off the ground. I don't know if Dom knows how to tackle fan service, or if it's just his eccentric and carefree personality. Maybe both.

She's returned to her place, followed by a light intervention from my dad; he knows that my eagle friend isn't mischievous, and that one warning will suffice. What a privilege!

Between the moment Equila begins to fly over the arena, Cragger tugs the raptor's left leg, pleading to hover above the race with him. He hugs the hatchling, still holding onto his megaphone, and returns to his place. Eris and I do the same, by holding me with her claws mid flight. 

At this height, we're able to spectate the racers; they sprint over the humid dirt, avoiding the obstacles in their way. 

A puddle of mud, camouflaged on the ground, splatters as one of the riders crosses through it– he loses control of the Speedor and spirals head first onto a tree.

Meanwhile, Dom sways between the tree trunks in a perfect rhythm. With his constant speed, he drifts along a sudden turn to the left. The others are way behind him, playing safe.

Chi awaits inside big stones in the middle of the road. The peacock snatches each and one of them—

Until Crominus flies from the curve onto first place, using his Chi to dart towards a ramp, projecting himself onto light boulders. Part of the obstacle course, Chi crystals cascade from them upon contact. The crocodile picks them up seamlessly.

"What a spectacular turn of events!", Equila shouts, "Who would've imagined that the king of crocodiles could surpass the legend himself, La Woosh?"

The crowd's cheers explode, as Equila describes the unforeseen; Dom has lost his lead against the other racers. They follow suit and pick up the remaining Chi.

Though, the end is still yet to come– he maneuvers left and right to regain speed.

A lion bumps his bike onto another participant and sends them flying at Dom's direction. In a pinch, he twists around before the Speedorz could collide. Such foul play!

All of the competitors waste their crystals, causing them to flock near Crominus at high speeds. He slows down– and they clash against each other. The vehicles crash everywhere. By then, a massive cloud of dust has started to cover the scene.

Equila accidentally drops his goggles in disbelief.

"No way…! The king of the crocodiles managed to eliminate his opponents!", he gawks.

The crowd cheers, clapping their hands at an improvised tempo. Now, only two racers remain.

La Woosh surges from the dust– he giggles while he dashes through the pile of leaves scattered around.

Vines swirl on and on, falling from the lush jungle, threatening a mighty slap if one dares to get on its way. Timing is necessary to get over this.

Dom and Crominus weave a trail on the ground between the vicious vines. A big one hits the crocodile's bike, shoving him straight to the side– the spectators scream in horror. Fortunately, this was not enough to take him off his vehicle.

Beyond them is their last trial: a trap. If one of them were to fall into this lake near the finish line, it's game over.

The peacock doesn't hesitate to propel himself forward at steep stone, and, with his speed, he defies gravity in a marvelous spectacle of skill, flying as the wind rushes through his feathers.

Crominus, however, has a trick up his sleeve; he uses his Chi to dart at the bridge above the waterhole—

but it was too late.

Dom has already pulled the trap's lever, making the bridge fall down and throw the crocodile off his unicycle at the last second.

Bang! Bang!

Guards hit the gong with enthusiasm– flags rise from the towers, before the harmonious toot of the trumpets begin to flow a melody. The race has just ended, and now is the time to start celebrating this amazing victory. 

"Amazing!", Equila squawks, "In an astounding turn of events, Dom de La Woosh has come first place!"

My friends and I land on the ground in the middle of the arena, where the winner stands victorious, blessing everyone with grateful good wishes. He's showered in roses and confetti by fans, an act of unconditional love, phenomenal passion that's able to unite animals from all tribes.

Lagravis walks down the canopy; he orders his workers to bring the Golden Chi, reward for finishing the race in first place. They march in formation: one guard is in front, holding the magnificent prize, Longtooth and Leonidas follow behind him while wielding decorated spears, and the rest remain behind.

My dad grabs the Golden Chi, whose sparkle shines so bright it resembles the sun, preparing himself to begin the ending ceremony.

After breathing in fresh air, he says:

"La Woosh– as always, the skill you displayed today was astounding. It was a tight match, and yet you managed to outsmart your opponent."

The crowd cheers, satisfied with the resolution of this beautiful competition, and while it was fast, it lasted enough to have an impact on all of us.

The gray-maned lion sighs in relief.

"I, Lagravis, king of the Lions and protector of the lion temple, hereby bestow Golden Chi, a powerful and sacred present created by Mount Cavora. Use it well, use it wisely."

He hands the crystal over to Dom, who proceeds to bow and blow kisses to his fans, before accepting his prize.

The peacock cries, "Thank you, obrigado, my loves! I wouldn't be able to continue my passion if it weren't for all of your constant support!"

Bang, bang!

Brave soldiers hit the gong once more, marking the end of this event– its booming noise spreads around the air, and, upon hearing its echoes, the audience starts to leave their seats, going down stairs, as they form a rockslide of throngs that accidentally block out everyone's exit from the Coliseum. Dom, however, noticed this craze and hopped on his Speedor, but in vain. We're surrounded.

Gunshots thunder nearby.

I lose sight of Eris, but manage to hold onto Cragger.

The swarm of fanatics escaping the arena jostles us around amidst steps and pitterpatters, as they clomp and run after the glorious winner, who's running away from this mess with his Speedor.

I can't help but look behind me– there, a small gap opens; a tall, pale olive green crocodile smirks, his arm pointed straight at the sky, as he's holding a gun. His macabre amber eyes show no remorse at all, his smile grows more sinister while our gaze meets.

Cragger snatches my hand. Together, we squeeze in between the crowd, shoving the animals away from us, and notice a breach to the outside slip— now is our chance!

I push my friend forward, then I latch onto his tail– our bodies fly through this mess, and with our vision cleared out, we find ourselves holding onto Dom's vehicle.

The cocky peacock, now terrified, croaks from the top of his lungs; he loses control over his bike, which starts to whirl around at high speeds, almost shaking us off it.

Swoosh!

A strong turn to the right lifts me and sprinkles sand into my eyes. It burns and scratches my eyeballs to bits. Trying to get the stuff out of my eye, I end up letting go of Dom–

Wind blows on my back as Cragger pulls me by the collar.

"Carambolas! Why pounce on my precious Speedor?", Dom shouts.

"Uh– duh! Why shouldn't we?"

I giggle after Cragger's defiant speech. I mean, we had no choice, after all. 

La Woosh rushes straight into a bush, covering our faces with a bunch of flowers that block our view. Wooden sticks and dead leaves crunch as the wheel spins, small birds flap their wings at the sight of a speeding vehicle turning at each lush tree.

Desperate, Cragger shakes the driver and fiddles with his feathers, in an attempt to pressure him into parking somewhere– after we get smacked by long vines and tree branches.

Ah. To be surrounded by greenery instead of tumultuous fools feels so, so nice.

"Uh… Dom?...", words spill out of my mouth into a full stop.

He's static, face deep inside the humus. A humiliating scene for the best Speedor racer ever, for sure. Cragger kneels before the blue fowl, contemplating the fall of the last remaining master of the craft. Then, he attacks the body with tickles.

Dom rolls around and play-wrestles my friend.

Meanwhile, the light dims from inside the forest, followed by rattling fronds. They diffuse penumbras all over the tall grass, even beyond our view, before its colors fade away in the distance.

A mysterious sound howls out of the faraway depths– it grows louder as the moon emerges from the sky, cornering our eardrums in a sound barrier.

It's followed by a stampede of wolves that obstructs our path, they dash and crawl without regard to the trees and shrubs in their way and form a muddy fog of black and gray pelts.

Though, one of them sits still, menacingly staring at us. That wolf snarls, their bare fangs drip with blood, and their elongated body twitches, with their fur void of color while brimming purple shine of the moon, stained with gore– it's the image of a vile creature unaffected by this chaos.

We jump on Dom's Speedor and he drives as fast as he can. This is too dangerous– no, everything after the event became dangerous.

He manages to run around the gaps left between the animals, but they close down quickly and leave us with no other choice but to run over a few of them.

A harsh turn to the right forces us out of the mob, but the wolves sprint behind us. We're being hunted!

"Dom! I don't think we can flee from them much longer", I shout from my trembling throat, "They're after us!"

"And what am I supposed to do?"

We look behind us for a second; they're getting closer in less time than we expected.

Cragger squeals, "Use your Golden Chi!"

"You're crazy! I'm not going to do that—"

They begin to gallop at our pace, and one of them latches onto our vehicle.

Dom plugs in his Chi without hesitation– the Speedor speeds like crazy in zig zags, and we get hit by whatever is obstructing us. It rumbles on the bumpy road, but manages to keep its ground.

By a miracle, we find ourselves further near the grasslands. I can see Mount Cavora from here! Now's our chance!

From the top of my lungs, I growl desperately, hoping my cries can be heard nearby.

Dom brakes his Speedor in a drift, which kicks behind a cloud of dust that flinches the wolves cornering us– but this doesn't stop them from approaching in large numbers.

Fog seeps from their eyes. I can see the shine reflecting on their pupils… Their foam drools off their teeth, and their howls echo from the distance, as these menacing creatures crawl on the ground, penetrating their claws into the dirt.

I can't do anything, neither can my friend. We are surrounded, alone, afraid, defenseless.

That's unfortunate.

As I close my eyes shut and squeeze Cragger between my arms, despair seeps into my thoughts and reality.

Sweat drips from my shivering paw pads, freezing at the touch of my friend's cold scales.

if this is my final moment, then so be it.

"Halt! You fiends, stay away from my son!"

This loud, tenacious roar catches the wolves off guard, ceasing their rabid intimidations on the spot.

A swarm of small lion tanks rumble at high speeds, shooting their Chi lasers on everything in sight, as growls and barks screech from around all corners, muffling down the cracking bones of those dead wolves who flew amongst the clouds and crumbled underneath tracks.

The night sky brightens at every spark of light bolting out of their cannons and sizzling the canines' pelts, but a few of the victims manage to jump on top of lion warriors, as if their bodies haven't been mutilated to a crisp.

Loud rumbles shake us– Dom places himself in our front, hiding us from harm behind his giant and glamorous tail feathers.

We're trembling, confused, afraid.

"Woosh, there is no time to waste! Jump!", Lagravis' voice shrills in agony.

The peacock grabs our arms to lift us both, one at a time; seconds after my body is raised, when his plumage brushes off my face, the view reveals itself, with piles of wolf corpses scattered everywhere, drowned under their rancid blood. The damp moon hazes the horizon.

I turn my head around: Eris and Lagravis are standing on his Royal Fighter, he's stretching his hand to grab me.

After my friend is rescued, Dom hops onto the vehicle and hugs us for dear life. We're petrified, from head to toe– eyes shrunken and mouth shut, as we wait for this hell to finish. I hide my face on Woosh's feathers.

This… this is a nightmare. I don't want to be here, their excruciating whimpers haunt me…

Lagravis, while resting on the Lion Temple's throne, presses his fingers against his eyelids in absolute disdain, as I hug his leg, sobbing and trembling. 

We couldn't get enough sleep, even after dawn. The blood, the pile of corpses… all of it kept me awake. I've never seen anything like that, and I wish I didn't.

It all happened so fast; the gunshot, the hysteria, the bloodbath– so many tragedies, and yet… How come? Why?

"My lord", Longtooth kneels before my dad, visibly worried, "I am not in a position to give my input, but…"

"Go forth. Tell me about your findings."

The bodyguard gets up, then walks up to us, before bowing in gratitude.

"There have been two consecutive incidents in the past few days. Isn't that suspicious?"

Dad sighs, his hope gone thin– he can't argue, because that statement wasn't false. Instead, he nods, though in aversion, as he snarls and sticks his hind claws out.

"Yes, that is true. It has only been two nights since my son was attacked.", he stares at point blank, and, in a quick turn, looks at Longtooth with an earth shattering expression, "Are you implying that they're correlated?"

An ominous silence establishes itself in the Throne Room, the harbinger of chaos, a warning. It drowns us in fear, the one that lives inside our anguishing anxiety. Though, it gives us time to think, to plan ahead.

"I believe so. The gunshot was fired by one animal the day after that, and even if we don't have clues about who did it, it's obvious that both actions were made as a threat."

Ah– I've seen this perpetrator before, maybe?...

I add, muttering, "Yesterday, there was a pale green crocodile in the middle of the crowd… He had a long grin."

Lagravis' golden eyes water, as he leans his body to pick me up and places me on top of his lap.. An emotional smile spreads across his muzzle.

He pats my head, silently sobbing, "My son, I'm truly, truly sorry for what happened. I'll make sure to solve everything, whatever it takes."

This morning, my dad decided to inspect the Wolf Lair. Guards caught me by surprise while I was playing with Cragger, and I had no choice but to leave. My friend, who had insisted on following me, hopped onto their vehicle.

The land is barren, lifeless– so arid, in fact, that I can feel its dust grate my feet. My lungs ache a bit everytime I breathe this dry air, but maybe that's because everyone is tucked inside their base, except for Wakz and Winzar, his trusted escort.

Lagravis raises an eyebrow, as he places his hand behind his back.

"Let me ask you a question, Wakz. Have you noticed anyone missing last night, after the Speedor Race ended?"

The elderly wolf tenses up– his ears and tail stiffen in opposite directions, a sign of alertness; he makes eye contact with his guardian, who replies with the same reaction.

Dad takes a step closer to Wakz, glaring at him with the coldest, piercing stare I've ever seen.

After a brief moment of doubt, Winzar approaches my father, stretching his chest, not afraid of the king's presence. The patches of black hair on his muzzle and muscular build are already intimidating enough, even if he's covered with velvety gray fur.

"Your Majesty, do not treat our elder like that.", he growls.

Wakz pats him on the shoulder, "Hush… now is not the time."

He tilts his head downwards, losing himself at the sight of the dry dirt; a million memories seem to flash before him, as he pants in disbelief, unable to move. Terror consumes him whole, desperate by sorrow.

"Lagravis… forgive me for not knowing sooner. Wilhurt is on the loose."

"Wilhurt? Are you serious? He's been gone for years– this isn't a mass murder, but a hundred wolves gone rogue!"

Lagravis covers his face, pinching his nose bridge. Dumbfounded, he huffs; an incident like this surely couldn't be caused by one individual– a force beyond our imagination needed to be what caused this. Wolves can't just snap out of the blue, right?

"Your son was attacked the day before, Lagravis."

Cragger holds his arms together, waving his tail in fear. He's upset enough to leave me and join Wakz' side.

"But I'm asking about yesterday's bloodbath!", Lagravis slips out of his mature mannerisms, folding his face into a macabre yet horrified snarl.

"How hard is it for you to understand that you are threatening Chima?", he raises his voice, failing to maintain his composure, "How could you let all of this happen?"

Wakz pants, hugging Cragger. His entire body is trembling, closed up in dread, as his pale yellow eyes stiffen after that sentence.

"Your pack, Wakz. Think about the hundreds of wolves that died yesterday! They're wreaking havoc all around our lands, and you're here, refusing to do anything!"

I nip my dad's tunic, pressing my tears onto it.

Is… is there a way to stop them? Are we even able to end this war, finish it all without pointing fingers at each other? There needs to be a solution, somewhere. We can't sit still the entire day and expect problems to disappear by themselves.

Dad's tone returns to normal, "Wakz. I will send my guards to monitor your lair. From this day onwards, we will scout every nook and cranny of this place in search of the missing wolves."

"That'd be of great help, if you didn't just accuse our elder of treason!", Winzar barks, holding himself to no lunge on my dad.

In a matter of seconds, Lagravis grabs my hand, ready to leave, as he glares at him. 

"Soldiers, keep an eye on them. I don't have time to waste."

While the moonshine barely manages to spread on the ground, the training area's horizon is painted by its soft light– the painted battlefields shine bright, echoing blood red paint. 

Besides me is the armory, crammed onto the walls of the Lion Temple, where each and every armor produced and displayed has been delicately forged to perfection. Weaponry such as saws, scythes and spears were left here by soldiers after their scheduled training.

"Hey kiddo, right behind you!", this loud, sharp voice emerges from the distance.

I turn around and find myself face to face with my uncle. His disheveled hair looks heavy, falling onto his shoulders. 

He runs at a mannequin, picks it up and brings it over.

"What about we train while your dad's busy? You can't be defenseless for the rest of your life, you'll make Lagravis worried."

My arm is still hurt, I can't go on like this. It… it has been too much.

An itch crawls all over my fur, as the unnerving sensation transforms into the abominable sickness from that time at the Fangs.

"Sorry… I don't want to.", I stutter, "No– I mean, I can't. My body feels weird."

He leans towards my face, raising an eyebrow in suspicion. Seems like he's looking out for signs of illness.

When he gets closer, my skin begins to frost; the cold sweat dripping from my snout bothers me, it tickles and it stings my nerves, so I lick it.

He pokes my snout, "You can't fool me out on this one, buddy! I know you're just nervous. C'mere now."

I equip a silver light armor Lavertus grabbed from the armory, then Lavertus lends me his sword, a Royal Valious, one of the four legendary swords of the Lion Tribe. 

Its magnificent black blade bounces the sunlight off into the faraway sky, reflecting my face onto its shine. No blacksmith in Chima can recreate this beauty without black leochium– a raw, scarce material extracted from the few mines in the middle of Chima. It is actually so strong, it can only be molded in extreme heat, with fire combusted by Chi. Due to its rarity and sheer power, only a few of the Lion Tribe's royal family possess this weapon.

I wield the weapon, admiring its uniqueness and surprising weight. It pushes my wrist down a bit, but I hope this doesn't matter much.

"I'll teach you how to swing that sword with your weak hand."

He kneels, points his wooden sword upwards, before slashing downwards with one hand, then pushing the wood up to the side.

"Repeat after me, Laval."

In synchrony, we kneel, then slash with our sword from down to up—

The hilt of the weapon is heavy enough to pressure my hand from pulling it upwards, which makes me fall and cut the mannequin in an ungraceful manner.

With a mediocre final result, the unrecognizable mannequin remains frozen, unaware that its insides of cotton scatter away into the ashes of a corpse.

Its only purpose was to embody the fragility of oneself, a weakness that forces our soul to remain captive inside us: life's ephemeral existence. It is by no means alive– but it's supposed to represent an animal, the enemy, as a target, one that's waiting patiently to be killed. If this sword, prized heritage from my family, is capable of obliterating this doll, then what could it do to someone else? Why am I being trained to murder people?

Is this what strength truly is? Destruction? I don't think I can do this – every fiber of my body paralyzes at the mere thought of it. 

Lavertus worryingly looks at me, "Yo, buddy…", he murmurs, "are you okay? You look pale."

I breathe deeply. What should I do?...

"Uncle Lavertus, do you think that there's another way to solve problems without resorting to violence?"

I let go of the Royal Valious, and it bounces a fee times before sinking into the dirt ground.

His muzzle falls open, eyebrows skyrocket; he's clearly never seen me like this. 

He sighs, "I know I'm a commander… but war really rubs me the wrong way, you know?"

He itches his head, shaking his tail sideways.

"But if someone tried to attack us, we'd have no choice but to defend ourselves. That's what my brother ordered me to do, teach you to—"

"...Why? Why do we need to use brute force? Why can't I be the Lion Temple's shield? If this is how it is, I'll leave."

[NEXT]

Taglist: @fenth-eiria @aspiringfictionwriter @deadhunter-series @jasper-the-menace @tigeryasou @olive-riggzey @fretgoon

(@rekinus20 and @the-lesbian-demon-queen1 I unfortunately couldn't tag, but I'll try to fix this soon).

[eremiie]

gone for too long;

❥ in which you’ve been gone way too long for eren’s liking.

❥ 2.8k words | nsfw | modern au

❥ content: phone sex, dirty talk, mutual masturbation, i think that’s it

eren rolled over on his navy sheets. he was tired of switching back and forth between the same three apps, constantly checking for new notifications besides the ones from his group chat that kept blowing his phone up.

he missed his girlfriend. he missed your presence being next to him when he woke up and he missed cuddling into you on early mornings. the only company he had now was the dim light being let in through his sheer curtains.

he went to his camera roll and clicked on his photo album of you, scrolling through numerous times; like when the two of you had went to the movies together, he remembered the aftermath, the two of you getting riled up in a taxi and you forced him to tip the driver extra. he also remembered the plethora of dirty photos you'd send to him when he would ask, of course this wasn't a normal occurrence but definitely when the two of you were feeling it.

he contemplated calling your phone despite knowing you were away for a trip with some of your closest friends but he didn't want to bother you, yet his own issue was getting the best of him, the constant tossing and turning, the constant adjusting his sweats, and the constant aching pain he wanted to relieve so bad.

i mean, your contact was right there. he was scrolling through your messages a variety of text messages and share photos sent back and forth, the last time the two of you texted being the day you left for the trip and he wouldn't stop blowing your phone up with how much he missed you; the days after that he resorted to calling you instead.

maybe he should text you first?

okay, okay, he'll text you first, and if you're not busy then he'll call you; if you can't talk then he'll try to handle his own.

10:34pm

Baby you up?

yeah ofc, i’m on a trip

I miss you☹️

imyt bby, wyd?

No

Like i miss you

bye

eren chuckles at your response, a smile on his face forming at the response time of your texts.

10:37pm

Ok no fr, can we ft, wanna see your pretty face

u sure it’s just my pretty face you wanna see?

Nah

Now answer baby

eren couldn't help but smile to himself as he clicked your contact name, the facetime call ringing one, two, then three times before you picked up, your voice after so long sounding like a melody to his ears.

"hello?" your voice came through the line and from where you were sitting on the couch, pieck's legs sitting comfortably on your lap and the heads of sasha and historia whipping towards you, ymir not caring enough to look up from historia's phone.

"hey baby, how are you?" eren asked, his face not in the camera while his hand sliding left to right on his lower abdomen as he spoke to you.

your eyes flickered to your friends, a sly grin on historia's face at the sound of eren's low voice on the other end of the line.

you and your friends decided that it would be nice to go on a small trip, residing in an air bnb while you all traveled together. it was hard to convince eren to let you go, him saying that "he'll miss you," and "you'll be gone for too long", but when you told him you'd keep in contact with him everyday he reluctantly let you go, of course with a pout. you wouldn't be back for a couple more days as you had a couple more places to sightsee with the girls.

"i'm good, how are you?"

"i'm fine... i just miss you..." eren mumbled, adjusting himself in his position, bringing his hand up to his chest then back down to his stomach, feeling the ripples of his abs from under his palm.

sasha threw her head back and huffed a breath. "i wish connie call me like that!" she turned over to her stomach from on the couch and grabbed her phone, you, pieck and historia chuckling.

"i miss you too, i'll be back soon though."

"but baby soon is not soon enough, i want you here with me." he pouted, his hand smoothing down to his crotch while he stared at you, you looking down at the camera. "i want you beside me, 'm tired of going to sleep by myself."

you pressed the volume down on your phone a couple times. when pieck opened her eyes, her dark irises shifted towards you with a raise of her eyebrow. she could read your mind; her legs sliding off your lap more towards her body, and her eyes closing again. "go on." she smiled.

you shook your head after her trying to hide your mere embarrassment before getting up from the couch with a soft "eren!" to warn her that you were in front of your friends. "i'll be back guys..." you made your way towards the staircase of the rented house while eren continued to talk to you.

"what? i'm so serious babe. it's been so long, i just want to feel you against me." he whined. at some point his hand made its way into his sweatpants, him now palming himself over his black boxers. "where are you?"

you opened the door to the room you share with pieck and sasha, getting on your bed and turning over to face eren, half of his face finally in the camera. you could tell he hadn't woken up too long ago, almost all of his hair falling out of his ponytail, frizzy pieces framing his face and around his head like a halo, although it was kind of hard to see with how dark it was in his room. "well now i'm in the room i'm sleeping in... the owners had two rooms so i took one with pieck since she's pretty quiet, but since there isn't three rooms sasha sleeps here too, she didn't mind making a makeshift bed, plus the owners apologized. ymir forced us to all share a room anyways because she wanted the other room alone with historia."

"yeah? well it sounds like y'all are still having fun anyways since you haven't been calling me."

"eren, we just talked yesterday."

"yeah, because i called you. you didn't call me."

"same thing." you huffed, turning to your back and resting the bottom of the phone on your chest, an angle that made eren laugh. "what are you doing?" you asked him, while your eyes darted around the room to study it since you never really got a chance to, being out and about everyday you've been here.

"thinking about you."

you felt your cheeks heat up, and held back your smile, rolling your eyes instead. "hm, i told you i'm co—"

"thinking about how i want you next to me, so i can feel you against me."

"eren, stop," you moved your face out the camera, of course the butterflies in your stomach decided to start flapping around.

"i'm not kidding baby, i was just going through my photos, that's how much i miss you... and i saw some of the photos you used to send me... how come you don't send me nothing no more?" he taunted you, and you didn't even know his hands were halfway down his pants as he spoke to you so enticingly.

"you know why. how did armin end up seeing my nudes?" you furrowed your eyebrows and turned the phone back to your face with a jokingly angry expression causing eren to burst out laughing.

"i told you i was sorry, it was an accident! historia saw my dick print that one time."

"that's because you sent it to me when she was using my phone, nobody asked you to send those to me while i was out with my friends."

"you're always out with your friends and never with me."

"you're such a baby."

"but i'm your baby, and your baby wants you right now."

you were at lost for words, your voice croaking when you tried to come up with something to say, but eren didn't mind, after a moment of comfortable silence he continued to carry the conversation for you.

"wanna feel that pretty body, i wanna kiss you and hold you," a faint noise was eliciting from the other side of the line, small constant sounds of fabric being ruffled almost— and alongside it, eren's soft panting. "the things i want to do to you, baby... i wanna fuck you so bad right now."

eren's hand was wrapped around himself, stroking up and down in a rhythm that you could hear from where you were thanks to the facetime call you were on. "eren—"

"that's one reason i miss you so much... i been fucking my fist to that pretty face almost everyday..."

you turned over to your side letting the phone rest beside you as you listened to eren through the phone. "yeah?"

"yeah, 'm doing it right now, that's how much i miss that pretty pussy."

somehow you found your own hand trailing down to your underwear, pulling the fabric aside and basking in eren's deep voice and praise. you didn't even realize the soft moan you made until eren's voice came in on the other line.

"you're touching yourself too? touching yourself to me?"

his voice— it was so low and grumbly, just like he had only just woken up, the way he spoke working you up. "mhm," you responded, and when he didn’t continue you took his silence as a way of him telling you to 'proceed', letting your fingers brush over your clit.

"i bet you miss me just as much then... miss the way i bend you over..." eren groaned at his own words, his hand tightening around his cock. his sweatpants and boxer were shoved down around his thighs, only enough so that he would be able to pump himself while laying on his back. "miss the way i fuck you so nice, right?"

"yeah.." you mumbled, you didn't really want to be in the position you were when your friends were sitting just downstairs but you couldn't help it, eren just had a natural charm to him that had you doing whatever he wanted you to.

"fuck, baby, if you were here right now i'd have you screaming like you always do—" you let out a low whimper at the thought, he wasn't lying, he did usually have you screaming and crying during your sexual endeavors, he was just that good once the two of you had learned what each other liked and disliked. "bouncing on my dick like that... you wouldn't even be able to touch yourself like you are right now if i was there..." you clenched at this because once again, he was right, he loved edging you, it's was something about the way you would cry and beg for him to let you come that turned him on so much. "fuck, i miss you."

you let a finger enter into you, and you tried to hold back your moans, your mouth agape at the feelings and you could only imagine it was eren's fingers instead. "i, i miss you too." and the noises, the squelching noises just had to be transferred over the call as well, eren letting out a low chuckle when he heard them.

"you're dirty..." he laughed, thumb slipping over his tip to collect his precum and smooth it down his length. "if you're gonna finger yourself show me,"

you squeezed your legs around you and turned onto your back. "eren..."

"let me see."

he moved his face into the camera, head now against his headboard and him still pumping himself while he watched you adjust his view so that the camera was flipped. at first, it was quite shaky while you pulled off your own sweatpants and underwear, putting them off to the side and then making sure the camera wasn't too shaky for eren. "yeah, right there, now put them back inside, put on a show for me, ______."

he was doing something to you, and it wasn't fair. you slipped your fingers back inside of yourself as he asked and let out a drawled out moan, eren's mouth dropping open much like yours earlier, head tilting back against the headboard as he lifted his hips up to meet his hand. "fuck— you wish that was me fucking you instead?"

you let out another whimper, your eyebrows furrowing and your eyes closing at his words; you weren't even sure if the camera was positioned properly anymore but eren wasn't complaining so you could only assume so. "uh huh,"

"look, baby." you opened your eyes again and looked at the phone. the camera was no longer on eren's face, it was now on his dick, his hand wrapped tightly around it moving up and down slowly. "can you see it?" and you could, albeit the dimness of the room, there was just enough light to see his movements. "you want this inside you?"

you nodded your head only to realize he wouldn't be able to hear you and instead let out a small "yeah", adding another finger into yourself and biting your lip to keep from moaning out while watching eren get himself off at you doing the same, you completely dismissed the words 'eren jaeger💍 took a facetime photo.' when they popped up on your screen, you were to amped up, but you knew you'd be complaining later.

"god, you're so beautiful, i can't— 'mma come." he whined, hips once again jutting into his hand. he was getting sweaty, feeling how close he was, his skin shiny with a thin sheen of perspiration, hair tie touching his neck as his ponytail was almost completely loose. his eyebrows were knit together and his complexion was flushed, with the phone in front of him to give you a good view while he stared down at it to watch you. "i want you to come first, make yourself come first for me."

your eyes fluttered, and you used your thumb to rub your clit while you let your fingers glide in and out of you, the wet noises making eren jerk off faster, a choked noise leaving his throat as he tried to hold back. "c'mon baby, just act like that's me, that's me fucking you so well," and he didn't even have to go on, your orgasm washing over you at eren's words and the stimulation, your fingers pulling out of you and your knees coming together while your face twisted in pure pleasure, the sound of eren unfolding on the other line as well.

"______!" he moaned, letting his cum spill all over his hand, and oh, what a sight. "fuck... did you like that?"

you flipped the camera back, placing it on the bed and using your one hand that was holding the phone to pull both your underwear and sweatpants back on. "i guess," you murmured once you had your bottoms on again. "i'll be right back."

"yeah, me too."

both you and eren left to clean yourself up and wash your hands, you coming back to eren being back first. "so when are you coming back again?" he asks, now his face once again fully in the camera laying on his stomach, clutching his pillow.

you held back a small laugh at his boyish grin when he looked at you, clear content in his eyes, the light from the phone illuminating his features. "two more days, i'll see you soon, eren."

"that's too long. can we do this again if i start missing you again?"

"no, this was a one time thing, i'm hanging out with my friends!" eren pouted at you and squeezed his pillow a little more then leaning forward and kissing the phone making you grimace at him and start laughing. "you're so weird."

"shut up and go hang out with your friends."

you and eren finally hung up the phone after a mantra of 'i love you' from both ends, you finally heading back downstairs.

"well that took forever." historia said, her eyebrows raised at you when you strut back in the living room.

"yeah cause she was probably phone fucking her boyfriend." ymir joked, but it caught you off guard because, she wasn't wrong.

"i wasn't!" you retorted quicker than you meant to, historia and sasha laughing.

"i took a nap while you were up there... that’s how long you took! we have to get ready, we're leaving to go out to eat at four pm." pieck yawned, stretching out her arms and legs and moving them from where she stretched them into your previous spot.

"okay, well then i'm gonna go back upstairs to get ready." you replied, turning back around to head back upstairs.

"don't waste anymore of our time being on the phone with jaeger boy." ymir scoffed as she watched you go up the stairs, historia hitting her shoulder from beside her.

"i won't!" you smiled to yourself, as you made your trek back up the stair, of course you wouldn't take any longer than you needed to getting ready, but you definitely  wouldn't waste anytime getting back to eren once you made it back home.

[just-a-little-cellist]

Levi Ackerman - NSFW Alphabet

A/N: i'm bored so i'm just writing these nsfw headcanons for all my comfort characters, don't judge me. feel free to request - i posted request rules so go check it out :)

enjoy! nsfw under the cut :P

A - Aftercare (what are they like after sex)

The first time you have sex, Levi needs a lot of comfort. He'd never been that vulnerable with someone before and it took a lot for him to open up like that, so aftercare for him is the priority. Once sex becomes more frequent and he gets used to everything, he's the one to clean you both up but he still needs more emotional reassurance than he'll admit.

B - Body part (fav body part of themselves/their partner)

He isn't a vain person, so he'd probably say his arms just because of how much you love them. He wasn't too fussed at first but because of all the attention you give them he's started growing fonder of them.

His favourite part of you is your neck and collarbones. He didn't even realize he had a thing for that until he met you, and whenever you wear chokers he can't take his eyes off you.

C - Cum (where do they prefer to cum?)

Levi prefers to cum on your stomach, purely because it makes it easier to clean up. (He's always very mindful of any mess.)

D - Dirty secret (self-explanatory)

It obviously couldn't happen because of his status, but it sends a shiver of arousal through him whenever he imagines you humiliating him in public. It's something he wants to try in private, though he's nervous to talk about it with you.

E - Experience (how experienced are they?)

Levi is a virgin, since he doesn't have sex with people he doesn't genuinely, 100% trust. You'll have to guide him through everything at the beginning, however he's a quick learner and picks it up pretty fast.

F - Favourite position (goes without saying)

He likes missionary a lot because it lets him feel close to you, and he'll melt if you wrap your arms around his neck and your legs around his waist. He also gets shy sometimes, so this position is perfect to hide his face in your neck.

G - Goofy (are they goofy or serious in the moment?)

Other than the odd sarcastic comment, he's generally serious. If he's in a vulnerable position then joking around doesn't calm his nerves at all.

H - Hair (opinions on grooming etc.)

Levi keeps his own hair neatly trimmed. He'd prefer if you keep yours vaguely under control but, as long as it's clean, it's up to you how you keep it.

I - Intimacy (how intimate are they during sex?)

It takes him a while to fully open up to you, but sex becomes one of the most intimate moments you ever share with Levi where he truly breaks down all his walls for you, just the two of you.

J - Jack off (masturbation headcanon)

He doesn't tend to masturbate unless he's really desperate. Something about it just makes him uncomfortable, but he also has urges sometimes when you aren't available.

K - Kinks (again, pretty self-explanatory)

When you first started sleeping together, Levi had more of the control because he thought that was the way it was 'supposed' to be. However once you brought up the idea of him being submissive, your dynamic shifted. He was extremely hesitant at the beginning because he wasn't used to being in such a powerless position, though as soon as you managed to get him into a submissive headspace it became a regular occurrence.

Levi is a sub at heart who needs a soft dom more than anything. Some of the kinks you've explored that he likes are bondage, light impact play, praise, orgasm denial and marking (as long as the marks are hidden during the day.)

He also definitely has a bit of a humiliation kink but he's still working up the courage to tell you.

L - Location (favourite place to do the deed)

His favourite place is a tie between the shower and his desk. Sometimes when he's had a long day and doesn't want a full scene, he likes to have sex in the shower (also it makes clean-up easier). Although if he feels like subbing, as long as the door is locked, one of his favourite things is for you to cockwarm him while he's trying to work.

M - Motivation (what gets them going)

Showing skin is a sure-fire way to get him riled up. I personally headcanon Levi as demisexual, so he doesn't care when other people show skin, but if it's you? All you have to do is leave a couple buttons undone, expose your chest a little, and he is done for. Also, slipping casual praise into conversations will sometimes start pushing him into a submissive headspace, especially if you've done a lot of scenes with him recently because he starts responding to that tone of voice.

N - No (something they'd never do)

He doesn't like intense pain play - he's had enough pain the rest of his life so he needs you to be gentle with him. He also wouldn't want a harsh or strict dom, preferring to have you take care of him instead.

O - Oral (preference in giving, receiving etc.)

He enjoys both equally. Before you'd had sex you wanted to ease him into the experience carefully, so you gave him his first blowjob and he almost sobbed from the stimulation. Buuuuuuut alongside that he would also happily spend hours between yours legs - the praise you give him as he pleasures you and the feeling of you clenching around his tongue is almost enough to make him finish without any physical touch.

P - Pace (are they fast, slow, quick, rough?)

If it's just against the wall in the shower then it tends to be a bit faster, and on the odd occasion Levi feels more dominant he can get rougher, but he is usually perfectly content to let you decide the pace entirely.

Q - Quickie (opinion on quickies)

They're good sometimes, especially when you're both very busy with other duties. They're good to relieve basic urges, but Levi would never choose them over a full scene.

R - Risk (how open are they to risk?)

Levi is open to a bit of experimentation, but never anything exhibitionist. He can't risk the possibility of someone catching him in a compromising position, considering his importance in the military, so he insists that you keep all bedroom activities private.

S - Stamina (how long can they go for?)

As expected, at the start Levi had pretty low stamina since it was all so new and overwhelming. It gotten a little better since then but he also has a fairly quick recovery time to make up for it.

T - Toys (opinion on using toys etc.)

He doesn't particularly enjoy using toys on you, but adores when you use toys on him.

U - Unfair (how much do they like to tease?)

He'll only tease you a little when he's in a dominant mood and you've been doing something to piss him off, but the rest of the time it's not something he does at all. (He kind of likes when you tease him though.)

V - Volume (are they loud or quiet?)

Levi is cautious to control his volume so that other people don't hear, but his whimpers of pleasure can get quite loud sometimes.

W - Wild card (random headcanon)

During a scene once, while he was deep into subspace, he accidently called you mommy. When he realized what he said he was mortified, and almost started dropping. You had to quickly assure him that it was perfectly alright, that you weren't upset with him, and that you don't mind it if he wants to keep calling you that. He only uses that name for you when he's really, really submissive, and it's adorable hearing the tiny whimpers of "P-please mommy..."

X - X-ray (what's going on... down there?)

So many people seem to think that this man has a monster cock. He is 5'3 there is no way. He's a little smaller than average, in length and girth, but that just means you can hear him whine when you take his whole length into your mouth.

Y - Yearning (how high is their sex drive?)

His sex drive is low most of the time. He has so many other things he has to focus on everyday, so sex doesn't cross his mind that much. Sex is more of a stress relief that he doesn't think too much about until it happens.

Z - Zzzzz... (how quickly do they fall asleep after?)

Being an insomniac, Levi takes a while to settle down to sleep, although it's always a little easier when he's comfortably next to you. (definitely the little spoon)

[shysneeze]

vulnerable love (draco malfoy x fem!reader)

Vulnerable Love 

Description: Draco looks for the reader in the aftermath of the Battle of Hogwarts for @psychogolbrock (hope this is what you wanted) :)

Warnings: Death (not me writing the description vaguely as to avoid spoilers like i wasn’t gonna go and spoil it in the warnings 👁👄👁 ) this is legit sheer angst you have been warned

edit : i didn’t mean to but i wrote ‘good enough’ like months after this one but somehow it works really well as a prequel... might make it hurt more though

....

There is no big celebration, no victory cheers or rounds of applause to mark the end of the battle. Harry's wand is lowered and the enemy is gone, but so are the castle walls, so are the childhoods of all the students who fought and so are the lives of so many friends and family. The end of the battle isn't much more than a shift in priorities from the living to the dead.

Now that the fighting has stopped, the heart breaking reality settles across the castle grounds. Where there moments ago had been the deafening sound of curses flying through the air and various war cries, is now an eerie quiet, filled only by the whimpers of grieving families and the occasion desperate call of a missing person's name.

Draco tries not to look at any of these families as he makes his way across the courtyard. His last minute defection has kept him out of Azkaban, but it certainly hasn't awarded him people's good opinion and people glare at him as he passes. He's not even sure where he's going, not sure where to start to find her without becoming one of the anguished name callers.

He's about to start asking people if they've seen her when his eyes find a crowd  gathered around what used to be an alcove and his heart jumps in his chest painfully. His legs drag him forward on their own accord, his body taken over by a sudden panic as his mind pleads for it not to be her.

As he gets closer, he can hear people crying, a broken melody of shaky breath and chocked sobs. People clench their jaws as he tries to gently push through the crowd, his own breath becoming ragged with the fear of whoever's body he's about to face. A few, more sympathetic, people move out of his way and allow him through and he soon stumbles through the last row of observers.

"Malfoy..."  

The voice is quiet and strangled by tears but one he knows well as Hermione Granger's, although he can't lift his eyes to check. His eyes are stuck on the lifeless figure who's head she's cradling on her lap, face bloodied and bruised but so familiar to him that he's beginning to tremble. He feels winded, as if someone has punched every last breath form his lungs and he's left teetering on his feet as he's smacked with an overwhelming burst of emotions.

"(Y/N)."

Her name comes out in splinters, shattered under the grief that seems to pull at every nerve in his body. He doesn't care now ,about the eyes on him as he lowers himself onto his knees before Hermione, he doesn't care what they think as he reaches out with trembling limbs for (Y/N)'s body, he doesn't care that they can see him cry. It doesn't matter, not right now.

"She- she was healing someone's wounds." Hermione voice cracks. "She was hit by a stray curse."

Draco doesn't reply, he doesn't even look up. Hermione allows him to pull (Y/N) into his arms, a fresh set of tears trickling down her cheeks as she watches him gently push (Y/N)'s hair from her eyes. Hermione doesn't know what to say, 'sorry' doesn't quite cover it these days.

Some people will tell you that the only times they've ever seen Draco Malfoy genuinely smile, was at (Y/N) (Y/L/N). No one could possibly doubt their affection for each other, when it was so obvious in how they interacted, with love sick glances and whispered secrets that made them smile.

To Draco, she was his courage when he had none. She was never afraid of what people would think of her for being with him, head never turned by the outlandish rumours about him. In sixth year, she kept him together when he was falling apart under the weight of an unimaginable task, unjudging and sympathetic.

He wishes he could have some of her courage now, as he holds her in his arms, completely and utterly terrified. Her face is becoming blurred through tears and each silent sob feels like it's ripping him apart. Blinking away another bout of tears, he looks up to Hermione, mouth opening with no sound for a second until he's sure his voice won't break.

"Has someone told her parent's?" He manages, voice hoarse from crying. "They need to know."

"I-I sent someone for them." Hermione nods. "I know it doesn't help... but she died h-honourably."

"She shouldn't have died."

The statement isn't angry or harsh, but tragically honest. Hermione nods, turning her head slightly and lifting her hand to her mouth to capture a sob, that instead comes out as a muffled groan. Draco turns back to (Y/N), and if it weren't for the stillness of her chest that would normally rise with each breath, he could imagine she's sleeping, with her eyes shut and an almost peaceful expression on her face.

He leans down slowly to press his lips gently to her forehead. She's cool to his touch, a reminder once again that she's not just sleeping, that this is her permanent state from here on, and he's caught with another painful sob.

"You didn't deserve this." His voice trembles. "I'm sorry."

People were always saying that she made him soft, and in a way, she did. To be in love is to be vulnerable, to give your love to someone willingly and to let them have such a fragile part of you. It's exciting, the thrill of being in love with someone, and to be loved by someone, is a beautiful experience.

There are two sides to this vulnerability though, one that Draco is beginning to think out weighs the excitement of loving someone. Draco is suddenly experiencing the painful side of love, the consequences of giving his heart to something as fragile as another person.

"I love you." He whispers hoarsely. "I love you so much and I'm so sorry."

He clutches her closer, too scared to let her go knowing he'll never have her back in his arms again. He can't cope with the finality of this situation, he longs to feel the warmth of her hand in his, the feel of her arms wrapped around his middle or her lips on his cheek. He's desperate to hear her tell him she loves him again but she never will.

She's already long gone with every ounce of love he had.

....

authors note: y’all i did warn you!!!