#and on the other hand all your problems don't magically disappear if suddenly everyone loves you. papyrus has a lot to figure out too.

[alsojnpie]

today's repostober comes with a lot of words. because if i remember correctly i restrained myself from writing an essay at the time i made these. because look. all of the ut cast but especially papyrus belong in the harvest moon 64 world. i don't care if crossovers are cringe (are they? no don't answer because i really don't care). these are my two favorite video games and they go together like pb and j.

anyway first we have papyrus drinking water after water after water at the bar. this is an incredibly time consuming but free way to get unlimited energy to upgrade all your tools to the max on the first night. hypothetically. if you feel like spending. idk......20 hours or so of your life doing it......(he does) (sans does not). because not only is it free as in, costs no in game currency, time stands still inside the bar and in this game time IS MONEY. also "aren't you the healthy one?" is what the bartender says when you order the glass of water and I've only read it about one hundred million times in my life

a weird exploit exists at the horse races in which you can prepare to place an extravagant bet but withdraw it at the last moment. you pay nothing but the game considers the bet placed all the same. so you bet he will figure that out and take advantage of it!! seriously though, i just love the idea of the situation being a bit switched from the way it was in undertale. sans has a bit of a hard time finding his place in this weird surface world. (and yes i think he would stress about bills. what of it.) papyrus somehow finds his way into the hearts of every single person in the village. he is at the top of his game and everyone loves him!!!!!!!

[lionlena]

Dancing With Your Ghost (JavierPeñaxreader) Epilogue

A/N:

Ok, so that's the end of this story. I started writing it almost 7 months ago, not really knowing where it would lead me and having the idea until chapter 6… Along the way, I abandoned this story for Joel… But sooner or later, my heart always missed Javi 🥺 I would like to thank you all for your comments and likes. Everyone who read this series enjoyed it. I hope you'll be happy with the ending🥰

Epilogue

Since Javier found out you were pregnant, theoretically nothing has changed. He still loved you madly, he still cared for you, you still spent magical Sundays, and he still worked hard on building the house.

On the other hand, everything has changed. Javier worked even harder and at the same time spent every free moment with you. Even if it meant driving half an hour into town just to spend twenty minutes of your lunch break with you, he did it. And of course, he couldn't keep his hands off you. And he fulfilled all your desires without blinking an eye, including sexual ones. You suddenly discovered that pregnant women can be very horny, but that was no problem for Javier. If he had to, he would fall on his knees in front of you every evening and listen to your moans with pleasure.

You also noticed that the bigger your belly was, the prouder Javier was. When you were walking through the city streets or sitting in a restaurant, he would always put his hand on your belly and look around with a cocky smile as if to say, 'Look this is my work. Thanks to me, her belly is swelling.'

It made you laugh, but at the same time, you didn't want to take away his joy. After all, he deserved it for what a wonderful man he was to you, for supporting you every step of the way and going with you to all your doctor's appointments. Thanks to this, you felt confident and your fears about your child's health decreased significantly. Everything was going perfectly.

When you were seven months pregnant, the construction of your house was officially completed. With a wide smile, Javier led you into your beautiful living room. And even though you had been there many times before, somehow knowing that everything was over filled you with delight and you looked at everything as if you were seeing it for the first time.

"Everything is amazing." You said with emotion in your voice.

Javier kissed you passionately while tenderly stroking your belly.

"It's all for you, my little ghost, and for our baby."

Then suddenly Javier knelt down on one knee in front of you and pulled out a small box from his pocket that contained an engagement ring. You were speechless at that moment.

"Y/N, you are the most wonderful person I have ever met in my life. You taught me that love is more than a physical connection, it is a connection of souls. You gave me peace and warmth that warms my heart. Please be my wife. Be Mrs. Peña. Let's have a little wedding next week."

You looked at him in shock and quickly said, "No."

Javier looked at you surprised, maybe even sad. "No?" he repeated quietly.

Seeing the fear in his eyes, you knew you had to fix the situation quickly. "No... I mean yes, but no."

This didn't help at all. Javier was still kneeling in front of you, now on both knees and tilted his head to the side, looking at you with those puppy dog eyes. "Yes, but no?" He asked confused.

You took a deep breath and gently stroked his hair. "I want to marry you." You said calmly, and the sadness instantly disappeared from his face. "But not next week."

Javier smiled coquettishly. "What are you doing next week?"

You huffed and pointed to your belly. "I'm carrying your baby, in a week, in two... basically for the next two months."

He laughed softly and kissed your belly sweetly. "And? I still don't see the problem. One little extra guest isn't a problem."

You groaned in annoyance. "Javi, I don't want to get married with a huge belly... I don't want to be ugly and fat in my wedding photos."

Javier immediately tightened his grip around your waist, gently squeezing your ass and still kissing your belly.

"Mi amor, hermosa, cariño, how can you say such terrible things about my future wife? You are beautiful, the most wonderful, and I can't wait to see that beautiful belly in a white dress... Oh, believe me... This makes me get hard..."

You gasped in surprise as his hands squeezed your ass tighter.

"Javier..."

"I'm telling the truth." He kissed your stomach and looked down at you. "But I will understand and respect any decision you make. We can even have a big wedding next year if you want."

And suddenly, as usual, all your fears disappeared.

"Actually…" You started quietly. "You're right. I want a small, modest wedding and I want our baby to be born with your surname."

Javier smiled widely and gently placed the ring on your finger. Then he stood up and looked at you with eyes shining with joy.

“Y/N, I dreamed of this moment.”

He cupped your face in his hands and kissed you, but it was a different kiss. It wasn't a passionate, hot kiss... Or hungry or longing... It was something completely different. It was a kiss filled with love and gratitude. Your heart was beating like crazy and suddenly you felt your baby move. You placed Javier's hand on your pregnant belly and he chuckled.

"Someone here is as excited as Daddy." You purred against his lips and he kissed you lovingly once again.

A week later, you and Javier were married in the meadow behind your house. You were wearing a plain white dress that fit your pregnant belly really nicely. You wore a wreath of white flowers on your head. It was surprising, but you felt like a princess. Everything seemed wonderful and so peaceful. You said 'yes' surrounded by your loved ones and friends, and then you all had fun together until late.

That night, Javier took you to your bedroom and made love to you in such a gentle and caring way as he had never done before. And he wasn't just doing it because of your pregnancy. He really wanted to prove to you that he will be the best husband in the world.

Two months later, after almost ten hours of labor, your son, José Peña, was born. You were tired after giving birth, but happy as you held your healthy baby in your arms. And for the first time, you saw former DEA agent Javier Peña cry like a little baby. When he took your newborn son for the first time and looked at this little miracle created with his help, so tiny that he could hold José with one hand, he just cried. And he wasn't even ashamed of it. He hugged his son to his chest and kissed his little head, whispering sweet words. It was a sight that melted your heart and you were sure that Javi would be the best dad in the world.

...

You woke up one night and Javier wasn't next to you. You felt anxious for a moment but quickly calmed down. You started listening to see if José was crying, but you didn't hear anything. Still, you decided to get up and look into his crib. However, your son and husband were nowhere to be found. Your heart started beating a little faster. Common sense told you that nothing had happened. Maybe José couldn't sleep, and Javier took him for a short car ride. It was something that quickly calmed your three-month-old baby. But Javi never did it alone. You quickly went out of the house to the terrace to check if there was a car outside and that's when you saw them.

Javier sat on a rocking bench with his son safely placed in his strong arms. For a moment, you wanted to be angry at him and tell him that he shouldn't scare you like that, but... It was such a sweet and adorable sight that it melted your heart.

However, you noticed that something was bothering Javier. He didn't take his eyes off his son's sleeping face. You carefully sat down on the bench next to him and touched his arm.

"Mi amor? What happened? José couldn't sleep?"

Javi still didn't take his eyes off the baby. He gently touched his son's chubby cheek with his finger.

"He was crying, but as soon as I changed his diaper he fell asleep, but I... I couldn't put him down in the cradle..."

You smiled and nodded. You knew this feeling very well. You yourself have held your baby in your arms many times after he fell asleep. However, Javier's next words surprised you.

"I felt a sudden fear. I was afraid to put him down... I was afraid that as soon as I let him out of my arms, something bad would happen to him."

You sighed and gently stroked his cheek.

"Javi, what's going on?"

Javier finally looked away from his son and looked at you. He smiled sadly.

"I don't know, cariño... The cocky, arrogant, and malicious DEA agent suddenly became soft and scared."

You giggled quietly. "You're still cocky and devilishly handsome."

Your comment made Javier laugh softly. You always knew how to cheer him up. He carefully placed your son on his chest, holding him with only one arm. So that he can wrap his free hand around you and pull you to his side. He kissed your forehead and whispered:

"I wonder if I've made the world a safer place for our son. Catching Escobar, and taking down the Cali Cartel, does it all matter? The world is still dangerous. Maybe retiring was a mistake. There are so many things that could hurt him. So many bad things, bad people. Now he's still tiny... For now, I can really wrap my arms around him and protect him, but then what...

You smiled at him understandingly. Javier always had a tendency to get lost in thought. Often unnecessary.

"Javi, darling. The world is dangerous, and we are not able to protect our baby from everything. This is the pain and fear of all parents. In a few months, our son will start walking and he will surely trip over a stone more than once. You want to remove all the stones from the area?"

Javi looked at you with determination. "If necessary."

You rolled your eyes.

"You know it's impossible, but you know what is possible? Our comfort. We will wipe his tears, bandage his hurt knee, and assure him that we are with him. And this is how we will keep him safe. At every stage of his life we will love him and accept him and thanks to this, he will know that he can always come to us and ask us for help.

Javier looked at you with eyes full of boundless love.

"You are very smart, hermosa."

You giggled quietly. "I learned a thing or two about life by being a ghost."

Javier laughed softly. Then he kissed you on the forehead and then your son. He looked at you with those puppy eyes of his.

"Can we sit here for a while? I don't want to put him in the crib just yet."

You nodded and snuggled into his warm, strong body. You looked at your son's calm face and realized that he felt exactly the same as you. That Javier Peña would do literally anything, even burn down the entire world, to keep you safe, happy, and loved. You closed your eyes and whispered, "We can stay here until morning."

You felt Javier hug you tighter and rest his chin on your head. You no longer needed words. Everything was perfect, right in that moment, when he held in his arms the two people he loved and needed most in the world.

...

Six years later, you still felt the same peace and security when you were in your husband's arms. You've had harder times, but you've always been in this together. You didn't hide anything from each other, you didn't fight each other. You loved each other.

Your son was healthy and growing quickly. From a baby, he became a small, charming boy who loved life. He was cute and feisty like his Daddy, but he was also calm like you... And he wasn't the only one.

Four years after your wedding, your little girl, Maya Peña, was born. And if you thought José was like his dad, then... Your little girl looked like a little copy of her daddy. Her eyes were identical.

And currently, she was looking at you with those sweet brown puppy eyes that were tearful and very tired. She put her thumb in her mouth and hiccuped. Her cheeks were red and the hairs on her forehead were wet.

"Oh my little one, you really need a nap."

"Papi…" She whined indistinctly and you already knew you had no choice.

You've been trying to put her down for a nap for the past forty minutes, but she's only gotten more grumpy and cranky. There was no other option. You must have to used a secret weapon. You took her in your arms and left the house, heading towards the horse paddock.

Your son was just sitting on a little white pony and looked very happy. His grandfather Chucho held the reins and Javi secured his son, but you knew that your little boy could handle it even on his own. So you walked up to the fence and waved your hand. Javi immediately said something to his son. You could only guess that he was asking him to hold on tight and be careful.

When he got closer to you and your daughter, he immediately noticed what the problem was and without asking, he reached out his hands, taking Maya away from you. His two-year-old daughter immediately snuggled into his chest and let out a few grumpy purrs. Javi chuckled and kissed her head.

"Someone here is tired but doesn't want to go to sleep?" He asked, knowing the answer perfectly well. "It's okay. Daddy can handle it."

He smiled at you and kissed your forehead, whispering. "I love you."

You smiled and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Even after all these years, he still took every opportunity to make sure you knew how much he loved you.

"I'll go to José." You said and kissed your daughter on the head before Javier took her towards the house.

When your son saw you, he smiled broadly. Chucho gave you a friendly smile too.

"Is everything okay with the little princess?" he asked with concern.

You immediately felt your heart melt. Your children not only had a wonderful, loving, and caring father, but also a wonderful grandfather who always spoiled them and cared for them.

You nodded and moved closer to your son, placing your hand on his back.

"Yes, the heat today is just bothering her. But I'm sure Javier's magic will work on her and she'll be asleep soon."

Your son giggled (in the same way as his daddy) and asked, "Papi can do magic?"

You smiled widely and touched his sweet cheek.

"Yes, it always puts you and your little sister to sleep in minutes."

Your son eagerly nodded and added: "And he can turn ghosts into people!"

You laughed. This was your son's favorite story. Of course, Javier told your story in the form of a fairy tale, omitting the tragic moments and changing a few things. And of course, only you and Javi knew that it wasn't just a made-up story at all.

Half an hour later, your son finished riding the pony and, together with his grandfather, took the pony to the meadow so that the animal could enjoy the fresh grass and rest.

You came back home, quietly entered the living room and your heart beat faster.

Javier lay on the couch and slept with his baby girl, who was dozing comfortably on his broad chest. You saw them both calm and finally resting. You looked at them, enchanted, for a moment. Then you went to the kitchen and started preparing lemonade. You were sure that soon your son and his grandfather would come home, and then your daughter and Javi would wake up. And you all need a sip of refreshing, cool lemonade. Soon your quiet home will once again be filled with the joyful screams of children and the laughter of their father. And as always, Javier will grab your hips whenever he gets the chance, kiss your neck and whisper some dirty words in your ear, because some things never change.

And your love for the man who danced with your ghost will never change.

...

MASTERLIST

Part I

Part XII

Taglist: @aestheticangel612 , @kittenlittle24 , @hxpburn76 , @creedslove , @ranahx , @yyiikes , @fuglyputa24 , @picketniffler

[our-neighbours-cat-is-a-menace]

Asking the dorm leaders to be your fake boyfriend for I week

It's been almost a month now and it's really starting to get on your nerves, the constant messages at untimely hours, the letters that just screams psycho, and the gifts that just make you feel pressured. Hell you even came to a realization that some of your belongings have magically disappeared.

Your borderline psychotic admirer have done all sort of things proclaiming it as his way of showing how much he likes you. You appreciate the sentiment really but going as far as following you while your out shopping is just what a stalker would do.

how did you know he was following you?

Well for starters he sends you pictures of yourself enjoying your cup of tea or munching on a strawberry tart, hell if that ain't scary what is

He wasn't a student from NRC so he can't see or follow you while inside the campus but there are instances where you have to go off campus. You didn't want to tell anyone of your current problem, it's almost time for the annual sports festival and everyone's busy as hell, it'll only inconvenience the others so you stayed quiet

You were never really a fan of confrontations but this has to stop. To do so, you replied back to his constant messages and asked to meet up and you can count on it that he was ecstatic thinking you're finally returning his love

You're either really brave or really stupid, or both

Agreed to meet at a cafe you frequent, there he was sitting in a chair constantly smiling. You didn't want to prolong this any further, you approached him and seated across

"Hi, I'm ___, though I'm pretty sure you know more than that" you stated trying to sound sarcastic and not totally nervous

The guy said his greetings and how he was pleased to finally have a conversation with you. Without missing a beat you told him the reason why you asked to meet up

"Look i appreciate how you feel about me but what you're doing is just making me feel horrified, we have different love languages i get that, but I'm definitely not a fan of yours, so i ask of you to stop" you said firmly hoping the message got across

"I see, you still don't like me then, that's ok, i can wait" he reasoned

"No, you're missing the point here, I'm asking you to stop, i don't want you doing anything, i want you to leave me be" you tried make it sound as nice as you can

"but you're not dating anyone anyway, so it's fine"

"look whether I'm dating anyone or not is not the point here, i am simply asking you to leave me alone, i don't plan on accepting your advances" you said getting irritated cause you feel like you're just repeating your words

"But you will come to love me, i know that, you'll eventually come to love me and when that time comes, I'll love you with all my heart and i'll protect you forever" he proudly stated

You feel like your about to blow up from frustration, your words fell on deaf ears, it's as if he filters out your words into his own convenience and just morph it into his own

"Look mister, I'm trying to be as nice as i can, just leave me alone, that's all I'm asking from you cause you see I'm already dating someone, i didn't want to tell you but if this is the only way to get you to leave me alone then fine, I'm taken and he's definitely not gonna like it if he knew how you're harassing me" you said standing up but he suddenly gripped your wrist HARD

"that's a lie, you can't lie"

"it is, we're secretly dating due to some circumstances not that i have to explain that to you" you stated firmly making it look like it's not a lie, this made the man slightly waver and you took this chance to slap your hand away from his hold, you didn't wait for anything you just completely turned your back and ran back towards the school

Upon arriving

A/N: ok all that's left is kalim, I'll be doing him thay sweet ball of sunshine soon. Thank you for the requests❤️

Masterlist🌻

[husbandohunter]

Dear Father [Genshin Impact/Diluc x Reader]

Synopsis: Wherever you are wherever you may be, even if you are beyond my reach, I only wish to see you again. -from a letter lost in the wind.

(A story where you and Diluc somehow managed to meet Crepus)

Genre: all fluff

"I know how late I am to father's day but here's my father's day take on Genshin Impact! Just let Diluc be happy for once T_T Mihoyo pls."

============================

Discovering Master Crepus' old belongings was like wandering in a domain surrounded by ancient artifacts. Each piece holding the memory of someone you've never met.

The paintings. Master Crepus loved to paint. Typically birds were the main muse of this portraits since they deeply embodied Mondstadt's values for freedom which shows you how much he cherished this city just like his son did. In almost every hallway you walked through there was a collection of his paintings, some belonged to another artist but the majority was an original work. Diluc didn't have the heart to sell them.

Elzer. He was one of the oldest workers who served under the Ragnvindr name, ever since Master Crepus had appointed him during his earlier days. You were told that he treated everyone, both staff and noble, with equal respect. Almost all the denizens of Mondstadt knew this man for he was not only noble in riches but also in the soul.

"I'm sure he would have loved to meet you in person. Now that I think about it, you and Master Crepus are quite similar. Haha, it seems that Master Diluc was selective in terms of who he wanted for his future bride."

Elzer adds with a light chuckle but the statement only made you more curious. A man who affected the lives of so many others, he must have been a wonderful person.

Diluc. The bloodline Master Crepus left behind after his death, a piece of himself and the heir to the whole wine industry, his son Diluc. Although you could see the resemblance in appearance, both of them were men of prinicples and values, putting Mondstadt first before anything else and you suddenly realized if that was the reason why Diluc was so protective of this city. As if, it were everything he had? You could tell he loved Master Crepus very much, not because he said so, rather the painful expression buried deep within his crimson glare whenever someone brought up the topic. Diluc was skilled in hiding himself, it's something he practiced over the years of working alone, though he lowered his guard as long as you were the only one present.

Even so, he had many conflicts still wringing him internally and you didn't want to push him until the day he felt ready to personally tell you himself.

But it would be nice if he opened up, just a little bit.

There were times when you would worry since Diluc had the tendency to hide his feelings for the sake of not troubling you. He wanted to keep life simple and bright, bringing the best to the table while making sure that you lived safely out of harm's way. You couldn't seem to get him to understand that as lovers, you would be happy to help him, in anything. Unconditionally. It was natural for you to feel the need to force yourself in every once in a while and there was nothing more you wanted to know than the story of the man who raised him.

You would even jest on the idea of what it fel like to meet Master Crepus in person. Were you able to reach his standards by any chance? Would he have liked you just as everyone claimed? Of course, they were only silly indulgent thoughts so you quickly dismissed them in the end. Bringing back the past was impossible no matter how badly you wanted it. You closed your heart on that possibility.

On a lovely evening, while you and Diluc were taking your time off Angel's Share to make a stroll around Mondstadt's quiet streets, a strange merchant called over to you. She displayed various antiques ranging from different sizes to designs, none of them seemed to haven been carved in the same place but distinct cultures throughout Teyvat. The only thing they had in common was that they were all equally beautiful to the eye.

However a particular item of what looks like to be a heart locket snatches your attention and you instantly became mesmerized, allured by it's mysterious charm.

"Ah, the locked heart caught your fancy, my lady? It's said once you open it, you will be set free."

"It's magnificent..." you muttered, staring unabashed at the shining surface.

Diluc who was observing from behind folded his arms and tilts his head, "How much is that?"

Although you intended to simply inspect the choices, your lover immediately offers to pay. They all already gave the impression of a hefty price and you didn't want him to spend his fortune on things that deemed unecessary. Still, this wasn't the first time it happened. Diluc would always insist whenever you protested against him from buying anything, it was just a way of expressing his affections towards you. Mora was never a problem and you were priceless. That's how he sees things. You had to remind yourself to be careful when stumbling upon a bustling area full of salesmen next time.

"Five hundred thousand mora."

He purchased it without hesitation.

On your way home, Diluc noticed that something was amiss. You couldn't tear your gaze from the locket as if it had hypnotized you by the golden smooth surface. He had to ensure you didn't run into anyone by accident, tugging your arm closer so that it gave him an opportunity to lead you where you yourself could not. Surely it must have been the appearance but instead of being drawn by, you were drawn in. Completely.

I wonder...what will happen if I open it?

"(Y/n)?" Diluc narrows his eyebrows together. Did you like it that much? No, he knew you weren't the type to be so etranced by jewelry, this was certainly different. Even the merchant seemed a little suspicious when she approached you and Diluc couldn't ignore the heavy sense of aminosity that was emitted around her aura. He couldn't think within her presence but now that his mind was much clearer, he was able to use his skillful judgements.

"Wait...! Don't open it yet-"

However, he was too late.

The wind picks up at an alarming speed and you both brought up your arms to block the debris that had flown in the way. They swirled in non-stop motion until your worlds were engulfed with not even the sky in sight. Amidst the turmoil Diluc latchest onto you and holds your body close his chest as he was determined to protect against any force that dared to hurt you. Something heavy knocks his head and he winces, tighting his hold even further. Your voice could hardly be heard with all the noise that rung around and eventually you discovered the the world wasn't disappearing. You both were.

The last thought you had was the image of Master Crepus and you didn't know why.

---

"Diluc? Diluc?"

He faintly heard his name through a series of echoes. Diluc fights to regaind concousness, feeling your grip upon his shoulder while trying to urge him awake.

"Diluc are you alright?"

Your worried face was the first thing he sees other than the fog that looms above. Diluc blinks a few times in an attempt to ease his migraine, using one arm to force his body into a seating position as he allowed himself to be supported by you at the same time.

"Does your head hurt?" You ask, palming gently against his forehead to feel the heat. Even if her was usually very warm, there was no unusual rise in tempurature, something must have hit him instead, "Here, maybe this will help."

Bringing out your hand you concentrated on generating the water through your fingertips. Having a hydro vision meant you were capable of healing magic which Diluc appreciated since he often came home late at night with injuries hidden behind his sleeves. But nothing came out and he became even more suspicious of the situation.

"Eh? What's going on?" You blurted out, patting down your clothes and your pockets, "My Vision, it's gone too!"

"Mine as well," Diluc flexes his fingers to test his own element, "It seems that our powers were sealed once we entered this domain."

"A domain that prevents you from using a Vision? That doesn't sound very comforting," you scratched your head, suddenly remembering the cause of your current problem, "The locket...it's all starting to make sense now. Ugh, I should have listened to you earlier, I'm sorry Diluc."

"No (Y/n), you don't have to apologize," he interjects and you returned a curious glance, "I should have stopped you the minute I discovered there was something strange. I was too careless."

"You felt that too? I thought I was the only one," your tone and face mimics one of surprise. The fog continues to dance around, enclosing the two of you to the small area. You lifted your head and looked above in deep contemplation, "When I saw the locket I couldn't tear my eyes off of it, like something was pulling me in. Like...there was a spell casted on it."

"What do you mean?" he asked in an inquisitive manner.

You nod, "I can't put my finger on it bit Ifel that the locket wanted me to..." balling your fist upon your lap, you stared intensely at the floor as if drilling holes into them while digging into the depths of your mind for any specific clues. Initially you thought the locket was so captivating that you were simply charmed by it's craftmanship. But tere was more than that, you began deciphering, there was also a need for fulfillment. A yearning desire, "to know. The locket was calling me to know."

'Once you open it, you will be set free.'

"To know..." you trailed off. How strange. No matter how much you tried to rationalize, you were always brought back to the same square as if the locket knew exactly what you wanted. What you were lacking. Because the one thing you wanted to know most about was the person you've never met, "Someone very important to you."

The fog dispersed.

Diluc instinctively puts an arm in front of you defensively as he scanned his quick and thorough eyes around the area. It didn't take long for him to know exactly where everything was. In fact, the abrupt change isn't what puts him on high alert, but it was how familiar everything looked to the point he evaluates if there was any reason to be skeptical or if he should be breathtaken.

"What a beautiful house," However you didn't recognize it. Diluc knew because he had yet to meet you during the time he lived in this estate, "I wonder who does it belong to?"

"Father's old mansion...how?" Diluc breatlessly mutters, as if seeing the supremecy of Celestia for the first time. When years passed after his father died, he chose to sell off the majority of his belongings, the mansion being on for example. Currently it was in the possession of a well-known business associate that used to be a friend of Crepus. The mansion would likely have looked much different due to the renovations it gone through but Diluc remembers the picture as if this were yesterday. Everything was in tact. The vine yard, the gazebo where they drank tea, the hill that he and Kaeya used to race on when they were kids-

Revelation burns in his pupils as his eyes expanded.

"Welcome home, my son."

Both you and Diluc fall wordless at the sight that appeared like a miracle's blessing. Crepus stands at a distance, the graceful smile complimenting his warm features. He looked exactly how the court artists portrayed him in the Ragnvindr's family picture. Sharp face with gentle eyes and an aura that was as pleasant as what Elzer described.

"So this is why the locket was calling to us," you whispered, "I guess the mora really was worth it after all."

"...Fa...ther...."

You snuck a glance at Diluc. From behind the resemblance was as clear as dawn, like you were staring at a carbon copy of Master Crepus himself. Almost. He was a less hardened version of Diluc during uncommon situations. It made you think just how much you didn't know before his father passed away. What kind of person was this man during his days as a knight? You never had the chance to know.

"Father is that really you?" Diluc couldn't help his voice from trembling, paralyzed in place when he could hardly make sense of what stands in front of him. The person he longed to hear from, the person who left the world too quick, Diluc was afraid to get his hopes up in case his father suddenly disappeared and everything was just an illusion conjured by his mind. He was already used to being betrayed and dealt with disappointment too often. Which is why he learned to trust only himself. But, right now, can he really trust himself?

Feeling your hand gently on his shoulders, Diluc was brought back to reality. You smiled with warm reassurance that bled into your voice, "It's okay Diluc. Go, I'm here for you."

There was the faintest light shining in his eyes as emotions swell in his chest. Ever since you came Diluc never had to feel alone anymore, truly, you were the light that was brought back into his eyes, to his life when he gave up the thought of seeing it again. If he couldn't trust himself then at the very least, he could trust you.

"Thank you," he embraces you wholly like you were everything, and you were, before letting go and taking off to the otherside.

The air hits him in a rush and knocks the ones out of his lungs, "Father!" Diluc yells with tearful eyes. For the first time in a long while he was finally letting his feelings run free, "Father!" A name that felt foreign upon words that is pushes him forward, wanting to claim the truth that was smiling from afar.

"Father!"

Crepus lifted his arms and openly catches Diluc when he crashed into him. Here. He was here. He certainly was.

"Haha its been a while hasn't it my son?" He begins, encasing Diluc in a hug like he did the day he turned eighteen. Crepus was a tall man and his genes seemed to have went through. Back when they were younger, Diluc managed to only reach the blade of his shoulders, just barely. Now they were practically the same height, "Look how much you've grown over the years. There were so many things I planned to say but I don't know where to start."

Seven years. That was how long Crepus spent alone with his thoughts. He saw what happened through that time span, the truth about the Knights and Kaeya's origins. To say that none of that bothered him would be a lie. Especially when his son was the most impacted throughout all the events.

"Father I...I-" Diluc tries to speak but the words dissolved the moment it reached his tongue. He wasn't the type to be very good at expressing emotions. None of it could simply be communicated by sentences. For him, actions spoke louder yet somehow, they still wouldn't be enough. Nothing can comprehend the weight of seven years.

Crepus seemed to have understood and fills in the gap instead, "I have also missed you and Kaeya. More than I can even say. It must have been so hard for you both to endure it all by yourselves. Life hits us when we least expect it but despite that, you still chose to persevere."

Diluc clenches his hold, face buried in his shoulders and mouth quivering as he barely answers, "Yeah."

"You're both my pride and joy no matter what happens, as a father I cannot be more proud," before knowing, everything that was said came out naturally from his spirit. Crepus may have his own set of things to share but he knew what Diluc needed the most, "So please don't stop relying on one another, don't always think that you have to do everything alone. Stength is a virtue. However, its okay to let go and allow new people to come into your life. I don't need to be avenged, as long as you and Kaeya are happy, its all I ask for."

As if the world had been lifted from his shoulders, Diluc allows himself to break just this once. On the outside, he was known to be an unstoppable force, the Mondstadt tycoon, the uncrowned king and a hero who serves at night. But here you saw only a boy who dearly missed his father as he hugs him tightly. Although you couldn't hear their conversation clearly, just watching them from where you stood was enough to make your eyes glisten from pure happiness.

"You finally chose to open your heart, right Diluc?" You quietly note to yourself, "You don't have to carry everything by yourself anymore, you're free."

'Once you open it, you will be set free.'

He was able to dwell in this one in a lifetime experience, all because you unlocked the heart and dispersed the fog inside.

They spent a good amount of minutes bringing the distance back together after being seperated for so many years. You made sure to make minimal movements in the consideration of their time. It was only temporary until Crepus noticed you standing in the distance and he gave you a quick glance. Your whole body tenses in response, suddenly feeling guilty as if you were a third wheel who didn't belong in the moment between two family members.

He's staring at me. Diluc's father is staring at me! Your thoughts panicked along with your thrumming heart. What should I do?!!

"I see you've brought someone along with you," He comments, the playfulness rising in his tone, "She seems to have been waiting for quite a while already. If you don't mind, may you do the honours of introducing her to me?"

Diluc turns to see you stiffened in place with your hands tightly clasped below your stomach and heat pooling from your ear to your cheeks as you dipped your head down. His father was a kind man and he couldn't understand there the discomfort came from, yet found it endearing nonetheless. Diluc walks over to you and extends his hand, silently urging you to come with him. You complied, albeit hesitantly at first.

"It'll be okay my love," he whispered softly, causing you to be taken aback by the nickname he called you by. Diluc often reserves them for special instances and this was one of them, "Whatever the staff told you about my father, they're the truth. Trust in their judgement. Trust in me."

"Diluc..." you say, voice fading. You knew him to be someone who always kept his word and someone who would never lie to you. Taking in a short breath, you nodded, "Alright, I will," and followed his lead.

There was once a time where you indulged in the idea of facing Master Crepus in person. But never did you prepare yourself for the amount of pressure it came with. Now that you were together with his son, there was a high chance that he would also become part of his family too, sooner or later. You weren't just meeting Master Crepus. You were also meeting your future father-in-law.

"Father, this is (Y/n)," Diluc starts the welcoming exchanges. You felt his hand squeeze yours gently. He turns to you so that you caught glimpse of his face, seeing the reverance in his gaze that was hinted among his handsome features, "She's the woman I fell in love with and I would do anything to make her happy. I cherish her more than anything else."

"D-Diluc!" you flushed, your embarassment as red as his own hair. But he wasn't bothered by it in the slightest.

"I only speak the truth."

Master Crepus lets out a content chuckle, drawing both of your attentions back to him, "He can be surprising poetic sometimes but I'm sure that he got it from me. Even my wife reacted the same way," he reminisced shortly before sighing, "In truth I already knew that you were together. Staying in the after life gave me the chances to watch things from an omniscient standpoint, I was sincerely worried how Diluc would handle things when I suddenly left, I hope you don't mind. If you do, I apologize for making you uncomfortable."

"N-Not at all!"

"Haha, you're very kind. Thank you. I'm glad that my son was able to find a woman like you to be his fated partner. As a parent, it brings me great reassurance," Crepus remarked, "I know he can be stubborn and a little too headstrong when it comes to making decisions. It really must be a handful for you to deal with at times but I promise you that he means well. So please continue to watch over him in my stead, take care of my son while I'm gone."

"You can count on me," you beamed, "I'll give it my all."

"You have my gratitude (Y/n)," Crepus replies and turned to Diluc, "And listen to her every once in a while. I may have been the previous owner of our wine industry but even I always make sure to get me sufficient amount of rest. Son you know its bad to get two to three hours of sleep every day."

You blinked, "Two to three hours?"

Diluc clears his throat, "I understand Father. You don't have to say it."

Oh I think he does.

With a satisfied grin, Crepus took both of your hands together in his and gave you his blessings. The man once considered to be an artifact through the vast mansion was going to be part of the memories in your life. All of your expressions held as much happiness as the future can become now that he gave you the closure you both needed.

[fainee]

Hi can I have one where the reader is a madrigal and when they get their gift the family (including Bruno this is post movie) and they think they don’t have a gift but the door is still there and when they swap with their tia pepa’s gift they realized that she can swap gifts to themselves and others bonus points if they think they completely stole it from her

Aaaa, that's an awesome idea! I hope I don't get it wrong. Bad English warning, please correct me if I'm wrong with my spelling.

- So basically, you're Y/N Madrigal and I see you as Julieta and Augustin's daughter. - When Casita starts cracking, you are a couple months younger than Antonio, so you, Mirabel and Antonio have been like best friends since you were born. - When Antonio got his gift, the two of you spent so much time together in his room that nobody saw you around 24/7. - The first time you met your Tio Bruno, you were so scared of him that you hid behind Antonio. "D-did I do anything wrong?"   "No, she's scared because Camilo told her that you're 7 feet tall and evil."

"Oh." - But when time passed, you started to literally adore him, especially his "acting." - When everything returns to normal, you have your own ceremony, but as you touch your door... Nothing happens. But not exactly like with Mirabel. The door stayed, but there was no picture of you with your gift. Nobody understands what just happened. As you all entered, it was a normal, large room with paintings of all the Madrigals on the walls. "Maybe you will write our familia history one day, mi vida, "said Alma to cheer you up. Days passed, but nothing happened, and you still didn't do much. So everyone got back to their lives and thought that you're like Mirabel; you just don't have a gift. But after a couple of years, the situation starts to change... - You've been playing with Antonio, and as you were running, you stumbled and landed on Tia Pepa. "¡Pilas! What are you doing Y/N?!" "Tia, I'm so sorry... Wait you're not angry?" "Of course, I'm! I'm literally thunde-" she reaches for her hand to show them her cloud, but... there wasn't even one. "Huh?" She quickly looked at her door, but her name and the picture disappeared. You were truly petrified. Is all of this starting to happen again? Magic is fading? Suddenly, you felt cold snow on your cheeks.

Plus your door started to change and you see yourself with Pepa powers. "How do you do that? You... ladrón! You stole my gift!" "I didn't mean to! I'm so sorry!" -The entire familia gathers to talk. Everyone was shocked. "So you can take our gifts?" "I think so..." Pepa grabbed your hand and said that you must give her powers back as it was your fault. Bruno started to defend you and grabbed your arm, that you will feel better. Instantly, something weird happened. Pepa's eyes started to glow green, and above Bruno's head appeared grey clouds. So you all know what happened after that. Chaos - So you can swap your family's gifts, that's your job. It's not as useless as you first thought. Family members are often just tired of their gifts.

Dolores loves coming to your room and finally lying in bed in quiet. Luisa can rest and finally sleep without constant energy in her veins.

Camilo loves it when he's trying to change and still see his face. He can see real Camilo Madrigal.

Isabella can feel normal and, for the first time, average like town people. That's mean a lot to her.

Antonio can finally hear how birds sing and lions roar, without knowing their problems.

Julieta's wound can be healed by her daughter.

Pepa can cool down and finally control her emotions.

Bruno doesn't have to look at someone else's future and feel bad about it.

And Mirabel.

Mirabel can feel what it is like to have a gift. She likes to visit you when someone else is resting, taking their powers for a day. And everybody is finally happy.

[parchmentedpetrichor]

➳the girl in the lilac dress ♠ ♡

in which y/n meets fred's ex-girlfriend, days after fred confessed his love for her. there's still some confusion on the status of their relationship. angst -> fluff. narrated by you, y/n l/n.

fred weasley x fem!reader

word count: ±5.4k

tw: angst (not too bad though), mean words, blood, mentions of auror missions, kidnapping, needles, st mungo's

drop a follow if you wanna see more of this content!!

my masterlist:D

ft. hermione, lee and alicia

I don't wanna look at anything else now that I saw you

I don't wanna think of anything else now that I thought of you

the girl in the lilac dress

i was in a good mood. on the way to work to receive my mission, i was humming a song that had just come out. it was catchy and worth the wait.

out of the corner of my eye, a lilac colour appeared suddenly. strange, i thought. it approached me, in the form of a beautiful woman. she had the lightest grey eyes and the smoothest milky-white skin, and the shiniest locks of dark brown hair. she walked in a flowy lilac gown, her slim model-like body walking in a model-like fashion.

i was pretty sure she wasn't headed towards me, but when her luxurious voice said "good morning" in the calmest tone possible to me, i looked at her confusedly.

"hi!" i replied brightly, smiling.

she smiled sinisterly, "my name is pretoria aphrodite, i'm fred's ex-girlfriend."

he hadn't ever mentioned an ex, but i knew he had dated quite a few people. she made me seem like a glass of water next to a glass of red wine, naive and ugly. i was those two things anyway.

"oh! i'm y/n l/n! nice to meet you, you do seem like a daughter of aphrodite," i said politely.

"darling, all women are daughters of aphrodite. i understand fred's interested in you?"

she observed me and i laughed.

"i don't think that's quite the word. he's my best friend."

"friends with benefits?"

"oh gosh no! i don't really know where we stand, honestly."

"bitter about it?"

i thought for a second, "nah, i couldn't be. love's a hard thing."

"it is, indeed, and you work for the ministry?"

i nodded, "head of the auror office. what about you?"

"i model for witch weekly."

i gasped, "you're the p. aphrodite? i should've known!"

"big fan?" she looked amusedly at me.

"my friends are, so naturally i am."

"you don't seem the type fred usually goes for."

"i wouldn't say he's even going for me," i said cautiously.

"you are much too cutesie for his type."

i glanced up at her. she was smiling kindly.

"pfft, but better cutesie than nothing, amirite?" i asked friendlily, "well it's been nice to talk with you, but i gotta hurry!"

"no worries, i'll come with you, i have some business at the ministry too. have you seen his past exes?"

"uhh, not really?"

"well they're all models for one magazine or another."

"oh, okay. and that's important because...?" i asked her carefully.

"i just thought you should know."

i laughed, "i'm not model material, am i? i don't mind at all."

she looks taken aback. "i would say, with longer hair," she plucked a hair out of my poor mess of locks, "and a shorter upper body, with perhaps lip fillers, you'd look model-like."

her tone was analysing and not at all attacking.

"only three things??" i asked, shocked.

"you are rather... pretty already," she mused, "not model-like, but cute."

we had reached the ministry.

"thanks, see you later!" she waved and disappeared.

all that was left was a buzzing fly which soon flew away.

i immediately dialled in my auror code in the red telephone box and was sent into hermione granger's office.

"'mione! how good to see you!" i hugged her.

"hello y/n!"

in the ministry and the auror department, the head of the auror office was probably more important than the minister for magic. i didn't know why. she had brought me a cup of hot chocolate.

"thanks, 'mione, you didn't need to. what's the mission today?"

"two babies are being held hostage in a coded location by a person who calls themselves the light lord. dark lord, light lord, y'know?" she handed me a coded piece of parchment.

i thoughtfully pondered, "the light lord. who do you need?"

"i was hoping you go on this mission, then you could give me some news on this light lord person."

"that's doable. we'll need to bring in hepole and a ministry official to negotiate passports and such. and a strong auror team."

"right on it. i'll get wally becker and charlotte-ann becker. they're a force to be reckoned with on the borders."

"how much experience?"

"they're twins, been doing this for about fifty years now."

"perfect. and hepole?"

"on the way."

"thanks, minister," i winked at her, getting out my telephone and dialling the disguise unit.

"hello, poplinn speaking."

"pop, we need a few disguises. light lord."

"miss l/n! o-of course!"

"and pop?"

"y-yeah?"

"call me y/n."

i hung up, dialling harry's office.

"harry, call draco and be in my office in ten minutes. i don't care what business he's doing with scorpius, we've got babysitters here. light lord, perhaps a second of voldemort."

"of course."

i picked up the ringing phone that was in the corner of hermione's office.

"y/n, me and scorpy are having a zoo day, we're at the muggle zoo you suggested."

"sorry dray, but it's important."

"there's no one else?"

"there are others, but we need your expertise."

there was a pause, "i won't need to show my dark mark?"

"it's fading anyway. no."

"i'll be paid?"

"in hundreds."

"how old are the children?"

"2 and 4," hermione said.

the silence told me he was sold.

"i'll be there."

i picked up the big microphone and said, "auror unit 156 to the brief room. no need to bring anything. see you there!"

"good luck," hermione grimly said, "be safe, head."

"mhm and cup o' coffee tomorrow? if i survive, that is," i grinned.

"'course."

i smiled, "c'ya!"

she was shaking her head.

"oi, no disappointment, 'mione! i was the one who got the ministry out of paperwork!"

"burning paper doesn't count, y/n."

"it wasn't burning paper, hermione granger, it was arson."

"no, it was the saddest form of arson i've ever seen."

"hey! that's rude."

"just go on your mission already."

i laughed, "on it, minister. kalle?"

kalle looked at me, "yes?"

"tell miss minister to take a break and play a game or something, will you?"

she smiled, "okay."

"give my thanks to your mother too, loved the cookies!"

"alright, good luck, head!"

"thanks, bye!"

i apparated to the brief room, where everyone was strapped into special camouflage clothes.

i handed hepole the parchment and immediately began briefing the unit, harry and draco, on the mission.

"please be safe out there. if you're injured, apparate or travel back here, okay?"

i looked at hepole.

he cleared his throat, "they're in albania. the forest there."

"okay. harry and draco will provide attacking forces," the two nodded.

"i want lopex, quentin blake, quentin grill and hilly to break into any establishment," i say to the team, "and eron, hawks, melv, argonas to hold the offender hostage. johnathan, team healer as always. i'll take the children. hepole, you come and accompany us till the forest, then you have my permission to stay back, and beckers, stay invisible with the cloak, write a report for the minister when you come back, understand? have faith, team! i believe in you. we travel by apparition with the machine in three minutes. call your family, chat, have a snack, drink some water, and relax."

i picked up my telephone and dialled my parents.

"hi mum, dad, i'm going on a mission!"

"alright, be safe sweetie," my mum called.

"yeah, don't die kiddo," my dad added.

"right right, i love you, bye!"

the mission was successful. we rescued the children and sent the kidnapper to trial for azkaban. i escaped with a gash on my forearm, but quickly fixed it up with a spell. it ended late in the evening, so the team healer had gone home. the wound kept opening again, but i wasn't sure if it needed stitches.

putting everything away and making sure the aurors were okay, i headed back to the apartment i shared with fred.

i felt emotionally and physically drained, ready to enjoy a good shower and a good late dinner.

when i fiddled with the key to the door and opened it, my heart absolutely stopped.

pretoria aphrodite was kissing fred passionately. i felt my heart fall ten thousand flights of stairs in disappointment. of course. i was all a rebound who was pathetically in love with him.

when they stopped and saw me, pretoria smirked and fred stood up, astounded.

"uhh, continue? sorry," i apologised awkwardly.

"wait, y/n, it's not what it looks like-" he said.

"i don't mind, be safe," i smiled, too tired and too weak to do anything, closing the door and feeling tears well up in my eyes as i took my bag and myself somewhere. anywhere away from this all. my wound burned. i cursed under my breath as i made my way to st mungo's.

"y/n, you should have come here earlier!" yvonne, my friend, says, as she slowly injects a needle into me, "it's infected! and it needs stitches."

i laughed, "everything needs stitches. this is why i didn't become a healer, yvonne."

she shook her head in dismay.

"lol."

i watched the needle go in.

then she stitched the bloody mess of a wound up, cleaning it gently.

"now i can't stay, y/n," i pouted, "no, don't give me that face, i have other patients."

i nodded, "thanks yvonne."

"no problems. take care. you're too reckless."

"am not!"

she laughed. "that's funny."

after the trip to st mungo's which was pretty short, i wondered what to do. my mind kept floating to the scene i had just witnessed.

i was just the stupid, stupid, girl he used as a rebound. he didn't even use me as a real rebound, just someone who was simply infatuated with him to help him forget his unforgettable ex.

looking at a shop window, i caught a glimpse of myself. i hated being insecure but it happened.

i looked ugly. eyes too small, nose too big, lips not full enough. my thighs touched and i didn't have abs. i had a long gash running down my forearm, surrounded by other cuts. my hair was messy and disgusting. compared to the angel on earth pretoria was, i was nothing. small and plain was nothing when luxurious and beautiful was present.

and it hurt. my heart hurt. my head hurt.

i shook my head gently of my thoughts, chuckling bitterly.

fred weasley was completely and utterly out of my league.

whatevs, i thought. hurting was fine.

deciding to get over him once and for all, i bought some groceries and apparated to the doorstep of lee and alicia's glamorous cottage.

i knocked twice on the door. "hellooo!" i called out.

"baby, can you get that?" lee asked alicia.

alicia opened the door, smiling as she saw me.

"hey ali!"

"hi! come in!"

at first glance i could tell she knew something wrong.

"can i sleep here tonight? and take a shower? and eat some of your food please guys? and maybe steal a shirt i left here for safekeep? and maybe use your telephone? i'm really sorry for troubling you, so i got you guys snacks."

i was the second cousin by marriage of lee. it was good overall, but he was super naughty.

"snacks?"

"your favourites."

"then i guess you can," he said cheekily and i laughed.

"alicia, i don't know how or why you ended up with this child, but i'm glad you did," i told her and she laughed heartily.

"he's cute, isn't he?"

"no," i quickly stepped into the guest bedroom and took a long shower, letting a few tears slip but not enough so that it looked like it. i was subtle.

i bundled up in heavy clothing and wrapped my hair in a towel.

gingerly, i bandaged the wound.

by the snores in the other room, lee was asleep. i crept out quietly, going to cook something.

alicia was sitting down, with my favourite comfort meal prepared. i felt tears of appreciation well up in my eyes.

"thank you, ali, i love you."

"you damn well do."

we both giggled.

"what happened?" she asked me.

"nothing. i just wanted a change."

"from fred? liar. i'll ask again. what happened, y/n?"

"just a long mission, that's all."

"after long missions you usually watch movies with fred."

"couldn't i visit my best friend and my cuz?"

"you visit us on weekends. it's a friday."

"well i wanted to visit you!"

"bullshit."

"is it that hard to believe?"

"what the fuck did fred do to you?"

"nothin'?"

"c'mon y/n, you have to tell me. there's a reason why you didn't go to angie and george's tonight."

"i went here because they're super kissy. you guys have space and act normally. i appreciate that."

"you're awesome at lying."

"i'm not lying!"

"does this happen to involve pretoria aphrodite?"

i nodded, sighing, "she's so nice and pretty." i played with my food.

"i bumped into her. she's pretty, but not nice."

"oh?"

"she called me fiercely ugly. she forgot i model for witch weekly too."

"what did you say back?"

"i told her to fuck off."

i laughed, "she was very nice to me. but next time i see her imma kill her."

"of course she was nice to you, you're a lil angel! anyway, she's an animagus, didya know?"

"whoa how did you know?"

"caught her in a jar. she's a fly. who do you think told hermione to catch rita skeeter in the jar?"

i laughed, "rita skeeter is a beetle! gosh, she's annoying."

"what did fred and pretoria do?"

"nothing."

"please tell me?"

"they-" i swallowed, "they were kissing, and so i came here because i didn't wanna watch anymore."

"hang on, he told you he loved you a few days ago?"

i nodded.

"that doesn't seem right."

i shrugged, "pretoria's better than me. i don't blame him."

"his mother would kill him!"

i shrugged again, "i don't think he was legit when he said that."

"molly weasley, y/n!"

"look, he can explain it to you, i don't even wanna hear it. the first stage of mourning is denial, they say."

"doesn't mean it's good."

"denial is awesome. it's ignorance, but you choose to be stupid. i'm already so stupid!" i groaned, covering my face with my hands, "so so so so so so so stupid, foolish, dumb, and i don't want you to tell me i'm not because i know i am. pathetic."

i gobbled down the rest of the meal, "ths 's delicous," i said, swallowing, "g'night!"

"don't be afraid to let it all out."

"yeah."

i shut the door softly, before brushing my teeth and collapsing exhaustedly on the bed, nodding off quickly.

the next day, i woke at 4am, and put on new clothes, apparating to the phone box and filling out paperwork for the missions yesterday.

i joined hermione quickly, handing her a cappucino and sipping my mocha.

"court sitting this early?" she asked me.

i nodded, "mistake of sirius black, now they do all court sittings within 24 hours of arrest."

"that's smart."

"yeah. it's good. he's obviously guilty right? just a dust of veritaserum to bring it all out?"

"i reckon he'll just confess."

"criminals don't go down easily."

"you guys did a spotting job. the children were unharmed."

"are they here today?"

"they're in st mungo's. being monitored."

"parents?"

"dead."

"oh gosh, those poor children. what's going to happen to them?"

"someone's adopting them, wally becker and his wife."

"that's awesome."

the court hushed as we entered the room. hermione and i shared amused glances and began the sitting.

he was found to be guilty and was chucked in azkaban.

"what an idiot, sending a message like that."

"yup," i chuckled, "what with hepole in our ministry, they never escape."

we laughed.

"how's everything with ron?" i asked her.

"i don't know if he's still into me?"

i almost laugh at her statement, "bro. of course he is."

"i never see him."

"then see him more!"

"how? i'm so busy!"

"busy enough for ron?" we both took sandwiches from the canteen lady with courteous smiles and words.

we sat down at the cafeteria.

"i guess not, but he's busy!"

"busy enough for you?"

"i guess not."

"'xactly."

"but he might not wanna go on a date."

"why? the boy's obsessed with you, 'mione!"

the aurors and ministry workers looked at us in fear as i rose up. i chuckled.

i immediately skipped over to the telephone, putting in the WWW's number.

"y/n! what on earth are you doing?" hermione said in a panicked tone.

"nothing to be worried 'bout."

"hello?" it was george. i thanked the heavens for that.

"yolo george, give the phone to your lil bro please."

"'kay."

hermione was gaping at me. i smirked at her.

"y/n?"

"hey ron, i want you to meet me in rosemary park at 5pm today."

"o-okay."

"could you also bring hermione's favourite snacks and wear an extra jumper?"

"what? why?"

"i'm curious, that's all," i said, "see you there!"

"is that y/n?" i heard fred's voice.

"nup, it isn't," i replied.

and with that, i hung up.

"hey 'mione?"

she was glaring at me, "what."

"meet me at rosemary park at 5pm?" i batted my eyelashes at her, before bursting out in laughter.

she laughed, "i love you."

"pfft, love ya too. you really are too careful. like he would reject you."

"what do you think i should wear?"

"let's go off work early today, at 3," i suggested, "we're both on top of our work anyway."

"okay! you wanna go now?"

"it's 11?"

"yeah!"

"alrighty! kalle!"

kalle turned to us, "yes?"

"hi! me and minister are going out to talk about the mission."

"alright, bye."

we apparate to hogsmeade.

"what theme do you wanna go for?"

"hmm," she thought for a second, "floral!"

"alrighty!" i fumbled for my cell phone and dialled the WWW's again.

"hello?" it was fred this time.

"heyo freddie," i said to him like nothing had ever happened, "tell ron to dress up at 5 pm in something cute but not too out there, preferably in florals or somethin', and he better bring me hermione's favourite flowers."

"wha? if he's going with you then- ohhhh."

"thanks, bye."

"wait!"

"mhm?"

"can we talk?"

"erm- about what exactly?"

"everything."

i sighed, "later, okay? i'm out with hermione and you've got work."

"okay. have a good time, lovely."

"you too."

i was utterly confused. here he was one day kissing pretoria, and now he was calling me lovely?

what the hell was going on?

"let's go, mione!"

we went and bought her a pretty pink dress with white lilies adorning it. it was cute and definitely casual, sort of like a sundress.

"what if he doesn't come?" hermione chewed on her lip.

"hermione jean granger, we both know that ron is absolutely definitely a thousand times head over heels in love with you. he wouldn't ditch you for the world! and look at you! anyone can see he's lucky to have you! you both are star-crossed. when has he ever ever ditched you?"

"with lav brown."

"lavender, she's, she's dead, hermione," i said carefully, "fenrir greyback bit her to death. it was a tragic, heroic, death. she was listed in the extended casualties sent to my office a few months after the battle. i think she's watching down on us from wherever she is up there."

"she's dead?"

"yeah," i replied sadly, "life is so short."

"yeah."

"what i'm tryna say, is that that might've happened, but it won't happen again now that he knows you love him and he loves you. understand?"

"yeah."

"and love him well, for the sake of lavender brown."

"for the sake of lavender brown," she said, smiling.

"yup, now, light lord. his name is actually pont knight."

"pont knight?"

"former assistant of me."

"pont knight?"

"yeah, i know right."

"how did he go again?"

"oh, i fired him," i laughed.

"why?"

"smart guy but terribly lazy and he kept asking for promotions! like please do something if you want money."

"interesting."

"he moved to eastern europe to chase after the trendiness of the islands. i think it was just an excuse. he's changed. he used to be clean-shaven and have the blondest hair."

"do you think he did anything else?"

"we did put him on veritaserum, right?"

"yeah, but it's illegal to put someone on it for more than 10 minutes now in court sittings."

"we could go visit him in azkaban later? i'll take gregir."

"yeah, maybe tomorrow or the day after?"

i nodded, "'course. today is a rest day for the aurors right?"

she nodded, "yeah, half of the agency is at home or working out in the gym."

"good. sometimes this work is so tolling, 'mione."

"yeah, i heard from st mungo's you got hurt?" her eyes were concerned.

i rolled up my sleeve, "that's it."

"that's it? what do you mean, that's terrible! you need to take better care of yourself."

"well sometimes it's hard to. it was worth it."

we continued chatting until it was 4:30.

"oop!" she checked her watch, "i have to go!"

"good luck! tell me how it goes, minister! i'll head back to check if anyone's called for you or me and dust it all up."

"thanks. i owe you."

"nah. i owe my job to you. if minister for magic didn't exist, i wouldn't either. i love you 'mione, be safe!"

"love you too!"

i apparated to the phone box and typed my letters in.

with a whoosh, i immediately spotted two letters and a beeping phone. i answered the phone, solving the problem of the woman on the other end of the line and scribbled a reply to both of the letters.

i finished the paperwork and sent it off, then visited my office. it was piling with letters. i answered all of them, redirecting some of them to different departments, before calling everyone back.

i spotted some of the aurors from yesterday's mission sitting in the cafeteria and talking.

i sat down next to them, "how are you guys doing? any injuries?"

they shook their heads, "we've been spending time in the healer's office and just exercising lightly by the orders of johnny," argonas explained and i nodded.

"take it lightly, and go home if you want to. seeing family always helps the process, hopefully not too many nightmares?"

they laughed, "nightmares all the time, miss," hawk said lightly, "get used to it in this job."

i frowned, "have you tried speaking to doctor yvonne? she might have ways to solve nightmares."

"ahh, miss, sleeping draughts can only do so much," hawk replied cordially.

i laughed, "alright, hawkeye, but just make sure you're not getting traumatised okay? what about you, lopex, quentins?"

they shrugged.

"it's okay? the door was very hard to bust into," lopex said quietly, "we had to try several bombarding charms."

"now, lop, it was easy work!" draco said, sitting down, "hello, head auror, hello unit."

it brought on a cacophony of greetings.

"how are you doing, dray?" harry sat down next to him, "hi everyone!"

we all replied with more greetings and a steady conversation started and flowed for a couple of hours.

i felt my cell phone go off and i excused myself, noting it was 9pm already.

i apparated to the apartment doorstep, knocking on the door just in case anything was happening. i checked the caller id, it was hermione.

fred opened the door, hair messy, still good looking. i smiled at him, patting his shoulder as i ran to the ringing telephone and picked it up.

"y/n!" i could just hear the beam in hermione's voice.

"'mione! how did it go?"

"absolutely wonderful, head auror, ahhh, he's so cute!"

"what happened?" i asked, smiling already.

"well it was really cold when i saw the picnic blanket, which was matching my dress for some weird reason, and ron was there in the cutest button up and he looked so handsoME and he gave me a flower, he's always handsome but i just can't! ahhhh!" she squealed and i clapped my hands in excitement.

"and then i was shivering and he gave me hiS JUMPER and it smelled like him and oh my gosh i think i might just be in love, y/n!"

i giggled, "my cooling charm did work!"

"whaT y/n????"

cackling, i said, "continue, i wanna hear more this is so adorable!!!"

i ignored the dirty glance fred gave me, quietening my voice.

"and then we had food and he said he had cooked it himself and was being such a dear and i told him that i loved him over and over again!!!"

i squealed silently again.

"and, and, gosh my english has gone out of the window!"

"english is nothing compared to the language of love!!" i giggled.

"we watched the sunset whilst cuddling, and i fell asleep and then when i woke up i was in his bed and he was looking at me intently and i just, i'm the luckiest girl alive!"

"you are but you deserve it! that's so sweet! i'm happy for you goshhh, you are the cutest couple. you're both such darlings!"

"and then we watched a muggle movie and he got scared of the spiders and it was so adorable ahhhhHHHH!!!"

"that's the cutesttttt," i gushed.

another dirty look from fred. i gave him a frown back.

"and then he walked me home and it started raining and we kissed in the rain and another check off of my bucketlist and oh my gosh he's so perfect."

"oh gosh that's beautiful," i was smiling uncontrollably.

"anyway," her tone changed into one of mischief, "wanna meet up tomorrow to talk about it?"

"sure thing! when and where? i'll be there!"

"erm, lemme chec- think," i heard the suspicious rustling of papers.

"you're sus. let's just talk about it over the phone. i don't want anything weird."

"how about 10 am in the morning at the field of fireflies?"

"that's a highly romantic place, miss minister. isn't it for couples or something?"

"no? you must be talking about fiona farm."

oh. "yeah, probs, well okay, it better have good coffee. i'm dying of boredom too, does it have a playground??" i asked, hopefully crossing my fingers.

"nope."

"awww, shucks, i don't think i'll go then. you wanna come over though?"

"no please come! there's a surprise!"

i was sold, "lovely. i'll be there at 9:30!"

"no, no, don't do that."

"what the hell, hermione, you're being so suspicious!"

"i'm not, okay? just come on time, you won't regret it."

"if there's any funny business i'm not committing arson ever again."

"oh crap."

i sighed.

"just come anyway!!! good night cheerio!!!"

"what the-"

the line ended.

i frowned, noticing the glare fred gave me yet again.

"is everything okay??" i asked him.

"no," he said rudely.

"well, do you need any help?"

"no."

"how was your day?"

"fine."

i sighed, "okay."

"you called ron cute."

i laughed lightly, "that's it?? and so what's kissing a girl huh, nothing? i called him cute because he treats 'mione like a goddess, because she is a goddess, for goodness sake. and he is cute, in a completely objective way," i added absentmindedly, "all you weasleys are."

he frowned.

"she kissed me!"

"oh i don't mind, i couldn't. my two braincells can't handle it. you kiss whoever you wanna, okay? live, laugh, love, and all that." i smiled.

he was silent.

"and we can talk after i meet up with hermione, okay?"

"okay."

"we don't needa if you don't wanna, of course. g'night."

"have a nice sleep."

the next morning, i got up and went to the field of fireflies or whatever.

it was a beautiful place. it was a full on field. meadows stretched across the near english countryside. the sky was clear and light, and the world around me was stunning.

winds blew from all directions, and i soon found myself accio!ing a jumper.

"hermioneeee???" i called, "you're leaving me hanging."

had hermione stood me up? i chuckled at the very thought, soon rolling in the field of flowers as i laughed.

"hermione you devil you stood me up! you left your poor little work wife hanging!" i shouted dramatically.

i suddenly spotted a little house? by the side of the meadow.

i ran towards it.

"whoa."

it was absolutely magnificent. beige little bricks were stacked on top of each other, grey bricks dotted in. the shillings were dark green, and plants hung out everywhere in the cracks of the house.

large windows which reflected the blue light in the sky spanned across the whole house, and a single wooden door stood ajar.

i just wish i had brought a camera. i sat on the grass, playing with the hem of my jumper sadly. even hermione didn't have time for me. i wondered what a sad person i must seem like.

"contemplating life there?" i heard a far off voice. i swung my head around, seeing fred standing and grinning.

yeah well duh i was, no thanks to you, i thought.

i immediately got up.

"we can talk here, right?" fred asked, as he brought me into the house.

"wow," inside, it was cluttered and messy, with plants sprouting everywhere and bookcases and things everywhere. i loved it.

"you like it?" he asked.

"love it."

"good, because i bought it," he laughed at my flabbergasted expression, "i'm rich, darlin'. let's sit, i cooked lunch."

"was this your plan? to have hermione stand me up?" i asked.

"love, i wouldn't call this a plan. simply just a boy trying to explain himself."

"look i don't need an explanation. i told you, you can love whoever you wanna, i don't mind, i don't care, i support."

"but i'm gonna have to explain because i wanna kiss you."

"then go ahead," i sighed, "if you're lying i will stab you."

"jeesh okay."

i looked at him.

"oh yeah, i forgot the food, here," he said casually, handing me a plate filled with yummy looking delicacies. i was willing to put up with his rubbish story telling for the food, i guess.

"alright, i'm all ears."

"okay. so she talked with you right?"

i nodded.

"did she take a piece of hair from you?”

i nodded again.

"so you came home just right about when the night lights flicker on in london. or so i thought it was you. it was actually, aphrodite, yeah? in polyjuice potion. and she knocked on the door, which i thought was strange. i opened it and she immediately kissed me, as you. and it was weird but it was you and i would give the world to kiss you like that," he said bluntly and i could feel my face heating up, "and then it went like that for a few seconds and she turned into pretoria, and by then the woman had her claws on me. then the door opened and i knew i had made a mistake and then you left and apologised so sweetly. i'm so so sorry, my love, please, i never meant to hurt you, i never meant to do anything. i broke up with her last year. i haven't wanted to be with her since. i want to be with you."

i looked at him. i knew he was genuine.

"okay. i'm sorry too, for not trusting you. i guess i was just really unsure of our relationship. it's still kinda blurry."

"what do you wanna be?"

"could we be official, please?"

he grinned, "of course."

then smiling sheepishly, he added, "can i kiss you now?"

"only if i'm the only girl you kiss from now on," i teased, smiling.

he blushed, placing my hands over his heart. it was beating very very fast.

"feel that, beautiful?"

i nodded.

"only you."

he gave me a cheesy grin and laughed at my blushing face, before tilting my head upwards and going in for a kiss but kissing my cheek.

"that's not fair!"

and that's how his head ended up falling into my lap, as i ran my fingers through his ginger strands.

he had fallen asleep just as the sunset began.

it was breathtaking. hues of orange and red danced across the sky.

"i can think of something a lot more beautiful than that," fred said, smiling.

"oh?"

"yeah. yeah."

"i don't believe you."

"that's because you can't see yourself right now."

[lailyn]

Argh, I know, I shouldn't be greedy, but I just love a good whump fic and I love Strangefrost and I love your writing... so, might I humbly ask for another?? Maybe?? For the - I don't know - the digestive system maybe?

Here ya go! This one's a bit longer, it kinda got away from me. 😅

A Fool For You

It began with a relic gone missing. A sword forged in blood and tears, the sword was said to have been used to lop off the head of a tyrannical emperor after he had used it to slaughter his own brothers, all six of them. 

It was a dangerous katana that required a calming ritual at every turn of the century to temper its blade, for it could turn the susceptible, the most innocent into murderous monsters. 

Stephen had been lucky to escape unharmed that morning when he awoke to the blade pressed against his throat, wielded by an invisible hand, controlled by long-range magic.

Stephen had been lucky Loki was there to banish the spectral intruder and restore the katana to its resting place in the Sanctum vault under lock and key. 

Reading the blade that had almost taken his human from him only led them back to Kamar-Taj, but the trail ended there. 

There was a traitor in their midst. 

"Nothing's going to happen to me." 

Or so Stephen kept insisting. 

Loki was no fool. It would take more than vapid assurances to assuage this urge in him to tear whoever dared harm a hair on Stephen's head limb from limb.

Wong thought it could be a Zealot who might have escaped from having to join Kaecilius on his eternal journey to be one with the Dark Lord Dormammu. 

Stephen made a sound argument of the low probability, seeing how the Dark Dimension was as good as sealed forever with the Book of Cagliostro gone, but Loki had disguised himself as one of them that very night and searched each and every Master, fellow and apprentice for the telltale mark on the forehead. 

If someone cared for his opinion, Loki thought Stephen was being too complacent with his life.

"Loki, I am not going to lock myself up in the Mirror Dimension!" 

Stephen had the gall to laugh at Loki's suggestion. For that, Loki did not speak to him for an entire day. 

As the night grew closer, Stephen had given up trying to apologise for something he did not believe he did wrong and resigned himself to the idea of attending the communal dinner at Kamar-Taj without his plus one. Sorcerer Supremes had traditionally been lonesome creatures, and initially Stephen even thought of himself as such. 

Until he met Loki. 

Stephen abhorred gossip. If the Sorcerer Supreme and the (reformed) God of Mischief were indeed an item, he would rather come clean about it than suffer salacious stories being passed around behind his back. 

But since Loki was a no-show, Stephen was going to suffer them for one more day, until he could figure out what to do...or what not to do. When it came to Loki, abstaining was just as important. 

So that was how Stephen had come to sit at the head of the table, flanked by a representative from the other two Sanctums. Wong had drawn the short straw by virtue of his being Stephen's second-in-command and sadly had to stay behind in New York.

A young man barely out of his teens came to the high table with a set of tea. 

“A new apprentice. I recruited him from the streets of Kowloon City,” Master Murata murmured in the Sorcerer Supreme’s ear. “I think he’s got potential.”

Stephen looked at the scabies burrows in the webs between the boy’s fingers, the badly damaged nails from a chronic nail-biting problem superimposed with a fungal infection. 

Must have been homeless, he deduced. Family problems? A runaway?

Stephen watched as the boy poured a pinkish golden liquid into the three cups in front of them. It glittered with edible gold petals. 

“Sour plum tea,” Master Murata nodded in approval. He held up his cup, “Here’s to our Sorcerer Supreme. May you live in interesting times.”

If the wording sounded odd, it could only be due to the Guardian of the Hong Kong Sanctum’s oriental heritage. 

Stephen surreptitiously waited for both Guardians to finish drinking first before raising his own cup to his lips to take his first sip.

"Sorcerer Supreme, there you are!"

"Wong?" Stephen's forehead furrowed at the sight of his friend marching down the dais toward him. "What are you doing here?"

Wong grabbed the cup out of the Sorcerer Supreme's hand and drank it all in one gulp. 

"That hit the spot," he declared, delicately fingering the corners of his lips. 

"M-Master Wong," Master Murata stammered. 

"What's gotten into you?" Stephen muttered. He held out the empty cup for a refill, but Wong quickly grabbed his wrist. "Wong!"

The apprentice scurried away with the tray; Wong followed the retreating form with his eyes until the boy disappeared amongst the dinner crowd. 

With a wide smile Stephen had never seen the likes of it on Wong’s face before, his best friend boldly grabbed him around the wrist and yanked him out of his seat. "This is simply no time to be drinking! Come, I have much to tell you!"

"It's just tea," Stephen grumbled, more curious than embarrassed at being manhandled in public.  

Just as they passed a few Masters in the hall, Wong stumbled and would have fallen had Stephen not caught his friend. 

“Really, Wong, one would think you had been imbibing…” Stephen's voice trailed off at the sight of perspiration dotting his friend's forehead. “Wong?”

“Take me to your room,” Wong grunted, and Stephen froze, for Wong’s voice suddenly sounded so much like -

“Loki?”

In the blink on an eye, Stephen teleported them to his room and Wong slowly sank to his knees with a soft, forlorn sigh; his form shimmered as all manner of glamour dropped, revealing Loki's shaking form. 

At the tell-tale shudder, Stephen quickly grabbed a trash can from under his desk and shoved it under Loki's head just in time to catch the first of his stomach contents. 

"Poison?"

Loki nodded frantically as another wave of extreme nausea surged up his gullet.

"But how? We were all drinking the same thing!" Stephen demanded.  

“It wasn't the tea,” Loki gasped. “It was the cup.” 

"If you knew it was poisoned, why couldn't you have just told me? Why did you have to drink it?" Stephen berated.

"Now you have evidence," Loki managed in between gasps. "Somebody was trying to kill you."

Loki lashed out a hand which his lover caught unthinkingly; into Stephen's palm Loki pressed the ceramic cup he had drunk from. 

"It's the lacquer," he wheezed; the pain raging in his stomach was making it difficult to breathe. "It...reacted with the gold leaf. Turned the tea."

Stephen stared at the object in his hand. True enough, the urushiol lacquer had corroded away, leaving behind a suspicious white deposit that had formed a sediment at the bottom of the cup. 

Loki had done it all on purpose...impersonating Wong, stealing Stephen's drink right under his nose and making sure everyone saw him drink out of the Sorcerer Supreme's cup -

And stumbling in the hallway with witnesses around had been in part an act, the rest of it very, very real...as real as the blood dribbling down Loki’s chin as his body tried to purge the poison. He heaved and heaved uncontrollably into the trash can, his long hair limp and matted to his scalp like a crown of thorns.

But before Stephen could hold his hair back for him, another violent cramp folded Loki in half, his desperate cry of the kind Stephen had never heard out of the God of Mischief before.

"Oh, Loki…" Stephen could not help but moan. "Why must you always do this?"

Loki shuddered and wiped the blood away with the back of his hand. He slowly sank to the floor, prostrating on the tatami mat, arms wrapped tightly around his stomach. 

"I'll live," he sighed. "You wouldn't have."

Stephen leveled his writhing lover with a frosty look. "What made you think I could live with this on my conscience?"

Loki's eyes fluttered to a close. "As long as you lived, I don't particularly care."

Stephen heaved a sigh of frustration and sickening anxiety. "What can I do?"

"Hang the perpetrators by their entrails, that would be a start," Loki groaned. He curled up as tightly as his cramping muscles would allow. "Norns!" 

Stephen rummaged through his apothecary cabinet and waved potion after potion of possible remedial value, only for every jar to be waved away. 

"I've purged it all." Loki bared teeth slick with blood in a grotesque grimace as he tried to breathe through the worst of the cramps. "It's just the sequelae now."

Tears sprang to Stephen's eyes as he dropped onto his knees next to his ill lover. "You are such a fool."

Loki chuckled weakly. "Ah yes, that I am. A fool for you."

A furious tear escaped and made its way down Stephen's cheek. He gathered Loki's long limbs in his arms and lifted the trembling figure gently into his lap, holding him upright. "I'm such a fool."

"Stephen, don't." Utterly exhausted, Loki could do no more than squeeze the protective arm around his neck. "I'm alright. Truly."

"I will find whoever did this," he heard Stephen vow in his ear and the tension drained out of Loki's body like water.

"Good," Loki hummed faintly. 

If putting himself in jeopardy was what it took to get Stephen to give a damn about his own life...then Loki had no objection whatsoever. Nor had he any objection to the comfortable weight of Stephen's hand on his aching belly, or to the healing magic furious at work, aiding the repair of any internal damage caused by the poison. 

"I am going to sleep now," Loki murmured, sagging in Stephen's embrace like a sack of bones. 

As Loki drifted off into a restorative slumber, he could hear Stephen mumble something in his ear. It sounded a lot like 'I love you', but Loki could not be sure.

Stephen was just going to have to say it again when next he awakened.

[bored-storyteller]

Okay, I humbly apologize. I had a bad time - and unfortunately it's not over 😩- but here's the second part with three other leaders. I know I know I know! Malleus is missing! I'll try to post Mal today too- tomorrow, it depends on where you are - I promise.

Please I know you love him so much but love me anyway 🥺

14- Dorm leaders x down!s/o pt.2

Kalim Al-Asim

· Kalim is magical and exhausting at the same time. Yes, s/o love him from the bottom of their hearts, but dealing with him in times of stress is exhausting.

· The young nobleman does not really know the stress, at least, for what s/o can see, and this leads him to overcome any worries. It's not that he doesn't want to see other people's problems, it's just that he can't think of them.

· S/o as the days go by they feel worse and worse. The head often hurts and tiredness brings them into a state of almost half asleep. If Kalim saw this he would be very worried about them, but their presence for him is a fact. He is convinced that if something went wrong s/o would tell him, right?

· But no. How could they say no to his requests? That is, actually there is not even time to refuse.

·  Jamil is worried. He sees what is going on and tries to marginalize the problems. S/o should rest, they could ask him for help - as if he wasn't already doing everything in the dormitory-. But s/o know that the vice leader is already very busy, burdening him with their study problems and their worries is not the case.

Having to deal with Kalim really means having almost never breath. Even his affection can sometimes be a problem.

Yes, s/o certainly love him, but three days before the start of the test session, the thing more than making them happy is shaking them.

They have studied practically nothing and really feel their strength failing. While everyone is studying carefully, they are struggling to finish their homework for the next day.

The nights for s/o are now nothing more than a staring at the ceiling in desperate search for information that does not exist in their head. And the lessons are so heavy in the morning that their hope of getting through the year is almost zero.

Sometimes the idea of dropping out of school even went through their mind. They would certainly be freer.

Right now, s/o they are hiding in the bedroom, surrounded by study books.

It doesn't matter how much they read and reread those words, their overfull mind wanders over their fears, not making them memorize anything.

There is no way they can overcome this. They curl up on the bed, clutching their knees to their chests and doing everything they can to keep from crying.

Suddenly the door swings open. Kalim comes in with his cheer, filling the room with his happy voice.

It seems that he is excited about something, but s/o can’t help but look at him with wide eyes without understanding.

His exclamations echo in their heads as if it were empty, breaking the delicate crystal walls.

"Stop!" They cry when even the last fragile column of their sanity is brought down.

"Stop!" They repeat, bringing their hands to their faces and collapsing supine on the bed.

"Stop it! I can't take it any more! If I continue like this I will go crazy!"

The arms cover the face wet with tears. They are not really shouting at Kalim.

He stops suddenly, a little frightened by that reaction.

What happened? Where did he go wrong this time?

When the silence weighs too much, they still speak: "I ... I need to get out of here, I... don't want to be in this school anymore. "

Kalim listens in silence for a few moments to their sobs, then slowly, shyly, sits beside them on the bed.

"No ..." he murmurs, "I will help you, whatever your problem is." His voice is that of an injured child, but his arms raise s/o to his chest, to hold them against him and protect them.

"Everything will pass, I promise you. But I can't be without you."

The fingers pass slowly through the hair of s/o while his crimson eyes scan the books around them.

Kalim's arms hold them desperately. Right, how could they leave him alone? In short, who would help Jamil then?

That thought makes them smile, and while s/o get up seated they give to the boy a simple and light "ok", and then they resume the study with a quieter mind.

Kalim no longer talks, but neither does he leave, he simply remains close to them a little to comfort them, a little for the fear that they will move away from him, until he ends up falling asleep on their lap.

Vil Schoenheit

· Here, another guy who made stress his life. Some type of stress. Obviously, he must meet expectations.

· This also applies to those around him, or rather, to those who are close to his heart. If he demands so much from someone, it means that he cares about them. In a sense, even his insult when it is constructive is flattering.

· But for an already stressed s/o, dealing with him is extremely anxiety-provoking. You have to be perfect, everything has to be in order, and for an already fragile mind, well, the step to break is not far away.

· Still, he bears a great deal of stress on his shoulders without showing it, but he doesn't notice that others can sometimes be overwhelmed, and his manners aren't exactly delicate when it comes to appearances.

·  S/o are almost afraid of him every time his eyes meet them. What will he say? What's wrong with them?

Yes, they know how important the smile is, but they can't do it. In the library they leaf through the book they hold in their hands with empty and dull eyes.

They don't have to look good, on the other hand disappointment for themselves keeps them up all night.

There is no way they can get through this period, not for how they are.

They sigh, placing the book on the shelves and giving up. They fold their arms on the table as they sit, and there they hide their tired faces.

S/o  would like to go into hibernation, everything would be easier. No commitment, no judging eye ...

"S/o, my dear." The firm voice of the Poemfiore leader makes itself heard. It is firm, severe even if placid.

What's up now? Oh sure. They are not sitting upright with their backs. Hair is probably a mess and their eyes have been ruined for days. They already know to suck, there is no need for him to say it. They already hate each other, and there is no need for him to see how ugly their sticky face is with tears.

S/o do not move, as if he were not there, they remain closed inside themselves, in such a state of surrender that not even Vil can grasp immediately. But he understands that something is wrong. It never happened that they ignored him.

 “S/o.” the name is repeated again, but this time it is accompanied by the delicate hand of the leader who touches the hair of s/o.

As soon as the fingertips touch the head, as if they were of fire, s/o spring back, scared as if they had a ferocious beast in front of them.

Vil stares at those eyes so full of fear. Afraid of him.

In their dark circles he sees all the suffering of those days, all the dozing sadness. And in that situation of desolation, they feared him as if he were their enemy, the one who wants to harm them.

"No… Please..."

A prayer comes out of their fragile lips as if he is ready to kill them. He's not sure if they're clear-headed... no, they seem to be in another world. A dark and lonely world.

Vil's white fingers caress s/o's chin. They do not retreat, but tremble as if they were blades.

"I won't hurt you. I'm just worried about you."

His words are clear, as always, but a little sweeter than usual. He patiently sits in front of them, without losing contact.

"You can tell me what troubles you."

Finally the gaze of s/o meets the beautiful eyes of the boy. Eyes so beautiful, admired, and at this moment sincere.

S/o they bend down again, resting their forehead on Vil's hand while holding it with theirs. There they cry, for once without the weight of the angry gaze, but only surrounded by affection, while Vil gently caresses their head.

Idia Shroud

·  Ok, how to say, this guy is made of stress.

· Idia fears the social relationship, people stress him, what is not his room and his computer stresses him. He is not an easy person to manage.

· S/o are practically elected. They are fortunate to be admitted to his. In short, they can remain curled up on his bed without him saying anything.

· Usually are s/o who take care of him, who try to support him and calm him down, but sometimes of course they are the ones who need support ... but well, Idia practically doesn't exist.

· It is not his fault, but even if he cares about s/o in a way that even he did not believe possible, he is not good at social relationships. Very often he will limit himself and stay next to them, still connected to the internet. They don't mind, usually.

But this time the boy's body isn't even close to them. He is far away, in the darkness of the room, illuminated only by the screens. Yes, they are not even totally sure that he is aware of their presence.

Ortho, to their disappointment, is not present.

S/o don't need to be there, but for some time now they have felt a lump in their throat that they can't swallow. They have failed a test, and there is no way to recover it, or so they believe.

The truth is that they are nothingness.

They have to study, but loneliness echoes in their head. Nobody wants them.

So they slipped from the leader of Ignihyde to find comfort. It would have been fine even if he had been silently beside them, but no, he was elsewhere. They had seen an excited light in his eyes when they arrived. Maybe chat with someone online? Of course, those friends are better than them.

A failure, a weight, that's s/o.

Small tears wet the already dimly lit page.

In the darkness in which they find themselves, they sink into the anxiety and fear that they have been holding inside for weeks.

That horrible feeling of emptiness that causes the brain to tilt.

Idia does not notice the sobs. S/o are hidden, curled up into a ball on the boy's bed. Nothing makes sense to them anymore. More they cry, more they lose consciousness of their surroundings, and everything disappears.

Idia is too caught up in his game. He does not really notice that s/o are not well.

Only when he turns enthusiastically to communicate something to them does he hear them.

Sobs are louder now, but they don't know it.

Heart breaks in Idia. How long have they been crying? Two hours will have passed since they arrived. Why didn't they speak?

Oh God, it's his fault ... he sucks with people so badly, and he always ends up hurting them.

Maybe they came to him because somehow they believed he made them feel good, didn't they?

He gets up from his chair, unsure of what to do. Embarrassed he approaches them.

God, they seem so fragile. Will he break them if he touches them?

Slowly, as if he were dealing with a kitten, he places his sweatshirt on them, and then, a little scared, he sits next to them.

They seem lost, s/o don't react.

Idia feels the butterflies in his stomach from agitation. Suddenly, it seems to him that the figure of s/o is fading away in the dark of the room. It's scary.

Shyly he stretches his arms around the small figure and carefully pulls them into his chest.

He feels their sobs freeze for a moment, almost frightened, and then finally the muscles relax, while they abandon themselves to him.

"Sorry, I'm a delusion..." They murmur, clinging to him.

So is this what they think?

"No ... you ... I ... find you beautiful ..."

He speaks shyly. He's not exactly that these words are what they need, but that's what he really thinks.

His cheek is warm against their head. Maybe he's blushing.

How can they not smile at this?

[sailingintothenight]

“WANNABE.” T.H. Imagine.

And what if after years of chasing each other like a cat and mouse, you and Tom started to wonder if you wanna be something else in each other's life?

A/N: I am posting a one shot after weeks of writer's block. I hope you like it. It's 9:30 pm in Peru and it's still April 28, so it's still my birthday! Give it a try. Pleaseeeeee! And yes, I borrowed a scene from Mean Girls (Because I loveeee that movie)

“Hello God, it's me again, (y/n). What's up? I know we haven't talked much lately, but, hey, listen, I have a favor to ask you- I have behaved well, I haven’t gotten drunk at any crazy party of any Hollywood star and I haven't accepted drugs, ever: I'm afraid my grandmother will appear in my room as a ghost and pull my blankets in the middle of the night, plus, I haven't make out with any Stone-cold Hollywood hottie, and trust me, I've had more than one chance. Anyway, about the favor–”

"Yes, but (y/n)'s grandfather invited us to his birthday party..."

Tom's voice startles you and cuts off your internal dialogue, turning you back to the reality.

It’s 6 am. The sun shines in the clear sky, and you are on a flight back to England in a luxury privet jet that is about to arrive at the airport, while Haz, Harry, Tom and you are sitting in comfortable velvety seats, with the view of morning sky on your left side. 

The exciting memory of your last recording still seemed to run through your veins, too exciting to let you sleep. Because that was the end, the goodbye after incredible months. All your efforts from the past months were hidden behind that last performance that looked like a fantasy, except for the kiss, ugh, you had to erase it from your mind. But now, you're going back home, ready to take a break away from the set-up bridge and blue and green backgrounds, away from the makeup artists who gave your face the final touches of the magic of Hollywood, far from the suit of a superhero who had just won her last battle and who got the cute boy, Peter Parker.

But not far away from Tom Holland.

Because evil takes a human form in Tom Holland, your lifelong neighbor.

How do you even begin to explain Tom Ho– Stop, people say that if you pronounce his name 3 times a curse falls on you.

But fans say Tom Holland is flawless, you heard his curly hair is insured for 10,000 dollars, his favorite movie is “Spider-man Homecoming”, duh, and very soon, “far from home”. One time he met Robert Downey Jr. in his own village and he started hyperventilating, and once he threw a fan's phone on the floor and she said it was awesome.

"Please don't tell me you're going to his birthday party." You complain, because you can't help it.

"Would that bother you that much, darling?" Tom smiles, tilting his head back so that his tender smile fits perfectly with his tender face. “Then of course I will go. Also, your grandfather still has the hope his granddaughter would get a man like me.”

"Ew. Why would my dear grandfather want me to be with someone who enjoys keeping a frog in his mouth?" You ask, earning yourself an Oscar for best actress with the innocence you exude and the seriousness you manage to put on your face, even when Tom's eyes narrow from the attack you just launched, while, enjoying the show, his friend and his younger brother laughs, shaking heads with a familiar expression on their faces because of the familiar discussion between you and him that happens, every two or three days. "Seriously, Tom, give the poor Henry a break."

"Henry?" Tom asks with real confusion, his accent thick, while the other male voices ask it in a collective whisper too.

"I named your frog Henry, hope it doesn't bother you." And you laugh, victorious to feel how Tom exhales the air through his nose.

“Seriously, (y/n), when will you confess that you are in love with me? You don't have to be so shy, darling.” Tom laughs too, using his finger to tap your nose, because he knows perfectly well that you don't like that, just as you don't like being called darling anymore. “Ray is a wise man, you should listen to your grandfather."

"Yes, if you like skinny ones."

"I'm not skinny. I have the perfect body.” Tom defends himself.

"For now, but in a couple of years you will named your big belly as your dad does after drinking with mine." You laugh like a little girl because you love Dom, because he's warm and funny, because he loves his wife and children, and because of how funny he is when he and your dad have had too much alcohol, like the time they started a cartwheel contest in the middle of the street. "Who's there? It's Dom Junior.”

"Shut up! My dad is still sexy!” A heavy silence falls over the small place as everyone looks at Tom with furrowed brows and true confusion, but that's when he realizes the choice of words he used to refer to his dad. "That's not what I meant!"

You raise your hands in a sign of peace, your gaze avoiding his as you stop yourself from laughing and mocking him.

"That's so wrong, Tom." Harry says, with a certain bittersweet taste on the tip of his tongue. "Now because of you I won't be able to see dad's belly the same way."

Harry and Haz chuckle at Dom's expense.

But when the jet landed smoothly on the headlight-lit runway in the early hours of the morning, the heavy hours from the past months feels now as if they weighed the same as a feather, pain and exhausting sleepless nights disappeared in the blink of an eye, and now, there is no oceans that could make you feel far away, because in the end, you always came back home.

"Besides..." You say to finish that conversation, your backpack on your shoulder before making the victory path towards the stairs to get off the plane. "I would like a boyfriend who can grow a mustache, not like the failed attempt on your face. Thank you very much."

"Hey!" Tom frowns as you pass him by, and his voice rises even higher than it already is. "My doctor says it's just a hormone problem."

"Damn, bro..." Harry laughs as he puts an arm around Tom's shoulder, giving him a brotherly hug before walking out to the car waiting outside. “(Y/n) will be hard to catch, you know? But try it, maybe you will make it in this century."

Harry laughs, and then, walks out of the plane.

"What does that mean?" Tom asks Harrison, who is still waiting by his side.

"I think he meant that you are in love with (y/n), but you haven't noticed it yet."

Harrison chuckles, but after patting Tom on the back, he rushes to place a hand on his best friend's shoulder to stop him.

“Hey, mate… you, uh…” Tom's eyes soften, almost to the point where his brown eyes resembled the gaze of a little 5-year-old boy, sad, and lost. “You haven't told anyone why we came back, right?”

“Of course not.” Harrison says, and his gaze smiles just like his lips. “Don’t worry about anything, okay? We are home, you are home. You can take the time you need to rest.”

Tom nods, unsure, but tries to be strong as they both get off the plane. 

The gray autumn clouds hang with invisible strings in the sky as Tom Holland, actor, handsome, wealthy, and the loneliest person in the world, releases a deep breath that is lost among the sounds of the world, because his world is no longer sparkling or velvety thanks to the cameras or a red carpet, and while his new movie is a box office hit that never in his best dreams he would have imagined, something wasn't right for him.

That’s why he is back home.

The car ride is silent as some sleep, except you and Tom, because your eyes seem to recognize the streets you grew up in, because your hearts recognize your home. But for Tom, he recalls tilting his body to the left and a camera captured his best actor pose a week ago, but since then, his body has felt null, as if floating in the air and no longer responding to his orders. He was crystal clear, but a few people seemed to see clearly through him. Tom tries to convince himself that the tickling in his hands is his body's response to tiredness and not his anxiety, because he suffers it too, but he feels that something is eating his soul.

"Are you okay, Tom?"

Among a sea of ​​people, Tom Holland has always pretended to be an interesting person, but now, he takes a deep breath and looks at you, nervous, lost in the middle of that huge world, but you, looking back at him gives him peace, because he doesn’t feel alone anymore. 

What did you think? That someone is interested in knowing if you are really okay? Of course they care, right?

“Of course, darling.” Tom smiles, as if in a snap of fingers, everything is fine.

But there, he catches a movement of yours.

You tilt your head to the side, like his beloved Tessa when she is curious about something, but he doesn't say it out loud because you would take it the wrong way, but the movement in slow motion worthy of a Hollywood scene and the serenity of your gaze makes Tom hold his breath, that breath that previously didn't fit his chest with so many problems that he carried inside.

But suddenly he can breathe again, finally.

“Okay.”

The minutes pass until the car stops on a street that you two recognize perfectly. When everyone is out, the car leaves, but because your favorite boys are about to leave, too, you hug everyone as the promise to celebrate Harrison's birthday next week hangs in the air. You love them so much, because they are beautiful people who helped you to save yourself from the storms of doubts and fears, each of them in their own charming way, and for that, you were grateful.

"My friend Danielle is coming so I would like you to meet her, Haz." You chuckle adorably before leaving, noting that Harrison's smile is as real as his desire to meet her.

"I'm looking forward to it, darling."

"Wait, why he can call you darling?" Tom says, and for a second, you see a sparkle in the brightness of his eyes, but as the door of his house opens and his beloved Tessa runs to receive him, the confusion disperses like the morning haze.

"There she is the only darling you will ever get, Thomas."

And the moment you turn around, because the door of your house opens too, you lose sight of Tom's honest smile and the question that he hides behind his sweet eyes. Was he in love with you all this time without realizing it? And what if he wanna be your boyfriend? 

Oh, right. The favor that you were going to ask God for? To get you a boyfriend, a cute one, a hot one... maybe like Tom. Weird, isn't it?

Tag list: @galaxies-of-the-heart​

[chronicallylatetotheparty]

Fractured Foundation: Scorned Soul Ch.5 Spark

The smallest embers can lead to raging wildfires if left unattended.

”Ladybug…" Adrien looked down as the guilt opened a pit in his stomach. "I'm sorry-”

Carapace interrupted Adrien by tackling him. Arms wrapping around him in a tight embrace. "You're okay!" The Turtle's voice broke. "You're okay."

Confusion clouded Adrien's eyes but, slowly, he wrapped his own arms around Carapace. "I didn't... hurt anyone, did I?"

Feeling Carapace stiffen under his hands was all the response Adrien needed. Pulling away from the hero Adrien curled in on himself. "I see."

"It wasn't your fault you were akumatized!" Queen Bee pointed out. Coming off harsher than she meant to, Chloe softened her voice. "Everyone has bad days. It doesn't mean you're a bad person."

Adrien bit his lip. Chloe's words seemed to have the opposite effect of her intention. If the growing void in his gut was any indication.

Rena Rouge stepped forward to add her voice to Chloe's. "She's right, Adrien. You two aren't the only ones here who were akumatized."

Eyes widening, Adrien's head whipped towards Rena. Her? Akumatized? And Ladybug still trusted her with a Miraculous? Maybe he-

Suddenly, four near simultaneous beeps rang out. Announcing the heroes' imminent detransformation.

"...Go. I'll collect your Miraculous later," Ladybug decided.

Carapace shot his Miraculous an accusing look as Rena Rouge grabbed his arm and pulled him away. Casting worried glances at Adrien over his shoulder. Queen Bee stood still, struggling with what to say, before she too left. Eyes locking with Ladybug for a too brief moment.

Coming closer, Ladybug held out Adrien's previously akumatized item. The lucky charm she gave him.

Letting it drop into his hand Adrien stared at it. Slowly, he brought it to his chest.

Placing a hand on his shoulder Ladybug pretended not to feel him tense at her touch. She opened her mouth... And nothing came out. Fire and smoke danced behind her eyes as Scorned Soul's heartbreak echoed in her mind. No words seemed solid enough, strong enough, to pierce the spell. Not even to ask why Adrien was akumatized in the first place.

"Have you ever had something you loved ripped away from you?"

No. Ladybug couldn't say that she had. So, instead she said. "I can take you home?"

That seemed to be the wrong thing to say as Adrien's shoulders hunched slightly. And Ladybug was about to force words out of her mouth to fix it. Even if they didn't come out right, even if they wouldn't obey her, when Adrien answered. "... O-okay."

He trembled in her arms as his own wrapped tightly around her neck. Burying his face in her shoulder to avoid looking at her. Ladybug swinging quickly across the city. Relief at the lack of fires bloomed in her chest. Adrien's grip shifted as he focused on keeping his breath even.

At the sight of the Agreste manor her eyes watered. There was no sign at all of Scorned Soul's unbridled rage. Adrien seemed to sense her shift in mood and opened his eyes.

A vise gripped his heart as he saw their destination. Tears streamed in the wind, disappearing into his hair. When he searched himself for the reason why his eyes stung at the sight there was nothing. Nothing but fire and ash.

Before leaving him in his empty room Ladybug glanced back. Eyes setting in determination. But for what he didn't know. Then she was gone.

The door to his room slammed open. Adrien jumping at the sound. Gabriel strode in, his expression thunderous. Nathalie hurrying behind.

"F-Father?"

"What have you done!?" Gabriel snapped and Adrien flinched at the steel in his voice. "What have you done!?"

Adrien backed away. "I- I don't-"

"Gabriel," Nathalie soothed, though there was a tremor to her words. "Ladybug put everything back as it should be. Everything is fine."

Taking a deep breath Gabriel adjusted his tie. The eruption he was about to loose on his son quelled. For now. Fixing Adrien with his usual look of unimpressed dismissiveness, Gabriel turned on his heel and left. Nathalie glanced at Adrien sympathetically before closing the door.

Adrien collapsed to the floor as his breath came in sobbing gasps. Tears burning from his eyes. His phone rang. He tossed it away without looking. There was no more strength for speaking to others. Gabriel sapped it out and left without even saying why he was so angry.

His phone rang again. Adrien stood, stumbling, and muted it. He felt... drained... Empty... Alone.

----------

Marinette waited quietly, if not quite patiently, across from Master Fu. Her desire to speak was superseded by the persistent guilt that weighed down her tongue. Their kwamis whispered to each other beside the Miracle Box.

First losing Chat Noir then almost losing Adrien, it was too much. She shuddered at the way Scorned Soul had somehow manifested her guilt. Using her own emotions to add fuel to his fire. Turning her own weaknesses against her...

Finally, Master Fu spoke. "I am sorry."

Marinette stared, uncomprehending.

“I created this hatred in him. I could have simply addressed it with him. He was not beyond hope…”

"Wait... Chat Noir is going through the same thing as Adrien!? We have to help him! We have to-"

"Sit down, Marinette. I have already decided to return Chat Noir's Miraculous to him."

Her legs suddenly unable to hold her weight, Marinette collapsed back onto her seat. "I- Really?"

Master Fu nodded, glancing from the Miracle Box to giving her a knowing look. "Recent events have shown me that it is better he remain by your side."

A thought came to the forefront of Marinette's mind. It solved a problem she actively prevented herself from solving. But it wasn't the first time she dismissed it. So, with practiced ease she sent the unwanted answer back where it came from. "Thank you, Master Fu."

He waved away her thanks. "I acted rashly. It is only fitting I correct my mistake."

"Stll-" Marinette's phone rang and she saw her maman's face smiling from the screen. "I have to go Master Fu." Marinette stood and this time her legs held. "Tikki, transforme-moi!"

Ladybug stood for a moment at Master Fu's window. Glancing back at her mentor, Ladybug smiled. A genuine smile at the thought of seeing her partner again. "Thank you." And then she swung away.

Master Fu stood slowly. Although the Miraculous Cure healed his burns the memory of them had not faded.

Wayzz hovered closely to his wielder. "Master?"

"I am alright, Wayzz," he walked toward the Box and pressed the proper code to open it, "Simply thinking."

The ring of the Black Cat seemed to wink at him in the light. Casting his mind back to that day.

Master Fu remembered a call from his memory-less protege suddenly being cut off. A great sphere of amnesia magic ready to wipe every mind in Paris clean. But mostly he remembered Ladybug getting hit while covering Chat Noir. His last mistake, which convinced Master Fu to take his Miraculous.

Picking up the ring, Master Fu placed it in one of the smaller octagonal boxes. He would keep a closer eye on Chat Noir. Obviously, he was too susceptible to akumatization to be let in more than he already had. But this time Master Fu would be there. Watching and assessing from the side. This time Chat Noir would have a guiding hand to set him on the proper path.

----------

Adrien stared disbelievingly at the box in his hand. The same one he'd found the ring in over a year ago. It was even in the same place.

Why? That thought echoed in his head. Sweat beading along his brow, hand trembling and mouth dry.

Why? It was only a day since his akumatization. And suddenly his Miraculous reappeared in his room without explanation or warning.

Why? It was the question itself that made him hesitate to open the box. Or was it the answer?

Why? Gut clenching Adrien snapped it open.

Before he even finished materializing Plagg crashed into Adrien. Calling out his name. Purring into Adrien's chest.

The last shred of his disbelief faded as Adrien slowly hugged Plagg to himself. Tears brimming as Adrien asked for answers he knew would bring no satisfaction. "Why?"

Plagg stopped purring. "Well, Master Fu changed his mind."

"Why?"

Floating at eye level, Plagg gazed at Adrien. "He realized taking me away was a mistake."

"Why?"

Ears drooping, Plagg's tail fidgeted anxiously. "Is that all you're going to say?"

"I was akumatized," Adrien stated, a question in his voice.

Plagg forced his tail to still. "He... Fu's sorry he took Chat Noir away from you."

"I see... And he couldn't even tell me that himself." Adrien turned towards his bed.

Zooming after him, Plagg tried to elicit some reaction besides this unsettling monotone. "Adrien-"

"I'm sorry."

Plagg blinked.

Adrien stared at his friend. "It's good to see you again." He smiled sadly. "I... I missed you."

"Of- Of course!" Plagg tried to downplay the sudden lump in his throat. "I missed you too."

Adrien's smile became a touch brighter.

"Why don't we take a little rooftop stroll? That's always fun."

Abruptly, Adrien's fledgling smile fell and he looked down. Normally he'd jump at the chance to transform, to fly across Paris. But transforming meant seeing Ladybug again. And he didn't want to face her. Not yet.

"Thanks, Plagg." He started for his bed again. "But I'm tired. Maybe later..."

Stunned into silence, Plagg slowly floated into the boy's hair while Adrien settled in. Adrien never turned down an opportunity to transform... Plagg purred for his kid. And if Adrien's tears stained his pillow, well, Plagg wouldn't tell anyone.

----------

Ladybug didn't find Chat Noir until the third night.

He wasn't transformed when she checked her yo-yo contacts and couldn't bring herself to leave a message. She didn't know what to say. Still, Ladybug searched his favorite spots and double checked his patrol routes. All in vain.

Until she spotted a dark shadow purely by chance. Turning sharply, Ladybug angled herself towards the rooftop. "Chat Noir!"

The shadow stiffened at her voice and turned in her direction.

Landing, Ladybug all but tackled him into a huge hug. "I'm glad you're back!" Pulling back to get a better look at him, her enthusiasm faded.

Chat Noir was smiling but... it didn't reach his eyes. His ears were flat against his head and his tail hung limply from his waist. As he pushed her to a respectable distance Ladybug realized he never hugged her back. Merely let his arms hang limply and let her do what she wanted.

"Chat?"

"Hello, Ladybug."

"Wh- What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong." His smile widened but his ears didn't move. "Everything's fine."

Ladybug didn't believe him. "I... I'm sorry I didn't try harder to convince Master Fu."

That did get a reaction. Eyes widening slightly and ears twitching, Chat Noir's smile tightened. "It's fine. You were just obeying your Master."

Before Ladybug could linger on how he'd called Master Fu her Master instead of their Master, Chat Noir jumped to the roof's edge.

"Well, we should get started on patrol don't you think?"

"What? Chat wait-" Ladybug reached for him but he was already leaping away from her. Fading into the shadows.

This whole mess started because he couldn't act professionally. Because he burdened Ladybug with his feelings when she needed to focus. Distracted her with his irrelevant emotions. Chat Noir knew that the only reason Master Fu gave him the ring back was for Ladybug's sake. It was... something. For him to lie and say he regretted taking Plagg away.

But it wasn't true.

Master Fu only regretted that Adrien's emotions hurt Ladybug. So, he would keep them buried like he always does. Chat Noir would smile and do what he was told and not ask questions. That's what everyone expected of Adrien anyway, it was foolish to think anyone would want differently from Chat Noir. He had practice, after all.

Pressure built up in his chest and pushed into his throat. But he swallowed it down. Adrien wouldn't make the mistake of baring his heart again.

That never gave him anything but pain.

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

Inspired by @gale-of-the-nomads Scorned Soul AU.

To Be Continued in Fractured Foundation: Chat Blanc

[erissthemean]

If only... - Jinx part 2!

Woah. I... Never ever thought that my fic could get so much love. I am so grateful for every comment and every like I received.

The whole fic was supposed to be a one shot, something to get out of my head for once but after reading your comments and seeing how lot of you would want a second part I just couldn't say no.

So this fic will have in total 4 parts. First one you already saw, it was mainly to cover what happened, what led Marinette to becoming Jinx. Second part will cover feelings of Marinette's parents--you're here! This chapter will be probably shorter? I can't really see the word count, so yeah. Enjoy!

Part 1

Part 3

Part 4

***

Paris was in chaos. It was only a day after Jinx live transmission ended and dark emotions blossomed all across the city. It was their Ladybug. It was their hero who got hurt, who let herself be akumanitazed. And even if they knew that Chat got the earrings, that be could pick new Ladybug everyone stiil held a despair in their heart. How heroes were supposed to win? How Paris was supposed to look at the fight between them and not suffer?

After the transmission, the story about Marinette's fall flew around the whole city. It didn't take long before wave of criticism crushed the school. If they only did a little bit better. If they only were a little more profesional. People were looking for someone guilty, someone who would take the blame. And no one wanted to be this person.

Day after transmission mayor held a meeting in the city hall. It was supposed to be a way to figure out the plan in the small gathering but it soon became a whole manifestation. People were angry. They wanted the end of the situation and they wanted for their Ladybug to come back.

*

Mayor forcefully closed the door and blocked them witch heavy chair. Screams and profanities just behind the walls of small room, the song of the hurt. Too strong.

Andre looked around the room. Somehow he managed to gather only a few people. Hopefully that would be enough. The Chat Noir, parents of Marinette, police officer, director of this God forsaken school, the teacher, his daughter, this girl, Lila? And a few friends of the akumatized girl.

"Alright, we have to think about the plan."

"We can't give her anything that she wants!"

"Miss Bustier have you seen what is happening?! This must stop! Marinette killed innocent-!"

"Oh would you shut up!"

Everyone looked at Chloé. She looked... Somehow more pissed than usually.

"Miss Bourgeois, your language-!"

"I said shut up! You're talking nonsense! It's not Dupain-Cheng, duh!"

Andre looked nervous.

"Honey what you..."

"It's not Dupain-Cheng! It's not our Ladybug! It's Akuma! And she has an Akuma because of her!"

Chloé shoot a nasty look in Lila's way. She knew. Chloé was one of the few who didn't believe in Lila's lies. When this whole mess started she didn't for a second believed that Dupain-Cheng did any of this nasty things. After all, she had bullied the blue haired girl for years and she never even smacked her! And this clumsy ass was supposed to push someone off the stairs? Not a chance.

Chat Noir stepped up.

"Okay, okay, let us leave this talk for another time! We have to get a plan!"

The hero turned to Marinette's parents.

"Ma'am, do you know where your daughter is?"

Sabine looked at the boy and gritted her teeth.

"Do I look like I know where she is?!"

Chat Noir looked at her.

She looked like she didn't sleep well for the past month. She looked like she was crying each and every day. She looked like she didn't eat a good meal, like she couldn't force herself to pick up the fork. She looked... fragile. Broken. She looked like she needed comfort and safety but not for herself.

Chat looked at the ground.

"... No" he said softly.

Dupain-Cheng's reported that Marinette was missing a week ago, just when it all started. They were brushed away because Paris was dealing with other problems like a constant reakumanitazations and destructions that weren't magically repairing themselves. And now everyone had to watch how Jinx was making everything worse.

Tom hold his broken hand and tried to look strong. For his wife. For... For his daughter.

If he only believed her then. If he only fought for her, tried to discover the truth... He knew his daughter. He knew that she couldn't do this kind of things. But... But he got this conclusion after it was too late. Now he looked seriously at the Chat Noir.

"What do you want to do."

It wasn't a question. It... Somehow sounded more grim that everything else. Chat looked like he was uncomfortable.

"She... She has to be stopped..."

"You want to hurt her again!"

Tom made a few furious steps toward the hero but was soon stopped by the officer.

"Mister Dupain-Cheng, please calm down! Your daughter is a victim of the Akuma, Chat Noir will try to save her!"

Tom clenched his only good hand. The broken bone remained him what happened day before and suddenly he lost all his strength.

"I... I can't do this."

He left. Sabine didn't go after him, she just sat on one of the couches and cried silently. It wasn't supposed to look like this. She needed her family. Her husband and her little beautiful daughter. Without them she felt so weak. She felt... Useless.

She regretted that day. When she lost her faith in Marinette. When she got herself caught in the lies of this awful girl. The day when she could support her princess a bit more... And maybe she would still have her. And maybe she would still be awake.

But not only this. If she showed her support even before, maybe a lot of things would be different. If she saw how stressed Marinette was, how she sometimes looked like she was so, so tired. Maybe... Maybe she could be a better mom. Maybe she could put her faith in her. Maybe she could... She didn't know! She just felt like she failed and couldn't make it better. She just wished she could at least try... But it was impossible, was it?

At the same time, Tom was walking away. Far, far away. He couldn't just stand there and listen how they wanted to hunt down his little girl. He couldn't listen how they blamed her for everything. Wasn't she just a child? His sweet baby girl. She was the same as every villain that showed up in Paris! She didn't know what she was doing! She... She didn't deserve everyone's hate. Tom stopped and tried to fight off the tears. His little girl. He looked up, at the broken ceiling and screamed.

"Hawkmoth! Hawkmoth, do you hear me?! Come here! Come and get me! Am I not broken enough?!"

Tom felt like he was making a deal with the devil but he didn't care anymore.

"Come and get me! I want to be strong! You gave it to me! Change me again! Hawkmoth!"

He needed this. He needed this strength. Tom felt tears on his cheeks.

"Hawkmoth! You bastard! G-give it to me! I-I.."

He fell to his knees.

"I need to protect her." he whispered. "I need to protect my little girl... Why can't I protect her..."

And he sat there, sobbing. No Akuma came to him. No one answered. He was left alone, weak.

He looked at his arm. It was broken because he was too reckless.

*

When he saw his daughter he couldn't stay in place. He and Sabine ran to the studio. They didn't care what she did, Marinette was their daughter. They had to make sure she was okay. Or as okay as she could be. When they saw her, they just cried. They tried to tell her to come back, to fight off Akuma... And she smiled. She began moving, floating towards them. One of her ribbons reached out to them... And he stepped up and grabbed it. Suddenly one of the heavy cameras fall over, in one second crushing his arm and hand.

"Huh... Such a luck, hm?"

"Marinette!"

"Marinette what? There is no Marinette."

"It's not like you! Please honey, stop this madness!"

The girl cocked her head.

"Stop it? But... If I stop I will go back to sleep. That's what you want?"

"No! No, no, no! Please Marinette!"

"Besides... It's not like me? That's funny."

She wrapped herself in ribbons, suddenly flickering even more than seconds ago.

"Last time something like that happened, you believed it was something I could do. What was that? Ah, yes. Pushing Lila, this little..." Jinx made and ugly face. "This... This girl from stairs. That's almost like I tried to kill her! Isn't it worse than what just happened? If you could believe I did it then, then why don't you believe it now? I mean... At least someone saw me doing it, right~?"

Sabine cried.

"Please... I... Miss you so much..."

"And you still want me to give this up. I won't be trapped anymore. I'm free now mom. Isn't it better?"

Jinx didn't wait for an answer. She just disappeared, leaving her parents alone. To cry and wait for someone to help...

****

People who wanted to be tagged:

@lenoreofraven @crazylittlemunchkin @prussianblue350 @nerdyandproudofitsstuff @pheonixashtree @absolutelywizard @lovebug5151 @yin-390 @redscarlet95 @literalfantrash @unabashedlyswimmingtimemachine @amychi2000 @im-here-for-the-content @yokizu @fatimaabbasrizvi @teresarosiadeviluke2112 @ravenabby @someone-idk-is-here @supern-a-vengers @clockaede @aloeveraspeaks @enby-witching

@map-soul

[lov3nerdstuff]

Dark Stars {Part 6}

*Loki x OFC*

Part: 6/10

Words: 6.2k

Warnings: language, violence, death... Pretty much all except for smut 😂

Summary: ~Loki could just let her die here and now. His problems would be solved and he could go back to his usual ways. But then he would forever be left with an unsolved mystery and he hated the prospect of that even more than the fear of what would happen if she lived.~

A story of what happens when Loki stumbles upon someone who is like him in every way. Only better. Oh, and they just happen save Asgard too.

A.N.: To celebrate over 1000 people following me (how insane is that?!), I decided to share the newly edited version of the very first Loki fanfiction I ever wrote! Enjoy the mischief 💚

All Parts can be found on my Masterlist!

________________________________

Once they stood in the middle of the marketplace, Ivy realized that she needed to be more careful this time. She couldn't let something like yesterday happen again and she knew now that she was not worth the damage. Not her body, not her soul. She needed to use her own kind of magic carefully and wisely before it came bursting out like it had before. But she couldn't deny that after all this time it had felt… good... to use her own magic once again. Not the pure and shallow one Loki or the queen used.

Ivy sighed. They would be fine, she told herself. Then she simply started walking off, leaving Loki to follow her.

"No disguise? Nothing to keep the guards from recognizing you?" Loki finally asked, having himself appear as a random ginger man.

"Nah, boring… I'm up for a little excitement." Ivy commented and she knew that Loki wouldn't be able to resist a challenge. Deep down, her reasons were of a different nature nonetheless. Indeed she was right about Loki though, as he changed back into himself.

"Alright, but this is your responsibility. You want to prove to yourself that you can very well handle a situation like this, and I respect that. But keep in mind that you will have to be responsible for me as well." He smirked, enjoying the whole situation more than he should. Somehow it was rather exciting to have her in charge, so he held himself back and merely observed.

Ivy for her part grabbed Loki's hand to not lose him in the crowd and walked through the streets, which were still dominated by the day crowd; families, children and women with baskets instead of drunk adults who were looking for amusement. She preferred the way it was now. After a few minutes of casual strolling around, she finally noticed how many people were staring at Loki. He seemed at ease with it on the outside, but she could see in his eyes how uncomfortable he was with all those gazes on him.

There were stares of all kind: surprised, disgusted, longing… But everyone seemed to immediately recognize him. Of course they did… He was his very own kind of gorgeous and certainly not ordinary in his looks. Some people also stared at Ivy as she came to realize. After all, she was dragging Loki through the streets by his hand. Undoubtedly no one had ever seen somebody actually touching the raven prince without dying a painful death seconds later. It made her a little proud that she was still alive and a whole lot proud that he allowed her to touch him. On the other hand she could see the judgement in people's eyes; they probably deemed her insane for being with Loki. Well, screw them.

Shaking the feeling off, she finally reached a small shop selling beverages of all kinds. She gently dropped Loki's hand once she realized that she was still holding it tightly even though they had stopped moving. He only let out a huff in response.

"I'm surprised you didn't cut my hand right off…" Ivy teased him as she went to check what type of wine she wanted, looking up at him through her eyelashes.

"Don't tempt me…" He smirked and crossed his arms behind his back, patiently waiting for Ivy to finish whatever she was doing. "Must I remind you that soon the guards will be here?" He asked after a while, as Ivy still looked at the various bottles in search of something that would do.

"Oh hush! I know what I'm doing!" She answered, though not looking at him. Soon they heard shouting in the distance, and multiple people running.

"Ivy…" Loki growled, growing increasingly nervous, but she ignored him and smiled to herself.

A few moments later a dozen guards hurriedly entered the street, coming running towards the shop. Loki turned to face them, already starting to go over things to say to them in his mind. When the guards were only a few feet away, Loki moved to say something, but suddenly a hand pressed against his mouth from behind him. His eyes widened and he didn't dare to move while the guards were now standing right in front of him, looking around searchingly.

"They came this way!" One shouted.

"Maybe they are gone already…" Another sighed. "Why do we have to search for them?"

"What did they do anyway?" A third asked.

"That woman killed a troop of guards! Some of them were my friends… That little bitch ended them." The first answered angrily, and Loki rose an eyebrow.

"And what did he do this time?" A guard further to the back asked as they went to walk along the street, away from the place where Loki and Ivy were standing.

"Pff… Who cares. He always does something that upsets the allfather. Maybe he screwed the girl and taught her how to kill. Only two things he's good for…" They all laughed, nodding in agreement. "Y'all know what, if he didn't screw her, I definitely will!" One laughed, elbowing one of his fellows playfully. "She may have killed a couple people, alright, but she certainly knows how to pleasure a man! I can see that in a woman!"

"You wouldn't even fuck a woman if she fell into your bed! I tell you what I would do if she ever came to stumble into my chambers; I will make her scream my name so loud that the whole palace would know just how hard I took that dirty little minx!" They laughed once again, and soon ventured out of hearing range.

Loki felt the well known rage return to his body in an unreal second, filling his blood with a blazing energy that was forcing him to act.

"Don't…" Ivy's soft voice said from directly behind him as she removed her hand from his mouth. He closed his eyes for a second and turned around to her slowly, his eyes dark and full of pure hatred and disgust. Ivy prepared for the worst, but then he took a deep breath and his features softened once more. She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

"They didn't see us…" Loki remarked quietly, for now pushing the hatred back into the darkest part of his mind.

"No… They would have been able to hear us though, which is why I simply had to make sure you shut up. Sorry if that was a bit… inappropriate." Her voice was just as quiet, feeling highly uncomfortable after the guards' conversation.

"It's alright, considering I did want to say something… I'm just surprised. You didn't tell me you could do that... making us invisible to their eyes…" He leaned his head to the side and watched her blush for the very first time since they had met. It was completely and utterly adorable, and it made him forget about the guards for a precious moment.

"I did the same thing in the palace, you know… When we were walking to Sif's room." She bit her bottom lip, searching for any signs of mockery in his eyes. But there were none, he only seemed intrigued and honestly surprised for once.

"And I thought you were just insane. I must say, I'm impressed. I did not see the magic you worked right there and that definitely tells something about its qualities."

Ivy laughed. "How very humble of you." She said sarcastically. "But what would be the purpose of using magic to hide us, only for the magic itself to be seen?"

"Touche." He smiled. "You will have to teach me how to do that one day."

Ivy blushed even more, which made Loki chuckle. He liked making her blush, but it happened so rarely. And as quick as it came, the red tint disappeared from her cheeks.

"I hardly doubt you'd be able to do the things I do… My magic… it's different." She smiled sadly at him and shoved a bottle of wine into the bag she had brought. After a moment of thinking she shoved another one in.

"I hardly doubt that you have a different magic from mine... I might not quite know how you did that thing yesterday, but that doesn't mean..."

Ivy huffed in annoyance at his words, his unwillingness to believe her, and grabbed Loki's wrist once more, pulling him back into the streets. "C'mon, I'm gonna show you some of the other magic I am very well practiced in."

This time, they hurried through the streets without being seen. Loki smirked at Ivy's determination while she dragged him down the streets relentlessly, not even bothering to properly take his hand this time.

"Why exactly didn't you hide us right after we got to the marketplace?" He asked out of curiosity, once they had reached a particularly busy street, and he could be sure that no one would hear them over the loud noises of the other pedestrians.

"Wouldn't have been nearly as impressive once you found out that I could do that at all. And less fun, too." She smiled, but didn't slow down just yet. "And despite that, I maybe just a little bit enjoyed showing off that I get to drag you around at my pleasing."

He chuckled deeply, but more to himself. "You're such a tease… I love it."

"What did you say?" Ivy asked over the noise, but she had heard him very well indeed. She only prefered not to acknowledge it, since it would have done no good for the blush she tried to keep away from her cheeks so desperately.

Finally, she slowed down. "Watch this…" She winked, and before crossing another corner, she put a finger to her lips, ordering him to be silent. He immediately saw why, as the guards from before came headed towards them from the end of the street they now stood in as well. No one else was around, and Loki wondered what Ivy had planned, so he leaned against a wall and watched the ongoings with great amusement.

Ivy stood still in the middle of the street as the guards approached her, laughing and talking as they had before. Her eyes were solemnly fixed on them, intently and almost scarily as she didn't move at all. Suddenly one of the guards started scratching his neck, slowly at first, then more desperately. Then he scratched his face and his hands and his arms in the same vain desperation. The others laughed at him, until snakes came slithering from another's amor, crawling and winding all over his body. He let out a scared yell and danced frantically through the street in an attempt to shake them off, but it was of no use. A third one's legs turned to jelly and he dropped to the ground with a small cry, vainly trying to make use of his softened limbs. The fourth guard's armor disappeared altogether and he stood in the street completely naked, as he tried to cover up as much as he really didn't have to show.

Ivy laughed first at the spectacle in front of her, then looking over at Loki with pure joy at getting her revenge for the untasteful comments made about both Loki and herself. After a short moment, a fifth guard lost all his hair all of a sudden, grabbing onto empty air as he inspected his bald head with horror.

It was very funny to watch indeed, and Loki chuckled at the sight, bemused by Ivy's mischievous skills as much as they impressed him. It was all fun and games.

Until the sixth guard dropped to his knees, screaming in agony without reason.

The bemusement in Loki's face faltered, being replaced with genuine interest and also the first signs of alert. Then another guard dropped down, screaming in even more agony than the first. They all followed the example one by one, until all 12 men were all lying in coils on the dusty ground, writhing and crying in pain. The sounds echoed through the small alley, mimicking those of a battlefield.

Loki looked around himself, towards the main street, but no one besides him and Ivy seemed to hear their cries of agony, or to see their torture.

When his eyes fell upon Ivy's face however, he almost gasped. Her eyes were dark, distant and hazed, and they held the same expression in them that he had seen the day before already. It made his skin tingle in an oddly uncomfortable manner, and his body freeze and burn at the same time. But foremost it made all air leave his lungs while he couldn't move an inch, unable to stop staring at Ivy in shock.

Suddenly the guards were lifted off the ground, simply hanging in the air a few feet above the ground, still screaming and moving around in seek of relief from this internal kind of torture. A second later their bodies were brutally smashed against the walls of the street-framing buildings, again and again, bones breaking and skin tearing.

In an instant Loki stepped between Ivy and the guards, finally urging his body to obey his own mind once more instead of the trance she had put him under, be it intentional or not. The white of her eyes had almost completely disappeared and she was merely staring right through him, with empty eyes of the deepest black.

"Ivy, stop!" He called to her, forcefully and maybe even a little desperate. She jumped at his harsh voice, but didn't stop what she was doing, eyes still clouded over by whatever force seemed to have taken a hold of her.

"Ivy, please, stop this madness!" He begged, intently, shaking her by her almost frail shoulders.

She let out a gasp that sounded simply otherworldly, and only then the color returned to her face, to her eyes, and in an instant she looked a him with terror filled gaze. Behind his back, Loki heard the guards' armors clash on the ground, but no more screams, no more sounds at all.

Ivy stood there, breathing hard as she only stared into Loki's concerned eyes with the same confusion he had felt moments ago.

"What happened?" She breathed. "I just wanted… It was some innocent fun only, and then…"

"Come, we should leave…" He said, before gently placing a hand on her shoulder yet again. Then he brought them back to the opening without further explanation.

_______________

Ivy couldn't remember, couldn't understand how it could have happened again. She had meant to tease the guards, scare them a little and make fun of them as a punishment for what they said. Maybe even to show off that she wasn't as dull as Loki seemed to believe. But then… things had gotten out of control yet again, and yet again it had been up to him to pick up the pieces.

She sat down on the blanket, tightly hugging her legs to her chest as all she could think was how completely STUPID she had been. Stupid and reckless and inane in absolutely every fucking way. How, by the gods, had she believed that going back to the city was a good idea?!

Loki sat down next to her in silence, while his head tried to put sense to what had just happened, and his emotions were busy figuring out if he was scared, impressed, or anything in between. Neither dared to address the gruesome thing that had just happened for the longest time, and they simply sat next to each other, both silently glad for the other's company.

"Why do I have to be such a freak…" Ivy finally breathed to herself, closing her eyes in anger directed at solemnly herself. Loki gently placed a hand on the small of her back, trying to give her some sort of comfort, in any way he could. He wasn't good, or rather wasn't practiced in these kind of things.

"Don't touch me! Please…" She almost whined, and he pulled his hand back immediately. "Just leave me alone…"

He didn't know what to do, now… most certainly he would not leave her alone! But how should he comfort her, after something like this? After understanding so very little about it…

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked quietly, hoping she would open up to him, but honestly doubting it. "I do believe you, now… Your magic is something very different from mine. I'm sorry."

Ivy on the other hand grabbed one of the wine bottles out of her bag and began to empty it at a concerning speed. "I only want to forget." She finally said, lips red from the dark liquid.

"I could make you forget… would be better than drinking yourself into oblivion." He said without thinking, only feeling pained by her self-destructive tendencies.

"Would you do that? If you even care for me in the slightest, please, do it..." Her eyes shot up to meet his, a pleading expression so obvious within them that Loki felt a painful sting in his heart yet again.

"Because I care for you, I won't." He said quietly, cursing himself for bringing it up in the first place. Great, now he was being an arse again… but at least she had less energy to spend on hating herself if she hated him, and that was good enough for a start.

She looked away once more, in disappointment and pain. "You're a jerk, Loki."

"I'm sorry…" He breathed, barely notably, averting his gaze both in remorse and equal pain. The whole situation was so strangely familiar to him… only that usually he was the one needing comfort, and he would find it in the darkness within him. But he wouldn't let her go there, he wouldn't let her delve into the dark places he had been in so often. Had she been there before?

Loki sighed inwardly at the realization that he knew practically nothing about Ivy, but her name and favorite color. He didn't know what made her happy, nor what gave her comfort.

Just then, he had an idea. A truly stupid, ridiculous and puny idea, but it was the only one he had, and it would have to do. It wouldn't solve any of their problems, but maybe it might make Ivy feel better, and that prospect was enough to try. So he grabbed Ivy's bag, earning an angry glare from her which he kindly ignored. After a short while of digging through the pockets, he finally found what he was looking for.

He unlocked the ipod and chose a song he knew Thor had listened to when things between him and Jane had been… kinda dark. Just like things were currently for him and Ivy. He made it sound aloud all over the opening, then rose to his feet and held a hand out towards her. "Dance with me?"

Ivy only huffed and looked away, shaking her head to herself.

"Oh, come on, you said yourself that dancing makes one feel better!" He smiled at her the best he could. "Please, Ivy. Do it for me. I've had a rather rough week as well."

With a sigh, she unwrapped her arms from around her knees and placed a hand in his. "If you insist…" She still didn't look at him.

"Indeed I do!" He smiled as he gently pulled her towards him and into his arms. Of course he didn't really enjoy dancing all that much, but surprisingly enough, Ivy would dance for his sake rather than for her own. The thought that maybe she cared about his well-being more than about her own made his heart pick up speed, and his stomach do backflips… nobody had ever cared about him that way.

Thus, almost happily, Loki pulled her closer and they started moving with the flow of the music.

_____

The song was actually quite nice, and soon Ivy found her sadness and despair shrinking. Why was it that they only ever danced late at night? Dancing with Loki felt nice.

_____

For Loki's taste the song was a bit too sappy, but maybe that was just what Ivy needed right now, and he would gladly go along with absolutely anything that made her happy. He just felt beyond relieved that she was actually allowing him to touch her again. It was hard to comfort someone with only your words, when all you have ever done was to lie. Eventually, no one believed in your sincerity anymore. So Loki just held her close in contentment, and moved with her to the soft music.

_____

Eventually Ivy leaned her head against his chest, just not caring about appropriateness anymore. Should he behead her if he felt like it. But Loki actually found it alright… pleasant, even. What had been intended to give Ivy comfort now did the very same for him, and he found himself enjoying the dancing less than he enjoyed her body pressed against his own. They stayed just like that until the song ended at last.

And only then Ivy finally looked up at Loki, meeting his eyes in wordless questions he didn't know how to answer. They stood perfectly still in the middle of the opening, as Loki refused to let go of her. This time, he wouldn't run.

_____

"Loki?" She asked quietly, still entangled in his arms. "Do you think I'm a monster?"

"My dear, if you had seen what I have seen, you wouldn't even need to ask."

She frowned up at him, her eyes piercing his soul in a way that made him shiver. "You're evading the question."

He let out a huff, but it was rather born of desperation than of real annoyance. "Do you want to see a real monster?" His voice was so low it brought goosebumps to Ivy's skin. But she wanted to see. Anything he could show her, anything he would allow her to see… she was ready for it.

"Show me." She replied quietly, but with determination, and so he closed his eyes as she felt hers fluttering shut as well.

Images started flooding into her mind, images of war, of tragedy, of death. Pain beyond measure, deaths too horrible to describe and betrayal most brutally close. But also images of trust that was lost, a family without love and a home without comfort. Sometimes the pain those images, those millions of stories, caused her to feel was just too much for her to handle, but before she could scream, it had already shifted to the next. Those memories consisted of sounds, smells, tastes, feelings and knowledge of all and any kind. They all had one thing in common: they were part of Loki's life. Everything he had seen, had felt throughout his entire life was on display for Ivy to see, and to feel in return.

Yet, after a moment when it was all over, she opened her eyes once more for a wave of hot, salty tears to run down her face, and to drip off her slightly parted lips.

"What was that!?" She breathed, searching for his eyes, but he merely looked down, avoiding her gaze.

"Me." He replied calmly, but unable to keep the sadness out of his voice. "You wanted a monster, and I gave you all of me."

For a moment Ivy honestly didn't know what to reply. There had been such an incredible amount of sadness and injustice, not only inflicted by Loki, but also done to him… What was she to say? 'I know what it's like?' or maybe even 'it's not that bad'? She couldn't lie to him. Not right now and probably never again. So she did the only thing that felt right.

"Close your eyes." She commanded quietly, waiting for him to do as he was told, which he –surprisingly enough– did without question. Then she closed hers as well and did something she had always been afraid of. She let him in.

_______________

Loki saw pictures of a family, of a little girl… it was the same thing he had seen when they had met in the palace gardens not so long ago. But this time, it was clearer, unguarded, and it stayed. He watched how the little girl was beaten up and abused in the most devious ways… He saw her getting older, looking more and more like the Ivy he knew now.

He watched her being given away at a young age, to a much older man who mistreated her and did unspeakable things to her mind and body. He watched how the man taught her a peculiar kind of magic, watched her magic developing into something strong and dark and lethal… it made Loki shudder. The things they had made her do, despicable things, using her and her magic for the most wretched things… No one had taught her how to handle the power she held. Then, one day, Loki saw her running away, still a teen probably, even though she had suffered more already than anyone should throughout their whole life. He saw her becoming older, more independent, and wiser in her decisions. She had tried to make a living by working hard, but eventually the darkness within her would always get back the upper hand, leading her to destroy everything and everyone around her. Soon, she had been, she was feared all over the lands. No one would allow her to come near, and thus she had started to learn to use her magic not to destroy, but also to create. She had fought her way through life, until suddenly, there was a sharp cut in the things Loki saw. The pictures started back up when she was in the city of Asgard, trying to lead a normal life, enjoying every moment until the darkness would surface and she had been alone once more. That's how it always had been, and that's how it always would be. The darkness looming, patiently waiting until the time came to destroy her and everything she loved.

The last picture Loki saw was one of himself, dancing with Ivy in their little hideout in the forest. And upon that last picture he felt the crushing weight, the pain, the misery from before flood away and turn into something very close to happiness. Then everything went black, and he opened his eyes after a moment of hesitation.

He was at a loss for words, just like Ivy had been.

"You're not alone." She finally said, with a sad half smile. "I'm just as fucked up as you are."

Loki let out a sincere laugh at her words, running a hand through his tousled hair. "Yeah, it really seems like it."

Then Ivy laughed too, and they both laughed loudly and desperately because there was nothing else they could do. Loki let himself drop to the ground, laughing like mad as Ivy followed his example mere seconds later. After a few minutes, when they had calmed down, they lay next to each other, out of breath once again.

"Seems like we always end up on the floor…" Ivy snorted, turning her head towards Loki, who laid so close to her that their shoulders touched. "Maybe that's just where we belong."

"Nonsense. We belong wherever we want to belong. We can choose our home to be wherever or whoever we want it to be." He also turned to look at her, with a curious expression on his face.

"I think I might just have chosen mine…" Ivy said quietly and hoped he would not get all weird again at her slip of emotion. But he only smiled at her, so brightly, so beautifully, that she felt like melting away into the night right there.

"I'll be yours if you are mine." He said lowly, and it was the sweetest thing Ivy had ever heard, the deepest she had ever felt for someone. She smiled at him, then turned her head back up to face the stars. Maybe she would let herself love one more time…. maybe, she would allow herself to love Loki. But she wouldn't risk to scare him away by admitting any of it just yet.

"Loki?"

"Yes?"

"Do you think there's wine left?" She grinned at him, and sat up a moment later.

He rolled his eyes, but together they went back to sit on the blankets. Ivy took a sip from the bottle she had started on earlier, smiling in new found contentment. Then, she looked at Loki with a small frown.

"...yes?" He asked once he noticed her eyes on him.

"Can I ask you something about your family?" She surprised him with the question, making him feel slightly uncomfortable, but he had no reason to actually hide something from her. She had seen his life and felt his pain, condensed into mere minutes, but not any less raw, or any less complete.

"You can always ask… but I don't know if I'll answer." He finally said, leaning his arms on his knees. "I have never talked to anyone about them. At least not honestly." He chuckled lightly.

"So… What's up with you and Thor?"

Loki rolled his eyes. Of course she would ask about his brother… "You saw everything that happened between him and me." He answered rather stiffly.

"Yes, and yet I saw that you care for him. Very much so indeed." She placed a hand on his arm on instinct, and he took the chance to take her hand in his, squeezing it gently before intertwining their fingers, before his mind would come up with any reason not to. The sensation made Ivy's skin tingle immediately... she adored his touch very much and appreciated every moment they could enjoy like this.

"I don't care for a lot of people, Ivy, and I like even less of them. Sometimes, one has no say in who we care about and who not."

"But you care about me."

"Obviously."

"And you care about yourself."

"Nah, I wouldn't say that by general means... I have a strong interest in guiding things into paths that bears the best outcome for myself. For both of us, as of recently... But there have been plenty of times I didn't care whether I die or not… didn't care what would become of me."

"I know the feeling..." She sighed sadly. "I have been there."

"I know…" He caressed her hand with his thumb. "I wish you hadn't."

"Maybe just tell me this one thing… Do you trust Thor?" She asked after a moment of silence.

"Why would you ask that?" He frowned.

"Because I'm starving and I need someone in the palace to set the table for me." She winked at him, nudging him in the side with her shoulder.

Loki smiled in return. "Yeah, a meal would be nice…" Then however he thought for a while about her question, before answering at last. "I really don't trust anyone but myself. Sometimes not even that. But I think I do trust Thor, in my own kind of way. He is very keen on obeying Odin's wishes, while I'm very keen on doing the opposite of what he wishes."

That made Ivy chuckle. "You did trust me though. I could see every secret, every thought and every feeling of yours. That's probably the most one can trust another being."

"Yeah, and it was by far the scariest thing I have ever done. But it made you feel better, and that made it worth it."

"It did…" Ivy breathed, slightly flustered at how far he would go to make her feel better, before she finally emptied the wine. "On to the next one!"

"Oh no, you've had enough, my dear. I want some as well!" Loki protested with a laugh and opened the second bottle, taking a large sip before Ivy could pull it from his hands.

"Geez, that stuff is so sweet!" He squeezed his eyes shut, and stuck his tongue out in exaggerated disgust. Then he quickly took another gulp and shook his head in even more disgust.

"C'mon, it's not even sweet wine! Stop acting as if it was disgust!" She pushed him lightly in the shoulder, chuckling.

"What?! It's horribly sweet… and I'm not even exaggerating." He frowned at her for real now.

Ivy took the bottle from him and smelled the indeed disgustingly sweet liquid. "Wow, it does smell sweet! Like berries… odd berries! But I'm sure I picked two bottles of the same kind…"

Then she watched Loki's eyes widen for a second, before he closed them in pure annoyance, or maybe anger, Ivy couldn't really tell.

"Don't drink it." Loki said sternly. "Put that down, now."

"What?" Ivy laughed, incredulous at his sudden change of mood. But still, she closed the bottle anyway and set it down as he had asked.

"Now listen carefully, this is very important." He said, grabbing her shoulders and looking deeply into her eyes with a seriousness that surprised Ivy. "I will most likely pass out in very few moments. There was a substance in the wine… It's called Atropa Belladonna. It's a Midgardian plant that can kill mortals in a small dose even, but I highly assume that a higher dose will kill me just the same. Anyway, what you will need to do now is to search my memory for a remedy spell. Or get rid of my body. Depends on your timing." His voice was too high pitched while he sounded breathless at the same time, and his face was starting to get really red and blotchy.

Ivy only stared at him in confusion and shock for a few long seconds, until at last she found her voice again. "If that's some kind of joke, I will kill you myself…" She said wearily, holding onto his arms on her shoulders.

Loki rolled his eyes and his fingers dug even deeper into her soft skin. "Ivy, please. You can let me die if you'd prefer that, but I would highly suggest you to do something to prevent it. It's in your hands now… I won't be any help."

"But I can't!" Her voice was now too high pitched as well, desperate even, and her eyes started to water involuntarily. "I… My magic can only kill and destroy! I couldn't possibly save you."

"I believe in you, my sweet." Loki managed to smile sadly, before his face gained a bluish tint and he coughed, laying down on the blanket beneath him as his strength gave out at last.

"Why the heck do you even know so much about poisonous Midgardian plants?!" Ivy asked in her confused state, not knowing what else to say.

"I read a lot." He tried to wink at her, but his body didn't obey him any longer and he let out a small pained noise that twisted the sinews of her heart painfully. Then his body began to shake and his muscles twitched, before finally he fell silent and his eyes closed completely.

Oh god oh god oh god oh god… Ivy didn't know what to do, what to think even! In all honesty, she was very g ood at hurting people, but healing them wasn't something she's ever had to do to anyone but herself. Fuck.

First thing, she checked his pulse. His heart was beating way too fast, but at least it was still beating at all. His body was losing heat rapidly, which seemed rather ironic due to the fact that he was indeed a creature of the cold. She covered his body with the blanket she had been sitting on anyway, and also took off her jacked and placed it under his head as a pillow. But now? She didn't know how to read his mind… Maybe she should've mentioned that before he had passed out. Fuck.

She then tried a normal healing process on him, her hands on his chest right over his heart, but it showed no effect at all. Slowly she started to panic even more.

Why hadn't he just healed himself when he still had been able to?? It would've spared her the agony of watching him die solemnly because of her inability to do anything about it.

Damn him. Damn wine.

Ivy promised herself in that very moment to find whoever was running around the city, merrily poisoning people, and to end them in the most gruesome way imaginable, whether Loki lived or not.

She looked down at Loki in her lap… he looked like he was only sleeping, his face now peaceful, but still a little blue.

No, she couldn't just sit around while he died in her arms. He had said that he reads a lot… and Ivy remembered the incredible amount of book he stored in his room. Maybe one of those would give her a clue on how to save Loki, a vague direction at least, but she couldn't possibly go through them all and still be back with him in time. She needed a plan, and she needed help. And she quite possibly knew just where to look for it.

________________________________

Tags:

@vodka-and-some-sass @t-sunnyside @lokis-high-priestess

General Tags:

@its-remy-not-ratatouille @wegingerangelica @thidls12333 @tomstoobeautiful @dreary-skies-stuff @averyhill4445 @wiczer @lotus-eyedindiangoddess @theweirdlunatic @caretheunicorn @kthemarsian @lady-of-lies @sadly-falling-through-wonderland @strawberrysandcream @noplacelikehome77 @theoneanna @mishaandthebrits @mygodisloki @i-am-a-mes @nonsensicalobsessions @exygon @hiddles-lobotomy @rjohnson1280 @annwhojumps @spookycatqueen @salempoe @headoverhiddleston @fanfiction-and-stress @createdfromblue @halszka-potter @thecreatiivecorner @themusingsofmany @inthemarvelvoid @from-hel-i-with-love @kinghiddlestonanddixon @scorpionchild81 @foodthatsgoodforyoursoul @crystal-28 @adefectivedetective @lokis-girl-in-mischief @booklover2929

Hope you enjoy lovelies! 😊💚✨ I'm so grateful for everyone who reads and comments on this story!!! You guys make me so happy 🥰

[araminakilla]

Ducktales theory: Modern Arabian Night(mare)s

Warning: Long theory, has a little of angst too.

So, you already know I love the Treasure of the Lost Lamp characters, and with Found Lamp! things got better. Today's theory is about D'jinn (I'm not sorry) and a concept that was introduced in this new Ducktales' season 2. What is that concept? Stay tuned.

This Christmas I was watching an original Netflix movie with the name of "Knight before Christmas" The plot is simple: An european knight from the XIV century meets a witch in the forest. Said witch brings him to the present in 2019, days before our Christmas. He has to complete a quest before the Holidays or he can't return home, that is, his time period.

While there is more to tell, I wanted to point this because the knight spoke in a manner that made me think in D'jinn. That's when I realized: That's how medieval knights spoke! (yeah, I think you knew this by this point, I'm slow in some things, it happens)

Not only that, but said knight tried to solve conflicts with his sword and is very loyal with people he just met but have good intentions. Also, he was talking about his quest during the movie, just like D'jinn in the Found Lamp! episode.

There was a post about the movie where the person said that the knight was handsome, among other things, but also very stupid. Then I found this comment:

Why am I telling you all of this? Well, here comes the theory part. I thought in two possibilities of why D'jinn acts like a medieval knight.

1) He's a fan of stories with ancient arabian medieval knights and is imitating them (a dramatic theater boy)

2) He IS an ancient arabian medieval knight stuck in the present.

But how? Well, I think it has to be with this lamp: (pictures belong to @scroogeislife)

The lamp of Eternity. It has to do with time, so that could mean something. At first I thought of Merlock given that he's inmortal, and maybe that could be Gene the Genie's new lamp design, but who knows?

Also a fun fact: Faris means "knight" in Arabic so if D'jinn is really a knight that would make him "Al-Faris Faris D'jinn" which would translate to "The knight Faris D'jinn" or is The knight Knight Genie?? Anyway...

The point is, Faris was doing what arabian knights did with the company of other knights from his hometown. I theorize that he was in a war against some new invaders that wanted to conquer his homeland and destroy his family for the lamp. I would say they were either the Knight Templars or the Ottomans, let's go with the Ottomans since it was established he hates them in the series. The time period would be the early/mid XIV century (I don't really know much about arabian history in those times, so lets continue)

Be a lamp, a wizard or some strange magic, our Faris ended up in the XXI century, 700 years in the future.

To make things better (for us) he ends up in a modern arabian City with many modern malls, very advanced technology and beautiful skyscrapers (because yes, there are still people who believe those things don't exist in the Middle East)

He naturaly freaks up and demands to know what happens and for "demands" that means raising his sword, pointing it at everyone who is making eye contact with him and screaming: What kind of sorcery is this!?

The people around him also freak out, culminating in D'jinn being taken to the police, who proceeds to take pictures of him, hence those pictures in Lunaris' secret war room and why there are two of them when everyone has only one.

They began to make questions like: Who are you? Where did you come from? What are your intentions?

And D'jinn is like: I am Faris D'jinn! Loyal knight of (Insert name of a sultan here) who along with other magnificent people has the sacred duty of stop the Ottomans so they can not expand and become a powerful Empire!

And the police is like: Do you know the Ottoman Empire ended almost a century ago right?

Which is why Faris asks: They became an Empire!? How!? When!? What year is this!?

The Officers explain that the Ottomans ruled the Middle East for centuries and by the time of World War One they started to fall and now their descendants are the Turks. Oh, and also that this is the XXI century.

And then Faris D'jinn.exe has stopped working.

The officers were worried about this guy's mental health and told him they were going to call a doctor to see if he can help him and that he has to wait in a room.

But D'jinn had other things in mind. What happened seven centuries ago after he disappeared? What happened to his people, his companions in war, his family? Where are they now? He wants to know all those answers. He wants to know everything NOW.

So, like the good warrior he is, he escapes and begins to seach for the D'jinn family.

Unfortunately, they seem to have disappeared. There's no sign of his family or descendants with his last name. He begins to fear for the worst. He sometimes thinks the Ottomans wiped them out of existence, but other times he believes they are fine and it's only matter of seaching more, hence why Faris told Huey that the Ottomans failed miserably at trying to destroy his family (and suddenly another funny moment becomes an angsty one)

Gif belongs to @drummergirl231-2

We believed Della had it rough? Well yes that's very true but what about being the only survivor of your family? That must hurt a lot, specialy for someone very family-oriented and who consider bloodline and legacy to be very important.

He actually goes through the 5 stages of grief, the Anger and Depression stages being the most prominent ones.

He refuses to have any contact or friendship with other people, as he can't understand them and he feels they will never understand him.

It's only when he gets to the Acceptance stage that he begins to talk to others and is interested in modern technology, music, etc.

D'jinn even records everything new he learns in different scrolls just in case he has the posibility of return to his time period.

The people (mostly millenials) around him find his way of thinking and speaking funny and they call him a loony when he tries to convince them he is an actual knight from the past.

That's where we return to the "Knight before Christmas" post. D'jinn is not dumb, he's from another time period. He's adapting, with hilarous consequences.

After hundreds of failed intents to revelal his true identity, Faris gives up and adopts a "sure, I'm a dramatic man who loves knights, whatever" attitude, which makes him feel more lonely than what already was before.

Years pass and he knows how to use a cellphone properly, how to ride a motorcycle, among other things. But he still has the hope to return to his true home and see his family again.

In the future (our present), his quest for the lamp of the first Genie continues as it still is one of the (if not the only) relics his family has.

Then he meets the Duck family and the rest is history...

After the lamp adventure, he meets the Living Mummies and bonds with them as they were in a similar situation, being from "other times" and adapting to the present.

If he gets to meet Gene and have the lamp in his hands, he would try to make a wish to return to his original time period. But there are problems:

1) He is starting to like his new present and will miss all of his new allies (the Ducks and the Mummies)

2) He knows to much. OF COURSE he's going to tell everyone about what happens in the future which could end in him becoming the arab equivalent of Nostradamus at best, or everyone thinking he is crazy at worst.

3) He and his family have a code that if someone found a thing with a Genie in it and if the genie is good, they would free it with their first wish. This code is as strong as the Mandalorian's code of not removing his helmet (This is the way) so Faris will be torn about betraying the family code only to return to them or staying in the future and never see his family and friends again.

The only solution would be asking the Ducks to make a wish so he can return but knowing Scrooge, Della and Donald, they would consider that very dangerous because again, he knows to much, he could change dramatically the events of history.

Gif belongs to @nerdalmighty

And things could get worse if Merlock/F.O.W.L. get to know about the time traveler knight.

But that is another story.

[carreraleigh]

I'll always remember you (Colt x mc)

Part 1

A/N: this story is going to have two parts, I hope you like it! Tysm for helping me again @vienroose

Summary: After nine months Ellie realized that there are people who can not be forgotten.

Rating: NC-17, NSFW

Tags: @courtesan-of-garage @zig-nazario @queenkaneko @lovehugsandcandy @client-327 @vienroose @the-red-jhon @rwanchoices @storiesofsass @brightpinkpeppercorn

Inspired by:

—

Ellie entered the room with a few books in her hands, they were much heavier than she thought. Trying to keep her balance she moved closer to the nearest sofa and dropped the books on it. She let out a sigh that she didn’t know she was holding until that moment, it had been a complicated day. She had been in class all day, final exams were closer than ever, and just a few hours ago she had had an unreasonable fight with her friend Lily, a girl she met on her first day at college. Ellie looked up at the calendar hanging on her wall, one of the things her father had given her before she left. She observed the date that was marked in a circle, it was today, November 18. Ellie already knew that the only thing she could think about all day wasn't exactly that date, but what had happened a year before that same day.

Her first kiss with Colt.

A wave of nostalgia invaded her body, she felt like those memories were still fresh in her mind. It wasn't the first time she felt that way, she asked herself if she ever really stopped feeling all that and the answer was always "no". She was about to finish her first year of college, but she had never stopped thinking about the past, it was as if a part of her stayed with him that last day, the day they said goodbye. She hadn't heard from Colt since, and she wondered what he might be doing at the time, it was a question she asked herself more often than she wanted. She tried to call him on his phone a few times in the past months, but it was always off. She came to the conclusion that he changed his number, it was a logical explanation considering he had to disappear from the map for a while.

She got up from the sofa and went to her room. She lay down on the bed closing her eyes, trying to rest a bit, but she couldn't, those moments she had lived with Colt invaded her mind and didn't leave her alone. She opened her eyes again and sat down, angry with herself for letting all that affect her, she felt a strong pain in her chest and suddenly, without warning, her eyes filled with tears. Ellie didn't fight them, she was tired of fighting those feelings, so she let them take her. She missed him, there wasn't a day when she didn't miss him, she missed his kisses, his body, the way they could accomplish anything they wanted together, she missed the adrenaline she felt when she was by his side, waiting expectantly for his next move. She missed him, that day more than ever.

“Ellie?”

She raised her eyes full of tears and fixed her attention on the figure that had appeared on the door, it was Julian, a boy she had known for a few months. He didn’t study the same things as her, but they had become friends thanks to friends in common. Julian and Ellie had a strange relationship, they were definitely not just friends, she had slept with him a few times, but they were also nothing official, even though Julian had alluded to his desire to be with her several times. He was the guy Ellie had always wanted, he was attentive, kind, romantic, dedicated to his studies and the best in his class, but still somehow she couldn't fall in love with him, she appreciated him al lot, yes, but it wasn't enough. And it wasn't his fault, she knew she was the problem, she knew she couldn't leave behind that love she felt and it didn't seem fair to start something new knowing she couldn't leave her past behind, and she was far from letting all that go.

"Why are you crying?" Julian came over and sat next to her, wrapping his arms around her.

"It's nothing." Ellie said wiping her tears away, Julian looked at her intently.

"I came to see you," Julian put a hand on his cheek "I heard you had a fight with Lily this morning, and I wanted to see if I could distract you somehow."

But the fight with Lily wasn't the reason she was like that in the first place, and it wasn't the reason she needed a distraction. She looked at Julian, who looked at her with a smile as he stroked her cheek, Ellie wanted to forget everything for a moment, she just wanted everything to stop hurting. She pressed her lips with his, taking him by surprise. Julian held her back and laid her as he climbed on her, leaving hungry kisses around her neck. Ellie let out a groan when she felt Julian's hands get into her underwear. He began to move his hands slowly, sending waves of pleasure all over her body, she closed her eyes and her mind traveled elsewhere, she thought of the first time she had slept with Colt, the way he had touched her in the same way, his delicate fingers that made her tremble in a way Ellie could never forget, and for the moment it was like he was there with her, as if he had never left.

She opened her eyes quickly, forcing herself to return to reality. Julian continued to work with his hands, still kissing her on the neck, but her desire was no longer there. It was true that the two had nothing serious at the moment, but it was not fair to Julian, to sleep with him thinking of another man, Julian deserved more than that.

"Julian." Ellie said, her voice sounded so cold that it made Julian look at her automatically.

"Is there a problem?" he said, slowly pulling his hands out of her underwear.

"I'm sorry. I really don't feel like it" Ellie said sitting on the bed.

"Well, a moment ago it seemed like it was." Julian raised an eyebrow, Ellie tapped him on the shoulder.

"I just can't concentrate." she didn't like lying to him, but she couldn't be honest either, she didn't have another option.

"Don't worry," Julian kissed her on the forehead "If you want we can just watch a movie and eat some ice cream."

Ellie thought for a moment, considering the offer. Until an idea crossed her mind.

"I really want to take a ride in my car." Ellie looked for the car keys in the drawer of her nightstand "Alone, if you don't mind."

"You want to be alone, I get it" Julian said raising his hands, surrendering "I just want you to know that whatever you need, I'm going to be here for you."

Ellie knew she could count on Julian for anything, he wasn't just someone she could sleep with, he was also a good friend and a good shoulder to cry on when things went wrong, he had never let her down.

"Thank you, Julian." she said with a smile, slowly leaving the room.

Ellie was driving fast down the avenue, a cold wind hit her face as she raised the volume of the song that was playing on the radio. Driving had always made her feel better, it helped her distract herself and immerse in her own world, but this time she didn't want distractions, she wanted to feel again everything she had felt months before, and she felt it. She felt all the happiness the crew had given her, all the good times she had with them. She remembered all those little moments with Colt, all the laughter they had shared, the unconditional support they had for each other, that feeling of being able to eat the world with one bite that she had every time he talked to her about ruling the city together. She remembered the words Colt had spoken that last day.

“Every time you get behind the wheel, you’ll think about the crew, about me. About this part of your life. About this exact moment.”

Almost a year had passed and the bastard was still right. Ellie laughed to herself, he was never wrong about her, it was as if he could see her soul, all her fears, all her desires, he knew everything about her just as she knew everything about him. She looked at the cactus that Colt gave her that day they caught The Brotherhood, she had it there always, it was one of the few things she had left of him, that and one of his T-shirts she brought in her backpack. Ellie didn't remember how that appeared in her home, but she had no complaints. Those were the two things that made her feel, somehow, close to him.

She slowed down as she saw that she was reaching her destination and parked the car to the side of the street. She got out of it and began to walk forward, her heart was beating faster and faster as she took more steps. After a long time she was there again, the same place where they had shared their first kiss. But that place wasn’t only the place where they first kissed, it was also the place where she saw for the first time the other side of Colt, that vulnerable and sensitive side that he tried so hard to hide from everyone.

She sat at the edge of the cliff, looking at the horizon. The sea moved calmly beneath her and she remembered how much fear she had to jump that time, but she did it, she did it because Colt needed it at that moment. She also won that day, she overcome that fear because of him. In one way or another he always pushed her to her limits, that was one of the things she liked most about him. The laughter of the two as they hugged and kissed resounded in her head, distant memories of that day. She let herself be carried away by these thoughts, and she could see herself and Colt in the sea, splashing each other like that day, she smiled almost out of inertia, letting that moment sink into her skin slowly, she was daydreaming it.

Ellie heard sounds around her, but she ignored them completely, in that moment there were only her, the sea, and that bittersweet memory that had never left her. She heard footsteps behind her and, as if by magic, all of her thoughts vanished when she heard the only thing that could bring her out of that trance, the only voice capable of bringing her back to reality.

"I knew that someday I would find you here again."

[codevassie]

hi! a'ight first off i just wanna say your ASFoS fic is quite possibly the dopest shit i've ever read. like. i saved some of the songs from that playlist and i stiLL get emotional when they come up on shuffle so yeaH amazing work!!!

CV: Omg thank you SO MUCH!!! I can’t tell you enough how happy it made me to see this! ASFoS is my baby. That playlist too! I’m curious which songs you liked.Alright, on to the one-shot. I hope you like it! I didn’t know how much I wanted to write this au until I got this request?? Now I have sooo many headcanons. So thank you and enjoy!

Note: Sorry if I got anything to the PJO universe incorrect. I can’t remember every single detail of the books and, I must say, that is one of my greatest downfalls as a human being. I will be working on my other request shortly, but requests are still open, so stop by!Btw, this takes place during Sea of Monsters.

“One,” Keith murmured to himself as he plucked at a strawberry, dropping it into the basket at his feet. “Two, three, four,” he continued counting.

The wind swept past, rustling his bangs across his sweaty forehead. The sun beat down, the weather adjusted for camper comfort, but not the physical labor of hours in the strawberry fields.

“Five… six…” Two more thumps into the basket, filling fuller with the ruby red fruit, delicious where they shined in the bright sunlight. “Seven…”

Keith paused, hand carefully extended to number eight. His fingertips brushed its smooth surface, but he retracted it before it plucked.

He righted himself from his bent posture, directing his line of sight across the field where numerous others were hard at work. The satyrs played their music. The Demeter and Dionysus kids wiggled their fingers, making the vines dance. There were some other kids who had gotten roped into the task too, but mostly it was just them. Satyrs. Demeter and Dionysus kids. And that one kid who hadn’t been claimed yet.

For eight years.

It really had been that long now, hadn’t it? Keith had stumbled his way into camp eight years ago, dirty, scared, orphaned, and only seven years old. Somehow, he had found his way there, in a place he was supposed to belong. Finally.

Except, not even at Camp Half Blood had Keith really belonged. He’d been stuck in the cabin of rejects, of extras, of forgottens. And, whoever his godly parent out there was, they hadn’t cared to get him out.

Hadn’t bothered to send just the tiniest sign. For eight years.

Suddenly, Keith didn’t feel like working in the field anymore. That eighth strawberry could pluck itself.

So he gathered his basket and walked to one of the others, handing it over before making his way out of the fields. He was tired from his work, and nothing sounded better than a bed right now - a bed which had taken years to earn since he wasn’t even an official part of the Hermes cabin and all - but he wouldn’t be going back to the cabin just yet. If there was anything guaranteed about the chaos of the Hermes cabin, it was that there would always be people in it, always a crowd, and Keith didn’t feel like dealing with a crowd right now.

Instead, he went to the arena where only a couple of people had decided to spend their afternoon. Since the border had been poisoned, the weather had become increasingly hotter and its magic was unable to regulate it. Most people were inside, with the air conditioning.

So Keith found himself a corner of the arena and started to hack away at one of the dummies. He was already sweating from his work in the fields and the scorching weather, but he decided he didn’t care much as long as he got to swing his sword, stretch his muscles, and ignore the world.

He didn’t want to think of it all. The border. The monster attacks. That Percy kid off on another quest to save them all. Luke…

“Aren’t you sick of it? How many years has it been now and your mom won’t claim you?”

Eight years…

He swallowed down the sick feeling that rose in his throat, putting extra effort into slashing the dummy. It split, half of it falling to the ground. Shit, now he’d have to replace that.

Keith threw his sword into the dirt, leaving it to stick up like Excalibur in the stone, while he went to drag away the useless dummy. He tried to forget Luke’s voice. He tried to forget how tempting it had been to follow. He’d trusted Luke. He’d looked up to the guy - was even kind of close to him, considering no one survived in the Hermes cabin without having known its cabin leader. He had been a great cabin leader.

But it hadn’t been a shock, really. Keith regretted that - that he had almost seen it coming. Luke had always been so bitter towards their parents. There had always been something off about the way he brushed it off, like he had to force himself to calm down.

It was something achingly familiar, this grudge that Luke held onto. Like a life raft. This resentment towards their parents Keith understood completely. He didn’t think a war was necessary for it, but he understood.

Despite this, a lot of people were wary of him now. More and more unclaimed were disappearing from camp to join Luke. Why would Keith not? Eight years was a long time to wait, after all…

And maybe Keith might have. If not for Shiro.

Shiro was the closest thing Keith had to a brother. Once upon a time, it had made him consider the chances of being a child of Hebe. He’d gotten rid of that idea almost immediately. Children of Hebe were way too good to be anything like him. Not that he had much to go off of. Shiro was the only claimed child of Hebe at camp at the moment, and, even though he was stuck in with all the unclaimed and Hermes kids, he never seemed resentful. He always paid attention too. He helped kids get settled in when they arrived, made sure they had plenty of people they could go to, even kept an eye on them after they’d been claimed and moved cabins. It was just in his nature to care - something Keith couldn’t understand how he did for all the brain cells he put into the notion.

But it had really helped him throughout the years. Shiro had always been there for him, since he’d first arrived three years ago. After so long of being alone, it was nice to have someone like Shiro.

Dragging the dummy out of the way, Keith thought about going to find Shiro. Maybe they could spar together. Or go to the dining pavilion - it was close to lunch anyway. Just then, though, a voice interrupted his thoughts.

“Oh, hi, Keith,” Lotor said, walking up to him with purpose, tailed by the two girls who were always following him around. “Here all alone? I suppose it makes sense an unclaimed doesn’t have any friends.”

“Piss off, Lotor,” Keith spat, pulling out a dummy and carrying it over to one of the empty mounts.

“I guess it makes sense that you have no friends at camp. I heard they’re all with Luke. Only a matter of time until you follow, I suppose,” Lotor said, sighing like he really believed in that inevitable. Keith felt his blood boil.

“I’m not turning on camp,” he said, turning to Lotor suddenly. “And, for your information, I have friends here too.”

“Oh, yes, whatever,” Lotor said, waving his words away like particularly annoying flies. “Anyway, we were going to spar, but we seem to be uneven here. Care to join?”

Keith knew that was a bad idea. Everyone knew that was a bad idea. You see, Lotor was a kid of Tyche, the goddess of luck, and a pretty powerful one at that. Going against Lotor was stupid, dumb; he’d lose for sure.

Which is exactly why he couldn’t back down each time. Lotor had won too many times, and Keith was determined to bring him down. It wasn’t fair, especially when Lotor won on nothing but his own unnatural luck. Keith was brought down time after time from a misplaced foot or the awkward angle of his sword. The fights were never on skill, and that frustrated Keith to Hades.

When he accepted Lotor’s offer this time, he ended up on the ground not two seconds into the spar. But, hot-blooded as Keith was, he kept going back. And back. And back. Any time Lotor challenged him, Keith was there to take up the offer, as many times as he continued to lose.

Keith was good, but luck, luck was better. Luck had never been on Keith’s side.

“Again, Kogane?” Lotor asked from above, but Keith was already exhausted. The adrenaline from Lotor’s initial challenge was already wearing off, especially after he had already been sparring all day, even long before Lance had arrived.

But Keith had never been known to do things for his own good. He rose to his feet, readied his sword. “Again.”

He was taken down time and time again, none of it by skill, all by happenstance. Stupid things. A foot in the wrong place. A wrong sword angle.

It wasn’t long until Ezor and Zethrid were laughing their butts off. Lotor chuckled too as he watched Keith rise once again, wiping sweat from his forehead. “If this is what Luke is looking to recruit, camp should win without problem.”

Keith was exhausted. He knew, logically, he wouldn’t win anything like this, but he couldn’t leave it at this. Lotor would get what was coming to him and Keith would be the one to deliver it. Eventually, his luck had to run out.

“I bet you’re staying at camp to do the recruiting for him,” Lotor laughed. “How pathetic that he would choose someone who has gone years without being claimed.”

Keith brandished his sword before him. Lotor rolled his eyes, but he put his sword up again too.

“I’m not working for Luke,” Keith gritted out through clenched teeth. His voice shook. He knew he was letting Lotor get to him.

Shaking the emotions away, Keith readied himself to lunge again when a voice interrupted them. A familiar voice. A voice Keith did not want to hear right now.

“What’s going on here?” Lance asked, stalking up to them, flanked by two other kids. Keith recognized them. It would have been strange not to, as long as he’d lived at camp. It was Hunk and Pidge, a child of Hephaestus and a wood nymph. Keith wondered what they were doing there.

“Keith, why are you always doing this?” Pidge asked, stalking forward to look up at him with this look in their eyes. He knew exactly what they were referring to. What they all saw, and what they all knew of his record with Lotor.

“Sparring,” he grunted simply, trying to stand tall despite the exhaustion dragging down his limbs. He crossed his arms, trying to appear put together. Pidge, of course, saw straight through him. And so did everyone around.

“Don’t spar with him,” Pidge said, practically growling on the last word as they glared at Lotor. Lotor just looked on, amused and innocent. At this, though, he spoke up.

“Keith here seems just fine sparring with me,” he said, shrugging a shoulder and smirking. “And I’d really like to continue, if you three don’t mind.”

They both turned toward Keith, Lotor with a challenge in his eye that set a fire in him that wanted to lash out, Pidge with a disapproving look. “Keith,” they said in warning.

Keith had never really listened to them when it came to stuff like this. He didn’t even listen to Shiro half the time when it came to Lotor. He turned back toward Lotor, lifting his sword. “Pidge, give us space.”

“Nope! Nope nope, nuh-uh,” Lance suddenly cut in, making Keith look his way. He was walking forward, coming to stand next to Pidge. “You, my friend, are exhausted. Don’t be an idiot.”

“Seriously? You’re calling me an idiot and expecting me to listen to you?” Keith asked, putting down his sword yet again to turn toward him.

“Yep,” Lance said, self-assured. “And you’re going to.”

“And why is that?” Keith couldn’t help but ask.

Suddenly, Lance seemed to get serious. He leaned forward, talking in a low voice and holding Keith’s eyes to his like glue. “Because, if you keep sparring Lotor like this, you’re never going to win. You’re probably the only one at this camp who can do it, but if you go in blindly like this, he’s never going to get what he deserves. And that’s to eat dirt at the tip of your sword.”

Keith paused, letting the words going through his mind, felt them tug on him, felt them tug him toward Lance, to put down the sword. Lance was right. Keith wanted Lotor to get what he deserved so bad, but Lance was right. That wouldn’t happen today. That wouldn’t happen when he didn’t have the strength to do it, or the level head to execute it.

So he clutched at his sword, then sheathed it. He turned toward Lotor. “Another day.”

And, with that, he followed the three out of the arena.

-/-

Lance, Pidge, and Hunk invited him to the mess hall for lunch, but Keith turned them down. Instead, he went to the showers, then back to the Hermes cabin, deciding to call it a day.

“Long day?” another camper asked as she walked by. Keith merely grunted in affirmation and Romelle giggled. She was a new comer there, yet she had already been claimed. Daughter of Iris. Apparently, since Iris was a messenger goddess, Romelle had inherited some strange ability to project thoughts into others’ minds.

Feel better, she whispered into his mind, and he pushed back a Thank you that he hoped she got.

“I’m heading to Athena cabin,” she called as she left, and Keith could hear the excitement in her voice. That was another thing. As the daughter of the goddess of rainbows, she also claimed to it was her god(dess) given right to be as hopelessly gay for cabin six resident Allura as possible.

“Good luck,” Keith called, but she was already gone. He chuckled, then dropped his head back into his pillow. He stayed like that for a while, listening as voices carried in and out of the cabin. No one paid him any mind and no one disturbed him. Eventually, he was able to drift off, sleeping away much of the hot and sticky day as he could in the tolerably okay temperatures of the busiest cabin.

When he awoke, it was with regret. Mid-day naps were never a good idea. He felt groggy, somehow more tired than when he’d gone to sleep, but, as he tried to roll over and drift again, his body kick-started, letting him know that he would not be getting any more sleep any time soon. Great, he pissed his body off.

So, with a groan, he sat up, rubbing at his eyes. When he looked around, he noticed that the cabin was darker, but still relatively empty. Beams of orange sunlight streamed in at odd angles, signalling a sunset over the Big House and time for dinner. Keith wasn’t sure if he was really hungry, but, then again, he’d only had breakfast that day and Shiro would surely come looking for him if he skipped two meals.

He huffed before swinging his legs over the bed, getting ready to stand before he saw another inhabitant of the cabin. Lance, laying in is bunk across the room, book propper up on his pillow where he had been reading on his stomach, was staring over at him. Keith’s wasn’t sure if it was the sunset or what, but his cheeks looked particularly dark.

“Lance?” he asked, causing the boy in question to jump.

“Keith!” he exclaimed, cheeks going even darker. “You’re up!”

“Yeah…” he replied, then stretched a bit, arms overhead. Lance made an odd sound. “Are you not going to dinner?”

Sounding rather strangled, Lance replied, “No, no. I am.”

“Okay…” Keith said, finally catching up to the awkwardness of the situation. He paused. “Well, we should get there?”

“What?” Lance squeaked. “Like, together?”

Keith frowned. “Um, I guess?” Why was Lance being so weird. “Why are you being so weird?” he decided to ask. Lance blinked, then shook his head, sitting up from his position. He cleared his throat.

“Weird? No, not weird. You’re weird,” he accused, jumping down from the bed. “Let’s go get food.”

Keith, confused but amused, chuckled and shook his head. “Alright,” he said as he followed after.

Much of the walk there was spent in silence, and Keith watched the sunset, watched the blue of the Big House and the lonely porch swing out front. He looked up into the pavilion, seeing the commotion of kids getting food, scraping into the offering, talking and laughing and crowding into the Hermes table. But Keith’s thoughts wandered back down to the arena, looking at the desolate area and thinking about earlier in the day.

“Thanks for earlier,” Keith said, startling Lance.

“Huh?” Lance asked, brows furrowing in a cute way. Keith shook the thought from his head, refusing to get stuck on that bullshit again.

“When I was sparring Lotor. I shouldn’t have taken it so far.”

“Oh,” Lance said, then shrugged. “No problem. I know how you get.”

“Do you?” Keith asked, genuinely curious. He hadn’t been aware that anyone paid attention to him. Shiro kept tabs on him. Pidge would beat up anyone who messed with him. Lotor did so only to the extent that he could piss him off. But Lance?

“Well, you’re always fighting Lotor, even though no one has beat him. He’s just got way too much luck for it to be worth it. But you think it’s worth it.”

“It’ll be worth it when he understands he can’t always win,” Keith huffed, frustrated and tired all at once. It was always an uphill battle when it came to Lotor. Or, maybe not even uphill. He was on a cliff and Keith couldn’t scale it. There was never any progress.

“But you always go at it when you’re not ready,” Lance pointed out, and Keith’s attention snapped to him. He frowned, ready to protest, but Lance continued. “Your emotions get everywhere, then you tire yourself out, then you won’t think straight. You’re way too impulsive.”

“That doesn’t matter. One of these days, I’ll beat him.”

“Not like that, you won’t,” Lance shook his head. “Hermes kids are like a Jack of All Trades, you know? So I know what it’s like to spread myself between different things. I’m not great at anything, but I can be alright at a couple.”

“You’re selling yourself short,” Keith said without thinking of it, then went red at the compliment. Lance looked at him a bit incredulously and Keith cleared his throat, determined now that he had said it, to explain. “I mean, you’re good at a lot of things, and it’s not just ‘alright’. Being a Hermes kid means you have the capacity to understand a whole lot, and you do.”

“Oh,” Lance said, and Keith turned towards him. His eyes were wide and staring at him, the tips of his ears red in the setting sun. He averted his gaze almost immediately, but Keith’s heart was already thumping wildly in his chest. There was the smallest of smiles on Lance’s lips as he determinedly stared down at his scuffed up tennis shoes, and it made a smile of his own appear on Keith’s face. “Thanks,” Lance said.

“It’s the truth,” Keith replied simply, turning to look back ahead of them again. They were quickly approaching the mess hall.

“Yeah, well, so, it’s like that,” Lance said, clearing his throat and tapping his fingers to his thigh, looking all around, probably to avoid Keith’s gaze. “Beating Lotor isn’t going to rely on just one of your skills. You have to pay attention to a lot more than that. You have to use your head as well as your instincts to figure it out.”

For a moment, Keith was silent. He watched the pavilion where he could see Shiro at the offering fire talking to Pidge’s brother, eyes soft as Shiro laughed at something Matt said. Lotor’s words filled his head again, the accusations he knows everyone must be thinking.

Shiro was the only one who had known just how close Keith had come at one point to actually following Luke out of there. One night, he had exploded with the frustration of it all and Shiro had been the one to calm him down. He’d told Keith not to cling to resentment, to use his head instead of running head first in with anger. It made sense then and it made sense now.

And, surprisingly, coming from Lance, it calmed him down easier than Shiro’s own go at it had. When Lance said it, it sounded like a plan, it sounded like something, not only logical, but attainable.

“I’ll think about that,” Keith said with a nod. Then, they stepped into the pavilion and were swept up in the hassle of kids all around and the delicious smells of dinner.

“And, Keith?” Lance asked. Keith turned to look at him, surrounded by excited kids and sloshing drinks and the smell of sweet burning. Lance scratched his head, looking sheepish, when he said, “About what Lotor was saying to you…”

“About what?” Keith asked, but he had a bad feeling that he knew what. He swallowed, unable  to tear his gaze from Lance’s. His worry must have shown on his face because Lance’s gaze softened.

“I know that you aren’t with Luke, and so do a lot of people here. You’ve been at camp for too long to actually think that we could believe that. Too many here have your back for that. You know that, right?”

Keith felt frozen on the outside, but his insides were alive and a squirming hot mess. Suddenly, there was a lump in his throat and he had to look away in order to swallow it down, nodding his head.

“Yeah,” he said as evenly as he could. “Thanks, Lance.”

“No problem, man.”

-/-

“Keith,” Lotor greeted, walking into the arena and making an immediate detour his way. Keith, who had just been sharpening his sword before practice, turned to him with a scowl, clutching the whetstone tighter. He rubbed the pommel of his sword with a thumb, back and forth.

“What do you want, Lotor?” he asked, already on guard. Lotor didn’t have his lackies today, though, and the arena was considerably full of campers, all training for the day. Lotor wouldn’t try to pull anything.

“Our fight was interrupted the other day. Since we both seem to be in for practice, why don’t we give it another go?” Lotor smiled cruelly down at him, flicking a tiny lock of white hair that had fallen into his face away.

“So, you want someone to beat down for the day?” Keith translated, unable to really care about his pride at the moment, especially when a shocked look crossed Lotor’s face. This guy really needed someone who could counteract his powers if he ever wanted to become a better swordsman. Keith would prove that luck couldn’t always win one day, and then Lotor won’t have a single way to get better for those instances.

“I suppose I will have to go easy on you, then?” Lotor asked, rolling his eyes, but Keith shook his head.

“I won’t need it,” he huffed, feeling frustration bubble up inside him. Then, he remembered Lance’s words.

“You’re way too impulsive.”

Impulsive indeed. Keith paused, collecting his thoughts, letting his emotions settle down. He took the time to consider… was fighting Lotor right now a good idea?

He wasn’t tired from practice. And he had sorted out his emotions. His frustration was a dull murmur in his head, but, overall, he could think clearly. If there was ever a time, Keith decided it was now.

So he walked out into the open space, turning to face Lotor, who had done the same. People around the arena seemed to have taken notice and were hushing and gathering, interested to see how another Keith vs Lotor match would go. There were no exchanges of hands in the audience. They all obviously thought they knew how it would go.

And it probably would. Keith had lost to Lotor enough times to realize that, and could think clearly enough to know that he still wanted to try. He would never give up on trying to teach Lotor this lesson: that he couldn’t always win. Since he wouldn’t give up, he might as well learn from the fight.

So he raised his sword, defensive before him and stance low. Lotor tied back his hair, then mirrored the stance. Keith could hear murmurs in the crowd. He breathed one more deep in and out. He was ready as he’d ever be.

Then, he lunged.

Their swords clanged in a metallic ring, screeched as they broke apart, and repeated its reverberations over and over as they each attempted to disarm the other, and put each other in check-mate. He let his body carry him through on instinct, but maintained a clear head, watching to make sure his feet landed correctly, and his blade didn’t skid horribly. He was on the look-out for blatant uses of Tyche’s luck, but it was hard to divide his attention between his opponent and everything else.

One moment, his foot stepped to the side, far from where he’d meant, and he knew what was at play. Lotor’s sword came down to trip him, but Keith moved at the very last second, breathing heavily as the toll of the fight dragged on his limbs. Lotor was fluid and natural, but even he looked to be feeling the effects.

It showed most especially in the increasing number of Keith’s simple screw-ups, things that would have rarely happened had he not been against such strong luck. Somehow, though, he barely dodged each one.

“You have to use your head as well as your instincts to figure it out,” Lance’s voice in his head reminded him.

Balance. It was something Lotor lacked. There was no balance between his wins and losses. There was no balance between his goods and bads. Luck spun everything around Lotor, and he avoided the natural order of the world with it. Keith had lacked balance too, relying on his instinct and frustration to carry him through his battles. Not anymore.

Keith’s sword skidded at an odd angle along Lotor’s blade, heading straight for the dirt below them, and, after that, Keith would be unforgivably open for take-down. He could feel the power behind the move, the golden luck winding its way around Lotor’s blade, blessing it, and its repercussions, its own way of balancing the world, pushing all the bad luck onto Keith’s blade. Every action has an equal and opposite reaction.

But this action and reaction were twisting the natural order, pushing things around that weren’t meant to happen. And Keith felt his need to right it.

Then, he pushed that need into the power he felt around him, burning away the luck and bad luck and leaving only the way of the world. He felt it all cancel out, his blade swinging with his weight so that, instead of falling into the dirt, it spun around with his body and fell back on the other side of Lotor’s blade. Lotor, for a moment, looked shell-shocked, before he snarled and bat away the blade.

They were back into the throng of it, metal clangs, the audience’s cheers, sweat in their eyes. Keith could feel the luck working around him, working against him, but he could also feel something else. He could feel it canceling with each of his moves. He could feel the luck withering away.

And Lotor could too. His swings became harder, his spurts of luck more and more desperate. They were both tiring, but, somehow, in some way, Lotor’s luck was running out.

Then, in a display of great irony, Lotor’s foot misstepped. Keith reached forward with his own, hooking around the ankle and pulling. Lotor fell right to the ground, wincing as his head hit the dirt. Keith kicked the sword from his hand, then hovered over his pliant body, surprise on his usually impassive face. He pointed his sword at Lotor’s jugular and called for his concession.

Swallowing, Lotor looked around, then down at the blade at his throat. He must have known Keith wouldn’t hurt him, but the sight seemed to scare him all the same. He’d rarely been in this position in his life, now had he? And the sudden appearance of it must have opened up some sort of crisis in his brain.

“I concede,” Lotor said, his voice shaking, then Keith lowered his sword and offered a hand up.

Surprisingly enough, Lotor accepted, though, once standing on his feet, he fled immediately, not looking back. Keith didn’t have time to dwell on that, though, because, almost immediately afterward, he felt someone tackle into his side.

“Oh my gods, Keith! You did it!” Lance practically shouted in his ear. Keith was stunned, momentarily, by the sudden closeness, and it must have shown on his face because, when Lance looked at him, their faces mere centimeters apart, he stopped short, eyes widening and sucking in a breath. Lance backed away very quickly. “Sorry.”

But Keith just laughed. “That’s alright.”

That was when he heard the crowd around him, all cheering and rushing in with congratulations. Pidge and Hunk were there too, whooping and hollering, and Keith felt a smile grow on his face.

Then, everything stopped. The crowd shushed around him, and they all ceased approaching, suddenly looking wide-eyed. Some were excited, some looked confused others pointed somewhere overhead.

Keith glanced toward Lance, but he was frozen too, looking somewhere above.

Keith looked too.

“Oh,” he breathed, the glowing sigil a dull pulsing glow in the midafternoon sun. Around him, campers started to kneel, as was custom. He watched as they all lowered themselves, like a great wave. Hunk and Pidge knelt, the nymph, sending him a thumbs up when they saw his gaze. He saw, towards the back of the crowd, Shiro approach and kneel, holding a fist to his chest as he watched on in pride. Keith saw so many of his friends from the Hermes’ cabin there, including Romelle, and Allura next to her too.

And he saw Lance, at the front and still closest to him, kneel with a reassuring smile and a nod of his head. Chiron wasn’t present, so Lance seemed to take it upon himself to do the honors.

“All Hail,” he said, voice strong and carrying over the throngs of people, “Keith Kogane, son of Nemesis.”

[lyxxstories]

Asking You Out

[ DK FLUFF FLUFF FLUFF ]

If there's one thing DK cant do, it would be expressing himself.

Sure at times he says his opinions about something but he would instantly ask people to disregard it.

But then again, he doesnt need to express something in order for others to know his feelings. He was particularly obvious when he realized he likes you more than a friend.

Not that you've noticed of course.

The other members sure did. Specifically, Jeonghan.

"So when are you gonna tell us you have a crush on Y/N?"

"What?" DK replied falling off his chair.

Why did they invent chairs with wheels?!

"I dont have a crush on Y/N." He said standing up before facing a chuckling Jeonghan.

"Oh sure cause anybody would just fall upon hearing that question," an amused expression appears on his face.

Seokmin scratches the back of his head, slightly embarrased "That obvious huh?"

"Oh not at all." Jeonghan grins.

"Anyone else knows?"

"Basically everyone." Jeonghan answered. "You always smile 10 times brighter whenever she visits and that's saying something."

Seokmin heads over to his bedroom and smothers himself with the pillows cause oh my gosh what the hell. He thought he was being subtle.

"So any plans on asking her out?" Jeonghan asks lying next to him, eyes very much curious.

"Me?" Dokyeom laughs out loud. "Nooo way."

"Why not?" Jeonghan pouts. "I'm sure she'd say yes."

"I'm not." DK sighs, facing the ceiling. "I cant even look at her."

"Really? Cause at times we see you eyeing her 10 minutes straight."

Dokyeom cringes "You know what I mean."

"Don't be too hard on yourself," Jeonghan says patting his back. "I'll help you out."

"Somehow that's not comforting," Dokyeom chuckles.

"HEY." The hyung pouts hitting DK making him laugh. "I'm a romantic person dont you know?"

~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•

A few days passed and Jeonghan got Seokmin to prepare for your visit. He made sure that DK is 100% ready in asking you out. Heck, Jeonghan got him so worked up that Seokmin had to create a cheat sheet.

Seokmin has been practicing non-stop. Trying different voices and gestures with the lines of "Will you go on a date with me?" He even asked other members in which tone of voice will get you to say yes in which Jihoon finds it absolutely ridiculous as it all sounded the same to him and "does it even matter?"

"Of course it matters!" Everyone else shouted at him.

This being the reason why Jihoon got himself evicted at the Get Y/N to date Seokmin committee.

It was now the day of your visit and everyone in the dorm was either hyped or nervous. The moment Seokmin woke up, he could feel his heart accelerating and it didnt help that the members just outside his room were screaming "Today's the day!!!"

"KAJAAAAA!" Hoshi shouts as he dragged Seokmin out of bed.

They were all in a frenzy.

It was nearing lunch time and soon enough you'll be in their dorm. Seokmin felt really anxious.

"You'll be okay," Jeonghan stands next to him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.

"Y-yeah of course," Seokmin chuckles nervously. "I'll be okay, hyung."

Dino slammed the door open causing everyone's attention to turn on him.

"I just saw noona coming up the stairs!"

Everyone's eyes widen and those who were sitting immediately stood up.

"Stairs?! We're on the 6th floor!" Mingyu exclaimed.

"Oh I kinda shut the elevator when I saw her coming to give hyung some time to prepare," Dino replied with a chuckle.

"That's a bit much," Jihoon stated.

"It's necessary though," Jeonghan smirks. "You ready, Seokmin?"

Seokmin swallows hard before nodding.

Crap. It's time.

"Goodluck," Minghao gives him a pat on the shoulder and heads to his room.

"I'll just be playing in my room," Seungcheol told Seokmin. "Don't get nervous."

"Same here," Wonwoo trailed behind.

"Woah wait you're not going to greet her first?" Seokmin asked and it was obvious by his voice that he was slightly panicking.

"Once you're done asking her out," Wonwoo grins before closing their bedroom door shut.

"As much as I'd like to stay, I still have to get ready for my schedule," Mingyu goes over and gives his fellow member a hug. "Tell me everything once I get back!"

Then they heard three knocks.

Most members magically disappeared in the living room, leaving only the Vocal Unit to answer the door.

Joshua looks over at Seokmin, "Are you going to get that or...?"

Oh right.

Seokmin scurries and opens the door. Your face instantly lit up once you saw him.

"Hey Seokmin!" You greeted with a smile and Seokmin could already feel his heart melting. He returns a small smile as he gestures you to come inside. "Hey guys!"

"Hi Y/N," the rest of the vocal unit greeted simultaneously.

They looked at you with a weird smile which made you grew suspicious.

"What's up?" You raised a brow at them.

"Oh nothing you just look lovely today," Jeonghan grins and nudges Seokmin. "Doesnt she?"

Jihoon and Joshua laughs softly at how fast Seokmin nods his head.

"Okay..."

"Hyung!" Seungkwan exclaimed causing both of you to jump in surprise. "Didn't you have a question for Y/N?"

Already?!

"Uh... well... yes.." Seokmin could feel his hands getting sweaty.

"What is it?" You asked him curiously.

Okay. This is it. Now's the time to ask her out. Okay. Remember the lines you practiced. Will you go out with me? Simple. As. That. Tell her you like her and you want to hang out. Okay. Let's go. Okay.

"Uh... Seokmin?" You called as he suddenly froze in place. His mouth was open but no words came out.

Joshua facepalmed. He wasnt sure if he could handle the awkwardness.

Seungkwan started to nudge DK and he successfully came back to Earth.

"Y/N..." FINALLY A WORD. "W-well I was wondering," he chuckles nervously. "If you know... you could go out? But like not right now. I'm not asking you to go out right now. I mean next time. If you want to??? Maybe when you're free, you can go out. Not with the other members. I was hoping it would be just you and well.. me..."

Jihoon and Joshua had to leave the room. They couldnt bare to watch it.

"What?" You honestly didnt understand what he was saying.

Okay this is NOT how he practiced it.

Seokmin looks at Jeonghan and Seungkwan practically asking for help but his hyung urges him to still try.

"I... just," he cleared his throat. "Want to spend time with you. Whenever you're free."

"Oh that's no problem, Seok." You smiled at him. "We can do that right now."

"Uh no that's not what I-"

"What he means is," Seungkwan finally helps. "He would really like to spend time with you. Just the two of you."

You looked at Seokmin for confirmation and he was licking his lips out of nervousness. His mouth felt so dry as he struggled to ask you out.

"It would really mean a lot if you could go on a date with me..." Seokmin spoke softly.