#and then not even reasonably so! he's got *no* reason being so star-struck by Whisper since he is *tons* more powerful than she is

[true-blue-sonic]

Last year Ian Flynn said that Sega gave him an answer on Silver's time travel. So it might get explained in the next two issues but if it was said at that point then it seems they really are going with the involuntary time travel.

Any explanation is better than none, though with the comics it is clear previously-established things can change on a dime... Silver's involuntary time travel directly contradicts earlier issues from the Metal Madness (is that Beeg Metal Sonic's name? I can never remember) saga, after all. I do however feel that the proposed setting of the coming two issues does not entirely lend itself to deep dives into Silver's time travel, considering the whole Silver Is Going To Accuse Duo/Mimic Of Sussiness While Being Cringefail (And No-one Will Listen To Him) plot that the two solicitations tell us is going to happen. I'm not sure how any deep, actual exploration of Silver's time travel abilities fit in there, assuming they will give us something more substantial than the two or three throwaway lines we've had about that topic so far. Though on the other hand, since the solicit for #64 also says "Then, Blaze comforts Silver as they bond over being away from home and in Sonic's world.", maybe they could talk about it there?

Honestly, I just want answers, and then preferably something that also makes the tiniest bit of sense. I don't like the idea that Silver cannot control his time travel, but I can make more peace with it if we have any idea how it works and what does control it.

[cardigan-ns]

Wandering Star (2)

Pairing: Diego Hargreeves x Reader

Summary: Ben’s dead and there’s no reason to stay. Diego gives you an ultimatum. Live with him or rot away in the commission. But after being with him things take a turn for the worst.

Synopsis: HERE

Note: This is definitely a long part.

Part 1 <- here Part 3 <- here

You’ve not left your room for weeks, not for food, not for the free day, not even to give your weekly calls to your parents. Ben’s death struck you like nothing you’ve ever felt before. Handling death was in your veins but not now, not after the 4 years you’ve spend close to him, helping him, shading the rest of the family with him.

Seventeen now, you and Diego snuck around, got more and more close together, secretly without his father’s notice. Not being able to keep your distance after your kiss that night. Only one of the hargreeves suspected it though (that you knew of), Ben, he’d heard you and Diego through the wall, he hated being next door to Diego. He always banged the wall yelling for you to “SHUT THE FUCK UP!” causing you to place a silencing hand over Diego’s mouth. But knowing your connection it just made the both of you more frustrated and passionate. It was thrilling, just how hungry his eyes got when he saw you. The power in each of your veins manifesting more and more out of sorts every day, making it lustful too. But that craze died down when Ben left, both of you too stunned with grief to even think about anything of the intimate kind.

A knock struck your door, “Go away!” You barely got the words out as you sat on your floor, back against your bed, crying. The door opened slowly anyways, despise your call to leave. “My dad wants you downstairs.” Luther spoke, mopey, still in pyjamas, nobody was talking this well. You failed as a team. You cried again, looking at number one, “Goddamn Luther can’t you just fuck off!” You screamed, your grief turning into malice. Luther walked into your room, crossing his arms, “Get. up.” He spoke through gritted teeth, making you laugh, standing up, punching him in the gut, winding him. “Aw.” He groaned as you gripped both of his shoulders, shoving him out of the room. “I told you to fuck off!” Luther stumbled and whacked his back off the wall across from the hall, his eyes pained, he didn’t expect you to be that cruel, he was only the messenger, he ran to his room, slamming his door.

You looked at the dent the wall made with the strength of Luther’s impact. You walked out of your room and touched it, noticing just how unhinged you’d become, you felt despair now, wanting to run to Luther and apologise but you knew he wasn’t in the mood to look at you right now. You decided to see whatever Reginald wanted, wanting to get it over and done with. You reached his office to see your parents sitting there, you crossed your arms immediately fixing your posture and attitude when you saw them, you weren’t meant to be going home for another 2 weeks.

“Ah, Y/N, took your time.” Your mother spoke up, her curly auburn hair moving with her head as she turned to see you. You were still in your pyjamas too, expecting to be scolded by Reginald for lack of decorum, but he only sighed and tapped his pen on his desk advising you to sit down. You took a seat between your parents, facing the billionaire. “Now, I know you’ve taken it upon yourself to go on strike from your role.” You looked at your lap, ashamed for letting him down, he was disappointed, greatly, making your heart beat slow drastically. “But, Number 6’s death is merely just a mistake to add to your list.” Reginald confinued. But your father saw just how miserable you’ve become, zero wit, zero spark, zero ambition. You were overtaken by such dread, he just frowned, rubbing your back, causing you to look up at him, your eyes glossy. “I’m so sorry, dad.” He shook his head, kissing the top of yours. “Angel, it’s okay, we’re taking you home, that’s what this is about.” He whispered to you. Your mother glared at him, making him revoke the affection altogether, she was colder than a blizzard. Never allowing your father to treat you like his daughter.

But you finally acknowledged what your father had said after his presence left you. You looked around the room at the three adults. “No. I’m not due to go home for another 2 weeks. I’m not ready.” You protested, looking at your mother as if asking how she could do this to you, you stood up now, wanting nothing more than to run into Diego’s room and make him hide you, he was still asleep though, your mind letting you see what he was doing anytime you needed to pick up on it, you’ve learned to control the visions, but sometimes your control slipped up.

Your mother harshly grasped your arm, making you wince from the pain, you looked at her sadly. You wish she’d just be kind to you ONCE. “We are not done, how dare you treat us with such disrespect after we’ve travelled all the way here.” Your father rolled his eyes at your mother’s guilt trip over you, and you just huffed and spoke to her face. “Yeah, because a 0.1 second briefcase jump is worthy of my consideration.” You yanked your arm away with force and stormed out of the office, leaving your father silently proud of you, Reginald appalled and your mother playing the victim with a sad look on her face.

You ran upstairs banging on Diego’s door. You haven’t spoke that much after the funeral but you needed him right now. He didn’t answer and you took it upon yourself to burst in teary eyed and shook him up. “Diego…” your veins glowed and he was disorientated. “Huh?” His voice deep and growly from sleep and he gazed at you, seeing you cry. He immediately stood up, his hands holding both your arms making you face him fully. “What’s happened?” He was was gaining more and more protective of you by the day. But by his touch on you he saw what your mom had done and that your parents were downstairs. He was about to put a shirt on and walk you the door, seeing you cry made him so fucking mad.

“No. They aren’t taking you away from m-me.” He stuttered on his last word, your eyes softened and you kissed him, his brows that were furrowed instantly softened as he continued to have his lips on yours, he walked you towards his closet, grabbing a button up shirt, you grabbed it and let him slip his arms into it, still while kissing you buttoned it up for him. “God, they’re definitely not taking you away from me!” He panted as he grabbed your hand and you both ran downstairs. Diego flung one of his knives, the ones he hid in his pyjama pants, down the hall, it halting as it pinned your father’s suit blazer to the wall. Your parents just got into the hallway, your father got annoyed, “How in the hell.” He shook his head and your mother’s glare was golden, the look of disapproval only filled you and Diego with more drive, putting your hostility to your parents and not to each-other. “She not gonna be your weapon. She’s staying home, where she belongs.” Diego defended you, referencing the academy as your home, you just examined his beautiful face, just how you had one another wrapped around your fingers. Your father yanked his arm, from the knives hold, now having a rip all down his tailored navy suit, you stifled a laugh.

“Child, I don’t know what’s possessed you to think you can talk to her parents like that, but you must stop this at once!” Reginald’s stern voice echoed through the office, the door slightly ajar so he heard all the commotion. Diego just smirked, this was fun, he walked up to your father and briskly took the knife from the mahogany wall. He whispered threateningly, “She’s staying here.” Your father looked at you to see how you were taking this boys aggression towards him, but you were on his side. “Mom, dad. I’m staying here for my 2 weeks and that’s final.” Your mother was not happy with you in the slightest and walked to you strutting, grabbing your ear and forcing you to look at her. “You’re not the girl I raised. So rotten, it’s disgusting.” She was unbelievably cruel and bitter causing Diego to stare at her with distain, but he remained by your father, knowing you could handle yourself.

You just just pushed your mother, making her mind ripple, in your control, you just demanded her as her eyes glowed white, “You’re going to agree with me.” She shook her head, growing used to you trying to change her punishments all the time. “ONE MORE DAY! AND WE WILL BE BACK YOU BRAT!” She screamed as you stood back, not expecting her to get so loud, but at least she was letting you stay until tomorrow. Compromise. “Fine. Bye mother.” You smiled eagerly, “father.” You nodded to him as he was opening the front door, your mother’s vein popping out of her forehead as she was furious. Once they left, Diego walked over to you, fixing your hair a little, “Let’s get you packed then.” His hand moved to your shoulder tracing his thumb along the fabric of your pyjamas. You sighed, both of you walking to your room. It wasn’t the best thing in the world but atleast he could prepare today to say goodbye tomorrow.

As you both tiptoed down the bedroom corridor, as to not wake anyone, Luther fell back to sleep after your outburst. Diego peered out the window, halting you by putting his hand over your frame, to stop you taking another step. He walked to the window and tapped it with his blade, looking over his shoulder to you. “We should runaway.” You looked at him, disagreeably. “Yeah, to just have to police pick us up after making it out 20 minutes.” You huffed a laugh, Diego’s seriousness didn’t falter, wanting you to see his vision. “We could get out. Allison’s already moved out. Klaus hasn’t been home for days. Viktor is house hunting too. Runaway with me.” His eyes desperate for you to notice his sincerity, his want to keep you safe and free. Free from Reginald, free from your parents, the commission, yeah he told your parents this was your home, but he knew deep within his soul that your home is with him. But here we go again, your lack of agreement interfering your good time, it was always so short lived, being on the same page. “I’m going back to my parents tomorrow. You know better than anyone here that they can and will find me.” You protested with a valid excuse and he couldn’t handle that.

He walked into your room, grabbing the bag you came here with originally and threw some of your clothes in it before you pushed him away from that task. “What the hell are you doing?” Your frustration rising, as was his, he couldn’t take your rejection. “I’m packing for you, seeing as I mean nothing to you. As always.” His voice along with his demeanour was stern. He always knew just how to make you heated. “You know that’s not true, you asshole!” You pushed his chest again, making him hit your desk, he placed a hand behind his back, to the table steadying himself. You definitely woke viktor and Luther up by doing this. “Then why’re you running back to them like a scared little girl. You don’t need them.” He argued and he would continue to argue until you believed he was right. “Because it’s who I am.” You believed your only quality was to be an assassin. Diego saw you as so much more than that. Sometimes less than that, but all in all, he wasn’t just going to let you run right back to your hellscape.

“I’m not watching you walk out there, getting yourself killed.” He continued to pack your clothes, hypocritically his actions betraying his words, he tried fitting as much stuff in as he could, even packing your elephant stuffed animal, one that you slept with every night. Seeing Diego stuff Achilles into your bag meant that this was actually happening. The poor elephant had a dried blood stain on his right ear, after an altercation with the butler of a cruise in Italy when you were six. You killed the guy for laundering money on it, you and your parents undercover as a tourist family. No matter how many times you tried putting him through the wash, the blood never got out. Just like how the blood on your hands would never rinse from your memory, Diego was right, you needed to be set free, with him.

“Fine.” You sat on your bed, letting out a deep breath, you were overworked. Diego just gave you a look as he knelt before you placing both his hands either side of your knees. “It’s all going to be okay. I’ll get a place for us, okay?” His lips turned down as he looked at you with careful consideration. You nodded, your morning already giving you twenty different plot points.

You and Diego waited until everyone was asleep before your escape, no goodbyes, just a letter under Luther’s door, mostly you apologising for winding him. Reginald always told you that he required at least a 2 week notice if you were to move out, but after Ben died he just gave up on all of you altogether. So it wasn’t him you really had to worry about, but you took precaution anyways. You and Diego had packed all in all 5 bags, 2 each and then one with spare things that both held sentimental value to you, like the stitch Grace made Diego with his name on it and a domino mask. And a cassette Allison made you for your birthday, you made her one too, it was your gift to each-other.

Diego helped you out the 3 story window, luckily the drain pipe was there to slide down. Once you got to the concrete ground, the alleyway exit seemed too good to be true. Diego threw the bags down, you caught them, setting them on the ground, so nothing would smash, he then made his grand exit from the window, you smile up looking at him. Your future of freedom already clear in your mind, naive to how being in constant proximity to him would affect each-other.

Once he was by your side, he grabbed your hand with his gloved one, his knives on the holster over his chest, he smiled to you, squeezing your palm as you both ran down the streets of a midnight New York. You both made a pit stop at griddys donuts, the owner Agnes confused that two teens came in so late, ordering sugary treats and two sprites. But she gave you them anyway, noticing your bags. “Where are you guys headed?” The pink dressed woman asked as she set the plates down, you smiled and handed her a twenty, “We’re finally getting our own place.” Saying that aloud made Diego stare at you, his heart bursting at the seams at how lucky he was to have you be the one he fell for.

“I wish you two young lovers the greatest luck.” She nodded with approval as she walked to the back office to get your change for the twenty. Diego watched her leave then moved closer, to talk to you from across the table. “I saw a boxing gym across the way. Maybe we could sneak in there?” You looked out the window to see what he was talking about, your eyes brightened, “Yes.” You bit into your chocolate sprinkled donut.

After finishing your midnight feast, you and Diego walked across the street and ran to the back entrance to Al’s boxing gym. He took out a wire from his backpack and picked the lock, you were apprehensive, you couldn’t sense anyone around but you knew this place still had life, it wasn’t abandoned. Diego jimmied it open and you both entered and felt the cold chill emerging from the concrete gym. He walked around, punching the bag and lifting the weights as he went. You, on the other hand, immediately went to the office, a practical thing to do, most things you touched giving you the same vision of a man called Al. He was in his late 50s. He ran this place up from nothing and was organising monthly big fights, you seemed intrigued, Diego noticed you flicking through a file of old boxing poster dates. “What’s that?” He snatched it from you, smiling at you as you looked offended. “Boxing fights.” You told him as he’d already clocked it by looking at them. “I could do that.” He wanted to see your reaction, which you hesitated. “I mean we just broke into this guys place, are you sure we should hang around long enough for you to fight for the guy?” You weren’t wanting to feel the wrath of Al. Diego just dry laughed causing you to frown, “I need to make us money somehow…” you still weren’t convinced at his plea.

“Trust me, I’ve got this sorted.” He set the files down, “Look what I found.” He held your hand and walked you down a hallway, a boiler room, you suddenly got a gut feeling but you weren’t yet sure what it meant, whether it was good or bad, they both felt the same. “There’s a makeshift bed in there, we could both squeeze onto it.” You were extremely exhausted, yawning at the mention of collapsing onto a bed. You looked at the only person you trusted with your life, nodding. “Okay.” He stood a little behind you, his hand rubbing your shoulder as he kissed it. “Okay.” He copied your response. His kiss on any part of your body sent electricity through your veins.

You turned around, your eyes pouring into his. His faint smile made your heart palpate, he was magnificent. You undid his holster and he looked down at your hands unravelling it. “Let’s make ourselves at home.” You whispered handing him his bundle of knives hugged in leather. He pulled you in for a quick kiss, your wrists glowed, then dimmed, the glow rarely stuck around that long, the longest it’s ever lingered was in the first 2 years, you’re both now so used to one another.

You spend the night in eachothers arms, two stowaways, making a life from absolutely nothing.

You were lying there, half asleep, half conscious, hearing voices in groups. People in the main area of the gym laughing and singing along to music. “Yeah, a couple of troubled trespassers.” Suddenly a deep voice spoke to another as you heard footsteps approach your room. “In here?” A feminine voice spoke up, and the man’s voice agreed, suddenly the dimly lit room was now exposed by the bright light of a torch, blinding you and Diego’s closed eyes, he shot up and put one hand over his eyes and one hand on your arm, making sure you were within his safety.

“Y/N Bardot, get up right now!” You opened your eyes to see your mother dressed as a police officer, not even trying to be a worried mother. Fuck her. Diego scoffed keeping you by him as you sat up. “Jesus Christ you couldn’t stay away could you?” Diego spoke irritated, you just elbowed him in the side causing him to wince. “Officer, I’m afraid I do not tolerate rude pigs!” You spat out, respecting the character your mother tried so desperately to play. This caused Al to get a good look at you and Diego. He called the cops expecting you two to be a couple of homeless addicts, not expecting you to be some teens in need of asylum. His face rested in ponder.

Eliza just grabbed Diego off the bed and shoved him beside Al, making him look at the older man and give him a dirty look, knowing it had to be him who called your mom, not knowing how the commission had hacks to the emergency numbers. “Jesus fucking Christ, Eliza, just stop!” Diego hated your parents, especially your mom, hated how she talked to you, referred to you as anything but the kid she birthed, how could a mother be so cruel to her baby. Your mother then grabbed you by the hand as you protested with great restraint. “Is she not a copper?” Al asked Diego and Diego just rolled his eyes. “No, you idiot, look at her.” You just accepted defeat, your mother was holding a briefcase, you finally noticed it. “No.” You sighed. “Mom, no, please?” She just gave you a somber look as if you were the biggest disappointment of her life. After all she didn’t want you, she made that clear, you were merely a rank to keep her at the top of the commission. “No, darling, why do you have to make everything so difficult. Don’t you want to see your family?” Diego wanted to kill her, he felt as though he could, one simple stab and she’d be a goner, but that’s one thing you’d never forgive him for, and he wasn’t wanting to make you hate him.

“We had this all figured out.” Diego muttered, causing your mom to scoff and walk over to him, pushing her finger to his chest, causing him to narrow his eyes. “You think breaking and entering into this man’s gym is having it all figured out.” Then your mother looked over to you. “Jesus Y/N, you actually associate yourself with a bafoon such as this?” This made Al mad, he pushed Diego behind him. “Lady, I think you’ve overstayed your welcome.” The gut feeling you had from last night was all too clear now, good AND bad. Diego would have respite in here while you had to go back to home sweet home with the devil herself. Diego looked at Al confused that and adult was defending him like this. “Fine then. Y/N, honey.” Your mother gripped your hand again, and Diego tried to grab hold of you but she got you out of that room as quick as possible, pressing the button on the suitcase and off to the commission headquarters you went.

Diego shed a tear, trying to be stoic. Al looked at the boy, then looked around the room. “You can stay. But on one condition, mop the floors at night for me?” Diego didn’t give a fuck what Al wanted him to do with the gym he just wanted you back. “Whatever.” He sat on the bed, Al noticed your bags still here. “And if your girlfriend comes back, she can convince you to box for me, you’ve got potential, kid.” Diego’s eyes lightened, Al saw his potential, without him having to beg for him to look. “I’ll leave you be though, I’ll take you out to dinner tonight, just scrounge up some breakfast yourself.” He was supportive, something Diego subconsciously admired, he wasn’t asking much of him either which was a breath of fresh air, and he knew nobody was gonna come looking for him, he was alone. For once he was actually alone.

You took in the familiar halls, the familiar intercom rules that played on a loop, the familiar colleagues, you were just agitated, ready to kill your own mother. “Just take me to dad.” You spoke to her distastefully, only wanting your father right now, at least he had sympathy in his body, something you’ve now grown to appreciate after five and Ben were gone. And your mother lived and breathed.

You walked down the halls to your mother and fathers joint office, the tainted windowed door read ‘Bardot inquiries’. Your mother opened it and let you walk in, your father was stood by the window drinking a cup of coffee, he had two more in a holder on his desk, for each of his girls. “Sweetheart, you made it, without any wounds I hope?” You ran into his arms and he hugged you back, looking at your mother worriedly, and she rolled her eyes and sat at her desk, working the typewriter. Peter tried to let go but your hold on him only tightened, he was protesting but he was just concerned for your wellbeing, when you were at the academy yesterday you didn’t look so sharp, and especially not now.

“What’s the problem?” He finally made you let go, you walked across the desk and grabbed a coffee, one pump vanilla in your latte for sweetness. Just how you liked it. “Her.” You spoke bitterly glaring, at your mom. She just shook her head smiling angrily as she kept her eyes on the type writer. Your father gave you a look, ushering you not to push the situation, you sat on one of the chairs beside the door, taking a sip of your caffeinated beverage. “Where’d you go? You weren’t at the academy.” Jesus, news travelled fast. Your mother spoke up now, happy to call you out on your scandalous behaviour. “She was with that boy. In a run down boiler room. Like the horrid girls we raised her not to be.” Your lip quivered trying not to cry at how cruel she was, your dad just put his hands on his hips, looking between the two arguing ladies. “Sweetheart, maybe you should take a little walk, come to terms with what you want.” He looked at you, you raised a brow, how’s a walk going to help you any?

“Of course, kicking my feet about an agency hellbent on gore, will serve me in the right direction.” You stood up, leaving their office. Once you were gone your father handed your mother her coffee and he tutted, “She’s really vulgar.” Your mother just gave him an ‘I told you so’ look.

You dragged your feet along the shiny tiled floors and looked into each room you walked by, until you saw Hazel, he looked pretty beaten up from one of his missions, he sat in the common room, you went in taking a seat beside him. “Hey kiddo, I haven’t seen you in quite some time.” He spoke chuffed. You didn’t even look at him. You just stared at the little television that played the welcome video repeatedly until someone kicked it in, mostly you, there’s around 20 new televisions brought in weekly, due to workplace violence. “It’s been 3 months, Hazel, it’s always 3 months.” You threw your head back on the couch, slouching. “That’s still quite some time.” His brows raised a little showing that there was truth behind his words. You finally looked at him, his emotions calm and assuring, as he never usually let you see any bad temper from him, he was always the nicest employee here, and herb. Dot too. But you had a soft spot for hazel.

“Do ever feel like you’re living a lie?” Your blunt question sparked a little pain in his gut, he hated thinking too much about his career decision. “In what way, sport?” You reached over and broke the antenna off the TV, not wanting to see that animated briefcase anymore, his cartoon smile filled you with unbelievable rage. “I’m with the commission, correcting the timeline, a child soldier. Then I’m with Reginald Hargreeves, fighting crime, a-maturely. I can fight better but whenever I’m there something stops me, like the child I am doesn’t want me to be violent.” Hazel’s heart broke when he heard your side to your life, everyone else always had to convince him you were okay with what you do, even though he had doubts on the morality of it. “So, you’re saying that your lie is thinking you should stay here?” Hearing him ask that made you realise you were in a deeper mental hell than you thought. “No. The lie I’m living is thinking I could ever be normal. Have a white picket fence life, no power, no briefcase, being content with just me.” Your mother taking you from Diego made you question the ethics of it. You and him weren’t just 2 normal runaway kids, young love over living with your individual parents. Your lives weren’t built that way, meaning it just wouldn’t work. You loved him, a little too much, but you were always going to run, that was just in your nature, never tied to a place, hell, you were swapping personalities every 3 months. You were breaking at the seams.

Hazel unbuttoned his blazer, getting comfortable to help sit and divulge your life crisis at 17. “You don’t need to have that figured out yet. You can be happy and then take your life in a completely different route.” He sighed seeing your eyes so dim. “Think of this, when you’re 30 where will you be?” You didn’t know. How could you, I mean, you could just kill the guard by the infinite switchboard and break in and look, but the future was always changing with every decision you made, who’s to say what it will truly be. “I don’t know.” This made Hazel smile softly. “Exactly, you don’t know, so don’t think that being normal isn’t in the cards for you. It’s your life at the end of the day, don’t believe what you’re conditioned to believe.” He’s been having doubts about being here too. You could feel it from him. That eased your consciousness a tonne. Without thinking, you hugged the man, he was truly a friend, whether you were colleagues or not, he was like an older brother, and with a pat of your back, you finally realised why your father told you to go on a walk.

You quickly walked back to your parent’s office, stopping yourself before going in, almost fearful at what they’ll say. You breathed out and opened the door. It was just your father, he gave you a little smile as he packed some files into his non-time travelling briefcase, he was taking these home to theorize on his big pin board, he did that with all his cases, it never faltered, and sometimes you’d stay up late nights with him to help him solve cases. “You coming home tonight or are you still protesting your right to freedom?” He spoke sarcastically, the brunette man clicking his case closed. “I actually wanted to talk to you about that, where’s mom?” He gave you a confused look, “She always has an early day on Wednesdays, you know this.” You had actually forgotten what day it was after being so grief stricken by Ben, and running away, you didn’t have time to look at the newspapers or listen to the radio. “Okay, whatever, she doesn’t matter.” He gave a dry chuckle and sat down on the desk, letting you pace and ramble.

“You were right, well, mom was. She didn’t raise me to be a horrid girl who runs away without alerting you.” Your father nodded along, no idea where this was going. “But I interpret it differently, I’m not made to kill. I’ve been conditioned to believe I am because that’s the family I was born into. But I am not a violent person.” You were just a kid, a lost one at most. Your father crossed his arms now, tugging on his loose tie from working so hard all day. “I don’t want to be your soldier anymore.” That was the most honest and truthful you’ve ever been to him about your needs and wants. He seemed guilty at you calling yourself his soldier and he had to admit, you weren’t wrong. “I love Diego, dad. And I know mom hates his guts but we have a real connection and I’m not going to let you hide me away from him. He’s made me see that this life isn’t who I am.” You continued to pace every-so-often stopping glance at him hoping he was keeping up. Your father was a bright man, there was no doubt he felt your frustration and resentment. He stood now, placing one hand on his side, scratching the back of his neck, with the other. “Angel, I want you to follow your dreams, but you don’t know what you want, you’re a child.” He was the one person who you wanted to understand you, and that hurt deeply.

“Dad?” Your eyes saddened and he immediately wanted to take it back. “All I’m saying is, he’s one boy, there’s millions of them. And he’s only going to break your heart. This is your true home.” You sat down in defeat, your hands covering your face, “Please just listen to me.” You whined like a little kid, after all that’s how you mentally felt, you never got to be one. “Can’t you hear what I’m saying? Diego’s my family. Not you, not mom, I was dumped on you. I chose to love him. There’s a difference than being forced to.” Your father could live in all the denial he wants but he cannot escape the fact that he failed you, he was more of an operative than a dad. Your mother heavy hitting boss than a nurturing mother.

Your father walked towards the other side of the room, unlocking his metal cabinet, he’s never actually let you see inside it before. You were amazed he was finally unlocking it in your presence. “I can’t force you to do anything. You’re almost an adult. So, take this.” A briefcase, your own briefcase. “I bought it when you were born, for you to take when you started disagreeing with me about your future, like you are now.” He was understanding you, finally seeing you as the person you were and not what he expected you to be.

“You mean it? I can have it?” You now stood by him, seeing the entire contents of the cabinet. A passport, a commission suit tailored to your size, an elephant mask, similar to the bear and bunny Hazel and Cha Cha have. Yours was purple. “It’s like Achilles.” Your father placed an assuring hand on your shoulder as you stood by him. “But you don’t need these.” He closed the cabinet, just keeping the passport out for you. “Go see the world, without having to kill someone, for the holiday. The briefcase is for you and Diego to go wherever.” He made you face him now, “and to visit me, if you’ll remember after your amazing sights.” He seemed wounded with grief that his little girl has grown up. You rested your head on him. Somber and bittersweet, he was finally letting you go.

“What about mom?” That was the real worry. He just kissed the top of your head, like he always did, “I’ll calm the wolf.” He assured you and that made you smile through tears. Not actually admitting to yourself that this was it. The commission life was no more, you could be with Diego. “I love you, Angel.” Your dad ruffled your hair, causing you to give an annoyed look, but secretly you loved happy moments as this. “I love you too, dad.” You left his office feeling better than you did entering. And all you had to do was log the date into the briefcase “September 28th 2006”.

It’s been 12 hours since you left, your mother picking you up at 7am it now being 7pm. Diego was mopping the floor of the gym, Al closed up early because he wanted to take Diego to get some food for dinner. He had the radio on and was listening in to an article about the legacy of WHAM, when the doors opened. You arrived, the mop has never hit the floor faster and Diego immediately pulled you into a tight embrace. “Holy shit!” He smiled chuffed that you chose to come back and be with him. He’d even decorated the boiler room with both your things, making sure to gently set the cassette player on your own personal stand.

“Alright alright, ease the applause.” You taunted him and he set you back down on the ground. You found your way back, and he was so unbelievably grateful. He then got irritated, “Is this a goodbye? I feel like you just got sent here to tell me you’re gonna vanish off the face of the earth. No way your mom is lenient enough to let you stay.” His paranoia making you laugh, you sat on a balance beam and he was still apprehensive. “Diego, I’m all yours. I stood my ground and the bastards let me go.” Hearing you say you were all his filled a swell of pride in his ego, he crossed his arms with a little smile tugging at his lips. “All mine then?” He was delighted, but it wouldn’t be long before you were at each-other throats again about how he was mopping wrong and forgot to even add soap.

Note: this was so long and part 3 will also be backstory but they’ll be older. I just really want to add a certain plot, you’ll thank me for it.

Tags:

@ravenn-darkholme @shadowbriar @total-lunareclipse4 @vesper4seance @yanibobonni @st4w3

[mischiefmaker615]

The Boy is Mine

Rating: R

Summary: Loki finds you after dark.. but who owns who? 

Note: Based off the song The Boy is Mine by Ariana Grande

Requester: @Laer111ee (wattpad)

*Insert slut song here First and play as you read LOL*

Your hips swayed from side to side as your fingers gripped the pole firmly to keep your balance. Shifting your weight as you swung yourself, arched your back and flipped your hair, all were the main ingredience to get the big bucks coming, especially with those regular fat cats in the audience that continued to gawk at you for the 5th day in a row. It paid the bills at least, kept your head away from other problems and.. you just really loved to dance.

Your hair was loose, make up was light but still captured a sexy look, you ditched the ridiculous high heels and just put on the shorter ones that almost said ‘sexy business woman’ and you had your favorite black outfit that almost resembled slave Leia from Star Wars.. or at least, that’s what that one guy shouted from the audience that one time.

As soon as your last song ended, you struck your pose and closed your eyes, catching your breath with a smile as the feeling of paper brushed against your exposed skin as people threw cash and cat called. After a moment, you collected it all after a corny bow and headed down the stairs for the next girl to take over.

‘’hey Y/N, some fella in curtain 5 paid for a private dance’’ your boss whispered before you could get to the back rooms. His grip on your arm indicated his usual ‘I’m telling’ not ‘asking’.

Your eyes glanced over at the closed curtain room, as if expecting to see the gentleman right there and glanced at your boss with a sigh. ‘’fine, then I’m done for the night.’’

‘’sure.’’ He waved off and disappeared elsewhere.

After placing your bag in your locker, tiding yourself up a bit and even changing into something similar, just with more exposed leg space for your usual lap dances and headed over. Ignoring the stares and cat calling as you pass people, you paused at the curtain and took a deep breath- knowing you’ve done hundreds but it was just to prepare for.. anything, and went in.

“hello darling, you’ve never mentioned about your little side business..’’

You stopped dead in your tracks with wide eyes and queasy stomach. Your body ran a cold shiver up your spine as you remained a deer in the headlights at who sat before you, manspreading and comfortable, rocking his perfect black suit and your expression was still.

Snake..

‘’what the hell are you doing here?’’ you managed to squeeze out, your voice not indicating any anger but more.. uncertainty as you glanced at the curtain behind you to make sure it was closed.

‘’don’t worry darling, I’ll keep your little secret’’ Loki smirked and laced his fingers together before him with a cross of his legs. ‘’but might I say, you do look ravishing, especially displaying your skillset and.. assets on stage’’ he smirked, trying to get a rise out of you.

So he had been there that long.. your eyes narrowed in challenge as you remained calm. At least on the outside. Loki has been your long-time crush for a long time, having seen him amongst the tower many times to share some playful bickering and knowledgeable conversation here and there. He was someone to keep things interesting, never boring and got your mind to always think- unlike the dull and self-centered males that also occupied the tower. Most of them anyway. Being an Avenger was also your job, but you just couldn’t give up your first job here when Stark offered you the position, so you worked both, this one obviously in secret- until now.

‘’how did you know I was here?’’ you questioned, crossing your arms as worry showed on your brow nevertheless.. for some strange reason you trusted he would keep your secret- it didn’t mean he wouldn’t use it against you though.

‘’the tower tends to get rather boring, and most of your Midgardian locations don’t suit my interest. But you do, you’ve always have..’’ his voice got dangerously low as he leaned forward as he spoke. ‘’so, I followed you. you tended to disappear every evening and I got curious’’ he smirked.

You looked away a little as he spoke, glad the dim lighting hid your blush you felt come to your cheeks as you took a deep breath. Were you really going to do this? ‘’..you know I could always refuse you right?’’ you challenged out of curiosity.

‘’true,’’ he shrugged, relaxing back on the couch as he watched you, his eyes slipping down from yours a few times. ‘’but I could tell a part of you actually wants to do this,’’ he smirked, his eyes flicking up to yours again. ‘’and I don’t even have to blackmail you.’’

Your eyes narrowed as you stared at each other, almost daring to see who would do what first, but unfortunately it was all you. he was the customer and you hated that he was right. He wasn’t just a customer; you had wanted him for a long time; there was no use in denying it. if you had to do this, you were going to take your time and take charge. You will not give him a chance to belittle or doubt, this was your job and you were good at it.

As if on que, the music had started playing again and you wished you had taken a shot of tequila while you had put your stuff away, because the way he gazed at you now was making it hard to focus. He was sat back, limbs loose and relaxed as if he had been drinking a bit himself. His legs were a bit more together now, his slender hands resting at his thighs as his eyes drank you in now. His expression was difficult to read, but you could tell by his deep breathing and how now and again he would shift a little, that he was aroused, and that made you extremely powerful to offer your own smirk.

Taking a small step forward to be more in the center of his room, you kept your half-lidded eyes on him as your hands gently brushed over your thighs, slowly swaying your hips in the beat of the music while they slowly rose and flattened a little at your covered center.

His chin tilted up as his eyes seemed to pry, almost as if trying to look right through your clothes themselves as he swallowed and remained his composure. Your body slowly turned, showing off as your hands slowly rose around your hips and brushed against your perfect ass with your cut dress covering your intimate parts before you slowly faced him again while you gripped your chest.

Your eyes closed then, as if your own touch alone could make you orgasm and your fingers traveled into your hair while your lips parted. While your eyes were closed as you moved to the music, Loki’s hands briefly brushed against his pants as he began getting antsy, his jaw tight but he remained patient as he drank you in. gods you were beautiful, and you both knew it. the fact that he also knew your personality form your encounters at home as well he felt you were all the sexier.

His breath hitched when you placed your hands on his knees, feeling him having no rejection as you leaned forward and he took advantage of the view of your cleavage. Feeling his tense but loose limbs, you pushed his legs apart, standing between them as you remained holding eye contact and you smirked, seeing a small flash of defeat in his eyes that he hated and loved at the same time.

You had the upper hand now.

You turned yourself and slowly, just ever so slowly to tease him- more- began grinding your ass on him. depending on the package, it could involve touch, but you still weren’t expecting your breath to hitch when you felt his slender hands rest at your hips, his finger tips lightly digging into your flesh as he used strained control to bring you harder again him. speaking of..

By the gods he was huge, and you could feel yourself getting aroused every time he pulled and you pushed your cunt against his hard cock. You almost felt like you could salivate as your grinded more into him, hearing him growl as his grip strengthened ever so slightly, as if to stop himself from slapping your ass. You had him where you wanted him and pulled away, his fingers hesitating to let you go as you turned around to face him and placed your hands on his shoulders with do-me-eyes.

Loki’s lips parted weakly as he remained himself to breath, his eyes looking up into yours as if silently begging for you to take him. you wanted to.. if you wouldn’t get fired. Though it didn’t mean you couldn’t tease him a bit as you got onto his lap, your thighs resting against his while your cunt began grinding itself again on his bulge.

His hands went back to your hips as fast as magnets, wanting to grope and touch but he was unsure if he was allowed. You felt him squeeze your flesh as he leaned forward, making you grip his shoulders more as he inhaled your scent with fluttering eyes closed.

This gave you the perfect opportunity to lean forward and run your tongue teasingly up his neck, making your body lift as his cock got impossibly bigger to raise you. his eyes shock open with blown, hungry pupils and his own cologne filled your sensed as you gazed at him. he gave you a frustrated breath, his hips almost thrusting up as if he forgot you both were clothed.

Just to add fuel to the fire, your hands ran down his chest and took his wrists, pulling them off your thighs to rest against your chest as he eagerly began to massage and knead. His eyes never left yours as he almost seemed to study you, admiration on his features as if he never thought this moment would be possible- and he was still trying to believe it.

his thumbs ghosted under the edge of your bra at the bottom-if you want to call it a bra. It was thin as paper, you might as well of not have been wearing one as his movements slowed, asking silent permission as his teeth grasped his bottom lip lightly. Giving a small smile with a nod, his thumbs lifted the bra forward enough to slip his hands in and he almost shuddered in pleasure as he grasped your globes. Your head almost fell back as you moaned, slowing your griding at his bulge to deep, long strokes and you felt a warm tongue run up your neck.

You pulled away just enough to give him a playful smile as he shared one, knowing it was a pay back tease before a hand left your chest to move to the back of your head. It moved it forward, his fingers lightly grasping your hair as he tilted your head up and began sucking at your neck. Your hands went to his shoulders, nails digging into his suit as your own body shuddered in pleasure. He left open mouth kisses below your jawline and ran his tongue to your collar bone.

‘’F-Fuck..’’ you breathed before there was a knock outside the room.

‘’hey Y/N, I’m not paying over time.’’ your boss called and you realized the music had stopped.

Loki pulled away and removed his hands to rest at your hips, looking up at you curiously as you both caught your breaths.

‘’..the songs over..’’ you whisper, your eyes breaking contact as you use his shoulders to help yourself off of him and he keeps his hands on your hips for as long as possible as he lets go and stands up.

His height reminds you just how different you both are as you brush and straighten your clothes before you feel his hand at your chin and lift it to look at him. his expression was gentle but deadly serious and seriously still aroused.

‘’what time are you off?’’

Your blush darkens and you could feel your arousal as your thighs close tight. ‘’now-‘’

He leans down a bit, his knees bending to accommodate his height as he holds your eyes hostage and your noses almost touch.

‘’then this is most certainly not over.’’

Tag List: @foxherder @asgards-princess-of-mischief @fire-in-her-veinz

Note: Thank you for reading! it's kind of like a series~ you send songs, i write based off of them LOL More on my masterlist!

~Funny *on the subject*

[sandboxscenes]

For you, I'd break the world.

A/N: It's my first time doing something like this. But this got a foothold in my brain and would not let me go. Inspired by this post from @skylovs and partly based on real life shenanigans with the 3.2 photo glitch a couple of months ago.

Honestly, Ayato was the main reason I started Genshin, and he was the first character that I went all in for.

-----

Every action has an equal and opposite reaction.

It should've been impossible for you to meet, but yet…

When you first saw Ayato in his trailer, he captured your heart. The mysteriously shrewd Yashiro commissioner, who operates in the the shadows - Kamisato Ayato. You weren't sure if it was the white official outfit he wore as part of the Kamisato Clan, his elegant movements, his personality, or his voice - equal parts calming and mysterious, that caught you, but you fell for him.

You were well aware of Ayato's status as the Yashiro Commissioner and the responsibilities it came with, and his sister, Ayaka, as the Shirasagi Himegi. In addition, you had devoured every single tidbit about him and the Kamisato clan that you could get your hands on. Even with the constraints of the game locking you out of his story quest, and even Inazuma, you read everything about him - his past, and his stories, and committed them to heart.

You wanted him.

You needed him.

And you were willing to break all of the rules to do so.

"If I can get to Inazuma without going past AR 25, I will pull for him. I want him. I won't ascend my world level until I get him."

The words quietly left your lips. It was a mantra of sorts. A phrase you'd say to yourself often, when you were exploring around the world of Teyvat.

For you, it was also a reminder of the goal that you set for yourself. Ayato's original banner had long since passed, but you were hoping that he would be getting a re-run soon. That singular piece of hope is why you were hunting. You wanted to gather enough primogems, in the hopes that he would come to you on a golden star.

When rumors swirled online regarding the reappearance of a glitch that would allow beginning players to make their way to the closed nation of Inazuma, you were intrigued.

A way to make it to Inazuma? Without getting struck by lighting? Impossible.

It must be too good to be true, you thought. You shook your head and heaved a heavy sigh. You weren't necessarily the best at video games in general, so the thought of being able to essentially break the game, by being somewhere where you weren't supposed to be was a hard ask. But you also couldn't help your curiosity.

After a few days, your curiosity won out, and you decided to put the glitch to the test. You watched endless tutorial videos on the glitch. After multiple failures, you ended up with a success, and watched as your character walked on air.

"Yes!" You loudly yelled as your character maneuvered around, defying gravity.

The success spurred a fire in you. You needed to repeat the conditions and do additional testing to master the glitch. But you did not care how many hours it would take. You were determined to travel to Inazuma, no matter what.

The first place you touched down in Inazuma after walking on air, was the Kamisato Estate. A fitting place for you to touch down. After unlocking the wavepoint right by the Kamisato Estate, you hunkered down and continued to hunt down primogems.

Then, the fated day of his banner arrived.

You opened up the wishing window. You took a deep breath. With all of the primogems that you gathered, you put your hands together and whispered a silent prayer. You clicked the button to wish, and you closed your eyes, hoping for a miracle.

The first ten pull you did, you saw a purple star shooting across the screen. Not him. You knew it was unlikely for you to meet him, but a part of you hoped that you could meet him immediately. That did not happen. Ten pulls turned into thirty pulls that turned into eighty Pulls, but still, he was nowhere to be found.

Your heart tightened. Anxiety swirled in your thoughts. Even though you knew that you had enough offerings for him, you made sure of it. You couldn't help when your thoughts turned doubtful.

"Why can't I get him? Why?"

Your muttered to no one in particular. You laid your head down on your desk as your eyes fell on the wishing screen in front of you. Ayato's visage seemed to be taunting you the more you looked at the screen. As if in a trance, your fingers lazily clicked the button for another ten pull.

Ninety pulls. Hard Pity.

You sat up with a start when you saw the golden star fly across the screen. The anticipation built up in your chest as you held your breath to see who would appear on your screen. One by one, the pulls were revealed. But you couldn't concentrate on them. You wanted to know if you could meet Ayato.

When the golden star was revealed to be the Yuheng of the Liyue Quixing, Kequing, your heart fell. You knew of Kequing and liked her fine enough, but she wasn't who you wanted. You wanted Ayato. You knew that if you continued your offerings, you would be able to meet him. But still, a small part of you disliked how things played out. You wanted Ayato to be the first one you met.

You laid your head down on the computer keyboard, as you mentally tried to psych yourself up enough to continue to pull. The keys dug into part of your face, but you didn't care.

"Ayato, please come home."

Your soft words floated on the air. You knew it was futile to say, but you couldn't help yourself. Perhaps, despite Genshin being a videogame, you wanted to lose yourself in the hope that he could hear you, and that your sentiments would reach him.

Ding!

The sound, followed by a blue notification, popped up on your computer, informing you that the computer was about to run out of battery. You looked around for the power cord. You plugged it into the computer, and felt a small shock jump up your arm. You looked at the cord and then at your hand. You flexed your hand to make sure there was nothing out of the ordinary. It felt fine.

That was weird.

Your computer had only been on for a few minutes, but it was weird how the battery drained so quickly. You knew that you played Genshin last night, but you were sure that you left charging before you went to bed. You thought so, at least. You shrugged. Maybe you are making a big deal out of nothing. Your memory may have been mistaken, and you forgot to plug it in last night. It was an honest mistake that you've done before.

"Alright, Ayato. I promise you, I'll bring you home. I'm ready."

Are you?

You hesitated for a second, before you shook your head. You thought you heard something, but dismissed it. Your mouse clicked the button as you started to wish once again. The pulls started to rack up - Ten, Twenty, Fifty, and then finally, nintety pulls. Hard pity again.

Despite your rotten luck, you couldn't help the grin on your face as you watched the golden star shoot across the screen. Your heartbeat rang in your ears. This is what you've been waiting for. When the shadows dissipated, you found yourself looking face to face at the handsome face of Yashiro Commissioner himself. The words slipped out of your mouth, unbidden.

"Hi, Ayato. Welcome home. I've been waiting forever to meet you."

Sorry for being late.

You blinked. There it was again. You couldn't help feeling uneasy. You thought you heard something - twice. But nothing seemed to be making noise around you.

You turned to face the screen again, and you were in the character menu, looking at Ayato. You were mesmerized as you watched him elegantly materialize his sword and sheath it. You swore that you saw a mischievous twinkle in his eye and sly smile on his lips. Or did you?

You blinked, and Ayato went into his other idle animation, the one where he was drinking Boba. You raised your eyebrow. You knew that you wanted to check out his idle animations after getting him, but it was odd how the game seemed to predict what you wanted to see. If you didn't know any better, you could've sworn that he was aware of your presence, or worst yet, reading your mind.

Now that you think about it, when did you log out of the wishing screen?

You don't remember clicking the button to exit the screen.

You shrugged. Maybe it was just your laptop acting up again. Even laptop troubles couldn't dampen your mood now. You had Ayato now, and he was the one you wanted from the very beginning.

You outfitted him with all the gear that you saved for him, and started to play. Perhaps it was a trick of the light, but you could've sworn that you saw Ayato's strikes do even more damage. They seemed to take care of every obstacle you faced as a player.

"Thank you, Ayato."

My pleasure.

[sl-vega]

✧Sticking to the Script✧-03

⋆｡°✩ 03-inspiration? more like desperation

Xingqiu had been staring at a blank document with an empty piece of lined paper right next to him. The empty void of white taunted him. He sighed as he closed his laptop and put it back into his backpack.

"You okay?" Xingqiu looked up, and he saw Chongyun standing next to him. "Yeah I'm just stressed..." Xingqiu replied as he gathered his stuff and placed it into his bag.

"Don't you have a few months to finish it?" Chongyun asked. "We do, but it's supposed to be twelve pages at the very least." Xingqiu said as he rubbed his temples. He sighed again, "Sorry, this has just been bothering me for a bit."

Xingqiu started placing all his supplies back into his bag. He quickly got up from his seat waiting for Chongyun to follow. "Where are you going?" Chongyun asked. "The drama room." Xingqiu replied without any further elaboration.

"Why? You aren't actually going to audition for the play are you?" Chongyun asked with a concerned tone. "Thankfully I'm not." Xingqiu said walking out of the school's library with his friend.

"I'm going there for inspiration, some of the actors who audition are phenomenal and Romeo and Juliet is this year's production so there must be something I can use." Xingqiu said, his eyes sparkling in anticipation.

"You're just saying that because our library has no good romance books, aren't you?" Chongyun asked seeing right through his friend.

"You know me so well Chongyun." he replied. Yes that was part of the reason, but Xingqiu was a fan of theatre and the live arts. He still preferred books and literature, but he could admit that actors and live performances had their own merits.

The two boys continued their way down the stairs passing by several teachers and formally greeting them, they made their way to the auditorium, it was state of the art, with a huge stage and hundreds of plush, velvet seats.

Xingqiu and Chongyun sat near the front, Xingqiu eyed the students all over the huge room. Many held scripts and seemed to be memorizing their lines last minute. His eyes continued to scan the room before landing on a familiar figure.

You, the girl he had given his umbrella to

The two of you made eye contact, and he could see you quickly dart your eyes away, even in the dim lighting of the seating area, he could see your face flush.

"Hey Chongyun." he whispered to his friend, not wanting to interrupt the current student auditioning.

"Who's that girl over there?" He asked, gesturing to where you were standing, the two of them saw you get up to the stage to audition.

"Name and part?" Furina, the director, asked.

"(Y/N) (L/N), auditioning for the part of Juliet." you said.

"There's your answer." Chongyun whispered responding to his friend's question from earlier. The baby-blue haired boy glanced over to his friend as you started your monologue. Xingqiu looked star-struck.

"Xingqiu, earth to Xingqiu." Chongyun said as he waved his hand in front of his friend's face. "You good?"

Still completely focused on you, he whispered something under his breath.

"She's perfect."

additional notes:

-QUADRUPLE UPDATE LET'S GOOOO

-golly gee i wonder what xingqiu means by that

-y'all get the potential double meaning?

-chongyun thinks that xingqiu is head over heels for this random girl

-he may as well be tbh

-next chapter will be this but from y/n's perspective

-yes y/n is blushing over a boy that she barely knows

-look, she just went through a break-up, her standards are very low now

-xingqiu would be a great boyfriend tho

-oop did i just spoil the endgame

-oh well

-ty to @freyao7 for being my proofreader again

masterlist

<prev ll next>

✧Sticking to the Script✧

Pairing: Xingqiu x FEM! Reader

Genre: fake dating, strangers to lovers, slow burn, fluff, angst (?), high school smau, modern smau

⋆｡°✩-Synopsis: Xingqiu just got entered into a special writing contest, the type that's invite only, the theme this year is love, the only problem is that he has zero romantic experience. but he really wants to prove himself as a writer. meanwhile, you just found out that your boyfriend cheated on you, and you need to show him that you're 100% over him, the only problem is that there's no way you can get an actual boyfriend that quickly. clearly, the solution to both of your issues is to fake date each other. it shouldn't be hard for an actor such as yourself, all you need to do is stick to the script.

(OPEN) Taglist: @freyao7, @thatoneswordgirl, @sn1perz, @latay7. @esmetrees, @nmriki0, @help-whatdoimakemyusername, @httpsrenren, @cupid-spams, @aixaingela, @kaitfae, @luvkvni, @danhenglovebot

[crazyyanderefangirlfan]

Do you know her?

This was supposed to be easy. Get the volleyball team to believe that Teresa is unfit to be a manager because of her cruelty, have her kicked out and be the new manager. 

Easy right?

In her head this was the perfect plan. She was supposed to be manager, not that outsider. It’s not her fault volleyball terms were supper complicated or she didn’t think the other players that weren’t the starting line were just as important.

Teresa has been in top of Shiratorizawa for far too long. It’s time to put her in her place.

She could hear the practice in the distance, and hid herself behind the lockers. She waited until she saw Teresa going with water bottles in hand. She took at least twenty minutes, more enough time to de-throne her.

She marched inside and threw the door open. The sound caught the entire team’s attention. She surveyed the room, no coaches in sight.

“Can we help you?” Semi approached her first. He had a wary look on his face, in fact the entire team did.

She nodded eagerly. “Yes. It’s about Teresa.”

That immediately got their attention. Good.

“What about Teresa?” Ushijima walked up to her. She gulped when he narrowed his eyes to her, he looked more intimidating up close. But she’s on a mission.

She took a deep breath and launched into a tirade about Teresa's supposed cruelty: Teresa  humiliated a girl, Teresa gave an unfair punishment to her group mates, Teresa punched someone and many more.

She began to explain when she’s not with the team she showed her true colors: A two-faced snake who’s only a manager for popularity and the attention for the team. She spoke on how Teresa mistreats her classmates and threatens them to keep silence since she has a reputation to uphold, expecting them to be angry and disappointed at their manager. But as she finished her rant, she was met with silence.

Kawanishi spoke up first, his voice calm and measured. "So... what did they do?" he asked, his tone tinged with curiosity rather than accusation.

She blinked, taken aback by the unexpected question. "E-Excuse me?" she stammered, unsure of how to respond.

Shirabu, who crossed his arms, chimed in next. "Teresa is not cruel unless it's a form of retaliation," he explained, his gaze steady and unwavering.

Then Tendou, with a manic look on his face, leaned in close to the girl's ear, his voice low and conspiratorial. "And besides," he whispered, a mischievous twinkle in his eye, "Ter-Teri is so much crueler than that."

Her eyes widened in disbelief as she processed their words. She took a step back, breathing hard as the team was not amused by attempt to slander their manager.

“Uh-um…”

“Let me guess. You were…jealous of Teresa cause she’s the manager and you’re trying to replace her? Is that right.” Tendou started. It wasn’t a question but a statement.

“No!…She really has been a liar! She’s-“

Reon cut her off. “You said Teresa humiliated a girl right? Well, I was there. That girl was taunting Teresa, trying to rile her up. She tried to ignored it but that girl struck a nerve so she retaliated.”

“But-“

“When Teresa gave an ‘unfair’ punish to her group mates.” Yamagata continued, using air quotes at unfair. “Those guys were slacking off and tried to take credit of her work, so of course she gave them their just desserts.”

The girl gulped, this is going way bad.

“That guy Teresa punched was actually one of my classmates and he was an asshole.” Goshiki added. He practically has stars in his eyes as he recounted the event. “She saw how he was acting towards and punched him. She threatened to cut his balls and he never bothered me again.”

By now the girl was trembling where she stood as the team scowling at her. Even more when Ushijima stood in front of her, his face being more severe than usual.

“The reason why she is our manager is her strength, determination, and unwavering support make her an invaluable part of our success.”

Semi then added, “This is especially true to us third years, we know her very well, which obviously you don’t.” There was bite in his tone that made her wince.

Realizing she lost, she quickly turned me ran to  doors. As she opens she collided with someone.

“Whoa! What’s the rush?” A familiar voice asked. There wasn’t any anger but curiosity and concern evident in it. She ignored and kept running.

Teresa watched the girl ignore her and kept running. The corners of her mouth dropped, wondering what happened while she was gone?

‘Well, I hope she’ll be alright.’ She thought as she picked up the water bottles.

“Teresa let me help!” Goshiki was by her side in an instant and quickly helping her.

“Thank you, Goshiki.” She smiled at her junior, who blushed at the praise.

She and self-proclaimed future ace handed the bottles to the team, who mostly thanked Teresa.

“By the way, who was that just now?” She questioned after practice was done. The team glanced at each other, before one of them spoke.

“Eh, another person who wants a manager position. We told them the responsibilities and they chicken out.” Yamagata answered, with a dismissive wave. The albino girl arched her brow at that.

“Are you sure it wasn’t because you guys scared her off?” She teased.

The team shared a look once her back was turned to them. 

Teresa is their manager and friend, they don’t scaring a few snakes off.

[abyssalpeach]

up against the ropes (a matcha blossom fic). rated e. also on ao3.

"Are you sure you don't have a concussion?" Kojiro's voice lowered to a hoarse whisper.

"Positive."

a/n: i promise this started out totally normal and achingly tender before the brain worms whispered The Unholy Headcanon to me. pls forward this to my lawyer for when they come to take me away to horny jail.

anyway cheers to posting fic on tumblr again because somebody around here needs to start clogging the mb tag

Life was slowly returning to normal after the fateful S tournament where Langa had thoroughly whooped Ainosuke’s ass at his own game and Kaoru came out the other end seriously injured.

He had sustained a sprained ankle, a minor concussion, and the big one: a hairline fracture to his wrist.

He’d been lucky enough through the years to be a skilled and precise enough skater to avoid most injuries that would impede his work, but his luck had to run out eventually. Kaoru was honestly surprised it took even this long. He was not immune to bailing every once in a while.

But now his skating had massively affected his income for the first time in his entire adult life. It was a good thing he was self-employed and in an artistic profession where he could make his own rules and use art block as an excuse to push a deadline a little, but it didn’t stop him from feeling uncomfortable with it.

His injuries on the other hand, were harder to explain away when they were so visible. He had to come up with an excuse at some point, and for someone with as much pride and poise as Kaoru, a nasty spill down the stairs was simply not a believable reason.

So, he told the truth. At least, as much of it as he was comfortable telling. He fell off a skateboard. Whether they inferred that he was a novice and simply trying to entertain one of his young relatives was none of his concern. They could think what they like.

He would’ve rather said that he’d gotten hit by a car, but it would surely look suspicious if he wasn’t involved in any kind of investigation or trial afterwards. Best to stick as close to the real story as possible and let people draw their own conclusions.

People were surprisingly generous with him during his time of injury. Maybe he shouldn’t have been surprised, but his clientele always struck him as being fairly rigid. That’s why he took out all of his piercings and did his best to compartmentalize the different areas of his life. The resistance he was expecting to be met with when he was forced to push back dates for demonstrations and signing events was practically non-existent.

These things happen, they would say, as if he wasn’t a twenty-something year old professional admitting to falling off a skateboard. The reactions had him questioning whether or not he needed to be so cautious with his presentation and reputation after all.

There were too many things going on in his life that he was second-guessing now. Nothing was what it seemed to be anymore and he’s not entirely sure what to make of it. Kaoru spent so much time doing calculations, statistics, risk assessments, and not even the data could support the litany of weird shit he was enduring the past few months.

He really had come to terms with the fact that he was always going to be a little bit in love with Kojiro. He was always the nurturing sort, but he’d never gotten to experience it to that degree before. They spent every waking hour together for three whole weeks and somehow hadn’t killed each other yet.

Kaoru knew he was a needy person, and a jealous one at that. If he took it out on Kojiro unnecessarily sometimes, he was met with retaliation, and rightly so. He just couldn’t help himself. Kojiro could slut himself out to whoever he chose, but Kaoru would be damned if any of those women received the five-star treatment from Kojiro that he got.

No one could rile Kojiro up like he could. No one could critique Kojiro’s cooking like he could. No one could understand Kojiro like he could. Sure, they may have his bed for a night if they were lucky, but Kaoru held onto Kojiro’s heart with a vice grip and wouldn’t relinquish it for anything.

If Kaoru was going to be forced to live a life without enduring romance or marriage, he would make sure Kojiro was too. They were in this together, god dammit, they had been since they were in fucking kindergarden. They’ve done everything together for decades, that wasn’t about to change.

Maybe it wasn’t the best mentality for him to have, actually he knew it wasn’t, but he couldn’t exactly talk himself out of his own feelings. Lord knows he’s tried to do that enough times over the years. A crush on his straight best friend and the biggest fuckboy in town. It was so embarrassing.

It was honestly kind of sick, this game that he’s been playing with Kojiro in his own mind. Maybe he just liked the thrill of the chase or always wanted things he couldn’t have and wouldn’t even know what to do if he got what he wanted, but these thoughts remained in the back of his mind throughout the years and all their petty squabbles. Life changes, but Kojiro never does.

He really needed to be less selfish. It’s not as though he deserved Kojiro’s kindness. The man has surely spent an ungodly amount of money throughout the years just to feed him. He probably writes it off as a business expense on his taxes, the damned fool.

“You’re my taste tester,” Kojiro rationalized. “I shamelessly use your discerning palette and instead of paying you in money, you would rather be paid in carbonara. You’re doing me a service.”

He’d do him a service alright. Glorious idiot.

It was a special kind of torture sharing space with him for so long. Waking up to breakfast in bed, afternoons spent doing nostalgia rewatches of their favorite stupid childhood shows, elaborate dinners, being bathed by him. It was… intimate. There really was no other word for it. Every night they parted ways after Kojiro had diligently washed his hair and dragged a soapy cloth across his back, every night he expected the tension to get the better of them, and every night Kojiro eased Kaoru into bed and excused himself to the couch.

And that was it. The cast and splint came off and Kojiro went home. His entire routine had been disrupted now. He had gotten used to all of the attention and care. And they still hadn’t killed each other. That part continued to baffle him. He didn’t feel smothered. Kojiro wasn’t sick to death of his neurotic behavior. If anything, he felt closer to Kojiro than ever before. It was like there was a seismic shift in the earth under him and he was, what? Expected to go back to how things were before? Fat chance.

He was able to repeat the same movements as before, going to Sia la Luce after he finished up with clients for the day, going to S together, working on improvements for Carla well into the night before passing out under the kotatsu. But something was missing. Big surprise, it was Kojiro. He hardly needed Carla to spell that one out for him.

It’s later than usual by the time he arrives at Sia la Luce, the lights in the dining room are already off, save for the ones above the counter he’s claimed as his own. The door is unlocked, but Kojiro is nowhere in sight.

He wanders into the kitchen to see if there’s something in the cooler worth raiding, but he finds his best friend casually sitting on the floor.

“Oh, hey. Sorry, I didn’t hear you come in,” Kojiro brings the bottle of whatever he’s drinking up to his mouth.

“That’s alright, I was overstepping my boundaries anyway.”

Kojiro lets out a thunderous laugh. “I hardly have boundaries when it comes to you, but good of you to own up to it.”

“Shut up, asshole,” he laughs. It’s a bit awkward. They need to have a serious conversation for once, and they both know it. “By the way, I... wanted to thank you.” Kaoru avoided his gaze, weight shifting between his feet.

Kojiro simply stared, not sure he was hearing that correctly. Kaoru continued, “For taking care of me.”

That seems to please him. “Somebody’s gotta do it. Not like Carla can carry you to bed.”

“Oh, fuck off. I’m trying to be nice.”

“You could certainly stand to do it more often, considering how much I feed you.”

Kaoru smiles softly, gaze dropping to his feet. “What are you doing on the floor anyway?”

“Having a beer, obviously. Want one?” Kaoru shook his head, moving to join him on the floor. He continued, “It was just a long day. Feet hurt.”

“Chairs too sophisticated for neanderthals now?” It almost sounded like a pet name.

“Is work going alright? How’s your wrist?”

“I’m fine, Kojiro. You don’t need to worry after me, you know.”

“Somebody should.” His answering smile is almost sad.

Silence fell heavily between them. Carla could never give him this. Ainosuke certainly never did. It was just Kojiro. Always Kojiro. “Would it be weird to say that I miss you?”

“I hope not, because I miss you too.”

“We should do something. See a movie, maybe.”

“We should. A movie sounds great actually, there’s one I was kinda wanting to see.” Kojiro pulls his phone out and is looking up showtimes, forwarding him a link to the trailer as he goes. It doesn’t look half bad for an action movie. It looks fun and fairly mindless, as they tend to be.

It’s a bit late and they’ve missed the last showing of the night, but they make a plan to go tomorrow. They settle back into their companionable, if slightly awkward, silence. Kojiro nurses his beer and Kaoru steals glances at his large hands, veiny and strong. His motions are not his own as he reaches for one and holds their palms up together, noting the difference in size.

Kojiro’s hands have always been a morbid fascination of his. He just likes to suffer, apparently. They’re large, but dextrous, with a couple prominent veins down the back. There’s some hair there now, not much, but it certainly wasn’t there when they were younger. What’s always been there is the smattering of freckles. Loathe as he is to admit it, he loves when Kojiro gets really tan and the freckles come out even more.

Kojiro’s hands have a couple burns on them and are a bit calloused from all the cooking and skating and working out. It almost makes him wish his own hands had half as much character. They’re soft and slender, not even particularly masculine, just generic. The only noteworthy thing about his hands is what they’re able to create.

Perhaps in this moment, he could use his hands to express the depth of his feelings to Kojiro. Something to avoid having to say it out loud.

Kojiro is watching their hands with rapt attention, his eyes soft but… pained? Before Kaoru can get the wrong idea about Kojiro rejecting him in that moment, he finds their fingers laced together. He’s never felt so warm.

“Kaoru…”

His face is so close. Kaoru can feel his warm breath on his cheek. He can feel his own blush. He dares a look into Kojiro’s eyes and finds everything he could’ve ever hoped for, but was too scared to imagine.

“Are you sure you don’t have a concussion?” Kojiro’s voice lowered to a hoarse whisper.

“Positive.”

Kojiro’s hand was in his hair, bringing him close to brush their lips together, breathing him in before sealing his mouth over his. A pathetic noise rose from Kaoru’s chest, barely escaping his throat. Kojiro wanted to swallow it. Their hands were everywhere, tangled in hair, tracing along faces, scrambling at arms and shoulders.

They kiss just long enough for reality to sink in, pulling back with startled gasps.

He supposes astonishment is the best adjective to describe the look Kojiro gives him now. His own expression surely isn’t much different. But Kojiro raises their entwined hands to his mouth and presses a soft kiss to the back of his hand.

“Are you hungry,” he asks, as if they haven’t just crossed a line they hadn’t dared tread in the twenty years they’ve known each other. Kaoru nods slowly before letting his forehead rest against Kojiro’s.

“I’ll make your favorite,” his voice is a low rumble, sending shivers down Kaoru’s spine. Kojiro’s knees give an ominous crack when he rises from the floor, making him groan and Kaoru chuckle quietly.

“We’ll see who’s laughing when you get carpal tunnel. Don’t forget you’re next, pinky,” his smile is more disarming than ever, with hand outstretched to assist him off the floor. Kaoru takes the proffered hand, but not without getting in a jibe of his own.

“Maybe if you spent a little less time doing squats…”

“Don’t pretend like you’re not checking out my ass.” Kojiro’s laugh is thunderous when he sees Kaoru floundering for a comeback, knowing he’s been busted.

The rest of the evening passes without any more shocking revelations. Mostly it’s just… normal. There might be marginally less bite to their bickering and the glances they exchange might be a bit more tender, but it’s far from unusual. It’s familiar, and he knows that he’s safe, no matter what that kiss will mean for their relationship when tomorrow comes.

He waits next to the front door while Kojiro finishes locking up. The night air is crisp, the breeze cool instead of warm – a sign that the weather is about to turn from scorching heat to mild and temperate. They may not have seasons in the traditional sense, but it’s not as though it can be hot all the time.

Kojiro walks him home, gentleman that he is. Kaoru would read into it if this wasn’t already part of their routine. A routine they’re so entrenched in that they part ways with a “see you tomorrow” and a friendly wave. No fanfare, no trepidatious kiss to the cheek, nothing.

It’s disappointing really.

He’s mostly on autopilot as he readies himself for bed, thoughts consumed by what tomorrow might bring, mixed in with visions of that tender kiss. His toothpaste foams at the corner of his mouth and the blush sits high on his cheeks. He looks insane.

What kind of giddy teenager has he turned into? He’s a grown man , he should not be so affected by a simple kiss that happened an hour and a half ago.

He hunkers down into his futon and tries to shake it off.

His dreams are of crimson eyes, so soft, and lips that are even softer.

*****

They decide to just meet up at the movie theater since Kojiro bought their seats ahead of time. He tried to pay him back, but Kojiro refused.

God, it was like a real date and they were fighting over the stupid check.

He’s wearing pants for a change. Well, they’re still hakama, he isn’t being too adventurous, but he did pair it with a black halter top. He really ought to wear these pants more. They’re a light sage green color and decorated with small white flowers. He knows they look good with his hair and the fabric feels downright sensual against his skin.

When Kojiro rounds the corner, he doesn’t spot Kaoru right away, giving him a chance to drink his fill of the sight of him. He’s got his black bomber on this time, the one with the leather sleeves that he typically only wears for special occasions.

He’s so fucked.

When they do finally lock eyes, Kojiro’s entire face lights up and strides over to meet him. He does not miss the appreciative way he looks Kaoru up and down. He shifts on his feet, unaccustomed to Kojiro being so brazen with him.

“You look great!” He’s honestly such a child, he’s so giddy. It’s charming as hell.

They head into the theater, making small talk along the way. It’s not often they have time off that lines up, but Kojiro closes early on Sundays and doesn’t reopen until Tuesday.

Kojiro spent his day tidying up around the house and planning menus. Kaoru mostly spent his day fussing over his hair and worrying about tonight, not that he would divulge that particular bit to Kojiro. Instead, he claims to have spent his afternoon tending to Carla’s operating system. If Kojiro sees through the lie, he doesn’t say anything.

They’re early enough that the trailers haven’t started yet, so Kojiro stands in line to get them snacks while Kaoru uses this opportunity to visit the restroom. When he emerges, he finds Kojiro leaning just a tad too far over the counter, talking conspiratorially to the snack counter girl. Before he has the chance to get upset though, Kojiro waves him over with a grin so dopey that it rivals one of the seven dwarves.

Kojiro hands him the sour candies he favors so much and pushes off from the counter. He’s got his own popcorn in one hand and the other draped casually over his shoulders as he walks them to their seats.

“Who was that,” Kaoru inquired, hopefully not sounding too jealous.

“Oh, that was one of Rini’s old friends! Haven’t seen her since she was like eleven years old!”

Rini was one of Kojiro’s younger sisters. He hopes his sigh of relief isn’t too noticeable.

They settle into their seats while Kojiro rambles on about Rini’s friend and how she’s getting ready to graduate and move to Tokyo, where Rini has been for the past year. The way Kojiro talks about the people in his family and their circle around them has always left Kaoru jealous. Not in the sense that he wants to be the only one in Kojiro’s life, but wishing he had something like that to call his own.

His parents weren’t exactly the warm and nurturing type, often keeping Kaoru at a distance. No matter how hard he rebelled as a teenager, nothing seemed to make them pay attention. They’d pay for anything else though: toys, skateboards, a car, tuition. Anything to get him off their back.

It had to be why he gravitated towards Kojiro so much. Just being in the Nanjo house, crowded and messy though it often was, there was love and family to be found there.

Kaoru really needed to get a grip. It’s not like Kojiro would be flirting with someone while they’re literally on a date. If that’s what this even is. Surely it must be. The movie plans predicated the kiss, but it was a pretty straight fucking line from A to B. There was definitely a charged undercurrent to this little outing.

Kaoru squirms in his seat, sneaking glances over at Kojiro’s form next to him. Don’t ask him what’s going on in the movie because all he knows is that Kojiro’s body language is open, but his hands are clutching his popcorn container. He offers it to Kaoru wordlessly, getting in his space and leaning over the armrest. He allows himself to indulge, but it’s not the popcorn he indulges in, it’s Kojiro’s proximity.

They remain close for the rest of the movie, still in their own seats and occasionally shifting to a more comfortable position, but their bodies lean towards each other like magnets. Sometimes Kojiro will whisper something to Kaoru and earn them a shush from someone behind them, making Kaoru outright giggle.

Everything is always funnier when you’re not supposed to be talking or laughing. It reminds him of high school, though usually he was the one getting Kojiro into trouble rather than the other way around.

Life has changed around them. They’re practically whole new people now, but through all their evolutions, they can’t shake each other. They always go together, balancing each other out perfectly.

He wonders if this new development of their relationship will throw a wrench into it all. Much as he wants this, he doesn’t know what he’d do without Kojiro. That’s his best friend. No one in the world knows him better. Maybe they’ll be okay.

In fact, he’s all but sure of it now.

The credits come sooner than either of them expects, and they slowly put themselves to rights and clean up their trash. They wander lazily towards the exit, probably holding up the people behind them.

It’s warmer outside than it was the previous night. The breeze blows through his hair, and it has Kaoru feeling wistful. He takes in a deep breath and looks up at the stars. Neither of them has anything left to say, really. They just stand there in companionable silence, wondering what comes next.

Kaoru looks over to Kojiro, and you’d think he never looked away from the sky for how starry his gaze looks. Kojiro steps close, gingerly tucking a loose hair back behind Kaoru’s ear. He has to take a steadying breath.

“Why don’t you stay at mine tonight,” Kojiro asks.

Unsure whether his voice will come out normal or not, he gives only a curt nod. “I brought the bike,” Kaoru gestures to the Carla motorcycle, trying to get his blush under control, “it’s right over there.”

Kojiro climbs on the back of the bike, legs spread wide and inviting. Kaoru slides between him and the handlebars, turning the ignition. Kojiro lets his hands fall to Kaoru’s waist and he scooches himself even further up. If he feels like he’s being smothered now, he has no idea how he’s going to make it through the rest of the night. The engine roars to life, creating encouraging vibrations beneath them.

Kaoru’s sense of urgency to get them back to Kojiro’s place is only heightened when his hands creep up his ribcage and back down to his hips. They get stopped by a light and Kojiro takes his opportunity to pull Kaoru’s hips even further into his own and drop a hot kiss to where his neck meets his shoulder.

The sound of the bike drowns out much of the obscene moan he lets out, for which he is grateful. They need to get home now.

They’re only a block or so away and Kojiro’s forehead is pressed between his shoulder blades as he tries to calm his breathing.

What feels like mere moments later, he pulls up outside Kojiro’s building and kills the engine. For all the build up, the two are frozen in place, still slotted against each other. This is it. Kojiro steps off the bike first, his hand coming into Kaoru’s line of vision. Their eyes connect and Kaoru can’t help but smirk. Kaoru puts his hand in Kojiro’s and lets himself be pulled from the bike. He doesn’t let go of Kojiro’s hand, even as he fishes through his pockets for his keys.

Once they finally make it into Kojiro’s apartment, they’re immediately reaching for each other. The kiss is explosive and they greedily paw at each other’s clothes. Kojiro’s jacket doesn’t even make it past the genkan. Kaoru’s hakama are hastily discarded so Kojiro can hoist him into the air, legs wrapping around his bulky frame. He sucks relentlessly on Kojiro’s lips and tongue, digging his fingers into his shoulders.

The pleased noises Kojiro makes are sure to haunt his dreams for the rest of his life. Kojiro steers them into his bedroom, dropping Kaoru gracelessly onto the bed. He wriggles out of his jeans and Kaoru grabs a fistful of his shirt, yanking him down on top of him.

They kiss and kiss and kiss, rolling and writhing together, not an inch of space between them.

Kaoru grabs two handfuls of his plump ass, grinding their hips together in a way so filthy that it has Kojiro practically choking for air. “Kaoru, fuck.” They’re both so hard, panting so heavily into each other’s mouths and they haven’t even gotten to the main event. Kojiro extracts himself from Kaoru long enough to grab the condoms and lube from his side table. Kaoru takes the moment to adjust his ponytail higher on his head and snatches the supplies right from Kojiro’s hands.

“Lay down,” his tone leaves no room for argument and Kojiro scrambles up to the headboard to heed him. “Good boy,” he praises before peeling him out of his boxer briefs and taking every impressive inch of him into his mouth.

He doesn’t even ease Kojiro into it, he’s too greedy. He’s immediately taking him all the way to the back of his throat and hollowing out his cheeks, groaning at the taste.

“Jesus fuck, Kaoru, take it easy,” he cries out, head thrown back. “I’m gonna blow my load before we even get to it.”

“Don’t tell me that your reputation is all bullshit.”

“Hey, give me a break! I’ve waited a long time for you, okay,” he runs his fingers through the ends of Kaoru’s ponytail.

“I’d hardly call that ‘waiting,’ you slept with everyone who fluttered their eyelashes in your direction.” Kaoru rips at the condom package and rolls it on, firmly placing the bottle of lube into Kojiro’s hand. He swings a leg over him, straddling his hips with another filthy grind.

“Of course you even wanna fight during sex,” he laughs into Kaoru’s mouth, pulling him down for a kiss, “can’t believe I expected anything less.”

“Yeah, shame on you,” Kaoru slips his tongue into Kojiro’s open mouth as he sinks a slick finger into his ass. The pressure punches a sharp moan from him, but he quickly relaxes into it, rocking his hips back into Kojiro’s hand.

Kaoru spends the next minutes sucking at every bit of skin he can get his mouth on. He wants to devour Kojiro, leave him without a shadow of a doubt who he belongs to. Kaoru drags the flat of his tongue over one of Kojiro’s nipples, keeping direct eye contact and giving it a few more kitten licks until Kojiro is a restless mess beneath him. He finally, finally sinks back onto Kojiro’s fat cock with a firm nip to his chin. He sits back on his haunches with a luxuriant roll of his neck. He can practically feel him in his throat. “Fuck, you’re huge.”

“God, Kaoru, you can’t say stuff like that,” he is clearly fighting for his life down there, “not if you want me to last.”

Kaoru can’t help but chuckle darkly, “Come on, big boy, I know you can do better than that.” Kojiro thrusts up harshly in retaliation. He takes that as an invitation to start moving, swiveling his hips, grinding down and getting used to the feeling of Kojiro inside of him. Kojiro presses his fingers into the meat of his thighs harshly as they sink into a rhythm.

“Fuck, baby, you feel so good,” Kojiro praises.

He wonders how many people he’s called that.

Maybe they should be going slower. Really relishing in the fact that they’re finally doing this after all this time.

Fuck that actually. They’ve waited long enough. They have all the time to go slow later. Now? Now they can be rabid and ravenous, biting and grabbing at each others’ flesh. That’s more their style anyway.

Kojiro throws his head back with a delicious groan. Kaoru only picks up the pace, riding him like it’s his fucking job.

“Kaoru, Kaoru, Kaoru…”

God, he could get used to this. He intends to get used to this, to Kojiro’s enormous body entwined with his, warming his bed, his moans, making his eyes roll back in his head just like that.

Kaoru whips his hair to the other shoulder and brings their mouths together again, panting heavily into each other’s mouths, touching foreheads damp with sweat.

“Kaoru… I’m not gonna last, Kaoru.”

He pours a kiss into his mouth. “Give it to me, Koji. Cum.”

He does what he’s told for a change. Liquid white heat runs through his body and seeps into his veins. Kaoru comes long and thick on Kojiro’s heaving chest, having an out-of-body experience or maybe ascending to a higher state of being.

He watches himself take one slender finger and drag it through his mess.

He marks Kojiro with a singular kanji, drawing it right there on his chest.

Mine.

Mine.

It’s so base of him. And certainly petty. He watches understanding dawn on Kojiro’s face and he worries he’s gone too far.

No. He needs to know.

“No one else.” He leaves no room for argument.

“There never was anyone who could live up to you anyway.” Kojiro agrees all the same, tucking a loose strand of pink hair back behind Kaoru’s ear.

He relaxes and drapes himself along Kojiro’s side, legs still tangled together. Their breathing slowly returns to normal and Kaoru can’t help but smell him. He needs to burn this into his memory in every conceivable way.

Kojiro shifts like he means to get up and start cleaning them off, but Kaoru grips his large bicep and effectively pins him with his gaze.

They can clean up in the morning. For now, they just let it sink in.

[too-destiny-panda]

Wyllvember Day 21: Kids

A/N: This is once again very chaotic, but Wyll with children just makes me so soft. Credits: @sagscrib Tags: @commander-yinello

WC: 618

Wyll was great with kids. Even before he became the renowned Blade of Frontiers, children flocked to him as he grew older, be it at fancy balls or a neglected playground, they always seemed to recognize his kindness and joviality.

When he first entered the Emerald Grove and assessed the situation, he immediately made his way over to the kids, to at least offer them a distraction from the world around them by regaling them of his deed if nothing else. Their smiles and star-struck looks warmed his heart, their endless questions a challenge to keep up with, but he was determined to keep it up for as long as his circumstances allowed him to. Which was not long as Asharak approached him, a kind smile on his lips though his eyes betrayed cheerlessness at the favour he was about to ask of him. So, instead of stories, he managed to as nonchalantly as he could suggest sparring, telling the tiefling children that although not needed, swordsmanship greatly helped when it came to being a hero. He fooled very few of them, but not a word was uttered in protest, instead squabbles and taunts began to carry throughout the training grounds in a way only children’s voices managed to do.

His heart broke at his powerlessness to guarantee a safe journey for the refugees when the goblin leaders fell, but he hoped they at least wouldn’t need to run for their lives anytime soon. The foreboding sense of dread in his stomach as they descended into the Underdark told him otherwise.

When they met again at the Last Light Inn, the Blade of Frontiers was acutely aware of how little his words and stories mattered in such an instance. Most of their relatives, neighbours, friends, caretakers lay dead at a crossroads, their bodies often mutilated for no reason other than to instil fear and submission. Alas, all he could do was offer his condolences and a steel-wrought vow that he would make sure they got out of here safe and sound. His words rang true and soon Mattis was scrambling up and down the floors of Moonrise Towers in search of trinkets or things that could be passed off as trinkets. He was relieved to see them alright, though Mol’s continued disappearance and Umi’s rapidly changing personality were concerns that gnawed at his heart.

Finally, at Baldur’s Gate, a true weight fell off his shoulders when he recognized the faces of what remained of the tieflings. Although scattered, they were safe (or at least as safe as they could be with the Netherbrain hiding in the city). He bought a worthless and overpriced trinket form Mattis, reinforcing his promise to find Mol, and spent an evening entertaining the children in front of the gates with his cantrips, accompanied by Karlach and Halsin. He was happy to see them laugh for the first time in a while. Inside the city, he encouraged Silfy, boosting her confidence until her voice stopped being a whispered tremor and instead rang clear through the air as she pitched her newspaper sales.

And as the threat was subdued, the Chosen and Grand Design a threat no more, his thoughts turned to slightly different horizons, to up until now uncharted territory that was as different as it was similar to entertaining random children, a longing sparked by their presence. A desire to have his own child. It mattered not to him whether they would be born of his blood or adopted into it, whether there would be only one or five, as long as he had a bundle of joy to love and care for alongside his partner, that was all that mattered to him.

[ckygetsjobs]

Just one dance?

Brandon Dicamillo x reader

A/N: part 2 of all I wanted fic I made a few days ago. Screaming and crying over this… kinda based off this song a little.

You were looking for new job opportunities after your previous employer had fallen through and they had to quit the business. You weren’t sure exactly what you were doing, it had been rough, but you hadn’t gotten any better by any means, if anything your heart ached more. But you were an adult, you had to face real life, stop living in the past, and what could of been, and live in the moment. 

When you woke up the next day, you made breakfast for the first time in who knows how long, reading the paper and sipping on hot chocolate that was cheap and had little marshmallows. You had another job interview at a local diner in your small down. The one everyone went to, at least when you still had a friend group. Every other day someone was getting kicked out for something, you even got kicked out before, because one of the workers found you and dico having sex in the bathroom. 

You still were allowed back, well kind of. Bam bribed one of them to keep their mouth shut in exchange for an autograph or something? You were unsure of the exact details but it had you and Dico laughing for weeks. You really hated Bam cleaning up the mess or whatever but how extra happy Dico was when you got to go back was worth it. He wasn’t that excited about the building itself or whatever, he was overjoyed because of the thing Bam did to get you guys back and not kicked out indefinitely. 

You smiled, how much ease you had back then, even if you gotten into fights a lot because Dico was a fucking idiot who always said the wrong thing or something smartass. He always got caught up in bar fights or fights out in an alley. You were always cheering him on, telling him to kick his opponent’s ass. Ryan would be so close to you, you were touching arms, and just laughing because of how stupid he was being. Raab would be on the other side of Ryan cheering him on as Novak was either naked a little bit away, or somehow getting his ass caught in the fight. 

When you got done with the interview you stayed and ate lunch there, you wouldn’t get your results on how you did for probably another few days at least. As you were sipping on the drink of your choice, waiting on your food to arrive when the sound of someone’s voice caught your ear. It couldn’t be… you hadn’t heard that voice in years…. and it sounded deeper. But you knew in your heart it was him, and you prepared yourself for an awkward conversation you were sure he’d leave because that’s what he did before. 

You aren’t sure exactly what he was saying, it was hard to hear over the music and the noise of the people conversing. You caught some things he had said, but they weren’t relevant and didn’t really matter, at least not to you. When he had gotten up for whatever reason, you assumed it was to hunt down the waiter or to use the bathroom. He seen you while he was walking to his destination. He was star struck, like he couldn’t believe it was you. He just stared wide eyed and embarrassed…. and you knew that met he wasn’t comfortable around you and you assumed he’d react that way of course. It would have been a bigger surprise if he reacted a different way, but it he didn’t, and now he was right in front of your fucking face and you didn’t know what to say to him, even after pining after his fucking ass this long, god you were stupid.

You told him to sit down, you don’t know why, because it only made it more awkward than it was when he was standing there, but you weren’t really in control anymore. You were also too shocked, just as he was, to say anything. Then you felt a touch, a soft graze that hardly felt real, like a dream, like you just finally woken up, that or you were living a fantasy. “You really are real,” he whispered, his finger still touching your face and slowing lowered his hand, staring in awe like you were a famous painting just out of reach or the really old composer, Beethoven, that he really liked.

You had never been in a position like this before, the biggest opportunity of your life, and you were wasting it by staring at his eyes and dumbass cap, he looked exactly the same since the last time you saw him. You weren’t sure who made the move first, you didn’t care, but your hands were clasped together and he was rubbing his fingers against yours. “And you are too,” you answered back, sighing in relief, like you forgot he was real, like you felt like you dreamed up everything. He seemed to feel the same way, but when you said that, his face turned up just a little, he wasn’t smiling, but he was a little more comfortable than he was before.

Then he looked behind him and seen the beaten up jukebox that was in the corner, obviously looking it’s age. He stood up and held out a hand to you “just one dance,” he asked. You didn’t say a word, you just took it, and that’s the only thing he needed, he didn’t need words. The song playing was a classic, probably something Dico was extremely into, he always knew about the classics. You just stood up next to the booth next to him, nobody was really seated next to the both of you, so it was just you guys. He put his arms in their respected spots, and started slow dancing, neither of you were great at it, but that didn’t matter. That was the fun of it, you were both so bad it was hilarious. It was a fucking laugh for the two of you. 

There was one time where Dico skipped out on the school dance and told you beforehand, and you agreed with his idea. He wanted to build a fort instead, and he was great at building them. You thought he was joking at first but then the way his eyes lit up when you showed up at his house and he shown you all his shitty drawn blueprints, you could tell he wasn’t. That was one of the instances that made you fall deeper in love with him, him skipping out on some stupid typical teenage outing in favor of fun things he actually enjoyed. He didn’t get pressured by stuff other classmates were doing, he was living the moment. He always did, it just took you longer to be able to do so, but he was here again, dancing with you, holding you, smiling at you as you stepped on his feet a few times. 

You were so caught up in the moment you didn’t even realize when he had stopped dancing, he was getting ready to say something, “can I kiss you,” he asked, you just nodded and his lips were against yours, urgently and hungrily. You had been waiting on this moment, practically every day for all these years. And it was better than you remembered, he was better than you remembered. As your lips were moving against his in a messy form you knew he was the missing piece of your life, and he wasn’t getting away easy this time. Especially after he asked you to dance, and he asked to kiss you, he could of just left, he didn’t have to sit down, he didn’t even have to acknowledge you, but he did. You were glad you were in his arms again, and hopefully his heart too, as you smiled and placed your head on his chest, just being in the moment.

[kyberblade]

Back To You (Din x Reader) - Part 2

A/N: I did a rewatch, and inspiration struck. I don’t know if they all will come out this quickly, but I figured if the muses wanted to, I’d let them. This one got a little angsty, but I also brought the sass, fluff and…. Just lots of making this face 😈 while I wrote. So there’s that. Enjoy!

(This takes place right where the other one left off and goes right to the opening title screen of episode 2x1/9, The Marshal.)

I do not own Star Wars or it’s characters. Sadly. But I carry them in my heart. Does that count for something? My soul says yes.

Warnings: Space swearing, show typical violence, Grogu being the cutest thing you ever did see, there is some dialogue directly from the show if that’s a warning, and Din is a warning in and of himself in this one.

Word count: 7,162 (yes, we went there)

As always, thanks to @grippingbeskar for encouraging me, looking over this for me, and being the one to introduce me to Din fanfiction in the first place, getting me hooked. You are fantastic and I always love our chats.

Previous | Series Masterlist | Next

Xxx

Din was silent behind you as you navigated the few short turns to your apartment. You had told him to go get the ship ready, but he insisted on following you, mumbling something about lurkers and shadows and danger, or something. All you registered was it was dramatic, and quit listening with a roll of your eyes. You let the movement of the eyeroll go along with the turn of your body down the street, making it look like the gesture was so violent your body had no choice but to follow. It earned you a single snort of laughter through the modulator.

You wondered how someone with an almost solid suit of beskar wouldn’t even make the sound of footsteps, but then again, he was one of the best known bounty hunters, if not the best, in the galaxy for a reason. The only clue you knew he was still there was an occasional coo or babble from the child.

Glancing over your shoulder quickly, you saw him only a few steps behind, head on a swivel. The kid was also looking all around, but not looking for danger like his caretaker, he looked around with wide eyes in awe taking everything in as he munched on some pendant around his neck.

Taking the last few steps up to your door, you waved your key over the pad and it lit up with a beep before sliding open. You motioned them in ahead of you, but he just mimicked the gesture back to you and you let out a little huff before going in first. “I’d ask you to sit down and relax, but this isn’t going to take but a minute.”

Din’s hand on your arm stopped you, and you looked up at him in concern, turning your gaze where you saw his own was focused, making you take in a sharp breath.

The place was ransacked.

You opened and closed your mouth a few times, nothing but a small squeak coming out as you surveyed the damage. Walking forward you lifted a few various items that now sat under broken glass and splintered wood, lightly kicking some other things on the floor to clear a path. A path to where, though, you didn’t know, just further into the chaos.

“Stay here,” Din whispered, barely audible over the vocoder. You nodded, lips drawn in a tight line. He ventured deeper into the apartment with purposeful but slow steps, hand resting on top of his blaster.

You grabbed a nearby empty bag and began tossing a few things in it, brushing off the broken pieces of others first as quietly as you could. You sighed. “What was I saying? Oh yeah. You and sitting. Plus, I know you, and despite that crick in your neck, or that back pain, you won’t sit unless you're on your ship.”

“I sat at the bar tonight,” he said quietly, peeking around a doorway down the hall, and you don’t know why you expected anything less. He made almost no sound over the broken glass on the floor and you once again were left wondering how he does that.

“You’re right. With your back to the door, no less.”

“We all have our moments,” he said off handedly, poking his head into another room, flipping the lights on as he glanced in briefly, then flicked them off and came back toward you.

“Coast clear?” You asked softly, smiling at him.

He let out a small huff of a laugh. “Yeah. Doesn’t hurt to be thorough.”

“Couldn’t you have used your helmet?”

He shrugged. “I don’t mind.”

Loud voices came by the door in the hallway, making your head snap toward the sound, Din drawing his blaster in an instant and aiming silently, his posture rigid. The child lightly squeaked an ‘eh?’ with a tilt of his head while looking at the door as well, still munching away at the pendant.

The voices passed, and you let out a breath you didn’t realize you were holding to go along with them.

“Probably just some neighbors,” you sighed, walking towards the door to lock it, but before you could fully reach the mechanism, it clicked over as if by an unseen hand. You instantly turned to the child, having felt a surge in the air around you briefly, and he simply looked back at you. You could have sworn he was grinning around the pendant now, though. “Thanks, kid.” You smiled as he let out a soft squeak.

Looking down to the satchel with a sigh, Din reholstered his blaster and muttered a soft, “Kid….”

“What is that thing he’s chewing on, anyway?” You moved over to a section of flooring that gave more of a squeak than the others, pushing away pieces of a broken chair before kneeling down to lift the loose boards and remove the strong box you had stashed.

“It’s a mythosaur, a symbol of Mandalorians. It…. It was mine, but during an…. Incident a few days ago, I thought I might not make it, and asked a friend to hang on to it, and to give it to the child. If they showed it to my covert, they would be protected by the other Mandalorians.”

Din came over to kneel beside you, holding the pieces of floor you were removing. You noticed the child adopted a solemn look at the mention of the events, his ears drooping slightly and gaze downcast while the pendant just sat suspended in his mouth, almost forgotten, so you reached out to smooth your hand over his head gently. Looking up into your eyes, you smiled softly at him, and he instantly perked back up, munching on the necklace with renewed vigor.

“Is it beskar?”

“Yes.” You removed the box with a muttered thanks to Din, rising to put it in the bag as he put the boards back and continued. “I decided it was better he hang on to it in case anything like that ever happened again.”

“Right.” You turned to him with hands on your hips playfully as he rose to his feet again. “And it has nothing to do with the fact that it’s covered in magic wizard baby drool or anything?”

Din let out a snort of laughter. “This is the way.”

You looked at him wide eyed before you let out a loud laugh. “Did you just…. Did you just make a joke about your creed?”

He tilted his helmet the slightest amount. “I have spoken.” The baby made some babbling noises after this, almost as if imitating the phrase, while looking up towards the visor.

You shook your head gently, smile on your face, and stared at the floor for a minute. You kept your voice quiet, afraid to scare off the topic, but even your tone seemed afraid to broach it. “What was the incident?”

“What?” He hesitated before asking.

You cleared your throat. “What was the incident? Where you thought you wouldn’t make it?”

The two of you stared at each other for what felt like an eternity. His dark visor gave away nothing, and yet you could feel the weight of his gaze on you. His posture was rigid, but not in anger, more like discomfort, and he finally shifted his weight to one leg almost in nerves, hands going to rest on his belt and blaster respectfully as if in a default position.

“It doesn’t matter now.”

You sighed. “Yes it does, Mand-”

“Din.”

You couldn’t help but smile just a little. “Sorry. Force of habit.” His visor bobbed in a silent nod. “Yes it does, Din.”

He sighed. “Why?”

“I want to know what I signed up for.”

“So you can change your mind?”

“No!”

“Because you’re welcome to. No one’s forcing you to come with us. I don’t need you to-”

“Oh, shut up!” you finally snapped, cutting him off.

He shifted his weight to the other leg, hands flexing where they still sat on his belt and his head tilting dangerously at you. “Excuse me?”

“I get that you’re the big bad scary Mandalorian. I get that you probably usually always work alone. I get that you’re used to quiet, and easy, and things going how you want them to because you’re on your big old ship all alone, except now you have him,” you pointed to the child, who squeaked an ‘eh?’ at you as you did, while taking a much needed breath before continuing your tirade. “But you also have me, Din. I’m here now, too. And it’s because you’re all those things that people are after you and the kid, and they obviously know where I live.” You looked around at the room full of broken things as if it would prove your point.

“We don’t know that this has anything to do with your connection to me,” Din said quietly, his voice almost sounding as if he wanted to believe what he was saying.

“Yes, we do,” you said with a sigh.

Walking over to where you had first moved some things around, you picked up what was once a painting Din had gotten you at some market on some Outer Rim planet years ago. It was beautiful, the landscape like looking out a window into something secret and breathtaking, and in your little apartment on a giant city planet, it was always a little escape to just sit and look at it. You used to sit with a cup of tea and stare at it, pretending you were off on an adventure just like your friend, perhaps even with him, seeing what all the galaxy had to offer. Only now it was marred with bright red paint - at least you hoped it was paint and not blood - with a mythosaur crudely drawn over it. Underneath it was something scrawled in what you assumed was Mando’a, but you didn’t know that particular word.

Din’s breathing was audible through the helmet, his chest rising and falling with the effort. His hands at his sides turned to fists, nearly shaking under the pressure.

Dropping the painting, you walked over to him, putting your hand on his forearm gently, the beskar cold under your touch.

“Hey. It’s okay, it’s just a painting, I’m okay.” Tentatively, you ran your hand further up his arm to grip behind his elbow, the warmth of his skin seeping through the cloth of his gear, one of the few unprotected spots. You squeezed it a little to get his attention away from staring at the painting. “What does it mean? The Mando’a?”

He hesitated, his body slightly relaxing under your touch, his weight shifting again. “Burc'ya,” he said quietly. “It means ‘friend’.”

“So friend of the Mandalorian,” you mused quietly, just to clarify, looking back to the painting and seeing him nod in your peripherals.

“Will you tell me about the incident now?” You ventured quietly.

He seemed to take eons to answer. “We’ll talk about it on the ship. Get the rest of your things together and we’ll go.”

You nodded. “I just need a few clothes and my pillow-” Your face pulled tight in a look of fear, your stomach dropping in dread. “I hope they didn’t destroy my pillow!” You ran to your bedroom, finding the thing intact and let out a grateful sigh.

“That’s what you’re worried about right now?” You heard Din ask from the other room incredulously, and you could just imagine the head tilt that went with it.

Walking back into the main room with what you needed, you held your head high. “Judge all you want, if I have my pillow, I can sleep anywhere. And since I’m gonna be on the run in your itty bitty ship, I think I deserve at least that.”

“The ship is not that small,” Din grunted, turning towards the door.

You stopped him. “What are you doing with the painting?”

He looked down to it in his hands. “I was going to see if maybe I can find out what paint was used or something, anything, to try and see who did this,” he said quickly. It was just believable enough that you nodded, but you narrowed your eyes at him in question all the same.

“Kid, will you do the honors?” You asked, glancing down to the wide eyed little monster.

He grinned, reaching his hand out and squinting his eyes slightly until the lock clicked back open.

“Thanks, kid,” you said with a smile.

He looked up to you happily, eyes drooping as he quickly fell asleep, sinking slightly into the satchel.

Flipping the top over his head to conceal him, you looked up at Din with a smirk. “Worked like a charm.”

Xxx

You sat in the copilot seat to Din’s left as you absorbed everything he just said. Eyes straight ahead and staring out the viewport as the stars seemed to move almost lazily by, you adjusted your position in the seat just slightly, tightening your arms already across your chest gripping your own biceps tightly.

To your right the kid slept peacefully in his floating cradle where it rested in the seat, soft snores leaving him from time to time.

Beeping of various instruments and controls the only other sound to fill the air as Din studiously kept facing forward, away from any possibility of meeting your gaze.

Flicking your eyes his way, you studied him. His rigid posture, absent and seemingly random flicking of various switches and buttons from time to time, and the occasional rise and fall of his shoulders with a deeper breath.

He came to visit you infrequently, but often enough you came to rely on it. His presence calming, and always put a smile on your face. He’d never let anyone know it, but he had a sarcastic streak, and even a rather large funny bone underneath all that armor, and as you quickly came to know, he had a big heart he held close to the vest, except when it came to a select few, of which you got to call yourself lucky enough to see when he’d wear it on his sleeve.

He never complained, never brought you his troubles, his burdens, though he’d gladly hear yours if he suspected even for a second something was bothering you.

Now it was your turn to start being strong for him. You may not wear beskar, but you could be just as strong if you needed to be. For him.

Before you could say anything he flipped a switch that beeped before he slowly turned to face you, and you had to bite your lip not to smile as it crossed your mind that once again he did it in silence you’d never understand.

“The ship’s on autopilot. If you want to go sleep, you can. We can sort out a schedule or something later, but for now I’ll sleep up here and you can take-”

“I’m sorry,” you said quietly. Almost too quietly. You wondered if he even heard you. But he must of, because his helmet tilted just slightly in a way you did understand.

“It’s just a bed. I sleep up here all the time-”

“No, you tin can, that’s not what I mean,” you almost laughed softly. “I’m sorry, Din. You lost a friend.” He took in a sharp breath, sitting back just slightly in his chair. “A Burc'ya,” you said, trying out the word in a more positive context, and liking the way it felt on your tongue. “Not to mention what all you went through, that was…. A lot. But losing someone you care about, that’s never easy. And for someone like you who doesn’t come to care for someone easily, I can only imagine.” His hands fidgeted ever so slightly, but he stayed silent. “If you need to talk, I’m here. You’ve always been there for me. It’s time I returned the favor.”

Standing, you gently put your hand over his where it rested on the armrest of his chair, the feel of leather under your fingers warm and familiar. “Kuiil sounded like an amazing man.”

You lingered for just a moment longer, not wanting to overstay, and just when you were going to pull away, Din spoke softly, his voice sounding almost broken through the vocoder. “He was.”

Giving his hand a slight squeeze, and offering a tight lipped smile you went to go down to the bunk below, walking through the doors as they hissed open for you.

Turning and beginning down the ladder, you stopped when just your head looked over the edge and glanced his way, finding him still watching you, visor tipped down toward your face.

You offered him a wide grin. “Goodnight.” Then continued down as the doors hissed shut.

“‘Night,” Din said quietly as he spun his chair back around to face the viewport. “Cyar'ika.”

Xxx

You woke up with a start at the feeling of something crawling on you. Disoriented at the sudden wake up call, you quickly shut your eyes again, squinting one open to try and see the trespasser. Luckily you had left the lights on in case Din needed to come down here for anything. The tips of two large green ears sticking up over either side of your shoulder instantly filled your heart with ease.

“Kid….” You heard Din’s voice call from what sounded like the cockpit before a sudden thump of him taking the ladder in one drop and landing on the floor hard vibrated through the space. Quick but quiet footsteps followed, a slight jingle in his steps as his gear shifted in his urgency. “Hey.”

You quickly squinted your eyes shut again to feign sleep, not wanting to get the little one in even more trouble than it already seemed he was.

“I told you to leave her alone. Come here, you little womp rat.”

The slight pressure of the weight of the child lifted with an indignant squeak in protest, followed by the sound of fabric rustling as he must have wriggled in his captor’s hold. You had to bite your lip to keep from smiling and giving up the ruse, the nickname almost pushing you completely over the edge.

Blinking your eyes open before squinting, and giving an exaggerated stretch, you took in the scene in front of you, allowing yourself a faint smile. Din looked frozen, like a child caught stealing sweets before dinner, and the child looked the complete opposite, a look of glee on his face as he just would not sit still in the Mandalorian’s arms.

“I didn’t want him to wake you,” Din said quietly as you sat up and took in your surroundings.

The child managed to get out of his grasp, onto the floor with an impressive hop, the landing causing a bit of a stumble, before he took the few steps to the foot of the cot, grabbed your blanket and began to climb back up.

Taking pity, you reached for him with a chuckle. “Don’t worry about it. It’s alright. I always have time for the little womp rat,” you said the name with emphasis, letting him know just how long you had been awake without saying anything directly.

He let out a hefty sigh, his shoulders rising and falling with the effort before he turned and took a few steps deeper into the hull. He stood there for a moment, back to you, as he looked over the random crates and various things collected along the wall, before he turned back to you. “I want to show you something.”

“Ok,” you said after a moment, eyebrow raised in question as you awkwardly tried to get out of the cramped sleeping space. In two large steps Din was at the foot of the bed, hand taking yours to help steady you, giving you something to lean on the last few feet before you made it out. You paused for a moment when it slipped into yours, looking at your joined hands briefly before smiling and looking up to his visor to see his gaze tilted down towards the child in your lap. Letting the child go and run across the hull with a squeal before rising fully to your feet made you chuckle. Standing, you stretched, hands going to your back as you groaned in pain.

“I’m sorry, I know it’s not the most comfortable-”

You held up a hand. “Din, I used to sleep in the back of the bar in a storage closet before I found my apartment. It’s fine.” He shifted his weight from side to side like he wanted to say more but you continued. “If anything, I should be apologizing. I’m taking up your space here, making you sleep up in the cockpit-”

This time Din held up his hand to stop you, and you grinned a bit. “I sleep up there all the time anyway. It’s fine.”

Having your words parroted back to you didn’t help you feel any better about the situation.

“You mentioned a schedule last night. Maybe we can switch off, I’ll fly while you sleep, and vice versa.”

“Do you know how to fly a ship?” He tilted his helmet at you in an almost mocking way.

“No, but I know how to sit and watch the autopilot take care of it.” You tilted your head the opposite direction and grinned up at him. You kept finding yourself with a smile on your face around him and the child, but you couldn’t help it.

He snorted a laugh and gently shook his head. “I guess that works. We’ll figure it out.” He turned to a panel on the wall and made his way over to it. “Now, what I wanted to talk to you about. We’re on our way to a…. Rough place. I’m hoping if I can find more of my kind, they can help lead me to the Jedi.” He punched in a code in the unit on the wall and a set of doors across from it swung open.

Looking inside you saw every assortment of weapons you could think of, and even some you’d never even dared to think of.

“It’s going to be very dangerous, and I want you to stay on the ship while I-”

“I’m sorry, what?” You interjected, turning to face him.

“It’ll be safer on the ship. We can make it so there’s no way anyone else can get in while the kid and I-”

“You’re taking the kid?” You leveled your gaze on him, your voice flat and low to match.

“Wherever I go, he goes,” he answered simply, hesitating for a moment before lightly resting his hands on his hips as he kept his visor leveled on you.

Vaguely you registered the child behind him on the ladder, several feet up, turning to face the two of you with an ‘eh?’ as he looked between you both.

You stared at Din for a long moment, the energy in the room charged between you. Finally you huffed out a breath. “Can we get on with this conversation, please?” You turned back to the wall full of weapons.

The kid was climbing up into the space, and you quickly scooped him up before he could grab at a particularly shiny blaster.

You heard what Din said, as he explained about a few different options for you to use, just to have on you in case anything happened, but deep underneath frustration was simmering.

You had a small inkling of a plan forming in your head, but if it didn’t work you’d be stuck out on a plant you didn’t know, and-or you’d be stuck with a very angry Din.

And you weren’t sure which would be worse.

Xxx

Din had left you on the ship alone. He said it was for your protection, as he had pressed the blaster into your hand after looking it over once again before adjusting his bandolier across his chest. To the untrained eye his visor was looking at you, but you knew him well enough, you knew he wasn’t quite meeting your eyes.

Finally he sighed softly, rolling his shoulders back before taking a few steps down the ramp toward a dark and dismal looking city street. You didn’t even know what planet you were on, but after this preview, you didn’t really want to.

Turning to the kid in his hovering cradle, you heard Din punch a button on his armor to make it stop as it tried to follow him. Sending him a thankful glance, you reached out one finger to the kid’s head, scratching the top lightly. “Be safe,” you almost whispered, and you hated that your voice was so small. Stepping back, you heard the buttons once again and the cradle hovered to his side, following him down and out of the ship.

“Don’t be a hero,” you called softly to his back, making him falter in his steps just slightly, almost looking like he was going to turn around before he lifted his head again and strode forward more confidently and faster than before.

You were supposed to close the door quickly after he left, but you didn’t. You watched his form slowly get smaller, the floating orb beside him shrinking, too. Once you were about to finally close the door, you saw multiple sets of glowing eyes on each side of the road, followed by low, menacing growls. Din didn’t seem to notice, or if he did, he paid it no mind, but it set off an uneasy feeling in your stomach, and before you could think it through, your feet were carrying you toward your plan a bit earlier than intended.

You had planned to see where he went in, sneak in, and be there to watch in case something happened. But whatever demons were lurking in the shadows changed that plan, and before you knew it, you were running toward a rigid Mandalorian with his visor tilted squarely on you.

“What? What’s wrong?” He hissed, gripping your upper arms, slightly turning you from side to side, checking for an injury.

“Did you not see the giant glowing eyes or hear the growling that sounds like that sound on the underside of the Razor Crest when we took off?!”

He grunted at the slight, turning his visor to look off and in the distance in what you read as annoyance.

Oh well. Tough. He could deal with you saving him and the child from what looked and sounded like rabid Jawas in the darkness.

Turning the visor back on you with a tilt you knew all too well, you felt a wave of something coming on and braced for the impact.

“It’s not safe,” he hissed in a low voice laced with anger. “I can’t protect you in there. There’s too many variables and not enough time to get you ready….” He trailed off, his head tilting down a little, hand coming up to brush your cheek with the back of his gloved fingers so softly you almost wondered if you’d imagined it. His hand quickly fell back to your upper arm in a gentle grip. “I’m just trying to keep you safe.”

You reached out and held his upper arm in your grip, mirroring him. “I know. And if my apartment was any indication, I’m safest when I’m with you.”

Just standing there for a moment, you both looked at the other’s face, finally realizing just how close you had gotten during the conversation. You were sure a deep enough breath would close the distance left between you. And although all you could see was your reflection in his helmet, you liked to think you were meeting his eyes. What color would they be, you wondered.

Pulling away from you slowly, your arm falling to your side along with his to his own, he took a step back.

“Please go back to the ship.” His voice was soft, but left no room for an argument.

Well, you would make room.

“You want me to stay on the ship?! Alone?! With all those carbonite villains?! Alone?! While I’m alone?!” Your outburst on a frantic whisper was pushing it, you knew, but its sentiment was true.

“So what you’re saying is you don’t want to be alone?”

Um, yes. Yes, that is what I’m saying. Gold star for you. You paused for a moment, staring at him with wide eyes, mouth slightly open before you responded. “I’m saying you brought the kid!” You gestured to the kid in his floating cradle beside Din for emphasis.

“….fine.” He turned and continued walking for a few steps before turning around abruptly, almost causing you to slam into his armor clad chest. Reaching around behind you, one hand on your back, the other pulled out the blaster you had tucked in the back of your pants, checking the safety. You had been looking up towards his helmet, but as soon as he gripped the blaster, you stared straight ahead at the beskar inches from your face. He tucked it back in as he spoke in a quiet low voice close to your ear, quiet and kind. “Just don’t shoot. Unless you absolutely have to. You still need to practice first. Remember what we talked about on the ship, mesh’la?”

A smile tugged at your lip. You knew what that one meant. Mesh’la. Beautiful. It was a nickname he teased you with for years now. It started after a particularly drunk patron kept complimenting your eyes. It tumbled out and just stuck. You hadn’t heard it in a while, and were glad it had made a reappearance. That meant he was feeling at least a little bit okay about you being here with him instead of the ship. You nodded, still staring straight ahead at his chest. “Just wave the blaster around and look scary.”

He sighed, his arm on your back lingering, and his other resting on the blaster at your back for just a moment too long, before it moved to your hip briefly, and he gave a gentle squeeze before releasing you, turning away to continue towards the building.

You swallowed roughly.

What was that?

Xxx

After Din quickly ducked back to seal up the ship while you stayed with the child, firmly planted in a circle of light from a dim street light that seemed to keep the monsters in the shadows at bay, the three of you walked to a guarded door.

The Twi'lek guard waited silently, looking at Din, then at the child who cooed at him, then glanced quickly at you, until Din subtlety stepped into his view, blocking you enough to take back his attention.

“I’m here to see Gor Koresh.” Din said calmly.

Stepping to the side the Twi'lek offered a simple, “Enjoy the fights.”

Following on his heels, you clutched Din’s cape in one hand as you made your way in, glancing over your shoulder to make sure the crib was following.

There were two Gamorreans fighting with vibro-axes in a center ring, surrounded by a massive, roaring crowd.

Releasing the cape, you took a deep breath and held your head high, making your way over to the opposite side Din was headed. This was the agreement made in the alley - you could come but you had to keep your distance, and if anything happened, you had to get out. You looked at the kid’s orb enviously, wishing you had one for yourself you could just duck into if anything happened.

You wrinkled your nose after the deep breath, the smells of hundreds of sweaty, dirty bodies accosting your senses.

As Din walked beside the ring to his chair in the front row opposite you, you saw him turn his head just enough toward the action in the center to look interested, but knew his gaze was on you. A subtle nod of his helmet to let you know he knew where you were. You nodded back, turning your attention to the action again before focusing on the child. You couldn’t be close enough to hear, but you could try and sense what was going on through him.

Taking another deep breath to center yourself, you grimaced at the smells once again as you stared at the child across the way.

Your whole body tingled, felt like a current of electricity was running just under your skin. The colors were brighter, sounds fading in and out as they traded themselves for one another, fighting for your focus as your senses honed in across the room. The glint off of Din’s beskar seemed brighter than usual, almost glowing with its own energy source, but still soft somehow.

The kid's eyes sparkled with mischief as they looked at you across the action between you, and you smirked as you felt a fairly strong wave of playfulness come off of him. It was pure, full of light, and something so easy to focus on. It was almost like he was saying, I know what you’re doing. That’s cheating. Of course I’ll help.

His little green head turned toward Din, looking up at him, and suddenly you could hear them talking as if you were sitting beside them, too.

“Do you gamble, Mando?” Gor asked.

“Not when it can be avoided,” Din answered, sounding bored and also frustrated.

Gor chuckled. “Well, I’ll bet you the information you seek that……” you lost focus for a minute, squinting to try and listen closely again, only able to make out, “….die within the next minute and a half….” before it went out again. You shut your eyes tight and heard, “…..your shiny beskar armor.”

Your eyes shot open and by the look Din leveled on him, he wasn’t amused, nor was he playing the game. You could hear his voice, muffled, as if through pillows over your ears and finally gave up, frustrated.

Looking at the kid for a minute you felt the anger pass over you as you noticed his eyes start to blink heavily every now and again. This was wearing him out. Sending out what you hoped was something reassuring, you looked at the kid with a smile, and saw him send a small one back your way, before you withdrew from trying to listen. Din could handle this. This is what he did every day. He’s got this. Right?

….Right?

Wrong. So wrong. The next thing you knew Gor had shot one of the competitors in the ring who dropped dead, before turning his blaster on Din, and chaos filled the room, people scattering everywhere, looking for exits. You tried to push through them toward the center, seeing flashes through bodies as they passed by you. First one, then two, then three, and then suddenly Din was surrounded by several of Gor’s men, all with blasters drawn and pointed at him.

You dropped to the ground beside the ring, hiding behind it. You weren’t running. It didn’t matter if that’s what you were supposed to do, it wasn’t happening. Peeking up over the top briefly, you tried to belly crawl your way around the back of the ring toward them, the blaster in the back of your pants heavy as it pressed against your skin.

“Thank you for coming to me,” Gor said in a sleazy voice that made you feel sick. “Normally I have to seek out remnants of you Mandalorians in your hidden hives to harvest your precious shiny shells.” He chuckled, and the sound made your skin crawl.

You were at the far corner, and glanced up over the edge again, watching.

Gor continued. “Beskar’s value continues to rise. I’ve grown quite fond of it. Give it to me now or I will peel it off your corpse.”

There was a pause, nothing in his posture giving anything away, so you smirked when Din came back with a somewhat snarky answer. “Tell me where the Mandalorians are and I’ll walk outta here without killing you.”

“I thought you said you weren’t a gambler….” Gor taunted, making your smirk turn to a sneer.

Din flicked his wrist ever so slightly, and you saw his vambrace light up. You had no idea what weapon that was, but the child took one look at it, his ears drooping before he leaned forward and hit the manual close switch on the front of his crib, plopping back and sealing himself inside.

“I’m not,” Din said simply.

The room felt electric, almost as if it was humming silently, vibrating under your touch, and as you looked back to Din’s wrist, you couldn’t help your muttered, “Oh kriff.”

Suddenly several individual projectiles flew out of his wrist, whistling, each to an individual target before exploding. Din used the distraction to get to his feet and kicked backwards, shoving the kid’s orb back out of the way.

You stood up quickly, locking eyes with Din before hunching over slightly to become a smaller target, and running toward the child, putting the cradle behind you when you reached it. Din’s visor tilted at you almost imperceptibly before following you until you reached the crib.

The Gamorrean left standing in the ring launched out at Din, and he had to step back, away from the incoming body, only to have another wrap their arms around him from behind.

You noticed across the way that Gor was getting away, so you went after him, the orb following along with you. The only sound in the air was the ringing of beskar as Din deflected and dealt blow after blow, each time one less set of grunts being added to the mix as each opponent quickly fell. It should have bothered you when the sound abruptly stopped along with the sound of a blade, but one look at Gor running scared ahead of you, and that was the farthest from your mind.

Stopping at the doorway, you turned to look over your shoulder, finding Din already looking your way before grabbing his blaster off the floor and quickly jogging to your side.

“You okay?” You asked hurriedly, reaching out to touch his arm gently, and catching your breath.

“Yeah, are you?” He looked you over from head to toe and back again.

“Yeah. Didn’t even get a chance to pull my blaster,” you mumbled, and a huff of air sounded out of the vocoder, a laugh, making you smile at the sound.

Following Gor out into the dimly lit street, Din stopped after only a few steps.

“You want me to shoot him?” you asked jokingly.

“Not yet,” Din teased, launching his whipcord out of his vambrace, and wrapping it around Gor’s ankles, bringing him to the ground.

“What all do you have in those things?” You asked quietly, making Din chuckle. “It’s like the kid and food - where does it all go?”

A final snort of a laugh left Din’s modulator before he threw the top over the nearest street light and hoisted Gor up by his feet.

Both of you walked the last few steps to him slowly, almost lazily. Your arms crossed over your chest, weight shifting to one leg as you looked down at his face in something that felt like triumph. Din’s helmet tilted ever so slightly and you knew he probably felt the same. It almost seemed condescending in a way as he peered down at the upside down crook.

“Alright, stop, stop!” Gor relented. “I’ll tell you where he is. But you must give me your word that you won’t kill me.”

“I promise you will not die by my hand.” Well. That was oddly specific. You looked at Din out of the corner of your eye for a brief second before turning back to the dangling villain. “Now where is the Mandalorian you know of?”

Gor sighed. “Tatooine.”

“What?” Din sounded like he didn’t believe him, which shouldn’t be a shock, given the circumstances.

“The Mando I know of is on Tatooine.”

“I’ve spent much time on Tatooine. I’ve never seen a Mandalorian there.” Din’s voice had turned somewhat cautious, and you honestly didn’t know what to believe.

“My information is good, I tell you. The city of Mos Pelgo. I swear it by the Gotra.” He sounded honest enough, resigned to his situation.

“Tatooine it is, then.” Din took a few small steps back before turning and heading back in the direction of the Razor Crest, leaving him strung up to the light. You looked between them once before following after Din, falling into step beside him.

“Wait, Mando! You can’t leave me like this. Cut me down!” Gor was angry, and a little bit frightened.

You looked to Din as barely a moment passed before he was saying, “That wasn’t part of the deal.” He turned, drawing his blaster, and shot out the light above where Gor hung by his feet.

“Wait, what are you doing? Mando! I can pay! Mando! Mando!”

You didn’t dare look back as you heard the eerie growling of the shadow creatures growing, along with the screams of Gor as you got further away. You knew the creepy glowing eyes of the demented horrors would haunt your dreams if you looked back. You decided to change the subject.

“You could have let me shoot the light, you know.”

“Not if I wanted it done the first time,” Din countered easily, and you dropped your jaw in shock, his head turning to face you, visor tilted just so.

You reached out to shove his arm, and it barely made the limb go anywhere, much less the rest of him, making him shake his head at you before turning his face back forward.

Suddenly his warm gloved hand was at your back, and you almost stumbled when you noticed. Quickly falling back into step, you looked over at him out of the corner of your eye. His hand inched lower and you had to remind yourself to breathe. It was comforting, but also…. Something else.

It kept inching lower until he landed on the blaster, withdrawing it from your waistband before removing his touch all together.

“You could have just asked me to hand that to you, you know,” you mutter, barely turning your face towards him.

“Now where would the fun be in that, cyar'ika?”

You snorted a laugh. “That’s a new one. I don’t know that one. What happened to mesh’la?”

He didn’t respond for a minute. It wasn’t until halfway up the ramp of the ship that he said, “Nothing. Just covering all my bases.” Then he went to the weapons rack to store the blaster, leaving you standing there in an entirely new and unknown feeling.

Once again, for the second time in as many days, you turned away wide eyed, pondering over just what in the world had just happened.

Xxx

Tags: @ren-ni, @hoodedbirdie, @rennalouise, @kurlyfrasier, @what-the-heckin-heck, @deceiverofgodss, @Littleshadow17, @nghtwings What’s this?

[imagine-knowing-a-name]

Captivity

Summary: The Avengers think they know the reader, but a mission gone wrong proves they really don’t

Pairing: So I wrote this as a platonic Avengers & Reader but then it could also be seen as Natasha x Reader, so read it however you’d prefer.

Word Count: 4700

A/N: I really like this one, it was fun to write at least. Also I have some fics pre-written already like this but I really have no time to write, so I’ll see how often I can, I don’t want to go through them too fast.

—————————————————

You’d met Pepper at a coffee shop. It was a temporary job as a barista, but it was a bit of money while you were at college. Of course heads turned when the CEO of Stark Industries walked in, ordering a cake and two coffees. In fact, the only reason you served her was because your co-workers were too busy being star struck, whispering bets on whether Tony Stark himself would walk in later; you thought it unlikely.

Pepper smiled at you, thanking you by the name she read off of your nametag. She kept coming, once a week, and you were always there to serve her, making small conversations with her, about her day, her work. They were the same questions you’d ask any customer, not wanting her to be singled out by her famous husband and his co-workers.

Until one day he walked in with her, strolling straight up to you. His eyes seemed to be studying you, and you stood tall. He merely tilted his head in the end, “so you’re the Holly that serves Pep such nice drinks?”

You nodded, “I do have a whole team with me making them, so I can’t take all the credit”

“Ah no, there’ve been times where you’ve done it all yourself” the CEO defended on your behalf, “and maintained conversation throughout”

“Well, you tend to come in at quieter times, not that many staff are needed, and fewer customers held up by my talking” you laughed, “speaking of, what can I get you?”

“I’ll just take a latte please Holly” from Pepper

“Well star server, what would you recommend?” Tony asked. You tilted your head in contemplation. 

“I can’t say I’ve tried that many drinks, I tend to stick to hot chocolate, but it’s served me well”

“I’ll go for that then” he decided, “and grab me a doughnut too, thanks”

You nodded, plating the treat he was pointing at, “do you want any cream and marshmallows? No extra charge”

“I would love cream and marshmallows”

“Consider it done”

No other customers came in as they waited, so you kept up the conversation as you made the drinks. Pepper was a good conversationalist, but adding Tony to the mix certainly led to some interesting tangents. He wasn’t as against recognition as his wife, in fact, he was all for it, so he happily discussed the things everyone wanted to know about the Avengers.

“It was a good conversation, I see why Pepper’s a fan” he concluded once the drinks were served, depositing $100 into the tip jar as he walked out.

“Come again!” you called after them, happy to just have a conversation even without the tip, he was a much nicer guy than the tabloids made him out to be.

—————————————————

“Nah, Nat’s already been in here, you got her seal of approval so the team trusts you.” You raised your eyebrows at that, it probably made sense that you didn’t notice her, she was a superspy and all. “Plus, none of this has gotten onto social media yet, so I trust you for not snitching”

He did come again, many times. He’d appear just as the store was closing, sometimes with Pepper, sometimes without. You’d let him sit and try different drinks, though mostly he came to rant about his life.

“Hey, I do love to hear about the Avengers, but do they really want you ranting about their personal lives to a stranger? Wouldn’t Pepper be a safer choice?” you’d asked one day

“That’s an odd system for trusting people Stark. Hoping for the best.”

“Worked well enough so far” he shrugged, “as for why you, it’s nice to have someone who’s life is a bit more... normal... to talk to.”

You smirked, “you were gonna say boring weren’t you?”

“Perhaps” he admitted, holding his hands up, “but there’s nothing wrong with boring!”

“Sure ok. Well, I still have a couple more years at college so you can find me here most nights when you need a ‘normal’ opinion”

“Ooh, about that” he leant forward, “I’m paying your college fees from now on, no need to thank me” You stared at him, jaw open. “Least I can do” he shrugged.

“I think there’s a lot less you can do” you teased, “but thank you so much Tony. I mean, wow, thank you”

“I just said no need to thank me kid and you do it twice?” he reprimanded, though smirking.

“Yeah well, not many people get me out of a lifetime of debt just because I give them coffee and listen to their cool stories. Those who do, deserve thanks.”

“Makes your life a little less boring too huh?”

“Just a little” you grinned back.

—————————————————

A year on from meeting Pepper that first time and you’d now met all of the Avengers. They’d started coming into the coffee shop together when they knew you were working.

Steve was always polite, offering to walk you home on nights when your shift would end late.

Thor and Clint were great customers, happy to engulf any of the food leftover at the end of the day. The stuff which usually got wasted due to going stale.

Bruce would always smile, offering help with any science parts of your Criminology degree.

—————————————————

But the one you clicked most with was Natasha. She had apparently done the same degree when she had to pose undercover as a college student. Plus the job of an assassin meant she knew a little more about crimes than the average person anyway.

It became a game between the two of you to try and spot her. If she wasn’t on a mission she would try and come into the shop every few days, already knowing your schedule, in elaborate disguises. Wigs, make up, clothing, shoes, accessories. No part of her stayed the same between disguises, even her accent would change as she ordered. You really had to scrutinise your customers to recognise her, and even then she still passed your checks on occasion. She really was good.

“Kiddo, you coming to my party Saturday?”

“What’s the party for?”

“Haven’t had one in a while” he shrugged. You’d been to quite a few of Stark’s parties since you befriended the man. They were fun, and a good excuse to hang out with the rest of the team without being on shift. But you couldn’t make this one.

“I’m... actually going on holiday Friday night, got a friend’s wedding”

“Ooh, where to? When are you getting back?”

“It’s in Paris, that’s were they live, so I’ve booked a week off from this-” you indicated around at the surroundings, “-and a week there”

“Very nice. Romantic. You bringing a date?” he asked curiously, his party forgotten.

You laughed, “no, I’m not dating anyone”

Clint caught the last part as he entered, gasping, “bring a friend, become a fake dating fanfic”

“I’m no spy, I can’t act to save my life so I’m not doing that” you joked, before adding, “you read fanfics Clint?”

“I dabble in the occasional story. They’re good reading” he smirked back. You had his hot chocolate pre-prepared (apparently he’d been banned from caffeine), and handed it over.

“You gonna tell us which fandom Barton?” Tony asked, grinning.

“Oh, multiple. And no”

“I’m asking next time we play truth or dare”

“Bold of you to assume I won’t take several dares to get out of it”

“Knowing Tony” you interjected, “the dares will be more embarrassing than the truth”

“Holly’s right, just fess up Barton”

“Never” he grinned, already turning to run out of the shop, trusting Stark to pay for him, “see you next week Holly”

“I see why you need the break” Tony sighed, paying for them both.

“As if you guys aren’t the best part of my job”

“I do my best. Unlike others” he smirked, “Enjoy the wedding Holly, I’ll throw another party when you’re back. I expect you to be there.”

You gave a weak salute as he turned to leave, “I’ll do my best”

“I expect nothing less”

“See you in a week”

“See ya”

—————————————————

Avengers POV

“How are you so chipper Nat?” Tony groaned, walking with the assassin to the conference room where they’d been called to a mission.

“I didn’t get black out drunk at the party last night?” she suggested

“Well I didn’t know we’d be summoned to a mission the morning after. I need coffee”

“Yeah well you gotta make it yourself now”. He groaned. “Or just go to the coffee shop and get served by someone else” she continued.

Tony gasped, “that’s like cheating on Holly. I would never!”

“Fine. Go back to making it yourself then, we have a coffee machine”

“It’s not the same anymore” the billionaire whined, entering the room.

“This about coffee?” Bruce asked, already seated next to Steve and Clint.

“Yeah” Tony pouted, nursing his head when a headache formed.

“5 more days Stark. You can hold through” Steve comforted

“Or just drink this coffee I made earlier” Clint suggested, sliding a mug over to a grateful Tony.

He muttered, “still not the same but I need it.

Natasha looked between the two, “Clint, didn’t we ban you from caffeine?” she asked in mock curiosity. Everyone in the room knew the answer, shuffling a little bit further away from the woman.

“Uhhh” Clint panicked, “for legal reasons I didn’t drink any. I’m just a good friend who knew people would need caffeine after their hangovers”

Natasha glared, standing up just as Fury walked in. Clint flinched away. “Romanoff, he’s necessary to the mission. Kill him later” Fury deadpanned, throwing manila files onto the table.

“Thanks boss” Clint and Nat answer synchronously. The former sarcastic, the latter honest. Clint gave one final scared look as they all reached for the mission file, scanning through it.

“New HYDRA base” Fury started, accompanied by groans. 

“You know, I really think their slogan is accurate, there’s always more.”

“This one seems to be in it’s infancy, so the best time to shut it down. Soldiers have only just arrived to guard it, so they won’t have had much time to settle in and learn their roles, so you can take them out easily. There have also been six armoured trucks seen heading towards the facility, our intel says it’s their weaponry being delivered, so it’s not set up yet.”

“How long until it arrives?” Natasha questioned

“12 hours. So go get on the quinjet and get going if you want to make it on time”

“Understood”

They hurried on board, Maria getting them into the air while the group planned.

“So we have the base” Tony began, projecting a 3D holographic of the building they were preparing to storm. “According to the agent on the inside, most of the building is dorms and training rooms, so if we highlight the other rooms...” a section in the middle lit up orange, as did most of the ground floor, “there’s a surveillance room here. Offices here, likely where the higher ups are. And a control room here.” Stark emphasised each location with a point.

Steve then took over the speech, “if these recruits are new they might not be loyal, or even aware they’re HYDRA. So our aim is to get to the control room and lock as many of them in as possible, then SHIELD clean up can come in and arrest them, see what they know.”

“So that’s a stealth team?” Clint asked, receiving a curt nod from the captain.

“Obviously that is yours and Natasha’s skill set, so the job falls on you two”

“Sounds reasonable” Nat agreed with a shake of her head, “what are the rest of you up to?”

“We’ll stay out of sight, keep guard and such until you do that. Then we go in, knock out any stragglers, Tony needs to get the data from their servers, I’ll go into the offices and make sure the commanders are accounted for. Bruce, you stay here unless there’s a code Green, alright?” They all nodded.

The base was located just outside of Versailles, and the quinjet landed even further away; there could be no chance of HYDRA agents even seeing them fly over, especially not them landing.

Which gave Clint and Natasha a long trek.

“So, the caffeine situation...” Natasha began and Clint gulped.

“Can someone please save me?” he whispered into the comms. Redundantly, because Natasha was wearing one too.

“No can do Hawkeye” Stark replied, and Clint ran further ahead of his partner, fearing the wicked smirk on her face.

“Look, I was hungover OK? It was a good night last night and I needed to wake up before the mission. Surely you want me to be at my best before a mission. I’m meant to have your back and I can’t do that if I’m falling asleep and to not fall asleep I need coffee so I was really doing this to save you” he rambled. The redhead said nothing, only checking the sharpness of her knives as she walked beside him. “Guys I genuinely think I’m gonna die on this mission” Clint added desperately into the comms.

“I will let you go this time because you needed it” Natasha said slowly, “but if you do not stop talking on this stealth mission, I will destroy every coffee machine in the compound and let you deal with a caffeine deprived Tony, understood?” Barton nodded, giving a light salute to his partner as the base came into sight.

They scanned the area, it was in an empty field, so it was hard to sneak up to it unseen, nor did there appear to be any movement of soldiers around the compound. That was odd. It made sense to not have guards in the area when you’re trying not to draw attention, but the base was already pretty far out.

The two spies had no time to dwell on it when a muffled ‘go’ was heard behind them, followed by gun clicks. “It’s a trap” Steve gritted through the comms, the same time Natasha and Clint turned to face five soldiers hopping down from the trees they’d just walked through. Natasha’s eyes flit through the woods, realising too late that soldiers lay in almost every one, guns pointed at the spies.

“Hands up” the first one down instructed, and a similar instruction could be heard given to the rest of the team.

“Obey them” Natasha instructed Clint, knowing the others would hear too. Any attempt to fight would be too dangerous, even a code Green would risk the other teammates getting shot. The spies raised their arms, letting the HYDRA agents approach them slowly, cautiously lowering their hands behind their backs and handcuffing them.

“They knew we were coming” Clint grunted, being pushed alongside Natasha towards the compound.

“Yes we did, you should vet your spies more carefully” the one who spoke before sneered, he seemed to be the leader, of this lot at least.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about” Natasha bluffed, she’d been arrested many times, it wasn’t an issue for her. In fact, with the right people, like this guy clearly was, it could easily be turned into an interrogation for some inside information, without them even knowing, of course.

“Don’t play dumb” he instructed, “we know there was a mole, telling you that we hadn’t set up the base yet, that we were still waiting on weapons, had only recruits manning the bases. We know because we found they were... easily swayed.”

“So our information is fake?” Natasha asked, lacing her words with hurt, betrayal.

“We’ve been set up for weeks now. Those new agents you got footage of? That was my team, highly trained snipers coming as back up before the Avengers were called.” God this guy loved to brag, didn’t he? He’d given up some good info though. The agents weren’t innocent of HYDRA’s actions, and a clean up team might have been decimated. They’d need to deal with the soldiers themselves... once they got free of the handcuffs.

“A lot of people just to kidnap six people, no?” she continued, Clint, thankfully, knew her technique and stayed quiet, letting her do her job.

“Oh it wasn’t just you. MI6 had a mole too, shame these agencies don’t work together, would have saved us the work of bribing two agents.”

“MI6 have never done anything though, just a bunch of James Bonds” the dumb act continued. Natasha had, in fact, worked with multiple MI6 agents who would qualify for SHIELD, some even for the Avengers. But she had no idea why they would be targeted, unless they knew a certain agent would be sent.

A plan to capture the Avengers she could kind of understand, that gave bragging rights, and they’d been on HYDRA’s ass for a while. But MI6? Nobody even knew how many agents there were, they could keep sending more. There was no point made by killing or capturing some of their agents.

“We knew who they’d send” the man confirmed for her.

“Aiming for a bit of vengeance? What’d the agent do to you?”

“We’re going to kill her slowly. And the reason why is none of your business” he snapped, finally clocking on to her game. They were in the building now, and reunited with Maria, Tony, Steve, and Bruce; the four being led down the hall from the opposite direction. Just as the two groups re-joined, a door was opened to the side and all six were thrown in, still handcuffed, and locked in.

—————————————————

There you were, already in the room, hands tied above your head, legs hanging freely above the ground. You frowned when you saw them, a much different reaction to their shock of seeing you.

“Holly, on my god, did they kidnap you? It wasn’t because you were close to us was it? If you were at that wedding in Paris, you’d be the friend closest to here. Oh no” Clint rambled, before Natasha cut him off, eyeing you closely.

“Well someone ignored the no caffeine rule” you smirked and Natasha scoffed, “is it because I’m not around to give you hot chocolate?” you continued in a fake pout, confusing Clint, and everyone else in the room for that matter.

“You were the mole, the one who sold us out” Natasha theorised, narrowing her eyes in your direction. You stared at her, open mouthed, for a second before shutting your mouth and nodding your head at two slumped bodies in the corner.

“No... that’s your mole. Right next to the guy who sold me out”. You dropped the fake New York accent you’d been using, returning to your natural South London one, although the American tinge was still there, you’d been using it for a couple of years.

“The MI6 agent then I presume”

“Yes. Thank you. Now don’t accuse me of being a sell out again”

“My apologies.”

“...What the fuck just happened” Steve spoke, breaking the staring contest between you and Nat.

“Language Captain” Tony teased, “but also I agree, what the fuck”

“I third that” from Bruce.

“Holly here” Natasha began, then paused, “...that’s not your real name is it?”

“Y/N”

“Y/N. Hmm, nice name”

“Thanks”

“Anyway, Y/N’s a British spy. We were all targeted”

“Correct, but I did also get further than I hear you did”

“We didn’t get near the building”

“I’ve set sleeping gas around the building and called for backup. We just need to get out and into the woods and then I can set it off”

“They’ve got a perimeter?” Maria asked and you nodded.

“Anyone who escapes they can take care of”

“So how do we escape, we’re a bit tied up” Bruce asked, leaving Natasha chuckling.

“I freed myself when we came in” she admitted, “and based on how much Y/N is gripping those ropes, I assume she did too”. You shrugged with a smirk and let down the façade, dropping silently to the floor. Clint and Maria stood up too, handcuffs removed.

“Is it like spy training 101 or something? How to break free of handcuffs?” Tony asked.

“Pretty much” Clint nodded, moving to unlock the door, while you went to unlock Tony. Natasha freeing Bruce, and Maria helping Steve.

“So what’ve you been doing in New York?” Natasha asked as she worked, “I told you Criminology was the number one choice for undercover spies.”

“Well, technically, it’s classified”

“Oh come on” she whined, “don’t pull that card on me”

“Makes up for the fact you used to use it pretty much every week”

“My work is classified”

“As is mine”

“Yeah but you know I’m a spy. I didn’t know you were.”

“And that’s what makes it even better” you added with a condescending smirk.

Steve huffed, “can you stop this spy v spy conversation and get us out?”. He was free of his handcuffs by that point, and stood behind Clint by the door.

You sighed, “well there’s seven highly trained fighters so my plan was just to walk out and punch anyone who tries to stop us”

“I don’t know if you noticed but they took my suit”

“And my shield”

“Plus my bow. And guns. And knives. And spare guns.” Clint pouted

“I don’t know about those last ones but I’m not giving HYDRA an Iron Man suit, or a vibranium shield.”

“We can come back and get them after all the soldiers are knocked out” Natasha pointed out, “for now, we just need to make sure we aren’t put to sleep with them”

“Hey, well, easier way out” Clint beckoned, drawing a pistol from the body of one of the dead moles. “Let’s get going” he shrugged, passing his team to lead the way.

There were fewer guards than you’d been expecting, but they shot on sight, leading to a dangerous game of ‘dodge the bullet’. Jumping into empty rooms or out of the bullet path until Clint or Natasha could fire back at the soldiers and halt the gunfire. Luckily it didn’t last too long, you made it to the end of the corridor and up the stairs in one piece. Then Steve ran out of patience and smashed a hole in the wooden wall instead; it was easier than finding a door.

You ran out and met your supervisor, giving him a quick summary of the plan. “You have my permission” he approved, “set it off”

“Yes sir”

It was obvious it was working when HYDRA agents began to stream  out of every doorway, and the hole that had been created by the Avengers. All of them were coughing and covering their mouths, trying to avoid gas inhalation. Made sense, they didn’t know what was in it. Your fellow agents watched in a ring around the building. Some HYDRA agents dropped as they came out, falling into an unconscious state. Some needed a little... nudge, to join their comrades in dreamland. And, by nudge, a baton to the back of the head at full force was the most appropriate synonym.

Your boss had come prepared, handing out guns and gas masks to you and the Avengers before you went in. Bruce and Maria returned to the quinjet instead, given that they were never meant to be inside in the first place, so you bid them adieu.

“Any of you watch Doctor Who?” you grinned from beneath the gas mask, face falling into a scowl when they all shook their heads. “This is why I miss MI6 missions. I could say ‘are you my mummy?’ and they’d immediately understand” you ranted, making your way into the building with a gun drawn; the gas seemed to have done the trick, but you could never be too careful.

“None of us would understand because who the hell would say mummy, not mommy” Tony retorted and you made a face, forgetting that he couldn’t see it.

“The English. Y’know, the ones the English language is named for.”

“Bunch of weirdos”

“Oh my god, how did I cope in America for two years?”

“By pretending you were an American student for...” Nat prompted and you chuckled,

“I’m not falling for that Natasha. If you want to know what my mission is then my boss is just outside.”

“Is” she noted, “so it’s still ongoing... this was just a mini break for you”

“Ask. My. Boss.”

The group finally made it to the control room they’d been aiming for, Tony  working on retrieving the data, while the rest of your retrieved the stolen items instead. “Everyone’s asleep” you told your boss, “close in, arrests should be easy, weapons have been recovered.”

“Good work 007″

“Are you kidding me?” Tony tried to interrupt, but you ignored him. Instead giving your supervisor the mission debrief; your goal to recover weapons they stole from GCHQ and dismantle this branch of HYDRA a success.

Eventually you were done, and had to face the people you’d befriended over the last year.

“007? Seriously? James Bond?”

“It’s based on real codenames” you stated, “the last 007 quit the title so the codename was given to the next recruit, which was me”

“Fitting because Y/N is one of our best agents” your boss interrupted, “sleeps around a whole lot less than Bond though”

“I’m Bond but better” you concluded, laughing alongside the Avengers.

“Sir-” Natasha interrupted, and you groaned, knowing what was coming next, “as a top SHIELD spy may I ask for clearance on the mission Y/N is assigned to in New York?”

“Yes. Natasha Romanoff. I’ve heard a lot about you. If Y/N trusts you then I see no reason keeping it a secret, you might be able to help.”

“Dismissed” he called out, disappearing into the trees.

“I can’t believe you actually asked” you whined.

Natasha smirked, “now you gotta tell me” she practically sang, 

“I’m investigating one of the NYU criminology professors, posing as a student to do it. So, the degree wasn’t actually my choice, I was just 18 and willing to spend four years of my life in America getting a degree.”

“So you are actually 20?” Steve asked. You nodded.

“Pretty young to be a ‘top MI6 agent’ or whatever your boss said” Clint added.

“What can I say, I’m a natural” you deadpanned.

You’d walked back to the quinjet with them, but faltered as they got on. “You’re coming back to New York right? You want a lift?” Natasha asked,

“Well, if you’re offering”

“I am”

“Then yes please, thank you” you hopped on after them, this was a lot better than flying economy back.

“This is like when I paid for your college fees all over again” Tony said sarcastically, then opened his eyes comically wide, “WAIT, if that was for a mission did I pay for nothing?!”

You shrugged, “kinda, yeah. It was a nice act though, saved UK taxpayers from paying my extortionate American fees.”

“Oh my god” he grumbled.

Silence fell on the plane once more, and it took a few minutes before you gathered the nerve to break it. “Are we all... like, still friends?” you asked hesitantly.

“Yeah Y/N, of course, why wouldn’t we be?” Clint exclaimed

“You’re not mad about the whole... fake identity thing?”

“Nah, that’s how I met Nat too” Stark replied, “all the best friendships start that way”

“I cannot be mad at someone who’s official title is 007″ Clint added, “so... all good in my books.”

Natasha nudged you with her boot, “honestly the whole situation makes me like you more. I mean, we were friends anyway, but now I have a fellow competent spy, and soon enough a fellow Criminology graduate. Yeah, it just makes me like you more.”

Bruce and Steve just nodded their agreement and you settled in. Neither of your missions turned out the way you’d expected, but you couldn’t say you were complaining. They’d given you a great team, and a great group of people you could call friends.

“Hey, wait... did you just call me incompetent?!” Clint realised, finally clocking Nat’s words. You smiled. A definite success.

[a-shy-blueberry]

Forever Mine

A/N: This is for the ever lovely @vehementvows​ Thank you so much Hailey for submitting something for my event!

Pairing: Takami Keigo x Reader

Genre: Fluff

Summary: When Keigo realizes you’re the one, he has a few bumps in asking you an important question.

Warnings: Fluff, Swearing, Unedited

Word Count: 0.8k

Taglist: @katonshoko​; @silentnotifs​; @touyas-peach​; @awilddreamerwrites​; @vehementvows​; @thathoneybee3​; @b-o-n-e-daddy​; @kisseswithkai​; @kirissluttypebble​

Want to be tagged in future works? Click here

Or if you prefer, read it on my ao3 here

Love existed in the little things. The routines you had built together. Late nights with takeout chicken, or the tender way you groomed his wings after a tough mission 

It was found in the whispers, the quiet words you'd giggle to each other every morning. Trying to steal just a few more moments of bliss.

You could feel it in the jokes you'd exchange, in the deadpan way Keigo would tell you anything. The way you knew he was reliable, knew you could lean on him and trust his judgment. 

Keigo knew he struck gold when he fell for you. Your humor and love-filled him, even on the darkest of days. Then by some miraculous reason, he found that you loved him back.

Together you created a home, the family he'd always desired. Thanking his lucky stars for you every day. You, in a similar position,  neither of you willing to accept that you were anything but blessed by the heavens to have each other.

So it was on one average sort of day, that lightning hit him and he realized exactly what he wanted for his future. 

The two of you had been dating for almost two years and you had been nothing but patient with him, never pushing more than he could handle, always being there when he needed you. He knew in his heart he wouldn’t make it without you. So he hatched a plan. 

It had been easy to find a ring, he’d known your personal tastes for a while, it had been somewhat sketchy trying to measure your finger while you slept. Breath catching every time you wriggled with the measuring tape wrapped around your ring finger. But he had managed to get through it, securing the perfect ring that was bound to make you cry. 

The next step was the proposal, Keigo wanted it to be special but the two of you were private for safety’s sake so it needed to be lowkey. He planned it out perfectly, a picnic in a private park under the stars, champagne, and a small catered dinner carefully packed away in a basket, and at the bottom, the ring. He was nervous, more than he’d ever been but he was also assured. Knowing that he was about to make the smartest decision of his life.  

That was until a villain swooped into your private dinner, burning the basket and sending his plans up in smoke. It was completely unsalvageable, a warped ball, and yet you still comforted him, assuming he was upset that your plans had been ruined. 

Next, he thought he’d try something even more private, a midnight flight, you sitting in his arms as the two of you soared among the stars. Setting you down on an abandoned rooftop you gazed around at the city below you while Keigo got down on one knee, reaching into his jacket pocket— No, that couldn’t be right, it was right here?! Only to realize he dropped the ring somewhere during the flight. 

It had gotten to the point where the jewelry shop refused to sell him insurance. 

This time he was determined, he’d made reservations at your favorite restaurant, with plans to stash the ring with dessert. It was completely perfect! They would take care of everything! 

That is until they delivered it to the wrong table, and a sweet older woman thought her husband was re-proposing. He hadn’t had the heart to correct it. Watching as you oohed and ahhed over the ring that was supposed to be yours. Gently squeezing his hand as you watched the older couple with such fondness. 

He had given up, there was no point in theatrics, he needed to just get the ring on your finger. He was a man on a mission. Determined this time to not fuck it up. He flew to the jewelry store after work, picking up a different ring this time, still one he was sure you’d love, and flew straight home, slamming the door open. Startling you while you were working on the kitchen counter. He marched towards you, and you looked at him carefully. He was breathing heavy, practically keeled over in front of you, his hands on his knees. 

“You—” he pointed to you, waving his finger. “Me—” he grunted, stabbing a finger to his chest, “Get married,” he finally wheezed, digging into his pocket and collapsing on the ground in front of you holding open the ring box. His head popped up meeting your eyes, tears welling in them. 

“Please baby bird?” You nodded rapidly, tears falling from your eyes as you got up, sitting down next to him, carding your fingers through his hair. 

“I’ll always be yours Kei,” you whispered, helping him as he slid the ring onto your finger. "And you'll always be mine." You brought your lips down to meet his, soft and full of love. And Keigo knew, right then, that he’d always be a happy man. 

Granted that is— if he survived all the teasing about his proposal strategy.

Thank you for reading! Likes, comments, or reblogs are appreciated!! ♡

[thefanficmonster]

An Impostor In Love

Sequel to ‘Love For The Faceless’ (’Body Reveal’)

Corpse Husband x Reader (Female)

Warnings: Swearing (maybe)

Genre: Fluff

Summary: Rae can’t stay mad at her best friends forever. Them being absolutely adorable doesn’t help her ‘pissed off’ act either. Y/N’s outing Corpse like she’s a human lie detector. Corpse is gushing about her every second word that comes out of his mouth. And the rest of the lobby are getting one hell of a kick out of the Among Us romantic comedy - An Impostor In Love

Requested but, once again, not in a typical way. I honestly wasn’t expecting all the positive feedback I got for Love For The Faceless (Body Reveal). I was star-struck! You guys are so amazing I have no words to describe just how much I love you all! Thank you for everything! This story is for all of you 🥰🥰🥰

“Mr. and Mrs. ‘Totally not dating’ have entered the call!“ Sean announces when I hop into the Discord call to play Among Us with the usual gang. I hear Corpse’s laugh from down the hall, bringing a smile to my face.

We’ve gotten used to playing in this arrangement, a few rooms away from each other, ever since we moved in together - Corpse is in his recording room and I am in our shared bedroom. When one dies, they go in the other’s room to troll them. I’m usually the one dead, but that’s besides the point.

“Hi everyone!“ I say in my typical cheery tone before kicking it done a few notches, making it an octave deeper just to say: “Hi Rae.”

The whole lobby laughs, they all know what I’m trying to do here. Everyone’s aware this is the first time Rae is in the same call and lobby as Corpse and I after you-know-which incident. Sure, I’ve been poking sticks at her, waving a white flag and admitting I was wrong several times by now. Who knew my sweetheart best friend could act so cold? I know it’s a front. I know she’s fighting to stay mad. There’s a ton of pressure on her to finally forgive us, but she’s been holding up better than I would be if I were in her situation.

I honestly felt, and still feel, slightly guilty. I know best friends are supposed to tell each other everything. They are supposed to be the first ones to know whatever’s going on in each other’s lives. And I know I broke one of the main rules of friendships, but the decision wasn’t only mine to make. I’m sure she understands where I’m coming from, she’s just giving me and Corpse a hard time.

“Hello, Y/N.” She replies, her tone strictly formal.

“Progress, people! Progress!“ I say joyously, the smile turning into a grin 

“Don’t worry, babe. We’ll get her eventually.“ Corpse reassures me as he’s done for the past week or two. He knew I wasn’t as unbothered by Rae’s anger towards me as I tried to appear - a pro and simultaneously a con of living with someone: they pick up on everything about you. You become as familiar to them as the back of their hand.

“I know, I know.“ I giggle, “She’ll cave.“

“Yeah, good luck with that.“ Rae has dropped the formal tone, now sounding like a stubborn child which is something I’m way more familiar with. I’ve dealt with her tantrums and childish outbursts - I don’t know which number it is, but it’s somewhere in the rule book of friendships - and I at least the approximate meaning behind it. 

Ken puts an end to our friendly, stick-poking, sorta one-sided banter, ushering us to start the game. We all oblige, muting our mics and getting our heads in the game as though we’re about to enter an actual warzone with upmost stealth.

To my dismay, the screen flashes ‘Crewmate’. I head out of cafeteria to do my task in Weapons, staying weary of anyone within my proximity. Once I’m done, I head on down to Shields and complete my task there as well. I cringe when I’m done, knowing my last three tasks are in Electrical. Like, the fuck kind of luck do I have?

I make my way through the halls, running into Sykkuno and we circle around each other a few times to show we’re safe before we each continue our own way. I enter Electrical and.....oh Felix is dead. And oh lookie who’s right there...

I report the body before the impostor can and we all unmute our mics.

“Found him in Electrical.“ I say nonchalantly, “Didn’t see anyone in there though.“ 

“Anyone sus?“ Sean asks

We say our ‘no’s and ‘I don’t know’s and skip the vote. I’m smirking to myself as I head back down to Electrical. Walking in, I see the same person as before - Rae. I stop dead in my tracks and we just stare at each other for a few seconds before she comes towards me, circling me twice, bumping visors with me and venting out of the room.

“You’re welcome.“ I mumble, smiling widely.

I finish my tasks and leave Electrical just as Corpse enters our bedroom, giving me this tired-parent look like he’s half disappointed and half amused. “You just threw the game, didn’t you? Don’t lie.” He raises his eyebrows, fully adopting his parent role.

I giggle, shaking my head, sending him the briefest of glances before my eyes fixate on the screen in utter shock - Sean just killed me. Oh, for fuck’s sake...

“I was gonna come clean eventually, but I guess they won’t hear it from me now.“ I shrug, lifting my laptop and setting it aside so Corpse can join me on the bed. I snuggle up to him immediately, drawn to him as though he’s a human magnet.

“Who was it?“ He asks me, running his hands through my hair in a soothing manner.

I frown, pulling away from his chest to look him in the eyes, “Wait, how did you know I threw the game if you don’t know who I threw it for?”

He smirks, shrugging, “I didn’t know. You were smiling downright evilly when I came in so I just assumed.” He boops my nose. “And you ratted yourself out.”

I narrow my eyes at him, blowing some air out my nose - a gesture that has become my only way of showing anger towards him. I literally can’t even voice when I’m upset with him cause the grudge lasts like .5 seconds. I let him get away with more than he should.

Seeing as how I can’t argue to his statement, I lean back into his chest and pull out my phone to pass the time while I pretend to give him the silent treatment. Among my notifications is one for Rae’s stream. I smile and tap it, being taken to her YouTube channel and her live stream.

Just when the stream loads, Rae finds my dead body in Storage.

“Oh, nooooooo! Y/N!“ She wines as she goes over to it, “Sean must’ve killed her.” She reports the body and unmutes herself in game, “The body’s in Storage. I was on my way to call an emergency meeting cause I saw Sean vent in Security.”

“WHAT?!“ Sean exclaims in shock, “I didn’t! Rae’s lying. I swear I didn’t! I wasn’t even in Security!“

“Sean has been following me around this whole time. Just saying.“ Ken joins the discussion, throwing even more suspicion on Sean.

“We gotta vote someone.“ Charlie says, “Might as well be the most sus person at the moment.“

The voting results show all the little astronaut icons on Sean except his which is on Rae. Sean gets launched into space and the game continues. Having muted her mic in-game, Rae speaks up: “Y/N has been avenged. No one kills my best friend.”

I’m staring at my phone screen, eyes wide, eyebrows raised, a huge smile on my face. I take a glance at Corpse out of the corner of my eye and see he’s just as pleasantly surprised as I am.

“For those of you asking if I’m still mad at her and Corpse, the answer’s no. Actually, I think I was never mad. I was just in shock and a little hurt that I wasn’t made aware sooner.“ Rae says as she keeps wandering around the map, “Then I realized not talking to my best friend hurt more than the betrayal, you know. The only reason I still pretend is because it’s really funny to see her trying to soften me up.“ She laughs, “But yeah. I don’t know what I’d do without her or Corpse in my life. I love them both and love them even more together. My best friends are dating, I still can’t wrap my brain around that! They are sooo cute, you guys! I wish they posted more content of them together. I’m literally simping over their relationship! But shh, don’t tell em I said that.”

I laugh, overjoyed by what I just heard. I knew she couldn’t still be mad at us. I know she has every right to be, but she’s too sweet to actually hold a grudge against anyone ever.

I suddenly want nothing more than to give her an enormous hug and hold onto her for as long as she’d let me. I just now realize how lonely it feels to have never hugged your best friend because you haven’t hung out together in person. The only reason Rae now knows what I look like is because I sent her a full body picture of myself as one of my sad attempts to get her to start talking to us again. We have never met in person, and that thought kills me. It makes me impatient for this pandemic to end even more than before. 

“Told you there was nothing to worry about.“ Corpse’s arms tighten their hold on my body, pulling me even closer which I didn’t know was possible. The most fulfilling and endearing feeling - being in the arms of a loved one. Being held so close and so tightly that you feel like you’re untouchable. Like you two can’t be hurt by anything in the world as long as you have each other.

“Yeah, you were right.“ I sigh in content, putting my phone down and covering his hands with mine, our rings clinking quietly when they touch.

“As usual...“ he whispers theatrically with his lips against my hair.

I playfully roll my eyes, catching glimpse of the screen showing Rae’s demise. 

“Oh no, they caught her.“ I say, a bit disappointed she didn’t win and more than a bit responsible for her defeat.

I somehow manage to convince myself to get untangled from Corpse’s embrace and join the new round. I hear him groan as I settle my computer in my lap, unmuting my mic.

“See ya, kitten.“ Corpse kisses my temple, standing up.

“Oh my God, you two are too cute.“ Poki says sweetly, having heard what Corpse said to me.

“SIMP!“ Sean and Felix shout in unison causing the whole lobby to laugh. Corpse is as red as Rae’s avatar as he exists our room, running down the hallway.

“Ok, ok, ok. Hold on. I have to address this. I really hadn’t stepped foot in Security, let alone vented in there. Rae why were you lying?“ Sean’s voice cuts through the teasing directed towards Corpse and I.

“While we’re on that topic...“ Felix speaks up as well, making me break out in a nervous sweat, “Y/N, you literally saw Rae kill me, but you said you didn’t see anyone.“ He laughs, “Not gonna lie, I was a bit pissed.“

The call falls silent for about five seconds until Rae and I speak simultaneously.

“I was avenging Y/N.“

“I was helping Rae.“

Silence follows our statements, not for long though, as our friends break out in amused laughter.

“Fuck’s sake, you two make a good team.“ Sean says through genuine laughter which Rae and I soon join him in.

Felix and Sean and the rest of the lobby forgive us for throwing the game from both the crewmate and impostor’s side and we move onto another round. This time I have only one task in Electrical which I leave for last as always. I don’t feel like dying right from the get-go. I start by doing the card swipe in Admin and then the fuel task in Storage. As I make my way to Upper Engine, Corpse leaves Electrical, falling in step with me. I immediately get nervous, but still make my way to where I’m supposed to go, hoping he’d go his own way eventually. 

I stay wary of my boyfriend as I do my task, praying he won’t take my head off. When the task is finished, I find I’m trapped in the room with the doors shut. And Corpse right there. With every right and opportunity to kill me and vent. No one would know. No one saw us. 

That nervous sweat is back. 

I’m counting my last seconds of being alive.

And it happens...

A body is reported

“Oh than you so so so much! Corpse was gonna kill me in Upper Engine!“ I don’t let the person who reported the body speak, thanking them for my survival. “I was sure I was a goner.“

“Babe, come on now. You know I wouldn’t kill you even if I was an impostor. I love you too much.“ Corpse hurries to defend himself, “I’m following you around to keep you safe.“

I can tell he’s capping, but I have no concrete proof. He knows I’m onto him. His best bet is having me killed by the other impostor. He might have been capping the majority of his defense, but I know he won’t kill me.

“I’ll vote for myself because of that one.“ I mumble

The vote is skipped except the one vote I placed on myself and the round continues. I follow Corpse around the whole time, making sure he’s completing tasks - not that I can be 100% certain he’s actually completing them.

All is well until we walk into Admin and find Felix there, uploading data. Corpse, dead-ass, goes up to him and kills him, reporting the body right afterwards.

“IT’S CORPSE!“ I don’t give him a chance to start his brainwashing of the rest of the players. “Felix, this is my redemption for leaving your death unavenged last round.“

“Yeah, it’s me.“ Corpse laughs, that adorable laugh of his melting me despite the need to stay strong and carry out my argument, “Just vote me out so I can go troll Y/N.“

“Sounds like a plan to me.“ Ken says, the remainder of the crewmates, and the impostor probably, agreeing with him.

The votes are put in, all on Corpse obviously, and he is sent off into space. Not even five seconds later I hear his footsteps approaching. 

I look up when he pops his head in the room and says, “I have come to annoy you to death with my love for you.”

I can’t help but laugh, shaking my head. The things this man does to me are insane. It’s insane that I let him. 

It’s amazing, really. We’re amazing.

And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I pat the spot on the bed next to me, “I’ll allow it. But only cause I love you too.”

@susceptible-but-siriusexual  @simonsbluee  @save-the-sky  @hacker-ghost  @itsminniekat  @bi-andready-tocry  @imtiredaffff  @jazzkaurtheglorious  @hereforbeebo  @fandomgirl17  @chrysanthykios  @maehemscorpyus  @loraleiix  @letsloveimagines  @annshit  @i-cant-choose-a-username-help  @enigmaticmaze  @divine-artemis

[jjamjamm]

Supply Run

Masterlist

Wordcount: 964

Summary: Nori and Y/N get some supplies for the company, and Nori reaches a realization.

“We’ll set up camp once we get beyond that hill.” Thorin announced, and everyone in the company thanked their lucky stars for it. The days stretched out far longer when you were stuck riding horseback nonstop.

Y/N realized that now was the perfect time to bring something up, and slowed her pony to let others pass her, until she was riding by Nori.

“We’re running low on supplies.” She whispered, and he turned an ear to her.

“And what do you suggest we do about that?” He asked, playing innocent.

The two had grown rather close over the journey, so close that Nori had even told her about some of his ‘adventures’. She knew what he had done in the past, and that he would be the most helpful for her plan. Sure Bilbo was their burglar, but if they got caught, the company couldn’t stop and wait for their release. She couldn’t risk taking Bilbo, and besides, she had complete faith in Nori.

“I heard Thorin talking to Dwalin earlier, the only reason we took this path is to avoid a town a bit to the north.” She said, “It may be our best chance.”

He nodded, and the two agreed to head over. Once camp was reached, and ponies were tied, the duo snuck off. They made it to the village and wandered until they found a marketplace.

Nori tended to draw some attention as he ‘browsed’, which is why Y/N went along. She struck up conversations and distracted people while he made use of his pockets.

Sometimes, it couldn’t be helped, and people would stare at the only dwarf in the market, leaving Y/N the opportunity to tuck some things away as well. They both made a point not to take more than they needed, they weren’t bad people, just in need of supplies and light on coin.

They went through the whole market place, and Y/N did purchase a pouch of tobacco at Nori’s advisement to appease the leader of the company when they returned.

On the way back, Nori was beaming with pride, “Well done back there, almost as if you’d done it before.”

“Personally? No.” She said, surprising him, he just laughed at that, and called her a natural as they went along.

When they arrived to camp and produced their ‘findings’ Thorin was fuming, but after being presented with the purchased tobacco, he did ease up on his stance.

“It’s only things we needed.” Y/N assured him, before joining Nori for distributing.

Soaps, spices, tobacco, bandages, a spare handkerchief, and other items were splayed out for the company to take as needed, after everyone had taken their share, Y/N reached for the remaining soap, and was stopped by Nori.

“‘Fraid that one’s mine.” He said, producing another, from his coat, “For your help.”

“You didn’t have to.” She said, accepting it anyways, she brought it to her nose, and nearly swooned, “Though, it will be nice to smell better than you lot again.”

Nori grinned at that, it seemed that they make a good team.

While Y/N went to wash up, Nori puffed on his pipe with a stupid grin on his face, until he got smacked upside the head.

“What do you think you’re doing? Taking the girl to steal from the market like that.” Dori scolded him, “If you had gotten caught, how would we have known where you were?”

Nori started to tune his brother out, it was the same speech after all. He was more interested in Y/N anyways, and how nice her hair would look braided for her.

That thought took him a bit by surprise, he had never considered romantic feelings towards the girl, but he couldn’t deny that he felt happier whenever she was around.

“Are you even listening to me?” Dori asked.

“Hmm? Oh, yeah, won’t do it again, incredibly reckless, I know.” Nori brushed him off, and rose to his feet.

“Where are you going?” Dori asked, not done making his point.

“I need to talk to Y/N.” Nori said.

“At least let the girl dress before you intrude on her privacy.” Dori pointed out.

Nori agreed, and kept a watchful eye aimed towards the river. When Y/N got back, he would ask to braid her hair.

He patted his pockets, and frowned, before considering using the beads already in his braids. He worked one out, and noticed Dori’s strange expression.

“What do you look so smug about?” Nori asked, tucking his hair back as he set the bead aside.

“I’m not smug, just happy for you.” Dori admitted, “She’s lovely.”

Nori couldn’t hide his smile, as he agreed with his brother. Once he fixed his hair, he picked up his pipe, and kept watch on the trees for his one.

When she finally emerged, looking relieved at being clean again, she crossed camp and stuck the soap into her pack.

“Y/N, amrâlimê,” Nori caught her attention as he sat beside her. He almost asked, but nerves caught him by surprise, “You look happy.”

“I feel clean.” She beamed, noticing his hair was changed, “Are you changing your style?”

“I needed a spare bead.” He said.

“Are you going to braid someone’s hair?” She asked, remembering when the company had told her about courting customs. When she met his eyes she connected the dots, “Nori.”

“Amrâlimê,” He repeated, “Would you let me braid your hair?”

Dori watched from the fireside, beaming as Nori began to weave a braid into her hair.

After he clasped it off with a bead, she turned to kiss him, and Dori felt the tug of his heartstrings.

“Nori braided Y/N’s hair.” Ori noticed, “I knew she liked him.”

“Did you now?” Dori asked.

Ori nodded, “She was nearly as obvious as he was.”

[celestialarchon]

The Celestial Archon

Chapter One: A Storm of Stars

Genshin Impact x F!reader

In the first chapter, you may find the mystery archon described in a way that doesn’t fit you. That’s okay, it will change to each individual’s own tastes with time. The archon is described a certain way for reasons regarding the story line!

WARNINGS: lots of genshin spoilers, mentions of blood/violence, & mentions of injury.

tag list! @pebblegwn @krexpe @rockinaflock @creation-magician @noythe @weightlessrose @kclremin @vievi @simpinforkirari @red-riots-crocs

Our story began when Mona, the esteemed astrologist made a bold declaration. The stars foretold the return of a mysterious eighth archon. With this information, the most influential people of Mondstat and Liyue set a plan into action. The beloved traveler and his sidekick were quickly dragged into the preparations for the Celestial Archon. Aether and Paimon were looking forward to resting after weeks of hard work but unfortunately were interrupted by a star falling from the heavens. And so, we continue onward with our adventure.

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Aether’s legs were sore, his knees began to buckle as he finally made it to the entrance of dawn winery. He yelped, falling forwards and closed his eyes preparing for the impact. It never came as two sets of hands grasped the boy and steadied him. Diluc, the esteemed owner of Dawn Winery sighed as his brother gently removed the mysterious young woman from Aether’s back. The red headed man scowled as the traveler’s knees buckled once more, catching the now unconscious boy.

The knights of favonious stood outside the winery, watching the two men carry the weakened traveler and mystery lady. With the stars still falling in the distance it was quite a sight to behold. Mona gasped as Kaeya approached, the woman in his arms still still sleeping. Her hair was long and wild, strange silvery tattoos danced on her skin, and her body was frail. Kaeya tried to be gentle with her, holding her bridal style but he could feel her losing strength and the warm blood from a wound staining his shirt.

Noelle rushed forward to remove Aether from Diluc, “My apologies Master Diluc, but this young lady needs a free room immediately.”

Diluc nodded, grimacing at the sight of the wounded woman in his brother’s arms. He pushed the doors to Dawn Winery open, making his way to the nearest guest room. Kaeya followed him and Jean yanked her younger sister along. The room was simple with a bed, night stand, and single chair. Kaeya set the woman down on the bed carefully, and rolled her over to see the back of her top soaked.

“Kaeya, go wash up.” Jean ordered, unsheathing her sword.

Diluc steered his brother out of the room while Jean got to work. With speed and precision, Jean’s sword cut the cloth away from the injury. Her eyes widened and she stepped back as the wound as freed. Barbara peeked around her sister and felt nausea building up. Noelle entered the room to see the two sisters in shock. Jean’s eyes were filled with a mixture of sadness and disgust.

“Did she have wings?” Barbara whispered, eyes never leaving the back of the woman.

“No, this isn’t a tear. Somebody or something did this to her,” Jean gritted her teeth, “they carved it into her.”

Noelle glanced over them to see something incredibly awful. There were two deep and wide gashes starting at her shoulder blades and meeting at her tailbone to make an upside down v symbol. Her breathing was shallow as the air hit the open wound. Barbara made her way to the bedside to infuse the wound with hydro energy and try to help the pain.

“Noelle!” Jean barked, “Find the Alchemists and tell Albedo to set up a direct teleport point here. Bring Sucrose here, we will need all the help we can get.”

Noelle nodded and dashed out the door, nearly colliding with the knight’s librarian. Lisa frowned but ignored the rushed girl and stepped into the room.

“Lisa,” Jean sighed as the woman walked in.

Lisa’s hand found its way to the dandelion knight’s shoulder, “Yes, acting grandmaster?”

“Please send word to Liyue Harbor that we need the aid of their best herbalist right now. This is urgent. You may also inform the adepti and Zhongli of the archon’s arrival but we need aid now.” Jean’s tone was serious, it struck a chord of anxiety in Lisa.

Without a word, Lisa strode out of the room and began to do as she was asked. Barbara continued to ease the pain of the sky goddess but grew more worried each second. The wound was infected. Sucrose burst in soon after, tears forming at the sight before her.

After what seemed like an eternity, Liyue Harbor’s esteemed top herbalist arrived with a small zombie girl. Together, the best healers from both countries began to work hard. They poured all their energy into their work and successfully removed the infection. By the time the sun began to come up, the wound was rapid healed but scarred terribly.

Though morning approached, the temporary residents of Dawn Winery found themselves crawling into bed to get some rest. Jean didn’t want to leave the eight archon’s side but was convinced to by her loving sister. The healers slept all day and all night long, missing the arrival of Liyue’s highest regarded people and adepti. Not a single soul dared to peak at the mysterious goddess as she slept, in fear of interrupting her much needed peace.

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24 Hours had passed since the arrival of the eighth archon. The herbalists and knights began to wake finally as morning approached. Unfortunately, when they went to check on the strange woman and her injuries, the room was empty. Dread set over Dawn Winery with the goddess of the stars missing once more.

Noon soon came to pass but there was no sign of the Celestial Archon. Everyone had split up to search for her but had no luck. Aether was frustrated and panicked as he fell onto the grass. Suddenly a large gust of wind blew him over, Paimon clutched to his hair as a winged blue beast shot across their line of vision.

“Dvalin?” Venti stood abruptly, “Could it be..”

Realization hit Aether, “Let’s go! We need to follow him!”

Aether, Venti, Kaeya, and Lisa trailed behind the dragon. Paimon screamed at them to slow down but they were too focused to care. Finally, out of breath, they stopped. Dvalin had landed on the edge of a cliff, his head leaned down to press his snout against the cheek of a beautiful woman. Her hair was still long and wild but not unkempt. Her eyes shone bright like stars and her skin seemed to glow under the sunlight. Aether was awestruck. Was that really the same person he rescued only a day before?

The wind carried her laughter as the majestic beast snuggled up to her. Her hands came up to stroke his scales as her feet left the ground. She truly was floating. Starstruck, Aether and the knights of favonious could only stare. Venti, however, burst forward with a gleeful giggle. The celestial archon turned as the bard crashed into her. Dvalin rested his head atop of hers as her arms wrapped around the childlike god.

“Don’t worry, Barbatos,” She reassured, “I missed you, too.”

“You scared me, you stupid supernova!” Venti nuzzled his face into her chest.

Aether shivered as a growl tore through the air. The noise startled him enough, he fell right on his ass. Xiao shot forwards, ripping the anemo archon off of the celestial archon.

“You bastard drunk,” Xiao’s face was dark, “Don’t touch her as you please.”

“Ehe,” Venti giggled as the adeptus held him by the collar.

Aether stood and sighed, gazing at the shocked woman. He turned, hearing footsteps behind him. Zhongli had found them and the remaining adepti trailed behind him. The eighth archon’s mouth was agape. She flung herself at Xiao, tackling him. Venti escaped the yaksha as the goddess fell ontop of him.

“Oi,” She grinned clutching onto him, “I think I even missed your shitty attitude, pretty boy.”

Xiao’s face was red as he grumbled, “Just shut up, space case.”

Zhongli clicked his tongue, impatient. He pulled the goddess off of the yaksha and embraced her. His sudden affection made her cheeks flush but she returned the hug. Zhongli’s arms tightened around her, fearful that he would wake up from a dream. After a few moments he released her only for the poor bright eyed goddess to be swarmed by the adepti.

She giggled as they each took turns showing her how much she was missed. Even as Cloud Retainer scolded her, the smile never left her face.

“What exactly happened to you anyways?” The female crane adepti grilled the goddess.

A nervous laugh escaped the young woman, “Well, I kept thinking about how my heart was restless. So I guess I kept walking. Eventually this strange darkness consumed me and I couldn’t go anywhere. It was as if all the evil gods I struck down were exacting their revenge. Some time ago, the void I was stuck in opened up a bit and I escaped but was forced into something even worse. There were terrible monsters and powerful beings who sought my abilities I guess. They mistook me as a new goddess and attacked me.”

Aether’s ears perked up. She was talking about the Abyss, he was sure of it. His heart hurt at the way she tried to mask the pain of the endeavor. She reminded him of Lumine a bit.

“So anyways,” She continued, “I ran again and got caught in this space. It wasn’t bad, but nothing happened. I mean nothing, I was actually stuck for real that time and the space seemed to shift around me even though I couldn’t move. Time didn’t pass and my thoughts came to a stop, too. Then I was forced out and I think I was falling? That blonde kid picked me up but I was weakened. Sorry I don’t remember much but that.”

“Forced out, hm..” Cloud Retainer seemed stuck in her thoughts.

“That’s not quite right,” The goddess sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, “It’s more like it shattered? I think I fell with the pieces of it.”

“How strange,” Kaeya started, “It almost sounds like a domain.”

Zhongli nodded, “It does. Let’s not discuss this any further for now, it seems to be a painful topic.”

The celestial archon smiled gently at the geo archon, embracing him again. Zhongli stiffened but wrapped his arms around her again. Aether felt Xiao shift next to him, he glanced at the adeptus and had to restrain his laughter. He didn’t think the rough adeptus could ever pour, but there he was pouting.

After exchanging greetings and parting with Dvalin, the group headed back to Dawn Winery. Paimon had already taken a liking to the goddess of stars. Aether couldn’t blame the chubby fairy, the archon seemed oddly mortal to him. The other Archons carried themselves with grace and authority. The Celestial Archon was strangely human. Her appearance was godly and she did have a sort of divine aura to her but she was far more down to earth then even Venti.

“So why did you leave so suddenly?” Aether’s curious eyes met hers as they hiked back to the winery.

“I, uh, well the sun was calling to me.” A bashful smile formed on her lips.

Aether raised his eyebrows, “Calling to you?”

“Yeah,” her eyes were a bit distant, “It’s as if it was reminding me that the sun is a star, too. It willed me to bask in it I suppose.”

Paimon giggled at the archon’s clumsy wording. Aether pondered over what she said, thinking it was unique. Dawn Winery came into view and the traveler noticed that everybody else had returned. Chaos ensued at their arrival.

“Ahem,” Venti cleared his throat, “This is the eighth archon. The Celestial Archon, Seraphim. I call her supernova though cause she’s beautiful and destructive.”

“Hello! Let’s skip formalities, feel free to call me by my chosen name!” She introduced herself cheerfully.

Everybody chose to ignore Venti’s comment on the goddess being destructive. She was far too kind and gracious to be anything of that sort. Aether was the only one among them who noticed Venti’s words. They filled him with curiosity.

“I’m so hungry,” Paimon groaned.

“Oh, I missed food!” The bubbly goddess yelled, “Let’s eat! Can we eat?”

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The dining room was filled with chatter as they celebrated the arrival of the long lost archon. Paimon was stuffing her face as Venti chugged another bottle of dandelion wine, hiccuping. Diluc sighed as Kaeya poured another glass for himself with rosy cheeks. The scarlet haired man found himself looking for the celestial archon again. No matter how heard he tried to distract himself, his thoughts and eyes always found their way to her.

She was levitating above her seat, giggling as people brought her food to try. Xiao was uncharacteristically calm and looked happy even, as he fed her bits of almond tofu. Zhongli was smiling at her as she took sips of tea. The goddess picked up the small zombie girl and sat her in her lap, letting the child introduce “coco goat” milk to her. Things were going well overall.

Diluc watched as the kind hearted goddess set the child down and excused herself. She glided towards the terrace with a lingering sadness in her eyes. The esteemed Ragnvindr swiped the unopened bottle of dandelion his brother was reaching for and uncorked it. For a moment, the man was hesitant but his legs carried him to the open terrace anyways.

“Hello, Mister Diluc,” The goddess greeted him without turning to look at him.

“Pardon me,” He stopped at her side, “I don’t mean to intrude. This is a gift for you, Dawn Winery’s special.”

She glanced at him through her peripheral vision and held out her hand. He sighed and placed the bottle in her slender hand, watching her take a sip. She returned to staring at the stars above, sipping on the wine. The tycoon couldn’t help but stay by her side, seeing the look of longing she had. He felt that if he left her, she might just disappear again.

“It’s good,” She murmured, closing her eyes.

“Thank you,” Diluc tried to hold back the smile growing on his face, “I appreciate that you’re savoring it and not gulping it down like certain alcoholics.”

A snort escaped from the girl, “Barbatos the esteemed anemo archon and local alcoholic.”

Diluc snickered at her comment. She was so surreal. Everything about her felt dreamy, it was truly enchanting.

“I can leave you alone with your thoughts, I am deeply sorry if I disturbed you.” The man sighed and turned, but was stopped by her fingertips grazing his wrist.

“Diluc Ragnvindr, you are not a bother,” She sighed, “I am just a fool who would rather look for answers in constellations than face the reality before me. For me, not much time has passed since the Archon War. So you’ll have to forgive me if I seem cold, I simply am frustrated and depressed by the changes in Teyvat. I missed thousands of years and it will haunt me for a long while.”

Diluc’s jaw nearly hit the floor at the bluntness of the woman in front of him. He was empathetic to her situation, after distancing himself from everyone around him he had moments of sadness as well. He was also fascinated by her adoration for the stars.

“Do the stars give you answers?” He asked quietly.

She laughed, “Not always, but i’m able to read the constellations of an individual, even you Darknight Hero.”

“Oh, fucks sake that’s mortifying!” He groaned and then leaned in, “Wait. I have a constellation? How much do you know?”

“Your constellation is Noctua, and it’s fairly easy to read. I know that you pretend like everybody is bothering you at all times, because you don’t want to be disappointed again as your brother disappointed you after the loss of your father. You feel the need to be strong and never seen as weak, somewhere between inferiority complex and social anxiety.” Her words made his heart pound.

“But,” She continued smiling, “I understand. I also have daddy issues of sorts. And it often feels easier to put up those walls.”

Diluc was speechless. Their conversation was interrupted by clapping, as Kaeya made his way out of the shadows. Any vulnerability left Diluc at his brother’s entrance. He quickly exited the balcony seeing Kaeya’s smug expression.

“You are interesting,” his voice was almost sultry, “Tell me, what do you see from my constellation.”

The goddess gave him a sour look. She was quiet for a minute, eyes narrowed at the man. He waited, expectantly.

“Pavo Ocellus,” She sighed, “A complicated constellation. You do carry a heavy burden savior of Khaenri'ah. So much of you is shrouded in mystery, although that’s fitting isn’t it? I don’t know enough to see you as a threat, however your dishonest habits and constant tests you put people through seems irritating.”

“Oh, you’re bold,” He grinned, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, “Bold, beautiful, and busty. Just my type.”

“And you say things like that so casually,” She pushed his hand away, making her way back to the dining hall.

“Sir Kaeya, you should be careful saying such things. If you aren’t, somebody might fall for you. It’s like a honey trap. Give the wrong person the wrong idea and you’ll find yourself in a pinch.”

With that, she left the calvary captain alone with his thoughts. He was pulled in by her, but knew she was dangerous. His mind shifted back to Venti’s word earlier and he clicked his tongue. The bard may have been onto something.

When Kaeya returned to the banquet, the Celestial Archon was back to eating and being doted on. Xiao’s glare was locked in and targeted as Kaeya sat a short distance from the goddess. Kaeya merely winked at him, sticking his tongue out slightly. The yaksha’s hand flew to the spear by his side as he snarled at the cryo wielder. The goddess noticed the sudden change in the atmosphere and moved to the adepti’s lap. He blushed and scowled, but set his head on her shoulder.

The young woman’s affection towards Xiao didn’t go unnoticed and soon Zhongli was offering her tea while Venti offered her booze. Even Jean was attempting to seek some attention from the goddess. For once, Diluc and Kaeya had the same thought. That woman is troublesome.

[rein4r1]

In The 10 Years I kept Loving You

Wc: 1.3k

Genre: Fluff, Angst

Warning/s: Drug abuse, Infidelity, Potential Death, Not Proofread

Pairing/s: [MODERN AU] Eren x GN!Reader, Reiner x GN!Reader

The only promise Eren kept is loving you until the last sun dies.

“You look-“ Beautiful

Heavenly in your white wedding gown. Glamorous in the jewels that adorned every piece of you. And just, Beautiful in the way you elegantly sat on the chair, waiting for the clock to struck 10.

“I just know he’ll cry when he sees you! So stunning!” Sasha exclaims, completely in awe of you. You continue to converse until you hear a knock on the door.

“It’s time.”

Today is the day you the knot to your soon to be husband. Truly, it is an auspicious and joyful day, but you cannot help but think that of 10 years ago.

———

The beginning of your relationship was pretty normal, you met Eren at one of your classes, got partnered up in a group project, and became friends. Friendship turned into attraction, which blossomed into him taking you out. And like a speed of light, you began a relationship with him. The attraction was quick, but what you felt was way beyond reason. Because you cannot explain love, you just feel it.

Everyday felt like you were in your honeymoon phase, Eren wouldn’t fail to show you how much he loves you. He adored you, so much that you were his oxygen, the breathe of life that turned even the grayest of lands green.

And how he loves you with you naked beside him, after a night of dancing in romantic bliss, under the starry sky that shall bear witness for his love for you, and you for him. How he loves to nimbly trail his fingers on your lithe skin. His goddess of beauty, making sure he drinks so much of your love, he’d never go empty.

I want to marry you, my love. I want to spend the rest of my life in your arms. Cared and nurtured. Eren kisses your shoulder softly, as if scared to steal you from your peaceful dream.

I hope you dream of me.

———

You love Eren, oh so dearly. That even the small infuriating things about him makes you love him even more.

“I swear to God babe, I TOLD YOU TO WIPE THE TOILET SEAT!”

“My bad babe my bad.” As he throws a wink at you with his half-hearted apology.

And whenever he calls you in the middle of the night, drunk of his ass and hearing Connie laugh at the background

“Babe I love you so mu- JEAN SHUT THE FUCK UP!- Babe please listen to me.”

“I am listening Eren”

“I want to fuck you right now.”

Yup, you love him.

———

You’re currently stargazing with Eren, your head on his chest and his hands under your shirt, tracing small circle on your back. The whole situation making your heart thud for joy.

“You see all those start babe?”

“Mhm?”

“That’s how much I love you”

“… You love me far?” And whenever you pout? Eren just has this urge to kiss you.

“No baby, I love you a lot. I’ll love you until the last star dies.”

———

But when did it all go wrong? Why do every kiss feels like he’s anxious? Why does every embrace feel like insecurity? And just like how your relationship start, it’s quickly wilting away.

You saw him less, your dates gets rescheduled, and he- it’s like he can’t be bothered anymore. And you felt it, fear.

You thought that he’d love you until the last star dies, and you look up to sky at night, and saw emptiness.

“Pieck I’m scared, I really am!” Your currently on the phone with your best friend, with endless tears caused by dread.

“I don’t want him to leave me! I just- I can’t imagine a life- a world without my Eren”

“And why is tha-“

“That’s because I love him! He is the sun that basks me in fervor, everyday. He is my sun, and I love him. I can’t live without him Pieck.” She cares for you, but how could Pieck say that there are relationships that are meant to die out, no matter oh much promises you made. Stars are meant to die.

———

Eren loves you, he truly does! And he’s sorry for doing this to you.

Eren loves you, Eren loves you so much that he began to doubt his own feelings for you. He didn’t know when it started. But one day he woke up with voices in his head he cannot even understand. But maybe it’s the drugs he’s been secretly taken from your back. The substance fucking up his brain, he can’t even remember his own name.

He began to lose himself, and slowly, you. He drifted himself away from you, and traded his dates for pot sessions with his frat buddies, the same disrespectful frat boys who introduced him to women despite him being in a relationship. Because according to them gods shouldn’t was their times for one pussy.

Together with drugs and alcohol, he lost control on his body. That’s why, the same night you’ve been balling you heart out to Pieck, is the same night, he had someone else sobbing for his name, beneath him.

That’s when he stopped becoming your Eren.

———

When you learned what he’s done, you felt numb, hearing nothing but the static nose that made your head explode. And here you were wandering aimless somewhere in the city.

I thought he loves me

I wasn’t enough?

Am I not enough?

AM I NOT EN-

“MISS PLEASE!” You felt an arm roughly but securely tug you from your senses.

“Are you okay? You almost got hit by a-“ You turned at the man, tall blonde and buff man, if only you could see how handsome he is if not for-

“AM I NOT ENOUGH FOR YOU?” and you broke down, in front a stranger. He stood there awkwardly, as he saw people staring at you, whispering. He knows he can’t leave you like this, so all he could do is offer you is comfort. So, he embraced you, and you cried in his arms.

When you pulled away, much calmer than before, you thanked him.

That whole night was weird for Reiner. He was having an argument with his mom, so he decided to have a jog to calm down his nerves. The next time he saw you was at university. That’s why you felt familiar, you study at the same uni!

You were sitting down at some bench, ignoring someone. You knew you had to go to school, after all, your future is better than any boy the world could offer. You felt a presence beside you. It’s that man from that day.

The both of you only sat there in silence, but it doesn’t feel suffocating. If anything, it’s warm. Who would’ve thought that you’d fall in love once again. But this time, it’s slow and careful. As if to not shock the water with sudden waves. It’s slow, but it’s sure.

———

He fucked up; he clearly did. Eren knows he loves you; he does love you! So why did he traded something temporary with something that’ll give him a lifetime supply of happiness. It’s because he doubted his love for you. Doubting you for a second, compromised years of the lost half of his heart. And in the ten years he’s loving you, not stopping from loving you, nothing hurts more than seeing you love someone else.

He knows it’s his fault. That being swayed away from superficial things, means that he gets to see you walk down the aisle with another man, someone who’s more deserving than him.

You get to offer your whole life with someone else. While he’s stuck, ten years and more, for loving you. And he has nothing to blame but his self.