#and then suddenly the face that was once comforting turned to something she felt disdain towards

[forecast-rain]

you know what... maybe that song is who Lilly would've been had she not met Olive

[vandnana]

Hi!!! How are you? Could I ask for a Lo'ak x fem!reader (That used to be human but she bonded with her avatar so now she's a navi, like jake) with an already established relationship. Where she teaches him what a pinkie promise is? Basically showing him his "demon blood" allows him to do things other Na'vi can't and he shouldn't be insecure for who he is

Thank you!

This request is so creative and so heartwarming! Thank you so much for sending it in! I LOVE IT <3 i added a backstory for how she got an avatar using the plot from the first part of the movie! i hope you enjoy reading! 

The Pinky Promise

pairing: lo'ak x female avatar reader (formally human and now na'vi)

summary: you comfort lo’ak at the tree of souls after one of the warriors tells him he has freak hands

genre: angst, fluff

warnings: suggestive language, bullying

word count: 2,631

Earth was dying and the only way to save humanity was relocation. The reinvention of the avatar program was exclusive and while many believed that creating more avatars would benefit the mission as a whole, it was decided that you, as General Ardmore’s most admired lieutenant, would take on the task of gathering intel on the Omaticaya.

Back on earth, you had worked hard to get to where you were in General Ardmore’s troops. You were the youngest, but you were easily the most capable, strategic, and willing. You had the attitude of a Marine. 

No fear.

You always found it easy to separate your emotions from your work, but once you entered into the forest, something inside you had stirred and somehow you knew you would never be the same. The forest felt like it was calling you, every branch, every tree, every bush, and even the dirt on the ground seemed to feel alive. But nothing made you feel more alive than when you encountered Lo’ak. He was the one who saved you from a thanator, pulling you out of a tree trunk you were hiding in and leading you away from danger. And at first, he was your savior.

But the minute you had fled to safety, he instantly tried to kill you, questioning where you had come from and why you had five fingers like him. In truth, he could have let the thanator kill you, but then he saw your hands. He told himself that he was only curious about you, but he noticed more than just your hands at first glance. You were undeniably pretty and even the way you walked in the forest felt like a force to be reckoned with.

From there, you tried your best to keep your focus on the mission, but Lo’ak had grown on you. His family had grown on you. And when you told the truth about why you had come, you were met with anger and hurt from the Sullys. 

Jake was the one who wanted to send you away, his expression fierce as you stood vulnerable in front of the clan. Even with everyone looking at you with disdain, you apologized over and over, your eyes pleading as you looked at Lo’ak, explaining how it was him who had changed you, how falling in love with him changed everything. And suddenly, Jake saw himself in you, how he must have looked to the Omaticaya all those years ago and how he could never turn back the clock to save Hometree and to save Neytiri’s father. 

He was Olo’eyktan, and as the clan leader, he chose to believe you, not willing to repeat the same mistakes as before. But, he also warned you that any misstep after this could never be forgiven. You never gave Jake any reason to doubt you ever again.

You had become the devil’s advocate for as long as you could manage, gathering intel for Jake about Ardmore’s operations until she finally figured you out. Despite your high status to her, she didn’t hesitate trying to kill you, but she also seemed to underestimate you too. You faced her in human form, your body taking on a fatal wound.

Yet one thing she failed to know was a truth that Eywa could easily grant.

For when one life ends, another begins.

~

Trouble. That was all you seemed to be in the past few days. 

But, you weren’t alone, Lo’ak always beside you and always willing to go along with your crazy schemes. Yet, most of the time, it was him who had the crazier schemes, reckless schemes that sometimes led to brushes with death and most definitely led to danger.

You didn’t mind though. It was nothing you couldn’t handle. You both were similar in the way that you were. You had no fear, invigorated whenever you were with Lo’ak, the need to protect each other intensely existent with every risk that you took. You had a string of shenanigans behind you, all done for the good of the people, but Jake, although secretly appreciative, had enough of you and Lo’ak’s adventures, forcing you to stay at high camp. There was no use in arguing about it, the two of you reluctantly watching as Neteyam, Jake, and Neytiri took off on their ikrans to patrol the area.

When they had vanished out of sight, Lo’ak groaned in annoyance, turning to you, “We should be out there with them.”

“We were out there Lo’ak, for hours. We just...blew up some machinery without permission.” Lo’ak groaned again, the word “permission” making him want to throw himself off the base of the cave, “Just try to understand your dad. He cares about you. I care about you, so just suck it up and let this pass. ” You replied, snaking your arm around his waist.

 Your touch sent goosebumps down his skin and he gave you a half-smile, trying not to be swayed by how close your bodies were, but ultimately failing as he wrapped his arms around you. 

Taking a hand and gently pushing your hair behind your ear, he answered, “Fine, fine. I’ll let it go. For now.” 

You smiled at him, the corners of your eyes crinkling as you grabbed his neck, pulling him in for a kiss, which he happily accepted. Pulling away, he bit his lip, his eyes fiending for more, but you shook your head.

“We should make ourselves useful while we’re here.” You said with cheery eyes, grabbing his hand, but he pulled you into him again, your back against his chest.

“Or I could just be useful to you…alone” He cooed, his lips gracing your ear as he spoke and his hand trailing your chest.

You turned to look at him, rolling your eyes, “We’ve only been back for ten minutes and that’s what you want to do?”

He merely shrugged, his eyes suggestive, but you quieted his urges when you pushed away from him, your hands on your hips as you faced him again, “Let’s sharpen some arrows, clean up for a bit, and then I am all yours.”

His whole demeanor deflated as you stood there resolute, not even responding to his adorable pout. “I mean, Lo’ak if you really don’t want to help me you can be useful…by yourself.”

“Y/n, come on. We can sharpen arrows later.” He whined, putting his hands together as he begged, still wearing that irresistible pout on his face.

“You are so annoying when you’re like this, you know that?” You crossed your arms, irritated at his insistence.

He gasped instantly, “I’m annoying for wanting to love the most beautiful woman to ever exist? How is that annoying? It’s pretty charming if you ask me.”

“Hmm, I guess I won’t ask you then.” You let out nonchalantly, walking away without another word, smirking as you faced away from him.

It was a regular routine to tease one another like this and you knew you had won when the sound of his nearing footsteps became louder. “Fine, y/n. I guess I’ll just be deprived of your love for a little longer.” He sighed, taking his place beside you.

“So dramatic.” You whispered under your breath. He definitely heard you, but you distracted him with a kiss on the cheek.

~

The warriors were all seated on the floor, their dull arrows laid out in front of him as they meticulously sharpened each one. You sat with them, Lo’ak taking his place beside you, the two of you greeting everyone warmly. During the time you spent in the forest, after becoming a Na’vi, they had become your friends, comrades you trusted going into missions with and beating in sparring matches practically every time. You were all laughing amongst yourselves, teasing one another. 

“Well at least I can fly my ikran straight, unlike y/n.” One of your friends chided, snickering as you pushed him away with your hand.

“Ah, well at least I can aim straight. I seem to recall you missing the target more than once during our target practice last week.” You spat back, the comment making Lo’ak laugh just a little too hard.

They were all harmless, meaningless jokes, but it seemed you had taken it too far, your friend’s cheeks reddening with embarrassment. 

Flustered, he laughed weakly, “Yeah, well at least I don’t have freak hands like you and Lo’ak.”

It didn’t bother you at all, you had already endured the harshest ridicule when you faced the entire clan. Nothing seemed to faze you about how you were different. It was something you could never change. You had embraced your life with Lo’ak, but you still looked fondly at the memories you had when you were a human. 

You laughed, pushing him playfully, but Lo’ak was not so easily dismissive, getting up and gritting his teeth, the arrow he was working on landing dangerously close to your friend’s leg. 

He balled his fists, scoffing “If you have a problem with my hands, why don’t you come over here and find out what it feels like to get punched by them.”

Instantly, your friend took the challenge, but you stepped between them even quicker, your hand firmly placed on Lo’ak’s chest. You gave the two a warning look before you pushed Lo’ak back. Huffing in frustration, he threw his hands in the air, stomping to his ikran and flying off. 

You followed after him quickly, mounting your own ikran. Speeding up, you caught up to him. And for a while, the two of you rode your ikrans, the strong wind beneath you and all around you as you continued past the Hallelujah Mountains and toward the Tree of Souls. When you finally landed, Lo’ak’s anger had calmed, his head downcast as you both sat at the base of the tree. 

Scooting yourself closer to him, you took his hand, but he pushed you away. “Lo’ak, what’s wrong?”

Avoiding your eyes, he spoke, the words coming out of his mouth too vulnerable for him to face you fully, “My freak hands. My demon blood. Everything! My dad is Toruk Macto. He earned his place to be with the people. You helped my dad defeat that general, so you earned your place too. But me? What have I done?” 

He stopped, shaking slightly and catching his breath. It was as if what he had just said had always been lodged in his throat, and its sudden spillage formed bile in the pits of his stomach, churning in his insides as his heart violently palpitated with anxiousness.

You took in everything he had said, silence enveloping the two of you comfortably as the Tree’s strands swayed calmly around you. Taking his cheek into your hand, you looked into his eyes for the first time. They were starting to turn a slight red as he fought back tears in his eyes, but the minute your eyes met his, they finally began to fall.

Your expression was loving as you smiled softly at him, “I am proud of you for all that you have done, and you have done more than you think. You are as much a Na’vi as anyone else here. Don’t listen to them. They’re ignorant. They don’t know that our freak hands are capable of many things that they can’t do.”

He tilted his head at you, “Like what?” His tone was unbelieving, but his heart and mind felt otherwise, trusting your affectionate honesty.

Taking hold of his hand, you lifted it up, hooking your pinky around his. He looked down, watching your every move, his gaze going from you to your now intertwined hands. His expression was still unsure, confused as he raised his eyebrows at you.

You laughed at his reaction, and hearing your laugh lifted his spirits, the tension in his muscles relaxing in reaction to your cheerfulness.

You blanketed your other hand over the back of his, grinning, “It’s a pinky promise.” Lo’ak looked at you with even more confusion, but you continued on, “Promises are flimsy. They’re easily betrayed, but a pinky promise? It can never be broken.”

Maintaining your gaze on Lo’ak, his eyebrows knit together as he began to understand and a small smile slowly tugged at his lips. You caught it instantly, your heart slowly lifting its pressure of concern.

You placed your hand back on his cheek, the touch igniting the coldness of his skin, the anger and frustration he held inside dissipating as you rubbed your thumb gently across his cheek.

“I see you. And I promise that everything you are and everything you will be, freak hands and all, will never change that. This pinky promise, it’s ours. And no one can take that away from you. It’s something that the other people can’t do.”

His small smile became a big grin, tightening his pinky around yours and blanketing his hand over the one you put on his cheek, “Then I have a promise to make to you too.”

“Really?” The lighthearted air around the two of you returning, the Tree seemingly sensing it as its calm sway turned into a dance brought on by the gentle wind that found its way to where you were.

“Yes, really.” Your heart melted at the way he was looking at you, like you were the only one that mattered in the world, the rest of what was around you falling away as your fingers were still entwined, enhancing the bond you already shared with one another.

“I promise to annoy you forever.” Although his tone was lighthearted, the weight of his words were sincere, his eyes dripping in affection for you as you let out another boisterous laugh, the sound of it like honey as it came out of you.

“Good. Cause that seems to be your favorite thing to do lately.” You joked, the wind howling with you as you let out another laugh.

He spoke again, taking in your appearance as he let go of your pinky and took hold of your waist, closing the gap between the two of you, “Well, there are other things I can do, now that we’re alone.” His eyes glinting again with the same suggestiveness from earlier.

You raised an eyebrow, amused, “Oh really?”

“You said after we sharpened arrows that you were all mine, remember?”

You didn’t protest any further, simply nodding, “Yes, and now that we’re here, what exactly do you want to do?”

Lo’ak shrugged his shoulders, lifting a hand from your waist, “You know, you’re right. There are a lot of things that my freak hands can do.”

You smacked him on the shoulder, gasping, “Lo’ak!”

He instantly winced, but he was snickering, his playful smirk still painted on his face, “I’m sorry. I couldn’t resist.”

You sighed, “Just come here you idiot,” Taking the back of his neck into your hands, you pulled him in, connecting your lips with a passionate kiss that started to grow in intensity.

But then a realization hit you, making you pull away, much to Lo’ak’s disappointment, “We weren’t supposed to leave camp.”

You got up quickly, walking over to your ikran, making the bond and waiting for Lo’ak, who was slowly trudging over.

“Hurry up!” You yelled, but he didn’t walk any faster.

Finally making his way to you, his head tilted upward to look at you on your ikran, a disappointed sigh coming out of his mouth, “Please don’t make me sharpen arrows or clean or do anything else when we get back.”

You leaned forward, placing your hand in front of him, your pinky out, “I promise.”

Hooking his pinky with yours, his face lit up, the corners of his mouth tilting upward as a satisfied smile overtook him. It was all he needed to hear.

~

[thetargaryenbride]

𝑩𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒂𝒅 𝑶𝒇 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑾𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑾𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 - [3]

Warnings: none

Pairing: Steve Harrington x f!Byers!Reader

Word Count: 4818

𝐀𝐍: 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘦𝘱𝘪𝘤 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘌𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘨𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴. 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵, 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘎𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳. 𝑰 𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌~ 💚🐸

𝑨𝒔 𝒂𝒍𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔, 𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒎𝒆 𝒊𝒇 𝑰’𝒗𝒆 𝒘𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝑶𝑶𝑪 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒃𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘏𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘪𝘵! 💚🌿

Masterlist || Chapter 2 || Chapter 4

“That was brilliant!” exclaimed Becky as she, Hopper, Steve, and Murray came to greet you and Will after the Parade ended and the chariots retreated backstage.

“You were gorgeous!” Steve lifted you in his arms and gave you a deep kiss before setting you back down. “You two did great,” he grinned and ruffled Will’s hair, making the boy smile shyly.

“You certainly did. But I suggest we go discuss your awesomeness back at the apartment,” said Hopper quietly and you looked at him, surprised at his serious tone, only to see his gaze focused on something behind you.

You turned around to see what had his attention in a clutch and your body chilled at the sight of the District One and Two’s Tributes staring at you somewhat dangerously and with disdain. You didn’t let it show on your face as you allowed your friends and teammates to pull you away and head for the elevators but deep inside you were very much disturbed and your mind was racing with reasons as to why you had gained their attention.

“Here we go, Seventh floor,” said Becky as the elevator came to a stop and the doors slid open, revealing a gorgeous huge apartment.

It was even more luxurious than the train was, with crystal chandeliers, leather couches and armchairs, huge television, a large table with comfortable-looking chairs, and lots of plants and flowers scattered all around. Everything was colored in earthly tones and it sort of reminded you of home, causing a pang of nostalgia to hit your heart like an arrow.  

“Ah, you just wait to try the beds! They are so comfortable,” began Becky and you felt your eye twitch in annoyance. “The pillows are once again made from the finest geese feathers. You’re gonna sleep like babies. And the food, oh my, what you had on the train was nothing compared to what you’re going to taste now. The most exquisite of foods. You will be pampered in the next week like nothing you’ve experienced before! So lucky!”

“Ookay, I’ve had it. Just what is with you and all the bloody talk of luxury?” you snapped as you marched towards her and Steve’s body lurched forward as he tried to take a hold of your arm and stop you from getting in her face. “Don’t you understand? We are not lucky to experience this glamour of yours because we’re going to die! Die!...So stop shoving all of this bullshit in my face. No one ever, except the brainwashed fucks in District One and Two, is happy to die in the Hunger Games for the sake of representing courage, nobility, and whatever else the Capitol is trying to push as an agenda in order to control the people like livestock,” you grit out in her face and yanked your arm out of Steve’s grasp.  

Suddenly, Becky’s face turned deathly serious which was a far cry from her usual bright façade.

“You are not the only one who has to play a game,” she whispered as she looked you dead in the eyes and you could only stare in disbelief. “The life of some people itself is a sick and twisted game that goes on...forever…We all have roles to play,” were her last words before she whirled on her heels and briskly walked away and into her room, leaving you stunned.

“What did she mean by that?” you asked as you turned to look at Hopper, hoping for an explanation, and he rubbed his forehead before beckoning you to sit down at the table.

“I should have told you earlier, knowing that you can sometimes get easily riled up by talks like that,” he cleared his throat. “Do you see that Avox over there?” he whispered as he nodded towards one of the servants standing at one of the corners and you nodded. “Now, she is Becky’s sister. Her name is Terry Ives.”

“What?” you furrowed your eyebrows as you looked at the woman who stood unmoving.

“The two of them were originally from District Seven,” he revealed and your, Will’s, and Steve’s eyes almost popped out of their sockets. “Terry tried running away. She was pregnant at the time and…she got scared. She didn’t want to raise her kid under such…conditions,” he accentuated the word but you both knew what he really meant to say was ‘tyranny’.

“So…you mean to say she was captured?”

“Yes, the Peacekeepers captured Terry and brought her here. People who try to run away are deemed traitors and given a punishment. Their tongues are cut off so they can’t speak. And they become servants. Well, actually, ‘slaves’ is the correct word,” he let out a sigh as he poured more alcohol into his glass and took a large gulp, scrunching up his brows and nose.

“But then…why didn’t Becky…you know…get her tongue cut off?” asked Steve.  

“’Cause she didn’t try to run away like her sister did. But ‘cause they are related she also ‘deserved’ some kind of punishment,” snorted angrily the man as he ran a hand down his face in frustration. “And the president decided that the best kind of punishment was to become a mentor and escort to the Tributes of District Seven. To teach and accompany them the whole time, get attached, and then watch them die. And of course, she has to keep the façade of an excited, bright, bubbly woman who preaches how amazing the games are, how lucky the Tributes are for giving their lives for glory, and for experiencing the luxury that the Capitol oh so graciously provides them. Pretty much she has to sell the Capitol’s propaganda… Trust me…it’s tearing her up on the inside.”

You shut your eyes and rested your face on your palms, regretting the words you had spat out at her. You slid back the chair and stood up, ignoring Hopper and Steve’s confused looks, as you marched to the woman’s room. You knocked a couple of times and waited patiently.

“Oh…I certainly didn’t expect you,” she cleared her throat. “What is it, Y/N?”

“I just wanted to apologize for my behavior…It wasn’t right of me to snap at you like this when you’re just doing your job,” you shrugged and looked down guiltily before back at her and you were surprised to see her smile at you.

“No, it’s ok. I understand your frustration…I understand it very well.”

You woke up bright and early the following morning. You had a short breakfast and after that, you immediately dragged Will to the training facility where you found most of the Tributes already waiting for the head trainer to give instructions.

Your eyes scanned each and every individual standing in the room.

First, you focused on the Careers. You’ve watched the games since you could remember yourself. You’ve seen them in action and you’ve heard Steve and Hopper talk about them. They were lethal. But they seemed to be way too full of themselves with the way they strutted about as if they owned the place.

Peacocks.

But someone was bound to harvest their feathers sooner or later and you’d be happy to see the floor get wiped with their faces.  

Second, you focused on the others. They didn’t look as threatening as the Careers but that didn’t mean they weren’t skilled. You weren’t going to underestimate anyone especially because many of them were most likely applying the same strategy as you – not revealing much about themselves or their skills so they could be overlooked and when you least expected it, you’d get a knife in the back.

You felt a small hand worm its way into yours, snapping you out of your racing thoughts, and you looked down to see Will whose eyes were filled with uncertainty. He must have been feeling very small, surrounded by all these tough, older people. You couldn’t blame him. You felt intimidated too.  

“In two weeks, twenty-three of you will be dead,” began the instructor, barely bothering with pleasantries like introducing herself. “One of you will be alive. Who that is depends on how well you pay attention over the next four days, particularly to what I’m about to say.”

You ignored the nasty looks the boy from Two was sending you as you squeezed your brother’s hand and focused on the woman in front of you.

“First, no fighting with the other Tributes. You’ll have plenty of time for that in the Arena. There are four compulsory exercises. The rest will be individual training. My advice is, don’t ignore the survival skills. Everybody wants to grab a sword, but most of you will die from natural causes.”

‘There is nothing natural about this’ you thought and bit down a snort.

“Ten percent will die from infection, twenty percent from dehydration. Exposure can kill as easily as a knife.”

And speaking of exposure and knives, your eyes found the group of men seated in a space that stood erected higher above the training grounds. They were all so openly exposed, sitting on their velvet couches and eating snacks as they watched kids fight as if it was some kind of theatre, that you wondered if anyone ever got tempted to throw a knife at one of them.

Particularly at this one specific person.

You could see him. The one man who seemed to tower above them all despite his lanky stature. He had short-length blonde hair, defined cheekbones, and eyes that pierced through your very essence. He looked at you in such a way as if he already knew all the deep and dark corners of your mind.

He was the Head Gamemaker, you were told.

Henry Creel.

“You may begin,” said the woman, and like an illusionist snapping his fingers to break someone from a trance, the Tributes scattered and everyone began their training.

You wanted to conceal your skills as much as possible so you weren’t going to engage much, only going as far as covering the bare minimum.

You wanted the others to think of you as weak. To think of you as someone who knew only the basics and didn’t have any weaponry skills. You didn’t want to fight and reveal what you could do. Or maybe you could fight and purposely be clumsy to throw them off your back. That would hopefully serve you well. It was always good to be underestimated. It gave the element of surprise and that was one of the most useful factors you could rely on in the Arena.

If they were to underestimate you.

If they were to overlook you.

They’ll never see you coming.  

But that didn’t mean you couldn’t do some training for endurance that everyone else did as well. Or follow the Survival training.

Some running and weight lifting were not exactly going to expose much and were going to be very helpful. Meanwhile, you could come down here and train with your knives and axes and combat to your heart’s content during the late hours when nobody else would inhabit the training grounds. And after that, when individual training came, you’d be able to train day and night without worrying about showing off your skills. You were going to keep some Peacekeepers awake past their bedtime but you couldn’t even bring yourself to feel sorry for them. They could have all the rest they needed, safely tucked in their beds and never worrying about being put in an Arena. They could survive a couple of days of putting up with your schedule. After all, you had privileges now and everyone had to sort of cater to your needs.

The needs of pigs for slaughter.  

“You want to lift weights?” you asked, chuckling lightly as you watched Will struggle to take two dumbbells of ten kilograms each.

“You know… Mike, Dustin, and Lucas call me Will the Wise. I’m smart. But…I’m not strong,” he grunted and you took the weights off his hands, making him look at you quizzically.

“If you start with such heavy weights you’ll do your muscles more harm than good and when we are out there in the Arena, you won’t be able to do anything because of muscle ache. You understand?” you asked and he nodded. “You start with lighter weights and slowly build up muscle mass until you can lift heavy ones. Unfortunately, building muscle mass takes a lot of time which we don’t have. But even a little can be helpful. Now take these,” you handed him two dumbbells of two kilograms each and he gladly took them. “I’ll show you what exercises are most efficient and you’re gonna do them until you can’t anymore. Okay? Then you’ll take a break before repeating.”

“Okay.”

After showing Will some exercises that Steve and Jonathan had shown you a long time ago, you left him to train and headed for the treadmills not too far away, keeping a watchful eye on him the whole time.

While District Seven didn’t have training camps where people could train for the games like District One and Two did, you weren’t strangers to exercise and most people exercised daily to keep good form and grow muscles, otherwise, it was very hard to properly fulfill your job which required lots of force, endless swinging, and heavy lifting.

You began with a slight jog. Then you started running in intervals, switching from jogging to power-walking and then repeating the cycle.

“Run, rabbit, run, rabbit, run, run, run,” drawled tauntingly a voice from right next to you, almost making you jump startled, and you pressed the pause button, slowing the treadmill to a stop and turning to look at the person who so casually and creepily approached and addressed you. “Careful there…we don’t want you to fall and have an accident before the games have started…little forest fairy,” he smirked mockingly, teeth glinting in the luminescent light as you stared him down.

You recognized him as the guy from Two who had stared maliciously at you at the Parade yesterday. If you remembered correctly, his name was Chance.

“Did you need something?” you asked after a while, a bit out of breath, and he shrugged.

“Not really, no… at least not yet… Just wanted to see what the whole fuss was about but… well, let’s just say I see nothing but a little girl,” he snorted.

“I hope you realize that all of us, you included, are still kids,” you threw back at him calmly and the smirk fell off his face.

“Don’t smart-mouth me, Seven. Pick your battles wisely.”

“It’s not smart-mouthing if it’s a legal fact,” you shrugged and he frowned, rolling his eyes.

“And what’s going on here? Is this the Running Games or the Hunger Games?” mocked a girl as she came to stand next to the boy, annoyingly smacking her gum, and you smiled tightly. They seemed to be from the same District because they had the same stupid ideas regarding intimidation tactics.

“Maybe they should be named like that. None of us is going to outrun death. In fact, we’re running headfast towards it. It’s just…sad,” you muttered, looking them deep in the eyes and they looked at each other, visibly disturbed and confused by your words, before walking away.

You let out the breath you were holding and leaned, resting your forehead on your crossed forearms.

“Don’t let them get to you,” you heard someone else speak and you straightened up, coming face to face with a redheaded young girl. “One and Two are all brawl and no brains. Only thing they know is how to antagonize people, thinking they’re intimidating but really, they just look like dumb oafs.”

“Well…you do have a point,” a small smile curled on your face. “And you are,” you drawled and tilted your head in confusion, indicating you were waiting for her to introduce herself.

“I’m Max,” she extended her hand and you took it for a handshake. “Max Mayfield.”

“Y/N Byers.”

Time felt like an illusion.

Like a dream.

A few days passed by so fast, it felt like you just closed your eyes for a minute so Becky could do your eyeshadows and you were already sitting in a room, waiting for your turn to come so you could show off your skills, get evaluated, and receive a score.

“Tomorrow, they’ll bring you in one by one and evaluate you. This is important because higher ratings will mean Sponsors. This is the time to show them everything,” had explained Hopper the previous night at dinner. “There’ll be an ax and knives. Make sure to use them,” was his advice to you.

“What about Will?” you had asked, eyes darting between your brother and the man. “I mean, he got a bit stronger and learned to shoot an arrow but…”

“Then let him shoot an arrow. If he hits center, it’s gonna be impressive. If not, he’ll still get good points.”

“Maybe I can paint,” offered Will quietly.

“Paint? What do you have in mind?”

“It’s your turn,” muttered Will after exiting the room and you stood up, ruffling his hair on the way to the facility, and waited for the Peacekeepers to open the doors so you could enter.

The first thing that you noticed and the first thought that struck your mind was how loud the echo of your boots hitting the floor seemed to sound. Maybe it was just the anxiousness making your senses overload but you hated it and you wanted it all to be over soon. You didn’t exactly do well when others examined you so closely.

So meticulously.

So fastidiously.

You felt naked. You felt exposed.  

You were used to seeing this place empty because of your late training sessions. But there was nobody to watch you like a hawk then. Not really. So now you felt kind of small and intimidated. But you didn’t lose the powerful stride to your steps as you approached the erected stand occupied by men who fell into silence and looked down at you, acknowledging your presence.

“Welcome, Mrs. Byers,” greeted Henry as he came to stand at the edge of the room and smiled at you, hands behind his back, as he stared you down from head to toe with that familiar knowing, discreet look of his that by now you were very well acquainted with and accustomed to, making you feel as if maggots were crawling all over your body. You contained a shiver and listened. “You have ten minutes to present a chosen skill.”

You nodded and slowly turned to inspect everything that was placed on the tables and carts. You did a double-take, however, when you finally took notice of the floor not far from where you were standing. Your brother had painted a whole, big mural of the president and the Head Gamemaker, standing proudly with the flag of Panem seemingly waving on the wind behind them. He had put lots of details and you were surprised he managed to paint such a stunning imagery in just ten minutes. You had to give it to Will, he was smarter than people gave him credit for. He was using his art skills and his innocence to manipulate the Capitol into adoring him and you could see him succeed. You didn’t know if you should feel proud or sad that he had to do things like that at such a young age. It was sickening.

You pushed down the feeling of distress to the pits of your mind and focused back on the task at hand.  

‘Should I go for the knives or the ax?’ You asked yourself as your eyes darted between the objects and you opted for the ax.

You grasped the handle and let out a breath as you looked at the humanoid target, eyes focusing on the red spot right in the middle. All your life you have used axes to cut down trees. You were used to them. It had been a bit odd to use them in any other way but you had quickly gotten used to it in the past days. You were confident that if you engaged in close combat with an ax in your hands, you would easily come out victorious.

You only hoped you’d be able to use them for long-distance combats too. Taking down opponents without them being able to get near you was something that gave you peace of mind.

You positioned your body and your arm and threw the weapon.

‘Fuck!’ you screamed in your head over and over as the ax missed the center of the target and landed next to its head instead, embedding into the slim wooden surface.

So maybe you overestimated yourself when it came to throwing axes. You thought you were good at it so you wondered why you ended up missing this time around. Was this ax too heavy? Or was something off with your aim? Did you need a better adjustment? Or was it just the nerves? Certainly, it seemed to be the case.

It would have been less infuriating if you had missed by a big shot but the ax was right there, an inch from the head. Somehow, being this close yet not right on the spot made it all the more frustrating than if you had missed the target altogether.

You let out a sigh.

Well, it was what it was. You couldn’t do much to change it.

You turned to look at the men, wishing to hear if they had something to say, and your stomach did a somersault when you saw they were talking amongst each other, laughing, stuffing themselves with grapes, cheese, meat, and pouring expensive, fermented wine down their thick throats.  

They hadn’t deemed you worthy enough to even pay a sliver of attention to you.

Utter embarrassment, shame, and frustration washed over you before they got replaced by anger and disbelief. Before the Peacekeepers could say or do anything, you grabbed one of the knives and threw it with all the strength you could muster.  

It flew an inch by Henry’s cheek, almost nicking his skin. It went past him, the edge of the blade piercing an apple that one of the men was holding. It snatched it off his grasp and embedded it in the wall right next to a shocked man. The apple was so deeply and precisely pierced that the moment the knife hit the wall it split in two and landed on the floor with a thud.  

There was dead silence for a moment as everyone stared at the knife and the two halves of a once-whole fruit before their attention snapped onto you.

You sent them a sickly sweet, foxy smile as you spread your arms wide open and curtsied politely, although even a blind man could see the tinge of mockery in your actions.

“Thank you for your consideration. It was such a pleasure and honor for a circus animal like me to perform for high-class gentlemen like you,” you told them sweetly as you straightened up and with one last look at Henry, you were whirling on your heel and walking towards the doors confidently, not wanting to show them how absolutely fucking terrified you were feeling right now.  

The moment you were out of the facility, your confident façade shattered, your ears filling with the sound of ringing and breaking glass, and your face twisted in a cringe grimace as you rushed to grab your brother’s hand and dash to the elevators.

.

“I almost pissed myself. You know what, actually, scratch the almost, I think I did pee my pants just a little bit,” you scrunched up your face as you exited the elevator and Steve, Hopper, Will, and Becky looked at you weirdly as you began pacing nervously and nibbled on your finger skins.  

“What are you talking about? A fucking good job is what you did,” snorted Hopper as he gave you thumbs up and Becky shook her head.

“No Hop, this was a bad idea. These people don’t take lightly to being provoked and you know this,” she said with worry in her voice and you exhaled sharply as you plopped down on one of the leather couches and buried your head in your hands.

“I just couldn’t help myself. I just…they wanted to be impressed so I thought I’d give them what they wanted! They didn’t even pay attention to me. So I made them.”

“Yes, but you can’t just go around throwing knives at people, Y/N!” berated you Becky, and you groaned, shutting your eyes in desperation.

“Oh, c’mon. I’m sure it’s all good,” waved his hand Murray. “They all want a good show, that’s all.”

“Show like that can affect us all badly and you know it,” she huffed and waved a finger, making you shrink under her gaze and look at Hopper who sent you an encouraging wink.

“Nice throw,” he mouthed silently and got smacked by Becky, making you smile a bit. “No, no, I’m serious. I wanna know how they reacted when you threw that knife.”

“Well…they kind of…jumped. They were pretty startled and just stared at the knife for a while,” you recounted. “Then they turned to look at me. They were like deer in headlights.”

“Oh, yeah?” laughed boisterously the man, accompanied by Murray’s snorts, and Becky rolled her eyes at them, throwing her arms in the air.

“And you said what again?”

“Thank you for your consideration. It was such a pleasure and honor for a circus animal like me to perform for high-class gentlemen like you,” you bit your lip to prevent your smile from growing and the men laughed harder, slapping the couch.

“-for high-class gentlemen like you,” he finished with you and you nodded. “Oh, that’s brilliant. Hoo boy,” scrunched up his face Hopper in what you assumed was satisfaction. “Oh, I hope that hit them hard.”

“You better pray it won’t hit us hard.”

“Oh, do lay off, you sourpuss. Loosen up your corset, would ya? What? They gonna take it out on them? Seriously? They are already fucked anyways. Might as well go out with a bang.”

“Hopper!

“Oh, it’s starting,” exclaimed Steve and everyone lifted their heads to look at the huge TV.

“As you know, the Tributes were rated on a scale of one to twelve after three days of careful evaluation. The Gamekeepers would like to acknowledge that it was an exceptional-“ Caesar began droning on about the scores and introducing each Tribute and how much they have received and you anxiously awaited to hear of your results.

“From District One, Andy, with a score of nine.”

“From District Two, Chance, with a score of ten. Nicole, with a score of ten.”

“The Careers are good, indeed,” you hummed as you bit your nail and Becky smacked your hand away, sending you a scolding look.

“From District Four, Max Mayfield, with a score of eight,” announced the man and you smiled.

“How many twelve-year-olds will we have in the games this year?” clicked his tongue Steve. “Do they hate children that much?”

“I wonder how they’d react if the children from the Capitol have to participate in the games,” you snorted. “I doubt they’ll be as happy and entertained as they are now.”

“Young lady,” Becky sent you a look and you sighed, looking at your lap.

“From District Seven, William Byers,” said Caesar and all of you straightened up, looking intently at the screen. “A score of eight.”

“Excellent!” exclaimed Becky and you wrapped an arm around the boy, bringing him close to your side and kissing his forehead.

“Good job, honey. Good job.”

“They must have really liked that drawing. Very patriotic,” Steve winked and Will smiled shyly.

“And now, for Y/N Byers. She lands a score of…Eleven,” declared the man and for a moment there was a stunned silence before everyone in the room erupted in gasps and cheers.

“Well, I stand corrected,” Becky did a double-take. “That’s outstanding, Y/N!”

“What did I tell ya, huh?” laughed Hopper as he raised his glass with one hand while the other went to muss up your hair. “That’s my girl.”

You chuckled and swatted his hand away, smoothing out the stray strands, and gladly accepted Will and Steve’s warm hug.

“I didn’t doubt you for a second,” muttered Steve in your ear and you smiled, closing your eyes and nuzzling in his shoulder.

“I thought they would be pissed,” you confessed once you pulled away from his embrace and Hopper and Murray shook their heads.

“Nah, on the contrary. They liked your guts. I told you they always want a good show.”

“To Y/N Byers!” raised his glass Murray and everyone joined for a toast, leaving you to look on abashedly.

“The blooming Willow Flower!”

[lumiereandcogsworth]

21. On a place of insecurity

From this prompt list

Word count: 890

Tags: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Intimacy, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse

on AO3!

—

Adam rolled onto his back, sighing and smiling. “That was fun,” he panted.

Belle laughed, grinning up at their bed canopy ceiling. “I quite agree.”

Her husband then turned on his side, quickly leaning down and kissing her. He left a trail of kisses down her neck and to her collarbone before parting from her and sitting up. He rubbed his eyes and ran his fingers through his hair. “Need anything, my dear? Something to eat? A glass of wine, perhaps?”

She chuckled, “That’s alright, love. I’m plenty satisfied.” Belle tilted her head, watching him with adoration, when suddenly she noticed something on Adam’s back. Curious eyes focused and brows knitted, she gingerly sat up, scooting herself behind Adam to look closer.

There in the yellow candlelight, she noticed lines. Not drawn, not dark, but fleshy and puckered. Lines along his shoulder blades, repeated in the same spots, evidence of re-opening and healing over again. Scars.

“What are you doing?” Adam asked, almost startling her from her concentration.

She didn’t say anything, only bringing a delicate hand to feel the uneven patterns. Adam understood at once, his stomach immediately clenching, his whole body growing tense at the sudden vulnerability.

“I never noticed these before,” she said simply.

“I… Yes, well…” he cleared his throat, quickly turning and taking her hand in his. “It’s no matter, darling.”

“Where are they from?” Belle asked, though she immediately regretted it. She knew where they were from. She knew who put them there. Her father always told her she had a problem with not thinking before speaking — her tongue always faster than her mind allowed, never being able to keep up. Her curiosity had gotten her into more trouble than she could tell, though, arguably, it had also been the source of some of the more wonderful things in her life.

“Sorry— Adam, I—,” she recoiled. “You don’t have to explain. I know.”

Adam’s cheeks burned with embarrassment. It’s not like he ever tried to hide his scars when they were intimate, it’s just that often they were in the dark. It was easier to keep secrets in the dark.

He held both her hands between his, turning a bit more to face her. “It’s…” he shook his head, words caught in his throat.

For a moment, they found themselves at a standstill. A tattered book of memories had been removed from the shelf, a deep wound had been sliced open with a knife. The whole room felt stuffy and suddenly they found it quite difficult to meet the other’s eyes.

As usual, Belle was brave first.

“Adam… You don’t have to be ashamed. Your father, he…” she swallowed, questioning if she even had the right to speak of the man. “He didn’t know you. He never tried to know you, and that wasn’t your fault.”

“I know,” Adam replied in a low voice, looking away. He knew. He knew that in reality it probably wasn’t his fault. He knew that his father was evil and cruel and hated the world and blamed his son for no good reason. But he also knew the voice that never left his head, the disdain he still felt when he passed a mirror, the twinge of emptiness in his gut every time Belle hugged her father. It always subsided a moment later, when he received the next hug from the same kind man, but it was always there.

Belle frowned, wishing she could do anything to remove the pain he had grown up with, the scars he had been left with. She gently removed her hands from his, inching around him on the bed, placing a hand on his shoulder. Slowly, they both turned just enough so that Belle could face his scars; lines and splotches of puckered skin. Her finger tips traced over them again, they vaguely resembled wings, burned into his back, clipped before he could ever learn to fly on his own.

Ever so lightly, she leaned closer and pressed her lips to his scars. She kissed each one, slowly, delicately, kissing away every awful memory, rewriting their very foundation as each tender kiss sent sparks shooting to Adam’s heart.

Adam had tears falling down his cheeks. Utterly silent, utterly ashamed. His lip trembled and his heart ached as he felt each soft kiss from Belle. Her love for him was like nothing he had ever known, it overwhelmed him in every possible way. A tear dropped from his jaw onto his hand, he didn’t move.

Belle continued to leave her precious little kisses, one for each scar that she could find. She felt Adam shake and she moved a hand around his waist. He grabbed it instantly, squeezing it. She began to hear his faint sobs, her heart broke. She loved him more than anything, her heart called his name even when they were in the same room.

She moved and kissed his shoulder then, looking up at him, her hand reaching to wipe his tears. “My love. How can I show you that you are enough?”

He turned his head, barely meeting her eyes. “You already have,” he whispered wetly. He leaned toward her and pressed his forehead to hers. She held his face, safe and gentle, always gentle. They closed their eyes and breathed, warm and vulnerable and full of love.

[momochizoey]

An excerpt of the multi chapter Chasefield fic I'm currently working on:

“OMG, V, don’t be obvious, but look at the hippie. She totally spaced out and broke that dumb camera of hers.”

Victoria rolled her eyes at Taylor. As if she was ever obvious about spying unless she wanted to be. What is she, an amateur? Still, she leaned back in her seat, changing the angle she was sitting at as if she was getting more comfortable listening to Mr Jefferson. She kept her gaze on him attentively for a few seconds longer (not like that was much of a chore) before she flicked her eyes to the side.

Taylor was right: Max’s camera looked busted, loose parts gathered here and there on the table, and she was visibly stressing out trying to put it back together.

Victoria almost laughed and whispered a snide remark towards Max, when suddenly the words caught in her throat.

A cloud had parted outside as Max was bent over her camera, her knuckles pressed against the side of her head. The hair falling in front of her face was lit up with a golden glow in the rays of the sun, and the soft shadow and light playfully danced across her frowning face.

Before she could think about what she was doing, she reached down to her bag. She took out her camera, aimed it at the vision before her, and with no extra thought, no perfecting the settings, no changing the depth of field, she shot.

The click of her camera snapped her out of it. Hurriedly, she tried to hide her camera again, hoping nobody saw-

“Victoria. I know this is a photography class, and I understand the urge to capture an image can feel overwhelming. But please, pay attention. I don’t get paid to talk at you, I’m here to teach you, and I can’t do that if you aren’t listening when I speak.”

She flinched at Mr Jefferson's reprimand, blushing as she noticed the rest of the class was staring at her. 

She scrambled for a convincing cover story. "I'm so sorry Mr Jefferson, I just bumped into my camera bag, and I thought I saw a scratch on the lense and wanted to see if it showed up on a picture. I was paying attention though, you were talking about chiaroscuro? That's like, the interplay between light and dark, right? Like Diane Arbus?"

He sighed. "That's correct Victoria. But please, next time, wait until after class?"

She nodded, and, ignoring her friends' inquisitive looks, she sank into her seat with her arms crossed in front of her.

What the hell was that? Why did Max-fucking-Selfield cause her to completely lose her mind? She was in the middle of class! And not just any other boring class, but Mark Jefferson's class! 

And then that picture! It was like she completely forgot everything her parents had taught her about the exact art of photography! It was entirely unprofessional, the environment was completely uncontrolled, the lighting wasn't coming from a precisely calculated angle, her model (whose identity she refused to think about for the moment) wasn't posed to her exact directions to evoke the specific emotions she had determined in advance. Frankly, she was almost convinced she must've damaged her camera by forcing it to take such a terrible photo. 

She shot the cause of this… lapse of judgement, a look of disdain, only to startle at the intense stare the normally timid hipster had aimed her way. 

Something behind those blue, usually doe-like eyes, had turned its attention to Victoria, and she could almost see the cogs turning in her skull. 

For a second, she wondered if this is how prey felt.

Then Max blinked, and the feeling disappeared.

I've been working on this fic for weeks now, and I'm currently about 7k words in? But while I want to have more chapters ready before I actually start publishing it, I got too impatient and had to share this first scene with you all here! Consider it a teaser! Anyway, I hope you like it! Life Is Strange, and especially Maximum Victory/Chasefield has (once again) taken over my heart, and I'm so excited for the moment I can share the full and completed story with you. Which is definitely coming, I'm in a pretty good writing groove and I know where I'm going, so look forward to it!

[skylarsin7]

Chapter 21: To Bear the Weight of the World

Steve wasn’t sure what time it was when his eyes fluttered open. Nor could he immediately tell exactly where he was. In A bed, sure, but whose, he wasn’t sure. The dim grey light coming between the dark curtains suggested the arrival of dawn, casting faint shadows of the tree outside the window dancing on the wall. The next thing he was aware of was that he was not alone in bed. Strands of dark curls tickled his cheek as the scents of jasmine, honey, and whiskey flooded his senses. His eyes snapped open as recognition dawned and it was all he could do not to leap from the bed as if he had been scalded. Lily had tucked her head under his chin and against his chest, and Steve’s arms were locked protectively around her. He managed a glance down and sighed with relief when he saw they were both still clothed. 

Memories of the previous night trickled back to him: the cellar, the whiskey, the glitter of her wedding ring as she hurled it away from her. His heart squeezed as her screams of anguish echoed in his ears, even their remnants powerful enough to send goosebumps pebbling along his skin. He eased away from her, slowly and carefully detangling himself from her hair. His body protested as he rolled away, standing up before he gave into its demands and curled around her again, surrendering to the warmth her body provided. He tucked the blanket back around her, managing a small smile as she stirred, but didn’t wake. She had a tiny bit of color in her cheeks, and she didn’t look quite so ghostly in her sleep. She was so beautiful, even in her sickly state, that he had to physically shove himself away from her. He had been struck by her beauty from the first moment, but knew she never saw him in that way. Memories of that first morning, of her kiss that seared right through him surfaced and he had to turn away from her completely, escaping into the hall. 

He closed the door quietly behind him as he crossed the space to the bathroom.  He splashed cool water on his face, willing calm into his limbs. His breaths came in shaky rasps, her tormented gaze haunting him. He needed to get his emotions under control before he did something he would regret. She was not his. No matter how much he wanted those expressive eyes to soften in his direction, they never would. And there was no use pining over it.  That thought had him scoffing. First Nancy, then Robin, and now Lily. “King Steve, you sit on a throne of unrequited attraction.” He mocked his reflection before glancing away. Standing here wasn’t helping. He needed to keep busy.

He gave his reflection one final disdainful glance before drying his face on a towel and leaving the bathroom.

***

Sunlight filtered in between the drapes as Lily’s eyes fluttered open. She was warm, tucked tightly into her comforter, and for once, she didn’t have the images of a receding nightmare dancing in her head. She felt slightly groggy, like someone coming up from a drug induced slumber. She lifted her head, her world shifting so suddenly and violently that she groaned, sinking back to her pillow. Her stomach tightened, saliva flooding her mouth in preparation for bile. She drew in breaths that already tasted foul. 

She extracted herself from the comforter, closing her eyes as the world tilted dangerously. “So this is what it feels like to be hung over…” Her mind mocked. Her head pounded with a splendid migraine, and she had to breathe slowly to keep from hurling the entire contents of her stomach. Her eyes slitted open, falling on the nightstand. A fresh cup of water, two tylenol, and Eddie’s ring arranged neatly on its surface. The sunlight glittered off the black stone, the shadowed prisms it cast almost mocking her with their brilliance. See? The stone said. I am a beautiful reminder of what could have been, and what isn’t. She shoved the covers away, swinging her legs over the side of the bed and stood much too quickly. 

Her knees shook, unwilling to hold her weight as she sank back onto the edge of the bed. She took in great lungfuls of air as the room spun, the contents of her stomach warning a swift and messy escape. She closed her eyes, holding her pounding skull in her palms. Sweat trickled down her brow, drying into salt on her skin. Once her nausea quieted some, she rose, this time slowly. She held onto the bed until she reached the end of it, then crossed the space to the doorframe. She clung there a moment to steady herself, before moving to the stairway. 

She froze as she made it to the bottom of the stairs. The smell from the kitchen hit her like a truck. Chocolate chip pancakes. She knew them by smell alone. She heaved, a swift and punishing wave of nausea doubling her over and her knees gave way beneath her. She hit the polished wood floor with a loud thump. Steve’s head poked out from the kitchen doorway, his eyes widening as he took her in. “Lily!” He exclaimed, ducking back into the kitchen long enough to drop the pan back on the stove. 

He was beside her the next moment, gripping her shoulders as the alcohol she had drunk came flooding to her throat, splattering all over the floor in a vile smelling pool. Steve had to glance away before he doubled over himself. He ran his knuckles down her spine gently as her heaves gradually slowed. Tears streamed down her face as she drew in ragged breaths, grimacing as bile continued to burn her throat. Steve only had to wonder for a moment what had caused this sudden and violent reaction. He felt like an idiot. Of course she would react that way. She had said once that chocolate chip pancakes were Eddie’s favorite. “Lily, I’m so sorry, I wasn’t thinking…Hang on, I’ll be right back…” He murmured, standing and bounding back into the kitchen. He returned with a damp paper towel and a small glass of water. He sat beside her, offering her the towel and water when she could sit up again. She didn’t look at him right away, wiping her mouth and sipping the water. “I’m sorry…” She murmured, swiping at her eyes and the tears that turned them to emerald glass. It still unnerved him that the amber fire that had become so familiar to him was absent. 

“No need to be sorry hon. You were impressively drunk last night and with no water or food to combat the alcohol, I would imagine that you are in the throes of one splendid hangover.” He spoke the words as a joke to hide his concern. Her face was pale and splotchy, the hollows beneath her eyes standing out like purple bruises. He closed his eyes for a moment to ground himself. “Can you stand?” He asked quietly. She nodded. He looped one arm beneath hers. “Lean on me, let’s get you back to bed.” She shook her head. “I want to go see Max.” She said, her voice hoarse from the burning in her throat. He gripped her a little tighter. “But you are not well. You need to rest.” He protested.

Lily sighed. “I cannot stand to be around that smell. Please…I want to go see Max. I don’t think it possible to feel any worse than I already do.”  He hesitated, but could find no argument that could change her mind. “Alright, let’s get you cleaned up and changed. I’ll take you to Max.”

She was quiet as he drove her to the hospital. The fresh air went a long way to ease her nausea and clear her head, but she felt a little sick. As they neared the stark white building, Steve slowed, pulling off the side of the road. She rounded her confused gaze on him. “Lily, I want you to swear to me you will NOT try and heal Max again. We still don’t know what that power is capable of, and you are sick as it is.” She had the grace to flush. That had been her plan exactly. She was tired of feeling useless, feeling like a burden. She swallowed. “Ok.” She croaked. He continued to stare at her, his dark eyes hard. “Not good enough. I want you to swear it to me.” She sighed. “Alright, I swear to Tou Mu that I won’t try to heal Max.” She said, staring into his eyes. He held her gaze a moment longer before nodding and throwing the car back into gear. 

The hospital was a far cry from the first time she had visited. Families still milled around and sat in clumps around the lobby, but it was not the three ringed circus it once was. She made her way to the visitors desk, offering the clerk a smile she did not feel. The woman’s eyes widened, but she didn’t comment on Lily’s bedraggled appearance. “I’m here to see Max Mayfield. My name is Rose. Rose Munson." She forced her last name through clenched teeth. The clerk smiled gently, as if sensing Lily's turmoil. “Room 201.” She said.

The third floor was just as she remembered it, sterile and falsely cheerful. She was reminded how much she hated hospitals. She could hear Lucas’ soft voice as she approached room 201, rapping gently upon the door. His voice stopped abruptly as he came to answer the knock. “Lily? Are you alright? You look sick.” He commented, wide eyes raking her form. She was sure she looked as awful as she felt. Still, she offered him a smile she was sure did not reach her eyes. “I’m a little hungover, but I’ll be alright.” She tried to make her voice sound convincing, but his gaze told her that she fell short of the mark. Lily cast a glance over his shoulder. “How is she?” She asked quietly. He lifted one shoulder in a shrug that was meant to be nonchalant, but didn’t quite come across that way. “No better, no worse. The doctors say that if she doesn’t come out of it soon, she…she may not.” He struggled with the words, his dark eyes glassy with the tears he barely held at bay. She wanted to reach for him, but knew her touch and support would be of little comfort.

“May I see her?” Lily asked quietly. Lucas nodded. “Do you want me to step down the hall?” His question was careful, as if he wasn’t sure he wanted to. Lily understood. Being away from someone you love and could potentially lose was painful. She nodded. “Just for a few moments. I won’t be long.” Lucas brushed past her without another word, his shoulders set in a hard line as he forced his feet to carry him away from the room. She sent a sympathetic look after him she knew he wouldn’t see. She stepped into the room, skirting the bed before settling into the chair Lucas had obviously been sitting in. Talisman was face down on the edge of the bed. He was almost done with it. She vaguely wondered how many more books he would read to her before he, too, gave up. Lily sighed heavily, taking the prone girl’s hand into her own. “Hey Max…” She said quietly, squeezing the hand in her grip. “I promised Steve I wouldn’t try to heal you. I doubt I could anyway. I’m so tired.” She paused, taking a deep breath. 

“Why don’t you relax?...” Eddie’s voice was quiet, barely a whisper against her ear. “You’ve been through so much, it’s time to rest now, my love.” She stood, searching the room for the source of the voice. It couldn’t be him. She froze. He never called her his love…he always called her Sindarin endearments. A growl bubbled up in her chest. “Vecna…” Her eyes searched in vain for his figure in the shadows. 

“Liliana…” That cold, serpentine voice slithered down her spine and she shuddered. “You look exhausted. You should follow your lover’s advice and rest.” Lily snorted. “As if you give a shit. You wouldn’t know concern if it bit you on the ass.”  She was playing with fire, but she didn’t care. Anger burned like bile in her throat. “Temper, temper. I happen to know why you are so ill. And…how to fix it.” Lily gritted her teeth, her breath catching. “And how would you know that?” She hissed. “Because I have seen it before. That power you have…it comes with a price.” Lily rolled her eyes. “I already knew that, Captain Obvious.”  A little voice in her head warned her not to be so snarky, but she brushed it off. After all Vecna had put her and her friends through, he didn’t deserve her politeness. “You are ill because you have been out of my realm too long. That power you squander requires regular contact in my plane, and without it, it will feast on your longevity until you no longer draw breath. You have about two weeks at most.”   Lily’s heart dropped into her shoes. Two weeks? She knew she was sick, but she expected to have more time than that. Even if only a little. She swallowed hard. “Why are you telling me this?” She dreaded the answer, but couldn’t help but ask. “I have a proposition. Should you accept, it may save your life, and the lives of all you love. Meet me at the Crossroads, and we will strike a deal.” A shiver passed through her, and she knew that other than the girl prone on the bed, she was once again, alone.

She didn’t know how long she sat there, but she slowly sank back into the chair. A knock at the door roused her, if only slightly. “Come in…” She called absently. Lucas opened the door, shivering as he came in. “It’s cold in here…” He commented, his eyes finally falling on Lily. He froze. “Are you alright?” He asked, lengthening his stride and approaching the bed. “Did anything…?” He broke off, biting his lip as his dark eyes raked over Max. Lily shook her head. “Nothing, I…I had a dizzy spell.” The lie slipped off her tongue with the ease of a serpent. He eyed her a moment, but let it go. Lily rose slowly, the room tilting dangerously. The dizzy spell wasn’t exactly a lie, she felt faint and weary. She made her way around the bed, hugging Lucas gently. “I’m sorry I can’t help her. I made a promise to Steve that I wouldn’t try to heal her.” 

Lucas’ eyes narrowed in confusion. “What are you talking about? Heal her…how?” Lily sighed. She had forgotten that not everyone was privy to her weirdness. “Something happened to me in the Upside Down. I got these…powers. One of which is a sort of healing ability. But…like everything, it comes with a price. And so far, that price seems to be my health.” She held up her hands, which were boney and pale, like the rest of her. Lucas sucked in a small breath. “No, I wouldn’t want you to use your powers either. I wouldn’t trade your life for Max’s.” He said firmly, gripping her shoulders almost to the point of pain. Lily managed a small, sad smile. “Trust me, if you did, you’d be doing me a favor.” 

***

The ride back to Steve’s house was heavy with awkward silence. Steve had asked her how her visit was, but Lily couldn’t find the words to tell him. She shivered, remembering the conversation with Vecna. It was an easy choice of course. She would go, if only to find out what he wanted of her, and if it meant that she could protect her friends, all the better. There was just one thing she had to do first. And Steve would not be open to the idea, so she would have to do it after he went to bed that night. 

She told Steve that she had a headache, and that her visit to the hospital had taken more out of her than she anticipated. He helped tuck her into bed, offering tylenol that she refused. “I think I’ll just sleep.” She told him gently. He offered a small, apologetic smile. She forced herself to return it. He leaned down and pressed a feather-light kiss to her temple, and she had to close her eyes to keep from bursting into tears. This would only be the first of her betrayals, her mind told her. But if she managed to protect them, she would pay any cost associated. 

Lily lay still and listened to the quiet of the house. The sun had set at least four hours ago, and there was not a breath of sound to be heard. At least, not on this floor. She kept her eyes closed, straining to hear. Nothing. The house was silent as a tomb. She rose, stuffing her wedding ring in her pocket. She padded on tip toe into the hallway. Darkness and silence greeted her. She padded down the hall to Steve’s room, and leaning on the door, she could hear the sound of his soft snores. She smiled. “Have pleasant dreams.” She whispered, meaning it with every fiber of her being. Her fingers lingered on the wood of the door for longer than seemed necessary. She hated that she had to do this. Especially since Steve had made it perfectly clear that he would stop at nothing to keep her safe. And here she was, running headfirst into the very jaws of the thing that hunted them. 

She padded back down the hall, sliding into the shoes Robin had lent her. She tucked her long hair under the beanie she had worn to the high school, and pulled on her hoodie. She found Steve’s keys in the glass dish by the door, and wrote a note for Steve on the back of an envelope, and laid it in place of his keys. Slowly, and as quietly as she could, she stepped out into the night. Steve’s car started without a fuss, but she still watched the upper floor of the house for movement. Tense seconds ticked by, and after a whole minute of silence and stillness, she backed out of the drive. 

Her heart constricted as for the second time in her life, she raced off into the night. In a stolen car, on a suicide mission. Only this time, there was no Eddie, no safety net waiting for her at her destination. 

[runesandramblings]

"To The Ends of The Earth"

Word Count: TBD / ongoing

Content Warnings: none, follows the events from The Hobbit so there will be the expected violence from the movies

Pairings: KilixOC

Themes: crossover Marvel x Tolkien, romance, fanfic, canon-ish events

Summary:

In the wake of The Blip, the multi-verse has expanded knowledge of the universe in ways no one thought possible. For the first time, journeying between realms and realities is a tangible possibility.

Ex-SHIELD agent and Avenger, Lilith Lenore, is hiding from her past, shunning the life she once led. But when an offer from a wizard of another world is extended, she cannot refuse.

Chapter 2: A Proposition

I grimaced at my old colleague as I knelt down to pick up the knife. I slipped it back into its sheath and tugged my pant leg back down to cover it before standing to face Nick. He was still before me, his larger frame blocking the majority of the doorway between my bedroom and the rest of the apartment. 

"How did you find me?" I asked pointedly. 

I stepped around Nick and whipped my small backpack off, pulling the damp paper bag containing my dinner out of the pack and tossing it onto the ground beside the tattered couch in the same motion. I crossed the floor to the tiny kitchen, the space scarcely large enough for the round, ratty table and two mismatched chairs I'd procured from a thrift store. I pulled back one of the chairs on the side farthest from Nick and sat down, eyeing him skeptically. 

"My dinner is cold, thanks." I lamented, still eyeing him as I began to eat. 

Nick smiled wryly. 

"Apologies. But you changed your number, so I wasn't sure how to get in touch with you."

I gave him a disdainful look. 

"And you didn't take that as a hint?" I asked flatly.

Nick gave me a knowing look and crossed the room in my direction. He seated himself on the arm of the tattered loveseat in what was supposed to be the living room, if you could call it that. The loveseat was the only piece of furniture I'd acquired to fill the space so far. He took a look around at his surroundings before he spoke, taking in everything from the outdated kitchen, to the same faded, red walls in the living room that matched the bedroom. I felt an eyebrow involuntarily raise in skepticism. Had he not gotten a good look around while he was undoubtedly waiting for my return? I was sure he hadn't just gotten in when I made it home, knowing Nick's fondness for turning up unannounced. 

"You know you don't have to hide." He said finally. His tone was soft, apologetic. "Everyone who didn't sign the Accords were pardoned shortly after The Blip." 

I shrugged, keeping my eyes trained on the wrap in my hands rather than looking in his direction. 

"I'm not hiding." I said simply. 

He scoffed. 

"Oh really, Samantha? Isn't that it? Why hide your name if you aren't running from something?"

I shrugged again, still avoiding his piercing gaze. 

"Just because I'm laying low doesn't mean I'm hiding. I'm just retired." 

Nick shook his head. 

"Retired. Give me a break. Lilith, you're too damn special for that. You've done a hell of a lot for this planet, you know." 

I laid my dinner down on the bag and pushed it across the tabletop. Suddenly, my appetite was gone. I felt my stomach turning as the last decade came flying back into my mind. The good deeds I had done in service of the Avengers, sure. But there were also the not-so-good things I'd done before I was involved with SHIELD. And, regrettably, the things I'd done for SHIELD without knowing they were really HYRDA in disguise. The things I'd agreed to, not truly knowing the reality of the mission. The innocent targets. I could feel the sting of tears beginning in the corners of my eyes. 

"I never felt like much of a hero." I said quietly. 

Nick shook his head again as he shifted on the couch, undoubtedly debating standing up to offer comfort before deciding against it.

"That wasn't your fault." He said simply, his tone still soft, much more gentle than his usual mode of delivery. "None of us knew what SHIELD really was. You had no idea they were manipulating you to carry out their agenda-"

"You know it's more than that, Nick." I cut him off. I stood from my seat at the table and crossed the room to stand before him, keeping my distance as I rested against the wall directly across from the couch. "You know what I did before SHIELD. You know why they pardoned me, why they picked me. If you didn't know before Natasha released all of their intel into the world, you sure as hell know now." 

I shifted uncomfortably and stared down at the splintering floorboards beneath my feet. I never had a name, but SHIELD considered me the American rebuttal to the Winter Soldier. I was an assassin already when I came into their service, but when I was dosed with the serum I became lethal. Unless the target was another superhuman, most didn't stand a chance when I was locked onto them.

I finally looked up and met Nick's gaze. He was far from a gentle man, but he looked at me with a sympathetic softness that left a pang in the pit of my stomach. 

"I know, Lilith." He said quietly. "I know what you've done. But the good you've done and the lives you've saved have more than outweighed your past. I know you don't see yourself as a hero. But you're one of the good ones." 

I didn't acknowledge his response as I turned my gaze down to the floor once again.

"So." I started, digging the toe of my boot into a groove in the floorboards. "Why are you here?"

Nick laughed. It was another rarity for him. He seldom showed any kind of emotion, especially toward me. Our relationship had never been particularly cordial. 

"You still don't beat around the bush." He remarked, standing. He stepped closer to me, closing the gap between us by a few feet. "How much do you know about the idea of multiple universes...coexisting?" He started. 

I laughed dryly and shook my head. "Did you forget how we saved the world last time?" I scoffed. "I know a little bit. There are multiple versions of our reality that exist, or coexist I guess. I know its possible to travel between them or back in time..."

I froze, trailing off. For Nick to show up, out of the blue, asking me questions about the universe...it could only mean one thing. 

"No." I said flatly, pushing myself off of the wall. "Nick, I am retired-" 

"Whoa, now." Nick started, holding his hands up in surrender and stepping in front of me. "I haven't even explained yet." 

I frowned and stopped in my tracks, crossing my arms across my chest again. I looked up at Nick, as we were now about two feet apart.

"Well?" 

Nick rubbed the top of his head with his hands as he stepped backward, allowing himself to fall back to sit on the ragged couch once again. I stayed upright, arms still tensely crossed over my chest. 

"The Blip opened up a conversation many of us never thought possible." He started. "Travel between dimensions, between worlds... It's opened doors we never thought possible. Defeating Thanos was only the beginning." 

I nodded, gesturing for him to continue.

"The Time Keepers are responsible for maintaining the timelines and realities of our universe. But, there are many other universes out there. Many worlds. And many keepers of those realities." He continued. "They might go by different names, they might call it different things, but there are many universes out there very similar to our own. And some of these universes, well, they don't have as much help as we do-"

"Get to the point, Nick." I said curtly, cutting him off. I was beginning to lose patience with the unexpected guest. I had lived a peaceful life for the past year, and entertaining the notion of another mission wasn't on my agenda for the evening.

"Well, we thought our universe could only be affected by realities within the same universe, but" He paused. "There are beings in some of these other universes that, with the right power, might be able to cross over. So even though we might think the problems in other realms aren't ours...they could become ours." 

I froze. I was vaguely familiar with the concept of timelines and travel between dimensions. But I had never stopped to consider worlds and realities beyond our own. The delicacies of the universe-the multiverse-whatever it was being called now, were complicated. 

"God, it never ends does it?" I groaned. I felt my back hit the wall as I slid down to sit on the floor.

Nick offered a sympathetic smile. 

"I don't fully understand it, to be honest. Long story short, Time Keepers from outside universes have opened to the door to request help from others, ours being one of them. And the Time Keepers of our universe want to lend that helping hand, if the events in these other realms could affect our own. There are a lot of realities out there, and ours is one of the best equipped to handle these...threats." 

"And? What does that have to do with me?" I questioned impatiently, prompting Nick to continue. 

"And, my dear" A tall, imposing figure clad in a gray suit stepped from around the corner, in the direction of my bedroom. "That is where I come in." 

I leapt to my feet again and removed my blade in one motion. I wasn't used to being startled in my own apartment, and this was twice in one day someone had gotten a drop on me.

"What the hell, Nick??" I questioned, gesturing to the graying, elderly man that had seemingly appeared from the bedroom I had just been in. Where had he even come from, especially without me hearing? 

Nick held out his hand to me, gesturing for peace, as the man in gray stepped confidently forward. He didn't seem rattled in the slightest by my reaction to his sudden appearance. On the contrary, he almost seemed to expect it. He offered me a kind smile and clasped his hands in front of his body. He was dressed in a light gray, three piece suit with matching, slightly darker gray loafers. The shades of gray on his clothes almost seemed to exactly match the gray of his beard and hair, both much longer than would seem normal for a man his age. His waist-length hair was slicked back into a neat, low ponytail. His beard, albeit a bit wild and wiry, was also neatly combed and clasped in the center with a small band. He had kind, knowing eyes that were a piercing shade of blue-gray.  A little too knowing, I thought. It felt as though he were staring straight through me, right into my soul. I shifted my gaze away as I bent over and slipped my knife back into its hiding spot once again. 

"It's nice to finally meet you, Lilith." The stranger said kindly. He had an accent I did not recognize. "Master Fury has told me a great deal about you."

I relaxed a bit, although still not fully trusting of the man that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. I wasn't overly fond of putting my trust in strangers, but I did somewhat trust Nick. At least enough to know he wouldn't intentionally put me in harms way.

"Nick hasn't told me a thing about you. You aren't from here, I take it." I said. 

The gray stranger shook his head. 

"I am not." He confirmed. "I come from a land we call Middle Earth." 

I glanced warily at Nick before returning my gaze to the elderly man. 

"Okay" I started, unsure of where the conversation was going to go. "I still don't really know what this has to do with me." 

The stranger's smile never faltered. There was an aura about him, a gentleness. I couldn't quite put my finger on it. Despite my hesitance, I couldn't help but feel a certain safeness around him.

"They have a problem that they've requested our help with." Nick interjected, attempting to speed along the explanation. 

I leaned back to rest against the wall and crossed my arms over my chest again.

"Do I at least get a name before we get into this?" I questioned, gesturing towards the man. 

The stranger approached slowly and extended his hand toward me. I reached out hesitantly to grab it, sliding my hand into his much larger one. His skin was warm, and once again I felt a wave of peace wash over me. 

"My name is Gandalf." He said simply, giving my hand a light squeeze before releasing. "Where I come from I am what we call a wizard-"

"We have those here." I blurted, cutting him off. "Well, kind of." I shook my head, still feeling a bit overwhelmed. I wasn't one to usually ramble and yet I couldn't stop the words from tumbling out of my mouth. "I'm sorry, you were saying?" 

He smiled again and continued.

"My world is home to many creatures, many of whom hold a similar power as I do. But as I'm sure is the same in your realm, not all creatures choose to wield this power for good." 

I nodded along silently, gesturing for him to continue. I felt a thousand questions threatening to spill over.

"Many years ago, elven lords created a number of rings. Rings of power, as it were. They were meant to be dispersed to the different races of Middle Earth to be used for good. They were shared between elves, dwarves, and men." 

"Okay," I nodded again, trying to wrap my head around the information I was being given. "I'm following." 

"Unfortunately, the rings were a trap. They were intended only to seduce the wearers to evil. A dark sorcerer was behind the rings, and he created a ring for himself as well. A very powerful ring, one that was intended to give him rule over all." Gandalf paused for a moment. "I apologize, I feel I'm beginning to ramble. The rings themselves are not of dire importance to the purpose of my request. This sorcerer was driven back and defeated, many years ago." He said hurriedly. "However, the threat of his return is ever present. There are still a number of dark creatures that are forever in his service and will do anything to see the return of their lord." 

Gandalf turned, glancing to where Nick was seated on the couch. 

"Would you mind?" He gestured to the open space beside Nick.

Nick shook his head as he shifted over. The wizard stepped over and settled himself onto the seat beside Nick. He rested his hands on the tops of his knees, as though he was wearied from a long trip.

"There are those in my realm who can gain a glimpse into the future. These seers are always watching for events that could allow a foothold for evil to return to Middle Earth. There is a quest I am soon to embark on that, if unsuccessful, could allow these dark creatures to wreak havoc on our land. We have many powerful weapons in our world but, given this new opportunity for help from other realms, we thought it might be beneficial."

I nodded, still slowly processing the information I'd just been given. Magical beings and otherworldly creatures were not new to me. The idea of time, or I guess in this instance inter-dimensional travel, was not new to me either. But this, a wizard from another realm, showing up in my home to ask for help...this was very new. Especially after the quiet life I had led for the past year. 

"Lilith?" Nick asked. 

I looked between Gandalf and Nick, realizing I'd been silent for several minutes. 

"Why me?" I asked quietly. I returning my gaze to the floor, avoiding Gandalf's piercing blue eyes. "I mean if you're looking for help from this world, we have actual gods at our disposal. We have real heroes, people who are much more powerful than I am. Why would you want my help?" 

Gandalf stood from the couch and stepped toward me again. He came to rest a couple of feet away from me. I could feel his gaze on me as I kept my eyes directed downward at the floor. 

"This is not a quest for brute strength and force." He started. "If we are to be successful, we need stealth, and wit, and cunning. There are more important things that make a hero." 

I looked up and met Gandalf's gaze. He was unlike anyone, human or not, I'd ever met. There was an aura about him of wisdom and purity. His kindness was radiant, and I felt an overwhelming sense of safety and trust in this stranger I barely knew.

"I have been told that you do not think yourself worthy of, well, anything." He started again. "Often the people who think the least of themselves are the ones with the most to offer. From what I have learned about you, Lilith, I believe you are exactly what I am looking for." He smiled warmly at me. "You are a skilled fighter. You speak your mind, for better or worse. I've heard you can break into any locked room. You're small, if I may be so bold to say. Probably not much larger than your traveling companions will be." He continued, with a knowing twinkle in his eye. "I think you'll fit right in."

I returned his smile, feeling somewhat at ease for the first time since I'd stepped into my apartment. Although I was not sure why, I knew that I would not refuse his offer. 

"So what do you say, my dear" Gandalf extended his hand toward me once again. "Are you up for an adventure?" 

[potassium-pilot]

FFXIVWrite 2022, Day 21: Solution

(A/N: My friend and I are developing an AU, and this was written to honor that. Meet Bea Adore, a Keeper of the Moon non-WoL adventurer. I’m basically taking the Lodestone story and stuffing her into it)

The Shiokaze Hostelry of Kugane, storied for its hospitality and spectacles, held the former Azure Dragoon and his traveling companion, the tiny dragonet Orn Khai. Estinien sat bored, holding up sarume for the dragonet to sear to perfection.

And now here we are, a spectacle to drunkards, he thought.

It was then that a guest of an odd nature appeared- at least, odd to Kugane. Few ever see a Keeper of the Moon miqo’te travel outside of their abodes, but here was one with dark red hair, maroon eyes, and bluish-grey skin out in the middle of Hingashi. They seemed to stare at Orn Khai in horror.

“Welcome to the Shiokaze Hostelry!” Orn Khai greeted cheerfully. The miqo’te stepped closer and closer to the table, and bent down to get a better look.

“Is something the matter?” asked Orn Khai.

“Sir, did you know your lizard could talk?”

Estinien had to hear that question from her with his own long ears. Granted, after sending him on a wild goose chase for a dragon that turned out not to be a dragon, he couldn’t help but feel a bit gratified by the question.

“Aye, though appearances can be deceiving. What you see before you is a dragon.”

“A dragon?” Soon, Orn Khai felt his ribcage be compressed by the hands of this curious patron and soon was held in the sky aloft. “Hey! Put me down!”

“If the Twelve didn’t want you to be picked up, why did they make you so pickup-able?”

“The Twelve didn’t make me! My people don’t hail from Hydaelyn!”

Halone save him, this is the first time that Estinien had felt like laughing in weeks. After a moment of examining him, the miqo’te put him down. “Sorry, I should have asked for your permission first”, she apologized to Estinien.

“What about mine?!” Orn Khai demanded.

“Pets don’t talk, Orn Khai”, Estinien teased. The dragon growled and looked away. “What’s your name?”

“Bea.”

“Hm. Odd name for a Keeper of the Moon.”

“You know our ways?”

“I’ve met all kinds in my travels.”

Bea’s face brightened. “Per chance, have you met someone named Dia Sito?”

“Heh, you could say that. She pulled a dragon’s eye out of my shoulder once and threw it off a bridge at the risk of her own life.”

Bea gasped. “Have…have you seen her recently?”

“Hm. Last I saw her, she fell unconscious in battle and I dropped her off in the care of the Lord Commander.”

“What’s a Lord Commander?” Bea asked before remembering a previous conversation. “Hey wait…black hair, Elezen, tall, nice voice?”

“Er…I’ve no comment for the voice, but that seems to fit the bill.”

“Oh, I know him! I’m Eric or something like that!”

His eyebrows furled in curiosity. “You’re what?”

“That’s his name! ‘I’m Eric de Boring’.”

“Do…do you mean Aymeric de Borel?”

“Oh yeahhhh…well, good for him for taking care of her.”

Keep yourself together, Varlineau. Keep it together.

Suddenly, he heard a familiar voice of Tataru yelling, “There you are!” Across the way, Tataru and Krile waved, then stepped towards him.

“Oh, I like your cat ears”, Bea complimented Krile.

“Thank you”, Krile said before she started bursting out laughing at Estinien. “Forgive me, I had heard that the Azure Dragoon had hung up his lance. But I did not expect that he would take up the serving trays in its stead.”

Bea’s face showed a clear disapproval before they showed it to Estinien, who seemed to wear a look of disdain for whatever it was that Krile had in mind. He stood up and told Orn Khai, “‘Tis time we went our separate ways, little one. But so long as you remain here, you shall not want for comfort. Fare you well.” He turned to Bea and said, “You too. Our time was short, but memorable.”

After he said this, he grabbed his bag and leapt upward to the second floor. Bea stared in amazement at his flexibility. Tataru shook her head. “Well, now where could he be?”

“He has so few places left to go. We’ll find him”, Krile reassured.

“What do you even want him for?” Bea asked. “He seemed to just mind his own business with his lizard.”

“Dragon!” Orn Khai protested.

“It’s a mission of grave importance, I’m afraid. Otherwise, I would dare not disturb his deserved retirement”, Krile answered.

“Hm. Well, nothing to it but to keep going. Nice meeting you all.” Bea ran out of the Shiokaze Hostelry and continued her own mission.

—————

Kugane Ohashi seemed to be the last place anyone would look for anyone. This helped Estinien find some comfort, and a nice perch to settle into alone.

At least, so he thought.

He found Bea there at the top, and yelped at seeing them, making Bea yelp back.

“Fury! What are you doing up here?!” He demanded.

“A local told me that Dia was seen fighting someone here, so I was hoping I could find clues.”

Estinien blinked, then slowly let down his guard. “Then why are you up here?”

“Well…I found nothing. I was hoping that maybe I could find some inspiration up here.”

As he slowly lowered his body to sit, he asked her, “Why do you seek her out in the first place? She’s rather busy, and I bet she’s still recovering from her travails in her battle against Zenos.”

“Zenos? That the big guy with the greasy blond hair and the big arse?”

Estinien frowned. “Again, I cannot comment on arse size…but that would be him.”

“Eugh. I know she didn’t like him.”

“Can’t say I do either.”

They shook their head. “She’s been kind of helping me in this adventuring stuff.”

“Oh?”

With a nod, Bea continued, “I only knew my tribe for so long. When I finally left my home to see more, I was…disappointed. But she was different. She and I bumped into each other in the Carline Canopy one day, and we’ve been adventuring together since. But we got separated after she was banished from the Eorzean Alliance, then reunited once Ishgard opened its borders, then separated again after she got her arse handed to her by the guy with the bigger arse, then reunited again after she killed the big primal dragon thing in Ala Mhigo. Now I fear I may have lost her again.”

“Did you check the Rising Stones?”

“Yeah, but they didn’t know where she is either.”

Estinien hummed gravely. “This bodes ill…”

“Why?”

“Because now I think I understand why those insufferable Lalafells are after me.”

As if on queue, the Lalafells in question appeared behind him. “You realize that they won’t let you pass into Shishu there without one of these?” Krile asked, holding up her entry permit.

Estinien stared in horror.

“I have to admit, you’re quite good at finding”, Krile admitted to Bea. “Good on you for locating him before we did.”

“Wait, you have it all wrong, I—“ Her explanation was interrupted by the sounds of Estinien leaping off his perch and onto the mast of a nearby ship sailing through.

“Whoa…”, Bea whispered.

“Believe me, he’s capable of more than just that. Did you know he destroyed a massive cannon with one concentrated jump?” Krile gave that small fact. “We need him.”

“Hm. Well, I didn’t quite mean to put myself between you and your search, so I’ll just er…go that way. Good night, ladies.” Bea then left behind Kugane Ohashi.

—————

It took several minutes of effort, and several failed attempts at the jump, but soon, Estinien found himself clawing at the roof of Kugane Castle. After a moment, he pulled himself upward, panting and walking exhaustedly towards the railing on the top of the roof. When he looked up, however, who did he see but his familiar new friend, Bea?

“Fury! How long?” Estinien demanded.

“Oh, at least a bell. Dango?” Bea offered.

“Hand me a piece”, he accepted. Bea pulled off a piece and handed it to him, where he proceeded to shove the whole ball in his mouth. “Now what compelled you to scale the damn tower?”

“I was hoping that maybe a bird’s eye view might help in my search.”

“Of course you did.”

“Now tell me how you do all those jumpy moves.”

Estinien couldn’t help but crack a small smile. “I’m a dragoon. It’s in my training.”

“Oh, Dia told me about dragoons once. She said she knew this one, a right cranky bastard when they first met, cold and distant, and never bothered to shower after being covered in dragon blood for days, but she warmed up to him after a trip through a cloud or something like that. Do you know him?”

“Were those her words specifically?”

“Well, I put two and two together after she told me all the events that took place with him. She didn’t actually call him anything.”

“Ah. Well, allow me to introduce myself- I’m the right cranky bastard.”

Bea choked on her dango. Estinien gave a good smack on her back which helped her reswallow her food. “All right?”

“Yeah. Thanks. Sorry about the cranky bastard comment.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Bea smiled. “So you’re Estinien Wyrmblood then?”

“Wyrmblood was a title. My real last name is Varlineau.”

“Oh. Well, nice to meet you. Bea Adore, at your service.”

“Well met.”

They stared out at the starry sky above them, a magnificent sight considering they were far closer to the heavens where they sat.

“So…you mentioned how you two met, but I still don’t understand why you go to such lengths to find her. What do you need her for?” Estinien inquired.

“Need?”

“Has something happened where you require her services?”

“N-no, nothing of the sort. I just wanted to see my friend again.”

He raised an eyebrow. “So you crossed hundreds of malms of oceans and performed a full stakeout for her for…entirely sentimental reasons?”

“We were supposed to go to Radz-at-Han together. When she didn’t show up at the Carline Canopy like we agreed, I grew worried that we separated again.”

“Ah. What did you need to go to Thavnair for?”

“Kicks. Shites and giggles. Funsies. You name it.”

Estinien shook his head. “You adventurer types.”

“She was excited to see the weaves of Thavnair.”

“Of course she was.”

Bea smiled and asked, “Haven’t you ever sought out someone for sentimental reasons?”

As he remembered his own journey to Ysayle’s resting place in Azys Lla, he couldn’t deny that sometimes, the journey was worth the time it took. “I have.”

“So it’s not that weird.”

“Perhaps not. Forgive me, when it comes to people looking for Dia, I have my suspicions- especially the Lalafells.”

“Who are they anyway?”

“Tataru Taru and Krile Baldesion of the Scions of the Seventh Dawn. The pink-clad one is far more fearsome than she looks. Don’t underestimate her.”

She giggled a bit and said, “Fair enough. If it helps, I’d seek you out for sentimental reasons.”

He scoffed. “You hardly even know me.”

“Well, can I get to know you?”

He wasn’t sure how to take that question, though perhaps somewhere deep down, he felt flattered. “I wouldn’t mind that.”

“Neither would I. So let’s do that.”

“Fine by me.”

Bea grinned. “So what brought you to Hingashi? You seem a long way from home if you’re from Ishgard.”

Estinien nodded. “A fair point. After retiring from my post, I chose to keep moving, considering that a far better fate than forcing my fellow countrymen to remember me. One thing led to another, then I was approached by that dragon you met earlier who asked me to help him seek out Seiryu, one of the legendary auspices. Unfortunately, his request ended up landing me in the hostelry as a tourist attraction.”

“Oof, that sucks. There’s one thing you mentioned that bothers me though.”

“Oh?”

“Why wouldn’t people want to remember you? You don’t seem like someone people wouldn’t want around, especially if those Lalafells are any indicator.”

Would he explain to this woman he just met that he was once a monster set upon destroying his home, even though his faculties weren’t his own? Would he explain how he nearly ruined the chance of peace between man and dragon by piercing Vidofnir with a lance? Would he explain that he refused to stick around and be the object of disdain of his own people?

Before he could form the words, he heard it- the sound of the Lalafellan duo giggling. He rushed to the edge of the roof and stared down at a nearby walkway. A Sekiseigumi guard led them by lantern light.

“What sorcery is this?” Estinien whispered.

“What’s happening?” Bea whispered next to him.

“We’re making our escape.”

“Oh. Well, they might see us by the time we climb down.”

“Perhaps if we use the traditional method.”

Bea blinked. “What?”

“You said you wanted to get to know me, yes? Then know this: I will not let any harm come to you.”

“Ohhhh-kayyyy, but I still don��t understand.”

He scooped her up and tossed her over his shoulder like a sack of popotoes. “Hang on tight and don’t scream.”

“What the-what-i-!” Before she could babble any further, Estinien jumped off the side of the castle and fell down the side of the castle away from the Lalafells’ view. Bea did her best not to scream, but dear gods, the man was crazy.

And she liked it.

Once he landed, Estinien placed her down and asked, “All right?”

Dazed and confused, her heart racing, and her breath erratic, she nodded.

“Good, because we’re going this way.”

He took hold of her right hand and led her towards the docks that would lead him out of the city. As soon as they found a bench, Bea collapsed onto it, and Estinien sat calmly next to her.

“Do you do that with everyone you meet?” Bea asked out of breath.

“Nay, only you. You’re the only one with who I would dare try that.”

Bea laughed. “Well, maybe don’t try that again for a while. I need some time to recover.”

“It was a necessary act, believe me.”

“I do. Though, if they’re being this stubborn, is it not worth it maybe to hear them out?” Bea proposed.

“The more they pursue, the more scarce I wish to make myself.”

Bea frowned. “That sounds a bit petty.”

“Petty?”

“Or perhaps silly…it sounds like you’re treating this like hide-and-seek, but you’ll not let them have their turn.”

“Will it make you feel better if I let them talk to me?” Estinien asked.

“A little bit.”

“Then we’ll wait. If patterns are any indication, they’ll be here shortly.”

“All right. In the meantime, how long were you in Ishgard? I went there a lot to visit Dia, but never ran into you.”

“When did you start visiting?”

“After Ishgard opened its borders.”

“I was far away from there by the time that happened.”

“Oh. Well, that sucks. Did you have any friends there, aside from Dia?”

“There was one.” He let out a small laugh and asked, “What did you call him? ‘I’m Eric?’”

She laughed and replied jovially, “Yeah.” They laughed together for a moment before he answered, “That would be my oldest friend.”

“I never met the guy- Dia says he’s a workaholic so he doesn’t get out much, so she goes to him quite a bit- but from what she told me, he sounds like a good friend to have.”

“I agree.”

“Anyone else?”

“No one else alive, no.”

“Oh. Sounds like you need more friends.”

Estinien hummed in a begrudging agreement. “When I was Azure Dragoon, social concerns were not my priority. I stuck mainly to training.”

“Well, you’re retired, right?”

“Indeed, I am.”

“Then it’s time to retire that mindset too.”

“You believe that to be true?”

“It is.”

Estinien gave a half-smile. “You’re a curious being. Picking up talking creatures you’ve never seen before, perching on high places, chatting up men you’ve never met before. Anyone ever tell you that?”

“You’re not exactly the most normal guy in the world either.”

He laughed a bit and replied, “Aye, you’re right. Perhaps our quirks differ us from our neighbors more than I imagined.”

“All the more reason for you to make more friends. You’ll need weirdos like me in your corner.”

He nodded. “Mayhap I do. A fair while has it been since I’ve been interested in idle chatter.”

“Oh, I have lots of that!”

“Good. On that boat, we may have need of it.”

“Where are we going?”

“Wherever the Kuroboro Maru takes us.”

“Oh, that sounds safe”, Bea remarked sarcastically.

Estinien smirked, then turned to face the ocean of the port ahead of them. After a few moments of silence, he said, “It must have been some time since the two of you saw each other last.”

“Not since she got called to the Ghymlit Dark, no.”

“Hm. Well, seems I keep having more and more information you don’t have.”

Her eyes lit up. “What? What do you know?!”

He smirked again, but before he could say anything, he heard Krile say, “Anyone would think you were trying to avoid us!”

“And right on cue”, he muttered to himself. It was then that Krile fell to one knee, clutching her head as she was clearly in pain. Tataru kneeled next to her and asked, “Are you all right?”

“Did she drink too much?” Bea asked.

“I don’t think what’s happened here is the result of alcohol”, Estinien answered warily, kneeling down to try and help somehow. However, she started laughing not long after.

“What? What’s so funny?” Bea asked.

“Oh, Estinien…never would I have imagined…” Krile said between her fits of laughter.

“Did you see something from his past?” Tataru asked.

Bea never saw someone turn as white as a sheet like Estinien did in that moment.

“Be at ease. I am not so heartless as to reveal what I saw. Not here and now, at any rate. But enough about that. We were hoping to speak to you, if you have a moment?”

His shoulders drooped in defeat, and Estinien sighed, “Fine. Tell me what you want from me.”

“Let’s continue this conversation somewhere more private, shall we?” Tataru offered, knowing fully well they could use the East Aldenard Trading Company’s Kugane office to their pleasure. As the three of them walked away, Estinien requested, “Bring Bea.”

Krile turned around and looked at her. “Ah, so your name is Bea, then?”

“That’s right. And you are?”

“Krile Baldesion, and my associate and loyal assistant to the Scions of the Seventh Dawn, Tataru Taru.”

“Pleasure to meet you”, Tataru chimed in.

“Now that you mention it, everytime we located you, Estinien, Bea would be right there. And not in easy to reach places either.” After a moment of pondering, Krile said, “We may yet have use for you if you would be willing to join our ranks, Bea.”

That surprised Bea. “Er….sure, why not?”

“Excellent. Then what we have to say will pertain to you as well, so please, follow us.”

—————

“I still can’t believe you agreed to being a Scion so quickly”, Estinien remarked as they made their way through Radz-at-Han, travelling down the stairs to the entrance of the city.

“Who knows? It might be fun, and it might get me closer to finding Dia.”

“Perhaps so. At the very least, it should fill your coinpurse.”

She stared at the pouch of gil Tataru gave her. “That’s also a very nice perk about this-employment.”

Estinien gave a smile. “You did want to visit Radz-at-Han.”

“With Dia, yes. But I have to admit, I’m having fun with you too.”

“Excellent. We make our way to the lands of the Garlean Empire, however, so take in the balmy air of Thavnair while you can.”

“Will do.”

One chocobo porter later, they arrived at the docks at the ship that would carry them to stop Black Rose. It wasn’t long before the ship that docked in Yehdlimad sailed off to the north, towards their mission.

“We’ll stick together, right?” Bea asked.

“Wouldn’t leave you behind. Especially in a place unfamiliar to both of us, I won’t let you out of my sight.”

“And I won’t let you out of mine, so long as we agree there.”

He nodded with a gentle smile. “Agreed.”

Estinien held out his hand as if to make a deal, and Bea took it to shake. After that was done, they stared at one another for a little while, Estinien still rather curious of her. He took great interest in her skin tone, and the way the light bounced off her hair, but stopped himself and cleared his throat before looking away and staring out the side of the boat. She joined him in his ocean-viewing.

Together, they sought out the unknown.

[yanderechuu]

do any of the teachers ever notice the things happening to y/n? (i headcannon Mic and Midnight as yanderes that would give advice to 1A lol)

yandere!Class 1A x fem!reader

[2.1K]

Summary: Aizawa is the first one you approached in regards to your certain predicament.

Warning: nonconsensual recording

│

Aizawa suspected something wasn’t quite right by the moment he saw you entering the class a minute before the bell rang, all haggard and teary-eyed, though you tried your best to obscure your disposition. He always knew you to often be in a state of discomfort whenever you were compelled to socialize, especially with your classmates, but now - you looked as if you reached your limit of holding the weight of the world on your shoulders, crashing down all at once as depicted on your crestfallen expression. 

And when you showed up in front of the faculty room, timidly soliciting his presence, his suspicions were only further verified. Even with a pending question regarding subject matters in your mind, you weren’t one to approach a teacher to inquire about it, and if you did it was because the teacher was the one who would ask your attendance; never the other way around.

Present Mic was the first one to acknowledge you. He stood up from his office chair, waving at you comically. “Yo, (l/n)! Having trouble with English again?”

You never had a problem with his subject; he only insisted that you’d come to him in regards to that. “N-no, not really. May I speak to Aizawa-sensei?”

“Talk with me instead!” He enthusiastically spoke and headed over to you. “Come on, what’s the matter?”

“It isn’t your place to ask that when I’m here.” Aizawa interceded, clearly unimpressed by Mic’s antics. He failed to see the latter’s displeased countenance. “(L/n), what is it?”

You avoided eye contact with him, averting your view to the ground - that was alright. You were always like this, and he didn’t mind. Nothing out of place except for the fact that it looked as if you were about to cry any moment now.

“Can we- can we, um, talk somewhere more private?” You asked quietly.

His brows raised in wonder at your request. Nevertheless, he didn’t decline you, only nodding lackadaisically before heading towards the teacher’s lounge, where you followed him suit. He flicked the door tag to ‘occupied’ and entered the room after you, when he told you sit on the three-person sofa situated not quite on the farthest left of the space. Then, he settled himself on the chair across you.

“Well?” He asked, expectantly.

But you had once again your head above a thick cloud of anxiety. You knew that after the event with Momo in the girls’ locker room - where you had injured her against your will because she had been violating your personal space - your homeroom teacher kept a cautious eye on you in case you’d re-enact that incident. And it wasn’t just that incident that made him look at you like you were a criminal on the loose, either. Your classmates found and did a lot of ways to place you in Aizawa’s naughty list just so you wouldn’t snitch on their abusive (they’d call it affectionate) behavior on you.

That didn’t erase the fact that you were nevertheless his student; he cared for you no less than he cared for his other pupils, yet you were just too ignorant in figuring that out. All that mattered to you was that you’d voice out your current concern to him, but with your insecurities holding you down it seemed it would be more difficult than you had primarily foreseen it to be.

“I-I,” you stammered out, fiddling with something inside your pocket, “u-um, you see, t-there’s this, I mean, I can’t-”

He grew increasingly frustrated with your constant stuttering, and although he did understand your shy nature which largely affected your conversational habits, he only had so much patience to deal with it.

“I don’t have all day.” He stated, glowering at your form in mild irritation. “If you’re going to keep doing that, talk to the wall.”

You abruptly halted in speaking after that, only looking down on your lap, staring wide-eyed, grief-stricken at the revelation that perhaps he really did not want to heed any of your words because you were just that bad of a student that he had decided you were not worth much the effort to concern himself with. And maybe he was right - that your words didn’t matter because you didn’t matter; that there were more affairs he better be tending to than yours; that you were only making a big deal out of this when it truthfully wasn’t.

Oh god, you felt like vomiting. Self-deprecation was getting the better of you.

He stood up and sauntered to the exit, not bothering to spare you a glance. “Come back to me when you actually know what you want to say.”

It was a matter of seconds when you ran to him, pulling him back rather harshly by the grip you had on his sleeve. He turned around due to the force to see your head still hung low, avoiding his gaze as always - only, your shoulders were quivering sporadically, and occasional sniffs were heard from your person.

“P-please, sensei...” you voiced out, shaken and horrifyingly delicate. “I-I’m so scared. Please.”

While he looked at you with contracted irises, countenance now alert from your unexpected disposition, you pulled your trembling hand out of your skirt pocket, nervously disclosing to him from your palm a small, black device with a tiny yet prominent lens.

“M-my room,” you heaved, “I-I saw this i-in my room, m-my closet, while- while I was dressing up, and I don’t know how long it had been in there but it probably already caught me bare and-”

You broke down in a flurry misery and shame, allowing yourself to fall to the ground but you didn’t - Aizawa seized you in his arms, his gentle, fatherly arms that could only do so much to console you from the horror of your reality. And he held your head as you cried on his chest, one little thing he could do after ignoring your situation and letting you think that your significance was less than the rest of his other students. At that moment, you were just so little, so fragile, so naïve he’d keep you in his pocket if he could. Why would someone do something as debauched as illegally recording your innocent self?

“I’m sor-sorry,” you sobbed, “I’m really telling the truth, p-please-”

“Shh, it’s okay. I don’t doubt you.” He reassured. Why were you apologizing? Were you that insecure of being a nuisance? No, no, you never were. Not to him. He reached for your hand to take the cursed device. “Since when did you find out?”

“J-just this morning.” You responded.

“Alright. Do you want to rest? This must have taken a huge toll on you.”

But you still had classes ongoing. Then again, you didn’t feel like looking at the faces of the prime suspects who possibly did you dirty, even when you knew that you’d have to eventually interact with them to get notes of your missed lessons. You were so tired from summoning the lot of your courage to confront your teacher regarding your problem, so you probably wouldn’t have the energy to listen to class discussion. Aizawa finalized your decision by pulling you up and guiding you towards the office of Recovery Girl who, after being briefed of your predicament by your homeroom teacher, welcomed you with a warm smile, telling you to make yourself comfortable in one of the beds in the infirmary.

He then made his way to 1A classroom, a newfound swelling of rage and disappointment in his chest, both forwarded to his class and to himself because only now did he realize that perhaps you were often so restless and apprehensive in the presence of your classmates because they did things that made you bury yourself in the deepest parts of your shell as a last attempt to revel in a sense of safety. Your timidity was not entirely derived from your own nature; it was also due to the maltreatment you were receiving from your classmates. Halting his steps by the classroom door, he looked through the glass window, seeing the class focusing on Midnight’s lecture.

Well, not quite. He could tell that your classmates were visibly affected by the lack of your presence, glancing at your desk from time to time as quiz papers were being passed behind - so they were in the middle of a test, he guessed. But that wasn’t his concern.

In impudent manner, he walked in amid Midnight’s talking, disregarding her face’s sudden morphing into vexation as the students gave him a look of confusion.

“Eraser, what are you-” she was rudely interrupted as Aizawa took the test reference papers from her hands. Something about Modern Hero Art History, he read. He faced his class with disdain, stating,

“Until someone confesses their crime of hiding a spy camera on (l/n)’s dorm room, all of you are receiving failing marks on this test.”

Quite suddenly, the class burst into violent upheaval, gasping, perking, some allowing the dreadful news of your situation to sink in, others letting out noises of complaint before actually taking consideration to the main point of Aizawa’s statement. Midnight stared at him in disbelief, but did nothing to stop his measures.

Momo abruptly stood. “I-is (y/n) okay? We should go check on her!”

“No, you shouldn’t.” Aizawa said. “All of you are suspects. You’ve no right to see her.”

“She probably just made that up get back on us for whatever fucking reason!” Yelled Bakugou.

“Yeah?” The male pro-hero disingenuously mused. He then picked up the spy camera and held it for everyone to see, before setting it down the teacher’s podium. “This was found on her closet. Would she risk recording herself naked just to prove that point?”

Noise died down thereafter, setting their sights solemnly at the device, the class collectively having the same thought in regards to the spy camera.

(Why hadn’t they thought of that? It could have been easier to check on you that way, since you almost always confined yourself in the privacy of your own room.)

“So? No one wants to speak up?” Aizawa asked, though expected the silence.

“Aizawa, have them approach you after classes. It’s embarrassing this way.” Midnight intervened.

“Well that’s the point. Get them exposed to the entire class, so everyone could realize how much of a perverted bastard one of these to-be heroes are. Good values, my ass.” He replied, not bothering to filter rather colorful vocabulary. “Where’s your dignity?”

He let a minute or two pass for the perpetrator to reveal themselves, but soon it became apparent that whomever they were refused to admit to their crime, willing to sacrifice the grades of the class for the sake of anonymity. That would be deemed useless, anyway, because Aizawa was already set on figuring out whom they were, no matter the extent he’d go to in order for that to happen. He’d expel them at once.

But he didn’t have the power to expel someone outside of his class.

“I guess that’s it for your test.” He sighed, disgruntled, picking up the small camera and sauntering his way out of the classroom after giving Midnight a look that he was dead serious with marking all of them a failing score. She stared at him in uncertainty, nonetheless abided by his decisions, albeit hesitantly.

Upon ascertaining his absence, Midnight turned to Class 1A, amusement and humor dancing on her seductive countenance.

“Naïve, hormonal teenagers,” she mused, “the closet, really? Couldn’t you have chosen somewhere less conspicuous?”

None of them bothered to tell her that they were truthfully unaware of the incident.

===

Hagakure Toru, stealth hero, entered your room silently in the nude, the only proof of her movements being a tinier, different spy camera she’d brought along with her. No, not the closet, you might find it again. It looked so painfully obvious on the desk, too, and neither in the bathroom due to its pale white interior. 

But on the pencil holder situated atop your nightstand would do. You barely moved it, anyway, only having its purpose served as a decoration; something to fill the vacancy of the bedside table. After a few adjustments in camouflaging the device with the environment and making sure the lens displayed the area of your space, Hagakure checked its concealment one more time, before mechanically heading outside and back to her own dorm. 

Her body collided almost violently with her room’s door, snapping her out of her trance. 

“H-huh!? Weird... how’d I end up in my room?” She asked, receiving no answer from particularly anyone.

But Shinso Hitoshi could provide her one, if only he weren’t outside, staring at your terrace from five stories down your room, a gratifying smirk donned on his features. Now, the only thing he had to do was dismantle and relocate the gadgets wirelessly connected with the camera Aizawa had confiscated.

[ithinkhesgaybutwesavedmufasa]

Of Constellations & Creeds

Chapter 21: Fire of Devotion 

Summary/Author’s Note: Din presents you with a gift that he has had for while. You start exploring what it means to work as a team and meet a fiery mechanic that takes a shine to you. 

There is a note at the end for what something looks like if you guys are having a hard time picturing it. I tried to do my best. Thank you for reading! 

Pairing: Din Djarin x F!reader (Alpha/Omega/soulmates AU) Word Count:  5k Warnings/Promises: Mature/18+ - language, sexual themes, weapons/shooting

[Previous Chapter] [Series Masterlist] [My Complete Masterlist]

--

This is what dreaming felt like. 

You were the perfect temperature of warm bodies and crisp blankets. Sprawled among the sheets, you lucidly stretched your body as your mind slowly woke up the rest of your limbs. You started by wiggling your toes while you listened to the birds chitter in the trees outside the barn, your ankles, your back, and lastly your arms. You quietly popped your fingers as you brought them up to rub gently at the back of your sore neck with a groan. 

"Shit."

You winced as you stretched your arms and suddenly remembered why your shoulder was so tender. Rotating the cuff much slower, you worked the stiffness out of the muscle until you could move it more freely. That was at least a little better. 

Before falling into bed last night, Din had ravished you against the wall, then again on the ground, neither one of you able to stop long enough to tear yourselves apart. The idea of moving into the comfort of your bed never came up, due to not wanting to wake the kid and once again...that required you to stop touching each other. Whatever discomfort you felt had absolutely been worth it. 

The morning sun was warm on your face and you opened your eyes to find the Mandalorian facing you...still helmetless. You had worried the moment you fell asleep everything would have ceased to have happened. You really wouldn't have seen his face. You really wouldn't have received his mark. But he had sleepily assured you that closing your eyes erased nothing and he promised to be here when you woke up. Everything you had done last night was no dream. It had been very, very real. 

“Din?” you whispered almost inaudible, as if to test him. 

His eyes were closed and his mouth open ever so slightly as he continued to sleep with his arm bent behind his head against his pillow. He looked younger in the sunlight. The gentle rays tinting his already light brown skin to a warm sienna, it did the same to his hair, finding the small strands of molten gold throughout the tousled dark curls. He was so handsome and you had yet to tell him, but something told you he wouldn't believe you even if you did. 

Did Mandalorians have a concept of beauty? When you spent your entire adolescence with a helmet on, you couldn’t imagine it mattered much what the person underneath looked like. It leveled the playing field so to speak. While society squabbled over such trivial attributes, you imagined Mandalore was more concerned with your ability to win a fight, to negotiate, to contribute to your clan.

It used to be easy to look at him with disdain. Then that disdain turned to something little more than convenient indifference. It was easy to blame him for the destruction of your home world, for the loss of your old life. Anger was always easier. And yet as you looked at him now, and fought the desperate urge to trace the bridge of his nose with the tip of your finger, you knew you felt something else towards him. Something that you hadn't felt in a very long time. Something that felt a lot like affection...a lot like love.

Yes, to you Din was beautiful. But then again when you loved someone, weren’t they always? There was that word again. It made you smile quietly to yourself as you mulled it over in your mind. 

Leaning forward, you pressed your lips to his, a chaste kiss that caused a soft groan to come from somewhere deep in his chest as his arm slid around your middle. 

"Good morning," you whispered against his mouth and he grunted, not bothering to open his eyes. 

"Ten more minutes."

You smiled, kissing him again as he pulled you closer. You reached down and grabbed the blanket before pulling it up over the both of you more securely. For a man that never took a break, he loved sleep more than anyone you had ever met. 

"Alright, ten more minutes," you said quietly as you moved to kiss his cheek before tucking your head under his chin against his chest and closing your eyes. 

--

Saying goodbye to Omera and Sorgan was more painful than you imagined it would be. She was the first person who understood your struggle. If it weren't for her who knew how long it would take you and the Mandalorian to find one another. But no matter how you felt, you couldn't stay here and she couldn't come with you. It seemed everywhere you went there was something new to lose, a new heartache to experience, and as you hugged her tightly and held back your tears she was added to the long list of loss in your life.

"You'll always have a place here," she said quietly as you squeezed her tighter. It's as if she knew you were trying not to fall apart. She felt the soft cloth that you had used to bandage your shoulder and she leaned back to see your face and give you a knowing grin. “But you are now right where you’re supposed to be.”

"Thank you," you said, wiping your eyes as she fixed the shawl around your shoulders and gave your arms a pat. 

“Keep up with your meditations. They’ll help.”

“I know.”

"Take care of them," she nodded to the man behind you who was holding the child and waiting patiently for you by the cart. "But don't forget to take care of yourself."

"I will."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

The trip back through the woods to the Razor Crest was a somber one and you watched as the child stood at the back of the cart and waved its tiny three-fingered hand at the group of children who were waving in return. You leaned forward and rubbed the space between its massive ears gently. However you were feeling was probably nothing compared to the little guy. He didn't know what was going on, or that there were people hunting him, or why you couldn't stay in such a beautiful place where he had made so many friends. It was tough being a kid in such a big world. Maker, it was tough being an adult in such a big world. 

You looked back as you felt Din put his hand on the small of your back and lean his helmet against your temple for the briefest of moments. You lowered your walls ever so slightly and accepted the comfort that he sent your way. Maybe Omera had been right, maybe he had wanted to stay too. 

--

Being back on the Razor Crest came pretty naturally to the three of you and to say you were surprised was an understatement. Fresh supplies from Sorgan filled the storage bunker and with more variety to eat than prepackaged rations, your spirits were much higher than they had been previously. 

“Come on, kid,” you said, gently as you picked up the child and straightened his burlap cloak. “Nap time.” 

“Ba-to!” he squeaked, raising his arms up and giving you a two-toothed smile that warmed your heart. 

“Just for a little bit,” you assured him. “Then you can come up front and help pilot. Sound good?” 

“Ah-yo!”

“No, no, I promise,” you answered him like you were having a full conversation. “I’ll make him let you. You’re plenty old enough,” you scoffed with a laugh. “You just need a few phone books to sit on.”

He gave another happy squeak as you sat him in the hammock hanging above Din’s bed and tucked him in. You dug out the small stuffed frog that Winta had made for him back on Sorgan, with it’s bright blue felt skin and lopsided eyes, and helped him nestle it under his chin. You gave him a soft pat on the head and waited for him to close his eyes before pressing the button on the panel that closed the door with a quiet hiss. 

You heard your name being said from above you and you went to the ladder that led to the cockpit, looking up to see the Mandalorian looking down. He had brought the ship out of hyperdrive for the time being as you researched a plan of action. Without coordinates, it was pointless to travel in circles and waste precious fuel.

“Can you come up here for a second?” he asked and you nodded. 

Taking one rung at a time, you hauled yourself up into the main hull and gratefully accepted his help in order to plop your butt on the floor with a smile. You didn’t have to see his face to know he was smiling back. 

There had been precious little time for him to take off his helmet once you were back on the ship. Somehow the ship was less private than the bed you had shared in the barn. Although you were disappointed not to be able to look over and see his face whenever you wanted, you understood. This was a new experience for him in a way you would never understand, a type of vulnerability that you would never know, but how you longed to kiss him properly again. You wanted to feel his lips on the back of your neck as he curled himself behind you for sleep. All selfish reasons, of course, but that didn’t diminish them in any capacity. 

“What’s up?” you asked as you leaned back on your hands and looked at him where he stooped beside the captain’s chair. 

“I got you something.”

“Me?” You leaned up with widening eyes as you put a hand to your chest in question. 

“Is there someone else I’m traveling with?” he asked and you glared at him before realizing it was his poor attempt at dry humor. “Yes, you.”

He moved under the chair and dragged a medium sized trunk out from the alcove created by the dashboard and the control panel. You recognized it as the trunk he had received from the armorer back on Nevarro. It was a dark slate colored material and he popped the latches before 

beckoning you closer.

“I hope you like them.”

“Whatever it is,” you encouraged him. “I’m sure I will.”

“You don’t have to use any of it if you don’t want to--”

“Din, just show me.”

“Alright, okay,” he let out a heavy breath and lifted the lid before spinning the entire thing slowly around to show you.  

“You didn’t have to get me anyth--oh, goddess,” you said softly in amazement. 

Inside, carefully protected by a velvet type of lining, were crafted pieces of a silver metal. You hesitated, reaching out to touch one of them and thinking better of it before looking at him as if you needed permission. With a careful nod of his helmet, you picked up one of the cylindrical pieces and brought it closer for inspection. 

“Is it--?”

“Beskar,” he nodded. “It’s yours.”

“Din, I--”

He held up a gloved hand to stop any argument you may have had and helped you take the pieces out one by one. Two bracers that fit perfectly over your wrists and protected your forearms about two inches from your elbows. He took them gently and slipped them over your tender skin before locking them into place and letting you get used to the feeling. You made a fist with both of your hands a few times, opening and squeezing, testing how they felt.

“They lock like this,” he said after completing the motion. “They’ll deflect anything. Blaster-proof. Just hold your arm like you would defensively,” he instructed, pulling your arm up to protect your face and tapping it once with his finger. “Ping. Right off the beskar. We can practice.”

“Handy,” you nodded and he dove back into the box for the next piece. 

“This,” he offered the single pauldron to you, moving around your body slightly to fit it to your non-dominant shoulder. “Protects your dominant side by sitting opposite it.”

“Because I turn my body away from the blow?”

“Exactly.” He put it over your shoulder and clamped it down around your bicep. Hooking it securely across your torso. “Plus, the added weight on your dominant arm would slow you down if you’re using your staff.”

“Makes sense.”

“Move your arm,” he said and when you did, he adjusted it slightly. “How’s that?”

“It’s extremely generous and useful but--”

“No buts.”

“I--”

“You’re my Omega,” he interrupted you gently. “You have the right to wear it. And it’ll help keep you safe--and if you’re safe, I’m focused.” His hand came down to rest gently over your shoulder blade, covering the still tender skin of where he had marked you. 

He had a point but it still made your ears burn with embarrassment. You knew he didn’t mean it as an insult to your abilities. You had more than proven you could handle your own when you first met, but the knowledge that your safety proved a distraction to him still made you feel guilty. You felt the sudden need to apologize but you knew Din wouldn’t want to hear it, let alone entertain such an idea.

“There’s one more piece,” he said gently. He held it out gently and when you looked at him in confusion he offered his hands forward. “Can I?”

You nodded and sat still with your hands in your lap as he made sure any stray pieces of your hair were out of the way. Even with the gloves and his armor, he was always so gentle, so careful. When he was satisfied he held out the silver circlet and slipped it around the front of your forehead and over your temples. The blocky beskar came to a strong point between your brows and the edges came down in front of your ears to frame the sides of your face. Each subtle point that mirrored the larger one turned what would have been an ordinary face guard into something much more symbolic. 

“I feel ridiculous,” you said softly, not wanting to hurt his feelings but also having a hard time wrapping your head around the idea that such a piece of finery was really necessary. 

“You look breathtaking,” he argued and it made you smile. “You’re an Omega, an Ursa at that--people deserve to know.” He swallowed hard and nodded to the box. “If we find more beskar I can have a proper helmet made instead of--”

“A tiara?” you asked with a bite of wit and he chuckled. 

“It has more purpose than that, I promise.” He touched the sides that came down almost level with your jaw line. “These protect your peripherals--keeps light from obscuring your view for long range weapons.”

“Smart.”

“And this,” he touched higher, closer to your ear and a soft static hum came before you heard his next words twice, almost overlapping one another. “Has a direct com line to me.”

“That,” you put your hand over his and spoke into the mic as if to test it the other way. “Is incredibly useful.”

He gave a nod to signal that it had worked and he dropped his hand from your face to rest comfortably on your thigh. You put your hand over his and held in gently. It was beautifully crafted and you were having a hard time coming to terms with the idea that he had spent any of the rarest metal in the world on something for you. But that wasn’t the only issue, no, there was something else. An issue of the timeline. 

“When did you have this made?” you asked, tracing the metal etching that lined the outside of the bracer. 

“When we got the bounty on the kid--I had it made along with mine.”

“But that was before I agreed to be your Omega,” you said carefully, watching his body for any sign of tension. There wasn’t any. 

“I know.”

You bit your lip and looked down. With a shake of your head, you swallowed the lump in your throat before speaking. “What if I would have left? What if I never agreed to this? You--”

“But you didn’t.”

“But I could have,” you argued. “And then all of this would have been for nothing. You--”

“I had a feeling.”

You looked at him in awe and realized how much he had staked on you making the right decision. He would have sooner sold his beskar than taken away your freedom, the freedom to choose what you wanted. He had hoped against all hope that you would eventually want him, but there was no guarantee. To Din it was all left up to faith. Faith in his creed, faith in his people, faith in you. It was hard not to feel undeserving of such things, but it only confirmed that perhaps it was time that you had a little faith in him. 

Going up on your knees, you moved the metal storage box out of the way and grabbed him by the front of his chestplate. He said your name softly as you slid into his lap and his hands came around to rest on the swell of your hips. You tilted his helmet back just enough to kiss his lips, drawing a soft sound from them as he tasted you. 

“Thank you,” you said quietly and you were glad you could see his mouth move up in a genuine smile. 

“You’re very welcome.”

The more moments like this that you had, the easier it became to realize just how ‘all in’ you were when it came to the bounty hunter. When he had stepped off of his ship and chased you through the woods now flight like a lifetime ago and in a way it was. That was a different life completely. And you were okay with that. The world seemed a lot less scary now that you were on the same team. 

You leaned in to kiss him again but there was a loud bang and whoosh of energy as something dropped out of hyperspace and the Razor Crest rocked slowly. Din lowered his helmet and the two of you looked around before you slowly climbed out of his lap and to your feet. 

“What was that?”

“I’m not sure.” 

He moved to the pilot’s chair and leaned over the control board, inspecting the map and waiting for the radar to ping something back. Nearly the exact moment a blip showed up on the neon green screen, a blast screamed passed your vessel and struck the ship, rocking it back and forth. 

“Buckle in,” he barked and the two of you moved to your respective places. 

You fell into the co-pilot bucket seat to the right of the Mandalorian and placed your feet up on the footrest to brace yourself. As soon as you clicked your seat belt, your fingers instinctively wrapped around the control stick in front of you and reached up to flip the buttons on your side of the dash. Your side of the ship whirred to life as you shared control of the panel with Din, making it easier for him to focus on flying. Like you had told him before, if he handled the fancy maneuvering, you could squeeze a trigger.

Another wave of fire lit up the dark atmosphere around you and Din turned the ship to try and find the culprit behind the attack. 

“If the kid sleeps through this, I’ll be impressed,” Din said as he swiveled his own chair around and jammed the buttons for the back up thrusters. 

“I’m pretty sure he could sleep through anything,” you agreed.

“Pa-too!” 

The two of you both whipped around to see the small, green thing standing in the doorway with its arms in the air and a wide smile. 

“You were saying?” the bounty hunter chuckled and the child stumbled its way to you as the ship took a nosedive. You barely had time to grab him by the tiny cloak and haul him into your lap. 

“Got ya!” you said and he squealed with laughter. At least someone found your current predicament funny. You tucked him on your lap securely as a series of blaster fire whizzed passed the sides of the ship.  

“Hand over the Child, Mando.” A deep voice said through the com-system and when the child in question squealed again you clapped your hand over his mouth. Another round of shots pinged around you and the crest gave a jolt as one of the engines took a hit. “I might let you live.”

“Guild?” you asked and Mando nodded before grabbing a large lever to his right and yanking it down quickly. 

“You got both hands on the blaster cannons?” he asked. When you nodded, he continued. “When I say fire, let ‘em have it.”

Another hit rocked the ship as the engine on the left started to sputter and burst into flames before it powered down. Din cursed quietly under his helmet and pulled another lever to quickly power down both engines. “Hold on!” he yelled over the roar of the enemy ship as he rolled the crest out of the way of another round of fire. Stars streaked passed the windows as you both stared upwards and the other ship came directly into view. 

“I can bring you in warm,” the enemy bounty hunter said flatly, “...or I can bring you in cold.”

“That's my line,” Din said in a deadly tone before he hit the thrusters and pointed at you and the kid. “Fire!”

You squeezed the trigger on the gun leavers and shots fired from the front of the razor crest, exploding the smaller ship into a wave of orange fire and metal debris. You flinched away from the bright light and the child clapped its tiny hands as Din gave you an approving nod. 

“Oh-ah!”

“Not bad, little one,” you laughed softly, kissing the top of his green head between his ears. “Not bad.” Din clicked on a few of the switches above his head and the dashboard lit up in a series of red and orange lights. You watched him carefully and waited until he stopped before you spoke. “How bad is it?” 

“We’re losing fuel,” he said, pulling up the map and thumbing through a few different screens. He thumbed through a few of the nearby planets before double tapping the screen and bringing up one of the larger orbs. “Mos Eisley is the closest place where we could dock and get some repairs.”

“Will we make it?”

“Of course.” He pulled another leaver and the ship gave a lurch forward before it evened out. “We have enough in the power reserves to get us there--don’t worry.” 

“I’m not worried,” you said, biting your lip to keep a soft smile from gracing your features. The truth was, with Din, you were never worried. 

--

Mos Eisley was the largest spaceport on the planet of Tatooine. Din explained that what it lacked in a centralized docking bay, they made up for in the fact that they had hundreds of hangars that were each maintained by individual workers and mechanics. It sounded impressive but to you it looked like little more than a patch of dust and poorly refined sandcastles. 

The control tower told you to head for bay three-five and the Mandalorian copied as he steered the ship in that direction. The Crest had definitely seen better days as it sputtered and landed with jerky movements before finally touching down in a puff of sand and a clang of metal. 

As you drifted through the vast emptiness of space before entering the atmosphere, the child had somehow lulled himself back to sleep. It was actually pretty impressive the amount of naps he managed to squeeze in in a day. 

You carefully tucked him back into the sleeping compartment and put on the rest of the clothing you had from Arvala-7. It was still breathable but it wasn’t nearly as light as the cloth you had sported back on Sorgan. The leather riding pants and bantha hide boots would keep the sand out of your more intimate places, while the tan corded top and matching cloak kept your skin protected from the harsh sun without absorbing much of the light. 

The beskar looked out of place with the rest of your attire, but something told you it was just the fact that you weren’t used to it. What was your favorite mantra as of late? One thing at a time. 

You stopped in the doorway to the refresher and couldn’t help but stare at your reflection in the mirror. The metal of the headpiece that Din had tucked gingerly into your hairline. You had spent most of your life running from what you were: an Omega, an Ursa, a royal lineage of some kind that you had no desire to uphold. And yet, the tangible evidence was glittering on your forehead. Had Din designed such a thing or had it been at the behest of the Armorer? Somehow you felt you knew the answer to that. 

You saw Din appear behind you in the mirror before you ever heard him and you prided yourself on not nearly jumping out of your skin. 

"Good to go?"

When you nodded, he hit the button that started to lower the ramp on the main hull and you squinted against the bright sun. As you walked down the ramp a group of rust colored droids popped up from their current task and scurried towards the Mandalorian. Their saucer-shaped heads bobbed in place making them look like mushrooms on stilts as they surveyed the ship and chipped back and forth to one another.

Din pushed back his cloak and drew his blaster, firing one shot from the hip into the dirt. The droid squealed and jumped into the air before clamming up into a tiny ball. 

“Mando!” you jumped and looked at him in surprise before looking back to the shivering droid. 

“Hey!” a woman’s voice screeched from inside the building connected to the hangar. She pointed at the two of you through the window of what looked to be a very dusty office. “HEY!” she yelled again, scrambling out the door and stomping over to you. 

Next to the Mandalorian she was incredibly short, but her demeanor was so incredibly scrappy that you weren’t entirely sure who you would bet on if the two of them were in a fight. Her grey mechanic’s jumpsuit was dusty and oil stained from no doubt thousands of ship repairs. Her hair was incredibly curly, poofing out in tight ringlets all around her head to her shoulders and seemed to be growing by the second as she jabbed her finger at Din’s chest.

“You damage one of my droids, you pay for it!”

“Just keep them away from my ship,” Din said flatly, pointed his own gloved finger to the fear-filled robot.

“Yeah? You think that's a good idea, do ya?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest before looking at you. “Blink twice if this brute is holding you hostage, honey. Though by the looks of ya, I’d say you can handle your own.”

“I’m sorry,” you apologized on Din’s behalf before you introduced yourself and stepped in front of him. “We just need some repairs.”

“The name’s Peli,” she returned the politeness and shook your hand with strong, jerky movements. “He always this grumpy?” she nodded at the bounty hunter.

“Actually you caught him on a good day,” you smiled and she chuckled. Din sighed.

“Alright, well, let's look at your ship.” She picked up a clipboard and walked over to the crest. Looking it up and down slowly, she made a fist and knocked twice on the main hull and listened to the klonk that came from the inside.

“Is it bad?” you asked.  

“Oof…” she winced as she wrote some things down. “Look at that.” She looked over her shoulder at you before gesturing to the sides of the ship. “Bad? You got a lot of carbon scoring building up top. Ya know--If I didn't know better, I'd think you were in a shootout.”

“Well…” you started and Din cleared his throat.

“Can you fix it?”

“Special tool for that one. Oh ya, I'm gonna have to rotate that…” She mumbled. Peli ignored you both as she continued to poke and prod the undercarriage of the ship before pulling down a side panel and coughing at the smoke that it produced. “You got a fuel leak! Look at that, this is a mess! How did you even land? That's gonna set you back.”

Din looked down at her as she walked back up to him and he tossed over a coin purse that jingled when she caught it. “I've got 500 Imperial Credits.”

“That all you got? Well…” she weighed the money in her hand and worried her bottom lip between her teeth. She turned to the droids who were slowly approaching again now that she was there to protect them. “What do you guys think? I mean-- that should at least cover the hangar.”

“I'll get you your money,” Din reassured her.

“Ha! I've heard that before,” she rolled her eyes.

“I promise, we’ll pay you somehow,” you interjected and Peli looked you over again before waggling her finger at you. 

“Now, you I believe.” 

That made you smile and she returned it. 

“Just remember--” Din started.

“Yeah. Yeah. No droids. I heard ya.” She stuffed the credits in her pocket. “You don't have to say it twice. Jeez. Womp rat.” She mumbled the last under her breath as the two of you took her dismissal as a sign you were free to leave. 

You waited until you and Din were out of earshot before you glared at him in disappointment. “We have got to work on your people skills.”

--

Note: When imagining the headpiece Din had made for you, I was drawing heavy inspiration off of Queen Hippolyta’s crown. Something that keeps your hair out of the way, looks futuristic and strong. 

Hey guys, as always there is always room on the tag lists! That being said there are about 300+ of you that want to be tagged in this fic and that is totally cool, but I am human and I miss names and forget tags, SO–if your tag didn’t work, I forgot it, or you want to be moved to another group, please message me or send me an ask. Even if you have already sent me one reminding me, I PROMISE it was not on purpose. A lot of times I wont answer until I have PHYSICALLY put you on the tag list that way I don’t forget! Thank you so much. - K

TAG LISTS:

PERM:

@rae-gar-targaryen​​ @zeldasayer​​ @winters-buck​​ @gooddaykate​​ @steeeeeeeviebb​ @jigglemiwa​ @seawhisperer​​ @halefirewarrior​​ @ripleyafterdark​​ @phoenixhalliwell​​ @thebakerstboyskeeper​​ @honestlystop​​ @lackofhonor​​ @readsalot73​​ @cryptkeepersoul​ @skdubbs​​ @cahooter​ @synystersilenceinblacknwhite​ @googiebeankat​​ @dinohaze​​ @saltywintersoldat​​ @huliabitch​​ @tainted-gay-ghost​ @roxypeanut​  @hayley-the-comet​ @domino-oh-damn @corvueros​ @pettyprocrastination​ @qveenbvtch​ @hopplessdreamer​   @apples-of-february​ @pocket-of-anxiety​ @marie-is-in-the-dark​ @pikemoreno​ @Pascalplease @cosmicbug379​         @your-pixels-are-showing​ @gamingaquarius​ @blushingwueen​ @crimsonandwhiteprincess​ @bluemoon-glen​ @river-soul​ @robbinholland @nerdypinupcrystal​ @fleetwoodmactshirt​ @jaime1110​ @fioccodineveautunnale​ @fantasticcopeaglepasta​ @kid-from-new-zealand​ -- @roguereds​ @paintballkid711​ @javier-djarin​ @ellaprime7​ @kaetastic​ @veracruz-djarin​ @moonlightburned​ @nowyouwilldielikehimtoo​ @glitterfaecakes​ @karmezii​ @cyaredindjarin​ @nonink​ @irishleesh93 @heatherbel​ @himalayanwhite​ @stylelovechild​ @chews-erotically​ @sylvanas-lover @max--phillips​ @holographic-carmen​ @moonlikepascal​ @frankiemorales  @thewaythisis​ @miss-leto​ @moonagedaydream505​ @lannister-slings-and-arrows​ @atlas-adams-apple​ @lokiaddicted​ @ksgeekgirl​ @seasonschange-butpeopledont​ @nonetheleiss​ @ahopelessromanticwritersworld​ @this-cat-is-dea​ @thelastemzy​ @mymindisawhirlpool @mrschiltoncat​ @corrupt-fvcker​ @f0rever15elf​ @ohpedromypedro​ @walkerchick007​ @66wookies​ @thirstworldproblemss​ @zannemes​​ @lucifer-​ @mstgsmy​ @lunarthoughts​ @rosiefridayrogersunday​ @browneyes-djarin​ @jedi-mando​ @lv7867​ -- @emotionalswift2 @pedrothirst​ @the-importance-of-being-sasuke​ @queenbbarnes​ @lou-la-lou​ @dandywinchesterbras​ @mtjoi​ @misslexilouwho​ @thisshipwillsail316​ @sarahjkl82-blog​ @ladyperceval​ @persie33​ @greeneyedblondie44​ @unelohe @jettia​ @invisibility-thy-name-is​ @doin-stuff​ @wondergal2001​ @missroro​ @bunniwarrior​ @hb8301​

OCAC:

@mrsparknuts​ @equalstrashflavoredtrash​ @djarin-junk​ @altarsw​ @countryday​ @thottybarnes @limedane21​ @warm-tea-and-otp​ @theocatkov​ @sinnamon-bunn​ @smiithys​ @jjlizz​ @marie-is-in-the-dark​ @violetsimery​ @assassinsasha23​  @californiakoenig​ @i-hide-inside-my-head​ @paryl​ @mandowhoreian @peachdameron @imnotmentallyst4ble​ @lustriix​ @lokiaddicted​ @auty-ren​ @theocatkov​ @perropascal​ @manda-but-not-lorian​ @phenomenaaa​ @the-cosmic-ghost-18​ @mad-red @coffeeandtodd​ @lostinwonderland314​ @youmeanmybrain​ @rosalinayagi​ @mrpascals​ @humongouspandafest @highlycommendable @lucifersfavouritesinner​ @theduchessofkirkcaldy​ @spacenerdsebby @maytheglitter​ @keeper0fthestars​ @maydayfigment​ @chibi-liz05​ @fleurdemiel145​ @myhoneybeeheart @rise-my-angel​ @popculturepriestess​ @kochamcie​ @gallowsjoker​ @beefthief247 @ginger-swag-rapunzel​ @toilet-keeper​ @that-one-weird-one​ @thesoftdumbass​ @mandalorianbrat  @ghostwiththemostbitch​ @mstgsmy​ @rosalinayagi​ @sesamepancakes​ @the-wandering-pan-ace​ @straycatoncrack @anteatingbitchlizard​ @dandywinchesterbras​ @marvelous-capsicle​ @altarsw​ @thesoftdumbass @misslolasworld​ @sunshine-and-peppermint-tea @generalbluebirdphantomc​ @haleypearce​ @lakeli​ @jeor​ @shadowfoxey​ @screamingexternally​ @wonder-jedi @1800-fight-me​ @mar-y-tixrra​ @fanficshitandother @03stepedwa @rogertaylorsfalsettogivesmehives @nerd-without-a-cause​ @lonelystarship​ @valhallavalkyrie9​ @stra1ghtn0chaser @celestialscrewup​ @simply-sams-things​ @rosemirrors​ @pansexualdriver​ @wanderlust69​ @taydjarin​ @harrypotter3941​ @what-is-life-in-general​ @hidden-whatever @womenofwharton @amanda-loriannn @justawilddreamerchild @mahowg-blog​ @mlb4evah @ayamenimthiriel​ @bekahbug94 @ayamenimthiriel @obiwanwhore​ @womenofwharton @subtlestarrs​ @chook007​ @alovelypeach @heykathchuu​ @mellomadness​ @t3a-bag​ @izthefangirl @misslexilouwho​ @devcaisnea @misguidedandbeguiled​ @tedpicklez​ @vampgguk​ @risingphoenix641 @the-scandalorian​ @mcueveryday​ @setsuna-meiou31​ @tanyaherondale​ @lordofthenerds97​ @youre-a-wallflower-charlie​ @grogusmum​ @beefcakebarnes​ @pedritopascall​ @4ng3lf43 @petersunderoos96​ @cannedsoupsucks​ @greatcircle79​ @spideysimpossiblegirl​ @angelcvsmic​ @bel-ppa​ @julesorwhatever​ @giselatropicana​ @buckysbackpack​ @dankest-farrik​ @ajeff855​ @aerolanya​ @bluegirlusa1​ @momc95​ @sickinthesoul​ @grippleback-galaxy​ @certainwerewolfnight​ @bookloverfilmoholic​ @a-coffee-addict-613​ @an-author-of-stars @darlingotaku​ @darlingotaku​ @arduadastra​ @pansexualdriver​ @rosemirrors​ @simply-sams-things​ @xxtwizztedxx​ @call-me-soap​ @nerdthickly​

[rubysunnday]

Favourite Brother

A/N: not gonna lie, I am terrified to post this because there is no established community for a bridgerton sister like there is with peaky blinders but into the unknown we go

Y/N Bridgerton is based off my own character who is Daphne’s twin sister (there’s a whole thing in my head as to why her name begins with a C, but i digress) and is, technically, the eldest daughter but is never seen that way. 

If she was being completely honest, making her debut into society at the same time as her twin sister was probably one of the worst things Y/N Bridgerton could have done. Ultimately, it was down to her mother to make the decision and no matter how much Y/N - and Eloise - begged for her to postpone her coming out for a year, her mother was insistent (Eloise’s begging had been so that none of the attention next season would be on her). 

Y/N knew that her first season out in society wasn’t going to go well. She had Daphne as a sister for heaven’s sake - despite being older than her by a whole five minutes (a fact her oldest brother, Anthony, seemed to keep conveniently forgetting) - Y/N Bridgerton was merely a twinkle compared to the explosion that was her twin sister.

The Queen had offered Y/N a most gracious remark alongside her sister but it felt as if it was merely to balance out the scales - as if she didn’t truly mean it.

But, deep down, she hadn’t wanted to believe that she was merely a cast off. That she was just Daphne’s sister and was nothing more.

Her first ball, however, solidified the feeling she’d had for a while. That she was nothing more than Daphne’s sister in the eyes of the ton. Daphne was the season’s diamond. Y/N was merely a geode waiting to be split open. Unassuming on the outside but magnificent on the inside. 

Y/N stared after her brother and Daphne as they wandered around the room, eyeing out appropriate suitors (which, according to Anthony, didn’t exist in that ballroom). 

“Dearest,” Violet said, placing a hand on her daughter’s arm, noticing her fury, “shall we go get some lemonade?”

Y/N had a childish urge to grab a cup of lemonade and pour it over her brother’s head but swallowed it down, forcing a pleasant smile to her face. She turned to her mother and nodded.

“Anthony means well -”

“Mother,” Y/N grounded out. She really did not want to talk about her eldest brother. 

“He means well,” Violet repeated, handing her daughter a glass of lemonade, “he’s just fiercely protective of you all.”

“Everyone except me, you mean?” Y/N corrected, giving her mother a hard stare. Y/N sighed and slumped against the wall. “I know he does,” she said quietly, almost not wanting to admit it. “But it’s almost as if he doesn’t realise I’m here.”

Violet nodded. “I know. But he wants the best for you - we all do.”

“Yet the best simply are not here in this ballroom tonight, are they?” Y/N countered, giving her mother a raise of the eyebrows. “He and Daphne are walking around the room, eyeing up every suitor in that room and where am I? Hiding at the back by the drinks table like a wallflower.”

Violet put a hand on Y/N’s arm in sympathy for there weren’t many words she could offer her daughter that would be of any comfort. She knew the feeling of being a wallflower all too well. 

“Y/N! Why are you skulking back here?”

It was almost as if a light switched on behind Y/N’s eyes at the sound of her brother’s voice. She turned and smiled at Colin as he, and Benedict, approached her, weaving through the ambitious mama’s and their debutantes and studiously avoiding making eye contact with any of them. 

“Anthony has eyes for Daff and Daff only,” Y/N replied, standing on her tiptoes to hug Colin and then Benedict. They’d inherited the Bridgerton good looks and the Bridgerton height. Something Y/N and her five foot four height was all too jealous of. 

Colin smiled sympathetically at his sister, knowing full well what she meant. He held out his arm to her, ever the gentleman. “Well, shall we go promenade around the room?”

Y/N giggled as she excepted Colin’s arm. She then looked up expectantly at Benedict who gave her the iconic Bridgerton smile (one Y/N had mastered too) and he offered his arm to her too. 

The three of them began a deliberately slow walk around the edge of the room.

“You do realise everyone’s looking at you?” Colin whispered, a cheeky grin on his face.

Y/N, for the first time that night, felt all the attention on her. Every suitor watched her as she passed by and all offered a smile. 

But, deep down, she knew she was second best. And she refused to settle for that. 

“Not that we’d let you pick any of them,” Benedict added quickly. “None of them are suitable.”

Y/N swallowed her urge to groan, counted to five in her head and looked at Benedict. “You sound just like Anthony.”

“Well, someone has to,” Benedict replied giving her a smile that had made many a woman swoon in the past.

She didn’t understand why. Well, Benedict was her brother. Whenever he smiled at her she just remembered the time he’d left a fish in her bed and she’d retaliated by leaving numerous frogs in his room. 

The sibling prank war of 1805 had been a dangerous one. Y/N had fallen down the stairs and ended up with a concussion and Benedict had ended up with a long, and loud, lecture from Anthony about the dangers of trip wires near staircases. 

“Oh, there’s Anthony and Daphne,” Colin murmured, noticing them on the other side of the room. 

“Daff!” Benedict called, all but dragging Y/N over to the,

Y/n, who’s arm was in Benedict’s, didn’t have much choice to follow and neither did Colin as Y/N wasn’t about to let her buffer leave anytime soon. 

Anthony looked up at them as they approached but his eyes narrowed slightly when he saw Y/N in the middle of them. 

“Have you been looking for suitors?” Anthony asked, his stare narrowing even more when he noticed someone eyeing Y/N over her shoulder. 

“Did Mother tell you yet?” Colin asked Daphne, saving Y/N from having to talk to Anthony and conveniently turning the conversation away from her. “I’m to start my tour in Greece.”

“Oh, Greece, that sounds wonderful,” Y/N said, both her and Daphne making a similar remark. Daphne and Y/N glanced at one another and giggled. 

Anthony’s eyes widened as he looked up. “On guard!”

It was an instant change. All five of them suddenly had anywhere else to be and they all turned around, fully intent on heading to literally any other corner of the room.

“No escape,” Colin muttered as they heard the formidable Lady Danbury’s cane hit the floor loudly.

“Too late,” Lady Danbury called. “I already noted you.”

Her words were followed by a loud thump of her cane. Startled, Y/N stepped back in Benedict and accidentally stood on his foot. She lost her footing, wobbled, and fell even further back into her brother.

Benedict, to his credit, let out a soft grunt as his sister impacted him, but then managed to right her and stand her back up on her own feet without drawing Lady Danbury’s attention.

“Lady Danbury!” Benedict, Anthony and Colin all greeted at once, all bowing in sync as if they were performing.

Y/N and Daphne curtsied slightly at the older woman. 

Lady Danbury’s eyes rested on the two girls. “I’ve yet to see either one of you on the dance floor,” she said, her eyes narrowing even more.

“We’re biding our time,” Anthony cut in. 

“We?” Y/N whispered under her breath, sparing Anthony a glare that would’ve turned lesser men to stone. 

Apparently Lady Danbury had heard that but, to her credit, said nothing. If anything her usually steely glare softened ever so slightly when she looked at Y/N. 

“You poor girls,” Lady Danbury muttered, shaking her head. “I always knew I liked you two for a reason,” she added, eyeing Daphne and Y/N as they both gave Anthony a disdainful, joint glare (one the two girls had hoped she’d missed but, as usual, Lady Danbury never missed anything.) “As for the rest of you.... hmmph.”

And with that, Lady Danbury vanished off to torture some other poor soul.

Benedict stared after her with an offended expression. “Hmmph? Hmmph?” He echoed. “Is that all she could come up with? Hmmph?”

Y/N smiled to herself. “She likes us,” she said, looking at Daphne with a smile. 

Daphne smiled back at her sister. “Yes, it would appear she does.”

Benedict grunted. “You can have her.”

Y/N elbowed Benedict in the ribs and her brother let out a rather loud grunt - one that had numerous nearby partygoers look over to wonder what was happening.

“For that, you can dance with me,” Benedict muttered, grabbing Y/N’s hand and all but dragging her away from the safety of Colin and Daphne and onto the dance floor.

“You hate dancing,” Y/N said as she struggled to keep up with her brother. she was suddenly spun onto the dance floor and somehow managed to keep her footing. 

Benedict put his arm on her waist and gave her a level stare. “I also hate being paraded around by our Mother,” he said, nodding his head behind him.

Y/N leaned past him and saw Colin being unwillingly paraded around the room by their Mother. Colin, ever the gentleman, was putting a smile on and greeting every single debutante. But he did look up at Benedict and Y/N and give them a very ungentlemanly glare.

 Y/N let out a very unladylike snort and laughed. Benedict rolled his eyes. 

The music began and the two began dancing around the obnoxious looking floral arrangement in the centre of the floor. Neither one said anything for a moment - focusing on the music and ensuring they were getting the steps right.

“Thank you,” Y/N said quietly. 

She’d noticed her mother, Daphne and Anthony leave a few moments earlier and whilst Daphne had given her a sister an apologetic look and her mother had ensured Colin was going to get her home safely, Anthony had marched off without a second glance.

Benedict frowned. He twirled Y/N twice and then resumed the proper position. “Whatever for?”

Y/N smiled up at him and for the first time that night, felt as if she was enjoying herself. “For being my favourite brother and saving the day.”

“I’m your favourite?” Benedict asked, tilting his head to the side in a curious gesture.

Y/N hit his arm. Hard. “Don’t ruin the moment,” she replied as the song ended.

They bowed to one another as the dance ended and then moved off the dance floor. Y/N suddenly wrapped her arms around Benedict’s neck and hugged him tightly.

Benedict, surprised by the sudden show of sibling love, slowly returned the hug with a confused expression. 

“Thank you for making this night worth it,” Y/N whispered in his ear. 

Benedict hadn’t been oblivious to the way Anthony glossed over his sister. Whilst it was probably unintentional - everyone knew that Anthony Bridgerton would die for his family - he hadn’t missed the hurt look in Y/N’s eyes. 

Benedict smiled and ruffled Y/N’s hair as best he could without messing up the intricate updo. “Always, sister.”

Colin, impeccable timing as always, then happened to walk into Y/N, backwards, almost dropped the lemonade he was carrying and ruined the entire moment. Y/N fell forward into Benedict and Benedict fell back a step trying to catch his sister and his brother. Benedict had then slapped Colin on the back of the head. 

But according to those around the ballroom, Colin had been clumsy on purpose to try and cheer up his sister. Which had worked. 

[plaid-shirtsandvibranium-arms]

Nemesis: Retribution (2)

Summary: 10 years after the Avengers had left you for dead during a mission gone wrong, you unexpectedly re-enter their lives. Wholly unrecognizable from the person they used to know and now with a new team behind you, they ask for your help to stop a chain of syndicates who were manufacturing and peddling the super soldier serum. You were determined to say no until the chance at the vengeance you had been chasing for years was added to the offer.

Fandoms: Avengers, Marvel, MCU, The Punisher, Daredevil

Pairings: Female Reader x (Frank Castle, Billy Russo, Matt Murdock, Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, Pietro Maximoff)

Warnings: MENTIONS OF SMUT FOR THIS CHAPTER. SHAMELESS SEXUAL BEHAVIOURS. (18+ ONLY), polyamorous relationships, reverse harem, blatant disregard for canon timelines and events, mentions of illnesses, momentary fluff, bit of angst care of Bucky, Punisher canon level of violence and gore, rejection, bullying, heartbreak, character death

A/N: I couldn’t resist not posting this early. Here you go. Next ones will probably take a while coz I have to be an actual adult for a bit. 

No permission is granted to repost, steal, or translate my work. Not even a credit makes it okay. Tumblr is the only place I post my writing. If you see it anywhere else please report it.

Series Masterlist | Full Masterlist

1:2 Dark Chocolate

A few days of rest was required to recover from a super soldier's punch. The doctors had said that you were lucky Steve hadn't punched you with full strength or else you would probably have a whole cracked rib cage. You were anxious to jump back in to training, not used to being idle for very long.

You were given some painkillers at the clinic and ordered to stay there for the rest of the afternoon for monitoring. When you woke up, it was early evening and a blonde super soldier was napping on a steel chair next to your bed. He jumped when you moved to sit up, his heightened senses alarmed and disoriented for a second before he quickly switched to repeatedly apologizing to you. You laughed out loud. It was just a little ridiculous to you to see such a commanding presence in the field so charmingly boyish and adorably embarrassed.

Steve was a comforting presence but to be honest you were hoping to see Bucky. You didn't get a chance to thank him since he left immediately after the doctors had ushered you into the examination room. Once you were cleared to return to training, you caught sight of his long brunette hair and the bright smile on your face couldn't be stopped. It was the glare he pinned you with that made you halt your approach.

He was back to his disapproval of your very existence.

You had to admit that it stung. You thought that you were getting somewhere with him after he helped you. At least somewhere outside of the realm of outward disdain. And maybe you were hoping just a little bit that it could lead down the road to him feeling the same about you.

The timing was perfect when you were assigned to your first official mission with the Avengers. It was a chance to prove your worth to the team and to Bucky in particular. A chance to maybe make him see you as more than just a troublesome recruit.

You came back from the mission with your head held high and absolutely glowing with confidence at the kudos from Sam and Natasha. The great Natasha Romanoff had complimented your sniping skills, picking off enemies in her area even before she could aim her own gun at them.

The first thing you wanted to do after getting back to the Compound was to tell Bucky. You wanted to brag a little bit and maybe even thank him for the mentoring. If he hadn’t been so hard on you then you wouldn’t have pushed yourself to be at this level. You were skipping down the halls of the Compound in search for him, clutching the bullet casing from your first official Avenger kill.

FRIDAY had informed you that he was in the training area and you were bouncing on your feet with excitement. As you entered though the place was empty, the rest of the agents having retired to the mess halls. You ventured further in, trusting FRIDAY’s intel until you heard some noises coming from the adjacent armory. You smiled, he must be cleaning his guns again.

As you got closer, the noise began to get louder until you could make out what was undeniably pleasured moaning, one low and gravelly while the other more high pitched. You should have turned away, if only for the privacy of the couple who was wrapped up in their passion, but your curiosity pushed you to come closer and peak through the small crack in the door.

The brief image that you saw made you instantly draw back, a shaking hand pressed to your mouth to silence the shocked gasp. You backed away slowly, your mind struggling to process what you had just seen, then your flight response kicked in and you ran like hell out of there. The scene was burning a hole in your brain and caused your skin to grow cold. Sergeant Barnes rutting hard against a woman wrapped around his waist, his glinting eyes locked with yours, and a cocky sneer on his face.

You didn’t go to dinner that night or to the team celebration for a successful first mission. You chose instead to lay in your bunk with tears burning in your eyes and trying to erase the memory of your discovery. Of course he was already dating someone. A man of his caliber was sure to have a line-up of gorgeous eager women at his disposal. He probably had no interest in boring recruits like yourself. The woman he was throwing into bliss must be some supermodel or high ranking spy. How did you even end up deluding yourself that you could possibly catch his eye?

The rest of your roommates filtered in after a few hours, chatting away noisily about the party. Anna had come to sit on the edge of your bed and ran a comforting hand along your arm, concern clearly etched on her face.

“I’m fine. Just tired. The mission really wore me out,” you muttered with a small smile. You weren't ready to talk about it yet.

“Personally I think I had better success today than all of you,” Kim’s shrill voice cut through the good natured conversations in the room.

She wasn’t part of the group taken on the mission, claiming beforehand that she was ill. A chorus of curious why’s rang out through the group and she preened at once again being the center of attention.

“Well I just had the fuck of a lifetime from none other than Sergeant James Barnes.”

The room of women burst into chaos; squeals of disbelief, rapid fire questions on how big he was and how good of a lay was he, were they dating now or was this a fuck buddy situation. Of course Kim was more than happy to entertain each question.

You tuned all of it out, the noise turning into an annoying ringing in your ear. You turned around to face the wall as the silent tears that refused to be contained any longer fell to wet your pillow. You barely registered Anna squeezing your shoulder or the words that Kim threw your way.

“Sorry, Y/N. I guess I was just more Bucky’s type.”

You curled yourself into a tighter ball as the pain in your chest radiated across your whole body. You had assumed wrong about Bucky. It seemed that he wasn’t opposed to dating new recruits.

He was just opposed to you.

The taunting from Kim continued on and you just couldn't take it any longer. You brushed the tears away, grabbed your sweater, and marched yourself to the door. You needed to get some air. You needed to get away. Anywhere but there. You wrenched open the door and almost came crashing straight toward a solid chest. Your eyes travelled up to lock with the kind blue gaze of Captain America. You wondered why Steve was standing at the doors of your bunkers holding a pack of beer in his hand.

"Good evening, ladies," he said to the room of now suddenly speechless females. "I'm just going to borrow Y/N for a bit."

The crowd remained in shocked silence while you stared at him in confusion as he smiled sweetly down at you. He had gone looking for you when he didn't see you at the celebration after Natasha and Sam had sang your praises to him at your performance. He wanted to congratulate you and bring you a drink for a job well done.

"Come on. I know a good spot," he said, placing a hand on your back and guiding you out.

Steve brought you to the top of an observatory in the Compound. It was quiet, peaceful, and offered a great view. He cracked open a bottle for you and the conversation just flowed naturally. He kept making you laugh until your sides hurt with stories about his time as a performer in the military and all the unfortunate videos that came with it. You were crying with pure joy when he relented and re-enacted his buy military bonds act, your earlier darkened mood forgotten for the moment.

Steve felt like he did something right when your glassy eyes and defeated expression was replaced with clear amusement. Even if it was at his expense. He wouldn't ask what the reason was, but he felt happy he made you feel better.

"Thank you, Steve," you muttered before you parted ways. Somehow both of you understood that it was more than just for the drink.

You promised yourself then that you would give yourself tonight to weep over your unfortunate romantic feelings. Only for tonight. Come morning you would focus all your energy on what you actually came here to do; become an Avenger. You slept fitfully that night, the shell casing from your first mission still gripped in your hand.

You made a conscious effort after that day to limit your interactions with Bucky and Kim to polite clipped conversations. At first Bucky had been surprised at your change in attitude, your blank expression and sparse words causing a momentary guilt to flash in his eyes. You had chosen instead to spend more time with Steve and the twins, your mood obviously brighter around them.

You were sitting now in a large conference room for a briefing on the next mission with a handful of other recruits when Sam Wilson sent you out to fetch the rest of the Avengers who were running late and not responding.

"Can you get them for me, sweetheart?" he chuckled, knowing that you blushed uncontrollably each time he used a nickname on you.

FRIDAY had directed you to the private common room exclusive for their use. You were about to knock on the door when you heard your name in the middle of what sounded like a heated argument. Against your better judgement, you leaned in closer.

"I don't think Y/N's cut out to be part of this team."

Your heart dropped. The conviction in Bucky's voice was clear. It was one thing for your infatuation with him to be forcefully thrown back at your face, but for him to explicitly state to a set of people that you held at such high esteem that you were not good enough was a whole other vicious heartbreak.

Lily was wrong. This time you should have known when to quit.

You forced yourself to crack the door wider and step inside, clearing your throat to announce your presence. You didn't see the startled look on their faces or the guilty one that followed when they realized that you had heard. One look at your sad glistening eyes that refused to look up confirmed it. Natasha and Steve both threw Bucky a deadly glare.

"Sam wants you all at a briefing. I was sent to come get you."

Your voice was so small and unsteady, none of the easy happiness and optimistic determination that it usually carried. Bucky felt the shame burn through him, the guilt drowning him in an instant. You weren't supposed to hear that. He took a step towards you, instinct driving him to do anything to wipe that defeated look off your face, but a threatening look from the twins pinned him in place.

"We'll walk back with you, little star," Pietro said softly, appearing beside you and wrapping an arm around your shoulder. Wanda came on the other side, looping your arm with hers.

For the rest of the briefing, you strained with the effort of focusing on Sam while blatantly ignoring Bucky. You knew he was staring a hole at the back of your head, but you couldn't allow yourself to give him any satisfaction by looking back. You were soon assigned your tasks, you being placed on sniper duty again having performed well the last time.

It was supposed to be a run of the mill mission for intel and taking out a criminal base, but with the expectation of more hostiles so a slightly bigger team was necessary. You practically flew out of the room when you were dismissed, not giving anyone a chance to talk to you. A decision was solid in your mind now for when you got back.

This would be your last mission.

The ride on the jet to the location was spent with you cleaning your gear and checking your weapons. You were sliding a few knives in place when Bucky came in front of you holding out another set of knives for you to take.

"You know if you tilt the hilt to the left you can fit more in one holster," he said.

It was odd hearing him with almost warmth in his tone toward you. If it had happened yesterday, you probably would be celebrating this fact. You nodded at him, but didn't say a word.

"Remember to keep your head low and stay on your post. Okay, doll?"

You nodded wordlessly again. Because you made a point not to look at his face, you missed the way he was struggling to say more to you and the disheartened look when you obviously weren't going to answer him. You ignored him for the rest of the ride, choosing to focus on reviewing the intel.

As far as bad intel could go, this had to be the worst. You were perched up on a densely covered hill a good distance away from the base that the rest of the team were storming. You were picking off as many hostiles coming out of the base as quick as your hands would allow. Your fingers were starting to ache from the constant reloading, your eyes stung from the gunpowder, and your lip was already bleeding from biting down on it.

The noise in the comms was pure mayhem. Each team member trying to ask for help, for backup, for a plan. You had all come expecting a fight but not an army prepared to defend. You were certainly not expecting HYDRA.

"They have Bucky."

Three words spoken that sent a cold dread to wash over all of you. HYDRA couldn't be allowed to take Bucky. You abandoned your post without a second thought and sprinted down toward the base, pistols at the ready for anyone coming your way.

"Last location," you asked urgently as you slipped into the building shooting down two agents immediately.

"West wing. Near the last corridor," Steve grunted, clearly having a hard time on his end. "Y/N, do not engage!"

"I'm the closest one, Cap."

"I'm close too. Just a little busy," Natasha huffed. "I'll follow, Y/N. Steve, we need to get the hell out of here."

Steve had reluctantly agreed, seeing that there was no other choice. He quickly barked orders and commanded you to keep safe. You nodded although he couldn't see it as you wove through the corridors at full speed in search of your teammate. The moment you barged into that last room, your eyes found an unconscious Bucky immediately.

Seeing him in that chair horrified you; shirt ripped, bleeding in several areas, skin pale and cold with sweat, chest rising and falling far too rapidly, and eyes that were unresponsive. You were so distracted by the jarring image that you failed to notice the operatives across the room until the bullets were burning through your soft flesh.

You screamed from the pain, but raised your gun and fired back until you heard their bodies thud heavily on the floor. You clutched at your side, the amount of wet blood pouring out was alarming. You pushed your own welfare aside and hurriedly undid Bucky's restraints. It was a struggle to sit up a semi-conscious super soldier and when you took his weight on your shoulders, you collapsed to the floor at the intense pain in your arm. You hadn't realized that you had multiple shots there too.

You gritted your teeth and groaned at the effort of lifting you both up, your blood soaking through your gear as well as Bucky's. You huffed painfully with each step but you just had to get him out of there. You could have kissed Natasha square in the mouth when you saw her come barreling towards you.

"Jesus fucking Christ, Y/N!" she winced at your state before taking Bucky's other side. Apparently you looked as bad as you felt. "We gotta move fast. I hear more of them coming up this way. This path is clear."

Having Natasha's help in carrying Bucky alleviated some of the burden from you and made you all move faster, but the blood loss was already starting to make your vision blurry and the adrenaline was wearing off. Through the haze, you could also hear the rapidly approaching footsteps. Soon you would be basically useless and you knew there was no way Natasha could carry you both out while fighting off a hoard of enemies.

"Natasha," you said quietly, your steps faltering.

"No. Keep going goddamn it!" Natasha cried.

She knew what you were thinking. She had assessed the situation too and come to the same miserable conclusion. You smiled sadly at her angry eyes and shaking head as you let go of your hold on Bucky. Her eyes widened further as you limped toward the doors behind you and locked them tight before raising your guns to aim right at anyone who would come through them.

She didn't miss how your hands were shaking and your shot arm could barely hold up, the way you scowled deeper in pain with each movement, or how your uniform was soaked in your own blood and slowly forming a pool at your feet. Ghastly as you looked, you turned your head and tossed her another gentle smile. You were basically going to use yourself as a human shield for them and yet you were comforting her. You were reassuring her.

"Check on my sister for me, yeah?"

Natasha wanted to insist on another plan. Anything other than leave you behind to hold off the nearing enemy units. Shouting and gunfire from the other side of the door forced her to make a decision. She cursed sharply under her breath and dragged Bucky away with her, the regret heavy on her heart for having to leave you behind.

You stepped further back and supported your weak body against the wall after Natasha had thankfully left. The enemy was trying their hardest to barge through the door, ramming into it and shooting their guns at the locks. It wouldn't be long now before they manage to breach it.

You took a moment to spare a thought for your sister. A part of you was saddened to think of her grief after she finds out that you had done the most heroic thing anyone could ever do.

Sacrifice.

Another part of you was relieved knowing that she had Jill and she wouldn't be alone in that grief. When you decided this morning that this would be your last mission, you didn't necessarily expect it to be in this way.

"I'm sorry, Lily."

Natasha managed to get Bucky back to the jet where the rest of the team were all converging, still fighting off operatives chasing after them. There just didn't seem to be any end to them.

"I'm going back for Y/N!" she yelled to the team as she dropped Bucky on the floor of the jet. There was no time to be gentle, she had to hurry back to help you out.

"What do you mean? Where the hell is Y/N, Nat?" Steve shouted as he grabbed her arm.

"She stayed behind to hold off the ones chasing us so we could get out. I have to go back!"

"I will go. I can get her out," Pietro volunteered at once but he doubled over immediately from the extensive wounds on his torso.

Natasha was already sprinting back into the compound, not willing to waste another minute. She made it only a few feet before the entire facility exploded into a fiery inferno that quickly ravaged it and threw her farther back.

The entire team watched in horror as the explosions continued on several parts of the structure. The area was quickly getting engulfed by the flames and smoke. Steve had to force everyone onto the jet and bodily carry a shell shocked Natasha.

No one could have possibly survived that.

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

Natasha steadied her breath as she quietly landed on a perch high above in the rafters of a seedy warehouse. Wanda joined her seconds later, weaving her magic to better cloak them. The other twin was running a lap around the perimeter and would join them later.

She was assigned weird missions all the time. Missions that had very little to doubtful intel was common. This mission though was by far the strangest she's ever gotten. There was a very small list of vague things that were told to them; the time and location, not to intervene, to remain unseen until the target was ready, bring the target to the Compound.

She was slightly annoyed, but she complied anyway. She was curious too as the mission was given in secret to only the three of them. A million questions was speeding through her mind as she observed the activity below. It looked like a regular run of the mill drug den filled with busy workers and roving guards.

"How many, Wanda?" Natasha whispered.

"I sense more than 25 of them. All armed, but with much fear."

A gust of wind signaled the return of the other twin. He had a frown on his face and a concerned look in his eyes. "There is another one, but this one does not seem to be with them."

Natasha was starting to sincerely doubt this mission when a fast movement from the shadows caught her eye. By the way the twins perked up too, they surely had seen it. They followed the figure as it slipped through the darkness, almost losing track if they hadn't noticed that the guards were quickly dwindling in number. Natasha was growing worried, this was surely a highly skilled group of assassins. Pietro must have been mistaken. They were clean and efficient too.

All of a sudden a gunfight broke out below them. A figure completely clad in black, strolled casually out from the shadows with a pistol in each hand firing precisely at their targets. They confidently charged closer, unfazed as they greeted the gunfire. They continued to tear viciously through the crowd with a deadly mix of combat, bullets, and blades. 

The workers had drawn their weapons by now as well, but they were quickly killed off with barbaric aggression. It did not take long for the floor below to become a sea of blood and lifeless bodies. One person remained barely alive, hanging on to his middle to keep his internal organs from spilling out from the wide gash. The attacker came to him, nonchalantly stepping over decimated bodies. They couldn't hear what was exchanged from this distance, only the choked scream that followed as he was stabbed straight through the throat. His blood spurting out like a broken faucet.

Natasha had been in this profession for a while, but she has never seen this level of unrestrained violence.

One person.

One single person had cleared out a base of approximately 30 people. Natasha was growing more and more worried. Clearly this person was at the very least an enhanced and even with the twins with her, they were not prepared to face someone powered.

What kind of bloodthirsty lunatic does this?

"You can come down now."

All three of them froze in place. Looking down, the attacker was staring right at them with cloaked eyes. Reluctantly and very slowly, Wanda used her powers to float them down carefully keeping a good distance from this murderer.

From this close they could now see that they were in full military tactical gear in what was originally all matte black, but now had an explosion of dripping red. Combat boots, fitted cargo pants, a long sleeved shirt underneath a tight bulletproof vest, gloves, a loose hood over their head, and a cloth mask around the lower half of their face.

"Should have known something was up when my team mentioned seeing a really fast man."

The shivers that travelled through every expanse of skin on Natasha, was a reaction to that voice. It sounded strangely familiar yet unknown, but something in her mind was denying her from piecing it together. The moment the hood was dropped to reveal their eyes was when she spiraled into a complete icy shock. They were eyes that had haunted her for the past ten years. Haunted all of them. The only difference was that the eyes in her memories were smiling warmly.

The bloodied face mask was lowered to reveal a face they mourned, unmistakable and yet completely different. White raised scars branched out like weaving vines from the right side of the neck to just above the jaw and the ears. They were obviously old and healed but still raised and prominent, adding an even more dangerous edge to the menacing look on their face.

Your face.

"Hello, Natasha. Pietro. Wanda."

10 years after they had watched you tragically perish in a burning HYDRA facility, you stood before three of a group of people you had unknowingly tormented all these years.

The earpiece you wore crackled to life. "Blackbird to Hedwig. I have a visual. Should I shoot them?"

You smirked. There was no need for that. At least not right now.

"Hey, Blackbird. Tell Raven I'll be late for dinner. I have a reunion to get to."

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

A/N: Tell me which pairing or combination in this harem you’re most looking forward to. Smut or otherwise. I’m still rearranging scenes and working out smut. There is a long list of kinks. I need help.

Series Tag List (Open):

@anythingwriter @kamalymaly @lazyloki @marvelfansworld @blackbirddaredevil23 @purechaosss @iloveangstposts @onesmokinbabe @jojodojo02 @spookyparadisesheep @strawb3rrydr3ss @studentdoctorstark

Permanent Tag List (Open):

@alwaysclassyeagle @closetbtstrash @fanofalltheficsx​ @unlikelygalaxygiver​ @alyispunk​ @fckdeusername​ @milkyway-writes​ @dumb-ass-writer​

Series Masterlist | Full Masterlist

[thetargaryenbride]

A Way of Mourning

Requested by:  @iamhowieson​ Hey! I was wondering if you could make a Levi x reader request where Levi accidentally hurts the reader and he feels terrible about it but the reader comforts him and tells him they’re ok. 

Thank you for requesting! <3 And I’m sorry for the delay. 

Words: 2K+

Pairing: Levi x Reader [gn]

Hope you like it  ❤️ Feedback is deeply appreciated! ^^

* . °•★|•°∵ ∵°•|☆•° . *

“Where…” you whispered, almost choking, as your dry throat tissues scratched against each other.

“Here, have some water,” someone helped you sit up and held a glass to your lips, letting you gulp greedily. The chilly liquid soothed your parched throat and you sighed in relief. Finally opening your eyes, you were met with the face of your best friend and the rest of your squadmates.

“Captain, you gave us quite the scare there. It’s been two days and you weren’t waking up. Glad to finally have you back!” grinned one of them and you smiled, only now feeling the dull ache in your abdomen. You remembered now, how you had saved one of your subordinates which resulted in a titan sinking its teeth into you.

Your eyes widened as your thoughts shifted to a certain trio.

“What happened to Levi and the others?” you asked, almost frantically, because you didn’t remember anything from the mission and the worry quickly settled inside you, like a parasite, and started eating.

Since Levi, Isabel and Farlan joined the Scouts, you were one of the few people who were assigned to take care of the three. They needed to learn more about the world above, about how the military worked, about how the Survey Corps operated, and tons of other stuff, not to mention training, riding, and strategy. The others who were assigned to help, did it with disdain until at one point they just gave up, not wanting to have any contact with the “mongrels from the Underground” but you had stayed. You genuinely liked them. Your mother had done some charity in the Underground and you had accompanied her on a few occasions. What you felt towards the people from that place was only pity, because they deserved so much better than the curse they got since birth – to live in a place with no sun and light, where only filth and shadows flooded each corner, lurking over every inch of your skin.

So you had tried your best to take care of the three. Isabel had quickly taken a liking to you, followed by Farlan. Levi had been harder to win over. He was very quiet, reserved, and distrustful. But your constant kind gestures managed to crack even his shell if only a bit. He didn’t have problems with letting you be near him anymore. He even started talking to you and a day before the expedition he had even allowed you to rub his right shoulder. It had been aching and you had told him that he had to be healthy and strong for the expedition if he wanted to protect himself and his friends. He couldn’t malfunction. He had actually chuckled, although it was so quiet you almost mistook it for him letting out a breath, and let you do your magic at soothing his muscles. You had grown so attached to them that you couldn’t imagine your life without them. The thought that this was their very first expedition had hit you like a sack of bricks just before you had taken off and you had been worried out of your mind throughout the whole expedition, wondering whether they would make it out alive.

“Look, Y/N…I know you grew close during this past month but…Isabel and Farlan are dead,” announced your friend grimly and your heart dropped to your stomach. And suddenly your throat was dry again and no amount of gulping water or saliva was going to help. You let out a shaky breath as your trembling fingers clutched the edge of the bed, helping you sit up straighter and swing your legs over it.

“Wait, where are you-“

“I need to see Levi,” you muttered and your friends shared worried glances. They let you pass. They knew you were one of the most stubborn people alive and no amount of persuasion would put a stop to what you have in mind.

You stumbled all the way to the male barracks and opened the door, fully expecting to see Levi slumped on his bunkbed. But he was not there. In fact, the barracks were quiet and there wasn’t a single soul inhabiting them. The only sound that penetrated that silence was that of running water. Your eyes snapped to your left where the male common showers were located and you took hesitant steps towards it. This had to be the man you were looking for. After all, one of your squadmates had told you that Levi hadn’t left the barracks since the expedition.

You didn’t know how long you just stood in front of the door, wondering if you should wait for him or leave and come back later, endlessly contemplating on what exactly you were going to tell him. But after thirty minutes had passed and nobody was coming out, your thoughts shifted to, once again, worry. Because nobody ever took showers that long. The hot water had to be preserved. After all, there were around a hundred soldiers in the regiment who needed it and it was a bit harder to warm it up since they lived in a castle and not in the city like the Military Police or the Garrison.

“Levi?” you called out as you knocked but no answer came. “It’s me, Y/N. I’m coming in, ok?” you slowly opened the door and your face and body were instantly hit with hot thick steam and moisture. It was almost suffocating. “What the-“ you rubbed your face and eyes as you fully stepped inside and tried to focus. You finally located a figure at the end of the room and you walked towards it. The fog parted a bit and revealed the familiar backside of Levi. You were about to huff and scold him when you noticed just how red his back was. Your eyes widened as you outstretched your arm and put it under the sprinkling water, hissing and retreating it almost immediately.

“That water is scalding hot!” you exclaimed. “Levi, hey, let’s get out of here, hm?” you asked, voice laced with desperation and worry as you went to put a hand on his shoulder and shake him out of whatever trance he had fallen in. “You’re harming yourself. Please, let’s leave,” but before you could touch his skin, his hand shot out and grabbed yours, clutching it so tightly that he almost snapped it. He stood up abruptly and shoved you away, causing you to let out a squeal as you slipped and fell on your bum, the pain from your wound jostling your body, making you groan and clutch your stomach as if it was going to help soothe it.

“Get out,” he growled, his back still turned on you.

“But-“

“I said leave!” he yelled as his head sharply turned to look down at you. His eyes grew wide and the angry sneer and furrowed eyebrows he had donned eased a little. You stood up slowly and raised a hand, nodding.

“Ok…it’s alright, I’m going…just…don’t stay here long,” you whispered before you turned on your tail and exited the room.

* . °•★|•°∵ ∵°•|☆•° . *

“Gods, would you go to bed already? Your wound is still healing and instead of resting you’re burying yourself in paperwork!” exclaimed your friend angrily as she crossed her arms.

“You know that there is always extra paperwork after expeditions. And I’ve been out for two days. I have a lot of work to catch up to. I’m fine,” you smiled at her reassuringly and she rolled her eyes before they snapped to the door after a knock echoed throughout your office.

“Name and business?!” you called out but nobody answered. The door just opened and your eyebrows shot to your hairline as you saw Levi holding a tray with two cups of steaming tea. Your friend gave you a look and nodded.

“I’ll leave you two to it,” she said as she quickly exited and closed the door.

Levi just stood there awkwardly, shifting from foot to foot until you told him to sit. He placed the tray on your desk and grabbed a chair, dragging it to sit in front of you while you were sipping on the liquid. There was silence for some time as you looked at him but he didn’t have the courage to look at you, focusing on his lap as his bangs covered his face.

Levi felt horrible. He felt disgusted with himself. He had been shaking like a leaf the moment you had left the bathroom. He hadn’t known what to do. He hadn’t even known which world he was on.

He remembered sitting there, almost choking on the thick steam, feeling the hot water drops drum against his skin. He had been so deep into his thoughts and the still fresh memories from two days ago, eyes scanning his hands in haze, seeing not clean skin but skin marred with dark wine blood – the blood of his family. The family he couldn’t protect because of his own foolishness and weakness. The moment he had felt that someone’s presence breathing down his neck and feeling the closeness of their hand, hovering over his shoulder, the close proximity creating warmth and electricity that had made the hair on his neck bristle, his hand had shot out automatically. He hadn’t wanted anyone to breathe the same air as him, much less touching him. He hadn’t hesitated when he pushed them away. But the moment he had turned and his eyes fell on you, regret had struck his heart and he had been frozen in place, not being able to do anything but watch with wide eyes as you shot him an apologetic smile before leaving.

He told himself that it wasn’t on purpose. He told himself it was just a reaction – a reflex – to something, someone, foreign, invading his personal space in a moment of deep vulnerability. But still…he felt like a trash.  

“I’m sorry,” he finally let out and you smiled at him, shaking your head.

“It’s fine,”

“No…I yelled at you…I pushed you…I didn’t mean to hurt you,” he whispered and you sighed.

“Everyone mourns differently, Levi. You needed space; so I gave it to you. I probably startled you by touching you. I shouldn’t have been so abrupt with my actions,” you explained gently, hoping to ease the guilt that was so obviously drowning him. His hands balled into fists as he bit the inside of his cheek.

“You’re the only one I have left,” he muttered as his eyes finally locked with yours and your hand touched his ever so slowly.

“And I’m not going anywhere. Please… let’s just forget everything and keep going together,” you smiled at him as your hand stroke his and he let out a sigh of relief before nodding. The emotions swirling in his eyes were so many and so vivid that it almost made you cry. It engulfed your very being and had such an impact on you that it overwhelmed you, making you succumb to emotion rather than rationality. You stood up and approached the man, crouching down in front of him. The smile you sent him and the emotions swirling in your eyes, had him give you a soft smile. You rose on your toes and closed the distance, letting your arms embrace his form. You sank into him, head nestling in the crook of his neck as his own arms tugged you closer and squeezed your form.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured in your hair again and you tightened your hold, nuzzling into him. He didn’t know whether he truly deserved this forgiveness. You were simply an exceedingly kind and forgiving person. But he knew one thing. From now on he was going to do anything for you. He was aware he had a difficult personality but he was going to try his best and stick by your side. Because you truly were one of the few people who gave him a chance and tried so hard to forge friendship with him despite all and you actually managed to wiggle into his heart and settle there.  

.

.

.

I promise to protect you...

[thedaredevilsgirl]

Chapter Two - Vibrating

Warning: Smut (vibrator use, fingering and dirty talk)

Word count: 1,817

I'm starting to think I'm terrible at writing smut, but I swear I'm trying to improve. I hope you like it

You and Tom have always been close, everyone knew that, but after the events of the last week it seemed that you were even closer. He was always waiting for you so you could go to campus together, walking you to your class and taking you to the library before you went back to the fraternity.

"Megan said she is waiting for me in front of the library and can take me home later, so you don't have to wait for me today." You say to Tom as they walked to the library.

"Are you sure honey?"

"Yeah, see you later" you turn to look at him.

"Can I come to your room tonight?" He asks with a mischievous smile on his face.

Every time he smiled like that it made you nervous, you nod your head positively and he steps closer tucking a lock of your hair behind your ear before bending down a little to be your size and whispering.

"I can't wait to touch you again angel," you feel your whole body shiver at those words.

Tom leaves a kiss on your forehead and goes in the opposite direction from you.

When you turn to enter the library you see Megan with her arms crossed in front of her body looking at you suspiciously, you approach her and she pulls you inside the library quickly making you sit on one of the tables and sitting in front of you.

"You're going to tell me everything that's going on right now," she commands.

"What are you talking about Megan? Nothing is going on" you try to cover it up.

"Y/N I'm not an idiot, why are you and Tom suddenly so close?"

"We've always been close" you answer as if it's obvious.

"Yes, because he is your brother's best friend, but now you are acting like a couple, like you are fucking...OH MY GOD YOU ARE FUCKING" some people who were inside look at the two of you angrily.

"Keep your voice down please, and no, we are not fucking...not yet at least."

"Oh my god, what do you mean not yet?" She asks agitated.

"I asked him to teach me how to fuck" you say softly and embarrassed "he said yes and maybe he gave me a oral earlier in the week" you admit all at once.

She puts her hands over her mouth to avoid screaming again, and you can see the excitement in her eyes.

"Finally you're doing something about your feelings," she says with a smile.

"I don't have feelings for him" "A seriously" she rolls her eyes" You have liked him since first grade and he likes you too, you just never did anything because your idiot brother would kill him"

"That's not true" he tries to defend himself and she just looks at him with disdain.

"You can literally feel the sexual tension between the two of you."

"Anyway, it's just sex Megan, nothing else is going to happen, I just need the experience." You say. She suddenly gets up from the table again drawing glances at both of you.

"Get up" she says quickly grabbing her things.

"What? Why? I thought we were going to study".

"No, we're going shopping".

•─────✧─────•─────✧─────•

When your friend Megan said you were going shopping, you thought she was talking about going to some clothing store, but that's not what happened.

"Why are we here?" You ask Megan as soon as she has you enter a sex shop getting a blush as you look at the things there.

"I just thought since you started your sex life you might want a few things" She says laughing.

"If I had known you were going to act this way I wouldn't have told you" you roll your eyes "can we please leave".

"No, come on Y/N, have some fun, I know this isn't really your thing, but I guarantee that once you try it you will like it, you just need to give it a chance" she speaks while looking for something specific in the store.

"Try what exactly?" "

Here" she takes something from one of the shelves before turning to you again "try this on" she puts the box in your hand.

"No, no way" you turn red as you hold the small box of bal vibrator in your hand.

"Y/N, think along with me, you tonight, going into Tom's room and saying you want him to use this on you" she points to the vibrator.

You can picture exactly the scene perfectly and it sounds wonderful.

"I'm sure you'll kill him with a hard-on just by suggesting it, and you'll still have a wonderful orgasm, so...will you try it?" She ask.

"Ok, fine" you give in.

"Great" she smiles "don't worry, I'll pay, thank me after Holland makes you cum".

•─────✧─────•─────✧─────•

You ran to your room as soon as you arrived at the fraternity, only to take the vibrator out of the box and clean it, You also changed your lingerie for one that you had just bought. You wanted to impress Tom a little tonight.

As soon as you get dressed again and hide the small vibrator in the pocket of your sweatshirt you finally make your way to Tom's room.

"May I come in?" You ask knocking on Tom's bedroom door.

"Hey" he says as he opens the door and gives you room to enter "I was just on my way to your room, I thought you'd be here early" he locks the door.

"Megan and I decided to do some shopping" you say smiling and sit down at the study table.

"Did you buy anything interesting?" You ask curious.

"Yeah, I mean we went to some cool stores, forever 21, Gap, Victoria Secrets and Megan took me to a sex shop" you say as if it wasn't something interesting and Tom looks at you surprised.

"Megan took you where? He asks, maybe he had heard you wrong.

"To a sex shop," you shrug.

"Why?" he asks walking over to you and standing between your legs.

"I wanted to see something" you say a little nervously taking the small vibrator from your pocket "actually I wanted to try something"

"What?" Just imagining you going to a sex shop made Tom horny.

"I want you to use this on me" she puts the dildo in his hand.

He sighs as he looks at the vibrator and soon after he is kissing you desperately, his hands grip your waist tightly pulling you closer to his body.

Your shirt is the first to be removed and he stops for a moment just to look at your body, trapping his lower lip between his lips when he sees the red lingerie on your body.

"Do you like it?" He asks running his fingers gently over the strap of the bra "I bought it with you in mind."

"I think it is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen." He helps you remove your skirt without you having to get off the table.

"Can you take your shirt off too, please?" He smiles and removing his shirt, his hand touches your abdomen the direction before pulling you in for another kiss.

His fingers touch the inside of her thigh trailing towards her intimacy, both fingers touch the delivery catching the wetness and he brings them to his mouth closing his eyes as he feels her taste again on his tongue. His breathing fails, you never thought you would see anything hotter than this.

"Are you sure you want to try this baby?" He asks to make sure it felt comfortable.

"Yes, please."

He finally takes the vibrator and turns it on at the lowest speed.

First he slides it down the length of your neck stopping the vibrations right at your pulse point, you close your eyes and feel him moving further down, from the top of your breasts to your nipples making them hard against the lacy fabric of your bra.

"Stop teasing me, please," you plead, and he just smiles.

The vibrations travel down your belly and you feel your breath hitch as he reaches for the bar of your panties, he looks at you for confirmation and you say yes.

The vibrator finally touches your clit and you feel like you might die, but the vibrations are turned off soon after. You look at Tom trying to understand why he had stopped.

"Don't worry honey, just getting it out of the way" he says pulling your panties off your body.

He turns the vibrator back on and puts it in contact with your clit, he moves it down into your folds teasing your wet entrance, sighing you throw your head back feeling the pleasure in your body. Tom leans only his body on yours and leaves wet kisses on your neck.

"Tom, please" you moan gripping the curly locks of your hair tightly

"I need more". He chuckles against her neck before bringing the vibrator again to her clit along with his thumb making a circular motion.

"Don't stop please" she pleads.

"You don't know how beautiful your moans are love" he whispers to you and lets a light bite on your earlobe increasing the speed of the vibrator.

"Fuck, Thomas, I'm going to..." You close your eyes tightly feeling a tasty sensation in the pit of your stomach indicating that you were about to cum.

"I got you angel, cum for me".

Your body obeys his command and you come with a loud scream of his name, he turns off the vibrator but continues with the finger movements until you come down from orgasm.

You hug him tiredly letting your head fall on his shoulder, he quickly picks you up in his lap and lays you on his bed.

"Are you okay?" He asks pulling your hair out of your face.

"Yes, thank you."

"You need to stop thanking me for this" he smiles.

"Never, not until you stop giving me orgasms" she laughs a little before closing her eyes.

He lies down next to her hugging her body and sleeping next to her for the first time.

•─────✧─────•─────✧─────•

You wake up the next morning alone in Tom's bed, desperate to get out of there and not be caught by your brother, and sneak out of the room quietly.

When you are finally ready for your day and go downstairs to the kitchen you see Tom and Harrison having coffee alone since the other guys in the house were slow to wake up.

"Did you sleep well?" Harrison asks as soon as you enter the kitchen.

"Yes" you put the coffee in the cup and sit down next to him "Very well" you say looking at Tom.

"And you?" he asks Tom "did you bring any girls home last night?"

"What do you mean?"

"Dude, your room is next to mine, I heard all the moaning" Harrison says laughing and you choke lightly on your coffee "Don't stop, Oh Thomas, keep going I'm going to cum" you say imitating a female voice.

"Did you hear everything?" Tom asks nervously.

"Yeah, I don't know who the girl was, but I hope you made her cum at least," he says debauched.

"Yes, I did" he says smugly giving a cocky wink.

He walks past you to put the cup in the sink and when Harrison is not looking he whispers in your ear.

"And I hope for several more".

TAGLIST

@cherryobx

@a-daydreamers-day

@bevanbexley5252

@multihoee

@storybookholland

[beforeoursunsets]

aud. i'm so obsessed with literally EVERYTHING on your masterlist. ugh chefs kiss af. as for the request: since i haven't seen this trope on your account yet, what about some good ole amnesia? like one day draco gets wiped OUT by a bludger, wakes up, and forgets being in love with the reader. i just know you'd do this justice ILY

Amnesia - d.m

a/n: hiiii anon! tysm for the love you are so kind and i hope i didn't totally butcher this request!!! also im too tired to come up with an original title,, lol enjoy <33

house: slytherin

word count: 1.7k

warnings: just amnesia but idk if that counts, oh and a sorta open ending dont kill me

-----

You almost fell out of your seat, a cry escaping you as Draco plummeted nearly fifteen meters to the grass below. The astounding crack and thud sent the entire stadium quiet, Madam Hooch and her surrounding professors racing to the unconscious blond.

“Is he…” Pansy breathed, “...alive?”

Concern, etched on both of your faces, felt like a complete understatement compared to how you actually felt about the incident. Grabbing the coat you’d almost left behind, Parkinson followed along as you went straight for the infirmary.

Minutes later she had to slow down, unable to keep up with your running pace. Once she was finally able to catch up, Pansy found you bickering with Madam Pomfrey, begging her to let you inside the hospital wing.

“No you listen,” The matron scowled, “you can visit him tomorrow morning. Mr. Malfoy needs ample time to rest.” She said with finality.

You gave up, irritably walking towards your panting friend while dragging her back in the direction she had just come from. Tears stained your cheeks, but the weeping was gone momentarily, replaced with newfound disdain for Madam Pompfrey.

“She won’t tell me anything.” You complained, pacing in the Slytherin common room. “From what I know they could be embalming him right now!”

“Y/N, I think we both just need to relax right now. I don’t think Draco’s dead,” Pansy reassured you. “Come on, let’s get you to bed.”

After a long night of restless tossing and turning, you were out of bed the minute the sun rose. Thankfully it was a Saturday, and with no classes to attend you could spend the entire day in the hospital wing. Once you were inside, she would have to drag you out of there herself.

You pulled one of your boyfriend’s sweaters, holding it close to you as the cold morning air nipped your skin. With your best friend at your side, you pushed open the infirmary door, eyes searching for the injured boy.

Madam Pomfrey motioned for you to stay quiet, narrowing in her eyes as she did so.

You found Draco quickly, as he was the only other student in the room. His arm and left leg were bandaged up, his neck in a brace to hold it steady. The mere sight of him made your knees grow heavy, threatening to send you to the ground if you weren’t clutching onto his bed.

Pansy put a hand on your shoulder in an attempt to comfort you, “Hey, look, he’s waking up.” She whispered.

Slowly, his eyes opened, grimacing at the room’s lighting. Draco looked down at his hand entwined with yours, hesitantly recoiling it.

“Pansy? What’s going on?” He asked, his voice raspy.

You were almost taken aback. Never had you been insecure about his friendship with Parkinson, but it was like he didn’t even see you standing beside him. She looked almost uncomfortable, dealt with his awkward inquiry.

“One of the Ravenclaw beaters took you down with a bludger…” She prompted, trying to kickstart his recollection of last night’s quidditch game.

“Oh.” He responded simply.

“Are you serious?” You cut in, “You almost died and that’s the best you can say?”

Draco had finally made eye contact, looking back at you incredulously, “Why are you wearing my sweater?”

“And why is L/N even here?” He asked Pansy, turning away from you.

The matron picked up on the conversation, now concerned herself. “Miss L/N, I think it’s best for you to leave.”

“Of course I’m here, I’m your girlf--”

“I said, I think it’s best for you to leave.” She reiterated.

You were utterly confused, sending Pansy a look of near despair. “What’s wrong with him?”

“Leave. Now.”

After you had begrudgingly left the hospital wing, Pansy stayed behind as requested by Madam Pomfrey. Draco had seemed to recognize his friend, unlike you, who had only befuddled him.

She pulled your friend to the side, beginning to explain Draco’s condition now that you were out of sight. “I’m starting to believe that Mr. Malfoy here has suffered a brain injury after his fall. For how long have he and Miss L/N been together?” She inquired.

“Over a year,” She responded quickly.

Returning to his bedside, Madam Pomfrey began asking Draco a series of questions, trying to pinpoint how far his memory had recoiled. “What year are you in?”

“Fourth, obviously.” He drawled, “What does that have to do with anything?”

“And what was the last thing you remember?” She prodded.

“The goblet of fire,” Draco responded, “bloody Potter managed to cheat the damn thing.” He spat.

Pansy looked at Madam Pomfrey with concern, that had happened two years ago.

“Would anyone care to explain what bludger you’ve been blabbering about? And why has L/N stolen my jumper? Can someone tell me what’s going on!” Draco quickly grew frustrated by the women’s secretive conversations, demanding answers at once.

“Draco,” She began, “you’re a sixth year--and Y/N--she’s your girlfriend.”

-----

“What do you mean he doesn’t remember me?” You cried out in exasperation.

“He knows who you are,” Pansy explained, “he just has no memory of your relationship. It’s like he’s still a fifteen year old.”

Never had you imagined Draco could forget you so suddenly, so entirely. It was like one of your worst nightmares had sprung to life. “I need to talk to him.” You responded, getting off your bed.

He had been released from the hospital a few hours prior, now on strict bedrest. You knew he’d be in his room, and luckily, you had a key.

Unlocking his bedroom door, you knocked on the oak wood as it slowly creaked open, signalling that someone was there. “Draco?”

He was laying on top of his comforter, nose buried in his journal. Clearly he was trying to piece together the last two years of his life, your life together. You had hoped that something in there could possibly trigger his memory, a hope that would only set you up for disappointment.

“You can come in,” He spoke gruffly, his eyes still trained on the ivory pages littered with his handwriting.

You sat at the edge of his bed, the distance between him and you feeling so foreign. “I write about you a lot.” He almost chuckles, scanning one last entry.

“You really don’t remember?”

He shook his head regretfully, “No, I don’t.” He apologized, “But I really wish I did, honest. From what it looks like, I was seriously in love with you.”

I was, his voice repeated in your head. Who would’ve thought that one sentence could pierce your heart so deeply. “If it helps--” Draco piped up.

“I still fancy you, even now--or back then--I don’t really know how to talk about it.” He rambled, somehow eliciting a small laugh from you.

“Well I’m just happy to hear you confirm it, I’ve always had my suspicions about our timeline.” You smiled softly, the air filled with a bittersweet tension.

“You know, I can come back.” Getting back on your feet, you went for the door, suddenly feeling like an intruder.

Draco held a hand out to stop you, softly closing the journal to his left. “No, don’t go.” He pleaded, “I have so many questions.”

You sighed, tentatively sitting back down a few feet away. He cleared his throat, and by the look on his face Draco was actively trying to pull back a memory, any sort of recollection of you he could muster.

“How did it, you know, happen? Us, I mean.” He asked after a moment.

Fighting a smile, you replied with “Well, you and I both know we had fought since the moment you stepped foot in the common room, it wasn’t just two years ago.”

“How could I forget?”

“At the end of our fifth year you got into a bit of a tussle with Cormac again, something about how you were the only one allowed to bully me.” You laughed, “After that, I had my own personal bodyguard--on the rare occasions you were being decent.”

“People were messing with you? Why?” He asked, suddenly concerned.

“There were a lot of rumors going ‘round back then, most of them about my romantic affairs.” Rolling your eyes, you added “All about you, of course.”

Draco’s fallen smile was back and brighter than before, “Nice to know I’ve always been a nuance.”

“It wasn’t always that way.” You clarified, “We had some really good times, and no one--not even Pansy or Blaise--expected you to be such a romantic.”

He sighed, “I just wish I could remember it. It’s all there, I know it is, but no matter how hard I try the memories stay locked up somewhere.”

You moved closer, placing a hand over his, “Don’t worry about it, I’m sure they’ll come back sooner than later. Besides, I won your heart once, I have full confidence that I can do it again.”

“Did the part where I mentioned my current massive crush on you just fly right over your head?”

“How could I forget?” You mimicked, “I’m just glad you’re okay, Draco, your fall had us all freaked out.”

“Is it weird?” He asked out of the blue, “Talking to me?”

You thought about his question for a moment, as there aren’t enough words in the dictionary to describe exactly how it all felt. “It is weird, I suppose. Honestly, if anything I’m scared, scared that your feelings for me won’t be the same after the accident. I have all these memories of the last year with you and the only thing left of them is that journal of yours.”

“Believe me, I’ve read it.” He assured you, “The moment Madam Pomfrey released me I was practically glued to it.” Draco finally pulled you into a hug, the long awaited embrace feeling like a weight being lifted off your chest.

“It's awful to say, but I feel so lucky right now.” He mumbled into your hair, “I’m experiencing you all over again.”

taglist (link in my bio/nav if you want to be added): @gwlvr @thatsassyhufflepuff @dracoswhore007 @eunoniaa @darlingmalfoy @dracoscene

[t0wnspersonb]

The Sun (Levi Ackerman x Reader)

Word Count: 3.4K

Warnings: SMUT, rough sex, mentions of spanking, slight mentions of trauma (PTSD kinda), bad language, my shit writing

Summary: Missions can take their toll on anyone, especially in the Survey Corps. It’s not just Levi that needs a distraction from the horrors that he’s seen beyond the wall. You guys have always taken care of each other, for years now. This time was no different than any other time you two have comforted each other. If anything, this time solidified the relationship between the two of you.  

~~~~

GUYS. I’m so sorry for the lack of content recently. I’ve just gotten so busy with life and it’s been kind of crazy. School starts up soon too, so I’ve been attempting to relax before break is over. I’m doing a terrible job at it lmao. ANYWAY. I hope you guys like this one! This is the first time I’ve ever written anything for AOT, so please let me know what you think!:) 

As always I adore you guys so much and I hope you have a fantastic week!

~~~~

Levi didn’t know what was more cruel; the fact that this particular mission was a complete failure, that the amount of casualties this time was far more staggering than past failed missions, or the fact that he was taking it out on your body.

 It was like his vision was under water, he couldn’t even begin to register the influx of emotions coursing through his body. 

 Anger.

 Sorrow.

 Relief.

 Pleasure.

 He grunted loudly, the firm grip he had in your hair tightened, shoving your face harder into the mattress. His other bruised and battered hand gripped at your hip harshly, the flesh turning pale and then red once he released his hold; only to crack down against your already red and welted ass. 

 He could still hear your delicate yelp and cries of pain even though your face was buried against the mattress. Levi only thrusted harder into your swollen cunt. His eyes fluttering shut at the way your walls tightened around his shaft.

 But he could see the bodies, and the blood, and the looming shadows of those fucking monsters that took away far too many of his soldiers. His teeth clenched together tightly, eyes snapping open to gaze down at your body being pressed down into the bed. Your skin was beginning to bloom with dark bruises; angry red welts lingered on the delicate swell of your ass. Levi knew he was being rough; he knew that he was being cruel when usually he was a gentle lover. 

 His frustration, his anger, welled up inside of his body even more at what he knew he was doing to you, at the fact his cock was incredibly hard, and because of the immense amount of pleasure your body was giving him. 

 He wanted to slow down, he wanted to be gentle, he wanted to give you the pleasure and the release he always did when he fucked you. But he couldn’t bring himself to do any of that. 

 His slim fingers reached down between your legs, pressing down hard against your clit and rubbing fast. 

 A low whine escaped your lips, and your body automatically attempted to wiggle away from his rough touches. 

 His hand that was tangled in your hair slid down, grabbing at the back of your neck and shoving your face further into the bed, his other hand was now painfully gripping at your hip again. 

 “Don’t fucking move.” He panted, eyes narrowing as his speed increased again, he was ramming himself into you now. “Endure it.”

 It didn’t take long before Levi was reaching his end, his rough thrusts suddenly coming to a halt before he tore himself out of you, spilling his warmth against the skin of your ass and lower back. 

 He panted softly, his eyes coming into a focus at the image before him. His stomach turned unpleasantly, and every instinct to clean you up, to press his mouth against every inch of your skin, to cradle you against his chest; was replaced with the instinct to run in shame. 

 You were slumped against the bed, body twitching softly as you sucked in a watery breath. 

 He’s never hated himself more than in this moment. 

 “Levi?” your voice was soft and tender, dripping with sweetness as you called out to him. But before you could even muster up the strength to turn to look at him, he was already tucking himself back into his pants and slamming the door loudly on his way out. 

 ****

 It had only been a couple of days since that night. Levi hadn’t seen you, or rather, he was actively going out of his way to avoid you. 

 He hated what he had done. He knew he shouldn’t have taken his emotions out on you, but he did anyway. You always had the ability to quell the rising hysteria that tried to break through his body; and he was grateful for that. He was grateful that you had stayed by his side for all those years, he was grateful for your never-ending gentleness and love. 

 Levi knew that a man like himself, did not deserve a woman like you. You were too kind, too soft and gentle to be in a place like this. 

 The Survey Corps was no place for a tenderhearted person, this world was no place for it. The world was hell, and you… you were a fucking angel that seemed to take hold of his life. 

 He had always wondered how you still held those hopeful doe-like eyes, how you still managed to smile so tenderly at people, even after seeing the worst in the world, you were still just… so kind. 

 You seemed to have made it a point to glue yourself to his side when he joined the Corps, and originally, he had fucking hated it. Despised how seemingly delicate you were, despised your sunny disposition in this fucked up world. 

 Levi could have sworn that you were a sadist, it was the only thing that made sense. But when he had gotten to know you… when he saw your strength and dedication to humanity… he didn’t mind you being by his side. 

 He wasn’t quite sure when he started loving you. 

 No that was a complete lie. He knew exactly when he did, when he fell in love with you. 

 It was when you had asked about his backstory. You guys were beyond the wall, taking the first watch together as everyone else slept. It was a quiet night, peaceful almost. You and Levi were talking softly with one another when that topic had come up. Levi didn’t think much of it when he had answered, reflecting back on his past with a tone that was entirely nonchalant. 

 To him it was, Levi didn’t care much to make a sob story of his past, he would rather move on with his life. But to you… it was something he had never predicted happening. 

 You had started crying. 

 You cried for him.

 You had started whispering gentle apologizes about what had happened as if you had dealt a hand in what he had gone through. 

 It was a reaction he didn’t expect you to have. But it was a reaction that started everything that has happened between the two of you. 

 It was a reaction that led to his confession, while Levi never verbally said that he loved you, he had kissed you that night instead. 

 After that, he had sought you out every time; craving your attention, wanting your affection. 

 To Levi, you were like the sun; a delicate warmth that he had never felt until he left the underground. When he had first seen the sun, it was a treasured beauty; but the sun itself was nothing compared to you. You were warm and bright, absolutely lovely in every aspect. 

 And you were his. 

 It was an unclaimed relationship, even after being together for years, it was never verbally stated. Everyone knew though; everyone knew that Levi was your person, and that you were his. Everyone knew that it went beyond just being your Captain’s second. It was never questioned, it was never brought up, but people just knew; and if they didn’t know, they found out eventually.

 So, Levi wondered why no one fucking told him that you were assigned a solo mission. You had left earlier this morning apparently; it was the evening, and he was barely hearing about it now. 

 “She’ll be fine Levi. Erwin assigned this mission specifically to her. She has five other soldiers with her too. She’s more than capable.” Hange said easily, dismissing the irritated stare that the dark-haired male was giving her.

 If anything, Levi was more upset about the fact that no one told him. 

 “Are you two fighting?” Hange asked. 

 “Why do you ask?” Levi grunted out, lips wrapped around the rim of his cup, slowly drinking.

 “Because she’s usually always with you. Moblit’s room is across from Y/n, he said the past couple of days she’s actually been sleeping in her room, and not yours.” She said easily.

 Levi released an annoyed noise from the back of his throat, signaling that he no longer wanted to talk about this.

 No, you guys weren’t fighting. It was more so that Levi couldn’t meet your eyes just yet, not after what he had done. 

 He didn’t… he didn’t want you to hate him. He couldn’t bear to see your sweet eyes look at him with disdain. You probably did hate him now, which was why you hadn’t come to him about the mission. 

 He fucked up. He knew that, and now he was going to suffer the consequences of his actions. 

 But… as long as you were alive, that’s all that mattered to him. You could hate him as much as you wanted, but Levi knew that he would continue to love you regardless of if you no longer loved him.

 ****

 You were gone for weeks. Levi thought he was going to lose his fucking mind. There was no way of knowing if you were still alive, if you had gotten eaten, he had no idea. 

 It drove him mad. 

 It was pure fucking torture. 

 “Captain,” Levi’s eyes flickered up from his desk, glancing briefly at the soldier that was standing by the door.

 “What is it?” he asked, gazing back down at his paperwork, his movements never stopping as he continued to work. 

 “Y/n is back, she’ll be entering through the gates soon.” 

 The tightness in Levi’s chest loosened at the mention of your name. The anxiety he felt in his heart all but disappeared. 

 You were alive, and now… you would be home. That’s all that mattered.

 “We need to take him to the infirmary. Quickly now, let’s grab him.” A small group of soldiers had surrounded you, carefully pulling down the injured man that you held on the back of your horse. 

 Levi stood back, watching as the injured soldier was carried off before his eyes flickered to you. You looked exhausted, blood and dirt clung to your clothes and exposed skin. From what he could see, there were no serious injuries, much to his relief. 

 But it wasn’t the filth or the small cuts and bruises that worried him, it was the fact that your eyes held an emptiness that he wasn’t used to seeing.

 “Y/n.” he couldn’t help himself; he ran away the last time you two were together, he wanted to take care of you this time. 

 His expression softened when your eyes met his, a delicate flicker of adoration passed through but was replaced again with that sad emptiness that made his heart ache.

 Your usual bright and hopeful self was incredibly dim. Levi wasn’t used to seeing this side of you, or rather, it was something that rarely happened. Which meant that this mission was entirely taxing on you. 

 The fact that you had left with five others and came back with only one was a clear sign in itself.

 You lost people you were responsible for; it was never easy. Levi knew that feeling firsthand, and the fact that you had to experience that feeling all alone… he had to take care of you.

 “My room, after you’ve reported back to Erwin.” He said evenly. 

 “I need to get cleaned up Levi -”

 “Straight to my room after your report. No detours.” Levi interrupted, his tone was final, no room for any argument to occur.

 Only he was talking to you, someone that never hesitated to talk back. It was annoying, but it was also something that proved your strength. If you could talk back to Captain Levi with no fear in your voice, well, you could do just about anything. 

 “But I’m filthy, I don’t -”

 “That wasn’t a request. That was an order from your Captain, Y/n.” He said sharply, silencing your protest immediately.

 Levi said nothing else as he walked away, he would take care of you tonight.

 ****

 “Come in.” Levi said quietly after the delicate knock that echoed in his room. His eyes never left his book until he heard the door open and then close. You stood hesitantly in the middle of his room; unsure almost, like you felt like you didn’t belong here.

 Levi took in your form once more, pleased that you had actually listened to him and came straight to his room after your report. 

 “Come here.” he murmured, walking towards the table that housed the hot bowl of water and the many other supplies he would use to clean you up. 

 “I-I’m dirty… I don’t want to ruin your room…” You said softly, your teeth biting into your lower lip. 

 Levi said nothing else as he walked towards you. His slim fingers reached towards you and began tugging at your jacket, easily sliding it off of your shoulders, allowing it to fall on the floor before he began unbuckling the strap that laid across your chest. 

 “Stop moving.” He said, eyes narrowing slightly as you tried wiggling away from him. Levi gently squeezed the tops of your shoulders before sliding down towards the button of your shirt, skilled fingers easily undoing each one. 

 “Levi, I’m filthy I don’t want to get you dirty…” you knew about his aversion to filth, you didn’t want him touching you when you were this gross, this dirty.

 He ignored you completely, eyes trailing down the exposed skin of your upper body before he carefully knelt down. His fingers gently trailing against the soft skin of your stomach, stopping at the leather sash that laid over your hips. He carefully unclasped everything, the material falling to the floor with a soft thud. Levi couldn’t help touching you as he undressed you, fingers gliding over your legs as he undid each brown strap that was secured over the tops of your thighs. His hands gently reach around cupping your bottom before softly squeezing at the covered flesh before sliding back towards your calves, carefully sliding the zipper of your boots down. 

 “Levi, I don’t… I don’t want you touching me when I’m like this… I don’t -” he could hear the soft catch of your breath. A clear sign that you were holding back tears.

 “Stop it.” he said evenly, gray eyes smoldering as he stared up at you. He could see it then, the rising hysteria. It had finally hit you, or you finally couldn’t suppress your emotions any longer. 

 This mission took its toll on you. He knew, he could tell. Which was why he wanted to make sure you were okay, that you weren’t alone tonight, that you were taken care of. 

 “If you hate me now, then hate me. If you need to scream, then scream, if you need to hit me, then hit me. But I’m not going anywhere. Let me take care of you, brat. Go ahead and cry, I’m right here.” he said, his eyes never wavering from your face before he turned his attention back to undressing you. 

 “Why would I hate you?” you whispered, the tears that you were holding back finally spilling down your cheeks. 

 “Because I hurt you, and then I just left you.” he said simply, gently grabbing hold of your hand to rest on his shoulder while he tugged your boots off of your feet, tossing them behind him with a loud thunk. 

 “I’m sorry about that,” he continued. “I let my emotions get the best of me. I took it out on you. I’m sorry for that.” he said, tugging your pants down your legs. 

 “I’m not.” you whispered quietly. 

 Levi looked up at you curiously, hands resting carefully on your hips before he stood up. You were dressed down now, completely bare and exposed to his eyes.  Absolutely beautiful, he thought.

  Levi waited patiently for you to elaborate, taking his time to roll up his sleeves and to soak the rag in the hot water. The only sound in the room was the soft trickle of water as he wrung out the rag. 

 He carefully started wiping away the filth that covered your beautiful skin; his eyes and hands getting reacquainted with the body he loved the most. 

 “Even after all these years, you never talk to me about how you feel after missions. Not really at least, not without me prying for it.” you said quietly. “But you… you needed me that night. I… I was just glad that I could do something for you, be what you needed that night…”

 “You’re always what I need.” he said simply. “I shouldn’t have been so rough. You didn’t deserve treatment like that.” 

 He was almost done cleaning you up, pleased with the fact that there were only bruises and small cuts on you. 

 “I want to be what you need when you get like that too.” he said, tossing the rag over the bowl of water. His hands rested gently against your hips, thumbs rubbing softly against your skin. 

 “You are.” you said immediately. “You take care of me too, Levi. You always have.”

 There it was. That sweet, bright expression in your eyes was back, filling the emptiness, vanishing the darkness. It was wonderful. 

 “Good. Now, if you ever go on a mission alone again - without telling me - I’ll punish you.” he murmured, eyes flashing as he tangled his fingers into the back of your hair, forehead pressing against yours. 

 “Yes Captain.” you whispered sweetly. 

 Levi’s nostrils flared, his grip tightening for a moment before he leaned forward, capturing your lips in a heated kiss. 

 This kiss was full of love and passion, it was all teeth and tongue as you fought for dominance, only for Levi to easily overpower you, his tongue invading your mouth, hot and wet as he searched every inch. 

 His hands were everywhere, grabbing and kneading the soft flesh of your ass; pulling you closer to grind his hard member against you. Levi began trailing wet kisses along your jaw, down your throat, sucking and biting at every inch of skin he could taste. 

 The moans and gasps that were spilling from your mouth was music to his ears, he’s never heard a sound so sweet before. He wanted, no, he needed more of it. He needed all of it, all of you, every single inch. 

His skilled fingers found their way to your soaking folds, gently parting them before sliding softly against the length of your slit, gathering up your slick easily before pressing against the top. 

 Levi circled your clit gently, his movement slow and careful. He would give you pleasure, every ounce of it. 

 “Levi.” you gasped; eyes fluttering shut as one of his fingers slid into your weeping cunt. 

 “You’re so wet.” he breathed. “You filthy girl, you like my fingers that much?” he slid another finger into you, his thumb carefully pressing against your clit as he began thrusting in and out of you, fingers curling to reach that devastating spot within you. 

 “Answer me brat.” he murmured, his lips were near your ear, his breath coming out in hot, wet pants, his tongue flicking out to drag against your lobe. 

 “Yes.” you trembled, feeling your release beginning to build. 

 “You made a mess.” he groaned, pulling his fingers away abruptly. “Clean it up.” 

 You could see your slick coating his digits before he held them up to your lips. “Clean up your mess.” he demanded, groaning when your hot mouth wrapped around his fingers. He couldn’t tear his eyes away as he watched you lick and suck his fingers clean.

 “You like how you taste?” he breathed, pressing his mouth against yours, his lips prying yours open so that he could taste you on your tongue. 

 “Yes.” you gasped as he pulled away. 

 “Dirty girl.” he murmured, but then Levi’s whole demeanor changed. He cupped your face tenderly, gazed at you with gentle eyes despite how dark and lust filled they were. 

 “You’re mine.” he said quietly, carefully tugging you towards his bed, gently pressing you down into the mattress. 

 He couldn’t take his eyes off of you, you were just so beautiful. So perfect in the soft glow of the candles. 

 “I love you.” you whispered tenderly.

 His lips twitched into a gentle smile. 

 Just like the world couldn’t live without the sun, Levi couldn’t live without you.