#and yet...everyone lived happily ever after...

[c0tt0ncandi]

💜 A Sunday Kinda Love.💜

Hey y'all!! So Sinners has temporarily pulled me out of retirement. Forgive my writing I'm a little rusty.

Parings: Stack x OC feat. Smoke x Annie.

Word count: A Lot. 😭

Warning: Just a 🤏🏽 Mary shade, protective Smoke, and Annie being perfect per usual. Pretty fluffy. It's a pretty long one shot so I'd grab a blanket and something to snack on.

A/N: I wrote and edited this on my phone so PLEASE forgive any mistakes or weird spacing. Please don't steal my picture or story. I worked really hard on this and I hope you guys love it. 🫶🏽 I'm really sensitive y'all so be kind. Please?! 🙏🏽😭

Summary: Stack is looking for love, but can he find what his brother has? The women he's interested in just aren't cutting it and he's not sure if "sweet" is quite what he's looking for yet. Or is it?

Lena walked home from the market in her yellow dress and two braids laid against her scalp on a breezey April day. Spring was her favorite time of year. She loved being outside and leaving her windows open while she read her favorite books or napped. Others called her crazy for leaving her windows opened, but the breeze flowing in between her curtains was relaxing and kept her cool. Besides Lena's place was protected by her friend Annie's magic. She sometimes traded her pastries for protection. That's all Lena really wanted. No money spells and no love spells. Nothing more than protection and safety for her and her home.

It was just Lena so it wasn't that smart to leave the windows opened, but as of now she was safe living alone with nobody, but her, Annie's protection, and her baseball bat.

Lena took a seat at an empty park bench in front of a pond and put her bags down next to her. She had two chapters left in the book and she just had to finish it. The walk home was probably seven minutes away from the park and twenty from the market, but she didn't mind taking a quick reading break today.

"Aye one of these days someone is going to rock your shit and I can't help you. Stack your mouth is going to get you in trouble and so is fucking married women!" Smoke hollard at his brother as he furiously drove to his and Annie's house. His brother was definitely a ladies man, but he took it too far. A good woman was hard to find so taking one from a man that went in front of the congregation and said I do is a death sentence in his eyes. If anyone even stepped to Annie or attempted to talk to his wife he had no qualms of shooting him right then and there. He's done it before and he'll do it again.

Stack sucked his teeth as he brushed his brother off. "Ain't no nigga steppin' to me about shit. Especially not about his bitch."

His brother shot a look at him before focusing back on the road. "Keep calling them bitches especially field bitches and imma knock yo ass out myself. Our mama was a black woman in the field too so you disrespect them you disrespecting her. Another thing if they bitches why you keep fucking them and riskin' your life for some already owned pussy?"

"You preachin' this bullshit to me while you got someone to lay in bed with. Spend your nights and mornins with, cook for you, suck your dick, and live happily ever after with! What do I got, huh?!"

"Nigga I should bust you upside yo' head. You look for sex not a relationship! You look for temporary not forever. You look for those loose girls that want what you want and get mad when they get you before you can get them! I'm surprised yo dick ain't burning right now."

"Well my bad brother. Not everyone can find their forever at 15." Stack sucked his teeth as he looked at his surroundings passing by.

"Every fuckin' excuse in the mother fuckin' book."

Silence rang louder than the engine on their way home.

"I want you to find your own Annie. Not that white skinned broad either. Fucking with her will get yo black ass lynched. They don't give a fuck that she's got that one drop of nigger. She looks like them and she lives like them."

Stack shook his head. "She don't know the word no. Plus her ass can't cook. She turned her nose up to collard greens and measured her sugar for sweet tea."

They both broke the tension with a shared laugh.

Lena had finished her book and it was the perfect ending. The guy got the girl and they lived a happy life after. It was everything she wanted and more. Lena walked home with a smile and a new tune playing in her heart. She couldn't wait to get home and put some music on while she soaked in the bathtub.

As she was walking home a red Model T came zooming past her. Now Lena was a sturdy girl, but they almost knocked her over with the speed they were going. Lena collected her balance and continued walking home.

Stack's head flew back to the thick brown skinned woman in yellow walking by. He wanted Smoke to stop the car, but his brother had just lectured him about woman so he kept his mouth shut. Hopefully he would run into her when he was by himself. She was mighty fine and plenty thick and he didn't want Smoke to blow it for him.

Lena woke up to the sound of birds chirping, her fan slowly blowing, and car horns going off miles away. She stretched out her arms and sat up as she expressed her gratitude for waking up today. Hopeful for a good day Lena got up and headed to the restroom to start her day.

Stack rolled his eye and squeezed the pillow over his ears. No breakfast, no talking, no good morning just Annie's moans and a squeaky headboard. He was happy for his brother, but damn. Every morning? He wanted his own Annie. She was his brother's world. It would sometimes dawn on him that she was his other half. Sure sometimes it made him jealous because as a twin that should've his role, but that was the point of finding your soulmate and partner, right?

He got himself ready for the morning. As he was leaving the bathroom a glowing Annie walked out in a robe with his brother following behind her. He on the other hand looked like she gave him the ride of his life. Tank top was slightly ripped, lips swollen, and a bit of a limp.

Stack wanted to be jealous and mad about it, but he couldn't do anything but laugh. "She to' yo ass up!" His head dropped back with laughter as Annie tucked her head away into Elijah's neck.

Elijah wrapped his arms around his wife and shrugged with a small smile. "Worked me up an appetite. I'm starvin." He groaned into her ear before placing a slap to her ass.

Stack walked into the kitchen and shook his head. "Y'all real annoyin'."

Lena had her hair out. She noticed the aftermath of taking the braids out caused cute chunky curls to frame her face. She slipped her earrings in and put on her white sneakers. She had thrifted a cute red and white polka dotted dress that stopped above her ankles, an anklet that she made with old earrings and cute trinkets sat on her ankle. She threw on a little lipstick and rubbed her body down with some butters that she made herself. Lena grabbed her satchel, keys, and a new book that she started on last night and she headed out the door.

Lena needed to grab a few things from Grace and to return a book today to the library. Just a walk a few minutes shy of twenty minutes.

"Hey Lena!" The older gentleman a few minutes from her house greeted as he took his hat off to address the young woman. "I have some extra apples from my tree. Do you mind cooking me up a pie? I got whatever ingredients you needen to make it."

"No problem, Mr. Willie. When do you need it?" She asked never stopping her stride.

"No rush! Sunday morning after church would be perfect though."

"Throw in a few squash and a head of cabbage and I'll make you two pies. That sound good?"

"Sounds good to me. I'll drive them to your house later on today."

"I'll be back. Heading into town. Probably gonna stop by Chow's. Y'all need anything?" Stack asked as he fixed his hair and adjusted his cuff links.

"What you want for dinner tonight?" Annie asked as she handed Smoke his plate.

"Don't really matter to me long as it's meat and potatoes."

Annie shook her head with a smile. "Pot roast it is."

"With Sweet tea?"

"Anything for you Elias."

"Love you, sis!" He shouted before he headed out the door.

Lena left the library and was headed to Chow's to grab some material from Grace. Grace wanted her to make a skirt for her and Lisa this week. Lena loved working for them because they always paid well and brought her customers. The flowers in their store were from her garden. She brought some by every week. If they needed help she was usually the first person they called. If not her then it was Annie.

Lena didn't have a 9-5, but she worked just about every day. If she wasn't doing it for money it was for food or items. If someone needed help delivering a baby they called her. If someone was hurt or injured they'd usually come to her. Alterations? Flowers? Baked goods? She was the go to girl. That was also the reason many people didn't mess with her. You never bite the hand that feeds you.

"Hey, girl!" Grace greeted as she finished up with a customer.

"Hey, Lisa." Lena greeted the young girl with a smile after hugging Grace. Lisa didn't smile much, but she always smiled at and gave Lena a hug.

"Did you bring me somethin'?" She asked quietly so her mother couldn't hear.

"You already know I did." The sweet woman whispered and snuck the little girl two big chocolate chip cookies wrapped in brown parchment paper.

"Thank you!" She squealed. Her head turned towards the window and her lips perched at the sight of a tall man in red walking into her dad's shop.

"Lisa," Grace called and nudged her head towards the register. Grace walked from behind the counter and took Lena to the back.

As Stack was talking to Bo his head turned at the site of a woman with a fitted mini skirt walk in.

Bo hit his friend's shoulder and shook his head. "That's MRS. Suzette. Married to THE "one punch" Theodore."

Stack sucked his teeth. "What you do talk to Smoke? I'm just lookin'."

"That man that LOOKED at Annie got shot in the knee. These men are serious about their wives."

"You'd shoot for Grace?"

"If you even have to ask I'm not showing her enough love." Bo replied. "You need to talk to Grace's friend. She's real sweet and is a great cook."

"Ion know if I'm ready for sweet." He replied as he adjusted his collar and looked around.

It was Bo's turn to suck his teeth. "That's your problem. You keep finding someone to wet your whistle and that's it. There's more to a partner than sex. Find someone that builds you up and is there through thick and thin. Doesn't get tired of seeing your face everyday. The person you run to for comfort and vice versa. Someone you trust with your entire life. That's what Sweet gets you."

"You point her in my direction and I'll dip my tongue in it."

"Toe! The expression is toe, fool!" He playfully shoved his friend's shoulder.

Stack laughed as he placed his toothpick in his mouth.

"I'll bring these back to you by Saturday. Bye Grace. Bye Lisa."

The little girl waved as she got ready to cash out a customer.

Lena walked home with material in her bag and a few chocolates in hand. She strutted home with a tune in her head and a pep in her step.

"This girl you talking about. What she look like?" Stack asked as he picked at a few grapes that were on ice.

"She's a stacked one. Hourglass, brown eyes, and she always smells real good. She lives like 20 minutes away. She might be with Lisa now. Peak ya head in and see if she in there. She's supposed to be making them some dresses or something!" Bo shouted as Stack headed out of the door.

Stack headed across the street on a mission to see if said woman was still there. He was always allowed into the Chow's establishment, but her shop was mostly white people and it was usually frowned upon to have a black man shop with them. Stack really ain't give a damn.

"Grace, your thick friend still here?"

Grace rolled her eyes. "Who Lena?" Her eyes widened at the realization. "Hell no. You leave her alone. She's way too good for you. She's got her head on straight. She's not one of your whores." Grace put on a smile as one of her customers asked her a question. "Ten cents." She turned her head back to Stack and started pushing him out of her store. "She already left. If you see her leave her alone. Bye Stack."

Stack snatched an apple from her stand before heading back to his car.

As he was driving he took his knife out and tried to cut his apple. He looked up last minute and swerved to avoid hitting a large rock in the road causing him to cut his hand open. "Shit!" As he looked over he saw the same girl from yesterday walking in a red dress today. "Ooohwee it must be my lucky day!" He looked at his hand " Almost lucky. This can wait" and immediately stopped his car for her

Lena was almost at her house probably less than ten minutes away when she saw that same red Model T car zooming past her only this time it swerved and abruptly stopped ahead. It started to back up and she saw a man turn to her. He was very handsome. Hair was neat, had a beautiful smile, nice brown eyes, and a fancy suit. His arms filled out the jacket very nicely too. He wasn't anyone she'd ever seen before, but he was a good looking man.

"Good evenin'." Stack greeted with a nod.

"Evenin'." Lena greeted sweetly.

"Where you headed? This is the second day I've seen you walking. You must live close by, no?"

Her head cocked to the side as she tried to read him. "I might. This your second time seein' me? You ain't say nothin' to me the first time so why now? I wasn't good enough to stop for yesterday?" She teased.

He nervously chuckled his hand still bleeding. "No. My brother was actually driving and refused to stop." He reached over to open the door for her to get in.

Wary, she stepped back with hesitation. Although he was good looking she didn't know him. As soon as Lena was going to decline she noticed his hand was bleeding. "Your hand. That's a lot of blood. You need to put some pressure on it before you bleed out."

"Oh this?" He said as he lifted his hand "Naw it ain't that bad."

She hopped in and ripped an extra piece of fabric off that she had in her purse and wrapped it around his hand. "Put some pressure on it and move over." Lena hovered her body over his to get in the driver's seat as he moved underneath her.

He bit his lip and dropped his head back at the feeling of her ass brushing up against him. She was too focused on getting him bandaged up that she didn't even notice.

Lena hadn't driven in over a year, but she remembered how to do it. For the most part. "I'm takin you to my house to fix your cut. Is that okay?"

"Yeah." He was feeling a little faint. "Got anything to drink? Anything to eat?"

"You feelin weak?" She quickly handed him her purse. "I have some chocolates. We're almost home. Just snack on that until I can get you some water."

After a few more minutes they reached her house. She stopped the car and turned it off before getting out. She grabbed her bags and headed to the door with Stack following behind.

They headed in the house and she immediately grabbed some water, an apple turnover, and her first-aid kit. "Here have a seat. Eat this first."

He quickly took a bite and was taken by surprise. "These real good." He complimented as she pulled a chair up to him and took his hand in hers. "You got some soft hands and smell good, too. Sweet."

"Thanks I made them this morning." She ignored the other two compliments. She was here to help not sweet talk with him.

"They're good. Did you hear what I said about,"

"You ought to be mo' careful. Why was your knife out while you were drivin anyways?" Lena interrupted.

"Ummm I was eating my apple."

"Eatin' and drivin'? Sounds awful dangerous especially with how fast you drive."

"I wasn't going that, OUCH!" Stack flinched and pulled back.

"Don't be a baby. A big strong man like ya self squealin over some alcohol?" She lowered her head to his hand that sat on his lap and gently blew on his cut. Lena gazed up at him as he looked down at her.

His eyes dark and focused on her.

"Better?" She asked above a whisper.

"Y- yeah." His eyes watched as she efficiently and delicately stitched him up.

She hummed a soft lullaby as she grabbed a bandage and a pair of scissors. Lena clipped at the extra stitching and followed up with a secure bandage. "There. You all stitched up." She finished with a satisfied smile. Her eyes big and soft. Safe.

"Thanks." His hand still in hers.

Stack felt something but didn't know what he was feeling. He was happy. He was in awe. He was calm, but turned on, but not like usual. He wanted to get to know her. To be around her. She had him mesmerized.

He looked around the house and although it was small and filled with a lot personality it was neat. "Looks like you're a jack of all trade. Mind me askin what you do?"

Lena wiped her hands off and closed the kit. "If you askin what my title is I don't have one. I just do a little bit of everything for everyone. Little Lisa? I helped deliver her. Those flowers you always seein' at Bo's stores? They from my garden'. I do just about everything, but fix cars." She confessed with a giggle as she crossed her legs in front of him.

"Don't worry about that. I'm mighty handy when it comes to some wheels. I didn't see a car when we pulled up tho."

"I don't own one. Ain't no point. I don't go no further than the market." She poured two glasses of sweet tea and brought it to him.

"Thank you." He took a sip and he couldn't help but shake his head.

Lena's eyes widened at his reaction. She had the best tea on this side of town and she never heard anyone complain.

He pulled the tea back to examine it as a big smile spread across his face. "Probably the best damn tea I've ever had, but don't tell my sister Annie that."

Lena cocked her head to the side and stopped making the sandwiches to look up at him. "Annie? Moore?"

He chuckled and stood to his feet to walk over to her. "Married my brother 8 years ago. Been in our lives for 12. How you know her?"

She closed the bread to the sandwich and cut it in half. "I buy protection from her."

"You believe in it?" He asked as she handed him a plate.

"I believe in Annie. I believe she don't put her name on anything crazy. Her work been keepin' me out harms way."

Stack couldn't argue with that. She kept him and his brother protected while away at war. Hell kept him safe from some of these jealous husbands too.

He took a bit of the sandwich and stood in front of her shorter thick frame. "I should probably ask, do you have a husband?"

Lena leaned back against her table and took a bite. She shook her head. "Don't need one."

Stack chuckled, but stopped when he noticed her raise a brow.

"What's funny?"

He shook his head and wiped his mouth. "Nothin'. Just thinkin' what if someone break in? Havin' a man will protect you."

"Annie protects my home every month and the good Lord protects me everyday." She crossed her arms and looked up at him.

He smiled. "Okay. What if somethin' break?"

"My daddy taught me how to fix things. If I can't fix it Mr. Willie up the street has no problem helpin' me."

"Can't reach somethin'?"

"It's my home. I ain't puttin' somethin' somewhere I can't reach." She quipped with a small smile.

"Somethin' heavy? I'm pretty sure when you go out you need someone to help carry heavy things for you."

"I've always made a way." Lena replied.

"What about sex?" He inquired as he finished his sandwich and stepped closer.

"Sex ain't that important to me. I can handle some of that on my own." Lena replied with a raised brow. "Everything you sayin' I can find a way. Is that all you think you good fo'?" She asked. It was her turn to step closer to him. "Sex and heavy lifting?"

"And protection." He said slightly embarrassed by his answer.

"Baby, if I get a man. A husband" she said as a matter of fact. "I want him to know his worth in this world. Yes my husband can fix, lift, and lick things for me, but is he going to be there for me when I'm ill? Rub my feet when I'm pregnant? Will he support my temporary hobbies that I randomly pick up from time to time? If I'm too tired to cook is he going to make a big fuss about it or is he going to get straight to it in the kitchen? What if I'm having a bad day and don't want to talk? Are you going to be mad at me for my emotions? Will my husband speak as highly of me when I'm not around like I would do for him? Will my husband make love to more than just my body, but my mind and my soul? If I don't feel like having sex are you going to be mad and seek it out else where? I want to come home to peace and so should my husband. A healthy form of communication and respect on both ends is very important to me. I just want to make sure that if I'm going to spend the rest of my life with someone I need to know he's going to be there with me every step of the way without wavering."

"I can be that." Stack answered. "I love when my woman cooks for me, but I can also throw down in the kitchen. When our baby is cryin' and you spend all day nursing I'll be the one to wake up and change em'. You want to randomly ski in this 90 degree weather I'll be the first one in line at the ski store. Hell I'll build you some myself. I can oil your scalp when you too tired to do so and I can run your bath water after a rough day. If you don't want to talk I'll sit here with you in silence until you're ready. However I'd hope you'd never get so down to where I can't hear that pretty ass voice of yours. Be a damn shame." He teased.

He closed the little bit of space between them and rested his hands on either side of her.

Lena watched his eyes scan her face. From her brown almond eyes, round cheeks, to her plump lips. He focused on her lips longer than she needed him to. Lena was no stranger to eye contact so he wasn't intimidating. She had strong will and knew no amount of flirting and flashing of his dimpled smile was going to make her fold.

His head dipped down for a kiss, but Lena moved her head to avoid his tempting lips.

He couldn't help but laugh. He'd never had someone reject his kiss before.

Lena smiled at him and took his face in her hands. "You should head home now and get some rest. It's starting to get late. Annie and your brother might be trying to figure out why you're not home yet." Her fingers played in his beard before placing a gentle kiss to his cheek. "Goodnight Stack."

"Can I see you tomorrow?" He asked. Borderline begged.

"I've got a pretty busy schedule tomorrow."

"I don't have to do nothin. I can just sit around and wait until you finished. I just want to see you."

She tried to hide her smile, but failed. "I'll be wrapping my day up around 4."

He flashed his grin. "See you tomorrow at 3:30. Goodnight Ms. Lena." He tilted his hat before placing it back on his head and walking out the door.

"Nigga you said you went to Chow's bout 7 hours ago." Smoke pointed out as he finished his second plate. He got up and brought it to the sink to wash and dry.

"Damn. Was I gone that long? My bad." Stack removed his jacket and took a seat. "Where's Annie?"

"Freshin' up for bed." Smoke looked at his brother's hand. "Hell happened to you? You ain't get yo ass in no shit you can't fix, right?"

Stack had a smile on his face.

Annie walks in with her robe on comfortable and ready for bed. "Oh lawd. That boy happier than a tick on a dog. Which young lady did you pay a visit to today?" She handed him a glass of sweet tea and a plate from the stove.

"Thank you. I went to go visit the Chow's, but as I was leaving I got distracted. Ended up cutting my hand on my knife while I was driving and ran into a beautiful lady named Lena."

Annie stood straight up and scanned her brother in law. "What you doin around Lena? She a good girl that mind her business."

"If she a good girl then he ain't want nothin to do with her. Unless you sweet talked her out of her skirt like usual." Smoke assumed.

"Naw, she don't play that. She focused. Sweet girl with a lot of hobbies." Annie looked at his hand. "She stitched you up?"

Stack nodded with a smile. "Fixed me a sandwich and some tea too. We ain't do nothin but talk. That's all I wanted to do. She real nice and a little feisty. Think she'd be interested?"

Smoke scoffed, but Annie nudged his shoulder.

"Your mission to just sleep with her?" Annie asked. She took a plate of pie from Elijah and thanked him with a kiss.

Stack shook his head as he enjoyed his food. "I ain't want that once I started talkin' to her. Ion know how to explain it, but I just liked bein' 'round her. She got a good spirit I guess." He shrugged as he filled his mouth with food.

Elijah fed Annie a bit of the shared dessert. He circled the fork around in the air before asking his question. "What she look like? Must not be your type if you didn't want to have sex."

"She not my usual type, but she real pretty. Brown skin, full hair, round lips, hips, a little healthier than my usual, but that really don't bother me none. She fit it so well." He whistled. "Voice is like butter. She smell good too and got the softest pair of hands"

Annie chuckled. "That girl don't play about her perfumes and butters." She confirmed. "When you gon' see her again?"

"Tomorrow at 3:30. Said she should be done with everything around then."

"What y'all plan on doin?" Smoke asked as his brother got up for a second helping.

"Nothin." He said happily with a shrug. "I'm just goin to talk. Might see if she'll let me fix a few things around the house or somethin?"

Annie chuckled at her brother in law. He was bit by the love bug. It was no surprise though. Lena was a warm and welcoming spirit who minded her business and helped others along her way. She didn't want much just a simple and happy life. Her love hit hard so if Stack wasn't on his best behavior she would have no problem leaving him with a broken heart. Annie knew of her ex that didn't do right by her and she got rid of him. That man been in a miserable marriage with a woman he don't really want. Hadn't truly found love since she left him.

"Just be careful. She might be a good girl, but she ain't no pushover. If you screw up she'll send you on your marry way and not think twice about it." Annie confessed.

"Imma be on my best behavior." He kissed his sister in law's cheek and sat down to finish his food.

"Stack you don't have to fix that it's fine." She advised as he unscrewed the bolts in the fan. It worked the blades just happened to have one speed and that speed was slow. It was too hot and moving too slow for Stack's liking.

"Naw. It's fine. I can fix this. The motor ain't blown just probably got a little dust in the shaft that's all."

Lena sat next to him on the couch and watched as he struggled with one of the screws. She covered her giggle with her hand causing him to lose his focus and look over at her.

"This funny to you?" He put the fan down and turned to tickle her side now causing Lena to double over in laughter.

"You sweatin' on me!" She laughed as she grabbed his arms to leave some distance between them.

He sat up and sighed. "Baby, it's hot in here! I'm tryna fix this fan and you laughin'. I'm strong it's just stuck!" He said in his defense.

Lena gave a sarcastic nod. "Very strong. Need help with that last screw?"

"I'll screw you!" He mimicked under his breath.

He was just joking seeing how he was playing off of her words, but she was turned on by that. She shook it off and just cleared her throat.

He took his button up off leaving him in a tank top and a leather vest holster. His gun was strapped in and his knife at his side. Lena's eyes wondered towards him as his arms flexed once he finally got the screw loose after a few twists and turns.

"Ha!" He turned to her and noticed her direct her eyes from his arms to his face. He smirked and looked her in her eyes. "I got it out."

"I see." She replied softly. Lena moved closer to him on the couch closing in the space between them. "So what's the next step?" She asked looking up at him with those big brown eyes of hers.

Stack cleared his throat. "I umm" he looked away. "I'm just gonna clear this shaft off and put it back in." His eyes widened and his head snapped back towards her. "Back on! I meant back on!" He corrected.

Lena couldn't help but giggle at him being nervous.

He put his focus back on the task at hand and did just that while she got up to grab something to drink. The wind blew through the window causing her dress to fly up a little catching Stack's attention. "Shit." He said to himself.

"You say somethin'?" Lena asked as she headed back over to him. Hips swaying side to side and a soft smile on her face.

He shook his head. "Nothin' just that I fixed it." He put the last screw in and turned it on.

"Awww yes!" Lena cheered on as she sat down next to him. The fan was blowing faster and stronger. "Ugh that feels so good. Thank you."

"You're welcome. Told you I'm good with my hands." He grinned.

"I see." Lena playfully teased. "I know you introduced yourself to me as Stack, but what is your real name?" She asked as she leaned her elbows on her lap to look up at him.

He smiled at her beauty. "Born Elias raised as Stack."

"Elias." His name sung beautifully on her tongue. Very southern, sweet, thick, and sexy. He wouldn't get tired of it.

His eyes scanned her plump lips. He swallowed hard and adverted his eyes to his glass of tea. "Yes ma'am."

"Did you want dinner or is Annie making something for y'all back home? I don't wanna ruin ya appetite. Mrs. Annie a good cook."

"Great cook. She's making pork chops, but I can still eat here if you had planned on cooking. I don't turn no plates down." He laughed.

"I'm just making a salad with salmon croquettes for dinner. Ain't nothin too fancy."

"You say croquettes? They're one of my favorites. I can make room for both."

Weeks had gone by and Elias had been over her house almost everyday. Showing up in the morning and leaving late at night. Smoke would either pick and drop him off or he'd take the car himself. It didn't really matter how he got to her Stack was going to see her either way. Time was spent doing things Stack was never used to doing before. She enjoyed his company and same for him. He'd drive her into town even if she insisted on walking or taking her bike. They even went on a picnic by the lake a few times. Unfortunately the two of them couldn't hang out the following Saturday because she had to finish a new set of dresses for Lisa and Grace, but Lena had planned to see him the Sunday after bright and early.

"Lisa it fits? How bout you Grace?" Lena asked as she sat at their shop past closing. The two ladies came out from the back room and spun around. Smiles were shared by each lady because of how everything turned out. Lisa had a beautiful pink and gold embroidered dress that came past her ankles and Grace had a beautiful blue and gold dress that stopped a little under her knee.

"They're perfect as usual, Lena. Eight for her and ten for me, right?" She clarified as she handed Lena cash plus a small tip.

"Y'all gonna be the talk of the town. The colors fit y'all so well too." The proud craftswomen said in awe. "Lisa how you wearing your hair?" She asked. Grace always wore a low and tucked bun for formal outings, but because Lisa was younger Grace liked to do something a little more age appropriate and fun for her.

The little girl walked over to her to describe what style she and her mother were thinking about. Lena remembered that she had a few ribbons in her bag and pulled one out that matched. "How about a bow?"

Lisa's face lit up and Grace smiled. "Mama look!"

"You tell Miss. Lena thank you. She's gotta head home. You want Bo to give you a ride? He won't mind." Grace asked as she hugged Lisa tightly.

"I'm good. Thank y'all tho. It ain't a far walk. Y'all have a good night tho."

"You sure?" Grace asked again as Lena headed towards the door.

"I'm good Grace. Y'all have a good night!"

Lena walked home in the dark but she had protection on her. Her goal was never to walk home so late, however she got to Grace's later than anticipated. A little bit of the sun was still up before she left the shop so she thought it was fine however the sun set faster than Lena could walk. Purse at her side and shoes hitting the dirt road Lena heard some people talking off into the distance, but less than a minute later a male voice approach her.

"P-pardon ma'am. Where you headed looking so good this time of night?" He said a little too drunk and a little too close.

"I'm headed home thank you. Seems like your company needs you back over there, no?" She quipped as she tried to keep calm.

He threw a lazy arm towards his company. "They be alright. I'm tryna come home with you pretty lady." He stumbled backwards. "Why you diggin in that bag?" He asked stumbling again.

"Just tryna find my lipstick that all." Lena pulled out some protection powder and blew it at him causing him to scream out and fall to the ground.

She continued to walk home, but this time at a faster pace. She had to remember to tell Annie thank you for her protection powder and get some more from her because thinking about how much she blew out she definitely used more than needed. It wasn't her fault though. She panicked plus she never had to use it before, but she was glad she carried it with her.

Not even two minutes later she heard a car pulling up by her. She prayed it was Elias.

"Lena, come on and get in." Annie instructed as she sat in the passenger seat.

"Annie what are you doin on my side of town?" She asked. She looked in the driver's seat slightly startled. She saw a man looking exactly like Stack driving except he wore blue and wasn't talking.

"We had stopped by the Chow's to drop something off and Grace said you had walked home. Ion know why you insist on walking by yourself. You know people crazy."

"I had your powder on me. Wasn't nobody gon hurt me." Her smile was big and bright. Proud.

Annie chuckled. "You a stubborn girl."

Smoke pulled up to her house and stopped. He turned towards Lena and greeted her with a nod. "My brother Stack had some business to handle. He'll be up here in no time to stay with you overnight. Just for safety purposes."

"And don't say you don't need it. I blessed your house, but we can't be too safe."

"I understand."

Turning around by a sound behind her Lena saw Stack jogging in the distance. She hopped out of the car and examined his clothes from afar. His jacket in hand and shirt untucked. She was sure he had done some damage to the guy that approached her. Lena wasn't sure what he did or how bad he handled him, but she was turned on by his disheveled look.

She walked over to Stack and took his face in her hands. She scanned his face and ran her hands down his arm to find any sign of harm.

"I'm okay. That nigga ain't, but he's no longer my problem. Let's head inside." He turned towards his brother and Annie and waved them off. "I'll see y'all tomorrow round noon."

"Thank you again. Bye Annie."

"I'll bring more protection by tomorrow." She waved as Smoke drove off.

The two of them headed up the stairs with his arm around her waist. As soon as they walked in he shut and locked the door and dropped the curtains down. He sat down at the kitchen table as she headed to grab a cold wet rag. Lena kneeled down in front of him, in between his legs, and gently pressed the rag against his skin. "Did he get you?" She asked as she sat back.

He shook his head. "He didn't get a hit in. Come here."

She rarely ever hear him speak like this. Her eyes soften at his tone. Lena sat on his lap as he wrapped his arms around her thick waist. His head rested on her chest and he just took in her heartbeat.

Sounds of crickets, her blowing fan, and the howling dogs were silenced by the matching heartbeats shared between the two of them. A rhythm Stack had loved and gotten used to since being around her. He never stuck around someone long enough to notice if his heartbeat matched there's. He was grateful for experiencing a first with her. It may not mean much to her or anyone else, but to him it felt real. Felt normal. It felt like home.

Lena could tell his mind was racing and he was trying to calm his nerves. She allowed her hand to gently caress his neck. "You wanna get ready for bed?" She asked.

Her eyes scanned his face.

"Yeah." He lifted her up with ease.

"I'm not trying to hurt you."

"You ain't hurtin me, baby." He replied as he headed to the bedroom. Stack gently laid her down before taking his gun off, removing his knife and holster. He placed it at the nightstand next to the bed as he kicked his shoes off.

Without breaking eye contact Lena removed her dress revealing a short lilac colored slip.

Stack removed his shirt and pants leaving him in his boxers.

Lena bit her lip at his muscular frame.

Stack couldn't help but chuckle.

"Why you laughin' at me?" She asked. She made her way to him on all fours to sit in front of him on the bed. Her head tilted to the side as she looked up at him waiting for an answer.

"Cause you're cute. You also try to play innocent, but I catch you lookin' at me. Bitin' your lip and everything."

Lena couldn't help but laugh at him trying to imitate her. She gently nudged him as he laughed.

"I'm just sayin. Hey, I don't mind."

"I'm looking because I like what I see." She confessed.

"I'm surprised you ain't said nothin about me. I'm always looking." He laughed.

"I don't mind." She wrapped her arms around his neck and looked up at him and his brown eyes. "Imma kiss you now, okay?"

"You don't ever have to ask." He whispered seconds before he greeted his lips with her plump set. He moaned at the touch of her lips and the taste of her tongue. Stack lifted Lena up making sure his hands were secured under her ass.

She moaned in his mouth as he gave her a firm yet gentle squeeze.

His lips moved to her neck as he took a seat on the bed. His grip not loosening up as he sat down with her body on top of his. The weight of her on top of him was something he could definitely get used to.

Lena's fingers gently played at his nape as soft moans escaped her lips which caused his breathing to speedup.

He pulled back from her soft skin. Not because he wanted to, but because she was doing everything right. Her gentle caresses and fingernails always made his heart skip a beat and his goosebumps raise. He rested his forehead against hers and took in the gentle gestures. Lena hummed a soft tune as they took in each other's presence.

"Am I getting too heavy?" She asked. This was the first time she was in his lap for this long and wasn't sure if he was comfortable.

"Naw. You just right."

Not wanting to let the softness of her body go just yet Stack stood to his feet with her in hand and pulled the ceiling fan chord to turn the light off. He gently laid her down and settled his body down next to her.

Lena turned towards his body and nuzzled up next to him. "Thank you again Elias. You didn't have to beat that creep up just for me. I was able to hold my own."

He released a sleepy chuckle. "If I didn't he'd think it was okay to try that shit again." Elias hand rubbed up and down her now exposed hip as she stroked his beard. "I don't play about my girl." He poked one eye open to see her reaction.

Lena sat up on her elbow and looked down at him. "Your girl?" She asked gently.

"I've been meaning to make it official. Lena if you don't mind having me will you be my girl? My partner? My person?" His nerves getting the best of him now causing him to ramble. "I don't usually do this. I've actually never done this so I'm not sure if I'm,"

She stopped him with a kiss. Tasting his tongue yet again was becoming a favorite of hers. His hands gripping her ass as Lena's hands gently ran down his stomach. Stopping at his waistband. She pulled away to catch her breath. Her breast rose as she caught her breath. Her brown eyes scanned his face with a smile. "My answer is yes."

"Yes?" He grinned ear to ear. He pressed a quick kiss to her lips again before pulling back to look at her. He had never done this before. He wanted to put his best foot forward. Be on his best behavior. He wanted to build his own world with her the way his twin brother built his with Annie.

Stack took a deep breath and closed his eyes. "Baby I'm tryna to be good right now and your hand is umm,"

Realization kicked in and she lifted her hand from the band of his boxers with a giggle. "Awww I'm sorry!" She cooed. "I appreciate you being patient with me, but baby we don't have to be innocent everyday." She confessed with peppered kisses in between.

"Wait now don't tempt me!" He threw his body over hers and immediately rammed his face in between Lena's neck causing her laugh to fill up the room.

"You think that boy was on his best behavior last night?" Smoke asked Annie as he watched her get dressed.

Annie chuckled. "He ain't walk home last night so I think he did alright." Annie turned to her husband and tilted her head to the side with a smile. "What's wrong, Elijah? Why you so worried about your brother and Lena, hmm?" She asked as she stood in front of him. Her hands gently laid on his firm shoulders as she awaited his answer.

He wrapped his arms around her waist and shook his head. "I just worry about him gettin' in trouble. Messin' with his future. I'm scared he ain't gon find love and he just gone be by himself forever. I can't be with him every step of the way. I want him to find his other half."

"Elijah you already know everyone has a different walk of life. His ain't gone be the same as yours or mine. Lena might be who he needs in his life. He's hardly here with us anymore and I'm sure he would've bragged about getting himself some from her, but he hasn't. She got him baking cookies from scratch, goin' on picnics, readin' books by the lake. She's good for him and I think he knows that. You gotta trust your brother to find his way his own way." She kissed her husband's lips and rubbed his arms. "Come on let's head over and pick him up. That was his first time staying over so he probably don't wanna come home tonight." She teased.

Lena was taking a nice bath and reading her book when Elias asked to join her. He sat across from her on the floor and took her book and began reading it to her letting her get lost in the fairytale. She had raised her leg and enjoyed the bubbles that sat on top of the warm water cover her leg only to slowly pop with the warm winds blowing through her windows.

Elias put her book down and watched as her thick thigh lifted up and he had every thought imaginable run through his mind. Her eyes focused deadset on him as her smooth brown skin was exposed with every gust of wind. He was doing a damn good job the last few months, but temptation was getting to him every second of the day.

He stood closer to Lena and placed his hands on both sides of her on the porcelain tub. "Keep teasing me with that leg and imma jump in here with you."

She smiled at his threat and was hoping he made it a promise. "What's stopping you?"

He took his shirt off and stepped in one foot at a time with his pants on.

"Elias!" Lena screamed with laughter as he got in halfway dressed just to join her.

Stack hovered over her completely wet and just smiled. He looked her in the eyes and leaned in for a soft kiss. Nothing too long or harsh. Just soft enough to make her heart flutter and lips want more. "You probably the best thing to ever happen to me, ya know? I ain't been this happy in a while and I want to thank you." He confessed.

She gently took his face in her hands and saw the honesty in his eyes. She wasn't looking for a partner or a man. She just so happened to go with her gut with him and she was happy she did. He had brought nothing but peace and happiness into her already peaceful and happy life. He wasn't trying to change it or her just enhance it and he did that times ten. She was forever grateful for him.

"I'm so glad I got in your car to stitch you up two months ago." She confessed with a smile.

"You and that smile healed me up that day."

Lena's eyes started tearing up.

"That ass kept me around though."

She couldn't help but fall into a fit of laughter. Leave it to Elias to make her capture so many emotions all at once. "I can't with you."

He shrugged and kissed her nose. He stood to his feet, leaned over to grab the towel and helped her up. He wrapped her up in a towel and helped her out of the tub.

As they were drying off she got a knock at her door. Elias gently guided her behind him as they headed towards her door. "Who is it?"

"It's Jim Crow nigga open up."

"Elijah!" Annie shouted as she tugged his arm.

Stack opened the door and Lena welcomed them in.

The look of confusion read on Smoke and Annie's face as they saw a wet Stack and a towel clad Lena.

"Make yourself comfortable. I'm going to make myself presentable. Elias see if they want some of that pound cake." She said before disappearing into her room.

"Y'all want some? I helped her bake it the other day."

"It's edible?" Smoke asked as he received a plate from his brother.

"Elijah be nice in other folks home." Annie scolded.

"Why would I offer you somethin' that ain't edible, fool? My baby helped me make it." He said with pride.

Lena walked out and handed Elias a pair of slacks that she made for him a while back. He thanked her with a kiss before heading to the bathroom to change. Lena sat on her couch and smiled. "Thank y'all again for last night. I do appreciate it. Elias helped make that pound cake. He was so proud of himself once it slipped right on out the pan." She confessed with a giggle.

"It's good. Elias should be proud of himself." Annie confessed.

"My brother ain't been crossing the line with you has he? He been respectful?" Elijah asked as he put his empty plate down.

"Oh yes, sir. Always respectful with me. He's always so thoughtful, too. Very kind and a great listener. He lets me ramble on and on about nothing sometimes just so he can hear my voice." She nervously giggled.

Smoke gave her a content nod.

Annie smiled. She pulled a bag out of her pouch and handed it to Lena. "Here's some more protection powder and a mojo bag. Keep this on you at all times. You don't gotta wear it around your neck everyday just keep it on you any way you can, okay?"

"My baby made me and my crazy brother one. We was skeptical about it at first, but it's proven many of times to keep us out harms way. I suggest you keep it close to you when you heading to the market by yourself." Smoke informed.

Annie shared a proud smile at him and took his hand in hers. He gave her a gentle squeeze in return. He wasn't always a believer, but time proved itself over and over again that what she was doing was the truth. The proof was in the pudding. Ain't no way around it.

"Elias you plan on heading back home with us now? We ain't trying to take up her whole Sunday." Smoke asked.

"Oh I don't mind. If y'all want we can have a little cookout today? Elias and I went to the market a few days ago so I have plenty of food to share and cook. I can make a fresh batch of tea, too. Mr. Willie up the street brought me some extra vegetables from his garden. If I don't use it up it'll go to waste and I would hate to trash good vegetables."

"Yeah stay and celebrate." Stack added.

"Celebrate what?" Smoke quizzed. His eyes went back and forth between the two sitting in front of him. They were practically sitting on top of each other and their fingers were locked.

"I asked her to be my girl last night. She said yes. I know it ain't marriage yet," he clarified "but it's the first step. Hopefully she says yes to that too when I ask her in the near future."

Annie looked so proud of her brother in law. He seemed like an enhanced man. Not necessarily change because he was always gonna be Stack, but it seemed like Lena made him want to be a better man. She prayed it all worked out for them because he deserved that happiness that he was always searching for.

Smoke's features softened at his brother's new found happiness. He always wondered if he'd ever find someone and although he only knew about Lena from Annie and Stack she seemed like the best person for him. His brother always spoke so highly of her. He was never vulgar when it came to her or crude. Always respectful and that's all he could ask for.

"Well my schedule is free, baby?" Smoke asked as he looked at Annie.

She smiled and gave her a nod. "Sounds good to me. Thank you and congratulations. I'm proud of you Elias."

Stack smiled wide as he gripped Lena's hand.

"Alright I'll start getting some water boiling. Excuse me." She stood to her feet, gave Elias a kiss, and headed into the kitchen to start cooking.

Annie got up to help leaving the brothers to talk amongst themselves.

"I'm proud of you. Seems like you got yourself a good one."

"Yeah. She real sweet. Got a heart of gold."

Stack continued to tell Smoke all about his plans. He was going to get a car and probably move in with her before getting married. He wasn't in a rush, he wasn't going anywhere and neither was she, but he wanted to make sure everything was set up to give her a perfect life that she deserved.

Stack watched as his girl and his sister in law laughed together about whatever conversation they were having. This was the life he wanted to live. He was glad that he stopped when he did that warm spring day.

[honeybuns-bb]

wow that was simultaneously an extremely satisfying and extremely unsatisfying ending

[luna-the-cretar]

So I got a couple comments on chapter 2 of my most recent Frostbek series addition, and idk if they’re actually annoyed or not, but like. One guy was saying how they’d think The Other would actually react *this way* instead of the way I wrote him in the chapter, and another person under their comment agreed and like.

Dude, I’m sorry that my interpretation of The Others relationship with Frost in my fic in my series is different than your interpretation. But I’m not writing him this way to be like “oh he didn’t intend to hurt Frost and will be upset that he did :(“.

Like, the reason why The Other initially apologized to Frost when he realized he had accidentally hurt him was because Torbek was partially in control still (and fully gained control shortly after). The reason why The Other is hurting Frost now—intentionally or otherwise—is because he no longer has Torbek reining him in like before. He sees Frost as his, an object more than a person, a thing that he can do with whatever he pleases. It’ll probably never be mentioned in the remaining 2-3 fics, since idk how I’d even bring it up naturally, but Frost does in fact have a couple of deeper cuts underneath his robes that will never quite heal right, and more or less become scars (saying this as someone who had relatively minor injuries that became scars bc they didn’t quite heal right for some reason).

The Other enjoys the fact that he can mark Frost however he wants, thinking that Frost wouldn’t ever tell Gricko out of fear.

Of course, if you still don’t like this interpretation, then you can just. Idk. Not read it? The back arrow is right there. It’s free. Nobody is forcing you to read a fic if you feel a character is ooc.

[childofthestone]

everyone: did you make maevaris or dorian archon? the quest is so interesting because hfekduowjskekfkfkkf

me, who saved treviso: the what

[enigma-the-anomaly]

all stories are time loops some are just more up front about it than others

[luminnara]

Protector | Feyd-Rautha x reader

ANON REQUEST: your marriage to Feyd-Rautha is an arranged one, and your only task is to provide an heir. When you finally become pregnant, your new husband suddenly grows obsessed with you—but does he care about you, or is he simply protective of his progeny?

Warnings: pregnancy, labor, and related talk; canon typical violence

MY REQUESTS ARE OPEN!

Your marriage was one born out of duty, not love. You couldn’t even call it a marriage of convenience; there was nothing convenient about leaving your homeworld and traveling across an entire galaxy to marry someone you had never even met before. Yes, the Houses had agreed beforehand that you were to marry Feyd-Rautha, the Na-Baron of House Harkonnen, and immediately after the deal had been struck you had seen his face and read his writing, but you hadn’t met him until your wedding day.

You had chastised yourself for thinking it could be like the fairytales of Ancient Earth. You, a princess, your betrothed a handsome prince…in the stories of your childhood, he would have whisked you away, off to a great, shining palace full of magical wonders, and you would have lived happily ever after. Instead, your prince had proved to be disinterested in you, busying himself with his arena and his concubines, ignoring you most of the day. The Harkonnen fortress did not shine, nor did it hold any great wonders, and Giedi Prime felt far from magical, with its harsh black sun and polluted landscape.

After your vows, you had naively thought your wedding night would be full of romance. Perhaps you had been holding onto hope as a means to protect yourself, clinging to optimism to distract yourself from your harsh, sad reality. You had been all too eager to shed your dress and veil in Feyd-Rautha’s living quarters, though had not expected them to be ruined by his blade, and you had not expected him to greedily conquer you as if it were yet another battle in the arena. He had slept next to you that night, but had made it painfully obvious that he had no interest in holding you or even touching you, keeping far to his side of the bed while you remained far to yours. In the morning, you had awoken alone, and had realized that it was the beginning of a long and lonely road on your new planet.

Everyone expected an heir. That was the entire point of this marriage, a legitimate heir for the Harkonnen line. Anyone else could have done it—you were of fine breeding, yes, but any of the other Houses could have offered up a daughter to suffer at Feyd-Rautha’s side. Why it had to be you surely came down to the only things powerful men seemed to care about—money and spice. An allegiance with House Harkonnen protected your family, and your small share of spice harvesters on Arrakis added yet another drop into their vast bucket and one less smuggling operation to worry about. Your parents were happy. Baron Vladimir Harkonnen was happy.

And you were miserable.

Two months after your wedding, your monthly cycle continued as normal, and you were forced to shamefully inform the na-Baron. After an annoyed sound and a grimace, he bent you over the nearest table and took you for a second time, leaving you to clean yourself up and cry at your husband’s callousness. You didn’t know why he couldn’t bring himself to care. You supposed he already had everything he could possibly want; wealth, concubines, a throne to inherit…you brought nothing of real value to him, save for the ability to produce an heir.

Time passed, and it became clear that Feyd-Rautha would have to touch you more than once a month if he was to have any hope of fathering a child. You cursed yourself for your apparent inability to conceive—fertility had been one of your parents’ selling points when negotiating with the Baron, and now, you couldn’t even do the one thing that was expected of you. It brought you to tears every night, the stress of being reduced to this and yet still being unable to perform your task. It was maddening, though you knew you were hardly the first woman to find yourself in such a situation. You did worry, however, that you may have been the weakest.

One evening, as Feyd performed his husbandly duties, he noticed a tear slipping down your cheek and paused. You felt a rough hand cup the side of your face and opened your eyes to find your husband staring at you with dark eyes, his head tilted to suggest he was curious.

“Tears?” He asked in his raspy voice that was still so alien to you.

“My apologies, na-Baron,” you looked away from him.

“You are crying.”

You stifled an annoyed sigh. “Yes.”

“Why?”

“Do not worry yourself with me, husband.” You said.

“Tell me.”

This was perhaps the longest conversation you had had since marrying him, and part of you didn’t want it to end. You looked at him once more, finding him still watching you with that unwavering, predatory gaze, and another tear rolled down your cheek and onto his hand.

“I am sorry I have not given you a child.” You whispered.

“Then let me put one into you.”

His tone sent a chill down your spine, frightening and exciting you all at once. That night, Feyd-Rautha did not let you sleep, shocking you with his determination. It was simply because the sooner you conceived, the sooner he could return to his own concerns, you reasoned.

Sure enough, your period did not arrive when expected, nor did the next. A medical test confirmed what you already knew—you were pregnant, with Feyd-Rautha’s child. A Harkonnen child, who would grow up to be just as ruthless and savage as its father, you thought.

Upon receiving the positive result, you immediately set off to tell the na-Baron. He should not be made to wait; you wanted him to know that the entire point of your union was finally achieved, and that you could both go back to ignoring each other as usual. As you walked, you had the worrying thought that he may not even keep you alive after the delivery.

“Na-Baron,” you addressed him upon finding him in his armory.

He looked up from the blade he was sharpening. “Wife.”

“I bring news,” you said, folding your hands in front of yourself.

“Then tell me, before I grow bored of waiting.” He returned to the hunting knife, looking away from you once more.

“I am with child.”

You watched as Feyd-Rautha paused, tilting his head to look at you. “My child?”

“Yes. Who else could it possibly belong to?” You asked, exasperated. “The physicians confirmed it just now. I wanted you to be the first to know.”

He nodded slowly, looking back at the knife in his hand as he thought. “I see.”

Whatever hopes you had once had for him to suddenly flip his entire personality at the news were quickly dashed by his lack of emotion. You left him there, a hand over your mouth as you tried not to cry, returning to your bed to be alone once more.

-0-

In those earlier days of pregnancy, you were often ill, sprinting from bed to the wash basin nearly every day to be sick. Usually, you were alone; Feyd-Rautha rose early, spending his mornings training and sometimes killing his instructors. Whenever that happened, he would come back, wearing blood and a grin on his face as if he had just won some great contest.

Today, however, he was enjoying a rare occasion of sleeping in. He had begun spending his nights in the center of the bed, crowding you as you attempted to stay away from him. One morning you had even woken up to find his arm throne over you, his body closer than ever. Now, he was sleeping, and you would have been content to let him remain there were you not busy launching yourself over him as you ran to the adjoining wash room.

You missed the way your husband sat up, eyes wide and frenzied as he pulled a dagger from beneath the pillows. When he found the room to be empty and free of danger, he grew confused…until he heard your retching in the next room, and slipped out of bed.

“Wife?” He asked from the doorway.

“What?” You groaned, leaning your cheek on the cool basin.

“…are you alright?”

You sighed. “No, na-Baron, I am not. I mean…I am, I just…”

“You are sick,” he pointed out.

It took every bit of willpower you possessed to swallow down the part of you that desperately wanted to throttle him. “Yes. I am. It’s the pregnancy, the pills from the doctors haven’t been working—“

“This has happened before?” He interrupted.

“Most days, yes,” you felt another wave of nausea coming over you and hunched your shoulders, preparing for the worst.

You never expected to feel a cool hand brushing your hair away from your forehead, nor the feeling of your husband’s chest against your back as he held you.

“Harkonnen women don’t have this problem,” he commented as he held your hair.

It was the least helpful statement he possibly could have made as you vomited once more, and yet it was also quite possibly the best.

“If Harkonnen women have no hair, then what do you pull?” You asked wryly, too ill and too exhausted to hold yourself back.

Feyd-Rautha stared you, unblinking, before a smirk found its way onto his lips. “If you are feeling brave, perhaps I will show you one day.”

You let out a laugh as the nausea ebbed, leaning back against him. “Perhaps one day I will finally stop seeing my lunch so many times, and then you can regale me.”

-0-

Your sickness faded as your pregnancy progressed, thankfully, but Feyd-Rautha’s company did not. By the time you were beginning to truly show, he was refusing to leave you alone, demanding your presence wherever he went. As a result, you sat in on many a sparring session, and he made up his mind to abandon the arena until after the baby was born. His sudden change in attitude was shocking; he had never paid so much attention to anything before, and now, his hands were constantly on you.

“I must keep you safe,” he had said when you first asked about it, and had acted as if it were the most obvious thing in the universe.

You assumed he was protective due to the baby, the precious new heir to the Harkonnen throne. As its vessel, you were afforded some luxuries, but you fully expected that to change after the birth. For now, though, you were content to receive any and all attention your husband saw fit to pay you.

“That went well,” you said one day after the doctor examined you.

“He should not have touched you like that.” Feyd-Rautha growled.

“What do you mean? He’s a doctor,” you laughed, somewhat nervously.

“I did not like it.” His voice was tense.

“I could tell.” You grumbled, dropping your happy façade. He had nearly chased the doctor out of the room, hunting knife in hand. “Examinations are unavoidable, I’m afraid.”

“No more.”

“But—“

“No more strangers touching you.”

"Doctors help," you protested. "Don't you want your child to be healthy?"

At that, Feyd paused in thought. "...You may have a Harkonnen midwife."

"Because a Harkonnen doctor is too much?" You asked dryly.

He glared at you briefly before looking away towards the door. "Come."

You audibly groaned, one hand on your lower back. "Na-Baron, I am tired. I wish to retire to bed."

He looked back at you, and you caught an expression of distress on his face. "I need to train."

"You train every day."

"Yes." he said it as if it were obvious, but something in his tone suggested more; he made it sound urgent, as if it were something he had to do daily, and missing a single session would be disastrous. "Come."

You heaved a sigh and followed him.

-0-

In the months that followed, your unborn child grew, as did your body. You found yourself becoming large and bloated, your gait slowing as your flexibility waned. New maternity gowns were brought to you, an interesting mix of styles--the flowing, heavy garments of your homeworld meeting the simple, stark aesthetics of Giedi Prime. You found them strange, but at that point, you really didn't care; you would have walked around naked if no one would have stopped you. You spent your days feeling uncomfortable and awkward, with swollen feet and a sore lumbar region. Harkonnen servants brought whatever you needed, and your husband ensured--no, demanded--that all of your food be tasted by someone else while you watched so that there could be no chance of poison passing between your lips.

You wondered if this was simply some aspect of Harkonnen culture that the other Houses weren't aware of or never cared to talk about. Perhaps on a planet as harsh and toxic as Giedi Prime, infertility and infant mortality were more commonplace than the rest of the known universe. Perhaps this possessiveness was common among Harkonnen men, if conception was more difficult for their people.

Whether your theory was correct or not, Feyd-Rautha had certainly become even more attached to you. Not a morning went by when he wasn’t there next to you in bed, and as of late, he had begun waking you up by reminding you exactly how you had ended up like this in the first place. Before your pregnancy, he had acted as though bedding you were a boorish duty he had no choice but to perform; now that you were heavy with child, however, he was more than interested in you physically, constantly touching you with those rough, murderous hands.

You enjoyed the attention, and you enjoyed the way he squeezed and massaged you with surprising gentleness. He didn’t want to break you, you supposed, not right now; after the child arrived, perhaps, but not now. That was a grim thought, and one you had often—what was to come of your after the birth? Would Feyd-Rautha want more children, in case this one died some horrible, brutal, Harkonnen death? Or would you be disposed of, no longer needed after his legacy was secured?

You tried not to dwell on it.

One morning, you roused on your own, without Feyd’s interference. Wondering if he was even still there, you reached out to the side, feeling for him—and you nearly jumped when you felt bare flesh beneath your hand. When you rolled onto your back with considerable effort and turned your head to the side, you saw that your husband was there, still sleeping, and that what you had felt was his exposed chest.

You took the moment to look at him, really look at him. He seemed so peaceful like this, when he wasn’t fighting and killing. You had seen him take lives so quickly that his victims hadn’t even known they had died, and you had wondered how someone could be so dismissive of those around them. The first time you had watched your husband slit a throat, you had nearly vomited, and he had found your revulsion amusing; the most recent, however, you had simply sighed and looked away. You were desensitized, it seemed, just like he was, and now, you slept just as easily after watching him commit horrendous acts of violence as he did now.

Feyd-Rautha was handsome as far as Harkonnens went. His skin was smooth like marble, free of the scars and bruises one might expect to see on a warrior. His face, usually so harsh during the waking hours, was relaxed now, and you realized he was beautiful. You couldn’t keep yourself from brushing your fingers over his lips and feeling how surprisingly soft they were, though in a way, this felt wrong. Feyd-Rautha didn’t strike you as the kind of person who would allow this sort of touch, but when would you have this opportunity again? He always rose first in the morning and slept last at night. You never caught him with his guard down, and you kept your hands to yourself during the day. This was the only time you could marvel at him like this.

As your fingers ghosted across his cheek, he twitched, and you froze. Then, to your horror, an eye cracked open, and you knew that he had been awake all along.

When you moved to pull away, he caught your wrist, then covered your hand in his. He held your gaze for several long, strange moments, and you realized that he hadn’t simply been awake—he had been allowing you to touch his face, to explore him in a way you had never been brave enough to before. It felt like a gift, in a way. In his way.

“I apologize,” you breathed, unable to look away from him.

“Why?” He asked, voice deep and rough with sleep.

“I should not have touched you without permission.”

“I am your husband,” he said. “And you are carrying my child. You do not need permission to touch me.”

Somehow, you knew his words carried a deeper meaning. You knew you were one of, if not the only, one on all of Giedi Prime whom he had said those words to. And for the first time since marrying him, you felt that Feyd-Rautha was truly your husband.

-0-

He was with you when the labor began.

You had been lounging in your shared chambers, enduring the final week of your pregnancy. It felt bittersweet, in a way; you had no way of knowing then if you would ever be experiencing this again, and a part of you desperately wanted to hold onto it while the rest was fed up with feeling massive and uncomfortable every day.

Feyd-Rautha had been agitated all morning. It was as if he had known something was about to happen, and he had spent his time barely containing himself as he paced and sharpened knives, attempting to keep to himself and leave you alone and doing a piss poor job of it. You had been ready to chase him out of the room—or at least attempt to—when you felt your waters go and the panic set in.

That had been three hours ago.

Now, you were in your bed, and a shockingly-diligent Harkonnen na-Baron had yet to leave your side. He had briefly stepped into the corridor to bellow at the nearest passerby and your midwife had arrived very quickly as a result, but after that, he had sat down next to you and refused to go anywhere else.

“Is it agony?” He asked as you stood.

You shot him a glare. “I would not wish this sensation on even you.”

He was taken aback by your tone, impressed, even, by the venom in it.

“A short walk about the room may help,” the midwife suggested. “I will assist—“

“No.” Feyd-Rautha was up and at your side in an instant, taking your elbow. “I will.”

You didn’t care who did what, you just wanted it to be over and done with. The labor was progressing quickly, the midwife assured after another check once you were back in bed, and soon, you were wailing and grunting, your face was sweaty, and the na-Baron was staring in awe. You were focused on the task set before you, one hand on Feyd’s arm as you pushed with all your might, and so you could not see the way your husband was looking at you.

When your son was born and crying at the top of his tiny lungs, Feyd-Rautha cut the umbilical cord with a hunting knife and then he stared. It seemed that the entire time, he was incapable of looking away, his eyes glued to either you or the new Harkonnen heir. You supposed he had been too enthralled to order the midwife out of the room, and the woman was smart enough not to push her luck—she did the necessary examinations as quickly as she could, then handed the baby off to you, busying herself with cleaning what looked like a murder scene and gathering the afterbirth when it came. Then, satisfied with her work and the health of the child, she left, and you were alone with your husband and son.

You cradled the infant, tucking him against your breast and pulling the edge of your robe over him in an attempt to keep him warm. He was born pale, like his father, but with a soft layer of hair that made you wonder how much he might grow to look like you. The midwife had said it before she slipped out, and you had to agree—he was beautiful, and you smiled down at him.

A thud startled you and you turned to see that Feyd-Rautha had fallen to his knees at your bedside, looking at you with a reverence you had never seen in anyone before.

“Feyd?” You asked.

He looked between you and your son, and you saw then that something had changed within him over those many months. Gone was the dismissive, uncaring husband you had wed; this Feyd-Rautha had grown to become a protector, one who would fight until his muscles tore from his bones, who would bleed himself dry for you.

“You are stronger than I knew,” he murmured, brushing a thumb over your cheek much the way you had with him all those nights ago.

You felt a lump in your throat. “Come here. Join us.”

He did.

Feyd-Rautha sat with you there, in your bed, the very bed your first child was born in. He watched as your son woke from his peaceful, short nap, and he was privy to the private, intimate moment of his first feeding. He held the baby, staring at him in wonder and what may have been a touch of fear, supporting the both of you as he helped you to the bathing room when you were well enough to stand.

“A son,” he said, watching the baby sleep that night.

“Yes.” You mumbled, exhausted and nearly asleep as well. “Are you pleased, husband?”

“I would have been just as pleased with a daughter.”

That surprised you, and you glanced over your shoulder to see him propped up on an elbow, watching your son as he slept in his simple Harkonnen manger. “Really?”

“Yes,” he said, never once taking his eyes off the child. “I can teach a daughter to fight just as well.” Finally, he looked down at you. “Are you well?”

“As well as can be expected.” You sighed.

“Are you happy?”

“Yes, I am,” you answered him, sleep already dragging you down.

You barely felt his lips as he pressed a kiss to your temple, and you barely heard his voice as he said,

“I am as well.”

-0-

You had expected Feyd-Rautha to grow cold in the weeks following your son’s birth, but he never had. He was attentive, caring for you in a way that suggested he felt some primal urge to drag back great beasts for dinner every night but modern living prohibited that.

Now, you watched as he stood before one of the massive windows within the Harkonnen palace. It was evening on Giedi Prime, but the black sun casted no shadows over the landscape. Feyd-Rautha held your son, whispering to him, and as you watched, you wished the moment could stretch on forever.

“Husband,” you said, approaching him.

“Wife,” he greeted you, turning.

“On your evening walk together, I see.”

He chuckled. “I am showing him everything he will one day rule over.”

“I am surprised you haven’t taken him into battle with you yet,” you said sarcastically.

“I will strap him to my chest so that he might taste the blood of House Atreides,” he said with a grin.

“The youngest Harkonnen warrior the world has ever seen.” You smiled, leaning in to check on what appeared to be a perfectly happy, albeit possibile bloodthirsty, baby.

“What are you doing walking alone?” Feyd-Rautha asked.

“Looking for you.”

“And now that you have found me, what do you intend to do?”

You leaned into your husband, resting your head on his shoulder. “Drop the baby off with the wet nurse, seduce you, take you to bed and then have my way with you.”

“You have my attention.”

“I thought you might be interested in trying for a girl this time…”

In a blink, he had spun you around and was dragging you down the corridor, and once the baby was safely tucked in with a nursemaid watching over him, you did indeed have your way with your husband. And again. And again. And you realized, as you retired to bed that night, that you were truly glad to have been arranged to marry Feyd-Rautha, heir to the Harkonnen throne and father of your children.

[mofromgaza]

✅️Vetted by @gazavetters, my number verified on the list is ( #235 )✅️

My dear friends,

From the bottom of my heart, I thank you for your immense generosity and unwavering support for me, my family, and our cats. I deeply appreciate your noble spirit in helping us through these challenging times.

I apologize for the delay in updating you on our situation. My family and I are deeply touched by each and every donation, which brings us comfort and eases our hardship during this ordeal.

After the ceasefire announcement, we had hoped to return to our home, a place that would shield us from the bitter cold and allow us to live like everyone else in the world. However, we were shocked by the sheer devastation we witnessed in my city of Rafah, particularly in our neighborhood of Tal Al Sultan.

A picture of my city Rafah before and after the genocide.

|| THE FAMILY HOME ||

The family home where we had a small apartment was partially destroyed, rendering it uninhabitable. It's surrounded by massive piles of rubble, making our street look like a ghost town.

|| THE DREAM HOME ||

About five years ago, our family decided to pool all our savings and invest in building a new house, which we fondly called "The Dream home." We purchased a plot of land and began constructing a two-story house with a small garden for my mother, who loves gardening and raising poultry. We were close to finishing it when the machinery of destruction turned our dream into ashes.

|| THE LAND ||

Our beautiful farm (the land) , which was our last hope and located a bit away from the military operations zone, has now turned into a pile of sand and rubble , its trees reduced to firewood. This destruction was the final blow that made us weep bitterly for those trees, the poultry, and the cats that used to live happily with us. That shattered our dreams of ever returning home.

Sadly , We are still living in tents in the Mawasi Khan Yunis area, and we can't even go back to see our neighborhood safely. The area is extremely dangerous because it's close to the Egyptian border ( Philadelphia Corridor) , from which they have not yet withdrawn until this update .

I know this has been a lengthy explanation, but I needed to explain everything to you in detail.

I hope you will continue to support and help us in our efforts to rebuild a small home where we can live safely, like any other human being. A home is the most basic human right, which we now lack.

Save us from the bitter cold, and alleviate our pain and suffering. Stand by us and support us, for you are my family.

Thank a lot to everyone who supports us!

Follow me on Instagram to stay updated on our daily lives👉🏽 M.ib89

Help me to spread the word

[deikshen]

Hear me out: a sort of spiritual communication array that works like a group chat of some Binghe's wives where they gossip and live together more carefree behind their husband's back... where the transmigrated and current rogue cultivator Shen Yuan is accidentally added.

Shen Yuan probably ignores all the messages at first as, well, fuck. A group of gossipy women. He's been in worse group chats, and the company is entertaining when he's been through more two weeks without a trace of another human being hunting a beast. However, you could send some useful answers, some knowledge about plants or medicines that they appreciate!! And they call him "Meimei", so Shen Yuan assumes that they have surely made a mistake with his communication array password... Which is weird, he suppose, because who uses "blessed heavenly pillar" as their password? Anyway. Shen Yuan appreciates the gossipy friends he's making.

Apparently they all live in the same place, are they like, a community? Given certain comments and insinuations between them, perhaps a community of lesbians living under someone's protection? Cool! He was sure that the heavenly pillar definitely wasn't something that could treat lesbianism like a sick and "cure" it (even if he knows that the bastard Airplane would have considered it, nor would he have been capable of that disrespect), so good for them! He liked them too much to end up like part of that harem!! Although being Binghe's wife is a privilege, of course, but one in three hundred...

Shen Yuan doesn't talk much in the group, but he has his favorite "Jiejies"! They're all sweet and nice to him, and even the most unfriendly ones become fond of it after a good recipe for scented soaps or moisturizing creams. Sometimes they even ask him privately with any questions. Shen Yuan feels bad when he has to decline invitations to eat or go listen to music, because he's not even there!! In fact, at this point he's already embarrassed to admit that he was added by mistake and he remained silent about it!!

And, in the midst of one of his travels, Shen Yuan encounters the core of the world. Binghe! Emperor Luo Binghe! They share a small adventure hunting the beast — Luo Binghe looks quite haughty and arrogant, yet vulnerable when he's cooking, illuminated by the fire and with that tiny disheveled braid in his hair. Shen Yuan enjoys his meal and read in the chat, commenting that he remembered some flowers that can be used to dye fabrics, sending the specifications and receiving tens of happy comments about it.

Ah, actually, he doesn't have a bad life. He thinks so. He keeps randomly running into Luo Binghe on his travels, and his friends in the group chat are as gossipy and fun as ever.

And then, one day, Shen Yuan wakes up with an exaggerated amount of messages:

» "I think we'll have to add another one soon"

» "Another one? Damn. How many of us are there?"

» "Three hundred and twelve?"

» "Not everyone is here, in this group there are less than a hundred. The main wives have their own group, too."

» "I thought lady Mingyan was at the beginning?"

» "She was, but she got bored. Mingyan never wants to be in our groups since we criticized thata bad novel about the ice king and his spy"

» "Hualing neither, but she caused the first group to collapse with her rudeness"

» "But why add another one? You're getting off topic, ladies. Husband's been away again?"

» "Phew, honey. If only you knew. He goes off and comes back like a puppy. I've never seen that look on his face"

» "He looks young and adorable. Hualing was complaining about that the other day"

» "I mean, husband always looks handsome, but he has this glow. The glow when he's falling in love, again. I haven't seen him like that in a long time"

» "Me neither! I thought I'd never see him shine like that again after the third week of our wedding"

» "Same sis. Since the second one. It's nice to see him shine happily even if he's not looking at me"

» "Do we know who she is? From which realm? A demon? A cultivator? Details, details!!"

» "We need more demons, badass girls"

» "Husband says he's going hunting. He comes back with beasts and flowers. But also with that smile. So I'm guessing a cultivator"

» "Hell, more? They'll beat us by a landslide"

» "Girl, don't complain. More to bite on"

» "When you stop being being super close and eating together, we can talk about how we can't let husband ruin it with this?"

» "Why would a husband ruin it?"

» "He is our husband"

» "You're absolutely right. Fuck he's going to ruin it"

» "What should we do?"

» "First, find out about her! Warn her! Tell her that our husband is a fool but has a good heart deep down!! Who has permission to leave the palace? Has anyone spoken to Yingying lately?!"

» "We have to warn her about the size of his dick"

» "That too. I would have appreciated being prepared"

» "I married him after reading the yellow books about him, AND I WASN'T PREPARED"

» "No one is. My poor flower"

» "Too much information"

» "I'm not sorry"

» "Girls GIRLS GIRLS. For heaven's sake. YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT I JUST FOUND OUT."

» "If it doesn't have to do with our husband's new conquest, it's irrelevant gossip."

» "It has to do with"

» "SPIT IT OUT"

» "His new conquest is not a woman"

» "what"

» "WHAT?"

» "?????"

» "Listen, but it makes sense, right? Husband could be a cut sleeve that didn't notice until now. So that's why there are so many of us. None of us can be enough because we're missing something, you know, important."

» "A dick"

» "I was going to say a pillar, but you get the point."

» "Where did you hear that from?"

» "Our husband was telling General Mobei. That he should prepare a trunk of fine men's robes, that he would soon bring his new traveling companion to see the palace. That he plans to move him into his private chambers."

» "NO FUCKING WAYYY"

» "Hualing will explode"

» "I haven't seen a good attempt in years, do you want to bet?"

» "Do we know anything else?"

» "I don't know his name, sorry, that's all I have. He is a small rogue cultivator"

» "How small?"

» "By the measurements that husband requested for his robes, 5'6"

» "Damn it"

» "Short"

» "Oh damn, his poor chrysanthemum"

» "OH FUCK"

» "NO WAY"

» "HOW THE HELL DOES OUR HUSBAND'S COCK FIT IN SOMETHING SO SMALL? FUCK"

» "I will put incense in the name of his hole"

» "Oh girl, me too"

Shen Yuan stops reading with a mixture of horror, shame, and panic. What. The. Fuck. HOW THE FUCK DID HE END UP IN THAT GROUP? In the DAMNED BINGHE WIFE GROUP. Fuck. Oh fuck.

And yes, HE HAD agreed to visit Luo Binghe's palace, BUT only because he had mentioned that it had been a long time since he had slept in a bed and had a nice hot bath!! And Luo Binghe had been an exceptional gentleman and good friend offering to visit the palace and receive some care! Nothing perverted like those wives talked about!!

Oh, those wives. Damn. How come he'd been infiltrating that chat for MONTHS without realizing it!? Yes, it was true that when there were MANY messages he would ignore them and just skip them... But he would have stopped immediately if someone had mentioned Binghe directly!! But FUCK. They only mentioned him as "husband" and Shen Yuan's radar on anything where Binghe was mentioned didn't go off. Fuck.

Well, that's fine. He's not... a conquest. Nothing like that. Shen Yuan is sure of that! The protagonist is 100% heterosexual, no matter what those wives say!!! They're his wives damn, they should know how straight he is!!

He'll go to that palace, prove that he's just a good friend of Binghe, and that's it!

(In the future, when he is already married with Luo Binghe and one of Binghe's many wives asks for his communication array password to add him to a group chat to, he know, chat and share, Shen Yuan runs away with a red face. That same night, everyone is saddened because the kind and sweet Meimei who knew a lot about beast, flowers and remedies left the group.)

[suninia]

Dragons and flowers

Dragon Sylus x fem!MC/Reader Tags: fluff, dragon sylusss Words: 3.7k (sorry) 𐙚⋆°. I watched Barbie Diamond Castle again recently and thought of this with Sylus after reading lots of dragon Sylus fics muwehe. First long fic, hope everyone will enjoy it <3

Are you going to die?

You probably will.

You sobbed quietly as the harsh air hits your face. One minute ago, you were just happily transporting your fresh produce of flowers to the townhall, now you're 100 feet off the ground, carried like a helpless kitten by the scaly arms of a terrifying 8ft tall man with half draconic features. 

You should've seen it coming from the times you felt like the air seemed to carry something heavy. Something overwhelming. Something that a lone girl living in a small wood cottage by a river cannot simply fight off. You've had lots of close encounters with bears, or even wolves, but this feels different.

This feels like your end.

Yet it never came.

You're always on alert, looking through the woods across the river to see anything, sometimes looking over your shoulder as if a pair of eyes are locked on you all the time but there's nothing. You never caught anything. Not even a mere shadow. Not even when you're wandering in the woods to fetch a few herbs requested to you by the village botanist. There's only ever silence and the strange musk of wild animals in the forest.

Nothing.

"Miss flower! G'morning!"  you looked over the river to see a group of hunters with their weapons about to enter the forest for their hunt. You stood up from tending to your garden to approach them wearing a friendly smile.

'Miss flower'. You've made a name for yourself from supplying such good batches of unique and beautiful flowers that adorns the humble homes of your small village. You set up shop every few weeks in the town’s market to deliver fresh flowers to the hardworking housewives and young ladies who ordered them. You even sell special mixes of perfume pouches and floral essential oils which are quite popular to both married and unmarried women.

Although simple, seeing their smiles really makes all the sleepless nights and fighting for your life against terrible storms all worth it.

"Good morning, gentlemen. Early hunt today?"

"Yup! Gotta feed the village y'know. Seen anything lately?"

"Well, aside from the usual animals I feed here then everything else is up to you."

"Ones you marked, right? Aightie, we'll drop by for some sandwiches earlier in exchange for a whole deer, how ‘bout that?" a younger man among them blurted out. The rest of the seemingly older men nudged him in a teasing manner, you just smiled.

"I'll make sure to prepare some!"

You went inside your cottage to make some sandwiches for the hunters’ return later for lunch. You pan-fried some dried meat and eggs, topped it with some fresh vegetables from your garden and some mayo you recently made. You smiled from your hard work and slowly placed them inside your picnic basket when you heard a loud thud from outside your house.

The hunters are back so fast?

Washing your hands and finishing the basket with some of the fresh fruits you sliced earlier, you head over to your door to feed your guests but all you’re met with were field of flowers and your long rows of fresh vegetables. Thinking it’s just some lost animal, you sighed and was about to turn around when your gaze fell downwards, only to gasp from the sight of a dead deer lying on your porch. It looks big and mature, fur all shiny and silky. It's like something you'll get as a first prize for the annual village hunting competition or an offering to the mountain gods. You looked around to see if any of the men were around. No, only silence. The usual silence.

Chills went down your spine.

Who delivered this to your front door?

As the hunters returned, they confusingly looked at the deer that was supposed to be their catch that very afternoon but it mysteriously disappeared. They still managed to hunt a few animals, however, so their trip was not in vain. They offered to butcher the deer in house but you shyly refused, not really good with blood or slaughter. They came back to share a most of the portions back to you the next day so you made a nice roast for them as a gift, then they went on their way.

You wondered how that deer ended up dead on your front porch… but decided to brush it off. It’ll only spawn unwanted thoughts that you’ve been desperately avoiding and that is something you’ve decided to do religiously given your circumstances of living alone.

And once again, peace conquered your small cottage in the woods.

A few days had passed when you observed that your stock of firewood wouldn’t last for more than a week. You admit that you were not the strongest woman out there to chop a big tree by yourself but you try anyway, it's hard to commission lumberjacks to do it for you sometimes because the festival had them busy in the town square so this is a matter to be solved by your own hands this time. You grabbed your axe and a few pieces of rope from the shed and went on your way.

"Awe, here to accompany me today?"

It was one of the deers that you marked. You had saved this little one not too long ago after his mother was hunted and injured by other wild animals, dying shortly after in your peaceful garden which you took the responsibility of letting it rest within the quiet hug of your fresh flowers. You always strive to nurture life while respecting its natural cycle, but perhaps… a little touch of humanity will let your heart rest a little peacefully. Even just a little.

You finally found small trees that are okay to be harvested but you always make sure to plant new ones as a trade. After chopping down a few to nice pieces and tying them up with the rope so you can easily carry the pile on your back, you proceeded to pick up some firewood scattered along the ground on your way back to your cottage. The cute deer helped you out sometimes, bringing you pieces of wood with its mouth which earned him pieces of food and lots of headpats. 

You failed to notice dusk approaching until the fiery colors peeking through the tall trees and the howling of wolves from afar caught your attention. You instructed the deer to quickly hide in the hiding spot you made for it a while back then sprinted yourself. Biting your lip, you were afraid that you had wandered too far and possibly…

No. No such thoughts.

Along with your light footsteps, heavier and faster legs surrounded you in no time making your heart beat erratically. 

Lucky gods, you were independent but athletically incapable at times. In panic, you tripped over a rock that made you fall face flat into a pile of leaves. You heard growling and the footsteps getting closer just as you're about to get up which made you freeze. You closed your eyes, whether in acceptance of your end or in hopes that the playing dead tactic will work on wolves too… you're not quite certain.

You silently prayed to whichever God is listening out there to at least let you live for another day. Quietly sobbing, this isn't how you planned to go, but is the world that merciful?

Tap. Tap. Tap. In large numbers, four legged creatures circled around you howling in a choir. You bit your lip and held back a sob by capturing your mouth with your palm, wishing that this quiet response will trick these predators from pouncing on their prey.

Closer… closer… and closer. Growling a few feet away from your legs. Sniffing your heels and your basket of wood until they stepped back, preparing to lunge to finally feast on their meal.

Gods. Please.

Save me.

As if the heavens actually listened to your pleas, the wolves stopped their attempts to attack in almost an instant. Chills ran down your spine when you felt this overwhelming energy once again. This familiar heaviness and bloodlust in the air. The strange movement of the wind and the ominous swaying of leaves and branches, this unexplainable ringing of danger in your head… it’s a warning you absolutely cannot ignore.

Something far more dangerous appeared before you... and it wasn't heaven's.

Your heartbeat stopped upon hearing a much deeper, raspier, and mature voice that growled right behind you. It was terrifying. It was territorial. It was overpowering. It made those wolves’ cries sound like that of a 1-month-old puppy. Every heavy footstep the monster made had you counting your remaining seconds of life on this planet. You didn't know what to do other than to write your own elegy inside of your head as the first and only guest to your own funeral.

You closed your eyes shut in silent surrender when you felt something sharp crawl along your spine that made you shiver, reaching for the strands of your hair on your face and gently pulling it. As if it’s checking if you’re alive, you didn’t notice that you’re already holding your breath in suspense, fear crawling into your skin as the last of your days were cut short into ten seconds… nine… eight… seven…

Until you finished counting to one while waiting for the grim reaper to pull your leg towards the afterlife… realization hit you that you were not dead.

Death didn’t come for your soul.

No pain, no suffering.

Just silence.

You raised your head and turned to look around, mouth dry and unable mutter words, your cheeks warm with rivers of your tears, hands and feet bleeding from blisters and scratches as a result of your fall, and breaths slowly returning to your lungs after nearly suffocating yourself. No matter how ruined you looked, the fact that you weren’t mauled to death by a pack of wolves was evident.

Around you were nothing but silence. No wolves, no big scary monsters, not even the small noise of birds and crickets...

Only the quiet trees, the soothing air, and bright moon that came to light up your way.

You were spared from death.

"Are you sure you weren't dreaming?"

"No!" you exhaled loudly, seemingly frustrated while telling your friend Tara what happened that evening. She wouldn't believe you! What is there not to believe?!

"You wouldn't be here if you encountered man-eating wolves."

"Exactly!" you let out an exasperated sigh and leaned on the table lazily, looking at your reflection on the glass of orange juice in front of you when the long ribbon on your hair smoothly fell to your palm.

That encounter was weird… but what was more unusual was you discovering your scattered firewood neatly piled up and tied with red silk on your front porch when you woke up this morning. You got it checked earlier by the seamstress and they claimed that it was one of the expensive silks that’s only woven by rare materials found in the eastern regions. You ended up getting it sewn into a ribbon and wore it, can’t tell if you should be scared or thankful to whoever delivered your wood back to your house.

She pouted, reaching for both of your cheeks to stretch it.

"You need sleep, darling. Thank you for the flowers for this year's festival. You deserve the rest. Also, never go out at night again on your own!"

You walked back home with your empty wooden cart and a bag of coins that the town gave you as payment after supplying a ton of flowers for the upcoming festival. You don't know how to explain what happened to you last night because you didn't see much either out of fear.

But it happened. Terrifyingly so.

You heaved a heavy sigh and opened your gate as you arrived back to your house only to be greeted by a big tree lodged into half of your garden where your precious flowers are planted. 

You froze on the spot, eyes blinking, mind blank as paper at what you’re seeing. The tree is bigger than your house, enough to block the whole river and certainly enough to knock your home down like a pile of rocks.

You ran towards your garden, tears welling around your eyes at the sight of your poppies, lilies, and hydrangeas crushed by the sheer weight of a 500-year-old load of wood. Your legs weakened like jelly, collapsing to the ground with utter disbelief. 

"My flowers..."

It was heartbreaking, truly.

The wind blew harshly; a silhouette of a flying object flew over you for a split second before a heavy thud and cracking of dirt rang from your back but you didn’t even bother to look at what it was. Your eyes blurred, warm tears staining the dirt as each drop slid along the beautiful petals of your white lilies. Your heart felt like it was being torn into pieces, hands trembling as you caressed the leaves of your once healthy buds that bloomed beautifully under your attentive and utmost care.

Why do these things keep happening to you?

From your sorrow, you momentarily forgot the thing that landed in your garden until fast approaching footsteps rushed towards you, mists of red and black danced around your figure in a fluid motion before a sharp claw captured your chin and gently pulled your head to turn to the side.

Your mouth parted at the sight of a large man… with horns as sharp as blades, scales in the color of charcoal, red piercing eyes that reminds you or rubies, plush lips and soft cupid bow pressing into a think line, and eyebrows knitting together. As if he was frowning… or disappointed? enraged? You’re not certain. His sharp teeth gritted; growls laced with a tremendous amount of savageness that poisoned your heart with fear.

"You are crying." he mumbled, voice breathless, jaw tightening and growing more and more dangerous by the second.

You didn't expect him to speak but you didn't reply either, feeling your chest heavy and your breaths slowly escaping your lungs. He muttered a few words in a language you don’t understand before growling once more. You noticed a sharp and scaly object, moving slowly towards you like a snake. It reached for your face which made you close your eyes, only opening one of them when you heard a deep sigh from the person in front of you. The snake like limb of some sorts was holding your hair up from blocking your face, giving him a clear vision of your flushed cheeks that’s stained with tears.

It's a dragon. A dragon in form of a man crouching right in front of you.

"Was the tree not enough? Do you need a bigger one? Or five more? Tell me what it is that you need. I'm strong. I can get it for you."

His increasing frustration strikes fear into your heart. You let out a soft sob and covered your face in fear that this will trigger this creature into harming you. What will you do now? Who is this? What is this? What does he want? Did he put this tree here in hopes to destroy your house but missed the target? Or did he hope you were there to be crushed by it?

And why is he asking you questions like that?

"My flowers..."

It was your only form of salvation in that fearful moment. The flowers you held so dearly. The ones you've been tirelessly cultivating over the past few months… gone. Just like that.

The dragon's ruby eyes turned to the large tree and noticed the flower beds ruined under it. He stiffened, face met with horror and anger upon the realization of his mistake.

He cursed and turned to you again, gaze sharper than newly polished swords. 

That’s it. If you're going to die, at least let you die beside your flowers!

The dragon stretched its wings and grabbed a hold of your waist to pull you upwards in a gentle manner using the same scaly limb that was brushing your hair a few moments ago, which you finally figured out was his tail. Your mouth let out a small cry for help and shrieked when he crouched a bit before stepping back to gain momentum and eventually darted high up in the air carrying you in his arms.

This is the end for you, right?

You closed your eyes in anticipation, prepared to get dropped immediately. But while your eyes are getting disturbed by the large force of the wind that’s making you lose your focus and drying your tears in an instant, the dragon’s large claws lightly covered your face… as if shielding you from the wind’s assault.

You blinked your eyes when it suddenly went quiet and you felt like you were slowly descending. You shook your head to clear your mind a bit before looking ahead, meeting a solemn view of a large field of flowers running towards the horizon. It’s a place that you've never seen before. It was beautiful. It was like a dream. A dream you never knew you can witness with your very eyes like this.

The dragon settled you carefully into the bed of flowers, the sweet scent of the fresh variety of flowers rushing to your nose as you took in a deep breath. Gentle petals brushed against your skin like a gentle greeting, their pollen dancing around you as acknowledgement and announcement of their divine presence. They scattered in the wind like confetti, colors shimmering against the blinding sunlight, almost sparking like stars in the night sky.

You were in awe. Completely pulled away from the agony you were in earlier, heart now filled with gentle joy and fascination.

"Your flowers... I don’t know how to properly ask for forgiveness, I did not mean for that to happen either. Still, I hope I'll earn to be forgiven."

You turned to the dragon that’s now sitting beside you with wings half folded, forgetting that you were basically taken by a dragon that you’ve only heard of in the legends, heavy scales and leather armor draped across the flower bed providing it with a nice shade, silver hair glistened like snow against the bleeding sunset and tail squirming behind him, wagging in quick, graceful motions… reminding you of a happy puppy’s. The red gem on his chest reflected rainbows into his eyes. Sharp, brilliant, enchanting, and oh so beautiful.

"You needed wood so I gave you the biggest one I could find. I did not mean to destroy your nest."

My nest?

"I should've stuck with the deer."

Deer?

"What…?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"I am attempting to court you."

Your jaw dropped, hands quickly covering your mouth in shock. Your eyes stayed on him. His eyes burning through you with a fierce, sincere, and surprisingly honest intention. 

"M-Me?"

He nodded and held out his hand which you hesitantly took, but did anyway when he waited for you to take his offer or maybe reject him. His eyes looked shocked for a moment when your palm pressed on his rough talons but quickly brushed it off and led you to sit beside him, looking away for a second to wipe his cheek.

"While I don't know how to properly court someone. I would like to try." He muttered earnestly that left you in awe. He searched for something inside his robes and brought it out. His sharp claws pointed to your hand so you hesitantly held it out and yelped from the heavy bag that was placed on your palm. It was small, but really bulky. You looked back up at him, noticing how much you need to crane your head upwards to meet his eyes from your obvious height difference before tilting your head a bit in confusion.

"What is this?"

"Open it."

You gulped before pulling the string and let the pouch's mouth open to reveal shiny pieces of gold ingots trapped inside the fancy pouch. You let out a gasp and quickly turned to him.

"Why are you giving this to me? Don't dragons never share their hoards? I can't accept this..."

"Not to their mates." he gasped for air. "Never to you."

"Why?” you sniffed, thumbs circling on the shiny glare of the pure gold in your palm that you can only dream of having. “But… I’m a human?"

"I do what I want." he stated so firmly that it almost startled you. He clenched his fist. Whispering gentle reminders to himself that you cannot comprehend but it effectively made him calm down.

"You have a soul that I am... inexplicably attracted to and I would love to have you with me. But if you refuse, then I will do as I'm told. As long as you’ll allow it, I would like to be your mate."

"And this..." his tail reached for another thing from his robes and carried another pouch by its string, dropping it towards your palms. You were so overwhelmed with gifts, but he doesn’t look like he’s willing to let you return it.

You opened it and saw a bunch of seeds inside that look like crystals. Once again, you were filled with confusion.

"I've been meaning to give this to you when I saw your garden empty back when the trees were dying. It makes your soil nourished. Fast and abundant. Good for harvest. Take it along with the gold as compensation and gift for the damage I did."

“Been meaning to? Since when?”

“Since last winter.”

“So not that long ago...” that’s a relief.

“No. Last winter. When you first planted your white flowers.”

“You mean last year?!” your eyes widened. He pursed his lips and held his chin in thought, slightly shaking his head.

“I don't have the paper with numbers you humans use.”

“A-And you only approached me now?”

“I wasn't proud of my hoard. My den wasn't warm enough for humans. I couldn't speak in straight human sentences before I read a human book. I wasn't good then, but…” he grinned, his sharp fangs poked out from his plump lips. “I can say I have more than a lot to offer if you're willing to see for yourself.”

“So… you planned all of this…”

“Not this. Never to make you shed tears.” he shook his head.

“Not fear. Never fear.” he gasped, collecting himself first. “I wanted to see how delicately you look at your flowers up close. How your laughs sound like gentle wind chimes when you're with other humans. How your embrace must feel like the warmth of home. How your fingers must feel taste like solace. How your eyes must glisten like shiny coins when you’re full of happiness.” he drew his breath and nodded his head, exhaling loudly before his sharp pupils dilated while reflecting your face.

As if you’re all he sees. As if you’re everything he ever wanted.

“I want it. I want all of it to be mine. I want it to be given to me willingly. Happily. Freely.” he growled and leaned closer, holding your chin with utter softness. You felt like he was taking your breath away as he inched closer to press your forehead against his. 

Like a mortal praying to his saint.

Your fears from earlier quickly dissipated from this simple declaration, hoping the flowers sent it along the wind with a sweet goodbye. You have never seen anyone look at you like this… with so much devotion, raw passion, and intense desire to prove that he’s worthy of your hand. 

It sent you to the clouds. How can a man of another species make your heart feel like it’s going to burst when no other human person could? 

It made you think. All of the efforts he made that you perceived as ‘terrifying’ was his innocent attempt to catch your interest all along. The deer, the tree… so the wolves must be…

“Was it you… when I was almost attacked… and my firewood?”

“You were scared. I didn’t know if it was a good time to introduce myself. It wasn’t. I gave you a big tree to last you a while so you wouldn’t go out in the woods on your own. And if you run out, I’ll get you a new one again. I’m strong. And…” the wind suddenly blew that made your hair sway. His eyes locked on the ribbon tied to your hair, mouth parting as his claws caught it. He closed his eyes momentarily, letting the silence sink in before opening them again, eyes now filled with determination.

“If you’ll give me a chance… I will show you that I am a man who can give you everything.”

A man that can give me everything. 

You lied down on the bed of flowers and glanced at him. He signaled to lie down beside you when your eyes met, in which you gave a quiet nod of agreement. He looked uncomfortable, yet he still chose to lay on his side just to level his face with yours, his own eyes hiding an intense feeling of love and admiration.

A dragon’s love, huh? 

You didn’t know fiends can be affectionate like this. But isn’t his existence enough to prove that?

Although sudden, it felt strangely warm to be the receiving end of someone's passion like this. You know how easy it is for him to harm you, but he only ever touches you with pure fondness, silently hoping his sincerity will reach you somehow.

And it did. In the most surprising way.

You took a deep sigh and reached for a single flower in between your noses, inching closer to pick it and display it on the dragon’s delicate silver hair, moving gently along the whistling wind. 

You spoke out your name, your real one, only for his ears to hear. You grabbed two more flowers and planted it on the hard scales right on his left chest where a human heart would usually be.

“Flowers are my most favorite thing in the world. Nice to meet you…” you closed your eyes when your noses touched, breaths playing along the red of each other’s lips, still etched with a gentle smile.

“Sylus.” he whispered, seemingly losing air to breathe. “Your Sylus.”

You’re still quite unsure with this strange proposal… but looking at this being in front of you that’s ready to surrender his possessions just so you’ll stay beside him, maybe it won’t harm to see for yourself.

And maybe you’d like to learn more about him too.

“And you’re my most favorite thing in the world.”

[deathbxnny]

Arcane women seeing you again after cheating on you. | Vi, Caitlyn, Sevika x Gn!Reader

(Part 1)

Here is the part 2 that you guys asked for! I hope you'll like it!<3

Summary: Arcane women see you after they cheated on you a year ago. How will you react to seeing them again? And most importantly, who's that person you're with that seems to have stolen your heart from them?

Content: TW!Past cheating, angst, jealousy, swearing, probably ooc, sfw

Reader has no mentioned pronouns.

((Not proofread))

》VI

She never got over you.

It didn't matter how much time passed or how long she spent trying to forget you. You were always there at the forefront of her mind. And it drove her mad, not to know where you were. She looked all over for you after the mission, yet it seemed like you had disappeared off the face of earth, never to be seen again even during the war. Vi couldn't even find you in the aftermath of it, her heart empty and broken without you.

Her relationship with Caitlyn was practically non-existent now, as the woman felt near insecure of Vi's idealistic image of you she could never compare to. It was depressing and toxic until it eventually blew up in her face, and the Kirammann distanced herself as well for good.

And now the woman was alone.

Your words rang true, and yet you weren't even here to tell her, "I told you so". She had lost everyone she loved, being driven mad by the solitude she had brought onto herself. It was unfair and unjust, even if some of it was deserved. Just some. Eventually, the sadness turned into anger over the last year. Anger towards you. Why couldn't you be here after what happened? Why didn't you understand that it was a mistake? Hadn't she atoned for her sins enough? What else did she have to lose for you to come back? Rage, frustration, irritation. It all plagued her, as she thought of how your meeting would go if she ever sees you again.

But nothing she ever prepared was enough for when it did happen. She never thought it would. She never thought she'd see you again. And yet there you were, happily holding onto another person's arm, as you beamed up at them. You never looked like that with her. You were never this bright and giggly at her side. There was always something to be stressed about. There was always something to argue about. There was always something that made you frown around her. Whether it was because of the circumstances you were in or her own actions, you were never content.

So she stood there, in the shadows, as she gazed at you intensely from under her hood. For a moment, she considered just turning and leaving, but the internalized rage was bubbling up dangerously. She lived with survivors guilt every single day, and you go to have your happy ending? She couldn't believe it. She couldn't ever dream of you moving on from her. Marching up to you, your partner saw her first before you did, their eyes hardening protectively. Pulling you closer, they stood unmoving in the face of doom. "Can we help you?" They asked when she was close enough, but her words died on her tongue when your eyes met hers. And then there was deafening silence.

"I..." "Vi. What the hell do you want?" You hissed out, clearly not having it. You were sick of her after what happened. You, therefore, refused to let her wedge herself into your life ever again. "Actually, I don't care. Get lost." You tried pushing past her with your partner, but she wasn't moving. Instead, she blocked your way. "Please just... hear me out! I've lost everyone whilst you're out here fucking around with some randoms! Do you know how long I've looked for you? How much I've suffered?" You stopped your lover from saying anything with a hand against their chest. You can handle this.

"And I get that I fucked up! But don't think that you're completely innocent in this either." She was breathing heavily, the slightest smug relief filling her at finally saying what she had always dreamt of... but alas, you gave her the most unimpressed look possible as you scoffed. And then you began laughing. Right in her face. "Hah... that was funny... anyways, as I was saying, get lost." Finally being able to push past her, you two casually continued doing your shopping as though nothing happened.

She was left behind in shock at your uninterested reaction, as the realisation finally set in that she truly has lost everything.

》CAITLYN

The aftermath of the war was nothing short of agony to everyone, especially to Caitlyn, who had yet to find a trace of you. Last she heard, you left the city via skyship and disappeared into the blue skies forever, leaving her behind for good. It was miserable to live without you, near unbearable, and yet she kept it together with the smallest hope for your return to her.

It was pure delusion to everyone but her to hold onto such a ridiculous wish, considering she was the cause of it.

She lies awake at night thinking of your heartbroken gaze, the memory, and the words lulling her to sleep in tears. And a year later, the day of your disappearance felt as vivid as ever, as though no time passed. She could never move on. Never rest for as long as she couldn't tell you about how remorseful she felt. You were right in not trusting Maddie for a multitude of reasons. But she was so stuck in her ways due to the grief and pain that she lost the best thing that happened to her. The one person that kept her together and sane.

How was she ever going to live on now?

Whenever she did sleep, she dreamt of you coming back to her, allowing her to apologize and move on from everything she had done. It was perhaps selfish, and she was at least self-aware enough to acknowledge that, but it didn't matter to her in the long run. She just wanted you back no matter what. It didn't matter how or when. She just had to have you. And as though the gods momentarily heard her prayers, a small part of her wish finally came true after twelve long months of waiting.

There you were, under the sparkling lights of the ballroom, happily conversing with long-lost friends as you sipped on a refreshing drink. She had heard the rumor of your return a while ago, skillfully ignoring the part mentioning your unknown companion, and made sure to attend this grand event best dressed, of course.

If you saw her, then you didn't turn to even glance at her once.

She understood why but wouldn't let the opportunity to fix things slip out of her fingers now. You were so close. So unbearably close at last. Cait approached you carefully, a simple clearing of her throat being enough to drive your company away for some privacy. And you were clearly not happy about that. But as usual, she ignored your disdain for her own gain unknowingly. "It's nice to see you again." She was hiding how excited she was, practically bursting at the seams with how hard she was containing it. Your reply was less thrilling, however. "Unfortunately so... I have nothing to say to you, so leave me be, lest my partner has to see you out." You huffed, a frown hiding behind your glass.

Dumbfounded and blinking, she raised a brow in surprise. Partner? Were the rumors true after all? She was in denial. Very deep denial at that. She must be hearing it wrong, yes, that's it! "I... I beg your pardon? Partner? As in companion or...?" She must've looked silly and disheveled as she stumbled over her words like a drunk. A hand pressing against her shoulder made her pause, as she felt a very irritated presence behind her. "It seems that the wine is getting to you, Ms. Kirammann. I believe it is, therefore, time for your departure. The car's outside." Your dearest partner has come to your rescue. And it seemed that this was a setup for your own small revenge.

Your lover owned this estate. It completely slipped Caitlyn's mind in her haste to get to you. How funny.

You hid in their side, wanting her out already, and the Kirammann decided to keep the last of her dignity intact by leaving with a curt nod. She definitely cried in the cab, though, unable to complain that all her waiting was for nothing.

You were never coming back to her.

》SEVIKA

If you fuck around, you'll certainly also find out.

That was your life motto, something you lived by and your enemies feared about you. Sevika often found it amusing to watch you enforce this to those willing to face your wrath, a certain pride welling in her chest at the pure violence you could display. Until she became the receiver of it. The scar on the back of her head proved it and left a bit of a bald patch, a constant reminder of what she had done. Also, a great humiliation tactic on your end, she has to give you that.

But that's all she had left of you too.

You up and left without a trace a year ago, and made sure she'd never see a glimpse of you again. The war came and ended, resulting in her becoming a councilor, but even then, nothing she did drew you back to her. You were supposed to share this glory with her, but she knew she was the reason why you didn't. She wasn't delusional or in denial about it. No, she was a grown woman who just made a stupid mistake, in her humble opinion. Nothing more or less. So why couldn't you see the same?

It was impossible to track you down, and for a while, she thought that you may have left the city entirely a while ago. Maybe you even died in the war somewhere. She didn't know what was worse, but either thought kept her up up night to ponder about all the what ifs.

If she hadn't done what she had done... would you still be laying at her side sound asleep? Would you be proud of her and support her for finally achieving her goals? Would you praise her? Love her? Cherish her so loyally like you used to? You were absolutely right in the end, after all. She never will and never wanted to find someone else like you. She wanted you and only you from day one, but it all seemed like a distant dream now.

And then, when she was just about to move on from you by force, you appeared in her life again so casually. You were dressed in foreign clothes, a content and sweet look on your face, as you conversed with your partner, who just so happens to be an emperor of a different land.

They have come here for some trade negotiations with the council, and of course, you had to come along. Their sweet, stunning spouse they couldn't talk enough of. Your partner spoke of the riches they spoiled you with, the endless servants at your feet, the way they too were very clearly wrapped around your bejeweled fingers.

You pretended not to know her, practically avoiding her gaze as you held onto your lover tightly as they talked away. God did it hurt her, too. She was burning up in jealousy, her gaze hardened and angry enough to make the other councilors scoot away from her.

And when she saw your partner give her an evil, knowing grin, she finally realised that this was all on purpose. Your spouse couldn't give less of a shit about Piltover. They just wanted to get back at Sevika for what she had done to you, just out of pure spite. She can't do anything about it either, something she acknowledged in defeat.

Her heart was empty and broken, but she'd never admit it, as she simply concluded the meeting and took her leave. If you were happy... then she supposed she'd be content with it, too.

[ovobawrites]

The Background Character is Avoiding Death in This Life!

Dying? Hard. Reincarnating into a dating sim? Even harder. Doing everything to prevent your predetermined tragic fate? Might as well give up at that point. The bell tolls for you, but you refuse to let it claim you just yet!

(Leona Kingscholar x Reincarnated!Reader)

A/N: I tried to make the reader as gender neutral as possible, but the implication here is that the reader is afab/capable of becoming pregnant and giving birth.

The carriage jostled over gravel as you sat there in silence, clothed in pure white. A marriage to a man you've never met. One that you had done everything you could to prevent.

Waking up with memories of your past life wasn't the worst thing in the world, at least at first. As the third born Royal of the empire, you weren't given many duties, nor were you interested in competing for the throne. All you had to do was study (which you did with ease thanks to your past life), attend balls and tea parties (which at the very least served delicious food), and survive without falling victim to a plague (and the holy magic in this world, thankfully, made this task as easy as the rest). That was until your world came crashing down.

Outside politics weren't much of an interest for you. All you knew was that your older brother, the Second Prince, was a general who would fight and win wars alongside the Emperor, your father. Until you learnt of the development of a protectorate, representative of an alliance between seven kingdoms.

The Night Raven Protectorate was established in Imperial Year 1302. You had just turned 17, and realized who you were.

NRP: Battles of the Heart! was a tactical rpg with dating sim mechanics you had played in your first life. It wasn't the best game, but the art and soundtrack were lovely, the characters were nice to look at, and the gameplay was good enough. Here's the problem: the characters in nrpBoH (as the fandom called it) were at war. War with the Empire you currently resided in. A war the character you were reborn as had inadvertently caused.

The Third Royal of the Empire was engaged and promptly married to Leona Kingscholar, the only Duke of the Sunset Savanna. The two resided in the Night Raven Protectorate, as Leona had been chosen as a diplomatic envoy for his kingdom while his brother Farena, the crown prince, remained in the capital. Leona worked alongside the other diplomatic envoys of the alliance: Crown Prince Riddle Rosehearts, Marquis Azul Ashengrotto, Marquis Kalim Al-Asim, Duke Vil Schoenheit, Duke Idia Shroud, and Crown Prince Malleus Draconia, to establish unity and peace across their kingdoms.

The Third Royal died a year into their marriage with Duke Leona. The Empire, distraught at the loss of one of their royal family, declares war two years later. The Hero of nrpBoH arrives a year before the war starts, and ultimately helps the Seven Kingdoms win the war, capturing the hearts of the envoys and their closest aides on the way.

Essentially the timeline was as such: 1304 > you get married to Leona 1305 > you die 1306 > the Hero arrives and charms the cast of nrpBoH 1307 > the Empire declares war 1315 > the Seven Kingdoms defeat the Empire with the hero's aid, and everyone lives happily ever after

What do you mean you die before the events of the game even start?! And, just to make things even worse for you, your character was barely mentioned and the circumstances of their death were never discussed! Obviously it must have been suspicious, why else would the Empire declare war?! And why was it so easy for your husband, of a year, to get over you and date some floozy so soon after your death!

Okay maybe that last one was stretching it a bit, after all, it's not like Duke Leona had ever loved the Third Royal. When asked in game, all he said was that "They were a suitable partner for me. What, jealous? My heart will always belong to you, herbivore." with a cocky smirk on his face!

And so, you made it your life's goal to do anything to stop your marriage to the Duke from going through. You took a bigger interest in politics, encouraged the Crown Prince to form diplomatic alliances. Hell, you even got your brother, the warmongering Second Prince, the hardest boss in the game, to return home from the battlefield for the first time since he left at 16!

Yet every single action you took ultimately amounted to nothing. Your father, the Emperor, declared that you would marry Duke Leona to solidify the Empire's alliance with the Seven Kingdoms, and that was that.

You had begged and pleaded of course. Both the Crown and Second Princes had fought your father on this decision. Hell, even your younger brother, the Fourth Prince, had argued against the necessity of a marriage alliance. But your father's word was law, and so you were sent to the Night Raven Protectorate clad in your pure white garb, with nothing but your carriage, your luggage, and an entourage of guards and servants who would leave you at the border.

Which brings you back to the present. Slumped over in a grand carriage, with nothing to do but embroider and scheme. Your brothers were not even permitted to attend the wedding (at the Kingscholar family's request and the Emperor's decree), and none of your personal servants were allowed to join you in the protectorate.

So here you were, alone and unsure of if you could even avoid the wretched fate you'd been saddled with. If you couldn't prevent your marriage, were you just destined to die once a year was up? Would any of your actions even prevent the war that would happen in three years?

The carriage stops, and the coachmen knocks on the door to inform you of your arrival to the Night Raven Protectorate. You thank him and listen to the horses being switched out, your guards and maids leaving with the coachmen as your new one announces his presence to you.

"Ruggie Bucchi greets Your Highness." A voice calls out from behind the carriage doors. The windows are veiled, but you can make out the silhouette of a thin beastman with rounded ears. "I will be bringing you to the Duke's Estate to prepare for the wedding."

You sit there and try to ignore your world splitting into pieces. Dread curls in your stomach. You don't reply.

A beat of silence as your new coachman awaits any questions from you, before you watch his shadow pass over and the carriage start to move once more. The ride is much smoother this time. It does nothing to stop your shaking.

You didn't even have a second to compose yourself upon arriving at the Duke's Estate. A whirlwind of maids and valets descended upon you to prepare you for the wedding. You were bathed, dressed and had your make up done over the course of hours, the day going from early morning to evening without you even having a bite to eat, lest you risk 'ruining your figure'.

Your wedding garments were traditional to the empire. Shining white and decorated with diamonds as a display of wealth, a delicate veil hiding your features from the world. The servants beamed in pleasure as the head maid sang praises to your beauty.

"Trust me, Your Highness. His Grace will not be able to keep his hands off of you during your wedding night!"

You doubted it. If Leona had been spending regular nights with the Third Royal, a mention of their pregnancy would have been somewhere in the game (after all, the death of his unborn child would have made his backstory all the more tragic). But you took their praise with gentle nods and thanks, waiting until you would be led to the altar.

A knock on your door came a moment later. "Sir Jack Howl wishes to greet Your Highness and escort you to the altar."

You stood up and let a maid open the door for you. A wolf beastman dressed in armor stood before you, his ears twitching as he offered you the crook of his elbow. You took it with grace, each step making the death knell in your ears ring ever louder.

The Duke's estate was large enough to host hundreds of servants, but thankfully someone had the forethought to dress you in a guest room close to where the wedding would be held. Your garments were made for you to be displayed, as evident by how hellish it was to walk in them, the weight of them making each step feel laborious. Sir Jack graciously matched your pace, the heels of your shoes clicking against tile as you reached the altar.

Your husband-to-be stood in front of you, dressed in Empire wedding garments. Based on the in-game marriage cg, you'd expected him to be wearing the colorful wedding attire of the Sunset Savanna. Yet he stood in front of you, clad in black.

You thought it was fitting for him to be clad in the colors of a reaper. His green eyes pierced through your veil, flitting over the death grip your hands had on your bouquet before returning to the priest, looking ever so slightly bored.

The two of you stood through a lengthy speech about the union of two countries and the solidification of the alliance between the Empire and the Seven Kingdoms. Sir Jack stood behind you in parade rest, while a blond beastman stood behind Leona in a more lax pose.

A quick glance through the crowd saw that the rest of the game's main cast, from Crown Prince Riddle to Sir Sebek, all sat in the cathedral, with Crown Prince Farena sitting with his wife and son at the back. It was, by all means, a perfect imperial wedding.

Eventually, the priest's prattling stopped as he gestured for the rings to be presented to the betrotheds. The rings were simple. Gold bands rested on a white velvet pillow in a white cathedral adorned by white flowers on white tile and-

"-take Leona to be your husband in life, death and the lands that lay beyond?" The priest gazed at you, and you snapped back to attention.

"I do." You said in a lilting voice, taking the ring and placing it upon Leona's ring finger as he did the same to yours.

You couldn't hear what the priest said next through the pounding of blood in your ears, the polite applause in the cathedral barely registering.

Sir Jack offered you his arm once more, and you took it to be readied for the reception.

You could faintly make out Duke Leona being surrounded in congratulations from his friends and colleagues. You glanced at Sir Jack through the veil, and for a second saw your second brother instead.

Your heart ached in time with your hollow steps.

Here's the thing: Out of all the diplomatic envoys, the only one you could ever be married to was Leona.

The Emperor never had a blood heir, his kind heart instead adopting children he'd find during his conquests of other lands. Neither you nor your brothers had a drop of royal blood.

The nobles of the Empire took issue with that, or they did when the Crown Prince was adopted. The Emperor's threats quickly shut them up.

The Empire would not accept you being married to anything less than another land's prince, but the Queendom of Roses and Briar Valley would never accept one of common blood on the throne.

Leona was the only option for you to marry to solidify your lands' alliance.

(It was too bad the Third Royal's death caused the alliance to dissolve anyways)

The wedding reception was a blur to you. Faces passed by and congratulated you and Leona (mostly Leona), presenting gifts upon gifts as the hours ticked by. Marquis Kalim offered you a littany of jewelry. Prince Riddle gave you books on the history and etiquette used throughout the Seven Kingdoms. Duke Vil gifted you a variety of beauty products, with a guide for when and how they should be used.

You could barely eat the wedding food provided to you. You numbly watched your husband scarf down his steak, avoiding each and every vegetable. A flicker of amusement ran through you at that, and a smile quirked up your lips.

Duke Leona noticed, of course. "What're you smiling at?" He asked, voice flat.

You ducked your head down at that. "I simply was admiring how gracefully you cut your steak."

A moment of silence as he looked at you before he went back to eating without a word.

The Third Royal's death in nrp14 was rarely brought up. There were two things the playerbase knew about it:

It happened on the exact anniversary of the wedding

The Empire found it suspicious enough to declare war against the Night Raven Protectorate, and by extension, the Seven Kingdoms that the Protectorate belonged to.

A suspicious death was all you had to go off of. The Third Royal was likely murdered, and all you knew was when it happened. Honestly, it might not have even been a quick assassination. It could have been a gradual poisoning that eventually killed them on the day of their anniversary, a 'quiet' heart attack, hell it could have been a freak horse riding 'accident' for all you knew.

The Empire declaring it suspicious was, in itself, suspicious. It might have been a genuine accidental death, but was a convenient excuse to declare war. It might have even been your own Empire that killed the Third Royal for this reason.

All you knew was when you were meant to die. Therefore, everyone was a suspect. If Duke Leona did it (which, judging from how flippant he was about his spouse, he very well might have), then all you could do was be the model spouse in hopes to please him. If one of the other diplomatic envoys did it, then you have to make yourself invaluable to their diplomatic maneuvers to avoid it. If the Empire did it-

If the Empire did it, then you had to make yourself as nonthreatening as possible to it.

The room you shared with Leona was beautiful. A wide balcony adorned with plants opened the room up, letting you watch the night sky. The bed was grand, populated in numerous feather-soft pillows. Colorful rugs, trademarks of the Sunset Savanna's weaving expertise, lay across the floor. A carved chessboard and pieces rested on the table.

Leona noticed you looking at it. "D'you play?" He said as he threw his court coat across the room without care.

You brushed your fingers over the pieces. "Not really, Your Grace. That was more of my brothers' thing..."

Leona's eyes trailed you as you carefully placed your veil on a sofa cushion, before he turned away as you started to fiddle with the clasps of your outfit.

He spoke up after a moment. "I didn't ask if your brothers played." You heard the rustle of clothing as you put on your nightwear. "I asked if you played."

"I do, but I'm not very good at it."

"I'll be the judge of that."

He strolled over to the chessboard, clothed in a thin silk shirt and pants. He gestured for you to sit across from him as he reset the board, black facing him.

You moved your white pawn to D4, wondering if this would be your wedding night. A preferable outcome, really. You barely knew Leona. Plus he might kill you if you performed badly enough. You chuckled at the thought.

Leona raised a brow. "Something funny?" Knight to F6.

"Just a passing thought, Your Grace." Knight to H3.

A grunt of acknowledgment. Pawn to D5.

You played through a few more moves before speaking up again. "Is this..." You tossed the words around in your head. "Will you be..." Your fingers brushed over the queen.

"If you're asking about our wedding night, I'm plannin' on sleepin' after this." He tapped his finger on the table as he waited for your next move.

"I-" Thank you, you wanted to say, but you moved your pawn to H4 instead.

He checkmated you with ease, barely losing any pieces. But instead of gloating, he simply went to bed, expecting you to follow.

Being the master of the duchy was different from being a royal. You were in charge of managing all the internal affairs, while Leona was in charge of the external ones. While this would usually mean that you'd be managing the servants and budget of the Duke's Estate, in your case it meant that you were doing not only your paperwork, but the late paperwork Leona had neglected to do.

You looked at the towering stack of paper leaning against the desk in your new office. It would take more than a week to get through all that.

Ruggie laughed nervously by your side. "The rest is in Leona's office."

You sighed and reached for a quill. "Right. Shall we get started then?"

Sir Jack, who you soon learnt was Leona's most trusted knight, and Ruggie, Leona's aide, were invaluable to you running the duchy as smoothly as you did. While Leona napped, you had Ruggie deliver the needed letters and replies to the other diplomatic envoys. While Leona trained the knights, you were stamping all the paperwork he hadn't finished the day before. And when Leona finally entered the office, you were hurrying down a lunch you barely had enough time to eat.

Still, you never said a word about it to Leona, even when the workload threatened to swallow you whole.

You needed to be a model spouse; to be invaluable to the duchy. If you did most of the work, then what reason would Leona have to kill you? If he did, then he'd be the one stuck doing paperwork in the office all day.

...You barely had time to eat dinner with him. You entered the bedroom hours after he went to bed, and woke and ate breakfast when the sun rose.

You would be running on fumes soon, and there was nothing you could do about it. Ruggie started to slip you snacks during the lulls between one stack of paperwork and the next. Jack started pulling you away every so often, if only for a few minutes, just so you could get some sunlight.

It still wasn't enough to get you to leave your office for more than an hour or two each day. The paperwork seemed never ending, impossible for one person to do. Until, eventually, Leona stepped in.

"I'll do that." He muttered as he swiped a pile of paperwork off your desk.

You blinked through bleary eyes. "There's no need, Your Grace. I can-"

"Where'd this 'Your Grace' stuff come from." He shot back. "Call me Leona."

"I- fine. I can get through that stack of papers Leona, there's no need for you to burden yourself with it."

His tail swished as he glared at you. "Then why're you the one doing it? If it's a burden, then give it to Ruggie or someone."

"...Because it is my duty as the Duke's Spouse to complete any paperwork necessary to the functioning of the Duchy." You tucked your hands in your lap, twisting your fingers through each other in a facsimile of a hand holding your own.

"Is that so?" A dangerous smirk played at your husband's lips. He started to glance through papers, separating them into two piles.

"I- Your Grace- What are you doing?"

He didn't reply, merely continuing to sort through the stack on your desk.

Was he seriously going to ignore you until you called him by his name? What kind of immature, childish-

"Leona, what are you doing?" You asked through gritted teeth.

"Makin' sure you're only doin' paperwork necessary to the functionin' of the Duchy, dearly betrothed." He replied with ease, holding the larger stack of papers in his arms.

"But- you- let me do the larger stack at least, you're already so busy-" You attempt to appeal before you are cut off.

"Busy doin' what? Sure, my naps are incredibly important." Leona ignored Ruggie's eye roll. "But I'm sure I can fit in time for this somewhere."

You gnawed at your thumb, before trying again. "There's really no need, I've been managing fine on my own-"

"Ruggie told me you fainted yesterday." Leona's eyes flashed as the room turned cold. "I'm not lettin' you do this at the expense of your health."

"It was only a minor occurrence, really I'm fine! I'll take better care of my health, just let me-"

"Why are you so insistent on this?" You froze, and Leona's eyes saw right through you. He scoffed. "You don't need to be walkin' on eggshells around me all the time. I can handle my own work."

"Obviously not if you let it pile up to this point!" You snapped back, teeth digging through the flesh of your thumb. "If you don't want to do it, then why not let me? You can keep your naps, and I can do the work, that's perfectly alright with me!"

"And watch my spouse waste away? I barely see you at dinner, and when I do you're picking at your food like some kind of bird. You barely eat, you barely sleep, Sevens, you barely even talk to me!" You flinched at Leona's raised voice, and he paused, taking a breath. He continued with a gentler tone. "We may not have married for love, but I expect a life partner. I don't want to watch my spouse overwork themselves to the grave just to please me, okay?"

You hesitated, scanning his face for any hint of a lie. Leona's eyes met yours, a steady green. "Alright. But, in exchange-" You looked at him for any sign of objection before continuing. "I- I want to help with your diplomatic envoy meetings." At his crossed arms, you struggled for an explanation. "It doesn't even have to include me being present, I can just help with your appeals. I don't even have to look at any of the documents I just-"

"It's a good idea." He stopped your rambling with a raised hand. "The others've been asking how you were doin' anyways."

"I- really?"

"Why'd you ask if you didn't even think I'd say yes?"

You ignored his snarky comment and moved past your desk, legs shaky like a newborn fawn. Still you persevered, Leona moving closer to hover over you. You grasped his hands in yours, ignorant to the shocked expression that flitted over his face. "Thank you thank you thank you! I won't disappoint you, I promise!" You squealed as you bounced up and down.

Now you just have to make yourself useful to the envoys, and that's two death flags down! Leona seems to care about your continued well-being, which removes him from the culprit list. Jack was way too noble to even think about hurting you (He almost cried when he saw the slight bruise around your wrist. He had gripped you a little too hard to save you from falling during your fainting episode.). And Ruggie saw you as a comrade against the paperwork Leona kept leaving for him to do. (He had cried tears of joy when the two of you had gotten through that first stack. Apparently it had been tormenting him for a month.).

If things kept going your way, then you could probably prevent the entirety of the main cast from killing you. Then, it's just making sure to stay far, far away from the Empire until the year is over.

You will get through this year! And then, once the hero arrives, you can take a backseat and graciously allow Leona to pursue them, then return to the Empire with a war averted, divorce papers in hand! You just have to continue to be useful to the main cast, before taking a bow and exiting stage left.

Surely you could just get through your lines without issue. Right?

Leona frowned as he looked at your hand. Your thumb was bleeding. He glanced at Ruggie, and with a tilt of his head the hyena was off to grab you some gauze.

An unbidden, soft smile came to his face as he basked in this moment with you. He'd been apathetic to this union from the moment it was clear he'd have to marry you, a royal he'd never even seen before. But looking at you, you with your bright smile and your warm hands around his, he could admit to himself that a marriage with you as his spouse couldn't be too bad.

A/N: And that's a wrap folks! I'm not sure if I will be continuing this story, I mostly wrote it to get it out of my system, but if people seem interested in a continuation, I might write one. If you can't tell, this is based off of the many, many otome isekai manhwas out there. If you're looking for a fluffy one like this story, I recommend "The Villainess Wants to Marry a Commoner!!". You can read it ad-free on mangadex.org <3

[yuvany]

"MS.UGLY DUCKLING" ft SIM JAKE

SYNOPSIS : growing up "ugly" was not for the weak. Being absolutely ignored both in and outside of school was not for the weak. No one is ever ugly forever though. Changing schools and meeting new people, but most importantly meeting him might have been the best choice you've ever made in a very, very long time.

CONTENT WARNINGS : angst (with a happy ending) + bullying + insecurities + strangers to friends + friends to lovers + written in second perspective + self deprication + fluff + long + little rushed + partially proofread

ACTORS : ENHYPEN JAKE x FEMALE READER

WORD COUNT : ~ 4k

CHECK BOX !!

i. "WHY WON'T THEY EVER PLAY WITH ME," you asked your mother after returning home from a long and harsh first day of school. Your hair looked a mess, and dirt was scattered across your clothes, yet your voice sounded like childish innocence and pure wonder. Maybe it was too much for such a young child to realise that her newly made friends maybe weren't actually her friends?

(Read more under the cut)

"I'm sure they didn't mean to?" She replied, her voice sounding soft and vulnurable, feeling like she was responsible for the sorrows and grief that her child had been put through, since she was the one who had bought you into this world. Instead of confronting the problem, she told her child that the world wasn't as evil as it seemed, that thinking on the bright side, or the possibilities, were the correct way to live life.

Eight-year-old girl walked up the stairs with heavy weights glued beneath her feet after dinner was finished. You threw yourself onto your bed that was neatly made in the morning before you went to school happily, just to come home opposite of the way you left. The softness of the pillow and blanket laying on your bed was enough to comfort you as you buried your face deep into it and wrapping the blanket around you tightly. You wished for friends, and you wished to be happy, but most of all, you wanted to be like everybody else.

ii. ONE MORE DAY at school, the daily mistreatment never seeming to come to a halt. You walked through the corridors anxiously holding onto the straps of your backback tightly with your pair of eyes wandering all over the place in case of danger. This was certainly not nessecary for a child your age, but when nobody chooses to help, you've got to start taking care of yourself.

Maybe it was your nerves that made it feel as if everyone's eyes were on you, but their mouths would open to release a fit of laughter that they had held in until specifically you walked past them. You crossed your arms, feeling extra aware of yourself now, guessing that they were laughing and giggling at you, which you didn't appreciate, but you were also too insecure and scared to speak up against them.

You reached your locker, looking forward to being able to collect your throught, away from everyone else, the locker shielding you away from their piercing gazes and judgemental stares and whispers. As you look up from your shoes, you see piles of gum stuck onto your locker, the gum being pressed onto the metal aggressively by the people you wished you didn't see. It was them; the popular girls of the school, and few of many people who seemed to despise you. They saw you standing there, shooting you an all too familiar look before walking away with their hips swaying from side to side dramatically.

You approched your locker to finally see what they were doing up close, "UGLY!" it read. You felt embarrased imagining all the people who passed by and saw this. Did they laugh? Did they feel bad for you? What did they think? You wanted to run away and hide in a deep hole you'd dig up with all the stored up shame inside of you.

iii. "MOM, DO YOU THINK I'M PRETTY?" You asked your mother once more, years after the first, but soon to the recent encounter. "I think you're very pretty." She says, but your gut tells you another story. "Really?" You ask, awaiting her response that takes a long while before she hums lowly. That just confirms it, she wasn't being honest. "Thanks," you say, with no emotion in your tone. She looks away and eats her dinner quietly.

You quickly finish yours, and wash it in the faucet, the soap bubbling up and covering your fingers as you scrub and rub the plate, utensils and glass that you used. After finishing that up, you return to your room, locking it behind you. You hid under the covers for a while until it got too suffocating and warm, leaving you itchy and irriatted before sliding out and standing in front of the mirror. You inspected every inch and detail of your face, feeling not so content with some parts. You sighed at your reflection that looked back at you with tired, red eyes. At just fourteen years old, you began caring about how you looked, and how others precieved you, so you took matters into your own hands. That night, you stayed up all night searching for 'how to be prettier' and scrolled endlessly through social media.

The next day, you had decided to get a new hair cut to maybe fix the way you looked, you knew excatly what you wanted, and how to cut it. Before anyone else woke up, even before the first birds chirped their morning tune, you made your way to the bathroom and grabbed a pair of scissors in your grasp. You carefully cut strand for strand, the same way you remebered how the video showed. "It doesn't look too bad." You think to yourself, and then you hear footsteps outside the door. Your eyes quickly scanned the hair that layed on the tiled floor and faucet, wondering what to do with it.

Too late. The door slowly swung open and in came your mom. She was silent upon seeing the scene, the horror only showing in her eyes. "What happened here?" She asked like a sharp whisper. "I just cut my hair..." You reply equally quiet. You see her shake her head in disappointment, so you turn your head down, looking at all the hair that had been flying everywhere while you had fun cutting your hair, and suddenly you weren't as proud of your hair cut like you were before. "Go get the broom, y/n." You obeyed your mother's order and hurried out of the bathroom feeling tears of embarrassment reaching your eyes.

iv. YOU STARTED WEARING MAKE UP to cover up, but to everyone else, you told them that you wore make up becase you thought it looked pretty. Still, they'd give weird glances toward each others, which you knew was their way of judging you.

Each morning, you woke up early to sit in front of your mirror examining your appearance like you always did. Hoping and praying to somehow change over night, you hated how your features looked together. You opened the drawer of your vanity and picked up sponges and brushes, leaving them aside for later use while you chose the different essintials. You had prepared the whole summer break to look pretty. Every day, you followed a new tutorial, improving as you continued. You did all this to look presentable at school.

You thinly spread the foundation across your face, dabbing the liquid evenly all over as you moved onto the next step. You sat there for a long time, perfecting each detail and mole, brushing your brows and coating your eyelashes with mascara, and lastly smacking your lips together after applying lipstick.

You stood in front of your larger mirror that you had ignored and hidden away since you never wanted to see yourself ever, but now you felt prepared. In your eyes you looked prettier. You wore your hair differently, you had earrings and necklaces, the school uniform from last year looking a lot better than you remembered. The confidence boost put a smile on your face as you made your way downstairs and made yourself breakfast.

In the kitchen, your mum was sipping her coffee calmly, but as she saw you walk in, her eyes widened in shock, but she didn't say anything. "Good morning!" You greeted happily, and she waved her hand slowly, still trying to process what was happening. "You look different." She comments, and you are content with that reply, and answer, "Thank you, mum!" You proceed to eat your breakfast and then made your way to school.

At shcool, you felt everyone's eyes hooked on your face. The corridors got quiet when you walked by, and you heard murmurs and whispers about you, "Is that really y/n?" "No way..." "What happened." You didn't know what context to put it in and just walked with hurry in your steps, wanting to get to your class and focus on your studies.

Lunch also happened to be no different compared to before your make over, the group of three girls made their way to your table, cackling amongst themselves, planning what to do today. You, who already finshed your lunch stood up to walk away, not wanting to have an encounter with them, until one of them, the blonde barbie, knocked into you with her lunch tray, spilling her food and drink all over you. "oops!" he chuckled cheerily, enjoying the laughs and fingers pointed at you from around her in the cafeteria. You angrily stood up and rushed over to the bathroom, feeling embarrassed once again.

v. "I WANT TO CHANGE SCHOOLS." You say to your mother after a long while of thinking, fearing that you might make the wrong decision, but what could possibly go worse than how it already is? Your mother is sneering at you from the side as she puts down the bags of groceries by the sink. She hums, and you wait for her reply, feeling your heart beat through your ribs, beating so hard that you start belive it'd jump out of your body any second. To be fair, you'd rather for that to happen than to be rejected of this preposition. "Are you sure?" She asks with uncertainty in her voice after silence, and you nod your head, "Of course." "Think about it for a little more, and then we can ask your father when he returns home." She says and walks away. How much longer could you ponder it when you're already certain.

You help her organise the groceries, washing them in the sink to sterilise it of bacteria before placing it in either the fridge or freezer and taking your sweet time, not knowing what else to do other than lay in your bed or be on your phone scrolling through social media.

So, that's exactly what you did for the past hour or so after your chores.

Of course it was boring, but you had nothing else to do. Homework was done, your room was clean and you could only wait for dinner with your father. You heard the sound of the stove from your room, and rushed down to help prepare with your mother. You plated the dinner table, helped your mum with the dishes and washed them afterwards, now you waited in your seat for your father to arrive home from work.

You hear the door slide open, the sound of keys jiggling from the entrance. You sit straight in your seat, resembling a meerkat on its legs as you inspect the person who enters the kitchen. Your father walks in with his coat still slung over his shoulders, his briefcase slamming onto the kitchen counter while he sighs. "Hello, dad!" You greet him cheerfully, and he simply nods his head in your direction. Your mum rose from her seat to help him with his jacket and hat, but he just shrugs her off, and you notice both of their irritated moods.

Dinner was quiet - the sound of utenstils hitting each other and then being left on the plates filled the house. "y/n wanted to ask something." Your mum blurts out, wanting something to happen, being too awkward in this stale atmosphere. You see him look at you from the corner of your eye and he clears his thoat. "Really? What is it?" He asks, and you manage to utter the same statement from before. It takes a moment before you get a reply again, but he says, "I'll think about it." You pleaded with both your parents to let you change schools until they finally caved in with an extended sigh.

vi. YOU WALKED INTO THE FULL CLASSROOM feeling everyone's eyes glued on you, the feeling being vagualy familiar yet different. Some leaned over to their friend, whispering something, but as you saw them and they made eye contact with you, you wanted to shove yourself inside a locker. "Everyone, this new student ..." You zoned out her speaking until she placed her palm on your shoulder and asked you to intruduse yourself to everyone. "Hello, I am y/n l/n, and I really hope we can all be friendly," You said, and then walked over to the empty seat that the teacher pointed at.

As you take a seat, you take extra notice of your bench mate. Oh, how beautiful she was, her hair looked neat, her skin looked perfect and her eyes... You finally took a seat and did what everyone else did - copying what the teacher wrote. After class, you observed your schedule, confused by where to go. This school was big, and you were a new student who just joined, there was no way you could ask anyone else for help except the teachers, but the one in you room had already left. The girl from beside you tapped you on the shoulder and you turned your head curiously.

"Do you need any help?" She asked, and you nodded. "Help would be appreciated, thanks."

You spent the day with her, laughing and talking like never before. It was comforting to have someone like her beside you. At the end of school, she walked you outside of school and there you saw a group of other people gathered, and they waved in your direction. You turned to see your newly made friend, Yoona, waving back. Her pace quickened as she rushed over to the group, pulling you along by the sleeve of your uniform when she noticed you standing still.

It was a fairly small gang, but they still stared at you as you arrived. They all greeted each other, hugging and chatting till Yoona introduced you to the rest. Her voice sounding so smooth.

As she spoke, you noticed this guy. His hair was long and swept in waves, his eyes soft and brown filled with warmth and kidness. You learnt that his name was Jake from your friend's introduction. "Y/n, wanna come to karaoke with us?" She asked, and you shook your head. "Sorry Yoona, but I gotta head home now" you say, not wanting to interrupt the harmony established amongst the people. She nodded understandingly and let you go, waving her farewell.

On your way home you realised you had made a new friend. A real one at that, but thoughts of insecurities snaked its way into your mind. What if she was just being kind? To say that this could possibly be one of many occurrence was high, and the possibility that you'd fit in was low.

vii. YOU FOUND YOURSELF IN THE PARK with them. You've come to the realisation that a new start was exactly what you needed. Your feet swung you back and forth on the swing, hearing the laughter of everyone around you and feeling the warmth in your heart expand. You had gotten close to everyone, but Jake seemed to have a special place in your heart for some reason.

"Anyone wanna go to the arcade?" Someone called out, and everyone said yes, including you who never went along with them. On the way there, you walked along side Jake, chatting with him and joking. "So what made you change schools so suddenly." He questioned, and you shook your head with an awkward chuckle, "Nothing, I just wanted to." Jake had this friendly smirk on his face as he nudged his shoulder against yours, "you can't be serious. You probably had a lot of friends there." You had your eyes focused on the road as you tried to comply a decent reply. "I mean-" as you were about to answer, everyone had already arrived at the arcade. You found this to be the perfect escape.

Everyone rushed inside, being bombarded with games and bright lights. Almost immediately, you spotted the claw machines. You eyed it like it was candy. There were many plushies, but you really really wanted the bunny one. Jake who was close by saw the way your eyes lit up and approached you with his hands in his pocket. "If you beat me in any game, I'll get you that plushie." He says, and you turn to look up at, his lips being extremely close to your face. "Are you sure you wanna bet?" You asked and he nodded his head, "Go ahead, choose a game." You pointed at an air hockey board and Jake ushered you over there with his palm resting on your shoulder.

You played a couple of games, and you were determined to win. Jake, not so much. His eyes roamed everywhere except for the hockey puck, his eyes landed on your concentrated face a handful of times, observing your reaction to each goal. You easily won and rushed over to his side, cheering. Your smiles were contagious, and Jake laughed, exposing his pearly teeth. "You wanted that white bunny, right?" He asked, and you nodded. "You could get whichever one, really." He made his way to the machine, you standing beside him. Jake kissed his coin before inerting it into the machine. It took him many tries before he sighed and collected his calm once more. "You don't really need to continue, Jake." You tell him, but she shakes his head and stretches his arms and back. "I'll get it this time. I might need more luck though." You see him point at his cheek with a smug smile. "That's silly." You reply sarcastically and he pleads with you giving you the puppy eyes before caving in. You stand on your toes and quickly peck him on the cheek shyly. Your heart was pounding and you could feel your cheeks turn rosy at the act.

He winks at you once before turning to the machine with one last try. His focus is evident in his fierceful gaze and you also hope for him to win this time, mostly becuase you start to feel bad for all the coins he's lost.

While being consumed by your own thoughts, Jake celebrated his win. He turned around to hand you the bunny, but saw you spacing out. He snapped his fingers in you face and you shook you back into reality. You finally processed the fact that he had won after staring at the plush in his arms. Jake gently hands it to you and you take it with a smile. "Woah! Thank you so much!" You thank him over all the other people's conversations around you two.

The rest of the evening was spent with silent glances that held adoration between the two of you. and eventually, it was time to go home. You all gathered outside the arcade to wave each other off before going their separate ways.

You notice that Jake was taking the same way as you and you stopped in your tracks to let him catch up to you. "Do you also take this way?" You asked him. "Kind of, I actually wanted to walk you home." He rubbed the back of his neck before you two began walking again. "You could've told me before, you almost looked like a creep." Jake chuckled at your remark and said, "I would've, but I guess I got shy." with his thick accent seeping through.

The sound of crickets and owls hooting filled in the silence during the short walk to your front door step. "Thanks for walking me home, Jake." You say as you search for your keys in your purse. He was silent for a while as you unlocked your door. "Y/n, I have something to ask you." You turned to him curiously and arched an eyebrow. He was obviously nervous as you saw him fidgeting with his own fingers and clearing his throat over and over again to muster up the courage to ask,

viii. "WILL YOU GO TO PROM WITH ME, Y/N?" It had totally slipped your mind that prom was soon. You stood there wide eyed at the question. "You're not joking with me right." You wonder if he's pranking you, but he shakes his head. "Why would I joke with a pretty girl like you." His tone sounds genuine, but you still can't shake this feeling of uncertainty. "There's many other people you could've asked, but instead you chose me." The identical feeling of hopelessness returned after finally being chased away. "Becuase I only want you. Y/n, please." It takes a while for you to open your mouth an reply, but you feel the cold sweat coat your hairline and seeing Jake's soft expression was not helping you to calm down.

"I need to think about it, sorry."

You take notice of how Jake's expression turns dark when you shut the door and lock it behind you. You rush up the stairs and sprint into your room, ignoring your mother's calls. The plushy you had gotten from Jake was thrown onto your bed as you hurry to look out the window, observing him walk away from you. To your surprise, you see him look back at your house. Hurriedly, you pull out a diary that you had hidden under your mattress and write about everything, it isn't until after you're done taking notes that you feel bad for Jake. How must he feel?

You take a look at the plush he gifted you, and groan at the dilemma.

ix. THE NEXT DAY at school you searched for Jake everywhere, but you never saw him. Your mood visibly worsened as the day had come to an end without seeing him once. Yoona took notice of this and decided to question you. "Is everything okay?" She asked you and you nodded your head with a hum. "Yoona, have you seen Jake today?" She shakes her head and pulls out her phone. "He sent me a text this morning that he wouldn't come today since he felt under the weather. Why?" "Nothing, just wondering." You quickly blubber, grabbing your stuff quickly. "Hey, what's the rush? Wait for me alright." You hear Yoona chuckle as she packs her stuff. You apologise and wait for her.

You two part ways at the split road with a hug, and you gradually start to jog your way to his place. You stand there on his door step, bag slung over your shoulder with your fingers twisting the hem of your skirt. "Is it too late to turn around?", you think you to yourself. You shake away these thoughts, and raise your curled up fist to knock, but to your surprise, Jake opened the door, his eyes looked equally as shocked as yours. "Uhm, so I wanted to talk to you." You utter, and see Jake sigh. "Sure, I'm going on a walk if you wanna follow along." You nod and walk behind him.

"So, I've been thinking." His interest perks, and he glances your way. "I'll go to prom with you, but I don't understand why me? I'm not pretty. I'm not that ....good." You voice comes out weak, and Jake stops walking. "Don't say that. Not only are you incredibly beautiful, but you're also so, so kind and caring." He approaches you, his hand gliding up your cheek. "Are you not angry at me?" You ask, trying to avoid his eyes. "Angry? At you? That's ridiculous." He scoffs playfully, and you finally get the courage to look him in the eyes. "I might've been slightly upset since I thought you rejected me, but i guess I have a date for prom!" He smiles brightly and you look at him awestruck. "Of course," you reply and kiss him on the cheek once again with your arms swung around his neck, and his arms instinctively wrap around your waist. "You make me so happy." He is smiling widely as he pecks your face with butterfly kisses.

TAGLIST :: @swaivy

[onlyquinns]

Pt. 3 of Quinn and readers wedding? Maybe the boys make a speech??

you and quinn sit side by side, hands clasped together. the two of you smile at each other, whispering softly over dinner. it’s been hours since the wedding, but the magic of it hasn’t set in yet, even as the reception dinner comes to a slow.

everyone around you eats happily, chattering and the sounds of silverware clinking together. someone whispers excitedly next to you about how gorgeous you and quinn look, and how much they can’t wait to see the two of you dance together after dinner, but you pay no attention to them.

“you look beautiful, mrs. hughes,” quinn whispers, grinning shyly as he squeezes your left hand. he holds your hand just right, the centerpiece stone catching the golden setting sun coming through the giant windows. “you always are.”

you look down at your plate, a silly smile plastered to your face from the compliment. it’s not rare for quinn to say nice things to you—he makes it a point to compliment you at least once a day—but it still makes you fluster.

you’re about to respond when you hear chair legs scrape along the floor, followed by the repetitive clinking of a fork against a crystal wine glass. quinn groans next to you, all half hearted,

“oh, god,” he says, nudging your shoulder with his as if he’s annoyed, but his lips are tugged into a large grin.

you look up as jack and luke stand to your left, nestled amongst the rest of quinn’s groomsmen. the two of them squabble over a microphone and a sheet of paper, muttering and bickering over who gets what. a soft ripple of laughter goes through the room as they finally settle on luke holding the mic and jack holding the slip of paper.

luke opens his mouth to talk, but jack clears his throat dramatically, a silly smirk on his face. “hey, party people!” he starts, and quinn sinks into his seat, a hand coming up to cover his flushed and rosy cheeks and the gorgeous smile on his face. “this goes out to our sister from another mister, the greatest baker of this century, another woman in our lives that knows what it means to sacrifice; this goes out to you, y/n.” jack makes a point to look at you, eyes softer and his smirk more tender. someone in the crowd sniffles, and that’s luke’s cue to take the microphone back.

luke runs a nervous hand through his hair as he looks at you and quinn. “before you,” he starts, “we all thought q was going to marry hockey—“ the crowd laughs, and you turn to quinn with a eye-crinkling smile, “—but you changed that.” luke smiles at you, “i have never—and i mean never—seen quinn so head over heels for anyone. i promised him to secrecy, but i’m the youngest so we all knew that was a bad idea, but the day he met you… it was his second year at umich and he told me that he was going to marry you. he told me—and mom, obviously—that you were the brightest person he’d ever seen.” you let out a watery laugh at luke’s words. “i didn’t know what that meant. i asked him, ‘bright as in smart?’ and he went off. he said that you were the smartest, kindest, most caring person he’d met—and when he got drafted, he told me he was going to propose to you then and i had to convince him not to because he hadn’t even asked you out yet.”

quinn groans in his spot, hiding his face behind his hands. you laugh at him and squeeze his thigh.

“so you knew you had a crush on me since college? i thought you started liking me after we ran into each other in canada,” you tease, reminiscing on the day you’d moved to vancouver for a job offering and had literally run into quinn, who’d offered to tour you around the city.

quinn sinks even lower in his seat, “i mightve lied,” he mumbles, and you giggle to yourself.

jack lets out an obnoxious ‘ahem,’ “we aren’t done yet,” he says sassily, rolling his eyes.

you snort, “i’m the bride!”

“uh, who cares? lukey—back to you,” jack says, dramatically turning to luke and displaying his hand out to him as a little flair.

luke laughs, the sound gentle and somewhat awkward. “uhm… after i met you, i knew quinn hadn’t lied about a single thing. you really are smart, pretty, and super kind. i’m so glad quinn found you and that you found quinn. i hope your guys’ marriage is filled with laughter, love, and a lot of baked goods—because, fuck, you make a mean lemon loaf.”

you laugh, bringing a hand up to wipe away stray tears. you sniffle and quinn tucks you against his side, wary of accidentally crushing your hairdo.

“you better treat her right, q,” jack says. “because that’s our sister, and even though we’re biologically related to you, mom taught us to always treat a lady right. i’m not afraid to call you out.” jack narrows his eyes and points at quinn, making sure he gets his point across.

quinn laughs, cheeks still red from embarrassment. “i promise to cherish her for my entire life, and the next.”

jack nods and sits down, finally satisfied, and pulls luke down with him. the other attendants burst into applaud, sharp whistles coming from some of quinn’s friends. you laugh and tuck your face into quinn’s neck, not caring about how your makeup might look after.

“i love you,” you say into his skin, breathing in the intoxicating aroma of his cologne.

quinn smiles, eyes soft as he tilts his head atop yours. “i love you more,” he says.

and you believe him, because he’s never given you a reason not to.

[shewas-afairy]

One of the things that makes Ever After High so amazing is how every character, main or side, has their own complicated story.

Obviously we have Raven not wanting to follow her destiny because she doesn't want to be evil, and Apple wanting a secure and safe future because she's scared of the unknown and wants to meet her mother's expectations

But at the same time, we also have characters like Briar Beauty, who, on the outside, may seem like she has her life all straightened out and is the life of the party, but in reality, she's so terrified of having to sleep for a hundred years that she is determined to live every day to the fullest so that she doesn't have to think about her grim fate.

Ashlynn Ella, who's desperately in love with Hunter, but they are just not meant to be, at least according to the book.

Duchess Swan, who, behind the mean girl facade, just wants a happily ever after, and is determined to do anything to get one.

Darling Charming, who is not content with being a damsel in distress and basically has a double life so that she can be a hero.

CA Cupid, who helps everyone around her find love, yet is stuck crushing on a boy who doesn't like her back.

Lizzie Hearts, who has so much love in her heart and misses her mother and homeland so so so much, but hides her true feelings behind her harsh exterior.

Cerise Hood, who's guarding her family secret with her life.

Kitty Cheshire, who pranks others just so she could have her mother's approval.

Blondie Lockes, who just wants to fit in with her fellow royals, so she's constently trying to prove herself, however much of a gossip she may be.

And there are so many more characters who each have their own story. Their own tale to tell. And that's what makes Ever After High one of the best shows ever.

[cokoakeostuff]

Legend, Koholint.

i’m not real

He’s a talented and experienced hero, someone who has faced countless challenges and saved everyone more than once. But the spark he once had has faded. His adventures stopped being exciting and began to feel like a burden.

The events of A Link to the Past, Oracle of Seasons, and Oracle of Ages left their mark on him, but what truly shook him was his visit to Koholint Island.

There were no kingdoms in danger, no imminent threats, no grand destiny awaiting him. For the first time, Link had no one to save. And the more time he spent on the island, the more attached he became to its people, especially to one person: Marin.

He fell in love with Her and with the peace of the island. But he couldn’t help to continue in his journey to uncover the mysteries of the place. The monsters that arrived with him seemed to be trying to stop him, and the warnings were clear: if he kept going, he would only bring misfortune. Yet Legend continued.

In the end, he discovered the truth. Everything he had lived through on Koholint was nothing more than a dream created by the Wind Fish. Waking the Wind Fish would erase the island and all its people.

And what else could he do? He completed his mission, because that’s what heroes do, right? But this time, it didn’t feel like a victory. Nothing about it made him feel like the hero he once was. Even if Koholint wasn’t real, for Link, it felt like sacrificing an entire village just to save himself.

And if it was all just a dream… why does losing Marin and all those people hurt so much?

Koholint was a reminder that not all adventures end with a "happily ever after."

——

I just need to talk about him, he has been living in my mind rent free, Im gonna post this later but it’s 4AM and I can’t sleep because IM THINKING ABOUT HIM, anyway, short comic about Legend, his thoughts and what he is going trough. And come on, he is a teenager, nothing hurts more at that age than a broken heart.

[long-live-astronerd-ghost-king]

DPxDC prompt. Fae!Danny x Jason. Dead on main. Death of a Fairy Tale. or

"Oh no! This tricky hooman stole my heart! What should I do?" *becomes a leader of his court and, just in case, overthrows the tyrant Pariah Dark in order to allow marriages with representatives of other races and live happily ever after with Jay*.

~~~~~

 “You're not allowed to be here. This is not your territory.”

Jason barely had time to catch his breath after escaping from the hot dog vendor when someone noticed him hiding in the bushes.

There were no rides for children or food vans in this park, so Todd didn't understand why anyone would cling to this territory but the guy looked at him with obvious concern. And well, after the morning's adventures, Jay didn't have any energy for another conflict at all. This kid looked pale and thin, so it didn't look like fighting with him would get him anything.

“Calm down, I'm just passing by. What's your problem, dude?”

“I live somewhere ne...here.”

Jason rolled his eyes. It's clear that the guy lived nearby, but it's unlikely that he had a house. The lack of a T-shirt and shoes hinted that in front of him was also a street rat who most likely had not yet learned how to defend his belongings. Poor guy. But this is definitely not Jason's business.

However, did he really spend the night outside in the open air? Sleeping on the bench was a last choice even for Jason. This might be acceptable options in some quiet provincial town, not in Gotham.

“I mean, what are you doing outside?”

Young Phantom checks his glamour, but finds no flaws in it. This man in front of him must be very knowledgeable and experienced, despite his young age, since he immediately recognized him as not a human being. For Danny, who lived with other fairies in Fairyland all his childhood and came to this dimension for the first time, the outside always meant the world of human. Fae shocked and upset that he was discovered so quickly. Haven't people almost forgotten about their existence? The elders would swear a lot if they found out that he had failed. The boy carefully orders the vine and clover to cover the circle of mushrooms, hiding the front door from the human. He was the only one of the entire brood entrusted by Undergrowth to start a practice in a city where there are almost no plants and sunlight, and faeling did not want to let down the mentor who took him under his wing at all.

The old Fairies claim that people are mean and narrow-minded, but Danny himself is intrigued by these creatures and therefore hopes that he will be able to come to an agreement with the boy and to continue his research without obstacles. Danny intends to take the exam for the right to be called an adult fae this decade, which means he has no right to make mistakes. But still, forcing a guy to dance until he drops dead from exhaustion or make him wander along the paths of this small green area without being able to find a way out, as he was taught to get rid of pests at home, seemed too cruel. This boy, just like him, is still a cub and he is here by accident, not to encroach on their possessions. They need not quarrel.

“Don't banish me. I'm just trying to learn.”

“To do what?”

“To steal.” Danny blushes, realizing that such honesty was unnecessary. Stupid, stupid...People know that faeries can take their names, thereby gaining power over them. Now this cub will definitely decide that he has come to cause harm and he will not be able to learn anything useful and interesting. Phantom quickly makes excuses. “Nothing important! I only borrowed trinkets and fruits.”

“You're new to this, aren't you?”

“Is it that noticeable?”

“Pretty noticeable, yes.”

The boy looked at him almost pityingly. And the Phantom didn't like it.

That's how the spirits and other fairies used to look at him when they found out he was only halfa. Because of this fact, his abilities were belittled and not taken seriously too often. What's wrong with that? He's dead just like everyone else, even if not completely.

And now he's screwed up, not even because of his nature, but because of his sluggishness. It was especially unpleasant, as it was deserved. He should have spent his time more productively, but the flowers bred with the help of humans were so interesting and talked about their longing for the sun with such sadness that fae did not dare to interrupt them.

Jason finished both of the stolen hot dogs and leaved the park. The guy still follow him and stares intently, almost without blinking.

“Stop it. What do you want?”

“I study. You seem experienced. “

“People don't really like being stared at like this, in case you didn't know. Back off.”

“Really?”

Jason was ready to be outraged that the kid thought he was an idiot but the tramp from the park looked really puzzled. It seems that if he ever had parents, they didn't care about the boy, since they didn't explain to him that atypical behavior could add him problems. The boy is lucky that Jay is an asshole only when absolutely necessary.

“You're weird. Try to keep your mouth shut near others.”

“Okay.”

Jason took a few minutes to think and sighed. Todd could not leave this strange child alone, because damn conscience would not allow it. He can't survive alone. He will either wander after some other person and become a victim of trafficking or he will be at the beck and call of some assholes in the late afternoon. Jason cursed his bleeding heart once more and promised himself that he would keep the boy by his side no longer than necessary. Jay couldn't afford to be responsible for another mouth to feed. Summer has already come to an end and it was worth starting to save a little money and store things in case of early cold weather.

“If I teach you some of my skills will you promise to stay away from the places where I…work?”

“Maybe. Is this a deal?”

“Yes, if you'll agree, idiot. “

Danny nods and his new acquaintance continues.

“First of all, we'll get you shoes and some clothes. I don't need you to pick up tetanus and some viral crap.”

Danny smiles a little, trying not to make it too noticeable. Great trick.

He nodded to indicate understanding rather than agreeing, and the boy did not ask for verbal confirmation. It seems that he is not completely hopeless at deceiving people. Phantom couldn't wait to tell Clockwork or Frostbite about his success.

They wound through streets and rooftops for a long time until they reached other man's temporary shelter, and Danny had to admit that the man's decision to borrow more clothes was very clever. Strange sharp things and narrow bags of biological fluid were found between the houses disgustingly often. The elders are right about something? Danny must admit. Some people are nasty. They didn't even clean the settlement they live in properly.

A foul-smelling device for carrying things flew into the face of fae while he thoughtfully followed the boy telling him something about removing so-called tires from the iron inanimate horses.

“Dude, stop fighting with a trash bag. You'll stand guard while I give the customer the goods, okay?”

“Fine.” To be honest, the intern was ready to cry from the injustice of life and rush home, and he was only stopped by the desire to visit the observatory, which his new acquaintance mentioned when fae complained that because of the smoke and smog the stars would probably not be visible at night.

Danny realized that he did not regret his decision when, a couple of minutes later, he heard his human quarreling with adult specimen. Judging by the conversation, the man refused to pay the price for the things brought to him and even threatened to hit Phantom's guide. Danny was annoyed by this and decided to intervene a little. To his good fortune, on the balcony of this vile man there was a pot with withering petunias and they did not mind helping lil fae teach their owner manners. A slight whiff of magic and the pot falls on the deceiver's head and human begins to choke on the roots that climb right into his mouth. Danny giggles, congratulating his green comrades on their successful revenge. Other boy doesn't waste any time and grabs the bucks that fell out of the customer's hands and orders new boy to run.

Danny spent several days with human cub and really learned a lot about these creatures. Despite the fact that such a pastime was exciting, he needed to at least create the illusion of practice the fae skills.

It is dangerous to ask a person who knows who he is about this but teachers will be upset if he does not make an attempt. And despite the fact that the people around him seem scary, Nocturn will be much scarier in anger if he finds out that Phantom is such a loser.

“Ma- Can I have your name?” Danny muttered uncertainly and immediately panicked at his own impudence. “Sorry!”

“Jason.”

Todd was in a good mood, as luck had been with him for the last few days, and the new companion was not at all as useless as it seemed to him from the beginning. He was able to hide so well that no one could detect them, and managed to bring fresh fruits, vegetables and mushrooms to their safe house. However, there were problems with the last one, since this strange dude sometimes brought toadstools and satan's boletes to their apartment, which he managed to get from unknown places. Jason thought he was going to have a heart attack the first time he caught child happily eating raw fly agaric. Indeed, if Jay hadn't found him this boy would probably have died of poisoning in that park by now. Todd had to persuade him to bring only chanterelles, which he could confidently identify as edible and not fear for their lives every time the boy tries to help find food. And his padawan really managed to find them. In Gotham. Holy shit. Maybe this park, so fiercely guarded by the boy, was another secret area for Poison Ivy's experiments? However, poisonous specimens will not be wasted either, since you never know when you will need to defend yourself without entering into a fight, but acting more subtly.

“Real name! Real one!” The boy's eyes were as big as saucers and he became very worried and waved his hands as if trying to shake off invisible sticky threads from his fingertips. “You shouldn't say your actual name! Why did you do that? You shouldn't have given it to me.”

“There are a lot of Jason's around. Why do you care about that?”

“You're not just some Jason, you're my Jason, you're important to me. It's dangerous if someone has your name. Then that someone can make you do bad things.”

Tears began pouring down boy's face and Jason was surprised by such a violent reaction. Todd doesn't think there's anything to worry about, since he didn't tell the stranger his last name. He often introduces himself in different ways. Just, for some reason, something made him be honest this time. But how would this guy know that?

“Well…You're not just anyone. We're friends. I don't think you're going to rat on me to the cops or anything. So it's okay. “ Jay tries to calm the newcomer down.

“Friends?”

“Yes. Friends forever?” Jason teasingly holds out his little finger, offering a childish oath that he recently taught his padawan.

“Forever.” The boy supports the oath, and then, after thinking for a second, leans closer to Todd and whispers. "I'm Danny, just so you know."

“Good. I'll remember.”

The young fae is overcome with euphoria. He took the name! He did it! But that was all the other boy had, apart from a rusty tire iron, so it probably wasn't right or friendly to keep it. The human cub helped him. Danny couldn't keep such a gift. He didn't even really try to get his name. “Jason is your name.”

“That's right, buddy.”

“I won't call you that name.” Where I come from, even spouses rarely know each other's names. Danny wanted to assure his friend that he should not be afraid that he would abuse his power. “ I like you so I will take full responsibility for the possession of such a gift, don't worry.”

“Hah, in order to take responsibility, you already need to at least marry me as a moral compensation, given the number of brain cells killed by your antics. “

“Well, if I have to, then I will. When we're older.”

Jason snorts and shakes his head. It's probably not love, since they're just kids, but still, Jason thinks that if all autumn evenings were like this, he wouldn't mind spending his life with Danny, snuggling closer to the boy while they both bask under the same blanket. No matter how many times a day they managed to roll in the mud and fall into the trash can, the boy always gave off a light scent reminiscent of spring greens, which reminded Todd of something warm and cozy. Maybe a home? Although when his father was not in prison yet, his house smelled more like the stench of cigarette smoke and mold.  So Danny was more like a hope for a good home that they write about in books.

On their free evenings Jason usually entertained them by reading. Danny has always been an attentive listener, reacting vividly. After stroking the battered cover of a new book he found, Jason puts it aside. He's too tired today, and  just wants to listen.

Noticing this, Danny begins to chirp about his homeland. His stories are like fairy tales, too bright and colorful for the stone Jungle. Jay realized a long time ago that his friend had something like a defense mechanism. Todd himself snapped and fought when the world was too cruel, this guy escaped to his fictional world, where he was safer and happier. His friend could have been a great writer someday. The descriptions of Princess Dorathea and her cruel brother, pharaoh with an unusual passion for technology and ultra-recyclo vegetarian queen of plants were so detailed and vivid that they seemed true. Danny's imagination contained the whole world.

When the first snowflakes fall to the ground, Danny says that this means that his friend Frostbite will soon come to pick him up. Jason is honestly not ready for such a turn of events. He promised himself that he would not be around another boy for longer than necessary, but he managed to get attached. He hopes that this statement is just another one of his companion's fantasies and forgets about it for a while.

A snowstorm is raging in the city when Danny does not return home. The snowfall does not stop for several days, and Todd realizes that his friend left him, although all his belongings are left in their apartment. He hopes that someone really came for the boy, and not that in the spring his body will be found in one of the melting snowdrifts.  After a few months, when the canned homemade vegetables carefully cooked by Danny are coming to an end, and the mold, sitting alone  in a corner of the ceiling all winter, felt the first the warm rays of the sun, Todd decides not to waste energy on useless worries and hopes.

Soon, as Danny would put it, Batman steals Jason. Todd doesn't really trust the old man at first, but he teaches him to be Robin, and, well, Robin is cool. He's magic. Robin is an urban legend, a spirit worthy of being the hero of Danny's favorite stories. Robin is Jason's connection not only to the city itself, but also to his past. Robin does not need to think about whether he should grieve not only for his mother but also for his friend. Robin is more. There is not only strength and hope in this uniform, but also memories, nostalgia and  humanness. Therefore, Todd is not ready to give up the suit, even if he understands Grayson's displeasure. Because when he goes out on a patrol, the longing becomes less, and he feels that he is getting better and closer to something important. It helps.

No.

It helped.

And then he died.

And things are getting worse by the day, hah.

~~~A few hits with a crowbar later~~~

Jason learns about a new attempt of eco-terrorism relatively late, when he is officially called to help. Even so he stays at the place of the fight before the rest of the family. Firstly, because this time Ivy decided to start destruction from the closest to Crime Alley park, and secondly because Ivy's creations always pay little attention to him. Even the famous pollen has almost no effect on Hood.

Making his way through the furiously writhing vines, Red Hood notices the enemy and realizes that it is not Ivy, but decides that he will analyze the situation during the battle and rushes forward.

“Hey! Don't touch B, you.. “Almost flying into a guy with such a familiar face, the Hood slows down sharply “... pointy-eared.”

A guy with sparkling green energy in his hand and a vigilante with a pistols in each hand freeze looking at each other.

“Man, is it you?”

Snow-white hair, glowing green eyes, transparent dragonfly-like wings and razor-sharp claws are completely unfamiliar to Todd, but facial features, expressions and a bracelet with star pendants that Jay gave Danny for his birthday, adorning one of the impressive polished horns, allow to recognize him.

“Jay! It's been a long time, my friend.” Hearing Todd's voice, despite the sound changed by the helmet, the creature calms down. “You've grown up a lot.”

“And you're still so short. Wow. And, by the way, I can't believe you're still keep it.” Red puts the safety of the guns and then points one of them at the jewellery. “It's from a dollar store, nothing special.”

John says goodbye to the hope of a day off after the mission, cursing the manners of the bat and his offspring. Is a couple of days without the risk of interdimensional conflict really that too much to ask for?

“You gave it to me. That's why it's special.”

The creature smiles and Todd feels his face blushing. It's a good thing he's still wearing his helmet. Danny looks too…magical…in every sense.

“Do you know him, Hood?” Of course, Bat cannot stay out of the conversation when nothing is holds him back.

“No.”

“Yes.”  Danny denies the statement of Hood, proudly puffs out his chest and declares. “He was my first. He calls himself Hood these days? How strange.”

Bat gasps and exhales indignantly.

Jason quickly connects the fact that his friend is definitely not human with the possibility that Danny's stories were true.

“Name!” Trying to fix the chaos that his friend is trying to involve them in, Red Hood hurries to explain. “He's talking about damn name. I'm the first one who gave...”

“Oh, come on, spoilsport. He almost believed me.” The fairy winks playfully and Jason has to do his best to focus on the mission and not on the guy. “You're my betrothed anyway. And, hey, I collected the library as a wedding gift.”

“Hm.” Hood rolls his eyes. This joke about their childhood promise would have been hilarious if he hadn't felt the old man's rising pressure behind his back. So, returning to the problem, he still needs to get these two away from each other as soon as possible. Neither Danny nor Bruce has a calm personality, and Jason didn't want to start Danny's acquaintance with Alfred by giving first aid to these dummies. “So what's all the fuss about? Are you like um.. Ivy's pet-pixie or what?”

Now John Constantine, who carefully watched the meeting from the sidelines, almost feels his blood pressure rising too. Compare faeries with garden pests. What was Batman's son thinking about, showing such disrespect? He wanted them to have more problems or what?

“Hm? Who is Ivy? I've never heard of her. To be honest, I'm only here because our gate was disturbed.” The fairy chirped angrily and, with a nervous flutter of his wings, flew up to the bushes. His finger pointed accusingly at the crushed mushrooms that John and Batsy had landed on when they unsuccessfully attacked Dr. Isley. “But even though your companions' behavior is inexcusable, I don't blame you, of course. I am glad that we met again because of this incident, Tagetes.”

The Faerie circle...John hadn't seen this in years. Damn Gotham. He difenetly doesn't want the problems of this crazy city to fall under his and Shazam's responsibility. Now it is clear why Rogue disappeared so quickly. She probably knew about it and wanted to make them someone else's problem. Damn it twice, John should have sent a message instead of coming to Gotham to discuss business with Wayne. Being uninvited guests of such mischievous and malicious hosts does not bode well.

“You are lucky that the Fright Knight is not on duty today. But someone will have to answer for it. Is it really so hard to look at your feet? Or is this a deliberate provocation? I demand an apology.”

“No, enough games for you. They're a little busy chasing someone, in case you didn't notice.” Jason starts pulling on his friend's hand, intending to take him out of the park. Next to these paranoids, it's better not to ask an old friend about anything. “Only good little fairies are invited to my safe house to taste my signature lasagna today, so stop trying to give my old man a heart attack, okay?”

“Wait. Is this Willis?” The fairy's eyes narrow and he looks at the cloaked dark figure with disapproval.

"No, another jerk. B has a problem with adoptions and that's the reason I'm now part of his brood." Jason reluctantly explains. "He literally dragged me off the streets without consent after I tried to take the tires off his car."

“Oh my Ancients, he did what?! But you're mine! He had no right to steal you.” Danny indignantly rustled the leaves of the closest trees.

“I prefer to be considered as my own man, thank you very much.”

“Riiight…but still, speaking absolutely one hundred percent theoretically, who would you rather stay with, darling? If only you were mine~”

“Ja-..Don't let yourself be fooled, Red Hood. You can't trust him. Ten or even fifty years spent on a prank don't mean anything to this creature.” Bruce doesn't look happy with how at ease Todd is with the threat, but frankly, he rarely looks happy at all, so the crime lord doesn't attach too much importance to it.

"Wow. Rude. This is partially true, but it still hurts. Jason is a friend. I won't do anything to him and I don't demand anything from him. I can't say that about the rest of you. I was preparing for a long-awaited vacation, and because of your fuss I have a new bunch of paperwork to do. What can you say in your defense?"

The boy with the snow-white hair didn't look really upset, but just because there was still a smile on his face, it couldn't be said that he wasn't furious. Next to fairies, all human senses became enemies, not allies.

Despite the deceptive good-naturedness of merrily fluttering his wings guy, John was on high alert. Short-tempered, playful and obnoxious temperament were both a blessing and a curse when working with these creatures. Fairies skillfully searched for loopholes in contracts and in general were the best deceivers among those who could only tell the truth. Faeries prefer to bend victims to their will with words, but they are skilled users of the magic of nature and chaos. They also, despite the business acumen as strong as the alligator's mouth closing strength, were willing to play cat-and-mouse with those who dared to turn to him for help or just walk near their possessions. And this specimen was also clearly not one of the fairies that Morningstar had taken over control, since his energy reeked of Infinite Realms. Unknown territory. John urgently needs to come up with some ingenious plan to get everyone out of this fighting safe and relatively unscathed and…

“Fuck off, B. I told you he already has my name. If he wanted to hurt me, he would have done it at any time. You should show more respect for your future son-in-law, you know.”

“Jason, honey, since when do street rats hang out with bats?” Danny obviously didn't have much sympathy for the Gotham vigilante before, but because of his story, their chances of getting along tended to zero.

“Oh, come on, don't even start this conversation. What is more important…Who would I rather stay with? Hm…Let's say, um, theoretically, of course…If your fiance was killed by one very very bad cruel clown, what would you do, Stardust?

"I would tear clown molecule by molecule."

“Yes, yes! Right!” Jason pats Danny on the shoulder and turns to Batman. “See, that's how you should have reacted.”

Constantine: …What an Addams family. I'm leaving. I've already seen enough. If you get kidnapped, don't call me. Damn freaks.

Come with me now to see my world

Where there's beauty beyond your dreams

Strangers Like Me - Phil Collins