#before i hit him with the gardening hose and spray him down

[d3rpydoods]

idk, i saw this and was possessed to throw my exams to the side and draw it - someone give this stinky man a shower

[harrywavycurly]

Random Eddie Concept: You live next door to Eddie and y’all have said the casual “hello” and “good morning” to each other but haven’t properly met, you don’t even know each other’s names. But over the course of a month or so Eddie has learned that you love your plants, he can always count on seeing you standing on your back patio with your watering can every evening and sometimes if he has his windows open he can hear you talking to them and he won’t admit it but he thinks it’s adorable.

That’s why when he notices your flowers wilting he gets sort of concerned because you love your little make shift garden, but his brushes it off to maybe you’re out of town or something. But a few days later when he’s out on his patio having a smoke and he looks over and sees all the plants have gone completely brown and are slumped over in their pots he can’t shake the feeling that maybe something is wrong, so he just takes it upon himself to get his hose out and spray some water on them from his backyard hoping he’s not disturbing you.

He does this for a few days until he finally gets them to show signs of life again, that’s also when he gets the courage to walk up to your front door. He doesn’t know why he’s nervous but his hand is all sweaty when he reaches up to knock on your door. It all makes sense as to why you’ve all of a sudden abandoned your little garden when you answer the door in a robe that has a spaghetti stain on it with your hair in the messiest bun he’s ever seen but he’s also slightly impressed it’s still sitting on the top of your head, it’s all very clear to him that you’re going through a rough patch.

“Uhm I’m Eddie.” He gives you a soft smile and a little wave as your cheeks get red as the realization of how you’re dressed hits you when Eddie’s eyes look you up and down. “I’m your neighbor and I uh just wanted to let you know I’ve uhm been…watering your plants for you.” He explains as you try to adjust your robe so he can’t see the week old pajamas you have on.

“My plants? Oh god my plants.” Your eyes go wide as you remember all the flowers you have on your back patio. “They must be in such bad shape by now.” You run a hand over your face in an attempt to hide your embarrassment and Eddie just shakes his head at you.

“No no they’re fine really uhm most of them have kinda sorta turned a weird shade of green so I think they’ll be okay.” You let out a sigh of relief. “I just figured I’d introduce myself to you in case you look out your window and see me..I’m also uhm always around if you…ever wanna talk or uh…anything.” You give him a little nod as he rubs at the back of his neck clearly nervous and you can tell he means everything he just said so you just smile at him.

“Thank you Eddie that’s really sweet of you.” He just smiles as you introduce yourself and nods as he looks down at his feet for a moment before turning to head down your front steps. “I really appreciate it.” You add as he looks over his shoulder at you.

“You’re welcome…it’s nice to finally meet you.” He states as he gives you a small wave before he heads back over to his house.

Over the next few days Eddie notices you have slowly began watering your plants again and one day he gets home to find a few potted plants of his own sitting on his porch with a little note that says “Water daily and make sure they get sunlight and if you ever need someone to look after them for you let me know” followed by your name and number.

[blueywrites]

Thinking about husky!eddie again…

sighhhhhhhh

I wanna be standing at the kitchen sink doing dishes and see husky!Eddie out the window mowing the lawn or working on his hobby car in the driveway. It's hot as fuck so his tank is sticking to him and his tanned shoulders are all shiny, fading into pale biceps that are thick and just a little cut, sweat making those tattoos glisten. Wanna feel the cool water on my hands as I wash and get an idea; sneak out to the front yard and nail him with the garden hose just before he's about to turn around and spot me. Wanna feel the nozzle kick in my hand as the spray hits him right in the chest, see his expressive face when he gets doused, hear that raspy bark of shocked, incredulous laughter as he realizes what I've done.

And then I wanna squeal when he comes for me, all that sopping dark hair and sun-kissed bulk tackling me to the grass. Wanna flatten under his damp weight, feel the grass on my calves and the backs of my arms, the shock of cold against my breast and stomach as his soaked tank seeps into me even as my face presses to his feverish skin, slippery from sweat and the hose-mist alike. He's heavy, warm and cold all at once, pressing the breath out of me as the forgotten hose drains in the grass nearby. The stream crawls toward the asphalt driveway as Eddie attacks my face with playful, sloppy kisses, heedless of the neighbors on their flip-flop walks and the cars passing by with their windows rolled down, playing summer tunes.

[thornlock-obey-me]

Her Garden continuation: Water Fight!

Word Count: 1336

Warning(s): None I think…

A continuation of the mentioned water fight between Eden and Mammon! Mostly just silly and fluffy!

   “Oi, do you mind holdin’ this for a moment? I think these guys need some of that new fertiliser Lucifer bought…” Mammon asks while holding out the hose to me. “Just keep watering in this direction, I’ll be right back.”

   I nod and reach for the garden hose, and for a moment we are both holding it. The demon pauses for a moment… staring at where our hands are so close together, but letting go suddenly and turning— “Ah!!” I can’t control it! The hose flings about in my hold, not at ALL pointing at the one garden bed I am supposed to be watering!

   “Gaahh! What the hell Eden— Oh shit!” I hear Mammon shout a few feet away as water rains everywhere! My grip tightens and does… absolutely nothing to gain control. Two hands? Same thing! What is in the Devildom water to cause this?!

   “Mammon! Please help—!” I barely shout as the water sprays at me! I think I could hug this hose and it wouldn’t be enough!

   “Shit, shit, shit! I guess that’s what Lucifer meant by strong water–!” Mammon panics and tries to get ahold of the wild hose— “GAAHHH!!” Only to get sprayed in the face when he takes a step towards me! I almost want to laugh— “Let go of the hose!”

   “What?! Why?!”

   “If ya keep clinging to it, ya are bound to get hurt—” He ducks as the water darts in his direction again. “Let go! And do it now!!”

   The idea sounds terrible! But I’m barely dodging getting hit in the face by the hose and I’m totally soaked! “Ah—!” The hose starts dancing back and forth as soon as I let go! It’s like a bucking horse! “Eeek—” I drop into a crouch with my arms over my head, which does nothing to protect me from the water… or the hose as I’m still in the middle of the garden.

   “ACK—! Come on!” Mammon shouts as leaps at the hose— and misses! Landing on the muddy ground beside me. Does he seriously plan on trying to wrangle it like some lowly cowboy?! (Though I suppose his boots are fitting for that description)

   “Why not just turn off the tap?!” I yell, but not before the demon is up and fighting the hose. My question gives him pause— “Watch out!” The warning comes too late and Mammon gets hit straight in the chest by the hose!

   “Aah—” I wince at his pained gasp and bite my bottom lip. I look towards the direction of the tap and— make a dash for it! We aren’t going to be able to grab hold of the hose! “Oi human– What are ya—” Water sprays him in the face again.

   I reach the tap and grip it with my damp hands and— Nothing!? “Bloody hells I should have known—” Like most things, as I’ve come to learn, the tap is built with demonic strength in mind. Not humans. I groan, but try again with both hands as I see out of the corn of my eye Mammon getting up again to lunge at the hose. Come on– Something, anything! My eyes close as I continue trying to get the bloody tap to just MOVE—! I feel the metal twisted under my grip! Just a little, but I keep working at it and slowly— painfully slowly— I get the water to start turning off!

   The hose slows and falls to the ground, to which Mammon picks it up. I grin wildly at just the simple fact that I turned up the water. “How did ya—” The demon stops and his jaw hangs slack as he stares at me…. No, at my chest, I look down and see my brows rise. The pact mark, right over my heart, is aglow in a bright yellow.

   ‘Through pact marks you can borrow a demon’s strengths or the demon can more directly lend you their strength…’ Still I’ve never seen either option in action. I’ve only used my pact with the greed demon to… antagonise him. Or I ignore it. “Huh… It’s never glown so bright before….”

   “Well, of course, not! You pulled from my strength to turn the water off!” Mammon explains what I already figured out. Then he suddenly grins and puffs out his chest more, “Guess ya need me more than ya thought, human!”

   I shake my head at his boasting as an idea, a rather mean if not evil idea, comes to mind. He has the water hose half pointed at himself and since I can still feel his strength… I turn the tap again, turning on the water. Spraying him in the face right as he opens his mouth to speak! A laugh courses through me as he screams at the sudden flow of water!

   Unfortunately, he too thinks to use this against me, pointing the hose at me, resoaking me! “Ahah! That’ll teach ya to spray the Great Mammon!”

   I turn off the water with a smirk, “Oh, Mammon~ freeze!” His body goes rigid, a telltale sign of the pact working. I skip over to him and point the hose back at him. Then place my hand on the tap—

   “Don’t ya darn, human! You will regret this!”

   I ignore his complaints and turn on the water. Laughing at how he screams more, unable to move as the water hits him again. My giggles become so immense that I lose concentration of the pact hold— And promptly get doused in water! To which starts a wild game of water fighting, me running and dodging Mammon’s attacks.

   We both laugh and every once in a while, I get another command in: “Stop!” “Back!” “Freeze!”. All only lasts so long before he has control again to spray the water at me! Each time I get a command in, I run around him and point the hose at himself! We are dripping in water by the time I turn off the water again.

   I double over into the damp ground with laughter and soon Mammon joins me in my fit of laughter. His jeans are covered in mud and dirt, much like my own, paired with being soaked through. “You– haha, you don’t laugh– hehe, this often!” He says through his own laughter while looking at me.

   To which I giggle more… I don’t laugh this much. I don’t remember the last time I’ve laughed this hard, with so much raw joy. “I’ve– only been here for a little over a week—! That’s an unfair judgement!” I try to defend… even though he is right.

   He shrugs with another chuckle and for a few minutes, we lay there in the wet grass, in our wet clothes, with bright smiles on our faces. “You have leaves in your hair,” he mentions and reaches out plucking out a stray leaf with another laugh at seeing me so… messy. “Ya should go inside and get cleaned up.”

   “And you?”

   “Nah— I’ll meet ya inside, gotta make sure ALL of the plants got watered. Don’t need Satan yelling at me for tracking mud in the house AND failing the water half the beds when I already forgot yesterday.” Sitting up, he stretches and takes off his wet jacket.

   “Don’t complain when I use all the hot water!” I give a cheeky grin and sprint over to the gate. I reach out to open it, but stop, looking back at where the demon has gone back to watering the plants. Maybe he’s not so bad…. I don’t linger on the thought, walking back to the house. I take my dirty shoes off before walking in and let out a sigh of relief when no one is around to see (or lecture) me in my messy state. Hair is a mess, my clothes as well… memories from long ago flicker in my head as I get ready to clean up. I wish those memories would last a bit longer before flying just out of my reach yet again….

[apathetic-theme-song]

Secret Santa!!

I got to make something for @ryoukio for @super-secret-conspiracy! I hope you enjoy this little one-shot of a bunch of dorks living together (and why you shouldn't leave Bakura and Yamima/Saif alone with a garden hose)

Saif sputtered as a spray of water smacked him in the face. "What the hell?!"

Ryou and Bakura stood before him with two very different expressions. Ryou's hands were clasped over his mouth in shock, and Bakura had his default expression of boredom with a tinge of annoyance. "Don't try to sneak up on a thief, jackass," Bakura said.

"I wasn't sneaking up on you, I -" Bakura held up a hose, squeezing the trigger of the spray nozzle. The water started flowing again, jetting out to soak through Saif's shirt in a violent spray. "Stop it!" Saif yelled, flailing his arms up to try and block the spray.

"Bakura," Ryou said, desperately trying to hold back a laugh. "I think he gets it."

Bakura released the trigger, the corners of his lips pulled up in impish amusement. "Negative reinforcement, bitch. Serves you right for not having manners."

"Manners?! That's rich coming from you, Bakura, gimme that -" Saif reached for the hose, receiving another spray of water to the face for his trouble. But he pushed forward, grasping for the hose.

Bakura's confidence quickly fell away as Saif managed to grab the nozzle, his hand wrapping around Bakura's. "No - fuck off!" Saif managed to turn the hose, and Bakura nearly choked as water exploded in his face before Saif released the trigger. All was quiet for a long moment, but then Saif squeezed the trigger again for a second, water spraying directly into Bakura's open mouth. "That's it - you're fucking dead!" Bakura screeched, tossing the hose aside to tackle Saif onto the dirt.

"You started it!" Saif screamed back, pushing Bakura's face away as he tried to swing down with some open-palmed hits. They'd graduated beyond actually trying to cause damage a long time ago, but old habits died hard, especially in the heat of the moment. Despite himself, Saif started laughing as he wrestled with Bakura, who was looking less like a menacing embodiment of darkness and more like an angry, wet cat. Seeing the fury in Bakura's eyes, knowing how easy it was to rile him up, made Saif want to pull him down and kiss him. With teeth.

A blast of cold water hit them both, stopping them dead in their tracks to cry out in surprise, holding their hands out to try and block the water. The spray stopped, and Ryou was holding the hose now, unable to hold back his giggling as they stared at him. "Et tu, Ryou?" Bakura whined melodramatically.

"You both need to calm down," Ryou said with a nonchalant shrug, turning to start watering the plants in the garden - the whole reason he'd brought the hose out in the first place. He still smiled even as he mused, "Our water bill is going to be horrible this month."

Bakura climbed off of Saif, squeezing water out of his shirt and hair. "Marik's going to wonder why our clothes are all wet."

"As soon as I explain that you decided to wage war using gardening tools, he'll understand."

Saif sat upright. "Ooh. Y'know, I bet that home improvement store has those handheld sickles -" Ryou lifted the hose to splash Saif again. "Ack - okay, okay! I get it!" Saif said, slumping to the ground before adding dejectedly, "No more knife fights."

"You two are really bad for my blood pressure." Ryou turned off the water and started to roll up the hose for storage.

"Hey, we could do a lot worse," Bakura reminded as he stood up.

Ryou tilted his head, giving Bakura a warm smile. "You could. But you don't anymore. I'm proud of you, you know."

Bakura groaned, smacking Ryou on the arm with a wet hand as he headed for the house. "I've hit my 'sappy' quota for the day." He paused to look at Saif, drawing a thumb across his throat. This isn't over.

Saif blew him a kiss in response, laughing when Bakura made a noise of disgust and disappeared inside. "That goes for you, too," Ryou said after a moment, watching him. "Marik and I are both glad you're doing better."

Saif groaned, hurrying to follow Bakura inside as Ryou laughed. "Bakura! Come back! Ryou's turned on me!"

Ryou followed a few minutes later to find Bakura and Saif wrapped up in towels on the couch, brushing through the wet spots of their hair. "You might be horrible for my blood pressure," he said, sitting between them to wrap his arms around Saif's bicep and hug him close. "But I mean it. I'm proud of you, and I love you."

"And I'm growing quite fond of you," Bakura cracked, resting his head on Ryou's shoulder. "Damn you and your healing power of love."

"I can't take all the credit -"

"Hey, guys?" Marik's voice came immediately after the sound of the front door opening. "First, hi, I'm home. Second, why is the sidewalk all wet?"

"Bakura sprayed me with a water hose," Saif explained.

"Because he snuck up on me and Ryou when we were watering the garden!" Bakura shot back. "He knows better than to surprise me when I'm holding something that can be weaponized!"

"You really should, Saif," Marik said, approaching to lean against the back of the couch. He leaned down to kiss Bakura on the cheek, pulling back to eye the towels. "But thank you for not getting the couch wet."

"Last thing I need is you getting angry at me, too," Saif said with a cheeky grin. "I'm not an animal."

"Not all the time, anyway," Bakura cracked, sticking his tongue out when Saif flipped him off.

"Stop fighting!" Marik fake-whined, leaning down to rest his chin on Bakura's head. "You love each other!"

"Unfortunately." Bakura sighed, but he gave Saif a little smile - just kidding. Saif winked at him in response. "Anyway. Gang's all here. Movie night?"

The couch cuddle pile was always the same. Bakura on the left, then Marik, then Ryou, and Saif on the right, closing off the sandwich of bodies. Ryou won the right to pick the movie, and they turned on some gothic romantic horror that had Marik curled into a ball within minutes. Saif reached over Ryou's shoulder to press his hand against Marik's back, a gentle reminder that he was there. This was nice; this was normal, now.

"Y'know, getting all wet reminds me," Saif said at a quiet point in the movie. "We should get to the beach before it gets too cold."

Ryou perked up, giving him a wide smile. "Yeah! I'm done with exams for now so we have time!"

"How can you talk about beaches when there are OH MY GOD!" Marik broke off into a yelp, burying his face in his hands as ghosts started appearing in the movie. "How can you watch this?!"

Ryou gave Saif an apologetic smile and hugged Marik. "Sorry. Don't worry, it calms down after this. Anyway, let's plan on it."

"Only if we stock up on sunscreen. I am not dealing with sunburn again," Bakura chimed in, patting Marik's hair.

"I love you guys," Saif said, and as his brother and their partners laughed and huddled closer together, he realized for the first time how much he meant it.

[theloveinc]

Plsssss do more of old n grumpy bakugo😭😭 I loved it soo much

(pt i here!)

we already know old and grumpy bakugo has given up on hiding the fact that he's a complete and total cuddle bug........ but before all else, he needs to cuddle you every morning or his whole attitude will be wrong for the day (even tho it's not so much about the cuddles as it is just knowing you want to cuddle him).

but then... clock hits 10 and you're pestering him about breakfast and he literally makes the grumpy cat face thinking about having to get up LMAOOOOO. like for real will just roll his eyes and sink in on himself cuz he's so nice and cozy and doesn't want either of you to move.

but you say something about, idk, not wasting the day bc he has a meeting later anddddd idk you wanna go out or something...

and he's just going, "i spent almost 30 years getting up at the literal ass crack of dawn, you can't just let me lay here?"

"baby, it's almost eleven."

and he's like... turning over and ignoring you LMAOOO for once in your relationship. but what's funny is... if you leave him be for long enough, he's getting pissed about that TOO.

stomping into the kitchen in his underwear and staring you down, caging you against the counter and not even saying anything, just looking all >:( because you left him.

And really all you can do is laugh because 1. it's cute, and 2. he's really turned into such a baby about things.... and even he knows it, cuz he's not even that tired!!! he just wanted to cuddle more and ignore whatever work thing is coming up.

(feed him a little brunch and some protein shake though and he's happy again. i'm thinking like while he's standing there glaring, too.... you're chest to chest, but if you press a little bacon or whatever to his lips, he's eating it and then melting cuz it's sweet of you to cook for him. still some old man ass shit though).

-

and also earlier, when i was trying to think of some stuff for this... it was making me laugh to think about bakugo like... tending to his veggie garden or doing some kind of workout in the yard........ and accidentally attracting a bunch of attention onto himself cuz he's just ... so handsome.

and like... everyone on the block knows you've been married forever, so it's not a problem in THAT sense... but old ass grumpy ass bakugo still puts on the hose to "accidentally" spray water at anyone who walks past trying to catch a peek.

[much-obliged-timothy]

Finally tackling @badthingshappenbingo​!

Fandom: Devil May Cry

Prompt: Coughing Up Blood

*

“Well, this is…different,” Dante said, looking around.

They’d been hired to investigate demonic activity inside a rather large greenhouse. It was filled with surprisingly beautiful greenery and exotic flowers and plants that none of them had ever seen before. Nero stepped forward, inspecting a brightly colored group of flowers.

“Let’s just get this over with,” Vergil said. 

“Hey, don’t complain about a change of scenery,” Nero said. “I was getting sick of subway stations and creepy, abandoned buildings.”

“Gotta go where the job takes ya, kid,” Dante said. “This is a nice change of pace, though. Anyone see anything demonic?”

Vergil shook his head in irritation and moved forward to explore the place. Nero and Dante glanced at each other and shrugged, fanning out to join the investigation. 

“You ever seen Little Shop of Horrors?” Dante called over to Nero. 

“That took place in a flower shop, not a greenhouse,” Vergil said.

“...did you just admit you watch musicals?” Nero said. 

“Did you?” Vergil said.

Nero opened his mouth, reconsidered, and closed it. He instead went back to inspecting the plants, wondering if something demonic could possibly be hiding in such a nice place. 

Kyrie had a nice little garden she cared for. She’d love this place, and Nero wondered if he could take her here sometime after they’d cleared out the threat. 

“Anyone find anything demonic yet?” Dante asked after a few minutes.

“No. This is turning out to be a waste of time,” Vergil said.

“Let’s go back to the owner. Maybe he can give us more information,” Dante said.

“This is why I hate that you’re in charge of accepting the jobs. You never ask for information about them,” Vergil said in irritation, heading for the exit. 

“It really shouldn’t surprise you at this point,” Nero said, turning and heading down a different row to join the twins.

He’d just spotted the large, bulging plant in time to see it burst out at him in a shower of purple dust. 

Nero stumbled away, choking on the dust and trying to wave it away. It clung to his skin and clothes, scratching at his throat and burning his mouth and eyes.

“Nero?” Dante called.

“Fine,” Nero said, moving cautiously past the plant and coughing into his arm. “Fucking plant.” 

Dante was laughing at him. “You- You really just got attacked by a plant!”

“You fool,” Vergil snarled at Dante, shoving him back as he went to pat Nero on the shoulder. “Demonic activity. Does that look normal to you?” 

“I- Oh. Oh shit,” Dante said.

“Don’t be over…over…overdrama-” Nero had to stop to double over and let out a hacking cough, blood splattering on the floor. The burning had spread down to his throat, growing worse. He clutched at his chest as it began to burn too, coughing harder, blood dripping from his mouth.

“Don’t touch him!” he heard Vergil snapped. 

“He’s coughing up blood! Am I just supposed to watch?!”

“Well it won’t help him if you start coughing up blood too!” 

Struggling to breathe, Nero hit the ground on his hands and knees. The blood was filling his mouth, clogging his throat. He coughed harder, hoping to clear his airway, panic seizing him.

Something thumped his back a few times. He gagged up more blood, glancing up to realize that Vergil had torn off part of his jacket to wrap around his hands so he could touch Nero without risking any of the dust - pollen? - getting on himself. 

Vergil pushed Nero into a better position, trying to keep his airway clear. “Dante, find a hose, or some way to wash him off. There’s got to be something here. Nero, take your jacket and shirt off.”

Vergil helped Nero get his jacket and shirt off, tossing them a safe distance away. Vergil kept a grip on Nero’s shoulders, thumping his back whenever he began to choke too hard. 

“Here,” Dante said, out of breath. “I found a hose.”

“Spray him. We need to wash it off, and try to wash it out of his mouth,” Vergil said.

Nero expected Vergil to move away to avoid getting wet, but he stayed where he was, shifting just enough that the water would spray the dust back onto him. Nero opened his mouth to thank Vergil, but coughed up more blood instead. Vergil only tightened his hold and hit Nero’s back again.

Alright, maybe he wouldn’t take Kyrie here. Still, as he choked up more blood just before the spray of cold water hit him, his only relief was from the firm hands on his shoulders, keeping him steady through this nightmare of an experience.

[creepycrawliesanonymous]

"I had the worst dream last night."

The season was beginning to turn. The leaves had turned into an ugly shade of brown and fell off their branches at least a month ago, and were growing soggy in the gutters. You were wearing the warmest jacket you owned, knowing that in the coming months going outside with only the thin layer of flannel would become nearly unbearable. For now, it did just fine.

"Tell me."

Your sandwich had been warm when you left the deli, but the chicken was starting to leave a stale and dry feeling in your mouth. Adam had abandoned his a while ago, wrapping it up to store in his shitty fridge.

"I was in my parents' house, but it was like, around Christmas time so everything was real festive and awful. You were there, but it was you when you had dyed your hair, but also like now? Like your face was how it is now. Scott was there too, but he didn't really do anything, he just sort of stood there."

Thinking about Scott made your skin crawl. The last time you had seen him he was trying to break down your door, screaming at you about some money you owed him. The bad blood between the two of you went way back to when he stabbed Adam with a rusty nail when you were children. He had tried to get you to fuck him in the bathroom at one of his band's gigs, around five years ago. You walked away with bruises on your arm from when he tried to drag you away from the bar, while he stumbled home with bloody nose and scratch marks on his face. He left several voicemails, blaming his actions on the beer, calling you a bitch and a prude and a slut, threatening legal action, and begging for forgiveness.

"Remember when your mom got you that psychiatrist voucher one year?"

Adam's mother had spent many years thinking there was something wrong with her son. For a long time he was too quiet, then he hit middle school and was suddenly too loud. The music he listened to was too loud and angry, and he started painting his nails black and got called slurs a lot at school. Then there was the chain smoking when he got to high school, and the endless stream of girlfriends that he only dated because he knew his parents would hate them and their septum piercings and vocal fry (and in some best case scenarios, they were communists, those were the ones you got on the best with). He was sucking dick on the side as well, but it wasn't like his mother knew that.

"I tried to leave the living room, but every time I walked out the door I would just go back to the place I started. Mom was playing some classical record, and I remembered it because it was the one she would always play when she was trying to lower her blood pressure. She gave me a present to open, but I couldn't find where the wrapping paper ended and she kept getting more and more mad at me for being ungrateful or something. She, like, grew claws and started ripping at the box and inside was a tiny version of me, like if I turned into an action figure. Then you picked me up and left the room. Thanks for that by the way, mom was thrilled."

Sometimes Adam made you want to scream. You had met when he poured a bottle of paint down your arm during kindergarten. You had reached up and grabbed a fistful of his hair, smearing paint on his face, making him howl and getting you both sent to the principal's office. In seventh grade, he had, albeit accidentally, set a piece of your hair on fire playing with a lighter. He sprayed you down with a garden hose, and in a fit of frustration and unresolved anger management issues you had tackled him and rubbed his face in the dirt. But he only got some grass stains on his forehead and the bridge of his nose, while you had to sport an ugly, jagged haircut for months. One time, the month before graduation, he tried to drop out. You two spent an evening yelling at each other, you that if he left now his parents would probably have him sent him to the military or a monastery and he was neither tough nor religious, and him spouting out some concerning things that in your adolescence you elected to ignore. When you had both calmed down, you fell asleep listening to The Pixies, his head on your shoulder, your nose buried in his hair.

"If I found a tiny version of you I would keep you in a jar and get you to run small errands for me. I would never have to sharpen a pencil ever again."

There was a thin layer of grime in the park you two had chosen to eat lunch in. The city was underfunded, so many of the trashcans were overflowing out the top and onto the street and the sidewalk. A stench permeated throughout the air, smelling of pollution and piss and dog shit. It seeped into you if you stayed around long enough. At this point you were blind to it, the stink nestled into your nostrils in a way much too permanent.

"The walls started to break down, and then I was in my apartment, and I think my mom had turned into a giant bird because she had started clawing at all my shit."

When the clouds parted, and the sun shone down just right, you could be fooled into thinking that Adam's eyes had some gold in them.

"What then?"

You took another bite out of your sandwich, your hunger winning out over your distaste for the dried out bread and the cold chicken.

"I woke up."

[stardustinthesky]

You know what I miss most about home? The sound of rain hitting the roof at night. It always helped me fall asleep. Back when I was a kid preparing for the Academy, I’d be up ‘til 4 or 5 o’clock in the morning studying, and I’d have maybe two hours to sleep after that, but I was so wound up, I’d just lie there. Same thing happened the night before my final test. I just knew if I didn’t get some sleep I—I’d never pass it. And did it begin to rain? No. But dad—my dad—heard me walking around. He knew I couldn’t sleep. So, he went outside, he got the garden hose and sprayed it, so it came down on the roof... just like rain. He stood there making it rain until I fell asleep. I sometimes think he would have stood there for days if he had to. I miss him.

[jensensfanfic]

WET T-SHIRT CONTEST

[gif is mine via sideblog]

pairing: justin foley x gn!reader

prompt: garden hose

warnings: cursing, use of babe/baby, water fight,

—☆—

"Fuck, it's hot today!" Justin yells from where he's stood in your back garden, bouncing a football on his knee. "Sweatin' balls over here.”

"You want some water?" You shout back over the loud music that blasts from your speakers in the kitchen.

"Sure." Justin catches the ball and glances over to nod at you. "Thanks, babe."

"No problem." You wander inside, heading straight for the fridge and enjoy the coolness that hits you when you open it. You let out a sigh, running your hand through your hair. You stand there for what feels like just a few seconds, but is apparently long enough to have your boyfriend calling for you from outside.

"Hey! You got the water? Dying out here." 

"Yeah, shit! I'm coming, your Majesty." You joke, then grab four bottles of ice cold water; two each for the both of you.

You throw the bottles to Justin. He catches it with ease, then blows you a kiss in gratitude. You pretend like you've captured his kiss, and it makes him grin. You chuckle at the small gesture that had become your 'thing' since you had started dating.

You watch as he opens the first bottle and downs it in one, then uncaps the next. "Woah. Aren't you gonna get brain freeze?"

"Nah." He rubs his head as if feeling for a temperature. "I think I'm good."

You laugh, and then your eyes make contact with something on the ground. The garden hose is sitting there, attached, and ready to be used as a weapon. You smirk and giggle, and when Justin hears this, he looks over. When he notices what you are looking at, his eyes grow wide. "Oh, don't even think– No!"

You dive for the hose, just as he starts to run forwards for it, too. Quickly, you run to the tap and then look up at your boyfriend. "You better run."

"Shit."

He runs to the opposite end of the garden, looking around for somewhere to possibly hide as you turn the tap.

Then you jump into action, chasing him and spraying him with the freezing cold water. He runs and yells, ducks and hides, and tries to take the hose from you.

At some point, he succeeds, you end up going back and forth like this until you both start to get tired.

—☆—

You are both sprawled out on the now-wet grass, exhausted. Justin mumbles about how dry you are compared to him, and you simply smirk in reply, smug.

Sitting up, you cross your legs, and Justin follows, shaking his hair around so that droplets hit your skin. "You feel cooled down now, huh?"

"Yes..." He rolls his eyes but smiles upon seeing how amused and happy you look. "Very."

"You, um... might need to change. You're looking like you should be entering a wet t-shirt contest right now."

"Oh, really?" Justin reaches behind him to grab one of your bottles of water from the deck chair. Before you can even try to move and run away, he grabs you by your hip, pulling you down as he uncaps the bottle and pours the entirety of it over you. "Looks like you should be entering now, too."

"What?" Justin raises his brows at your sudden squeal when you look down at your shirt. He follows your eyes, looking down at your chest. Your shirt, unlike his, has now become almost complete see-through. "Shit, sorry."

"Not your fault."

"Here." He kneels up and pulls his hoodie from the back of his chair. You quickly removed your soaked shirt, and then Justin wraps his hoodie around your shoulders. You zip it up, glad to be less exposed once more.

"Thanks."

"Hey, you wanna go inside now?" Justin pulls you up with him as he stands. "We can both change and then get some snacks ready... sit in front of the fan with a movie?"

"Only if I get to pick it."

"Why do you get— you drenched me!"

"Exactly. Winner picks."

"I think the person who offered you his hoodie should pick."

"Fine! What are we watching then?"

"Wait and see."

—☆—

Taglist: @mockerycrow @wqxianwriting

13 REASONS WHY MASTERLIST

[vukovich]

Listen. Draco goes on a run past Harry’s house everyday. It’s August. He needs hosing down.

The Ass is Greener Where You Water It

Harry gets the keys to the dingy little cottage on his birthday, so that he can have a housewarming party instead of a 30th birthday party. It's the best birthday he's ever had. By miles. Instead of Gryffindor kitsch and Quidditch tickets, his friends give him things he actually wants.

Hermione brings an owl perch that clips right into his bedroom window. Ron distracts Harry with a cast iron skillet from the Burrow while Dean and Seamus set off atmospheric charms over the house. Bit of a risk in a Muggle area, but the houses are so far apart, and the traffic so sparing that no one notices.

Luna arrives late, and he greets her on the dilapidated porch. His glasses fog in the humidity, and she casts a spell on the weed-choked front lawn that sounds like it should give the thistles the power of prophecy, but merely keeps his glasses clear.

Hermione takes one look at the kitchen and heads back out for pizza. Ron and Seamus do a double-take at the chartreuse living room carpet and roll up their sleeves. Luna performs an exorcism in the basement, just to be safe. Dean stocks the fridge with beer. Only beer.

Dinner is eaten out of hand, seated on the living room floor between rows of carpet staples. Ron sets a small team of allen wrenches into motion, and Harry watches furniture assemble itself.

Ron thumps a fist against his chest, holds his breath, and belches so loudly he has to swallow at the end. Hermione shakes her head and confiscates the rest of his beer.

Slowly, as the bottles accumulate in the recycling bin, and the leftover pizza makes its way to the fridge, they all filter out.

"Gotta pick the kids up from Mum's. Love you, Harry. And happy birthday!"

Luna yawns. "The dabberblimps will be waiting for their bedtime story."

Dean and Seamus each snag a cold piece of pizza on their way out. "We're headed to the bars. Coming, birthday boy?"

"Nah," Harry says, shaking his head.

Dean rolls his eyes. "Got a big day of fuck-all tomorrow?"

Harry snorts a laugh and shoves him out onto the patio. "Like you've got a big night of fuck-nobody tonight?"

Seamus licks his finger and marks an imaginary tally board. "G'night, Harry. And happy birthday."

Seamus pulls Dean along, out to the sidewalk, and exclaims, "Shit! Longbottom, what the fuck?!"

Harry squints out into the dark front lawn, and Neville stands up from the other side of the snaggletoothed picket fence.

"Oh, hi. Hey, Harry!" Neville waves. "I'm planting Moonroses along the fence!"

Harry leans against a pillar, but the bottom of it slides away. He startles, catches it, tugs it back into place, and eyes the porch roof warily.

"Uhm, thanks, Nev. You want some pizza?"

Dean shoots Harry fingerguns, then throws an arm around Neville's shoulders. "He wants to get shitfaced, not put that shit in his face!"

Dean looks to Seamus, who licks a finger, raises it, tilts his head in thought, then revokes the potential point with a solemn head shake. Dean flips him the bird.

Neville brushes his hands off on his jeans. "An appletini does sound good. Harry, be sure to water this rose bush every sunset for the next month. Only at sunset."

Harry shrugs and agrees. He really does have fuck-all to do.

--

The bush is dead. Or he's pretty sure it is. He watered it dutifully at sunset every day for the first week, but then a chipmunk bit a hole in his garden hose and he missed a night.

Flooding the ground around the scraggly bush might revive it. He tugs the hose out over the picket fence and stands on the sidewalk, intent on spraying the dirt as fast as it can absorb the water.

Spray. Watch the standing water trickle into the ground. Spray again. It lulls him into a rhythm.

A hard knock to his shoulder spins him around, and he grabs at the fence. He hits the ground next to the bush, arse in the mud, a busted-off picket in one hand and the hose sprayer in the other.

A man looms over him in the fading daylight. He pants for a moment and takes a long breath before speaking. "For fuck's sake, I hollered three times-" Platinum hair glows pink with the sunset where it isn't sweat-matted against his head. "Potter?"

Dry rose thorns scrape Harry's arm. "Uhm, yeah."

Draco holds a hand out to help Harry up, but Harry hands him the picket. Draco tosses it into the yard.

"I wondered who wasted their money on this hovel."

"Excuse me?"

Sweat drips down Draco's temple, and his t-shirt clings to his chest. It's a rather nice chest, Harry decides.

"This house is hideous. I've run past it every day this summer, and I honestly thought it would end up torn down."

Harry scowls up at him. "It's got good bones."

Draco rolls his eyes and rests a hand on a hip. It's a rather nice hip, Harry decides.

"Carcasses have good bones."

Harry points the sprayer at Draco's face and waits for him to notice, but Draco's busy cataloguing Harry's house's faults.

"That porch roof is going to fall off, and the porch itself is-"

A jet of water hits Draco right in his open mouth, and he coughs, swallows, and glares down at Harry.

"Your front door doesn't even-"

Water shoots up Draco's nose, and he sneezes it out.

"Goddammit, Potter, I-"

Harry looses the hose all over Draco's face for a good, long while. Draco freezes and lets the water drip from his nose and chin.

He blinks down at Harry, who bites his lips to keep from laughing. "You looked thirsty."

Draco clears his throat. "I was..."

"And hot."

Draco smirks. "I can't argue with-"

Harry points the hose at Draco's chest and soaks his shirt while Draco winces and turns his face away from the spray.

Draco peels his shirt off over his head and wrings it out onto the sidewalk. "Your house is still a piece of-"

Harry aims for Draco's crotch and hits him in the balls with a short shot. Draco yelps and wads his t-shirt and hands over his groin.

"Done?" Harry asks, hose steady on Draco's face.

Draco clears his throat again. "Quite."

"Good."

"This splendid manse of yours wouldn't have a towel, would it?"

Harry tosses the hose back over the fence and climbs to his feet.

"I have no idea, but you can help me look."

[bakuroo-writings]

ooh.. okay how about either 44 or 49 (or both if you want), with Tendou?

Hi! Hello! How are you? Thank you for sending one in! Sorry it took forever - motivation is fickle bisch.

44.“i wish you were dead.” + 49. “are you fucking happy? does this make you happy?” with Tendou.

“Are you fucking happy?!” You shout before continuing. “Does this make you happy?!”

Seeing you covered head to toe in soapy water, Tendou’s musical laughter ringing in your ears, you’d think he looks pretty damn happy.

You were supposed to washing your car with your ever-so-helpful boyfriend, Satori. Turns out, he had different plans as evidenced by him unexpectedly dumping the bucket you prepared on top of your head halfway through.

“My paradise, there is only one thing that could make me happier,” is uttered before you get sprayed with even more water from the garden hose that was now left at your feet.

Crouching down to pick up the hose, you mutter, “I wish you were dead.”

“Dead wet,” you shout, turning the hose on him and spraying him. His laughter reaches your ears once again as he dances and rejoices in the water hitting him. You should have known it wouldn’t bother him but that’s why you love him - life with Tendou, your perfect guess monster, is never boring. And that’s why you can never find yourself mad when he turns a mundane chore into a cheerful water fight, even when it means you get covered in water, car only half clean.

© 2021 all works are the property of bakuroo-writings. Do not repost or re-upload to other sites such as wattpad, ao3, or tiktok. Do not do audio readings.

[drabblingdraco]

✬ Arranged ✬ Part 2 Draco Malfoy x Reader

I received a lot of requests for a part 2 to Arranged. I’ve finally come up with some ideas to continue! Maybe even a part 3 ;)

Part 1 

Warning: SMUT GALORE (unprotected sex, female receiving)

If you are underage please do not read.

Y/N’s POV

It had been only been a week after you arrived at the Malfoy Manor. To your surprise, you’d been enjoying your stay so far. What began as a forcible “vacation” brought upon by the Malfoy’s and your parents turned into an enjoyable experience so far.

After your kiss with Draco, things seemed to be less tense. You both were getting along better than ever. You’d take pleasant walks in the garden (unlike before), have tea on the patio as you watch the sunset, stay up late talking about your desires, likes, and dislikes, the upcoming years at Hogwarts.

He managed to open up to you rather quickly. Even after he confessed his love for you, you expected him to remain reserved. Although he hasn’t kissed you since the night you arrived, he’d steal cheek kisses and subtle touches on your shoulders or hips. It gave you butterflies every time without fail.

Today we were planned to take engagement photos. Although Draco hadn’t proposed, this was still a long awaited arranged marriage. As you thought about the future as a Malfoy, you weren’t sickened by it like you were a week ago.

Mother had sent you a beautiful gown to wear for the shoot. As the photographers were setting up downstairs in the foyer, you were getting your makeup done by Narcissa.

“I don’t mean to pry but..I see you and draco are getting along rather nicely, yes?”

“Yes, I guess we’ve grown a liking for each other..” you looked away shyly.

“Oh don’t be embarassed dear! I’ll tell you a secret to ease your mind.” She cleared her throat “I too was arranged to wed Lucius, I was not his biggest fan at first, but I’ve grown to love him for everything he is.”

“That’s good to know. Thank you, Narcissa.”

“Come, look at my handy work!”

You got up out of your seat and looked in the mirror. She gave you a smoky green and black eye look with basic facial makeup.

“I love it,” you smiled at her.

“Now get that beautiful gown on and come downstairs.” She then left the room.

You let your hair fall out of its clip. You untied your robe as it fell to the ground, revealing nothing but your black strapless bra, black lace thong, knee high panty house and black heels. As you unzipped the bag your dress was in, the door swung open and Draco was on the other end. At first he looked away, but when he looked back at you there was nothing but awe in his eyes.

“I- Uh may I come in? Just need to fix my hair.”

You stood motionless, trying to chose your next words. It’s not like you could say no, it was his room after all, so you didn’t deny him that.

“Oh of course.” Your breath hitched as his eyes lay locked on you and your illuminated figure.

He walked to his vanity, sitting in the chair as he grabbed a comb. You watched from the corner of your eye as he skillfully played with his grey blonde locks. You caught him locking his orbs with yours yet again and looked away, continuing to put on your dress.

You removed it from the bag and unzipped it, giving you enough room to stick your feet in through the top and pull it up. You had to admit it was a beautiful piece of clothing. The top half was corset like, there were small points above both breasts, which lifted them up and made them even more apparent. The corset had small minimal lines going down just above your waist. The bottom was pure smooth silk. And of course, it was all dark, Slytherin green. As you lifted the dress up it was difficult to pull up the zipper behind you. Draco sat at his vanity and sprayed some cologne on him.

“Draco?”

“Yes dea-I mean y/n?”

You silently giggled at his almost comment. “Could you help me?” You darted your eyes towards your zipper. He rose from his seat and walked towards you. As you moved your hair infront of you so it wouldn’t get caught, you felt Draco’s cold finger tips on your spine, sending jolts through your entire body. As he reached the top, he placed both his hands on your shoulders and leaned in to your ear.

“You look..ravishing..my dear.”

You hid your blush from him and turned to face him. “Why thank you..you look delicious as well”

He furrowed his brows. “I MEAN DELIGHTFUL- YES, DELIGHTFUL.” Now you couldn’t help hiding your blush, it was too late.

“That’s you my dear, you..look..delicious.”

You suppressed your thoughts and spoke, “shall we go downstairs then?”

“Let’s.” He held out his arm and you locked yours with it as you headed down the stairs.

You reached the bottom of the stairs and untwined your arms. You could see the foyer set up for the honorable Malfoy portrait, the same backdrop as all the other family photos.

You and Draco listened to the photographer as he told you how to stand. Draco stepped behind you, wrapping his arms around you and pulling you in tight. You placed both of your hands on top of his, as you were instructed.

You sensed a presence behind you and it wasn’t just Draco himself..it was below the belt Draco. He shuffled trying to shake his erection but it wasn’t helping. If anything it made it worse.

“You two were lovely to photograph. I’ll get these to you by next week.”

“Thank you sir, have a great rest of your day.” You said with a smile.

You and Draco went upstairs back to his bedroom. As much as you loved that dress, it was choking the life out of you. Before you even realized Draco was right behind you, you peeled your dress off of you, dropping it on the floor. You felt him snake his hands around your waist and his chest against your back. He took a long breath, you could feel it against your cold skin.

“You have no idea what I want to do to you when you look like this.” You completely forgot you only wore your bra, panties, hose and heels. As you felt his hardness grow, you spun around to face him, pressing your hips into him.

“Show me,” you whispered.

He was shocked to get that response, but it didn’t matter because in a matter of seconds he was pushing you on to his bed.

He towered over you kissing your thighs, going up your stomach and finally your neck. He took his sweet time there, leaving long and passionate bites. You moaned as he continued to do what seemed to come so natural to him, turning you on.

He released himself from the nap of your neck and grabbed his wand. He put a silencing spell on his room. Just after feeling his lips on your skin, you knew you were going to need that charm.

You sat up and scooted backwards towards the head of the bed, Draco following you with your lips locked at all times. You started to untangle his clothes. First his tie, blazer and finally his dress shirt. You both worked together to unbutton it. He did the honors of ripping his belt off, the metal clang as it hit the floor.

“You are the most gorgeous woman I’ve seen in my life.” He said breathlessly, reaching his hand down towards your thong. “I hope to have the pleasure of making such a beautiful girl scream my name.”

He pushed your panties aside and began moving in large circles around your clit. Your head naturally rolled backwards in pleasure. His other hand grabbed your chin, moving it to face you.

“I want to watch you untangle under my hands..figuratively and...” he paused, going ever faster, “and literally.” He smashed his lips with yours.

You pushed him away by his shoulders.

“Draco please,” you whined. “I need you now.”

“Say no more, love...one more thing.”

He knelt down and pulled your panties off. Placing his hands on your hips, he yanked your body closer to him, making you yelp in surprise.

“A gift for my fiancé.” He smirked.

His mouth found its way to your pussy, flicking with his tongue over and over. You moaned with excitement. You looked down, watching him tear your nerves apart. His thumbs pressed into your hips, inching you closer to him with each lick he took of you.

“Draco..” you were breathless. “Fuck me, fuck me please!” You screamed.

He purred as he took one last stroke on you. He stood up and removed his pants and boxers.

He brought his tip to your entrance and slid in, like putting a glove on a hand. You gasped, then let out a soft moan. He pumped himself in and out slowly at first.

“Ohhh Princess..” He moaned.

You started going faster as you bucked your hips closer to him. Will each stroke he went in deeper every time. When he reached your g spot you released a high pitch moan, and that made him go crazy. You pulled him down to you and stole his lips. Your legs now around him as he pounded into your pussy.

You flipped him over and now you were the one on top. He didn’t oppose this idea one bit. As you adjusted yourself, you started jumping up and down, each time his dick going in further. One of his hands was gripping your hip, while the other snuck it’s way to your clit. The pleasure sent you into a frenzy. You grabbed his shoulders, sinking every nail into his skin.

“Yeah Princess, take it all in.”

You went as fast as your body could go.

“Oh, oh, I’m gonna cum,” you whined.

“Me too baby. Go ahead, cum all over my dick.”

“Ohh yeah!” You screamed in pleasure as you both climaxed to your body’s content.

You pulled yourself off of him and fell down on the bed next to him. Panting, you both stared at each other with smiles.

He licked his lips and took a deep breath. “Is this a bad time to officially propose?”

[enhyqenn]

❝ garden hose ❞ — k.sn

📁 … !? pairing. sunoo x fem!reader | wc. 0.6k | requested? no

had you not had a massive crush on kim sunoo, you would be mad at him for completely soaking you in water.

“hey!” you shouted over the sound of sunoo’s laugh, frowning at the pink-haired boy. “i thought you said you’d play fairly! this is not ‘fair!’”

he did nothing to acknowledge your complaints, instead, he just raised the green garden hose in his hands, spraying you with even more cold water. he cackled at your weak attempts to cover your face. sunoo only stopped when you yelled his name.

as you balled your hands into fists, staring at the boy only a few meters away, you said, “you’re the absolute worst.

“says you,” sunoo snapped back with a grin, the twinkle in his eyes suggesting he wasn’t afraid to drench you again. and you were well aware that he definitely would with zero hesitation.

“ugh, now i’m freezing,” you said with a frown, wiping water droplets from your eyes and looking down at your drenched bathing suit.

sunoo raised his eyebrows at you as he replied. “um, yeah, that’s how this game works, dummy.”

cursing under your breath, you reached down to the bucket beside you. picking up a blue water balloon, you glanced over at sunoo, a smirk starting to form on your face. “i’m giving you ten seconds to run,” you warned.

“ok, i love you, but this is the equivalent of bringing a knife to a gunfight. i thought you were smarter than this,” he remarked, jutting his right hip out and leaning to the side. he lifted the hose as if to show off how much of an upper hand he had.

before sunoo could ridicule you anymore, you threw the water-filled balloon, hitting him square in the chest and watching as it burst, water splattering all over the expanse of his skin. sunoo took a step back in astonishment.

you let out a sharp laugh at his shocked expression, amused at the way he registered what just happened.

“oh, you are so going to pay for that!” sunoo yelled, a determined smile starting to spread on his lips as he raised the garden hose once again.

letting out a shout of surprise, you tried—and failed—to dodge the incoming spray of water.

you heard sunoo giggle before finally lowering the hose, allowing you a second to breathe. “that’s what you get.”

“can’t we just have a normal water balloon fight?” you asked in annoyance—the reason the hose was even out in the first place was to fill the numerous balloons you two had bought at the store.

sunoo’s head tilted slightly. “where’s the fun in that?”

groaning, you sank to the ground, sitting down on the wet grass. you started to pull at the small blades. “this is ridiculous.”

dropping the hose, your crush approached your slumped figure, smiling as he did. “what is? the fact that i managed to get you entirely soaked within the first thirty seconds of the game?”

“yes,” you said bluntly, looking up at him with a slight pout. “this was supposed to be a fair water balloon fight, sunoo.”

“ugh, fine. if you’re going to complain, no more hose. but, with or without it i can still beat you,” he stated proudly.

“oh, i’m sure you can. now please help me up,” you said, sticking out a hand.

sunoo sighed through his nose before grabbing ahold of you and hoisting you to your feet.

“thanks,” you quipped.

“mm hm,” he merely hummed, eyes on the water balloon bucket. he reached down next to you and pulled out a yellow one, glancing at you with that familiar twinkle in his eyes again as he said, “i’m giving you ten seconds to run.”

[nancywheelxr]

Word of Honor prompt where yby is wkx and zzs’s mailman. he and wkx have a feud (god only knows how it started, but neither of them want to back down first), so yby always leaves packages in the most inconvenient places. wkx tries repeatedly to report him to the mailman board or whatever, but they’re always like yby? no one named yby works here. this is unbelievably irritating to wkx because he knows yby has to work there. how tf else would he have their mail??? well turns out there was a mix up with the addresses and wkx and zzs’s mail has been being sent to yby for years. when yby went to drop off their mail the first time wkx assumed he was the mailman. this pissed yby off, so he decided to retaliate by putting their package next to the wheel of wkx’s car in hopes he’d run it over. and thus, the feud started

another galaxy brain idea, i would expect nothing less 😌

*

“Please,” Zhou Zishu says without looking up from the newspaper, “don’t throw your phone at the wall.”

There’s an angry noise, followed by the loud thud of something being slammed on the table. Better than the wall, he figures. “I wasn’t going to.”

He hums in agreement, adding pleasantly,  “of course not.” 

Is it mean not to engage like this? Maybe, but in his defense, Zhou Zishu has been forced to listen to increasingly angry phone calls for the past weeks on a daily basis, the same answer drifting from the speakers time and time again, so maybe he’s entitled to some bitchiness. 

Also, the way Wen Kexing’s face scrunches up a little, eyebrows furrowing, lips in a pout– he’s cute when he’s annoyed, so what’s Zhou Zishu suppose to do? Not antagonize him?

Case in point: a hand tugs his newspaper down and Wen Kexing comes into view, pouting in a terribly endearing way that Zhou Zishu has never been able to refuse, “A-Xu! Can’t you see I’m in distress? I’m distressed and you’re just sitting here, how heartless!”

“Is that so?” He raises an eyebrow, “I apologize for not coming to save you from the mean lady at the front desk, then. Did her answer change this time? Did someone named Ye Baiyi suddenly appear in their records?”

“No,” Wen Kexing sighs, dropping down on the couch beside him like a puppet with no strings, and Zhou Zishu goes through the motions of huffing exasperatedly, pointedly folding his newspaper, and leaving it on the coffee table. Then, he nudges him closer, a tug at his sleeves and Wen Kexing leans happily into him, face tucked neatly into Zhou Zishu’s shoulder. “I’m going to murder him,” he says.

“No felonies. Have you tried apologizing?”

“Pah,” Wen Kexing tries to sit up in outrage, but Zhou Zishu pulls him down again, hand carding through his hair, “apologize for what? He’s the one not doing his job! A-Xu, it was on the roof this time! On the roof!”

Ah, so they’re not ready for that yet, alright. “Hm. I think both of you need better hobbies.”

“A-Xu, you’re not listening, he’s my arch-nemesis!”

He opens his mouth to remind him it’s the 21st century and people don’t have arch-nemesis, but then, he remembers this is the guy who wakes up at god knows what time to leave their packages in increasingly ridiculous places. “I can’t believe you found the one person who might actually agree with you on this, what the hell.”

“What if we set out traps in the yard?” Wen Kexing muses and Zhou Zishu has a terrible feeling about this– he can foresee trips to the ER in the future and a litany of actually broken packages. 

Also: “Have you seen our children? They’ll get caught in them before Ye-qianbei does.”

“A-Xiang wouldn’t,” he says, but he doesn’t sound so sure anymore, so Zhou Zishu counts as it as a win.

“Maybe, but her boyfriend would and you promised her to stop scaring him off.”

The truth is this: a month ago they ordered a new coffee maker. It would take two days to arrive, great price, good quality. Zhou Zishu had even been looking forward to it! In hindsight, that might have been foolish, when has the universe ever made anything easy for him? No, the two days had come and gone, and on the third day, instead of enjoying as many expressos as his heart desired, he had been forced to witness the start of a trainwreck that’s been dragging ever since– Wen Kexing had been outside, gardening in a very broad sense of the word, when a man had approached their house, a package in his hands.

He had squinted at the yellow chrysanthemums Wen Kexing had been drowning with the hose. “That’s the ugliest flower I’ve ever seen.” 

“Excuse me?” Wen Kexing had smiled. It had been a terrible smile, full of teeth and no real friendliness, and Zhou Zishu had watched from the window and known with a deep-seated certainty that that would escalate out of proportion. 

The mad had scoffed. “Are you deaf besides incompetent? Whatever, just take this so I can stop looking at those flowers.”

“Incompetent?” Wen Kexing’s fingers had tightened around the hose as if he had been calculating the merits of hitting the man with the water spray, “ha! The mailman is late for his delivery and he wants to lecture me on my garden! A-Xu, come listen to this!”

“Mailman,” the man had repeated, face going blank, “the mailman.”

“A-Xu, come tell him my chrysanthemums look just fine!”

Then, he had exploded. “You brat! Who do you think you are? Have you no respect for your elders? Useless child–”

“Elder? Have you taken a look at the mirror? Get off my lawn! Out, out, out! No Old Monsters allowed!”

The man– Ye Baiyi, Zhou Zishu would learn later, after Wen Kexing had gone into his stalking spree trying to find his information to report to his alleged boss– had left. With their coffeemaker. Only to return at some point while they were inside to leave the package just behind the wheel of their car.

One month later and Zhou Zishu is yet to get his goddamn coffeemaker.

“Wen Kexing, you no-good insolent brat!” 

The yelling startles him back to the present, followed quickly by the sound of paper being ripped. At his side, Wen Kexing snickers. “I think he found the sign.”

“Sign? Is that what you and Chengling were doing in the garage last night?” 

“No Old Monsters permitted,” he recites, smug as a cat in the sun, and presses a kiss to his neck, “wasn’t it a good idea? A-Xu, I’m encouraging our son to improve his artistic skills.”

“Quit distracting me,” Zhou Zishu tugs his hair a little, “Lao Wen, you owe me so many cups of coffee.”

Wen Kexing grins, impossibly bright, ridiculously beautiful. “A-Xu ah, what’s mine is yours and what’s yours is mine, so how can there be a debt? Don’t be stingy!”

“Hm. Lao Wen is very wise, no debt between us, so he won’t mind making dinner tonight again.”

“A-Xu!” The whine comes out half laughter, and Zhou Zishu loves the sound of it, could never get tired of it, so really, he has no choice but to draw his husband closer and kiss the complaints before they even fall from his lips. 

[tchallasbabymama]

Troubled Waters Chapter Three

Hello, my lovelies, I’m back 🥰 Recovery is going well, so I started working on this chapter a few days ago, and voilà, c’est fini! I hope y’all enjoy the chapter but know I’m still working on some requests so these probably won’t be weekly updates. I’m shooting for every other week with requests in between, but we’ll see how it goes. Let me know if you want to be tagged in anything, and check out my masterlist to read my other stories and oneshots. There’s plenty of content for y’all to enjoy! As always, likes are appreciated, but your comments and reblogs really make my day.😘

Word count: 5,759

Sego watched with concern from across the garden as yawns replaced Nia’s usual morning ballads. After the third yawn stretched over her usually cheery face, he set his magazine down on the metal bistro table and interrupted her daze, “You didn’t sleep well last night?”

“No,” Nia pouted as she turned to face her friend. “I kept waking up every couple of hours and then when I finally got to sleep, I kept hearing a voice talking about ‘the thinning’ over and over. I don’t even know what that means.”

“Sounds ominous. Did you ask Celeste?”

“Of course I did,” she snapped and immediately regretted it. “Sorry, I’m tired.”

“Clearly,” he rolled his eyes and she narrowed hers before spraying him with the water hose. “Hey!”

Nia giggled and went back to her plants as she pondered the message from her dream. Sego picked his fashion magazine back up and flipped through the colorful pages. He wasn’t one for clothing around the house, but when he was in public in his human form, he liked to keep up with the trends.

A comfortable silence fell over the two of them, and minutes passed before an idea came to Nia as she stroked a large monstera leaf. “You know, mama wasn’t much help, but someone else might be.”

Sego set down his magazine again and his face turned serious.

“Plan B?”

“Plan B,” she nodded.

Sego cracked his knuckles and stood up, “I’ll get the drum.”

Nia finished up outside and washed her hands before piling a plate full of the excess sausage and grits she had cooked with Sego in mind. He wasn’t hungry that morning, so it seemed her leftovers weren’t meant for him in the first place. Nia opened the ritual by placing the plate in the center of the altar and lighting her frankincense resin. She wafted the smoke around their bodies and Sego’s drum, opening them to the spirit world as she hummed the unnamed tune that always came to her during rituals. Once Nia set the small clay pot of burning resin back on the altar, they were ready to begin.

The two friends got into position with Sego placing the drum between his legs and rubbing his hand lightly over the head to set his intentions while Nia stood tall with her head and shoulders back as she waited for him to begin. A few moments later, Nia came alive at the first strike of the drum. She let go and allowed herself to get lost in the sacred sounds, stepping in rhythm. Her feet carried her counterclockwise as her upper body snaked forward and back, being pushed and pulled by unseen forces. When her head began to tingle, she fell to her knees, triggering Sego to pick up the pace as she swayed from side to side with her eyes closed and head tilted back. Nia’s ears began to ring with a high-pitched tone that grew louder and louder until her body grew warm and her eyes flew open. She saw a swirling aura above her, and even though she had hoped to contact Bast, she welcomed unknown spirit. She figured it had something important to say since they usually just communicate through the veil. However, this one felt the need to deliver it’s message in person. Nia’s irises turned white as she parted her lips, allowing the being to enter her body. Goosebumps appeared all over her skin as the high of possession took over her, and the spirit settled into her flesh. The room went quiet as Sego carefully observed his friend. She showed no signs of danger, but he held tight to his drum, ready to banish the strange spirit if necessary.

“Who are you?��� he asked, and Nia’s head quickly shot to his direction.

“I am Oma,” she spoke in a gravelly voice that unnerved Sego. Despite the chill that went down his spine, he recognized the name as one of Nia’s distant ancestors, and his apprehension waned. However, his curiosity grew as he wondered how she was able to travel to them so easily.

“What do you want?”

“To warn you.”

“Of what?”

“The realms, they are moving.”

“Moving how?”

“Closer. Space between getting smaller and smaller,” she droned.

“What do you mean?”

“The dead will walk among the living, and the humans among your people.”

“But how is that possible?”

“Bast. Her magic weakens.”

Sego’s heart dropped into his stomach.

“Well, how-”

“You cannot stop them. Worlds collide.”

“Who is ‘them’?”

Nia’s head rolled back, and her body began to convulse as the spirit prepared to leave her host.

“No, not yet!” Sego tried to stop her, “Who is doing this!?”

“Be careful. She is precious.”

“Who?!”

Nia’s mouth flew open, and Oma exited her body before disappearing back into the realm of the dead. Sego rushed to his friend and caught her head before it hit the floor, laying it softly on her altar pillow. He grabbed the blanket Nia’s ugogo had woven for her only grandchild and laid it over her shivering body. Confused by what he just witnessed, Sego returned to his drum and closed the ritual with his skilled hands striking the instrument in rhythm. The sound cleared the air, and the vibrations traveled to Nia’s passed-out form, waking her from her state. He played softer as her chest heaved, and she reoriented herself with the world. Nia sat up slowly when her breathing returned to normal, her chilled fingers clinging to the blanket as she looked to her friend. Sego nodded and laid his palms flat on the drum.

“It was...scared,” Nia spoke softly as she ruminated on the spirit’s emotions. “Who was that?”

Sego pointed to the photo of her great-great-great grandma and her sisters. His finger landed just above the shortest one, all the way on the left. Her smile was the brightest of all her sisters, and her wings the biggest.

“Oma?” Nia asked through her brain fog as she tried to piece together what had just happened. As usual, she could only remember how the spirit felt in her body. This one felt anxious and in a hurry. “She’s never spoken to me before. What did she want?”

She attempted to stand, but Sego picked her up and carried her to her bed.

“I will tell you later. Right now, you need to rest.”

Before she could even protest, Nia’s body betrayed her, and she fell into a deep slumber. She slept the day away and woke up to fragrant smells wafting from the kitchen. Sego knew she would need to refuel after what she had just experienced, so he had prepared a hearty dinner to build her strength back up. Nia dragged herself into the kitchen right as he scooped the stewed meat and vegetables over a large bowl of rice. No words were spoken as she slid into the chair and dug into her food as though she hadn’t eaten in days. Sego took a seat on the other side of the table and waited for her to finish. It didn’t take long at all, and when Nia’s body finally felt full, she leaned back in her chair and took a deep breath.

“So, what did she say?”

Sego’s face contorted into a grimace as he spoke, “She, uh...she said the human realm and the realm of the dead are moving closer to ours.”

Confusion clouded Nia’s face as she tried to wrap her mind around Sego’s words.

“But how? Bast-”

“Is weak. Oma didn’t say how or why, but her magic is failing.”

Nia’s breath caught in her throat, and she looked down at her hands, testing her powers and making them glow a vibrant purple.

“I don’t feel any different, though.”

“Maybe because your magic was gifted to you, she doesn’t have to maintain it like the veils?”

“I didn’t think they required upkeep.”

“I didn’t either, but they’re thinning somehow.”

They sat in silence for a few minutes as Nia thought about Oma’s message before another question entered her mind.

“Why her?”

“She didn’t say,” Sego shrugged, “but she said to be careful and that ‘she is precious.’”

“Who?”

He shrugged again, and Nia stood from the table with conviction, “We should go see my dad. Maybe he’ll know more about her.”

“It’s worth a shot,” he lisped as his forked tongue flickered out and his body melted to the floor. His spotted skin turned to brown and black scales as his arms absorbed into his torso. Nia left to grab her bag, and she returned as his legs melded together. Sego slithered up her body and draped himself over her shoulders. When he got settled, Nia closed her eyes and felt the atmosphere thicken as she transported them to the magic realm. It was much easier than it was the last time she visited over a week ago. Usually, traveling through the veil felt like swimming through water, but it felt more like walking through a downpour this time.

“Did you feel that?” she asked Sego, and he nodded lazily.

Nia walked out her front door and warded it up tight before turning around and facing her other world. She smiled at the vibrant blue sky and breathed in the fragrant floral air before taking the first step into the magical realm. Her stomach twisted with anxiety as Sego’s words echoed through her head, but she was quickly pulled from her trance when a little voice called out on her right.

“Sawubona, Nia!” Adana waved excitedly, and Nia couldn’t help but grin at her young neighbor as she played with her doll on her front porch.

“Sawubona, Adana. How are you feeling today?” she asked as the girl glided over and hugged her waist. Sego slid down Nia’s shoulder a little, and his tongue tickled Adana’s cheeks, making her giggle.

“Good!” she said proudly as her wings flapped behind her.

“Let’s keep it that way,” Nia chuckled as she booped the little girl on her round nose. “I see you’ve been practicing flying.”

“Mhm. Umama said I’m not allowed to fly higher than this yet,” Adana said as she motioned to the few inches between her feet and the ground.

“That’s probably best. You remember what happened last time.”

Adana nodded, thinking back to when her mother had to carry her to Nia’s late one night with a broken wing.

“Umama says she’s gonna teach me how to go higher when I get bigger, and-”

“Adana, dinner!” Zita called from her kitchen, and the little aziza’s wings fluttered even faster at the thought of whatever her mother had prepared for her. Everyone in the neighborhood knew Zita was a fantastic cook, and despite having just eaten, Nia’s stomach grumbled at the thought of another meal. Especially one prepared by Zita.

“Tell her ‘hi’ for me,” Nia called out as Adana quickly waved goodbye and flew indoors. Sego shook his head fondly at the little girl as the door closed behind her, and Nia was thankful for the brief interaction calming her nerves.

As a known healer to all, Nia was very popular among the residents of Birnin Umlingo, the Magic City. She returned waves and short greetings as she made her way to her father’s place, which wasn’t too far from her own. When Nia and Sego arrived at the baobab tree Amare had fashioned into a cozy home for himself, she found him lounging on a limb with a book in his hand. Amare looked up from the page when he felt someone near, and joy spread across his face at seeing his greatest creation. Both of them started to glow faintly as they laid eyes on each other, and his large orange wings spread out as he flew down from his resting spot. Amare enveloped Nia and Sego in a warm hug and kissed her cheek before rubbing the python’s head.

“What are you doing here?”

“What? I can’t come visit my old man?”

“Who are you calling old?” he playfully scolded her as he held the intricately carved door open for her to come inside. She looked around at all the human gadgets that filled his home and smiled warmly at his treasures. Nia had always loved his collection, but the books and records were her favorite. Sometimes, they were all she had during the lonely days of her childhood.

“Oh, nobody,” she played coy as she removed Sego from her shoulders and set him on the ground. “How are you, ubaba?”

“I can’t complain, especially today,” he winked.

“Because your favorite daughter is here?”

“Of course! And I have a date in an hour.”

“A date?!”

“Yes, he’s taking me to a restaurant opening in the town square.”

“Sounds fancy. Who is this mystery man?”

“I’m sure you’ll still be here when he arrives. You can meet him then,” Amare said excitedly before another thought crossed his mind. “Oh, and I forgot to tell you! I popped over to the human realm and got these.”

He held out his arm, and Nia marveled at his brand new kimoyo beads, “Ooooh, those are nice.”

“Aren’t they? Top of the line,” he bragged as he examined the new bracelet that he had almost no use for in the magic realm. “Enough about me, though. Is something up? You never drop by unannounced.”

Nia sighed and plopped down in her favorite high-backed leather chair.

“Something’s wrong, ubaba.”

Amare’s eyebrows furrowed, and his wings sank a little as he sat across from his daughter.

“What is it?”

Nia explained her dream and the ritual to him and watched as his face contorted in confusion and disbelief.

“-and then she was gone.”

Amare leaned back in his chair and ran a hand over his face.

“Oma, huh?” he asked, and Nia nodded. “She was a powerful medium when she was alive. I guess if she can communicate with the dead from this realm, then she can easily communicate with the living from the realm of the dead.”

Nia nodded and continued, “I was trying to reach Bast when she cut in.”

“Hm...maybe she didn’t ‘cut in.’ If Bast’s magic is failing, she might not be able to hear you wherever she is.”

“Maybe you should ask T’Challa,” Sego quipped from the other side of the room as he changed back into his human form. Nia shot him a look to be quiet, and he smirked.

“The king?”

Nia sighed, “Yeah, I forgot to tell you I saw him again.”

“Sure, ‘forgot’ to tell him,” the shapeshifter mumbled.

“Sego!”

He put his hands up in defense, “Ok, I’m done.”

“So what happened this time? Did he recognize you? I hope you gave him a piece of your mind. King or no king, nobody hurts my baby and-”

“Ubaba.”

“What? I’m just saying. So what happened?”

“A bad man tried to hurt me, but before I could do anything, he showed up. He insisted on cleaning my wounds, so I let him, and…”

“And?”

“And he saw Zita and Adana, so I had to tell him about us.”

“You what?!”

“He had questions! What was I supposed to do?”

Amare sighed. “Ok, well, what did he say?”

“He was shocked, but I think he responded well. He didn’t treat me like a freak or anything.”

“That’s good. He seems like a decent, level-headed man.”

“I don’t think he’ll tell anyone. He was-” Nia was cut off by a ringing in her head as the protective wards around her home warned her of a visitor. She could tell by the low pitch that they were coming from the human realm. “I have to go, ubaba. Someone’s at my door.”

Amare and Nia stood while Sego sank back down into his python form and slithered over. The father and daughter hugged each other tightly and said their goodbyes before Nia and Sego were out the door and on their way home.

--------

Earlier that same day, T’Challa sat on his throne and halfway listened as the council argued over trade agreements between the tribes. His attention waned somewhere between the third and fourth attempt to compromise, and his mind wandered to the conversation he had with Nia almost a month ago. He hadn’t been able to get her off his mind lately. Not just her, but what he learned that night, too. He could barely wrap his mind around magical species existing in the first place, much less within his borders.

He was jolted back into the present by a nudge on his left arm and frowned at his cousin.

“What?” he whispered under his breath, knowing N’Jadaka could hear him. The prince also had the heart-shaped herb pumping through his veins from his coup attempt a year ago, so his senses were just as enhanced as T’Challa’s.

“Quit daydreaming,” he responded, equally as low so as not to give their conversation away to prying ears.

T’Challa fought an eye roll and straightened up in his throne.

“Let’s table this discussion for next week,” he cut the conversation short. “Now, is there anything else on the agenda for today?”

“No, my king, but I have one more thing I’d like to bring up,” said the Merchant tribe elder tentatively.

T’Challa nodded for her to continue.

“There have been some strange happenings among my people,” she began. “Just yesterday, a woman wandered into the market yelling about creatures nobody had ever seen before, then she collapsed and started seizing.”

“You’re concerned about a psychotic or epileptic episode?”

“It’s not so much the episode as what came after, your highness.”

“Ok…”

“She died before the doctor could get to her...and then she disappeared before the coroner could examine her body.”

“What do you mean ‘disappeared’?” T’Challa’s eyebrows furrowed as he leaned in closer.

“The men who transported the body were found knocked out cold...and when they woke up, she was gone.”

“Sounds like there’s a sick motherfucker around here somewhere,” N’Jadaka muttered with his signature scowl on his face. “Bodies don’t just disappear for no reason.”

The king ignored his cousin and focused on the Merchant elder. “You said she mentioned strange creatures?”

“Yes, my king. She looked deranged, and she spoke of creatures with dripping claws and visible skulls...She seemed terrified.”

T’Challa leaned back in his throne, and his mind wandered to Nia again, but this time with purpose. That didn’t sound like any creature he had ever heard of before, but he wondered if she had. His thoughts were interrupted by the Mining tribe elder.

“Also, if I may?”

T’Challa motioned for her to continue.

“There have been multiple sightings of abnormally large hyenas around our province.”

“There were some sniffing around the entrance to the lab this morning, but the Dora scared them off,” Princess Shuri added. “They didn’t look like any hyena I’ve ever seen. They were huge!”

M’Baku’s breathing faltered for a moment; he had heard of creatures like that before. When he met Nia a year prior, he began to worry about the existence of other, more dangerous magical species, and now his fears seemed to be coming true. He couldn’t just come out and say it, though, especially since several of the council members already considered the Jabari to be a backward people. He didn’t need “superstitious” added to the list of reasons not to like them. However, he felt that T’Challa might be a little more open to what he had to say. M’Baku decided a private audience with the king would probably be best.

“Hm...has anyone else noticed anything strange or unusual?” T’Challa asked the room, and two more hands went up. He nodded to the Border tribe elder, and the older man cleared his throat before speaking.

“We took a man into custody yesterday for killing his wife. He claimed she was alive when he left for work, but when he came home, all that was left was her bones. Of course, he’s claiming innocence, but the neighbors say they didn’t see her at all that day, which was unusual. But, um, we’re not sure how he was able to remove the flesh so easily. There looked to be bite marks.”

T’Challa looked to his little sister, who had a horrified look on her face, and grabbed her hand in his. He turned to his other side and saw N’Jadaka’s face scrunched up in disgust.

“What the fuck kind of sick shit y’all got going on over here?” he mumbled so only the king could hear.

“I’m not sure,” he whispered back. The king turned back to the council and gestured at the River tribe elder. “And you?”

“Sightings of strange fish in the river, your highness. Human-sized, much larger than what we are used to.”

T’Challa’s eyes shifted to his right and he noticed the Jabari chief’s nervousness, despite his best efforts to mask his feelings.

“Anything else?” T’Challa asked the council, and they all shook their heads. “N’Jadaka and I will investigate these claims further and have a report for next week. Meeting adjourned.”

The council members saluted him and took their leave—all except one.

“My king, may I have a word privately?”

T’Challa looked at M’Baku knowingly and motioned for the chief to follow him. The two of them, along with the prince and princess, retired to T’Challa’s office to continue their conversation.

“What can I do for you, my friend?” the king asked as everyone filed into the room. Shuri sat by the window and looked out at the country nervously, obviously spooked by what she just heard. N’Jadaka plopped down next to her and tried to seem unbothered, but he couldn’t stop fidgeting with his lucky knife, repeatedly flicking it open and closed in his left hand. M’Baku sat across from T’Challa at his desk, and his leg began to bounce involuntarily as he waited for the king to sit down.

M’Baku cleared his throat anxiously before he began, “We Jabari have many...beliefs that the rest of Wakanda seems to have let fall by the wayside. I only bring this up because of what I’ve seen with my own two eyes, but I believe the elders’ reports. Call me superstitious, but there are forces out there that you would not believe. Even I haven’t seen everything, but there is someone who might know what to do-”

“You’re saying you believe the crazy lady?” N’Jadaka scoffed.

“I do not believe she is ‘crazy’. I believe she saw something none of us could ever imagine.”

“Ok, and her body?” The prince challenged him as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

“I do not know...but I know who might.”

“Who?” Shuri chimed in as she tore her eyes from the scenery.

“She lives with the Border tribe. Her name is Nia-”

“Olu?” T’Challa’s eyes lit up in recognition, and M’Baku couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“You know her?!”

“She was the woman who was almost abducted a month ago. How do you know her?” the king asked curiously.

M’Baku wasn’t sure how much he could say without outing her as a non-human.

“She wandered into our territory once when we were still separate from the rest of you. She was very...odd,” M’Baku looked to the king, who seemed to understand his meaning. He wondered just how much he knew of her identity. “She might be able to help.”

“Odd how?” the prince interjected.

“It’s hard to explain,” the king brushed him off to avoid further prying, making M’Baku nod along. The chief still couldn’t tell how much T’Challa knew, but he kept his mouth shut nonetheless. “I will go talk to her.”

Shuri and N’Jadaka shared a look. They both felt like they were purposely being left in the dark, and neither appreciated it.

--------

Nia snuck back into her home in the magic realm and quickly threw on a headwrap before taking a deep breath and opening her door to the human realm. Her stomach twisted up again as she laid her eyes on the king and his guards standing on her doorstep.

“T’Challa, hey,” she greeted him nervously as she leaned against the doorframe with Sego still draped over her shoulders. Nia noticed the two fierce-looking women on either side of him look at her questioningly for her informality, but they said nothing.

“Hello, Nia,” he smiled before noticing Sego. “How are you today?”

“I’m alright. I, uh, actually just got back in from visiting my ubaba.”

“With that?” T’Challa motioned to Sego, and the python stuck out his tongue.

“Sego? Yeah, he likes to get out sometimes,” she said as she stroked her companion’s head. Nia backed up a little and opened the door wider for him, “Anyways, come on in.”

The king ordered the two guards to stay on the front porch, and they stood at attention, looking out at the village. Several of Nia’s neighbors had noticed their arrival and were trying their best to seem inconspicuous as they spied on her to see what was going on. It wasn’t often that the king came around, so the rumor mill started turning almost immediately.

Once T’Challa stepped into the familiar home, keeping a wide berth from Sego, Nia closed and locked the door behind him. They made their way over to the kitchen, and the king sat down in the same hand-carved chair he sat in the last time he was there.

“Can I get you anything?” Nia offered politely as she made her way over to the stovetop and started warming up a kettle she had filled up the night before. “I made a tea blend that helps calm the mind. I’m about to have some myself if you want in.”

“Sure, I’ll take a cup,” he responded with a smile. He watched her scoop the prepared herbs out of a jar and into two reusable cotton tea bags and place one each at the bottom of a mug. She worked in silence as she tried to calm the anxious feeling that had crept back into her bones after leaving Amare’s. Sego could feel her shaking and squeezed her just a little bit to get her to calm down. She relaxed at his hug and poured the hot water into the mugs before carrying them back over to the table. Nia sat down across from T’Challa and blew on her hot tea before taking a small sip. He did the same and smiled at the flavor. “This is delicious, Nia.”

“Thanks,” she gave a small smile back as her stomach fluttered at his compliment. “So...what brings you here?”

The king sighed and leaned back in his chair, watching intently as Sego slithered down from his perch and curled up in the corner. “There have been some strange activities around the kingdom, and I was wondering if you might know anything about it.”

“Strange how?” Nia’s head cocked to the side, and she placed her elbows on the table as she leaned in closer.

“First, there was a woman who was found dead in her home. Her neighbors saw her the day before, and her husband claims she was alive when he left for work, but all that was left was her bones,” he spoke carefully and observed as fearful recognition clouded her face. Nia couldn’t believe what she was hearing, but she easily put two and two together. The thinning had begun.

“W-what else?” she asked as she leaned in even closer.

“Another woman’s dead body disappeared. She wandered into the market screaming about horrifying creatures, then she seized and collapsed...but her body never made it to the coroner,” he paused to make sure she was still with him. She motioned for him to continue, and he spoke again, “There have also been reports of abnormally large hyenas and fish, but that is less concerning than the other two.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Nia mumbled as she got up and hurried to the bookshelf. She pulled out a large leather-bound book and opened it to a page near the middle before flipping a few pages forward. When she landed on what she was looking for, she set the heavy book down in front of the king. His eyes traveled to the page and widened in fright at the image of a childlike being with a mouth as wide as its face and sharp teeth on display.

“W-what is this?”

“Eloko,” Nia answered as she sat back down. “Long ago, our queen banished them to their own part of the forest. They’re harmless if you ignore them, but if you take pity on them and let them into your home...they’ll eat your flesh in minutes.”

T’Challa scanned the page, taking in every horrifying detail he could as he attempted to calm his heart rate. Not many things frightened the unshakable king, but he was completely out of his element. His mouth went dry as he attempted to speak, “And the other woman?”

“I’m not sure, but…”

He tore his eyes from the book and looked up at her. “But what?”

“I don’t want to jump to conclusions because it’s not a common occurrence, but when bodies disappear like that, there’s usually dark magic involved.”

“Dark magic?”

“Yeah...like I said, it’s not common, but over the years, there have been a few aziza who use their gifts in ways the rest of us do not approve of.”

“Like…?”

“Like creating zombi.”

“Those are real?”

“Very,” Nia shuddered and downed her tea. T’Challa’s eyes fell back to her book, and he began flipping through the well-worn pages. It felt old like it had been passed down for generations, and he surmised it probably belonged to her family for decades, centuries even. He flipped towards the front of the book, landing on the page about aziza. He couldn’t help but smile at the much more welcoming illustration. T’Challa got lost in the description as Nia stood and went to wash out her mug, needing something to do with her hands to calm her mind. He finished reading and looked up to ask her a question, but it slipped his mind when he noticed strange markings on her back in the shape of wings. He started to ask her about the scars when he realized he had seen them once before.

“It was you…”

“What was?” she asked without turning around, scrubbing her mug unnecessarily hard. Nia heard him stand and walk closer, but kept her focus on her task.

He removed the mug from her hand and rinsed it out. Before she could protest, he spoke softly, “I said they looked like wings.”

Nia stilled as she remembered her tube top left her back exposed.

“Yeah…I remember,” she murmured without looking up at him despite their closeness.

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I don’t know,” she shrugged, “I just didn’t think it was important.”

T’Challa smiled, “Of course it’s important! I never forgot that day…now I know how you appeared out of nowhere.”

“Heh, yeah,” Nia responded as she pushed past him to grab her tea kettle. She filled it up again, but still wouldn’t make eye contact. T’Challa looked at her, confused by her change in attitude when it clicked for him...

“You know, I wanted to see you again-“

“Then why didn’t you come back?” She snapped and he realized why she didn’t seem to like him that much.

“I did. My baba took me on a trip with him that night. We were gone for two weeks, but I came back looking for you.”

Nia paused again before setting the kettle back on the stove. She turned to face him, and he could see the confusion all over her face.

“You did?” She asked apprehensively, and he nodded in response. “I went back every day for a week before ubaba made me stop. He didn’t like seeing me so sad.”

T’Challa’s face fell and he took a step forward, “Nia, I-“

“No, it’s fine.” Nia moved away from him and his heart sank as he watched her go over to her herb pantry. She rummaged around for a while before she came back with yet another tea blend.

“So, I’ve been meaning to ask you,” she began to change the subject, “have you spoken to Bast recently?”

T’Challa didn’t want to upset her more by pushing the conversation, so he went along with her train of thought.

“Uh, no. It’s been a while. Why?” he asked as he leaned against the counter, eyes tracking her as she moved to sit back at the table. Nia noticed he had been reading about aziza and smiled internally.

“The veil is thinning. That’s how the eloko got through…and who knows what else.”

“The veil?”

“Yeah, it’s like the border between realms.”

“How is that possible?”

Nia shrugged, “Only Bast knows.”

“And she’s not answering you,” he mused as he sat next to her. She wanted to move away, but forced herself to stay still.

“Nope. I tried this morning, but one of my ancestors came through and told us about the veil.”

“Us?”

“Me and Sego.”

“The snake?”

“Python,” Nia chuckled and shot Sego a look to warn him to behave.

“My apologies. So what did they say?”

“The realms of the living and dead, and the human and magical realms are colliding…they might overlap soon. That and ‘she is precious.’”

“Who is?”

Nia shrugged, “Bast, I guess.”

“But you think she’s disappeared…” T’Challa thought aloud.

“Yebo. I don’t know what can make a god disappear, though. Another god maybe?”

T’Challa’s mind wandered to his Avengers colleague, Thor, but he had no way to contact the god while he was off-planet.

“Perhaps.”

“I could try contacting some.”

T’Challa nodded as the wheels turned in his mind. “There are smaller cults around the country that worship other gods. We might be able to-“

“We?”

“Well, yes, I was hoping you would come with me. I’ll need someone with your expertise. I know nothing about all this, but you do…I need your help.”

“I don’t know, I-“

“Please, Nia,” he begged as he grabbed her hand in his. The silence was thick as they looked at each other, but neither was able to look away. “I need you.”

Nia stopped breathing for a moment as he trapped her in his puppy dog eyes. She wanted to say no, she really did…but she just couldn’t.

“Ok, I’ll do it.”

Next Chapter

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