#but he said wear other colours so hopefully i still get ti see him play it might be sevilla

[swaggypsyduck]

via @sergioramos on insta

[tomtenadia]

A Little Braver - Chapter 11

Hello everyone. That’s me back from my holidays and I have ch 11 ready for you.

The first part is our two lovebirds still on holiday in Doranelle and they get to be cute and yes, this part as fluff. Enjoy it while it lasts.

For the second part and the ending, just blame the angst gremlin. I decline every responsibility.

It was Sunday and also Aelin’s last day of holiday in Doranelle. She and Rowan had spent their Saturday in the Cambrian Mountains and did a lot of hiking, had a picnic near a waterfall and swam naked in the pool in front of it and also engaged in some other more interesting activities. The day had been perfect and they had managed to survive two full days without fighting and they both were impressed by it.

Now they were in his car and Rowan was driving her to the coast. He had explained that it was the last part left to explore and that one of his colleagues had suggested a lovely place. He had made lunch for both again and they did manage to set off a bit earlier.

Aelin was comfortable in her seat, her feet on the dashboard and he stared at her while her head was turned to look outside. 

After their talk he had decided to stop feeling guilty. Aelin had been right and they both deserved a second chance at happiness. He had finally decided to accept what he felt for her and maybe that was why they had not fought for two whole days. They had been both pushing the other away, too scared of caring once again. He still was, if he was truthful to himself. Her job scared the heck out of him. But he was done pushing her away.

“Are you comfortable over there?”

She turned and smiled at him, her blue eyes lit with mirth “are you going all health and safety on me, captain?”

“You are the firefighter, you should know the dangers of such a position in case I hit hard on the brakes.” He explained, stopping a mocking smile from appearing on his lips.

“Well, just don’t slam on those breaks, captain. Can you do that and deliver us safely to the beach?”

His hand gently brushed her naked knee. She was wearing a pair of blue shorts and a colourful top.

“Will the water be warm enough for me to swim in it?”

Rowan nodded. “According to my colleague this is a lovely beach and not too busy either. Something only the locals know about.”

Aelin pulled her sunglasses down on her eyes “wake me up when we are there.”

Fifteen minutes later Rowan poked her arm “Ohi, sleeping beauty. Get up.”

Aelin lifted her sunglasses on her head and glared at him “why can’t you behave like a well mannered man? I don’t know, wake me up with a kiss?”

He got of the car and opened the rear door and unloaded the two backpacks “get your arse out of my car. We are at the beach.”

“So, so rude.” She complained while leaving the car and grabbing her stuff from him. They had warmed up to each other but she still adored their bickering.

He started walking and she ran after him, grabbing his hand in hers.

They arrived at the beach and she rejoiced at the discovery they had the entire place to themselves.

Rowan selected a space not too far from the water and deposited their stuff on the ground, placing also the two beach towels for them.

In an instant Aelin had removed her clothes and was standing in front of him in her bikini.

He stared at her “is that your… bathing suit?”

She posed for him “lovely isn’t it?”

It covered very little, thought Rowan. Two red triangles covered her breasts all tied together by some very flimsy strings and the same for the bottom part.

He grabbed her hand and pushed her down on the towel “sit,” he rummaged in his back pack and took out sunscreen “you have a very fair skin and you will burn.”

Aelin sat down and he took a place behind her. He dropped some cream on her back and started spreading it on her back “you do the front,” he said by passing her the bottle.

“I thought you’d love the honour.”

Rowan sighed “if I do that it might lead to something else which is not appropriate on a beach in the middle of the day.”

Once his hands stopped she reached for the knot behind her neck and untied it, the top of her bikini falling off. She untied the one on her back as well and turned to him “up to the challenge, captain?” She took the bottle and put a dollop of cream on her fingers and started spreading it on her naked breasts and enjoyed staring at his expression morphing into pure lust.

“You’ll be the death of me.” He put more cream on his hands and began massaging her breasts making sure they had a nice cover “given how flimsy your bikini is, you need protection everywhere.”

“So considerate of you…” she teased him arching her back into his touch. She never had enough of him. She had a few men before Sam and no one had ever made her feel like that. Not even Sam.

Once he was done he bent over and recovered the piece of garment “come on, cover up.”

She took the piece of her bikini from him “scared by a pair of magnificent boobs?”

“No, we are in a public place.”

She slowly put the top back on and he offered to tie it for her “let them stare.”

Rowan’s mouth was at her ear again, biting gently her lobe “I don’t share.” and the tone in which he said it made her toes curl.

She then pulled away and ran to the water, jumping in it with happiness. Rowan stood and joined her slowly.

“Come one, it’s stunning.” She shouted emerging from the water.

Rowan smiled then ran and once he reached her he tackled her and carried Aelin like a sack of potatoes and threw her sin the water as soon as they reached a deeper spot. 

Aelin re emerged. She tried to protest but she found his body against hers, his lips kissing her hard. She stared at his tanned and muscular body and ran a hand along his chest “I don’t share either, captain. I am very jealous of what is mine.”

Those words were his undoing. He grabbed her legs and pulled them around him and Aelin climbed on him and a moment later they had completely forgotten they were in the middle of the sea.

Luckily for them they had remained the only two people on the beach as their adventure in the water was followed a bit later by one on the sand.

Fully clothed again they now lay side by side. Aelin had her eyes closed, trying to suntan a bit and Rowan on his belly reading a book.

Aelin turned on her side and lifted the cover of his book and noticed it looked like about some theory of flight or tactics “we are on holiday and you are working?”

He turned to her.

“Your book,” she pointed “it’s about flight tactics. Can’t you enjoy a day without thinking about flying?”

“I’d like you to know that I am reading for pleasure. The fact that the book is giving me great ideas is another matter.”

Aelin scooted closer to him and placed her head under his arm and stared at the book with curiosity. She noticed strange drawings “are those flight manoeuvres?”

He nodded and with his arm he pulled her closer “this,” he pointed at the diagram “is called barrel roll attack. It’s quite cool.” Then he pointed at another one “this is the Immelmann and this one…” he turned the page “these are a low and high yo-yo.”

“They have funny names.” She looked at the book “this one seems cool,”

“This is a high G barrel roll.” He explained “you do this when the attacker is at your tail and you can feel his guns on you. It’s far more brutal than a regular barrel roll. Not recommended if you have a sensitive stomach.” He took out his phone and showed her something “Fenrys put a camera on his fighter during training and this is a video taken during training and a mock dogfight.”

Aelin watched the video with amazement “Play it again, it was so fast.” He did it and she stared at the jet completing the manoeuvre “was that you?”

Rowan nodded and showed her a few more videos of their training. She was fascinated.

“I still want to see you fly. For real.”

He put the phone down and looked at her “Lorcan says it’s fine. We can do that when I come back.”

Aelin nodded and he kissed her. He closed the book and pulled her closer and then lay down with his arm over her in a very protective gesture. She turned and snuggled all the way against his torso and let his body protect her from the sun. 

It was a few hours later when Rowan woke up and realised they had fallen asleep on the beach. Aelin was tucked in his embrace and was sleeping soundly and he was glad to notice that her body was in the shadow of his body. It would have been a very painful awakening. 

“Hey, sleepyhead.”

She opened her eyes and looked up at him and he loved the freckles that had appeared on her face.

“We fell asleep.”

“You really do make a good pillow.” She told him while sitting back up.

“I will make sure to update my resume, I am sure it’s a very sought after skill.” He stood and offered his hand to her “come on, let’s go for a stroll.”

She wore her top again “we don’t want to cause a riot, don’t we?”

Rowan smiled and he pulled her up after he took her hand.

They walked for a while. The beach had turned out to be much longer than they thought. Aelin had kept her shoes in one hand and walked the whole distance with her feet in the water. She hadn’t realised how much she needed a holiday. In the past year her life had been complete dedication to her job. It had helped to keep the demons at bay. But now there was Rowan and hopefully she had found someone with whom to walk the path back toward light.

“Fancy going out for dinner tonight?”

“I am craving seafood.” She said swinging their linked hands “we can stay here. Have dinner and then go back to your flat.”

“Sounds like a great plan.”

It was much later that night when they finally rolled back into Rowan’s flat.

“I am so tired and my face is on fire.”

Rowan cupped he face with his hands “you have freckles and you are stunning.”

Aelin gave him a smile and then ducked “I call dibs on the shower.”

Rowan laughed and let her win.

The shower took her a bit longer than planned. Her thoughts wandered to the fact that she was meant to fly home the next day and sadness struck when she realised she did not want to leave Rowan. They had the four best days so far and she hated that she had to wait two more weeks for him to be back and finally try and work on the foundation of their relationship that they had built during that holiday.

Once back in Rowan’s room she started packing. He had given her her own room but she never used it. They had ended up sharing the room and the bed.

She was busy groaning at packing when she felt his arms fold around her waist from behind. His smell of pine and snow was much stronger and she leaned against his chest, closing her eyes “I really don’t want to go.”

“I’ll be back in two weeks,” he told her against her ear.

“I know,” and she hated how petulant she sounded. She turned in his arms and buried her face in his naked chest. Rowan held her tight, her head tucked under his chin.

“I love when you hold me like this. It makes me feel less alone.”

Rowan squeezed her and they remained like that for a time that it felt endless. He didn’t want her to go either and he had a feeling they were going to be two very long weeks. He was getting used having her in his bed and loved waking up in the morning with her scent around him. He eventually pulled away and sat down on the bed and put on his briefs “come on,” he patted the bed “time to sleep.” She climbed in bed with him and took her usual position nested against him and his arms protectively around her.

Aelin was once again in his car but alas, this time it was not for an adventure. He was driving her back to the airport. Her holiday was officially over and she had been grumpy all morning. 

His hand was resting on her knee giving her comfort.

“Are you going back to work tomorrow?”

Aelin shook her head “I need to start tonight. We are on night shift.”

“That sucks.”

In the distance she noticed the shape of Doranelle airport appear and her heart sank.

Rowan parked in the short stay car park and he grabbed her hand and together they walked into the airport. Check-in was a breeze and he eventually walked her just before the security area “this is as far as I can go.” He told her sadly.

Aelin crashed against him and fought it very hard not to cry.

“Hey…” he said very gently caressing her head “I will be back soon.”

She took a deep breath and pulled back.

“Call me when you land. I don’t trust those civilian pilots.” His thumb brushed her lips gently then he leaned over and kissed her.

“These are going to be two very long weeks.” He whispered against her mouth.

“I know.” Then she kissed him one more time and pulled away with all the courage she had. One of them had to let go eventually.

He kissed her one last time and let her hand go and stared at her walk away until she disappeared behind security.

***

It was a few hours later when Aelin landed back in Orynth. She had texted Aedion before boarding and gave him an ETA. While she waited for her bag to arrive on the carousel she phoned Rowan and he answered at the first ring.

“I am pleased to say that my pilot did manage to land us safely back in Terrasen.”

She heard Rowan scoff “It’s not that difficult, he just needs to press a few buttons and use the stick for landing and take off.”

She loved to tease him “he was hot though…”

“Sure, if you fancy men getting paid to fly a big metal trap in a straight line…”

She chuckled “we turned a few times as well.”

“You banked,” he corrected her.

“Uh?”

“An aircraft banks, does not turn. Then we roll, pitch and yaw.”

She huffed “fine, we banked. Happy?”

Her bag arrived and she placed it on her shoulder.

“Was the flight okay?”

She started walking to the exit “yeah, no turbulence this time.” She reached the main doors and walked through “what are you doing?”

“Getting ready to head to class.”

“Are you going to crush those little bastards?”

Rowan laughed “oh yes, I have a very hard exercise in mind.”

She spotted Aedion in the distance and weaved at him “Aedion is here. I gotta go.”

“Be safe, okay?”

“You too, captain. I am getting quite fond of having you around.”

“Bye menace.”

Aedion found her within minutes and hugged her as if he hadn’t seen her in a lifetime.

“Welcome back.” He squeezed her “give me your bags.” He grabbed her stuff and they walked back to his car “how was you holiday?”

“I had a good time.”

“You seem happier.”

“How is the station? Is it still standing?” She changed the subject. She had no intention of talking about her time with Rowan with her cousin.

“It is still standing. We had a few interesting calls, but nothing we could not handle. The team we got from west is blending really well in our team.”

“Good.”

They arrived at the station not long after and once she got off the car Lysandra and Elide ran to her and hugged her fiercely “I was away only for four days.”

“We missed you.” Then Lysandra grabbed her arm and pulled her to the lockers room “get changed and talk.”

Aelin opened her locker and dropped her duffel bag inside it and took out her uniform “So nosey,”

“You have just spent four days with hot captain. Come on girl, we want details,” and both women sat on the bench.

“We had a good time.”

“And?”

“And it was relaxing.”

“And?”

Aelin removed her clothes and remained in her underwear “and that’s it.”

“You are telling me, that you just spent four days living in his flat and you two did nothing?”

“I am not telling you anything.” She wore her trousers, then grabbed her top and finally her blue shirt “things happened but they are between us.”

“Aelin, I have a bet to win.”

“I knew it.” Shouted Aelin, fixing her hair again in a tight braid.

“Well, they had to concentrate on a new target since Aedion and I are off the betting pool.”

Aelin stopped and turned to Lysandra and the woman showed her her fourth finger now carrying a gorgeous ring.

“Holy fuck, he did it. He finally proposed.”

“It was beautiful,” said Elide dreamingly.

“He did it here at the station?”

Lysandra nodded “he waited for me and Elide to come back from a call. He placed loads of candles in a heart shape in front of the rigs and as we drove back in he stopped in front of the ambulance on one knee. And then he proposed.”

Aelin hugged her best friend “this is amazing. So friggin awesome.”

“So nothing happened with hot guy?”

Aelin looked at the clock. She still had twenty minutes before the start of the shift “Fine. Just as an engagement present.” And she took a seat beside the two women “Rowan and I, we… had a great time.” And at her expression, Lysandra squealed and Elide smiled as well.

“Is he good?”

Aelin laughed “he is… very skilled.”

“Holy shit. How many times? Where? Any naughty places?”

Aelin knew this was going to happen. She and Lys had always shared such things “the first time we did it three time. The night I arrived in Doranelle. And we did it in the sea and on an empty beach.”

“Ok, I am really jealous right now.” Asked Lys grabbing her friend’s hands “what does this mean?”

Aelin shrugged “he is away for two more weeks. Once he is back we… will discuss things.”

“Ok, from a scale from 1 to god, how good is he?”

Aelin laughed “definitely god.”

“And is he…?” Lys’ eyebrows lifted in a suggestive manner.

“I am not telling you that.”

“What does he do to be a god?” Asked Elide shyly.

“Make you scream so much the neighbours thinks he is torturing you.” Explained Lysandra deadpanned.

Aelin laughed and grabbed Elide’s hand “don’t worry about all of this.” She said tenderly “how is it going with Lorcan?”

Elide blushed savagely “really well. I… I told him about… me.”

“And?” Asked Aelin curious. She hoped the man had been nice to her. She knew where his office was.

“He has been nice about it. He promised he’ll wait for me and that when I feel ready he will show me everything.”

Aelin chuckled “Good.” Then looked at the clock “girls, let’s go.”

The team was having a relaxing night in front of the tv. Aelin was on the comfy chair  her legs draped over the arm, reading a book. Rowan’s manual on flight techniques that he had lent her. After he had shown what he was reading at the beach she had started getting curious and wanted to be able to impress him upon his return. Her phone was in her lap and they had been texting all evening. She was hoping in an easy shift when the dispatch alarm went off. Everyone jumped and she and Aedion took a rig each after the announcement called for two engines and the ambulance.

Aelin ran to her turnout gear and got dressed super quickly and jumped in the engine.

“Did I hear correctly?” She asked Nox who was already at the wheel ready to go “are we going to the airport?”

Nox nodded.

“Those bloody civilian pilots.” She joked but no one got her and she wished Rowan was there, he would have loved it.

They arrived at the airport and Nox stopped the truck. Aelin got off and met the man in the car with red flashing lights “Follow me. We have a collision between two aircrafts. The big one then crashed into the hangar and we have people trapped in there as well.”

Aelin ran back and they followed the car and when they reached the accident site they were not ready for the carnage in front of them. The plane had slammed into the hangar and a raging fire had enveloped a side of the aircraft. Aelin searched for the second plane but could not see it. She jumped off the truck and went back to the man to get an idea of what they were dealing with.

“I thought you said there were two aircrafts.”

The man silently pointed at the remains of a smaller aircraft under the bigger one. There was nothing left and the smaller plane had been reduced to smithereens.

She went back to her team and started shouting orders “Manon, Asterin, try and crack the aircraft door open and see if we can save someone. Wesley, Kyllian you go with Ress and cover Asterin and Manon with water.” She ordered them “Ansel, you are on the aerial and get Manon and Asterin where they need to go.” Then she turned to the rest of her squad “Aedion, take Luca and Brullo and stop the aircraft fire. Remember that the fuel is in the wings.”

“How do you know that?” Asked Nox surprised.

“That is not important now.” She went to their engine and grabbed mask and oxygen tank and tools “Ren, Nox, you two are with me. We are going inside the hangar.” They all geared up very quickly and in the distance she noticed Dorian’s approaching. “Aedion, we might need to call west if it gets worse.”

Aelin and the two guys ran to try and find and entrance to the hangar but the frame of the plane was stuck inside it, blocking any access. “Be careful, there is jet fuel everywhere.” They walked under the wing on fire but they could not see any point of access inside the hangar.

“Can you hear it?” Asked Nox.

“Fuck, there are people still in the hangar.” The nose of the plane had collapsed as the landing gear had failed. Then she noticed it. A small passage near the nose. She removed her oxygen tank from her shoulders, pushed it through the opening and walked to the small hole.

“What are you doing?” Shouted Ren.

“Going in. I am the smallest of the three.” She kneeled and started to wriggle her body through the small opening “open up a bigger passage, we need to find a way to evacuate the civilians.”

Once on the other side, the heat was unbearable and fire and smoke made visibility impossible. 

“Fire department, call out.” She shouted to draw attention. A massive explosion rocked the hangar and she threw herself on the ground and rolled quickly on the side managing to avoid a piece of the roof of the hangar collapsing on her.

“Fire department, call out,” she shouted again. Slowly she began walking deeper in the raging inferno in the hope someone was still alive. Everything was collapsing around her. Then she heard it. A voice. 

“Fire department, call out.”

She heard the call again and tried to walk to the voice. Then she saw it. A person was on the floor and beside it there was another one. She ran to them.

“Are you okay?” The woman was in shock but alive.

She had a look at the man lying on the ground and searched for a pulse and found none.

“You need to come with me.”

The woman started shaking and Aelin pulled her up on her feet. She had no time. 

“Go through there, there are firefighters outside. They will help you. You are safe.”

The woman nodded and kneeled and slowly slithered through the small aperture.

“Ren, there is a woman coming out.” She shouted.

“We can’t open a passage. If we do this side will collapse completely.” Shouted Nox in a panicked voice.

“Go through the other side, go through the nose, but I need a fucking bigger passage.” and she left again not waiting for a reply.

Manon had cracked open the door of the aircraft and she and Asterin had made their way inside. The cabin was full of smoke and fire had started to spread from a gash that had opened where the wing was attached to the fuselage. Manon smelled fuel and knew they had to be quick.

“We are with the fire department. If you can walk we need you to follow us and evacuate the aircraft immediately.”

Asterin walked deeper down the aisle “cover mouth and nose with something.” She noticed a few injured people “Manon, you take those who can walk.”

Manon nodded and directed people out of the main door and once at the aerial she shouted for Luca.

The young man climbed the aerial very swiftly “I am passing you some passengers, make sure they get down safely.”

Luca started ferrying people back and forth leading them to safety to two waiting Lys and Elide.

Asterin heard a few ominous sounds and pushed the people down the aisle, Manon joined her and together with the last two passengers they ran into the cockpit and slammed the door shut when an explosion rocked the plane.

Luca flattened on the aerial and covered the person he was accompanying, with his body.

On the ground Aedion and his two men took sheltered from the explosion and Dorian did the same. 

“Evacuate the civilians quickly.” He shouted over the noise.

Lysandra and Elide took all the survivors to the ambulance that had been parked at a safer distance.

“Aedion, I want that fire under control.” Dorian barked again “we are getting close to the collapse point.” then he realised he was missing one person “where’s Aelin?”

“Inside,” and Nox pointing at the hangar.

“Alone?” Shouted Dorian in rage “you let her go inside alone? That is not protocol.”

“She was the only one who could fit through the small gap.” Ren bit back, not caring if he was being disrespectful to his CO. “Nox and I are trying to open a second gap but the fuselage is the only thing holding up the hangar right now.”

Dorian slammed his hat on the ground and tried to call Aelin over the radio but no response came over.

Aelin knew she was lost. She had found two more people beyond saving, but she did not give up. The heat was becoming worse by the minute. She continued walking until she spotted two figures hiding in a corner. They were alive “Fire department,” she shouted. The two people waved at her. One was badly injured “can you walk?”

“I can manage.”

“Lean on me,” offered Aelin to the man. Slowly they crawled back to the nose of the aircraft and as she did with the first person she pointed the exit to them.

She looked at the small screen on her wrist and noticed that her oxygen was running low.

“Shit.” She probably still had fifteen minutes. She could try and save someone else.

Dorian saw the two people come out of the passage and for a moment he hoped a third one would appear as well but Aelin never did. “Where are you?” He whispered to her.

Aedion got the aircraft fire under control, but not yet the hangar and Nox and Ren could finally work on opening a bigger passage for them to go in. They knew it was a race against time. Chances were Aelin’s oxygen was running low and they had to get in and find her quickly. 

Aelin’s breathing apparatus beeped signalling her that her juice was up. She had moved even deeper in the hangar and she had lost sight of the nose of the plane, her only landmark to her way out. All around her there was nothing but fire. She threw the air tank on the ground, now exhausted and useless. She removed the mask and the stench of jet fuel hit her. The smoke grew thicker and she began coughing, her lungs burning at every breath. She placed the mask again against her face and walked a bit more searching for more survivors.

Aedion saw it happen in slow motion. He was helping Nox and Ren opening a new passage to the interior of the hangar when the structure folded on itself. The material, now compromised by the crash and the heat had given up like a house of cards in the wind.

“No… no… no…” said Nox frantically, “Aelin is inside. Fuck it, Aelin is still inside.” He shouted.

Aedion turned to him with a dangerous glare in his eyes.

He ran to the engine and went to grab his oxygen tank but Dorian stopped him “you are not going inside.”

Aedion freed himself from the man’s grip “I am going in and I don’t give a fuck. I am not letting her die in there.”

“You can’t go in there.”

“If you love her as much as you claim you will let me go in and save her.” Aedion wore his gear in defiance.

Dorian tried one more time to stop him but Aedion did not listen and slowly crawled through the passage they had managed to open. 

Aelin stopped and coughed a bit more. Her lungs and her throat were on fire. She could feel the fumes from the jet fuel starting to have an effect on her. She moved a few steps then she heard it. 

A moment later the whole structure collapsed on her. Her mask rolled away from her hand, and Aelin, trapped under the debris, sank into unconsciousness as the fire now surrounded her completely.

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[tenacityreturns]

aokaga drabble: post-nba

plot: kagami cuts off all his friends after forced retirement from the nba, and goes to live in japan again so that he can rebuild himself from the ground up. aomine’s girlfriend, sabs (whom we love), breaks up with him and aomine follows kagami to try and reconnect after a quiet few months. he’s worried as hell, he loves kagami, who he knows without hearing from him that he is miserable. it’s angst. word count: 5860 notes: sfw, future verse, aomine’s pov. it’s specific to my future verse hcs but hopefully it makes sense even if u dont know them lol. nijimura and kagami are ( thank you so much for reminding me about this. present tense. they ARE ) besties, i think that comes up. 

god, it's just too weird coming back here. everything is the same. same cream wallpaper, same dirty mirror in the lift. same buttons, circled with red once pressed. same shitty elevator music. it hums melodically, creating the pretence of relaxation, but daiki is anything but. he stares at himself in the mirror. not much taller than the last time he'd been inside, on his way to see an exuberant redhead in that same, ridiculous penthouse apartment he'd had by himself. would it seem small now that he'd seen the world? now that he had money of his own, lived in a big apartment himself? there are lines in his brow as he inspects it. he doesn't try to fix it. allows himself these nerves because they remind him that he cares. if he didn't, he wouldn't have come back to stay with his parents. wouldn't have followed taiga across the world despite the months of radio silence. missed calls ( ignored calls ). unanswered texts. daiki had tried everything. called taiga’s dad, asked if he'd heard anything recently from him. he never had. never gave daiki anything, anyway. all 'oh, I'm sure he's fine, he's probably just sulking about his injuries.' yeah, that's what daiki is worried about. asao had always got on his nerves. how is he so blind? why can't he see that taiga's devastated to be retiring? he still had as much fight in him as he'd had when they were teenagers. so much fight, and grit, and impossible potential.

the elevator dings. he doesn't move for a moment. ghosts surround him. that time taiga dragged him way too roughly into his apartment, only to kiss him like he's made of glass. the times they'd held hands in the full elevator and no one had minded. the time someone had, and taiga nearly beat him up for it. like, really nearly. all the occasions taiga found to cook meals for him. all the excuses. how the hell could taiga stand to come back here and relive all those memories?

the doors shut. daiki grunts and pushes the button to open them again. he has to buck up. he has to gather himself, all the courage in the world, and tell taiga everything. he was waiting inside, anyway. he'd buzzed him up. yeah, alright. he'd said at the door. yeah, alright. he sounds different now. colder. the knot in his stomach is eating him alive. tearing organs apart. his knees are weak, barely carrying him into the hallway.

how will he phrase it? Daiki makes his way to taiga's door. it's the same colour. same paint, it's peeling a little. he feels sick. so sick. it's fight or flight, isn't it? the nerves. well, he'd already flown away. already allowed taiga to think he didn't care. maybe he hadn't. maybe love had drifted between them, fluttering around like a butterfly in spring. sabina had been a flower daiki visited, she was everything he thought he'd wanted in a partner. funny, clever, interested in him. not like in love him, which she had been, but she'd asked how his day was. sabs was great, but she wasn't taiga. they fought a lot, but not in the same way he'd fought with taiga. and taiga had dated people too, like that hot business guy. older, smart, in love. daiki recognised the way he'd looked at taiga during that terrible doubt date they'd gone on. softly, in awe, like there had been no one else in the room. and taiga had been looking at daiki. saying something with a smirk, trying to get a rise out of him. daiki could have kissed him then.

but he's broken up with sabs when taiga retired. all daiki had done was call him, text him, trying to find out if he was okay. of course he wasn't, but daiki wanted to be there for him. sabs grew tired of it. he doesn't blame her for it. he doesn't blame himself for being in love with taiga, either. it's the natural way of things. and it has been the natural way of things to go back to Japan as soon as he could get a break away from work. he stayed with his parents, kept his head down. reconnected with other old friends from high school, tried to pretend it was just a social call. Tried to pretend he hadn't come all the over here on the off chance taiga might be around to see him, wherever he'd been. what a bittersweet moment when taiga first texted back a few months ago. all casualness, he’d said don’t worry about me, i’m fine. talk soon x and that had been it. he’d replied in english, daiki had texted in english. daiki called him about a week ago and taiga had answered. hearing his voice had been jarring. he’d been waiting so long, so patiently. always hoping taiga would call him for a change.

“i’m in tokyo visiting family,” daiki had said hastily, shocked that he’d actually get a reply this time. he waited. nothing. fine. he kept talking. “i get it if you don’t wanna talk to me, or whatever, but---

“no, i wanna see you. come over. i’m back in my old apartment, you remember where that is? come by next saturday.” and they agreed on a time like it was the most normal thing in the world.

daiki sees his hand raise to knock on the door, and he wonders how many times in his life he’d done this. his knuckles had met the door hundreds of times before, when they’d been younger. less experienced. happier. god, daiki’s scared. it’s too weird coming back here.

the door opens. it’s taiga. he looks tired. he’s put on weight, his bare arms are still tree trunks but they’re not showing muscle definition anymore. he makes grey sweats and a black t-shirt look classic for a reason. daiki stares at him, taking it all in, suddenly tongue-tied. he doesn’t have the right words, they don’t exist. there’s nothing to say. he shouldn’t have come.

“makes you feel old, don’t it?” taiga says, rubbing his neck.

"what?”

“being back here. i feel like i should ask you if you wanna play one-on-one then go to maji’s.” the joke hurts. red eyes hold such sadness in them. it looks like it hurts to look at daiki, too. he shouldn’t have come.

“taiga---”

“i can’t, i dunno if you heard. i can’t play again. i’m still recovering. i had to choose between being able to walk when i’m sixty, or playing basketball another year. i was so close to picking basketball.”

daiki trudges inside. he fights the instinct to sweep taiga into an all-encompassing hug. it’s awful being in this room again. the furniture is different, thank god, but the essentials are in the same place. the kitchen is the same. there’s the spot daiki would always perch when taiga was cooking something for him. the sofa is in a different position. how clearly he can see the old layout now that he stands amongst its replacements. daiki doesn’t know what to say to taiga’s crushing statement. could he speak if he wanted to? there’s a lump in his throat. he takes his shoes off. those are taiga’s jordans. it’s good he still wears basketball shoes. it’s wrong when he doesn’t. they’re like an extension of him, like the colour of his hair. scarlet in the sunlight.

“isn’t that what you wanted to hear?” taiga’s voice is so dark, he hasn’t shut the door yet. when daiki looks over, the hand on the door is tense, as if trying to make a fist through the wood. it takes daiki by surprise to see this rage. “isn’t that what anyone wants to know, whether i care if i played again?”

“i---” he blinks. “i don’t care about basketball.”

wrong answer. the door slams. daiki flinches. taiga stalks into the kitchen.

“i mean, of course i care, it’s just-- you scared the shit outta me. i figured you didn’t wanna see me of all people, then i heard you cut everyone off, all your old teammates. gave everyone the cold shoulder. we just wanna help you, man, you’re not alone in this.”

“i’m over it.”

“i wouldn’t be, if i was you.”

“you have no idea how i feel, daiki,” taiga pulls two beers from the fridge. daiki had half expected banana milk. the thought makes him feel worse.

“nobody does, you won’t talk to anyone.” it’s a leap, maybe he had been, but had avoided daiki’s questions when he’d asked them. did nijimura know how he felt? did satsuki, and they just hadn’t told him?

“i don’t want to,” he takes the drinks to the couch, and daiki follows. daiki sits in a chair where his beanbag had once been. taiga continues, “i don’t wanna even think about basketball. that’s why i never messaged you back. i knew it would all come out once i saw you.”

daiki doesn’t open his beer. he stares at it guiltily, but he can’t bear opening it. can’t bear disturbing the quiet falling between them.

“i would’ve left you alone if you hurt yourself,” taiga goes on, in too smooth of a tone to have been anything but the truth. “i would’ve known you wouldn’t want to see me because it’d remind you of the old times.”

silence. he really shouldn’t have come.

“i’ve always had basketball,” taiga says quietly, sipping on his beer. “all my friends were into it too. back when i had this place first, i figured everyone was only interested because i was good. especially you guys.” he clicks his tongue. “you, generation of miracles. i didn’t blame you, either. i got it. tetsu, ryouta, tatsuya. i’d think about whether you’d lose interest if i got hurt and couldn’t play anymore. i didn’t wanna face it.”

“is that--- is that what you think about me now?”

no reply. he drinks more beer. daiki shifts to the edge of his seat.

“taiga. answer me.”

“i considered it. at first, definitely. then you kept calling, i guessed it was your conscience or something. don’t feel bad about it, or whatever--”

“don’t feel bad? why would you think that? i--” he has to take a breath. it’s taiga’s mistake. it’s something in his past that caused him to think that the limits of his worth are tied with his ability to play ball. that’s awful. but it’s not something to argue over. it won’t help. “look, you’re wrong. alright? don’t ever think that about me again.”

taiga shrugs. “you wanted to know how i felt.”

it’s a blow. it hurts. no doubt about it. when daiki had said i love you, had taiga always heard i love your basketball? that’s ridiculous. daiki had loved taiga’s way of playing, but that wasn’t just it?! there are corners of taiga’s mind that daiki doesn’t like, doesn’t get along with. but despite that, he loves that, too. loves taiga. loves, loves, loves him. he always has, he always will.

“you once said there’s nothing a winner can say to a loser. ain’t that how it is here? what could you say to me i haven’t heard from everyone else who can still play basketball?”

“if you couldn’t walk now, do you really think i wouldn’t wanna be there to help you with your wheelchair?” it slipped out, almost venomously. defensively. taiga blinks, quiet as the dead. daiki sighs, setting the drink down unopened. “you’re one of my best friends, taiga. you’re more than that. i think i made myself pretty clear when i called you and texted you. sorry if that was the wrong thing to do... but... if you stopped playing basketball after high school, i’d still have wanted you around, you know. even if you were some boring ass banker in another country, i still would’ve kept in touch.”

daiki doesn’t look at taiga now. he can’t. it’s too much honesty. there’s too much weight to his words. ( if he had looked over, he’d see the shaking hand raising beer to lips, hiding that they too quiver under the threat of tears. )

“sorry if i’m just saying stuff you’ve heard before. i’ll leave if i’m making it worse. i didn’t mean to.”

continued silence. what does he say next? what can he say? he doesn't want to leave. he should have come. daiki sighs, sinking back into his seat with his eyes anywhere but on taiga. this chair is hard. it's a sand-coloured linen armchair with deep mahogany accents. the kind of chair that really isn't meant to be sat in. sabs had one like this. it was a glorified bowl. totally uncomfortable, and even he was never able to sleep in it. this chair is similar. its voice is loud and harsh: i am an adult purchase. daiki misses the beanbag. the most comfortable thing he'd ever slept on. second most. he finally looks at taiga. the couch is different. it's also sand in colour, and cuboid, but the arm-rests are low and with the right cushion, their rounded corners would make for a good napping area.

the old sofa hadn't been comfortable. he'd convinced himself that it was, until taiga became the perfect cushion between sofa and daiki. it's a stupid thought, but is a toned body really that comfortable of a cushion? the soft lines of taiga's broad shoulders look just as enticing. but... the beanbag... daiki's bought beanbags for himself since then but they've never been the same. even the same brand (model discontinued) hadn't been the same. it wasn't just that it was oblong and firm enough that he doesn't touch the floor, while still retaining body-moulding softness. it was partly that. daiki had realised it the first time he settled into his new and immediately rejected beanbag years ago, when he and taiga had broken up for the second major time. it was that he'd been on taiga's floor, exhausted after an almost challenging one-on-one, waiting for his rival to make him his dinner. even before they'd started dating, daiki had felt a special sort of peace here. there's comfort in finding someone who you can be your authentic self with. daiki's basketball ability didn't scare taiga off.

"daiki?"

daiki had been staring at the window when taiga spoke. he immediately looked over, momentarily forgetting everything that was said minutes before. forgetting why he's here, what brought him, what chair he's sitting in. he's in the beanbag again. taiga's about to ask him to solve a history question, and daiki's half a second away from making up a completely fictitious answer so he doesn't have to bashfully admit that he doesn't know.

“can i ask you something?”

“shoot,”

“were you just thinking about your old beanbag?”

ah. busted. he blinks, dazed. taiga’s expression starts to change. his eyes search daiki’s from across the room and gradually, a smile forms. the sun comes out. literally. the shadow-stealing grey sky gave the city a brief interlude of hope in a few, impossibly long seconds of proper sunlight. the weather, daiki noticed, linked inextricably with a personal epiphany. it doesn’t matter whether he’s an easy read. at any given moment, daiki is thinking about his next meal or his next sleep. but that, in the depths of their conversation, taiga had pulled himself out of it enough to come to the correct conclusion on what daiki was thinking about. it wasn’t basketball, it wasn’t their history ( not entirely, at least ), and it wasn’t taiga’s injuries ( though maybe it should have been? ). it was his old beanbag. not taiga’s. not nijimura’s. his. and he’s smiling again, for the first time today. a wall has come down.

the future starts to fit into place. is that dramatic? it’s fate. it’s fate. does taiga see it too? does he knows that daiki could walk to the ends of the earth for him? daiki smiles too, now. he sinks deeper into his awful seat, shoulders almost meeting his ears.

“i hate this chair, taiga.”

“me too, but i hated the beanbag more.”

“you didn’t,” a critical insult! “why’d you keep it if you hated it so much?”

taiga sighs now, shifting in his seat so that his arm rested on the back of the couch, head against his hand. he stares with an unimpressed downwards turn to his mouth, and a double chin beneath his jaw. because you loved it, his eyes replied in words his mouth couldn’t betray, and i loved you. past tense, daiki can’t flatter himself into thinking that taiga is in any kind of place to be thinking about relationships. but they’d been in love before. daiki had been taiga’s first ( almost ) everything. it’s over in a split second, but he remembers thinking they’d be together forever.

“do you really think i could’ve been a banker?”

the question, offered casually under the guise of an innocent topic change, has weight to it. daiki knows this, but it doesn’t matter. his answer comes from the heart. their eyes meet.

“y’know,” daiki straightens up a little, “yeah, i do. i still think you could be a banker, dude. you’re one of the few people i’ve met who can really do anything you set your mind to.”

“i’m too stupid to be a banker.”

insecure words don’t suit taiga’s voice. they sound wrong. daiki doesn’t look away. “your tenacity outweighs your stupidity any day.”

taiga rolls his eyes and sips his beer. his smile fades. what’s he thinking about? daiki feels guilty realising he can’t read taiga as well as the other way around, but the last time they’d been in this room, it would have been a fair guess to suggest basketball was on his mind. it had almost always been on his mind. and now that his eyes no longer sparkle, basketball or lack thereof would also be a decent guess, but daiki didn’t think it was just that. does taiga think of the past? does he regret not paying attention in school and not giving himself any kind of backup career? daiki does. their parents do.

god, why can’t he think of anything to say? why is he so fucking silent all of a sudden? daiki’s usually quick as a whip, can spark a laugh or a fight at his whim. he usually knows just what to say when taiga’s not feeling great. or knows just what to do. all he can think of is a hug and what good has a hug ever done, really? he wants to wrap his arms around his old friend’s shoulders and tell him it’s all going to be alright. would taiga push him away? would he get mad?

“so,” taiga stands unexpectedly. is he about to tell him to get lost? “how are you doing?”

it takes him aback. uh, he’s been shit. he’s been worrying to death over taiga’s lack of communication, and fearing the worst with every phone call ignored. daiki exhales, watching taiga walk over to the sliding doors to the tiny balcony. it’s early evening and the city is starting to twinkle. does taiga admire its familiar beauty, or does he stare out with an empty gaze? for the love of all things good, daiki, for fuck’s sake! just say something!

“fine,” excellent.

“good. how’s sabs?”

“sabs?”

“yeah. i heard things were getting serious with you two.” his voice is impossible to hear, but he’s not mocking him. taiga’s ignorance at the situation is baffling, but he isn’t being spiteful.

“uh. we-- we broke up, man, ages ago. like, a few months.”

“huh.”

silence returned. daiki hates this. he understands not googling each other, but hadn’t anyone told taiga about sabs and him? had taiga really not asked? he’d been avoiding every other basketball guy he knows, why would daiki be any different? was it possible that taiga doesn’t care anymore? no, cool it. no talking about relationships right now, it’s not the time. fuck knows what conversation this moment does call for, but it’s not that. leave it. chill. have some beer.

daiki follows his own advice and finally opens his beer. it’s gross. he’s more of a wine guy, while taiga has always liked his beers. unsurprisingly, the drink does little to distract him.

“how are your parents?”

so is this what it was going to be? small talk? daiki would prefer going back to aggressively telling taiga how fucking amazing he is, just to fight the voice that had said i’m too stupid to be a banker.

“dad’s retiring soon,” daiki replies in a sigh, “there’ll be a party. you should come.”

taiga chuckles dryly.

you don’t have to, jesus. daiki doesn’t say it, and fights the irritation as best as he can. he’s using the same patience that taiga had used with him in the past when the world had felt like it was collapsing. “mom asks about you all the time.”

a grunt this time; it’s kind of like the surprised huh from earlier, mixed with a noise of amused rejection.

“how’s your dad?”

“he doesn’t get it at all. i tried telling him imagine you lost both your hands and couldn’t work anymore, but it’s not the same. he doesn’t love his work.”

daiki’s moving before he can help it. he comes to stand beside taiga to watch the city. he can’t see beyond the reflection of taiga’s sorrowful face in the glass. he’d been right, earlier. those gorgeous eyes were empty. if he was looking at the view, his eyes were dead on the horizon.

taiga continues without interruption. “he only works as an escape from everything he fucked up in his life. me, for instance.”

“taiga,” daiki’s heart aches.

“i should’a listened when i was a kid. that’s it. i should’a paced myself.”

“would you have joined seirin’s team if you paced yourself?”

silence.

“your intensity is a part of you, taiga,” daiki says gently. taiga’s distant eyes hone in on the reflection, too, and now they’re looking at each other in the glass. daiki is first to look away like a coward. “i think if you had paced yourself, you’d have come to one of seirin’s games. you would’a found out about the generation of miracles and thought i wanna take those asshole down a notch.”

“you told me my light’s too dim when we first met, though.” taiga turns his head so that he’s facing the city again. “even if i joined the team, we still lost before we got to finally beat you.”

“it was tetsu who lifted you up to my level,” daiki’s reply is barely a whisper. he’s falling into his own memories and his eyes drop to the windowpane. it had always been him. they both dwelled on it, he didn’t have to be a mind-reader for that. he misses kuroko like hell.

“you ever wish you hated basketball?” taiga’s voice cracks. he takes a sip of beer and daiki copies him.

“yeah,” before he’d met taiga, he’d been plagued with the idea of never meeting anyone up to his standards. anyone better. kise came close, but daiki had lost to seirin. that felt like lifetimes ago now.

“this fucking sucks,” he’d finished his beer now. daiki glances over in time to see taiga blindly toss his beer bottle over his shoulder. he looks back to see where it landed. it hadn’t shattered, but flown safely onto the sofa where taiga had been sitting. taiga doesn’t move. he doesn’t react at all.

daiki feels it keenly too, can’t taiga see? he’s not alone. sure, daiki can’t fully understand how it feels to be forced into retirement due to injury, but he’s on his way there. his body is tired and it is always sore. one of these days, he’ll land funny and never properly recover. and then daiki will isolate from the world until he can figure himself out. it will be like carving the basketball out of himself. having played for his whole life, what will be left? he comes to stare at taiga so gradually that he hadn’t noticed when it happened. he sees a strong man with a huge heart and the rest of his life ahead of him. he is awesome at cooking, maybe he’ll do something with that? he has enough money that, if he’s sensible with it ( which he always has been ), he’s financially secure. hell, taiga’s always been financially secure.

he sees a man waging a war in his mind. he sees broken pieces desperately held together. daiki sees himself.

“i’ll leave if you want me to, tai. i don’t wanna make it worse.”

taiga shakes his head. he looked, for a second, like he’d say something. his mouth opened, but he changed his mind last minute and closes it again. daiki can’t stand to see him this way. if they never talk about basketball again for the rest of their lives, he’ll find something else to say. they can’t just stop talking because they can’t play against each other anymore. unless that’s really what taiga wants, which daiki doubts.

it’s a bold move, perhaps, but he bumps his knuckles gently against taiga’s hand hanging beside them. the redhead glances between them, but it doesn’t put daiki off. he carefully offers his hand to hold, forgoing breathing lest it spark an outburst. there’s no rage this time. their hands connect like they had a million times before. daiki already feels better for it, selfishly, as if how he feels is what’s important right now. fuck, he just loves taiga so much. he’ll be fine, he’s taiga. of course he will. he’s at a low point and it’s weird to see him so lost, it’s unnatural somehow, but he’ll get through it. daiki believes in him. he believes in him with his whole goddamn heart.

taiga meets his eyes just as he’s feeling like he could just say it outright. daiki sees tired, teary eyes. he squeezes his hand. “what are you thinking about?” taiga asks quietly.

“how amazing you are,” he replies. “you’ll get through this. i know you will.”

taiga scoffs, but it doesn't sound like an outright rejection. not totally, at least.

a silence settles between them as they each think of something to say. daiki wishes there was something he could do to fix it. fix all the hurt. wrap it up in a ball and throw it outside. it's more of a distraction than anything, but hadn't that metaphor sounded like basketball? it would be impossible to cut the sport from himself. he doesn't think he'd be able to do it. this must be hell for taiga. he glances over and meets teary eyes unexpectedly looking at him, too.

"come here," daiki pulls his hand away, only to slide in and wrap his arms around taiga's waist. he hadn't thought twice about it this time. it's the right thing to do.

"i'm fine," taiga sniffs.

"then it's for my benefit," he snaps. it works, and he feels familiar arms wrap around him in kind. they stand in gentle silence, there’s a wall clock ticking somewhere in the background. cars beneath them sound like crashing waves. a siren. daiki runs his hands along taiga’s back soothingly, and notes that the form is softer now where muscles had laid careful marks of definition. taiga had always been bulkier than him, but this added weight makes the guy seem immovable. and here he is, hiding his face in daiki’s shoulder in the world’s saddest hug. he has to stop himself from kissing him there and then. as if that would help anything. it used to. enough kisses peppered on taiga’s face had always been enough to lift his mood. it’s strange to love taiga with restraint, but he will, if that is what he needs.

"you were right, by the way," taiga mutters, "I haven't talked this through with anybody."

"yeah. i'm here for you, tai. but we don't gotta talk about it if you don't want to. hell, we could pretend i'm the one who works at the bank and never talk about basketball again."

"you, a banker? that's just unrealistic." it's a joke delivered totally pathetically, with a shaking voice.

"shut up," and it's a defence without any bite to it.

“sorry about sabs,” daiki feels the words mumbled into his shoulder, feels taiga’s lips say her name against his t-shirt. taiga sounds guilty. he must know.

“don’t worry about it.”

“i heard you say in that interview that you were gonna have kids. i thought you were gonna end up with her.”

“interview?” daiki frowns. taiga breaks out of the hug and opens the sliding door. he comes to lean against the balcony, and daiki is still standing where he had been, racking his brain for what the hell he was talking about? he remembers an invasive question from a dickhead reporter along those lines, but daiki hadn’t said that he was going to? have them with sabs? he had never even considered it. really never considered it. hell no. “uh,” he finally replies, realising that he hadn’t yet, “no.”

“would you, in the future? not with sabs. i just mean, in general.”

daiki slides the door further open and steps into the cool air. he rests against the railing with his forearms, looking down and out at the city. for all that it could mean, he looks over with a gentle expression at the only person that would change his mind about it. “would you?”

taiga remains fixed on the horizon. his shoulders shrug. “i never thought about shit like that before. i think so, maybe.”

daiki hums. he doesn’t say anything. he doesn’t admit to being happy to hear that taiga is open to it, doesn’t admit that he’s always liked the idea of having kids. at least one, maybe two. being an only child is difficult, but then, the adoption process is difficult. hopefully two kids. he recalls a conversation they had had a long time ago, or maybe it had been a moment in passing that stuck out. taiga has changed his mind. back then, daiki distinctly remembers hearing that taiga didn’t think he’d make for a very good dad. he remembers, because he knows how much he disagreed. a guy like him with a heart like that? please. it’s a given.

“while you’re here, you should visit nijimura and his kids at teiko.”

daiki blinks. the speed at which the conversation was going is leaving him behind. he’d done that before, sure, but not as often as taiga. that makes sense though, right? taiga was always good at making time for shit like that. he shrugs his shoulders. “yeah, i guess. i hadn’t thought about it.”

“daiki?” taiga says quietly. when daiki looks over, their eyes meet. god, taiga’s eyes are so fucking sad. he can’t deal with it. daiki nods, taiga continues. “i’m gonna give you a word of advice. you should really think about what you’re gonna do when you can’t play anymore. i wish i had. there’s no point dwelling on the past, but if i can stop you from feeling like this, then it won’t all be for nothing.”

daiki categorically doesn’t like talking about stuff like this. his injuries will heal. they always do. and he will play again. he is not strong like taiga, he can’t just carve it out and build himself up again. taiga will be able to tell by the look on daiki’s face that he has taken the advice to heart, even if he can’t speak for the lump in his throat. when he can, after a moment, daiki replies.

“i get it if you wanna be alone right now,” his eyes drift back to the city, “and i’ll go stand on the side-lines ‘til you’re ready if that’s what you want, but if our roles were reversed like you mentioned earlier, i hope you would know to come find me.”

“of course i would,” taiga rests forwards on the balcony, mirroring daiki. their arms touch, neither move. “when you put it like that... i’m sorry i was so hard to find.”

daiki doesn’t tell him that he loves him now. not in words. he says it between the lines, in the diminishing space between his fingertips and taiga’s skin. any excuse to touch him, he makes. now, as his head comes to rest momentarily on taiga’s shoulder. can he stay there? taiga allows it. he does. on the arm, later, as a story is told, on the hand. taiga returns it in a drifting touch across daiki’s shoulders as he’s passing in the kitchen, or that one, affectionate moment where taiga had playfully scuffed his knuckles against daiki’s chin. god, it had driven him crazy. taiga is so beautiful. his hair is a little longer. the guy’s always wanted a mullet, maybe now he’s actually growing it out? his hands, his back, his thighs. they’d been friends with benefits a few years ago because they couldn’t handle being in the same room without physically reacting to it. then they’d started taking other people. and now, daiki feels that gut instinct to give taiga everything again. but he won’t. not tonight.

instead, he’ll confess his love in the respectful silences, in reassuring smiles, the changes of conversation, the nah, i’ve got nowhere to be when 11 o’clock hit and taiga was embarrassed to have taken up so much of his time. he says i love you in the way that they briefly hold hands. in the words unsaid because now isn’t the time. in the lingering glances, in the i’ll take the couch tonight. ( taiga, in his way, says i love you as he says no you won’t, you’ll sleep with me. or at least he says i know you love me, which is good enough. ) of course they sleep together. taiga’s head comes to rest upon his chest. they’re clothed. it’s weird not immediately making out with him now that all that daiki can smell is taiga. they are silent as their arms find comfortable ways to settle to sleep. daiki waits for the longest time before he speaks. he waits for breathing to even out, and grip to loosen where taiga’s hand had come to rest at his hip. and, when he does speak, it’s barely a whisper scraped through his tired, croaking throat:

“i love you, tai.”

nothing happens. taiga had been asleep. the night wears on and daiki’s mind walks through every sentence they had spoken. he falls asleep as the stars start to fade, wakes up again when taiga is getting out of bed, but doesn’t stay up. later, the smell of breakfast makes him stir ( it’s never failed before ). taiga tells him that he’s got a job at a bakery, so this bread is actually made by him. it’s perfect, but of course it is. it’s his.

[imsorryimlate]

Specific references in Pomegranate Seeds, sorted by chapter

Title of work: Pomegranate Seeds

A reference to the myth of Persephone and Hades, where Hades is the god of the underworld who kidnaps Persephone – the daughter of Demeter, goddess of agriculture and harvest – and makes her queen of the underworld. He gives her a pomegranate to eat, and for every seed she swallows she has to spend a month with Hades in the underworld. During the months she is with Hades, she is gone from her mother, and that’s why autumn and winter exist (since Demeter is grieving the loss of her daughter). Spring and summer are the months when she is back with Demeter, and Demeter is once again happy. The myth has lots of interpretations, but my favourite is the one where it is said to be based on the trauma of both daughter and mother as they are separated when the daughter gets married and enters a new household.

Even though Giorno’s mother didn’t treat him well, her death was most likely traumatic to him. He enters the new household of Dio (Hades) and every time they touch each other in a way that isn’t befitting father and son, one could say that Giorno swallows another pomegranate seed, and it binds him to the underworld. In this case, the underworld would both represent the criminal world, but also the trap of their incestuous relationship that he then cannot leave, should he want to.

No specific references in chapters 1 & 2.

Chapter 3:

Demetra – Giorno’s mother doesn’t have a name in canon, so I made one up. Demetra is the Italian version of Demeter, which is the name of the Greek goddess of agriculture and harvest. The goddess is the mother of Persephone, and the title of this fic – Pomegranate Seeds – is a reference to the myth of Hades and Persephone.

The biblical paintings in the church – John the Baptist (martyr) was beheaded, and Judas (traitor) hung himself. The imagery around Eve, the snake and the red apple, well… depending on how you interpret the story in the Bible, this could mean that the scene doesn’t represent a fall from grace, but rather that it was God’s intention to have humanity step into the broader world.

Dio’s books – I mostly just had a look at my own bookshelf, but I purposely included Nabokov, Machiavelli, and Plato. Nabokov, of course, references his infamous novel Lolita. Machiavelli was an Italian politician and philosopher during the Renaissance, and he’s most famous for his book The Prince, where he gave rulers quite… devious advice, not shying away from unethical and corrupt means. Therefore Machiavelli and the derived term Machiavellian often denotes (political) deceit. And Plato, well, in his text The Symposium he speaks of the ancient practice of pederasty in a very positive manner, and claiming that it is the purest form of love.

Aniara – I picked the book because it’s my sister’s favourite. It is a book-length epic science fiction poem that narrates the tragedy of a large passenger spacecraft carrying a cargo of colonists escaping destruction on Earth veering off course, leaving the Solar System and entering into an existential struggle. This is the “space-travel” Giorno later reflects on while in the bath.

No specific references in chapter 4.

Chapter 5:

The next reference to Machiavelli – Giorno thinks about Machiavelli and the question if it is better to be feared or loved, which is something Machiavelli writes about in his book The Prince, where he states that it is better for a ruler to be feared than loved, if they cannot be both.

No specific references in chapter 6.

Chapter 7:

Reckless – Giorno notes that Dio wants him “recklessly, passionately”. This is one of the two times the word “reckless” is used in this story; the only other time being in the first chapter when Giorno’s mother dies after her car collides with a reckless truck. Dio’s desire for Giorno is tied together with that accident, as if it’s equally dangerous.

Jewel – “Yes, Giorno would like something like that; to show Dio that he was a prized jewel, cut to fit perfectly in the curve of his palm.” This line directly references the Song of Songs 7:1 “Your rounded thighs are like jewels, the work of a master hand.”

Eden – “How truly unfortunate, that the most tempting fruit should be found in the middle of Eden.” The garden of Eden, in the Bible, is where life is first created by God. It can therefore also symbolise family, where life also is created. So what Dio essentially says here is “what a shame the most fuckable person is found in my family”.

Draconic tendencies – Giorno having “draconic tendencies” is a reference to his earlier thoughts about Abbacchio hoarding Bucciarati like a jealous dragon.

Chapter 8:

Buttercups – Giorno picks a bouquet of buttercups for Dio, and buttercups have traditionally been associated with childhood. It is meant to express that Giorno, no matter how mature he himself is convinced that he is, still has a childish edge to his affection. As a fun aside, the Latin name for buttercups is Ranunculus, which means “little frog”.

Leda and the Swan – the painting Dio has in his study. It is, of course, an erotic yet controversial motif in itself, but there are some references to the Greek myth it is based on. In it, Zeus disguises himself as a swan and copulates with Leda. It is not entirely clear if it is by rape or seduction. Zeus, of course, is known for his sexual escapades, his violent temper and jealousy, but here he disguises himself as a swan, which is an animal that in European culture often has symbolised love and fidelity. This story of a shady person disguising himself as someone loving, to enter a relationship where consent is dubious at best, well… I think the implications are clear. As a fun aside, the name Zeus and the name Dio are directly connected.

Uneasy lies the head – the whole quote is “uneasy lies the head that wears a crown”, a saying from Shakespeare’s play Henry IV, Part 2, meaning that someone with great responsibilities won’t be able to rest properly.

The prodigal son – it’s a reference to a parable in the Bible, from Luke 15:11-32. The story goes that a son requests his inheritance early, spends it all irresponsibly, and then returns home to beg his father to let him work for him. His father, however, welcomes him home with open arms and throws a feast, which indicates that he has hopefully waiting for the son to return.

Nakedness – the scene in Giorno’s room, where he lowers his duvet to display his “nakedness”, the word choice here is important. Except for Genesis 42, all biblical occurrences of the common idiom ”to see the nakedness of” or “to uncover the nakedness of” are explicitly sexual, usually referring to incest. The Classical Hebrew word 'erwā is not “nudity” but “nakedness”, in the sense of something that is unseemly or improper to look at or expose; often used to denote forbidden sexual relations.

Chapter 9:

Wine-dark – Dio’s eyes are described as wine-dark, which is a reference to the use of “wine-dark sea” in Homer. It’s an epithet used in the Iliad and the Odyssey, of uncertain meaning. What exactly does it mean that the sea is “wine-dark”? Is it a reference to the stormy sea being unpredictable, like someone who’s drunk on wine? Or does it tell us something about how ancient Greeks perceived colours, where maybe depth and opacity levels were more important than hues?

Ambrosia – Giorno compares the taste of Dio’s seed to ambrosia, which is the food and drink of the gods in Greek mythology.

Lollipop – Giorno is sucking on a lollipop while he’s out shopping. This is a shameless reference to the most culturally recognised image of Nabokov’s Lolita, where Sue Lyon, the actress who portrayed the character Lolita in Stanley Kubrick’s film adaption of the novel, is sucking on a red lollipop while wearing heart-shaped sunglasses. It’s worth noting, however, that the character Lolita doesn’t eat a lollipop in the novel or Kubrick’s film, and the images were only used for promotion. Either way, the lollipop has nonetheless become a symbol for playful, youthful temptation.

No specific references in chapter 10.

Chapter 11:

Dio’s alarming beauty – Giorno reflects on how beautiful Dio is, that he is alarmingly beautiful. This is a reference to a quote from The Secret History by Donna Tartt: “Beauty is rarely soft or consolatory. Quite the contrary. Genuine beauty is always quite alarming.”

Chapter 12:

Kisses – there’s a lot of descriptions of kissing in the beginning of this chapter, and it is all a reference to the biblical book Song of Songs. “Honey-sweet kisses that melted his tongue” is a reference to Song of Songs 4:11 “honey and milk are under your tongue”. On a more complicated note… “those kisses, Giorno drank them from his mouth like they were life-giving water” is a reference to Song of Songs 1:2 that should be “I want to drink kisses from his mouth”, however, most translations will read “let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth”. It’s really complicated as to why I and others would translate it differently, but in general it has to do with the manuscript and the Masoretic editors’ vocalisation, which in turn has a lot to do with evaluating Classical Hebrew grammar and poetic conventions… I am going to spare you that lecture, but I still wanted to let you know that you won’t find that wording in most English translations of the Bible.

The garden, Eden, and juvenile sex – this all ties together. The garden of Eden is, in the Bible, where life is created and before “the fall of man”, it is a place of peace and innocence. Now, it might seem strange to refer to innocence in a story like this, but there still is a certain kind of innocence to their relationship, especially on Giorno’s end. They are described as “easy and unafraid, in full view of God”, which again is a reference to the biblical creation story; after “the fall of man”, when Adam and Eve have sinned, they are suddenly afraid of God and tries to hide from him, and for the first time shield their nudity, since they have now lost that innocence. So, Dio and Giorno being unafraid in full view of God is another reference to them being fairly innocent. At least that’s how Giorno conceptualises it.

Satyriasis – a word for excessive sexual desire, and an outdated term for hypersexuality. The word was developed in relation to the satyrs of Greek mythology, who were lustful woodland gods.

Nipple play – Giorno sucking on Dio’s tits, well… quite obvious reference, but if you missed it; it’s a reference to breastfeeding and nourishment.

Sunlight – in Stardust Crusaders, Dio tells Polnareff that he too has pain in his life because he can never see the sunlight, since he is a vampire. In this story, Dio isn’t a vampire, but I still wanted to include this pain. Dio’s love for the sunshine, and the depravation of it in his childhood, is my attempt to reconceptualise it.

Chapter 13:

Ice cream – elder flower sorbet has a tendency to taste like laundry detergent if you’re not careful, so Mista definitely picked the wrong flavour that time.

Know thy enemy – “know thy enemy” is a famous quote from The Art of War by Sun Tzu.

Chapter 14:

Paradise burning – more Eden references, they never truly stop.

Loins – in Classical Hebrew, one specifically emphasises that a child has sprung from someone’s loins to indicate that it is a biological child rather than an adopted one.

Deadly sins – Giorno notes that one of the seven deadly sins, sloth (that is, excessive laziness and indifference), doesn’t come as naturally to him as others would (such as lust or pride).

Know thy self – another reference to the famous quote of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War.

Companion – Giorno thinks about how the universe has blessed Dio with a companion that can keep up with him, which is a subtle reference to the creation myth in the Bible. There, God creates the first human, Adam. Adam attempts to find a companion amongst the other creatures, but cannot find an equal until God creates another human – incidentally, God creates another human from Adam (by his rib), which of course parallels with Giorno being created from Dio, since he is his biological child.

Clay – the dream Giorno has of Dio forming him out of clay and breathing life into him is another direct reference to the creation myth in the Bible, where God forms the first human out of clay/soil/dust from the ground and breathes life into his nostrils. Similar creation myths are found in several ancient Near Eastern religions. If you want a little more “fun” fact, the first human is named Adam, a name he gets from the Classical Hebrew word for “man” (as in human – not male), which is adam, and the word for “ground” is adamah, which ties to all together quite nicely.

Nakedness – Dio uncovers Giorno’s nakedness, and just like in chapter 8 it’s a biblical reference. Except for Genesis 42, all biblical occurrences of the common idiom ”to see the nakedness of” or “to uncover the nakedness of” are explicitly sexual, usually referring to incest. The Classical Hebrew word 'erwā is not “nudity” but “nakedness”, in the sense of something that is unseemly or improper to look at or expose; often used to denote forbidden sexual relations.

Chapter 15.

Cuddling – after having breakfast, they cuddle, and their position is described as Giorno resting his head on Dio’s left arm, and Dio draping his other arm over Giorno’s waist. This position is a reference to the biblical book the Song of Songs 2:6 “His left arm is under my head, and his right arm embraces me.”

Angel lust – Dio gets hard after Giorno chokes him, which he says is a perfectly natural reaction to being choked. Which it is! “Angel lust” or “death erection” refers to the phenomenon of men executed by hanging having an erection, because of the increased downward blood flow. After observing this, doctors in the 17th century started prescribing choking sex to men with erectile dysfunction, and that’s partly where erotic asphyxiation comes from.

England – the phrase “lie back and think of England”, alternatively “close your eyes and think of England” is an old-timey reference to unwanted sex that one doesn’t enjoy – specifically used for sex within a marriage, which at least back in the day was more of an economic arrangement than a love affair. Disgustingly, it means “just lie back and endure it”.

Bone of my bones, flesh of my flesh – this is another reference to the creation story in the Bible. The specific verse is Genesis 2:23, when God has created another human to be a worthy companion of the first one. Adam, the first human, has searched for a companion among the animals but been unsuccessful to find an equal. But when he meets the newly created Eve, the second human, he exclaims “At last! This is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh” (since she was created from his rib). That “at last!” is very sweet – and fits in this story too! Dio has finally found a worthy companion to share his highest highs and deepest lows with.

Chapter 16.

Roses – Giorno buys a bouquet of roses for Dio. This is intended as a contrast to the buttercups he picked for Dio in chapter 8, being that roses are a much more “mature” flower than buttercups, therefore showing that Giorno has matured. Also, the fact that he buys the bouquet of roses while he picked the buttercups indicate a certain loss of simplicity and naturalness in their relationship.

Fin.

[gamerzack-blog]

I think now's as good a time as any to share a few deets on my Magic player identity, before branching out into my other interests:

The Basics

Archetype: Johnny-Vorthos

Colour identity: Altruism 🔥🌳☀️{💧}

Top 3 Favourite formats: Limited (any style); Kitchen table; Commander (hypothetically)

"Power Nine" planes (in alphabetical order): Alara; Arcavios; Ikoria; Kaladesh; Kaldheim; Kamigawa; Ravnica; Tarkir; Zendikar

Custom sets (Magic Set Editor): Uncanny/Unfunny; Secret Vault: Heroes of Squidkid Saga; Secret Vault: Ascensions Series

Milestones

First year: 2003

First Core Set: Eighth Edition

First Large Set: Mirrodin

First Small Set: Guildpact

First Side-Set: Coldsnap

First novel: The Moons of Mirrodin

First Commander: Glissa Sunseeker

Key Factional Affiliations

Guild (Primary): Izzet League 💧🔥

Guild (Secondary): Selesnya Conclave 🌳☀️

Shard: Bant 🌳{☀️}💧

Clan (Khans timeline): Jeskai Way {💧}🔥☀️

Clan (Dragons timeline): The Ojutai ☀️{💧}

Triome: Ketria 🌳{💧}🔥

Realm (Primary): Bretagard {🌳}☀️

Realm (Secondary): Surtland 💧{🔥}

College: Prismari 💧}{🔥

Other Associations (by Plane)

Ravnica

Simic Combine 🌳💧

Azorius Senate ☀️💧

Boros Legion 🔥☀️

House Dimir 💧💀

Alara

Esper ☀️{💧}💀

Naya 🔥{🌳}☀️

New Phyrexia

Quiet Furnace 🔥

Progress Engine 💧

Innistrad

Kessig 🔥{🌳}

Tarkir

Temur Frontier {🌳}💧🔥

Mardu Horde {🔥}☀️💀

The Dromoka 🌳{☀️}

The Silumgar 💧{💀}

Amonkhet

Trial of Knowledge 💧

Trial of Solidarity ☀️

Ixalan

River Heralds 🌳💧

Brazen Coalition 💧💀🔥

Eldraine

Ardenvale ☀️

Garenbrig 🌳

Ikoria

Raugrin 💧{🔥}☀️

Zagoth 💀{🌳}💧

Kaldheim

Istfell {☀️}💧

Starnheim ☀️{💀}

Gnottvold {🔥}🌳

Arcavios

Silverquill ☀️}{💀

Lorehold 🔥}{☀️

New Capenna

The GWU Family 🌳☀️💧

Planeswalker Friends List

Karn {⚪}

Elspeth Tirel {☀️}

Will Kenrith {💧}

Liliana Vess {💀}

Rowan Kenrith {🔥}

Vivien Reid {🌳}

Teferi {☀️💧}

Tezzeret {💧💀}

Angrath {💀🔥}

Arlinn Kord {🔥🌳}

Ajani Goldmane {🌳☀️}

Sorin Markov {☀️💀}

Ral Zarek {💧🔥}

Vraska {💀🌳}

Nahiri {🔥☀️}

Kiora {🌳💧}

Tamiyo {🌳☀️💧}

_________ {☀️💧💀}

#####_##### {💧💀🔥}

_________ {💀🔥🌳}

Huatli {🔥🌳☀️}

_________ {🔥☀️💀}

Sarkhan Vol {🌳💧🔥}

_________ {☀️💀🌳}

Narset {💧🔥☀️}

Nissa Revane {💀🌳💧}

_________ {💧💀🔥🌳}

_________ {💀🔥🌳💧}

Me {🔥🌳☀️💧}

_________ {🌳☀️💧💀}

_________ {☀️💧💀🔥}

_________ {☀️💧💀🔥🌳}

Planeswalker Friend List Deets (How We Friended Each Other)

Met him on my first 'walk to Mirrodin. Apparently he created it himself!

Heard about her on Bant, and decided to see if I could find her so I could learn more about being an altruist. Told she was slain, so my trail went cold, but they were SO wrong about that!

Met him while studying on Arcavios... HOO boy, THAT was a mess! Anyway, he helped save the plane, so good on him.

Friended her a while back after she failed to seduce me (turns out there are limitations to charm magic when the intended target isn't that into you).

Twin sister of #3, with both sharing the same spark. Must be awkward if one decides to 'walk while the other's in the middle of something important like... I 'unno, peeing I guess?

For some reason, liking the natural world to any extent warrants a friend request from her. That and having a connection with animals.

Heard about my affinity for time, and so he tracked ME down! This is AFTER I spent a while tracking down info on the "Great Mender", though I thought it was a specialist on healing magic, heheh...

Friended him when he was still... sane, I guess? This thing's glitching out for some reason, so I can't delete it. Probably should visit that gadgeteer on Kamigawa to get it repaired...

Asked to friend me after overhearing that I don't eat beef or wear cowskin... then swore fiery, forgey vengeance on me if I EVER come onto his daughters. PRETTY sure there's no danger of that even if they're human, so... yay?

Saw me blundering through Ulvenwald and asked if I were worried about the wolves, to which I innocently replied with "What's wrong with wolves?" She led me to safety (aka a different plane) as a thank you for being so kind.

THIS is the life mage I was trying to find! I eventually tracked him to a book club or something on Kamigawa. The Nacatl of Naya called him "a hideously gruff, ill-mannered, insatiably berserk rebel", but I see him as kind, wise, and calm.

Kinda unsettling at first, but let's just say that putting the Greater Good first and foremost reveals an unseen side of this seemingly snobbish gentleman.

My first 'walk to Ravnica was... let's say "tumultuous". Actually, let's also say it was "accidentally crashed into an Izzet laboratory-ish". This guy said I was an automatic shoe-in to become a member of his guild, but he also advised me to consider whether I wanted to get tied to one plane. I was too busy staring at his... uh... eyes to remember what I said, or how he was added to my friends list.

Friended me later that day, in fact. Turns out a simple, sincerely friendly "Hi!" is enough to win her over... though she DID admit to almost turning me into a statue for being too close at first.

She was dealing with an emotional conundrum, so I offered some advice: "Just be true to yourself, and vent those pent-up emotions. Holding onto them isn't healthy, and your needs matter just as much as others' do." Hopefully she's in a better state of mind than before.

For some reason, liking the natural world to any extent warrants a friend request from her. That and having a connection with the seas and skies... wait... did I do this one already?

Met her through Ajani's book club... well, she's the host of said book club, so friending her was a no-brainer.

To be added...

Weird... why is this now playing up...? Was someone already on here? I should ask Denkimoto to look at this, too...

To be added...

Met her in book club. Turns out she's some form of skald from a plane called "EESH-a-lahn". I tried finding it, but no-one's ever heard of it, OR a city on that plane called "or-RATS-kuh", which is supposedly made of gold...

To be added...

Met him through a member of the book club, though he's not really into books. He does, however, like DRAGONS! I just had to visit their home plane, which is filled with so many kinds of dragon. Any fan of dragons is a friend of his, apparently. He also had a good chuckle at my "Hi, Khan!" joke, so it's now our informal greeting (his is "Oh, Zed!", cos it sounds like "O. Zed").

To be added...

This is the book club member via whom I indirectly met #23. She loves learning, and is currently delving into the ancient history of her people, "a time before the dragons"... which seems kinda familiar.

For some reason, liking the natural world to any extent warrants a friend request from her. That and having a connection with the elements... okay, this is DEFINITELY the third time I've posted this, I'm sure of it!

To be added...

To be added...

No idea why there even NEEDS to be a slot for my own contact details, but...

To be added...

To be added...

To be added...

[gravelyhumerus]

Criminal Minds College AU - Chapter 5

Title: “I may just take your breath away”

Relationship: Jemily

Summary:

Emily surprises JJ at her soccer game.

Slow-burn Jemily college AU where they live across the hall and despite all odds, the universe pushes them together. AKA they’re silly gay babies who pine after each other for months.

Read it on AO3

Tumblr: Tumblr:  One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, (bonus scene), Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty, Epilogue

Emily walked out of her Philosophy class, waving goodbye to Spencer Reid, who had back-to-back classes that afternoon. He walked away, dodging the crowds of students milling about on his way to his Physics class.

Things had calmed down in the weeks after midterm season, giving Emily a bit more free time to relax into a rhythm during her second year at college.

In her bag was a small bag of cookies that she had baked last night, wrapped up in carefully and tucked away. She was making her way through the quad, setting her sights on the soccer field. Emily checked her phone for the time: it was 2:25 PM and JJ’s soccer game should be almost done. She knew she was going to miss most of the game, but if she hurried she would catch the tail end.

That morning, Emily had looked up the games time on the varsity sports website, and triple checked that she’d be able to make it.

Dodging an enthusiastic skateboarder who was using the ramp down to the field as his own personal skate park, Emily hurried towards the bleachers, climbing onto the second row near the away team’s goal.

Emily squinted towards the field, setting down onto the ice cold metal bleacher seat and regretting her choice of a plaid skirt and fishnet stockings. A familiar blonde ponytail caught her eye and her heart jumped at the sight of her tackling another girl, freeing the ball and turning Emily’s way, barrelling down the field.

She had the ball! JJ pulled ahead, dodging the advances of the other team before kicking it to her teammate, who confidently circled around past the defence.

Emily’s heart was in her throat. She had never particularly cared about sports, but with her time in Italy, football (or soccer as she reminded herself to refer to it as) was something Emily could confidently say she understood enough to have a conversation about. She thanked her lucky stars that the first jock Emily had a crush on played a sport she at least knew the rules of.

JJ ran into centre field, and her teammate passed the ball to her, JJ kicked it right into the net, sneaking right past the goalie’s outstretched fingertips.

Goal!

The crowd cheered, Emily joined in and clapped as JJ’s teammates swarmed her, jumping and hugging her in a mess of celebratory bodies.

Emily looked around, while the crowd was spotty, there was still a fairly good turn out. Most of them seemed to be family members, though there were certainly groups of students, wearing their school colours and the logo emblazoned across their chests.

Emily peered at the scoreboard, it was 4–2, as JJ just scored a tie breaking goal with ten minutes left in the second half. They reset, and JJ switched out with another, taller girl who high fived her as she walked onto the pitch.

JJ sat on the bench with elbows on her knees and her feet planted firmly on the ground in her running shoes. She gulped some water as her eyes remained fixed on the action as the ref blew the whistle, and the game continued.

Without JJ to watch, Emily’s eyes roamed across the field, taking in the action without that much interest. She hoped that their team won, obviously, because that would make JJ happy, but she had no personal investment into their college’s athletic standing.

Emily knew that while her class had cut into most of the game, she would be able to linger around and hopefully walk back to residence with JJ. She had cookies to give her.

Now, the cookies were just an excuse to hang out with her. Or a bribe. Probably a bribe. Well, JJ had said, back when they studied together almost two weeks ago, that she wanted more cookies. As she had enough free time to walk to the nearby grocery store to pick up the dough, Emily was furiously trying to bake the best cookies she’d ever made. She had briefly considered making them from scratch, but the pressure of it all made her choose the prepackaged dough.

Emily actually didn’t spend more time eating the dough than baking, this time, because she wanted them to be perfect for JJ.

She had been tempted to invite her to bake with her, but despite JJ’s initial request for Emily to tutor her, JJ had not really followed up. In fact, Emily hadn’t seen much of the girl at all. The anxious part of her brain told her that JJ was avoiding her, but Emily, for the life of her, could not figure out why. Every time that she ran into JJ, the blonde seemed anxious to leave.

The clock counted down, five, four, three, two, one. The buzzer sounded. The other team hadn’t managed to score another goal, so their team had won!

The crowd cheered in delight at the victory. JJ and her team jumped together, piling on top of one another in a group hug.

While the other audience members packed up their bags and blankets, chatting as they filed out of the bleachers, Emily remained, waiting for JJ.

She watched as JJ removed her cleats, shin pads and long socks, swapping them instead for a pair of boots. She zipped up her windbreaker on top of her shirt and followed her teammates as they grabbed their bags and made their move to go home.

It was now or never.

“JJ, hi!” Emily called out, waving at her from the side of the bleachers.

JJ caught her eye, then said something to her teammates, who waited for her on the edge of the field.

“Great game!” Emily said, “at least what I saw of it.”

“Emily!” JJ said, smiling at her.

“I, uh-” Emily rifled through her bag. “The cookies you liked. I made some last night and thought that you may want some.”

JJ’s eyes widened as she took them.

“Thank you, Emily,” she stated, smiling quickly. “That’s very nice of you, I hope you didn’t go out of your way for me.”

“Oh it was no problem,” Emily said, trying to keep her voice calm, “Derek practically begs me to and well, you know, it’s nice to do something relaxing during midterms.”

JJ nodded, then turned to look at her teammates, who were beckoning for her.

“I haven’t seen you in awhile,” Emily said, “Did you need any more help with your French?”

Something strange passed across JJ’s face, first she looked happy, excited, but then nervous she looked away from Emily.  

JJ hadn’t texted her. Emily had given her number to her last Wednesday, and had received radio silence ever since.

“Uh, maybe. I’ll text you if I need any help,” JJ said, “I’m actually having a bit of trouble writing a presentation.”

A spark of hope ignited in Emily’s chest. Just as she was going to reply, she heard someone approaching them from the bleachers, clamouring down the steps from behind.

“JJ!” Penelope Penelope exclaimed, “And Emily! I didn’t know you were here! You could have sat with me!”

She was dressed in a long purple peacoat and had her bright blonde hair tied up in space buns. She had a small blanket folded up in her arms that she was likely using to sit on the cold bleachers.

“I didn’t see you,” Emily says honestly.

“Hey Pen,” JJ said, turning to her roommate, “No Spence today?”

“He has physics,” Penelope and Emily responded in unison, before laughing.

“We just had Philosophy together,” Emily explained. “He had to run to his next class.”

“Wait that reminds me,” Penelope exclaims, “Emily you must come with us to trivia tonight! We need six people for our team and I don’t wanna get stuck with some randos like last time.”

Emily looked over at JJ quickly to gauge her reaction. Trivia sounded really fun, and the excuse for spending time with JJ sounded even better.

“You could bring your friend Derek,” JJ replied, not balking at the idea of Emily’s presence. “Spence hasn’t stopped talking about him since the party.”

Emily felt herself breathe an internal sigh of relief. JJ wasn’t avoiding her after all. And maybe even wanted to spend time with her.

“Oh he really is a beautiful sight, that Derek Morgan,” Penelope just about purrs in response.

Emily can not help but laugh.

“That makes, what, five?” Penelope counted on her fingers, “Jennifer, do we have another friend?”

JJ frowned, shook her head, which made Penelope laugh.

Emily thought for a second, thinking about who in her circle would enjoy trivia. Aaron. Of course.

“I think I could talk someone into it,” she said.

“It’s a date!” Penelope exclaimed. “Now off to the locker room with you Jennifer! You stink!”

She gently pushed JJ towards her teammates and JJ laughed before waving goodbye and heading towards the gym. Penelope looped her arm through Emily’s and had already begun to explain the details of the trivia night.

From what Emily gathered, it was at the bar right off campus, and luckily for them, allows underage students in on Monday nights to play trivia, and the bartenders didn’t really check IDs at the bar so they could usually get served if they didn’t get too wild. There were prizes and Penelope was convinced that with Reid, they had a good shot at winning, depending on the topics of course.

Emily and Penelope walked back to their building, finally exchanging numbers and the promise to meet in the hall no later than seven that night.

As soon as Emily was in her room she found herself grinning. She did a small dance in her room in excitement for the evening before pulling out her phone to tell Derek and Aaron that they had plans for the evening.

[t100ficrecsblog]

three thoughts about raven reyes (& 1 thought about Murven endgame)

ONE

I loved Raven Reyes from the millisecond she showed up on screen. I started watching from the very first episode of t100 but I got truly invested once she showed up and that has never changed. She’s so complicated but at the same time her motivations are simple to figure out if you consider her past and what it was like for her to grow up on the Ark. This might get me some shade but I don’t think a lot of fandom understands Raven at all, and that makes me sad (and also angry lbr). She’s one of the most forgiving characters on this show, she wears her heart on her sleeve and you never have to guess where you stand with her. Raven can be tremendously kind and understanding but she can also tear you down and make you feel small if she disagrees with your choices. I happen to think this is one of her strengths. She deserves so much happiness even though she thinks she doesn’t. It’s not even remotely a stretch to say that she may very well be my favorite character of all time. -JENN

A beautiful, iconic genius. I love how from her introduction, there’s no problem she can’t handle or won’t approach. She’s Raven Reyes and she’s a badass with an amazing mind. Yes, she faces challenges, as all these characters face, but she has such a tenacity when it comes to approaching them which I really love. I think it’s been so great to see this character, played by such a great actress, during the years of t100. -RYN

i find she’s often overlooked for how much representation she brings to the show. she’s not necessarily underrated, but just not appreciated enough for how much she can mean to people. raven reyes is a woman in stem, a woman of colour, and a woman with a disability. on top of that, she is so kickass and kind and funny and beautiful and strong - she isn’t reduced to tokenism, she is an integral part of the show. i love raven reyes and lindsey morgan for the comfort and inspiration they give so many people. -ELLE

TWO

Her strength is something that I think is both one of the most powerful and interesting parts of her character. Her season four arc really broke my heart, in the best way since I love pain, but I absolutely loved that she chose to live. That she fought back against every odd and said “screw that” and powered on. She does struggle, yes, she feels pain and experiences loss and everything else that all the characters face, which I think is important, to show that she isn’t unbreakable. She also confronts those struggles by continuing forward though, and doing what she can for herself and her people. -RYN

despite what canon says, i think that she has always been morally gray in her actions. she took extreme actions against grounders in season one. she wanted to turn murphy over to the grounders in season two. she was pretty complacent in the nightblood experiments in season four. she helped with the flame in season five. in season seven, she wants murphy and emori to keep up the prime act. she’s complex and contradictory and realistic and human. -ELLE

For Raven, family is everything and once she counts you as hers, she’s not letting go without a fight. She felt this way about Finn, which I hated at first, but I have come to appreciate their relationship more and respect her feelings for him as her family even after what he did. She’s willing to do anything for her family, including stay behind alone in space, facing likely death like when it meant getting Spacekru back to Earth safely. We see the devastation she takes on when she loses family and how it haunts her and also influences her actions. This outlook is still going strong in s7 when she fights to bring Echo back to herself and throws being a family in Bellamy’s face when she feels that he has betrayed them. I don’t think anything motivates Raven more than family. -JENN

THREE

Thinking about regrets I’ll have that we likely won’t see for Raven, I think it’s particularly traumatic that Finn, Sinclair and Abby all died right in front of her while she could do absolutely nothing about it. All three were her family and I think the helplessness & guilt that she felt regarding their deaths (and to an extent Monty & Harper too, based on what she says after learning of their deaths) really plays a big role on who she has become over the seasons. I wish canon took a deeper look into that but I do think Lindsey does a particularly good job at showing devastated emotions (sob) so at least I got that. I am truly turning myself into a pretzel to cross my entire body that Raven gets her happy ending, but I will add the caveat that it better make sense for her & not be some bs last-minute move that ruins her character either. -JENN

We love color symbolism!! I love Raven’s red jacket and the repeated red symbolism we get for her. Not just because, of course, it ties with Murphy’s symbolism as well (I see you red jacket patch, I see you), but also because I think it shows her character so well. I enjoyed it so much when they brought the jacket, or one like it, back this season, and think it shows how all the character arcs, but specifically hers, are circling back and connecting them to who they were in season one to who they are now. Hopefully, this circling will include satisfying conclusions for her and the others. -RYN

raven reyes is the only one who should be allowed to call murphy a cockroach. with anyone else, it bothers me, but with (the) raven, it’s fine. i think that’s just because of the development they’ve have. it was a title born out of hatred, but it has since evolved into an inside joke for the pair, and it’s even a bit of a mantra. i know a lot of people disliked the “go be a cockroach” line in season seven, but to me i think it was her way of saying (in a high stress situation) “i need you to survive, like you always do” á la season four’s “go. survive” and “that’s what cockroaches do, right?” lines. every cockroach needs a raven. -ELLE

what’s your ideal ending for Murven?

I feel like there’s two viewpoints I’m torn between - what I want to happen vs. what’s appropriate for the story. IMHO the ending for them that’s appropriate for the story is that they die together. It’s a huge part of their dynamic that canon has set up since early s2. If the show does it well, showing that Raven & Murphy actively choose not to leave each other or it’s a scenario where it’s inevitable and they sort of peacefully accept it and perhaps do something heroic at the end, then as sad as I’d be, I’d also probably love it and would completely accept it. And then I’d write reincarnation fic or something, LOL! But what I want to happen - oh well, in that case - I’d like them both to survive and have maybe a hint or two that the option of them being together is there. Personally I don’t need them to be romantic canon in the end if we can at least leave the ending up to interpretation but I would sell my soul for them to kiss onscreen at least once. I don’t care how or why just let me have it!! -jenn

a quiet life in sanctum. i think after all the danger and pain they’ve experienced, they deserve a nice peaceful life. my ideal would be them being together, living in a cute little cottage style house. raven would take over the machine shop, getting to tinker around all day. murphy would work at the bar/kitchen, getting to chat and joke around with people all day. they would come home and talk about their days or hang out with their friends, never without some playful teasing, and then they would fall asleep together - peaceful and happy. -elle

Okay, this is more than simply just sad, but my ideal goal is a final, important moment between them. I have been theorizing and predicting a possible Murphy death since really the season started, and I’m scared to admit I feel like it is heading there. So, while I think it’s gonna break my damn heart, I want Murphy to have a true hero’s death (if he does have to die which I am not down with or excited about but what I feel is indeed coming) and a final important moment with Raven, who I feel with pretty intense certainty will live and (hopefully) lead a very full and happy life. It’s not a perfect ending, or the ending I would’ve written for them, but this is where my ideal meets my acknowledgement of canon meets haha. -ryn

it was an absolute delight to interview these three Murven writers! you can find ryn @animmortalist on Tumblr, or here on AO3. you can find elle @hopskipawayon Tumblr, or here on AO3. you can find jenn @easilydistractedbyfanfic on Tumblr, or here on AO3. all three of them are working with @t100fic-for-blm, request a fic written by them there. <3

[laurawritesandgames]

Title: Objections

Fandom: Beetlejuice (Musical)

Rating: PG-13

Pairing: Beetlejuice/Adam/Barbara, Charles/Delia

Prompt: Wedding

Content Warning: Set during coronavirus pandemic

Summary: It’s Delia and Charles’s wedding day. The Maitland-Deetz household tries to keep their irreverent demon from spoiling the big day. Little do they know it’s not Beetlejuice they need to worry about….

It had taken ten minutes, but Barbara was finally satisfied with Delia’s lashes. “There. I think we’ve got it.” She moved aside to let Delia see herself in the mirror.

Barbara had put her hair and makeup skills to the test and helped Delia out on her wedding day. Why invite over a makeup artist and hair stylist during a pandemic if you didn’t have to?

Delia examined her reflection and beamed. “It’s perfect.”

That was being kind. It wasn’t exactly one of the dramatic looks on Delia’s wedding Pinterest board. More dramatic makeup would’ve suited her dress better. Ordered from Italy, her dress was a gold ballgown with dramatic tiered tulle flounces on the skirt and a deep V neckline. The gold in the dress played off the gold accents in Delia’s bright orange hair, which was in romantic waves down her back. It was daring and sweet all at once.

When the pandemic hit, the household had talked about postponing her and Charles’s wedding. But Charles’s parents were old-fashioned, and since Delia and Charles wanted to try for a baby right away, they decided to have a virtual wedding instead.

“I can’t thank you enough, Barbara.”

“I’m not letting you do your own hair and makeup on your big day!” She gestured to the laptop. “Now go show the girls.” Her bridesmaids were eagerly awaiting drinking mimosas and celebrating Delia’s look. Barbara had met them at Delia’s virtual bachelorette party, though, of course, they hadn’t known Barbara was there. The bachelorette party had also been rather subdued, considering Delia’s usual standards. She, Barbara and the bridesmaids had streamed both Magic Mike movies, ate popcorn and drank champagne. What else could you do in a pandemic? “I’ll go check on the preparations.”

Delia’s phone, face down on the makeup table, buzzed again. Someone had been texting her all morning, and Delia had been ignoring them. Her gaze flicked to the phone, jaw tightening before she looked back into the mirror.

Barbara gestured to the phone. “I can grab that for you, too.”

A hint of a frown worked its way between Delia’s brows. A moment later, her expression relaxed, and she waved the suggestion away. “I’m fine, darling. I’ve been getting so many robotexts lately. You know, you could stay and have a drink. You’re a bridesmaid too, dear!”

“Oh, it’s nothing. I like keeping busy!” And if I bump something or the camera catches me drinking a mimosa, the focus is definitely not going to be on the bride. Barbara excused herself and went downstairs.

The walls of the living/dining room were decorated with curled gold ribbons and champagne-coloured tulle banners beneath the crown molding. The ghosts and Beetlejuice had moved all the furniture—quite easily, with telekinesis—and added two rows of four chairs on either side of an elegant pale gray runner. The rug led the eye to the laptop, set up on a crystal-laden table where the officiant would’ve stood, and the pale-wood wedding arch wrapped in the same champagne tulle. Everything looked perfect.

Adam, Beetlejuice, and Lydia, the family’s impromptu wedding photographer/videographer, were gathered around a photo album. It took Barbara a second to recognize it.

“Aww, our wedding album!” She joined the group, resting her head on Adam’s shoulder. He kissed her temple, pulling her closer with both arms. The book continued floating in mid-air.

“Obsessed with sunflowers much?” grumbled an unimpressed Beetlejuice.

“I guess so,” Adam said. “My family’s farm had a little sunflower patch. That kinda became our thing.”

“Love the mason jars,” Lydia commented.

“Hey, those were the big thing in 2009,” Barbara said. She supposed their wedding had followed a lot of popular trends: an outdoor barn wedding, lots of tea lights in mason jars, and even a photo booth. But they’d managed to be ahead of the curve on a few things. “Remember our party favours, sweetie?” she asked Adam. “They were little terrariums in stemless wineglasses.”

Adam grinned and squeezed the arm around her waist. “They were tied with ribbons that said ‘Thank you very ‘mulch’ for coming to our wedding!’”

Lydia chuckled; Beetlejuice rolled his eyes.

“Don’t encourage that,” the demon said to his friend. He continued scowling at the wedding album, but Lydia seemed happy to keep looking at the photos.

The most pages they turned, the more Barbara’s mood slid closer to Beetlejuice’s. All those photos were full of friends and family she couldn’t see anymore. Most of her friends’ Facebooks or Instagrams were private, so she couldn’t even do any light internet stalking unless she wanted to log into her old accounts and confuse everyone. Was Lisa still going back to school to get her Masters, or had the pandemic put that on hold? Was Alison still having issues with her mother-in-law? Barbara had no idea. Dead women didn’t have friends. Not to mention her family….

But a wedding was no time to be sad. She pasted a smile on her face and even managed a few cute wedding stories.

“Remember when your uncle Eddy tried to drink his wedding favour?” she asked Adam, who chuckled. “He almost choked on a succulent!”

“But he kept trying to drink from it! Three times!” Adam chuckled. A moment later, his smile faltered. “Probably because he’s a massive alcoholic.”

“Oh, right. Sorry.” That story wasn’t quite as cute as she remembered. “So, um, why don’t we do a last-minute check? Make sure we’ve got everything.”

“All right,” Lydia said. She took the photo album from midair and put it away, frowning slightly. “This is probably going to be the nicest moment I have today, so thanks for that.”

Barbara and Adam shared a worried look. Lydia was deeply ambivalent about her father marrying another woman only six months after her mother died. Lydia had used that fact to extract a lot of concessions about the wedding: Delia had let her wear a black dress and take photographs on her analogue camera instead of a digital camera.

“C’mon, kid!” Beetlejuice said. “Just wait ‘til I get the party started!” He blew a party favour, and sparkly beetles flew behind him.

While Lydia rolled her eyes fondly at her friend, Barbara and Adam shared another worried look. The young woman went upstairs to get changed.  

Barbara turned to Beetlejuice. “I just wanted to remind you about your promise, Beetlejuice. I know it’d probably be very funny to interrupt the ceremony. Maybe Lydia would even appreciate it. But this day means a lot to Delia and Charles. They’ve found each other through a lot of pain and hardship, and they deserve a fun, special memory.”

Beetlejuice waved her words away. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. You don’t know this about me yet, but I love a good party. And people can finally see me! Well, only people here, but whatever. Why would I mess that up and have everybody pissed at me? I’m here for the fun and the food, baby.”

As much as Barbara wanted to believe him, she suspected that the only reason he didn’t have a disruption planned was because of Lydia’s innate goodness, not his own.

“I noticed you didn’t love us going through the wedding album, buddy,” Adam said. “Is everything okay?”

He shrugged. “It just…it looked nice. Your wedding.” He glanced between Barbara and Adam, loudly announcing, “None of that boring-ass shit at our wedding, okay?”

Barbara tried not to look too surprised—Beetlejuice loved shocking them. “Noted. But it’s also not going to be jump scares every minute, or a projector that reveals everyone’s darkest fears, or some kind of Saw situation.”

Beetlejuice’s eyebrows rose. “I was just thinking there’d be singing cockroaches and banners made of bats, but those are way better! You wanna plan it, baby?”

“I said ‘not.’ It’s not going to be any of those things. Did you even hear that part?”

He darted in close and kissed her lips. “Eh, we’ll find a compromise that works for all of us. We’re all about that life, right?” His neck stretched cartoonishly to kiss Adam on the lips as well. Then he poofed away in a cloud of smoke.

After a few moments, Adam said, “Did he just ask us to marry him?”

“I think it was a joke proposal. You know him. If he really wanted to propose, there’d be a lot more pizzazz. And possibly dead bodies.”

“Right, of course.”

“Would you have said yes if he’d been serious?” Barbara asked, curious.

“Things between the three of us have been going pretty well, but I don’t think I’m ready to jump into another marriage quite yet. And you?”

It was exactly what she’d expected from Adam. They’d changed since their deaths—six months later, their afterlives involved parenthood, isolation from friends and family, a lot more free time, and a polyamorous relationship. But it was nice when she could guess what he was thinking. Not everything had changed. “The same. Maybe in a few years or so.”

*

Before the ceremony, Charles and Lydia stayed in the living room, helping older relatives log on to Zoom and greeting people as they logged in. Charles was wearing a pale grey tuxedo with a metallic grey tie and pocket square. Lydia looked like an elegant classic Hollywood starlet with a goth twist: her black lace gown had a subtle skull pattern to it, barely visible unless the light hit it just right. Her onyx choker and bracelets looked like thorny vines going up her pale arms and encircling her neck. On her head was a raven fascinator with golden bead eyes, her one concession to the wedding colours.

The laptop screen filled up with squares of happy, smiling faces. Everyone had dressed up for the occasion, wearing suits and dresses.

“Betcha most of them are wearing sweat pants,” Beetlejuice said.

“Well, hopefully we’ll never find out,” Barbara replied. The three of them were sitting on the white chairs on either side of the aisle. Most people watching this meeting online probably assumed these chairs were only there for symmetry. As far as they knew, Lydia was the only other person physically at this wedding.

Despite her earlier claim, Lydia was smiling and chatting with Charles’s parents and, to Barbara’s surprise, Emily’s mother. Coming to your son-in-law’s wedding six months after your daughter’s death must have been hard, but if there were any issues, Barbara didn’t see them, and she wasn’t about to eavesdrop on a family moment.

Emily was sick for years. I suppose her family had a lot of time to mourn her. She thought about her parents and her sister at her own funeral. What had that been like?

Lydia took video of Delia coming down the stairs to the bridal chorus, played on speakers set up throughout the room, then put the video camera on a tripod so she could participate in the ceremony.

“I want to thank everyone for joining us today,” the officiant said. “In lieu of wedding gifts, the bride and groom have asked that you donate to the Rural Connecticut Preservation Society. I’m pleased to share that we’ve raised $10,000, which will be donated after the wedding.”

If Charles had had any reservations about donating to a charity dedicated to stopping housing development in rural Connecticut, which directly impacted his career, he hadn’t brought it up during the wedding’s planning stages. Lydia had suggested the charity, after all.

Everyone applauded.

“We will now bless the rings,” the officiant said.

Lydia took out the rings, held them both tightly in her hands, and whispered her blessing into her clenched fists. She smiled mischievously at Charles.

“I suppose if they burst into flame, we’ll know Mom disapproves.”

There were a few awkward chuckles from the assembled, none louder than Delia’s. “That’s my darling, unique stepdaughter for you! Oh, Lydia, you’re so funny!”

In a mocking, little-girl voice, Lydia replied, “I appreciate the compliment, my dearest stepmother.”

Barbara and Adam made sure that they were holding Beetlejuice’s hands so he couldn’t raise them.

The demon scoffed. “You know, I don’t need my hands to do ghost magic? I could just set the rings on fire with my mind.”

“Do not—”

“I wasn’t gonna! Jeez.”

With a theatrical flourish, Lydia showed off the rings to the laptop camera. Barbara half-expected them to be Netherworld green, but they were normal. “My blessing has been spoken. Please speak your blessings now.” Ideally, everyone would’ve been able to touch the rings and speak their blessings in private.

After a pause, Delia’s father spoke first, and others followed. The wedding program had provided a few sample blessings, but people were free to write their own. Delia’s mother began crying halfway through hers.

“Save something for the wedding speech, Amanda,” her father joked. He reminded Barbara of her own dad.

Barbara and Adam gave their own blessings. “Delia and Charles, we wish you health, happiness and love as you start your new life together,” they said, touching the rings, making sure not to brush Lydia’s hands.

Beetlejuice had declined to take part in “New Age bullshittery,” so he remained hovering over his seat.

The rest of the wedding was more traditional, probably to appease Charles’s parents. Barbara’s mind wandered. She and Adam had come so far, hadn’t they? She held Adam’s hand lightly, running her thumb up and down his palm—rather, she did until Beetlejuice forced his way between the two of them and sat on both of their laps.

“Poor baby, no one was paying attention to you,” she cooed into his ear.

“It’s the worst,” he agreed. She ran her fingers through his spikey green hair. Adam gave him some attention by resting his head on Beetlejuice’s shoulder. That seemed to do the trick—he sighed and relaxed.

Readings were read, vows were said, and rings were exchanged. Charles’s vows were simple and straightforward—too curt for Barbara’s tastes—but Delia’s were long enough for them both. Barbara fought the urge to check the time. She felt like Delia had been going for 10 minutes.

Delia actually appeared to be wrapping up when “I object!” sounded over the laptop’s speakers.

A square popped up on Zoom, revealing that the speaker was a tanned older man with more salt than pepper in his hair and bright white teeth. He had a faint accent that Barbara couldn’t place. She’d never seen him on any of Delia’s photos or social media.

Delia made a few choking noises in the back of her throat, the colour draining from her face.

Charles glared at the screen. “You,” he spat out.

Clutching Charles like a lifeline, Delia drew herself up as tall as she could. “Jeremy, log off immediately! I don’t know how you got my number or how you got this link, but get out, you narcissistic psychopath! You don’t get to be a part of my life, not after what you did!”

“Delia, my love, I know you still feel something for me—“

‘My love’? This can’t be the ex-husband, can it? Years ago, Delia’s ex had sailed away to Rome with the secretary he’d been cheating on her with.

“Hey,” Beetlejuice whispered, “I never possessed someone over the internet before. Maybe if we all work together, we can do it?”

Jeremy had opened his mouth to speak again. If ghostly powers could stop this disaster, they had to try. Barbara grabbed Beetlejuice’s and Adam’s hands and held them out to the laptop screen.

“—and I—” Jeremy continued. His gaze abruptly unfocused. Barbara tried to force words into his mouth.

“I’m so sorry!” he said, just as she’d scripted. “I’m going to log off and…and…and throw myself into a dumpster like the piece of trash I am.”

She hadn’t told him to say that. Barbara glanced at Beetlejuice, who grinned back at her.

“And then,” Jeremy continued, “I’m gonna take my toenail clippings, and my belly button lint, put them in a blender, take a shit in that blender, start the blender, and pour myself a shit-shake. It’s my regular Saturday morning routine, baby!”

Lydia rushed forward and tapped a few keys. His square vanished from the screen.

“I blocked him,” she said.

“Thank you, stepdaughter.” Delia sniffled, and Charles handed her a Kleenex from his suit pocket.

As Delia struggled to compose herself, Barbara whispered, “A poop-shake? Really, Beetlejuice?”

“It was Adam!” He couldn’t even keep a straight face, and chortled. “Okay, you caught me. Hey, I had to make sure he’d never be able to look these people in the eye again.”

Delia glared at the laptop screen. “Lydia, darling, explain to me how you set this event up again.”

“I set it as a private Zoom event. Everyone involved in the ceremony had to have a link and a password.”

“So,” Delia said, “who gave my ex-husband—who, I’d just like to remind everyone, is a cheating bastard—the link and the password?”

Slowly, one of Delia’s aunts raised her hand, her face bright pink behind her makeup.

“Millie!” Delia’s mom exclaimed.

“Mom!” shrieked one of Delia’s cousins.

Most people on the Zoom call started shouting at once. It took a few minutes to hear Aunt Millie’s explanation.

“I had no idea he was going to object,” she squeaked. “But he was such a big part of our lives for such a long time, and I thought he deserved to at least see the ceremony….”

“Aunt Millie,” Delia said, “you are no longer welcome!”

“Of—of course. I’m so sorry, Delia.” Aunt Millie took out her glasses and peered at the screen. “Er, which button do I…?”

Lydia took care of it, and banned her.

“And everyone thought I’d use my ghost powers for evil,” Beetlejuice boasted. “Look at me, doing good deeds! Being a goddamn hero!”

Barbara would’ve responded, but poor Delia sagged against Charles, tears running down her face. She tried to speak, but only managed a quiet sob.

“We’re going to take a break,” Lydia said quickly, turning back to the laptop. “See you in 10 minutes, everyone.” She muted them and closed the laptop.

Beetlejuice waved his hand to grab Delia’s attention, grinning broadly. “Thought I’d mention that if you know where he lives I could teleport to his location and, well, cause a little havoc.”

“Do we need to go over the house rules?” Barbara asked. ‘No Murdering’ was the first one.

“No murdering, this time! Just a little non-fatal revenge.”

Delia hesitated for a moment, then shook her head. “No, thank you.”

“Non-fatal?” Lydia asked Beetlejuice. “Are you sure? Our wedding did set a precedent for murder….”

Beetlejuice chuckled, and the two fistbumped.

After a moment, the demon frowned. “Wait, should I fistbump you for murdering me?”

“You already completed the ‘bump—you can’t take it back now,” Lydia said.

“Shit, you’re right.”

Delia stared at the living room, lips quivering. “Maybe…maybe this is a sign. The universe must not want me to get married again!”

Beetlejuice floated over. “Delia! Signs don’t exist. Trust me, I’d know! There is no heaven, no hell, no meaning to anything! The universe is cold, distant, and uncaring. It’s basically my mom,” he joked. “But the point is—it doesn’t care what you want, and nothing you say or do can affect it.

“Besides, girl!” Beetlejuice leaned in. “Chuck is rich as fuck. Lock him down!”

Charles glared at him before turning back to Delia. “I still want to get married to you, Delia.”

“Are you sure?” She blew into her Kleenex before continuing. “There are women who…who don’t have ex-husbands that ruin their weddings and—and make a scene in front of all their friends and family….”

“Delia,” Barbara said quietly, “you’re not the first person to date an asshole. I mean, look at me and Adam.”

Beetlejuice appreciated the burn, even if it was at his own expense—he cackled over Delia’s tepid chuckle.

“Don’t blame yourself for what just happened,” Barbara continued.

Delia whimpered into her Kleenex. Charles stroked her hair lightly.

“Delia,” he said, “I stood in front of our friends and family and told them how you were the brightest light in my darkest time. I meant every word of it. Nothing will change that. I love you.” He kissed her so deeply that Barbara looked away to give them some privacy.

When they were done, Lydia cleared her throat. “I’ll go get the digital camera so we can adjust the photos faster. That way you won’t have to worry about your makeup looking perfect.” She began to set her analog camera down.

Delia shook her head. “No—you said this was your artistic vision, and I won’t see it compromised.”

Lydia looked surprised. “Oh.” Her smile was small but sincere. “Thanks, Delia.”

Delia took this as an invitation to hug her stepdaughter. Lydia rolled her eyes, but patted her shoulder and didn’t pull away.

“Besides,” Delia added, “this camera was your mother’s gift to you, and I don’t want her coming back from the Netherworld to tell me off.”

Beetlejuice facepalmed. “That is not how the Netherworld works! That’s not how any of it works.”

“Well, it couldn’t hurt to make sure, could it?” Delia stepped back. “If you’ll excuse me, I’ll just fix my face.”

“I can help,” Barbara said, and Delia nodded.

Once they were upstairs, Delia collapsed in her makeup chair, sighing heavily.

“I actually thought it was going to go well,” she commented. “That I’d have one beautiful day even in the midst of the world’s ugliness. I was so stupid. Nothing ever goes right for me.”

Barbara reached out to pat Delia’s shoulder before stopping herself. When Delia looked confused, she explained, “Lydia said touching me or Adam is like touching an ice cube tray straight from the freezer.”

“I don’t mind.”

Hesitantly, Barbara touched Delia’s shoulder. It was the first time she’d touched a living person other than Lydia in months, and hugs from a 16-year-old girl she didn’t know that well were rare. The older woman shivered but didn’t pull away.

“Lydia’s not wrong,” Delia admitted. She put her hand over Barbara’s, squeezing slightly. “But a hand offered in friendship should never be refused. You know, it’s been almost four months since I last touched someone who wasn’t Charles.”

“Hopefully this coronavirus pandemic will end soon.”

“I’ve been saying healing prayers twice a day.”

Barbara wasn’t sure they’d be effective, but healing prayers were more than most of America’s leaders were doing. At least Delia was listening to the science and wearing a mask when she went outside. She’d grown so much in the short time Barbara had known her.

Barbara missed her friends from when she was alive. That was natural. But she couldn’t let her loss keep her from recognizing that she’d made a friend after death, too.

“Thanks, Delia,” Barbara said. “Not just for the healing prayers, but for everything. Having two ghostly housemates and a demon would be a lot for some people, but you’ve taken it in stride.”

Delia chuckled. “I once lived in a commune of 200 people. Living off the land, growing our own food…and digging our own toilets.” She wrinkled her nose, then chuckled. “You three are a walk in the park compared to that!”

“If there’s anything you need from me or Adam, please let us know. We don’t want to trouble you or Charles.”

Delia opened and closed her mouth. After a moment, she said, “Well….I suppose I do have a rather personal question….”

“Shoot.”

“Beetlejuice—is he actually good in the bedroom?”

Barbara giggled. “He is. He’s had millennia to think about what he’d do if he ever had sexual partners again. He’s very…inventive.”

“I’ll admit, I’m surprised. He doesn’t seem the type to be concerned with another’s pleasure.”

“Oh, there’s definitely times he forgets. But then we get to teach him. Ahem. Now,” she nodded to the mirror, “let’s get your makeup touched up.”

*

Barbara wouldn’t ever be hungry or thirsty again, but the stuffed butternut squash was delicious. Delia and Charles had deferred to Barbara and Adam’s local expertise when they planned the menu at their wedding dinner. Adam knew most of the farms the vegetables had come from.

The Deetzes had said goodbye to all their guests, and the family was eating their wedding dinner in the dining room.

Delia had been going to give out the crystals on either side of the laptop as wedding favours—the stones were mostly rose quartz, moonstone and a pale white stone called selenite. But after Jeremy’s arrival, she said she needed to cleanse the crystals. “I’m going to give them a few lunar cycles, just to be safe.”

Barbara nodded, pretending she understood what that meant. “Adam, Beetlejuice and I are dead. We’ve got nothing but time!”

“I just want to thank everyone again for your hard work,” Delia said, smiling at them. “Lydia, for your photographic eye and leading the blessing. Barbara, for the hair, makeup, decorating and emotional support. Adam, for sending out all the emails and doing the tech support. All the ghosts, for intervening when a certain someone decided to crash the party.”

“It was mostly me,” Beetlejuice said. Barbara rolled her eyes at Adam, who chuckled.

“He is the ghost with the most,” Adam said, making Beetlejuice grin.

“My mistake—thank you, Beetlejuice. Thank you all for being part of one of the most important days of our lives. Thank you for being our family.”

Barbara sniffled a bit as she and Adam applauded the speech.

“I got the happy couple some extra gifts,” Beetlejuice said. “For the wedding night.”

“I’m going into another room,” Lydia announced abruptly, setting her plate down. “Another house. Another life.”

As she left, Beetlejuice grinned. “We’re rated PG-13, guys! It’s just rose petals on the bed and some boozy chocolates. Figured you two have your own toys—”

Lydia started singing loudly as she covered her ears, taking the stairs three at a time to get away.

Barbara tried to figure out what he had in mind. “These rose petals won’t become spiders, will they?”

“They’re totally normally and boring, if you must know. I ordered them off Amazon.”

“How?” Adam asked. “You have no money.”

“I typed in Chuck’s credit card, duh.”

“What?” Charles snapped.

Barbara and Adam sighed. Beetlejuice’s morality was a never-ending project that was not without its consequences.

Not for the first time, Barbara reflected that it was a good thing the Maitlands loved working on projects together.

*

After the wedding dinner, as Barbara, Adam and Beetlejuice were cleaning up, Lydia came downstairs. She was carrying another photo album and wearing a glum expression. She’d changed out of her party dress, and was wearing a comfy hoodie and sweat pants—all black, of course.

“Got a sec?” she asked quietly.

“Of course, sweetheart,” Barbara said.

Lydia showed them a photo—a younger Emily Deetz on a younger Charles’s lap, grinning at the camera in a fancy restaurant.

“My mom and dad’s wedding wasn’t like today’s. There wasn’t any structure. It was just a big party at one of the best restaurants in New York, followed by wandering the city with all their friends and family. They stopped in at dingy bars to listen to live music, they caught a comedy show, they walked through Times Square at two in the morning. They almost got mugged! Mom was hard core like that. Daddy attracts dramatic weddings, doesn’t he?” she joked.

Her smile dropped a second later. “And Daddy looks just as happy here as he did today. I was photographing him and Delia the whole time. I’d know.”

“So,” Beetlejuice said, “the big takeaway here is that Chuck is in love with the women he gets married to?”

Lydia chuckled sadly. “Something like that. I mean, one of them was a woman he met in college, while the other was his employee…. But who cares about things like abuses of power when it’s true love? Daddy and Delia keep trying to make me comfortable with their love story, but how can I be? If it were any other situation, I’d be blasting Daddy online as he stars in the latest MeToo scandal, right?”

Barbara nodded. “You’re right. It’s pretty rare for a story like Delia and Charles’s to end this way. You sound like you’re carrying a lot, Lydia. Do you want to sit and—”

“No, thanks. I just wanted to whine for a bit. Delia’s family seem nice, at least. Except for Aunt Millie, obviously.” She closed the photo album in a short, frustrated gesture. “Well, goodnight, guys.”

“Do you mind if we check in with you tomorrow?” Barbara said. “See how you’re feeling?” Sixteen was such a tough age—particularly when your father was remarrying.

“If you want.” She shrugged, as if she really didn’t care, but her small smile made Barbara hopeful that she’d made the right decision. The only thing more difficult than being a teenager was parenting a teenager she’d just met a few months ago.

Beetlejuice was frowning as Lydia left. “Guys, we gotta help Lyds!” He was nothing if not loyal. “We should break Chuck and Delia up, right?” He leaned in to Adam. “I got the perfect way to do it. You know how Delia thinks Emily can come back from the Netherworld?” Beetlejuice became Emily Deetz for a moment, still with a few mossy patches and green hair. “Well, what if she can? And then we tell Delia to GTFO!”

That he was asking them instead of just doing it was a pretty good sign.

“Well, Bug,” Adam said, “think about it—if Lydia didn’t want this wedding to happen, she could’ve objected herself. Or asked her father not to get married to Delia.”

Beetlejuice became his usual self again, looking disappointed. “Oh. Right. Didn’t think of that.”

“She’s an intelligent, sensitive young woman with complicated feelings about a complicated issue,” Barbara said. “I think the best way to help her is to listen to her without judgement.”

“Why is the right way always the most boring way?” Beetlejuice said, sighing.

Barbara knew how to get him happy again. “Now,” she said, running her hand along his shoulder, “why don’t we finish up and go upstairs? After all this work for everyone else, we deserve some…ah, quality time together.”

Beetlejuice fistpumped and chortled. “Yes! Unfortunately, because of this fic’s rating, we gotta cut it off here. I just wanna let everyone know, it’s gonna be freakin’ awesome—'cuz I’m awesome, baby.”

Barbara had no idea what he was talking about, as usual. Adam kissed her cheek, and they went back to the dishes.

[shoujolover-666]

Twisted Wonderland Meets the Wonderland: Azul Ashengrotto Chapter 1

Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27011998/chapters/65940889

Ship: Dee/Azul/Dum

Warnings: Minor Character Deaths, Canon Typical Violence, Crossover

Azul was standing between two tall men, both of them wearing black suits and a mischievous smile on their lips. Each of them had an axe in their hands, their beautiful faces stained by blood. Both of them were excited as they started to cling on each of his arms, causing the suit he wore to get sticky because of the still warm life essence.

A look of disgust was on his own face.

The student was used to a bit of violence because of his own pair of twins that were nowhere to be seen, but that did not mean that he enjoyed it in particular.

No, he simply saw it as a tool to get what he wanted.

That was the reason why the excessive amount of bodies was not something he appreciated.

“Haha, that was refreshing, wasn’t it Dee?”

The man whose eyes were as red as the blood on his face grinned at his twin, his hair was slightly messy because of how he fought against the men who tried to ambush them, or to be more specific, him. His short black hair was slightly ruffled.

Those men were enemies of the Hatter family, the family which was renowned for being the strongest mafia family of that crazy world he was now in. He couldn’t help but sigh tiredly. Everyone who said that Floyd and Jade were difficult never got to know the gatekeepers of the Hatter family, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum.

If he had the chance to go back in time, he would have used it to show his classmates a bit more consideration.

Well, there was no use crying over spilled milk.

“It was~.”

Dee was almost purring as he tried to wipe off the blood with his sleeves, which only caused the blood to smear. His long hair that had been tied before was now loose, falling over his shoulder smoothly. Azul shook his head before he tried to pry their arms off him, just to notice that they were stuck to him like glue.

It seemed as if they did not intend on letting him go anytime soon.

A tiny smile appeared on his lips. If he had to be honest, he didn’t mind being desired like this… quite the opposite. He enjoyed it.

He basked in it.

~ ♠️ ~

Eyes that were full of curiosity were on him as he sat on one end of the table. On the other end sat the leader of that mansion and the inhabitants of that place. His aqua green eyes were closed as he took a sip of his tea, almost as if he were not interested in the stranger who appeared out of nowhere. That man’s name was Blood Dupre. He was a man with black, spiky hair and a tall stature. The white jacket and vest was almost blinding, but what really caught one's attention was the top hat he wore, which was decorated with several roses and cards. Elliot March sat beside him. His attention was occupied by the several carrot dishes that were offered but stayed untouched by the host of the tea party.The brown rabbit ears that peaked out from his long and wavy brown hair twitched. It made him look so different to when the other saw the octopus for the first time, threatening to blow his brain out of his head with a revolver, just because he didn’t know him. Not that he could blame him, for he would probably have reacted in the same way if he were in his place. Even now he was sure that he would do it without blinking if he made even the tiniest suspicious move, despite how it looked as if no attention was paid to him by the other tall man.

They already spent over two hours at the table, talking about their own worlds… at least to an amount that was necessary.

Neither Blood nor Azul went too deep into the details, each of them having their own reason for it. Azul himself didn’t trust any of them but was dependent on their knowledge of the world that was so strange to him.

Blood himself wanted to be entertained. Lately, things had been rather boring to him, for no other mafia family dared to threaten his own one at the moment.

He wanted to see how his reactions to this kind of place would be. After all, the young man reacted very shocked when he killed a subordinate for his lack of manners around his guest.

Something, that a child wouldn’t react too much to when they were from this world.

Death was simply a daily occurence of them, violent actions like these could be found everywhere, no matter where you were.

The leader of the mafia family couldn’t help but smile when he thought about it. Really, what kind of other things would the outsider show him?

Finally, maybe the days of boredom would finally cease, at least for a while.

Elliot March glanced at the man with silvery blue hair once in a while, for he was still suspicious of him. No matter how interested he was in the outsider, he couldn’t allow himself to get distracted too much. He had to make sure that the black haired man stayed safe, even if it meant that he would get punished for whatever inappropriate thing he had to do to make sure that nothing happened to Blood, the man who gave him a new chance to live in freedom.

His eyes wandered to the strange pen the other had tugged in the pocket of his jacket, the gem in it made his instinct shiver slightly.

Outsiders were known to be rather weak, defenseless, but why did he have the feeling that this was not the case for that one in particular? Sure, he himself never met an outsider personally, but so far, there was nothing that proved that those who did not come from their world could handle the things that they saw as normal.

So what made the young man so different?

The brown haired man swallowed the piece of carrot cake he had in his mouth and was about to ask something, but he was silenced by the look that his saviour gave him.

That was enough for him to quickly keep his mouth shut. He knew that kind of look well enough.

‘I want to be surprised, so don’t you dare take this away from me.’

If that was the boss’ wish, he would oblige, for as long as it wasn’t dangerous.

~ ♠️ ~

Time passed, and Azul spent his days on the premises of the Hatter family. He had been given a tour by the twins, who now were both shorter than him and almost looked identical if it weren’t for the different coloured eyes and uniforms, one red and one blue. Each twin held a hand of his, they were excited to finally have the chance to spend some time with the outsider who was infamous in their territory. That also gave them an excuse to skip on their work… which they didn’t need in the first place. Even without the stranger, they would have fooled around whenever they pleased.

The twins showed the man with the light coloured hair each and every room except for one, and that was their own room, because they wanted to show it to him at the very end of their little tour.

Once in a while, they would get distracted because of how they wanted to show him the traps and pits they left all over the place that were deadly for intruders or any poor subordinate who did not get the chance to be notified by others who have witnessed the twins’ little ‘Playtime.’

One of the traps they showed him already caught a little rat, the man's body was pierced by the spikes that they built into the pit.

They heard how Azul gagged slightly, but they simply shrugged. Something like that didn’t faze them in the slightest. Quite the opposite, they were happy that one of their traps was a success. Maybe they could even ask the boss for more money later when they were done with showing him around.

When they showed him each and every room of the gigantic mansion, they finally went over to the room they have been waiting to show him all the time.

Dee and Dum slammed the door open with a ‘Ta-da~’, and identical cheshire grins were on their lips, almost making them look innocent when they were anything but that in fact.

Pure joy was shining in their eyes as they shushed the leader of the Octavinelle dorm into their room.

It was decorated by two golden gargoyle statues, and a lot of different weapons were displayed. There were also things, like the head of a lizard that was covered by a glass bell, but it almost paled in comparison to all the blades and guns.

Right now, he really wished to have his own pair of twins back. Of course they weren’t without flaws, but at least he knew how to handle them.

The people here were too unpredictable.

Mad.

In Night Raven College, he was less tense and cautious because of how he could easily predict the people and how their minds worked. The world and its people here were too different from the ones of his own.

Their common sense, their beliefs and their morals were completely lacking.  

Who knows what would happen if he did not play along to the whims of the residents? When it came to the residents, he was not as worried, for they still cared about their own lives, at least to a certain extent.

No, he was more wary of the boss of this place and the twins. Elliot March was a man who he also was not too wary of, because he seemed to be alright with him as long as he did not plan on doing anything that might hinder Blood Dupre, which he did not.

When the twins finally let go of his arms, he ran his fingers through his hair. Even when all he did was walk, he felt more exhausted than when he was working on the contracts for his fellow students.

Really, he was tempted to use magic to make them fall asleep, but he feared that he would not be fast enough to cast a spell before they reacted simply because he did something suspicious in their eyes.

An almost silent groan escaped his lips as he took a seat on the red couch that was placed in the room in an almost random way. Dee and Dum went over to a different direction, before they returned to him, each with a different weapon in their hand as they started to show off their beloved weapon collection.

Oh Great Seven, hopefully he was going to survive this mad, mad world.

[littledrummeraussie]

the closest to heaven that i'll ever be. / getaway series

Word count: 5000+ Warnings: Maybe a few bad jokes. Author’s note: The third part of my getaway series. Hopefully it puts a smile on your face during this hard time. Please stay safe and wash your hands! 😉 Feedback is always appreciated! Much love!

getaway masterlist. / masterlist.

When the next morning you woke up to the sun shining through the windows, Ashton decided it was time to explore the forest trail he found the previous day on his run. Even though you knew what your answer will be, you still let him convince you with kisses and nuzzles as he listed all the perks of spending time outside – most of them being his impeccable company by your side, and honestly, how could you say no to such promises? With the biggest smile on his face Ash pulled you out of bed, already reaching for some comfortable clothes to wear on your upcoming adventure.

After breakfast you left the cabin to go on your little trip through the woods, hands interlocked, taking your time enjoying the scenery around you, and talking about your next step. You knew things won’t be perfect when you get back to your everyday lives, but you wanted to make an effort in trying your best. This meant time, work, and honesty towards each other. But when you looked at Ashton as he told you how he hoped that you can keep being open about your thoughts and feelings, you knew you were on the right track to come out of this stronger than before.

In the end you found yourselves in a nice little clearing with a breathtaking view, and Ash decided it would make a great place for taking some pictures. It’s been a while since you’ve stopped in your lives to capture something like this, and you both appreciated it for what it was – a calm, happy moment shared by lovers, enjoying the time they get to spend together. Ashton pulled you to his side, embracing you in a hug and pushing his cheek against yours, making you laugh as he started grimacing, trying for the silliest faces he could. He laughed with you about his own goofy attempts, and you couldn’t stop giggling for the next few minutes, all of your pictures ending up blurry in the process. He tugged you closer to his chest, kissing you with his happiest smile, and once again you felt like you were finally home.

By the time you arrived back to the cabin you were both exhausted, the day spent outside and your long walks making you ready to drop. After a quick shower and a late lunch you ended up on the couch, a blanket wrapped around you as you lay back on the pillows with Ashton lying on top of you, his head resting on your breasts. He made a happy little sound as you started to comb your fingers through his hair, nuzzling closer to your touch.

”You’re nice and comfy,” he said with a content sigh, his voice already sleepy.

”Of course, you’re resting on my boobs,” you made a comment with a laugh, and he scrunched up his face.

”Shh, pillows don’t talk.”

”They also don’t play with your hair to help you fall asleep,” you smiled, brushing the dark locks back from his forehead.

”This one does,” he mumbled, snuggling closer to your chest.

”You want me to keep going?” you whispered, fingers still running through his hair.

”Please?” Ash looked up at you with big eyes and a slight pout, and you just nodded, hand still in his hair.

Within minutes his breaths evened out and he was quietly napping against you, his weight on you once again a reminder of just how much you’ve missed these moments between the two of you. His presence filled you with peace and hope that you will be alright. You knew Ashton was trying his hardest – just thinking about how he took care of you the previous days made you appreciate all his efforts even more. He did everything he could to show you how much he cared about you, about both of you – clearing his schedule, finding a remote place where it could be just the two of you. All his words, all his actions made it clear that he won’t give up.

You remembered how he looked at you after he fucked you in the shower, how he promised you that he will love you even if you cannot love yourself. Blaming yourself for ending up in this situation was one thing, that you could handle – but Ashton blaming himself was a different thing. He might have kept quiet about it, but you knew that deep inside he was hurting. During last night he held you close, wrapping his body around yours as he talked about some of his favourite memories he shared with you, reliving the good times you had together. After everything that happened between you, he wanted to make you feel loved, to know that you were the most important person in his life. He seemed like the stronger one, but he needed you to take care of him as well.

Your words hurt the both of you. Even if he knew that you didn’t actually mean it when you told him how much you hated him, it still felt like a slap in the face. He pushed through it, he made it clear that he won’t let you feel anything else just love for the two of you. But for that you needed Ashton to feel, to know that you were ready to love you again – your relationship, yourself, and most importantly: him. It was your time to care for him, and if it meant that you have to stop doubting yourself in everything you did, and start focusing on how much he gave you and how much you can give back, then that is exactly what you were doing.

You felt yourself nodding off as well, Ashton’s body warm and comforting against you, your fingers slowing down in his hair, when he started shuffling a little. You opened your eyes to see him nuzzling his face against your stomach just under your breasts, then he mumbled something in his sleep.

”Baby?” you smiled, caressing his cheek as he again started mumbling.

”Hmpf?”

”Did you know that sometimes you talk in your sleep?” you asked, brushing the hair behind his ear.

”No, I don’t,” Ash answered, still half-asleep.

”Then what’s this?” you bit your bottom lip to stifle a laugh, trying not to shake him.

 Ashton did talk in his sleep, mostly when he was extremely tired – or when someone was playing with his hair while he was sleeping. You were not sure if he knew about it, or if he simply didn’t want to acknowledge it. Calum told you that they did record him once when they were younger, and that just made Ash really embarrassed, almost to the point where he did not sleep for days just so he can prove them wrong. He failed miserably; the guys never tried it again.

You’ve never really asked him about it, first you’ve just thought that Calum tries to make him flustered in front of you when you’ve started dating. But after long flights and tours, when Ashton finally fell into bed next to you, cuddling up to your side, he did start mumbling about everything his sleepy mind came up with, and you found the whole thing really sweet and intimate. Other times when he took a nap on the couch, head resting in your lap, your fingers running through his hair as he lightly snored, he hummed his appreciation, sometimes whispering about how much he enjoyed the touches.

The first time you knew that you were having trouble with your relationship was also the last time when he slept in your lap like that. He asked you if you’ll be able to come to the concert his friends were throwing that night, but you needed to say no; your inbox was going off with concerns from your colleagues, and you needed to solve their problems as soon as you could. Ash sighed, leaning down to kiss your hair and whispered a short “maybe next time” in your ear, then left you with the promise that he will be back around midnight. He did send you a few pictures and videos while he was at the show, but you just didn’t have time to check those – in the end, you just fell asleep on the arm of the couch.

Midnight came, and with it Ashton arrived as well, slightly tipsy from the party he attended. You woke when he crawled over the couch and put his head in your lap, sighing happily as he nuzzled against you. He was going on and on about the concert and you were trying to keep up with him, still drowsy after waking up so suddenly. By the time you would have been able to answer him, he was fast asleep, hot breath puffing against your thighs. With your fingers combing through his hair you started to watch the things he has sent to you, wanting to give him a few minutes until you had to wake him to go up to the bedroom. Ashton nuzzled against your palm, then when you caressed his cheek to try and wake him, he suddenly started muttering.

”Ash?”

”Don’t… go…” his lips were barely moving as he pushed closer to you in his sleep. ”Stay… don’t lea– don’t leave… stay… with me… ”

”I’m here, Ash,” you quickly brushed away the tears from your eyes. ”I’m here.”

”Stay… with me…”

His words broke your heart, and you promised yourself that you will do everything you can to make up for the time you have spent on your job instead of him. Little did you know that that night was the last time when he asked you to go with him. When the next show came around, he left the house without a word, leaving you behind.

 Ashton slowly looked up at you, eyes blinking against the light in the room, gaze still sleepy. He burrowed closer to you, fighting off the last of his dreamy haze. His hazel eyes were shining, and you could see a question being asked in the way he stared at you. What did I say to you?

”You’re really cute,” you smiled at him instead. ”And kinda sexy.”

”Exactly what I wanted to hear first thing when I wake up…” he chuckled, a blush colouring his cheeks.

He stretched his arms as he sat up, moving in a way that should have been forbidden in every single part of the world – he arched his back, muscles tensing and relaxing under the shirt that hugged his body. Before he could move further, you sat up to wrap your arms around his waist and pulled him back against you on the couch. Ashton landed on you with an “umpf” sound, laughing at your attempt to keep him close.

”You’re okay there?” he tilted his head back to look at you. ”Am I not crushing you?”

”You’re exactly where I want you to be,” you smiled at him, hands resting on his shoulders.

”Lying on your boobs?” Ash grinned at you, wiggling his eyebrows.

”Pretty much on my whole body, but yes,” you leaned forward to kiss his forehead, and that made Ashton scrunch up his face in another smile. ”On my boobs.”

He reached for your hand to interlock your fingers on his chest, rubbing his thumb over your skin as he started telling you about the dream he had just before he woke up. Your other hand went back to his hair to play with it as you’ve talked, and sometimes he lost track of his thoughts because of that. Ash laughed at your attempts to try and distract him, and when it was your turn to tell him something, his hands slid down to your legs, slowly brushing his fingers over your skin. He rubbed your calves, then made his way up to your knees, circling his finger around the bone, drawing patterns on it with his fingertips.

”Are you lost?” you lightly tugged on his hair as his hands disappeared under your skirt, skimming higher and higher on your thighs.

”Oh no, I know my way around here,” he answered, then looked back at you again, eyes sparkling with mischief. ”Hmm, no panties?”

”Didn’t feel like it,” you smiled at him, biting your lip as he licked his own.

”Naughty,” he smirked at you, lightly grabbing onto you. ”Really… naughty.”

”Says the person who likes to take them off of me… before we go out… or when people come over…”

”To be fair, you’ve never stopped me,” Ash answered, still caressing your thighs. ”You seemed to like that game… I remember someone getting really… excited, on several occasions…”

”I’m sure it was more like… one or two times,” you teased him, still tugging on his hair as he grinned.

”Such a shame. Guess I’d better up my game?” he stuck his tongue out at you.

”Could put that tongue to good use,” you laughed at him. ”Just saying.”

Ashton winked at you, and before you knew it he turned around, lying back down on his stomach, resting his weight on you. He pushed your shirt up, nuzzling his face against your skin as he started lightly kissing your stomach, slowly making his way down. You grabbed his face and tilted his chin up, biting your lips.

”What are you doing?”

”What does it look like?” he quirked an eyebrow at you, then slowly licked over your navel. ”Cause I think you know…”

”Something naughty,” you felt yourself blushing, and the next moment Ash just started laughing, pushing his forehead against your belly.

”You’re so cute,” he looked back up with a smile, resting his chin on you. ”One moment you are all sultry, and the next you get bashful and can’t even talk about me wanting to lick your pussy…”

”Aaaaaasssh!” his words made you all hot and bothered, but also just really embarrassed, like you were caught doing something you shouldn’t have.

You hid behind your hands as you’ve tried to pull away to curl up in a ball, but his hands on your hips and his weight on your body kept you pushed into the couch. He reached for your hands to interlock them with his own next to you, then nuzzled your stomach again, kissing and licking the skin, lightly nipping the soft flesh with his teeth.

”Oh, no – no, no, no. No going away,” he pressed his lips against one of the marks he left on your skin, then looked up at you with dark eyes. ” I’m gonna eat you out and you’re gonna enjoy every second of it.”

”How could I not?” you let out a breathy sigh, and he chuckled against the fabric of your skirt.

”Exactly my thoughts.”

His lips and nose lightly skimmed over your lower stomach and thighs, leaving hot puffs of air wherever he stopped, pushing his mouth against the fabric to tease you. When he finally reached the edge of your skirt, he locked his eyes on you as his teeth grabbed onto it and slowly inched it up your legs, pushing and pulling it out of his way. He squeezed your hands before he slipped lower, pushing his shoulders under your thighs, spreading your legs wider. As he was kissing over your inner thigh, you grabbed onto his hair again, lightly tugging on it until he looked up at you.

”You seem lost,” you licked your lips with a grin. ”Do you need a map?”

”Still good,” he kissed the crease of your thigh. ”Think I found the treasure.”

With that Ashton stuck his tongue out and licked a line up your slit, lightly swirling it around your clit. You could feel his chuckle against your skin as you moaned, and he repeated his action, brushing his lower lip against the sensitive spot.

”Tease,” you pulled on his hair as he again did the same thing, this time with a little more pressure on your clit.

”Hmm, but you like it,” he hummed against you, spreading your pussy lips with his fingers as he licked over your entrance. ”You’re so wet, baby, fuck.”

”Fuck, Ashton! Please!” you whined as he looked up at you, a grin on his face.

”Only because you used the magical word.”

He gave you one last wink as he grabbed your ass to pull you closer, getting to work. You threw your head back as you moaned his name, losing all coherent thoughts as he licked your pussy, his lips closing around your clit to suck on it. He answered your noises with his own sounds, humming contentedly, like pleasuring you was the single most amazing thing that could have happened to him in that moment.

Ash was playing a game with you – sometimes he held you down, so you couldn’t move, and he gave you all of his, lips and tongue working against you until you felt like you will explode. Then he stopped. Gave you a grin before kissing your thighs, waiting for you to calm down a little. After that he let you pull him closer, grabbing his hair as he let you ride his tongue, chasing your orgasm until he pulled away again, chuckling as you whined.

”Where did that smart mouth go, love? Huh?” Ashton pressed a kiss on your lower stomach as he gave you another break to catch your breath.

”Definitely nowhere near your cock,” you bit your lip to hold back your laugh, and Ash just shook his head with a smirk.

”Let’s see how you like this, witty girl,” he said as he pushed his finger inside, slowly moving it to tease you. ”Do you think you can take more?”

”I’m used to much more…” you looked down while still biting your lips, and he just pushed a second finger in.

”More?”

”Hmm, more,” you moaned, and he locked his lips around your clit, rubbing his tongue against it as his fingers started to pick up the pace.

”Are you close, baby? Gonna cum for me?” he asked, fingertips rubbing against the sensitive spot inside you.

”You need to work for that,” you pulled on his hair when he licked you again, a glint in his eyes as he looked at you.

”I like a good challenge,” Ash said, pulling his fingers out.

Before you could complain, his fingers started stroking your clit, tongue slipping inside your pussy to fuck you with it. He knew exactly what to do to make you cum, and he was ready to pull all your strings to get you there. You let go of his hair as you put your hands over your mouth, trying to stifle the moans he pulled out of you, feeling yourself getting closer and closer. Then suddenly he let go of you as he pushed himself up, grabbing your wrist and pulling your hands away, kissing you roughly as you tasted yourself on his tongue.

”I wanna hear you moaning my name as you cum,” Ash pushed his face against yours, lightly biting your lips. ”Want to hear you scream as you lose your mind.”

”I’ve already lost it,” you whined as you kissed him back, and he hummed happily. ”But would happily lose it again for you.”

”You don’t need it now, do you?” he chuckled, pressing his lips against your jaw.

”Stop talking and make me cum, you fucker,” you pushed on his shoulders to guide him back between your legs, and he again just laughed, kissing his way down.

”You’re so impatient, love,” Ash pulled your legs over his shoulders again. ”Are you sure you can take it?”

”Fucking hell, Ashton!”

You didn’t need to ask him again, he just got back to work, tongue and fingers working together to bring you over the edge, this time for real. Your moans soon turned into whines as he chased you towards your orgasm, his name the only thing on your lips as he made you come. He held your hips down as he continued, eating you out for another minute until you stopped riding his tongue. He licked through your folds, wanting to be soothing but making you shake in the process, and Ash just giggled as he pushed himself up to you again, holding your face in the palm of his hand as he kissed you.

”Delicious,” he smiled, nuzzling his nose against yours.

”Not as good as you,” you scrunched up your face, running your fingers through his hair.

”You want a taste?” he wiggled his eyebrows at you, pushing his hips against yours, his cock hard and straining against his pants.

”Hmm, in a second,” you smiled at him, pulling him close to kiss him.

Ash sighed happily into your mouth, resting his body on yours as you kissed, giving you a few more minutes to enjoy the pleasure still running through you. His hand sneaked under your shirt to lightly cup your breasts over the bra, pushing his fingers under it to tweak one of your nipples.

”I’ve thought it’s my turn,” you bit his bottom lip with a smile, pushing on his shoulder. ”Alright, up! Get off me!”

”You’re bossy,” he wrapped his arms around you, pulling you up with himself. ”Why do I love you?”

”Maybe for that smart mouth,” you stuck your tongue out at him, and with that you licked a line up his neck.

”You do know how to use it,” he sighed as he leaned against the back of the couch, his hands resting on your hips.

”We’re just getting started,” you whispered, kissing into his ear. ”And this time it definitely goes near to you cock.”

Ashton groaned at your words, pulling you down in his lap as he pushed his hips up, pressing his hardness against your pussy. You slowly started moving on him, the friction against your clit making you bit your lips, his cock throbbing against you inside his pants.

”Don’t tease me, baby,” Ash whimpered, pulling you closer more and more. ”Please…”

”Only because you used the magical word,” you chuckled as you repeated his own words, and Ashton let out a sound between a laugh and a moan.

”God, I fucking love you.”

You kissed his chin before getting out of his lap, kneeling down between his legs to finally give him what he craved for. You tugged on his sweatpants and he lifted his hips, letting you take it off of him. You looked up at him with a smirk, and you could see that he knew what you were thinking about.

”No underwear? Really, really naughty.”

”I’ve learned from the best,” he winked at you, and you rolled your eyes at him.

”Obviously.”

Ash laughed again, the sound turning into another moan as you licked over his tip, only touching him with your tongue. You locked eyes as he looked down at you – his gaze dark and full of lust, full of pleading for you to do more. You slowly wrapped your lips around the head of his cock, lightly sucking on it, pulling away until it rested on your bottom lip, looking up at Ashton with big eyes, almost like waiting for something. He slid his fingers into your hair, both of you letting out a sigh at the familiar touch as he pulled your head forward, his cock sliding into your mouth.

He brushed through your hair as you started to suck him, one hand resting on his thigh, the other grabbing onto his shaft, stroking it up and down. You let him slip out of your mouth, licking the underside until you could wrap your lips around him again, working him a little harder. Then you put both your hands on his thighs, the sign clear to him, and you could feel his fingers lightly pull on your hair to look at him. His eyes asked for permission, and he didn’t move, just when you nuzzled against his hand. With another groan he started moving your head up and down his cock, setting a pace he liked, his length rubbing against your tongue.

”So good, baby, you’re so good,” Ashton babbled, his words slurring as he got lost in his pleasure. ”Love that smart mouth on my cock, fuck!”

You hummed around his hardness, the vibration making him shiver, and you knew he was getting close. You sucked him hard and long, tasting him on your tongue until he pushed you back, his cock sliding out of your mouth again. Ash was already taking off his shirt, a light sheen of sweat covering his body. He reached forward to quickly help you up, tugging the skirt down your legs, then pulled you into his lap, your legs resting on either sides of his thighs. Your shirt quickly followed his on the floor, his fingers doing quick work on the clasps of your bra to get rid of it as soon as he could.

”If you do not fuck me right now, I’ll probably die,” he groaned against your neck, his hands grabbing your ass to pull you closer to his cock.

”We wouldn’t want that,” you bit your lip to hide your smile, fingers sliding into his hair at the nape of his neck. ”I prefer you alive, you know that, right?”

”Right now I would prefer you on my cock,” he slid his length against your pussy lips, making the both of you moan.

”So impatient, aren’t we?” you kissed the soft spot behind his ear, your teeth lightly tugging on his earring.

”Y/N, please,” he pulled your face closer, kissing you, voice barely above a whisper.

Pushing yourself up on your knees you held onto his shoulders, letting him grab his cock and run the head between your lips until he pushed the tip inside, letting you slowly slide back on him, his hard length filling you up inch by inch. You could have come just from feeling him inside you, and from the way his cock was throbbing in your pussy, he must have felt the same way. Ash grabbed your ass as he pulled out and pushed back in, starting to fuck you quickly.

One of his hands slid up your back to pull you forward, his lips closing around your nipple to suck and bite it, his breath hot on your skin. He switched to the other, teeth lightly scraping against the hard nub as you shifted in his lap, the tip of his cock rubbing against your spot, and you knew you were lost. Still grabbing onto his shoulders you started to ride him, moving up and down on his cock to feel that perfect feeling of him being inside you, the way your clit rubbed against him, how your thighs were shaking as you got closer and closer.

You collapsed against his chest as your pleasure reached you, Ashton wrapping his arms around you and pulling you close as his orgasm followed, still fucking you to get the most of his own pleasure. He pressed his lips against your jaw, kissing it as you buried your face in his neck, trying to catch your breath. His fingers lightly ran up and down your back, holding you close, his touch loving and comforting. You slowly looked up at him, leaning your forehead against his, and he nuzzled his nose to yours, kissing your lips in the process. There was a smile on both of your faces, your movements soft and slow as you cuddled against each other, enjoying your afterglow.

Your hands lightly held his face, rubbing your thumbs against his stubbly jaw, and Ash nuzzled against your palm, eyes shining, a permanent blush on his cheeks. He pulled your hand to his lips, softly running them over your fingers, kissing the skin of your wrist.

”Sunshine,” he whispered, pushing his lips against yours again.

”Little moon,” you kissed his forehead, brushing your hands through his hair. ”My moon.”

”Yours,” he sighed happily against your neck as he pulled you to his chest again. ”Only yours.”

 ”Ash?” you asked a few minutes later, slowly looking up at him. ”Are you… really drumming on my ass?”

You finally gathered yourselves and pulled away from each other just to lie back down on the couch, Ashton on his back, you on his chest, the blanket wrapped around you. His hands were running up and down your back, and you didn’t mind it when he rested them on your butt, but this caught your attention.

”It’s nice and round,” he winked at you, his grin never leaving his face.

”You just can’t help yourself, can you?” you laughed, crossing your arms over his chest, resting your chin on them. ”Drummer boy.”

”Needed to catch up on my practice,” he tapped your nose with his finger, and you scrunched up your face.

”You’re so silly.”

”You love my silly,” he answered, patting your butt once again.

”I love you, silly,” you leaned forward to kiss him, and he pressed his lips against yours, a smile on his face.

”The best feeling in the whole wide world.”

He wrapped his arms around your back, and you rested your head against his heart, listening to it as it slowed to a steady beat. Ash ran his fingers through your hair, lips brushing against your temple as he kissed it.

”Don’t fall asleep on me,” he whispered with a smile in his voice.

”I’m not,” you yawned, cuddling closer to him. ”And if I do, you will just take me to bed.”

”Maybe once my legs stop shaking,” he chuckled, chest vibrating with a laugh.

”Was it that good?” you opened your eyes to look up at him, biting back your grin.

”Don’t get cocky,” Ash tickled your side, still laughing.

”Oh, but you did…” you winked at him, burrowing into his chest as he huffed at you, then pulled you up to press another kiss on your lips.

”Silly little sunshine,” he nuzzled your nose with his brightest smile. ”…and this is why I love you.”

part 1 // part 2 // part 3 // part 4 // part 5 // part 6 // part 7 // part 8 // story tag.

[kpopchangedme]

Two Sheep Staring at Stars | Mark Tuan [M]

Years ago, you couldn’t believe a man like Mark could really be your Soulmate. This morning, it’s his turn to find out, and he can’t believe you wasted all this time.

Protagonists: Mark Tuan & You

Word Count: 3.7k

Genre: NSFW - University - Friends - Soulmates - [Drabble 2k]

Prompts: “You heard me. Take it off.” + “Don’t you know how to knock?” 

Requested by: Anon

GOT7 | M.list

“What about you, Cece?” Your best friend rolled back her eyes at the boy’s intrusive question. His back was turned on you, but even from the entrance of the empty pub, you could hear him loud and clear. You walked over to their table, eager to meet her new classmates. Cece was nervous about starting her Engineering major, knowing she’d have to deal with a majority of male classmates. That’s why she had invited you to their first outing, but now that you were here, she looked quite at ease. It might’ve been the first week of University, but Cece always was the best at making friends after all.

“Of course not.” The entire table chuckled at her obvious reply. “You think I’d be out drinking with you in the afternoon if I’d found Her?” She smiled as soon as she spotted you and waved, scooting closer to another stranger so you could sit next to her.

“Her?” The man repeated in surprise, and you almost ran to the bench.

Hopefully, none of her new classmates were bigots.

“Cece likes women.” You enlightened, sitting and shrugging away your Fall coat and light scarf. Everyone turned like one at your unexpected entrance. You didn’t raise your head to meet their curious gazes.

“I’m gay.” She confirmed, immediately wrapping her hand around your shoulder. “Super super gay.”

“Is this your… Girlfriend?” The following question forced you to assess the man across you. The curious guy blinked, unbothered by whatever he read in your eyes. He was also the one who had asked her if she had met her Soulmate. Charming, you decide, enough for you to forgive his rudeness. He had dark wavy hair and soft brown eyes, quite built too. The other young man to his left unsubtly elbowed him, probably ashamed by his lack of manners.

Cece laughed, “Me and her?!” You joined in. As if. The single most stupid thing one could assume about you two, although men always thought this. Or rather they hoped, in many sick cases. “We’re just friends.” She enlightened, hugging you tighter. You had known each other whole life; your moms were best friends, and that basically made you spiritual sisters. “Y/n plays for the other team.”

“Oh,” the built man grinned, leaning above the table. The beer in his glass tilted dangerously, and it occurred to you they might already be drunk. You came as soon as you could after your Introduction to Greek Architecture class, but still, they had been there for a while. “Ever seen something like this?” He turned his head to the side, pulling his hair aside to expose a weirdly shaped pink birthmark behind his ear. After a heartbeat, you shook your head, offering a contrite smile. You had never seen a Soulmark like that.

Cece was pouring you a welcoming beer, purposefully ignoring this whole thing. Living in a world where everyone is bearing a mark that irrevocably ties them with their Soulmate can disinterest you real quick of the urgency of the Search.

You had heard of people like this guy, using the beginning of University to find their significant other amongst their new acquaintances. It made a lot of sense, an opportunity. Every pair that isn’t an abnormality usually has a link, a common interest that unifies them. Immediately after your reply, the man pouted, disappointed, and turned to his friend. You hadn’t even had time to properly greet anyone at the table yet. 

“Jackson!” The other guy protested, but he was already pulling down his shirt. A mark right under the man’s collarbone got exposed.

It was small as a dollar, and it contrasted with his immaculate skin by its bluish colour. A peculiar Soulmark, completed with three tiny dots on top. You blinked; it only was visible for half a second before the man freed himself, highly embarrassed. It was enough. You felt warm, stuffy. Glancing at Cece in shock, you realized she missed it, busy posting a story on her Instagram instead. The guys were distracted too, drunkenly bickering over ‘boundaries’, a concept the one named Jackson apparently often didn’t get.

Meanwhile, you were as breathless as someone who’d just received an uppercut in the stomach. Surely you were overreacting. You only saw that man’s mark for a fleeting moment. “Yours is so pretty, y/n.” Cece had once said when you were only six or seven years old, getting ready to take a bath. “No,” you had protested, staring at your bare skin in the mirror, “it’s like a dirty ink stain!” You always hated your Soulmark. Most people’s marks were colourful and gorgeous, often smaller. Cece’s was on her left boob, a peachy complex heart shape one. Some unlucky people had to bear them publicly, on arms, neck or even faces. Yours was dark and ugly, but at least it was easy to conceal. 

“So?” Jackson turned back to you, hopeful. He wasn’t ready to give up yet apparently. “What about Mark’s?”

Mark. Was that really it, the way you’d meet Him? You hadn’t even got to have a proper look at his Soulmark. You weren’t sure. You weren’t ready.

“I…” Gaping, you turned to that guy, Mark, who didn’t even meet your eyes, clearly sulking. He was unarguably beautiful, even with his messy hair and face flushed by alcohol. His traits were striking, eyes a perfect stretched moon crescent, nose long and narrow, heart-shaped lips… No way, that man was way out of your league. The Soulmate bound wouldn’t be that mismatched. You were as dull and common as it gets. “… Sorry.” You managed, and Jackson’s face fell, disappointed.

“Sorry.” Mark echoed, meaning for his friend’s behaviour. “Mark Tuan, East Asian Studies. I’ve been stuck with Jackson since kindergarten, please don’t mind him.” He met your gaze for a fleeting second, only long enough to nod and for your heart to skip a beat. You couldn’t tell if he was ever slightly rude or just shy.

“Y/n,” Cece interjected, in your stance, unaware of what that guy almost was for a second. “Classical studies, been stuck with me since the womb.”

Forcing a laugh, you rolled your eyes. “You aren’t that bad, Ce!”

And just like that. The moment passed.

Gathering all your hair with your free hand, you bend to spit your mouthful of toothpaste in the sink. Your Hair. Your second mission this morning, doing something with it is getting harder and harder. You’re growing it, and it’s been a pain in the ass. Your phone chimes in repetition, and you barely glance at it before rolling your eyes. Mark is supposed to pick you up in ten, but as usual, he’s early.

Mark: I’m here. [6:48]

Jackson: RISE AND SHINE TUAN! Where are you? I’m glad you are coming but you are wayyyyyyy too early. Doors open at 7:30. [6:48]

Jackson: I can’t see you? I’m outside the building! Where are you??? [6:48]

Mark: I’m at y/n’s place. We’re going together. [6:48]

Why would he write in the group chat when he knows Jackson has to be up already. The man won’t stop texting once he’s started. You’re sure Jinyoung is still in bed, at whoever’s he ended up with last night, cursing because his phone won’t stop vibrating.

Today is Sunday and it’s not even 7am; basically the weekend’ dawn.

Ignoring the texts that keep coming in, you finish your hair and hurry to put on base makeup. You might have agreed to attend Cece and Jackson’s robot presentation, but you don’t intend to look like a zombie there. That’s another downer about living in a world and knowing your Soulmate is somewhere out there. You might end up running into Him at an inconvenient moment, and even though it shouldn’t matter, you don’t want to look like shit. Your mom met your dad at the beach, and even after 35 years, she never shuts up about the ridiculous sunburn she had that day. Like he would’ve noticed, (he did, but obviously didn’t give a shit).

You’re busy blending a little bit of concealer under your eyes when the door to your studio opens. There’s no warning at all, just the sound of the knob turning. You probably forgot to lock it after you got your mail earlier. Jerking to face the intruder, you squeal in terror, ready to stab him with your concealer’ brush. It’s not a stranger though. In the doorframe, Mark seems as startled as you, staring you up and down with eyes wide in shock.

“Shit, Mark, you scared me!” Fuming, you walk over to hit him, but he barely flinches. “Don’t you know how to knock?!”

“I-I texted you I was coming up…” He looks away guiltily. “Lock your door if you don’t want people to walk in on you half-naked…” Shit. You’re only wearing your very see-through white cami dress. Highly embarrassed, you turn your back on him to rummage in the first drawer you find for something decent. The mortification of your exposure makes you forget to be mad. “Your neighbour, the cat enthusiast, let me in… The one who dresses like a hobo.” Your friend steps in and shuts the door as you put jeans on, probably wanting to preserve your intimacy from the rest of the corridor. 

“Jaebeom.” You reply mechanically, he is convinced you and Mark are hooking up despite you denying it many times. Still, he shouldn’t have let him in like that. It’s against the apartment complex’s policy, and he could get in trouble. Shaking your head, you throw a gray shirt over your inappropriate attire. “I think he has like… Five freaking cats now. Jaebeom’s more than an enthusiast if he were a woman everyone would call him crazy. Don’t you think it’s sexist in a way?” Carefully, you slide off your nightdress from under your clothes, staying covered. Behind you, Mark is oddly silent for someone that is usually very opinionated. You glance over your shoulder. He’s still standing in the doorway, looking like he has seen a ghost. “What? It’s never too early in the morning. Patriarchy isn’t gonna fuck itself, Tuan.”

This seems to shake him, and he steps forward with a strange urgency. “Take it off.” His jaw, that was dangling open, clenches.

You did not expect that reaction. “W-What?” It is now you that is completely shaken. Is Mark making a move? What should you do, reject him? He’s come a long way from that shy guy you met at the pub if because he’s seen a little skin he… Holy shit… You hadn’t thought about the mark on your back in years. You are not one of those who freak out at the idea of the Soulmate Bound.

“You heard me, take it off.” Mark stares at you, expression unreadable.

You force out a chuckle to ease the tension in the tiny one-bedroom apartment. Rolling up your shirt, you obey, exposing the darker spot in the middle of your back, it’s on your ribs to the right; your embarassing Soulmark. A sheep staring at stars, that’s how Cece always described it when you were kids.

He breathes out in disbelief, “Is… Is that yours?” His fingertips graze your mark, and it’s like an electric shock.

Tensing, you stare intently at the wall in front of you. “Obviously.” Releasing your shirt, eager to hide it, you snort. “Ugly, right?” Somehow you feel bad when you meet his accusatory glare like you’ve committed some sort of unforgivable sin. Oh.

“It’s mine.” He announces, clearly out of it.

“Mark.” You shake your head from side to side. He needs to get it. You need to clarify that giant misunderstanding. “There is absolutely no way. Our Soulmarks are just similar.” 

His face twists, “Are you shitting me? I can’t tell if you are serious right now.” In a heartbeat, Mark shrugs off his sweater, exposing his chest and toned abs. You focus your attention on the spot right under his collarbone; a bluish cloud shape with three dots… Despite the fact you all went together to the beach last spring break, you haven’t seen his birthmark since the first night you met. Your eyes narrow on it, trying to remember every detail. It’s true, it looks an awful lot like yours. It’s like… There’s something caught in your throat, and you can barely breathe. “You saw mine. That night.” When Mark goes on, you fawn your face, unable to stop your mind from running crazy scenarios. This can’t be. “Why didn’t you say anything? Is it because you hate the idea of being with me that much? I can’t believe I’ve been fee…” He catches himself just in time, throwing both hands to the ceiling.

“Mark, we’re gonna be late to the convention…”  Running a hand in your already messed up hair, you state this like a formality. Over with it! He’s acting insane. That’s not right. It cannot be. You’re someone that always avoids everything, confronting you on that can’t do any good. He should’ve known this. “Jackson and Cece’s presentation is–” When you attempt to walk away, Mark in on you in no time. He catches and spins you in his arms before you can protest.

“I don’t give a shit about their fucking robot.” His whisper makes you shiver treacherously. In your back, your Soulmark is throbbing, like it has a life of its own. Mark’s hand slides inside your shirt, creeping up your skin until it finds it. Maybe he’s right; maybe you really are a match. None of you needs to see to know he’s touching the right spot. In a daze, you press your fingertips on his. Mark’s skin is burning, and you can feel his heart beating almost like it’s your own.

“Shit.” You curse lowly, overwhelmed.

It’s clear he isn’t doing much better, and he presses you into him as though his life depends on it. Is that It? Mark leans in, nose brushing yours and breath fawning your lips. You seem unable to stay anchored in reality, and your response is impulsive, automatic. Cupping his face with your palms, you pull Mark into you. He finds your mouth even with both eyes closed, but stops there; hovering millimetres over a fine line that you are bound to cross.

“Is that It?” You dare aloud against his lips and feel them curl into a smile.

“If that’s not it… I think I’ll die when I meet Her…”

You both know the answer when you finally kiss though. You should’ve done it years ago. Should’ve jumped him on that very first night. 

“Fuck,” you are seeing stars, “you’re my Soulmate.”

Mark groans in reply, it’s instinctive, it’s animalistic, it’s carnal, and it ends you. Whatever string of sanity holding you back breaks. It has been mere seconds and you know you’ll be his forever. Mark halts the kiss to press his mouth on your throat as you throw your head back. He reaches to lift your shirt, unable to refrain from it. He wants to feel you all over his chest, skin to skin. It joins his sweater on the ground. You are far from protesting, already you are backing up to your bed, in the middle of the room. You aren’t sure who pushed or pull when you fall on it, chest to chest. You’re a messy mass of skin and bones, but it works, it fits.

You were made for this.

Heat courses through your veins, setting everything afire every time Mark’s tongue grazes a new spot. It’s obscene how much you crave each other, both feeling like breaking with every kiss. One. Your heart explodes. Two. More. Three. You lose your mind. Four. Never stop. Five…

Obviously, there’s no slowing this down, you’ve passed the point of no return. Your jeans are taken care of in under two minutes. Mark’s pants? You blink and they are gone. It’s a miracle, every hindrance to you touching each other disappears, it’s magical. You only realize you’re fully naked when he naturally falls between your legs. Mark rolls forward and you curl in delight. He pants kisses more and more inconsistent. He rubs himself between your legs again, burying his face in your neck. In all the years you’ve known each other, you never imagined you’d end up like this. You spread your thighs wider, allowing Mark to run his cock on your slit. When he brushes your clit, you curse, throwing your head back on the mattress. 

“M-Mark,” your voice is husky, and he raises his head to observe you, “now.” 

“Now?” He repeats, astounded, completely lost. You nod, fighting back many shivers. “But–”

“Now, or…” Your words turn to a gasp when he rolls his hips again, making you see all the stars of the milky way behind your shut eyelids. Now. You reach between your legs, aligning him to your entrance. In your palm, his cock is already wet from your juices. You’ve never been this turned on, your skin is tingling everywhere. “I-I can’t.”

Mark smiles, dropping to peck your lips. “Take our time another time?” You nod in a hurry and he chuckles, pressing you into the mattress. His tip enters your core languidly. “Okay, but only because you want me too much…” Mark finally agrees a little bit too smug for your usual taste.

Right now, you don’t find it in yourself to care. All your attention is on your bodies merging slowly. You stretch deliciously around his length as he sinks in. Despite what you requested, Mark is still taking his time. You give in to your impatience, reaching for his hips. Guiding him to you, you pull until he’s completely inside, pressed against your body. It’s amazing.

Mark is inside you, throbbing. You both lay there for a few heartbeats, revelling in this overwhelming sensation of proximity. Never has intimacy felt that great in the history of the world. You’re sure of it. You want to express this to him, and you lack the words, but one silent exchange seems enough for him to get everything. After a moment, Mark pulls away slightly to better slam back in, and you squeal in glee. Oh, shit. He’s done taking his time. He finds a rhythm quickly, hips meeting yours roughly. You raise your pelvis to help, body bouncing on the mattress with every thrust. It is loud, your apartment fills with filthy moans, sounds, and the creaking of your bed.

“I…” Mark grunts, brows sweaty from the strain. You reach for the headboard to push against him, you want more. “I w-won’t…”

Knowing what he means, you slide your calves up against his ribs, letting him hit a better angle. It’s deeper and rougher. If he won’t last long that’s fine. You couldn’t bear this tempo much longer either. He raises on his hands to allow you to raise your knees even higher on your chest. Your pelvis is now perfectly curved. When he slams in this time, he reaches that spot you wanted him too. 

“Oh f-fuck,” you gasp and your legs begin to shake, “M-Mark…” You cry when he hits it again, fervour renewed by your vocal reaction. “Shit shit shit.” 

Curses fall of your mouth, mixed with an incessant flow of praises. It’s so incredible you’re not there anymore, lost for good, away with the fairies. Mark doesn’t falter once he’s found what goes for you. He manages to stay in control long enough for you to break. You come so hard you stop making sounds altogether, almost going blind at the high of it. When you slowly return to your body, Mark is also done. His hips lag, and he empties himself inside you with triumphant last thrusts. 

Both of you are completely spent. Shattered, Mark falls next to you, sweaty and breath unstable. It takes a few minutes for you to muster enough will to move, but when you do, he’s pleased to welcome you on his chest. A sheep stargazing, you see it now. On him, your mark is way cuter somehow.

“Was it…” Mark trails off, after a while, hesitating. “Did you…” 

Your index tracing his Soulmark stills. Is he serious? You don’t get much more vocal than that. Besides, you can still feel the remnants of your orgasm down in the soles of your damned feet. It was crazy strong. 

You hesitate too before remembering Mark is also your friend. You can be honest with him. “Like a Tsunami,” you confess, “I’m deceased.”

Mark laughs proudly, pulling you closer. “Ha, me too…” He seems to ponder on something for a minute, letting a comfortable silence fall behind you. “I guess Jackson can shut up about us now. He wanted me to date you, even without our marks matching. He couldn’t–” 

“Oh. Shit.”

“What?” Mark frowns, confused by your interruption. “He’s just like that, you know? He cares, and he wanted me to be happy, even if it wasn’t with my Soulmate. But clearly, you’re It.”

“Jackson.” You repeat like a fatality, but still, he doesn’t seem to get it. “Cece. Their presentation.” 

“Holy shit!” Mark suddenly stands, probing around the room to gather his clothes. “We’re so late! They’ve been working on this for a year!” You can’t help but laugh, unable to be stressed when you’re in post-coital delight. As soon as you’re next to him, Mark pulls you into him for a back hug. He wraps his arms around you, kissing your elbow before whispering in your ear: “I bet you won’t laugh when they send Terminator to exterminate us.” This doesn’t tone down your amusement at all. “Ok, now… More clothes, less fun!”

“Take our time another time?” You ask, quoting him back as you pick up your underwear.

Mark snorts, “I have all the time in the world now that I have found you…”

GOT7 | M.list

[themonotonysyndrome]

“All teenagers scare the living shit out of me.”

I... have no excuse. I need a fic where Silver sneaks off to be a rebellious teenager without Lilia or Malleus knowing as well as being a good senpai with a hidden, fun side. Warning: it’s pretty long and yay for MCR’s songs. Anyway, enjoy. 

-

Sneaking out of the Diasomnia dorm is so easy once you’ve memorised every corner, hallways and the occasional night owl wandering about like a pale ghost underneath the moonlight. 

It’s also a lot easier once you mastered the silencing spell. Especially if your room is a floor beneath two powerful and ancient Faes and below is another Fae known to read late into the night when he couldn’t sleep. 

After slipping the red jacket on, Silver ties his hair into a small ponytail and checks his reflection at the vanity table one last time. His eyeshadows are fine so he just adjusts his hair a little to let the bangs framed his face a lot neater before grabbing his phone and wallet. 

Silver turned off the lamp on his bedside table and immediately, his room is thrown into darkness. Only the soft moonlight reveals him standing at the door, his hand on the doorknob as he tries his best to listen to any sound outside. Malleus would already be fast asleep, judging by the hour. Lilia would also be fast asleep after pulling a four-day all-nighter playing video games with Ortho. Sebek had mentioned during lunchtime that he’s exhausted from helping the other First Year students of their dorm studying, so he’d probably turn in early tonight. 

When he could hear nothing, Silver cast a silencing spell on himself as soon as he exits his room. The hallways look so eerie at night with the swaying green flames from the candles. The thorny vines creeping up the walls and ceilings cast long shadows underneath the soft light. The dorm would spook anyone meant not to be here, but Silver has become accustomed to sneaking between the shadows of Diasomnia that nothing but Lilia’s footstep can startle him. 

Once he reaches a dead end in the hallway on the ground floor, Silver gently presses one of the bricks hidden behind the thick tapestry and the brick wall reveal a hole that’s big enough for him to slip out to the back of the dorm.

The cold night air envelop him as soon as he steps outside with the moon hanging high and full in the starry night sky. It’s a quiet, peaceful night and more importantly, one of the rare nights that Silver is fully awake for once and he plans to take advantage of it. 

Silver raises an open palm to summon a couple of fireflies to lead him through the forest. The little creatures shine a brilliant shade of dark green light; strong enough to illuminate the path for him. The occasional hoot of the owls and crickets accompanied him as he walks deeper into the forest towards his destination. 

However, he instantly froze when he heard something unexpected somewhere near him. A couple of voices dispels the quiet evening. 

“ - right way?” 

“Pretty... sure. I’ve walked... way... a couple... time now!” 

Silver frowns. He ducks underneath a thick branch and hides behind a tree as the voices gradually become louder and clearer. The green fireflies disperse at a flick of his finger.

“Are you sure we aren’t lost?” Silver knew that voice. It’s that human student from the Ramshackle dorm - Yuu. 

“Yeah, Ace. Isn’t this the way to the Dwarf’s Mine?” Another First Year student - Deuce - chimed in. 

“Of course we aren’t lost! Look, it’s just a couple more steps, and we should be on the path towards the back entrance of the campus, alright?’ Ace assured them. He then leads the way, and the two hurried after him, the flashlight from their phones pierce through the darkness in front of them. 

‘What... are they doing?’ Silver wondered as he watches them going further away from the same path that he’s on. He has a feeling that they too, are planning to sneak out of campus, but they’re going the wrong way, just like Yuu suspected. He bit his lower lip and then sigh, mind already made up. 

Without hesitation, Silver went after them. There are monsters that lurk in this forest, and the ones that only reveal under the cover of the night tend to be vicious and nasty. Despite not being from the same dorm, it wouldn’t sit well with him as a Second Year student if he lets a bunch of newbies gets hurt if he could help it. 

And when Ace let out a shriek, Silver quickens his steps and prepare his magic. 

“What the fuck is that!?” Deuce shouted, eyes wide open in shock. Ace is on the ground, flat on his ass with Yuu and Deuce in front of him. 

A large slime-like shadow monster with multiple red eyes and way too many mouths loom over them. As it bares its razor-sharp teeth and prepares to pounce on them, Silver shouted.

“Get down!” He ordered and threw a large fireball at the monster. Fortunately, Yuu and Deuce were smart enough not to question and quick enough to duck. 

The creature let out an unnerving shriek of pain, but the fire refused to snuff out. The teacher had covered this particular monster during the first semester for the Second Year curriculum, so Silver knows how just how to defeat. He raises the fire higher and hotter until the monster bubbles and evaporates into soft smoke. 

The green fireflies returned and circled them to ward off any more surprises. 

“Silver-senpai?” Yuu called out, tilting his head in both relieve and confusion. “What are you doing here so late at night?” 

“Isn’t that supposed to be my question?” Silver countered instead. Folding his arms, he then asks, “Shouldn’t it be common sense to stay away from the forest? Especially at night?” 

At least Yuu had the decency to look bashful. Ace, however, managed to shake off his fear to reply, “You haven’t answered him, Silver-senpai. And why are you wearing such cool clothes for? Wait... are you going to the Mystic Elixir too?” 

“Ace!” Deuce hissed, but that was all Silver needed to know. 

“What!? You’re thinking about it too!” 

“G-Guys...” 

Silver sighs. He really didn’t expect this; looks like Azul wasn’t kidding that this trio tends to bring trouble wherever they go. Still, maybe he can work something out... 

“Actually, I am.” 

His blunt and honest admission shocks them. “Whoa... I didn’t know that Silver-senpai is the kind of person to break the rules.” Deuce said in awe with a hint of respect. 

Silver just shrugs. He’s aware of the school’s impression of him and his family; rather than getting annoyed, he let them think what they like. “What I do in my free time is my own business. Now, since we’re both breaking the rules and planning to go to the same place, our little trip to the city is going to be a secret just between us. Got it?” 

“C-Crystal, Silver-senpai!”

“Of course, Silver-senpai!”

“...Yes, Silver-senpai.” 

Silver nodded. “Good. Follow me.” He turns around to return to the previous path with the First Years meekly walk behind him. “Have you three been to the Mystic Elixir before?” He asks. 

“We overheard it from Cater-senpai and got curious.” Deuce explains. “He said that it’s the only nightclub that doesn’t care about your age.” 

“Have you heard about it, Silver-senpai?” Yuu interjects. The boy’s eyes glint underneath the light of the fireflies. Is he genuinely incapable of using magic like the Mirror of Darkness said? 

“Been there a couple of times.” Silver admits. This results in a chorus of awe and questions, but he put a stop to it with a raise of his hand. “Ground rule: I’ll take you guys there, but you guys are not allow to drink. If I see any you disappear from my line of sight or do anything besides dancing and talking, I’ll haul your asses back here. Understand?” He demands, trying to sound as firm as he can. Hopefully, they’ll take his words seriously; he doesn’t have much practise other than arguing with Sebek. 

The trio murmurs, “Yes, Silver-senpai.” Good enough. 

When they reach far enough from the campus, Silver calls for a transportation portal from their area straight to the street where the nightclub is. If they were within the boundary of the college, the headmaster would sense the portal immediately, which is why they needed to be out of the radius to leave safely. 

“I’m so excited!” Ace exclaim with a wide grin. “This is going to be the best night ever!” 

“As long as we listen to Silver-senpai rules and don’t stay too long, it should be fine...” Deuce quietly assure himself, but Silver could see him fidgeting with excitement and eagerness. 

Yuu said nothing. Though he kept sneaking glances at Silver; wanting to say something but stop himself every time. Silver made a mental note to ask him if they had the chance. 

As soon as they step into the portal with Silver being the last, the Mystic Elixir appear before them. The building is large, circular with three floors and a rooftop lounge. The main entrance holds up the name of the nightclub in bright purple lights with the walls flashing a myriad of soft colours and music can be heard blasting inside. 

“Oh wow, look at the line!” Ace pointed out. Like any other typical Saturday night, the club had a long line of people eager to get in. “It’ll take forever for us to get in at this rate!” 

“Just follow me.” Silver simply replied and went around the building. The First Years continue to trail after him like ducklings; their excited chatter muffled. Away from prying eyes, they slip into an alley beside the building where an imposing bouncer is guarding a small door. 

When he saw Silver, he peers over his sunglasses. “Oh-ho, the guys and I’ve been wondering when you would show up, Argentum. There’s even a bet running that you ran off to some other clubs at the other side of the city.” The Minotaur said with a friendly grin. 

Silver rolled his eyes. “It’s only been four months. Anyway, is Hansel in tonight?” 

“Heck yeah! He’s manning the bar on the ground floor with a couple of new girls. There’s a new menu that I think you’re gonna like.” 

The two chatted for a few more minutes before he laughs at Silver’s sarcastic quip and opens the door for them; barely batted an eye at the three kids behind him as they shuffle in. 

“Does Silver-senpai knows a lot of people in the city?” Deuce couldn't help but ask when the door close behind them. Silver leads them through the dimly lit hallway to where the music and people shouting and singing is. 

“No.” Silver answered, and that’s that. When they finally reach the dance floor, Deuce and Ace gape at the sight. Music blares from every corner of the large room, the bright and colourful LED lights pulse from the ceilings, walls, and the entire floor is crowded with all sorts of creatures; some were dancing, some were playing cards and drinking at the tables while others made their way to the neon stairs for the rooftop lounge. 

“Now this is a party! C’mon, c’mon! Let’s dance, guys!” Ace urged and grabbed both Yuu and Deuce with him to the dance floor. Silver watch them mingle with the crowd before heading towards the bar where it’s a little quieter. 

Hopping onto one of the stool, Silver is immediately greeted by the bartender, Hansel. “Argentum! Good to see you again. How have you been? Busy?” The man said brightly as he tucks away a shot glass. Behind him, Silver could see two girls handling the other patrons. 

“Had to study for a test.” Silver said. He hid his identity whenever he sneaks out of Raven Night College in case Lilia or Malleus caught wind of his little late-night adventures. A small part of him knew that although Lilia wouldn’t mind him hanging out with his own group of friends, the old man would definitely put his foot down as soon as he mentioned Mystic Elixir. 

It’s baffling how overprotective the old man can sometimes be. You’d think he’s old enough to make his own decisions. 

There’s been a lot of shady events that happened in Mystic Elixir ever since its grand opening. Being one of the very few nightclubs with very few rules, anything can happen here. Agreements, truces and even death. Though Hansel enigmatically smiles and said nothing when Silver wanted to confirm the last rumour. 

But despite the nightclub’s infamous reputation, Silver actually enjoyed it here. Watching all sort of creatures dance the night away and even chatting with some interesting strangers over a glass of Icy Polaris about this and that can be fun. 

When Hansel slides him a shot of Poison Harbinger, Yuu sat on the vacant stool beside him. Like before, he made a poor attempt trying to hide his curious glances despite looking at the non-alcoholic section of the menu. So Silver decide to nip that in the bud. 

“Do you like sweets?” He suddenly asks. 

“Umm... I don’t really mind them, Silver-senpai.” Yuu said after some thoughts. 

Silver nodded. “Then I suggest either a Dea’s Kiss mocktail or Priestess Lemonade.” 

Yuu decides on the first suggestion, and one of the girls begin to prepare his order. “Has enough of dancing?” Silver asks after a sip of his drink. 

“I was starting to get sweaty.” Yuu admits. “I’ve never been to a nightclub before. Not even in my... world.” He pauses and then, “Not unlike Silver-senpai.” 

“This is my fourth time here, but I’m not much of a dancer. I’m just here for the drinks.” Silver said, raising his glass for emphasis. Hansel cheers. 

“Still... even though I’m still new here, I always thought that Silver-senpai prefers a much more... quiet scene.” Yuu said with a tilt of his head. 

Silver turns around to face the dancing crowd. Despite the writhing bodies, he could see Ace and Deuce without a problem. “I do enjoy hanging out with Lilia-san and the others. But I’m also a curious person. Just like your friend, I heard about this place and wanted to check it out and found myself experiencing something new.” 

Hansel returns with Yuu’s order. He eyes the drink; inside the tall glass is a swirl of purple galaxy with sparkling black dots that oddly reminds her of onyx. A single red rose petal floats on the surface of the drink. The drink looks pretty rather than delicious, to be honest, but he takes a sip nonetheless. His eyes widen when a pleasant sweet taste burst on his tongue. It faintly tasted like blueberries and something else entirely. 

“Does Lilia-san knows you’re here?” Yuu finally ask. 

Ah, Silver was wondering when he would ask that. “No.” He said after the sweetness of his drink burns his throat. As long as he can remember, Silver’s world consists of Lilia and Malleus; they the ones who taught and raised him everything they knew. They watch him grow when they themselves don’t, and over time, Silver can feel the difference between them.

Don’t get him wrong; Silver dearly love them as his parents, and they in return treat him as theirs. It’s unconventional, but he wouldn’t have it any other way. But after enrolling to Night Raven College, Silver sees them not only as parental figures but also his senior students.

Awkward is an understatement whenever the other students witnessed Lilia teasing him like how a father would and Malleus would scoop a portion of his food to his plate during lunchtime in the cafeteria. It’s during those moments that Silver is grateful for Sebek’s presence and would gladly humour him whenever he’s upset with something. 

Yuu said nothing and they enjoyed their drinks in silence. The topic then shifted to something lighter; about classes, magic and the difference between their world. Silver couldn’t comprehend a world without magic, and despite knowing nothing of their histories, Yuu grasps his explanation surprisingly quick. 

It’s almost as if he’s heard of them before. 

When midnight came and went, the First Year trio were beginning to wear out from dancing and the intense atmosphere. Around 2 in the morning, they decide to return home. Silver paid for their drinks much to the their protest, but Silver easily brush it off, claiming that since it’s their first time, it’s a treat from him. 

As they made their way back to the back entrance of the nightclub, Yuu took one last glance at the dance floor behind him. Just like the moment they arrive, he sees a young man with short auburn hair with red tips and russet brown eyes stare at them from one of the private booth. 

No, Yuu suddenly realises when the stranger turns his head slightly. Not them, but at Silver. 

-

Apologies for any grammatical errors or spellings. It was 2AM when I was writing this. Hope I managed to get Silver right

[thetruenamelessmonster]

These Dark Times.... Psycho Pass Fan Fic

If you like what you see, have a question or anything else related to my story please leave a comment, this is one of the very few times I have shared this on the internet, I very rarely post my stories due their strange and unusual content that greatly deflects from the main anime. So with that in mind I present my disclaimer being that I do not own any characters from this anime and also a warning that many of the characters mentioned in my stories are very OOC (out of character!) ok enough of that legal stuff!!

 The tight dark alleyways which were almost maze like in appearance as they stretched for miles around the ‘free zone’ didn’t seem to bother Makishima as he sprinted down one particular long walkway while searching for the mysterious individual known as Azusawa.

The free zone was strange type of oasis on the outskirts of the main city.

It was a place that had been purposefully overlooked by the Sibyl System, a place where citizens could indulge their sins in small healthy amounts without fear of clouding their hue.

Many times, in the past Makishima, at times accompanied by his hacker friend Choe, had visited such an area to meet with certain individuals to discuss their plans of destruction.

It made sense then that the ‘hunter’ Division had brought the asymptomatic along as his knowledge of the area was quite valuable especially when it came to locating certain meeting places for lesser known criminals.

A certain name had constantly popped up during the investigation into Mount Olympus and that name was Azusawa.

While Makishima was unfamiliar with the name he knew exactly where such a mystery man would be hiding.  

Using his influence and street reputation the asymptomatic had managed to get the hunters inside without any incident.

Locating Azusawa however proved more difficult as they only had a very sketchy description of the suspect.

Makishima had purposefully separated himself from the group in order to draw Azusawa out.

Well aware that he was being watched from a far the asymptomatic didn’t flinch or react when he was approached by a tall man with scraggly short black hair who was dressed in a faded grey business suit.

It was quite clear that the smug arrogant individual who slowly circled around Makishima was indeed Azusawa who seemed very at home in the seedy darkened room of the underground café.

Azusawa appeared to be aware that Makishima had changed and was no longer the big scary monster he once was.

The obvious proof was that the asymptomatic had lead members of the MWPSB into a hidden area and also the fact that Makishima was dressed like an Enforcer.

It was according to Azusawa all the evidence he needed to know that the asymptomatic had gone soft and had fallen from grace, Makishima didn’t have as much influence as he once did in the past, he was slowly losing his hold over the lesser criminals he once commanded.

After making such cruel accusations Azusawa quickly left, choosing to stealthily slip out the back exit, and Makishima followed not because he’d been insulted by Azusawa but deciding to purse the man for a different reason which went beyond forcing him to apologize.

If the arrogant Azusawa was apprehended, the MWPSB would be too distracted in their interrogation to focus on Makishima who hoped to use Azusawa’s arrest as a means to escape.

The asymptomatic was getting quite bored of playing the role of the helpful civilian consultant to the law, it was time to break free and do his own type of investigation, one that didn’t involve being under the constant supervision of several Inspectors and suspicious Enforcers.

The communication device on Makishima’s right wrist started to flash which signaled an incoming call.

Such a distraction was ignored by the asymptomatic who continued down the alleyway, alert and looking for the sly Azusawa.

Seeing a form crouching behind a large metal dumpster up ahead caused Makishima to grin as he slowed his pace, it seemed that apprehending Azusawa would be easier than he thought.

Azusawa appeared to have little to no combat experience and it was because of this that he was most likely hoping that a swift surprise attack from a hidden location might give him an advantage over Makishima.

Silently approaching his target Makishima silently reached forward to grab Azusawa’s shirt collar, the sudden assault would hopefully be enough to force the man to the ground where Makishima could easily restrain him.

Again the communicator rapidly flashed on the asymptomatic’s wrist and again it was ignored by Makishima, his sudden disappearance at the café had no doubt angered and confused both Inspectors by now.

Suddenly Azusawa rapidly spun around to face Makishima catching the asymptomatic off guard as he took several steps backwards in surprise.

The individual that stood in front of Makishima wasn’t Azusawa but instead a very angry Kogami Shinya!

Kogami frowned in anger as he tossed the cigarette he was smoking to one side.  

Not allowing Makishima to say a single word the Enforcer grabbed the asymptomatic and pinned him to the nearest wall never taking his eyes off his hated rival.

Quickly studying Makishima’s attire caused both concern and confusion to flash across Kogami’s features as he frowned.

“What are you…? Why are you…like…that?” Kogami stuttered appearing unsure of what to say as his mind struggled to assess the current situation.

Makishima simply smirked as he observed the Enforcer in his current state, very rarely did anything really upset Kogami or cause him to become so shocked he turned into a stuttering mess and now the asymptomatic had found a new method to cause trauma to an already unstable Kogami and it was very entertaining to witness.

Suddenly Kogami seemed to realize that instead of concern, he should be feeling angry at Makishima and the Enforcer shoved the asymptomatic hard into the wall refusing to let go while glaring back.

“What game are you playing at now?” Kogami demanded. “Are you trying to mock the MWPSB by dressing like that? Answer me right now!!!”

Admittedly Kogami was still puzzled over what Makishima was wearing, the Enforcer was so used to seeing the asymptomatic only dressing in white or lighter colours such as green or blue that suddenly coming across his hated rival wearing what seemed to be an Enforcer’s uniform seemed very strange and disturbing.

Hearing Kogami’s angry words caused Makishima to grin as he stared back at the Enforcer.

“I believe you have it all wrong” Makishima said snidely. “I’m merely doing my part as a good citizen and assisting the MWPSB in whatever way I can, I was told that in order to temporarily assimilate that I should wear this suit”

Kogami gritted his teeth, “You expect me to believe that garbage? Since when do you listen to orders? What’s your true motive in all of this? Are you behind this new crime wave involving Synth addicts?”

“In all honesty Kogami I have no idea what you’re talking about” Makishima chuckled. “Perhaps in the past synthetic substances were something that may have been useful as an effective bribe when I was assisting others but I no longer have any ties to such individuals, tell me if you’re here you surely aren’t alone? Does that mean that the lovely Inspector Tsunemori is close by?”

Kogami slammed Makishima hard into the wall glaring back at the asymptomatic, it was obvious that Makishima had hit a nerve.

“Don’t change the subject!” Kogami snarled. “I know you’re playing a role in these killings; it has signs of your influence all over it!”

Makishima shrugged, “As I stated before I don’t know what it is that’s gotten you so upset, if you’d like to explain in greater detail then perhaps, I might be able to help you”

As Kogami went to speak he noticed that Makishima’s right wrist was blinking.

Releasing the asymptomatic from his iron hold Kogami grabbed Makishima’s right arm and quickly brought it forward, slightly turning the limb so he could clearly see the communicator.

“What the…?!? Why are you wearing this?!” Kogami demanded.

Makishima causally glanced at the communicator before looking back to Kogami.    

“It was put on me before I started to assist the hunters” Makishima said slowly. “I believe all the Inspectors have one too”

Flinging Makishima’s arm down in anger Kogami loudly exhaled.

“Please tell me you’re not that stupid” the Enforcer muttered. “That this is just a terrible dream I can’t wake up from”

“You seem troubled again Kogami” Makishima spoke up.

Glancing back towards the smug asymptomatic Kogami repressed the urge to punch the man.

“Idiot!!” Kogami yelled. “That’s not an Inspector’s communicator!”

As if to further demonstrate the point Kogami rolled up his left sleeve and showed Makishima the exact same communicator.  

When Makishima only casually glanced down at his communicator without any signs of concern Kogami’s anger slowly started to rise.

“Notice anything?” Kogami asked.

Makishima looked down at the communicator then back to Kogami before shrugging.

“I don’t notice any differences” the asymptomatic replied.

Exhaling loudly Kogami loudly grinded his teeth.

“Mine and yours, they’re both the same you moron!” Kogami snapped. “They collared you without you knowing, you’re an Enforcer now!”

Again Makishima’s blank expression caused Kogami to become angry.

“I suppose my curiosity got the better of me” Makishima remarked as he studied the communicator. “I assumed it was only temporary, isn’t this how all Enforcers are recruited?”

Kogami glared at Makishima as he took one step towards the asymptomatic.

“You know as well as I do that’s not how it happens, people don’t willingly become Enforcers for fun unless they’re stupid idiots like you, you’re the only individual I know who decided to become an Enforcer voluntarily and that truly sickens me!”

Watching as Makishima tapped his communicator against the brick wall frustrated Kogami.

“If you think that they’ll release you after whatever it is that you’re ‘helping’ them with you’re stupider then I thought” Kogami said quietly. “It wasn’t meant to end like this, it was supposed to be different but now…”

Glancing up at a confused Makishima who’d returned to studying his communicator Kogami sighed.

“The MWPSB caught you idiot!” the Enforcer said harshly. “And you didn’t even put up a fight”

“I assure you it’s only temporary” Makishima replied. “Despite the fact that I can no longer see any latch to unlock”

“Just face the facts!” Kogami said angrily. “You’re not walking away from this, you’re a wanted felon by the MWPSB remember? Why would they just let you leave without question?”

Before Makishima could say anything Kogami quickly pushed the asymptomatic hard against the wall pinning him in place.

“Someone’s coming” Kogami whispered. “So shut it!”

As Kogami glanced to the right a figure approached the pair.

Seeing the middle-aged man with short black hair, goatee beard and dressed in an Enforcer’s uniform caused Kogami to release Makishima as he turned to face the individual.

“Hey Boss” the young man said smiling. “Didn’t expect to see you here”

“Irie?” Kogami frowned. “What are you doing wandering these alleyways alone?”

Irie grinned as he thumbed towards Makishima, “It’s fine one of my Inspectors sent me to find this guy, he pulled a disappearing act before and neither Inspector is very impressed”

“So it’s true” Kogami breathed. “Makishima is assisting you”

Noticing Kogami’s faint smile caused Irie to question his mentor.

Taking a few steps away from Makishima, Kogami kept his smile while shaking his head.

“The idiot just realized he can’t take his communicator off” Kogami said.

Looking back at Makishima who was attempting to find a latch to undo once again caused anger to swirl inside of Kogami.

“It won’t come off unless an Inspector authorizes it” Kogami remarked.

“They have to be alive too” Irie added. “Just thought you’d like to know that”

Kogami turned back to Irie, “So you were told about Makishima, what he’s done in the past?”

“Yeah we were told, remember I am part of a group that’s meant to hunt dangerous guys like Makishima but lately…” Irie trailed off.

Irie paused before continuing, “It’s one thing to read the files and know about the MWPSB’s most wanted but it’s another thing to see them in real life, I mean I heard stories about Makishima when I was on the streets, that he was ruthless, a sadist, a manipulator but really intelligent and organized, I read about his ties to the helmet riots but I’m not sure if this is the same guy or not”

Kogami glanced past Irie to see Makishima attempt to break the metal strap by chewing on it.

“Stop that!!” Kogami ordered. “That MWPSB property and the last thing we want is your saliva all over that communicator!”

Makishima instantly stopped before looking up at Kogami, an act that surprised Irie as the asymptomatic refused to listen to either Inspector of the hunter Division.

“It’s not coming off” Makishima said. “Perhaps I should try a different approach?”  

“Of course it’s not coming off” Kogami huffed. “Isn’t that obvious?”

“Wow” Irie breathed. “He listened to you”

Kogami crossed his arms, “I just know how to speak to Makishima that’s all”

Directly looking at Irie, Kogami spoke, “Please tell me you didn’t give that maniac access to a Dominator? Your superiors aren’t that naive, are they?”

Irie shook his head, “No they didn’t but strangely enough Makishima seemed relieved that he wouldn’t have to use one”

“That’s because I don’t need such a weak weapon to enforce others” Makishima spoke up. “I have my own way of doing it”

“You’re not ‘enforcing’ anyone so just shut up!” Kogami shouted. “I’m still having a hard time believing that all of this is happening, it doesn’t feel real”

Irie shifted on his feet, “So Boss why are you out here by yourself? You looking for someone?”

“A Synth addict” Kogami replied. “I really should get back to my unit before I’m noticed though”

Before Irie could reply Kogami leapt forward and punched Makishima squarely in the jaw causing the asymptomatic to fall back hard against the wall in shocked silence.

Irie simply whistled softly as he glanced back at Kogami who was flexing his right hand.

“That feel good Boss?” Irie asked.

Kogami faintly smiled, “You don’t know the half of it, that was a long time coming”

Struggling to his feet Makishima touched his left cheek lightly smiling as the faint iron taste of blood filled his mouth, Kogami’s punch had caught him off guard however he didn’t mind the unexpected attack.

Not wasting any time Kogami reached forward and grabbing Makishima by the purple tie he wore pulled the asymptomatic closer, enjoying seeing the faint flicker of fear in Makishima’s eyes as though for once in his life the asymptomatic had no idea what his opponent would do next.

“Listen to me and remember this” Kogami said slowly. “Now that you’re an Enforcer I don’t have to hold back understand? What I did to you today is only a small sample of what I’ll do to you if I ever see you dressed like this again, you’re just very lucky that I’m needed elsewhere otherwise…”

Kogami left his threat hanging as he roughly shoved Makishima back.

“Whatever it was that frightened you so much that you willingly became an Enforcer is something I don’t care about, but know one thing you aren’t safe by pretending to be one of us in fact you just made your miserable life even harder, we Enforcers have a system of our own in place similar to a ladder and you’re the bottom rung, everyone steps on the bottom rung try to keep that in mind”

Kogami then turned back to Irie, “Get this idiot out of here before I decide to punch him again”

Irie simply nodded as he glanced towards Makishima who was gently touching the left side of his face which was slowly growing red.

“Hate to say I told you so….” Irie said shrugging. “But you sort of deserved that”

As Irie attempted to grab Makishima by the collar the asymptomatic flicked the Enforcer’s hand away giving Irie an annoyed stare as he started back down the alleyway.

Irie sighed, “Doesn’t look like I have the magic touch like you Boss”

“It’s not something you want trust me” Kogami replied. “What I just did should make Makishima a little bit quieter for the next few days but if he acts out of line again contact me immediately ok?”

“Sure thing” Irie nodded. “Best of luck hunting your suspect”

“I think your Division needs more luck then me especially now that you’re having to deal with Makishima”

Both Enforcers then simply nodded and went their separate ways down the dimly lit alleyway.

[annteasocial]

Hello there! May I please have some stuff for Arashi having a partner who's into lolita fashion (particularly classic lolita)? (She/her for Ara if possible too?) Thanks in advance!

Of course you can! First request let’s get this bread lol. Hopefully this is something you like and up to your standards X’D. I did make the reader a female but I pray that it’s not a huge problem

EnStars Arashi X Lolita Fashion Fem S/O

“Arashi-chan, look what I bought yesterday!” You excitedly run up to the blonde, catching her off guard. “Oh (Y/N)-Chan dear, you gave Onee-san a bit of a fright!”

“Ahaha…sorry about that, I was really eager to show you this super cute dress I got whilst shopping at the mall yesterday.” You scratch your cheek awkwardly, but proceed to bring out your latest purchase from the shopping bags for your girlfriend to see.

“Tada! What do you think? Do you like it?”

Arashi’s eyes widen at the sight of the frilly red and white Lolita dress. It had a beautiful double layered knee length skirt with a plaid pattern travelling down the side of both. The puffed sleeves were a traditional white with the exception of the cuffs which were a matte dark red lined with small crosshatching stitches, giving it a cute yet elegant look.

“Oh my! It’s gorgeous!” Arashi claps her hands together and gives a radiant smile, taking the dress from you and admiring the ensemble. “I also picked out this bow that matched the colours of it.” You draw a large plaid bow out of the bag, showing it to the purple eyed individual, whose eyes are practically sparkling.

“(Y/N)-chan, please go change, Onee-san would love to see you in your new outfit.” Arashi hands you back the dress and shoos you off to the nearest changing room, which thankfully wasn’t far from the practice room the two of you were occupying for the time being. You remove your school uniform, carefully unzip the back of the dress and slip into it. You take the opportunity to admire yourself in the mirror, twirling to let the skirts flow out a bit, before returning to Arashi.

You bounce into the room with your new appearance and attack the Knights member with a hug. She catches you and squeezes you slightly before pulling away to revel at the sight in front of her. “Oh you’re absolutely stunning (Y/N)-chan, really, you look like an adorable little model! It puts Izumi-chan to shame!” Arashi bends down to give you a peck on the cheek, pulling away with all smiles on her features.

A strong breeze sweeps through the open window that was left open due to the noontime summer heat, blowing your long hair in front of your face. Arashi catches some of the locks and brushes them behind your ear, then proceeds to usher you towards the mirror.

“Arashi-chan? What are you doing?”

“Let me braid your hair so it’s not flying into your precious face.”

“Oh, okay.”

The blonde seats you down on a chair and leaves to grab a comb, two hair ties and some red and white ribbon, which you had no idea she carried around, from her bag. Arashi returns and begins to gently tease out the small knots in your hair from you hopping about. You close your eyes in contentment, enjoying the feeling of her hands running through your locks.

“You have super soft and silky hair you know that (Y/N)-chan?” She meets your eyes through the mirror and begins to part down the middle of your hair. “Well, I do use the same brand of shampoo that you use, because your hair is really nice as well Arashi-chan. It also smells good,” you giggle, fiddling around with some of the loose strands she’s left in front of your face.

A moment of silence passes before you decide to speak up again.

“Um, Arashi-chan? Can I ask you something?”

“You can ask Onee-san anything you want.”

You pause, contemplating your next words.

“Do you…think it’s weird that I’m into classic Lolita fashion?” Arashi stops braiding and furrows her brows. “Of course not! I honestly think it’s refreshing, seeing you present yourself differently to others,” she states with a hint of disbelief, seemingly surprised that you would even ask a question like that.

You nod your head feebly as another cool breeze drifts through the window, ruffling your almost finished twin tail braids. You shiver involuntarily at the cold passing through the sleeves of your dress. The sun had hidden behind some clouds, filling the room with a dull grey tone, contrasting the warm atmosphere that once filled the room. “It’s just, people give me strange looks whenever I’m out in public because of what I wear. They look at me and whisper, calling me a freak and stuff…it’s made me question my appearance a bit,” you say truthfully.

Arashi finishes fastening the last braid with a ribbon and walks around the chair to face you. “(Y/N), look at me please.” The Knights member cups both your cheeks in her hands and tilts your face to meet hers. “Don’t let anything that anyone says about ever change how you want to dress. You’re beautiful as you are and I will always be there to support you.”

“Arashi-chan…”

You stand up and bury your face into the shoulder of the blonde. She wraps her arms around your waist and envelops you with warmth. “Thanks for understanding,” you mumble into her shirt, and you feel the vibrations through her body as she chuckles. “Of course my cute (Y/N)-chan~,” she coos.

“I love you, Arashi-chan.”

“I love you too, dear.”

BONUS:

Arashi pulls away from the hug and grabs one of your hands in hers. “Let’s go show the other Knights members! I’m sure they’d love to see you in your new outfit!” She elatedly drags you out the door as your brain tries to process what she’s just said. “Eh? Wai—what? Now?! They’re still here?!” You stammer. “Yep, they’re all doing something for Ou-sama apparently, though I was taking a little break when you found me.”

Arashi bursts into the room vigorously. “Look ah what my precious (Y/N)-chan bought yesterday~!” She parades you in front of her, gaining attention from the rest of the young idols.

“Wow, Onee-Sama you look marvellous!” Tsukasa is the first to compliment you, giving you an adorable smile, befitting of a little princeling. “Thanks Tsukasa-kun, I’m glad you like it,” you laugh, returning his gesture.

Out of the corner of your eye, you see Izumi take a long hard glance at you. “She can’t look as cute as my Yuu-kun,” he scoffs, looking away but Leo is quick to reprimand him. “Now now Sena, be nice okay! I think (Y/N) looks really good!” Leo walks over to you and gives you a pat on the head and Arashi smiles proudly. “See? Everyone loves what you’re wearing! Izumi-chan likes it as well, he just won’t admit it~”

Izumi flushes slightly due to embarrassment and anger. “Shut up Naru!” He yells and retreats to elsewhere in the room.

“Ahh…you guys are so noisy…I can’t sleep when Secchan is shouting.”

“Oh, Sleeping Beauty decided to wake up.”

“It’s not like I wanted to wake up in the first place…” Ritsu yawns and stretches his thin arms above his head before flopping back down onto the beanbags with a sigh. “Haah……hm? Did you get a new dress (Y/N)-chan? You look pretty~” the self proclaimed vampire gives you a sleepy grin, observing your appearance from amidst the pile of bean filled cushions.

You feel a slight heat rise to your cheeks from all the kind remarks and fidget with your hands. “Thanks you guys, you’ve really made my day you know that?” You murmur, playing with the ends of your new braids.

“You guys are the best friends I could ever ask for.”

Stan the Queen that is Arashi.

[eldri-sv]

6 - Aizawa

Kaori Shinsou has always been fascinated by people's minds. She is one of the best students in her Criminal Psychology course at U.A. and - being the lucky girl she is - her professor is not only one handsome dude, but is also working on the case of the serial killer Stain - a case that has been going on for years. As she is about to become Professor Aizawa's TA during the next term, a lot of other interesting cases start popping up all over the country... AU, OC x Aizawa

Trigger warnings: mentions of murder

(possibly incomplete, if you’d like something added, please let me know)

Though I know it must be the killing time

(Echo & the Bunnymen - The Killing Moon)

Shouta Aizawa was waiting for Kaori Shinsou in front of her house. He was early to pick her up, so he wasn't too bothered to be waiting for a little while. He was leaning against his car, enjoying the sun. It had finally stopped raining and the sun thankfully wasn't too strong yet, so it was just right to be outside.

He eyed up the pack of cigarettes that were on top of the dashboard. Aizawa used to smoke quite a lot, but had slowly gotten used to smoking less and less. These days he would only have a cigarette when he felt extraordinarily nervous. And right now, he wasn't outright nervous, but he felt uneasy. There really was no reason for that and that's what worried him. If he had learned one thing while he was working as a profiler, it was that he should be trusting his gut feeling.

Something about the whole day seemed off and he couldn't put his finger on what it was. There was nothing wrong. It was a calm day, except for quite a few incidents around town that needed to get resolved today. None of them really concerned him in any way, though. Maybe it had to do with the lockdown yesterday.

The press had managed to get onto the campus somehow and it had taken hours to take down all their details and send them off. There would be some hefty fines for trespassing coming to them soon, but thankfully nothing serious happened. Except for people being able to get through the tight security at U.A.

It was Yagi's fault, really. Shouta Aizawa would never understand why some people working on the more difficult and high profile cases were so happy to be talking to the press and to be on talk shows, give interviews and whatnot. To him, it was dumb. They were all already putting their lives on the line, working on these cases. Why would anyone try and draw even more attention to themselves? To make it easier for the bad guys? To cause a fuss wherever they went? It was dumb.

"And do the fucking dishes this time, Toshi, I'm not going to do your chores ever again, so you won't get into trouble!" Aizawa heard someone shouting from the house. He looked up, glad to have a distraction from the cigarettes.

Kaori Shinsou was slamming the door shut and walked up to him, shaking her head. She hadn't seen him yet, she probably wasn't aware that he was there. She was wearing a pair of black chinos and a dark red turtleneck. Her hair was tied up into a tight bun, but Aizawa knew it would fall apart within an hour.

"Morning, Shinsou." he said to her, as she was climbing over the gate leading up to her home. She looked up and immediately blushed a little. Aizawa knew that she was fully aware of it, but she did her best to play it off. She finished climbing over the gate (because opening it would have been too easy?) and gave him a smug smile, while her cheeks were slowly turning back to her usual skin colour.

"Good morning, Mr. Aizawa. Sorry, I had to talk about something with my brother before I left the house, he can be really lazy sometimes. I hope I'm not late..." she replied. Aizawa was impressed by her not being flustered at all.

"It's fine. You're early. Let's go." he said to her and walked around the car to get into the driver's seat. He really didn't know why he offered to give her a lift to the Rescue Training Facility. He hated having other people as passengers, mostly because he didn't like entertaining others. He always felt uncomfortable being around most people, because he just didn't know what the hell to do with them.

Kaori Shinsou quickly got into her seat, closed the door and put on her seatbelt without much of a fuss. She held up some papers that were on her seat. Aizawa had almost forgotten about them, but he couldn't really do anything about it now. Anyway, there were some papers for Shinsou in there.

"Sir, what do you want me to do with that?" Shinsou asked.

"Just put them on the backseat or something... Actually, you can look through them, the forms for your TA application are in there somewhere. You can get them and fill them out while we get to the facility, just put the rest on the backseat." he replied and fully focussed on the road again.

Or he at least tried to. He really shouldn't have left all those files on the seat. There was some sensitive information in there. The only reason he let Shinsou look through it freely was because he trusted her not to do anything stupid with what she found. He knew he really shouldn't be trusting anyone, but Shinsou... she was brilliant. Just a few days ago he had almost considered showing her those files anyway.

She was still looking through the files gathering up the papers that she needed. Aizawa mentally scolded himself for getting all of that mixed up. She really shouldn't be seeing that other stuff, especially since her eyes seemed to linger on the pages for longer than he would have liked.

"I... I think I have them all." she finally said and gathered up the other files she wasn't supposed to see. She leaned back and carefully placed them on the backseat, the empty side up, so no one looking in could see anything. So she really did know how confidential and important those were. Good girl.

When she turned back, her hand brushed against Aizawa's shoulder. She smelled like she had been bathing in coffee. He wasn't surprised. Not with how tired she always looked. Sometimes Aizawa wondered if she ever got any sleep at all. She wasn't collapsing, so she had to get some sleep, but it was definitely not much.

Aizawa wanted to focus on the road, he really did, but he ended up watching her take a pen out of her bag and starting to fill out the papers quickly in neat and small letters. Shinsou's handwriting looked as if it was printed, always neat and orderly. He had never seen any of her work look sloppy.

"Okay... I think that's all. Will I put those papers on the back seat, too?" she asked after a while. They had almost arrived at the facility. Aizawa nodded.

"Sure. Go ahead, that way they won't get lost at least." he replied. She nodded in agreement and placed them on the backseat on top of his work files. She looked at them for a little longer than he would have liked.

"Sir, those other files... I wasn't supposed to see them, right?" she asked as she turned back to the front. Aizawa gripped the steering wheel tighter.

"No, that was my mistake. I shouldn't have had them here in the first place. I fully trust that you'll treat whatever you saw as strictly confidential. If anything gets out to anyone, you're going to be my prime suspect." he explained.

"I understand. May... may I ask something, though?"

"You're going to ask anyway, aren't you?"

"Those were letters from Stain, right? And there was one new one that hasn't been published in the news yet. I know there was one that I hadn't seen yet and I follow the case closely. And I know you're working on it."

Aizawa didn't say anything. He really couldn't. Not only because Shinsou should never, ever and under no circumstances have seen that sort of inside information, but also because he still didn't know. At the moment he could neither deny nor confirm whether that new Stain letter was authentic. And as much as he would have liked Kaori Shinsou's input on the issue, it simply wouldn't fly.

Maybe he'd let her have a look at them if he got really desperate, but right now he was still waiting on an analysis from the graphology department. That would hopefully give him a clear answer on whether that new letter was Stain's doing or not. There had been a lot of letters that were simply copy cat letters, since Stain had started involving the press. Some were faked really well.

"Sir? I know you probably aren't allowed to tell me, but... that letter looked pretty real. It seemed to be the same type of pen as the other letters. Same colour, too. Same weird capitalizations..."

Aizawa stopped the car and looked at Shinsou. She had this intense glow in her eyes. It was the same glow he had when Aizawa was presenting the class with a made-up case where they had to profile the perpetrator. This girl had a passion for murder. For getting into the minds of people.

"I can't tell you anything. I'm sorry." he said. And he was. He was genuinely sorry. He would have liked to hear her thoughts, but those files? They were confidential for a reason and they should stay that way.

"I understand. Uhm... why did you stop the car?" she asked.

"We're here."

"Oh. Right." she said and unfastened her seat belt. She got out of the car and stood outside waiting for Aizawa. She looked nervous. Aizawa sighed and rubbed his temples. He still felt uneasy about the whole day. What the hell.

With a sigh he got out of the car and locked the doors. Shinsou was waiting for him, blinking against the sun that was shining in her eyes. She seemed to be a little insecure about the prospect of having to interact with first years. Aizawa felt much the same half the time. At least he had the advantage of his position as a professor.

Aizawa glanced over at the facility entrance. Most of his students seemed to have already made it. He checked his watch quickly and realized that they were just on time. He sighed. Might as well use the time and introduce Shinsou to the class.

"Come on. I think most of them are here already." he said. Shinsou nodded and followed him without a word. Aizawa noticed that she moved extremely quietly. She barely made a sound when she was walking over the gravel.

"Oh look, it's Mr. Aizawa!" one girl with short, pastel pink hair exclaimed and the rest of the students turned around, some of them waving at us. Aizawa was pretty sure that the girl's name was Ashido, but he hadn't been responsible for this class for long enough to be absolutely sure.

"Good morning, everyone. Anyone missing?" he asked them.

"I think Kaminari and Mineta are running late." a boy called Midoriya said. He had dark, fluffy hair that was long enough to start curling.

"Alright. I'll just go ahead and hope they'll arrive in time. As I've already told you, you'll have three instructors for today - me, Toshinori Yagi and our traumatology expert on campus. We'll also have my third year student with us. Her name is Kaori Shinsou and she'll be my TA from next term on so she'll have a chance to see what she's dealing with at that time. She'll be here today just to observe. Any questions?" Aizawa said. He saw how Shinsou was nervously playing with her sleeves. She didn't seem to like to have so much attention on her all at once.

"Alright, fine, seems there are no questions, let's head inside." Aizawa told them, just as he saw two figures approaching. One was tall and had blond hair, the other one was considerably smaller.

"Kaminari, Mineta, you two better hurry up or we'll lock you out and you'll have to repeat this thing next year. If you'll even make it to next year." he shouted at them and they started jogging faster to catch up with the group. Aizawa waited with Shinsou until all of them were inside and then closed the doors behind them. He walked up to the front of the class, Shinsou following with a bit of distance.

"Morning, Anakuro. Class is all yours." he mumbled and leaned against one of the walls. Something still felt off and Aizawa didn't like it one bit. His eyes carefully wandered over the facility.

"Hello, everyone. I've been waiting for you!" Anakuro Hirooki said to the class, expertly ignoring Aizawa's indifference to what she was saying to his class. The kids seemed to be happy enough looking at all of the stuff that was around. There were a lot of different environments simulated in this facility - shipwrecks, landslides, fires, storms - whatever one could think of.

"We're here today to prepare you to deal with different types of disasters and difficult terrains. I'm really excited to do this training with you today!" Anakuro announced with a big smile on her face. Aizawa noticed something else that bugged him. He walked away from his wall and went up to Anakuro.

"Hey, shouldn't Yagi be here already? Let me guess, he went to an interview instead." he said to her. Anakuro's smile faded and she came up closer to him.

"Actually, it's something else."

"Huh?"

"Apparently, he got caught up in some incident at work this morning and can't make it anymore. I think he's still busy either at the scene or with paperwork. He said he'll try to make it before the session ends." Anakuro explained. Aizawa rolled his eyes and sighed in frustration.

"That man is the height of irresponsibility." he commented, consciously ignoring the fact that he had just left extremely confidential files in his car where anyone smart enough to break a window could steal them. And a lot of people were smart enough to break the window of a car.

Well, we should be fine with just the two of us. If we need any extra help, I guess Shinsou can help out. He looked at the students. They all probably had been looking forward to working with the famous Toshinori Yagi. Well, too bad.

"The clock's ticking. We should get started." Aizawa said and went back to his wall, still trying to figure out why the hell he was feeling so uneasy all day.

"Excellent! Before we begin, let me just say one thing. Well, maybe two things, possibly three, four, five..."

"We get it!" one guy in the group said. Judging from the voice Aizawa guessed it was Bakugou. The kid could be a right pain, but he knew from the start he wanted to become a specialist for the bomb squad and if anyone was suitable, it was him.

"Listen carefully! I'm sure you're all excited to get out there and start the training. You should have learned a lot of basics in your classes, when it comes to first aid, securing certain areas and so on. You also all had lots of fitness tests and should know your own limits. Whatever you do today, make sure you do it safely and you don't overexert yourselves. You won't be much use helping other people if you're the ones needing help. Always keep that in mind. That's all I wanted to say. Thank you so much for listening." Anakuro finished with a bow. The students all looked really excited and clapped.

"Right. Now that that's over, form groups of three or four and head into one of the zones each. I'm not going to tell you where to go, you're adults and you can figure this out by yourselves." Aizawa said. Something still felt off. He had noticed some lights flickering earlier and he had seen some of the volunteers who were here to act as victims and one or two seemed strangely familiar.

Something was going on and it made Aizawa even more nervous that he didn't know what it was. He should have had that cigarette earlier.

[katedrakeohd]

Nothing Like the Present (Part Two)

[Part 9 of A Very Valtorian Christmas ] (Masterlist)

TRH gang are still opening christmas presents...

Warnings: A little angst, mostly fluff.

..__________________________________..

Drake admires the amber color of the whiskey in the bottle that Nicholas gave him, wishing he could pour himself some but it's too early in the day.

Leaning against the sofa is a fishing rod that Drake received from Hana. Next to Drake, Kate is wearing a silver locket that he gifted to her. On her lap is a gift box containing red and black silky lingerie.

Kate had blushed when she opened it, while Maxwell had wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

“Ooh, now you both have sexy jammies.”

Drake grumbles, “Next year I think we’ll open our gifts privately, after the guests leave.”

Hana smiles, “Oh but next year there will be baby presents to open too.”

Nicholas turns the pages on the leather-bound journal that Hana had given him. “I suppose in the Spring we’ll be throwing a baby shower.”

Maxwell gathers up the last few gifts and hands them out. Drake gets two envelopes, Kate gets an envelope and a large jar with a ribbon tied around the lid. She notices that both gifts are from Hana. In the jar are layers of ingredients, including marshmallows.

Kate smiles, “Let me guess, your famous hot chocolate recipe.”

Hana nods, “Of course, I know how much you like it.”

Kate lifts the tab on the envelope with a grin, “This is a pretty large set of instructions on how to prepare hot chocolate. What could this possibly be?”

Hana and Nicholas exchange a knowing glance, while Maxwell plays tug of war with one of the corgis on the floor. Drake sets his two envelopes aside, assuming they're Christmas cards, and watches Kate pull a folded document out of hers.

“What are these?” Kate asks as she flips through the pages.

Hana smiles, when realization dawns on Kate’s face.

“It's a copy of my Cordonian citizenship papers. Nicholas helped me make them official. Remember how my parents were pushing me to move back home when they came to visit during the lantern festival? Now I can live here permanently.”

Kate hugs her, “Oh Hana this is so wonderful. Now you can move in.”

Drake’s mouth drops open, “Wait what?”

Nicholas tries to explain as he can see the growing look of panic on Drake’s face.

“With the social season over, and where I’m no longer actively searching for a Queen to supply my heir, it would not be right for Hana to remain living at the Palace.”

Drake’s expression goes from panic to a frown, “So you’re just kicking her out? She’s your friend, and a Guardian of the Realm. Would it really be that scandalous to allow her to stay as your guest?”

Nicholas is surprised by Drake’s reaction, suddenly finding himself on the defensive.  “Well...no, that's not what I meant. Kate invited her to live here, and once Hana finished her cultural studies to earn her citizenship, she told me she was eager to make her move. We weren’t quite sure how you’d feel about her moving in, considering your family is already growing.”

Everyone turns to look at Drake expectantly for his answer. He zeros in on Kate and her guilty expression as her eyes shift away, and then move back to him.  The way Hana is holding Kate’s hand, and how they're leaning on each other causes an ache in the pit of Drake’s stomach. No dammit, I’m not giving in to selfish jealousy. I need to handle this like a mature adult.

Drake shrugs, giving Kate and Hana an uneasy smile. “Of course Hana can live here, she’s our friend, practically family.”

Kate breathes a sigh of relief, reaching out to touch his hand. “Thanks so much honey.”

Hana looks between Kate and Drake, trying to dispel the sudden awkwardness, “I don’t need to move in right away. I can wait until after the baby is born.”

Maxwell smiles, “Just in time to help out if you need it. I’m jealous of Auntie Hana already.”

Nicholas looks to his friend, and notices Drake’s jaw working, the clenching of his teeth setting his lips into a grim line. His hand keeps bunching and releasing the blanket on the couch next to him. When Drake catches the sympathetic look on the King’s face, he relaxes a little.

“So are we finished opening gifts now?” Drake asks hopefully.

Maxwell sees the two envelopes next to Drake on the sofa, “You haven't opened your christmas cards yet, might be something special in there.”

Hana opens up a package from Kate, revealing a silk scarf with an elegant jungle and tiger pattern, “Oh wow Kate, this is beautiful.”

Kate smiles, “I wanted to give you a scarf with a phoenix on it, as a welcome to Valtoria, but couldn't find one that was quite right.”

“No worries Kate, I love tigers. And the fiery colors are so pretty.”

Kate gives her a hug around the shoulders, grinning “I’m so glad you like it dear, plus now I can borrow it.”

Hana laughs as she holds the gift box out of Kate’s reach. “We’ll see.”

Drake tears into the first envelope, a photo of a green rowboat falls out of the Christmas card as he opens it, he turns it over to read the details written on the back, “What’s this?”

“Surprise!” Maxwell says, “Bertrand and I got you a boat. Hey you’ve finally got your own house on a lake, so we figured you could use a boat too.”

Drake smiles, “Thanks Max, I appreciate it.”

Maxwell looks off in the distance, holding his hands out to frame the view of the lake outside the window. “Picture it, rowing out onto the water with Kate and your little one, catching fish or just enjoying the quiet sounds of nature.”

Looking over at Kate, Drake could imagine it. He thought back to that night in Portavira when Kate had agreed to go fishing with him. He wondered how long it would be before they had the chance to do such a thing again. Maybe next summer Auntie Hana could babysit? Having her around might be a good thing after all.

Maxwell is still talking, “...I wanted to get you a bigger boat with a motor, but Bertrand insisted it wasn't in the budget. Then we haggled back and forth over wood or fiberglass, and the colour..”

Drake snaps out of his daydream of being on the lake with Kate on a sunny day, imagining her in a bathing suit.

“It's ok Max, this boat will do just fine. I see that it comes with it's own trailer, but I don't think the Manor’s SUV has a trailer hitch.” He shrugs, “But we’ll find a way to get the boat to the water.”

Maxwell and Kate share a knowing glance, and Kate encourages Drake to open the other envelope. “That Christmas card might help.”

Drake raises his eyebrow, mumbling as he opens the envelope, “I don’t see how, but ok…”

He pulls out a card that has a Papa bear sitting in an overstuffed chair with his bear cub in his lap, the juvenile text on the outside says “Have a Beary Merry Christmas Papa.”

Drake’s vision goes blurry as he tears up, and his breath catches in his throat. My first daddy Christmas card.

Maxwell covers his mouth with his hands, gasping with surprise, “Oh my God, Kate. We made Drake cry.”

Drake wipes his eye with the heel of his hand, trying to hide his embarrassment with a sniff and chuckle, “No..no you didn't. Besides, what do you mean we? I'm not your Daddy.”

“Open it, open it, open it!” Maxwell insists, bouncing with excitement.

Inside the Christmas card is a folded up vehicle listing from a local car dealership. When Drake unfolds the paper he sees that it has a picture of a blue pickup truck on it.

“You can't be serious?!” He exclaims, choking on the words, “You got me a truck?”

Kate nods, smiling and pointing out the truck's special features on the paper, “Yes, yes we did. Max helped me pick it out for you. It's a 2019 GMC Sierra, blue, with four doors, four wheel drive, heated seats, backup camera, V8 engine, trailer package, all the bells and whistles, everything a new Daddy could ever want in a vehicle, with plenty of room in the backseat for a child safety seat.”

Drake just stares at Kate, dumbstruck, his mouth hanging open. He'd never owned anything larger than a television in his life. And now he had his own truck.

As Kate goes on to describe the other vehicles that she and Max had looked at, and her conversation with the salesman, Drake tunes her out and just gazes at her with an expression of love and wonder. He was thinking about road trips with her sitting on the seat beside him and them both singing along to the music on the radio. He could already feel the excitement of having so much horsepower under his control and hear the hum of the tires on the pavement.

“…and he agreed to wave his commission and other fees if we do a promotional photo when we go in to sign the papers.”

Drake leans in to kiss her mouth to stop her from talking. When she giggles, he mumbles against her lips, punctuating each word with another kiss. “You're the best..wife..ever.”

Kate cups his face in her hands, loving his happy expression and his goofy grin, “So you don't mind posing for photos?”

Drake shakes his head, focusing on her lips, “..photos? What photos?”

“The guy at the dealership said that it would be a great way to boost sales if he could say that the Duke and Duchess bought one of his vehicles.”

“Ok sure, I’ll pose for photos. When do we go pick up the truck?”

“Monday.”

“Oh can I come along?” Max asks.

“No,” Drake answers.

Maxwell pouts, “But I helped pick it out. Kate wanted to get an SUV, but I convinced her that you'd rather have a big manly bruiser of a truck instead of a soccer Mom family car.”

Kate shrugs, “He’s not lying. I really had my heart set on the red Terrain instead.”

Drake sighs, “Ok fine, but you travel home with Preston in the SUV.”

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