#free leads for travel agents

[upsidedownwithsteve]

Could I request either “You’re always worrying.”“Yes, I am, because you're you.” or 'Their partner doing something and their clumsiness striking in a way that leads to good spirited laughter between the two.' with Steve please? Whichever you prefer 💚

I went with the first one, I hope that’s okay! 🧡

Steve Harrington x fem!reader

“You’re late.”

Your voice was a little mournful, your pout hiding your concern, your worry, but your eyes gave you away. Steve’s brows knitted together as his hand cupped your elbow, bringing you into him as you both began the walk to the pizza joint on the upper level.

His hand on your skin was soothing, a medicine you didn’t know you needed. It travelled up until his arm draped around your neck, the smell of Steve making your shoulders drop, tension forgotten, if only just.

Steve laughed a little, soft and not at all unkind, but you frowned anyway. “By like, three minutes, babe.” He didn’t say sorry - he didn’t really need to - but his voice was gentle enough that you heard the apology stitched between each word.

He tugged you into him, uncaring of the busy mall, the passersby, the onlookers. His lips found your temple, a kiss stamped there that was all adoration and love. “You’re always worrying, huh?”

You scoffed but leaned into him anyway, seeking out more of his mouth, lips lifting in the corners when his nose nuzzled at your hairline. “Well, yes, I am,” you mumbled, shy at being caught out, adored that he could read you so well. “Because you’re you.”

Steve snorted at that too, leading you through the evening crowds, the mall busier than usual as Hawkins residents made their way to the cinema, the new laser tag rooms that had opened up last week.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

You tried really hard not to roll your eyes but Steve must’ve seen, pinching at your side with his free hand and making you squeak, batting him away. He grinned, letting you escape his hold only to catch your hand and pull you back into him. Your fingers twined with his, nose wrinkling as you glared up at him, playful, for the most part.

“You have a baseball with nails embedded in it in your trunk,” you reminded him, “plus another under your bed.”

Steve grinned, nonplussed and he bumped his shoulder with yours as the pizza counter came into view. “Hey now, lower your voice, there could be lingering Russians.”

You really were glaring now, because you truly didn’t know if he was joking or not. To be truthful, Steve wasn’t sure either. But he was still smirking, enjoying your pouty mood, knowing that once he got you alone, he could kiss it right out of you.

“You’re not funny,” you told him, joining the queue and pretending to look at the overhead menus, bright signs and flashing pizza cartoons making your eyes ache. Steve knew you’d get your usual, a slice of chicken and sweetcorn, like always. “You probably are on some CIA watchlist, you know.” You prodded at his ribs, eyes narrowing when Steve laughed. “A whole team of agents listening in to you and the kids dragon game meetings. That’s why I worry.”

“Oh my god, you’re like, totally in love with me, huh?” Steve was still smiling but his grin had turned softer, jokes turning lovesick. He bent a little at the knees, nose nuzzling your cheek despite the people around you. He didn’t mind a little PDA. He pressed a kiss to your cheek, the corner of your mouth, doting when you allowed one to your lips. “S’real cute, babe.”

You let him kiss you, once, twice, cheeks hot when the woman in front of you huffed but Steve just wrapped his arm around you again, bringing your back to his front as you both waited your turn in line.

“You’re so annoying,” you told him, head resting against his chest all the same. You didn’t sound annoyed at all, in fact, from over your shoulder, Steve could see your smile.

“Tell me about it,” Steve hummed, more than happy to be at the receiving end of your worrying, especially if you let him dote on you like this to make up for it.

[phaedraismyusername]

Happy International Lesbian Day! Here's some super brief book recs to celebrate

Books dealing with love, loss, longing and abandonment

This is How You Lose The Time War is a short but beautifully written epistolary novel between two agents on opposite sides of a time war as they slowly fall in love.

Our Wives Under the Sea is one of the most beautifully written debuts I've ever read about a woman whose wife comes home wrong after they thought she'd died at sea and how it feels to grieve the loss of someone who's still in your home.

Lucky Red is a western novel about a young girl working in a brothel who meets her first female gunslinger and falls head over heels for her, and the consequences that come with loving dangerous people.

Body horror galore

Camp Damascus is about a young woman living in a super conservative christian town built around the worlds most successful conversion camp and the horrors that are uncovered there when praying the gay away fails.

To Be Devoured is about a woman whose fascination with the local vultures turns into obsession and the urge to know what carrion tastes like overtakes her life and leads her down stranger and stranger paths.

Chlorine is about a girl whose entire life revolves around being a competitive swimmer, and how abuse, neglect, and obsession with being the best takes its toll on the young women caught up in these destructive cycles.

Flawed character studies

Big Swiss is about a woman who has a kitchen floor reset in her 40s, moves away and starts a new life as a transcriber for a sex therapist and becomes obsessed with one of his clients before inserting herself into this poor woman's life.

The Seep is a speculative sci-fi set in a future where there's been a quiet alien invasion that has given people the ability to make almost any changes to their own bodies and what that world feels like to someone who doesn't want to partake.

Milk Fed is about a woman in therapy who feels cut off from almost everything until she meets another woman who triggers in her a melding of sex, hunger, and religion and where that takes her. Huge trigger warnings for ED content. It gets tough, y'all.

Fantastical wlw books

Bitterthorn is an amalgamation of fairytales retold as a slow burn sapphic love story between a sad young girl from a cursed land and the evil witch who takes her as a companion in the latest of the generational sacrifices made to appease her.

All the Bad Apples may be set in contemporary Ireland but it is a fairytale following a young girl as she travels across the country looking for a sister she refuses to believe is dead and the people she meets along the way.

Gideon the Ninth needs no introduction on this site but for the sake of formatting - lesbian necromancers in space who find themselves in an isolated murder mystery plot. It's not a romance but it is a love story and this series will change your life if you let it.

Translated novels

Boulder is a short character study following a free spirited woman when she accidentally settles down with the woman she loves and how love and resentment can take up the same space in your chest when life doesn't turn out the way you hoped it would.

Notes of a Crocodile is a cult classic coming of age story about queer teens in Taipei in the 1980s. It was written in the 90s so please keep that in mind if you choose to read it.

Paradise Rot is about an international student studying in Australia and her growing obsession with her housemate as they share a space that allows no privacy. I've never read anything that feels stickier.

[antiquarianfics]

Taken pt. 2

If Bucky Barnes could time travel, he would go back to that morning. He would hold you a little tighter in his arms, and he would kiss you a little deeper. He would pull your daughter in between the two of you, letting her giggle as loudly as she wants whilst her parents kiss her cheeks and tickle her belly. If Bucky Barnes could time travel, he would have told you not to go to the park—to go anywhere else. But Bucky Barnes can’t time travel, and his wife and daughter are gone.

A/N: The response to pt. 1 was incredible! Thank you guys so much. Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Fem!Reader Genre: Angst/Fluff / WC: 1,341 /Rating: PG-13 Warnings: Kidnapping, canon-typical violence. Note: I do not own the character Bucky Barnes or any other Marvel affiliated characters.

You do not have permission to copy or repost my work; however, feel free to like, comment, and reblog.

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previous part | series masterlist | next part

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"What do we know?" Steve asks, rubbing his chin.

"Y/N and Becca have been missing approximately 52 hours; their last known location was Central Park; there are no leads as to who took them; Y/N's phone connected to a cell tower in Munich, Germany 42 hours ago but we've still had zero contact," Tony reports, reading his notes from a tablet.

The same information Tony reports is posted on the screen behind him alongside your official Avenger's photo and a photo of Becca from her 4th birthday party. It makes Bucky sick to see his wife and daughter on the screen as if they're just victims the Avenger's need to save--but they are.

"It just doesn't make sense," Natasha says, pulling everyone's--Bucky, Steve, Wanda, Sam, Clint, and Tony's--eyes to her. "How come we can track her phone? If whoever took them have it, they would have disconnected it. If she has it, she could send a signal, a hint, something to give us a lead."

"Unless she's being watched," Clint points out, anxiously messing with a pen, twirling it through his fingers.

Sam nods in agreement. "Yeah, maybe they--they being who took the better Barnes'--don't know she has the phone and she's hiding it. As long as it's got juice and they don't know it, we've got a chance at finding her." Bucky smirks lightly at Sam's attempt at a joke to lighten the mood; you would've laughed.

"Or it could be a trap," Clint offers in rebuttal to Sam's hypothesis.

"Trap or not," Steve says, "we've got to follow a lead. The longer we wait, the less likely we find them."

Bucky stays silent, sitting alone in the corner of the room. Listening. Worrying. Trying to stay calm. He's exhausted; he hasn't slept since his girls went missing. He leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he scans the room, eyes falling on his friends working tirelessly to rescue his family before returning to the photos of you and Becca on the screen. He balls his hands into tight fists.

"Tony?" Wanda asks, taking a few frantic steps towards a far screen that displays your phone's tracker.

"I see it," Tony says, typing away on his tablet. "F.R.I.D.A.Y., status report?"

"The cellular device belonging to Agent Y/N Y/L/N-Barnes connected to a cell tower in Novosibirsk, Russia approximately 3 minutes ago. The device is holding at 8% battery life," the A.I. reports.

Bucky sits up straight, eyes narrowing on the red dot indicating his wife's location. He recognizes Novosibirsk as a major city in Siberia. His stomach turns as gears turn in his head. He feels eyes on him and he pulls his gaze away from your location to see Natasha staring at him, lips pulled into a tight frown; he realizes she's making the same realization he is. His gaze flicks to Steve who's staring at the ground, eyebrows scrunched together in concentration.

"I know where they are," Bucky says, closing his eyes, breathing in painfully slow in an attempt to ease his frantic heart rate.

"Well?" Tony asks indignantly. "Care to share with the class, Terminator?"

Bucky's left fist connects with the wall beside him, birthing an indentation of his hand in drywall. Clenching his jaw tightly, Bucky can't bring himself to form the words.

"The Siberian HYDRA facility," Natasha sighs. Her tone indicates she is nervous.

"Wait," Sam interrupts, "that's..." He trails off, eyes widening as he looks at a livid Bucky.

"The birthplace of the Winter Soldier Program," Steve confirms.

—

"Mommy?" Becca calls softly as her eyes flutter open.

"I'm right here, baby," you quickly confirm, swiping a few flyaways from the little girl's face. "I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere," you assure.

You are unsure just how long you've been in the aircraft, but you know it's been a few days. You've not seen the outside of the hanger you found yourself in since you woke up inside of it. No one has brought food, or water, or even so much as spoken near enough to you to hear. You think you felt a touchdown and another take off somewhere along the way, though, and you're pretty sure you're actively feeling a descent.

"Mommy, I'm hungry," Becca complains, pulling you from your thoughts.

"I know, baby, I know," you pull your daughter into your chest, soothingly running your fingers through her hair. You're trying so hard to keep Becca calm, but it's becoming more difficult the hungrier and filthier she gets.

"Where's Daddy?"

"He's looking for us, sweet pea."

"How do you know?"

"Because," you pinch her cheek playfully, "your Daddy loves you more than anything in the whole wide world, and he would never let anything happen to you. He'll find us."

Your response seems to appease her, but she doesn't have a chance to argue anyway as the plane touches ground with a jostling thunk and throws her off balance. You quickly reach out, steadying the girl.

"You okay, Becca?" You ask, hands holding her still as your eyes frantically run over her body. She nods.

About 30 minutes pass--you think--when the aircraft door finally opens. Behind the door are 3 tall, bulky men with rifles and 1 shorter, sleazy looking man who is clearly--somehow--in charge.

"Welcome! Welcome!" The mysterious man greets, clapping his hands together. You push bile down your throat as you stand as quickly as you can manage, pushing Rebecca behind you gently.

"Who the hell are you?" You ask with a grimace. "And where do you get off kidnapping innocent women and children?"

"Please, Mrs. Barnes and little Miss Barnes, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Igor Morozov, but you may call me Dr. Frost. I presume it may be easier for the little one," Morozov--Dr. Frost--introduces.

You take him in. He's small (perhaps 5'5 and skinny), and he does not exude power. His dark black hair is slicked back so much so that it appears greasy and hairsprayed directly to his scalp. His grin is unsettling, gummy and with a prominent gold capped tooth where one of his front teeth should be. He's wearing a military style jacket, pleated trousers, and dress shoes. You can hardly believe he is the man in charge; he looks like he's a man pretending he's in charge.

You say nothing, further stepping in front of your daughter to shield her from the men in front of you. Your hand grips her shoulder tighter than you think you've ever held her.

Morozov seems unfazed by your irritable and accusatory behavior, his sickening smile never leaving his face.

"It's such a pleasure to have the Asset's plaything and offspring in our midst!" He chuckles and it makes bile fill your mouth. You swallow it back down. "Welcome to HYDRA's Siberian Facility! You may recognize the place as a home of sorts; after all, the Winter Soldier was born here!" Morozov claps his hands together. Giddy.

You bite the inside of your cheek to ground yourself. In most circumstances, you would jump at the opportunity to fight your way out and towards freedom, but, in most cases, you're not holding yourself back for the safety of your 4 year old. Rebecca came first.

"What do you want with us?" You demand, but you're sure you'll be denied answers.

"All in good time, Mrs. Barnes. All in good time," Morozov assures, turning around and walking away. Your fingers twitch as you note you wish you could strike.

"Mrs. Barnes, do follow me, please," Morozov demands despite his polite formalities. "And I advise you keep the baby to your side. You never know where she may wander off to if you're not watching," he says ominously.

You clench your jaw as you scoop Becca into your arms. She clings to you, little arms surrounding your neck. The poor girl is terrified, and you know you have to pretend you're not, too. For her.

You follow after Morozov and pray your phone hasn't died yet.

Please, Buck. Find us.

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ko-fi

[tizzyizzy]

Izzy's Feelings Matter Too

As a fandom, I find that Ed's feelings are often front and center. How hurt he was when Stede apparently abandoned him. Whether he was healing or not healing in s1e10. How hurtful or triggering or frightening Izzy's threat to him was, and to what extent it motivated Ed to destroy himself and everyone around him.

But what about how Ed's behaviors hurt others' feelings? Like Izzy's? Especially in s1e9 and s1e10?

From season 2 episodes and promos, we now know:

Ed and Izzy loved each other.

Ed and Izzy have been together most of their lives, and they know one another like no one else does.

Izzy taught Ed everything he knows.

Keeping that in mind, let's look back at the Act of Grace scene.

This isn't just Ed sacrificing his old way of life for a new love. Ed is severing his longest lasting, intimate relationship with Izzy for a future with Stede.

So for Izzy, this is his closest, most beloved friend ending their relationship to be with someone new. Someone Izzy said would ruin him.

Then Stede disappears, and Ed comes crawling back.

The man Izzy loved most left him for another man, and after Ed's heart broke, Ed walked back into Izzy's life like he belonged there.

Ed needed time to heal from the heartbreak? Well, I'm sure Izzy would have appreciated a bit of time to himself. Maybe a show of appreciation or apology. Literally any attempt at all to make up for the fact that Ed had picked someone over him (who ran off).

Instead, while Ed is crying in his blanket fort, it's Izzy who has to handle the crew. A crew he is clearly struggling to manage.

Then, without warning, Ed radically changes his leadership approach, if he's even consciously making a decision about how to lead at all. He proposes that they stop being pirates.

Remember, we are now aware that Izzy has known Ed ages. Izzy has been Ed's first mate for a long, long time. Izzy's career and livelihood are deeply intertwined with Ed's.

People tend to forget that Ed is not an independent agent. Izzy Misunderstanders like to paint Izzy as controlling, but Izzy is the one being ordered by a superior. When Ed decides that, actually, the crew is going to become a travelling ship-based variety act, who do you think Ed expects to help organize these plans? Who is going to have to implement these orders? Who is going to be dealing with the consequences when it turns out this may not a practical idea?

And sure, we can say that Ed is free to choose his path, and Izzy is free to leave. But I think most of us would agree that this would require a serious, likely emotional conversation where they both talk about their expectations and needs. Remember how long these two have been working together.

But Ed doesn't think he needs that, because he assumes that Izzy will come around and do what he wants, because until recently that's what Izzy has done.

So, yeah, Izzy said some hurtful shit to Ed, shit that struck a chord. But Ed isn't, and wasn't, the only one hurting in that scene. Izzy's closet friend left him, came back expecting to resume their own partnership without apology, and turned Izzy's entire career and way of life upside-down without warning.

[fancyfeathers]

The Hydro Knight

(Yandere Childe) (Normalized Yandere AU)

What happens when Childe’s darling goes to the darling of Signora to learn how to defend herself and fight…

going from this post and the credit to the names goes to @busy-dadzawa-fish who I asked if I could use the names they came up with here as placeholder names for the other darlings when writing from different perspectives

You sat on your sleeping bag, your head facing up at the stars above you. You couldn’t sleep, not tonight, so while everyone slept you sat awake. The days merged together now, every day the same, just trying to survive. You think your birthday was coming up soon but Archons you can’t remember when. Ajax- no, Childe probably remembered, after all he remembered you even after he left for the Fatui. He came back only to ask your parents for your hand, no letters, no word from him, not even from his family, nothing. He was obsessed with the idea of you, the ide of how you were when you were young together.

So that leads you to where you are now, on the run with a few others, a knight and ballerina from Mondstadt, a librarian from Fontaine, a medic from Sumeru, and from your home land of Snezhnaya, a hunter, and who you knew the longest a shopkeeper named Keina. Honestly you felt the most pity for her, she had worked hard for her whole life, building up everything to own a small business that was absolutely torn down by the ninth of the Fatui Harbingers, Pantalone, all because she rejected her proposal. She had worked for everything only to be crushed under his heel. You felt so similarly to her, you were planning on running your family’s business one day, not being a harbinger’s housewife.

You decided to stop trying to sleep so you stood yourself up, walking off to find another clearing in the woods as to not wake the others up. When you first left Snezhnaya and made your first stop on in Mondstadt you had found an old sword that you had fixed up for you. You didn’t really how how to use the sword but you figured that having a weapon was better than not having one at all, plus with you having a vision it would be smart to at least have a weapon to use with it.

“You’re going to hurt yourself swinging your sword like that.” A voice caught you completely off guard and you almost screams, but you were able to whip your head around and you only saw the familiar face of one of your travel partners, Clarus a former Knight of Favonius until he left Mondstadt to accompany you all. He was just wearing his travel clothes and jacket, no armor or anything else, he must have just woken up. You watched as he walked over to you, and nudged your legs to stand farther apart with one of his boots. His hands took you by the arm and guided you on how to stand. “You want to win a fight, you need to know how to stand. If your feet are to close together any Fatui agent could easily kick your legs in and get you to fall to the ground.”

“T-Thanks…”

“Don’t mention it, besides I’d rather not see you die in a fight.”

He helped you train that night and other nights following, unsurprisingly he could not sleep either. Clarus was a surprisingly good teacher, with his formal demeanor you would have expected him to be cold and stern, but he was kind just quiet. You learned that he helped train and teach the younger knights. You never asked about his days with Signora, you figured it would bring back bad memories for him even if he said that you could.

Then the news of the death of Signora came to you all. When your heard the news all of you turned to face the knight, reading him for a reaction but he cried. When you asked him why he cried he smiled and said. “I weep for joy, I am finally free.”

If only it stayed like that…

After the news your lessons stopped as Clarus returned to the Knights of Favonius, back to his position as an instructor. Then not even a week later you received news on how he was attacked on the way back to his some in Springvale. He was missing…

Meanwhile at the Zapolyarny Palace the hydro knight was forced down on his knees by Fatui agents in front of the Harbingers and the Tsaritsa herself. His lip was bleeding and he wore more than a few bruises. The Tsaritsa smiled down at the beat up knight, the letter he was going to send to you in hand.

“Ajax, come here.”

At the goddess’ words the red headed harbinger walked over to the Tsaritsa‘s side and she handed him the letter, letting him read it.

“It seems like this knight has taken your fiancé as his newest student…”

[4dkellysworld]

Self-realisation and life duties

For those wondering how to reconcile a life of work, studies or obligations with self-realisation, you don't have to stop those activities (Robert said the same thing, you give it up mentally). I compiled a bunch of Q&As with Ramana Maharshi on the topic which may be helpful guidance.

Q: Is solitude necessary for a Jnani? M: Solitude is in the mind of man. One might be in the thick of the world and maintain serenity of mind; such a one is in solitude. Another may stay in a forest, but still be unable to control his mind. He cannot be said to be in solitude. Solitude is a function of the mind. A man attached to desire cannot get solitude wherever he may be; a detached man is always in solitude. Q: So then, one might be engaged in work and be free from desire and keep up solitude. Is it so? M: Yes. Work performed with attachment is a shackle, whereas work performed with detachment does not affect the doer. He is, even while working, in solitude.

Q: Is work an obstruction to Self-realisation? M: No. For a realised being, the Self alone is the Reality and actions are only phenomenal; not affecting the Self. Even when he acts he has no sense of being an agent. His actions are only involuntary and he remains a witness to them without any attachment. There is no aim for this action. Even one who is still practising the path of Wisdom (jnana) can practise while engaged in work. It may be difficult in the earlier stages for a beginner, but after some practice it will soon be effective and the work will not be found a hindrance to meditation. Q: My work hinders me. M: If you have the right attitude, the kind of life you lead does not matter very much.

Q: Our work-a-day life is not compatible with such efforts. M: Why do you think that you are active? Take the gross example of your arrival here. You left home in a cart, took train, alighted at the Railway Station here, got into a cart there and found yourself in this Asramam. When asked, you say that you travelled here all the way from your town. Is it true? Is it not a fact that you remained as you were and there were movements of conveyances all along the way. Just as those movements are confounded with your own, so also the other activities. They are not your own. They are God's activities.

Q: My work demands the best part of my time and energy; often I am too tired to devote myself to Atmachintana (Contemplation on the Self). M: The feeling "l work" is the hindrance. Enquire, "Who works?" Remember, "Who am l?" The work will not bind you. It will go on automatically. Make no effort either to work or to renounce work. Your effort is the bondage. What is bound to happen will happen. If you are destined to cease working, work cannot be had even if you hunt for it. If you are destined to work you cannot leave it; you will be forced to engage in it. So leave it to the Higher Power. You cannot renounce or hold as you choose.

Q: Should we do our duty or not? M: Yes - certainly. Even if you try not to do your duty you will be perforce obliged to do it. Let the body complete the task for which it came into being. Sri Krishna also says in the Gita, whether Arjuna liked it or not he would be forced to fight. When there is work to be done by you, you cannot keep away; nor can you continue to do a thing when you are not required to do it, that is to say, when the work allotted to you has been done. In short, the work will go on and you must take your share in it - the share which is allotted to you. Q: How is work to be done? M: Like an actor playing his part in a drama - free from love or hatred.

Q: How to practice meditation? M: Keep off thoughts. Q: How to reconcile work with meditation? M: Who is the worker? Let him who works ask the question. You are always the Self. You are not the mind. It is the mind which raises these questions. Work proceeds, always in the presence of the Self only. Work is no hindrance to self-realisation. It is the mistaken identity of the worker that troubles one. Get rid of the false identity.

Q: I have my professional work and yet I want to be in perpetual dhyana. Will they conflict with each other? M: There will be no conflict. As you practise both and develop your powers you will be able to attend to both. You will begin to look on business as a dream. The Bhagavad—Gita says: "That which is the night of all beings, for the disciplined man is the time of waking; when other beings are waking, then is it night for the Sage who Sees."

Q (a professor): How can I do my duties without attachment? There is my wife, there are my children. I must do my duty towards them. Affection is necessary. Am I right? M: How do you do your work in the College? D: (laughing) For wages. M: Not because you are attached, simply as doing your duty. D: But my pupils expect me to love them. M: "Detachment in the interior and attachment in appearance" says Yoga Vasishta.

[autistichalsin]

What do you think of Halsin's status as archdruid after he brings in Francesca to lead the Grove? That actually confuses me. He still goes on being referred to as archdruid (and retains his archdruid armour), so he doesnt seem to have renounced the title. But, we know he didn't feel comfortable in that role and didn't want to go back to the Grove and resume his duties. Since, afaik, there are only 3 archdruid for each circle, what do you think is his actual status especially after the epilogue?

So here's how I see it!

When joining the player, Halsin considered the act to be in service of the Druids, even if he wasn't staying at the Grove. He specifically linked it to nature/preserving the natural order, saying that both the tadpoles and the Shadow Curse needed to be cleansed. He could, therefore, be considered to be performing Archdruidic duties. He turned leadership of the Grove over to another Archdruid to prevent Kagha from happening again (note that the first time he left and turned the role over to Kagha, she didn't actually have the title- she was a "First Druid", acting over the Grove, and demanded to be called Archdruid at times for her ego, but wasn't actually one) but could have left it to someone else if not for Kagha's nonsense.

After the curse is broken, Halsin realizes that he doesn't want to go back to the Grove- there's even a line about it in the scene in act 3 where he gets a letter from Francesca, where the player can tell him he can go back after their adventure ends, and he says he thought he would, once, but isn't so sure anymore. Halsin has come to terms with the fact that his time as Archdruid has passed, BUT has not communicated this to the Druids (likely to promote stability, and also probably lacking the time to compose everything necessary over a letter; it's the kind of thing better suited for a meeting of higher-ranking members of the Circle at any rate). If we assume BG3 Archdruid rules follow DND ones, he would have to be "challenged" for his title to give it up (though this isn't always a serious challenge; an Archdruid who really doesn't want the role anymore can just sort of stand there and let the new person 'win'). So, no need to rush making it official when there's nothing to be done about it yet anyway.

Then, after the last battle, Halsin starts his new commune. He would, I imagine, have time once the commune is established, to attend one last meeting and relinquish his title to some younger Druid. In my headcanon, he has the place declared a Druidic community as well, but less strict than the Grove. By not associating it officially with the Emerald Enclave, he is less bound by strict Druidic principles, and can find ways of leadership that are more harmonic than the "old teachings" he alludes to in the ending, which he says "could never have foreseen this new world." He basically gets to balance the Druidic teachings he cherishes with the new perspectives he's learned from traveling. He will always be a Druid, but he becomes more of a free agent instead of a member of a particular Circle.

That's my take on it!

[annaskareninas]

My ACOTAR Fanfiction Masterlist

(Link to my ao3 profile)

Elucien:

All Roads Lead To You = completed, 5 chapters, 31k words, rating E // Five years after the war with Hybern, the world is relatively peaceful, and Elain is relatively bored. When she decides to travel the Continent in search of her purpose, the last thing she expects is to run into her almost-mate Lucien Vanserra at a wine bar in Montesere -- and get very drunk and go swimming. Together. The next morning, she flees in shame -- but wherever she goes, Lucien just keeps on appearing. As if it's destiny.

Phoenix Rising = ongoing, updates every Mon, Thurs and Fri, with a final length of 140k words and 32 chapters, rating M // It has been twenty-five years since Elain was Made. Ten years since she lost the love of her life, Azriel, defeating Koschei. Eight years since Beron Vanserra claimed the Dread Crown and became High King of Prythian, forcing Elain and her friends to scatter to the four corners of the world. Lost in her grief, Elain works as a nurse in a war hospital in Rask -- until one day, she recognises a patient: Lucien Vanserra, the last free Heir. Charged with healing Lucien's mortal wounds, she finds herself drawn into an adventure -- of dragons, prophecies, allies and magic. But Lucien has secrets too, and as she grows closer to him, it is her heart that faces the biggest test.

Lonely Together = one-shot, 7k words, rating E // Always the odd one out, always the one without a partner -- Elain can't help the loneliness that plagues her immortal life. Until one Starfall, she decides to finally make a move on her mate, Lucien -- one one condition: that he's not gentle.

Feysand:

A Rake By Any Other Name = Regency AU one-shot, 7k words, rating E, the first in my Regency Romance one-shot series // Feyre gets more than she bargains for when she's caught at a political radical meeting by Rhysand, Viscount Velaris.

Nessian:

Burning Bright = Regency AU one-shot, 8k words, rating E, the second in my Regency Romance series // Dissatisfied with her life living off her brother-in-law's money, Nesta finds solace in Cassian, the groundskeeper, who thinks nothing of proper society -- and everything of pleasure.

Azris:

The Tender and Growing Night = Regency AU one-shot, 8k words, rating E, the third in my Regency Romance series // When Rhysand brings Azriel to a new gentlemen's club, he realises this is a place where he can truly be himself, for the first time ever. And the club's owner, Lord Eris Vanserra, has caught his eye...

May The Best Man Win = Killing Eve AU two shot, 17k words, rating E // MI6 agent Azriel Singer is haunted by the one killer he could never catch - Eris Vanserra, who happens to be nurturing an obsession for him.

Elriel:

I Dream About You = one-shot, 5k words, rating E // Azriel returns to the House of Wind to find Elain, alone; it's time for her to tell him what she really thinks.

Other:

In Spring, Becomes the Rose = Elain/Lucien/Tamlin, 82k words, 20 chapters, rating E // Elain volunteers to go to the Spring Court to help rebuild, with Lucien alongside her. She expects to hate Tamlin -- to hate them both, actually -- but the truth couldn't be further from it. As well as rebuilding a court and redecorating a house, Elain finds herself grappling with irresistible feelings for both males -- as well as strange new powers and magic she must learn to use before it's too late.

Two For The Show = Elain/Lucien/Azriel, 25k words, 5 chapters, rating E // Elain runs into two rich, attractive men at a bar. They both want her. And each other. Sex, dating and humour ensues!

This post will be regularly updated when I post more! Enjoy <3

[gerec]

Do you have any canon movie fics to recommend? (could be canon divergence too)

the best ones of course

Hi Anon,

It's impossible to define 'best ones' when it comes to fic as everyone has their own set of preferences but I'm happy to share some of my personal favourites. :D And this list barely scratches the surface of all the incredible fic we've been blessed with in this fandom so def. do your own search on ao3 and filter for your preferred tropes! Also, feel free to check out some of my previous fic recs posts on my blog for more options! Happy reading!

XMFC

never too late to be who you might have been by acetamide Erik wakes suddenly and takes a deep breath, and realises that there is nothing.

Replay by SlightWeasel (series) After Magneto of an X2-ish future succeeds in the unthinkable, Charles sends his consciousness back to 1962 to guide Erik away from the path that will lead to the genocide of the human race forty years hence.Charles knows that Erik has always loved him, and intends to use this knowledge + sex to seduce Erik away from his ideals in his youth.There’s no way this well-thought-out, sensible, debugged and 100% bulletproof plan can possibly go wrong.

When We Two Parted by nekosmuse At the end of X3, a still depowered Erik travels back in time to meet 1962 Charles. Cue angst, desperate kissing and happy endings for all. Written for the x-men kink meme.

Lucid Dreaming by listerinezero Magneto finds himself in 1962, on the morning they go to Cuba, in the bed of the young Charles who’d spent months letting him think they were in love before breaking his heart. But he is not the same man he was forty years earlier, and as he gets to know young Charles again, he discovers that things might not have been exactly the way he remembered them after all.

Time to Grow by zarah5 In which you'll find chess dates which aren't dates (or maybe Charles is wrong about that). -- Based on First Class, this turns (slightly) AU during the beach scene.

Not Half As Blinding by keire-ke Cuban beach AU. Charles discovers that death does, in fact, solve everything.

Blood and Steel and Miles Between by dreamlittleyo (Post-movie AU.) On a beach in Cuba, Charles manages to talk Erik down from the edge. But even after the missiles have been diverted, compromise is impossible. There are two different futures to build, and Erik and Charles will always be separated by their principles. But when Charles is kidnapped and the X-Men can't find him, Erik will get him back no matter the consequences.

Homecoming by nekosmuse Five years after they part ways on a beach in Cuba, Charles sends a telepathic message: We are under attack.. Erik drops everything to rush to Charles' side. In which battles are fought, war is avoided, a middle ground is found, and happily ever afters do exist.

how near to fairyland by ikeracity Since childhood, Charles has kept all the things he can't let go of in a beautiful room in his head. Cuba brings his precarious balancing act crashing down.

The Line in the Sand by ikeracity The CIA agents on the base are bullying the children, mocking them for their mutations. Charles will not tolerate it.

DOFP

Hope by daymarket  A near-decade of hatred can't be wiped out with a single summer, no matter how eventful that summer might be. When Erik shows up uninvited at the mansion, Charles is just barely civil enough to not throw him out, but that doesn't mean he'll let him stay.

Mile High by cygnaut There’s only so much time you can spend sublimating your emotions into chess.

Spark Me Up by blarfkey “This is Erik raw. This is Erik lost. This is Erik looking at Charles like he is the only piece of wreckage in a vast ocean. The only star in the sky.

And such a look does things to Charles.”

After ten years, they are both starving for each other.

XMA

third time's the charm by Gerec XMA ficlets and missing scenes

Regrets by SlightWeasel After Apocalypse, Charles and Erik sleep together—but it’s way too soon for Erik.

as it arcs towards the sun by pearl_o

night by night by pearl_o

things worth fearing by pearl_o

Dark Phoenix

After the End of the World (One Bad Day) by kianspo Set during and immediately after the events of X-Men: Dark Phoenix. Everyone deals with the aftermath of Jean's transformation and everything that comes with it in their own way. Could there be found a measure of peace and happiness after everything they've lost?

Never a Place by kianspo It takes some getting used to. Charles hasn’t seen Erik cheerful, actually cheerful without a homicidal intent of some sort in a very long time—perhaps never. Or. Charles takes Erik up on his offer while trying to process everything. Erik is remarkably patient until he isn't.

rue de la paix by Ireliss Post Dark Phoenix. Charles, Erik, and the winding road towards peace.

The First Move by TurtleTotem Charles and Erik live together now, in Genosha. They get up together, spend the day together. And then... go to sleep in their separate beds.

Charles is going quietly crazy.

[water-to-drink]

Be a Gladiolus in a Field of Belladonnas pt8

Let’s Go Ice Fishing!

(Summary): Seeing that your mood has been down in the dumps, Lumine and Childe decide to surprise you with a secret ice fishing trip, unbeknownst to the strom closing in

Part 1 Last Part Next Part

✧ Masterlist ✧

(Characters): Traveler!Lumine, Childe, Paimon, Abyss Prince!Aether , Al haitham, Jean, Ganyu, Sara, Ayato, and Ningguang

(Warnings): Cursing, suggestive language, use of Childe’s real name, Childe’s downbad in this part too, not proofread(let me know if I miss anything)

(A/n): Al haitham and Jean are friends cuz I said so >:(

─────────── ✧ ───────────

The snowstorms have gotten less frequent and harsh during your time in Snezhnaya, but that still didn’t calm your nerves. It has been 3 weeks, nearing a month since anymore Primogems have been found. You can tell things have gotten stressful from the jumpy nature of the low level fatui agents and them being much more apologetic lately. Things have gotten to the point where you rarely see the Harbingers or the Tsarita. Though you have Lumine and Paimon and Aether when he’s not in the Abyss to talk to, the tension still hanging over your head the feeling of uncertainty starts clutching at your back a lot more as of late

You try not to let your anxiety show, but it seems that no matter how hard you try your first vessel would be more privy of you and your emotions

And her and Paimon’s behavior today, you began to grow a bit suspicious of them. What could they be planning? It wasn’t until your favorite homicidal ginger ran up to you and shoved a fishing rod in your hand, saying that he and Lumine have something planned for you

“Ice fishing?”

“Yeah, we’ve noticed that you’ve been down recently and Childe suggested that we take you ice fishing, to clear your head.” Lumine explained

“It would be good to get some fresh air!” Paimon chimed

“That sounds nice, but we should let the others know about this so they don’t freak out when they can’t find me.”

“Don’t worry about that, I already told Capitano!” Childe exclaimed. “Come on, the good fish are waiting for us!” Childe grabbed your free hand and took you out the back

You should’ve known something was up when the taller man looked around each turn before leading you to another corner, but the prospect of being outside made you throw out any reason. When you were brought to the destination, a frozen lake with 3 stools around a hole cut into the ice

“This way, your-”

“Let me help you to your seat, (y/n).” Lumine cut the Harbinger off and took your hand to help you get through the ice and to your designated stool

Once all three of you settled into your respective stools, you turned towards Childe. “So what’s the point of ice fishing?”

“Well, it’s just a way to get out. I do this to clear my head after a long mission with no bloodshed.” The Ginger explained

“So we just talk and hope to catch a fish?”

“Yeah…”

“This sounds too boring, I’m going to take a nap.” Paimon said before disappearing in her little pocket dimension

“Wait, she can do that?!” You shrieked in bewilderment

“Yeah, I thought you could see it during all the times you used me as a vessel.” Lumine assumed

You were too dumbfounded to formulate any words. Thankfully you didn’t blurt out thinking her disappearing into a mass of sparkles and stars was only a game mechanic. You don’t know how you would explain to them what game was and that they were in one without causing some existential crisis

“Okay…”

It was all you manage to say and the two took it without saying anything more. You looked towards the horizon and admired the sun that just revealed itself in all of it’s shining glory. Oddly enough looking at the ball of fiery death didn’t blind you after starring at it, you could say it almost felt comforting. The same comfort you get when reminiscing on a snack you would have as a kid but not as much as you got older. The feeling of nostalgia got you thinking on some things, the same things that been crawling at your back. It didn’t help that the silence you were sitting in made the crawling worse the seconds pass

“Hey, Childe…?” The young man lifted his head towards you. “Do you mind if I call you by your real name, just while we’re here?”

“Of course, your Grace!” Ajax said with glee

“You can call me (y/n) since I’m using your real name.”

“Okay, (y/n).” The way your name rolled off his tongue made him super giddy, all the while Lumine and Paimon watched in mild discomfort. After the initial feeling of exhilaration has subsided, Ajax quickly composed himself. “Is there anything on your mind, (y/n)?” He asked gleefully towards the end at the privilege of getting to say your name

“Do any of you think my plan of taking my doppelganger off the throne would be possible?”

“Of course I do!” Lumine and Ajax said in unison

“Do you mean that as a devoted acolyte or as just you.” You turned towards Childe, a look of earness on your face. “ As Childe of the fatui harbingers or as Ajax?” You turned your attention towards Lumine. “And as the Traveler, the hero renowned all over Teyvat or as Lumine who traversed the stars with her brother?”

The two were left stunned, Ajax opened his mouth but no words came out while Lumine turned her gaze away from you

“I don’t know if I can really beat them. One day I’m just some ordinary person and the next, I’m in this world labeled as an imposter but I’m actually this divine Creator.” You looked towards the hole in the ice to avoid the gazes of your company. “I’ve never been too notable back home, but all of you call me ‘your Grace’ and hold me in high regard. I don’t feel that and sometimes….” Tears start to well up your eyes. “Sometimes I even wonder if you guys are just going along with my plan because you’re all afraid of hurting my feeli-”

“That’s not true!” You snap your head to face Ajax who got up from his seat. “Even though you’ve been reincarnated in a human body, everyone who knows of your presence believes you can achieve this goal. If her majesty had any doubt on then she wouldn’t hesitate to tell you!” Ajax sat back down on the stool. “I believe in you as Childe, the 11th Harbinger and as Ajax, the guy from that small village.”

“I agree with Ajax. Even though I’m claimed to have done massive feats, I wouldn’t have done them without you guidance. My battles against Stormterror, Osial, and the Shogun they all wouldn’t possible without you right by me.”

“Thanks guys,” You took your hook out of the water and set the fishing rod next to you. “Ice fishing is kinda boring, ya’ll wanna have a snowball fight?”

Lumine and Ajax share a look between themselves before turning their attention back towards you and nodding with smiles on their faces

─────────── ✧ ───────────

On the other side of the world, in the nation of contracts, Liyue. Here is where most if not all of the nations’ leaders are temporarily residing due to the order of their “Creator.”

The streets don’t hold the same sense of peace and liveliness it once held, now replaced by animosity and tension so thick one can nearly choke just by breathing. It isn’t any better at the Yujing Terrace, where the world leaders constantly discuss their next corse of action and the same place Al haitham dreads going

On one hand he is grateful that he’s not responsible for the work that comes with being the Acting Grand Sage, but this isn’t exactly what he was expecting

“Good morning, would like some coffee?” Jean asked as she held out a paper cup with its contents producing steam

“Thank you.” He said while taking the cup and drinking from it

“How are you liking your stay at Liyue?”

“It’s alright, I took the chance to pick up some books that typically don’t reach the Akademya.”

“You like to read, me too! Normally I don’t get to read because of my work schedule, but I digress. What genres do you read?”

“Mainly science, philosophy, and…” A noise takes Al haitham out of his line of thought

“Is something wrong?” Jean asked worriedly

It’s whistling

Al haitham walked towards the direction where the sound comes and sees the Natlan priestess with a bird perched upon her finger

“Chimalma, good morning!” Jean greeted

“Morning to you, Jean!” The priestess waved

So Chimalma was her name, Al haitham probably heard her name before but didn’t bother to remember it

“I didn’t expect for you to talk to birds.”

“Hummingbirds are said to be the souls of fallen soldiers, it would be absurd that the priestess of Natlan to not be able to speak to the late warriors, no?” Chimalma scoffed with a playful glint in her eyes

“No, I didn’t mean anything-” Jean tried to stammer out an apology

“I joking, you really need to lighten up.” Chimalma waved her hand dismissively

“I heard the language of birds is something their Grace and only people they chose are able to understand it.” A short woman with blue hair and horns commented as she walk up the stairs

“Spot on! As one would expect from one of Rex Lapis’ adepti~” Chimalma sang which made the qilin turn her head away from the feline hybrid

“If you can indeed talk to birds, then we can use that to our advantage in capturing the imposter.” The tengu general from Inazuma proclaimed as she entered with the Yashiro Commissioner sally of whom Al haitham couldn’t be bothered to learn their names

For a second Chimalma’s eye twitched and a slight hint of malevolence can be seen but soon returned to their usual easygoing gleam. All of which didn’t go unnoticed by the acting Grand Sage and apparently the Yashiro Commissioner caught the slip up

“It seems that everyone is here so we can start attending to matters,” The voice of the Tinaquan brought everyone’s attention towards her. “are there any concerns one would like to bring to our attention before we start with today’s proceedings?”

“I would like to bring up a question,” The young clan head raised his hand. “is Snezhnaya going to be joining us? I don’t recall seeing a representative in our meeting with their Grace.”

“Despite the numerous attempts to get their involvement, they refused each instance.”

“Would it be possible to think, they’re harboring this imposter.” Everyone’s attention quickly turned towards Al haitham, each face containing certain level of surprise. Wether it being what the former scribe said or the fact that he even spoke at all. “Not too long ago they tried to construct a god that would replace Lord Kusanali, so it wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility for them to be hiding the imposter in hopes of using them to their advantage.”

An unsettling silence hung over the envoys as the realization of the words fully took root in each of the leader’s minds

“That’s absurd! You don’t think they’re foolish enough to try that…? To try and use a world ending entity to replace their Grace, right?” The horned Adeptus worried

There was a moment of silence until the Tinaquan cleared her throat

“If your assertion is true, then we need to mobilize our forces as soon as possible.” She declared, her eyes showing a flame burning within them

─────────── ✧ ───────────

Completely unaware of the arrangements being made, you throw the snowball without a care in the world. The same carefreeness you once had before being labeled as an imposter and hunted like an animal

You watch the snowball fly through the air and break apart once it missed Childe and made contact with a tree trunk. That was the nth snowball you threw he dodged with no effort, but it looked like Lumine was having an easier time getting the snowballs to hit the ginger. You shouldn’t feel too bad, things could be worse. You could be doing just as bad as Paimon desperately flying out the way of snowballs but still getting hit by a good chunk of them

“Your Grace, there you are.” A familiar voice greets you

You look back to see a pair of golden orbs starring back at you

“Aether, how did you find me?”

“I followed your aura when I didn’t sense you in the palace.”

“The spell wears off? Damn that’s really inconvenient.”

“I can cast it on you, again. If it’s for you, I don’t mind being inconve-” A snowball hits Aether square in the face. “Lumine!” Aether yelled

“You didn’t specify you weren’t in the fight, so I didn’t know.”

“Bullshit!!!”

Aether held out his hand and a clump of snow appears in it. As he gets ready to throw the snow ball Lumine tries to run out of its potential line of sight

“Wait! That’s not fair! You can’t use elemental pow-” The blonde tried to shout but was hit in the face

Lumine wipes the snow off her face and starts to grab a large chunk of snow from the ground and packed it into a ball. Aether shield you from Lumine’s and Ajax’s line of sight

“My sister is scary when she’s angry, don’t worry I’ll protect you, your Grace.” The normally cold prince told with an uncharacteristic smile on his face

“No fair, I wanna be on (y/n)’s side-” Ajax whined but got hit in the face by a snowball

“How dare you utter their Grace’s name so casually!”

Lumine and Ajax looked at each other and seemed to have reached a sort of truce. The two grab snowballs in each hand, getting ready to throw them

“H-hol up. Go easy on me!” You pleaded

They did go easy on you, Aether not so much. A barrage of snowballs were thrown at him mercilessly, but he managed to dodge a good portion of them and got an equal amount of his snowballs hitting them

You tried to throw a couple of snowballs but they always ended up missing their target and so you just decided to sit back and watch them. They didn’t notice when you sat on the sidelines, but you didn’t mind you had just as much fun watching them. Time seemed to have gotten away from all of you because the next thing you knew you realized how dark it was

“Uhh timeout guys…” You yelled clear enough for the others to seize their attack. “it’s getting pretty dark out here, we should start heading back.”

The cheerful expression on Ajax’s face dropped into one of realization and horror

“Shit! We need to find shelter fast!”

“What, why?!” You asked fear quickly sinking in

“There’s a cave over there!” Lumine said as she pointed towards its opening

Ajax picked you up and ran into the cave, he stopped once he no longer felt the harsh winds from the outside

“Are you ok?” He asked, making you look at his face, which you were in close proximity. Did he always look this pretty? Or was it that because he’s in front of you and you can see details in face that couldn’t be captured in a series of polygons?!?!

“Ye-yeah, I’m fine,” You said with your gaze adverted. “can you put me down now?”

He immediately does and a smirk graces his pretty boy face

“What are you smirking at?” You asked dreading his response will make your face heat up even more

“You know my offer still stands. The one I gave when we bumped into each other in the forest of Sumeru, us having s-” The ends of the red scarf around his neck fly into Ajax’s face and the two of you turn to see the twins grimacing as anemo particles dissipate by Aether

“Can you not try to get your dick wet for two seconds?” Aether chastises

Ajax yanks the scarf out of his face. “You’re just jealous of the effect I have on (y/n), they can’t help that they find me attractive.”

“You nearly put their Grace in danger and now trying to make a move on them while saying their name so casually, don’t you have no shame!”

“Don’t blame me, you could’ve noticed the sun setting but didn’t so act like you’re any better then me!”

Aether retorts something back but you didn’t catch it due to your attention being brought to something else. It seemed that Lumine took notice on your spaced out look

“Is something the matter?” She asked

“I just feel something pulling me towards it…” Was all you responded with

The pull got more intense the longer you stayed, immediately turning your body you begin walking further into the cave. Lumine and Ajax followed you and tried to convince you to sit back in your seat near the fire, or that is what you think they’re saying to you. Your only focus is on finding out what is pulling you deeper into the cave

You stopped at the dead end and you stared at the wall in awe of what you see. A Primogem embedded into the wall

“(Y/n), we should really be heading back. You’ll get sick if you’re not near the fire.” Ajax tried to persuade you

You turned towards your companions. “Wait! You don’t see that?!”

“I don’t see anything.” Ajax admitted

“You don’t see anything?!”

Ajax shook his head leading you to turn towards the twins

“Lum, Ae, please tell me that you see what I’m talking about.”

They only shook her head, you could see a slight blush on their faces, most likely due to the nickname you gave them. You weren’t in the mood to fawn over how adorable they both looked, you groaned in frustration and went to where the rock was embedded. Seeing the glowing stone, hesitation stopped you from touching it but pushed it aside, you reached out for it and pulled it out. The gem began to glow brighter in your hand as if it had been brought to where it belongs

─────────── ✧ ───────────

Taglist:

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[bloomingpresent]

FERRO ROSSO CHAPTER VII

Pairing: Charles Leclerc/Female reader digital artist older woman

Summary: in your mid 30’s you never imagined you’d be divorced. To help with the healing process you decide to return to your first love: digital illustration. Posting videos of your art online leads you to work for Ferrari. But you never thought it’d lead you to find somebody who’s going to bring you back to trust again in love.

Warnings: NSFW! 18+, swearing mention of sexual words, consensual sex, penetration, cheating, sexually themed. IT’S ALL ABOUT REVERSE AGE GAP HERE. Older woman with a younger man. They are both adults, don’t be judgemental. 

Disclaimer:

I don’t mean any offense to Mr. Leclerc. 

English isn’t my first language so all mistakes are my own. My Italian is basic so be gentle, please.

All the previous chapters are here

You already knew that something was off when almost a week after your last encounter with Charles happened and you haven't heard of him. Both of you were busy of course, but he hadn’t mentioned a thing about coming to London. 

Either way, you are too busy with your art studio, which by the way, is still going and your agent had you packed with activities for it. Ferrari was still on the call but for the next weeks, you were on your own.

At the end of the week, you get Facetime from Charles.

“I might be able to be in London next week” he casually says.

You just smirked “Oh really? Got some free time?”, yep, you are being ironic about it.

“What’s with the attitude?” he asks shifting on his seat.

“Well you disappeared for days and now you come out of the blue and tell me you finally can come to London? What am I supposed to be waiting for you?”.

“Yes” he answers with his bright green eyes wide open, his confidence it’s something else. “As I made time for traveling to see you, you are making time to see me”. 

You grim.  “Where are you now?”. 

“Paris, why you ask?” he raises an eyebrow

“No reason, I thought you were in Maranello with Carlos” you reply casually. You already know he was in France with Piere for fashion week.

“I was, I’m not anymore,” he answers drinking from a glass of water. “You’ve stalking me?” he asks with a cocky smile

“No” you answer, the truth it’s that you had been checking his IG account, and you tried not to think “I work at Ferrari PR, I have to know where you’re up” You wink.

“Well, do you know where I will be next Sunday?” His voice tone changes and he puts his phone closer to his face.

You shrug your shoulders and look at him with a flirtatious smile. "No" you answer almost whispering.

He moves closer to the phone "Inside you, Making you scream my name" 

All you can see is his eyes shining differently as he whispers those words to you.

You can't stop your stomach from jumping and you even think you're blushing. But you played. "Ah well, I think I have time in my schedule for that next time for that" you answer, trying not to show how excited you are.

The next day you casually receive an invitation from Andrea Ferrari, Charles' trainer, and fellow Ferrari teammate, inviting all his teammates to London next Sunday to celebrate his birthday.

"Ah well, he probably isn’t coming to London just to see me," you tell yourself when you see the invitation.

You don't even think about it, you accept the invitation. You don't tell Charles, if he's in London that weekend, it's probably because of his friend.

By the time the weekend arrives, you don't want to set high expectations, but you can't help it. You're excited and a little nervous.

"So we'll see each other on Andrea's birthday?" you send him in a text.

The answer comes insanely fast "We're already in London since this morning" Charles replies.

'We are'. Yeah, he came for his friend's birthday and not just to see you.

Does it bother you? Yes, quite. Does this fit your purpose of not putting too many expectations on this weekend? Probably not. Are you going to admit it? Not even dead. And there's no way you're letting him ruin your fun.

So the mission is to look the most attractive and elegant to any man, not just for Charles.

As you get ready for the birthday party, you can't help but feel a little nervous. You dress up in your best clothes, and you are looking stunning. You know that Charles will be there. 

When you arrive at the party, you start looking around for Charles. You immediately see him in the corner, chatting with one of your mutual friends. You smile to yourself and go around the room greeting everyone.

You’re wearing a form-fitting dress that accentuates your curves in all the right ways. The dress is elegant and simple, yet also sexy and bold. The material is silky satin that feels luxurious against your skin. Accessorized with statement earrings and a pair of heels to complete the look. The makeup is subtle yet natural, and your hair is down, adding to the overall effect. In one word, you feel divine.

Charles is a total heartthrob. He looks dashing and sophisticated. He has a confident and relaxed presence, which only adds to his overall attractiveness

You finally get to Charles, casually greeting him as everyone else. When you kiss him on the cheek, you can smell his perfume. making your skin crawl.

Charles: "Y/N, it's been a while. You look incredible."

Y/N: "Oh, thank you, Charles. Weeks out of the paddock are slow, yes. You look very distinguished yourself.”

You exchange smiles and look into each other's eyes, feeling the electricity in the air but trying to keep it subtle.

Soon, everyone starts asking about their personal lives, and they both keep it vague while maintaining their friendly demeanor and casual conversation.

As they chat, you are careful to avoid giving anything away. This it’s the first time you are in the same room with your co-workers outside your work.

 You talk casually and make sure to keep the conversation light and friendly, while also finding excuses to stay close to each other. But there is a tension in the air, as you both know that there is more. The evening progresses, and as people and friends get increasingly drunk, you and Charles find themselves getting closer and closer together, getting away with subtle gestures that no one notices.

When the music is loud enough and everyone is into their own thing, Charles leans into your ear and whispers.

“There is a balcony next to the room at the end of the hallway. Meet me there” He says and walks away without saying any other word. There is a risk of doing this now and here and with all these people around. 

You think about it for a few seconds until you decide to go. 

The Airbnb apartment in London that Charles rented to have the party could be described as having a chic, modern vibe. The apartment is spacious, with lots of light coming in through the floor-to-ceiling windows. There's a stylish kitchen and a bright living room, perfect for entertaining guests. Making it an ideal space for having get-togethers. Charles thought of everything.

Walking to the balcony you can already see the view of London from up there. You’ve never seen something like that before, and you’ve been living there for 4 years now.

When you open the door to the balcony the chill air of the British summer hits your face. You can see Charles leaning against the rail watching you. 

“Wow, so this is what a lot of money gets you everywhere you go uh?” you tell him as you take one last look to the hallway making sure nobody saw you following him.

“It’s for my friend, I want him to enjoy his birthday party,” he says, playing with his glass. “And don’t worry, Andrea won't let anyone come near here” he smirks.

You stop when you hear him say that. “he knows?!” 

Charles nods with a mischievous smile “How do you think I convinced him to have his party here?” 

“Awesome, bring more people into this,” you say taking your steps carefully. You haven't had that much to drink yet but the whole situation is making you feel a bit more edgy than usual.

“Andrea always has my back,” he says, coming close to you. 

When you and he are close enough, Charles extends his arm and slowly brings your body closer to his. The bastard knows what he's doing. "Plus I needed an excuse to see you up close again before we go back to work"

You bite your lips and smile. "You're dangerously close and with all these people here, it's not good" You look into his eyes.

"AND?" he answers as you, approach your lips "I already told you, no one will come here."

You are the one who kisses him first. You can smell his perfume again, it's extraordinarily delicious. The combination is extremely sexy for you. You close your eyes and let yourself be carried away by him. The kiss grows in intensity. Neither of you has reservations about using your tongues, Charles's hands holding firmly to the sides of your face. Your hands are on his waist.

You can hear the party noise in the background. Charles notices it. "You know we can go somewhere more private if you're worried about someone seeing us," he tells you as he smiles close to your lips.

You smile flirtatiously "Oh I wonder what place that is?" you answer him

It only takes two seconds before Charles pulls you by the hand and leads you from the balcony through the sliding door that leads to a room. His bedroom. You both laugh like teenagers.

You can barely see what the room looks like. Charles makes sure the doors are locked and the curtains are drawn.

"Very clever of you, Leclerc," you say, taking off your sandals. There is nothing to hide here. You both want this.

"Clever? Why?" he answers and approaches you.

"No one will be able to hear us with all this loud music" you reply.

He sits on the edge of the bed "Come to me firecracker" he says biting his lower lip. His eyes shine in the dark.

You can see him take some condoms out of one of his pants pockets and put them to the side.

"You came prepared, did you expect action?" you tell him walking towards him

"Of course, if you didn't come I'd be looking all over London for you" he stretches and pulls you towards him.

You laugh.

Both of his hands cup your breasts while you are standing in front of him. His gaze is on your chest now, as his hands gently massage and squeeze your breasts. You feel confident in yourself, there is no doubt that he wants you and that ignites a new sense of security in you.

He continues massaging you without saying a word but his eyes are now examining every part of your body in that dress.

His hands now travel to your waist, down your thighs. Your hands are now in his hair. You have been together enough times to recognize each other's tastes for foreplay.

"This is a nice dress. I'd hate to rip it off you," he whispers.

"Then don't do it" you answer and try to get closer to kiss him. But he stops you. You stand up straight again and he continues his way down your body with his hands.

His hands reach to the edge of your dress. Now they go under the skirt in the direction of your panties.

"More than one man is wishing to have his hand where mine is now tonight” he looks at you caressing your folds through the fabric of your underwear.

"Really? I can keep my options open then." You love a good praising.

He smiles "No babe". 

"Oh you can and I don’t?" you say ironically, you know he still sees that girl.

"Don't bring that up now" he tells you, bringing his fingers to the edge of your panties and he starts to slide them down.

Fine. You think to yourself.

When he tries to move your underwear to the side, you grab his wrist and stop him. "What makes you think that he came to this party for you to touch me?" you tell him almost challenging him.

He looks at you and smiles, "You're mad at me aren't you?" he guesses

"No". Actually yes you are, but you won't even admit it to yourself.

"Come here grumpy, I'm going to fuck out of you that attitude" he pulls you towards him. You put your knees on each side of his hips and sit on his lap. His hands are squeezing your ass.

You don't make a sound.

There is nothing like you two together. Neither of you can deny that. As soon as you two get rid of the inhibitions of work, age, and what’s going on in each other’s lives, you two are amazing together.

You kiss like there's no tomorrow. It feels good, without effort, without pretending. And this is new to you.

Charles pulls your dress up, you smile against his lips. “Let me see her” He looks down on you “Oh there she is” he runs his fingers over your folds.

You bite your button lip suppressing a moan.

“Look at you trying to hold back on me” the tip of his fingers now over your clit. “So wet,” he says and then he inserts one finger inside you making you whine a bit “Oh so wet” his eyes open wider.

“Now don’t touch if you’re not going to buy sir” You take his wrist and pull his fingers out of you.

He groans. “Come on!” he chuckles.

You stand up from his lap pulling your dress down.

 “Show me” you point at his groin “I want to see him too”. 

Charles laughs. He has no reservations about unbuttoning his pants, opening the zipper, and revealing to you the angry bulge making a tent inside his boxers 

The sight makes you wetter. You take one step forward thinking about kneeling and have your taste of it. But he stops you.

“No no darling, I’ve said I was going to fuck out of you that attitude” He pulls you against his body and kisses you while he sits on the bed again. You see him grabbing a condom out of the box on the bed “You get to ride me until my cock wipes that brat smile from your face”. He says all of this while taking his cock out, already leaking and hard, and slides a condom on it. 

You are more than ready for this. “You are going to regret this Leclerc” you mewl as you get on his lap again hovering over his hard cock.

“I fucking doubt it firecracker” he grabs you by the hips. You reach down and grab his cock guiding it inside you.

You sit comfortably on his lap full of his cock and both of you moan. 

His hands keep caressing your body, you feel so good with him, he is trying to hold the feeling of you around him. 

You throw your head back moving your hips in circles “Oh god yes”.

His hands go to your breasts squeezing them “i want you to move but…” he pulls down your dress and your breasts fall out of it “I don’t want this to end” his lips lash to your nipples 

You moan out “Good, you know what to do”. You can’t help it, your body starts moving up and down his cock. 

“Shit!” he gasps grabbing your ass and pulling it down “Wet, tight…” he grids his teeth. 

You support yourself on his shoulders to move faster and look down on him. The world outside that room is fading away as your moans get louder. “Fuck Charles!”

“I know baby I know, don’t stop, don’t fucking stop” he looks up to you.

The feeling of his teeth on your neck makes you squeal in pleasure. Your pussy starts pulsing when you feel his thump on your clits pressing it “Oh fuckfuckfuckfuck” you grunt.

Charles chuckles at your reaction. 

The sounds of your bodies against each other make it all more erotic. You can feel your orgasms approaching each time he presses on your clit and it’s driving you wild “Charles that’s …Oh god…” you moan “I’m.not.going.to.last.long” you punctuated each word with each move down his cock.

He grunts “Come on my cock” his voice sounds raspy, maybe a bit shaky. You look down and see his face red gridding his teeth holding in his orgasms too. Beads of sweat on his forehead.

His cock starts twitching inside you and he starts rubbing your clit harder trying to bring you with him. 

You come first, your moans muffled against his neck. Squeezing his cock. 

His hips push up and against your pussy making your orgasms more intense and seeking his release too.

Just a few more seconds and he pushes your ass down his cock grunting and moaning spilling his cum in hot waves. 

He collapses on the bed. You just fall supporting yourself on your hands on each side of his body, catching your breath with him inside you.  

He looks up to you with a satisfaction grim “You sure know how to ride cock firecracker” he runs his fingers tips on your lips.

You smirk and move your face to the side making his hand caress your cheek. Still catching your breath. 

“Let’s not wait too long to do this again. We’re so good at it” he whispers

You slide up and off him with a gasp and lay next to him. “I have to admit we do know how to fuck each other,” you tell him turning your face to him. 

He laughs, and you laugh too.

Both of you are gazing into each other’s eyes when his phone starts buzzing in his pants pocket. 

It snaps you from his gaze. You sit on the bed as he takes out his phone and looks at the caller ID.

“Si Andrea” “Yes Andrea” he answers while you stand up looking around for your panties. “Che cosa?!” “What?!” he says and you look at him. He sits in bed “Quando?!” “When?!” he puts his hand over his forehead in distress. “Fuck!” he says looking at you.

You are frozen in place looking at his worried grim “What?” you whisper.

He hands the call and looks at his phone for a moment “My girlfriend is here” he looks at you.

You stop breathing for a few seconds watching him standing up and reaching for a tissue from the nightstand next to the bed for the condom he just used with you.

“Your…WHAT?!” the whole situation turns into a nightmare out of the blue

“She shouldn't be here,” he says cleaning himself with the tissue.

“What do you mean?! I thought you were here for…” you stop taking as you realize what is going on. “Oh shit!” your jaw drops open. 

“Y/N this was a guy's trip for Andrea’s birthday, she shouldn’t be here,” Charles says fixing his pants 

“What do you mean she shouldn’t be here, you’re dating now?!” you spit out without thinking about the consequences.

“Yes! “ He looks at you not getting your reaction. Honestly, you don’t get your reaction either. “What’s wrong with it?” he asks opening his arms

You shake your head not even believing it. But you breathe in, and start putting your panties on again without saying a word to him. 

“You’re doing it again” he walks over you 

“I’m doing what?” you snap back 

“Getting mad at me because I have a relationship that’s not with you” he keeps coming closer to you

“We just had sex Charles! You can’t blame me!��� you almost fall trying to put your panties back on

“So?” he tries grabbing your arm 

You push his hand away “So?!” you finally get your panties on “You don’t travel to another city for just a fuck”

Charles crosses his arms on his chest his jaw clenching. He doesn’t have a good comeback. He is doing it again too, swallowing his feelings. 

You laugh in disbelief.

Booths staring at each other until a knock on the door snaps you both back 

“Bebè?”, a woman’s voice comes from the other side 

You put your hands on your head not believing his silence. The knocking comes back.

He just looks at the door not moving an inch.

You turn around looking for your purse and walking to the balcony door.

“Y/n…” he whispers

“Don’t you dare Charles” You look at him with your eyes full of tears, it’s the first time you allowed yourself to get like this in front of him. 

You open the balcony door. Not giving him a second to say anything else.

You closed the door behind you. The fresh air hits your face. You breathe in fix your dress and walk back to the door to the living room hall. 

You come inside holding your tears in. You see her knocking on the door of the room you just had sex with her boyfriend.

She is pretty, elegant, and…young. 

You put on a smile and greet her as you pass by her. You don’t even care if she suspects something, you just want to get out of there.

You reach the elevator, no one notices you leaving, the party is too good. 

You get into the elevator. The mirrors inside of it show you what you don’t want to see: yourself broken for a man. Again.

You don’t want to share a tear more for a man. You breathe in and walk out of the elevator.

When you are outside the building, you take your phone and start typing away on it.

“This ends now for me”.

Let me know what you think, please.

[themirokai]

The Bell Bird - Chapter 4

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3

In this chapter, plans are put in motion.

Chapter is 2,545 words.

Extra thanks to @once-in-a-blue-moon-rising for normal Brit-pick and beta support PLUS incredible help with details of the logistics for this chapter.

Read it below or on AO3.

~*~

Gregory had the decency to wait a week before asking. Mycroft was not surprised. Gregory was, after all, a fundamentally decent man.

The intervening week had been busy, but no more taxing than Mycroft was used to.

The DNA test had, of course, shown that the Bell Bird was David’s daughter, and they had quickly begun to implement the plan he had sketched out for her that first night in his office. Arranging for Jenny to sing a concert at the Nevill Holt Theatre two weeks later took very little effort, and Ahmad had barely concealed her eagerness to travel with Jenny to Leicestershire and remain there as primary bodyguard under the guise of Ms. Lindish’s personal assistant.

Romer had come back to work the following day with his tail between his legs, and had apologised for his behaviour. To demonstrate that there were no hard feelings, Mycroft had moved Yang to another assignment and put Romer on his personal security detail. Though Wilkinson was older than Romer, Romer had been in Mycroft’s unit for longer, meaning he was technically the senior agent on the detail. He had taken the responsibility with enthusiasm and extra gravitas, and Mycroft was grateful to Wilkinson for his bemused acceptance of Romer’s bluster.

The day to day of Mycroft’s work had all gone relatively smoothly that week, with the dozen or so operations his agents were conducting both domestically and abroad tracking with no major hiccups.

Which all left Mycroft free to lounge in bed with Gregory on Saturday morning at – for him – the late hour of eight AM. Gregory was half-sitting up against the pillows and Mycroft was laying with his cheek on Gregory’s stomach. Gregory was ostensibly reading something on his mobile but Mycroft could tell he hadn’t scrolled in some time and likely had something on his mind. Finally Gregory put the mobile down and stroked his hand down Mycroft’s back.

“Darling?”

“Mm?”

“Can I ask? About Jenny’s father?”

“Were you and my father lovers?” Jenny had asked that night, when Ahmad had stepped out and they were alone in his office. Her bravado was gone, and she suddenly looked very young. When Mycroft didn’t respond she continued. “It’s just… the way he talked about you… and you have a partner…”

“‘Lovers’ is too strong a word for what we were,” he had said quietly. “And I want to be clear that your father was devoted to your mother. As far as I know he was never unfaithful to her. But—” Mycroft sighed "—I suppose I don’t mind telling you that a long time ago… I loved him.”

“I think he loved you too.”

“We were very close, for a time,” Mycroft told Gregory. “There were a few times, before he met Jenny’s mother, when the adrenaline of a mission got the better of us and we… well… But that was a different time.

“It wasn’t safe for us to be together, both because of our work and even moreso because we were both men. I was closeted in my professional life until shortly before I met you. And David met and fell in love with Jenny’s mother in the nineties. If the circumstances had been different, if we had been brought together in the 2010s instead of the late seventies… if I had met him instead of you… I don’t know.” Mycroft sighed. “I owe him my life. I hope by protecting his daughter I’m doing what I can to repay him and honour his memory.”

Gregory hugged him closer and kissed the top of his head. “I think you are, darling.”

Mycroft was honest enough with himself to acknowledge that in the days leading up to Jenny’s concert, he became irrationally nervous. He deployed extra agents around Leicestershire and had nearly every resource at his disposal scanning for any sign of the Black Tornado. He repeatedly questioned whether using Jenny as bait was the best way to keep her safe, but just as often resolved that, yes, taking out the Black Tornado was the only way to protect her, and they had no other way of making him surface.

The information Mycroft had on the Black Tornado indicated that he would spend as little time in the UK as possible. Unlike the Bell Bird, he had operated there in the past, but those had been extremely rapid strikes that had him out of the country within hours. By having Jenny’s concert be at Nevill Holt it would force the Black Tornado to travel a great distance by car, regardless of how he arrived in England, which would give Mycroft’s team ample opportunity to apprehend him. It also meant that it narrowed the window of when he was likely to strike at her, since the night of the concert would be the only time he would know exactly where she was.

Gregory and Mycroft would be attending the concert and spending the night at a nearby inn. It would give Mycroft the opportunity to direct operations more or less on-site, and the idea of intentionally putting Jenny in harm’s way while he stayed in London was unthinkable. And while he considered it, he did not bother suggesting that Gregory stay behind.

He and Gregory were packing for the night away when Mycroft’s mobile buzzed in his pocket. He took it out and saw it was one of his agents working in the operations centre. He answered. “Go ahead, Parnell.”

“Sir, we believe the Black Tornado has boarded a plane in Istanbul headed for Heathrow.”

“Good. Keep scanning in case you’re wrong, but send a team to intercept him as soon as the flight lands.”

“Yes, sir.”

Mycroft disconnected the call to see Gregory watching him.

“Got him?” Gregory asked.

“Not yet,” Mycroft told him. “But he should be landing in about four hours, and my people will be there.”

Gregory smiled. “Maybe we’ll be able to relax and enjoy the concert after all.”

Mycroft certainly was not superstitious enough to believe in the concept of a jinx, but Gregory’s words still felt like a lead weight in his stomach.

In the car on the way to Leicestershire, Mycroft was not on comms. He knew the Black Tornado’s plane would be landing while they were en route, but he also knew that there was nothing he could meaningfully add to the operation at that point, so he forcefully resisted the urge to micromanage. He had found that his agents felt more free to communicate openly when he was not listening in, which improved group cohesion on the ground. While it was more difficult when he was so personally invested in the operation, it helped that Simmons was monitoring comms while she drove – a role she happily fulfilled when required. Simmons had known Mycroft long enough to know what updates he would find useful, and the agents trusted her to keep their non-essential chatter to herself.

In theory, Mycroft was reading a report from an operation in Abu Dhabi, but he couldn’t help frequent glances at Simmons. At one point when he looked up, their eyes met in the rearview mirror, and she gave a short nod. The plane must have landed. Mycroft glanced at Gregory, who was engrossed in a book, but decided not to say anything. He gave up all pretence of reading the Abu Dhabi report, and just waited.

He saw when Simmons’ shoulders tensed, and when she gripped the steering wheel more tightly, and so he was not entirely unprepared for her to swear.

“Shit!”

Gregory startled out of his book. “Lucy? You okay?”

Simmons looked at Mycroft in the rearview again. “They lost him, sir.”

Mycroft felt the breath squeeze out of him in a hiss. He pinched the bridge of his nose. “Pull over, Simmons.”

Simmons tapped her ear to change the channel on her comm. “Wilk, we’re pulling over.”

Ahead on the road a nondescript grey van pulled off to the side as Simmons manoeuvred their vehicle over. Mycroft got out of the car just as a motorbike pulled up beside them and Romer took off his helmet. His face showed that he had been monitoring comms too. Simmons joined them beside the car.

“Tell me,” Mycroft said.

“Massive crowds at Heathrow,” Simmons reported, “and there was some mix-up with the gate, so two planes-worth of people thought they were supposed to be boarding their flight through that gate just as Black Tornado’s flight was disembarking. The team lost him in the crowd.”

Mycroft felt a cold fury rise in his stomach but he kept his tone even. “Completely unacceptable! That entire team is being reassigned for additional crowd training.” Well, maybe not entirely even.

“He must’ve had someone mess with the gates, sir,” Romer put in.

“And he’s an extremely skilled operative, not a random mark,” Simmons said.

“Both observations are irrelevant. This unit is supposed to be the best in the world. I do not care how skilled the mark is or how big the crowd, a five person team should not lose one individual in a crowd. And you can tell them I said so.”

Mycroft wheeled around and got back in the car, shutting the door with perhaps a bit more force than was necessary.

Gregory, apparently, had also gotten out and had been listening. He returned to his seat and tentatively reached out to touch Mycroft’s hand.

“Maybe a bit of an overreaction, darling?”

Mycroft snorted. “Nothing of the sort. My agents should be better than that.”

“Sure,” Gregory said gently, “but are you perhaps taking it a little hard because you’re worried about Jenny?”

“If I were being hard on them,” Mycroft informed him, “I would have called them myself. Having Simmons and Romer deliver the message that I am displeased and sparing them my full thoughts on the matter is taking it easy on them.”

Gregory raised an eyebrow at him, then squeezed his hand.

After Mycroft and Gregory had deposited their bags in their very nice room at the inn, they went for a walk to stretch their legs. Though Romer was moving nearly silently, Mycroft did spot him tracking them through the woods at several points. At the pre-arranged time, they encountered Jenny and Ahmad on an abandoned lane.

Before the women caught sight of Mycroft and Gregory, Ahmad said something they couldn’t hear to Jenny and Jenny threw her head back in a melodious laugh and rested her hand on Ahmad’s arm. Ahmad grinned at Jenny, then quickly looked down at her feet. While they were a little too far to see, Mycroft strongly suspected that she was blushing.

Ahmad caught sight of them then, and her entire expression changed. Her grin faded, and she stood straighter: the picture of a calm, professional agent. Jenny, on the other hand, lit up when she saw them.

“Hello!” she called. “Welcome to the picturesque Nevill Holt estate.”

Mycroft felt a surge of fondness. Her accent was exactly the same as David’s: one of the regional American ones; midwestern, if he recalled correctly.

“Beautiful day for a stroll,” Gregory said.

“Ms. Lindish,” Mycroft said. “Are you well?”

She leaned closer to him. “You know you can call me Jenny,” she mock-whispered conspiratorially.

“Mr. Holmes only does first names under duress,” Ahmad told her.

Mycroft glanced at her with a small smile. “Thank you, Ahmad.”

“I’m very well, Mr. Holmes, thank you for asking,” Jenny said with a smile. “Agent Ahmad has been taking very good care of me.”

Mycroft looked between them quickly but answered without hesitation. “I’m glad to hear it.” He turned to Ahmad. “Have you been on comms today, Ahmad? Or in touch with anyone from the unit?”

Ahmad’s face grew even more serious. “No, sir.”

Mycroft grimaced. He had been fairly sure that was the case, but it didn’t make his next task any easier. “I have some unfortunate news, then. I had a team go to intercept the Black Tornado at Heathrow, but they lost him. We have to assume that he’s on his way, or potentially already here.”

Ahmad grew angry. Jenny’s face detoured quickly from frightened to resolved.

“I understand,” Jenny said quietly.

“I don’t,” Ahmad said. “How big was the team, sir?”

“Big enough that they should not have lost him,” Mycroft told her. “There will be consequences, but you will let me worry about that. You have a much more immediate concern.”

Ahmad took a deep breath, and Mycroft watched her consciously unclench her jaw. “Yes, sir.”

“Your team is ready?” he asked her.

“Yes, sir.”

As Ahmad briefed him on how she had deployed the agents assigned to help her protect Jenny and the plan for the concert that night, Mycroft watched out of the corner of his eye as Jenny took a few steps closer to Gregory and the two of them had a quiet conversation.

“Very good, Ahmad,” Mycroft said when she finished. “That’s all well-thought out.”

Ahmad gave a very small smile.

Jenny and Gregory cut off their conversation and Jenny turned to him with a smile.

“He’s most likely to attack tonight, when he thinks you’re asleep,” Mycroft addressed both Jenny and Ahmad. “I’ll be monitoring comms following the concert.” He reached out his hand towards Jenny, and she took it. “You don’t need to be frightened. Ahmad is skillfully deploying an excellent team.”

Jenny looked at Ahmad through her lashes. “I have every confidence in Agent Ahmad, Mr. Holmes.”

“Good,” Mycroft said. “My dear, we will keep you safe. I give you my word.”

Jenny smiled warmly and squeezed his hand. “Thank you.”

“Now,” Mycroft said, “we should all get back to where we’re supposed to be.”

Romer faded out of the woods and onto the road once Mycroft and Gregory were headed back to the inn, walking hand in hand.

“Ahmad’s soft on the Bell Bird, sir.”

“I’m well aware, Mr. Romer.”

“I think Bell Bird likes Ahmad, too.”

“Yes,” Mycroft said, “you are correct.”

“Is that a problem, sir?”

“Ahmad and Ms. Lindish are more emotionally invested in protecting each other. I see that as an asset to the operation, Mr. Romer.”

Romer walked beside him for a few steps, considering. “Guess I’ll have to find a hot assassin with a sob story,” he said.

On Mycroft’s other side, Gregory chuckled. “You do know there are other ways to meet people, right Peter?”

Romer looked briefly thoughtful. “I guess I could be introduced to a handsome copper by my troubled brother, but I don’t have any siblings.”

Gregory shook his head. “We’ve got to get you some other role models, kid.”

Romer flashed a smile at Mycroft before heading back into the woods. “Nah. I’m good.”

“What were you and Jenny talking about?” Mycroft asked Gregory when Romer was far enough away to not be able to hear their conversation.

“You, mostly.” Gregory chuckled. “She was asking how we met and how we got together. Whether you usually brought me along on operations. She’s a sweet girl.”

Mycroft raised an eyebrow at him. “She is a deadly assassin.”

Gregory shrugged. “And a sweet girl. We should have her to dinner when this is all wrapped up.”

Mycroft stopped walking, pulled Gregory to him, and kissed him.

~*~

Thank you for reading!

Final chapter is now posted.

[theresattrpgforthat]

Hi! Looking for a two person game to play with lil bro while I’m at college. Epic fantasy feel preferred, whatever mechanics though. He’s only played dnd, I’ve played dnd and lancer.

THEME: Epic Two-Player Games

Hello there friend, I’ve got quite the broad span of recommendations for you here! Some are epic, some are fantasy, and some are both! 

Godkiller: First Blood, by Connie Chang. 

GODKILLER: First Blood Edition is a holypunk PbtA (Powered by the Apocalypse) game for one player, the Godkiller, and one Game Master, the god of gods. Together, the two of you will weave a mythic, violent, and transformative tale about the only mortal in existence with the power to slay a god, rising against the challenges of the divine. Which gods will you kill to shape the realm — and which gods will you spare?

This game is still in pre-order, but it looks to be about as epic as they come. It’s designed for two players, over an extended number of sessions, as the single player does their best to kill the single GM - God. The art on the storefront page looks gorgeous, and the people behind it are stellar names in the indie games scene. You should absolutely check this out.

Dice Souls, by Chris Bissette. 

Dice Souls is a zero prep Souls-like dungeon exploration game for one or two players. Set out into a procedurally generated world filled with traps, monsters, and unbelievable bosses. Kill them. Take their souls. Die. Get better.

As you play you'll answer questions about the world and your place in it that will build the story of what happened to the world, why you're here, and what your purpose is. No two games will ever be the same.

Dice Souls is designed to emulate popular games like Elden Ring and Dark Souls, with a cycle of character death that fuels a constant cycle of progression. The story is one of pursuing rebirth against all odds, holding on to hope in a dark and stained world. The Quickstart is free, and inside it’s 16 pages it will introduce character creation in the first steps of gameplay, leading you through a pre-built Region up until your first boss fight. By the time you finish playing, you should be comfortable enough with the system to decide if it’s for you - and then pick up the full book, which is currently still in the process of being released. 

Agent of the Throne, by Toastmortem.

Agent of the Throne is an old-school inspired tabletop roleplaying game designed for two people, with one taking the role of the Game Master (GM) and the other as the Player. The player assumes the role of a Throne Agent, a man or woman charged by the emperor himself with the protection of the empire and its people. They travel through distant villages and crowded cities, hunting down alien monstrosities, twisted cults, and treasonous rebels.

This game takes a lot of nods from the OSR scene, which has some similarities to older editions of D&D. If you’re looking for recognizable bits and bobs such as to-hit modifiers, hit points, and character classes, Agent of the Throne has all of that, in a familiar dark fantasy setting. To facilitate the feeling of a party while reducing the amount of bookkeeping required, your single character will have a retinue, a small number of NPCs with their own specialties and fighting capabilities. 

One thing that might set this game apart is the inclusion of an Investigation phase in the three-part story structure of a game session. As an Agent, you’re responsible for finding out what’s causing local disturbances and tragedies, so sometimes you’ll have to examine clues and interrogate witnesses before you can start kicking down any doors. If you want to stick with traditional fantasy with rules that make it easy for a single player to get into some complex adventures, this game is absolutely worth checking out.

Anyone Can Wear the Mask, by Jeff Stormer. 

This is an imaginary story (which may never happen, but which then again may),About someone with great power, who chose to use that power only for the good of all.

Anyone Can Wear The Mask is a tabletop RPG about a superhero, a supervillain, and the city they share. Throughout play, you’ll record the adventures of a great hero as they defend their city, stand up to those in power, and eventually confront a terrible nemesis. You’ll draw maps, roll dice, pull cards from a deck, and make a living record of the city and its people.

This game can be played solo, as a duet, or with three players, depending on whether you want to play with or without a GM. You can choose to use a pre-generated city or create a city of your own, and mark the changes that both the hero and the villain wrought over the course of their struggle. The narrative gives you a chance to look at the cost of super-powered rivalry and responsibility, and how the actions of powerful people can have widespread effects on the city around them. For that reason, I’d consider it sufficiently epic for this recommendation, even if it isn’t fantasy.

Frog Knight, by Daysemay.

You are a Frog, yes a frog. Amphibian with a slimy layer of mucus moving from both in and out of the water with grace. have you always been a frog? or have you been transformed in some manner? You are also a knight, to what you are sworn you can not remember, but you carry a sword and fight with it well.

You are on a quest... to somewhere. You do know you have a rival who is also a frog and a knight on a quest just like you. It seems no matter where you go your paths cross in opposition and you must duel to proceed. This is one such duel.

Free to play, Frog Knight is a simple 3-page game that uses a deck of cards as an oracle to help you narrate a duel. The first player to run out of cards must either fall or flee, thus losing the duel. 

This game is short and has a very light-hearted tone to it. Its ability to be epic in scope depends on the quests your frogs are currently on - are they trying to save rival kingdoms? Find a princess to kiss? It’s up to you! This game is probably the farthest in style from both D&D and Lancer, as the oracles are very broad and require a lot of input from the the players involved. However, if you’re on a low budget and you want a chance to test out something radically different from what you’ve played in the past, it costs you nothing to check out!

The Serpent and the Spider, by Junk Food Games.

The Serpent and The Spider is a tiny ttrpg for 2 players. One player takes the role of The Serpent, a charismatic sword-wielder. The other player takes the role of The Spider, a highly intelligent necromancer. Your souls are bonded together. You will fight against corrupt corporations and explore your relationship.

To play the game, you need something to write with, two 4-sided dice, and two 8-sided dice. This game is inspired by the book series, The Locked Tomb, by Tamsyn Muir. 9 short session prompts, inspired by the 9 houses from the books, are included as well.

I’d describe this game as a space-fantasy, rather than your regular sword-and-sorcery game. It’s designed based on a setting that prized the bond between fighter and necromancer more than anything else, following themes about deadly power and the price of tying yourself to someone whose death could also spell your own. The premise really sets you up for great danger and big, impressive fights - but also can cover some heavy topics that you should talk about before you start play. 

[alphacrone]

Portland Row Trio - Tugging!

Tugging - being able to feel a tug in the direction of your soulmate if they are feeling a strong emotion

Lucy had always been pulled south. 

She hadn’t always dreamt of moving to London. As a child she’d been content with her life in the north, running barefoot through the fields and climbing trees with Mary. Even after she began at Jacobs, Lucy thought she’d end up in Newcastle like Jody and Beth, or Durham like Sarah, or stay in her little village and marry a nice boy like Michelle. London was worlds away, a pipe dream at most.  

But when she felt her soulmate’s tug, it was always south. It never mattered where in town she was, never mattered how far she wandered or how far she traveled for a job. Lucy’s soulmate was always south. 

The first time she felt the tug, Lucy cried. She barely remembered it now, she’d only been three or four at the time, but the overwhelming sense of grief that pulled at her heart was too much for her to bear. Mum had scolded her for throwing a fit while she cooked supper and Dad had yelled at Jody and Michelle to shut her up. Lucy hadn’t had the words to describe the sadness that had overcome her, but she knew that it was leading her somewhere, somewhere away from home. She’d made it to the garden before someone scooped her up and smacked her bottom, which only made her cry harder. In the end Lucy had gone to bed without supper; she was far too upset to eat, anyways. 

After that, Lucy didn’t tell anyone when she felt the tugs of her soulmate. Not when she was overcome with rage and shame while picking flowers in the schoolyard. Not when she felt an elation on Christmas that didn’t correspond with the secondhand rapier her mother had foisted on her, a silent command to become an agent. Not when her heart broke in two during a normal training session and she’d been sent home for her hysterics, pay docked for the lost hours. 

Everyone else spoke of their soulmates openly. Sarah found hers in town, a sweet lad who lived down the street. Before she left home, she’d told Lucy that he’d found her on the day their father died, when she’d been so overcome with relief that she’d wept. He could feel her, he’d said, knew how to find her without even seeing her. Lucy thought that sounded useful, if not a bit creepy. 

Once, after a long day of working and a long night of drinking, Mum had told Lucy and Mary that she’d felt it when their father died. She’d felt his fear and his pain, had felt a sudden pull east towards the rail station, then…nothing. All that remained had been a cold, empty nothing. 

Mary had cried but Lucy’s eyes remained dry. The nothing meant her father wasn’t a Visitor, and that was more than enough comfort for her. People whose soulmates returned were said to be driven mad by the pull, by the constant loop of anger and sorrow.

It was almost a relief to Lucy that she didn’t feel that fear, that pain, that nothing after the mill incident. Her team had been her closest friends for half of her life and they’d been snatched from her so horrifically, but at least she hadn’t felt it. At least none of them had felt her terror as they died. 

So when she left home in the wee hours of the morning, Lucy didn’t have to think twice about where she would go. The answer had always been: south. 

---

Lucy didn’t feel her soulmate much after joining Lockwood & Co. 

That wasn’t unusual. Most people didn’t live in a state of constant heightened emotion. Her soulmate probably had a normal job or went to school, lived a life free of danger and excitement. Lucy often wondered if she kept them up at night, when jobs went a bit sideways or she walked in on George in the bath. She wondered if they thought of her at all. 

George had asked her about her soulmate once, when they’d been reading in comfortable silence at the kitchen table. He had some Xeroxed articles in front of him from the Archives, studies on soulmates and the dead. Lucy wasn’t very interested in her own mystery novel, so she’d tossed it aside to answer his questions. 

“I’ve never met them,” she’d said with a shrug. “Not even sure where they are. South of my hometown, I know that for certain.” 

George nodded, peering at her over his glasses. “Mine’s all over the place,” he admitted. “Most often North, but not always. They must live in London, I just haven’t pinpointed them yet.” 

“When was the last time you felt them?” Lucy asked, propping her chin in her hand. 

To her surprise, George looked a bit bashful. “Well…don’t misunderstand this, but…the night you and Lockwood burnt down the Hope house.” 

“What, you don’t think…?” Lucy glanced up at the ceiling, to where Lockwood’s bedroom sat just out of sight. George shook his head. 

“I thought so as well, at first, but there have been times I’ve felt the pull while with Lockwood, and it wasn’t towards him.” For some reason, Lucy felt relief, but she couldn’t be sure why. “What about you?” 

“Well…” Lucy paused. “I thought felt it at Combe Carey, but it was all over the place, and everything happened so fast. I think I get it confused with my Touch sometimes.” 

George gave her a shit-eating grin. “Is your soulmate an evil monk ghost?”

Lucy pretended to consider it, tapping a finger against her lips. “Well, I do like them tall, dark, and crazy.” 

“What about me?” Lockwood stood in the doorway, society magazine tucked under his arm. His shirt was rumpled, tie draped loosely around his neck. Lucy wondered if he’d been dozing in the library. 

“We’ve decided Lucy’s soulmate was one of the demon monks from Combe Carey,” George said. 

Lockwood didn’t have the courtesy to look fazed. He simply chuckled and plopped down in the chair next to Lucy, tossing his magazine down next to Lucy’s discarded novel. “I’d have thought it would be Annabel Ward, if we’re choosing Visitors who died before we were born.” 

“Do you know your soulmate, Lockwood?” Lucy asked. 

“No,” he said simply. “If they want to find me, I won’t oppose, but all that—love, dating, marriage—it’s not in my plans.” 

“That’s a bit of a reductionist take on soulmates,” George admonished. “It’s not just about getting married and having 2.5 kids and a white picket fence. They could be platonic or familial, a lifelong companion of some sort, a twin flame—or flames! There have been instances of three or more soulmates all finding each other, or soulmates who have other soulmates outside of each other. It’s a literal connection of the soul.” 

Lucy liked listening to George talk when he was excited about something. His eyes would light up and his hands would dance all over the place. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Lockwood watching him, too, with an easy grin. 

“I surrender, George,” he said, hands raised in defeat. “I was being reductionist. Maybe one day I’ll find my soulmate, but it’s not at the top of my to-do list. I’ve got my team; that’s all I need.” 

“That’s insane,” George retorted, but he was smiling. 

Lucy decided then and there that she agreed with Lockwood. She didn’t need her soulmate, not as long as she had her boys and her home in Portland Row. 

---

In the end, it shouldn’t have been surprising. 

Somehow, in some stupid way, they were all still blindsided by it. 

The job had gone wrong. Lucy thought that should have been the agency’s motto: Something WILL go wrong, guaranteed! Nothing was on fire and nobody had broken any bones—yet—but if they didn’t hurry up and find the source, someone was bound to die. 

The poltergeist was a strong one, throwing knives and chairs and other detritus all throughout the house. They’d all been separated pretty quickly, torn apart by the raging wind and flying projectiles. Lucy was trapped in the hallway between the kitchen and the sitting room, shielding herself behind a tea tray that had nearly decapitated her. She could hear the poltergeist’s screams, could feel that the source was somewhere nearby, but without anyone to guard her back she had no hope of finding it. 

Then—a flash of terror, searing pain in her ribs, and an overwhelming pull in her chest had her sprinting toward the kitchen, dodging flying books and debris. Something glanced off her head and she could feel blood trickling down her temple, but Lucy couldn’t concentrate on that, not when her soulmate was in trouble. 

When she found George, he was pinned to the wall by the kitchen table, struggling to break free. That explained the pain in her ribs. That explained why she’d been pulled to London her whole life. 

That didn’t explain why she now felt a pull upstairs. 

“George!” She cried, stumbling across the room to him. She batted down pots and pans that came at them with the tea tray, ignoring the ones that met her back as she wrestled the table away. George sank to the ground, gasping for air, but he grabbed Lucy’s arms, eyes wide and terrified. 

“Lockwood,” he panted. “He’s in- he’s in trouble- I can feel-”

Lucy nodded, pulling him to his feet. “Me too.” 

“And- your head- I could feel-”

“Yeah.” Lucy grabbed his hand and tugged. “Yeah, I know.” 

“Okay.” George followed her from the kitchen, slashing at the airborne cutlery. “Source?” 

“Hallway. Under the floorboards, I think.” Lucy ran past the spot, not giving it a glance. “Lockwood first.” 

“Lockwood first,” George agreed. His grip on her hand tightened. “Hurry.” 

Lucy felt it as well, a swell of fear and then…nothing. That nothing scared her more than the poltergeist at her back, more than the way her head spun from the scent of blood, more than any pain she’d ever experienced. She sped up her pace, taking the stairs two at a time. 

On the landing of the top floor, Lockwood’s body was sprawled across the pea-green carpet, rapier still clutched loosely in his hand. His eyes were closed, face too pale, chest too still-

“He’s breathing,” George said. “Lucy, he’s okay, he’s alive.” 

Lucy didn’t realize she was crying. She hadn’t cried over her soulmate in years, and now look at her, weeping like that little girl in the garden all those years ago. She collapsed on top of Lockwood’s chest, hand still entwined with George’s, and sobbed. Sobbed for all those times she felt their pain and grief, sobbed for all those times they’d felt hers, sobbed for the nothing she’d feared so viscerally. 

“Did I die?” A voice below her asked. “Why’s Lucy cryin- George, are you crying?” 

Lucy pulled back to see Lockwood’s eyes open and trained on her. He was wincing a bit, struggling to sit up, but his gaze seemed clear and lucid. A goose-egg was forming on his forehead, where the poltergeist must have nailed him with something heavy. 

Before either of them could say anything, Lockwood put a hand to his chest, face twisted in confusion and sadness. Then he looked up, glanced between them, and said, “Oh.” 

“Yeah,” George said, voice thick with tears. “Guess we found you after all.” 

“We should probably-” Lockwood motioned vaguely. “Poltergeists feed on emotion, and all that.” 

Lucy couldn’t help but laugh. “We’ve realized we’re all soulmates and that’s your reaction?” 

Lockwood grinned at her. “Well, it makes sense. You’re my team, my- my family. Of course we’re soulmates.” 

“I don’t care how injured he is,” George muttered to Lucy. “I’m drowning him in the tub when we get home.” 

“C’mon, I know where the source is,” Lucy said, pulling her boys to their feet. “Someone fetch me a crowbar and a net.” 

Containing the source would be a remarkably simple task, once they were all together. In fact, it would be downright dull. The real excitement of the evening would come later, when they were safe at home, icing heads and cleaning wounds, exchanging stories and secrets and little, whispered confessions. Lucy wouldn’t feel the tug south any longer; they would never be out of her reach again.