#got an APOLOGY from my FATHER people wait their whole lives for that. sorry but if the issue is that i know i deserve your respect and your

[pondscummy]

real burn that bridge when we come to it hours tonight

[songmingisthighs]

Wanbelyn

introduction pt. i | pt. ii | pt. iii

<< previous | m.list | next >>

ch. xi - a vaccuum

neurosurgeon!hongjoong × reader

buy me coffee ?

where love and peace is held, i never expected for this to happen. i planned and i planned, i expected, and i hoped, but it was never you. you held what i wanted hostage to make room for you, the thing that i needed but has no means of acceptance. deny me, live your best life.

As much as you hated having told by your cousin to run an errand, you had to admit that it was kind of helpful. Even just the walk to grocery store was refreshing. It wasn't like the weather was nice nor was the neighborhood extremely beautiful. But it was just you becoming one with the crowd of people and becoming one of the average joe. It was like you have a problem, the lady next to you has a problem, the grandpa sampling coffee has a problem, and so does the teenager looking stressed out on her phone as she was crouched down in front of flours. Being part of the crowd helped dilute the severity of your problems because more often than not, you'd think about how other people were facing their own issues and they seem to still be able to function.

But of course, when issue came barelling into you, it's a whole different thing.

Literally.

One moment you were trying to reach for the cereal Jongho likes (that was put on the top shelf because life like to make sure you'd struggle a little), the next, you were tackled to the floor, crashing hard like an idiot. It was fortunate that there was no one near you and that there wasn't a cart in front of you because that would've been even more disastrous.

"Kijoong!"

As much as you hated to admit it, the first thing that popped into your head was "Please God, tell me it's not the kid whose dad aided in the desolution of your career" but of course, when you sat up, you saw the adorable face of the kid you saved grinning at you happily, hands around your waist. "Hi," he giggled before he hugged you tighter. Though you had wished that it wasn't him, you couldn't help but chuckle and pat his head gently, saying hi back.

As quickly as Kijoong attacked you, he was ripped away just as quick by the guy you can only think is his dad, holding him as he looked down at you with worry in his eyes. "I'm sorry miss, I truly- I-I'm sorry, I should've kept an eye on him and- are you hurt? I'm a doctor, I- I work at KQ Hospital, I can help," he tried extending a hand forward but you only rolled your eyes and got back up without his help. "You've done enough, and even if I wanted to seek medical aid, I doubt your stupid hospital will allow me in, dr. Kim," you smiled sarcastically.

Recognition flashed in his eyes as they widen, "Oh my God, are you (y/n)?" At the mention of your name, Kijoong leaped out of his father's hold and crashed into you once again. "(y/n)!" He exclaimed happily, squealing as he tried to squeeze the life out of you (to which he failed to). "What gave it away? The fact that Kijoong seem to know me or the fact that I know you're dr. Kim Hongjoong or that I'm banned from the hospital?" Immediately, Hongjoong felt guilty, ashamed even and it was obvious from how he was trying to avoid your gaze that you maintained because honestly, you were waiting for him to apologize to you. Acknowledge what happened and what he did. Express his regret. But the most you got was from Kijoong and no matter how much you adored the kid, it wasn't enough to keep you around.

So with a roll of your eyes, you pat Kijoong on the head and bid him goodbye.

You really did mean to avoid both Hongjoong and Kijoong but somehow Kijoong managed to sneak away from his dad and stood next to you with an innocent grin while his dad rushed back and forth trying to find his son (and you but you're there by proxy).

The straw that broke (hongjoong's mental state) the camel's back was when Kijoong followed you out of the grocery store (and you only realized when he grabbed your hand as you tried to cross the road). As soon as you stepped back into the premise with Kijoong happily playing with the string of your hoodie, you were met with a dishevelled Hongjoong on the verge of tears standing with a security guard.

"Hey," you called out and as soon as his eyes met with the sight of his son, you could see the relief on his face but even then, you couldn't help but poke fun at him. "Don't worry, I didn't kidnap him," you set Kijoong down in front of Hongjoong as he slumped to the floor, holding his son who looked rather confused and unsure as to why his dad was acting that way.

When Hongjoong pulled away from Kijoong, he held the boy at arm's length as he huffed, "Wooyoung was right, we're gonna have to put a leash on you," and to make matters worse, Kijoong barked at his dad at the mention of the leash but Hongjoong looked too tired to even comment on his son's response. Standing back up, Hongjoon took a step forward towards you but you took a step back while shaking your head, an action you didn't even realized you did. "How can I thank you?" Hongjoong asked, genuinely wanting to repay you. He expected you to do that push-and-pull thing where you said he shouldn't and he said he absolutely should and you said no and he ended up doing something he figures is the least he can do for you. What he didn't expect was you raising an eyebrow at him and just stared blankly. It was rather unnerving. "I- Do you want me to drive you back home?" he asked but you only tilted your head to the side at him, looking unamused. "Is that a yes? O-or...?" but you still didn't reply. Finally, an idea popped into his head, "Kijoong and I haven't eaten. Will you join us?"

So that was how you found yourself sitting in a booth of a noodle restaurant. You sat on one side of the booth with Hongjoong across from you while Kijoong sat on a high chair. Hongjoong initially let the kid sit on the booth, but considering that Kijoong had played Houdini the whole day, you figured putting him in confinement was a better alternative.

Hongjoong stared in wonder at how Kijoong allowed you to watch him eat and even clean up his face. He remembered how the boy used to bite the fingers of people other than him who tried to clean him up or even clean around him. And by 'used to', he meant not even 3 months ago and his brother was still complaining about the bite. But this? Kijoong even accepted your offer to try your noodles (which he hated but he didn't cry). It was always apparent to Hongjoong that Kijoong was not like other kids but at that moment, he realized that Kijoong had the potential to. What was he missing?

"Do you usually watch people eat, dr. Kim?"

Snapping out of his trance, Hongjoong shook his head and went back to eating as if he wasn't just staring at you. "I don't watch people eat," he muttered, slightly embarrassed that you caught him in that situation. Luckily for him, you simply shrugged and went back to eating, going back and forth between taking a bite and making sure that Kijoong wasn't making a mess.

"You're good with children," Hongjoong stated, surprising you slightly. "Yeah... It's as if I have experience working with children or something," you smirked.

At the mention of your job, Hongjoong stiffened slightly and a question hung onto his lips. Before he could stop himself, however, he blurted the question out, "How are you doing though? How's the job hunt?" Initially, you were surprised that he knew about you seeking employment, but you figured he heard stuff from Wooyoung so you shrugged, "Well, I just found out that my career as a nurse has ended before it could actually take of because somehow the news that KQ Hospital wanted to sue me and wanted to bestow upon me a restraining order for 'assaulting the child of a doctor in the hospital' got out proven by the people who rejected my application or invited me to get a direct scoop," you chuckled bitterly, swirling your noodles in hopes that the sudden feeling of wanting to cry would pass. Looking up at him, you sent a smile that sent chills down his spine, "In your professional opinion, dr. Kim, how do you think I am?"

Hongjoong didn't know what he was expecting out of you. He was already aware of what happened but hearing it directly from you, he really felt like he was responsible. Though it was the hospital that suggested bringing the case to court and getting a restraining order he did say yes without taking the time to actually seek the truth. He knew very well what Kijoong could do and after checking the CCTV (4 days after the event), he was proven wrong but things already happened and between dealing with his son and the legal issues, he would rather deal with his son.

You saw him opening his mouth and you immediately raised a hand, "If you're gonna apologize, save it. That's only going to alleviate your guilt and do absolutely nothing for me. I'd rather you feel guilty for the rest of your life because you did ruin my career." It was like he was slapped in the face. He was only thinking of his son and the fact that he wasn't there when it happened. Maybe he really was trying to do what he could due to the circumstances, but maybe it was also his attempt to alleviate the guilt of not being there when something traumatic happened to his son. But alas he took it a step too far. Actually, he took it ten steps too far and now, while his son has returned to normalcy, you were still bearing the burden of what happened.

"But, even in this situation," you looked at Kijoong and couldn't help but smile seeing the boy eating happily as he kicked his tiny legs, "I didn't regret helping him. I wouldn't have had it any other way," you then turned to Hongjoong, "I'm glad Kijoong is fine now."

It was then that Hongjoong realized what kind of a person you actually are. He noticed that something must have happened in the past for you to act as such even in this situation, prioritizing the health and safety of a boy you don't even know even when your career was hanging by a single strand of hair. But Hongjoong didn't want to comment or dig into that, it wasn't his place. He wanted to say something though, but it was obvious that nothing he said could make the situation any better. He wanted to wish you the best, but he was the one who put you in a crappy situation in the first place. He wanted to say sorry, but you had said that would only make him feel slightly less guilty but do absolutely nothing for you. He could change the subject and talk about the food but he shouldn't be the one to do that because it would seem like he was trying to escape the conversation. So he remained silent, he only watched you and Kijoong interact as he mulled and soaked in the guilt. Just like you wanted.

network :

@cultofdionysusnet @sandsofire @kflixnet

taglist :

@yunho-mp3 @strawberry-yeo @luvt0kki @allisonleannn @dinossaurz @khjcs @blackb3ll @aloverga @at1nys-blog @itsbeeble @senpai-of-doom @axo-l0tl @green-thots @intancollins @galaxypox @babyhailey819 @maddiebabyxoxo @alyssajavenss @mirror-juliet @gxlden-bxbyy @charreddonuts @dreamlesswonder86 @mayonnaisehoeshit @kodzukein @teenyfinds @dear-dreamie @mitchloveswriting @soobiverse @satsuri3su @phenomenalgirl9 @guess-monst3r @dimeb29 @ka-ni-ma @yayaistime @angelicyeo @kyume02 @thedistractedwriter

@rheriver @olizzly @chocolatelightbeliever @bubblesdestiny @starjoongie1117

@yungilia

[melwilson]

deserving

bodyguard!courtland gentry x reader

warnings! mentions of injury and trauma

“you’re late.”

“i know. i’m sorry. got tied up.” the blonde hums as the front door shuts behind you. his eyes raked over your frame to looking for any new bruise or signs of injury. “you didn’t have to wait up for me,” you say as he comes to stand in front of you.

six rolls his eyes, taking the pile of shopping bags from your hands. “it’s my job.”

“i really hope my dad pays well,” you utter under your breath. you don’t mean for him to, but six hears you. he always does. he doesn’t respond though, mind wandering to the offshore swiss bank account that is collecting his check every week. he doesn’t need the money. when he was approached by the balding politician, he was skeptical, but it was an out- a means to the end of sierra six…even if it meant being the personal bodyguard of twenty-year-old you. it wasn’t glamorous, but it allowed him to live without looking over his shoulder and it provided him with more than enough money to take care of claire and himself.

you follow him to your room, watching as he subconsciously checks all the windows and doors that he knows are locked. occupational hazard, he would say. trauma, you would argue.

“i really am sorry for keeping you up this late,” you apologize when your eyes read the time on your bedside analogue clock. half past twelve. “we obviously did some damage,” you gesture towards the shopping bags. “had a couple drinks. lost track of time.” your best friend had suggested a shopping trip. how could you turn it down? six had insisted on going, in fact, if your dad found out that six hadn’t gone, he would lose his mind. however, you convinced the bodyguard that you would only be gone until nine. nine…conveniently turned into twelve thirty.

the glare the blonde gives you is hard enough to make you want to dig an early grave. his blue eyes are intense, staring right through you. “you’re not old enough to drink.”

you brush past him into your closet to change into your usual tee shirt and spandex. “if i can sign up to die for my country, i think i can have a drink every once and awhile.”

court doesn’t argue with your point, he simply replies with, “you should’ve called me, y/n.”

when you exit the closet, you’re met with concerned eyes. “i’m okay, court. one night without you didn’t kill me.” he raises an eyebrow and you send back a begrudging look. “i promise to call next time.”

he nods, satisfied. you both know you are very capable of protecting yourself, but six took your safety seriously. the first month of his stay included you learning about situational awareness and the basics of krav maga. you were strong, more than able to overtake the average sized military aged male. six was hired, however, because the people who wanted to hurt your father were relentless and better than the military. they were men like him. machines. killers. you couldn’t handle yourself against men like him and that is what six was scared of. he cared about you just as much as he cared about claire. and vice versa.

you had taken a liking to your short-lipped, blonde shadow. after a year of him being around, he had become the closest thing you had to family. he had truly seen you at your best and at your worst. he celebrated your birthday with you, listened to you vent about celebrity drama, held you when your sister left, became a punching bag when you were angry. he was the only person who knew where your birthmark was and snuck you out when you wanted to get a new tattoo. the first one had been a crescent moon on your left shoulder. the most recent was the number six permanently etched into the smooth of your wrist. the blonde thought it was a joke and proceeded to lecture you the whole ride home when he realized it wasn’t. he said it was foolish. you thought it was touching. that was your first argument. what he failed to realize was that he was everything your family wasn’t. he was present, available, he listened, made stupid jokes, gave terrible advice, but he was always there for you.

“we’re staying in tomorrow,” six informs heading for your door. he intends to check the the grounds one more time.

“wait.” his shoes making a squeaking sound on your hardwood floors as he stops. “i got you something.”

six watches as you dig through the pile of massive shopping bags on your floor. the first thing you throw at him is a four pack of gum. “island berry lime, watermelon wave, pineapple twist, splashing mint. what happened to perfect wintergreen peppermint?” 

“discontinued,” you mutter finally finding what you were actually looking for.

six hums in surprise. “i kinda liked that one.”

“well, i hope you like this a little bit more.” your usual mischievous glint is replaced with one of adoration. six is skeptical, but takes the small black box from your hands. you rock back on your heels, nervous.

“y/n,” six says, “what is this?”

“what do you mean? it’s a watch.”

“a really expensive watch,” he shoots back. hublot, orlinski titanium, $15,000.

“whatever,” you shrug, “look at the back.”

VI ; six

the cardinal number between five and seven.

a small smile creeps onto his lips as he reads the engraving. “what is this for?”

“because i like seeing you smile and because you deserve something better then the crappy one you’re wearing right now.”

the word deserve was one that six battled with. he had never felt deserving of anything in his life. he had always thought that the people he had been sent to hunt truly deserved to die, but what about him? what did he deserve? for years he existed in a world beyond the walls of normal life where the word deserve didn’t exist. but now as a civilian, he could think about the things that he wanted and the life he wanted to live. you were apart of that life- not romantically of course, but rather as a reminder that he deserved good things.

he shakes his head trying to hide his smile and sets down the watch. “c’mere.” you raise a skeptical eyebrow and he insists, “come here.”

he opens his arms and you step into them, humming as he wraps you in his warmth. “thank you,” he utters softly. “i mean it.”

you lean back to place a soft kiss to his jaw. “you deserve it, court.”

[be-my-ally]

Do you mind?

This is pure, meet-cute, fluff where literally nothing happens. For the prompt - “Do you mind? I came here to get away from other people.” 

thanks to @whositmcwhatsit for the game + @thatbanditqueen for the prompt + @ellie-24 , @vintageshanny , @missmaywemeetagain + @from-memphis-with-love for the fun!!

I super stupidly got a lil bit confused with scheduling this post so ... it's uhh.... by my attempts at scheduling the post 13 hours early, but actually 11 hours late. many apologies folks.

It’s overwhelming - the noise, the people, the conversations. You just need five minutes to yourself, time to take a breather, and try and get yourself back together. You hadn’t known everyone was going to be bringing a partner, or a date, to this party; you’d managed to forgive Nancy for it, because she was the one picking you up (or rather Paul,  her date, was driving) but you had felt blindsided when the group was waiting outside, double the size you had expected since everyone had their plus ones. It was meant to be casual, the birthday party of Sharon’s brother - the perfect excuse for a get-together of people who were now all busy with their own lives. It was meant to have been a chance for you and your friends to catch up and have some fun; you’d all agreed to attend as a group - no partners. Worse than being blindsided as the only girl solo was how left-out you were feeling, it was just making you feel lonely. 

You make your way across the lobby, desperate to find somewhere quiet - away from the other event rooms, or guests. Build yourself back up to going in, stay for the toasts and leave politely after another half hour. You check the time on the large clock above the reception desk as you wander past; half past eleven. A pitiful time to be wanting to leave a party. You want to roll your eyes, internally berating yourself for being so overdramatic. You cringe as you think about how much you’re now looking forward to being tucked up in bed, cup of tea in hand, with perhaps one of the gossip magazines you’d picked up earlier in the week and how much you wished you could just skip this whole party.  It’s quite a large hotel, and there’s several reception and event rooms but eventually, on the other side of the lobby, you stumble into an empty and dark space; seemingly some sort of library/games room situation, judging from the bookshelves surrounding the walls.

You look around, seeing, in the barely-there dim light from the hallway that allowed the objects in the room to be just visible, a little couch nestled in a corner. You practically throw yourself onto it, burrowing your head into the cushion. Ugh, it had been frustrating, and ultimately overwhelming to have to continue to answer the exact same questions again and again from the other people at the party - the same two worded responses coming out of your mouth. 

Where was your boyfriend? Not here. Did you come with a date? Not today. Are you still ‘going’ with Daniel? Not anymore. Sorry to hear about your dad. Thank You. They almost all responded with a similar politely sad but evidently morbidly curious face; clearly desiring to know if your break-up had occurred before or after your father’s funeral, or wanting to know more details in general. It had almost been worse when the questions had ended and small-talk had resumed; relief at the chance to not have to explain your life, but annoyance that it was clearly only because word had spread about your situation. You kick your feet against the sofa cushions still feeling your upset rise again at the memory of being stood in your group of friends while everyone around you laughed about their wedding plans with no regard for the fact that most of them knew that you and Daniel had broken up almost a month ago. 

You reach out, fingertips knocking against something, before your fingers curl under the cushion. 

You scream into it, muffling the noise - as frustrated as you were it would be mortifying to be found like this. You relax for a second as you lose your breath, for some, potentially insane reason you can feel your annoyance lessening and your body starting to release the tension it had been holding. You ready yourself for another, 

But you’re distracted when you take another breath, ready to go again, by a faint cough in the opposite corner. 

“Do you mind?” Your head whirls around, noticing for the first time, a man sat in an armchair on the other side. You push the cushion you’d been screaming into back into its place as surreptitiously as possible, blushing at the idea that someone had just witnessed your behaviour. 

“I came here to get away from other people.” He says it in such a tone that you’re immediately annoyed again, who was he to speak to you like that? You scoff, nose wrinkling; 

“Huh? Well yeah, me too.” He makes a wordless harrumphing noise and you roll your eyes. “I have just as much of a right to be here as you do.”  He doesn’t respond - standing up and starting to walk over to the sofa. He walks through the streak of light shining across the floor from the window in the door and you quickly realise why his voice had seemed familiar. You blink, slightly dazed at seeing Elvis walking towards you, frantically sitting up and smoothing out your skirt; panicked voice in your head telling you to be calm, it’s ok, he’s just a man, don’t panic.

He plops himself down beside you, for a man claiming he was out here to get away from people he had clearly been desperate for company, leaning back against the cushions. He angles himself sideways to get a better look at you, and you tuck your legs up - deciding there was little point in pretending to be all prim and proper when he had just witnessed your miniature breakdown. It means you can sit sideways on the couch - examining his side profile. His hair is coiffed within an inch of its life and it immediately makes you want to muss it up, you wonder if he feels the relief you do when you can finally brush out your Elnett. You sit in silence for a moment, but you can’t resist for much longer than a couple of minutes. 

“What - What are you doing out here?” You glance at his fancy looking suit and tie, “You, uh, here for a party?” He shakes his head at your tentative questions, glancing over at you, 

“it’s a- uh benefit thing but it’s really just an excuse for everyone to hound me for somethin’ or other, half of the producers are in there… they want me to do more movies, I don’t know - I, I,  shouldn’t tell you this but I’m not happy with them at the moment and I-I want to go back to the music but…I don’t know.” You frown, having no idea how to respond to that, hesitating briefly before patting his arm gently. 

“Oh, that sounds awful - you should be able to do whatever you want to do.” He huffs a little laugh at that, staring across the room before turning back to you, 

“Anyway honey, what’s got you all screamin’ into that little pillow - what’d it ever do to you?” He smiles as you blush, you were still hoping that by some miracle he might not have noticed that - although you suppose a screaming girl flinging herself onto a sofa was pretty obvious. 

It sounds trivial and childish when you try to explain, especially in the face of his own, clearly much larger and important problems; “‘s just - I’ve had this difficult break up recently, and all my friends were gonna come to this party solo but they’ve, they’ve actually all brought their partners and I’m just, all on my own. I just, I didn’t want to come anyway but I definitely wouldn’t have agreed to come if I’d known!” 

“Pretty thing like you couldn’t get a date?” You blink at him, he’s turned the charm on full force and it feels almost a bit much to have his bright eyes focussed on you. 

“No-no it wasn’t like that,” You’re quick to deny that it was something you’d failed to do, “I didn’t know! They all told me we were coming together!” He laughs, a little cruelly, 

“And you believed ‘em?” You frowned, squirming a little - you had believed them, perhaps in sheer desperation to make it worthwhile leaving your house, or from the belief that they also wanted to spend time with you. You shrug, unsure what else to say, you wish you weren’t going home to an empty house, you wish you’d at least been able to have fun this evening, but it wasn’t like you’d be able to do anything about it now. You change the subject, 

“Tell me more about the movies, do you not like making them?” You tried to remember if you’d even been to see his latest release, but couldn’t even remember the name to suggest it wasn’t as bad as he thought. He looks pleased that you’re interested, and starts to chat away - explaining his reservations with the soundtracks, and filming methods. You are listening, but there’s something about his voice, and while you’re interested in what he’s telling you, fascinated by the glimpse into an industry so removed from your everyday life as he starts to go into the intricacies of his studio contracts you can feel your attention beginning to wane. Your eyes starting to drift close, and your head dipping towards his shoulder. A moment later his hand, somehow simultaneously heavy and delicate, brushes your shoulder, startling you out of your relaxed almost-asleep state. 

“C’mon honey, who’s gonna take you home? You got a car?” You blink, shaking your head, 

“No, no I’m uh, No, I got a ride here - It’s not far though,” You shrug, “I can get a cab, or walk.” He frowns at you, 

“You’re dead on your feet,” He looks at you sideways, as if assessing you for something, “I got a room upstairs, you can join me if you like?” You blink properly awake at that, a surge of anxiety rippling through you - as much as you’d want to you’re not ready for anything intimate again, too fragile. The idea of having to turn down Elvis though is sending your heart racing. 

“I don’t, I don’t know if I can, I haven’t, not with just anyone and my, my, boy-my ex-boyfriend he was uh, no I think I really ought to go home.” He nods, a little sadly, 

“Well that’s alright sweetheart, if you want, but I don’t want you to get the wrong idea - just, just offering to, uh, sleep mama, that’s all.” He looks back at you, completely earnest, eyes wide, and you can feel yourself caving in, 

“Well alright then. But, no funny business.” He does a scout salute as he beams at you, and you giggle - relaxing again; you know you shouldn’t trust him, he’s still a man you’ve just met and yet he just gives off an air, that you somehow know you’ll be safe with him. 

Your nerves skyrocket as he pulls you by the hand into the elevator, you hope he can’t feel your anxiety through your clammy hands, and you wonder how it is that he was just able to sneak away so easily. He starts to talk in the confined space, you wonder if he can tell you were getting nervous, telling you,

“I’m not sure if it’s the same thing,” Looking a little nervous himself, “Because I haven’t - haven’t uh had a split, but I, I get lonely too. I just, just like having someone ‘round to uh, take care of… or take care of me.” He whispers it like a secret and your heart aches a little for him, but before you can respond the doors are opening and he’s pulling you down the hallway. It’s not that late so you don’t expect for him to immediately be directing you through to the bathroom, instructing you to get ready for bed, but you also can’t find the energy to protest. 

You’re glad, now you’re thinking about it, that you didn’t bother with too-much make up, as you inspect your face, hopeful that keeping it on throughout the night won’t make you break out too much. His voice though chimes in through the door - almost as if he could hear your thoughts; 

“There’s cold cream on the side there, honey.” You’re pleased, but also a little disconcerted - was that how many women he had over? Your eyes rove over the counter, seeing the little jar on the side, and you reach for it - before noticing the little stack of eyeliners and mascaras, oh, it’s for him. You hate that that makes you feel better - you shouldn’t be feeling jealous, he’d invited you up here to sleep, because it was convenient. Nothing else. 

You leave the bathroom, having taken the pins out of your hair and brushed it out, and face fresh from being washed to find him waiting for you. He had already gotten himself changed - monogrammed silk-satin pyjamas that looked almost too similar to something your father might have worn, it made you smile to yourself. You still couldn’t believe you were getting to see him like this. He motions you forward, 

“Let me take care of you, honey,” You frown, a little confused, until he’s turning you around to undo the waistband on your party dress, his fingers light over the zipper down your back. You clutch the dress to your chest as it starts to open down your back, still shy about showing off too much to him. You can’t help but shiver as you feel his hands on your bare skin; perhaps you’ve been touch starved since your break-up, it feels like an age since you’ve even had a fingertip brush across your body. You yelp a little when he tugs the dress down, pulling it off of your arms and away from your torso, pooling at your feet. He chuckles when you wrap an arm around yourself, embarrassed at your boring, old, bra slip and underwear, 

“S’ok baby, here put these on.” He hands you a soft cotton shirt, and you nibble your lip looking at him for a moment, before he playfully huffs and putting a hand over his eyes, “I won’t look, go on.” You hastily pull the slip off, quickly shrugging the shirt on.

“Ok, you can open your eyes again.” He looks over at you, smiling, clearly pleased with however you look. You feel like a child, but you honestly couldn’t care less. Instead you make the subconscious decision to lean into the warmth and coziness he was providing, clambering under the bedsheets he pulled back, fingering the EP adorned on your breast while you waited for him to come back from the bathroom. You’d only known him two hours and now you were feeling owned. It wasn’t, however, an unwelcome feeling, alarmingly domestic perhaps, worryingly forward but not unwelcome. 

When he returns he turns off the lights, climbing in behind you. You know you should be more reserved, more reluctant but you can’t find it in yourself to be instead curling into his body, his arms automatically coming around you. You can't help but hope that this might happen again as outlandish as it might seem. But if nothing else ever comes from it at least you can sleep happy that it had been worth your while leaving the house tonight, if only for the feel of his warm body against yours, and the knowledge of how his hair looks before he goes to bed.

…

[hestusjamsession]

I’m currently farming light dragon parts (sorry Zelda) and decided to do a follow up to my last post while I wait.

This list is all Linked Universe baby. Once again, if you know the blogs of some of these authors I’d appreciate it if you could tag them.

1. Linked Universe Age Swap AU by LazuliQuetzal

Let’s kick this off with a bang. This is a series of one shots centered around the Chain being alternate ages. We got Old Man Hyrule. We got Angsty Teen Time. We got Wolfkin Wild. It’s great. Check it out.

2. Dawn of the Fourth by LazuliQuetzal

By the same author, Dawn of the Fourth is one of those fics that I don’t think I’ll be able to do justice, so here’s a snippet:

Wild reached out and brushed a finger across the body’s cheek. Then he licked his finger. “Eleven,” he decided, smacking his lips.

“Hey, what the fuck.”

“Dirt tastes different depending on age—”

“No, don’t explain it! Why are you like this, I hate you so much—“

3. The Man and the Pup by Bubbly_Kandy

Once upon a time, in the magical land of Hyrule, there were eight boys and a man all trying to exist in a world that doesn’t want them.

This one has some serious fairy tale vibes which I love. It’s also kind of dark at times. It’s not finished but maybe if I point enough people towards it the author will pick it up again. Who knows? One can dream.

4. Deserving by @a-little-bit-of-ravioli

When Colin overhears part of a conversation between his father and his adopted big brother, he decides it’s up to him and his friends to protect Link from those wishing to do him harm.

5. Malevolence by @thescrapwitch

Wolfie eats something he shouldn’t and things go downhill from there. Secrets are revealed, friendships are tested, and Ganon is a jerk.

This fic is a masterclass in tension. If you need some heavy angst with a happy ending, this is your fic.

The one shot Wolf Heart by the same author is also very good.

6. Our Nightly Confident by Wisetypewriter

Alternative titles are “Wolfie is the Best Boy” and “Men Will Literally Talk to a Wolf Before Going to Therapy.”

This was one of the first LU fics I read and it’s so sweet. If you’ve liked Lupis Vigilans (coming up) you’ll really like Our Nightly Confident.

7. The Fierce Dadity Series by @skyloftian-nutcase

A series focusing on everyone’s favorite Mask-bound God/Spirit just trying to take care of his favorite mortal.

There’s a lot of fics by Skye that I love and it’s hard to narrow it down. But Fierce Dadity is up there.

8. Brethren in a Cradle by @skyward-floored

After coming across a village raised to the ground, the Chain finds its sole survivor: a baby boy. They quickly learn that there is more to this child than meets the eye.

The “Baby Joins the Chain AU”. Also I always get Skyward_floored and Skyloftian-nutcase mixed up and I would like to make a formal apology.

9. Where Your Meant to Be by @adrift-in-thyme

Malon has lived her entire life in her tower, never seeing the outside world. When a former-hero-turned-thief climbs through her window, her life takes a whole new turn.

The Tangled AU I didn’t know I wanted until I read it.

10. Lupus Vigilans by @pluviatrix

A character study of each of the Chain told from the point of view of Twilight, Hillbilly in Resident.

Wholesome and hilarious and heartbreaking in equal measure, I can’t recommend this fic enough. Also, I’m from the Ozarks and it’s cool to see that accent represented in the wild.

Their other fic, And Still The Cradle Blossoms is also really good if you’re like me and need a good cry at three in the morning.

11. Down by @musashi

When the Chain gets hit by a horrible illness, it’s up to Sky to take care of eight stubborn heroes. Each chapter is focused on a different member, and Twilight’s chapter in particular hit me in the feels.

I love sickfics for some reason and this one is so good.

12. Colors by HylianHarmony

A Four centric fic where he reveals the Colors to the rest of the Chain. Also he has a mind palace which is pretty neat.

This fic isn’t finished but it’s too good not to recommend.

13. Alone Together by Blueskullcandy

Another Four centric fic but told from the point of view of different members of the chain (including Four). The Twilight chapter in particular is worth the read by itself.

This fic is also not finished but I still recommend it. It’s really good.

14. Brothers Becoming by @turtleduckscribbles

After a fight with Twilight, Legend is forced to face his fears and insecurities and confront the one person he wants to avoid at all cost.

Prickly Legend learns to let others in.

15. Not Like You by HylianHarmony

Wind deals with serious imposter syndrome, but the others don’t realize it until it’s almost too late.

This is one of my comfort fics y’all. When I’m down I’ll read it and it always manages to cheer me up. I can’t recommend this one enough.

[threadsun]

Ok, here is the entire intro fic in one piece, enjoy!

You still can’t fucking believe you’re doing this, how did you get here again? Oh, right, the letter. Not a letter in your mailbox, or even under the front door, no, that would make too much sense. This letter was tucked safely under your pillow next to a concerningly sticky spot right next to your head. The letter was about your dad, he had recently passed and he left you his house and his whole ass cult in his will. No, really, in the will it says “and my whole ass cult” Apparently your father had a sense of humor

Your mother warned you not to go, urging you to come with her to flee the country, but something about this was too insane to not delve into. You also felt bad for all those poor people your father must have tricked, people don’t just decide to move to a commune because they’re in a good place in life, maybe you could help them out, change some lives. Or maybe the thought of having a whole town under your control sounded just a little too good to pass up. Either way, you packed everything important in a few bags and suitcases and plugged the address into your GPS

It was a few hours drive, and your car was making some concerning noises an hour or so out, but you pressed on, hoping this little town had a mechanic. You manage to get your car to pull through just long enough to get you into town and into a gas station parking space. You noticed the gas station had clearly seen better days, not because it was dirty at all, but because of how old it looked, the pumps didn’t even have card readers on them

While looking around, wondering just what you should do next, you read the sign of the shop right next door “Jo’s Repair Shop” You guessed it was common sense to have a repair shop right next to a gas station. As you walk over you spot a guy on his smoke break, you’d hate to bother him but you did need your car looked at. Yep, that’s it, that's the only reason, it’s not just your excuse to talk to the handsome stranger, definitely not, that would be silly. Oh wow, he’s built like a brick house, can you even talk to this guy? Oh, fuck he’s looking at you, quick, just don’t be weird

“Howdy” Howdy? Your one job was to be normal and you open with Howdy??? Wait, he laughed, god he sounds nice, at least he thinks you’re funny instead of stupid. You ask that after his break he looks at your car because of the noise it keeps making “Oh, that was your car? I thought someone was killing a dog out here” He chuckles and you can’t help but feel a bit flustered, you can’t tell if the feeling comes from having made that noise on the road for about an hour now, or because of how nice his voice was to listen to

He tells you it’s no trouble and puts out his cig, saying “I really need to quit anyhow” before letting you lead the way to your car. He gives your car a good once over before looking back at you “Well, I’ll be honest with you, it’s a miracle you got this far, doll. Your breaks are shot and your engine almost looks like it’s been cut with something. Sorry to say, but I don’t think I can get her up and running again, at least not cheaper than just buying a new car”

Great, just great, moving into a new town with no car, awesome. You sigh and thank him for the trouble, asking how much he wanted for the once over. He tilts his head “How much? I just looked at it, doll you don’t gotta pay me anything” …Doll? Doll??? Is this man trying to kill you? It didn’t register the first time he said it but it sure is now. You stutter out a thank you and ask how far out the founder’s house is “Oh…uh, from here it’s about a mile, but there’s not much of a reason to go. The founder died about a week ago” His eyes glaze over as he speaks, like he’s not even here. You tell him you know about your father’s recent passing, and apologize for bringing it up, saying he clearly meant more to him than he ever did to you

Joseph takes a moment, you can almost hear him trying to grind the rust off the gears in his head “Wait, father, like…like he’s your dad? Or was, I guess, but you’re-you…you’re the founder’s kid?” You have to stifle a laugh before confirming that yes, your dad was indeed your dad “...Holy shit-uh, sorry, I shouldn’t cuss in front of you, unless you want me to? God, you saw me smoke” He runs his hand through his hair, trying to calm himself down “Sorry, let’s start over. I’m Joseph, it’s an honor to meet you, your grace”

You’re a little taken aback by his shift in tone but also a bit flattered. You tell him your name and that it’s nice to meet him as well, not missing the small shudder that runs through him when you say his name. He quietly says your name, testing how it feels on his tongue, the way he looks at you when he says it sends up to your cheeks “Well since you’re moving in you probably have quite a bit in your trunk, so we’ll need someone to move it. I mean, I don’t have a doubt everyone in town would pitch in to help you out but you look a little overwhelmed already”

You nod, you’ve only been here for about fifteen-thirty minutes and you’re already a bit shaken, the long drive here probably wasn’t helping things “Hm, why don’t I take you over to Laurent’s place? The actual restaurant is closed because Jean broke his arm but the bakery and frozen section are still open. We’ll get some food in you and I’ll talk to Berry about bringing his car over to haul your stuff” You agree, thanking him for all the trouble, he just laughs, and you can’t help be notice just how fake his other one’s sounded in comparison “If this is trouble I’d love to see what you think doing someone a favor is. Now come on, let’s get you something to eat” You make sure to lock your car before walking off with your new acquaintance, still nervous but excited to see where today will take you

================================================

The bell above the restaurant’s door rings as Joseph holds it open for you, the wonderful smell of freshly baked bread and something sweet surrounding you as you walk in. It’s a quaint little restaurant, more the size of a cafe than anything. A few booths and tables are scattered about in an area off to the side from the main counter, above which are prices for various frozen treats, and below are display cases for baked goods

Behind the counter is a very… normal-looking man. You don’t mean that as an insult it’s just the best way you can describe him at first glance, besides being ginger “Hey, Berry, someone sick or something? You usually don’t run the counter” The man behind the counter, who you now know as Berry, just shrugs “I thought I’d take Mariah’s shift, something told me today would be rather interesting. Who’s this?” As he looks at you you can feel the hair on the back of your neck stand up, you swear you’ve heard his voice before

“Oh, right, Berry this is the founder’s child” The way his eyes widen almost looks practiced “Really? Well, welcome to Laurent’s Place. Would you like some froyo? I’ve actually been working on a new flavor just for you” You try to decline his offer as politely as you can, saying you’d prefer something warm. Berry pouts at this “Oh, well maybe next time. As for warm foods, I’m afraid Jean’s still in his cast after the scene at the funeral. I’ll talk to Rory about making something, I’m sure he wouldn't mind if it’s for you” You could swear his smile got a bit wider when he talked about whatever incident left one of the chefs in a cast, but you shake it off, there’s no way, right?

Berry exits through a door to what you can only assume would be a kitchen as Joseph walks you to one of the empty tables “...So, I know you haven’t been here long, but do you like what you’ve seen so far? The town, I mean, you know I-I wasn’t talking about me or anything, just, um, yeah” Poor guy, you can tell he’s nervous, his blush starting to spread to his ears at his clunky attempt at small talk

You give him a reassuring smile and say everything you’ve seen so far has been great, the people too. His smile is so wide, it’s like he just can’t contain how happy he is. He looks away bashfully and you notice just how small he looks like this, just how cute he is burying as much of his face as he can in the hand he’s propped up on the table. You didn’t have long to admire his blush, his face paling as he saw Berry bringing you food over

“Here you are! Hope you like them” Berry sets a stack of pancakes on the table, made exactly how you like them. It’s almost scary how perfect they look, and taste you find out as you take an experimental bite. You thank Berry and give your compliments to the chef “Of course, I’ll let him know” Berry turns to leave before Joseph stops him “Actually, I know you’re busy today but their car broke down and I was hoping you’d help haul their stuff to the founder’s house, or, old house, I guess”

Berry’s eyes light up at this “Of course, anything for the child of prophecy. I’ll get on that right now” Joseph stands up a bit too quickly “I’ll come too! I mean, you know, cuz I know where their car is” You only now realize how pale Jo’s face gets while talking to Berry, how tense he seems. You tell the two that you’ll need a minute to finish your food “Oh, don’t worry, we can handle it just fine. You just relax here while we go move your things, we won’t look into anything, promise” The way Berry says it is almost sarcastic, like he’s just waiting for you to call him out on it. You just nod and thank them for the help

Berry sticks his head in the back and yells something before leaving with Joseph to move your things for you…to move your things for you. Wait, why the fuck would you ever agree to that? This is nuts, you don’t fucking know these people why do you just keep saying yes to them??? Because they’re hot. Yeah, ok, what’s a good reason you keep saying yes? … Yeah, that’s what you thought. God damn it, at least the pancakes are good, a bit salty but it’s a welcome addition to be sure

Everything just keeps happening, it’s a little hard to keep up. Most of your day has been on the road in your own little world, only stopping once or twice for gas and bathroom breaks. While this all sounded new and existing on paper it’s a little terrifying in practice, you’re already getting a little homesick, though the pancakes do taste like the ones your mom made for you. Yeah, your mom’s awesome, you wish there was just one familiar face around here. As you’re about halfway done with your stack the front door rings

================================================

You hear the front door ring as another customer walks in and orders their “usual” from who you can only assume to be…oh fuck, what did Berry say their name was? Tori? No, damn, this is a small town you have to get better at names. Before you can ponder what truly is in a name you hear the customer walking towards you. They look familiar, but you can’t quite place why. They seem to be just following their routine as they sit down in the booth across from you, not even looking up to see if it was taken

You just sit there a moment before clearing your throat in an attempt to get their attention “Hm? Oh, oh gosh, I-I’m so sorry! I wasn’t even looking, I just always sit here to wait, I’m so sorry” You tell them it’s fine, asking them if the Monday fog is still hanging around. A nervous laugh escapes them “Y-Yeah, you know how it is, um…oh, shit. I’m so sorry, but I can’t seem to remember your name” You explain how you don’t think you’ve ever met before and tell them your name

Their eyes go wide and they clutch their chest, you think something’s wrong until they start fumbling inside their shirt and pull out a necklace. That necklace, holy shit, the necklace, the red hair, the freckles, that cute little stutter, it’s Ian! Words begin to fly out of your mouth at record pace, asking how he’s been, what he’s been up to, if his mom’s still a bitch, and apologizing for not recognizing him sooner. Ian just sits there, his mouth opening and closing, as if trying to say something but nothing comes out

Then he starts to cry, he tries to keep it in but fails miserably, he never could hold his tears back. You get up and move to his side of the booth, rubbing his back like you always did when he was upset, and just like back then he wraps his arms around you and buries his face into your shoulder. You let him cry it out for a while until he calms down “You…you don’t hate me?” He croaks out. You explain to him that you’ve never hated him, and that it would be a little silly for little you to ask him out if you did. He laughs, sounding relieved “Ye-yeah, I guess so, huh? But…if you didn’t hate me, why did you leave?”

You explain that you’re not really sure why you had to leave, all you remember is your mom putting you into the car when it was dark and driving as fast as she could. Ian’s eyes darken slightly “Oh…so it’s her fault. Huh, well, at least you’re back now. Oh, sorry!” His hands recoil from your waist, almost as if the touch had burned him, and he straightens up “Sor-sorry, I wasn’t, it’s just that, it-it’s been so long, I just-” You cut him off and tell him it’s fine, remembering that he will just keep going until you stop him

“Right, um, well here, let me pay for your food. It’s the least I could do” You go to decline when you hear “Ian, your order’s ready” You stand up to let him out of the booth to grab his box of donuts “Um, hey, are you sticking around for a while? I-I’d love to keep talking but I have to get these back to set, and get my makeup on again, why does Shaun keep making his monsters covered in fur? Uh, do you think we can talk again?” You tell him you’re here to stay and you’d love to catch up sometime “Really? Awesome! Well, I need to go but I’ll see you later, bye!” The poor guy nearly slams into the door from his excitement before turning around and pushing it open with his back

You smile to yourself as you eat, reminiscing on just how much has changed, and just how much really hasn’t. Ian’s still a bit of a mess, and everything still looks pretty old, except this restaurant which looks pretty modern all things considered. You always thought your little kindergarten boyfriend was lost to time, but there he was, a full-grown man now. Wait, was Ian a man? Looking back on things he had some solid egg vibes, oh fuck you didn’t even ask for his pronouns, their pronouns? Oh damn it, have you been assuming people's genders this whole time? When did all your pancakes end up in your stomach? How long have you been looking at this empty plate?!

Ok, ok, fuck, no, you’re ok, everyone’s fine, nobody died. Just take a deep breath in…and out. Ok, you’ll just ask them for their pronouns later, you’re usually good about this, maybe how old everything looks is making you assume shit? Who knows, either way, you need to pay for those delicious pancakes so you get up and head over to the counter. There’s a register so it’s probably safe to assume this is where you pay, and you are a bit curious as to who apparently made your pancakes. After a moment someone in a similar uniform to Berry’s walks out of the door that leads to the kitchen, a basket of fresh rolls in their arms “Sorry for the wait, I couldn’t let these babies burn”

================================================

The chef (baker?) puts the rolls in their spot and straightens back up to look at you “Can I help you?” Now that you can see their face properly you notice they’re wearing face paint of some kind, must be good stuff too, it’s such a bright pink but it doesn’t look cakey at all, ironic for a baker “Are you gonna order something or are you just going to stare at me?” You snap out of your little trance, apologizing for staring and asking how much for the pancakes

they tilt their head in confusion “Uh, unless I made another stack in my sleep Ian just paid for them, you don’t owe me anything” You feel your face get hot, both from how awkward this interaction was getting and the fact that you let them pay for you like that. You ask how much it was so you can pay Ian back later. Rory chuckles at this “Don’t worry, they were about five bucks, nothing to sweat over. Besides, Ian’s loaded nowadays, but if you are gonna have a heart attack over it could you do it outside? I really don’t feel like getting the mop out”

You chuckle, appreciating their attempt to lighten the mood. You tell them you’ll make sure to reschedule your heart attack for a later date and ask for their name “Damn, you really are new, huh? I’m Rory, Rory Rainberry, pleasure to meet you…?” You tell them your name, and then tell them your full name to mimic them “Huh, so it really is you. Everyone was talking about how you were gonna come back after the founder died but I was a bit skeptical. Glad to have you here though, you seem alright, as long as you give all this your best shot I’m sure you’ll do fine”

You can feel a bit of weight come off your shoulders as they speak, the way they talk making it seem like they’re an old friend rather than some stranger. You thank them for the assurance, telling them that today’s already been a bit of a whirlwind and you’ve only just gotten here “Yeah, that’s how folks here can be. A word of advice? Don’t be afraid to say no, you’re the boss now and everyone wants a piece of you, but they would never go against direct orders, especially if you can get Bo back in shape”

You ask who Bo is “The founder’s guard dog, poor thing’s been wasting away ever since he passed. Don’t be fooled when you see him though, at peak strength he can break through bone, just ask Jean'' Your eyes widen, Berry had mentioned someone in a cast but you just assumed they fell or something, a bit of a silly thought looking back on it but being around that guy was making your fight or flight go off a bit more than usual so you think it’s fair that you weren’t really pondering it before. You ask if this Jean is ok “Oh, yeah, he’s still in the cast but he’s back to doing shoots. Won’t be in the kitchen for a while which has its ups and downs''

You ask how so “Well, up side, I don’t have to deal with him telling me what to do. He’s an alright guy but man is he bossy in the kitchen. The downside is now Berry’s coming to me to pick up the slack, but up side to the down side, he does keep giving me free froyo” You ask him what flavor is his favorite “Oh, well you can’t get it. It’s a special flavor he saves for employees, says he puts his “secret sauce” into it, whatever that means'' You get an odd feeling from the phrase “Berry’s secret sauce” but choose to brush it off for now

You’re about to ask them another question when the front door rings, it’s only now that you realize you’ve been keeping Rory from actually doing their job, though something tells you they don’t mind. You turn to see who walked in only to be met with possibly the largest chest you’ve ever seen, you hear a chuckle and look up to see its source. They’re big, like, Joseph big, how many hulks does this town have? You stutter out an apology and step to the side, telling them you weren’t ordering anything

“Oh, you’re fine, I completely understand. It’s hard not to get roped into conversation with Rory” The way they say Rory sends a shiver down your spine, you can only imagine what it does to them. Well, no, you can see the puddle Rory’s melted into clear as day. Where a confident slightly sassy guy once stood is now a blushing mess. Rory takes a strand of hair between their fingers and starts to twirl it “Hi” You don’t think you’ve ever heard a word filled with more puppy love in your life

The large person leans over the counter and gives Rory a quick kiss, melting the last little bit of composure they had “I’m going to go visit Jean, he just got back from getting his cast readjusted and I thought I’d get him some coffee cake. Wanna come? I’m sure he’d be happy to see you” Rory opens their mouth to respond before their face falls. They sigh “No, I’m the only one here right now and if I close early again Berry might actually kill me” The stranger presses on, kissing Rory’s cheek “Come on, you know I’d never let anyone hurt you” Rory giggles, the kiss on their cheek tilting their head towards you

You suddenly realize that you’ve just been staring at this couple for some time now and you can feel your face getting hot again. You internally smack yourself for just gawking at these two but Rory doesn’t look offended, if anything they look pleased with themself, maybe even enjoying your voyeurism. No, that’s stupid, they’re probably just laughing at you in their head. Why is everyone in this town so hot?

“Oh, what if you take them with you? Jean’s been talking about seeing them again since forever” The stranger looks over to you, giving you a once over “...Who is that?” Rory giggles again “That’s the founder’s kid” The stranger’s eyes widen “Oh, golly, forgive me your grace, I’ve never seen a description of what you look like” You tell them it’s fine and that you look pretty different from what you did all those years ago anyhow “Well, it’s nice to finally meet you, I’m Sunny Day Jack, but everyone just calls me Jack” You tell them that it’s nice to meet them and give them your name

Rory reaches down into the display case and puts a few pieces of coffee cake into a bag and hands it to Jack, giving them a kiss on the cheek “As much as I’d love you to stay you shouldn’t keep Jean waiting, you know how fussy he gets. I’ll meet up with you after my shift, ok?” Jack leans down and gives Rory a proper kiss, melting them all over again “Alright, can’t wait sunshine. Your grace, would you like to join me?” You nod, unsure of what else to do with your time, and a bit curious about this Jean guy. You swear you remember that name but you can’t quite put a face to it. Jack holds the door for you and you two start to walk to Jean’s house “So, what’s your favorite color?”

================================================

Favorite color? You can’t help but ask them why that’s the first question they ask you “Someone’s favorite color can say a lot about them, and it’s something most people know off the top of their head. It also probably comes from how many kids I meet” You tell them you were wondering why they were so colorful “Oh, well that’s because I’m literally a clown. Though I guess all my bright colors do make me look like I’m from a cartoon, huh?” You two chuckle and you agree with them, saying that they’d make a great action figure

Jack laughs at this “Aww, you’re too kind, I’ll let you know if our merch team ever makes one. I’d love to see you play with me” A shiver runs up your spine as their voice dips into something lower, seductive even, before snapping back to his original tone “How’d you like Rory? He’s pretty great, right?” The tone shift makes your head spin for a second before responding, agreeing that Rory is nice to talk to “Yeah, he’s really sweet when you get to know him, he’d make a great harem member if I might be so bold” You chuckle and ask if he has a harem “Huh? Oh…you don’t know much about what leading the cult entails do you?”

Your face falls, that familiar feeling of anxiety pooling in your stomach. You ask him what he’s talking about “Well, there are a lot of things the leader is expected to do but one thing you’ll have to establish is who gets to be in your harem. People will flock to you once they all know you’re here and all of them want to please you. The harem is a system that makes sure people don’t do something stupid like try to have sex with you in public” You laugh, they don’t

You look at him for a moment before asking if he’s serious “Oh yeah, it was a real problem before the founder established his. If you’re still unsure who you’d like to be in it by week's end just pick someone you’re friends with to hold them off. Though make sure you tell them they’re just there because they're your friend, don’t wanna kill anyone now, do we?” even though you’re both outside in the afternoon sun you feel ice cold, you’d expected weird shit, it is a cult after all, but this is just something else. You can’t even tell if they’re kidding about your rejection killing someone, the way he says it is so flat, like they’re telling you the sky is blue or fire is hot

You tell them you’ll keep it in mind and you start to look around as you try to think of another conversation topic. As you do you notice all the houses look nearly identical, not an uncommon occurrence in neighborhoods to be sure, but it’s more than a little uncanny. Every now and again you see a group of children playing after school, all of them wave at Jack as you pass by. You remember them saying that they talked to a lot of kids and decide to ask them about it

“Oh, I’m the elementary teacher! Though I also do counseling for the older kids. It can be rough going through life alone, I just wanna be there them” It’s only when their voice drops do you realize they’ve been performing this whole time. Their voice has been light, almost bubbly all this time, but in that moment they sound so down to earth, like they really care about these kids. You can’t help but smile

“Oh, here we are!” Their voice regains its bouncy quality as he walks down someone’s driveway “Now, I’ll make sure to tell him who you are but don’t be surprised if he gives you a bit of a death glare when he sees you. Jean’s never been fond of newcomers” You thank them as they knock on Jean’s front door. It takes a minute but eventually the door opens, the man inside looks a bit awkward, having to cross his left arm over to open it. He gives you your warned death glare before it turns to something more confused “Hey Jean, I thought I’d bring you some coffee cake after your readjustment. This is-” Jean’s eyes widen and before they can get it out, Jean says your name

================================================

You finally piece it together, Jean, spoiled bitch Jean. He was always nice to you but it was never really personal, like he didn’t really know what having friends meant. You greet him by name, commenting on how tall he’s gotten. Jean chuckles and welcomes you both in, as you walk inside your mouth starts to water at the smell coming from what you assume to be his kitchen. He holds out his left arm and you go in for a slightly awkward side hug

“It’s so good to finally see you again, how have you been?” You tell him you’ve been good and that it’s nice to see him too. Man, Jean has really changed from when you were kids. Where Ian still has a bit of a baby face Jean looks almost like he was sculpted. Sculpted? Really? One of the first things you point out is how hot your old friend is? Maybe a harem wouldn’t be too bad for you, when was the last time you got laid- “Your grace?” Jack places their hand on your shoulder and you snap out of your little daze

You shake your head slightly and apologize for staring, Jean simply chuckles “Oh, you’re fine. Please, sit” He gestures to his couch, the upholstery having a few claw marks on the armrests but otherwise looking rather new. As you sit down you hear a chirping sound from under the couch. A ball of white fur crawls from underneath the couch before hopping into your lap. Jean opens his mouth but then shuts it, seemingly mulling something over “Uh- Princess, get off there, you’re getting your hair all over them” You laugh and say it’s fine, your hand petting her soft fur

After a second Jean’s eyes widen “Oh, Jack, didn’t you and Shaun have that meeting today?” Jack almost flinches “Oh, shoot, that was today? I better get going then, uh, here’s the coffee cake, goodbye your grace” Jack sets the bag of coffee cake onto Jean’s side table before giving you a small bow. Once Jack leaves Jean closes the door with his back and sits next to you on the couch. You ask for the cat’s name “Huh? Oh, uh, Princess, I said it earlier, remember?” You tell him you remember his folks not letting him have a cat and that once he got one he probably named it out of spite, so, what’s its name? “...I just call her Fucker” You knew it!

Jean laughs “I guess you did, you were always the smart one” He goes to touch your hand but Fucker bats it away before rolling onto her back and purring in your lap. Jean’s face goes from serene to pissed to something bashful all within a few seconds. He sighs “You always did have a way with animals” You thank him, actually, while you’re at it you ask him if he’s still cool with he/him stuff “Yeah, do you go by anything different now?” You tell him your pronouns “Alright, I’ll make sure to pass it on” His tone is full of confidence before seemingly remembering something “I-I mean, if you want me to”

The way he just talked sounded so much like Ian that you could swear he’s making fun of them, but he’s not making any faces or anything so it comes off as oddly genuine. Maybe they hang out now? A lot of time has passed, surely Jean’s bullying has toned down to some extent. You tell Jean there’s actually something you wanted to ask him “Oh? Well, whatever it is I don’t judge. You can tell me anything”

Jean leans forward slightly, looking up at you through batting eyelashes. You tell him that you remember his family being pretty close with your dad and ask if he can tell you anything about what running this place actually means. Jean’s face falls for just a moment before perking up again “Of course I can, I was one of the people closest to the founder before he died, what would you like to know?” You ask about your every day, if there’s a schedule you have to follow

“There’s no strict schedule except for the weekly sermons and any speeches or appearances you have to make” You ask what the sermons are like “A bit bloody if we find a decenter but other than that it’s just us praising your name. Except for the ones at the start of the month, that’s when the founder would make predictions of what would happen during that month” You can feel the blood start to drain from your face. You ask what happens when the predictions are wrong, Jean looks at you like you’ve just admitted to liking pineapple on pizza “They aren’t? They are predictions from our god, they are never wrong. If you’re worried about it, don’t be. You’re our god taken human form, I’m sure your predictions will be the best yet”

You feel like someone just ran up to you and punched you square in the diaphragm, knocking all the wind out of you. Fucker decides you’re not petting her good enough and starts rubbing her face on your shaking hand. You ask what he’s talking about, Jean sighs “That awful woman didn’t tell you anything, did she?” He takes one of your hands in his good one, he starts by saying your name “You are our god incarnate, the one who will raise us from the dark times after our founder fell. You are our future”

It feels like the whole world is slowly spinning around you, your brain desperately trying to make sense of all of this. You can feel your panic start to bubble to the surface, starting in your chest and spreading. You can feel it crawl down your arms and legs and you don’t know where you’re gonna go but you can’t be here-...He’s petting you. The long delicate fingers of Jean’s left hand weave into your hair to scratch your scalp “It’s ok, you’re ok, everything is going to be just fine” He gently places his hand on your left shoulder, moving you to rest your head on his chest

You feel yourself melt slightly, enough of your stiffness leaving you for you to wrap your arms around him “I want you to focus on my voice, ok? It’s just us here, you don’t have to worry about any of that right now. Can you tell me something you can smell” You tell him his cologne, a deep cinnamon mixed with some kind of wood. You can smell the faintest whisper of smoke on him too, it’s nice, complementing his cologne. You also pick back up on the smell from the kitchen, now that you’re focusing on it you can tell it’s some kind of roasted chicken. You breathe out a small laugh as you realize your mouth is watering

“Good, very good. You’re doing such a good job for me” Something about his praise mixed with him petting you like this makes you feel warm. It’s not like the fiery heat of embarrassment you felt earlier in the day, it’s softer, it feels nice, almost too nice. His hand moves down to your back, slowly rubbing up and down, you’re reminded of how you did this for Ian back at the restaurant, did it feel this good for him too? You hardly even know Jean but something about him feels so safe, so familiar in all this chaos. A small chuckle escapes you as Fucker butts her head against your leg, clearly miffed you’re not giving her all your attention

“There you go, just relax into me. You’re so cute like this” His hand slides up a bit higher than before, his thumb brushing the base of your neck. Now that he’s made you focus in on your senses everything just feels so much…bigger than it did a few minutes ago “You know, if you’re this worried about doing a good job, I could help you. Like I said, I was really close with your dad. I could be really close to you too” He leans his head down just a bit, his lips brushing over your ear making you shiver “Or maybe even closer” Jean’s hand moves to your cheek, cupping your face gently. He tilts his head, you can feel his hot breath on your lips and-DING DONG

Both of you damn near jump out of your skin as the doorbell rings. Jean looks to the door, to you, and back to the door. He lets out a groan as he gets up to answer it. He just stands there, knob in hand, for a second to collect himself before opening it “How can I-...oh, it’s you” A deep voice comes from beyond the doorway “It’s meeee!” Jean huffs “What are you doing here? Don’t you have some murder fest to be filming?” The voice chuckles “Well, I did, but then Jack came and told me he was sorry for being late for our meeting that starts a week from now. And after he told me their grace was left here all alone with you? How could not come pay you a visit?”

Jean looks back over to you before trying to close the door, the person from outside easily keeping it open “This is my house, Shaun you can’t just barge in here like this!” Shaun steps inside so you can now properly see how massive they are. They’re not as tall as Jack or Joseph but they seem a bit wider? Not chubby, just wider, maybe it’s bone structure? Maybe it’s Maybelline. Oh shut the fuck up

“Listen, we’re allowed to do whatever is needed if there’s an emergency our leader needs to take care of remember? Or are you going to admit you had no good reason to take the founder away every time I wanted him to review my edits?” Jean stutters on his response “Hey, it’s not my fault the founder was such a good taste tester. What else was I supposed to do? Just feed the public food before it’s perfect? What kind of a man do you think I am Shaun?” Shaun laughs again, they have a good laugh, a deep warm belly laugh, even in this rather tense situation “I’d tell you, but I’d rather not use that kind of language around their grace, speaking of” Shaun turns to you “I wasn’t kidding earlier, there really is something you need to take care of. Mind coming with me your grace?”

================================================

You shake your head, trying to get out of the weird headspace you were just in before agreeing. As you stand from the couch your legs feel like jelly, honestly your whole body feels a bit sluggish after your panic attack. Jean’s eyes fill with fear as you start to walk to Shaun “W-Wait! You can’t go yet, you, um, you haven’t had any tea yet! If you just give me a second I’ll-” You tell Jean you’d love to stay but you can’t if there’s an emergency “Thank you your grace, at least someone here has there head screwed on right”

You’re almost out the door when you turn to say one last goodbye to Jean, he looks dazed, like he’s trying to remember which way is up. You go to ask him if he’s ok but Shaun takes your hand, leading you down the road to wherever this emergency is. You two run down the road for a minute or two before slowing down to a walk. You ask them why you’re slowing down “Well, there is an emergency but you’re gonna need Nick there with you to deal with him. So I figure, why rush? Nick won’t be on set for another fifteen” You ask them why you started running in the first place

“You think I was leaving you in that house? No way in hell. I mean, I’m sure you can handle yourself but new faces are Jean’s specialty. Any longer and I’m sure he’d have convinced you to add him to your harem” Why is everyone talking about your harem? You tell them Jean was just trying to help you after you started panicking “And what made you start panicking?” You were asking Jean questions when he told you were like actually a god and how you were super important and…oh, oh fuck

“Yeah, that’s Jean for ya. Damn snake, he’s got almost the whole town’s pity after his accident too. Don’t worry, anyone that actually knows him knows how fucking awful he is” You ask how many people actually know him, Shaun’s face falls “Not nearly enough” They clear their throat before attempting to lighten the mood “But that’s enough of that, how are you holding up? Today’s probably been a lot huh?” You sigh and agree, you’ve already met so many people, and you’re bound to meet so many more

“Hey, if it makes you feel any better, most people around here are in bed by nine so everyone’s already starting to wind down for the day. People don’t fully know you’re here yet so you have until at least tomorrow before shit gets crazy” You ask him about the emergency “Oh, well, yeah ok things are gonna get a little crazy tonight but Bo is pretty low energy these days so…I mean that’s not a good thing, but he’ll be easier to manage”

You ask how Bo’s doing “Well, he’s still kicking, so there’s that” Is that really the best news about him? Shaun sighs “Yeah, poor guy, hasn’t eaten anything since the funeral” You ask how long ago that was “About a week now, Nick’s been able to get him to drink a bit of water but that’s about it” You ask how he’s still alive “The guy’s strong, even like that he’ll still growl at anyone who tries to enter the founder’s room that isn’t Nick. That’s why I’m not sending you in there without him”

You give Shaun your thanks and you two walk in silence until Shaun takes a turn off of the cobble road. You follow his lead and eventually you get to a small filming set over by the forest. Wait, film set, wasn’t- “Hey, Ian, I’m back!” “Oh thank god, Shaun I love you man but you can’t just leave me in charge like…oh” You greet Ian as he realizes you’re there “Uh, hi, hello, how-uh shit how are you?” You give a shrug and tell him you’re fine “Hey, how come you aren’t in costume yet?” Ian sighs “Sorry Shaun but as soon as you left Daniel damn near set the forest on fire with one of the props” “Again? I swear, that kid has got to get it together”

It’s fascinating to see Ian talk to Shaun like this, he’s so casual about it, so fluent. Who is this man and what has he done with your Ian? Wait, your Ian? Ah, shut up shut up! “Hey, thought I’d swing by early. Hope that’s cool”

================================================

You turn to see, well, an e-boy. You don’t mean it in a rude way, that's just the best way you can describe this guy “Nick! Perfect timing, change of plans. I’ll get your opinion on my latest edit later. Do you think you could take their grace to see Bo?” Nick’s eyes light up when Shaun calls you your grace but they otherwise hold their cool expression “Of course, follow me your grace” Nick gives you a little bow before turning to leave “W-Wait, you’re already leaving?”

You turn back to tell Ian you have to go, but you’d love to hang out later “Yeah, and besides we gotta get you into costume if we wanna stay on schedule” Ian visibly relaxes a bit “Oh, ok, I’ll see you later then” You bid them farewell and head off to go see Bo. You two walk in silence for a while when you hear a clinking sound, it’s not metallic, it kinda sounds like if you knocked two pieces of porcelain together. The sound comes from Nick’s pocket and you ask him if that’s his fidget toy

“Hm? O-Oh, yeah…sorry” You tell them it’s fine, whatever helps you get through the day, huh? “Heh, yeah” …Cool, cool cool cool, this conversation is going great. You decide now’s a good a time as ever to ask their pronouns “He/him, you?” You tell him your pronouns “Cool, cool” Very cool, so cool, you’re so very cool right now and definitely not wondering if he hates you, that would be silly…Yeah, ok, this is a bit silly. You’re sure this guy thinks you’re fine, you’re just panicking again. Just breathe. Geez, how many anxiety attacks can a person have in a day? Why can’t that number be zero?

“Hey, are you alright?” You tell him you’re fine, just stressing out over…everything, you guess "Damn, god's relatable" That manages to get a laugh out of both of you "Sorry, I guess I just wasn't expecting that. It's cool though, nice to know I'm not the only nervous one" Wait, he’s nervous? Nick pauses for a second "...I'm seeing god for the first time since I was seven, yeah, I'm a little nervous" He says it like it's the most obvious thing in the world, and you guess it kind of is. These people think you’re a big deal, it would be weirder if they weren't nervous around you

You tell him that there's no reason to be nervous, you don't bite "Aw, I was looking forward to that" Nick slaps his hand over his mouth "I am…so sorry. I can't turn it off" You laugh and tell him you get it, saying you do stuff like that all the time “Right, thank you your grace, you’re too kind” You want to correct him and say that that’s the normal response but you don’t know if that’s safe. It’s gonna be your job to pretend to be god now, fuck, how are you even gonna do that? Ok, you can question that later, right now you need more info

You ask him about Bo "Oh, yeah, he drank some water yesterday. He's not doing great but I'm sure once he meets you he'll be on the mend. He just needs a new purpose, a new master, I'm sure of it" His reasoning is pretty good but he sounds more like he's trying to convince himself than you. You tell him you're sure he'll be fine, and that it sounds like he's been doing a great job taking care of him. Not everyone's strong enough to take care of a dog like that. You watch his face turn from as pale as porcelain to firetruck red "Huh…thank you your grace"

As you continue to walk your eyes are drawn by the giant fucking house in front of you. Holy shit "Yeah, it's pretty big, huh? You like it?" You shake off your surprise and tell him it's massive "Yeah, don't know how the founder lived there personally. All that space would drive me up the wall" …what?

That's your fucking house? Nick chuckles "What you and the house get up to is none of my business but I'd say so" you're pulled from your bewilderment when you feel the hair on the back of your neck stand up "Well hey there, and here I was thinking you'd never show up" You turn to see Berry who is…right next to you? How did he "We managed to get everything inside but we couldn't bring it into your room with Bo in there"

You thank him and take a half step back to try and get him out of your bubble but he steps with you staying uncomfortably close. You try to look for anything that isn't Berry to focus on when you see Joseph leaned up against the house. You wave over to him to catch his attention, he seems to flinch at your acknowledgement and gives you a meek wave in return "Well it's a good thing you showed up when you did, that mutt probably would have keeled over by tomorrow if you didn't show up"

You hear the clinking of Nick's fidget toy getting louder but he doesn't say anything. You tell Berry Bo sounds like a strong dog and probably could have held out a little longer. You're not sure if you believe yourself on that one but Nick seems to relax as you say it "Huh, if you say so your grace" Nick starts walking towards the house and you follow him, thankful for the out "He might growl at you but as long as I'm here with you he won't bite" Nick opens one of the front doors for you, the heavy thunk it makes as it closes making you wonder if the damn thing was made of stone. You two walk up a flight of stairs and down a hallway before he stops in front of a door, your things neatly stacked next to it

"Ready?" As you'll ever be. Nick opens the door and his voice becomes a bit softer "Hey Bo, how are you feeling?" You hear a growl and then a voice? "Why is he here?" Is there someone in Bo's room? "Huh? Oh, Berry and Joseph were just delivering their grace’s things" You look past Nick to see someone lying on the bed, their voice is dull and hoarse "Their grace? They're here?" Nick opens the door fully and you finally see it, their ears and tail, their voice, the way you can see the bones in their face from here, Bo

He perks up as you say his name “Your grace?” You can tell his energy is low and yet he spends whatever he has left into wagging his tail for you. You have to walk to the other side of the bed to get a proper look at him, he looks sick, pale and boney where you’re sure he was once full of life. You greet him, telling him your name before extending your hand to him to sniff, you see his face drop as he does “Why…why do you smell like him?” You ask who “Berry, I mean, not all the time, but sometimes he smells like that in the mornings” You can feel the blood drain from your face, no, no no no, don’t be silly

You tell Bo you probably just use the same soap or something, does he not like it? “Wha? No I…If it’s yours I like it” It’s only once Nick reenters the room do you notice he ever left, man he’s quiet. You see he’s holding a stick of jerky and ask Bo if he could maybe take a few bites, for you? Nick smiles at you and hands you the jerky “Mhm, I-I can do that…I’ll be good” You hold the jerky up to him as he takes a few bites. You can feel Nick’s excitement radiating off of him as you let Bo eat from your hand. He’s slow, chewing each bite thoroughly before taking another, only eating a bit before he stops

“I’m sorry, I feel so full already” You tell him it’s ok, gently patting his head as you tell him he did such a good job for you. You smile as you hear his tail thumping on the bed behind him “Thank you your grace” You see him start to tear up “Please…don’t go” You cup his cheek with your hand and tell him you’re here to stay, which means he needs to get better for you, deal? He giggles “Deal”

I reread the whole thing and it's still so good!!

[paceypeternathanslawyer]

If I may I would love to go on the most unhinged Nathan vs Lucas rant i've ever gone on, on this hellsite lol

Every once in a while i'll see someone who is team Lucas over Nathan and this is just my message to them...

Nathan is not perfect... I will accede that. The thing is that Nathan has a shit ton of integrity in the face of his mistakes. For instance, with the whole point shaving scandal I think Lucas and a lot of the fans of OTH make that situation out to be so black and white but I think it's more complicated than that. Nathan was between a rock and a hard place and at the end of the day he got involved with some loan sharks because they were going through some major financial strain and his father refused to help him. But regardless of how it happened and whether or not it should have happened... at the end of the day it did happen so Nathan was making the decisions he felt he needed to make to protect himself, his wife, and his unborn child. And it isn't just as simple as win the game because Whitey deserves to win a championship and Skills deserves to get a scholarship to college. All those things are true but people's lives are at risk. If the game had been lost then Haley would not have been run over by a car and Lucas would not have had a heart attack. Daunte was threatening Nathan's family so Nathan was truly scared for his family. But my point at the end of the day is that Nathan has a shit ton of integrity in the face of the decisions he makes. He always has the best of intentions and Nathan ultimately takes responsibility for his mistakes and apologizes. But on top of that he learns from his mistakes and never makes the same mistakes! Did Nathan ever again get involved with loan sharks? NEVER! Did Nathan ever get mixed up with a crazy psycho nanny after Carrie? NEVER! He left Slamball after it became clear that it was a risk to his health and never went back. After getting in a bar fight and getting thrown through a window he learned to quell his anger and pick his fights very carefully. To the point where by the end of the show he was damn near perfect. He became such a gentle soul, he learned to not let his anger control him but he learned to control his anger instead. He has incredible boundaries with his female friends. Haley never feels like she plays second banana to any of his female friends. He's there for them if they need him but he has incredible boundaries with them.

Lucas on the other hand will cheat on Brooke and then a few months later wax poetic and tell her (paraphrasing) "oh, i'm so sorry, I will never take you for granted again. I kept that to remind myself never to take you for granted again. Peyton is just a friend. You are my life" and then he turn around and cheat on Brooke again!!!! He will then wax poetic to Peyton "you are the girl I want by my side forever. I will never leave you. I love you so much!!!" and then the moment she doesn't want to get married on his timetable then he will break up with her. Start dating another woman and then proceed to start physically and worse yet emotionally cheating on her with Peyton. He will wax poetic with Lindsey and say "you're the only woman for me. I love you and I will always love you. I will never give up on you. I could wait 20 years for you to see that you are the one for me!!!!" Then he will turn around and start making out with Peyton and make the same fucking mistake for third fucking time!!!!!! The Leyton ship highways are strewn with women that Lucas used to shield his heart from his true feelings because he refused to admit his feelings for Peyton and just fucking be with her!!!!!!!

I would much rather have a Nathan Scott any day of the week who is imperfect but takes responsibility and learns from his mistakes!!! Give me that over Lucas fucking Scott any day. Also Nathan's hotter and taller so there's that lmao (that's specifically a message to anyone out there who says that Chad is hotter than James. I will not take that diss against James Lafferty and his hot piece of ass. To be fair I think most of the people who think that Lucas is hotter is people who haven't seen the show but only have seen fancams of the show that almost exclusively include S1 scenes of James. And James was 17 at that. He only became a hot piece of ass from S2 and onwards. Truly sorry to Chad but i'm not gonna say that Aryan dream Chad Michael Murray is hotter than James who if Google is correct may or may not be part Mexican on his mom's side. Just sayin there's a reason that the name Chad has become synonymous with basic averagely hot white dudes. Edit. James also has a bigger butt and more muscles. Don't hate me cause I spit the truth ;) I told you it was unhinged so I don't know what you were expecting lmao)

[poeticmoonspirit]

These Things I've Done - Part IIII

Part I Part II Part III Part V Part VI

Katara's hands clenched, her eyes still narrowed at the young airbender. Zuko knew how to control his inner fire. He's known for awhile now. But he knew that his control could only go so far, especially when he was angry. There were no excuses to make for Aang anymore. Nothing could excuse how he treated Katara and the rest of them today and if Aang was here to apologize, he wasn't sure he'd even stick around for it. Or if he'd believe it.

He was done.

"Don't you know how to knock? You can't just barge into people's rooms!" Katara yelled. Aang had the sense to look down in shame.

"I-I'm sorry, Katara. I just came in here to–"

"– call us monsters?" Zuko finished. "Oh wait, my father's a genocidal maniac so that makes me one too, right? I'm just waiting for the right time to kill you all without a moment's notice." The sarcasm didn't go unnoticed by Aang.

The Avatar held his arms to his sides to show that he was serious. He willed his hands to stay still and to keep from fidgeting. "Zuko, Katara," he said, looking them both in the eyes, "I'm sorry. So sorry."

"I was wrong about what I said, about all of it. I judged you based off of what I thought was right and that wasn't okay. I should have just listened."

"Also, you're free to date whomever you want, Katara. I'm sorry about that too."

Katara glared. "I know I'm allowed to date who I want. Do you?" Aang nodded quickly, not wanting to leave room for any doubt on their end.

Katara crossed her arms, not saying a word. Zuko stood next to her mimicking the same stance. Both of them were too angry to respond, too wounded. So Aang kept going, gulping as he tried to figure out how to proceed.

"I-I also talked to my past lives today. Um, they were the ones that persuaded me." Something in Aang's voice, the righteousness or the nonchalant way in which he spoke, annoyed Katara. She stood up suddenly, facing him with a look Aang couldn't read.

"Persuaded you? It took a bunch of dead people to knock some common sense into you?" She let out a bitter chuckle. "You are something else, I swear."

Aang opened his mouth, about to respond when—

"I have nothing more to say to you."

It was like the airbender got the wind knocked right out of him. His hands tingled in that feeling that told him to leave but he couldn't move, couldn't think. Couldn't feel. His eyes were blurry now. He wiped at them only to realize that he was crying.

Zuko sighed. "Look, we all talked while you were gone and decided that we'll continue to train you until the comet comes. Once the war is over and we handle whatever else we need to, you can do what you want. But don't expect friendship from us anymore."

In a moment of anger, Aang shouted, "Don't you think you're taking this too far? I already said I was sorry!"

Katara clenched her jaw, her eyes now focused on the angry expression on his face. Why was he upset? He was the one who fucked up! He's the one who judged her for the one thing she'd always wanted. He was supposed to be her friend, one of her best friends. But now his actions were proving anything but. If he was sorry—really sorry—he wouldn't have gotten mad. She wasn't just upset anymore, she was disappointed. She thought that maybe it was his age, but then she remembered that Toph was also his age and still didn't behave like that. So why was he the only one like this? Why did he have this sense of warped self-righteousness?

Katara glared. "You're angry?! Imagine how we feel, Aang! If you hadn't said what you did, you wouldn't even be in this position! You screwed that up! You screwed up our friendship, my trust, and any semblance of hope I had for you to grow up!"

"The first time I noticed your little snide comments was when we went to see Bato and you judged our diet and culture. I let it slide because you were a monk and a kid and maybe you didn't know any better. But this? This is a whole different situation. You've just dug your own grave, Aang. Now you lie in it!"

She stormed off, leaving the room in an uncomfortable silence as Aang faced an angry Zuko. The firebender noticed the water in the plants in the room were all dead, despite them being new. She was so upset that she was bending the water out of the plants. Unknowingly, he thought. And she liked them too, another thing Zuko added to Aang's tabs of misfortune.

A certain sadness enveloped Zuko's words. His voice laced with disdain. His voice was almost a whisper. "You know, Aang, when you told me that we could be friends that one time, this isn't what I had in mind." And with that, the oldest of the group left the room, leaving Aang to his thoughts. His past lives decided to make another reappearance in his mind.

"Thoughtless!"

"Fool!"

"Self-righteous child!"

And this time, he didn't argue with them.

[class1akids]

If you have seen the sneak peek of chapter 360 can you give us your opinion of what you think will happen? I was have read if he gets saved by the Big 3 (not sure if that’s true or just a theory) mainly I just wanted to get your take on the upcoming chapter! I have been following for a while and I love how you talk about each chapter!!

The whole chapter is out, as well as the summary, so if you are willing to spoil yourself, you can find out exactly what happens. I've also already written quite a lot about it - if you check my bnha 360 tag.

Last chapter, when fandom fell into despair, I said that I didn't believe this was the end of Bakugou's involvement in the fight (as the core of his character is never to give up) and that how HK handles what is coming is going to be an indication for me for the rest of the story.

The one thing I was adamantly against is rage!Deku come in, see the desperate state Kacchan is in and use that as emotional catalyst to beat Shigaraki.

Let me explain why I didn't want that:

"I'm sorry I said something so awful"

We had the Villain Hunt arc which concluded basically by saying that Deku can't do this alone, he needs to accept others, he needs to accept people with less power than him staking their lives out of their own free will to help him and trust that they can handle themselves. If Bakugou here had to be bailed out by Deku specifically, it would have proven right Deku's fears that the others can't keep up with him. You know the exact thing he even apologized for as an awful thing to say, because it also would have proven everyone right who ridiculed and stomped over quirkless Deku's dreams. The entire narrative question of the story about who can be a hero.

2. Wait but isn't it exactly what happened? Bakugou had to be saved...

Bakugou having to be saved by the team is not problematic - because that precisely shows both Bakugou's teamplay philosophy from back in JTA (I'll have your backs and when I'm in trouble you'll save me) and also how hero society has grown and changed since Ch 1 when the heroes stood around waiting for someone with the right power to save Bakugou (or you know nobody helping Tenko), while now they all work together to get him back.

3. "Control your heart"

I don't know if you have noticed, but since the endgame fight started, everyone who had a part in it so far got taunted by the villains, putting them face-to-face with their worst fears, guilts, inadequacies. And raising to the bait gets you beaten. All those words were wielded as weapons - targeting their hearts.

Shouto (whose new power required perfect concentration / meditative state) got told by Touya how he was their father's half-baked little puppet who will never amount to anything and kept being rejected by his brother.

Hawks was taunted for losing his wings / becoming worthless.

Endeavor got taunted by letting his sons fight each other, and when that didn't work, AFO pulled out the Touya's body card (and Endeavor went down when he lost his head).

Jirou and Tokoyami were called weak gnats

You get the pattern...

Which to me meant two things: (1) Bakugou needed to prove that he really faced and conquered his worst fears (that he's weak, not as great as everyone told, that he's the stepping stone for Deku, that he has no chance to become no. 1.) and is able to stand up mentally in face of those fears and continue to give his best (2) if everyone else needs to control their hearts and fears, Deku shouldn't (again) win by rage.

So the new chapter's direction feels really good to me, because Bakugou after that soul-crushing, brutal and absolutely humiliating beatdown is controlling his heart. He's focused, he hasn't lost his faith that a path to victory can be found, he hasn't lost his will to fight. A power-gap is not the end of the road, it means having to find other ways (like early Deku who could only keep up by quirk analysis, teamwork and creativity). We see Bakugou vulnerable and hurt - but he hasn't given up. How could he? That's who he is. That's his image of All Might - the one who never gives up, no matter how hard.

4. "But with his broken arms"

So this was one of the biggest problems last chapter - how can Bakugou keep fighting and contributing (even if he won't give up) when one of his arms are broken, essentially depriving him of half his quirk.

My response to this was that Deku was allowed to fight in such situation (most famously in the Muscular fight - where both his arms were broken, his 100% OFA hits shrugged off, yet he managed to keep on with his broken arms and somehow surpass his max).

So for Bakugou, there were 3 possible paths: (1) same as Muscular!Deku - getting to keep on fighting with a broken body (2) a quirk awakening removing the limitation of his quirk (3) finding an entirely different path to victory (such as a fight inside the vestige realm or a team strategy).

I feel like the way implied in the end of the chapter is a mix of everything. BJ will stitch up Bakugou's arm. He seems to have a quirk awakening that would allow him produce explosions from other body parts than just his palms, opening up more options for him. And he seems to have spotted a weakness to exploit in Shigaraki. And as far as I'm concerned - that's a good way to go - playing into all of Bakugou's arc.

5. "It doesn't matter, he can't win against Shigaraki. He's Deku's villain"

Again, to me this is not an issue. Bakugou can get a win / make a difference while simultaneously Deku can still have a lot left to done.

I don't know if you noticed, but none of the villains are done. Toga has the Twice clones up her sleeve, Dabi's chest is glowing, AFO is rewinding. I'm sure even if they beat ShigAFO, a new boss-form will come. And Deku's role in any case is about saving Shigaraki (giving rise to a possible conflict between Bakugou and Deku or alternatively, to showcase their relationship where Bakugou, the one who almost died at Shigaraki's hands will be the one to back Deku up, displaying his trust in Deku's way) so he can help them destroy AFO.

So I'm very optimistic with how this chapter played out. It's reinforcing the themes I want to see and it gives Bakugou to stand on his own feet to complete his own arc (that's the stage we are at). The resolution of the important bonds will come after - and I'm sure it will come. Bakugou and Deku will talk, will fight, will support and save each other. I'm sure of it. But this would have been the wrong time.

[quietly-by-myself]

Chapter 6 - Smoke, Salt, and Asbestos

Masterlist

The usual: I accept all asks, tag games, etc and will tag you if you ask. Thank you to everyone who's provided me feedback. I ended up feeling it to be most natural where this split.

CW: nonhuman whumpee (changeling), dehumanization, "it" as a pronouns, family/family issues/feelings of abandonment/coming to terms with where you come from, multiple caretakers/blurry whumpee-caretaker line, descriptions of a curse (including emeto of blood), misunderstandings, getting kicked out (sort of)

Previous | Next

===

Interestingly, the fae have many ways of living. While humans mostly have villages and towns, the fae are much more varied. Some lives in the two Courts, ruled each by a different Faerie Queen. Others live on their own, having so much power that they can compete for land like cougars. There are also fae "troops" that are nomadic. Some fae creatures adopt lost or abandoned humans, while others are communities of the displaced who've lost their homes one way or another. I wonder, sometimes, how they keep track of everyone without names. Maybe it has to do with their superior intelligence that gives them some sort of special ability in remembering individuals.

===

Silvanus waited patiently inside until an hour past nightfall. He’d been putting out fires all day in wake of his sister’s vibrant arrival. Either way, he was anxious to see Briac again. He wanted to know that the fae creature was well - not because he didn’t trust Dubheasa, but because he didn’t trust himself to do the correct thing.

Eventually, Dubheasa came back with Briac in the wheelchair, fast asleep. Somehow, he hadn’t awoken from being wheeled all the way back to the lab from outside. Either way, Silvanus was relieved to see him so peaceful. He’d never seen Briac so at peace before.

Dubheasa eventually motioned for Silvanus to follow her into the kitchen. Silvanus had already prepared tea for her, but it had since gone cold.

“I don’t mind.” She’d said to his apology, waving her metal hand dismissively.

“How is he?”

“Traumatized and shaken, as usual, but your concoction worked. He wasn’t in any pain. He figured out that you weren’t trying to hurt him. He was just being given painful medicine.”

Silvanus was so relieved he could cry.

That emotion hung in the air as both tried to think of what to say next.

“It’s… disturbing.”

Dubheasa was, of course, the one to break the silence.

“You should’ve seen how he begged for death the morning we got him. The whole situation is disturbing.” Silvanus sighed. “I think it was the village a few paces out of this area. They stopped chasing him past the willow trees. You know how this place is protected by glamor that makes people think that it’s a church. He thought we could exorcize him or something.”

Dubheasa shook her head as he spoke.

“I wouldn’t mind going and blowing the whole place up.”

Silvanus laughed, earning him a glare.

“I’m sorry. It’s so like you to say something like that.”

There was an unmistakable taste of sadness between them. Silvanus’ laughter was helping to keep him from crying as he looked at Dubheasa who was still radiating her anger.

“Funny how life is, right?”

Silvanus nodded.

“I wouldn’t stop you, Dubheasa, if you did something like that.”

“It’s weird to hear you call me by name.”

Silvanus looked up at the ceiling, watching the glowing alchemical energy in the lightbulbs. “I wish I had a name as beautiful as yours. I miss home. My heart never left the Repose, even if I never loved the place.”

Dubheasa nodded a little, folding her hands. “It’s hard to love a place where half the people are afraid of your energy.” She went a little quiet. “You never did do more research into your curse, right?”

Silvanus shook his head. “Father said it wasn’t deadly. I have no concerns about it if it won’t kill me.”

Dubheasa looked at him quietly, thoughtfully, for a while before she spoke again. “You should take him to see Father. Father might be able to guide you in treating him. He told me to tell you that he wants to see you.”

Silvanus looked up at Dubheasa in shock. “You can’t be serious. He must hate me.”

Dubheasa’s face changed in a way that Silvanus couldn’t recognize. “He’s never hated you, Silvanus. Father doesn’t have it in him to hate someone like you.”

Tears Silvanus didn’t know were there formed in his eyes. “He really wants to see me?”

He hated the pathetic way his voice sounded between those tears.

“Came to me and said it himself.”

Somehow, Silvanus’ shattered heart broke even more as tears he didn’t know he had started to flow from his eyes. He didn’t know what to say as he looked at Dubheasa, teary-eyed.

She came around and gave Silvanus a hug.

“Even if you’re taller now, Silvanus, you’re still my little brother. You’re still Father’s child. We all still love you.”

With that, Silvanus cried harder, as his sister hugged him for as long as he needed.

---

Briac awoke the next morning to Silvanus packing. It looked at Silvanus with great confusion, knowing that it was far too inhuman to know what Silvanus could be packing for.

The kind woman - Dubheasa - was waiting in the doorway with a bag already in hand. It had to blink a few times before Silvanus and her noticed it was awake.

Dubheasa motioned to Silvanus, which left Briac even more confused.

“Briac, I- uh, I’m sorry for before.”

Silvanus scratched the back of his head a little bit.

“This creature understands what it couldn’t then, sir. It understands that you were giving it medicine, not punishing it.”

Silvanus nodded. “I should’ve done better by you, either way.”

Briac froze a little. It had never been apologized to like that. It didn’t know how to react nor did it get the time to figure out why Silvanus was apologizing to something as lowly and disgusting as a changeling. 

“We’re going somewhere. I know of someone who can make you better, Briac.”

“This creature will be very happy once it is able to be useful again!”

Maybe, Briac thought in its scheming little mind, that if it were useful, it would not be tossed to the side.

“I understand.” It was Silvanus that spoke this time. “We’ll be taking an unconventional route, though. Are you okay with traveling in a wheelchair? You can’t walk far in that condition.”

Briac nodded frantically at the merciful suggestion. “Please, sir, this creature will do anything to please you so that it might have the mercy of not having to walk.”

“Okay, good, just stay there while we finish packing.”

Their packing didn’t take long at all. Soon enough, Briac was being pushed through the forest in its wheelchair. For a moment, it feared that it was being sent back to the village. However, around the trees that would take it back to the village, they veered a strong left.

After walking a while, a moss-covered stone with small balls of light dancing around it appeared. On its surface was a marking that Briac didn't recognize, but thought looked vaguely like a compass.

Dubheasa put her hand to the marking and began to recite a small chant. The language she spoke was clear to Briac, though it was sure it had never heard that language before.

“Oh, Great Mother of the Forest, grant this child and her wards safe passage through your shifting belly. I am Dubheasa of the Children’s Repose and I come to heal the one called Briac and reunite the one called Silvanus with Father. Through your kindness, we may pass quickly and save Briac more pain. He has suffered enough.”

Briac was bewildered at the language, the words - the whole situation, really. However, it didn’t have time to think as the rock responded.

“Child of the Father and guardian of the Children’s Repose, I grant thee entry. Thy hunger shall feed me another day.”

“As you wish, Great Mother of the Forest.”

A great creaking came from the rock as it broke, revealing in its place a great passage. Dubheasa motioned for Silvanus and it to move, and that Silvanus did.

Once through the great doorway, another world of lush, untouched fields surrounded them. Briac was stunned into silence. It had never seen anything so beautiful. Even just the thought of seeing it was a privilege; actually seeing it made it feel somewhat unworthy.

Fae creatures wandered around the place. In one way or another, they were all injured. It only felt more uncomfortable at the sight.

They whispered about it, too.

He smells of fire.

His soul has been burnt.

Fire must follow him everywhere.

How has he not suffocated?

Were they speaking of it at all?

It shut off its mind in the way it did during those horrible beatings with iron chains across its back. It was easier than paying attention to what they had to say.

It was awful, stuck between their world and the humans’. There would never be a place in the world for it. Briac knew this as fact.

Eventually, Briac began to feel sleepy again. Its nights were disturbed by nightmares and somehow, this place put its mind at peace. Before it realized it had gone to sleep, Briac was out like a lightbulb.

---

That day was one of the most awful in Silvanus’ living memory.

Silvanus had never known his parents. He was comfortable with that idea, though. The Repose was a loving place, even if half the fae creatures pretended he didn’t exist.

Back then, Silvanus wasn’t Silvanus at all - he was “frost-haired brother.” Frost was a natural name for him. After all, his favorite season was the winter, when he’d watch the world go quiet.

He’d fallen deeply ill while watching the leaves fall, waiting for the running fae of autumn to knock them down from the leaves. It was like a clap of thunder. He suddenly found himself vomiting blood and lying in a pool of his own sweat.

Thankfully, someone had found him and brought him to the medic. However, the medic wouldn’t touch him.

“Father, he smells of rotten flesh.”

It was something that Silvanus had heard before. He couldn’t think about it more, though, as another round of coughing and vomiting started.

The two talked and talked, before an ancient-looking faerie, perhaps one older than Father, entered the room.

“He’s the child of a wicked union,” he’d said with disgust, looking upon Silvanus’ frail body with disdain.

Father had given him sympathetic eyes he wasn’t all that unused to. He demanded the ancient faerie out of the tent and the two adults talked for a long while, before it was decided that Silvanus would rest.

That was some of the last rest that Silvanus had gotten for the next however many years. One night, joyous from his speedy recovery, Silvanus found summons to Father’s quarters.

“My son, you must leave.”

Those words had shattered his entire world.

“You must leave. You do not belong here. That curse of yours will destroy you if you stay here.”

Silvanus had tried to argue with Father, but he would take none of it. That was the first time Silvanus had ever felt shame in the people he’d come from and the last time he’d see Father until after he’d earned his full title as an alchemist.

It was also the last day he'd ever seen the Children's Repose. Somehow, Silvanus was at peace with that, until it was time to see it again.

---

When they arrived, Silvanus had to stop himself from panicking. Dubheasa took his hand for a moment, allowing him a moment’s rest from pushing the sleeping fae creature asleep in his wheelchair.

“You’ll be okay, Silvanus. We’ll take you straight to Father. I’ll bring Briac to the private quarters I have arranged for him, away from prying eyes.”

Silvanus gulped and nodded, emerging from the wandering place with fear in his eyes.

Before him stood Father.

Father’s shoulders, head, and torso were lined with a giant cape of live moss. His large buck’s antlers grew from his head, making him seem a head taller than he actually was. As usual, his feet were lined with the leather of animals that had sacrificed their lives to him.

Silvanus got down on both knees, bowing deeply to the great faerie. The power radiated off of him.

It took Silvanus a moment that he had been separated from Dubheasa and Briac when he exited the wandering place - teleported straight to Father’s private quarters.

They were alone and Silvanus couldn’t be more relieved.

“Why do you bow to me, child of mine?”

It was a question that brought Silvanus to tears.

“Father-.” The sobs in Silvanus’ voice made him cringe. “I thought you never wanted to see me again.”

The faerie, with his sharp, cat-like golden eyes, watched Silvanus.

“Child, whatever made you think that?”

“You told me to leave here ten years ago. You told me to find something else to do. You told me that you thought I didn’t belong here.”

Silvanus couldn’t put thoughts together. 

It looked like Father couldn’t either.

“Do you mean the day we found out about your curse?”

Silvanus nodded tearfully.

“Silvanus, you are the product of a wicked union. The curse placed upon your soul is no fault of your own. In fact, my son, it’s more my fault for not catching it before it hurt you so.”

All Silvanus could do was cry harder at the feet of the only creature that he’d ever called a parent.

===

Previous | Next

Masterlist

Tags:

@hold-him-down, @pumpkin-spice-whump, @thegreatwhodini, @whump-for-all-and-all-for-whump, @nicolepascaline, @i-can-even-burn-salad, @whumpsday, @myhusbandsasemni, @just-a-whumping-racoon-with-wifi

[silversimp]

Yandare Armin x FemReader

Warning: (NSFW) 18+ Rape/Non-Con

Summary:

He always told himself he would never fall in love, what was the point of that anyway? In the world he lived in it felt like there was no future for things like that. Armin, however, would not be able to stop his brain and heart from falling when he saw her. Despite how pathetic he thought it would be to bother with something like romance, he found himself awake late at night swimming in thoughts of her. She, however, had no idea who he was.

Chapter 1

Armin found himself at that tea shop again, the one he overheard Levi and Erwin talking about. The boy thought he may be able to become more like them if he had a better understanding of them. He felt silly sitting alone at the shop, only two people working and every table was full. Armin couldn't help but feel like he was just an extra nuisance for the people working. After a few minutes of waiting, and both workers apologizing on their passing of his table, the young girl working stepped up to him with a notepad.

"I'm so sorry again for the wait" she smiled sweetly, a glisten of sweat on her brow as she clicked her pen, "what can I get for you?"

"No need to apologize" Armin returned her smile, "I'll have the forest walk blend please" he didn't bother looking over the menu, he had known since the moment he walked in what tea he wanted. Levi sang its praises the last time he overheard the man telling Hange about the spot. To better understand his superiors in order to become more like them he wanted to start somewhere simple, such as enjoying the same tea.

"Oh?" She looked up from her notepad, tapping it softly on her chest, "where did you hear about that?" Armin's heart pumped against his chest violently, had he misheard the name of the tea or of the shop?

"My captain and late commander" he mumbled nervously, "they said they love this place and that blend" the blonde fiddled with the untouched menu on his table.

"You don't mean from the scouts do you?" She leaned down to speak quietly, Armin breathed in the perfume clinging to her clothing. A soft lavender that was barely present until she was hovering right over him.

"Ye-yes" he smiled weakly, her eyes becoming harder to meet as his gaze tried to move down her neck to her newly exposed cleavage. Before temptation won out she stood back up and gave him a heartwarming smile, one that made his whole body shiver.

"I can't believe they went blabbing about our secret" she giggled, "good thing you got me and not my dad" she pocketed the notepad without writing on it. Armin stared up at her as she giggled into her palm. She gave Armin a wink and walked off to the back to make his tea, he couldn't figure out why his heart was racing so fast.

He waited for a few moments, skimming the menu he had neglected earlier. If he had looked it over he would have seen that the blend he heard of was not listed anywhere. The girl returned and placed a tea set in front of him. The set had a forest theme, hand painted trees lined the sides of the pot and cups with a few little painted deer grazing along the bottom of the cups. Armin picked up one of the two cups and inspected it, the paintings were so small yet impeccably detailed.

"My mother painted them" the girl smiled softly as Armin set down the cup, she poured him some of the tea from the pot and Armin was met with a warm smell. The girl poured a second cup as well, the blonde raising a brow at her as she did so, "this tea blend was her favorite, but unfortunately she had been in Shiganshina when the titans attacked" the girl looked down into the cup solemnly, her smile still present but fading.

"I'm sorry to hear that" Armin swallowed, he felt his pulse picking up again and a lump forming in his throat.

"My father took this blend off the menu because he doesn't like serving her tea to anyone, but Erwin had been a patron for as long as I remember so I always snuck him and his captain some" she smiled brightly, the sad look in her eyes dissipating as she looked over Armin at the window beside him.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know" Armin looked down nervously, he couldn't figure out why he was getting so sweaty all of a sudden, "I just heard them talking about how good it was and I wanted to try it."

"Don't apologize, my mother loved sharing tea with new people" the girl set the tea cup down across from Armin, "I'm sorry if it's weird, but any time I make this blend I always pour a cup for her" she softly traced along the rim with one of her long thin fingers, Armin found his eyes following it despite how hard he tried to look away. A soft silence fell over them for a moment as he watched her finger slowly move along in circles, "well enjoy your tea sir" she bowed and walked away to serve another customer.

After that day Armin's mind started wandering to her, wondering what she was doing and if she was overwhelmed at work. Their encounter had been brief, she hadn't paid attention to him in a special kind of way. No, she had treated him the way she would have treated any customer. However, her sweet smile and the smell of lavender wouldn't leave his mind.

A week after his first visit to the tea shop he decided he needed to go back again, he had to see her. Unfortunately she wasn't working, instead the shop was being taken care of by her father and her brother. Armin, frustrated, ordered some tea and waited around hoping she would come in. By the time he finished his tea it had gone cold, bitter from over steeping. Not quite as bitter as Armin felt though, he started lurking around the shop after that. Unable to afford purchasing tea every time he visited, Armin began to make sure she was working before going in and ordering.

He didn't always get her as his server, but just watching her work was enough to make his day better. His interactions with her were never more than the ordering process and her checking in to make sure everything was to his liking, just the amount she needed to interact with him for her job. Unfortunately, as much as he would have loved to make visiting her a regular activity, he just couldn't afford it. Armin made sure to stop in at least once a month, and he of course walked by the shop fairly often to peer in at her.

Four months of this and what little he was getting was no longer enough. He sat at his table looking out the window, she was in the back out of his view leaving him to entertain himself elsewhere. Armin was starting to understand his feelings for her, he knew what was building inside him was romantic. Though he didn't know much about her, or even her name, he knew that he was falling in love with her. Armin needed to get more of her time, he needed her to fall in love with him. Something that wasn't going to happen if he was only ever a customer, one she didn't even seem to remember each visit. He'd listened to her tell a few stories multiple times, at this point he could tell the story of how her brother tricked her into thinking a titan lived in their basement when she was five better than she could.

"I accidently made too many strawberry pastries, would you like one?" Her voice ripped him away from the thoughts in his head, Armin looked over at her. She had walked up to him holding a small plate with a pastry sitting deintly in the center, "free of charge" she smiled. Armin felt like his heart might burst through his chest, how can someone be as cute and perfect as she is.

"Wow, thank you" he smiled back after a small pause, "it looks delicious, are you sure it's free?" He watched her set it down in front of him, her beautiful long fingers softly tracing the edge of the plate as she pulled her hand back.

"Don't worry about it" she winked as she picked up his untouched menu, "please let me know if you need anything else" after a small bow she walked off to another table, starting up small talk with a family who had ordered a lot of food. Armin swallowed nervously as he looked down at the desert.

'She made this just for me' his mind ran wild with thoughts just on the edge of irrational. Licking his lips, Armin picked up the small fork beside his plate and pressed into the still warm pastry, 'she was too nervous to stay and see me try it, she's so cute' he smiled as he pressed the fruit bread to his tongue. He had never had such a delicious treat, though she could have given him a live rat to eat and it would probably taste amazing since it came from her. He needed more.

A few days after that Armin decided to do something he knew was crossing the line, but he couldn't think of anything better or easier. He snuck off base and into town after curfew, nervously walking down the quiet streets of Trost toward the tea shop. Armin needed to see her outside of work, but he had no idea where he could conveniently bump into her. His plan was simple; follow her home from work then wait around near her house in the morning on the scouts next rest day. Armin knew it was a little immoral to follow her home, but if anything this made her safe from creeps. He could keep an eye on her to make sure no one tried to do anything to her.

He waited patiently in an alley across from the tea shop, her and her brother were closing together and it looked like they were getting ready to leave. Armin nervously pulled his hood over his head, just in case they noticed him following them; he didn't want to risk her or her brother recognizing him. He stayed far enough back that he was fairly confident they had no idea someone was following them, the siblings keeping up light conversation about customers they had that day.

Armin was pleased to find out she lived a ten minute walk away from the shop, and just as pleased when he realized she lived alone, not with her family. He decided to check out the area around her little house, a small backyard with a garden teeming with fruits and different plants she used for making teas, her windows were flimsy and looked easy to get in and out of, and he could even see inside the house pretty easily too. Nervously, Armin peered through a few of them trying to see which rooms he could see into. The window above her kitchen sink was easy to see through from the street, but he needed to get in her backyard to look into her bedroom. After pushing his luck as far as he felt was safe, Armin made his way back to his dorm with newfound excitement for his next off day.

Eren and Mikasa were both surprised when Armin said he was too busy to do extra training with them that Saturday, they were even more surprised when he mentioned meeting someone in town. They'd noticed he'd been spending more and more time in town without them, but this was the first time he'd mentioned a person being the cause. They didn't pry, unsure what kind of relationship Armin was building with the mystery person and not wanting to make him self conscious about it.

What they didn't know was Armin wasn't meeting anyone, he was instead stalking them. He was waiting across the street from her house for any sign of her leaving, when he noticed movement in her kitchen. Excitedly he busied himself with a newspaper, sitting on a bench and trying to keep an eye on her door. Once he saw her exit her house he watched her walk down the sidewalk, she was holding a few empty bags so Armin figured she was going shopping.

Giddy, he got up and followed a few feet behind her. Armin kept her in his sight at all times, the last thing he wanted was to lose her in the crowd of people in the busy shopping area. She walked into a shop selling candles and Armin decided it was safe to follow her in, besides his dorm room could use a few new candles. As he walked in he almost jumped with joy seeing that the two of them were the only customers inside, a perfect opportunity to share some small talk with her and hopefully get her name.

"Excuse me" Armin smiled politely as he walked up to her holding a candle, "I'm sorry to bother you" he gripped the candle tightly as she turned to him.

"No worries" she smiled back, she eyed him cautiously.

"It's a little embarrassing, but I figured a woman's opinion would be useful for my current issue" he held the candle up to her as she raised a brow at him, "I'm in the scouts and I share a dorm room with a pretty messy guy, lately he's been making the room kind of stinky and I wanted to get something that smelled nice to counteract it. Do you think this would be strong enough to make a whole room smell nice?" Her features softened at the mention of the scouts, Armin already knew that telling her he was a scout would make her less nervous about talking to him. Her family greatly respected Erwin, even naming a blend of tea after him when he passed.

"Oh lavender" she smiled as she sniffed the candle, a scent Armin was already positive she would enjoy, "you might want to get two just in case, but that should help with the smell" she giggled. Armin held back the urge to touch her with all his might, there was no table between them this time and it made her feel more accessible.

"I'm glad, I thought this one smells the nicest, but having a second opinion in helpful" he nervously swallowed trying to figure out the best way to trap her in conversation with him, "my name is Armin, by the way" he could tell he was blushing, but hoped she would think it was cute and not weird.

"It's nice to meet you Armin" she smiled that sickeningly sweet smile of hers as she finally told him her name. The most beautiful name he had ever heard, he already knew he'd spend his evening mumbling it as he touched himself.

"I don't mean to sound weird, but do you work at that tea shop?" He figured it would be best to get it out of the way now that he knew her already, but hoped asking in this way made it seem like they truly bumped into each other by coincidence.

"I do, have you been?" She smiled before turning her attention to the candles in front of her.

"Yes, the tea is always very nice when I've been there" Armin fiddled with the candle in his hands, he wanted to spend more time with her but couldn't figure out if he was coming off as creepy.

"Well thank you" she beamed, "hopefully I'll see you there some time then" it was clear she wasn't trying to keep up the conversation. Armin chewed at his bottom lip, he wanted to keep prying at her, but he needed to stay calm and casual.

"Yes, hopefully" he gave an awkward wave and headed to the cashier, a sleepy old man who was hardly paying attention. Honestly Armin could have just walked out without paying and the man would have never noticed.

Another month passed and Armin was starting to need even more. At this point she recognized him when he came into the tea shop, also smiling and greeting him. The way his name rolled off her tongue was enough to send shivers down his spine, he was desperate to hear her whimper his name in a breathy moan. He needed to see her outside of the shop more, he had found ways to bump into her on three of his five days off. She had even been the one to approach him one of those times, a soft smile as she recognized him in the crowd.

Now Armin was standing outside her house deep in the night, he was once again crossing lines he knew he shouldn't. Armin had been spending a lot of time in Hange's lab working on some serious sleeping medicine, with the excuse he was having difficulty sleeping because of nightmares. The final product was sitting snugly in his breast pocket, just a dash of it would be enough to knock a person out for hours. He tested it on Eren, who said it was the best sleep he'd ever had and even offered to pay Armin to make him more. The blonde, however, had much more of a dubious reason for wanting to make the sleeping medicine.

Jerking off to the thought of her having gotten old, he needed something more. Armin waited patiently in her backyard, hiding in a blind spot from her window as he waited for her to get ready to bath. Once she was out of her bedroom and in her bath he snuck into her room, tapping a bit of the medicine into her cup of water by her bedside. Armin had watched her fall asleep many times now, she always kept a glass of water with her and periodically sipped it as she settled into bed. After adding the medication to her drink, Armin slipped back outside and waited. Her yard wasn't visible to any of her neighbors, unless they were out in their own yards, and her window lock was broken. He felt a bit worried for her safety knowing how easy it was to sneak in, luckily he was there most nights to fend off anyone who may try to get inside.

Read the completed work here

[writings-05]

Invisible To All But One (01)

Okayy so this is the first part of a new series ! This series is a Changbin from StrayKids X Reader. The first parts are more focused on the reader and the whole group but later on it'll be more Y/n and Changbin focused. This is story is related to mafia, it just hasn't been revealed yet.

I have 3 parts ready already, they're quite long and there's a lot of description, I hope you'll like the first part already ! 2nd part should be up tomorrow :)) Happy reading <3

Description : Y/N is living all but the perfect life she wished, until she meets 8 strange but heartwarming men.

TW: feeling of sadness, loneliness, pressure (for the reader), the parents aren't the nicest honestly sorry, a few tears

1425 words

You grew up in a big mansion surrounded by servants, cooks, guards, maids and everyone you could possibly think of except for your parents of course. You were the heir of a wealthy and powerful family, being an only child and the heir only added pressure to you. Of course being now in your twenties it was time you found someone as wealthy and powerful as you to marry, except for one problem, you hated it here, you genuinely wished to escape this world and everything that came with it. These responsibilities, the anxiety, sadness and loneliness of everyday. One thing for sure was that if the person you were going to marry couldn’t help you escape this world you lived in, well then you had absolutely no interest in marrying them. “Miss Y/N, are you up?” one of your maids asked “YEP!” you said out loud from your vanity. “Your father would like you to come into his study.” Oh how surprising you thought, you haven’t seen or talked to that man in maybe 6 months? You do live together but honestly neither of you or your parents could bother taking time out to be with each other. You would simply go to university in the morning and come back and study, while your parents arranged balls and attended gatherings and other stuff that adults tend to do. “Tell him I’ll be there in a minute.” You said. You didn’t know if it was a good idea to make him wait but you couldn’t just give him what he wanted at the exact minute that he asked for it. You did your hair and a light makeup to cover up the sleepless nights you’ve been having, got dressed in a simple but elegant dress and went out to your fathers’ study. You had a love hate relationship with all this pretegious life you got to live, you liked the fun parts, dressing up, getting to travel, meeting other people of other nations, riding your horses. But then the bad parts were present all the time, all the time the one thing your parents couldn’t stop talking about was you finding someone to marry and taking over for them. You didn’t want to live a life with a husband who you barely saw and barely talked to. Your parents thought that getting into university would help you find someone, but you were so immersed into your studies you barely had time to make any new friends or friends at all. They were disappointed to say the least and as you opened the door to your fathers’ study you had a feeling they wanted to change all this.

As soon as you opened the door you were met with multiple pair of eyes looking at you. But for not more than 1 sec and they all looked back down. These 8 men were just standing next to your fathers’ desk as he looked up from his papers and sighed “Finally, the princess decides to show up?” wow cranky in the morning already “Sorry father, I had just gotten out of the shower so I came as quick as I could.” You apologized even tho your father knew it wasn’t sincere at all. You were still focused on the 8 men still staring at the ground, they were taller than you but not that much well maybe for one, but they did look intimidating and also charming in a way? “Ah I guess introductions will be needed, introduce yourself.” Your father said talking to the guy standing right next to him “Hello, we are StrayKids, my name is Bangchan, this is Minho, Changbin, Hyunjin, Jisung, Felix, Seungmin and Jeongin.” Okay you are so bad at remembering names but let’s keep nodding as if you had remembered everything in 2 secondes. “Hi, I’m Y/N.. I guess you already knew that tho..” wow can you not be so awkward. They all smiled a little but were quick to lower their gaze as your father cleared his throat. “Y/N, these men are here to accompany you throughout your search for a husband-“ “Excuse me?” you interrupted him “DO NOT interrupt me.” He coldly said. You flinched at his voice, never really liking when people raised their voices at you and stared into the ground. “As I was saying, they will be your guards for the period of time where you will search for a husband as you are the heir to all of this. You will attend balls and gatherings with your mother.” “What about my studies?” you slowly asked being afraid of what you were about to hear. “You will take a break from them, as long as you have not secured a husband you will not attend your uni classes.” And there you go, the one thing you feared the most, you really liked studying, it was like a break from this unrealistic life you were living. You nodded “is that all ?” you asked, your father just looked back at Bangchan and took out contract papers for them to sign. You sighed and left the room as you thought, no one in this world can actually see you for who you are, whenever you enter a room no one realises it, when will you gain the attention from others, you know you deserve much more hence why you dedicate yourself so much to your studies wanting to achieve something of your own and making others see you as someone who is capable to do great things.

You entered your room and took a deep breath, a couple tears dropped from your eyes but you simply looked up at the ceiling hoping they stay in, you hate crying, it makes you feel weak. You sat down next to your window and looked out at the garden, the snow was laid softly on the cold ground. Whenever it snows everything outside feels so serein, so peaceful. You just basked into the peaceful sounds of the outside world wondering when you would find someone who can help you escape this fake world you live in where you have to pretend to be perfect. Someone knocked on your door, you honestly didn’t wish to be bothered right now but you dried out the unconscious tears that dropped onto your cheeks and answered “You can enter”. You were still watching outside, the whole window opened, you felt the cold on your skin but didn’t care much, it kept you awake and conscious as you felt the cold from the world instead of the one you’re always welcomed with in this mansion. You were so concentrated on watching the snow descend onto the ground that you didn’t realise who was in the room and this person was putting a blanket around you. You quickly grabbed that persons arms but as soon as you met their eyes your eyes widened, it was BangChan. “Oh sorry I didn’t mean to scare you, you just seemed cold, wouldn’t you want to close the window Miss Y/N?” “Um, please call me Y/N, and no need to apologise I was just so mesmerised by the snow I didn’t even realise you had come in. I like having the window open but if it bothers you we can close it?” you politely asked “No, no worries I don’t mind.” He answered with a big smile. Wow who thought someone’s smile could be so warming. “Your father might have been a bit cold before but I would like to assure you miss- I mean Y/n, we don’t intend to meddle with your life. We are just simply guards her to be by your side.” “Aren’t you guys a bit young to be guards? I mean I don’t think you’re much older than me?” “Well I guess so..haha” he laughed nervously, something was fishy. If everyone thought they could fool you they were a fool themselves. You might not act like it but you know that something is wrong, something seems off with this whole plan your parents have. “Okay weird answer but whatever, where are the others?” you asked him “They went out to put our horses in your stables.” Your eyes light up, new horses ?? “Oh.. can we go too ?” you asked BangChan, he felt like an older brother and you don’t know why you felt like you had to ask him the permission, he smiled again warmly and nodded. You got up quickly and sprinted out “Y/N IT’S COLD OUT!” BangChan said as he ran after you.

[mercurygguk]

OC's father (shitty) reasons only confirm that he is a manipulative and controlling parent who thinks it's okay to dictate his daughter's life with the excuse of wanting to 'protect' her. It's stupid, completely irrational and delusional on his part. And not only that, he also uses his position of power and decides it's a good idea to blackmail JK, saying that he'll take away from him all that he's worked for in the last ten years of his life. And because of what? Because he dared to date his daughter. The more I think about it the more absurd it sounds to me.

OC and JK are adult people who made the conscious decision to date. They needed to ask no one's permission, nor did they have the obligation to inform the father at any point. They had every right to inform him at a time they deemed right, because it's their fucking private lives.

If OC's father was so concerned about his daughter, he should have expressed it properly and not treated her like a kid who is having a tantrum, while at the same time invalidating her feelings. He could have voiced his concerns and doubts in a way that was respectful towards both JK and OC.

The whole thing is toxic af and if my father ever acted like that towards me, I would lose all respect for him as a person.

Sorry for the rant, but I was a little triggered after reading the chapter.

That being sad, I want to note that I appreciate all the effort you put into this series! ♥️ Can't wait to see what happens next!

so so true!! oc's dad does assert his power onto both oc and jk for no reason. he's acting like a crazy person, trying to control two people who are in their free will to do whatever they want – including dating each other.

hopefully oc's father will express his worries and concerns properly in part 5! she deserves an explanation for what he did to her and to jungkook :') it is incredibly toxic and i too would lose A LOT of respect for my father if this happened to me!

also, dont apologize for ranting anon! i love when y'all got stuff to say about my fics kfldksk also, i'm sorry it triggered you :')) didn't mean to do that

tysm for reading !! i appreciate you taking your time to tell me all of this <3

[rachaelnpc]

The Awaiting

I made my decision a long time ago. It wasn't as easy as just walking out the door. Our lives had become so intertwined. I realized quickly I didn't have much to lean on outside of you. That was by your design, right? Did I cut all of the people I loved out of my life, all on my own? You were always behind me whispering, 'They don't really care about you.' whenever there was conflict. I finally woke up, realizing I was living my worst nightmare. My deep fears coming alive before my eyes. Realizing that it was you the whole time who really didn't care about me. I have been fighting to override the programing. I cannot give you all the credit. There was the one before you who primed me for your warm, yet lifeless embrace. Mom? No, caretaker really. Growing up with a lifeless timebomb. Every time they exploded it was my fault. Everyone hurt in the blast, I was the reason the bomb exploded. At least that is what they told me. That is what they let me believe. Every time I was the one to apologize, to fix it. 'Be the bigger person.' Why me? 'Because you are the only one that knows how.' 'I'm sorry for...' For what exactly? Trying to express my needs? My feelings? Oh, that is right, you don't matter because they matter. They have to matter the most or they lash out, hurting people, having ultimatums. How many times did they try to leave? How many times did they try to leave and said the words, 'I cannot deal with Rachael.'? I am just a kid that looks like that 'controlling women' that came before you, that kid that cries for the 'other women', the kid that won't stop talking about... My Mother. That must have been... hard for you? It was never a secret that would be an element in the equation. What else was in the equation? Love, marriage, becoming a mother, the limitless amounts of.... money. Money can go fuck itself. Set it all on fire to warm those who are out in the cold, those that actually need it. How much for you to leave me alone? Stop hurting our family. I am so sick of it. It isn't okay. I left as soon as I got the opportunity. I hurt so many people when I left. It hurt myself most of all. I was the problem. I fixed the problem by leaving. I wanted my dad to be happy. I am strong, I'll figure it out. I was determined to make the life I wanted... to have a family. It seemed like when I left, you stopped detonating. Then they became your family. You convinced them I was always the problem. There were no phone calls, no check-ins, just silence. I see now that you wanted me gone and made sure once I left that no one would come looking for me. Applause. GGs. You played an 8 year old who just lost their mother, leaving a broken, self-conscious adult full of guilt, pain, anger from a heart that had been broken over and over again.

I got this. I know who I am. I am smart. I can do anything I put my mind to. The fire inside me to keep going had not gone out. The memories of my mother, grandmother, father, sister, friends, family helping to keep the light ignited inside me.

I didn't realize I was conditioned to be manipulated with the snap of someone's fingers. I was desperate to feel wanted, to belong, to be loved. It was all too easy for them. He held me close, if I mis stepped, he took my head in his hands, crushing me until I did what they wanted, then let me go. A cycle on repeat. I couldn't leave, where would I go? I can't fail at another relationship. I can do better, I can fix it. Wait, I think I deserve better. I need help. I can't do this alone. I made a choice no one wanted me to make. That would be unfair to ask for help for something they all saw coming. Oh, wait, it is okay. They are sorry. They want to change, become better. The light inside me flickering brighter. Giving me hope for a better time.

You learned how to blow out my flame when I asked the right questions or did things you didn't like. 'I am locked out, can you let me in?' Darkness. *I can fix it. I shouldn't have stayed out so late and shouldn't have drank.* Light flame. 'Claire got behind the dishwasher into the wall.' Darkness *I can fix this. There is a lot going on with their family and work. I haven't been doing enough to ease their stress.* Lights flame. 'Is that lipstick on your collar?' Darkness. *I can do better. I am projecting insecurites. They are hurt you even suggested they would do something like that. I need to get the stain out of their shirt.* Lights flame. 'What is this website?' Darkness. *Stop messing this up. I shouldn't have gone on their computer and should be more trusting.* Lights flame. 'Why did you have this testing done?' Darkness. *Hold them, they are having a hard time. Put your pain asside. He was confused, embarrassed.* Lights flame, confused asking 'Why are you so kind, why are you not mad?' *Being vulnerable helps. That had to have been really hard for you and scary. I wish you would have trusted me, I would have supported you in figuring it all out.*

'I don't feel well. I am going to the doctor. Who is Jonathan? Why did they all know, but I had no clue?' Darkness. Flame. Darkness. Flame. Darkness. I hear you screaming in the darkness, WHAT THE FUCK!

Shhhhh..... You cannot control me anymore. I have learned it isn't my fault. It isn't me. It was never me. The books say once I start to hold boundaries it gets worse. I didn't realize how bad it would become. How scared I would become. How once I leave I have to break a trauma bond which feels like a cocaine addiction. Thirteen years of this rollercoaster changes your brain patterns. I craved you, was it ever love? Did you ever love me or did you just enjoy the control and the cover it gave you?

My friends and family came in from every direction to hold me when I needed it most. I did it, I moved out. I find myself back where it all started, next to the timebomb. There is no way that I could detonate it after so long. I am an adult now. I know how to keep the peace. The explosion patterns are all in the past.

FUCK.... FUCK.... everyone is hurting again. Damn it. This is why I left. If not here, then where? I owe them what? They are trying to.... what? Juels? JUELS! What the absolute FUCK?

'It isn't your fault.'

How am I supposed to believe that? Look at it all. Piles of ash. It all went to shit because of me.

'What could you have done differently?'

... I... I could have...

'You did try. You put all you had into fixing things. It was never going to be enough because the issue wasn't you to begin with.'

I have to be missing something. Maybe I am the wolf in sheep's clothing. My ego is so big I cannot see my flaws. I am lieing to myself that I am a good person. I cannot admit my faults. I can't be a good person with all of these people around me saying I hurt them, people that don't want to deal with me.

'There is nothing wrong with you, you are the victim - you are not pretending.'

That isn't how they all see it. I needed to be better.

'What do you need to be better ato? They were actively tearing you down. When people get upset at you, what are you feeling, what are you trying to convay?'

Pain, hurt they have caused.

'They then turn it back to you as your fault. You forget the issues you were trying to talk about and hyper focus on fixing yourself. Do they change? Do they hear your concerns?'

....No.... that is why I feel it is always my fault for... their actions. This pattern has happened since I was a child.

[Looking down at myself sitting on a couch crying, sitting across from an older women - how many couches have you sat on, crying? I keep looking for what is so WRONG with me that my life keeps falling apart.]

WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?!?! Why does it have to be this hard? Why do I have to constantly think how what I say or do will affect everyone? Why do I hyper focus on everyone else in the room and ensuring they are happy instead of just enjoying myself?

'They conditioned you.'

I tried to leave them. Strange how they don't care but as soon as you try to leave they turn up the heat. Are they scared I will speak the truth? I see through the cycles. I see the game. I know how they will respond. I know how their mind works. THEY CANNOT CONTROL ME. They are trying to conrol me even now, why? I cannot wait until I am free from this mental prison. I want to be happy, to just be, to not have to walk on eggshells, to have the life I have always wanted, to be loved unconditionally.

I am fighting with everything in me to be the person I want to be, to survive this, to come out the other side stronger. To keep hope alive that it will be better, the hope that it is possible for me to find what I am looking for. I just have to make it through the last of this mental warfare. I am praying to finally be free from them. Maybe then I'll be ready for real love.

[threadsun]

Ok, I don't think we're at splitting it into parts territory yet, but we might just get there if I keep making these longer each time, but without further a due, here is the true beginning of the cult town au

You still can’t fucking believe you’re doing this, how did you get here again? Oh, right, the letter. Not a letter in your mailbox, or even under the front door, no, that would make too much sense. This letter was tucked safely under your pillow next to a concerningly sticky spot right next to your head. The letter was about your dad, he had recently passed and he left you his house and his whole ass cult in his will. No, really, in the will it says “and my whole ass cult” Apparently your father had a sense of humor

Your mother warned you not to go, urging you to come with her to flee the country, but something about this was too insane to not delve into. You also felt bad for all those poor people your father must have tricked, people don’t just decide to move to a commune because they’re in a good place in life, maybe you could help them out, change some lives. Or maybe the thought of having a whole town under your control sounded just a little too good to pass up. Either way, you packed everything important in a few bags and suitcases and plugged the address into your GPS

It was a few hours drive, and your car was making some concerning noises an hour or so out, but you pressed on, hoping this little town had a mechanic. You manage to get your car to pull through just long enough to get you into town and into a gas station parking space. You noticed the gas station had clearly seen better days, not because it was dirty at all, but because of how old it looked, the pumps didn’t even have card readers on them

While looking around, wondering just what you should do next, you read the sign of the shop right next door “Jo’s Repair Shop” You guessed it was common sense to have a repair shop right next to a gas station. As you walk over you spot a guy on his smoke break, you’d hate to bother him but you did need your car looked at. Yep, that’s it, that's the only reason, it’s not just your excuse to talk to the handsome stranger, definitely not, that would be silly. Oh wow, he’s built like a brick house, can you even talk to this guy? Oh, fuck he’s looking at you, quick, just don’t be weird

“Howdy” Howdy? Your one job was to be normal and you open with Howdy??? Wait, he laughed, god he sounds nice, at least he thinks you’re funny instead of stupid. You ask that after his break he looks at your car because of the noise it keeps making “Oh, that was your car? I thought someone was killing a dog out here” He chuckles and you can’t help but feel a bit flustered, you can’t tell if the feeling comes from having made that noise on the road for about an hour now, or because of how nice his voice was to listen to

He tells you it’s no trouble and puts out his cig, saying “I really need to quit anyhow” before letting you lead the way to your car. He gives your car a good once over before looking back at you “Well, I’ll be honest with you, it’s a miracle you got this far, doll. Your breaks are shot and your engine almost looks like it’s been cut with something. Sorry to say, but I don’t think I can get her up and running again, at least not cheaper than just buying a new car”

Great, just great, moving into a new town with no car, awesome. You sigh and thank him for the trouble, asking how much he wanted for the once over. He tilts his head “How much? I just looked at it, doll you don’t gotta pay me anything” …Doll? Doll??? Is this man trying to kill you? It didn’t register the first time he said it but it sure is now. You stutter out a thank you and ask how far out the founder’s house is “Oh…uh, from here it’s about a mile, but there’s not much of a reason to go. The founder died about a week ago” His eyes glaze over as he speaks, like he’s not even here. You tell him you know about your father’s recent passing, and apologize for bringing it up, saying he clearly meant more to him than he ever did to you

Joseph takes a moment, you can almost hear him trying to grind the rust off the gears in his head “Wait, father, like…like he’s your dad? Or was, I guess, but you’re-you…you’re the founder’s kid?” You have to stifle a laugh before confirming that yes, your dad was indeed your dad “...Holy shit-uh, sorry, I shouldn’t cuss in front of you, unless you want me to? God, you saw me smoke” He runs his hand through his hair, trying to calm himself down “Sorry, let’s start over. I’m Joseph, it’s an honor to meet you, your grace”

You’re a little taken aback by his shift in tone but also a bit flattered. You tell him your name and that it’s nice to meet him as well, not missing the small shudder that runs through him when you say his name. He quietly says your name, testing how it feels on his tongue, the way he looks at you when he says it sends up to your cheeks “Well since you’re moving in you probably have quite a bit in your trunk, so we’ll need someone to move it. I mean, I don’t have a doubt everyone in town would pitch in to help you out but you look a little overwhelmed already”

You nod, you’ve only been here for about fifteen-thirty minutes and you’re already a bit shaken, the long drive here probably wasn’t helping things “Hm, why don’t I take you over to Laurent’s place? The actual restaurant is closed because Jean broke his arm but the bakery and frozen section are still open. We’ll get some food in you and I’ll talk to Berry about bringing his car over to haul your stuff” You agree, thanking him for all the trouble, he just laughs, and you can’t help be notice just how fake his other one’s sounded in comparison “If this is trouble I’d love to see what you think doing someone a favor is. Now come on, let’s get you something to eat” You make sure to lock your car before walking off with your new acquaintance, still nervous but excited to see where today will take you

I need you to know that as soon as I got this ask I put everything down to read it aloud to Moon and now we're just rambling about how good it is!!!! We're so invested in this AU!!!!

[unabashednightmarepizza]

Post canon Bruno with a younger pregnant wife??😩 He wasn’t expecting he’d ever get any of this or even think he deserves it and he’s the sweetest most loving boy maybe a little anxious he doesn’t want to mess this up

《 You Are A Good Man and... A Good Father》

A/N: I've been reading works of Bruno as a father and was waiting for a request like this!! If you didn't request this, dear anon, I'd have started to write one myself. A side note here: READER WILL BE IN HER LATE TWENTIES AND EARLY THIRTIES!

ೃ⁀➷Bruno Madrigal( He/Him) x Fem!Pregnant!Wife! Reader

ೃ⁀➷Word Count: 1,7+

ೃ⁀➷ Tag-list: @dai-tsukki-desu @camerondiaz48104 @unwanted-dying-soul @tigreost @shuru @agreatcheesecakestudentstuff @itsmesmileyface

Life has become even more lively and colorful after moving to energetic and cheerful town.

The idea of moving wasn't an easy one to make. It took a lot of courage to move from a big city to a small town with your siblings and nieces and nephews. You almost broke your neck to convince your family but even if they complained about your stubborness to get away from the stress of the city, they were happy of the outcome.

Of course, for the people of the town who hasn't seen anyone new coming to the town, your family has become the next big talk, making your family a well-known one.

Well... After the Madrigal Family.

You learnt of the thing that happened to the important family which was important for the town's people. How Casita was destroyed, how the whole village was rebuilt with other's help and how the family lost their gifts...

You felt guilty though, feeling as if you were like an intruder after learning everything they went through as a whole town.

What you didn't expect was a woman's voice interrupting the conversation you were having with a neighbour.

"Excuse me but, hearing this kind of words made me feel bad... you have nothing to be guilty about."

When you lifted your head to see a very tall young woman, you looked at her with a shocked face, not being used to see such a strong and tall woman. You felt your cheeks got hotter and waved your sheepishly at her.

"Ah, sorry about that. I just couldn't help myself but to feel... Anyways, what was your name, dear? I have the worst memory of names, really..."

"No need to apologize ma'am! I'm Luisa Madrigal. It's nice to meet you!"

You two shook your hands and exchanged names, after having a pleasant conversation with the teen. She let out a gasp and turned to look at her home that was away from the town.

"By the way señorita (L/N), Abuela wanted to meet you and your family! That's what we do when there is someone new here but since it's been a long time she wanted to throw a party for you!"

And by accepting the invitation, even though you didn't know, you really changed your life.

For good.

Although it's been about 3 years since the first step of your life's change, old memories still make you smile and feel like you're a young girl in love.

The “love” part was true though...

When the first light of the morning hits your eye and breaks your good sleep, you grumbled and couldn’t help yourself but straighten up and looked at the man sleeping next to you. 

His curls, although they fell on his face, made him look so innocent that it made your heart feel so full of love. Since you couldn’t wait for him to wake up, you put your hand on his chest and started to plant multiple kisses across all over his face.

"Bruno... mi cariño~~ The love of my life, my dear husband~"

You cooed and continued to lay teasing kisses all over his face and neck and by the subtle smirk on his face, which was a proof that he wasn't sleeping and just pretending, he finally opened his eyes to look at you lovingly with the sleep still evident in his eyes.

"Mi ceilo, don't wiggle around too much. We wouldn't want to hurt the baby with our love..."

You threw your head back with a groan and sat on the bed you shared with him, letting him get up as well. You looked around the room you were sitting, looking at all the little trinkets you had with Bruno and seeing that he kept all of them with himself made you think about the first time you two met.

"Uhm... Hello? How are you?"

You looked at the man in front of you, playing with his fingers anxiously. He was standing in the middle of two tall women, Julieta and Pepa who were his triplets. They were smiling excitedly at you, obvious that they were as excited as you were to meet them. But you weren't going to lie...

The man looked so tiny and cute between his sisters.

You couldn't help but giggle at them, being amused to see them be all different than each other. You always heard that twins and multiple siblings can have different mannerisms but actually seeing one was even more wholesome.

"Hola, my name is (Y/N) (Y/L/N)! I'm so glad to meet you all!"

The two women grinned at you and told their names to you, the one in the yellow dress was so eager to hug you though.

"What a lovely and kind woman you are! We're happy to have you and your family-OHHH LOOK AT THE KIDS! THEY'RE SO CUTE!!"

You stand there awkwardly while the rest of your family was having the time of their lives. You realized another one near you and looked around to see the man you talked to a few minutes ago.

You extended your hand out to him and grinned joyfully while he jumped slightly at seeing a hand in front of him so suddenly.

"I couldn't get your name earlier... If that's okay, would you give me your lovely name?"

He flushed at the end of your sentence and looked at the hand between you and him while thinking to himself, She thinks my name is fancy?, being giddy inside. He threw some salt over his shoulder which you looked at curiously and took your hand in his.

"It's Bruno... Nice to see you in our town!"

"It's a pretty name for a cute man like yourself!"

"H-huh..?"

At the end of his sentence, his voice came out louder without him realizing out of shock and he cringed at it, thinking he weirded you out. But you had a resssuring smile and before you were able to talk, you saw a rat come out of his poncho.

You were startled to see a rat, not because you were disgusted by it but you didn't expect it. You had a one-year-old nephew who would pat the weirdest things and try to put it in his mouth.

But Bruno didn't think like that, thinking that you didn't like them just like everbody else.

"Hey, there... How are you all doing?"

Well, to cut it short, the rats liked your reaction and Bruno?

He felt the so-called butterflies and felt his heart beat as if it wanted to rip out. Seeing his friends slither over your arm and you not being disgusted made him feel... flustered

He watched your family and his own walk towards the Casita and you waved him to follow after everyone. He looked at your back with widened eyes when he realized something.

" Oh Díos, did she just flirt with me!?"

You giggled at the memories and rubbed your swollen stomach. He watched you with adoration and took your other hand to plant a kiss on it. You swatted his chest playfuly and swung your legs down to get up from the bed.

"Come on, sleepyhead! We need to get down for breakfast and I need to help Julietta."

He chuckled and nodded his head while watching you wear your green clothes to match with him. He looked around and spotted two little cribs with hourglass pendant on it in several shades of green. He walked up to them and took the little onesies in his hands with slight tears in his eyes.

"I never thought I'd have this, y'know? Thought I was too old to have any kids... to have... my little family... When I stopped to hope, you came into my life..."

"Thank you so much, mi vida... Thank you so much..."

"You deserve to be happy, mi vida... You're a very good man and will be a great papá."

You widened your eyes in shock and waddled to where his small form was standing. You took him into your arms and pat his curls between your hand. Pregnancy hormones affects him more than me...

Kissing his forehead, he hugged you while being careful to your swollen tummy. You cooed at him and rubbed his back, backing off to look at him, you kissed his nose and your lips stayed for several minutes. You kissed his eyes and cheeks, wiping the tears away.

You kissed his forehead one last time and felt two strong kicks in your stomach, making you wince in pain and Bruno panic since even he felt it.

" Are you okay, mi corazón!! It was a strong k-kick! Should I get Julietta? What kind of a question i-is th-that, of course I should- JULIE-"

"Calm down, calm down! I'm fine, dear. I believe they are just as angry as me because of the way you think of yourself... Or they’re angry because you didn’t do your telenovelas like usual..."

He was still unsure and your teasing didn’t ease him, even though he flushed at the thought of his babies loving his telenovelas, so he put his ear on your stomach to talk to the kids with anxious, big eyes.

" My loves, please don't give me a heart attack like that!! I'll not say things like that again so please don't hurt your mommy... And don’t worry, I’ll tell you what will happen later this night..."

He sighed in relief and looked up at you while extending his hand out.

"You know, I'm glad that your room no longer has long stairs like Mirabel said... I believe I'd die while walking up in this position... Thanks Casita!"

The house opened its windows and waved enthusiasticly at you, moving the bricks happily. You smiled at it and took your husband's hand gladly but before you could exit your shared room, an angry Julietta with a rolling pin, a Pepa with a big cloud above her head and a Luisa with a huge vase over her shoulders barged into the room.

"WHO DO WE NEED TO BEAT!!"

"IS THERE AN INTRUDER??!!"

"I'M READY TO PROTECT YOU TÍA (Y/N), TÍO BRUNO!!"

Bruno clinged to your arm while letting out a scream at their loud and sudden voices whereas you laughed 'till your stomach hurt.

They were really gonna be the best family for your babies and you loved every piece of the times like this.