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mochegato · 4 years

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Pixie Spy

Chapter 10

Chapter 1 Chapter 9

Marinette shuffled her feet in the hallway. She smoothed her hair again, as if it could have somehow gotten messy since the last time she checked it, less than a minute before during which time she hadn’t moved from the spot she was in. Content that her hair wouldn’t embarrass her, at least not more than normal, she smoothed over her outfit to make sure everything was in place despite the fact that Jason had seen it earlier in the day getting whipped around in the akuma induced wind.

Finally she reasoned that she couldn’t put it off anymore. She took a deep breath to steel herself. For what, she wasn’t sure. It made no sense to be nervous and she knew that. It didn’t relieve the anxiety though. She was giving him the news he wanted to hear, the news he had asked to hear. So why was she nervous?

She stared at her fist, poised to knock on the door but frozen inches away. She slowly lowered her hand, the confused look staying on her face. He was going to get to stay. He was going to be near her, but what if that wasn’t what he really wanted? What if he changed his mind once he actually spent time with her?

She stared at the space her hand had been. Was that why she was nervous? No, her anxiety wasn’t about her love life, not this time. This was something else. This was about something more. Telling him made it all real. Everything would change and she had argued the change would be for the better. She couldn’t afford to be wrong about it and it wasn’t up to her. It all depended on Jason and really, she didn’t know him. She had bet the world’s future on someone she didn’t know.

On top of that, for him to really work with the rest of the team, they needed to know what happened with the Lazarus Pit. And as soon as she knocked, she was going to have to start that conversation. She was going to have to dredge up painful memories and she loathed the idea of doing that. The idea physically pained her.

She took a few deep breaths and looked back up at the door with a newfound resolve. She was Ladybug for fuck’s sake. She could handle a difficult conversation about emotionally excruciating events. That was a significant part of her job after all. People didn’t become akumas because of fun, happy experiences. And she didn’t know everything about Jason, but she knew him. She knew he would help. She knew he was the right choice. She looked back at the door and knocked loudly. She silently congratulated herself for her small but significant victory. She could do this. She was Ladybug. She could do this.

Jason opened the door after a minute with an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I wasn’t expecting you so soon.” He opened the door to let her through, but she was frozen in her spot. Her mouth dropped open. He had clearly just gotten back from working out. His arms were on full display in his sleeveless shirt and his loose, grey sweatpants clung to his muscular thighs. His arm muscles looked even more pronounced with the light catching the sheen of sweat covering them. And God, his arms were bigger than her head. She stared at them in wonder. She couldn’t do this. Who the fuck did she think she was thinking she could do this?

Jason grinned smugly at her reaction. He leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms over his chest, making sure to put his fists under his biceps to make them appear larger. His muscles definitely didn’t need any help to look enormous, but he wanted to impress her and see just how distracted he could make her. “Like what you see?”

“Yes.” The answer came out before she even thought about the question. Her eyes snapped up to his, her cheeks blazing red. His smug smile grew into a deep laugh. She narrowed her eyes at him noticing the smug smile. “Come on lover boy. The rest of the team is waiting to talk with you and the supermodel has a photoshoot in the morning so he's in a rush to get home and sleep.”

“Supermodel?” Jason’s smile faltered, suddenly less secure in his approach to distract her.

“Yep,” she said with a smirk popping the p. “Told you it takes more than a pretty face.”

“Good thing I have this body too.” He grinned again, motioning to himself.

She puckered her lips. “Did I mention the shoot is for a fragrance, so it will be shirtless? That’s one of the reasons they chose him.” He didn’t need to know it was mostly because it was for his dad. But even if it wasn’t, Adrien’s body was amazing. That said… Jason’s body was perfect. Looking at it made her feel like she was going to burst into flames. Looking at his body and that devilish smile and those captivating eyes, she didn’t think he would even need to touch her to make her orgasm. And if he kept flexing his muscles like that, that’s exactly what might happen.

“So,” he leaned a bit closer to her so he was in her personal space, bringing her eyes back to his, “what does it take, exactly?”

She pushed him away with a finger on his chest in one of the few dry patches on his shirt. “Well first of all, someone who doesn't waste my time. Hurry up, Hagrid. They’re waiting and I want to talk a bit before we go.” She looked him up and down again. “But, I’m not doing that while you’re sweaty.”

He chuckled and moved to let her in again. She took him up on his offer this time, giving him a wide berth to both keep away from the sweat and keep herself from reaching out to run her hands along his chest as she passed. “I just need to take a quick shower and I’ll be ready.” He turned to her and gave her devious smirk. “You’re welcome to join me if you want.”

She quirked her lips to the side and narrowed her eyes at him as though analyzing him. “I get the feeling you wouldn't know what to do if I actually said yes.”

He raised his eyebrows slightly in surprise before grinning seductively at her. “I wouldn't believe my luck, but I have all kinds of ideas about what we can do. Been thinking about them since we met.” He waggled his eyebrows at her.

Marinette blushed deeply and looked away. “Just… Just hurry up André the Giant. They don't like to be kept waiting.”

Jason chuckled and started walking out of the room with a small mock bow. “As you wish.”

“And if I got my hands on you we would definitely be late,” she said loudly enough for him to hear her. She smirked proudly when Jason tripped on nothing, almost falling into the doorframe to the next room.

“You're going to make me take longer in the shower of you keep that up.” He shook his finger at her and kept walking before she could reply.

As soon as Jason left the room Marinette pulled out her phone and texted Alya. ‘His body should be illegal. I can’t breathe anymore. Thinking about just one of his muscles is going to give me an aneurism.’

Marinette’s phone pinged almost immediately with Alya’s response. ‘WTF happened?’

‘He answered the door sweaty and in workout clothes, showing off for me. I think I died. Did you see ladybugs flying around, because I’m pretty sure I died and came back.’

‘I’m not sure you’re the best judge. I think I need to see for myself.’ Marinette could just see the smirk on Alya’s face.

Marinette narrowed her eyes at the phone. ‘No! Back off. Mine. I will cut you. But he’s going to take a shower so expect a delay.’

‘Without you? Rude’

Marinette snorted and tucked her phone back in her pocket. She walked over to the balcony doors and looked out over her city, trying very hard not to think about the water she could hear running. Just a few feet away, okay more than just ‘a few’, but still not many, he was naked and washing himself… Nope! She shook her head. Not going to think about that right now. She needed to distract herself.

She looked around the room to see if there was anything she could use to preoccupy herself for the next few minutes. She gave the room a sweep. Nope. Nothing. Bastard is going to just let her sit out there with nothing to do but imagine his naked body. She groaned and fell back over the armrest of the couch, hair splaying out over the cushions and legs kicking idly over the armrest.

Why couldn’t an akuma strike now? But nooooo. They never happen when it would be helpful. They are also bastards. Well, not them. It wasn’t their faults. Hawkmoth and Argus were the bastards. And she was the bastard because she couldn’t stop them. And Constantine was the bastard because… so many reasons, but primarily right now, because he’s the one to put her in this situation in the first place.

She sighed and threw her arm over her eyes. God, she didn’t want to ask him about the Lazarus Pit just as much as she did. Was there any chance describing it wouldn’t be traumatic for him? Maybe he would just laugh it off like a joke. “Hey funny story, my brothers and I were just messing around and I ended up falling into the Pit accidentally. We didn’t even know what it was.” Then he would run his fingers along her jaw and run his other hand along her side until he got to her hip and pull her closer to him. Then he would kiss her deeply, running his hand through her hair and his other hand would go lower to…

“I see you’ve made yourself at home.” His voice was smooth and amused.

Her eyes shot open and scrambled to stand up. “Sorry, sorry, sorry.” He chuckled at her giving her a heart stuttering smile. He cocked his hip to the side, resting one hand in the pocket of his pants and running the other through his still wet hair.

“Holy shit,” Marinette mumbled absentmindedly, which was the only way she would be able to do anything right now. Jason had come out in nothing but a pair of pants that were tight around his thighs and she assumed his ass as well, because his thighs were too muscular for regular, off the rack pants. She’d have to make him some, she thought distantly. Though it would be a shame to not see this sight. The lack of shirt and shoes added a sense of casualness and domesticity to his sexiness that Marinette couldn’t handle.

His broad, chiseled chest was on full display and she couldn’t look away from it. She had known his chest was muscular, the curves of his muscles could be seen even through his clothes, but seeing his bare chest was short circuiting her brain. Drops of water from his wet hair were trailing paths down his chest. Her eyes tracked one of the drops of water. She was distantly aware of a chuckling noise but her face scrunched up with concern.

The drop’s smooth path was getting continually disrupted by scars. There were so many. Deep ones, shallow ones, small, large, barely noticeable, wide and rough. She reached out to touch one of them but stopped herself just short of touching him when she realized what she was doing. She slowly pulled her hand back and looked up at Jason with concern clear in her eyes. “I’m sorry,” she said simply.

She let the intention hang in the air ambiguously. Because she was sorry for so much. She was sorry for acting so casually in his room. She was sorry for almost touching him so intimately without his permission. She was sorry for the suffering the scars indicated. She was sorry that she was going to have to ask him to talk about incidents that may have been what caused the scars.

Jason shrugged with a practiced nonchalance. “No problem. I’m hard to keep your hands off, I know.” He tried with a smirk, avoiding her eyes.

“Still inappropriate for me to touch you without your permission,” she pointed out sheepishly.

He gave her a roguish smile and moved closer to her. “Oh, you have permission to touch me whenever you want.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” she answered breathlessly. She couldn’t look away from the roguish glint in his eyes.

He stepped closer again until his chest was almost touching hers. “Please do. And I fully encourage you to make yourself at home here. Please feel free to get as comfortable as possible. Maybe start by losing some of your more restrictive clothing.”

“Is that why you didn’t bother with a shirt?” She looked up at him from under her lashes, not trusting herself to be able to hold her head up straight.

“I hate feeling restricted.” He nodded slightly, his voice turning seductive.

She gasped quietly when he brought his hands up to cup her face gently. “You’re making it really difficult to stay focused and be responsible.”

“So be irresponsible with me.” His voice was enticing and his eyes entrancing, a triton luring her into his lair and she so very much wanted to let him.

She shook her head apologetically. “I can’t.”

“You’re fighting a villain without help…”

“I have a team.”

“You went in without training.”

“I learn fast.”

“You’re the leader of your team.”

“We work together as a team.”

“You don’t let yourself feel.”

“I feel things.”

“You feel responsible for everything that is happening even though it isn’t your fault.”

“It is my fault we haven’t ended it yet.” She shook her head, tears starting to form. Everything he was pointing out were things she couldn’t let herself focus on. Because if she focused on them, she would never be able to keep going.

“You deserve a break. You deserve to do something crazy. You deserve to be irresponsible,” he said gently. “You deserve to be happy.”

He ran his thumbs over her cheeks and gazed adoringly in her eyes. Marinette leaned into his touch. “You have no idea how much you make me want that.” She gently placed her hands over his and closed her eyes. His strong hands made her feel warm and safe, but she couldn’t return the favor. “But we need to talk. And I don’t want to do it with an audience.” She winced internally at how that sounded.

He sighed and let his hands drop, taking a step away, also well aware that sentence never leads to anything good. “Okay.”

“Unfortunately, you should probably put a shirt on while we talk,” she sighed and looked at the ground.

He smiled cheekily at her. “Do I distract you?”

She looked back up at him and puckered her lips attempting to keep the corners of her lips from quirking up. “Yes,” she mumbled and looked away.

“Good.” He grinned and stepped closer again. “Because you make it impossible for me to focus on anything but you.”

She closed her eyes and shook her head. She couldn’t let him distract her. They needed to have this talk and she didn’t want to make him have to do it in front of a group. After a few deep breaths she looked back at him with a serious look. “It's about the Lazarus Pit.”

His face turned in an instant from teasing to unsure and a bit panicked. “How do you know about that?”

She gave him a weak smile. “That’s one of the things we can talk about.”

He looked away with a pained sigh. “Yeah, okay. I’ll go finish getting dressed.” He turned back to her with a strained smile. He really didn’t want this conversation to go as dark as it probably was going to go. He wanted to get back to the flirty banter, even though he knew it was probably impossible. “If you’re sure you want me to.”

She gave him a half smile and looked away with a quiet laugh. “Not really. It seems like a crime to cover your body, but it’s probably a good idea if I’m going to form coherent sentences.”

He nodded and turned to get dressed. She was still flirting with him. Still giving him compliments. That had to mean she wasn’t disgusted by his past with the Lazarus Pit. Maybe there was hope then. Maybe she could know the worst parts of him and still stay? That seemed like too much to ask for. He would just have to enjoy as much as he could, as long as he could. Until she learned too much about him and changed her mind.

After a few moments, Jason walked back into the room with a serious expression, trying to be prepared for the conversation. “Well that’s not fucking better.” Marinette threw her hands up in the air and turned away. Jason was fully dressed but that consisted of combat boots, the same tight pants from earlier, and a skintight shirt that clung to his muscles. She could see the outline of every muscle through his shirt and trace the movement as they flexed. “How am I supposed to have a serious conversation with you looking like that?”

Jason blushed lightly chuckled, grateful to her for relieving some of the tension. “The same way I do when you are anywhere near me.”

“It’s not the same,” she grumbled into her hands. “I’m not always in skintight clothes.”

“You don’t have to be to knock me on my ass,” he answered earnestly. Marinette looked up at him with wide eyes, a blush taking over her cheeks.

Jason grinned proudly. God it made him feel so amazing to know he could make her blush so easily. All he had to do was say a few honest words and she would blush for him. He could do that. But they had to be honest words. She wouldn’t respond if they weren’t. She demanded honesty. So he was going to have to give it to her. He cleared his throat and sat awkwardly on the edge of one of the arm chair’s cushion. “So… you wanted to talk about the Lazarus Pit?”

He had clasped his hands between his knees and hunched over like he was waiting for a scolding. The sight broke Marinette’s heart. She rubbed her suddenly sweaty palms on her pants and sat on the coffee table across from him. Their knees were almost touching. If Marinette were taller, they would be. It was the closest she could sit to him without actually sitting on him. She wanted to be close for this conversation. She needed him to know she was there for him. She wasn’t going to turn her back on him without hearing him out.

“We know what the Lazarus Pit is and we know you were in it. What we don’t know is why. What happened that you ended up in it?” She took a breath and gave the top of his head, the only part he was showing, a determined look. “What we don’t know is what it cost you.”

Jason let out a long, deep breath and ran his hands over his face a few times. “Yeah, okay. That’s fair I guess,” he mumbled into his hands. Was it really fair? He didn’t know. He didn’t know if they deserved to know his deepest, darkest secrets in order for him to stay. He knew he shouldn’t have to expose the rawest part of himself to stay, but he understood why they wanted it. And if they knew about the Lazarus Pit, then he understood why they were worried.

What he didn’t understand was why Marinette was sitting so close to him, making herself so vulnerable. If they really did know about the effect the Lazarus Pit had, then she should know better. She should know how dangerous it was to be so close. Yet there she was, sitting inches away, looking at him with openness and compassion. She was the strangest person who had ever entered his life and God, he hoped she never left it.

“You want the Cliff Notes version or the Mahabharata version?” His voice was tired.

She cocked her head to the side. “I don’t really know what either of those things mean, but I want to know as much as you’re comfortable telling me.”

Jason huffed out a laugh and leaned forward, concentrating on the floor as he composed his thoughts. How much was he comfortable with telling? He was still deep in thought when Marinette spoke up again. Her voice gentle and non-accusatory. “I know it must be really difficult and I don’t want to… I hate that I have to ask you to talk about it, to go through it again. But, the rest of the team knows too and they’re scared. If it’s too much for you, we don’t have to know. You can stay and we won’t push you. It isn’t a requirement to stay. But they’re going to be worried and I don’t know if they’ll be able to trust you. They…” she paused considering whether or not to tell him what Alya had said. There was no way he could take it positively, and he shouldn’t, but she wanted him to know what he would be up against, why she was asking. “They think you chose to go into the pit and they want to know why someone would make that choice knowing the price.”

“Choose?” He looked at her questioningly. She couldn’t possibly have meant that. “Choose!” he repeated incredulously. He leaned back in the chair and ran his hands through his hair. “I didn’t choose anything. I didn’t choose to die at that fucking clown’s hands. I didn’t choose to get brought back at the hands of that fucking holier than thou Super. I didn’t choose to get taken in by the League of fucking Assassins. And I certainly didn’t choose to get thrown into that damned Pit by that fucking bitch.” He started breathing heavily running through everything that happened.

“You wanted to know what it cost me.” He looked back at her with a feral look in his eyes. “It cost me my sanity. It cost me my serenity. It cost me my sense of justice and balance. It cost me my family. It cost me my future.” He scoffed at himself. “Not that I really ever had any of those things in the first place. Never had them and never going to have them.”

Jason looked up to face her, frustration and betrayal clear in his eyes. The Pit took so much from him and this should be one of those things. She shouldn’t let him stay. She shouldn’t trust him. “Why would you trust me? If you know about the Pits, why let me stay?” He cried.

She frowned at him. “You think I shouldn’t?”

“FUCK NO!” he yelled louder than he meant to and standing up to pace the floor. “I’m the last fucking person you should trust. And you already said you didn’t. You just said you thought I chose to jump into that fucking, godforsaken hell water.”

“That’s not what I said.” Her voice was calm and low, but demanded just as much attention as his screams had. “I said they were worried about that. They don’t know you. They haven’t met you so they’re scared. They know you have the potential to hurt us, to hurt me, and they don’t know you well enough to know you would never. I do. I trust you.”

He threw his hands up in the air and collapsed back into the seat. Why wasn’t she understanding this? As much as he hated the way his family treated him, he understood it. He deserved it. This though, he didn’t deserve. It was everything he had asked her for; a chance, their trust, her attention. But he didn’t deserve it. “Terrible decision,” he grumbled at her. “They could be right.”

She chuckled at his reaction and gave him a soft smile. “I trust you and I’m a pretty good judge of character.”

He scoffed at her. “You trust Constantine.”

“Eh. Yes and no. I trust Constantine to be Constantine.” She shrugged at him and leaned back, supporting herself with her hands behind her. “We needed someone with magical knowledge and questionable morals so he was the best fit. We sure as fuck weren’t going to go to Doctor Fate or Zatara, for opposite reasons.” She sighed and looked out through the windows, watching the city’s lights twinkle in the distance. “Look, I wouldn’t trust him to watch my dog, if I had one. But I’d trust him to watch my back until the cost got too high. I’d trust him to know when that was. And honestly, he’s the only one I trust with that. The only one.” She turned back to Jason with a quizzical look. “Do you think that’s what the Pit did to you? Made you untrustworthy?”

He shook his head and looked her in the eye. She needed to know who he was. “I was untrustworthy long before that.”

She leaned forward, matching his gaze with a fierce one of her own. “I don’t believe that.”

“Pixie…” he sighed, closing his eyes and leaning his head back.

“No,” she cut him off before he could say something else self-deprecating. He opened his eyes to see what she was going to say next. “Just because you weren’t trusted, that doesn’t mean you weren’t trustworthy.”

“You don’t know what I’ve done.” The look he gave her was heartbreaking and she wouldn’t let him get away with thinking that about himself.

“You don’t know what I’ve done.” She inched forward in her spot, her face closer to his so he couldn’t look away. “I trust you. You crossed an ocean to help us. You went against your family to come here. You saved Manon and August when you could have kept walking. You left on the rooftop when I asked you to even though you didn’t know it was me asking. You stopped at the gala to help a little girl because she looked sad. Because that’s who you are. And I trust you to be honest with me. I trust you to help Paris. I trust you to try. I trust you to protect us. I trust you to sit out as long as you can stand it. I trust you to fight until your last breath when you can’t stand it anymore. I trust you to do what you think is right. I trust you to trust me. And I trust you to argue when you disagree with me. I trust you.”

The room went silent except for Marinette’s deep breathing echoing through the room. Jason watched her for a few moments letting her words bounce around in his head. He finally lunged forward to pull her into a tight hug and settle her in his lap. Marinette froze momentarily before she wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his neck. She gripped him tightly as though she were afraid to let him go, afraid he wouldn’t understand how she felt. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have gotten worked up. I can’t do that here and I promised you I wouldn’t.”

Marinette shook her head rapidly. “No! I asked you about something extremely painful. I knew it would be horrible for you and I asked anyway. You had every right.”

“I didn’t. I’m sorry,” he sighed out. That was one of the conditions for him staying, not just for them but for himself and for Selina. He had promised himself and her that he would stay calm and the first day he blew it. He needed to do better and he knew that. He couldn’t afford to lose it like that. No matter what anyone says, no matter what anyone asks about, he couldn’t get angry.

He sighed at himself and took a calming breath before turning his attention back to Marinette. He hooked his finger under her chin to get her to look up at him. When she made eye contact with him, he softened his gaze. “You had every right to ask. I can talk about it calmly. I’m fine,” he tried to assure her with a weak smile.

Marinette looked at him with understanding and nodded at him. “I can pretend that’s true if you want me to,” she offered quietly.

He furrowed his brow at her, poised to reassure her it really was fine. That was his standard response, but for some reason it didn’t feel right. It felt wrong to lie like that with her. He didn’t want to lie. He cupped her face and pulled it closer to his. He rested his forehead on hers and shook his head lightly. “I don’t want you to pretend with me.”

She looked at him with half lidded eyes and licked her lips. “I don’t want to either.”

His eyes searched hers as he moved his lips closer to hers. She closed her eyes and angled her head in preparation. She jumped when her phone dinged, letting her know she had a text message. She chuckled lightly and looked down. “I guess they’re getting impatient.”

Jason changed his path and kissed her forehead, letting his lips linger. Marinette closed her eyes and leaned into the kiss. “We better get moving then,” he agreed just as quietly. “Wouldn’t want the model to have bags under his eyes in his pictures.”

She giggled at the comment and rested her head on his shoulder, making no move to get up. “So very thoughtful of you.”

“Yep, always thinking of others. That’s what everyone always says about me,” he joked, hugging her closer again.

She pushed away to look him in the eyes and cup his face. “I don’t doubt it.” She rubbed his cheeks with her thumb for a moment before standing up to leave.

Jason shook his head and sighed. “You really should,” he muttered too quietly for her to hear.

“Now we really better get going before Chloe skins me alive. And if we don’t leave now we’re going to be late. It takes a while to get there.”

“Ready to go,” he confirmed, following her out the door.

“Sure you got everything, General Sherman?” she teased him.

“General Sherman?” He looked at her questioningly, pulling the door closed behind him. He could not for the life of him figure out what the American Civil War had to do with him.

She nodded with a grin. “It’s like the biggest tree in the world or something?”

He shook his head. “What is it with you and all the tree nicknames?”

“They’re big and annoying, like you.” She booped him on the nose and laughed continuing to walk down the hallway.

He stared after her for a moment before something clicked in his mind. He walked up next to her and leaned down to whisper in her ear. “I think it’s because you want to climb me like one.” Marinette squeaked and stopped walking. Her cheeks immediately turned deep red that spread to her ears and neck. He gave her a devilish smirk and kept walking to the elevator. “You coming?”

Marinette cocked her hip to the side with a smirk that said she knew something he didn’t and knocked on that door she had stopped in front of.

Jason looked at the door and back to her and shook his head. “And here I was hoping I'd be able to make some more and better moves on you on our trip.”

She raised an eyebrow at him. “You have stronger moves than coming out in just skintight pants?”

“I do and I'm very excited to show them to you,” he confirmed with a cheeky grin, moving until he was only a hair’s breadth away from her.

She looked up at him and swallowed heavily. “I’m not sure I’d survive them.”

“Fucking finally! It’s only like ten feet what the fuck took so long. Some of us have better things than to do than lay the groundwork for getting fucked by our boyfriends.” Chloe exclaimed with an amount of exasperation that only she could achieve.

Marinette squeaked again and turned to Jason. “I swear I didn’t tell them that.”

“I will,” he smirked at her moving past her into the room.

She gave him a halfhearted glare and followed him in. “Go ahead, but at some point someone should wait for me to agree to be their girlfriend before they start telling people I am.” She gave Adrien a pointed look.

Adrien jumped up with a scowl, “Hey, no. It doesn’t count as ‘before’ if we never dated.”

“Take a look at the Ladyblog. We’ve been dating for five years,” Marinette pointed out with a smirk.

“I meant actual dating,” Adrien pouted, “not fanfiction dating.”

“Luka didn’t tell anyone before… or after,” Alya offered. “He really didn’t talk about it at all.”

“Bri didn’t tell… oh, no, yeah she did,” Nino added with a grimace. “Everyone.”

“Looks like Jason is your only hope,” Alya gave smirked.

“Too late for that,” Marinette gave him a pointed look. Jason shrugged not looking at all repentant and even had the audacity to put his arm around her waist and pull her closer, which Marinette subconsciously leaned in to. “Henry was the only one that asked me and then told people.”

“Yeah, but he didn’t last long, so clearly not a good approach for you.” Alya pointed out.

“Lasted longer than Bri though, so your theory might need some work,” Nino corrected her.

“The problem isn’t the approach,” Chloe chimed in annoyed with the conversation already, “the problem is Marinette.” Alya rounded on Chloe, red in the face and ready to start lecturing, but Chloe continued before she could. “Her standards suck. As in she has none.”

“Hey!” Marinette yelped indignantly.

“She doesn’t date people worthy of Ladybug, let alone Marinette.” Chloe clarified haughtily, pulling out her homework.

Everyone but Jason froze and stared at Chloe. “She’s drunk,” Nino stage whispered to Alya. “That’s the only explanation.”

“Okay, as godawful as this introduction has been so far…” Marinette spoke up ending the conversation. “… and it has been. Let’s do real introductions. Jason, this is the permanent miraculous team.” She motioned her arm to indicate the people in the room. “The drunk one is Chloe.”

“Fuck you, Dupain-Cheng.” Chloe scowled not looking up from her homework.

“I thought that was my job,” Jason commented with a smirk.

“Oh, he’s going to fit in perfectly,” Nino laughed.

“I’m Alya.” She waved from her spot on the couch. “The one that looks like he just got in a fight is Nino. The dork is Adrien.”

“Did you just get in a fight?” Jason asked observing him. His clothes were rumpled, his hair looked scruffed up, and there looked to be the beginning of a bruise on his arm.

“Kind of. I said…” Nino started with a wicked smirk.

“Nino, you finish that sentence and I will give you a black eye to complete your look,” Marinette growled at him.

Jason looked down at Marinette in surprise before leaning over to whisper quietly enough that only she could hear, “Did I mention how fucking hot you are?” Marinette squeaked and turned bright red again.

Adrien crossed the room to shake Jason’s hand with a friendly grin. “Okay, introductions are done, now let’s focus on the important business before I have to leave. First, what did you just say? I haven’t seen her turn that color in years. Also, a correlated question, he’s already telling people you’re dating?” He waggled his eyebrows at Marinette. She took a deep breath and let it out loudly in a resigned huff. They were going to ridicule her for the rest of her life over Jason. Adrien laughed at her and moved his focus over to Jason. “Good to see you, man. I’m impressed you were able to find Marinette.” He eyed Jason’s hand around Marinette’s waist and Marinette’s body language. He looked up to Jason. “I ship it.”

Jason grinned smugly at Marinette. “He ships it,” he pointed out in an innocent voice.

Marinette rolled her eyes. “He would ship me with Loki. It doesn’t mean anything.”

Adrien grinned at her and shot her finger guns. “Whatever makes you happy, baby. And Loki is hot. I ship everyone I like with him.”

Alya pushed him out of the way and stepped in front of Jason. “Ignore him. He trusts everyone. You don’t need to worry about him unless you screw up… and then he’ll kill you.” She stuck her hand out to shake Jason’s. He looked down at Marinette questioningly. She shrugged in response. This wasn’t the worst shovel talk they’d doled out and he was Red Hood, he could handle it. “We, on the other hand,” she motioned to Chloe and herself, “don’t trust anyone. We’ll kill you when we think you even might be about to screw up.”

Jason nodded at them. This was a form of interaction he understood; threats. “And him?” He motioned to Nino.

“Me? I provide the alibis.” He answered with a grin.

“One of the most important pieces in the game.” He nodded looking around. “Another important piece is believability. People have to believe you would do what you threaten. That’s where a reputation can help you. No offense but you guys don’t seem the type.”

“But I am.” Plagg appeared in Jason’s face out of nowhere with a maniacal grin on his face.

Jason flinched back almost falling on his ass, pulling Marinette behind him as he moved. “What the ever living FUCK is that?” He yelled out.

The room erupted in laughter except for Plagg who continued staring him down. Marinette stood between the two with an apologetic smile and helped him straighten up. “Sorry about him. I’d say he doesn’t mean it but… the dinosaurs would say otherwise… if they were still alive… and could talk.”

“Jesus Christ, Marinette. You were over there forever. Did you explain anything to him?” Chloe groaned.

“I was trying to explain things to but then someone,” she looked pointedly at all of them, “kept interrupting.”

“And just exactly what were we interrupting?” Adrien asked waggling his eyebrows.

Marinette gave him a deadpan look for a few seconds waiting for him to figure it out. “Explaining things. I just fucking said that, dumbass.”

“Excuse me, but would we discuss the fucking floating demon cat, please?” Jason interrupted keeping his eyes glued to the floating creature.

“Please don’t call him that. It’ll just go to his head. We won’t hear the end of it for centuries.” Tikki floated up near Jason but at a respectful distance. “I’m Tikki. He’s Plagg. That is Wayzz. That is Trixx. And that is Pollen.” She said, pointing out each of the kwami in turn as they hovered over their wielders. “We’re kwami.”

“Right. That explains exactly nothing.” Jason scowled. “Is there someone who can use real words to explain what is going on?”

Marinette laughed and pulled him over to the sitting area, letting him take the arm chair while she perched on its arm. “Kwami are what give us our powers. Each one represents a concept. Each concept comes with powers related to that concept. Pollen is the kwami of subjection. She can knock people out. Wayzz is the kwami of protection. He creates an impenetrable force field. Trixx is the kwami of Illusion. He can cast… illusions. That one’s rather self-explanatory really. Plagg, the demon cat, is the kwami of destruction. He can be asshole, like his owner.” Twin heys rang out from Adrien and Plagg, which were completely ignored. “But his power is he can cast bad luck and he destroys things. Tikki is the kwami of creation. She has the power of luck and can create things. There are more, but those are the five main kwami used currently.”

“Okay…” he drew out the last sound of the word, not sure how to process all that.

Marinette grimaced at him. “It gets worse so I just… want you to be prepared.” He scowled at her. Worse than their last conversation didn’t sound good. “The kwami are tied to pieces of jewelry called a miraculous. If you possess the miraculous, you can control them. That’s why the villain is trying to get our miraculous. If he gets them, he controls them. Tikki’s and Plagg’s miraculous can be used together to grant a wish, a physics defying, reality destroying wish. It can reset time. It can destroy worlds. A couple hundred years ago, someone got them. He wished for immortality.”

Jason watched her apprehensively. “He created the Pits.”

“No, we created the Pits. He wished for them.” Plagg hissed. “But he wasn’t too specific with his wish,” he cackled as he said it.

“Making a wish is like making a deal with a leprechaun. There’s always a catch.” Marinette clarified. “He got immortality, but at a price.”

“That’s why we’re letting you stay lover boy,” Alya added.

“I already used lover boy,” Marinette interrupted.

“Fuck, yeah that was too easy anyway. Don Juan?”

“Not yet.”

“Not ever.” She said pointedly and turned to Jason. “That’s why we’re letting you stay Don Juan,” she continued. “Because the Pit restores your health, but weakens your ability to link to a miraculous or its powers.”

“It means Hawkmoth shouldn’t have as powerful of a pull on you, should an akuma ever land on you,” Nino added.

“It also means you can’t ever wield a miraculous,” Marinette said apologetically.

“Was that a consideration?” Jason exclaimed.

“No!” “Maybe.” “Duh!” Alya, Adrien, and Chloe answered at the same time. Alya and Adrien looked at each other in surprise while Chloe rolled her eyes.

“We never discussed that!” Alya raised her voice in annoyance.

“It wouldn’t have been the worst idea,” Adrien offered weakly.

“It would have been the obvious next step. If he’s here to help us and he has training and Marinette trusts him, which of fucking course she does, of course we would have given him one.” Chloe explained.

Jason leaned over to Marinette so the others wouldn’t hear him. “I see what you mean about Manon and Chloe.”

Marinette giggled and nodded. “It’s only a matter of time before she adds the cursing in too. She probably does just not in front of me or her mom.”

“And what are you two kids giggling about over there?” Adrien asked with a knowing smirk.

“Fuck you. I don’t giggle.” Jason grunted.

“Too manly for that. I only laugh in a manly way,” Nino’s voice lowered to imitate Jason.

The rest of the room started chortling in terribly concealed laughter. Jason narrowed his eyes and pointed at him, “Yes I am.” Causing the rest of the room to give up on their attempts to hide their laughter. “Okay, so what I’m hearing is I don’t get one of those magical girl sequences.”

Marinette laughed and patted him on the shoulder. “I mean, you could always pretend. Nobody’s stopping you from creating your own amazing sequence when you put on your suit.”

He smirked and pulled her closer to him. “What kind of sequence were you thinking of exactly?” Marinette squeaked and turned red. She buried her head in her hands making him laugh.

“An incredibly fucking boring one considering she mentioned putting your clothes on.” Chloe remarked.

“I’m creative. I could make it work.” Jason assured her with a wink. Marinette groaned and bent in half, trying to force her face, still covered by her hands, into her legs while the rest of the room laughed.

Chloe eyed him for a moment before nodding and going back to her homework. “I’m sure that’s true, off brand Robin Hood.”

“Are we letting him suit up though?” Alya asked. “Do we want Hawkmoth knowing one of Gotham’s vigilantes is running around? Not to mention, his identity isn’t protected by magic. If someone knows Jason Todd from Gotham is in Paris and Red Hood from Gotham is in Paris, people will be able to put things together. They aren’t stupid.”

“That’s a good point, babe. I don’t think we can.” Nino agreed.

“We’re not letting him run around at all.” Marinette’s voice was so firm, the note of finality so clear Jason did a double take. “You don’t have magic to protect you and we can’t give you a suit. You can’t be in the fights.”

“I’ve fought worse things than you can imagine,” Jason said slowly.

“I have an incredible imagination, but I don’t have to use it for this. I just need my memory,” she said coldly. The rest of the room watched her with sympathy, knowing where her mind went. “Because I can remember devastation. I can remember people torn to pieces. I can remember people crushed. I can remember people drowning. I can’t remember you like that.”

“I can take care of myself. I’ve fought Supers. I’ve fought assassins. I’ve come back from the god damned dead,” he assured her, starting to understand where her objection was coming from.

“Join the club. You aren’t special.” Chloe snarked.

“But I did it without a magic suit. I’ve probably done almost as much as you all and without a magic power up to do it.” Jason argued.

“Power ups are a different thing.” Nino threw in. Marinette and Jason glared at him. He held his hands up in surrender. “Just saying.”

“I can do more than just hide,” he pointed out, begging her to let him do more.

“And you will, but not in a fight.” Marinette responded, her eyes pleading with him to understand.

“He’s going to need to suit up if he’s going to train us while we’re in suits though. Jason Todd can’t just be hanging around the miraculous team. That would put him squarely on Hawkmoth’s most wanted list. Right next to Marinette.” Adrien pointed out.

Jason’s head whipped over to her and Marinette groaned. “The fuck?”

“It’s nothing,” she tried to assure him, but the look he gave her confirmed he wouldn’t believe it.

She sighed and shot Adrien a glare. “Fine. Hawkmoth likes to target me. Has from the start. We have no idea why. I would say Lila, she’s the only one we know of who actively dislikes the Marinette side of me, but it started before she appeared in Paris and we know Hawkmoth is a man. We checked her National ID and school records. She definitely wasn’t here. We don’t think he knows my identity, otherwise he would have targeted me more. So it’s just one of those fun mysteries that makes life interesting. Because otherwise our lives would be so boring.”

Jason stared at her with an overwhelming need to protect her burning in his gut. It wasn’t just as a hero that she was dealing with this. She had to deal with it as a civilian too. No fucking wonder she was so fucking over this. But since she wouldn’t let him fight with them, the best way to help her right now was to train her and to do that, he would have to come up with a new identity. “Red hood can’t run around with you guys and train you, but maybe another hero can.”

“Hell no. We’re barely letting you stay, and that is still probationary. We sure as hell aren’t letting another hero in.” Alya growled.

“No, I meant I’ll have to be someone else,” Jason explained.

“I still don’t want you in akuma battles,” Marinette said carefully.

“We can discuss that later,” he assured her. He knew why she was objecting, for the same reason he would object to her fighting against the Joker. He didn’t doubt her abilities, but even the idea made his lungs feel like they were slowly disintegrating. And worrying about him would distract her during a fight, which he also couldn’t allow. But he was sure he could convince her to let him help with crowd control, saving innocent bystanders. He just needed a bit of time and the right approach. “But for training and patrol and investigations, another identity would help.” He was specifically thinking about when he was breaking into different places, but she didn’t need to know that. But the way Chloe was eying him, he had a feeling she knew what he meant.

“Like Red Bat?” Nino suggested.

“No, nothing bat related, just to be safe.” Jason shook his head.

“Oooh, Red Cat!” Adrien exclaimed, bouncing in his seat at the idea.

“Hell no. I would never hear the end of it.”

“Red Turtle?” Nino suggested with a smile. “Raphael?”

“Oooh, Red Fox!” Alya offered loudly. She froze almost immediately realizing what that would be. “No wait… forget I said that.”

There was a pause as people thought of a name. “Don’t look at me,” Chloe spoke up without looking up from her homework. “I’m not sharing my name. I’m the only Bee in town.”

“A name can wait. We’ll need a suit before a name. I think I can come up with a few ideas, unless you have one already.” Jason shook his head and Marinette bounced with anticipation. “Yay! I never get to design hero suits.” She pulled him up to standing so she could examine his body with a critical eye, thinking of designs that would work with his body. Jason suddenly felt exposed as he circled him with no hint of a blush as she stared at him and for the first time, he was positive she was not thinking about him in any remotely sexual way. He scrunched up his face. He didn’t like it at all.

“Okay,” Adrien interjected. She’s going to be gone to the world for a while. “So, back to the important business. Second question; is your brother single?”

Tags:

@loveswifi @mystery-5-5 @dreamykitty25 @ira-sairain @wannajointhecrabcult @susiej1118 @casual-darkness @mandy984 @darkthunder1589 @chez-pezeater @emilytopaz @elements1999 @mermaidreject @dramatic-squirrel @thenillabean @alysrose-starchild @phoenixperegrinebitch @nickristus-dreamer @goblinwhoships @valeks-princess @redscarlet95 @inarachi02 @unrepentantgeek @theymakeupfairies @smolplantmum @moongoddesskiana @thehufflepuffranger-blog @fusser90 @spyofthenightcourt @jayverca @animegirlweeb @queen-of-the-trash-planet-tm @consumeconstantly @lozzybowe @novicevoice @random-fandoms7 @acoolspacegirl @laurcad123 @dast218 @frieddonutsweets @maribat-is-lifeblood @g-arya @fantasiame @lilkeymilkey @corabeth11 @roselynfey @babylovebug18 @pepelachanel @atramentias @jalaluvsu @nathleigh @iloontjeboontje @spicybelladonna @kokotaru @zalladane @zebrabaker @too0bsessedformyowngood @demonicbusiness @our-preciousss @ertyzeta @nik-nak-3 @i-wanna-be-a-ninja @no-username2544 @2confused-2doanything @maybe-nonsense @icebluedolphin2365 @fc-studios @bee-wrecker @ichigorose @kking13 @officiallydarkgeek

#maribat #jasonette #Pixie Spy

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skiijumpinng · 5 years

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Just Forget The World -Lellinger fic

The last weekend was way too emotional not to write a fic about it. Enjoy. :)

The screen showed a bright yellow number one and Stephan felt his lips spread into a smile. He finally managed to do a good second jump and even though there were 7 jumpers still waiting for their turn, he knew he could be satisfied with his performance.

It was a hard weekend behind him and he couldn’t wait to get some sleep. He hasn’t had a well-rested night for weeks and travelling to Japan was not making things any easier. He felt like a couple of hours of sleep were not nearly enough and being the only one in team who valued his sleep and liked to get every minute of it that he could, jet lag really wasn’t his friend. Combine that with a morning competition, and you get what Stephan feels now. Exhaustion.

The others don’t get it, Markus and Karl preferring the morning competitions over the night ones, while Constantin and Pius don’t mind waking up early as well. The only one who understands his struggle though, isn’t there. Andi is even less of a morning person than him. While sharing a room, they would spend at least half an hour waking up.

It was usually Stephan being the first to stir up at the sound of the alarm and even if he knew he shouldn’t, he pressed the snooze button. Turning around in his bed and slowly falling asleep again, it was Andi’s turn to shut the second alarm off. They kept repeating the process without saying a word and after the fifth time of trying to squeeze in another 5 minutes, one of them would finally wake up. It was their least favourite time of the day and even if they knew that the others would make fun of them for being late, they couldn’t care less. They were the only ones who could tolerate each other’s grumpiness in the morning and overhear the annoyed words that none of them really meant.

They could do that, because they got it. And without having someone here who understood his everlasting love for sleep, Stephan had to bear being the only one who was made fun of.

Turning around, he was once again reminded that his roommate was not here. Usually, Andi would be waiting in the outrun and holding open the red gates, smiling brightly and enjoying everyone’s success. But this time, he wasn’t there and Stephan couldn’t share the happiness that he felt when he realised that he became second.

It happened in Willingen all over again. Stephan was sitting on top of the hill, waiting for Horngacher to wave the flag. The atmosphere around him was exhilarating and he all he saw was a sea of german flags that were waving for him.

It was noise and cheering, but Stephan didn’t hear anything.

He remembered his second jump in Titisee, and he knew he didn’t want the events repeating themselves all over again. He missed the podium enough times already and he was determined to do a decent second jump that would get him on the podium. It was his home hill and he had the advantage of knowing it better than anyone else. He knew the long inrun that could be deceiving at the take-off. He knew the ski flying shape of the radius, and he knew he must be quick over the knoll. He knew every little detail, because he trained here since his young age, and he also knew that he was in good shape. He just had to trust himself. ‘Don’t defend, just attack,’ he reminded himself and let go of the gate.

His mind was blank when he jumped. He trusted his body to do the process on its own, without his nerves interfering. He picked up speed on the inrun and pushed himself in the air at the table. They always kept saying that there isn’t enough life in his jumps and the eager wish to prove them wrong was enough to make him put in all the energy he had. He straightened himself in the air and let the wind take over. He saw the green line at the bottom of the hill and desperately hoped he would surpass it. The conditions were hard, but he managed a good landing and let himself be relieved when he heard the loud cheering.

His teammates were waiting for him in the outrun and he desperately wanted not to let them down. But what he wanted even more, was not letting himself down. His heart was beating rapidly in his chest as he waited for the results to come in, and the elation he felt when he took the lead couldn’t be described. To be on the podium in front of his relatives, friends, people he grew up with and other spectators who were there to cheer him on, was simply indescribable.

In the leader box he only had to wait for one more jump. He knew his second one was good, and he secretly hoped that it was enough to keep the lead at the end. But the person that was still waiting on the top was Kamil, and everyone knew he never messed up the second round. But when he landed it was before the green line and everything after that happened way too quickly for Stephan to fully comprehend.

It was people congratulating him, it was noise all around, it was black-red-yellow flags far in the distance, and everything felt like a dream.

Years ago, when he got into the world cup, he didn’t dare to dream about winning a competition. One had to be consistent, have luck with the wind, be precise on the take-off and do a perfect landing for having the chance of winning. It was a silent dream, one he thought was too far away to reach. Up until now he was satisfied with top 10 finishes, always enjoying the atmosphere and the opportunity he had to compete with the best ski jumpers in the world. But ever since that podium in Wisla that surprised everyone, including himself, he craved for more. He knew he could do it, and every time he finished just under the podium, he felt himself get the motivation and confidence he needed. He dreamed of it, but he had never dreamed of getting his maiden world cup victory here, in Willingen, in front of the people he loved and who he knew where there to support him.

The once silent dream became a reality.

People were rushing around him and his teammates, who were now mirroring his wide-spread grin, couldn’t stop hugging him. Everyone was around him, except someone, whose hug would mean a lot more.

He desperately tried to push his thoughts away from Andi, because this was a moment he should enjoy every second of, but all the ‘what if’ thoughts kept coming back.

They’ve talked about this moment for so many times in the last couple of years, Stephan revealing his desires to finally be on the top and Andi attentively listening. He always urged him on and motivated him to trust himself, without letting his nerves ruin his success.

Now, when he was finally listening to his advice and letting himself relax before jumping, Andi wasn’t there.

Stepping on the top of the podium felt exhilarating. His cheeks hurt from smiling and there was still noise in his head, the last couple of minutes repeating themselves all over again. The hymn was loud and people were singing along, while Stephan still tried to comprehend that it was playing because of him. He felt proud and happy, so unbelievably happy, that his heart could burst.

He knew Andi was watching and he hoped he felt proud too.

Andi was cursing his injury over and over again, like he did a countless times in the last months. The competition form Willingen was playing on his tv and his heart was beating wildly before Stephan’s jump. His knuckles were white from crossing his fingers and he couldn’t turn away his eyes. The camera was showing a close-up of Stephan’s face and he couldn’t stop himself from trying to figure out his roommates’ thoughts. He hoped he wasn’t letting his nerves get to him and in his head he repeated all the conversations they had about this moment.

His mind went blank when he watched him jump, and even before the landing, he knew the jump was good. He watched Stephan’s lips spread to a smile and subconsciously mirrored it with his own. He had that energy around him and one could simply not return a smile while looking at him.

When the results came in, he never wished more that he could be there. He watched as others hugged and congratulated him and he knew it was pointless to try to call or send a message. There was chaos around him and Stephan deserved every second of it. He knew that he won’t be able to squeeze him into a hug today and tell him how proud he is, but watching his grinning face that conveyed so much happiness, he knew there will be time for that later.

#i just had to wite something after everything that happened #also this was a work in progress since sapporo as u can see #and it kidna came perfect to add the part from willingen as well #ahhh i miss these two together #also #this is not really a fiction?#i kinda lik writing things as they actually are whil dding a couple of things #but tbh we all know andi was a nervous mess watching this competition #and he definitely wished he could squeeze him into a hug #why am i doing this to myself #hope you like itttt #ski jumping #season 2019/2020 #lellinger #stephan leyhe #fanfiction #andreas wellinger

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everlastingdreams · 5 years

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BETA John Constantine x Reader : Heaven And Hell Chapter 1

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Summary: The reader has been travelling alone for a while now, running from her demons. When soon she finds herself dealing with real ones. At first she appears to be just a psychic, but as time passes John finds himself wondering if that is all she is. The rising darkness is coming closer everyday, what part does she come to play ?

Notes: Damn, the start is always hard to write isn’t it ? This is just the very first chapter of this story. I will follow the whole damn show lol Also, this is the beta.

Chapter: 1/?

Word count: 7056

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Water splashed beneath your feet as you walked home in a fast pace. You had spend some time with your friends after school and lost track of time. You were expected home soon. It was spring time so luckily it wasn't dark soon and the walk home was only a few minutes and there was always a lot of people on the street that you knew since you you were very little. It could be a bit awkward for your 10 year old self when Gerda from the newspaper stand would pinch your cheek when she saw you walk by, but at least you felt safe knowing there was always someone making sure you were getting home safely.

You started walking on the last street to your home and checked your watch for the time again. When you looked up you noticed how a man was sitting on the ground, in the rain, his hand outstretched to all the passer-by's. He pleaded to each of them and all ignored his existence.

You thought about crossing the street as you were taught to do but you didn't feel unsafe here so you decided to keep walking on this side.

When you finally reached the man on the ground, you stopped. He didn't stretch his hand out to you as he kept his head low. You reached in the pockets of your jacket and took out the small amount of coins you owned. Your family wasn't rich, often the opposite, but seeing someone in the pouring rain and turning a blind eye wasn't something you wanted to do.

You stretched your hand out to him while you held the coins “Excuse me, sir.”

He looked up, a little suprised.

You nodded to your hand holding the coins.

His eyes fell on the coins before he looked up at you again “Are you sure, child ? You could buy yourself something to eat with this.”

You were suprised by his manner of speech and his reaction. You were hungry, however. But this person was clearly going through worse things then just hunger. And maybe all you could do was help him with that.

You gave him a nod “I'll be fine” and you let the coins fall into his hand.

“Thank you.” he said quietly and you turned, walking away again before you would be home late.

“Child !” the man called for you and you walked back to him. He stretched out his closed hand and nodded to it. You opened your hand and he let a necklace slide into your small hands. That suprised you. On the necklace was a round pendant it had a cross and angel wings on it, the rest was unclear to you and when you turned it around it had, what looked like skeletons, crawling over stuff. You turned the pendant over a couple of times before you looked down to the man again and you stretched your hand out, wanting to give it back to him.

He shook his head and chuckled a little as he took hold of your hand and closed it, making you hold the pendant in your hand “Oh no, young one. You will need this.” His mouth twitched as if he wanted to smile but changed his mind.

“Why ?” you furrowed your brows, confused as to why someone who clearly needs more help would give away one of their few possesions.

“In time, we will need you.”

His explanation just confused you more “Who is 'we' ?” you asked politely.

He ignored your question “You should head home. You don't want your parents to worry about you.”

You nodded to the strange man, and put the necklace over your head as it was a bit too big for you for now.

“Thank you.” you quickly said and started walking again.

You were sure you were going to be late now, you walked a little faster and glanced at your watch and stopped when you saw the time.

It was like the watch hadn't moved the entire time you spoke with the man. You checked and saw that the watch was still working as it finally ticked to the next minute. You looked behind you and saw that the man was no longer sitting on the ground. He was gone, as if he was never even there in the first place. The only thing that helped you believe that it wasn't a dream was the necklace around your neck.

Years later...

You were driving down the last bit of the dirt road you had been following for about 2 minutes. The place you were called to was a former farmhouse, no farming was done there anymore however. It wasn't the first time someone had heard about your 'gifts', even when you tried to keep a low profile word still got around. The man who had called you heard about you through a local priest that you had once met with. The man had spoken to the priest about his strange problems concerning his house, the priest had tried to help him but was unsuccesfull.

The man had called you, asking if you would be able to help. He was hearing things but only inside the house. Scratching and sometimes whispers. Stuff would move as well. You could hear the fear in his voice through the phone. You agreed to meet him at his house to see if you could help him with his problem.

You pulled up on the driveway of the house. The man was waiting outside for you already and you walked up to him.

“Good afternoon, Mister Peterson. I'm y/n l/n.” you held out your hand.

He shook your hand “Good afternoon. Thank you for coming, please just call me Harold.”

You nodded “Alright, Harold. So this is the place ?” you tilted your head to the door.

He sighed deeply “Yeah.” he walked to the door and held it open for you, you stepped inside and almost immediately you could hear it.

“It's been doing that for the last hour again.”

“And you had people check for rats or other reasons, correct ?” you walked further in the house towards the noise.

“I did, they found nothing. No rats, no mice, no busted pipes, nothing.” he followed you into the kitchen where you stopped.

You had visited people's homes before, everytime it was just a spirit trying to seek contact with their loved ones. You had managed to send them all on their way when the familly had gotten their closure.

But this was different, the scratching wasn't something you would usually hear. Voices ? Yes. Shadows ? Yes . Scratching ? No.

You walked around the room a bit as the sound continued.

“When they came to check, they never heard it, the scratching I mean. Like it only makes itself known if it's just me.” Harold stood in the doorway.

You nodded, you had hear that one before. It could drive people insane and make them desperate. “They were never going to find anything. Or hear the scratching. Whatever is doing this, it's doing this to torment you. Drive you over the edge, isolate you, make you feel like you can't escape an invisible enemy.” you listened to the sound again.

“So..you think it's really a ghost ?” Harold swayed a little uncomfortable.

You clicked your tongue “I'm not sure. The scratching... it's not something I've heard before. It could be a malevolent spirit or-” you stopped yourself from saying the word, knowing it wasn't smart to cause the man more fear.

Before he could ask you about it, you spoke again “Please don't think that I am being rude, but I need to be alone in here for a bit. I can't really focus when someone is around, and I really need to be focused.”

Harold looked around the room before he stood upright “Uh.. alright.. I'll leave you to it then.” he paused for a second “Do I close the door ?” he asks.

You nodded “Yes, please. I'll call for you when I'm finished or if I have a question.”

He gave a short nod and closed the door. The moment the door was closed the scratching got louder as if it had been waiting for this moment. You couldn't really figure out where the sound was coming from exactly, only that it was coming from this room. You wondered if you could trigger a vision and stepped close to the wall. You reached for it but before you could place your hand on the wall of the room, Harold knocked on the door of the room.

“It's okay. You can come in.” you called out.

Harold opened the door a little, probably afraid to be face to face with a ghost, as he only poked his head past the door to look at you “Sorry, I didn't want to disturb you but there was a guy at the door and he insisted that he knew you. Said you two worked together.”

You frowned at that, you had no idea what Harold was talking about considering the fact that you always worked alone.

You stepped away from the wall “I'm afraid I don't- ”

The door opened wider and a man brushed past Harold rather rudely. You arched a brow at the blond-haired guy.

“'Scuse me, mate. Sorry I'm late to the party, luv. Traffic. You know how it goes.” he directed it to you as if you knew him. You obviously saw straight through his bullshit.

Harold was looking at him suspiciously and so were you.

“Look, I don't know-” you started to speak but the guy pulled a card from the pocket of his coat and handed it to you.

You stared at the card for a moment. Was this guy for real ?.. Did he seriously have a business card for this ?

“I don't know what entity is housing in this place either, but we'll figure it out. Won't we ?” he turned to you again, he was hoping you would play along.

You looked at him annoyed, this guy had the nerve to just burst into this place and interupt you.

You wanted to tell him to leave. But you looked at the card again and maybe, just maybe, this guy was for real.

“Sure thing.” you gave him your best fake smile, your eyes were probably shooting daggers. “Harold, we'll handle it from here. I'll call you when you can come in the room again.”

Harold gave a short nod and left the room again, closing the door behind him.

“So, Mister Constantine.” you flicked the card between your fingers “Wanna tell me why you're here ?” you weren't going to just act all friendly to a guy who just showed up and pulled you into a lie.

He turned to you in slight suprise “I was wondering the same about you, looks like we're here for the same reason, luv. No need to be afraid.”

You scoffed loudly at that “Let me make something clear here. I am not afraid of you..” you held up the card he had given you and took a few steps in his direction “Oh Master of the dark arts.” you mocked.

He looked at you for a moment, as if he wasn't sure how to react. Then he smirked “Not fond of competition, I see.”

You shook your head biting your tongue, you had a feeling he was arrogant the second he walked in and you were right to think so.

“This isn't a competition. Constantine.” you stepped closer to him “At least, not for me.” you lightly smacked your hand to his chest and let go of the card. He catched the card against his chest before it could fall.

“This is people's lives. I do this to help them. I'm not pissed at you because you might be better at this, I'm pissed because you waltzed in here, lying your ass off and I don't trust you. That and I was getting ready to solve the mystery that haunts this house, I don't like to be interupted when doing these things.” you kept your voice low as you spoke, crossing your arms in front of your chest.

“Ever heard of a scry map ?” he seemed reluctant to tell you this.

You arched a brow “ A what now ?”

He took a step towards you “A scry map. It detects supernatural activity in the city. If something is happening, the place on the map gets..highlighted. And this place lit up like a christmas tree.”

His explanation did sound trustworthy, you didn't know how else he could have even found out about this place or that it was haunted by something.

“So, what now ? I don't like to work with other people.” you shrugged and crossed your arms.

He smirked and you knew he clearly didn't plan on just leaving “I prefer to work alone myself, but I'm guessing were stuck in the situation, luv.”

"Why do you keep calling me 'luv' ? I got a name you know." "Wasn't able to pull that information out of ol' Harry when I was at the door. Just told him I knew ya, hoped he would mention your name but he didn't." he explained. "Hah, I thought we were friends ?" You fake pouted. He stood a little awkwardly and you felt bad for him "It's y/n l/n." "That will make things a bit easier, luv." This time you visibly rolled your eyes at him

Loud scratching close to your feet made you jump backwards, you looked to the floor but nothing was there.

Constantine took a few quick steps to you, his expression alarmed “What is it ? What's wrong ?” he looked to the floor as well.

“Did you hear that ??” you kept looking at the floor, scanning for whatever it was that cause it.

He focused on your face now, his eyes narrowing when he did “Hear what, luv ?”

You looked at him and realised that he had no idea what had just happened “The very loud scratching.. you didn't hear it ?”

He looked to the floor again “No. I didn't.” he looked back to you “But somehow you did, which makes me wonder..”

“What ?” you were still startled.

“Do you see or hear things often that other people don't ?” he looked around the room, scanning it as well.

“Are you trying to call me crazy ?” you calmed down a bit. Your annoyance with him was getting stronger then your fear.

He chuckled “I'm the last person who should be able to call you that, believe me. I meant, do you get visions, hear spirits ?”

You thought for a second, thinking about saying no, but then again this guy was an exorcist and what not. If you sounded crazy, so did he.

“I've been having them since I was very young. As I grew older, they grew stronger. More frequent.” you tried to shrug it off. It wasn't the first time you had told someone you could hear and see things.

“A psychic then.” he concluded “Not the type one should call when dealing with this.”

You narrowed your eyes at him “Are you saying that I can't handle this ?”

He walked around in the kitchen a bit “I'm saying you shouldn't handle this alone.”

You resisted the urge to roll your eyes. Then the scratching started again, this time close to where Constantine was standing. It didn't startle you this time and you marched to where he was standing.

He almost stumbled back at your quick pace “What-”

“Shut up.” you whispered as you kneeled and placed your hands on the wooden floor.

He understood what you were doing and kneeled down next to you, waiting for you to speak.

You didn't even have to focus much before you saw people, sitting together at the dinner table in this kitchen. A young woman and what looked like her boyfriend were in light conversation, laughing and smiling. You couldn't hear what they were saying.

You blinked once and the vision was gone. It wasn't what you were expecting to see, especially not with the scratching. You had expected something..scary ?

Constantine was watching your facial expressions “What did you see ?”

You blinked again, almost having forgotten that he was next to you, you pointed at the dinner table in the room “A woman and her boyfriend, I think, sitting at that table. They were enjoying their meal.”

You were a little disappointed that you didn't get anything usefull from the vision. You slapped your hands on your knees and pushed yourself off of the ground sighing.

Constantine was still kneeling on the floor, he knocked the floor a few times before he stood up as well “HARRY !” he shouted suddenly and you almost jumped. Why was he so loud ?!

“It's harold !” you corrected him and he just smirked at you again. He knew.

Harold opened the door a little hesitantly “Is it gone yet ?”

Constantine looked at you then back to Harold “I'm afraid it's a bit more complicated, we'll have to look around the place for a bit. You don't mind do ya ?”

Harold looked at the two of you worried “Uuuh..”

“It will make things easier. Can't send this thing away if we don't know what we're dealing with.” Constantine took of his jacket and put it on the chair.

“Okay. Sure. I'll stay here then ?” Harold asked a little awkwardly.

You took a step towards Harold “If you don't mind, of course ? We won't be nosey. We just have to get a bit more information on this thing.”

Harold nodded.

Constantine walked past him and opened the door, you followed him. You had set one foot past him before he spoke again “Oh, just one more thing, do you have a basement ?”

Harold seemed suprised at the question “Not that I know of.. no.”

“Alright, well. See you in a bit then.” he said before closing the door, leaving Harold in the kitchen on his own. You felt a drop of water fall on your jacket in the hallway, you looked up and saw that there was water dripping down slowly. It didn't come as a suprise to you, the house was rather old.

“Are we seriously leaving him alone in a room with all that scratching going on ?” you didn't get this guy at all. And he didn't seem to act very professional, at least not compared to his card.

“He'll be fine for now. But we have to find this thing before it get stronger and manifests itself.” he walked towards the stairs “It's not a demon, if that's what you're worried about.” he looked over his shoulder at you as he walked to the stairs.

“How do you know that ?” you followed him up the stairs.

“The smell, mostly. That and a demon wouldn't just wait all this time. It would make it's presence very clear.” he reached the top of the stairs and waited for you.

You were about to take the last step but then you froze as another vision took over.

You looked behind you, down the stairs and saw a man running up, his face full of blood. He was running for his life and you could feel his fear. It looked like he was going to run right into you and you stumbled backwards. A hand gripping your arm snapped you back to reality. You almost fell over the baluster but Constantine was quick to react and prevented it.

“Alright there, luv ?” his eyes were wide as he held onto your arm and guided you safely up the last steps.

You shook your head, your body trembling a bit “I had another vision..”

“What happened ?” he held onto your shoulders as you looked at the stairs, trying to catch your breath.

“That guy from my other vision, the boyfriend ?” you drew a breath “He was running up these stairs. His face was bleeding badly. I could feel his fear, he was running for his life. Something was chasing him.” you doubted you would ever forget the sight.

Constantine let go of one of your shoulders, giving the other a squeeze to keep you focused “Did you see what was chasing him.”

You shook your head again “No, but whatever it was, it's was trying to kill him.”

He gave a nod, before pulling you a bit further away from the stairs again. “I wonder who the people in your vision were.” he put his hands in his pockets “ I haven't seen any familly pictures in here, could have been the previous tenants. Let's check here first.”

He tilted his head in the direction of a door “Your visions are getting stronger aren't they ? You were even able to pick up the fear the guy felt.” he walked inside first and clicked on the light. It was a bedroom. “But you're not in control of your visions, it's a dangerous thing. Makes me think that you haven't learned how to control them.”

“Didn't realise that being a psychic comes with a manual.” you replied drily as you stepped into the room after him. "I was very young when I first started seeing things, my parents just brushed it off as a vivid imagination. When I got older, my visions.. they started to get more clear. I could understand them better. When I got older and made friends that weren't imaginery, my friends thought it was exciting, me being able to see shadows..visions. That didn't last long once I told one of them that I saw her father's death. She thought I was messing with them. A couple of days later, her father died. Just like I saw it in my vision. None of them spoke to me again, I think they believed that I had a part to play in that man's death." You let out a light scoff when you thought back on it. "So you are right, I'm not an experienced... whatever." You couldn't find the right word "But with the little I know, I have helped people, helped them to process the deaths of their loved ones, made it known to them that their spirits were at rest. But I haven't actually done anything other then seeking contact with spirits. I only know a summon spell or two for that." You admitted.

John swayed a bit on his feet "A lot of people.. well most of 'em can't handle the idea that there are things in our world, that aren't supposed to be here. Their minds.." he clicks his tongue "..maybe it's for the best. Imagine what the world would be like if this thing we do was normal." You let out a chuckle at the idea "It would be the damn apocalypse." "Exactly, and we don't want that. So, don't pay attention to the people who don't understand what it is like." Constantine walked past you, stopped and looked at you past his shoulder "And for that spell part, carefull with those. It's not just friendly ghosts hearing you, luv." You followed him into the next room "Yeah, I'm aware." He picked up a photo frame and looked at it "So, tell me. Why would a medium, wannabe mage, come to a haunted house in the middle of nowhere ?" You resisted the urge to flip him the finger "A priest that helped me once, asked if I would check this out. He doesn't know anyone else who deals with this sort of thing." You explained and he put the frame down. "Still, what would you have done if the thing here isn't just a friendly Casper ?" He strutted around the room, knocking the walls a bit. "I've seen enough horror movies to know that getting the hell out of here would be my best bet." You eyed him curiously. "Maybe next time, ask for an excorsist first. Preferably one that dabbles in the dark arts. If you really want Hell out of this place, that is." He played on your words. You sat down on the bed in the room "I prefer to work alone, sorry." "And why is that ? if you don't mind me asking. Most mediums are better when teaming up with others." Constantine seemed interested in the answer. The answer to a question people have asked you before, the answer you have locked away because it was too painfull. You opened your mouth to lie, but he suddenly focused on the bathroom door. You wanted to ask what was wrong but he held up his hand, silencing you.

Then you heard it. "Do you hear that ? I can hear something but the noise is faint." He took a few steps to the bathroom door and you got up from the bed, following him. You focused on the noise and within seconds the noise became clear to you, louder "It sounds like someone is crying." You told him. He nodded and pushed you aside gently before he slowly opened the door. He stepped inside carefully "Can you still hear it ?" You gave a quick nod, your eyes scanned the room and then you froze. He was far more relaxed then you and that's how you knew he couldn't see what you were seeing. He wanted to step further into the room but you grabbed hold of his arm, stopping him from doing so. He was suprised at your sudden action, first looking at your hand on his arm before his eyes focused on your face. The moment he did, his expression became serious. He stepped back until he was standing next to you. Your eyes never left the figure your were seeing, holding their knees to their chest as they were weeping. Short brown curly hair hiding their face. The dress she was wearing was torn and bloody.

After another moment of just starring at the sight you slowly stepped forward until you were just a few steps away from the spirit, you looked over your shoulder to Constantine. You hated to admit that you felt a bit safer having an exorcist there. He followed close behind you, and you felt him put a hand on your shoulder "I can see her too now. Careful." he whispered. You gave a nod and looked back to the ghost "Hey..." striking up a conversation with a ghost like this wasn't something you had done before. You could use that manual now. She started to lift her head up and a bunch of horror movie cliches jumped through your mind. Her hair was wet, something dark making it stick together. When she finally looked in your direction, her eyes were wide, filled with fear. She put a finger to her lips, motioning for you to stay quiet.

"Leave." You almost didn't hear it as her voice was so quiet. "Sorry ?" "While you still can." She whispered through her sobs. You didn't move and hoped she would give you more information. "LEAVE !" She shouted the word so loud that it made your ears hurt. But that wasn't what made you tumble back and scramble away in terror. She vanished as if she had never been there at all. You continued to scramble backwards until you felt yourself being pulled up of the ground. Constantine stood behind you and had pulled you off of the ground. It didn't look like his ears were ringing, he didn't seem affected at all. "Alright, it's alright, just breath. She's gone." He stood next to you now and held you by your upper arms. "You're looking pretty pale there." "I could feel it... like a wave crushing down on me when she shouted..." you were feeling rather dizzy. He studied your face as if he was looking for wounds "What did you sense ?" You looked at the spot she had been sitting at "Fear. Horrible fear. " you looked at him "whatever happened to her... she was terrified."

“Something's definitely going on in this place.” he looked over your shoulder, his eyes shortly locking on the spot where you had seen the woman. “Let's get you downstairs before you blow a fuse.”

Nodding, you followed him and stumbled a bit before he took your arm and guided you.

Constantine helped you down the stairs, Harold stepped out of the kitchen as he heard the two of you coming down the old creaky stairs and looked confused. "Get her a glass of water will ya, mate ?" Constantine said to Harold as he helped you down the last steps. Harold quickly nodded and went back into the kitchen. Constantine followed him into the kitchen with you and Harold was quick with giving you a glass of water. "Thank you." you gave a gratefull smile as you took the glass from his hands.

You took a swig from the glass and swallowed. Then frowned, the sensation you felt was... odd. It felt as if the water was still in your mouth so you swallowed again, but it didn't help. You grabbed your throat and started to panic, you couldn't breath. Oh no, you knew this vision was going to be bad. Constantine was beside you instantly when he saw that something was very wrong, seconds later you fell to the floor. You tried to gasp for air but only more water went into your mouth and soon all you saw was water all around you. You felt something around your throat, pressing down on your chest, your head.. something was preventing you from trying to escape. Then to your suprise, you were able to grab hold of what was keeping you under and you tried to fight the hands that kept pushing you down. Suddenly your vision became clearer and that's when you saw Harold's face. You thought the vision was finally over but then you realised there was still water everywhere. Harold smilled down at you wickedly. The hands left your neck and you couldn't move, that's when you learned the truth. This had been the last moments of the drowned woman in the bathroom. And then as quick as it had started, the vision stopped. You gasped for air and coughed loudly, relieved that that nightmare was over. Constantine looked down at you in horror as he shook your form "y/n ! y/n ! Please, talk to me !" You looked at him and then you looked at Harold, your sight a bit blurry from the lack of air "You killed them.. it wasn't a demon or a monster.. it was you." your voice raspy.

For a moment the space was so silent that you could have heard a needle drop.

Constantine looked down at you as the reality dawned on him as well, then Harold moved away from the both of you. Harold quickly runned over to a cupboard and pulled out a gun. Constantine saw what was happening, or he had a hunch. He pulled you up from the ground again and hoped he could at least get you out of harm's way.

Harold pumped the shotgun “Don't even think about it !” he shouted as he aimed the gun at you.

“Easy there.. let's not make a mess here.” Constantine put his hands up and you did the same.

Harold's calm and friendly attitude had taken a turn "I called you here to get rid of them, not chit-chat with them. Look what you are forcing me to do !" He kept his aim on you.

“You killed all these people.. why ?” you looked at him in disgust.

Harold laughed as if it was a dumb question “Everyone has a hobby. Some like to fish, some like sports. The weather can get bad here, sometimes people end up with a flat tire and no place to stay.”

Constantine looked at him in disgust, his eyes were cold “And that's where good old Harry came in to save the day.”

Harold nodded and smirked “It was so easy.”

Your stomach turned “You're a monster ! No wonder these spirits are making your life miserable, you deserve it !”

“You're lucky I need you to get rid off them, you wouldn't be talking anymore if I didn't.” he threathened. John kept his hand up a little "Easy there, Harold. She won't be able to send those spirits away, there's too many and she's only a medium. You're barking up the wrong tree here. I'm the only one here who can send them on their way." John was clearly trying to pull Harold's attention away from you. And it seemed like it was working as his eyes darted between you and John before he aimed the gun on John. All you could think about was how many times someone had lost their life around you. You had a gift but it was as if you were also cursed. Feeling like you were the opposite of a good luck charm. You had to do something, or else this would not end well.

You barely knew a summoning spell, and the one you did know had failed you more then once, leaving it up to the spirits to contact you if they wished to do so.

But you knew you had to try.

You started to whisper the spell to call upon the spirit of his victim.

“You who lingers here, hear my plea.

I call you from my soul to yours.

Come back from the shadows into the light and show yourself here.

Help us fight the darkness so we may bring forth the light.”

You felt the pendant starting to glow, it rarely did.

You felt the room get cold, very cold. The room filled with the spirits of the people who had lost their lives to Harold, including the young woman you had seen before. But this time, she was not weeping. John looked around the room before discreetly glancing your way. Disbelief and shock written all over his face. To be fair, you never thought you would be able to bring all the spirits out. You had directed it to the woman in the bathroom. Harold stepped back in terror as he saw what was happening. The gun flew from his hand across the room and the young woman appeared in front of him. She grabbed him by the neck and screamed a deafening scream. Harold let out a scream as she attacked him and soon the other spirits got involved. You wondered if you should try and save him, but when you saw the spirits, many young women, men, children.. you didn't. Maybe you couldn't even save him. You let them drag him down into the wooden floor that was cracking open. Before he was dragged down completely, he tried to scream but only water came from his mouth, then they pulled him down. The room was silent, there were no screams, no scratching, nothing. You could only hear yourself breathing. John stood motionless as he watched the hole in the floor. You carefully walked to it and pulled out your phone and switched on the light and shone it into the hole. "Looks like you'll be able to grant the spirits their rest." You told John after seeing what was down there. He snapped out of it and walked up to you and peered down as well. The hole had uncovered a basement holding Harold's secret as it held the skeletons of the victims. "Damnit." Constantine sighed at the sight and you clicked of the light. "The scratching I heard..” you thought back to it.

“It was them, they were trying to warn us all this time.” he looked at you oddly.

“What ?” you asked oblivious to why he was looking at you that way.

He stepped away from the hole and you followed him as he plopped down on the chair where he had left his coat when he first got here “How did you do that ?”

You were confused for a moment before it clicked “I just said the only summoning spell I knew and hoped for the best.”

He looked at you, a brow raised “ You're a psychic that has barely any experience summoning spirits. Yet you just summoned what ? Twenty spirits into this room, and you did it so well that they were able to manifest themselves physically.”

“It wasn't my intention for the spirits to attack him. I was trying to make them appear so we could catch him off guard. I don't know how they were able to physically attack him." "Could be another effect of the rising darkness." Constantine muttered. "What ?" Confussion washed over you. He sighed before explaining " It's been happening all over the city. A dark energy is leaking into our world somehow. Making things that are normally weak or calm become strong and act erratic.

“You mean like the apocalypse ?” that didn't sound good at all, rising darkness ? Seriously?

“'Fraid so.” he dragged a hand across his face. “But I'm working on it, whatever is happening, it won't be able to hide much longer.”

You nodded and sat on another chair, your eyes focused on the hole

“Everything I felt since I walked into this place is what they felt in their last moments. They wanted me to feel it so I could help them." you shook your head and swallowed the lump in your throat. "They must have seen something in you that they didn't see in me. I'll admit I wouldn't 've been able to do this without your help. I probably would have ended up like them if it weren't for you." he admitted. "I never would have known what happened here if they hadn't shown me. He just seemed like any regular person." You whispered to yourself mostly. "Not all monsters hide under beds." he stood up and walked to the hole "Some hide in plain sight.”

He stretched his arms out “Ever seen spirits pass over ?”

You shook your head “No. I've seen them vanish but never the whole..leaving your body and bones behind part.”

He smiled at you over his shoulder before looking at the hole in the floor again “Well then, stay silent and watch.”

You stood up quietly and watched as he spoke the words and soon you could see the souls dance into the air seconds before they disappeared forever.

“Are they free now ?” you asked him.

He nodded as he put on his coat “They are. Do you have the number of the priest that send you here ?”

“Yeah, why ?” why did he want the number of the priest.

He pulled out his phone “I should have a chat with him, make him see that he should call me too next time before he sends a young woman out in the middle of nowhere.”

You rolled your eyes, but he was right. This could have ended very badly for you.

“Shouldn't we call the cops ?” someone must be looking for these victims.

“I'll call my contact, but we should get out of here before the cavalry arrives then.” he pushed in the number of the priest as you read it out to him.

“There's people in the police force that believe in this kind of stuff ?” you chuckled at the thought.

He put his phone back into his pocket “There's mages, psychics and other kinds of magical beings everywhere around us. The police force is no different.”

“I've never actually met anyone like me.” you admitted. Never once had you met anyone like him either.

“And I haven't met anyone like you either, never seen an untrained psychic with a gift like yours.” he looked at you admirable.

You didn't like the word 'gift', you saw it more as a curse after all the things it had cost you“Thanks. You're not that bad either, Mister Constantine.”

“Just call me John.” he winked at you.

Was he seriously trying to flirt with you here ? Next to a hole with skeletons ?

“Alright, John.” you stood a bit awkwardly.

“Usually I work alone, but you seem like someone who can handle herself. What do you say we go and see if we can help some other poor sods ?” he looked nervous “I could teach you how to control your powers, maybe even refine them.”

You were grinning “Are you asking me to come with you ?”

He cleared his throat before looking at you “I am.”

You swallowed, no matter how much you wanted to say yes, you couldn't. Your gift hadn't brought anything but misery to those around you, you doubted it would be different with John.

“I'm sorry.. I can't.” you felt horrible when you saw the disappointed look in his eyes, he really did want you to go with him.

“I understand. What I do...it's not for everyone.” he swallowed.

You smiled softly “I'm sure the great master of the dark arts, will be fine without me.”

He chuckled at your choice of words, looking down for a moment before looking back up to you “It's been a pleasure, luv. Maybe our paths will cross again someday.”

You nodded hopefully “Maybe they will.” you reached out your hand to him, he took your hand in his and shook it softly. You froze for a moment as the touch of his hand on yours triggered a short vision of him as a child. You snapped out of it so fast that he hadn't even realised it that you just had a vision.

He let go of your hand and your vision made you look at this man in a different light. Even as a child, he had seen monsters. Human ones.

“Goodbye, John. Maybe I'll see you around.” you said your goodbyes as you both walked out of the house.

“I hope so, y/n.” he smirked at you one last time as you got into your car and drove away.

CHAPTER 2

#John Constantine #john constantine x reader #nbc constantine #Constantine #constantine reader #john constantine!reader #constantine reader insert #constantine!reader #legends of tomorrow

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ladynonsense · 5 years

Text

Doomed Ship (ARD Alternate Ending)

Remember when I wrote a perfectly nice ending to A Royal Disgrace, where everyone lived happily ever after? Well, by popular request...here’s a different ending entirely. Diverges at chapter 10. The entirety of Perfect Match 1&2 and TRR3 happened between the end of ARD and this fic.

Pairing: Liam x Damien

Rating: M (I guess...fairly suggestive in parts but no smut)

Words: 5854

Damien bounced his phone in his lap anxiously, waiting for permission to turn it back on.

Finally the plane rolled to a stop, and he pushed the power button, still bouncing it nervously as he waited for it to connect to a network and download his messages.

I can’t wait to see you.

I hate that I can’t be there when you land. I’m sending someone to collect you.

You’re going to love Cordonia.

God I’ve missed you. I’ll see you tonight.

He tucked his phone back into his pocket, trying to fight the goofy grin that was determined to take over his face. Visiting the Cordonian royal palace was well outside of his comfort zone, but in a few short hours it was going to be more than worth it.

A familiar face met him at the terminal, holding a sign with “NAZARIO” printed in neat black letters. “Hey, Bastien! Good to see you again.”

Bastien nodded. “Good to see you, Mr. Nazario. I’ve been asked to escort you to the palace.”

He followed him out of the terminal to where his black armoured SUV was waiting. “Can’t say I expected to get the king’s personal bodyguard as my ride.”

Bastien held the door for him before getting into the driver’s seat himself. “Your safety during your visit is of utmost importance to His Majesty.”

He chuckled quietly to himself. This was too weird. He’d been mentally preparing for weeks to walk into Liam’s world, but it still felt surreal to be in a strange country as a guest of the royal family. “So we’re heading straight to the palace?”

“Yes,” Bastien answered. “A room has been prepared for you there.”

“Great.” He pulled out his phone to text Liam.

I’m on my way to the palace.

He stared at the screen nervously waiting for a response.

You’d better be.

Fuck. He bit his lip, ducking down so Bastien wouldn’t see his face in the rearview mirror. His face -- and, for that matter, the rest of him -- couldn’t be trusted not to respond involuntarily when Liam was feeling flirty.

When will I see you?

He saw three little dots appear and then disappear, over and over. Finally…

Soon, Love. I have one more quick meeting and then I’m yours.

His stomach did a little flip. Liam had been calling him that more often lately, and he’d yet to acknowledge it. As much as he cared for him, he couldn’t tell him he loved him, not now. Not when their future...hell, even their present...just seemed impossible.

A “doomed ship,” Kai called it once, when he was being drunk and careless and mean. Damien had to ask Sloane later what that meant. He hated that the words stuck in his brain, coming to mind every time he tried and failed to envision a life with the man he--

Fuck.

He tucked his phone into his pocket, focusing instead on the Cordonian scenery, barely visible through the deeply tinted windows at night. He could see the lights of the palace, now, though. Bathed in warm floodlights, it looked like something out of a fairy tale. For some reason his first thought upon seeing it was to wonder whether he would be able to wear his shoes inside. Were his socks matching today?

Stop being an idiot.

They were met by a porter at the door, who insisted on carrying his one modest carry-on bag to his room for him. The palace corridors were wide and ornately decorated, with oil portraits of past kings and queens adorning the walls. Damien read the names as they walked, none of them ringing any bells until he saw a handsome and stately older man in somewhat more modern dress. King Constantine. Liam’s father, who had been killed in an attack on the palace just a month prior. So many late night conversations, listening quietly as Liam had tried to talk through his feelings, his voice cracking with grief. Trying to fight back the feeling of panic knowing that Liam was the intended target...knowing he was too far away to protect him.

It felt so real now, seeing the portrait here, the date of his death freshly engraved beneath. He could imagine Liam wandering these halls, stopping here to stare, to try to feel a connection to what he lost.

He hoped to see a portrait of Liam next, imagining how regal he would look rendered on canvas like the others. But the next painting he came to was a coastal landscape.

Apparently this hall belonged to the dead kings only.

---------------------------------------------------

Liam sat in his office talking about nothing of any specific importance with the visiting trade minister, focusing all his attention on smiling and making eye contact, keeping up the appearance of a good host.

Internally he chastised himself for not cancelling this meeting outright. Yesterday it had seemed so important to prove to himself that Damien’s visit wouldn’t interfere with his regular schedule. Now it seemed pointless. All he could think about was Damien all alone in his room at the other end of the palace, waiting.

The longer the meeting dragged on, the more his longing morphed into anxiety. Had he made it to his room OK? Had he found something to eat? Was he angry at how long he was having to wait?

“Will you excuse me a minute? I just need to attend to something.” The minister looked on in surprise as Liam stood and left the room, finding Bastien outside the door. “Could you have the kitchen send a meal up to my guest, please? If he hasn’t already requested something himself?”

Bastien nodded. “Anything in particular?”

“Something good. Your favourite. And a bottle of rum.”

“And should I let him know when to expect you?”

Liam glanced down at his watch anxiously. “Soon. I’ll be there before he’s done his meal. In fact, send my meal there as well.”

“Of course, Your Majesty.”

---------------------------------------------------

Damien was beyond relieved when dinner was delivered to his door. He’d just spent 45 minutes trying to figure out what the food situation at the palace was, finally resigning himself to starvation before two plates of ravioli showed up at his door.

Two...that was odd. He wondered if he should wait for Liam to show up, but he was too hungry to hold onto that idea for long.

He was just finishing his meal when he heard another knock at the door.

Liam’s smile on the other side of the door knocked the wind right out of him.

“Hello, Damien.” He stepped forward tentatively, just barely crossing the threshold.

He looked good. As flawless as ever, really, and wearing a dark grey three-piece suit that made him look even more delicious than the last time he’d seen him. He wore stylish reading glasses that caused some sort of short-circuit in Damien’s brain for reasons he couldn’t entirely explain. “Fff-- fuuuu--”

Liam stepped closer, his brow knit with concern. “Are you OK?”

He realized he must look like he was having a stroke. Death by King Liam in a well-cut suit. No more attempts at words. He pulled Liam into the room by his tie, kicking the door shut after him, and pulled his lips against his own roughly.

When they finally broke apart, Liam chuckled warmly. He took off his glasses and tucked them into his jacket pocket. “You smudged them.”

“And I’m gonna crush them if you leave them in there. Take off your jacket.”

“Yes, sir.” He obliged, hanging it carefully in the closet while Damien waited. Liam glanced at him over his shoulder and smirked before slowly removing his vest, then sat in a wingback chair to remove his shoes.

“Take your time, Your Majesty,” Damien groaned.

Liam smiled brightly. “I will, thank you.” He loosened his tie, slipping it over his head and hanging it on the doorknob before slowly making his way back to where Damien stood next to the bed. “Hey,” he said softly, wrapping his arms around him and pressing a kiss to his forehead. “I missed you.”

Damien swallowed hard, melting against him. “I missed you too. So much. You have no idea.”

“I have some idea.” His kiss was gentle and patient and perfect. For the first time in months, Damien felt warm, safe, secure…home. How did he feel so at home in such a strange, foreign place?

He knew how. “Liam,” he sighed, need creeping into his voice. He sat down on the bed, Liam following him, leaning down over him to kiss him again.

He pushed Damien down, settling down against him, straddling his hips. “Damien, I love you.”

Damien frowned, propping himself up on his elbows. “Liam…”

“I know you’re not ready to say it. And we have a lot to talk about. But I can’t have that conversation without you knowing that I love you. It’s…” his voice cracked briefly with emotion, and he cleared his throat. “It’s important. It’s the most important thing.”

He stared up into Liam’s eyes, speechless. God, he was beautiful. And he did…care about him. So much. But… “Can we table this discussion for the moment? Please?”

“Mmm…” he sat back on his heels, unbuttoning his shirt. “...for a moment.”

---------------------------------------------------

“I don’t know about you,” Liam panted, reluctantly pulling away from Damien’s naked body, “but I really need a drink.”

“Good thing somebody sent up a bottle of rum.” Damien sat up against the ornate headboard, pulling the sheet up to his waist.

Liam grabbed the bottle and poured the smooth amber liquid into two crystal tumblers. “Somebody must be very thoughtful. And probably very handsome.”

“And certainly very humble.” Damien accepted the drink gratefully, meeting Liam’s eyes for a long moment as their fingers brushed. He blushed and looked away.

“You weren’t so bashful a few minutes ago.” Liam settled back into the bed, sliding his legs against Damien’s beneath the sheets. He grinned as Damien closed his eyes and shuddered with pleasure.

“It’s hard to forget that you’re a king here. I mean...in your palace. In your country.”

Liam winced, pulling away from him. “Do you need to forget who I am to want to be with me?”

Damien groaned, reaching out for him, but Liam brushed his hand away. “You know that’s not what I mean.”

“I’m not sure I know what you mean then. You told me you would never want me to abdicate.”

“And I meant it. This is who you are. I get that.”

“But you don’t like it.” His face felt hot. He knew he shouldn’t be getting emotional but...how could he not? Seeing Damien again was intense. Frighteningly intense, having him here, in his real, everyday life. And if he didn’t like it, couldn’t accept it...that hurt. More than he wanted to admit.

He reached out for him again; Liam didn’t have the strength to deny his affection a second time. Damien wrapped his arm around him, pulling him close. “It’s not that. I guess I just...don’t know how I fit in.” He looked like he had more to say, but he went quiet, staring blankly at the wall while his fingers tapped out a nervous rhythm on Liam’s shoulder.

Liam sighed, not sure what to say. “I guess I should let you get some sleep.”

Damien’s hand on his shoulder tightened. “You’re not leaving, are you?”

“That was the idea.”

“I want you to stay. Please.”

It was terribly improper to stay. His guards, at least, would certainly notice. Regina might too. But the thought of just curling up next to Damien and going to sleep was incredibly tempting. “I didn’t bring pyjamas or...anything.”

A wicked grin spread across Damien’s face. “I wasn’t planning on asking you to put clothes on.”

He never was any good at denying Damien what he wanted.

---------------------------------------------------

“Riley?” Damien had been trying to sleep off his jet lag after Liam left in the morning when he was surprised to find his newlywed ex at his door.

“Rise and shine! Were you still sleeping?”

He groaned. “It’s like 3am in New York.”

“Yeah, well.” She threw open the curtains, letting the late morning sunlight stream in. “You’re not in New York; you’re in Cordonia.”

“I noticed.” He pulled his robe tighter around himself. “I’m uh, not dressed.”

“Put some clothes on; I’m taking you to lunch. You’re not going to spend the whole day sulking around waiting for Liam.”

Riley summoned a car for them and took him into the city, dragging him along to various designer boutiques where he gave feedback on all manner of extravagant dresses while avoiding even looking at the menswear that was well beyond his budget.

She eventually got fed up with him and started perusing the menswear herself. “Come on dude, I know you didn’t bring anything nice enough for the ball tonight. Try this on!”

Damien frowned as he took the hangers from her. “I did bring a formal suit, you know. I’ve been to fancy galas before.”

“I guarantee this is nicer than whatever you brought. Liam will love it.”

He ran his thumb over the soft fabric of the shirt she’d picked out. It did look nice. “OK, I’ll try it on.” He went into a change room and looked over the ensemble more closely. A simple black suit, with a black shirt and tie. Nothing too flashy, but...damn. It looked great on him.

Someone knocked on the change room door. “How’s it going in there?” Riley called.

“Great, just...shit.” He looked at the price tag on the suit and nearly fainted. “Riley, there’s no way I can afford this.”

“Shut up and let me see.”

“No, I can’t--”

“It’s my ‘welcome to Cordonia’ present for you, OK? They pay me way too much for this duchess thing anyway.”

Damien sighed, reluctantly stepping out of the change room. “I do love it. You really think it’ll make an impression on Liam? Should I try something...flashier?”

Riley stood back to take him in, grinning. “No...you wearing this will be more than enough to blow him away.”

He couldn’t argue with that. “Do they have a shorter length in the pants? The fit’s a little off.”

“Don’t worry about that one bit,” a man he hadn’t noticed was standing behind him interrupted. “We can take care of any alterations.”

“Oh...great. Thank you.” He stood in front of the mirror as the tailor pinned him in several places he didn’t expect before changing back into the clothes he’d brought.

Riley led him out of the shop and to an open-air cafe selling espresso and gelato. “We’ve got a few hours to kill while they make those alterations. Anything you want to do on your first full day in Cordonia?”

He leaned back in his seat with a contented sigh, enjoying a spoonful of vanilla gelato. “Honestly? A relaxed day with a friend seems perfect.”

She smiled, spooning strawberry sorbet daintily into her mouth. “Sixteen flavours, and you chose vanilla.”

Damien shrugged. “Vanilla’s underrated. It’s delicious.��

“You know, literally the only other person I’ve ever heard say that was Liam.”

Damien didn’t bother trying to hide his wide, goofy grin. “Yeah?”

Riley rolled her eyes. “Yeah. You two are...I don’t know. It’s like you’re soulmates.”

“Can I ask you something serious?” He leaned forward, lowering his voice.

“Yeah...sure.”

“Are you still upset with me for...uh...stealing him?”

Riley let out a sharp bark of laughter but collected herself quickly, giving his hand a squeeze. “No, I’m not upset. I mean...it wasn’t your finest moment, or his. But I was fooling around too, so I can’t exactly stay up on my high horse here.” She fiddled with her wedding band. “I loved Liam, but I think I knew by that point that Drake was the love of my life. I just hope you two can be as happy together as we are.”

Damien gave a small nod, staring at the bottom of his gelato cup. “Right.”

“Do you...not want that?”

He let out a long breath, shrugging his shoulders. “I guess I’m afraid to want something that seems impossible.”

She frowned. “Don’t give up on him.”

---------------------------------------------------

Liam didn’t usually agonize too much over his clothes, but dressing for this particular ball was stressing him out. It was a charity ball, raising money for lung cancer research in honor of his father, so all eyes would be on him even more than usual.

And Damien would be there.

He settled on the royal blue tux, figuring he should stand out without looking too stuffy or superior. Plus, it meant Damien wouldn’t have to fuss with a formal sash when he took it off of him later.

When he got to the ballroom a line of nobles waited in the hall outside to be announced as they entered. He scanned the line quickly, searching for Damien and Riley, but didn’t spot them. Disappointed, he retreated to a corner behind one of his guards and waited to be the last to enter.

“Do you always hide in a dark corner outside your own party?” He looked up to see Damien, standing before him dressed in a beautifully tailored black suit.

“Damien.” He waved his guard off and wrapped his arms around Damien, squeezing him tightly. “Did Riley take good care of you today? I’m sorry I was unavailable. God, you look good.”

He blushed adorably. “Um...thanks. You too. And don’t sweat it; I knew what I was getting into when I came here.” He backed away but gave Liam’s hand a small squeeze before releasing him completely. “Should I stick with her for the rest of the night? I don’t know what to expect in there.”

“Yes. You’ll be seated with her and Drake for the meal. After that, come find me. I want to show you something.”

Damien’s eyebrows shot up.

“That’s not what I want to show you.”

He laughed. “OK, fine. I’ll come find you. I’m going to jump back in line...I’ll see you soon?”

“Absolutely.”

After the speeches, toasts, calls for donations, and finally the meal, Liam started scanning the ballroom for Damien immediately. He found him still seated with Riley and Drake, talking and laughing over drinks. “Mind if I join you?”

“Be our guest, Your Majesty,” Drake said, pulling out a chair for him.

Liam laughed. “What’s with the formality?”

“He’s obsequious when he’s drunk,” Riley answered for him. “And he is most definitely drunk.”

“Guilty as charged,” Drake confirmed with a small hiccup.

Liam laid a hand on his shoulder. “Well, I’m going to take the police officer away before you get yourself into too much trouble, OK?”

Damien rolled his eyes. “I haven’t been a cop in years.”

“Once a narc, always a narc,” Riley teased. “Get out of here.”

Liam led Damien around the edges of the dance floor, disappearing out a side door into the hidden palace courtyard. It was empty other than the guard who followed them out, discreetly turning to face back towards the ballroom.

He pressed Damien up against the wall and kissed him fiercely, letting his hands roam under his jacket and wrap around his back. Months of longing from afar had driven him crazy with lust for this man, and now he had him, finally in his arms.

And then he pulled away.

“What’s wrong?” He panted, still breathless.

Damien looked around nervously. “Shouldn’t we be a little more discreet? After, you know...everything that happened.”

Liam started to close the distance between them, but stopped when he saw Damien’s obvious discomfort. “That was different. I was engaged. You don’t have to be a scandal any more.”

He led him towards the fountain, sitting on the edge. Damien wrung his hands nervously. “What do you mean by that? You want to go public with our relationship? Subject our private lives — my private life — to all that scrutiny?”

Liam felt sick to his stomach. This was not how he wanted the night to go, but this discussion had to happen. “I won’t force you into the spotlight if you’re not comfortable with it. But I can’t stay single forever. I need to start a family for the stability of the crown.”

“Exactly. A family.” The distance between them seemed to keep increasing, like he was slipping away right before his eyes. “I shouldn’t have gotten involved with you, Liam. You could’ve married Riley...she would’ve been your perfect queen and given you lots of perfect little heirs. I ruined all of that for you.”

“I’m not in love with Riley. I’m in love with you.”

“Stop saying that.”

“No.” He reached out to hold Damien’s trembling hand. “Stop trying to tell me what I want. I want you here. With me.”

“That’s...you know...you know how much you mean to me. But this isn’t what you need. Or what’s expected of you. Or...I mean...I’m not here, with you, I mean I am right now, but…”

“So come live here.”

“Fuck, Liam.”

“Is that not what we’re working towards? I can come to New York maybe once a year. That’s not enough for me. Is it enough to you?”

Damien buried his face in his hands. “No. It’s not.”

“So…” Liam spoke slowly, carefully. “Come live here. Be with me.”

Damien wouldn’t meet his eyes. “You’re not...out.”

There it was. “Is that what you’re worried about?”

“Yes. Don’t act like it’s nothing.”

“I know it’s not nothing, but it’s something I need to do.” He felt shy suddenly, but forced himself to meet Damien’s eyes, which welled up with tears.

“You don’t, though.”

“I...what?”

“Just...don’t, Liam. Just find a nice girl and make her your queen. I’m not worth this. You’re too important, and I’m just…”

“Are you seriously telling me I need to just shut up and pretend to be straight?”

Damien blinked at him, his mouth hanging open in surprise. “Obviously that’s not what I think, but…”

“Yes, it is. You’re the one saying it.”

“I know you should be able to be open about this, but that doesn’t mean it’s a good idea right now.”

Liam’s head was spinning. He wasn’t sure what he’d been expecting but...not this. “I’m sorry you feel that way. I’ll be heading back inside now.”

“Liam…” Damien stood as if to follow him, but seemed to freeze in place, staring at his shoes.

Liam left.

---------------------------------------------------

Damien was up all night, the mix of stress and jet lag ensuring he had plenty of time to lie around hating himself.

Coming to Cordonia was a mistake, that much was clear. He’d been weak and stupid, wanting to see Liam so badly he’d barely considered what it actually meant for them.

The doomed ship had always been sinking. Coming here had only sped things up.

And now he’d hurt the kindest man he’d ever known, the one most deserving of...fuck...the one he loved. He felt like he might vomit if he weren’t so completely hollow.

He finally fell asleep well after sunrise, pillow over his head to block out the mocking morning sun.

The knocking began what felt like minutes later, although the clock insisted four hours had passed. He tried to ignore it.

“Let me in, idiot!” Riley’s voice called through the door.

With a groan he pulled himself up out of bed. He wrapped himself in his robe and opened the door.

“Dude, you look terrible.” Riley walked right past him, making herself comfortable on top of his unmade bed. “Rough night, I hear.”

He sat next to her, flopping sideways to let his head rest in her lap. “Rough year.”

She ran her hand over his back a few times before tangling her fingers in his hair to massage his scalp. “I’m taking you to lunch, OK? I have a friend I want you to meet.”

Damien sighed and sat back up, his hair wild from Riley’s hands in it. “Does your friend know about Liam dumping me?”

She gave him a sympathetic smile. “We all know, yeah. It was a rough night for him too.”

“Is he OK?”

“He’s supported and loved but no, he’s not OK.” She stood up from the bed, smoothing her dress. “Get dressed. I’ll be right outside the door. Don’t take forever.”

They headed into the city again. It was a beautiful spring day, and the streets were bustling with tourists and weekend markets. They left the car and walked through a few narrow pedestrian-only streets to find a cozy little hole-in-the-wall bakery. Riley secured a small beef-filled pastry for him and a bacon sandwich for herself before they settled at an outdoor table to wait for her friend.

“This is delicious,” Damien marvelled, his mouth still full of warm pastry. “Cordonia’s going to make me fat.”

Riley patted her perfectly lovely tummy. “I’ve gained fifteen pounds. Having my own kitchen staff seemed like such a good opportunity to always have healthy home-cooked meals, but in reality I can’t resist the easy access to pasta.”

“Right? That pasta at the palace was unreal. Liam must be a man of incredible restraint to still look like he does with unlimited access to food like that.”

“Well, he has other vices.”

They both went quiet, the mood suddenly turning awkward. Damien was just finishing up his pastry when a tall figure showed up seemingly out of nowhere, casting a shadow over him. He looked up to see a stern redhead glaring at him with her hands on his hips.

“So what’s so great about this one?” She said, looking only at Riley.

Riley smiled. “Damien, meet Olivia. Olivia, Damien.”

“You didn’t answer my question,” Olivia insisted.

“I’m not great,” Damien answered. “I’m just trying to make a graceful exit and I’ll get out of Liam’s life for good, OK? Is that what you want to hear?”

Olivia grabbed a chair from another table and pulled it over, grabbing the half-eaten sandwich out of Riley’s hand as she sat down. “No. Try again.”

“Excuse me?”

“Olivia is one of Liam’s oldest and closest friends,” Riley explained, looking mournfully after her sandwich as Olivia started to devour it. “She’s a little protective.”

She held up a finger while swallowing the last of Riley’s sandwich, then continued. “This one already broke his heart…” Riley blushed a little, hiding her face, “And now I see him all fucked up over another American...what is it with him and Americans? Anyway, the way he was last night…” She slammed her first down on the flimsy metal table, making everyone on the street stop and look at them. “You need to fix it. Today.”

Damien stared at her in shock. “I...um…”

“Damien,” Riley interjected, her voice soft and gentle. “Liam is the most beloved person in this entire country. We’re all…” she gestured at the crowds of people milling about on the streets, “all rooting for him. You say you’ve had a rough year...imagine what it’s been like for him. The responsibility that was thrust on him. All the attempts on his life. Losing his father.” She took a deep breath and let out a sad sigh. “Having the woman he loved leave him for his best friend. These past two months he’s been so strong, and I know it’s because he was leaning on you the whole time. I guess we’re struggling to understand why you held him up for so long only to come here and break his heart.”

“I didn’t...what did he tell you guys? He broke up with me.”

Olivia crossed her arms over her chest, staring him down. He tried to stare back confidently, but she was truly terrifying. “Well, he told us that you resisted any talk of a future together and told him to deny his sexuality and ‘just find a nice girl’.”

“OK well when you say it like that…”

“It sounds fucking terrible?” Riley offered. “If you don’t want to be with him that’s your prerogative, but you don’t get to tell Liam how to live his life.”

“The rules are different for him…” Damien said weakly, “...right?”

Olivia stood up again, looming over him. “He makes the rules. The rest of Cordonia follows his lead. If he wants to stand up and say he’s bisexual and that the rules of succession are going to have to accommodate that fact then, well, that’s a rather personal issue for me and I would be thankful to him for it. How about you?”

“Of course,” he whispered, his face hot with shame. “Of course I want that.”

“Damien,” Riley laid her hand on his arm, her eyes searching his face, “Do you love him?”

He swallowed hard. “So much.”

“Then fix it.”

---------------------------------------------------

Liam was struggling.

He’d hardly slept, spending most of the night surrounded by his friends, drinking scotch but not as much as he wanted to. All day he’d felt like he was sleepwalking through his work, going into meetings with red swollen eyes, being asked countless times if he was feeling OK.

He was most definitely not feeling OK.

Now dinner had arrived, and he was eating alone in his office as usual. But he had no appetite. He pushed the food around on his plate for several minutes before giving up and scraping it into the trash.

Damien was here for two more days, but he might as well be gone already. He made it clear he thought their relationship was a mistake. If he’d known that it would all end so fast, he wouldn’t have spent a second of the past two days away from him. Was that why Damien thought they couldn't be together? Because he’d been too busy with work? He should’ve made more time for him. Stupid. Stupid.

A knock came at his door and he dabbed at his moist eyes with a handkerchief, trying to pull it together before the steward came in to remove his dinner dishes. “Come in!” he called, trying to keep his voice steady.

All the oxygen in the room seemed to disappear as Damien walked into the study. “Hey, Liam.”

“Oh...hi, Damien.” He stood and walked around to the front of his desk. “I didn’t expect you.”

“Yeah...we need to talk.”

“I’m so sorry,” Liam blurted out. “I’m sorry if I came on too strong...I shouldn’t have pushed you harder than you were ready for, and I should’ve made for time for you, and I should’ve visited you, and…”

“Liam, stop.” Damien took a tentative step towards him, reaching out to brush his tear-streaked cheek. “Please don’t apologize.”

“I’m so bad at this,” he stammered. “I don’t know how to date.”

Damien took both of his hands. “I don’t care. I’m in love with you.”

Did he hear that right? “You...what?”

And then Damien’s arms were wrapped tight around him, pulling their bodies flush together as his kiss swallowed Liam’s surprised moan. He brought his hands to Damien’s waist, holding him lightly, afraid to move in case he scared him off somehow. After a long moment Damien broke the kiss, nuzzling his face into Liam’s neck as he caught his breath. “I love you so much, Liam. I don’t want to lose you.”

He was so relieved he was afraid to respond. But… “I don’t want to continue like this. I want to be together for real.”

Damien nodded, leaning back to look him in the eye. “I’ll need some time to wrap up my business at home, but I can come here. I can set up shop here…”

“You can’t. I mean...you can’t be a private investigator here; you’ll be too much of a public figure. I need you to understand that. But I’m sure your skills will be useful to the guard, or the police, or intelligence...we’ll find something, if you want to work. And you can live here, if that’s OK with you. You don’t have to worry about anything.”

“OK. We can figure all that out.”

“Yeah?”

He kissed some softly, lovingly. “Yeah.”

“Damien...I want to marry you.”

“Was that a proposal?”

“No. I can do better.”

He kissed him again, each one somehow more perfect than the last. “I can’t imagine anything better than this moment.”

Liam backed him up until his knees hit the back of the couch. “I can.”

---------------------------------------------------

Damien sat snuggled against Liam on the couch in his study, the two of them wrapped up in a blanket that he’d produced from a cabinet. “You spend the night here often?”

Liam nodded, pulling Damien’s face in to rest against his naked chest. “My chambers are a little depressing. Half the time I don’t bother going home.”

“Mmm, I get that. I’ve been known to sleep at the office too.”

“Things are going to be different when you move here.”

“Yeah.” He closed his eyes, listening to the sound of Liam’s heart beating. “Are you nervous?”

He hesitated for a moment. “A little. I’m not entirely sure how people will react.”

“Your friends all seem to know about us already.”

“Yes. My step-mother and the other nobles might not be as open-minded, though.”

“Mmm.” He wrapped his arms tightly around Liam’s waist. “I came out to my family in high school.”

Liam stroked his hair. “How’d that go?”

“Could’ve been worse. My mom said she loved and supported me...and that she was fine with me ‘experimenting’ but hoped that I would marry a woman someday.”

“Ah. So, basically what you said to me last night.”

“I’m so sorry, Liam.”

Liam kissed the top of his head. “I know. And I’m sorry she didn’t entirely get it. Do you think she’ll be disappointed in you now?”

“Oh, no, she’s going to love you.” He hesitated, unsure if he should go on. “I had a really bad time a few years back. I...went through something really traumatic. Left my job. Lost my girlfriend, who I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with. It was rough. And my mother...I couldn’t face her after that relationship ended. I felt like she was going to be so disappointed in me.”

“I’m sorry, Damien.”

“No, it’s...it was just me, letting my own insecurity put up walls. Kai pushed me to reconnect with her recently. I told her about you. I mean, I didn’t tell her who you were, but I told her I’d met somebody. She was happy for me.”

“I can’t wait to meet her.” Liam nudged him to sit up, reaching for his own clothes. “And in that vein...I have an idea how to spend the rest of our day, if you’re up for it.”

Damien reluctantly started to dress himself. “Oh yeah? What’s that?”

“Want to go see the look on your future mother-in-law’s face when I tell her about my boyfriend?”

He chuckled, pulling Liam back in for a quick kiss. “Absolutely.”

Tags: @hustacks @hopefulmoonobject @brightpinkpeppercorn @choiceslife @perriewinklenerdie @pixieferry @nazariobae @zaffrenotes @ritachacha @h3llostrang3r @blackcoffee85 @wannabemc2 @sleepwalkingelite @debramcg1106 @furiousherringoperatortoad @bobasheebaby @sawyeroakleyscowboyhat @jlouise88

#liam x damien #damiam #a royal disgrace #choices fan fic #trr #perfect match #damien nazario #king liam #em getting entirely too real about being bi #i kept getting drabble requests for this hypothetical alternate timeline #so here's what that timeline actually looks like #you damiam shipping maniacs

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theroyalweisme · 6 years

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Duties of a Prince - Chapter 27 - Leo x Liam x MC

A little AU of what would have happened at Leo’s fling before the social season to determine his bride kicks off.

Rating: For mature audiences… language and themes as the story continues.

(A RoE and TRR Crossover)

Summary:

Two brothers who couldn’t be more different if they tried. One out to be the life of the party. The other understanding both of they’re roles and determined to fulfill them all. But what happens when they fall for the same girl?

Word count: approximately 1400

MASTER CHAPTER LIST

Tagging: @youwontlikewherewewillgo @chrstbll @pens-girl-87 @xxrainbowprincessxx @queencatherynerhys @syltti78 @boneandfur @ranishajay @blackcatkita @bobasheebaby @pbchoicesobsessed @umccall71 @hamulau @drakelover78 @crookedslimecreatorpasta @jlouise88 @furiousherringoperatortoad @laniquelove @mitalijoshi @speedyoperarascalparty

Permatags: @mfackenthal @kinkykingliam @enmchoices @alwaysthebestchoice @writtenbycandy @diamond-dreamland

Sabrina poked around at the pancakes in front of her, her brow furrowed deeply as her stomach flipped again. She took a deep breath through her mouth to keep the smell of the coffee surrounding her away. Never had she ever thought there would come a day she didn’t like the smell of coffee. Maybe Jax was right... maybe I did come back with some weird virus... she sighed deeply pushing the pancake around her plate.

“Sab,” Megan’s voice cut through her thoughts, forcing her to pull her eyes up to her friend’s gaze. “The pancake didn’t do anything to you, Love.”

“Megan,” she sighed deeply, rolling her eyes. “You know how much I hate when you call me ‘Love’.”

“I know,” Megan grinned, eating a mouthful of her own heaping plate of pancakes. “That’s why I say it. Now, will you please tell me what’s wrong?”

“Nothing is wrong,” she assured her friend, forcing a smile on her face. Megan’s eyes narrowed at her friend.

“Right and I’m the Queen of England,” her bright blue eyes rolled at the woman across the table.

“Your Majesty,” Sabrina bowed laughing. “Honestly, nothing’s wrong. I just haven’t felt like myself.”

“Not like yourself?” Megan reached across the table and squeezed Sabrina’s hand. “Like what, Love?”

“Megan,” she groaned as Megan held up her hand in apology.

“Besides,” Megan’s eyes softened at the blond across the table. “You’re probably just stressed. I mean traveling by itself is hard... but Jesus, Sab, you moved across the world... twice!”

“You’re probably right,” she smiled, placing her napkin on top of the half-eaten plate of food. “And in saying that... it’s time to go home for a nap.”

“There’s no chance you could be pregnant, right?” Megan studied her friend closely as her brow furrowed in concentration.

“No,” Sabrina waved off any concern her friend had. “There is zero possibility that I could be pregnant.”

“Okay...” Megan held up her hands in defense as the blond threw a handful of bills on the table. “Then you should have no issues taking a test...”

“You’re joking,” Sabrina laughed as her friend’s face stayed completely passive. “Ugh... fine... I’ll take a damned pregnancy test. Just to prove you wrong. I guess we’ll stop at Walgreens?”

“God no!” Megan laughed, pulling her phone out of her purse. “That’s what Josh is for.”

—

Leo continued to walk down the street lined with people, shaking hands and having small conversations with his people was his favourite part of the job.

“So, Prince Leo,” an elderly woman smiled brightly as he shook her hand. “Have you chosen your bride?”

“Honestly?” Leo glanced around him before grinning conspiringly at her. “I couldn’t even begin to pick. Maybe you should tell me who?”

“That blond girl...” she nodded absolutely.

“Countess Madeleine?” His smirk remained on his lips but his brain started turning. Could she be the one after everything that happened?

“No, no, no...” the woman waved him off. “The other blond girl. The one with the dog.”

“Sabrina?” The woman nodded wordlessly as Leo chuckled softly. “I’m sorry ma’am, Sabrina was here for Liam, not me. She wasn’t even part of the social season.”

The woman batted the thought out of the air.

“I saw how you looked at her through my television,” she scolded him gently. “We could all see how she looked at you too.”

“Even still,” he shook his head gently at the old woman. “She’s gone home now, back to America.”

The woman gave his arm a soft pat as he began to move to the next person, a knowing look on her face.

—

“Are you sure we should be pushing back the end of the social season for this, Constantine?” Regina questioned as she followed her husband into the room his sons were waiting in.

“Of course I’m sure,” Constantine waved his wife’s concerns off like an annoying fly. “I can’t be everywhere while we’re in New York and Leo has truly started to show some promise in our meetings. It’s time to let him prove he’s ready.”

Liam leaned against couch one leg crossed over the other while Leo continued to study the file in his lap, barely paying attention to what was going on in the rest of the room.

“Leo can handle this on his own, Father,” Liam’s voice cutting through Leo’s concentration, his head raising to watch his father’s reaction.

“You will both attend New York,” Constantine’s voice held no room for compromise from either of his sons.

“What are you expecting from us in New York, Father?” Leo tilted his head towards the older man.

“I will be attending the UN meetings,” Constantine pointed between his two sons. “While you two idiots will be meeting with our business associates.”

Leo’s eyes lit at the thought of running into Sabrina again.

“And neither of you are to have any contact with Sabrina Pierson,” Constantine met each one of his sons’ eyes as he started towards the door. “Do I make myself clear?”

“Crystal...” Leo mumbled staring into his hands.

“Of course, Father,” Liam nodded stoically as the older man left the room to sort their travel arrangements.

—

To: [email protected]

From: [email protected]

Date: September 21, 2017 21:10:00

Subject: Need to see you

Brina,

It turns out we’re heading to New York.

My father will be tied up in meetings, meaning Liam and I are being paraded around from fancy dinner to fancy dinner.

Listen, we really need to sit down and talk. It’s not something I can just put into an email.

Please write me back. We’ll be in town next week.

-Leo

—

“Damien’s getting itchy, Boss,” Padraig sat across the heavy oak desk, flipping through a small leather-bound notebook. The book seemingly smaller than it actually was, dwarfed in the large man’s hands. “He needs to be brought in. Two girls quit last week, we’re getting lucky they ain’t pressing charges.”

The red-hot end of a cigarette glowed in the dimly lit room as cold blue eyes stared at the email on the screen in front of them, half listening to the man across the desk.

“Boss?” Padraig pushed again, he’d noticed over the past several weeks that his boss had become more and more distracted as of late. This always meant one of two things.

One – something was up with the girl… And usually, someone was going to pay for it. Poor sucker. Padraig thought.

Two – someone was encroaching on the business territory. This one was less likely as Padraig was usually the bearer of this news to the boss. Sometimes it paid to be the right hand of the man on the top of the pyramid.

Those cold blue eyes moved from the computer screen to meet Padraig’s seafoam green ones.

“What?” He turned his full attention to the man in front of him. “Damien…”

“Right, Damien’s becoming a problem, Boss,” Padraig nodded. “I’ve given him a shakeup, but they don’t seem to be working.”

“Bring him in, Padraig,” his eyes hardened to a pair of blue stones as they narrowed at the man across from him. “I will personally handle this.”

“You got it, Boss,” Padraig nodded.

“How is the rest of our associates?” His thick fingers steeped below his mouth as he leaned back in his deep leather chair, studying his most loyal soldier.

“Everyone’s fallen in line,” Padraig nodded easily towards him. “Dominick’s been surprisingly cooperative.”

“Good… good.” He nodded, his gaze flickering back to the computer, causing Padraig to raise an eyebrow.

“How's things going with Sabrina being home?” The man’s voice was soft, causing the cold blue eyes to harden once again as his attention turned back to him.

“Ná bíodh imní ort faoi mo iníon, Padraig[1].” His voice was low and menacing as the man across the desk held his hands up in apologies.

“Gan aon chion[2], Boss,” Padraig wheeled back quickly. He nodded stiffly before turning back to the computer.

“Fág[3],” he waved at the large man across the desk from him as he re-read the email on the screen.

Not even two minutes after Padraig had left his office a loud knock came to his door.

“Cuir isteach[4],” he called out as Josh poked his head into the office.

“Uhh… Boss,” the young man tentatively called into the room. “We’ve got a bit of a problem…”

The cold blue eyes quickly moved towards the young man in the doorway.

“What kind of problem, Joshua?” He demanded as the young man shuffled nervously.

“Well, Boss…” Josh sighed, not really wanting to tell the older man what the issue was. “It’s about Sabrina…”

[1] Do not worry about my daughter, Padraig

[2] No offense, Boss

[3] Leave

[4] Enter

#choices stories you play #choices the royal romance #choices: the royal romance #choices: stories you play fanfics #choices: the royal romance fanfics #choices: stories you play #leo x mc #brothers rys #princes

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walkerismychoice · 6 years

Text

Queen of My Heart - Chapter 7

The Royal Romance Reality Show AU

Pairing: Drake X MC, Liam X MC

Author’s Note: The first elimination ceremony. Will Liam keep Riley around?

Tag List: @lazychic28, @choices-fanatic, @simplyaiden-blog, @butindeed, @bobasheebaby, @queencatherynerhys, @theroyalweisme, @boneandfur, @drakelover78 @notoriouscs, @mfackenthal, @blackcatkita, @devineinterventions2, @choiceswreckedme, @drakewalkerfantasy, @andy-loves-corgis, @traeumerinwitzhelden, @confessionsofabrokegirl

Word Count: 2500

Queen of My Heart Chapter Index

Riley took a nap and got some reading in before showering and getting ready for the cocktail party. The day and had been long and tiring. Hopefully the next date would be somewhere relaxing, like a spa or something. She was little nervous that she could be eliminated, but after the date she and Liam had, she thought her odds of staying were pretty good.

Riley perused her closet full of Ana de Luca couture for the right dress for the occasion. She chose a slim fitted black keyhole halter gown with an embellished neckline. It was floor length with a slit on one side to mid thigh. Simple, yet elegant and sexy at the same time. She was thankful she didn’t even have to think about shoes, because Ana had paired each dress with it’s own pair of heels to match. The women were all on their own for hair and makeup tonight, but Riley’s long wavy locks were behaving, and she was pleased with her final results.

Riley heard a knock on the door just before 8pm. She knew it was Drake, so she didn’t think to check before opening it.

“Bennett, what -

~~~~~

Drake was kind of dreading this evening. He already knew Liam was keeping Riley, so it would likely mean just standing around the perimeter outside the pool and back garden area where filming would take place for hours making sure there was no suspicious activity going on. All of the crew for the show had security clearance, but with so many people running around the palace filming and working on the show, it would be easy for someone with nefarious purposes to blend in with the crowd. Drake still thought it was unlikely, but he had to follow orders nevertheless. He walked up to Riley’s door and knocked. Just like the day before, she opened the door much too quickly without checking to see who was there.

“Bennett what-” Fuck, she looks hot, Drake thought, momentarily forgetting he was about to reprimand her for not looking through the peephole. It wasn’t just that the dress highlighted her best assets--he’d seen her in a nice dress before--but her hair and makeup were more natural, more her, and everything put together just made him speechless. “uh...that’s a nice dress.”

Riley laughed. “Drake Walker, is that the second compliment you have given me today? Maybe you were in the sun too long this afternoon. Should we get you checked out for heat stroke?

“Ha ha Bennett, very funny.”

You calling me Bennett all the time seems very informal for a guard. Shouldn’t you be calling me Lady Riley or something?

Drake thought she was just giving him a hard time but he wasn’t cetrain. “Well then Lady Riley, you seem to have forgotten what we discussed yesterday about looking before answering the door.

“But I knew it was you. You told me what time you were coming,” Riley protested. “And I just started getting used to you calling me Bennett. Now anything else sounds weird. Just go back to Bennett.

God she could be difficult. This is why Drake was definitely not into her. She would bug the shit out of him. “Okay Lady Riley, Bennett, or whatever you want to be called, what if I was late and it was someone else? Just put your stubbornness aside and do what I ask when it relates to your safety, okay?”

“Fine Mr. Doom and Gloom. Anything else you need to scold me on before we leave?”

Drake knew it wasn’t his place to say anything, but Riley seemed naively sure of herself, and for some reason that bugged him. Maybe it was his own experience, or things that happened with his sister Savannah. Riley didn’t know how bad other nobles could be. She wasn’t a commoner like him, but she grew up as one. If things got hard, she might just run back home and leave Liam heartbroken. And he would have to be a real jerk not to care at all about her feelings either, even if only because he could relate to being an outsider like her.

“More of a warning than anything. This may all seem like a fairy tale right now, but real fairy tales don’t exist. This life is probably not as great as you think it is. Can you really see yourself being the Queen of Cordonia, dealing with all the political obligations, backstabbing nobles, and assassination attempts? If you think there’s any chance you can’t handle it, you might want to just bow out right now and let Liam be with someone who wants all of it.” Drake realized it came out harsher than he meant it to when he saw the hurt look in Riley’s eyes, but he didn’t know how else to say it. “I just mean-”

Riley didn’t give him a chance to explain. “I heard exactly what you meant, Drake. Thanks for your concern, but I think I can decide for myself if this is what I want. Didn’t you say you were just getting paid to ensure my safety? You can save your advice next time. Let’s just get going”

~~~~~

Riley was fuming on the way to the cocktail party. Who did Drake think he was and why did he care so much? Was it really just that he was worried about her hurting Liam? She just couldn’t figure Drake out. He was so hot and cold. One minute he’s joking around with her, the next minute he acts like he can’t stand her. But whatever, she was going to hopefully spend some time with Liam tonight, so it was time to forget about whatever stick was up Drake’s ass.

They arrived at the back of the palace, and it was absolutely gorgeous at night. There were lights strung all around the garden and pool areas, a stone fire pit, ample seating areas with plush cushions.The french doors opened up to a 3 seasons room with a bar and another sitting area.

Most of the women were there already and they all looked amazing. Riley started to get a little nervous again, but then Liam walked in. He locked eyes with her and smiled before acknowledging anyone else, and her nerves melted away.

The host Chad gathered everyone to explain the plan for the evening. “Good evening ladies. You will hopefully all get some time to spend with Liam, and then in a couple hours, the Apple Blossom Ceremony will commence. Hana already has a corsage from her date, and there are 15 additional corsages to give out, meaning 4 of you will be eliminated tonight. But as is customary during the social season, this doesn’t mean you have to go home. You are welcome to stay at court and see if you can make a connection with any of the other noble bachelors that will be attending the social events. You just won’t be part of the show anymore. Good luck to you all, and have a fabulous time.”

Riley was surprised to hear that last bit. She wasn’t aware that other noble men hung around court waiting to scoop up Liam’s leftovers. She really hoped Maxwell and Bertrand didn’t expect her to marry some other random noble man if she didn’t Marry Liam. Hopefully she wouldn’t have to find out.

As soon as Chad dismissed the women, Madeleine grabbed Liam and pulled him to a secluded seating area. Riley decided to head to the bar and grab a glass of pinot grigio. She would probably need a few drinks to make it through this evening. Hana, Olivia, Penelope, Kiara, and a few the other women were in there already lounging on the couches. Penelope started talking about her poodles and went on for at least 10 minutes. Riley had hardly heard a say a word up to this point, but apparently the key was to get her talking about her poodles.

Riley tired of the conversation inside before long and headed out to the pool area to see what was going on.

"Riley, I've been looking for you!" She turned and saw Kat standing next to her.

"Oh, hey Kat, what's up?"

"I need you to go interrupt Liam and Medeleine. She's been talking to him for too long already."

Of all the people Kat could ask Riley to do this to, Madeleine was the worst. "Are you serious? I think Madeleine hates me already. This isn't going to help."

"Well you could just let them talk all night and give them ample time to get closer. I hear King Constantine and Queen Regina are really encouraging Liam to pick Madeleine at the end."

She was pretty sure Kat was trying to get under her skin to get her to do it, and Riley was mad that it was working. "Fine. But what should I say?"

"Just politely ask for a turn to speak with Liam. Madeleine is concerned enough with her public image that she will politely step aside," Kat encouraged.

Riley walked around the corner to the semi-private alcove where Liam and Madeleine were seated. She had her hand on Liam's thigh and was talking intently while Liam listened. The whole scene made her stomach churn a little.

"Hey Madeleine, can I steal Liam from you for a bit?"

"Riley!" Liam beemed. "I was just thinking of getting up to stretch my legs. Would you walk with me?"

Madeline didn't say anything, but rolled her eyes and walked back to the party.

Liam placed his hand in Riley’s and led her further away from the party through the garden. Riley continued to marvel at how stunning everything looked all lit up at now. “These gardens are beautiful. I could spend every night out here.”

“These gardens were my mother’s vision. I often come here and think of her.” Liam paused, looking lost in thought. “You know, Drake and I have had a lot of fun out here too. We used to sneak out here when we were kids and make up games like maze-tag in that hedge maze over there.”

“Wait, are you telling me Drake knows how to have fun? I just can’t picture it.”

“Heh. It’s true,” Liam laughed. “I owe most of my fun childhood adventures to him. One time we stole a bunch of chocolates from the kitchen and ran around in the maze until we tired ourselves out. We didn’t want to go back, so we climbed up that tree in the middle of the maze and fell asleep. It didn’t end well. I fell out of the tree and landed flat on my back...But honestly, Drake is great. He’s the most loyal friend I’ve ever had. He’s been through a lot. He can be hard to get to know, but once you do, he would do anything for you.”

They walked into the maze and continued towards the center. “You better be careful talking him up so much to me. I actually might start liking him more than you,” Riley teased.

Liam smirked. “Oh you are right, he’s grumpy, sarcastic, and complains all the time. Not even worth getting to know...but in all seriousness, I hope he does find someone as amazing as you some day. He deserves to be happy.”

“So are you telling me you are saving me for yourself?”

Liam wrapped his arm around Riley’s waist and pulled her close. “I know we don’t know each other well yet Riley, but I already like where this is headed, and I’m excited to continue on this journey with you.”

Riley couldn’t resist the expectant look in Liam’s eyes. She brought her lips to his in a searing kiss.

“Ahem! I hate to interrupt this disgusting display of affection, but I would like some time with Liam now.”

Riley turned and saw Olivia standing there with a a look of contempt. “Uh, sure, he’s all yours. Thanks for the tour Liam.”

Riley went back to the party and had a few more glasses of wine. She knew she wouldn’t get any more time with Liam, as orchestrated as everything was, so she figured she might as well just try to have fun. Hana even had a few drinks and they were having fun watching a few of the women make fools of themselves. Charlotte was crying because she hadn’t gotten any one on one time with Liam. Isabelle was so drunk she was tripping over her feet.

Finally after what seemed like an eternity, Chad came back. “If I may all have your attention. It is time for Liam to decide who is going home tonight.” Liam stepped up to Chad’s side next to a table of apple blossom corsages. Chad continued. “As you recall, Hana already has her corsage. Liam, when you are ready...”

Liam began to call names one by one: Penelope, Kiara, Madeleine, Olivia, Lydia, Sophia, Grace, Charlotte, Diana, Victoria, Louisa, Amelia, Catherine, Anna.

Riley knew she couldn’t be going home, but there was only one corsage left, so she was starting to panic.

Chad spoke up again. “Liam, ladies, this is the last corsage.

Liam’s eyes met hers and he smiled. “Riley, would you please accept this corsage?”

She walked up to Liam, and he slipped on the corsage. He hugged her and she whispered in his ear. “Were you trying to make me sweat up there?”

Liam whispered back. “I was just saving the best for last. Also, I didn’t get to chose the order, the producers did.”

Chad addressed the rest of the woman. “Isabelle, Emma, Flora, and Ingrid, I’m sorry but you are not the Queen of Liam’s heart. I wish you the best of luck finding another suitor at court. Please say your goodbye’s to Liam.

Riley didn’t get another chance to speak with Liam before they were all ushered back to their rooms. Riley was still a little mad at Drake, but after her discussion with Liam, she understood that he was guarded and complex. She was more determined than ever to break down his walls, if only to get to know Liam’s best friend better. Plus after 4 glasses of wine, she wasn’t in the mood to hold back.

“I still don’t like what you said to me earlier...but I talked with Liam tonight and he says you are a good guy, so maybe your intentions were in the right place. I’m going to make you like me Drake Walker, just wait and see. Everyone likes me, it’s my thing. And I’m going to make you show me the side of you that Liam sees. He says its in there somewhere. Just wait, I’ll get it out of you.”

“Heh, is that a challenge? Good luck with that. I can be very stubborn.”

“Challenge accepted.”

“Okay Bennett, we’ll see about that...but we are back at your room now, and you seem like you need some sleep, and I certainly do. Goodnight.”

#the royal romance #playchoices #drake x mc #liam x mc #my fic

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thearrangment-phff · 7 years

Text

X. Then Kiss Me

November 2016

Isabella looked around the room finding both friends and family talking and walking the salon of the Hotel President Wilson. Isabella’s godfather had arranged a small birthday celebration for Isabella in the Swiss hotel. Isabella had few friends so it made sense that most of the guests were her family.

Guests included the Luxembourg Grand Ducal Family, the Belgian Royal Family, dozens of Archdukes and Archduchess of Austria and Austria-Este that Isabella didn’t know how exactly they were related, their families, Liechtenstein Principality Family, Princes and Princesses of Nassau, Belgian princes, random Russian Princes and Princesses, and a handful of counts and countesses.

She had greeted guests alongside her parents and godfather. But once she was inside and everyone was talking before dinner would be served she began to get nervous. Harry was about an hour late and he said he would come.

Isabella played with her fingers for a minute, only to look up and find her cousins coming in her direction. It wasn’t a subtle action since there were about a dozen of them coming her way. She saw her cousins Archdukes Michael and Joseph from her uncle Archduke Rudolf, Prince Sebastien of Luxembourg, Princess Alexandra of Luxembourg, Princess Marie Gabrielle of Nassau, Princes Constantin, Wenceslas, and Carl-Johan of Nassau, Princesses Maria Anunciata, Marie Astrid of Liechtenstein, and Prince Josef-Emanuel of Liechtenstein. They all were within a 4-year age range and despite being brought up in different countries they all remained fairly close.

Though, Liechtenstein and Switzerland were practically neighbors. Not to mention Belgium and Luxembourg is a quick car or train ride away. Her cousins embraced her all with hugs and well wishes.

“Where is the red-haired prince?” Asked Maria Anunciata.

“I’m afraid he’s late,” answered Isabella.

“Your own boyfriend is late to your birthday celebration?” Asked Constantin before his sister Marie Gabrielle hit him in the chest.

“He is coming from London so I’m sure he has a good excuse,” corrected Isabella.

“Well Joachim is looking for you,” said Alexandra.

“Wait Joachim is here? Why is he here?” Asked Sebastien.

“Joachim is family… well, in a way. He’s probably related to all of us somehow. But that’s beside the point, most of the Belgian royal family are here. Didn’t you see King Philippe?” Mentioned Maria Anunciata.

“Well there are a lot of people here,” scolded Sebastian.

“Belle, your boyfriend is here,” announced Marie Astrid with a large smile.

Isabella listened to her cousin and found her parents greeting Harry with a handshake and kiss on the cheek. Isabella’s mother pointed in her direction and Isabella looked back at her cousins.

“I don’t want to be mean but leave.”

“No way. I’ve never even heard of this guy. I’m staying,” stated Michael.

“I barely see you! That isn’t my fault,” barked Isabella before exhaling, “Fine, stay. But be nice. I’m practically bombarding him with meeting the family.”

“It’s not like there’s a lot of us,” said Wenceslas before everyone gave him a ‘Really?’ Look.

“There’s a lot of us, and I’m serious about being nice.”

Isabella looked back to see Harry take one more step toward her with a bright smile on his face. Harry kissed her on a cheek before pulling her into a hug. He stayed there with his face buried in her neck and Isabella hands slowly released themselves from around Harry’s neck. His arm went around Isabella’s waist as he looked at her cousins.

Harry reached out one of his hands to shake the hands of all of Isabella’s cousins, even recognizing a couple. Isabella reintroduced the ones he knew and introduced him to the cousins he’s never met. While Harry smiled and nodded at them, he started to think.

The room was filled with royalty. The Grand Duke of Luxembourg, Hereditary Prince of Liechtenstein, King of Belgium, dozens of Archdukes, German princes and counts, and dozens of other titled men he didn’t know about. They were all here for Isabella. She was a member of a disposed of monarchy yet, she could still draw royalty to her. This is what his father wanted.

Sure, royalty came to events in London for his grandmother, but it was because she was Queen. Her father couldn’t draw a crowd like this and he was a future King. Isabella was related to these people that would never come to London for him. Of course, the obvious part of them being related to her was a large part of it.

Despite that, his family didn’t have ties like that with other European houses. But by marrying Isabella they all came with her. Ties to at least 4 royal houses came with a marriage to her and the British Royal Family wouldn’t be accused of distancing themselves.

“So how did you two meet?” Asked Joseph.

“Mutual friend,” answered Harry.

“Mutual friend? That’s a little hard to believe,” questioned Constantin before earning a hit in the chest by Marie Astrid, “Okay can everyone stop hitting me!”

“Then stop saying stupid things,” snapped Alexandra.

“Well, he’s kind of a friend. Isabella went to school with his girlfriend and I knew him from Eton College. It was a very long thing,” explained Harry.

Isabella looked up at him with a smile on her face showing him that she was pleased with the story he just made up, “If you don’t mind I want to speak to Harry in private before the dinner starts.”

She received smirks and inappropriate remarks from her cousins before they all dispersed into the crowd. Once they were alone Isabella pressed herself against Harry more. He took the hint and wrapped his arm tighter around her waist.

“This celebration is a big deal. About half of my family is here so you need to impress them,” stated Isabella as she leaned more on him.

“Do you think your cousins believe it?” Asked Harry.

“I think so. Constantin and Wenceslas are probably the ones you’ll have to convince. They are super close to Joachim and Amedeo. They’re distant cousins but very close friends since we’re all close in age. Joachim and I were close.”

“Are you still?” Asked Harry.

“Joachim and I have never been anything more than friends. Besides I have you now, don’t I?”

“So where am I sitting?”

“Large long table in the front will be my immediate family. I don’t know where Alexander and Gabriella are, but Imre, Christoph, and Marie Christine couldn’t make it because of their kids. And you will be on my right side.”

“I’m going to be with you?” Asked Harry in slight surprise.

“Yes. The perfect way to show you off like the future trophy husband you are,” laughed Isabella, “Once we get some whisper going more and more people will now.”

Harry hesitated, “Do you really want the press to know so soon?”

“They are going to find out either way. You don’t think we should go public yet?” Asked Isabella in concern, “I assumed we were good now.”

“We are. We’re friends now, right?”

“Totally,” replied Isabella.

“Maybe we should wait a bit longer,” suggested Harry.

Isabella looked around the room before looking up at Harry, “I guess we can wait for the press, but we can’t wait for my family.”

“Do you want to kiss?”

“I’m totally down to make out with you if that’s what you’re suggesting,” joked Isabella.

“I was talking about one kiss,” smiled Harry.

“Yes, but I’m a very affectionate person I can’t stop at one kiss. Just saying. Besides I’m sure no one in their right mind would just give you one kiss.”

“Yes, I’m walking sex. You’ve said that before,” laughed Harry.

“I was going to go for oozing sex now, but you can say whatever you want,” joked Isabella.

“Has anyone ever told you how inappropriate you are sometimes?” Asked Harry in a teasing manner.

“Only with you,” replied Isabella as she gave Harry a kiss on the cheek.

“We never talked about that one night,” said Harry changing the subject.

“Which one? The one where we woke up in each other arms?” Asked Isabella with a slight smirk.

“Yes, that one.”

“There’s nothing to talk about. I got scared and you comforted me. It’s not a big deal. We are boyfriend and girlfriend, at least supposed to be. I’ve already established how comfortable I am with you. It’s simply you who makes things weird,” explained Isabella.

“I don’t make things weird,” replied Harry.

Isabella removed herself from Harry’s grip on her waist and put her hands on her hips, “Then kiss me and I mean really kiss me.” Harry pulled her towards him by her waist only to hesitate, “You need to comfortable with me. I need you to treat me like a proper girlfriend.”

“… I don’t think I can do that,” confessed Harry, although that was a slight lie. He was afraid to get too close to her.

“Then how do expect us to work? Sure, we hug and are affectionate for 10-year school children but not for a couple that will be married soon,” scolded Isabella.

“We just met half a year ago. We barely know each other Isabella,” said Harry.

Isabella pulled herself away from Harry’s grip, “No. You said you knew me. You said we were friends.”

“Yes, and friends don’t marry all the time,” Harry hesitated to continue talking. What he wanted to say, Isabella might take the wrong way, and he didn’t want to, but the words came out of his mouth anyhow, “Your pushing this Isabella.”

“Whatever. I going to see what the strongest alcohol is here,” replied Isabella as she walked away from him in slight anger. So much for getting along.

Isabella found her way to alcohol faster than she imagined. Champagne wasn’t enough and settled drowning down screwdrivers. By the third one, she felt someone stand behind her and put their hand on her right shoulder.

She came face to face with Joachim and her grim look turned into a happy one. Isabella put her drink down and wrapped her arms around Joachim’s neck, pulling him into a tight hug. Joachim returned the smile and hugged Isabella back with an equal force. He then left her go but Isabella had remained in the same position not wanting to look him in the eyes just yet.

“Belle, people are starting to stare.”

“Who cares. Besides, it’s my birthday celebrations,” replied Isabella before she finally loosened her arms. It took even longer to pull her arms back to her side.

“You’re upset,” stated Joachim looking at the alcohol behind her.

“Boy issues,” said Isabella as she rolled her eyes.

“Since when do you have a boyfriend?”

“If I tell you, you won’t hate me?” Asked Isabella.

“I could never hate you. After all this time you should know that,” replied Joachim.

Isabella leaned forward to Joachim’s ear and explained the situation. The Prince of Wales was looking for a husband for his youngest son. Isabella was then chosen and they were to marry next year. Joachim didn’t have any words for her. He couldn’t even believe that the future King of England would think of this and his father’s cousin, Isabella’s father, would ever agree to it.

“Belle, why? Why would you agree to this?”

“He’s sweet. It isn’t a bad arrangement. I like him,” answered Isabella grabbing his hands, “Harry is a good and kind person. He won’t hurt me.”

“That isn’t a good enough answer for me Belle,” argued Joachim.

“Even if I said I loved him it still wouldn’t be a good enough answer for you,” interrupted Isabella.

“No, they wouldn’t. Do you even love him?”

“I don’t know. I could. We haven’t known each other that long and who knows what the future holds,” admitted Isabella as she squeezed his hands in hers.

“He doesn’t deserve you,” replied Jochim as he slowly removed his hands away from her.

“Mamie said the same thing.”

“Your grandmother is a smart woman. Belle, you shouldn’t be doing this. You shouldn’t marry a guy you don’t even know.”

“You’re wrong Joachim. I do know him and like I said earlier. He’s a sweet guy and if you meet him then you would see how amazing he is,” smiled Isabella.

“Well I don’t like him and never will. Belle I am begging you end this. I’ll talk to your dad. I’ll get my father to talk to yours. Or my mother to talk to your mother if it comes to that.”

“We can talk later Joachim. I need to go find Harry. I left him alone in a room filled with people he doesn’t know.”

Isabella found Harry within minutes with her cousins Marie Astrid, Maria Anunciata, and Josef Emanuel. When they saw her coming, her cousins left, and Harry looked at her with slight sadness.

“Before you say anything I am sorry. I shouldn’t have said those things to you and you’re right we do need to be more like a couple and I’m going to try more.”

“…Good. Then I need you to kiss me.”

Harry looked at Isabella before grabbing her by the waist and Isabella looked at him curiously. He looked at Isabella, letting one of his hands go up to her side then settled on her jawline. The kiss was weird and only lasted a few seconds. It was clear to Isabella he didn’t want this.

She couldn’t even look him in the eyes, “I was wrong. Maybe we shouldn’t kiss just yet.”

“What?”

“You clearly aren’t comfortable and the kiss showed it,” replied Isabella.

“I’m sorry.”

“No. It’s fine. I was kind of pushing you to be affectionate anyways. Come let’s go find our seats and some alcohol,” smiled Isabella.

Next Chapter

#Prince Harry Fanfiction #Prince Harry Fanfic #PHFF #Royal Fanfic #Royal Fanfiction #Fanfiction

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