#her husband suddenly killed himself and left her to raise their son alone and she thought the best thing for Ted was to bottle everything up

[mitskijamie]

Can we talk about how Dottie Lasso gives me bad boy mom energy? She doesn't have the energy of somebody who would be normal to her 16-year-old son who probably looks a lot like his father after said father's death.

I actually thought the problem seemed to be that Ted and Dottie were too emotionally distant rather than too emotionally close. An enmeshed parent will turn to their child for support and advice and companionship (as if they were a romantic partner), and Ted talks about how Dottie shut him out and wouldn't even acknowledge that she was grieving

So personally I would describe her as more of a wire mother than a Boy Mom

[princess-of-thebes-1995]

Any day now. Your hybrid daughter would come into this world of Pandora just like her older twin brothers before her.

Your sons, Mitchell and Matthew were only one year old. And as expected, your new husband, Colonel Miles Quaritch and the father of all your children.

He was obsessed with impregnating you with one child after another.

Almost as much as he was obsessed with killing your friend, Jake Sully.

Your first human son, Miles or should they call him, Spider, ran away after the final battle and went to the Sully family. Obviously for his girlfriend and your God Daughter, Kiri.

That made Quaritch hate that family more. And he wanted to get his son back. He was humiliated after losing again and the admonishment he got from the General.

You huffed as you watched the ten foot Navi strap on his machine gun.

You asked when will be home. Close to a home at least. You were forced to live with him at Bridgehead City.

For the sake of your remaining children and the in coming one.

Quaritch looked annoyed and snapped that he doesn't Fuckin' know.

You flinched at his rudeness. You said nothing as you brushed your long wet hair since you came from the shower.

He left. And you were alone. Again.

Quaritch claimed he loves you but he doesn't show it. He either spends his time on work, gym, fucking the shit out of you, and sleeping. He doesn't play with his kids despite always wanting more babies from you.

Might as well be a stranger to his own family.

.....

You decided to do your normal routine. Your human children were attending the school quarters where RDA children would go. So, you had time for yourself before your twin sons start to wake up.

Suddenly, it happened. Your water broke.

Quaritch was having a shitty day. That hag of a General was bitching and complaining again. Only Lyle survived the final battle. He was assigned a new squad.

And now that Jake Sully knew that Quaritch will come for him again, he was prepared. Thus, making things difficult.

Quaritch was in an empty island and was wondering if Sully moved again. Then he heard a pathetic voice.

A human marine soldier.

"What!?" He snapped.

"Sir, your wife is in labor. She wants you back with her."

Raising a brow, he shook his head. She had three weeks left. He checked the calendar of his watch.

April 1st?

Nice try.

"I ain't buying it. Tell her to stop bothering me. I got a job to do."

"Yes, sir."

.....

You felt tears stream down your cheeks. The news of Quaritch's message hurt you. He really doesn't care for you or his children. Action speaks louder than words.

....

Your baby girl as expected has four fingers and a thumb and no eyebrows. She looked like the Sully Children minus Tuk and Neteyam.

A normal and yet beautiful Navi girl.

You kissed her forehead but she stirred and cried. She then began to suckle your milk.

Your daughter Isabella Maria called her father and told her about what happened. Quaritch cursed himself. He dropped all he was doing and rushed back to Bridgehead City.

You were sleeping and your new baby was taken by the Doctors in another room for shots and medicine.

Quaritch walked into your hospital room. Your eyes opened to see that jerk.

"I came as soon as I heard." Quaritch reached out his hand but you found an empty glass cup and threw at him.

Quaritch easily caught it and explained it was a misunderstanding.

Should you forgive him?

AN: Thank you for all the attention from that funny one shot I posted where Reader Chan was in labor on April 1st of all days. This is like the detailed version of that one shot.

[pettyprocrastination]

I dunno anything about GOT lord but does she get self conscious after losing her eye? And how exactly did it happen?

Hello! So for this im gonna do a little lore dump just to explain how (at least for now) Oberyn's wife (you) lost her eye and what part she plays in the war

SO

Reader is the sister to stannis, renly, and robert baratheon. Robert was the previous king of the nine realms before he died in a hunting accident, leaving his son joffrey to inhereit the throne (but of course. joffrey is not his real son, but a bastard of his wife and her brother)

after the death of ned stark (the hand of the king) was killed because he openly spoke against joffrey's lineage to the throne, stannis and renly both rose up and claimed to be the next king. Despite being brothers, they went to war, fully accepting the fact that they'd be fighting against their family.

Initially, you want no part in it. Dorne of course does not take anybody's side in the war and stays out of it completely. You do not wish to see what is left of your family lost in some futile fight for the throne. You try to reason with your brothers that fighting eachother will do nothing, the proper answer is to unite against the lannister army, but neither will bow out.

You spend your time at sunspear with your husband, ellaria, and his children. Trying to distract yourself with sitting by the ocean and smiling when the girls offer you the shells they find in the sand.

But then Renly, your sweet little brother, is killed in his quarters.

You don't care about the throne or the family name or even the vicious bastard boy that calls himself king. All you know is that your parents are dead, Robert is dead, and Renly is dead.

Stannis is all you have left and you refuse to lose him.

So you leave Sunspear in the dead of night, find a cargo ship headed to dragonsport and join your brother's army.

You lose your eye at the battle of blackwater bay where stannis and his army (and you) march on King's Landing, the city where the king and his family resides.

The battle ends in stannis' regretful retreat back to dragonstone after losing many soldiers to the Lannister army, and you losing your eye.

I'm thinking its just something that happens within the heat of the battle. Somebody gets close enough as youre preoccupied with another enemy and suddenly a knife is slashes across your face and you scream.

You keep fighting of course. Baratheon blood boiling hot within the fight so all you feel is adrenaline and blooding dripping down your face as you cut the throat of whoever thought they were fast enough to kill you first.

You say it doesn't bother you. That "I don't concern myself with vanity nor the opinions of others on what I look like." but truthfully, it's hard. You can wrap the scarred side in lace but you still find yourself staring at your reflection when your alone and struggling to meet your husband's gaze in public. You hate that it affects you so much to the point where you cover the mirror in your room but snap if anybody asks why.

It isn't until the gentle fingers of Ellaria Sand untie the lace from your scarred face and press her lips to the raised skin that you finally stop hiding.

[lostgirl677]

Welcome to the Hellfire

This is an AU Pirate!Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader

Masterlist

(This picture is entirely handmade, sorry for the quality. It didn’t turn out the way I wanted 😅)

A runaway, that’s what you are. A runaway that left everything behind her because of a forced marriage. You can’t stand the simple idea of being married to that jerk of Lord Hargrove’s son, William. Number of girls would kill just for one of his glance, but you are not like them. You know that your family needs their money, but you won’t let them decide for you. How you had to fight at the ceremony to escape from his grasp.

Flashback

They just finished helping you put on your nuptial gown. You fight so hard to keep your tears from falling. 

‘You have to be brave, darling. Think about us, about everything that we’ve been through and to finally find a solution that suits everyone’ says your mother.

‘Yes, everyone but me..’

 ‘Y/N? don’t start again with this. It’s been discussed for months. Now, it's the big day. Don’t ruin our chances, be the daughter I raised you to be.’

 ‘The emotionless puppet who’s supposed to obey her master and to satisfy everyone but herself ? Well, it seems like the puppet grew a heart and a brain’ she’s about to explode but decided to leave you.

 ‘I’ll see you at the ceremony’ she says coldly

Now that you are alone, you try to think of a way to escape from this place without being noticed. You were quickly interrupted by your ‘soon to be husband’.

 ‘You look gorgeous my dear’ William says, nearly drooling and his eyes full of lust. 

‘You are not supposed to be here. Get out’ you say flatly. 

‘Well, well it’s not a way to talk to your future husband’ he smirks. He closes the space between you and grabs your waist. You try to throw him a punch but he grabs your hand.

‘I promise to teach you some manners, love’ he says murmuring in your ear. Enough is enough, you knee him in his secret parts and escape from his embrace. He falls to the ground.

‘Little bitch !’ he growls and tries to catch a piece of your dress.Your struggle causes a torn in it and makes you fall on your butt. He grabs your ankle but you kick him in the face with your other foot. He growls again in pain.

‘I will end you ! Who are you to say no to me ?’

 When he tries to get up, you take a lamp in your hands and shatter it on his head. He falls unconscious on the floor. It’s your call to escape. You manage to open the window and jump. Thankfully it wasn’t that high. Once outside, you run. You don’t know where, you just run. Wherever you go on this land, you know that they’ll find you. Suddenly, an idea crossed your mind. You weren’t far from the beach. So you run to the beach and luckily find an abandoned tiny boat on the sand. 

‘Time to cut the strings little puppet’ you say while pushing the tiny boat on the ocean.

End of Flashback

Here you are now, alone on the ocean. You don’t even know if you are going to make it out alive but you’d rather die free than live with someone like William. It feels like days have passed but maybe it was just hours. You are tired but you can’t sleep. You relive the last events in your mind again and again. But your thoughts are cut short when the waves start to grow bigger and bigger with each passing second. You try to steady the boat but it rattle way too much for you to succeed. Without a warning, it sways and makes you fall. You knock your head and lose consciousness

Eddie’s POV.

It’s a boring day but he tries to keep his mind busy by planning their next adventure. Will they try to find the legendary Sea Witch’s treasure or find the Kraken ? His crew is more than willing when it comes to go and find lost treasures and fight creatures. But again, today is a boring day, even Jeff stopped playing music outside.

‘A girl ! A girl !’

It’s Gareth from the crow nest. Eddie practically ran out of his cabin to see for himself and so all the crew. Indeed, there was an unconscious girl on a tiny boat. She is sickly pale and looks almost dead. Her dress looks like a wedding dress.

‘I’ll go get her’ Eddie says. Once in the boat, he tries to get close to her to check her pulse.

‘She’s alive’ he screams to his crew. 

‘ Hello ? Miss, can you hear me ?’ No answers but he could swear that he saw her fingers move a little but he’s not quite sure nonetheless.

‘Prepare something to eat for her.’ he says while picking her up and getting back on the ship.

He lay her delicately on his bed. She’s the most gorgeous girl he ever laid eyes on. Her (h/c) hair is a bit tangled and her “wedding” dress is torn in some places. He really wonders who she is and what happened to her. Before he could let his thoughts wander a bit more about the stranger he hears someone knock on the door.

‘Come in’ he says without tearing his eyes off her. 

‘I bring the food you asked for, Captain’ 

‘Thanks Grant’

‘How is she ?’

‘I don’t know. Now that she is in a safe and warm place, she seems a little better. Let’s hope that she’ll wake up soon’ 

Grant leaves the cabin. Maybe he should go back to his plans.

Y/N’s POV

The first things you register while waking are the soft mattress under you and that it gently cradles you. Then you open your eyes. There is a ceiling. That’s weird because the last thing you remember is being on a boat in the middle of a storm. Was it a dream ? And you turn your head and see a man seated behind his desk. You gasp.

He turns his head towards you and smiles kindly.

‘Hey ! Glad to see you’re awake. How are you feeling ?’ He asks and gently walks towards you so as to not scare you.

He seems nice but you are wary. He has long brown curly hair, a bandana with skulls printed on it under his hat, plenty of rings, a necklace and  has brown eyes with eyeliner. He also has tattoos. He wears a white shirt, a black pants, black boots and a long black leather jacket. He is more than probably a pirate.

‘Where am I ? Who are you ?’ you ask

‘On a ship. I am Captain Eddie ‘The Freak’ Munson. At your service.’  He says bowing to you while taking his hat off. ‘Now my turn to ask questions. Who are you and why were you dressed in a wedding dress and alone in a boat in the middle of the ocean ?’

You are completely at his mercy, so it wouldn’t change a thing if you tell him a lie. So you tell him the truth.

‘My name is Y/N  Y/L/N and I ran away because I was forced to marry someone I hate’

He seems genuinely interested in your story and asks you for more details. So you tell him all the details.

‘You are a feisty one, M’Lady. Should I be careful around you ?’ he asks playfully. You feel at ease with him

‘Definitely’ you say smiling.

‘Oh ! I asked my crew to prepare you a meal. I thought that you may be hungry after all of this adventure.’ he says after a moment of silence and pointing at a plate.

‘Thank you’ you said.

‘If you need me, I’ll be on the deck. If you want, I can find you something to wear other than this dress.’

‘Thank you, it’s really nice of you’. He leaves the cabin. You ate everything on the plate and decided to take a look around the cabin. There were loads of different kinds of guitars and other instruments. You also spot a box full of tobacco and a pile of doodles. After this, you decide to wander outside.

The sky was a bit gray but the sun still shines through the clouds.You notice the flag and realize that it wasn’t the classic Jolly Roger flag but a demon head surrounded by two different weapons.

The crew members are busy with the chores and Eddie is at the helm. He spots you and leaves it to walk in your direction while the crew waves at you.

‘Welcome to the Hellfire, Miss Y/L/N’  he says, kissing your hand. You try not to blush at his actions.

‘You can call me Y/N’

‘Well Y/N, it’s a pleasure to have you here. I found you new clothes and since you are sadly stuck here for a bit I’ll show you around after you change.’ 

There was a burgundy dress, a plain shirt with a pair of pants and boots. You take the shirt with the pants and the boots, arrange your hair and go outside the cabin to begin the visit.

 By the time  the visit is over, it is time for dinner. Eddie is really a charming person and is very funny. He makes you forget all the bad things that pushed you to live your past life with your parents and the terrible wedding.

‘It would give me great pleasure if you'd join me for dinner, Y/N’

You accepted. You take the burgundy dress this time and join him.

The dinner was great and you decided to ask him about his story.

‘I wasn’t always the great and sexy pirate you have before your very eyes.’ he says, smirking. ‘I used to live with my uncle in a country far away from here. I was always one to cause mischief and people there hated me but I had a few friends I could count on so it didn’t matter.They all said that I am exactly like my father, which is the worst insult I’ve been targeted with, that I’ll never be someone. Just the local freak. But you know, being harassed and shunned is a routine, you get used to it at some point. Everyday, people insulted me and accused me for every single wrong in their life.But one day, something terrible happened to a girl I knew. She was murdered in the most awful way before my eyes. I couldn’t do anything to prevent that and I was accused. They were going to put me on trial and execute me for something I didn’t do. So I ran away and became a very charismatic pirate. It’s still haunting me. But I guess the local freak wanted to get international, you know’ he said with a wink but you see the sadness in his eyes and notice that his voice was about to shatter when he mentioned that girl.

You can’t help but feel sorry for him. You motion to take his hand and look him in the eyes. You can feel the coolness of his rings under your palm.

‘I’m really sorry for you. If they couldn’t appreciate you, their loss’ he smiles at your kind words. 

When he gets up, you finally notice a weird metal sound.

‘What is this noise ?’ you aks

He seems confused and then understands what you meant.

‘Oh, it’s nothing, just chains’

‘Chains ? I thought that you escaped the authorities’

‘Yeah, I did but I wear them to remind me that I should have done something to help her. So it’s a form of punishment I put on myself’ he says with the same haunted look on his eyes but he regains his composure and before you could react he practically ran like a maniac on the deck to ask his crew to play music.

‘ Gentlemen ! This lady needs a distraction so I expect you to play like virtuosos to honor her and your Captain. Make me proud, you bunch of scoundrels !’

Eddie’s POV

It was the only way for him to not crumble in front of everyone. He shouldn’t have burdened her his depressing story but it was like he always knew her. Call it fate or whatever, but he was sure that the seas brought her to him for a reason. To reward him for something, he doesn’t know what but she must be a reward from the gods. And now that he sees her dancing and laughing with the crew, it makes him like she has always been there by his side. He joined her and they danced until dawn.

When everyone was exhausted, he gave her his cabin and headed to the crew dorm when she grabbed his hand and told him that he could stay.

One month later

 You roamed the seas with Eddie and the Hellfire crew and you couldn’t be happier. You explored many islands, discovered lost treasures and even fought creatures. The only thing is that you also made an enemy: the terrible Captain Henry Creel a.k.a Vecna. But Eddie always finds a way to save everyone, right ?

Should I make a part 2 ?

[erodasfishtacos]

This was an ask but I lost it - it was a prompt for the tropes to get a text about a guy hitting on them in a grocery store

Okay but work with me here

There is actually a guy hitting on them.

Have a Good Friday bubbies 💕

-

With three growing boys came a lot of groceries, on top of Harry who was a garbage disposal himself and ate like crazy - came the need for two groceries carts.

Harry had wandered off to pick up a forgotten item with Ezra in the little seat, Easton and Cash in the cart among the food item.

It was just YN waiting in a ridiculously long line to check out when a cart pulls behind her, and she hears someone cough to get her attention.

She turns to look and it’s a younger man with a white smile and a raised brow, “I just wanted to let you know you’re very beautiful.”

YN has to stop from making a face, instead pulls up her phone and sends out a quick text before sliding it back in her purse.

yn: better hurry up, some guy is hitting on me

She would normally ignore the comment but she’s just waiting for her husband to come and have a fit so she entertains the conversation.

“Thanks, that’s very sweet of you,” YN gives him a small smile and his eyes dart to her chest before reading it - it was a pretty plain tee with a Yankees logo on it.

“Fan of the Yankees? You’re too pretty to like baseball too,” The man laughs like the joke he said was just comical.

“Who’s you’re favorite player?” YN asks with a curious grin.

“Oh, Styles for sure. Have you heard of him, honey?” The man asks patronizingly like she’s a dumb, band-wagon fan.

“Uh, Styles?” She replies dumbly with wide eyes, “Is he the catcher?”

“Can I help y’mate?” Harry interrupts rudely, maneuvering his cart full of children in front of the man talking to his wife.

The guy legitimately gasps, “Y-you-you’re Har-Harry Styles.”

“Oh my god, that is Harry Styles!” YN remarks with faux surprise to irk her husband but it gets ruined when Ezra screeches, “Mama!”

Harry rolls her eyes at her but she doesn’t miss the little curve to his lip.

“I am. What can I help you with?” He asks gruffly, his hand going to cup the back of his wife’s neck protectively.

“I was ju-uh? I was talking er to this girl because of her s-shirt,” He rambles, the man’s hands were shaking with excitement and nerves.

“This girl is m’wife and I’d appreciate if you left her alone now,” Harry glares, “I think she’s off the market based on the fact that she gave me these three babies in tha’ cart.”

YN giggles when Harry gives her skin a slight squeeze, he was so hot when he was protective of her and their babies.

“Ca-can I have a signature?”

Easton furrows his brow, tossing the box of cereal to the side in the cart, and huffs out, “Leave us alone!”

Harry laughs, moving to shush him and shrug, “Y’heard him, leave us alone.”

And if that man goes around telling everyone Harry Styles is an asshole after that…well Harry couldn’t give a flying fuck.

-

YN didn’t need Harry to tell a man to fuck off, obviously not, but it doesn’t mean that it wasn’t an opportunity to rile him up.

It’s in the pasta aisle, Harry had went to find the Cheerios that Beau had suddenly demanded with puppy dog eyes.

As she reaches for a box on the top shelf, someone steps behind her and grabs it for her - encroaching on her personal space.

“Here you go, doll,” A clean-shaven, business-looking man smiles as he hands her the box and steps back from her.

Beau and Olive were sitting in the cart, playing with the few toys YN had brought along to keep them entertained.

“Thanks,” YN scoffs but then realizes this is a perfect opportunity to fuck with her husband so she sweetens her tone and smiles, “You’re so tall.”

As he begins rambling, YN pulls out her cell phone and sends a quick text to her husbands.

yn: some guys in aisle six is trying to make me his house wife

She sees the message is read but he doesn’t reply.

It’s less than a minute before he’s striding back down the aisle - looking hotter than fucking ever if you asked his wife.

He was in his normal black skinny jeans and plain black tee, his curls pulled into a bun, black leather boots, and his body covered completely with tattoos.

“Can I fuckin’ help you?” Harry barks, right off the bat, lightly pushing his wife behind him in his normal protector mode.

“I was just offer some help to this beautiful lady,” The man smiles obnoxiously, puffing out his chest to appear bigger.

“My wife doesn’t need y’help,” He replies with a scoff, he was taller than the men and much more muscular - there was no chance.

The man falters for a moment before shrugging, “I just wouldn’t expect such an stunning girl to be with fuckin’ tattooed up scum like you. She’ll leave you.”

Harry has to use all of his self-control to not knock this man out, “Look at those fuckin’ babies, look exactly like me, don’t they? Because I put them in her. Pretty sure she isn’t gonna leave me.”

“Low life,” The man scoffs.

But then, Harry is narrowing his eyes, “Wait a minute, I know you. You’re Henry Clark.”

It’s obvious Henry is confused to how this man knows his name by his raised eyebrows.

“How do you know me?” He challenges.

“Because you owe me money,” Harry replies with a crooked grin.

“I don’t even know you!” Henry laughs with a honking, annoying sound.

“Oh, y’know me,” Harry is still smiling, he pulls up his tee slightly where he has a tattoo on his abdomen that matches the slogan on his gun.

Smile! You’ve met the devil!

Henry’s wide grin falls and his face pales without a seconds notice.

“Daddy, please!” Olive whines angrily after Beau smacks a box of crackers out of her hand with a baby giggle at his sister’s irritation.

“Excuse me a minute, don’t move,” Harry replies with a shit-eating smile, he lifts his shirt a bit more to flash his gun before turning to his kids.

YN had been distracted at looking over their grocery list, unconcerned about what was going on.

“Whassit, button?” Harry murmurs, thumbing away the tears on her ruddy cheeks.

“S’being mean,” Olive squeaks with sad, puppy eyes and a poured bottom lip - making grabby hands for her father, “Pick m’up, daddy.”

“S’kay, Beau - y’need to be nice t’your sister,” He tells his son seriously before turning back to the quivering man, “There better be £50,000 at the Third Street Shipping Ware house by midnight or I’m coming to find you.”

“Stop talkin’ daddy,” Olive complains, wanting his attention on her and not this random man. Her small hand comes to pat at his cheek, finger curiously touching the tattoo there.

“F-fine,” Henry agrees with a stutter, a sheen of sweat forming on his brow.

Harry snags a bag of cookies of the shelf to distract his daughter as he finishes their conversation, “If y’not there, I’ll gladly painted m’walls with y’blood.”

“I-I wi-will,” The man agrees, wiping his brow.

“Also, if y’tell anyone about m’babies - I’ll not only kill you but every single person you’ve ever loved if you even think about mentioning m’children,” Harry touches his gun with his free hand, “I have bullets w’your name on it.”

“Daddy, no more. Cuddle now?” Olive interrupts, unbothered or concerned by her father’s tight jaw and dangerous eyes.

“Get lost,” He demands before turning away from the man and kissing his daughter’s temple, “Y’want a cuddle, hm?”

“Please,” She whimpers, giggling when she feels her father’s slight scratchy stubble on her cheek before he’s hugging her close to his chest - protective and safe.

-

[dreamescapeswriting]

Night Feeds ~ KSJ [Request]

WORD COUNT:2.2K

PAIRING: Seokjin X Fem!Reader

GENRE: established relationship, family au, angst with a happy ending, fluffy, arguing

a/n: I noticed that I tend to leave my imagines with a bit of an open ending so I’m doing my best to improve on that and make everything tie together. I hope that you enjoy this hunny

"You have no idea Jin! I'm tired, I fell asleep for two minutes!" You cried out as Jin stood in the bathroom staring at you and then down to the bathtub. The water was discoloured from all of the scrubbing he had been doing on your daughter's arm. Bath scourer on the side of the tub along with body scrub, whitening toothpaste and all of the coconut oil you had available. All your daughter had said was that she wanted to be like Uncle Jungkook and then she had "tattoos" all over her arms. Small doodles that she would normally do on paper but on her arms, trying to match with Jungkook who had told her that she could do it when she was old enough. It wasn't as if you could watch her every second of every day, you had a newborn baby in one room, your head was all over the place trying to care for your son and daughter alone. You were exhausted from the night feeds and it wasn't as though Jin was exactly offering to help you with those either. Instead, he would fall back to sleep or go and sleep on the sofa while you were up with your newborn son. It had been that way when you had your first daughter too. You had no idea why you had expected anything different this time around. 

Marriage and family were supposed to be about working together, making sure that each of you was supported but right now. All it felt like was that you were supporting Jin and were left hanging on your own. 

"Do you realize how much worse this could have been? She could have burnt the house down! She could have run away," Jin was yelling at you but never looking up at you. That was the kind of person Jin was, he could yell all he wanted but he knew the moment he would look at you he would stop. Not wanting to see you upset but this was something serious, something he wasn't just going to let slide. 

"But it wasn't, I'm sorry Jin." You whispered as you reached out to touch his shoulder but he nudged you away softly. Reaching for the plug so that he could empty the water out from the tub and begin cleaning up. You didn't want this to be the way you fought, you hardly had fights with one another because you hated them so much.

"It's too late for that Y/n, what if she had seriously hurt herself? What were you thinking?" He questioned sounding a little harsh as he finally turned to look at you. His face was red as he looked at you, your heart sink as you stared back up at him. The guilt was already weighing down on you and now you had Jin looking at you as if you were the worst mother in the entire world. 

"We have a nanny for a reason," He mumbled coming out of the bathroom and heading toward the staircase, frowning you looked at the time. It was almost 11 at night, where could he possibly be going right now? 

"Where are you going?" Your voice cracked as you saw him reaching for his car keys and jacket, while you stared at him. 

"Jin!" You yelled as he opened the door and slammed it behind him as he walked out on you. Not wanting to deal with any of this right now but you weren't going to let him walk out. Not when you were still having a conversation, you weren't going to let him have the easy way out this time. 

"Fuck, sake!" You yelled out in frustration, walking down the stairs when you stepped onto one of the toys belonging to your daughter. It was over as quickly as soon as it happened. As if you had blinked and suddenly ended up on the floor, your ankle throbbing and your head spinning. 

"Mama?" You heard your daughter question as she began to walk around the top floor to see why you were screaming. She'd woken up hearing you and Jin fighting and stayed in her room, she hated the yelling just as much as you did.

"Hey sweetie," You croaked out attempting to get up but your ankle throbbed and sent a jolt of pain through the rest of your leg the second you put weight on it. You hissed looking around for your phone and then back to your daughter, 

"B-Bab, can you get mummy's phone?" You questioned as you pointed into the living room, your little girl rushing down the staircase to get your phone for you. 

"Do you know where your brother is? Go and make sure he's still sleeping for me baby," You ushered her back up the stairs to go and make sure he hadn't woken up through all of this while you called the Nanny. You wanted her to come and watch the kids while you went to the hospital, not telling Jin anything since he was the one to walk out on all of this. 

Sure it was petty but you didn't care, you wanted your kids to be looked after while you went to the hospital. What Jin didn't know wasn't going to kill him.

Jin walked through the door the next morning expecting to find you curled up with the kids but he frowned. The kitchen smelt like fresh pancakes and he could hear your daughter giggling. He'd come home to make sure she got to school on time, he wanted to take her with you. 

"Babe? You're making breakfast?" He called out walking around the corner to see the nanny standing in the kitchen, your daughter eating at the table while your son slept in a bassinet in the room.

"Where's Y/n?" He questioned defensively, seeing the nanny look a little worried. She was under strict instructions from you not to tell Jin where you were. The doctors had asked you to stay in overnight since you'd hit your head a little hard, they just wanted to make sure there was nothing else wrong before they sent you home. 

"She had to go somewhere, I'm watching the kids." She lied, it was an obvious lie so Jin stared at your daughter as she looked up at him. The marks were completely gone from her arms now and she was already up and dressed for school. 

"Mummy fell down, she's not here." Panic rose inside of Jin hearing that you had fallen and weren't there anymore. What did that mean?

"Where is mummy baby?" He questioned, sitting down beside her as the nanny said nothing. She was under instructions not to say anything but it didn't mean that your daughter couldn't tell Jin where you were.

"Hospital, Nanny Nora is going to take us later...Mummy said we should keep it a secret," Nora smiled weakly at Jin and he sighed rolling his head back and rubbing his temples. 

"She told me not to tell you, but she's in the women and children's section, they kept her overnight because of her head." Why wouldn't you want Jin to know? The two of you were married and were supposed to tell each other everything and yet, you hid this? 

"Jin? I told Nora-" You'd tried to speak but Jin shook his head, cutting you off. The moment he'd taken your daughter to school he went home and got ready to come and visit you. Even if you didn't want him there he was going to show up.

"She didn't, our daughter did," Jin said as he pushed the pram over to your bed, your son sleeping soundly in the little pram as you smiled down at him. Reaching your hand down to rub his little cheek with your thumb, he looked so much like Jin, even as a small baby. It was as if looking down a miniature version of your husband.

"Why didn't you tell me?" He sounded hurt but you didn't want to give into that. The whole night you had spent inside you had done nothing but think about your relationship with Jin and the kids. You wanted him to start pulling more weight around with them, taking them out to parks, helping you with the night feeds. It wasn't as if you were the only one that could feed your son, you had pumped enough bottles to make sure there was food for him. 

"Why didn't you tell me where you were going?" You quipped back at him. Jin looked at you and sighed, he'd run back to the dorms. It was where he always went when things got too much to deal with. 

"I went to the dorms," You scoffed a little, you should have known that was where he would have been but why? Why couldn't he have stayed with you and spoken everything out one on one? 

"What was the scoff for?" Jin asked with a little anger behind his voice, staring at you as you shook your head at him. 

"That's where you always go, when night feeds are too much you go to the sofa, when we fight you go to the dorms, you run away from everything." You mumbled looking over at the nurse who was coming in to check on what you were going to be eating for lunch.

"Because night feeds are exhausting, I work all day." He explained while you shook your head at him again. There was no excuse for running away from your family or wife when you need him. 

"You don't think I find them tiring? Laying there feeding our son while his father runs away to sleep?" You snapped a little, too angry to care anymore. Why did Jin think it was acceptable for him to rush off when you had your son together.

"You're his mother, you're supposed to feed him-"

"Don't. I pump milk so we can share the responsibility, this is why I'm so tired and fall asleep around our daughter." Jin could see just how pissed off you were about all of this but he said nothing as he sat there. Your heart breaking as you thought about the words running over in your mind, 

"Do you even care? Do you even want a family anymore?" That had been the one question going through your mind when you were laid in bed all night. Wondering if all of his running away was because he didn't want this lifestyle anymore. 

"What?! No! No, I love you all." Tears built up in his eyes as he thought about you thinking that about him. How could you ever believe something like that when he loved you. Promised himself to you in front of friends and family all of those years ago. 

"Then why do you do it? Why run away? You did the same thing when we had-"

"No, I didn't! I fed her," He yelled out defensively, raising from the chair he was sitting in as you remained calm. You knew the truth, no matter what Jin seemed to believe you remembered everything. It had been you and Jin feeding your daughter most of the time, the other boys helping sometimes too.

"When? Because I seem to remember the night and day feds being me or Jimin." It was like a shock to Jin's system as he thought back on your firstborn. Your daughter who had been the light of your life's after trying for a baby for so long, the first year of her being born you had been living at the dorms. 

"I didn't...I fed her, I-" He stared down at you as you looked up at him, staying calm was how he knew you were telling the truth and he sighed. 

"I've been alone throughout both pregnancies and raising them..." You knew it was going to be hard for him to hear but he had to hear how you felt. Letting out a huge breath as he sat down and thought back on everything, 

"I didn't...I never did help..." He whispered as you sighed, rolling to the side to pick your son up and cradle him in your arms. Even when it came to changing diapers and taking them out he was always busy or rushed off to do something else. Leaving you with all of the responsibility of being a parent.

"Why didn't you say anything before now?" He questioned watching as you rocked your son in your arms, turning to look at Jin who had tears running down his cheeks. 

"What was I supposed to say?" He looked down at your son and shook his head. Never wanting to make you feel like that ever again, that you were alone in all of this. 

"I promise I'll be there more, I'll help out more." He reached across to touch your son's cheek and you smiled weakly. It wasn't just a matter of promising you something it was doing it. Making sure he was staying true to his word and wasn't just going to do it for a couple of weeks before stopping once again.

But he did it, he stuck true to his word. Helping out with both your son and daughter over the years. Making sure he was being the best father and husband that he could ever be. Improving on himself more and more as the years went by, even as you had your third and fourth child with one another. Becoming a big and happy family together.

Tagline: @lyoongx @mitzwinchester @rjsmochii @taestannie​ @sw33tnight​ @sweeneyblue1​ @agustdjoon​ @jin-from-the-block​ @acciocriativity​ @taeechwitaa​ @mwitsmejk​ @justbangtanthingz​ @stillwithlix​ @misa0000​

[invisibleanonymousmonsters]

Absentee

Character: Jason Todd x Fem!Reader

Summary: When Y/N fell in love with Jason Todd, she didn’t realize the normalcy she lost would become such a problem in their relationship. And she didn’t know how much pain it would cause to hide her boyfriend’s secrets. 

Word Count: 4,600 – One Shot

A/N: This is probably a really personal story. And you all might hate it or not relate to it. But oh well...

Y/N had her music playing in her headphones just quietly enough so she could hear them announce when her plane was boarding.

Between corporate holidays and what was left of her vacation days for the year, she was able to go home for a week and a half.

Only, she was hoping that this year she wouldn’t be going home alone.

But when Jason got sucked into a case two weeks before their flight back to her hometown, she knew there was no way he’d be accompanying her.  

“I’m so sorry, Y/N. I just–“ Jason had tried to tell her when she realized they weren’t going to be spending the holidays together.

“You don’t have to apologize. There are more important things right now than meeting my crazy family,” Y/N laughed lightly. “But they’ll be bummed.”

Jason still looked so down guiltily. He knew that Y/N had been downplaying how excited she was for her family to meet him.

Yeah, Y/N was upset, but her family was even more upset. Being in a different part of the country and them never putting in the effort to visit her, they had yet to meet Jason. Even when the two of them had been dating for 10 months.

Y/N had met all of Jason’s brothers, along with Bruce and Alfred. It had all been against his will, his family strategically running into them or invading his apartment when they knew Y/N would be there. Jason acted annoyed by it, but Y/N knew he was happy for her to meet them and without him having to act like he cared.

But Jason had only ever waved on FaceTime to her family or sometimes answered calls from them when Y/N left her phone next to him and went to another room.

It wasn’t like Y/N needed her family’s approval. She knew what she wanted and what was best for her. Their opinions didn’t hold as much weight with her as they thought.

But Y/N also had never introduced her family to a boyfriend before. Things either fizzled out before then or the relationship was so casual that the thought of even mentioning a boy-toy’s name in passing to her family made her want to jump out a window.

———

“So Jason couldn’t get out of work last minute?” Y/N’s older sister, Kate, asked as they drove to her house after picking her up from arrivals.

And so it began.

“No,” Y/N answered. “His boss is sort of an asshole. He’s a workaholic and can’t fathom why anyone else would ever be anything different.”

The truth was that Jason didn’t really have a job. When it came to income, Jason was resourceful. He was still a hitman for hire. But once the killing part of that job stopped – which was long before Y/N ever met him – it didn’t rake in as much money. Most of his money was either stolen from criminals or he would work odd jobs here and there.

However, the lie Jason and Y/N had agreed on was that he was a mechanic. And Jason did know absolutely everything there was to know about cars and motorcycles. He’d even promised Y/N that if she ever decided she wanted him to drop the vigilante life, he would do just that and start his own mechanic shop. But Y/N knew better than to ever ask that of him.

“Cars don’t stop breaking – even around the holidays,” Y/N joked darkly.

“Mhmm,” her sister answered.

Y/N already knew what her family thought of her boyfriend’s “job”: it wasn’t good enough for them.

The only reason they let it slide was because they knew Bruce Wayne was his adoptive father. Therefore they interpreted Jason’s ‘lack of ambition’ as his personal rebellion against his privilege and upbringing.

“Mom said he sent flowers and a bottle of wine to the house today and apologized for not being able to make it,” Kate added.

Y/N quickly looked at her in surprise.

“So I’m guessing from your reaction that it wasn’t your idea,” Kate teased.

“No,” Y/N shook her head. “He didn’t even tell me he did that.”

That was a Bruce Wayne move for sure. It didn’t matter that Jason had a rocky relationship with him, the Wayne charm and manners were deceivingly contagious.

————

Later that night, when everyone was in bed and Y/N decided to finally unpack. And she was surprised to find two of Jason’s t-shirts hidden in her bag. They were her favorites of his, always stealing them. Mostly she wore them to lounge around the apartment or to wear to bed. But her favoritism was in no way hidden.

Jason must’ve snuck them in her bag while she wasn’t looking.

Y/N smiled as she grabbed one of the shirts and raised it to her nose. It still smelled like him.

It was enough to make her feel guilty for not having called him yet. She’d texted him that she landed, but other than that, she’d been pretty silent.

She grabbed her cell and dialed.

“Hey, you.”

He always answered her calls as if they made his day, even if she’d called him multiple times that day already. His reaction to her calls never failed to make Y/N smile.

“I didn’t really expect you to pick up,” Y/N admitted.

“Always got time for you,” he answered lightly.

But then she heard background noise: wind blowing, distant sirens, people shouting at each other nearby.

Jason was on patrol. Or maybe he was doing some recon. 

But Y/N knew not to ask. 

“I see some of your clothes made the trip,” Y/N commented through a smile. Jason could hear the smile in her voice. “Those t-shirts have a mind of their own…”

“And my mom thought the flowers and card were sweet,” she added.

“I might not have met her yet, but I know that’s not gonna be enough to win her over,” Jason answered darkly.

Y/N didn’t say anything, because they both knew he was right.

“Flight was fine?” Jason asked, changing the subject.

“Mhmm.”

“I miss you.”

Y/N shook her head and laughed. “No, you don’t. I’ve been gone for like 12 hours.”

“Doesn’t matter.”

She rolled her eyes. “Always the romantic.”

More sirens could be heard. They sounded closer this time. “Are you being careful?” All playfulness had disappeared from her voice.

“Of course.”

Y/N sighed. “Jason, I’m serious. Please, be safe.”

“I know. I know. Don’t worry about me.”

“You know that’s not gonna happen, J.”

He ignored her comment. “I love you.”

“Love you, too.”

————————

To say Y/N’s time at home was rough…was an understatement.

If Y/N wasn’t being asked a million questions about Jason, she was being interrogated for why he wasn’t there. And if Jason wasn’t the subject of the conversation, people acted like she was single – some even talking about setting her up.

Y/N realized she preferred the former.

Every year, her family threw a giant party.

And for the past five years, Y/N had always been the only one that was single. All of her siblings, all of her cousins, all of their family friends, all of their neighbors…every single one of them had a significant other during those years. 

Everyone...except her. Now, this year, all of them had kids or were expecting.

It was exhausting. 

Sometimes Y/N felt like they were all robots programmed to do the exact same things at the exact same time –  no original thought to be had.

Y/N would be lying if she didn’t spend most of the party wishing Jason was at her side. He would make fun of awkward situations with her. And he would stick up for her when her family teased her a little too much.

The other thing Y/N wasn’t prepared for was unintentionally studying  her family’s boyfriends or husbands. She felt like she was watching everyone’s relationships through a different lens now that she herself had her own. And to put it as kindly as possible…she was not impressed.

Y/N noticed how none of the men offered to help in the kitchen, instead deciding to sit on the couch and watch football and scream at the television. Or how when her cousin handed her son to her husband, and he acted like he didn’t even know how to hold the one year old. And later, when his diaper needed to be changed, he handed him back to his wife as if he had no idea how to do it himself.

Yet her family was stuck on Jason not being able to visit or that he was a mechanic.

What did someone’s job matter if they treated her like she was their world and he the best thing to ever happen to her?

If Jason were here, he would be in the kitchen cooking. And if they had a kid, it would be a 50/50 job – not a burden only Y/N had to bare. He would try to get to know everyone because he would want to know the people who raised the woman he loved. He’d make sure to check in on Y/N every once in awhile, making sure she didn’t need anything. 

Thinking about it all made Y/N miss Jason even more.

Needing to get some air, she decided to go outside and let the winter chill refresh her. It had been getting too hot in the house.

Y/N pulled her phone out of her back pocket and tapped Jason’s name.

“Hey, you.”

“Hi,” she sighed.

Just hearing his voice made her feel a bit better and tension left her body.

“What’s wrong?” Jason quickly asked.

“Nothing. Just…wanted to check in.”

For a second, she was going to explain that she had the sudden realization that all the men connected to her family were trash. And witnessing it was making her miss him more. But she didn’t really want to waste her breath and she figured she’d just come off dramatic more than sincere.

“Are you at your apartment?” She asked quickly.

“Yeah, I’m gonna leave for patrol in a bit…”

Then Y/N’s mind suddenly thought, ‘Fuck it.’

“Jason?”

“Yeah, kid?”

“If you were here…” She began softly.

“Mhmm,” he encouraged.

“What would you be doing?”

Jason was a bit confused by the question for a second. But he slowly got what she was asking.

“Well,” he took in a shallow breath. “I would’ve stolen Alfred’s famous chocolate chip cookie recipe and whipped up those bad boys to bring over. And I’d pretend to care about football with your dad.”

That made Y/N laugh.

“I’d help your mom in the kitchen, even when she pretended not to want it.”

“Really laying it on thick, huh?”

But Y/N knew he was right. Jason was the cook between the two of them – and a good one, too. He also was a helper. He couldn’t sit back and watch someone do something while he did nothing. No matter how big or small.

“Shhh,” Jason reprimanded and then continued. “But most importantly, I’d try to get as many embarrassing stories about you as I possibly could.”

“Well, thank goodness you’re not here then,” she teased with a roll of her eyes.

Jason was quiet a second before he asked, “Wanna tell me what’s wrong now?”

“Nothing’s wrong. Just miss you.”

“I miss you, too.”

“All my family’s boyfriends and husbands are losers. And I guess I’m just now realizing it.”

“Ahh,” Jason noted.

Now he really knew why she’d asked her question.

“It’s snowing here,” he told her as he looked out the window. “It’s almost making Gotham look pretty.”

“Are you going to the manor for Christmas?”

“Probably not,” Jason answered.

“Jason,” she grumbled. “What are you going to do instead? Sit in your apartment alone?”

“I’m gonna patrol. Crime doesn’t take holidays, Y/N.”

“Cheesy,” she pointed out. “Please be with your family, Jason. I don’t want you to be alone. OK?”

“I’ll think about it.”

Y/N knew that was as good as it was going to get.

Then she felt something on her cheek and she looked up. “Hey, it just started snowing here, too…” She told him with her head tilted back.

“I love you,” he sighed.

“I love you, too. Be careful tonight, Jason.”

Y/N gave herself a few more moments outside before returning to the party.

When she walked back inside, she immediately heard her name. But no one was calling to her. 

She was being talked about. 

She recognized her mom and sister’s voices, and then a couple of her aunts. They were talking around the corner, completely unaware that Y/N was in hearing distance.

So Y/N couldn’t help but linger.

“She says he works a lot. Every time I facetime her, he’s never there,” her sister Kate told the women. “I wouldn’t even really know what he looked like if it weren’t for her photos that she’s sent me. He doesn’t have any social media.”

“I just can’t believe he couldn’t get work off. Around the holidays?” Her mom added in utter disbelief. “Sounds like it won’t be surprising when she finds out he’s been unfaithful,” one her aunts commented.

The group hummed in agreement, but also disappointment. 

“He doesn’t even live in Metropolis. He lives in Gotham,” her mother supplied, only further backing the idea that Jason wasn’t committed. “God knows why. But I hate that Y/N is constantly going there. No good news comes from that city.”

Y/N clenched her teeth in anger.

If only they knew the truth about Jason. 

He was a hero and risked his life every night for an entire city – a city that had done nothing but hurt him. And he was 20 times the man than any of the men in their family.

She just wanted to scream at them for being so judgmental about a person they’d never even met.

But she couldn’t.

So Y/N stormed up to her childhood bedroom and decided she had enough of the party.

She shouldn’t have come home for the holidays. She would’ve rather waited for Jason to get back from his Red Hood work than listen to her family misjudge the first man she ever truly loved and wanted to share with them.

————————

Y/N was so tired when she got off the plane.

She felt like a zombie as she walked to baggage claim to grab her duffle.

What she wasn’t expecting was to find her boyfriend waiting for her in arrivals.

Y/N had told him she would just get a car.

But Jason seemed to have other ideas.

Y/N’s entire face brightened at the sight of him.

She practically ran to him and jumped into his arms.

Jason chuckled at her enthusiasm.

“What are you doing here?” She asked, her words muffled by his body.

“I thought I’d surprise you,” Jason said through a smile before he kissed her head.

Y/N didn’t respond, just held him tightly.

“Come on. Let’s get your bag and head home,” he finally told her.

—

“So, how was it?” Jason asked once they got into his car. Y/N shrugged, “It was fine.”

Her lack of details and curt response was enough warning for Jason to realize things were not totally fine between them.

He didn’t bother asking for more details during the car ride home. Instead, he answered all her questions about what he had been up to, how the case was going, if his family was alright.

Once they got back to Y/N’s apartment in Metropolis, the grace period seemed to be over.

Y/N had grown quiet as she moved around her apartment, unpacking and putting all her things away.

Jason walked into her bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed as she folded clean clothes. “This might be a shot in the dark. But I can’t help but feel that you’re not happy with me,” he finally pointed out.

She didn’t answer or look at him, just kept folding.

“Did something happen while you were at home?” Jason pushed.

She still didn’t answer. So Jason reached for her hands, holding them gently.

“Hey, talk to me. What’s going on?”

“I just didn’t expect how hard it was going to be…” she finally whispered with a bowed head.

“What would be?”

“Just going home without you,” she explained.

“Did something happening?”

“I mean, kinda? Not really. They just…” she hesitated. Did she really want to confess all of this to him? She knew it would only hurt him. "They think you’re a bad boyfriend.”

Jason just nodded slowly.

He should’ve seen this coming. Of course her family didn’t think he was good enough. How could they think anything different?

“I’m just…fucking frustrated,” Y/n groaned. “I knew what I was getting into when you told me about your other life and who you really were. I was willing to keep your secret and protect it. I just never thought about how hard it would be keeping it from my family.”

She shook her head. “They think you’re not committed or something. And that…that you’re probably cheating on me.”

The idea of him ever doing that her made Jason sick to his stomach.

“I’m sorry,” Jason mumbled.

“What?” Y/N gasped. “You haven’t done anything wrong.”

“But I have,” he argued. “I put you in this position.”

“No, I did. I did when I fell in love with you,” she clarified.

“But I don’t want you lying to the people you love.”

“I’m not telling you this because I’m mad at you or blame you, Jason. I’m trying to tell you why I’m frustrated.”

She rubbed her face. “I just want them to know what an amazing person you are...and how brave and selfless. How you take care of me and love me and…and protect me.” Her eyes began to water. “They’re never gonna know the real you…even when they do meet you. And I fucking hate it.”

“So what if you told them?” Jason offered.

Her eyes widened at that. “Jason…”

“I’m serious. What if you told them?”

She thought about it. But she already knew the answer.

“It wouldn’t do any good. If I told them, then they’d be worried about me. Worried that your other life was putting me in danger. Worried that I would get pulled into it.”

Jason knew she was right.

Her family probably preferred an absentee boyfriend over a vigilante.

“But I see how the shitty men that have joined my family are. And you’re nothing like them. You’re so much better. And they’ll never even know.”

“Come here,” Jason muttered before he pulled her to him.

He let her body sink into his as he held her.

“I’ll do anything you want,” he whispered as he rubbed her back. “I just want you to be happy.”

“I always wondered what it would be like to finally been in a relationship – to just have someone on my team no matter what. I went to all those family gatherings thinking I’d never have it. And once I did, once I found you…” Her thoughts died out. “I just never expected it to be this way.”

“Do you regret it?” Jason asked as he pulled away to look in her eyes.

Her brow furrowed. “Regret what?”

“Being with me. Falling in love with me.”

Her heart broke at the question. “Oh, Jason. Of course not. Never.”

“What if I stopped?” He asked.

“No. I would never ask that of you,” she quickly shot down.

“I’d do it for you,” he tried to argue.

“I know you would. But I’m not asking. Because I know what it would do to you. Every time you’d see something in the news, you’d hate yourself. Because you would convince yourself that you could’ve stopped it. And maybe you would be right.” She took in a deep breath. “Red Hood isn’t just something you do. He’s a part of you. And even though I worry about you constantly, I’m never gonna tell you to stop.”

Jason took his time in reading her face.

“OK?” She pushed.

He nodded.

Then he embraced her once again.

“I’m sorry you have to keep my secrets,” he breathed into her hair.

————————————

Y/N walked into Jason’s apartment.

It was a Friday night and they agreed to have her come to his place this weekend.

Jason was always weary of her coming to Gotham, preferring her to stay in the safety of Metropolis.

He knew they couldn’t do the distance forever, and eventually they’d move into together. But he wasn’t ready to leave Gotham yet. And he didn’t want Y/N to lowering herself to such a city.

“J!” Y/N called when she walked in.

He had given her keys to his apartment quite early in their relationship, and told her she was welcome at his place any time. However, he wasn’t a fan of her getting there after dark. Gotham was Gotham, and he didn’t like her wandering around the city by herself just in order to give him a surprise visit.

An envelope on Jason’s kitchen counter caught her attention.

She nosily looked at it and saw that they were plane tickets to her hometown with both of their names on each of them.  

She heard Jason walk up behind her. “What’s this?”

“A surprise,” he shrugged.

“What do you mean?” She laughed.

“We’re gonna visit your family,” he explained casually. “I called your mom and sister to find a weekend that worked.”

Y/N was shocked to silence.

“I know I fucked up when I couldn’t go with you during the holidays. I know this isn’t gonna solve everything. But I figured…it’s start.” Before he could say more, Y/N threw her arms around him.

————

Jason Todd knew how to throw on the charm. And no matter how thick he laid it on, it always felt sincere.

Y/N smiled as she watched her boyfriend interacting with her family.

He knew so much about each of them already, that he knew exactly what to talk about with every one of them.

For their long-weekend visit, they had decided to stay with her sister.

Jason knew she would be the hardest to win over and was the most protective over Y/N. He made it his personal mission to befriend her and show her how much he loved her little sister.

Y/N never said so, but Jason knew how important it was to her that Kate approved of him.

However, Jason hadn’t been able to have a conversation alone with her all weekend.

Until their last morning there.

Y/N was still sleeping when Jason had made his way to the kitchen.

He figured he could make Kate and her husband breakfast after housing them for a long weekend. And he made sure to start a pot of coffee while he was at it.

Halfway through making his specialty waffles, Kate walked into the kitchen rubbing her eyes.

“Oh, hi,” she greeted, clearly surprised to find Jason cooking in her kitchen.

“Morning,” Jason greeted.

“This is a surprise,” she said as she looked around the kitchen.

“There’s coffee if you want some.”

“T-Thanks…” she managed to mutter. “Do you need some help?”

“Nope. I got it. You just relax.”

Kate seemed to be unsure of how to behave when she was alone with her little sister’s boyfriend, and eventually sat on the kitchen stool with her coffee.

“Do you cook a lot?” She finally broke the silence with her question.

“I enjoy it,” he answered with a shrug. “I figured it’s the least I can do for you guys putting us up.”

“That’s very sweet of you, Jason.”

He continued cooking.

Kate figured this was her opportunity to get to know Jason – and not just through Y/N’s eyes. So, she started asking him question after question, and he seemed happy to answer them. Kate was surprised to find out about Jason’s traumatic childhood, making him realize that Y/N must’ve only shared his relation to Bruce Wayne and nothing more about his life before becoming an adopted Wayne.

Jason wasn’t surprised Y/N kept that part of his life to herself. She was protective of him that way. She always felt like his past was his story to tell, not hers.

“I know missing the holidays didn’t leave the best impression,” Jason told her after they’d been talking for awhile.

“You really mean a lot to Y/N. And your opinion matters more to her than you might think,” he added as he crossed his arms.

Kate seemed a little taken aback by how unafraid he was of confrontation.

He seemed more mature for his age – maybe for hers, even.

“I know I’m not going to win any of you over from just a single trip,” Jason continued. “But I’m going to work my ass off to make sure I get there.”

Kate smiled at that.

“I love her,” he told her quietly, but with determination. “She’s…Well, she’s the best thing to ever happen to me.”

Then he smirked. “And I’m not dumb enough to do anything to fuck things up with her.”

He took in a shallow breath. “I just…I just needed you to know that.”

Kate’s heart swelled from hearing her little sister’s boyfriend confessing his love for Y/N.

“Thank you for telling me that,” she whispered, trying to stop herself from crying. “I worry about her. And I hate that she’s so far away sometimes. I miss her.”

“She misses you, too,” Jason assured her.

“Thank you for taking care of her. I’m suddenly realizing you’re the only reason she’s eating anything that’s not out of a takeout container.”

Jason laughed. “I plead the fifth.”

Before any more could be said, Y/N walked into the kitchen as if she was sleep walking.

“Well, look who it is…” Jason teased.

Y/N walked to him silently, clearly wanting cuddles.

Jason chuckled at her, but gave her what she wanted. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. He had kept the PDA at an absolute minimum while he had been around Y/N’s family. But he couldn’t help it when Y/N was her sleepy and adorable self.

“You sleep OK?” He tried to whisper to her.

But Kate still heard it and pretended to look down at her phone.

Y/N nodded into his neck, making him chuckle at her more.

This was new for Kate, seeing her sister being loved and loving someone. Her instinct was to say it made her uncomfortable. But it was just something she wasn’t used to.

Soon Kate’s husband woke up and they all ate breakfast together.

And a few hours later, Y/N and Jason were packed and their was a Lyft was waiting outside to take them to the airport.

Jason hugged Kate and her husband and thanked them for hosting them. Then he grabbed Y/N’s bags and gave her a moment alone with her sister as he took their stuff to the car.

“I think I owe the two of you an apology…” Kate told her little sister.

“You do?”

“I think I judged him a bit too much before really giving him a chance.”

Y/N winced, but nodded. “Yeah, you did, actually.”

“He really loves you.”

Y/N smiled. “He does.”

“I just want you to be happy, you know that right?”

“I know. But sometimes you think that what makes you happy is what would make me happy. Our lives are different. And we want different things. Just because my relationship looks different than yours doesn’t mean it’s worse in some way.”

Kate nodded sadly, knowing her sister was right. “I get that now.”

-----------

A/N: I was inspired to write this when I thought about how my own family would react to me having a boyfriend like Jason Todd: a man who was secretly a vigilante and had a past too hard for anyone to ever imagine. Hopefully, other people can relate to this and it wasn’t too personal. 😬

Let me know what you thought!!!

[translations-by-aiimee]

The Husky and His White Cat Shizun - Chapter 18

Original Title:  二哈和他的白猫师尊

Genres: Drama, Romance, Tragedy, Xianxia, Yaoi

This translation is based on multiple MTLs and my own limited knowledge of Chinese characters. If I have made any egregious mistakes, please let me know.

Chapter Index

Chapter 18 - This Venerable One has Begged You Before

Tianwen has a deadly killing move. The name was very simple, just one word: "Wind". Once activated, no piece of armor in the surrounding area could withstand it.

Mo Ran was naturally acquainted with the power of "Wind". He also knew Chu Wanning's strength so there was no need to worry. He glanced at the pale man whose robe was dyed red with blood. He threw away the rest of his talismans to buy Chu Wanning some time, then flew away to the edge of the fight. He grabbed Shi Mei with one hand, Madam Chen with the other, and took two unconscious people, hiding a far distance away.

Chu Wanning endured the severe pain and reluctantly moved his other. Suddenly, Tianwen burst out with a dazzling golden light, and Chu Wanning violently jerked it back.

The Master of Ceremonies Ghost went berserk. It jumped up and rushed towards Chu Wanning with a distorted face.

Chu Wanning's robe waved like a flame in a violent wind, billowing and flying. His eyebrows were furious, half of his shoulders soaked in blood. He quickly raised his hand, Tianwen's golden light became more and more intense then it took off by Chu Wanning's flying spin.

The willow vine stretched for several tens of feet and whirled into a golden spiral. Like a whirlpool, it engulfed the surrounding ghosts, dead bodies, golden children, and the roaring and twisting Master of Ceremonies Ghost into the center of "Wind". The fierce image that was created by Tianwen was then shattered in an instant!!!

"Wind" smashed and destroyed. Not even the surrounding grass and trees, being ripped up from the ground, were spared.

The huge storm centered around Chu Wanning let out a dazzling golden light. The sky grew dark, covered by flying sand and rocks. Whether it was a coffin or the dead, they were like grass fluttering in the wind.

She was sucked in and was cut up by the rapidly spinning Tianwen.

Sliced into tens of thousands pieces of debris. . .

When everything calmed down, there was no grass around Chu Wanning, a desolate and empty wasteland.

Other than him standing alone in his bright, auspicious clothes that resembled a blooming red lotus and a begonia blossom, there was only a ground covered in crushed white bones, and the horrible hissing of Tianwen's golden light.

From this point of view, Chu Wanning did the world a favour pumping out so many disciples.

Based on his performance today, if he wanted to, even if every disciple on Life-Death Peak were defeated, it wasn't impossible for him to keep fighting. . .

The golden light faded away.

Tianwen turned into flickering dots like stars, blending into Chu Wanning's palm.

He breathed a deep breath and frowned. Enduring the sharp pain in his shoulder, he slowly walked towards his disciples in the distance.

"How's Shi Mei?"

Coming to their side, Chu Wanning pushed through and asked.

The ink burned down to look at the unconscious beauty in his arms. He still wasn't awake, his breathing was weak, and his cheeks felt cold to the touch. This scene was too familiar, it was a nightmare that Mo Ran couldn't get rid of.

As Shi Mei was lying in his arms like this, as time went on, he wasn't breathing anymore. . .

Chu Wanning placed his hands on Madam Chen's and Shi Mei's necks. He mumbled out: "Hmm? How could the poisoning be so deep?"

Mo Ran's head snapped up: "Poison? Didn't you say they were okay? Didn't you say that they were just being compelled?"

Chu Wanning frowned: "The Master of Ceremonies Ghost relied on the fragrance powder to compel them. That was a kind of poison. I thought it was only superficial, but I didn't expect the poison to be this severe."

". . ."

"Send them back to Chen's house first." Chu Wanning said, "It's not difficult to expel the poison. It's fine as long as they don't die."

His voice was cold and unwavering. Although Chu Wanning normally spoke like this, at this moment, it really made people feel like he was uncaring and downplaying things.

Mo Ran was brought back to that year of heavy snow. He was knelt in the snow and in his arms was Shi Mei whose life was slipping away. With tears on his face, he hoarsely begged Chu Wanning to turn his head, look at his disciple, and pleaded for him to raise his hand to save his disciple's life.

But what did Chu Wanning say back then?

It was also in such a light and calm tone of voice.

Just like that, rejecting Mo Ran the one time he knelt down and begged.

In the heavy snow, the person in his arms gradually became as cold as the snow falling on his shoulders and eyelashes.

That day, Chu Wanning killed two disciples with his own hands.

One was Shi Mingjing, who he could have saved but didn't.

One was Mo Weiyu, kneeling in the snow mourning the death of his heart.

There was a sudden panic in his heart, a brutality, a snake-like flow of resentment, rage and viciousness.

There was a moment when he suddenly wanted to rise up and strangle Chu Wanning. Wanted to shed his kind and pleasant disguise, revealing the hideousness of a malevolent ghost. Like a fierce ghost from a previous life, it viciously tore into him, questioning him and demanding his life.

He claimed the lives of the two helpless disciples in that snowfield.

But when his eyes flicked up, they suddenly fell on Chu Wanning's blood-covered shoulder.

The beast's anger was suddenly cut off.

He didn't say another word, just stared at Chu Wanning's face with poorly-masked hateful eyes. Chu Wanning didn't notice. After a while, he lowered his head again and stared at Shi Mei's haggard face.

His mind gradually went blank.

If something happened to Shi Mei this time, then. . .

"Cough cough cough!!"

The person in his arms abruptly coughed. Mo Ran was stunned and his heart trembled. . . Shi Mei slowly opened his eyes, and his voice was extremely hoarse and weak.

"A-. . . Ran. . .?"

"Yes! It's me!" In his ecstasy, the haze disappeared. Mo Ran's eyes widened. The palms of his hands were pressed against Shi Mei's cool cheeks, and his shining eyes trembled. "Shi Mei, how do you feel? Does anything hurt? "

Shi Mei smiled lightly, his eyebrows still. He turned his head, and looked around: ". . . How are we here. . . How did I faint. . . Ah! Shizun. . . cough cough, this disciple is incompetent. . . this disciple. . ."

"Don't talk," Chu Wanning said.

He gave Shi Mei a pill: "Since you're awake, take this poison dispersing pill. Don't swallow it right away."

Shi Mei took the medicine then was suddenly taken aback, his colourless face appearing even more transparent: "Shizun, how did you get hurt? You're covered in blood. . ."

Chu Wanning still had that faint, calm, irritating voice: "It's nothing."

He got up and glanced at Mo Ran.

"You, find a way to bring both of them back to the Chen's residence."

When Shi Mei woke up, the gloom that was deep in his heart suddenly vanished. He nodded quickly: "Okay!"

"I'll go first. I have something to ask the Chen family."

Chu Wanning said and turned to leave. Facing the vast darkness of the night, the fields covered in decay, he finally couldn't supress a twitch in his eyebrow, revealing a painful expression.

The entire shoulder was pierced by five fingers, the tendons and veins were torn apart, and the Master of Ceremonies Ghost's claws even pierced the bones deep in his flesh and blood. No matter how he pretended to endure it calmly, no matter how he tried to stave the bleeding, he was still be a human being.

It still hurt. . .

But so what if it hurts.

He walked forward one foot after another, the hem of the wedding dress flying around.

For so many years, people respected and feared him, but no one has dared stand by his side. No one cares about him. He has long been used to it.

Yuheng of the Night Sky, the Beidou Immortal.

No one liked him. No one cared whether he lived or died, whether he was sick or suffering.

He seemed to be born without the need for the support of others, no need to rely on anyone, no need for company.

So there was no need to shout out in pain, and crying was even more unnecessary. Just go and dress the wounds, cut off all the festering flesh around the tear and apply ointment on it.

It didn't matter if no one cared about him.

Anyway, that's how he came to be alone. He's survived all these years. He can take care of himself.

When he came to the door of the Chen residence, before he entered the courtyard, he heard an ear-piercing scream.

Chu Wanning didn't care about aggravating his wound and immediately rushed in - only to see the old lady Chen with a disheveled hair, her eyes closed, but chasing her son and husband all over the house, only ignoring the young daughter of the Chen family. She stood beside her in panic, huddled tightly, shaking.

Seeing Chu Wanning enter, Mr. Chen and his eldest son screamed and rushed towards him: "Dao Master! Dao Master, help!"

Chu Wanning held them back. He glanced at Madam Chen's closed eyes, and said angrily: "Didn't I tell you to watch her and keep her from falling asleep?!"

"I can't help it! My wife is unwell. She usually goes to bed early. After you left, she was still holding out at first, then she fell asleep, and then she started to go crazy! She started screaming. . . yelling. . ."

Mr. Chen shivered and ducked behind Chu Wanning. He didn't notice that he was actually wearing an auspicious outfit, nor did he notice the hideous wound on Chu Wanning's shoulder.

Chu Wanning frowned and said: "What was she yelling?"

Before Mr. Chen spoke, the mad woman rushed over with her teeth bared, screaming mournfully. It was actually the voice of a young woman—

"Spineless liar! Pathetically fickle! I want you to pay with your lives! I want you all to die!"

Chu Wanning: ". . . This evil spirit stoops low." He turned back and sternly shouted at Mr. Chen, "Does this voice sound familiar?"

Mr. Chen’s mouth was trembling. He rolled his eyes and swallowed nervously: “I don’t know, I don't recognize it, I don’t know! Please help! Please help!

Just then, Madam Chen rushed over. Chu Wanning raised his uninjured arm, pointing at the sky above Madam Chen, and a lightning bolt slammed down, trapping Madam Chen within a barrier.

Chu Wanning turned his head with an icy gaze: "You really don't know?"

Mr. Chen repeated: "I really don't know! I really don't know!"

Chu Wanning didn't say anything else. He whipped out Tianwen and bound old lady Chen in the barrier.

He should have tied up the rest of the family outside, it would be more convenient and easier to gauge the situation, but Chu Wanning had his own rules of conduct. It wasn't easy using Tianwen to interrogate abnormal individuals. So he abandoned the soft approach and instead questioned the ghost in Madam Chen's body.

Interrogating ghosts wasn't the same as interrogating people.

When Tianwen interrogated people, they couldn't fight it and would speak.

When Tianwen interrogated ghosts, it would form a boundary where only Chu Wanning and the ghost would exist. Ghosts would regain their original appearance in the boundary and pass on their message to Chu Wanning.

A flame ignited on Tianwen. It snaked along the vine, burning from his end straight to old lady Chen.

The old lady let out a scream, and suddenly began to twitch. The original scarlet flame on the willow vine instantly turned into a blue ghost fire and burned back to Chu Wanning's side.

Chu Wanning closed his eyes. The fire burned up the willow vine onto his palm, but the ghost fire couldn't hurt him. It just burned all the way along his arm, down his chest, and then went out.

". . ."

The Chen family looked at the scene in horror. They didn't know what Chu Wanning was doing.

Chu Wanning's eyelashes trembled lightly, his eyes still closed, but a white light gradually appeared in front of his eyes. Immediately afterwards, he saw a small, white, jade-like foot step out of the light, and a girl about seventeen or eighteen years old appeared in his field of vision.

Previous Chapter Next Chapter

[howlingday]

nora's arc) sexy times with jaune is great, but with the advent of his semblance and it effectivly making his stamina infinate nora turns to desperate messures to maintain the energy she needs to match him.

jaune tells her that she needs to chill after she jacks into beacon's energy grid

"Hello?" Isabella quietly answered her scroll. She was currently engaged with watching over her first-born grandchild as they slumbered softly in the Arc family crib. Every child in the Arc family has used it since long before her grandfather's generation. She slept in it, her daughters slept in it, and her son personally helped with it's rebuilding after Nora tried sleeping in it.

"Mrs. Arc?" A familiar voice replied. Isabella turned away from her grandson with frown. Professor Glynda Goodwitch, Deputy Headmistress of Beacon, never made social calls. It was either something in regards to the Watchtower, or one of her children (always Nora, despite her prayers for it to be Jaune just once) was in trouble. "It's Professor Goodwitch from Beacon. I'm calling in regards to your child's recent behavior at-"

"Was it Jaune?" Isabella interrupted. To her surprise, the response was a cough.

"Actually..."

"So, explain to me how this plan works?" Pyrrha asked as Nora connected the last jumper cable to the Beacon generator with a loud CLACK! The three generators inside the cage hummed loudly as their turbines spun, producing small gusts of air to ceaselessly blow from their ports.

"It's simple, Pyrrha!" Nora beamed as she gestured to the jumper cables. "I hook myself up to the generator," she flexes, "I power up," she then crudely pivoted her hips forward and back repeatedly, "and Jaune and I thunk-a-thunk until either his aura runs out, or mine does!"

"And if you die in the process?" Pyrrha winced.

"Psh! You worry too much!" She then turned towards the jumper cables, gripping the rubber handles, (which were smoking), clicking them with excitement. "Don't worry, though, because Mama always gets her man."

Jaune and Ren were studying in the library when the lights flickered. All of the lights. Ren lazily looked around with an arched brow. "Weird. Is there a power surge, or...?"

Ren looked to Jaune, or rather, where he was, as Jaune had already left his seat. Ren shut his book with a sigh, and carried them to counter for check-out. Ren knew they weren't going to be of any use in the library at this time.

"Nora!" The girl turned to see her fiancee panting outside the cage, his eyes wide with excitement. "What the heck are you doing?!"

"Oh, don't you worry, Jaune," her grin became sultry, "because in a couple of seconds, all you'll need to worry about is how much your lap is gonna hurt!"

Jaune's eyes became wider, somehow, as he tore open the cage's gate, clearly eager to ravish her and impatient to wait. She moved the cable teeth closer together, slowly to tease him.

Nora felt her body become weightless, more so than usual, as Jaune lifted her off her feet and pulled her away, the grips slipping from her fingers. She giggled as he spun her, letting out a cry of delight. When she opened her eyes, she watched as Jaune felt her up, patting her arms and hands specifically. She gazed lovingly as he let out shaky breaths from his desire.

"Oh, thank God!" Jaune cried, letting out a sigh of relief.

He then looked at her with... a panicked look in his eyes. Was he... scared? Why?

"Jaune, what's wrong?"

"You almost died, Nora!"

Nora let out a laugh. "What? No! I was going to just-"

"Just what?!" Jaune barked, his tone turning aggressive. "Get yourself killed?!" She only ever heard this tone from Mom. Nora flinched as he continued yelling. "Nora, you're not invincible, indestructible, or immortal! Do you know how horrible I would feel if you died?!"

Nora's face felt hot, and her cheeks felt full. "I- I just wanted to... to... to..." She wailed in front of her future husband, sobbing as she reached for him. "I'm sorry, Jauney!"

He held her at a distance by her shoulders, and he let out a shaky breath as he spoke. "I know. I know you're sorry, but..." He shook his head. "This is just too reckless! I can't just take an I'm sorry this time." He stepped away from Nora and looked over her shoulder. "Pyrrha, take Nora back to the room. I..." He turned away from Nora. "I need to think about this."

Nora shook as she felt Pyrrha lead her away. Her movements weren't her own. She walked by Pyrrha's guiding hand, and as she blinked tears from her eyes, she suddenly found herself in her room.

She sat on her bed, and said nothing for the rest of the night.

Jaune sat in Headmaster Ozpin's office with his hands folded in his lap. The white-haired man looked over the items on his desk. The jumper cables sat coiled in a neat pile, the rubber grips on the handles fully melted to a black, flaky, carbonized layer. After a long silence since his first words of, "Have a seat," he spoke once more. "Show me your hands."

Jaune turned over his palms, revealing red palms with signs of scarring. The scars were the width of the grips on the cables, and there was a black powder under Jaune's hands.

"Your aura is certainly worth praising." Headmaster Ozpin chuckled. "I'd expect nothing less from someone of the Arc-"

"Sir?" Jaune interrupted. He folded his hands again. "I'm..."

"Not in the mood for jokes or praise?" Jaune silently nodded. "Understandable, of course. After all, our next discussion isn't a laughing matter." He seated himself, reaching down and refilling his mug. He looked to Jaune with a glance from the side. "Coffee?"

"No, thank you."

"You may need it one day, Mr. Arc, for those long nights of deep thought." Jaune said nothing. The headmaster sighed. "I suppose there's no sense in delaying the inevitable. Mr. Arc, tell me what happened."

Jaune gulped before speaking.

"And that's what happened." Professor Goodwitch finished.

"I... see." Isabella grit her teeth after hearing how her son took the fall for Nora. More surprising, however, was hearing how Jaune stood up to her. "How are they?"

There was a long moment of silence before Professor Goodwitch cleared her throat and spoke again. "They're fine. Their grades are staying above average, and your son has been showing progress as a team leader."

"And Nora?"

"Miss Valkyrie-Arc has been showing improvement in her behavior. She's more quiet, less excitable, and..." Isabella heard her sigh. "I won't lie to you, Mrs. Arc, she is not her usual self. Since their argument, the two will barely look at each other, let alone speak with one another."

Isabella cursed under her breath. She was always hoping Nora would calm down at Beacon, but not like this. The bubbly girl she fed, cared for, and raised wasn't acting like her usual self. She needed to fix this, and she needed to do it now.

"Mrs. Arc?"

"I'll talk to them."

[ktheist]

2 | all yours to enjoy [m]

title inspired by blackpink’s sure thing cover.

⟶ read part one, play me like a toy, here.

muses. heiress!reader x ex-mafia!hoseok

genre. age gap factor. chaebol-mafia au. arranged marriage au. modern au.

warning. implied smut, mentions of gun use and all that mafia shizz

verse. knj. ksj. myg. kth. pjm. jjk. jhs.

synopsis.

“marry me or be killed.”

“is there a third option?”

“we fucked but you were too drunk to remember so that option’s invalid.”

x

the carved name above the handle points in wayward angles. as if made by a child.

well, 5 year-old-you lacked tact. and a sense of artistry but nobody dared insult the work of the only daughter of the han group.

the room hoseok stepped in feels familiar yet foreign at the same time. it’s been years, but the pink unicorn plushie still sits on your bed like it’s waiting for you to climb in and cuddle it every night.

the pastel peach walls have been repainted in a deep maroon shade. at your order, hoseok suspects. it’s as if you’ve renounced that childish innocence and took on a blood oath for the han family name.

much of that youthful wander in your eyes has disappeared.

‘it was my fault, i shouldn’t have left her all alone in this wretched place,’ hoseok surly thought to himself.

before he can even think about how inappropriate his actions are - to have stepped into a woman’s room without a reason - a surprised voice echoes from the door adjacent to where he’s standing.

“hoseok...” you’re standing there, in front of the ajar bathroom door, with a pristine white towel around your body and another wrapped around your head, water dripping from the stray strand that manages to escape from your towel turban.

perhaps he had a reason, after all.

perhaps he just wants to see you, the person who coerced him to come back to this god forsaken house where he’s seen more deaths than his fingers could count.

“i’m sorry- i didn’t know you were taking a bath-” hoseok didn’t even manage to take a step back when you shake your head, a smile he’s not used to seeing curved on your lips.

“it’s fine, come in. close the door behind you.”

when he remains frozen in his spot, hand on the handle that seems to seep cold, icy frost into his palm - you raise a pair of trimmed brows, “what? we’re getting married, aren’t we? you forgot but you’ve seen all of me,” a coquettish smile on your lips, “don’t tell me you’re getting all shy now after announcing to the entire head of families that they should sleep with one eye open.”

the funeral had been handled by uncle jihoon, your father’s right hand man and most trusted confidant. he probably cleaned up the skeletons in your father’s closet more times than you’d met your own father in your 25 years of living.

your father had enemies and someone had to get rid of them.

such was the ways of the hans.

yeojun was yours and sehun was chanyeol’s.

hoseok was meant to step in once uncle jihoon resigned since at an early age, he’d gathered enough support to ruin the whole nation. his only fault was being loyal to your father, han jiseok.

and it was his loyalty that made your father drive him away.

because no matter when hoseok was and what he was doing, he’d never betray the hans.

“he’s just a kid,” you’d once heard him say to uncle jihoon.

several months later, he’d announced at the annual family gathering that hoseok got into yonsei university as a business major. it also meant that his ties with the han group would cease to orphan student-influential family sponsors. every record of his existence was wiped clean. he was no longer the child uncle jihoon took in because he pitied hoseok’s miserable state of living. he’d come to your house in tattered clothes and a bluing bruise on his cheek.

jung hoseok was meant to carry half of the burden of the head of family until the true heirs grew up and learned the ropes of leading the han group.

in short, hoseok was a proxy. a stand-in who gathered a little too many support that threatened the powers of the actual heirs.

their bow lingered longer, as if they were thanking the gods for bringing him back just as they’d lost a great leader.

you didn’t mind though. you liked hoseok - he was the only one that didn’t look at you like you were a prophecy of death. a child who’d grow up just as wicked as her father.

he’d looked at you like a human.

han jiseok took a liking to hoseok, the loyal dog of the han family that would drive a fist into someone’s gut at the command of the head or any of his heirs. hoseok wouldn’t question it either - why he was beating someone up half-dead, he just... did it.

so when that jung hoseok who got cut off from the han family at chanyeol’s whining over how his succession would not be supported by the branch families if hoseok were to remain as the stand in - came back and announced  first thing after his return, his engagement to the heiress of han group, naturally, all hell broke lose.

hoseok had stood by your side as you’d kept your head low, the black veil covering your eyes and nose did well to hide your dry gaze.

true to his reputation, as soon as he stepped into the mansion with you, the men who swore their loyalty to the han family, one by one, started bowing at hoseok whilst the heads of the vassal families started whispering among themselves.

“hoseok, the loyal dog? that’s him?”

“did the boss ever say who was going to inherit the family business?”

family business was just a white washed term of the commercial front of han group that was meant to blur the eyes of the korean government on what truly goes on underground.

“the attorney hasn’t been found, right? that means nobody here knows the contents of the will.”

“did he ever mention chanyeol would inherit the business?”

“____’s achievements aren’t something to be turned a blind eye on either.”

one of the heads of the branch approached you, he smiled too sweetly on the day of his principal’s passing. rubbed his hands together schemingly as he murmured words of condolences that sounded like congratulations, “the boss suffered for so long from leukemia, the gods must’ve answered his prayer. i’m sorry for your loss, miss ____.”

foolish fiend.

kang sungho was chanyeol’s uncle from his mother’s side. he was the head of one of the closest branch family who’d swore loyalty to the han’s. yet he acted like a stranger who didn’t have anything to do with his brother-in-law’s passing.

“say, hoseok, you’re here too,” sungho didn’t even wait for you to respond - perhaps he thought you were too in shock to say anything, “it’s been a while, thank you for coming even though you have no relation with han group anymore.”

just like that, sungho made a u-turn and spoke on the behalf of han group.

your hand that you didn’t even know was balled up into a fist shook silently - that was, until hoseok slipped and grasped it with his large hand as he lowered his head in a nod.

“it’d always been my intention to come back to serve the new boss,” his hand had left you to wrap his arm around your shoulders, “well, a husband is a slave to his wife, anyway, right?”

it was clear from what hoseok said that he didn’t mean chanyeol was the soon-to-be wife.

you’d sent yeojun to the hospital to confirm your father’s status while you’d met up with an - well, you were holding her son and husband hostage if she didn’t corporate but still - acquaintance who works at the korean embassy to speed up the marriage registration process.

it was when you were walking out of the embassy and to the car that hoseok slips his hand in yours and murmurs to himself.

but you’d heard every word of it, “your hands are trembling. you’ve never shot a man, have you?”

a sense of melancholy paints his face as his grasp tightens on your hand, as if saying ‘sorry i left you all alone in that house.’

you shook it off, heart too dried and withered to ponder on what he’d thought. thoughts of you father filling your heart.

no ceremony, no nothing.

and now you’re married.

the hoseok from just hours ago stood with his back straight and an ease in his aura. yet his presence alone was enough to make even the eldest of the head bow to him.

“are you... are you okay?” this hoseok asks you with hesitance in his voice.

“what makes you think i’m not?” you amble to the bed and drop your towel, letting it pool around your ankle.

there’s no mistaken low breath hoseok let out at the sight of your naked body. as if he’s a teenage school kid who’s never seen the body of a woman.

“do you mind zipping this up for me?” you say, standing with your exposed back on him, damp hair pulled to drape over your shoulder and chest.

hoseok lets out a cough. as if to announce that he was in the room and he was coming closer.

the fingerpads feels callous against your skin. you have to remind yourself to breathe through your nose than hold it in until your lungs feel like they’re about to burst.

hoseok takes his sweet, leisure time tracing down his index finger down your spine to get to the zipper. and when he does, he drags it up in an agonizingly slow pace, the grazing sound it makes causing the hairs on your neck to stand.

“skip the after-reception... you look tired,” he says after his hand falls away from your body and you’re suddenly missing what warmth it provides, like a flame that thaws the ice in your heart.

a dry laugh escapes you, “the elders are finally looking at me as an heiress, you know i can’t afford to slip out of the spotlight on the pretense of fatigue.”

before hoseok can offer any response, you twirl around, arms banding around his waist and bare face buried in his chest.

“hold me like you used to when i woke up from a nightmare and i’ll be fine,” the remnant of your sob threatens to spill from your mouth - true, you didn’t shed a single tear when you arrived late at night at the hospital.

the death of your father had been announced at 1703 hour.

but it’s only ever sunk in that the only family you have is gone - once you’ve left to your own devices to take a bath and change into new clothes before the after reception begins.

it’s then, that the waterworks began to pour over your cheeks without any hints of stopping.

hoseok must have seen the aftermath of your puffed, pink eyes when you stepped out of the bathroom, not expecting for anyone to be there except the silence.

a pair of strong, secure arms wrap around your body wordlessly. hoseok tilts his head so his cheek is pressed against the side of your head.

“you grew a few inches,” his husked voice brushes your ear like a dream you’d never want to wake up from.

a small laugh escapes you, “oh come on, i got more than my height on me but you-”

hoseok groans and you clamp your mouth shut, chuckling.

“i’m sorry,” he confesses, a treasure trove of remorse laced around those two little words.

all of a sudden, guilt gnaws at your conscience for having teased him too many times about forgetting something he couldn’t control, “don’t say sorry,” you mumble, “now i feel bad.”

“i used to tease you a lot about your obsession for ponies and unicorns.” his voice drums in your ears.

“i used to fantasize about finding a unicorn in the forest behind our beach house and beating chanyeol at a race someday,” without you realizing it, your cheeks are hurting from how wide you’re smiling.

silence lapses around you.

but it has no space in between your flushed bodies. you hear hoseok’s unusually fast heartbeat.

“you’ve changed...” you murmur, somber.

“i did?” he sounds melancholic, as if reminiscing about the days in this household.

chasing after the troublemaker daughter that always thinks they’re playing hide-and-seek. beating and threatening any rival members he sees hovering around the han group’s territorial influence.

“i didn’t say i don’t like the new you,” you tear your face off his chest, tilting your chin to gaze up to his warm eyes that appear deep brown under these fluorescent lights.

standing on the tip of your toes, you peck his lips lightly.

a sweet smile plays on your lips.

‘yeah, his lips are as soft as they look,’ you affirm.

it’s the way his eyelids cover his eyes as he blinks. the way his lips part as if surprised at the sudden, unannounced advancement. the way the realization seems to sink in that there was nothing stopping you from kissing him again-

an index finger presses against your pouted lips as you stand on the tips of your toes once again.

“it’s dangerous...” is all he offers.

but with the way his gaze becomes hooded as the chains of self-restraint shackles his hands and ankles, you think you know what he means.

instead of offering an answer, you sweep your tongue over the length of his digit, mouth opening to lightly bite his finger all the while gazing into his stormy eyes.

“guess i’m just a little kitten compared to the wolves in that room full of old wolves to you, huh?”

once the storm passes, his gaze becomes hooded with something - something you can’t pinpoint.

yet you let him slide his finger deeper into your mouth, feeling the soft pink flesh of your tongue on his fingertip.

you flutter your lashes skittishly, hand pushing the hair to the back of your ear as you lick a strip down his finger like you would his other head. but the rap on your door and the “miss ____, it’s yeojun,” coming from the other side almost sends your heart leaping into your throat.

you suck in a deep breath around hoseok’s finger before pulling away and stepping to the side, completely aware of the sexual tension that hovers in the air like thick, dark clouds.

“yeojun, is everyone here?” your gaze is fixed on the handle that your hand’s reaching out for.

“everything’s set, we’re waiting on the priest to arrive,” his voice sounds muffled through the door.

you step out of the door with half-damp hair and a face bare of make up whilst patting down the skirt of your dress.

but it’s not your half-as-acceptable appearance that makes yeojun stare at you for five solid seconds.

rather, he’s staring at something behind you as you feel the warmth of a body heat against your back.

“i’ll be the one escorting my fiance, yeonjun.”

he speaks casually despite yeojun being older than him and yet it felt natural. hoseok holds out his arm for you as yeojun stepped back with a bow, making way for you and hoseok to walk down the hallway leading to the flight of stairs where the main hall would be.

x

“god, i hate ties,” hoseok murmurs under his breath from next to you, nimble fingers pulling on his collar.

“you wear it well for someone who claims to hate going around in crisp button downs and shiny leather loafers,” a smile tugs on the corners of your lips.

chanyeol finally stepped away with the madam for some fresh air. maybe the death glares she’d been shooting you since you arrived - has finally got the world spinning behind her eyes.

“was the only option an orphaned nobody like me had when i was offered to work a nine to five,” he says casually, still fumbling with his tie.

your hand feels like a child’s when you place it on his. he pauses, gazing down at you before letting his hand fall on his side whilst yours remain on the knot of his necktie.

“may i?”

hoseok’s head moves, not quite a nod but not a shake of ‘no’ either. so you take out the pin from your hair that yeojun fetched from your room after your hair started falling into your face with every head bow you made in front of the guest. undoing the knot on hoseok’s tie, you slip the pin between the knot before looping the end over the knot and patting it down once you’re done.

the ‘how did you learn to do that’ look that hoseok shoots you makes you laugh. he’s both impressed and suspicious.

“my mom-” the one who’s confined to the house your father give and can’t even attend her late husband’s memorial service, reception and after reception, “-taught me all the things i needed to know to be the ‘perfect’ wife.”

“never pegged you for someone who’d obediently absorb her teachings,” he comments.

back then, you were as ruthless and spoiled as they come. the fine lines on your mother’s forehead was probably caused by your bursts every time she tried to push her views on you.

“a year after you left the seong’s proposed for our families to join together... they had a son and daddy had a daughter at his disposal... i was preparing to be a bride because that’s all people around me made my life to be until i just... had enough of being treated like a doll. so i cut a deal with seong joongki, got rid of his dad so he could step up as head, we remained engaged until i turned 18 and broke it. now he’s one of the people i know i can count on,” a shrug of your shoulder and you look up to him, locking his gaze with yours.

“seong, huh?” hoseok scanned the faces of the guests behind you, eyes narrowed like a hawk before they paused on something.

his gaze returns to you, an overly sweet smile appearing on his face as his dimples dig into his cheeks, “people like him cut and run when things get messy.”

you laugh, it sounds tired, but it’s still laugh, “if he does, i’d be the one to tell him to.”

“and i’ll put a bullet in his head if you didn’t,” he says words of murder like a romantic confession as he gazes into your eyes like there’s no where he’d rather be.

that is, until an unfamiliar voice calls the husband of the heiress by his name.

x

“namjoon,” hoseok hugs the chairman of kimcorp. for a lingering moment as the man pats his back once, as if unspeakingly consoling him.

kim namjoon, the second child and heir of kimcorp. and hoseok’s college friend and boss who booked a sudden trip back to seoul at the news of the head of the han group’s passing.

though the later generation washed their hands off the dirty work that got them where they are, they still remember their roots.

when they break apart, hoseok turns to you, arm around your waist, “___, this namjoon. namjoon- ___... my wife.”

hearing the word ‘wife’ slip out of hoseok’s mouth warms your heart yet makes your stomach knot painfully. ironic how you’d want to believe the heartrendering way he introduced you to be anything more than the act you told him to put on.

“ah,” kim namjoon narrows his eyes at you, as if shifting through his memories, “the kid hoseok babysat.”

the disparaging regard to your status as heiress tells you enough what this so-called friend of hoseok thinks of you.

“the friendless nerd hobi befriended out of pity,” you state, flashing you best smile.

a nod from his side. as if saying ‘touché’.

“ah, mrs. aera didn’t come?” hoseok asks, eyes searching the crowd until namjoon shakes his head, a meaningful smile playing on his lips.

“she’s too tired so i told her to rest at home,” he says and hoseok nods, as if understanding the underlying reason that kim aera is missing from honoring the master his husband’s family’s served for generations.

the kim’s are one of the oldest families that was tied down to han group by an oath. your great great great grandfather helped his great grandfather build the legacy the kim’s found themselves on now.

though the later generation washed their hands off the dirty work that got them where they are, they still remember their roots.

he steps away, greeting chanyeol and han chohee, your father’s legal wife before meandering away and keeping out of the spotlight for the rest of the night while you amble languidly with your hand on hoseok’s arm, exchanging pleasantries with the guests like it’s a wedding rather than a funeral until it’s time for the head of the family to gather in the boardroom.

everywhere you and hoseok goes, eyes follow. those who you approach tenses up while they wear their best smiles and utter words of sweet saccharine but as soon as the attorney turns up, you have no sliver of doubt that these people will be the first to vote for your head if it turns out the will appoints chanyeol as the next and rightful heir of han group.

those who you pass by end up with twisted faces. they’re the acquaintances of the han group, loyal to no master - the actual people who’d cut and run.

“mr. jee,” the middle aged man with too big of a nose and overbearing personality turns his full attention to you after hoseok was done talking about the stock market he’d been investing in, “a friend of mine, doctor maria wong, is a skin specialist who just received the asan award in medicine for her recent findings, i can introduce you to her, if you’d like.”

the youngest jee suffers from a rare skin condition which is why she never attended any social functions. they claimed she got accepted to a boarding school in europe when she was actually getting treated in one of the most prestigious private hospitals in the world in switzerland.

the situation is kept under wraps. you lost one of your holiday villas for this piece of information.

“o-oh, yes,” it takes a moment of him staring at you like you’re emitting halo from your body before he stammers back to life, “i- we,” he looks at his wife who shares the same hopeful gleam, “would really like that.”

“one down... tens more to go,” hoseok murmurs under his breath when you walk away from the couple, “you’re pretty good this ‘you know whose side you should be on, don’t you’ kind of threat.”

“i threatened the jung hoseok to marry me, this is child’s play,” you shoot him a coquettish smile, not expecting for him to lean down to your ear and whisper lowly.

“the lock was on the whole time,” he chuckles as he straightens his back at the announcement summoning all the heads of the families present, its representative, the children of the han’s and their spouses to the meeting room.

hoseok pulls out a pair of tucson, ariz’s tucked behind him and places them on the metal tray soobin’s holding out. he slips a hand under his suit, pulling out a revolver from his shoulder holster you didn’t even know he had on. then, two grenades from each of his pockets like he’s taking out a piece of candy. a foldup knife from the pocket of his blazer.

red lights go off when he walks past the metal detector, cursing to himself before he shoots you a sheepish look - the one the new hoseok would - and bends down before pulling out two kolibri the size of your palm and appear like toy guns in hoseok’s that was strapped on both his ankles.

one of your father’s men manually hovers a handheld metal detector and scans him from head to toe before giving him the greenlight to walk into the room just as kang sungho screams, “i’m the uncle of the future head, you’ll regret this!”

you roll your eyes at the old man’s outburst, taking out the dagger strapped to your thigh and pretending to not notice hoseok’s ogling at your exposed thighs when the dress rides up.

“bringing a knife to a gun fight - ballsy,” hoseok murmurs under his breath, his words meant only for you as you join his side, both of you stepping into the still-empty boardroom as the heads of the branch families you pass by grumble to themselves, pulling out the weapons they have on them and piling the tray in front of them.

one even pulled out a bandolier wrapped underneath his coat. the others merely have a pile of handguns and revolvers on their tray.

“oh, i brought something better,” you feel your lips stretching into a smirk as hoseok pushes the chair behind you before slipping in the one next to you, inquisitive eyes boring into yours.

a peck lands on his lips as you giggle at the way his eyes go wide for the briefest moment.

“tch,” someone says as they pass you and hoseok. chanyeol sits across from you, glare digging holes into your skull as he looks at you as if you were guM under his sole.

“please, tell me you have a plan that involves me driving my fist in his face,” hoseok’s low voice sends shivers down your spine.

it takes a moment for you to grasp that his statement needs a response.

“even better,” you murmur, head tilted to him, “you’ll get to do whatever you want with him after we walk out of this room.”

x

“we can’t go on without a leader for longer than 48 hours!” kang sungho smacks his pudgy fist against the clear glass surface of the oval table.

“we get your frustrations head family kang, but we need to locate attorney hyeon first,” seong joongki speaks informally to the man 20 years his senior and kang sungho can only grit his teeth.

in this room, no peerage title exists. every head is equal and that means every single person here is below you and chanyeol, the heir and heiress of han group.

“for all we know, attorney hyeon could be dead,” ahn sujin glances around the room, meeting every eye of the head until her gaze rests on you, “they found traces of tires on the road and a wrecked tree trunk a few feet away.”

“are you saying attorney hyeon got into an accident on the way here but someone quickly moved the car and bodies as if they were planned it, auntie sujin?” chanyeol baritone cuts through the tense air.

he throws you a side glance as he sits at the end of the oval table where your father and his father and his father’s father sat, bearing the weight of a legacy as old and majestic as the royal family had they survived all these years. the audacity of this man you call a brother walked straight up to the seat your father used to occupy and plopped down as if he owned it.

“the crash mark in the bark of the tree was still fresh,” ahn sujin nods.

“well...” at the sound of your voice, the whole room falls silent, “let’s ask him shall we?”

soobin, nods at you like he’s known your ways for years. he pulls out a remote and the tv screens tacked behind the leader’s seat.

the screen flashes with a picture of uncle jihoon getting into a sleek black car with the plate number HG that only you, chanyeol, the madam and your father have access to.

a blurred buzzing echoes against the soundproof walls of the boardroom before it gradually becomes clearer.

“...get the names?” a deep voice asks - the owner sitting directly across from you stares with knitted brows as he focuses on the familiar sound.

“a-... -re you... sure about...? ...involve ...your mother’s family...” uncle jihoon’s dialect wrapped around the syllables of the words, giving out who that voice belongs to.

he used to be proud of where he came from and wore his dialect like a medal.

“..-actly, they’re my mom’s family. not mine. ‘sides, kang sungho’s been clinging onto dad like a fucking leech even though he knows there’s nothing he can offer us that we want.”

silence fills the audio.

hoseok’s hand slips over yours, as if reminding you to let out that breath you’ve been holding.

chanyeol’s jaw tightens as he shoots daggers at you with his eyes.

“the names, uncle.” a sense of urgency laces around chanyeol’s voice.

“th-the kang’s, byun’s and ahn’s agreed to get molly to the scorpios in thailand on 23rd of april on flight ka8792 at 2:35 pm.” uncle jihoon says after a heartbeat.

each of the families listed are known for either their couture designs that receive orders from ministers’ wives all over the world, custom made colognes or either owns five star hotels in south korea and overseas.

“this isn’t enough, you think the cops are gonna believe all we have is the names of families involved in some mid level drug smuggling? my reputation’s on the line here.”

“a-and a fishing vessel will be making port at around 3 in the morning five days from now. it’s owned by the cha’s, they’ve been using it to smuggle meth and hide it under the hauls of fish they caught.”

the cha’s hold the monopoly to the wet market business.

“that’ll do for now, get out.”

the audio cuts off and the screens begin to move again, this time showing shots of chanyeol and a man in his 40′s sitting across from each other, having coffee.

shifting your hand so your palm is facing up in hoseok’s, you slip your fingers in the gap of his longer ones.

“that’s detective kim namseok and my beloved brother having brunch together - that’s right, chanyeol with the held of uncle jihoon, sold the kang’s, byun’s, ahn’s and cha’s off in his grand scheme of getting the leader position in exchange for police immunity for the han group... oops?” your lips purse into a mocking pout.

“lies! you know how much this bitch wanted to take over han group!” chanyeol roars, pushing himself off the chair and turning to face the wide-eyed gazes and dropped jaws of the heads of the families.

“i-i was b-blackmailed...” uncle jihoon stares at his reflection in the table, as if in a whole different world, “i-it’s not my fault! the young master threatened me!”

“let’s ask the detective shall we? since it’s been  proven that men from the han group have a hard time believing the women’s words,” you roll your eyes.

the screen flashes with an dark, barren room with nothing but a man tied to a chair in the middle of it. his head is hung low but there’s no mistaking the sight of blood covering his face and shirt.

the ghost scent of the blood makes your stomach churn yet you wear the malicious smile of someone who’s about to grasp the very thing she desires - perfectly.

“he’s a little... tied up. we caught him just in time before he called up his partner and spilled everything your darling heir provided.”

“uh, hello? are we live?” a cautious, brittle-like voice echoes from the intercom as a man with greying hair enters the frame as he adjusts his glasses to sit higher on his nose bridge.

“attorney hyeon, you’re live,” you affirm, smiling tightly.

“ah, good evening,” a light of recognition glints in the man’s eyes as he smiles, bowing deeply before straightening his back and backing up until he’s standing next to the half-conscious detective, “i apologize for not being able to attend the meeting myself. i got into an accident, drugged and would have had my nails pulled out if miss han didn’t come to my rescue and brought me here.”

“argh... a... ah...” the detective interjects, groaning.

attorney hyeon laughs calmly as if he didn’t just hear the bloodied and bruised man asking for help.

“in my hands here, i have the contents of the will which i will now have my... uh, assistant-bodyguard share it to the screen and send to your phones... are you sure... they’re sent?” his voice becomes quieter whilst phones and tablets begin to ding with a notification simultaneously.

“... the three holiday villas in incheon, jeju and daegu will respectively go to the madam...” he begins listing out the properties owned by your late father and the distribution of a portion of it to the madam and your mother.

no one interjects even though attorney hyeon’s voice seems to drone on and one despite the tape and audio that leaves everyone on the edge of their seats.

“...and for matters regarding the succession of the new head, the boss, han jiseok, wishes a fair voting system be used to decide whether mr. han chanyeol or miss han ___ will take the position a starting a month after his death.” by the end of it, the room is deathly silent as if a pin drop would echo like thunder in this spacious room.

“the heir and heiress are given three months for them to prove themselves to the vassals and in the absence of a leader, jung hoseok will be appointed as proxy-”

at that, the whole room breaks out into a roar.

“jung hoseok hasn’t stepped foot in han manor for over fifteen years!”

“miss ___ and hoseok are married! this will lead to unfair results!”

a screech against the floor as a chair falls over.

“you still want to support the son of a bitch that’s willing to sell all of us out to the blue bastards?!”

“who’s to say the young master’s not selling out the names of sons of bitches like you who switches sides the first chance you have!”

in the midst of the shouting, chairs screeching and the elderly lawyer trying to gain calm the elders, chanyeol turns to you with the eyes of a man who’s watching his legacy fall right in his very eyes.

“i should’ve left you in the forest when we got lost 15 years ago,” he reaches for something behind his back.

you recall the brother with scratches all over his body, the sun was setting and his back had looked broad for your 8 year old self. you were just two kids who lost their way, slipped and fall in the forest not too far from the family villa.

that same brother is holding a gun to your face.

x

hoseok takes a long whiff of the cigarette that sits in between his index and middle fingers.

“that was a shitstorm,” someone laughs from behind him - your voice sounds oddly free for someone who’s about to either get hexed or get worshipped within three months.

the curve of smile on your lips makes him smile too. he breathes out, laughing, “yeah...”

“do you mind sharing?”

hoseok blinks once. then he regains his senses, looking at the smoldering bud and tapping the middle part of the cigarette with the tip of his index finger to get the ash off so it wouldn’t hurt you if it fell.

“yeah... here.” he pushes down the wince that comes from the slightest strain of passing the cigarette to you.

the way your eyes linger on the clean white bandage on his arm tells him you’re not fooled by his unfazed mask. yet you don’t say anything, your eyes flutter close as your matte burgundy lips wrap around the beige colored bud and inhale.

when chanyeol pulled out the gun, hoseok tried to reason him out of it. promises were made at the expense of his own life. all that, in exchange for yours. in the fleeting moment that chanyeol took to consider pointing the gun at hoseok, you find your opening, shoving his hand upward and hitting that spot in his rib.

the bullet didn’t hit you but it grazed hoseok’s arm. he was standing right next to you.

And hoseok has a brand new pack of cigarettes in his pocket along with an electric lighter - he’d probably grab them both in one grasp if he slipped his hand in his pocket now.

for some reason, he takes the cigarette you pass and takes a good, long whiff out of it.

“did you know?” the puffs of smoke pass through your mouth as you speak and breathe out.

“when i left,  boss told me that i should be ready to drop everything i have... everything i am at any moment... they would have dragged me back one way or another and it’s not gonna be with a gun with its safety lock on if i didn’t walk in on my own accords,” hoseok taps the ashes off a second time, watching them flutter down and settle in between the green blades of grass.

a sense apprehension follows your nod as you stare at your reflection in your polished pumps, “after all this... after i convince the vassals, i’ll make sure you walk out of this alive. heck, i’ll sign the divorce papers today-”

the half of the unsmoked cigarette hits the ground.

hoseok finds himself swallowing the gasp that slips out of your lips at his sudden movement. you freeze underneath his fingertips like the ice you build in your heart but you don’t push him away and hoseok takes that as a maybe.

maybe there’s stability in this chaos.

maybe love does bloom in the most desolate place.

he feels his heart leap into his throat when your arm goes around his neck as you kiss him back just as desperately.

maybe, just maybe, you need him as much as he needs you.

x

the three months fly by with you gathering the majority of the votes by exposing the dirt you have on chanyeol as well as obtaining support from the main branch families by giving them more control over the underground market that was previously monopolized by han group.

though you’re competing with no one, the three month grace period still went on to ease you into the leadership spot.

to keep everything fair, you and hoseok lived apart. him in his apartment he’d been living in up till now and you in one of the holiday villas that your father gifted your mother.

by virtue, you had every right to keep staying in the main mansion as the heiress but chanyeol’s presence was still too strong. his people still lurk behind the mask of the so called loyalty for the han group. he’s locked in one of the safest hideout where only a selected few know where it is. one of them being hoseok. you never asked him what happened with your brother.

that brother of yours was dead to you the moment he pointed a gun at your head.

and with that, you find yourself in a standstill when it comes to your relationship with hoseok.

the last time you mentioned divorce was on the day the will was read. you ended up in one of the empty guest rooms in the mansion because yours was too far away. hoseok fucked you into the silk satin material of the bed like he did that night. as if begging you to keep him - even if it was only for cheap thrills and fleeting passion.

once you stepped out of that room - somewhat presentable and barely any feelings in your leg, so much so, he had to wrap an arm around you to keep you upright - he was whisked away to discuss ground rules of what being the proxy head is entitled.

and that included maintaining a professional - as professional as a mafia leader can be - relationship with the heir and heiress he were to oversee.

once the three months were over, hoseok moved in with you. did all the things married couples would do - attended social functions and established your power as the head and him, the husband of said head. as if saying he had no eye for the position of the head. as if saying if they’d get on their knees and bow down at his will, they better be ready to die for you at his will. only when you’re away on trips overseas, visiting other ruling families in tokyo, hong kong, china and everywhere in asia - would he take over your job.

he kept the men in check and made sure they had a good beating if they went astray. and even then, they’d still follow him to the ends of the earth.

jung hoseok has the full support of the people who swore loyalty to the han family and you have the majority support of the heads of the branch family.

to anyone and everyone, you two make a dangerously powerful couple.

except there’s one problem: you’ve only consummated your marriage once and you can barely kiss your husband without him running away like you’re the literal devil that’s after him.

“h-honey, you’re back,” hoseok stammers, his adam’s apple bobbing as he gazes down at your exposed cleavage that’s pressed up against his body, trapping him between the desk and you.

he looks as if he’s a touch away from losing his mind and fucking you against the table in front of the frames of your predecessors on the wall.

but then his phone vibrates in his pocket and he doesn’t need to take it but he does, a ‘namjoon’ flashing across the screen.

as if seeing a lightbulb go off his head, you shake your head, ‘don’t you dare’.

“i remember taehyun caught the baek’s men in our territory, they’re in the tortu- interrogation room. i was gonna kill them and get rid of their bodies, but since you’re back... i have golf with namjoon, see you tonight.” with that, he kisses you on the corner of your mouth.

in other words, hoseok was saying ‘they’re your problem now, boss.’

“wh-what, jung hoseok, you-!” you manage to yell back but he’s out of the door before you knew it.

hours later, the clock hands strike an hour and a half past midnight as they mock you for making your own husband run away at the sight of you. the door clicks twice as some slips in and shuts it behind them.

you don’t even catch the sound of footsteps as hoseok goes about the room, taking off his shirt and wrapping a towel around his waist. the only indication he’s even here is the body that suddenly freezes up at the sudden flash of light on the nightstand on your side.

“where were you?”

“i was out... golfing... with namjoon...” he drags out the sentence as if his brain short circuited when put in the spotlight in nothing but a flimsy towel around that muscular body of his.

“your wife comes back after two weeks and you decide to go golfing on the very day she touched down?” you say curtly, arms crossed over your lace donned chest.

“i-...” hoseok starts pointing to the open bathroom door behind him that he was about to go in had it not been for your abrupt intervention.

“come here,” you order.

“i just got back and i sweated a lot-” is it the way your eyes bore into his without so much as blinking that makes him clamp his mouth shut?

“yes, ma’am.”

a sigh leaves your lips heartbeats after he comes to stand by the bed, head hanging low like a puppy who knows he’s about to receive a scolding. but you’re not his owner and hoseok’s your husband. your lifetime companion.

“hobi,” the nickname slips out of your mouth without you realizing it as your fingers graze his, tugging on his index finger like a child.

he seems to understand your beckoning, bed dipping when he takes a seat, facing you. it takes everything in you not to let your eyes linger longer than a millisecond at the way the towel ends up stretching, revealing a very noticeable lump protruding in between his thighs.

you clear your throat, mentally chiding yourself for the wave of memories that flood your mind when hoseok is looking at you with attentive eyes. all ears for you.

“for some reason, i feel like you’ve been avoiding me and it’s not just this afternoon. since we started living together... it feels like we’re back to being strangers with memories who happen to have to spend their lives together from now on.” you play with his fingers that you tuck into your lap, heart beating too fast for you to look at him in the eye.

and to think you started off like a lioness prepared for war.

all of a sudden, the temperature of the room drops as you mention the word you promised you’d never utter again since the day of the reading of the will.

“i meant what i said about divorce - monthly alimony until the day you die, a house in gangnam a car with a driver, all expenses paid. and if you find someone and want to start a family with them, i swear on my honor as the head of han group, your family will be protected under our care for as long as i’m alive.”

“i don’t want a divorce.” hoseok says, sounding somewhat hurt.

“then- why-” you begin but he cuts you off with his troubled voice.

“____, i watched over you, i dropped you off and pick you up after school,  taught you how to ride a bicycle-”

this time, it’s you who speaks over him,“-ten years ago. hobi -”

i’m an adult who literally knows how to put a bullet in someone’s head.

but you don’t get to say that when hoseok shakes his head.

“do you remember why you started calling me that? because you came home one day and said you learned a new word- hope. you said i was your hope and you were so excited because you could equate a new word to someone you know... someone who’s been like a brother figure to you- how messed up am i to marry the little girl that i watched over and actually desire her as a woman now?”

“so you do see me as a woman.” is all you say.

“is that all you heard, ___?” hoseok’s wide eyed gaze bore into yours, as if disbelieved by your nonchalance.

“it’s the only thing i care about,” you shrug, the easy arrogance almost costing you another ruined relationship but you sigh a second later, eyes fixed on the motionless hand in your lap before you slip your hand in his, holding it like you’re about to commence a thumb war, “i may have acted like a spoiled brat the majority of the time after we met again which is probably why this whole existential crisis is happening right now,” you laugh, “it’s easier to play the role of a bimbo daughter than a strong overbearing heiress. i guess i acted like that for so long, i started becoming that.

your hand lies still in hoseok’s as you look up, meeting his gaze for what it is, “i admit, it’s my fault if you think that my feelings spurred from the fond memories of the only person who treated me like a human.”

“but i assure you, i didn’t get to where i am now because i’m driven by sentiments like hate for chanyeol and everyone who looked down on me nor the love i had for you as a guardian. in life, there’s only one thing i want and that’s to be the head of han group. you’re a chest piece that helps turn the tables around for me but you’re not my only piece.”

the line of hoseok’s shoulders sag, as if hearing the truth hurt him more than the lie convinced himself of.

“choosing to make you my king is entirely up to me... not because of some childhood memory or dependency on a guardian figure like you thought but...” your thumb grazes hoseok’s knuckles as you lift his hand to your lips, pressing a lingering kiss on his knuckles, “we can take it slow, i won’t tease you anymore and you can see for yourself how true my words are.”

“feels like i should be the one saying that,” the lips on your forehead feels warm, spreading through your body like a mid summer’s night.

arms wrap around your body, hugging you to a strong, tight, unclothed chest as your breath hitches in your throat. you raise your hands to return the embrace but decide against it - it feels like a sin to be drooling over hoseok’s abs and greek god-like body when you’ve just promised to stop jumping the gun.

“you smell nice,” you finally cave, slender hands wrap around his naked torso as you breathe in his scent - a faint trace of musk and sea and masculinity.

at that, the body underneath you seems to freeze up, “i-i think i should take that shower now.”

hoseok’s sudden retreat almost has you falling face first into the sheets. you watch as he covers his face with that large, pretty hands of his while his feet carries him into the bathroom door and closes it shut.

x

the room is silent.

save for the sound of the droplet gathering underneath the tap before hitting the quartz countertop.

hoseok stares at himself in the mirror. lips parted, glazed eyes that are becoming clearer with each passing second as if gradually realizing the sticky situation he found himself in.

the bathroom smells like your favorite floral bath gel but he can still sense the scent of his arousal that, after running the shower head over, finally washed down the drain.

the water was obviously hot. not scalding - hoseok couldn’t take scalding hot showers like you do. but since he’d moved in and after screaming and almost tumbling down to his death if the water didn’t boil him alive first - the next day, he’d found the water to be cooler. warm enough not to make him freeze but not hot enough to have his skin emitting vapor like a half cooked human meat.

but that’s besides the point.

the point is - he’s already had a good, warm shower and jerked himself off but he’s still hard.

it’s the way your delicate frame presses against him when you try to hug him. no- hoseok shakes his head mentally, it’s the way you breathe and compliment his scent which, hoseok is certain, smells like sweat and grass and soil that he rolled over after miserably failing to hit the ball.

he might be well acquainted with riches and luxuries but he’ll get used to these rich people hobby namjoon’s been trying to get him on after his marriage with the head of han group.

these days, it feels like namjoon’s been trying to get hoseok to meet him more than the times they have to actually see each other when he was slaving over his perfectionist ass at work.

before hoseok can even ponder further on namjoon’s unarousing quirks and get his boner down, he hears a rap on the door and a hesitant,“hobi?”

“y-yeah?” ha manages to answer somewhat smoothly.

“i just wanted to say that i can sleep in my old room... if you’re not comfortable sleeping in the same-”

“no!” a rushed rejection, a heart trembling inside a chest.

hands of fear grasps at his wrists and ankles as though if he stayed tight-lipped any longer, he might actually walk out to an empty bedroom with no trace of you at all.

as this is all just one beautiful, tragic dream.

“no, i like sleeping with you.” hoseok slaps himself in the cheek, “i mean i like sleeping next to you... in the same bed.”

the silence seems to stretch on for hours until he hears the giggle coming from the other side of the door - hoseok’s heart warms, you sound like you’re back to yourself, “okay, well, come to bed faster.”

“i will!” he curses himself for that rushed response but you’re probably back in bed with the lights from the nightstand off, probably tired as fuck after a one hour flight back to seoul, having had baek’s men’s territory breach matters shoved into your arms and waiting up on your pitiful husband who was avoiding you over his conflicted conscience.

by the time he’s out of the bathroom, loose pajama pants hanging lowly around his hips, he sees that small lump underneath the blanket, your fetal position telling him you fell asleep facing his side of the bed.

hoseok slips into bed, laying on his side and admiring your pretty lips and thick lashes. his hand clenches and unclenches as if he’s not sure if he should sleep hugging you the way he’s used to.

he caves, hand wrapping around your back as he kisses the top of your head.

unbeknownst to him, you’re still awake. you pretended to be asleep because you didn’t want to make hoseok uncomfortable. but now he’s cuddling you like a child whilst his semi erected head presses against your stomach and it’s kind of too late to say anything.

not to mention, you were a virgin up until awhile ago and you’re not sure if it’s normal for men to be able to hold out this long without fucking their wives or if hoseok’s self-restraint is just over the roof and you’re the one with too high of a libido.

‘damn it, should’ve jumped on his dick before initiating a heart-to-heart.’

[valewright67]

Melizabeth Week, Day Two: Heaven/Hell - Heaven

Fair warning, this is an old one I wrote but never published. I wasn't sure what else to do for it. Also, I apologize in advance for any grammar mistakes.

A bit of OOC with Ludociel

_-_-_-_-_

 "So where should we go first? Now that we're free from the curse. We agreed we'd travel, right? Sooo.... Any ideas?" Meliodas asked, leaning back against Elizabeth. His eyes were closed in bliss as he lay cradled in her arms, back to chest. She was leaning against the headboard on their bed. "Hm… Well, we could return to the celestial village? I've got my memories back now, and… well, that's the closest place to the goddess realm I can get. I'd like to visit. Fly around a land above the clouds once more."

He hummed and turned his head, nuzzling into her collarbone gently. "Sounds good to me. Should we invite any of the others?" Her eyes lit up. "That's a splendid idea! I'm sure Mael would like to visit a place like that too! Zeldris and Gelda as well!" She giggled. "We can invite the rest of the sins, but to be honest? I think they're pretty occupied."

True to her prediction, the sins all declined this time round, citing… alone time. (For Merlin and Gowther, that was literal. They just wanted to be left alone for awhile.) Mael was eager to come, for the same reasons Elizabeth had listed. Zeldris was reluctant, but Gelda convinced him, saying it'd be good for him and Meliodas to spend some quality time together, and she wished to discuss more with Elizabeth.  

By the time the group of five had arrived, the sun was almost rising. "Oh, the spring is refilled! Good, that's convenient! We could have flown, but it would’ve been irritating." Meliodas said. He leaned down by the water and tapped it gently, channeling his energy into opening the portal. An extra burst of goddess magic from Elizabeth by his side, and the familiar glow lit up the pool. He grinned and stood, looking to the other couple. "Zeldris, Gelda. After you."

The black haired demon sighed. "Why do I feel like this is a bad idea?" The blonde smirked. "Because it probably is. Have fun!" 

"...why do I ever trust you?" He grumbled, but dove into the pool anyways, quickly followed by Gelda. Elizabeth smiled at Mael. "You next." He nodded and went without complaint. Elizabeth after him, and Meliodas last, closing the portal behind him.

_-_-_-_-_

Zeldris blinked, adjusting the sudden darkness of the cave as Gelda broke the surface besides him. He swam out and pulled her with him. "Might as well take a look around. They'll be a minute." She nodded and the two walked out of the cave, into the sunlight. 

He almost gasped. The view was incredible. It was stifled though, when he felt a presence of light flying towards him. He was immediately on the defensive and enabled his hellfire with a snarl, whirling around to face the potential threat. 

Goddesses!

Wait… no. These didn't feel like Goddesses. Similar, but off. That's right, they're celestials. Apparently, descended from the heavenly beings who'd once been his mortal enemies. It was hard to remember that now, sometimes. That the war was over, and he had FRIENDS from the other side.

He held his hands up. "Wait, please, I mean you no harm, I swear it!" The bearded man holding a familiar feathered sword scowled. "Like we would believe you, demon! There's only one demon we've ever trusted, and that's not you!" 

Zeldris tried to speak, to explain that he was pretty sure he knew exactly who they were talking about, and that they had nothing to fear from him. “You mean Meliodas, right? I’m-” Before he could complete his sentence, however, the man held the sword up near his throat threateningly. "No lies will spill from your throat before blood, demon scum." Gelda snarled. "How DARE you threaten my husband, you IMPUDENT prick-"

"I am only defending my home from the likes of creatures like you!"

"Remove the sword from my husband's neck!"

"Absolutely not! Either of you make a move, and I slit his throat!"

"MELIODAS IS MY BROTHER!!!"

The man froze and stared at him, before scowling suddenly. "You lying scum-"

"Hey, hey, hey! How about we all calm down, now!" Mael said, emerging from the cave entrance, arms raised placatingly. "There's no need for figh…ting… is that my sword??" He gaped at it. "I haven't seen that thing in 3000 years! This is where it's been the whole time??" 

The Celestials didn't say a word, too stunned at the sudden appearance of a GODDESS, when they were supposed to be wiped out. And not only a goddess, but apparently the first wielder of their most sacred sword. He shook his head. "Um, well anyways. My names Mael, I'm one of the four archangels. That's Zeldris and Gelda. They're not gonna hurt you, the five of us just came for for visit."

"Five? Where's the other two?" By now a small crowd had gathered. The trio blinked as a small blonde man, looking eerily like Meliodas, were it not for the wings on his back, walked forwards. A woman looking near identical to Elizabeth by his side. Mael blinked and smiled. "I'd think they were right in front of me, if I didn't know any better, but they should be here in just a moment. They came through the portal last."

The two exchanged looks. Did he mean…? "Yo, Solaad!" Sure enough, the blonde demon who'd saved them during the time of ruin came up through the cave. "Why are you all terrorizing Zelly?" (A scowl at the nickname was directed at him, but he just smirked at the younger.) "He won't hurt anyone, I promise."

"Hello, Elatte. And everyone else too! It has been quite a long while, hasn't it?" Elizabeth spoke, walking up behind Meliodas with her wings folded neatly against her back.

…wait.

Wings??

"Meliodas? E-Elizabeth? Since when did you get WINGS??" Solaad asked. Elatte glanced at the older man. "Sir Zoria, please drop the sword, Meliodas himself said that this man means no harm."

Elizabeth gave a soft smile. "It's complicated. I've always had them, in a way, as I was born a goddess in my first life. But I was cursed by the demon king to reincarnate as a human for the rest of time, and if I should ever get my memories back, I would die in three days." She fluttered her wings gently. "We managed to break the curse, after 3000 years and 107 lifetimes."

"...who's 'we?' And why did the demon king curse you, what did you DO??" Zoria asked. She laughed. "Well. His firstborn son and I fell in love." She gestured to Meliodas, who had drifted over to Zeldris and thrown an arm over his shoulder, apparently teasing him in demon tongue, much to the younger's displeasure. Zeldris was almost visibly bristling, and his face was red.

“Meliodas is the son the demon king??” Solaad almost yelled, gaining the two demons' attention. “I mean, yes?” Meliodas said, arm still around Zeldris’s shoulders. “Though the previous demon king is dead now, we killed pops. I’m not exactly the current demon king's son.”

Mistress Vaness hobbled forwards. “Who could possibly have the power necessary to take the place of a god?” Meliodas and Zeldris blinked, looked at each other and back at her. “We share the burden.” They said together. She gaped. “You mean…?” They smirked. “Yep! Zeldris is my younger brother. We have the same blood, which makes it easier to share the role of demon king.” 

“Meli is, technically, the stronger by default. But we split the demon king's power and influence 50/50. He just had a more powerful base. Not by much though.” Zeldris added on. 

Meliodas ruffled his hair fondly, and Zeldris swatted him off, retreating to Gelda’s side.  The blonde laughed and drifted back over towards Elizabeth. Mael was just. There. He was still looking at the sword. “Where did you all even get that?” He asked, baffled. The Celestials all exchanged looks and Elatte smiled at him. Solaad took the sword. “Come, we will show you.” They took off and flew down towards a temple. The group followed them.

Elatte gestured up at the magnificent murals. "The legend says that 3,000 years ago, a dark haired goddess in flowing robes accompanied the great Oshiro when Sealing away the demons on our island. He gave us the sword right before his body was spent."

She pointed to a section along the side. “All he said was: ‘I cannot bear to look at this blade any longer. Perhaps it will protect you all better than it did my brother.’ And then he was gone, simple as that. We have passed it down, generation to generation. It is because of Solaad figuring out that it could be used to seal away demons that we are all still alive.”

Mael flew up towards the mural, gazing at the depiction of the goddess. “His name was Ludociel. He was my older brother. There was a forbidden spell cast that changed the memories of everyone in the world, including that of the gods. It made it seem as though I had been killed by Estarossa, one of three demon princes. In reality, Estarossa never existed. I was transformed into him, and false memories were implanted in everyone’s head, including mine. I had no idea that I was actually Mael.” He gave a small smile. “The memories are all still there, though. It is strange. I am both Mael of Sunshine, one of the four archangels, younger brother to Ludociel of Flash. And also, I’m Estarossa, second of the three demon princes, Commandment of Love. It is… strange. I don’t fit in anywhere anymore. Not really.”

Meliodas and Zeldris exchanged glances and flew up next to him. “Mael.” Zeldris started, quietly. “For a moment in time, even without the false memories, you were still our brother.” Meliodas grinned. “Yeah! You may not be Estarossa, but, like you said, he never existed in the first place. He was made up. But you are Mael, and we may as well count you as our brother. Even if you did kill me.” He smirked and the goddess gave a strained chuckle. “Thank you.” He murmured, drifting back down to the ground. Meliodas slapped his shoulder, and Zeldris nudged his side in an unspoken display of commadry. 

He turned and looked to Solaad. “The sword belongs to your people now, I accept that. But… Would you permit me to wield it once more?” The blonde nodded and held the sword out to him. He took it gratefully, feeling the familiar weight of it. He twisted it around, reacquainting himself with it.

He walked outside into the clearing and took a deep breath, centering himself. He thrust the sword up towards the sun, channeling its energy, and he spoke. “Huius bring animam suam. Iterum ego volo loqui cum eo.” The sword lit up, and a beam of light shot out of it. He grunted. “Permitte mihi vedere!” He removed a hand and pointed it forward. The beam of light connecting him to the sun moved through him and flowed out of his hand. A silhouette started to form, flickering. He pushed his hand a little bit farther forward, and more light and magic poured out of him. “Emerge.”

The silhouette solidified. A goddess stood there, blinking and looking confusedly at his hands and then around him. His eyes landed on Mael, and then the stream of light that flowed to him and formed his body. A glimmer of understanding crossed his face, and he looked back up, meeting his brother's gaze.

“Mael… Hello, little brother. What are you doing?” He smiled kindly. Mael gave him a slightly strained grin. “Hi Ludociel. I missed you, I wanted to see you again.” The dark haired goddess softened a little and walked forward, caressing the side of his face. “I have missed you too, all these years. You cannot keep this up for long, however. Manifesting a soul takes up a lot of magic, and you’re going to burn yourself out.” Mael leaned into his palm. “I know, but… my sword… I can channel more magic through it, and I just. I needed to talk to you again. I needed to tell you how sorry I was, Luce...” 

He shushed him. “None of that, Mael. There is nothing to forgive. You’re my little brother, and I love you. I understand.” He glanced around again. “So you made your way to the Celestial’s island. I remember giving them your sword. I couldn’t stand seeing it without you there everyday. I just wanted to get rid of it. I’m a little impressed they’ve kept it in such good shape all these years. Heaven knows most of the rest of our weapons were damaged or destroyed over the centuries.”

Mael wobbled a little, and Ludociels image faded. His hand was clasped on his older brother's shoulder, channeling the magic directly into him. He grunted and forced himself to straighten, Ludociel’s body solidifying again. He gave him a sad smile. “You have to let me go, Mael. Before you hurt yourself.” “No! I’m not, I’m not done talking to you yet, there’s so much I need to say!” He grunted again, the magic taxing on him. Ludociel was about to force him to stop, when two beams of pure magical energy hit his back, reinvigorating him. He turned to look, and Zeldris and Meliodas were lending their power to him. 

“He’s our brother too, in a way.” Meliodas said. Zeldris finished the thought. “He deserves to get to talk to you, after everything.” With the extra influx of magic, Ludociels form started to glow. He could almost feel his body again. Elizabeth walked forwards. “Ludociel… I can do this for you, at least.” He blinked, almost surprised to see her here. She pressed one hand over his forehead, and another over his chest. She inhaled deeply, eyes closed. On the exhale, she spoke. “Revertere ad vita.” His eyes widened. Return to life. 

Her hands glowed with a brilliant light, and he could feel a true body forming around him. She groaned, drawing on her reserves. Gelda scowled and whirled around to the celestials. “You all have light magic! Give her some of yours!”

They were frozen, but Elatte stepped forwards and lifted her hands, pointing at Elizabeth’s back. “All of our power into one! Heal!” A beam of green light shot out of her hands and into Elizabeth. The other celestials were quick to follow her example.

She gathered the influx of energy and pushed it into him. A blinding light filled the clearing, and when it faded, Ludociel was actually there, kneeling on the ground, naked as the day he was born. Though, Elizabeth supposed that made sense, considering he had just been reborn, in a way. Mael dropped the sword and stumbled forward, clinging to him tightly. Ludociel hugged him back. 

“...May I please have something to cover up with?” He asked. Mael laughed and took off the topcoat of his robe, wrapping it around him. Ludociel buttoned it up, silently thanking that it was long, and reached to his ankles.

Mael stood, and helped him to his feet, the two leaning on each other for support. Meliodas had already gathered Elizabeth up, and was holding her while she regained her energy. The two murmured gently back and forth. Gelda and Zeldris were doing the same not too far away.

"Mael…" He started. "Thank you, little brother." The light haired goddess grinned and leaned in to hug him once more. "I missed you, big brother." Ludociel smiled and stroked his hair. "We can talk later. For now, let's just enjoy the moment."

"Elizabeth… How did you do that? Even with all of our energy, we cannot bring someone back to life. So how is that with you performing the spell, it was successful?" Solaad asked, picking up the sword. She smiled a little. "I honestly had no idea that would work. I hoped, of course, but I had no way of knowing for sure."

Ludociel barked out a tired laugh. "You are far too modest, Lady Elizabeth." He turned to the gathered celestials. "She is more powerful than even I or Mael are at our strongest, when she wishes to be. Her healing powers far surpass even the best of our other healers. She is able to remove the darkness from even Indura’s, and has done so before, purifying two Indura demons at the same time. Her formal title is Elizabeth Lightbringer." He gave a small smirk as he added on one more tidbit of information. "Daughter of the Supreme Deity."

Gasps echoed through the crowd, and Elizabeth sighed. "Please, it's really not that big of a deal-" "But it is, Elizabeth." Mael said, with a brilliant smile. "Of the goddesses, you are second in power and ability only to your mother. In the rest of the world. Well. You married your equal." He nodded his head at Meliodas, who returned it with a smirk. 

The two brothers walked off, shooting the crowd and, specifically, the demons and Elizabeth, grateful smiles. Meliodas clapped and rubbed his hands, wings taking shape on his back. "I'm hungry. I'll catch a sky fish, and you'll teach me how to cook one. Deal? Deal!" He flung off the ground and Elizabeth bristled, bolting after him. "YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO COOK, YOU'LL POISON US!!" He just cackled. 

[kpopinesss]

[ateez] S A N ➱ baby daddy au

YOU HAVE TO RAISE HIS SON AFTER HE LEAVES. MAFIA SAN.

warnings: teen pregnancy

a/n: sorry ya’ll I accidentally posted this on my main lol - @atinybitofau

• raising a son on your own was hard.

• raising a son whose genes were on par to his notorious father was even harder—

• a hooligan. a mischievous troublemaker.

• an eyesore in morality.

• and yes, your son was just like him.

• cold. ruthless. blood thirsty.

• but unlike San, your son loved you enough never to leave you.

• appreciated the things you did for him enough to stay.

• “Eomma..”

• you turn on your side when your son interrupts your slumber,

• injuries blatant on his tethered arm.

• raising a child who’s now 13 since you were 16 never easy.

• “Where were you, Ari?”

• he sits at the edge of your bed and leans for the warmth only a mother could give. “I was trying to get your medicine.. but I ended up causing a scene and the store owner kicked me out.”

• you sigh letting him lay down beside you. “It’s just a little cold. You don’t need to go and risk your life to save mine.”

• he wants to ask you.

• he’s old enough..

• why hasn’t his father came back to be the one the take care of you?

• to take care of him.

• why do you have to suffer alone?

• “Ari, just do me a favor and take care of yourself the way you do for me.” you cuddle into your sons warmth too. “That’s all I need.”

• but you’re lying.

• you’re getting sicker.

• and he can’t take it anymore.

• he goes to lower than the low to find something to save you, his mother.

• eventually ending up tied up in San’s gang house.

• brutally beat for intervening a drug heist—

• “Alright you little shit,” San holds your son up by the collar, blood running down his face mixed with his tears. “I don’t care that you’re 13 years old. Hell you could’ve been 10 and I’ll still beat the living crap out of you. No one just comes barging into a drug heist for no reason. That’s not just a coincidence.”

• it is.

• it really is.

• and maybe god was just giving him a sign.

• because you were on the verge of dying—

• and his own son being dealt his life and in the hands of his own father,

• yet San still didn’t know what was going on.

• what sign god was trying to give him.

• “I have to admit.” San runs a finger down his son’s chiseled jaw and smirks. “You’ve got a nice face. But in a couple minutes, you might not even be able to recognize it anymore.”

• “I-I-I was just trying to get medicine for my mom! I swear.”

• San really needed to get a clue.

• not all drugs were recreational.

• and some—

• some can actually save lives not just make dirty money.

• “You think I’ll believe that sissy crap?”

• Ari shudders looking to his torn up jeans. “H-her pictures in my wallet. I swear, she’s the only thing I’ll do anything illegal for. I promise I wasn’t trying to fuck anything up. She’d kill me if I got involved. Kill herself if I pushed myself too far.”

• he’s convinced at the desperation in the poor kid’s voice.

• normally not as merciful but he digs through the kid’s pocket for the picture anyway.

• and he should be glad he did because shit—

• the picture of you made him go from 100 to 0 real quick.

• “Y/n?”

• “T-that’s her! That’s my mom.”

• San glances up at the beat up kid, horrified.

• horrified at the sight.

• that he was basically beating to death a walking replica of himself.

• an age far enough that fit the time he left you.

• “You’re telling me my high school sweetheart..” San’s bloody fingers curl around your picture. “The woman you’ve been trying to steal medication for is your mom? The woman in this picture.”

• he’s at first in denial.

• that the kid he almost beat to death was your son.

• but denial hits him even harder the chances he could also be the father.

• “M-my mom is everything to me.” Ari bawls his last tears out begging for his own father to spare his life. or anything to save yours. “She’s only got me. I’ve only got her. S-sir please. At least save her. If you wanna kill me sir, please save my mom first.”

• his jaw clenches,

• still knealt down on one knee propped in front of his pleading son.

• studying every feature of his face.

• how on par everything was to his own.

• San was beating up his son, he realized.

• holy shit he was about to kill his own son.

• “Why didn’t she tell me?”

• “W-what?” his son chokes. “What do you mean?”

• “Fucking hell— kid, I think I’m your dad.”

• the five days that your son was held captive was long enough for your body to grow cold and weaker.

• laying in a hospital bed nearly blacked out.

• your son cries over your body as you sleep.

• hoping he’s not too late.

• not too late to give you the one thing that might be able to keep you alive.

• a husband?

• finally a father to your child.

• “You’re the husband?” the doctor finds San watching from the doorway awkwardly glancing at the black dressed men who towered behind him. “You’ve got quite the entourage there, sir. But not even an army of soldiers would be able to save your wife right now. She’s hanging on a thin line. Barely holding on. That woman needs a miracle if she wants to live the next good years of her life.”

• San watches as his son that he never knew about cries over you.

• wishes you would’ve told him..

• he would’ve stayed.

• would’ve loved you.

• why were you always so selfish? always wanting to do things that pushed you too far even if there were another option available.

• “Eomma.”

• you hear everything.

• your son.

• San.

• “Ma, I’m sorry I wasn’t able to get the medicine. I got into trouble again, ma. I’m sorry.” Ari folds his hand over your limp one’s. “B-but I have something even better. Someone who could help you and me. He can take care of us, ma.”

• it hurts.

• you want to wake up for your son because he deserves the world.

• he deserves a fight for the both of you but the option you chose came short.

• in the past, the option of never telling San in the first place of his own son.

• “Ma.. he’s gonna talk to you okay? I’m gonna let him talk to you.” Ari sniffles and suddenly your hand gets replaced with a different warmth. “He’s gonna tell you it’s gonna be okay. I love you, eomma. I love you. We’re gonna be okay.”

• it’s almost enough.

• your heart beats a little faster.

• burns a little more so you could breathe on your own.

• it’s definitely working.

• “You shoulda told me, bubba.”

• the nickname San had given you years ago,

• a nickname you thought you’d never hear again, rings in your ear and that light so far away,

• it gets further.

• “You shoulda told me about him. About you.” he lifts your hand against his trembling lips. “13 years? 13 years after I tell you to take care of yourself and now you’re almost dying. Come on now. My girl was a fighter. Pushed herself harder than she wanted to.”

• his voice is like a mantra—

• a dream that gives you a little bit more of life you we’re starting to lose.

• “Bubba, you were the love of my life. And I didn’t tell you enough how much I appreciated you. I know it may be too late and if god forbid I do lose you, I will make sure our baby stays safe okay?”

• you think if you were awake right now you’d be crying.

• as if a weight lifted off your shoulders.

• cause the one person who could save you right now—you and your son,

• was right here.

• ready to go merciless to keep you two safe.

• “I left loving you. And I’ll come back loving you. 13 years only kept us apart. But let me tell you, y/n, it never stopped me from loving you.”

• he’s unsure when he lets go of your hand.

• usually gets what he wants with one word—

• cause he’s a notorious mobster.

• but let’s just say you were the one thing he wanted he could’ve never gotten even with two words.

• 3?

• “I love you.” he continues. “And if I’m gonna have to love our son the way I should’ve loved you then so be it.”

• but life’s not like movies where you wake up right during a miracle.

• this miracle takes time.

• and after an EXPENSIVE deal of money and medicine to keep you alive,

• a year it takes for you to finally open your eyes.

• to a nice hospital bed room.

• filled with flowers and the reminiscent scent of old spice and San.

• your hair’s a bit longer.

• the sun’s definitely brighter.

• but not as bright as the smile you see once you turn to the side.

• “Good morning beautiful.” San reaches his forehead against yours. “How were your dreams?”

• you choke on a decent reply. “S-San?”

• “The one and only.”

• “Where’s— Where’s Ari? Where’s my—“

• “Our?” San chuckles softly. “You mean our son.”

• you kind of remember.

• it takes a while to remember the voices and the dreams in your head.

• how waking up to find them real was surreal on its own.

• “He’s at school, bubba.” San cradles your face in the palm of his hand staring at you like he was hypnotized. “I’ll have someone pick him up. Tell him mommy’s awake.”

• “San..” you shake your head in his hand. “How is this real?”

• “Our son might be a miracle worker. Brought us together the way we made him. Brought me so I could keep you alive.”

• cheesy as you remember.

• although this handsome and older version of your old flame you aren’t too sure.

• “So you just show up while I’m in a coma and play daddy while I sleep?” you hoarsely chuckle while he smiles against your lips. “Even after 13 years, you won’t grudge against me for not telling you?”

• “I can’t blame you for trying to save yourselves.” he admits with his lips still on yours. “I wasn’t good enough for you. I know still I’m not. But I’m gonna try this time. Even if I have to pretend I’m not who I am sometimes.”

• you two are interrupted by a crying teenager.

• one you remembered resembled San.

• but now them standing right next to each other,

• looking like two carbon copies and a surreal dream in your head.

• maybe you are dead...

• “Ma!” he shoves his father away abruptly. “Look ma! I brought dad! He helped pay your debt, pays for my school. Even finished the hospital bills.”

• you glare at your always boisterous ex boyfriend and long lost father to your son.

• “You did what?”

• “Did I mention this was my way of getting back at you for not telling me about my 14 year old son?”

• “San how the hell am I gonna pay you back?”

• you just woke up.

• and the doctor runs in ready to sedate to keep you stable for at least more than 24 hours.

• but the way San looks at you is enough.

• him being there like your life long medication itself.

• holding your hand while your son holds your other one proposing,

• “Marry me. And we can call it even.”

@atinybitofau

[oddshelbyout]

Affection // John Shelby X Male!Reader

Requested by: @sparringtonbitch

Summary: You are John’s boyfriend and he panics when you don’t show up at work.

Warnings: Swearing

Word Count: 1419

Author’s Notes:

I was so nervous about writing a male reader because it’s my first and I hope I did it justice. I hope you enjoy it <3

I’m not really good at writing fluff and I feel like John might be a little out of character because of that but I tried to do my best.

Requests are open. You can request any Peaky Blinders related imagines or prompts for me to write. I’m a minor so I don’t take NSFW requests, please keep that in mind.

You can ask to be added to my taglist. You can be tagged to works on a specific character or just any of my works. Please dm me or send your wish to my ask box if you’d like to be added.

English is not my first language and I’m not always confident about my work so please let me know if I make any mistakes or anything I can fix in my writing.

———————

You have always been an early bird. You grew up in boarding schools so that was a must. It was just another day you woke up early. As everyday, you took your flatmate, Ada Thorne’s baby son Karl, calmed him down and fed him.

It was a routine. You were lucky to meet Ada and move in with him when you were really new in Birmingham. The city came with a lot of dangers and Ada has been a gift. Being a friend and the flatmate of a Shelby was the best thing that happened to you.

The catch was that everyone assumed you were dating Ada. Her husband was on the run and was assumed dead, even Tommy Shelby couldn’t get him back home. It was the last thing you wanted but it came with the perk of people looking over your attraction to men if they noticed.

Another perk was that you were known as a close friend of John Shelby, though the truth wasn’t that. John was supposed to get married to one of the Lee daughters, it was part of an arrangement but it didn’t work. Instead, John had you and you had him.

The thing about you was, everything in your life was basically a plot twist. As a child, you were perceived as posh but you were just a lucky kid who had a rich uncle take care of you after your parents died. After you moved to Birmingham, looking for a new life, your sexuality was the plot twist.

Ada, despite looking like your girlfriend was actually just your close friend. John, despite looking like you close friend, was your boyfriend. The family knew. They were all okay with it as long as Tommy was and as long as it didn’t put them all in a kill list. You trusted them with your secret and you trusted them so much that you knew they wouldn’t let you get punished for that.

Your life just went on like that. You woke up early, took care of Karl, you give Karl to his mum when she wakes up, you leave home and go to work. You worked for the Shelbys so it was all so easy and natural.

That day wasn’t much different than any other day, the plot twist of that exact day was that you didn’t go to work after you left home. Instead, you went to the train station to buy tickets to London, you were going to visit your uncle. This caused some confusion on a certain Shelby brother.

John ran to you and Ada’s flat as fast as he could. If someone else was absent at work, it probably wouldn’t bother anyone that much. You were always on time and always had motivation to work, it wasn’t like you to be absent at work without telling anyone. Even if he wouldn’t care normally, that day with still being a little drunk from last night’s drinks, he started overthinking.

John found himself on your doorstep. He relaxed and he thought Ada would know where you were. He knocked on the door and Ada opened the door with Karl on her arms.

“Where’s Y/N?” he asked, “He went out a little earlier, isn’t he at the office?” she replied with a question. John hated that. He always hated any vagueness.

“He isn’t there.” John said, Ada was as surprised as John was. “He mentioned visiting his uncle, maybe he left to get tickets?” Ada was thinking more rationally than John because his answer was, “I would’ve taken him, why would he need tickets?” Ada laughed.

“Calm the fuck down!” she stepped to the side, John understood immediately that she was inviting him in. “I’m calm.” John said, petted Karl’s hair as he stepped in.

“Would you like to take him?” Ada offered to give John her son. “No thanks.” Ada rolled her eyes, “Okay.” she just said to her brother’s response. John was uneasy and that was something Ada wasn’t used to.

“For Fuck’s sake John, I’m not used to seeing you like this.” Ada complained. John tried to relax, he knew she was right. At that moment, luck was on John’s side and you opened the door with your key.

“John, what are you doing here?” you asked, shocked to see him there. “Where were you?” John asked, he was a bit more relaxed but didn’t know how to exactly react to your sudden reappearance.

“I went to the station to get tickets.” you simply answered. You could see how scared John looked, it warmed your heart in a weird way. It was good to see him care like that.

“See, I told you so!” Ada said smiling and just made her way into the kitchen after seeing the annoyed look John gave her.

You started climbing the stairs to your room and he unconsciously followed you. You stepped into your room, left your ticket on your bedside table and sat on your bed.

John sat next to you and hugged you. “Didn’t think you were the affectionate type.” he usually was more interested in sexual affection. “Then you’ll never get another hug.” you chuckled, “Your choice.” you shrug your shoulders.

You let your body fall down to the bed, John did too. You slided closer to him and supported your head on his shoulder. “This is nice.” you said, you could feel John smiling.

“We would continue if both of us didn’t need to go to the office.” John said, even though he didn’t like to show it, he enjoyed that wholesome moment too.

“You’re the boss, nobody would care.” you mumbled, “You know really well that Tommy is the boss.” he answered. “To me, you are.” you just laughed, John joined you too.

He suddenly gave you a kiss. Your blood rushed through your whole body, you hoped John felt the same. The kiss heated up both of you, he pulled himself back slowly. “I think I like this.” he smiled, “I think I like the hugs and the kisses and the safe feeling.” he confessed.

You felt like you were in a dream. This was exactly what you dreamt of as a child. A partner who cared for you, who made you feel safe and you loved. It seemed impossible then and it seemed too good to be true now.

“Maybe we should share more of them.” you said and gave him another kiss. John decided to make a confession, “I don’t know why but I was so scared when I didn’t see you in the office but after seeing you, the scare was worth it.” he said softly.

You took a deep breath, that was the best thing you heard someone say to you. “I thought I’d never say this but I love you.” you say, “Why? You thought you’d never love me?” you laughed at John’s ironic question.

“I can take it back if you like.” you joked, “Don’t even dare to.” he replied in a more serious tone than yours. “Maybe I should.” you kept joking, John started tickling you.

“I love you Y/N Y/L/N” his fingers’ movement made you laugh but also his love declaration had an effect. “John stop!” you hit him, jokingly but you seemed to hit him hard because he stopped tickling.

“Ouch!” he said, “Uh, sorry, sorry.” you placed your hand on the cheek you hit. He smiled big and used it as an opportunity to kiss you once again. You liked it but you knew you had to leave the room soon.

“Maybe we’re getting a little too comfortable.” you said squinting your eyes, “I thought you liked it.” John replied. You nodded and raised your eyebrows, “Yeah but remember we have to go to the office.” he sighed.

“Fuck, I don’t want to go.” he chuckled, “What if we don’t?” you liked that offer but there was no way you were going to accept. You jumped on your feet, leaving him alone on your bed.

“Get up John Shelby, time to go back to work.” John looked disappointed but he finally gave up. He stood up too, fixed his clothes and left the room. You followed him downstairs.

“We’re leaving Ada!” you shouted at the doorstep and left with John. You both felt refreshed and happy. You just moved on with your day. Though it wasn’t an unusual day, both of you felt different because you had finally said ‘I love you’.

[sincerelystranger]

not enough 7

Life goes on.

Wei Wuxian stays alive in the Burial Mounds.

His daughter births a beautiful baby boy.

Jiang Cheng begins to take on more and more responsibilities for the sect.

Life goes on and it’s strange and different, but it’s… good.

Jiang Fengmian begins to think his wife is wrong. Maybe the war really is over.

He bounces little Jin Ling on his lap. It must be over, he thinks as A-Ling giggles up at him delightedly. Such light could not exist in war. Such happiness could not survive in war.

It must be over.

He looks over to where Yanli and her husband are sitting together. Their whispering to each other and smiling like two young children lost in their own world. Their love for each other is so open and obvious that it’s a little embarrassing for Jiang Fengmian to watch them.

“Give him here,” his wife says next to him, taking A-Ling from his lap. “You’ve had him all morning.”

Yanli giggles at his wife’s actions. “Did you dote on us like this, mother?” she asks, a cheeky smile hidden beneath her sleeve,

Sometime between getting married and having a child, Yanli’s relationship with his wife changed. No longer does Yanli go still and quiet around her, and his wife no longer seems to be so frustrated by her… weakness.

They seem almost like friends at times.

“Neither you nor Jiang Cheng were half as cute as A-Ling,” his wife replies tersely, her eyes glued to little A-Ling’s face. “My heart was not sufficiently moved enough to dote.”

A-Ling reaches his chubby hands out and places them on either side of his wife’s face.

It’s a little bit terrifying, but his wife smiles big and delighted. She coos at A-Ling and rubs her cheeks against his chubby palms.

It’s a strange enough sight that it shocks a little chuckle out of Jiang Fengmian.

His wife sends him a quick glare when she hears him laugh. “What is so funny?” she asks.

“Nothing,” Jiang Fengmian answers quickly with a shake of his head. “It’s just… nice to see you so happy.”

She squints her eyes suspiciously but A-Ling quickly takes back her attention.

Jiang Fengmian sits back and watches his family contentedly. War really is over. And yes, he lost much but…

But maybe he made the right choices.

After all, Wei Wuxian is still alive and the Wen’s who helped save Jiang Fengmian and his wife are still alive.

And…

Well if Wei Wuxian still lived in Lotus Pier, there would be no way that Jin Guangshan would let him alone.

Knowing his old friend, he would probably stoop to using A-Ling as some sort of bargaining chip to get his hands on Wei Wuxian’s damned talisman.

It’s selfish and Jiang Fengmian knows it’s selfish, but the thoughts comfort him.

He had spent so many nights torturing himself over his decision to let Wei Wuxian go, but maybe time had shown him that he had made the right call.

Maybe, this happiness could not exist without letting... go.

Yanli stands suddenly and beings to wave.

“A-Cheng,” she says happily, “Where have you been?”

Jiang Fengmian smiles as he sees his son approach. Jiang Cheng is by far little A-Ling’s favorite person. He has this laugh that he only does for Jiang Cheng and Jiang Fengmian is happy to finally be able to hear it.

“A-Ling has been waiting for you, Jiang Cheng,” his wife says as greeting.

The happy mood quickly changes as Jiang Cheng enters the pagoda.

Jiang Cheng’s face is pale and his eyes are wide and he’s holding onto his sword so tightly that Jiang Fengmian can see the sword shake.

“What’s wrong?” Yanli asks quickly, her small hands touching Jiang Cheng’s cheek and forehead. “Are you unwell?”

Jiang Cheng stares at Jiang Fengmian for a silent moment, and his eyes are so terrified that Jiang Fengmian can feel his heart begin to beat faster as well.

“Speak!” his wife orders.

Jiang Cheng doesn’t even look at her. He keeps his eyes on Jiang Fengmian.

Jiang Fengmian just waits.

Jiang Cheng swallows nervously.

“It’s Wei Wuxian, father,” he says finally.

No.

“Jin Zixun has accused him of cursing him.”

No. No. No.

“Jin Zixun has taken a hundred men to storm the Burial Mounds.”

---

A shocked, heavy silence falls over the hall.

Jiang Fengmian wishes time would stop in that moment. In that heavy silence he can still believe he made the right choice.

Cold fear and stinging regret pour themselves down his throat and into his stomach.

It’s such a shocking feeling that it’s a small miracle that he’s able to stay standing.

After a few silent moments, Yanli staggers suddenly into Jin Zixuan’s side. This seems to spur him into action somehow and he looks up to make eye contact with Jiang Fengmian.

“I’ll go to my father,” he says earnestly, “I’m sure this… This has to be a mistake.”

Jiang Cheng turns to Jiang Fengmian as well. “Father, let me take some disciples to the Burial Mounds. Jin Zixun reportedly left this morning – he’s probably already at the Burial Mounds. It’ll be too late if we go to Lanling first.”

Jiang Fengmian just stares back at them, something like fearing gripping at his throat. He doesn’t know what to do.

He doesn’t know what to do.

What to do.

His wife suddenly snarls impatiently beside him. “You old fool,” she spits contemptuously. She looks at Jin Zixuan, “You will stay here.” She looks at Jiang Cheng. “We all will stay here.”

“Mother!” both Yanli and Jiang Cheng cry.

“Hush!” she snarls.

“Yu-furen, please,” Jin Zixuan says gently, “I’m sure my father could not have approved this. He will be upset when he finds out – I’m sure of it.”

His wife snorts snidely, rolling her eyes as if Jin Zixuan said something particularly stupid.

“If you really think that, you don’t know your father at all,” she says., “he’s been looking for a reason to attack Wei Wuxian since he first laid his eyes on that talisman of his.”

Jiang Fengmian looks at his wife. “Perhaps Jin Zixuan is right,” he says weakly, “Jin Guangshan… he… he knows that Wei Wuxian is…”

“What?” his wife asks coldly, “that he is what?”

A boy Jiang Fengmian raised and cared for. A boy Jiang Fengmian wanted something more for.

His wife sneers at his silence. “He’s the orphan you brought into our sect on a whim and cast out just as easily,” she says plainly.

“Mother… please,” Yanli pleads desperately, “We must be able to do something for A-Xian… please.”

“Stop your tears,” his wife says, “What did you think would happen? From the day that he chose to protect those Wen’s he was destined for ruin.”

“Then let me go to the Burial Mounds,” Jin Zixuan says bravely, “I will talk to Jin Zixun. He’s proud but he’s not unreasonable. I’m sure if I –“

“—Do you think this is all a coincidence?” his wife asks, cutting him off. “Do you think that it’s a coincidence that JIn Zixun chose the day that you are away from Lanling to attack Wei Wuxian?”

Jin Zixuan just stares back at her, as if the thought hadn’t even crossed his mind.

“This was all planned,” she says slowly, a finality in her voice that leaves no room for argument. “Waiting for you to leave Lanling so no one would stop Jin Zixun from his stupid plan. Making it so that if the Jiang Yunmeng sect were to interfere in any way, it would be a declaration of war against the Lanling Jin sect.”

She begins walking around slowly, little A-Ling still in her arms.

“I know that Jin Zixun,” she says, “he’s a stupid boy. Undoubtedly he will do something in the Burial Mounds that gets him killed.”

“Wei Wuxian wouldn’t kill him!” Jiang Cheng defends hotly.

She turns sharply to him. “Do you think that he has a choice?” she asks coldly.

Jiang Cheng is quiet at her question, his brows furrowing in frustration.

After a beat, she begins to walk around the room again.

“Jin Zixun is too stupid to have planned this, and Jin Guangshan has about as much finesse as he has sense – which is to say none.” She walks over to Yanli and hands A-Ling to her. She looks at Jin Zixuan. “There is someone else in Lanling pulling the strings, and you must find out who, because they are pulling them well.”

Jin Zixuan furrows his brows at her. “No one… It can’t be, Yu-Furen. This must all be…”

Jiang Fengmian slowly sinks back down into his seat. His wife is…

His wife is making sense.

But her conclusion is too devastating to accept.

Jiang Cheng turns to him finally. “Father,” he pleads, “there must be something we can do. If only I go then no one could take it as our entire sect siding with Wei Wuxian.”

“I’ll go as well,” Jin Zixun says.

“Yes,” Jiang Fengmian nods blankly, feeling almost out of his body at the current situation. “I will go as well. A-Xian…”

The doors to the room slams suddenly.

They all look up to see his wife standing in front of it. Zidian is crackling on her fist.

Jiang Fengmian sighs tiredly. “My wife, you are my wife,” he says softly, “and in every possible way, I’ve chosen you over that boy. But please… I will go by myself. Jiang Cheng and Jin Zixun can stay here. But please…”

“You are the one who sentenced him to this fate,” his wife replies – her voice strangely gentle for the cruel words she says – “You have seen his strange method of cultivation yourself. If you go up there, you will only either be a casualty or a hindrance.”

His eyes burn at her words. His throat aches. He wishes so badly that she wasn’t right.

“It’s because I sentenced him to this that I must go,” he says desperately, his voice coming out strained as he squeezes it through the tightness in his throat.

“His only chance is that Jin Zixun sees sense and leaves the mountain on his own,” his wife replies.

He rises to his feet and walks towards her.

She raises her chin as he comes closer. Watching him coldly.

“Will you raise your sword against me?” she asks.

She is his wife.

“Must you do this?” he asks her desperately, his hand resting uselessly on his sheathed sword.

She stares at him a long while and breathes deeply. “You are my husband,” she says slowly, “I’ve respected all of your decision – all of them. But I will not allow you to kill yourself over that boy.”

“He’s my responsibility,” Jiang Fengmian argues, “As you said, this is my fault.”

“So accept the consequence,” she snarls. “You’re always doing things by halves with that boy and it isn’t the kindness you believe it is.”

Her words are too true to be cruel but they hurt just the same.

“It’s too late to save him,” she continues, “You chose me. So keep choosing me. Stop trying to hang in this limbo and uselessly grasp at us both.”

This is his problem.

He’s always confident that he can have everything.

And by the time that he realizes someone has taken it away, it’s too late to fight for it.

Jiang Fengmian doesn’t know how to fight for it.

Jiang Fengmian folds his fingers tightly over the hilt of his sword.

Maybe it’s too late to learn how to fight for people, and this may just be Jiang Fengmian losing both, but…

Just as he’s about to unsheathe his sword, a desperate banging starts at the door.

“Young-master, young-master!” a voice calls out.

Jiang Cheng walks quickly to the door and opens it by almost shoving Yu-furen out of the way.

“What is it?” he asks.

“It’s Jin Zixun,” the messenger says hurriedly, his eyes wide, “the Yiling Patriarch has killed him.”

[killiansprincss]

Two Victims of Bad Form

Okay so this fic is inspired by this post I made last week and it blew up and I had a few requests to write it, so here it is!! I really hope you enjoy it!! 

link to A03

Tagging: @the-darkdragonfly​ @elizabeethan​ @superchocovian​ @lostintheskyfaraway​ @pirateprincessofpizza​

_____

Liam Jones was used to The Underworld. He hadn’t yet had a run in with Hades and it wasn’t too bad of an afterlife. He didn’t try to keep track of his time here, it was a waste. While he did wonder when he would see his brother again, he only wished he was living a long and happy life.

Liam does wonder what he is up to and what happened when they returned to their home kingdom. Killian was Captain of the Navy now, would he go in front of the King and reveal the true nature of that awful plant, and become a hero?

But had he also found happiness? As a navymen Liam can’t lie and say the female sex didn’t find ways to converse with them and Killian would often become flustered, not knowing the correct and best way to talk to them, as a men of the King there were expectations. But he had hoped there was a special female who he had found happiness with.

But his life-or-afterlife was pretty good. It wasn't great at first though. Accepting the fact you are dead was not something Liam was able to accept straight away, he kept playing his last moments over and over again, and wishing he could go back and stop himself from scratching the dreamshade on his arm. It was a foolish and rash decision which every day he regrets. He fell victim to bad form quickly. The Underworld was a strange town but the wide variety of alcohol was one thing he liked.

There was a bar that Liam would go to every day and the Rum was far spicier than the one he had become accustomed to in the Enchanted Forest, and it was stronger too. Apparently being dead knocks out your tolerance for alcohol. He was a mess. He grieved for his own life, all the things he planned to do and see, and he grieved for his little brother and how now he was all alone.

The owner of the bar, Alaric, was a former King of a long forgotten kingdom. He wasn’t the kindest or most understanding King in his former life, so in the Underworld Alaric devoted his time to helping others, and he helped Liam come to terms with the fact that while he was dead, it was not the worst thing in the world.

“If your mother is here, her gravestone will be up. If she’s in a better place it will have fallen, but a crack will appear if that is not the case.” Those were the last words Alaric said to Liam before he found peace.It was the one thing Liam wanted to know.

Finding out his mother’s fate was a high priority for Liam, he hoped she were in a better place and they would be reunited once Killian arrived in years to come. He hoped she could be proud of her two boys. He doesn’t know what he would do if she were in a worse place.

And there it was. A grave marked “Alice Jones”

Liam smiles. It had fallen over. She was in a better place.

Knowing his mother was in a better place, at peace likely, was all Liam needed to get on with his life in the afterlife.

Alaric was the first person Liam felt like he could speak to and open up to. And it felt good. He wanted to do the same for other people.

So Liam takes over and starts working at the Bar, working his way through the ranks until he eventually becomes manager and owner, well nobody is really an owner of any property in the Underworld, but in every sense the bar was his. He becomes to other people what Alaric was to him. Letting them grieve and come to terms with their own passing and potentially their unfinished business.

Every day he’s at the bar, he hopes his little brother will walk through the doors and they can be together again. Deal with their unfinished business and find peace together. But every day he doesn’t. And as much as it hurts not seeing him, it’s a good thing.

Every day Killian doesn’t walk through his doors is another day he is on Earth living his life. Maybe he's married to a Princess and is the greatest Captain the Royal Navy has seen in centuries. Just maybe.

These dreams keep Liam positive, until one day.

________

It started out like any normal day in the Underworld, Liam would wake, go for a morning run before his shift at the bar. It wasn’t too busy, a few regulars who would sit quietly on the other side to where he was working. Until a woman came in who he hadn’t seen before. She was beautiful, with strong bone structure and dark curls that accentuated her face. But she didn’t look in the best state. A new arrival to the Underworld Liam guesses, he’s seen that scared face all too many times.

“I need something strong.” is all she says as she sits on the bar stool to steady herself.

Liam nods as he reaches around for the strongest whiskey they stock and pours it into a frosted glass. This was a much nicer way of serving alcohol, he assumed this was how royals drank, vastly different to the dirty taverns he and Killian drank in.

“How did I end up here?” She sighs as she takes the glass in her hands.

“Well, this is the Underworld, therefore I’d say to end up here means you died. Sorry to be the one to break the news.” Liam says with a sarcastic smile.

She looks up from her glass, clearly not amused by the sarcasm, and Liam can see the pain in her green eyes. “It gets easier, I promise you that.”

“I was murdered.” She finally says. “How am I expected to feel better?”

It was an unfortunate fact that a lot of people ended up in the Underworld due to falling victim to murder.

“Well, I died because of my own stubbornness, left behind my little brother who is all on his own. It takes time to accept these facts, not saying it gets easier right away but you’ll get there in time.”

“I left my son behind with his horrible father. I am a horrible person.” She admits. “It wasn’t meant to be like this. I was going back for him and we would’ve been a family.”

Liam doesn’t say anything else, so he pours her another shot of whiskey and lets her sit there until she eventually leaves. This was her journey and Liam didn’t want to probe into open wounds. And if anyone knew anything about being left with a horrible father it was Liam. He hoped the poor lad ended up on a better path.

But the next day she comes back. “So that whiskey was really good yesterday. Got anything else?”

Liam smiles as he grabs the spicy rum he’s grown accustomed to drinking on days where he needs to drown his sorrows. “My bar is always here if you need a drink or a chat. Names Liam.”

The dark haired beauty takes the glass from Liam and takes a sip, “Milah. Have we met before? You look awfully familiar.”

Liam studies Milah for a second, her green eyes and dark curls don’t ring a bell, and he was normally good with faces. “Can’t say that I have, unless you’ve been dead longer than you think.”

__

Milah comes in almost every day for a few weeks before she starts to open up. Liam doesn’t pry, he serves her a drink while she ponders her afterlife.

“My ex husband killed me.” She tells Liam one day. Liam didn’t try to force her to say anything which she appreciates, so she doesn’t mind telling him her story.

Of all the things Milah could’ve said about her murderer, Liam was not expecting that. “I’m sorry to hear that. Do you mind me asking why?”

Milah takes another sip before saying, “I ran away. To be with my lover. He was angry that I left my son behind, but he was just a boy and the high seas are dangerous. I was going to come back for him when he was older. After I ran, my ex husband got hungry for power and revenge so he found a way to become the Dark One, and sure enough he got his revenge on me. Rumple ripped out my heart and called me a bad mother, which I hate to admit he was right.”

“I don’t think you were a bad mother.” Liam tells her. “Sure you could have handled your situation differently, but it sounds like you never forgot about your son and the fact you wanted to go back for him speaks volumes. You mention the high seas, was your lover in the Navy?”

Milah laughs. “Oh no, far from it actually. He was a Pirate Captain and I guess I was also a Pirate. We weren’t bad people, I assure you that, but Baelfire was far too young to understand anything.”

Liam gives her a disapproving look which Milah catches. “Don’t look at me like that. We both ended up in the same place. Don't tell me you were in the Navy.”

Liam just nods. “Naval Captain. Died on a mission the King sent us on. My little brother tried to save me but it was poison and it went straight to my heart.”

“Well I’ll cheers to that.” Milah says, raising her glass.

A few days later Milah is telling her story again, and giving more details about how bad her life was at home with her husband. “He took my choice away from me to have a second child. Baelfire was sick, and he was too much of a coward to steal the medicine to save his life. Rumple made a deal instead that this man would take our second born in exchange, so I could never have a second child.”

“You’ll get to face him again one day, when he arrives down here and you can tell him what a coward he was.” Liam felt horrible for Milah, she was a victim of another man's bad form and it ruined her life and led to her destruction.

“One can only hope. Anyway, it was that night I met Killian and everything changed.”

Liam freezes, he hadn’t heard that name come out of another mouth since he died. Milah notices, “are you okay?”

“Sorry. Killian was my little brother's name, I haven't heard it since, and it brought back memories. Sorry, continue with your story.”

“So he tells me he’s a Pirate, and he’s captain of the fastest ship in all the realm and he can take me anywhere I wish.”

Killian. It’s a common name surely. Fastest Ship in all the realm, Liam is sure a lot of Pirates say this. But just to be sure. “What was his name? Captain who? We came across Pirates in my Naval days, I’d be interested to know who he is.”

“Jones. Captain Killian Jones.”

Liam freezes and his vision suddenly becomes blurry.

No. It couldn’t be. His little brother, his trusted Lieutenant, a Pirate. No, not just a Pirate, but apparently the most ‘fearsome in the land.’ “I believe you’re talking about my little brother. Only when I died he was Lieutenant Jones of the King's Royal Navy.”

Milah’s eyes widened, “That’s why you look so familiar, you have his eyes.” Tears began to form thinking about what she had heard and what Killian had mentioned about his brother. “Something called Nightshade, it poisoned you, but the King wanted it for his army. Killed you as soon as you left the Island.”

Liam smiles, Killian had told someone about him. “The poison was called Dreamshade. I didn’t want to bore you with details of my death but I guess it relates. We didn’t know that it was a poison, and assumed it was a simple herb or plant used to heal our warriors. It was a strange island, there was this boy no older than 15, he told us it was deadly. Course I didn’t believe the kid so I cut myself with the plant. One thing led to another and I died because the water I drank which healed it wore off as soon as we were back in the Enchanted Forest.”

“I’m so sorry Liam. Killian spoke of his brother, of you. I didn’t put two and two together.” She felt horrible that she had been speaking about Killian not knowing his blood and flesh was right in front of her.

“Don’t worry about it, I’m not angry at you-how were you to know. I’m a little disappointed in my brother though, as soon as he became a Navy Man he stopped drinking and always believed in good form, Pirates were the epitome of bad form.”

Milah shakes her head. “No stop that. You don’t know what your death did to him. He told me the reason he became a pirate is because how could a King send his best men on a mission that had such dark consequences, he would never serve under the rule of such a cruel man. He would not let you become a victim of the King, he didn’t want the man who sent him there to die and speak crap about what a fine captain he was and what a tragic accident it was.”

“So you’re saying he became a Pirate because of me?” Liam was having a hard time understanding how the most noble man he knew would live a life like that when they had worked so hard for their position.

“I met Killian only  a few years ago, and by then he had made a name for himself in the lands. But once I got to know him, I understood he was a broken man who drank away his sorrows. He mentioned you to me but he mainly buried what happened to you inside, bottling up his emotions so he seemed hard-faced and scary to others. But not to me.” She explains. “He idolizes you, always believing you were the best man he ever knew and how could he ever live up to that. But it was the anger over what happened to you which forced him into the situation he was in, he made a statement as the King had to scramble to find a new Navy and a new ship.”

Liam smiles at the thoughts of their so-called great King realising his navy men were now a band of Pirates and convincing the people it was fine and explaining to trade leaders why he needed a new ship and a brand new legion. “Our terrible King paid a dear price for his wicked plans, I guess it’s what they call karma.”

“We were happy, Killian and I. He was happy, his men commented they hadn’t seen him like that since you died.” Milah tells Liam. That’s all she would want to know about Bae, if he was happy.

“I’m glad he was able to move on and find love. And I’m just sad it didn’t last.”

“He will be happy again. It’ll take time but I’m sure he can find what he has with me with someone else.” Milah wasn’t cruel, she wants Killian to find love again someday with someone special- he doesn’t deserve to be alone forever.

______

While Milah stops coming to the bar every day, they still keep in touch and give each other updates if someone new arrives who knows Killian.

“Captain Liam. What a sight for sore eyes you are!” Miller, a former crewmate of Liam and Killian arrives one day, explains he was killed by someone called a Lost Boy, another Pirate. “Your brother is a fine captain, Hook may be a Pirate but you’d be proud of him.”

“Hook?” Liam asks.

Miller looks confused for a second before realising, “Oh I forgot he got the hook after you died!”

Turns out the Dark One cut off Killian’s hand and in Pirate fashion he replaced it with a hook, so now he’s ‘Captain Hook.’ Well at least he now knew to listen out for Captain Hook when new arrivals came.

And sure enough this worked out, though he wasn’t fond of some of the stories he heard.

“Did you hear there will be a curse?” Milah says to Liam one day.

Liam shakes his head, he doesn't like to hear too much of what is going on up there, he’s only interested in his brother.

“There’s an evil witch or someone who is planning on cursing everyone in the Enchanted Forest and placing them in her own personal hell.” Milah explains, she leaves out the rumours her ex husband is involved. “They say they will be frozen in time for 28 years until a saviour comes.”

“28 years? That means-“

Milah finishes his thoughts, “28 years frozen in time means nobody comes down here and we are in the dark about Killian.”

Liam sighs, it had been a few hundred years in the world upstairs, and they had learnt Killian was in Neverland, a place where nobody ages. But they had learnt so much about him and were hoping to find out more, but this curse was a setback.

_____

They know the curse has broken when people start entering the Underworld. Also turns out the town where the curse put them was based off the Underworld.

At first they don’t hear much about Killian, or “Hook”. Until one day.

“They took the Saviour’s son. Hook lent his ship to the Hero’s, they’re going after them.”

Not too long after, a face Liam would recognise anywhere shows up. The boy who led them to the dreamshade. And he is joined by the Dark One himself.

“I’m not ready to face him.” Milah tells Liam.

“It’s okay, he’s the only one who knows about my brother. I shall keep your name out of it.”

“Well if it isn’t the one handed Pirate’s brother.” The Dark One says when he enters the pawn shop, which he apparently owns in the cursed land. He’d never met the man before, but supposedly he was all knowing.

“You’re the only person who can tell me about my brother. Please I mean no threat.”  It wasn’t his place to defend Milah, he also did not wish to anger the Dark One.

The Dark One sighs. “I met your brother when he was a Pirate and I was a man with no power. He beat me in a duel when I was still powerless, so it was an unfair advantage. Many years later we met again and I cut off his hand as I thought that’s where a magic bean was but alas he tricked me. The Pirate hid in Neverland for a couple hundred years to get revenge. But I will say your brother has changed while in Storybrooke, he’s in love with the Saviour who hasn’t quite admitted she feels the same just yet. But he’s changed his tune, he may be a Pirate but he’s working on being a hero.”

Liam smiles, his little brother has found love? And a hero. This woman he was in love with- a saviour, the one who was destined to break the curse? Not admitting her feelings for him, sounds like the perfect match for the ‘womaniser’ that he had rumoured to be.

“He’s on the side of the heros.” He tells Milah that night at the bar when she was sure she was not going to run into her ex.

“You’re not serious?” Milah couldn’t believe it, Killian was working on the good side?

“Dark one confirmed it himself. He also, um,” Liam begins to tell her about how he found love, but isn’t sure how she would take to it.

“What? What is it” Milah can tell he’s hesitating, not wanting to tell her something, wait. “He’s found someone-hasn't he?”

Liam nods.

Milah lets out a soft laugh, “It’s okay that he found love again. I’m not so daft to wait 500 years for him to return. Killian is not my unfinished business, my son is. Tell me about the woman he’s found.”

___

And so Liam wonders about this woman his little brother had fallen in love with. He imagines she’s strong and feisty, like he remembers his mother was, and doesn’t put up with his brother's cockiness he inherited from their father.

Killian was always destined for great things and it sounds like he is finally on the path for this greatness. He tries to listen out for little things here and there when new people start arriving, but he wants to hear it himself when he eventually does see his brother again. Although he hopes it won’t be for a very long time, he wants to hear how his brother fell in love and started a family, giving his kids a better childhood than the two of them had.

But unfortunately one day, sooner than expected, he does overhear

“Captain Hook is here.”

He arrives at the blue house by the water, it’s grand and beautiful. Knocking at the door was the hardest thing he ever had to do, but a blonde woman dressed in white opens the door, this must be the saviour.

He doesn’t know what he will say to her, does he say thank you for being the woman his brother needs? Or does he just introduce himself and hope Killian isn’t too far away.

“Hi can I-“ she begins, but that’s when he sees him standing behind her,

“Killian!” 300 years of waiting, looking a lot older and dressed in modern black leather, his little brother was finally here.

[whump-town]

Into Your Arms

@genevievedarcygranger this one’s for you (I would have done more but the other’s sucked ass)

Various ways Aaron Hotchner stumbles his way into his loved ones arms only to give them heart attacks because he’s a drama queen with awful timing (and inspired by this post)

(1) Haley

He tells her everything that he can when he gets home each night. A second debrief where he sits on the couch, anxiously rubbing at her fingers, and is allowed to feel the impact of what occurred. She knows it’s just the honeymoon phase, that’s why he still greets each day with a smile and promises her it’s not that bad. He’s still got that look in his eyes like he can save the world or eat it whole like he hasn’t decided but when he does...

She thinks that if there was ever a man who could succeed, it’s going to him. His background is so drastically different from everyone else there. Not the son of a politician, hardly the son of a lawyer. Aaron has dragged himself here bleeding, nothing more than roadkill to these men. He might not have been able to pour himself into these cases as they had, doesn’t have the experience, but he’s lived many of them. Felt abuse and escaped his monster’s hands. Maybe she’d just needed him to be different. Safe for once. 

But isn’t that what all those other men had wanted too?

It’s midnight when he gets home. She’s already in bed when she hears him fighting his bike into the door, the loud clatter of the pedals and the handles refusing to fit. All before he shouts angered and explosive and not nearly under his breath-- “fuck”-- before he gives up and throws it out onto the porch. Desperate with those thoughts that tell him everything is out to get him, that’s he’s alone in his misery.

She jumps when he slams the door, not expecting the sound from her typically very timid, soft-spoken husband. The man who will drop a dish or a pot and comes to find her to make sure he didn’t scare her. She’s known him for nearly all her life and she’s heard him utter maybe five curse words. It’s how she knows that what greets her downstairs will not be her Aaron but something broken, something like the boy who feverishly tried to convince her that his bruises and scars were something of her active imagination. The boy killing himself to save everyone else. 

“Aaron?” She comes down the stairs, making sure to hit every creaky board so that he can hear her coming. He’s not in the living room. None of the lights are on but with the street lights pouring in she can make out just enough, and he’s not there. She searches it twice, making sure her eyes don’t deceive her but he’s not there. “Aaron?” she comes around the side of the room and stops.

He’s standing in the kitchen, shoulders shaking. She can hear his soft intakes of breath, the way he presses his hands into his face to muffle the sounds of his sobs. “Oh, baby.” She comes around him, keeping her distance until she’s standing in front of him. Watching as he wipes at his face, jaw quivering as he fails to hide the tears streaming down his face. “Aaron,” she hesitates to touch him, waits until she’s certain he’s calmed down enough not to flinch at the contact. 

She starts with a hand on his shoulder-- this is the hardest part about loving him. No matter how many years she’s been here, no matter how long it’s been since he’s seen or talked to or been hurt by his father every time is like the first time. Like he’s still just a kid standing in his kitchen waiting to get beaten for something beyond his control. 

He lets her get closer, anxiety growing but he wants her there. Knows it won’t get better until she’s got both arms around him so he wills his body to remain stationary. He whimpers when she touches his back but she keeps going until their chest touch and there is, he’s right there. She wraps him as tight as she can. Feels his heart beat against her chest.

“Okay, okay--” she’s not ready for how quickly his knees give out from beneath him. She pulls him back when it startles him, holding his arms with her own, willing herself stronger to keep him down. “You’re okay.”

He shakes his head, bowing in until his face is in her shoulder. “No,” he rasps. “She was right there,” he cries. “I had her in my arms, Haley. I felt--” he chokes on his own words. Chest heaving. “She died and I held her, she wasn’t alone but I couldn’t do anything.” 

She hates the pain in his voice, the way he shakes nearly feverishly against her. 

“She was seven,” he cries, “and I held her the entire time, I promise I did. I tried but she just kept bleeding. She was so tiny, I don’t even know how she had so much blood. I hurt her, Haley. She cried when I put pressure on her wounds. She was scared and all I did was hurt her.” He’s frantic, trying to make her see his reasoning. See him for what he sees, the thing he flinches from in mirrors. 

She just holds him and waits for morning.

(2) David Rossi

Dave is going to put a tracker in the kid’s boxers. He’s fairly certain Haley might hate him but she might okay this idea, so long as nothing like this happens again.

“He’s like ten feet tall,” Max grunts, “how the hell did you lose him?”

Dave shoots him a glare in the rearview mirror. “I didn’t lose him!” He presses on the gas pedal, the old car groaning as it accelerates. There’s nothing David Rossi likes more than playing Mr. Cool & Collected and there’s nothing that Aaron freaking Hotchner has accomplished more than making Dave feel like the frantic father to a toddler that can’t just stand still in the store. It’s kind of ruining the badass vibe thing he claims so feverishly. It’s hard to be a hot FBI agent when he looks like those dads in the store, running up and down the aisle calling out for their child.

“Alright,” Jason soothes, reaching over to squeeze Dave’s elbow. He looks at the picture of calm but he can feel his own fears rising as the gauge climbs steadily over seventy miles per hour. “Easy, Dave. Have some faith in him, okay? You’ve put in the time, he’s a smart kid.” A blind hope sort of faith but all things considered (with the exclusion of the fact that Aaron is like a fire-bug and seems to not understand that you run from danger not to it) he’s has a good head on his shoulders.

“Right,” Dave mumbles. God, he should have left Aaron in Seattle.

They find him in a field and when Dave hears the deputy calling in his description-- early thirties, dark hair, slender build-- his breath catches in his throat. He’s expecting the kid from Seattle, whose gangly height had made Jason wince and Max laugh. Who drinks too much coffee and trips over everything to be brought back to him on a stretcher. A sheet thrown over his body. Suddenly all those jokes, the way Max pointed out Aaron’s ankles hang off stretchers, would fall bitter.

But instead, he sees that ten-foot-tall, 99% all-leg toddler that he hired and his throat dries.

There are deep, dark circles around his eyes. Too many cuts to count on his face, some actively dropping blood onto his dress shirt, but he still smiles. Still raises a hand to wave when Jason shakes his head and huffs out “that kid is a piece of work”. He leans heavily on the deputy at his side, wincing and limping but he’s upright and alive.

Dave gets to him first. Tearing through the tall grass to end up, chest heaving from the run, right in front of Aaron. He points a finger up at him, anger melting at the sight of just how tired he looks. How young he really is and Dave hates himself for bringing him into this stupid mess.  “Don’t you ever do something like that again, do you understand me?” Is this what it feels like to finally find your kid in the endless aisles of Walmart? Because he’s livid but he wants to pull this big oaf into a hug and never let him go. “You could have been killed. Do you know how much paperwork that is?”

Aaron smirks, tilting just a bit and wincing when he puts pressure on broken ribs.

“Come here,” Dave says far too angrily to make it clear he’s on the verge of tears here. He pulls Aaron down, cupping the back of his head closer and wrapping his other arm across his back. “Big old idiot,” he chides sniffling to keep his tears at bay. Dave can feel him shaking, shivering despite the humidity looming over them thickly. Making even the air nearly unbreathable it’s so thick.

Aaron grunts, shifting in Dave’s arms but not away. Just trying to be comfortable but his ribs light up like a match has been struck inside him. “Rossi,” is all the warning he can get out, knees rolling out from beneath him. He hits the ground with a thud, Dave grunting to keep him from falling completely.

Dave grabs him, wincing when Aaron’s eyes roll back into his head and his mouth slacks open. Body jerking.

“It’s a seizure,” the deputy drawls. Dave is too shocked to fight as the deputy eases Aaron to the ground, rolling him onto his back, and holding him on his side. “You have to time it.” Dave looks down at his watch but he’s unable to think-- unable to breath as he hears Aaron moan in pain, crying softly as his body jerks beyond his control.

The deputy rubs Aaron’s chest, whispering something softly until Aaron’s eyes peel back open. His choked breathes easing into breathless pants, confused mumbles leaving his mouth. He doesn’t pull away from their touch, if anything Dave thinks he might actually press his face into Dave’s leg. Holding on a little tighter to Dave’s hand. “My son used to have them,” he tells them both. “You’ll be tired for a while but you’ll probably be fine.”

Unless it’s a brain bleed or a severe concussion or brain damage or a thousand other things.

“Da--Dave?”

He leans closer, squeezing Aaron’s hand and rubbing at his back. “I’m right here, you’re okay.”

Aaron peels an eye open, that signature scowl slipping into place. He looks like himself for a few moment as he looks around and artfully deducts, “I’m laying in the mud.” Leave it to Aaron. “It’s cold.”

Dave thinks again to the sweat pouring down everyone else’s backs. To the humidity so thick it should be considered a solid at this point, defying all laws of matter. “Shut up,” he says entirely too softly to be taken as it should be. A jab, a taunt. “You’re always cold.”

The crunching of grass betrays the medics coming in behind them but Dave doesn’t leave Aaron’s side. He hears the deputy tell them about the seizure. He smiles down at Aaron, brushing back a strand of hair. “I’m putting a tracker in your underwear. Gonna handcuff you to me next time we go anywhere.” And as Aaron’s eyes slip closed, loosing his battle with fighting his body, he smiles.

Dave already complains that he walks too fast, how would handcuffing them together solve anything?

(3) Penelope Garcia

They entrusted him in her care. She’d seen the hesitation in Emily’s eyes, watched her move back to Aaron’s side twice before averting her eyes and going to stand back by Dave. As if physically putting distance between them would solve the gut-rotting feeling Emily has that she’s abandoning him. That they’re all awful for leaving him but there are no other options. They leave him and they go solve this case and they can come right back as soon as it’s over.

“I’ll watch him,” Garcia promises. “We’ll be okay.”

And it’s relieving to know that it’s Garcia who will be here. It’s unspoken the connection between Garcia and Hotch. No need to review the ways he won’t even behave for Emily or Dave, he will succumb to Garcia’s nurturing ways. Let her tuck blankets around him and fuss with him about resting when he wants to sign himself out. He’s far more hesitant to hurt her. He loves her just a little bit more.

“Call if you need anything,” Derek reminds her again, as he stalls at the door. Looking back between Garcia and Hotch, convinced there is no way this goes over smoothly. No way Hotch doesn’t burn her trying to self-destruct and he’s afraid of what that will do to both of them. Garcia has ever right to be wounded by the daggers Hotch throws when he’s down-- a wounded animal cornered, snapping and teeth barred fighting with all he has left. But if Hotch sees the blood, sees the way that he hurts them… He doesn’t need any help placing those knives in his chest,  prying his ribs open to see his heart. Trying to convince himself, as his blood flows freely over his hands, that his human. 

They’re all terrified of what will happen this time. As they are every time he goes down. How much longer until the next time? How close will he let them get? How much blood is it going to take? 

“We’ll be okay,” Garcia says again because she’s still trying to believe it herself. 

But she knows that when he wakes up, he will be someone else entirely. An animal biting it’s leg off to escape, unaware that is leaves that mutilated limb behind that they will never get free. A few feet. Maybe a mile. Blood loss and infection will set in and they will die alone. Panting but free. 

Aaron never cares about what he has to loose, he  just has to get free. 

The drugs hold him back for a day. She sits there, expecting every little hitch in his breathing to be the start, but the next inhale comes and all she has is a pained groan or a soft sigh. 

She falls asleep, laptop precariously tipping off her hips, when he wakes. He doesn’t make a sound, just peels his eyes back and takes in his surroundings. He’s panicked, on the edge, and he sees her but he can’t say a word. He’s too tired, too drugged to even try to make the great escape he’s already formulating in his mind. 

She hears the monitors pick up, something shifting in the room. “Sir,” she gasps but she’s a little too late. He’s already sitting up, hunched down and over himself. “Are you okay? Should I--” 

The door is thrown open, startling them both with the bright lights from the hall into the dark room. 

“Hotch are you okay?” she stays right beside him, trying to get him to say something. Anything.

The nurses buzz around him, not as frantic as she feels just quick practiced movements. She watches them give up trying to move Hotch’s arms, raising the sleeve of his gown up and plunging something into his arm. They step back, going to the machines.

“Hotch?” she tries again, softer. 

He turns his head, eyes darting between hers.

“Are you okay?” she touches his shoulder and nearly jumps in surprise when he leans into her. She hesitates for only a second-- mind racing to understand what’s happening right now. Hotch who avoids hugs and hates attention, leaning into her. Seeking out comfort. “It’s okay,” she whispers, pulling his shoulders closer to her. “You’re okay.” 

She can feel him deflating, all of him now against her. Head on her shoulder and his other arm, not the one pinned between their bodies, trying to reach closer. His breaths even out, no longer quick and shallow as they had been before. 

“It was a sedative,” one of the nurses assures her. “He’s okay. He just needs to rest.”

Garcia nods and tries to pretend like that idea doesn’t terrify her. She’ll call Derek or maybe Dave just someone later and tell them about this. How quickly Hotch had just gone limp in her arms, unable to hold his body up. She’ll cry in the shower and probably every night after this-- is that how desperately he needs a hug? Should she have really been listening to him all these years and skipping him while showering the others in affection? 

She doesn’t fall back asleep, she sits up with him. Listening to his breathing and calming him back down before he can wake up or work himself into a nightmare. She’ll make up for when she wasn’t there and vow that once he’s back on his feet, she’s going to pull him down into a hug and she’s never going to let go.