#hit the ground running by gladie

[itsallhoney]

[wanderingelvis]

Hi, so can do one where R is Elvis girlfriend and is really close to Gladys like she treats her like she treats Elvis and make sure everything is perfect for when R comes over

Oooh I love this! I adore Gladys and the way that she brought up such a wonderful person. 🧚🏻

🧚🏻 Masterlist 🧚🏻

Meeting Gladys & Graceland

word count: 1,244 pairing: elvis x f!reader

You'd met Gladys and Vernon a few times since you and Elvis had become an item, but only ever for the evening or during a show. You knew how close Elvis was to his mother and you were secretly desperate to impress her. Elvis could tell and he found it very endearing.   Elvis was taking you to Graceland for the very first time and you were the perfect mix of nerves and excitement. Elvis had to practically pull you from completely climbing out of the car window as you desperately tried to see all of the grounds leading up to Graceland.

"Woah.." You said quietly, gazing up at staircase and around the rooms as you both entered the mansion. Elvis smiled fondly down at you, he knew Graceland was impressive, but one of his favourite things about your relationship together was that he could introduce you to so many new, grand things. "You really live here?!" You whispered, in awe.  Elvis chuckled, running his fingers through your hair. "You like it, little 'un?" You nodded eagerly, beaming up at him, grateful for the chance to experience such a large, yet inviting home. "There they are! Vernon! They've arrived! Oh, well don't y'all look darlin'!" Gladys said, opening her arms and engulfing you into a hug, startling you a little at how forward she was being, but you liked it, it quelled your nerves. Gladys then kissed and hugged Elvis before Vernon arrived into the foyer, greeting you and Elvis. Once all greetings were exchanged, your nerves kicked back in a little, unsure of what to do next. Elvis, who was stood behind you, placed his hands on your upper arms, leaning down to whisper into your ear. 

"Remember the flowers you picked, baby?" He said in a hushed tone, reminding you of the bouquet you had gripped in your hands, full of pansies and tulips that you'd picked especially for Gladys.  "Oh!" You said, nodding cutely at what Elvis said. Elvis patted your butt, prompting you to move forward towards Gladys and Vernon.  With an outstretched arm, you offered the flowers to Gladys. "You have a lovely home, Mrs Presley!" You smiled.  "Oh darlin', they're just precious!" Gladys gasped, smiling back down at you.  "Y/N spent hours picking out the perfect flowers for ya, Momma." Elvis said, causing another grin to form on Gladys' face. You blushed slightly at what Elvis had said, a little embarrassed at Elvis revealing just how much you'd tried to impress his mother.  Gladys loved it, she didn't meet a lot of the women that Elvis was with, mainly because they didn't stay with Elvis for very long. The ones that did, often wouldn't put in much effort with Vernon or Gladys, only ever having eyes for Elvis, which could hurt Gladys' feelings.  But as soon as Elvis met you, he knew his mother would love you. You had all the traits that he and Gladys adored; you were incredibly thoughtful and caring, almost to a fault. If anyone needed help, no matter how big or small, you'd drop everything you had on the be by their side.  Gladys put her arm around you, guiding you into the living room, with Elvis and Vernon following behind, discussing Elvis' latest record. Gladys introduced you to Dodger, who you chatted to whilst Gladys served drinks before dinner was ready. Dinner was a hit, with Vernon, Gladys and Dodger all asking you various questions about your upbringing and family as you asked questions about everything they loved. Elvis didn't engage too much, enjoying watching you come out of your shell and fit perfectly into his world. He sat at the head of the table, with you sat in the seat to his right.   Elvis quietly sipped his Bourbon with one hand, whilst his other hand held yours, his thumb stroking the top of your hand lovingly, making you feel safe as you babbled on to Gladys all about how you'd always wanted to learn how to make your own clothes and you'd love to take Gladys up on her offer to teach you. Once dinner was over, Elvis took you to the living room, along with Vernon as Gladys and Dodger cleaned up. "Elvis?" You said softly, tapping his arm to get his attention.  "Yes, doll?" Elvis mused. 

"Can I go help your Momma and Dodger clear up the mess?" You asked. Elvis smiled at you. "'Course ya can, baby, but you don't gotta."  "S'okay, your Mama made such a yummy supper, I just wanna help out!" You insisted, making Elvis chuckle.  Elvis watched lovingly as you dashed away towards the kitchen, turning around briefly to wave at him. Gladys was beside herself when you appeared, eager to help her with her workload, passing you a rag as you both continued the conversation you held at the table.  The evening dragged on and you'd had a pretty overstimulating day that had been very emotionally overwhelming, but you'd loved every second. After the seventh little yawn you let out, Elvis and Gladys decided it was definitely time for your bedtime. You conceded, bidding Dodger and Vernon goodnight, holding Elvis' hand as you both followed Gladys upstairs for Gladys to show you the room she'd set up for you. Gladys was a traditionalist, setting up separate rooms for you and Elvis, which you were both happy to comply with. Gladys had set up your room perfectly, with a thick, heavy comforter, covered in pink satin, just for you. You thanked her endlessly for everything she'd done for you with Gladys insisting that she was happy to do all of it. You bid each other a goodnight and kissed Elvis goodnight before they left you to drift off into a peaceful slumber.

Despite having been absolutely exhausted, as you curled up in the king sized, luxury bed, your mind raced. You'd had the perfect day and you loved Graceland, Elvis' family and Elvis - you felt like the luckiest girl in the world and you decided you were going to tell Elvis just that. You knew everyone would've retired to their bedrooms by now, so you slipped out of bed with your lace pink negligee on. You padded quietly through the hallway, your bare feet making no noise on the soft carpet as you arrived at Elvis' room. You quietly opened it, to be met with Elvis who was sat by a dressing table, applying aftershave. He noticed you immediately in the reflection. "Are you supposed to be asleep, little girl?" Elvis said, lip turned up in a coy smile, sending you a cheeky wink. "Uh huh! But I can't! I keep thinking about how I had the best day ever." You shouted and whispered at the same time making Elvis chuckle. Elvis nodded his head towards himself and patted his lap for you. "C'mere." He said, as he watched you scamper over to him and climb up onto his lap. "My parents liked you, doll." He mused as you both looked at each other in the reflection of the mirror.  "I loved them, Elvis. They're so kind. Thank you for bringing me here." You sighed softly, playing with the large, chunky rings on his fingers. Of course, Elvis had known you'd fit right in, but the evening had gone even better than he could've ever imagined.  Elvis watched your reflection in the dimly lit mirror. He couldn't help but smile, knowing that only fifteen minutes before you'd run to his room, he'd told Gladys you were the one.

[sunstone-smiles]

Can I please request a Dimitri Felix, Sylvain, and Ashe tickle fic, please? Almost like a tickle fight style. Those 4 are my absolute faves, and u write FE so well!

If not, it is completely understandable! Happy Saturday, my friend

Hi Gladys! Thank you! And yessss, the boys! I’m so excited to share this with you, so I hope you enjoy!

A Training Tussle for Lions

Series: Fire Emblem

Characters: Dimitri, Sylvain, Ashe, Felix

Word count: 2,151

Summary: During a training session, four of the Blue Lions end up in a playful free-for-all. Enjoy!

—

The heel of a white academy boot drags into the dirt as its wearer is pushed back by an attack. Stabilizing himself, Felix thrusts forward with a training sword in hand. Dimitri swings his own wooden sword to counter, keeping Felix’s from hitting him. The two struggle at a stalemate of strength, each side trying to push back the other. The Blue Lion’s house leader powers through for a final shove. Felix stumbles back, and with the opening, Dimitri hits him with a swing of his sword, forcing the other noble to fall onto the dirt of the training grounds.

“Aaand point to Dimitri!” Sylvain says while gesturing towards the leader. Ashe stands by his side, keeping track of the score in his head alongside Sylvain.

“Excellent round, Felix. You nearly had me there,” Dimitri walks over to lend a hand to his friend. 

Now to his feet, Felix dusts himself off. “Yeah, but not close enough.”

“Better pick up the pace Felix, or Dimitri will have you beat everytime,” Sylvain teases with his signature smile.

Felix growls upon seeing that smug grin on Sylvain’s face. “Oh yeah? I’d like to see you do any better!”

Dimitri steps forward. “Come on you two. There’s no need to argue—”

“Ha!” Sylvain puts on a new confident grin, “Watch me!”

Dimitri's face palms and Ashe’s eyes grow. The silver-haired boy quickly tugs on the redhead’s academy uniform sleeve. “Sylvain, are you sure about this?” the smaller boy whispers. He doesn’t want to see two of his friends getting hurt over a little squabble.

Another smirk grows on Sylvain’s face. “Relax, I’ve got this,” he whispers, “I’ve got a foolproof plan up my sleeve.”

If Ashe knows anything about Sylvain and that smile, it’s that he isn’t going to be able to talk his friend out of this. Ashe lets out a long sigh. “If you say so…”

“Hmph, good luck,” Felix hands Sylvain the training sword and the two switch places. Felix now stands on the sidelines with Ashe while Sylvain stands across from a battle prepared Dimitri. 

“Ready,” Felix holds his hand up. He slices it down through the air, “Fight!”

With that call, Sylvain and Dimitri run towards one another. When he gets close enough, Dimitri takes a large swing forward with all his weight, but Sylvain dodges to the side. Overshooting the attack, Dimitri stumbles forward and is left completely open. Sylvain swoops up behind him, wraps his forearm around Dimitri’s neck in a headlock, drops the wooden sword, then playfully ruffles the leader’s blonde mop of hair.

Dimitri giggles and tugs at his friend’s headlock. “Sylvain! No playing! We’re trying to train.”

“No playing, huh?” Sylvain’s smirk grows even wider. “Then how about…a tickle attack!” Sylvain moves the hand that was ruffling Dimitri’s hair to scratch his fingers at the leader’s tummy. 

“AH! Sylvahahahain!” Dimitri explodes into giggles and yanks himself out of Sylvain’s headlock, in turn tripping onto the ground. With no time to spare, Sylvain goes down after him, scribbling into the house leader’s torso and sending him into laughter again. Dimitri rolls over onto his back in an attempt to shove Sylvain away while the redhead’s attack proves its giggly effect. 

“See Felix!” Sylvain throws another quip at the blue-haired noble on the sidelines, “Look how fast I took him down!”

Felix huffs out a short laugh. He points at Dimitri, who looks ready to fight back. “I think you might regret that though.”

“Nah, it’ll be fine—” 

The prince suddenly tackles him backwards, strong-arming his way through the attack. Sylvain’s back hits the dirt with a thud. Before he knows it, Dimitri uses one hand to pin his chest down and the other to plunge his fingers into Sylvains ticklish stomach.

“ACK! Hehehehey!” Sylvain wriggles under the weight of Dimitri’s pin, attempting to twist away from the leader’s nimble fingers while Dimitri moves his hand around to scribble at his sides.

“So that’s how you want to play it, huh?” Dimitiri says with a smile. “Then it’s your turn to face a tickle attack!” the leader exclaims, now diving in both of his hands to scribble into Sylvain’s torso. 

“AH! Hahaha! Nohohoho! Wahahahait! Yohohour highnehehehess!” Sylvain attempts to tug Dimitri’s hands away as he squirms from side to side through his swelling laughter. His plan severely backfired.

Ashe lets out a soft chuckle of his own. He was worried about Sylvain's scheme at first, but he’s relieved to know that it resulted in them playing. In addition, the game looks fun.

Leaving his spot on the sidelines, Ashe dashes over behind Dimitri, then gives a quick squeeze to the prince’s sides. The leader’s back arches straight up with a yelp. Ashe giggles and Dimitri playfully whips around to try and catch Ashe, but the silver-haired boy jumps back. Realizing his mistake, Ashe starts making a run for it. 

“Get back here Ashe!” Dimitri chuckles and chases after him, leaving a winded Sylvain to plop back onto the ground. 

Felix lets out another short laugh at the scene. He heads over to a sprawled out Sylvain, who’s just beginning to recover. The redhead holds out a limp hand towards Felix’s direction, thinking his friend is going to help him up.

“Thanks…” Sylvain responds when Felix grabs his hand, but Felix suddenly pins his arm on the ground next to the side of his head. “Huh?!”

“Who said anything about helping you up?” Felix smirks. Sylvain’s eyes go wide and he immediately squirms backwards, his free hand up in defense. 

“Oh no! F-Felix! Wait! Not you t-OO!” Sylvain yelps and explodes back into laughter when Felix uses his free hand to scribble into the redhead’s torso.

“Hey, you were the one that was so confident you could take the boar down.”

Sylvain shakes his head from side to side. “Whihihihich I rehehegret nohohow! Hahaha!”

Meanwhile, Ashe makes a sharp U-turn across the training grounds while Dimitri charges behind him at full speed. The prince quickly closes in on Ashe. As fast as a speeding wyvern, Dimitri snatches up his friend in a tight hug and lifts the smaller boy off his feet. Ashe giggles and playfully kicks his legs in the air as Dimitri easily carries him back over to where they originally were. Aware of the possible fate that awaits him, Ashe attempts to free his trapped arms, knowing that Dimitri’s hands can ambush his sides at any moment. 

“Your highness! Let me explain—Eek!” Ashe squeaks and releases a few giggles when Dimitri gives a quick pinch to his side. 

“An explanation won’t be necessary to get you out of this now, Ashe! Now, prepare for your revenge!”

“Dimitri, wait! I might fall—AH!” but the hand positioned at his side finally strikes and Ashe bursts out into giggles, kicking his legs widely in the air.

Dimitri places the squirming Ashe back on his own two feet, still keeping him in a tight hug. He scribbles a little farther up to Ashe’s ribs, and the boy lets out a giggly shriek, nearly doubling over in Dimitri’s hold. 

“Dihihihihimitri!” Ashe’s face flushes a little under his freckles.

The house leader chuckles at his friend, then looks over at the other two Blue Lions. Seeing Felix distracted with a laughing Sylvain, Dimitri releases Ashe from his hug, allowing the smaller boy to wrap his arms around his own middle, then runs over to the others.

Quickly coming up behind, Dimitri gives a sudden squeeze to Felix’s sides, causing the noble to jolt in place. Felix shoots his hands down to pry Dimitri’s hands away that start wiggling into his sides, while also swallowing down the bubbly feeling of laughter rising in his chest.

He growls through his gritted teeth, “Oh no you don’t!” The blue-haired noble quickly retaliates by spinning around in Dimitri’s hold and tackling the house leader to the ground. It isn’t long until Felix is able to find an opening through Dimitri’s defenses to scribble at his friend’s ribs.

“AH! Fehehehehelix!” Dimitri returns to his state of giggling.

“Trying to get a hit on me on me? I don’t think so!” Felix grins.

“Here, let me help!” Ashe races over, then kneels down next to Dimitri’s other side to scribble at his stomach. The house leader jumps and attempts to curl up his middle, using one arm to shield his body while the other tries to playfully shove them both away. 

“Hohohohold on yohohohou twohohoho! Quihihihit it!” Dimitri exclaims through his laughter. He lets out a little snort and plops back into the dirt, his face now faintly blushing pink at the sound he just made.

Felix can’t help but chuckle. “So the boar snorts while being tickled? How fitting.”

Suddenly, Felix is tackled to the ground by Sylvain and slams down on his stomach. Before he can throw the redhead off of him, Sylvain grabs his wrists and pins it behind his back. Felix lets out a startled gasp, knowing he’s in prime position for Sylvain to get what he’s looking for: revenge.

“Sylvain!” Felix snarls and tries to reach his other hand behind in any attempt to shove Sylvain away. “Don’t you even think—” 

With no hesitation, Sylvain dives his free hand down and claws into Felix’s wide open side through his academy uniform. Felix yelps and attempts to suppress the laughter quivering in his smile, but he soon bursts into laughter like the others. 

“Sylvahahahain!” Felix exclaims through his bubbly laughter, squirming from side to side to nudge away Sylvain’s fingers, only for his laughter to increase when Sylvain crawls his hand up to his underarm.

“Well well well, look who’s laughing now,” Sylvain smiles. The redhead then releases his friend’s arm to use both of his hands to attack, resulting in Felix squirming around onto his back for a better chance to defend himself.

Allowing Dimitri a break, and for the fear that the Blue Lion’s house leader will soon retaliate, Ashe scoots his way over to Felix to assist Sylvain. While redhead goes for his ribs, Ashe slides in to attack Felix’s sides, causing the usual stoic noble to jolt with more laughter. 

However, in the midst of Felix’s squirming, the noble strikes back. He flings himself past Sylvain and clings onto Ashe’s sides with nimble wiggling fingers, effectively halting Ashe’s attack as the younger boy breaks out into giggly squeaks.

“I’ve gotcha Ashe!” Sylvain exclaims as he tickles Felix’s underarms, making Felix release Ashe and flop down to the ground in his own laughter again.

Ashe lets out residual giggles. “Phew. Thanks Sylvain.”

“Oh, don’t thank me yet,” the redhead says with a sly grin, aiming the look right towards Ashe. 

Ashe gasps. “Uh oh—AH!” he screams when Sylvain pounces towards him. He’s yanked backwards into the redhead's hold where Sylvain’s fingers start to poke and flutter into his sides.

“Hehehey! I thohohohught we wehehere on the sahahahame sihihihide!” Ashe squirms around and kicks his legs in the dirt while Sylvain holds him captive in a second tickle hug.

“Not in a tickle fight, Ashe! That was just a temporary truce. You have to be quick!” Sylvain smiles behind Ashe’s shoulder. 

“Then think fast, Sylvain!” Dimitri comes up behind Sylvain and hooks his arms under the redhead's, pulling him away from Ashe. Felix then swoops in towards his front, immediately diving his fingers into Sylvain’s torso for one last attack.

“Ohoho nohohoho!!! Wahahahahait!” Sylvain bursts into giggles again, letting out a shriek of laughter when Felix scribbles near his hips. 

“You brought this upon yourself, Sylvain!” Felix grins while he unleashes his counterattack.

Dimitri moves his hands into an already squirmy Sylvain’s underarms. “Ashe, want to help?”

“With pleasure!” Ashe holds his hands up with wigging fingers in the air. Ashe then jumps in with his friends, scribbling into the rest of Sylvain’s torso.

“Hehehehey!!! Threehehehe ahahagainst one ihihisn’t fahahahahair!!!”

“So then, do you yield, Sylvain?” Dimitri smiles.

“Yehehehes! YES! Okahahahay!” Sylvain giggles and pulls himself free from Dimitri’s hold, flopping belly first on the ground. The force of his tug takes the rest of his friends down with him, all of the lions crashing in a pile on top of the redhead. The four can’t help but giggle.

“Point for Dimitri,” Ashe jokes after everyone’s laughter subsides.

“What? That counted?” Sylvain begins to sit up as the rest of his friends also pull themselves out of the pile they collapsed in. “If that counted, then I definitely scored a point every time I took you down.”

“Oh yeah? Then what’s the score?” Felix returns to his knowing tone.

“I…lost count,” Sylvain admits.

“Back to square one then,” Dimitri ruffles Sylvain’s hair for a final act of payback and Sylvain chuckles. The leader returns to his feet, “Come on, you three.” 

The four Blue Lions return to their training, surprisingly still brimming with energy even after all their play fighting. 

[dlnorton]

(As I write this, the Tropical Storm Hilary has yet to land its full force into the Southern California region.. but its 24 hours away and coming in..)

Here’s the thing about the hurricane Hilary coming in to give Southern California a huge, and potentially, a much needed bath.. it’s the irony.. (btw..Southern California really needs the water after a horrendous two to three year drought) Southern California has had it’s share of natural disasters.. namely brush fires and earthquakes.

I currently live in the Denver, CO region along the Front Range, but my hometown is Riverside, CA. I’ve also lived in Los Angeles in various communities during my younger days as a starving artist.

Living in SoCal since 1970, I lived through 3 major earthquakes and countless brush fires. Brush fires so bad, at one time in the early to mid 1990s fire seasons, I could see all of those fires (1993-94?) 360° around me in the mountains and foothills. It was a crazy time.

Growing up, I also lived in two states, Florida and Texas. I don’t even remember severe weather back in those days. I don’t even remember hurricane Gladys in 1968 hitting the Florida panhandle where we lived when I was 6 years old. Hell, I barely remember any tornado that came in. Of course today, here in the Denver area, I’m connected 24/7 to all tornado and weather alerts.. and I won’t mention the crazy snow storms and blizzards..

But hurricane Hilary is a conundrum to me. It’s like a cartoon.. it’s there, but it’s two dimensional. I have family and friends that are right now bracing for this potential disaster, what with the possibility of catastrophic flooding and wind damage.

The last event equal to this was around 1937-38. Massive flooding due to run off that the hard SoCal ground can’t absorb, and the ground is still like this today, from the deserts to the sea.. pancake hard. I know the Los Angeles River and the Santa Ana River are the main concourses that will have to take the brunt of this deluge that will be coming. I can only imagine.

The majority of the storm is currently hitting the east from Palm Springs to all points eastward. Arizona and Nevada will surely get a drenching.. and probably within a week, we’ll start to see remnants coming into Colorado.

But something like this has never happened to the southwest U.S. in over 85 years.. or what has been referred to as the 100 year flood event. It’s bound to happen but not as a Tropical Storm.. “Pshhh! This happens to Florida, the Caribbean and the Eastern Seaboard.. not the west coast..!!” SoCal did have a horrendous Pacific storm in the late 1980’s that tore up a good chunk of the L.A. and Orange County beaches.. tore off a pier or two. I do remember that one. Rained for days..

So here I am.. getting ready to watch my old stomping grounds get tested by the storm of the century.. seems unreal, but there it is.. in all it’s wet sloppy glory.

Go easy on them Hilary.. it’s their first time..

..and..

huh?

What?

Southern California really dodged a bullet..?

Oh fuck me..

[rebelliousstories]

Searching For You

Continuation of: Kentucky Rain

Relationship: Elvis Presley/Austin! Elvis x Reader

Warnings: Angst with a happy ending, Fluff, Strong Language

Word Count: 3,597

Main Masterlist: Here

Elvis/Austin Butler Masterlist: Here

Summary: He found her. Elvis finally found her; now to get her home.

She was here. Right in front of him. He almost felt like he was dreaming. Her eyes lit up as she took him in. She quickly turned to the door and made sure no sound was near it. Once she had cleared the door, she came to the window. The window that Elvis was perched at. Her smile grew wide as she took in the small sliver of tan skin and black hair that belonged to her boyfriend. She tried to fit her fingers through the crack to touch him, but it wasn’t big enough. The most they could do was touch the very tips of their fingers together.

“Oh Elvis! I’m so happy you’re here. I was so worried and I..” her voice trailed off. She spoke so quietly that Elvis almost had to strain his ears to hear her.

“I-I-I know, baby. But come on. I gotta find a way t’ get you outta here. We’re leaving.” He spoke almost as quietly, determination in his voice. Her smile dropped and her eyes dulled. She pulled slightly away from the boards covering her window.

“I can’t leave E. Not this time. They’re making sure I ain’t gonna leave this place again.” She admitted sadly. Elvis was heartbroken at her words. But, no matter what, he made a promise to himself and his momma that she was coming home. He leaned away from the window, and looked around. His fingers could get just enough purchase on the boards to start yanking on them. Her face was turned down as she thought about the life she was going to miss out on.

They’d never be able to get married. With any luck, she’ll hopefully be married to someone who doesn’t hit her. But the man she’ll be arranged with will most certainly control ever aspect of her life. She’ll never be able to have kids with Elvis or grow old. She’ll never see Gladys again, or Dodger. She missed Vernon and everyone that lived and worked in Graceland. She wanted to be back there, making sandwiches in the kitchen with Elvis. Running around the yard, or laying in the back underneath the shade of trees with a book.

Just then she heard a rip tear through the air. She looked up startled, but she could see more of the outside. Elvis had started to tear the boards off the side of the house. Apparently brute strength sometimes wins. There was now just enough of a gap that she may be able to fit through with a bag. When Elvis flung the piece to the ground he poked his head in through the gap.

“Watcha waitin’ on darlin’? Let’s get the hell outta here!” He exclaimed quietly, trying not to alert the members of the house. She backed up and started running around the room. She was trying to find her bag so she could bring things with her but she couldn’t find it. The minutes were ticking away and Elvis was getting antsy.

“Don’t worry about bringin’ anythin’ doll. Let’s just go. I’ll getcha whatever the hell you want but we need to go before they wake up and find us.” Elvis was frantic. They were louder this time about escaping which added to the danger of being caught. She seemed to understand and eventually just focused on finding her shoes and jacket to get out. She only had her slippers and thin jacket but it would have to do. Elvis climbed down the ladder just a little bit and waited for her to follow him. Soon, one foot came out the gap, and landed on the ladder. She started squeezing her body through. The amount of weight she had lost being here had made it a bit easier to pass through the gap. As she started pulling her second foot through the gap, she heard them. They were on the other side of her door. The locks on the outside started jiggling as she hurriedly landed on the ladder. Elvis was waiting at the bottom for her.

She heard the door rust open and her family call her name. The nightgown she wore didn’t help her move any faster but she didn’t care. She finally was able to escape. Her mother poked her head through the gap and a rage filled yell frightened her still. She saw the anger in her eyes, and felt powerless against her. Vaguely, she heard Elvis call her name but she couldn’t move. It wasn’t until her mother’s head disappeared that she resumed her plans. She jumped the last few steps of the ladder, landing directly in Elvis’ arms. He set her down, grabbed her hand, and ran down the road. They only stopped briefly to grab his bag from the neighbors yard. Running like the devil was on their tail; they heard her family come out the front door, but they were already turning the street corner.

Cars started up and the headlights shown over the houses. Elvis had yet to let go of her hand, when he pulled her behind a tall and dense shrub. He pulled her into his chest and hid her from the outside. She was about to question him when she saw the headlights pass them. The fear was starting to grip her too tight. Blindly, she followed but it didn’t register to her.

They ran for a few more minutes before Elvis felt like they could stop. He was panting like a dog, but he couldn’t give up now. His girl was counting on him. He turned to her, but she had a look in her eyes. It was far off and removed from the world in front of her. Elvis dropped his bag, and grabbed her shoulder.

“Baby?” He asked gently. No response.

“Baby.” No response.

“Darlin’. I need you to look at me.” He pleaded. But still, no response. He shook her lightly, trying desperately to knock her out of this. When he still received nothing, he shook her harder. But she continued to stare straight through him. He sighed and looked down. He couldn’t lose her, not when he just got her back.

“I’m sorry baby.” He said before he reached up and tangled his hand in her hair. He yanked her head back and heard her gasp. When she pulled up, the cloud was gone from her eyes.

“Why’d you do that? That hurt.” She said, now rubbing the spot where he yanked from. He smiled and brought her in for a hug. They both felt the tension leave her body as soon as she was wrapped up in his arms.

“I’m sorry darlin’. I was worried ‘bout you. You weren’t respondin’.” Elvis pressed a kiss into her head. She nodded in understanding. He pulled away first, but kept her in his arms.

“Now, baby listen t’ me. Imma get you outta here. I promise you. I’m not gonna let you go back there. But if we’re gonna make it out, I need ya here with me. I need ya present. Can ya do that for me darlin’?” He asked, moving his hands to her face. He cradled her as she felt the tears come down. His thumbs traced her cheeks, wiping the droplets away. She was finally letting go of the fear of being caught and her body was going through so many changes so fast. Drastic emotions, or lack there of, was taking a toll on her. Elvis quickly caught her as she collapsed to the grass beneath their feet. He let her get everything out that she needed to. Once she had calmed down, she looked up at Elvis.

“I-I can do it baby. Le-let’s go-o.” They raised once again, and left. They kept walking, kept looking over their shoulder’s. But they made it through. Elvis could see familiar landmarks coming past them as he navigated his way to the nearest civilization that they could hitch a ride with. They passed the big oak tree that Elvis nearly crashed into on several occasions. They stopped for a moment at the blue church with the white door just to catch their breath. Once they were ready to go, Elvis lead the way to the general store. His watch beeped 2:30 AM, but they continued on. They were so close to freedom, so close. The lake looked calm and serine in the midnight moonlight, and Elvis was glad that he found the familiar landmark. He kept walking with her on his left closer to the lake to keep her out of the road. It was almost peaceful, had they not been on the run. She started slowing down, and eventually had to stop walking all together.

“Baby, I’m so tired. I can’t continue. Can we please stop? Just for a little bit?” She asked, shifting her weight quickly from one foot to the other to relieve herself of the pain. Elvis’ heart softened at his girl’s request. Who was he to deny her?

“Of course sugar. Let’s go to the gazebo nearby, yeah? We can rest there.” He offered. She nodded and took his hand once again. The gazebo was connected to a pier on the lake. It was a popular spot that she would come to when she was younger and really needed to get away from her folks. When she began dating Elvis, she took him here when he was still making the trip to Kentucky to come see her. Elvis helped her onto the path, and walked her into the gazebo. He unpacked his bag just a little bit to fish out another jacket. He sat down, and pulled her into his chest. His back was against a beam, but he made sure she was comfortable. Once they were settled, he draped the jacket over her. She snuggled into his chest, and it wasn’t but a few more minutes till he heard soft snores coming from her.

He felt his heart swell as he gazed down at his girl. Elvis shut his eyes for a moment to savor the feeling of having her back in his arms. He was brought into a memory of a night very similar to this.

“I just don’t get it. Why can’t they see that you’re music and they way you move is just how ya are? You ain’t hurtin’ no one.” She said, back pressed against Elvis. They were standing at the gazebo; their date night being prolonged as far as they could. Elvis stood behind her, caging her in with his arms resting on the banner that ran across the gazebo. His cologne had invaded her nose with him being this close, but she wasn’t complaining. The boy let out a deep sigh and simply shook his head.

“I don’t know baby, but the older ‘important’ folks are startin’ to notice me. The Colonel says that I need to calm it down on the wigglin’ but, if I can’t move, I can’t sing.” He admits quietly into her shoulder. She turned in his arms and places her hands on his cheeks. They stared into each other’s eyes, neither one wanting to break the moment.

“Elvis, you’re just letting the spirit of music move you. The spirit is God given, meanin’ that God wants you to feel music like that. There can’t be nothin’ wrong with it if it’s given to you by the King. Don’t let them big wigs change ya baby. I-I love ya. Just the way you are.” She concluded. Neither of them had said those words yet, but by God it made Elvis feel like he was floating on cloud nine to hear. His face broke out into a wide smile and he buried it into her neck. He pressed kisses all over her neck and she started to giggle. He pulled away, panting and smiling, with a blush running up his tanned skin.

“I love you so much baby. You always know just what to say to me.” His words took a minute to sink in, but once she recognized what he had said, she was in heaven. She grabbed the back of his head and smushed their faces back together. Nothing mattered to them in that moment. They existed in the love they felt for each other. Without breaking their lips, Elvis reached down and picked her up by the back of her thighs. She laughed against his lips, and there wasn’t a sweeter sound in the world. Her legs wrapped around his and everything was right with the world.

A crunching noise broke Elvis out of the memory. Sunrise was starting to hit him in the eyes. He hadn’t realized he fell asleep. The crunching noise was the sound of a car, more specifically a truck at the top of the embankment. Elvis looked down to see she hadn’t stirred yet, and he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. A blue uniform, a badge, and gun greeted his vision before he could even think about getting up.

“Son? Son you alright over there?” The officer asked as he approached the couple in the gazebo. The young man looked to the sleeping woman in his arms once more before waking her up. It hurt him to do so, but it needed to be done. She grumbled and moaned about being disturbed from her sleep. While she was busy getting conscious, Elvis waved to the officer. He maneuvered her so she could begin to stand, and the officer got closer. He was an older gentleman, with graying hair and a clean shaven face. He climbed down the hill towards the gazebo as Elvis stood up.

“You alright baby?” He asked her as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. She nodded while she kept rubbing and leaned against the banister on the gazebo. Elvis noticed the officer on the boardwalk and stood in front of his girl. He reached out a hand to shake, and the office took it.

“How’re you doin’ today officer?” He asked politely, shielding his girl with his body just a little bit.

“Doin’ alrigh’ myself. How’re you kids doin’? Did a little too much partyin’ last nigh’?” The officer peaked his head around Elvis to see the girl behind him.

“Umm, somethin’ like that. Hey would ya mind givin’ us a ride into town? My car is at the shop there and it’s still a bit of a walk.” She had moved from the banister to tucked under Elvis’ arm as he held her close. The officer looked at the young couple skeptically, before he nodded and smiled.

“Course son. Let’s get ya love birds into town now.” And once again, they were off. Elvis held her close as they climbed up the hill again, and held her tight as they rode in the back of the paddy wagon. He started to notice familiar stretches of land in between the two towns and was getting excited at being so much closer to being home. The friendly officer made small talk with Elvis all the way, but she reminded quite. She hadn’t fully woken up but she just didn’t feel like talking.

Elvis thanked the officer for driving the two back into town once he dropped them off at the motel. He warned the young couple to not party so much late at night, and Elvis chuckled. Thankfully by the time they had made it back, the truck was fixed. His beloved old beat up truck was running brand new. He paid generously for the work and made sure to tip generously as well. He loaded her up into passenger seat, threw his bag in the back, before making his way to the driver’s seat.

The ride was quiet for the most part. It was probably going to end up taking most of the day to make it back to Graceland, but it was all worth it. Elvis felt his girl snuggled up with his arm secured in hers as a sort of security. Just to make sure he was really there. While Elvis didn’t want to open a fresh wound this early, he needed to know.

“Baby?” He asked quietly. She hummed back at him in acknowledgment. “How did they get you?”

She froze. Her grip tightened on Elvis’ arm, almost to the point of being uncomfortable. Her breathing started picking up, and Elvis knew that Graceland was going to have to wait. He pulled over to the side of the road and turned to the girl in the passenger seat. She didn’t want to remember what happened; she wanted it all to go away. He placed his hands on her face and made her stare him dead in the eye.

“Baby? Baby, I’m sorry but I need to know. I need to know how… how they stole you away from me. You’re car wasn’t there baby and neither was your suitcase. I thought you had left me for good. Please talk to me.” Her panic didn’t last long as the sadness creeped in. Depression hit her like a freight train at the thought that Elvis thought she willingly left him.

“No. No, no, no, no. I’m sorry baby. It’s my fault. I didn’t tell you cause I thought I was crazy and then it just all the sudden happened and I had no choice. I would never leave you.” Her tears and sobs choked her voice to were Elvis couldn’t understand her. He pulled her into his chest and let her sob. She sobbed for the pain and panic he must’ve gone through. She sobbed for the pain and panic she went through. The last week had been the most stressful week of her life, and she never fully processed it. They didn’t know how long they sat there, but it was however long was needed. Soon her full bodied, heart shattering sobs, made way for quieter, occasional tear filled sniffles. But he didn’t dare pull away. She needed the comfort more than he needed the story.

When she eventually did pull away, her face broke his heart. Her eyes were red and puffy, and filled with such a sadness he couldn’t comprehend. Her nose and cheeks were also red and puffy from all the crying. Snot was finally stopping from coming out of her nose as she wiped it with a napkin in the truck. But she was still the most gorgeous woman he had ever seen.

“Well, it started off small,” she began, “I would notice cars with people inside when I went dress shoppin’ or somethin’ like that. And then I’d move to the other store and the same car, and the same man would be inside. I saw a few different cars and a few different men but the pattern was the same. I thought it was a coincidence so I never mentioned anythin’. But then I noticed them amongst the people at the gates of Graceland, and then I saw one of the men peerin’ into the backyard when I was readin’. I assumed they were there for you. When I asked the police about it they said nothin’ could be done. Then that night that….” She trailed off, but Elvis refused to open his mouth. He simply rubbed her shoulder, comforting and encouraging her to go on.

“Well that night… I got woken up by the storm. But I didn’ wanna bother you so I quietly slipped out of bed to go downstairs to make some tea. And then a knock came to the door. I assumed that since it was late and in the rain, and it was the freakin’ front door it was someone we knew. But it was that man again. He grabbed me and put me to sleep. The next thing I knew I was back at that house. Apparently my folks hired a PI to find me.” She now rested comfortably against his chest. Elvis’ arms were caging her in but it didn’t feel restrictive. It felt safe, like nothing could get her while she was tuck away in his arms.

“Oh Elvis I really didn’t mean to cause you such a fright. I mean, it must’ve been hell waking up and finding me gone.” She kept apologizing but she did realize it wasn’t her fault right? Elvis gently pulled her up so he could look her in the eye. The eyes he loved so much and could never tire of seeing were permanently stuck on her hands. He delicately placed his hands on her cheeks and made her look up at him. Elvis’ face held a small, sympathetic smile.

“Doll, don’t you worry ‘bout that no more. I’m just glad to have my darlin’ home again. Now, how about we head home? I know momma is gonna be overjoyed to have you back.” She nodded and smiled big at the thought of going home. Back on the road, Elvis let his mind wander. He thought about the future they were going to have. What her wedding dress would look like, how beautiful she was going to look as a mother. He thought about what dog they might get or how they were gonna introduce their kids to the music they grew up on. He thought about how excited his mother was going to be to have both of her babies back home.

He made sure to remind himself when they got home to have security doubled around the perimeter and to have a talk with his lady about saying something is weird before it gets too bad.

[marvelfanfics1]

Request: The reader got into a fight after a long day of work and daddy Loki was there to comfort her I wan tit to dramatic sjbwksshbs

Thank you :3

Got in a fight

(GIF not mine)

Pairing: daddy!Loki x little!reader

Warnings: Age Regression, violence on reader, mentions of blood, angst, fluff

A/N: Oouu, I love dramatic :3 it really took me some time to write this and I'm not very proud of it. I still hope you like it <3

⭒𖥸⭒

To say you were exhausted would be an underestimate. You were working the whole day and are happy to go home now. Loki was waiting for you to take care of you when you open your apartment door.

You grabbed your bag and went to the front of the store you worked at. You said goodbye to the security and made your way home.

It was only a few more steps, and you would be in your cozy home. But what came unexpectedly was when you felt an arm wrap around your neck.

You were pulled into an alley, and your body froze when you felt the cold steel from a gun on the side of your head.

"Search through her bag and pockets, fast!" The guy said, who was holding you.

You had your hands on his arm, so he won't suffocate you. You tried to kick but then heard the click of a gun.

"I wouldn't do that," he growled in your ear, and you were fighting back the tears that were threatening to spill.

Your little side knows you're under stress now and wants to comfort you, but right now, that's the most dangerous thing you can do.

"All right, I'm done lets- oh wait. What is that? " Another man approached you and got a better glance at your bracelet.

It was the bracelet Loki gave you for your anniversary. It was the most special thing you owned.

"Please don't. Take everything but not this," you pleaded, a tear escaping your eye.

"Oh, don't worry, we will take good care of it," he chuckled and tried to get it off your wrist.

That's when you've had enough. You held tight to the arm that was holding you and used both of your legs to kick the man in front of you. He grunted and stumbled backward.

You used the shocked moment and elbowed the guy behind you. You tried to make a run for it, but one of them grabbed your ankle causing you to fall on the ground.

"You little bitch! You will see what you have from that," he said and pulled you to him.

You didn't want to let him think that you were scared of him and smiled at him. Big mistake.

"I see, a bratty one. I will punch the smug smile off of your face. " And true to his words, he started to punch and slap you in the face.

You just hoped that you would pass out due to exhaustion and pain. But it didn't come to that. You tried your best to punch back, but it was useless.

"Man, come on. We need to go." His partner pulled him off you. You groaned and turned to your side.

You coughed and saw blood hitting the ground. The guys went with most of your belongings.

You got up, still coughing, and inside your apartment building. Glady, yours and Loki's apartment was on the first floor. When you reach the door, you knock aggressively with your remaining strength.

When the door opened, you fell into someone's arms.

"Oh God, Darling! What happened!" You heard the worried voice of Loki and immediately slipped into little space.

"D-Daddy h-hurts," you cried and held onto him tight. You winced when he touched your nose. "oww."

"I'm so sorry, Daddy will make it better," he promised and picked you up. "Let's get all that blood off you, then Daddy can see where you're hurt, okay?"

You said nothing, just clutched his shirt tighter. "It hurts, make it stop, D-Daddy."

"Shh, I know. Can you sit upright?" he asked and sat you down on the toilet seat. You shook your head, and he sighed. "All right, come here"

He sat down on the ground with you and began to wipe your face. When he slightly touched your nose, you winced again.

"I'm sorry, I guess your nose is broken, little one," he apologized and thought for a second.

"Okay, Daddy needs to do something with your nose. So, it can heal properly. Here, hold my hand. " You grabbed his hand with both of yours. Loki then held his other hand in front of your nose.

"Daddy wha'- OWW!" You yelped when you felt a sharp pain in your nose and started to cry.

"Shh, it's over." He pulled you into a hug, and you soaked his shirt with your tears. "I know, I'm so sorry that this happened to you"

He rocked you back and forth, waiting for you to calm down. When you did, he picked you up and got to the bedroom.

He changed you into comfortable clothes and tucked you into bed. He gave you some painkillers and read to you until you fell asleep.

"I will find the morons who hurt you, I promise, and when I do, I will let them suffer," he whispered. Kissing your forehead, he pulled you closer to him carefully.

[wolviecore]

Some trans Jughead headcanons bc I got inspired:

He knew really young that something was just out of place, not only with himself but also how everyone treated him

" Forsthyia, baby can you -" " No, " itty bitty baby pointing at his chest, " Not Forsthyia. Forsythe" and FP nods like, ok I got it

" so hey we have a son now, just thought you should know" Gladys is confused. Did you try stealing that Fogarty kid again?? "

No I mean, we have a Forsthye now."

Gladys doesn't really get it, but since she doesn't plan to stick around that much, doesn't really mind.

Mostly she's bothered bc they bought all those " girl" things for nothing. " We could always donate them or give them away." " That sounds kind and charitable. Let's just have another kid."

Everyone takes it really well, - Archie changes the sign of their tree house from A + B + F to A + B + J

" Jughead? You sure?" " Yep!" " ... Cool. Hey dad, I want to change my name too!"

Alice tells Betty not to get any ideas, but also makes sure Jughead only comes over when when Hal isn't home (small mercies)

Jug inheriting some of Archie's hand me downs like shirts and jeans and overalls, but also some of FP's. He drowns in everything but they're great to sleep in

Because I love the Jangs friendship, Fangs also takes some of his younger siblings' clothes and leaves them on the Jonses' doorstep ( FP sees him several times but never says anything)

His discomfort grows when he does. The first time he experiences body disphoria is when he's a junior and Jason Blossom sneaks a hand on his thigh in English. " You're a good writer, right? Maybe you can help me out." (Jason is like lowkey creepy sorry not sorry sjsj)

He runs away, and maybe his small fists won't leave the bruise Jason deserves, but the shock on his face is priceless

He does get detention, but is that a spark of approval in Weatherbee's eye? " And you can tell your father Jason will get a hefty suspension. Mister Jones."

Betty gets suspended for knocking two teeth out of his mouth and surprisingly enough Alice doesn't comment on it

Archie takes him out for milkshakes later that day, " want an awkward bro hug?" " always" " and do you want me to kill that guy for you? Because I can totally kill that guy for you" " nO"

Cheryl specifically comes to apologize to him, in her own way. " You're the only boy I tolerate in this God forsaken breeding ground of drama and social cooties."

The Bulldogs were bad before (bc they have crushes on him) but now, it got a bit worse. However Jug does take some comfort Reggie remained the same

One of them does make a comment about doing things to his chest, visible even through 2 layers of shirts. But said creep gets suspended from the team and an anonymous benefactor leaves a binder in Jug's locker a week later, with a note.

'' If you're going to be annoying, at least be comfortable about it."

Reggie isn't very subtle because when he pins Jug to lockers or hits him he avoids his chest even if Jug never mentioned anything

By the time he's a sophomore he still can't use the boys lockeroom, - not that he desperately wants to, Archie and Kevin have enough horror stories to fill a Stephen King book about them

so at PE, Cheryl, Veronica and Betty make sure everyone either gets dressed before he arrives, or wait for him to finish before going in

Eveeyone who matters knows he's homeless once it happens. Archie finds out first, but doesn't want to embarrass Jug, nor offer help upfront since it'll most likely go unaccepted, but they help in small ways

Betty invites him over to slumber parties with Polly and Veronica. Cheryl can't always be present because Penelope still holds a grudge to the punch incident

But while they're there, Alice keeps FP informed of his well being and promises he'll be okay. Also makes sure to pack food for Betty to stuff in his backpack when everyone's asleep

Cheryl and Veronica help with the more uncomfortable stuff. Leaving tampons or other hygiene products for him to find once a month, or asking the janitor or the school nurse to say " they just found them around"

There's also the Book. Nefarious. Pretty much all the girls are in it, safe for Cheryl and Betty, who apparently are way too gay to be believable

But Jug is there too, in Jason's neat handriwiting next to Polly and thats how Archie and Reggie get suspended for the rest of the year

When the whole Jason thing happens everyone thinks its Archie and FP who did it. Jug would concentrate on that but the tall Southside boy is distracting

His family is super worried when the transfer happens bc the Southside isn't the most tolerant part (no part in Riverdale is, but) with tough boys and girls which Jughead. Isn't.

Fangs being unreasonably happy when Jug wears a shirt he knows for a fact was his own a while ago. " Good to know you finally grew into it." Jug doesn't know what he means by that, and pouts. " Is that a short joke?"

Jug being surprised they know who he is, - he expected them to remember FP's daughter, but not him. Toni scoffs. " Are you kidding? FP can't keep quiet about his amazing writer son. It remains to be seen if you live up to the hype."

Jug rejecting Sweet Pea's quarry invite because he doesn't want to out himself

he can see Sweet Pea took it personally tho, so he uses some of his savings to buy cake mix and decorate some cupcakes terribly, which he leaves them in the beat up locker next to his.

Precisely not staying with the serpents bc he doesn't think sweet pea likes him, and if he found out about the detail that could make or break his experience at this school, would downright detest him

Toni and Fangs know but say nothing to Sweet Pea bc its not their place, but also, they can tell he sees this as a challenge and it's a good distraction from Josie

Sweet Pea sees Toni and Jug walking together from the girls' bathroom and thinks they have a thing? Which is weird considering Toni hasn't stopped mooning about Jugs scary redhead friend

Maybe he knocks over Toni's motorcycle after, maybe he doesn't. " You're a loser." " Your face is a loser."

It's not only Toni thought. One time he asks Jug (read: corners him) why he won't get in the locker room with the boys and Jug speaks even less to them after

Which results in Fangs not speaking to him either. " Are you blind, or just stupid?" " What are you talking about? " " Not my place to say. Just know that you're a dumbads and really not helping your case."

BONUS points if Sweet Pea had a crush on Jug before he transitioned and may not recognize him now, but also keeps a picture of a girl patching his knee in his lockeroom door

And then Jug remembers him as well and doesn't speak to his " playground husband" at all

[t0th3-ark]

Foreign Shadows

Karl Heisenberg x Reader: Part 1

Warnings: weapons, blood, gore, kidnapping, torture, cursing, sexual content.

"Ethan, you can't be serious?" (Y/N) calls after her friend. "I am serious. She's missing and I'm going to find her." Ethan shouts, over his shoulder, continuing into the woods. "Its getting late, you can't go out there alone." She says, stomping after him. Ethan turns suddenly. (Y/N) bumps into her chest, inhaling sharply. He looks down at her with desperation.

"Then come with me."

(Y/N) walks beside Ethan, arms crossed. They hadn't spoken to each other for at least twenty minutes. "Look, I'm sorry, okay?" Ethan sighs, breaking the silence. "I know this is hard for you." (Y/N) starts, feeling an uncomfortable shiver run down her spine. Someone was watching. "But this wasn't a good idea. We're out here alone, in that dark, with a only a flashlight. I mean this is classic horror story shit." (Y/N) says. "I know, I know." Ethan mumbles. What sounds like a small branch snapping under someone's foot his heard. They both fall quiet. Ethan looks at (Y/N). Shs looks back wide eyed. He glances around, suddenlt noticing lights in the distance. He pulls (Y/N) to him, whispering in her ear. "There are light down the hill. When I tap your arm, we run, got it." He explains, having a feeling of dread in his gut. (Y/N) lets out a shaky breath feeling him tap her arm. She boots.

Ethan is hot on her tail, as they both sprint down the hill. The lights get closer and closer to reveal a small village. "What the hell?" (Y/N) whispers. Ethan doesn't see her stop running and bumps into her, knocking them both to the ground. "Shit!" Ethan says, grabbing the attention of some people walking the street. (Y/N) groans, sitting up, feeling eyes on her. "Ethan." (Y/N) says, patting the ground beside her. He was gone. She stares at the spot of the ground he once was sitting on. Did he leave her? (Y/N) stands, brushing her hands on her jeans. "Ethan!" She whispers harshly. "Dammit." She mumbles, looking entirely out of place in the village. "Are you lost?" Someone asks, from behind her. She turns, quickly. "I don't- I'm not from here." (Y/N) stutters watching the woman's face light up. "A foreigner! How lovely." She starts. (Y/N) doesn't let her finish. "Have you seen a guy, about this tall," She gestures with her hands, "Blonde hair? He was wearing a green jack-" The woman stops her. "I've seen no man. Please come, inside!" She says ushering (Y/N) inside her home. "Wait, but-" The woman sushes her. "I insist! We never get foreigners nowadays." The woman laughs, eerily. (Y/N) swallows, thickly. "Let me go find my husband, and I'll be right back." The woman says, giving her a creepy grin. (Y/N) shutters as the woman leaves. She rushes to the door, opening it. It slams on the wall as she bolts out of the woman's house and into the square. Where the hell was she? What was going on? Where did Ethan go? What was in the wood? Her breath quickens and she glances frantically around the village for an escape. Villagers stop in their tracks, staring at her as if she were a digusting creature. A dull pain, resonates on the back of her skull. She grunts, falling to the ground from the impact. She turns, seeing villager with some heavy object in hand. (Y/N)'s head pounds. Her adrenaline begins to kick in. The man raises his weapon to strike again and she rolls to the side hearing it clank on the brick below her. She kicks the man in the shin, pulling herself up. "Oh no you don't!" The man yells, aiming a shotgun at her. Where did her get that from? "What do you want? What's going on?" (Y/N) roars, anger filling her. "Where is my friend? What did you do to him-" The gun goes off, the bullets piercing her thigh. (Y/N) falls on her back, crying out in pain. Her hands shoot to her injured leg, holding it. Blood seeps onto her hands. She sobs, looking up through her tears at the man. "Mother Miranda will be very pleased to see you." The man says, confusing the hell out of (Y/N). "Please-" The barrel of the gun comes down the hit (Y/N)'s head. 

Darkness.

"Oh, please, that is utter nonsense!" A female's voice booms. (Y/N) winces, feeling cold metal around her wrists. Her thigh is numb and pulsates with her heart. Her head hurts. It's throbbing, aching. She turns to lie on her back. "(Y/N)!" Someone hisses, from beside her. "Ethan?" (Y/N) croaks, quietly. "Thank God. I thought you wouldn't wake up." Ethan says. He's bloody and dirty. "What's going on? Ethan, please tell me this isn't real." (Y/N) whispers. "Ah!" The same female voice says. "They're awake." She chuckles. (Y/N) props herself up against a wall. Oh god. A woman looms above her. She's enormous. She towers over (Y/N) like a tree. She has to crane her neck to see the woman's face. She glances around the room seeing several other figures. Her eyes widen. What the fuck was happening? "Oh, don't be alarmed, darling." The woman, grins. "The worst is yet to come." She says. Someone snorts and (Y/N)'s head turns to see a gruff looking man, smoking a cigar. "What the fuck is going on?" (Y/N) projects, taking all of the strange people by surprise. Ethan feels anxiety bubble in him. "Who are you? What are we doing here?" (Y/N) drills. No one answers. "Answer me, goddammit!" (Y/N) shouts. Cigar man let's out a laugh. It sounded like it came from deep within her gut.

"What's so funny, cigar man?" (Y/N) growls, making Ethan kick her uninjured leg. "Dont provoke them." He mumbles. "Cigar man." The scruffy man repeats. "Don't provoke them?" (Y/N) says lowly. The strange people watch the two humans interact. "Don't fucking provoke them?" She shouts at Ethan, making him flinch. "Some dumbass shot me in the leg and all I was trying to do was get some answers." (Y/N) rants. "You're the one who dragged me out here to find you're precious daughter!" She says raising her hands mockingly. Ethan's face contorts. "Oh so it's my fault?" He says, laughing bitterly. "Obviously! We're in this situation because of you!" She argues, shoving her index finger into his chest. "Me? I'm not the one who-" The tall woman becomes tired of their bickering. "Enough!" She booms, shutting them both up. "Mother Miranda is on her way and she will decide what to do with both of you." She says, obviously annoyed. "I like her." The man says, pointing his cigar at (Y/N). "She's got spunk. Now him," He pauses, pointing to Ethan, "He seems like a pain in the ass, if I'm being blunt with you." He says, ignoring that the two humans were even there, talking to the tall lady. The large woman, sighs heavily. "It isn't your decision, Heisenberg." She says, sitting down. "Now hang on just a minute," (Y/N) says squinting. "Since when am I property?" She glares at all of them. Ethan swallows. "Since you set foot here." A new voice says. It's filled with power. It was quite intimidating. A female figure covered in feathers enters the room. "What the fuck." (Y/N) whispers, eyes trailing her as she walks. The Heisenberg man snorts. Ethan  cowers to the wall behind him. Idiot. 

Miranda stops at the center of the room. "We will decide your fate, from now, forward." She says, speaking with a kind of grace. "So we don't get a fucking say in this?" (Y/N) fumes. "(Y/N)." Ethan says, weakly. "Don't '(Y/N)' me. I don't want anything to do with this! This is insane. It this a joke? Did my mom set this shit up? She's been after me for years. I knew-" (Y/N) is silenced. "Shut your fucking hole and let the woman speak. Damn." Heisenberg snaps. "I thought you liked me, cigar boy." (Y/N) sneers. Heisenberg rises from his seat, suddenly, making her jump. Mother Miranda sighs. "Now you listen to me, princess." Heisenberg growls, stalking over to her. (Y/N) stands her ground, rolling her shoulders back. Ethan starts to shake in fear. He grabs her jaw, roughly.

"You ain't making the fucking decisions around here." He says. (Y/N) tries to pull her head out of his grasp, but he simply tightens it. "Your fate is already layed out for you. So I suggest to cooperate or you will face the consequences." Heisenberg grins. "Get your hands off me you pig!" (Y/N) says, lowly. A loud crack echos inside the room. (Y/N) falls back against the wall, hand to her face. He just hit her. "Learn your place or you won't survive." Heisenberg whimpers. (Y/N)'s eyes sting with tears. Everything hurt and nothing made sense. "Go to hell." She mumbles. "What did I just say-" heisenberg starts raising his voice. "That's a great show you put on for us, dear, but I think that's enough." The tall woman says, boredom in her tone. (Y/N) slumps back against the wall, defeated. It was no use. 

"Ethan Winters." Mother Miranda says. "Your fate has been decided." She speaks with authority. There's a pause. "Lady Dimitrescu will have you." She states. The tall woman grins wildly. Ethan shrinks back against the wall. (Y/N) sits there, a cut on her cheek from something Heisenberg hand on his hand. Possibly a ring. She didn't care. Ethan is carried away by the tall lady she had learned to be Alcina Dimitrescu. "Good fucking ridens." (Y/N) mumbles to herself, watching Ethan struggle. "(Y/N) (L/N). Your fate has been decided." Mother Miranda repeats. "Oh, great." (Y/N) says, voice dripping in hate. "Lord Heisenberg will take you." She says. (Y/N) feels anger filling her. "I'm not going with that idiot." She says, looking at Miranda while referring to him. She hears him stand. Goosebumps rise on her skin, seeing his shadow on the ground as he looms above her. "Get up." He orders. "Fuck off." (Y/N) retorts, still looking at Miranda. "Get the fuck up!" Heisenberg booms. (Y/N) glares up at him. "I said, fuck off!" She yells back. Heisenberg smiles, adjusting his hat. "You're in for a ride, pretty girl." He growls, grabbing her forearm, forcing her to stand on her bad leg. (Y/N) yelps, numbing pain shooting through her ankle to her hip. She pants, pulling at the chains surrounding her wrist. She would glady, for no money at all, kick him in the balls, if her leg was healed.

"Well? C'mon walk." Heisenberg says, in a teasing manner. "I got shot, dumbass! I can't walk." (Y/N) spits. "Guess I'll either have to drag you or throw you over my shoulder. What'll it be?" He says, a glint in his eyes. (Y/N) remains silent. He grabs her by the middle, hosting her over his shoulder. "Put me down!" (Y/N) shouts as he begins to walk. "Oh! I see. You'd rather be dragged on the ground, huh?" Heisenberg says, stopping. "No." (Y/N) says, quickly. "That's what I fuckin' thought." He says, hand resting on the bad of her thighs. It didn't seem like he really cared about the wound on her thigh.(Y/N) starts to feel blood rush to her head. The man was carrying her at an uncomfortable angle. She grunts, wiggling to adjust herself. "Quit movin'." Heisenberg barks, slapping the back of her injured thigh. (Y/N) flinches letting out a pained sound. She dangles from his shoulder like a ragdoll. This was embarrassing to say the least. He was treating her like a sack of potatoes. 

After what felt like a month, they reached some sort of plant. A factory maybe? This was all surreal. A whirring sound is heard and (Y/N) is walked through a door. "Welcome to your new home." Heisenberg chuckles. "This isn't my home." She snaps, hitting his back with her chained wrists. "Now you've done it." He says, before throwing her down on the floor. (Y/N) hisses, her leg aching. "Look, this us how it's gonna be." He starts, kneeling down to an eye level stance. "You ain't gonna cause trouble and your gonna do what I say. You hear?" He says. "You may need some trainin'," He pauses, eyes hinting some darkness,

"But you'll fuckin' learn."

[sugar-petals]

Club Daemon (m)

PAIRING. merman!baekhyun x vampire!reader

↳ PLOT. You join a club of half-demons all hailing from different supernatural species — and find an unexpected love.  

↳ WORDS. 27k

TAGS / WARNINGS ⚠️ eventual smut, jealousy, explicit bloodsucking sex (mutual oral, vaginal), fangs kink, pining, groping, femdom!reader, angst/action, neck fixation, rough sex, fantasy au

The room is filled with smoke, but not from any cigarettes. Somewhere around here, or so you’ve been told, must be the entrance to actual hell. 

A gloomy spiral staircase headed for the core of the earth, kind of rusty and gleaming in red, fog everywhere, you get the idea. But so far… that’s none of your business. And either way.

The architecture in the part of the mansion you were invited to elegantly pools into a massive door of brass and copper. An embossed piece, amazingly sculpted — a hundred years old or more.

The center depicts a translucent emblem that appears to be strangely double-headed. Two facial profiles. One gazing east, the other, west. What exactly that’s supposed to mean: You have no idea, but you get the gist. Some kind of Greek mythology visual going on there. 

Doesn’t look like hell, does it.

You approach the door with slowed steps, tug your blazer into a comfortable fit at the lower hem. Had a mint? Check. Documents? Check. Posture? Semi-check. Adjusting necessary. Back straight, firmer walk. Done. Hopefully. As long as you don’t have to take those reckless stairs down south, you’re surprisingly ready for this. And what kind of preparations can you take for this kind of encounter in the first place anyway.

Beside the door, a concierge behind a luxurious, bulky table lifts his golden-framed glasses. They’re exceptionally thin and round, making their wearer appear like a wise, yet prying owl. Mister Mark Lee, apparently, going by how Taemin described him to you. 

Oh God, Taemin’s pointers saved your life finding this place. He’s been so forthcoming and took the time to explain as much as he could. The moment makes you reminisce a little. Your eyes lose focus.

Meanwhile, fully in the moment, the conscierge seems to cloud himself in the mystery of his dark green suit without any words. A man as groomed as this very Victorian penthouse. And this very borough, and this very carpet you’re standing on. Greeting you with a nod as understated as can be. 

It’s not like he’s treating you like air — he simply keeps the certain reserve you’d expect from a nocturnal bird. Or so it seems. That you’d be scrutinized you already expected, but this way feels a bit uneasy in the chest. If you’re the mouse to the owl, you want to move on past that door as fast as you fucking can.

You try to continue standing straight and hand him your letter as inconspicuously as possible. Oh, that damn piece of paper that turned your life around. A little ‚good evening‘ barely leaves your throat and Mister Lee presses a button underneath the table top after gazing over the document nearly thrice. Following his insistent eyes, you leave your phone on the table altogether, and now have virtually nothing to hold onto. You opt for putting your hands in your navy blue pants pockets. If that’s any good around here, staying a little hellishly casual. 

‘A very good evening indeed,‘ is what Mister Lee’s eyes seem to reply.

The door shifts open with a dull, booming sound. Very well then. You stagger inside toward what’s hopefully behind it — suddenly feeling so terribly exhausted. Hazy. You don’t know how it hit you. So many scents. Impressions. Movement. Space. Eyes. Heartbeats. 

You try hard to focus on the first candle you can see around, and you do find one, and it does ground you. After their split-second delirium, your feet anchor on the carpet now, and the scenery pulls you back to breathing. Now, the bigger picture becomes a lot clearer. 

There are several men settled everywhere across the room that opens before you so luxuriously. All dressed in the finest of garments and polished shoes, donning the most annoyingly impeccable haircuts on top of that. Everything about this room screams dignity, and haughtiness, and a hefty bank account. 

But you can’t deny another, stronger hunch. The presence of one gentleman in particular sends a chilly feeling down your spine. You can’t tell who it is now. You just know that somebody here is very different. Dangerously so.

Between armchairs, chandeliers, blood-filled cups and side tables, you spot arrangements of night-blooming jasmine and daffodils. Large and opulent, really catching your eye with their elegant trumpet shapes. 

Perhaps, and you really have no clue whether that’s a good theory, to suggest that however solid teak and mahogany this entire interior might be, there is still life and scent in it. But it’s all… so carefully curated. Too deliberate to be authentic in the very least, and that’s what is making you tense up so much. You know very well that nobody in this room, if it weren’t for this meeting, would be preoccupied with flowers. Except maybe Taemin. But he’s half-elven, so that doesn’t count. Elves love jasmine.

Meanwhile, you suspect that the cups with blood were purposely brought in to catch you off guard pretty much right away. To test your self-control, get you startled, or lord knows what. Power games in this club, you’d not be surprised. But the scent really is so overbearing. You become all light-headed. Whatever they set up for you here, it’s already working. You feel like falling asleep in the middle of the damn night. 

The fumes, and the candles, and the daffodils—

„Wong Yukhei,“ a voice finally pierces through the mist inside your brain. 

You perk up. It belongs to a figure seated in the deeper middle of the room. A dark-haired man, noticeably tall and baritoned, with full lips, immense shoulders. In fact, a frame to behold all tailored in matte black. Down to the pointed oxford shoes, laced up in a very brisk way as if someone pulled a corset very tight.

„Yes—?“

„Half-lycan. Club president. Have a seat.“

Now you know why he speaks first.

It’s like you’re frozen on the spot. Judging by how muscular he is underneath that very suit, especially around the upper body, you don’t want to catch a glimpse of what happens when the moon says hi. Half werewolf it is. No wonder his hands are huge like paws. You don’t have to count one and one together to know that this guy could go casual beastmode and rip the room’s door in half.

„A... alright.“

Stammering like a fool isn’t something you planned but comes out as a sheer reflex. To distract from the awkward tone, you resort to looking around. You wonder if the club is in full attendance. Because who knows, they could await some more people like you later on. There are actually quite a few empty seats to choose from. A dozen, perhaps a bit more. Each with a filled cup on a table, right to the brim, one more flavorful than the other.

Since the president didn’t gesture towards any seat in particular, you find yourself having to make an intuitive choice. Whether that’s some werewolfey ‚where does she put up her territory?‘ personality quiz or whatever… is unimportant because your nose is already telling you precisely where to sit anyway. In fact, obnoxiously so. It’s itching like crazy at most of the scents except one. You realize — at least that you can rely on. There’s that one cup you want to be close to. Ignoring it would probably torture you for the entire night so you give into it.  

Taking the empty chair at the chimney fire on the right side of the room comes naturally. And: With several eye pairs resting very firmly on you. But your attention is elsewhere already. The blood in the goblet of this particular table really does smell like the most delicious thing. There’s something magically attractive about the consistency. You can feel with your whole body just how amazingly juicy and welcoming the drink is. For a strange reason, it seems like it’s almost iridescent. You’ve never seen that before. Everyone in the room has the current pleasure of watching you being smitten by a fucking drink.

There’s no way they didn’t see you lick your lips like a first class pervert either.

Whatever first impression you’re giving them, it’s one that makes a part of you mentally run out the door again. Poor Taemin thought you were a promising invitee. You feel bad for disappointing him already. Slave to your instincts, how on earth are you even supposed to sit here in the finest and highest of company. Creating sexual tension over a glass of blood in a millionaire’s club or whatever.

Still, against all odds, the other part of you glady reclines in your seat, sleazy like a retired Russian oligarch on his yacht. Because that means: Smelling that heavenly scent up close. Hell, just fuck everything else. It’s the most gratifying thing you’ve come across. Did they brew you a damn magic potion or something? 

You have a hard time snapping back to the conversation and realize everyone is still intently looking at you admiring your cup as if it’s a prime time television event with Zac Efron in it. Which you now force yourself to break from. Not so gladly this time. You really want to have a sip, but Yukhei’s pressing gaze demands you to make your move. You wonder why his eyes are so livid, but again realize that he probably doesn’t need the moon to be wolf-like, does he.

„So you were the one who came up with inviting me, then?“ you say, and the words come out much more bluntly. It surprises you. Since you skipped the introduction and small talk altogether, maybe your mouth thought, why not strike a direct tone. Just being in the vicinity of something so mouthwatering makes you feel on top of the world out of literal nowhere. You’re about to lose your train of thought again that Yukhei fervently shakes his head.

„It was Baekhyun’s suggestion. A terribly daring one I thought,“ he says. „Thank him that we agreed to meeting you in person. In fact, he was very adamant we’d do so.“

You look around the assembly, hoping to find clarity about whoever prompted the invitation letter. Since nobody seems to put anything forth, you quiz yourself on who of these gentlemen looks like a Baekhyun, and why nobody is reacting. Everyone’s literally sitting there like marble statues. 

According to Taemin, getting an invitation to Club Daemon is not only something that excludes the general public, but also merely a fleeting ‚rumor‘. Not even a neighborhood legend if it came down to it. Because on more official papers, this guild does not exist. Whoever wanted to invite you was indeed taking a notable risk — to the president’s nuisance, on top of that.

Oh yeah. Now you’re at the edge of your seat.

„Eh. I’m afraid Baekhyun cannot meet you in this particular setting,“ Yukhei breaks into a lop-sided smirk. You’re shocked he’d pull a dismissive face like that. So openly, like he simply doesn’t give one damn all of a sudden. Strangely enough, it still doesn’t take away from just how nobly he’s dressed. It’s seriously messing with your head. Or is it the goblet?

„So, this setting, um—“

You look like Yukhei just spoke in a different language now. Stifled laughter among the guild members. At least they’re reacting now. That’s progress. But you’re even more confused and stuff your hands back into your pockets.

„See. Carpets are typically not Baekhyun’s favored grounds. He’s half-merman,“ Yukhei continues, very much composed in his seat now just as before. And it finally registers.

Oh man.

You can’t spot some giant water tank in this room or anything of that kind. There’s no way he could just casually hang out here. Of course he can’t greet you in the club. Sweet Jesus. You have too much blood and flower scent around you.

„But not to worry. You’ll get to meet your sweet benefactor,“ Yukhei leans back, the smirk growing even wider. „Baekhyun can speak to you in the club bathroom from time to time. If he’s not out there playing around in the bays like the kid he is.“

„I see? Uh...“

You shift back and forth in your seat. Even if your brain somehow tries to piece that information together, keeping your eyes off the chalice is so hard all over again. 

You can’t lie, it’s even starting to get you hot and bothered from the toes up. Gritting your teeth is all you can do not to gasp out loud. Literally, you’re one moan away from semi-public indecency. That is, if human law applies to this room. Going by how everyone is so keen to see you react, it probably doesn’t. Your ears are telling you that pretty much everyone is holding their breath right now. Untouched orgasm at 7:30 PM? Wasn’t on your plan either. But looks like you’re headed for it. You wonder if Yukhei has been planning to set you up for this and—

„We didn’t put this up to confuse you, Y/N. Please feel free to drink. We want you to feel welcome here,“ a second, innately friendly voice addresses you now, parting the silence like a vintage knife through warm butter. It’s much softer than Yukhei’s, as if laced with honey.

Immediately, you recognize the sound. It is Taemin.

Seated to Yukhei’s far left in a flawlessly upright posture. Blond and lavish, dressed in a type of brocade tux. It seems to be a mix of burgundy and golden pipings in the fire light, but you could be wrong. With good reason and regard to most members present, the room is kept very dark. In fact, the atmosphere couldn’t be any more controlled. Nevertheless — finally reuniting with him is such a relief. You already want to thank him for averting a full-on catastrophe.

„Taemin! It’s good to see you again,“ you finally break the tension. Your tone loses all discomfort, your face brightens. Taemin gently bows in response. His poise lights up the room, and you even manage to detach from the chalice.

„The pleasure is ours. It’s great to see you again as well.“

You recall. The memory is still so vivid. He was the one who brought you the letter in the late evening. You were sitting on your balcony scrolling through your phone feed and boom. There he was, sitting — even seemingly glowing or whatever it was — in a cherry tree. With his pointy ears and an envelope for you, the exact invitation Baekhyun had suggested. As far as you can remember, he’s been elected as the Club’s vice president very recently.

Taemin explained a lot of the club’s incentives to you on the balcony. Even if you did manage to drop your phone in shock at his appearance, his open approach had you packing up your bags for the mansion in a matter of two days. Seems like the club knows who to send when they don’t want to intimidate possible recruits. If Yukhei showed up in that dark suit and the low brow, you probably would’ve turned into a bat and headed for the forest. Well, or something like that. Meanwhile, Taemin feels like you’ve been familiar for decades.

„Do drink. It is handpicked for you!“

„Thank you, Taemin,“ is all you can say, and turn back to your drink with shaky hands. Finally. And well. If Taemin offers it, it can’t be wrong. It’s far too late to ignore it anyway. You already grab the base of the chalice like you’re holding on to dear life.

The first sip is so hasty, Yukhei almost has to laugh out loud. Or is it a laugh? Taemin frowns right at him, but you’re too busy chugging to notice. Hawthorn, lotus, apples, water lily, chestnuts and vanilla. So many nuances, too little tastebuds and too little words to describe it. You’ve never tasted blood of such a quality. For free. Not one pause to breathe, it just goes down like fine liquor.

Everything in your body starts to feel completely alert. Whoever this blood belongs to, whatever is going on, this is the most thrilling feeling you’ve experienced in a while. It’s like floating inches above your seat. Your face is feeling all heated as if the chimney fire burns your cheeks. Your skin is normally pretty cold and stays that way if you think about it. 

At the same time, you’re surprisingly refreshed on the inside. The blood left a minty trace on the back of your tongue. You know the men are watching you, but you can’t help but ride the high of the taste for a few seconds with your eyes closed. Once the rush is fully over, you slack in your seat. Open your eyes. And sigh out. Goddamn. 

If that means to feel welcome here, then you’re more than convinced. Taemin knows how to serve an aperitif. Everything about your body feels relaxed. You bet your pupils are more blown than Yukhei’s dick in his freetime going by how he sits and watches your reaction. Manspreading is an understatement. Wolfspreading is the new thing. Literally, what on earth happened. He’s glowering at you like you just stole the keys to the glitzy silver sportscar that’s parked in front of the mansion and without a doubt must be his. Your eyes aren’t deceiving you even if the light is so dim: He’s straight-up gotten all angry to the point of gritting his teeth.

But there’s also something that tells you he’s afraid.

„Now, you probably want to know why we’re interested in you, right,“ Taemin gently continues once you put the empty chalice down and make very needed use of the napkin already placed next to the cup. Heartbeat: Speed of a bullet train arriving at a station.

„I’m starting to see why.“

Most of your exhaustion is actually… gone. Out of the blue. You’re feeling much more perceptive, much faster in every move. Maybe Edward was right with his personal brand of heroin. You just never knew because you had 5 Pounds 50 blood from TESCO’s every day until now. So that’s that.

„We didn’t find a novice in twenty years,“ Taemin says. „Nor a half-vampire for that matter.“

In passing, he ushers a slender-looking butler towards your table. Casually, as if he did it a million times already. So far, using the shade of the lighting, the butler had been blending in with a velvet curtain until now. You ask yourself if you’ve actually noticed him or not. You can’t clearly tell which is strange. But then again, going by the course of events until now, not really.

„Right,“ you reply, trying to focus on Taemin — without much success. The butler simply looks too striking. He uses a large carafe to refill what probably measures up to another quarter liter into your chalice. He looks at you with sheer intent, it’s Yukhei’s gaze times ten, almost like it’s bundled into a lazer. Instead of being excited about the refill, you find yourself trying to desperately decipher the butler’s look. It’s not wolfy this time, that’s for sure. It’s something far, far different. It’s something deeply scary.

The butler lingers. It takes five seconds too long for him to return to the curtain. There’s that feeling again. That hunch from before when you came in, so much stronger now. You’re shivering. The man looks so serious in his crisp red suit, with the pin stripes and a golden pocket watch at his lapel. His aura is so freezing cold.

„Meaning, our guild could urgently use a new addition,“ Taemin keeps on speaking, with Yukhei closely listening to how he puts his words. In the meantime, the butler stands completely still in the dark, merging with the curtain almost completely again. But you can tell his eyes are on you. His frame looks so skinny at a distance, but you can tell he’s much stronger than that. Lord knows Yukhei might not be the only one who could break the door in half.

You hold on tight to the napkin in your lap. Where you thought you’d feel elated, you’re all sober now.

„Twenty years is a long time,“ you comment, a lot more dryly this time.

Even in a club where nobody ages by human standards, this could be quite a frustration. Looking around, you begin to understand why the invitation was such an urgent matter and there are many more empty seats. All the members look very established and at home to say the very least. Nobody here appears to be a novice.

„It is,“ Taemin replies. „You can see why we wanted to talk to you.“

„Yes. I can. Thank you for considering me. It was a bit out of nowhere but, I guess there’s no way to do it differently.“

Taemin nods. Meanwhile, Yukhei remains visibly displeased in his center seat, with his expression growing much darker by the minute. You can’t tell whether he didn’t like you downing the blood so fast like a post-diet Dracula or how Taemin explained all of this to you now. You don’t have to wonder for a long time, though.

„That we expand our assembly with a half-vampire out of all possibilities— was not my idea,“ Yukhei taps his fingers onto the lion-shaped armrests of his chair. The poor fellas probably have a hard time carrying his frame, fragile as they look. Taemin, on the other hand, is as nonchalant and petite as you got to know him. Like a feather on his seat, he sways his torso ever so slightly while he listens. Then, he reaches over to pat Yukhei on the shoulder with a wide, reassuring smile.

„But you were still delighted that Baekhyun found someone, didn’t you.“

„You make it sound like a public holiday. Eh, we’re recruiting, Taemin.“

„You didn’t take too long to agree to sending the invitation at all. Back when Kai joined, you needed five months to say yes. And he’s half-lycan himself.“

„Because Jongin was a grade A stupid bastard… and still is,“ Yukhei darts an even lower gaze to a particularly shaded corner of the room. Whoever this guy Kai is, he’s sitting right there and grins his life away. Now that you set your eyes on him, you’re about to piss your fucking pants.

Even behind a particularly large array of jasmine bouquets, his silhouette looks the most powerful out of all the club members despite him not being as tall as Yukhei. Where you would’ve called the Yukhei ‚strong‘, Kai was first and foremost athletic — head to toe, with a looming frame. He’s kept silent for the entire time, but he sure listened well.

„It’s a competition, Yukhei,“ the silhouette crosses his legs, laughing. „Whoever is bastardly enough is qualified for being the club president. Sounds like I’m headed right for it. But you’re also knee-deep. Knee-deep, I’m telling you.“

Kai’s voice is much lighter than you thought it would be, but the way he speaks commands instant respect. Yukhei’s answer is a mixture of a growl and a huff, but it’s so blended together that it’s becoming hard to distinguish to your reeling ears. All you know is that the atmosphere in the room feels like a string ready to snap.

So that’s what half-lycans are all about, then.

In case they’re about to fully out-bastard each other, you take another sip to distract yourself. You hear your ears pulse even more. The blood really is delicious and takes your mind off. To your surprise and relief, Yukhei squarely turns to the assembly with a much more point-blank attitude in his movement now. Kai remains entirely ignored.

„That she’s not part of a vampire clan and we couldn’t find possible members for so long is the only reason she’s here, that’s all.“

„Enough a reason,“ Taemin smiles even wider, and puts more soothing into his phrasings. Kai’s unsettling presence doesn’t seem to faze him the very least. 

„We’d be happy to have you join us if you’re inclined,“ he now addresses you again. „I’m sure our talk about the training and formal things will bore you, though. I reckon you want to be introduced to your kind first.“

„Oh…“

Your kind.

That explains a lot. A whole damn lot, to be exact. You can’t help but suck in air, but it’s less awkward than you thought. In fact, your reaction brings some life into the room. Looks like everyone has anticipated this. Yukhei’s eyes narrow. Kai seems even more alert. You feel like a lab rat new to the cage.

„You felt his presence when you stepped in, didn’t you,“ Taemin asks, his head tilting a bit to the side.

You did. The half-elf looks confirmed in his statement.

„It’s him, right,“ you direct your eyes toward the curtain, but don’t dare to lift your gaze any further.

The butler.

He’s been sticking out like a sore thumb.

You felt him since the very first moment.

„Yes,“ Taemin says.

Your suspicion, or rather, what your body told you from the beginning with every shiver and every fiber, was entirely right: With an interpretation you couldn’t grasp just then. But now you do. Your intuition didn’t lie.

„Ma’am. Pleased to meet you. Lee Taeyong,“ the butler strikes a surprisingly fluid introduction. You freeze up again. It’s very unlike his stiff positioning, stepping forth from his usual waiting place so his face is visible to you in candle light entirely at a bit of a distance. Lee Taeyong. His face… really is sharp.

„I was expelled from my clan 80 years ago,“ he disposes of his tray to speak freely now. His voice is so deep, it almost resonates in your ribcage. But then, you see something vulnerable in him. You don’t know what it is.

„Expelled?“

„You can imagine. They found out I wasn’t full vampire,“ he continues. Now you do see them. His fangs. You should’ve noticed. Damn. „That’s how I got here.“

And now you actually get what happened. Taeyong is an outcast. Looking past his teens, 150, 170 years, a tenth of Taemin’s age at the very least. And he’s half-vampire who’s been on his own pretty much: Just like you. That’s something that still didn’t sink in yet. Your kind. The butler of Club Daemon. 

No wonder he took his time pouring the blood into your chalice and looked at you like you’re some kind of revelation. If the cups in the room smell only half as delicious to him as they do to you? He has admirable self-control just standing there at the carpet without losing his mind.

You shift forward on your seat — as does Yukhei, unseen to you. Almost automatically, your tone becomes more tense.

„So what happened?“

„I didn’t know my entire family history until that point. I was orphaned,“ Taeyong expands, his mimic controlled. „The clan was all I knew. I never thought I could have any demon heritage. Literally any. For decades. Until my father showed up. It was…I didn’t know he was that far up the hierarchy.“

Your jaw drops. He has to be kidding you. That can only mean one thing, there’s only one person he could refer to.

„You met Satan personally?!“

Dead silence in the room. You could hear a pin drop. In fact, an elven hair strand.

„I wish I didn’t,“ the butler finally says. With a more silent voice. You can tell he has to cave in, force himself. „He gave me this.“

Taeyong begins to slowly loosen his tie. Taemin already averts his eyes. The butler goes on to reveal a left collarbone so scarred, you can’t bear to look at it for very long yourself. The tissue has been deeply torn. The bone, presumably broken twice, healed in an odd way on top of that. You feel the pain in the very same spot within your own body.

Taeyong doesn’t have to tell you that the altercation left his arm fully paralyzed. You just know, like you could sense his presence from far away already. Meeting his father changed his life forever in the worst way possible. Now you understand why Taeyong does the butlering in the club — he can keep his left hand behind his back at all times.

„His father rejected him,“ Yukhei says, sterner than ever. His anger has faded, and an extreme seriousness begins to sink his brows.

„It’s that — Neither my clan nor demon folk really want me present,“ Taeyong’s face is even more barren of an expression now. He’s bottled it all up, it’s hard to watch. It sounds like he hasn’t spoken about this for years. „This was the only place I could go at that point. Yukhei was very helpful. I hope you can feel the comfort of being accepted here like I do.“

„I… don’t understand why Satan would disapprove of you so much, Taeyong.“

„Some demons willingly get together with vampires,“ Taemin steps in now, careful in his intonation. „But Lucifer rarely does. And, only when he’s drunk. If you ask him on a normal day, and I know this sounds harsh… he despises most of pure vampires, and half-breeds even more so. He is also Yukhei’s father.“

„He is?!“

Now you’re almost falling off your chair. That Yukhei’s father must be one of the higher-ups in the demon ranks was already a no-brainer, but this —

„Idiot cast me from hell the second he found out I can grow these longer than his silly horns,“ Yukhei points at his mouth, baring all teeth now. Even in their natural shape, they’re already razor sharp, sporting clearly prominent fangs. Even your canines, and those are hardly used and worn down, aren’t as slicing as his. When he says he can grow them that long, you fucking believe him.

„He’s… not been the most accepting dad to say the least,“ Taemin folds his hands in his lap. “And doesn’t stick up for any mistakes.”

„’Cause he’s an insecure ass,“ Yukhei makes a disgusted grimace. „Fucks around and then gets mad at what he’s done. Vampire girls he sure likes when he’s doing one of his stupid orgies. But not the consequences. He’s so easily threatened. That’s almost funny.“

You’re stiffer than ever now, glued to your seat. Not in a million years did you think there was some serious family drama going on behind those fancy suits.

„So that’s why this club exists. Satan can’t handle us,“ Kai adds, kneading his thighs. Looking much more detached, almost demure. You can tell that Taeyong’s speech hit the underbelly of everyone in the room. That even Kai looks so sunken catches you off guard. „We’re half this, half that. I mean look at us. Yukhei and I could never be part of a pure wolves pack. Never. We can’t mingle with demons either. They doubt us in any place. Shitty situation.“

Damned if you do, damned if you don’t. Now, the double head emblem on the embossed door makes a lot more sense. It’s not just for the aesthetics. Two faces going into opposite directions. Always torn. Always the onlooker, yearning from a distance. Unable to go in either direction. Seems like you’re in the right place. Or the wrong one: Because you bet this assembly is the very eye of the storm.

„Why did Satan not try to attack the Club yet? Isn’t there even a stairway to hell in this house?“ you ask. If Satan got pissed off by Yukhei’s or Taeyong’s abilities, several people of that kind in one place sounds pretty much the ultimate provocation. Installing a designated hell door with smoke all around even more so. 

„He sure wants to,“ Kai shrugs, again, smirking in this very distinct way. He builds himself up again, and the teasing undertone in his voice strengthens back to normal. „But he’s afraid and doesn’t know about half of us. You see… Hellboy has no way of gauging what expects him. Even if he fucking hates us and wants us dead in a ditch, whatever. We know him inside out, too. Even more than he knows us. I’m sure he doesn’t want to face Taeyong now that he’s not young and weak anymore. He only exploits way down the hierarchy. He knows he can win there.“

„Makes… sense. Sort of— preying on vulnerable people.“

That an insecure hell boss is the reason this very club has formed? Seems to be a better explanation than you thought. No way so many species could stick together otherwise. How you’re in a room with two high functioning, protein-powered lycans both standing over six feet is already a miracle. Just sitting there sipping your bloody drink. There’s even an elf guy. That’s some surreal shit, even Salvador Dalí wouldn’t believe it.

„And, um. Saying that there’s a hell door is a joke Taemin pulls on every recruit,“ Taeyong scratches his head now. 

„Everybody thought that Mark was vaping but he actually put up a room difuser down the hall,“ Kai adds. „He’s using essential oils in there since a couple weeks. So sometimes we do have some fog round that area. But there’s no actual stairway or anything. It’s a club tradition... a hoax.“

Your what-the-fuck expression must be hard to beat right now.

„Er. All right then. So much about hell smoke.“

A whole damn prank. Taemin is not as angelic as he looks, is he. Still part demon, after all. It really felt like there was an entrance to hell around when you arrived here. Taemin’s little giggle right now doesn’t worry you as much as Yukhei’s grunting.

„So much about a hoax,“ he growls back. „I wish we actually had that door so I could go beat his ass.“

High functioning, protein-powered lycans with daddy issues. You never thought this club had major drama. Your lips think its time for another comfort sip from your chalice. Blessed thing you have that one. Because all this… got you into something bigger than expected. Eating shrimps on a terrace with some fellow half-breeds on a cozy Sunday evening? Nothing of that kind. Rating Christopher Lee movies and signing up on vampire tinder together just for fun? Nothing of that in sight.

„So, naturally. That we can recruit you is a good feat,“ Kai continues. „You might grow very strong in training.”

“Strong in training?”

“Vampire half-breeds are always up for a surprise. You see how Taeyong is like. He can open jars even I can’t crack. With just one hand. Long as we have a balance of power with hell, the Club is quite safe. Even from my father.“

Looks like what you got yourself into is a Cold War that coincidentally involves people from Down Under — but it’s not Australians.

„Are you Satan’s son as well, Kai?“

Kai shakes his head quite firmly. Just how stark his face structure is becomes visible when Taeyong puts a candle into his vicinity, helping you gauge Kai’s outline much better, which is a bit more reassuring. The butler seems to almost read your thoughts. Your initial shiver gladly has been in decline ever since Taeyong spoke up. And you do believe he can open those jars.

„My old man? Mammon.“

„Mammon? Ugh.“

You can already guess what this is all about. You don’t need to wait a second for Kai to go on a rant.

„He’s a fucker, fucked up, a fucking twat, and fucks around even more so than Satan,“ Jongin kicks his left foot, looking mighty grumpy in the candle light. „I’m sure you know what he’s in charge of. He likes fear and chaos. To say the very least.“

You sure can imagine. Mammon governs the most powerful resource on the planet. Or rather, what people do with it, so… you already don’t have to know anything more than that.

„Talking about him is of no use,“ Yukhei intervenes. „Lost cause, wasted time. What I wanna say is. The vampire clans also don’t know much about us either,“ he now points at you. „That’s our advantage. And the reason why you will have to quit most of your regular life if you agree to be a member. Or take a serum that will make you forget about meeting us. At least, up to the point where you received the letter. I know this is quite a severe change. You can imagine how discrete we have to be. Given everything you heard.“

Yukhei looks dead serious.

Well, alright then. The case is clear. This is legitimate big business.

Club „Most Hated Half-breeds“ Daemon. Outsiders, all of them. The first rule is: You do not talk about Club Daemon. A guild for the All-Transylvanian Rejects, the crossovers from hell gone hiding, the MIB of supernatural creatures. And all just because big daddy Lucifer loves to host an infernal orgy every now and then and never heard of a condom. It’s crazy. So much information intake, it’s time to sort your thoughts.

You take a deep breath, let the blood chalice dance in your cupped palm. Sweeping the remaining liquid at its very bottom, rhythmically. Sweet lifeline. You observe how the drops run as if nothing else in the world existed. And still, you have crystal clear hearing, and your voice is again becoming firmer. It’s the effect of the drink, you can feel it. Such good stuff, really.

„It’s not that I didn’t anticipate it. Taemin said something along those lines when we met. I get why you have to be discrete,“ you hum. Even telling you about the serum before any other information would give away too much. „I’d be back to square one anyway.“

Taemin nods at you.

„We’ll always be between elves and demons, mermen and demons, vampires and demons, werewolves and demons… This club wants to protect anybody who’s caught between chairs. We go to great lengths with secrecy. I hope you will join us in our cause. It’s a new life. Lucas has great plans for us.“

‚Lucas‘ seems to be Yukhei’s club nickname. Taemin appears to confide in him a lot even if he will smooth out his blunders. Meanwhile, you remember how Taemin talked to you about his own parents on the balcony. 

Apparently, none other than Beelzebub is Taemin’s father since over ten centuries. His latest habit seems to be blowing up his son’s phone with strange texts about recent hell politics. If that’s not enough, he asks about what he’s doing all day. It really is a new level of hell-icopter parenting. No wonder Taemin learned to be so appeasing in all situations.

„There are also ways of us finding out who your parents are,“ Taeyong comes to rest his right hand on your shoulder. Carefully, as if asking if it’s okay to touch you. You let him, without much care. Simply by— well, what is it, instinct?

Particularly Yukhei seems to observe this moment with much intent. Monitoring with piercing eyes, wild and deep. Trying to see through you at all cost. Surveying whether you’re a suitable club member, fair enough. But you seriously begin to wonder why he’s trying so damn hard to get into your head. He wants you on his side, sure, why’d he stare like that all the time?

Meanwhile, you don’t even know much about yourself except that you find veiny necks extremely appealing. Duh. So what’s there to analyze. You’re still kinda new to this. Blunt how Lucas is, wouldn’t he tell it to your face if he knew something you didn’t by now?

„At least, your demonic heritage,” Kai finishes the butler’s thought. “It’s not an easy discovery, however.“

Taeyong’s hand really does comfort you. But the thought of involving yourself in family affairs feels more than daunting and spoils the moment more than you want to. It’s something you could avoid until now thanks to simply not knowing much about your background. But apparently there’s no way to run from it.

„You might wanna anticipate that shit,“ Kai cracks his neck from side to side, then adjusts the sleeves of his white camisole. You’re suddenly so very well aware that he can probably see and smell your hesitation from a mile away. „Because when pa from hell shows up to see what’s going on? Preparation is better than being sorry. You gotta know who you’re dealing with. Art of war 101.“

Kai pointing at Taeyong’s battered left side reminds you all the more that lifting the veil is probably better than hoping for the best. If Satan happens to be your dad as well, you’re in huge trouble should he ever find you. Kai is right. Without allies and any knowledge of what you’re dealing with, you’d be lost.

Not to mention that Taeyong and Lucas would be your half brothers. Among probably a thousand other people. You didn’t walk through this door to get instant patchwork family. It would be a whole town of siblings now that you think about it.

If Satan has been even busier than that, which you’re sure of, that could mean an entire nation of people related to you somewhere overseas. Most of them being far from half-breeds. Why? Because Satan still preferred his own kind if he wasn’t completely hammered.

„Sounds like a nice prospect,“ you mumble, arms tightly crossed. Thousands of demons all out for your neck. Joining a notorious club network would certainly hide your identity much better than you hanging out in your small apartment in the middle of nowhere behaving like an average citizen. Glorious. You hate everything.

Which one person, as always, disagrees with.

„He makes it sound more dramatic than it is. Especially in this club you are more secure,“ Taemin softly adds, swiping a blonde strand from his right eye. „You must understand. Kai is in charge of defense. We all have our tasks.“

„Figured as much.“

„We all specialize in something we’re really suited for. Depending on our species, usually,“ Taeyong picks up Taemin’s point, and you begin to understand.

On the balcony, Taemin had even mentioned a gryffin member who worked as the designated club driver. Mister Ten as they called him, who was always out and about for a gazillion tasks. From hell mail to picking up tailored suits to doing the shopping to frequenting hospitals and various butchers for… leftovers.

Taeyong being an older vampire would require very specific blood (type A respectably, whreas you preferred O), and both Lucas and Jongin are in their wolf prime. Kai being slightly older but all the more active by the looks of it. So, just like Baekhyun, Ten seemed to be busy tending to that all the time, nowhere to be seen nor even mentioned. Which was a little… suspicious. 

But the ‚everyone has a task‘ seems to be a big deal. And: Everybody is set up to take their spot very seriously, in their supposed element. Being the VP suits Taemin just like being the butler really suits Taeyong. Even Yukhei, you admit, has the exact leading, head-on personality, although mixed with a lot of tempers, that his position would require. And Kai — his body doesn’t lie. Of course he is in charge of defense.

„We would strive to find out your ideal role in the club, too,“ Taemin says. „Kai thinks about this scenario from a combat perspective, but know that cases like Taeyong’s are extreme ones. We’re used to this but you don’t have that struggle. It’s probably like different worlds at the start but don’t let it phase you.“

You exchange looks, and Taemin gives an empathetic nod. His face is really gentle. It seems trustworthy. Again, you notice how his diplomacy helps you the most right now. It’s a bit cryptic, but it’s the type of classy conduct you were expecting to find in the club. You’re damn glad he’s here. Half-elves simply have a different kind of wisdom.

„I guess,“ you look at Taeyong. „It’s an extreme case because he was part of a clan, right, and I wasn’t.“

„Smart,“ Taemin takes up a porcelain cup from his own table and guides it to his lips. It appears to be some sort of elven elixir inside of it, light blue and sparkling. Maybe that’s the source of his maturity or something. „This is exactly the reason how so much conflict was possible in the first place.“

„Right.“

„You grew up with adoptive parents after your mother’s passing. It was unfortunate but also a hidden feat of luck later on,“ Taemin balances the cup between his elegant fingers. „Nobody from hell could find you. You didn’t show many abnormal traits. Nor were you close to any clans that fostered your abilities or spread the word. But especially the former. You grew up in human ways. Your abilities weren’t worked with.“

„Which we can do for you now if you want to,“ Taeyong clears your table off the empty goblet. Instead, he puts a booklet with a red ribbon around its hard cover just there. „In a more covert way that doesn’t arouse any attention.“

„Can we really do it so secretly?“

He really did read the concern out of your face all over again.

„Yes,“ Taeyong emphasizes, then directs his gaze toward the fireplace. „For any half-demon, half-vampire, this is the place to develop herself. We want to honor both sides and work with it. As good as we can.“

„All other approaches usually fail because they’re one-sided,“ Taemin raises his tea cup indicating towards a thoroughly disgruntled Yukhei. You get what the elf wants to say by that.

Yukhei — another extreme case, perhaps the most severe. From a certain perspective, you can imagine how being antagonized by his father and wolf packs at the same time would motivate Lucas to run a club like this. And what would motivate him to act like this, anyway. 

Leading Club Daemon with a velvet gloves approach? It’d be more dangerous than an iron fist mentality. Although it feels so clear to you, past the nebula of the blood cocktail, that Yukhei completely turned this aggressive style into a hyperbole. But you never know what or whom he’s doing it for.

Even at such a young age. You are convinced he really can’t be anywhere near 30 years of equivalent human age even if his height and way of dressing makes him look so settled. His overall presence on top of that: Whatever training they have to offer, it must be compelling.

At this point, you can only say to yourself — fuck everything. And lords knows the whole club is green of envy. No wonder they’re staring at you like that. You grew up so unbothered, your life is a joke compared to theirs. You were ignorant about way too many things about yourself. Looking at how everyone here embraces their origin, not developing your abilities was a full-on heresy.

„I’m actually considering it,“ you browse through the booklet, directing all attention in the room at you so keenly. Taemin sits at the edge of his seat himself. The paper feels luxurious between your fingers. As a first page, the name of who assembled the booklet’s contents is printed in bold. Mark Lee, conscierge, Club Daemon. 1999 edition.

The text details several time lines, diagrams, and fact lists about vampire-demon halfbreed history, on top of outlining a program featuring traits that a club novice could develop. 

Sprouting and care of demon wings. Usage of blood banks. Defense against crosses and garlic. Cities with high vampire populations. Types of claws. The culture of hell. Demonic Spells. Battle Gowns. Impact of ‚Twilight‘ on public perception of Vampires. Symbolism. Vampiric Reflexes. Christopher Lee Movie Analysis. Avoiding Exorcism. Communication with hell hounds. On Hunting and Forests. Fist-fighting Lucifer. Evolution of Ancient Vampire Dress Codes. Fang safety. Hierarchy of hell. Nutrition. Choosing a castle. Strength development. The list is nearly 200 bullet points long.

And the majority of training, it states, is supervised by Kai. Even the lessons on Vampires and Sexual Relations. Other lessons are conducted by Taeyong and Mark, mapping the more theoretical contents.

Most of the listed training units feature things you never knew you could possibly try let alone perform. Some lessons are even more vital than you thought they would be. Things your apartment life wouldn’t have to offer in the very least. At this point, walking out the door would be a grave mistake for an entire variety of reasons and you trust your instinct. The only thing that makes you bargain is not the elephant — but the big and bulky alpha wolf in the room.

What to do about Yukhei. 

Given the hardliner choice between serum or a complete new existence, it’s a question you’ll have to postpone. Interestingly enough, even though he was lycan through and through, Kai doesn’t bother you nearly as much anymore after the initial shock effect faded.

So what is it about Lucas. Even more things you’ll have to find out, then.

You’re nervous with the booklet in your hands, but you can’t complain. The two cups of blood in your system have given you more courage to look the four of them in the eyes.

„Considering what: Joining for the cause or the heritage?“ Yukhei crosses his arms at the solar plexus. His eyes are so probing on you, but you keep your head straight. You very well know that he’s testing you with this one.

„Both. And I want to know my role, too.“

The president seems to ponder for a bit. Then, he hums. More placid than before, you note. He actually seems satisfied with that answer.

„Then let’s start out,“ Kai rises from his seat alongside Yukhei, and both walk towards the red curtain in big strides. Taeyong sweeps it to the side, revealing a heavy door to another room.

Unlike the rest of the house, or at least the parts you’ve seen so far, this area has no embellished walls or ceilings. Not a spark of luxurious colors, either. No dark materials, no curtains, no dutch paintings, just concrete everywhere. It looks heavily worn, but strangely, doesn’t seem to be a relic like the fireplace room’s wooden tiles. All lighting is purely artificial. It seems part gym, part studio, and all furniture is solid metal, minimal, angular. You’d never expect such a modern, plain grey room to be anywere around the house. It smells like a damn hospital in here.

„Our training grounds,“ Kai paces around the area, clearing it and turning a knob that seems to activate floor heating. „The second safest place in the manor.“

„What’s the safest one, then?“

„We have a bunker downstairs. Flood-proof, radiation-proof.“

And Satan-proof, you don’t have to guess.

„Oh wow.“

„It’s unused so far when it comes to catastropes,“ Yukhei roughly pulls off his tux jacket and hangs it over a steel chair. Given how he stretches his arms, you figure it’s to gain some mobility. Or… to show off his huge build to impose his authority and intimidate you which surely is working. „But we do run it as a makeshift jail.“

„You’re keeping criminals in here?!“

„If you’d call Kai a criminal,“ Yukhei raises a brow.

Now you understand. The bunker is actually not meant for somebody else unless the situation calls for it.

„You’re isolating yourself during full moons.“

„You got it,“ Kai nods. „Nothing gets in, nothing gets out. Two days. I got used to the cold down there. And Yukhei locks himself in here with a pile of meat.“

„I…see.“

So that’s why the concrete walls look so damaged despite not seeming that old. If you look close enough, it’s actually not hard to imagine how there’s massive strength and claws at work here. And there must be plenty of things to desinfect afterwards. Hence the hospital smell. 

But then again, Lucas is not the one who gets put in the bunker downstairs. If that one is the safest room, Kai is in all regards the strongest. Which makes sense given his task here. But something about it makes you shift from one foot to the other. If Kai has to jail himself in an atomic prison, what a fucking beast are you even dealing with?

So this is with who you’ll train with, then.

„Nothing you’ll see anything of,“ Taemin clasps his hands, bringing your mind back to the image of meat piled up all over this room. „The member’s private rooms are way up on the 3rd floor. You’ll be situated there as well, in whatever free room you choose. They are very pleasant suites. The interiors are selected Victorian antiques. It’s not like around here.”

“Thank you, Taemin. That sounds great actually.“

“And— we can always predict their transformations without failure.“

„The suites have steel doors as well,“ Kai adds on. „Easy to lock from the inside. We’ve had centuries to think all of this through.“

„Reassuring…“

„Mind you. In case you feel you get a bad craving, you’re doing the same thing Kai and I do,“ Yukhei re-ties his left shoelace, foot placed on the metal chair like a 6’0 Napoleon. „It’s not like we aren’t the only people who have to protect others from ourselves.“

You don’t like the tone he’s striking and try not to look into his direction. As if you’re some crazed vampire lord with a body count and not a bloody amateur. Whatever cravings he’s talking about, it’s hard to imagine how you’d go absolutely buckwild on a concrete wall whining for blood.

„With half-vampires, well… It can happen,“ Taeyong helps Kai pull off his jacket as well. „But lycans still have to take more prevention if I may add. Simply because their whole being transforms and they’re gaining unexpected strengths from it. Vampires hardly do. Our strength is present always. We naturally learn how to deal with it each day. Lycans have exponentional and way more erratic powers in a shorter period of time.“

Now that puts it into perspective. You exchange a thankful glance with Taeyong. The butler gives a composed smile. Yukhei sees that and huffs. Looks like someone’s been projecting.

„We’re dealing with threats from the outside, better check the ones from the inside,“ Kai says, shrugging. „We can’t change that we’re aggressive species but we can lock a door ten minutes before shit goes down. Early risk detection. That’s gonna be a lot of what you’ll learn in the programme anyways.“

„Pragmatic, I guess,“ you scratch your chin. 

And he’s right. There’s nothing else the members could possibly do. Unleashing someone outside of the manor into the surrounding woods sounds like an overall bad idea. There’s a town somewhat nearby, fifteen minutes down the road. And as a matter of fact, you’ve never heard of suppression pills for half-demons on the market. Each species would need a different concoction: Tailored exactly to them in a long chemical process. Given the variety of Satan’s harem, that equals pure scientific madness.

Yukhei cracks his neck, puts the steel chair back in its spot. „We hope so. What reasons you’ll have to lock your suite for we’re about to find out.“

Three minutes later, you’re face down on the center table of the room, Yukhei pulling off your blazer. Even if you thought it would be much more unceremonious, he seems to do it rather slowly. In the meantime, Taemin rings a little silver bell. The sound is shrill and obnoxiously piercing. Seconds later, the concierge enters the room with a clipboard, introducing himself fully now. 

Oh shit, you almost forgot about the owl guy.

„Mark Lee. Bookkeeper, treasure master. Half-goblin. I also do our finances.“

Joining the club officially unlocks a whole new level of information, does it.

„Bookkeeper, I see?“

„Yes, we do keep a secret chronic.“

„Oh, alright? Spanning for how long?“

„Older than this house. I’ll introduce you to the archive next week, in fact. Welcome to Club Daemon, Miss. I’ll be documenting the findings of this test.“

Then, he turns to put down your phone on another table. First you missed it, now you don’t even care. Mark’s sudden appearance has you all wondering. He’s different now. Maybe his initial silence was very much connected to the exact level of secrecy Taemin has been talking about.

Mark comes across much more high-spirited when he talks, and his face appears youthful once it comes into motion. You give a little ‚mh’ as a rather distracted reply, and he begins a lightning fast scribble on his board, using a golden pen that looks like it’s worth your apartment.

Meanwhile, Kai’s interest seems to gravitate entirely to your shoulder blades. He goes about tapping the skin and muscles surrounding the bone, even pulling down the backside of your tanktop by an inch, causing you to hold your breath. He circles the spine, presses too fingers in at either side. He’s surprisingly subdued, but still quite hands-on. It’s not hard to feel that he has experience with examinations like that. In fact, Kai has the touch of a modern day chiropractor. Whatever you should think about that you don’t know yet.

It makes sense he’s in charge of all things physical. And — that the first thing he’ll do is get your wings to grow and work, wherever they may be inside your back right now. Lord knows what kind of reflex or trigger is needed to make them sprout. Mark, in full haste, keeps on checking off boxes on his board and hums, cocks his head every now and then.

Yukhei only seems to care for another area altogether. He holds up your ponytail to take a closer look at the back of your neck. You glare at him for pulling at your hair more than you thought was needed. Taemin volunteers to take up that task instead, with Yukhei going on scanning the nape. His hands are so large and grip at your shoulders, it feels like you’re some kind of prey being handled. Taeyong has no problems reading the discomfort on your face and clears his throat, prompting Yukhei to slack off at least a little.

„It won’t be anything painful,“ Taemin says. „We’re looking for any birth marks to appear.“

„Birth marks?“

„It shows up when other demons or half-breeds are around. It usually gives away who you’re related to. The color and shape show which rank your demon parent had. Not to worry.“

You chant a little thank you, Taemin inside of yourself as a way to keep yourself together and nod.

„Yukhei and Taeyong have large black markings that resemble a lighting shape if you will,“ Mark now speaks up. „Taeyong’s is so noticeable, he always wears his hair past his shoulders. And Yukhei mostly uses a high white collar.“

How fitting. You didn’t expect anything else if you’re honest.

„So I should cover it as well, right?“

„You shouldn’t tie your hair up this way so it can be seen,“ Kai says. „You can be glad it hasn’t alerted anyone yet.“

So… that’s why Yukhei did not seem to be very happy with your ponytail. You’ve been utterly reckless without even knowing. If there was someone who didn’t think it was a tattoo, you could have caused some major issues. But before you can apologize, the president already shakes his head.

„Well. You can keep that silly hairstyle. Because there’s nothing on that neck where there should be something.“

„What?“

„Not one mark. I’ve pressed every spot, there’s nothing. The birth mark should be visible already anyways since we’re here. Our presence activates it.“

Commotion. Yukhei lets go of your neck, Taeyong begins inspecting the area very hectically instead, joined by Kai. Mark seems to be in the most confusion right now and gnaws on his lips.

„But Baekhyun clearly said she has demon descent!“ Taemin interjects. „He sees such things the best!“

„Baekhyun… Little fish only wants her here because he has an eye on her,“ Yukhei grits his teeth, looking like he’s ready to kick the steel chair into a corner. „Swims around and invites anybody he fancies long as they have some decent fangs.“

„Yukhei!“ Taeyong cuts right back.

„I knew something wasn’t right,” Lucas keeps shaking his head, now seeming even more convinced. “Not a drop of demon blood in her.“

„What are you saying!“

Taeyong’s stoic face is turning livid now. You never thought he could turn this angry.

„Stop kidding yourselves. Get the serum, Taeyong. All that jazz we’ve been doing… I’m fucking tired. I told you it wasn’t my idea to invite her.“

Yukhei curses an entire string of very canine-sounding things under his breath and Taemin tries to hold him by the shoulders. The whole room feels like it’s about to explode. Taeyong doesn’t look like he’s ready to comply in the very least. Instead, the butler starts baring his fangs with a defiant snarl. Mark shouts out loud.

„Don’t—!“

„Are you deaf? Get the serum, bloodsucker! We’re not playing around anymore!“ 

Yukhei begins grabbing Taeyong by the collar. His eyebrows start to become fuller, and his teeth begin to crack, growing rapidly. Taeyong, eyes turning blood-shot, fastens his left hand behind his back. He positions himself to bring forth a powerful fist about to shatter right through Yukhei’s face. Alongside Taemin, you struggle to get up and reach them in an attempt to hold them apart. But before either of them can strike out—

„Wings! Her wings!“

Exclamations from all sides. Everybody turns to Kai. Panicked, he rests his hands just inches over your kidneys. Mark screams, loud enough to make Lucas shift his attention. Meanwhile, Kai gestures everyone back to the table.

„Here! Look here, now!“

Incredulous, Yukhei lets go of Taeyong’s suit and jumps right beside Kai. He pulls up your tank top to expose the lower back completely. Mark drops his board and pen. Yukhei’s hands roam all over the area that Kai mapped out through the fabric. And yes. Now you’re feeling bumps there, too. A painful tear pools at the bottom of your spine. The adrenaline of the situation didn’t make you realize.

„They… they’re unusually low,“ Mark chops his words, eyes wide and crouching behind Yukhei as if petrified.

„That means they’re large,“ Kai puffs out. „Look at the color, too. White, grey. They’re spotted in red. I’ve never seen anything similar. As if they’re bloodied.“

You can’t believe your ears, wind on the table. „Spotted wings?! What’s that about?“

„It’ll be even more visible when they’re spread. They’ve been hiding really fucking well down there,“ Kai says. „It’s very unlike any wings of ours. And I can’t get them out, all we did was locate them now.“

Great. You have special snowflake wings.

„Really?“ you’re pretty much staring like Mark yourself now. Kai affirms.

„It’ll take a trigger event that sprouts them. I don’t know what yet. Too early to say.“

„But what does the color mean, then?“

„Our wings are all some kind of… well, auburn. Neither Satan’s nor Mammon’s children have colorings like this. Only Taemin’s are blue.“

„But that’s regular for elves,“ Taemin adds.

A churning knot of panic seems to grow inside your gut. The fact that Yukhei keeps on groping about your back is starting to tug at your nerves as the cherry on top.

„Why, why are they like that? What is this?“

„Y/N,“ Mark inhales sharply. „Please calm down, we only—“

„And why are you touching me like I’m some kind of science object? Who am I?“ you shout at Kai and Lucas, prompting Taemin to slowly pull away both their wrists from the table. In this moment, you could jump either of them.

„I’ve, I’ve only heard of one case with such wings,“ Mark begins, but ends up choking up a cry. He’s shaking all over, takes his glasses off. „If you… turn her around…“

Yukhei doesn’t have to be told twice.

„So her mark is elsewhere? Isn’t it? She’s from a different family altogether?“

Mark nods.

Lucas swiftly flips you on your back. You can’t even blink and you’re already watching the ceiling with five faces right up close above you.  

„Let Taeyong do this,“ Taemin begins to urge Yukhei. „Lucas, you shouldn’t touch her now.“

That you need Taemin’s words for Lucas to hold himself back is starting to bother you. Him just grabbing you by the hips and turning you around felt more than strange. You imagine how in his mind, you’re probably a sizzling steak in a pan that he wants crispy on both sides and you don’t like it. One thing’s for sure: You’re not here for being werewolf dinner. What the hell.

What’s been on your mind even more is that Kai is not even half as annoying despite being so full of protein himself. With his chiropractor hands all over you on top of that. Is it that they’re from different families? Wouldn’t you dislike Taeyong as well then? He’s from the exact same corner of hell, after all. What exactly makes Lucas so pushy to you keeps on preoccupying everything you thought of until now as a bottom line. It’s not like you can ask him directly why he behaves like an asshole.

Three minutes pass. Lucas has stepped back from the table, watching like a hawk. A bit more composed, Mark picks up his pen and clipboard. He still can’t concentrate on writing. Taeyong gently probes each of your legs and ankles, even pulls your shoes and socks off to look at the underside of your feet. Finding nothing, he moves on to survey your wrists by smoothing over them, sending Yukhei an evil eye for grinding his teeth. Looks like someone doesn’t like others touching your soft spots.

Kai watches reactionless, seemingly deliberating. He’s in a different headspace, you can tell. Taemin helps Mark with ticking off boxes on the paper. Taeyong turns your jaw to either direction and slightly upwards to inspect the underside. He glides two fingers over your temples, and also asks you to open your mouth. He counts through your teeth with his digit and moves your upper lip to look at your fangs. Taemin emits a large ‚wow‘ when he does, and Yukhei growls out loud. Kai looks visibly interested, although he still seems to piece something together in his head.

„Extremely durable and angular,“ Taeyong says. „I’ve never seen this shape.”

„Me neither,“ Kai props up his palms on the edge of the table.

„Nobody in any clan I knew had fangs like that. Not even the elders. They’re so sharp… it must be inconvenient often,“ Taeyong requests a measuring tape from Mark who pulls it out of his left suit pocket.

„It is. Shreds every toothbrush,“ you mumble.

Taeyong glides his finger all across your gums above both canines, pressing on the root of each tooth. It seems to get a nerve inside your jaw going, and again your breath becomes shallow. He measures, dictates the unintelligble results to Mark. For some reason, you find whatever he’s doing strangely pleasant. Meanwhile, Lucas has been prowling around the table with a heavy gait. You adapt Taeyong’s method of sending him eye daggers.

„Can you put your story-telling on halt? This isn’t some vampire underground bar at Friday 12 PM,“ Yukhei grunts back at you and Taeyong. „Just say whatever the fuck this means. Shouldn’t you search for the birth mark?“

„Can’t quite tell now,“ Taeyong, sounding rather absent-minded, goes on counting through your teeth each. He’s feeling about like it’s a box of jewelry. 

Beside being an obvious difference to what your mostly human high school mates sported — if you could call them that, high school makes everyone inhumane — you never thought your fangs were anything out of the norm. There weren’t many people you could compare them to in your small home town in the first place. You only saw vampires on late night TV at best.

There’s a strange tingle that spreads across your body now. It’s unusual having someone so comfortable with your teeth.

Your first and last boyfriend headed right for the door when it came to kissing. As if stung by a hornet almost, a complete change of mind. Meeting you at a festival he thought the idea of dating a vampire was „pretty sexy!“. He paraded you around at his birthday party two weeks later, you thinking he was actually proud of you rather than only himself.

You later realized that he just wanted to appear like the bravest guy in the world. To gather his guy friends complimenting him on the ‚spicy catch you got there!“. And maybe, you suspected, also making the female guests compete for him with some one-upmanship towards you. If he needed you to attach any value to himself, what value did he have himself to begin with? It still feels like a bad decision because you said yes to someone like him.

He liked the exterior, but doing the actual dating with all that it entails he had seemingly underestimated. It’s not like you expected him to use any tongue or try a blowjob. Why would you?  Doing that would always be a stupid idea for both. Did he think you would purposely hurt him? Or did he just leech off everything he could get until he had to be responsible and deal with limits? Crazy vamp is what he last called you, and you never heard from him again. No texts, nothing. Does your pussy have monster teeth, too? Just go back to your cave or wherever you came from.

„If you forgive me saying so. They really are pretty,“ Taemin chimes in, then urging Mark to note something down. You take a moment to realize he means your teeth. Mark seems to have a lot of trouble snapping out of his daze at first himself, but begins to immerse himself in sketching and documenting after a while, ruffling his hair like a mad scientist. Lucas regularly gazes over his shoulder and you can tell he’s one grumpy wolf.

„We can show you how to keep them in shape and do a proper bite on someone who agrees on it. But you probably even tried something along the lines, right,“ Taeyong says, and Kai nods, probably wanting to say the same. It seems to be nothing out of the ordinary going by their expressions. But the question makes you more nervous than you actually want to.

„Honestly, I… didn’t bite anyone so far,“ you shake your head, unable to meet the eyes of anyone at the table. You hate the feeling of shame that kicks in almost by itself.

„Come on folks, that’s the first thing you smell about her,“ Yukhei boldly announces from his wandering spot around the dumbbells. 

Way to go. You realize how comments like that are exactly why you’re so nervous. He’s already acting holier-than-thou again.

„I only ordered cheap blood online,“ you try to muster a shrug. Acting indifferent is at least helping you to say literally anything. „All legal but artificial.“

And disgusting, but that’s another story.

„Not hard to tell either,“ Yukhei laughs out. „Takes a blood virgin to down a whole liter of the real deal in five minutes. You were staring at that cup like you’ve gone mad. The difference to cheap blood is quite intense, isn’t it? Wanna see your face if you get a willing neck for the first time. Priceless.“

Something coils up inside of you. Eye daggers aren’t enough at this point, are they.

„Don’t get rude, you dog… Do you like spying on others or what?“

„Come on, come,“ Taemin steps in, ushers Yukhei towards the steel chair.  He leans in, speaking in a low tone to the president. „Little more tact and privacy with a novice. Your dad would thoroughly enjoy this.“

„Would enjoy what?“

„Us creating discord in the club without him having to do crook a single hoof.“

You’re starting to think that ‚Vice President‘ means nothing but ‚group counsellor‘. Fine by you, but Yukhei has been rubbing you the wrong way from the very start. That he tried to attack Taeyong and called him names isn’t something you’ll just ignore. You’re growing increasingly more tense. That there doesn’t appear to be a way to take matters into your own hands is even more frustrating. 

„I think… there’s a reason you’ve been living a more isolated life than most vampires,“ Kai interrupts your thought as well as the ongoing banter, trying to strike a more rational tone. He returned from his thought process, ruffling the long hair at the nape of his neck.

„Okay—?“

„See. Most half-breeds with the same father will find each other. Almost automatically. Look at Taeyong and Lucas. And all vampires will get picked up by clans, their scouts. But in your case… I think you have been purposely avoided. By both clans and demons.“

„What does that mean now?“

„My theory is, I… I suspect. Your father,“ Mark looks up from his clipboard, „is someone who hasn’t exactly been Satan’s ally.“

„My dad is — some kind of, Lucifer’s enemy?“

„Maybe. It’s likely. So, the clans would use to trust your father lot.“

„Does that make any sense?“ you frown at Mark, who hastily continues. You still don’t get why that has something to do with how you grew up completely uninvolved in clan affairs.

„His affinity for vampires was much higher on top of that, unlike Satan.“

„Get to the point!“ Lucas taps his feet on the concrete.

„I, I think that’s why you were born,” Mark carries on, pushing up his glasses. “He got together with a vampire. But he has been mingling with a lot of arch angels as of recently as well. Your father, I mean.“

„Okay? But how would you know?“

„The reasoning is this,“ Mark reads from the clipboard. It seems like he has been working on some kind of theory. „The clans don’t like the archangel’s power nor their politics. And the angels don’t really like us as a club either. Simply because we’re half-demons and have offsprings of Satan among us. I know that’s, that’s really complicated, so—“

Whoever Mark means in all of this word spill, your father is evidently a huge trainwreck already. Who’s against who now? It’s all so hard to understand.

„That all doesn’t sound very good,“ you grumble. „Are you sure your theory holds true, Mark?“

„It all sounds like he’s pulling that out of thin air,“ Lucas says. „Angels and whatnot. That’s some random bullshit.“

The conscierge looks rather overwhelmed with your question and can’t quite get a word out at first. Taemin encourages him with with a little supportive eyebrow raise.

„What I know is. By the signs your… body has. We have to keep you safe here and build your strengths at all cost. Because something’s going on,“ Mark eventually continues, earning strong approval from Kai.

Then, Mark addresses the president, much more fragile in his voice, but still secure in his judgement. „Lucas. If we give her the serum, Satan could someday get her if he musters up the courage and the helpers. Which I think he will. That won’t end well in any scenario. The club is in danger. Do you understand? Putting her out there is a bad idea and she doesn’t want it either. She wants to be a member and that’s instinctively the right thing at this point. Baekhyun happened to spot her now out of all times with good reason, I think.“

Lucas seems to ponder back and forth now. He props down on the steel chair with crossed legs, palms in the back of his neck. He looks genuinely concerned for the first time. You find yourself starting to nod along to Mark in the meantime. You like when he speaks like this. 

„Thank God you’re here then, Y/N,“ Taeyong says. „It’s important you get to know more about yourself. It creates a lot of chaos otherwise. For you the very most, unfortunately. We have to admit that joining the club probably makes it worse. But we can’t know what would have happened if you never found your way here.“

„Yeah, I guess.“

„Your heritage is probably much more… controversial I would say. I hope you don’t take this to heart too much,” he continues. “We’ll still have to find out more. But it’s something else we’re not accustomed to so excuse any crudities.“

You can imagine. If your dad is yet another person having beef with Satan, and there’s even people from heaven involved, things are bound to get icky.

„So, where is my birth mark, then?“, you exhale, voice growing with an acute panic. „Do you know my father’s name or not now? 

“Um...“ Mark stares at his own feet.

“Is all of this a fraud? And what can be more controversial than having Lucifer as your dad?“

Taeyong and Mark are looking at each other far too awkwardly not for you to notice. Kai crosses his arms and sighs out.

„Come on, you two are suspecting something. Tell us.“

All attention is now on Taeyong and Mark who are a puddle of sweating embarrassment.

„We have to… Well…“

You feel like a patient about to receive the most embarrassing surgery. Yukhei roams around the table murmuring and fuming.

„What is it now? What are you avoiding?“

„…pull up the shirt to see the birth symbol,“ Mark spouts in one go. „It’s located in the middle of the chest.“

So here’s the reason for all that tiptoeing and stuttering.

„And I thought you’d need my period blood to paint an ancestry sigil or something,“ you roll your eyes right at Mark who looks like he’s sinking into the ground right before you.

„That’s actually what we wanted to do next,“ Yukhei licks his fangs. 

Taeyong, as if lightning struck him, immediately kicks him in the back of the knees. Everyone turns their heads. Judging by Yukhei’s awkward, reaching step forward and no signs of retaliation, Taeyong has some serious leg strength going despite being so lithe. You never thought you’d see his butlery composure begin to crumble either.

„Stop making weird jokes. You’re a dog just like she said.“

Taeyong’s tone is so cutting, Mark breathes out as if he was the one getting kicked.

„Technically not wrong.“

„You got what I wanted to say, Lucas.“

„Can’t hear you mumbling through your stupid old fangs, brother. I’m fucking proud of being a dog.“

Yukhei does an even more obnoxious werewolf-brand wink that makes even Kai cringe a little. Taemin looks like he’s slowly dying on the inside. 

While they’re all continuing to throw out retorts, you cut the debate short by pulling up your tank top. Must be the courage from getting your teeth praised.

Today’s braless day, but anyways.

Mark immediately starts crouching again, and Kai’s mouth drops wide open. Taeyong collapses right on the floor. Taemin buries his face in his hands.

„It… It is as dramatic as Kai said!“

„What is it now? Can’t you guys handle some breasts or what.“

You look down on yourself. And— soon freeze as you see the large round marking right on your solar plexus. Red as blood and crudely outlined.

„What the fuck is that!“

You get goosebumps. The mark has never been visible before. Whatever work Kai did on your back pressing all sorts of points, it must have activated not only your wings, but also this particular spotting. It appears to be shaped like a medal emblem, depicting a snake and a centaur or whatever creature in bold zigzag shapes.

„The sign of King!“ Mark shudders through his tears. The temperature in the room seems to drop, and the scent of jasmine smells like rotten coal. The sign glows red and large on your chest, and not even Yukhei is looking at your breasts now.

„We’re so fucked, man!“ Kai pulls at his hair. „What are we gonna do!“

„Wait! Wait, what is this!“ you pull at Mark’s suit, urging him to speak on. He can’t properly gather himself the very least.

“I can’t say—”

“Tell me, Mark! What is this sign!“

„Be, Before Lucifer… became the prince of the underworld. It was like this.“

„Like what?“

„There was a King who ruled the 9th circle of hell. For over a million years.“

„Who is that guy? He’s my dad?“

„Yes. He never left. That was, until Satan overthrew him after being cast from heaven. The King purposely decided not to come back and expand his influence elsewhere. He’s now a free-walking spawn of hell. The guy who’s technically… actually the boss. Satan is just tolerated but The King has the actual powers. You can guess… look at how large the mark is.“

„I am the King’s daughter?“

„You are,“ Mark contines. „The daughter of King Belial.“

He can hardly pronounce the name without everybody flinching.

„He’s the original guy in charge,“ Taemin bends to help pick up Taeyong, who’s breaking out in a cold sweat. Whatever is glowing on your chest, it’s something out of the Club’s league and that thought alone drives an equal sweat on your face. Belial, you’ve only heard that name sparsely, somewhere, and you knew hell had kings, but you didn’t know it was a very real tale.

„Satan was expelled from heaven for his pride,“ Kai picks up Mark’s point, but his voice is just as shaky. „So he took on hell and drove out your father after a decade-long war. And, plenty of tricks, dark magic. The King first settled in a radical vampire clan who thought he’d be the ultimate weapon to get back at Satan. And Belial thought he’d had an army now, too. But the arch angels also took interest in the King for that same reason. They wanted to fight Satan, too.“

„Didn’t Mark mention the angels earlier? What’s going on with them?“

„They don’t like vampires, so they lured the King away from the clan to only collaborate only with them.“

„So there’s a triangle going on!“

„Belial hasn’t really retaliated or done anything since then, but we’re thinking that he’s plotting something big together with God,“ Kai continues. „Against anything demonic that they set their eyes on. Not just Satan.“

Your head is spinning. Now God’s involved in this shitshow, too. It just gets worse with every new thing you find out.

„The foe of my enemy is my friend. That type of idiot logic,“ Yukhei says. „And Belial was stupid enough to fuck a trash vampire in the process. And you… are the result that we have to deal with now.“

„As if I can help it! You shut your mouth!“ you jerk up to lash out at Yukhei, but Kai steps in between you. He’s as fast as he is strong, and an impenetrable wall you can run up against all you want. And Kai isn’t foolish, either. He grabs you by the shoulders with extended arms to keep your fangs as far away from him as possible. All Yukhei has to do is step back.

„Stupid— because that got your mom killed,“ Kai says, teeth gritted, but sounding much more sensible than his stance suggests. „You gotta understand. Satan wants to eradicate or silence anyone associated with Belial. To avoid a revenge and losing his position!“

„Then you’re right that he’s a prick…“

„My damn words,“ Yukhei shrugs behind Kai, adjusts his tie. „Now put your tits back and sign Mark’s form, you’re part of Club Daemon without further notice anyways.“

„Wha—“

„Now listen closely madam,“ Yukhei burges past Kai to build himself up above you.

„I’m not gonna say this a second time,“ he throws the blazer at you, and you awkwardly catch it. Kai steps out of the way to let Yukhei step even closer to you. The grit in his eyes is too commanding, untouchable. Mark backs off against a wall, and even Taemin gives up on stopping Lucas. Only Taeyong lingers close behind the president, surveying his every move.

„Since Satan is an illegal worm on the throne and the King prefers to sip ambrosia with God, you happen to be the only legitimate heir. The literal, official ruler of hell. And as we saw, giving you the serum would cause even more trouble. You might even get used against us or yourself. You get me? We have enough trouble and craziness with all this! Do you understand that? From now on: You’re doing exactly as I say.“

„Why are you the one to declare all that now? Yu—“

„No objections. Training starts today.“

————————

„Your wings are so nice,“ Baekhyun smiles, turning twice in his bath tub. The water gently rises, bringing some foam to the corners. If you squint a bit, it actually sparkles. You’re feeling laid-back with the scent of fragrance sticks and candles lingering in the bathroom now. Tangerine, a bit of lemon. A pocket-sized music box strums away on the sink. The melody is foreign to you, but it feels nostalgic and welcoming. There are almost a dozen shell-shaped metal soap holders all around and pointy quartz clusters frame the two mirrors on either side of the room, creating an endless loop of reflections. Yours excluded, which always seems to amuse Ten even if he’s already used to it from Taeyong by now.

A snugly dim lightbulb screwed into a large pink lamp shade right above you spreads some warmth, as does a fluffy carpet underneath you. The vapors of the room become visible as little ascending particles in the light and you wonder how hot the bath water must be. Unlike the chairs in the main hall, the one you currently sit down on cross-legged is meant for comfort solely. A pink and poufy 50s relic, put there specifically for you since it’s Friday.

„Ah…Baekhyun. I forgot you see them for the first time,“ you settle, while he turns again. You find yourself laughing at how cutely Baekhyun spins. That this is the way mermen express their excitement and adoration you learned only last week.

„And, your fangs have grown so big!“ His cheeks are bright and giddy, and his tail glistens from all the soap he tossed around in the water for almost half an hour now.

„I’m on my 50th day of training now.“

„Ooh, that’s so impressive! You’re doing great for sure!“

„I don’t know if I do. But there are some results at least. Kai made me fight Yukhei with bare hands and they came out,“ you wriggle your either wing, and make their tops touch the ceiling. Ever so slightly, you don’t want to break anything around here. Baekhyun’s little bathroom paradise is too carefully assembled to pull any stunts in here, and it’s your Friday night safe haven for long talks and even watching movies on Mark’s tablet. Now, it doesn’t take a lot of stretching to do so in the first place. At this point, wearing your wings out this way is starting to feel natural, even if the way that they shift your balance is still new. They are red-white and stringy, feathery, and spotted just like Kai had predicted.

„He was in his full form, right? You’re really brave you did this.“

„It’s a strange thing sometimes. It’s like I followed an impulse.“ you say, shrugging a little. „I guess — Blame it on instincts.“

You really hoped he would buy that dodge, but it’s a futile try.

„Hey, I mean it. I’m proud of you. Really.“

You push a few hair strands out of your eyes. He’s not going to let you off the hook until you admit it, or maybe it’s only you so fearing to say that, and making it so awkward that he notices.

You don’t want to bare yourself but also don’t want to leave him in the dark about how much his words have been building you up over the last few weeks. It’s almost been two months since you first saw Baekhyun on Mark’s video call, discussing where to relocate the club chronicles after a shelf randomly collapsed. Even a fraction of him on screen made you hold your breath.

Maybe it’s because a whole lot of your ancestors were — although surely snobby and even aristocratic — so bite-first-talk-later and rather reserved folk staying in the shadows that accepting or never doubting flattery is hard for a vampire of your generation. And maybe it’s time you muster up something else than either extreme end of that aristocracy or that terrible shyness.

„Thanks for your compliment,“ you stare at the tips of your fingers that clamp around your knees. „Matters a lot, okay.“

Baekhyun props up his head on the edge of the tub in response and looks at you all blushed. He’s playing with the blue crystal penchant around his neck, and his light purple hair falls into his face in wet little waves until he shakes it. The strands are so thin and plush, they prop up all dry again so fast, as if by magic (which it likely is). His cheeks are so glowing when they’re rosy, you notice every time you see him, but today even more so. To the point where, and you feel it in your gut, your confidence becomes so shaky all over again.

„But don’t praise me too much,“ you say. „It’s only doing what I’m supposed to do and what I’m made up of, I think. It wasn’t that hard.“

„Not as hard as defense against crosses and garlic, isn’t it?“

„Damn right, that was something ese,“ you nod. „But there are much bigger problems.“

„Is there something that preoccupies you as of lately?“

Baekhyun blinks a few times with a falling smile, and you contract in your chair.

„I feel like… It’s so hard to say.“

„I won’t hold anything against you, okay. I just hate seeing you preoccupied night til dawn. That’s not right.“

„It’s…Yukhei is treating me like some kind of tool. Just fostering me because that means a hybrid demon sits on the throne of hell. It feels too much sometimes. Like I have to dance to the beat of his track all the time, you know.“

„I’m sorry. Lucas can be really zealous. I hope he’s not demanding too much from you.“

„Or… training me like a machine. I’m really not a dog’s toy. I don’t think that’s what made my join all this. I don’t have as many problems with my heritage as with the way he takes so much control. It’s… one-sided. And I feel like I should be above that already and just do my thing anyway.“

Baekhyun’s expression sinks even more now, but there’s also something single-minded in it.

„As long as you truly wish to take that position in the 9th circle, you can do as you please,“ he says. „Look at how strong you are. I don’t even have to tell you that. As I know him, Yukhei wants to protect his kind. Including you, that’s why he trains you so hard and wants you to have influence. I know it’s an ironic thing. That you have to be his subordinate now to be his superior in the future. He sees himself as a founding father, so he coaches us. His strict ways are not for everybody.“

„I guess,“ you shrug. It doesn’t sound illogical to you. Having a half-breed in charge of hell would raise the status and safety of Club Daemon immensely, and Yukhei does behave like the club is his child. „I just don’t like it when he uses his position too much without caring about how I want to go about it. I know I’m new to this, but I still have preferences. And the training is for my sake, he’s the one who emphasizes that the most but it feels like it only serves him. Telling him that is like, like— talking against a fucking wall, I don’t know.“

„That doesn’t sound good. I think that you inspired a lot of respect in him. Lucas is afraid of many things.“

„I feel that.“

All too often. When he trains you. At dinner. During any hand-to-hand practice. And especially: On Fridays, where he is tense all day.

„That the pack order is so wired into him doesn’t help. There’s always only superior or subordinate to him, he doesn’t know anything else. The social order of vampires is less defined than that.“

The roles, the hierarchies. You often find Mark talking about it.

„I try to understand it but our ways are so different. I don’t know what it is. Yukhei should know that vampires aren’t responsive to this alpha thing the very best. And I don’t think anyone in Belial’s family for that matter.“

You’ve seriously been wondering how Lucas was donning his big bad wolf attitude. That he was intimidated behind all that jazz would come as no surprise to you. But this type of explanation would be too… simple. Too easy, for all those intricacies, the weirdness of his behavior.

„If you look at it from what he does rather than what he says. He spends a lot of time developing your skills and puts all of his energy into the project,“ Baekhyun’s gaze drops from yours now. „To be honest… I’m jealous of him.“

Now that makes you swallow hard. It implies way too much for you to process right now.

„I don’t, I don’t think he likes me,“ you vehemently shake your head. „Or at least not in a way that feels good to me. And that’s what counts. He’s making me grapple with hell hound holograms and box with Kai until dawn under his supervision. I’d rather be here and discuss with you. It’s really valuable.“

„Ah… thank you.“

Now that you’re on a roll, saying it is easier.

„I’m really glad you were the one who scouted me. I really wish I could be here more often. And, you put a lot of effort into this. You think it’s just talking but it’s important for me.“

The last part you say with a much more subdued tone, but it doesn’t lose its meaning to Baekhyun. That he looks flustered is an understatement. He wriggles his shiny tail and it actually changes its color to light pink, matching his flush.

„You know, it was more of a coincidence. I was counting shells at the beach, I saw you coming out of a pharmacy at the quay. I haven’t told you that, have I?“

Back in May. A very breezy, sunny late afternoon.

„Taemin said something along those lines, but not in detail, no.“

„You had these huge sunglasses on. And so much sun screen. And a big hat. You came out with six packs of iron supplements and cranberry juice in a transparent plastic bag. I couldn’t quite believe it.“

„You really saw it that clearly?“

„Merman eyes can see even in murky water. Kai has trained me to read people at any distance on land.“

„And how did you see that I’m part demon?“

„You had a crop top on.“

What?

„I mean. Come on. That half-vampires like crop tops is clear to me. Taeyong is wearing them all the time. But don’t other people do that as well? Isnt’t that a little—“

Baekhyun starts giggling.

„The sun was hitting your back while you were opening the lock of your bicycle. I could see the wings folded underneath your skin.“

„Oh man,“ you puff out, reclining in your seat. And you thought he was going for a reach. „Okay, I get it. I hope nobody else saw that.“

„It can easily look like some kind of tattoo,“ Baekhyun shrugs. „At least someone who has no idea about demons wouldn’t have realized anything. And it was only visible for a split second since you weren’t standing upright.“

„Okay… that’s good I guess? Just me walking around in a crop top at the bay. Nothing suspicious going on.“

You’re ready to chastize yourself for being so careless, but then again. Arguably, you don’t have eyes on the back of your head. And on top of that, it took someone as trained as Baekhyun to discover your sleeping wings showing in a matter of one blink or two.

„It’s likely that your wings only started growing this very year. I really need you to realize. This didn’t happen in twenty years. I was never as fascinated in my entire life, I—“

And by saying that, Baekhyun’s pupils become heart-shaped, and pretty much everything else about him turns bright red. The hair, the tail, the lips.

Oh.

Looks like you’re starting to understand why Baekhyun didn’t just casually mention you to Yukhei to send out an invitation, bar half-breeds being a rare occurance and highly sought for by the club.

„I called Taemin with my shell phone right away so he could inform the club,“ Baekhyun stutters on. „I’m sorry we’ve been observing you that way. Many half-breeds don’t know that they are.“

„You didn’t do it to hurt me,“ you shake your head, gather yourself, and take Baekhyun’s hands in yours. They’re so pretty and slippery. „You don’t have to apologize. It’s been a lucky coincidence.“

He saw you in the right moment and it decided everything.

„I’d not be here without you, that was very needed,“ you add. „Lost and found, you know. I gotta be the one to say thank you.“

Baekhyun firmly squeezes your hands and looks you deeply in the eyes, even more so than before.

„We’re the ones who have to say that,“ he says. „We didn’t have many good prospects before you. Maybe we can have a better chance being half-breeds in the future. Don’t think of yourself as Yukhei’s chess piece. That takes away all your importance. I think he’s trying to tell you that, too.“

„Maybe. But just know that if he’s so invested in me the way you say, I couldn’t reciprocate it.“

You look down, retreat your hands. Baekhyun reaches out of the tub to cup your chin upward very gently.

„This whole werewolf-vampire feud thing,“ he starts in a low tone. „You don’t have to buy into it. It’s not good for our club’s unity.“

You cast down your eyes. „I know.“

��If we fall apart, that makes us very vulnerable to the outside. It’s important that you stick together, and… he really likes you.“

„Baekhyun—“

„You have an easier time with Kai, right. If you approach Yukhei the same way, that… could be beneficial to your bonding.“

„Bonding?“

You don’t like where this is going. All of your alarm bells are going off right now. There’s cold sweat starting to stick to your shirt at the back of your spine.

„It’s kind of an unspoken codex,“ Baekhyun sounds much more understated now, his eyes become droopy. „If there is a female half-demon with claims to the 9th circle, a mate from the guild may accompany her. But it has to be someone from the upper rank.“

„What!“

„Yukhei is the highest in our hierarchy... He might become your consort. He said to me he’d be ready to do it.“

„Yukhei as my mate? How do I know nothing about that!“

The shock in your voice makes Baekhyun rolls up in the bathtub and his tail turns into a lifeless green. You’ve never seen him so small.

„Because… because he can’t say he likes you.“

„I beg your pardon?“

„It’s all bound to happen because of his status, and yours, and— As I said, it’s an unspoken law. It doesn’t really matter if he confesses or not.“

„Are you kidding me now?“ you jump off your chair. Your wings knock over a ceramic vase in the bathroom cupboard right above the sink. It comes down splintering. „Why on earth does Yukhei push me around like some political… genetics… preservation tool!“

„It, it is not the intention—“

„I don’t want to mate with Yukhei! Not because he’s the president, not because I need some fitting husband apparently, not because he spends a lot of time with me, not because of his money or because he cares a lot about preserving half-breeds, and especially not just because he likes me.“

„You— You don’t?“

Baekhyun’s eyes are wider than when Mark first saw your spotted wings, well-knowing he was dealing with a more delicate subject of the chronicles. But this was something that would turn the annals of the club upside down entirely.

„We’re not compatible. Not in the least,“ you frown. „Did you assume I did?“

„Of, of course! I mean in your position, who else would come to your mind? It’s such a given from both of your sides, I didn’t… even think about it. Please, I didn’t want to offend you!“

You settle on your chair again, fold in your wings. Cross your legs, lean back. An overbearing feeling of depletion makes your whole body ache.

„You know. That’s the thing with tradition. Nobody thinks about what they actually want. They just follow a program to satisfy some stupid custom. To soothe their ego, their morals, I don’t know what. But that leads them in the opposite of being satisfied. Because it’s against their real wishes. Doing away with quite a few traditions without causing much damage would be entirely possible, wouldn’t it.“

„I think traditions do serve someone,“ Baekhyun shrugs. „Many people.“

„In this case, only one person. Hint: tall lycan man who wants to fuck me. And take me as a wife which I didn’t even know until now. And how would I if he’s yelling at me about putting away my tits as if I’m some chunk of trash.“

Baekhyun stutters, decoiling not one inch from his position.

„Didn’t he do that in front of others?“

„Yeah, but why are you asking?“

You can’t help but put some sharpness into that reply. All that mating monkey business is reeking of bullshit.

„Lycans are, well you know it. Really possessive. He wants you for himself, he… he’s affected by your body. Everyone can see that. So, everyone automatically thought he’d just, sooner or later make a move on you, you know. You’ll be exclusive to him.“

„You really think that Yukhei is territorial over my fucking tits.“

„On the outside he was acting grumpy that it was a half-vampire coming to us out of all races. But he sent out Taemin with the club invitation letter in a matter of a day. The fastest he ever wanted to get someone to join was when I scouted Ten as our chauffeur. Ten had all the qualifications and he’s half-harpy, they get on with lycans very well, but Yukhei was deliberating for two weeks.“

You shake your head.

„He sent it out because the club direly needs extra manpower, a new element, whatever, that’s why. He literally said so.“

„Yukhei ordered to send out the invitation only when I told him that you’re a good-looking… woman.“

You’re gasping for air. Can this get any worse? This has got to be a bad joke. It sounds like Yukhei literally wants to own you.

„Is he— that desperate?“

„He’d not mate with any full-lycan or half-human half-lycan, or humans altogether,“ Baekhyun shakes his head. „And how could he, he’s the president and protector of the only demon half-breeds club there is. Anything else would be out of character.“

„So me being in need of a mate because of all this heir thing… serves him well and he’s already planned all of it and treats it as a given in the club. All behind my back.“

You could rip out all your hair at this point. You curse him. This dirty, sneaky, cunning wolf guy.

„From his perspective, it makes sense. Nobody else in his shoes would do it differently. He didn’t mate at all yet. We respect that he will take that only chance because he has the last say, you saw that. If a lycan runs a club, we go by lycan ways.“

All you can do is plant your face on the edge of the bath tub and puff out a deflated noise.

„So I’m the only fuckmeat in sight. To get rid off his virginity.“

Oh God, no. This has got to be a terrible dream, even the club’s chronicles pre-1689 aren’t as tragic.

„Yukhei’s instincts are going crazy since he reached maturity. Kai already mated earlier in his life and takes Beta status. I guess that’s why you get along a little better. But with Yukhei… he’s so depraved, he’s even ready to mate with a half-vampire.“

„I saw how hostile he can get with Taeyong…“

It still pains you. That Yukhei would go at him with full fangs and claws even if Taeyong is so severely marred was a punch in the gut. You don’t doubt Taeyong’s strength, and you saw he was ready to defend himself properly and resolutely. But it showed a lot of true colors and you thought about it for many nights.

„Exactly. That he said he’d be your consort tells you how much he needs somebody. He’s even ready to bury the rivalry and also contests anybody of your race. Taeyong is competition to him.“

„Jealous possessive alpha looking for a trophy,“ you bury your face deeper in the enamel of the tub edge. „Baekhyun. I fucking swear. You’re giving me even more reasons not to get with him. He’s even dragging Taeyong into all of this.“ Taeyong, who made you feel so at home and comfortable with being half-vampire. Who was very open with you and had exactly the integrity and dedication and utter class a club member needed to have. A confident, quiet strength and rolemodelship that you could always look up to.

„So talk about unity,“ you grit on. „And I’m only tolerated to Yukhei. If I’d be a guy, he would’ve sent me an invitation after like 5 years, wouldn’t he? Yukhei cares a lot less about halfbreeds than he pretends. How would I get with this guy if he’s such a mess. Never ever.“  

„You actually wouldn’t?“

„Come on! If that’s not clear at this point. No degree of Yukhei wanting me means I want him. Man, what the—! He’s planning my life as if it’s his factory. He’s making chaos out of everything.“

Hell, Yukhei must be more than insecure if he reached that level of entitlement. And you only get to hear it from Baekhyun? He’s not just insecure, but also a coward. Just how much he’s living in his own bubble is hard to fathom.

„But, it’d be an honor for you to be with the president. Is there a reason you don’t like him back?“

„Baekhyun. I don’t give a fuck about his arranged marriage thing. He has no respect. I want someone else.“

„I mean, I… You’re free to choose from the assembly. You’re the Queen of Hell. You can do whatever you want.“

„Apparently not.“

You cock not one, but two brows right at him. Baekhyun seems entirely confused. It’s so strange to you how he doesn’t seem to catch on in the very least. Yukhei really must have threatened the other club members. Nor does he seem to take your role seriously in the very least.

„Is there someone you want to mate with, then?“

„First time someone ever asked.“

You straighten your posture and tap your fingers on your knees. Admittedly, you’ve probably picked that one up from Kai.

„The guild accepts any of your wishes. It’s just a recommendation or a tradition that—“

„Yeah yeah. A dumbass expectation. Disguised as some… guideline. And everyone’s parroting it just because Yukhei is the boss. I don’t like that, okay. I’m not on board with his personal agenda. Because it’s shitty. Full stop. I’ll shove his bonding schtick up his ass until it comes out of his ears.“

„Ah, I, I see. I get it now.“

„Understand, Baekhyun. Rules have to be adapted to the benefit of those they concern. Are we agreeing on that?“

„That’s only logical!“

„So you get that I have someone in mind that I want to have a consort. That person is not Lucas. You see that the benefit would apply here, that, you know, I mate with that other person instead.“

„Sure! Do you need any help with selecting somebody? Wouldn’t Kai be a perfect match? You’re both so strong! Or Taeyong. You have great chemistry! Mark is very impressed by you, too! Haven’t you seen how shy he is?“

You want to sink into the ground on the spot. It just goes on and on. Man, you need a 500-year coffin nap with extra dust and spider webs and no garlic in the radius of ten kilometers.

„Baekhyun, you, you are… God damn…“

You can’t say it. You can’t.

„Always glad to help,“ a bright smile lights up his face once again. His tail turns back to a very familiar turquoise.

And just when he decoils himself to his full size—

It happens.

„Ah! What was that!“

Baekhyun begins to jerk up and winds. You panic. The surface of the bath water colors with red almost right away. He grabs his tail in pain. You dive either hand into the tub to pull up his tail.

„It’s a splinter! It fell inside the tub!“

„From the vase?!“

„Yes, it’s, it’s…“

„Are you okay Y/N? You look different!“

He seems more shocked about that than the fact that he just got pierced.

„It’s…stuck here. I’ll pull this— out and… and. Very carefully, and…“

Your hands work on their own. There’s nothing in your mind that has to direct them. The piece of ceramic is easy to remove from his scales, nor is the cut too severe at all. It’s not even two fingers long. But he’s bleeding. He’s bleeding. It’s unbearable. You mindlessly cast the splinter into the sink and look at your hands, and the water, and his tail.

„Are you really okay? It really doesn’t hurt a lot!“

„Baekhyun,“ you slide forward from your seat and linger at the edge of the tub, facing him. „I can’t take this shit anymore. Please.“

„Oh my god. Your eyes are going red! Should I call for Taeyong? You’re looking really sick!“

„Don’t you understand. How, how are you not seeing it,“ you clutch at the bath curtain, dizzied, and it’s like you’re seeing double. Baekhyun tries to keep you upright in his arms that wrap tightly around you. But your head has lost all its stability, tipping way forward. You’re face-to-face, forehead-to-forehead with him now, a frantic, salivating mess. Your lips feel so swollen and pulsing, it’s hard to keep them pressed together at all.

„I’m… I’m not sick. I’m not. Hush— Listen to me now, Baekhyun. I don’t want anyone else’s blood. You’re the one I wanna mate with. I want yours. And not just a little bit of it.“

Open mouths. You gape at him, he stares right back. You’re already expecting him to call for Kai to drag you into the serum room. So much about Club Daemon.

To your surprise, he doesn’t. Instead, he begins to blink like he just heard the most incredulous news, pulling away from the embrace. He looks at you in earnesty.

„Why didn’t you just say that right away?“

Baekhyun turns the brightest shade of pink all over yet. „I never thought you’d like me back this way.“

„Really?“

„Of course…“

„God,“ you laugh, „oh God.“

„And who said you can’t drink all you want from me? That’s literally what I was gonna offer—“

You are already shoulder deep leaning into the water with your arms grabbing hold of his tail. Some of the water even gets into your nose and it’s terribly soapy from Baekyun’s shampoo, but saturated with enough blood to knock a tidal wave of adrenaline right through your system.

This is the freshest and warmest you’ve ever had it. It’s feeling like a shark in the water. The lithe red clouds wavering through the tub loosely clinging to your face and lips makes you go weak in the legs. It tastes sweet like actual candy. And it’s so, so… familiar. Being surrounded by all that cherry pink water is better than a coffin nap and no garlic pizza combined. This is way too good. You can be glad your air is running out and the wound begins to close behind scales getting back into order.

„Wow! You can hold your breath for a long time,“ Baekhyun gasps when you surface.

„I didn’t,“ you cough, and take two minutes to gather yourself.  But not exactly because of that much water getting inside of you. Rather, the blood is showing its very effect already. „The wound should be fine, um,“ is all you can say, but Baekhyun only smiles in reply.

„Oh? You don’t look full in the very least.“ he swipes his hands over his wet neck and pats it. „Try it here!“

Oh please no, not the patting and the slapping. It brings all the best veins out, oh fucking no. But he continues to do just that. At this rate—

„Can’t guarantee I’m not getting really horny.“

„Huh? If you’re not I’d be worried. Didn’t you say you want to mate with me?“

„Well… yes.“

„I’m just really honored, I need a little moment.“

„You don’t have a problem with me just… vandalizing your neck?“

„Isn’t that what it’s for? It doesn’t suck itself.“

Baekhyun, with the most innocent little expression, continues just as before kneading into the sides of his neck. His long… tan, glistening piece of art neck. You probably look like a starving wet poodle preying for a bone, and then there’s him in the tub, sparkling like a water god with his beautiful cherry hair and droopy brown eyes.

With every smack on the side of his neck, your pants squarely decide to get a little more soaked. Maybe because it sounds like you’re already fucking. Maybe because his neck is bursting with everything a girl needs. It doesn’t suck itself, huh. And your canines are in best shape because you floss them twice a day just like Taeyong said. Uh oh.

„I’m so sorry I… I think I’ll tear you up.“ Why does it have to be so long and throbbing. His smell is turning your brain inside out and back again. „God Baekhyun, you’re tormenting me.“

„Hey, not fair! That’s your job,“ he’s pouting again, and probably begins to realize he’s been doing more prep than most porn stars nowadays because the kneading stops. Without much further ado, Baekhyun squarely beckons you to climb into the tub.

„Are you really ready—“

„Don’t worry, Taemin is great at cleaning the tiles. He actually loves doing that.“

„I want to make this enjoyable to you, Baekhyun, so…“

„I don’t know, you don’t have to please me or anything,“ he shakes his head. „That you like me is already overwhelming enough.“

„A bite is serious business. I still want you to enjoy it like I do.“

„If you want that. Just, just do it harder,“ Baekhyun wriggles himself up, pinker than ever. „If we’re doing it unprotected… I want this properly.“

Finished off with a shy smile. This guy is making you go times more nuts than the first raw blood you had in that chalice. You start to understand what Mark really meant by recently mentioning how Baekhyun’s parents gave him „A certain inclination“. A well nymph and Asmodeus, demon of lust, combining? That could not possibly create anything less than somebody so enticing.

„Baekhyun, always tell me if I should stop, I, I try to rein myself in, okay. You’re too delicious…“

„My veins stop swelling, just bite already,“ he sways his tail, keeps on rubbing into in throat again with his flat palm. „Just don’t worry. You’d have a hard time draining me. You saw my body just heals itself fast.“

„Yeah. Merman thing. Mark said that.“

„You can also fuck me if you want to.“

„Baekhyun, you really don’t have to offer yourself just because my body is going crazy.“

„But I’d really enjoy it. How aroused are you?“

„In all honesty… Bram Stoker novels level horny.“

„I’m not gonna leave you like that.“

And something in his tone tells you that Baekhyun has it all figured out.

As much as your wobbly legs permit it, you get into the tub more or less elegantly. You already want to apologize for mounting him that way, but Baekhyun squarely sits you down on his crotch with his hands on your waist. That his wrist and knuckle veins have gotten the word does not go unmissed by your tunnel vision. All those pulsing underarm serpentines… leading your gaze upwards, and more, and more. Up, up, until you cannot rip your gaze from his puffy little throat. Baekhyun lets out a content little hum and lifts his chin. You really get the full damn view.

„Sorry teeth, I’ll devirginize you. No more blood oranges,“ you babble to yourself, and you can tell your brain just switched off all inhibition. You never thought you’d be slurring your words about what types of emergency fleshlights you use, all in a bath tub with a merman. „About time I pop my cherry boy.“

„Exactly right,“ Baekhyun proudly huffs, and leans back. With his Adam’s apple bulging out his throat even more, you lose all trains of thought and just grab him by either side of his head. You sink your teeth in as far as the power in your jaw can drive them, and going by how his pulse is beating inside your ears, you drilled them in pretty damn hard. Oh fuck. Beginner’s mistake. A huge gush comes out to spritz against the back of your own throat, and you almost pass out from the incredibleness of the taste.

It’s too much at once. You’re hanging by a mere thread. All your body does is follow whatever its instinct dictates. Grabbing Baekhyun by his hair is all you can keep track of, shoving your teeth right up his throat again all dissipates in a blur because your entire mouth is dripping full with him. He’s moaning so loud right now, his neck vibrates along.

„Yes…!“

You don’t want to be a weakling. And, get yourself to swallow for the first time — but then. regret it right away. His blood melting down your esophagus is like a liquid marriage proposal on the Eiffel tower. You don’t know where the noise comes from, but the birds are singing. Once it’s down your stomach and pooling there, you’re already high as fuck. Grinding erraticly all over Baekhyun’s more than steel hard boner that parts upward through the scales of his crotch. He’s really giving you all the best things.

You bury your whole face in his neck. No more neatness. All you do is let your tongue loose and drag your mouth all over his face, and his chin, and his lips, and his jaw, and all of his neck. Every angle, every side, every nook and cranny until your mouth is bursting full with all of his sweet-tasting sweat and pinkish blood that has thinned out with the water dripping from his gills. If it wasn’t diluted, you’d probably forget your own name.

You melt your teeth into his pulsing skin. A vibrant image opens before your inner eye. You’re getting visions of the beach and you as seen through Baekhyun’s eyes. And then— Baekhyun from an outside perspective, swirling through the water the moment after he saw you walk at the quay for the first time. Singing so beautifully, your ears are ringing and you never want to hear anything else.

His blood is all over your lips and chest, your training print shirt. You admit you’re tempted not to ever wash that thing even if Taemin politely asks you to or Yukhei calls it crazy. You want it to be as sullied as a white shirt can possibly get. What must be your eleventh bite in a row gives you a particularly big shot right to the tongue. It’s so much, Baekhyun’s blood starts running out of your nose, only to get back onto your lips that suck up all that candy right away all over again.

Being all drenched in Baekhyun’s nicely bloodied wonder shampoo water and your own horny leaking shit at the same time, your pussy is double wet and way, way too ready to get stuffed up with all that merman dick. You never thought that he would be any larger than your thumb, but you’re mistaken.

„No wonder Yukhei has been keeping you outside the club so often.“

„You can have it as often as you want, eight times a day, I’ll manage to be there, don’t worry.“

It’s so stiff and glides into you so easily, you groan out loud and loose a whole portion of blood from all that open mouth. It sprinkles over Baekhyun’s little nose and lips, and makes his way down to his belly. The scent is turning your brain upside down. You find yourself hooked on his nose, sucking and licking it with your pussy reaching the meaty base of what’s all the way inside you now. All the precum he’s leaking into you is taking its time, but comes down to cream you up when he starts moving. Really smudgy thrusts from below, several big fat fillings from above that you can have your fun gargling on the back of your tongue. Baekhyun knows what makes you happy. You squeeze every bit your can get out of his throat and plunge your teeth inside of him far enough to feel his vocal chords vibrating during his moans. You don’t wanna damage those. So you decide to switch things around a little and slip off his cock. It’s grown a lot inside of you and peaks out the water still brimming. The whole tub gets a taste of soapy foam mixed with Baekhyuns semen and lord knows how much delicious red cherry juice that you’ve been milking out of him. Oh god, you feel like cumming. You turn Baekhyun underneath you so the back of his head comes to face you, and you bow down to violently bury and seesaw your teeth in his nape like a lion shaking a little prey animal. His little helpless moans are so melodic and out of this world, you do notice you forgot your own name. Well, he can tell you afterwards so, no problem. For now, you made him completely yours. You don’t miss how Baekhyun didn’t reach down to get himself a hand but has grown even harder.

Going by how much he’s been begging you to do your carnage on him, and you’re tempted to ask him, you know for a fact Baekhyun would probably fanboy like mad and ooze his cum all over the place if you broke his neck altogether, but you decide that’s probably way too edgy for now. And too much, hello. His body can heal anything in a matter of five minutes, doesn’t mean you have to challenge it with a clean snap during the first time. That’s a schtick for the later fucks, maybe a birthday. Just when you find that what you’re doing with his little nape all between your jaws is way too sick for a novice, a string of tiny „please, please, please!“ noises spurs you to sink in deeper and even work your tongue just like it’s a french kiss.

„Oh woah, ah! Do it, do it more!“ His pleasure screames and demands for roughing him up leave no second for a pause. At this point, you’re just digging in and he’s all the way close to going off like a bomb. Taemin doesn’t just have to clean the tiles alone, there’s gonna be sperm everywhere. Probably even as far as the door, and that one’s all opposite to the bath tub and four meters away.

Now that you’re so snugly penetrating with your fangs pierced in around his spine from either side, you notice how Baekhyun has successfully corrupted you into a sadistic freak. The more blood seeps into your mouth, the lewder your slurping gets, and the tub water has long gone from pink to very crimson like it’s the type of apples Taeyong loves to test his fangs on pretty much daily just for practice. You swallow again, and this time, a wave of Baekhyun’s sexual fantasies crashes down on you.

Looks like since you’re closer to his central nervous system, you’re tapping his entire stream of thoughts. However this works, it’s giving your pussy severe missing-cock-disease. Drinking and swallowing repeatedly makes the visions even more vivid. The images are so vast and animated, you can hardly keep up. His face, buried between your thighs. His tongue, dragged all over your legs. You riding his tail like it’s thighs. A big gush of semen between your breasts. You slobbering blood all over his cock and making good use of its protruding veins. Images of you cumming and screaming his name. Baekhyun screaming even louder because he can. Baekhyun sucking his fingers and you licking his wrists clean. Baekhyun cumming inside you and everything bursting right out because holy shit, that’s a lot.

You want his dick and properly connect to his lips for the first time now, so you ease your teeth out of his nape, much to his protesting. You cave in and give him another bite, and make it brutal so he begins squeaking and gasping that he’ll cum. Now that you have him there, you can venture a second try and turn him around. Because you’re afraid of blowing up the second you sit on his cock again, so you start with his lips.

Kissing Baekhyun is all you expected and even more than that. Even if you’re so saturated with his blood that your taste buds are on fire, you can still clearly taste how sweet he is. Everything about him is so delicious and he’s so cute. All that pleasant taste and the gentleness of his tongue has you riding up and down his cock in less than a minute. Busy like a New York high rise elevator. Gentleman he is, Baekhyun retorting with his own thrusts feels nothing short of whipped cream consistency fucked into you with a headspin-inducing mega girth. Where he mustered that one from, only Neptune knows.

Since the entire water is ripe with his blood, that can’t go without pumping some of it into you. You’ve never found yourself horny all over your period even if the scent does make you tingle, but now, somebody else’s blood squeezed into you? Your legs feel like doing somersaults. You’re probably asking for too much, but you hope your walls soak it all up, his pre-cum included. Hell, if all that mixture shoots up in your womb, you’d probably be on a permanent high for one week. Who would have thought. This giggly little merman has turned you mad and lawless.

It doesn’t take for very long that Baekhyun’s tongue has been wrecking a havoc of pleasure between your fangs and has started bleeding after deliberately giving himself a small little prick with them, you want to get bursting full with his cum now, you can’t wait any longer. You lost your breath so it takes a few seconds until you can verbalize it, but when you do, Baekhyun doesn’t take even half a minute to have you pussy bubbling with a particularly scented load of deliciously fertile semen.

It’s such a huge amount, you have to hold onto his upper arms. Baekhyun breathes like he’s curently swimming a marathon, and has his eyes closed to concentrate on giving you the best to the best. What makes you moan is just how wildly his cock is throbbing and pumping against your cervix, that girl has never seen an avalanche of white stuff like this, she’s so lucky she gets to see this up close. Baekhyun has sunken so deep into his orgasm, he’s starting to mumble some kinds of magic words. Which seem to be directed at keeping his dick hard and keeping the cum flowing just like that.

„Shit, I want that in my mouth,“ you promptly decide, and pull your all-loaded pussy off, causing leakage all over the water. You turn to prop his cock between your lips, and Baekhyun makes it no secret that he won’t hesitate sucking his creampie right out of you. So while you’re busy sliding your tongue up and down all that veiny shaft, Baekhyun glides his nose and chin between your slippery pussy lips. The stimulation of his tongue has you twitching and stuffing his cock even deeper until your mouth is nothing but filled except a few remaining spots.

His cum is all fizzy in your mouth, it’s the most addictive thing. You decide that all that vanilla ice cream needs a juicy strawberry sauce to top it off. You do exactly what Baekhyun’s steamy fantasies displayed to you. That you lock your horny fangs deep inside of Baekhyun’s cock and squeeze him out by the liter for sperm and cherry milk is already having your eye lids flutter because you’re that stoned. Not to mention that you will smell like candy to the lycans and certainly also Taeyong for at least a whole month.

You’re the farmer, he’s the maple tree, and Baekhyun’s blood the runny, sugary syrup. The mix with his semen tastes like you bite right into a large fresh lemon and melon popsicle. and swallowing comes easy once you got into the rhythm of his continuous little bursts. Your stomach is telling you oh babe, I adore you for this. It’s stuffing full a) with the one thing is needs and b) the other thing it loves. All while Baekhyun’s bloody tongue is having a party on your clit and you can’t help but heavily rock your pussy all slapping up against his face.

The friction is unbearable, it makes you sopping wet on top of already being shot up with a ton of cream. Which now faithfully drops right into Baekhyun’s awaiting mouth and his nostrils along the way. He just snorts it up, gathers it on his tongue, then swallows it down like it’s a mild cold. The noise is so disgusting, it’s so sexy. You didn’t know mermen were this hardcore. You bet your fangs Yukhei can’t do that.

Baekhyun keeps on slurping on your creampie like it’s a desert pudding, and puckers his brazen lips to suck your clit between giving it little kisses and licks. The point where you forgot not just your name but your hometown and birth day is already passed, with Baekhyun indulging your pussy like that, you even forgot about planet earth being a thing.  His petite „Aw pretty“ and „So tasty“ noises have you clenching up and wildy deepthroating whatever impossible length of his dick is still left.

It’s oozing out too much to deal with at this point, so you just let it flow into the bath water. Your mouth being so slobbery, Baekhyun’s cock pulsing in and out of it causes a wet, hollow noise. It’s strangely satisfying and dirty to hear, you just love it. The blood seeping into your mouth makes you spiral even deeper and resorting to drift off into a wonderworld again, blowing big pink cum bubbles while you’re dreaming of Baekhyun in a groom suit out of nowhere.

Swimming at the edge of a pool, he’s stroking your hair and admiring your skin that seems so completely without any veins. Cut to Baekhyun standing in the kitchen with an apron making pancakes, drizzled with what can’t possibly just normal strawberry sauce. He perfectly balances himself on his tail to stand upright, and you’re wearing a Christmas sweater signed by Christopher Lee and Bela Lugosi.

Image three, Baekhyun massaging your feet with his pretty hands while you watch Nosferatu Reloaded on television. He whispers sweet nothings but they mean everything to you. Image four, a big house with a nice water system inside, and on top of that, a really shapely coffin that smells so dusty and snugly by just looking at it, you’re enamored with no return. Oh my god, there’s a moth plague in that house, too, and the garden grows nightshade!

Swallowing the remaining semen, thick and marshmallow-y as it so savoringly is, you shift back to your senses. Shit, that was a ride. You have a hard time letting go of his cock, but he’s not sustaining it with a spell at this point. Rather, it closes back behind his scales. Probably regenerating, you sucked and performated the shit out of it. Preoccupied, Baekhyun is still busier than ever making your pussy his personal oozing face grave, he’s particularly enjoying the digging part with the tongue. You promise to unearth him once he’s zombiefied, can’t let the poor tiny merguy just drown in there.

To think that he could do all the things you saw makes you furiously thrust back and hear his face smack into you. All of the cum he pumped into you is slathered all over his mouth and makes it all the easier to get all the clit stimulation you want from his bottom lip in particular. That he catches a hang of it and moves right along doesn’t help with your arousal. Your entire lower body is so heated and bustling, any south-Texan bat cave is a joke compared to that.

You hardly catch a direct glimpse of what’s going on, but from the reflection in the tiles you can see that Baekhyun’s hair has changed its color to how it naturally grew according to Mark’s seemingly random chronicle recital on Monday. Baekhyun only ever does it when he’s really serious about something and vulnerable enough. You can tell be picked up the pace and makes sure not one lick will miss.

With that level of determination, Baekhyun is sure to earn your moans and shaky thighs after a mere minute or two. You think that because he’s part demon, his tongue is… a bit longer and pointier and stronger than the average merman’s. It’s simply how the genes tend to mix and your clit very well feels that. The way he’s driving in the tip of the tongue in rapid sequences that resemble Ten’s piano suites, you’re tipped over the edge hard enough to grab at his tail not to slip from the massive tremble that rocks you.

Your orgasm rolls your eyes back to places even ghouls could dream of, and the amount of pleasure is so strong that your hearing and vision sets out for a solid ten seconds. You just scream and moan and scream again, and Baekhyun’s face gets one massive cum shower all over again. He’s not shy to move his mouth and head around like a madman, so your cum ends up being stuck in his hair altogether. Through even more frantic sucking and kissing, he seeks to prolong your high for another fifteen seconds of blissed out grinding against his face. You drank so much blood, you

By now, your face must look so blown up with all that cum and Baekhyun marked up so relentlessly, even if his bite marks have closed by now, Kai must think you switched roles going by your scents.

„Really sorry for my big cock.“

„Your blood… does it cause random hallucinations or something of that sort, can you direct it in any way?“

„It causes prophetic visions in some cases, if you experience it clearly as an image it will come true. Did you see something?“

„Um. Lots of things. Let’s say I… liked what I saw.“

„Actually, don’t tell me. I like being surprised.“

„Doesn’t it take 50 years until the egg fertilizes?“

„47, 48 is usual. Mermen cum is really slow but it’ll get there.“

„Nice. Isn’t the firstborn always a girl?“

„Yep.“

„We’ll name her after the song that’s always on the human radio, what is it again. Janine?“

„Jolene I’m thinking. I think it was that kind of song.“

„Yeah, I like that. And in the meanwhile we have some time, do we.“

„We can just go on like that. What are you thinking?“

„Shit, shit. I’ll suck you dry, Baekhyun, you don’t even know.“

„My blood regenerates the fastest among all half-species. Shouldn’t be a problem.“

„And what will we do about Yukhei’s mating drive?“

„Don’t worry. He’ll smell it.“

You pull the bathtub plug with a heavy heart and begin washing Baekhyun down. The blood doesn’t seem to stick to him very easily, which is as unsurprising as you not getting it off your own body. Even with his whatever pricey merguy body scrub thingy thing that’s normally used to keep gills and scales in shape. Resorting to staying bloodied for the day is nothing you’ll particularly hate, though.

Ten minutes later, you find a very unsettled Yukhei standing at the window of your designated club office, not able to meet your eyes for more than a second. In that expensive black tux, and you… in your bathing robe with blood all over your hair, and just a pair of Baekhyun’s sparkling light blue and silver ‚i ♡ dolphins‘ socks he borrowed you. He can’t wear them anyway, but they were so cute that he ordered them online.

Very much naked underneath all that, and water running down your legs in drops, alongside— something that does not feel like water. You already plan to hop right back into the shower and do the rest of the cleaning. The sex is great, but vampire hygiene is a pain in the ass sometimes. The scent must be killing him. You don’t even have to sit down for the word spill to start.

„Y/N.“

„I told you I don’t like you sneaking in here.“

„After working out. And, you know my senses are always heightened after this…“

„What is it now, hellboy. Just cut to the chase.“

„Please let me talk for a minute. I came walking by in the northern corridor,“ he starts out low once again. „You talked about your wings sprouting and you were being open with him. So—“

„You listened to us!“

He keeps his lips tight, not granting any reply.

„Piece of shit, you! You’re an all-round asshole.“

The water contained in a silver jug on the office table goes right over Yukhei’s head. He doesn’t react, lets you poor it all over him stoically. You hope it’s particularly cold. Since the water is silver-infused, it stings him, but he takes it.

„I can’t switch my nose and ears off, even at such a distance. It… it just reeks, alright. I just heard what was going on without intending. The talk, the— I didn’t know what it would develop into.“

„From start to finish. Am I right?,“ you dig your nails into your palms. „And you didn’t just walk off like you fucking should. So stop blaming your ears or what topics we started out with or whatever! You talk about mating behind my back, you eavesdrop, you invade my office just like this. Do you think that’s gonna make me marry you on the spot?“

All the magical afterglow — ruined. You cast the jug into a random corner and prop down at your desk. Yukhei wipes the wet bangs out of his face and turns from the window to face you now.

„I’ll stop with all this. Okay. I don’t want to treat you like a crusade machine against my dad or just to satisfy me. I’m sorry if I’m like you said. I’m just a stupid voyeur. I really didn’t want to.“

Yeah. Of course.

„If I spied on you? You’d be kicking me out in a hearbeat,“ you cross your arms and leave them in deadlock. „And what, you’ll stop what?“

„Training you for your position and fighting dad’s army.“

„Eh.“

„I know very well that’s Kai’s job and mine.“

„No shit, Yukhei.“

„And that we should defend more and not just plan the attack. You don’t enjoy the training as much as the normal recruit. You said you’d rather be talking with Baekhyun and that you chose him as a mate.“

„You’ll change your program?“

„A lycan will respect a no. We’re determined but not a creep. And my nose works perfectly fine.“

„What?“

„I’ll be realistic, I don’t think I could satisfy you like him.“

Now that sounds very different from all he’s ever said. You turn your chair toward him and stare Yukhei down.

„I’m listening.“

„I’m not stupid, okay.“

„Inaccurate, but go on.“

„You’d… bite me once and either I bleed out if I control myself or go wolf when I don’t. That’s lose-lose.“

„So you got that all of a sudden,“ you murmur. Yukhei just keeps on talking. It’s almost a prepared monologue.

„I’m a wolf, okay. I only get it when I smell it.“

„That’s some weird shit but fair enough, Mark says that too.“

„You smell like you had almost nine liters in one go. The whole fucking mansion feels like a butchery just opened. How many times did you bite him, fifty, sixty?“

„As if I’m counting. Do you count down when you drink water? You have it easy, you’re normal when you’re not in the moonlight. I’m vampire all the time.“

„What I try to say is. I don’t boast that much regenerating ability even if I wish I had.“

„And you realize that only now.“

„I came here to be honest. I gravely underestimated Baekhyun. You bit his nape and he really enjoyed it.“

„Well thanks for the information. About my private business…“

Yukhei’s senses must be really sharp to discern all of this. He might have stood in the bathroom in person. And if he knows it, Kai does tenfold if he was anywhere near the house. His senses are time-tested and four times as trained.

„I know that doing a bite like that is a big deal in half-breed… couples.“

„You’d find that inacceptable for me to do on you, wouldn’t you.“

Silence again. You tap your feet. Yukhei ends up nodding.

„To the extrent of how you reacted when I grabbed you by the hair. We’re not much different. Trying to make someone ours. Call me possessive but you’re also territorial. You didn’t just bite his neck tonight.“

„You understand why I said we’re not compatible. then.“

Yukhei remains silent for a while after that.

„The tension between our kinds has a reason.“

„No way. Never thought of that. Totally groundbreaking news.“

„We’d probably kill each other when we fuck. Simply because of what we naturally do. We’re suited for other species. Baekhyun matches you very well with his abilities. I admit that even if it hurts my pride.“

„One man’s trash another man’s pleasure.“

„You’re not trash. You know you’re my MVP here. And Baekhyun is going to please you well himself. He’s not as selfish as I am. He’s 290 years old, he’s very experienced.“

„Your instincts are really dying for a mate, don’t they.“

„Just like you deflate to a literal zombie when you’re not drinking, I can’t go without my pack hierarchy being complete. You go stupid when you sense blood, I go stupid when my senses aren’t challenged and I have to suppress my form. It’s that easy.“

„Now tell me something I don’t know.“

You comb your fingers through your hair. It’s kind of comforting right now. Yukhei comes to sit at your desk now himself, opposite to you.

„I should have left you to your own devices when you picked your spot at the fire place already.“

„What do you mean?“

„We left you seven empty places, right.“

„So that was not a coincidence.“

„We spiked each cup with a blood probe of each member. Enough to emenate a scent, but small enough not to have you figure out which cup belongs to whom. Especially not in a room with so many people was it possible to tell that apart so it worked.“

And of course they put up flowers to further confuse you. It was all planned.

„Did you… you…“

„It was a test. I made it so that if was covert enough and fair to everyone.“

„Fair? What the hell did you do with me!“

„Find out whose blood you like the very most. It was my idea. I wanted to see if I have a chance with you or not.“

„That’s insidious.“

„You picked Baekhyun’s probe right away. And you even drank a second cup. That should’ve answered my question by that point.“

That’s why the blood in the cup was so strangely shimmery. You knew that was familiar when you slept with Baekhyun, but couldn’t connect the dots entirely because there was so much soap in the water.

„And you still kept on talking about mating with me?“

„I didn’t know about your heritage before you came to us.“

„So?“

„That gave me a second chance that I hoped you would reconsider. Because it’s tradition tha—“

You smack Yukhei right across the face with your right backhand.

„Never say that word again.“

„And you said you’re here to tell the truth anyway. It’s a shallow excuse to get with me.“

„I’m not denying that, Y/N.“

„It’s been clear to you who I like since our first words. You’re acting like you can bend me to your wishes. You tested me and knew I wasn’t into you. Why?“

„It’s like when you couldn’t take your eyes off your cup. We’re not far apart with our instincts.

„I never said that’s a lie, Yukhei.“

„You can’t expect me not to get the hots if you’re lying there on the table without your top on. And I already controlled myself. I did my best, alright.“

This man is infuriating. You wish you had more silver water to splash him with.

„Taemin was right, Taeyong should’ve done the examination. Touching me fucked with your virgin head. You’re just hunting some one-sided dream looking for some omega girl that fits into your ideology thing.“

„Well you’re right.“

„Unfortunate.“

„But at the same time at least acknowledge that I realized we wouldn’t fit together. I changed my mind about that prospect okay, I’m trying.“

„That you’d make the worst blood bank ever is already clear.“

„I really wouldn’t.“

„Just know that the next time you’re trying to own me or do your wolf stalking shit. Or try to mess with Baekhyun. I’ll be skinning your hairy back with Taeyong’s 17th-century silver dagger and use you as a mud boots doormat.“

„I’ll control my senses as good as I can.“

„Leave away the last part of the sentence.“

„I’ll control my senses.“

„Ma’am.“

„I’ll control my senses, Ma’am.“

„You’re one desperate little shit. Club president and you need to be trained like a rowdy dog. How old are you again?“

„Last time I checked, 21.“

„Not surprised Kai still calls you a puppy and Ten thinks you’re a giant baby.“

„I say, found your own club if you can’t handle it.“

„That would put it back to square one. The only problem is you being horny for the wrong person, the rest are only consequences.“

„As if I can control what my nose tells me. And you know that the very best.“

„You’re still mad your own test backfired,“ you remember the cups put up in the fireplace room.

„Is it wrong wishing you would’ve chosen my blood?“

„Yes, after I clearly made my pick.“

„Then that’s that.“

„That’s that.“

„So what are we gonna do?“

„You cut your wolfy shit, that’s all. It’s creepy. And don’t annoy Taeyong either. You got me? Just stay in your own lane.“

„If I can.“

„Are you the president or are you not?“

„Fair enough.“

Taeyong rings a bell, and you gather for some tea under the backyard Wisteria. Shrimps are served, and Taeyong even bothered to prepare a minestrone that’s wonderfully dark red. Lucas savagely chews on raw chicken wings, Ten relaxes in a hammock, Mark writes, Taemin knits, and Baekhyun plays in the nearby pool, watching and listening and chatting, upbeat as always.

Kai arrives the very last in his post-jog showering robe, but greets you the very loudest in front of everyone.

„Hey, hey! I heard you waterboarded yourself to get some soapy red juice!“

Some confusion at his word choice, some giggles.

„So that’s been making the roun—“

„Amazing! That’s my girl,“ Kai burst out and pats you on the back so passionately, it feels like a freight train hits you.

„O—okay?“

„That greed is all I ever wanted to bring out in training! Where was that determination when we peeled garlic? I tried every method in the book to get you to that point!“

Awkward silence among the members. Then, some shrugs. Mark seems to be the only one who doesn’t get it. Figures, half-goblins don’t have hyper-developed senses. Thank God, his innocent soul. The club chronicles would be filled with details of you doing all sorts of things in a bath tub because Mark never leaves out anything unless he’s currently dropping a pen out of nervousness. Which doesn’t happen anymore.

„Kai, um… I still don’t think you understand what really motivates a vampire,“ Taeyong scratches his head, with you well-aware that he can smell merman blood across the entire house without even trying himself.

„So, what is it, then?“ Kai puffs himself up, arms crossed. „I’m the fucking trainer of how many species again? I should know best!“

It doesn’t take two seconds for a heated discussion to break out. The Venerable Pyramid of Essential Vampire Needs — which author defined it the most accurately? Which peer-reviewed vampire journals are trustworthy? Which interviewed populace is the most reflective of all vampirekind? Serbia, Romania, Turkey, Russia, Greece, overseas?

Everybody wants to weigh in: Taeyong and Mark at the forefront, with Kai and Lucas saying the exact opposite of what they expertly claim just because. Ten starts trolling them with made-up facts („a vampire’s #1 need is premium cellar dust!“), Taemin unsuccessfully tries to calm everybody down with a theory that considers all perspectives, and the tea gets colder and colder.

In the meantime, you squat down at the pool and muse over Baekhyun’s hair in the wind. You twirl it and tell him he’s gorgeous. He whispers just how good you smell. Why debate about essential vampire needs when it’s all right before your eyes.

Thinking about it. It was all about which relationship was mutual. That’s what the decision had been all about, and yes, it had been crystal clear from the very start. Lucas desperately wanted you, but it was one-sided. Mark was flustered by you, but didn’t make a move, nor did you have feelings for him. Taeyong you loved, but his age and mentor status were incompatible with turning it into a relationship. You understood him, but it was motivated by an admiration — there was a pedestal, which again made it one-sided. Ten was a mystery, it wasn’t clear on either part, and leaving each other guessing was no good sign instead of going about your ways. Kai was a compelling man, but had his piece of cake and aspired to different things. Baekhyun — he loves you and you love him.

A powerful engine revvs in the nearby garage, then, the motor stops. Onto the Wisteria jogs Ten with a huge bag of groceries.

„Hello, hello!“

Everybody greets him and picks their favorite snack from his bag. He really thought of everything. Yukhei and Jongin get a huge pile of meat from the car trunk’s cooling box. As a crowning finale, Ten presents you with the latest newpaper. The front page splayed out on the Wisteria’s main table causes everyone to steer and gasp.

SHOCKING!

SATAN’S HEAVENLY RETURN

Ruling hell too stressful after all?

„Rumor has it the King finally got bored of chatting with God and kicked out Satan from the 9th circle without much further ado.“

„No way!“ you toss and turn the newspaper. Five whopping pages are filled with cover story details.

„So dear horned guy went back to where he came from,“ Ten shrugs, then points at the snapshots all over the newspaper. „I mean look at it. This is all just a big ole jealousy drama.“

Who knows God talked some sense into Lucifer.

„I know that dad was getting envious about the King associating with the arch angels,“ Yukhei says. You start to get why. Satan had the privileges of being an archangel for who knows how long until he reached puberty and rebelled or whatever.

„Doesn’t that mean dad has the throne back now?“ you ask.

„Yup,“ Ten turns to page three, where @king_beli’s instagram feed is filled with selfies of the 9th circle, posing with Sisyphus, and throwing peace signs in a sulphurous-looking throne hall. 666,000 likes after just 6 hours. If that’s not a good sign.

You keep on debating how exactly Satan got kicked out so effortlessly until Taeyong rolls in a little swirly metal wagon after the tea is finished. On top of it: An almost ancient relic that Alexander Graham Bell probably built himself.

„Sir, the Hell Telephone might be a good idea right now.“

„Your turn Y/N,“ Yukhei declines, ushering Taeyong to bring the wagon to your side of the table. You dial and wait roughly half a minute.

„Sorry, I was partying,“ a voice creaks through the old speaker. „How can I help? Isn’t this Club Daemon speaking? Is it who I think it is?“

„Hey dad.“

„It is!“

„Hello. You’ve heard about me, then.“

„Yup yup! That you’re Yukhei’s personal dog trainer is what Kai wrote me on Whatsapp! Did you really pour silver water on him? That’s funny as hell!“

„Oh God.“

„I say that a lot these days as well, man. Sorry, we have some music blasting here by the way!“

„Hey dad, what actually happened with God and Satan?“

„Ah, long ass story. Satan chickened out recently, hell is one hell of a job you know. New job opportunity for me. But you gotta take it easy and have fun.“

„I can tell.“

A spitfire verse of what sounds like Megan Thee Stallion is currently pumping through the telephone. Ten grooves right along in his hammock, smiling way too ominously. You can tell he knows every bar by heart. He’s been listening to the human radio way too much during his errants.

„I’m only stressed because the furniture is terrible.“

„The what?“

„In the years of my absence, horned geezer got a little too creative with the design, you know. I’m more of a romantic.“

„So… you just moved in there just because.“

„You could say that, yeah!“

Confused shrugging among the club members. Belial keeps on babbling and blasting something else at the other end of the line. It must be K-Pop or something like that.

„Talk about romance, I hear you have a mate?“

„Yeah dad, it’s Baekhyun.“

„Oh him? I’ve heard of that guy! The merman!“

„He’s really sweet.“

„Make many cute demon babies alright. That would be so adorable. I’m all ready to cuddle wuddle them. I actually came up with baby name suggestions.“

„Dad!“

„You know, 80 years ago. I met your mom…“

„Dad, I don’t wanna hear your love stories. Rather tell me what happened to mom. What did Satan do?“

„Listen here. That was a stupid rumor Azazel was spreading because he’s a gossip man!“ Belial rages at the other end of the line. „Your mom was 8906, alright. She died of diabetes. You got adopted by humans she found trustworthy and planned to be your caretakers.“

„That was all planned?!“

„You were… a bit too young for hell back then. She wanted to leave you the choice later on in life whether you want to be in a clan or come here, or neither of that. I know being a half-breed isn’t easy. And you should get into all these worlds by your own devices. I learned about all of this only much later you see. I’ve been hanging out in the clouds for some time. It’s pretty chill there. But now I’m happy to hear from you.“

„Yeah.“

„If you got anything you need paid? Rent, marriage, car, diapers? Just ask me when needed.“

„I dunno…“

Looks like your dad is a rather forward thinker indeed. Well, least he thought it through.

„If you need it spontaneously and I’m not available, just force Yukhei to give you some pocket money.“

„I don’t have to force him. He already does that without me even asking.“

„That’s what I call a great president!“

„He literally thinks my bank account is free real estate where he can dump anything. I can’t even manage all that,“ you roll your eyes, with Yukhei grinning his most satisfied smile at the end of the table.

On the more unsatisfied end, Kai is about to jump up and sock him in the chest. You know damn well his salary hasn’t been increasing since Yukhei discovered his unsolicited Sugar Daddy hobby. You can buy Baekhyun some extra cotton candy now, but you’ll have to figure out a way to transfer some pocket money to Kai yourself. Now really, he’s been training the shit out of you.

„Even better! Cheers to him. He’s too straight for his own good sometimes though. Anyways. You can drop by as soon as we cleaned up here. We’ll open the circles of hell completely next month.“

„Okay, that’s good news!“

„Once you get pregnant, make sure you two find a flaming cave apartment on the east side! You really wanna raise your kids here. Hellraiser, get it?“

„The east side is too hot for Baekhyun. His tub water would just evaporate, man.“

„Oh! Then the west side. A nice penthouse with panoramic views on a volcano. You’ll get a baking Pompeii face mask every time you’re stepping out! There’s so much ash raining down, your kid can do snow angels on every pavement. Don’t worry, I’ll pay for everything.“

In the meantime, the party guests are blasting Caramelldansen in the background and louds clapping numbs your ears.

„Dad…. you realize you have a lot of clown energy, right? Do you even hear me?“

„Talk about clowns, actually,“ the king carries on completely unbothered. „Mammon really wants to see Kai too, I think he’s missing him. He’s calmed down a little after the Corona crisis messed with his bank account.“

Commotion at the table. Kai almost chokes on his cold tea.

„That’s unexpected… I thought he’d never do that.“

„Yeah aw, I know,“ your father says. „Satan has spread a lot of fake news while he was here, you see.“

„We’re glad to be welcome then? That sounds like a good idea to meet up some time. Maybe for a day or two.“

„Strike! I convinced you!“

„Yeah, you did…“

„Few of you saw hell back in the day, right?“

„Yukhei, Kai, I dunno who else, Ten I’m guessing.“

Nods from the hammock. Wouldn’t be strange if Ten was a regular hell driver.

„Oh Ten! Greet Ten from me. His instagram is what I aspire to. Ten is the coolest. Even the ghouls I know don’t have that kind of fashion sense.“

„Will do.“

„And— about aspirations. We’ll be talking about your heir thing when the time is right you see, I know you want to know about all of this.“

You perk up, as do the club members.

„It’s a thing for the future. I’m not hellbent or anything,“ you say, tongue in cheek.

„Hah! You’re funny. I see we’re agreeing on this. You’re very busy with Baekhyun, right. Love is priority. Hell later. This place is a lot to handle anyway.“

„…exactly.“

„I know my daughter and I didn’t even meet her yet!“

Taeyong does a little aw noise in the background and even Yukhei has to smile.

„I’ll probably tell the same stories you do and blast the same music in a couple years, I can see it coming.“

„And that’s when you’re ready for the throne. Remember—“

„Gotta keep it easy and make it fun.“

„You got it. Until then, live a tense life man, that’s also needed.“

„Dad, what the hell!“

„I actually mean it. Leave it to your old man to get this 9th circle popping in the meantime.“

You get the image of your father watching youtube music videos all day and trying to keep up with the latest slang words on twitter.

„Okay, crazy old man.“

„At your service!“

It almost makes you laugh how the old generation of full-breed demons is completely gone wild and the youngsters are the opposite. Well, except the half-lycans, but they’re always living on the edge anyway.

„Can I speak to Mister Lee as well? Is he around?“

„Mark or Taeyong or Taemin? We have a lot of Lees.“

„Um, the butler guy.“

„Taeyong, here it goes. See you dad!“

You pass the hellephone, Taeyong poises himself.

„Hey there, young man!“

„Not that young. 552, Sire.“

„Hilarious, you can’t even get a Styx boat license around here at that age. Anyway. Got some news for you.“

„Yes, Mister?“

„Mammon recently splurged on the latest robo fancy schmancy tech stuff from Japan for no reason. I guessed you would want to try one on.“

„Pardon— Try on what?“

„Oh, a prosthetic exo-skeleton I mean. I heard you had beef with the loopy guy. Just drop by whenever.“

„A prosthetic arm aid?“

„Well yes!“

„That’s… that’s very kind of you.“

„No problem! Is the your Professor X available to speak to as well?“

„Of course, Sire, one moment,“ Taeyong composes himself, but you can tell he’s still processing it.

Everybody is on the edge of their seat.

„Hi down there,“ Lucas takes the speaker and leans back in his seat very laxly. Compared to how defeated he looked in your office, his posture is much more unwound now.

„Hi up there, Lucas what’s good?“

„Doing mighty fine these days. You gave us a good headline.“

„Oh, you’re very welcome Mister President. There’s headlines about me?“

The King sounds genuinely surprised.

„Yeah. You’ll have to add me in Kai’s Whatsapp group or give me your number. I’ll update you on these types of things.“

„Note down 1666 2666 3666, and I have some updates for you as well.“

Mark and Taeyong instantly start scribbling the number into their vest notebooks, meanwhile Lucas swirls the tea in his cup around.

„Shoot.“

He begins drinking it.

„Mister Cerberus’ daughter graduated today. Canine sciences. Lovely girl, calls herself Circe, you know, like the evil witch. Very intelligent person. She’s looking for a job and a mate in the upper world. I told her about the Club’s situation and you know, gossipped a little. She says she’s interested in you.“

Lucas spits out the tea.

„Sorry, what?“

„Hey, do you really think you’re not a man in demand? Anybody who studies werewolves knows about you. And you have free membership spots, or is that information outdated?“

„I-Is she a half-breed?“

„Of course, do you think Mister Cerberus would date another demon? That would make no sense! Hell, wouldn’t that be beastitality or something? Is it that what you call it?“

„Uh… Bestiality I thought, Sir.“

„Anyways. I haven’t seen Cerberus with anyone else but werewolves.“

„Werewolves are the closest genetically to hell hounds, Mister President,“ Mark leans in confidentially to brief Yukhei. „It’s good conduct for them to date.“

„Oh, uh, I get it.“

„So, do you want to meet her or not?“

„We, we have free spots all the way!“

„Great then, I’ll send her up the staircase now. She’ll be there in a minute or so.“

„The stai—!”

© 2017-2021 submissive-bangtan. all rights reserved. no reposts allowed.

[captastra]

Day One

Fandom: The Outer Worlds

Prompts: word: protective, setting: high school AU

Words: 1.6k

Summary: Rhea has an interesting morning as she sets off for her first day at her new high school. @writersmonth

“Hey look out!”

Rhea jumped back in surprise as a car sped dangerously close to where she was about to step out onto the street. She felt the wind from the car race past her, blowing her hair quickly around her face and setting her heart racing.

“Watch it, asshole.” A low voice rang out behind her but Rhea was too focused on trying to calm her heart beat. It hadn’t registered what had happened until the car had already passed, that she had been so close to danger. She hadn’t even started her first day of school before…

A slight pressure on her arm brought her back to where she stood. Turning, Rhea saw a young man standing next to her. He had messy black hair, olive skin, and beautiful hazel eyes that stared back at her in concern.

“Are you new or somethin’,” he motioned to the intersection while holding a skateboard in his hand. “Everyone knows to watch out for this corner. You’d think being right next to a school would make people slow down but that never seems important to those assholes.”

Rhea watched numbly as the boy continued to talk animatedly about what just happened. She was taken back by his energy and ability to talk without taking a breath. It seemed like he could talk forever, but Rhea wasn’t keen on being late for her first day.

“Uh yeah, I’m new.” She stepped back, glancing up at the sign. “I’ll make sure to watch out for this one in the future. Thanks.”

She gave him a smile and was surprised when he immediately stopped talking. It seemed like he could have gone on forever. Maybe if she knew him better it would have been endearing but she really needed to get going.

He reached his hand up to rub the back of his neck as he shuffled his feet. “Don’t mention it. Wouldn’t want you to get hurt and all.”

They stood there awkwardly for a moment. Rhea was never good with words and the last thing she needed was to make a fool of herself today. He seemed nice but anyone could seem nice.  Until they weren’t.

“Well, uh, I gotta go.” Rhea waved her hand down the cross walk, not wanting to be rude but still needing to leave.

“Oh duh.” He dropped his skateboard to the ground, placing one foot preciously on it. “I’ll leave you to it.” He started to skate off but hollered back at her over his shoulder. “Be care”- he swerved slightly to miss a car - “careful out there.”

Rhea stared at him in amazement as he sped off down the sidewalk. She couldn’t fathom how one person could be concerned about her almost getting hit by a car and then proceed to do the same exact thing she had.

“What a strange boy.”

20 minutes later

The clicks of a mechanical keyboard echoed through the office as the secretary typed away at her computer. Mixed with the clock ticking away the seconds and buzzing of the fluorescent lights, Rhea was a bundle of nerves. She didn’t have anyone who could have. Dropped her off at school and no one at this new school to welcome her.

She hated it.

“Principal Rockwell will be right with you dear.” The secretary - Gladys she told Rhea to call her - gave Rhea a warm smile before  turning back to whatever she was working on at her computer.

“That’s alright.” It wasn’t but Rhea kept her thoughts to herself.

School had already started and Rhea did not want to walk into a class where all eyes would be focused on her, the new kid. She had to stop herself from making a disgruntled noise as she thought about that nightmare.

Grin and bear it, she reminded herself.

The silence continued and Rhea was nearly ready to speak up when she heard loud noises outside the door. A second later and the door swung open abruptly. An older women with a stern face ushered in the same boy Rhea had run into earlier that morning. His face was twisted into a sneer as he talked back to the woman.

“I wasn’t even doing anything Akande.” He threw his bag onto the floor as he dropped into a chair a few seats down from her. “Just admit you have it out for me already. You can’t fit everyone into your perfect lit...”

“Enough.” Her tone was as sharp as the look she gave him, stopping him from talking further. “I am not out to get you. I’m trying to help you from screwing up your life. With the princip…”

She didn’t continue when she realized they weren’t alone in the room.

“You must be Rhea Hawthorne.” It wasn’t a question.

Rhea felt herself shrink slightly under the woman’s intense gaze but she tried her best to hold herself up high as she spoke, “Yes ma’am.”

This got a slight smile from the woman. A snort from the boy next to her.

“You know,” Akande turned her gaze back to the boy, who only glared back up at her. “You could learn a thing or two from her. I am the assistant principal, Sophia Akande. Your last school had nothing but good things to say about you, Ms. Hawthorne.” Akande gave her a small smile. “Mr. Millstone, I’ll be seeing you this afternoon for detention.”

“For what?” The boy’s face grew red as he yelled at Akande. “I. Didn’t. Do anything.”

But his complaints went unnoticed as Akande made her way into her office. She shut the door with a resounding click, leaving the rest of the office in a moment of silence.

Rhea sat there silently, trying to process everything that had just happened. She glanced over to where the boy sat. He sat slouched in the chair, his leg bouncing up and down restlessly, while he glared down at the floor.

She wanted to speak up, say something to see if he was ok, but she thought better of it. It’s not as if she could actually offer any support. What would she know? It’s not her job to be protective of someone she didn’t even know.

“Rhea Hawthorne?”

Looking up, Rhea saw an older man in a perfectly tailored suit step out of the principal’s office. He was holding a folder in his hand and staring at her with a look of indifference.

“Uh, yes?” She scooted forward in her seat and sat up straight. She couldn’t help but glance over at the boy one last time but quickly looked away when she saw he was staring back at her.

“My name is Principal Rockwell. Welcome to Halycon High School. You’ll be shadowing Parvati here for the next few days as you get adjusted to our new school.” A young girl came out from behind the Principal. She hugged her bag tightly to her chest and didn’t look up as the Principal spoke. “We look forward to having someone of your caliber at our school” - Rhea caught the glare he shot at the boy next to her - “and have high expectations from you. Felix Millstone, I’ll see you in my office now.”

He waited by his door as the boy, Felix, made a big show of getting up and walking into his office. But as he passed Rhea, he turned to her and said, “Good luck, new girl,” before heading into Principal Rockwell’s office.

She barely got out a thanks before the door was shut rather forcefully behind him. Ignoring the loud voices that started to sound from the office, Rhea got up and walked over to Parvati.

“Hi, I’m Rhea,” she offered her hand to Parvati, who stared at it for a moment before shaking her hand. Rhea was surprised at how rough Parvati’s hands were but didn’t say anything. “Sorry you’re stuck with me for a while.”

“It’s no problem,” she gave Rhea a big smile and shook her hand with extreme vigor. “Principal Rockwell was going over your classes and we ended up having all of the same classes! I’m super excited to show you around but we should probably head to class. Ms. Hagen isn’t one for tardiness in general so she’ll want us there right away.”

“Oh, ok. Lead the way.”

But as they started to walk out of the office, Rhea glanced over her shoulder to look at the principals office. Gladys showed no sign of being bothered by the loud noises coming from the office behind her. She continued to type away at the computer without missing a beat.

“Hey what about that boy?” Her curiosity finally got the best of her and Parvati was there to help her out for a bit. “Does that happen a lot?”

“Hmm Felix?” Parvati glanced back to where Rhea was looking. A sad smile appeared on her face as she shook her head. “Yeah, he ends up in there all the time. Don’t get me wrong. He’s a good kid, but it seems no matter what he does he’s always causing trouble. It’s probably best just to steer clear if you don’t want to get in trouble with Principle Rockwell.”

“Huh.” Rhea didn’t realize she had stopped to look in the office until Parvati started pulling at her arm.

“Don’t worry about him right now. We should get to class.” The whine in Parvati’s voice finally broke through Rhea’s thoughts.

“Right, sorry.” Rhea let herself be pulled by Parvati. But as she followed Parvati to her classroom, Rhea’s thoughts wandered to her day so far. The interesting morning she had, the possibilities of what this school year would hold for her at this new school. All of this left her wondering, what would happen next?

[buck-buck-boose]

I'll Love You 'Til I Die

Masterlist | Playlist

Summary: A Brooklyn schoolgirl fell in love with James Buchanan Barnes at the tender age of nine. With this love she made a vow, promising to love him until her very last breath.

Pairing: Bucky x OFC

Warnings: language, mentions of violence and gore (not too graphic)

Word Count: 3.4k

Author's Note: The story is starting to pick up pace again ;)

Chapter Twenty: The Recruits

March 18, 1943

In the two months following the nurses’ success with the serum, Camp Lehigh had nearly tripled in its inhabitants. Throughout their research and training, the five women were surrounded by fuddy-duddy sergeant majors and their crotchety commanders, with Agent Carter as their only equal; by the end of January, hundreds of recruits were being shipped in. The base seemed to be teeming with fresh-faced boys who thought not of the unforgiving grip of death, but of the blazing glory of victory— the gore and trauma of war meant little to them, but Lottie knew that she would have an intimate relationship with the horrors of war.

Sometimes all she dreamt of was blood. Blood on her hands, on her white dress, and oozing in puddles beneath her feet; the crimson color seemed to stain every inch of her skin, streaking her pale flesh with a sickeningly deep red. She told no one about her dreams because they seemed so foolish to her. Lottie hadn’t experienced a day in fieldwork, and here she was having these nightmares about the gore of war.

The ambient sounds of Camp Lehigh drew her out of her thoughts and grounded her.

Lottie was standing alone, rather dazedly, outside of the nurses’ barracks, observing all the commotion surrounding the recruits. She was still getting used to the chaotic environment that unfolded around her; everywhere she looked, there were lines of marching soldiers, followed hotly by shouting commanders, or trucks careening around buildings, as if always running late for some rendezvous. Gone were the days of picnicking in the grass and basking in the sun— the base was now all hustle and bustle, with little time for leisure.

All the activity had thrown a wrench into her combat training; Agent Carter had been training her on an individual basis with both firearms and knives, but the soldiers now needed more training than she did. Lottie had become more than proficient in the use of her M1911, which left her wanting to learn more. On the advice of Agent Carter, she’d taken up the KA-BAR and they had begun training with the knife only a few weeks prior. She was more than a little disappointed by the abrupt end to their training, but Lottie understood that training the men who would be doing the actual fighting was the higher priority. The one saving grace of Camp Lehigh was that the base was outfitted with two obstacle courses for physical training so the nurses could continue their exercises each morning. Although their combat training was put on hold, they could continue preparing their bodies for the stress of war.

A distinctly male voice interrupted her train of thought— was that a Brooklyn accent she heard?

“Hey sugar! You rationed?”

Lottie blinked for a moment and looked to her right. A group of men stood outside their own barracks, sharing a pack of cigarettes. She easily identified the man who’d spoken by the way he smiled at her; it was the same charming, lopsided grin that she’d seen on Bucky’s face countless times. His brilliantly blond hair caused a tug at her heartstrings; it was almost the same shade as Steve’s. That’s where the resemblance stopped, though; his eyes were a chestnut brown and his build was sturdier.

Lottie didn’t move from her spot, “Is that your way of asking if a lady’s got a fella waiting for her back home?”

The soldier’s grin only seemed to grow at the sound of her own Brooklyn accent, “A Brooklyn gal, eh? A woman after my own heart. What’s your name, doll?”

“I’m Lottie Green. But that’s Lieutenant Green to you, Private.” She smirked, relishing in her title. The year before, Congress had authorized the promotion of Army nurses to the ranks of Second Lieutenant, granting them positions of power in a largely male environment.

The soldier ambled over to her, flicking the ashes from the butt of his cigarette.

“Ah, so you’re one of those girls they hired to patch us up, then? I always knew there’d be choirs of angels when I died, but I didn’t know they’d send ‘em to fix us up when we’re wasting away.” He was a flirt, that was for sure, but she felt a pang of annoyance at his belittling of her profession

She wasn’t just some ‘girl’ who was shipped out to slap Band-Aids on his scratches and send him on his way with a pat on the head. She’d spent the last year of her life dedicated to formulating the perfect Super Soldier Serum. Lottie was a woman— a powerful woman who would one day hold the lives of so many men in her hands.

Lottie mustered up a wry smile, “While I haven’t got a fella back home, Private, a medic tent isn’t exactly ideal for courtship, is it?”

Without waiting for a response, she departed and made her way toward the obstacle course that was currently in use. Dr. Erskine had requested that the nurses of Project Rebirth be present for some of the recruits’ training sessions since they would be the best opportunities to scout out candidates for America’s first Super Soldier. These candidates would not only need to be physically capable but also morally incorruptible. An aspect of the serum that was discussed briefly was how it had amplified Schmidt’s already malicious personality; if they made the same mistake by administering it to a man of morally questionable character, they could have another failure on their hands.

When Lottie neared the obstacle course, she caught the tail end of Colonel Phillips’ speech to this batch of recruits.

“—but every army starts with one man. At the end of this week, we will choose that man. He will be the first in a new breed of Super Soldiers.”

Lottie barely had time to glance at the recruits who were lined up a handful of yards away from her. A clipboard had been thrust into her hands, stacked with papers that listed the soldiers’ names, dates of birth, and measurements. She scanned the pages, barely registering any information due to the sheer amount of it; it was too overwhelming to process properly.

“I heard Colonel Phillips has taken a real liking to Gilmore Hodge,” Gladys whispered, shuffling her papers.

Betty made a disapproving noise, “Agent Carter socked that guy in the kisser. No way in hell he’s our guy.”

“I agree!” Mary piped up, “His moral character is real atrocious.”

Nancy seemed to be torn, “He is the most promising recruit thus far. Sure, he’s gotta work on his manners, but gosh, even his measurements set him apart from the rest.”

Lottie hummed in thought and finally looked up to watch the recruits in action, her eyes narrowed. For the most part, the soldiers got through the net climbing efficiently and descended the other side with ease, but a particular recruit was struggling to get a sure footing in the netting. Her heart started pounding in her ears— she knew that build, that stature. It couldn’t be, he’d been rejected at the enlistment. Sure enough, the soldier lost his footing and fell with his other foot still caught in the ropes.

Lottie’s breath caught in her throat as she stared at the flushed face of one of her childhood best friends. In the distance, she could hear a sergeant berating him for his clumsiness, but her attention could not be torn away from his face. She was at a loss as to what to do; he obviously hadn’t seen her but she couldn’t call out to him to get his attention, as that would land him in more trouble than he was already in.

“Poor guy,” Mary murmured, wincing in sympathy. It seemed that she’d also noticed the trouble that Steve had been having.

“Yeah,” Lottie replied lamely, biting at her lip in anxious thought.

What would she even say to him if he saw her? Would he even acknowledge her? She knew she’d just about die if she had to undergo a silent treatment from Steve. But she deserved it, she was sure. There wasn’t a day that had gone by where she didn’t think of her boys back home. She often found herself lying in bed late at night, staring at the ceiling and listening to the breathing patterns of the other nurses in the barracks. Lottie would roll her lucky penny between her fingers and think of her best friends back home. Were they asleep? Or out at the dance hall again, trying to woo some women into a couple of dates for the next night? She prayed nightly for their safety; their safekeeping. It was a fool’s prayer, she knew— it was a war, after all. But that never stopped her from begging God on high to protect her most beloved friends.

The commotion of the obstacle course had died down, but the yells of the sergeants had not died down; it seemed that they were to continue their training elsewhere.

Betty noticed Lottie’s lost look, “They’re having ‘em run the trail.” She gestured to the tree line where they would usually do their morning runs.

Gladys looked over her clipboard, “I think it’d be best if we head back to the mess hall and grab a bite to eat. We can talk all of this,” she gestured to their clipboards, stacked high with papers, “once we’ve all got full stomachs and clear minds. I hope you all took notes, ‘cause I sure did!”

Lottie was silent on the way to the mess hall, still reeling from the fact that Steve had somehow been recruited for the military. There had to have been some mistake; he’d most likely spend more time in her medic tent than on the battlefield. Running into battle would have him hospitalized even before an enemy could manage to hit him.

They sat in their usual spot at the back of the mess hall, at a table in the corner that had been pushed up against a wall; it kept them out of the way and allowed them a sense of privacy from the other staff members. Lottie absentmindedly peeled at an orange while she listened to the conversation of her friends.

“If we can’t have Hodge for the serum, I think Johnson might be a promising guy!”

Betty laughed, “Do you really think that or do you just like the way he looks in his fatigues, Mary?”

“Gosh, I just think they bring out the green in his eyes! Either way, he’s certainly got the build for it.”

“He’s such a knucklehead, though. He couldn’t figure out the proper way to hold his rifle while he went under the barbed wire. He was practically dragging it through the mud by its strap.” Betty rolled her eyes, unimpressed with the performances of most of the men during training.

There was some continued discussion on the topic, but it was interrupted by the entrance of dozens of soldiers. They needed no introduction, as the sounds of their hoots and hollers, as well as the aroma of their body odor, heralded their arrival at the mess hall. Lottie shot to her feet, unable to stop herself from searching the sea of men for a scrawny man with too much pluck for his own good. The men milled about as they grabbed trays of food and seated themselves, loudly conversing about the training they’d just experienced.

Finally, Lottie’s eyes locked with those of a scrawny blond guy who looked as if he’d just seen a ghost. He was all the way at the other end of the mess hall, but that didn’t matter, she rushed to him as quickly as she could. She so desperately wanted to hug him before he could turn and run from her. She knew that her silly display was surely catching the attention of other soldiers, but she couldn’t quite bring herself to care; she hadn’t seen one of her best friends in over a year, dammit! She walked quickly between the tables to where he stood by the food line.

“Stevie,” Lottie choked out, crushing him in a tight hug. Tears threatened to escape her eyes, but she refused to make a scene in front of half of the recruits.

“Lottie I—” Steve began, “I dunno what to say. Why are you here? Why did you lie?”

He asked the questions with such earnest bewilderment, with sincere sorrow that nearly destroyed Lottie. He didn’t seem angry with her at all; he was instead deeply hurt, and it was all because of her. When she pulled away from their embrace, she saw the pain in his eyes and recognized it— it was the same pain she had felt when thinking of Steve and Bucky, praying for their safety.

Lottie was becoming acutely aware of the attention they were attracting but that was the least of her concerns at the moment. If Colonel Phillips caught wind of their little embrace, he would surely berate her about relationships with the soldiers, as he couldn’t fathom the idea of a platonic relationship between a nurse and one of his men. She would deal with that situation at a later time. At that moment, Lottie knew that an apology and explanation were long overdue. She planned on apologizing to him sincerely in private, but she knew that an explanation could not wait.

She grabbed Steve’s wrist and pulled him towards the table at the back of the hall, “Please trust me, Steve. I can explain everything, but I’m gonna need their help.” Lottie jerked her head in the direction of the other nurses, “What I did was real crummy of me, I know, and I’ll apologize over and over until the day I die, but I promise that it needed to be done. The girls over here will help me explain it all so you can understand.”

“Well, who do we have here?” Betty questioned as they approached, arching a carefully plucked brow.

Steve awkwardly shifted his weight and shoved his hands in his pockets, obviously intimidated by her steady gaze and cool demeanor, “Steve Rogers, ma’am.”

Mary’s eyes lit up, “One of Lottie’s Brooklyn boys! Now do tell me, where is Private Barnes? Because I absolutely must meet the man that our Lottie is so infa—”

Before she could finish her sentence, Gladys kicked her shin under the table and answered the question for Steve, “I’ve looked through every file Dr. Erskine has given to us and there’s no Private Barnes here.”

Lottie shot Gladys a grateful smile, albeit a weak one. She cleared her throat and addressed the group of women before her, “I promised Steve here that I’d explain why I fell off the face of the Earth for a solid year, but I’ll need your help filling in all the details.”

It took nearly an hour to catch Steve up on all the events of the past year. The nurses gave him as much information as they could, though there was certain classified information that they were privy to— the formula for the Super Soldier Serum —but could not be shared with anyone outside of Project Rebirth. Steve interrupted regularly to pose questions about different aspects of their research, obviously invested in all the work they’d done for Dr. Erskine and Mr. Stark. When they recounted their experiences testing the prototype serum on various tissue samples, he went a sickly shade of green, so they quickly ended that train of thought. They glossed over the details of how they finished the serum and their discovery of how Vita-Ray Radiation affected its ingredients. His brow seemed to furrow exponentially with every scientific term used

“And that’s the skinny on what we’ve been up to for the past year,” Gladys finished, holding back a giggle at Steve’s overwhelmed facial expression.

“Thank you, ladies,” Lottie smiled and rose from her seat, gesturing for Steve to follow, “Steve and I are gonna step outside for a moment.” She led him across the mess hall and outside; they came to a stop after they rounded the corner of the building. She stood against the wall, fidgeting with the hem of her jacket sleeve.

“Stevie, I owe you an apology. After the attacks I just knew that the world would go to shit,” Lottie felt her eyes start to water, “and well— it’s my job as a nurse to save lives, y’know? I couldn’t just stay home and twiddle my thumbs while everyone else went to take care of our boys overseas. And I know Bucky made me promise not to and all that, but I’d already enlisted. I knew if I told him the truth, we’d fight, and I’d have left you two on a really sour note, which isn’t what I wanted at all.”

“So, you decided it would be better to lie about going to your parents’ for Christmas and leave the two of us wondering for months?” Steve’s tone wasn’t scathing but the question still cut deep.

Lottie sniffled and knew that there was little she could do to hold back the tide of tears that would surely start flowing, “I was being horribly selfish; I knew it would hurt the both of you but I was just so afraid and uncertain about it all. I knew you two would get real concerned for me and I just didn’t want that. Plus, you have to understand, Stevie, when I enlisted, they offered me a position in a high-level government organization. I couldn’t tell anyone about my whereabouts or where I would be going— all I could say was that I would be training for the Nurse Corps. It wasn’t fully my choice to keep these things from you and Bucky; it would’ve been risky to tell anyone about the SSR or what I would be doing for them. I know you two would’ve been good about keeping it a secret, but I was still so afraid, Steve. I didn’t want to let the SSR down, so I guess that meant I had to let you two down instead.” She stared at her shoes, letting the tears roll down her cheeks and fall to the dirt below.

“Thank you for telling me the truth, Lottie. It really hurt me when I realized you weren’t coming back. I understand where you were coming from, though I don’t agree with what you did. I forgive you, but Bucky— he, well,” Steve shook his head sadly, “You should’ve seen him when he got back from bootcamp and you weren’t at the station, Lottie. Worried out of his mind, he was. I’d written to your folks a month or so earlier; it was mid-January so I knew something was up. They told me you’d joined the Corps, but didn’t know where you’d been sent. I told him everything I’d learned and he hasn’t been the same since; he was always on edge. Even the night before he was shipped out to England, when we went out with Bonnie and Connie—”

“England?” Lottie’s voice was weak with disbelief. She shouldn’t have been surprised, he was going to be deployed at some point, after all. Somehow, it still hit her like a punch to the gut.

She held onto the hope that they were at least exchanging letters to check in with each other. “Have you kept in contact with him at least?”

“I didn’t think to get an address before he left.” Steve muttered, digging the toe of his boat into the dirt in front of him.

“Dammit,” Lottie hissed and wiped away hot tears that continued to stream from her eyes. She was utterly helpless and could do nothing about it; she had no way of contacting Bucky to make sure he was safe. For all she knew, he could be one of those men bleeding in a medic tent— lying limply in a cot that was not his, thousands of miles away from home. She could only hope that he had a kind nurse that would wipe the sweat from his brow and murmur soothing sounds that would remind him of home.

At Camp Lehigh, Lottie was constantly reminded of home. She saw Bucky in every soldier she met, whether it be through their personality, charm, or looks, they all served as a reminder of him. When it came down to it, neither Massachusetts nor Brooklyn was home to her— it was only Bucky that she could truly call home.

And as their time apart continued to drag on, she realized that she was beginning to feel terribly homesick.

[fandomanxiety-fa]

"Fluffy February" - Day Four

The Outerworlds

Maximillian Desoto X Captain Dottie

Summary: On Roseway they met the nervous Anton Crane, and now are on the search for the diet toothpaste! The Captain along with her ship's Vicar and newly adopted orphan, Felix Millstone are heading to the secret lab. Along the way, the Captain and her team experience trouble, and now are fighting for their lives against mauraders!

Note: I am really craving angst, my fellow spacers. To be honest, I am thinking of making My Captain's story on here or maybe AO3. I am not sure which, but I'm slightly leaning towards AO3. If you have any thoughts on it, I'd like to hear them! Because this is Fluffy February, and I don't know if you guys will appreciate angst. Plus, I have been wanting to do her story for a bit. Anyway, I'll get on with this now!

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This is ridiculous.

Max had never thought in a million years he'd be fighting rapts and mauraders for toothpaste. (Toothpaste! Amongst other things, but toothpaste!) He trudged behind the Captain out of the building watching the ungrateful idiot they just saved scramble off to Roseway.

He'd be dead if it had been up to me, not this Captain that I am beginning to think hit her head to hard. Who goes out if their way like this? Who seriously, goes on some big trip for diet toothpaste?! Toothpaste?! Law, she must be an idiot! It's a Law-forsaken joke!

"Captain, are we really doing this?" He asked with a sigh, and she kept walking forward.

"Yes. Why?"

"Because we are risking our lives for some toothpaste and rapt musk. It's well, not to put to sharp of a point in it, but absolutely ridiculous," Max huffed, he tried to not growl out the words.

"This is this man's job, Max. If he, along with others, don't get their "projects" in...well, who knows what could happen to them?" She spoke, and Felix butted in.

"We are just feeding the corporate, Dot! We might as well be lackeys too!" Felix stated, and Max saw his point, even though the kid was an idiot.

"Sure, but we'll likely be saving lives in the process. And that's what we do."

"What about Gladys then?" Felix asked, and she sighed.

"I will tell her there was nothing. Because there is. This isn't ours, or hers. No matter how much she wants it," she spoke, and Max noticed she has distaste in her voice.

"Do you not like our black market friend, Captain?" Max asked with curiosity as he stepped over a dead body.

"I do...but she's going to be expecting something. Anything. I have a feeling about it. She's probably going to make me pay for this key, and I don't want to," she replied, and Max noticed she was frustrated.

We should be the ones frustrated! Going around doing other people's jobs, because we are "good people". Not that I am not a good person, I just draw the line at this. I am a good person, that's what I've strived to be. A good person. The Plan has helped make me a good person.

"It's getting late. Which isn't ideal right now. We'll have to stop traveling," she sighed, and she removed her helmet to wipe sweat from her face.

She glanced around and her hair was slicked down on her forehead with sweat. Her lips dry from the heat inside her helmet, and he also noticed they had a pink tint to them. In times like this, he was thankful for his helmet, because she couldn't see him staring like a moonstruck idiot.

Law, look away...just try to. You are just making it harder for yourself.

He watched her plop down on a rock in frustration. This was the most aggravated he'd seen her in his time with her.

"We need to find some building, but I'm not seeing any. What do you guys think?" She sighed, and he watched her drag a hand down her face.

Blood from their previous fight smeared on her face, and she didn't even care.

"I think we should keep going. I'm not tired," Felix stated, and Max rolled his eyes.

"Captain, we can stop if you'd like. But the side of the road is not preferable, we're out in the open," Max stated, and she looked at him like he was stupid.

"Captain Obvious, I know that. Let's go up in the hills. Find a cave. I've seen a few on my way here," she huffed getting up, and grabbing her helmet she had tossed on the ground.

Captain Obvious?! It's not his fault she was plopped on the side here like an idiot! She can be insufferable!

They padded through the incoming nightfall in the mountains, and it took well after nightfall for them to finally find this cave. She pulled off her bag, and opened it where she pulled out a sleeping bag.

"Max honey, could you start a fire?" She asked, and he nearly tripped over his own feet.

"Do what?" He asked, and she began rolling out her sleeping bag on a tarp she had placed down.

"Make a fire, hun," she stated, and again used the nickname.

Felix had noticed too, and Max swore he saw a glare from him. Was Millstone...

He's is jealous? Hah! What a laugh!

Max began making the fire with a sense of pride. Knowing that Felix was jealous of him made him-.

"Felix darlin', bring me Max's pack."

Nevermind.

Felix walked over to him with the biggest smirk, and reached out his hand.

I could knock that smirk off his face!

Max roughly handed Felix his bag, and Felix took it with bounce in his step to the Captain. She took it and pulled out his sleeping bag and rolled it out. She took Felix's out of his bag doing the same.

The fire was started. She retrieved canned food from her pack, and she opened the cans. Sitting them on rocks near the fire, she hopped it would warm the food.

"Alright, that should be it," she said, and she smiled tiredly at him.

Max felt uneasy. Something didn't feel right about something. Everything ran to smoothly on their way up here.

"I am worn out," the Captain spoke, and suddenly he watched her eyes dart to the mouth of the cave.

Does she feel uneasy as well? Is it just me?

"But, before I rest I am gonna do a look-over. Check outside," she spoke, getting up to head for the cave's opening.

When she reaches it there is silence, only the sound of the crackling fire to bid her farewell. It was ominous.

Maybe I should go with her? But I can't leave the cave only manned by this idiot. He'd let mauraders in, or wo-.

Not a second later there was a loud sound of a bullet hitting something, and then the sound of something hitting the ground with a loud, armored thud.

Glancing at the Captain, he saw her on the ground. She was face-first in the dirt, and it didn't take long for Felix to scramble to his feet. Max yanked him back.

"What is wrong with you?! Let me go!" He shouted, and Max tightened his grip.

"Stop! They want us to go out there! Then they'll pick us off!" Max growled lowly, and Felix squirmed.

"She's hurt!"

"Or dead. And we could be next. If we really want to help her we'll pick them off here," Max stated, and Felix stopped squirming.

Max's heart was pounding out if his chest while he glanced back at her limp form. He let Felix go and reached for her weapon. Max used it to look down the hill, and there he spotted three mauraders trudging up the hill. Getting in position behind a rock in the cave he motioned for Felix to look down the scope of the gun.

Felix looked, and Max was right. They wanted them to come out.

How long where they following us? Did they just find us?

Felix unholstered his weapon, and glanced at Max for a plan.

The Plan. Was this the end? No. It couldn't be. The Plan is still yet to be deciphered, and I am going to do it. The Captain is fine. Dottie is fine. She has to be. This can't be her end either. She didn't live all this time to die! No. She's fine.

"Felix you take the one on the left. I'll take the right. Then we both get the middle one," Max stated, and Felix nodded in return.

"Don't miss, okay? For Dottie," Felix spoke.

For Dottie.

Felix felt like he was going to throw up, and Max kept looking at Dottie. But Max and Felix didn't miss. Both killing the two crazed mauraders, and then the middle one came running up the hill.

Well, at least he made himself an easy target. Law-forsaken idiot.

Max shot him in the head, while Felix put a bullet in his leg. Max wondered which came first, and hoped the bullet in it's leg hit first because the maurader deserved pain.

Felix didn't wait to scramble over to Dottie, in fact he tripped over his own feet, landing him infront of her.

"Felix! We should check the perimeter first!"

But it was to late, Felix was rolling her over and saw no blood. Max jogged over to see the damage, the bullet didn't tear through her armor.

Thank the Law.

"Let's get the Captain in the cave," Max said, while hauling her over his soldier.

His heart was still pounding. He put her up against the cave wall and began removing her armor. He started at her feet, removing her boots. He wouldn't admit it, but he was nervous to see her chest- that's why he started by removing her boots. When it was time to remove the chest piece he examined the damage to her armor. It was buried in the metal, and around the bullet there was cracks that spidered out from there.

It might fall apart on me when I remove it, but it must be done.

Max began to pull the armor off, and like he predicted, it began falling apart. He undone some of the armor straps, and then managed to get it off. Throwing it aside he began unbuttoning her shirt.

"Max! What are you doing?!"

"Don't be so juvenile! I have to examine the damage!" Max scolded, and he glanced back at Felix.

Felix crouched next to him, wanting to see if it hurt her. Max pulled open the shirt and right in the middle of her chest was turning an awful, sickly purple.

Just as I thought. It didn't leave her unscathed, I wonder it it broke a bone?

Max put his hand on it, and he began to press down to see if any damage was done to her bone.

A cry came from her and he felt it rumble in her chest. His hand drew back and saw she was squirming away.

"Captain! Your awake." Max sighed, and it was releif.

"I wish I wasn't...what...what happened?" She asked, her voice was weak.

"You where shot. Luckily, it didn't go through your armor," he replied.

"Dot! Your okay! You scared us!" Felix exclaimed, while grabbing her hand.

Suddenly she began to cry, but laughed in the process. She grabbed Max's hand and squeezed both his and Felix's.

"Dottie?" Felix asked, looking at Max for an explanation.

"I am so glad you guys are okay!" She giggled through the tears.

Max looked at their hands joined together and squeezed back. Felix had removed his helmet, and Max noticed his own was still on. He removed it and looked at her wildly.

"Why are you laughing?" He asked, and she laughed harder.

"I'm just glad you okay! Both of you!"

"We hope your okay, Bo-Dottie. Did you hit your head?" Felix asked, and she smiled at him.

"I don't know..."

"We need to get you to a doctor, maybe Dr. Crane cane help you. I assume so," Max spoke, and she leaned against the cool wall.

"I'm sleepy," she yawned.

"Here, let me help you to your bag," Felix said, and helped her up.

He helped her over to her bag, and she managed to squirm inside. She lied down and Felix sat near by watching her until she drifted to sleep.

Max eyed the forgotten, wasted food at the fire. No one was hungry now, and it'd go to waste. He began removing his armor, until he was left in his clothes.

"Take your armor of, son," Max told Felix, being kinder than he had ever been to him.

"No. I'm gonna be prepared this time," Felix spoke, and Max sighed.

"We would have never known."

"It should've been me. Not her," Felix spoke, and Max eyed him.

"Don't say that. She'd be distraught," Max spoke, and Felix shook his head.

"Nobody needs me Max. She'd get over it. It wouldn't effect anyone if I was gone."

"She's not gone, Felix. And yes it would. Your family now," Max spoke.

A hand landed in Felix's shoulder, he hadn't even seen Max come over to him.

"And you shouldn't say that. We need you. Even though me and you may not be...close," Max said, and Felix stayed quiet.

Max plopped down next to the Captain, her now in-between him and Felix. She was fast asleep, and he looked at her hands. She had large, square fingernails that where caked with blood from the battles on Roseway. They where large, and one thing he knows now, is warm. They are warm and kind.

Gently he took her hand in his, lacing his fingers between her motionless ones. They weren't like his, which where calloused and cold from years of work. They where still soft, dare he say, baby-like to the touch. He supposed it was from being in cryo-sleep, and not having to condition hard, labor work on Earth. That or she must care for them with different ointments and lotions.

He felt her fingers curl up to lace with his, and he saw her tiredly looking at him.

"You should sleep, Maximillian," she croaked, and he felt his ears burn again.

"Did I wake you, Captain?" He queried, and she smiled.

"I'm fine. It wasn't you. It was the pain," she softly spoke, and he squeezed her hand.

"Does it hurt to talk?" He asked her, and she peered at him with her emerald eyes.

She nodded.

"Don't talk then, alright?" He said, and she smiled in response.

She continued to look at him with those shinning eyes. It didn't take long for them to flutter closed as she began to drift asleep.

"Goodnight...Dottie."

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[talltalesandbedtimestories]

House Edge

Title:  House Edge (COMPLETE)

Characters/Pairing: Dean Winchester x Reader, Dean Winchester, Sam Winchester

Summary: You're on a Girls Trip to Vegas and meet a certain hunter at the buffet.

Word Count:  9,100

Warnings: fluff, flirting, gambling, strip club, private dance, mild language

A/N:  My first reader insert try. I'm thinking this is sometime around Season 7. Maybe the annual pilgrimage to Vegas when Becky whammies Sam. The majority of events that unfold will probably be right before Dean gets the text from Sam to meet up with him. Thunder From Down Under probably wasn't at Vegas yet - who knows - artistic license and all that. Also, I don't have an extensive knowledge of gambling, so most of what you'll read is from what I've Googled. If something is terribly wrong, feel free to let me know. But, I tried to stay in the vague zone.

Your head pounded and sloshed from the one too many Malibu Bay Breezes you’d ingested during the “Thunder From Down Under” show that ended minutes ago. Three of the nine others in your group were still hooting and hollering at the oil slicked row of hyper muscled, surreal Australian blokes on stage. In addition to the baby oil, the men were bathing in the estrogen overload and accolades washing over them. Wads of cash, stuffed into the glittery floss substituting as underwear, stuck to aforementioned oil slicked skin.

It had been fun, there was no doubt. But the lights and the music and the rabid female reactions were hitting you all at once. Kasey pulled you by the elbow and screamed in your ear. “Wanna get a photo with Faux Fabio?” She pointed to the long-haired blond Adonis with a shoulder span the width of a football field.

You frowned. “How much is that going to run me?”

“Shannon!” Kasey called across the table, still too close to your delicate ear drums. “How much to rub up to one of ‘em?” You were glad you weren’t sharing a room with Kasey. She’d be hurling in the toilet for most of the night after the number of Tequila shots she’d downed. So far. And the night was relatively early. Especially for Vegas.

“Thirty bucks, I think.” Shannon shrugged, paying more attention to her phone.

You shook your head. Your single status and mid-level office job already had you on a strict budget for this girls’ getaway weekend. “I’m good. Besides, the more up close I get, the more disappointed I think I’ll be.” Shannon nodded with a smirk in agreement, still staring at her screen.

Kasey huffed. “Well, Linda, Stacey and Mira are already in line. I’m going to see if I can cut!” She dashed off without another word.

Women skirted and pushed past your standing frame. You tried to become one with the table in front of you. Anything to avoid being pulled into the stampede or thrown to the ground, and mercilessly stomped on by stilettos and sneakers.

Even Shannon looked a bit miffed at the onslaught as you stared at her in a half-cry for help. “My God.” She rolled her eyes.

“Where did Cathy and that bunch disappear to?” You yelled over.

“Who knows?”

You sighed. “What was next on the itinerary?”

“I think any plans are out the window. Every woman for herself.” Shannon tapped on her phone. “My little one’s running a fever. I’m going to get back to the hotel room so I can check in at home.”

You nodded. The only thing waiting for you at home was your tabby, Tyrion. Your Grandma-type neighbor down the hall, Gladys, had offered to cat sit. So there was no one, human or feline, actually waiting for you back in your one-bedroom apartment in Albuquerque.

Holding your breath, you pushed yourself into the crowd, moving against the current towards the exit instead of the line for photos. The quadruple threat of your old college pals was screaming in line about which stripper had the tightest ass.

It wasn’t that you didn’t want to have a good time or ogle good looking men. Far from it. But gambling was more your scene anyway. You had a pretty good teacher with your last boyfriend when it came to Blackjack. You breathed a sigh of relief when you shimmied out of the entertainment venue and stepped foot onto the busy carpet of the Excaliber’s casino floor. Your phone read 9:10 pm. There was still plenty of time to lose your shirt.

You’d popped a few aspirin and downed a whole bottle of water in the sitting area of the women’s bathroom, hoping to fend off a killer hangover in the morning. A quick reapplication of lipstick and you were ready to scope out a good table.

After about an hour, you’d split, hit, and stood with the best of them at one table. There’d been one experienced player, Ron, that looked like he’d planted roots in the seat next to you. He got to talking, as the old timers usually did, and you’d learned he was born and raised in Reno. You had a nice little chat with Ron and Stevie, the female dealer, and fended off a few men who sat on the other side and hit on you more than the cards they were dealt.

“That is not a bad takeaway, there.” Ron nodded when you decided to cash out.

“Thanks. Pleasure, Ron. You take care.”

“You too, pretty lady. Remember what I said about Roulette. You should try it once.”

The betting chips clinked in your plastic souvenir cup. “I might.”

He tipped you a two-finger salute. You wandered, your stomach empty. The buffet to end all buffets calling your name.

“Fuck it.” After turning most of your chips into cash at the counter, leaving one $50 chip in your jean pocket, you headed for the International food amalgamation that guaranteed intense heartburn and bloating in the morning.

Fluorescent lights and sneeze shields presented you with choices beyond comprehension. You grabbed a large plate and planned your method of attack. One of your pink manicured nails tapped on the bottom of the china. “Ease into it.” You decided to go with the Mediterranean spread first. Before you knew it, there were helpings of General Tso’s chicken, pizza, potstickers, mashed potatoes and French fries, along with some bratwurst and sauerkraut. The grumbling from your tummy may have been a warning when you sat down at the table for two, alone, on the cafeteria style floor. The waitress gave you a tired smile when she dropped off your iced tea.

You shoveled some sauce drenched chicken into your mouth and took in the scene. People floating around, getting up for seconds or thirds, talking about how much money they lost or won, what shows they should try to see while they were in Vegas. You chewed and stared at the formidable back of a man at the table directly ahead of you. He’d give Faux Fabio a run for his money. He had fluffy, long brown hair. His animated storytelling hands got your attention. You heard a deep chuckle and slurp from his table sharer, out of your view because of the mountain man. “Alright,” the man stated, “Going to give the Poker Room another go. Coming?”

“Nah.” The very deep voice replied. “I’ve still gotta hit the dessert line.” 

You watched the man rise from his seat, floored by how tall he was. And, when he turned, you saw how very cute he was. You’d have paid thirty bucks to snap a picture with this man. He gave you a sweet little smile when he walked past. You couldn’t help but look over your shoulder and take in the rest of him as he left. Smacking your lips and shaking your head, you turned back to your plate to resume the dent made in the food. Your eyes darted up to look at the man left alone at the table. You were pretty sure your mouth gaped open at the sight of him, staring at you. He wiped at his face with a napkin.

Oh my. If the man that left appeared sweet and cute with just a smile, this one was a boatload of sexy and trouble with that smirk. You could tell by the way he took his time inventorying you with care, chewing slow the whole time. One side of his lip curled up in another grin variation. He nodded at you in greeting from across both tables. You smiled back and then pretended to stare at your food. He tossed the napkin on his plate and stood up. You peeked up and noted he was layered in a couple shirts and broken in jeans, like his partner. Not quite as tall; but, still very tall in your estimation. You wondered what he’d look like in a g-string and bathed in baby oil.

And, oh boy. He was walking straight over to your table. Yep, he was very tall, by the way you had to tilt your head backwards when he strolled up. He smacked his lips, disrupting the beaming smile before he spoke. “That was my little brother you were checking out. Want me to give you his number?”

You had to lean back in your seat a bit more. “Um. No, that’s okay.” Geez, he was pretty. Holy Facial Symmetry Batman! 

He nodded, then smiled again. “Want to give me your number?”

You had to chuckle at the bravado. “Does that work for you a lot?”

He shrugged. “Works enough.”

“I don’t doubt it.” You decided to play along. “How long are you in Vegas?”

His brows rose up. “Just tonight.”

You tisked. “Not enough of a time commitment for what I’d want to do.”

He chuckled this time. “Is that so?”

You nodded.

He pointed to your plate. “Can I get you anything? I’m heading back up.”

“I think this should tide me over for a while. But, thanks.”

His jaw clenched. “Can I join you when I get back?”

What the hell. “Sure.” You smiled.

*

“Man, you almost kept up with me.” Dean sighed and rubbed his tummy after his third dessert plate.

“Hardly.” You were only working on your second serving of what might be considered actual food. A half hour had passed, you sitting with this veritable stranger. Talking about nothing of much importance, but having a grand time flirting, enjoying his rough and rugged demeanor and the boyish charm. One of your palms hit the tabletop. “I’m tapping out.”

“Not much for sweets?” He leaned in and studied you. Stunning green eyes twinkled with mischief. He batted the kind of lashes you could only get with a thick coating of mascara. “Or are you already sweet enough?”

“Is this like an Ocean’s Eleven thing?”

His smile dropped, waiting for you to elaborate. “Come again?”

“Am I like some unwitting part of a huge con job going down in the money room right now?”

He chuckled. “I’m not following, sweetheart.”

“Why are you sitting here with me?”

“Are you kidding?” He leaned way back in his chair, teetering on the back two legs. An arm swept out from his side in your direction. “Have you seen yourself?”

You pursed your lips. “Please.”

He raised a hand. “I’m not going to try and convince you. But I may take advantage. Commandeer more of your time, since you think you don’t deserve mine.”

“So you are a con man.”

He shook his head. That smile could only belong to the most skilled grifter. “If I was a good con man, I’d have more than a hundred dollars to my name after half a day in this ‘It’s a Small World’ casino.”

“It is a bit Disneyfied, isn’t it?”

A shrug. “Well, it’s cleaner than the ones near the motel Sam and I are staying at, so that’s a plus.”

The plate of food in front of you looked less and less appetizing as the seconds passed. Pushing it away, you really wanted to dig into the dessert that was Dean. But you’d only had two one-night stands in your life. Neither one was spectacular and left you full of regret that you’d had them to begin with. But this man. Oh, you had a feeling this man would love you and leave you with a million other regrets and create an addiction you’d never be able to fulfill again. What was that saying? Better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. This man was surging all kinds of wants in your head. If you got a taste, you knew you were done for.

His voice rumbled like a storm cloud and pulled you out of your thoughts. “What’s up for the rest of your night?”

You grinned, wanting to tease out this time with him for as long as possible. Skirt on the edge of a pond of possibilities and drown in those sometimes sea green colored eyes. “I told you there’s not enough time if you’re leaving tonight.”

“Pretty good at completing a task quickly and efficiently.” He licked his lips. “I mean, taking my time, yeah, that’s always ideal. But, if we’re pressed for time, sweetheart, I won’t disappoint.” His brow twitched up.

You sighed, sounding a little too loud and desperate for your liking. “Does a guarantee come with that claim?”

“How much of a gambler are you?” He deflected the question with another.

“I enjoy it.”

“I might be worth taking a chance on, then.”

“Hm. I met a nice old man while playing black jack tonight. He talked about odds and luck and the house edge and why he loves cards, black jack especially. It works his brain and he can play for hours and not lose his shirt.”

Dean smiled. “So, what kind of hand am I? Soft or hard?”

You grinned at the innuendo, trying to keep your train of thought on its track.  You leaned across the table. He mirrored your action, meeting you halfway. His hands clasped together on the surface, forearms firm and locked. The closest stare you’d shared. 

Both thumbs lifted up in his grip and he nodded a fraction with his chin. “Well, what’s the verdict?” You could smell apples, cinnamon, and vanilla on his breath; courtesy of his indulgence in pie ala mode and his slightly parted mouth. He came into full focus now. Freckles dotting the tops of his cheeks and sprinkled across his nose. Lips that were perfect, puffy and pronounced. Sharp edges and soft curves. He watched you inventory him as he did the same, eyes scanning, crinkles emerging around them when he smiled and you thought he found something he especially liked about your visage. The gamblers and diners dropped away from your periphery. The piped in music and frantic sounds locked away in a vacuum, muffled and mumbling like the adults in those Peanuts cartoons you loved to watch when you were little.  

“Neither. You are in no way a safe bet. You’ve got a major house edge.” Your answer came out lower than intended. The slight mix of surprise and disappointment on his face at the answer made you clear your throat. You continued. “So, why gamble in the first place? Cause there’s always the slightest chance you’ll get lucky and hit it big. Flip a coin and see where it’ll land.”

The smile returned and he shot stick-straight in his seat. “I’ve got plenty of coins.” He began to rifle through a jacket pocket. “Two out of three?” You held back a giggle at his eagerness.

“I’ve got one right here.” You dug the chip out of your jean pocket. The plastic disc twirled between your fingers. “Wanna see where it lands?”

His eyes widened. “Big spender. What’re we betting?”

It was your turn to lean back. “Depends. How lucky do you feel?”

He chuckled. “Stakes? And, then I’ll let you know.”

You swallowed. “Well, Ron, the old man, was explaining that Roulette has the best House Edge for the casino. Over five percent in their favor that a player loses. Think you can be my lucky charm and push those odds in my favor?”

He nodded. “What we talkin’? Street or split bet?”

The man knew his games. You smiled. “Straight up.”

His head tilted back. “Whoa. That’s a helluva lot of luck.” A finger pointed back and forth between the both of you. “I help you hit the jackpot and…”

You grinned. “You hit the jackpot. Call the shots for the rest of the night. We go wherever. Do whatever.”

His lips curled into an “O” as he tried to hold back his own grin. He nodded in thought. “If you lose?”

You shrugged. “Buy me a drink at the nearest bar, share some more stories, then we shake hands and say it was nice meeting the other.”

He raised his hands. “Well, I will take those odds. Let’s go find us a wheel.” His tall frame bolted out of his seat, beaming a smile at you.

Your heart sped up. There was no way he was winning this bet. But he seemed up for spending a little more time with you regardless. And that said something. You reached into your purse to drop a tip on the table but he’d already beat you to it.

“Lead the way, sweetheart.”

You nodded and wandered from the restaurant to the massive casino floor. He towered next to your side, the elbow of his jacket brushing against the sheer material covering your biceps. He smelled amazing. When you stopped in the middle of the floor to get your bearings and looked up to ask what direction you both should head, you found him gazing at your cleavage in the strappy surplice top. The look on his face shot straight to your core.

His eyebrows shot up at the realization he’d been caught ogling. “What’s wrong?”

A flush of warmth flooded your face. “We’re using your luck here. You pick the table.”

“Lot of pressure.” He mumbled.

“Lot at stake.” You countered.

“Alright.” He nodded to the right. You followed him, weaving through the crowd, now having the chance to notice his bowlegs and how very wide his shoulder span was. He was wearing entirely too many layers to your liking. But, you got to bathe in the wake of his scent and imagine how very pert that ass was under that denim. He halted without warning and you put the brakes on your stride, inches before careening into his back. His fingers pointed three tables over. “That one.” He looked over his right shoulder and grinned, finding your body and face quite close. “Step right up.”

You took the lead again and inhaled and exhaled deep, taking the one empty seat at the Roulette table. The wheel was currently in motion, the ball spinning, holding the breath of every gambler with a stake on the result. You heard the clicking of the ball along the slots as the rotation slowed, deciding on its destination.

Dean slid his standing frame along your right. He was warm, solid. He tipped down to whisper in your ear. “Sure you wanna go for a straight bet? Making me think you don’t even want a little fun time with me. We could lower the stakes. I’d be more than happy to let you call the shots for the rest of the night.” The offer dripped out of his voice with a deep intensity, low and tempting.

You would not meet his eyes again, already picturing the sexy smirk on his face. He would distract you, make you cave. “Nope.” You responded. “All in. Go big or go home.” You pulled out the chip from your pocket as the winning number was called. A mixture of whoops and grumbles emerged from the dealer’s announcement. Chips were swept over and around the table.

He sighed and rose up, waiting for the table to be cleared and for the dealer to tell everyone to place their bets. “Okay. What number?”

Your mind reeled with the possibilities. “When’s your birthday?” You asked.

“Seriously?” He chuckled.

“Yep.” Your eyes wandered over the red and black numbers on the green felt board. The all clear was called and chips scattered in place with both hurried and tentative fingers of various betters.

“January 24th.”

“So, we could go with 1 or 24. Red or black?”

Your body startled with the pressure of his hand at the small of your back. “Black.”

“24 it is then.” You gulped and placed the chip with care over the number. It rested there alone, a single play amid a multitude of others.

His fingers tapped against your skin in anticipation. “Well, it was fun while it lasted.” He joked. “Maybe as a parting gift you’ll give me your number.”

You smiled, focusing on the slight swirl of his fingers now, imagining what they could do to other parts of your body.

“No more bets.” The dealer called and waved a hand over the table. The wheel spun in one direction. The ball clicked and whirled in its lane in the other.

You thought about what Blackjack Ron had said earlier. Roulette, straight bet odds were 35 to 1. You could view that bet as a drowning man’s last ditch effort to keep their head above the water’s surface. Hold out for that raft to save them, give them a second chance to get things right. Or, you could view it as something as simple as hope. Hope that great things sometimes happen when you take a risk. You should try it once. That’s what Ron had said. 

You closed your eyes as the wheel slowed and the ball eased in its race for the finish line. You replayed that little mantra, the pep talk you’d give yourself every once in a while in your bathroom mirror. Failure is always a possibility when you try. But so is success.

The dealer announced the winning number. 

Dean’s fingers froze. “Holy fucking shit!” He bellowed.

Your eyes jolted open. The dealer placed a tiny marker on “24 Black.” Your mouth dropped open and watched the chips stack up in front of you.

“Holy fucking shit!” Dean repeated. “How much is that?”

You blinked, then repeated the calculation out loud you had figured out when you threw out the dare. “One thousand, seven hundred, and fifty dollars.”

“Wow!” You looked up and assessed his face. He was floored and amazed, like a kid that was just told he had free reign in a toy store. “That’s… that’s some luck.”

“All you.” You grinned.

The compliment took him aback. There was the slightest hint of blush on those cheeks.

You motioned to the winnings. “Okay, grab some and let’s cash out. Half of this is yours.”

Even more amazement. “That wasn’t part of the deal.”

“I’m feeling generous.” You packed the chips into your purse. He stuffed some into his pockets. When you rose up, a jolt of adrenaline pushed you into a new territory of action. One filled with courage. You took your time and slithered close to his standing frame. Let parts of your body sweep along his. His brows rose higher than you’d seen so far that night. “Looks like you’re calling the shots now, Dean. We go wherever. Do whatever.”

A delicious lick of his lips followed your statement. His eyes dazzled with thoughts. “Let’s get out of here.”

*

You’d walked with him along the strip for what felt like forever. He’d gotten you a cup of frozen yogurt for part of the adventure. The warm air and pulse of Vegas fed your lingering alcohol buzz. Dean was just as intoxicating. He talked in cryptic paragraphs about him and his brother’s nomadic lifestyle. You laughed at his dirty jokes, both basking in the artificial glow surrounding you and the high of winning. But you, most importantly, let go of the decision making. 

A turn off the busy, fluorescent lit thoroughfare landed you in a much more adult amusement area of the city. And, you had an inkling, heading in the direction of Dean’s motel. You’d finished the last bit of your treat and tossed the empty cup and spoon into a nearby trash can when he stopped to read the flashing sign of a venue. 

His rapt stare forced you to look up and see what he was focusing on. The amber neon depicted the figure of a voluptuous female with flowing hair, one leg wrapped around a bright white pole. You read the name of the establishment out loud. “Sapphire Gentlemen’s Club?”

He turned to you and grinned. “Been in one of these before?”

You felt your brow scrunch together. “Well, no.”

He walked over to the glass door covered in dark film. “Well, let’s go, then.”

“Really? This is what you want to do?”

“At this moment? Yes.” He opened the door and ushered you in. “My lady.”

You chuckled and shook your head. “Are you trying to test my comfort level or something?” The question breezed by his frame as you passed.

“Something like that.” He smiled.

You really didn’t know what to expect when you walked in. A bouncer looking dude waved you in after a quick survey. Dean’s hand was on your back again, as it had been off and on throughout the evening, leading you towards the dim section of tables and booths. It was packed with, from what you could see, a majority of male patrons with the occasional token female. The tables wrapped around a few circular stages with catwalks emerging from blue velvet curtains. A dozen or so topless females danced for the pleasure of their audiences. The bass of the music rumbled through your skin.

“Here.” Dean leaned in, pushing you to a free high top right by one of the stages. Enough light spilled onto the area that you spotted the kid in a toy store look on his face again when he took his seat.

You sat across, tearing your gaze from him to the ladies wrapped around poles, bronzed and oiled similar to the male counterparts you’d been hooting at earlier that evening.

“Thought you could see how the other half lives, after that Australian review.” Dean brought up the exact same thought, only he shivered in distaste. A wave of his hand requested the attention of one of the waitresses who thankfully, for you, wore a bit more than the dancers.

“Hello, lovelies. I’m Cherie. What can I get you?” She purred over to Dean and gave you a sweet smile, dropping napkins in front of your spots. Her bare glittery shoulders and cocoa skin made you crave chocolate for a second.

Dean’s lips quirked up in a smile. You realized he’d been giving your reaction more attention than the female with big onyx eyes and raven, wavy hair.  “I’ll have a bourbon. Top Shelf. Neat. What are you having, sweetheart?”

You shrugged, continuing the little game you’d started since he won the bet.

He nodded. “Same for this pretty little lady.” The waitress nodded, about to walk off, when Dean asked, “Oh, what’s it cost for a private show in the back?”

The waitress raised a pencil lined eyebrow. “Depends on who you want the show with.”

“Are you available?” Dean grinned.

She giggled. “I might be.”

“Well, if you are, let me know what it’d be for the both of us?”

“Will do, sweetie.” Cherie bounced off with a pronounced sway of her ample hips.

 Your mouth popped open. “What?”

“Whatever I want.” He reminded you with a lick of his lips. He leaned his forearms on the table. “You ever, ah…”

An awkward giggle erupted from your throat. “No.”

He shrugged and smiled. “Thought about it?”

“Maybe.”

That made Dean’s grin grow wider. “Well, it’s only a dance. You technically aren’t supposed to touch the ladies. Sometimes, though, you get lucky. And, the way my luck is going tonight… got to give it a shot.” His fingers brushed over the top of your hand. “Get something etched in my memory for repeat viewings later.”

The touch of his fingers, light and gentle, ticklish and thrilling, hit an itch you couldn’t quite scratch. You emitted something between a laugh and a sigh. “You’re going to blow all your winnings tonight on booze and boobs.”

“Worth it. I’m getting to spend it with a beautiful partner in crime.”

You sat with him and watched the show. A country tune blasted through the sound system. The ladies all sashayed back to the curtains, flinging them back with a dramatic flair. They disappeared only to be replaced by cowboy hat and boot wearing dancers. Daisy dukes rode so high up that half of their ass cheeks bulged out. Holsters, hung loose from their waists, held fake pistols that, when pulled out for use, were done so with the most phallic inducing reminders. And all had the perkiest, perfect breasts you’d ever seen.

His fingers tangled into yours about midway through the performance. “Thank God I’m a country boy.” He tipped his head about to the twang. “So, Albuquerque, huh?”

You attempted to track the conversation and not the feel of his warm skin tingling yours. The pads of his fingers were rough and worn, gritty but not harsh. You imagined what kind of work he did to get them that way. “Yeah. Moved there after college. Got a job at a big research company. Glorified office assistant, so just the mundane business stuff that helps keep everyone employed on the books, bills paid.”

“Research?” His smile softened, listening to you.

“Sustainable energy, nuclear weapons.”

His bottom lip jutted out as he nodded. “Like it?”

“More days than not.” Your eyes widened as one of the dancers provocatively licked the barrel of her toy gun. You couldn’t help but laugh in embarrassment. “Geez, I’ve never done that with a firearm.”

Dean chuckled. “What have you done with a firearm?”

“I’ve got a license to carry. My dad taught me how to shoot when I was around thirteen. He was a big time game hunter. Back in Colorado.” You didn’t bother to go into what happened to your parents. You wanted to keep the tone of the night light and fun.

“What do you carry?” Genuine interest spread over his face now.

“Walther PPQ. But I left it back home.” You smiled, realizing he was not put off and probably carried as well. “Are you packing?”

“Oh, I’m packing,” He grinned, “but my gun’s back at the motel. Not a good idea to mix Vegas nightlife and bullets, I’ve learned.” That sounded like a perfect lead-in for a story. But he only added. “M1911.”

You nodded then asked, “Country boy, huh?”

“Yep, Kansas.”

“We could have hit Stoney’s then.”

“You would have tried to get me to dance.” He nodded to the stage. “More fun to watch.”

Cherie returned, interrupting the flow of conversation with two tumblers of bourbon. After placing the glasses on the table and eyeing the way Dean gripped your hand, she leaned in close to his ear and whispered. You struggled to make it out, giving up when it proved pointless. His lids lifted a fraction. “Well, that sounds positively delightful, Cherie.” He added with a sexy swagger. “Think you can get yourself one of those cowgirl outfits?”

She nodded. “See what I can do. Jimmy’ll come by for you two in about a half hour then.” Another nearby table called her away.

Dean grabbed his glass and raised it for a toast. “To Vegas.”

You shook your head and clinked your glass with his, mumbling. “To Vegas.”

*

The sparkling beaded fringe curtaining the doorway was a nice touch. You pushed through the strands and took in where you’d be with Dean for the next twenty minutes, along with Cherie, who was on her way. It was enough privacy for an intimate dance. Safe enough, you imagined, that if one of the women had to call for an assist from a handsy client, someone could be there in a flash without impediment. Burly Jimmy, about a foot taller than Dean, seemed to be the bouncer/bodyguard for the ladies and waited outside in the hallway.

“Really playing up the Sapphire theme, huh?” You asked Dean for his thoughts on the decor. There were two blue velvet, plush armchairs in opposite corners of the tiny eight by eight space. Two of the walls were floor to ceiling glass and a tinted overhead light washed everything in shades of midnight blue.

“Fancy.” He teased. “One of the deluxe rooms.”

The two bourbons you had milked at the table for the last half hour had sizzled your senses with a warm euphoria. Almost like you were watching yourself in some sort of out of body experience. Had it really only been a few hours since you’d seen your girlfriends? You glanced at your watch and confirmed in the spin of your head it was a little after midnight. Your brain and body were wired and alert due to the proximity of this man pushing all your buttons tonight. It was raw, racy, a revelation in facets of sexiness you’d never had the honor of being in the presence of. Until tonight.

He’d teased with playful touches; flirted with that outlaw mouth; melted you with heated stares; worn you down with roguish charm; and hinted at some heavy shit  that made you wonder how broken he might be under all that attractive armor. The alcohol had let his guard down a few times.

“Hey.” Dean snapped his fingers and brought you back. “You still with me, beautiful? I think we need to cut you off.”

You clicked your tongue and shot him with your finger gun. “Might be right, partner.”

He chuckled. “Yeah. Think so.” He rubbed his hands together and spotted a touchscreen in the wall. “Huh, even get to pick the music. Real fancy.” He pointed to one of the chairs. “Get comfy.” He tapped some buttons. You slid into the cushion, trying not to imagine the amount of bodily fluids embedded in the fabric. It did smell nice and clean, almost antiseptic, so that settled one of your racing thoughts. Your stare lingered over at Dean, a pensive look on his face as he decided on the tracks. It had to be illegal for someone to be that handsome without even trying. “Damn, it’s hot in here.” He pulled off his jacket and one layer of flannel, draping them over the back of the empty chair. His simple black t-shirt strained over his shoulders, biceps, chest. The alcohol had to be part of the reason he looked so perfect. No way, you kept thinking, no one’s that perfect.

The beads parted and Cherie strolled into the room. She had certainly done what she could to honor Dean’s request. She wore the same white vinyl hot pants and matching color stripper pumps that comprised her waitress attire. But she’d gone full on country bumpkin with a plaid flannel tied in a knot under her push up bra, and a cowboy hat.

“Did you pick your tunes, Cowboy?” She flirted at Dean.

“Yep.” The wide, cheesy grin spread over his face.

“Have a seat, time’s a wastin’.” She was working the southern accent, too. Dean hopped onto the other seat cushion and wiggled his ass into position. He also wiggled his eyebrows like a cartoon villain at you. You giggled. 

Cherie tapped the screen. You were unsurprised by the country music that filled the room at a respectable volume. “Jimmy explain all the rules?” She asked and began to gyrate her hips to the song.

You nodded and replied, your eyes bouncing from Cherie to Dean, “You get to touch us, we don’t touch you. Stay in our seats. If we aren’t sure if we can, ask first.”

Cherie twirled and stopped to smile down at you. “I bet you were top of your class, hun.”

Your cheeks heated up at the flirting. This woman was obviously younger than you by at least a decade and was calling you hun. Dean’s jaw clenched at your reaction.

“So, what brings the two of you to Vegas?” Cherie turned around, giving you a full face of her curvy hips and tiny waist. The white pants almost glowed in the light and you could hear the slight squeak of material. Her moves were smooth, fluid, second nature.

Dean was getting a full face of the cleavage peeking out of her shirt as she bent down to give him a nice view. “Romantic getaway for my girl, here.” His eyes drifted over to you, past Cherie’s elbow, with a smirk.

Oh, this is how we’re playing it now, you thought. You had to admit the idea of you being his girl was absolute heaven.

“Aw, how sweet. How long you two been together?” She rose up, her hands gripping the back of her neck, elbows jutting out like wings. She twirled to look at you. She backed into Dean’s lap and began to circle and skirt her ass along his thighs. Cherie blocked his beautiful face with pink flannel. The only Dean reaction visible were his fingers latching onto the armrests like a vice.

You stifled a giggle. “Five years.” You threw out the first number you could think of.

“A lot of man to be working with for five years.” She smiled.

You couldn’t argue with that.

“Alright if I put my hands on him, darlin’?”

You heard Dean moan. How could you deny him? And, how fun that she was asking you for permission and not bothering with his approval. “Of course.” You swallowed at the intimate turn things were taking.

She lifted up, turned again. Her hands landed on Dean’s knees. “Let’s let your pretty lady see how much you’re enjoying this.” She cooed and spun him in the - surprise - rotating chair. You got an eyeful at this angle of that chiseled face and the wide eyes from his own surprise at the movement. He glanced over at you, turning serious in a second. It was like someone had turned the temperature on to sauna level in the room. 

Cherie’s actions focused Dean’s attention back to her. Her fingers and long nails drifted and scraped along the surface of his hands, forearms, biceps. Her palms came to rest on his shoulders. She climbed on top with grace, wedging her knees into the cushion by his hips, clamping his bowlegs shut with the force of her muscular calves. Her heels poked out from the chair like weapons. That ass settled on his knees. Her cleavage inched closer to his face as he settled and reclined into the headrest. 

“How does he feel?” You realized you had asked the question out loud.

Dean turned to you, languid and lush, blissed out and smiling in a lustful stupor.

“Warm. Strong. All sorts of good.” She smiled at you. “Lucky lady.”

If only, you thought.

Dean licked his lips at you, delved his gaze into Cherie’s cleavage, then met the dancer’s stare. “If you think I feel good, you should give my girl a test drive.” He unclenched his grip on the armrest for a few seconds, maybe trying to get some circulation back in his fingers. “In fact, I’d love it if you’d tell me how good my baby feels.”

Holy shit. Your panties dampened at his confession.

Cherie grinned. “Well, that’s up to your baby. Woman always gets the final say.”

“Ain’t that the truth.” Dean chuckled. “I’ve gotta run everything by her, or else I’d get spanked. Can I tell you a secret, Cherie?” Dean husked out the question. Cherie nodded in interest, grinding on him now. Dean cocked a brow at the action. “Sometimes I get in trouble on purpose, just so she can spank me.”

You couldn’t help but giggle at that; the thrill and imagery of Dean naked, leaned over your lap with a bright red ass after some serious punishment from your hand.

“Sounds like you’re a handful.” Cherie snuggled down deeper, and dry humped him. “Feel like a nice handful, too.” She was humming along to the country tune. Just another day at the office for Cherie.

It felt all sorts of wrong and right at the same time, watching this lap dance. This teasing, edging. Who the hell has the House Edge in this scenario?

Dean’s hands clenched tighter around the velvet. “Don’t wanna come in my pants, Sweet Cherie. Isn’t that one of the rules?” He panted.

She laughed. “Oh, I’d break a couple for you two.” She slowed the torture and peeled off him with a groan that almost matched Dean’s. “We going for that test drive, baby?” Her hungry eyes scanned your seated frame.

“Um…” You began. Dean’s breathing regulated and he circled the seat back to face you. He grinned at you, peeking over the curve of Cherie’s hips, ready for the show.

“It’s okay. Anyplace you don’t want me touching, just streetlight. Only if you want to indulge your man.” She raised a brow. “But you might like it, too.”

“Oh, God, I hope so.” Dean mumbled.

Cherie did the same with your chair as she had with Dean’s. You tilted, looking at yourself beyond Dean in the mirror. How very deer in the headlights you appeared. Cherie was a veritable tigress, running the entire show.

She leaned down, inches from your face. Her fingers wiggled and she cupped your jaw. “I won’t bite.” Her sweet breath laced with peppermint washed over you. “So warm. Don’t be nervous.” Her soft voice lulled you into a safe space. “Your big strong man over there wouldn’t let anything happen to you. Would you, Cowboy?”

“Absolutely, fucking not.” Dean’s voice shot straight to your core again. You caught him licking his lips. He nodded, entranced at the vision of Cherie guiding her hand down the slope of your neck, then cupping the curve of one breast. Your breath hitched as she squeezed and her long nails dipped into the cleavage. “How’s she feel?” Another lick.

“Hm, so soft.” An eyebrow arched when she skirted over your covered nipple. “And excited. Still green, sweetie?” You nodded. Cherie tipped off the cowboy hat, sliding it over the crown of your head.

Dean rumbled out a low moan. You thought you heard him curse under his breath and whisper something close to “Ride ‘em, cowgirl.”

The arousal created by this beautiful woman was dizzying and the heat from Dean’s stare was making it hard to breathe. Sweat broke out on your forehead. Your stomach churned. “Oh.” Something else was threatening to escape as a sour bile hit the base of your throat. “Oh, no.” You mumbled. “Red, red. I need to get to a bathroom.”

Cherie hopped off and grabbed you by the wrist. “Jimmy! Need a trash can, stat.”

Dean jumped up from his seat. You spotted alarm on his face and got a quick glimpse of a decent bulge in his jeans before you groaned again at the somersaults your insides were doing. A hand clamped over your mouth as you forced down the gag and swallowed. It wasn’t going to be long before the entire floor would be covered with a Vegas buffet.

The saving grace that was Jimmy parted the curtains and slid a small desk trash can over in your general direction. Dean fell to his knees and held it in front of you. Cherie tossed off the cowboy hat you were wearing and held your hair back.

A deep inhale of the artificial lemon smell covering the trash can liner was what finally had you retching.

*

You emerged from the women’s bathroom fifteen minutes later after the whole fiasco had commenced. Cherie had been nice enough to bring you a disposable toothbrush and some toothpaste from backstage. You’d cleaned yourself up as best you could. But you were exhausted, humiliated, and planned to call yourself a cab. You were certain Dean had called it a night, leaving your sorry ass to figure things out.

How surprised, then, your face must have looked to see him leaning against the wall, Cherie’s cowboy hat twirling in his hands. He was back in his flannel and jacket, staring out onto the stage. The hint of movement by your slow trudges catching his attention, he turned and gave you a soft smile. “Hey there. How’re you doing?”

You shrugged. “I’m so sorry.” Your scratchy voice skipped over the apology.

He walked over to you. “I pushed my luck… and yours… a bit too far. I’m sorry.” He grinned and placed the hat on your head. “Cherie said you could have it. A parting gift for the both of us.”

A smile broke out on your face.

“You look really cute, Cowgirl.”

“You stayed?” You questioned.

Dean’s face contorted in confusion. “Not like I was going to just skip out on you over some upchuck. Trust me, beautiful, I’ve seen way worse.” He flicked the hat so it rose up an inch higher on your head. “So, calling us a cab or walking you back to your hotel so you can sleep this off? You are going to have one hell of a hangover in the morning.”

You tummy seesawed at the thought of a lot of walking right then. “Cab.”

He nodded and headed for the exit. “Let’s go flag one down.”

“But…”

Dean stopped, wavering in his stride and waited.

“I don’t want to say goodnight yet.”

He smiled, then sighed. “Well, I got a text about an hour ago that little brother is going off on a granola munching hike in the desert by himself.” He scratched the back of his head. “So, if you want to hang out in my seedy motel room for a couple hours, it’s free.”

You grinned, queasy but happy.

*

He’d found a country station on the motel’s radio alarm clock when you’d arrived earlier and forced you to down a bottle of water and pop a couple aspirin. The both of you were now on your third round of War. The conversation had gotten deeper as the battle continued. But there were still the light, fun and flirty moments that made spending this time with him feel even more special. 

You sat cross legged on the blanket Dean had pulled out of his duffel to spare your ass from sitting on the dingy motel room carpet. He sat across from you, back against the foot of his bed, leaning an elbow on one propped up knee, the other leg splayed out on the blanket. You didn’t think his bowlegs could manage a cross legged position and grinned to yourself at the thought.

It was 2:00 am. He showed no signs of fading, but you were struggling. Dean kept glancing at his phone but never faltered to toss down his cards in time with yours.

“Hopefully he’s okay.” You offered. The tinge of pain crept in. You knew you had to say goodbye and call it a night. It was obvious he was worried. His brother had not returned his texts and was still roaming around, somewhere. “I should go. It’s getting really late and you look ready to form a search party.” You tossed your hand of playing cards onto the blanket and attempted a slow rise to your feet. You placed a hand on the cowboy hat to keep it from falling off your head. At least, for now, your stomach had settled. The pounding in your head had lessened.

“I’m surprised your gal pals haven’t been ringing you non-stop.” Dean’s head tilted up and stared.

“I’m the last thing they’re thinking of tonight.” You hadn’t given them much thought either since the first time you’d looked at Dean hours ago. God, it felt like a lifetime ago at this point.

 “You should stay a little longer and at least see who wins. We’re all tied up.”

“We’ll just have to call it a draw.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” He hopped up much quicker than you.

“Where’d I put my bag?” Your eyes found it on the little table by the kitchenette as soon as you’d asked the question. You hobbled over, letting the blood flow into your legs proper again.

As you rummaged through the contents, you heard the volume of the radio go up.

You turned and saw Dean sitting on the edge of the bed, tapping his thighs.

You giggled. “You like this song?”

“Ah, it’s pop-country. But ladies like it, right?”

You shrugged and dropped into the chair beside the table. “Where I’m from, ladies get weak in the knees for Luke.”

Dean grinned that grin you’d seen countless times that night and wished you could see for every night after. He stood up and swaggered over with purpose, in only that black t-shirt, jeans and sock clad feet. He mouthed the words to the song on his approach. Your eyes were locked on those luscious lips and how well he knew the lyrics.

Gonna stomp my boots in the Georgia mud ***

Gonna watch you make me fall in love

Dean pulled the hat off your head and slid it in the perfect sweet spot on his head. The slight tilt was sexy as hell.

Shake it for the birds, shake it for the bees

Shake it for the catfish swimmin' down deep in the creek

For the crickets and the critters and the squirrels

Shake it to the moon, shake it for me girl

Aw, country girl, shake it for me

He teased and smiled, sticking his fingers into the belt loops of his jeans and swirling his hips. You giggled at his awkward and heartfelt attempt at this show and the blush creeping over the apples of his cheeks.

You rose up and joined him, wanting to relieve him from the embarrassment. And, hell, you finally wanted to dance with him. You sidled up into his space, slotted one leg between his bow legs and circled your hips in time to his. That rhythm being something he easily adjusted to and was happy to continue. You looked up into those green eyes, wrapped your hands around his neck and felt his warm, safe hands glide up and down your back. The lyrics came to you easily and you lip synced along with him. It was corny, cheesy, unexpected, and sexy as hell. 

Pony-tail and a pretty smile

Rope me in from a country mile

So come on over here and get in my arms

Spin me around this big ole barn

Tangle me up like grandma's yarn

Yeah, yeah, yeah

The brim of his cowboy hat bopped your nose during a particularly forceful pretend belting of words by Dean. “Sorry.” He spoke aloud and chuckled.

“It’s okay.” You whispered, out of breath from everything he was doing to you. “I’m so glad I took a chance on you, Dean.” 

That one statement pulled you both out of the playful and flirty exploration of each other and the boundaries you’d tested. His focus on your face turned serious. And, even though the uptempo song stomped on in the background, his motions halted. His eyes drank you in, every inch of your face. His fingers danced along your jaw, curled around your neck, angling you up to him. To finally kiss you through the rest of Luke Bryan’s crooning.

Now dance, like a dandelion

In the wind on the hill underneath the pines

Yeah, move like the river flows

Feel the kick drum down deep in your toes

All I wanna do is get to holdin' you

And get to knowin' you

And get to showin' you

And get to lovin' you

'Fore the night is through

Baby, you know what to do

You’d died and gone to heaven; were positive of that fact. No man had ever had lips so soft, a mouth so determined, and knew exactly what to do with the precise amount of pressure and tongue.

As Bryan faded out, you heard the chirping of a phone. Dean broke the kiss and leaned his forehead into yours. You felt the brim of his hat on the top of your head. “Sweetheart…” The moan was a mixture of want and something else.

You sighed and knew. “Your brother.” You motioned over to the bed where his phone was. “You should go.”

He leaned down and kissed you again, placed the cowboy hat back on your head and sprinted to the phone. You did the same, found the contact of a Vegas cab company you’d put in at the start of your trip and dialed. You spoke to the weary dispatcher and repeated the name of the motel, watching Dean reply back to the text as he sat on the bed and slipped into his shoes.

“Not too far. Should only be about five minutes.” You nodded. “You can go. I’ll wait outside.”

He rubbed his thighs. “No way. You’ll wait in here with me.”

“Dean, I…”

He cut you off. “You surprised the hell out of me tonight, beautiful. You were up for everything I threw at ya.” He smiled. A genuine, heart tugging smile.

“The night could have taken a much different turn if I could have held my liquor better.”

He shrugged. “But it was still one helluva night. And, I’m glad you took the chance on me, too.” He offered his phone. “Put your number in.” You smiled and did as asked, then handed it back. He shot you a text. “There. Now, you have mine.” He pulled a business card out of his wallet. “And, here. Don’t ask questions, but if for some reason that phone stops working... call this number and say you need to get in touch with Dean Winchester.”

You read the card. “FBI Director, Mike Kayser?”

Dean raised both eyebrows.

“Okay.” You slipped the card and phone in your purse. Headlights flooded through the motel curtains. “Well, that’s my ride, I think.”

Dean stood up and opened the door, walking out into the early morning with you. The yellow cab idled in the parking lot. He waved at the driver, then turned you in his arms and stared at you hard. “You send me a text when you get into your room.”

You chuckled. “You’ll be roaming the desert like Jim Morrison by then.”

“Please.” That soft smile again.

“Okay.”

He grabbed your face with two warm palms, angled you in just the right way so he  could dip down and kiss you under your cowboy hat, soft and slow. He whispered in your ear. “I wish I could be your safe bet.”

You gave him one more peck, then walked to the cab. When you opened the back door, you turned and called out. “What would be the fun in that? Flip a coin and see where it lands every once in a while, right?”

He gave you a two finger salute and smiled that Dean Winchester grin. As the driver nodded at your destination and turned out of the lot, you watched him, standing, waiting for you to disappear from view. You held onto that grin. Closed your eyes. Committed it to memory. And hoped you’d see it again.

THE END

***Luke Bryan - Country Girl (Shake It For Me)

MASTERLIST

[fandomanxiety-library]

“Fluffy February” - Day Four

The Outer Worlds

Maximillian Desoto X Captain Dottie

Summary: On Roseway they met the nervous Anton Crane, and now are on the search for the diet toothpaste! The Captain along with her ship's Vicar and newly adopted orphan, Felix Millstone are heading to the secret lab. Along the way, the Captain and her team experience trouble, and now are fighting for their lives against mauraders!

Note: I am really craving angst, my fellow spacers. To be honest, I am thinking of making My Captain's story on here or maybe AO3. I am not sure which, but I'm slightly leaning towards AO3. If you have any thoughts on it, I'd like to hear them! Because this is Fluffy February, and I don't know if you guys will appreciate angst. Plus, I have been wanting to do her story for a bit. Anyway, I'll get on with this now!

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

This is ridiculous.

Max had never thought in a million years he'd be fighting rapts and mauraders for toothpaste. (Toothpaste! Amongst other things, but toothpaste!) He trudged behind the Captain out of the building watching the ungrateful idiot they just saved scramble off to Roseway.

He'd be dead if it had been up to me, not this Captain that I am beginning to think hit her head to hard. Who goes out if their way like this? Who seriously, goes on some big trip for diet toothpaste?! Toothpaste?! Law, she must be an idiot! It's a Law-forsaken joke!

"Captain, are we really doing this?" He asked with a sigh, and she kept walking forward.

"Yes. Why?"

"Because we are risking our lives for some toothpaste and rapt musk. It's well, not to put to sharp of a point in it, but absolutely ridiculous," Max huffed, he tried to not growl out the words.

"This is this man's job, Max. If he, along with others, don't get their "projects" in...well, who knows what could happen to them?" She spoke, and Felix butted in.

"We are just feeding the corporate, Dot! We might as well be lackeys too!" Felix stated, and Max saw his point, even though the kid was an idiot.

"Sure, but we'll likely be saving lives in the process. And that's what we do."

"What about Gladys then?" Felix asked, and she sighed.

"I will tell her there was nothing. Because there is. This isn't ours, or hers. No matter how much she wants it," she spoke, and Max noticed she has distaste in her voice.

"Do you not like our black market friend, Captain?" Max asked with curiosity as he stepped over a dead body.

"I do...but she's going to be expecting something. Anything. I have a feeling about it. She's probably going to make me pay for this key, and I don't want to," she replied, and Max noticed she was frustrated.

We should be the ones frustrated! Going around doing other people's jobs, because we are "good people". Not that I am not a good person, I just draw the line at this. I am a good person, that's what I've strived to be. A good person. The Plan has helped make me a good person.

"It's getting late. Which isn't ideal right now. We'll have to stop traveling," she sighed, and she removed her helmet to wipe sweat from her face.

She glanced around and her hair was slicked down on her forehead with sweat. Her lips dry from the heat inside her helmet, and he also noticed they had a pink tint to them. In times like this, he was thankful for his helmet, because she couldn't see him staring like a moonstruck idiot.

Law, look away...just try to. You are just making it harder for yourself.

He watched her plop down on a rock in frustration. This was the most aggravated he'd seen her in his time with her.

"We need to find some building, but I'm not seeing any. What do you guys think?" She sighed, and he watched her drag a hand down her face.

Blood from their previous fight smeared on her face, and she didn't even care.

"I think we should keep going. I'm not tired," Felix stated, and Max rolled his eyes.

"Captain, we can stop if you'd like. But the side of the road is not preferable, we're out in the open," Max stated, and she looked at him like he was stupid.

"Captain Obvious, I know that. Let's go up in the hills. Find a cave. I've seen a few on my way here," she huffed getting up, and grabbing her helmet she had tossed on the ground.

Captain Obvious?! It's not his fault she was plopped on the side here like an idiot! She can be insufferable!

They padded through the incoming nightfall in the mountains, and it took well after nightfall for them to finally find this cave. She pulled off her bag, and opened it where she pulled out a sleeping bag.

"Max honey, could you start a fire?" She asked, and he nearly tripped over his own feet.

"Do what?" He asked, and she began rolling out her sleeping bag on a tarp she had placed down.

"Make a fire, hun," she stated, and again used the nickname.

Felix had noticed too, and Max swore he saw a glare from him. Was Millstone...

He's is jealous? Hah! What a laugh!

Max began making the fire with a sense of pride. Knowing that Felix was jealous of him made him-.

"Felix darlin', bring me Max's pack."

Nevermind.

Felix walked over to him with the biggest smirk, and reached out his hand.

I could knock that smirk off his face!

Max roughly handed Felix his bag, and Felix took it with bounce in his step to the Captain. She took it and pulled out his sleeping bag and rolled it out. She took Felix's out of his bag doing the same.

The fire was started. She retrieved canned food from her pack, and she opened the cans. Sitting them on rocks near the fire, she hopped it would warm the food.

"Alright, that should be it," she said, and she smiled tiredly at him.

Max felt uneasy. Something didn't feel right about something. Everything ran to smoothly on their way up here.

"I am worn out," the Captain spoke, and suddenly he watched her eyes dart to the mouth of the cave.

Does she feel uneasy as well? Is it just me?

"But, before I rest I am gonna do a look-over. Check outside," she spoke, getting up to head for the cave's opening.

When she reaches it there is silence, only the sound of the crackling fire to bid her farewell. It was ominous.

Maybe I should go with her? But I can't leave the cave only manned by this idiot. He'd let mauraders in, or wo-.

Not a second later there was a loud sound of a bullet hitting something, and then the sound of something hitting the ground with a loud, armored thud.

Glancing at the Captain, he saw her on the ground. She was face-first in the dirt, and it didn't take long for Felix to scramble to his feet. Max yanked him back.

"What is wrong with you?! Let me go!" He shouted, and Max tightened his grip.

"Stop! They want us to go out there! Then they'll pick us off!" Max growled lowly, and Felix squirmed.

"She's hurt!"

"Or dead. And we could be next. If we really want to help her we'll pick them off here," Max stated, and Felix stopped squirming.

Max's heart was pounding out if his chest while he glanced back at her limp form. He let Felix go and reached for her weapon. Max used it to look down the hill, and there he spotted three mauraders trudging up the hill. Getting in position behind a rock in the cave he motioned for Felix to look down the scope of the gun.

Felix looked, and Max was right. They wanted them to come out.

How long where they following us? Did they just find us?

Felix unholstered his weapon, and glanced at Max for a plan.

The Plan. Was this the end? No. It couldn't be. The Plan is still yet to be deciphered, and I am going to do it. The Captain is fine. Dottie is fine. She has to be. This can't be her end either. She didn't live all this time to die! No. She's fine.

"Felix you take the one on the left. I'll take the right. Then we both get the middle one," Max stated, and Felix nodded in return.

"Don't miss, okay? For Dottie," Felix spoke.

For Dottie.

Felix felt like he was going to throw up, and Max kept looking at Dottie. But Max and Felix didn't miss. Both killing the two crazed mauraders, and then the middle one came running up the hill.

Well, at least he made himself an easy target. Law-forsaken idiot.

Max shot him in the head, while Felix put a bullet in his leg. Max wondered which came first, and hoped the bullet in it's leg hit first because the maurader deserved pain.

Felix didn't wait to scramble over to Dottie, in fact he tripped over his own feet, landing him infront of her.

"Felix! We should check the perimeter first!"

But it was to late, Felix was rolling her over and saw no blood. Max jogged over to see the damage, the bullet didn't tear through her armor.

Thank the Law.

"Let's get the Captain in the cave," Max said, while hauling her over his soldier.

His heart was still pounding. He put her up against the cave wall and began removing her armor. He started at her feet, removing her boots. He wouldn't admit it, but he was nervous to see her chest- that's why he started by removing her boots. When it was time to remove the chest piece he examined the damage to her armor. It was buried in the metal, and around the bullet there was cracks that spidered out from there.

It might fall apart on me when I remove it, but it must be done.

Max began to pull the armor off, and like he predicted, it began falling apart. He undone some of the armor straps, and then managed to get it off. Throwing it aside he began unbuttoning her shirt.

"Max! What are you doing?!"

"Don't be so juvenile! I have to examine the damage!" Max scolded, and he glanced back at Felix.

Felix crouched next to him, wanting to see if it hurt her. Max pulled open the shirt and right in the middle of her chest was turning an awful, sickly purple.

Just as I thought. It didn't leave her unscathed, I wonder it it broke a bone?

Max put his hand on it, and he began to press down to see if any damage was done to her bone.

A cry came from her and he felt it rumble in her chest. His hand drew back and saw she was squirming away.

"Captain! Your awake." Max sighed, and it was releif.

"I wish I wasn't...what...what happened?" She asked, her voice was weak.

"You where shot. Luckily, it didn't go through your armor," he replied.

"Dot! Your okay! You scared us!" Felix exclaimed, while grabbing her hand.

Suddenly she began to cry, but laughed in the process. She grabbed Max's hand and squeezed both his and Felix's.

"Dottie?" Felix asked, looking at Max for an explanation.

"I am so glad you guys are okay!" She giggled through the tears.

Max looked at their hands joined together and squeezed back. Felix had removed his helmet, and Max noticed his own was still on. He removed it and looked at her wildly.

"Why are you laughing?" He asked, and she laughed harder.

"I'm just glad you okay! Both of you!"

"We hope your okay, Bo-Dottie. Did you hit your head?" Felix asked, and she smiled at him.

"I don't know..."

"We need to get you to a doctor, maybe Dr. Crane cane help you. I assume so," Max spoke, and she leaned against the cool wall.

"I'm sleepy," she yawned.

"Here, let me help you to your bag," Felix said, and helped her up.

He helped her over to her bag, and she managed to squirm inside. She lied down and Felix sat near by watching her until she drifted to sleep.

Max eyed the forgotten, wasted food at the fire. No one was hungry now, and it'd go to waste. He began removing his armor, until he was left in his clothes.

"Take your armor of, son," Max told Felix, being kinder than he had ever been to him.

"No. I'm gonna be prepared this time," Felix spoke, and Max sighed.

"We would have never known."

"It should've been me. Not her," Felix spoke, and Max eyed him.

"Don't say that. She'd be distraught," Max spoke, and Felix shook his head.

"Nobody needs me Max. She'd get over it. It wouldn't effect anyone if I was gone."

"She's not gone, Felix. And yes it would. Your family now," Max spoke.

A hand landed in Felix's shoulder, he hadn't even seen Max come over to him.

"And you shouldn't say that. We need you. Even though me and you may not be...close," Max said, and Felix stayed quiet.

Max plopped down next to the Captain, her now in-between him and Felix. She was fast asleep, and he looked at her hands. She had large, square fingernails that where caked with blood from the battles on Roseway. They where large, and one thing he knows now, is warm. They are warm and kind.

Gently he took her hand in his, lacing his fingers between her motionless ones. They weren't like his, which where calloused and cold from years of work. They where still soft, dare he say, baby-like to the touch. He supposed it was from being in cryo-sleep, and not having to condition hard, labor work on Earth. That or she must care for them with different ointments and lotions.

He felt her fingers curl up to lace with his, and he saw her tiredly looking at him.

"You should sleep, Maximillian," she croaked, and he felt his ears burn again.

"Did I wake you, Captain?" He queried, and she smiled.

"I'm fine. It wasn't you. It was the pain," she softly spoke, and he squeezed her hand.

"Does it hurt to talk?" He asked her, and she peered at him with her emerald eyes.

She nodded.

"Don't talk then, alright?" He said, and she smiled in response.

She continued to look at him with those shinning eyes. It didn't take long for them to flutter closed as she began to drift asleep.

"Goodnight...Dottie."

[papermoonloveslucy]

RETA SHAW

September 13, 1912

Reta M. Shaw was born in South Paris, Maine, on September 13, 1912. Her father was an orchestra leader. Shaw's younger sister was actress Marguerite Shaw. The daughter and granddaughter of women who believed in spiritualism, Shaw reportedly once told a newspaper interviewer that she had been "brought up on a ouija board." She was a graduate of the Leland Powers School of the Theater in Boston, Massachusetts.

Shaw's first credited appearance on the Broadway stage was in 1947's It Takes Two. She appeared in as Mabel in the original production of The Pajama Game in 1954 (above), recreating her role in the 1957 film, as well the Broadway production of Picnic, which she also did on film in 1955.  

She is probably best known for her role as housekeeper Mrs. Brill in the blockbuster Disney classic Mary Poppins (1964). 

Shaw made her TV debut with an episode of the anthology series “Armstrong Circle Theatre” in December 1952.  

In 1958, Shaw was hired by Desilu to play the recurring role of Flora McCauly on “The Ann Sothern Show”.  Shaw did eight episodes in 1958 and 1959. Desi Arnaz was the Executive Producer and Lucille Ball guest-starred on the series as Lucy Ricardo in 1959. Shaw would later perform opposite Ann Sothern on “The Lucy Show”. 

In October 1961, Shaw did a guest spot on “Pete and Gladys” a spin-off of Desilu’s “December Bride.”  Coincidentally, she shared the screen with Gale Gordon as Uncle Paul. 

Also in 1961, Shaw returned to Desilu’s “The Real McCoys” a series she first did in 1957. The show featured Richard Crenna, who played Arthur Morton in “The Young Fans” (ILL S1;E20) and was a regular on “Our Miss Brooks.” 

Shaw first collaborated with Lucille Ball in 1962 with “Lucy Misplaces $2,000″ (TLS S1;E4). Shaw played a girthy grandma attending a carnival with her granddaughter. 

Shaw (whose character is un-named) also happens to be sitting on one of Lucy’s lost $500 bills!  Shaw’s imposing frame was definitely a factor in her casting. This was her first encounter with Lucy, but not her last. 

In December 1962, Shaw was back on the Desilu lot to play Big Maude Tyler, an escaped convict on “The Andy Griffith Show.”  The role was quite a departure for Shaw. Two years later Shaw was back in Mayberry as Eleanora Poltice, a character more in keeping with Shaw’s usual casting. 

Also in 1962, Shaw made her first appearance on “My Three Sons” (filmed on the Desilu lot) opposite William Frawley as Bub. The next time she did the show was the vert first appearance of William Demarest as Uncle Charley.  

Shaw was back on “The Lucy Show” (with Byron Foulger as her henpecked husband) as Dora Dunbar in “My Fair Lucy” (TLS S3;E20), a parody of the blockbuster film My Fair Lady. Coincidentally, in 1964 Reta Shaw starred in another blockbuster, Oscar-nominated film musical, Mary Poppins. 

A good sport, Shaw ends the episode with a glass of punch poured down her dress by the Countess (played by her former co-star Ann Sothern) and a rebellion by her husband Fred! “Oh, shut up, Doris!”  Once again cast for her size, The Countess calls Dora “fat lady”. 

In December 1965 Shaw did a single episode of “The Dick Van Dyke Show” (filmed on the Desilu lot). Coincidentally, she shared the episode with Jerry Hausner, who played Jerry the Agent on “I Love Lucy.”

Shaw makes a third appearance on "The Lucy Show” when “Lucy Goes To A Hollywood Premiere” (TLS S4;E20) in 1966.  Shaw plays Mrs. Foley, a neighbor of Lucy’s about to move back to Iowa and give up her lucrative stand selling maps to the star’s homes, a job she’s had for 15 years. Lucy takes over and makes a terrible mess of things. 

In 1967, Shaw was reunited with Byron Foulger, who played her henpecked husband Fred on “My Fair Lucy,” for an episode of the short-lived “The Danny Thomas Hour” filmed at Desilu Studios. 

On “Here’s Lucy,” Shaw first played Mabel Ryker in “Lucy, the Process Server” (HL S1;E3). Here Shaw uses the same first name she had in The Pajama Game on stage and screen, Mabel. Shaw was also cast in one of the new series’ first few episodes, just like she was on “The Lucy Show.” 

Mrs. Ryker is the elusive woman to whom Lucy must serve her first summons. This episode was seen just two days after the third episode of...

“The Ghost and Mrs. Muir” starring Shaw as housekeeper Martha Grant. The show (based on the film of the same name) ran for two seasons on NBC, from 1968 to 1970. Although unrelated to Lucy or Desilu, Shaw performed alongside many “Lucy” cast members. 

Another non-Desilu show on which Shaw often appeared was “Bewitched”.  She did a total of four appearances over the entire run of the sitcom: in 1964 and 1965 as Bertha, and in 1966 and 1972 as Aunt Hagatha. All but one episode was directed by former “I Love Lucy” director William Asher. In one episode she appeared opposite Madge Blake (above) who did two episodes of “I Love Lucy” and one of “The Lucy Show.”    

In “Lucy and the Group Encounter” (HL S5;E14) in 1972, Shaw played Rita Forrester, the owner of Forrester Publications, a client of Carter’s Unique Employment Agency. The name was actually a form of her real-life married name, Reta Forester. Shaw married only once, to actor William Forester in 1952. They were both in the film of The Pajama Game. They divorced ten years later and had one daughter, Kathryn Anne Forester.

When a pencil starts to roll off the desk, Reta Shaw tries to grab it before it hits the ground, but is unsuccessful. A consummate professional, Shaw continues the scene as if it never happened! 

Shaw’s final appearance opposite Lucille Ball was as Mrs. Witherspoon in “Lucy’s Tenant” (HL S6;E7) in 1973. Witherspoon is the first to respond to Lucy’s ad to rent a room now that Kim has moved out.  While the credits list her as MISS Witherspoon, Lucy addresses her as MRS. Witherspoon. Shaw enters with Lucille Ball early in the episode, so she benefits from Ball’s enthusiastic entrance applause.  

MRS. WITHERSPOON: “I don’t approve of men, loud music, alcohol, and...um...whoop-de-doing.”  LUCY CARTER: “Well, we might ‘woop’ once in a while, but there’s very little ‘de-doing’!” 

Lucy ends up renting the room to the equally undesirable Kermit Boswell (Jackie Coogan). 

Shaw’s final screen appearance was in the Disney film Escape to Witch Mountain in 1975. She died in 1982 at age 69.

[xserpentlife]

I hate you, I love you

Requested: Anon - Tumblr hasn't been working properly so not sure if my request went through so here it is again: sweet pea x reader imagine, where sp and the reader have a love-hate relationship ( not dating) and for some reason they have to share a hotel room with only one bed. reader gets embarrassed and says 'i'm not having my first time with you'. And then the reader blushes and it's ends with fluff and them dating. (Reader also has never kissed anyone) thanks!

A/N: Hope you like it Anon

Warnings: Angst, Fluff, Cursing

Word Count: 3409

Sweet Pea and I were not that close. We had a love-hate type of relationship I would say. I have been friends with Fangs, Toni and him for years but he always pissed me off. I don’t know if he meant to but somehow some way he would always end up being a dick. At first, he hated me because I came from the Northside. Then it turned into him hating me just for being me and it made absolutely no fucking sense. But it was also a friendship. He was there when no one else was, we talked about some things like how hard it was losing my dad, things I didn’t say to anyone. He even defended me a few times, kicked some guys ass when he saw me pushing him off of me at the bar one night. We would tease and push each other, it is light-hearted, but other times the fights turned into saying hurtful things.  At this point, I kind of just ignored him and dealt with it.

I walked into the Wyrm where we all planned to hang out and Toni was working at the bar. I sat down she handed me a beer and Fangs came over. We talked for about 20 minutes before I realized Sweet Pea was nowhere to be found, which granted was very odd because by this time he was usually playing pool. That's when I saw the new recruit push him against a wall and kiss him. I turned around, not wanting to see him tonguing down some bitches throat. He came up to us then.

“What’s up guys?”

“What? Actually decided to come hang out? Did you choke on the recruits tongue for long enough?”

“What about you little miss fuck everyone she sees”

“Excuse you, you don’t see me pushed up on some asshole”

“No, but you usually are”

“I don’t know what your eyes are seeing Sweet Pea” he walked away. It started as a rumor that never really stopped, some new recruit wanted to gain ground with the older members. He told people that he got in my pants, then others said the same. I tried to get people to believe me but it was me against about 5-8 other guys. Nothing I said worked people just automatically assumed. I saw Sweet Pea walk out the Wyrm with the girl probably taking her to his place to fuck. A few minutes later we all headed off in our own directions.

School the next day was good for the most part except I knew when I saw Reggie Mantle walking down the hallway it would get a lot worse.  He tried flirting, like always grabbing my wrist and lightly pushing me against the locker. I pulled him off not wanting to deal with it and ran away to the bleachers, pulling out a cigarette. Of course, the day got worse.

“What running from your problems again precious”

“Seriously Sweet Pea I am not in the mood for you right now”

“Oh your always in the mood for me Y/N”

“Disgusting, get over yourself”

“Serpents not enough had to get in Mantles pants to”

“You know nothing Sweet Pea so go fuck yourself”

“Glady” he winked and walked off. He was such a jackass. He thought he was right about every little fucking thing. I was tired of the day at that point I wanted to get out of school but Jughead made me help him with a project. That meant I didn’t get to the wyrm until fucking 5 I needed a drink or to talk to someone I couldn’t deal with him, I did not want to see him but I wanted to talk to Toni. We started talking about random shit. I was having a really good time and of course, fucking Sweet Pea had to come over and ruin it. He said hey to Toni and bumped into me backing my beer spilling it slightly onto my shirt.

“Seriously Sweet Pea!”

“Oh calm down”

“I’m not going to fucking calm down, why do you always have to do the stupidest shit”

“Why are you so pissed off Y/N. It was a fucking accident chill out”

“I am not going to chill out you always do this” I pushed him back not that it did much but FP saw walking down the stairs and over to us telling us to calm down. And then told me the worst news I have heard in a long time.

“Y/N, Sweet Pea grab your bags you gotta go on a run for me. Take the truck out back the stuff is in there, the address is on the dash. When you get there, check into the hotel it’s under your name Y/N. The guys for the trade will switch out the stuff in their truck and ours in the middle of the night. You can leave with it in the morning” Sweets looked unfazed, but annoyed at the same time.

“Woah, woah, woah… wait a minute you're telling me I have to drive with him somewhere and stay in a hotel with him!”

“It’s an order, leave now its a 2-hour drive” you gotta be kidding me I thought to myself. I had one of the worst days and now my night is ruined too. I walked out the back door getting into the passenger side of the Truck. Sweet Pea hopped in next to me, throwing a duffle bag in the back.

“Did you know about this?”

“Not really FP told me there was a job I was going on, not that it would be with you, and not that it would be overnight. He apparently didn’t want me to back out so he had Fangs get my shit from my trailer without even telling me”

“That’s rich”

“What is your problem with me”

“Nothing, just drive” It was complete silence for an hour other than the hum of the tires on the road and the light music coming through the radio. I started drifting off to sleep before I felt a hand touch my leg.

“What the fuck are you doing get off of me!”

“I was putting a blanket on you”

“Why would you do that”

“I was just trying to be nice”

“That's ironic” I turned my head out the window again, He went to speak but he stopped himself. Silence filled the truck once again. I could tell he was pissed, but I didn’t know what about. The most logical answer was me, my mere presence tended to annoy him as he told me oh so many times. I was tired I just wanted to get to this motel and sleep. We pulled in and I grabbed my backpack out the back Sweet Pea grabbing his duffel bag. We walked in, I told the guy at the desk my name and he handed me a key. A KEY, ONE.

“Uhm excuse me is there another key for the other room?”

“Only one room is reserved under your name” I heard Sweet Pea from the other side of the waiting area. You've got to be fucking kidding me. I was pissed to say the least. Why the fuck did FP only reserve one room. Whatever, I walked over signaling for Sweet Pea to follow and handing him the key as we walked up the stairs to the third floor. He opened the door to the room stepping in. Sweet Pea turned on the light and audibly again I heard a

“You've got to be fucking kidding me, I have to fucking sleep in a bed… with you”.

“What?” he pointed to the bed THE ONE SINGULAR BED, NOT TWO SINGLES, ONE. “this day keeps getting worse and worse, you know whatever I’ll just sleep in the chair you can take the bed Sweet Pea. I am not in the mood for this not today, and I am tired of dealing with you”

Before he could protest I walked in putting my bag on the ground and then I walked into the bathroom and sighed I needed to shower. I still had beer on me from earlier. I took the shower and got out forgetting that I left my bag in the room. Walking out with myself wrapped in a towel I saw Sweet Pea sitting on the bed scrolling through his phone. I walked to my backpack to grab my clothes, I started grabbing them out. Bra, Underwear, shorts… oh no, I forgot a fucking shirt. I screamed goddamnit and Sweet Pea shot up.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing” I walked into the bathroom slipping the clean clothes on and then slipped the disgusting beer stained shirt over my clean bra. I walked out and he looked at me.

“Why did you put your dirty clothes back on?”

“Does it matter”

“I guess not, just asking”

“Well, I forgot to pack a fucking shirt. You know today has been nothing but fucking bad luck”

“Here,” he walked to his bag taking a shirt out and handing it to me. “Just put it on I have extra in my bag, it's my fault yours is dirty anyway. I slipped my shirt off after I turned on and slipped his on. I turned around again grabbing a pillow and walking over to the chair.

“No”

“No, what Sweet pea”

“Sleep in the bed I’ll take the chair, get up your not arguing”

“No, your two times my height you’ll be more comfortable in the bed the chair is fine for me”

“I said no arguing”

“Oh fuck off” He stormed out, I imagine he had a smoke. Of course, he had to open his mouth again when he came back in”

“Really get in the fucking bed and off the chair” I glared at him, I really didn’t need his shit, I was getting tired of it. “I am just trying to be nice Y/N”

“I don’t need you to fucking be nice. You know you say we are friends but we fucking aren't all you ever do is try to constantly fight me. We’ve had these deep conversations and then the next day it is like I barely exist, so what the fuck is your problem. You know you were the only one that truly stuck by me when my dad died and then… and then you left me, you barely talked to me for weeks and then when you did it started with sly remarks, more than we ever had before. Then the sly remarks turned to rude ones why? I am tired of your shit Sweet Pea. I am tired of always trying and getting nothing in return from you. Can I even call you a fucking friend at this point?  All you ever do is say rude shit to me, or say shit to make me mad, what's the point does it get you off or something does it make you happy when you make me feel like I want to storm out of a building and never come back. I am done tryi…” He cut me off pressing my lips to his. I thought I would have hit him pushed him away, but I didn’t I melted into it something was… different. He disconnected our lips, but within seconds I pulled him back to me. I pushed him onto the bed so I was straddling him and made the kiss deeper. His hand slipped up my back and I stopped him, I got off and I ran outside. I couldn’t do that, I was a fucking virgin, hell I never even kissed someone before that moment. I stood over the railing looking down at the truck and watching the rainfall. I felt the linger of the head his lips had on mine. But of course he probably was just horny and needed some action because he didn’t have any other options right now, It probably meant nothing. I got knocked out of my thoughts by him coming outside.

“Y/N, I’m sorry I shouldn’t have done that”

“Sweet Pea. You are mistaken if you think I am going to have my first time with you of all people”

“That's not what I was… wait, first time?”

“Not important” I could not deal with him not now. I was tired, angry that I didn’t pull the kiss away. A tear slipped down my cheek. All I wanted was to be close to him again. Something that kiss made me feel deeper, but I knew it was just a game to him. I heard the door open and shut I figured he would sit in the chair and leave me alone. I closed my eyes trying to hold back the tears that wanted to flow before I felt a dip on the bed next to me. I looked up and over at him he looked down at me his thumb coming and brushing the tear away.

“Stop! Sweet Pea”

“You can’t just do that, You can’t just be an ass and then think everything is going to be okay”

“That isn’t my intention. I just… I’m sorry, I am sorry that I pushed you away and I am sorry that I have been such an asshole to you. You don’t deserve it. You never deserved it.”

“Then why Sweet Pea”

“I… I can’t tell you” he looked soft almost like the hard exterior he always held at completely subsided, almost defeated. I put my hand to his cheek. “Tell me” he looked down shaking his head. “I don’t want to ruin anything, but I guess…. I guess I already did. Look Y/N. I… I like you”

“Wh… what?”

“I have for a long time. I didn’t like you at first coming to the Southside. The Northside and I never saw eye to eye. That passed when I got to know you. I grew close to you, fast. And then… and then your dad died and I was there through it all. The nights at the hospital, the funeral, the aftermath everything. I hated seeing you in pain. It made me angry. Not being able to help made me so mad, so when I got you to smile or even laugh I felt so happy. I started being with you 24/7 and we grew so close it scared me. I just… I was rude thinking that maybe if I was rude I would start to not like you again. Then you were rude back I could see I was hurting you but it was the only way to keep you away. I couldn’t, the feelings I had for you were so strong, they came so fast, it hit me like a truck. It was new for me. I never felt like that… ever. But it backfired clearly or you wouldn’t be in here crying. My intention wasn’t to make you hate me it was just to push you far enough away so that the feelings would go away… but, they didn’t. I’m so sorry I didn…” I stopped him kneeling up so I could connect our lips I understood him. I mean it killed me how much he had hurt me, but he was scared. I couldn’t blame him for that.

“It’s okay”

“It isn’t Y/N I said terrible things to you, I called you names so many times and did such stupid shit. Some of it out of jealousy but some of it out of just trying not to get close to you again”

“Jealousy? I never even dated anyone how could you… oh.” the rumors.

“The guys who had you and I couldn’t it made me mad, angry, I wanted to kill them, but I would never. The best I could do was push you further away, and I am so sorry about that. I thought they were true. I should have believed you when you told all of us they were rumors. My judgment was clouded though. I was so angry, angry that I couldn’t have you. It was my fault and it was stupid. I was so, so terrible to you”

“Stop… Pea, it’s okay” I kissed him again. I wanted to feel his lips on mine. It was a need, I loathed for his lips. He Released pushing me back on the bed. I grabbed his arm pushing him over slightly and climbed on top. I connected our lips once again. I wanted him… all of him. I was in love with him. It’s why I was always so mad, why the shit he said affected me more than anyone. I knew what I wanted. I started to undo his belt, wanting him fully. I needed him I wanted to feel our skin touch. I knew what I wanted, but he swatted my hand away, sitting up pulling his shirt off, our lips only disconnecting for a second. I pushed him back down my hips grinding against his, and again I started to unbuckle his pants, but he stopped me. Pushing me off to the side of the bed and him standing up grabbing his shirt off the floor. I felt… rejected was what he said all a lie.

“I can’t Y/N” I didn’t realize a tear rolled down my cheek. I never cried, why did he have to have such an effect on me. He saw it sitting on the bed in a quick motion taking my hand in one of his and his other cupping my cheek. “No, Y/N please don’t cry I didn’t mean it like that I do want you, a lot actually but”  I interrupted. “You clearly don’t. You would have kept going. You never stop,  you constantly take girls to your trailer, you clearly don’t want this”

“That is not, true”

“Don’t lie, you literally did it the other day when we were hanging at the Wyrm. I mean the girl did throw herself on you but you took her to your bike and headed to your place”

‘Yeah… she kissed me but she was drunk out of her mind. I took her to my place but nothing happened. I am not like that. She is the first girl I took to my trailer in months, and we didn’t even do anything. The only reason I’m known as that guy is because I let the rumors go. I wanted to see if it made you jealous but it didn’t. I tried being with girls to get over you but it never worked. I am not the guy everyone thinks I am”

“I… I’m sorry, I”

“Don’t apologize you don’t need to but, now can I explain myself and why I stopped you?” I shook my head. “I stopped because you deserve so much better than this. And god I would want nothing more than to fuck you right now but… I can’t.  You don’t deserve to lose your virginity in a nasty ass motel room. You deserve the fucking world” I kissed him. I needed to. I knew deep down he wasn't an asshole. I was falling for him more and more by the second. I pulled away smiling up at him. “Hey, why don’t we get some sleep we have a long ride back tomorrow” He stood up walking over to the chair. I wanted him next to me. “P… Pea”

“Yeah?”

“Could you come sleep with me, It may sound cheesy but I want you close… Please, of course only if you want to if you don’t I mean it's fine I…” I got cut off by him climbing in next to me and pulling me close to him. My head landed on his bare chest and we laid there. At that moment everything was… perfect. I started drifting off to sleep and the last words I heard were “I love you so much Y/N, I am so, so sorry that I was such a dick to you. I will never do anything to hurt you again and I will never let anyone hurt you either” Before I fell into a deep sleep I whispered at him “I love you too” I knew everything would be okay then. The guy who was my best friend, who I ended up hating, I was madly in love with, and he was in love with me too.