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#i hate this so much i just want ti enjoy my holidays without the ever looming stress of big assignments and projects and study i have to do
brighhton · 1 year
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why. do thry call it "school holidays" a holiday away from school and then give me assignments i need to do during the holidays and is due first day back. what
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anincompletelist · 9 months
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rwrb christmas recs! ❤️
hi all! :D i wanted to rec some festive fics for the holidays for fic rec friday this week!
I'm sure that I've missed some and that some are still to be posted, which will be included in the january rec if so! but here are a few that I've particularly enjoyed reading this month -- the holidays can be a difficult time for many of us and fic - both reading and writing it - can be such a wonderful distraction!
I hope all of you are doing well and being kind to yourselves and to one another this season. happy reading, and as always be sure to spread the love with a kudos, comment, or reblog if possible. enjoy, and happy christmas! <3
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fell apart (in the usual way) by @hypnostheory (E, 12k)
Henry is a mess around the holidays, and he's expecting to have a tremendously horrid time without Shaan. Fortunately, Alex has plans to make his Christmas both merry and bright. (Bodyguard!Alex Part 2)
When I Think About You by @clottedcreamfudge (E, 36k, wip)
Dream sharing is absolutely not a thing, even though Alex would very much like it to be. The magic of soulmates, however, means that someone you’ve never met – someone whose soul is tied to yours, in whatever way that manifests – can appear in your dreams, like an extra character who keeps popping up over and over again. They won’t be having the same dream as you, and you won’t actually meet, but whatever you remember from the dream can start to take shape in your waking hours; you can figure things out, bit by bit, dream by dream.
Gonna Give You Something (So You Know What's On My Mind) by @affectionatelyrs (E, 4k+)
With the help of a white elephant gift, Henry learns that maybe the whole being-in-love-with-his-roommate thing isn’t as one-sided as he thought.
Every Day's a Holiday (When I'm Near To You) by bleedingballroomfloor (E, 30k)
I know this is a long shot, but if anyone’s going to Texas/anywhere south for the holidays and is crazy enough to drive there instead of fly, I’m looking for a road trip buddy. We can split gas money and snacks if you pick good ones. DM me if you’re interested. And Henry knows he's about the make the most idiotic decision he's ever made in his life. [Or, Henry impulsively tags along with Alex on a road trip to Texas with absolutely no plan. Surely this won't backfire.]
The Christmas Guest by @omgcmere (E, 17k)
Alex is looking forward to a relaxing winter break catching up with his sister after her semester abroad, but June's gone and ruined everything by inviting her insufferable international student friend to stay with their family for a real American Christmas experience. Henry is irritatingly gorgeous with a completely obnoxious superiority complex, and Alex is prepared to hate every single second he's forced to spend in his presence. As Alex starts to get into the Christmas spirit, however, he finds that maybe there's more to Henry than meets the eye - and maybe, just maybe, this will actually be the best Christmas ever
❤️ and if you finish all of these or don't see something you like, be sure to check out this wonderful collection!
New Traditions: A Red, White & Royal Blue Advent Calendar Event
featuring so many beautiful and lovely works by @hgejfmw-hgejhsf @adreamareads @lizzie-bennetdarcy @whimsymanaged @raysletters @sparklepocalypse @thinkof-england @littlemisskittentoes and more!
❤️ as well as a few rwrb holiday fic roundup posts I've seen floating around:
cricketnationrise's holiday fics / @cricketnationrise chamel's holiday fics / @cha-melodius railmedaddy's holiday fics / @rmd-writes allmylovesatonce's holiday fics / @three-drink-amy clottedcreamfudge's holiday fics / @clottedcreamfudge
❤️ and, last but most definitely not least, a wonderful and thorough rec from @roseharpermaxwell (thank you for all you do!)
RWRB FirstPrince Holiday Recs
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happy reading friends! :D
xx
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pleasantglitterflower · 2 months
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The dark side of envy (Joe Burrow x Burrow!sister x Patrick Mahomes)
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Tw: envy, hatred, anger, resentment, displays of narcissism and psychopathy
NCAA Championship 2017- Clemsom x Alabama - Tampa, Florida
Janine had just won the college football championship for the Alabama Crimson. It had been a fantastic season for the young wide receiver. She walked towards her parents with the trophy in her hands, all proud, seeing her brother in the middle of the way, all smiles with open arms to welcome her.
-Jan, I can't believe it, I'm so happy for you, you're a champion. - Joe tries to hug her, but she walks right past him, pushing her arm hard against his chest.
-Get out of here, you little shit. - She strode towards her parents.
Joe stood there, embarrassed and not knowing what to do.
-Oh my God, daughter, I'm so proud, you won the college championship. - Her mother shakes her hard, before she and her father give her a triple hug.
-Now that we have a champion, next year we'll all be in the stands, cheering for Joseph. - She just forced a smile at her father's comment.
CURRENT DAYS
A lot has happened between Janine and Joe, her twin brother, but of all these many things, the most important one, without a doubt, was his effort to be with his sister, to show her that he loves her and wants to be part of her life.
Janine, on the other hand, is the kind of person who, when she realizes she is good at something, uses it to bring everyone down to earth.She has become the most poisonous and manipulative person Joe has ever met in his life and she loves being like that, the kind of unbearable person who only shows herself like that when everyone around her is already tied down enough to her and her ego.
Her words at first made him laugh, his mother would say “It’s just her way”, “She loves you”, “You are siblings, she would never hate you”.
But it’s not quite like that.Janine has never been able to see anyone being better than her and when she does, it’s better that that person is someone she really loves.
Like her husband Patrick.
Someone who is hard to overcome, hard to shake, hard to deal with and hard to hate.
She knew she couldn't compete with him, so why not combine business with pleasure?
Mahomes fell in love with her strength, her desire to be the best in everything she does and the way she is with her family.
At least until they get married.
-We finally have someone we can proudly call a quarterback- She boasts, still wearing a veil, with a glass of champagne in her hands, giving her husband a peck on the lips, who laughs awkwardly.
Joe, sitting at the table with his parents, heard it and started laughing, hoping it was just a joke, but it wasn't. Janine hates him.
As the years went by, the annoyance became more and more explicit at family dinners, making birthdays, the rare holidays they could spend together, a living hell for his parents, siblings, nephews, and husband, for everyone except Janine, who enjoys watching her brother with his head down, without the courage to retaliate, because he wouldn't be able to say a single word that he knew would hurt her, out of respect for his sister and love.
Actually, Joe never understood what love in a family is. Some people are easily lovable, while others, like Janine, even though he had more reasons to hate them, just thinking about it made him feel incredibly guilty and his conscience weighed on him. She was his sister and all she had to do was receive her love, no matter how much it cost him.
-You need to listen to this new Kendrick Lamar song, this guy never tires of changing the rap industry- Joe says, ecstatic as always, when the subject is his favorite genre.
-You again with that low-level and derogatory noise, please improve. Although what could I expect from you, right Joseph- His smile died and so did the conversation and smiles at the table.
-Jan please, you are married to a black man, you know better than anyone how important this song is for the whole society, that the lyrics talk about real problems, not stupid love affairs- He tries to keep the conversation going.
-Any John Lennon song already does the job, we are in the 21st century, no one is an idiot- she replied.
Seeing Patrick uncomfortable, she sat down next to him with her plate made, now she would need to disguise the situation.
-But of course if Patrick likes it I respect it, especially because he listens to artists and not gangsters.
They weren't just arguing about music.
-I've been thinking about maybe finishing my studies, maybe changing fields, it might be good for the future- Joe confessed to Jamie, his older brother.
-Joe, you're almost 30, do you really think now is the time to think about that? You wanted to waste your time with these ridiculous courses, you don't even have enough intellect to do anything else- Janine makes the comment. Dan, the middle brother, immediately snorts.
-You talk as if you were a respected journalist, when all you do is spread fake news on social media, what kind of intellect do you have, Janine Burrow? It's because of people like you that others hate journalists. Give us a break, girl- The brother stomped off.
-Far be it from me to be bored enough to judge other people's lives, especially since I have real problems to think about, but it's very interesting how you think that finance is less important than marketing. Don't forget that your beloved husband didn't graduate, but your brother has a master's degree, something that not even you have. - It was Jamie's turn to throw it in her face.
-I think it's better to focus on your problems, Jamie, and go pay your mortgage. - The brother's hatred is visible, from the looks on his face they would easily kill each other right there, in the Burrow family's living room.
But nothing in the world moved Joe more than when she decided to criticize the only thing that Joe was most proud of in the world, not a football trophy or a degree, but his foundation.
A foundation he wanted the whole family to be a part of and help out equally, something that would be something from his family to the others, but someone refused to be a part of it.
-Joseph, I've been thinking, I want to make a photo album for the foundation of all these moments we've spent together and most of all, it would be really cool if we had an annual photo with whoever wanted to participate, to show how many lives we've touched, it would be really cool- Robin focuses partly on the Thanksgiving pie and partly on what the Burrow siblings are doing in the kitchen, to make sure nothing gets out of hand.
-I was thinking about doing some TV commercials with the kids to try to get more visibility and donors. With that, I believe we could extend the donations to the state. I feel really bad about only being able to help our hometown. I even spoke to Jamie and he loved the idea. - Joe explained, trying not to get dirty with all the seasonings he puts in his food.
-It will be really good. We can see which kids feel comfortable speaking out, if their parents allow them to participate, and then we can put it on TV. If the feedback is positive, we can even get support from interested companies. - The older brother explained to Robin, who agreed excitedly.
-Doing charity and advertising? If you want to be seen so much, put a watermelon on your head and go naked in the street. It had to be Joseph's idea. He's trying to buy sainthood. If you show charity to everyone, it's better not to do it. - Janine hurt him in the worst way.
-That way we'll get more donors, more interested people who will help. - He tried to explain.
-I have projects like that and I don't need anyone to know when I make deals with other people, I also don't need anyone to know, I just go there and ask them to see the project and help. You're ridiculous, you only think about fame, did you know that I even have a project with the NFL itself? - She boasts.
The silence in the kitchen takes over.
-I encourage girls to dream and maybe make it to the NFL - she was soon interrupted by Jamie.
-Do you know what your mistake was Robin? Joseph not being Josephine, because she would beat Janine to a pulp - Jamie leaves the plate she is making, going to the sink to wash his hands.
-Or rather, my intellect isn't that bad, it's your fault, dad, because the man is the one who defines sex. Besides, it's your fault that this girl is like this, because you didn't raise her right, you just did everything she told you to do, you two are wimps and now we have to put up with this bitch talking shit - Jamie leaves in a hurry with Jim, his father, calling him. 
-Don't beg me to come back, I'm almost 50 years old, I don't need this shit, I'm going back to my family who are saner - He shouted, leaving the house. 
-Janine, this behavior is unacceptable and you know it - Robin tries to correct her daughter. 
Although Jamie always gets on her case about what she does to Joe, he is her favorite brother and is always around, because for some reason the anger goes away. 
For this very reason, Joe always felt forced to do the same, but for Jamie, who was never offended, it was easy to forgive. 
And when her mother got stressed about the situation and called her to talk and take it easy on Joe, she gives her best acting.
-Joseph has always been the favorite, you always loved him more than me, because I'm a girl, you always celebrated everything he does and never cared about what I do- She opened his mouth and started to cry.
Jim dried her face, which began to burn, and when he felt his chest tighten, seeing his little daughter sad, he quickly went to her and hugged her tightly, while Robin remained firm.
-You know better than anyone that we always did everything equally for both of us. When you won the NCAA, we threw a party and kept Joe hopeful that his ring would arrive, and when he won, we threw a party and kept you hopeful that one day greater victories would come. So swallow your tears, because you have nothing to complain about us, girl, not in that sense, we always did everything equally.
But none of that is enough to stop her.
Patrick discovered a blog years ago, something very common until he was a teenager, where there was always some special subject for the author that it addressed, until it was replaced by long videos on platforms with the same style. But the more time passed, the more he spent with Janine and returned to the blog, the stranger everything became.
Investigating was not enough, she is his wife and knows her well, but he does not have the courage to ask if she had a blog when she was a teenager.At least until the day came to clean the garage, she had to get everything there in time, so why not during the holidays?
He took down the boxes, got ladders and a bench to tidy up the place and take a break from her pink world, it seemed like a good thing.Among the dolls, books, photographs, old telephones studded with crystals, making him laugh at the fashion of the time and also at imagining her at that age, he found an old diary with a broken padlock.
He opened it, imagining that they were drawings, because he himself loved to draw, but showing them to anyone would only be embarrassing. Even among the various scribbled pages, he found some rants about his family, very similar to the ones on the blog, nothing too different from what she talks about every day, so he wasn't too worried.
Until he saw one reference in particular, which left no doubt.
“Just one”
That's what the girl on the blog always said, because according to her, she wished she had been the only one born on that December 10, 1996.
Patrick didn't even blink, everything seemed to stop around him. It couldn't really be her, his wife saying those things about her family on the internet, for everyone to see, as much as he hoped to know that it really is, it's too heavy for him.
She didn't see when he came to her in the living room, she just threw the notebook for her to catch and by the look on her face, she knew exactly what it meant.
-I already know about the shit you did- He said loudly, catching her attention.
-That's good then- She let the notebook fall on the couch and went back to looking at the phone.
-If you still want to live in this house, be my wife and have the slightest bit of my respect, find a way to fix this situation, because if this becomes public, it won't be very good, besides, everything you wrote about them is disgusting and knowing them Janine, I know it's a lie - Mahomes yelled 
-Of course it's a lie, Joseph is too soft, he would never be able to fight back against me, but it made everything much more fun- She couldn't stop laughing.
Patrick stares at her seriously, not believing what he heard, and then she finally sees that he is really angry.
-And what are you talking about me? What did you lie about me to people or, I don't know, on some fake login somewhere? Fix this or this marriage ends here. - His ultimatum came out, leaving her alone in the living room with many worries, but not about feelings or what she did, but about being discovered and what she would do.
She took the diary and threw it in the trash can on the street, calmly returned to her house, not imagining that there would be a photographer there at that moment, wanting to see the facade of the house, after the recent renovation.
Unfortunately for her, he waited for her to come in and stop the movement at the door, to hang on the trash and pick it up, which for him at one moment seemed crazy, soon became true, since when he opened it, he found something too heavy and soon saw the same thing as Patrick.
Patrick was soon asked at the press conference.
Chaos ensued.
The Mahomes family was shocked, since they had no suspicions about this evil and dark side of Janine.
The Burrow family was devastated, due to so much exposure, each one of them was exposed there in an almost indiscreet way, with only their identities hidden.
Anyone who knew Janine and the way she talks about them would know it was her, because she talks about many things that happened, but also invents many others to make herself look poor.
Anyone who only knew the Burrow family would be suspicious, but would never have guessed that Janine would do this.
Joe was seen by Ja'marr, crying in the training center, hiding, afraid of being found, wondering what bad thing he did in his life for his sister to hate him so much.
Yes, hate.
As she herself writes in a post that was rescued, "If I had known that my brother would be so unbearable, I would have found a way to suffocate him with the umbilical cord", and she has often admitted in other posts that she planned different ways to kill Joe, whether by putting poison in his food, trying to asphyxiate him while he was sleeping, or even contacting hardcore serial killers from Athens to order the crime, but according to her, she ended up giving up because she wanted more years to make his life hell.
Joe is devastated, hurt, hurt, sad, it's as if someone had broken both his legs, both his arms and kicked him in the face, no injury and no defeat would hurt more than that.
In another state at the training press conference.
-Janine, what do you have to say about the blog? Do you regret it? Have you apologized to your family and especially to Joe? - A reporter asks.
-I was just a teenager, a child, too immature, it was just a joke, nothing major and they know it. - Her evasive answer and psychotic smile after answering the question shocked everyone. The apathy and coldness in Janine's eyes, and her frightening psychopathic smile put a warning sign in everyone present in that press conference room. They didn't need to be experts in psychology to realize that they were in front of a pathological narcissist with psychopathic traits.
Patrick began to suffer the consequences, as if he himself had created that blog.
-If Patrick doesn't come out and apologize, it will only seem like he is in agreement with all of this and since she is his wife, it is very clear that yes, he is in agreement. How can someone marry someone who doesn't respect their own family? If he didn't know before, now he does. What does she say about him without him knowing? - One of the commentators asked indignantly.
-Exactly, he has to speak up.
-Yes, he does, many sponsors won’t agree with that - another added.
-What scares me the most is that Patrick and Janine have a daughter together, what kind of education is this child receiving? Poor child - another commenter laments
That weighed on Patrick's conscience, the consequences of what he didn't do could arise,that's when he washed his face and made a video tagging the entire Burrow family, except Janine.
'I would like to publicly apologize to everyone in my wife's family.
Above all, I would like to say that I found out about this a few days ago and that I do not condone it, nor have I ever condone it. I have already asked her to do the same and I am waiting for it to happen and, like everyone else, I know very well that this cannot happen at home, it must happen publicly, since she had the courage to expose the family publicly in so many ways, for so many years. I can only regret that this happened. I love each and every one of this family and they are my family, especially you Joe, who shares the same profession and who is so young and talented, you have always had and will always have my respect and affection. You are family to me, you are a brother, I am sorry for those hurtful things you read, things your sister said about you'
The video was finished and posted, Patrick was more than ecstatic with everything he read.
When Janine saw it, she immediately appeared behind him, ready to confront him.
-My video, which I had no obligation to post, is ready, now please, have enough courage, the same courage you had to mistreat your brother, and do the same Janine and personally apologize to your family and Joseph or, if it's better, pack your bags and leave - He ordered, going up the stairs without even looking at her face.
She hugged her brother in a careless way, while he, imagining that she was being truthful, held her tightly, letting the tears wet her shoulder, who soon grimaced without anyone seeing.
-I'm sorry for everything, I was just an immature and idiot, who didn't know what I was saying, you know I love you very much Joe - She said it out loud very easily.
When her brother released her and she thanked him for it, she had to put on a fake expression of sadness, which worked well.
Peace was established between the Burrow’s, at least that's what everyone thought, since now she had other ways to transfer her anger towards Joe, a new diary, and Janine, with her traditional psychopathic smile, started writing again.
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loversj0y · 1 year
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'tis the damn season
chapter one - we could call it even
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its your first day back home from winter break, and the overwhelming extent of the holidays leads to some interesting rekindlings
'tis the damn season masterlist
pairing: cc!wilbur soot x gn!reader
fluff and angst (quite a lot of angst in fact)
trigger warnings: reader's mother is abusive (not physically) and father is emotionally absent. this will be talked about in extensive detail. alcohol, some suggestive themes, and a lot of anxiety.
author's note: WELCOME! to the very first installment of a multichaptered fic inspired by taylor swift's tis the damn season! this work has been in progress for about. 4 months now so !! yipee!!! hope u enjoy (chapter two should be out sometime within the next week; i wont make the wait too long between chapters) dont like tumblr formatting? ao3 version is available here!
word count: 6.3k
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If you had to be honest, you despised the holidays. It was always stressful, no matter how prepared you tried to be. But regardless, being in your final year of Uni, it was pretty nice to get a final winter break before graduation. The idea of staying with your parents wasn’t ideal. They’d spent years neglecting you and taking a toll on you emotionally, but in the time you’d been gone, it had seemed like things had improved. You agreed to go home for the holidays under this idea, hoping to have a nice break from everything, despite the heavy feeling in your chest that came from being in your hometown – that you’d proudly left behind – and the general dread of the holidays.
Wilbur wasn’t exactly the opposite. While he didn’t mind the holidays themselves, he hated the social conventions of it all. Particularly the insistence that you must be with family or else the holiday isn’t worth anything. However, Wilbur seemed to luck out this year. His mother and stepfather happened to book a cruise for the holidays, and all they wanted from him was to watch the house while they were gone. It gave him both the convention of helping out family without dealing with the mental decline that he gets from actually being around them, mostly his stepfather. So, he’d spend a month in his old bedroom, in the town he dreaded because the number of good memories he’d had all involved one person that left not long before he did.
When you’d finally arrived, it wasn’t long before your parents were hugging you and peppering kisses on your face, talking about how much they’d missed you, and asking if you were eating alright. It was loving, and you did appreciate it, but you felt uneasy. As your mother hugged you, it felt unfulfilling as you looked around the room, each familiar surrounding bringing up memories of your mother’s yelling. You’d settled down fairly easily, which tended to be a perk of returning to your childhood bedroom. After changing into something much more comfortable, you’d returned to where it seemed your family members had accumulated.
“Y/n, darling, my goodness, you’ve grown so much since I’ve last seen you! What are they feeding you out there in London?” It was your aunt who spoke to you. She was tame enough, save for when she got her hands on enough cosmopolitans to feel the need to share everyone’s gossip. 
“It’s nice to see you too. And I cook for myself, in case you were wondering.” You deadpanned. Honestly, you just didn't feel like humoring her advances to pull information out of you. You’d fallen for them as a kid, but now, even with little to hide, you couldn’t quite trust her. 
“Of course, you are, my genius. How’s the dating scene been?” 
You rolled your eyes at the nickname, brushing it off, “Boring as ever.” 
She hummed, taking a sip of her drink.  Ah, looks like she may already be ready to gossip, you thought, noticing the soft flush on her cheeks consistent with her drunkness. Your suspicions were confirmed when she continued, “You know, your mum told me she saw that old fling of yours at the shops the other day. What was his name?” She hummed for a moment, “Wilbur! That’s what it is.” 
Your chest turned to stone in a matter of seconds, and you forced out a response, “Oh, cool.” 
It was not “oh, cool” however, it was very much not cool. You and Wilbur had been friends since the third form, and while you weren’t incredibly close at first, you became much closer as time went on and as social circles grew smaller and smaller.  It came to the point where you two were inseparable, the best friend you’d had even until now. Your “fling” couldn't even really be classified as such. Despite how much you loved Wilbur Soot, you and him just never seemed to break that barrier, save for one weekend in your final year of A-levels. You’d planned to go to prom together, neither of you being romantically involved with anyone else, but you never actually made it to prom. You both went and sat in a field outside the back of the school, sharing a bottle of vodka he’d lifted from his stepdad’s stash. It was then that he’d opened up to you about how embarrassed he felt to be leaving school without having ever kissed a girl before. The mixture of his vodka and your love for him ultimately amounted to a few sloppy kisses, a moment’s worth of making out, before the two of you both had to run from a counselor who was looking for any delinquent students. Neither of you ever addressed it again. 
The years you two had known each other eventually culminated in the same relationship that you had with most people these days: you leaving him and losing contact. You didn’t mean to leave him behind, but between a full scholarship in London and his insistence on how shitty London is, you had to leave. 
You thought about him frequently. There were numerous nights where you’d open up his contact and attempt to draft a message, but it always ended in watching the cursor blink as you struggled to find the words. Honestly, you never thought you’d see him again. You knew nothing about him anymore, what he was like, what he was doing. It was impossible to decide if you dreaded seeing him or would go out of your way to attempt to see him. 
After catching up with your family for a bit longer, you decided to step out. Honestly, you didn’t know where you were going. It was late, almost midnight, and you just needed the fresh air. After walking into town, you found the one thing that would realistically be open this time of night: the pub. It was mostly empty, save for a few older folks sitting in some booths around the wall. You recognized the bartender, he was a few years above you back in school, but he always made an effort to be kind to everyone. He grinned at you once you sat at the bar. 
“Well, if it isn’t Y/N L/N. Shit, I would’ve thought you died," he chuckled, "You visiting for the holidays?” 
“Yep. And trust me, I’d quite rather be dead than be around my whole family all day.” 
He laughed, “Let me guess, a martini for the sophisticated Londoner?” 
You laughed back, “God, no, I haven’t exactly been converted over yet. Just a pint.”
“Still the same as before?” 
“Mmhm,” you nodded out, sighing softly. Being here felt a lot less tense than being at home. At least here you didn’t have to deal with the hushed fights and curses whispered between spouses. 
Wilbur had been incredibly excited by the idea of being alone when he first arrived at his old house a week before. It wasn’t long before it got old. 
“Alright, chat, who should we raid?” 
His chat moved rapidly in response to his words. He’d been playing Minecraft with Tommy, not unlike usual, but he’d been live for an hour and a half, which was a long time to hold up a persona for. Once he’d ended, he stayed on call with Tommy through Discord. 
“I dunno, man. I like being alone, like having the place to myself, but I’ve never felt so lonely,” Wilbur paused, “This place is way bigger than I remember.”
“So go somewhere,” Tommy offered.
Wilbur groaned, “You do understand that there is nothing to do here. It’s part of the reason I settled on Brighton.”
“Oh, c’mon, there’s gotta be something there for you to do. Don’t you have at least, like, a park or a pub maybe? You could go meet women!” 
“Tommy, I know every woman in this town, nobody has moved here or left here since I left,” he sighed, “we do have a pub though. Honestly, that’s not a bad idea. I could go for a drink.” 
“See! Just gotta think outside the box. Have a little optimism, man. Maybe you’ll see that person you knew in school.” 
“Tommy, don’t.” Wilbur genuinely considered leaving the call, his heart sinking at the mention of his old friend, “They haven’t been back since they left, alright?” 
“Yeah, but you never know! Have you thought about what you’d say to them if you did see them?” 
“No,” he groaned, “I don’t know why I’m humoring this, but if I saw them, I’d probably be nice. As much as it hurts, I miss them, and it’s not like I reached out much either, so.” 
Tommy hummed, “Wilbur the Wise, you are. At least maybe if you do see them, you’ll be much less bored.” 
“Yeah, I suppose,” Wilbur sighed, pulling an old beanie on. “Alright, I’m going to head out, talk to you later, man.” 
“Have fun!” 
Wilbur hung up the call after a moment, sighing a bit as he stretched. While he didn’t actually want to go to the pub, it was a better idea than staying in another night. Plus, at least he could get to walk his old path and try and see some of the cats he always used to stop for. 
His walk did end up taking quite a while. He only spotted two cats on the way, but he’d given them as much attention and love as they’d allow. But that wasn’t really what took up so much of his time. He kept going back to what Tommy had asked. Honestly, he did not even consider he’d see you here. For a long time  after you’d left for school, he thought that one day he’d see you walking to the shops and he’d go up to you, and just by saying hello, everything would feel like it used to. After a while, he’d lost hope that he’d ever see you again. He’d tried to find you online, some scrap to see how you had been and to see if you were okay, but he knew he couldn’t exactly just follow you without the risk of questions. He cursed himself for a long while over his pettiness in never reaching out. He thought about that prom night often. Part of him couldn’t make peace with the idea that his best friend, someone who he’d fallen in love with the second they’d spoken to him, was now just a stranger to him. It didn’t make sense to him, but  what made even less sense was when Wilbur opened the door to the pub to find you sitting alone at the bar. 
Wilbur’s breathing went full stop when he saw you. He couldn’t feel his fingers, but whether that was from the cold or the shock he felt seeing you, he couldn’t tell. Once he could feel his body again, he felt his heart pounding in his chest. He’d have to make a choice right now, and he’d have to make one he wouldn’t eventually regret, but-
“Wilbur! Mate, close the door, would you, you’re lettin' in a draft!” 
You felt frozen in your seat when you heard the bartender– whose name, you were kindly reminded, was Liam– yell to Wilbur. You didn’t know if you wanted to look up at him or look anywhere but him. Eventually, curiosity got the best of you, and you looked up directly into his eyes as he stood in the doorway. He seemed to come back to life after a second, turning to walk towards the bar. 
“Uh, right, sorry, man. Could I get a pint?” 
He sat across the corner of the bar, close but still seemingly holding you at a distance. 
After Liam walked away, he turned back to you, and for a moment, you both stared, trying to find words. He’d grown quite fit since the last time you’d seen him. He was still  tall, but not quite as lanky. His shoulders have filled out nicely.  
You decided to start, stuttering a bit as you began, “Hi, Wilbur.”
He seemed to think for a moment before the look faded from his face and something kinder replaced it, “Hi.” 
“How- um,” you contemplated even asking, but you’d rather ask than be sitting here in awkward silence with the boy you’ve loved for years, “How have you been?” 
“I’ve been…” He took in a breath, a moment to compose himself, before responding, “I’ve been good, actually. How about you?” 
You considered lying. “I’m okay, could be better but…”
“But?” 
“Well, I’m still doing the whole uni thing, so still just living in London. Not many developments.” 
“Right. How is London?” 
You thought back to your apartment. Your shitty apartment and your three roommates who you never spoke to, the leaks in the ceilings, the constant noise, the crowds, the grey fogs that would weigh down on your lungs, the deaths on the tube, the harassment just from walking to campus, everything. “It sucks. The city is horrible,” you sighed, “The school is alright, though. The people are standoffish and don’t talk, but the education is good.”
Wilbur looked as though he was fighting off a smile, taking a sip from the beer he’d been given. “I’m sorry to hear that. Glad the school is good. It may not be my place exactly, but do you mind if I say something?” 
Dread filled your chest. “Well, you have to now.” 
A smile crossed his face, his eyes wrinkling at the corners. “I told you so.” 
A moment of processing passed before you burst into laughter. Of course, after all the years you knew Wilbur Soot, you probably could have predicted that would be the first thing he’d want to say to you. 
“Okay, okay, I can admit. Maybe you were a little right. I’ve got my regrets, but despite the city, I don’t hate my choice,” you took a sip from your pint, “what about you? How’s life been?” 
He shrugged a bit, “I’d say good. I did some schooling online and graduated a bit ago. Been doing some work, uh, online, so yeah. It’s been good.” 
“Oh, that sounds cool. Anything I’d know?” 
 “Uh, maybe…” He went quiet for a moment before continuing, “I work for Twitch if you know that company.” 
You shrugged, “I know of them. That’s cool though, I’m glad you found something you enjoy.” 
He smiled a bit, “Yeah, it’s been nice. I’ve made quite a few friends.”
“Really?” That was a bit of a surprise, “Shy little Wilby is making work friends?” 
He seemed to flush a bit, chuckling, “I’ve gotten better about the shyness.” 
“That’s good. You seem to be doing better in that department than I have. I haven’t changed much at all, I think.” 
He hummed, pondering. He stared for a moment, and you almost felt shy under his gaze. Finally, after what felt like ages, he spoke up, “You do your hair differently. You used to part it to the side.” 
You laughed, surprised by the unexpected statement, instinctively reaching up to fix some stray hairs. It brought a blush up to your cheeks, as you couldn’t remember the last time someone had noticed such a small detail as that. You bit your lip for a moment before responding, “Yeah, I- I guess so. Though, to be fair, we kind of had the whole edginess thing going on back then. Had to look the part.”
“Very true,” He snorted a bit, “I still listen to the same music for the most part though.” 
“Oh, let me guess. Favorite band is still Los Campesinos!?” 
“Yeah,” he laughed, “though I play a bit of my music now too.” 
“Oh?” that was a major development. Wilbur spent a significant amount of time in school talking about how much he wanted to play music, always humming some tune to himself, “Will, that’s fantastic. You’ll have to show me sometime.” 
“I could show you now, if you’d like. I’m just watching the house for my parents, so I brought some of my music equipment with me.”
You don’t know what made you so willing to say yes. Maybe it was the fact that you’d finished your pint. Maybe it was just the way that being here and talking to Wilbur made the heaviness in your chest finally lighten up since you first realized you’d have to go home. Either way, before you knew it, you and Wilbur were walking back to his place, chatting lightly the whole way there. 
“Wow, this place hasn’t changed.” 
You took off your coat as you and Wilbur entered his front door. 
“My parent’s haven’t made much of an effort to change things. They think the nineties are still in.” He joked lightly as he locked the door behind you both. 
You chuckled, “Yeah, I can see that.” You followed him up the stairs, “So, you said you were just watching the place for them. I take it you don’t live here anymore?” 
“Nope, I’ve been living in Brighton, actually. I think you’d really like it. It’s still England, so it’s not great, but the ocean is gorgeous.” 
“I’ve been meaning to go down there, actually. It’s only about an hour's train from me, so sometimes my roommates go down there for long weekends. I just haven’t had the time.” 
He hummed, “Well, whenever you do have the time, let me know. I’ve got a pretty nice spare room. Plus, I could introduce you to my mates.”
You smiled softly, mostly to yourself, “Yeah. That would be nice.” 
He sat down on his bed, reaching behind him and grabbing his guitar.  You  took a moment to look around the room. The same posters were still hung up, the dents in the wall from you and him goofing off and throwing things, even the scuffs on the floorboards from when you and him rearranged all his furniture. In the years of separation, you expected more of a difference. The only actual difference was that the room was cleaned for once. You hesitated before sitting next to him as you made your observations. He noticed. 
“What’s up?” 
I shrugged, “It’s weird. Being back here, I mean. I haven’t sat here since A-levels.”
He nodded, thinking it over for a moment. “Yeah. It is a bit weird. Doesn’t it kind of seem like nothing’s changed though?” He chuckled, “I mean, despite the time gap, you always did say being here made you feel safe.” 
“Yeah,” I sighed, “the feeling is still there. I just feel… weird. I’m used to missing you and all of our memories, but I’m not used to being here again after everything that has changed.” 
He smiled slightly, “you missed me?”
I chuckled, “Obviously, man. I missed you every day. Missed having a best friend to bully.” 
He snorted, “Hey, all of our bullying was friendly. Unlike some of the other wankers at our school.”
You laughed, throwing your head back, “Oh god, yeah. Bloody hell, man, I feel bad for their kids. Marshall’s going into medicine, and my god, I pray I never end up as his patient. I feel like his negligence alone would kill me.” 
Wilbur laughed, leaning into you a bit. “God, that is not a man who should have a medical license,” he sighed softly. “Don’t fret, though. I missed you a lot too. I missed having someone yell at me to go outside or cut my hair.” 
You laughed, “Yeah, my yelling comes from a good place, though.” 
He hummed, “True. It did help me not go stir-crazy for a while there.” He paused for a moment, turning towards you slightly. “Wait, if you missed me, then… why didn’t you ever call?” 
You took a deep breath, sighing softly. “Honestly, at first… I thought you might be mad at me for leaving. We did kind of have a whole argument about it, and I didn’t know if you’d want to hear from me. And then, once some time had passed, I considered it. I considered looking you up and trying to talk to you, or even just texting you, but I just felt like it might’ve been weird for me to just text you out of the blue. I didn’t want you to think I was just contacting you because I needed something or something stupid like that. I got busy, and more time passed, and reaching out just felt weirder and weirder each time I considered it.” 
He nodded softly. He didn’t make eye contact as he listened and thought. “If I’m being honest as well, I didn’t want to hear from you at first. I was pretty upset. But after a while, I just missed my best friend. And I was going to text you, but I thought you’d be upset with how we left things. I wanted you to reach out because if I had hurt you, I couldn’t handle reaching out only to get anger, or even worse, just silence,” He sighed, “but if I knew you were thinking the same, I would have dedicated as much effort as I have to keep you in my life.” 
You flushed a bit, “I would have too.” You made eye contact with him and everything felt warm for a moment, as if his gaze was sunlight peering through dark clouds. 
“Now that I know, though,” he started, “I am going to annoy the fuck out of you.”
You laughed loudly at that, grinning up at him, “I wouldn’t have it any other way. We’ve got a few years to make up for after all.” 
He grinned softly, looking down for a moment. He pulled his guitar up a bit, smiling, “Well, now that that’s settled. Let me play you something.” 
Wilbur’s music was beautiful. He played for an hour before he decided to stop, something about not wanting to play anything he hadn’t quite finished yet. 
“Always the perfectionist, you are,” you commented as he placed his guitar down. 
“Not always, I’ve gotten better about it. But I want to impress you mostly.” 
“Really?” He sat back down on the bed next to you, “You wanted to impress me?” 
He nodded, humming out a soft ‘mmhm’. 
“If I knew we were trying to impress each other, I would’ve made my life sound much cooler.” 
“Oh, really, how so?” 
“I dunno, would’ve made it sound like I have some millionaire boyfriend who takes me to Spain for a casual date.” 
He hesitated, his teeth taking his bottom lip in thought. “Do you have one?”
“A millionaire boyfriend?” You laughed out, “No, Wilbur, I d-“
“No, I just meant like, a boyfriend.” 
“Oh.” You frowned a bit, “No. I don’t. Haven’t exactly gotten to know many people there. Plus, all the men are quite shit.” 
He nodded, “Just like everything else in London?”
“Pretty much,” You chuckled softly, “What about you though? A handsome guy like you in Brighton, I’m sure you’ve gotten yourself, someone, by now.”
He shrugged, “Tried it out for a while, but I just didn’t have much luck.” He stopped as he processed your response in full, “Hold on, handsome? You think I’m handsome?” He teased. 
You lightly blushed, rolling your eyes, “Obviously, man. You’ve always been quite fit. Especially with that haircut rather than that straight line cut you used to have.” 
He laughed, “God, that was horrendous. Well, wait, how about now,” he took his hands and pushed his hair back, revealing his forehead. 
You burst out laughing, “Somehow, yes, even if your forehead takes up half your face.” 
He laughed, moving his hands and shaking his head to get his hair to fall back into place. “I can safely say, I find myself quite flattered. Especially coming from an incredibly pretty person such as yourself.” 
You flushed a soft pink, “You think?”
“No, I don’t think, I just know facts.” 
You blushed darker, chuckling. “Well, thanks.” You lightly nudged him with your side. 
He repeated the action, albeit slightly harder. You two did this for a moment, each going slightly harder until he’d accidentally gone a bit too hard, knocking both of you down. 
You both laughed, him laying his head against your side for a moment, before pulling himself up and holding himself up by his arm above you. 
“You’re still as goofy, Mr. Soot.” 
“Only with you.” 
“Oh?”
“Actually, no. But this kind of goofy, yes.” 
“And what kind is that?” 
He just stared down at you for a moment. You felt yourself flush a bit under his gaze, and you stared back up at him. The light from his room gave him a soft halo glow around his head that made him look completely angelic. You’d always thought him attractive, but fuck he was ethereal like this. 
“The kind I do to make pretty people laugh.” 
Your breath hitched, but you were quiet otherwise. You couldn’t remember a time when your best friend was ever so… bold. Maybe part of you was reading into the tension, but the most gorgeous man you’d ever know just called you pretty. That plus his position above you was enough to make your heartbeat faster. You wanted to kiss him. Something in you felt so strongly the urge to wrap your hands around his neck and kiss him. For some reason you couldn’t quite fathom, though, you didn’t. 
“Well, feels nice being special, then.” 
He laid down next to you, the both of you just staring at the ceiling for a few quiet moments as the tension diffused. 
He turned to you. “I can’t tell if I still know almost everything about you or if I know nothing anymore.” 
“I can’t tell either.” You turned back to him, sighing, “Honestly, you probably still know more about me than I do.” 
“You think?” 
You nodded. 
He thought to himself, “Still play Minecraft?” 
“God, no,” You laughed, “I wish. I just don’t have the time for anything like that. I’ve just been studying constantly.” 
“Unfortunate. If you ever need a break from studying, we could always play together.” He hummed, “ They’ve added a lot of cool things to the game.”
“You still play?” 
“Yeah,” he nodded, “I play a lot. It’s a fantastic narrative tool, in fact.”
“Oh, really?”
“If you have enough people willing to work out a story and act it out, it makes for a cool platform to tell stories.” 
You smiled, despite it being only for Wilbur’s sake. Honestly, you were sad that you didn’t know what he was talking about. 
“What’s up?” 
“Hm?” You questioned softly. 
“Something’s wrong. I still know one of your fake smiles when I see them.”
“Oh,” you mumbled, “no, it’s just… I missed you. I’m a bit bummed that I can’t see the cool stuff you’ve done since.”
“Well,” he started, rubbing the back of his neck, “actually, you can.” 
You gave him a confused look as he continued. 
“You know how I mentioned I worked for Twitch?” You nodded, “well when I say that, I mean that I stream, actually, so playing live for people and that includes all my stories.”
“Wilbur, that’s amazing.”
“I know,” he laughed, “I’m still shocked people are interested in what I write and create.” 
“If they’re anything like your DnD campaigns, I’m not shocked at all.”
He laughed again, throwing his head back, “Oh, man, I loved making those as convoluted as possible though, you were the one who made the stories make sense. These are more streamlined since we have to deal with so many different schedules and coordinate stuff.” 
“God, that sounds stressful. I can barely coordinate plans with one person.” 
He shrugged, “It’s easier since streaming is all of our jobs. It’s more like assigning work shifts.”
You hummed, “That makes sense.”
“Yeah, I can send you some stuff from it. Though, be warned, without your aid, some pieces of lore are wildly convoluted.” 
You chuckled, “I expect nothing less.” 
You and Wilbur continued to talk for hours, just catching each other up on life and new habits, and every detail missed between the cracks of time you two were separated from each other. You couldn’t be sure when you or Will fell asleep, but you woke up feeling safer than you’d had in a long time. When you’d briefly woken up to the morning light coming through the blinds, and you noticed his lanky arm wrapped around you, you gently reached down and held his hand in yours before falling back into the kind arms of rest. 
You woke up again about two hours later. You were facing him now, both of your legs wrapped between each other, and his arm was still lightly cupping your back. You opened your eyes to see him still sleeping, a soft and peaceful expression on his face. You gently reached a hand up to brush some of his hair away from his eyes. You were so busy staring at his soft features that you barely noticed his eyes open. 
“Good morning to you too, then,” he spoke, his voice laced with sleep. 
Your hand jumped back, a blush immediately rising to your cheeks, “Sorry.”
“‘s alright. Felt quite nice, actually.” He blinked the sleep out of his eyes after a moment, and he flushed himself, going to move his hand off your waist, “Oh, sorr-“
“No.” You stopped him, his arm halting midair, “It’s okay. It felt quite nice,” you said, mimicking his words from a moment ago. 
He blushed, cautiously lowering his arm back onto your side. 
“Did you sleep well?” He asked. 
“Yeah. Your room feels more familiar than mine, honestly.” 
He chuckled, his laughter slightly gruff from the early morning, “You probably spent more time here than at your own place, so I can’t say I’m shocked.”
You laughed, “Oh, almost definitely. What about you, did you sleep well?” 
He smiled at you, nodding, “Best I’ve slept since I got here. I felt much less lonely.” 
“I know what you mean. My room kind of just feels cold. Not temperature-wise, but just like,” you sighed, “you know what I mean.”
“Luckily, I do.” He smiled, “You’re welcome to stay here again, if you like.”
You hummed, “I might consider it. Though I would like to stop home to put on something clean.” 
He nodded, “Right, of course, yeah. I actually have to stream today, too, so, if anything, just,” he trailed off, “text me around eight?” 
“Yeah,” you nodded, “That sounds good. I can bring some food from home too, given that I know you have probably just been eating takeout or, god forbid, have been trying to cook by yourself.”
“Hey, I’m much better at cooking than I used to be,” he laughed. “You’re right about the takeout, though.” 
You snorted, “I know you well, Mr. Soot.” 
He smiled fondly, “You sure do.” 
The two of you just lay there quietly, basking in the early air and light. After a few minutes, you sighed, leaning your head against his chest quietly. 
“Is everything alright?” He whispered. 
You nodded against him, burying your face deeper against him while he wrapped his arms tighter around you. You felt emotional all of a sudden as you held onto him: Your best friend, who you’d secretly loved for years. And now, you thought about what held you back in the past. The main thing you were afraid of was losing him, but in the end, that ended up happening anyway. Love confession or not, you lost him, and now, you were given another chance by whatever fateful creature may exist out there. And as insistent as you were to not lose this chance, your logic stopped you. This trip was just that: a trip. In two weeks, you’d be back to your place in London and he would be back in Brighton. But yet there was an ache in your chest, consistent with longing and want but entirely unattainable. 
“Stop thinking so much,” he spoke softly, placing his chin on top of your head. 
“Wilbur, you know that is entirely impossible for me.” 
“Okay,” he trailed off, “then do you want to talk about it, so it can at least be out of your head?”
You did. You wanted to talk about it all, in its entirety, if only just to know if the ache present in your chest matched an ache in him. But you couldn’t. If that ache wasn’t present in him, who would you be to share it with him? The solution seemed to lie in half-truths.
“I’m just thinking about how I go home in two weeks and how much I’m dreading it. I don’t want to go back to schoolwork.”
He hummed, nodding, “It’s probably not helpful to say, but if you dwell on that the whole time you’re here, then it will come twice as fast. You’ve got to slow your brain down a bit. Try and just be in the moment.” 
You snorted, “That’s rich coming from you.” 
He chuckled, “Hey, my anxiety might take over sometimes, but it really does help to try and just focus on what’s happening, you know. You’re safe here,” he lightly kissed the top of your head, “so just focus on being here.” 
You sighed, “I’ll try.” You shifted your focus to the soft sound of his heartbeat against your ear, the feeling of his arms wrapped around your back. Every detail was comprised of him. 
You eventually did have to go home, after receiving a frantic call from your mum about how you “couldn’t just sneak off every time you got bored” which, granted, you disagreed with; you knew this town like the back of your hand, and you’re an adult so it’s not like she can dictate your every move. When you made it home, you went to your room to change and shower, but your thoughts immediately drifted back to Will. You never really noticed just how many minute details you had memorized, like the way his eyes crinkled when he laughed, or the way he would tilt his head back when something that caught him offguard made him really laugh. You thought about the way he would hiccup in between laughter so strong it made his ribs hurt. The sly smile he would give you when you made eye contact but neither of you had anything to say.  Your thoughts were entirely consumed by him. 
By the time it was dinner, you had done almost extensive research into Wilbur’s online persona. You watched as many videos as you could, some of his, some of them fan-made. It was a weird concept, your best friend having fans. You’d gone onto the online space briefly before backing away. You didn’t exactly want to intrude on fan debates given how much you knew about Wilbur really. It was odd watching him talk to his chat and everything. It was so different. He didn’t seem like the shy, almost moody, boy you knew. He was much more confident and comfortable. It did warm your heart to see him being so strong in himself. Your mind wonderer over this new information, how different he was from the person you knew, as you ate. You almost didn’t hear your mum speaking to you. 
“Dear, are you listening?”
You brought yourself out of your thoughts, grimacing. She hated when you weren’t listening, “Oh, sorry. No, uhm, what’s up?” 
She frowned, giving you a cold stare, “I asked if you’ve found any jobs lined up yet. For after graduation?” 
You sighed, “Not yet, Mum.”
“Because my old work friend, Charles, he could use the extra folks there. They’re looking into expanding into America.” She never actually cared much about what you wanted to do, always trying to push you into the field she wanted you to pursue. 
“I’ll be fine. I can find a job myself. And Charles doesn’t even work in the same field my degree is in.” 
“Just trying to help,” she tutted, tucking her arms defensively in front of her. “What’s on your mind these days?” 
You shrugged tensely, “School and work. I haven’t had time for much else.”
She cooed, almost mocking, “You really should be looking into a relationship, dearie. You don’t want all the good ones taken, right?” 
“God, mum, stop that. I’m fine on my own.” 
“But are you happy?” She laughed, as if taunting you. 
“I resent the implication that I cannot be perfectly fine and happy on my own without the presence of another person to fulfill me.” You spat.
“I’m not saying that specifically, I’m just saying, you really ought to try harder. I’m sure most people don’t find your constant sweatpants that attractive.” 
You groaned, standing. “I can’t be here for this anymore.” 
She did this every year. Constantly reminding you of your own loneliness under the guise of being thoughtful and caring, rather than just understanding that you are your own person who’d rather be alone before feeling like someone’s personal doll. 
You strode to the kitchen, filling a container with some leftovers for Wilbur as your mother tried helplessly to justify her own points. You waved her off, grabbing your bag before walking out the door.
You let out a sigh once you headed out. You walked to the end of the street and sat on the curb, pulling out your phone to text Wilbur. Once you got confirmation that you could come, you stood and walked the short distance to his place.
He opened the door, and you walked in casually. 
“You look annoyed about something,” he noted. 
“I would like you to take a wild guess,” you hummed, handing him the leftovers. 
He murmured a quick ‘thank you’ before responding, “Your mum?” 
“Still as bad as before, she is.” 
He sighed, “At least you’ve got mine to hide out at. Want to watch a movie or something?” 
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shivvroys · 1 year
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can’t stop thinking about shivlina spending the holidays together thanks to your fic
oooh okay!! i have a few headcanons about shiv/karolina and the holidays
To begin with, I feel like neither of them are very attached to the “spirit of the holidays”, and they tend to get very maudlin during the holiday season
For Karolina, I think during her childhood she felt like the holiday season was more of a mourning than a celebration, because her parents had been forced to leave behind their community and holiday meals (especially Christmas dinner) were reminders of everyone they’d had to leave behind. So Christmas dinner would probably look like a quiet, tense affair - maybe her father would have one too many glasses of wine and start telling stories but they were always tinged with sorrow.
I also feel like, as a child, maybe she held onto this frustration that she always wished for some toy or trip that she never got because they couldn’t afford it, which over time just tied into her habit of denying her own desires.
As an adult, I feel like she tries to visit once every couple of years, but it’s very much a frustrating time for everyone.
For Shiv, it’s the opposite. Where Karolina felt the holidays as an absence (of joy, magic, and everything she’d learned from TV that Christmas was supposed to be), Shiv felt them as an over abundance that rang hollow. For the Roy kids, the holidays were probably these grandiose parties where they were only ever treated as any other bauble on the blandly decorated Christmas Tree that the staff had set up. And the presents never meant anything, because they were rarely denied their wishes, so essentially their presents were just whatever they happened to want during that time period, and not things they’d wished for all year long.
As adults, and as a couple, I feel like their holidays would look very much like a quiet night in. Maybe they’d do little things here and there to symbolize the “spirit of whatever” like listen to Sinatra and drink mulled wine. Maybe Karolina would sneak candy (or coal, if they’d been bickering) in Shiv’s boots the night of St. Nicholas. I don’t feel like they’d watch any Christmas movies, because it would just remind them of the disillusionment they felt as kids, but maybe something that takes place during wintertime (like Fargo or RENT - which Shiv pretends to hate with a burning passion even though she always hums Light My Candle around the house when she’s distracted).
Overall, just enjoying each other’s company in peace, after having to attend a bunch of bullshit corporate parties/galas/benefits the entire weeks leading up to Christmas.
For New Years, maybe they go over to Roman’s and get drunk on champagne and argue loudly just for the fun of it, and without any bite to it.
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msmargaretmurry · 11 months
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music anon here!! hi!! how’s it going? heard you were kinda stressed so!! hope everything’s better!!
idk why but i’ve been on a weird mcstrome mood this past few days, and so i had to make a mcstrome blues playlist, because well. they were besties and now they’re not anymore.
i thought i’d share some songs with you as a token of gratefulness for your general existence <3 the vibes are kinda sad tho ngl. it’s a vision of their relationship that is just… bleak. so without further ado, mcstrome blues!
now that we don’t talk by taylor swift. “did you get anxious though?/ on the way home / i guess i’ll never ever know / now that we don’t talk” i’m just. there’s a post floating somewhere on swiftie tumblr along the lines of “this song is for the girlies with a dramatic best friend breakup” and. yeah that’s mcstrome to me
still got it + can’t go back baby (one right after the other) by troye sivan. his new album is full of bops btw but these ones…… man. cant go back baby is actually about being cheated on, so not really applicable here but. the hurt? phew 😮‍💨 (from the same album how to stay with you gives me matthew and leon getting together after matthew fucked off to florida vibes!!! “i feel my mother might like you / just not in the same way i do” that’s tthe tkatchuks baby!!! but i digress.)
ivy by frank ocean. “we had time to kill back then / you ain’t a kid no more / we’ll never be those kids again” hello??? also along these lines. ribs by lorde. a classic of the “i want to go back to the past but it’s impossible and it makes me go insane” vibe
the exit by conan gray. oh my god this one . “you love her / it’s over / you already found someone to miss / while i’m still standing at /the exit / i can’t hate you for getting everything we wanted / i just thought that i’d be part of it” this one is tied to irl stuff which. eh i know. but oh my god…
hope this wasn’t too long and that you enjoy (if you didn’t know these songs before!!) 🤍🤍🤍🤍
hello music anon!! lovely to hear from you as always 💖 i am indeed very stressed right now but it's okay, i will make it through. just one more month of the semester! two more months until my biggest work event of the fiscal year! i have the veterans' day holiday off from work today tho so before i dig into the massive pile of homework and household chores i have been ignoring, i took myself out for coffee to sit at a cafe and catch up on tumblr asks 😂
i have ALSO been in a weird mcstrome mood lately, i think because connor mcdavid is so miserable right now, so thank you for sharing this little playlist, it really hits the mcstrome sadness spot. like even beyond the hrpf of it all, it makes me sad because to me friendship is one of the most important things in the world and it makes me sad thinking about them not being best friends anymore! obviously, drifting apart from your besties when you were a teen is a pretty normal part of life for a lot of people, but i am still sad about it. they were so sweet about each other, and now we don't even know if they actually still talk ever 😭
i knew some of these songs but not all of them! as usual they are all going directly on my playlist for disassociating to on the metro to and from work. i love a pairing or character or story concept playlist so much (if you couldn't tell by how i tend to post playlists with my long fics, haha). thank you for sharing!! 💕
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queenshelby · 3 years
Text
The Concubine - Part Eight
Pairing: Tommy Shelby x Reader
Warning: Graphic Torture, Blood, Angst, Violence, Loss of Pregnancy, Smut
Words: 2,656
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One week has passed since you miscarried and your life had changed quite significantly. You were sharing it with Tommy now and he was very different to Steven. To your surprise, he was gentle and caring and this wasn’t something you were expecting from a man in his position and with his standing.
You knew what he did and what he was involved in. The murders, the killing, the drug trafficking. You weren’t blind and business was always on his mind. In fact, his mind never rested. He couldn’t rest. There was too much to do and he still craved revenge.
Whilst you had never spoken about it again, the beatings and causing you to miscarry, you knew that he wanted to see Steven suffer for what he did to you. But, Steven was nowhere to be found until that very cold Sunday evening where everything changed with a phone call from Arthur.
‘Fucking got em Tom’ Arthur said through the phone and Tommy was quick to put on his jacket and coat, making his way through the door and to his silver Bentley.  
‘Where are you going Tommy?’ you asked surprised as you followed him through the door. He seemed to be in a mad rush.
‘I’ve got work to do Love. Don’t wait up, eh’ Tommy said, turning around briefly to give you a kiss.
‘Tommy, you promised’ you pouted, knowing that tonight was the night your abstinence and hunger for him was to come to end.
‘I will make it up to you, eh?’ Tommy said with a grin before you pulled him in for another kiss.
‘You will?’ you asked, biting your lip seductively. Whilst you were still bruised and hurt, you were desperate for him to take you. You loved being intimate with him.
‘Yes, I will, and you won’t be able to walk straight for fucking days, eh’ Tommy winked before getting into his car, causing you to laugh.
***
When Tommy arrived at the factory building where Arthur and Michael held Steven captive, the anger within him was building and so was his rage.
He knew what Steven had done to you and he knew what he had done to other women, including several working girls at establishments owned by the Shelby family while using an alias.
‘At last, we meet, eh’ Tommy said harshly as he sat down on a chair across from Steven who was bound to a pole with a with rope. A white piece of fabric was tied around his mouth to keep him quiet while he was sweating profusely.
‘It was fucking hard to find you. But now that you are here, your father can go free, get on with business or, more so, start over again because you fucked up, eh’ Tommy said as he removed the white fabric from Steven’s mouth.
‘I haven’t done anything to you. What the hell do you want from me?’ Steven asked, shivering and crying as he did. He was fearful and believed that Tommy was there to kill him.
‘I don’t want anything from scum like you. All I want is for you to pay for your fucking sins, eh’ Tommy growled, pulling Steven up on his shirt as he did.
‘If this is about this whore your brother saved, she fucking deserved it’ Steven then said, unable to hold back his emotion and, just as he did, Tommy pulled off his razor cap and slowly dragged it across Steven’s face, causing him to bleed profusely.
‘Listen to me you little fuck. I have made a deal with your father not to kill you but if you disrespect Y/N again, I will end you in the most painful way possible’ Tommy then said louder as Steven’s screams.
‘She cheated on me and I should have beaten her to death’ Steven growled in anger and pain.
‘He didn’t fucking listen to a word I said’ Tommy observed with a chuckle. ‘Did he fucking listen Arthur?’ he then asked, looking at Arthur.
‘No Tommy. He didn’t listen’ Arthur confirmed.
‘Pull him up, put him onto the table and start with what he did to his fiancée and the whores he visited at our establishments’ Tommy growled, handing one of his men a belt and they were quick to comply with Tommy’s request while Tommy watched.
‘She did fucking cheat on you, didn’t she, eh’ Tommy then said as the tenth stroke hit Steven’s back.
‘Because why would she be with someone like you...’ he went on to say as the twelfth stroke came down, causing Steven to cry in pain.
‘He is enjoying this too fucking much. Hit him harder’ Tommy then instructed before he continued on.
‘Now, I tell you a little secret Steven. The man she cheated on you with was me. Unlike you, I didn’t force her to do anything, treated her with respect and, if it wasn’t for you fucking animal, she would still be carrying my child. You killed my child and you can be grateful that I didn’t know that she was pregnant before she lost the baby, eh. Because if I would have known, you most certainly would die tonight’ Tommy then said, pulling on Steven’s cheek with anger as the 20th stroke hit him.
‘How does it fucking feel, eh? Being treated and abused like this’ Tommy growled when the final stroke came down on Steven’s back and he told his men that this was enough.
‘I am sorry please…please just stop’ Steven pleaded as tears were running down his face.
‘So that you can go back and rape more prostitutes, beat more women or take your anger out on anyone else who is not equal in size to you?’ Tommy asked.
‘I promise, I won’t hurt anyone…please just let me go’ Steven pleaded.
‘No, you won’t. I will make sure of that’ Tommy then said, pulling his face close as the blood from Steven’s cheek-stained Tommy’s clothes.
Then Tommy pulled Steven of the table and, whilst the blood from Steven’s back now also covered Tommy, he forced him to turn around and sit on the chair in the corner.
‘If you come near Y/N, or her family or any of my establishments, I will have you killed and I will also have your father and brothers killed. Do you understand?’ Tommy asked, causing Steven to nod.
‘Good’ he growled before turning around, facing his men.
‘Finish it’ he then ordered before lightening himself a cigarette and handing one of his men a hot piece of metal.
‘This will hurt’ Arthur then said as he followed Tommy to his car and, just as they left the building, they could hear the screams in the distance as Tommy’s men were branding Steven’s skin with the word ‘Rapist’ as a warning for any women who would cross his path.
‘See that the women in our establishments receive compensation for what he has done to them. Also, I am taking a break for two weeks. I trust you can handle matters without me, eh’ Tommy then said to Arthur, causing Arthur to nod.
‘A break? Arthur asked surprised.
‘I promised Y/N a holiday when this is over. And now it’s over’ Tommy then said.
***
It was at around midnight when you heard Tommy’s car pull up in front of the house and, whilst he told you not to stay up, you did and waited for him in the small reading room leading to his office.
‘You waited up, eh’ Tommy said somewhat surprised when he saw you wearing nothing but black and very seductive lingerie as he hung up his jacket and gun holster.
‘Tommy, are you alright? Your clothes are covered in blood’ you said with worry as you quickly walked over towards him.
‘Yes Love, it’s not my blood’ Tommy said, reassuring you before kissing you gently.
‘Then who’s blood is it?’ you asked almost unbothered by it.
‘Steven’s’ Tommy said carefully, leaving you speechless.
‘I wanted to kill him. But I didn’t. Yet, he got what deserved and he won’t be hurting anyone else’ Tommy then said, sighing as he did and, just like that, you crashed your lips onto his in haste.
There was something wrong but yet sexy about all of this, Tommy covered in blood, the man you loved seeking revenge on the man you hated with all your heart.
‘I need you to fuck me, right here and right now’ you said. Your crimson lips curled, taking on a sinful countenance as your ever hungry tongue slithered forth before whispering ‘I need you Tommy’.
‘My clothes are stained with blood Y/N, I should…’ Tommy said, holding back and, before he could finish his sentence, you responded.
‘I don’t care’ you said with urge and Tommy was quick to return your kiss.
You felt small as he towered over you but you drew up to your full height and boldly ran your hands over his chest.
You then stepped back just far enough to let your nimble fingers glide over Tommy’s tie and shirt, unbuttoning his vest and releasing the loose knot of his tie.
‘Fuck’ he simply growled and you watched his eyes crawl from your encased feet, up your stocking legs, to the clasp of the garter...following the garter straps up and noticing what the frame job was doing to your immaculately bare pussy.
You couldn't help but shiver as Tommy took in the sight of your mound. You could tell just how excited he was by your swollen glistening pussy lips and clit peeking out from under its protective hood. Tommy’s eyes only pulled away reluctantly, to continue the sight-seeing journey they started until your eyes met.
What you saw there made your heart skip a beat. Gone was the selfless man that saved you as he once again transformed into a predator ... and you were his prey.
The smile that your face sported grew with a devilish delight. Finally, the week of abstinence was coming to an end and you would get to experience the beast within Tommy again.
You had no time to react as Tommy stepped close, pushing you back against the wall with a resounding grunt, his hands moving to the lace barely covering your breasts and tugged the flimsy material down.
‘Tell me if I am hurting you, alright? Your back is still bruised’ Tommy said caringly and you nodded before pulling him closer again.
‘I need you to fuck me, Tommy. No holding back, please’ you demanded, causing Tommy to chuckle.
Your breasts were fully exposed now with the prickly lace under the tender flesh, your nipples extended and aching. Tommy used this moment to exert his prowess, as strong fingers captured the taut buds, pinching, rolling and tugging them until he heard a familiar moan.
His lips quickly and fiercely covered yours in a consuming kiss, his tongue forcing its way into your mouth, finding yours and battling with it. You knew the demanding kiss was intended to keep you as quiet as possible with the maids around but you couldn't help but return it with equal urgency and demand.
You felt one of Tommy’s hands release your aching nipple and slither down to your fiery pussy. His fingers rough as they worked between the slick folds and against your erect clit. You cried out, his mouth the only thing keeping the sound to a minimum, as your hips bucked against his questing fingers. You ached for those same fingers to worm their way into your seeping hole and give you the slightest moment of relief, but no ... that was not his plan at all.
Your own hands were not still, as the nails of your left hand raked harshly against his shoulder, while your right hand found the buttons of his pants and tore at them. You needed this just as much as he did and were rewarded with little "pops" as the buttons released. You fished your hand behind Tommy’s briefs seeking what you had hoped was his throbbing cock and were again rewarded as your fingers wrapped around his steely member and began to stroke.
Tommy groaned and broke the kiss, panting heavily, nostrils flaring and you saw the darkness in his eyes deepening. His fingers still danced between your thighs and your own hand continued to stroke his hot cock all the while you dared to whisper, ‘I need you inside me Tommy, please’
With each word spilling from your lips, you squeezed his cock in exclamation. There was no doubting your words or purpose.
Tommy needed no other prompting as he pulled his hands from your needy body and worked his pants and boxers down just past his ass, his beautiful cock sprang into full view now, swollen,
Some pre-cum was glistening at the deep red tip and though you longed to tongue bathe that precious organ, Tommy again decided the outcome of this particular adventure.
His hands cupped your ass, lifting you and you wrapped your legs around his waist, your back hard against the wall, your left-hand clutching at him while your right was positioning his cock at your seeping hole. Tommy’s eyes never left yours as he thrusted forward, burying his cock easily into your lava-like cavern.
‘Oh god yes, fuck Tommy’ you moaned before you tucked your bottom lip between your teeth and bit down, wanting so badly to cry out in pure pleasure as Tommy quite literally took you. Each thrust was more powerful than the last and you knew that you would most definitely be sore in the morning.
Tommy’s fingers curled painfully into the flesh of your ass, holding you tightly as he roughly drove his member into your spasming pussy. It didn't surprise you when you felt the index fingers of his hands work their way to your wicked hole and pry before pushing them inside the sinful star.
‘Oh god, fuck’ you moaned as you bit down harder on your lip, tasting blood but managing to squelch the whorish moan that threatened to burst forth.
Tommy worked his fingers in deeper and though you tried, you couldn't gain enough purchase to meet his pounding thrusts. Tommy pulled back just far enough that his swollen tip rubbed the hidden bundle of nerves within you and sent you flying over the edge.
He saw how your eyes widened, how your own nostrils flared and knew you were about to cum. His mouth covered yours possessively again, drinking in the scream of utter bliss and complete orgasmic delight. Your pussy rippled down Tommy’s length, pulling his own release from him.
Your hand left his shoulder and found Tommy’s head, pulling his mouth tightly to yours. It was your turn to devour his guttural growl and devour you did. You drank his pleasure down as his cock spit his precious seed deep into your mound, painting you.
It all happened so fast with an urgency born of intense need. As Tommy’s cock slipped free, he looked into your eyes.
‘Fuck’ Tommy huffed, letting go of you slowly before kissing you again passionately.
‘I missed this Tommy’ you said just before Tommy pulled up his pants and lifted you up.
‘Where are we going?’ you asked as Tommy carried you upstairs.
‘The bathtub for round two, then the bed for round three and I haven’t decided where we will take round four yet, maybe my office…’ Tommy smirked and your eyes widened in disbelieve.
‘I told you, you won’t be walking straight for days, eh’ he then grinned, causing you to giggle.
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Since I don't have an original idea maybe Gundham NSFW ABC's
Also if you do anon names can I be 🦎 anon? If not it's okay I just wanted to ask!
YES I LOVE TANAKA SO MUCH I planned on doing this anyway 🦎 anon so I’m DOWN! Also yes you’re officially my first anon with a name I love it! Welcome!!!
NSFW ABC’S : Gundham Tanaka 💖
A (Aftercare) Gundham is so sweet and loving after sex with you. The two of you always shower together, and while you’re getting dressed he’ll make the two of you hot tea, and put on a movie in bed so the two of you can just snuggle and drink tea all evening until one of you (usually you) fall asleep.
B (fave body part) ASS. GUNDHAM IS AN ASS MAN! He likes to grab it and smack it and kiss it and bite it. He’s a sucker for your ass.
C (cum) he’s literally the ultimate breeder. So naturally he cums inside of you every. Single. Time. And you love it of course.
D (dirty Secret) it’s no surprise that Gundham is a little old fashioned about things. Well, same goes for romance obviously. He hates sexting and sending nudes, but he loves writing you erotic notes and leaving them on your nightstand, or bathroom counter for you to see when you wake up/get home. Usually they include something about how he can’t wait for his dark beauty to come home so he can absolutely ravage them. Ya know, cute romantic stuff like that
E (experience) You’re his first and only! He’s very shy and doesn’t express himself well, so when you two finally started dating, you were his first everything. Relationship, sexual partner.. all of it. But he caught on quick and he’s damn good at it.
F (favorite Position) he actually prefers missionary because he wants to constantly be able to kiss you and be as connected and close as possible. But don’t think that’s the only one he loves. Gundham is also obsessed with fucking you doggy style. From that position he can pound into you as hard and deep and rough as he wants, and also don’t forget that he has a preference for your ass.
G = (Goofy?) a little bit. Since he’s only ever slept with you there’s always some errors that embarrass him, but make you giggle and kiss him. Which makes him do the same. It’s super cute and makes you both fall more in love with eachother. Also since he was a virgin before meeting you there’s lots of experimenting that makes you both a little embarrassed and laughing sometimes.
H = (Hair) He’s never fully shaved, but he does trim and groom himself regularly. He doesn’t mind what you do either way, because he loves you regardless.
I = (Intimacy) sex with Gundham can definitely be goofier, but it’s usually incredibly intimate. He wants to touch and bite and leave marks all over your entire body. He usually lights candles and on birthdays, holidays, or your anniversary, he also has some rose pedals because even though he’s an emo boy, he’s also super romantic. He doesn’t give his love to just anyone, so he’s gonna absolutely shower you with it.
J = (Jack Off) Before meeting you he would jack off all the time. Here lately not as much. But when you’re not able to come over, he’s not afraid to think about you and enjoy himself.
K = (Kink) well he has a breeding kink. But besides that, he also realized he liked overstimulation and orgasm deprivation- but not to you. He wants to be over stimulated. He wants you to do all of that to him. Even though he has a “I’m better than everyone” thing going on most of the time, in the bedroom he’s actually very submissive. He does take charge every now and again, but for the most part he wants you to dominate him.
L = (Location) mostly your apartment/ dorm. But for his birthday you got a romantic hotel room with a jacuzzi bath tub you fucked in more than once. You’ve also had sex in hot tubs, pools, tents in the woods while camping, and in his car at night on a cliff. As long as you’re alone and together he’s so happy.
M = ( Motivation) sit on his lap and whisper in his ear. “Hey my sexy prince of darkness” something like that. Kiss his neck. He’s going to m e l t. Anything you do that’s even remotely sexy is all it takes.
N = (NO) he doesn’t wanna do animal play. He won’t use a collar or leash or treat you like a pet. He loves you in a different way than his animals.
O = (Oral) as much as Gundham adores when you blow him, he almost always cums too quickly without meaning to, and usually tells you not to do it. He’ll always happily give you oral though. He loves making you feel so blissful with his mouth
P = (Pace) slow and long, but also deep and hard. He wants to be buried inside of you, but never want it to end.
Q = (Quickie) oh yes. Shower quickies, after work quickies, just because quickies, waiting for dinner to finish quickies. But he also loves to make an entire evening out of having sex with you.
R = (Risk) yes and frequently! As mentioned before he’s never gotten to experiment with sex or kinks before meeting you, so the two of you have tried a lot of stuff.
S = (Stamina) at most he cums 3 times, but usually just two within like and hour and a half of foreplay and sex. He likes orgasm deprivation remember? Wink wink
T = (toy) can’t say you two haven’t used any toys ever. You’ve both been handcuffed, whipped, blindfolded, and tied up
U = (Unfair) he doesn’t like teasing you at all. He always feels bad and gives in as soon as you start to beg him. But he fucking loves when you tease him. At first, becoming such a whimpering mess was embarrassing for him. But now he’s obsessed with it.
V = (Volume) He isn’t quiet by any means, but he’s not the loudest. Gundham’s voice is so deep that all of his moans, groans, and grunts are very very loud in your ears. He also screams when he talks without realizing it sometimes, so you can imagine he accidentally gets real loud sometimes.
W = (Weird fact) if you’re ever trying to get him horny, wear something sexy in the color black. As the true overlord of the underworld, he loves black, and he always thinks you look so sexy in it. Especially when you’re trying to be sexy.
X = (X-Ray) 9 and a half inches. hard. When he told you that you literally didn’t believe him and eventually made him measure for you and prove it. He knows how to work it too.
Y = (Yearning) he doesn’t just want to fuck you. He wants to make passionate love to you every night of his life. He’s grown addicted to your body, and you feel the exact same for him. That’s why you have so many quickies and long long nights together. Because you both crave each others touch so frequently.
Z = (ZZZ) as stated before he loves to make you two tea and watch a movie in bed. Typically the two of you watch half the movie, finish the tea, and pause it to take the dishes to the sink and use the restroom. Sometimes somebody makes a snack to enjoy in bed once you resume the movie, and cuddling. 9 times out of 10, you fall asleep first, on his shirtless chest, arms wrapped around him tight. Doing his best not to move, he turns the tv off and adjusts the two of you to lie down more; and he falls asleep holding you to his chest.
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tommyspeakycap · 3 years
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request for jack grealish one where he’s really upset over something and you’re there with him to comfort him, lots of physical contact being his love language and you being the only person he likes touching his hair ?
Comfort
You knew from the very second he walked through the door that annoyed would be an incredibly generous word to describe the emotions running through the Brummie boys head. You grimace to yourself, shoulder raising closer to your ears at the sound of the brand new front door slamming heavily behind him with a curse at the fact he couldn't get his shoes kicked off just right the first time he attempted it in the foyer.
The first game was a loss and just about all he'd gotten for the past few days was hate, stress, hate and some more fucking stress. He was exhausted. From Mykonos to Birmingham to get a bag full of clothes so he could meet Villa in London before eventually travelling to Manchester, his sleep schedule has been completely messed up and even when he did have bursts of time where he should have been sleeping, he had been laying awake scrolling through countless tweets criticising his every single move. Add to that the fact his body was exhausted from international duty and that he had wanted nothing more than to curl up by your side and let his worries melt away like he had last gotten to do nearly three whole months ago.
He doesn't know you're here. To the very best of Jack's knowledge, you were still home in Birmingham and he would probably have to broach the conversation of whether or not you'll be joining him up anytime soon, if ever. He lets out a frustrated grunt, but you know Jack better than anyone else and there's the thick sheen of his heart aching tears existing beneath his frustration.
"Hey baby."
His head snaps around to land his eyes on you the second your sweet voice meets his buzzing ears. The echos of Etihad still burn a bit of his hearing away for now, but he knows it'll return to normal by the end of the night. The tears that had previously been kept on his lash line, pushed back by his will not to breakdown for fear he might not be able to stop if he starts are now past the last line of defence, streaming over his cheeks as he crossed the floor at a pace that would send his fife rating into surefire question.
Your body makes an involuntary 'oof' as he crashes against you, his arms so tight around your body as he stops you from stumbling back with the force of his incoming hug. You don't think he's ever actually held you that tightly before, never with such dire necessity, with such urgency for you to be as close to him as he could get you.
The hair that's been allowed to fall loose from the band he'd earlier had it tied back in tickles the back of your neck as it dangles over the exposed skin. He mumbles something almost incoherent about how much he's missed you into your neck, pepping chaste kisses where his lips have landed against you in this hug. You wished you could enjoy that, but the dampening that has begun to occur over the shoulder that his head is above reminds you of the pain he must be in.
Leaving your childhood club is one thing, but leaving it when everybody else seems to think he's a monster for it is a whole different kind of agony. There were just too many emotions for people to see the kind of things Jack had given for the club and the huge opportunity he had left them with his legacy and with the money they copped for his record breaking sale.
"It's okay, Jacky." You coo, tightening your arms around you as he attempts one tighter squeeze to force the tears back into him. It's a futile attempt, his arms loosening but never dropping away from you as he squeezes his eyes shut and lets those sobs shake his body. "I got you, baby. I've got you."
There was such a mix of emotions running through him that made him feel like the world had just pushed him to the ground and taken the perfect opportunity to give his body a good kicking. First final for England in 55 years, then they lost in a penalty shootout he didn't even get to be a part of after a game he barely got to play in. Then a holiday he couldn't take with you because of work commitments and a sudden coworker needed sooner maternity leave meaning your holiday was completely eliminated. As if those things didn't dampen his spirit, all that transfer business had gone down and it was finally all hitting him.
His exhaustion had caught up, an inevitable burn out that could be messed only by the presence of you in his life. Some of this tears that stream down his cheeks and pool on the grey material of your t-shirt are ones of joy and relief for finally having you back in his arms again for the first time in far too long of a time. Jack vows he will never ever spend that amount of time without you again. Never will he let so much time pass before he gets to hold you, kiss you and tell you face to face how much he truly loves every single thing about you.
"You're my rockstar, you know." You announce, seemingly out of the blue ones his body wracking sobs had died to smaller sniffled and period tears streaking down onto you. "I've literally never been prouder of anyone in my life ever. Not only did you fucking smash the euros, but then you stayed so sweet and so amicable during such a difficult process. You handled everything so well, J. I'm so proud or you and I'm so, so happy for you." You promise, pushing him back so you can take his blotchy, tear streaked face in your head. The expanse of that face is coved in your kisses, pecked all over the surface until he's giggling like the Jack that you know so well, his laugh the most contagious sound you've ever been lucky enough to get to hear on a daily basis. "And I'm so lucky that you let me share this journey with you." You finish, landing your lips softly and perfectly onto his with a warmth and love he had been desperately missing out on for those last vital few weeks of his break.
"S' our journey," Jack mumbles in response against your lips, pulling back every so slightly so he can get a proper good look at the face he had missed so much in person. Your cute quirked eyebrows and confusion tainted eyes make him smile before he elaborates. "Not my journey, it's our journey together. All of this, just the two of us."
His words make your heart sore, flying up onto the space above you in pure glee. You had to admit there was a mild element of fear wondering if he would want you here or if he'd maybe be wanting fresh start, but that was certainly not the case for Jack.
"I love you," he says as you feel him tuck you right back into his chest with a content hum. "I love you too, but you need a wash."
Jack's laughter bellows loudly from his chest beneath your ear at your lightly playful and yet very truthful statement.
"I ran you a bubble bath for you. Bathroom's huuuuge." Your eyes are full of wonder like he thought they might be when he would get the opportunity to bring you out to his temporary Manchester abode. This is you would both stay until he could find a house to place some money down on so he can truly start to settle out the fact he's going to have the next six years of his life here in this area with this club. It makes him more than happy, being here. But something that tickles him in thought as he follows you up the stairs is that he'll get to experience all of this newness with you. You’ll get to explore the new area together, find nee places, making it home together. You had both known Soulihull like the back of your hand, now you could find new places to just be together. He can go house hunting with you. He'll let you drag him through the houses he probably wouldn't otherwise look so much into, talking about what room could be which and silly little things he wouldn't even have noticed.
He could pick a house with you that would have enough room to start a family in together within the next year or so, like you had been hoping to do depending on what the club and transfer season had brought. This brought stability, a team that would function well without a reliance on him if there were some things he had to sit out in order to build this family.
It had been, unbeknownst to you, such a pivotal part of discussions with the Manchester City agents. Jack made it clear he was looking for stability and trophies. He had done so much for Villa and now it was time for him to invest energy in bigger fights with bigger clubs that don't face relegation so constantly. He made it clear to the managers also that the was looking to be in the business of starting a family sometime soon. He was welcomed with open arms still. A club who wanted him desperately and would probably have caved to many more demands from him, not having a fraction of an issue with negotiated paternity pay and leave.
He couldn't wait to find a house and settle down here with you for the foreseeable future, even if things didn't look exactly as he thought they might've looked when you first got together as merely young adults.
"What's going on in that pretty head of yours, eh?" You ask softly, running your fingers gently through his tangled and sweaty hair as he stands there in the middle of the large bathroom. Jack shrugs. There's so much in there today, not really like usual where he could sort through those thoughts and keep his head clear for every day and every game he faces.
"Just stressed," he huffs, allowing you to help him out of the brand new away strip he had been given at the beginning of the day today for his first first game with the new team.
His muscles are achy and tight, body still stiff from the cold that the rain had battered into his limbs as you easily hook off his boxers and tug them down his legs so he can step over the bathtub into the perfect temperature bubble filled water that makes him heave out a heavy sigh of relief the second it meets his skin.
"Talk to me, baby?"
And talk to you he did after he sat down in that bath with you.
He leaned back against you, allowing you to lather shampoo into the hair he trusted very few people with multiple times to massage the ache out of his skull from the previous days tension headaches. He talks about all those messages from so many unhappy people, some even City fans who didn't even want to entertain the idea of him being there. He talks about his worry of sitting on the bench season after season, telling you he was hoping to god those tweets wouldn't be further from the truth. He confided in you some of his greatest pains; the concept that he'd let his Villa teammates down and maybe even made his family unhappy despite the fact they had given him nothing but their full support and unsurprising pride just like everybody else in his immediate circle.
You massage muscle relaxing soap into all of the muscles in his body as he just talks, letting the weight of the world off of his shoulders to dissipate like the steam in the air from the bath. Only once he has everything off his chest and the waters gone cold do you both leave the bathroom, wrapped in towels then into pyjamas where he wraps you up in his arms like he's been desperate to do since the moment he touched off for International duty months ago, and he talks again.
This time, he talks to you instead of just talking out every worry and fear he's ever had.
Jack uses probably the most amount of words he's ever used in such sensible succession in order to paint you a perfect mental picture of a house just outside the city with a huge garden, fenced in for dogs and kids with a pool and enough room for all three of those future kids to have their own room, even though they'll share at first just for fun. He paints a picture of you at his games with two sons and a daughter, his name on each shirt along your back. The kids will call Foden uncle Phil and they’ll love him just like you both do. They'll get to play with the teams kids on the pitch after the games no matter how tired the guys are even if they've been thrashed in a loss. He depicts the kind of life you had both wanted for so long, somehow always deterred by something until right this moment, the time feeling like it had rolled perfectly into place for both of you.
And Jack tells you about how you'll poke fun at him when he starts to get those salt and pepper strands of hair and he'll love you no matter how you look. Your kids will learn what love is from their parents, they'll pick it up and they'll emulate it in their own lives sometime in the future. They'll stamp out hate with the hearts full of love that you will both allow those kids to grow into.
You both fall asleep together that night, wrapped in each others arms drifting off into dreams of kids that don't exist yet in a house you haven't even looked for with a future that each of you wants nothing more than to grab onto with both hands.
Jack's heart hurts for the changes he's made this week. He doubts the pain will ever fully leave him and he hopes that one day his club will welcome him back to end his career on a high note with them. However, until then the pain will be dulled by the prospect of his new future here.
One he can't wait to get stuck right into.
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oftenderweapons · 3 years
Text
Dirty ABCs | Namjoon and Vixen
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Pairing: Namjoon x Vixen (OC)
Wordcount: 2.1k
Genre: headcanons
Rating: 18+. Minors, do not interact.
This just me having a little bit of fun in between collabs and commissions with an NSFW alphabet, so I can also get to know my characters better (yes, they're just characters. Do not assume the boys like/dislike any of the things I mention). A new drabble should be out soon, but just in case you missed it, here's Jimin's post-Soowoozoo smut! Please, read the trigger warnings carefully 🥺💖
Here's my masterlist! enjoy!!!! 💜✨
Trigger warnings: cumshots, cumeating, creampie, marking, unprotected sex, switch!vixen, switch!joon, daddy!joon, DDLG, lapdance, stripping, masturbation, voyeurism, exhibitionism, roleplay, homework within a professorxstudent roleplay, positions (doggy, missionary, reverse cowgirl, bend over), intimacy kink (?), bondage (hands tied, gags), impact play, oral sex, oral fixation, biting, casual mention of foot fetish, food play, choking kink, erotic massage, jealousy (kink), sapiosexuality, size kink, mention of infidelity and sharing partners, mention of outdoor sex, sex toys (dildo, vibrator, manacles, cockring, paddle, buttplug), edging, orgasm denial, orgasm control, overstimulation, BDSM club, uhm...bicuriosity ig?, thickdick!Namjoon, bubblebutt!Vixen impressive sex drive (?)
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Aftercare: Namjoon is the kind of guy who’d gladly collapse in bed after some good, nasty fucking. He puts plenty of energy in it and he isn’t content until he’s barely alive before calling it a night. Yes, both him and Vixen need to force the other into heading to the bathroom and cleaning up before falling asleep. When he goes especially hard on her, aftercare becomes a way to relax for both of them: he needs to pamper her to even things out, and she in return likes spoiling him, giving him cuddles, letting him fall asleep with his head on her chest while she strokes his hair. Yes, his favourite cuddle is her touching his hair and chatting about how they felt during sex.
Body part: He most definitely has a thing for legs, hips and ass. Vixen is all about his chest and arms — but, truth is she’s absolutely crazy about his neck.
Cum: He either cums inside or on Vixen’s ass. No other alternatives for him. He hates cumming in her mouth, mostly because her cunt is soooo much better to him; and then again, that means he can eat her out right after — or mark her up and shove his cum back inside. Vixen is a fan of him cumming inside, she’s pretty much traditional about this.
Dirty secret: Namjoon loves when Vixen doms him. He’d never admit that out loud but he’s praying for her to tie him up and strip for him before performing a lapdance and fucking herself with that glass dildo he bought her… He’ll just wait… hopefully… Vixen wants Namjoon to give her homework on some impossible topic and then punish her for every mistake she makes while he’s dressed in a suit and glasses.
Experience: We know all about Joon’s and Vixen’s bodycount. Joon had four, possibly five partners, one of which broke his heart. He wasn’t entirely vanilla with them, but Vixen is most definitely the spiciest he’s been with — and the most rewarding. Vixen had two partners before Namjoon and her first boyfriend was way more experienced than Namjoon is, but that is not an issue to her. She knows if she ever asked him, they could try out pretty much anything.
Favourite position: Namjoon is mostly about doggy and missionary. Doggy for enthusiastic fucking with that teenage eagerness that characterises them both. Missionary when he needs to make love to her slow and steady — though he admits Vixen on top of him in reverse cowgirl is also a hot topic for him. Vixen likes good old missionary since she likes Namjoon’s body shielding hers. She also enjoys bending over for him — especially on the back of the sofa.
Goofy: neither of them is that goofy when it comes to sex. For them is a moment to get rid of tension and gain more intimacy. It’s a moment of communication and connection, and a very spiritual one at that. There might be little giggles and laughs here and there when they’re in a playful mood, but even then they’re more happy than goofy.
Hair: Namjoon trims his hair slightly, just to keep things neat and tidy. Vixen used to shave at the beginning of their relationship. She waxed a few times, to try something different and to feel Namjoon’s tongue better when he goes down on her. She switched to trimming when she found out Namjoon enjoyed a more natural look.
Intimacy: Nothing isn’t intimate between these two. Brushing their teeth together before going to bed? Religion. Getting dinner ready? A ritual. Making love? Therapy. Fucking like gorillas? Relief. These two share one single soul. They’re each other’s temple, and their bedroom is their church.
Jack off: These two? Masturbation galore. They’re the literal proof that being in a relationship should never stop you from taking care of yourself. They masturbate together while they watch porn, they masturbate to the sight of the other one doing it or just watching them. Namjoon is a huge fan of watching Vixen touch herself. He can do it with his hands tied, untied, or stroking his cock. He really doesn’t care as long as he can watch. Plus the fact that the wall dividing his bedroom from the shower is made of glass really gives him the best view when he has morning wood and Vixen is washing herself. And that goes both ways. She likes watching him while she showers, putting on a bit of a show. Vixen also likes watching Namjoon masturbate, though she prefers putting her hands on him. And Namjoon prefers her hands to his own, especially since she’s so fucking good at that.
Kink: We all know these two are the resident DDLG freaks. Other than that Namjoon suffers from a pretty severe case of voyeurism. On the side, all giving, we have oral fixation, impact play, marking, biting, cumplay and cumeating, and a very mild, very experimental foot fetish. He’s also into roleplay, especially regarding school/university environments. To that, we need to add on Vixen’s end exhibitionism and food play, and then, all giving, choking kink, exhibitionism, bondage and gags, erotic massage.
Location: these two need someplace private, since they can’t get in the mood unless they’re 200% sure they can take their time and relax and be as loud as possible. Namjoon would never stand the idea of them getting caught: he needs to protect Vixen. And Vixen would never try something in public. She knows he’d be too focused on the possible dangers to properly enjoy the experience. That doesn’t mean that they don’t tease each other in public. Vixen likes when they talk dirty in public so once they get home Namjoon rips her clothes off her.
Motivation: Namjoon gets turned on whenever Vixen looks incredibly refined and elegant, completely out of his league. Pair that up with someone flirting with her and he goes out of his way to remind her why she got his ring on her finger ten months after they first met. He also gets hot under the collar when he’s reminded of how fucking smart she is; that makes him both proud and horny. On a baser level, she just needs to grind against his thigh, rub her ass on his crotch, kiss his neck or suck his fingers to make him instantly hard. Vixen gets horny very easily when she sees him exercise power — which happens pretty often with him being the leader. Also watching him tower over someone who isn’t her makes her a little volatile — that’s her daddy, he’s her protector.
No: easy. Sharing. Even simply her moans being overheard by someone would make him nervous. Once he used to share everything about his sex life with his friends, but after he and Vixen got engaged, everything involving her without clothes on became a 100% restricted topic. He still happens to talk about sex with his friends, but he must be in need of desperate help in order to share details. Vixen agrees on sharing being a hard no. She also thinks doing stuff in public is absolutely a hard no: she’s far too attached to her job to risk a scandal ruining it. And of course she would never stand Namjoon’s career and reputation going downhill.
Oral: Both fans, Namjoon both on the giving and receiving side, though he prefers giving by far. Vixen is also a fan of receiving. If Namjoon weren’t so damn intimidating, she would enjoy giving more, too.
Pace: depends on the mood. Playful or angry? Then he’s fucking her like she’s nothing but a cocksleeve, straight up jackhammering his way in. Loving and emotional? Then they’re going slow and steady so they can feel every inch of their flesh meeting and parting and squeezing and squelching and sliding.
Quickie: yes, but not excessively. Vixen can only consider a quickie as a form of foreplay. There’s no way to satisfy her unless at least two rounds are involved. Namjoon is more than happy to take his time with her. If they don’t have that much time, they prefer masturbating together — quick, efficient, delectable.
Risk: No? The only risk he would take would be fucking her out in the open, but someplace where the possibility of getting caught is lower than 0.1%. He’d book super secluded villas for their holidays and fuck her until she’s begging him to give her a break.
Stamina: Namjoon hasn’t got too much stamina and Vixen doesn’t either, they just deprive and tease each other when they want to make it super special, otherwise they would be lazy and take naps in between a round and another. And they can truly deal with that brilliantly since they are great at foreplay and that makes up for their rather weak stamina.
Toy: These two are shameless about their toys. Vixen has a thing for dildos, and Namjoon loves spoiling her with those. She has a couple vibrators too, but she’s not that much of a fan: she has a practical one, when she needs things done quick and easy and another one that looked way too cute for her not to have it. In addition to that, they have manacles, a cockring, a paddle and a quite interesting plug.
Unfair: Being with Namjoon is all about the pleasure. He’d much rather overstimulate Vixen rather than deny her. Also because he has very poor control over his instincts and he can’t deny himself. He would tease, edge or deny Vixen only to punish her and make sure that she actually reads that as a punishment and not as some sick way for her to get exactly what she wants (aka spanks). Vixen is more on the teasing side, and she enjoys controlling Namjoon’s orgasms, but she’s very fair. They like to play dirty, but they make sure everyone gets what they need.
Volume: Namjoon is all about low and deep. His moans, groans, growls and grunts all come in a very quiet, although very eloquent way. He prefers keeping it quiet so it feels more intimate. Vixen on the other hand is very vocal, especially when Namjoon goes down on her or is trying to overstimulate her. She’s still considerate about the people living next door, but at the same time, she has a thing for doing it in the studio so she can be as loud as she wants, much to Namjoon’s — and his private tracks’ — chagrin.
Wild card: if it weren’t for his jealousy and his position, Namjoon would love to fuck Vixen in a room full of strangers, just to show how good he can make her feel, and to enjoy just how deranged she would get once adrenaline started kicking in. Claiming her in a semi-public context would help him sate his possessiveness for a good while. Vixen instead would love to go to a BDSM club with Namjoon and watch scenes from other people — maybe, potentially, join? — she most definitely wishes she had done stuff with a girl before getting with Namjoon.
X-Ray: Namjoon is packed. Length is not exceedingly more than average. But match that with more than impressive girth? That’s a wild ride. It most definitely takes a stretch. Vixen has rather small boobs — but she’s more than stubborn to make up with a full, round bubble butt.
Yearning: at the beginning they go pretty wild. Vixen is used to getting at least an orgasm before falling asleep — every night. Of course that tones down once she gets with Namjoon, especially since she learns to prefer quality over quantity and he refuses to get stuff done in ten minutes. She easily slips into a two to three times a week regimen, but deprive her for longer than ten days and she’ll feel neglected. Of course she’d take care of herself, but that doesn’t mean she wouldn’t start drifting away as she’d feel emotionally neglected too. Namjoon considers himself happy as long as he can have a full weekend of fucking: he tends to cram all the sex in days where he can relax since during the week he’s often too tense to initiate anything sexual. But he wouldn’t deny it if the fancy struck him.
Zzz: He falls asleep like a bear. He goes positively lethargic the moment he hits the bed after cleaning up. Vixen finds it extremely endearing. She usually takes longer, but not too much. She likes cuddling him while he’s sleeping.
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shreddedparchment · 4 years
Text
A Wife for Thor Pt.14
The Garden Hallway
01/02/2021
Pairing: King!Thor x Reader          Word Count: 5,974
Warnings: language, smut, smutty smut smut, talk of pregnancy, jealousy, spoiled lobster, alcoholic Brunnhilde, babies
A/N: First post of the new year! This was a fun one to write with lots of little tidbits that were enjoyable. Writing doubts aside, I hope you all enjoy this one! Sorry it took so long to get to you, but holidays, ya know? xoxo
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“She’s beautiful, Thora. Just gorgeous.” You bounce the infant in your arms and she coos and goos.
Spittle runs down along the edge of her lips and Thora, the most gorgeous woman you have ever seen in your life, leans forward to gently dab away at the clear liquid.
Her very long ice blonde hair falls forward, half braided, the other half loose. She tosses it back then sighs and rips it back feeling frustrated.
“You could cut your hair, if it’s bothering you.” Ice blue eyes meet yours, slight shock at your observational skills painting her pale cheeks pink.
“Oh, no. I’m too fond of it, Your Majesty. I’ll grow used to it again. Having a little one to care for does make it a bit tedious to handle. But ‘tis no worry. I will just have to braid it more tightly and perhaps wear it atop my head to keep it tame.”
She’s all politeness, this Agardian beauty. The Goddess of it, if you’re honest, though you know that’s not true. To you, every Asgardian woman is the Goddess of beauty. They’re all so stunning in their own unique ways.
The same could be said for the women of your own species, but these Asgardians seem to glow.
“Well, if you ever change your mind, it’s really very normal for women of Earth to have very short hair in some cases. Especially when work or busy lives get in the way of maintaining it. I’m not sure how often women in the old Asgard used to-”
“It was not uncommon, though ‘twasn’t very common either. Most of us keep our hair long. I’m not sure my husband would love me as much if I did cut it.” She confesses, and you see a fleeting worry pass through her exquisite face and you can’t imagine how a woman this beautiful can doubt the hold she has on her husband when you’re only mortal and constantly worry about Thor’s love for you.
“Armod is a lucky man. I’m sure he knows that you’re more than your hair. But if it’s that important to you, I can try to find ways of keeping it out of your way? Some new hairstyles maybe?” You smile at her, hoping to offer comfort.
She relaxes, the little bundle in your arms wiggling just a bit as you lean forward to place your hand over hers.
“She really is so beautiful,” you say, hoping to redirect her attention to her perfect little girl.
Luta has deep olive skin, her hair the same stunning raven as Armod.
Thora’s entire being shifts. She gleams at her daughter, the clear apple of her eye.
“It won’t be long before you and His Majesty are blessed with a baby of your own. An heir to the throne? The celebration will be monumental.” She wiggles her eyebrows at you and you smile shyly, remembering almost every night since your honeymoon has been spent pinned either underneath Thor, or to the wall, or on the dresser, or his desk, or the tub, or even the floor in an attempt to get that heir to finally come.
Both of you want a baby so badly.
“We’ve been trying for almost two months,” You confess, a sadness in your voice incapable of hiding.
“Armod and I tried for nearly a year,” Thora nods, her own happiness sidelined to make way for understanding. “I believe that sometimes it just takes a while. My sister was able to conceive so quickly I began to think there was something wrong with me.”
She gives you a reassuring smile, almost like she can read your very thoughts.
“But it happened. It took time. It will happen for you as well, Your Majesty. We are all looking forward to an heir, but even if it takes a while, you’re still our Queen.” She assures you and her words do make you feel better.
Maybe you and Thor have just been trying too hard?
Oof, but there’s no way you can give up those touches.
“I guess I’ll just have to relax and take it one day at a time. Thank you for your encouragement. I’m seriously really jealous of you. She’s so lovely.” You offer her over, and Thora takes her eagerly.
The baby, Luta, whines a little but then settles as she’s held to her mother’s breast.
“She’s a peach, isn’t she?” Thora gloats, and she’s absolutely beaming.
The front door opens and there’s a startled pause by the tall dark Armod, long pitch braids swishing as he comes to a stop.
“Your Majesty?” The shock is clear, but he quickly bows and you get up, waving away his formality.
“No, please.” You smile, throwing out your hand for him to shake, “It’s so nice to see you, face to face and not from the backseat of a car.”
Armod laughs, taking hold of your hand gently and he quickly kisses the back of it.
The respect of the gesture is flattering.
“I was not expecting to see you here today, though I’m not going to lie, it’s an honor.”
“I promised I’d come,” you remind him. “I’m sorry it took so long. I’ve been so busy with the planning of the park and meeting with the Ambassadors to see what they want from us, and it’s just been so busy day after day.”
“Your Majesty,” Thora stands, shaking her head. “You have no obligation to explain yourself to us. We are at your service.”
You smile at her, reaching over to caress Luta’s little head then Thora’s shoulder, “I think it’s the other way around, but I’m grateful for your generosity.”
They both seem happy with you and as lovely as they are, you can’t spend all day here in their comfy little home.
Armod is paid really well and that’s reflected more in their belongings as opposed to the size of their house.
Very neat and high quality furniture and gadgets display their wealth though compared to the one you inherited and the one you married into, it’s just a fraction.
Armod and Thora's wealth lies in their love and family.
As they stand there, the ache in your chest begins to get unbearable so, you quickly tell them goodbye and you walk back up to the palace.
Armod's home is situated within the grounds of your New Asgardian dwelling. Smallish cottages that line the inner stone and vibranium wall are filled with staff who living close by makes it easier to work here.
If they lived outside of the palace walls, you'd have needed Armod's services to visit his own house. Luckily, in this way, you can visit some of your people without the need for fanfare.
You like not having to dress up.
As you slip into the garden and move for the large heavy door that Thor had shown you through two months prior to propose to you out here, you smile at the sight of the only person who hates it when you don't wear a dress, or at the very least a skirt.
This isn't of course because he wants to have you he all wrapped up in tight dresses and uncomfortable, but rather it makes certain activities just a little more difficult in rushed moments.
Thor's smile widens as he spots you, shutting the door behind you before you put your hands behind your back.
"There you are, I've been looking for you," Thor says.
He looks so good in dark jeans and a slightly loose tan t-shirt. The round neck gives just the slightest peek at his trapezius and you force yourself to keep your eyes on his beautiful face instead of the way his biceps strain against his sleeves.
Fuck he looks good.
"Looks like you've found me. What did you need?"
"Where were you?" He wonders, putting his own hands behind his back to copy your stance.
"Is it curiosity, suspicion, or control making you ask?"
"Interest. And because I missed you and if I have an hour free again, I'd like to spend it with you."
Damn him.
"Well, shoot," you scoff.
He quirks his head inquisitively and you smile wide at the sight of your puppy. How can he be so damn hot and cute at the same time?
"That was the perfect response. But, an hour?" Quick glance down at your watch reveals it's too early for lunch. "I thought we were meeting for lunch at eleven?"
Thor’s smile falters and he nods slowly, looking at your collarbone instead of your eyes.
"About that…"
"Oh, shit. What?"
"I'm leaving in about twenty minutes," Thor confesses, bringing his hands back to his front to fidget.
"Twenty minutes? But you said an hour!"
"And I spent forty minutes looking for you, cherub. That leaves me with twenty."
He closes the distance between you, tracing the length of your arms to your wrists and then pulls your hands out from behind your back.
"And leaving? Where are you going?"
The pout that overtakes you feels inevitable. You can't even attempt to hide it.
"The Warriors Three have reported in. Sif says that they are ready for inspection so I must go and see each outpost's condition before I can deem them proper watch towers to guard against the threat that Loki has foreseen.
"Heimdall says he is in agreement. Whatever it is that is coming, it's hiding itself from his sight which should be impossible. I must go, love. I'm sorry."
He really does sound and look apologetic too.
"And...I won't be home until possibly very late. Nearly morning I think," he tells you, voice low.
For two long moments the two of you stand there, minds whirring until they both reach the same realization.
It's Thor that voices it first and he nearly kills you with how much you want to swoon, "You know, this will be the first night since we've been engaged that I won't be sleeping beside you."
Your pout only grows more pronounced.
"Will you be lonely without me?"
All of the insecurities he's felt since marrying suddenly come pouring out of him in that one singular question and you can suddenly see all of the fear and strife he has been dealing with since he chose to marry you.
Like you, he's been wondering whether you're happy in your new married life. He's been worried about you in your role as Queen but worried for you, not whether you can do the job as you have been fretting.
You sigh, a heavy release of your own tension, "Oh, Thor…"
Hooking your hand behind his neck you pull him down until you can kiss him.
His response is ready, eager. Hands funding your hips as he pushes you back until you're shoved into the small space between one pillar and the wall it supports.
You're both very aware of the loss of activity this night will also bring, but maybe a rest is due.
Pulling back, you place your hands on his chest and give him a little push. He stops his kissing, licking his lips as he leans back to fix you with his star-eyed gaze.
"Maybe this is a good thing? We've been trying so hard to get pregnant for two months and my last test was negative. Maybe what we need is a break?"
Thor blinks, considering your words but then he shakes his head.
"Is that the only reason you've been laying with me night after night? To be with child?"
He almost sounds hurt by the idea and you hurry to reassure him.
"No! Of course not, Thor. I...being with you intimately is one of the best things about my adult life that I never knew I wanted or needed. It feel so good to be with you. Sometimes I can't believe that you want me.
"You're this perfect God, desired by millions. Billions even. And I'm-"
"Let me stop you there, cherub. If you are ever in any doubt as to how you affect me-mind, body, and soul-" He reaches down between your bodies, unbuttons his jeans and lowers his zipper.
"Thor!" You gasp quietly, peeking around at both ends of the long secluded hallway.
"No one will see us," he whispers, seductive and deep.
He's right though. Especially here where the pillar meets the wall, a tight corner where he's got you trapped. Right where you want to be.
He takes your hand and pushes his pants down a bit until he's exposed, erect, and throbbing.
As you wrap your fingers around him, he purrs and after another lick of his lips, he flies into a frenzy that you match with your own fervor.
It has to happen fast and before you know it he's inside, thrusting up into you as he holds your right leg up around his waist.
Neither of you have any words, only heavy breathing. A gasp. A grunt. Mewling moans that rise from your throat which he quickly silences with a finger pressed gently to your lips.
"Shh, my cherub," he urges.
Even if no one ever comes down here. The sound of the Queen making these noises would surely draw someone's attention.
"I'm coming…" you whimper, hands vices around the fabric of his shirt.
Thor groans again then mashes his lips against your own, thrusting faster and smoother. Like silk on skin he fills you up and as you grip his cock, twitching around him, he empties into you.
He coats you with his heat, caressing the curves of your body as he continues to kiss you with slow and deliberate passion.
"We aren't missing a day," he declares.
As the two of you recover, a voice from the far end of the hall interrupts.
"Thor, we must go if you're to be back by morning."
For a moment your heart leaps into your throat. Loki’s voice is knowing. He clearly gets what you two were doing.
You peek over Thor’s shoulder but don't see Loki anywhere. He's got the sense to give you two your privacy and stay out of sight.
"I'll be right there," Thor says, leaning in to kiss your lips slow. "Don't worry, he's discreet."
Thor helps you get dressed again, blocking your body from sight even though he knows no one is looking.
When you're both decent again, he takes your arm in his and leads you out into the main hall where Loki stands by the large doors pacing.
As he spots the two of you, he gives no indication that he heard or saw any of what happened down in the garden hallway.
"You two look...refreshed," Loki says pointedly.
"Brother, do not tease Her Majesty the Queen. She's already fretting."
Thor adjusts his arm to wrap around your shoulder and gives you a quick squeeze as you glare at Loki.
"Of course, you're right. I'm sorry, Y/N."
Loki gives you quick polite bow, then a mischievous smile curls his lips and you can see the trickster God peek through.
“I am a most avid supporter of my monarchs doing what they can to provide the kingdom with an heir, and if there is any way that I can help, I would be happy to lend my assistance.”
“Watch it, Loki,” Thor warns, only half heartedly but with the punch of genuine jealousy.
You haven’t really questioned lately whether you’re Thor’s because you are. No doubt in your mind. He has you wrapped around his finger. Hearing him assert that claim, the one on your heart and body--it drives shivers up your spine and you suddenly want him back home from his trip already.
“I only meant that I am glad to make excuses if you two wish to escape for a few hours a day,” Loki clarifies. “What did you think I meant?”
He’s teasing Thor, you can see it. That playful jabbing is routine and you’ve seen him do it before but you were never the tool for his poking at Thor.
“I’ll wait out front,” Loki takes his leave, shutting the large doors to the front hall with ease.
Without a word, Thor pulls you into his arms. He embraces you tightly, sighing heavily and you shut your eyes at the feel of his body wrapped around yours.
You can’t remember ever feeling so happy. So, safe? There’s something in the way it feels to have his large arms around you, a weight pressed to you but not down on you.
He’s not suffocating you or oppressing you. He’s supporting you, ducking down a little to get a better hold of you. He presses his nose against your hair and breathes in deeply.
It could just be a sigh, but if he’s anything like you, he might be trying to memorize your scent.
As your own nose is pressed into the crook of his neck, you let his own wash over you.
His unique smell brings to mind a dark cloudy sky, a field of soft overgrown grass swaying in an endless cool wind. The scent of freshly sodden earth. It’s rain and nature, with the briefest sting of ozone as the sky lights up with his immeasurably powerful lightning.
All of that runs in him and you can’t believe that you’re lucky enough to be here holding him close.
“I will be as quick as I can be,” he says, deep tone settling in your chest.
“I wish you were back already.”
You can hear him laugh, just a small huff of air before he kisses the side of your head.
“You will be so busy with the park and then so exhausted you will pass out before you even have time to miss me.”
“I miss you already, doof,” you sigh.
“Will you promise me something?” he asks, pushing you back to meet your eyes.
“Anything,” you promise.
“Will you stay in the palace for me? I-I know that you were supposed to go down to the park to walk the new pathways and tree markers but I would feel much better about leaving you if I know that you’ll be here, safe.”
“You said there was nothing about this threat to worry about?”
Suddenly, a fear begins to grow in your belly. It twists it in knots and makes you nervous. Like if your marriage and all of this confidence you’ve found in yourself as Queen of New Asgard has been snuffed out, you feel like the nobody who sat in her room writing stories of lives you would never live.
“There isn’t, cherub. Not that we can tell. But we don’t understand it. With Stark and Banner having had delays in coming to install their extra measures of security, I was hoping that this inspection could wait until they had finished whatever business it was that drew them to Wakanda, but Steve says he is not sure how long they will be there.
“And until they can come, I--I cannot stand the thought of something happening to you, that’s all.”
Thor hooks his hand behind your neck, caressing your cheek as he ducks his head and gives you a reassuring smile.
Inside you’re at war with yourself. On the one hand, if he’s this scared, this threat is more serious than any of them are making this out to be.
On the other hand, Thor is so convincing in his words. You can clearly see the worry he has for you, for your safety. The tight hand on your hip tells you that he does indeed have some fear, but his gaze tells you that his favor is for his peace of mind.
So, you nod.
“Yes,” you give in. “I’ll stay here. I can work on the plans from my room and I have a lot of studying to do about the Valkyrie anyway.”
“Thank you,” Thor physically relaxes, his shoulders falling as a teeny bit of weight comes off them. “I will be as quick as I can be and then I will be here with you again and we can resume trying for that baby.”
“Thor about that,” you begin, licking your lips and wondering if he’ll even understand where you’re coming from. “I think maybe-?”
“Thor, I’m really very sorry. Y/N, if we don’t leave now we might have to extend the inspections until the day after tomorrow. Volstagg has to leave the planet for a short visit with his kin and cannot miss his window to do so.”
Thor stands taller, disapproving of the interruption, but he knows better and he leans down to kiss you.
“Can we continue this conversation when I return?”
You kiss him back as he leans down for another and nod when he pulls away, “Of course, Thor. Go. Hurry back.”
He gives you one more kiss, this one lingering before he presses in on your lips a little harder as if it pains him to pull away, then marches out the door without another look back.
The heavy doors close with a loud clatter and you’re left in the empty hall feeling strangely out of place.
You take your time getting up to your room. The bed looks huge without Thor sitting on its edge, pulling his shoes on in the morning with a groan of complaint at having to leave you so early.
His mornings are always full of rolling back into bed to cuddle you for a few more minutes before he has to go.
This morning feels like ages ago and maybe it’s because this really is the first time the two of you have been separated since before your wedding, but you miss him so much already and it’s only been minutes.
There’s a rush of air from the balcony, so strong it pulls your attention, but the smell that entices you has you running for the open door.
Through the rippling flowing curtains you see Thor in full armor, gold and black, his right hand wrapped around his hammer.
He opens his left arm for you as you reach him, pulling you right up against his body as he meets your lips sweetly.
“Mmm,” he mumbles.
“Why are you here? You’re supposed to be gone!”
You gasp, hands pressed to his chest as your heart pounds hard.
“Just one more kiss,” he simpers. “This is truly much harder than I thought it would be.”
“It’s only a few hours,” you tease, but you’re so ecstatic that you weren’t the only one feeling that ache.
“Too many,” Thor sighs.
“Then kiss me, and go. The sooner you’re gone the sooner you’ll be back.”
He obeys, and kisses you only less sweetly and with the passion to leave you wanting more.
He leaves you in a second rush of air leaving the smell of coming rain in his wake.
“Well, that was dramatic.” A voice interrupts from within your room. “You’d think he was going off to war.”
Moving inside, you find Hilde strewn across the chaise at the end of your bed, crystal bottle sloshing with brown liquid in her hand.
“Give us a break, it’s been nearly two and a half months since we’ve been separated.”
“Two and a half months is but a split second in time for us,” Hilde explains.
Her words give you pause and then the ache in your heart is hard to keep from spilling onto your face.
Hilde notices and quickly sits back up, “Your Majesty, I didn’t meant-”
“It’s alright. Really. It’s okay.”
With a quick smile at her you move to sit at your desk and put your feeble mortality out of your mind.
It’s not something you like to think on, and you’ve been good at forgetting about not only the significant age difference between you and Thor but also how fast you’ll age in your marriage and Thor will pretty much look the same as he does now.
Pulling over the large binder with the park plans, you reach for your phone to dial up Edgar, New Asgard’s senior construction manager and explain to him that you won’t be making your appointment for that afternoon.
“Good morning, Edgar. Yes, I’m doing well, thanks. I just wanted to give you a heads up that I won’t be able to walk the park today. Yeah. Thor has gone with Loki to attend to some things and won’t be back until early in the morning and I’ve had to take over a few things here in the palace. I’m so sorry, I hope you can forgive me.”
Edgar is all politeness and eagerness to please you and Thor. Like the rest of his people, they look up to the God of Thunder and for some reason, they’ve accepted you into their hearts openly.
“We should reschedule. Let me know when you can walk the grounds with me and I’ll-” You stop and listen to him assure you that he’s available at your convenience. “I appreciate that. I’ll give you a call tomorrow and we can set something up for later this week. Thank you, Edgar. Okay, bye.”
“It’s really not necessary to call him and tell him all that, you know? Just tell him you want to reschedule and he’ll do what you want.”
“I know, but that feels weird to do. I can’t just order him around. What if he had something special to do later in the week and me moving the appointment affects that?”
You throw open the binder and the map of the planned park. Already you and Edgar have marked it all up with red scribbles where things would need to be changed. You’d wanted a man made lake in the center, but you’ll have to settle for a small pond in one of the corners until more land can be leveled for a lake.
Several of the trees you’d wanted are not available so you’ve had to get new ones there too.
Every bit of this park has been selected by you from the type of grass, the stones in the pathways, to the wildflowers planted in the flower beds.
The responsibility of giving your people a space that they can love and appreciate stresses you out from time to time though you’ve pretty much accepted the weight of your crown.
Without another word, you go to work and Hilde, who you assume is here to be your personal bodyguard while Thor is out, gets up and presses a small button hidden underneath a small steel panel the size of Thor’s large palm.
She moves back over to the small breakfast table where you and Thor enjoy your first meal of the day in private, and sits back to wait patiently. Her bottle with drink has been abandoned on the chaise, now empty.
As your mind begins to focus on your work, you register Hilde telling Estrid to send for food and drinks.
“And make sure they bring her Majesty’s favorite snacks so that she can eat while she works. I’m sure she’s been neglecting her meals all day,” Hilde knows.
Time passes without you realizing and you do appreciate the small munchies that are brought and placed on the edge of the desk.
You eat without thinking and soon the plate is empty, wrappers littering the top right corner of your workspace as well as the floor below.
“Shit, what time is it?” You crane your neck around to look for Hilde and find the room empty.
Pulling your phone close you click the screen on to see that it’s just before dinner and Hilde is probably waiting for you down in the dining room.
You don’t bother changing much of your clothes. You slip out of your jeans and shirt and quickly pull a simple cotton dress on.
It’s customary to dress up for dinner a bit but without Thor here, you put in minimal effort and the burnt orange cotton dress is relaxed enough to let you breathe but nice looking enough to be presentable.
You’re tying the sash around your waist to heighten your curves as you make your way down the two floors to the dining room and fixing the wrists of your long loose cinched sleeves when you reach the hallway and look up only to gasp as Hilde stops right in front of you looking frazzled.
“Hey, what-?”
“I need you to know that he didn’t know about this. If he did, he would have warned you-us. I also don’t think he thought he’d be out when they came.”
She’s so stressed that you reach out to grab hold of her arms and smile through your confusion.
“Hilde, what are you talking about? Who’s here?”
You receive your answer only too quickly, “Is that you, Cherub? Queen of New Asgard?”
The snark is brief but familiar and you don’t need further explanation to know who you’ll see behind Hilde.
She steps aside to reveal Tony Stark, moving towards you a few steps until he’s standing right in front of you.
He bows.
“Oh, shit, please don’t do that,” you gasp, embarrassed.
Tony smirks, “Gotta follow the rules, Your Majesty.”
“Please, Tony. Just my name is fine,” you plead. “Really, I can’t bear anything else.”
“Queen’s orders?” he teases.
You genuinely chuckle, rolling your eyes before finally noticing his extended hand. Taking it, he lifts it to his lips to give you a quick polite kiss, then gently drops it.
“Thor wasn’t expecting you for another few weeks. Wasn’t there a mission? It was going to take a while?”
“My fault,” Bruce’s voice interjects.
Tony steps aside and you smile as your eyes find Bruce. He walks towards you both with his head slightly ducked, his hands held together at his front as he moves towards you nervously, wringing them.
“I kind of Hulked out and might have single handedly taken out the guys patrolling the building we were trying to get into. And then broke in through a wall and started a fire. And then sat on the mainframe of their computer system and lost us all the data we were trying to steal in the first place which cut our mission short by a few weeks.”
Bruce extends his hand and you take it, all too happy to see him again.
You’re halfway to a laugh at the chaos he seems to have caused when you notice a small head of swaying hair behind him. As your chuckle is caught in your throat, you freeze mid handshake, heart stuttering as those pretty brown eyes that have plagued a few of your nightmares meet yours.
“Jane…” you quietly gasp.
“Remember what I said?” Hilde asks, moving to stand by you.
“Oh, um…” Tony points at Jane as Bruce releases your hand and moves aside to give you full view of the pretty brunette dressed in a semi-formal pantsuit complete with thick jacket to combat the Norwegian temperatures that press in on the warmth of any home after the sun sets.
Jane is quick to give you a much better curtsy than she did the first time and then hesitantly offers you her hand, “Hello again, Your Majesty.”
“Jane has something to show Thor and well, you. Where is he, by the way?” Tony asks, giving the hallway a complete turn to see if he can spot Thor hiding behind some chair or doorway.
“Just, my name, please,” you tell Jane, giving her your hand and fighting the urge to run and shove your face into a pillow to scream in order to focus on the stronger urge of finding out why your husband’s ex-lover came all the way to your home to see him. “Thor’s out. He and Loki have gone to meet with Fandral, Volstagg, Hogun, and Sif to see how far along the outposts are.
“Does your visit have to do with the threat?” You turn back to Jane and slowly take your hand back.
“I’d really like to talk about it with both of you, if you don’t mind?” Jane explains.
“Listen,” Hilde begins, but you shake your head just a teeny bit and she stops and shuts her mouth.
“Okay, that’s fine. He won’t be back until tomorrow morning at the earliest, so join us for dinner?” With a gesture at the doors to your right, Estrid throws them open and inside is waiting a modest but still lavish feast compared to most dinners in common households. There are three main courses to choose from as well as plenty of sides to give the most picky eater options.
Even though there is plenty of food, they’re simple foods. Roast chicken, sandwiches, salad, soup, bread, rice, potatoes, and other vegetables. Lots of it, but plainly prepared.
Hilde had known you wouldn’t even really be tasting your food with Thor gone and now, you doubt you can find your appetite again to consume anything.
“Nice spread,” Tony admires, but he holds out his elbow for you and you take it.
He escorts you to your usual seat by Thor’s at the end, then pulls it out for you and as the others take to standing behind their own seats--Hilde across from you and the others wherever they’d like--they wait until you take yours before they even attempt to pull their own out.
As several younger looking men and women move in with pitches of ale and wine and water, you catch Estrid’s gaze as she whispers instructions to a much younger looking girl with very curly dark hair.
The young girl rushes off when Estrid sees you need her and gives her a small push and a quick word.
“Yes, Your Majesty?” Estrid asks, stopping beside you and silencing the others as they had begun to dig in and chatter pleasantly.
“Have three rooms made up for our guests? Make sure they want for nothing while they’re here, alright? The best rooms for Thor’s close friends.”
“Yeah, I’ll take the suite,” Tony teases, and Estrid looks flustered for a moment before she realizes that he’s joking and then with a kind and surprised smile, she gives you a curtsy and then rushes off to do as she’s been asked.
“I’m sorry if the food isn’t more…” You can’t find the word to convey what you want to say, so you leave the sentence hanging there. “If I’d known you were coming, I’d have had Cook prepare you something nicer.”
“Oh, this is wonderful,” Bruce assures you, lifting his fork laden with broccoli and chicken.
He nods and smiles, then shoves the forkful into his mouth.
“Yeah, this is good,” Tony nods, using your name which gives you a strange sense of acceptance.
It’s casual, the way he says it. It’s like he really has welcomed you into his circle after your visit with them during your honeymoon.
“We can’t all have lobster every night. Bruce is allergic.”
“What?” Bruce asks, slightly stunned. “Me? I’m not…”
“Aren’t you?” Tony asks.
“No,” Bruce shakes his head, flabbergasted.
“How come you didn’t want to eat those Lobsters on Fourth of July then?” Tony demands, dropping his hand so that his fork clinks against the side of his plate.
He’s starting to look upset.
“You bought the box off some guy standing at the mouth of the alley where we were catching arms smugglers!”
“What’s your point?” Tony demands.
As their banter flows, you keep a pleasant and appropriately amused smile trained on the pair of them but you have one eye fixed on Jane and carefully you take a few hurried looks at her. Admiring the way her hair falls softly against her shoulders and the way she eats with poise and why the hell did she have to come in person?
Hasn’t she ever heard of fucking e-mail?!
363 notes · View notes
mamamittens · 3 years
Text
Exquisite Control
Help, I thought too hard about what it would be like if Ace had a touch of Carrie in him. If the fire he used was a bit more... tied with his temper. And he refined that temper. I just really like people with nasty tempers but a fine control over it until someone fucks around and finds out.
Okay, maybe I'm also mentally preparing myself for the holiday season. Pray for me y'all, work will be riding my ass well into February ;_;
Also, I'll work on Sabo's jewelry tomorrow, I was just really tired and this wouldn't leave me alone.
So enjoy Scary Ace. Or don't. I'm not going to pretend I even read it over before posting.
@cyborg-franky, enjoy mild shipping vibes.
Also, warning for somewhat graphic descriptions of people burning alive. You can't convince me Ace didn't kill people often with his devil fruit, I'm sorry. Fire kills people. Smokey the Bear told me so.
Ace was a hellion growing up. Snarling and biting at everyone and anyone that came close to him. A ball of self-hatred and desperation to leave a mark on the world, even if it was in the shape of his teeth in every hand that reached out to him. Gramps taught Ace determination. The kind that left blood on his teeth and wanting more. Sabo taught him what it meant to be patient. To be clever with his teeth, where to bite and when to nip. Luffy… taught him that there are people out there that will love him despite the violence in his soul. Luffy inspired him to use that as a weapon in defense, rather than just lashing out because he could.
But still Ace had his damnable temper. Not even Sabo’s passing couldn’t cool the fire in his blood. Not Dadan and her awkward affection, nor Makino and her gentle acceptance. It beat in his chest like a war drum. A need to prove himself more than the sins of his father. It curled in his heart, intertwined with his hatred for what he saw in the mirror. He lacked any control to tame it, so it spilled over, often hurting those around him in bursts.
What finally taught him control was, ironically, his devil fruit. And Deuce. Deuce really helped Ace in those first few weeks. Endlessly patient, but not willing to take his shit… Sabo would have gotten along well with Ace’s first mate. Really bonded over wrangling his feral mountain child heart and temper.
Fire came easily to Ace. It had been in his very bones from the start and never stopped growing. It was so strong, in fact, that Ace found it almost impossible to so much as walk past a candle without it flaring up. Deuce taught him what it meant to breathe. To settle in his chest and understand what it meant to be still. To rest on his haunches rather than stalk around, waiting for a perceived insult to set him off. He still hated himself. His reflection. Every part of his face that he deemed too much like that man.
Not even his ever-growing crew could help that.
But when he patrolled his ship late one night with nary a flicker of candlelight, he felt like he was one step closer to casting aside his darkness. The shadow of a man long dead that hovered over his shoulder along with the entire world. That night, the reflection of his eyes looked like a banked campfire rather than the cold steel he thought suited the devilish man who created him.
Challenging Whitebeard was the best and worst decision he ever made.
He never used his devil fruit outside of that first instance, too aware that his fraying temper spelled disaster for the entire ship. His hard-earned control strained under the weight of mocking laughter with every failed attempt. He got better, of course. He could hardly grow up on Dawn Island, let alone thrive in it’s hostile environments, if he wasn’t adaptable. But still… that fire burned brighter—hotter—with every passing comment.
He’d never held his temper at bay quite like this before.
Whether he intended to or not, Whitebeard taught him true restraint. To hold back just enough, even if enough wasn’t good enough for what he needed to do. To understand where the line was and just how close he was comfortable being to it. He wanted to kill Whitebeard, but the man’s crew? Not his target. They did not deserve his wrath. Even if they tested his patience with their mocking laughter again and again.
And when he finally caved and asked that damn question, Oyaji… gave him hope. It settled in his chest. If someone who knew that man could look past his legacy and accept Ace as he was, then… maybe that long shadow wasn’t quite his burden to bear after all. Maybe Luffy and Sabo were right to accept him so easily. He still had bad days, of course, but with time… he could pick out parts of his features he liked. That he could look fondly at because they reminded him of his family.
Thatch teased him for his freckles, how they splattered over his nose and cheekbones. Perpetually casting his features in a soft, childish light.
Oyaji liked his eyes, how they lit up with a certain fire separate from his devil fruit. How alive he looked when he was willing to put everything he was on the line.
Marco admired the loose curls of his hair, how the twisting locks caught the light of both their fruits on an ebony canvas. How soft it was despite Ace’s lack of care. He would often ruffle Ace’s hair when he was being particularly difficult.
A great many of his new family members liked how his blush burned bright over his face to the tips of his ears. Flickers of fire casting embers into the air when Ace was especially worked up. Which was often.
And then, one day, Ace taught them something too.
What it meant to have absolute control even if it appears like it was the complete opposite.
A strong rival crew sailed boldly through Oyaji’s territory, destroying homes and ransacking people under their protection. Insulting everything under the sun and then some.
At first, Ace did quite well. Insults didn’t quite roll off his back, but they were noted and addressed accordingly. His moniker getting a real workout as he tore through the rival crew with a determined stride. It was his first real fight with Oyaji’s mark, after all. So what if he showed off a little?
Then they crossed a line.
“So you’re the whelp of that bitch, Portgas Rouge, huh? Just as worthless, to boot!”
There was a shift in his stance. Something in his chest stirred hot, seeping into his bones. Lanterns in the evening light swayed before standing still. His eyes fixed ahead as his lips were pulled into a grim smile.
Sensing something, Thatch was quick to try and defuse the situation.
“Hey! That’s a lady you’re talking about, how about you shut your mouth?” Ace lifted his hand and glanced back.
“It’s alright. They can apologize in person.” Ace raised his other hand. Candlelight flickered and swayed, twinkling in the air around him as the lanterns heated up. Glass began to crack.
“Ace! Don’t lose your temper like this!” Marco called out.
“Lose my temper, Marco?” Ace called out, as fire gathered at his feet like fireflies. The air itself began to buckle and sway under the heat, wood softly groaning. Easing his shoulders back, Ace cheerfully beamed.
Fire plumes swept around the deck like a whip, hot air barely grazing his family and the flammable wood of Moby Dick. The offending crew began to scream as shapes condensed in the flames. All manner of creatures twisting and spiraling around.
Ace was pleased to note that the rude man who insulted his mother by name had a lot less to say when his throat was charred.
One by one, the crew was ignited in quick fashion. Ace wasn’t cruel, not anymore. Not like he used to be. But he was calculating with his burning anger. Something Sabo had set the foundation of long ago. Ace rather thought Sabo would approve of how there was scarcely ash left. Not even the deck was seared by the burning heat.
Ace was thorough, to put it lightly.
When the last one was gone, Ace sighed. Turning on his heel, he brushed off some grime from his shoulder and smiled at Marco.
“I’ll have you know I have exquisite control.”
Later, Marco would confide in Ace that the look in his eyes at that moment was magnetic. A promise uncompromising. That he couldn’t look away. It wasn’t like Roger, where his presence felt like it filled the room. It was like seeing an absolute certainty cast in silver and fire. As sure as the sun and searing to the bone.
Teach would not get to tell Ace that in those final moments, Ace looked like hell on earth. Damnation made flesh and punishment assured. That his warm fire burned like ice.
There wouldn’t be anything left of him either.
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spices-and-cherries · 3 years
Text
Nailpolish Headcanons:
Benoit Blanc, Joe Bang, James Bond, Jake Lonergan, Prof. Fluke Kelso
I got the idea in my head not too long ago and this was the end product. I hope you enjoy!
I did not reference race, gender, sexuality, or physical appearance. If I missed something, please let me know so I can change it!
Masterlist:
Benoit Blanc:
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Color: mustard yellow, baby blue
- He’d let you do it only if you’re really bored and he has nothing better to do.
- He’ll let you choose which color because he trusts your judgement and wants to be surprised.
- The first time you do it, he messes it up almost immediately because he didn’t realize how long it would take to dry. He apologized profusely and asked if you’d “be so kind enough as to fix it” for him.
- Absolutely coordinates his ties with his nails for the rest of the week.
- He will gush inside if you paint his nails so they match with yours. 
- If anyone has any rude comments, he just chuckles as he tells them that his lovely darling did them for him. If he gets any compliments, he’s sure to pass them along to you. 
- However, for the sake of being professional, it’s super rare that he’ll let you do his hands - but his toes are free real estate!
- Not surprisingly, he does your nails perfectly on the first try. He’s more than happy to do your toes during the few lazy days you have together. He finds that it’s both a great way to unwind and spend quality time together.
10/10 - You’ve bonded a lot and besides, nothing’s wrong in enjoying the simple pleasures together, is there?
Joe Bang:
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Color: dark blue glitter, white
- He was a bit hesitant at first when you said that he’d have to let them dry, but he quickly forgot about that when he saw how many colors you had to choose from.
- When his restlessness starts to annoy you, he tells you that if you sat on his lap, maybe he’d learn to sit still. The trick is actually to turn on the TV because he’ll be too busy paying attention to that than you.
- His brothers got both super excited and jealous when they saw his nails and practically begged you to do theirs. Joe wasn’t very happy when you agreed to do them. 
- By the end of the first week, it doesn’t matter if it was his toes or nails painted because they’re so chipped, it’s worrisome. 
- Within days, he’ll have figured out how to make a bomb in three different ways with polish, but gets super pouty when you won’t let him sacrifice your collection in the name of science. 
- It takes a lot of time and determination on his part to learn how to paint your nails reasonably well. But you don’t mind because - not that you’d ever tell him - but he looks adorable when he concentrates so hard.  
- If you match your nails to his, he’ll get so cocky you have to threaten to wipe it off if he doesn’t keep it in his pants.
6.5/10 - The polish never lasts and is a big baby about the whole thing. At least he lets you do his hands?
James Bond:
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Color: black, ruby red
- The first time you ask, he chuckles, genuinely amused by the idea. When you pout, he somehow convinces you to let him do yours instead. Of course, the first time he tries it, it’s perfect. Turns out, he’s done it before. 
- It’ll take a lot of convincing for him to give in and let you have at it. Jokes on him, he actually ends up liking the end product a lot more than he thought he would. 
- It takes you a while to convince him to let you do it yourself and not a professional. Though he will insist on taking you anyway.
- Instead of matching his clothes to his nails (like Blanc), he matches his nails to his clothes. 
- His female co-workers immediately notice the difference and are intrigued. He just passes it off as normal. 
- Sometimes, you’ll do your nails together - especially when the two of you are getting ready for a party and you don’t have time to do his as well. He prefers it when you do it though.
- If your nails don’t match on dates, he gets a bit worried that you’re mad at him. He understands that red doesn’t match with any of your outfit, but why aren’t you wearing it anyway?
- As soon as a nail chips, he acts like a big baby and makes you fix it. 
- Someone talks shit about the nails you did for him, he will make them regret it vehemently whether it’s with a witty remark or a bullet in their head (depending on who it was).
9/10 - He gets too pouty and possessive, but it’s still endearing. 
Jake Lonergan:
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Color: clear, maroon
- He literally will only let you do it with color on his hands once. If you insist on doing his finger nails again, he wants the polish to be clear. 
- He’s a bit more lenient when it comes to his toes. 
- If there’s one thing he doesn’t mind, it’s sitting still, but heaven forbid he actually waits for it to dry. He simply has no patience for that. 
- He enjoys playing with your hands, so he prefers painting your nails instead of the other way around. He finds it super relaxing and he gets very good at it very quickly. 
- If you do your nails in his favorite color or if you match your toes, he gets super smug. 
- Most of the time, he’d rather enjoy watching you paint your nails because then he can have his arms wrapped around you without worrying if he’s going to mess them up. 
- If someone were to say anything about his nailpolish, he’d reply with a shrug and something about how his partner did it for him.
3/10 - He just doesn’t want his nails done. 
Prof. Fluke Kelso:
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Color: forest green, clear
- He only want color on his toes - he’s just more comfortable that way. 
- At first, he doesn’t like it, but as time goes by, he prefers having his toes done to not. 
- He hates the smell with a passion, which was one of the reasons why he was dubious about it at first.
- When he goes to a salon for the first time, you had to drag him there. He loved it so much that he ends up dragging you there the second time. 
- When he discovered nail art, his world transformed. He physically can’t go to a salon and not ask for a fun design. 
- He’s a bit clumsy at doing your nails. The end product always looks great, but he has a lot of cleaning up to do. 
- For the holidays, he gets you whatever colors you know you’ve been wanting or have run out of. He might even get you some stuff to the nail art with. 
- If someone has something to say about his nails, he’d reply by saying how lucky he is to actually have someone in his life, much less who’d do his nails. 
10/10 - His curious nature got the better of him and how he’s hooked. It’s adorable, really. 
I had a lot of fun with this, so I hope you all enjoyed reading it!
- Simpy
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girlmaster132 · 3 years
Text
(Yan)Childe x Reader: Remember Me?
This is like my first in this app please bare with me lmao.
Rated: Mature Words: 3.1k Warning: Kidnapping, Name Calling, Bullying.
Second-Person POV:
~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~
You wince as you pick up the burnt food on the ground. You accidentally poured in too much oil and you threw the fish away. This was a simple Grilled-Tiger Fish yet you can't even do it. How clumsy are you? You picked up the failed meal and threw it in the trash. You sigh as you shook your head and went to the table to eat one of the fruits on the table.
    You moved to the window and opened it. The sun shined bright, the sounds of people enticing customers to their stalls can be heard up to your house. Liyue Harbor is such a calm and relaxing place. Well, as long as you don't evade tax that is.
    It's been years since you've lived in Liyue, in contrast to most people here who have a specialty in cooking. You only ever bought food here. You took a bite into the apple and got ready for the day.
    You leave your house and walk down the stairs. Opening the door you're met with the friendly people of Liyue.
    "Goodmorning Y/N off to work?" You turn around and see Ganyu walking towards you.
    "Yes Ms. Ganyu, it's the last day before a week's break. I decided to get there earlier so I can get all my work done. I hate going on the weekends. Also, it's rare to see you out of your workplace, what brings you here?" You say. Ganyu giggles and pats you on the back.
    "Well, I have some important business to do. Don't waste time and off to work you go! Can't miss any seconds, time is gold!"
    You smile at Ganyu and continue your stroll to the outskirts of Liyue. You pass children playing with their kites, tag, and some even roleplayed as the Millelith. The vendors yell as they advertise their product in any way they can. You reached the bridge and continued your way to the statue of the seven.
    You bow down to the statue of Rex Lapis. He was such a different god from the previous one you had. Reaching the building of your office, you fixed your clothing and walked proudly. Opening the door and walking, Something felt off. There would usually be people welcoming you inside. The room should have open lights and a warm temperature. Instead, the building was dark, and it's eerily quiet. You sharply inhale.
    "Guys? Where are you?" You shouted as you searched each room you pass through. Was it a holiday and you accidentally went to work? But Ganyu would've told you earlier.
    The moment you arrived at the secluded area, you felt a hand with a handkerchief pressed over your mouth. You look back and attempt to punch them. Your heart beats rapidly and you squirm. More men appear and one of them punches you hard in the stomach. You fall to your knees as they hold you down and suffocate you. Black spots forming in your eyes as the world around you is rapidly fading quickly.
    "Is this one of the people on the list?"
    "Yeah, he's the last one." The man says.
    You try to struggle one last time as you close your eyes and drift to sleep. You squirm, punch, do anything. You struggle.
    And struggle, and struggle.
    And for the last time, you—
...
Struggle.
    You were being held down by Alek. He has always done this to you for as long as you can remember. Your face smeared across the snowy floor. It was cold and freezing, why is your life like this?
    "Y/N! I thought you wanted to be in the military!" He laughed, "Is it because your father is so poor he'd sacrifice you anytime to get money!"
    You sob and try to push yourself up, but Alek steps at your back. Leo, your other tormentor kicks you in the face, "How about your mom? Is she selling herself again to earn money? What a whore!"
    "My... Mom's not a whore..." You whimpered as the two boys made fun of you more. Blood trickles down your nose, you have a black eye and a broken self-esteem.
    "Hey!" A familiar voice shouted. He aimed his arrow and shot it right beside you threatening the two other kids. Your eyes light up and you see your best friend Ajax. He slides down the snow hill and directs the bow at the two boys. "Let him go! Or I will shoot."
    The two boys stare at Ajax. "And who might you be? We haven't met you before."
    "Someone that will kick your ass and make you fear my name." The two looked at each other and laughed. They glance back at you and Leo picks you up. Ajax glare would be enough to kill these two. Without warning rushes at them. He raises his fist and punches Alek right in the nose. Leo drops you roughly into the ground and before he could do anything, Ajax swings his bow at him and uppercuts him in the jaw.
    Your eyes light up as you watch Ajax beating them up a bit too hard. He strikes them with his bow without mercy. "Don't you fucking dare, return to this village. You got me!"
    "Ajax..." You call out, he stops and faces you. "I think they had enough." He shoves Leo into a tree and approaches you. The two boys ran away with fear. He crouches and touches your face.
    "Ajax, thanks for saving me again." You breathe out. He hugs you and lifts you. "Hey! This is embarrassing!" You hide your face and he bursts out laughing.
    "You can barely even stand, don't get shy of a friend helping you out." He carries you and runs you back to his place. The wind was a gentle breeze you blush slightly as he passes through the village. He sits you on the porch and opens the door.
    "Wait, is anyone home? I might disturb them,"
    "Nonsense!" He pulls you into a room and opens the lights. "Stay here, I'll get something for that black eye and a broken nose." He rushes into a room. You hum and wait, he returns with an entire medkit.
    "You don't have to, that's a waste of supplies. I thought you were just going to give me a cold compress—"
    "Here have some of this, your nose is bleeding," He ignores your complaints and brings you a cloth. "Now for that eye," He takes out a cold compress and gives it to your other hand. You apply it to your eye as you wipe your face off the blood. He happily sits beside you.
    "I wish I can be like you, strong, powerful, and brave. Do you ever wish to be part of the military?"
    "Nah, I don't think I'll ever join the military soon. I like to fight but you're more fit for that."
    "You're just wasting your time, thanks for being my sparring partner and the person that always saves me but..." You trail off.
    "But what?"
    "I'm someone you can leave behind. I'm the one getting prepared to become a soldier but I can't even fight those two. You don't even get training yet you're better than me. I bet you're just doing this because you don't want to hurt my feelings."
    "Y/N don't think about that!" Ajax smiles, "I enjoy your company! Even if you win or lose as long as you learn with me I am fine with that!" your face heats up and you look down at the floor.
    "That's sweet of you to say..." You whisper.
    Silence.
    His demeanor changes, "Y/N I've always wanted to tell you something, I've—"
    The door opens, "Y/N I knew you'd be here. Your father is calling you, he orders you to go home now," He walks towards you, "Yeesh, what happened to you kid?"
    "Oh just Alek and Leo doing their thing again... Your son saved me again sir! He's such a nice friend," You compliment. "I'm sorry I used some of your medical supplies."
    "It's okay boy, I don't mind. No hurry, your father needs you."
    "See you Ajax and thank you so much for helping me!" You bow down and run outside, waving goodbye.
...
You walk through the snow and trees. You arrive home and see a carriage and a ton of boxes everywhere. "What's this all about?"
    "We're leaving, pack your things before afternoon." You stand there in shock. Leaving? To where?
    "W-what! Father, why do we have to leave again? Where are we even going? Aren't we fine? You say if I trained and got in the military we'd be safe. W-why?" You stuttered. Looking at your father who's hastily fixing the bags. He grabs your shoulders.
    "Liyue, we have the biggest chance of surviving there. We can't pay off our debt anymore, they'd kill us!" He yells at your face, making you shake in fear.
    "B-but where's mom? And Ajax— I still haven't said my goodbyes to him." He grabs your hand and pulls you roughly.
    "Your mom won't be returning any time soon, we have to hurry. And as for Ajax, I told him about the two of us leaving for Liyue. You're not good enough, look at you. Whenever you get back here you get beaten up by such a useless piece of shit. There's no time so get your goddamn stuff and let's leave this hell hole!" He pushes you and his words echoed through your mind. You wipe a tear threatening to fall down your face.
    You pack all your clothes and whatever you can hoard in a box. You throw it in the carriage and your father commands you to get in. You are sad, at the sudden change.
    "Hey! Wait up!" Ajax shouts. You see him out of breath, his eyes full of worry.
    "It's best if you don't follow us..." You say. Your eyelids get heavy and hide your face. You look back once more to see Ajax chasing you with full speed. Your father grunts and whips the horse to go faster. You watch as he fails to match the speed.
    "Wait, Y/N! Don't leave me please!"
    And that was the last you've heard of your best friend.
...
The room is silent and uncanny. You squirm around and freedom has no avail. Your eyes are covered and your hands are tied. You start to panic and hyperventilate.
    "Looks like the last one woke up," you hear a voice.
    "Are these the hostages?"
    "Yes, we're just waiting for the boss to return," says the other. Footsteps were circling the room. You feel like you're about to vomit. Your insides churn at the fact that you're kidnapped by other people in the room.
    "This one seems to be eager for a beating!" The agent jokes. The blindfold tightly wrapped around your face stops you from absorbing info about the matter. Your hair gets roughly pulled and you gasp. They laugh at your attempt to escape from them. You hear the door creak open.
    "Well hello there, you did a great job you two, now would you mind if you avoid touching the hostages?"
    "Yes sir!" And with that, the two men drop you down. The newcomer arrives and clears his throat.
    "All of you calm down. We're waiting for your greedy scum of a boss to pick you up from here in about an hour. There are 6 people in here, If he arrives early and pays, we'll set you free. If he doesn't," You hear him chuckle. "Every 10 minutes wasted I will pick one of you and make sure none of you get out of here without a broken bone or two. So hopefully he responds and gives the money he owes us. Just hope this boss of yours is kind."
    Time ticks the sounds of your co-workers begging for freedom gets hushed by threats and punches.
    10 minutes had passed.
    "Looks like one of you is lucky," You hear a loud slap and a person groan. You witness your co-worker get beaten up. You flinch every time he begs for mercy. You hid in the corner of the room, hoping to dear god your boss would arrive now. You didn't even know nor want to do anything about this debt they were talking about. With one last punch, you hear a thud, ending one's suffering.
    You try to calm yourself down but you can't stop it. You huff and puff loudly, sweating bullets, stomach-churning, dying from the anticipation. All of these give all the attention to you.
    Another 10 minutes passed, it didn't even feel like it. Time was ticking too fast you've lost all hope of getting out of here.
    "Sheesh, that old geezer really does not care about you folks does he? Now, who should the lucky winner be?" His steps got louder and you know he's going to hurt you. He grabs your hair and pulls your blindfold and throws it. He raises his fist ready to strike. "Now you little-"
    "Ajax? Is that you?" You asked, blinking to clear the light. He's taller and has a Fatui mask on his face. He still looks as handsome as you remember. He halts and stammers.
    "H-how do you know about that? Are you one of Liyue's spies? Or are you an eavesdropper that knows too much?" He studies you before saying, "Keep an eye on the other 5, I have to deal with this one." You gulp as he harshly tugs your arm. He drags you into the room beside and throws you into the wall. Your heart sinks, whatever happened to your best friend? You feel the tears swell up in your eyes as sadness overtakes you.
    "A-ajax don't you remember me?"
    "As far as I can remember, I don't know anyone that's part of an organization that borrowed money from us. I only know your boss, and his subordinates are going to get a good beating if he doesn't arrive with the money."
    You stare at his eyes, it's devoid of the sparkling light of hope and kindness. It's empty and dark, soulless and heartless. You gulp and a tear escapes out of your eye.
    "I'm a coward..."
    "Save the tears and sad story for later. I'll get back to you after your boss returns." He rolls his eyes and scoffs. He stands up and he quickly walks to the door.
    "I'M A COWARD THAT LEFT THE MILITARY AND YOU ALONE!" You shout as you reach your hand up to him. "I was never fit to become a soldier! And I made you suffer!" You sat down and tears streamed down your face.
    Childe stops walking and looks back at you. His eyes widened and his mouth agape.
    "Y/N? How're you— alive? My father told me you were taken away and you... died...."
    "W-what? My father said that he informed you about the two of us leaving Snezhnaya to hide in Liyue. We couldn't pay off our debt, and mom never returned the same day you rescued me from those two asshats."
    His eyes softened like every memory of you two together came crashing to him. A small smile appeared on his face as he approached you slowly. Each step he takes, you take one back.
    "I'm sorry I- just hurt me..." His hand reaches for your face and he looks directly into your eyes. He leans in and you feel his soft lips touch with yours. The moment was bliss, you close your eyes and hold onto him. You breathe in sharply as he pulls out. He wipes away your tears and lets out a laugh.
    "I can't believe you're alive Y/N. I missed you, and you aren't a coward," he says. Your stomach somersaults and you hug him. "Now, let's get to it." You look up to him and then A sudden sharp pain surges and paralyzes you. A knife digs into your abdomen. You widen your eyes and more tears stream down your face.
    "A-Ajax?" You whimper and your body numbs. Your legs weaken and Childe catches you. He chuckles as he runs his hand through your hair. You cough out blood and he whispers into your ear.
     "Shh... it will be okay. Y/N just relax, you'll be fine with me. Just sleep, we'll talk in a bit."
...
You flutter your eyes. Everything was so blurry, your body is ready to fall apart from exhaustion. The pain of your best friend betraying you loomed and haunted your thoughts. You sluggishly move and the pain shoots through your stomach. You wince and attempt to cover it. You realize something is attached to your wrists. You move your hand and hear the clanks of chains. You dart in that direction and see that both of them were chained in the wall. The room is pitch black.
    Your heart races and you panic. You struggle but your efforts are futile. Something heavy was weighing you down. You look down to your feet to see chains shackled on your ankles.
    Your breathing gets erratic, and adrenaline rushes through you. The sounds of footsteps came near and you waited for the danger. The door loudly opens and you see Childe enter.
    "You're finally awake! Took you long enough, I know you don't like to keep friends waiting," He exclaims while crouching down to your level.
    "Where am I? Ajax why the fuck am I chained?"
    "You'll never be able to leave me anymore. We're going to be together just like before! Aren't you excited! We have so much to catch up to, after you left I thought you died! So I chased after you and fell to the abyss—"
    "Abyss?! Is that why you've cracked your head and went mad!" His grin widens and he giggles.
    "You've always been funny Y/N I've loved your jokes. The abyss was such a fun place. I always thought that if you weren't in this world anymore, you'd be there! But foolish little ol' me remembered you are an angel, they don't fall into the abyss. They fly up into the sky," He rambles with a twisted smile on his face. You raise your brow, scared for dear life.
    "This isn't right Ajax! Y-you fell into the abyss?! What happened to you! Why are you doing this to me? Let me go!" You yell. His face drops and he laughs maniacally. He comes closer and rubs your shoulders. His hand runs down to your chest. He licks his lips and stares at your eyes, piercing through your soul.
    "We're going to have some fun."
~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~
Author's Note: I swear to God idk what I just wrote ;-;
If you enjoy whatever the hell I wrote you can follow me on WP too! 
https://www.wattpad.com/story/264619512-genshin-impact-oneshots-x-readers-x-characters
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heyovivi · 4 years
Text
ACOTAR 6? (MAJOR SPOILERS FOR ACOSF)
Okay! I just finished A Court of Silver Flames and absolutely love Nesta’s journey and this is coming from a person who didn’t really like Nesta from the beginning. Her journey of healing and finding herself was beautiful and her journey with Cassian was heart-wrenching and sexy and I just loved it all! But anyways, more on that later, I have some predictions for the next book. 
So I usually don’t go into anything without spoiling myself so before I even picked up ACOSF from a bookshelf at Target (don’t worry I was able to read both bonus chapters; meaning Azriel’s and the Feyre and Rhys’ chapters) I knew a little about ACOSF already. Now, ACOSF wasn’t deeply plotted and there wasn’t any world building like there was when we read the first three book--although it didn’t really matter to me I still enjoyed the book. ACOSF was all about Nesta and her journey and an insight to her thoughts and why she is the way she is and although I felt that at some points I hated Nesta I could still understand her frustrations and I could understand that she was deeply flawed as a character--which is fine. 
Now, even if ACOSF didn’t have a huge plot there were some key elements that will probably be very important in the next book such as Koschei, the remaining Mortal Queens, the Band of Exiles, Azriel’s journey, and Elain’s journey. But one key thing I noticed was Eris. Now he didn’t appear that much in the book and if he did it was during moments where his presence was essential to the plot (such as being kidnapped by Queen Brialynn and Koschei), but in that last chapter he appeared in it seemed like there was more to the story, to his story specifically. I think that maybe we might be getting a book on Eris. 
A lot of people say that ACOSF is reminiscent of Tower of Dawn from the Throne of Glass series, where instead of following Aelin in her quest to free her kingdom and stop Maeve, we instead venture into a Chaol-centered book where we kind of try to understand his point of view and character growth. So maybe, and this is just a theory or prediction, maybe we’ll get a similar thing with Eris. 
From that one little conversation we get with Cassian and Eris, it appears that Eris is kind’ve jealous of the Night Court and it’s relationships with the other courts in Prythian. A lot of people have already pointed how much Eris could be a lot like Rhys in the manner that Eris wants the Autumn Court to be seen not as the fiery court of rage and misery, but instead wants to be a beacon for those who dwell there. And you do see some parallels between Rhys and Eris and their upbringing with their fathers being very strict figures in their lives but with Eris there was an emphasize of abuse somewhere along the line. 
Now I’m not saying that Eris is getting a book or that his book even next, but I think that we have not heard the full story of what happened between both him and Mor, and I really want to know the entire story of what had happened in Eris’ life to make him seem like such a conniving person. But if I’m being honest I would much rather read a book about Eris’ efforts to lift the Autumn Court than a book about Mor--just my preference you don’t have to agree with me. 
Now here are my runner ups for who could be the possible voice of ACOTAR 6. 
Azriel
Elain
No, not Azriel and Elain, but Azriel or Elain. Now there were a lot of people saying that the book is either about Elain and Azriel, or Azriel and Gwyn, or Elain and Lucien--and I’m not going to shut down anyone’s theories but I’m going to share my own. Again, if you feel peeved about what sides or ships I support then stop reading when you get pissed because I can live with the fact that not everyone is going to agree with my theories.
First off, Azriel. 
I’m going to be honest, from what I read on Tumblr mainly I thought Azriel’s role in ACOSF was going to be way bigger, but I still enjoyed his dry humor and presence when he was there. Though when it comes to Miss Sarah J Mass we have to pay attention to every little detail in her books and if you caught onto his distance from Mor during the Solstice party or his reluctance to hold baby Nyx because of his scarred hands then I think it’s pretty telling that the next book could be about Azriel and his journey with coming face to face with his trauma, his past, and maybe his unsteady relationship with the Illyrians; not to mention his five century one-sided love with Mor. 
If you know me, or looked at any of my content, you should know that I am a hardcore Gwynriel shipper. I love Gwyn and fell in love with the ship almost immediately so much so that I’m embarrassed that I entertained the idea of shipping Azriel with Emerie or Clotho. I think that she might play a pivotal role in his journey to healing and that he might also play a large role in hers as well. Through his bonus chapter we can kind of see the sparks of something starting between them, I’m guessing it’s tied to theories that they are mates or to the theory that Gwyn could be a possibly lightsinger. All I know for sure right now is that Gwyn’s story is definitely not over with and I except see more of her in the future along with the other Valkyries as well. 
Finally, Elain. 
Now I don’t think the next book is about Elain but I do feel that out of all of the other characters her story is in the making? I’ve been told numerous times that Elain will be getting a book of her own, but we don’t know when and we don’t know what it is going to be about. Now, I’m not the hugest fan of Elain and it all goes back to her and Nesta just sitting around when Feyre was in the woods fighting for her life and there's as well. I know that she apologized and felt guilty afterwards but her excuse was “we gave up and she didn’t” just did not do it for me. 
It was in this passage from A Court of Thorns and Roses, where my distaste for Elain blossomed: 
The mercenary transferred the coins to my waiting palm, and I tucked them into my pocket, their weight as heavy as milestone. There was no possible chance that my sisters hadn’t spotted the money--no chance they weren’t already wondering how they might persuade me to give them some. 
...I felt my sisters sweep closer, like vultures circling a carcass. 
Like at least we knew Nesta was the “wolf” as she described herself. We knew she had a sharp-tongue and we knew she could be a bitch with her words. But Elain, she was described as innocent and nice, and yes when you paint her in a garden with flowers and frilly dresses she does just seem like some Cinderella-like character but after five books, especially after ACOSF my hate for Elain has just grown. Like after ACOWAR, I just thought she was boring--yes, she had a hand in killing the king of Hybern but that hype was kind’ve stolen away when Nesta ripped his head from his body. 
Since then, we haven’t really, really got a full look through with Elain and a large part of that is because we haven’t gotten her point of view, like not even in A Court of Frost and Starlight. From what we know about her, canonically, no theories or anything, she likes to garden, she likes to cook, her friends are Cerridwen and Nuala, she doesn’t want to confront that bond she has with Lucien, and she has an attraction to Azriel. But beyond that we don’t know anything--there were things that I kept out even though they were mentioned in ACOSF but there is also a lot of mystery around the things she said and claimed to do--even Cassian questioned them but didn’t approach her about the topic. 
I don’t think we have enough of a story to build up on Elain. For the most part I feel like her presence in ACOSF was mostly there to just piss Nesta off. Literally, in every scene she has with Nesta, she is pissing her off, setting her off, making her yell or scream, or making the silver flames ignite. And this is extremely out of character for Elain. Yes, we don’t get enough of her, but from what we can gather, Elain usually is not one to push buttons but I wonder why she did with Nesta. 
Here are a few passages that I just found beguiling while reading Nesta’s interactions with Elain: 
Elain stepped closer, brown eyes wide. Undoubtedly wholly convinced of her own innocence, her innate goodness. “It’s the truth. We did this because we love you, and we worry for you, and if Father were here--”
“Don’t ever mention him.” Nesta bared her teeth, but kept her voice low. “Never fucking mention him again.” 
Mentioning their father? A very taboo subject for Nesta. And Elain stans like to argue that Elain is quiet and docile because she is an observer. She takes things in and she tucks them away in her memory, but if she’d paid so much attention then why would she mention their father to Nesta? Feyre noted Nesta’s relationship with their father in book one, so there is no way that Elain herself didn’t know about it. 
Here is  another line from their conversation I thought were very weird to read about and I’ll explain why: 
Elain crossed her arms and said calmly, sadly, “Feyre warned me this might happen.” 
Bullseye. Nesta doesn’t like to be talked about, to be judged. We learned that in ACOSF and again if Elain was this person who sees and pays attention she should’ve known this or caught on. 
I think in this scene, Elain was purposely trying to set off Nesta. 
Nesta cleared her throat. “Cassian said it might be good if I came.”
Elain’s eyes flickered. “Did Feyre pay you, like last year?” 
“No,” shame washed over her. 
Elain sighed, glancing over Nesta’s shoulder to the open doorway across the entry. The party within, only for their small inner circle. “Please don’t upset Feyre. It’s her birthday, first of all. And in her state--”
“Oh, fuck you,” Nesta snapped, and then choked. 
Nesta was actually trying to get better at this point. She even risked going to a party despite not feeling welcomed just because Cassian told her it might be good for her to be surrounded by her family and for her not be alone on the holiday. You could even tell how by the way Nesta is keeping herself away she is still uncomfortable but the thing is she still showed up which is a sure sign she is improving. 
I don’t know why Elain started talking about the year before or about upsetting Feyre--literally wanted to slap the bitch in this scene. Like I just want to know why Elain pressed so hard. Then afterwards she waved it off as if she hadn’t just said what she said and acted normally. I can not tell you how mad I was at this--like especially for a sensitive character like Nesta who is ALWAYS In her thoughts and always takes things to a deep level. Like what Elain said could’ve just broken a vital part of Nesta and caused her to relapse. 
Anyways, I think Elain’s behavior in ACOSF could hint at the Evil Elain theory. Although I don’t think it’s going to come in the next book--it might build in the next book but at most I think Elain’s story will come to fruition in ACOTAR 7 or 8 and isn’t going to be about her journey or soul searching but maybe we’ll be getting the point of view of a villain. Like there were many mysterious hints dropped in ACOSF and the way I interpreted them is that Elain is planning something and if her behavior matches her actions, it’s something that could possibly affect her sisters. 
Plus, you have to wonder how Brialynn and Koschei knew everything. They knew all the IC’s moves and all of Nesta’s moves...but how? A lot of the time when Nesta was given a mission by Rhys it was in the River House and we also know that Elain has been getting better at sneaking around without being detected so it’s not too farfetched that Elain could be the spy. You don’t have to agree with me but I think it’s a pretty solid theory as far as they go. 
But do tell me your thoughts I would love to hear them. I’m sorry if I offended anyone in the end but we all have to just respect everyone’s opinion so no fights or slander, especially in my comment section. 
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scriibble-fics · 3 years
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No idea if this is a popular sentiment amongst Bought readers or not (though I’d guess likely not), but I honestly don’t even think I’m rooting for lily and james to end up together. I spent a lot of this last chapter thinking “fuck you, James” and not in the good way as Lily notes. I was so happy for her at Luca’s. Just seeing her relish being seen for her ability as a brewer and really in her element. And working with someone who is not tied to Voldemort (at least not that we know of and certainly not as publicly and closely as James). That was my favorite part of the chapter. And to see James not get that and instead let his selfishness win out made me really not want them to be together. Like I want lily to go off and work with Luca and build this badass life for herself free of the horrible ethical qualms that come with James and all he stands for.
And of course, as always, I will read whatever you write and love (even while I hate) every moment of it. Hope you have the very best holiday Scriibble and congratulations on all the Jily Award noms! It was such fun to vote for so many of my favorite scriibble fics—EA is without a doubt my favorite fic ever written and Magic and Notes bring me such joy and happiness every time I reread them. Youve given us so many beautiful worlds (both fanfic and original fic!) to escape to this year.
I LOVE reading the different reactions people have to James in Bought! he's so wonderfully polarizing, especially in chapter ten, and I'm not mad about that at all. he's definitely mean to be Not A Good Guy, so I'm glad you're not constantly rooting for them to end up together! after all, neither is Lily at this point. I adored writing the brewing part in chapter ten, so I'm so happy to hear that you enjoyed it. that means a ton, and I'm super excited to see how your opinion of James and Jily stays consistent or changes as the fic continues!
thank you for this sweet message. ❤ still utterly blown away by the Jily Awards (and spent wayyyy too long trying to explain to Mr. Scriibble exactly what they were and why it was A Big Deal to Me, Thank You Very Much, because seeing the support for my work has given me such life over the past few weeks. I'm so, so grateful to everyone who has taken the time to read my work, both fics and original!! it's easily been the best part of 2021 for me.
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