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thosehallowedhalls · 3 months

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The 2 AM Christmas Tree Farm (1/2)

Pairing: Trystan Thorne/MC (Emma Rose)

Summary: Trystan is haunted by regrets. But when he's granted a wish to undo the worst of them, he finds that the price might be more than he's willing to pay.

@choicesjanuary2024 @lilyoffandoms Day 10, "Change"

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2

When the first flurries of snow fall and Christmas lights begin to go up, Trystan always battles a certain melancholy. Growing up, the holiday season was a time of year when royal responsibilities were somehow more overwhelming. His mother always breathed down his neck a little extra hard, which made the extra number of public appearances, guests, and boring so-called ‘parties’ more unbearable.

Then, during the one holiday he spent with Juliana, things shifted. Juli loved Christmas. Her enthusiasm and joy were so contagious that Trystan found himself genuinely enjoying it for the first time. She talked about the annual Christmas ball they would hold when they were king and queen, and she swore it would be an enjoyable one - unlike his parents' usual tedious affair.

He has wrestled with bittersweet memories ever since.

But this year is different. This year, he has Emma. She makes everything better, and he finds himself looking forward to the season for the first time in years. She always makes sure to attend the Rockefeller Center tree lighting in honor of her dad. He’s looking forward to going with her this year. He’s looking forward to a lot of things.

He can’t completely banish the regrets, though. This year, Sebastyan has joined Juli in his personal hall of ghosts. He no longer blames himself for their deaths, but he doesn’t think he’ll ever fully get over the guilt of not seeing that they needed protection.

He hasn’t told Emma this, but he imagines she knows. She has her own regrets, after all. Her own ghosts.

“Trystan, are you going to help or are you just going to fool around?” Exasperated, Emma tries to wrestle the Christmas lights out of his hands.

He pretends to think about it. Then he wraps them around her. “Option B.”

She blows the hair out of her face. “Seriously?”

He plugs in the lights and grins when she starts to sparkle. “Oh yeah. They look much better on you than they would on the tree.”

“You know, when you asked me to help you put up some Christmas decorations, I assumed that we’d be decorating the tree.”

“But you’re so much more interesting than a tree.”

“Then why, exactly, did we bother going to that horrifyingly packed tree farm yesterday?” She shudders. “Seriously, when a New Yorker tells you that a place is bound to be too busy, listen to her.”

“But the people were the best part! When those two elderly gentlemen almost came to fisticuffs over the tallest fir? The angst. The drama.”

“The extra half an hour that breaking them up added to our day.”

He waves this aside. “You’re determined to see only the negative. Besides,” he wiggles his eyebrows. “Didn’t I make it up to you when we got back to my apartment?”

Her lips twitch. “We could’ve had another two hours for you to make it up to me if we’d had a tree delivered.”

Trystan gives her a pitying look. “What would your father say about having a Christmas tree delivered?”

“… He would say only philistines do such a thing. How could you possibly know that?”

“Easy. A man who takes his daughter to see the tree lighting every year is a man who takes Christmas seriously.” He wraps his arms around her waist, pulls her still glittering form close. “I intend to carry the torch.”

She gives him a suspicious look. “Am I being managed? Did you ask me to decorate with you to make sure I have fun this Christmas?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m simply lazy and unwilling to decorate an entire tree by myself.”

“Did you even have a Christmas tree these last eight years?”

“Naturally. The biggest tree of them all. A veritable tree farm in my living room.”

She kisses his jaw. “Not that I want you to make managing me a habit, but… thanks.” With a sigh, she pulls back. “It’s getting late. I have to go.”

“Stay,” he murmurs, his lips against hers.

“I can’t.” She nuzzles his neck, her tone making it clear she wishes she could. “Tommy has a date with Sofia. I promised to tend bar tonight.”

“Responsibility isn’t all it’s cracked up to be,” he says forlornly.

“Welcome to adulthood.” With a last kiss, she walks out.

He drops down on the couch, intending to watch a movie, but finds himself musing on Emma’s words.

Did you even have a Christmas tree these last eight years?

He tried once, the second Christmas after Juliana’s death. But it felt like a mockery. An accusation. Christmas was always Juliana’s thing, so what right did he have to enjoy it? Why should he have a good time after failing to save her?

As usual over the last several weeks, thoughts of Juliana turn to thoughts of Sebastyan. Bas always did enjoy Christmas more than him. Did Juli’s death also ruin the holiday for him? He could ask Mags or Lydea, but he isn't sure he wants to know.

He wishes he had not drunk so much the night of Mags’ debut. That he hadn’t fallen asleep almost as soon as he and Juli fell into bed. That he had been a better brother to Bas. That he’d been able to save them both.

Perhaps, if she had lived, Bas’ life would have been different. He never saw the charm and warmth that Marguerite talks about, but they apparently existed once. Maybe he would have moved on with his life without the specter of Juliana to haunt him. Fallen in love with someone else. Been happy.

Maybe.

Regrets coursing through his veins, useless wishes clamoring in his heart, Trystan dozes off.

The scent is the first thing that stands out to him. It’s easy enough to recognize – after all, it was filling his nostrils only yesterday. Firs and spruces, hot cocoa and candy. The Christmas tree farm where he spent a chaotic yet marvelous afternoon with Emma.

What in the world is he doing here?

“Hello?”

“Oh, hello.” The man who sold them his fir yesterday smiles. “I was wondering when you’d arrive.”

“You were… what?”

“Lots of visitors this time of year,” the man, his name tag reads Jacob, says.

“Well, yes. I would assume that late November is a busy time for Christmas tree farms.”

“Indeed.” Jacob nods sagely. “And an even busier time for regrets.”

Well aware that he sounds like a broken record, Trystan blinks. “What?”

“That’s why you’re here, isn’t it? That’s why everyone is here.”

“About that. You sure work late. Or early, depending on your perspective.”

Jacob waves this off. “2 AM is the perfect time for regrets. No other time of day invites them quite as enticingly.”

Trystan shakes his head. “I’m afraid you’ve lost me."

"You have regrets, don’t you?”

“Who doesn’t?”

“Ordinarily, you deal with them well. But every once in a while, they suffocate you.” His gaze sharpens. “Tell me, Trystan, if you could have a second chance, if you could undo a regret… what would it be?”

He's given up on trying to understand what's happening. The oddity of the question doesn't register anymore. It only brings back to the surface the wish that's been playing on his mind in a painful loop. “I would save Juli and Bas.”

The alarm goes off too early, as it invariably does. He stirs when he feels lips on his cheek, fingers trailing down his chest.

“Mm. ‘S nice.”

The responding giggle is melodious, beautiful, and very familiar. It sounds an awful lot like… like…

“Good morning, my love.”

His eyes snap open. Awareness slams into him like a freight train. “Juli?”

“For your sake, you had better not have anyone else waking you like this,” she teases. “Happy Christmas Eve. Now get out of bed and let’s get to work.”

“Juli? He asks again, dumbfounded and wondering when in the world he started lucid dreaming. Because this… surely it is only a dream?

Concern softens her features. “Darling, are you all right? Do you want me to fetch the doctor?”

He struggles into a sitting position, feeling the silk against his skin and realizing that… oh. This isn’t a dream. But then…

I would save Juli and Bas.

Oh my god.

“Juliana?”

“That is my name, yes.” Her tone is light, but she only looks more concerned. “Wait here, I’ll have Elias call the doctor.”

“No, wait.” His hand shoots out, taking hold of her wrist. “How are you here? How am I here?”

“Where else would we be? The Christmas Ball can’t very well happen without us.”

The Christmas Ball?

He looks at her, truly looks at her. She’s as beautiful as always, but there’s a new maturity to her face. This Juliana has lived longer than twenty-two years. “What year is it?”

Her eyebrows disappear under her hair. “Oh no. Please tell me you aren’t hungover. We have a million things to do today.”

Trystan tries to smile. “Humor me?”

“2023, of course. Same as the last 356, and the next eight, days.”

She’s thirty now.

She’s alive.

He throws his arms around her in a hug so sudden that Juliana squeaks in surprise. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”

She curls into him, bringing on a deluge of emotion and memories that nearly topple him where he stands. She still wears the same perfume. “Likewise, husband of mine.”

Husband? But…

She presses her lips to his, tenderly stroking his cheek. For a moment, Trystan holds motionless. Part of him feels twenty-two again, kissing the woman he loves when love is a new and dazzling experience that he never expected to have. But deep inside, a voice blares a warning.

Wrong.

He pulls back. Juliana considers it a tacit suggestion.

“Yes, yes, you’re right. We need to get to work. There are a hundred details to finalize and even more to double check. I’m happy that we’re to finally be the hosts of this ball, but I don’t think I truly realized how much work it was going to be.”

If they’re hosting the Christmas Ball, then that means he’s… and they’re…

Fear trails cold fingers down his spine, and he finishes untangling himself in a burst of panic.

Where is Emma?

“Well? Are you ready to get started?”

His royal training kicks in, allowing him to keep his turmoil in check. “Right, yes. Remind me what’s on the agenda for today?”

She rattles off an intimidatingly long list, complete with receiving the guests who would be arriving for the week. “Bas and Em will be here any minute now. Play nice.”

It’s unexpected that Sebastyan and Emika would arrive anywhere together, but the warning is fair – or it would be, if he weren't so relieved that his brother is alive. Presumably, he thinks with a pang of shame, this Trystan still despises his little brother. “I’ll do my best.”

“I mean it, Trystan. You know she doesn’t like you, and the last thing we need is you antagonizing one of our guests.”

He stops. “She?”

“Oh, please get it together. Emma already didn’t like you before. Now that she and Bas are together, she’s unlikely to see you in a more positive light. You know how in love they are.”

Everything inside of him goes cold.

It can’t be.

“Of course. What is Emma’s last name again?”

She gives him a look. “Trystan, darling, Rose is hardly a difficult name to remember. What is the matter with you today?”

“It’s n-nothing. Give me a moment.”

He locks himself in the bathroom before she can reply.

He can’t breathe.

Emma doesn’t like, let alone love him. She’s in love with someone else. With his brother. The words keep replaying in his mind, equally unbelievable each time. It’s like someone completely changed the rules of the game and threw away the handbook.

He doesn't know how to live in a world where Emma doesn’t love him.

All this time, when he was wishing he could have saved Juliana, he never stopped to consider that if he had, he and Emma wouldn’t be together. Much less that Emma might be with Bas.

What the hell does he do now?

The thought emerges fully formed. I want to go back. But can he truly wish for a world where Juliana and Sebastyan are dead, simply because the woman he loves is in love with someone else? Is he truly that selfish?

Trystan emerges back into the suite with a forced smile. “You go ahead, I’ll get dressed and meet you in a moment.”

His heart is hammering in his chest when he heads to the front entrance, fully dressed and looking as regal as he’s capable of looking. Juliana is hugging Bas, and right next to him is… He sucks in a breath, drinking in the sight of Emma, holding back the desire to rush to her side and take her in his arms. Then she looks up and sees him standing at the top of the staircase.

Her smile fades.

His heart trembles. Even when they first met, before he wormed his way into her good graces, Emma never looked at him with such patent dislike.

Juli and Bas break apart, and she moves to hug her. “It’s so good to see you! It’s been too long.”

“I know. I’ve been busy. For that matter, so have you.”

Juliana waves this off. “Never too busy for a friend. I thought you’d be coming over sooner. Didn’t you arrive a few days ago? Oh, what am I saying. Bas wasn’t going to let you out of his apartment after spending all that time apart.”

Sebastyan wraps a possessive arm around Emma’s shoulders. “I didn’t get to see her in over two months. I wasn’t ready to share her.”

Juliana laughs, then glances over her shoulder. “Trystan! What are you doing up there? Come greet our guests.”

Somehow, his feet carry him to the foot of the stairs. “Hello, Bas. Emma. It’s good to see you both.”

“Trystan.” Sebastyan’s stiff tone says that he doesn’t like him any more than he did in the original timeline. But Trystan can tell he’s making an effort, probably for Juliana’s sake. “We appreciate the welcome.”

“No need. This is your home, too.” It’s probably Sebastyan’s home more than it’s ever been Trystan’s, but that’s neither here nor there. His eyes slide over to Emma’s.

She lifts her chin a fraction. “Your Majesty.”

It’s all wrong. Emma has called him Your Majesty before, but the tone was always affectionate and teasing. This… this sounds like she’s talking to his mother. Polite. Formal. Cold.

“Please, Trystan is fine.” He holds out a hand, and after a brief hesitation, she takes it. He resists the impulse to pull her to him, but he can’t help savoring the feel of her skin.

Emma’s hand tenses in his, and he realizes that he’s been holding on to it. He lets her go quickly. “Well, you should be shown where you're staying.”

Juliana gives him an odd look. “They already know where they're staying. In the same room where Bas lived for twenty years, and where they stay every time they come over.”

He would be more confused by that twenty years remark if the singular room hadn’t sucker punched him. His gaze falls on their entwined hands. “Of course. My apologies, I’m afraid I’m running on little sleep today.”

All three of them look like they don't quite believe him. But Emma… Emma looks the way she always does when a new mystery fires up her mind. He can practically hear the cogs of her mind turning.

Then she shrugs and turns to Sebastyan. "We should unpack."

Juliana smiles. "Certainly. Don't forget that we're having a small family dinner this evening."

"We'll be there," Sebastyan says, before wrapping an arm around Emma's waist. They both head upstairs.

Trystan's gaze follows them. Sorrow swells up in his chest.

What the hell has he done?

#trystan x mc #trystan x emma #crimes of passion #trystan thorne #detective rose #emma rose #sebastyan thorne #juliana georgescu #the 2 am christmas tree farm #angst #all the angst #chapter 2 coming tomorrow

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justrainandcoffee · 1 month

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Inner demons (Alfie Solomons x fem!oc)

“They gave me a free pass to kill and I enjoyed it...”

Masterlist

Summary: It's 1917. Alfie and the men under his charge were allowed to return home. The war isn't over, but it's for him. At least physically. His wife found him one night sat in front of fireplace, he's mentally lost back in France. "Tell me a story about a man tortured by his own thoughts," his mind says "I'll tell you the story of Alfie Solomons."

Warnings: PTSD. Mentions of war. Blood. Murder. Suicide. Angst. Hurt/comfort.

Words: 1.5k

1917

"Captain, captain! It's Jacob Craig!! Captain!"

In his dreams, Alfie is following one if his men. Out of the trenches, a young soldier named Jacob is lying on the ground his whole body is shaking and Alfie can see why. His left leg is no there anymore and around him there's only blood.

"I'm…I'm so-sorry cap-captain."

"It's okay, soldier, you're fine. You're fine." Alfie put a hand on his shoulder and tried to not look at his missing leg.

"Te-tell my mum I lo-love her."

"I will."

Jacob Craig, only 19 years old, died no longer after. He was just a kid. Alfie wanted to yelled while some of the men put the corpse next to the others. He didn't have a chance to become a man, to have a family, to live a long life. Jacob Craig was one of the many that didn't have the chance to return home. His thoughts travelled to London. There, in a nice house in Camden Town, his wife was waiting for him. Alfie didn't know if he will be able to see her again.

A bomb exploded next to him and he ducked. When you're in a battlefield there's no time for sentimentalism. You kill or you die. Alfie grabbed his rifle and shot.

Next to him, his wife is sleeping but Alfie can't. His mind is torturing him, his nightmares are chasing him like a predator. He can name every single man who died under his watch. Not just Jacob Craig, there was a Kyle, a Christopher, an Andrew, a Derek… and so many more. You can hide if you want to, but you can't hide from your own mind.

Alfie was always an impulsive person, using the violence to be feared and respected was part of his nature. The problem is that the war increased that. He had to survive to return home and he knew what to do. But now in his mind there were not only the voices of his men, but also his enemies. The ones he killed with his own hands.

Back in 1914, before the war, he thought that returning home it'd be easy. But it wasn't. He was back, it's true, and it was more than millions could say, but the price he had to pay…

He goes to their living room. Alfie sits down in front of the chimney and watches the fire. It's hard to control himself. It's hard to pretend that everything is fine, when everything is not fine.

"Please, please… spare my life."

The voice of a man he never knew appears in his memories. Alfie can see his uniform in his mind. It was an Italian. 'A fucking wop'.

Alfie didn't spare his life. He took it and now the spirit of the Italian soldier lives forever in his conscience.

The rage he's carrying is too much. Too strong. "Tell me a story about a man tortured by his own thoughts, mom." His imagination says. And another voice responds: "I'll tell you the story of Alfie Solomons."

Anibal González was a good man. One of his best friends while they were there. Son of a Peruvian couple, Anibal was raise in England when both of his parents moved to Europe. Anibal was a funny man, full of good intentions who just wanted to live in the countryside and have a farm. That was before he blew up his brain after two years in the front. Alfie tried to stop him, but he couldn't.

He hides his face in his hands. "Make it stop… make it stop…"

"Al?" her soft voice, makes him turn around to see her. "Alfie, what's happening?"

"Ghosts… I can see them. They can see me. They're haunting me. All of them."

His hands are shaking and she put hers over his. Alfie is not the same and she can see that. His eyes are now always scrutinizing the surroundings. He's alert all the time and he can't sleep, like now.

"I don't want to hurt you, Rosie. I don't want to hurt you."

"You won't, Al."

"No, you don't understand. I know I'm 'ere, I know I'm safe now and I know who ya're… but it requires a lot of strength to reminding myself that. I need to tell me all the time that I'm not in the trenches. That there aren't wops here… only you. But I'm afraid that one day I won't be able to distinguish between ya and an enemy, between this house and the battlefield. I-… I'm terrified of hurting you. Of killing you, because my mind is damaged."

Rose caresses his face. Her poor Alfie. In her whole life she never saw him that bad… broken. Fuck those who dared to hurt him. She doesn't need a reminder to know that her husband isn't a good man, but Rose knows her husband is incapable of doing anything against her. And the proof is in front of her. Even broken, Alfie's biggest fear isn't his well-being but hers. The man she loves is terrified of hurting her because his mind isn't the same.

She hugs him and he hides his face against her body. Rose strokes his hair. "We'll face this together, Al. As always. Even if it takes you ages. I don't care. I'll be here."

"If I hurt ya, I will kill myself, ya know that, right? I fuckin' shoot myself."

"And I'm going to stop you before you can do it. You're my everything, Al. I know you better than I know myself. True that I don't know what did you experience in France, what did you see but I know how strong you are. And this is only…"

"They gave me a free pass to kill and I used it. I enjoyed it," he interrumpts. Alfie looks at her "I know I can't stop now. My nightmares, luv, are red and the voices keep claiming blood. Over and over again."

She notices that he's trembling again and holds him even tighter: "I wish we'd have the chance to run far away from here. I wish those who sent you there die cruelly. Alfie, I can't change the past. But I'm ready to this new present. If hypothetically you kill someone else… Do you think that will scare me? The day you arrive here covered by blood then I'll prepare a bath to help you to clean yourself. I'll stitch your wounds. I'll kiss your bruises. I'm not scared of you. But I'll help you to fight that urge, no matter what. Listen, I said I know you better than I know myself and it's true and since it's true, I know you're incapable of hurting me even if your voices are screaming at you."

In the house there's only the two of them. As always the two of them. Their dog called Fancy is sleeping next to the door. The sound of the fire is only interrupted by the sound of their breathing.

"I love ya, pet."

"I know. And I love you, too Al."

"I'm tired. It's just it. I'm tired of everything. Ya think it'll pass?"

"Everything always pass, Alfie. One day this will be a distant memory."

"Probably."

They remain in silence once again. When Rose watches at him again, she sees him sleeping on her. The woman caresses his hair slowly.

"They gave me a free pass to kill and I enjoyed it." His words are engraved in her mind now. If hell is a real place then Alfie's soul already has a room for him there. But he was not going to go alone there. If she had to sell her own soul to be with him then she's ready to make a deal with the devil himself if that meant to be with him forever.

Alfie sleeps with his head on her lap. He's dreaming again. He's in France but this time his wife is there, right in front of him while he's ready to use his rifle. Alfie's hands are shaking and is bitting his lower lip. He sees her smiling at him and before he'd realise what's happening, the gun fells on the ground. For the first time in his dreams he's not hurting anyone. Rose is right: he's incapable of hurting her even in his nightmares. The demons in his head scream but he's not listening to them. In the dreams, Alfie smiles at her too.

#peaky blinders #alfie solomons #alfie solomons x oc #tom hardy #alfie solomons x ofc #peaky blinders x oc #alfie x rose

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decaflondonfog · 11 months

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starting a new thread because i got tagged in sliiiightly different tag games by both @tidalst and @caroll-in but there were a lot of overlapping questions so i’m just making one that mixes both 😂🥰 #practicalqueen

currently reading: The Haunted Hotel by Wilkie Collins, which I picked up while on holiday because I only took two books and read both way too quickly hahaha

favourite colour: yellow!!!! it's just the happiest, brightest and best. it makes me so happy!!!! i’ve painted my new kitchen in a lovely soft butter yellow and it gives me the tummy fuzzies just to look at it 🥹

last song: Tuya by Rosalía

last show: Yellowjackets!!!!!!! idk how everyone isn’t obsessed with it honestly

currently watching: not started anything post-Yellowjackets yet because i’ve been very busy moving house but i’m starting Succession next, which i hear will put my heart through it and i can’t wait!

last movie: Empire of Light (2022), which was gorgeous

sweet/spicy/savoury: ugh why would you make me pick… sweet? maybe?

currently working on: doing final edits on growing pains which i’ve been posting for a few weeks now, putting some words into a soap/ghost farm au, and there’s also some kandreil porn going on because there’s always kandreil porn in my wips (hopefully some of it will see the light of day at some point)

current obsession: media wise it’s yellowjackets though i’ve not quite recovered from that series finale!! my true current irl obsession is my new gigantic window right in front of my bed. i spent three hours today just cuddling the dog and looking outside and it was incredible

and now i’m supposed to tag 6 mutuals i want to know better???? hmmmm hello @fluxweeed @vivantesopales @greenautumnleaves @courtjestermerlin @moondal514 and @the-tortoise-lady 💕 you’re next, if you fancy it!!

#tag games #[insert melting emoji here]

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ineffablestardust · 2 years

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Wake up besties the dinluke faves collaborated !!!!

To which @swedenis-h had this super sweet comic idea and I wanted to do it justice :D

Comic sketches (courtesy of the lovely @swedenis-h)

Oneshot (courtesy of me lol)

Dusk on Tatooine had always been filled with heady purple and the last licks of sweat the day tried to cling to, the day like an overenthusiastic mastiff trying to be led away.

Two dots of red on the horizon, a flickering fire- Tatooine shed its warmth like washing slobber from skin. The day’s heat lingered, and lingered… and vapourised without warning.

A flicker of silver, a spark of gold.

The smell of hot circuitry, huddling closer to the fire. Luke tried to stay still as Din removed the wiring tool from the open wiring panel of his robot hand.

"It's beautiful work." Din complimented gently, lowly, his gloved fingertips tracing the palm lines of Luke's prosthetic hand. Almost as if he was tracing the lines of a map, learning the routes by heart. Luke imagined it would feel really nice, if there hadn't been a dull edge of metallicism to every sensation from that hand.

"It doesn't..." Luke fights a frustrated noise, feelings stuck in his throat like backed up Tatooine traffic. His throat tightened.

A breath.

"It's not." Luke admits finally, gaze shifting to meet Din's. A warriors fire sparking in his eyes for the tiniest moment as he resigned himself to unravelling this particular insecurity for Din the way he had cracked the circuitry of his robotic hand wide open.

Young, immature. The harbingers that were supposed to breed wisdom and maturity… may have only just hurt the people he loved.

How could it not have? With Han’s sight affected for the rest of his life and Leia having nightmares about watching the empire take Han away…

Forces, he’d been so stupid. Too wrapped up in the thrill of getting to finally use Force for good to realize the time had been wrong.

Would the situation had resolved itself without his intervention? Had Luke lost his hand for nothing?

"This is going to sound weird…" Luke trailed with a reluctant smile, struggling with the words- embarrassment reigning them in until they crowded in his mouth. Hesitancy to lay bare; a fog he couldn’t shake. “But…”

He grimaced.

"It's not your hand?" Din asked, ripping the words right out of his mouth. Luke blinked back at him, surprised.

Luke gulped thickly, but the tight knot of emotion wouldn't unravel.

"Yeah." Luke murmured reflexively, casting his gaze down- back to his hands. They were both held aloft in front of him, palms up. In theory there wasn't much visible difference between them, but...

"Mine had calluses," Luke began, his voice cracking at the admission as his eyes darted to where the calluses used to be. "from my work at the farm."

An image of his hand before the injury conjured itself in his vision, like an overlay, as he studied the robotic one. Sticky blackness climbed his insides, his skin crawled.

A ghost he was haunted by day and night.

Din paused in his ministrations, and the silence yawned and waned in the space between them.

Luke was drawn back in.

"It had scars from working on ships," Luke explained, his left, real, hand reaching out to point to the vulnerable stretch of skin around his wrist and the skin on the other side of his hand. It was pale in a way that was uncharacteristic of Luke's tanned skin tone. The skin looked less durable than the rest of him on the robot hand, a constant chink in his armour.

A breath. Luke could see the ghost clear as day, like a sort of glitchy holo projection.

"It also matched my left hand." Luke's voice was small as he stared at the robot hand, the gaping hole where the circuitry he had been showing Din spilled out. The visible circuitry when he fixed it made it both more and less easy to see the hand as his, paradoxically.

Luke had almost lost more than his hand.

The price of his hand was nothing compared to the company of his friends. His loved ones.

He knew that.

But why was there such a bitterness there? A guilt and shame- the robot hand meant more than just a second chance at mobility; it meant an unspoken forgiveness from his loved ones.

And Forces, that was hard to digest.

Leia, Han and Chewie had almost died that day. It would have been his fault that their stars had blinked out, and Luke would probably never forgive himself for it.

He'd just dove in unthinkingly, all of his mind on the need to save them that he hadn't thought it through-

The robot hand was just one big scar he'd never be rid of. One big forgiveness he wasn't sure he deserved.

Why was blind, reckless, heroism worth any forgiveness?

Luke would always be haunted by his old hand- the one that had just always been a part of him- it followed him when tinkering and sparring, the loss a thing of endlessness.

A gloved hand grabbed out for the wrist of Luke's real hand, cutting Luke's absent movement short. He'd been unknowingly tracing the places his right hand used to have character and definition. Startled, Luke's thoughts fell away.

"I-I... I sound insane." Luke back-pedalled, feeling self-conscious and awash with a hot and sticky shame at the vulnerable oddity about it. Fuck, he'd opened up too much there-

A tug.

"These are my real hands," Din's warm voice followed, and Luke looked up at him with a moment of flustered confusion.

Din looked down at his own gloved hands, studying them anew. "The ones you see now."

"I know their weight. Their durability." Din flexed his hands like he was about to pick up a rifle.

"The ones underneath the gloves, I haven't seen as mine for a long time now." Din admitted softly, looking at his hands now like they were foreign to him. "They were soft, and reaching for something that doesn't exist anymore."

Oh.

And then-

Oh.

Din had lost his parents, but he was talking about the new relationship with his hands that his gloves gave him after the loss of his home. The gloves being used both to bring about vulnerability for others while protecting the vulnerability of Din's open and wanting palms from his youth.

The side of himself that never had the opportunity to mature slowly. The side that grew up too fast but there would always be a sliver of, crying out for home.

Luke blinked, looking back up at Din.

"They were hidden away with a pain I never want to feel again." Din's voice wavered, and Luke unconsciously reached out, cradling one between his cupped palms, resting it on his knee.

"Yes, these hands have seen my mistakes, but they've seen my successes, too." Din reached out with his other hand, trailing it along the territory of the faux skin of Luke's robot hand with a reverence that made Luke's face hot with something. Something between tears, appreciation and gratefulness.

Perhaps all three.

"The hands I know now were a gift." Din concluded, looking Luke right in the eye. Luke could puzzle out his message now.

"A second chance." Luke finished for Din, and he nodded affirmatively.

Not a mark of forgiveness. A possibility to start again.

"They may not have the scars to prove it, but they are mine. Just as much as the hands under the gloves." Din softened, gloved fingertips lingering around the fleshy part of Luke's robot wrist, near the open wire access panel.

Luke felt himself flush, flattered by the way Din so deftly applied such a simple yet all-encompassing type of logic to find a solution.

There was earnestness to it, fresh and raw. A hopefulness.

“Hm.” Luke hummed back, letting Din’s truth wash over him and settle, clinking, next to the old one.

Perhaps Luke had been thinking about the robot hand all wrong.

He took in Din with their hands still intertwined in the space between their knees, a pang of warmth filling him.

Look not to the past, but to the future.

Luke smiled. How Jedi of him.

Din’s helmet looked back down at their joined hands, and then back up at Luke.

All of a sudden, Luke was very aware they were still holding hands.

Luke blinked, blushing a deep red, letting go at the same time Din did and pulling his hands in to his chest like they had been burned.

“Thanks for the hand-” “Yeah! Uh-”

#may the 4th #may the 4th be with you #dinluke #dinluke fic #dinluke fic recs #skydalorian #din/luke #feel very lucky to have had the opportunity to write this y'all I really do #luna's thinky thoughts

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echantedtoon · 6 months

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Demon Bride Ch51 Urogi Earns A Day Out

(Warnings: Karaku IS his own warning. Possibly some innuendos. Urogi hits his head flying into the ceiling but he's ok. WARNING!!!: Sakura was going to give Karaku a love potion but he's ok and nothing else happened, she didn't even get a chance to try to but this warning is important just in case.

Get ready for Urogi to act like a birb.

Important Edit: I ask everyone to have patience for future chapters since some irl things are taking place. At the same time I am working on a second story and two oneshots for other fandoms I enjoy. Thank you all for reading this and continuing to read my works. Hopefully things will straighten back to they're usual pace soon.)

"I think she might be too young to train. It seems like all she's doing for now is eating and sleeping like a young puppy."

"When can she play?"

"Not until she's a few months older. Don't worry about it. Just take care of her the way Sekido told you to and she'll be fine...Minus the training bit for now."

It was certainly a surprise for you to see Rui and Sekido not only get along for a little while but actually talk. Well...Sekido mostly talked at Rui while he played with his many toys and the sleepy puppy. Sekido went as far as to assign a specific servant to care for said puppy. It was nice to not have them fight and not be at each other's throats. But that was last night. Now it was morning and Rui had to go back to school. You caught him trying to sneak out both the puppy and a few of the toys he gotten. You took them from him, he threw a small fit, and eventually he then left pouting without them all leaving you alone. Well except for the puppy. Arachnid Rui called he if you remembered right. She just flopped over in a random part of the room and went back to sleep. Leaving you to just do whatever it was you usually did. Read. So there you were reading a book Aizetsu recommended you, some kind of murder mystery thing.

"The murderer is either the Stepmother-in-law or the farm hand since they're the only ones with motives. Unless they worked together then it'd be both of them," you spoke to no one in particular, "It could be the Husband but he really loved his wife despite her affair and he doesn't know about the death yet... Unless he hired someone to murder her! It's possible. I wonder if Kyogai wrote anything like this before."

No one answered you obviously. No one was there except for you, the puppy, and the lilies Sekido shoved into your hands the other day. It was silent except for you talking to yourself and the sounds of you turning the pages whenever you finished reading one. You just sat there and kept reading the book as time slowly began to stretch onwards. Until there was a very familiar sound at your door.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!!

You looked up slightly annoyed from your book and stared at the door as more knocking continued from the other side. Great. Who could that be now? Still couldn't be Douma. He would've blabbered talking by now...Sigh. It was probably one of the brothers again. You groaned before placing your book to the side and standing up to head to the door. More knocking louder this time.

"Alright! Alright! I'm coming!" You grabbed the door and pulled it open. "What do you-..." You blinked. Pausing as no one was there. "...want?"

No one was there? You blinked again before shaking your head and leaning your head out to look up and down the halls. No one was there. Not even a servant. The perfectly polished halls stood empty and devoid of all life. That was... strange. You could've SWORN you heard someone knocking. You know you did. Was this a joke? You would've heard someone run away from the door if they did. Unless they could float or turn invisible. Was there a ghost running around? Was the dwell haunted?! ...Or maybe it was just your ears playing tricks on you after you've been bothered so MANY times? You sighed and was about to close the door when something suddenly dropped from the ceiling in a blur of black and brown feathers

"HI!"

"AHHH!!"

You shrieked as a face suddenly appeared in front of your face and scared you into screaming at the top of your lungs and stumbling back tripping over yourself and falling onto your behind panting and staring wide eyed at a- ... Laughing face?? What? You blinked panting as loud laughter filled the air and you stared at a figured hanging upside down, holding his sides, and laughing wildly at you. It took you a few seconds to register who exactly it was but then you scowled.

"UROGI!! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"The harpy brother of the quadruplets was there hanging upside down like a bat laughing his head off at you. Urogi of you remembered correctly. You immediately stood up and marched up to him. "I ought to kick your ass!"

"HAHAHAHA!! You should've seen your face!," Urogi cackled pointing a talon at your face as you rose a brow and looked up. "I made you jump so high!"

"Uh huh." So that's how he did it. He was clinging to one of the wooden beams above you both by his feet talons. Your hand was held up and your own claws reached out. "It's just too bad you're so low." With that you harshly pinched your claws into his left bird leg.

"YEOWCH!! AH!!" He lost his footing and down he fell in a heap of feathers with a loud thud. "OOF!!"

You didn't give him another chance to speak before the door was closed in his face. Urogi cursed indignantly before scrambling up and opening your door to walk in and meet your annoyed, cross armed, and frowning face. You watched him ruffle his feathers and shake a bit before looking at you again with a big smile.

"That's no way to treat your date is it?"

"No it isn't! And you're not getting one for that stupid stunt you pulled!" You glared at him as he suddenly froze mouth open. "If that's your way of asking a lady out for a date then I'd hate to see how you'd ask for anything else! Now get out!"

"What?! N-N-NO! WAIT!" You turned your back to him only to hear a few panicked flapping of wings before he popped up again to your side smiling nervously. "Look! Sorry I scared you! I-I was only trying to make a funny joke!"

"Well I didn't find it funny at all!" You again turned away and again he followed looking nervous to pop up in your view.

"Ok! You don't like being scared! I get that now! But don't hold it over my head! Let's go out and have fun! " you have him a glare and again turned away and he followed you holding up his hands. "I'll make it up to you! We can go wherever you want! How about the green houses? Or a dress shop?! Girls like that right?!"

You hummed.. before looking at him raising a brow. "I don't know if I want to go out since Sekido was nice enough to do that with me just yesterday. Why are you here anyways?"

"It's my turn to court ya! My old man said so! He didn't say when I had to come over, so the sooner the better right?"

You still narrowed your eyes at him. "Uh huh...And you want to earn a chance with me?"

"Aw. C'mon, Dove!" He smiled wider in an almost pleading way. "I already said I was sorry! A-And I promise to make it up to you! Anything you want!"

You huffed rolling your eyes. "How about taking me outside so I can see the sun for once?"

"DEAL!" You blinked and stared at him as he smiled brightly and nodded. "I needed to stretch my wings anyways! Do you know how hard it is to fly in a place that at any moment a whole house can appear in front of you? So this is a good idea for both of us!"

"Wha-..." You shook your head before pointing at him. "Hang on. Really?!" He happily nodded. "No. Seriously. You're not just telling me that and then twisting my words later?"

"Nah! I'm getting bored just staying inside this place anyways. It's boring and I can't move around how I want. My back is starting to hurt from dragging my wings around and my feet hurt from walking around so much." He held up one of his feet and made grabbing motions to get his point across. "It'd be nice to get out again!"

You could..go out? As in outside OUTSIDE!? AS IN NOT INSIDE THE INFINITY CASTLE?! You eyes widened at the possibility of that. Purple eyes looked Urogi up and down cautiously. The last time you were out was with Enmu and he purposely didn't let you know a way out so you couldn't leave whenever you want. But...If Urogi could show you a way out and you could remember it..You could possibly have a way out! That could be an escape way for you and Rui! But it all depends on how you play your cards with Urogi. He could end up with the jack of cards for fooling around too much but if you messed up then you'd just be handing over a full house of aces into his awaiting talons. These demons were a LOT smarter than they looked. You learnt that the hard way from Douma. Urogi may be an arrogant demon that liked to play around but that didn't make him stupid. You had to approach this very carefully and cleverly.

With a calm sigh, you looked back to Urogi's hopeful grin and nodded. "Alright. I accept your apology and you've earnt a day with me." You then pointed at him sternly. "BUT there better NOT be anymore jokes like that! I don't like being scared and next time I might throw a punch instead of running away. I'd rather not hurt anyone if I can avoid it. Got it?"

He nodded eagerly. "DONE! Where do you wanna go outside?! Human settlement? Woods? Maybe the Coast-..Uh..Yeah. Maybe not anywhere near water. But I can definitely take you for a fun time!"

Well he seemed very energetic didn't he? "Anywhere would be fine. Although somewhere nice and bright would be a nice start."

"Woods it is then! There's so much to do there! Hunting, fishing, finding small crystals in caves- HEY! I KNOW THIS GIANT FIELD WITH LOTS OF FLOWERS AND STUFF!! YOU'D LOVE IT!! SOMETIMES THERE'S OTHERS THAT SELLS STUFF THERE!!"

"Why would someone set up shop in a random field I'm the middle of the woods?"

"Sometimes it's a hot spot for travelers or just used for giant meetings to sell useless stuff nobody wants! But you'll like it definitely! You wanna go now!?" He lit up brightly. "We can go now!"

You nodded making a mental note to remember which way Urogi brought you outside for later. "Alright then. Now." You gestured to him. "Lead the way."

He smiled and grabbed your arms pulling you after him Towards your door as his wings spread out and up enough to block the view of the door completely before he stopped. One of his clawed feet slid open the door and he proceeded to pull you out. Before completely dropping his wings.

You completely froze.....You blinked.

Lush green brush surrounded you both as the sounds of birds and wind and forest ambience hit your senses all at once. Tall trees swayed in the wind. Grass felt soft under your feet. REAL sunlight gleamed down everywhere and you stared... Before whipping around only to discover that the doorway and entire room was gone and replaced by BEAUTIFUL lush forest. You just stared before slowly looking at Urogi who only giggled at the sight.

"Ok. HOW did you do that ?!"

"Simple! I bugged Nakime to open a doorway for me once I entered your room! That way we could just go where we needed! I also made her promise to teleport us both back when it hit one in the afternoon! I also promised Sekido I'd spend time with Zoha today! Why not split the day in half?"

You opened your mouth...but closed it. Nakime. Of COURSE that's how Urogi did it. Akaza mentioned that she could teleport the Kizuki around. "...You did that for the sole purpose that I wouldn't know the way out.. Didn't you?"

Urogi's smile turned to a face of shock for a split second before smiling widely again. Can't tell her Muzan have strict orders to Keep an eye on her. "Haha!...Heh. It's a pretty day isn't it?"

"You're making it very obvious that it's a yes, and I'll be talking about it later with Ms. Rei." Urogi felt his eyes get smaller in worry before you then looked around. You two were in the middle of the woods alright. You slowly breathed in the air holding your arms up to stretch. Everything smelt so...fresh. And it felt so..OPEN AND FREE. "Which way is the field?"

That way three miles by flying." He pointed to the left with a smile. "Let me carry you!" He reached out his sharp hands to you but paused when you immediately stepped away.

"No thanks. I think you've flown me quite enough."

"What? But flyings the best part!," He insisted holding out his wings. "It'll take too much time just walking there and Nakime might teleport us back by then!'' He whined and gave you a puppy dog eyed look.

You rolled your eyes. "I'd rather walk and get there without daring heights."

"Dare?" He blinked before suddenly gaining a thoughtful look. A hum escaped his throat and a talon tapped his chin as he smiled slyly smiled before looking at your deadpanned face. "Ok! Let's have a date! It'll be so much fun!"

"Pass."

"Just hear me out first! There's a single pine tree between here and the field one mile where I pointed." He then smirked at you pointing. "If you can run and get there before I can catch you then we'll walk the rest of the way there! If I catch you then you gotta lemme fly you there!"

"So you'll chase me down like a hawk chasing a mouse?" Your brow rose as you hummed at his excited look. "Alright. Deal. But if I win, then you have to wear a dress for the rest of the week!"

"Oooh.~ Getting bold there, Dove,~" he cooed before nodding with a few chuckles. "Alright then. But just so you know I can totally pull that off!"

"Getting ahead of yourself there?"

"Nah. I meant the dress. My hips are better fitting for it than Sekido's." You blinked as he struck a pose with one hand behind his head and the other on his hip making a ridiculous kissy face. "I'd totally fill it out."

You stared at the ridiculous sight... before a smile forced itself onto your face. "Pfft. Hahaha!!" And a bout of laughter escaped your mouth.

Urogi paused in shock. He... actually wasn't expecting you to laugh. If anything he expected you to be annoyed or brush him off but no. You were smiling and laughing. It made him pause for a moment before smiling widely.

"Yeah. Sure my wings might be a problem but you can't tell me that I wouldn't look good in it.~" He then placed both hands on his hips and sashayed a little bit aways from you.

You nearly doubled over in laughter now hugging your stomach and leaning over slightly. "Y-Y-Youre r-ridiculous!!" You spoke between rounds of laughter. This was a Kizuki demon? He was utterly ridiculous! "E-Enough! Enough! Hehehe. W-When d-did you wanna s-start?"

He smiled. Wings opening and leaning down pressing his feet in a position to launch himself. "I was thinking maybe about...NOW!!"

FWAP!!!

Two giant wings flapped down. A body launched himself right at you. All the wind left your body as something large hit you. Something strong wrapped around your body. And up you went. You SHRIEKED at the sight of the earth quickly being left behind you. A panic spoke went down your spine as branches snapped and broke from the force of Urogi's body barreling through them and leaves scattered down from the branches almost like a makeshift smoke trail. You logically did the most logical thing any calm, smart woman would do. You shrieked again, threw your arms around Urogi's neck, pulled up your legs in a curled up pose, and buried your face into his shoulder as the demon laughed.

"What's wrong?" Strong wing beats could be heard from each powerful flap his wings took. He looked amused by the sight as he held the trembling woman bridal style. "You showed no fear last time we did this."

"PUT. ME. DOWN!!" You shrieked over the wind and refusing to look up from him. He was oddly warm. "THIS IS CHEATING YOU ASSHOLE!! I WAS DISTRACTED!! YOU CAN'T DO THAT!!"

"I never stated when I would start! And being distracted was your own doing that you'd find me that funny." You didn't respond to him after that and he gently nudged you. "Hey. C'mon, Love bird.~ Don't give me the Silent treatment now. Just take a look at the view."

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!! I HATE HEIGHTS!! WE'RE PROBABLY HUNDREDS OF FEET OFF THE GROUND BY NOW YOU FLYING CHICKEN!!"

"Actually, we're just above the trees. That can't be more than two stories off the ground. Look. I can still touch the leaves if I perch." You didn't answer again but slowly opened up one purple eye. Your stomach did flips feeling the strong wind whipping about you making your hair blow all around you. "Trust me. You're not gonna fall...As long as you don't pierce my throat with your foot again. ... Unless you're into that.~"

You snapped your head up in anger at him. "YOU BIRD BRAIN!! ARE YOU JUST A SECOND KARAKU?!" H smiled seeing your face. "I'm...gonna..." You stopped slowly eyes going wide.. before slowly looking down. And seeing branches and leaves so close you can touch it going by, and past it the ground fat away but much closer than you expected it to be. You slowly inhaled in and out before looking back at Urogi's smiling face. ".... You're DEAD when we land, Urogi "

He giggled and tilted his head. "I doubt that. But now that I have your attention." He nodded out to the air. "Just look at the view."

You didn't want to. You really didn't, but you did. And what you saw made your eyes widen. Purple eyes blinked against the wind until vision refocused and widened at what they saw. The world was going by in blurs. Green trees and land were essential smears as they sped through the air. The wind knocking again your skin so fast it combated the hot rays of the sun right in the big blue sky. It...reminded you a bit of the time Enmu took you on that train ride. You stared out for a moment at the admittedly pretty sight before relaxing a little and breathing a bit easier but you didn't loosen your grip even slightly on him.

"Sooo? Whatcha think?"

"I think I'm still going to kick your ass once we land. It's pretty." You narrowed your eyes at him in a way that made him gulp. "But you're still dead for pulling that stunt."

He chuckled nervously. "Ahehe. You're funny. Just wait til you actually see the place. It's a great spot for hunting rabbits."

Oh you doubted that. He still refused to let you down until you got near an opening in the tree tops and you yelped when he suddenly nose dived dove towards it. FWAP FWAP FWAP!! His wings beat against the wing making you jolt to a stop and he landed on his feet.

"Well here we are, Dove. Quiet and peaceful just like you asked."

You wriggled until he put you down and you have him a glare before looking around. It was a grassy field alright. It looked like a good five houses big and wide all around in a semi circle kinda shape smack dab surrounded by trees and other plants and there seemed to be a little pond of some kind. You looked around at the Peaceful field filled with wild flowers. It was pretty you had to admit. You only wished you brought a book to read while here.

"Well... I'll be honest and say you were right about it being beautiful. Now about that payback I owe you!" You frowned looking behind you..only to blink finding Urogi gone. "...Urogi?"

Where did he go now? Oh he better not be playing another prank on you! You'd definitely slug him this time! But ..there wasn't any place for him to hide in the field. The grass was too small and he was too big! And you would've heard him if he ran or flew into the trees. Purple eyes looked around until you saw him. Oh. There he was! He was a little bit aways from you... pulling up...grass?? And... jumping?? You blinked and just stood there watching Urogi shuffle about one specific area jumping up and down, stomping in certain areas, and grabbing large handfuls and talonfulls of grasses and nearby small bushes and twisting his head this way and that before stomping again and placing the grass and bush parts and flowers down.

"Hey, Urogi! What are you doing?!," You called out to him but he didn't respond.

Just continued to do what he was already doing. It made you raise a brow totally lost and confused... Maybe he was digging? Or dropped something and was trying to find it? After a moment you slowly walked over but stopped a few yards away from him. And blinked at what you saw. It was an almost perfect circle of grass stomped down flat and around the edges of said circle of stomped down grass was a pile of bush branches, leaves, grasses, wild flowers, and whatever else Urogi grabbed. Wow...He was fast. He did all of this in such a short amount of time too. You blinked as he hopped out of the circle and you just....stared at the thing before you..What the heck was this? Was this some kind of weird symbol in demon language or something?

Coo.

Your attention was drawn back to the demon as he finally looked at you. But you could've SWORN that you heard a dove cooing. As soon as you look at him the demon puffed out his chest and his wings splayed out poofing out his feathers and looking proudly.

You just blankly stared at him .....And slowly blinked. "Are you good?"

...He blinked. "Huh?"

"I asked if you were ok?," You said slowly raising a brow and looking between him and the weird... circle thing. "Did those branches hit you too hard on the head when you took off or something? Or maybe you hurt yourself?"

He continued to stare at you. Then at the circle thing. Then back to your confused face- FWAP! You blinked as a gust of wind hit you as his wings snapped shut and an extremely embarrassed smile strained on his face.

"Haha! Yeah! Totally fine! I was just...Um....C-Clearing a spot away for us to sit! Yeah!," He said quickly smiling at you.

"Um...Ok. That was very nice of you." Your brow rose but decided to drop the subject for now. "So you said this place had lots of rabbits?" You said changing the subject to make it less awkward.

Urogi rolled with it. "Yep! " he quickly relaxed turning himself away from.. from... whatever it was that he had built. "But it doesn't look like there's any today! If you wanna see animals the pond over there usually has fish and frogs and turtles and stuff."

You lit up. "Hey! That sounds great! If you can catch one I can cook it for us!"

THAT made his head snap around in interest immediately wide eyed and jaw smiling. "You can cook fish??"

You nodded. "Been doing it for years. Had to eat somehow. It'll be fun to be able to cook my own food again." You then gestured to where you stood. "You can get the fish and I'll make a small fire pit here. Ok?"

He instantly nodded giving you a thumbs up. "I can absolutely do that! Give me a few minutes and I'll drag you out the biggest fish in there!"

You nodded. "Alright then. I'll leave you to it."

With one last nod and FWAP of his wings, Urogi took off and flew back toward said pond. Now then. Where could you find some rocks and branches? You ended up finding everything you needed by the edge of the field and in the trees. And you ended up making a small fire pit in the area Urogi flattened out. The flat grass would be a nice place to make a small fire. So the rocks were tightly packed together in a circle, branches were frown in the middle, and with a little elbow grease a small fire was started by you furiously rubbing two sticks together. Ok. Perfect! You heard a distant splash as the fire was first starting but paid it no mind just assuming Urogi was just catching a fish. Urogi did catch a fish. He did bring it back to you. However...He stopped seeing your form standing in the space he flattened out..And instincts he couldn't control bubbled up-

CHIRP!!

You jumped hearing such a loud sparrow like tweet behind you and snapped around only to see...Urogi...Hopping?? You blinked as Urogi again puffed out his just and poofed his feathers up before taking quick bird hops. Three hops to the left and then three hops back to the right. His head tilted in question at you similar to an owl-

CHIRP?

You blinked again as an honest to gods bird chirp left Urogi's throat but it sounded more...questioning before he made his feathers ruffle again and hopped twice backwards, twice back forwards, and cooed like a dove. You just ... stared at him.

"....Ok. Did you seriously hit your head or is this some weird joke I just don't get?"

He blinked. Your words seeming to snap him out of... whatever state of mind he was in. And he blinked. "...What?"

You rose a brow and crossed your arms. "You literally just started tweeting like a bird.''

"I... N-No I wasn't!" He was quick to straighten up and clear his throat. "Here! I caught you that fish you wanted!" He then quickly thrusted a decent looking bass in one of his taloned hands. "Biggest one in the pond!"

Your pose and expression didn't change. "Ok. Yes you did. I'm not stupid and I clearly made those noises." He suddenly looked embarrassed straining that grin. "What's gotten into you? It's like you're acting like a-..." You slowly froze in realization.

Bird.

Urogi was acting EXACTLY like a bird. Making noises like a sparrow or dove. Hopping around like them too. Your eyes slowly looked down at the flattened circle of grass. This wasn't some kind of symbol. This was a NEST!! Urogi had built a nest! And he kept tweeting and hoping about like a bird would when they-

You slowly looked back to the now red faced demon. "Are you flirting with me...like a bird does?"

SQUAWK?!

An indignant turkey sound left his mouth as his feathers puffed out in shock. If possible his face got even more red. "NO!! I WAS JUST...M-M-MESSING AROUND WITH YOU!!"

"Your red face tells me otherwise." He sputtered as you slowly smiled amused. "Are you serious? Oh that is just too precious!~" Urogi gave a chicken choking sound as you quickly just grabbed his cheeks before he could react and laughed. "That is the cutest thing I've seen since Rui drew me a picture!~

"I-Im not cuuuuu- MMMMMMM!!! CHIRP!! "He quickly cut himself off and chirped again loudly when you brushed a hand over his cheek. Before slapping a taloned hand over his mouth in flustered horror.

You couldn't help but giggle again and continue to coo over his face. "OH MY GODS!! DO THAT AGAIN!! IT'S SO CUTE!!"

He tried to not to..he really did..but he somehow ended up sitting cross-legged holding you in his lap with his wings encasing you giving happy dove coos and thrums as he nuzzled his face into yours. You couldn't believe this. HOW CUTE WAS THIS?! A big bad Kizuki demon acting like a love struck dove. It made you almost forget about his earlier stunts. Almost. The fish was just stuck over the fire impaled by a large stick as you watched it. Until Urogi loosened up his grip to allow you to move and you took the chance to lean forward and turn the fish onto the other side. Nearly ready now- But you paused as you felt sharp talons take a piece of your hair and..Run down it. You blinked. It happened again and again. Urogi gently running a talon down a different part of your hair... before smiling.

"Cute." He froze. "Are you trying to preen me now?"

"...NO!" He squeaked out before pulling his talons away making you giggle. So cute. "B-Besides! If I was preening, WHICH I WASN'T, I -I-Id preen me since my wings have been so dam itchy lately!"

You turned back to him blinking. "Your wings itch? Why?"

He blinked.. before actually pouting and glaring at a wing. "I'm shedding some old feathers. But I can't exactly grip the loose ones with these." He held up his hands. "It's hard enough to write or even eat with them! You think I can even reach the teeny tiny ones in the back?"

"Well...what do you usually do when this happens?"

He shrugged. "Usually Aizetsu or Karaku helps me get them out of I shake them out eventually. Takes forever though. Luckily it doesn't affect my flying."

You blinked at him before looking at his wings. Huh...now that he mentioned it, they seemed kinda .. Clogged? As if there was feathers on top of feathers. And when you looked at where you both were sitting, you were surprised to see the many, many feathers strewn about. He was loosing a lot of feathers. Urogi blinked as you just got up without saying anything and walked behind him. His head followed raising a brow.

"Hey, Dove. What are you dooooo- CHIRP!!!"

His face went a red, and his feathers rustled out as a single hand grabbed at his wings and pulled down through them. Immediately a plethora of feathers tumbled from the wing as Urogi froze...and then relaxed back as a relieved feeling started to replace the dull, annoying itch that plagued him for days now. You noticed that a LOT of feathers immediately fell from him as you just started to run your hands through his wing and he slowly stretched it out fully for you. A series of rapid fire happy little chick like chirps leaving his mouth. AW! CUTE!! He must feel better. It couldn't be good for his health to just leave all these loose feathers in. You continued your actions of combing through his wing again and again until barely any feather really fell out and it didn't look as full of feathers. Then Urogi stretched out his other Wing with a look over his shoulder questioning. You obliged doing the same thing to the other wing until minutes later both wings looked the same and there was enough feathers on the ground to stuff a giant pillow with. Urogi stood up and stretched out his wings and arms.

"How do you feel?"

"ALOT BETTER ACTUALLY!!" He happily looked over his shoulder and flapped his wings lightly a few times. "They're not as heavy anymore so it's not as stressful on my back! And the dam itch is gone!"

"Anymore loose feathers?"

"Probably a few but it's not enough to bother me anymore! You really know how to treat a guy! Uh..." He sniffed the air before humming. "Is something burning?"

"MY FISH!" You were quick to run around Urogi and yank the fish on the stick...only to deflate seeing the charged black fish. "Oh no. It's burnt! It's inedible now."

"Burnt or not. Hand it over! I'm starving." You watched in disbelief as Urogi plucked it from your hands and without deboning it or anything opened his mouth and bit off half of it.

You blinked at him messily eating said fish.. before shaking your head. "I'll just take some dirt and put out the fire."

After you made sure the fire was put out, you both just sat around some more for a while before Urogi got bored, stood up, and stretched out his wings. "Hey! I bet I can take off a lot faster now than my wings are lighter! Wanna see?!"

"Are you sure?"

"Of course! Just watch!" He raised his wings rotating his shoulders as he did-

STRUM!!!

One moment you were sitting in a grassy field, the next you were in a polished wooden hall....What? FWAP- THUD!! Urogi launched himself up, only to ram head first into a thick wooden ceiling and tumble back to the ground in a heap.

"...Ow."

"UROGI!!" You were quick to crawl back over to the groaning demon and pulling him up into a sitting position. "Are you alright?!"

He shook his head before smiling. "Oh yeah! Nakime must've teleported us back already...I should really talk to her about timing though."

You helped him stand as he rubbed his head but otherwise he seemed perfectly fine. Until you both heard clapping and turned down the hall. And saw none other than Karaku snickering and clapping his hands. KARAKU?! WHERE'D HE COME FROM!?

"Nice landing, Bro. As graceful as a swan!"

"Hey! That hurt!"

"You laughed every time I was kicked!"

"Hmm....Touche."

"Anyways..." Karaku smiled at you. Uh oh. And walked down the hall until he was in front of you both and leaned against the wall. But... didn't look cocky?? In fact his smile seemed genuine happy. "Since my brothers had their turns...What time should I come court you tomorrow?~"

You stared at him. ".....Never."

He froze. Urogi froze and stared at you wide eyed. "...What?" Both asked in shock.

"You're not welcome around me after how you've acted."

"I..Wha-" he exchanged looks with his brother before looking back at you like he was slapped across the face. Stuttering at your deadpanned face as you crossed your arms. "Yo-Yo-You and Sa.." he stopped himself before saying the whole name.

"Sakura?" Karaku froze up again..and you softened your look and sighed. "Look. I don't know what Douma told you but I didn't fight Sakura for your hand. I fought Sakura because she insulted my friend and attacked her. I had no idea she was going to challenge me for you."

Urogi just looked shocked between the two of you as Karaku just...well his face went blank.

"Douma must've misunderstood my intentions but I might as well straighten it out here. However that's not my only reason for saying that. Karaku... You're not giving me the impression you're taking this seriously. You're acting impulsive and thoughtless with this courtship and pushing my boundaries even after both myself and Akaza warned you of the consequences of that. An example of that is when you tried to kiss me after you asked. I didn't say no but I didn't say yes either," you explained before pointing at his face, "You also provided no of fulfilling your promises to me before approaching me. Yes. You all did what I asked but you don't seem to take this seriously as I am taking it. While you might've apologized for everything and fulfilled what I asked you I can't do anything until you prove to me that you're actually serious. ...Until I see that, then I won't be courting you...Good day Karaku." You then turned to Urogi, reached up and then pecked the shocked harpy on the lips. "Thank you for the fun time, Urogi. I hope your dinner with your family goes well."

You then patted his shoulder and turned to leave. Or you would've...If Karaku hadn't literally dropped to his knees, and hugged you around your legs. Looking up at you in a mix of panic, pleading, desperation and... longing.

"WAIT! P-PLEASE!! GIVE ME A CHANCE PLEASE!! I- ILL MAKE IT UP TO YOU I PROMISE!!" His grip slightly tightened up on you. "I-I-ILL DO WHATEVER YOU WANT!! JUST PLEASE!!...PLEASE DON'T TAKE AWAY THAT CHANCE!!" He heaved.. looking up at you pleading almost as if..he was going to cry. "...Please...Please....I LOVE YOU! I WANT YOU! I DONT WANT HER!!"

His voice echoed throughout the hallway as the two of you stood there staring at Karaku... Before Urogi kneeled down and grabbed his brothers shoulders in worry but Karaku didn't budge from your shocked body.

"....What did she do to you?"

Karaku choked on his air blinking in shock..so his brother spoke. "She was going to give him a love potion."

You blanked for a moment. "WHAT!?" Before snapping over to Urogi.

He just grimly nodded. "Yeah...He walked in on her trying to make it. That's when he got out of there and the crazy bitch started being crazy."

Karaku stared between you two.. before sighing and letting you go letting his arms flop to his sides. "Yeah. Alright. I fucked up. Alright? I fucked up!" He glared at nothing. "But do I really gotta be punished for it! Gods! I know it was stupid to pursue her after Sekido said not to! I get it now! Ok!?"

He panted sitting there for a long, long silent moment as you both stared at him. In the cold, silent hallway... before you slowly turned and began walking down the hallway making both brothers blink.

"H-Hey! Where are you going?!"

"To beat her ass or commit murder. I'll decide when I get there!"

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fatehbaz · 2 years

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Food and Ghosts in Peru ...

And certainly, I never planned to write a book that critiqued the chefs credited for transforming Peru -- the country of my birth -- from a place of terror, violence and poverty, to a vibrant, global culinary destination. But as I conducted research for a different project in the early 2000s, it became clear that Peru’s so-called “gastronomic revolution” was central to any contemporary exploration of culture, politics and coloniality in this Andean nation. I was especially intrigued by the ways particular histories of violence haunted hegemonic narratives of inclusion, racial harmony, and economic success, all made possible (as the story goes) through the rediscovery and revalorization of Peruvian cuisine.

As I write in Gastropolitics and the Specter of Race, backstories of violence matter. After over two decades of political violence that claimed at least tens of thousands of lives, not to mention the countless lives destroyed by kidnapping, torture, displacement, sexual violence, and more, the argument made forcefully by prominent chefs in the capital city of Lima is seductive. They claim that gastronomy can offer a path to economic opportunity and support Indigenous livelihoods through chef-producer alliances that make possible farm to table dining. Culinary festivals can showcase cultural vibrancy, biodiversity, and indigeneity to the world, and help Peruvians rediscover and fall in love with their country. In short, Peruvian food and the country’s culinary history of racial, cultural fusion have the power to unite and to heal.

But a closer look at these narratives and practices, at high-end menus and well-meaning chefs, and at the gastropolitical machine that became central to national projects of restoration as the country transitioned to “peace” and democracy, reveals a darker side.

Gastronomy in Peru is implicated with ongoing forms of violence -- colonial and otherwise.

Colonialism shape-shifts.

Its Peruvian echoes and forms can be felt in multiple ways through gastropolitics. At times, writing and researching this book felt like thinking with ghosts. I remember two moments in particular, which both took place in Astrid & Gastón, the flagship restaurant of Gastón Acurio. Acurio is one of the architects of Peru’s gastronomic revolution, and perhaps the leading chef and culinary spokesperson in the country.

-------

The first moment was during my initial visit to the restaurant, located in a restored Casa Moreyra, the 300-year-old main house of the old hacienda in San Isidro, one of the most affluent districts in Lima. We were seated next to a painting called “historia de un huaquero afortunado” by Cuban artist Jose Bedia. As I looked at that remarkable painting [...] I suddenly knew my project had shifted. Huaqueros are looters, persons who clandestinely excavate archaeological sites in order to find pre-Hispanic artefacts to sell illegally, usually to foreign collectors. Huaca means sacred in Quechua, and often refers to sacred objects and places. The painting depicts a figure at the top of a mound, with a clear path leading to a huaca, drawn as a simple white triangular outline with a small, round face. The huaquero is fortunate as he has found his treasure. To me the painting spoke to the extractive and appropriative dimensions of the Peruvian gastronomic revolution. It brought to mind in particular the ongoing theft of Indigenous lands, sacred objects, and intellectual property. But the painting also evoked the Huaca Huallamarca, a striking pyramidal mound located only a few blocks from Astrid & Gastón. When I visited that Huaca during my last trip to Peru in January 2020, I thought back to that painting. Rather than see only the commodification of this space, I felt a powerful refusal to be swallowed up. Could the Huaca not stand instead as a testament to the survivance of Indigenous peoples?

-------

The second moment took place during my last visit to Astrid & Gastón, while on a brief tour of Casa Moreyra. Hoping to learn about how (or if) restaurant staff narrated the histories of violence intimately entangled with an hacienda economy -- one that involved the importation of wheat from Chile, cacao from Guayaquil, indigo from Guatemala, and slaves from Panama -- I asked about the catacombs under the building. As soon as I mentioned them, our guide shook her head:

“Oh no. We don’t go in there. One of my colleagues heard screams coming from there, the screams of a little girl.” I asked how they knew it was a girl. “We saw her,” she whispered.

Ghosts, whether emanating from paintings or buildings, embedded in landscapes, or lurking in the midst of cultural performances at culinary festivals, invite us to reconsider gastropolitics and its multiple impacts. Eve Tuck and C. Ree write that haunting does not “hope for reconciliation. Haunting lies precisely in its refusal to stop…. For ghosts, the haunting is the resolving, it is not what needs to be resolved.”

In Peru, we need ghosts to continue their work. In a context where so many want to forget the violence of the past and refuse to see the ways that violence lingers powerfully in the lives of so many, ghosts can offer productive disruptions. [...] The victims of the political violence of the last century and the pandemic of the current one will haunt Peruvian society for many years to come, as the drastic and obscene inequalities that produced them show no signs of abatement.

-------

Text by: Maria Elena Garcia. “Food and Ghosts in Peru.” UC Press Blog (University of California Press). 25 May 2021.

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smieszkanazawsze · 2 years

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CAN SOMEONE WRITE IT ????? I NEED IT!!!! Drop link in comments if you gonna use one of ideas. AND IF YOU GONNA USE IT THEN TAG/CREDIT ME PLEASE.

Also you guys decide if its angst or fluff. Or if there's happy ending or no.

I got some steddie fic ideas:

1. Eddie is secretly a drag queen in some lgbtq+ club. One day Robin decides to take Steve to this club and they see Eddie there and Steve just totally falls in love with Eddie

2. Steve is a popular rally driver. One day he falls in love in his new mechanic named Eddie Munson.

3. Steve told everybody that he meet someone. They assumess that it's a girl. But it's Eddie Munson, 20-years old single dad.

They meet when Eddie came to Family Video to rent some movie(s) for his kid/kids at Robin's day off.

4. Eddie is old Nancy/Robin friend, but they losed touch when Nancy/Robin moved to Hawkins.

One Day Nancy/Robin introduced Eddie to them,because he moved to Hawkins and Steve falls for Eddie.

5. Fruity four works as counselors at summer camp. Robin and Nancy takes care of girls group meanwhile Eddie and Steve take care of boys.

6. Eddie work as mechanic nearby Family Video. Everytime when Steve see him, he got bi/gay panic.

7. Steve is in hospital, because he broke his hand. He became friends with Eddie, boy who is sick. He has a list of things he wants to do before he dies.

Steve found out about this list and he helped him with doing all of this. But there's one thing, they got only month for it, because Eddie is dying.

8. Steve and Eddie were bestfriends when they were kids, but when Steve became popular he started to pretend that he doesn't know Eddie, and starts to bully him. Eddie tries to change it.

9. When Robin's parents meet Eddie, they assume that Eddie is Robin's boyfriend. But they don't know, that their daughter is lesbian, and Eddie is her gay bestfriend.

Robin is too scared to tell them truth, so they started to pretend that they are dating.

10. There's new student Eddie Munson. Nancy shows him school, and then they starts to spend a lot of time together. There's a rumour, that Eddie is in love with her.

But nobody knows that Eddie have a crush on Steve Harrington. Popular basketball team captain.

11. Eddie Munson is quiet nerd with good grades. But at night he plays in popular band called Corroded Coffin.

Steve Harrington is fan of Corroded Coffin. He have crush on Corroded Coffin's hot lead singer, who can play guitar. He also hates Eddie Munson. Steve doesn't know that they are the same person.

12. Steve goes back in time, to his high school years, and he can't go back. So he decide to change. He doesn't date Nancy, he get's friends with Robin and he tries to change his relationship with Eddie. But it's hard, because Eddie doesn't like him (yet).

13. Steve haunts monsters, but he doesn't know that Nancy is witch, Robin is vampire and Eddie is werewolf.

14. (Modern times) There's law that says that ghost and humans can't be in relationships (friends, lovers etc.).

Steve meet Eddie Munson one day, at beach. He gets friends with him. He falls for him, but he doesn't know that Eddie is ghost. And they can't date, because of the law.

15. Steve used to be in love with very pretty, popular girl in elementary school. But elementary school ends, and nobody never see her again. Everyone assumess that she is missing.

There's guy in class with Steve. Eddie Munson, weird outcast. Steve hates him. One day some asshole tells everybody Eddie's secret. Steve found out that Eddie is "missing" girl, and not matter how hard he doesn't want it, he catch feeling for Eddie.

16. Steve get sends to farm (to visit his grandparents) as detension. He gonna be there for two months (summer vacation).

He meets guy who works for them (Eddie). Steve doesn't like him, but longer he's there more he starts to like him.

17. Eddie is angel of death. When somebody died, he kiss their lips, so they can go to afterlife.

One day he was supposed to kill Steve Harrington, but he didn't do it, because he fall for him. They became friends and some time later they fall in love in each other.

Some time later they became couple, but it's hard for them, because everytime when Steve tried to kiss his lips, Eddie do anything, so it wouldn't happened.

18. Steve is son of king. He swimm to another kingdom (he is supposed to marry princess), but he gets kidnapped by Eddie's crew.

Eddie is wild pirate, who steals and kidnapping people (rich or royalty). They were a lot of stories made about him and his crew.

While Steve is on Eddie's ship, he meets him better, and catch feelings.

19. Steve is scared of needles, but Robin decided to get a tatto. While they are in studio Steve waits outside and talk to a guy. Robin's tatto is done, so they came back home.

Some time later Steve founds out that this guy ( that he was talking to, outside tatto studio) works there. So Steve decided to get one, little tatto.

20. Eddie moved to new, home. It's big, old mansion from the 80's. While cleaning it, he found old phone, he gonna throw it away later, because he doesn't have time right now.

It's night, and Eddie hears ringing. He's checking his phone, but it's not it. He decided to go back to sleep, but ringing doesn't stop. So he checking whole house, and it's this old phone.

Eddie picks it up, and it's some dude. Eddie talks to him, he wants to stop conversation, but then dude is screaming in panic, that his name is Steve Harrington. Eddie hangs up.

He checking Steve in internet, and he founds out, that Steve died in mallfire in the 1985. Eddie throws phone away, but next day, it's back on it's old place. No matter how hard and how many times Eddie tries, he can't get rid of it. And dead people still calls him.

#eddie munson #steve harrington #steve x eddie #steddie #steddie fanfic #steddie fic #steddie fic ideas #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things fic #stranger things season four #stranger things season 4 #stranger things 4 #stranger things s4

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jimblejamblewritings · 2 years

Text

snow falls hot | part 10.

Summary: (Y/N) Snow isn’t a Snow at all. She’s a Targaryen— Rhaegar’s child. Taken in by the Starks, she leads her life as another on of Ned’s bastards. Will she be able to live in Westeros comfortably? More importantly, does she have any ambition to see herself one day on the Iron Throne?

Warnings: it’s game of thrones…

Pairing: gendry x reader

Word Count: 4.1k

Previous Part | (Series Masterlist)

Kylis, Nestar, and Rosyn ran at you as if no time had passed at all when you landed on the farm. Darren and his parents almost ran out as well but stopped when they saw Shadow. The dragon was larger than the last time they saw you. You laughed as you slid down, extending your arms when you reached the ground so Eddard could jump down into them.

“Little Stark!” Waylar chirped.

Eddard stayed frozen in place, looking up at you. You nodded and gently pushed him forward, saying it was okay. It would be an adjustment for him. Everything would be from the cold of the North to the sights of people that weren’t ghosts. But in time he would be fine— he already seemed to be as Kylis and Rosyn fawned over him as if he was their living doll.

“You two look so different,” Darren said.

You reached into the bag around Shadow’s leg right leg. Pulling out riches, you handed them to Waylar and Fryda. They stared in amazement at the coins and jewels in their hands. Fryda shook her head like she couldn’t believe it was real.

“I told you I would pay you back in riches over for being kind to Eddard and I.”

“Enith…”

“Don’t try to give it back. We are family and it is a present. Consider them gifts for everyone’s name days that I missed. There is more.”

“More?” Waylar asked.

“Shall we go inside?”

You followed the family into the tiny home you hadn’t seen in forever. Rosyn brought out Robb’s cloak, assuring you she kept her promise to keep it safe. With a chuckle, you thanked her and settled it in your lap. You took out Robb’s sword from the bag and took out your new sword— the large Valyrian one from the crypt— out of its sheath.

You struggled a bit to pull the decorative pieces that went around the grip and pommel off of both weapons. Switching them around, your new sword now had the grip with a wolf’s head on it.

“That sword over your mantle, it was yours first before being Darren’s. Wasn’t it, Waylar?”

The man nodded. You attached the old decorative piece onto Robb’s sword and gestured for Darren to come over.

“That sword will go to Nestar if he becomes a soldier. A firstborn should have a sword of his own, one you can pass down to your own children. This sword belonged to a great man who lived and died by his honor no matter how stupid he could be sometimes. I hope it serves you as well as it served him.”

Darren accepted with shaky hands. “Shouldn’t this be passed down to Ned? This is the King in the North’s sword.”

“Ned and I have many things of Robb’s, we can part with a few items. And it is time for us to try and let go a bit.”

“Is that something you can do?” Fryda asked. “Let him go.”

You sighed. “No. But I cannot let his memory continue to haunt us, Robb wouldn’t want that. He would want it to mean something. I don’t have sadness when I think of him any more. I have love for him and anger for our enemies, anger I will use to be smart and destroy them.”

Grey Wind howled outside and you stood up. You wrapped Robb’s cloak around you, clasping the two wolf head clasps together. The ends of your curls rubbed against the fur on the shoulders, the top black half covering any white as all your hair was down.

“I need you to watch Eddard. There is something I must do before we go back home.”

You kissed your son on the head. “Be good for them, Little Prince. Watch over Shadow.”

“Yes, Mama.”

“Your Grace!” Fryda called as you walked out of the door, causing you to stop. “It is good to have you home, in Westeros.”

You gave her a smile. It was a strut you had when you walked to Grey Wind. The farm family watched as the large wolf sped away. The bite of the cold wind was a welcome to you. You suspected it was a welcome to Grey Wind as well, the dire wolf running faster than he had in three years.

The Twins were just as grim and ugly as you remembered. Grey Wind stalked closer, not a body insight. The whole of the Twins was quiet, everyone beginning to retire. You watched a figure head down the hill. With a grin, you risked shouting.

“Does a girl know what she is doing?”

The figure turned around, thin sword at the ready. She nearly dropped it when you hopped off of Grey Wind and began to walk towards her. Arya Stark ran full force at you, enveloping you in a hug that had so much to convey. She stepped back before giving you another hug as if she couldn’t believe you were really in front of her.

“Where have… dead, I th—”

You cut her off with a laugh. “A lot has happened and a lot will come out. But you didn’t answer my first question. Does a girl know what she is doing?”

“This is where they killed him. Lord Walder was the start of our end.”

“I hope you don’t mind if I join you, I’ve been meaning to talk to Lord Walder. Come, Grey Wind.”

Arya looked at the wolf behind you. Another smile entertained her lips at the realization it was Grey Wind and not Godswood. A small bit of her eldest brother was still in the world. Arya stuck out her knife for you but you denied it, stating you didn’t need a knife to handle Walder Frey. The two walked to the Twins— Arya killing the two guards that stood watch. She slipped away and you let her, knowing the time would come for you to reveal yourself.

You could hear Arya’s impression of a servant girl as she talked to Lord Walder who was demanding his dinner. You and Grey Wind walked the halls, the entire place holding eeriness. If you closed your eyes, you could still hear the happy sounds of a feast before it melted into screams of terror. Could still hear the sounds of the Rains of Castamere as that cello played the haunting Lannister tune, the barking of your Godswood. Your breath hitched when ghosts of Starkmen raced by you.

Catelyn moved past as well, stopping to look at you with sad eyes. This was the price you paid for becoming a true ruler. Unlocking the magic of Valyria meant you accepted the bad with the good and that included seeing the spirits of your men that were trying to pass on and meet the gods.

“Beloved.”

You heard a voice. Both you and Grey Wind turned— for once, the dire wolf didn’t growl at the spirit. Tears threatened when you saw Robb’s ghost. He looked as handsome as ever, just like the man who kissed you many times over at Riverrun. With a whisper of his name, you walked closer to him. You reached out to touch him but your fingers slipped through his hand. Magic was still not strong enough in Westeros. You couldn’t touch his ghost, only see him.

“Don’t cry,” he said, unable to do anything to console you.

“I won’t… Eddard, your child’s name is Eddard. I had a boy. I would have brought him if I knew you would be here.”

“What you are about to do is not for his young eyes. If he’s anything like his mother, I’m sure I will see him in his dreams… (Y/N) Targaryen.”

“St—”

“Stark. Targaryen Stark,” he cut you off with a smile before turning his head. “I think my sister has started serving Lord Walder his pie.”

“Will you stay with me?”

Even though he couldn’t touch you, Robb stroked the side of your face. “Of course, I will. Make him pay, beloved.”

“I intend to.”

Your face hardened as you turned and faced the doors. You opened them and with a smile walked through the hall— Grey Wind and Robb at your side. Lord Walder, who was already shocked at Arya’s revelation that she had cut his son’s up and put them in the pie, looked even more astonished at the sight of you. He tried to stand up and run but Arya’s hand held him down. She read him his list of crimes. As she did, Grey Wind seemed to grow in size with all his fur standing on end. He snarled and showed all his teeth. Lord Walder’s eyes flitted between you, Arya, and the wolf.

“The last thing you will see, Lord Walder,” Arya said. “Is a Stark smiling down at you as you die.”

You scratched behind Grey Wind’s ear and spoke to him. “Not the face, Arya might have a use for it.”

As soon as your hand left his fur, Grey Wind pounced on the old man. With a twisted delight, you and Arya listened to Walder Frey’s screams until they eventually died down. Grey Wind lifted his head from the body— his muzzle coated in blood. The wolf returned to your side. You nodded at Arya as you climbed on top of Grey Wind.

“I have to go back for something but I will see you at Winterfell.”

“What about the rest of House Frey?”

“Robb was your brother, Catelyn your mom. Do with the rest of the House whatever you see fit to avenge them. Let them know the North remembers… at Winterfell.”

“At Winterfell,” Arya said, agreeing to see you there.

Grey Wind stalked away and as you left the hall a smirk plastered itself on your face. Robb’s ghost walked with you through the halls until you reached outside. You looked at him with sad eyes.

“You shouldn’t be here, you belong in the crypts at Winterfell.”

“Lord Walder kept my bones as a prize.”

“Arya will take them back. We will bury you properly, let you rest.”

Robb smiled. “Thank you, beloved. I think I would like to see the weirwood again.”

“You never liked going into the godswood when you were alive and I begged. Now that you are dead, it suddenly becomes enjoyable?”

You laughed and so did he. With a promise to bury him next to his father in the crypt and that you would visit with Eddard. Robb nodded and let you go. You felt at ease walking across the bridge of The Twins. House Frey was going to get what they deserved. Now, you just had the other traitors and usurpers to deal with.

~~~

“The things we do for love,” Bran said.

Jaime Lannister swallowed uncomfortably. He expected to be judged when he reached Winterfell but with all the lords watching and the panel in front of him, it became more intimidating than anticipated. Everyone was in the North, the dead man brought to the meeting of rulers was enough to scare him and make him leave Cersei.

Living to fight for the Iron Throne required living and to do that, the army of dead had to be defeated. The Lannister wasn’t quite sure who to address, the previous King in the North, the Lady of Winterfell, or the Dragon Queen? They all sat at the table in front of him— along with Bran— and simply stared. Brienne stood up to vouch for him, an act Jaime was forever grateful for.

“This goes beyond loyalty. This is about survival.”

Before anyone could speak, all heads turned towards the doors of the hall that were opened. It was silent as Grey Wind’s claws gently scraped the floor with each step. The larger than life dire wolf stalked into the hall, you and Eddard sitting tall as he did. Eddard sat in front, despite sitting tall, he still tried to hide against you in a way. You wore Robb’s cloak, making sure the dire wolf clasps were shining as much as they could. The top half of your hair was braided and pulled up so the white hair underneath could be seen past the black— the crown from the Valyrian king in the crypt sat atop your head. Shadow waited in the forest, unneeded at the moment.

Sansa and Jon couldn’t close their mouths at the sight. Even Arya couldn’t— she had seen you but not your son. Some men whispered while others just looked on. Grey Wind stopped in the center of the room. If your face wasn’t recognizable to them, they dire wolf certainly was. It was impossible not to know who you were with Grey Wind at your side.

“Ser Brienne is right. It doesn’t matter what you want or think you want. Survival is the most important.”

“How is this possible?” Sansa asked, looking at you. “They said you met the same fate as Robb, your body was drowned in the river of the Twins.”

You gave a short laugh. “So that is the lie the Freys told, I couldn’t even receive a good death. I’m so sorry it took so long to come back to you, little bird.”

“The boy?” she asked. “That is…”

“Your nephew,” you reassured her. “Eddard.”

That made the Stark siblings gasp. Attention on you was lost as they focused on Eddard, seeing the spitting image of their late brother. Daenerys’ eyebrows scrunched up in confusion as she looked at Jon who was still, like the other Starks, was focused on you. She looked around to see those that thought they recognized you look on in a mix of awe and doubt that you actually existed.

“Who are you?” she asked.

“The Queen in the North,” Lyanna Mormont said, having thought you were a myth.

You smiled. “What she said, it is nice to meet you Lady…”

“Mormont.”

Your jaw dropped a bit in surprise. “You were a babe when I last saw you, now the leader of a whole House.”

“A small one.”

“Small but mighty. House Mormont fought with vigor at Robb’s command, I don’t think I could spot a House more proud.”

“Thank you, Your Grace.” She shared a smile with you.

Daenerys cleared her throat. “It must have been a while since you set foot in Westeros but a new king was crowned in your stead and he has bent the knee.”

Jon’s eyes cast down but you paid him no mind— there was nothing to be upset over. A small chuckle left you and spectators could have sworn they saw your wolf laugh too. Your voice came out light-hearted, a surprise to those around who were already sensing and expecting tension after Lady Mormont spoke.

“That’s okay, that was Jon’s right to give when he was king. Considering I’m not dead anymore, it is no longer his right.”

Jon tried to stop the corners of his mouth from lifting at your response. He kept his face down and focused on the table instead. Sansa, on the other hand, did not try to hide her smile one bit. Daenys’ jaw clenched and the smile that had been plastered on her face turned into a straight line.

“I don’t think you quite understand, Lady Snow…”

You kept quiet, noting how she chose to use that name. Arya and Sansa’s head whipped over to look at her— Jon as well. Grey Wind snarled slightly, you scratched behind his ear to calm him. Eddard looked up at you and you smiled down at your son before turning your attention back to the other Targaryen.

“May I ask you a question before deciding if I will bow or not?”

Daenerys dipped her head in a nod, a tight smile on her face.

“Why do you want the Iron Throne?”

“It is my birthright.”

You snorted. “Your birthright…”

“It was taken from me and is ruled by those who want to enforce a wheel. I intend to break it. You’ve seen the Unsullied, the Dothraki. They are all under my command because I know how to rule.”

“A Khalasar is not a Realm. You know nothing of the Seven Kingdoms and Westeros, nothing of the land you want to rule.”

You jumped down from Grey Wind. As your feet touched the ground, a Dothraki man approached. He went to step in between you and your wolf. Before he could get close, you whipped out your sword— fire coming from it— and pointed it at his neck. Northerners stood up in their seats in shock. The Hound stepped back at the flames. You narrowed your eyes at the Dothraki in front of you.

“Step any closer to my son and I will drive this sword through your neck.”

Tyrion blinked as if the scene in front of him would go away. The Dothraki man stepped back and you returned your sword to its sheath— the fire on the blade extinguishing as it was put up.

“What happened to you?” Tyrion asked.

“Your family happened to me.”

“Lady Snow,” Daenerys started. “I am Daenerys Stormborn of the House Targaryen, the First of Her Name, the Unburnt, Queen of Meereen, Queen of the Andals and the Rhoynar and the First Men, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, Break of Chains and Mother of Dragons.”

“Was that supposed to mean something to me?”

“Did you not hear m—”

“The long title? I heard. You are first of your name, unburnt, the mother of dragons amongst other things. You birthed beasts… I command them.”

“Perhaps you didn’t see the dragons outside.”

“I did.”

“Yet you still speak as if you have no intention of bowing. Everyone here has bent the knee, you will as well.”

You lifted Eddard from off of Grey Wind. You bent down to his level and adjusted his cloak. Running your hands through his curls, you framed his face and let his chin rest in your palms for a moment. Eddard smiled at you before running over to where Arya, Sansa, and Bran were seated next to each other at the table. Arya scooped Eddard up. It warmed your heart that he was already loved by them— of course he was, he was a Stark. And if there was nothing else you were sure of, it was that Starks stuck together.

“I left Westeros after my son was born. We took a journey, like many in this room. Like the aunt whose lap he is currently sitting on. But it wasn’t to become no one. It was to be someone. Are you aware of the prince promised?”

Daenerys and Missandei smiled at each other, sharing a look. You nodded in satisfaction.

“As such, I’m glad I don’t have to explain. I’m sure we have all heard the story in some form, haven’t we. Jorah the Andal, Tormund of the Free Folk, Samwell Tarly, GreyWorm the Unsullied, and Missandei of Naath? You all have heard the story somehow, correct? What do the Dothraki call said hero?”

Everyone’s name you called looked at you with widened eyes. Jon tilted his head and you smiled at him.

“How do I know the names of people I’ve never met? I told you I left to become someone.”

You turned around to face the other people in the hall.

“I can warg into creatures, greet men I don’t know as if they are family, set my weapon ablaze, even see spirits. And I know an army of the dead marches this way and we will all die if led by false kings. Cersei is not coming, her armies are not coming. What you see before you is all you have to fight the Great Other.”

“And it will be enough to win with our commanders and my dragons,” Daenerys said.

You fished for the coin tucked in a sewn pocket of your cloak. You unclasped the silver wolf heads of your cloak and laid the fur over Grey Wind— now in a dress of Targaryen colors, a silver wolf pin attached to it. Grey Wind stalked away, relieved from his protector duties. People moved out of his way as he also walked to the Starks behind the table. He settled down on the floor in an almost relaxed state.

“They say the gods flip a coin every time a Targaryen is born. Ask me to bend the knee again and you will discover I can flip which side of the coin I am on. I know a lot about you Daenerys Stormborn, I can’t remember if it was from the ghosts or Lord Stark’s stories. That’s not very important though, is it? The Mad King Aerys grew paranoid with mutterings of burning everyone. He heard bells and they sounded like enemies to him.”

You stopped facing the people of Winterfell and turned back to face Daenerys and the Starks.

“You and Viserys were promised bell ringing to celebrate a return, that the people of King’s Landing loved you. No one in the bloody Seven Kingdoms knew you existed. Bell ringing isn’t always good, it rings for anything— a wedding or a funeral. I remember the bell at Riverrun ringing when Robb and I got married, they rang in The Twins when they beheaded the King in the North. You know they rang bells when they killed your father? They rang more bells when they killed your eldest brother, my father.”

You looked at the Old Valyrian currency in your hand. The coin spun between your fingers before you tossed it onto the table. Daenerys stared at it— so did the others. Eddard grabbed it, making them all look at him. For the first time, they truly noticed the white streak at the front of his hair. The other Targaryen looked at you.

“I am (Y/N) Stark of House Targaryen, First of Her Name, Commander of Beasts, Shadow Rider, Queen of the Andals and the Rhoynar and the First Men, Lady of Winterfell, Queen in the North, Azor Ahai, and rightful heir to the Iron Throne and the Seven Kingdoms.”

“Rhaegar’s child? That’s impossible, that’s…”

The Starks wanted to run to you when your eyes went white but Bran stopped them. The hall shook as Shadow’s head appeared in the still open doorway. Jaws dropped at the sight of another dragon. They already thought two were incredible and now there was a third. Your eyes returned and Shadow retreated, although part of her could still be seen in the doorway.

Daenerys looked around at the whispers that had started. It wasn’t just Northerners that already saw you as a queen because of Robb. They were processing what you said, what your claim meant. As Rhaegar’s child, your birthright to the throne came before Daenerys. She was aware of that and everyone in the room was starting to become aware as well. The hushes died down as you spoke again.

“You’ll notice I still carry Robb’s name, the name of my son. Northernmen are my people. Winterfell, my home that I will defend until death. I want only one thing and that is to see us live. You will help us fight the army of the dead, Aunt Daeny, and I will help you win the Iron Throne. But I will not bend the knee. The North will not bow again— we know no ruler but the one in the North whose name is Stark.”

“And how do I have your word that you won’t try to take the throne from yourself?”

“Because we are family.” You made a point to look Jon in the eye. “I’m not interested in the throne, I only want The Realm safe. I lived my life thinking my House was destroyed, that I had no family left. I’m not interested in destroying them again… but understand, Your Grace. This will always be about The Realm and if you betray them, I will exercise my birthright and see to it that you end.”

Daenerys gave you a small bow of her head, one that you returned. “Understood, Your Grace.”

“Oh, I do have one more request.”

“Which is?”

“When we take King’s Landing. It doesn’t have to be me but it does have to be a Stark that takes Cersei’s head.”

You ignored Jaime and Tyrion, only looking at the Starks in front of you. Jon, who now held Eddard, and Bran nodded. Arya, you, and Sansa wore the same twisted smile. No one else existed but your family. No one else would ever exist but your family because until time itself stopped, everything you all did was for the Stark Family. The pack would always survive.

(Part 11)...

#game of thrones fic #asoiaf fic #gendry x reader

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