#ig is what their ship name would be?? | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

ellecdc · 2 months

Note

okay so I just wanted to start by saying I love you're moonwater stories so much.

Ive been thinking about this like paring ig for a bit and your recent moonwater story when r gets home from girls night just made me think of it more so if you're interested id love for you to do it.

Basically its like poly moonwater plus Barty ive been calling it moonwaterkiller in my head (idk if its already a ship or already has a name but I haven't been able to find anything) but basically I feel like r and Barty would be like a chaotic duo and reg and rem would just be like wtf a lot idk... I just think it has some potential and I just love your writing so fucking much.

(I also just love how you write Barty)

so if you're interested I think it would be cool

much love :)

I love the way your mind works babes. thanks for your request! (it's almost two am where I am so please forgive any awkward sentences or spelling mistakes). also, if I didn't completely lose everyone with my DeathStar fics - this may very well do it. && this was written with the help of our fabulous @unstablereader

poly!moonwater x chaotic fem!reader + Barty Crouch Junior

Regulus didn’t know whether to be concerned or slightly aroused at the slightly deranged way that Remus was stalking the halls in search of you and Barty.

You and Regulus had both at one point or another been in a friends-with-benefits situation with Barty (albeit separately) during your time in school, before you and Regulus went and fell in love with a Gryffindor.

Regulus still wasn’t quite over the humiliation; both of falling in love and falling in love with a Gryffindor.

Of course, you and Regulus both stayed friends with Barty; Regulus mostly because he couldn’t shake him (ignoring the fact that Regulus really was quite fond of his maniacal friend), and you because the two of you really were sort of two sides of the same hyperactive galleon.

And though Remus (and sometimes Regulus) liked to pretend that yours and Barty’s friendship caused them grief, they couldn’t deny how much they valued Barty’s loyalty and devotion to his friends; specifically you.

Regulus’ new favourite thing was easily Remus’ new found appreciation for Barty.

Up until this point, Barty had been his notoriously flirty and salacious self when it came to the likes of Remus, who wasn’t yet accustomed to Barty’s unique…personality.

However, once Remus realised the history between his two partners and the other Slytherin boy, he quickly came to appreciate the kind of pull Barty could have on people.

So, Remus had started flirting back.

Barty hated it.

Regulus loved it.

You started keeping track of the number of times Remus reduced Barty to a blushing and stuttering mess in your notebook.

Barty hated that too.

It was nearing curfew and Remus and Regulus hadn’t seen you all afternoon.

Usually that was fine, considering you were a bit of a free spirit. What was concerning, however, was that they hadn’t seen Barty either.

Regulus watched as Remus checked the stupid map that his brother and their friends had created when his brows furrowed in confusion.

“What? Don’t tell me they’re in the middle of the Black Lake again?” Regulus asked quickly, moving to stand over Remus’ shoulder to peer at the map.

“Again?”

“Don’t ask.” Regulus muttered.

“But…doesn’t Barty not know how to swim?”

“I said don’t ask.”

Seeming to know better, Remus turned back and pointed towards the Ravenclaw common room on the map. “It says they’re up in Ravenclaw tower?”

“For fuck’s sake.” Regulus muttered, dragging a hand over his face.

“How’d two Slytherin’s manage to get into Ravenclaw tower?” Remus asked bemusedly, earning him an unimpressed glare from Regulus.

“Remus, I love you, but that was perhaps the dumbest question you’ve ever asked me.”

Remus rolled his eyes as he closed the map and tucked it back into his trunk.

“Come on, we might be able to catch up to Pandora on her way up and have her help us in.”

They had indeed caught up to Pandora, and Pandora had indeed helped them in, though it seemed to be for naught.

“I thought your stupid map said they were here.” Regulus muttered as he surveyed the common room, unable to spot a single lick of green and silver.

“It’s not stupid and they are in here.” Remus muttered back, moving to stand in the dead centre of the room.

“How do you know they’re here if you can’t see them?”

Remus glared at Regulus before looking around to ensure no one could hear them. “I can smell them.” He whispered.

Well Regulus just didn’t know what good these wolfy senses were if they were still out two Slytherin’s.

“Shit.” Regulus heard whispered suddenly as a quill fell from the air and landed beside his foot.

Remus and Regulus both looked up to see you and Barty casually lounging in the chandelier above them.

“Are you sodding kidding me!?” Regulus shouted.

“I think our cover’s been blown.” You said simply to Barty as if you didn’t have two fuming and fretting boyfriends standing nearly forty feet give or take below you.

“Pity.” Barty responded as he peered down. “This was a nice refuge.”

“How’d you even get up there?” Remus cried, pacing like he was getting ready to catch you should you fall.

“Magic.” Barty taunted from above.

“Junior, so help me gods if that witch falls I-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, Lupin. I resent the insinuation that I would ever let anything happen to our sweet angel baby.” Barty bit back immediately.

“Okay, okay. Fair enough.” Remus acquiesced as if he were negotiating a hostage situation. “Why don’t you both just come down here, nice and slow, okay?”

Both you and Barty leaned forward to look down at the two boys, causing the chandelier to swing precariously.

“Fucking hells! Stop moving!” Remus shrieked, causing the attention of the few Ravenclaws sitting in the common room to look over.

“Such a worrier.” Barty muttered as he stood and started manoeuvring himself to the edge of the chandelier - you following him over and causing the chandelier to tip to a nearly 90 degree angle.

“I’m going to be sick, I’m actually going to throw up right here.” Regulus muttered mostly to himself whilst Remus tried to stand directly underneath you lest you need to be caught.

To Remus and Regulus’ absolute horror, Barty launched himself away from the chandelier, grabbing at the billowy banners hanging from the ceiling causing the chandelier to swing away from him like a pendulum.

“JUNIOR!” Remus shouted, causing Barty to momentarily look shamefaced as he looked below him.

As the chandelier swung towards the opposite wall, you too launched yourself at one of the billowy banners hanging from the ceiling and began monkey climbing down them.

“Can you make sure she doesn’t fall, please.” Remus barked at Regulus as he made his way towards Barty.

Barty let out a high pitched screech and began hastily making his way down the wall. “Run Treasure! Save yourself!” He shouted dramatically.

You turned quickly at that and saw Regulus making his way to you.

You let out a surprised squeak and hurried down, and before Regulus realised what you were doing, you had used your wand to open one of the windows and were shimmying out.

“Oi! What the-” but before Regulus could even shove his torso out the window, you’d managed to shift into your animagus form - a mink, which Regulus felt was very fitting considering what a sodding cheeky minx you were being right now - and began scaling your way down the side of the building.

Regulus was interrupted by the sound of a squeal - Remus’ squeal - and turned to see Remus hanging halfway out of the window in much the same fashion that Regulus had been.

Unlike Regulus, however, Remus had been successful in his capture of Barty and had him hanging from the tallest tower at Hogwarts by one of his arms.

“Junior! Are you trying to sodding kill me!?” Remus barked angrily at him, trying to pull Barty up without any help from Barty himself.

Barty looked up at Remus with all the innocence he could muster (read: none) and winked.

“Catch me if you can, Mr. Wolf.”

And Barty shrunk into his own animagus form - an osprey - and let out a cry before swooping down to pick up something that looked suspiciously like a mink from the eaves of one of the lower towers and took off towards the grounds.

“Fucking son of a bitch.” Remus cursed as he tried catching his breath, still sitting half out of the Ravenclaw window. “Why do we put up with those two?”

Regulus shrugged with all the nonchalance he could muster. “‘Cause they’re cute?”

Remus sighed and hit his head against the windowsill. “They’re so sodding lucky that they are…”

“Come on.” Regulus said, offering Remus a hand and helping him out of the window. “Unfortunately, I know exactly where they went.”

Barty loved nothing more than the feeling of his feet sinking into the sediment of the Black Lake below his feet. He also loved the feeling of being near you, his Treasure. He also loved the idea of two handsome men frantically searching for you, and him by proxy.

All this to say, Barty was having a really nice night.

“Junior!”

Barty’s face morphed into a Cheshire cat grin as he turned towards the voice of the man and his boyfriend as they stormed towards the waters edge.

“Well hello, Lupin. How nice of you to join us; care for a dip?”

“Get out of the water.” Regulus drawled in a bored tone.

“Why would I do such a thing? The water’s lovely, I’m in wonderful company, and we’re going to feed the Giant Squid.” He argued.

“Barty.” Remus barked with all the severity he could manage. “You don’t know how to swim.”

Barty scoffed indignantly. “Yeah, well…neither can Reggie!”

“That’s why I’m standing on the shore you absolute bell-end.” Regulus countered quickly.

Remus turned his furious gaze into a bemused one as he took in Regulus. “Do you really not know how to swim either?”

“None of us can!” You shouted from your disturbingly deeper place within the lake as the gentle waves nearly lapped against your skirt.

“Oh, for the love of- you know what? This summer, everyone’s getting swimming lessons.” Remus proclaimed.

“Ou, does that mean I get to see you in your swim trunks, Lupin?” Barty called.

Remus, without missing a beat, started towards Barty, walking into the lake in his shoes and all. “You could see me right now, in less, for free, Junior. You only had to ask.”

Barty let out a screech and tried running towards you, albeit in slow motion on account of the water’s resistance. “Y/N! Treasure! Help! Make him stop!”

“No can do, bubs.” You called back in monotone, still throwing chunks of bread towards the middle of the Lake in hopes of eliciting the company of one Giant Squid.

“Dove, you’re going to catch a cold; get out of the water.” Remus called to you, pants soaked up to his knees after giving up on chasing Barty in the water.

“We’re trying to make friends!” You whined.

“You cannot make friends with a squid, amour. He will eat you.” Regulus explained from the shore.

“He wouldn’t eat his friend.” You scoffed.

“Dove.” Remus barked again.

“I want to see the the big water kitty!” You whined again, turning towards the boys and offering the most pathetic pout you could muster.

Regulus scoffed from his place, still dry on the shore, Remus let out a pained sigh, and Barty all but skipped towards you.

“A valiant death it will be!” He cheered before he felt the fabric of his jumper being summoned by an accio, dragging him unceremoniously through the water towards Remus.

“No! Ah! AH! STRANGER DANGER. STRANGER DANGER!” He shrieked as Remus threw him over his shoulder.

“Okay, well, now you’re just showing off, Lupin.” He muttered, crossing his arm petulantly as Remus held his free hand out to you.

“Dove, please? Come inside with me?”

You looked distressed at this and moved obediently towards Remus. “Are you mad at me?” You asked timidly.

Barty could actually feel Remus’ body soften beneath him as he allowed some of his tension to dissipate. “Of course not, dovey. I love you.”

You leaned over and pecked a kiss to the corner of his mouth before turning into your animagus mink and swimming to the shore, crawling up Regulus’ pant leg (who admonished you in faux contempt for ruining his trousers), and allowed him to carry you back to the castle.

Barty was feeling petulant about the whole matter of being chased and chastised so decided then that he was going to force Remus to carry him all the way back to the castle in silence.

Unfortunately for Barty, he hated silence.

He was at least proud he’d made it to the dungeons before giving up on his vow of silence.

“You’re really not upset with her?” Barty asked quietly from his current prison. He could feel Remus’ head tilt in confusion, though his steps never faltered.

“Of course not?” He responded as a question.

“Hmmm.” Barty said, racking his brain for something to upset or fluster this man.

“Oh! What about me having slept with both your boyfriend and your girlfriend?”

“What about it?” Remus asked plainly.

“Well…aren’t you upset about that?”

Remus scoffed and adjusted his grip on Barty, hand’s migrating none too innocently up the back of his thighs. “Junior. The only thing I’m upset about is that you haven’t slept with all three of us. I don’t like feeling left out, you know?”

Barty made a strangled sound as he struggled in Remus’ grip to no avail, causing you and Regulus to chuckle from a few strides ahead as you all stepped into the Slytherin common room.

“We told you he was smooth, Barty.” You chuckled.

“You should hear him in bed.” Regulus taunted, reaching over to pinch Barty’s arse, causing him to yelp and start cursing at him.

Remus relented and put Barty down, who immediately made for Regulus’ throat.

“Easy, Junior.” Remus chuckled, pulling him back by the shoulder. “You wanna keep Reg around, don’t you?”

Barty harrumphed and crossed his arms indignantly.

“We’d like to keep you around.” Remus continued.

Barty grumbled again and let out a quiet. “Fine.”

Remus beamed at him, which was very alarming if you asked Barty, as they stepped into his and Regulus’ shared dorm; Rosier and Avery were already asleep in their beds with their curtains drawn.

“Yeah? You’ll let us keep you?” Remus asked.

“I said fine, Lupin.” He bit back.

“Great. So we’re in a relationship then.” He explained simply, causing Barty to level him with a severe glare. “How dare you, Lupin. Never say such vile things to me again.” He spat before storming towards the boy’s bathroom.

Regulus groaned and grabbed his own toiletries before making his way to the washroom behind him. “I’ll go make sure he doesn’t try to drown himself in the shower again.”

Remus shook his head and changed into his pyjamas before climbing into Regulus’ bed and pulling you towards him.

“So, explain this to me, Dove. Why is Barty the way he is?”

You snorted a laugh and turned to face him. “You’re going to have to be way more specific, love.”

Remus chuckled and ran his hands up and down your back. “He likes Reg. He loves you. He seems sweet on me. We invite him to be ours and he accepts - but runs when we make it mean something?”

You smiled up at your boyfriend and booped his nose with a perfectly manicured finger - which Remus found very confusing considering you spend your spare time scaling the rafters of grand ceilings and enticing Giant Squids from their hiding places. “Barty doesn’t understand, Rem. He wouldn’t know love if it punched him right in the face.”

Remus could feel his brows furrow and he pulled you in tighter to his chest. “Dove…love doesn’t punch you in the face?”

Apparently that had been the wrong thing to say as you rolled your eyes in exasperation and threw your head back onto the pillow. “You see? That’s the kind of thing someone who grew up loved would know.”

It’s not that Remus ever really forgot to worry about you per se, but he sometimes really worried about you Purebloods.

At some point in the night, you had apparently decided Remus and Regulus’ bed was too hot and moved to Barty’s. Remus would have been slightly more petulant about the matter if he hadn’t thought you looked absolutely precious with Barty resting his head on your chest.

He looked so innocent in his sleep.

Sleep clearly didn’t know him very well.

Remus was shocked when the four of you entered the Great Hall for breakfast and Barty actually followed you three to the Gryffindor table. Though Remus was trying to play it cool, he couldn’t help but feel a flutter of hope surge within him at what that might mean for the three four of you.

Remus was just about to bite into his toast when a sultry voice sounded from behind Barty.

“Hello, Bartemus.” Amelia Bones sing-songed as she trailed a finger up Barty’s arm.

His brows furrowed almost comically from above the rim of his coffee cup before he slowly lowered it and turned to consider the Hufflepuff.

“Bones. Can I help you?” He asked, punctuating the word help as he plucked her fingers from his being between his two fingers as if he’d found something really quite disgusting on his person.

“I was thinking, you could help me, perhaps tonight?”

Barty turned to look at her incredulously.

“Help with what, Amelia? I’m really quite busy.” He spat, gesturing wildly to his cup of coffee.

“An orgasm or two? Gods, you’re pissy in the mornings.”

Barty scoffed, sounding completely scandalised as he clutched at non-existent pearls adorning his neck. “I am sitting here with my beloveds, Amelia. For shame. You see this lot? I’m theirs, capiche?”

Amelia looked bemusedly at the group of you before shaking her head in confusion. “Whatever you say, Junior.”

She moseyed on away, and Barty turned back towards his cup of coffee. “The gall of some people, honestly.” He said in exasperation, downing the rest of his still hot coffee and standing unceremoniously.

“Well, I best be off. Things to fuck up, people to scare. Tah-tah.” He called, pressing a quick kiss to your hair as he left the Great Hall.

Suddenly, realisation dawned on Remus.

“Ah, I see. So no to a relationship, but he is ours.”

You and Regulus chorused a hum of acknowledgement.

“That’s just how Barty operates. You’ll get used to it.” You explained, still not looking up from the Daily Prophet you had been reading all this time.

Remus didn’t mind getting used to that; not if it meant he managed to get everything he wanted.

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agendabymooner · 6 months

Text

ice ice baby ! oliver b. x ofc (driver!raikkonen!reader)

summary: kimi and vera raikkonen’s eldest daughter, romania ‘(a)roma’ coppola-raikkonen, debuted in formula one as an aston martin rookie for the mexico grand prix free practice alongside her designated ‘best friend’ ollie bearman, who drove for haas.

AND everyone seemed to be interested in their peculiar friendship… which was funny because they don’t seem to be friends in that way seeing as they referred to themselves by their ship name ‘the ice bears.’

content warning: use of explicit language, fluff, mentions of overprotective!dad!kimi raikkonen, simp!ollie, pet names, flirting on main, established relationship-esque (friends to lovers), brief mentions of coppola!ofc (vera) x kimi raikkonen, f2 drivers clowning each other, we bare bears reference

note: making this because i’m trying to immerse myself in other categories of motorsport that isn’t just f1 🫶 here’s some ollie bearman content

a - n masterlist

o - z masterlist

if you’d like to get on one of my taglists, check this post out!

tagged astonmartinf1, artgp_official, olliebearman

liked by theopourchaire21, arthur_leclerc, frederikvestiofficial

theopourchaire21 what happened to “through thick and thin theo” 🤧 what happened to “i’ll tag you in our photos later théo”

jolauriraikkonen my sister is a liar

kimimatiasraikkonen watch your words, johann

jolauriraikkonen oops my bad

frederikvestiofficial why am i not here 💀 i thought you’re gonna post our dump pics from the paddock but screw me and théo ig 😕

romaraikkonen 🥲 why am i being attacked

jackdoohan wait y’all got photos? 😀

user1 LMFAO NOT JACK BEING LEFT OUT BY THE QUADRUPLETS 😭✋ poor bby

artgp_official green looks good on you 🤩💚 liked by romaraikkonen

astonmartinf1 ice ice baby! 🥶🧊 liked by romaraikkonen

veracopparaikko happy to see you and the boys, aroma 😍 liked by romaraikkonen

theopourchaire21 mrs. raikkonen 🫶

jackdoohan 💪💗

frederikvestiofficial happy to see you too vera! ✨🙏

olliebearman theopourchaire21 jackdoohan frederikvestiofficial 🙂🙂 liked by romaraikkonen

user2 he’s staking his claim fr 😩

kimimatiasraikkonen 🤔🫥

user3 RIP OLLIE 😭

arthur_leclerc favouritism now that i see it 🙂

olliebearman as you should

user4 girlypop is one step away from barking at everyone and keeping roma from the boys 😭😭😭

olliebearman user4 🐕

user4 on it boss 🫡

tagged olliebearman

liked by felipedrugovich, victormartinsfr, arthur_leclerc

user1 ICE BEARS CONTENT 🥶😍

ferraridriveracademy the icegirl and our favourite simp 💗🫡

arthur_leclerc the most nauseating duo in the academy 🤩

theopourchaire21 real 💪

romaraikkonen cry about it 😩🙏

veracopparaikko soooo cute 🥰 liked by romaraikkonen

kimimatiasraikkonenn no he’s not 😑 liked by romaraikkonen

romaraikkonen DAD PLZ— 💀

user2 at least we know which raikkonen favours ollie and which one would rather leave him out in the cold

user3 live laugh love overprotective kimi

olliebearman grind on deez n— liked and pinned by romaraikkonen

romaraikkonen pinning this so everyone in the grid can shame you 😋

arthur_leclerc ollie… 😰

frederikvestiofficial jail behaviour

victormartinsfr put him in the doghouse

kimimatiasraikkonen 😐

theopourchaire21 TELL HIM KIMI!!!

olliebearman that’s my biggest regret ever.

romaraikkonen as it should

user4 y’all worried about putting ollie in the doghouse when they’re out here actually posting couple shit??? uhm????

user5 was this allowed???

romaraikkonen yeah

arthur_leclerc kimi caught her and ollie kissing once that’s why they’re open about it now haha 😂

romaraikkonen ARTHUR!!

olliebearman the lad isn’t wrong 😑

♡ moony’s reminder 🅶 (general): @hiraethrhapsody @avaleineandafryingpan

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wifeofsnowbaird · 5 months

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Can you write something with Katniss meeting Coriolanus wife. And she's like 'he wasn't always like this' ???

thats so depressinggggg but absolutely its my job. sorry its so short tho, i tried but this felt like an end ykwim?

He was my man, but now he's just a stranger...

(no ship ig, kinda Hunger Games trilogy! Coryo x wife!reader)

Queen of Hearts vibes

Summary: Katniss meets the First Lady of Panem.

Meeting [Name] Snow was a slow anticipated reach into the tresses of the Capital 'nobility'.

Katniss was slightly terrified, having heard that she was a scary woman who would order Peacekeepers to cut your head if you even passed her.

All Snow's are Lions, she'd learned, aiming for nothing but the kill.

But looking at her now, with her long, shimmering, dark blue dress cascading over her frame and her sad [e/c] eyes gazing into the bright rose garden, she had nothing but sympathy in her veins for Snow's wife. By her tensed body, Katniss knew she noticed her walk into the room.

"You know, that rose garden and I, we aren't much different. He prizes us but he says we do nothing but wither." She gazed at the brunette, analyzing Katniss' emotions through her bright green eyes.

" He wasn't always like this...I miss those times."

Katniss burst into laughter, shaking her head as disbelief struck her core.

" No, a man like Snow was born evil, and they deserve to rot in hell."

A slow, sad sigh fell from the First Lady's lips, reminiscing about the life she had with Snow before his yearning for power.

" That's what I thought too, till I fell for nothing but his sweet smile..."

#ballad of songbirds and snakes #tom blyth #coriolanus snow x reader #tom blyth imagine #the hunger games trilogy #the hunger games #fear and hunger #cruelty #President Snow's wife #president snow #tbosas fanfiction #thg fanfiction #thg series #hunger games #thg movies #district 12 #the capital

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starvine · 1 year

Text

☾ ⋆* kiss it better

pairing: neteyam sully x fem!omaticaya reader

genre: fluff, angst

synopsis: all you wanted to do was serve your people. however, when you get injured, your mission is cut short. neteyam insists upon patching you up and decides to explain his concerns for your well-being and future together.

warnings: battle stuff, guns, blood, battle injuries, medical jargon, stitches, minor swearing (?), allusions to mating/sex ig, aged-up neteyam

word count: 7.9k

notes: IT’S HERE! i’m very excited to have started writing again, and although i’m very casual about when i write, i hope to be somewhat consistent lol. enjoy this for now, i have more planned for the future! i hope you all enjoy, pls reblog/comment/etc if you feel so inclined <33

The air was tense today, thick with disciplined focus as you keep your ears alert for any incoming airships. Reeking of smoke and burning metal, a scent that is foreign and unpleasant to your nose, you remain aware of everything and anything. Gray clouds billowing and a pungent smell that cling to the back of your throat like a hand with a vice grip—nothing was natural.

Tilting your forehead forward, you hope your visor, decorated with teeth and interwoven pieces, will shield your eyes from the wind. You hold your bow tightly, the wood smooth against your fingers as you use your other hand to guide your ikran swiftly through the air.

“Calm, calm,” you soothe her, tapping your fingers along her strong neck.

You’re anxious today. Not because of the imminent arrival of the Sky People, their ships ready to fire metal bullets at you at any second; you’ve dealt with that many times before. No, the reason you’re nervous is because of Neteyam.

Today is Neteyam’s first day participating in the raid—well, his first raid on the ground with his father’s permission—rather than being a part of the aerial surveillance team. You tried to insist that you should accompany him, but, due to his wishes, you remained in the air beside his mother.

“Do you see anything yet?” Neytiri’s voice asks over the intercom.

Bringing your fingers to your throat to press the responding button, you reply, “Nothing yet.”

“I’m going to fly down to help gather some of the gear. You stay here,” she orders, raising her bow to signal that she and her ikran were descending.

“Let us know if you spot any bogeys. We’ve got some heavy-duty gear and need as much time as possible,” Jake informs you over the intercom.

“Roger that, sir,” you say, steering your ikran closer to where the enemy would most likely be approaching.

Ears twitching back and forth, you attempt to pick up the whir of an aircraft amongst the orders commanded, the creaks and minor explosions occurring from the Meg-Lev train your people have intercepted, and the wind blowing past you. You hope that maybe you could track a scent, sniffing the air a couple of times to no avail. It’s all smoke and metal. The skies were calm, except for your ikran’s screeching, however, they couldn’t be for long. There was no way those demons would allow your people to escape that easily.

“Hey,” Neteyam breathes over the intercom, a slight huff of your name. You could hear the smile on his face. “How’re things looking up there?”

“What happened to using my code name?” you question, peering over your ikran in an attempt to find him along the ground. “I’ll tell you if I see anything. I know how to do my job, you know.”

“Just double checking,”

You scoff, guiding your ikran to the right. “Maybe you should focus on gathering all of the gear instead,”

“Oh, really? Maybe you should-”

Suddenly, your ears flex forward, focused on the faint whirring of something mechanical and man-made; something that was not naturally occurring within your world.

“Airships spotted! Everyone, move!” you shout over the intercom. You yelp out into the open air, pumping your bow in tandem with the three shouts you release to alert your fellow brothers and sisters in battle.

Just as people begin clambering for their ikrans and direhorses, the two Scorpions start firing. The relentless pop of military guns fills your ears, causing your tail to swish frantically and your ears to perk forward.

Using a high pitch, you signal for your ikran to dive, swooping up and under the two fighter pilots.

“Do not engage! I repeat, do not engage! I want minimal casualties today,” Jake commands over the intercom, the background full of shouts and grunts.

“Jake, I’ve got to take out these two airships. They’re already taking down ikrans,” you spoke, peering up at the airships as you stealthily soar below.

Just then, Neteyam responds.

“No! Listen to my father, do not engage. I can lead the people to safety,”

“There won’t be any people to lead if I don’t take these airships down.”

Neteyam groans your name in warning, the sound of shouts heard from all around. “Would you listen for once?”

Jake barks your name, frustrated and frantic. “Get out of there! Get back to the High Camp!” he orders. You begin mapping out the plan of your attack. “That is a direct order!”

“I’m sorry, Jake,” you respond, ignoring all that comes after.

Your ikran shoots straight up into the air, coming close to the tail-end of the Scorpion gunship. You arch over the top of the gunship, upside down and looping over to the front side. The sun high in the sky and its beams creating a glare on the glass makes it difficult for you to spot the pilot. Upon finding his location, you draw the string of your bow taught, ready to fire.

“Incoming! Enemy on-”

You shriek upon release. The arrow flies straight through the glass, nailing your target right in the chest.

The gunship begins to tilt forward, preparing for its decline. As a hunter and warrior, it was your duty to pay respects to the creatures you killed in order to sustain the way of life. Kneeling over them, declaring your thanks, and wishing for their safe return to rest amongst the Great Mother was a sacred practice. However, as the gunship crashed and blew up in flames, hot and angry, you felt no thanks or remorse. They did not deserve to rest peacefully, and they didn’t even deserve to die on the Great Mother’s sacred soil. Their spirits deserved to walk alone, isolated and cold from the warm glow of the afterlife.

“You skxawng! What the hell are you doing?” Neteyam screams.

Looking around, you see the green back of his ikran, its rider perched on top with no visible concerns except for the fury etched on his face.

“I got this! It’s just one more,” you insist, positioning an arrow on your bow, eyeing the last gunship.

“May the Great Mother help you when I knock-” and with that, he’s easily ignored.

The wind whips past you, high and soft, almost like a whisper from Eywa that she too felt the tensions of battle. You would do anything to soothe her pain. She could not endure the suffering of this war much longer.

Tightening your grip on your ikran, her blues providing a stark contrast to the grayness of the military equipment, you attack from the rear yet again. Guns firing, you duck, placing yourself as flat as you can get against her back. However, once you approach the opening of the ship, where all of the massive guns were placed, you sit up, firing quickly.

The scream and weak grunt you heard confirms that it was a successful hit. Loading your bow with another arrow, you soar underneath the aircraft, looping around until you have the high ground. Securing your aim, your fingers release the string until the arrow flies straight into one of the Scorpion's propellers. A small explosion soon turned into a large one, the ship dipping to its left and falling from its dominant space in the sky to the dirt.

However, so were you.

You must’ve underestimated how close you were to the ship, your eagerness to protect your people and the Great Mother clouded your judgment.

The sound and burst of light, as well as the force, must’ve spooked your companion as she, too, seemed to have lost her place in the sky. She tumbles towards the ground, shrieks and roars released into the open air. Jaw clenched, you tried to convince her to gain control to no avail.

“Come on!” you shout, knuckles turning a pale blue with the tight grip you had.

As you neared the ground, panic began to set in. Your ears lay flat against your head in an attempt to not become overwhelmed by the wind, you tried to think quickly.

You could stay with your ikran, but you would both get injured; you could also disconnect from her and leap from the group, in hopes of only injuring yourself.

Deciding on the latter, you had one plea for the Great Mother:

“Please don’t let Neteyam kill me.”

Disconnecting your kuru, you leap the rest of the way to the ground, the shock of the force of your fall causing you to fall instead of landing perfectly on your feet. The ship crashes a couple of yards in front of you, the force of the blast propelling you forward.

Rolling and skidding along the dirt, pieces of gravel and discarded glass and metal tear at your skin. Red begins to bubble up along the surface, the violent opposite of your blue skin.

Tumbling down a hill, you lose your grip on your bow, the wood being left behind in your trail. The burning sensation of your flesh being scraped away keeps you alert, blindly clutching at anything to break your fall.

Eventually, you slow to a stop, landing on your stomach with a mouthful of dirt. Spitting and coughing up the soil, you take a minute to catch your breath. With a slight raise of your head, you look at the ship as the flames crackle and cause a film of sweat to break out on your skin. That hunk of metal was truly ugly against the backdrop of the forest.

You begin to slowly sit up, a sharp pain coming from your side. A cut, not deep enough to need stitches, slowly oozes blood down your left rib, crimson staining the skin. It looks swollen, screaming to be disinfected immediately. Reaching behind you to check for any more severe wounds, you arch away from your nimble fingers just upon a light graze. The heat from the explosion must’ve irritated the skin, causing soreness and slight bubbling in some places.

Minor scrapes along your knees and elbows from what you could see and feel, makes you thank Eywa for her protection and the benign wounds. Stumbling onto your feet, you catch sight of something unnatural.

A small piece of metal protrudes from the side of your thigh, embedded into the flesh. Staring at the shrapnel, you’re reminded that your world doesn’t just belong to you anymore. Even if the Sky People were to disappear and return back to their planet, the scientists would remain here. Their clunky gear and massive structures would continue to reside amongst the nature of Pandora.

Something about that notion makes your heart sink.

You lightly touch the silvery metal, trying to gauge how deep the foreign object must be. It felt stiff and unwilling to relent to your touch, confirming that it was not something you could brush off. Taking a step forward, a broad, aching pain festers throughout your leg. It hurt less if you put less pressure on the limb, however, that would be hard to do on your journey back to the High Camp.

Picking up your bow from the ground, arrows broken and scattered around, you slowly mount your ikran, muttering expletives to yourself at the pain that dwelled throughout your entire body.

Neteyam was surely going to kill you.

Upon your arrival, after an arduous flight back home, you slowly slid off your companion onto the uneven rock. Blood oozed out from around the metal, the object having dug deeper into the surface the more you moved. With one hand clutching your rib and another trying to steady the object, you hoped to stumble into a healing area before you were noticed by a Sully.

Turns out, you’re not as stealthy as you thought.

“She’s back! She’s back!” a high-pitched cheer sounded, a small girl bouncing towards you. Tuk’s big grin slowly faded into a look of concern and worry as she sized up your injuries. “Mom! Kiri! She’s hurt!”

The younger girl prances over to you, lifting your arms and examining your body from front to back. You feel the small girl brush against your tail, which was agitatedly flicking back and forth.

With a sigh of your name, you see Tuk’s mother and elder sister approach you, war paint still decorating Neytiri’s face in vibrant greens and yellows. She gasps upon spotting the dirt, blood, and bruising that has blossomed across your skin, tucking a stray hair behind your ear as her eyes fill with worry.

“We must get her to grandmother,” Kiri announces to her mother, clutching your upper arm as softly as she could without hurting you.

“There’s no need. I can do it myself,” you try to assure her, taking a fumbling limp forward.

“There is a piece of metal sticking out of your leg.”

You glance down, almost as if you hadn’t noticed it at all before. It was a futile attempt, especially as you used your fingers to brace the object, preventing it from moving too much. “There is?”

“Damn, bro!” Lo’ak exclaims, waltzing up beside you and trying his best to not laugh at your given failure. “Looks like someone got their ass handed to them by some Sky People,”

Hissing at him, you weakly push at his chest to show him that you weren’t interested in his jokes right now.

“Lo’ak!” his mother scolds, hitting him upside the head.

“What?! What I’d do?!”

Then, the two people you desperately wanted to avoid came into view: Neteyam and his father. Jake had a stern, militant look on his face—a facade that seemed to follow him everywhere he went. Neteyam’s face was set into a deep frown, a look that was a delicate cross between his mother’s and father’s disappointed faces.

“Well, would you look at the time? Looks like I better start tending to-” you attempt to walk away, only to be kept in place by Neytiri’s firm hand on your shoulder. It’s not like you’d be able to escape them as quickly or swiftly as you would typically be able to. You–apparently–had a piece of metal sticking out of your leg.

“What the hell were you thinking?!” Jake scolds still dressed head to toe in his fusion of Omaticaya and Sky military gear. “Disobeying direct orders? That isn’t something I expected from you.”

Casting your eyes downwards, you hope your flat ears and limp tail would get you out of this scolding quicker than it would’ve if he was scolding Neteyam or Lo’ak. Typically, avoiding his gaze would show that you felt regret—which, in this case, you didn’t really—and he’d let you move on. However, it’s hard to keep your eyes fixed on the ground when someone gets into your line of view.

Neteyam crouches down, face coming into view as if he’s trying to catch your fake performance. Instead, he places two hands, worn and calloused from all of the years of fighting and defending his people, onto your cheeks. He tilts your face upwards so he can view you from his natural height, allowing him to view each scrape and bruise in proper lighting. His lips twitch into a grimace, thumbs grazing over a small cut that must be on your cheek because, although there’s a faint sting, there’s no leaking blood.

Now, everyone knew about you and Neteyam. It’s not like it was kept a secret. Wherever you went, he followed; whatever he was doing, you were right there beside him. In the years to come, you would become his mate and that was an unspoken decision between you and him. Well, there was also an unspoken rule between Neteyam and the rest of the boys his age to not even glance at you, or else he’d have their tails. However, no matter how much people smiled softly whenever you’d exchange fond glances or spare looks when you two ran off alone, it wasn’t like you publicly displayed much physical affection. Nonetheless in front of his parents.

He unloops your visor from behind your ears, handing it to his brother without his gaze leaving your face. As soon as his hands leave you, they return just as quickly. His fingers smooth over your face, confirming that you’re breathing and here in front of him—something he’s very grateful for. Your stupidity—not so much.

“You’re such a skxawng,” he chides, tilting your face towards his.

“Yeah, yeah whatever. It’s not like I’m the one who took down—not one—but two whole- ow!” you yelp, stumbling forward towards the young man.

Tuk looks at you guiltily, one finger outstretched as if she was prodding at something.

Kiri steps forward, pushing Tuktirey out of the way in order to re-examine your back.

“We should take her to grandmother,” she insists, “now.”

You roll your eyes, trying to continue with your act of not being nearly as injured as you appear, but the longer you stand, the more it becomes not true. As the adrenaline wears off, the soreness and incessant throbbing grow throughout your muscles and bones. Your rib and leg are still oozing blood, warm and tacky against your skin. Neteyam loops an arm around you, careful to avoid the blisters and welts that decorate various places on your back.

His free hand reaches for the hand that hangs limply over his shoulder, intertwining your fingers and giving them a light squeeze. “It’ll all be okay,”

“Yeah, I know. Just ‘cause I’m walking a bit funny doesn’t mean I’m dying,”

You could say that then, but you sure as hell can’t say that now.

If there was one thing about Mo’at, it was that she couldn’t care less if her remedies stung like a bitch as long as they cured you thoroughly. So now, as she smears a paste along your back—the sensation as bitter and frigid as the Northernmost part of any mountain—that bites at your skin, you kind of wish you were dead. Or at least knocked out.

This isn’t even the worst of it.

Once the stinging fades more into a relaxing cool, Mo’at instructs you to lean backward so she can assess your torso. The older woman crouches next to you, hands hovering over the wound as if Eywa was sending her a direct message on the best way to heal you. Neteyam sits on the other side of you, clutching your hand with a grip that seems more like it’s to reassure him than you, his other hand brushing your hair away from your face.

Neytiri stays close to her mother, observing or advising what she believes to be the next course of action—just as a tsakarem should do. Kiri stays by your feet, grinding and mashing up various plants and syrups that could be used to aid with disinfecting your wounds. Lo’ak and his father stay near the door, ready to leave if someone else should need assistance with anything to do with the war effort. However, as everyone stays well within their place, performing their necessary task, Tuk couldn’t seem to sit still.

“Is she going to need stitches?” Tuk asks, peering over her eldest brother.

Neteyam removes his hand from your hair, slightly readjusting the younger’s weight so she doesn’t put too much pressure on him, in turn, putting pressure on you.

The Tsahìk doesn’t look up from your wound, eyes brightening as if Eywa had finally delivered her guidance to the woman. “No, she will just need to rest. I would advise very minimal movement for at least seven days,” the woman says, being handed a bowl of yellowish sap.

“Seven days? But I need to be out there, it’s my duty to fight,” you plead, growing restless and inching upwards.

Neteyam pushes you back down, delicate but firm fingers pressing against your sternum. “Down,” he murmurs.

“It is not my fault you did not listen to orders,” the older woman retorts, using a brush-like leaf to observe the consistency of the paste before lowering it toward your injury.

“Yeah, well it’s not my fault that I just happened to save- oh, Great Mother! Holy sh-” you yelp upon Mo’at contact.

Neteyam presses a hand over your mouth, sending you a stern glare. “Not in front of the Tsahìk,” he hushes, palm warm against your lips.

You groan against his hand, face twisting and back arching in pain. Unlike the gel thinly spread across your back, there was no relief from this paste. Mo’at continued to slather it all across your skin, insisting that the more you move, the more it will hurt. You squeeze Neteyam’s hand, feeling the bones shift with how strong your grip is. If you’re hurting him, you can’t tell. The look of pain on his face seems to be linked to his feelings about your injuries, your pain. Always the doting lover.

Once Mo’at wraps the injury, using both Na’vi and human medical wraps, she places a palm over the injury, thanking the Great Mother. Then, she looks at your leg.

Your leg was held down by Kiri throughout the excursion, as she didn’t want the shrapnel to lodge itself deeper into the skin and muscle. At the base of your leg, a piece of twine is firmly wrapped around the skin to lightly restrict blood flow. The skin was not pinched, nor did you lose feeling in your leg as you would’ve if the twine was used as a makeshift tourniquet, however, your thigh still resisted against the band.

You haven’t cried yet, however, just with her eyes boring into your leg you feel as if you’re about to sob.

“Please don’t take it out. I don’t- I don’t want to have to do this anymore,” you begin to blubber, looking at Neteyam as you try to sit up.

“Shh, shh,” he placates, stroking your cheek. “It’s okay. I’m here, I promise I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

“I’ve been hurting this whole time,” you groan, “what the hell have you been-”

Then, the last two people you want to see walk into the room: Norm and Max.

“I grabbed them as soon as I heard,” says Spider, following close behind.

“No. No, no, no. Get the hell away from me,” you say, instantly shooting up and trying your best to scoot away, even as Kiri still holds down your leg.

Neteyam says your name so sweetly, so full of fondness that a chill is sent up your spine—a chill that isn’t caused by the cooling medicine or a shock of pain. “He’s here to help.”

“I don’t want him here,” you spit, speaking Na’vi to the boy sitting beside you.

“We have no choice,” he reasons, his voice dropping an octave. “They will be much quicker with their equipment than with ours. I promise that my grandmother will heal and treat you, but we need their help to make sure that there’s no extra damage that is beyond what the eye can see.”

You shake your head, refusing to listen to him and averting your gaze.

His lithe fingers reach for your chin, turning you back towards him. There he goes again; always making you feel like the blushing fool, especially in front of his family.

“I will not let them hurt you.”

What a fucking liar.

Taking a team of three women plus Norm to hold your leg down, Max begins to lower his tweezers toward the piece of metal. With the first tug, you begin screaming. The pressure and the resistance between Max’s tweezers and the artificial shard against your tender skin and muscle caused your free leg to kick, hands tightening at your sides and clinging onto Neteyam. The fact that your whole body was tense, each muscle spasming, probably didn’t help what was already a difficult procedure.

“Damn, she’s strong,” Norm comments, adding more pressure in an attempt to hold your leg down. “Spider, help us out.”

You continue to sob, reaching for Neteyam to claw at his shoulder. If you’re hurting him or breaking skin, he doesn’t tell you. Instead, he cradles you as you cry against his leg. Ripping your hand from his, you squeeze his leg, nose pressed against his thigh to hide your face. There’s no guarantee that half of the clan hasn’t heard you by now, nor that a few people have poked their heads in to see who the hell was screaming so damn loud. You were well known. There’s no way anybody wouldn’t recognize that it was you who was being surgically tortured. However, if you could save some dignity by hiding yourself against Neteyam, you would do just that.

“I’m never letting them near my body again,” you weep, gripping tight to the blue skin beneath you.

Neteyam rakes his fingers through your hair, hands petting any inch of skin that has brought you comfort over the years. He knows you like the back of his hands. Playing with your hair puts you to sleep, rubbing his thumb across your cheek makes you keen, following the slope of your nose makes you smile, and touching your ear makes you quiet. Using this knowledge, Neteyam’s hands roam to any expanse of skin that he can reach. He must look mad, with busy fingers and frantic eyes, but he can’t help himself. His chest hurts when he sees you like this, and if he needs to kill someone to make you feel better, he’d gladly do that.

“It’s almost out. We’re almost done,” he assures you in a soft tone, getting close to your ear.

Your ears, which have been laying flat and folding over periodically finally perk up and away from your skull—a sense of relief. It’s quick-lived before they fall back against your hair, but he sees it as a small win.

“Can you dress it for me?” you plea, voice breaking painfully.

Who is he to deny you?

“All done!” Max cheers, placing the flat piece of shrapnel into an emesis basin.

The clang of the metal against metal causes you to abruptly sit up. Neteyam’s hand is on your shoulder, but for the first time, it’s not to push you back down. He lets you take your time viewing the sizable gash in your leg, an injury that without a doubt needs extra aid. You whimper at the sight, not necessarily at the pain, but because you knew what this means: you would be under strict supervision at the battle scene. You couldn’t be trusted to be alone, especially as you were a great friend of the Sully’s and Neteyam’s prospective mate.

Falling back into Neteyam, the cries you let out are softer but still cause your body to shake. Neteyam rubs his cheek against yours when you hide your face in his neck, tears causing the blue skin to become slick and tacky. He readjusts your top which has moved around during all of your painful squirming, protecting your modesty. The beads land softly against your shoulder, arms holding you snuggly against him. He tucks your hair behind your ear, giving him a view of the ear that is decorated with various pieces of Omaticaya jewelry. An orange bead, delicately dangling from your lobe, was a gift from him.

“It makes me feel wiser during battle,” you told him once before sending an arrow straight through the eye of a fish that swam around in the pond.

He touches it lightly, reminding you that everything is alright.

“No! She’s going to need stitches!” Tuk whimpers, a frown deeply set on her face. Even through your crying, Neteyam catches the faintest hint of a smile.

Mo’at begins to drip water over the wound, clearing away any blood that may have leaked down your leg despite the twine restricting your blood flow.

It’s silent besides Max, Norm, and Jake’s mumbling outside of the tent as Mo’at preps a needle and thread. Kiri, Neytiri, and Spider have since released your leg, observing you and the Tsahìk. Just as Mo’at blesses the needle and thread, Neteyam speaks up.

“I’ll do it.”

Mo’at looks at her grandson, her gaze strong but understanding. The white bone needle stays pinched between her two fingers, amber eyes unwavering.

“Neteyam, let your grandmother-“

“I said I’ll do it.” he hushes, lip curling in order to hide a scowl.

His mother looks at her own, a non-verbal communication occurring between their stares. Eventually, Neytiri acquiesces, standing up and taking a step away from you.

Mo’at hands him the needle, placing a worn but beautiful hand on your leg.

“Return here tomorrow so I can check on the wound,” she orders. You nod, eyes still teary before the older woman stands with her daughter, ready to move on to the other warriors who need their assistance.

Once his mother and grandmother leave, Neteyam grows restless.

“Everyone out, please.”

Kiri scoffs at him, still seated by your feet. “You can‘t be serious,”

“Out! Get out!” he hisses, fangs bared at his sister and the human boy beside her. “You have done nothing!”

“I wouldn’t call holding down her leg for nothing. I’ll have bruises for the next week,” Spider dismisses, standing up with Lo’ak, who is already headed towards the exit.

“Out!” he shouts one final time, his siblings leaving as his tail flicks back and forth with irritation.

It isn’t until they’re gone, that Neteyam leaves your right side, scrambling and pouncing over you in order to come in contact with your left leg.

The tent is silent as he begins his work. The process doesn’t hurt much, a gentle prick or pinch here and there; you’re not sure whether it’s because your nerves are shot and can’t detect pain anymore or because Neteyam is good at his work. It could be both. Before you know it, the wound is closed and a row of sutures stares back at you in a familiar Na’vi sewing pattern. The skin is even, nothing too uncomfortable, and although there’s bruising, it appears to be that everything will be okay.

You reach out to touch the stitches with a shaky hand, only to be slapped away. “Uh uh, don’t touch,” he tuts, eyes focused and mouth slightly ajar in concentration.

He grabs under your knee, bending it at the joint in order to prop it up so he can place a bandage over the sutures.

“To protect them,” he informs you, wrapping the gauze around your thigh.

He’s very quiet throughout, a reaction you were not expecting. Neteyam has always been logical, methodical; he never steps out of line or does something rash unless it’s for the means of protecting those he loves. Always quick to action, he’s usually the first to help and the first to reprimand someone (usually Lo’ak) for their stupidity. That would be the typical reaction. However, now he looked almost forlorn.

Once he’s done, he fully stands for the first time since you entered the tent. He begins to rummage through his grandmother’s remedies that sit in wooden jars and crystal vials, concoctions she’s mastered after years and years of being the Tsahìk. After selecting a small wooden bowl filled with clear oil, he grabs another bowl of water and a rag and sits down in front of you. Dabbing the rag in the bowl of water, he lifts the dripping cloth toward your face.

“What are you doing?”

He looks at you, eyes narrowing briefly before they return to their normal, large position.

“Your face is filthy.”

He gently holds your chin, tilting it up towards him so he can begin wiping your face. His hold is steady but his eyes look nerved, almost as if he has too much on his mind to bear. His breathing matches yours, and he dodges your gaze although his entire being crowds your line of sight. There’s no way for him to avoid you, really.

“What’s wrong?” you ask as he dips the rag and wrings out all of the water, approaching your face yet again.

“Nothing is wrong,” he replies curtly, his ears twitching quickly before returning to their previous state—a telltale sign that he’s lying.

“Oh, so you’re just going to pretend like I know nothing about you now?” you try to joke, smile falling when you notice how he doesn’t reciprocate your humor. “Talk to me,” you urge, grabbing his wrist so he can’t try to distract you or himself by caring for your wounds.

He sighs, looking away before he slowly looks back at you. Holding your gaze, eyes squinting and lips pursing slightly. Neteyam looks at you like you’re supposed to understand him–and you do–but it’s as if he’s expecting you to know what’s bothering him. However, the problem is that you don’t. Once he comes to that realization, he sighs, still looking into your eyes.

“I’m upset with you.”

And there it is. Your tail swishes uneasily, something that doesn’t go unnoticed by Neteyam, but he can’t bring himself to quell his emotions for your sake. He almost lost you.

“Why are you upset with me?”

He shrugs, almost as if he’s embarrassed or too shy to explain his feelings. Being the eldest son and the next heir, Neteyam often felt as if he had to hide his own inhibitions or concerns in order to be a good son, a good brother, a good leader. When it was just the two of you, you would often have to do a little extra prying in order to get him to reveal what was truly occupying that pretty little head of his. Even once he admitted it, it was even harder to get him to elaborate.

“Just drop it. You should be healing,” he dismisses, trying to distract himself by wiping your face again.

Pushing his wrist away with your fingers, you take the cloth and throw it into the bowl of water. Holding his hands on your lap, his tail swishing timidly behind him, you make him look at you by following his gaze. “I can talk and heal. The two aren’t mutually exclusive,”

“I wish they were,” he mutters, a braid swinging in front of his face.

“Hey,” you tuck the strand behind his ear. He leans towards your touch, almost as if he craves it, no matter how much he wishes he didn’t. “This isn’t how this works. You need to talk to me.”

“You’ve already been in enough pain today. I don’t want to cause anymore,”

“Quit the bullshit. I’m better now. I’ll feel worse if you don’t tell me.”

“That’s not the way it works.”

“Um, yes, it is.”

“It’s not.”

“How would you know? I can already feel my leg hurting ten times more now that you won’t communicate with me.”

“You’re not in any more pain because of me,” he scoffs, trying to escape your grasp.

“Ow, my leg! My leg!” you feign a whimper. He cracks a small smile, your cheeks spreading as smoothly as the war paint that still dons his face.

Neteyam looks so beautiful when he smiles. It’s a special smile, reserved only for you; it drips of sticky honey, so sugary that sometimes you feel as if you could fall ill from its adoration. He’s soft as he looks at you, coy and all things delightful. The hands that once tried to flee your own, now reach for your wrists, petting the skin in a pattern that speaks a million languages at once. And yet, somehow, not one of those languages can truly resemble how much he loves you. He loves you a lot.

“Please,” you whisper, “tell me what’s wrong?”

He sighs, assenting to your pleas. With one final sweep over your face, he finally indulges you.

“I’m not happy that you took down those ships.”

“Well, duh,” you scoff, rolling your eyes playfully. “I know that, but I want to know why.”

“You weren’t careful.”

This causes a richer scoff to form at the back of your throat, a sound that makes his ears press against his braids. “I thought we agreed to take down the enemy at any and all costs?”

“I know, and we did—we did make that agreement. I just,” he groans, trying to find the right words. Neteyam never had the right words when it came to expressing himself. “I was scared.”

“Okay,” you reply softly, shuffling closer to him. “Why were you scared?”

“Why wouldn’t I be scared?” he answers, tone mimicking the same quiet tone you used. “You’re mine—my girl, and- and they almost took what’s mine away from me.”

“God, I just got so scared that something bad would happen to you. And when I saw you hurt, how badly you were in pain, and I couldn’t do anything about it I just…” his eyes are frantic, searching all across the hut for something—anything—to provide him an answer. His hands start to tremor in your hold. “I felt helpless and so stupid. I should’ve been tougher on you, or—I don’t know—had Lo’ak or even Kiri stay with you so you didn’t have to be alone. And it’s not that I don’t think you’re incapable or anything—” he excuses, causing you to smile lightly, “—but I don’t trust them. I don‘t trust them with you.”

Smile turning watery, you reach for his shoulder, soon deciding to hold his face instead. He leans into your palm yet again, seeking the warmth that can only emanate from your hands alone. It’s the only warmth that can rid him of any chill.

Neteyam kisses your palm, soon rolling your hand over in his, placing his lips on each knuckle as if it provides him comfort. And it does. It provides him more comfort than he could care to admit. Placing your head in the crook where his neck and shoulder meet, you place a kiss on his collarbone, lowering your lips to place another on his pec, right above his heart. The young man draws in a deep breath, holding you close to him, savoring each second, each touch. Skin against skin; heart against heart.

“I’m sorry for worrying you,” you apologize, your soft lips grazing his blue skin. He loves the feeling. “I just wanted to protect our people.”

“I know, I know,” he murmurs against your forehead, a light kiss placed there. “I’m sorry for yelling.”

“It’s okay. You didn’t even yell,” you forgive, cheeks pillowing against his chest. When you lift yourself away from him, he tilts his head in confusion at your smirk. “Also, we both know Kiri would be awful on the battlefield.”

He chuckles, brushing his nose against yours. “True. She can’t even shoot an arrow in a straight line.”

“Exactly! I don’t know what you were thinking when you said that. Lo’ak? Sure, whatever. But Kiri?”

“I know, I know,” he agrees, voice growing softer as if his quietness will preserve this moment between you.

His eyes become velvet—smooth and warm—the longer he looks at you and it instantly makes you melt. His lips look saccharine, a buttery spread of a light smile decorating his face which is just the absolute cherry on top. If Eywa hadn’t taken you during battle, she sure as hell was going to take you now with how crazy Neteyam makes your heartbeat.

He tucks your hair behind your ear, his smile growing more and more with each expanse of skin he navigates. Dancing his fingertips over your jaw and across your cheekbones, he eventually cups your cheek and you just watch. If you breathe too hard, if you shift your weight, this moment could crumble. He’s looked at you like this many times before but it’s usually in the dark, under the bioluminescent blue and purple lights of the forest, where all you can see are the shadows of his face and the warmth of his tongue and the breeze of his breath. Now, you can see everything in pure, golden hues. The way his mouth relaxes, the way his eyes absorb all they can with each quick glance, the way the corner of his mouth tugs upwards unconsciously. You love it.

“May I kiss you?” he asks quietly, thumb swiping along a stripe on your cheek.

“Why do you ask now? You’ve done it many times before,” you wonder, eyes transfixed on the way his own mouth moves with each word he’s about to form.

He chuckles, a sweet, melodic sound, “Just wanted to make sure you’re still down even when the sun is out.”

This earns a loud laugh from you, a laugh that makes Neteyam’s heart squeeze and his lower stomach burn. He loves you. One day, he’ll say it.

Once your giggles have fizzled into a content sigh, you bite your lip lightly before you release it and it returns to its normal place. Neteyam follows the movement.

“I’m always down if it’s you.”

“Yeah?” he smiles, breathy and lips plush.

“Yeah.”

With that, he seals the deal. His kiss is soft, and you don’t miss the way his eyes dip to your mouth right before the initial contact. It makes you feel hot all over. He’s gentle—he always is at first—and he’s so, so kind. He pulls away briefly, returning not long after as if he needs to be connected to you or else he would suffer. In a way, he would.

Neteyam is sweet. He still tastes like the fruit you shared before the raid and also a little bit like blood—whether it’s from him or you, you don’t care; you’ll devour it desperately just like you want him to devour you. He traces that stripe on your cheek again, his new best friend, and follows it down the nape of your neck. His other hand trails up from the small of your back to the divot in between your shoulder blades. He uses his hand to pull you closer, seeking any contact from you that he can get.

Your hands are a barrier, shielding your chest from his, and in a way, it upsets you but also pleases you. Nobody knows what would happen if you could feel his chest pressed against yours at this moment—not even you know. Your hands glide across his chest, lighting scraping and molding against the fine muscle that hides under his smooth skin. When a lithe finger accidentally catches against a nipple, his mouth drops open pliantly, his tongue searching for yours.

“‘S scared they took my girl away from me,” he murmurs against your lips, his own following after yours after each word.

“Never,” you promise, kissing him firmly, one hand gripping his shoulder to ground yourself. All of this kissing was beginning to make you feel as if you could float away. “I’m yours. They could never take me or have me. You know that,”

“Mhm,” he hums, voice lilting towards the end as he presses his mouth to yours. It makes your back arch forward, seeking more of his skin, his touch.

His hands are growing desperate now. Neteyam knows he has to be gentle, avoiding the damaged skin on your back and remaining weary of the injuries on your rib and leg, but he so badly just wants to pull you close to him and never let go. He wants to hold you, to feel you, to be with you in every single way he can imagine so passionately. But he can’t. He will have to wait for another time.

You, on the other hand, may roam freely. Your hands travel down his chest, exploring the taught skin of his stomach. It seems he subconsciously flexes underneath your touch, something that is rather enticing. Reaching the plusher skin of his lower stomach, although there still isn’t much give, you trace the muscle gingerly, bordering right above the hem of his loincloth. The delicate touch of your fingers causes him to lightly moan into your mouth, a sound you gladly drink down just to feel its warmth in your stomach.

Neteyam pulls away suddenly, a loss you’re greatly upset about until he relocates his lips under your ear, traveling down your neck. He hums against the skin, tongue swiping against it as if he’s trying to taste as much of you as he can, as much as he’s allowed.

“You can’t touch me like that,” he says, using a hand to bring both of yours back toward his chest. You cradle his head instead, tracing a finger along his ear. It twitches.

“Why not?” you question, voice airy. Neteyam nearly preens at the sound, tail wild. “You seem to like it.”

“I do like it,” he insists, “I love it, even.”

“Then why can’t I touch you there?”

He places a wet, fervent kiss against the crook of your neck. Your breath hitches in your throat, a moan threatening to escape past your lips.

“Because,” another kiss, “You are not promised to me yet.”

“I just told you that I’m yours,” you reminded him.

“Yes,” he nods, trailing his kisses back toward your jaw. “However, you’re still not mine.”

Oh.

“I could be yours. All you have to do is ask,” you say as if it’s not something he already knows. You hold his head in place, halting his journey upwards so you can whisper in his ear: “Ask me, Neteyam.”

His tail swishes excitedly, something that makes you smile. Great Mother, you could eat him up.

“No,” he responds, pulling away and facing you head-on. He has a lovesick smile on his face, a grin that nobody could wipe off as long as you’re around. “I want to do it right.”

“Yeah?” you counter. “How would you do it?”

“Well,” he hums, kissing your lips. “First, I’d get all of your favorite foods. All of those fruits you like, season everything all nice,” he begins to slowly kiss your cheeks, “and get it all ready just for you to eat.”

“What else?”

“Then,” his kisses travel towards your ear, “Once you’re full and comfortable, we’ll go for a walk.” He bites your ear lobe and you press yourself against him. “We’ll go to our favorite spots: we’ll look at those flowers you like, go to the river, maybe swim a little. I like the way your hair looks while wet, you look so pretty,” he sighs. “You listening?”

“Yes,” you nod. “Go on.”

“Then I’d bring you to our sacred tree, just so Eywa can see us and I can see you under her light. I want to see you when I ask you. I want to see you if you smile or cry or decide that I’m not the one, I don’t care, I just want to see you,” he smiles, no longer kissing you but nudging your nose with his.

“And if you say yes—Great Mother, I hope you say yes—I promise, I’ll treat you so well. I’ll hold you the way you ask to be held, kiss you in all of the places I already know you love to be kissed, and learn all of the new places I can’t reach yet too. I want to feel you, and see the way you react. I want you to feel me, too. I want you to see me, and I want to see you,” he whispers, voicing each wish.

You nod, slowly and then desperately. “I want to see you, too,” you promise. He smiles that big, toothy smile. “Tell me when you’ll ask me? I can’t wait for much longer. I need you.”

His eyelids grow heavy, skin heating underneath your palm. “I need you, too,” he gasps, leaning forward to kiss you again. “It’ll be soon, just want you to heal for now.”

“Yeah?” you smile. “Soon?”

“Yeah,” he smiles. “Soon.”

#neteyam x reader #neteyam sully #neteyam te suli tsyeyk'itan #neteyam x female reader #avatar #avatar: twow #avatar: the way of water #neteyam sully fluff #neteyam sully angst #neteyam sully x reader #atwow #atwow headcanons #atwow imagines #neteyam suli x reader #neteyam te suli tsyeyk'itan x reader

2K notes · View notes

wintfleur · 4 months

Text

ꔫ ˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚ V-day with Pookie — Stella Hughes AU!

au masterlist — you can find asks under #💌stellahughes!

°. — asks about stella and rut are under #⋆ ˚｡⋆୨🩷୧˚ stella & rut!

°. — pairings ( Estella Hughes oc! X Rutger McGroarty )

°. — summary ( valentines posts with our favorite couple )

˖ ་ 💭 roro’s notes ( I didn’t plan to make this but I decided too last minute . . . Hope you guys like it !!! Please don’t be a silent reader and let me know what you guys think !!! )

°. — ( feel free to send any requests of things you would like to see in this series, or if you just want to share some thoughts! I would absolutely love that! Please comment if you would like to be added to the tag list! )

stellahughes added to their story!

🎵 hey lover - the daughters of eve

[caption: my lover boy 🌷🌷]

rutgermcgroarty replied to your story ‘My lover girl 🩷’

carmenbarlowe replied to your story ‘MARRY HIM NOW ‼️’

_quinnhughes reacted with ❤️

lhughes_06 reacted with 🤢

lilybaileys replied to your story ‘YOU GUYS R SO FUCKING TN 🤭’

rutgermcgroarty added to their story!

🎵 she chose me - Bruno major

[caption: v-day with the most beautiful girl 🩷]

stellahughes replied to your story ‘I love you so much rut 💞’

lilybaileys replied to your story ‘ wow my gf is so pretty 🤩 ‘

g.brindley4 replied to your story ‘simppp’

lhughes_06 reacted with 👎🏻

carmenbarlowe replied to your story ‘MARRY HER OR I WILL 🔫’

stellahughes

liked by gabeperreault44, _slafkovsky_, leocarlssoon and others

🏷️ rutgermcgroarty

🎵 melting - kali uchis

stellahughes; melting when he smiles <333

view all 1,652 comments

username Umm since when??

username have you been living under a rock…

username UMM WHAT IF I HAVE ?!?!

username ACTUALLY THE CUTEST COUPLE EVER

username I thought Stella was dating Ethan?

username I thought she was dating Trevor tbh 🤷‍♀️

username THE OUTFIT OMG ???

username I KNOW RIGHT SHES SO ICONIC

markestapa happy v-day pookie 🤪

stellahughes happy v-day pookie 🤓

username HELLO??

rutgermcgroarty I love you so much pretty girl 💞

stellahughes I love you so much more love bug 🩷

username IM SO SINGLE FUCK

lhughes_06 Ig you guys are kinda cute…

rutgermcgroarty I always knew you loved us 🫶🏻

lhughes_06 US?! I love Stella, my sister, the sister your dating…

rutgermcgroarty Is it too early to call you brother in law? 😃

jackhughes YES RUTGER ITS TO EARLY 🚫

lilybaileys Those cupcakes were delicious (happy v-day sexy)

stellahughes WERE?!?! THERES STILL SOME LEFT RIGHT?!?! (Happy v-day sexy)

lilybaileys hahah soo . . .

carmenbarlowe OMG THE STUFFIES HUGGING

stellahughes I KNOW RIGHT?!?! THEY EVEN HAVE NAMES

carmenbarlowe THEY HAVE NAMES ?!?! SOSO CUTE

username he’s so fine it hurts

username I LOVE STELLAS OBSESSION WITH BOWS SM 🎀

jamie.drysdale Happy Valentine’s stella ❤️

stellahughes Happy Valentines jams 💞

username i love this friendship sm

_quinnhughes Happy Valentine’s sis, hope you have a great day, did you receive them yet?

stellahughes QUINN OMG I LOVE THEM 💐💐

username stoppp he got her flowers 😭

jackhughes the flowers I definitely sent you will be there tomorrow…haha problem with shipping yk?

stellahughes uh huh yeah ofc

lhughes_06 @/jackhughes they don’t ship flowers you idiot

jackhughes I don’t see you getting her flowers you snitch @/lhughes_06

stellahughes He got me chocolate and 3 books…

jackhughes oh!

nicohischier Happy valentines Estella ❣️

stellahughes AHHHHEHEUDJDJ HAPPY VALENTINES SHEJDBDJ I LOVE YOU !!!!! 💕🩷❤️❣️💞

username Shes so real for that

tatemcrae happy v-days wifey 😽

stellahughes happy v-days bbg 😚

username 3some please ?

trevorzegras HAPPY LOVE DAY LITTLE HUGHES I LOVEEE YOUU

stellahughes Are you High ?

trevorzegras HIGH ON LOVE ☁️

colecaufield he’s lost his bf, broke his ankle…poor bud has gone delulu

trevorzegras YOUR WORDS DONT HURT ME @/colecaufield

stellahughes Poor bud . . . I love you too trev 🫶🏻

colecaufield still can’t believe you have a bf…

stellahughes still can’t believe ur still single…oh wait I can ☺️

colecaufield sassy girl apocalypse I see 😒…. Stay safe y’all

username she’s just using rut…he deserves sm better

username you can just tell by his body Language that he hates her

username she’s such a slut, look how she dresses?

username Hope you had a great day!!! 🩷

stellahughes Thank you lovely same to you!!! 💞

mollyannmcg no way you cropped me out bbg

stellahughes sorry babe I just couldn’t focus on anything but you 😔

rutgermcgroarty UM WTF GO AWAY MOLLY?!?!

edwards.73 YOU ARE MY CHURCH, YOU ARE MY PLACE OF WORSHIP

stellahughes I heard you’re the plug can I be the circuit?

edwards.73 Bestie where is the energy . . .

stellahughes WHEN I GOT COURT, I HOPE THAT YOU’RE THE VERDICT !!!!

edwards.73 NOW THATS MORE LIKE IT 😎

rutgermcgroarty

liked by _willsmith2, nick_moldenhauer, g.brindley4 and others

🏷️ stellahughes

🎵 something about you - eyedress (ft. Dent May)

rutgermcgroarty; the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen

view all 1,652 comments

username SHES SO PRETTY

username OMG THE SONG

username where do I get a Stella?

rutgermcgroarty sorry, it’s impossible there’s no one like her

lilybaileys AHH LOOK AT HER she’s so perfect 🥹

carmenbarlowe she’s so grown up, we raised her so well 😭

_quinnhughes who’s we???

luca.fantilli favorite couple 🫶🏻

rutgermcgroarty our favorite 3 🫶🏻

lhughes_06 3?

stellahughes HE MEANS OUR FAVORITE 3RD WHEEL

lhughes_06 Ohhh makes sense, haha loser @/luca.fantilli

markestapa pookie I love the glasses 🤠

stellahughes thanks I stole them from Ethan 👹

stellahughes STOP OMG THE SONG?!?! RUT ILYSM

stellahughes SOBS VIOLENTLY

stellahughes but why that picture baby? 😕

rutgermcgroarty my cute little bbg 👽

edwards.73 STELLA IS SO CUTE IM GOING TO SQEEZE HER

edwards.73 now wait a minute… 🤓

edwards.73 Stella girly, my bestie….those are my glasses.

rutgermcgroarty she told me to tell you, that’s she’s mentally flipping you off rn 🤗

adamfantilli stells rockin the glasses ‼️

stellahughes Can’t spell iconic without me 😙

lhughes_06 I don’t think that’s how it works?

adamfantilli can’t spell fucking buzzkill without Luke 😒

stellahughes always gotta ruin our fun ☹️

username what does he even see in her? 😐

rutgermcgroarty My future.

username I saw them today at this dinner and omg he’s so sweet to her

username AHHHHHH

dylanduke25 not Stella doing a face mask without me…

stellahughes Close your eyes, shut your mouth. dream a dream and get us out

tyler__duke5 dream dream dream dream dream dream 🤖

dylanduke25 Actually can’t stand the two of you.

elblue6 Thank you for the lovely flowers you sent rut 💙

rutgermcgroarty ofc mama Hughes 💙

entersteller

liked by adamfantilli, g.brindley4, _willsmith2 and others

🏷️ rutgermcgroarty

🎵 nonsense - sabrina carpenter

entersteller; how quickly can you take your clothes off pop quiz ??

view all comments

📍 rutgermcgroarty it was a new personal best if I do say so myself

entersteller wanna celebrate the new pb? 😌

rutgermcgroarty I’ll get the camera

mollyannmcg NAHH WTF

lhughes_06 Nahh wtf is this

lhughes_06 No one wants to see this.

lhughes_06 DELETE PLEASE DELETE ❌

carmenbarlowe that’s my shade . . . did you take my lipstick 😐

lilybaileys I don’t think you want it back minns 😧

lilybaileys HEHEHE I WAS SO RIGHT 🤭

entersteller sososo right, very right, right multiple times 🤭

lilybaileys OKAY BBG DAMN CALM DOWN 😮

luca.fantilli okay fridge I see you

trevorzegras so like I didn’t need to see this 👍🏻

colecaufield STELLA UR LIKE 12 ????

markestapa pookie this is not the content I subscribed for 😦

edwards.73 the r necklace really pulls this all together…

_quinnhughes I am not buying you film anymore.

_quinnhughes really debating on why I accepted the follow for this account.

_quinnhughes stella please think before posting. Thanks.

jackhughes MY EYES WTF

jackhughes ESTELLA HUGHES

jackhughes ESTELLA HUGHES DELETE THIS RIGHT NOW ‼️

jackhughes 🤢🤢

jackhughes WHY IS SHE NOT RESPONDING ⁉️⁉️

colecaufield I don’t think you wanna know…

trevorzegras there totally fucking

jackhughes what the fuck @/trevorzegras

_quinnhughes what the fuck @/trevorzegras

lhughes_06 what the fuck @/trevorzegras

colecaufield what the fuck @/trevorzegras

_alexturcotte what the fuck @/trevorzegras

tatemcrae me next 😩

entersteller just tell me the time and place 💋

jackhughes DONT IGNORE ME ESTELLA ‼️

˖ ་ 💭 roro’s notes ( Happy late Valentine’s Day !!! 🩷🌷omg this took me forever I’m gonna cry PLEASE LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK )

°. — taglist ( @privatemythss @juraj-slafkovsky @cixrosie @toasttt11 )

276 notes · View notes

g-xix · 10 months

Text

Pub golf Forfeit // ArthurTV

🙏 xLoving mr ATV eternally 🙏 Content: kinda fluffy ig, extra-long 5k+ wordcount CWs: Alcohol

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

‼️READ THIS IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT PUB GOLF IS‼️ (if you do, skip this bold writing and move onto the main story)

Pub golf is a game where you visit a set amount of pubs and get different drinks at each one- and you need to try and finish these drinks without having to lower it, as many times as possible.

TheBurntChip has used this concept with Harry W2S, ReevHD, Theo Baker, ArthurTV, ChrisMD, George Clarkey, and more- and that is what this oneshot is based around.

KEY TERMS: "Hole" -> the name of the pub. e.g. Hole 3 is the third pub that's been visited "Par" -> Number of sips/gulps it took to finish the drink Forfeit -> self explanatory but whenever the rules are breached/smth bad happens, a forfeit card is pulled and needs to be done.

Reminder to always drink responsibly as per usual, only drink when you're legally allowed to do so and stay safe when going drinking.

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

"ArthurTV and Maddie!"

I turned to look across the line, my eyes meeting Arthur's.

It was my first time doing a pub golf on the TheBurntChip channel and I was somewhat terrified. Sure, I'd known all the other boys ranging from years to just a few months- but I'd grown just as close with George Clarkey, who I had only met a few months ago, to Harry, who I'd known for years, having first met him when big brother Chris and Harry filmed their football videos together.

But one thing that all of the boys knew for certain, was that I had developed a little online crush on ArthurTV. Of all of Chris' friends, I'd never had the pleasure of meeting Mr TV in real life until that moment, when Harry had let it slip to Freezy who'd let it slip to Chip that I liked Arthur... thus Chip DMed an invite to for a pub golf video alongside Harry, Reev, Chris, George Clarkey, Theo Baker, and of course, Arthur.

Oh and as if it wasn't bad enough, Chris, my very own half-brother, knew I had a crush on Arthur.

"That's quite a interesting pairing isn't it, Maddie?" Chris snickered from the side with a grin I knew meant that he was going to have the time of his life teasing me for the next few hours.

"Bit of a coincidence if you ask me, Chrissy." Harry sneered from besides Chris, making my insides churn.

I wasn't so much a YouTuber as the rest of the boys- I was originally Chris's one and only member of the camera crew and production. In that small bedroom in Jersey, Chris and I would sit together on a desk and make lists of ideas for football challenges, ways to execute them, different shots to make the video dramatic... Then, we would hit the pitches and try to film without the older boys telling us to bugger off so they could play on the pitches.

Then, people started noticing the voice behind the camera, leading to me making a BROTHER VS SISTER video for the channel, which was only the start of coming in front of the camera more. As Chris hired professional camera men and got set production budgets from serious producers, I was pushed more in front of the camera, making videos with Harry and Chris before lurching into the British YouTube scene, initially gravitating towards the e-boys content, before relocating moreso to reaction content with George Clarkey and Cam Kirkham.

And we don't talk about that Stephen Tries sketch I attempted.

The fans were pleased with my occasional cameos in videos on the British YouTube channels, always finding new ship names for whoever I collaborated with, or new clips to edit, or rumours to spread... but overall, I couldn't be happier with where I've ended up.

Well, not where I'd ended up whilst filmed pub golf- right in the middle of Chris and Harry's teasing.

"How's it a coincidence?" Arthur asked, wide brown eyes swivelling between Harry, Chris and I like a deer caught in headlights.

"Oh, just because I said I uhm..." I started. Shit, quickly Maddie, think of something quickly... My thoughts began racing. Of course Chris would begin hinting towards the fact I had a crush on Arthur not even five minutes into the recording."Chris pointed out on the way here that us two were the only ones that have never collaborated together before... Like, you know... on a video..."

Yes he knows you meant on a video, genius. Great, you sound as thick as a brick now.

"Oh yeah, that is true actually," Arthur realised, his face lighting up as the thought seemed to land in his head. He was so expressive with his voice- like an animated Pixar character, seemingly straight out of the movie. His voice was so calm, and slightly husky, and somehow matched his face perfectly. "You should come onto the channel if you like watching those 90 day fiancée type of programmes-"

"Arthur's playing the 9 minute fiancée game right now, by the looks of it-" George giggled, nudging me from behind which only made my cheeks burn red, Arthur simply laughing it off before responding.

"Is it working though, Maddie?" Arthur flashed a grin with a quick wink, myself pretending to fall into George's arms and fan myself with my hands, jokefully pretending I was falling for it.

The real joke was that I wasn't just pretending to fall for it.

Arthur's biggest asset were those fucking eyes. They had me melting with how wide and doe-like they were- his eyes seeming to light up whenever he started a topic that interested him.

"You're not chatting her up are you, Arthur?" Reev raised his brow and crossed his arms to ask. Out of all of the boys, Reev was the most like a brother in the fact he was so protective- always trying to make sure I was safe. The others were more like brothers in the fact they'd just tease me and get under my skin at every opportunity.

I watched as Arthur's eyes widened, as he assumed Reev was trying to intimidate him.

"Give him a break, Reev, he's just having a laugh," I defended Arthur, not letting him respond to the allegation in fear that Arthur would shake his head or say that he really wasn't interested in me. That could wait until a few more holes, when I was too peppered to care.

"Well, listen to this you two, for your couples outfit, you two will be going as... The prisoner and the policeman...! or woman!" Chip exclaimed, throwing the outfits to us.

I looked a the policewoman outfit he had handed to me- the costume coming with a short skirt, unscrupulous tie and lopsided police hat.

This was gonna be a long video...

...

"Hole one, the rule on his hole is that you must drink it with your left hand!"

Hole one was easy. Arthur sent his pint down in one and after Harry and Reev, it was my turn to have my pint of lager.

"You want me to hold your hair back?" He offered. I searched for a band on my wrist and almost facepalmed as I realised I hadn't thought to bring one.

"Yes please, I completely forgot to get a hairband... Just come up behind me and grab my hair, while I do it" I said, scrunching my face up with realisation of what I'd said only once it had come out of my mouth.

"What was that?" Harry asked, bursting into laughter.

"Get in, Mr TV-"

"Please, not at that at the drinking table-"

"Not on the Chippo YouTube channel, you won't, but I can think of another site where you could-"

"Shut up I didn't mean it like that..." I groaned and put my head in my hands. "Look, I'm just going to send off the pint-"

Arthur's hand wrapped around my hair, the other one on my shoulder, rubbing it and giving soft words of encouragement. I let the drink tip down my throat easily as I felt the face heat up, his words landing hot on the back of my neck and making me want to shiver, despite the fact I was holding the drink. I could feel my face burning when I dropped the glass back down, grinning with the fact I had done it in one...

"That was really good- I didn't think you could finish it in two." Harry commented, nodding his head in surprise.

"I did it in one though?"

"Counted as two points though- you drank it with your right hand." Chip explained with a devious grin.

Of course I had been stupid enough as to forget the rule- too fixated on gorgeous bloody Arthur instead of what I was actually meant to be doing. Drinking.

"That one's Arthur's fault- Maddie was too distracted by waiting for you to come up behind her-"

"SHUT UP, GEORGE!" Arthur's face went into his hands this time, both of us clearly a blushing mess from all the comments the boys were making.

...

"What does your forfeit card say?" Arthur asked as we travelled to the next hole, not downcast despite my mess-ups, as we were still in joint second.

"Sing a song with your partner at one of the holes." I read it off. "Sorry for getting you roped into it..."

"No, no, that's actually one of the only one's I'd happily be roped into," Arthur shook his head. "I suppose we just need to think of a song to sing... You a fan of Harry Potter?"

"Am I?!" I repeated enthusiastically. "You have no idea how much I used to love those books, movies... Even the Cursed Child I went and saw."

"Seriously? I just get called a nerd whenever I say I like Harry Potter," Arthur gawked. "Do you have a wand?"

"Yep, Ginny's wand- black and fourteen inches." I proudly nodded. "You could see those fourteen inches later ya know..."

"Only if you're trying to see a rather bendy, sixteen inch one with waterproofing." Arthur retaliated with confidence.

"You got Hagrid's wand?"

"Duh, it came with an umbrella."

"Of course that's why you'd get it."

"This is hole two to the left, here!" Chip bellowed from behind. I lagged behind slightly to walk with Chris and Harry- catch up with them for a moment.

"You and Arthur getting cozy, eh?" Chris wiggled his brows, looking forwards to Arthur who was petting a dog with Reev- the both of them looking completely out of place, dressed in a bright orange prisoner jumpsuit and Reev as ketchup bottle (with a hat for a lid)- though the dog seemed pleased nonetheless.

"Just don't let me catch you two snogging after a few more drinks." Harry put bluntly, making my eyes go wide.

"Just because you guys know I like him doesn't mean he likes me back, unfortunately." I reminded them, though I could feel my heart melting as Arthur scratched the back of the dog's ear and tickled his chin, the dog happily wagging his tail with his tongue lolling out as Arthur pet him.

"Seems to like you enough." Harry shrugged. "Like you enough to come up behind you and-"

"Seriously shut up... Did I sound that stupid when I said that?"

"Yeah."

"No"

Chris and Harry responded simultaneously.

"Okay you sounded a little flustered when you said it, but then Arthur was blushing and looked shy as well- and everyone knows he's a bit awkward around women he likes," Harry pat my back comfortingly. "If anything he looked like more of a tit than you."

"Great, thanks Harry." I responded, somewhat flatly and yet somewhat happily.

"Maddie, your team's getting another forfeit because Arthur scared the dog away." Chip addressed me as we neared the bar.

"Like hell he did, that dog loved him!" I exclaimed, head swivelling to find Arthur guiltily wavering his eye contact.

"Theo tried to take the dog away from me by offering it something so I tried to bash him with his wheelchair but the dog got scared and ran off." Arthur explained, kicking at a pebble on the ground.

"Did you hit Theo?"

"Yes-"

"Well then... At least you hit him."

"What the fuck, Maddie." Theo deadpanned.

"Don't try steal Arthur's bitches I guess." I shrugged, watching as Arthur withdrew a forfeit card, his face dropping as he read it.

"What does it say?" I asked, leaning over to try and read it. He smacked it against his chest before shoving it into a pocket, eyes wide as they met my own.

"Uhh- nothing." Arthur spluttered. "We can sort it out when we get to hole five when forfeits are actually activated... What did you say the rule for this hole was, Chip?"

"Drink with your partner holding the glass." Chip responded.

I looked at Arthur.

"You're quite a bit taller- you're gonna have to crouch down for me to hold it." I realised, picking up the bloody mary and wrinkling my nose. "They really couldn't have picked a worse drink."

"They're foul aren't they." Arthur gave a dirty look to the glass.

Each pair began seeing their drinks off, using a variety of methods to check whether it was too much or they needed a break.

"Do we need to do the hand-squeeze method to indicate whether it's too much?" Arthur asked, looking distastefully as Reev squeezed Harry's hand, signalling for Harry to tilt more.

"I'm thinking we just raw-dog it." I shrugged, looking up for Arthur's reaction. He nodded in tasteful agreement.

"That's how I usually do it, anyways."

He picked one glass up. "You first," He stated instead of asking. "And open wide."

Reev gave him a neck-slap and a "Watch it, Arthur..." before I opened my mouth and tilted my head back, finishing it in one.

"Alright, sit down so you're lower down, Arthur." I spoke through a shudder, the bitterness of the bloody mary giving me a whole-body shiver.

Picking up a glass, I stood to the side of Arthur and held it up to his face, leaning over slightly due to the awkward angle I stood at.

"Just come 'ere-" He reached out, steadfastly placing his hands on my hips and manspreading- pulling me between his legs so that I was closer and presumably so that he had a better angle to drink from. I felt my body react to his touch, cheeks warming and knees feeling a bit wobbly as he held his hands there for a moment longer, his grip firm but not forceful. I tried to maintain composure and stop myself from running my hands through his fluffy hair and kissing him right then and there.

"You watch your bloody hands, Arthur." Chris warned, causing Arthur to hold them up by his head as if pleading innocence. As he finally released his hold, I couldn't help but notice how the closeness between us left a lingering sensation, like an electric current still pulsating through my skin. His presence was intoxicating, and I struggled to steadily hold the glass for Arthur to down. I turned to death-glare Chris as I placed the glass back onto the table once Arthur had finished it.

"Why would anyone voluntarily order that, that's awful... I feel like I've lost my soul after drinking that..." Arthur shivered at the bitterness. "Who knew dementors could be put in drinks..."

Laughing, I sat down besides him and leaned my head against his shoulder as if it were second nature. It felt so natural and cosy against the crook of his neck, and I felt warmed even more as he put his arm around my shoulders, watching in a comfortable silence as Chip choked on his drink from across the table.

"You're so cute..." I murmured, and only once the words had been said did I regret them slightly. I facepalmed internally as Arthur struggled to reply for a moment, myself wondering why I had to be such a lightweight; only 2 drinks down and already I was making careless comments.

"Am I really cute?" Arthur asked after a moment, and I pulled away from his shoulder to dopily smile at him.

"Of course you are, you have a cute little smile." I grinned, causing his lips to stretch out into a smile as he laughed slightly, eyes curving into happy little crescents as he did. "See? Cutest smile I've even seen." I giggled, and Arthur looked down with such domestic happiness in his glowing chocolate eyes I felt as though my heart were melting, simply so infatuated with him.

"Hope I'm not interrupting anything here-" Harry planted himself between Arthur and I on the bench, forcing Arthur's arm away and my head from his neck. Arthur cleared his throat and looked at the ground whilst Harry looked between Arthur and I. "What, something wrong?" Harry responded to my blank face, before grinning and giving a wink which Arthur couldn't see.

"Prick," I hissed as I passed Harry on the walk to the third hole, causing Harry to burst into laughs and start explaining to Chris what he's done- only making Chris laugh alongside him.

Pricks.

...

Hole three was easy- just a glass of wine and pub quiz Arthur and I managed to lose a point at for winning the quiz.

As the smallest person there, I was also the least able to handle large amounts of alcoholic units- and it had begun showing, from the moment I went to stand up and almost fell back down.

Arthur had to walk with his arm around me to the next pub, though I wasn't complaining- instead holding his hand and making him skip with me to hole four.

"Long Island iced teas on this one," Chip explained. "And the rule here is that one member of the team must drink it blindfolded."

"I think I'm more sober than you at the minute," Arthur stated the obvious, as if I hadn't just made him skip to this hole. "I'll wear the blindfold for this one."

"You sure? I'm not completely gone right now, just a bit...Well..." It was a pointless proposition from myself. Arthur just shook his head, handing me the blindfold.

I slipped the material over his eyes, placing the drink on a separate table to that the boys wouldn't dump ice into his drink (which had just happened to Theo's drink), and directing him to the glass- though Chip had better ideas.

"Maddie, could you please regulated the hand-" Arthur spoke waveringly, and I noticed that Chip had a hand on Arthur's arse.

"Oi, chip-" I reached over for the space hopper which was besides the bag, whacking Chip with it before being hit in the face with it myself.

"Fuck!" We both exclaimed. Arthur had found his glass and drank it in one towards the side, meanwhile Chip found Theo's wheelchair and he began fighting against me and my space hopper. "Chip, I don't think you're gonna win this one," I huffed as the space hopper bounced off of his side, making him stumble slightly.

"Like shit won't I win- I've been going gym you know-" I cut off his rambles by throwing the hopper at him, causing him to stumble back and trip slightly over the curb so that he was sat on the pavement- allowing me to put my arm around his neck, squeezing only slightly.

"Tap out already, Chip..." I groaned whilst Chip shook his head whilst struggling.

"Chip isn't used to tapping out, he usually passes out before he gets the chance." Theo sneered from the side. That seemed to be enough to make Chip tap out.

We finished our drinks after that before agreeing on a short grace period, where we sat around and chattered for a few minutes.

"The blindfold makes you feel like, ten times more drunk than you actually are." George said, the other who had worn the blindfold agreeing.

"You should try it, Maddie- you're by far the most off your head right now- it'll be funny to see how you react to it."

That's how I ended up on the pavement, blindfold on and hands outstretched as Arthur directed me, his fingers occasionally brushing against mine as he'd insisted on walking beside me to make sure I didn't get a concussion from falling over anything.

"Watch the curb here, it's quite difficult navigating- WHOA" As soon as Arthur had said that, I stumbled, almost falling but Arthur held me up from behind whilst the others laughed from the table at my stagger. "You sure you wanna continue? I don't think it's safe, Maddie..."

"It'll be okay, I'm just gonna get back to the table and pull it off..."

I took a few more staggered steps, Arthur holding my hand to guide me whilst I was blinded, his hand warm and reassuring, and I felt confident with Arthur's unwavering presence by my side. His touch sent a gentle electrical ripples down my spine, igniting a spark that brought butterflies to life in my stomach as I focussed less on walking and more on Arthur.

But then I felt a blow to my head- not painful- but extremely forceful.

Some voices screamed "CHIP!" whilst another shouted "Maddie!" as I staggered, waiting to fall- before feeling hands on my back and the crook of my knees, gravity seeming to turn upside down for a moment, before the blindfold was ripped off.

Arthur's face was above my own, looking forwards as he walked- his two strong arms holding me flush to his body as he carried me in what I assumed was bridal style- having prevented my fall. He looked gorgeous from this angle- his chiselled features accentuated by the soft glow of the sunshine through the dull English clouds- and his eyes, like pools of warm honey, never not making me melt.

"You okay, Maddie?" He looked down and questioned, eyes full of concern and yet also alighting sparks within me as they met my own.

"What? Of course I am... What even happened?" I asked in confusion as I looked back and saw the boys with open mouths looking between myself and Chip, who had a look of upmost guilt on his face. Arthur sat down on one of the seats surrounding the table and lowering me onto that same seat before replying. Nevermind- I was actually sat on his lap, and was NOT going to complain about it.

Chris was going to instead.

"She can sit on her own seat, Arthur-"

"She's almost been bloody ran over, she's sticking with me for now." Arthur huffed resolutely, wrapping his arms around my waist as he spoke to make his point. I felt my head go fuzzy from the touch, leaning back into his touch and resting my head onto his shoulder where it felt like it belonged... Before pulling it back off quickly as I digested his words again.

"Hang on, almost ran over? What the Hell just happened?"

"Chip thought it'd be a good idea to whack you with the space hopper whilst you were blindfolded and he knocked you off balance- you would've fallen into the road if Arthur hadn't got you." Harry explained, a small smile playing on his face.

"Good man, Arthur." Reev nodded his head approvingly before turning to Chip. "And you, you're no better at handling your drink than her- what if she had gotten run over?"

"Good riddance, in that case." Chip sipped his water calmly, making me throw an ice cube at him.

In the end, Chip made a formal apology (which was of course easily accepted), and drew another forfeit card, having to take 3 shots to make up for almost brutally murdering me- which I thought was very fair.

Hole five happened so quickly I didn't even register it- though that may have been also due to the knock to the head Chip had delivered.

However on the walk between hole five to hole six, the alcohol began taking its effect on more people.

Namely, Chris and Chip.

Chip had found the space hopper once more and began hammering Chris with it whilst Chris balled up onto the ground. "YOU STUPID BOY-" Chip was yelling between blows, Harry and Reev slapping each other between laughs.

Then, Harry set off on his bike to the next hole as Chip let Chris get up- before we all slung our arms over each other and began the journey to hole 6, singing Backstreet Boys all the way there.

Arthur lagged behind slightly, and though I was busy singing with Chris and Chip, I did notice they were having quite a hushed conversation, and looking our way every so often.

"Hole six- forfeits are now activated!"

"Can I know your forfeit yet?" I whispered to Arthur, and he simply shook his head with a small smile.

"I know what it is, Maddie," Reev giggled to the side, rubbing his hands together with a look of glee on his face.

"Is that what you two were talking about whilst we walked here?" I gasped at the realisation, looking between the two as they shrugged with all-knowing smiles on their faces.

Hole six was easy- sambuca shots with no hands. I managed mine, though I almost choked it and chipped it when it clattered onto the table- whereas Arthur was found out for trying to dilute his drink, and was made to do two shots instead.

Still, he didn't seem to be off his head at all.

"Arthurrr," I sang I skipped up to him, on the journey to hole seven.

"Madelyn." He nodded cordially, saying my full name before smirking as he saw my face wrinkle in disgust. "Not a fan of your full name?"

"Not when it's bloody Madelyn, I'm not," I responded, shuddering at the thought.

"Maddie sounds like you're mad," Arthur pondered. "You should just go with... Lyn."

"...Lyn." I repeated, trying to hold a laugh.

"Yeah, it's cute- just like you." Arthur grinned down, making me turn away so he wouldn't see the stupid blush that began spreading across my cheeks.

"Suddenly I quite like that name." I smiled bashfully back, and Arthur just laughed, sliding an arm around me casually and allowing me to rest my head against his shoulder as we walked in a comfortable silence.

"You're so fine, Arthur." I said after a while. "You know I like you?"

"I like you too, Lyn." He patted my head and pulled his arm away, instead slipping his hand into mine as we walked. I didn't feel satisfied with his reaction. Did he not realise I meant that I liked him romantically?

"No, I meant that like- I really like-"

"AND HERE IS HOLE SEVEN!"

Trust Chip to ruin a romantic moment.

just an fyi im swapping the order of the holes- everything that happened in the vid at hole 8 is now assumed to have happened at hole 7, and vice versa

"Lyn I don't think I an do another pint," Arthur put down two drinks onto the table before sitting on my lap instead of the bench, allowing me to plop my policeman hat onto his head and hug him from behind, shaking my head.

"I've been finished since hole three, Arthur- I don't care what happens now, you can just sip the whole thing and I'll be fine with that." I groaned. "I'm definitely doing this in at least three different pars..."

I did exactly that. Arthur managed his in five, alongside my words of encouragement which made Chip awhhh.

"I love how everyone hates each other and is beating each other with the space hopper between holes whilst Arthur and Maddie are too busy holding hands and being wholesome with each other, walking alone to each hole." Chip said with a disoriented smile at one of the cameras, louder than he thought he was being as both myself and Arthur watched him say it to the camera.

"Bit early to be holding hands isn't it?" Chris asked, dopily swinging his head back to Arthur and I, only just registering Arthur was also sat on my lap. "Naughty, don't be sitting on each others laps like I have no idea what's going in where when someone sits on someone's lap-"

"That's enough from you, Chris." I shushed my brother, pressing a hand to his mouth which weakly attempted to paw away from his mouth.

"On to hole eight, final hole?" Chip proposed and everyone nodded in agreement- all too ready to get this over and done with.

"I don't think I've ever been this drunk before." I admitted to Arthur as we exited the pub, hands clasped together and swinging joyfully back and forth as we walked, as though we were kids. "I feel like I'm not even walking."

"And now you really aren't even walking," Arthur said as he placed his arms on my legs and back, scooping me back into his arms, carrying me as though I were nothing. I wrapped my arms around his neck and stared up at his face I'd grown so fond of over these past few hours.

"What song d'you wanna sing for my forfeit at the next hole?" I questioned, myself also wondering what we could sing.

"Oh it'll come to us when we get there..." Arthur spoke lazily, jumping me up to readjust my grip causing me to let out a squeak before relaxing against his body. Did he have abs under that shirt? It felt like it. He is so fine.

My thoughts died out as I realised this was the final hole and after this it would be all over. Thank God.

We all clinked our jaeger bombs together, the lightweight drink easily going down in one for everyone before Chip reminded Arthur and I that we still had forfeits we had to complete.

"What is your forfeit Arthur?" Harry asked inquisitively- somehow looking as though he hadn't had a single drink, although he had in fact had the most, having ordered an extra pint for good measure.

"That's what I'm asking- he still hasn't told me, either!" I exclaimed, looking for Arthur to give his game up and show the card. "C'mon, surely you can reveal it now that it's the last hole-"

"Not before you do your forfeit-song to the bar- look- they have a karaoke machine nobody's using there, go use it before someone else takes it!" Arthur rushed, pointing at the TV screen connected to a microphone and speakers. The other boys began clamouring their agreement before pushing me up to the stage, a bundle of nerves as I stumbled up the stairs, slotting a coin into the machine and waiting for the next song to come on.

"ArthurTV this is a GROUP FORFEIT- GET UP ONTO THE STAGE!" I shouted and held a hand out to Arthur, causing him to take my hand and get onto the stage with the help of the boys, as they cheered upon hearing the first few chords of the infamous song we were only singing a few hours ago.

I Want it That Way, by the Backstreet Boys. Of course.

I held the mic out for Arthur to hold with me as we sang the first line.

You are... My fi-ire, the one... desi-ire

I opened my eyes and faced Arthur, the look of joy melted into his caramel eyes and making me feel soft and gentle hearted as we went to sing the next line.

Believe... When I say... THAT I WANT IT THAT WAY

I looked out to the crowd and saw that some tables had turned to face us, singing alongside the tune- and all the other boys had huddled together, arms around each other and swaying back and forth as they joined us for the chorus.

Tell me why Ain't nothin' but a heartache

Arthur closed his eyes as he virtually shouted the lyrics into the microphone, getting so into the song I had to pause to laugh before continuing

Tell me why Ain't nothin' but a mistake Tell me why I never wanna hear you say

Arthur and I leaned it to sing the final bit of the song, heartily enjoying as the rest of the bar joined us to finish it.

I want it that way

I looked at Arthur, his own eyes meeting me own- full of a tender sort of love I had only ever seen in the movies...

Cause I want it that way...

The song ended with whistles and claps from the rest of the bar, before I dropped the microphone to the ground, wheeling around to face Arthur with a squeal and outstretched arms, as my arms wrapped around his neck, his arms found my waist, pulling me right off of the floor as he hugged me, spinning me around once before I pulled my head off of his chest and looked up at his glowing face.

My eyes only flickered down to his lips for a milisecond before I felt his on top of my own, a billion tiny fireflies lighting up and racing around my stomach as I closed my eyes, relaxing into his hands which were positioned lazily around my waist, holding me lovingly as his lips caressed my own, tuning out the world around us as I focussed on just him and I- together - his lips perfectly top of mine.

...

"What was your forfeit in the end, Arthur?" I asked, eyebrows scrunched as I sat on his lap at the table- arms around his neck and my police hat and tie around Arthur's neck.

Theo was close to nodding off whilst Chip besides him already had. Chris had taken to the stage, wowing the bar with his drunk dancing and (not) killer vocals. Harry, George and Reev still seemed alright however, and were sat making warm conversation around the table, laughing and joking like there was nothing wrong. And truly- there was nothing wrong.

Arthur smiled slightly at my question before tugging at his pocket and pulling out the card, sharpie pen scrawled across it saying:

Give a kiss to the fittest person in the group xoxo (Doesn't have to be on the lips, Chip- we know you will anyways, but everyone else- just know you don't need to go that deep)

I laughed at the bracketed side-note before looking up to Arthur who smiled goofily down at me, looking so pleased- as though he wouldn't rather have anyone else in his arms.

My hand found the side of his face, thumb tracing his jawline and running up his cheeks before padding at his lips. Closing my eyes, I leaned it, finding his lips as we kissed once more, still with the afterglow of embers burning in my heart as I realised I couldn't be happier in anyone else's arms.

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

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sixosix · 11 months

Text

BUT THEY ALL LEAD BACK TO YOU | S. HEIZOU

he said, “it’s a shame, then, that it’s against my ideals to commit a crime.” you couldn’t think too hard about what he said because he distracted you quickly with a kiss, even forgetting your name for a moment.

tags implied…Ahem yk, getting together, heizou is pining BAD but so are u (carnally now too ig), sweet sweet fluff

a/n 2700 words, holy shit this was longer than i planned T__T

previous part

"why does this shikanoin heizou want to meet me that badly? how does he even know me?"

kazuha smiles lightly, content with watching you make a mess of your temporary room like a cyclone. “i’m not so certain. heizou has a habit of prying into the lives of people he hears mentioned. i was reminiscing about the day i met you while catching up with him, and he insisted i introduce him before i could talk about anyone else.”

seriously, who does that?

kazuha had mentioned shikanoin heizou before, as with his other close friends. you were listening but not paying attention enough to have him as your surprise not-in-a-romantic-way-date like a pop quiz. it was as though you didn’t have enough time to prepare for heizou’s inevitable “what time and date did i meet kaedehara kazuha and what’s the name of my distant cousin?” but that’s not the case right now, which means what else could doushin shikanoin want from you? a good first impression and a far-from-suspicious job, obviously.

“there’s nothing about me—my hair’s a mess, why didn’t you tell me?— that could possibly warrant a tenryou commission detective’s interest in that way.”

you pick an unruly strand of hair off, then belatedly realize that walking outside would lead to more of them, and there is no point in doing so. you’re deeply stressed.

“clearly he disagrees,” your friend says in return, amused. you do not share his delight, back to pacing across and around your room.

“kazuha,” you groan, “he’s your friend, isn’t he? can’t you just ask what he wants from me? get this over with.” you abhor first introductions. can’t kazuha just tell you if you should ship your ass back to liyue right this instant?

“are you truly this nervous?”

“he’s a detective, kazuha. and no one can know what i do for a living—yelan will kick me out!”

“you don’t have to worry too much. he bears no ill intentions towards you. if he did,” kazuha pauses to meet your eyes intently, turning serious, “i wouldn’t have offered to introduce you to him in the first place.”

you throw your hands in the air, exasperated.

that answers absolutely nothing and only brings more questions. what does he want from you if not your occupation? surely a detective with a renowned reputation such as himself taking an interest in you means that he wants you to spill truths you’ve sworn to lie about.

maybe it’s not too late to ask if beidou wants a trip back home at this very moment.

“y/n,” kazuha says, with a hint of a fond smile, “let fate take the lead for today. you’ll find that it’s nothing like you’re agonizing over.”

your first memory of inazuma city is when kazuha was hauled away by a few people and left you stranded in the crowd, the same one who had seen you tailing kazuha like a lost puppy—the same one who treated your friend as something sort of a celebrity because of his famous block.

in the few days you’ve been wandering around here, you’ve learned that people everywhere, no matter the region, are always too curious. and somehow prepared to bargain for information.

you’re breezing through everyone in hopes they can sense you don’t want to talk with any of them at the moment. the last time you were lenient, new rumors sprung in the air the first few hours you arrived at inazuma, saying that you’re their ticket to meeting kaedahara kazuha himself.

you’d been deeply affronted. you’re not a scammer; even you’re incapable of tying kazuha to one place, much less holding a meet-and-greet for his fans.

“sorry, sorry, hey—wait up! you!” someone calls out from behind, sounding oddly familiar.

irritation spikes.

“i don’t know who kaedehara kazuha is, sorry,” you say, speeding past stalls and apologizing in advance for people who swerve out of your way.

but this person is determined, somehow swift enough to seize your wrist. there was a second where you forgot where you were for a moment and jerked your arm back in favor of a very, very violent self-defense— even so, this person’s grip was surprisingly strong.

he smiles when you meet his eyes. “i was looking for you, actually.”

there is no mistaking it. his face had been hard to tell in dim lighting, but even then, you could make out the soft features and the distinct twin moles illuminated by blue.

you couldn’t confuse him for someone else even if you tried. the moment you stared a little too long when he was being dragged away, you set it upon yourself for today—as if he was never unfamiliar.

“i know you,” you say, “you’re the drunk guy.”

and then it hits you harder than yelan’s kick on a good day.

this is the same guy kazuha said is a tenryou commission detective—their best one, people say, renowned for his commendable skills and intuition. you were expecting someone older, taller, who fit that description, and definitely, someone who didn’t look like…this.

“yes, that’s me,” he grins brightly. “hi.”

seeing him up close on a bright, sunny day was not the best idea. only here can you see the startlingly compelling shade of green on his eyes and the softness of his burgundy hair. only here can you realize that this man is exactly your type.

“hello,” you say pleasantly and hope you aren’t gaping.

shikanoin heizou looks around, taking in the number of people passing by. he looks back at you, and leans in close to whisper, “let’s go somewhere else.”

you follow him into a food stall, with only one person on the far edge eating. you take a seat on the two chairs laid out on the far right with him. this is starting to feel less like an interrogation and more like something you’re not willing to get into at the moment.

heizou leans against the wooden counter, announcing his order. he suggests food for you upon seeing the conflict on your face.

“you’re from liyue, right? you live in liyue?” is the first thing heizou asks, his arm still resting on the counter with his chin on his palm.

he looks enticing in the gold glow of the lanterns on both sides of the stall. you let your eyes stray, pretending you’re entranced by the ramen and not his arms. “i’m not here on any official business. i’m just here because kazuha begged me to accompany him to inazuma.”

“from what i heard, you jumped at the boat the moment kazuha offered inazuma for you.”

your brow twitches, caught. “details, details.”

the distinct scents of different foods sold in other stalls along with this fills your senses. your stomach rumbles, a gentle reminder. an embarrassing one, at that.

heizou smiles, and it’s almost sweet if you weren’t so suspicious. “my treat.”

“...shikanoin-san,” you begin, “is there a reason why you were so adamant about meeting me?”

his gaze drifts then, ears darkening. “do you remember that night we met? i dragged myself to work the next day, head pounding, my desk a mess from stumbling around it the night before. my mind was elsewhere. my peers ushered me when they caught me snea—ahem, doing patrols.”

“did they belittle you once again or something?”

“i’m pleased you still remember that.” your face burns, intently staring at the ramen the stall owner is preparing. “they told me all about how i was blabbing their ears off about someone. someone i insisted must be a youkai with how uncharacteristically enamored i was. they told me i kept asking to get myself drunk again to trace myself back to you—and i almost considered it sober.”

“that’s stupid,” you say, pretending you aren’t flustered by this.

“isn’t it?” he doesn’t look embarrassed at all. “but then i saw kazuha. we caught up, and he told me about this friend who is a stranger in inazuma; my intuition honed in on your name the moment he mentioned it.”

“and what do you know—” heizou glances at you, “—my intuition still hasn’t failed me.”

this could’ve been the moment you realized that shikanoin heizou is a dangerous, dangerous man, but really, it was on that night when he had been an ungraceful mess, letting you pin him against the tree with a gleam in his eye.

finally, food is served, and you don’t have to answer that. you can only hope that heizou won’t hone in your face the same way, and you can excuse the steam of the ramen as the culprit of its heat.

“so,” heizou begins, and you dread how it’s going, “you come here often?”

you hide a laugh. “you shouldn’t be so curious about me, for your own sake.”

“why? are you hiding something?”

he is no threat at all, you realize. you’re almost desperate, because whatever is happening right now is far from your expertise. with a glimpse of honesty: “i have no obligation to give you information about myself or my field of work. if i spill anything, the commission will never hear from you again.”

“is that so?” he looks excited.

shikanoin heizou is strange. so why are you fighting off a smile?

is it also so strange you realize his body is completely facing you? he speaks again, “well, i heard from kaedehara about a case here in inazuma that i would’ve been thrilled solving, and you were the one to bring it to a close before anyone else caught wind of it. before i caught wind of it.”

you remember that. it was practically nothing. the bandits were just unfortunate enough to do their crimes in front of your face, trained and armed for these very moments.

but where is he going with this? “i have committed no crimes myself, detective.”

“that’s not what i said,” heizou grins, resting his chin on the center of his palm. “i just want to say i appreciate you for helping in your own way. even if that meant we had to deal with interrogating dazed, thoroughly beaten-up nobushi. i want you to tell me about what went down in excruciating detail some other time.”

“you’re welcome. are you going to arrest me for interfering?”

he hums. “why do you want me to arrest you so much? want my handcuffs on you that badly?”

you’re glad you’ve already swallowed the noodles before he opened his mouth. “that’s not what i mean and you know it.”

heizou giggles, the bastard. “cute,” he murmurs as he sips on his drink, smiling to himself.

are you the one with alcohol in your system this time? because the tension is suffocating and you want him bad. “you’re too forward, shikanoin-san.”

“heizou,” he corrects. “and what’s the point in beating around the bush? we both know what i want at the end of the day. you think i meet you again and i’ll let you slip from my fingers again?”

it’s hard not to want the same. it’s itching under your fingertips, begging to be closer, to feel his laugh against your skin. “let’s pray kazuha doesn’t find out.”

“what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him.” or makes things extremely awkward for him.

that night is also the same night you last see shikanoin heizou for a while. you told him about how you were leaving the next day, and getting attached would be a bad idea.

he had been hovering over you when he said, “it’s a shame, then, that it’s against my ideals to commit a crime.” you couldn’t think too hard about what he said because he distracted you quickly with a kiss, even forgetting your name for a moment.

with inazuma added to your to-do list for next year (ASAP!!! written beside it), you and the crux sail back to liyue. you were already starting to miss it, but homesickness washed over soon enough at the sight of the familiar wharf. people wave at you, saying they missed you, asking if you enjoyed your vacation.

“hey, you.”

you don’t have to look to know who it is. “yelan.” you crane your neck. “i haven’t seen you since i got back.”

“there wasn’t much you missed out on; i was dead to the world,” yelan says with a cunning smile, slinging an arm over your shoulder. “how was your trip? had fun? bring home anything good?”

you smile to yourself, “i had fun.”

“oh,” yelan smirks. “i see. what did they call it? summer fling.”

“no, nothing like that.”

she flicks your forehead. “you’re still a lousy liar as ever.”

the days pass, and it’s almost easy to forget you even went to inazuma. everything falls back into place, as routine dictated—if it weren’t for the way you keep thinking about bare sides, olive eyes, and unending playful banter.

although you weren’t slacking off, it was easy to tell that your mind was far away when you walked past couples whispering to themselves, tucked into some dark corner.

“hey, y/n! kazuha is calling for you in the wharf.”

“coming! hold on!”

the crux fleet’s grand ship looms over other boats. curiously, you note that the crew has only begun to disembark. beidou waves at you when she spots you, and you wave back with a wide smile.

she gestures at the side. you follow her gaze.

if you didn’t know who he was, you’d think—with the way he walks around and smiles at curious onlookers as if he knows them personally—that he belongs here. but you do, you do know him, madly so. he’s been in your mind for far too much that you convinced yourself he’s just a fragment of your imagination until he catches sight of you and brightens.

“y/n!” he says, enthusiastically making his way towards you.

“heizou…?” you let him tackle you into a hug, too stunned to do anything else. “wait, heizou!?” you pull away, cupping his cheeks in your palms. “what are you doing here… in—in liyue? who…”

heizou sighs, looking away despite all the confidence he’s bragged about. his face is very, very red. “it’s a long story.”

kazuha appears behind him, startling the both of you bad enough to have you freezing in sync. “he jumped at the boat the moment i offered. it was starting to get disheartening seeing the longing looks.”

he definitely knows something between you two went down.

“thanks again, kazuha, i owe you one!”

“two, heizou.”

“two,” heizou amends. “you’re the best.”

kazuha quirks a brow, amused. “flattery won’t make me lessen it, doushin shikanoin.”

“dammit,” heizou curses, smiling when you laugh.

“i’ll leave you two to it,” kazuha says, and despite all this, he looks genuinely happy. maybe because he’s rubbing on your face that he’s right—this was far from what you were agonizing over.

“ah, so you work for…the ministry of civil affairs.” heizou definitely doesn’t believe this, and he doesn’t even bother trying to hide it on his face. “the youngest, too, i heard on the way here. very good with a sword.”

“don’t underestimate me,” you instinctively say. deep inside, you’re pleased with the way your friends are giving him a good impression of you. “i do more than issue bounties on wanted criminals.”

“i knew that. though most of them don’t need to carry around a weapon as sharp as that.” you try not to react too strongly, but based on the way heizou smiles, you know that he can see straight through you. damn intuition or whatever. “and you don’t have to explain to me, i’m not underestimating you. i’m the youngest in the commission, too, you see?”

“oh…” you do remember him repeatedly mentioning how extraordinary and young he is.

“look at that,” he coos, his arms snaking around your waist, “we have so much in common already. what are you gonna do about it? shikanoin heizou, in the flesh, all for you.”

you couldn’t help but laugh. “is that all you think about?”

“you’re all i think about.”

you learn that it’s difficult to keep heizou’s hands away from you.

( “do you like him?”

“huh? who? shikanoin heizou? he’s annoying. the flowers in chinju forest are taller than him.”

kazuha looks thoughtful. “are they?”

“yes. they were taller than me, too, but that’s not the point.”

“and so was the answer to my question,” kazuha says, “you didn’t outright say no.”

your face burns, caught.

kazuha grins. “i’m glad to have someone accompany my every visit to inazuma from now on.” )

a/n thank u for reading!!!!! i feel like i didn't do heizou enough justice </3 but i wasn't expecting the first part to get attention at all so thank u to the people who commented and reblogged <333

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