#in the end just went with what had been tagged. partly because I'm not sure how I feel about how this looks ^^;;

[outeremissary]

I may be late but I never forget. Two months ago @dmagedgoods tagged me to fill this template out and at last I finally have. I’m... not much of a digital artist, so I’ve tried to compensate how I could. Unfortunately, resolution issues may undermine my efforts. I did my best though!

Due to having been tagged on this two and a half months ago I will not even be making an attempt to send this anywhere.

[sidekick-hero]

I'm a fool (for you)

Written for the Stranger Things Writers Guild daily drabble, prompt was 'meet ugly'. I don't know what happened here. warnings: implied cheating (not steddie) | tags: meet ugly, hurt Eddie, emotional hurt/comfort, love at first sight with the worst timing, hopeful ending | 1.2k | AO3

April is Eddie's favorite month.

Winter is finally over and spring is breathing life back into the world. With the colors of spring, happiness seeped back into people's hearts.

As Eddie walks home from work, whistling his favorite tune, his heart swells with it. The sun still shines brightly, a gentle breeze carries the scent of cherry blossoms from the nearby park, and tucked in his pocket is his very first bonus check. He can't wait to tell David, the exhilaration of a beautiful day gives him hope that maybe they can have a nice evening with some wine and dinner before falling into bed together. It's been a while, and he knows it's partly because he works so much, but lately he feels like he and David are drifting apart.

Determined to surprise David with some quality time together, Eddie plans to come home early. Perhaps they could even use the extra money for a vacation, he thinks with a smile on his face.

Filled with hope and happiness, Eddie opens the door to their apartment, only to be greeted by a sight that shatters both.

A stranger, clad in nothing but black boxer briefs, stands in their bedroom doorway.

"I'm such a fool," Eddie murmurs, blinking at the unexpected sight of an almost-naked Adonis standing in the doorway to the room he shares with the man Eddie thought loved him.

The stranger mirrors his shock. "You're not David.”

A mirthless laugh escapes Eddie's lips. "No, I'm Eddie. His boyfriend. Or rather, ex-boyfriend. Guess he forgot to mention me, huh?"

When the man just buries his face in his hands and groans, "I'm such a fucking fool," Eddie almost feels sorry for him.

Almost, because it's his heart that's just been broken.

"Looks like we both are," he agrees with the stranger. He really is beautiful. Eddie can see why David went for him, he just wishes he hadn't.

"I swear, I had no idea David had a boyfriend or I never would have gone home with him. I'm so, so sorry."

The guy looks sincere and Eddie believes him. After all, it was David who decided to trample on their relationship. It must suck to be drawn into the drama of Eddie's imploding relationship, less cause and more casualty.

Closing the door behind him, Eddie steps fully into the apartment. "I believe you -" he pauses here, waiting for the man to tell him his name.

"Steve."

"I believe you, Steve. Where's David, by the way?"

"Buying condoms," he admits sheepishly, and Eddie rubs his hands over his face.

"Of course. How awfully considerate of him." Steve winces at Eddie's tone, but he's too tired to care. He takes a moment to think about what to do next. "I think it's best if you get dressed and leave now, I doubt you'll want to be here when David gets back. To be honest, I don't want to either, but I guess there's not much of a choice."

Steve looks at him silently for a second before turning and going back into the bedroom, presumably to get dressed. Eddie sighs and heads over to the kitchen to make himself some coffee. He's going to need it.

He's thinking about where he could stay tonight when Steve comes into the kitchen, now dressed in tight, light-washed Levi's and a white shirt that looks painted on. Eddie can even see the dark chest hair through it.

It's hard not to hate Steve for making Eddie feel even more inadequate.

"I know you want me to go, but if it's okay with you, I'd rather stay? Just to make sure you're okay. I've been cheated on before and I know what it's like to feel like the rug has been pulled out from under you. You shouldn't have to deal with it alone."

It's hard to hate Steve when he's so kind to Eddie.

"Do I look so pathetic that I need the man my boyfriend cheated on me with to comfort me?" He spits, more out of self-preservation than anything else. Anger is so much easier to deal with than heartbreak.

Steve's response, however, is gentle. "You look like someone just broke your heart and you could use a friend. It doesn't have to be me, I can take you to one of your friends. I just don't think you should be alone right now." With that, Steve walks over to the coffee machine and pours out a cup. "Sugar? Cream?"

Eddie plops down on one of the kitchen chairs in defeat. "Both. More sugar."

Steve prepares their coffee and then they wait for David to get back. When he does, clearly shocked to find his boyfriend and his hookup in the same room, they both confront him. Steve has Eddie's back the whole time and gets downright mean to David, while Eddie is mostly tired and disappointed. After their confrontation, Steve waits for Eddie to pack some of his things and, as promised, drives Eddie over to Chrissy's apartment.

They park in front of her building and Eddie thanks Steve for everything he's done for him, but before he can get out, Steve takes Eddie's hand and squeezes it.

"I'm really sorry, Eddie. Nobody deserves to get cheated on and I hate that it happened to you. I can understand if you want to be mad at me or forget I even exist, but if you ever need to talk, even if it's just about how small David's dick is, I'm here, okay?"

In the palm of his hand, Eddie feels a piece of paper, and he's pretty sure it's Steve's number.

"Why?"

Steve reaches over and tucks a lock of Eddie's hair behind his ear. "You'll probably think I'm weird, but I feel like I almost know you. It sounds crazy, I know, I know. I can’t explain it. I just want you to be happy, and I can't help but want to be the person who makes that happen."

At Eddie's stunned silence, he hastily adds, "Oh God, I sound like a crazy person. Or worse, a psycho stalker. I promise, I'm neither. And that's exactly what a psycho stalker would say, for Christ's sake. Please say something before I put my foot any further in my mouth."

This makes Eddie laugh again, and this time it doesn't sound bitter. Just a little confused, but mostly fond.

"Thank you, Steve. Really. I appreciate it. You... I have no idea what I'm feeling right now, or what I'm going to do, but you've made this totally fucked up evening suck less, and for that alone I don't want to forget that you exist or be mad at you. I just need some time, y'know?"

Steve's smile is warm, if a little sad. "I do. You should. Take your time, I mean. I really wish we'd met differently."

"Me too. Believe me."

Eddie starts to get out of the car again, and this time Steve doesn't stop him. Just watches him, his hazel eyes shining brightly in the light of the street lamp.

"Take care, Eddie."

"You too, Steve."

As Eddie climbs the stairs to Chrissy's apartment, he saves Steve's number in his phone.

[moodymisty]

Author's Note: Inspired by this post. You can blame all of the unhinged horniness there for this unhinged horniness. Someone there put the idea down as space wolves or Luna wolves and I chose Luna wolves because @bispecsual gave me the brain rot. And since I'm a massive masochist, I write.

Relationships: Like five unnamed Luna Wolves/Fem!Reader

Warnings: Vaguely NSFW, Very hornily charged bullying, Astartes are very curious and grabby, Demeaning speech, Just imagine you're that one girl on the couch in the meme surrounded by massive dudes but those dudes are 8 foot tall genetic abominations, Gangbang implications(?) my warning tags are getting weird as fuck

To the Luna Wolves, serfs are a new idea- a curiosity.

But after their good deeds upon a planet of little known renown and placement in the galaxy, a few of their population offered to serve them.

Before them, most serfs were primarily stationed on Terra, and on Luna Wolves ships instead those roles were given to low ranking tech priests, or penal labor. Even then however the Astartes saw them rarely, until now.

Some of the newly conquered planet offered sons as aspirants, of which they eagerly accepted. The Luna Wolves have been eager to grow their numbers now under Horus’ leadership.

Others, older and ablebodied, offered themselves to serve as serfs.

Many Luna Wolves can't remember the last time they've seen a normal human for more than a few moments, ushering them to safely into a Stormbird or pushing them from a firefight. Or seeing their corpse flung on the far reaches of a battlefield, out of sight and mind.

In their brief periods of reprieve from battle, it's now been a struggle for their captains and lieutenants to keep their men on task, now that serfs scurry around them completing various tasks. Particularly for the youngest marines among them, it's been a constant to stop them from reaching towards the serfs, interrupting their sanctioned duties.

They will get to you once finished with your brothers, is what the current quartermaster on duty or Astartes captain says. Though haste to have their armor cleaned or bolter clips loaded isn't the thing on their mind, but instead an almost dog-like curiosity.

But after their superiors leave, they always end up crowding around you again. These astartes have barely seen baseline humans in decades, let alone a woman.

It's suffocating.

You were nothing on your home planet. Insignificant. You’d hoped joining them would bring you purpose, something to be proud of. And to get off the planet that had you feeling so trapped. And while you got your wish, in a way the thing trapping you had merely changed form.

They have you cornered in the armoring room now; Like Wolves. You went from trapped on that no name planet to trapped by five different astartes. Your palms feel hot and sweaty, but not as hot as your face.

“You’re so small, you’re going to get lost on the ship,” One says.

He grabs for your chin and holds it for a moment, forcing you to look into his grey eyes. they're stoic, but you can see he's enjoying something about this. Though he allows you to shrink away and out of his grip, looking downward at their chest armor. Or anywhere else that isn't their faces.

“Or trampled,” Says another. The one who spoke previous gives him a sour look before passively aggressively replying.

“We’ll make sure that doesn’t happen.”

One who hasn't spoken yet has his top armor removed, his lower half unpowered. He was training, using it as dead weight. Training concluded blood now drips down from his nose and lips but is mostly dried, partly covered healing bruises. If he looks like this, you can't help but wonder how his opponent looks.

It’s distracting.

You don’t know if it’s some sort of illness or insanity from being locked in this ship for so long; It makes him look more attractive. You hope to whatever deity or god or whatever exists out in the stars that he doesn't notice you’re staring. That he doesn't notice the way your heart is pounding in your chest and what feels like your cunt as well.

He does. As do the others. You can't kid yourself and think that with their hearing and smell that they haven't noticed that you're boiling alive, and that your body is screaming fuck me fuck me fuck me fuck me-

“He won. Out of one hundred men.”

Your gut twists and the marine behind you laughs quietly. It's deep, enough so that you swear you can feel it in your chest. You would squeeze your thighs together for some relief, but you don’t think you can without stumbling over.

“She likes the winners. Looks like you’re out.” He gestures to a fellow marine that gives him another sour look. You briefly wonder what he lost at to deserve such a jab.

“I should return to my duties,”

You meekly say, hoping to remove yourself from the embarrassment and scurry away to another quarter of the ship.

One of them blocks your path and traps you from leaving, picking you up by the armpits and holding you before putting you back down between them all. It's like you weigh nothing to them, and that they can simply jostle and swing you around like a toy.

“I’ll tell your quartermaster you were helping us.” He jerks his head in the direction of a marine clad in only the casual clothing they wear out of their ceramite. Now the focus of your attention he rolls his shoulder, and you can see the muscles of his neck and around his collarbone flex.

You swallow a knot in your throat that felt like it was going to choke you. Your hands clench tight, nails sharp against your palms. You're going to have a heart attack, you swear it. Tears well in your eyes but they don't break your waterline just yet, from sheer will alone. If any of them say another word, call you cute, small, soft, that you smell so sweet, you swear they’ll roll down your cheeks like a waterfall.

“He wants you to put on his armor. The others are always so rough, you’re so gentle with those little hands.”

The marine reaches for you, and in your back step you stumble and accidentally bump into the one who hasn't spoken at all; Just watching and sitting. You stumble over his massive armored boot and end up falling into a sit on his thigh, legs parted over it. His massive armored hand comes to grip your waist, to keep you from falling over. It covers a good portion of your stomach in the process.

You’re so tightly wound just the simple pressure alone is enough to have you clamp a hand your mouth to avoid letting out a moan that would kill you right then and there, if you weren’t already dead. Your knees quiver, toes just barely touching the ground. His massive height makes it impossible to fully stand with his thigh between your legs.

You know they can smell the way you’re leaking and staining your underwear, hear the way your heart is racing like it's going to explode. You’re half afraid you might make his ceramite thigh plate slick.

You can feel their eyes on you. They look at you like you’re food thrown to a pack of starving wolves.

One suddenly steps forward, and pushes his battle brother out of his way with a harsh slam of ceramite on ceramite before undoing the latch his belt.

“I go first.”

[lemurzsquad]

Hand Sanitizer

Pairing: Sakusa x gn!reader (platonic or romantic, up to interpretation)

Summary: You and Sakusa hate each other with a passion, and it's almost always a disagreement over hand sanitizer. So when you leave to wash your hands and don't come back, Sakusa learns why exactly you avoid using it so adamantly.

A/N: Okay so this fic. Hooooo boy. This fic. I've been wanting to write it for a while and finally have. It started as a "Reasons why I'm pretty sure Sakusa would hate me irl" and turned into this.

So I have a skin condition known as aquagenic wrinkling of the palms (or AWP), which affects my hands when they come in contact with water, which is what this fic is about. I never hear about this condition anywhere, and it's very lonely sometimes, and there's no real treatment for it (from what I've seen). So this is essentially a vent where I take my skin condition seriously for once instead of just making water allergy jokes to cope lol

(More info about AWP here)

Word count: 3898

cw: skin condition (non-graphic descriptions and discussion) (AWP - please read above), hurt/comfort, angst, crying, enemies to friends...?, emotionally constipated apologies from Sakusa, hand sanitizer is evil /j, vent, not proofread because I just wanted to get this done and posted to do literally anything else, (please lmk if I should tag anything else)

(Disclaimer: I am not a doctor, and everything written here is purely from my own experiences and observations. If you would like to learn more, please do your own research; this is not designed to be informative. It's purely for myself and for awareness.)

You and Sakusa had never gotten along.

You were certain you knew when it started, having been completely oblivious of one another up until that point.

It was when you were both first years in high school, and there happened to be a lizard in the classroom. You, upon seeing it, immediately proceeded to pick it up and ask the teacher to let you put it outside, to which they agreed.

You came back to the classroom, dusting off your hands, when a curly-haired boy took it upon himself to comment, “Go use some hand sanitizer, would you?”

You squinted at him, partly confused as to why he was talking to you and how you had never noticed he sat there before. “No thanks,” you answered, “I'd rather just wash my hands.”

“I don't think just washing your hands would be enough,” he rebutted with a sharp look behind his bangs. “You probably don't even know how to properly wash your hands.”

“Well, too bad! I'm not using hand sanitizer!” You were starting to get annoyed, crossing your arms.

Somehow, that seemed to make him even more disgusted, possibly at the thought that you were spreading whatever it was on your hands onto your clothes now, too.

The two of you threw jabs back and forth until the teacher separated you, which you were both happy to oblige. The animosity between you never seemed to quite dissipate even as the year went on and you became second years. You almost felt bad for the misunderstanding, knowing it was entirely your own fault, but how were you supposed to explain to this random kid that you couldn't use hand sanitizer even if you wanted to? At least, in your head you couldn't.

At some point, you and Sakusa became something of enemies within your class—renowned ones, at that. People would often ask the both of you why you hated each other so much, but your answers were vague at best.

“He's just so pretentious,” you said once.

“They're just so obstinate,” he said once.

And thus, an impasse stretched between you. You hadn't even learned his name until months after your first encounter, too bitter to really care.

Despite the efforts you both went through to avoid being within the presence of the other, you somehow still ended up nearby. Maybe it was your teachers attempting to make you get along—maybe it was the universe laughing in your face.

Throughout that entire time, you still faithfully avoided hand sanitizer like the plague. The one time the nearest bathroom was out of order for a little while and you couldn't wash your hands, you used as little of the accursed substance as you could. Whatever microscopically thin layer that coated your hands there was, you shook it off almost violently, simultaneously disgusted by the feeling of something on your skin and afraid of what it might do.

The disapproving look Sakusa gave you when he saw that was palpable.

At some point, you hated each other mostly out of principle. You'd both kept it up this long—it would be weird to suddenly just let it go since your flimsy justifications seemed enough until now. To admit that you were being unreasonable would be worse than getting along, you separately reasoned.

So when you were paired up for a project, you couldn't help but grimace. Sakusa was the first to go up to the teacher about it.

“I can't work with them,” you heard him say. For once, you agreed with him.

The teacher, however, dismissed his concerns with a wave, saying, “In life, you don't get to pick who you work with. Sometimes you'll have to try to put aside your differences to get your work done.”

It sounded stupid to you, like some half-hearted excuse so they wouldn't have to rearrange seating or partners. But it's not like you had any place to argue, so you resigned to just sucking it up.

Instead of working together, you both divvied up tasks as quickly as possible and did what you assigned yourselves—separately.

All was going well; you ignored each other and worked on the project silently. Despite other groups discussing their plans and the room being filled with chatter, your share corner was dead silent save the sound of pen on paper.

Which didn't last long when suddenly the tip of your pen snapped off. The now open ink tube spilled onto your hands, and when you tried to minimize the damage, it only got worse. By the time you dropped the pen onto your open notebook, raising your hands in surrender, they were absolutely coated in black splotches. A sense of defeat washed over you as you watched your words get covered and your paper stained in ebony.

Taking a moment to glance at your already ruined hands, you just resigned to picking up the pen and throwing it out. It was your favorite pen, which was unfortunate. It couldn't be helped, you told yourself.

Sakusa had noticed you flailing about your desk, silently judging you for the clumsy mess you made when you should have just thrown out the pen the second it broke to avoid the noir crime scene that now covered you and your area. He scowled knowing you would now have to redo whatever you had written for the project.

It was nearing the end of school, the class you were currently in being the final one of the day. You approached the teacher's table and asked if you could go wash your hands. They checked the clock to see about twenty minutes left before replying, “Make it quick.”

You walked past Sakusa's desk on your way to the door. He made the snide remark, “You could get the ink off really well with hand sanitizer.”

It took everything in you not to snap back at him, but you just hurried past, careful not to touch anything on the way out.

Sakusa knew he would never understand you. From the moment you met, you stubbornly refused what seemed to be basic courses of action. Touch something dirty? Use hand sanitizer. Eating? Wash your hands before and after to keep from touching anything.

The couple of times he had seen you wash your hands, it was very brief, and you seemed to avoid using the air dryer, opting for paper towels that were arguably undoing whatever progress you made in washing your hands.

At the same time, you avoided any task that would require you to touch dust or water. You always asked to sweep or clean windows, so much so that everyone just ended up giving you those tasks to get you to stop asking. If you did get something on your hands, you immediately wiped or shook it off, seemingly disgusted. You would even briefly run it under water just to dry it on your clothes so they weren't wet. It seemed there were things worse than water if you were willing to rinse them off.

But it was still that one avoidance that came between you: the hand sanitizer. It was practically the same as water, and it dried quickly. Even if it was comparable to washing your hands, it was still much more convenient in most scenarios. Yet you continued to adamantly refuse to ever use it. At some point you declared, “I would rather die,” when he had tried to squeeze some on your hand, earning him his wrist grabbed and pushed away. 

He just didn't understand.

So when he found you sobbing in front of the stairs, opening your hands and clenching them closed into loose fists repeatedly, he was beyond confused.

You hadn't come back to class after leaving to wash the remnants of your broken pen, so the teacher decided it was your project partner, Sakusa, who should find you and return the belongings you left behind. He went over to your open notebook that remained just where you left it and noted the handful of words that were still visible. 

Sakusa folded the cover over, enclosing the now dried puddle of ink. The remainder of your things he scooped into his arms, leaving the room once the halls had cleared a significant amount. As much as he wanted to just leave your things and go to volleyball practice, he figured it would end poorly.

Plus, what could possibly have kept you out of class for so long that you would have left everything behind? There was no way it had taken that long to get most of the ink off of your skin, so either you had just skipped the last bit of school or something happened. Since you hadn't taken your wallet with you with your IDs (he checked your bag when he put the notebook back inside, sure that it was completely dry), he reasoned it was probably the latter.

“Tsk.” They would have been able to get it off with hand sanitizer, he thought, brows furrowed. This is such a waste of time.

Sakusa wandered through the halls when he didn't find you by the bathrooms. He was starting to think it was a lost cause trying to return your bag; he even had to text his cousin to tell him why he would be late. It wasn't until he got to a particularly empty hallway did he hear something.

Quietly, in a dark alcove with a set of stairs leading up, a figure was huddled against a wall. Their tears were soft but anguished, stifled because it was in the environment of school. Sakusa had tried to ignore them until he realized it was you.

You held your palms up just past your knees that were pressed against your chest. You opened and closed your hands, a fresh cascade of tears painting your cheeks as you choked back a sob. You pressed—with more pressure than could have been painful—your thumb into the center of your other palm, nails digging into the back of your hand. You set your closed eyes on your knees with the hope that it might stop the water that leaked from them.

Sakusa, with great caution, approached your hunched figure. He didn't want to, he really didn't. You were the person he probably hated the most at his school, but somehow he knew he'd seem like an awful person if he didn't at least give your belongings to you directly—he wouldn't give you the satisfaction of another thing to hold over his head.

And yet those thoughts went to the back of his mind when he crouched down in front of you. His mask and curly hair obscured his focused expression as he tried to study your current state. The moment you seemed to hear him there, you held your breath and repressed your already quiet cries.

When Sakusa got close, you buried yourself further in to hide your face behind your knees and clenched your hands even more.

He frowned and something in his chest tightened. His brows furrowed deeper over his eyes and he huffed. He saw your nails digging into the skin on the backs of your hands.

“That's going to leave a mark if you keep doing that.” It came out more biting than he had meant it, but he was being serious.

It was then that you could no longer hold back your sobs, almost choking on your own tears. The grip you had of your hands softened and unlinked; instead, you lightly shook them apart from each other. Sakusa had to take a moment to process, but it almost seemed like there was something wrong with them. 

He just wanted to get you to stop crying so he could give you your bag. As much as he hated the gesture, he asked, “What's wrong with your hands?”

You curled your lips in to bite down on them, fighting back hiccups. With your eyes tightly screwed shut, you upturned your palms.

The sight alone made Sakusa's eyebrows fly up in shock. 

He didn't mean to, but he grabbed your wrist to get a better look. Ignoring the ink stains that faintly persisted, there were pale, patchy splotches in the center of your palm and on the side edges of your fingers; there were even some tiny pale rings on the periphery of the bigger splotches. But underneath that, the skin seemed as if it had soaked in water for hours or maybe even days. Not only were there dozens of deep crevice lines trailing from the tips of all of your fingers to their bases but the lines on your palms were more prominent, surrounded by profound, dense wrinkles that spanned the entire surface.

His eyes darted around your hand for a few moments just trying to comprehend what he was looking at. It looked unnatural—it looked painful. And when he met your gaze, he saw unidentifiable emotions flash across it. Was it shame? Regret? He couldn't be sure aside from the blood that seemed to drain from your face.

You tried to pull your hand away, but Sakusa wouldn't let go. His eyes never left yours, searching for some kind of answer. When he couldn't find it there, he asked, “What happened?” It was soft, calm, and even, enough to make you tear up a little again.

The second time you tugged, he released your wrist. You pushed your thumb into your palm again, looking away. Hiding your hands away in the space between your stomach and where your legs were still tucked against your torso, you sniffled a few times and tried to even out your breathing.

“I-It's normal… it just h-happens when I-I touch water…” You stuttered and mumbled between hiccups.

“That is not normal,” Sakusa said a little too quickly and curtly, realizing it probably would have made it seem like he was berating you.

With another sniffle, you said, “It's a– it's a skin condition.” You started to scratch your palms partly out of stress and partly out of the persistent stinging. “It reacts to water i-if I touch it for too long.”

His eyebrows knitted in concern. “Was that from washing your hands then?”

You gave a small nod, still avoiding his gaze. “I couldn't get the ink off and ended up w-washing them for too long…”

“You could have just used hand sanitizer,” he said genuinely. For the moment, he almost forgot he was supposed to hate you, more focused on being worried than anything.

Your answer was your head shaking rather fervently. “No, I can't.” You lowered to set your forehead against your knees again. “Well, actually, I don't know. I-It just scares me and I don't want to r-risk any more pain than I already have. I haven't h-had good experiences with it…”

“What did hand sanitizer ever do to you?” It came out snarkier than Sakusa had meant. He slowly lowered himself to sit with his legs crossed in front of you, your bag still next to him.

You let out a heavy breath. “I was a dumb kid in elementary,” you started. “I had an obsession with scented hand sanitizer for probably a few months. I used it multiple times a day, and even though I don't know for sure if it's related, my hands got worse after that year I think. Only after that did I finally go to the doctor to get it diagnosed after my mom did a ton of research. I agreed to avoid hand sanitizer from then on. I just don't want to risk being in more pain…”

You both went silent.

“Oh…” It was all that left Sakusa's lips. A sudden wave of guilt crashed into him. All of the times he had berated you for not using hand sanitizer and all of his snide, rude, annoyed remarks resurfaced in his conscience. He felt terrible. He felt bad. Someone was hurting and all he did was throw lighter fluid on their problems—for months—and it seemed there was finally a spark to set it all ablaze. The thought that he started it all made it worse.

“Stop with whatever weird look you have on your face.” You squinted at him and his downturned, scrunched face. You'd calmed down enough to be making quips, it would appear. “It's not like I can do anything about it.” You shrugged, half-hearted.

He searched your face again for any sign of emotion aside from blank resignation, but he couldn't find anything. “Is there no treatment?”

You shrunk down further into your huddle, not vocally answering, but the answer was still clear.

Something about the whole situation made his heart hurt; it made him upset, he realized. “So what, you just have to avoid water?”

The nod of your head to the side looked pathetic as you avoided his eyes. After several seconds of silence, you said, “I used to love swimming. It's not like I can't, it's just… it hurts and it makes me feel gross. I don't even like the beach anymore because if I go in the water and get my hands wet, there's no real place to dry them off.” You laughed humorlessly. “It's stupid. You'd think I would get more used to it and get over it as I got older, but it just made me more upset. Why me? Why did I have to get stuck with a condition that's rare and isn't really bad enough for people to care enough to find a treatment? At least, it feels that way…

“I know it's awful, but I sometimes wonder, ‘Why didn't I get stuck with something worse? Then I might have a way to treat it. Then people might care.’”

You glanced up to judge Sakusa's reaction, instantly regretting spilling your feelings and questioning why you did. Tears threatened to flood over again and spill from your eyes. You felt helpless; not only from your condition but also from being stared down by the person you were certain despised you more than anyone. You were giving him more ammo to be disgusted and to detest you, too.

But you couldn't find his face. His ebony bangs hung down like a curtain and his mask further obscured your view, his downturned line of sight completely blocked out.

When the silence was beginning to crawl around on your skin and became almost deafening, you took in a sharp breath and held it for a moment before breathing out a tiny apology. “Sorry… you don't wanna hear about this…”

“No.”

“...No? No… what?”

“No…” 

Sakusa was struggling to get out the right words. How does he say sorry to you in a way that you might actually believe? How does he tell you that you're allowed to be upset, that you can talk about it? How does he make you understand that it's okay?

And how is he supposed to get you to believe it when it's coming from him?

His voice sounded almost angry but not at you—it was for you. “You can be upset,” he said between gritted teeth, hands clenched into tight fists. “No one deserves to have to live everyday avoiding something so common just to not be in pain. And no one deserves to have some jerk constantly making light of it even if they don't know.”

The way your eyes widened and water dripped down your cheeks in sudden streams said it all. “Oh…” was all you could muster before you completely broke down. No one you had ever told about your condition had seemed to fully grasp how much you were hurting inside, how every day was a struggle to avoid reminding yourself of how awful your hands were, how even looking at your own hands sometimes made you ashamed and loathing of yourself. It was a constant reminder that there would always be something wrong with you; you would always be broken, and there was no way to fix it.

Sakusa let you cry with the renewed emotional rush. He remained firmly planted where he sat, not moving an inch. He was not going anywhere.

And he didn't, even as your sobbing slowed to quiet sniffles and wiping mostly dried tears. It took a while before you finally muttered, “Thank you… No one's ever said that to me before…”

“Well, they should.” His words were curt but lacked any sharpness to them.

When you looked up to meet his eyes, he turned them away from you. Hesitantly, he uttered, “Look, I can't promise you that we'll get along, but I can assure you I'll try not to bother you anymore. No more stupid hand sanitizer comments anymore, either.” It was the only peace offering he could make for a chance to pave a path towards making amends.

You let out a breath through your nose that was close to a laugh before hiccuping, “Next thing you know, you'll be telling me we'll work on our group project together.”

“Don't push it,” he answered, quickly and humorlessly. It only made you laugh, although he couldn't comprehend why.

“It's getting late,” Sakusa tried to divert. “You should head home.”

You reached for your phone, and the little numbers on the screen confirmed his statement. Suddenly, a flash of panic crossed your face. “I don't have my bag,” you state frantically, “or any of my stuff.”

It was then that Sakusa held up the original object of his search for you, gently lowering it to the ground. “The teacher told me to bring it to you since you never came back.”

Relief washed over you in a calming rush, and you finally seemed to relax. You pulled your knees away from your chest and sat with your legs crossed. Confirming that everything was in your bag, an immensely relieved sigh left your lips in a gust.

“Thank you.” Your gaze was earnest, trying to convey just how much you meant your words to make sure it sunk in.

Sakusa just grumbled, “Whatever.” He was back to his usual self despite how he stumbled embarrassingly when he got up and realized his legs had gone numb. He reluctantly offered up his hand to help you stand, but you only looked at it for a moment, mouth pressed into a line, before you got to your feet on your own.

He pretended he hadn't tried to assist you, instead pivoting on his heels and shoving his hands in his pockets with a slouched posture. Without another word exchanged, you both headed towards the school's entrance.

The air fell into a comfortable quiet until then. When you did reach the entrance, however, you both stopped in your tracks. You turned to Sakusa, giving him a soft smile and a small wave, and headed down the street. Only when you turned the corner, out of sight, did he head back towards the volleyball gym. He was so horribly beyond late that it was almost laughable.

But he didn't care, knowing it meant someone was there in that very moment for you when you needed it most. So what if he also started to mend whatever nonexistent relationship was there in the process? What mattered was that someone told you that it was okay.

And Sakusa was okay with that. Being late to practice wasn't nearly as pressing as his long overdue apologies. What could be more important than that?

Do not copy and/or repost!! Any likes or reblogs are appreciated, though! (c) 2024 LemurzSquad

[widowsistersandfriends]

I wanted to say that your fics are really cute and well-written! Could you do one where Kate is new at the compound and kinda have a hard time adjusting even if everyone is kind to her. Basically she talks to everyone but is kinda intimidated by Wanda because of her powers but at the same time she really wants to get to know her because they haven't really discussed before and also because Kate was a fan of Wanda when she was younger? With fluff tickles ?

Hi anon! Thanks so much, I'm glad you like them! I'm so sorry this took so long to get to, but I hope you enjoy! I changed it a little bit since there were other similar fics!

Word Count: 1111

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Although Kate was new to the compound, she was able to make new friends and become more comfortable with the other Avengers. At first, she mostly stayed near Clint and Natasha, while tagging along next to Yelena every so often. What she didn’t expect was for her to become friends with a witch with insane powers. 

Kate had been a little scared of Wanda at first. Partly due to the fact that she was new, but also because Wanda was so powerful. However, Kate admired the witch ever since she was young, wanting to be as skilled and powerful as she was.

While Kate and Wanda were already past the stage of becoming friends, Kate still wanted to learn so much from the witch. Specifically, she wanted to experience what it was like to fly, but was too shy and scared to ask the witch.

Meanwhile, Wanda was relaxing on the couch in the living room, watching TV. Kate nervously walked over, taking a seat next to the witch.

“Oh hey Kate! Nice to see you!” Wanda said cheerfully.

“Hey Wanda, it’s nice to see you too!” Kate replied, as her mind was still racing to find a way to bring up the topic of flying.

Wanda was currently watching a show where tourists went around trying different foods. They were now flying in a helicopter to a secluded island to try a secret restaurant that not many people knew about.

“Wow, that view looks amazing,” Kate said in awe.

“Tell me about it. The views from up where I’m flying are incredible!” Wanda exclaimed, as she caught the sparkle that lit up Kate’s eyes. 

Kate looked around sheepishly, knowing that this was the perfect time to ask the witch to teach her how to fly. Or at least experience what it’s like. 

Wanda ended up reading her mind anyway, a fond smile growing on her face.

“Why didn’t you just ask me if you wanted to experience what flying was like?” Wanda questioned, now sitting up to face the young girl.

“Oh, well, I wasn’t sure if we were on that level of friendship where I could ask that,” Kate replied.

“Kate, I know you had a hard time adjusting at first, but trust me, we are definitely friends,” Wanda reassured the archer.

“So, you want to know what it’s like to fly?” Wanda asked, while using her powers to lift the brunette into the air.

“Woah, this is so cool! I can’t believe you get to do this all the time!” Kate exclaimed, taking in her surroundings. Even though there wasn't much scenery since it was just the compound, it was interesting to see it from a different point of view.

“You’re not afraid of heights, are you?” Wanda questioned, while lifting the girl higher.

Kate didn’t respond, but just grinned like a little kid, fascinated by her experience of flying. 

“Okay, I think that’s enough flying for now, but thank you for the experience!” Kate said happily. However, her grin slowly faded away, as a grin was now forming on Wanda’s face.

“You know Kate, I think there’s also another thing that you would like to experience as well,” Wanda commented with a smirk.

Before Kate could ask any questions, she felt herself still floating in the air, yet she couldn’t move her arms or legs. 

Kate now looked down at the witch with a worried expression on her face. 

“I don’t think you’ve ever experienced being tickled while flying,” Wanda commented, now flying up herself to meet the younger girl at eye-level. 

“Wait what?” Kate cried, trying to free her arms and legs to no avail.

Wanda wiggled her fingers threateningly at the young girl, causing her to try and squirm, all while giggling in anticipation.

“No! Please don’t tickle me!” Kate cried, as panic built up inside of her.

“Oh but Kate, isn’t that what friends do to each other?” Wanda teased, as she began to wiggle her fingers into Kate’s armpits.

“NOHOHOHOHO STAHAHAHAP IHIHIT,” Kate laughed out, unable to lower her arms to protect herself. 

“Awww, Kate you’re so ticklish! Why didn’t you tell me earlier?” Wanda questioned teasingly.

“BEHEHECAUSE YOHOHOHOU WOHOHOULD TIHIHCKLE MEHEHE,” Kate squealed out, as Wanda wiggled her nails against her ribs softly. 

“Ah, I see I found another good spot,” Wanda commented, while adding some of her magic that caused a ticklish sensation on Kate’s stomach.

“AHAHAHAHAHA NOHOHOHO IHIHIH CAHAHAN’T STAHAHAHAND IHIHIHIT,” Kate screamed, as Wanda lowered herself to tickle Kate’s feet.

The brunette desperately tried to kick her legs, but all she felt was Wanda’s long nails raking over her sensitive soles. 

“YOHOHOU AHAHAHRE SUHUHCH AHAHAHAH JEHEHEHERK,” Kate shouted, trying to sound threatening. 

Wanda didn’t say anything in response. Instead, she just increased the ticklish sensation that was currently on Kate’s stomach, causing the young girl to lose her mind.

“NOHOHOHO OHOHOKAY IHIHIHM SOHOHORRY IHIHI DIHIHIDNT MEHEHEHEAN THAHAHAT,” Kate screamed out, desperate to escape. 

“Oh Kate, you’re just too ticklish for your own good,” Wanda sighed, as she began to knead at her hips.

“PLEHEHEHASE STAHAHAHAP IHIHI’LL DOHOHOHO ANYTHIHIHING,” Kate pleaded.

“Anything?” Wanda questioned, still tickling the girl to pieces.

“YEHEHEHEHES PLEHEHEHASE STAHAHAP,” Kate screamed, as her cheeks were fully flushed red from all the tickling.

“Okay, I’ll stop tickling you if you promise to not be scared of asking me questions and if you fully accept that we’re friends,” Wanda said with a grin.

“FIHIHIHINE OHOHKAY STAHAHAHP,” Kate cried, as the torturous sensations finally stopped, and she was freed from Wanda’s powers.

“How was that flying experience?” Wanda asked teasingly, as the brunette was now on the couch, lying down and trying to catch her breath.

“It was good until you ruined it,” Kate said, while rolling her eyes.

“Oh really?” Wanda asked, reaching down to wiggle a single finger into Kate’s belly button.

“WAHAHAIT IHIHI TAHAHAKE IHIHIT BAHAHACK,” Kate immediately surrendered.

“Good. That’s what I thought,” Wanda said in response.

The witch came over towards Kate, this time not to tickle her, but to wrap her in a warm, friendly hug.

Kate leaned into her embrace, happy that she could say she was friends with a witch that she admired from a young age.

Wanda felt her heart swell with pride, as she was so proud of how far the young archer had come. Adjusting to a new group of people was never easy, but she was impressed by how Kate had handled all the pressure and new experiences.

The two of them both knew that this had brought them closer together, and that there were many more memories full of laughter to be made in the future. 

[rosamelancholica]

Tolkien Tag 2022

I'm here yet another year for a new wonderful Tolkien Blog Party at The Edge of the Precipice. It is the tenth anniversary of this blog event, which promises to be magnificent and isn't disappointing so far so here I am giving my answers to the tag questions once again. This year they are taken from questions of previous years.

1. Who first introduced you to Middle Earth?

Well, it was technically a substitute teacher I had in eighth grade who, at the suggestion of a couple of classmates chose The Hobbit as our reading for our first term ten years ago, partly because the first film in The Hobbit trilogy, An Unexpected Journey, was going to be released shortly. This was what got me to read The Hobbit for the first time, I remember I enjoyed it a lot (and was surprised to see Gollum was in it too, I used to think he only appeared in The Lord of the Rings though I had briefly seen him in a trailer for An Unexpected Journey earlier that very summer when I went to watch Pixar's Brave to theaters) but it didn't really get me into Middle-earth in a strong way. I liked it, did well in the exam and that was all. So I guess the ones who really got me into Middle-earth were my brother and my sister's boyfriend. I first watched An Unexpected Journey at the latter's house with my sister and some of their friends, it was an amazing experience I will never forget. Shortly afterwards, I watched the rest of The Hobbit trilogy and The Lord of the Rings trilogy with my brother, I absolutely loved the movies and my obsession with Middle-earth began.

2. Has your love of Middle-earth affected your life?

Very much so. For one, it has me participating in this blog party and celebrating Tolkien every year, which is an absolute delight. Pretty much everyone who knows me knows I love Tolkien and his works and since most of them don't know anyone else who loves it this much, I have sort of become an authority when it comes to him even though I'm not an expert by any means. My end of degree project for my English Studies degree was about The Hobbit, particularly about how much it has in common with the Bildungsroman. I knew from the beginning I wanted my project to be about one of Tolkien's works. I would've preferred The Lord of the Rings but it was harder to make it about the Bildungsroman if I chose it as the pattern is less evident than in The Hobbit and I couldn't choose another aspect of the novel to analyze that would fit the scope of the project. Not sure this counts too but my love for Middle-earth has also got me to get some related merch, I have a Sting keychain given to me by my siblings as a gift I'm very proud of. It might have affected my life in more ways but these are the ones I can think of now. I wish I had the time to reread The Lord of the Rings and rewatch the films every year as some fans do.

3. Have you ever dressed up like a Tolkien character?

No but I've wanted to dress like a hobbit lady for about as long as I've been part of the fandom. Now I think maybe an elven cosplay would suit me a bit better since my siblings say I look more like an elf (though I love hobbits better). A Galadriel cosplay would be amazing. ♥

4. What people in your real life would you want in your company if you had to take the ring to Mordor?

I remember this question from earlier. Definitely my siblings (what would I do without them?), my cousins and my best online friends.

5. What Middle-earth location would you most like to visit? 

This one looks familiar too. The Shire!!! I've wanted to visit it ever since I first laid eyes on it! It's just so gorgeous. 😍 I love other locations well enough too (like Rivendell) but nothing beats the beautiful Shire for me.

6. Are there any secondary characters you think deserve more attention? 

Lord Celeborn please! I have always found him to be a great character but he won't get any attention at all. I mean, he is Galadriel's husband for a reason and I wish we got to see more of their relationship and his personality. Éomer's wife, Lothíriel of Dol Amroth, comes to mind too, I wish we got to know more about her. Oh and I can't forget my darlings Estella Bolger and Diamond of Long Cleeve. And Pippin's sisters! I want to know what each of them are like. And Sam's children! We only really know a tiny bit about Elanor and that's all. It makes sense since she's the eldest and their lives and personalities are not important to the plot but still!

7. Would you rather attend Faramir's wedding or Samwise's wedding?

Both really, but if I have to choose, I'd rather attend Samwise's! I love hobbit weddings, they suit my style the most.

8. How many books by J.R.R. Tolkien have you read? 

The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion and The Father Christmas Letters. Looking forward to adding more to the list.

9. Are there any books about Middle-earth or Professor Tolkien (but not written by him) that you recommend? 

The Complete Guide to Middle-earth by Robert Foster is amazing. I didn't read it in full but it's a very complete and useful glossary of Middle-earth terms. I haven't read this one but it looks promising: Tolkien's Ordinary Virtues: Exploring the Spiritual Themes of the Lord of the Rings by Mark Eddy Smith.

Oh and I used Bilbo's Journey: Discovering the Hidden Meaning in The Hobbit by Joseph Pierce as reference for my project though I didn't read all of it. I'm looking forward to it as well as to reading his companion book about The Lord of the Rings: Frodo's Journey: Discover the Hidden Meaning of The Lord of the Rings.

10. List up to ten of your favorite lines/quotations from the Middle-earth books and/or movies.

I have quoted it before in my answers to these questions but here's my favorite quote from the movies and one of the main reasons why I could never hate The Hobbit trilogy as some fans do:

“Mithrandir, why the halfling?”

“I don’t know. Saruman believes that it is only great power that can hold evil in check, but that is not what I found. I found that it is the small things, everyday deeds of ordinary folk that keeps the darkness at bay… Small acts of kindness and love. Why Bilbo Baggins? Perhaps it is because I am afraid and he gives me courage”.

Other favorites from The Hobbit trilogy include:

"In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit, not a nasty dirty wet hole full of worms and oozy smells. This was a hobbit hole and that means good food, a warm hearth and all the comforts of home".

"He doesn’t approve of being late. Not that I ever was, in those days I was always on time, I was entirely respectable and nothing unexpected ever happened".

My favorites from The Lord of the Rings trilogy:

"I wonder if we’ll ever be put into songs or tales. What? I wonder if people’ll ever say “Let’s hear about Frodo and the Ring”, and they’ll say, “Yes, it’s one of my favourite stories. Frodo was really courageous, wasn’t he, dad?” “Yes, my boy, the most famousest of hobbits and that’s saying a lot“. You left out one of the chief characters, Samwise the Brave, I want to hear more about Sam. Frodo wouldn’t have got far without Sam. Now, Mr. Frodo, you shouldn’t make fun, I was being serious. So was I. Samwise the Brave".

"It’s like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered, full of darkness and danger they were and sometimes you didn’t want to know the end, because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad happened? But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow, even darkness must pass. A new day will come and when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those are the stories that stayed with you, that meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand, I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn’t. They kept going because they were holding on to something. What are we holding on to, Sam? That there’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo and it’s worth fighting for”.

"Courage, Merry. Courage for our friends".

"Sons of Gondor, of Rohan, my brothers! I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me. A day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day. An hour of wolves and shattered shields, when the age of men comes crashing down! But it is not this day! This day we fight! By all that you hold dear on this good Earth, I bid you stand, Men of the West!"

From The Hobbit:

"There is nothing like looking, if you want to find something (or so Thorin said to the young dwarves). You certainly usually find something, if you look, but it is not always quite the something you were after".

"There is more in you of good than you know, child of the kindly West. Some courage and some wisdom, blended in measure. If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world. But sad or merry, I must leave it now. Farewell!"

From The Lord of the Rings:

"Then Bilbo woke up and opened his eyes. ‘Hullo, Frodo!’ he said. ‘Well, I have passed the Old Took today! So that’s settled. And now I think I am quite ready to go on another journey. Are you coming?’

‘Yes, I am coming,’ said Frodo. ‘The Ring-bearers should go together.’

‘Where are you going, Master?’ cried Sam, though at last he understood what was happening.

‘To the Havens, Sam,’ said Frodo.

‘And I can’t come.’

‘No, Sam. Not yet anyway, not further than the Havens. Though you too were a Ring-bearer, if only for a little while.

Your time may come. Do not be too sad, Sam. You cannot be always torn in two. You will have to be one and whole, for many years. You have so much to enjoy and to be, and to do.’

‘But,’ said Sam, and tears started in his eyes, ‘I thought you were going to enjoy the Shire, too, for years and years, after all you have done.’

‘So I thought too, once. But I have been too deeply hurt, Sam. I tried to save the Shire, and it has been saved, but not for me. It must often be so, Sam, when things are in danger: some one has to give them up, lose them, so that others may keep them. But you are my heir: all that I had and might have had I leave to you. And also you have Rose, and Elanor; and Frodo-lad will come, and Rosie-lass, and Merry, and Goldilocks, and Pippin; and perhaps more that I cannot see. Your hands and your wits will be needed everywhere. You will be the Mayor, of course, as long as you want to be, and the most famous gardener in history; and you will read things out of the Red Book, and keep alive the memory of the age that is gone, so that people will remember the Great Danger and so love their beloved land all the more. And that will keep you as busy and as happy as anyone can be, as long as your part of the Story goes on".

Wow, I listed ten? I didn't think I would come up with this many!

These questions were a lot of fun to answer as always. I want to thank our host, Hamlette, once more for this beautiful party. I'm already looking forward to next year's!

[xxsycamore]

- Might as well sit back and enjoy - [LANCELOT/READER NSFW]

Rating:E

Word count: 1,983

Relationship: F/M; Lancelot Kingsley/Main character (Alice)

Tags: Cock Warming; Exhibitionism; Semi-Public Sex

Summary: Under the spell of a magic forcing them to be physically stuck together, Alice and Lancelot think of a comfortable way to carry on with their day. They come to terms with engaging in a scandalous intimacy right where anyone could walk in and see, partly because it's convenient for work, and partly for the thrill of it.

A/N:  SPOILERS FOR CURRENT IKEREV EVENT “TIED TO YOU” 

SO this whole thing is a scene from Lancelot's route in the event "Tied to you" and the lap-sitting part (along with some of the dialogue here) really does happen. I, as a person unable to afford the epilogue, figured I could give things a little twist and write some cockwarming where it was calling for.

Tagging @delicateikemenmemes ​ and @btarinana ​ because I’m aware of both of you knowing of this event story and possibly wanting to see this hehe

Check my masterlist here!

It had been about an hour but Alice didn't seem to be able to shake off the worry of recent events. Being stuck to someone was enough of a hustle without that someone being her boyfriend and Red army King, Lancelot. Sure, having such an intimate relationship with him was supposed to be easing her worries - again, supposed, because what she was feeling was far from that. Lancelot was, and probably will always be, the number one person able to shake the ground from under her feet, with zero effort. One touch would be making her blush and one kiss would keep her heart beating unsteadily for the rest of the day, and despite them being a couple, deep down Alice knew that those overwhelming experiences would never come to an end.

Having the chance to dash back to her room after such heated moments was her number one relief, yet their current situation wasn't as generous as to allow that…

"Curse that rabbit!" 

Speaking so non-fondly of one of her dearest friends was inevitable in such times. Alice checked the facts once again in her head. They were under the influence of a spell brought by the so-called Stuck-on-you brew that she'd been accidentally served instead of carrot juice. The white rabbit promised them an antidote but with no further note on the time it would take to be done and delivered to them. Letting out a sigh, Alice wondered if by the end of this, she'd come to dislike carrot juice just as much as Oliver did.

Lancelot, on the other hand, accepted the news with a cool head, seeing ahead and making his mind typically quickly.

"There is no use wasting more time fretting over this. We're going to continue our day as usual."

 Hand in hand, the couple went to Lancelot's office where a refreshing cup of tea was already waiting for the king to help start his day. Draping his uniform coat on the nearby hanger was a little hard to accomplish when he had to be holding Alice's hand constantly while undressing, but otherwise nothing was threatening to come in the way of work after that point on. Or so Alice thought, until Lancelot complained about her standing behind him.

"My love, what do you think you're doing?"

"I thought I could stay here and hold into your shoulder? With your hands free, surely it's the least distracting way for me to…"

Lancelot made a small dissatisfied noise as he used his arm to drag her closer by the waist. Easily, he picked her up and placed her right atop his desk.

"A-and what are you doing now?"

"I'm not letting you stand on your feet all the while. We won't be able to get anything done if you were to tire so early into the day, isn't that right?"

Pouting, Alice smoothed down her skirts in an attempt to make her current state look more proper, if it even such a thing was possible. To anyone who might enter right now, for her to be casually sitting on top of the king's desk like that would be downright scandalous…

Yet the fact that Lancelot was caring so deeply for her as to consider such a minor activity as tiresome was warming her from the inside. Despite his unconcerned looks, he was so considerate of her state at all times… She squeezed gently on his hand, earning herself a gentle smile from her king and lover.

"However if you're still not content with this, I could offer you one more place to take a seat."

Oh, a chair! They should've come up with this earlier, as surely it would prove to be more convenient that way, and Alice swore she could remember another time she'd pulled a chair next to his desk in order to help with some minor tasks.

But Lancelot showed no signs of preparing to stand up, and instead, he was patting his lap and looking at her.

The nervous laugher she let out wasn't followed by a similar reaction as expected from Lancelot who only pat his lap once more. He was serious about it.

When Alice was about to say something, he made her a sign to hold on and proceeded to…unbuckle his belt.

"I understand. The seat I'm offering you must be lacking in enticement." Azure eyes shot to hers before returning to the task at hand.

"My king-Lancelot!" Before a chance of further protest, Alice found herself snatched in with a strong tug by the hand she's been holding into this whole time. Their forced physical connection was something Lancelot had quickly assimilated to work to his advantage - as a result, in mere seconds Alice found herself placed in the lap of his lover.

It must had been her luck but putting on a shorter skirt that day was another obstacle in the way of keeping a cool head in the current situation. The hem of it had risen up over her ass and a thin pair of underwear was all that separated her just slightly wet pussy from his unsheathed length. Was he seriously going to impale her on his cock, just like that? Alice bit on her bottom lip, remembering a conversation from what seemed like months ago, when she confessed the idea of having sex while on duty as being a huge turn-on for her. With her face half-hidden in her palms, she had suggested that she wouldn't mind if he just grabbed her and bend her over the desk out of the blue one day.

Needless to say, such brave words had had their time to shine only under the influence of some expensive alcohol that thankfully they had gotten to share while alone. Despite her hopes of Lancelot forgetting all about it, the very next day he had brought it up just to ask and make sure that she'd want that exact thing, in the exact way she'd said it, while sober. The answer was yes.

Looking back at it now, it didn't seem like all that long ago. She would've been happy with having another couple of months to prepare - but thanks to a potion stronger than any alcohol there is, it was bound to happen so early on.

Lancelot moved the grasp on her arm until it was on the back of her wrist, and he twisted it until it was placed behind Alice's back. He used this, ever so gently, to make her lean over the mahogany desk, her torso coming to rest on it. She breathed in and out, concentrating on the way Lancelot moved her panties to the side and plunged two fingers in, stretching her in what she recognized as preparation for the slide of his thick length. A little more stimulation to distract and she would've missed the little chuckle he let out at the discovery of her being so wet so soon.

Just when she was about to warn him of her steadily building orgasm, Lancelot removed his fingers from inside her, collecting her leaking juices as she assumed he was most likely applying them over his cock for further lubrication. As eager as she was, she couldn't do much about letting him take his time as she egged him on.

"Lancelot, please… I thought you wanted me to…ah, to take a seat…"

Hearing her coy tone, Lancelot gripped her wrist tighter and pulled her against him again. His throbbing cock easily slipped home inside her welcoming core as both lovers moaned out and hurried to hide their overly vocal reaction into a kiss.

Alice's whole form shivered. She did it, she was sitting on Lancelot's cock right where anyone could walk in, while he was supposed to work on his duties. She wasn't going to try and guess how long this sweet moment would last, as she had mixed feelings about that part, but deep down she wished for as long as they could keep it without being too obvious.

"Now that you got what you wanted, I'm asking of you to stay put while I work. Do you think you will manage?"

Clasping her hands together in her lap, Alice nodded enthusiastically.

Just then, the room echoed with the sound of a knock against the door. And Alice just thought she was making up about having bad luck today.

Opening her mouth to whisper to Lancelot anything about what they should do, the blonde answered nonchalantly in his usual loud and clear tone.

"Come in."

Without wasting a second, the two men entered the office - Edgar and Jonah, of all people - and they were even about to go on with the reason of their visit, but their eyes widened at the sight.

Their typically not-very-PSA-loving King had his lover cozily occupying his lap while he was working. A romantic idyll of sorts. Only if it wasn't so inappropriate in the eyes of the red Queen.

"Good day my King, and Alice." He moved his eyes from him to her in what everyone would read as an expectation for an explanation. Of course, Lancelot wasn't obliged to explain anything that private to him to anyone at all, but for that reason, Alice stepped in and filled him and Edgar both on everything about their unfortunate contact with the Stuck-on-you brew.

"How dare you involve King Lancelot in such debasing magic! Unbelievable!"

As imagined, Jonah was just waiting for her to finish before furiously scolding her good. Edgar in the meantime only chuckled, expressing his own compassion about the sticky situation at hand.

"This is quite the pickle, My King." He looked at him in sympathy and just as Alice triumphed at having the focus taken away from herself, Edgar's smiling eyes fell on her.

"As for you, Alice…"

She rose her gaze to meet his one back, nervously. She swore he looked like he saw right through their illicit doings.

"It looks like you get to keep our dear King company for the day. Cheer up, you might just enjoy yourself."

Alice gulped down, trying her best to offer him an evenly polite smile, slipping in a word of how she wished she could do more than just stay seated like that. Which is a lie.

A few more minutes passed in more adequate work-related exchanges of words between the men, and with another bow and another knowing smile from Edgar, the pair was gone.

Sighing and relaxing back a little, Alice shivered anew from feeling Lancelot placing his hand over her lower stomach, proceeding to rub soothing circles over the clothing.

"You did well. I'm impressed with how well you kept your composure in front of them."

"I think I wasn't breathing the whole time…" Alice offered a small chuckle, leaning into the touch and letting it calm her down at last.

"I noticed you being tense. Though, I'd be lying if I say I didn't get to enjoy it."

Alice didn't have to see his face to know that Lancelot was giving her one of those very dangerous smiles that made her feel weightless on the spot. It was a good thing he kept her in place so well.

"Now now my king, I'll have to remind you that you still have work to do!"

Clicking his tongue and settling his head against her shoulder as if intending to stay like this all the while and picking a piece of paper to read, he successfully made Alice bubble with laugher once again. He should have a word with her about moving around so much while on his cock, but he couldn't bring himself to ruin the moment again. Before they both know it, the moment to get rid of the spell would come - why not sit back and enjoy while it lasts, now that they found the perfect way to?

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[ray-ray-writings]

drabble idea: after Wilbur is killed by Phil, Fundy finds a smol arctic fox hybrid reader and cuz they're both foxes and the hybrid child looks abandoned, he adopts them. Then Ghostbur shows up and Fundy doesn't want him to have anything to do with his child. maybe some other relationships for fluff??? i'm just craving this rn -💍

So imagines won right? I sit down and go to write the imagine, and I just end up staring at a blank screen for what felt like forever. I know I said I would give you the option but I honestly couldn’t put anything in my brain for it. And because I spent so long staring at it, I lost a lot of time and so this is the only post for tonight…. I feel so bad. I’m sorry guys, I should have more stuff tomorrow. <3

TW: Parental abandonment.

This idea is so cute though. 

So we all know that Wilbur wasn’t the best father. He really messed Fundy up and gave him some of those good good daddy issues to where he has a hard time trusting people. But I think that he would be out on a walk, clearing his mind, trying to think of anything but his father. He’d be in a snowy biome when he hears footsteps. At first he thinks it’s a mob of some kind, so he draws his weapon and creeps toward the sound. He catches sight of something white and at first he thinks it’s a skeleton, but then the thing moves again and he can very clearly see it’s an ear, a white fluffy ear… That’s odd. “Hello?” he finally decides to call out. There is a small squeak and a lot of rustling. When he wasn’t attacked, he figured it safe to move forward. He carefully approached and as he pushed some of the bushes out of the way to reveal a small child. In one quick glance he could tell this was no ordinary child. It was an arctic fox hybrid, the fluffy white ears and tail a dead give away. In his glance, he could also tell this child was in rough shape. Their clothes were tattered and torn allowing him to see just how skinny they were. His heart ached for the poor child, “Hello little one,” he greets softly, “What are you doing out here?” 

You’d been on your own for a really really long time now. Your parents had brought you out here, told you to stay put, and left. You listened and so you waited for them to come back. But as the days went on, you began to understand what had happened. But nevertheless, you sat there and waited. Munching on the berries of the bushes, but it never quite fills your stomach. One day as you’re moving from bush to bush, a voice calls out. It startles you and you can’t help but let out a squeak as you fall to the ground in surprise. The bushes shuffle a bit and from over the top you find an orange headed man peering at you curiously. His eyes scan you quickly before he speaks, “Hello little one,” his voice soft and comforting as he speaks, “What are you doing out here?” You give him a little shrug and allow yourself to look him up and down. You’re heart thuds a little faster as you notice that he is also a fox hybrid with orange and black ears, an orange and white tail, and sharp canines poking out from his lips. “Where are you parents?” he tries again. Again, you give a little shrug and figuring you can trust this man, you speak, “Gone… Let me here.” His heart breaks at your sad and defeated tone. “They left you here? All by yourself? When did they leave?” Another shrug, “Two… three….. Weeks.” you mumble, looking down to the berry bushes, your fingers grazing them carefully. Fundy’s heart burns in anger as he thinks about how horrible your parents were for leaving their obviously amazing child to die in the woods. He’s about to speak when your stomach grumbles loudly causing you to flush in embarrassment. “Hungry?” Fundy asks, then mentally smacks himself. Of course you’re hungry your stomach just rumbled. But you nod sheepishly, still plucking at the leaves. “How would you like to come home with me. I can fix you up some fish. I have lots of fish at my house. You could eat as much as you’d like and you could stay as long as you want.” Not even caring if this guy was lying to you, you accept his offer, simply desperate to get out of the woods. Your head slowly rises from the bushes as you stare at Fundy who is smiling at you ever so softly with an outstretched hand. Carefully you raise your own arm and gently rest your hand in his, shivering at the warmth that spreads throughout your palm. “Let’s get going then kiddo.” 

Fundy leads you out of the forest and towards his house. As you two walk, you two talk… Well he does a lot of the talking and you give small answers here and there. You tell him your name and he tells you his. He talks about where you’re going and how it’s extremely safe there and how he thinks you’ll like it. He leads you inside his house, sits you at the table, before making up some fish for you and him. He places the plate down in front of you and before he can sit to eat his own meal, yours is finished. To say he’s shocked is an understatement, but he quickly remembers you were out in the forest all alone for two to three weeks, maybe longer with nothing but berries. You’re looking at him super embarrassed, like you want to ask for more but are too scared too. “Hey, it’s okay,” he soothes, walking back over to you, setting his own plate down in front of you, picking up the empty one, “You don’t have to feel bad. Like I said, I have plenty of fish, eat as much as you like.” And so you do. You eat until you’re so full you can barely move. Your eyes are sleepily closing and then jerking back open as you try to force yourself to stay awake. Fundy notices this and laughs quietly to himself. Your eyes close for a little while, giving Fundy enough time to put his plan into action. He quickly stands up, moves to you, picks you up, and carries you to his bed. He carefully lays you down, tucks you in, and presses a kiss to the top of your head. “Sleep well darling,” he mumbles, not thinking much of it. “Thanks dad” you mumble back, clearly out of it. But the simple word stops Fundy’s heart before a huge smile grows on his face. He decides that he wants you to be his child, if you want. He can feel a connection and a strong desire to care and love for you and he wants to be that strong father figure that he himself did not have. The next morning when you wake up, you don’t remember what you said obviously. You also plan to leave and go back to the forest. You would thank Fundy for feeding you but you already feel you've overstayed your welcome. You make your way down to the kitchen, ready to tell the man who saved you, who you don’t want to leave, goodbye. Fundy is standing over the stove and at the sound of your footsteps his head turns and he grins brightly at you, “Hey kiddo! Have a seat! Eggs are almost done! I hope you like them scrambled!” Not wanting him to feel bad, you do as you’re told and decide to tell him after breakfast. True to his word, the eggs don’t take that much longer and soon he’s served you some eggs. You two eat together, talking a bit about how you both slept and stuff. And after you’re done, you’re just about to tell him but then he begins to tell you about his plans for the day and asks if you want to tag along and you do. You really do. It is then you decide that you’ll stay until Fundy asks you to leave, and if that means you’re staying forever… So be it. 

Okay on to some more general headcanons and less plot type stuff haha

You two help each other in grooming your ears and tails all the time. I feel like they can be hard to get perfectly clean by yourself so you two do it together as a bonding activity. You would do Fundy’s first because it takes less time. Fundy does a lot of it and you just get the hard to reach spots and stuff, and makes sure there is no spot left unclean. However, when it’s your turn, Fundy takes complete control. He will make you just sit there and let him groom and take care of you. He is so careful as he does it. He cleans your ears and your tail carefully, making sure no dirt is left. And then he takes the time to carefully brush out the hair and make it very soft and very fluffy. It feels so nice. I would imagine you didn’t have the nicest parents, they literally left you in a forest to die, so you never got this special treatment or attention for your ears or tail. So the first time you two did this, you would be so confused. You didn’t understand what was happening or why you were being treated so kindly, which broke Fundy’s heart. I feel that’s also partly why he doesn’t let you help because he wants to make sure that you know that you will be loved and cared for as long as he’s in your life. 

So that being said, you two are so affectionate with each other. Like you curl up together and cuddle on the couch all the time. It has a lot to do with the fox side of both of you. It feels really nice to be pressed against family of your own ‘breed’ so to speak. A lot of the time it’s a lot of you sitting on his lap or laying on top him while he holds you tightly. Again, he wants to make sure that you feel loved and wanted. 

I feel like it wouldn’t take you long to call him dad. Like you accidentally did the first night, but you weren’t really awake for it. But I do feel like it would be a slip of the tongue on your part again. Just he does something for you and you give a quick “thanks dad” before you dead stop and stare at him. His eyes are also wide and filling with tears. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to call you that. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable. It just that you have taken care of me from the moment I got here and I--” Fundy would cut you off by pulling you into a tight hug. “It’s okay Y/N. It really is. It would be an honor if you called me your father” he tells you. Your heart soars in your chest as you hug him back. “Okay… Thank you dad.” You two go to sleep that night with the biggest smiles on your faces that you’ve ever had.

…….. Speaking of dads….. Ghostbur comes back. One day there is a knock on the door. You’re both confused because no one should be coming over to your knowledge. But Fundy gets up and he opens the door and his confusion turns into anger. “What are you doing here?” He spits out. You slowly make your way to the front room, hiding behind a wall but peeking your head around the corner to see what was happening. There in front of your father stood an extremely pale man in a yellow sweater and a red beanie. “Hello Fundy!” the man greets, oblivious to Fundy’s harsh tone, “I came to visit you! I wanted to see my son!” A gasp catches in your throat, this was your dad’s dad. He hadn’t told you much about him, he just told you that he used to be close with his father but as he grew more obsessed with politics, that bond broke bit by bit until it was completely severed by his death. “Well that sucks because I don’t want to see you. Go away now” Fundy snaps back, waving him off. Ghostbur catches his harsh tone now and a frown settles on his face, “Fundy please. I want to talk. I want to mend what was broken. You’re my son and-” “And nothing. You should have thought about that before you went and blew up our nation and then got stabbed by grandpa… So goodbye now.” Fundy moves out of the doorway and goes to close the door. When he moved out of the doorway though, he accidentally gives Ghostbur a direct line of sight of you peeking around the corner. He lets out a gasp and points, “Fundy who’s that.” Fundy looks over his shoulder and pales a little but because oh fuck. This is the last thing he wanted to happen. He clears his throat and looks back to the ghost of his father. “That’s Y/N… My kid” “I have a grandchild?” “No you don’t because you are no father of mine. Now if you’ll excuse me” and before Ghostbur can respond, Fundy has slammed the door closed. You’re a little worried as to what he’s going to say to you so you speak first after you walk all the way in, “I’m sorry” you whisper. “No, no, no baby. It’s okay. It’s not your fault. Don’t worry about it.” The rest of the day, Fundy is a little off. He tries to act normal but you can tell something is off. You don’t call him out on it though, you just let him do him. 

But yeah. Fundy does everything in his power to keep you away from Ghostbur. He does not care a single bit if Ghostbur isn’t Wilbur, they were both still his father that practically abandoned him and so therefore he will not be around his child. His child will only be surrounded by those who love them unconditionally and will always love them. If you and him are out and public and Ghostbur appears, Fundy will take you back home. He doesn’t care if what he is doing is super important, he will leave and take you home. He also will not let Ghostbur in his home. Ghostbur does show up occasionally, hoping to catch another glance of you, but Fundy barely opens the door to the point where Ghostbur can hardly see him. Fundy will let Phil, Techno, and Tommy see you occasionally which hurts Ghostbur a lot, but there is nothing he can do about it. Fundy does not want his ghost father to be anywhere near his child. 

But Fundy would be an amazing father. He knows what it’s like to be/feel abandoned by a parent and to feel ignored in a world full of family. So he makes sure you never feel like that. He loves you so much and makes sure you know that. Fundy would do anything for you, give anything for you. He loves you so much. His precious baby child. 

Okay that ending sucked lololol. Again, I’m very sorry that this is the only post tonight. I got a much later start than I planned and it fucked everything. I’ll see you guys with more content tomorrow though (hopefully).

[visbiscuit]

2: Teenage Dream ( chris evans )

— pairing. teenager!chris evans x teenager!ofc (lilac bonet)

disclaimer. English is not my main language. If you notice any kind of mistakes, please tell me and don’t be mean :). I am giving a shot at this to try and improve my written English. Thank you for paying attention and have a biscuit for your kindness!

series masterlist.

entire masterlist.

Chris doesn't know what love is. He's had a few girlfriends before, but he doesn't really know how to act. He doesn't know if love is when he looks at her and his eyes itch from the excitement she gives him or when, before he sees her, his stomach hurts so much he has to sit down for a few minutes. Maybe it's the sound of his heart beating wildly when they kiss or the feeling of flying at the speed of the world when he embraces her. Chris doesn't know what love is, but he's sure it comes close to what Lilac makes him feel.

— warnings. still rotting fluff. the first parts of this story will be like this, but towards the end, there's definitely angst and also smut! I'm not from Boston, so don't really know if there's a place like I described. if not, just have imagination. the entire story is not for people under eighteen, so don't even start reading it if you're a minor, please.

you're welcome to like, reblog and comment !

if you wanted to be tagged for this story, let me know !

previously on Teenage Dream: ONE

TWO.

There were some places in Boston that few people went to. Some thought those places were too dangerous and full of people ready to hurt them, others simply knew there was nothing there and preferred not to get lost only to find no way out. It was rare to see cars in those places and if there were, it was often to reach other cities or even states. Even police patrols didn't frequent them because they knew how useless it was. The last time they had found someone on the outskirts of Boston had been five years earlier and it was a newly licensed kid from the nearest town who had no idea where he was. Plus, the winter in 1998 was horribly cold and snowy, no one in their right mind would have left home with the idea of going to those isolated places. More to the point, the snowplows hadn't done a good job either.

What did it all mean? That Lilac Bonet had been smiling all week at the idea of showing Chris her secret place with the knowledge that nothing and no one would bother them but the harmless little animals in the nearby woods. To be fair, her secret place was nothing special. It was the end of a road that had been closed after some problems due to a landslide up ahead, giving a glimpse of the entire sunlit city. In that case, they had arranged to watch the sunset. She had known this place by accident, she too had gotten lost, but thanks to the help of a truck driver she had managed to find her way after quite a few advances that she had refused politely and with a pepper spray in his eyes. She had never confessed to anyone how many times she had gone there to enjoy some peace and quiet, partly because she was a discreet person, partly because of the jealousy she felt for that place. That December afternoon was the first time she had brought someone with her and she knew she had brought the right person.

Shortly after lunch, Chris, with an excuse told to his mother (he had asked her permission to go to a classmate's house to do a science project - he had even brought his backpack to be believable) and Lilac with a simple greeting to her little family (she didn't owe anyone an explanation), headed off in her car, a fabulous '69 Mercury Cougar, strictly orange, towards roads he had never seen. Sure, he didn't have a license yet, but he thought he knew a good part of the city where he had been born and lived. Fortunately, the snow had stopped, but still the roads were not totally dry and it had taken them longer than usual. When they finally found themselves at their destination, Chris didn't know what to say.

Not because he was witnessing something majestic and incredible, but because he could read in his girlfriend's eyes a sense of insecurity that made his legs shake. It was an honor for him to see the emotions written on Lilac's face, something he knew was not reserved for everyone. He had become able to read every little thing about her. So, in a gesture meant to soothe her, he had kissed her and thanked her for sharing something so special with him.

"I'd stay here with you and look at this view for the rest of my life, you know that?" sighed Lilac as she played with Chris' fingers, while being mesmerized by the pink and orange light that was beginning to tint the sky above them. It was freezing cold, but a sort of bubble had been created inside the car that allowed the two of them to relax and not shiver.

Chirs hummed. "I'd spend my whole life looking at you instead, go figure," his blue eyes hadn't taken a second off the young woman's figure. They had watched her from head to toe, seen how her sweater fit too loose, and had caressed the invisible scar to many under her right eye with their mere gaze. He'd run down all the tiny freckles on her nose and her split bottom lip from the freezing temperatures. He had then moved on to her hair, which she had left free and natural, with curls chasing each other. He was definitely smitten with her, but he didn't mind being trite.

Lilac rolled her eyes and looked up at him with an amused look. "You're awful, you know that?"

"Oh yeah?" he arched an eyebrow and pulled their hands apart.

"That's right," Lilac nodded, taking the opportunity to walk her own fingers over Chris' chest covered in a blue sweater. "The first thing I told you was not to get all romantic on me," she scolded him, but her eyes said otherwise. "And, would you believe it, the first thing you do is this."

Chris took her hand when it was now up to his heart level and squeezed it. "Don't deny how much you like it" he moved his face closer to hers. "I can see your eyes, you know."

"You'd be blind otherwise, mister," she tried to be snooty.

"No, my Lily. I see your eyes," he repeated, this time adopting a more serious tone. "I read your eyes. And they are the most beautiful book ever written. The complexity of its words leaves me breathless, and yet I am able to read them without much effort."

"It means that every now and then I'll close them, so they don’t weigh you down too much."

"No, no, no. Don't even try it. If you do it, I'll come after you" he threatened her, their lips brushing each time they spoke a word. They didn't feel the need to kiss at that moment, they just needed to feel each other's presence. "I have come to a very compelling chapter, I must, nope, I wish to continue. I need to."

"You...I-I" Lilac was forced to look down at the intensity of Chris' words. What had she done to deserve someone like him by her side? She had never felt this way, not with her first boyfriend or when she thought she was really in love. Was Chris casting a spell on her? She forced herself to look at him again and found him incredibly close once more. His lashes managed to caress her cheeks. "I lo- I think I'm- I think you're really cool."

Chris bit his lower lip to hide his smile. "I think you're really cool too."

"Yeah?" the girl was trying not to succumb to embarrassment. What kind of person would tell their boyfriend something like that? It really was true that when you felt something strongly, your head just didn't work anymore.

The boy nodded, "The coolest in the whole world. With your brown eyes - he gave her a chaste kiss -, with your darker skin - yet another kiss -, with your curls that never let me run my hand through your hair - they both giggled before kissing once more - and with these tiny tattoos that might not exist since they're basically undetectable" this time he didn't kiss her lips, but her right hand covered by those tattoos he had just mentioned.

"I could do one for you if you want" she offered.

Chris's eyes lit up. "Really? You know how to make them?" he didn't get an answer and took off. "Oh God, I don't really know what I could make for myself. I love theater, maybe something like this? No, no, too corny. An alien on my wrist! No, definitely ridiculous. Maybe something for my family, a phrase, a... a... Heck, how did you choose?"

Lilac laughed and gave him a long kiss while still smiling. "We will think about it later, we have all the time in the world."

"Right, we have a life together to live. There's definitely time."

[rogue-durin-16]

STICK TOGETHER

Summary: When Fred finds out Y/n is planning on leaving the Wizarding World, he canalizes his feelings in the worst way possible, which leads to a terrible outcome that seems unfixable.

Pairing: Fred Weasley x Slytherin!Reader

Genre: angst

Tags:

Fred Weasley: @whiskeyn-rain @lumos-solemn

Permanent taglist: @elia-the-bibliophile @randomparanoid @karlthecat15722 @thebutchersdaughtersblog @amourtentiaa @just-here-to-escape-from-reality

Warnings: swearing

A/N: @meph1stophelian is here putting pressure on me to post this already so I'm apologizing for the poorly written ending lmaoo enjoy <3

Rogue-durin-16 masterlist

"Fred, calm down." George begged me; he walked by my side, trying to talk some sense into me, but it was not the moment. "You gotta understand her— throwing a fit isn't going to help anyone—" I didn't even look in my twin's direction while he spoke. "Bloody hell, Fred—"

"Y/n!" I quickened my pace, leaving George behind after spotting her in one of the corridors, having a chat with a couple of Ravenclaws. "Can I have a word?"

"Sure— Oi!" I hadn't waited for her to reply before grabbing her hand and snatching her away to pull her into the nearest broom closet. "What was that about?"

"Tell me I heard Katie wrong and you're not actually leaving."

"I can't tell you that." She plainly responded, her voice steady.

A single, gobsmacked snide left my throat. "You're joking, right?" My heart ached as if it was being constricted when she shook her head no. "So you're fleeing?"

"What?"

"Things are getting ugly so you're running away."

Her eyes dug into mines as she stayed in a very uncomfortable silence before replying with. "So what if I am?" When I averted my eyes from hers, she called my name. Her eyes were somewhat softer now, with a gleam of plea in them. "For the last two years we had nothing but tragedy. Diggory died, You-Know-Who is back and recruiting, the ministry is full on going against a teenager, this pink colored nasty toad is physically abusing us, and on top of that, I have to put up with my housemates' bullshit for having muggle blood— I'm tired!" Her voice had raised a bit, enough for me to know she was struggling to keep it at bay, but still managed to. "If I can have a life out of this then—"

"You're a coward."

"Fred." there was a warning on her tone, but I couldn't listen.

"You're leaving... people behind," she attempted to reason; I didn't let her. "Dunno why I'm surprised, really. At the end of the day you're a Slytherin for a reason."

Her eyes started to well up, and I couldn't tell if it was with anguish or fury. I knew I was getting under her skin, but that was exactly what I intended to do; if I was going to leave that room scarred, so would she.

"Self-preservation, you call it." I scoffed, feeling my own rage building up faster each passing second. "Pure cowardy."

"Is that what you think?" Her tone wasn't steady anymore; she was holding back the poison of her words, for my sake.

"Yeah." I wasn't capable of doing the same thing for hers. "And I don't want your cheap excuses and emotional manipulation to convince me otherwise." My face was probably red due to the anger, my jaw and fists hurt from clenching them; I was off the rails, and the person who would usually stop me was standing in front of me. "Better leave now so you don't have the chance to sell us out when shit goes down."

Silence fell upon us, our gazes locked, equally watery and with the same amount of fury and sadness within them.

And finally she snapped. "Maybe I'm a coward, but you're a self-absorbed prat who's not able to see beyond your own ego!" The way she said it hurt me more than the sentence itself. "This is not gonna be a DADA class, Fred! I don't want to fucking die because I was too slow casting Protego."

"Good luck, Y/l/n." I curtly wished her before stalking out of the broom closet I have initially dragged her into.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

We avoided each other for a week. The following Monday, when I entered the Great Hall, I found George and Katie quite depressed.

"What's gotten into you?"

They shared a look before my brother turned to me, deciding to break the news himself.

"Y/n left last night." He gave me an apologetic look. "Thought she'd wait until the graduation—"

"But she's had enough." Katie finished, toying with her breakfast. "Honestly, I wish I had a life in the muggle world too."

My lungs were refusing to take the air inside; I felt as if I would choke if I stayed there, so I stormed out, jogging to reach the countryard.

I needed to breathe.

Even after the wind hit my face, that vital task felt like the most difficult thing in the world to accomplish.

I hate her I hate her I hate her I hate her.

A sob escaped my chest, realising the harsh words I had spat at her were probably the last ones she would ever hear from me.

I love her.

A Year And A Half Later

READER'S P. O. V.

I managed to apparate somewhere in the cornfield —the only place around the Burrow I remembered clearly.

I should have landed with a broom, but apparently, Mad-Eye didn't inform Lupin that I would serve as an extra escort for Harry if they were ambushed, so my broom was now smashed somewhere down the muggle road we had flown over.

Mentally cursing the damn moment in which I spoke to Shacklebolt in hopes of being useful in this war, I looked for the entrance of the Weasley home, which took me quite a while.

Funnily enough, it was Lupin who stepped out, wielding his wand and casting yet another hex at me that I somehow managed to block.

With a swift wave of my hand, he was propelled back into the house. "YOU!" A long-haired redhead I recognized as the eldest Weasley helped my old Professor up as I stalked to them with my wand up. "YOU HEXED MY BLOODY BROOM! I'M LUCKY TO BE ALIVE!"

"Y/n, calm down—" Shacklebolt was now besides me with his hands up. "He didn't know you were coming— he was trying to protect George from further harm."

My brain was slow to process his words, but as soon as it did, I started to down my arm. "What happened?"

"Snape hit him with the sectumsempra." My eyes widened at Lupin's heavy words.

"Did everyone else make it?" The three of them remained silent, the ginger shaking his head no.

My breath caught up in my throat, but before I could ask if Fred was alright, another tall ginger flashed the corner of my eye, and my head snapped to the living room's door.

FRED'S P. O. V.

Everyone was scattered around the house. Ginny took Hermione and Fleur to her room; Ron and Harry made its way up too; Tonks went out —she needed a moment alone to mourn Mad-Eye—, and, while my parents and I stayed with George, Lupin, Shacklebolt and Bill went to guard the entrance.

I was still kneeling by George's side, holding his hand while our mother healed his wound the best she could, when we heard a yell followed by a strong blow in the kitchen.

I looked at my mum and dad, my eyes flickering to my twin while I reached for my wand.

As I got up, more yells were heard, this time clearer; the voice was familiar— I knew that voice all too well.

There she stood, at the entrance of my home.

Her eyes met mines as soon as she caught a glimpse of me, and my head started to spin. I knew I had no right to do what I was about to do, but after that night's events, in which the war became very much real, I couldn't help but rush to her and engulf her in a tight hug.

Surprisingly enough, I couldn't take more than two steps forward, since she did what I intended to do first.

"You're alright." She mumbled against my shoulder. My eyes shut, trying to block the tears that threatened to fall. "How's he?" She inquired whilst pulling away with a concerned frown.

Not trusting my voice, I nodded in the living room's direction. A quiet sough escaped my lips as she passed by, her hands lingering on my arms for a brief instant before she entered the room and took careful steps towards the settee.

I barely caught a couple of words from George and Y/n's exchange, my mind still buzzing due to the shock.

"What do you say, Freddie?" I frowned at my twin, regretting not listening to the conversation. "She can take my bed, right? I'm not gonna get far anyway."

"Right." I agreed, struggling for my voice to come out steady. It was Y/n we were talking about; I had known her since our fourth year, I had been friends and more with her, seeing her shouldn't be that nerve-wracking.

A couple of minutes later, we were all heading to our respective rooms, and as I closed my room's door behind me and Y/n, it dawned on me that I had underestimated the anxiety that could cause me being left alone with her.

Get it together, Fred.

"If you want, you can grab a shirt from the drawer." I finally managed to speak, motioning at the chest besides the window. She nodded and turned to it to look for one she could sleep in.

Now that I had the opportunity, I carefully observed her, and soon realized how much she had changed in the time we were apart. Not only when it came to her physical appearance; she stood a bit straighter, talked a little calmer; the joy with which she used to sparkle was dim now, eclipsed by a severe, worried attitude— a sign of us no longer being the kids who messed around at Hogwarts.

"I missed you" I knew right away that wasn't the best start for the conversation.

"It sure didn't seem like it." The bitterness in her tone stung my heart harsher than I expected.

"You're still mad?" The way I was conducting the conversation was making me want to bang my head against the wall.

She sighed, turning around now that she had the shirt on to meet my gaze. "A year and a half, Fred. You didn't contact me for a year and a half. I thought we were friends."

"You left me behind!" I talked back, partly because I panicked, but also because I, to my surprise, was still mad too. "What did you even expect?"

"A letter?" She questioned, throwing herself down on the bed. "I mean— I didn't really expect anything, but a letter would have been a good way to let me know you didn't fucking hate me." My eyes, now fixed on my lap, went wide when Y/n's voice broke at her last three words.

"I'm sorry." I mumbled, quite ashamed of having to apologise while also being scared of saying anything that could harm her further. "I'm sorry about not writing and- uh... I'm sorry about what I said to you. I know it's not an excuse but I was really mad and..." I cleared my throat and felt the blush creeping up my neck even before I finished the sentence. "... and hurt 'cause you- I thought that maybe I wasn't important enough to you and- yeah, I'm sorry about what I said." I tried meeting her eyes but they were fixed on the wall before her.

"It's fine." She shrugged, "I guess you were right anyway."

"I wasn't right-"

"You were." She hugged her knees to her chest and hid her face there. "Wanna know why I'm back?" She didn't need my response. "They're hunting down my family." My heart stopped beating for a second due to the shockingly deadpanning tone. "A friend gave me a tip-off— they were tracking them down. I got to them just in time." I refrained myself from asking about them —the less I knew, the better. "So yeah, you're right, I was a coward and left people behind."

My body shot up and my legs carried me to George's bed; without me being fully aware of what I was doing or which consequences it could have, I sat down and pulled Y/n into my arms.

Though she was shocked at first, her body soon relaxed into the familiarity of my arms, and she let out a relieved sigh. "You're not alone on this." I whispered, pecking her crown. "I'm here, okay?"

"So you don't hate me?" She murmured against my chest.

Maybe it was the fragility of her voice, or the warmth of her embrace I missed so much; maybe it was this past year and a half of regret, or the night's events, but I couldn't hold back my words.

"I love you."

And even though she went stiff, even if I had just blurted them out almost in accident, I didn't regret saying them, because I, in fact, loved her.

She pulled away to look into my eyes. "You mean it?"

"Yeah." I replied, calmer than I had been in a while. "And I'm really sorry about everything, if I could turn back time—" words and air were cut off by her lips crashing against mines.

We had kissed before, but it was on a bet's behalf or to prank someone; this was different, this was her pouring her 'I love you' into actions, and I embrace it gladly.

"No more running away." I commanded when she pulled back. "From now on, we stick together." She nodded, her forehead resting against mine and her palms on my chest.

[mrskurono]

title: Stylin’ ᴘᴀʀᴛ ᴛᴡᴏ || Atsumu Miya x fem!Reader a/n: mm angst also need to go back in the first fic and fiddle with the timeline to bump it closer to the MSBY v Schweiden game but I'll do that later word count: 2.7k tags: angst, forgetting important dates, established friendship, on going fic, partly edited synopsis: Atsumu Miya might have a crush on his hair stylist. He followed you from 1000￥haircuts all the way to 5500￥haircuts. Beauty school to MSBY courts the setter might shoot his chance with the person who fixed his piss colored hair and makes him smile from jokes leagues above his own. character(s): Atsumu Miya (hq)

ᴘᴀʀᴛ ᴏɴᴇ : ᴛʜᴇ ᴀᴘᴘᴏɪɴᴛᴍᴇɴᴛ | ᴘᴀʀᴛ ᴛᴡᴏ: ᴛʜᴇ ᴘʀᴀᴄᴛɪᴄᴇ | ᴘᴀʀᴛ ᴛʜʀᴇᴇ : ᴛʜᴇ ꜰᴏʀɢᴇᴛꜰᴜʟ | ᴍᴏʀᴇ(?)

For having never been there, you knew what the front of the gym looked like exactly.

What the front of the gym looked like from the left and the right of the sidewalk apparently. And what it looked like before damn and after sunset.

As well as what the gym looked like in three different filters. All of them Atusmu had said were clearly what it would look like if it was raining, snowing or sleeting. Even if it was the end of spring and none of those weather outcomes were really possible. You still laughed at every text he sent you knowing how prepared he was. Or at least making sure you were prepared. A simple address would have sufficed. Atsumu wanted to be sure though.

Thursday came just like every other day. When you looked at your phone to see Atsumu's name had already lit up your over turned phone an hour before your alarm went off. It would have been pestering if it didn't make you smile seeing his name first thing.

Snatching your phone to poke fun at him with a quick "Where am I going again?"

You laughed and ignored anything he might send back as you got ready to leave and meet up with the setter. It was a little bit of karama for all the filtered pictures of the gym he sent over the last few days.

To Atsumu's credit, when you wandered down the sidewalk towards your destination. You saw the building a handful of blocks away because of the god awful siding you scrutinized in the pictures. But you'd save complementing Atsumu just in case this coffee date was a bust for your only day off.

It hit you when the double doors unlatched loudly when you pushed through that it had been over a decade the last time you'd been in a gym. An echo with each step of your shoes into the massive foyer.Floor buffed so well you swore you could pick your teeth in the reflection. It left you in a little bit of awe with the size and grandeur. If this was just where they trained, where the gyms they played their games at even bigger?

Surely standing around looking like an idiot as you gawked at the huge ceilings. Rightfully wondering how they even heated something like this. You were caught off guard by the sound of the double doors you'd just came through groaning once more when opened. Spun around with a jolt you find two men looking at you rightfully confused.

Snapping your head left and right to see you were the only one they could be looking at. You quickly laugh as you rub the back of your neck, "I'm sorry- I think I might be lost-"

"Oh you must be Miya's girlfriend!" Out of the two men, the shorter one with light hair beamed you a smile as he offered you his hand, "We thought he made you up!"

"Oh- Oh!" Cheeks heating up you can't help but follow in his chuckle to not think too much about his comment, "He talks about his hairstylist. Yeah guess that sounds like Atsumu." You take the out stretched hand to shake, "L/N. Y/N L/N. But I have a feeling Atsumu probably already told you that."

"He actually has your business card tacked up in his locker with a magnet that looks like a little fox," Not only was the other man's hair much darker than the first, he was also extremely tall. Atsumu wasn't joking when you had to look up even to smile up at his greeting as you took his outstretched hand as well, "I'm Adriah."

"Shion." The first man added.

You step back and tap at your temple, "Wait wait wait- I got this. He told me-" You dredge up all the useless information Atsumu told you over the years of doing his hair and grasp at what he told you in conjunction with these two names he'd said in passing, "Middle blocker?" You point at at Adriah then shift and look at Shion with your finger doing the same, "And...the one that starts with an L...leeb- lie-"

"Libero." Shion grinned, "Damn Miya talks about us to his hairdresser? What lies has he been telling to such a nice lady?"

Adriah rolled his eyes and excused his team mate, "I take if you're here to see our setter?"

"Unless any of you guys need a new stylist or brand recommendation?" You grin smitten with your offer. Always fishing up new clients where ever you went like it was second nature.

Shion tugged at his bangs and looked up to his teammate, "Whaddya think?"

Laughing at him, Adriah nudged him and shook his head, "Keep that forehead covered, kids come to the games remember."

"Like you have any room to talk," Shion jested with Adriah since his bangs hung partially over his forehead as well but it just so happened his was darker than the libero's, "Besides, if Miya is expecting her then he'll pop a blood vessel if we steal his girlfriend."

"And if our setter's all wrapped up whining then we all know Meian makes everyone do laps." Adriah groaned.

"That does sound like the Atsumu I know," You chuckle at both men painting a pretty vivid picture of what your friend is like. Even if the second girlfriend comment made a heat creep to your cheeks. Again you laugh it off and rub the back of your neck, "Guess you guys wouldn't mind if I followed you to the right gym?"

"You'd get lost in one of our big games won't ya?" Shion laughed.

"Yes! These things are huge for just a sport!" You exclaim at the exact thought you had coming in.

Adriah snorted and motioned for you to follow him as Shion walked besides you, "Don't let anyone here hear you say that."

You were left pleasantly surprised at the light hearted conversation that followed as both men showed you through the area. When you confessed that you hadn't been in a gym since middle school sent a ripple of laughter through them both since neither of them could remember when they weren't inside a gym. Not an ounce of condescending tone to their teasing though. Adriah was incredibly sweet and Shion's jokes kept you snickering between the mini tour.

When you were finally directed by Shion that the last gym was the one they practiced in. You could attest to that with the smack of a ball hitting the opposite side of the door Adriah opened for you. Rattlinging you for sure.

"Bokuto watch your spikes!" Shion shook his fist at the grey hair man who was clearly guilty of almost striking you all coming in, "We got precious cargo!"

"Cargo?" Perked up immediately, Atsumu craned around to the double doors. One hundred percent expecting you. When the blond man saw you the biggest grin spread over his face, "Y/N!"

"Tsum-Tsum is that your girlfriend?!" Bokuto, the one who had almost struck you with a volleyball, came bounding to clasp your setter friend on the shoulder, "The hair lady!"

"She's very well put together." Beside Atsumu came another dark haired man adorn this time with beautiful ringlet curls, "Seems odd for you."

"Odd!!?? Omi-Omi shut yer trap I know lots of people outside volleyball ya know!" Atsumu already one step away from popping a blood vessel this soon.

Laughing it up at Atsumu's sauve being stripped right before your eyes among the gaggle of men. Very much unlike the coyness he waltz into the salon with monthly to woo the ladies in the shampoo bowls. You bow to the line of men and introduce yourself. Even with Atsumu fumbling the rest of the team introduces themselves. Learning faces to the names you've heard Atsumu spout off a million times now. Smiling you know to file everything in the back of your head just in case. Because there was always a just in case.

Still swarmed by Adriah and Shion you'd came in with. Now Bokuto and Sakusa were joined in the half circle around you.

"Hair?" Sakusa interrupts your job in his own words then squints a little, "What about curly hair?"

Nodding you count on your fingers real fast the things you prefer doing. Of course curly cuts being one of them. There's a moment a twitching smirk to the man's lips flash over his lips.

"Good to know." Sakusa nods with his own thoughts saved.

"She already offered to fix Inunaki's hair," Adriah snorted.

"Soon as you get your hair fixed," Shion poked at their middle blocker.

"Your all going to need a fix if you don't get back to practice," Meian interrupted the little get together with a scowl and arms crossed, "Unless she's your captain, which last time I checked I was, get to your drills before coach is down our throats!"

It's then that you look at Atsumu. Who had been threatening to pop said blood vessel for the last ten minutes. When your eyes meet his brown ones though he settles back down.

Brows furrowing a bit you look around at the spotless gym floor, "So...."

"There's seating up above!" Atsumu quickly points out the balcony overlooking the playing area, "I'll walk you up there."

"Meian said practice." Sakusa mentioned in passed back towards the net.

You laugh awkwardly, "Oh I'm sure I can make it up there to wait-"

"She got lost in the foyer." Shion whisked past with some jerseys in his hands.

Gritting his teeth Atsumu made a loud groaning noise as he looked at you and back at the court. Too easy to pick up on. Meian sighed and told Atsumu to make it quick. Some what of a victory after your induction to the volleyball world was with his teammates and not him. Atsumu snagged your wrist and told you to follow him it'd be quick.

Trailing behind him through the gymnasium. As well as up the stairs squeezed in the back of the building by the utilities of the entire building. You look up at Atsumu's back as you both ascend the stairs.

"So....your team seems nice." You make it to the top with Atsumu grumbling.

"They're fools." Atsumu huffed as his steps slowed to be beside you.

"Seems like you'd fit right in then."

He whips around. Glaring a little but it can't last seeing you grinning, "Yeah...supposed yer right. Anyways-" Atsumu gestured to the railing as you both approached it. Layed out all below you was an birds eye view of the gym floor you were on moments before. From below Bokuto and Shion waved at you. Atsumu huffed but you still waved back, "Ya can hang out here. Won't get hit by a ball 'er anything unless Omi-Omi decides to put too much spin on a spike."

"Does that happen a lot?" You ask cautious to agree to this waiting arrangement.

Atsumu snickered, "Only when him and Bokuto get into it...no seriously, yer fine up here trust me."

A smile blossoms on your face and Atsumu suddenly feels a little choked up, "I trust ya. Don't worry."

Fumbling over a few words, Atsumu rubs the back of his fresh undercut and clears his throat trying to weight staying up here and talking to you or getting in trouble with the captain. Talking to you sounds wonderful but...the outcome of getting in trouble wins.

"Practice gets done we'll be outta here! Still on for coffee ya?" Atusumu points finger guns at you as he backs away. A quick and clunky look back to assure he doesn't trip on anything.

Still smiling you can't help laugh like he always manages to get you to do when he's around, "Still on for coffee."

Surely thinking you didn't see it. Atsumu's little fist pump when he hustles back to the stairwell makes you giggle. What was a bit of volleyball practice? If it meant getting coffee with one of your favorite people.

What you hadn't asked was how long exactly practice took. An hour? Two? Three?

You were at best ready for three hours of personal time. Indeed thankful that you got the empty balcony to yourself just to wait. With no time to really waste as soon as the men looked to be playing a mock game. You decided to dive into some off hours work of your own.

More than enough time to deal with some work. Balancing the weeks totals. Reviewing appointments and if they'd rebooked. Inventory and reordering some back bar items. The time spent waiting even let you get a jump on calling clients for the following week to give them appointment reminders. When all was said and done you couldn't recall a time recently you were so caught up to seamlessly start a new work week. What you didn't realize was four hours had past since coming up to the balcony.

Actually when you double checked your phone it was nearing five hours since coming. That didn't seem right. When you packed your things back into your pack and looked over the gym floor sure they might be finishing up after all this time. It wasn't the case at all. Still going the men were rotating something. While you saw Atsumu closest to the net repeatedly setting with each team member approaching the net.

Whatever they were doing, it looked involved.

Sighing you look at your phone. Far past coffee time. You didn't want to drink anything this late in the evening. That was fine though. Maybe they'd be finishing up and the coffee date might just morph into grabbing some grub. And when your stomach rumbled heading back down the stairs the idea of just going out to eat together seemed even better.

Lost only for a hot second when you walked towards the bathrooms and not the gym doors Shion and Adriah walked you through. Getting turned around didn't seem to matter when you let yourself back into the gym to see the team still going at whatever drills they'd been instructed to do.

"Hmph..." Chewing the inside of your cheek there's a sinking feeling in your stomach as you watch Atsumu staring at nothing but the ball in his hands. Even as you take a moment to wonder if anyone might notice you're standing there. The sinking feeling grows in size when Atsumu just...isn't aware of anything outside the court.

It's late. You look at your phone again. The thought crosses your mind to wave him down and let him know you have to go. But with the way Atsumu seems so absorbed in the game it feels pointless to try and grab his attention.

Your thumb glides over your phone and immediately the last text sent lights up on your phone.

The conversation that felt nonstop for days before. Was now only the last text Atsumu sent you before you made it to the gym. Fully aware his phone was probably in his locker or a bag somewhere. It felt lonelier than you anticipated standing on the sideline without much of a voice to pull his attention.

Phone held to your chest there isn't really anything you think to do besides send him a text hoping he'll see it whenever they actually finish.

"Leaving?" Oriver, the only MSBY player not on the court as he comes in with a bottle in his hands looks over at you, "Want me to snag Miya real fast?"

You take a second to think that telling him that you needed to go home would work. But watching him absorbed in the court gives you a twinge of guilt for wanting his attention like that, "No...no it's fine!" You break a smile at the man, "Don't wanna interrupt practice I'll just let him know later."

Oriver doesn't press you. In fact he thanks you for coming which makes you smile a little more. You watch him go back out on the court and even then Atsumu doesn't look in your direction. Utterly absorbed in what he's doing. You pocket your phone and turn back towards the door. Thankful at least, that Shion and Adriah had showed you how to leave.

Leaving alone just wasn't how you saw your day off going. It's alright though. Even as your thumb works over the smoothness of your phone over in your pocket. You both never tasted the coffee by your school. So you should have known you'd probably never taste the coffee close to work either.

[marvelbbyx]

Can I Be Him? (Carol Danvers x Fem! Reader) Part two!

Summary: You and Carol have been the best of friends for years and years, to you it’s simply platonic. Whereas for Carol, she tortures herself constantly pining after you. The situation only gets worse when you get engaged to your boyfriend of three years and Carol has to leave for a mission (that could more or less take her six years to get back from).

The day before Carol has to leave, she admits her feelings for you, giving you two choices: to leave him and go with her or stay with him and get married.

Who will you choose and what will be your outcome?

Author’s Note: Second part to Can I be Him? You guys seemed to really like it as much as I did, so thank you all! And enjoy!!

Warnings! ANGST

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Hey, Kevin,” Carol greeted bitterly.

“Carol? Oh, I didn’t know you were here,” Kevin comes into sight, a puzzled expression on his face when he sees both of you with tearful eyes.

“I was just leaving,” She replies dryly, moving towards the door and pausing near Kevin. “Congrats on your engagement, I’m sure you’re both very happy.” She stole a passing at you before walking out the door.

“Hold on,” You say to Kevin as you followed Carol out the door, closing it securely once you were in the hallway. Carol had made it down two flights before you shouted her name. “Carol! Carol, wait!” She stops mid-step and looks up at you as you descend the two flights. “Don’t walk away from me, not like this...”

“What’d you expect me to do, stay? Stay and watch you move on with your life?” Carol bit harshly. “I’m sorry, but that’s not happening.”

“I don’t want—“

“You don’t want what? Me to leave?” She prodded. “Well, you know what I wanted? I wanted to be the one you’d tell stories about—to be the reason why your eyes would light up—I wanted to be the person everyone would hate hearing about, because you’d talk about me so much. I wanted it to be me.”

You were silent for a few minutes before you finally opened your mouth to say, “...it is you.”

Carol had a wild urge to throw her arms around your waist and kiss the sorrow from every square inch of your face, but she couldn’t.

On second thought...

Screw it.

She moved in close, moving her hands to your cheeks, cradling your face gently. And you let it happen, anticipating the thing that would now seal your bond forever, you closed your eyes as did she and awaited the warmth from each other’s lips. You nuzzle into each other, the tips of your noses bumping against each other as you both went in close. Behind you, though vaguely, you heard a door open followed by approaching footsteps, before your lips were able to touch you gasped and pulled away, turning to run, but she reached out and grabbed your hand.

“Don’t go...please, don’t go.” She whispered.

“I’m sorry...” You cried, tears filling your eyes. “I’m so sorry.”

With that, you pull yourself out of her grip and run up the stars. You stopped by your apartment door, now too sick to go inside and face Kevin. Your heart sank when you heard her footsteps stride away from her spot, it sank deeper once you finally regained the courage to go back inside. As you opened the door, you heard Kevin on the phone, he sounded excited about something judging by the lilt in his tone. You stood by the doorway fiddling with your ring until you heard him hang up the phone.

“Oh, Y/N! Good, you’re back! I’ve made us reservations at the restaurant on 5th—“ He comes into your vision, taking notice of your eyes and the way that your lip quivered. “What’s wrong?”

“We need to talk...”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I swear that every word you sing, you wrote them for me.

Like it was a private show, but I know you never saw me.

When the lights come on and I'm on my own

Will you be there to sing it again?

Could I be the one you talk about in all your stories?

Can I be the one?

Can I be the one?

Can I be the one?

Oh, can I, can I be him?

Won't you sing it again?

Oh, when you sing it again,

Can I be him?

Oh, sing it again, yeah,

Oh, when you sing it again,

Can I be him?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

3:30 a.m.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You ran as far as your legs could carry you, feeling sorry for any disturbances that you could’ve—did cause. Your talk with Kevin ended on a note that you didn’t expect for a long shot. You told him the truth and gave him the ring back, you’d thought that he’d be offended, proposing to you the day before and the day after receiving the ring back. But Kevin—sweet Kevin—took it with class.

“In a way—I’m sorry too. I made things worse for you and Carol,” He said to you. “I was so determined to be that person for you...even though it was her the whole time.”

“You’re not mad at me?”

“I’m mad at myself. You two belonged together and I ripped you apart, you still belong together.”

“Kevin—“

“No, Y/N, go to her. And tell her I’m sorry.”

Now you were at the Avengers compound running like someone lit a fire under your ass, you had to find Carol, who most likely was asleep in her room. Resting up for the mission. You ascended the stairs with a quickness, the elevators took too long and you weren’t about to wait another second to be apart from Carol. Exhaustion be damned.

You made it to her floor, your legs warm and tense from the workout of the stairs. You knocked on her door with haste, no answer. You knocked again, still no answer. Now you assumed that she was ignoring you, which you felt you deserved after today.

You spoke up, now, “Carol? It’s me...Y/N, I know that you probably don’t wanna talk to me. If I were you I wouldn’t wanna talk to me either. But it’s over now—me and him—I wanted you to know that. I just had to let you know...even if—“ You twisted the doorknob to find that it was unlocked, making your way into the room.

Carol was always a neat person, drilled into her from the Air Force. Her bed was made, the small kitchenette spotless, and the floor looked like it had just been vacuumed. Disbelief spread across your face. No, she couldn’t have left. Not yet.

You walked around the room, scanning for any evidence that Carol was still here. You opened the closet searching for clothes, boots, ripped jeans, her super suit, anything of hers. But the only thing that was there...was an old Aerosmith t-shirt of yours hanging by itself.

Your mouth dropped open, and sadness crossed your features. You take the t-shirt holding it close to you. “No...”

You heard someone knock on the door quietly, you poked your head out to see Sam and Bucky standing there at the door. They’re tired, it showed in their eyes, they probably came over to tell you to shut up and stop making so much noise. But judging by the regrettable glance they shot you, it was nothing like that.

“Hey,” You breathe out, giving a half-smile.

“What are you doing here?” Sam inquired. “It’s three am, you okay?”

“We heard a noise,” Bucky says, his voice deep from his slumber.

“Where’s Carol?” You ask, clutching the t-shirt tighter.

They sigh in unison, looking to you with pity. Bucky was the first to speak up,

“She left, doll.” He says quietly.

“As soon as she got here...” Sam added.

You shake your head. “No...no—no, she said tomorrow morning—so she should still be here. Right? Carol wouldn’t leave without saying goodbye. She wouldn’t.” You were telling yourself more that you were telling them, and the more you said it, the more heart broken you became. “Please...tell me that you’re joking and she’s still here.”

They were quiet. Watching the two of them, it was all you could do, you could hardly contain your own tears, falling to your knees and sobbing hysterically...the realization that this was partly your fault, filled you with immeasurable guilt.

Knowing that now, you wouldn’t be able to see her until next time...whenever that was.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I swear that every word you sang, you wrote 'em for me.

Like it was a private show, but I know you never saw me.

When the lights come on and I'm on my own,

Will you be there, will you be there?

Can I be the one you talk about in all your stories,

Can I be him?

Can I be him?

Can I be him?

Can I be him?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Tag list: @captains-simp @blackluthxr @your-my-mission @wolfyalice-x @natblidaclexa @an-evergreen-rose @xxxtwilightaxelxxx

Read Part One Here!

[jasontoddshoe]

Strictly Business // Jason Todd

Chapter 10 - Jason

Warnings: injury, swearing, pain, crying, blood

Everything happened so fast. After the gunshot rang through the large office followed by your body falling to the floor, Jason didn't even register his finger pulling his own trigger. A second loud gunshot rang through the office right into Sionis' hip. He yelled out in pain, clutching his hip as he doubled over.

From there it was a blur, the next thing he remembers is Tim and Damien running into the room and Jason held your body close to his, applying pressure to your wound.

"We heard the gunshots, Batman and Nightwing are on their way here" Damien stated, making his way to Sionis' now also unconscious body. Tim rushed over to Jason and you, assessing the situation.

Shortly after Bruce showed up and with the help of Damien lugged Sionis out of there as Tim tried his best to help you. Jason felt useless at the moment, all of his knowledge of wounds went out the window as he held your unconscious body close to his.

"He shot her Timbers" Jason felt his eyes starting to water up but he swallowed back his tears. Tim could hear how Jason sounded choked up but knew better than to tease him right now.

"I know Jay, just keep pressure on it ok?" Tim replied softly, fumbling through the things in his belt trying to find something to help. Jason decided he was taking too long and yanked off his jacket and tying it around your wound tightly. "Good thinking, but your jacket's gonna get ruined"

"Do you really think I give a shit about that right now?" Jason snapped, locking eyes with Tim through his helmet. Tim looked slightly startled but shook his head. "Do you think Alfred can help her?"

"Yes, I'll take her back. She can't get on your bike like this" Tim answered, standing to his feet.

"Fuck that, you take my bike back. I'm taking her" Jason spoke up, standing up with you bridal style in his arms.

"Jay I don't think that's a good idea, I should-" Jason cut him off.

"I said I'm fucking taking her, it's my fault she's in this situation anyway" he snapped again, this time voice cracking. "I'll meet you at the manor. Fucking hurry"

**************

Jason burst through the doors of the Batcave. Upon hearing the news of you getting shot, Dick decided to stay back and help Alfred prepare everything he needed to fix you up. Jason laid you out on the bed, untying his now blood covered jacket from around your waist. Alfred carefully took some scissors and cut the top of your suit off. He cleared off the dried blood before looking over at Jason who was watching intently with tear filled eyes. His helmet was off and now people could see him, so he was doing his best to not cry.

"Master Jason, I think it best you don't be here for this" Alfred commented warily, glancing from Jason's face over to the table of surgical tools.

"No I need to, I need her to stay alive. I can't leave her alone right now, I can't" he rambled, catching Dick and Tim's attention.

"No Jason, what you need is to stop being a stubborn asshole and listen to your fucking family. You don't need to watch her get cut open" Tim finally snapped. Jason went quiet and recoiled into himself slightly.

"Alright, fine. But as soon as she's done let me know" he mumbled before picking up his jacket that he dropped on the floor.

"I'll take you upstairs" dick said quietly, going to start walking that way.

"No. Don't fucking coddle me. Help her" Jason replied, giving you one last look before he made his way up to his room.

***********

Warm water ran down Jason's muscular back as he hung his head under the shower head. It soothed his aching muscles, giving him the only form of relief he's felt for hours. The stream near his feet turned a slight pink as he cleaned blood off of his knuckles, with a sting as the water ran through the fresh cuts.

He placed a hand on the cold tile wall in front of him, shifting most of his weight into his shoulder and arm. Leaning his head back, he let his face get pelted with water for a split second before pulling away. He wiped his face, standing back up straight as he did so.

His hand reached forward and shut off the water. Stepping out of the shower, he grabbed a towel and dried off his hair before wrapping it around his waist.

When he stepped from the bathroom back into his room, he passed your bag. He stopped for a moment and stared down at it. Fuck he felt awful. He felt terrible that you got shot, even more so because you wouldn't have even been there if it weren't for him. But what really got him was he caught himself acting like you were dead.

He was moping around like a lost puppy because you weren't there anymore. This made him realize that he can try and fool himself and other people all he wants, but he really does love you and need you in his life.

He sighed quietly before pulling on some boxers and sweatpants. He hung his towel on his bathroom door and flopped onto his bed. He slowly pushed the comforter aside to lay underneath it. He knew for a fact that he wasn't gonna sleep very good, maybe even at all, til he knew you'd be fine, but he also knew that everyone else was worried. Not only for you, but for him. It's very clear how hard Jason's taking this, everyone can see it. Dick especially knows because of their little heart to heart, which is partly why Jason lashed out at him and Tim so much. He had a feeling Dick wouldn't have been able to hold that in too well and he would've told one person who can keep a secret like that and would actually care, which would be Tim.

After a few hours of tossing and turning, Jason huffed and got up. He silently made his way to the kitchen to get something to eat. The lights were on in the house but he didn't see anyone around. He assumed they're all in the cave or asleep. It was nearing 4 am after all, so he wasn't surprised he was alone.

He grabbed out a glass and filled it with water, deciding against drinking anything with caffeine or alcohol. After downing the whole glass he decided to make something to eat, which is what he originally came down there for anyway. He decided on just a grilled cheese because when didn't feel like doing or eating much.

Apparently he was hungrier than he thought because he ended up eating the whole thing in about two seconds flat and even making another one. Right as he finished off his second, Alfred came upstairs from the cave. This immediately caught Jason's attention, making him sit up straighter and look at the older man.

"Ah, Master Jason. I was coming up to look for you" he commented quietly. Jason nodded, awaiting any news that he had. "Miss (Y/n) will be alright, lucky for her Black Mask must have pretty bad aim. The bullet didn't hit any vital organs. I was able to take the bullet out, she should be fine after she rests and heals up" Jason let out a sigh of relief as a small smile came onto his face.

"Thank you, Alfred" he said quietly. Alfred gave him a small smile in return, along with a nod.

"Of course Master Jason. She's not awake yet, and I don't think she will be until the morning. Please get some rest yourself" he stated, putting his hands together. "If you don't mind now, I'll be heading to bed" Alfred turned and started heading to his room.

“Goodnight Alfred” Jason mumbled, turning to stare at the sink that was now full of his dirty dishes. Your voice rang through his head, telling him to clean up after himself so Alfred doesn’t have to. He stepped forward and turned on the water, making sure he cleaned the dishes really good. Alfred just saved your life for him, the least he could do was the dishes.

Once he finished up he glanced toward the hallway Alfred had recently emerged from. He wanted to go see you. See for himself that you were ok. But he shouldn’t. Alfred told him to go to sleep, and he was normally right.

So against his gut feeling, he turned and trudged up the stairs back to his room. He laid back down and forced his body to sleep.

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[acciocriativity]

Spark of Happiness ||Harry Potter

Pairing: Draco Malfoy x Reader

Summary: You already went through a lot in your life, but while dating Draco the world you knew has changed dramatically and it seems like it couldn’t get any worse...

Word Count: 2,8k

A/N: Thanks for the request @loxbbg and sorry for tagging you, I just thought that you would like to, since I took a longer time than I promised. That’s my first time writing for Draco, so I don’t know if it’s what you wanted. Hope you’ll enjoy it!

Part II

Like in all relationships, difficult moments always come up to test the couple, their trust, their love, and their future together.

It wasn't easy to get through the first two but we were still together at a nebulous time in the Wizarding World and in Draco's life.

I always knew about everything, the return of you-know-who, the nightmares and I thought that eventually, when this all came to an end, we could live a quiet life somewhere, preferably as far away as possible.

Draco agreed with me when we talked about it the other day but things were not going well, besides the daily stress at Hogwarts, the anticipation of the weight of the black mark on his forearm was taking him down bit by bit.

He was drowning, losing what little light I could see inside him, and even if I insisted to know more, he still had to keep too much inside himself. Partly because no one else could know and partly because he had trouble expressing himself. It was always like this, although I like to think that we were slowly getting better at it.

"Draco, can you come sit with me for a little while?", I said watching the blond try to concentrate on the book in front of him only to fail, for the 3rd time in a row. "I promise that page can wait about 10 minutes, it's a weekend". My heart sank in my chest as soon as he turned to look at me, the dark circles under his eyes even deeper than the day before. Another sleepless night.

I heard his defeated sigh and soon after felt the warmth of his body close to mine and his natural scent fill my lungs.

"Why are you up so early, love?", his arms passed around my waist and his head lay on my right shoulder. "More than anyone, you should rest, even if it is during the day."

"I just couldn't sleep anymore", his voice husky and faltered and automatically my hands went to his messy blond hair, stroking the strands carefully.

"You know I'm here to listen to you and I know these nightmares are getting worse, I won't say anything after listening if you prefer but I can't watch you like this anymore, not without doing something about it”.

We were silent for a few minutes, all that could be heard was our breathing and his tired sighs. I continued in that position, I tried to pass on as much reassurance as possible, because there was nothing else I could do if he wouldn't allow me.

"My mother sent me a letter, when I go back to Malfoy Manor, I will get the black mark", he didn't look me in the eye and I tried not to take it to heart.

"And when did you intend to tell me this? It's not more than two weeks until Christmas, is that why the nightmares are worse?", I felt my head spin and I had to close my eyes to concentrate again.

He nodded and again silence fell over the room, each lost in his own thoughts until I decided to speak again.

"You want to tell me about the nightmares? You don't have to go through this alone", my hands came out of his hair and went around his shoulder.

And he told me everything this time. The meeting room where the death eaters gathered, the place most of the dreams usually took place. While he felt the worst pain he had ever experienced, his father was standing with a proud expression beside his mother, who was paralyzed and you-know-who looked pleased, basking in the fear evident on his face.

The worst part was left for the end, where the reason for his entrance was revealed, which changed every day. In some he was supposed to be just a spy, in others he was supposed to kill someone or be killed, and it didn't stop there. He was supposed to prove his loyalty by killing a muggle in front of everyone there, who would serve as dinner for the snake named Nagini. He had no choice, he could have no compassion or he would be there with that woman.

"They were laughing like it was the most fun situation, they were all there, the Carrows, Lestrange, Avery…”, I felt a few tears wetting my blouse but he pretended he was fine and I preferred to pretend I believed him.

He kept talking more names with a tone of anger and disgust but I stopped paying attention to Avery, which was the last name on my old birth certificate before it changed to both my parents when I was adopted.

"Love? Y/N???", his grayish blue eyes were reddened, I could clearly see where the tears had run down his face. "Sorry love, I was just thinking...keep talking, it's good to get it all out at once."

After I heard everything, I kept my word and didn't say anything so instead, I let him finally relax in my arms.

"What were you thinking about earlier?", his eyes were already closed, exhaustion was winning the battle.

"I was thinking it would be a much better idea if we got some more sleep now, don't you agree?", he couldn't see my smile but I could see his and there was nothing in the world I wanted to see more often.

"Sounds like an excellent idea...", he wriggled a little until we were both comfortable in a position to sleep.

Later after lunch I began to notice the change in Draco's mood, he seemed equally tired as the few hours of sleep were not enough but somehow, he was glowing and I was loving it.

The next few days followed the same path until he decided to tell me why.

"Meet me at the Astronomy Tower in 10 minutes - D.M."

That was all it said on the note his owl came to hand me and I couldn't help but smile.It's not easy to be dating at Hogwarts, where there are students everywhere so we usually meet during the night in my dormitory or somewhere empty in the castle.

I waited a few minutes to make sure there was no one else in the Slytherin common hall and then started my way to the tower with the utmost care not to run into Filch or his cat and I was really close to being caught on the 7th floor.

"I thought you got lost along the way", he said without the humor I expected to find in his voice.

"I had an accident with Filch but I'm here now, so did something happen? You're so serious", I said approaching him by the window and leaning on the window sill by his side.

"Yeah, sort of, I've been thinking a lot the last few days about what's going to happen", he took a deep breath before continuing. "And this time is different, this time I might have a choice".

I opened my mouth but nothing came out, he didn't want to be like his parents, it's not a new thing but to really stand up to them?

"I'm putting together a plan, well I was. I need to know if you want to be in it with me", I could see my own reflection in his eyes.

"Of course, as long as we end up alive at the end. What's the plan?", he grinned and explained to me the little bit that was already right in his plan.

He wouldn't go to Malfoy Manor for Christmas, instead he would have to sell something to get enough money to rent a room, which isn't hard considering his shoes are worth more than all the Hogwarts school supplies tripled. I didn't have to check to know it's true.

"That's a good start but I don't think it will be necessary, what do you think about coming back with me for Christmas? My parents won't mind. They want to meet you and it would be harder to find you there", he was staring at me intensely but not saying anything, I started to think I had said something stupid. "Draco? It was just a suggestion...you don't have to come with me if you're not comfortable and...", he gave me a quick kiss and smiled at me.

"I'd love to go spend Christmas with your family, and then we can think about what to do after that", he said moving closer to me to the point where our lips touched.

I agreed with a small nod and we kissed again, this time for much longer. The weather was perfect, the cold wind contrasting with my warm skin from the blond's touches, for me we could stay there forever.

A week later, another letter arrived for Draco during our breakfast in the Great Hall and his expression changed as soon as he picked up the paper.

"Draco?", he didn't answer me and continued reading and rereading non-stop with the most grim expression I have ever seen on his face. "Draco, can you talk to me?", I whispered and even with him beside me, I couldn't read a whole sentence.

He simply got up and left in a hurry, I wasn't going to stay and pretend that everything was fine. I didn't bother to make an excuse, since most of the table stopped to pay attention to what was going on, I walked out a little behind him and it wasn't hard to catch up.

"Draco! What the hell are you doing? We were going to work it out together, you don't have to run from me like you do the others", I said approaching in the middle of the empty hallway. "You're still not going to talk to me?", I said with my arms crossed zero percent intimidated by his angry expression.

"And for what? You can't do anything for me now. The plan has failed, they're going to ask the principal to send me home tomorrow", he started pacing back and forth, his hands clenched tightly, fear and despair formed a powerful alliance inside him

I had no idea what to say, what could be said to make this better? His steps became harder against the ground and I was sure that at some point something would be broken if we continued there.

"Come on love, let's skip class today. Let's think of another plan, you won't become one of them, I promise", I held his tense arm and guided him quickly into the dungeon.

"You can't promise that, how can you be so sure?", I could see a glimmer of hope that I wasn't going to let go."Because I will do whatever it takes to make sure it doesn't happen, okay?", I slid my hand down his arm until I found his.

It was a long day, we barely slept that night as we were both unsure if our idea would work out or not.

The next morning I awoke to an unusual movement downstairs, the clock I had been given by my parents showed a little over five in the morning. My friends didn't even move in their beds as I walked closer to the door to hear what was being said and I didn't recognize those voices.

"I will call him Mr. Malfoy, please settle down", was Professor Snape's voice and after that silence came.

Damn it, there wouldn't be time to escape as we had planned. I took a deep breath and started to think, I wouldn't stay here, I had to do something, I had to think but the sound of my own heart was getting in the way. I hadn't noticed that I was shaking until I took a step back to my bed, my legs had almost gone weak.

A few nerve-wracking minutes later, as if I had drawn it to me from thinking about him so much, I heard Draco's voice in my hallway moving closer to my room.

"She won't mind, I'm sure", I could hear clearly through the door and I was sure that if it had been any other student, not only would he not have made it upstairs but he would also have gotten the scolding of the century.

The door was opened and the first thing Draco did was to quickly push me back near the bed before Snape appeared inside the room as well.

"Miss Lewis, you may also go with Mr. Malfoy, your Christmas break will also be early. Your parents will be waiting in the Great Hall Mr. Malfoy", and he stood there until Draco left the room but he didn't leave before giving me a quick hug.

"Wait for me in the common hall", he left unaware that his voice had made me shakier than I already was.

"They let you leave early because the Malfoys asked? That's so unfair", the girls were all awake. "Will you two be quiet? I still want to get some sleep before breakfast time", the second one said, still covered up.

After that complaint, they went to sleep while I took a shower and tried to process what had just happened and what was going to happen. I got dressed in one of my warmest clothing, I grabbed my suitcase that was already packed and went downstairs, it wasn't even past six in the morning, no one but my boyfriend was there and I barely set foot on the floor when he ran up to me.

"We don't have much time, we'll have to go with them but I'll make sure we get out before the meeting starts. It won't take more than 5 minutes", he hugged me tightly and I smiled as soon as the strong smell of his cologne hit me, I rested my chin on his shoulder and we stood like that for a few minutes.

"We'll be fine, the end of our plan still works", I spoke softly and I could notice the skin on his neck got goosebumps."I'm just going to let it go because it's not the time for that sir”, I said with a grin across my face.

"I have no idea what you are talking about, miss. We better go soon, the faster we go, the faster this is over", he kissed me before we walked hand in hand down the halls.

“Draco, why didn't you let us know your girlfriend was coming to visit us for Christmas earlier?”, his mother was the first to speak as soon as we approached them, her tone was nice but her smile trembled.

As soon as we started our relationship we talked it over and thought it would be best not to mention to his parents that I came from a muggle foster family. We knew it would be impossible to keep this secret since his parents are quite "protective", so he only mentioned me when he had no other choice.

I already knew that there would be one reason for them to be polite to me, I had not been judged on whether I was appropriate or not yet. They weren't giving me the benefit of the doubt, they were giving it to Draco's choices.

"I must have forgotten but it doesn't make that much difference, does it?", he said calmly and I pretended I hadn't seen his father's expression harden.

"We shall be going, I can't waste any more time here”, the disgusted tone in his voice left me more surprised than anything else.

Since no one can apparate on the grounds of Hogwarts, we walked to Hogsmeade in awkward silence. His parents walked imposingly in front of us and we were right behind them holding hands, only communicating by glances. Once we got far enough, we stopped on the dusty road at the entrance to the small village.

"Alright you two, Draco you know how it works, dear, have you ever apparated before?", she was kind enough to ask me. "No Mrs. Malfoy, I have never apparated".

"The first time is complicated but you'll be fine”, she held her husband's arm and in one second we were standing in the middle of the road and the next we weren't.

Harry Potter Masterlist

[pheita]

Business as Usual Part 6

So they have a plan and need to wait. I am sure you can guess as much as me, that waiting can have its own problems, or new chances.

Tagging @ashen-crest @adie-dee @abalonetea @cometworks @viskafrer @vivian-is-writing

Warning for strong language of the sexual kind.

After making the list, I was taken back to the simple room. Oddly enough, the door to the bathroom now opened. As soon as all this was over, I would have a few words about coercion with Lyran, but I couldn't be mad at him either. After all he had told, he had grown up here, that he did not really know how to behave in some situations or found some things normal that were not normal, was a natural consequence. I used the moment of rest and freshened up a bit. Those flappy pants were a little annoying, but I would survive. After a while, there was a knock. "Yes?" Lyran came in with a tray of food. The smell of spare ribs wafted toward me. My stomach immediately growled like a ravenous bear in spring. I guess I was too busy thinking. "I figured you'd be hungry. It' s going to be morning soon." Something amused shone in his eyes. "And it's been a long night. But there's one thing you didn't resolve." I stood up and walked over to the small table that was suddenly in the room when I returned. "What's that?" "Who put the bracelets back on me and why aren't you under their control?" He smirked, which immediately turned into a sigh. "I put the bracelets back on you before too many people got your magic and could catch a whiff of Meranki's fuse." "I see."

As he set the tablet down, I saw that he had brought a portion for himself as well. That was unexpected. It was, in a strange way, another unconscious hint from him that he was just as much a victim here, and not the hard-boiled bad guy he'd kept putting forward for protection. "And I can't be controlled because I'm a demon. Or half-demon. She has other ways for that." Again, his hand went to his back. It didn't take a genius to figure out where the scars came from. In the end, Merankis was still a warlord who had ruled with fear. Whipping was only right and proper for her there. "Sorry, I didn't mean to...", I didn't know what else to say. "That's all right. I know I'm partly to blame for everything. So are my parents, my grandparents, and I don't know how far back it goes." An awkward silence spread. I could only bridge it by finally eating something. Lyran smirked again. The question of whether he actually had a chance to become the man he wanted to be flashed through my mind. This was clearly something like a cult. No one could talk about normal childhood there. "Are you sure we can make it with your friends?" asked Lyran unexpectedly. "I'm sure you do," I laughed out, nearly choking on the meat, "Trust me, my sister has a bit of an aggression problem and good connections. And as for Maureen and Connor...I think the problem that those two can't get out of the way has yet to be created. Succubi and nymphs are also immune to lust demon magic, making them the best choice." I didn't want to mention the likelihood that Maureen would hit it off with half of Europe's succubi just because this weekend was speed dating for supernaturals, of all things. That being said, with Connor, I still didn't know where he was connecting everywhere. Feels like it was the whole fucking world. "Makes sense." "But tell me, the elf..." "Niat," Lyran corrected. I knew that smile. Hell, it was more personal to him than I thought. "This isn't just about getting rid of Merankis forever, is it? You want Niat back." "Would it be so bad if I wanted both?" "No," I suppressed a grin, "Both is good." "What if it's more than that?" Lyran looked at me in a mixture of wariness, emotional hunger and desire that left me speechless. I clearly wasn't imagining it anymore. Closing my eyes, I swallowed the sigh. "These are thoughts and questions for after we win. If we don't make it, it's idle to think about it." I didn't know if I got my act together with that, but Lyran lowered his head a little, only to look at me with a lowered gaze. It had to be exhaustion that I thought it was hot, yeah right. I'd been up and tense for far too long, and not just from all that my nose could still faintly smell. "Then promise me something." "Depends on what." The inkling of what he wanted hung over me like the damned sword of Damocles, and I was already trying to brace myself. This was not good. "If we won, and we're both still alive..." "That's a big if," I cut him off. Lyran's jaw grinded and he nodded. "Still, if we make it...", Lyran swallowed hard. Shit, if he got shy now, too, there was a good chance I'd bang my head against the wall until I could think straight. The thought left me irritated. I had never been as fixated on sex as I had been in the last few hours, except for maybe that one phase as a teenager. It was strange, and not just because of the circumstances around it. "Keep in mind what you were going to say," I raised my hand and checked my bracelets, "You put them back on, didn't you?" "Yes, the way I know it. Why?" He leaned over the table a bit, watching as I checked the bracelets. Everything was in order. I looked around the room. "The rooms are connected by ventilation shafts?" "And there are various filters connected in between. Will you tell me what's going on?" I was such a fucking idiot, but I could hardly tell him that. It had certainly been more than ten years since I had last taken off the bracelets for more than a few minutes. "Safe against my magic?" "Yes..." Frowning and waiting, he looked at me as I undid the bracelets and shifted to my

full demonic form. I stretched and took a deep breath. Yes, the filters were working well. I smelled even now only faintly of what was going on in the complex and nothing of Meranki's magic. That was good. Lyran's whimpering distracted me. He sat there with wide eyes and quivering lower lip. I had solved the mystery of why my thoughts had just landed far too quickly on sex, thanks to my own stupidity, but in return I think I had broken something in Lyran as if it had been made of porcelain. Faster than I had expected he was off the chair and even less had I expected with what force he was now pushing me against the wall. "Forget after the fight," he whimpered, which ended in a kind of purr. Fucking hell, it turned me on more than it should. His lips weren't even a hand's width away. All I had to do was lower my head. His hands held me by my shoulders, even if only lightly, and damn, I hated myself so much at that moment for having a weakness for being dominated. "Say it." "What?" I knew I had irritated him with that. With any luck, it would get us both out of this situation. "Say what you want," I explained to him, "or you won't get anything." In my mind, I hoped that would distract him further. It also seemed to work as he dropped his hands and just stood in front of me. Then something changed in him. An inkling of what it was came over me just a split second before he spoke. "I want to fuck you. I want you under me, begging for me to do you right. You know why you were tied down in the beginning? Because I wanted you for myself before I knew you were my way out of everything," Lyran was getting closer, and I could feel his erratic breathing on my face. All of a sudden, that authority resonated. That was it. I was gone. The last few hours were already tugging at me but Lyran now, this was too much. This wasn't just pushing me over the edge, I was running over it with a running start and the speed of light. "Prove to me, it's not just words," I breathed into his ear. With big greedy eyes, he looked at me. I felt my demonic nature boiling up like I was a fucking soup. In any case, my knees went weak as Lyran took my face in his hands and kissed me urgently. After that, everything was just a blur.

[coffee-n-bagels-comic-universe]

The Salem House or The Scottish Cottage

Quick Tag List: @kuruumiya @spacelizardtrashboys @stupidbluegirl @enigmaticandunstable @nattinngrst

This Passage Contains Potentially: swearing, violence, blood, angst, whump, fluff and smutty content.

Summary: Rod and Kirby move in to their new cottage home in Salem, Oregon.

Kirby's POV:

Rod blindfolded me with one of his ties and drove our rented van out to the property, taking off my blindfold in front of the house.

"There it is, our new home," he twirled the keys around his index finger, "all ours now, Kirbs."

There it was, white panel exterior with fancy windows and lights along both sides of the gravel path towards the house. Without thinking I pulled Rod into a hug and kissed him, tears of happiness rolling down my cheek.

"Woah, baby, are ya alright sweetheart?"

"I love it, and I love you and-" Upon hearing that, Rod hoisted me over his shoulder, "Woah, Roddy, what are you doing?"

"Taking you inside and carrying you to the one room I know you're gonna love."

He carried me through the front double doors, through the foyer and then the kitchen, before carrying me past the television and sofa, past what I believe is the ground floor bathroom and up the stairs, letting me get a glance at the basement staircase as we went up to the top floor of our new home.

He then put me down in front of a pale green door with a childish or childlike, chalk or pastel drawing on the front.

I turned the handle slowly, not knowing what to expect.

Then I saw it.

The lone white bassinet.

Surrounded by soft toys and things you'd assume would be in a nursery.

"The former owners said that they're daughter was gonna move in before she moved to L.A. They knew she had a baby and set this room up. I'm gonna be honest with ya and tell ya that I let a couple tears slip when I saw this room ma-self, so I completely understand if you need a moment alone."

"Rod, Roddy, as much as I hate the weird wallpaper in the foyer, this room is," I took a second to compose myself, "It's perfect."

"Do ya wanna see our bedroom?"

"Yeah."

Rod showed me around the rest of the house before going into the basement.

"There's no attic, so the basement will have to do if we want to store anything anywhere."

The basement was large, the only room separated off from the rest of the basement was another bathroom. I walked to the opposite side of the basement and stopped in my tracks.

"What's wrong babe?"

"They have a hot tub?!"

"What?"

Rod walked over to me, also stopping upon seeing the hot tub in it's own corner of the basement, separate from the gym equipment and rugs and the very empty basement.

"What d'ya reckon they use that for?" Rod asked, teasing me slightly.

"No, Rod, eww, that's gross, you wouldn't dare suggest that!"

"Hot tub sex, babe, it's a thing."

"We are not doing that. Ever!"

"We are alone in the house, you know." He started unbuckling his belt, chucking it as well as his sporran down at his feet, "I know we've gotta fly back to the other side of the country later, but, right now, we're home, honey," He started walking towards me, whipping his jacket and shirt off, leaving him in his kilt and boots as he ran his hand through his hair, letting out a deep guttural sigh.

"I guess we could test out the new bed, Roddy." I started unbuttoning my shirt, exposing the peach toned tank top underneath.

"Or, We could have sex right here and now," He suggested, whipping his kilt off and in true Scottish fashion, revealing nothing but his bare body below.

He unclenched his hand, showing off the fact that he had brought a condom with him.

By the time we got to Taunton, Massachusetts on the first of March, Roddy had set aside some time for us to redecorate the house, and by the time we actually got around to redecorating, Roddy had recruited the rest of the D.O.D as well a Schultz, Orton and Orndorff to help us. We had met back at the house on the Eleventh (of March) and unbeknownst to me, Piper had made a couple calls to his friends from back in his NWA and Mid Atlantic days.

"Woo!"

"He didn't." Schultz grunted out, partly worried and partly surprised.

"He didn't do what … David?"

Schultz guided me outside to meet the guys.

"Piper! introduce ya wife to the boys, I'll go grab us some beer."

"I'm not his wife," I called after him as he walked back inside, "So, Roddy, who are these guys."

Rod leant up to kiss me, he would have backed me into the nearest wall if I didn't pull away immediately after, concern taking over any hint of a flirtatious mood in me.

"Who's this fine female?"

I recognised the voice from the yell earlier.

"Ric, this is my girlfriend, Kirby. Kirby, this is Ric Flair. Over there," he gestured to the other four, "Are Tully Blanchard, with the black hair, JJ Dillon, the other blonde looking one and Ole and Arn Anderson."

"Are they here to help or are they here to distract you?"

"The only thing distracting me is the idea of seeing you na-"

I covered Rod's mouth with my hand and gave Ric a sheepish smile, "I apologise for my hus, I mean boyfriend's attitude Ric."

"You almost said husband, Kirbs." Rod whispered to me as we led the boys inside, before he took me aside.

"It was a slip of the tongue."

"I'm sorry, about the kiss, I got a bit jealous because I know what Ric can be like, with women in particular."

"Rod, you shouldn't have to apologise for that, I love ya. I was going to start looking for you anyway, what d'ya want for lunch?"

"Don't you worry about that, I'll go grill those hamburgers we have in the fridge and … hey look, beer."

"Thank you, David."

"Anytime, Tall-ass."

"Look, babe, I'll deal with it alright, you stop worrying and I'll deal with it. I'm the man of the house so I'll deal with it."

I came up behind Roddy, putting my head on his shoulder and wrapping my arms around his waist, kissing his neck.

"I'm gonna go rest for a bit Rod, my head feels funny."

"Baby, baby come here."

Rod helped me upstairs, making sure I didn't fall over and letting me lay on the bed.

"We have today and tomorrow here baby, relax."

"Rod, you know me, you know I wind myself up with worry."

"I know," He brushed his thumbs over my knuckles, "I'm gonna get you some hand wraps or something, stop punching things until ya knuckles bleed."

"I thought you were gonna go cook."

"I am, but, right now, I'm taking in every little detail of the woman I love."

"You softie."

"Oh really? I'm soft. You worry way more than me baby."

"I love you, Roddy."

"I love you too, Kirby."

I slept for a short while until I was woken up by Piper and Schultz yelling obscenities at each other. I ran down the stairs and outside the house to see the two grown men squabbling like children.

Without saying anything I picked Roddy up by his midsection and took him back inside, chucking him down on the sofa.

"I'm gonna fuckin-"

"Roderick!"

"Yes, baby."

"You are drunk, and shut up."

"Yes, Sweetheart."

I helped Roddy up, almost gagging at how strong the smell of alcohol was coming from him, swiftly avoiding his attempts at kissing me and placing my hand over his mouth.

By the Thirteenth we were back working and Rod had started to get fidgety around me until things came to a head on the Thirtieth.

"Rod, are you alright, you've been awfully quiet today."

"I'm fine baby, actually, Kirby?"

"Yeah?"

"Would you like to be on Piper's Pit?"

"When?"

"Sunday, Yes or No?"

"This Sunday?"

"Yeah."

"Well, there's your answer."

"Wait, you'll do it."

"Of fucking course I'll do it. I don't give a fuck what Damien says."

He let out a chuckle as I pulled into the hotel parking lot.

"How's the Visa status going?"

"It's good, I'll hopefully be a US citizen before the end of May."

"So, May, you'll be a citizen, so," He mumbled to himself for a short while, "Alright, cool."

Before long it was time for me to be on Piper's Pit, fully expecting Roddy to do something and cause a ruckus to occur.

"Well, I'd just like you to know, it's a pleasure to have our first, female, guest on Piper's Pit. I want you to know that I asked every single female in the entire WWF if they would be on the Pit and only one of them said 'yes' to me. The only woman with enough guts to face me with 'Gluttony' herself, Kirby Lucifarian. Kirby, I would like to thank you for being brave enough to come out here and face me. I had Captain Lou on here last week and he said something vague about you and your sisters protecting Lauper. Why would a woman like you, someone who doesn't smoke, doesn't swear, doesn't drink, or shack up with skinny little idiots like Dave Wolff, Why would a great and accomplished female wrestler like you offer her protection to Lauper?"

"First of all, Piper, thank you for having me on here."

"My pleasure."

"Secondly, I was going to let you unmask me, but you showed support of Big John Studd, A man I greatly despise for his disrespect of both me and André."

"I am sorry for going back on that unspoken promise, Miss Lucifarian."

"Thank you for the apology, Roddy, Thirdly, may I say that I did not offer my services of protection to Miss Lauper, instead that was my father who told, Miss Lauper, that the D.O.D would protect her. Why on earth would a woman with an intelligence that rivals, yours for example, protect a girl like Cyndi Lauper?"

"I don't admire a lot of women, but you, I like you. I admire your intelligence, your ability to strike fear into the hearts of men with your words alone. I know that you have been searching for your next challenging opponent, and I for one don't wanna offer myself up, I just want to know how difficult it has been for the past few weeks going without a challenging enough opponent for your skill level?"

"Well, Piper, it's been tough, honestly, I think I may have scared everyone off. As someone who has previously been banned from women's competition, I find getting any support in the ring quite hard at times. I find your lack of fear quite charming, honest to the Lord above, you charm me, boyo."

"Thank you, you're a real sweetheart. Quick question, why do you call me 'boyo'?"

"Don't you call men 'lad' in Glasgow?"

"Oh, I see, anyway, before you go, one last thing."

I wasn't expecting this, the rest me and Rod had planned in advance, but not that line, he said he wasn't going to pull anything, he gave me his word.

Then, before I knew what was going on, he unbuckled my mask, pulling it down for a moment and kissed me square on the lips, in front of the cameras and the fans.

I tried to stand up and he dipped me down into the kiss, much to the enjoyment of the fans, who were hooting and hollering, obviously this doesn't happen much in the WWF.

Roddy kept his right hand intertwined with my ponytail and had his left arm around my back, supporting most of my waist as he brought me back up and helped me re-fix my mask into it's rightful spot.

After the show I tried to avoid Roddy for a couple minutes, trying to make sense of why he would do such a thing knowing full well we were not an 'out' couple or even an 'in' couple with the fans, sure the fans enjoying the moment was nice, but we were both heels, we were not supposed to do that off-screen, let alone on-screen and in front of a full crowd of fans.

I came to the decision to drop it for now and wait for Rod to hopefully explain his actions or somehow work it into a programme.

My mind started to wonder, maybe he would try to use that as blackmail against Damien, or even against me.

The D200's door opening and slamming shut caught me off guard, making me jump a little.

"I'm sorry, baby, I didn't mean to scare ya."

"I'm fine, Roddy, just caught up in my thoughts, that's all."

"What were ya thinking about?"

"Nothing important, mainly just what happened earlier."

"Ya mean, me, Orndorff and Schultz winning the match?"

"No, Roderick, the kiss, we didn't plan that."

"Oh, yeah. I forgot to clear that with ya, but Orndorff and Schultz said that it would get the fans interested."

"Hon."

"Yeah?"

"Next time, please clear everything we do in a promo or interview with me first, so I don't start wondering if you'll blackmail me."

"I would never blackmail ya, maybe Damien, but never you."

"I love you, ya hot-headed, kilt wearing idiot."

"I love you to, ya blonde, gothic, tattooed Ivory tower."

"Did you call me an 'Ivory tower'?"

"You're tall and pale, what d'ya want me to say?"

END OF THE SALEM HOUSE or THE SCOTTISH COTTAGE