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americasass91 · 3 years

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His Kind of Beautiful

Hello lovely people! I don’t even know where to begin here. My ex popped up as a friend I may know on Facebook the other day. Of course it brought up all these memories. (I’ve been with my husband for over a decade so this ex was from way back when.) Anyways, I couldn’t help but think back to when and why we broke up. We worked together (that was a mistake) and I was chatting with one of our coworkers. The guy looked at me and was like ‘I don’t want to get in the middle of anything but your boyfriend said something about you the other day and it bothered me.’ I told him to tell me what he said. ‘He said you weren’t pretty enough to blow him.’ (Fun fact! I had already blown him a few times by this point.) So of course I thought my life was ruined. I mean I was only 17/18. I called him right away and asked him if it was true. The fucker didn’t even deny it! He was like I was just joking around. So I told him since I wasn’t pretty enough to blow him, I wasn’t pretty enough to date him either. That’s the last time I spoke to him.

Anyways! That’s what inspired this little fic. I know we all go through days where we don’t feel pretty or beautiful. But you know what? We are all beautiful no matter what! Please if you ever feel less than that and need to talk, I am here and willing to listen! Nobody should go through life feeling anything less than beautiful.

So I knew I needed to somehow incorporate this into a fic. At first I was going to go with Steve but I took a look at my Masterlist and realized I only had one Andy fic on there. That’s just despicable! So without any further ado, please enjoy this fic with our lovely, handsome floofy haired lawyer daddy!

Rating: Explicit (Like I could write something that doesn’t involve sex with Andrew)

Words: 5.3k

Warnings: Language, fingering, unprotected sex(Remember: Sex is cleaner with a packaged weiner), and just Andy being fluffy

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You honestly didn’t even know why you had agreed to this. You hated first dates in general, let alone a blind date.

But your friend, Jane, assured you this guy was handsome and nice and worth your time to go out with.

So, you pulled a blue dress from your closet that you’d only worn maybe twice in your life and actually did your eye makeup.

After getting fully ready you take one last look at yourself in the mirror. For once you didn’t hate the woman staring back at you. This dress happened to accentuate your curves and the color of your eyeshadow made your eyes pop. You wouldn’t necessarily say you were pretty, but you looked decent.

You slip on your heels and grab your purse and head out of your apartment. As you go to lock your door, the apartment door behind you opens.

“Good evening, neighbor.”

You turn around with a smile on your face and return the greeting to your sinfully handsome neighbor, Andy.

He can’t help but notice how pretty you look. “Where are you going all dressed up?”

You blush and start heading towards the elevator together. “Oh, my friend set me up on a blind date. I’m nervous. Haven’t been on a date in awhile.”

He presses the button for the lobby. “Blind date, huh? Yeah I went on one of those recently. First date since the divorce. It was...interesting.”

You couldn’t help the giggle that escaped as you both headed into the elevator and pressed the button for the lobby. You turn towards him. “Interesting, how?”

“Well, for starters, she was almost an hour late. Then when she showed up, she didn’t even apologize for being late. She just sat down and demanded the waiter bring her a cocktail. By snapping her fingers at him.”

The elevator doors open. You head into the lobby and notice Andy following you. “So I think it’s safe to say you aren’t calling her for a second date?” He opens the door to the outside for you. You smile in thanks and head out into the warm evening air of Boston.

He rolls his eyes as he follows you onto the street and hails down a cab. “Absolutely not.” He gestures for you to take the cab.

You look at him confused. “Don’t you need one?”

He waves you off. “Nah, I’m heading to pick up Jake to take him to dinner. He finally found some time to fit his old man into his ‘busy’ teenager schedule.” He heads towards his Audi you now realize is parked in front of the building right behind your cab.

You scoff at him as you open the cab door. “Old man? Oh, please. You can’t be more than what? 38?”

He opens the door to his own vehicle and smirks at you. “Try 43, sweetheart. Hey! Good luck on your date!” He waves and gets into his car. You return the wave and get into the cab and give the driver the address to the restaurant and try to get your mind off of how good Andy’s ass looked in the jeans he was wearing.

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You arrived at the restaurant with a few minutes to spare. You wanted to get there a little early so you could get a drink from the bar and calm your nerves.

You find a seat away from the other patrons and order a glass of wine. You scan your eyes over the room to see if your date has arrived yet. You weren’t entirely sure what he looked like but you knew he was going to be wearing a red shirt.

The bartender sets your wine in front of you. You hand over a 10 dollar bill and tell him to keep the change. As you sip your wine, you check your phone for the time. 7:02. You’re about ready to text your friend to ask if your date is normally late when you feel a tap on your shoulder.

You turn around and look up at who you assume to be your date for the evening. He was handsome. Not as handsome as Andy, but handsome enough.

He gives you a small smile. “Hi, are you Y/N?”

You nod your head with a smile. “Yes, hi! It’s nice to meet you. You must be Jason?” You then gesture to the seat next to you. “Would you like to have a drink before we get a table?”

He nods once and takes a seat next to you and flags down the bartender to order a scotch.

The bartender sets the drink in front of him. Jason thanks him and pays for his drink.

You can feel the awkwardness start to creep in. And when that happens, you tend to get chatty.

“So, what do you do for a living?” You smile hoping to ease the tension building.

He turns to look you up and down. And not subtly. He shakes his head in disapproval and downs his drink before standing up. “Listen, I’m sorry but I can’t do this. Jane lied to me.”

You can’t help the confused look that crosses your face. “She lied to you? How?”

He gives you another not so subtle once over. “She told me you were beautiful. And no offense, but I just don’t see it.”

You can’t help the jaw drop. Sure you knew you weren’t gorgeous but damn. You’d never had a man be bold enough to actually say it to your face. “So, you’re just gonna leave? Not even give me a chance because I’m not your version of beautiful?”

He scoffs and checks out a girl that walks by the two of you. “What can I say? I’ve got standards that you just don’t meet.”

You feel like you’ve just been punched in the gut. That’s it. You’re fucking done. You reach behind you and grab your wine glass and throw the drink in his face.

You grab your purse and head towards the door. You turn back to face him. “I may not meet your ‘beauty standards’ but at least I’m not an asshole!” With that you flip him off and head outside to hail a cab to head back home.

You manage to make it almost all the way home before the tears start to fall. Sure he was a stranger and his opinion didn’t matter. But it still fucking hurt that he didn’t want you and didn’t even think you were pretty enough to share a meal with. Your self esteem already sucked and this asshole sure as hell didn’t make it any better.

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The blue dress goes in the trash as soon as you step into your apartment. You take off your nice lace bra you had put on. You take your makeup off with a wipe and pull your hair up in a ponytail. You throw on some hello kitty pajama shorts and a t- shirt that’s at least 2 sizes too big for you.

Then you head into your kitchen to pour yourself a glass of wine from a bottle you keep in the fridge for emergencies. You think this classifies as one.

You grab your phone off the counter and call your favorite Chinese place. You order double what you normally do because nobody wants to sleep with you. Might as well eat whatever the fuck you wanted. God, you can’t believe you shaved your legs for that asshole.

The lady on the phone lets you know it’ll be at least an hour. You give her your card number and thank her before refilling your now empty glass.

As you’re sitting on the couch waiting for your food, you can’t help but replay the events of the evening. Then that takes you into a downward spiral as you think back to all of your exes.

Come to think of it, they’ve all left you for one reason or another. A majority of them cheated with someone way prettier than you. Wow, maybe you were the problem. Clearly you were going for guys out of your league.

Maybe you needed to reevaluate the standards you had. Which quite frankly, wasn’t much. You just wanted them to not be a serial killer.

Perhaps you should just give up on dating. You were perfectly happy alone. Maybe that’s how it was supposed to be for you.

Before your thoughts could spiral anymore, your doorbell rang. You glance at your phone. Damn that hour flew by.

You grab $10 out of your purse for a tip and open your door. As you’re grabbing the bags and thanking the delivery guy, Andy steps out of the elevator with confusion written all over his face. “Hey, Y/N. Thought you had a date?”

You could almost feel the tears trying to well up again. No, you weren’t going to cry. Especially in front of your handsome neighbor.

“Yeah, it uh, didn’t work out. Shit happens.”

He puts his key in the lock and opens his door then turns to look at you. “Not your type?”

You can’t help the rush of air that leaves your mouth. “Not exactly. I wasn’t his. Apparently Jane, our mutual friend, told him I was beautiful and well. He didn’t agree with her.”

Andy furrows his brows and cocks his head to the side. “What? Was he blind or something?”

You shake your head. “Nope. I just wasn’t up to his standards.”

Andy mumbles something under his breath. “Well, I’m sorry. Some guys can be real assholes.”

You wave him off. “No need to apologize. I get that I’m not everyone’s cup of tea.”

Andy shakes his head. “Still, I’m sorry. That really sucks. And he really said you weren’t beautiful to your face?”

You give him a sad smile and shrug your shoulders. “It’s okay, really. I’m used to not being wanted. Have a nice night, Andy.”

You turn and head back into your apartment before he has a chance to reply. You don’t need his pity. You just need to drown yourself in the rest of your wine and gorge yourself on the greasy Chinese.

Just as you set the food down on the counter, you hear a knock at your door.

Confused, you head over and open it to find Andy standing there. And he looks kinda pissed.

“What do you mean you’re used to not being wanted?”

You sigh and put your hands on your hips. “It’s not the first time some guy hasn’t wanted me and it won’t be the last.”

Andy shakes his head as he pushes his way inside and shuts the door with his foot. “There’s just something I’m having a hard time wrapping my mind around.”

You cross your arms over your chest. “And what’s that?”

He then proceeds to walk closer to you, forcing you backwards until your back touches the wall. He puts his hands on either side of your head and gazes down at you. You’ve never been this close to him before. You can feel his chest move against yours as he breathes. You can feel the heat radiating off of him.God, he smells good. You realize you’re not breathing and take a deep breath. He smiles down at you and takes his left hand to tuck a piece of hair behind your ear that had fallen free from your ponytail.

“That some moron would think that you’re not beautiful. He’s fuckin crazy, Y/N.”

Your breath hitches as his left hand has now grabbed the back of your neck to raise your lips towards his. You close your eyes, waiting for the inevitable kiss. “I guess I’m just not everyone’s kind of beautiful.”

He leans in, just barely brushing his lips against yours. “You’re my kind of beautiful.”

WIth that, he presses his lips to yours for a slow but intense kiss. You can’t help the moan that escapes your mouth. You wrap your arms around his neck and pull him all the way up against you. He grunts when his hardening cock comes into contact with your soft belly.

After a few minutes of intense kisses that take your breath away, he pulls back and presses his forehead against yours. “Will you let me show you how beautiful I think you are?”

You don’t even need to think about it. “Yes, please.”

He smiles and leans in for one more quick kiss. “Take me to the bedroom, pretty girl.”

You quickly grab his hand and lead him down the hall towards your bedroom, making a quick stop in the kitchen to throw the Chinese food in the fridge.

Once in your room Andy spins you around and presses your back up against his front. He leans forward and starts placing soft kisses against your neck. His left hand rests at your waist while his right hand moves up under your shirt towards your breasts. “Is this okay, pretty girl?” His voice is so low and husky. Your panties didn’t even stand a chance.

You nod. “Yes, please. Touch me, Andy.”

He groans a little and reaches up to cup your right breast in his hand. You hear him let out a growl as he continues to fondle your breast. While his left hand makes its way into your shorts, brushing his finger over your clit. You jolt forward at the sensation, whimpering out in the process.

“You like that, pretty girl? Like my fingers on your little cunt?”

You grab a hold of his wrist and writhe against him as he lowers his fingers towards your entrance. He gathers your slick up before moving his fingers back towards your clit and starts slowly circling it.

“Fuck, Andy. Feels so good.”

“Yeah? You want my fingers inside you, baby?”

You quickly nod. “Please. Need to feel you.”

He lowers his hand back down to your entrance and slowly slides his middle finger against your walls. You arch your back and moan out his name as he starts pumping it slowly.

“Fuck, Y/N. You’re so tight. When’s the last time you’ve been touched, pretty girl?”

“Too long. Feels so good. I need more. Please.”

His index finger quickly joins the middle one. He starts pumping them in and out of you quicker, curling them just right so they rub up against your g spot. “Oh, fuck!” You can’t help but yell out at the feeling. It’s been so long since someone’s taken the time to pleasure you, let alone find your g spot. You could feel the coil tightening already. You were embarrassingly close and he hadn’t even really started yet.

“You gonna cum for me already, pretty girl? Do it. Make a mess on my fingers.”

He moves his thumb and starts circling your clit. Your legs start shaking. He presses his thumb down just a little harder and you’re gone. You cum with a shout of Andy’s name into the otherwise empty room.

He continues pumping his fingers in and out but removes his thumb from your clit, not wanting to overstimulate you too much. “Good girl. So fuckin’ pretty when you cum.”

You lower your head in embarrassment. He spins you around and places his finger under your chin so he can raise your head so you’re looking at him. “Don’t hide from me, pretty girl. I want to see everything.” He takes his left hand and raises it to his mouth, sucking your essence off of his fingers. He moans into his hand. “You taste so fucking sweet. Knew you would.”

He grabs your face to pull you in for a sweet kiss as he slowly pushes you towards the bed. The back of your knees touch your mattress before he pulls away. He smiles down at you as he grabs the hem of your shirt and pulls it up and off, tossing it somewhere in the room. His gaze then falls to your breasts. He licks his lips hungrily. Before he can get too caught up, he hooks his thumbs into your shorts and pulls them and your panties down and off your legs, helping you step out of them.

He stands back up and pulls you in for another kiss, your hands fall to his chest. You start to unbutton his shirt, revealing his chest to you a little at a time. You pull away to get the last few buttons and push his shirt over his shoulders and are surprised to see his chest and abdomen sprinkled with various tattoos. You never would’ve guessed. You can’t help but let your hand trace over a quote on his collarbone or onto the eagle covering his pec.

“I never would have pegged you for a tattoo guy. These are amazing.”

He chuckles. “Yeah, I only have them where they can be covered up by clothes.” He grabs your wrists to stop your tracing. “You can trace all of them some other time, pretty girl. Right now, I need to be inside of you.”

You can’t help the shiver that runs down your spine at his words. His dirty talk was going to be the death of you.

He moves his hands towards his belt buckle and starts undoing it. You couldn’t help but notice the slight tremble to his hands. You place your hands on top of his and look at his face. “Hey, if you don’t want to do this, that’s ok.”

He looks into your eyes and gives you a shy smile. “No, I want to. God, do I want to. It’s just, I haven’t been with anyone since Laurie and I guess I’m a little nervous.”

You couldn’t help the pull you felt at your heart at his words. He was nervous. Thank god. So were you. This beautiful man wanted to sleep with you, of course you were nervous. “If it makes you feel any better, I’m nervous too. You’re kind of intimidating.”

He cocks his head to the side and furrows his brows. “Intimidating? Why is that?”

You remove your hands from his and gesture up and down his body. “Just look at you. You’re breathtaking, Andy. And I’m just me.” Your gaze falls down to your feet, unable to look at him.

He puts his finger under your chin and raises your head so that you’re forced to look at him. “Speak for yourself, pretty girl. You’re the breathtaking one.”

You scoff and roll your eyes. “Yeah, right.”

His gaze on you hardens just a little. He grabs your hand and places it over his pants against his erection. “Do you feel that? Feel what you do to me? Nobody but you can make me this hard, pretty girl. I’ve been in a constant state of arousal since I moved in, watching you coming in and out of your apartment in your tight skirts and almost see-through blouses. Making me go fuckin’ crazy.”

“Why didn’t you ever say anything or make a move then?” Of course your self doubt was starting to creep in. Maybe this was him just wanting to get his dick wet. You needed to know.

He grabs your hands and brings your knuckles to his mouth, giving them a soft kiss. “Honestly? I thought there was no way in hell an old man like me would have a shot with a sweet thing like you.”

You couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped your mouth. “Please. You’re only 43.”

He pulls you in for a sweet, lingering kiss. “Yeah, well. Probably too old for you. But after what you said to me, about how you’re used to not being wanted? I stopped caring how old I was. I needed to show you just exactly how much you’re wanted. So, can I still show you, pretty girl?”

You quickly nod your head and help him finish removing his pants, leaving him in just his black briefs. The fabric doing nothing to hide the outline of his hard cock. Jesus. He looked big. Bigger than anything you’ve taken. You couldn’t wait.

You quickly pulled his briefs over his hips and down his legs. His cock sprang free and smacked against his inked abdomen, making him hiss. You grab him at the base and slowly start pumping him, looking at his face for his reaction. His head is thrown back and his eyes are closed as he moans out your name at the feeling. His hands are gripping your hips.

You smear his precum that’s gathered at the tip and use that to help jerk him off a little faster. You tighten your grip as you pick up your pace, loving the sounds you're pulling from him. You start to go on your knees when he suddenly pulls you back up. You look at him in confusion. “If I let you continue, this will be over before it even starts. Gonna make me blow my load like an inexperienced teenager.”

You couldn’t help but feel proud of yourself but once again furrow your brows as Andy walks to the other side of the bed. He starts looking around in your nightstand. “Do you have any condoms?”

You shake your head. “I did but they expired. If you’re okay with it, I’m on birth control. And I got tested after my last partner and I’m clean.”

He pushes the drawer to the nightstand back in and climbs onto the bed and lays on his back, hand lazily stroking his cock. “I’m more than okay with that. I just had a full work up done. I’m healthy as well.”

You barely acknowledge what he said, unable to remove your eyes from his hand that’s wrapped around his cock. You pull your bottom lip in between your teeth and let out a little whimper. Andy chuckles at you. “Well, are you going to just stare at it, pretty girl? Or are you going to hop on my lap and get comfy?”

That gets your attention. You meet his gaze. “You want me on top?”

He nods. “Wanna be able to see all of you, baby girl.” He removes his hand from his cock and pats his thigh. “Come on, pretty girl. Ride me.”

Well that sight just caused a new wave of arousal to pool at your core. You had only been on top once before and it was only for a short time.

You place your knees gently on the bed and crawl the short way to him. You swing your left leg over him so that you're sitting right above where he wants you. You thread your hands through his hair and lean down for a heated kiss. You lick his bottom lip, wanting in. He doesn’t even hesitate to open his mouth to let you in.

He places his left hand on your hip while the other grabs his cock. He pushes your body down so that you’re hovering over it. “Please. Fuck me, pretty girl.”

You keep your lips attached to his as you slowly sink down on him. You get about halfway before you stop and pull away to look at him, trying to slow down your breathing. He brings his right hand up to cup your cheek. “You ok? Do you wanna stop?” The quick shake of your head makes him chuckle. “No, god no. I just need a minute. You’re fucking huge Andy.”

He can’t help the cocky smirk that appears. “Yeah, I know. Just take all the time you need.” He rubs his hand up and down your back to help calm you down. It only takes you a few more seconds before you continue to impale yourself on his impressive dick.

You let out a breath of relief when your hips settle flush against his. He grabs the back of your head and pulls you in for another kiss. You slowly start rocking your hips against him. He feels fucking incredible. Hitting all the right spots inside of you.

You pull away from the kiss and raise up a little and plant your hands on your headboard for some leverage. The rock of your hips speed up significantly. You move all the way up until his tip is barely inside before you slam yourself back down against him. You’re pulling the most beautiful sounds from his lips. It makes you move that much faster and harder against him.

Andy moves his hands to your breasts and gives them a good squeeze. Then he starts pinching your nipples, eliciting a moan from you. “That’s it, baby girl. Doing so good. You look so gorgeous fuckin’ yourself on my cock. Goddamn. Riding me so well.”

The praise he’s giving you just spurs you on. You raise up even more and place your hands on his chest and pick up your pace just a little more. You can feel the coil tightening in your belly. You’re going to cum and hard.

Andy keeps his left hand on your breast and keeps pinching your nipple. He moves his right hand down until his thumb is pressing against your clit, giving you the friction you needed. “Can feel you squeezing me, pretty girl. Cum for me. Make a mess.”

He presses his thumb just a little harder and that’s all it takes. You free fall over the edge of bliss with a scream of Andy’s name, your hips faltering from their rhythm.

You slow down your pace as you come down from your high, collapsing against Andy’s chest. He cradles you in his arms and rubs his hands up and down your back. “Still with me, sweet girl?”

You weakly nod your head and take just a second to catch your breath. It takes you a moment to realize he didn’t finish. You raise your head off his chest to look at him. “Why didn’t you cum?”

He smiles and pulls you in for a sweet kiss. “Oh, I will. Don’t worry. Just wanted to watch you fall apart on top of me. And let me just say, it’s one of the prettiest sights I’ve ever seen. You look gorgeous when you cum, Y/N. Almost made me lose it. Think you can take some more?”

You nod your head eagerly, already wanting to cum around his cock again. “Then why don’t you be a good girl and turn around and get on your hands and knees for me?”

He doesn’t have to tell you twice. You quickly pull off of him and turn around to get on your hands and knees. He takes a second to admire the view of your once again dripping pussy before he gets up on his knees behind you. He grabs a hold of your ass and gives it a hard squeeze. “Such a nice ass. I bet it’ll jiggle real nice while I’m fuckin’ you.”

He grabs a hold of the base of his cock and moves it towards your entrance. Before he starts pushing in, he gives your right cheek a hard smack. You drop down onto your elbows and moan into the sheets below you. Fuck. You didn’t know you liked that. He places his right hand on your hip and squeezes.

“Hmm. We’ll have to revisit that later.” And that’s the last thing he says before he slams home. You arch your back and fist the sheets as he sets a hard and fast pace.

And boy was he right. Your ass does jiggle nicely with every snap of his hips against it. He threads his left hand through your hair and gives it a tug. It makes you clench around him. “Fuck, baby girl. Keep squeezing me like that and I’m not going to last long.”

You move your head to the side and peer back at him. You clench around him again and it earns you another groan and smack to your ass. “Want you to cum for me, Andy. Please. Fill me up.”

He stills for just a second and wraps his left arm around your chest and lifts you up until your back is flush against his chest. This time he keeps his thrusts nice and slow. He places a kiss to the side of your neck. “Yeah? Want me to fill that pussy up, huh? To claim you as mine?”

You let a whimper escape your lips and you grip onto his arm that’s holding you against him as he starts picking up the pace of his thrusts. You clench around him again. “I am yours, Andy.”

He quickly moves his right hand down and starts circling your clit. “Fuck, Y/N. You’re gonna make me cum. Cum with me, please.”

You start pushing back and meeting his thrusts, desperate to get him to his release.

It only takes a few more snaps of his hips and circles against your clit before you're both falling over the edge while moaning out the other's name.

He continues pumping his hips until he’s completely spent and gently moves to lay the both of you onto your sides, basking in the afterglow of your orgasms.

He slowly pulls out of you and turns you around so that you’re facing him. He tucks your now loose hair behind your ear. “Hi, there.”

You chuckle and move up against him and press your face into the crook of his neck. “Hello.” You place a gentle kiss to his pulse point and relax as he wraps his arms around you.

There’s only a few minutes of peaceful silence when:

“So, was that good for you?”

You pull away and look up at him with an incredulous look on your face and smack his shoulder. You both start laughing.

“Of course it was good for me. Did you enjoy yourself, Andrew?”

He pulls you in for another sweet kiss. “Oh, yeah. But you know. Just to be sure. We might need to do it again.” He wiggles his eyebrows at you. It only makes you laugh once more.

“You are such a dork. How about we get a shower and then heat up the food you so rudely interrupted me from eating before?”

His jaw drops in mock hurt. “You weren’t complaining when I was making you come around my cock, pretty girl.”

You sit up and stretch your arms over your head. You swing your legs over the side and stand up, wobbling just a little. You hear a chuckle behind you and playfully send a glare his way as you make your way to the bathroom.

You turn on the light and can’t help but look at your reflection in the mirror.

Your hair is a hot mess, having fallen out of it’s ponytail. Your lips were swollen and red from all the kissing. Your nipples looked slightly red from all pinching they had been subjected to. Your skin flushed from the orgasms. And there was what looked like a bruise forming on your hip in the shape of his hand.

And yet. You’ve never felt more beautiful.

You see Andy walking up behind you in the mirror. He smiles at you.

You turn around and return it before throwing your arms around his neck and raising yourself up on your toes to pull him in for a kiss. He gladly wraps his arms around you and reciprocates.

You pull away with a smile still attached to your face. “Not that I mind, pretty girl. But, what was that for?”

You shrug. “Just thank you. For making me feel beautiful.”

He smiles down at you and pulls you in for another quick kiss. You can feel him hardening once again against your hip. “Why don’t we skip the shower for now? I’m not quite finished with you yet.”

And with that he pulls you back into the bedroom where he spends the rest of the night showing you that you’re his kind of beautiful.

Permanent Taglist: @stargazingfangirl18 @drabblewithfrannybarnes @harrysthiccthighss @IIIoIs

#chris evans #chris evans smut #andy barber x reader smut #andy barber smut #andy barber fanfiction #andy barber x female reader #andy barber x you #andy barber #Cici91 writes

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fullmarvelheart · 3 years

Text

Wrong Direction (Song Fic AU)

Pairing: Steve x fem!Reader(previously), Steve x Sharon, Bucky x fem!Reader

Word Count: 1,953

Warnings: ANGST!(not kidding ‘bout this one!), heartbreak, mentions of cheating, mentions of emotional abuse and manipulation, Steve is an ass, swearing, lil fluff at the end

A/N: This is a song fic based off Hailee Steinfeld’s song Wrong Direction. Honestly, it took me awhile to figure out how I wanted to write this and with who. But when I started writing, without picking anyone, Steve somehow came to mind and it fit perfectly in my head. There might be a part two of this, I’m not sure. But if I write one, it’ll be a stand alone (sorta) one shot. I hope you enjoy and know if you ever find yourself with someone like this, you are worth so much more!💕♥️

Main Masterlist

I don't hate you No, I couldn't if I wanted to I just hate all the hurt that you put me through And that I blame myself for letting you Did you know I already knew?

Locked away in the bedroom of your apartment, you wished you could erase the image in your head. The memory of what you saw made you feel like you were going to throw up. But instead of running to the bathroom, you laid on your bed, curled into a ball with tears streaming down your cheeks, not willing to move. At. All.

But what hurt worse than what he did, what your Steve did, was that you didn’t hate him. You still loved him with all your heart, with all your soul. And you hated that!

Couldn't even see you through the smoke Lookin' back, I probably should have known But I just wanted to believe that you were out sleepin' alone

All the excuses about mission reports, working late, or mission planning that kept him away from you really should have given it away. Natasha had even come up to you to voice her concerns weeks ago. But he wouldn’t do that to you. Not your Steve that loved you, or so he said. So you believed.

It was only a matter of time, really. He still brought that stupid compass around with him everywhere. And even though his first love passed on years ago, he just couldn’t let go. No matter how much you wished, begged, that he could.

No one could compete with Peggy. Well, no one but her it seemed.

Love me with your worst intentions Didn't even stop to question Every time you burned me down Don't know how, for a moment it felt like heaven Love me with your worst intentions Painted us a happy ending Every time you burned me down Don't know how, for a moment it felt like heaven

You knew going into this relationship that part of him still loved Peggy Carter, but you had hoped he would grow to love you more. After the first date, you knew, you knew you couldn’t get rid of Carter, that her memory would be a constant with him. He talked about her during your date, not that much, but enough to remind you that you’re not her.

But you ignored it.

In the beginning of your new relationship, she was mentioned every now and then. Sometimes he’d point out similarities between you two. As time progressed, his memories morphed into criticism that was like a shot to the heart each time.

“Peggy would have never let someone talk to her like that.”

“Peggy’s red lipstick color looked better than the one you put on.”

“Could you, at least, try to act professionally. Peggy would have never acted like this on a mission.”

He’d never say those around others, not intentionally. There were a few slip ups that he somehow turned back on you.

But regardless, you still loved him. You wanted to be someone strong, someone dependable for him, someone like Peggy. Though, it never seemed like enough.

When things started getting too far downhill, he’d remind you that he loved you. He’d talk about a future with you. But you realized that that future was never meant for you. He’d never be able to picture you in it.

And it's so gut-wrenchin' Fallin' in the wrong direction

And it hurt. So, so much. It hurt. You should have recognized the signs. You should have never went on a second date. But it was too late. You fell for someone who didn’t love you back and who let you fall. Someone who let you fall without even trying to catch you.

On my tip-toes But I still couldn't reach your ego Guess I was crazy to give you my body, my mind Don't know what I was thinkin' 'til now Everyone thinks that your somebody else You even convinced yourself

You tired to be supportive of him, be the woman he needed by his side, be the partner he never had, but there was never room in the spotlight for you. The people didn’t care that you were also an Avenger whenever Captain fucking America walked in. Always preaching about how he fought the bullies of the universe to protect those who couldn’t, making women swoon and children see him as a hero. When did he stop practicing what he preached?

Looking back on all the things you’d done with him, all the ways you opened up and became vulnerable to him, you knew why you gave in. Why you ignored the red flags. Because, like everyone else, you had this perfect image of Steve in your mind. The wall of muscle, who was incredibly sweet and adorably shy, could never become the type of person he hated. The disrespectful and rude people who truly didn’t give others a chance at being happy with themselves. Funny how he even believed that himself. He always said he looks out for the little guys. He didn’t see the hypocrisy or how he made you feel scared for even pointing it out to him.

Couldn't even see you through the smoke Lookin' back, I probably should have known But I just wanted to believe that you were out sleepin' alone

The longer your relationship progressed, the less you would see of him. You’d sometimes catch him in the hallway or kitchen, and he’d talk to you like nothing had changed. You’d go days without seeing him. Instead of your boyfriend, his best friend would spend time with you in order to help cheer you up, though nothing sexual or anything like that ever happened. Of course, you wouldn’t cheat on Steve, couldn’t even think of it. It was merely a friendship that grew the longer you two interacted that always made you smile. It didn’t always work, though. Some days when he’d manage to come back to your place, at all times of the night, he’d often see you sitting next to Bucky on the couch laughing at some romcom, or Disney movie, and then accuse you of sleeping with his best friend. The arguments always ended with Steve storming off and you breaking down while your new best friend tried to calm you.

Bucky would ask if you were okay, you’d lie saying you’re fine, you’re sure he’s just busy, that he has something else he needs to take care of.

Bucky had never said anything about Sharon. Did he know? Did he know and not tell you?

Honestly, you wouldn’t even be surprised if everyone at the Tower knew. You’d turned a blind eye to it all, hoping to save yourself from the hurt. Didn’t work so well in the end.

But now, now you can’t recall why you put up with everything. Why you hadn’t ended things earlier. The neglect from your own partner had become a typical thing, the harsh comments, or things he’d pick apart about you or what you did or wore, you considered normal. So why would you stay with him? Why didn’t you see what he was doing to you? Why didn’t you leave?

And it's so gut-wrenchin' (ooh, ooh) Fallin' in the wrong direction (ooh, ooh)

And with those thoughts, you realized he just hadn’t broken your heart, shattered it into a million pieces. No, he had damaged your soul too. He made you dependent on him, on his approval.

How did you sweep me right off my feet? Baby, I can't keep falling in the wrong direction How did you sweep me right off my feet? Right off my feet

You can’t place what made you agree to a second date, or a third, where things started to shift out of your control. How could you be so naïve to even agree to the first date when you knew he was still in love with Peggy Fucking Carter?

Well, you couldn’t, you wouldn’t do this anymore. You wouldn’t ignore the image of Steve fucking Sharon in the bathroom of the party you’d come from not long ago. They hadn’t even noticed you, how cruel is that? You wouldn’t let him break you apart any longer. You needed to do what you should have done a long time ago.

Couldn't even see you through the smoke Lookin' back, I probably should have known But I just wanted to believe that you were out sleepin' alone

You were so lost in you head, that you didn’t hear the knock at your door, the sound of it opening and closing, or even when the person walked into your room and kneeled in front of you.

“Doll? What happened?” It was the soft timber of Bucky’s voice that brought you back to the present. His fingers gently brushed the hair out of your face before he wiped the tears from your cheeks.

“Did you know?” You croak, voice breaking. When he only looks at you in concerned confusion, your eyes squeeze together as you force yourself to say it out loud for the first time. “Did you know Steve was cheating with Sharon?”

His eye brows jump to his forehead before they furrow in anger.

“No, I didn’t.” He growls. “But I’m guessing that’s the reason for why you left so suddenly or why I couldn’t find him to ask where you went.”

When you nod, he sighs, pinching between his eyebrows as his metal arm curls into a fist.

“I’m going to kill him. Only after I take care of you.” He states before falling silent. “Y/n, I know I’ve brought this up several times, but-”

“I’m leaving him.” You interrupt, watching as his lip curls into a soft but happy smile. And you know he’s happy because you’ll finally be able to start healing. He’s been waiting for you to realize this on your own. And you’re grateful for that, and for him.

Love me with your worst intentions Didn't even stop to question (oh, no) Every time you burned me down Don't know how, for a moment it felt like heaven Love me with your worst intentions Painted us a happy ending (ooh) Every time you burned me down (me down) Don't know how, for a moment, it felt like heaven

After helping you out of bed and brushing your hair while you cleaned off the ruined makeup caked to your face, Bucky hands you your favorite pair of pjs that haven’t been worn in a while because Steve didn’t like them. You glance at him self consciously, only for him to reassure you with a bright smile. With one last nervous look, you turn back towards the bathroom. When the fabric rests against your skin, a wave of comfort washes over you and you curl your arms around yourself. It’s not much, but it’s a start to finding yourself again.

When you exit the bathroom, you find Bucky perched on the couch with your favorite snacks and favorite movie queued up. You snag the blanket from on top of your bed then curl up into Bucky on the couch.

“Can you help me change my locks after I break up with him?” You ask softly.

“Course, doll. Whatever you need help with, I’m here.” You tear up at the sincerity of his voice, the care, the concern.

“Thank you.” You whisper as the movie begins to play.

“Always.” His arm curls you into his side more and he refuses to let go.

And it's so gut-wrenchin' Fallin' in the wrong direction

#bucky banres #bucky x reader #bucky x Female Reader #Steve Rogers #steve x reader #steve x sharon #steve x y/n #marvel #My writing #writers on tumblr #song fic

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rae-g · 3 years

Text

Dire Need of a Change: Spring 6 - Curiouser and Curiouser

I’m never going to get used to waking up this early, am I? You spent the first part of the morning as you normally do; rinsing off in the shower, finding something easy to eat, getting dressed. As you begin lacing up your boots, you hear a knock at your door. You quickly glance over to your door, wondering who would dare to have the audacity to knock on your door at any point during the day, much less at 6am. You wait a few moments, hoping it was just your imagination, but another round of -knock- -knock- -knock- ruined that fantasy.

Standing up, you make your way to the door and open it to find a short, portly woman standing before you. She wore a large cinnamon-colored braid in her hair, and an outfit of red and green.

“Uh… Hi?” You look at the woman, confused.

“Hello!” She smiled, and her eyes bright.

MEW

You looked down, spotting a small orange cat in her arms. You looked back up at the woman and raised an eyebrow.

“You’re the new farmer, right? I’m Marnie. I live at the ranch just south of your farm.”

“Uh, yeah. Hi, nice to meet you.” You continue to stand in the doorway, each moment becoming more and more bizarre.

Marine nervously chuckled, a soft and warm laugh coming from someone. “Well, I was out foraging in the clearing next to my ranch, and I found this,” she looked down at the cat, then back up at you, “sitting outside the entrance to your farm! I think it’s a stray… poor thing.”

“Oh.” You look back down at the cat, and carefully put out your hand, allowing it to sniff you. The cat sniffed your fingers for a few moments, then headbutted your hand. You smiled and started scratching it’s head.

“Well, if it isn’t too much to ask… Don’t you think this farm could use a good barn cat? I know we don’t really know each other, but it does seem to like you, and I’d hate for this little friend to be all alone.”

You look down at the little furry friend who has already begun purring. You gave a small smile and nodded. “Well… I don’t currently have a barn… But, it would be nice to have someone to watch TV with.”

Marnie’s face beamed as she carefully set down the cat. “How wonderful! I’m sure it’ll be so happy here.” She smiled softly, “You know about the upcoming Egg Festival, right?”

You kneeled and continued petting your small new friend. You looked up at Marine, “I don’t, actually.”

Marine grinned. “Well, it’s something we do every spring. I’m not sure if you currently have any chickens, but even if you don’t, we’d love for you to come. The whole town joins in and we have so many different dishes that people make. My nephew works hard all year prepping the chickens for the festival, and it’s always so much fun.”

You stand back up and brush your knees off. “Well, I think that could be fun. I’ll have to think about it. I’m not much of a cook, but it’s hard to say no to free food.”

Marnie beamed once more. “Well, I have to get back to the ranch before the shop opens. If you’re ever looking for animal care, please feel free to swing by!”

The two of you shook hands, and Marnie made her way towards the town. You looked down at your new responsibility and smirked. “Well… guess I’ll have to pick up some cat food for you later.”

----------

You spent most of the day continuing the monumental task of de-weeding your farm. There were still boulders, trees, rocks, and branches littered everywhere, but at least you were able to clear out a little more land. You began to think about what Marine had said. Chickens… Hmmm…You hadn’t even thought about having animals on your farm. The only buildings that seemed to stand the test of time at all were the main cabin, and the green house, but even those were in extremely rough shape.

You crossed your arms as you looked at everything. It was all going to be such a project. You shoulders slumped as every glance just added a new project to the list. I need to repair the green house. Clear out more trees and boulders. Get the oven working, and probably expand the house. Plus, if I want any buildings put up...You sighed. It was like a never-ending list.

Letting out an exasperated sigh, you picked up your watering can and filled it up. You made your way over to your plants. The potatoes and beans were growing nicely, but it was the flash of yellow that truly caught your eyes. You bent down and moved some dirt, and gently tugged on the stem of the parsnip. It came up easily. Your eyes lit up as you stared at the little vegetable. A little on the small side, but it was definitely a parsnip. After dunking it in the watering can, you took a small bite.

“Oh! It’s sweet!” You took a few more bites, and before you knew it the entire vegetable was gone. You savored the taste of the fresh vegetable in your mouth. It was as if someone had sprinkled a carrot with sugar. You looked at the rest of the row and saw more flashes of yellow. “I… I have my first harvest.”

You smiled and began pulling up the small vegetables, inspecting each carefully before moving on. At the end, you had about nine. After watering the rest of your crops, you brought the parsnips inside and began rinsing them off. You picked out the best of the batch and looked around for a small basket or box. Grabbing one of the cardboard Joja boxes from your move, you placed them carefully inside and made your way towards Pierre’s.

----------

*ding*

The little shop bell alerted Pierre to your presence. He turned around and looked at you, “Ah! My favorite farmer. How can I help you out today?”

You walked up to the counter and smiled. “Yeah. I. Uh. Have some crops to sell?”

Pierre grinned, “Wonderful! Show me what you have!”

You placed the box on the ground and pulled out five freshly washed Parsnips. “It’s not much…”

“It’s fantastic! I mean, they are a little on the small side, but they look and smell delicious. Let me do some calculations and see what I can offer.”

After taking a few moments to talk shop, the two of you decided to swap your small harvest for some more seeds, but only after Pierre assured that you would be able to get at least a few more parsnip harvests this season. You placed the seeds in the box and smiled. It’s really happening. I grew vegetables and sold them. I’m really a farmer. The two of you eventually said your good-byes, but not before he told you all about the new rucksacks he would have arriving in the next few days.

----------

You spent the rest of the day getting your new seeds neatly sowed in two little rows, and finishing up some smaller tasks, before eventually making your way back into the house. Today would be game 4 of the Gridball season. The Tunnelers weren’t playing, but that didn’t mean you couldn’t enjoy the game. You washed up and changed, then made your way over to the bar.

----------

As you made your way to your seat, you spotted a familiar looking blue jacket. You sat down and flagged over the bartender.

“Hey.”

“Hey back,” you said, giving a small smile.

“Didn’t see you yesterday.” Shane took a swig of his beer, keeping his eyes on the TV screen.

“Didn’t realize you’d miss me.” The waitress came over, and you ordered a hard cider.

Shane coughed slightly, and turned away. After a moment, he turned back to the screen, his body facing you slightly more than it was a moment ago. “I don’t know, missed is a very strong word.” He smirked, and continued sipping on his drink.

You raised your eyebrow and grinned. You turned your attention back to the Gridball game, sipping on your drink. “I sold my first batch of crops today.” You said, continuing to stare at the screen.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. Not much. Just a few parsnips.”

“Ah.” He took another sip of his drink, also watching the screen. “Joja has me on overtime this week. The other stocker called out sick, so it’s just me.”

“Laaaaaaame.”

“Yeah. But it’s fine. I’m not going to complain about more beer money.”

You raise your drink towards him, “I can drink to that. That is one of the rough parts about being self-employed. No days off. I don’t work my ass off, I don’t get any money.”

The two of you continued to banter back and forth for the rest of the night, only half paying attention to the game. Mostly the conversion centered around work, Joja, and favorite drinks. Eventually the barkeep called for the last round of drinks. The two of you finished off one more round of beers before heading outside of the saloon.

Taking a few steps out of the door way, you stretched and looked up at the sky. Your eyes widened, and you took a shallow breath. Shane walked over to you, a nervous look on his face, “Everything okay?”

You continued to look up into the night sky, “Its.. its just been awhile since I’ve actually seen stars.”

Shane looked up, “Ah. I get it. I remember when I first moved out here. Hard to see the stars with all the light in the city.” You nodded, then looked over at him. You couldn’t help but feel your cheeks warm as you watched him gaze at the stars. Eventually he glanced over at you, then coughed into his hand. “Anyway. I shouldn’t keep you.” He glanced around for a moment, “you’ll… you planning on swinging by the saloon tomorrow night?”

You nodded. “Probably. Once I get done with all my chores.”

Shane nodded. “Well.. Until then, I suppose.” But instead of leaving, he seemed to linger for a few moments.

“I look forward to it.” You smiled.

Shane reached up and rubbed the back of his head, looking away. “Uh. Yeah. See ya.”

You watched as he walked off.

“Hmm.. Curious,” you mused to yourself, before heading back home.

#Stardew Valley #Shane x Reader / Player #Slow Burn #Slow Build #Slow Romance #Depression #Alcohol Abuse #Anxiety #Dire Need of a Change

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haiky-u-lously · 3 years

Text

King Kuroo and the Red Knights (11)

Summary:

A Camelot AU where King Arthur is Kuroo Tetsuro, and the Knights of the Roundtable of characters from seasons 1-4 of the HQ anime. Eventual Kuroo X Reader.

Themes:

Action/fighting/killing, dead bodies, Fluff, Angst, Humor, Eventual Romance

Warnings:

Mentions of stalking and abuse of power, Language, Angst in feelings, Gore and fighting, mention of explosion, mention of seeing dead bodies

Word Count:

For Chapter: ~3800words

Questions/Comments/Concerns/Ideas welcome as always.

Teru v. Satori

Miya twins fight.

Who wins the first bout of the tourney?

I know, I've disappeared for awhile. And I truly am sorry, but life gets in the way, right? And that issue from summer 2020 has persisted and made life mostly...not worth appreciating. But I decided if I can push past the pain on the daily to do things I dont like, I can find a little bit of time throughout the month to do something I do also. Thus my decision to start writing for this once more came to fruition and I am able to present this chapter update. I don't think chapter 12 will be done until end of next month, but I think monthly updates should be agreeable as its better than nothing...

As Always, questions, comments, concerns, ideas and such are always welcome! Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy.

–Admin Red

Chapter 11: Round 1A

You and Suga approached the stadium set up for the first round of the tournament, large crowds of Camelot’s citizens overtaking the grounds and standing around the tents put up for the fighters to use before and between bouts.

“Oi! Sugawara!” You’d heard called, both your friend and you turned to the person calling for his attention. “I was just sent to find you two. Kuroo wants you up in the space he’d prepared for Yuurei so you can enjoy watching the show as much as the residents of Camelot. Follow me if you will.”

Suga nodded before motioning for you to follow the attendant’s lead first. Both of you taking in the sights along your path.

The small flags and banners flying in the sky, attached to sticks or just held by the people attending the tournament, hearing the screams of excitement as passerbys tried to get into the stands--for what you presumed were attempts to get good positions to watch the fights that were about to begin--it was a lot to take in.

“Is it generally this crazy come tournament times?” Suga yell-asked the man weaving your pair through the throngs of civilians.

He smiled back at your companion before answering with his own scream, “Nah, we just haven’t had all the knights of Camelot fight in the same tournament in a long stretch, so this is a pretty big occasion for its citizens.”

You waved to Suga as you sent your question to his mind so he could ask for you.

“Ah, the Red Knight wants to know what the different flags are for, that everyone has!” He screamed just as your trio broke through the group still pushing for entry into the stands.

Futakuchi laughed as he pointed out the tents littered around the ground and then back to the flags, “Basically it’s who the citizen’s are rooting for to win.”

“Really?” Suga asked in disbelief, mirroring your expression despite him not being able to see your face.

“Yea, see. Different knights have those they prefer to work with, so the first time we’d had a tournament like this Kuroo set up groups for the people to pick and choose who they wanted to cheer on by their colors. And, to all our surprise the citizens got really into it.”

Futakuchi laughed, still leading your pair around to your destination. “Some are alone, like Teru’s, all his fans carry the mostly yellow flag and he gets the yellow tent. But others are one unit, so the people cheer for everyone, like Yamagata, Ushijima, Semi, and Satori. See their tent, the flags used to cheer for them are also purple and white.”

You laughed to yourself before nudging Suga to get his attention, then thrusted your chin towards Futakuchi to show you wanted to know who he had as cheerleaders, if any.

“Ha!” He cackled out, shocking the brunet leading you and making him face your friend questionably, “Does anyone cheer for you? Which color flag represents your fans?”

“Wow, rude. To think I went to all the trouble to make sure you two would be represented with flags and fans as well.” He tsk’d back teasingly in return, “Just so you know, I am grouped with Aone, so all the white with dark teal flags and banners represent our fans.”

Suga nodded, playing impressed at the statement, “Aone’s fans sure are nice to cheer for the King’s servant alongside him.”

“Yea, they are---oh shut up! You have no room to talk since none of Camelot’s citizens have even seen you fight!” It was funny that the other magician had initially taken Suga’s words as a compliment, only to realize he was still teasing and you appreciated that the pair could be so friendly with one another after only having met a week ago.

He stormed off and you followed once again. Only this time checking the other colored groups and trying to connect which colors indicated which knights.

Seeing the orange and black flags, you pieced together that those probably indicated people wanting to cheer for Daichi or Asahi as you’d watched them head into that tent. You’d seen Bokuto leave the tri-colored tent and assume that meant his fans were the ones carrying the black-yellow-and-white flags. You saw half white and half black flags but couldn’t think who that would mean since you hadn’t seen a similar tent around the grounds.

“Oh-!” Suga gasped out, backing up from accidentally ramming into a group of citizens running across the field to try a different entrance into the stands.

“Apologies Sir knight!” One of the men turned and yelled back, the white and turquoise flags sticking out of his pockets waving behind him as he ran further ahead. His friend stopped to give a more formal apology, “Sorry for running into you sir. We are in a rush to get inside before they close the gates for the first fight. Please forgive us.”

Suga smiled sweetly at the young man, thankful that he’d kept his helmet off after getting into his borrowed gear for the fight. “No problem, really. But can you tell me who your flags mean you’ll be cheering for?”

The boy’s eyes shined brightly as he explained their choice to win was the knight Iwaizumi, “He is one of the strongest knights of Camelot’s courts and definitely one of the most strategic fighters. He’ll for sure place top four if he somehow doesn’t win!”

“Oi!” Futakuchi yelled, hearing the praise for the knight. “Don’t you know you are speaking to Iwaizumi’s opponents for the day? Don’t go around spewing nonsense!”

The boy laughed, stuck his tongue out at the King’s servant and ran to catch up with his friend.

“Well, let’s hurry.” Futakuchi said to you and Suga, “Kid’s right that they will close the gates to the stands before the first fights begin. And they should be closing them in a few moments now.”

Finally arriving at the gate you needed to enter, you noted the giant black and red banner. Running the few steps to tap on his shoulder, you pulled Futakuchi’s attention from just leading you straight under the fabric lined passage.

“Oh, yea. I guess color wise, we told the citizens that red would mean our guests or Kuroo. Since he normally has a monopoly on the red flags and banners we just thought it’d be easier to group your pair with him. If you fight, someone will make an announcement to say not to use the colored gear.”

You bowed your head in thanks for the explanation and thought back to the half black and half white flags, which you hypothesized to mean the twins Atsumu and Osamu after having figured out everyone else’s fans’ colors.

“Well, here we are. You can watch the rounds you aren’t fighting in from there,” Futakuchi smiled at your pair. “This is the royal’s private viewing box, so there is a bit of a buffer between the seats and the crowd of citizens in the rest of the stands. And it splits the grounds so you should be able to see both fights easily.”

“Are you not staying?” Suga asked.

Futakuchi smiled before answering, “No, I have to get some things together between fights, and make sure Kuroo’s gear is all well and good before my own bout. You both enjoy though!”

With that, the attendant left down the passageway you’d just come. You shrugged to Suga before pushing back the curtain and stepping into the space you could view the fights from.

_____________________________

“Ah, welcome welcome!” King Kuroo called, seeing you come in the mostly enclosed space, “I have seats for both of you. Thanks for joining me!”

You nodded to be polite as you took one of the seats he wasn’t standing in front of. Suga took the seat on his other side and the King sat down again.

He waved his hand in the air and in the corner of your vision you watched the guards leave the space. “I am probably as excited about this as the citizens are. It’s been a good while since everyone fought in the same showcase, let alone fight one another so explicitly. And having our guests as prime competitors doesn’t hurt the excitement levels at all. How are you two feeling? Thrilled as well I hope.”

You shook your head despite the wide grin on your face, not wanting to give in to his animated-ness, but Suga just laughed and said, “Despite his reaction the Red Knight is just as delighted by all this fanfare. We look forward to the fights, both watching and participating. Thank you for your inclusion, your Majesty.”

Kuroo waved away Suga’s mannerisms and clapped his hands together before shouting for the citizens to calm themselves, “AAAAAHH-TEEEEN-TIOOON!”

After a short stretch of time where the people quieted one another down, he smiled at everyone in the stands, watched as their hands clutched around flags and banners that supported the knights they loved, and grew even more excited at what laid out before him. The twins stood just a few feet apart on one side, facing the king in full armor, one having a black box painted on his gear while the other had a white box painted on his. You couldn’t tell which twin was which with their helmets on, but you were excited to watch them fight. The other side saw two knights, also with blocks painted on their backs, one having a plain yellow box and the other purple with a white stripe crossing from one corner to the other. Using Futakuchi’s explanation from before you knew the knight with the yellow block had to be Terushima and having memorized the fighting line-up, the other had to be Satori. Another fight you should have your eyes on. You smiled to yourself, agreeing with Futakuchi that these two would be very entertaining.

“Let me just say, thank you! Camelot, your knights fight for their honor. Cheer for the winners, cheer for a good fight. Cheer for those you believe in as these are the men always putting their lives on the lines to protect your livelihood!” The screams across the makeshift stadium made you sense the amount of love and support the citizens felt towards the knights and Kuroo as their King. He held his hand up and waited for the crowd to quiet down once more before continuing. “Today we will also see our guests from the Red Knight Order fight our beloved Knights of Camelot! Be sure to wish them luck against our men!” The cheers carried across once more and Kuroo laughed at his own antagonizing words. “Then, last thing! Today’s bouts will be the first and second rounds. Tomorrow we will see the final three rounds that will determine the overall victor!” Another pause for cheers to circle the crowds, and Kuroo grinned from ear to ear before finally shouting out, “LET THE TOURNAMENT BEGIN! Fighters...START!”

As soon as the king shouted, one of the twins shortened the distance with the other and swung his shield, pushing his opposers’ sword out of the way as he moved to strike.

The attacked knight blocked the flying blade with his own shield before swinging his blade around to attack the headpiece of his opponent. Making a clean hit against the helmet before the knight could push his arm away with their shield.

The black marked knight spun with his sword out as he used the weight behind his shield wielding appendage to force the white marked knight to protect against the larger chunk rather than the thin blade, taking the hit from the sword against his back as the current attacker continued his spin.

Stepping onto his back foot, the white marked knight lifted his toe from the grounds and momentarily tripped the black marked knight, hitting his helmet with the shield as his opponent stopped himself from falling face first into the dirt from, and tried to protect himself from the pressure while getting up.

Standing up straight, the black marked knight pushed his arms out against those of the other and made a clear path for a strong kick into his twin’s abdomen. After getting kicked, the night steadied his footing and swung his blade at his brother. The force behind the swing was strong as the black marked knight barely deflected it with his shield, the audible thunk could be heard despite the screaming crowd.

The back and forth continued between the pair and you felt your vision get pulled to the fight opposite. Between Terushima, marked in yellow and Satori, marked in the purple and white.

You were shocked to realize that both knights carried two swords rather than a sword and shield. As Terushima swung one sword down from above his head, Satori crossed his blades to catch the attack’s force. Spinning out from the exchange and hitting away the opposite blade Terushima had swung at his side.

Satori swiped at the shoulder of his opponent with one blade only to be blocked, then maneuvered to swing his other sword at the greaves of his opponent, probably in hopes to get Terushima to fall to his knees in way of protection, but the yellow marked knight side stepped and half spun to catch the balde with his own and force it into the ground.

Watching the two fight, you felt like you were watching an elegant dance. The pair played off one another with ease, obviously it wasn’t their first time facing off against one another. You waved to catch Suga’s attention but realized quickly that your friend was entranced watching the pair you’d just pulled your eyes from.

“It’s hard to pick who to watch, isn’t it?” Kuroo asked you, seeing you wave to your companion. All you could do was nod as you brought your sight back to the twins’ fight.

The black marked knight had just rolled to avoid the downward swing of the white marked knight’s blade, and you realized he must have fallen over while you were watching the other pair.

“Sugawara is watching Teru and Satori, perhaps you should watch the twins and you both can compare notes later.” Kuroo leaned in and whispered to you, probably to be heard over the shouts of the audience, but it still caught you off guard. You held your thumbs up to indicate you’d heard him but kept your helmet facing the twins’ fight so as to not feel embarrassed from having someone other than Suga be so close to you, even if it was only for a moment.

The black marked knight stood once more and threw his shield out of reach, this made you realize that the white marked knight no longer had his shield either and you wondered if throwing the shield aside was meant to say they would fight in the same manner.

The white marked knight seemed to get angry by this action and rushed the black marked knight. Blade swinging in cross cuts and varying angles as he tried to overwhelm his opponent who was now only dodging and shielding with his own blade.

You blinked and suddenly the attacker was on the defensive as the black marked knight was striking just as fiercely as he’d defended against. The sparks flying from the connecting metals washed around the pair as if a shining rain was falling around them. It was beautiful to watch, even if it was a different beauty than a fight that resembled a dance.

The bout continued, and with a harsh swing up along his chest plate, the white marked knight swiped away the helmet around his brother’s head, showing everyone who was whom in the fight.

Osamu shook his head out after getting his helmet knocked off before adjusting his footing and holding his blade with both hands, ready once more for an attack from his brother.

Atsumu rushed his twin, blade just below his navel as steady hands held it ready to swing in either a straight or upward trajectory. Turning his back to let his pauldron catch the attack, Osamu bent down in a half squat. Realizing too late to resist the caging, Atsumu could only feel as his brother wrapped his arm under his leading foot and over his swinging arm as he was lifted into the air before being released and flung to the ground.

He coughed against the dirt as he swiped his gloves at his helmet to get the obstructing metal out of the way of his airways.

Osamu however, just righted his footing, and stood ready to attack or defined with his lone sword once more.

The blonde twin seemed to growl through his clenched teeth as he staggered to stand again, dragging his sword to use as a prop-up, before readying himself.

You felt eyes on you and glanced at Osamu again, watching as he smiled to Kuroo before loosening the grip on his sword’s hilt, even as his twin screamed out and rushed him. You felt yourself stand and grip the edge of the private viewing box you were in, as you watched the gray haired twin turn a serious face back towards his opponent but not take a stronger hold against his blade.

Atsumu swung in an x pattern over and over again, and watched as the sword in Osamu’s hands began to falter until he parried around it, knocked his twin back onto the hard ground with a shove, and held the tip of his blade against his opponent's neck. “Do you concede, Samu?” The blonde asked teasingly, believing he’d won the bout.

Osamu just smiled as he pushed the blade away from his collar, “Yea yea Atsu, good job.” The blonde twin laughed before standing and holding out a hand to help his brother up as well. Both men waved in appreciation to those who’d cheered for them, but then Osamu stepped back to allow his brother to accept more praise as the winner.

You shook your head in disbelief as you returned to your seat.

“Hard to believe, isn’t it?” Kuroo asked you, but you just looked at him, pushing for further information. “Osamu always lets Atsumu win these things because he doesn’t care about the fanfare or being called the strongest. He just wanted to fight alongside his brother and help him achieve his dreams. I’ve never actually seen him fight to his fullest extent against his twin.”

It really was hard to believe, but thinking upon it further you felt you kind of understood. Looking at Suga’s smiling face as he watched the other fight that still continued, you knew he’d probably thrown more than a few fights during your training sessions to encourage your own working towards your goal. You appreciated your cousin even more from that thought, but only moved your attention to the fight that was still going.

Terushima’s blade crossed parallel to one another and the ground against Satori’s breast plate, forcing him to take a few steps back to protect his arm from getting caught by the attack. Satori spun, both arms outstretched as his blades extended his reach and they twisted, pulling dirt up from the tip sending the earth into the sky as his turning angled the blades opposite one another, in a move to try and kick up the dirt as cover, though light as it would be.

Both fighters stood, they seemed to catch their breaths as the dust around them began to settle. After his short pause, Satori went on the attack and swung his blades against Terushima’s helmet, the defender just a bit too slow in reacting to place his blades between his opponent and his protective gear. He turned his swords to sit against his shoulders as he steadied his upper body and kneed then kicked Satori away from him, causing the purple marked knight to retreat a few steps and attempt to stop himself from doubling over. He went on the attack again but moved too quickly, as he started falling from tripping over a protruding rock, Terushima kneeled down and swung the falling knight over his shoulder, making him land on his backside and crossing his own blades over his opponent’s neck. Trapping Satori against the earth unless he wanted to risk the blades cutting the chainmail against his collar.

Satori tapped out against the blades crossed above his neck, giving the victory to Terushima who jumped and yelped in his excitement before removing his blades and helping his friend to a standing position.

“Good fight Satori, but you lost again!” You heard the tease despite the blonde still sporting his helmet.

Satori ripped his own protective gear from his head before tsk’ing in response, “We’ll see how long this sudden winning streak lasts you, Teru. Just wait and see.” Moving to leave the grounds in front of the onlookers, Satori grumbled to himself about how he really did not want to deal with the new recruits after all. Terushima followed his friend out of the main arena, but laughed at his expense. Sending out teasing comments to antagonize him further. The pair disappeared down the tunnel of the exit and you finally turned to the King and Suga beside you.

“Well that was entrancing!” Suga exclaimed excitedly, “I’m sad I couldn’t tear my eyes from them, I wish I could have seen the twins’ fight also!”

Kuroo laughed before saying that he understood what your friend meant, “I told the knight to watch their fight solely because we both recognized you were already pretty attached to watching those two face off against one another.”

You smiled behind your helmet but nodded in agreement with the King’s statement.

“Well didn’t you two become chummy while I was distracted.” Suga teased you point blank, “Maybe I should cheer for Asahi during your match. We are childhood friends after all.”

Rolling your eyes, you held up an L sign with your hand, indicating your feelings towards his tease which caused your friend to laugh and Camelot’s King to mumble in confusion not knowing what was going on between your pair.

“Fine fine, I’ll keep my mouth shut for your fight. But do try and take it easy on him.” Suga caved to you, laughing out against your motions.

“Take it easy? Hells no!” The King shouted, facing you with a grin and a hint of mischief dancing in his vision, “I want you to beat that late comer like he is fresh cow manure. It’s his punishment anyways.”

It took all your concentration to not laugh out at Kuroo’s words, but you just nodded before exiting the partitioned area and moving to enter the main arena from the tunnel the prior fighters had just left through.

_______________________________________________ Table of contents:

Chapter 10 Chapter 12

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ourimpavidheroine · 3 years

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You always post your writing soundtracks. Mind sharing your top ten albums with us?

I actually laughed when I read this because I’m thinking of the Anon who complained that all of my music was OLD. I mean. I’m old! What did you expect?

Never mind me, I’m easily amused. Thank you for using the word album so I would not feel like Lady Danbury with my lethal cane.

Yes, sure I can do that! I don’t know that these are my forever and ever amen top ten, but they are the ones that are coming to mind right now. So.

Under a cut, it’s long.

In no particular order.

Brutal Youth - Elvis Costello

My ex-husband was in love with Elvis Costello and who could blame him? The man is a genius lyricist. This is not one of his more commercially popular albums but I love every single track. (I also lined up at Ticketmaster in Oakland, CA when the man was touring in order to get tickets for my ex. I got there at midnight and spent the night, meeting a group of drag queens who were getting tickets to see Barbara Streisand. God, that was a fun night, we ate donuts one of them went on a donut run for and sang showtunes for hours. One of my favorite memories.) This verse, from Clown Strike, is one that has resonated with me since I first heard it.

Tell me what you want of me Or are you terrified of failure? You put on a superstitious face Behind all this paraphernalia We're not living in a masquerade Where you only have three wishes It isn't easy to see In a lifetime of mistaken kisses

Unrepentant Geraldines - Tori Amos

I remember the first time I heard a Tori Amos song. It was the summer directly after I’d graduated from college, I was driving my ex-husband’s car and Silent All These Years came on the radio and I was just fucking gobsmacked. I bought Little Earthquakes that day and haven’t looked back. I have all her albums. I am a big, big fan.

Unrepentant Geraldines, though. God. It came out the year before my wife died and it got me through her death. The song Weatherman is about a man losing his wife, and how he sees her in the nature surrounding him.

And.

No, sorry, I can’t write more about this, not right now. But I sing it to her sometimes.

He is not a weatherman But his bride lies with the land And she will whisper to him I'll be dressing up in snow Cloaked in echo it's almost As if only Nature knows How to paint his wife to life With every season's tone "One more look from her eyes One more look can you paint her back to life"

Ray of Light - Madonna

This album got me through my divorce from my ex-husband. I’d go out every single day during my lunch hour, this on my walkman, and walk and walk and walk until I got myself in enough control to go back and finish my work day. It’s a great album and I still listen to it a lot. It empowers me. And then my daughter was born and Ray of Light has always been her song to me, even though that wasn’t the song on the album that Madonna herself wrote for her daughter.

Faster than the speeding light she's flying Trying to remember where it all began She's got herself a little piece of heaven Waiting for the time when Earth shall be as one And I feel like I just got home And I feel And I feel like I just got home And I feel

Seven and the Ragged Tiger - Duran Duran

This one was a difficult choice. For one thing, I really love their album Big Thing, which almost nobody’s heard about but one I love deeply. This one though...I think it’s the memories, including going to see them at the Oakland Coliseum with my cousin during their tour for this album and finding out they were partially filming the video for The Reflex that night. I like to think of us as being one of those girls in the audience. (Although I wasn’t screaming. I am a Capricorn. Have some dignity.) Duran Duran were responsible for my first fanfic and I’ve had a love for them since my Dad bought me their first album for my 13th birthday. I am nothing if not loyal. I have all of their early albums, all of their 12″ singles, too, including Secret Oktober, which I have always loved with a passion.

Also, Roger Taylor can still get it.

Freefall on a windy morning shore nothing but a fading track of footsteps Could prove that you never been there Spoken on a cotton cloud like the sound of gunshot taken by the wind And lost in distant thunder racing on a shining plain And tomorrow you'll be content to watch as the lightning plays along the wires and you'll wonder

Touch - Eurythmics

Another band I still love and listen to on the regular. Annie Lennox could sing me the telephone book and I’d be thrilled. Seeing her at age 14 in the Sweet Dreams video for the first time in my Grandmother’s living room quite literally woke something in me that led to moving across the world for a woman years later. (GOD.) I have all of their albums and choosing a favorite is difficult but this one won by a narrow margin, if only for the song Regrets, which is one of the songs that describes me until I became a mother, really. Like I RESONATED with that song. Still does in certain ways, if I am being truthful to myself.

I've got a delicate mind I've got a dangerous nature And my fist collides With your furniture I've got a delicate mind I've got a dangerous nature And my fist collides With your furniture I'm an electric wire And I'm stuck inside your head

Combat Rock - The Clash

Ah, teenage Impavid first understanding that music can also be political. Listen, I didn’t know much about what was going on outside of my own miniscule sphere - I was young and the internet didn’t exist yet. We got what news we got from our local paper and TV stations and they weren’t really reporting on what was happening in the world, not in 1982, let me fucking assure you. I got this album because my Dad was a part time DJ at a radio station that played mostly country music and the general manager of the station would just toss the rest of the non-country albums they’d get as promotions. My Dad would bring them home to me to listen to. You can imagine thirteen year old me listening to this album that opened with “This is a public service announcement - with guitars!” going WHAT THE FUCK? Let me just say there were a lot of trips to the library to read various newspapers after that.

Not to mention Rock the Casbah. What was a muezzin? I had no idea. I spent half a year reading books about Islam, about the Middle East and Northern Africa, which led to a curiosity about other religions beyond the Roman Catholicism in which I’d been raised, about other cultures as well. This album and The Color Purple by Alice Walker were the two things in my teen years that woke me the fuck up.

Now the king told the boogie men You have to let that raga drop The oil down the desert way Has been shakin' to the top The sheik he drove his Cadillac He went a' cruisin' down the ville The muezzin was a' standing On the radiator grille

Synchronicity - The Police

This fucking album. This fucking album. This album reached deep down into me and pulled out my soul and kicked it around for awhile. Every single song on this album hit me like a brick wall. Still does. Most likely always will.

Listen, you either like King of Pain or you live it. There’s no in between.

There's a little black spot on the sun today It's the same old thing as yesterday There's a black hat caught in a high tree top There's a flag pole rag and the wind won't stop I have stood here before inside the pouring rain With the world turning circles running 'round my brain. I guess I'm always hoping that you'll end this reign, But it's my destiny to be the king of pain...

Sign O’ The Times - Prince

The soundtrack to my University days. Jesus, it starts out with “In France a skinny man died of a big disease with a little name,” and it just keeps going. Pain, sex, wonder, glory, politics, love. It’s all there. I wore the vinyl out on this one. Amazing, amazing album. In fact, I still play it so often my kids practically know it by heart, and they don’t even like Prince!

To this day I think If I Was Your Girlfriend is the sexiest song ever written.

I will tell you this much: Sayuri’s main writing soundtrack song is Starfish and Coffee off the album, the same song I used to sing my kids as a lullaby. This should tell you a lot about her.

Cynthia wore the prettiest dress With different color socks Sometimes I wondered if the mates where in her lunchbox Me and Lucy opened it when Cynthia wasn't around Lucy cried, I almost died, U know what we found? Starfish and coffee Maple syrup and jam Butterscotch clouds, a tangerine And a side order of ham If U set your mind free, honey Maybe you'd understand Starfish and coffee Maple syrup and jam

Nina Simone Sings The Blues - Nina Simone

This was one of my Daddy’s albums. He loved it and so did I. As a child I just loved the sound of her voice - something in it both soothed me and pulled at me, made me want to run and just keep running. She still makes me feel like that. If you don’t know Nina Simone I urge you to change that, right now. There’s nobody at all like her. She’s irreplaceable. All of her material is good, not just her blues songs. Not to mention, she was an absolute brilliant genius at the piano, never mind the strength she had as a Black woman in a time when doors were shut in her face on a daily basis. Seriously. Read about her.

When I became a woman, of course, her songs took on a much deeper meaning for me, one that I could relate to. Isn’t that the hallmark of a good album, though? One that stays with you and changes with you? I think so.

If you’ve never heard her cover of I Put A Spell On You then do yourself a favor and go right now and listen. You’re welcome.

Oh and Buck from this album? Nuo to Wing, right there.

Also one of the sexiest songs ever written, this one. Especially how she sings it. The Hot Frenchman (have I ever told you about The Hot Frenchman? no? OH BOY THERE’S A STORY) told me he thought it was about drugs and I was like, honey, this tells me a whole lot about you, more than you probably wanted it to.

I want a little sugar In my bowl I want a little sweetness Down in my soul I could stand some lovin' Oh so bad I feel so funny and I feel so sad I want a little steam On my clothes Maybe I can fix things up So they'll go Whatsa matter Daddy Come on, save my soul I need some sugar in my bowl I ain't foolin' I want some sugar in my bowl

I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got - Sinéad O’Connor

This is a beautiful album, full of pain and joy, her hallmark. She sings every single word with everything in her; she’s far too intense for many, many people (and while she’s been open with her mental health struggles I’ve often wondered if she isn’t somewhere on the spectrum as well) but never for me. Her raw honesty has always appealed to me. She’s political, she’s a lover, a mother, a survivor of horrific abuse, someone who keeps reinventing herself as a way to find her way through pain. I always feel, when I am listening to her music, that I am bearing witness. I’m not afraid of pain; I’ve survived it as well. This album, one of her oldest, is still my favorite.

The line “You used to hold my hand when the plane took off” is the most evocative lyric I have ever heard with regards to the ending of love. It’s a punch to the heart - she felt it and she shared it with us, her fragile heart in her palms. Oh, Sinéad.

This is the last day of our acquaintance I will meet you later in somebody's office I'll talk but you won't listen to me I know what your answer will be I know you don't love me anymore You used to hold my hand when the plane took off Two years ago there just seemed so much more And I don't know what happened to our love

#personal #favorite albums #long post #Anonymous

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thedeviltohisangel · 3 years

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Whiskey In A Teacup/1

When Santi first got out of the military, he hadn’t known what to think of his options. There was always the option of giving up and going back in. The option to join a shadowy private military company. Go into private security. Go on the recruiting circuit. Maybe even become a cop. But none of them seemed like the best path. They all seemed like giving up. He had been trained by his country to be an elite, lethal machine. Being anything but the best felt like a cop out. So when an old friend of his reached out with an offer from the Secret Service, he accepted it on the spot.

masterlist is my url/writing or on ao3

send me any one shot requests for these two

----

The election had recently ended with a brand new administration being ushered into the White House. Pope thought he looked cookie cutter. Like he was aging perfectly, his wife wasn’t aging at all and his family had all done Cotillion. He was in an empty conference room flipping through the personnel files that had been left for him before he waited for his friend to pick him up for whatever orientation he had to go through.

“Santi! Glad you were able to make it in.” He stood and shook his friend’s hand, happy to have someone to talk to.

“Yeah and was cleared to read the briefing materials,” he answered as he dropped the folder back down onto the table.

“Good. So the basics are out of the way. Now, I vouched for you hard with leadership and they want you on the detail. Close circle, last line of defense type of shit.

“Perfect. Exactly the stakes you know I’m cut out for.”

“I know that. But the future First Lady doesn’t.” Santi furrowed his brow.

“Why does that matter?” His friend cleared his throat.

“She has requested she look every agent in the inner circle in the eye before they are officially assigned. Protective wife and mama bear.”

“You’re not saying the debutante daughters are included in my assignment are you?” Santiago hoped he wasn’t. They looked like stuck up brats and he would rather join Will on the speech circuit than put up with attitudes like that.

“I’m saying the other agents have been tripping over themselves to try and get conversations with the older one.” His friend pointed at her picture on the table.

“That’s disgusting,” Pope whined. “How do I get her approval? I got to wait a week for an appointment?”

“Her and the daughters are at a photoshoot right now for the cover of Vogue. Said she would talk to you there.”

“Great.” It would be one of his more unconventional interviews but Santi was eager. Chomping at the bit to get back in the game. Feel useful again. Devote his life to something other than thinking about the past.

----

The people allowed on the set were few. His friend introduced him to a few other agents and pointed to where the incoming First Lady was smiling for the camera.

“Let’s find somewhere we can wait for her to be done.” Santi kept his head down, smiling politely and shaking hands where appropriate, as they made their way towards the rooms in the back of the studio. There were two agents standing outside a door, nodding once as they let Santi and his friend into the room.

“Marnie, can you help me zip?” The female voice was coming from behind the dressing screen in the corner. Both men looked at each other, not sure what the appropriate thing to say was.

“Sorry, ma’am, we can go-”

“No that’s fine. I think I can do it myself.” Pope stayed silent as the woman, he thinks it was Penelope, stepped out in a beautiful blush pink dress that hugged her like it was made for her. He hates that his mouth ran dry and his tongue felt thick. But he pushed it aside as quickly as it came. “You’re new. And not in a suit. A friend of yours, Sam?”

“Yes ma’am. This is Santiago Garcia. Old Army buddy. He is here for a job interview.”

“A pleasure to meet you ma’am.” Santiago extended his hand and Penelope shook it even though her eyes were rolling.

“So stupid she makes all of you talk to her first. But I guess that’s why I am not in charge,” Penelope shrugged. “I’m sure it will go well and I’ll see you around, Santiago.”

“Santi,” he blurted out before he could stop himself. “Just...Santi.”

“Santi,” she whispered like she was just testing it out. “The pleasure was all mine.” She smiled as she spun, the skirt flying around her like a Disney movie, and then she was out the door and gone.

“Isn’t she something?” Sam mused as he still stared at the door she had just disappeared through.

“Beautiful. And probably a troublemaker,” Pope replied.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” his friend teased with a slap on his back. The sad thing was, he thinks he did.

----

Penelope hated that no such privacy existed in her life anymore. It hadn’t for awhile but it had only gotten worse in the past month since her father won the election. Even now, lying in bed flipping through fashion magazines, there were people bustling in and out to pack her stuff for the move. People asking which fabric and color she thought looked best for her inauguration dress. If she liked this or that singer for the National Anthem and if she thought her peers would find this or that choice relatable. She answered with a smile and took it all in stride but couldn’t wait to shut the door and go to bed. But even there she dreamt of flags and men in suits and waving until her arm felt like it was going to fall off. There was no such thing as privacy and there was no such thing as peace. Penelope felt she was no longer her own person but everyone’s. They told her that’s what being in the first family meant. But she didn’t like it and she didn’t want it.

“Ma’am?” It sounded like her new assistant on the other side of the door.

“Yes?” Penny had just started winding down for the night. Her face was soft from copious amounts of moisturizer. Her hair was fluffy after she took her time drying it. Her silk nightgown was kissing her legs with every step. She was tired. She wanted to curl up in a ball under a pile of blankets and dream of simpler times.

“Your new agent is here. I just wanted to introduce you before he started his first shift.” Penelope sighed and moved back towards her closet to find a knit robe that would help protect at least some of her humility.

“You can come in.” She recognized him instantly as the handsome man from the Vogue set. He looked even better now. Well groomed and in a suit that must have been tailored by an old school professional.

“Ma’am this is-”

“Santiago,” Penelope said before the introduction could be finished. “I’m glad to see the interview went well.”

“Thank you, ma’am.”

“We’re practically the same age. Any other title other than ma’am would work better.” He made her blush just by looking at her. It was tragic and sad. That she had to meet him like this. That he had to be someone that worked for her father. That he had to be stoic and professional all the time. That they hadn’t just met in a bar on a Saturday night or bumped into each other at a mutual friend’s backyard picnic.

“Of course. I’ll think on it and get back to you,” he offered with a smile.

“Agent Garcia is on interior duty tonight but I am sure you’ll get used to his presence quickly, ma’am.” She didn’t bother correcting her assistant. She didn’t care what she called her.

“I look forward to it.”

----

“Alright let’s go over Polar’s schedule for the day.” It had been a couple of days since Santi had started and so far he was enjoying it. His fellow agents were nice enough and had a similar sense of humor to him. Many of them had even served and it was nice to swap stories with people other than the men in his unit. He was posted close to the action and was never really bored. Penelope was his principle. Her safety was his only priority most days and he was by her side at morning show appearances, fancy dinners with campaign donors and visits to DC elementary schools. Things were moving faster and tighter the closer they got to the inauguration.

They hadn’t spoken much since his first night. Just nods and smiles as they made elusive eye contact throughout the day. She was beautiful. That was the simplest way for Santi to describe her. The most professional way. It was wrong but he wanted to know more about her. Learn what made her life. Made her cry. What she liked to eat and what she would order at McDonalds. Santi was someone full of life and warmth and love for those around him. Sometimes it was hard to be so cold. He hadn’t had to be so since he retired from the military. It was dredging up old feelings from the past. But he was more concerned how he felt more comfortable than he had before. How being alert and hearing radio static and a gun at his hip made him feel more at ease than the creature comforts of home ever could.

“We’ve got a pilates class, Skype call with a dress designer and then a private dinner.”

“Private dinner?” Santi hadn’t heard that on the schedule before and it made his ears perk up.

“She’s been seeing this guy-”

“Kind of a douche,” one of the other agents chimed in.

“-and it's very underwraps, very lowkey.”

“We normally draw straws or play rock, paper, scissors to see who has to take it.” Santi furrowed his brow as all the comments flooded his system.

“What’s so awful about a dinner date?” he asked, almost afraid of the answer.

“It’s the company she keeps,” one chimed in.

“He’s dull and chews weird.”

“Hurts to listen to and hurts to watch.” They all groaned in unison.

“I’ll take it then. The watching and listening part.” He was a low man on the totem pole anyways but he was also curious. He wanted to see this train wreck with his own two eyes. He took the file when it was offered, leaving the room when they were dismissed.

“Curiosity killed the cat, you know,” Sam muttered as he fell into step next to him.

“I know. This will satiate me,” Santi replied.

----

He stood dutifully by the car, waiting to open the door for Penelope whenever she was ready to go. The twisted part of him was excited to see how this night played out. Maybe it would at least be worth the good story. How the beautiful first daughter dated a slob and he was paid to be a third wheel.

“Santiago? I didn’t expect to see you here tonight.” Her fingers tightened around her clutch as she squared her shoulders to face him.

“Yes…” he froze when he remembered he had agreed to not refer to her as ma’am.

“Still thinking of something else to call me?” she asked with a smirk. Penelope didn’t wait for him to respond and instead slipped under his arm and into the backseat of her car.

The drive was dead silent. Santi felt awkward but knew this was a part of the job he would have to get used to. She wasn’t his friend. Wasn’t a girl he had picked up at a bar. She was his top priority in the least romantic way possible. He would take a bullet for her. When they arrived at the restaurant he moved swiftly to open her door and escort her into the dining room. They moved towards the back where a man was sitting alone. He looked like a college lacrosse player to Santi. In the most stereotypical of ways. His hands itched to pull Penelope’s seat out for her when her date didn’t, his eyes going to the menu instead of complementing the black dress she was wearing. Maybe he had been wrong. Maybe this was going to be torture.

#santiago garcia #oscar isaac #triple frontier #santiago garcia fanfiction #oscar isaac fanfiction #triple frontier fanfiction

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yamithediaperdork · 3 years

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The Baby of Hearts (Kingdom hearts)

If you had told Sora, the wielder of the key blade, that he would go from fighting to save the world and stopping the heartless to being reduced to a helpless big baby, there's a good chance he would of told you to get off the drugs. However that was exactly what had happened to the brown haired boy, and while he had only been in his new role for a week, he was quickly losing himself in it. Gone was his weapon and his big boy clothes, and these days he was more swinging a rattle around, with a little heart emblem on the top to make sure everyone knew just WHO his new mommy was, not that it would of taken much to figure out. the thick bulky diapers mommy insisted that he wear at all times (And that he made use of as matter of course since he was forbidden to ever use a potty again) were hidden under whatever darling outfit she picked for him each morning, but they were always a mixture of red and black in color, and always had hearts all over them. because after all, Sora's new mommy was the queen of hearts.

He'd been visiting the Alice in wonderland setting, and been shocked to find that the queens guards had handled the heartless with relative ease. Since he wasn't really needed he'd been ready to take off, thanking her for her time when she had insisted on him at least having tea with her, to reward him for coming to their aid even if it wasn't needed. Having heard about her temperament, and knowing that it was just rude to turn down the offer anyways, Sora had accepted and joined her on the terrace, nibbling on cucumber sandwich's and sipping the strong tea. "Your just the CUTEST little thing, aren't you?" The queen gushed, smiling and chuckling."So tiny and helpless and yet going from world to world, saving everyone. but who looks after YOU?" she asked, and Sora squirmed and blushed as she took a hanky to his face, wiping away some crumbs. Not for the first time he wished Donald and Goofy had come with him, but they had wanted to steer clear of the queen, having heard horror stories. "I um..I manage. and I have good friends who help me out." Sora squeaked out, but stayed still as she finished. "oh, it's always good to have have friends sweetie, but Wouldn't it be better to have a mommy?" she asked. 'Red flag! Giant RED flag!' Sora thought as he shook a little and reached for his tea cup. "Uh..I er..Maybe. i don't know. Listen I have to get going though, the world isn't going save itself." He said and gulped down the last of his tea as the queen smiled warmly at him. "Thank you for the tea, and keep up the good..good.." Suddenly Sora had felt sleepy, his limbs heavy and the world started to spin a little. "Oh, is something wrong Little Sora?" The queen asked, her voice sounding amused. "I..I uh..I.." Sora tried to think, but his eyelids just felt so big and heavy. "I think my little man needs a nap. just close your eyes and go nighty night little sora. and let mommy look after you." She said. Sora barely had time to think 'Mommy?' before the world faded into darkness.

he couldn't be sure how long he had slept for, only that it had been morning when he'd shown up and now it was in the afternoon. His head hurt a little and as he tried to bring the world into focus Sora sat up, able to make out..bars in front of him and wondered if he was in a prison of some sort. Closing his eyes and going to rub them, he noticed that there was something on his hands, and opening his eyes back up he noticed that A) his hands were encased in thick baby mittens, with a red and black theme going on with little black hearts in the red ares and little red hearts in the black. B) he was in a nursery, not a jail cell and of course C) he was sitting in a crib. He went to go and make a dry comment when he noticed for the first time there was something in his mouth, so only a muffled jumble of nonsense was heard out loud. He could feel a rubber nipple in his mouth now and it didn't take a genius to know he likely had a pacifier in his mouth and as he pushed it out and looked down, he could confirm that was indeed what had been in his mouth. he could also confirm that he was wearing a red and black diaper shirt, in much the same style his mittens were in and a pair of baby booties. and judging from the bulk around his crotch.. Blushing crimson, and dully noting his paci- 'not paci! Pacifier ! don't go baby brain!' he reached down with the gloved hand and rubbed the front of the bulk, and confirmed from the series of crinkles and the feel he was back in diapers. 'Ok..so..you've been drugged and dressed like a baby..your in a nursery that most little boys would kill for, and you don't have your weapon and you're in the middle of a palace run by a queen who's not exactly well known for taking rejection well.' Sora thought 'Plus side is it's pretty clear she doesn't wanna hurt you, quite the opposite..so..you've been in more dangerous situations..though not more fucked up.' deciding his best course of action was to size up the room and take inventory of what he had at hand, he looked around. the room had a plush red carpet on the floor and the walls were a cream white, with paintings of playing cards playing and being sill on the walls. the crib he was in was King sized had had a light black sheet on it, while the bars were metal and the wood at the head and foot were red. there was a white blanket and a white pillow in the crib with him (and he noted to some slight embarrassment there were drool stains on the pillow) as well as a stuffie of the white rabbit that he assumed was in the crib to keep him company. By the stuffie was a made for his size baby rattle, with a black handle and red bulb, and a little black heart on the top of it. there was a queen sized changing table in the room once again cream white and he noted just how stacked it was with red and black diapers, and there was a silver pail next to the changing table which was labeled in red text 'Sora's diaper pail'. "oh good..she expects me to use these things.." he mumbled. shaking his head he finished his scan of the room, noting a large red and black toy chest (Clearly the queen was going for a theme) which was opened at the moment and showed off a large amount of plush toys. Rolling onto his knees and trying to ignore the crinkling and rustling of his diapers, Sora struggled to get up to his feet from the thickness of the diapers throwing his weight off, and the softness of the mattress making getting his footing hard. He was forced to make use of the crib bars to get up, though with his mittens it wasn't as easy as it looked, and swayed a little before bracing himself on the railing. It came up to his chest and Sora had no illusion that he'd be able to scale it, he was trapped in his for lack of a better term, baby jail till somebody came to let him out. he didn't see a dresser or any form of a baby monitor anywhere, there there was what looked like a closet..but he doubted he would of been left all alone with no way to check on him. "Hello? Is..anyone there?" he called out, trying to keep the slight panic over the weirdness of this all out of his voice. "Your royal highness? anyone?" he waited a few seconds, semi bouncing from the softness of the mattress while he waited, and wasn't disappointed as the door opened and in came the queen. "There's mommy's big baby! Did you have a good nap little guy?" she coo'ed, walking over and tickling his chin. despite the oddness of it all Sora couldn't help but break into giggles at the tickle, before catching himself. "I uh..your Highness I-" he started but got cut off. "oh, you don't need to be so formal with me sweetie, It's just mommy or mom or mama..whatever you prefer." she coo'ed and then reached over the bar and checked sora's diaper! "H-hey! what are you doing! I'm no-" he started to fuss and whine. "Hmm, just a little wet. you'll be god for a while longer." she said, ignoring his protests. "A diaper wetting..baby..Wait what? I'm wet?!" he asked, and looked down. How had he not even noticed that, and more to the point, when had he wet himself!?! He was NOT a bed wetter! "Of course you are silly. you've been asleep for awhile. the sleepy time meds mommy put in your tea wouldn't of hit you so hard but you were a little greedy boy and chugged them all down." She laughed, and grabbed him under the arms. with shocking ease she picked him up out of the crib and sat him on her hip, one strong arm supporting his weight and the other brushing his hair. "I..Your Highness, you need t stop this. I'm not a baby. I'm a big boy and I have big boy things I need to do." Sora said, trying to be reasonable. "Sora sweetie, i told you, call me mommy or mom or Mama. and the only thing you need to worry about is being a good little baby for mommy. I've already contacted your widdle friends and told them how you begged to be my widdle guy, and Rikku has agreed to take over for you. so see? everything is going to be A OK." She coo'ed. "but..but.." Sora whined and despite himself, he felt tears coming up to his eyes. since when had he been such a CRY BABY!? "I don't wanna be a baby! I wanna be a hero!" he protested. "i know you THINK that's what you want, but Mommy knows better. now I'm going to give you some leeway since this is all scary and new for you, but I'm only going to let you fuss and pout so much. You should feel honored that out of all the silly so called big boy all over the worlds, I've chosen you to be my little royal baby." she said and kissed his cheek. "That means you'll never have to worry about fighting again, or dating, or even using the bathroom. just being a cute widdle baby and filling your diapers with presents for mommy for the rest of your life." If her words where meant to be comforting, they had the opposite effect on Sora, who broke down bawling. The queen just smiled and pulled him in for a hug, patting his back. "shhh there there, let it alll out." As if on command, a loud bubbly fart and worse escaped out of Sora's back side, making his diapers droop. "heh, not what i meant, but keep making mommy presents~"

One week later and Sora had sadly gotten used to much of his new life. He'd tired to escape a few times but the spanking and corner time that had followed just hadn't of been worth the effort, when the furthest he had made it in all three attempts was measured in steps. when he behaved and was good he got big kid food though it was cut up and still fed to him by mommy,and got to drink yummy juice or nice milk from a sippy cup. When he was bad he was spoon fed gross baby food and bottle fed icky formula. with it made clear his treatment was dependent on how he behaved, Sora tried his best to be a good little boy, at least till he could figure out a way to escape. So when Mommy suggested that she'd like him to make her a pretty picture, he tried his hardest to draw one even with the baby mitten making holding the over sized crayons she gave him hard. he personally thought the ensuring scribble he'd ended up making look like crap, but the queen had it framed and hung in the throne room for everyone to see, and woe to anyone who tried to mock it. Speaking of the throne room, he had his own little throne of sorts so he could sit by the queen, no one was sure where the king was and Sora got the feeling no one really wanted to ask questions about it. His throne of course was really just a fancy gold plated highchair, and he had lots of coloring books to keep him company while mommy was busy with work. One part of all of this that had semi shocked Sora, but he was glad for, was queen mommy refused to let ANYONE else change her widdle prince. it didn't matter how toxic his diapers were, or how long it would take, she insisted that she was the only one allowed to wipe the royal baby butt. It was the same logic that went into her being the only one who gave her little one a bath as well.

3 month's into his new baby life and Sora stopped even bothering to try and hold his tinkies or boomies in as he'd taken to calling them. he'd just let loose and give mommy a silly grin and wait for her to notice. He'd also become a total cuddle bug, and could spend hour's just sitting on mommies lap, snuggling into her and sucking on his paci, and was actually spending less and less time in his throne during the day. it had bugged him at first, cuz mommy went though a lotta trouble to get it for him but she assured him it was very much ok if he'd rather sit in her lap. Mommy had told him when getting him dressed that morning in his extra thick diapies and leaving him JUST in them, that some special people were coming by today JUST t see him. She mighta said their names but Sora had been too busy playing with Mr. Rabbit to play attention, holding him about his head and babbling around his paci as mommy changing his morning stinky. Sitting in mommy's lap and hugging Mr.rabbit, Sora grinned as it was Rikku and Donald and Goofy who came in, the last two going drop jaw at the site of his babied status, while Rikku had a huge grin on his face. "S-Sora? Gosh..I guess he really DID wanna be a baby!" Goofy said, rubbing the back of his head. "I guess we can call off the rescue attempt." Donald added. Sora furrowed his brow at that. Rescue attempt? why would he of needed rescuing from mommy? she was the bestest mommy in like, all the worlds! "Your highness..Little prince." Rikku said, bowing."Sorry to of course and disturbed you, but my friends were starting to doubt this is what widdle Sora always wanted..and I thought it was best to nip this in the bud." "Oh, i don't mind. and I'm sure Sora's happy to see you all again anyways." the queen said, though she gave Donald and Goofy glares. Sora for his part took out his paci and after getting a head nodd from mommy, slid off her lap and toddled over to his friends. "Donald! Goofy! it's wike, been ferevers!" he cooed and gurgled, giving each of them a big hug. "And ou too Rikku! Fanks fer taking over fer me, I totally wove being mommies widdle baby wayy more then a dumb stinky hero." Sora giggled then paused as Rikku smirked. "o-h! not that yer dumb n stinky..i just meant-" he started to add on. "It's ok little guy. why don't you just put your paci back in and go back to mommy. left the big boy stuff to us, you just focus on being a good baby." well, to sora that made all sorts of sense, and so sucking on his paci, he toddled back to mommy, and letting his friends and his old life walk away forever.

The end.

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deltas-writing-corner · 3 years

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Warmth: Prologue (2/3)

Fandom: Ikemen Sengoku

Disclaimers: Besides the prologues, I will be posting the first 1000 or so words of every new/next chapter. There will be a link to my AO3 at the end of the post, where the full chapters are at!

Warnings: mentions of blood

Masterlist: (coming soon)

"Here, let me help with-"

"It's alright!" Fuku shouts as she lifted several rolls of fabric with ease.

To say Fuku was doing a little better is an understatement. She was fantastically better. When Yuki and you came into work the morning after her accident, she didn't greet you both in her usual polite and quiet manner. Fuku had loudly welcomed you both in as if the shop were suddenly a bustling restaurant.

You were mending a ripped seam in the back room when Yuki suddenly enters and whispers, "Please tell me I haven't gone crazy, or is Fuku much more lively than yesterday?"

You resist the urge to smile. She got her spunk back indeed.

"I quite like this sudden shift in her character," you say.

"I do too, really! I haven't seen her like this since I was a kid. But the sudden switch from sweet to sassy is…" her mind trails off with uncertainty. She looks over her shoulder to make sure you two were alone still. "Do you think her accident yesterday had anything to do with her personality change?"

"They say your life flashes before your eyes in an instant when you come close to death. Maybe she decided to drop the quiet act and be true to herself."

"Yeah, that's it isn't it?" Yuki asks more to herself than to you. "But should she really be carrying all those fabric rolls? Those things are heavier than they look."

"Perhaps her back is doing better?"

"In a day?!"

She was getting more confused, more frustrated as she tried to wrap her head around everything. You put your needle and thread down and turn towards her. "Do you remember what I said yesterday?" you ask. Her tense shoulders relax a bit and she nods. "Then trust me on this. She's going to be fine. Would I ever lie to you if I didn't think she would?"

She shakes her head. "I don't know why, but you saying she's going to be okay somehow reassures me that it will be."

You give her a pat on the head, but she pulls you into a tight hug. You would hug her back if she wasn't squeezing your arms against your body. It was strange. Her hugging you like this almost makes you feel as if you two had truly become…

You don't finish that statement, for fear that your rival would hear it and use it against you. You nearly forgot that you could never truly make friends, not when you're still in the midst of a never-ending battle with a damn snake that targets the people around you. One of these days, you're going to get rid of it for good by any means necessary. Even if that means you would have to die with it, so be it. Anything to make sure it doesn't come out victorious.

You won't take away the people I love again.

_______________________________________________________________

The last time you took a vacation was...never. You've never been on vacation. Your 50-year lone journey could technically count, considering you don't work and essentially goof around most of those years. It wasn't to relax from the stresses of work though. It was merely to pass the time before you could integrate back into society without causing a fuss. It would also help you forget about the people you had gotten to know.

You look over to your co-worker and boss. "Can't I just relax at home? Do I really need to go all the way out to…"

"Kyoto," Yuki finishes your thought.

"Right. Do I really need to go out to Kyoto to relax?"

Fuku shakes her head in disbelief. "Honestly, all you ever do is work! You'll go stir crazy if you don't switch up your surroundings every now and then."

"Besides," Yuki chimes in. "If anyone deserves a vacation, it's you. I don't think you understand how much you work. It's admirable, but also very concerning."

Seeing their worried expression, you feel a bit bashful. They were only looking out for you, thinking you to be tied down to the same limitations they have. You badly want to just bite the bullet and tell them the true nature of who you are. Surely they would understand, right? They would accept you for who you truly are, right? The coiling of the snake around your arm keeps your confession at bay.

Apparently, a vacation for you meant a vacation for it as well. Tormenting you must be such a demanding job after all.

You made sure to sharpen your axe real well the other night.

The chugging of the train grew louder and louder. You and a few other people, mostly fellow travelers from outside your town, walk up to the yellow line on the ground and stand to wait. The train begins to slow down into a complete stop. Once halted, a hiss of steam is let out and the doors creak open.

You turn to give your farewells to your friends and surprisingly find yourself in the middle of a group hug. You give Fuku and Yuki their own pat on the back and they squeeze you a bit harder.

"Have fun! Don't forget to call me and take a bunch of pictures!" Yuki demands.

"And bring a man home," Fuku adds.

You laugh at her comment. She really was a feisty one.

Adjusting the bag hanging from your shoulder, you step onto the train cart and take a seat. After a few minutes, the doors close and you begin to depart from the station. As you look back out the window behind you, you see Fuku and Yuki still standing there, waving you off even as you gradually disappear over the horizon. You swear, they both looked ready to burst into tears.

A tightness against your arm grabs your attention. After wriggling about from under your sleeve, the snake finally pokes its head out and turns its head towards you.

"So," you whisper, as to not attract any attention from your fellow passengers. "It took you awhile to come back. Did I cut you up that badly?"

It hisses at you for mocking it. Uncaring of it feelings, you uncoil it from your arm and drop it in the seat next to you. Should any of the passengers have watched you, they would see you moving nothing. You were actually grateful they couldn't see it. If they did, they would all certainly panic. You did not want to be known as the traveler who carries a deadly snake with them.

You cross one leg over the other and sink in your seat. "Y'know, I should give you a name. It's starting to become annoying just referring to you as 'the snake'."

It seemed surprised that you were speaking to it on neutral terms. Usually, your interactions were hostile and more or less ended with you chopping it into fine bits. It slithers back onto you, this time coiling around your neck. You nearly flinch at the familiar sensation you felt as it tightened its grip to gain stability.

I felt this in my first memory. Go figure.

You pull out your phone and quickly search up an image of a color wheel. You take care to lift the screen up to the snake's eye level while not appearing odd from any lingering gazes. You tell it to tap on a color, and from the one it selects, you would refer to it as that henceforth. It was unimpressed by your naming process but you tell it that it was either this or you give it the most insulting name you can think of.

It looks at the screen for a minute. It then presses the tip of its mouth against the glass and selects the color black.

"How original," you sarcastically say. It responds by tightening around your neck. "Alright. I'll call you Kuro from now on. It'll make cutting you up all the more personal."

Your one-sided chat ends with Kuro, who turns his head away and settles around your neck. You pull up your phone's built-in navigation app and look at the expected arrival time, 3 hours. You lean forward and prop both elbows on your knees. For the next few hours, you just sat there and waited, not bothering to look out the window and marvel in the passing scenery. Your focus was entirely on Kuro, making sure that he wouldn't try to sneak off of you and attack any of the other passengers. He usually only goes for people you had grown attached to or spend most of your time with, but you weren't going to take any chances.

You give yourself a bit of comfort by sticking your hand in your duffel bag and squeezing the familiar handle of your axe.

________________________________________________________________

The city still amazes you. It was hard to believe that in just a couple hundred years, humanity would evolve so rapidly. As amazing as the advancement of humanity was, the air quality has gone to complete shit. Along with sleeping and eating, you didn't need to breathe either. You're thankful you didn't have to subject yourself to the polluted air and spare yourself from burning your lungs. Kuro seems to hate the air as well, as he makes a sort of gagging noise once you step out of the station.

Finally, we agree on something

You robotically push past the crowds, flag down a taxi, and check into your hotel room. You send a quick text to Yuki to let her know you arrived safely and thank her again for booking the room for you. Once you set your belongings down and relax against the plush bed, you get a text back.

'What r u going to do?'

That's right. This was supposed to be a vacation. You were supposed to be going out and doing literally anything other than work.

What the hell are you even supposed to do?

You text back, 'idk.'

'Seriously??? There's a ton of stuff you could do in Kyoto!'

'Like what?'

'I heard shrines are lovely this time of the year'

________________________________________________________________

The fact that you, a god, are visiting a shrine to be very, very hilarious. Kuro hates it apparently, which made it even funnier.

"Aww, don't be like that," you jokingly cooed at him.

You used the ladle from the shrine pavilion to scoop up the so-called purified water and bring it close to him. He hisses so violently that the shrine maiden that acted as a guide for you and your fellow visitors flinched and looks around to find the source of her scare. Deciding to spare him any more stress and reason to go on a frenzy, you put the ladle back in the basin and catch up to the departing group.

The tour was simple, a mere walk around the temple and it's public areas while the guide explained the history behind each building, important figures, and various rituals the worshipers practice. It wasn't the most exciting way to spend your first day on vacation, but you found still found it interesting and very educational.

Near the end of the tour, the guide leads you all up to a statue of a woman. Her skin is as white as milk, half of her black hair twisted up in a bun while the rest flowed down her back. It was a hairstyle your mother would style on you and even taught you how to do it yourself. Her kimono was a faded gold color from years of natural degradation. The pattern on her stone clothing reminded you of flames.

Your tour guide stops and turns back towards you all. "This here is a statue of the sun goddess, Amaterasu. She is a central deity within the Shinto religion. The Japanese nobility claim their divine right to rule by claiming to be her descendants."

Your tour guide went on about the shrine's methods of worship for Amaterasu, but you completely drowned out her words. You found yourself completely enamored by the statue.

Something about it was...

Hearing that name was…

Your body was...

"Miss?" One of the tour-goers waves her hands in front of your vision in an attempt to gain your attention. "Is everything alright?"

As you slowly regain your focus, you notice a wetness on your face. You had shed a tear. You quickly wiped it away and gave the concerned woman a reassuring smile. "Allergies."

She seemed relieved and without a second thought reached into her bag to pull out a bottle. She pops off the cap, shakes out two antihistamine pills and hands them to you. You take them and hide them under your tongue before taking a gulp of water from your plastic bottle. You thank her, waiting for her to walk off with the group before spitting them out.

Kuro gives a condescending flick of his tongue against the cheek your tear descended on. You slap his head away and growl, "Not a word."

You take a moment to gather yourself before heading back with the group. Before you turn the corner and lose sight of the statue, you spare it one last glance. When you looked at it again, you were certain what you were feeling wasn't just a fluke.

You felt warm.

________________________________________________________________

The tour ended not long after you all saw the statue of the sun goddess. You didn't leave until night, when the Shrine closed to the public. You spent the entire day just staring at the statue, basking in the familiar warmth that filled within your body.

"I know you don't care, but that wasn't some coincidence," you say to Kuro. "That warm feeling. It's similar, no, the exact same warmth I summon when I heal people!"

You yank him off your neck and plop him on the nearest surface, a stone tablet of sorts with writing carved into it. It was monument for some historical figure, but you didn't care about it. He looks at you as if he was actually considering your words for once. At this point, you could care less about this ingrained rivalry between you two. If there was anyone else in the world that could ever relate to you, it would be him.

"Who the hell am I? What the hell are we? Who the hell made us so hellbent on screwing each other over? Actually, let me rephrase. Why are we so hellbent on screwing each other over?"

You kept rattling on question after question. Contemplating the meaning of your existence to a snake that no one but yourself could see. In your confused frenzy, you fail to notice the grey clouds engulfing the sky. The loud roar of lightning and sudden rainfall put a halt to your pacing.

So much for clear skies.

The sound of footsteps approaching your figure brought your attention back down to earth. "Are you alright ma'am? Do you have an umbrella?" a man in a lab coat and glasses looks at you with a blank stare, but his voice indicates that he was worried for you.

You shake your head. "I didn't think it would rain today."

The man opens his mouth to say something when suddenly, your eardrums are assaulted by another clap of lightning. This time, it struck the space right next to the both of you. You frantically search your surroundings to locate exactly where it struck. The monument that your rival was on had been completely shattered into pieces.

Shit, I put Kuro on that!

The bespectacled man kneels down towards you and offers you his hand. You didn't realize that you had fallen over until you finally registered the stinging on each of your knees. You reach out towards his offered hand. Before you could place your hand in his own, darkness suddenly enveloped your vision followed by a wave of dizziness. You instinctively shut your eyes and nurse your head in your hands.

The wet and cold air of the rainstorm was suddenly replaced with a suffocating heat. You manage to open your eyes and find yourself in a completely new setting. You were on the balcony of a building, currently blanketed in flames and billowing smoke. You accidentally inhaled due to your shock and began to cough as your lungs fill with black air.

Your fit alerts a figure in the room of your presence. Seeing you, a defenseless woman all so suddenly, they found themselves frozen in shock. Your vision began to slowly clear up enough for you to notice the familiar sheen of metal. Whoever it was that you were looking at had a sword in hand, tip aimed to the floor where a man lied unconscious at his feet.

Instinctively, you reached into your handbag and grabbed your axe. You put all the force you could muster into your grip and threw it at the man with the sword. He gave out a cry of pain, indicating that you had landed a hit on him. He suddenly backs away from the body and you think you hear him mutter some sort of apology before running out the room. With the threat now gone, you make your way towards the man on the floor. He was still unconscious, so you took a firm hold of his shoulders and began to shake him awake. He wakes up with a sputter before taking notice of you.

"Who are you?" his booming voice asks

"No time for introductions! The building is burning and we need to leave! Now!"

You didn't give him a chance to get in another word. Grabbing his forearm and hoisting him on his feet, you pulled him out of the fiery room. You make sure to grab your axe, wedged deep into the wood of the door frame, on your way out.

Miraculously, you manage to find a way out the building. As soon as you're lungs fill with fresh air, you double over into another coughing fit. As you try to calm your breaths, you turn back to building. It was a temple, but not like the one you visited earlier in the day. This one seemed more rustic. It was hard to fully picture what it might have looked like due to it being quite on fire still.

If you hadn't escaped in time, the man you dragged along with you would have perished. If not by the stab of the sword looming over him, then by the flames. Speaking of him, he looks out towards the burning temple with you. Instead of worry or panic, he seemed to be rather annoyed.

"Someone tried to do away with me as I slept? Audacious, but foolish. Killing my guards and managing to get so close to me is another matter."

Who cares if you were asleep or not?! You almost died!

He then turns towards you, taking notice of your grip still on his arm. "You there," he addresses you. "Let go of me."

You let go of his arm and he rubs it as if your grip was uncomfortable. He took in the person standing before him, his apparent savior.

"You may be mere entertainment the monks brought in, but you saved my life nonetheless. You have my thanks."

Did he just insinuate that you were a prostitute?

"I must have missed all the monks among the fire. I don't have a clue how I ended up in there," you tell him.

It's now that you begin to take in your surroundings. You were no longer within the city, not a single skyscraper obscuring the night sky in sight. The air, despite standing next to a burning building, wasn't as disgusting to breathe in. The man you rescued had striking features. His hair black and eyes a carnelian hue. He wore armor sporting colors of black, white, and red. You remember seeing such attire way back when your parents were alive. He was some sort of soldier.

"What are you staring at? Surely you know who I am?" He asks. You shake your head, being at a total loss for words. This genuinely confuses him. "You saved me not knowing who I am? Not expecting reward or favor?" He gives a deep chuckle that echoes throughout the night. "So be it, I shall tell you my name. I am the man who will rule all under the sun-"

Your silence is broken by your faint laugh. Was this man seriously going to monologue and create some sort of suspenseful build-up over his own name? After he just escaped the clutches of death?

He lifts an eyebrow. "Have I said something amusing?"

You cover your mouth to stifle your giggles and shake your head once more. Surely, he must have thought you rude.

Instead, he lets out another round of laughter, this time louder. "You're a curious one. No one has acted so impudently to me before." He takes a step closer to you and you take half a step back. "You intrigue me, which is almost as worthy of praise for saving my life. I am the Lord of Azuchi Castle and Daimyo of Owari, Nobunaga Oda."

Your head involuntarily tilts to the side. You look up at him and say, "...Who?"

His brows furrow. Now he was getting frustrated. "Do you truly not know who I am?"

You fiddle with your thumbs. "Noooooo?"

"You are indeed a strange one. But I have given you my name. Now, give me yours."

You hesitated, but decided it was safe to give him your name.

"I see. A good name befitting my savior"

Was that a compliment? Hang on, where the hell are you?!

You shake your head as if to clear your mind of its confused state. "Now that we got the introductions out the way. Tell me, where are we?"

"We are at Honno-ji. The building before you is-"

"A temple. I can see that. What year is it?"

He seems taken back by your question and of the fact that you interrupted him. "It is 1582. Why?"

Ah, 1582………WHAT?!

Before you could understandably freak out, the galloping of hooves grabs both your attention. The man at the front of the small group heading in your direction shouts, "Lord Nobunaga, you're safe!"

Once he reaches a safe distance, he hurriedly dismounts and approaches you both on foot. The others that rode alongside him turn their attention towards the building and begin shouting out orders to put out the flames.

"Mitsunari," Nobunaga turns to him. "Why have you come? Where is Hideyoshi?"

"Lord Hideyoshi sent me ahead. He should arrive here shortly," Mitsunari explains. He then takes in the sight of the smoldering temple and frowns. "It would seem the information we received about your assassination attempt was correct."

You feel another coughing fit coming and try to muffle it. It is then that Mitsunari takes notice of you.

"Oh, who might you be?"

Nobunaga calls out to you. He gives a nod to Mitsunari as an indication that you were no threat and then commanded, "Present yourself to my subordinate."

"I'm- Ow!"

Something pierces your ankle and you nearly fall over yet again. Mitsunari pulls you towards him and swiftly draws his sword out. As your eyes search the ground for what could have bitten you, you notice the familiar black scales of your rival hidden between the blades grass.

"Kuro! You bastard, I thought the lightning fried you to a crisp!"

As much as you hate to admit, you were glad to see the serpent is alive and well. However, as Mitsunari took notice of the snake, he pulled you further in until you were between him and Nobunaga.

"A snake?! Please stand back!"

He firmly planted his right foot on the ground and raised his sword. You immediately went on the defense and shoved him into the Nobunaga's chest. They were dumbfounded as they saw you place yourself protectively in front of the snake as if they were the threat, not it.

"Stop! He's with me!"

"My lady, the snake could potentially be venomous. Please walk carefully towards me,' Mitsunari beckons you to him.

Oh, he's much more than venomous… hold on.

You look down towards Kuro, then to Mitsunari, then to Kuro and back to the grey-haired man again. "You...You can see him?"

"Of course I can! Now please, get back!"

You glare down at him. "You bastard! You can make people see you at will can't you?!"

Unsurprisingly, he plays dumb and slithers back on you. Like before, he situates himself around your neck before turning his gaze towards the two armor-clad men. He sends an almost condescending gaze at the grown men panicking before him, a tiny viper.

"Ok, before you panic let me explain. This is Kuro. Say hi." You roll your eyes as he hisses at them. What else did you expect? "Lovely. He's my…we've known each other for a long time."

"You say that as if the snake were a person." Nobunaga notices.

Man don't even get me started!

"He's more aware than most, but he isn't harmful. So long as you don't annoy him he won't try to lunge at you." You shift your weight to the foot he had bitten, reminding you of the fact that he sunk his fangs into you just moments ago. "Except me. He'll only bite me."

"He's not venomous, is he?" Mitsunari asks.

"He has venom," you stupidly say, but quickly backtrack on your statement. "But he never shoots it in me, I swear! like I said, you just have to be cautious around him and not give him a reason to bite you."

"A woman with a venomous snake as her companion. There is no end to your amusement, is there?" Nobunaga speaks up, impressed, and not at all ashamed of feeling so, "Mitsunari, this is my savior. Remember her well."

"I thank you for rescuing our Lord," the man, clad in purple armor and a singular beauty mark under his right eye, bows deeply towards you. "My name is Mitsunari Ishida. I serve Nobunaga's right-hand man."

You wave your hands frantically to stop him. "Ah, no need to be so formal! Despite the circumstances, It's nice to meet you as well."

you properly introduce yourself to Mitsunari, who instantly perks up at your more welcoming demeanor. "Is your foot alright? That bite must have hurt. Though now that I've gotten a better look at you, you don't appear to be a nun. Are you perhaps from abroad?"

You look down towards yourself and realized you were wearing nothing but a t-shirt, capris, and some old worn out sneakers. You must look like a clown to them. Also, what were you even supposed to say in this sort of situation? Hey, I'm from 500 years in the future. Did I forget to mention I'm actually a 300 year old deity? Life sure is crazy!

Not knowing what is safe and not safe to say, you remained quiet. Mitsunari takes notice of your hesitation and looks back at Nobunaga for some guidance. The man, now over your rude behavior, steps past his subordinate and towers over you.

"Were you not taught to speak when spoken to? You may have saved my life, but there is only so much disobedience I will tolerate. Tell us where you hail from, and quickly."

You and Kuro glance at each other. Like most of your standoffs, there seems to be a mutual understanding between you two without the need for words. Remain silent. Do not tell them of your origin or of the nature of your being. Even if he decides you aren't trustworthy and strikes you down where you stand, you will survive the blow.

You kept your mouth shut. He seems more disappointed than angry towards your answer and turns towards Mitsunari. "Restrain her. She is now officially a suspect in the assassination plot on my life"

"My Lord. She's clearly disoriented from the chaos-"

"Restrain her," he ordered with finality.

Mitsunari, hesitant but not one to disobey orders, grabs a length of rope from his horse's saddle and walks back towards you. "Please give me your hands,' he politely demands of you. You do as you're told.

"It's alright," you whisper to him. "If it makes you feel better, my reason for being silent is just for my safety. I mean you all no harm. You have my word."

"I…" he appears caught between his orders and trusting in you. "I will trust you. No person with ill intent would risk their life to save Lord Nobunaga."

You thank him by giving his hand a comforting squeeze. He makes sure to tie your hands in a manner that would make escaping impossible, but not tight enough to hurt your wrists. You're escorted away from the temple, to a camp not too far away. You're led to a nearby bonfire and told to sit and not make any sudden moves. Mitsunari steps away from you and is replaced by two of the soldiers he brought with him.

"Hey," you try to whisper as quietly as you can to Kuro, "I have a suggestion. Care to hear it?"

He slithers around your neck until he's facing you head-on. It seems he's willing to listen. "Let's call a truce," you simply state. "The only conditions are that we look out and help one another until we find a way back to our time. After we return, we can go back to despising each other for the next hundreds of years."

Were you seriously offering an alliance with your sworn enemy? Yes, yes you were. As much as you both detest the idea of having to tolerate each other, the current situation made it clear that the only way you two are going to manage to get home is to put your heads together. Maybe even get along for a change?

Ugh, the thought of befriending this slithering asshole is deplorable.

"If you agree to those terms, bite my neck."

He doesn't hesitate to sink his fangs into your throat. You're sure he's wanted to bite you until your body was littered in duo puncture marks. The guards are alarmed at your cry of pain and go to kneel beside you to see what was wrong. They both took notice of the black snake around your neck and bleeding wounds. They look at each other and then nod. "Don't move ma'am. We'll take care of the snake-"

"He's a pet! No need to draw your sword," you immediately explain to them. "Could I maybe get a rag to press against my wound?"

The guard on your right seems hesitant, but his fellow soldier nods in assurance. He leaves in search of a rag, while the guard on your left seems to get closer to you. He's probably keeping a closer eye on you until his partner returns.

Two new people enter the camp. One is clad in blue and white armor, hair a pure white color. The other in green armor with red accents, hair a natural brown. You try your hardest to listen to their conversation. So far, both new figures seem to be concerned for the well being of Nobunaga. They question him on how he managed to escape unscathed and soon the attention is turned towards you.

"This is my savior. Due to her lack of answering my inquiries about her person, I've placed her under custody until we return to Azuchi."

"That one, sitting by the fire?" the white-haired one gestured towards you. You gave him a wave with your tied hands. "What a slender thing, but appearances aren't everything. Shall I pry answers from her mouth?"

The threat of torture puts you both on edge. You more than Kuro as you would be the one subjected to it.

Nobunaga seems to notice your fear and revels in it. "Once we return home, if she refuses to explain herself again, I will leave her in your hands. For now, we prepare for our departure."

The white-haired one nods in understanding before sending a spine chilling grin towards you.

Note to self, watch out for that one.

The brown-haired one comes towards you. While he isn't as scary as the other one, his height makes up for it. He's nearly twice your height and taller than anyone in the camp. He glares down at you and says, "Whoever you are, if you have any plans to harm Lord Nobunaga, I will make you regret ever having such thoughts."

Threat after threat after threat. You were getting pretty fed up with it. You were about to give the man a piece of your mind when suddenly, Kuro lunges at him. His fangs were bared and spurted liquid out of his mouth. That wasn't a warning bite. It was an honest attempt to bite and kill.

"Kuro!" You scold him. "That's not going to help the situation!"

"A snake?! Why haven't you noticed and gotten rid of it?!" The green armored one questions your guards.

They stutter over themselves before you finally speak up in place of them. "He's my pet."

"Pet or not. Allowing such a dangerous animal around Lord Nobunaga is a risk I won't take."

He reaches down to his waist to unsheathe his sword. In your panic, you shot up on your feet and you kick him right in the diaphragm. His arms wrap around his stomach and he nearly falls to his knees over from the blow.

"The next person that points a sword at us, I'm going to hold you down myself and let him pump you full of venom!" you scream. Gods, were you so on edge that you were now threatening people?

Your suddenly thrown face first down onto the ground and pinned from behind. You turn your head to see who it was that had restrained you. It was the white-haired one. The empty barrel pointed at you keeps you still.

I smell gunpowder. That's a rifle no doubt. Father used to have one in the house in case wolves came by at night.

"Those things have a tendency to accidentally go off," you tell him.

He smiles down at you. "Indeed. You'll forgive me if it does, yes?"

Second note, I hate this guy.

Angered by his cockiness, you try to wiggle out of his hold, but it utterly fails. In fact, you actually help him get a better grip on you and make it harder for you to escape. Great job, you dumbass.

"What shall we do with the snake, my lord?" The one pinning you down asks Nobunaga.

He stood over your defenseless self and stared at you with indifference. "It is clearly a hazard, but it has yet to leave it's master side and only struck when it perceived her to be under an immediate threat. Leave it, but keep your distance."

"My Lord, that is too much of a risk. Removing the threat now would be the better option," the brown-haired one protested. Slightly bent over in pain from your hit.

"I hate to say it, but I agree with Hideyoshi," the white haired one says. "Even a moment of vulnerability on our part will result in her releasing it on us."

The one you hit is Hideyoshi. Noted.

Nobunaga smirks at him. "If you're so concerned, Mitsuhide, then I suggest you put your sharpshooter skills to good use and keep an eye on the damn thing. Now, if you're both done bickering, let us head out."

Mitsuhide didn't seem to like his new orders but answers with a practiced "yes sir", before helping you up to your feet. Without any more to say, you're escorted to an large crowd of horses and lifted onto a saddle. Mitsunari is your apparent rider and you quietly thank the heavens for your one saving grace.

"Sorry," you whisper, "I sort of made things worse for myself."

You feel him tense, immediately feeling bad for making him worry even more.

"Once we return to Azuchi, you'll be in a secure place and can speak your truth without fear of lingering ears," he tells you. The horse beneath you suddenly kinks into a speedy gallop and you hold onto him for dear life.

You travel for a few minutes before the steeds around you slow down into a complete stop. A man with an eye patch and blue and gold armor appears with another unit of soldiers. Perhaps he was back up? He sure is late though.

"Lord Nobunaga. I see you're unscathed," he says, a more casual hint in his voice.

"Physically, yes. But my pride has taken quite the hit. We're returning to Azuchi. Have your men follow."

"Damn, I guess I was too late to see some action," he answers disappointedly. He turns back towards his reinforcements and shouts, "You heard the man! It's back home for us!"

His soldiers all let out groans of equal disappointment. He laughs at their expense before maneuvering his horse to join with the rest of the retreat. It's when he and his men fully merge that he takes notice of you and your bound hands. "Who's the lass?" He shouts over to Hideyoshi.

"They're under suspicion for the assassination attempt tonight. She has a snake around her neck and it will strike if you get near."

"A woman with a snake, huh? I like you already. The name's Date Masamune. I hope we can get to know each other well."

First I get called a prostitute, then this asshole flirts with me while I'm tied up! So much for a relaxing vacation!

________________________________________________________________

Kennyo watches the retreat of the Oda alliance with rage. His chance to exact revenge was in the palm of his hand but had been slapped away in a mere instance. The rustling of bushes gains his attention and he turns to see Ranmaru knelt before him, sweaty and disheveled. He's now porting a gash across his normally pristine face. "Are you alright? We need to tend to that wound to prevent it from becoming infected. It'll likely scar."

Ranmaru is on the verge of tears. "Master Kennyo, I failed you. All our efforts to eliminate the head of the Oda have gone to waste because of-"

The monk shushes him. "You've done well, Ranmaru. You've demonstrated how well the devil king trusts you. That alone is enough to be the cause of their undoing."

Ranmaru flinches at the mention of the word "trust." Kennyo turns back to look at the retreating forces once more. He turned back just in time to see that the they had a prisoner in their midst. He becomes even more enraged once he realizes that it was a woman.

"They would go so far as to blame a woman for the fire and hold her captive. The Oda couldn't stoop any lower than they have now."

Kennyo begins to walk away into the darkness of the forest. He gestures for the boy to follow, and he does so without hesitation.

________________________________________________________________

Another set of eyes watch the retreat of the Oda alliance from the sidelines.

"How disappointing. Though perhaps this is a blessing in disguise," Kenshin, initially unhappy seeing Nobunaga escape unharmed, immediately perks up at his own thoughts. "I still have an opportunity to drag the devil king out to battle and strike him down myself."

Shingen shakes his head in disbelief. Although he was frustrated as the rest, seeing the Oda pull out victorious and without a single loss, hearing Kenshin retain his bloodlust was reassuring. "He truly earned the title of devil king. Only a demon could have such twisted luck on his side."

"Lord Shingen," Yukimura suddenly notices an unfamiliar figure among the retreating forces, "look at who is riding with Mitsunari Ishida."

Shingen searches out for the familiar tuff of grey hair. He was in a bad mood, but now he's pissed. That was a woman, bound by the wrist the same way a criminal would be. "Unforgivable," is all the Tiger of Kai could growl out.

"Yes," Yoshimoto nods in agreement with his cousin, "Such a small thing. She must be scared to death."

Kenshin doesn't make any comment at the revelation, but he notices the panic that overtakes Sasuke's face upon hearing that a woman had been taken prisoner.

"I've grown bored. Let us return to Echigo and reconvene another day."

Kenshin doesn't wait for an answer. He turns away and the rest of his allies follow without a word. "Sasuke," Kenshin calls out to his ninja who had yet to move from his spot, "Do not keep me waiting."

He snaps out of this train of thought before following along. "Yes, my Lord."

________________________________________________________________

You had remained quiet the entire trip. A few people called your name, but you were so lost in your thoughts that you didn't even acknowledge whoever was speaking to you. You failed to realize that night had turned into morning. Your surroundings had changed from foliage into a massive fortress-like castle.

Kuro paid attention to your surroundings in your stead. Anyone that had gotten even a little close was hissed at and had transparent venom spat at them. Even Mitsunari, your one and only ally as of now, was not spared of the serpents radar.

You finally speak your first words after hours of silence. "If you keep threatening every man that so much as looks in my direction, I might start to believe you actually liked me all this time."

You're once again bitten, this time on the back of your hand. Blood quickly pools in the twin punctures before rolling down and staining your skin.

Mitsuhide had witnessed the snake sink its fangs into you. "Oh my, such a temperamental pet. Are you sure you have it under control?"

You roll your eyes. "Of course I do. Hey, Kuro," you look down to him. "If things turn ugly, pump me full of whatever you got left."

The snake nods, pleased at the privilege you've given it. Mitsuhide narrows his eyes at you, concerned over your order. You make sure to pat Kuro's scaly head while maintaining eye contact with him.

The entourage heads towards the stable. Stable hands awaited their return and began to board and tend to each steed. Mitsunari eventually dismounts and offers his hand for you to take. You gratefully accept his gesture and he helps steady you on the ground.

"How are your hands? If they feel sore I'll redo my bindings," he offers.

You shake your head. "I'm alright. What's going to happen to me now?"

"Lord Nobunaga requested an immediate council upon his return. It will likely be about the events that took place at Honno-ji and will take some time to inform and gather everyone needed. Until then, you...you will be…"

You didn't rush him. He was clearly having a hard time trying to muster up the courage to tell you what will happen to you until the meeting. You already have an idea what it would entail.

"You will be held in a prison cell until your fate is determined."

There it is.

"Will Kuro be allowed to stay with me?"

He nods. "Hideyoshi requested that the snake remain on your person at all times and visible. I hope his request isn't too unreasonable."

"If it puts the people here at ease then I can live with it. I'd feel safe having him close by anyways, so I'm quite thankful he didn't call in some expert snake hunter or something."

Mitsunari smiles at your words. "Even when the odds are against you, you find the positive within. You are truly admirable, my lady."

You return the smile. "Thank you, but I'm sure I told you before not to be so formal!"

"Very well. I agree with the condition that you address me with familiarity too. Is that alright?"

You nod and, for a brief moment, you forget that you were technically still a prisoner.

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#ikemen sengoku #ikesen #ikemen series #otome #ikemen sengoku fanfiction #ikemen sengoku writing #ao3 fanfic #ikesen writing #ikesen fanfic #writing #fanfic: warmth #reader insert #reader insert fanfiction

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whenwegounnoticed · 4 years

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My Turn To Talk About VioletVineyard, MVCreates, and the Glaring Problems of Power Imbalances.

Introduction

I have been on the fence about talking about my experiences, on one hand, because one of her mods and I are or maybe were (?) friends, and I valued their friendship but in recent light, I don’t know and because I want my main to be a safe place for other writeblrs and because I am afraid.

I was in VioletVineyard at the beginning of it -- and being in it did not feel good for reasons I could never put my finger on.

Let's talk about me and who I am first without giving myself away:

I have a disorder that makes expressing myself difficult, this is due to childhood trauma and a form of self preservation. My wording will be clunky because only recently, with the help of amazing friends, I'm learning the right verbage.

Now. Some of you will know who I am. Hello. Please keep me anonymous. Some of you might have a guess. Hello. Surprised? Maybe you're wrong. I don't know, I'm not in your head just as you're not in mine.

I have screenshots for some stuff and none for others. These are all personal experiences.

I will not be sharing the screenshots of those who were victims to respect their privacy.

Please bear with me. I know this will be long and rambly, but it’s how I make sense of my thoughts and brain.

VioletVineyard: Questionable Reality

I joined VV at the start of it, although it was already pretty big. I was excited! I admired many writeblrs who were in there and wanted to be friends with many of them. They were all so welcoming. And I felt, for a hot minute, like I belonged.

It was sprint of my freshman semester as a journalism major, and Mina reached out to me in the general chat, saying that if I needed help or wanted an In at some journalism company, to let her know because she knows people.

Great! Cool. A little odd but that was nice of her -- and.

That's how it starts.

A side: my friend has a theory that if people only present how perfect and amazingly nice they are, they likely are rotting on the inside. Nobody is ever perfect and always super nice, do not trust them. I do not subscribe to this but it is a thought in my mind now.

It took a week of me being there for the not right feeling set in.

First:

There was drama.

She would start it. She'd vague in the vent about someone and then outright state who she was talking about. And it would be about someone whose opinions she disagreed with. People would go and send anons or they'd bitch about whoever was the victim in the vent channel.

I don't remember if I participated but if I did, I am truly and genuinely sorry.

I think I got stressed two weeks in. I was already ill from invisible physical problems. The server felt horribly unmoderated.

I remember saying something because Mina was doing it again and being told,

"Then support in here."

Mostly innocent right? You support your friends, right?

It wouldn't have been a problem if:

The victim did something wrong.

Mina and this person weren't in their goddamn 30s or near that. They have a child, by the way.

The person was at least under 20.

From my scattered memory, the issue was OP either slightly vagued abt Mina or she just disgreed with OP.

Lots of red flags, right?

"But OP why did you stay?"

Emotional masochism? Fear? Because she, either knowingly or unknowingly cultivated this sort of atmosphere? I cannot speak for anyone else, but that's the reasoning for me.

There was, also, in the beginning, a hope that maybe things would change. Varying personalities, you know? And a desperate need for validation.

So, so wrong.

MVCreates & OP

So, get to the point OP. What happened to you?

A vague threat.

Mina....had Opinions. And opinions are just that, opinions but for her, they were fact. After all, she has her own reality and own story that helped form hers but some of hers were odd. Maybe not to most people who aren’t paying attention or didn’t notice the red flags ( “through rose colored glasses, all red flags just look like flags”) but they were definitely something.

She, for awhile, talked an awful lot about writeblr positivity. I could never really make sense of it -- she either supported it or was against it, from what I remember. (keep in mind, this was a little over a year ago and visually, I can see the gaudy green - red - yellow colors for pronoun preferences).

And I made a vague post about it and her. A few times. I was in the wrong for vaguing about her instead of just saying something up front.

Her response was, and I will paraphrase,

“Do you ever screenshot people vaguing about you just in case they enter a political career?”

I wish I had taken a screenshot. I’m sorry now that I did not. Maybe someone saw that, maybe they brushed it off. I don’t know.

From then on, I kept quiet about my thoughts and opinions because I did have plans to go into a political career -- but jokes on her, I plan on being a human rights officer for the United Nations lmao

Another incident (we’re almost done, I promise):

I was -- venting about gender dysphoria. I was Peak Suicidal at this point in time, just knowing what I was born with brought me to tears frequently. Mina had jumped into in the conversation and started talking about something vaguely related. She started talking about trans BIPOC experiences, which is great! Their experiences are things that need to be talked about because they are often thrown to the side for trans white people’s experiences and that is not okay.

I forget the middle part, it’s been over a year. It went from BIPOC experiences to something else, a conversation about gender? I don’t know. Maybe there’s someone out there who remembers. I doubt it though.

I remember saying, “I wish I would have been born with testicles and everything else because [I’m in hell?]” and she answered with,

“That would [mean / cause / ???? ] privilege.”

This person who has claimed she is non binary, claimed to be a trans ally and part of the trans community, said that to someone in the height of dysphoria and was suicidal.

You do not say that to someone who is experiencing gender dysphoria. To say that is transphobia. And yes, trans & non binary people can be transphobic. You are not exempt.

Violet Vineyard & Reprehensible Behaviors

Before I start this section, and I promise this is almost done, I just want to thank:

@radley-writes, @gingerly-writing, @lilquill, @sapiencenotes @rrrawrf-writes & many more who have come forward about their experiences, whether publicly and in private. It’s admirable and brave of you to do something I could not. @nuwuhorizons & @time-to-write-and-suffer have amazing documentation as well.

There isn’t much to say that hasn’t already been said and documented, but I can corroborate the bullying Mina and the mods engaged in -- the stuff Radley spoke about I did not know about -- and that makes me ill. I’m glad they owned up to what they did, and for that, thank you Radley. It shows you are a much bigger and better person.

I will not lie, however -- I was hurt and felt a bit ill when you talked about what the mods did. And it made me question and second guess a friendship I have (had?) with another mod. But I think that helped put some pieces of the puzzle together.

An incident that stands out to me (and honestly bothers me, so a few people have heard about this often and I’m sorry), very clearly and I have screenshots for but will not share to protect their privacy, was when they dogpiled someone who had been asking about writing a Jewish character. While they were falling into somewhat harmful stereotypes, VV was handling it.

Not well.

The person was a minor, for one -- teenagers make mistakes, they make them more if they’re not exposed to varying cultures and beliefs. And the person who was on the receiving end of this dogpile looked to be coming more and more unstable and all I could do is just. Grab screenshots of what I could.

And if you’re reading this, you know who you are, I am so sorry I didn’t say anything. That wasn’t right, the entire situation wasn’t okay. You shouldn’t have gone through that. I hope you find healing and peace.

A quick disclaimer: Violet Vineyard, as far as I know, didn’t have a lot of Jewish members. I know a mod was converting (but hadn’t yet) and I think I saw one or two people with the Star of David in their name or icon. That said, my paternal grandmother was Jewish and had been one of the few survivors of her family from the Holocaust. I cannot speak for the entire Jewish population, and I do not consider myself Jewish in religion but trust me when I say this:

YHWH would be disappointed in their (VV’s) behavior -- and if the moderator who is working on converting is genuine about converting, then I need them to think long and hard about what is happening. This isn’t what Judaism teaches. And if you’re reading this, ask yourself, would G-d condone the actions of your fellow ex mods?

Final Words

Oof, this was long, wasn’t it? Must have been hard to sit through because I ramble! So. What’s left for me to say?

Not a whole lot but still, a lot but the stuff I want to say are not my lived experiences. It is not my place to speak on behalf of anyone else involved in all of this. And that is okay.

But to the people who were involved with the recent drama and dogpiled a trans teenager and to those who helped bully many people in this community on behalf of the oh so great Mina,

my question is why?

What was a thirty year old woman, WHO HAS A CHILD, bullying a nineteen year old? Why was an almost thirty year old person with a toddler and one on the way involved in this as well?

Most or a decent handful of you were adults, some with children, some expecting.

And Mina,

You used your age and position to manipulate people and for that, I find you the most reprehensible. Castor did not deserve what happened, neither did the victim mentioned above. Nobody did.

I hope, in the end, you finally find happiness without having to lie about your talent and without having to manipulate people.

Thank you for listening and sticking around if you made it this far and didn’t bounce in the beginning.

I’ve said my part. If anyone wants to engage in constructive discussion or share their experiences, feel free to do so.

#vv drama #violetvineyard #violet vineyard #op

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kessielrg · 3 years

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Comeback Kid: Part 2

Summary: More third person additions to the chaos rp that @chibi-mushroom and @animacreates are doing.This time, Sabrina has spontaneously decided to break up with Ventus after what could amount to a nervous breakdown. In the aftermath, she is forced to take all her vacation time and become reacquainted with one of her favorite hobbies. But is it enough to get over Ven, or will the memory of him be too much to ignore?

Rating: K+

Word Count: 2,398

Part: 1 | 2 | 3

If you liked this story, please reblog!

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One of these days, Sabrina was going to have to ask Brain what the name of his cologne was. In the same breath, she needed to harass him on how much he used on a normal day. The cinnamon scent lingered on the still dryer warm t-shirt she had stolen. It was comforting. For once in her life, she was glad not to be surround by her purple obsession. The scent of lavender may be calming, but at the moment all it was going to do was remind her of the apartment.

And of Ventus.

Good thing Brain wasn't as vain as she was- the only mirror he really had was in the bathroom, attached to the medicine cabinet. If Sabrina had a full body mirror right now, she would have admired just all the ways she could have made Ven jealous. Brain's shirt didn't fall very low on her, but the old leggings she found were enough to cause a direct gaze to her butt. She was almost confident with herself again. Almost. Purposely being alluring to someone didn't mean the same if you didn't actually have someone to allure.

Sabrina grimaced to herself in the mirror, fluffing her hair a bit for something to do. She couldn't look herself in the eye. The last time she looked at herself in a mirror was when she skipped out on Ven. It's only been a day, and it still made her flinch. She had to leave the bathroom before she started to panic again. She went to the living room to find Brain sitting on his couch. The TV showing off some livestream on how to jailbreak a certain console. Sabrina walked up and placed her arms on the back of the couch.

“Could you hold off on being a blatant nerd? You're not even paying attention to it.”

Brain laughing, craning his neck to look up at her. “My house, my rules.” he told her. Then he got a good look at what she was wearing, and laughed. “And here I thought I was done with girls stealing my shirts.”

Sabrina let out a loud, incredibly fake gasp. “You had a sex life? Wow!”

“I could have told you about her if you had just asked. We dated for about a year. Not that I think I would have let you two share a room- you'd scare her.”

“I scare a lot of people. It's not even a challenge anymore.” Sabrina smirked. She moved around to sit next to him. Once she was comfortably sitting, she then asked, “So she was a good one?”

“Very good.” Brain agreed with a wide, incredibly fond, grin. Sabrina immediately recognized it as a grin of true love and scoffed.

“Oh shush, you.” her brother teased, forcing her to lay her head on his chest. She struggled for a moment out of annoyance. When she finally gave up, that was when Brain removed his hand from her head. Instead of sitting back up, though, she remained leaning on him. Brain did pick up the remote to change the TV setting so they could watch something on live broadcast. From there, the duo sat in a peaceful silence.

During the change between shows, Brain laid his head against Sabrin'as in thought.

“Hey Wabi-Sabi.” he mused. His voice was rather soft.

“Yeah?” she replied, her attention not leaving what was on the television.

“Do you remember, back before old Oz took us in, and we tried to spend a night out on the playground at Walt Memorial Park?”

Sabrina shifted a bit in her spot. Her face slightly darker than before as she asked, “Was that before or after the time we almost got caught by some officer around 2 AM?”

“You know what? I think it was that day.” Brain snorted. “But way before that, before the sun went down. Do you remember what we talked about?”

Admittedly, she had to close her eyes to try to remember. They nearly snapped open again as she realized, “It was about Mom, wasn't it? Why she left us.”

Brain gave her a solemn nod. “Not going to lie Sabi, I bluffed about a lot of that stuff. I wasn't there when Mom made the choice. I barely understood that she was the one who even made the choice to keep us together. Back then, I just assumed that they kept siblings together because who wouldn't? But I had to tell you something that night. You had just run away from another family. You were dead convinced that you couldn't be loved.''

“Why are you telling me this?”

“No reason,” he informed her with a grin. “Just thinkin' out loud, I guess.”

“Liar.” she spat, purposely using her elbow to poke at his side. Brain didn't refute the notion. If anything, he just laughed.

“So,” Brain then said, “What's your game plan for the next month? Oswald cashed in all that overtime and vacation pay you had. I can't see you just jogging between here and the old man's house everyday.”

“Shows what you know.” his sis huffed. “Just for that, I think I'm going to have you personally move all my stuff here.”

“What are you doing with the apartment, speaking of?” Brain asked.

“I don't know.” she admitted in a half grumble. “I'd let the lease run out, but that's still for another four months.”

“You really think you two will apologize between that time?”

Sabrina didn't answer. Instead, her face twisted into one of absolute disgust.

“Never said that.” she hissed.

“Sure, sure.” Brain laughed. “Just don't want you sitting at home with old Hollywood movies and ice cream, that's all.”

“Do you not know me at all?” Sabrina demanded, shoving him with enough force to make him move like a bobblehead for a moment. Brain's mirth did not let up. Sabrina gave her brother another disgusted grimace, but his words stuck with her.

Later on, while debating if she should clear her phone of certain numbers, Sabrina stopped scrolling through to see the name of her ex-boyfriend, Max. Max had been her first serious boyfriend, and they had managed to stay on good terms after the breakup. Sabrina made a single second choice, leading to her listening to the phone ring over as she waited for him to answer. She felt kinda dumb while waiting- was she really that self centered to think tha Max would have the time to even...

“Hey Max.” Sabrina greeted, almost in surprise, when he picked up the phone. “Yeah, I know it's been awhile. That's actually why I'm calling. You want to go to that little tea shop on Main Street tomorrow? I get it if you have other places to be since it's last minute...”

There was just one thing she could always count on in Max; he was patient when the situation called for it. Hearing him on the other end brought up a sense of relief she got from only a select few individuals.

“Thanks Max.” she sighed. “I just… need someone to talk to someone that isn't family. Yeah, I'm fine. Really. I'll tell you more later. Bye.”

Sabrina let out a long sigh. Well, that was one bandaid ripped off. Now to deal with the other; getting new clothes.

. . .

This island really was kinda small when you thought about it. She just hoped that no one Ventus knew would recognize her. Then again, the clothes she bought yesterday were darker colors meant to blend in with the crowd. If they managed to recognize her, hopefully she'd be long gone before they could flag her down. Seeing Max casually checking his phone outside the tea shop brought Sabrina a massive sigh of relief.

“Hey Max!” she shouted at him. He looked up and grinned at seeing her.

“Hey stranger.” he greeted with a grin. Once they were close enough they shared a rather heartfelt hug. “You wearing heels today? I knew you had legs for days, but I could've sworn you were shorter than this.”

“Nice try.” Sabrina smirked. She stood a bit taller over the fact that Max was several inches shorter than her. His height was perfect when they were dating- considering what he was nearly in direct eye line of. “You know I've never worn heels around you.”

“I used to be taller than you.” he jokingly pouted.

“Yeah,” she snorted. “For a whole summer.”

Max went into a laugh that was so light and joyful that Sabrina gave a small half smile. Bouncing more banter off each other, the duo headed on into the tea shop. Max found them a corner table near a back window.

“Anything look good?” Sabrina asked as they looked over the menu.

“Haven't had a tea party since I was swindled into one as a kid.” Max mused. “So I guess whatever you want to eat, and I'll take a cup of coffee.”

“How come you're only really adventurous when it comes to extreme sports?” Sabrina teased as she flagged down a waiter.

“Hey, if it's not broke, don't fix it.”

Sabrina just shook her head with a roll of her eyes.

“Welcome to Hightopp & Kingsleigh!” the server girl greeted. “May I recommend the earl grey this afternoon? Fresh from the pot!”

“No thanks.” Sabrina callously told her with a flick of her wrist. “We'll take a pot of peppermint rooibos, a baker's dozen of ladyfingers, and a single black coffee.”

“Sure thing!” the server girl agreed, writing it down on the notepad before heading to the back kitchen.

Sabrina and Max continued to have idle talks with themselves while they waited. There was no one else in this world that Sabrina could tolerate meaningless talks than with Max. They both said whatever was on their mind as it came. Thankfully, time away meant that they had plenty to reflect on. Unfortunately, it meant that at some point, current matters were going to be brought up as well.

She should have really asked to have a refill of hot water for the tea pot before even breathing Ventus's name.

“You just left him?!”

Sabrina groaned as she rubbed her temples. “Yeah...” she groaned. “His dad… I just hate his dad so much, Max. Then he started talking about marriage, and trying to convince Ven into whatever shady deal he's got going next, and it was just… Just…!” She looked up at Max to give a gesture of strangling an invisible neck, and it was enough to convey the message.

“All because your least favorite coworker was getting married as well?”

“And, like, everyone else around us! Ven's brother, two other guys from the station. How about we just chill for a hot second and realize that a ring isn't the only indicator of a good relationship?”

“You really should have gotten chamomile.” Max noted as he watched Sabrina take a rather long slip of her tea.

“Peppermint's better for stress.” she shot at him.

“If you say so,” Max replied, throwing his hands in the air to show innocence. Sabrina glared at him, but relented with a heavy sigh. Max looked her over. She had gone back to rubbing her temples and muttering rather unkind things under her breath. He had never really seen her in conflict before- or at least, this much conflict. Which meant he had to ask. Someone had to.

“Would things really change that much if you did marry him?”

Sabrina clung to the side of her head, her fingers clenching in her hair.

“No.” she finally admitted in a small grumble. “Just a different check box to fill when tax season comes around. It's the only excuse I can really think of. We're already living together, have at least one joint bank account because of it, and all that domestic bliss. We even have a chore chart, like a bunch of kids.”

“So what's holding you back?”

Sabrina grimaced -her teeth grinding- as her whole body tensed. Carefully, Max placed a hand on her arm. She looked up at him with the sole intention of smacking him away. But in seeing his sincere expression, she nearly started crying.

“Maxie,” she quietly told him “Is it bad I'd rather give him a kid than tie the knot?”

“Definitely unorthodox.” he mused with a solemn nod. “Maybe they feel like less of an obligation? You know the deal; some parents just drop their kids off to whoever, or just don't pay attention to them. Then they turn around and brag they're the best parents ever.”

“I can't do that to him.” she heavily sighed. “I just can't. And even then, I don't think I'm ready for a kid. Or any drama that happens during or after the pregnancy. Maybe when I'm 30? But doing so now just makes me sick.”

“Ah,” was all Max could say. He went into thought over this development. When a new idea came to him, he snapped his fingers as if he had solved a major mystery. “You said Oswald's making you take the next month off from work, right? Maybe it's time for a change.”

“Max,” Sabrina told him, even rather condescendingly placing a hand on top of his. “I am not going full Britney Spears and shaving my hair off. The mental breakdown was enough.”

“No,” he laughed, “Nothing like that. Look, you used to love dancing. Right? Roxanne is a teacher at the local dance studio. She mostly teaches the younger kids, but she's been itching for private lessons in her off time. Go take the edge off a bit. Do some pivots off the mirror, or spin around a lamppost for a hot second. Be that dramatic princess I know you are. Be yourself. I mean, it's not like Oswald's gonna let you head back into work right away anyway. Might as well make the most of it.”

“Next you'll be telling me that I should start writing a novel.”

“Well, I mean, if that's what you need...”

It hurt, but Sabrina forced herself to laugh. She looked up at Max and just smiled.

“I can't believe I know a lot of good guys.” she laughed, leaning over a bit to give him a gentle kiss on the cheek. “Thanks Maxie.”

Max let out a shy little laugh as his face lit up a scarlet red.

#writing #writing stuff #writers on tumblr #fanfiction #kh fanfiction #kingdom hearts fanfiction #fanfic #kh fan fic #fan fiction #fan fic

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write-like-you-mean-it · 3 years

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Tied Apron Strings: No Doze Café

This is a Choose Your Own Character. This is part 2 to Sugawara’s story. Go to part 1 to read the beginning of the story.

Sugawara’s idea of a first date was to give me an address to a location, tell me what type of outfit I should wear, and tell me a time to be there. If I hadn’t known him as a regular in the cafe, I may have been more cautious towards this type of date. Instead, Koshi’s attempt at romance made my heart flutter. He must’ve gotten this idea from one of the cheesy romance movies he watches on weekends.

My head was buried in my phone as I watched the little dot follow along the path to my destination. The address Sugawara picked wasn’t too far from my apartment. Plus I didn't want to spend any extra money on unnecessary expenses like a car.

The blue dot came closer and closer to the checkered flag with each step. They were grounding motions as I became afraid of what I had agreed to do. First dates were never my forte. I would only look up to see if I was in the way of another passerby.

I looked up one more time and spotted my date before he had an idea that I was there. He stood outside an old brick building. He leaned on the staircase for support. I’d seen Koshi dressed up many times. He was a teacher after all. This time was different. He looked more put together as if he spent extra time getting ready. He was dressed in a pale blue top that was tucked into his corduroy pants. The shirt had been recently pressed as residue of post ironed wrinkles still laid claim to his back.

His profile was a beautiful sight to see. His head was turning to look down the opposite side of the street as that was where the cafe resided. I could’ve stayed for the full date admiring his beauty; however, a shout from behind me must’ve caught his attention. His head turns and we’re face to face.

Suga waves his hand as if to beckon me closer. I feel his pull as I finally start walking towards him. “You look gorgeous,” he said once I was in earshot. The simple phrase made my heart skip a beat. He moved out of his comfortable, relaxed state and put his phone away.

Words caught in my mouth as I stared down at my own outfit in pure wonder of what I actually put on today. “Oh, thank you. You look great too.” I tried not to give away that I was staring at him from far too long. My eyes met back at his once I gained the courage to look. I was met with his smile that reached from one ear to the other. He reached out a hand towards me.

“Where are we going?” I ask and take his hand. The teacher looked up at the brick building and started his incline up the stairs.

“I’ll explain inside,” he says. “I’m glad you’re on time. If you’d been any later, we would have missed our reservation.”

“Our reservation?” I asked while following behind him. Suga didn’t respond except for entering through the door. Inside was a quaint reception area. I looked around the older looking room to see if there was a sign for our destination. Sadly, there were no markers other than the reception desk and a couple that sat in chairs across from it.

Koshi hit the bell. The resounding ring echoed through the small room. He’d let go of my hand after we saw the pair. An elderly lady came out behind a beaded curtain. “Hello, do we have a reservation for today?”

“Yes. It should be two for Sugawara,” he replied.

“The room is up the stairs, on the third floor, and to the right.” The lady held the same smile mirrored on all our faces; however, the word room was concerning. What did he have planned for us?

Suga made sure to grasp my hand once again. He must’ve noticed the look of confusion on my face. Suddenly, the realization of what she with the lack of information he had given me had said dawned on him. He pulled me up a few steps before leaning in, “I thought you might like a cooking class.” The teacher was so close that I could smell his cologne of sea breeze. “I wouldn’t do that to you. We’re learning how to make bread. With a tasting afterwards.”

He was so close that I swore he would’ve heard my heart skip a beat. For a first date, Koshi didn’t hold back. “You’ll have to tell me how much this cost so I can pay you back later,” I said. After the words were out of my mouth, I regretted them. Suga was only trying to be nice and I worried about his financial status.

“No worries. This is all my treat.” The third floor came before either of us could finish the conversation. I was the first to open to a large kitchen with many tables. Couples, families, and friends were gathered around each of the tables with aprons around their necks.

“Welcome, welcome,” called the enthusiastic instructor. “You must be Mr and Mrs. Sugawara.” He was a broad man dressed for a day of cooking. His hands were already covered in a thin layer of flour.

Suga and I turned to look at each other on how to respond politely to the instructor that we were not, in fact, married. Instead, he hands us two white aprons and ushers us to our seats.

“We really should have told him-” I joke while putting on my apron over my head.

“-I did put two under my name,” he interrupted while following the same pattern. “Maybe we already look like we could be.” My heart couldn’t tell if his words were meant as a joke or if there was a hint of seriousness. I chose to ignore the continuous pounding that threatened to escape my chest.

My date turned around so that his back was facing mine. “Can you please tie me up?” he asked. Now I know he was teasing me. I took the two apron strings in my hands and made a tight bow. My hands were suddenly aware of how much they touched his back. It was an intimate moment that I dared not disturb.

“Can you do the same for me?” I ask while turning away from him. For a moment, I felt nothing except for eyes drilled into the middle of my back; the same stare I’d given only a second ago. Suga took the strings into his hand and I felt the tie against my back. A few more tugs of the string and the apron was secure.

I turned back to face Koshi; yet, his hands were still floating next to my waist. Our faces were close enough that I could feel his hot breath dancing across my skin. Before either of us could speak, the instructor started the class.

We pulled away only to find the reflection within the shiny chrome table. Ingredients were scattered across. “Today, you’ll be making sourdough bread,” boomed the instructor. “Hopefully you already knew what was being made as you signed up for this class.” The chef holds up a light coffee color jar. “This is your leaven. I made this up for you in preparation for today or this class would take days to complete.”

I chuckled at the chef’s joke. My eye’s scoured Sugawara's to see his reaction. I caught him looking my way. He picked up the same glass that the instructor had. I picked up some of the salt water that had been dissolved. “Would you like to pour it into the bowl or should I?”

“How about at the same time?” he suggests. I tip that glass into a larger bowl. Suga does the same with his mixture. I grab the spatula and stir the mixture until it starts to bubble.

“I really hope we’re doing this alright,” I say. “I stopped paying attention after he started pulling out random ingredients.”

He chuckled while reaching across the table for the instructions. “Baking is just chemistry. I’m sure we’ll do alright.” The plastic sheet was already dripping with some splashed water. “The next step is getting flour.”

I take the bag and the measuring cups and put them in front of us. We work in sync for the next few steps of the recipe. Suga would read out what was needed while I poured or got the ingredients. We fell into a calm peace as we found our own stride. It felt like we’d made thousands loafs of bread together. Soon, we came to a resting break for 30 minutes.

“Koshi?” I ask. He turns from the little stool provided. “Why’d you not make a move sooner?”

A grin danced across his lips as he leaned back. There wasn’t anything to catch him so he had to stop for himself. “I think it was the kids. They noticed something that I should have a long time ago.”

“The teenagers could be good for something,” I say.

“It didn’t help that Eichi would tease me during volleyball practice. Soon I found myself coming to see you at the shop. It wasn’t about the coffee or getting my work done. I came to see you talk to the kids or customers. You always had the most beautiful smile.”

“I see,” I said before biting my lip. It was a simple reaction in hopes of keeping the color from forming on my face. “I noticed you from the first time you walked into the cafe. Who knew a teacher would actually want to date his barista.”

“I did. You were too beautiful to ignore.” He reached out his hand to grab mine. They were covered in a thin coating of flour. Koshi moved his thumbs over the top of my wrists. I opened my mouth to respond in the same way but our timer went off.

The teacher let go of my hands to find the instructions. “I guess we have to knead the bread now.”

“Do you want to do it together?” I ask.

“You stole my line,” Suga smiled while pouring out the batter. He led me to the bread and guided my hands to how to knead. His chin rested on my shoulder as a way to see along with being as close to me as he possibly could be. My back began to heat as I could feel his chest pressed securely to mine.

His hands felt coarse against my skin. Years of volleyball weren’t kind to his hands. Calluses built up from extended use; however, the tops of his hands were soft. Kneading the dough wasn’t hard at the beginning. After awhile, the dough started to look like a normal loaf. If it wasn’t for Suga’s constant push and pull of the dough, it wouldn’t be remotely done. I was too busy all consumed in his floral scent and strong embrace to think about making the perfect bread.

“This looks like a good time to let the dough rest,” said the instructor. I was too busy enthralled with the idea of love to realize he approached our table. “All you have to do is let it rest for a little while. You may want to take a break before coming back.”

“Thank you,” said Koshi as he moved away from my back. A whine escaped my lips which was noticed by the only person I didn’t want to notice. I scoop up the bread and put it into the proofing basket. “How about we take a walk outside. I think we’ll have enough time to get a bobba from the place down the street.”

“Sounds delicious,” I comment. My hand entangles in his as if it belonged there all along. We escaped down the steps and out of the building. “Koshi.” My voice stops us in our tracks.

“What is it?” he questions while turning to look at me. Our faces were within that small gap. Close enough that all it took was a few inches before our lips met in a tender touch. Suga reciprocated the form of affection by pressing a little tighter onto my own lips.

“That was a surprise,” he mumbles against my lips.

“It felt right.”

“Yes it did.” Our moment was broken by the faint bustle of people trying to get past the couple kissing in mid-afternoon. None of them knew the magic that had happened in our lives. All the build up and excitement to this point. “Let’s go get the drink. I don’t really like people staring.”

“Let them stare,” he comments while wrapping his arms around my waist. “Let them be jealous of us. They know nothing.” He left a final kiss on my lips before dragging me down to the shop. We had so much time to kill before our bread would be ready and we were going to take full advantage of that fact.

Haikyuu Masterlist

(This series is a choose your own adventure. Pick your favorite man or all of them. I will try to make as many of them as possible with continuations. So far, there is Oikawa, Sugawara, Tuskishima, Kageyama, Hinata, and Akaashi. If you have a suggestion or comment, please message me!!)

#sugawara #suga #haikyuu #sugawara x reader #koshi sugawara #hq #fluff #no doze cafe #A writes

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limenysnocket · 4 years

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Blurred Stars and Even Blurrier Nights

Taika Waititi x Reader

Summary: After a late night out, Taika and (Y/N) wake up next to each other the next morning, in their undergarments. Despite being close friends, this predicament leads to an untimely confession.

Request: ////

Warnings: possible smut, a bit of a praise kink, usage of alcohol, soft sex and language.

Word count: 3,076

Author's note: This is going to be extremely fluffy too, unlike my last one. But, please forgive me if this turns out awful, like what usually happens.

I also take requests, so please, give them. Hand them over.

Also, this is only section 1 of the story. I'm thinking about making a part two, if this all goes well.

■●□■●□■●□■●□■●□■●

Section 1: The Morning Of

You took a deep breath, the heady scent of familiar cologne filling your nose and the soft heat of the morning sun filled your body with warmth, along with the sheets, and surprisingly, another warm body.

'Great,' you thought to yourself, 'One more one night stand to add to the list.'

You felt them shift against your back, their somewhat hairy chest sending tingles rippling down your skin like a stone tossed in a pond. You needed to see them. If they felt mature enough, then maybe they would be mature enough to not complain when they findd you gone when they wake up. You kept your hopes high as you attempted to turn around in their arms without waking them. When you had completely shifted again, onto your other side, you had to bite back a gasp of shock and there was mental restraints strapping you down from shooting away from the bed.

Wonder why the cologne on the pillow smelled so familiar? Now you know why. It was Taika's, one of your closest friends and long time crushes. You were in Taika's room, in Taika's bed, in Taika's arms.

His mustache was ruffled, hair disheveled and there were remnants of the dark bags beneath his eyes. It was very much apparent to you that he was wearing nothing but his boxers which you were very curious to find out the color of.

You couldn't leave his arms, 'less you wanted to wake him, which you kinda did. Your stomach growled, and you were only in your undergarments as well. It was a nice set, and you notice it hadn't been torn, but no matter how nice you looked in a set of underwear, this was serious!

It seemed obvious that nothing happened between you and Taika the night before, but the lipstick stains on his neck only made things seep in even deeper within your stomach. God, the night before. The two of you and possibly Jemaine went out together and all of you got shitfaced until your hangovers kicked in in the middle of all the muddled, drunken mess. It was even a headache to think about what happened. How you ended up here, you didn't want to know right now.

"God fucking damn it..." you whisper to yourself, squeezing your eyes shut too quickly to notice the slight twitch of Taika's mustache and that twitch flew to his lips. His face was slowly starting up and the last thing to power up was his beautiful, deep brown eyes. "Good morning to you too, gorgeous."

Your eyes flew open. He was grinning as wide as the Cheshire cat and his eyes seemed to scan the shock on your face. "Wild night last night, huh?" He poked fun, pulling his arm back slightly so his hand could rest on your naked side. "You were unhinged last night, baby."

Your cheeks flushed brightly and you smacked his chest, "Taika, you know we never did anything like that last night!" You folded your arms across your chest and you scooted away from him while slapping the hand off your waist. You flipped back over onto your other side and tried to avoid talking to him, but he was persistent.

"I beg to differ," He laughed, wrapping both of his arms around your waist and nuzzling his nose against the back of your neck. This set your entire body ablaze but the heat mainly scrambled between your legs. "You were all over me last night, (Y/N). It was flattering," he laughed again, now brushing his lips against the back of your neck, "and during the time you were grinding that cute bum of yours on my crotch, you kind of told me something." Your eyes widened. Oh God, he remembered that? It was a mistake for you to remember it, and it was an even bigger one for him to remember it too! Your confession.

"You told me that you just so happened to love me, and that you wanted me in your pants," he snickered. "Of course, you might remember us getting back here to my home, sucking faces and tearing our clothes off as we went-- your shirt is on the ceiling fan downstairs by the way-- but, I just couldn't do you. Not yet. I wanted our first time to be sober, so you could feel everything and remember what it felt like instead of just dealing with sore hips in the morning without knowing how they got like that." So he wanted this? He planned this, the need to get you under him?

His nose went back up into your hair and you felt him inhale deeply, "And I want to feel myself inside you and memorize that feeling without it all being fuzzy." He chuckled softly, gently pressing his lips against the back of your head.

You drew in a deep, shaky breath. Just the sound of his rumbly voice had you weak at the knees and the heat between your legs was more intense than ever. "I'm gonna go find my clothes," you made up the excuse and pushed away from him before his hands could crawl any more seductively over your body. He let out an exasperated sigh, more of a groan really, as you got up and started searching for your clothes. He propped himself on his elbows while you searched around the room, letting his eyes shamelessly roll over your body.

Not wanting to deal with the tension any more, you quickly hid yourself in one of his many white shirts and started downstairs. Your pants were along the railing of the stairs, softly drifting every once in awhile like a flag in the wind. Of course, he was right whenever he had said that your shirt was on the ceiling fan. You had to stand on his expensive coffee table to get it, getting up on your tippy toes too where you were juuuust able to reach.

You didn't have the mind to even put your clothes on as you went. You wanted to find them all first, even if you knew in the back of your brain, Taika was going to start following you around eventually. There was a deep feeling in your heart that wanted him to follow you.

Eventually, all your late night clubbing clothes were gathered up in one pile and you slowly peeled Taika's white shirt from your body, not knowing or noticing the soft steps on the stairs. They stopped about halfway, yet you still didn't notice. He was watching you with a longing look, lip between his teeth and his eyes going wherever they pleased. He waited until you were finished dressing before he moved like he didn't just stand in the same spot for the past few minutes to watch all of your beautiful skin get covered up by clothing.

"Want me to make you breakfast?" He broke the silence and startled your wits out of you. Oh, how easy would it have been to just say that you could pick up something from a nearby coffee shop on your way back home, but your stomach growled, and who knew how fast a cab was going to get there at this time in the morning. So you nodded begrudgingly. His boxers were navy blue, by the way. You tried not to make it obvious that you were staring, but you managed to catch too many glimpses of them between his fluffy, white robe.

Taika grinned widely as he went to the kitchen, knowing that you were following closely behind him.

You sat down at island and tapped your fingers against the counter. You were nervous. Were you supposed to act this awkward? I mean, you had never done something so promiscuous with Taika before, not even close... Well, maybe a few times there had been close calls as to you two getting a bit touchy, or whispering dirty things into each other's ear on set whenever someone has a line that's particularly lewd. It happened multiple times on Hunt for the Wilderpeople. Strangely enough, he would do it more than you, and he had a habit of keeping you close to his side the same time.

Had he always felt this way about you? Had there always been this desire to get you beneath him or kiss you like he did last night? You told him that you loved him, that you had felt that way... You don't remember if he said I love you back.

Before you know it, the clink of a plate hitting the surface before you and the aroma of amazing food wafted upwards into your face. "Bacon will be ready in a few moments. I made a bunch and I didn't know how many pieces you want, so I'll let you grab all that you need," he winked. It made you blush a little, you're embarrassed to admit.

What he had given you looked like a little droplet of heaven before you. Fired eggs and French toast. You know they are pretty easy to make, but God damn, did it smell amazing. You took your knife and fork and cut up your food into pieces, like a civilized being. You weren't in the mood to embarrass yourself in front of Taika possibly more than twice within the matter of just 24 hours. Eventually the sizzle of the grill had stopped and Taika was pushing dishes into the sink for a brief washing much later. He set himself up across from you, leaning over the counter slightly while he set down the massive plate full of bacon between the two of you.

He picked up a piece of bacon and started munching like nothing was wrong, like this was a normal day of him being half naked in front of you for the first time since you accidentally walked in on his audition many years ago for the New Zealand show called "The Strip". That was always a pleasant memory, even though he hated it every time you brought it up.

The more the silence grew between you, the more awkward you felt and the more you wanted to say something.

You wanted to tell him that you loved him, and you have loved him ever since you met him in an odd job both of you shared along the outskirts of Wellington, but most of all, you wanted to ask him if he loved you back. You wanted to know if you really are wasting your time chasing a man who can't be obtained.

It was eating you up, the silence. Oh, fuck it.

"You know, I meant what I said last night," you said, letting your fork drop and hit the plate with a loud simmering crack. He didn't move from his position, his jaw was still shifting up and down as he chewed on his food. He was thinking about what he wanted to say. You saw his chest puff up a little and the Adam's apple on his throat bobbed when he swallowed.

"(Y/N)," he said in his low drawl. He seemed vulnerable now, the powerful presence that he usually had just disappeared from his soul. He set down his fork and placed his hands on the table, standing a little straighter now. He looked up at you, his eyes just so visible through the forest of silky, silver curls on his head. You almost wanted to hate him for each time he looked at you like that. It made your heart throb in the most aching way and your nails sunk into your palms.

"I love you too..."

Those words hit you like a semi-truck and you didn't realize it until your lips crashed against his that you had risen out of your seat and leaned as far as you could over the island. He kissed you back after a few moments of shock, and raised his right hand to gently push it into your hair.

You felt the familiar feeling of his mustache along your upper lip, and heard the scraping of plates on the counter. He had moved all of your plates away then gently latched his hands onto your waist. He tugged you into the island and you got the hint, briefly parting from his lips and hopping onto the counter. He did the same, doing his best to avoid the hanging light that dangled dangerously close to both of your heads. He laid you down on your back, placed himself between your legs, and leaned down to kiss you again, this time with more want and passion. He was gentle with you and it felt incredibly sweet.

Taika took things slow, gently pushing his hand up your shirt to rest his hand on your stomach and he rubbed soft circles. You shuddered beneath his touch, but, at the same time, melted for him. Once he felt like his intentions with you were shown enough, he slid your entire shirt off of your body to expose one half of the lovely undergarment set you had worn. With that gone, he dropped his robe and carelessly tossed it on the floor. You both stayed like this, making out and slowly shedding you of your clothes. It was beautiful, amazing and passionate.

Taika parted with your lips to catch a breath, once you were completely undressed, left how you were when you woke up this morning. "You're sure you want to do this?" He whispered deeply in your ear. You let out a gentle moan, "Please."

He swallowed thickly, then nodded. He curled a finger around the hem of your underwear, gently gliding it down your thighs, then your ankles and tossed it onto the ground. He went for your bra and your back arched so he could have better access to the clip on the back. Once he knew how to do it, after feeling around it for a bit, he got it off and just stared for a long while. A smirk crept up on his lips after a few breathless moments. One of his hands placed itself on your chest, just beneath your throat, then it started sliding down to where it was beneath both of your breasts. He rubbed that space with tender passion and watched your face contort with need. He leaned down again so his hot breath beat against your ear, "How long have you been wanting this?"

You were almost to out of breath to answer him. The way he had you right now just knocked the breath out of you with one, simple glance. "A-a long time...~," you breathed out, rolling your hips up and bucking softly into the very apparent bulge in his boxers. His hand crept down between your legs and started to rub your now slick folds. "Mm, that answer isn't good enough, (Y/N)~," he growled, his hand now teasing your sensitive folds.

You moaned out his name into the air as he pinched and massaged your clit. "Tell me how long, (Y/N)," he whispered again, his teeth scraping against the lobe of your ear.

"Ever since I walked in on your audition~," you let escape from your mouth. You didn't have to describe which audition it was, because he already knew. You talked about it quite a bit, just to mess with him or compare where he was then and where he was now during drunk, emotional ramblings, usually with Jemaine around.

"Oh? Did the sight of me shirtless turn you on~?" He purred again, now dragging his boxers down his thighs while he watched you squirm beneath him. "Yes~," you responded, letting out groans of desperate need. He was smirking as he pulled away from your ear and he wrapped a finger around your chin while the other went to his length. He gently slipped into you, keeping your face aimed towards him so he could see every single scrunch of your face.

"You're so beautiful~," he purred started to slowly thrust, keeping it soft and slow. "You like this, don't you, baby~?"

All you could give to him was nods and moans in turn to his questions. He started getting faster with his motions the tighter he felt you clamp around him. His curls were sticking to his forehead and he let out soft groans and sighs, his hips rolling and the wet slaps of skin on skin sent the both of you higher than the moon. He buried his nose in the crook of your neck and he kissed at your sensitive skin, occasionally scraping his teeth against it too. "You're mine now, understand~?" He growled and panted against your skin. You nodded again, all the emotions hitting you at once. He claimed you and now you were his.

"Taika, I'm close~," you managed to moan out, your back arching upwards and your hands clawing at the counter beneath you. "Go for it, babe~. I wanna hear everything~," he purred, biting his lip. You could feel him coming closer to the end as well. He knew how to handle himself well down there, but his facial expressions said otherwise, every time he would lift up and kiss you roughly.

He dropped his hands down to your hips and held on tightly, he wanted this, he needed this and you needed this too.

"Fuck-- Taika~!!" You screamed out and bucked your hips while you came. Taika's thrusts became rough yet shallow, random ruts in attempt to gain pleasure. His nails dug into your hips and made you since softly. Their intense grip only released whenever he did. Luckily, he pulled out and poured it all onto your stomach.

He was panting heavily, his eyes squeezed shut, and his hands now softly massaging your hips, the best they could at least. Sweat dripped down his temple and your chest rose and fell immensely. He lifted himself off of you and sat up, completely forgetting about the dangling light. He remembered whenever it collided with the back of his head.

Both of you were in shock for a minute before smiles cocked up on the corners of your mouths. Taika was the first to break and let out a burst of laughter, you were hot on his heels, as if you both didn't have intimacy less than a few minutes ago.

Well... you guessed you could get used to doing something like this.

#taika waititi #fanfic #what we do in the shadows #taika waititi x reader #Taika Waititi X Reader #Ah I don't know don't judge me #DOIN' THE DIRTY AFTER BREAKFAST HECK YEAH

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