#it will need a thorough cleaning though ugh

[elektroyu]

I've got the keys!!

to the apartment today! AND a signature for the extra pet agreement AND EVEN a physical copy of the lease agreement.

Which means I can start planning things in earnest now. The whole apartment is a little shabby (the paint job is pretty ugh tbh and they even forgot to paint the ceiling in the living room lol, which they should be able to fix until I move in, but I mean the thing is OLD so that's kinda to be expected to a degree), but the new laminate is pretty nice.

[ardorwritesfanfic]

OMG HI i LOVEDDD (🤤) the blue lock men and their kinks that you did!! Would it be possible to please request the same for barou, nagi, sae and karasu? 😳 it's okay if you can't 😚 btw the kunigami and rin ones were so UGH 🥵

AAAAAA I’m so glad you liked it! I’m genuinely shocked by how fast those headcanons blew up 🫣😳

Anyways, I just started reading the manga, so hopefully Sae and Karasu don’t seem too ooc! Thank you so much for the request and I hope you enjoy it!

Blue Lock Men and their Kinks pt2!

Genre: headcanons, smut

Warnings: Sir kink, daddy kink, lactation kink, breeding kink, dom/sub dynamics, bondage, degradation, cunnilingus, size kink, pegging, praise kink, overstimulation, orgasm denial, mirror sex.

Featuring: Barou Shoei, Nagi Seishiro, Sae Itoshi, Karasu Tabito

Part 1

All characters are aged 20+! MDNI

Barou Shoei

Barou is extremely dominant, he needs to be in control.

He’s also incredibly meticulous. Every action has a purpose.

His touches are exactly where you need them, when you need them.

He ranges in speed when it comes to sex.

He’s almost always rough and hard, but he ranges from slowly fucking you into the bed and pounding into you fervor.

He loves having his hair played with during sex, but he’ll never tell you.

He loves hearing you moan and scream, however he only usually grunts.

Barou definitely has a size kink.

He uses his size to place you in specific positions that get you to scream just how he likes it.

He uses his muscles to keep you pinned there.

Speaking of pinning, Barou is definitely into bondage.

Hes a King, and he feels like he shouldn’t have to use his energy to keep you in place.

He will tie you up and keep your limbs flush against the bed, so he can fuck you as he likes.

I can definitely see Barou getting pussy drunk 100% of the time.

Barou lives for eating you out.

Remember how I said he was meticulous? This is a situation where that applies.

He’s so slow and thorough, his long tongue filling you up and massaging your insides so well.

Will not stop until he makes you cum just from his tongue.

Barou also has a sir kink.

He loves being called ‘sir’ in the bedroom.

The moaning of that name gets him all horny like he never has before.

Barou is really into degradation.

He’ll say such nasty things to you as he fucks you from behind.

“Such a wet fucking cunt you have, you’re such a whore for this dick, aren’t you?”

He’s also into orgasm denial and overstimulation.

Barou loves being in control, this includes when you cum, and when he believes the session should end.

He will not let you cum until there are tears threatening to roll down your cheeks. He wants you to beg for your release.

Barou loves how whiny and how much louder you are when you’re overstimulated as well. He will fuck you until the movement becomes painful.

Barou loves your ass, and he will bite, smack, and kiss the soft flesh until it’s covered in marks.

I think Barou is actually really good with aftercare!

He’ll clean you up with cool towels, then drag you into the shower with him to finish washing up.

Barou isn’t much of a cuddler though, but he will let you cuddle up to him as you fall asleep.

Just as you’re about to fall asleep, he’ll kiss the top of your head, and whisper just how much he loves you.

Nagi Seishiro

Nagi is a switch, he doesn’t really have a preference.

Most of the time, he’s on the bottom, just because he doesn’t want to exert that much energy.

He is one hell of a power bottom though.

His large hands and muscular arms move your hips with ease as you ride him, gently guiding you up and down his cock.

Sex with Nagi is usually slow and sensual, he likes spoiling you as much as he likes to be spoiled.

Nagi could eat you out for hours. Sometimes it truly feels like that.

He will stay buried in between you legs for as long as he can, a mixture of your slick and his saliva covering the lower half of his face.

“S-Shit princess, you taste so good! Just a little longer, please let me taste you a little longer!”

Nagi’s specialty though is cockwarming.

He adores having you sit on his lap while he’s gaming, the warmth of your pussy calming him as he plays.

However, you usually end up lasting longer than Nagi. Eventually the warmth and wet of your cunt, as well as the periodic squeezing from your walls becomes too much to bear.

He’ll pause his game and end up fucking you in his chair.

I believe in Big Dick Nagi™️ supremacy, and this combined with his height means that Nagi absolutely has a size kink.

When he sees the small bulge in your stomach from his dick, he can’t help but moan.

He’ll roll his hips into yours, eyes focused solely on your lower belly watching the bulge move. He’ll cum almost instantly.

Nagi also loves mirror sex. His favorite thing in the world is watching his cock absolutely ruin you in the mirror. His large hands cup and massage your breasts as he slowly pounds into you.

He adores watching your face contort with pleasure as he hits every sweet spot inside you.

Speaking of your breasts, Nagi is obsessed with them.

He can’t think of a better way to relax after a frustrating day that latching into your tits and suckling them.

He’ll move your hands to his hair, begging you to run your fingers through his snowy locks.

He’ll rut into your leg as he suckles, unable to resist the urge to pleasure himself.

Nagi is also really into pegging. He may be big, but all he really wants is to feel good in any way possible.

He’ll whine and cry with pleasure as you fuck his ass, gripping g onto anything he can. Bonus points if you let him suckle while you fuck him.

Nagi also has a praise kink. Please tell this man how good he is to you!

When he’s suckling or being pegged, he adores when you tell him how good he’s being for you.

The soft cooing of your voice allows him to relax, and sends pleasure straight to his cock.

If Nagi could, he would cum inside you every single chance he gets.

He loves seeing his cum drip out of your puffy pussy, imagining how pretty you would look pregnant with his baby.

Aftercare with Nagi is mostly cuddles and soft whispering to each other.

He’ll pull you close to his chest, pressing sweet kisses to your cheeks and lips, cooing how much he loves you. It doesn’t take long before you both are asleep, relaxing in each others arms.

Sae Itoshi

Sae gives me dom vibes.

I feel like he needs to be in control, and that’s no different when he’s intimate with you.

Sae switches between being incredibly soft with you, and being incredibly rough with you.

Sae is an egoist by nature, so when he does get rough, it’s usually to feed into his ego.

He’ll fuck you relentlessly, teasing you with every breath.

“Oh you like that, do you? Moan for me, baby. Tell me how good this dick makes you feel.”

He growls with pleasure with every moan he earns from you.

However, Sae treasures you deeply.

He knows what it’s like to be lonely, and he doesn’t want to lose the one think he has.

When he wants to be soft, he is incredibly caring.

He’s all about delicate touches and soft caresses of your body, all while dragging his dick in and out of your pussy.

Sae does have a daddy kink. He loves being called that no matter if he’s being rough or soft.

Sae also has a breeding kink.

Sae adores the idea that you’ll let him get you pregnant, and he’ll spend countless rounds fucking his cum into you until your stuffed.

On the other hand, he also appreciates that you’re so willing to take that big of a step in your relationship with him.

Sae loves to bring you to the brink of overstimulation.

He just adores the idea that he can make you cum so many times in one round.

He’ll kiss the tears off of your cheeks as he sloppily thrusts into you, begging to give him just one more orgasm.

Orgasm denial is one of the ways Sae feeds his ego as well.

When he’s in this mood, you’ll only get to cum when he wants you to. It gives him such a power trip knowing he has that amount of control over you.

Aftercare with Sae is minimal in the beginning of your relationship.

This is partially because he’s unsure of how to be vulnerable, and will often leave you to clean yourself.

He does get better with time though! On e he learns what you like, he’ll be sure that you feel safe and loved.

He’ll kiss your forehead and whisper praises, and he’ll help you clean up the mess in between your legs.

You both usually end up falling asleep soon after, with Sae’s head resting on your chest while you play with his hair.

Karasu Tabito

Karasu is definitely a very dominant lover.

He gives me the vibes of a soft dom, one that loves to tease you but will still take care of you!

He will sweet talk you, voice laced with sweet teases as he thrusts into you.

“You’re so pretty, my love. Trying so hard to keep up. You won’t last that long, trust me~”

Karasu adores fingering you.

Whether you’re in public or relaxing on the couch, his fingers are never far from your aching pussy.

He kisses you so incredibly gently while his fingers are knuckle deep inside you, drenched in your slick. (The duality of this man I —)

Karasu absolutely has a Daddy kink. He cannot get enough of that name.

A loud groan emits from his chest, hips jutting into yours when you call him that.

Karasu has large hands, and they’re constantly roaming and grasping at your body.

He’ll hold your hips in place while he slams his pelvis into you, making sure to hit your sweet spots.

Karasu also loves stuffing your mouth.

He’ll use anything he can find to create the muffled noises he loves so dearly.

He’ll shove his jersey in your mouth if he needs to blow off steam, your shirt if it’s a quickie, and if there’s nothing else he’ll shove his own long fingers in your mouth.

He loves marking you up as well, leaving multiple blue and purple bruises along your neck and chest.

Like Nagi, Karasu loves mirror sex.

He’ll use his strong arms to hold you up, his hand firmly placed on your jaw as he forces you to watch him fuck you.

Karasu loves overstimulating you as well, earning those pretty whines and moans from you.

He’ll finger fuck you until you squirt, sucking your juices off of his fingers before he fucks you again.

Once both of you are running out of steam, he’ll help you ride out your last orgasm, fucking his sticky cum further into your pussy.

Karasu likes cumming inside you as much as the next person, but he prefers cumming on your tummy.

Unless you want him to breed you, then of course he will! How could he say no to his precious angel~

Sometimes he gets so focused on pleasing you that he forgets about his own orgasm.

He’ll let you get him off if you still have the energy, but he’s more than willing to take care of himself if you’re too tired.

However, he knows how much you like it when he gets off too, so he makes sure that you both cum at the same time at the end of your session.

Aftercare is a dream with him.

He’ll clean you up, grab you some snacks and water, and offer to cuddle you as long as you need too.

He’s so incredibly sweet, very different from how he is in his daily life.

He just loves you with all of his heart!

[beansnsoup]

Hello

I saw your pinned post abt taking a break and honestly good for you, take all the time you need!!

I just wanted to send this bc I will most deff forget to ask when you come back but feel free to leave this in the inbox for months, take care of yourself first ❤️

Just a quick George x Fem reader who lived in the muggle world for yrs, George always has study session with her (which he calls study dates, much to her embarrassment) to help him in muggles studies even though it's his strongest subject (bc of his dad's job) and him asking what muggles do on dates and asking her help to develop a v thorough date plan that's for a class presentation (supposedly)- he also asks if she could take him there and have them act it out to help him memorize it for class, cute date commences with an entirely oblivious reader the whole way through, George confesses at the end but the reader thinks it's all to add realism till he finally had to convince her another way 💋👀(more than once bc she is still really contemplating if this is part of the study or not)

Ofc love, sorry this took so so long to get to

☆

Test Subject

George Weasley x fem!reader

Summary: He's always been fascinated with you but has never gotten the courage to pursue his ideas. Until he finds the perfect excuse to get closer to you.

Warnings: flirting, angst if you squint, lmk if there's anything else

"Come on, please!"

He was chasing you down the hallway while you were rushing to your next class.

"George, I told you, I'm busy."

"But here's the thing, I know you're not."

You groan and come to a stop. turning around to him, "Please, I need this extra help for this presentation in muggle studies."

"And it just so happens that it's about going on dates?"

"Yes! It's hard to explain right now, but will you just go out to Hogsmeade with me? Just to give me some pointers of what you muggles do on dates."

You thought for a minute, "Fine, but I'm going to think of this as tutoring so I'm going to be expecting payment."

"Ugh, alright, fine."

You smiled and speed walked with the remaining students in the hallway. Right after George made sure you turned the corner; he did a small victory dance.

-

You held his arm as he guided you through Hogsmeade. It wasn't too crowded that afternoon, so you were both free to do as much "studying" as you wanted without being disrupted.

First, he took you to go eat lunch, which led to you giving pointers.

He just listened to you even though he knew about a majority of these things. Because of his dad's jobs, he sort of flew through the muggle studies class, but he was just aching to spend time like this with you.

"George, are you even listening?"

"Hm?" He looks up from his food and raises an eyebrow, "Yes, of course."

You sigh, "I don't know how you suppose I'm going to help you when you never focus."

"How can I focus when there's such a beautiful girl in front of me?"

You cringe at his flirting, "I'd hit you but on muggle dates the men are just as intolerant."

George cheers, "Looks like I am focusing since I'm doing well."

You cleaned off with a napkin and set it on your plate, "Where to next?"

"Let me spoil you."

"With what cash George, you and Fred spend it on sweets and pranking supplies."

He scoffs, "I may have borrowed some from Harry, but he told me not to tell you so don't bring it up to him."

"George! You stole from Harry?"

"I said borrowed."

-

"Tonight went well."

You nodded, "It did."

He stuck by next to your door with you,

"Are you wanting a kiss goodbye Weasley?"

"You brought it up, not me."

He went in to close the gap between your lips, you went along with it, sensing that today had been a real date after all.

George pulled away, "See you tomorrow, gorgeous."

You stood there for a bit, trying to grasp on all that had happened, maybe you could do this again some time. You secretly hoped he'd ask.

-

You sat by yourself on a bench that viewed the forest, you didn't have a class for another 30 minutes, so you thought this was the best way to spend it.

"Why, hello there."

You turned around at the familiar voice, "George, how are you?"

"I've been well. You?"

"The same, say, how was your presentation, you said it was an early period, it's almost afternoon."

"Oh, well, about that."

You arched a brow, beginning to overthink, was it all just a prank, did he go back to Fred to laugh about how you fell for it and took him a date and told him all this stupid information?

"I never had to do that for muggle studies."

Your insides began to twist together, you were ready to get utterly humiliated.

"I just wanted to go out with you but didn't know how to ask."

"Look George if this another one of your sick jokes I don't want to hear it. I decided to spend all day with you yesterday, I evened kissed you for Merlin's sake."

You ran your fingers through your hair, you got up from the bench and started to walk away, "No, Y/N, that wasn't it at all."

"Then what was it, George? Why didn't you just ask from the start?"

"Because I didn't want to ruin our friendship if you said no."

You sighed, "Just tell me that you're really telling the truth, I don't think I can deal with you or myself if I find out that all of yesterday was just a big joke to you."

He walked up to you to cup your face in his palms, "Please just let me redeem myself, I love you so so much, more than you will ever know."

A tear ran down you cheek, You smiled as he wiped with his thumb,

"Fine."

"Thank you, you won't regret this Y/N. Let me show you how much I truly love you.

He gave you one quick kiss before hauling off to his next class across school.

I have no other exuse for taking so long for except the fact of being lazy and having huge HP writers block, pls forgive for it not being written very well.

You were so in love.

[akuaya-eng]

(Main story) Chapter 1 - Episode 2

- TUNER -

Fiori

(purifies) Alright, purification complete. It's great to move through the path without taking detours! Don’t you think so too, Espada?

Espada

(purifies) Stop chatting and focus on the purification. If you let your guard down, you'll be surrounded by curses in no time.

Fiori

Sure, sure. By the way, how long has this hallway been closed off?

Espada

Who knows. It’s been quite some time since it got covered with curses.

Fiori

Figured. Ugh, cough~... cough... It’s so dusty... This place is covered in curses and dust... We’ll need to do a thorough cleaning once the purification is done. Can we ask the familiars to help with that? Familiars are really convenient🎵

Espada

Stop being so lazy. Do your own cleaning. In this castle, you’re not a princess, just a freeloader. Remember, those who don’t work, don’t eat.

Fiori

That’s mean, Espada. Telling a princess to clean, unbelievable. Let's get out of here before you scold me even more.

Espada

...! Hey, that way is--

Curses

U...oooh--

Fiori

--! Oh no... ugh!

Dia

(purifies) What are you doing? Stay alert.

Fiori

You saved me... Thanks, Prince.

Espada

I apologize. Even though I was nearby...

Dia

No need to apologize... However, the disturbances within the castle are more unstable than ever. Letting your guard down can be fatal. Stay vigilant.

Espada

Yes, Lord Dia.

Fiori

The Prince is right. Understood. Let’s split up. Which way is shorter, left or right?

Dia

Right. Follow me.

Espada

But that path is completely blocked by curses. Even with purification power, it could be quite dangerous...

Dia

This is my castle. I don't want to take unnecessary detours. We’ll go straight through, using the power of purification.

Fiori

I vote with the Prince!

Espada

You just want to avoid trouble... Alright. In that case, I'll take the lead.

Dia

Fine.

Fiori

Then I'll guard the rear🎵

Espada

...I will definitely protect Lord Dia.

Fiori

Wait a minute, what was that sigh for?

Espada

Let's go... --Ha! (purifies)

Fiori

Nice, Espada! The path is clear now.

Espada

We must hurry, or the path will close up again soon. Lord Dia, stay close behind me.

Dia

...!

Espada

Lord Dia?

Dia

...Hmph. (purifies) There were curses lurking in the blind spot.

Espada

My apologies. Thank you for the assist. At this rate, we should be able to get through the hallway safely.

Fiori

It's great that the Prince and Espada are so positive, but there are a lot of curses following us from behind.

Espada

What…!

Dia

Can you handle it, Fiori? We can't afford to have more curses piling up.

Fiori

Of course! Who do you think I am? Don’t underestimate the Princess! Ha! (purifies) And over here!

(time passes)

Fiori

Ha... Ha... Purification complete. How about you, Espada?

Espada

Thanks to Lord Dia, we should be able to break through. --Let's move quickly. Come, quick. Otherwise, we'll leave you behind. (leaves)

Fiori

Wait up! Don’t leave me. Can’t you at least praise me a little?

----------

Fiori

Huh, isn’t this the front of the Prince's room? If we could use this path, we’d get here so quickly. The route we used before was such a long detour.

Espada

Yes, it was very inconvenient... But now we can bring Lord Dia hot tea even on cold days.

Fiori

Espada, you really think only about the Prince, don’t you? Hmm? Does this mean Tuner's room will be near the Prince’s room?

Espada

Of course not. We just happened to pass by. Lord Dia, the empty rooms are beyond here...

Dia

.........

Espada

Lord Dia?

Dia

! What is it, Espada?

Espada

Is something wrong? You don’t look so well...

Dia

No, it’s nothing. It’s just, there’s a strange presence around here--

Espada

!! Lord Dia, get back! Damn...!

(beast sounds)

Fiori

What is this curse! It’s huge! I’ll help with the purification...! (beast sounds) No use, it’s pushing back!

Dia

The three of us will do it together. Ready?

Fiori

Ugh...!

Espada

Gah...!

Tuner

This seems more intense than anything before. Wait, I’ll purify it too--

Spirit of Wisdom

No, you can’t.

Tuner

This voice...! Why not?

Spirit of Wisdom

Helping the "Mourner" is forbidden. Excessive intervention goes beyond the role of the Tuner. So, no. Do you understand?

Tuner

But...!

Fiori

Damn it...! What is this thing!

Espada

Urgh...! Lord Dia, are you alright!?

Dia

...Don’t worry about me. Continue... the purification…!

Tuner

--I can't just leave them. I have to help.

Spirit of Wisdom

You’re a stubborn child. If you push this much you'll die, do you understand?

Tuner

...!? What do you... mean?

Spirit of Wisdom

I mean what I said. If you exceed your given role, you will lose your life. But don’t worry. I’m on your side. That’s why I’m giving you this "advice".

Tuner

.........

Spirit of Wisdom

Now that you understand, just be a good child and watch over the "Mourners". Can you promise that?

[whenihaveyouromione]

When I Have You - Chapter 86

Read on Fanfiction.net or ao3 if you'd prefer.

---

Chapter 86

“Ugh… that was messy.” 

The moment Ron Apparated back into the Auror Office, he began removing the dried mud from his robes. It fell to the ground in puddles as he ran his wand over the stains. 

His whole left arm was purpled and bruised from where he had been flung into a wall, and he’d probably need some new robes because his current ones were almost torn beyond (magical) repair. He wasn’t quite sure what spells had caused the damage — he’d been hit by a lot and somehow suffered little. 

Harry was beside him, doing the same, and they now stood amongst dirt and a bunch of victorious, yet personally defeated, Aurors. 

The Black Robes were getting larger and more chaotic every time they made an appearance. They outnumbered the Aurors by a lot, but the group — whoever they were — were mostly untrained. Many of the opponents were weak and lacked knowledge in spells, making it easy for a single Auror to take on three or four at once. 

The investigations had been going on for nearly two years now, and no one was any closer to finding out who the hell they were. They were a mystery. A large, unorganised mystery that appeared at random intervals, months apart. But they were also very dangerous. They were not afraid of killing.  

At least this time the Aurors had gotten there before too many Muggles became their victims. 

A moment after Ron had begun cleaning his robes, a large group of Aurors appeared in the room with an even larger group of prisoners. They were all magically bound and their wands confiscated, some even with their own torn robes. 

Robards stepped forward between the group, looking annoyed and angry. It was the same process every time. Get the captured prisoners down to the court rooms for questioning and sit there for hours with them either pretending to, or not being able to speak. Then they’d lock them away until a trial occurred, in which most would be let out on technicalities. No one could prove which members had been the ones to kill or terrorise the Muggles, so no one was punished. 

It was a tiresome, repetitive process every few months now. 

“Alright, you know the drill,” Robards said to the Aurors in a deadpan tone. “Get them down. Thomas and Henrique, I’ll have both of you down in the rooms with me today.”

Dean straightened at the mention of his name, grinning. He’d never been given the chance to sit with one of them before and question them.

“The rest of you… start on the paperwork. It’ll be a busy few days.” Robards almost sounded bored as he followed the Aurors with the captives out of the office. 

Ron and Harry waited for the office to empty before they bothered to move. With torn and tattered robes, neither of them moved straight to their desks. Harry pointed his wand at Ron and managed to fix some aspects of his uniform, though some areas were too magically damaged for a simple Reparo. Ron did the same in return, and then they sat down at their desks, Ron for once glad to be there. 

This had been a nice one in comparison to the others. Less Black Robes and less Muggles to protect. Still, he had come out bruised anyway. He’d been tossed around, thrown against the ground and walls and hit by spells over and over. 

Ron hadn’t enjoyed a single moment of it. Sometimes he wondered why he continued to even show up.

He and Harry (and all the other Aurors) spent the morning filling out the documents of the days' events. Over the years, Ron had learnt to be thorough in his reports. He wasn't usually one for words, but this was important detailing and made the process of handing things over to Hermione and her office at the end a whole lot easier. 

Besides, Ron knew he was a good Auror. He was thorough in areas where he never had been in school. He'd given the bare minimum effort to his homework, turning in, more often than not, an essay that barely reached the minimum length requirement. He would have much preferred spending his time doing other things that interested him. 

Once he returned from a mission — as scarce as they were — he was happy to report the events in as much detail as possible. That way, when the time came to be trialled down in the courtrooms, he'd have as much evidence as needed for Hermione to do her thing. 

He'd watched her once, sitting in one of the seats as she attempted to defend a wrongly accused goblin of stealing gold from a wealthy wizard's vault. She hadn't even known he was there, but she went about the room, directing questions and responses to all the right people. She'd been so dignified, so confident of her presence in that room that it was near impossible for anyone bar the accusor to know that the goblin had not taken any gold. 

She was brilliant, and it had spurred him to be brilliant, also. They didn't work together, but their jobs aligned a lot of the time, and he felt it was important that they made it easy for one another. 

He was fifteen inches of parchment into his report when he paused, reading over the last few sentences he'd written. He frowned. 

"Was Evers with you, Harry?"

Harry looked up, thought, then shook his head. "No, I don't think so. She…" He scanned his own document. "I have no record of her actually being present today."

Ron looked up, his eyes searching out Gertrude Evers' desk. She was bent over, scribbling away also, looking as battered and beaten as every other Auror. 

She was a newish Auror, about one and a half years post training. A good, hard-working, talented witch; but quiet. Ron couldn't recall saying more than a few words to her in the eighteen months she'd been in the office.

"I can account for every other Auror," Ron said. "Except her…"

Harry scanned his own document again, frowning. "All Aurors were called. She had to be there."

"I remember her lining up in the office, then we all Disapparated and it —"

"It was insanity from the moment we landed," Harry finished.

"I still knew the location of every Auror," Ron said. "Clear as day. We're supposed to know that…" He thought for a moment. 

"We can just ask…" Harry said. "She'll know."

"Was she a Slytherin at Hogwarts?" Ron asked.

"What?" Harry said, looking stunned by the question. "What's that got to do with it?"

Ron shrugged. "Nothing… just… thinking."

There was silence, Ron once again looking over to the young woman.

"You're not suggesting she is one of them, are you?" Harry asked. "Aurors are vetted and trained thoroughly. She couldn't… and even if she was a Slytherin, that doesn’t automatically make her bad."

"Ever heard her speak?" Ron asked.

"What?"

"Well, the Black Robes, they can’t speak, can they? So —"

"She's spoken to me," Harry said. "Once or twice. Perfectly normal.”

Ron shrugged. "Alright, well, we've got to figure out where she was during the fight one way or the other. I'll go and check with Ryan." He got up from his desk, feeling uneasy by something he couldn't quite explain. He'd never gotten any negative vibes from Evers before, but he had considered her rather odd. It just wasn't something he fretted over when he came home each day. She was weird, but so were a lot of people. Wasn't Luna somewhere in South America searching for giant snails with telepathic powers? He liked Luna, she was his friend, and she certainly wasn't a bad person just for being different.

"Ryan," Ron said, coming to stand in front of the older Auror. "You got everyone accounted for in your report?"

Ryan looked up at Ron. "Not all the enemy, because they won't even tell us their names, their wands are all unidentified, but the Aurors, yes."

Ron nodded. "Great. Can you confirm the location of Gertrude Evers during the mission? Harry and I have… er… different accounts."

Ryan looked back down at the report and read through it. He was silent for a long while, a frown spreading across his brows the more he reread his writing. He picked up his quill, made to scribble something on it, but stopped himself.

"I must have missed someone," he said. "Where did you and Potter have her?"

"We didn't," Ron said plainly. 

Ryan's eyebrows shot up his forehead. "But you just said —"

"Yeah, was just checking," Ron said. "Make note of three Aurors being unable to account for her during the mission, would you?"

This statement surprised Ryan. He looked over at Evers, who didn't seem at all perturbed or on edge. She looked as she always looked — calm and collected. Great qualities in an Auror. 

"Just write what you remember," Ron amended. 

Ryan nodded, but looked uncomfortable as Ron walked away. 

"Any luck?" Harry asked.

"That's three of us who can't place her," Ron said. 

"That still doesn't mean —" 

"Yeah, I know. I guess it's just something to keep an eye on. I might deliver everyone's reports to Hermione today, once we're all done. Encourage her to read through them thoroughly. See if she notices any abnormalities."

"We could just ask her, you know. Evers, I mean," Harry said. "Sometimes Robards gives us individual orders to do something separate from the others. She could have had a separate job."

Ron shrugged. "The most likely explanation, I suppose. Still, wouldn't someone know that?"

"Robards?" Harry suggested with a raised eyebrow. "He is due back from the courtrooms soon. So we'll wait for him to write up his own account and then have Hermione compare. If there's anything amiss, she'll notice it. It all seems pretty normal to me, though."

Ron had to agree. It wasn't completely out of character for one of the Aurors to do some secret mission outside of the others. Secrecy came in their job description. But Ron's instincts were telling him that that wasn't the case this time. He had a funny feeling about Evers' whereabouts today and he couldn't shake it. 

He ensured he was thorough for the remainder of the report, making note of the presence of every Auror within the vicinity. It was probably the longest one he’d ever written, being more diligent than usual about the matter. 

It was nearing half past two when he finished. He dropped his quill, massaging his hand. 

Everyone was back in the office now, Robards, Dean and Henrique having returned about an hour before with the same news as always — none of the Black Robes spoke a single word to them.

Still holding his aching hand, Ron stood up and went to Robards’ desk in the office, dumping his report in front. “Am I the last one?” he asked.

“Not quite,” Robards said, looking up at Ron and accepting the report. “I must say, Weasley, you’re not usually one of the last to finish.”

Ron chose not to respond. He contemplated asking Robards if he gave Evers any special instructions but decided not to. There was no point in alerting him to one of his Aurors without any proof. 

Instead, he said, “When you have them all, I’ll take them down to the Personal Law office.”

Surprisingly, Robards laughed. “Not a very subtle way of asking to see your wife.”

Ron grimaced but said nothing.

Robards nodded. “I have two more to collect and then it’s all yours. That office will be busy sorting through them all, that’s for sure.”

Ron returned to his desk to contemplate all that he’d learnt. He took his time, since Evers had finished up an hour ago and was gone. Had Robards read through her report along with the others? Had he noticed a difference in them? Or was everything above board and was Ron just fantasising an answer to something that had baffled the Aurors for nearly two whole years?

He tidied his desk, sifted through some old reports, but that gave him no answers. Maybe if he got out all the others there’d be a link. 

“Weasley!”

Ron startled. 

“Over here. They’re ready.”

Ron jumped up from his chair and moved quickly over to Robards’ desk. The Head Auror indicated the rolls of parchment perched on his desk. “It’s been a busy day and so I haven’t had the chance to read through the last few myself, but get them to the Office of Personal Law. It’s their problem now.” 

Usually Robards would wave his wand and the reports would end up on Hermione’s desk to sort through. But Ron conjured a bag and tipped the reports into it. 

He then left down the corridor in the hope of catching Hermione before she finished up for the day. She was standing by a filing cabinet, her head buried in a lengthy piece of parchment alongside Maia. 

Upon seeing him, her eyes widened, and she left the conference with her junior lawyer and came over to him. 

“What happened?” she asked. 

“What?” Ron said. 

Hermione reached out a hand to his face and immediate pain coarsed over it. He’d almost forgotten about the injuries he’d obtained today. 

“Oh… yeah… another Black Robes fight. Got the reports.” He offered a grin and held up the bag. 

“Another one?” Hermione asked. “They’re getting closer together now.”

Ron shrugged. “Gives us something to do.”

Hermione looked at him worriedly. Her hand now traced his tattered robes, running down the length of his arm where spots of purple were visible beneath torn pieces of fabric. 

“Wait until you see my whole left side,” Ron told her. “Might even leave a few scars. Will be a story to tell our kid when she’s older.”

Hermione didn’t look amused. She always hated it when he showed up injured — ever since the first time and he’d landed himself in hospital. But he’d been rusty then, unused to fighting. These days, it was a little more frequent.

“Those reports,” Ron said, drawing her attention back to the matter at hand. “Just read them… carefully, alright?”

Hermione frowned, looking almost insulted. “I always read them carefully.”

“I know, but just be extra thorough, okay?”

Hermione now raised a questioning eyebrow, but rather than giving her an answer he kissed her cheek.

“I’ll see you at home, okay? Love you.”

“Please don’t get yourself hurt again, Ron,” Hermione called after him. “I’d like our daughter to meet her dad when he’s not missing an arm.”

Ron smiled to himself as he went back to the Auror Office. 

Yes, he’d like that, too.

…

That evening, Hermione didn't  mention anything about the reports. As they ate, she quizzed him about what happened that day, how he managed to get so badly beaten up, and asked time and again if he was okay. 

But then she disappeared into the study, claiming she needed to finish some work, and by the time she came to bed, it was nearing midnight. 

Usually, Ron was asleep by then, but he couldn’t. He needed to ask her. 

“Oh, God, Ron, look at you.”

Once Ron had taken his clothes off for bed, he’d been unable to lift his arms to put another shirt on. The bruising was worse than he’d thought, running all the way down his side from his armpit to his hip. His whole left arm was almost black with very little pink skin showing. 

He’d been unable to look at himself in the mirror after the first glance. 

“Pretty, isn’t it?” he said, propping his back against a pillow. “Hurts like hell.”

Hermione came over to the bed to examine him more closely. “Did you put anything on it to help?”

“Yeah, didn’t do much. I think it’s a combination of curses and physical injury. It’ll heal.”

Hermione shook her head. “I think I hate being married to an Auror,” she said after a moment.

Ron smiled. “Yeah, it’s pretty dangerous, isn’t it? But I’m alright. I can look after myself better than most.”

Hermione gave his injuries one last look and then changed into her pyjamas. A few minutes later, she was in bed beside him. 

“So, I read the reports,” she said almost instantly, also sitting up against the bed head. 

“And?” Ron asked, curiosity surging within him. 

“It’s… interesting,” Hermione said slowly. “I didn’t notice it at first. It wasn’t until I read Ryan’s version of events that it stuck out.”

“Ryan?” Ron questioned, frowning. “He’s —”

“The Auror, Evers, claimed he gave her an instruction to go around the battle and approach from the other side. But, his report doesn’t mention her at all. Doesn’t even indicate she was at the place today. He’s a pretty experienced Auror, and I doubt he’d forget giving an instruction such as that.”

Ron nodded and waited for her to continue.

“So, I then went back and reread everything. There’s not a single mention of her being there apart from her own report.

“Before I left today, I grabbed some old reports from past encounters with these people, and the only mention of her being involved is from Robards when he lists the people he called to go out. No one has ever reported her fighting alongside them before.”

She looked at Ron, her expression thoughtful. “Is that why you asked me to read through them today? Did you work that out, too?”

“It was brought to my attention,” Ron answered with a single nod. “To be honest, I was hoping for a logical explanation from you.”

“It’s so subtle,” Hermione said. “So clever. I probably wouldn’t have noticed had you not asked me to read through it carefully. I just… can’t work it —”

Hermione stopped, her eyes widening. Her hands flew to her stomach.

“What?” Ron said quickly, feeling panic rise within him. “What’s wrong?”

“The baby…” Hermione said, turning surprised eyes to him.

“What?” Ron said again, his heart pounding. “Is something wrong?”

“No,” Hermione said. “No… nothing’s wrong. I just… I felt the baby move, I think.”

“What do you mean?” Ron said, his heart rate slowing ever so slightly. 

Hermione grabbed his uninjured hand and brought it to her rounding stomach. She placed his hand on the side.

Ron waited for a moment, but nothing happened. Hermione looked at him apologetically. “I swear it was that,” she said. “I felt my tummy change shape and everything.” She smiled. “That was a weird feeling.”

Ron kept his hand where she’d placed it. He was about to give up when he felt something hard press against the palm of his hand. 

Hermione beamed at him while Ron stared at the spot where he’d just felt his daughter. A head, a foot, an arm, he didn’t care. 

“Woah,” he whispered after a moment. “That’s…”

“Amazing,” Hermione breathed. “I think she’s rolling around. She’s going again.” She moved Ron’s hand to another part of her stomach and this time Ron was certain it was a foot he could feel.

The day’s events all but left his mind. There they sat in bed, enjoying the moment of feeling their little girl move around — almost as if she really was with them. 

A lot had happened today — new injuries, new discoveries — and yet this simple moment was what he would remember for years to come. His family. 

He looked at Hermione and smiled at her. “Four months,” he said. “Just four more months and we’ll have her here.”

And as they sat in bed together, he couldn’t help but replay Hermione’s words from earlier over and over in her mind.

I’d like our daughter to meet her dad when he’s not missing an arm.

Out of everything that had happened, even the disparities with Evers, those words stuck. Suddenly, it felt like the bruises covering his body were a message — a warning — that maybe he was only one fight away from actually losing a limb, or worse. 

And he didn’t want that. 

What he wanted was, in four months time, to be able to hold his daughter properly.

Being able to do that was more important to him than any job he could ever hold. Even if he felt a breakthrough coming right around the corner. It was more important than anything. 

Feeling her little foot press against his hand solidified that feeling. 

If he was going to come home bruised and beaten every second week from being an Auror, then he didn’t want to do it. 

No matter how good he was at it.

[jujulebee]

[Earlier in the evening, as the last of the sun's beams shine over the LA horizon]

There's never any gasp of air, no suddeness to her waking—not anymore. Honey's eyes open and after a few moment's of registering consciousness, she stretches in bed, letting herself collapse into the plush. She's home, she can tell that much. She doesn't remember going home, though. Doesn't remember much of how the night ended. That's probably for the best.

She feels sober.

Hungry.

She reaches around for her phone, long nails combing at the fabric idly. When she doesn't find it, she gives an annoyed groan and sits up, her mind groggy. Did she lose it? Did she leave it somewhere? Maybe Jules would know where it is. She could just use her other phone. Where the fuck did she put it? Probably in her backpack. But where's her fucking backpack?

Another—louder—annoyed groan later, Honey shuffles herself off the bed, getting up and shuffling to get dressed. She'd stay in but she needs to eat. And find her phone. After a fairly thorough search of her room for her backpack, she sighs and sits on the ground for a moment, covering her face. Why is she like this?

No. No time for thoughts like this. Come on. Get up.

No time for thoughts like that, right. She'll feel better once she eats anyway. Pushing herself up to slightly unbalanced feet, she heads for the door of her room, coming to a jerking stop in front of the full length mirror nearby.

Ugh. She looks terrible.

She reaches a hand up to touch her face, clean and clear, no makeup hiding her appearance. Her lashes are so thin and short, so many of them lost to years of using false lashes. Her brows are the same, mostly shaved off and largely rubbed away from years of using makeup on them. Her lips look pale and thin. Her eyes seem so small, so...

So unappealing. She can't be seen like this.

She can at least... throw something basic on. Just a bit of eyeshadow, some falsies, something to block in her brows, a tint fo her lips. That won't take but a few minutes, it's fine. She's just looking around the house, it's fine.

Another fifteen minutes later she's back at the door of her bedroom, taking a breath she no longer needs, but there's no comfort in the action. A bright smile is on her face as she leaves her room, that showgirl grin back in its place, and she bounces her way towards the kitchen, finally registering the smell of food being cooked.

A young man looks up from what he's doing to raise a hand in greeting, small smile on his face. He looks so much like she did when she was younger, back when—

"Lilyyyyyyy!" She squeals, nearly knocking him over as she runs up to hug him.

"Ah! Honey! Honey! I'm cooking Honey! C'mon!" There's a good amount of alarm in his voice as he tries to angle his arm away to keep from dripping piping hot sauce, from the spoon he's holding, onto her. Once he's able to set down the utensil, he returns the hug, laughing. "You couldn't even give me a second?"

"Nope!"

"Honey I live here now. I ain't goin' away."

"Well shyeah, but I'm like, so totally stoked to see you anyway!"

Lily laughs, prying Honey off of him, her attention immediately turning to the tteokbokki cooking on the stove, picking a piece out with her long nails to blow on. When her attention's finally back on Lily, he's walking back over from the nearby table, her phone in hand, the girly charms so out of place with him. "Here. You were pretty gone last night, so I wanted t'make sure ya fell asleep okay. You were on call with Uncle Johnny still, so I told'im goodnight an' plugged it in for ya."

Honey takes her phone with an excited grin, shooting him a quick pout as she eats the tteok still held between her nails. "How come ya didn't like, plug it in in my room. I was like, so totally freaking out about losing it!"

"Honey have you seen your room." His voice is fully flat, judgemental.

"Okay maybe I need to clean it."

Lily can't help but laugh, rolling his eyes. "I'll help ya clean it later, come on, this is basically done and you're already eating it, so let's actually sit down t'eat it."

"Deal!"

[obsessivegeekgirl13]

.

[sulky-valkyrie]

Dangerously low? Well we can't have that !!!! what about "[ COAT ]: sender removes their jacket and drapes it around the shoulders of the trembling receiver." for my favorite boys you know it's Fenders :)))

A follow up to Fenris helping Anders escape from some Templars that Justice mostly turned into crispy fritters.

for @dadrunkwriting ~~~

Anders woke up in Hawke’s bed. The memory was hazy, but Fenris had insisted on carrying him up there last night, and Hawke had insisted on putting him in their own bed.

He's too tall for the spare, I'll just go sleep at Merrill’s tonight.  Anders chuckled softly to himself: leave it to Hawke to give their friends not just the shirt off their back, but their house and bed as well.  It was nice though; a proper mattress and the silk sheets were doing wonders for his battered and bruised body.  Justice could shrug off a lot, make them practically invincible for a time, but the aftermath was always rough, with or without smites and magebane.  He tried to summon a wisp and test whether his connection to the Fade was still blocked, then hissed in discomfort when he discovered it was.  Ugh.  Mundane healing would have to be enough for now.

The mage sat up with a wince; he was sore everywhere, so much that his hair touching his neck was uncomfortable, but tying it back would entail raising his arms, and that was just a bad idea.  Someone, probably Hawke - or had it been Fenris?- had helped him disrobe, and his clothing was folded neatly at the foot of the bed.  When he picked up the shirt, it smelled far better than it had any right to.  Maker, someone had washed them, and he wasn't about to ruin that luxury by pulling them on until he'd cleaned up too.  He wrapped a blanket around his middle as he stood, and headed out to find a bath.

When he opened the door, he almost tripped over Fenris, who was sleeping in a chair just outside.  He always looked so different in Hawke's mansion than anywhere else: like he was actually letting his guard down.  Just as the thought crossed Anders' mind, the elf frowned in his sleep, rubbing at one of his arms like he was chilly.  The only available blanket  was the one Anders was wearing, so he grabbed his coat from the peg by the door and draped it over his exhausted . . . guardian?  

The memory of that not-quite-kiss down in the cellar flashed in his mind and he covered his mouth.  Fenris had . . . they had . . .  Justice, did that really happen?  It did.  Anders shook his head and continued to the bathroom.  Hawke had more fancy toiletries that they knew what to do with, and, as the mage stared at the rows of tiny bottles while waiting for the tub to fill up, he was pretty sure he didn’t know what half of them were even for, and at least two were probably toxic, if he was translating the Orlesian correctly.  Arsenic in hand oil?   Fuck the Game, they’d all just kill themselves pampering at this rate.  He put those to the side and wished he had a pocket in his blanket.  The bath was full enough, and he didn’t want to waste the water when he knew he’d need to do a second rinse to properly clean himself after a thorough scrubbing, so he shut off the tap and climbed in.

He leaned back with a sigh.  There were bruises and scrapes all over his body and the water made them sting.  Someone must’ve stopped the bleeding, but did little else.  Not that he minded; I’ve lived through worse.  He scratched idly at the scar over his heart as he reached for a soap he could actually identify and started lathering himself up.  He was starting on the second bath when he heard a clatter outside.

“Mage?”  Fenris’ voice sounded almost panicked.

“I’m in the bath!”  Anders shouted, then dunked his head under the water to rinse it properly.  When he surfaced, Fenris was standing over him.  “What the - shit!”

Fenris knelt by the tub.  “You are alright?”

Thoughts of the last time they were this close made his cheeks burn, so he looked away.  “I’m fine, the magebane is wearing off.”  He took a breath, wiped some water across his face and tried to meet the elf’s eyes.  “Thank you, by the way.  I don’t think I’d have made it out of that if you hadn’t -”

Fenris’ hand shot out and grabbed his wrist, pulling him to the edge of the tub.  “Don’t ever do that again.”

They were far far far too close now.   Far too close and Anders was fucking naked and in a minute Fenris was going to notice that his checks weren’t the only place the blood was rushing toward.  “What, thank you?” he heard himself ask.  “Sorry, I’ll be more derisive in the future, just for you.”  He smirked.  “Now get out and let me finish cleaning up.”

“You tried to save me,” the other man murmured, like Anders had never even spoken.  “You put yourself in harm’s way.  For me.”  He let go of his wrist and reached for the mage’s face tentatively.

What is going on?  “Sorry, I won’t do it again.”  He couldn’t break away from that gaze.  “I’ll just tell Hawke, ‘sorry, Fenris said I’m not allow to help him because last time it was incredibly inconvenient’ and I’m sure they’ll be perfectly -”

“Fasta Vass, mage, I don’t care about that!”  

“Then what’s the fucking problem?” Anders snapped, finally able to look away.  “Also, can I finish my void-taken bath in peace?”

“You should heal yourself.”

The mage rolled his eyes.  “Would love to, but the magebane isn’t done with me yet.”

“So you are still defenseless.”

“Andrasted’s spitroasted kidneys!” Anders gave up on the bath; Fenris clearly was in no mood to leave him be and he was in no mood for an audience.  He stood up and poked Fenris in the chest.  “I’m a mage, not a puppy!  And I can bloody well fight back without magic if I need to.”  

“Prove it.”

Anders glared at him.  “You’re serious, aren’t you?   You aren’t going to stop - what, guarding me?  You’re not going to stop until my magic comes back or you’re satisfied I can take care of myself?”

Fenris snorted.  “I’ve seen how you live, you’ve made it clear that you cannot take care of yourself, but I would be satisfied if you could defend yourself.”

This was a terrible idea.  “Fine, you want to spar?  Let me dry off and get some trousers on, at least.”  He hadn’t grappled with anyone since the Wardens, and that had mostly been with Nate and usually not . . . competitive, but hopefully his height would give him some kind of advantage.

“No, right here and right now.  Either you don’t need my assistance at all or I stay.”

Anders turned as if to hang up the towel then launched himself at the elf.  Fenris barely grunted and didn’t stagger at all at the impact, then swept a foot under the mage, knocking his legs right out from beneath him.  I’m so fucked; I’m going to bash my brains out on Hawke’s floor and Fenris is going to - the elf’s hand was suddenly under him, breaking his fall, cradling his head, lowering him gently to the ground and sitting on his hips.  He couldn’t possibly miss what he was sitting on either.

“Do you want to try that again?”  The other man rocked forward, just once.  Just to make sure Anders knew that he knew.  “Or will you behave?”

[leonstamatis]

the nicmargo

big spoon/little spoon: ugh augh oh man. nic. he’s only like an inch or two taller which means they could switch but. they don’t.

favorite non-sexual activity: between the bar and blaseball and the garden they don’t really have a lot of free time! i think their favorite thing to do together is literally just watch tv at home or something. cooking is also pretty high on the list they both like cooking together but only if they have the energy for it.

who uses all the hot water: margo. nic showers in cold water for some godforsaken reason though so it works out. (“it’s better for you!” / “even if that’s true, and i’m not saying it is, you can’t go through life like that. it’s unnatural.”)

most trivial thing they fight over: anything. literally anything. it’s like lighthearted and no one is upset but there’s a list somewhere in the bar office of “things you can’t bring up during work hours or nic and margo will scare off all the customers.” it includes things like whether gazpacho is a smoothie.

who does most of the cleaning: nic. margo cleans up after xemself but when it comes to deep thorough cleaning nic is your guy.

who controls the netflix queue: nic prepares a list of options of things to watch and margo vetoes/approves them. it’s equality.

who calls up the super/landlord when the heat's not working: margo and xe’s a regular terror about it. nic sends baked goods as a thank you/sorry about my husband.

who steals the blankets: they both do this. their bed is a regular war zone of blanket thievery.

who remembers to buy the milk: they have to go shopping together because like, nic will remember the milk, but he’ll forget the specific spice margo needs for dinner that night. whereas margo will remember the obscure shit but assume, incorrectly, that they have all the basic necessities.

who remembers anniversaries: nic is better at it but margo REALLY tries it’s just that xe has so many fucking dates and obligations to remember.

who cooks normally: they trade off because they both really really like to cook both together and on their own.

what do they do when they're away from each other: please don’t separate them. they wouldn’t survive. (they’re fine they’re adults they can handle a weekend apart or whatever even if by the end they’re both very “i miss my wife, tails” about it.)

nicknames for each other: ANYTHING. EVERYTHING. margo calls everyone by their last name as a sign of endearment but it’s different to call nic by his last name because that’s also Margo’s hyphenated last name ykwim. husbands. and nic has full permission to call margo anything. mags, maggie, margo, nava, co-captain (affectionate). margo will sometimes go the opposite direction and call nic “Nicholas” to feign being upset.

what would they get each other for gifts: as a rule they don’t do gifts but it’s because they get pretty damn competitive. if nic gets a big gift for margo, margo gets tickets to Paris, and nic puts a down payment on a new house, it goes on and on. they had to be stopped.

who made the first move: nic waited for margo to do it. he fell first but he wasn’t going to scare margo off. margo got there eventually.

who cusses more: margo, but nic can get going if the right circumstances arise (the sportsball is not going his way)

what would they do if the other was hurt: augh. agh. oof. jesus. margo would be very melancholy and morose. nic would try his best to soldier through it but he would be STRUGGLING to keep it together. they aren’t criers but they could for this. god. ow.

[myhockeyworld87]

Bubble Wrapped - Part 15

Word Count: 3,021

POV: Reader

Warnings: Same as always, Language, Smut, NSFW, Please see the note in the Masterlist

Teams: Bruins, Caps, Flyers, Lightning, Pens, Jackets, Canes, Islanders

Notes: Well, here we are onto another part of Bubble Wrapped. I’m honestly not sure if this story is relevant anymore (or if I am at least as a writer), but I’m posting it anyhow. When last we left this story our reader had just had a great night with Mat Barzal, only she didn’t know that Mat deleted Tyler’s phone calls and voicemail. Let’s see what happens now. As always feedback is welcomed. Happy Reading!

Your time in the bubble was coming to end and you couldn’t say that you were mad about it. The staff was overworked and all needed a break. Each room needed a thorough cleaning. And you were going stir crazy from being in the same place for the last ten weeks or so. It would be so nice to get out of this hotel. The problem was, where would you be going?

Tyler had all but begged you to come to Edmonton. You thought Mat wanted you to do the same if they won this last series, but he’d somewhat changed his tune the last few days. He’d never officially come out and said not to come, but he wasn’t dropping hints at every turn as he had been. You chalked it up to the series being tight and his mind shifting solely to hockey, as it should, though Mat still spent all of his free time with you. Which meant you had less and less time for Tyler. It would definitely be a sticky situation for you if both teams made it to the conference finals and you decided to go to Edmonton. You were sure to be pulled in both directions.

There was only one person you could talk to about this dilemma and that was Carly. “I just don’t know what to do Car. If I end up going, I’m going to have to choose between them and I’m not sure I can.”

“You’re going to have to do that no matter what.” Ugh, you hated when she was right. “If you don’t, I have a feeling neither one will stick around. Mat walks around here following you like a lovesick puppy and Tyler,” she shrugged her shoulders. “Well, he’s surprising the shit out of me. I never thought the man could be loyal to one woman, but damned if he isn’t to you.”

“Is he? Do we really know? He’s all the way on the other side of Canada. For all, we know he’s getting it on with some waitress over there.”

“First off, the way he calls here constantly tells me he’s not. Secondly, there are pretty much only men in that bubble. And third, I’ve seen the number of gifts he’s sent you. Guys only do that for one of two reasons. He’s either done something horrible, which in your case he hasn’t because technically you’re both free to be dating, or he’s madly in love with you. And sweetie, that boy is madly in love with you.”

“You’re not helping.” It was worth pointing out, considering she was making your decision harder. Your phone rang then, Tyler’s name popping up on the screen.

“Speak of the devil, or should I say, boyfriend.”

“Shut up,” you said swatting at her shoulder. “Shit, Mat’s bus is pulling up right now.”

“Go in your office. I’ll cover for you before he sees you.” You ducked in before anyone on the Islanders team even got off the bus. It wasn’t that you were avoiding Mat. It just seemed that you hadn’t been able to talk to Tyler with Mat being around all the time. Obviously, Carly knew this and was trying to help you out.

“Hi Ty,” you answered cheerfully as you plopped down at your desk.

“Hey baby, I’ve missed your voice. I feel like I haven’t talked to you in forever.” Apparently, your absence had been noted by him as well. “Did you get my messages?”

It was kind of funny that he mentioned that. There was a missed call here and there from Tyler but never a voicemail. “Actually, no. I wonder if there’s something wrong with my phone.”

“I’ve left you a few. Haven’t you got any of them?”

“Let me check.” You switched him to speaker and checked but there were no voicemails from him. “Nope, not a one. I’m going to have to call the company.”

“Or I can just send you a new phone if you think yours isn’t working.”

“Ty, you don’t have to do that.” It was a nice gesture but completely unnecessary.

“But I like doing things for you. Babe, haven’t you got the memo yet, that I want to take care of you. I mean I’m sending out the signals…I think.”

You had to laugh for you’d definitely caught on to that, but it was even funnier since Tyler was noted for sending out bat signals of his location for women to slide into his DMs. Now, he was sending out boyfriend ones just for you. “You’re sending them out just fine, especially since you’re not sending out any bat signals.” Tyler laughed.

“That’s going to forever haunt me. But just so you know there aren’t going to be any bat signals flying out any time. And if you decide to make us official, they're banned for good.” He really was pulling out all the stops to try and win you. This Tyler was one you could fall for hard, and it scared you. “Which is kind of what my voicemails were about. You know, me telling you how much I missed you and that I really want you to come out here if we beat the Avs. Think we can make that happen?”

Edmonton was the last thing you wanted to think about, but at the same time, you needed to make a decision, and not about if you were going to travel across the country. “You know what?” Tyler hummed in response. “I think I am going to come.” No matter what happened with Mat’s team, you needed to see where things with Tyler were at and where they could go. It wouldn’t hurt to make sure Tyler was sincere in his offer of a relationship as well.

“Really?” Tyler seemed surprised.

“Yes, really, but I suppose you need to win a game first.”

“Consider it a win baby.” The Stars were playing game seven tonight, well tonight for you but this afternoon for him. If he won, you’d be heading to Edmonton in a couple days and if they lost, well Tyler would be coming here. Either way, you’d be figuring things out. “Speaking of which, I should be going. I hate these afternoon games. Will you be around so we can talk afterward?”

You were pretty sure there would be more than talking considering that the two of you hadn’t done anything over the last few days, and that was because of Mat. Let’s face it real sex was so much better than phone sex, but you did miss Tyler. “Yeah, I’ll make sure I am.” Tyler smiled over facetime and you found yourself returning it with one of your own. “Play well, Ty. I’ll be cheering for you.”

“I’ll do my best baby.” He puckered his lips to give you a kiss through the phone and you mimicked him. “Until tonight.”

“Bye Ty.” You leaned back in your office chair, trying to figure out a way you were going to tell Mat you couldn’t see him tonight when the man himself came bursting through the door. “Mat?”

“Sorry (Y/N),” Carly said following behind. “I told him you were on the phone, but…” she didn’t suppress the eye roll, but you could see relief written on her face when you weren’t on the phone.

“It’s ok Car, I just got done.”

“Oh well, I’ll talk to you later.” She gave a little wave then closed the door behind her.

“So, what do I owe the pleasure of you visiting me here?” You asked Mat who looked a little sheepish after barging into your office.

His hand went and rubbed the back of his neck. “I just missed you…thought I’d come say hi.”

“I just saw you a couple hours ago.” The two of you had spent yet another night tangled in each other’s arms; the sheets barely covering your bodies.

The confidence he exudes on the ice once again took over his countenance, now that he knew you weren't talking to Tyler. “Though it felt like forever.” A flirtatious glint was in his eye as he spoke. “You know I don’t think I’ve ever been in your office.”

“No?”

“No.”

You stood up and sauntered over to him. “Well, welcome then.” You let your fingers walk up his chest until you got to his jaw. The stubble there coming in nicely from his playoff beard. Which you had to say looked good on him. You brought his head down to yours and kissed his lips. It was heated right from the start, as his tongue swept in to tangle with yours. Mat quickly took control grabbing your hips and pressing them against his. He was hard and just that simple movement made you wet.

“I want you,” Mat growled in your ear. The deep rumble vibrating through your body and sending a shiver down your spine. He was bunching your skirt up before you could even respond. “Do you want me too?” You whimpered out a weak yes, as his hand trailed up your inner thigh. When he reached your core, you knew he’d find you wet and wanting there. “I see you do.” Two fingers rubbed your clothed clit, your hips bucking into his hand. Even though you only knew Mat for a short while, he knew how to play you almost as well as he played hockey. Touching and tweaking you in ways that drove you wild.

“Mat, please,” you moaned out forgetting where you were.

“Please what babygirl?” He slipped his hand inside your panties now. His bare skin against yours. “Please stop?” This time his thumb pressed against your nub, applying just the right amount of pressure to make you groan in satisfaction. “Or please continue?” He slid two fingers easily into you, working you into a frenzy.

“Fuck me,” you managed to croak out, as he worked his fingers in and out of your slippery folds.

With a few more thrusts, he stopped. “With pleasure,” he growled, as he twisted your body, bending you over your desk. There was nothing you could do but clutch the edge as he slid your panties to the side. Looking over your shoulder, you saw Mat glide his shorts down to his knees. The sight made you bite the side of your lip, something that drove Mat insane. Cock in hand, he pumped it a few times before slipping the head inside you. “Fuck you feel so good.” He barely got the words out before he thrust hard into you. Your grip on the desk tightened as he pounded into you.

“Fuck,” you hissed out as his cock slammed in again. This was a different side of Mat you were seeing. He’d always been a fairly gentle lover, but this quick coupling was showing you something you didn’t know you wanted.

“You like that babygirl?” You didn’t have to answer, for Mat knew you did. “What about this?” His hand came down on your ass, and you groaned when it connected with your flesh. A gush of wetness was Mat’s answer. “Yeah, you do.” He slapped you again. The sound echoing in the office. He repeated the action a few more times before you pushed back against him as your orgasm hit. Mat followed as your pussy fluttered around him; thrusting deep and cuming inside you. “Fuck,” he moaned out before collapsing on top of you.

It took a minute for him to recover. His hand immediately going to the red mark he made. “Shit, babe.” His hand rubbed slow circles soothing the heated flesh. “I didn’t mean to go that far.”

You got up and turned around to face him, though his hand never left your ass. “Don’t apologize. I liked it.” You kissed him sweetly, letting him know there was no need for an ‘I’m sorry.’ “I may not be sitting down the rest of today, but it was so worth it.”

“Fuck, (Y/N). You drive me insane. You know that?” You were already shimming your skirt back down, ready to get back to work. “How long are you working? Can we do dinner and well…maybe this again tonight.”

“Yes, to dinner,” you answered remembering that you’d told Tyler you’d call him after his game. “But I promised I’d work the night shift tonight.” The lie slipped easily off your tongue and you hated it. Though at the same time you had no intention of telling Mat the truth. The frown on his face let you know how displeased he was. “Don’t pout. I’ve been with you every night since you’ve moved into the hotel. It had to happen sometime.”

“True. I guess I’ll settle for dinner then.”

“Great. I’ll see you in a couple hours.”  

Dinner was an uneventful but nice affair. You and Mat just having a nice conversation in your suite over a meal. It was always easy talking and being with Mat, while the chemistry between the two of you was undeniable. You could see yourself being with him after this bubble was over. Days would be filled with working and meeting Mat for lunch, while your nights would be roaming around New York City eating at the trendiest spots until you ended up tumbling into bed together every night. Ideally, it was the kind of relationship you always wanted, had Tyler not been in the picture.

As dinner wrapped up, Mat began to pout, not wanting you to leave and go to work. It was still early, but you wanted to watch Tyler’s game. It was close to eight by the time you finally got Mat to leave, telling him that you’d see him in the morning and make it up to him before he had to play tomorrow night. With a few parting kisses, he left and you went to the lobby, just to make it look good.

“What are you doing down here tonight?” Logan asked. You’d finally found him a suitable job within the hotel, covering the night shift desk. It wasn’t like anyone was checking in so it made the odds of him screwing things up much easier.

“Just thought I’d check and see how things are going tonight.” The enormous big screen television which had been placed in the lobby was on, playing the Stars games. They weren’t fairing too well at the moment, and it made you nervous that Tyler’s team wasn’t going to win. You found yourself plopping down on the couch with Logan to watch the game. The lobby was quiet as Tampa Bay had already won their series and were on their way to Edmonton. While the Bruins had checked out yesterday. By tomorrow night this place would be practically empty. Both remaining teams, the Islanders and the Flyers were packing up their stuff and would head out as soon as their game was over. They’d either be flying to the last part of the bubble or heading home. While you would get started on returning the hotel to normal, though plans for that had already commenced. You’d already spoken to the owners about the next step, which would be taken care of by another team, allowing you some much needed rest. Once they found out you were heading to Edmonton, they offered to fly you on the private jet and have you stay in one of the suites at the hotel. Of course, they owned the JW Marriot so it really wasn’t a problem. Carly was going with you and of course, they wanted you to take Logan. There was no harm in it as the kid just loved hockey.

The only thing you needed to worry about were the two men that seemed to be vying for your heart. Right now, one was playing and the other was supposed to be packing, so it gave you some alone time. Well, except for Logan beside you, who was so engrossed in the game, he probably didn't even know you were there.

Your nerves were shot after sixty minutes of play, though they were about to be fried even more as the game went into overtime. Minutes ticked by until a player you hadn’t really even heard of until this game ended up scoring for the Stars and sealing their way into the Western Conference Finals. You jumped up off the sofa screaming along with Logan. The two of you hugging and then high-fiving. “Guess we’re going to Edmonton,” Logan said smiling excitedly. “Are we leaving tomorrow?”

“No, Logan. We still have work to do.” His face turned into a pout. “Only for an extra day though, then we’ll be flying out.”

“Sounds good and hey, you get to see Tyler. That’s pretty exciting. Do you think he’ll sign a jersey for me?”

“I think I can make that happen. Now, as long as you’ve got everything handled. I’m heading back upstairs.”

“Are you gonna talk to Tyler?”

“Yeah, don’t worry I’ll ask about the jersey.” Logan had one thing on his mind and you knew that he would hound you until you asked Tyler about it.

“Thanks, (Y/N).” You headed up the elevator to your penthouse suite to await your phone call from Tyler.

What you missed was Matt watching the whole encounter between you and Logan. “Logan, man,” Mat sauntered into the lobby going up to your hotel clerk as if they were long-lost friends. “Is (Y/N) on duty tonight? I had a little gift for her.”

“Oh man, you just missed her. She was heading upstairs to talk to Tyler.”

Logan didn’t catch the frown on Mat’s face or the grimace that followed. He had a feeling that you weren’t working tonight since you’d been in the office earlier today. Just as he thought Tyler was the reason you were avoiding him tonight. Hearing Logan confirm it, made his blood boil. It seemed like no matter what he did, he couldn’t keep you and Tyler apart. He turned and headed back to his room, without even a goodbye to Logan. Mat needed a plan, one that would keep you from Tyler for good.

[buckbuckstan]

Unthinkable - Chapter 2

Summary: Seven years, three movies, two people, one story. But before they can get their happily ever after, Sebastian Stan and Camille Solis must learn to trust in each other and in themselves, before allowing the unthinkable to happen.

Warnings: Fluff, Smut, Language, Angst, Mental Health, WOC lead character

Rating: NC-17

Word count: 4k+

Note: Decided to do some edits on this old story! I’ll start posting the updated chapters on here!

Back to Masterlist

Chapter 2 Almost Doesn’t Count

August 2010 (A week later) Manchester, UK

Buzz! Buzz!

Camille turned the kitchen faucet off glancing over at her phone on the counter. Slipping the yellow cleaning gloves off, she reached for the phone Sebastian's name blinking back at her. A smile tugged on her lips, at his name.

Sebastian: What are you doing?

Camille: Cleaning.

Sebastian: Weren't you cleaning two hours ago? How long does it take to clean a studio apartment?

Rolling her eyes she texted back: I'm thorough.

Sebastian: Hmm. Okay.

Camille: Why do I feel like you’re judging me?

Frowning even though he couldn't see it. Cleaning is what she did to clear her head, her own little coping mechanism. Had she been cleaning all morning? Maybe. Had she been hyper focused on the kitchen sink and counters for the past hour? Also maybe.

Sebastian: I’m not judging. But maybe you should take a break?

Camille: I’m fine. Deciding to change the subject she sent another text: Still on set?

It was 9:30 in the morning, but he had been on set since 3:30am. It was her day off and one his short days.

Sebastian: Done baby!

Sebastian: Don't change the subject, you need a break. I'm sure your kitchen sink is nice and clean now. Put the cleaning supplies down Camille and come open the front door.

She wrinkled her nose in annoyance. He thought he knew her so well! She had also been cleaning the counters- thank you very much!

Camille: Didn’t your momma teach you manners?

Ding! Ding!

Sebastian: OPEN.THE.DOOR.

She heard a faint knock, and felt her phone vibrate again.

Sebastian: Please?? L

She snorted at his plead. What was he up to?

Usually after a day on set, he liked to unwind back at his place. Alone. She couldn’t blame him. It was exhausting being around people all day. She didn’t know how he did it. Her thoughts broke when she heard another knock.

“Camillleeee….” He whined on the other side of the door.

She rolled her eyes, picturing him pressed dramatically against the door. He was a dork.

Sebastian: You’re really going to make me beg? I’m tired. I need to sit down. L

Letting out a large sigh, she made her way to the front door and swung it open, ready to scold but quickly pressed her lips together when he handed her a Venti size iced-coffee. God damn him for always being so thoughtful. And god bless him for looking so fucking adorable even at 9:30 in the morning. He stood in a pair of dark jeans and white V-neck shirt, hair hidden underneath a baseball hat, grinning from ear to ear. He looked rather happy for someone who had been up most of the night.

Ugh. Who looked this good this early in the morning anyway? She sure as hell didn't.

"Chi for you." he said in a sing song voice.

Camille took the drink into her hand taking a step back as he stepped inside her apartment. "Chi?" she repeated with a pout.

"Yes."

"I was hoping for an iced-espresso..." she teased.

He furrow his brows together sitting down on the bar stool by the kitchen counter, and used a higher tone to mock. "'Thank you so much for the drink Sebastian. You really shouldn't have. Especially after being on set all night busting your ass-.'

"Oh no, did you fall again?" She interrupted with a giggle.

"No.” he mumbled. Then sighed. “Maybe.” One of the things she had come to learn about Sebastian in the last few months was, how clumsy he could be.

“I’m sorry you fell.” Camille deadpanned. “Twice.” Taking a whiff of her tea, with a wrinkle of her nose. Tea was for weaklings, coffee wasn’t.

“You don’t need any more caffeine.”

Camille jerked her head up. “What? Why not?!”

He raised an accusatory eyebrow at her. "How many cups of coffee have you had this morning? Three? Four?"

"Three… and half." Long pause. “Fine, I've had four...and a half."

"That's what I thought." Sebastian said with a knowing look.

Wrinkling her nose she placed her lips on the cup and took a sip. "You can't cut me off."

"Watch me." he retorted back. "Besides Liz told me to keep an eye on you."

"Liz has a big mouth." Camille mumbled as she sipped again. The Chi was amazing, but she wasn’t going to tell him that. She knew she needed a break from caffeine at least for the next few hours. She had been drinking it since 5:30AM, and she was starting to feel a bit jittery. "You have nothing keep an eye on Seb." she tried to reassure.

She was just obsessively cleaning before her fiancé arrived later that evening. She was nervous of how the next few days were going to play out. She had taken off Wednesday (worked a 15 hour shift the day before) Thursday and Friday along with Saturday and Sunday for his visit. She was a bundle of nerves, barely sleeping the night before. This was the longest they had been in apart in their 6 year relationship, and she knew they hit a rough patch ever since she had gotten the job with Marvel.

"It's okay to be nervous. Especially when you haven't seen each other in months." Sebastian said knowingly. "But I can guarantee he isn't going care about how clean that sink is. All he is going to care about is seeing you." he muttered softly.

“Thanks.” She whispered, not able to meet his gaze.

Sebastian was right. Camille hoped he was right, but she was still anxious. It had been 4 months since she gotten to hug, cuddle and kiss David. She missed that. Missed being able to reach out and feel the warmth of his body when she rolled over in bed. Yes- they talked on the phone, but it wasn't the same. Besides the phone calls and Skype sessions in the past few weeks had gotten shorter and felt almost forced. That was the reason she suggested the trip. She needed to see him to reassure herself that their relationship was still strong, that they could get pass this. But a part of her was terrified all they were going to do when he arrived was fight.

"Take a break Camille."

Camille sat on the bar stool next to Sebastian. "Four months is a long time." she whispered.

"Yea I know it is." a knowing smile on his face.

"How do you and Leah do it?" referring to Sebastian's girlfriend.

Sebastian chuckled. "Leighton."

Cringing she mumbled. "Shit, sorry." She could never seem to remember her name. But again Camille had only met her once-in passing- at the beginning of filming. She had flown in to be with Sebastian for the first two weeks. Apparently she was a well-known actress from a TV show-at least that’s what Camille had been told by the crew on set. Truth of the matter was Camille only knew her as Sebastian's girlfriend.

He smirked.

"I said I was sorry!" she muttered. He brought his lower lip between his teeth, not saying a word. Great. He was enjoying this. Little shit. "I'm sorry.” she repeated. "I'm horrible with names. It took me like 3 weeks to remember Dominic's." she defended.

"I didn't say anything."

"You didn’t have to." Camille stated shoving a finger into his chest. "Your face says it all."

"I just feel better now." a teasing tone in his voice. "Because now I know it wasn't personal."

Camille groaned resting her head on his shoulder, putting down her Chi. "I'm never going to live that down I am?" closing her eyes. She was guilty. She hadn't known about Sebastian Stan- ‘the actor’- until after they officially were introduced by the writer and director. When she watched television, it was usually old shows like, I Love Lucy. New stuff wasn’t really her thing, but maybe it was time to expand her television taste...

"You not knowing who I am? Never."

"I'm sorry I didn't know you were the one and only Sebastian Stan." she said sarcastically, lifting her head enough for her eyes to meet his. "From such amazing movies like The Covenant-ahhh!" she yelped when she felt his hand cover her mouth.

He was blushing but smiling at the same time. "Fuck you Camille." She mumbled something under his hand, her eyes gleaming with laughter. "What's that Baby doll? I can't hear you." It was his turn to yell. "Jesus Christ!" snatching his hand from her mouth. "You bit me!" he accused.

She pushed herself away from him, walking to the other side. "I was just defending myself. I didn't bite, you big baby. I just licked." she stated innocently, pulling her curly hair up into a messy bun and quickly snatching her drink back up. She hadn't meant to lick, but it was pure instinct. She met his gaze and found those blue orbs staring her down from across the counter. There it was again- that small pull of electricity between them. "What?" she managed to spout out, as she tried to not melt underneath his gaze.

Licking his dry lips, he clenched and unclenched his shaven jaw. "Nothing...I just didn’t pictured you as a biter…”

Camille swallowed the lump in her throat feeling heat rise to her neck and cheeks. Did it just get a little too hot in the apartment? Those boyish good looks could put any girl under his spell without having to try.

"I guess you'll never know Ojos Azules." she whispered back, leaning into the counter to face him.

"Hmm." was his only response, a familiar smug smile tugging at his lips. He narrowed his eyes. “Wait, hold up a second-" raising his hands up. "Have you've been watching my movies?"

Rolling her eyes she stood up straight. "If you must know- yes. I started with The Covenant but if I couldn't stay awake through the first 10 minutes of that, I don't think I would have made it through any of the other ones." She cackled and jerked back when she his arm reach over to try and grab her. His cheeks were bright red. It was adorable when he got flustered.

"Ha-ha." he muttered.

She giggled. "I'm kidding! I did finish watching it. Promise.” Trying to hide her smile. “What do you suggest next? Gossip Girl?” Biting her bottom lip. “I was told that's how you and Leighton met?" Making sure to emphasize her name correctly.

"Told by whom?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"People."

“Nosy people.” He murmured with a frown.

She angled her head curiously. "What’s wrong?"

He was pretty private about his personal life. He did not like people poking their heads where it didn't belong. Not that she blamed him. She was the same way. But in the short time they had known each other, Sebastian confided in her about his relationship and vise-versa. They gave each other advice, even though sometimes Camille didn’t feel qualified to do so.

“Nothing.”

"Is she still upset with you for missing that party?" she guessed ignoring his response He had mentioned a week ago about how they’d gotten into a screaming match over the phone.

"No...No not upset anymore." the tone of Sebastian's voice changing. "You know how you asked how we do it?" Raising one eyebrow, she waited for him to continue. "Well…we don't." he paused. "At least not anymore. We broke up."

"Oh Seb...I'm sorry-"

He shook his head. "No, no, it's okay. You didn't know." he pursed his lips together. "We-I knew it was coming. As horrible as that sounds.” trailing off, taking his hat off.

"It still sucks."

Sebastian gave a small shrug. "Yea…I'm not going to argue with you there..." Rubbing the back of his neck with one hand. "It's not like we didn't try you know? But things really began to get worse around April and well...here we are." a bitter smile on his handsome face.

Camille wanted to reach out and give him a hug. She had a feeling this was the first time he was saying all of this out loud, which now made it real.

"Having a long distance relationship is hard-" he stopped himself looking wide eyed at her. "Not- that it can't work-I mean- plenty of long distance relationships work out great!" he said a little too enthusiastically. Camille hid her smile, waiting for him to continue. Sebastian pressed his lips together, silence hitting the room. After a few moments he finally spoke. "You just going to let me dig a hole for myself?"

Shrugging nonchalantly she pretended to think about her answer for a moment. "Hmm, yea kind of."

He frowned. "Obviously I'm not the poster boy for how long distance relationships should work." scrunching up his nose. "So maybe ask someone else for that advice?"

"Noted." Camille said with a small smile. She knew it was his way of letting her know he wasn't ready to delve into his feelings about the break-up. She was not going to push it. If wanted to talk he knew where to find her.

Pushing himself off the stool he took a step toward her. "But... I am the poster boy for helping friends take breaks..." he teased the grin back on his face.

Camille rolled her eyes, tilting her head to the side. "Sebastian, no."

"Sebastian, YES." he mocked giving her those puppy eyes. "You can't make this place any cleaner if you tried. Because newsflash dragoste this is the cleanest apartment in the whole building and we both know I can vouch for that. You've seen mine and Dominic's." he teased.

One of the perks of working on this movie deal was that Camille had been put up in a nice studio apartment about a 6 blocks from where they did most of the filming. Her upstairs neighbors just happened to be Sebastian, Chris and Dominic. The studio decided to put the actors in apartments rather than hotels since they were going to be on set for more than 2 months. She had been a bit intimated at the idea of having these good looking men as her neighbors, the feeling had slowly started to fade the more time she spent with them on set. Because they were the dorkiest dudes she had ever met.

"I think you win that one." she mused.

"Thanks” He elbowed her gently. "C'mon, come out with me."

She grunted. "Seb-"

"Just for a few hours? We can go to that museum you've been talking about? The one with the new exhibit?" he urged. "What's the name again? Whit-whitty-something-"

"Whitworth Art Gallery." she corrected.

"Yea! That one!"

God that smile, that fucking smile was everything. That smile could be trouble.

"Only for a few hours right?" she asked cautiously, not wanting to say yes-just yet. He nodded. "Will I still be cut off from caffeine?"

Sebastian licked lips. "Well played." He looked at her for a split second then glanced away as if he was thinking of how to respond. "It can be discussed." he said in a serious tone. Camille gave his stomach a light punch. "Ow! Jeez! Fine. Caffeine is reinstated-ONLY if we eat."

Camille grinned wickedly. "Okay, then I'll go. You are such a great negotiator!"

"And you're a big bully.” he grumbled.

"Was this Liz's idea? To drag me out of the house?" She squinted. "How the hell do you have all this energy right now? You've been up since 3 this morning!"

"Adrenaline my wonderful Camille." he responded in that smooth voice. Then added. "Liz told me watch how many cups of coffee you've had. Dragging you out of the house was all my idea."

"Okay fine." she said in an exasperated voice. "I won't have any more coffee for the rest of the day. Happy?" She really needed to stop drinking it anyway.

"Hey, you know my stand on coffee." Sebastian said. "But you should probably eat too."

"Can we eat first? Then do the gallery?" Getting excited at the idea of getting to go see the art exhibit for a moment forgetting the real reason Sebastian was dragging her out.

"Works for me. I'm starving anyway." He reached for his hat. "Let me go clean up and then we can head out. 20 minutes? Sound good?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I'll change too."

"Okay, I'll be back." He placed his large hands on her hips, looking down at her. Camille opened her mouth in surprise at his touch. Giving her his smirk smile, he gently maneuvered her body in the direction of the bookcase that separated the bedroom from the living room. "Go in there and change. Don't even look in this direction when you're done. Got it?" he instructed. She swatted his hand away from her hips in annoyance.

Camille looked over shoulder. "Hey-"

"Hmm?" Sebastian asked adjusting the hat on his head.

Smiling shyly she murmured. "Thanks." Hoping she conveyed how glad she was he was around and willing to help her get out of her own head space for a bit. If not- she would drive herself wild with the ‘what if' before David arrived.

Winking he opened the door and said. "I told you I was the poster boy for this!" shutting the door behind him.

*****

Next day

"Babe? Can you see if my glasses are in the bathroom?" Camille called out from the kitchen, placing the leftover chicken in the fridge. She really had to keep better track of where she placed them. They always seemed to disappear from where she placed them-which was her face. She took a step in the direction of the bedroom at the same time David walked out. Camille smiled at the sight of him, six feet tall of dark muscle with broad shoulders and a dark trimmed beard that still made her weak in the knees. God, she missed him.

They faced each other. "I'm going to have to get you one those lanyards that old people wear around their necks sweetheart." he teased with a grin, gently pushing the glasses up her face.

He had just gotten out of the shower and smelled like clean soap. "Shut up." Camille said wrapping her arms around his naked upper torso, feeling the drops of water against her fingers.

David chuckled leaning in pressing a chaste kiss on her lips. "You'll probably lose that too."

Camille traced one of his larger tattoos on his right bicep with her finger. "Hmm. Whatever." she mumbled distracted. His tattoos were always a turn on for her. One of her favorites was the one she was playing with at the moment, he had gotten it in memory of his grandfather when he had turned 20 years old. His grandfather's initials and favorite flower.

"Sweetheart." he started. "I thought you were going to show me around the city?"

"I will. But I've missed you." Camille started.

He had gotten in around 11:30pm the night before, exhausted. She hadn’t been surprised when she walked back into her room and found him fast asleep and under the covers. She had gotten up at 8, gone for a run, got her usual coffee and pastry, along with some extra groceries she had forgotten to get the day before. She hoped David would be awake by the time she got back, but she found him still passed out. She decided to start on lunch so it would be ready when he woke up. Finally a little after 11 he woke up to eat and shower.

"I missed you too." David said, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "But we have the next 4 days together. So let's go out and enjoy them." he reminded.

Camille knew he was right. But damn it, she was also a woman with needs and right now she was fucking horny. They hadn’t had a proper hello yet. Not that sex was something David owed her, but it would be nice to get some. Her vibrator could only do so much in 4 months. She needed the real thing.

"C'mon babe, let's go get ready." he urged.

Camille dropped her arms from around his waist. "I'll go get in the shower." walking toward the bedroom.

"Is my suitcase still in the living room?"

"Yup!" she said over her shoulder, letting down her curly hair and slipping the shirt up and over her head, tossing it into the dirty hamper in her closet. Feeling lighter than she had felt in days. Maybe she been projecting her doubts and insecurities a little too much the last few months. They had not fought once since he had landed. It felt almost normal. They talked over lunch just like they done so many times before. He talked to her about what was going on in the law firm offices he worked in, their friends, and she told him about everything she had done in the past 4 months on set.

Bending down she slipped her jogging pants off, ready to head in the direction of the bathroom, but stopped when she heard her phone beep. Glancing around the room she spotted it on the dresser and grabbed for it. It was probably Sebastian asking how things were going. Giving the phone screen a quick glance, she realized it was David's phone "David!" she called out. "Phone!" She was about to place it back on the dresser when it vibrated, someone was calling him now.

The phone screen blinked the name: "Ashley” Before Camille had the chance to call out for David again. His phone dinged with a new message.

Ashley: Baby, why aren't you answering my calls. Are you okay?

Camille blinked in surprise. His phone dinged again.

Ashley: 4 days is too long for us be apart. I miss you already.

Camille felt the air in the room being sucked out as she read the messages. She had to be reading them wrong. This could not be happening. His phone dinged again.

Ashley: Call me when you get a break from work okay?

Camille shook her head, hoping by doing that she read the text wrong. She shouldn't be reading his messages. Trying to take in breath she ran her fingers through her curls, while her other hand squeezed David's phone. He was on his knees looking through his open suitcase. "I should’ve brought an extra pair of jeans." he said with a small smile, standing back up. "I thought you were gonna take a shower?" he asked.

"You're phone was ringing." Camille started carefully, ignoring his question.

"Yeah? I'll call work later." walking towards her.

"It was Ashley." she whispered, watching his expression, but it did not change. Instead he rubbed her bare arms.

"Honey, go take a shower." he stated, his face not holding any emotion.

"Who's Ashley, David?"

David broke his gaze from her for a split second and shrugged. "Ashley’s a coworker. I've mentioned her before to you."

Camille gave a small nod 'no' and asked. "Are you sure?" Feeling her skin begin to boil with anger. He was lying straight to her face. There was no guilt in his eyes. How was this happening right now?

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Yes- of course."

Breaking away from his touch she shoved the phone into his chest. "Don't fucking insult my intelligence! You might want to check your damn messages." her voice raising. Not waiting for his response as she walked back into her bedroom, sitting down on the edge of bed, trying to catch her breath, she felt dizzy. She refused to cry. She would not give him the satisfaction.

"Camy-" David starting, using one of her nicknames from when they first started seeing each other.

Lifting her head up to look at him she glared. "Don't! Don't ever call me that again." she muttered bitterly. "Because what I saw has no fucking explanation David! None!"

David slowly walked toward the bed. "Nothing is going on." he started in a pleading voice.

"Are you serious right now? Are you fucking listening to yourself?!" she was yelling now. "Those text are not just nothing you fucking asshole! You've been seeing someone else!” Taking in a large breath. “We’re supposed to be getting married and you've been fucking someone else!!!!"

"You've been gone 4 months-" David's voice rising.

Camille quickly stood up from the bed and took a step toward him. "So since I've been out of the country, fucking other people was on the table? I didn't get that damn memo."

"Camille-"

"No! NO!!" shaking her head. "We didn't even make it one day-." Stopping mid-sentence. "You know. I should be surprised. I don't know why expected anything better from you-"

"That's not fucking fair!" David's nose flaring.

"But this is? You-you- sleeping with someone else is fair to me?" face to face with him now. "You told me taking this job was important. You said to take it. You said our relationship could survive this." her voice wavering, tears beginning to form in the corner of her eyes. "Instead of being honest with me. Instead of fucking talking to ME!!” Yelling as she gave him a hard shove.

David took a hold of her wrists. "Baby-I'm sorry-"

Camille shook her head hard and freed herself from his grip. "Why couldn't you talk to me?" she said in a sad whisper. "If you didn’t want this anymore you could have said so.” she said bitterly, chewing on her lower lip to keep from crying in front of him.

"You've been so busy and I didn't know what to do and she just happen to be there..." he said lamely.

"How long David?"

"That's not important-"

"It is to me. How long have you've been fucking her?" Camille pushed, but deep down she knew the answer. It had been in front of her face for months now. She was just too scared to see it. "Three months? Four? Longer than six??" David kept quiet. Letting out a sarcastic laugh, Camille wiped a tear with the back of her hand. "Why did you ask me to marry you? Why?"

"Because I love you sweetheart. You know I love you." moving an inch closer to her.

Camille put both of her hands up. "Don't touch me. Stay right there." she warned. "You don't love me. You don't do what you've done to people who you are supposed to love." She needed to calm down, her breathing coming in short. "I hope it was worth it.” She spat out. “Is she good?"

David shut his eyes giving a slight shake of his head. "C'mon, don't do that." he pleaded.

"I have the right to know don't I? It's the least you could do." She knew she was pushing his buttons and she didn't fucking care. She wanted him to hurt the way she was. She wanted him to feel just a smidge of what he was making her feel. "Tell me David!!! Is Ashley good? Does she give good head? Hmm?"

"Calm down Camille." he warned, his face glowering now.

"Or what? What can you possibly do to make this worse?"

"You always do this." David started, rubbing his hand over his face. "Your career come first. Always. School, new job and then maybe if you have the time-me.” His tone harsher.

"Don’t turn this around! You're the one fucking around in this relationship and it’s my fault?” Camille screamed. She really needed to calm down, not for him but for herself. She reached for her towel and walked in the direction of the bathroom. "I'm going to go take a shower...and when I get out, I don't want to see you here. I want you gone."

"Sweetheart-." David begged. "Please-I’m sorry. I fucked up. But we can figure this out. Fix this. Please." quickly making his way toward her.

"There is nothing to fix David. I want you out of my place got it? Zip up your suitcase and leave." she said as calmly as she could muster. "We’re done." Turning on the bathroom light, giving him a once over. "Get out." slamming the bathroom door behind her.

Chapter 3 If You Lift Me Up

[ask-the-dweets]

It was requested that I post this. I'm still not very confident in my writing ability but I hope those of you that read it enjoy it :)

It's a little... Ficlet? Is that what they're called? idk. It's of Elf Dwight and @askgogglessteve

[Need more Elf and Steve? Check this out too]

Word count: 827

putting the bulk of it under a read more

A goggles problem

“Ugh I can’t see anything like this!” Steve groaned, exasperated. He had done a lovely faceplant during their exit from the swamp and although everything else was cleaned and refreshed automatically during his exit his goggles decided to stay a lovely shade of… mud.

“It looks like they could use a thorough cleaning” Dwight responded examining Steve’s goggles, where they were, on his face. 

Steve made a disgruntled noise and furrowed his brows.

Dwight knew that Steve had a real problem with removing his goggles and had never pushed him to do so until now. They were completely covered inside-and-out from what Dwight could tell. There wasn’t any way Steve could see right now.

“Okay… This isn’t going to be easy but…” He moved to stand in front of Steve, holding his shoulders lightly. Trying to look him in the eye, even though he couldn’t really see. “You literally can’t see right now.” Dwight waved his hand in front of Steve’s goggled face to make a point, there was no reaction, Dwight sighed.

“I just-” Steve struggled to form words, it was so odd to see him like this. “they’re” he fumbles again “I’m not comfortable without them” Steve stammered out. Dwight’s heart swelled.

“Here how about this” Dwight said while he brought Steve down to the ground, pulling him into a more comfortable sitting position while Dwight crouched in front. 

“I have some cloth and water right here, okay?” He pulled them out and placed them in front of Steve, shuffling them a little to make sure he heard where they were placed. It was a canteen of water and a shroud of union. 

“It’ll just be us, we can clean them up right here.” He grabs at Steve’s hand and squeezes lightly, trying to be as comforting as he can. 

He doesn’t quite understand Steve’s attachment to the goggles, but he doesn’t need to. He just needs to be here for his boy.

“...I don’t want to open my eyes without my goggles…” Steve said slowly

“Ah! Okay, uhm” Dwight faltered with his words momentarily “Are-are you okay with me washing them for you?” Steve seemed overwhelmed. He didn’t say no but Dwight could tell he was uncomfortable with the idea.

“No, it’s Okay, do you think you could wash them with your eyes closed? I’ll be right here, I can guide you.” Dwight offered instead. Steve still didn’t look comfortable with the idea but gave a weak nod, there wasn’t much else they could do other than let Steve walk around blind. Which wasn’t really an option.

Steve slowly reached for his goggles, his hands trembled lightly. Dwight gave a soft kiss to his forehead and rubbed his shoulders for comfort. 

With the goggles off Dwight could see just how gross they were, Mud was smeared all over, inside and out. It was even squished into the joints of the strap. He really hoped what he had would be enough to clean them, it was going to have to be.

He took a quick glance at Steve's face, his eyes were squeezed shut, brows knit tightly, and lips pinched into a thin line. Dwight thought this might just be the most uncomfortable he’s ever seen Steve, and that’s saying a lot considering how often they got brutalized together in trials. There was mud caked on his face too, shaped to where his goggles had been sitting. Dwight lightly wet the cloth before handing the canteen to Steve, he went to dab at Steve’s eyes pausing when he realized he should ask first. “You’ve got mud on your eyes, Is it okay if I wipe them?” Steve nodded slightly, he probably couldn’t speak. He looked so nervous.

Dwight cupped Steve’s face lightly with his palm, to get a better angle, and dabbed at his eyes while Steve fumbled with his goggles blindly. Once Steve’s eyes were sufficiently clean Dwight checked Steve’s work. “They’re looking better already.” Dwight praised, placing the cloth into Steve’s washing hand. “It just needs a few wipes on the lenses and you should be good to go” he emphasized it with another small kiss on the forehead and went back to rubbing Steve’s shoulders, trying to give him the most comfort he could.

Steve quickly and clumsily wiped the lenses a few times with the cloth before setting them back on his face as fast as he could. Lenses first so he could open his eyes before adjusting the strap. The lenses were still a little smudged but it was manageable now. Steve wouldn’t have to take them off to finish cleaning them.

 When he opened his eyes Dwight was still crouched in front of him giving a soft smile and head tilt. “sorry” he apologised “but I much prefer getting to see those gorgeous eyes” he pulled Steve in for a hug, face to chest. Hopefully he wasn’t being too much, by the way Steve hugged back he assumed not.

[theodora3022]

Love You To Hell And Back(Yandere Claude)

Pairing: Yandere Claude Faustus x F!reader

Summary: Upon running away from home due to an unwanted arranged marriage, you took up a maid position in the Trancy household. You thought it would be simple, lay low for couple of months then the other family would cancel the engagement. Being a maid should be easy right? Just wash and clean the house and saying yes to their lords. You never thought you would end up in such a bizarre and dangerous household.

Notes: I am a Claude simp. If you do not know before, you do now. Do not get the wrong idea, Sebastien is handsome alright, but there is just something about those golden eyes makes me shiver in the best kind of way. (Also I love the French pronunciation of his name but whatever)

Word count:2k

Warning: Non-con touching, coercion, possessive behaviour, general Yandere content

SFW

As a lady on exile, you do not have many options. Your relatives were out of the question since they could inform your parents of your whereabouts, and so does all of your friends. Luckily, you figured out the perfect solution: disguises! And who is more unnoticeable then a maid? They blend naturally in the background of drawing rooms and parties, no one will bat an eye if there happen to be an extra one. Nobles do not care for servants, so a forged name and documents would get the job done. 

Answering advertisements seems to be a good way to start. Ah, there is one right here. The Trancy Estate? To your knowledge, there is only one young lord there, and you are not acquainted with the family. Seems the ideal choice: “Only for two months, as a replacement.” You know being a servant would be unpleasant, compare to your noble lady life now, but you had chosen between this instead marrying a man you despise.

Packing some essentials, you thrown on a simple cotton dress borrowed from your maids and sneaked out. You thought you had escaped from hell, not knowing you are better off staying. Because, you had quite literally, walked into a spider’s trap.

 A dark-skinned maid welcomed you, explaining how she has to leave the household for some personal business while giving you a small tour of the building. She seems nice enough, although you were curious why her right eye is covered by bandages. The manor is dead quiet and empty, giving you an illusion of how you can hear your own breathing.

“Miss Hannah, where are the other servants?” You shiver, tightening your clock just a bit. Although it is only autumn, the winds are chillier in this house, or so you felt.

“There is only five of us. Me, the triplets, and Sir Claude the butler. Our master can be...difficult, one could say.” Handing you a basket of maid attire, Hannah seem to be terrified of this master she speaks of.  

I wonder why he is so difficult. You thought as you thanked her and settled down in the little servant room you were given. Better put on these maid clothes soon, getting use to them as fast as possible. Blue and white does not look so bad together.

Kitchen duties are not so bad since all you need to do is chopping up vegetables and wash the dishes while the triplets took care of the cooking. Dusting is a nuisance, but with enough efforts it was taken care off. The triplets are an odd flock, as they never speak unless necessary. All your befriend attempts had failed miserably, you felt as if they look down on you somehow? Since you only do backstage work, you had yet to meet the master and his butler. Not that you mind, you want to kept your existence covert, after all!

You were trying to dust off the chandelier in the drawing room when you first met Claude. The stairs you use are a bit unstable, which causes you to have major anxieties about falling.

“Ahh!” You squeal as your staircase finally deciding to let you fall. Closing your eyes in horror, you were certain you are going to suffer at least bruises. But the expected pain never came. Instead, you felt a strong set of arms had caught your body mid-hair.

 Gazing up, what did you see?

Oh did that gorgeous face make this fall worth it. The tall man in black reminds you of those flawless Roman statues, of King David. You never thought humans can be this magnificent.(Well you are still right, as he is no human)

Gently placing you back on your feet, Claude started to examine you behind those clear glasses. You quickly smoothed the wrinkles on your skirt as you dip your head for greeting.

“Greetings, kind Sir. You must be Sir Claude. My pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am (y/n), the new maid.” Gods, he is handsome. You were not even sure words can describe how those golden eyes made you feel. Are you blushing? Ugh, get it together, self! He is only a butler here. It is beneath you to swoon over him. You put on a smile, then courtesies to the stoic man in the most elegant way possible.

The lack of callus on your fingers and your sophisticated manners informs him that you, are no ordinary maid. As a servant to his lord, Claude needs to make sure no sketchy individual can harm him. Some investigation would need to be done.

How interesting...Why would a high-born lady such as yourself ran away from your prestigious noble house, only to serve as a humble servant here? Just where did Hannah dig you up? Ah, that is no matter at present. Surely your cheerful spirts can light up the dull days of this mansion. The only thing Claude need to ensure is you do not expire as quickly as others. Alois can be such a spoiled brat; however no harm should befall to you as long as he can help it.

Your voice reminds the demon of little birds of forest mornings, chirping delightfully to a new day no matter how horrid the night before was. The way you thank him stuttering then trying to go back to your duties are just adorable, and amusing. It is clear as day:you are fascinated by Claude’s pretty face. Quite bold for a lady to do so. Claude had met a lot of people in his long life, but none of them intrigues him so as you do. He cannot grasp what exactly, but there must be something enchanting about you, that makes him want to pull you close and do unspeakable things to your good, pure body.  

Tender and cautious, that is what the knocks on his office door suggests. It is late, way past Alois’s bedtime. Who could have business with him this hour, apart from his demanding lord? “Come in.” Claude’s curiosity had spiked up.

It is you, still dressed and with a plate in your hands. What a pleasant surprise. And are those pastries?

“I...baked these for you, Sir. I want to thank you for your help earlier today.” Looking away, you quickly remind yourself how you should never indulge too much. However you had already spent two hours of your free time trying to bake something decent.

Did your parents taught you it is improper to visit a man’s quarters this late at night, alone? How rebellious of you, not that Claude minds anyway. You might appear to be demure and good at first sight, but under that nice façade is a bold maiden who does not care for modesty, how complex.

Chocolate chip biscuits, but with distorted shapes. “I am not very good at this, so I totally understand if you do not wish to eat them. I jus want to properly show my gratitude, that is all.” Nervously fidgeting your apron corner, you bit your lip when he raises one of them to his lips and took a small bite.

Edible, but has lots of room for improvement. Claude can practically taste your eagerness to please from the chocolate spheres. Seeing your gaze fixated on him, expecting his comments on your work, Claude let out a quiet laugh. Which made heat rush up to your cheeks. Is that a good or a bad response? It cannot be that terrible can it?

“Come.” He signals with a hand wave, and you hesitantly walked beside his chair. How cute, the butler and the little maid. It would be a shame to just give you some half-hearted praises and send you out, wouldn’t it? It is what a gentleman would do, of course. Claude on the other hand, has never been one. He could entertain that appearance for his lord’s sake, but in this little room with just you, there is no need for charades.

You were shocked when one gloved hand pulled you swiftly onto his lap, with the other locked around your waist, pressing you against his chest. Of course, you fantasized the idea of being the lover of such a fine specimen of mankind, but only the idea of it. Even though you are nothing more then a lowly maid now, you are still a lady of nobility with conducts of propriety.

Your shrinking pupils made Claude realize he might be pushing a bit too fast. But human lives are so fragile, so short compare to demon ones. If he does not seize this opportunity, who knows when is next one going to arrive? Whether it is your intention or not, Claude is now mesmerized with you. Now that he is holding you this close, breathing in your intoxicating sweet scent, the old demon had his first epiphany of a millennium: you are lovely, and he intends to keep you this way, one way or the other.

Squirming with protests, you tried to get out of his suffocating embrace. “Sir, this is not proper, please let go of me.” Yet you achieve no results, those iron grips still hold you firmly in place, those same arms that spared you an embarrassing fall this morning.

  “Little bird, finally thinking about propriety? You should know better then coming to my office this late unless you want something to happen.” Claude is close, too close, you can feel his breath fanning your ears gently. Gloved fingers trace down your jawline, making you tremble with fear. “Am I right, Lady (family name)?” You froze. What how did he-how do he know you are not a mere commoner? Had he already done a thorough investigation on you?

“Now, repeat after me, little bird.” His golden eyes shifted its color to pink, round pupils bending into a thin line. In normal circumstances, you would be terrified of how his features suddenly changed, but now you are too possessed by his intense gaze to think of anything else. Those eyes, you felt as if you could drown in those two magenta pools.

“I love Claude Faustus forever and I would do anything should he asks of me.”

“I-I love Claude Faustus f-forever...and I would do anything should....should he-e asks of me.” It is still your voice, although those words are defintely not your own. What is happening? Why do your tongue just moved on its own like man possessed?

“Perfect.” Running his bare fingers through your hair, Claude left a light kiss on your forehead, ignoring the horrid expression you are wearing. “You will behave, right little bird?”

“Of course, Sir Claude.” You did not just say that !There is no way. What has this evil man done to you? You never should have come here. Your terrible fiancée at least could not cast spells on you!

“I’ll take good care of you, my dearest little bird. After all, your fate is defined since the moment I lay my eyes on you. We are destined to be together.”

“Oh, do try to behave. It would be a shame if something should happen to your dear family. I would hate if you end up like your other human predecessors.” His lord, despite his young age, is a master at torture and inflicting suffering. There is a unfortunate reason why there is only a few servants in this manor, and the fact that they are durable demons too. Claude knows exactly where you would end up had he not intervened. Do not worry, he would never let you go. Demons mate for life, didn’t you know that? Why resist?

“I love you my dear, to the hell and back. We shall stay together until the end of time.”

[tuiccim]

Terrigenisis (Part 3)

Pairing: Avengers X Inhuman!Reader

Words: 2916

Summary: Your life is torn apart after undergoing terrigenisis unwillingly your life is turned upside down when you are deemed too dangerous to return to civilian life. You are put with the Avengers team to train and rebuild your life.

Part 1  / Part 2 

 —————————————

Before you leave for training the next morning, FRIDAY asks you to meet Steve in the conference room. You walk in the room to see him going through some paperwork. 

“Hey. Good Morning.” You smile at him. 

“Morning.” He smiles back at you. “I’ve been working through your evaluation for field work. Can you sit with me for a few minutes?”

“Absolutely!” You are excited that he is working on some goals for you. You sit and he goes through each part of the eval. Technically, you’re field ready in every area except one. Firearms. Apparently, your aim has not improved enough according to Bucky. You are proficient enough with handguns, but using larger weapons throws your aim. 

"I'm sorry. We can't put you in the field, yet." Steve frowns.

"No, this is great, Steve. This is what I need to know. Now, I have a goal and I know an excellent teacher." You smile at Steve.  

"Bucky will keep working with you. He says your handgun skills are great. Your hand to hand is excellent. Just a matter of time, Doll. Uh, Agent, I mean, Y/N." Steve puts a hand on his face and takes a deep breath. 

You giggle. You can’t help yourself. “It’s okay, Steve.”

“I didn’t mean to call you doll.” Steve says.

“Really, Steve, it’s okay. I didn’t think anything of it.”

“Thanks.” Steve stands and you follow his lead. 

"Well, back to training, then." You smile.

"Right." He smiles back.

You give him a quick side hug and head to the training room.

 --

The team went on another mission and you were left alone on the compound again. As you are training with Redtail one day you really take notice of her sight. The colors and distance she perceives is incredible and so different from your own vision. You carry the information with you as you go through your routine. While in the range you make an incredible discovery and you can't wait to tell Steve and Bucky. 

The team returns and you are giddy with excitement. You temper yourself and make a huge dinner for everyone knowing how exhausted they are when they return from long missions like this one. That night as you head to your room after cleaning up the kitchen, you hear Bucky’s voice coming from Steve’s room. A low moan and the whisper of Steve’s name. You freeze in place when you realize what is going on between the two. You pull yourself out of your stupor and grope for your headphones as you continue to your room. It takes you a few minutes to truly wrap your mind around the relationship between the two men. You had absolutely no issue with their relationship, but it was obviously not common knowledge. Or at least not a topic of discussion among the team. 

It actually made you feel a little more comfortable. You firmly believed the two to be out of your league, but comments from Sam and Wanda had made you question if one or both had an attraction to you. It put into perspective, also, why Steve felt the need to clarify why he had called you doll the other day. He clearly did not want you reading anything into it. It was sweet really. The two falling in love with each other after being the only thing still tethering them to their pasts. You were happy for them. 

--

The next morning, the team immediately fell back into their routine. You were excited when Bucky entered the range and Steve followed with him as you had asked FRIDAY to request his presence. 

“Thank you for coming, Steve. I want to show you both something.” You smile at both. You had already set up for the demonstration you had planned and handed them each safety gear before you started shooting. Picking up one handgun you hold it in your dominant hand and shoot center mass. Without a break, you grab the second gun with your non-dominant hand and aim for headshots. You set both guns down and press the button to bring the target up for inspection. You look back and see both men’s brows furrowed as they stare at the target. Center mass is a perfect cluster of shots forming a small hole, as are the headshots. 

“How did you do that?” Bucky asks. 

“Now watch.” You pick up Bucky’s favorite gun that normally throws your aim considerably due to the sheer size and velocity of the weapon. Moving to the second target you shoot and again bring the target up to reveal a dead center grouping. 

“Doll! How did you do that?” Bucky says emphatically. 

You set the gun down and remove your safety gear. “I was working with Redtail the other day and I noticed how sharp her eyesight is. It got me to thinking if I could somehow use it to my advantage on the range when shooting. I spent the next couple of days trying to hone in on the distance sight when shooting and it just worked. It’s like I can see through her eyes even though I’m not warging. Can you imagine what this means? I think it’s just like my ability to comprehend vocal communication. I think I might be able to absorb their abilities. I don’t know if it was because of my long term exposure to her or what, but this could mean so many things if I could learn to do the same with other animals and senses. If I can hone my hearing and sense of smell it would make me even more useful.” Your words are tumbling out in your excitement. 

“Whoa, whoa. Hang on.” Steve rubs a hand over his face. 

“Did I say something wrong? Isn’t… isn’t this a good thing?” You ask nervously. 

“No, yes, no, ugh. Nothing’s wrong. Let’s just go over all of it again. Slowly.” Steve says. 

You start over from the beginning, explaining each step you took to get to your conclusion, and how it affected you. Bucky and Steve asked several questions and you answered as well as you could. When you're done you look between the two nervously. Their expressions gave nothing away. 

"I have to report this to Fury. We need to update your file and do some work with you to see if this skill is something you can adapt to well. Bucky, work with her with every gun. See if her aim crosses over for all of them."

"It does. Also, throwing knives and bow and arrow. I tried everything while you guys were on the mission. But, I'm happy to go through it all again." You say.

"Thorough.' Bucky smirks.

"I'm a planner." You wink at him and smile.

"Go through it all again with Bucky," Steve turns to Bucky, "and I want a full report after." 

Bucky nods and Steve turns to leave.

"Steve. One more thing. I found a dog I'd like to adopt. She's 3 years old and fully trained. I'll pay for her myself but I'd like to have her to work with." You fidget as Steve looks at you with raised eyebrows. 

"You really have been busy. I'll check into it." Steve says with an indulgent smile on his face. "Find me this afternoon and we'll talk."

"Okay, thanks." You turn to Bucky with a grin. "Ready when you are." You bounce on the balls of your feet with anticipation.

Bucky smiles as he starts pulling weapons.

--

"FRIDAY, where's Steve?" You ask that afternoon.

"Captain Rogers is in his room." FRIDAY responds.

"Is he alone?" You ask hesitantly.

"Yes." 

You knock on Steve's door a minute later and smile as he opens it. He's wearing a tight t-shirt and sweatpants making him look ready for a run. 

"Hey. Is now a good time?" You ask. 

"Sure. Are you okay if we talk in here?" He smiles and holds his door open for you. 

"Sure." You echo him as you walk in. 

He pulls out his desk chair for you and then sits on his bed. He looks at you and you look at him and there’s an awkward silence. Both of you waiting for the other to begin

“So, um, you said we’d talk?” You fidget. 

“Right. Tell me about the dog.” Steve says.

“Her name is Dizzy. She’s a three year old Belgian Malinois. Fully trained. I met her two days ago and she handled the warg very well. Highly intelligent. She’s perfect for training and a total sweetheart. What do you think?” 

“Dizzy?” Steve chuckles.

“Yeah. Her litter was named after characters from Starship Troopers. It’s a really campy space war movie.” You smile. 

“Haven’t seen it. I talked to Tony. He’s okay with the dog since it’s for training purposes. Get the rest of the team’s consent and we can give it a test run.” Steve says.

“Great. Thank you!” You jump up and give Steve a hug. 

“You’re welcome, Doll.” Steve says. “I mean…”

“Steve. Really, it’s fine. It’s cute actually.”

“You like being called doll?” He asks. 

“Yeah. It’s sweet.” You smile. “I’m not offended by it or anything.”

“I’m glad. You’re a sweetheart.” 

“So, are you.” You hug Steve’s waist again and head to the door. “I’ll see you later. I’m going to talk to everyone.”

“See ya later, Doll.” Steve chuckles.

You make the rounds to your teammates and receive consent from each of them. You are giddy with anticipation and call the owner to make arrangements to get Dizzy. As you're getting off the phone you hear a voice from behind, “Hey Doll.”

You turn to see Bucky. “Hey. Did Steve tell you to call me that?”

“He might have mentioned that you like it.” Bucky chuckles as he sits next to you on the couch. 

“It’s cute.” You smile. 

“You’re cute.” Bucky smiles back.

You laugh and nudge him with your shoulder. You feel much more free and easy with Steve and Bucky since learning of their relationship. You wish you could tell them you knew but you didn't want to force a confindance. “You two are goof troops.” 

“What does that mean?” 

“Silly and sweet.” You grin.

“Nah. He’s a punk and I’m a jerk.” Bucky says.

“You are not a jerk, Bucky! You are a sweetie!” You laugh. 

“Aww, thanks, Doll.” Bucky leans over and kisses your cheek. 

“See! So sweet!” You squish Bucky’s cheeks in your hands and then dissolve into giggles at the silly face he mugs.

“What are you two doing?” Natasha asks as she enters the common room with Wanda, Clint, and Vision on her heels. 

“Just being silly.” You say. “What are you guys up to?” You catch the glance and smirk exchanged between Nat, Wanda, and Clint and roll your eyes at them. 

“Just looking for some food.” Clint says.

“When are you not, Clint?” Natasha jokes. 

“When I’m watching your six.” Clint snarks.

“Wanda, I can pick up Dizzy tomorrow. Want to go with me?” You ask.

“I can’t! I’m sorry.” Wanda frowns. 

“No worries.” You say.

“I’ll go with you, Doll.” Bucky says. 

“It’s an hour drive.” You want him to know what he’s getting into. 

“I don’t mind.” Bucky smiles.

“Great! I’m leaving at 9.”

“I’ll be ready.” Bucky says and gets up to leave.

You join the others in the kitchen and chat for a while. 

“You and Bucky looked cozy.” Clint says.

“Don’t read anything into it.” You shake your head.

“I’m reading plenty.” Clint says. 

“Stop. He’s my mentor and friend.” You say.

“Yeah, you two seem really friendly.” Natasha says.

“Seriously, guys, it’s not like that. Stop.” You say quietly.

“Okay, okay. But don't dismiss it outright. You two would be good for each other.” Wanda winks at you. 

“Uuugh.” You close your eyes and bang your head on the counter. “I’ll see you guys later.” 

“You’ll definitely see Bucky later.” Clint whispers.

“I can hear you, Legolas!” You call back. 

“I meant for you to.” Clint whispers again, chuckling.

--

The next morning you and Bucky leave from the shooting range to get Dizzy. You are so excited you can barely contain yourself. 

"Why don't I drive, Doll?" Bucky says.

"Only if I get to pick the music." You smile.

"Just no more disco." Bucky grouses.

"Oh, come on, Buck. You don't want to 'Shake, shake, shake. Shake, shake, shake. Shake your booty'" You sing and dance around. 

"Maybe if you keep dancing." He winks.

"That's a little difficult in the car. How about some rock?" You say and Bucky nods.

"Are you gonna keep the name Dizzy?" Bucky asks.

"Yeah, I think it's cute. Plus I like the movie. It's hilarious."

"We'll have to put it on the list for movie night." 

The drive takes less than an hour with Bucky at the wheel. When you arrive the woman seems a bit wary of Bucky but she relaxes when she sees Dizzy's reaction. Dizzy immediately runs to you and then sniffs Bucky before practically jumping in his arms. You are laughing as Bucky kneels down to play with her. His wide smile and low voice with the dog is endearing. 

"Well, she certainly likes your boyfriend." The woman says. 

You chuckle at the woman's assumption but decide it's not worth the energy to explain. 

"I'm glad Dizzy likes me, too. Huh, girl?" He ruffles the dogs head before standing. Dizzy moves to stand at his side. 

You conclude business with the woman and leash Dizzy before heading to the car. Once inside, you turn to Bucky and laughingly say, "Did you steal my dog already?"

"What can I say? I have a way with women." Bucky chuckles. Dizzy tilts her head and lets out a little whine at the noise.

"Chill, girl, you'll see him around plenty." You reach back to pet her head. "You're gonna have lots of friends." You say.

"Have you had a dog before?" Bucky asks. 

"Charlie had a pit named Brutus. He was a big baby." 

"Where is he now?" Bucky asks.

"He crossed the rainbow bridge about six months before Charlie. We were just starting to talk about getting another dog." You look at your hands suddenly feeling the sadness and loss all over again. "Sorry." You say softly.

"It's okay, Doll."

"It just hits me sometimes that he's really gone."

"Grief is a process. You always feel the loss of those you love. He was a good guy, huh?"

"Yeah. He was. You and Steve remind me of him sometimes. He was an Army Ranger. Served three tours. Did I ever tell you that?"

"No." Bucky gives you a sideways glance.

"He had just discharged when I met him. Still adjusting to being back in civilian life. It took him awhile but he did it. He was brave and smart and really, really loving." Your voice breaks. 

Bucky reaches out and takes your hand. "I'm so sorry you lost him, Doll, but I'm glad he was good to you. You deserved that."

"Thanks, Bucky." You hold hands for the remainder of the trip and your melancholy slips away the closer you get to the compound. "Okay Dizzy, ready to see your new home and meet the rest of the family?" 

Dizzy's ears perk up and her tail wags. You and Bucky take her around the compound. Dizzy is very well-behaved and everyone seems to take a liking to her. When you introduce her to Steve she reacts in much the same way she did with Bucky. Practically rolling over for him. You are elated at how Dizzy and the team seem to immediately bond. 

That evening as you are bringing her back from a walk when you overhear Bucky in Steve's room, "Did you know he was an Army Ranger?"

"No. I don't remember her ever mentioning it." Steve says. "She was crying?"

"No, just sad." Bucky says. 

Dizzy obviously hears their voices too and swivels her head. "Wanna check in with the guys before bed, Dizzy?"

You knock on the door and smile when Steve opens it. "Hey. We heard you guys still up and Dizzy wanted to check in before bed."

“Hey Diz.” Steve pets the dogs head. “How, uh, how much did you hear?”

“Um, Bucky telling you Charlie was an Army Ranger. That was really it.” You shrug. 

“Can you hear me a lot?” Steve asks.

“I usually have my headphones or earplugs in. I try to be respectful of everyone’s privacy.” You say. 

“I know. I just forget how good your hearing is sometimes. You okay? This jerk didn’t upset you today?” Steve smirks as he gestures to Bucky. 

“Watch it, Punk.” Bucky grouses. 

“I’m fine. Like I told Bucky, it just hits me sometimes. I mean, I know Charlie’s gone. I’ve come to terms with that. It’s just sometimes… I’m sorry. You guys probably know better than anyone.”

“Doesn’t make it easier for you. If you ever need anything, we’re here for you.” Steve says. 

“Both of us.” Bucky says. 

“Thank you. I’m really glad to have you both as friends.” You smile. 

“Who’s a good girl?” You hear from Bucky a minute later.

“She is!” You smile at Bucky who is on the floor with Dizzy practically in his lap. Dizzy’s tongue lolls out of her mouth as Bucky scratches her ears. “Alright, Dizzy, let’s let the guys get some sleep. Come on, girl. Night guys.”

“Night, Doll.” Bucky says.

Part 4

“Sweet dreams.” Steve says.

Part 3 1/2 (A smutty Stucky Vignette)

Or go to

Permanent: @bubbabarnes @badassbaker @thefridgeismybestie @strangersstranger @cherthegoddess @drunkbucky @sherlocksmanwatson @cap-n-stuff

Masterlist

[wylanvnneck]

This 2 part fic was written for the Secret Snusband Gift Giveaway hosted by @jurdannet​ and @jurdannetrevels​ for my lovely Knife Wife @lilacs-with-lavender​.

Rating: T for Tyrannosaurus

Summary: Inspired by an episode of my favourite Cop TV show, ‘Castle’, in which a bet takes place with pretty high stakes, although the plotline has been tweaked to fit this fandom. My Knife Wife said she loved the Enemies to Lovers trope so that’s what I’ve (tried to) write here and I hope you enjoy the story of Homicide Detectives Jude Duarte and Cardan Greenbriar and their mutual enmity.

Warnings: Not so graphic descriptions of murder and mention of drugs. (Really not sure what I need to tag, so please let me know if I’ve missed something.)

Posted as a Gift on AO3 | Part 1 | Masterlist

Part 2

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

“Lil, It’s 7.15 and I still need to decide on a dress, help!”

The ever helpful Liliver is currently perched on her bed, legs crossed and unruffled in stark contrast to Jude’s frantic rummaging of her sparse closet. She comes across a sparkly orange sequin dress that she holds up for her friend’s inspection.

“Honey. You’d look like a broken disco ball.”

“The girl at Saks said sequins were in.”

“She lied.”

Ugh. Damn Greenbriar for his stupid bets and his stupid dinners and his stupid brain which occasionally stumbled upon solutions. Defeat was a bitter pill to swallow.

She’s contemplating over whether to excuse herself for the night by pretending to have an infectious disease which requires keeping all other humans at a distance of five feet, when the doorbell to her apartment rings.

“Lil, would you mind answering the door for me please?” she asks, conscious of the fact that she was dressed in only her underwear.

“Sure, but when I come back you’d better not be wearing that ghastly hot pink dress I saw in there,” her friend calls as she unravels herself from the cozy mattress and leaves the room.

Foiled again. Jude’s just about out of options and the only thing that she can fathom being worse than having to be Cardan’s fake girlfriend for a night, was having to do so while being completely underdressed and out of place in a roomful of his father’s closest business associates.

“There was a package delivered to your doorstep,” Lil says as she re-enters the room, carrying a white parcel in her hands.

“A package? But I haven’t ordered anything.”

“Open it, maybe there’s a note,” she hands it over. The detective inside of Jude is wary, but she’s too curious to not open it so she gently rips open the package’s wrapping to reveal a large square box tied with a silver ribbon and tag attached to it. ‘Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo’ are the only words written on it. She knows immediately who it’s from and she feels an answering surge of anger along with an emotion that isn’t easy to decipher.

“I knew he was arrogant, but this-” She roughly unties the ribbon and tears open the lid  and inside is the softest folded up material that she’s ever seen. Gently, she takes it out and it unfolds, turning into a simple but gorgeous black cocktail dress with an A-line skirt and off the shoulder sleeves, the picture of elegance.

Lil’s silver eyes are wide when she lets out a low whistle, “Damn.”

Jude is speechless.

“Wow.” Cardan’s voice sounds slightly higher pitched than usual before he clears his throat, standing just outside Jude’s doorway. “You clean up nice, detective.”

With a little help from Lil, she had accessorised the dress with a silver choker necklace that had belonged to her mother and a small velvet clutch. Her hair was carefully put up with dozens of little bobby pins and she feels sexy and ready to conquer whatever the Greenbriar family had in store for her.

Cardan himself is dressed in a coal coloured suit, a silky scrap of fabric tucked into his jacket pocket, shiny enough to match his eyes. There’s the faintest shimmer of gold on his defined cheekbones and his curly locks are just untidy enough to look stylish and it’s unfair how handsome he is.

“So do you.”

He steps back and holds out his arm for her in the way that gentlemen did in those historical dramas that Lil was always forcing her to watch and it shouldn’t have made her blush as she clutches the soft fabric covering his arm, but it did. She blames it on the corridor’s harsh fluorescent lighting.

Together they glide to the elevator and wordlessy head to the garage where Cardan’s sleek grey Maserati stands out amidst the other rundown cars belonging to the other apartment tenants, her neighbours, yet another reminder of all the differences between the two of them.

“Your carriage awaits you, my lady,” he opens the door for her, something that most of her few disastrous dates had neglected to do in the past and she’s so used to thinking of him as an indecorous scoundrel that him being so courteous was almost unwelcome. She’s not used to spending time with him outside of work and she’s strangely out of her element.

Cardan goes round and gets in on the other side and Jude secures her seatbelt as he starts up the car and swivels his head around to watch the back of the car before reversing.

They’re cruising along in his car and the only noise is the smooth purr of the Maserati and it smells of the pine air freshener that he’s pinned up to the rearview mirror. She leans back in her smooth leather seat and watches as they pass by buildings and skyscrapers and shops, the city buzzing with nightlife.

“So, what exactly is it that I’ve gotten myself into?”

Cardan takes his eyes off of the road to shoot her a swift glance before focusing back ahead of him, one hand on the steering wheel and the other on the gear stick. 

“Well, it’s a dinner party with some of my father’s closest friends, all of them snobs and all of them with their own agendas. I suppose I should also mention that this party is to celebrate the win of his company’s recent lawsuit.”

“Sounds like it’ll be wonderful.” Her words are dry with sarcasm. She has no desire to spend the night making polite conversation with aristocratic stiff necks who would look down upon her, but a bet was a bet and she had to admit that so far Cardan wasn’t making her regret her decision to agree to his challenge.

He surprises her by letting out a low and husky laugh, “You have no idea.”

There’s an awkward silence. 

“Thanks for the dress, by the way.”

“You’re welcome.”

For the short remainder of the ride the only sound that can be heard are the songs being played on the radio.

The party is in high swing by the time they get there, champagne glasses clink, waiters in their smart uniforms walk around carrying trays of hors d'œuvre  and the low rumble of conversation and piano music fills the air. The private outdoor venue is large and there are fairy lights strung on the bordering walls and tea candles on each table, creating an overwhelming effect.

There’s a slightly raised ramp at the other end of the entrance where a podium had been set up, complete with a banner displaying a fancy script that reads ‘Elfhame Enterprises’, which was the name of Cardan’s father, Eldred Greenbriar’s company.

Cardan has been holding her hand since he opened the car door once again for her and now, standing at the entrance of the party and waiting for his invitation to be accepted by the guard stationed at the gate, he squeezes her hand tightly in his and the act seems unconscious. There’s a tension clearly written on his face. 

For once she doesn’t need to raise her head to speak to him, thanks to her three inch heels and she leans over to discreetly whisper in his ear, “You ok?”

This time the gentle squeeze that he gives her is definitely on purpose.

 “I’m fine.” There’s the smallest of curves to his lips.

A diminutive lady with pale skin and Cardan’s sharp cheekbones and raven hair bustles up to them, a long stemmed wine glass filled to the brim held loosely in her hand. Jewels glistened on her long and low-cut gown, adding to the air of opulence that she exuded. 

“Cardan, you’ve finally arrived. Oh and you’ve brought someone with you!” 

“Hello, mother.” There’s a tightness in his smile. “Yes I did, allow me to introduce you to Jude Duarte.”

Stepping forward she firmly holds out her hand to Cardan’s mother and is graced with the barest of shakes in return, “You may call me Ma’am.” 

Ma’am? 

“Of course, thank you...Ma’am.”

Mrs. Greenbriar gives Jude a long and thorough onceover, dissecting her with cold eyes as if she were a mere insect and the feeling is extremely disconcerting. She looks to Cardan for support, but he looks just as out of depth offering her a look of sympathy with the features that so resembled his mother’s.

“So, Judie, what exactly is it that you do?”

She stands taller and staunchly replies, “I’m a Homicide Detective for the 12th precinct.”

“Ah. I see.” The words reverberate with barely hidden disappointment and distaste and just like that she no longer pays Jude any attention, turning to her son and reaching out to possessively clutch his arm and whisper something in his ear which makes him tighten his jaw further before bouncing off, wine spilling over from her glass.

“That was my mother.” Cardan says, unnecessarily.

“Right.” Jude couldn’t help what but wonder about what sort of a childhood he would have had to endure. Perhaps his mother hadn’t always been so disparaging. It seemed that there was a whole different side to Cardan’s life that she’d never known about.

“She's - hard to explain. I apologise for her behaviour though, she shouldn’t have treated you that way.” He’s sincere, but there’s also an underlying note of sadness. The type of sorrow that you would feel if you were let down yet again by someone that you always gave second chances to. Her heart gives a pang on his behalf. Before she can reassure him he continues, as if desperate to push the subject behind them. “Anyways, let me go get you a drink, what’ll you have?”

To the side of the grounds is a long table covered with a white cloth with various bottles of alcohol lined upon it, their colourful glasses glinting under the fairy lights. Behind the bar there’s a bartender in uniform, smoothly mixing drinks to order as rich elites look on.

“Um, maybe a Martini?” She names the first drink that comes to mind. 

“A Martini, huh? Dirty, perhaps?” His trademark flirty smirk makes a reappearance and Jude knows exactly how to handle it.

“Yup.” She pops the ‘p’ in what she hopes is a seductive manner. “Just the way I like it.”

His pupils seem to darken just the tiniest bit and his mouth makes a slight ‘O’ shape before he promptly turns on his heel in the direction of the bar muttering, “I’ll be right back.”

After a few moments of standing near the entrance, moving only to accept a smoked salmon canape from a passing waiter, Jude pulls out her phone from her purse to find multiple texts from Lil.

So? How’s it going?

If you need me to call and be your ‘family emergency’ so you can escape, I can totally do that, just say the word.

Jude

Jude

Judeee

You alive?

Biting back a grin she reassures her dramatic friend that she was definitely still alive. She’s just pressed send when she senses someone’s stare on her and something about it makes her skin crawl. She looks up and is met by the sight of a tall girl in a jade green V-cut and backless dress with vibrant blue hair. Nicasia.

“Why, Judie, fancy seeing you here!” Jude inwardly grimaces. Nicasia’s voice hadn’t gotten any less painful to hear since their last encounter. Standing in front of her now, she can’t help but think that she looked slightly ridiculous in all her fripperies, opaque pearls dangled from her ears and around her neck, gemstones glistening on her hair and cerulean eyeshadow that completely overshadowed the rest of her face. Strange to think that the last time they’d met, Jude had been plagued with envy, not even really knowing why.

She plasters a carefully manufactured, artificial smile on her face. “Nicky! What a delight to see you again!”

Nicasia’s face twists for a mere second before her cheerful and friendly facade is back in place. “Quite. Although, I can’t imagine how you’ve come to be here.” 

Her words are clearly a question, one that Jude answers beamingly, “Oh, I’m here with Cardan. As his date.”

She watches as the blue-haired girl’s eyebrows fly up her forehead, unable to contain her surprise. Jude knows a moment of smug victory and Cardan chooses this moment to walk up behind her carrying two cocktail glasses in his hands. He stops right next to her, handing her a glass with clear liquid and an orange twist inside it before slipping an arm around her waist, sending a zing up her spine. What the hell did he think he was doing? She briefly considers shaking him off, before realizing that he was holding her this way for Nicasia’s benefit. After all, she was his pretend girlfriend for the night.

“Nicasia! How lovely to bump into you!” His smile is just as fake as Jude’s had been and that fact shouldn’t give her a moment of satisfaction but it did.

“Why hello there Car! Yes your mother invited me, wasn’t that sweet of her? And I was just talking to Judie over here, it’s been lovely seeing her again.” She brings a hand up to her neck and starts twirling a pearl necklace. “I didn’t realise you two were an item?”

Cardan holds her even tighter against him. “Well, what can I say, she swept me off my feet.” 

He turns his face to her and gives her a subtle wink before molding his expression into an excruciatingly sappy look of affection, the kind that only existed in extremely cheesy early 2000s Disney movies. Suppressing a smile she returns the look to the best of her abilities.

“Aww, Honey Bunch, you are too adorable!” 

Go big or go home, right?

Cardan has difficulty not breaking into laughter but he manages to hide the hysteric sound that leaves his mouth as a deep cough and if this charade went on for much longer she didn’t think she could resist cracking up either.

“Only for you, Kitten.” That almost undoes her.

Nicasia makes a low sound of disgust at their little act and barely bothers to make up an excuse for herself before stalking off, her stilettos clicking against the paved pathway. 

“Oh thank God she’s gone, I was afraid that we’d be regaled with ‘Nicasia’s Trials During Sea Travels, A Saga; Part II.’” He’s referring to her last conversation with Nicasia when she had dropped by the precinct to drop something off for him and had ended up spending almost half an hour recounting her issues with sea-sickness. By the end of that half hour Jude had felt like clawing her eyeballs out.

She can’t help but laugh at both his comment and the recollection of their ridiculous masquerade and he rewards her with a look of astonishment, before a slow smile spreads over his face, eyes unbearably soft. “There’s that laugh.”

He’s referring to their conversation at Fair Folk Inks when he’d accused her of being uptight. The recollection should prompt Jude to make a snappy retort, but instead she simply swallows against the sudden lump growing in her throat and her heart is beating quick enough for her to hear. What on Earth was going on? This entire night had felt strangely like being stuck in limbo, her and Cardan shedding their competitive workplace relationship for one that was a lot more informal, a lot more together.

She takes a sip of the forgotten Martini in her hand, trying to push her errant thoughts away. Before she can think of a way to defuse the situation, the tinkling sound of metal being struck against a glass rings out through the night air.

Unnoticed by her, an elderly gentleman in a midnight blue suit that contrasted heavily with his bright blonde hair and owlish bronze eyes had stepped up to the podium. In his ring clad hands he held a wine glass and a fork, explaining the sound that she had heard earlier. Standing a little behind him but at his side is Mrs. Greenbriar, gripping a re-filled glass of wine. There also appears to be someone else standing next to her on the ramp, but the crowd around it is so thick that Jude can’t quite make him out.

“And there’s good ole’ Dad.” Her date for the night doesn’t sound at all enthusiastic about the appearance of his sire at the podium. “Looks like he’s about to grace us with an Eldred speech.”

And indeed, the old man waits until everyone is paying attention to him before he sets down the fork and raises his full glass in the air as he speaks. “Ladies and Gentlemen, as I’m sure you all know; since otherwise all you blighters wouldn’t be here,” there’s a slight smattering of obligatory laughter, “Elfhame Enterprises has recently undergone a lawsuit, which we came out of with a resounding victory against the Seelie Corporation, as everyone knew we would. Nevertheless, let us raise our glasses in celebration and as a toast to many more years of victories and resounding successes!”

United, his entire audience dutifully raises their glasses in a toast and downs the contents, Jude herself takes the smallest of sips from her Martini out of respect, although the alcohol tastes more bitter than before. She had never been a huge fan of these big businesses that bribed and blackmailed and pocketed money for themselves at the cost of so many others and she’d been a detective for long enough to cement that dislike. Then, she makes the startling discovery that Cardan himself had not raised his glass, nor taken a sip, instead, the hand that clutched his drink was doing so so tightly that his knuckles had turned white. Before she has the time to question his surprising behaviour Eldred continues speaking. 

 “In regards to the many years to come for Elfhame Enterprises, well, as you all know I’m not as young as I once was, although I can definitely still party the way I used to,” more polite laughter,

“and it is very likely that I shall be retiring for good in a few years. Until that bittersweet moment arrives however, I am glad to announce that working right along beside me and learning the ropes will be my heir and the man to whom the running of my wonderful company will fall to...my beloved elder son, Dain Greenbriar!”

If a meteor had just flown across the sky and landed two feet away from her, Jude couldn’t have been more shocked than she was at that moment. Cardan had a brother.

She watches in slow motion as the previously hidden figure beside the now jubilant Mrs. Greenbriar steps forward to stand by his father. Unlike Cardan, Dain was the picture of his father, except 30 years younger. His blonde hair was light and shiny and his face was harsh and unforgiving, the angles seeming as sharp as a blade. His handsome but smug smile rubs Jude the wrong way, making her instantly dislike him. Next to her, Cardan wears a shield of uncaring resignation, but whilst she watches him watching his family, there’s an underlying sadness seeping from his countenance and she knows him well enough to detect it.

Jude had always taken Cardan at surface level, he was rich, came from a wealthy family with high connections and lots of influence and he was also a playboy. To her, that meant he had been given an easy life, one where he never had to work hard for anything and got a free pass into doing whatever he liked, so very different from the life that she had lived with her struggling single mother after her father had passed away during an accident at his forge. And now it looked like her disdain for his background had been unfounded. His mother seemed to only care about money and positions, his father was no better and from the self-satisfied grin on Dain’s face she could surmise that he was the golden child of the family, coveted by all and ‘overshadower’ of his younger brother.

The same younger brother whose existence his entire family and their friends seemed to have forgotten about. 

Enough was enough.

She deposits her Martini onto a passing tray and does the same with Cardan’s untouched one which she wrestles from his tight grip, before reaching out to take his hand in hers. He tilts his head and considers her for a moment before surrendering with a slight shrug, his usual debonair sucked out of him. 

“Come on, let’s get out of here.”  She drags him out through the entrance, not stopping to consider if any of the guests was watching them in the turmoil of congratulating Dain and his father.

The moment they’re out of the gates she stumbles into a nearby deserted alleyway, towing a bemused Cardan along with her. They come to a sudden stop right next to a streetlight, and unhesitatingly Jude plonks herself down onto the relatively clean looking sidewalk, with no regard for her new dress. 

“Sit.” She pats on an empty spot next to her.

Cardan raises an eyebrow at her, before giving in and seating himself in the place she’d indicated. Her heel clad legs stretch out next to his feet encased by fancy leather Oxford’s.

“Talk.” She silently encourages him with her eyes.

“I-” He starts, then stops. Struggling to meet her steady gaze he finally bows his head and forces himself to speak. “I suppose you could say that my family has never been the most loving,” understatement she thinks, “and ever since the day I was born I was nothing like my big brother, he talked; I watched, he walked; I crawled and it was always like that. He would excel at school, I used to run riot with my friends. I always knew that they loved him more.

“When it was time for me to find a job, I knew that I didn’t want anything to do with the corporate world, I’d seen what it did to my parents and my brother and I wanted nothing to do with it. So I decided I’d do the exact opposite. I’d try my hardest to fight for justice and go against everything that my family stood for, corruption, money and power. That’s why I became a cop, why I enrolled at the academy, why I used my father’s blood money to pay the fees, so I could give back to the community in even some small way. Needless to say, my parents weren’t very happy with that decision.”

His words hit Jude like a volley of arrows. She’d been so very, very wrong about the man sitting next to her. This man who fought so hard to escape his family’s legacy. Regret rushes through her and reaches out for his hand and squeezes it gently, the way he’d done to her earlier.

“Cardan, listen to me, what your family thinks about you doesn’t matter. I wish that you’d grown up with parents and a brother who loved and treasured you the way you deserved, but you know what? 

“I think you should be proud of who you are. Because everything that you’ve been through has made you who you are today; Cardan Greenbriar, a pretty smart cop - despite what I said earlier, it wasn’t true and I’m extremely sorry for it - and a partner who always keeps up with me and someone whom I wouldn’t hesitate to entrust my life to and the man who manages to charm everyone in the precinct with his magnetism.”

He’s squeezing her hand right back and his eyes are glistening suspiciously as they burn into hers. A shaky smile manifests at her last few words after which he looks down once again and mutters, “not everyone.”

“Huh?”

“Not everyone.” His voice is stronger now when he raises his head again, more combustible. “You said that I’ve charmed everyone at the precinct, but there’s one woman who appears to be immune, despite being the one woman that I’ve had feelings for for quite a while now…it’s you, Jude.”

She can hear the blood rushing in her ears as her heart thumps. He thought she was immune to him? So had she, she’d thought she hated him, but now she’s wondering if what she felt for him was so much more than hate. Yes, he had her hackles rising faster than anyone else did and his occasional arrogance was a never ending source of annoyance to her, but he was also the man who understood her when she was working overtime on a tough case, always bringing her coffee whenever she pulled an all-nighter, always making sure to inquire after her mother’s health, always making sure she had a safe way of getting home. So many times he’d helped her out in little little ways, disguising his kindness as him merely trying to get under her skin and now her oblivious self was finally starting to realize it.

He smells like pine and Cardan in the aftermath of his confession, and he’d called her Jude, not ‘Duarte’ and he had feelings for her and what she’s about to do next was something that she never dreamed that she would do before, and yet, it was somehow inevitable. She leans over and kisses him.  

His lips are so very soft, like a feather, and the moment they meet hers she bursts into flames. This kiss was unlike any that she had ever had before, It was a forge-fire hot conflagration and she didn’t care if it burned her. The flame that had always been there between them is stronger than ever and it felt as though all this time the ‘hate’ burning through them had been hiding a much more powerful passion beneath it.

He brings his hands up to her neck and gently tugs at the bobby pins holding up her hairdo. She barely notices as they skitter to the pavement, leaving her brown locks down for him to pull at. She does the same to him, carding her fingers through his thick curls, curls that felt as sleek as a puppy’s fur against her questing hands.

Panting, he pulls away first and she has to force herself not to follow his lips with hers. Slowly she opens her closed eyes and looks at him, so close now that she can see the slightest flecks of colour in his dark eyes as his breath stirs her loose hair. 

“Wow. That...wow,” he babbles, “I - we should date, that was, I mean-”

“Cardan?”

“Yes?”

“Shut up and kiss me.”

He does exactly that and later, when he asks her out, she has no answer for him but ‘yes’.

The End.

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

Liles, this fic was for you and I hope you enjoyed it. It’s been really fun getting to know more about you through our anon asks and answers and feel free to PM me anytime💕

Once again, I’m tagging: @cupcakesandkittens​ and @aelinfeyreeleven945tbln​

Please let me know (via ask or PM) if you’d like to be added to or taken off of my taglist!

[theriverpersonshadow]

Lamia Drama: Side Session (2)

Like I said, this got suuuuuper long. Also, I have no idea if I can even live up to the potential chaos I’ve set up XD

All the species belong to @vex-bittys

Previous | Next(?)

           Nikolai had been rather thorough in his consideration for the troublemaker of the night. It sounded like the entire gimmick was to be around pygmy’s natural playfulness, so might as well play it up. Their games might have had some darker tones and general swearing, but they could tone it down for one night; a child would be best. But not too young. They needed to at least be old enough to comprehend that they were playing a game of make believe and hadn’t actually become a dragon or whatever silliness was going to happen.    

           So Piper was perfect. One of the older children, but still very much a child by both human and lamia standards. Really there were many candidates, Piper just caught his eye first, possibly because he was easy to pick out. He’d developed a mostly harmless condition where he had patches of scales on some of his bones, most notable on the forehead and back of his skull. It tended to itch a bit, but a little bit of extra hygiene and some topical creams fixed that right up. The little one wasn’t quite old enough to start looking for a home yet – socialization with other younglings was important for development after all – but he would be fine spending a few hours away from the others.  

           Piper was curled around Nikolai’s left forearm, little hands clinging to the fabric and tail coiled tight as he stubbornly hung upside down, giggling and chirping as the world went by. He was still small enough that falling wouldn’t actually hurt him even if he hit the floor.

           Nikolai stopped in front of the door, looking down at Piper, “Remember how the game goes?”

           Piper nodded, “I the boss!”

           Keith had decided that Piper would be a sort of Co-DM. It was going to be an interesting session…

           “Keith – the Chain – is also the boss. And remember, it’s all pretend, but pretend how you want.”

           “I knoooowwsss! Not a hatchling!” Piper huffed, pouting and glaring at Nikolai.

           Nikolai chuckled, “No, no you’re not.” He mentally added, but you’re not much older. “Tell me if it gets to be too much, okay?” He’d be keeping an eye out anyways – overstimulating a pygmy was harder than it might be with other breeds, but not impossible.

           “It won’t!” Piper chirped. “Go in now!” He was pawing at the underside of Nikolai’s arm, wiggling restlessly.        

           “Alright, alright,” Nikolai said, opening the door to the break room. Everyone else had already taken their seats, snacks and drinks at the ready. It looked like someone had already set out a cup of Chai tea for him. “Why thank you,” he said has he settled into his spot, setting Piper down to wander the table.

           Piper immediately went for Nikolai’s mug, curling around it and peaking inside. Before Nikolai could stop him, Piper stuck his tongue into it and hissed, darting away.

           “BIT ME!” Piper cried, glaring at the offending mug from behind his hiding place… which was ironically Alex’s cup of tea – green and hibiscus instead of chai.

           Nikolai sighed, reaching out to give Piper a few little pets, “It’s chai tea. I could’ve told you you might not like it. It’s spicy, bitter, and still hot.”

           “Why?” Piper said.

           “Um… because it has spices?” Nikolai said.

           “Why drink?”

           “Because I like it,” Nikolai said.

           “No,” Piper said, crossing his arms. He was now holding Alex’s drink hostage instead, but had the good sense to not dunk his tongue in immediately. “Lady’s smarter. Smells good!”

           “Aaaaw, thanks. That’d be the hibiscus. Gives it kinda a fruity flavor. Not sure if you’d want this either though. I don’t put sugar in it… And you might be a little young for caffeine at all, honestly?” Alex said. “Geez… and I though Trousle was small! You’re so little!”

           “Mm hmm. I’m cute,” Piper said, rolling over to show the softer scales of his underbelly. Alex squeaked at the cuteness, gently stroking the softer tissue as Piper purred.

           Oozy huffed and leaned over, gently headbutting Alex’s other hand. Alex chuckled and started petting him too… And then Trousle looked over, and Keith was trying to pretend he wasn’t, but Nikolai could see his tail trying to sneakily capture Alex in a snuggle.  

           “… I don’t have enough hands for all these lamia,” Alex said. “Who designed humans? I have some questions for them.”

           “Me too! You need more hands! For more cuddles! But you’re very warm, I like it!” Trousle said, slithering over to lay beside her arm.

           “You guys are so desperate,” Hux said with a deadpan expression. “It’s fu…” He looked over at Nikolai, who was giving him a death glare, hood fully spread and tail coiled, “…uuuuuuppernuttering embarrassing.”

           Piper laughed and, as children do, immediately chirped, “Fuppernutter!”

           “Fuppernutter,” Alex echoed.

           “What is a fuppernutter?” Trousle said, head tilted in honest confusion.  

Oozy said, “Is it related to peanut butter?”

           “Maybe it’s cousins with flutters or shutters,” Keith said.

           “Does it give nuts to fuppers?” Alex said.

           “I think I’m having a stroke,” Hux said, looking desperately to Nikolai.

           Nikolai smirked, leaning with his elbows against the table. “You brought this on yourself, now deal with it, you fuppernutter.”

           Hux let out a loud grown. “Whyyyyy… Ugh. Aren’t we here to, like, game? Let’s do that. Please.”

           Keith nodded, “Yeah, guess we are. Alright, let’s see the insanity! And remember, keep it clean.” He gestured to the kid. “Let’s start with… hmm… Nikolai?”

           Nikolai straightened up and pulled out the character sheet, “A level 10 sorcerer who believes magic isn’t real. I’ve named him… Steve.”

           “Steve?” Keith said, clearly trying to hold back a laugh. “Oh boy- heh… Why the heck is that funny? Oh my gosh.” He snickered into his hand as Nikolai rolled his eyes. It wasn’t that funny.

           “Alright. So we’ve got Steve. Hux?”

           “Eh… I figured I’d go rogue and go Rogue this time. Level 20 changeling thief!”

           “Branching out a little, eh? Sounds like fun!” Keith said, apparently not caring about the lack of name or any background info.

           Hux was going to steal absolutely everything from everyone, wasn’t he?

           “Alright, Trousle?”

           Trousle grinned and quickly sent something to Keith, notified by a little ring. Keith’s eyes scanned it, nodding along, then grew wider, then he started laughing, “Dude. I know it’s dungeons and dragons, but… Oh man. I love it.”

           “What?” Hux said. “C’mon, tell us!”

           Trousle had a proud grin as he typed, “I’m a level 14 half dragon, dragonborn weredragon monk taking path of the ascendant dragon.”

           “That is so much dragon,” Alex said. “I think he wins. He’s the dragon in Dungeons and Dragons. It’s him. He’s all the dragons.”

           “I don’t know if that’s legal, but I kind of hope it is,” Nikolai said.

           “The monk subclass is in playtesting still, and weredragons are from 2e. So very much no, but it’s a one shot and I do not care.” Trousle had his little arms on his hips as the voice app finished speaking for him.

           “Oh man. This is, oh boy,” Keith said.

           Piper was looking at Trousle in awe, “You’re dragon?!”

           Trousle shook his head, typing, “Not really. But my character is!”

           Piper nodded. “I pretend dragon too! RAAAAWR!!!!” He slithered over to Trousle and play-tackled him, chirping and giggling as Trousle snaked around the table in a little game of chase.

           While that was going on, Keith continued, “Alex? What about you?”

           “I’ve been meaning to try cleric, but, well… Personal issues, I guess. But hey, tricksters are awesome, so I’mma trickster cleric! Sounds like some fun little bit of chaos chaos,” she said. “Maybe I should’ve gone higher level… I’m only level 10.”

           “Nooooob,” Hux said, tail end twitching.

           “Nooooooooom!!!” Piper said. He’d managed to capture Trousle, getting a sort of impromptu piggy back ride on the other lamia. Trousle seemed more confused than distressed about this occurrence.

           “And… Oh boy. Do I even wanna know, Oozy?” Keith said.

           Oozy got a shit-eating grin as he passed a paper forward. “Memelord.”

           “A what?”

           “Found it online.”

           “… Oh thor have mercy…” Keith said.

           “Level 20.”

           “Why did I let you just make whatever.”

           “Because it’s hilarious.”

           “You’re never playing this again.”

           “That’s fine.”

           “You can pickpocket Anubis mid-combat.”

           “Yeeeep,” Oozy said. “It’s great, ain’t it?

           “You’re proficient in all the saving throws.”

           “You should know better than to tell me to go nuts.”

           “Whyyyyyy” Keith hissed, rubbing away an anatomically impossible headache.

           “Because it’s hiss-terical.” Oozy laughed out loud, and Kieth was trying to hide it, but he was joining in.

           “I’m never doing this again,” Keith said, blatantly lying as he did every single time he more or less told them to be as ridiculous as possible for a noncanon oneshot.

           “Yeah you are,” Hux said. “’cause you looooove us or something. Ya dork.”

           “Heh, could say the same about you.”

           “Nope. My soul’s just ice.”

           “Ice soul?” Piper said, looking up from the captive Trousle. “Doctor’s here! Tha’s bad! Gotta get you warmed! Get the fire!”

           “No. No fire,” Nikolai said. “He’s just being himself.”

           “Hmm… okay! We play now? I’m the highest! Level 40!” Piper chirped. “I win all the things! ‘Cause I’m the dragon! Or the dungeon!” He was lightly bouncing in place, hands outstretched.

           “Heh, there’s not really a win to this game… It’s just about having fun and playing pretend,” Keith said. “C’mon, I’ll let you on my side of the screen.” He gently scooped up Piper and draped him around his neck.

           “I have the tall!” Piper yelled. “FEAR ME!”

           “Oh nooooo!”

           “Alright here we go…”

Memelord is a joke class I found online.

I’m actually using Path of the Ascendant Dragon in a campaign! Or I’m planning to, haven’t started yet.