#it’s like dream was sitting on his throne one day and went hm.

[bludpudding]

morpheus getting mad at the corinthian for having individualistic thoughts and emotions and ambitions is batshit considering he was the one who gave corinthian the ability to consume human emotions in the first place. WHY even give him that power unless you wanted him to do it in the first place. bitch

[hummingbird-of-light]

Against All Odds

Part 123

McCoy

“What did Khan say to Robbie?” McCoy asked.

They were in the quiet of the back of the library. He trailed his fingers across the spines of a few books.

“He asked him to be student representative.”

McCoy turned back to look at Scotty when he heard the vehemence he spat the words with.

“He’s up to something and I don’t know what.”

McCoy heard the fear behind those words. He grabbed Scotty’s hand and pulled him close.

“Would Robbie be good at it?”

“He’d be excellent,” Scotty said proudly.

“Then maybe it’s for the best, even if it came from Khan,” McCoy said softly.

Scotty leaned into him.

“Maybe.”

McCoy saw a book on the shelf behind Scotty and reached for it.

“Here. This one,” he said and handed it to Scotty. “That’s my favorite.”

“Why…?”

“Keep up the cover right?” McCoy grinned. “You asked for help looking for a book. Job done.”

Scotty looked at him funny then laughed. McCoy went to sit at the end of the bookshelf and Scotty joined him. The library was already a nice place, but it was quickly becoming McCoy’s favorite place.

“I miss home,” he started. “I had a place out in the woods. It was mine. I’d go there to get away from everything. Just me and a book most times. Hours I’d spend there. Sometimes just watching the clouds float by. I could forget everything about the expectations on me.”

He looked over and saw Scotty watching him intently.

“This is beginning to feel like my grove. Right here in the middle of the school. With you.”

He leaned over and kissed Scotty.

“Someday I’ll show you my clearing in the woods,” McCoy said when they pulled back. “We can have a whole day to ourselves. Just us and the clouds. No worries about anything else.”

He rested his head on Scotty’s shoulder as Scotty’s arm went around him. The thought of showing Scotty his private place at home made him smile. Even Leah didn’t know where it was. A whole day somewhere with Scotty away from prying eyes… McCoy sighed. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?

“This morning was great,” he whispered.

“Aye,” Scotty agreed.

“I…” McCoy started. He swallowed.

“What is it love?”

McCoy felt his heart skip at the endearment.

“I wish we had somewhere private here. That we didn’t have to rely on stolen moments in public places.”

“Aye,” Scotty said and nodded.

McCoy felt the movement from his place on Scotty’s shoulder.

Part 124

Scotty

It was fascinating. There was something about Leonard that soothed his inner anxiety. When he was around him he felt calm and happy.

Especially when they sat close together. Maybe it was the touch of Leonard’s hand. Or the sound of his voice. Or the wonderful smell.

He couldn’t tell what it was. All he knew was that he loved it. And that he never wanted it to stop.

When Leonard told him about his favorite secret place at home, Scotty couldn’t help but smile dreamily.

A special day. Just for the two of them. Somewhere only they knew. For no one else to see. It sounded so beautiful.

But maybe that was just it. It was just a dream.

Would it really be possible? Maybe… if they really ran away together.

“When… I heard ye talking to Leah the other night…” Would he really say it? Would he actually ask that question?

“Hm?”

Leonard looked up to face him. There was a gentle smile on his lips.

“Ye… ye said that… ye’d run away to be with me. Or… that ye’d abdicate the throne… Did ye actually mean that?”

He blushed heavily and looked down to the ground, avoiding eye contact. Scotty didn’t dare to look at Leonard’s face. What would it tell him?

Was Leonard serious about it? Or was it just something he had said while being emotional?

And if so… how would Scotty feel about either of these options? He just didn’t know.

On the one hand, he wanted nothing more than to leave this all behind with Leonard at his side. But on the other hand, he knew that it would cause a riot all across the universe.

People would search for them. And if they found them… what would they do? Would Leonard be forced to go back? To take his place as heir to King David?

“Scotty…”

He heard Leonard’s voice. But he couldn’t quite read it. It sounded like a sigh.

Scotty’s heart skipped a beat. But it quickly fell back into a familiar nice rhythm when Leonard grabbed his hand and held it.

He dared to look up and saw Leonard giving him a crooked smile.

“Scotty, I…”

What? What did he want to say? What was his answer?

[serena-hart-09]

"Remember Me"

A/N: Soooooooo yeah...... I AM BACK!!!!!✨✨✨✨✨✨✨ (Also, kinda not.... due to my admission process and stuff....... *concerned for future*)

Also, I going to focus on my Fics for a while like a finally making the OCs that I will be putting them into Verklig (other than Meera) Also, I will be keeping the Replaced MC Au on hold for sometime due to personal reasons also because I feel that without Verklig I don't think the plot that happens in the later chapters in the Replaced Au fic, will make sense. Since there are many characters that may end up appearing in the same.

Also, you can check out the Book of Memories for more "side information" that may help you understand some plot points. (Dw it's just extra information)

Any suggestions are always welcome!

Anyways, Happy reading!

As always, Have a great day ahead!

TW: Dreams ; Nightmares ; Death of Major Character ; Murder ; Betrayal. (If I have anything please tell me!)

Extra: Characters from other Fics ; Mention of "Books"

Pairing: Lucifer X Meera (F!OC)

Next

Prologue

“Really now? You think that would scare me?”

“I love you.”

“So adorable.”

“Don’t think that I did not notice that, human.”

“You are my only one.”

“Do you think you can escape from me, puny human?”

“For me to have such a long life, but for you to turn into dust after just mere years….. it is unfair…….”

“You are the only one.”

“I would bring the universe to your feet, for you to stay with me.”

“Please no…… Not you…….”

*crack*

“Please anyone but you…..!”

*crack*

“Don’t leave me!”

*crack*

“I know that I am being selfish……”

*crack*

“But please…… please meet me again……..”

*crack*

“To be honest I don’t know for who am I fighting for anymore……..”

*splatter* *crack*

“I lost them all…….. Meera….”

*crack*

“Please don’t go….”

“Kidnap me away from here, Meera…..”

…….

…..

…

…….!

“Don’t worry-”

*squeak*

*break*

*craaaaaaack*

“I will always love you even in a different reality.”

*Break*

“Please”

…..

“Love me again, Meera.”

In the dead silence of the night, Lucifer wakes up in a panic.

He looks around his room for a moment and stays silent looking through the darkness to find an answer to the question in his mind.

This dream again?

He was getting annoyed, to be honest.

He has been dreaming the same thing since………. Belphie was set free…..

There are many things that he doesn’t understand.

Firstly, from the voice itself, he knows that it’s Lucifer himself in the dream saying all of these things.

Secondly, why are there sounds of glass breaking and blood splattering?

Thirdly, why is he professing his love for the human girl in the dream? It’s true that the demon of pride actually does love Meera…… but….

…..

Whatever, these are….. just dreams. Nothing else. They have no meaning.

Or that’s what Lucifer would like to think.

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

“Lucifer!!!!”

‘Oh no.’ the prideful demon thinks as he turns around to be met with the demon prince grinning from ear to ear.

“Diavolo. Good afternoon.”

“Good Afternoon to you too, my friend! Anyways, come with me I want to talk about something.”

“Oh? What would that-” before Lucifer could even finish his question, he was dragged to the Mausoleum at the speed of light.

“Alright! Here we are!”

“……”

“………”

“My lord?”

“Hm?”

“You wanted to talk?”

“Ah yes! Silly me! The truth is…” the young prince pauses for a bit, to sit down on a small bench, “I went to meet with Prorok the other day……”

“The Prophet?”

Diavolo lets out a sound of affirmation.

Lucifer had known of Prorok since the old and now resting Demon King had taken the throne. Prorok helped him to overthrow the then Demon King, with the help of his prophecies. Prorok lived far away from the urban part of the Devildom, he lived in a cave on a mountain. It had quite a nice view.

In fact, at some point, Lucifer himself had a chance to meet him. Unlike the ball of excitement that the prince was Prorok was more mature and polite. Weirdly, Prorok had a small smile while meeting the prideful demon. Lucifer found it unsettling….. as if the prophet knew something…….

….

Lucifer shakes his head lightly and looks at the demon in front of him.

“Well? Did he give you any prophecies?”

“He didn’t…… or rather he couldn’t.”

“What?”

“He was found dead this morning.”

“I- how- Why?”

“I told my men to check more into it.”

“…..”

“In their investigation, they stumbled upon….. a lot of things.”

“Hm…?”

Diavolo slowly gets up from his seat and looks at Lucifer with a small smile.

“I want to apologize to you for this.”

“Diavolo……?”

“But….. I feel that you will understand right? I am the prince, I need to survive as one. I need to do this…..”

A shiver ran down Lucifer’s spine. Something is not right. His guts are screaming at him to run, run away from this demon….. now. To go back to HOL and run away from here with his brothers and Meera.

Many a time, our intuition may be right. So, we should believe it right?

And so, he did as well.

Before Lucifer could turn around and run, he feels his body pierced by Diavolo’s sword.

“Wh……..Why……?”

“I am sorry…… No, I……. I need to do this, Lucifer……… or else……… you or…..”

Lucifer can’t hear his words as he feels his consciousness slip away.

Did….

Did he die?

…..No…..

He can’t…..

Not right now….

He can’t…… he still has his brothers to look after!

He still has……. So much to do!

?????????????????????????????????????????????????

????????????????????????????????????????????

?????????????????????????????????????

????????????????????????????

?????????????????????

???????????????

???????????

????????

??????

?????

???

??

?

‘Well, if it isn’t my “Failure”!’

The demon’s eyes shoot open at the sound of….. ‘someone’s’ voice.

“What….. Who are you? And what the hell do you mean by “Failure”? And more importantly, where the hell am I?” he looks around in the darkness to navigate a way out there….. to no avail.

‘Well, you can count yourself as lucky that you came here after dying.’

Lucifer's eyes widen at that, “Dying?! I am dead?!”

‘Yes. Yes, you are.’ He ignores Lucifer’s confused and worried voices and continues, ‘Anyways, to answer your question, you are in the Hall of “Books”. Each book in this hall leads to sometimes yours or another Universe. You just need to “activate” these “books” and voila! You have finally entered into a different world!” Most of these haven’t “activated” in centuries with some exceptions…….’

“What does that have to do with anything?! I need to…… no I have to go back!”

‘Tch. Whatever, I am just trying to help your pathetic self, for your world, the universe, whatever, is known as “Verklig”. And, like others, it is also a “book”……. Technically….. it does function as one at least.’ The unknown figure sighs before continuing, ‘the place where you are now standing on, is where, all the “Mc”s would come, rather were pulled from their Universes and were to talk to their “Guardians”. They are meant to keep an eye on Diavolo and Michael in each universe. “Mc” is basically their “eye”. Anyways, you said you wanted to go back, right?’

“And what do you think was I screaming about the past couple of minutes?”

‘Well…. You can’t…… since you, Lucifer, have died and because you are not an “Mc” or “MC”. So, you can’t return.’

“?!”

‘But,’ the unknown figures pause, ‘You can return. Only if I become your “Guardian”  and you, my “eye”……..’

“…….. There is a hidden agenda here…… Tell me what exactly are you planning?”

‘Ah, hahahahhaahha- As expected of my “Failure”! Well, you are correct!’

“……”

‘I just want to possess your body for a moment or two in between. That is all.’

“…… Why may I ask?”

‘…….There are…….. many regrets that I carry, that I can…… well….remove if I can re-enter into the universe…..’

“And you can’t do it yourself?”

‘No, I am no longer a “character” in the universe. I have…….since then…. I have become a being that can’t be “recorded” anymore…….. thus, I can only manipulate some events in the “books” under “special” conditions but I can’t enter in there anymore…… I can only use an “eye” to enter.’

“And that’s where I come?”

‘Yes…… There you have it. Are you now willing to accept our alliance now?’ even if the demon can’t see it he can still imagine a small smile appearing on the figure’s face.

“…..Yes but you can only possess my body at my permission alone........There are still many questions I want to ask…..”

‘I can teach you everything I know…… only if you accept our alliance now.’ The figure’s voice grows impatient and the demon could somehow feel the figure’s piercing stare.

“……Fine.”

‘Finally.’

More glass-shattering sounds are heard.

“But I think that I have a right to know your name, yes?”

‘Oh…….’

Suddenly the ground shatters as glass and Lucifer falls. After a moment a blue light appears and he feels himself fall into it. He suddenly hears the figure's voice again-

‘You may call me……’

A malicious smile in red appears next to him.

‘M.L.’   

End Notes: I hope you like this chapter!😊

Please Do Not Repost without Permission! (Reblogs are welcome!)

All the characters mentioned above belong to Shall We Date?: Obey Me!, NTT Solmare

[beeindaclouds]

C!DSMP become animals pt. 2 ˚ ° 𐐒𐐚 ° ˚

Pairings: C!Badboyhalo, P!C!Skeppy, C!Quackity, C!Karl Jacobs, C!Nihachu, C!Eret, C!Foolish Gamers × Reader

Part One || Request are open

❝ C!Badboyhalo & C!Platonic!Skeppy ❞

You left Bad with Skeppy, cause they needed their "super-best-friend-moment"

And came back to two talking fluffy dogs arguing while running around the big mansion

They tried, highlight on the "tried", to explain what had happened but you gave up half way through since they were continuously blaming each other

It took a while to calm them down

It didn't stop them completely tho

Every time Bad would be happily cuddling with you Skeppy would try to make him jealous by asking you for pats

And this went on the whole day, oh boy

You had to beg Puffy to find a solution for these two before you actually went crazy

Thank god she came to the rescue and you had your boyfriend and best friend back

❝ C!Quackity ❞

"Quackity from Las Nevadas has become a duck"

"Hm?!?"

Your dear good 'ol friend Slime came by to drop you the news

And then showed you the small yellow angry duck with a cut on his left eye

Yeah, you didn't contain yourself and hugged the living duck out of him

Sorry, I had to

Since Slime didn't know what to do or how to take care of him, Quackity told him to leave it to you

So here you are, walking around with a duckie in your arms

You never let him go, you took him everywhere that day

Except the bathroom, of course

He didn't seem to mind

He was actually enjoying passing some time with you since Las Nevadas always kept him busy

It was a nice break for him

And he also got lots of kisses, so he was very satisfied

❝ Karl Jacobs ❞

You had to make sure you weren't dreaming

It's not everyday that you see a talking frog

Did you become a Disney princess?

No, no you didn't.

Sapnap had to explain that Karl had previously gave him the wrong potion that turned him into a panda and, since Karl felt bad, he drank the potion too

Not the smartes move but he was having the time of his life

He did accidentally jump on your face while you were sleeping and profusely apologized, which was adorable

We definitely do not need to talk about the fact that he ate a fly in front of you

When the next day came and the potion didn't wear off, you jokingly gave him a "true loves kiss"

It worked

He got very shy and giggly after that

❝ C!Nihachu ❞

You two found a potion from an unknown village nearby

Niki volunteered to try it out

And now she's a cute pink bunny

While going back to your home a lot of people stopped you to pat Niki

You had to explain what happened many many times

But other than that it was a pretty chill day

Watching little bun Niki trying to hold and eat carrots has definitely become your favourite way to pass the time

But it didn't take long for her to turn back

❝ C!Eret ❞

It wasn't common for Eret to sometime ask to be brought differeret creatures at the castle

At this point nothing fazed you

So when the lion that was sitting on your partner's throne talked, you didn't question it

"Didn't know talking lion was a thing, wow"

"Honey, it's me"

Yes the lion was your partner

Seemed like someone was trying to poison him but it didn't work the way they wanted

Nothing much changed, you had a lot of fun playing and patting the lion like it was a cat

The maids that passed by did look at you weird and definitely questioned your sanity, not knowing that the lion was actually their king

❝ C!FoolishGamers ❞

"Foolish! Why's there a shark tank here?"

"lOOK AT ME Y/N! I'M A SHARK"

He.was.overjoyed, to say the least

Even though the tank he was in wasn't really the biggest, he was enjoying frantically swimming around

You did have to transfer him to the sea later on cause the tank almost broke

You two even swam togheter in the ocean

He liked cricling around you for some reason

Looked a lot like a shark with a dolphin's personality

Unfortunately he turned back a few hours later, almost drowning in the process since he swam pretty low

He then explained that he didn't know what had happened, he just woke up like this

[euphoriyoongi]

Yoongi Historical au/ Royalty au

prompt requested: number 7:

I’m secretly in love with you but you never seemed to give me the time of day but you all of a sudden tell me you love me and my only thought was to make out with you.

Summary:

As the daughter of the military director, you’ve always had a liking towards the crown prince, Yoongi. Now, many years later, as your secretly in love with him, he’s secretly in love with you.

Pairing: prince!yoongi x reader

Word Count: 2.3k

Genre: royalty! au, historical au, friends to lovers

Warnings: none.

_________________________________________________

Joseon Era.

As a child, you dreamed to marry Yoongi. Too bad he was way out of your league.

Not look wise, but rank wise.

He was the only son of the king, heir to the throne. Now you were decently high up as well, being the daughter of the military head, but not even close to being able to even dream about him.

You didn't have a chance. Not even a thought. It's not like he would even like you back anyway, given how he was never one to look into your eyes when you'd speak to him, as if talking to you wasn't important anyway.

As you both aged together, you've noticed him always walk around the palace without any guards, always sneaking around to be alone. He'd never want any attention drawn to him, and if you would wave your hand to say hi, well, chances are that he would walk right past you.

It was hard, as the years flew by and you were still left with the heart wrenching feeling of a one-sided love. It was long enough to call it that, since you have been into him since you laid eyes on him.

Your father and the king were very good friends, and would often bring you to visit him whenever they'd have something to chat about. So you would sit off the the side with Yoongi, who never seemed to be able to replace the frown on his face with a smile.

The only time you had ever seen a smile on his face was when you saw him out of the corner of your eye, only for him to drop it as soon as you turned towards him.

Now in your mid twenties, your father is begging you to marry. You are at the age where you should have at least two kids now. For you to be single and constantly training to become a good fighter just like your father was, you didn't believe you had time for children. And anyway, ever since you turned fifteen to now, you used the excuse that you wished to marry when you met the one.

Your father now tried to bring up the conversation of marriage at this moment, and you stood pin straight, facing the target ahead of you with a bow and arrow in hand, ready to shoot. "But y/n, you really have to think about how important it is. You'll be thirty years old in no time!" He exclaimed, and as he slammed his foot down in irritation, you let the bow slide through your fingers, releasing it only for it to hit the corner of the target.

Groaning, you drop the bow to your side. "Father, I have more important things to be doing." You hummed, giving him the side eye as he stared at you with worry. You reached up to dry a patch of sweat on your forehead.

You used to tell him how much you wanted to marry the prince as a kid, but now it seemed too childish to use as an excuse. She knew she would never be able to marry him anyway, since he probably would have to be married to someone specific.

Yoongi was quite the character. He rarely spoke, but always wanted to leave the palace and go into the town, where his friends would live. He had a select few, and would also run into you as you went on errands.

Whenever he'd spot you, either in the palace or town, he'd stare at you for a moment and look away, almost telling himself not to even pay attention to you. It always made you upset, making you wonder why he would never pay attention to you. It's not like he didn't know you.

You lived your whole life pining over him. From the way he slightly dragged his feet across the dirt, to the way he would always wear a large hat to hide his face whenever he'd leave the palace, you loved him. He was the person you wished to marry even after all these years.

It seemed childish, yes. But if you were to marry and bear children, it would have to be to him. And if it wasn't him, well, it was no one. But your dad didn't need to know that information. "Listen, father, I will marry when I find the one." You said to him, lifting up your bow to shoot another arrow. "Just give me time."

He seemed to understand that you were trying to focus, and stepped back a few feet. Hearing him sigh, you gave him a side eye. "Okay okay. I'm sorry. I just want the best for you." He smiled, giving you a little bow in respect. "I'm off to meet the king for lunch. If you would like to pay your regards to him, let me know."

The arrow slipped through your hand again, now completely missing the target board all together. "Will the prince be there?" You didn't mean to ask this, but you couldn't help it. You haven't seen Yoongi for weeks, and you wished to see his beautiful face again. Would it be so vain to just..use the king as an excuse to see him?

Now, the king loved you. He wished Yoongi was as dedicated as you were, and always asked to see you when your father would visit. You had wished that he would ask you to marry his son, but knowing that it would make no impact with the kingdom, it was out of the question. He was probably just happy with his son having a friend of sorts.

Your father let a smirk reach his lips. "Hm. I'm sure he would be, if he's not galavanting in the village or anything."

Maybe she should stop by to greet the king. "I'll come with you." You said, smiling without paying attention. "I'm sure he'd be happy to see me."

Your father laughed. "I'm sure someone else would be happier."

"Greetings, your majesty." You bowed along side of your father as you stood in front of the king, who was sitting under the pavilion.

Smiling, the king beckoned you both to come under the shade of the pavilion.

Sitting next to him was Yoongi, who looked bored out of his mind. His gaze didn't even reach you, and you looked away from him and back to the king as you walked up the stairs. So much for coming here to see him.

The meal went on, your dad chatting with the king and talking about marriage. You pretty much tuned the whole thing out, given that you say next to Yoongi, who scooted over in the opposite direction of you.

Ouch. Now you knew you really didn't have a chance with him.

"I'm surprised you're sitting down with us, my son." The king bellowed, smiling at Yoongi who sat to his right, you sitting next to Yoongi. He huffed and picked up his utensils to start eating. "Usually you're out in the village—undercover I hope."

Yoongi hummed, not even answering with a word, and continued to eat, and the king brought his attention elsewhere. He faced your dad, smiling. "So, I'm surprised your daughter isn't married yet! My my, what a beauty."

You glanced over to Yoongi, who still stared down at his food. "Yeah, she has a few men lined up to marry her." Your father laughed, making the king chuckle as well. Yoongi finally looked up when he heard those words, now paying full attention to the conversation as he gripped his silk gown tightly in his fist.

"Oh I always wondered why a beautiful girl like her was still unwed." The king smiled over at you, and glanced at his son, who seemed to turn a bit red. "Im sure the wedding will be soon then, eh?"

Your dad hummed as he drank some rice wine. "Ah, yes. Whoever is her husband is sure one lucky guy."

"Why would be be lucky?" Yoongi scoffed, sipping his drink. "She's not even that pretty."

Silence. You nearly dropped your cup as he said this, staring at him with wide eyes.

Your dad cleared his throat and set down his cup. "Well at least you spoke today. I haven't heard your voice in ages..." he carried off, seeming offended by Yoongi's choice of words that were against his beloved daughter.

The king glared at his son. "Yoongi, that is no way to talk to our guests." He then looked over at you, noticing your dumbstruck look. "Please forgive him, he doesn't really socialize well."

Yoongi scoffed again, now slamming his cup against the table. "Why are you guys even pestering her about marriage, anyway? She has no chance with anyone other than—" he cut himself off, looking at you with a solemn expression out of all of his anger. When he noticed your eyes droop away from him and down the the table, he sighed and didn't finish what he was going to say.

Everyone was quiet. The sudden outburst from Yoongi put everyone off, even his father. As Yoongi glanced from your dad to you, you had enough of this degrading. Even though he was the one you dreamed to be with, it wasn't right for him to say those things about you.

You stood up and bowed. "I will take my leave." You said, looking to the king and to your father. "Thank you, your majesty."

He signaled oh that it was okay to leave, and you nearly ran down the steps as if to get away from the embarrassment. How did you not know that Yoongi felt so strongly for you in the most opposite way you wanted? What was the reason for him to hate you—

"Y/n!" You heard a voice yell behind you, the smack of footsteps getting louder and louder. You had stopped in your tracks, standing next to your favorite tree in the palace, the beautiful cherry blossom.

It was Yoongi behind you. He had reached you, now bent over and out of breath as if he just ran a mile. "Ah, you're fast."

You turned around with your arms across your chest. "What do you want?" You looked at him in the eye, and he stared back, nearly begging for forgiveness.

He sighed, kicking a rock that was near his feet. "I uh..." he carried off, now not being able to look at you.

No matter how mean he was to you, he always looked stunningly beautiful. His long dark hair was pulled up, his silky gown matching his hair. He had quite the scar across his cheek, but it made him more attractive in her eyes. As he stumbled on his words, you took the chance to speak. “Listen, your highness, I don’t what to hear your explanation.” You seethe, upset about how he feels towards you. “I don’t know what you were trying to say back there, but I got the message. Clearly.” You growled, turning away from him as you kept your tears in check.

Yoongi reached his arm out to touch your shoulder, making you jump. “What? What are you doing?” You asked, looking down at the ground once again, seeing the rock that he kicked was now near your feet.

“I just…” he carried off again, unable to speak the words on his mind.

You needed to get out of here before the tears began to fall. You were the daughter of the military head, how dare you cry over a boy. At least that’s what you tell yourself. You turned around quickly. “No, your highness, I’m not going to stand here and listen to how ugly I am. How I’m never going to be married because of my looks, how I—“

“I love you.” He sputtered out, looking anywhere but your eyes. “I’ve loved you since you taught me how to sword fight…and when you told me my scar was beautiful..” he carried on, now looking into your eyes with a small smile on his lips. “I didn’t mean any of that stuff back there, I was just upset to picture you..getting married to someone else.”

You were shocked. You stood there, your eyes wide open, standing in front of the man you always wished had feelings for you. And now he’s spilling his guts about how he loved you and—well, what the hell?

He stared into your eyes with worry. You weren’t saying anything back, and just when he was going to say something else, you leaned forward and let your lips touch his, out in the open courtyard for anyone to see.

You kissed him with all of the emotions you held back for as long as you could remember, and it startled him. He didn’t kiss back immediately, but as you pushed your body into his and gripped the back of his head to deepen it, he pushed his face towards you and grabbed onto your hips, pulling them flush against his.

His lips tasted like the cherry blossom tea that he drank, and his hands felt like ecstasy as they nearly tore through your clothing. His touch was like a drug you so desperately needed, and the taste of him made you feel even higher.

All that time you dreamed of kissing him could never live up to this moment, and when you pulled away, your hands still cradling his face, his still resting on your hips, he stared into your eyes and began to chuckle. You laughed back, resting your forehead on his.

“So,” he trailed on, his smile visible. “I’ll take that as an I love you too..?”

[syndxlla]

More To Love

Part two of the More to Love series

Summary: As you start adapting to Mandalorian culture and life in the palace, you have to start thinking whether or not you’ve made the right decision.

Word Count: 6.2k, NO USE OF ‘Y/N’

Warnings: Non-Consensual kiss, mentions of loss of pregnancy

Author’s Note: Wow wow wow, the support I’ve gotten for this fic already has been so awesome thank you so much especially to the people who have direct messaged me you’re all so kind I love you guys!!!!

Part One here

“Good-morning, Your Highness.” A Handmaiden said as she pulled open the heavy curtains, letting the bright morning light shine into your elegant room. You softly moan as the sun hits your eyes, and roll onto your side to try and sleep more. “Today you will be having brunch with Her Majesty the Queen and a few members of her court and we have set aside a bit of time for you and The Prince to get to each other this evening before dinner in the library.” Her accent was thick like the Prince’s. You sigh and roll around onto your back, letting your limp hand rest by your face. “I trust you slept well?” She asked as she walked towards your bed, in her hands was a golden tray with a teapot on it.

“Not enough sleep.” You groan, trying not to sound annoyed but failing.

“Would you like to sleep longer, Highness?” She asked.

“No, I’ll be fine.” You sigh before scooting to sit up in your bed, and she places the tray on the table by the mattress.

“I wasn’t sure what type of tea you liked, so I brought a chamomile, do you have a preference?”

You stop to think for a moment, “Chamomile is fine for today, but do you have any hsuaberry tea?” Hsuberries are native to Corellia, and you could use a little taste of home.

“I’m not sure, but I will check for tomorrow?”

“That would be lovely, thank you.” You nod.

“I’ll return in a half-hour with the other maiden’s to prepare you for the day then?”

“Alright… Miss?” You stop her as she turns to leave. “Do you have a name? What can I call you?”

“Oh… of course, Lady Soniee would be fine.” She smiles. “Thank you for asking.”

“It’s my pleasure.” You smile in return. “Lady Soniee, is my guard outside?” You ask.

“Yes, he returned to his post with my arrival, in the night we have the night guards patrolling so our individual day guards get some time off.” She explains.

“Would you… Would you send him in, please?” You ask.

“Yes, Highness. Is there anything else you would like?” Soniee asks.

“No, that’s all, thank you, dismissed.” You released her from her duty and she turned to leave the room. As her back was turned to you, you rub a bit of the sleep out of your eyes and run your fingers through your hair in an attempt to tame your bed head. You wanted to look presentable for the knight. Truthfully, you haven’t quit thinking about him since last night’s endeavor. You fell asleep picturing what he looked like under his armor, and brainstorming what his name might be. You even wondered if you dreamed about him, but it’s all gotten hazy now. You knew this was inappropriate, and that you were here for your wedding with another man, but something about the secret relationship the two of you were forming was exciting, you were addicted to it. You sigh deeply as she closes the door behind her and then quickly looks down at your nightgown, proceeding to pull the cap sleeves down your shoulders a bit to show more skin and more of your collar. You laugh slightly to yourself, “You are ridiculous.” You mumble, chuckling. Before you could consider anything else, however, he walked in, his stature at attention.

“Is there something wrong, Your Highness?” He asked.

You felt your cheeks heat up in his presence, “I just wanted to thank you again for last night.” You tried not to gush as you spoke.

“Oh… Yes, anything for you, your Highness.” He nodded in response. Your chest filled with warmth as you looked at him.

“You’ll be accompanying me today, correct?” You ask.

“Of Course, Your Highness.” He nodded once again, you really wanted him to call you princess again.

“Wonderful, I hope you slept well last night.”

“I did, Princess, did you?” You smiled a little too wide at the title, and tried to cool your cheeks, not wanting to look like an absolute child in front of him.

“Yes, I did, thank you once again, I’ll see you later.” You sigh in response. “Dismissed.” That word felt like poison to you, you didn’t really want him to leave but didn’t know how to keep him around longer. This was an accident waiting to happen, and you had the power to stop it in its tracks, the only problem is that you didn’t want to.

—

The Gardens were even more beautiful in the daylight, the sun shone spectacularly off the fountains and the various statues scattered throughout the estate contrasted lovely with the bright flowers. You sat at a round table ornately decorated with various different pastries, teas and sandwiches on it. Around the table was the Queen, the women of her royal court, yourself and of course the Elf. You really wanted to speak to the elf, unfortunately, you asat across from her, and was forced to mostly converse with The Duchess Wren and another woman you had never spoken to before. The Queen introduced her to you last night but you were having a hard time remembering her name. The women weren’t in such heavy gowns this time, and none of them wore the jeweled headpieces they had on the night before except for the queen. You wore a light beige and white dress which ruffled at the sleeves and had a scooping boat neckline. It was very beautiful, however the corset back didn’t go nearly as high this time as the last dress did, which meant you couldn’t use it as an excuse to spend more time alone with the silent knight. He stood a few feet behind you away from the table, watching over the event. Every now and then you would turn to glance at him, ceiling every time you laid eyes on his armor.

The tea was fine, not as good as the winter teas you had back home, they were far more bitter. Mandalorians clearly enjoyed more bitter-tasting food as you noticed the longer you’re here. Once again, you were being mostly ignored as the Women who knew each other talked about drama within the Mandalorian Royalty. It was all much more conspicuous than anything you would talk about at home, and you found yourself quietly listening in on the various conversations instead of applying yourself to them. The women most likely thought you were some sort of strange claude, not social enough and far too boring for their culture. Again, you tried convincing yourself that you were overthinking, but you had a hard time believing yourself.

“And what about you, Your Highness?” The Elf spoke up, interrupting your deep and self-centered thoughts.

“Huh?” You were not listening.

“What do you think about the conduct to come out of Coruscant?” One of the fatter women sitting by the queen asked.

“Oh… I think they’ve rather lost their integrity since the assassination of their Emperor…” You clear your throat. You were just saying what you remember hearing your father say, attempting to fit into the conversation and hopefully gain some affection, knowing how much Mandalore despised Coruscant (you were rather indifferent, however).

“Couldn’t have said it better myself.” The Queen smiled, “I believe you will be well suited for the politics of Mandalore.”

“Oh yes,” you began, “I had been preparing to be Queen of Corellia my whole life, I find politics rather exciting.” You admitted.

“Hm, I prefer to leave the politics to the men.” The fat woman scoffed and sipped her tea.

“I nearly forgot, you’re the only hair to the throne of Corellia, aren’t you?” The elven queen asks.

“Yes, I am.” You nod in response.

“Ah yes, your mother got sick and lost a baby-” The fat woman laughed. Your face dropped and went pale.

“Excuse you-” You began.

“Lady Aryn, have you no respect?” The Queen frowned.

“There’s nothing wrong with it, just a rumor I heard.” She shrugged, not seeming to care that she offended you or The Queen.

“Well it’s not a rumor.” You swallowed thickly, wanting to put her in per place for such an inappropriate comment, “My mother lost a baby when I was all but five and you have the audacity to bring it up like there’s nothing rude about it.” You spit out.

“Well who is to take the throne once you marry the Prince?” The fat woman asked as she sipped her tea. Many of the other women involved stayed quiet, timidly watching the drama play out.

“I don’t believe that is any of your business.” You chuckle out of frustration.

“It is my business, whomever rules Corellia during the impending war will directly affect how Mandalore responds to it. Considering my husband is the Grand General of the Mandalorian Army, it is very much my business.” Lady Aryn raised an eyebrow and dread washed over your body as she finished.

“I believe that your Cousin will be taking the throne?” The Elf Queen vouched for you and you were thankful she did, but still found the entire situation rude and out of hand.

“It should be me, but I’m being married off and getting my title stripped away from me.” You blurted out and immediately regretted what you said. You looked around at the faces of the women at the table. Each one showing a different expression of shock or betrayal, everyone but the Queen. The Queen’s face was stern, her lips dangerously straight and thin and her eyes dark as the two of you made eye contact. You had offended the Queen of Mandalore, you had offended the most powerful and wealthy monarch in the world. You sighed, and closed your eyes for a moment. “May I be excused, Your Majesty?” You asked with your eyes closed, waiting to open them until you finished speaking. You looked up at her through furrowed eyebrows, awaiting her response. The air was deathly thick, the tension grew as the court looked around at the scene. Your anger was justified, the remark on your unborn sibling was out of turn and incredibly rude, and after feeling ignored and unwanted for twenty-four hours by the very people set up to be your family, you snapped.

“You are excused.” The Queen said quietly, almost too quiet to hear, and you slowly stood from your chair before turning to leave. You looked to your knight as you did, and he followed. After you made distance between yourself and the other Mandalorian women, you could hear faint whispers. That went so much worse than you could have ever imagined. You want to disappear, you want to go home. You swallow a tear and sigh of relief when you get back into the Palace, strolling the halls until you found an empty sitting room. You sit down on one of the blue sofas and bring your fist up to your mouth. The Knight waited at the door, watching your every move. You felt ridiculous, and the absolute last thing you wanted to do was cry in front of the only person who’s shown you any decency since you arrived in Mandalore. You look over to him with dewey eyes before clearing your throat.

“I apologize for my conduct, I didn’t want you to see me like this.” You shakily sigh out. He didn’t reply, and you laugh once, “I suppose you have your code to uphold here.” You look down as you place your hands in your lap.

“No, I’ve sworn to protect you, that comes before the code of arms.” He takes a step forward and you were almost startled at his voice, you weren’t expecting him to speak up, but you were incredibly happy he did. You look up to see him a little closer, and smile just slightly at his gesture. “I didn’t protect you out there, I’m sorry.” He nodded his head.

“There’s no way you could have known,” You shrug, you didn’t want him to blame himself for your mistake, “Besides, I wasn’t in any danger.”

“Maybe you weren’t in any physical danger, but.. I really shouldn’t say this but that was out of hand. You’re family with the Queen now, she should have defended you.” He continued to step closer to you. “I deeply apologize for being so careless and allowing you to be hurt.” He bowed after saying this, and you smiled.

“Your apology is accepted, Sir Knight.” You slightly teased. “Thank you.” Your chest and stomach was filled with that warm and welcoming feeling again, and the negative endeavor from outside was forgotten even for just a moment. You knew you would have to face it eventually, and formally apologize to the Queen for offending her, but until then, you would allow yourself to feel okay for now. “You’ve been the kindest to me since I arrived.” You tilt your head, “You have no idea what it’s meant to me.”

“As I said, I vowed to be there for you, I will honor that vow.” He said, you didn’t want to feel like he was only being nice to you because he had to. You suck your lips in for a quick second as you absorb his response, unsure of how to respond. “But-” he interrupted your thinking, “It has truly been a pleasure to serve you, and I would be happy to undress you when you ask.”

Your eyes widened, “Excuse me?” It’s not that you didn’t like what you said, you just weren’t expecting it so casually.

“That- came out wrong, forgive me.” He corrected himself. “I mean, I’m happy to help you with anything you like.” He clears his throat and you smile, blushing at his sheepish correction.

“I understand.” You look down at the floor again. “I’m sorry they only give you the nights off.” You switched the topic, not wanting to linger on the last one in case someone was walking by or overheard anything.

“That’s fine, I... enjoy my time with you.” He stopped mid-sentence to consider what he was saying. You smile and laugh a little again.

“It must be tiring, wearing the armor all day, standing at attention, only getting a handful of breaks every few hours…” You think out loud.

“I’m used to it,” He shifts to his weight on one leg, lightly poppin his hip out as he speaks to you. “It’s not so bad, anymore.”

“Is the armor heavy?” You ask, trying to distract yourself.

“Yes, but that’s another thing we get used to. Our bodies adapt to it.”

“So… are you saying you’re strong under all that metal.” You raise and eyebrow, flirting just a little. You could hear a light chuckle come through the helmet when you said this.

“I guess you could say that.” It was like you could hear his smile.

“I’ve found that all Mandalorians are very attractive, do you fall under that assumption?” You knew very well you were playing with fire, that this was uncharted territory and everything was screaming at you to stop before you got too far but you couldn’t. Everything about him was so intriguing to you.

“I’m.. I’m not from Mandalore, actually…” He slowly responded.

“Oh?” You tilted your head, “I thought you had to be in order to be a part of the guard?”

“Well, in a way, you do. You have to be either born in or taken in as a foundling, and that’s what happened to me.” He shrugged.

“Oh, I didn’t know that.” You blinked, “Where are you from? Or can you not tell me…”

“The Nevarro frontier.” He responded, “I probably shouldn’t have told you that.” He groaned. You felt a shiver run down your spine at the sound of his rough voice groaning in such a way. You swallow your thoughts.

“You’re a long way from home.”

“I guess you could say that.” You smile at him again after he says this before turning and looking behind you, taking in the room. This was a larger sitting room, and there was a baby-grand piano in one of the corners. Outside of the windows you could see a courtyard, not the same courtyard that the garden is placed in, but one that was stoned and had a large tree in the center of it. There was so much of the palace you hadn’t seen yet, it was far larger than the Corellian one. You stood up to walk over to the piano, feeling a bit better now, and sitting at it. “Can you play?” He asked.

“Yes, I learned at a very young age.” You bring your hands up to keys and begin playing a song, one you have memorized. It was your mother’s favorite song. You played it with such emotion that the Knight was drawn into it, relaxing from his attentive stature and enjoying the sound.

“You’re... very talented.” He nodded.

“Thank you.” You said, looking up at him from the instrument. “I’m a bit rusty I must admit.” You shrug.

“I know someone who would really love it, no matter how rusty you say it is.” He explained.

“Who?” You ask as you stop playing, wondering who he may be talking about.

“I-I shouldn’t say, I’ve already broken the code so much-”

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, I fully understand.” You interrupt, “But just know that anything you say is safe with me, If you vowed to protect me from both physical and emotional harm, the least I can do is keep your secrets.” You nod. He sighs, you can’t hear it but you see it in the armor.

“My.. Uh, my son.”

—

“Soniee, do you know if any guards are fathers?” You ask as the handmaiden tightens the corset on a different dress, tying it to your body. You were preparing for some time alone (chaperoned) with the Prince. You knew you promised the Knight you would keep his secret, and you would do everything in your power to uphold that secrecy, but you figured there was no harm in asking a few questions here and there. As far as anyone is concerned, you’re just curious about the customs and traditions of your new kingdom.

“Well many of the Knights have families of their own, some have illegitimate children as well.” She said behind you.

“So, they don’t have an oath of celibacy?” You ask, hoping it didn’t sound too strange or specific.

“What? No,” She laughed as she said ‘no’, “No, marriage and families are incredibly important to Mandalorian society, the only thing stronger than power or war is love and family. Blood before anything else.” She explained, she had clearly said those words before.

“Maybe that’s why everyone is so cold towards me.” You sigh.

“Maybe.” Soniee confirmed, “But I also believe any new member of house Kyrze is going to be given a hard welcome.”

“And why is that?” You ask, wincing afterwards due to a tight pull of the corset.

“Well it’s taught in every Mandalorian history class: House Kyrze is the royal bloodline, but it wasn’t always that way…”

“What do you mean?”

“There was a civil war some years ago almost immediately after the assassination of Queen Satine. A bad man came in and tried to overthrow Queen Bo-Katan. He was successful in his endeavors for a while, and that's why the Elves and the Queen are so close-” The handmaiden explained.

“I never knew about a Mandalorian war that happened among themselves?”

“It’s shielded from the outside world, we fear that if it gets out, people will stop coming to us for their wars out of speculation that we are not strong enough to fight them if we can’t control each other.” She finished the corset and took a step back, admiring the beautiful dress. “Many Mandalorian’s blame Queen Bo-Katan for the civil war even though she gave up everything she believed in to protect the royal family. You see, she used to be on the side of the Bad Man, but switched after her sister’s death. Many see her unfit for the crown, including members of her own Court.” You didn’t need any more explanation from Soniee to assume who that might be. Considering your previous endeavor this morning, the fat woman probably did not approve of the queen.

“That is why it’s essential that this marriage happens. The people love Korkie, they always have. He is the true heir and the pride of his mother, who was revered and loved throughout all of the kingdoms. When he is back on the throne, not only will anyone who disapproves of Bo be silenced, but they will also see it as one of her many successes. Having to raise and prepare a child who isn’t even yours is not easy.” Soniee concluded.

Great, another weight to be placed on your shoulder based on your ability to fall in love.

“I had no Idea any of that happened.” Your eyebrows furrowed together.

“Personally, I believe that is why you’ve received such a harsh welcome, Korkie is the golden boy of Mandalore, and many will not see you fit for his wife.” You sighed, your belly filling with stress.

“Highness, the Prince is waiting for you in the library.” Your Royal Guard interrupts the conversation, and you smile at him.

“Thank you, Lady Soniee, you’ve been incredibly kind and helpful.”

“Of course, Princess. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask.” She curtsied and you walked out of a your suite into the hallway.

This dress was simpler than the last, a soft pink with embroidered flowers running up and down the smooth tulle and puffy sleeves. It was very beautiful, one you brought from Corellia that was gifted to you a few years ago. You wore pearls from Naboo, and had a soft look to your ensemble. You wanted to be perceived in a specific way by your fiancé, pure of heart, and genuine.

You open the doors to the hallway, and your guard is standing at attention.

“Would you escort me to the library?” You ask, smiling with your lips afterwards. He nods and holds his arm out for you to take, looping your own arms round his and walking down the hallway.

“You look very beautiful, your highness.” He said quietly through the metal, quiet enough that you were the only one who would hear it if anyone would be listening in. You got the lightest touch of goosebumps at his deep and gruff whisper in your ear.

“Thank you, do you think The Prince will like it?” You ask, looking up at his helmet with beady eyes.

“He would be a fool if he didn’t.” The Knight responded, and your stomach filled with butterflies. You blushed as you experienced the addictive feeling of his presence, and pulled him just a bit closer to you. The two of you walk in silence for the remainder of the journey to the beautiful library. This was a part of the palace that you had never been to before, and it was just as stunning as the rest of the castle. Books from all over the world in countless languages sat upon towering bookshelves that reached the tall ceiling. There was a large fireplace and in front of it was a number of red velvet armchairs and sofas. As you entered the quiet room, your eyes immediately found the Prince, who sat in one of the chairs reading a book, his head resting against his fist. You and the Knight walk towards him, and as you pull to unhook your harm, you feel him stretch his hand out to feel you for as long as possible before the contact breaks.

“Prince Korkie.” You curtsie, interrupting his reading. He looked up from the book and smiled, standing and bowing to kiss your hand once again.

“Your Highness, You look lovely.” After he compliments you, you turn to look at the guard, smiling.

“I hope you weren’t waiting for too long.” You as he takes your hand and guides you to sit on a sofa.

“Not at all.” He reassured, “Allow me to introduce you to Lord Vaughn, he will be chaperoning us today.” He gestured to a man sitting across from you.

“My pleasure, Princess.” He stood from his seat to bow.

“The library is beautiful, as is everything else in the palace.” You compliment.

“It’s less beautiful when it’s been your classroom growing up.” The Prince teased and you chuckle. “If you would like, please feel free to take any books at any time.” He nodded.

“Thank you, but I’ve never been very into reading.” You admit. “I much prefer music.”

“Ah yes, I play the viola, my mother taught me when I was a boy-“ Somehow he always made it about himself you noticed. You didn’t think he tried to, but conversations are rather boring when you’re just listening. He talked for nearly a half-hour about playing for the Queen of Naboo as a twelve year-old and being revered as a child prodigy for the early part of his life. You sat quietly as he bragged, telling the story to both you and the chaperone instead of keeping his focus on you. You even caught your mind wandering every now and then, glancing over to your knight to make a little face of boredom in an attempt to make him smile. You know you wouldn’t be able to see him if he had smiled, but the thought of it was enough to keep you occupied. After the Prince bragged about his viola skills for close to an hour, he finally asked what you played.

“Piano, actually. It’s my muse, if you will.” You smile, happy to have finally been included, although it was short lived. The prince then continued to talk about how the Queen could play piano but got sick of it after her sister died and hasn’t played in a very long time. He went on and on about it, and you were starting to wish you had picked up a book on your way in to pass the time.

“Allow me to show you to my favorite section of the library.” The Prince said, forcing you to snap out of your little trance as he held your hand out. You clearly hadn’t been listening for a while because you had no recollection of the previous situation, his voice was very tune-out-able. “I’ve asked the Chaperone and Knight to stay here while I do.” He smiled, and you take his hand, standing from the chair.

“Is that appropriate?” You ask.

“I’m the Prince, I can do what I want.” He shrugs and then proceeds to walk you towards a corner in the library. You look over your shoulder to the Knight one last time before you’re pulled around the corner. “This hall is where I would go when I was mad, isn’t it beautiful?” He asked.

“Yes, it is.” It had mostly desks and only a few bookshelves, but was covered in mirrors on both sides of the walls, showing an endless reflection of thousands of copies of yourself.

“I wanted to give you this, as an engagement present.” He held out a small box wrapped with a blue bow.

“Thank you…” You take the gift out of his hand.

“It was my mother’s.” He said as you untied the bow and opened the box. Inside was a beautiful necklace of a sapphire stone with a gold halo.

“It’s beautiful, thank you.” You held up the necklace to your eyes, watching how it sparkled in the light.

“May I put it on you?” He asked. You nod and hand him the jewelry. Turning around and pulling your hair to the side, you feel him hook the necklace, letting the heavy gem sit against your collarbone. You looked down at it.

“It’s incredibly beautiful, Prince Korkie.” You turn around and smile.

“Please, just Korkie.” He said before forcing a kiss on you, pushing his lips into yours forcefully and holding you in place. It startled you, you hadn’t expected this from him, especially considering how kind he had been before. This was your first kiss and was less than pleasant. You push him off you, and look at him in disbelief. You didn’t want to offend him, but couldn’t mask the look of shock and beytrayal from your face. Your stomach filled with regret, it was customary to not kiss one another until your wedding day, why had he broken that tradition? You felt as though it was your fault he forced himself onto you, and you swallowed back the feeling of anger and distrust. If anyone found out you had kissed him before the wedding, they would all blame you, regardless of who initiated the kiss. You both knew this.

“Excuse me…” You huff passed him, returning to the main room of the library and walked towards the door, you heard your Knight follow you close after, and in a fit of confusion and flusterment, you storm as fast as you can towards your room.

When you two got to a more private part of the palace, closer to the suite, you heard him speak up, “Princess, princess what’s wrong?” You hear your knight say, and before you can ignore him, you feel him grab your hand. It isn’t forceful and it doesn’t hurt, but he’s strong, he wouldn’t be letting you go unless he had to. You turn around to show a tear running down your cheek. “What did he do?” The Guard asked. You swallow thickly and try to look away, darting your eyes behind him, “Look at me.” He said.

“I can’t see your eyes.” You sniffle.

“Please, did he hurt you?” He took a step closer to you, your bodies almost flush against one another.

“We can’t do this here-“

“Did he hurt you?” The knight repeats himself, sterner this time.

You look at his helmet and sigh, “No.”

“Then why are you crying?”

“It doesn’t concern you.” You were embarrassed, and pull your hand away before walking away, trying to get to your room before bursting into tears. You heard him pick up his pace to catch up and then suddenly he was cutting you off with his body, firmly grabbing your shoulders.

“As your Royal Guard, it does concern me. I told you just this morning that I promised to protect you, and now you’ve gotten hurt twice because of my mistakes.” He said, startling you just a bit. No one had ever spoken to you this way, no one had ever shown that they care this much.

“It’s not your fault, really.” You reassure.

“But it is. What did he do to you?”

“It’s… I’m embarrassed. It’s silly and I’ll-“

“Nothing you say could ever be ‘silly’ to me.” He said, his voice hushing as he did, giving you those little goosebumps again.

You sigh, looking up at him and trying to get out your next sentence, “He-he kissed me. I wasn’t expecting it and he broke tradition and it was all so… so forced.” You admit, feeling as though he would blame you for the kiss.

“He what?”

“You’re really going to make me repeat myself?” You scoff and push passed him, you were almost to your room, if you could make it just a little further-

“He kissed you?” The knight asked.

“Yes. I told you it’s ridiculous but-“

“It’s… not. Ridiculous, that is. It’s not ridiculous. Did he ask if he could?”

“No…” You reply, “I didn’t think he had to.” You raise an eyebrow. “I just wasn't expecting such a stark betrayal of tradition and it startled me and if anyone else find out, they’ll all blame me-“

“He has no right to lay a single finger on you without your permission. He hurt you, and therefore I’ve failed at my job.” He interrupted you.

“Oh-“ You mutter, finally arriving at your door. He had done that without your consent, he had hurt you. The knight was right all along and you were stupid to not accept his help right away. You wipe a tear away from your cheek and open the door. You take a step in, and hold the door open for him to join you. “I have over an hour before dinner… I’ll have to see him again.” You swallow before closing the door.

“I’ll be there by your side, I won’t leave you again. I won’t let him hurt you like that ever again, I promise.” He was firm and confident with his words, giving you a little wave of relief as he spake them.

“Thank you.” You whipser. You take a deep breath and look at him, “You said he can’t do anything without my permission?”

“Yes. That’s how you protect yourself. Don’t give him power he doesn’t deserve.” The Knight explains.

You exhale sharply, “I had never been kissed before.” You admit, looking down at the floor. “It wasn’t what I expected, to say the least.”

“I’m sure it wasn’t… kisses are special, sacred.” He sounded pained as he said them, like it was hard for him to get the words out.

“Have you kissed anyone?” You ask, considering he had a son, you assumed he had, but never really know unless you ask.

“Yes, once, a long time ago.”

“So you haven’t had that helmet on since birth?” You lighten the mood just a little. You hear him chuckle and your stomach is filled with warmth at the noise.

“No, I haven’t.”

“Can you ever take it off?” You ask, walking over to sit on your bed, listening intently, he takes a step in that direction, too.

“Yes, I take it off to eat and bathe and sleep and sometimes I take it off to talk to my son…” He sighs, “But at work, in the palace, in the eyes of other people, it stays on. Always.This is the way.”

“I still don’t understand why.” You tilt your head.

“It… protects us, it keeps our knighthood separate from our manhood, an it’s an ancient tradition practiced by Mandalorians, we do it to respect the culture.” He nods as he speaks.

“Hm, I half expected you to say it was just because you were ugly.” You giggle, and he shakes his head. This time, you knew he was smiling under all that metal.

“Compared to you, I am nothing.” You could hear his smile in his words. You blush and the butterflies in your stomach only grow. You pause for a moment, carefully considering what you were going to say next.

“Will you… will you kiss me?” You ask, looking up at him, he goes still.

“What?”

“Will you kiss me?” You repeat yourself. He doesn’t respond at first, and for a moment, you fear you’ve made a terrible mistake. You wanted him to, you wanted to know what he meant by “kisses are sacred”. He had plagued your mind ever since you first spoke to him and you already have far more affection in your heart for the Knight than for the Prince. You wanted to kiss him.

He sighs in response, and nods once, “Close your eyes, and keep them closed.” You blushed at his agreement.

“Okay.” You say, slowly closing your eyelids and patiently awaiting his next move, feeling triumphant that he agreed. Your body fills with adrenaline as you wait, trying to slow your heart rate with deep breaths.

“Promise to keep them closed?”

“I promise.” You whisper and a few seconds after, you hear the sound of metal hitting metal, and the hollow echo of his helmet being placed on the mattress by where you sit. It took everything in you not to open your eyes, you wanted to look at him, wanted to see his eyes. But you made a promise, you had made promises to each other and had to keep those promises.

Then, ever-so-gently, you feel his warm and forgiving lips against yours.

They’re soft and light, like he didn’t want to hurt you. You melted into his touch, and against your soft skin you felt his stubble run against it. It was rough in the most satisfying and loving sensation possible. He was much kinder than the Prince, so gentle, so true. It wasn’t a very long kiss, but it was more than a peck, and held more passion and intimacy in it than any of the hours you spent with your fiancé combined. He moved just slightly against you, and you felt his bare hand come up to hold your jaw in place as he deepened it for a split second before pulling away. As your lips parted from his, your breath was taken right with them, and you had to consciously remind yourself not to open your eyes.

“Keep them closed, okay?”

“Okay.” You nodded, trying to remember the feel of his kiss. “Thank you.” Your voice was broken, and you wanted another, but before you could ask, you felt the helmet lift off the bed and the sound of gloves being pulled onto hands.

“Open.” He said after a moment, and your eyes fluttered open to see the knighted figure in front of you. “You’re welcome.”

Part three here

[draconic-ichor]

In the Steel Steeds Heart

Chapter 12: Devotion of Flesh

Warnings: blood/gore, sexual themes, strong language, nipple play, needles, body modification

Summary: After finding out about a certain type of piecing, Heisenberg won’t rest until he can fulfill a new dream.

Feedback appreciated. 18+

This is a shorter chapter, but fear not the next few chapters will have plot/smut and everything else my lovelies

Heisenberg was settled between her legs, his chest over her abdomen as he played with Juniper’s breasts. His eyes were focused, pressing the soft flesh together just to watch it bounce back.

Juniper giggled, “Like them that much?”

“Mhm.” He rumbled, inching up her body just enough to press his face into the warm softness.

She ran her fingers through his unruly hair. She almost drifted, relaxing from the gentle massages and his heat, until a jolt of pleasure rippled through her.

She gasped the sound of surprise drawing into a small moan.

Heisenberg lathed his tongue over her hard nipple, the other still in his grasp as he kneaded it like a happy cat.

She arched a bit, his exploring licks evolving. His mouth latched onto her, sucking feverishly, spurred on by her increasingly desperate moans.

He felt her lower section tremble a bit, getting what little contact it could rubbing against his stomach.

He chuckled into her flesh, pushing himself down on her harder. He trapped her, only allowing her relief on his terms.

Pulling his mouth free with a wet pop, his face split smugly up at her.

Juniper’s face flushed as she met his gaze, her eyes narrowing.

Before she could speak he twirled her now glistening nipple between two fingers, his smile becoming more wolffish the more she squirmed.

“I like them because they’re so damn sensitive.” He licked his lips, voice low and husky.

Taking a breath to regain composure Juniper huffed out, “They’re sensitive because you suck them raw!”

Heisenberg shrugged, dipping his head back down to give attention to the opposite nipple, grazing his teeth ever so slightly.

Juniper jolted, trying to free herself from under him. Without breaking his mouth away he grabbed onto her sides possessively, sucking harder as she tried to escape.

“K-Karl!” She let out a sound somewhere between a laugh and a moan, feeling him rumble with delight at her struggles.

“You're like a damn fish!” He finally broke his mouth free, amusement thick in his tone.

Heisenberg rolled over, pulling Juniper with him as he went, flipping their positions. Now on top Juniper shifted into a more comfortable position.

She gave a breathy giggle as she squeezed her thighs around his hips.

“You know,” Juniper straightened, cupping her breasts, “some women back where I’m from had nipple piercings.”

Heisenberg's eyes narrowed with curiosity, a spark ignited in their depths.

Juniper nodded, seeing his interest, “They would put little rings or bars though them.”

His lips curled into a devilish smile, reaching up to rub his thumbs over her nipples. “I could get my hands on some surgical steel. We could do that.”

Juniper’s face flushed. “I couldn’t!” She exclaimed, slight fear in her eyes.

“Oh, Doll.” The smile didn’t leave his lips, “Think of all the fun we could have.”

She covered her face, “All the fun you would have!” Seeing his eagerness ever growing she added, “You’ll have to convince me.”

“I can be convincing.” Heisenberg rolled his hips a bit, adding, “Persuasive too.”

And persuasive he was. Juniper was usually the one ever full of questions, but she ignited a deep curiosity in Heisenberg.

Day in and out he would randomly ask for more information: What did they use, how did they do it, how common was it?

Everything spilled from his lips with excitement. Whatever answers she gave he made a mental note of. Secretly, he collected the proper materials when he could.

After a week of pestering the Duke and going through piles and piles of metal he was able to scrape together everything he needed.

He looked over his spoils. He had managed to get a pair of steel piercer's clamps and a hollow needle from the Duke. Now the bars themselves he had to make.

He had drawn up schematics to match what Juniper described, taking her size into consideration. Finding titanium and building a special furnace to properly cast them, he finally had a set that he was sure would treat her well.

Now his biggest trial was before him: convincing Juniper.

~

“Come on Buttercup.” Heisenberg hugged Juniper from behind, “It’ll be quick, then after you’re all healed we’ll have lots of fun.”

“You’ll have fun.” She grumped crossing her arms.

He swayed back and forth, “I know you’re sensitive, imagine if I could play with you from across the room?”

She made a little sound.

“Want me to beg?” He rubbed his beard into her neck.

Juniper’s skin prickled with goosebumps at the rough sensation, she tried to push him away.

She escaped his grasp, turning to look him over with narrow eyes.

“Yes.” She finally spoke.

“Hm?”

“Beg.” Her voice was low, her eyes piercing.

Her tone made his lips curl, she didn’t often take the upper hand.

Heisenberg licked his teeth, knowing he made this bed.

“Please, buttercup.” He tried to sound sincere, “I really want you to do it.”

Juniper was going to milk this, she looked him up and down, “On your knees.”

Heisenberg shot her a warning look. He bared his teeth ever so slightly, starting to lose his composure, “You’re really busting my balls over this Doll.”

Juniper leaned back against the counter, “And? Do you want to put metal in my nipples or not?”

She looked at him expectantly.

When he saw she wouldn’t relent from her request he slowly lowered to one knee, disdain in every movement.

He sighed out, gritting his teeth before speaking, “You would make me really fucking happy if you let me pierce your nipples….please?”

“Alright.” Juniper agreed but added, “On one condition.”

“Come on.” Heisenberg huffed out, standing.

When she didn’t back down he cursed then asked, “What is it?”

“You have to do something for me.” Juniper asked, “Any one thing I ask of you, whenever I decide to ask it.”

“One thing?”

“One that you can’t deny.”

He mulled it over, eyes flicking to the side.

“Fine.” He agreed.

~

The next morning Heisenberg got to work, down in the belly of the factory most of the morning. He excitedly came up to retrieve Juniper, dragging her down to one of the surgery rooms.

He let go of her arm, seeing her taking cautious steps. She was tense, looking down at her feet. He saw her bite her lips every so often.

Heisenberg squeezed her hand reassuringly, drawing her farther into the room. In an attempt to put her at ease he started to speak.

“Look here, I did it on myself first ok.” He lifted his shirt for her to see. There was a bandage over his left nipple. He peeled it back to show that he did indeed pierce himself earlier that day.

“You actually did it.” She sounded almost dumbfounded.

“Well yea.” He shrugged.

“Only the one?”

“Mhm.” He rumbled.

“It wouldn’t be fair to ask you to do it without knowing how it would be.” He smoothed the bandage back over, “And now I know how much pressure to use and all that shit.”

“Such a gentleman.” Juniper walked past him, looking over the area he had prepared.

“I have sanitized the chair, table and all the tools. I've also got you some whiskey and ice to dull the pain.” He showed her each thing in turn, offering her the chair. It looked like the most clean thing in the room.

He was taking this all much more seriously than she expected.

“Your throne.” He strode behind the chair, opening his arms to either side of it.

Juniper took her top off, sitting in the chair. She took a deep breath, trying to ease her nerves.

“Here doll.” Heisenberg smiled, handing her a shot of whiskey.

“Thanks.” Juniper knocked it back, grimacing as the alcohol burned her throat. She held the empty cup out to him expectantly.

He cocked a brow, chuckling, “Give the first one a fucking second.”

She let him take the glass, sitting back in the chair. She watched him intently as he picked up some ice and the clamps.

Heisenberg set to work.

He was quick and efficient,  using the perfect amount of force to pierce the hollow needle through the bit of flesh held in the clamp.

Juniper whimpered, keeping her eyes clamped shut.

“Good girl.” Heisenberg soothed, placing the small barbell of steel into one end of the needle, feeding it through.

“All done with one.” He smiled, “Ready for the other one?”

Juniper gave a quick little nod. He held the ice to her nipple, pride swelling in him. She was being so brave and doing it all for him. Juniper was so perfect in his eyes, her devotion to him continuing to surprise him.

After both nipples were successfully pierced Heisenberg grabbed a bottle of healing salve, gingerly applying to the swollen flesh.

“You can open your eyes now.” He chuckled.

Juniper blinked down at her chest, seeing the news body jewelry.

“They’re pretty.” She gave a weak smile.

“Damn right.” He got the bandages, kneeling before her once more.

He covered the wounds, seeing her wince a bit.

 

He stood back, pleased. He helped her stand as he spoke, “Come on, let’s go make you forget all about that pain sweetheart.”

She looked at narrowly, causing him to bark with laughter. “You’ll be on pillow princess duty.” Heisenberg soothed.

(Disclaimer: Do not try to pierce your nipples at home or if not properly trained)

[sasa-gay-yo]

Just Us (Chapter Seven: Calculating)

← Chapter Six 

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“So… um, it’s the Spring Equinox and all. We usually do something. You know, you, me, some friends; like we always do. Are you… are you going to come this year?” I turned to Jonas who was leaning on a box of flour. How could he so easily forget moments like that? He confessed to me and then the next day seemed to completely forget. Months later when it seemed he had an in, he didn’t even go for it. Talk about being uncompetitive. 

“Will there be as much drinking as there was last year?” It was monotone and I glanced over to the corner spot. Garrison. Last year, the girl Jonas was interested in and I had to drag back him and his three friends from outside Wall Sina and they slept on the floor of the bakery while I offered her my couch. During the process of wrestling them inside, Jonas had somehow stripped naked and his friends were trying to follow suit. I try to keep that memory suppressed.

“Probably yeah. You know the spring wine is the best… but you’re still kinda sic-” I nodded and help up my hand to stop his excuses.

“You’ll probably have to drag me home this year. I’m in.” He smiled, but it was bittersweet, knowing I wasn’t going to hang out with everyone and socialize. I’d probably just sit under a tree and drink my sorrows away.

“Eva, you-” The sounds of horses outside broke him from his sentence. Some people went out and others just turned back to their food. The Scouts were slowly dwindling in number as they were waiting for the new recruits to come in from training. No one was enthused that they were coming in and out and those who would go and watch them come back were sadists. I turned my back and went to busy myself with some invisible work at the back table.

“You know, if he did something to you to-” I grasped the table. He says this almost every time they march outside of my café. 

“If who did something, Jonas?” He felt the venom in my tone and decided not to push forward. I coughed for what felt like the hundredth time and it broke the tension.

“So, uh, next week. I’ll come to get you when we leave. Should be after five. We’ll all get dinner and take it out.” He took the money off the counter and went out of the store, probably to go glare at the Scouts who were walking by. 

If he didn’t come this Saturday that marks three months. It also marks the point where I get the message and I’ll forget about him all together. I had forgiven him the first month. He didn’t know how to deal with emotions so he needed some time and maybe needed to kill some titans. The second month came, and an extended break for weather conditions, but yet he didn’t come anywhere near Trost. I even went through one cold and caught another one just waiting for his ass. I wanted him to reject me already so I wasn’t getting let down on the daily.

Here comes my surprise when Saturday one rolls around, I’m still coughing and sneezing, and he’s nowhere to be seen. Even the old ladies stopped coming. I guess they were more wiser on when to give up. 

Damn. That was something I never thought I’d hear myself say. Giving up hope. Even he said that he’s afraid I’d give up hope because of him. Well, here we seem to be. 

I shouldn’t let a shorty who doesn’t know how to process emotion take away my hope.

The bells rang above the door and two nightshift Garrison members walked in. My least favorite people, always coming 30 minutes before closing asking me to serve them fresh coffee to keep them awake. They never failed to make my mood worse and this oncoming headache wasn’t going to go away with their shouts. Last month, I had to kick out a few of them because they were talking so nastily about the Scouts. I couldn't bear it and neither could my head. I still had hope in the Scouts as a whole, especially hearing they were getting new recruits, and one person wasn’t going to ruin that. Hopefully, the fresh meat would propel them like it did last year. Hm, maybe fresh meat was not a good way to describe the cadets.

The bell above the door rang again and I looked up to be face to face with the Wings of Freedom. At least one Scout was using their day off, a tall one at that. A contrast to shorty. She had rectangular glasses strapped to her face and auburn hair in a ponytail. She came in smiling crazily too. A big contrast. 

“Are you Eva with the peppermint tea?” I had to do a double take and even blinked a few times before answering her. I sneezed again before answering.

“Um, yes. I think that would be me. Who’s asking?” She sharply reached out her hand and I shook it. Ouch, she had a hard grip.

“I’m Hange Zoë, a squad leader for the Scouts Regiment. I’m here to escort you to the Scout HQ. Do you have the peppermint tea?” I blinked again, not moving. She wanted to take me where? The last place I wanted to go, that’s where. 

“Am… Am I in trouble?” She laughed out loud, not caring if anyone looked at her. Yeah, she really wasn’t at all like the Scouts I meet on a daily basis. 

“No, no. Not at all. In fact, I almost have no idea why I’m taking you there. Well, a little bit more of an idea than you have. Personally,” she leaned in and whispered behind her hand, “I’ve been wanting to talk to you since I saw you at the festival, but shorty wouldn’t crack.” It wasn’t a whisper and I’m sure if anyone was at the first few tables, they would have heard it. 

“A-and if I don’t come with you?” She shrugged and crossed her arms.

“I’ll drug you and drag you myself.” I stepped back from the counter and she roared with laughter, “I’m kidding! I’m kidding! Do I look like someone who would do that? Well, maybe... but If you don’t come, I’ll have to deal with an even more upset Captain and I don’t want to do that!” Captain? He ordered her here? 

“Did the Captain send you to get me?” She pushed her glasses up and leaned one arm on the counter. 

“I guess I should’ve led with that. Levi said, ‘Eva with the peppermint tea,’” she imitated his voice and facial expression, “I had to go to three coffee shops in Trost to find an Eva. Two streets down is a Freud and about a half mile behind you in a cute old couple. I didn’t think the Captain would want them that badly. So when I walked in and remembered seeing Captain talk to you at the festival, I knew I hit the jackpot.” She snapped at the end making a point to her adventure to find me. The Garrison members were now staring at her, too. They probably knew about her better than I did.

“Why does he want me to come to HQ?” She shrugged again, but this time without a death threat after. 

“I don’t know, but shorty is very adamant about it. I told him I was busy for a whole month, thinking it was a fever dream, but that made him even madder. Anyways, I was hoping you’d come and bring the tea and a...” she looked down at ink on her hand, “ a tea set. Captain Levi broke his on the first day of the year. How unlucky is that?” He was adamant that I come? That’s stupid. How adamant can he be when he’s had three months to do it. He probably just wanted to make it easy for someone to drag me away from him when he rejected me. Either way, I was intrigued. 

The Garrison members groaned when I shoved them out the door to lock up a few minutes early. 

I shouldn’t have gone really, but I had no excuse. Maybe I just wanted him to reject me like I said and then have a sad ride back to the café. However, Hange coming in and saying all those things made me much more concerned about his mental wellbeing than what he was going to say to crush me. And if he was making me come all the way there, was he going to give me bad news? I don’t think he’d be that mean, but I have never faced the real Captain Levi before.

Hange had given me another cape, and some tissues for my nose, saying that it would be easy to have me come in unnoticed because the new cadets had just showed up. She just hoped I didn’t get caught sneaking around by Erwin and thrown into combat training. This woman was saying stuff that was making me scared the whole ride there. I was on a horse too, so that made my anxiety worse. 

The Scout HQ was a huge ass castle and I didn’t think it would look at all like this. The barracks in the capital were just a big square building with some pillars. This place was gigantic. Hange made it a point to name every section of the castle so I somehow knew right away where I was going. I was going to the Officer’s Wings.

“It’s a shame though. We’re leaving this place soon for a new one the government issued. It’s not as nice, but it’s smaller because they don’t think we need such a big place… Well, it’s true, but… they didn’t have to say it like that, you know! I’ll have to move my whole lab!”

The hallways were also tall on the inside. It was an actual abandoned castle. I wondered who had lived in here before the government got ahold of it. She even stopped by to show me the throne room that they had converted into the mess hall. It’s like I was on a field trip, but at the end of it was the school leader’s office. Why was I being summoned by him? Was he not good enough to come to the civilian’s café anymore? Annoying prick. 

“Here is Captain Levi’s quarters. We just transferred him back today, but he’s still a bit sore from not moving around much. I hope that once he gets his peppermint tea that he’s moaning about, he won’t be so rude to everyone anymore.” I balanced the tea set and bag of tea in my hands as she opened the door for me. 

“Transferred?” She waved her hand like it was nothing as shut the door on me. It was like she threw me into the wolves. She didn’t even want to be. I didn’t know she was just going to leave me like that because my nerves just skyrocketed. 

His office was like he described. Half the size of the capital, but still with big windows in the back. This time, they were turned to the way of the sun. There was a single, full bookshelf against the wall on the left with another chair in front. This time the chair didn’t seem as uncomfortable as the ones in the capital. He wasn’t sitting at his desk where I thought he’d be. As soon as I saw the crack in the door and dim light peaking through, I knew he was in his bedroom. Why? 

We just transferred him back today. Well where had he been? 

I decided to sneak up to the little cut out in the wall which held a singular hot plate. If I could make tea, I could prolong the time I didn’t have to talk to him. Why did I even come here in the first place? It’s not like I like this guy anymore or would bend over at his will. Just a rejection, yeah, that’s what I came for. 

Taking a single, short step, I tested the floors, hoping they didn’t squeak. Once I was in the clear, I slowly started to tiptoe towards the opening. If I went fast near his door, he wouldn’t even see it. 

Achoo! 

I held the tea set, but it rattled mercilessly in the box. Oh fu-

“Hange?!” Oh, yeah, he was definitely in the bedroom. Now, I’d just stand here with my eyes closed and hope I didn’t look too bad when he opened the door.

Who am I kidding, I literally hopped on a horse to get here on a whim. I’m bending so far over for this man it’s ridiculous. 

“Hange, I told you it was the sixth café down off of the turn we make on the main drag. It’s hard to,” there was a wheeze, “h-hard to miss.” I stood there for a while, but he didn’t come out or open the door. In fact, there was no movement coming from his room at all. 

“Hello?!” It was harsh and was followed by another sharp intake of air. It dawned on me then. Transferred. Was he injured?! 

“Um, hello?” I finally answered and looked again to see if he would open the door now. Still no movement and now no answer. Maybe Hange messed up and he didn’t want me he-

“Did you bring the tea?” I was not expecting that. His voice was instantly softer than before and after months of not hearing it, it made me melt.

“Oh, um, uh, yes, yes I did. And the set, and the set.” I coughed into my arm, masking my cold. If he knew I was sick, he might send me back just because of germs. 

“C-come in. M-My room. I already have hot water...” Come in? To his room? His bedroom? Where he’s laying? He hasn’t even come into my bedroom before.

“Um, are you sure you want me in there?” There was a loud groan, probably so I could hear his annoyance too.

“Just get in here, brat.” There was something about him calling me that that made me annoyed and walk slowly into his room. Was it the urge to bicker again?

 I opened the door and peaked in, instantly locking eyes with him. I screamed at my heart because just like the first day, it started beating fast again. Shut up. He’s going to reject you then you’re going to go back home and put the tarts in the oven to prebake. 

He looked pitiful. There were bandages wrapped all the way around his torso and he was shirtless, but it didn’t look like it. His head had one bandage around it too, but that one seemed pretty useless. More of a headband if anything. It had also been a while since he’s bathed, marked by the incomplete stubble scattered around his mouth and chin. He just laid there, blanket up to his waistband, staring at me. What had happened and for how long was he like this? 

My anger and inhibition to come inside subsided and I set the tea set down on the floor. There was no chair for me to sit on, so I just stood. We stared at each other for what seemed like eternity, my heart still beating out of my chest. He was the first one to break the silence.

“C-Can you make me tea?” It almost came out like a whine coupled with his lack of breath. I crouched down and took the tea set out, looking at the makeshift water kettle he had on his nightside table. This bedroom was so small; there was no room for a desk. His bed was up against the wall only leaving a few feet towards the door and enough room for a dresser and walking space at his feet. No windows. 

“You can,” he caught his breath and was silence for a few moments before continuing, “You can sit here, Eva.” He tapped the space next to him on his bed. I was hesitant at first, but the way he said Eva made me almost forget all his wrong doings. How badly did I want to see him again that I was acting like this? So weak for a single man. I sat down on the bed, back to him, trying to ignore his heated stare.

It was the same feeling the night I kissed him. I made him tea, he stared at me from behind, but I couldn’t get close to him this time. That was going to be the difference. I wouldn’t let myself have such a weak will like last time. Go in, make the tea, get out. 

“What did you do?” Goddamnit Eva. You weren’t supposed to make conversation like this. 

“A newer cadet ran into me while I was trying to finish off an abnormal titan. The titan got a hold of me and squeezed pretty hard before I cut it’s fingers off. The cadet gave me the concussion, and the titan fractured most of my ribs. This was the beginning of February.” Of course he gave me a date. If I went back to that time, I said I was going to let it slide, too. I had given him January off and if he got hurt in February that means even if he wanted to come to the café, maybe he couldn’t… No, Eva, if he wanted to he’d send Hange earlier. 

I told him I was busy for a whole month, thinking it was a fever dream.

“Oh,” I went back to work, taking out the set he left when he stormed out of the café and the new peppermint tea he has yet to drink. No one but him comes in to drink mint tea. Usually it’s just green or black, so the stock I buy is just for him. Imagine me staring at the tea leaves sitting under the counter for hours next to the tea set box willing him to walk into the café. If he wasn’t going to come back, maybe I should just give it to him so he doesn’t force me here again. 

“I’m almost healed completely. There’s just one rib that’s bothering me enough to not be able to go back in the field.” It was interesting to hear him talk so much, even when injured. Our roles had reversed. Maybe he felt pressured to talk more than usual. I hope guilt was pushing him.

“That’s good.” I just sat there, watching the tea leaves swirl in the water, and hoping I’d had enough strength to turn back away from him when I gave him his cup. 

“What have you been d-doing?”

“The usual.” I picked at my skirt, noticing it was the one I’d worn the last time I’d seen him. When only owning about five, there were heavy odds that would happen. Sadly, this meant the odds were stacked against me. I only won a few bits of luck back when I was, in fact, able to turn back around when I gave him his tea. I didn’t even look in his eyes either.

“Can you help me into the bathroom?” He set the empty tea cup down next to me, making it so I didn’t have to turn around to put it on his nightstand. If I helped him, I’d have to look at him though. This was apart of some plan.

“I could get Hang-” He grabbed my wrist with a bit of force and used his strength to turn me. I also fell on top of him with how hard he whipped me around. This was the first time he had put his hands on me like that. 

“Why can’t you even look at me?!” I was breathing hard, but still looking at the blankets on the bed. His hand was bandaged too. We’d traded places in that aspect. I wasn’t going to tell him, but the balm he gave me helped. HE didn’t deserve that information when he was acting like this. 

I stood up, taking my knees off the bed, and pulled the blanket off of him. I made sure to fold this so he had nothing to yell at me about again. He got himself parallel to me and needed help to sit up. The was probably going to be the most painful part. You were helping someone who was in pain, there was nothing else to it. I was being a nurse to him since no one else was around to do so.

Reaching for his back, I carefully helped lift him up to a seated position. The amount of curse words that came out of his mouth made my heart squeeze at the pain I was putting him through. It was just pity; you were sad for the man who was hurt. That’s it. I shifted my position to sitting next to him and silently gasped when he put his arm around me and grabbed my opposite shoulder. Minus the time I had kissed him, this was the closest we’d ever been. My mind couldn’t help but take a delight in that. 

When we stood, there were a lot less curse words, but they were still there. My gaze was directed at the floor as we walked out and directly to the right into the small bathroom. They really paid no expense to give the Scouts nothing. This was an officer’s quarters too, which meant that he had one of the best lodgings. I bet it was bunk beds and communal showers outside of this wing. 

I let go of him and got behind him near the door. I had no idea what he was going to do here, but I knew I’d leave as soon as he started. Would I leave completely now that I’d given him tea? It seemed rude to someone who was in his state. What if he falls or hurts himself again? This wing was so far removed from the others. My weak will triumphs again. 

“Can you take off the bandages? There’s scissors on the sink.” How much was he going to torture me before I leave? He’s hurt, just do it, Eva.

I picked up the scissors and walked over to his back, trying to be gentle so I didn’t cut the skin off of him. I put one hand on his upper back and worked from the bottom-up, cutting away at the thick, white bandages holding his ribs in place. 

The speed of our breathing matched when I touched his bare skin. Was he breathing hard because of the decreased pressure? I raised one eyebrow, maybe taking that as a selfish clue, and took away the last bandage. They fell on the floor and allowed me to take in his shirtless back. There were bruises that were healing and a few minor cuts, but most importantly it seemed to be all lean, muscle. He wouldn’t care or notice if I was staring, so I took it as payback. Sweet, muscular, gorgeous pay back. If he turned he would have seen my blush. 

Yeah, good luck Eva, the feelings aren’t gone. 

“I’m going to shower. You can, um, there’s books? I think Hange left something to eat a few hours ago, too. Eat that...if you want.” That was his way of telling me he didn’t want me to leave. 

“Okay,” I finished shortly and turned back around, closing the bathroom door. When the water went on, I took a long breath and sunk down against the door. I put a hand to my face and lightly slapped it to wake me up. My face had to be at least five shades redder after that encounter. Was he going to make me put bandages back on him? Would I get to see his front on full display? I slapped my face again and frowned at myself. He wasn’t the only shirtless man you’ve seen, quit acting like this. 

I stood up and looked around at his office. There were papers scattered all over his desk, nothing seemed to be in it’s right place, and I could see a layer of dust collecting on the shelves to the right of his desk. It’s not because me cleaning would make him happy, but it’s because I had taken an interest in looking around his office. It would be a disservice to the place if I didn’t look at it in the way he intended. 

Starting with the desk, I just pushed papers together and stacked them in neat piles on his desk. It was easy to find a spot because there was absolutely nothing on his desk besides a name plaque, a cup to hold pens, and a stamp that seemed to be his official marking for papers. His office was as bare as the one in the capital. I found a cloth by the burner and used that to wipe down the shelves that were equally as empty. A rusted knife, a small stack of Wings of Freedom cloth emblems, and a cracked, white teacup. I wonder what these things meant to him if he put them over here on display. 

I wiped off his desk too and opened the curtains that blocked the sunlight from the windows. His office viewed the training ground as I saw cadets practicing hand-to-hand combat in full uniform. When I finished dusting everything, I sat down in his chair, taking in the full view of his office. If I had a room like this, I’d fill it with something and not leave it so empty. I bet it even echoed. 

“Echo… echo,” I confirmed my suspicion. When we talked about remodeling the Scouts HQ, his office had never come into the conversation when it severely needed to. 

The water shut off and my gaze snapped to the door of the bathroom. He takes quick showers for someone who was slightly incapacitated. I wonder how long they took him when he was back to normal. Showers should be savored, not rushed; that was my opinion. 

The door opened and I just turned the random book of his desk open to pretend I was reading. It was something about the history of Scout maneuvers but I couldn’t understand a thing. He had to know I was lying to him. 

“You cleaned?” I glanced quickly up at him and looked back down at the book. Oh gods. He was smiling. Not a smirk or a smile after he insulted me; a heartwarming, genuine smile. Another one worth ten points at least. I wanted to look back up at him. If he smiled like that again, this whole emotionless façade of mine was going to break easily. 

He walked over to the small foot rest that was in front of his desk and sat down slowly to face me. I just kept staring at the pictures in the book finally discovering that the Os were Scouts and the Xs were titans. 

“Interesting book?” I turned the page and nodded, lying to him. This page didn’t have a picture so I’d have to pretend to be interested in the words. 

“Can you even understand what that’s saying?” I’d been caught. I acted like I had finished the page before closing the book and setting it aside. This time, I felt like I was at an appropriate distance to look at him. That was a mistake because he was still smiling at me and I felt my insides melt. He was doing it on purpose. The defensive strategy that I made while he was shower disappeared too. 

“No,” I answered truthfully and took in his form. He had put the bandages on himself, thank gods, and was sitting completely straight so as to not hurt his ribs. His face was smooth again, but his hair had grown almost past the tip of his nose. Even like this, he looked so handsome. I leaned back in the chair and started twiddling my thumbs, looking down at them. 

“You cut your hair?” He was observant. I coughed before answering.

“I do at the beginning of every year.”

“Are you sick?” His voice was filled with concern and not the tone of ‘If you say yes, I’ll kick you out’. 

“A cold.” 

“So you haven’t been taking care of yourself.” There was no tea to sip in place of answering his statement. Those words brought back a bit of anger though. The effects of his smile didn’t last long. 

“If you cared, why didn’t you come back then?” He sighed and rested one leg over the other like he always does. 

“I was sca-” 

“Don’t say you were scared. You’ve used that excuse before. Find something original.” It was a lot easier to yell at him when I wasn’t looking at him. 

“I didn’t know how to respond.” I clenched my fists. I knew that when I kissed him, but it still made me mad. He was a grown man.

“Usually when someone kisses you, you have two options. Respond back or tell them you don’t want that. You don’t run away from them.” He groaned which made my anger even worse. He didn’t know how to respond to anything I was saying and that made him frustrated too. 

“C-Can you come sit next to me?” I looked up at him for the first time, my eyes hardening with emotion.

“No, I won’t.” I didn’t dare get close to him again. 

“Eva,” he pleaded and I shook my head again. 

“I’m not playing this game anymore, Levi. I’m not going to play pretend with you and ignore the reality of things.” He stood up again slowly. 

“Look at this. At me. This is reality. I almost died out on the field because I was thinking about you and not the titans! I called you here to show you that because I don’t think you know how bad things can get.” I raised an eyebrow at him and crossed my arms.

“Are you saying I’m a distraction?” He pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration again. No, sir, I was the one who could be frustrated. 

“No, I’m not saying that. I’m saying that I almost died because of one small slip up. Who knows what could happen on the next expedition? You don’t know what it’s like to be outside of the walls or to see people die to the left and right of you! I’m always next.” I glared at him. 

“Maybe if we didn’t spend so much time in our pretend little world, you could’ve told me so I understand. Maybe you’d know about my life in the Underground and how you’re completely wrong about me not knowing how bad things can get. You’re the one who did this to yourself!” I hit his desk with my fist and stood up to match him. I wasn’t going to back down. His face went blank again, back into the calculating Captain Levi, not the one who seemed to blurt out things when the emotion came too much for him to know how to deal with it. 

“I don’t… ” 

“You’re afraid of yourself. If you let yourself really do what you want, it’ll break the little pretend world you’ve made. The one where you’re emotionless and in control of every part of yourself and the people below you. You can’t push away reality and keep playing pretend with me.” He gripped his fist. 

“I’m not playing pretend.”

“Then who are you when you’re sitting on my couch?” 

“Levi.” 

“Levi or Captain Levi?” He shook his head like it didn’t matter the difference. 

“What is that supposed to mean?” 

“They’re two different people. Right now, you’re being Captain Levi. You’re calculating down to your next syllable and not letting yourself say what you want. When you’re Levi, you talk freely and smile and laugh. That’s why we never talk about your life or the Scouts, because you feel you can never talk freely around me about those things. You don’t need to protect me.” He looked down at the floor again, calculating what to say next. It was so frustrating that he couldn’t just speak like he was previously. He always had to be in control. 

“Scouts die everyday. There’s no guarantee that I’ll come back. And when I’m back, there’s no guarantee that I can come and see you. I have paperwork and training and duties I have to humanity first. I will always be Captain Levi before I am Levi… since you see a difference in the two.” That changed the pace I was going at. I was going to continue to yell at him, but those last works… 

“I’m not going to hold myself back because I’m afraid of what could happen. I recognize there are things I can and can’t control and I live with it. No one can live like that. You would never be a Scout if you lived like that. You would never be a Captain if you hesitated on every move or order you made. Right now, you’re eating yourself up inside because you want to control everything and can’t admit it to yourself that you can’t!” I squeezed my eyes shut, not caring if my words hurt him in any way. It was the truth. 

“What will you do when I die?” My eyes shot open and locked with his. That emotion was there again. The sliver of something I could never put my finger on. The soft tone of his voice matched it. When? 

“I believe in you enough to know that day will never come.” Apparently, that was the wrong answer and it made him lean forward, grasping the edge of the desk hard enough to make his fingers white. He was only a few inches away from me, but my anger clouded over the want to lean in and taste him again. Did he taste like tea?

“I’ll ask you one more time. What will you do when I die?” I shook my head at him, denying his death, and this time he hit the desk with his injured fist, “Why do you have so much blind faith in people? In me?” 

“I was given a second chance at life because an old man had faith in a little Underground girl with burned hands. I believe everyone should be given the same. You haven’t done anything for me to lose faith in you. I don’t go out to see you off on expeditions because I know I’ll see you when you get back.” He seemed to almost collapse down in one big breath, his head between his straight arms, hands still gripping the edge of the desk. 

The air in his office was tense. No one had probably ever talked to him like I had just did and my words probably matched the internal dialogue he’s had with himself. He knows that I’m right and that he’ll break down on the inside if he keeps trying to strive for total control.

I stood there looking at the back of his head, waiting for him to speak up. His hands kept clenching and unclenching the edge of the desk like he was thinking everything over again. The fact that he couldn’t control the his emotions in this situation, no matter how hard he tried, was probably beating him to death on the inside. Was he sad because once he rejected me, he’d lose the pretend world where he can relax and there isn’t a need to strive for control? Was he angry at me for speaking to him like that? 

“I think I have feelings for you. I’m just apprehensive.” My eyes widened and I looked down at him, still crouched over at the other end of the desk. That wasn’t the emotion I thought he was experiencing. My heart was beating so hard he could probably hear it too. He just… I didn’t expect this to be the outcome of the night. 

“What will you do when I die? Just answer the question.” This was his apprehension. He’s had to move on constantly from people who’ve died, outside the wall or under it. He’s strong, but he didn’t know how strong I could be. I’ve watched people die too. I’ve had to say goodbye countless times. I had to make sure he knew I could deal with pain and hurt as well, and not just my own. 

“I’ll give you a nice funeral, wait a year, then move on to Commander Erwin.” The tension broke and he let out a huff of air in laughter before standing up. His eyes were back to normal, but this time a lot softer than when he was walking down the street. It wasn’t indifference, it was just from being relaxed.

“I can’t abandon my duty as a Captain. If I have work to do, that comes first.” 

“Understandable.” 

“It might be months on end where you won’t be able to see me.” 

“I guess I’ll just have to get a mistress.” He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. The orange light from the sun setting behind us made it so I couldn’t stop staring at him now.

“I’m being serious here, Eva.” I sat back down in his chair, crisscrossed, still struck with his face.

“So am I, Levi.” 

“I require monogamy.” I think that was him trying to make a joke so I indulged. 

“I guess I can live with that. The bakery keeps me busy enough. If I have orders to fill out, that comes first.” I mimicked him and a small smirk crept up onto his face. That’s how I knew he was completely back. 

“Understandable, but slightly saddening you put baked goods above me.” There was a knock at the door. He rolled his eyes and went over to answer it. I made sure I was out of sight of the door. 

“What the hell do you think you’re doing disturbing my sleep, cadet? Can’t you see my state? I should make you clean the stables for waking me up.” I could hear the nervousness in the cadet’s voice when he answered.

“I-I-I’m so… sorry, Captain! I didn’t know you were sleeping! Squad leader Zoë told me to bring you this!” There seemed to be an exchange of plates and the cadet was still shaking as Levi turned back into the room/

“Dismissed. Don’t come knocking this late again.” He kicked the door closed in front of the cadet saluting him and walked to the desk with two plates of food. 

“I see now where the mean rumors come from. He was just delivering food.” He set the place down in front of me, ignoring my comment. 

“Not Erwin.” He pulled the ottoman over so he could eat at his desk too. I smiled spooning some curry.

“Why not? I’m trying to climb the ranks.” He shook his head again. 

“If you think I’m too calculated, then you’d hate him. That book you were pretending to read, he’s probably gone through that six or seven times. He stays up till dawn thinking about where a single person should ride in our formation to maximize titan spotting. He’ll have no time for you.” I pulled a face and he lightly laughed. Actually laughed. 

“I guess I’m just stuck with you, Captain.”

Chapter Eight →

Chapter Masterlist

xx Now, we’ll start getting into actually AOT plot. Did you all watch the new ep today? Only got to see a part of our King’s face :( 

[the-girl-in-the-box]

Not Today XXVI

A/N: So, there's gonna be a lot of plot here that we've sort of... seen in the show? But it is necessary to move the plot forward, and I hope I've changed it up enough to keep it interesting! I'm also hoping to focus a lot on the "behind the scenes" of Ivar's and Asta's plans, but also soon we'll be getting more answers to what the end of the last chapter means! Until then, I hope you enjoy this update! Skål!

Summary:  When Ivar takes the throne of Kattegat, Lagertha flees to Wessex along with Björn, Ubbe, Torvi, and the Bishop Heahmund. There, they seek the aid of King Alfred. This aid comes in the form of his sister, Aethelind, who agrees to travel to Kattegat and try to reason Ivar, who she spent some time with during their youth, when her grandfather King Ecbert hosted Ragnar Lothbrok in their castle. Now, she is the only hope for Lagertha and her supporters to retake Kattegat from Ivar the Boneless.

Masterlist

--

They woke the next morning to the sound of bells, and to the feeling of Oleg shoving them slightly to wake them. “Ivar, Asta. Get up,” he said, and Asta grumbled and buried her face more into Ivar’s shoulder. His grip on her only tightened as she squirmed a little closer.

Oleg tried again, and this time, the pair stirred and looked up at him, irritation clear in their eyes- as well as a bit of exhaustion. “We have to leave,” he said, and went to wake up Igor, who still slept where Asta had put him to bed.

Once Asta had gotten up, and Ivar was sitting up as she went to straighten her hair, he began to speak. “I was dreaming, that my wine was poisoned, and that that’s the reason why I did not drink it,” he said, his eyes following her across the room. He finally tore his eyes from her to look to Oleg. “Why did you have to kill your brother?”

Oleg paused, turning back to look at Ivar. Asta had also stopped moving about and was now watching Oleg. He turned, looked to Igor, and answered, “Because this child belongs to me. Not to Askold, not to anyone else. His father made me his guardian.”

“What did Askold do?” Ivar questioned then.

“I heard reports,” Oleg said. “Askold was grooming the child. He was trying to steal him away from me. And that I could not allow.”

Asta noticed the way Ivar’s eyes narrowed, the look on his face which showed he didn’t quite approve. “He’s just a child,” he argued.

Oleg was silent for a few moments, before saying, “No,” and walking back toward Ivar. Asta leaned against one of the bedposts, her eyes following Oleg closely. “He’s not just a child. He’s the only legitimate heir. To control him is to possess the only keys to the Kingdom.” He stopped to look back at Igor, who was still sleeping soundly, before turning back to Ivar once more. “I mean to keep those keys safe about me.”

Ivar simply hummed in response, though he seemed skeptical. Oleg gave a nod, and then finally went back to Igor, who he began trying to wake, as Asta went to sit next to Ivar.

“Interesting thoughts about this all, hm?” she whispered to him in her own tongue. This earned another thoughtful hum from the Viking King as he turned to her.

“Indeed,” he replied. “I think… perhaps we should keep said keys safe about us as well, hm?”

“The child?” Asta questioned. “You mean to take him away?”

Ivar shrugged a little in the way that said he wasn’t closed off to the idea, even if he wasn’t fully agreeing to it just yet. “Perhaps,” he said. “Either way, it would be wise to be close to him.”

Asta nodded a little, and turned back to watch Oleg and Igor. Something the former said had scared the latter, but the sound of a horn blowing interrupted them all, and their attentions all looked out the window to see what it might have been.

“What is happening?” Ivar questioned Oleg.

Oleg sighed a little. “Seems like we have visitors,” he said vaguely.

The Commander came into the room and spoke to his Prince, making Asta and Ivar share a look, confused and concerned. Ivar decided to say something about this.

“Oleg, what is happening?” he demanded. “Hm?”

“I forgot to tell you,” Oleg began to reply, seeming almost put out. “I have another brother.”

Ivar and Asta’s eyes both widened. Another brother? They exchanged a look as Oleg added, “It seems like he wants to talk to us.”

Oleg almost stalked out of the room, and Asta and Ivar shared another look. This continued to get stranger, this situation. When they heard Igor slide out of bed and drop to the floor, they turned to see what he was doing, watched him hide behind the changing screen. Asta got up and walked over toward the boy as Ivar got to the ground and crawled toward him, Igor poking his head out to look at the two.

“You don’t have to be afraid,” Ivar assured him. Igor looked outside, then back to him, and drug his finger across his throat, making a face as if pained, before hiding again.

Asta’s face contorted in concern, as Ivar turned to look over his shoulder, brows creased as he thought. Oleg’s brother would kill him.

“Should I stay with the boy?” Asta questioned, her eyes glancing down at Ivar. He looked up at her thoughtfully. After a few moments, he nodded.

“Yes,” he said. “Be sure no one comes to hurt him. Hm?”

Asta nodded, and Ivar moved to start putting his braces on his legs. She moved to help him, and once they were done, she pressed a kiss to his forehead. “I’ll be here, love,” she told him. “Go.”

He smiled up at her and kissed her cheek, before going back to Igor. The sound of Ivar’s crutch growing quieter signaled that he was headed out of the room, and so she knelt down in front of Igor.

She waved, a way of saying hello, as she couldn’t speak his language, and he waved in response and said, “Pryvit.”

“Pryvit,” she repeated. She put her hand to her chest, indicating herself, and said, “Asta.” Igor gave a small nod, and repeated her name. “Yes, exactly.” Asta nodded and smiled warmly at him.

She got Igor to get ready for the day, just in case they needed to make a quick escape, and then moved him to another room, one with a warm fireplace and comfortable seating. Igor was relaxing, and Asta was sitting beside him, keeping an eye out for any signs of danger. Not that she was armed, but she didn’t require a sword to fight anymore.

It wasn’t long before they heard the sound of a crutch, and so they both looked up. Asta was grinning, and she gestured to Ivar. “Maðr minn,” she told Igor. She stood to go to Ivar, and kissed his cheek lovingly.

“Cholovik,” Igor said then, and Asta repeated the word.

Ivar gave her a tight-lipped smile and a short hum, coming into the room more. Igor gestured for him to sit on the small stool, and Asta went back to her seat beside Igor. Ivar was still smiling, but then he almost seemed to cough. The moment he coughed again, he leaned forward, and she realized he wasn’t coughing, but gagging. An image of Askold falling to the poison filtered through her mind, and she suddenly sound her heart pounding. He couldn’t have been poisoned.

Suddenly, he popped a small ball out of his mouth, which he then produced and looked at as if stunned. He coughed again and suddenly spat out two more balls, high up into the air, and he caught them both, before showing them all to Igor. The boy was laughing, and Asta relaxed a little. Ivar was fine, and only trying to play a joke on Igor.

Igor hopped up and ran to grab what looked like some sort of instrument, which he returned to his seat and began to play. While he was gone, Asta got up and wandered over to Ivar, her hands going to his shoulders and her chin resting on his head. “You scared me,” she told him. She pressed a kiss to his hair, and he turned to look up at her, humming.

“I did not mean to,” he said. He kissed her stomach as an apology.

The truth was, though they had kissed the night before, and though both had confessed things to the other, neither could be sure what exactly that meant for them, and it wasn’t as if they had time to discuss it. They kept up the affectionate relationship they showed to those around theirselves, but when it was only them? Who knew what would come of it?

Ivar relaxed quite a bit as he listened to Igor playing, and Asta couldn’t help but kiss his head once more. She knew how badly he’d wanted to be a father, and she wished so badly that his son hadn’t died. It made her heart ache to see how badly he still wanted it.

The sound of approaching footprints reached their ears, but neither of them looked away from Igor just yet. They wanted him to finish his song before they looked away. So, when he did, they all turned to look at Oleg. He said something in his own tongue to Igor, and then, “Asta, Ivar?” With that, he turned and left. Ivar gave a great sigh, pulling himself to his feet.

“Woof, woof,” Ivar grumbled, and Asta chuckled quietly. She turned to glance at Igor, who seemed disappointed, and so she reached down and brushed a hand through his hair. He gave her a small smile, which she returned, before leaving with Ivar to follow Oleg.

They walked into the main hall, though Oleg hung back, and so Ivar sat in one of the chairs at the table, Asta sitting to his immediate right. Many Queens sat to the left of their Kings, but not her. She was first and foremost his Prophet. She would sit at his right hand.

Oleg’s brother, who had been introduced to Asta as Prince Dir, was pacing the room as they waited on the Prince Regent himself. Eventually, he joined them, eating an apple. All eyes turned to him, and Dir said, “You have had two hours. What is your decision?”

Asta looked confusedly to Ivar, assuming he would explain to her, and he did. It was a quick explanation of the situation, how Dir was threatening Oleg and the two of them in exchange for custody of Igor.

“I told you,” Dir said to Oleg. “Hand over the boy, or I kill you and the cripple. And his Queen, as she has joined us.”

A glare narrowed Asta’s eyes as she sat up straighter, leaned over more toward Ivar. Clearly, she took that threat seriously, and didn’t intend for it to go through. Oleg gave a hum, and took another bite of his apple.

“Perhaps you have forgotten what I said. I said, ‘unless you release the four of us, unharmed, then in a day or so, a terrible thing will happen to you’.”

“I don’t believe you,” Dir replied. “You don’t really have second sight.”

“I think maybe you should believe him,” Ivar spoke up, watching the two Princes.

“What has this to do with you?” Dir questioned.

“Nothing,” Ivar said. He smirked. “Everything.”

Dir chuckled, unconvinced. “You are bluffing,” he told Oleg. “But let me give you the benefit of the doubt, and ask you a question only a true Prophet could answer.”

Asta and Ivar shared a look, considering she too was called Prophet. Would this be something he would want to test in her as well, or only in Oleg?

“I recently got married,” Dir said. “In secret.” Asta found her eyes darting to Ivar, only to find his eyes quickly looking back to Dir. So they’d had the same thought, then. Interesting. “The identity of my wife is only known to a few trusted servants. Not even Askold knew about my nuptials and the name of my wife. But I assume…” He turned slowly to face Oleg once more. “That you know. Don’t you, brother?”

He had approached Oleg, who was sitting on the table finishing his apple, but now stood to his full height, almost making Dir have to take a step back. Almost complete silence filled the room, aside from the natural sound which couldn’t be avoided. Oleg eventually confirmed, “I know your wife’s name. I know everything.”

He smirked and walked around to the side of the table, not noticing the skeptical look Ivar and Asta shared. He was eating their lies right out of their hands. How could he possibly know everything?

The brief realization that he could, in fact, be pretending occurred to them both, but they also both elected to ignore it. They’d rather survive this encounter first, then deal with Oleg later.

“What are you waiting for?” Dir ended up pushing. “Tell me her name.” When Oleg remained silent, Dir chuckled. “You see?” he called, turning to face his soldiers. “He doesn’t know her name. He’s bluffing after all!” He scoffed and gave a small shake of his head. “I knew it…You don’t know her name.”

“Anna.”

Ivar and Asta looked at Oleg when he spoke. Almost as quickly as they had done that, they looked to Dir for confirmation. They couldn’t see the way his face fell, especially as Oleg repeated, “Her name is Anna,” but the silence was telling as it was. “You were married at the church of St. Magnus Martyr here in Novgorod. I believe… this is the lady in question.”

He stepped aside, and Asta and Ivar turned to see a young woman standing there, clearly feeling quite anxious. Asta couldn’t hold in a gasp, and Ivar put his hand on her arm to calm her. She didn’t need to give away that she hadn’t known. After all, wasn’t she meant to be a Prophet, too?

Dir turned as well to face the girl called Anna, and the unsettled look that passed through his eyes made Oleg begin to laugh. “Am I right?” he questioned, though they all knew he had been. “This is your new bride, Anna.”

Ivar couldn’t help himself in applauding, though Asta did not. That seemed to be the image they gave off, these days. Ivar would approve of something Oleg might have done, and though Asta wouldn’t give her disapproval, she wouldn’t give her approval, either.

“Now, my dearest brother,” Oleg began. “You will give the four of us safe passage out of here, or my promise will come true.”

There were a few moments of tense silence, while all waited to see what Dir would do. Even he himself didn’t seem quite to know, until he commanded finally, “Order the warriors to stand down. Prince Oleg and his party should be untroubled when they leave, if they agree not to harm my wife.”

Ivar seemed stunned they were getting away with this, and Asta tried to just keep a small smile on her lips, as if she had expected this. Oleg, however, seemed almost offended, a bit concerned. “I don’t need to harm your wife,” he said, and then turned to her, calling, “Anna, come. Come!”

She ran from where she had been standing to Prince Dir, who wrapped an arm tightly and protectively around her. Asta chose to stand, and begin making her way toward the three gathered opposite the table from herself and Ivar.

“We meet so rarely, Dir,” Oleg said as she made her approach. “It’s unfortunate that it has to be in such circumstances. But the next time… will be different.”

“You have the boy,” Dir said, his eyes only briefly glancing over to Asta as she came to a stop beside Oleg. “You don’t need to see me again.”

“But we are family,” Oleg protested. “Family is important!” Dir took his wife by the arm and started to leave the hall, but Oleg called out his name. When his brother turned, he suggested, “We should stay in touch.”

“Perhaps,” Dir said vaguely. “Just don’t invite me for dinner.”

With that, they started off, but not without Ivar calling after them, “You forgot to say goodbye to the cripple!”

The door closed.

“Well,” Asta sort of huffed. “He was pleasant.”

“He is going to come for Igor,” Oleg said. “We need to return to Kiev, and we need to take control of the situation.”

Asta walked back to the table, which she rested her hands on and then leaned fully against. There was silence as they all thought, and she finally spoke up. “We need to move Igor to safety as well as eliminating the threat,” she said. “If we can capture Dir…”

“Yes,” Oleg agreed. “Then we will have all the pieces to this puzzle accounted for.”

“Then that’s what we do,” Asta said, and gave a curt nod, straightening again. “Ivar, let’s go get Igor. Oleg, be ready to go as soon as we’re ready. We can’t waste any time.”

Oleg nodded, and it was only once Asta and Ivar had left that he realized she had entirely taken over his plans. She knew how to command a room. Of course, she had been Queen in Kattegat- one of them- and he was beginning to believe she was the more militant of the two. Perhaps she had stood with Ivar in each war meeting, perhaps she had gone into battle with him each time he went. It certainly made sense- if one wanted to bring an entire room of Viking men to heel, they had to be able to command that sort of respect from them. He simply… hadn’t expected that from the previously rather quiet woman.

What else might she be capable of, that he would not expect?

“You are planning something.”

Asta couldn’t help the smile that came to her lips as she heard how good Ivar was getting at speaking her tongue. His fluency was improving, the more they used it to keep their words to themselves.

“Of course I am,” she replied. “I don’t trust Oleg as far as I could throw him, and I don’t like Dir. But having them both in Kiev, an eventual decision between them will be easier to make, and I want them both where an eye can be kept on them.”

Ivar’s eyes widened a bit, and he nodded. “You have a talent for strategizing, don’t you?” he commented, looking to her. Asta laughed a little.

“Of course,” she said. “How else do you think I actually convinced my brother to send me to Kattegat?”

He hummed as he considered that, and nodded. “The gods have… allowed much to be taken from me since that day you arrived,” he mused, walking along beside her. “But they have also given me the best ally I could have asked for.”

Asta shot him a look as if she were devastated. “Don’t tell me you buy into everything Oleg says?” she questioned, and Ivar chuckled.

“Of course not,” he said, and bumped her. “You know I meant you.”

“Yes, I did,” she said. “I just wanted you to say it.”

He couldn’t help but laugh at her words, shaking his head in an affectionately amused sort of way. They’d be back to Kiev soon, and he knew her plans would work well for them. Letting Dir be captured and brought there would help them, in some way, eventually. But, they would take their time in getting to know the boy, Igor, and just as Oleg had said- he would be the key to all of this. They only needed to determine which door he would need to unlock.

Taglist: @youbloodymadgenius, @wilhelmyna, @katfett, @fangirl-nonsense, @zuzus-sun, @heavenly1927, @pomegranates-and-blood, @kingniazx

If you want to be added to the taglist, feel free to reach out either by commenting, reblogging, DMing me, or sending an ask, and I’ll be more than happy to add you!

[imagines-by-a-typical-fangirl]

Dangerous Love (Pt. 04 of 13)

Pairing: Bruce Wayne (Batman) X Harley Quinn's sister!Reader

Summary: You're Harley Quinn's sister, Havoc, one of the many villain's of Gotham. But you've been caught, and has been tortured constantly for an year in Belle Reve. But when your think your life can't be anything else than the nightmare you find yourself into, Bruce Wayne, the Batman, takes you in for a project. He has a program to rehabilitate villains, and you're his lab rat. But soon enough confusing feelings start getting in the way. You know falling for Bruce is stupid. But can you keep your heart under control?

Word count: 2.3K

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{Justice League - DC Masterlist}

×

Nightmares

You're looking at the garden, admiring the little white flowers that only blossom at night. You're tired, eyes heavy, but you can't sleep. Some bats are flying down there, and you wonder if they live nearby. A much larger figure passes by, in a blur. Suddenly, the lights go off. Opening the window, you bend over, holding on the bars, to try and see more. Then, you hear a click.

Your head turns at the door. Did it just unlock? Is the system electrical? Then why does Bruce always uses a key? Moving to the door, you slowly turn the handle and... Another click. It's open. Pulling it, you step forward. The silence makes you anxious, and so does the darkness. Looking at the sides, you start walking down the hall.

“Bruce?” You call out, and your voice echoes through the place. You get no response.

Your legs keep moving, taking you downstairs and to the door, which is wide open. Why is Bruce doing this? Is it a test? Or did something happened to him? You shouldn't go. You should–

You're moving, against your will. Why are you moving against your will? Wasn't that the plan? To wait for an opportunity and run away?

The gates are open too, and they're the only thing you can see in the darkness. The next thing you know is that you're on the streets. Empty streets, no lights on. You're taking the way to the abandoned mall you claimed, taking all the right entrances and the elevator that leads to the underground. Your old house.

You walk through the garage, among the many cars you own. Reaching your private headquarters, you see piles of money. The jewels too, more shiny than usual.

“Is anyone here?” The place doesn't seem abandoned. You know they're still working for you, even after all that time in prison. They wouldn't dare to abandon you.

“Look who's back.” Your sister comes out of nowhere, followed by her boyfriend, the Joker. “Where were you, little sis?”

“I got out.” You could tell them the truth, that Batman held you hostage. But you don't want them to retaliate. “What are you doing here? You're not supposed to come uninvited.”

There's something in the air, in the atmosphere. It's so cold and and dark, like you're drowning in it. A weird feeling builds up as if you need to go home. But this is home, the only home you ever had.

What are you doing here? You made a promise not to run away. Bruce told you he'd help, so why did he let you get out? Why did he let the doors open?

“We know everything, dear." Joker sing songs, pacing around you. “The Batsy broke you down... Or should I say, Bruce Wayne?”

“What?” How does he know that? “I was in prison. Belle Reve. I got out.” You repeat, turning on your heels to look Joker in the eye.

“And now you're back home,” Harley exclaims, hugging you. “Enjoy yourself, sis. This is who you are. Have fun, steal what you crave for, and then, one day, they will just get you again.”

“Thanks to you, I know who Batsy is.” Joke speaks again, getting your attention. “I can attack him in bright daylight. When he's vulnerable, away from his toys.”

“You know you'll go back there right? The paradise on Earth.” Harley starts again. “They always manage to find us. And once they do, the torture is tuned all the way up.”

“Shut up, Harley.” You burst out.

“I will make sure to tell Batman you helped me. I may even bring his head here so you can use it as a decoration.”

“Shut up!” You're covering your ears, trying to understand what happened. What you did. You didn't tell anyone about Bruce. You know you didn't. “Shut up!”

“You're going back to Belle Reve, sis. We always do. We'll die there.”

“Batman's blood is in your hands, Havoc. Upon his death, we will rule Gotham.”

“Shut up!”

You sit up abruptly, just as the door is being open. Breathing fast, you run to the bathroom before Alfred comes in. Closing the door behind your back, you slide to the floor, hands on your head. “It was just a dream. Just a dream.” You mumble to yourself. Why did it scare you so much? You shouldn't be sleeping. “I won't go back. It was just a dream. Just a dream...”

A knock on the door startles you. “(Y/N)?”

It isn't Alfred, it's Bruce. With your heart pounding against your chest, you stumble up, opening the door and almost collapsing against his chest when you step out. He looks down at you, worried.

“Hi,” you whisper, stepping back.

“You look terrified. What happened?” He touches your arm, guiding you to sit on the bed. Behind him, you see a cart with lunch.

“I fell asleep. I shouldn't, I... I had a nightmare. No big deal.” As you move closer to the headboard, you see a book on the nightstand. “What's that?” Taking it, you read the cover. Game Of Thrones.

“I decided to bring you that. So you'll have something to do.” Bruce sits on the bed, hesitantly. “It has some violence, but I think you can deal with that.”

“Isn't there a TV show about it?”

“I'll stream if for you once you finish the book.”

“Ok.” It's good to finally have something to do. Opening the book, you look through the first pages.

“Why did you say you shouldn't sleep?” He inquires. Shaking your head slightly, you don't answer. “(Y/N).”

“Hm?” Looking up from the book, you meet his eyes. Why is he so worried?

“Won't you answer me?”

“I don't like sleeping.” Shrugging your shoulders, you sustain his stare. Bruce has nice eyes, and they're kind. You can't remember the last time someone looked at you like this. “The nightmares are constant so... I take naps. Whenever I feel like I'm falling asleep I get up. I don't sleep for more than three hours every night.”

“And what do you do up all night?”

“Nothing. I stare at the ceiling. The garden... Did you know that the little white flowers only blossom at night?” Smiling, you put the book down and move to the window. The garden is beautiful. You grow mesmerized by it every day. The flowers and threes are amazing.

“(Y/N), you need to sleep. To rest.” Bruce walks over you, touching your arm to get your attention. “Do you want something to help?”

“I'm used to my sleep schedule, don't worry.” You meet his eyes for a few seconds before looking through the window again. “I saw some people there a few days ago.”

“An interview. Now go eat.” Bruce brings the cart as you sit in the armchair. Sweet potato soup, your favorite.

He shouldn't be here for lunch, though. “Shouldn't you be at work?”

His expression changes, and he looks sad. “It's Saturday.”

“Oh... And don't you have a girlfriend or something?” The question comes out suddenly, before you even notice what you said. That's the bad part of being honest all the time, you lost the ability to control your thoughts.

“No, I don't have anyone at the moment. Why?”

“Because it's Saturday. You should be with her.” In the back of your mind, the figure of Bruce with a woman in his arm, going to dinners, smiling and chatting, bothers you. You don't understand why. It's only natural. A handsome man like Bruce probably has a lot of women chasing him. Being rich only makes it worse.

“Don't worry. I'm all yours today.”

That makes you giggle, looking down at the soup. “The therapy session will be long then.”

As usual, Bruce waits until you're done eating. You're growing used to his presence, and sometimes you think you're even a little excited to see him. It's unbelievable how gentle he is. Nobody was ever gentle to you. It's weird how you're failing to look for an opportunity to run away. You're just not thinking about this anymore.

When you're done, you push the cart away, holding your glass of soda. “So... What are we talking about today?”

“I have news. And I need you to tell me how you feel about them.” Bruce is serious now, all professional. Did you do something? Why does he seem so distant?

“Alright.”

“Yesterday night I found the Joker.” He begins, eyes focused on you, reading your face. “He almost managed to run away, but one of his bombs went off before the time, while he was close. He blew up, thrown into the air, and when he fell, he broke his spine. There's a chance Joker won't ever walk again.”

You don't know what he wants you to say. People tend to connect you to the Joker, even though you haven't worked with him in years. You're more like enemies now. “Well, that's too bad for him. And for Harley. She'll be heartbroken.”

“What about you?”

“I won't say I'm happy about it, I'm just... I don't feel anything.”

“Have you and the Joker ever been in any kind of... Relationship?”

That's new. “No. He kissed me once, to make Harley jealous, but I kicked him in the balls for it.” The memory makes you smile. His face was priceless. “He did make some... propositions, but I never accepted.”

“Why?” Bruce seems very interested in this. What are you thinking? He's just trying to understand and help you. Nothing more.

“Because he wasn't my type,” you say with a smirk.

“Does that mean other men made the same kind of propositions and you accepted?”

“What? No!” You exclaim, putting the empty glass on the cart. “I... I'm not...”

“See? When you don't say the truth, I can make any assumptions.” He leans forward, as he usually does. You're not sure why, but you mirror his position, looking into his eyes. “The truth, please.”

“Well, it's true that he's not my type, but... In my world, love is dangerous. You have lots of enemies and having someone you care about gives them a weak spot. So I never really gave me or... Love... A chance.” It's funny how easy it feels to open up to Bruce now. It doesn't mean you enjoy saying these things, they're supposed to be a secret, but with time, you're getting used to it. He has an effect on you, this man.

“For some people, there's no need for love in some... Situations.”

“For some people, yes. For me... It would never feel right.” You move back again, looking down at the sunlight coming through the window, on the floor between you and Bruce.

“(Y/N), I know the guards used to beat you. But did they ever... Assaulted you any other way?” The heaviness in his voice is tangible. Bruce is angry, worried.

“No. Never.” You're quick to answer, and he soon seems to relax. “Everything they feel for me is disgust, thank God. That... Never happened. They only touch me to beat me up.”

“I'm... Happy to know that. A pretty girl like you... I couldn't help but wonder if they ever tried something so filthy.”

“Woman.” You correct him as usual, the word pretty burning through your mind. Does he really think you're pretty?

“Woman. Forgive me.” A smile. A smile comes to his lips and you're mesmerized. He's so handsome, and now even more.

“I like your smile,” you tell him, biting back a smile yourself. “Didn't know Batman had this ability.”

“You're improving.”

“Am I?” It comes to your mind suddenly, that he brought you here to prove a point. “I'm happy your project is going well.” Running a hand through your hair, you get up, moving to the bed.

“I don't think of you as a project.”

“Really?” You don't believe him. “Sometimes I wonder what will be my fate after this. You say you can put me back into the normal world, but I'm not sure I believe it... I think that I'll end up in Belle Reve. And it'll be even worse because now I'm used to all this.” Gesturing at the room in general, you look at him. “Comfortable bed, nice showers, beauty products... Not being hurt every single day.”

Going back to Belle Reve would break you down, you think. The villain in you says that you can take it, all over again if needed, but the other part... Tells you otherwise. The very thought of your old cell is enough to make you shake like a leaf.

“I will never let you go back there,” Bruce speaks up, intense eyes on you, burning. “Never.”

“Keep me here then... If that's what it takes. I don't mind.” You can barely hear your own voice. You can't believe you just said that, that you would be ok being here for the rest of your life. But if your options are this room or cell 304B, you'd pick this room.

“Let's see how things go. There's no need to rush.”

Nodding, you continue telling him about your connections with the Joker, and about the many times you were at war against each other. After dinner, you ask for a pencil or pen, so you can underline the parts you like in the book. Bruce brings you a blue pen before wishing goodnight and telling you to try and sleep well.

But you can't. It's 2 a.m. and you're reading. You find a blank page in the book, so you rip it off and decide to draw. It's been years since you've drawn, and you're not really sure what you're doing. A few hours go by until you're finished with it. Bruce. You just drew Bruce Wayne. You stare at his features. His eyes, nose, jaw... Lips. Folding the paper, you decide to use it as a bookmark. He won't find out if you keep it inside the book.

×

@redwolf-7 @glitterypinkkitty @mybabyboytony @chipster-21 @agustdpeach @yaakimoon2

[errthel]

Route Two : Part Tree I guess

Hey, it's your friendly Lucien simp neighbor from the other side of the world and I come with part three of my fanfiction of @tri3tri 's Second Wife A. Yee yee.

His eyes carefully observed the glowy moon, lack luster look on his face signified his boredom. He had after all watched the moon for more nights than he could count with his fingers.

Lucien's window stayed open as he studied on the desk near the window. A snowy owl had brought over books, for what he assumed was his new school. How kind of them, he wasn't sure if he would have to pay them back though.

Flipping over the crisp white pages of the new book, he was able to find out that he had classes in Magic History, Chemistry, Dancing, Physical Education, and other subjects he was sure he would be able to ace with some time.

The click of his door alerted him of the entrance of either one of his grandparents, judging from their footsteps, Lucien narrowed it down to his grandmother.

"Don't stay up too late Lucien."

"M'kay, but I wonder why you still bring up some snacks."

"I noticed you didn't eat as much during dinner, so I thought you would be hungry now." the tray of snacks hit the desk with a thump, showing off its contents

Tea, chamomile Lucien thinks, some grapes and cream cheese and apple slices.

"I guess you're right, I am a bit peckish. You can go to sleep now Grandma, I'll be showering in a bit."

"Are there things popping up?" the question brought up the questioning things Lucien sees sometimes, be it fangs, a tail, horns, or scales, he would always see something inhuman in the bathroom mirror, but they would always disappear in some time

"Hm, nothing out of the ordinary, but the scales are starting to permanently stay here" Lucien gestured to his forehead, which was covered by his fringe

"Is that so?"

"Mhm, but it's fine, I don't usually tie up my hair so no worries."

"Alright then, I'll take your word, goodnight Lucien. Sweet dreams..."

Lucien watched as Hanna left his room, her white dress flowing from behind. This makes him remember the first day he was here, the day after that wretched day.

As well as forgetting what his family looked like, he also seemed to forget what the tall woman looked like. It was odd, Lucien knows that he has sharp memory, was it perhaps him erasing those memories of his?

Did he lose those memories to trauma? Was is just plain fear, that he forced himself to forget what those people looked like for his own sanity? But he still remembers what happened, he just doesn't remember. Why doesn't he remember?

Long fingers sharply tugged at (h/c) locks, desheviling the strands.

He racked his brain for any recollection of those long past memories. But he couldn't find any, he could no longer take it. The heavy breathing in the room quickened as the room started to become unbearably stuffy.

The quick and sudden drizzling hitting his window instantly notified the boy. The drizzling turned into heavy rainfall quicker than he could realize and thunder started to echo in the town.

"Shit, shit, shit, shit." desperate eyes swiftly moved over to the open window

Lucien immediately closed the window, preventing anymore rain to get inside his room, with a heavy sigh, he cleaned up his desk and went to take a shower.

Warm water cascaded over the slim pale body of the teen, his hair slicked back to reveal very offputting black scales that create an intricate and somewhat beautiful geometric pattern on his forehead. Some traces of bright green could be seen on the edges of the scales which shine brightly under the warm lighting of the bathroom.

Along with the scales was a pair of horns, with the same bright green highlights. Lucien hopes that this form of his won't show up during his stay at Royal Sword Academy, but the likeliness of that happening is closer to zero.

Lucien is aware that there will come a time where he will be forced to show off his other form, and he dreads that day.

After drying up, he changes into a pair of underwear and sweatpants and brushes his teeth. He notices the sharpness of two teeth and sighs once more, he can't catch a break with these sudden appearances of unwelcome features can he. While scrutinizing the existence of his fangs, the slit pupils of his eyes catch his attention and receive a small jump back from Lucien, mostly from surprise and terror.

"Slit eyes... this is definitely getting out of control..." the fearful expression stays on the boy's face as he walked back to his room, ready for bed

"...I wish that when I wake up, these things are gone and never coming back."

~

The warm, slightly chilly, day arrives, the suitcases that the family of three carefully packed a few days prior were now sitting on a seat inside the silvery pumpkin carriage.

Lucien's grandparents hug him as if it's the last time they would ever see him as Lucien wears the luxurious white garb with silver embroidery and subtle blue accents.

"I hope you'll be alright there Lucien."

"Will be. I will try to find ways to communicate with you when I get there." the comforting words allow the older couple to release their beloved grandchild

They watch as he walked to the carriage, ready to face the world he fears. His feet brings him to sit inside the velvety seats of the carriage as it whisks him away from his family.

He silently watches the view of his town vanish as they reach higher altitudes and by then his eyes have already dropped down, bringing him into a land of sweet dreams.

~

Royal Sword Academy, a prestigious magic school situated in Twisted Wonderland. Along with it's long standing rival, Night Raven College,  they are dubbed 'The Best Magic Schools in All of Twisted Wonderland'.

It truly shows, the moment Lucien stepped inside the school proper, he was greeted with marble and glass, fountains of all sizes, Greek-styled statues made of smooth ivory. He noted the extravagant architecture of the school, like The Palace of Versailles; with its enormous gardens with hedges trimmed to perfection, the delicate carvings of the walls, and the neatness of the school perfectly reflected the students who attended this institution.

Lucien briskly walked over to the well where the sorting of dorms was taking place in. As he sang his name into the well, a delicate chiming ring from the well was heard as a feminine voice sung out, 'The Aurorian Dorm'.

The Aurorian Dorm was one of the several dorms of Royal Sword Academy, founded on the patience of the Princess Aurora, her patience in waiting for her true love helped her defeat the dragon that had been terrorizing their lovely kingdom.

He joined his peers, also dressed in intricate white garb, introducing himself and mingling with them let him establish himself as 'The Kind Freshman'

Lucien was kind, to some extent, he very much was. It wasn't at all fake, why would he bother faking such complex things like emotions? But his kindess doesn't blindly extend to everybody, he is someone who isn't unconditionally kind, and he knows for sure that his peers weren't also kind from inside out.

The Aurora Dorm was definitely cozy, if not a bit overwhelming. Like a small village, cottages dotted the feild that was surrounded by lush forests. Each cottage would be shared by four people and it was a sizable enough cottage, definitely enough for four people with room to spare.

Lucien was put into a cottage with another freshman and two sophomores who chatted with him the moment they entered their cottage.

The freshman was called Brier Rome, a glowy individual with lovely soft blonde hair that curls at its tips and beautiful purple eyes. He was the first one to talk to the intimidating Lucien while he was putting away his clothes.

One sophomore was named Linden, a demure senior, he was almost as tall as Lucien, if not a bit taller. He had green hair with a bit of visible black roots, along with his hair, he had golden eyes that seemed to know everything.

The other sophomore calls themselves Hawthorne, he was shorter than his friend but makes up for it with his loud talking. He also had dyed hair, this time blue, and strangely like his peer, he had golden eyes.

Muffled noises coming from the cabin indicated that the four cabinmates were having the best time meeting each other.

Walking with each other to the central cabin to have some dinner was exhilarating to Lucien, many types of flowers and greens was planted all around and he had a fun time naming the plants with Brier.

In commemoration for the new students, they were going to partake in a picnic out in the flower feild.

The white daisies, purple chrysanthemums, pink carnations, blue hydrangeas, yellow roses, and many more beautiful flowers were present at this feild.

The Aurorian Dorm members talked to each other, sang, danced as they welcomed their new students with great joy.

"Brier Rome! You mean the heir to the throne of the Valley of Flowers?! It's wonderful to met you!"

"Mhm! Nice to meet you as well!" Brier paused a bit before his eyes lingered to the person behind him, he stood quietly, observing the flowers with great closeness, "Lucien!" the blond male called out to his taller peer

Briskly walking up to the taller boy with a bright smile he teased, "You seem to not put alot of effort into meeting your seniors~ what happened to your energy a while ago?"

A deadpanned expression bloomed on Lucien's pale face as he answered, "It's been diminished, I cannot bring myself to talk to people any longer."

"Awww don't be like that!" Brier said clinging to Lucien's arm as he walked him closer to the crowd

"Ah, hello, my name's Lucien (L/n)."

"Wait! You mean you're the special student who was accepted from another world?! How cool!"

"Ehh! Lucien's from another world?" a surprised look overtook the blond haired boy, "Why didn't you tell me~"

"Mhm... I didn't find a good time to really bring it up."

"Alright, I'll accept that. Say, what's your world like?" Brier's question brought eyes to look at Lucien, expecting his answer with baited breaths

"Eh? Well my world doesn't necessarily run on magic, to my world, magic is just nonexistent there."

"Ohhh! That's really weird then, how were you able to get magic then?"

The question brought a bit of surprise to Lucien, before he reverted back to his kind, kind smile, "I don't know."

~

The cold days of September brought a little chill to his spine, so wearing a lovely wool trenchcoat over his pyjamas, which was just a very loose white shirt and some sweatpants,  brought him joy. The warmth coupled with some early morning tea reminded him of life at home, being woken up at ungodly hours of the morning and being forced to carry out your normal activities while being half asleep, yeah definitely home.

The lax atmosphere of the early morning hour of six encouraged the (h/c) haired male to walk the expansive flower feild. After wearing some shoes, he walked out of the cottage and closed the door.

The fragrance of the forest seemed to stimulate his nose perfectly. Paired with it was the smell of a thousand different kinds of flowers. The experience of being in this wonderful place calmed the boy. As of late, he has been feeling a bit overwhelmed... it bothered him. Was he mentally weaker than he thought? Was he actually not ready for this? No, no, he's fine, he should just calm down, the flowers are there after all, it would be unsettling to show them such behavior.

The silence of the feild was broken by some rustling behind Lucien, who was alert and now facing the rustling bush.

"Who's there..." he wasn't so defensive, he was confident that he would be able to take out anyone with any sign of malicious intent

"Ah! Sorry... I didn't realize someone was having a walk." a head of flaming red hair popped up from the bushes

He was a tall person, not as tall as Lucien but tall enough. The person also exuded an aura of authority as he walked towards Lucien. Bowing forty-five degrees, he introduced himself.

"I am Florius, the Dorm Leader of this dorm. We weren't able to meet last night, but I had always wanted to make your acquaintance." smooth, his voice was as smooth as honey rolling of his pink lips

"Ah... um Florius-senpai, as you know, I am from another world so I'm quite curious about something." Lucien said

"Hm? Ask away then."

"Tell me everything you know about the Valley of Thorns."

So we finally frickin arrive at RSA, do note that this is my interpretation on what RSW is like, this has been written in like November of dumpster fire was 2020, so currently we only know about Che'nya and omg, I forgot his name, that Snow White dude. Any mentions of RSA are limited and most of this is what I think RSA is like, your interpretation of RSA can be different from mine and that's fine.

Okay, so I like to think that Royal Sword Academy is like really civil and sends an acceptance letter to their new student instead of kidnapping them, I'm looking at you NRC, and sends them their equipment to warm them up before bringing them to school.

My version of RSA is more of like a replica of NRC but good, I guess??? So there will be several dorms, all based of on the heroes of the Disney movies The Great Seven are from.

[witchcraft-in-wonderland]

Poor Little Anxious Crybaby (Pt.13)

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

Virgil seemed to be spending more and more time with Remus and Roman, not that anyone involved minded this change. But it wasnt the only thing that seemed to be changing.

This was the third week in a row in which Virgil seemed to be kept up for most of the night by dreams he couldnt understand. Sometimes he could make out the shapes of rabbits cats or mice, but rarely could he understand them.

"Maybe you just wanna be a mountain lion, I mean mountain lions could literally get away with ripping someone limb from limb, I'd wanna be a mountain lion," Remus said, running his fingers through Virgil's hair as Virgil lay across the couch.

"What I don't understand is why it would be waking you up, I mean, it's not like being a mountain lion is generally upsetting, right?" Roman said, pulling the hem of his sweater over his knees.

"Yeah. . . ." Virgil said, burying his face in Remus' stomach.

"Careful there bud, I gotta use that to digest stuff," Remus said, letting out a cackle as Virgil blew a raspberry against the skin.

"Well we dont need to focus on dreams now, anyone up for a game?" Roman said, shaking a controller.

"Ooohhh! I'll order pizza!" Remus said, bolting up off the couch. Virgil let out a whine at the loss of contact as his head landed on the couch pillows.

"Aaaawwweee, sorry Vivi, I'll come back in a little, but can you give me your order, Ro? You're usual?" Remus said, looking at both boys in turn.

"Cheese,,," Virgil mumbled.

"I'm not hungry," Roman said, bringing his legs closer to his chest. Remus seemed slightly upset by the response, but simply nodded and went to call the pizza place. Virgil moved closer to Roman, who draped an arm around him.

"Roro?. . ." Virgil said quietly.

"Hm?" Roman leaned his head on Virgil's.

"When we get back to school are you still gonna have to be friends with 'You-know-who' are you?" Virgil said, he hadnt thought about the kids at school for most of the summer, but it was nearly September, so the memory was slowly creeping back in.

Roman sat there for a few seconds, rubbing circle's into Virgil's back.

"I dont know Vivi. . . He's not exactly easy to get away from y'know?" Roman said sadly, Virgil buried his head in Roman's shoulder.

Virgil had known Inigo since they were kids, and they had never been friendly. But since becoming friends with Roman, Virgil had learned of even more reasons to despise the boy.

"I hope he and Brennan get together," Virgil muttered, casting a distinct glance at the sewing kit on the coffee table. Roman let out a soft chuckle, burying his head in Virgil's hair.

"That can be arranged," Remus said, sitting down next to the pair and draping himself across Virgil's back.

"Guuuyyyssss- you're crushing meeeeee," Virgil said, pouting.

"Not my fault you're so tiny," Remus said, resting his head in the crook of Virgil's neck.

"I'm only 4'8!" Virgil whined.

"Tinyyyyyy~" the twins chimed in unison.

Virgil had to admit that the feeling was nice, he was warm and happy, and for once in his life, he felt safe.

He and the twins spent a good portion of the day beating the crap out of fictional characters in a video game and stuffing their faces with pizza, Remus had taught Virgil how to make a volcano out of melted metal and an ant hill, much to Roman's distress.

"I'll see you guys tomorrow ok?" Virgil said as he stepped out the door to go home.

"Did you have fun kiddo?" Patton said as Virgil walked into the kitchen.

"Mhm," Virgil smiled as he rested his head on the kitchen counter.

"Dont forget to take your medication before dinner Virgil, I'm hoping the doctor will be right about it helping you sleep easier," Emile said, setting the bottle down next to Virgil.

"I wish they made this stuff in liquid form more often- how do you take all your stuff so easily?" Virgil said, raising an eyebrow at Emile.

"Its hard for me to, but usually if I take the water first and slip the medicine in after it's easier because it's already floating," Emile said, shrugging.

Virgil thought on this for a moment before nodding slightly. Virgil liked Emile a lot more than he'd first expected, of course sometimes he was a little different, but usually he and Virgil could just sit on the couch and talk about cartoons, and Virgil could even tell him about his nightmares without getting scared.

Of course there were some things he still didnt know about Emile, but if Patton or Emile didnt want to tell him things, he wasnt about to ask for information he shouldnt need.

Settling down for bed that night still felt bad, but Virgil didnt mention it, he didnt want to bother anyone.

Virgil awoke in a patch of soft grass, which upon closer inspection, seemed to be more of a dull teal color than the green it ought to have been.

"There you are! We've been looking everywhere for you!" Said a voice, Virgil looked up to see what looked to be a girl with white rabbit ears, wearing a waist coat and khaki shorts, a boy with a hat, a tux, and hair that varied from shades of brown and blonde on one side, and various other colors on the other, between the two was a girl with brown bunny ears, her outfit seemed to be an attempt at formality which only ended in the tattered remains of what could have once been a met gala dress.

"Who are you?-" Virgil said, sitting up and shaking his head slightly in confusion.

"Aaawww, you dont recognize us?" Said the brown bunny.

"Well of course he doesnt! When's the last time you saw him at the tea party! I mean look at his clothes! Hardly appropriate for such a special event." Said the man with the hat. Virgil looked down at his clothes, he was still in his pajamas.

"Come on- we have to get you dressed first, I cant imagine what would happen if we brought you to the king dressed like that!" Said the white rabbit, dragging Virgil off the ground and marching toward a small house on a hill.

It seemed like hours before the mission the three people seemed so set on completing was finished, and by the end of it Virgil found himself in a dusty purple dress with white sleeves, a black bow and buttons on the chest, white lace on the skirt hem, white stockings, and black boots. If he was being honest with himself, he'd never been happier to look at his reflection.

"Well come on then! The king is waiting for you!" Said the boy with the hate.

"Now hold on a second- I dont even know your names, how am I supposed to trust that you'll take me to the right place?" Virgil said.

The three figures in front of him exchanged glances.

"Hes right you know, I'd never trust someone without a name,"

"I made friends with a nameless person once, they stole my cat,"

"But if we give him our names outright then it's no fun!"

Virgil looked between the three of them in confusion, waiting for the conversation to end.

"Ok, we wont tell you our names, but you can guess them," said the boy with the hat.

The white rabbit stepped up first, she mimicked placing a crown on her head, and then mimicked a sword being pulled from something and swinging it around.

"Well- it cant be Arthur, you dont strike me as an Arthur- so is it. . . Gwenivere?" Virgil said, the girl shook her head but made a motion of begging him on.

"Gwendolyn?" Virgil said.

"You got it!" Gwendolyn said excitedly, clasping her hands together and bouncing from foot to foot. She stepped back and allowed the second rabbit to take her place.

This one held out two fingers first, dropped one, and began to imitate what seemed to be waves.

"Waverly?" Virgil said, the girl nodded and held up two fingers again, proceeding to drop them and hold up a full hand, pointing to calendar that had floated down from the ceiling.

"Waverly-Mae?" Virgil said, the girl nodded and spun on her heel to walk back next to Gwendolyn.

"And that leaves me for last I suppose," said the boy with the hat, making a sort of disappointed face to the girls as he walked up to Virgil. He mimicked both a face that Virgil would describe as angry, and one he would describe as having a few screws out of place.

"Mad?" Virgil said, the boy nodded and kept going, placing one finger on either side of his head and digging his foot into the ground.

"Maddox?" Virgil said, tilting his head. Maddox smiled and nodded.

"Well now that you know our names, you'll have to meet our king!" Gwendolyn said, grabbing Virgil by the arm and rushing off.

It took ages for them to reach what Virgil believed to be the palace. It was large and black with red and green accents along the sides, this left a sinking feeling in Virgil's chest.

"I present to you, his most gracious majesty, King Rhea!" Gwendolyn said, backing into a line with several guards dressed in red and white. Maddox and Waverly-Mae fell in line with the knights in black and green.

Virgil looked forward, in front of him and sitting on a throne was a man who shared much to many similarities with the twins to be comforting.

Though one eye was green and one eye was red, and rather than red or dark brown hair, his was black and white, but he still had the same smirk, the same demeanor Remus and Roman had when out on the town.

"So glad you could finally make it, your excellency," said Rhea, now turning his head to look at Virgil.

"I-" Rhea held his hand up, Virgil's mouth closed almost immediately.

"I know what you're going to say, and you are absolutely correct, you are not royalty, you are something much more important,"

Virgil woke up in a cold sweat, and it wasnt until he looked at himself in the mirror that he realized, he was still wearing the very same dress as before.

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

Tag list:

@frawkeye

@meowthefluffy

@thefivecalls

@luna--28

@deathcanbegreat

@willowaudreykeyes

@sleepless-emo

@teamplutoforlife

@melodiread

@cemmy

@pricklyfish777

@frog-candy-bee

[captainshyguy]

not to be a little melancholic but i've been thinking a bit about all the people that have come and gone in my general social circle like. not just irl, but online too. the close friends, who eventually left, and the ones on the outskirts, but were always there. at least, for a time. the people you never quite talked to, but were in your bubble, in your life, if just for a bit. the people who will only be icon, words on a screen to me. the people who will forever be 14 in my memories, because its all i have of them 

its just...its weird yknow? not even getting into social circles from school, friends you grew apart from, friends of friends of friends in your class that you had an odd connection with

but online its like. i’ve been in a few online communities in my time. the penguins of madagscar community on fanpop, one for the same fandom on deviantart, the agents of shield one here, then the maze runner, then star wars, then mario, then star wars again...i’d say ‘and hollow knight now’ but lets be honest, i haven’t made....many friends or even mutuals through it solely X]

i guess my point is like. all of these communities were different people. and over time, whilst i’ve generally stayed put (until i was physically the last one left, and jumped ship, like fanpop) people just. they left yknow? maybe it took a couple of months, maybe a couple of years, but they did, and its such an almost...odd thing to experience

im not saying people cant leave, not at all but it just made me think how many people i’ve known, how many i’ve been friends with, how many existed in my orbit. how many i only have pieces of. and i guess...how many people’s orbits i was in. the person i was in the past lives on through each and every one of then, and i have no idea what stuck. what’s their ‘luke’ memory, their takeway. heck, some of them wouldn't even have it by that name. 

one thing im glad about in a way is like. from each of the communities that like. meant something to me, i managed to grab a few people almost. a few that also dug their heels in, a few that are still in my orbit, however close or far, but they’re there. they’re posting actively or somewhat actively and i know where to find them. and thats nice 

it just makes me wonder sometimes yknow?? how many people currently in my circle, currently in my orbit, will eventually leave one day? who will stop posting, who’s icon i simply will never see again.

i do hope, with all my heart, that all the ones that i fell out of touch with are doing well 

(im musing about specific people under the read more, WILL get long kjdfhnd) 

from my primary/secondary school i dont have anyone exactly. the closest i have is one guy i was pretty fond of but not like. romantically. i follow his youtube and whilst i dont really watch the videos seeing his face pop up every now and again is nice. but man i do think back on those secondary school friends. funnily enough by the end whilst i liked my “official” best friends i honestly ended up more fond of others. sarah, priya, shriya, zarah, zi yu, kyle. danny, introducing me to treasure planet, hiding away with him and his friends to watch films in forgotten rooms when it was near the end of the year, then liam, of course, man..its weird he was my best friend in the first few years when i moved there, then we got put in different classes so we just didnt see eahc other much. but that fondness was always, always there. god, and jake....i wonder if he thinks back fondly to the two of us pretending to be transformers. i wonder if im still jazz to him. god, and then sophia, just, not even hanging out but having our little ‘hot buttered toast’ song. i hope thats the memory she has of me. (i haven’t even listed everyone from this part, and i couldnt! it was a 7-8 year period of my life! right during my brain developmental stages!!)

its weird i was in love with ryan for nearly three years. a lot of those memories are soured knowing one of my friends spread it around school and everyone secretly knew, (and looking back i was way out of his league like, morally lol) but still. maybe once or twice a year i’ll dream about him, and for a brief moment, im there, sitting with him in geography as he shows me magic tricks, during that period i do genuinely think he liked me too (before it wore off for him lol) and im still in love. 

from college, man....ewan was like. i have a feeling he was leading me on since he had a girlfriend lmao, and was just flirting for fun bc he saw i was shy and was trying to get me to react, but it never felt like bullying yknow? i dont think he was actively trying to make fun of me. so i dont know, it was nice, it felt nice and it still kinda does. 

khairun.....im so glad i still have her. i’m still a little gay for her. i remember sitting with her on the bus, riding for hours as we were on the geology trip, and she would ramble about the game of thrones video game and she’d squint so happily and her eyes would sparkle. she talks about dark souls now and i only see her messages, but i can still feel her enthusiasm. or tanisha and fatima, my other geology friends, my maze runner friends. seeing the scorch trials with fatima in the cinema. joking about newt and thomas with tanisha. sitting around the table with my actual friend group, in the big lounge chair reading the tolkien dictonary, joking about the flash with bindiya. sleeping around maddie’s house and playing would you rather. 

heck, i didnt even touch on teachers!!! teachers i connected with so much on a genuine level!!! mrs chambers, mr hauge, mr wrght, miss lloyd, mr hutchinson, miss petra, mrs young! mrs mohammed, mr santa maria, mr longdon, miss langley, mrs maize, miss davies. i know with teachers, the kids must start to blur together at a point. but i just....i hope, at least. with those first two, they’ll remember me, just a bit. i keep having dreams where im in my old school, and i try to find them., i’ve found mr hague a few times. but until about a month ago, whenever i got to geography, miss chambers was never there. im glad i finally found her. 

then fanpop...lexii, having the same birthday as me, talking with kait and roleyplaying as penguin ocs in high stakes situations. dating dylan fkjdngjdh, rigging the club’s presidential election. its weird, i dont have a lot of memories from this time. just....just people? people posting their ocs, people drawing ech others ocs. kaitlyn, anya, kait, dylan, lexii, imaneasel, mya, peacebaby, madascargirl, kate, starslight, imogen, tressa, sammi, crystal, cc, syliva, jasmine, hikari, amber,  yellow, steff, lilly, blue, richard, monique, sharpey, hannah, icicle, ratking, cian i- god, there was so many of us. theres more, i can think of more names. there was so many

anya did what i did pretty much and went to deviantart then kinda dug her heels in and didnt leave, though i don think she’s more active on toyhouse. and yet, i still see her art there, so its nice. having her throughout the years has been nice, watching as both of our art improves. she’s always been a bit ahead of me. then cian i’ve been talknig with pretty much every day for about 6 months now, thats been nice 

and then here, man! the agents of shield fandom! man! i dont remember a lot of names honestly besides the ones who stayed, and sam. i hope sam’s okay. y’all who stayed, who are still mutuals, the hm....five of us i think? though the one ofy’all i was closest to isnt around as often X[ but still. im happy y’all are here 

some of y’all that have been around long enoguh will know i was best friends with kacie for a while. from....i think that was my brief stint in the dan and phil fandom. she. well. she’s okay, the last i heard of her. but my overtalking screwed that up i think. my last message from her, a few years later, was amicable at least. i still feel awful about that if i think on it too hard

i think i only picked up ronan from the maze runner, at least, that i talk to, yeah, right, there’s two others that are still about but i dont think we’ve ever held a convo X] 

and u current peeps! from mario, star wars and.....im not quite sure where for some of you! i love u all! especially y’all that have been around forever, just, liking each others posts every now and again., i dont know how many people you all follow, but i follow less than a 100. i might only be a blip on your radar, but i like seeing y’all, genuinely. thank you for being in my orbit. i hope i’m a comforting or at least. nice reliable presence in yours, for as long as we all stick around.  

[theprojectionstalpha]

649 days till Graduation Day

Prologue There was the slightest bit of noise that silent night. The only thing heard was the small tip-tap of footsteps in the basement hall as the person was trying to escape a force unseen that was silently following them. "!!!" They tripped but got back up and made a wall of black fire, hoping that will buy his time as he ran again. He would scream if he could but his mouth had been sewn together and he was 300 feet below the surface....250.....100....30....1. He was so close to the door but it was locked and he tried to break the door down but the force was now towering him as he looked behind, tears falling and his cries going unheard by anyone.

.

.

.

.

.

"Ah! Mom! Why are you in my room!?" A loud and annoyed voice whined as a pillow was placed over their face to block the bright sunlight from shining on their face. "I'm in your room, Stella, because it is 10:57 am and it's your birthday, so get up!" The older woman said as she made her hand spark a bit and poked her child. "Ack-" The once sleepy Stella fell off their bed and hit their rug covered marble floor, "ow! Alright, I'm up crazy woman...." She stood up and popped her back but only got shocked again, "ah! What was that for!?" Stella whined at their mom. Stella's mom just laughed, "making sure your awake." She left Stella's room, letting the angry mage whine and go to their bathroom to get ready for the day.

After about 20 minutes, Stella left their room and almost tripped over a bunch of toys, "what the?" They saw they stepped in slime, "Gray! Gianna!" They shouted for the twins as they came running up the stairs. "Yeah?" Gray said, annoyed as he had just been doing something important which Stella knew was a lie. "How many times have I told you not to play slime tag in front of my room?" Stella put their hands together and pointed them towards their little siblings. "Sorry! We will clean it up!" Gianna, being her happy go lucky self said as the two began to clean it up. Stella walked downstairs, waving to their dad who was fixing up the bay window in the living room, and made their way to the kitchen where they found a plate of fresh pancakes waiting and their mom excited, hiding something behind her back. "You're acting weirder than normal mom." They laughed a bit and opened the syrup bottle, pouring some on their pancakes, and ate happily. "Guess who got a letter from Rutherford Trinity High?" Stella's mom said happily. Stella, who had been drinking milk, spewed it out and coughed, their whole face wearing shock, "what!? No way!" Their mom handed them the letter and Stella ripped it up, wondering what such a prestigious school wanted with her.

The letter was on silk-like paper which was nice to the touch, thread designs along the edges. Stella's eyes sparkled as they let their thumb rub over the soft paper and thread. "Hm?" They got over the softness of the paper and went onto the letter which read,

'Dear Stelliana Everdale,

I hope this letter finds you and your family in good health. We have sent this letter to you to invite you to spend your high school years here at Rutherford Trinity High University. Before you ask, no you won't have to pay anything. See this as a scholarship. We have seen your grades and hard-work throughout your years of schooling and are proud to pay in full for a dorm, classes, and lunch. If you are interested in joining our school we have put a number below for you to contact and times we are free. We would love you to join our school Ms. Everdale.

Yours's truly, Headmaster Ray Techlia'

"..." Stella was the least to say in shock. "What's the letter about Stella?" The mom sat next to her child, Stella had come out non-binary to her a few years ago and she was supportive, as Stella's step-dad walked in, "you all okay?" He laughed a bit and wiped his hands off. "They want me to join..." Stella said through their shock. "Sweetie I can not hear you and I'm right by you." Stella's mom pat their head, "Mom they want me to join their school!" Stella jumped off their seat happy as their mom did the same and they hugged happily, Stella's step-dad joining in and lifting them, spinning them, and laughed. "See babe? I knew my baby was smart!" Stella's mom praised and kept hugging her child. "They said to call them if I wanted to," Stella said, still in shock. Stella's mom and step-dad took the paper and went to another room to make the call. Stella was left in the kitchen alone, "..." They left out the backdoor and ran to their bike.

Once Stella had hopped onto their bike, they took off down the sidewalk, "..." They rode to a clearing on a cliff which was a good way away. "..." They passed trees, rocks, valleys, roads, large buildings, small neighborhoods, everything till they got to the beautiful cliff overlooking the beautiful view of the world they lived in. "....heh." They walked to the edge and smiled as they felt the sun on their face. They had to think, 'was this all true? Was their hard work paying off?' "..." Stella looked to the clear blue sky and smiled, "I hope your proud dad." They stood up and raised their hands to the sky.

Meanwhile, in a dark underground place live a creature so full of evil he didn't have a name...he was only known as the creature. "Was the letter delivered?" A dark voice boomed. "Y-Yes, sir." A young woman said, nervous that she would be slaughtered if she said the wrong thing. "Good....that girl's power will be mine." A large claw formed into a fist around a poor person's head that was now just mush and blood seeped through the claw and dropped what used to be a head. "Sir if I might ask, what is so important about this girl's powers that you sent her here...?" The young woman said nervously. There was a pause then silence, "I didn't say you could ask further questions now....did I?" He must have stood up as the woman grew scared and looked up since the large force now towered over her, "!!!" She screamed as she was picked and given to a bunch of wild animals that were dying for food, "this will teach you to never go beyond what I ask..." the thing tossed her into the cage and locked it, sitting back down on his large throne, the woman's screams filling the air. "Don't worry Stelliana....we will meet very soon...I can feel it." His dark laugh boomed throughout the darkroom and halls of the school basement.

Stella got back home, to see their parents watching a movie with the twins, "what is y'all watching?" They peeked over their step-dad's shoulder. The mom shrugged, "I don't know, the twins put it on so why not?" She laughed a bit as Stella rolled their eyes, "well imma head to my room." They kissed the twin's heads and went up to their room. They wanted to research this school they were going to be spending a lot of their life. "..." They brought out their laptop and began their search. They typed in Rutherford Trinity High into the search bar and it didn't take long for millions of results to come up, "that was fast." They looked through every one of the results, only stopping at one that mentioned something about missing graduates, "h-huh?" This made them worry as they scrolled through, "It was five years ago...it could have been a small mishap...." If only they knew what they were about to get themself into by accepting to go to this school.

Stella shut the laptop quickly and set it down gently, plugging it back in and setting it on their nightstand. They turned off their lamp and laid down, looking to their ceiling, the glow in the dark stars and moons glowing softly in the dark. "...." They smiled and couldn't wait to finally see all their hard work pay off. Stella didn't know when they fell asleep that night but all they knew was that they had one weird dream.

[onwesterlywinds]

PROMPT #18: Panglossian

Ahtyn raised her hand to open the door on her left. With a creak, its metal grates slid aside, amid a burst of rainbow light, to grant her passage. Aether propelled her upward to the final dungeon in Lyhe Ghiah. A burst of gold hit her eyes before she could fully comprehend the magnitude of gil lying there for the taking, not to mention the treasures that lay within - a suit of armor! lost relics from Sea Wolf history! a frog plushie! - and yet her gaze fell upon one treasure in particular-

"Well come, my dear sapling!"

Her own beautiful branch, draped across a conveniently placed divan, their wings fluttering as they pulled up the hem of their skirt ilm by ilm.

"Wait."

Feo Ul's fingers stilled, their mouth shaped mid-word in a perfect O.

"...Feo Ul." She looked around at the interior of the final chamber and could not summon the energy to speak anything but the first words that came to mind. "This is ridiculous."

"Och!" They threw their hands up in the air. "So cold our sapling is! Your beautiful branch slaved away at this dream for an entire day, while other, graver matters required our utmost attention-"

"That sounds more to me like a failure to prioritize, but go on."

"You're hardly one to talk!"

"Hey, I'm asleep. I can't do shit right now." Then an idea came to her - the sort of logic that only ever came about through dreams. "How 'bout this: I'll head into Lyhe Mheg, make sure everything there is all taken care of, and then you and I can... you know..."

Feo Ul bit their lower lip, their ginger eyebrows flashing upward twice. "Nooo, sapling," they teased. "I don't know."

"End the night on a good note?"

"We'll see what we can manage," they said. All at once they stood directly before her, and with a flick of their wrist and a single finger tapped upon Ahtyn's nose, the floor suddenly gave way beneath her. She hurtled through clouds that tasted strangely of cotton candy, until at last she landed with a splash into the pools of Lyhe Mheg.

Even before she had cleared the water from her eyes, she heard a familiar voice calling to her from one of the nearby hillocks.

"Ahtyn!" It was A’zaela Linh, waving to her from beneath a macaron-patterned canopy. "You're here too!"

"Yeah," she said, spitting out stream water all the while. "I'm here."

Sairsel Arroway was also there, it seemed, sitting next to A'zaela upon a rather unassuming mushroom. Despite his rather whimsical surroundings and the flush of playing cards in his hand, he bore an expression fit much more for the Eighth Umbral Calamity than a fantastical dream world.

"We're playing poker," A'zaela explained as Ahtyn approached.

She couldn't help but frown. "Do you know how to play poker?"

"No," said A'zaela and Sairsel in unison. A'zaela explained in a whisper, "Tyr Beq put us up to it."

"Ah." For all the difficulties that so often came about from being Feo Ul's sapling - difficulties to which Sairsel could relate all too well - Tyr Beq had a reputation for far lengthier jests. "Well, I vote we do something else." Even as she spoke the words, she found herself sitting down beside them at their table. "Poker doesn't really appeal to me, either." She grabbed the cards and dealt them each another hand of three, her own hands refusing to heed her. "Fuck."

For all her protesting, when she turned over her three cards, they were writ not in numbers and suits but in major arcana. "...Hm."

"Hm," agreed Sairsel. His furrowed brow indicated his own confusion at this turn of events.

"Hm," A'zaela concluded.

They each shared their hands with one another, with implicit and unshakable trust. Sairsel bore The Hierophant, inverted; The Sun; and The Hermit. A'zaela placed Strength; The Star; and The Lovers in quick but careful succession, her cheeks glowing bright pink all the while. Ahtyn, for her part, displayed her cards as gingerly as though they were made of glass: The Hanged Man; Justice; and The World.

"Cool twist," said Ahtyn, and her friends nodded their agreement.

With their fortuitous readings thus displayed, any anxiety or trepidation vanished at once. They spent a good deal of time frolicking like children, unbound by the observations of guileful mortals. Mostly, they went up to the petal hammocks and watched the multi-hued sky as its color changed ceaselessly.

"Would be nice to see some stars in here once in a while," Ahtyn remarked.

It was not to be, at least for the present. Her eyes closed as if of their own accord, and she wondered, not for the first time, if falling asleep here would cause her to wake up on Hydaelyn.

"Night," she yawned, curling into herself within the hammock.

Briefly, she hoped her friends would not hear her if she snored.

Instead she woke within Lyhe Ghiah again - the throne room, not the dungeons - and rushed herself back to Feo Ul's awaiting embrace.

All things considered, it was a better dream than any she could have hoped for.

[gemi-fool]

a journey starts, a journey ends

jam buds week day 6: journeys end

(ao3 will be added in rb)

Steven sat in what used to be the Bubble Room, now empty. Every single corrupted Gem they’d found had been healed. Every bubble had been popped. The Gems were still working to track down some that were missing, but out of the ones they’d already found, no one was left behind.

He heard the Temple door opening, turning back to see the Gems walking in with Connie.

“We thought you’d be in here,” Garnet said simply. Connie walked over and sat beside him, the Gems following suit.

“You got all of them,” Connie smiled. “All of the corruptions you and the Gems found, you healed them! All of them!”

Steven smiled, nodding. “We got all of them.”

“We should celebrate,” Pearl said. “You should celebrate, Steven. If it weren’t for you, stars, who knows if this ever would’ve happened!”

“C’mon, man!” Amethyst said. “We can order pizza! Or cake! Or anything!”

“And my parents said I can stay the night,” Connie said.

Steven thought for a second. “Yeah. Yeah! We should celebrate!” He stood. “An actual celebration for the start of Era 3!”

Connie and the Gems stood beside him.

“I’ll order the pizza,” Garnet said.

They headed out of the Bubble Room, into the beach house (which the B-Team was going to help rebuild), and outside into-

Steven stared, before a smile slowly formed on his face.

Healed Gems stood along the beach, all talking amongst themselves before they noticed Steven and the others watching.

Then it was a sea of Gems shouting Steven’s name, shouting thank yous, shouting praises.

One journey was over.

---

Steven was standing across from the Diamond’s thrones in the ballroom.

“Gems deserve a say in how they’re ruled,” he stated. “The Diamond Authority-- well, it isn’t that? Gems should be able to vote on who their leader is, and they should get to have other choices than the Diamonds.”

White stared down at him. Steven still wasn’t used to it. He was barely 15, he still looked like a little kid, but he’d stepped up to do what he did best: fix things. This was just on a larger scale.

“Pi-- Steven,” she said. (At least he hadn’t had to correct her this time.) “This is how our society has worked for thousands of years! Is changing it now really necessary?”

“Yes!” Steven said. “Yes it is! Because things are already changing!” He took a deep breath. “Gems have free will. If you’re going to give them more freedom-- they deserve freedom to choose, too.”

“She does have a point, White,” Blue said.

“He,” Steven corrected.

“He does have a point. Sorry, Steven.”

“He does, but… How would we even set that up?” Yellow asked.

“Well, Dad tried explaining it to me when I was younger, and it was kind of confusing? But the way it works on Earth-- or, in America, at least, is basically, each state has a certain amount of votes? Everyone votes, and then whatever the majority voted for is what they vote for, and whatever or whoever gets the most votes wins or… something like that.” Steven shrugged. “But it doesn’t have to be that? It can just be majority of everyone.”

Yellow nodded slowly. “I see.”

“But I just don’t understand how any Gem would be better at running the Empire than us!” White said. “We’ve been doing it since the Empire began.”

“I could probably think of a few better candidates,” Steven mumbled.

“What?”

“Nothing, nothing-- They can learn. The foundation’s already there, I mean-- Gems with any political experience can probably work with it.”

Steven’s phone beeped. He pulled it out of his pocket-- he was supposed to head back to Beach City soon.

“Aw, crap. I have to go.”

“Steven, we’ll talk to White,” Yellow said. “Your body needs food and rest. Go get it. We can sort this out ourselves.”

Blue nodded. “I like this voting idea. Thank you for showing it to us, Steven.”

Steven nodded. He stepped onto the warp pad, warping back home. He walked into his room and down the stairs, finding Connie sitting on the couch.

She looked up at the sound of his footsteps. “Hey, Steven! How’d it go?”

He sighed, sitting on the couch and slumping down it, ending up with most of his body not even on the couch. “It was tiring,” he said, before sitting himself back up. “But Blue and Yellow liked the voting thing.”

“So the Empire is going to become a democracy?”

“Hopefully! White wasn’t really into the idea,” he said. “She still thinks they’re the only ones really fit to run the Empire.”

Connie nodded. “Yeah, I’m not really surprised.”

“So…” Steven said. “Where do you want to go for dinner?”

“Well, I know you like Fish Stew Pizza,” Connie replied.

“Yeah, but we can go anywhere! We just have to call Lion!”

“Hm… Well, there’s a new burger place in Ocean Town?”

“Yeah! That sounds great!” Steven near-shouted. “Hold on, let me call Lion.”

Steven found out the next day that White had been convinced. They were going to instate democracy.

Another journey was over.

---

Steven patted Lion awake.

“C’mon, bud, I promised Connie we could hang out at her place,” he whined. “C’mon, get up!”

Lion yawned, grumbling a bit, but stood up. Steven hopped on his back. He roared a portal into existence, and next thing Steven knew they were outside of Connie’s house.

He walked up to the door and knocked.

“Coming!” he heard Connie yell.

She opened the door, and paused for a second, staring.

“Steven! You-- you grew!”

“Yeah!” Steven said. “And it’s not forced this time! I grew!”

“You do age,” she said with a smile, stepping out in front of him. “Aw, come on, you’re taller than me!”

Another answer.

Another journey was over.

---

Steven looked up at the hill behind the Temple from the beach. The grass and flowers had finally regrown.

He walked through the town, stopping for bits from Beach Citywalk Fries. The town had been repaired.

He could see Little Homeworld from here. They were almost done building it, including fixing the damage from Spinel.

Connie had gotten to go to space camp, in the end. After Spinel left.

Spinel was in Homeworld, with the Diamonds. She could heal. She was safe.

Another journey was over.

---

Steven laid on the top of his car, staring up at space above him. Sadie and Shep’s song played from his car radio. No one else was around.

He wondered if Lars and the Off-Colors were in the section of space he could see right now.

Everyone was leaving, it felt like. He hated people leaving. He hated saying goodbye. He was all about change but-- this was a kind of change he didn’t like.

He had quit Little Homeschool to avoid graduations. To avoid this.

He went to text Connie.

Another journey was over.

---

Steven was so used to saying, pretending, and thinking nothing was wrong.

Adverse childhood experiences. Childhood trauma. Dr. Maheswaren telling him all of this. Connie saying that them being there was making things worse.

Something was wrong. He couldn’t think that it wasn’t anymore.

Another journey was over.

---

Steven wasn’t sure how long he’d spent sobbing into Lion’s mane, but eventually the Cluster had put everyone back down on shore, gave a thumbs-up, and had gone back into its bubble. The Diamonds and Spinel had left. Steven had gone inside, thought about taking a shower, then thought about the shards and the diamond essences and my diamond and decided not to, and got dressed. Bismuth and Peridot went straight to work fixing the front of the house, that was him, that was his fault.

Connie sat with him in his room after he got dressed.

“Steven,” she said, softly. “It’s gonna be okay.”

He blinked back the tears that were welling up, that threatened to spill out of his eyes again, he was definitely dehydrated.

“It’s not,” he whispered.

“I know it feels like that,” she said. “But it will be, because we-- your dad, the Gems, and I-- we’re not going to let you keep doing it alone. You’re not going to go through this alone, Steven.”

And he didn’t feel like he deserved it, but he knew they would anyways. He was done travelling alone.

Another journey was over.

---

Just a little time, just a little something else instead.

Steven waved goodbye to the Gems, to Dad, to Connie teary-eyed as he drove away. The residents of Beach City held up signs, waving goodbye as he drove through the streets of the town.

Just a little time, just a little something up ahead. I’m dreaming of…

Another journey was over, but only so a new one could start.

---

Steven set down another stack of boxes, Connie carrying in two more behind him. Rings shined on each of their left hands.

He’d finally found where he wanted to settle down-- and it wasn’t too far from Beach City, in Empire, a little past Empire City.

Connie pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Alright, those are the last ones,” she said. “I’ll order takeout while you start putting things away.”

He nodded, pressing a kiss to her lips (it sparkled just the tiniest bit). “Alright, babe,” he said.

His final journey was over.