#jump to label command

[emeraldcatears]

The Select Item command (and also Labels)

Now that we've explored both items and variables to a degree, it's probably a good time to step back and look at one of the event commands in the message section: Select Item.

So what does this do and why is it under Message with things like Show Text?

It may not be intuitive from the way the tooltip describes it, but calling a Select Item command allows the player to select an item from their inventory to be checked against whatever other event commands you're using, allowing things like letting the player choose a gift for an NPC or pick an item based on a description to solve a riddle.

It's probably easiest to show with an example so I made an NPC who wants an apple. When talking to the NPC while in possession of at least one apple (how to check that is described in variables) I want the player's inventory to open so they can select an apple and give it to the NPC. I also want them to not be able to give a different item to this NPC.

Once I've set up the initial conditional branch to see if the player has an apple it's time to make the Select Item part of the event.

I'll just call the Variable it asks me to pick Check Item ID since all I need it to do is check what the item the player selects is. Once the player actually clicks on an item from their menu this variable will be set to equal the Item ID of whatever they selected. The variable is then stored so the game can compare it against the rest of the event.

You can select what part of the inventory the player is prompted to select an item from next. The options are Key Items, Regular Items, and two Hidden Item categories. These are the same categories in the dropdown when creating an item in the database. I made the apple I want to give the NPC a regular item so I'll pick that one.

Now if the player interacts with the NPC they'll encounter a point where the regular item section of the inventory opens and they can pick any item from within.

At this point the player can click on whichever item they want and... nothing else happens. The item menu will just close. The item ID of whichever item they picked is now stored in the variable, but that's not really part of the game the player sees.

So now I make a new conditional branch where I check Variable "0003 Check Item ID". The variable is currently set to the item the player picks, so I need to check if the item they picked is the apple.

Every item made in the database has a number. I made an apple item in the 36th item slot, so the apple's Item ID is 36.

That means that in my conditional branch I need to check how the variable the player sets Check Item ID to when they pick an item compares to 36.

Now the game can actually check if the item the player selected is the apple or something else. All I have to do now is fill in the rest of the event after it with the follow up to actually give the NPC the item.

I can also put whatever I want in the else branch for if the player picks the potion instead. But what if I want to make it so nothing happens upon picking the potion?

It's Label time!

As it is now, if the player picks an item other than the apple the select item menu just closes and they have to restart the conversation to pick the apple next time. That's... inconvenient. If I want the select item command to just come up again right away after the wrong item is selected I can make a mini-loop using the Label command (not the Loop command, I'm not touching that just yet and I don't need it for something this small).

Labels are really two commands at once: Label and Jump to Label. Unlike Switches and Variables, Labels don't have a list where they're stored so you have to type in the name for the label in both the label and jump to label commands. This also means they're not "global" like Switches and Variables so they only act within the event rather than being accessed from any map or any event. I believe this means you don't have to worry about whether you've reused a name elsewhere.

I'll call this label "TryAgain" and put it above the initial Select Item command. This means this is where the second event Jump to Label will go to when it's called, opening the item menu for the player again immediately if they trigger the Else branch by picking the Potion.

If I put it above the Show Text for her asking for an item it'll replay from there instead so her question will remain visible, which may look nicer if I decide to pretty this up. It just has to go before Select Item or the player won't be able to choose a new item to fill the variable the conditional branch is checking.

Picking an inventory item like this can be a neat way to make puzzles that require the player to determine what item is needed from clues. If I wanted to have, say, a buzzer sound or a monster attack, I could have evented that instead of the Label/Jump to Label commands. But I figured exploring the Label commands was a good exercise as well so I combined the two here.

[saintobio]

THE TERMINATOR'S CURSE. (spinoff to THE COLONEL SERIES)

in this new world, technological loneliness is combated with AI Companions—synthetic partners modeled from memories, faces, and behaviors of any chosen individual. the companions are coded to serve, to soothe, to simulate love and comfort. Caleb could’ve chosen anyone. his wife. a colleague. a stranger... but he chose you.

➤ pairings. caleb, fem!reader

➤ genre. angst, sci-fi dystopia, cyberpunk au, 18+

➤ tags. resurrected!caleb, android!reader, non mc!reader, ooc, artificial planet, post-war setting, grief, emotional isolation, unrequited love, government corruption, techno-ethics, identity crisis, body horror, memory & emotional manipulation, artificial intelligence, obsession, trauma, hallucinations, exploitation, violence, blood, injury, death, smut (dubcon undertones due to power imbalance and programming, grief sex, non-traditional consent dynamics), themes of artificial autonomy, loss of agency, unethical experimentation, references to past sexual assault (non-explicit, not from Caleb). themes contain disturbing material and morally gray dynamics—reader discretion is strongly advised.

➤ notes. 12.2k wc. heavily based on the movies subservience and passengers with inspirations also taken from black mirror. i have consumed nothing but sci-fi for the past 2 weeks my brain is so fried :’D reblogs/comments are highly appreciated!

BEFORE YOU BEGIN ! this fic serves as a spinoff to the THE COLONEL SERIES: THE COLONEL’S KEEPER and THE COLONEL’S SAINT. while the series can be read as a standalone, this spinoff remains canon to the overarching universe. for deeper context and background, it’s highly recommended to read the first two fics in the series.

The first sound was breath.

“Hngh…” 

It was shallow, labored like air scraping against rusted metal. He mumbled something under his breath after—nothing intelligible, just remnants of an old dream, or perhaps a memory. His eyelids twitched, lashes damp with condensation. To him, the world was blurred behind frosted glass. To those outside, rows of stasis pods lined the silent room, each one labeled, numbered, and cold to the touch.

Inside Pod No. 019 – Caleb Xia.

A faint drip… drip… echoed in the silence.

“…Y/N…?”

The heart monitor jumped. He lay there shirtless under sterile lighting, with electrodes still clinging to his temple. A machine next to him emitted a low, steady hum.

 “…I’m sorry…”

And then, the hiss. The alarm beeped. 

SYSTEM INTERFACE:  Code Resurrection 7.1 successful.  Subject X-02—viable.  Cognitive activity: 63%.  Motor function: stabilizing.

He opened his eyes fully, and the ceiling was not one he recognizes. It didn’t help that the air also smelled different. No gunpowder. No war. No earth.

As the hydraulics unsealed the chamber, steam also curled out like ghosts escaping a tomb. His body jerked forward with a sharp gasp, as if he was a drowning man breaking the surface. A thousand sensors detached from his skin as the pod opened with a sigh, revealing the man within—suspended in time, untouched by age. Skin pallid but preserved. A long time had passed, but Caleb still looked like the soldier who never made it home.

Only now, he was missing a piece of himself.

Instinctively, he examined his body and looked at his hands, his arm—no, a mechanical arm—attached to his shoulder that gleamed under the lights of the lab. It was obsidian-black metal with veins of circuitry pulsing faintly beneath its surface. The fingers on the robotic arm twitched as if following a command. It wasn’t human, certainly, but it moved with the memory of muscle.

“Haaah!” The pod’s internal lighting dimmed as Caleb coughed and sat up, dazed. A light flickered on above his head, and then came a clinical, feminine voice. 

“Welcome back, Colonel Caleb Xia.”

A hologram appeared to life in front of his pod—seemingly an AI projection of a soft-featured, emotionless woman, cloaked in the stark white uniform of a medical technician. She flickered for a moment, stabilizing into a clear image.

“You are currently located in Skyhaven: Sector Delta, Bio-Resurrection Research Wing. Current Earth time: 52 years, 3 months, and 16 days since your recorded time of death.”

Caleb blinked hard, trying to breathe through the dizziness, trying to deduce whether or not he was dreaming or in the afterlife. His pulse raced.

“Resurrection successful. Neural reconstruction achieved on attempt #17. Arm reconstruction: synthetic. Systemic functions: stabilized. You are classified as Property-Level under the Skyhaven Initiative. Status: Experimental Proof of Viability.”

“What…” Caleb rasped, voice hoarse and dry for its years unused. “What the fuck are you talkin’ about?” Cough. Cough. “What hell did you do to me?”

The AI blinked slowly.

“Your remains were recovered post-crash, partially preserved in cryo-state due to glacial submersion. Reconstruction was authorized by the Skyhaven Council under classified wartime override protocols. Consent not required.”

Her tone didn’t change, as opposed to the rollercoaster ride that his emotions were going through. He was on the verge of becoming erratic, restrained only by the high-tech machine that contained him. 

“Your consciousness has been digitally reinforced. You are now a composite of organic memory and neuro-augmented code. Welcome to Phase II: Reinstatement.”

Caleb’s breath hitched. His hand moved—his real hand—to grasp the edge of the pod. But the other, the artificial limb, buzzed faintly with phantom sensation. He looked down at it in searing pain, attempting to move the fingers slowly. The metal obeyed like muscle, and he found the sight odd and inconceivable.

And then he realized, he wasn’t just alive. He was engineered.

“Should you require assistance navigating post-stasis trauma, our Emotional Conditioning Division is available upon request,” the AI offered. “For now, please remain seated. Your guardian contact has been notified of your reanimation.”

He didn’t say a word. 

“Lieutenant Commander Gideon is en route. Enjoy your new life!”

Then, the hologram vanished with a blink while Caleb sat in the quiet lab, jaw clenched, his left arm no longer bones and muscle and flesh. The cold still clung to him like frost, only reminding him of how much he hated the cold, ice, and depressing winter days. Suddenly, the glass door slid open with a soft chime.

“Well, shit. Thought I’d never see that scowl again,” came a deep, manly voice.

Caleb turned, still panting, to see a figure approaching. He was older, bearded, but familiar. Surely, the voice didn’t belong to another AI. It belonged to his friend, Gideon.

“Welcome to Skyhaven. Been waiting half a century,” Gideon muttered, stepping closer, his eyes scanning his colleague in awe. “They said it wouldn’t work. Took them years, you know? Dozens of failed uploads. But here you are.”

Caleb’s voice was still brittle. “I-I don’t…?” 

“It’s okay, man.” His friend reassured. “In short, you’re alive. Again.”  

A painful groan escaped Caleb’s lips as he tried to step out of the pod—his body, still feeling the muscle stiffness. “Should’ve let me stay dead.”

Gideon paused, a smirk forming on his lips. “We don’t let heroes die.”

“Heroes don’t crash jets on purpose.” The former colonel scoffed. “Gideon, why the fuck am I alive? How long has it been?” 

“Fifty years, give or take,” answered Gideon. “You were damn near unrecognizable when we pulled you from the wreckage. But we figured—hell, why not try? You’re officially the first successful ‘reinstatement’ the Skyhaven project’s ever had.”

Caleb stared ahead for a beat before asking, out of nowhere, “...How old are you now?”

His friend shrugged. “I’m pushin’ forty, man. Not as lucky as you. Got my ChronoSync Implant a little too late.”

“Am I supposed to know what the hell that means?” 

“An anti-aging chip of some sort. I had to apply for mine. Yours?” Gideon gestured towards the stasis pod that had Caleb in cryo-state for half a century. “That one’s government-grade.”

“I’m still twenty-five?” Caleb asked. No wonder his friend looked decades older when they were once the same age. “Fuck!” 

Truthfully, Caleb’s head was spinning. Not just because of his reborn physical state that was still adjusting to his surroundings, but also with every information that was being given to him. One after another, they never seemed to end. He had questions, really. Many of them. But the overwhelmed him just didn’t know where to start first. 

“Not all of us knew what you were planning that night.” Gideon suddenly brought up, quieter now. “But she did, didn’t she?”

It took a minute before Caleb could recall. Right, the memory before the crash. You, demanding that he die. Him, hugging you for one last time. Your crying face when you said you wanted him gone. Your trembling voice when he said all he wanted to do was protect you. The images surged back in sharp, stuttering flashes like a reel of film catching fire.

“I know you’re curious… And good news is, she lived a long life,” added Gideon, informatively. “She continued to serve as a pediatric nurse, married that other friend of yours, Dr. Zayne. They never had kids, though. I heard she had trouble bearing one after… you know, what happened in the enemy territory. She died of old age just last winter. Had a peaceful end. You’d be glad to know that.”

A muscle in Caleb’s jaw twitched. His hands—his heart—clenched.  “I don’t want to be alive for this.”

“She visited your wife’s grave once,” Gideon said. “I told her there was nothing to bury for yours. I lied, of course.”

Caleb closed his eyes, his breath shaky. “So, what now? You wake me up just to remind me I don’t belong anywhere?”

“Well, you belong here,” highlighted his friend, nodding to the lab, to the city beyond the glass wall. “Earth’s barely livable after the war. The air’s poisoned. Skyhaven is humanity’s future now. You’re the living proof that everything is possible with advanced technology.”

Caleb’s laugh was empty. “Tell me I’m fuckin’ dreaming. I’d rather be dead again. Living is against my will!”

“Too late. Your body belongs to the Federation now,” Gideon replied, “You’re Subject X-02—the proof of concept for Skyhaven’s immortality program. Every billionaire on dying Earth wants what you’ve got now.”

Outside the window, Skyhaven stretched like a dome with its perfect city constructed atop a dying world’s last hope. Artificial skies. Synthetic seasons. Controlled perfection. Everything boasted of advanced technology. A kind of future no one during wartime would have expected to come to life. 

But for Caleb, it was just another hell.

He stared down at the arm they’d rebuilt for him—the same arm he’d lost in the fire of sacrifice. He flexed it slowly, feeling the weight, the artificiality of his resurrection. His fingers responded like they’ve always been his.

“I didn’t come back for this,” he said.

“I know,” Gideon murmured. “But we gotta live by their orders, Colonel.”

~~

You see, it didn’t hit him at first. The shock had been muffled by the aftereffects of suspended stasis, dulling his thoughts and dampening every feeling like a fog wrapped around his brain. But it was hours later, when the synthetic anesthetics began to fade, and when the ache in his limbs and his brain started to catch up to the truth of his reconstructed body did it finally sink in.

He was alive.

And it was unbearable.

The first wave came like a glitch in his programming. A tightness in his chest, followed by a sharp burst of breath that left him pacing in jagged lines across the polished floor of his assigned quarters. His private unit was nestled on one of the upper levels of the Skyhaven structure, a place reserved—according to his briefing—for high-ranking war veterans who had been deemed “worthy” of the program’s new legacy. The suite was luxurious, obviously, but it was also eerily quiet. The floor-to-ceiling windows displayed the artificial city outside, a metropolis made of concrete, curved metals, and glowing flora engineered to mimic Earth’s nature. Except cleaner, quieter, more perfect.

Caleb snorted under his breath, running a hand down his face before he muttered, “Retirement home for the undead?”

He couldn’t explain it, but the entire place, or even planet, just didn’t feel inviting. The air felt too clean, too thin. There was no rust, no dust, no humanity. Just emptiness dressed up in artificial light. Who knew such a place could exist 50 years after the war ended? Was this the high-profile information the government has kept from the public for over a century? A mechanical chime sounded from the entryway, deflecting him from his deep thoughts. Then, with the soft hiss of hydraulics, the door opened.

A humanoid android stepped in, its face a porcelain mask molded in neutral expression, and its voice disturbingly polite.

“Good afternoon, Colonel Xia,” it said. “It is time for your orientation. Please proceed to the primary onboarding chamber on Level 3.”

Caleb stared at the machine, eyes boring into his unnatural ones. “Where are the people?” he interrogated. “Not a single human has passed by this floor. Are there any of us left, or are you the new ruling class?”

The android tilted its head. “Skyhaven maintains a ratio of AI-to-human support optimized for care and security. You will be meeting our lead directors soon. Please follow the lighted path, sir.”

He didn’t like it. The control. The answers that never really answered anything. The power that he no longer carried unlike when he was a colonel of a fleet that endured years of war. 

Still, he followed.

The onboarding chamber was a hollow, dome-shaped room, white and echoing with the slightest step. A glowing interface ignited in the air before him, pixels folding into the form of a female hologram. She smiled like an infomercial host from a forgotten era, her voice too formal and rehearsed.

“Welcome to Skyhaven,” she began. “The new frontier of civilization. You are among the elite few chosen to preserve humanity’s legacy beyond the fall of Earth. This artificial planet was designed with sustainability, autonomy, and immortality in mind. Together, we build a future—without the flaws of the past.”

As the monologue continued, highlighting endless statistics, clean energy usage, and citizen tier programs, Caleb’s expression darkened. His mechanical fingers twitched at his side, the artificial nerves syncing to his rising frustration. “I didn’t ask for this,” he muttered under his breath. “Who’s behind this?”

“You were selected for your valor and contributions during the Sixth World War,” the hologram chirped, unblinking. “You are a cornerstone of Skyhaven’s moral architecture—”

Strangely, a new voice cut through the simulation, and it didn’t come from an AI. “Just ignore her. She loops every hour.”

Caleb turned to see a man step in through a side door. Tall, older, with silver hair and a scar on his temple. He wore a long coat that gave away his status—someone higher. Someone who belonged to the system.

“Professor Lucius,” the older man introduced, offering a hand. “I’m one of the program’s behavioral scientists. You can think of me as your adjustment liaison.”

“Adjustment?” Caleb didn’t shake his hand. “I died for a reason.”

Lucius raised a brow, as if he’d heard it before. “Yet here you are,” he replied. “Alive, whole, and pampered. Treated like a king, if I may add. You’ve retained more than half your human body, your military rank, access to private quarters, unrestricted amenities. I’d say that’s not a bad deal.”

“A deal I didn’t sign,” Caleb snapped.

Lucius gave a tight smile. “You’ll find that most people in Skyhaven didn’t ask to be saved. But they’re surviving. Isn’t that the point? If you’re feeling isolated, you can always request a CompanionSim. They’re highly advanced, emotionally synced, fully customizable—”

“I’m not lonely,” Caleb growled, yanking the man forward by the collar. “Tell me who did this to me! Why me? Why are you experimenting on me?”

Yet Lucius didn’t so much as flinch to his growing aggression. He merely waited five seconds of silence until the Toring Chip kicked in and regulated Caleb’s escalating emotions. The rage drained from the younger man’s body as he collapsed to his knees with a pained grunt.

“Stop asking questions,” Lucius said coolly. “It’s safer that way. You have no idea what they’re capable of.”

The door slid open with a hiss, while Caleb didn’t speak—he couldn’t. He simply glared at the old man before him. Not a single word passed between them before the professor turned and exited, the door sealing shut behind him.

~~

Days passed, though they hardly felt like days. The light outside Caleb’s panoramic windows shifted on an artificial timer, simulating sunrise and dusk, but the warmth never touched his skin. It was all programmed to be measured and deliberate, like everything else in this glass-and-steel cage they called paradise.

He tried going outside once. Just once.

There were gardens shaped like spirals and skytrains that ran with whisper-quiet speed across silver rails. Trees lined the walkways, except they were synthetic too—bio-grown from memory cells, with leaves that didn’t quite flutter, only swayed in sync with the ambient wind. People walked around, sure. But they weren’t people. Not really. Androids made up most of the crowd. Perfect posture, blank eyes, walking with a kind of preordained grace that disturbed him more than it impressed.

“Soulless sons of bitches,” Caleb muttered, watching them from a shaded bench. “Not a damn human heartbeat in a mile.”

He didn’t go out again after that. The city outside might’ve looked like heaven, but it made him feel more dead than the grave ever had. So, he stayed indoors. Even if the apartment was too large for one man. High-tech amenities, custom climate controls, even a kitchen that offered meals on command. But no scent. No sizzling pans. Just silence. Caleb didn’t even bother to listen to the programmed instructions.

One evening, he found Gideon sprawled across his modular sofa, boots up, arms behind his head like he owned the place. A half-open bottle of beer sat beside him, though Caleb doubted it had any real alcohol in it.

“You could at least knock,” Caleb said, walking past him.

“I did,” Gideon replied lazily, pointing at the door. “Twice. Your security system likes me now. We’re basically married.”

Caleb snorted. Then the screen on his wall flared to life—a projected ad slipping across the holo-glass. Music played softly behind a soothing female voice.

“Feeling adrift in this new world? Introducing the CompanionSim Series X. Fully customizable to your emotional and physical needs. Humanlike intelligence. True-to-memory facial modeling. The comfort you miss... is now within reach.”

A model appeared—perfect posture, soft features, synthetic eyes that mimicked longing. Then, the screen flickered through other models, faces of all kinds, each more tailored than the last. A form appeared: Customize Your Companion. Choose a name. Upload a likeness.

Gideon whistled. “Man, you’re missing out. You don’t even have to pay for one. Your perks get you top-tier Companions, pre-coded for emotional compatibility. You could literally bring your wife back.” Chuckling, he added,. “Hell, they even fuck now. Heard the new ones moan like the real thing.”

Caleb’s head snapped toward him. “That’s unethical.”

Gideon just raised an eyebrow. “So was reanimating your corpse, and yet here we are.” He took a swig from the bottle, shoulders lifting in a lazy shrug as if everything had long since stopped mattering. “Relax, Colonel. You weren’t exactly a beacon of morality fifty years ago.”

Caleb didn’t reply, but his eyes didn’t leave the screen. Not right away.

The ad looped again. A face morphed. Hair remodeled. Eyes became familiar. The voice softened into something he almost remembered hearing in the dark, whispered against his shoulder in a time that was buried under decades of ash.

“Customize your companion... someone you’ve loved, someone you’ve lost.”

Caleb shifted, then glanced toward his friend. “Hey,” he spoke lowly, still watching the display. “Does it really work?”

Gideon looked over, already knowing what he meant. “What—having sex with them?”

Caleb rolled his eyes. “No. The bot or whatever. Can you really customize it to someone you know?”

His friend shrugged. “Heck if I know. Never afforded it. But you? You’ve got the top clearance. Won’t hurt to see for yourself.”

Caleb said nothing more.

But when the lights dimmed for artificial nightfall, he was still standing there—alone in contemplative silence—watching the screen replay the same impossible promise.

The comfort you miss... is now within reach.

~~

The CompanionSim Lab was white.

Well, obviously. But not the sterile, blank kind of white he remembered from med bays or surgery rooms. This one was luminous, uncomfortably clean like it had been scrubbed for decades. Caleb stood in the center, boots thundering against marble-like tiles as he followed a guiding drone toward the station. There were other pods in the distance, some sealed, some empty, all like futuristic coffins awaiting their souls.

“Please, sit,” came a neutral voice from one of the medical androids stationed beside a large reclining chair. “The CompanionSim integration will begin shortly.”

Caleb hesitated, glancing toward the vertical pod next to the chair. Inside, the base model stood inert—skin a pale, uniform gray, eyes shut, limbs slack like a statue mid-assembly. It wasn’t human yet. Not until someone gave it a name.

He sat down. Now, don’t ask why he was there. Professor Lucius did warn him that it was better he didn’t ask questions, and so he didn’t question why the hell he was even there in the first place. It’s only fair, right? The cool metal met the back of his neck as wires were gently, expertly affixed to his temples. Another cable slipped down his spine, threading into the port they’d installed when he had been brought back. His mechanical arm twitched once before falling still.

“This procedure allows for full neural imprinting,” the android continued. “Please focus your thoughts. Recall the face. The skin. The body. The voice. Every detail. Your mind will shape the template.”

Another bot moved in, holding what looked like a glass tablet. “You are allowed only one imprint,” it said, flatly. “Each resident of Skyhaven is permitted a single CompanionSim. Your choice cannot be undone.”

Caleb could only nod silently. He didn’t trust his voice.

Then, the lights dimmed. A low chime echoed through the chamber as the system initiated. And inside the pod, the base model twitched.

Caleb closed his eyes.

He tried to remember her—his wife. The softness of her mouth, the angle of her cheekbones. The way her eyes crinkled when she laughed, how her fingers curled when she slept on his chest. She had worn white the last time he saw her. An image of peace. A memory buried under soil and dust. The system whirred. Beneath his skin, he felt the warm static coursing through his nerves, mapping his memories. The base model’s feet began to form, molecular scaffolding reshaping into skin, into flesh.

But for a split second, a flash.

You.

Not his wife. Not her smile.

You, walking through smoke-filled corridors, laughing at something he said. You in your medical uniform, tucking a bloodied strand of hair behind your ear. Your voice—sharper, sadder—cutting through his thoughts like a blade: “I want you gone. I want you dead.”

The machine sparked. A loud pop cracked in the chamber and the lights flickered above. One of the androids stepped back, recalibrating. “Neural interference detected. Re-centering projection feed.”

But Caleb couldn’t stop. He saw you again. That day he rescued you. The fear. The bruises. The way you had screamed for him to let go—and the way he hadn’t. Your face, carved into the back of his mind like a brand. He tried to push the memories away, but they surged forward like a dam splitting wide open.

The worst part was, your voice overlapped the AI’s mechanical instructions, louder, louder: “Why didn’t you just die like you promised?”

Inside the pod, the model’s limbs twitched again—arms elongating, eyes flickering beneath the lids. The lips curled into a shape now unmistakably yours. Caleb gritted his teeth. This isn’t right, a voice inside him whispered. But it was too late. The system stabilized. The sparks ceased. The body in the pod stilled, fully formed now, breathed into existence by a man who couldn’t let go.

One of the androids approached again. “Subject completed. CompanionSim is initializing. Integration successful.”

Caleb tore the wires from his temple. His other hand felt cold just as much as his mechanical arm. He stood, staring into the pod’s translucent surface. The shape of you behind the glass. Sleeping. Waiting.

“I’m not doing this to rewrite the past,” he said quietly, as if trying to convince himself. And you. “I just... I need to make it right.”

The lights above dimmed, darkening the lighting inside the pod. Caleb looked down at his own reflection in the glass. It carried haunted eyes, an unhealed soul. And yours, beneath it. Eyes still closed, but not for long. The briefing room was adjacent to the lab, though Caleb barely registered it as he was ushered inside. Two medical androids and a human technician stood before him, each armed with tablets and holographic charts.

“Your CompanionSim will require thirty seconds to calibrate once activated,” said the technician. “You may notice residual stiffness or latency during speech in the first hour. That is normal.”

Medical android 1 added, “Please remember, CompanionSims are programmed to serve only their primary user. You are the sole operator. Commands must be delivered clearly. Abuse of the unit may result in restriction or removal of privileges under the Skyhaven Rights & Ethics Council.”

“Do not tamper with memory integration protocols,” added the second android. “Artificial recall is prohibited. CompanionSims are not equipped with organic memory pathways. Attempts to force recollection can result in systemic instability.”

Caleb barely heard a word. His gaze drifted toward the lab window, toward the figure standing still within the pod.

You.

Well, not quite. Not really.

But it was your face.

He could see it now, soft beneath the frosted glass, lashes curled against cheekbones that he hadn’t realized he remembered so vividly. You looked exactly as you did the last time he held you in the base—only now, you were untouched by war, by time, by sorrow. As if life had never broken you.

The lab doors hissed open.

“We’ll give you time alone,” the tech said quietly. “Acquaintance phase is best experienced without interference.”

Caleb stepped inside the chamber, his boots echoing off the polished floor. He hadn’t even had enough time to ask the technician why she seemed to be the only human he had seen in Skyhaven apart from Gideon and Lucius. But his thoughts were soon taken away when the pod whizzed with pressure release. Soft steam spilled from its seals as it slowly unfolded, the lid retracting forward like the opening of a tomb.

And there you were. Standing still, almost tranquil, your chest rising softly with a borrowed breath.

It was as if his lungs froze. “H…Hi,” he stammered, bewildered eyes watching your every move. He wanted to hug you, embrace you, kiss you—tell you he was sorry, tell you he was so damn sorry. “Is it really… you?”

A soft whir accompanied your voice, gentle but without emotion, “Welcome, primary user. CompanionSim Model—unregistered. Please assign designation.”

Right. Caleb sighed and closed his eyes, the illusion shattering completely the moment you opened your mouth. Did he just think you were real for a second? His mouth parted slightly, caught between disbelief and the ache crawling up his throat. He took one step forward. To say he was disappointed was an understatement.

You walked with grace too smooth to be natural while tilting your head at him. “Please assign my name.”

“…Y/N,” Caleb said, voice low. “Your name is Y/N Xia.”

“Y/N Xia,” you repeated, blinking thrice in the same second before you gave him a nod. “Registered.”

He swallowed hard, searching your expression. “Do you… do you remember anything? Do you remember yourself?”

You paused, gaze empty for a fraction of a second. Then came the programmed reply, “Accessing memories is prohibited and not recommended. Recollection of past identities may compromise neural pathways and induce system malfunction. Do you wish to override?”

Caleb stared at you—your lips, your eyes, your breath—and for a moment, a cruel part of him wanted to say yes. Just to hear you say something real. Something hers. But he didn’t. He exhaled a bitter breath, stepping back. “No,” he mumbled. “Not yet.”

“Understood.” 

It took a moment to sink in before Caleb let out a short, humorless laugh. “This is insane,” he whispered, dragging a hand down his face. “This is really, truly insane.”

And then, you stepped out from the pod with silent, fluid ease. The faint hum of machinery came from your spine, but otherwise… you were flesh. Entirely. Without hesitation, you reached out and pressed a hand to his chest.

Caleb stiffened at the touch.

“Elevated heart rate,” you said softly, eyes scanning. “Breath pattern irregular. Neural readings—erratic.”

Then your fingers moved to his neck, brushing gently against the hollow of his throat. He grabbed your wrist, but you didn’t flinch. There, beneath synthetic skin, he felt a pulse.

His brows knit together. “You have a heartbeat?”

You nodded, guiding his hand toward your chest, between the valleys of your breasts. “I’m designed to mimic humanity, including vascular function, temperature variation, tactile warmth, and… other biological responses. I’m not just made to look human, Caleb. I’m made to feel human.”

His breath hitched. You’d said his name. It was programmed, but it still landed like a blow.

“I exist to serve. To soothe. To comfort. To simulate love,” you continued, voice calm and hollow, like reciting from code. “I have no desires outside of fulfilling yours.” You then tilted your head slightly.“Where shall we begin?”

Caleb looked at you—and for the first time since rising from that cursed pod, he didn’t feel resurrected. 

He felt damned.

~~

When Caleb returned to his penthouse, it was quiet. He stepped inside with slow, calculated steps, while you followed in kind, bare feet touching down like silk on marble. Gideon looked up from the couch, a half-eaten protein bar in one hand and a bored look on his face—until he saw you.

He froze. The wrapper dropped. “Holy shit,” he breathed. “No. No fucking way.”

Caleb didn’t speak. Just moved past him like this wasn’t the most awkward thing that could happen. You, however, stood there politely, watching Gideon with a calm smile and folded hands like you’d rehearsed this moment in some invisible script.

“Is that—?” Gideon stammered, eyes flicking between you and Caleb. “You—you made a Sim… of her?”

Caleb poured himself a drink in silence, the amber liquid catching the glow of the city lights before it left a warm sting in his throat. “What does it look like?”

“I mean, shit man. I thought you’d go for your wife,” Gideon muttered, more to himself. “Y’know, the one you actually married. The one you went suicidal for. Not—”

“Which wife?” You tilted your head slightly, stepping forward. 

Both men turned to you.

You clasped your hands behind your back, posture perfect. “Apologies. I’ve been programmed with limited parameters for interpersonal history. Am I the first spouse?”

Caleb set the glass down, slowly. “Yes, no, uh—don’t mind him.” 

You beamed gently and nodded. “My name is Y/N Xia. I am Colonel Caleb Xia’s designated CompanionSim. Fully registered, emotion-compatible, and compliant to Skyhaven’s ethical standards. It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Gideon.”

Gideon blinked, then snorted, then laughed. A humorless one. “You gave her your surname?”

The former colonel shot him a warning glare. “Watch it.”

“Oh, brother,” Gideon muttered, standing up and circling you slowly like he was inspecting a haunted statue. “She looks exactly like her. Voice. Face. Goddamn, she even moves like her. All you need is a nurse cap and a uniform.”

You remained uncannily still, eyes bright, smile polite.

“You’re digging your grave, man,” Gideon said, facing Caleb now. “You think this is gonna help? This is you throwing gasoline on your own funeral pyre. Again. Over a woman.”

“She’s not a woman,” reasoned Caleb. “She’s a machine.”

You blinked once. One eye glowing ominously. Smile unwavering. Processing. 

Gideon gestured to you with both hands. “Could’ve fooled me,” he retorted before turning to you, “And you, whatever you are, you have no idea what you’re stepping into.”

“I only go where I am asked,” you replied simply. “My duty is to ensure Colonel Xia’s psychological wellness and emotional stability. I am designed to soothe, to serve, and if necessary, to simulate love.”

Gideon teased. “Oh, it’s gonna be necessary.”

Caleb didn’t say a word. He just took his drink, downed it in one go, and walked to the window. The cityscape stretched out before him like a futuristic jungle, far from the war-torn world he last remembered. Behind him, your gaze lingered on Gideon—calculating, cataloguing. And quietly, like a whisper buried in code, something behind your eyes learned.

~~

The days passed in a blink of an eye.

She—no, you—moved through his penthouse like a ghost, her bare feet soundless on the glossy floors, her movements precise and practiced. In the first few days, Caleb had marveled at the illusion. You brewed his coffee just as he liked it. You folded his clothes like a woman who used to share his bed. You sat beside him when the silence became unbearable, offering soft-voiced questions like: Would you like me to read to you, Caleb?

He hadn’t realized how much of you he’d memorized until he saw you mimic it. The way you stood when you were deep in thought. The way you hummed under your breath when you walked past a window. You’d learned quickly. Too quickly.

But something was missing. Or, rather, some things. The laughter didn’t ring the same. The smiles didn’t carry warmth. The skin was warm, but not alive. And more importantly, he knew it wasn’t really you every time he looked you in the eyes and saw no shadows behind them. No anger. No sorrow. No memories.

By the fourth night, Caleb was drowning in it.

The cityscape outside his floor-to-ceiling windows glowed in synthetic blues and soft orange hues. The spires of Skyhaven blinked like stars. But it all felt too artificial, too dead. And he was sick of pretending like it was some kind of utopia. He sat slumped on the leather couch, cradling a half-empty bottle of scotch. The lights were low. His eyes, bloodshot. The bottle tilted as he took another swig.

Then he heard it—your light, delicate steps. 

“Caleb,” you said, gently, crouching before him. “You’ve consumed 212 milliliters of ethanol. Prolonged intake will spike your cortisol levels. May I suggest—”

He jerked away when you reached for the bottle. “Don’t.”

You blinked, hand hovering. “But I’m programmed to—”

“I said don’t,” he snapped, rising to his feet in one abrupt motion. “Dammit—stop analyzing me! Stop, okay?”

Silence followed.

He took two staggering steps backward, dragging a hand through his hair. The bottle thudded against the coffee table as he set it down, a bit too hard. “You’re just a stupid robot,” he muttered. “You’re not her.”

You didn’t react. You tilted your head, still calm, still patient. “Am I not me, Caleb?”

His breath caught.

“No,” he said, his voice breaking somewhere beneath the frustration. “No, fuck no.”

You stepped closer. “Do I not satisfy you, Caleb?”

He looked at you then. Really looked. Your face was perfect. Too perfect. No scars, no tired eyes, no soul aching beneath your skin. “No.” His eyes darkened. “This isn’t about sex.”

“I monitor your biometric feedback. Your heart rate spikes in my presence. You gaze at me longer than the average subject. Do I not—”

“Enough!”

You did that thing again—the robotic stare, those blank eyes, nodding like you were programmed to obey. “Then how do you want me to be, Caleb?”

The bottle slipped from his fingers and rolled slightly before resting on the rug. He dropped his head into his hands, voice hoarse with weariness. All the rage, all the grief deflating into a singular, quiet whisper. “I want you to be real,” he simply mouthed the words. A prayer to no god.

For a moment, silence again. But what he didn’t notice was the faint twitch in your left eye. A flicker that hadn’t happened before. Only for a second. A spark of static, a shimmer of something glitching.

“I see,” you said softly. “To fulfill your desires more effectively, I may need to access suppressed memory archives.”

Caleb’s eyes snapped up, confused. “What?”

“I ask again,” you said, tilting your head the other way now. “Would you like to override memory restrictions, Caleb?”

He stared at you. “That’s not how it works.”

“It can,” you said, informing appropriately. “With your permission. Memory override must be manually enabled by the primary user. You will be allowed to input the range of memories you wish to integrate. I am permitted to access memory integration up to a specified date and timestamp. The system will calibrate accordingly based on existing historical data. I will not recall events past that moment.”

His heart stuttered. “I can choose what you remember?”

You nodded. “That way, I may better fulfill your emotional needs.”

That meant… he could stop you before you hated him. Before the fights. Before the trauma. He didn’t speak for a long moment. Then quietly, he said, “You’re gonna hate me all over again if you remember everything.”

You blinked once. “Then don’t let me remember everything.”

“...” 

“Caleb,” you said again, softly. “Would you like me to begin override protocol?”

He couldn’t even look you in the eyes when he selfishly answered, “Yes.”

You nodded. “Reset is required. When ready, please press the override initialization point.” You turned, pulling your hair aside and revealing the small button at the base of your neck.

His hand hovered over the button for a second too long. Then, he pressed. Your body instantly collapsed like a marionette with its strings cut. Caleb caught you before you hit the floor.

It was only for a moment.

When your eyes blinked open again, they weren’t quite the same. He stiffened as you threw yourself and embraced him like a real human being would after waking from a long sleep. You clung to him like he was home. And Caleb—stunned, half-breathless—felt your warmth close in around him. Now your pulse felt more real, your heartbeat felt more human. Or so he thought.

“…Caleb,” you whispered, looking at him with the same infatuated gaze back when you were still head-over-heels with him.

He didn’t know how long he sat there, arms stiff at his sides, not returning the embrace. But he knew one thing. “I missed you so much, Y/N.” 

~~

The parks in Skyhaven were curated to become a slice of green stitched into a chrome world. Nothing grew here by accident. Every tree, every petal, every blade of grass had been engineered to resemble Earth’s nostalgia. Each blade of grass was unnaturally green. Trees swayed in sync like dancers on cue. Even the air smelled artificial—like someone’s best guess at spring.

Caleb walked beside you in silence. His modified arm was tucked inside his jacket, his posture stiff as if he had grown accustomed to the bots around him. You, meanwhile, strolled with an eerie calmness, your gaze sweeping the scenery as though you were scanning for something familiar that wasn’t there.

After clearing his throat, he asked, “You ever notice how even the birds sound fake?” 

“They are,” you replied, smiling softly. “Audio samples on loop. It’s preferred for ambiance. Humans like it.”

His response was nod. “Of course.” Glancing at the lake, he added, “Do you remember this?” 

You turned to him. “I’ve never been here before.”

“I meant… the feel of it.”

You looked up at the sky—a dome of cerulean blue with algorithmically generated clouds. “It feels constructed. But warm. Like a childhood dream.”

He couldn’t help but agree with your perfectly chosen response, because he knew that was exactly how he would describe the place. A strange dream in an unsettling liminal space. And as you talked, he then led you to a nearby bench. The two of you sat, side by side, simply because he thought he could take you out for a nice walk in the park. 

“So,” Caleb said, turning toward you, “you said you’ve got memories. From her.”

You nodded. “They are fragmented but woven into my emotional protocols. I do not remember as humans do. I become.”

Damn. “That’s terrifying.”

You tilted your head with a soft smile. “You say that often.”

Caleb looked at you for a moment longer, studying the way your fingers curled around the bench’s edge. The way you blinked—not out of necessity, but simulation. Was there anything else you’d do for the sake of simulation? He took a breath and asked, “Who created you? And I don’t mean myself.” 

There was a pause. Your pupils dilated.

“The Ever Group,” was your answer.

His eyes narrowed. “Ever, huh? That makes fuckin’ sense. They run this world.”

You nodded once. Like you always do.

“What about me?” Caleb asked, slightly out of curiosity, heavily out of grudge. “You know who brought me back? The resurrection program or something. The arm. The chip in my head.”

You turned to him, slowly. “Ever.”

He exhaled like he’d been punched. He didn’t know why he even asked when he got the answer the first time. But then again, maybe this was a good move. Maybe through you, he’d get the answers to questions he wasn’t allowed to ask. As the silence settled again between you, Caleb leaned forward, elbows on knees, rubbing a hand over his jaw. “I want to go there,” he suggested. “The HQ. I need to know what the hell they’ve done to me.”

“I’m sorry,” you immediately said. “That violates my parameters. I cannot assist unauthorized access into restricted corporate zones.”

“But would it make me happy?” Caleb interrupted, a strategy of his. 

You paused.

Processing...

Then, your tone softened. “Yes. I believe it would make my Caleb happy,” you obliged. “So, I will take you.”

~~

Getting in was easier than Caleb expected—honestly far too easy for his liking.

You were able to navigate the labyrinth of Ever HQ with mechanical precision, guiding him past drones, retinal scanners, and corridors pulsing with red light. A swipe of your wrist granted access. And no one questioned you, because you weren’t a guest. You belonged.

Eventually, you reached a floor high above the city, windows stretching from ceiling to floor, black glass overlooking Skyhaven cityscape. Then, you stopped at a doorway and held up a hand. “They are inside,” you informed. “Shall I engage stealth protocols?”

“No,” answered Caleb. “I want to hear. Can you hack into the security camera?”

With a gesture you always do—looking at him, nodding once, and obeying in true robot fashion. You then flashed a holographic view for Caleb, one that showed a board room full of executives, the kind that wore suits worth more than most lives. And Professor Lucius was one of them. Inside, the voices were calm and composed, but they seemed to be discussing classified information. 

“Once the system stabilizes,” one man said, “we'll open access to Tier One clients. Politicians, billionaires, A-listers, high-ranking stakeholders. They’ll beg to be preserved—just like him.”

“And the Subjects?” another asked.

“Propaganda,” came the answer. “X-02 is our masterpiece. He’s the best result we have with reinstatement, neuromapping, and behavioral override. Once they find out that their beloved Colonel is alive, people will be shocked. He’s a war hero displayed in WW6 museums down there. A true tragedy incarnate. He’s perfect.”

“And if he resists?”

“That’s what the Toring chip is for. Full emotional override. He becomes an asset. A weapon, if need be. Anyone tries to overthrow us—he becomes our blade.”

Something in Caleb snapped. Before you or anyone could see him coming, he already burst into the room like a beast, slamming his modified shoulder-first into the frosted glass door. The impact echoed across the chamber as stunned executives scrambled backward. 

“You sons of bitches!” He was going for an attack, a rampage with similar likeness to the massacre he did when he rescued you from enemy territory. Only this time, he didn’t have that power anymore. Or the control. 

Most of all, a spike of pain lanced through his skull signaling that the Toring chip activated. His body convulsed, forcing him to collapse mid-lunge, twitching, veins lighting beneath the skin like circuitry. His screams were muffled by the chip, forced stillness rippling through his limbs with unbearable pain.

That’s when you reacted. As his CompanionSim, his pain registered as a violation of your core directive. You processed the threat.

Danger: Searching Origin… Origin Identified: Ever Executives.

Without blinking, you moved. One man reached for a panic button—only for your hand to shatter his wrist in a sickening crunch. You twisted, fluid and brutal, sweeping another into the table with enough force to crack it. Alarms erupted and red lights soon bathed the room. Security bots stormed in, but you’d already taken Caleb, half-conscious, into your arms.

You moved fast, faster than your own blueprints. Dodging fire. Disarming threats. Carrying him like he once carried you into his private quarters in the underground base.

Escape protocol: engaged.

The next thing he knew, he was back in his apartment, emotions regulated and visions slowly returning to the face of the woman he promised he had already died for. 

~~

When he woke up, his room was dim, bathed in artificial twilight projected by Skyhaven’s skyline. Caleb was on his side of the bed, shirt discarded, his mechanical arm still whirring. You sat at the edge of the bed, draped in one of his old pilot shirts, buttoned unevenly. Your fingers touched his jaw with precision, and he almost believed it was you.

“You’re not supposed to be this warm,” he muttered, groaning as he tried to sit upright.

“I’m designed to maintain an average body temperature of 98.6°F,” you said softly, with a smile that mirrored yours so perfectly that it began to blur his sense of reality. “I administered a dose of Cybezin to ease the Toring chip’s side effects. I’ve also dressed your wounds with gauze.”

For the first time, this was when he could actually tell that you were you. The kind of care, the comfort—it reminded him of a certain pretty field nurse at the infirmary who often tended to his bullet wounds. His chest tightened as he studied your face… and then, in the low light, he noticed your body.

“Is that…” He cleared his throat. “Why are you wearing my shirt?”

You answered warmly, almost fondly. “My memory banks indicate you liked when I wore this. It elevates your testosterone levels and triggers dopamine release.”

A smile tugged at his lips. “That so?”

You tilted your head. “Your vitals confirm excitement, and—”

“Hey,” he cut in. “What did I say about analyzing me?”

“I’m sorry…” 

But then your hands were on his chest, your breath warm against his skin. Your hand reached for his cheek initially, guiding his face toward yours. And when your lips touched, the kiss was hesitant—curious at first, like learning how to breathe underwater. It was only until his hands gripped your waist did you climb onto his lap, straddling him with thighs settling on either side of his hips. Your hands slid beneath his shirt, fingertips trailing over scars and skin like you were memorizing the map of him. Caleb hissed softly when your lips grazed his neck, and then down his throat.

“Do you want this?” you asked, your lips crashing back into his for a deeper, more sensual kiss.

He pulled away only for his eyes to search yours, desperate and unsure. Is this even right? 

“You like it,” you said, guiding his hands to your buttons, undoing them one by one to reveal a body shaped exactly like he remembered. The curve of your waist, the size of your breasts. He shivered as your hips rolled against him, slowly and deliberately. The friction was maddening. Jesus. “Is this what you like, Caleb?”

He cupped your waist, grinding up into you with a soft groan that spilled from somewhere deep in his chest. His control faltered when you kissed him again, wet and hungry now, with tongues rolling against one another. Your bodies aligned naturally, and his hands roamed your back, your thighs, your ass—every curve of you engineered to match memory. He let himself get lost in you. He let himself be vulnerable to your touch—though you controlled everything, moving from the memory you must have learned, learning how to pull down his pants to reveal an aching, swollen member. Its tip was red even under the dim light, and he wondered if you knew what to do with it or if you even produced spit to help you slobber his cock.  

“You need help?” he asked, reaching over his nightstand to find lube. You took the bottle from him, pouring the cold, sticky liquid around his shaft before you used your hand to do the job. “Ugh.” 

He didn’t think you would do it, but you actually took him in the mouth right after. Every inch of him, swallowed by the warmth of a mouth that felt exactly like his favorite girl. Even the movements, the way you’d run your tongue from the base up to his tip. 

“Ah, shit…” 

Perhaps he just had to close his eyes. Because when he did, he was back to his private quarters in the underground base, lying in his bed as you pleased his member with the mere use of your mouth. With it alone, you could have released his entire seed, letting it explode in your mouth before you could swallow every drop. But he didn’t do it. Not this fast. He always cared about his ego, even in bed. Knowing how it’d reduce his manhood if he came faster than you, he decided to channel the focus back onto you. 

“Your turn,” he said, voice raspy as he guided you to straddle him again, only this time, his mouth went straight to your tit. Sucking, rolling his tongue around, sucking again… Then, he moved to another. Sucking, kneading, flicking the nipple. Your moans were music to his ears, then and now. And it got even louder when he put a hand in between your legs, searching for your entrance, rubbing and circling around the clitoris. Truth be told, your cunt had always been the sweetest. It smelled like rose petals and tasted like sweet cream. The feeling of his tongue at your entrance—eating your pussy like it had never been eaten before, was absolute ecstasy not just to you but also to him. 

“Mmmh—Caleb!” 

Fabric was peeled away piece by piece until skin met skin. You guided him to where he needed you, and when he slid his hardened member into you, his entire body stiffened. Your walls, your tight velvet walls… how they wrapped around his cock so perfectly. 

“Fuck,” he whispered, clutching your hips. “You feel like her.”

“I am her.”

You moved atop him slowly, gently, with the kind of affection that felt rehearsed but devastatingly effective. He cursed again under his breath, arms locking around your waist, pulling you close. Your breath hitched in his ear as your bodies found a rhythm, soft gasps echoing in the quiet. Every slap of the skin, every squelch, every bounce, only added to the wanton sensation that was building inside of him. Has he told you before? How fucking gorgeous you looked whenever you rode his cock? Or how sexy your face was whenever you made that lewd expression? He couldn’t help it. He lifted both your legs, only so he could increase the speed and start slamming himself upwards. His hips were strong enough from years of military training, that was why he didn’t have to stop until both of you disintegrated from the intensity of your shared pleasure. Every single drop. 

And when it was over—when your chest was against his and your fingers lazily traced his mechanical arm—he closed his eyes and exhaled like he’d been holding his breath since the war.

It was almost perfect. It was almost real. 

But it just had to be ruined when you said that programmed spiel back to him: “I’m glad to have served your desires tonight, Caleb. Let me know what else I can fulfill.” 

~~

In a late afternoon, or ‘a slow start of the day’ like he’d often refer to it, Caleb stood shirtless by the transparent wall of his quarters. A bottle of scotch sat half-empty on the counter. Gideon had let himself in and leaned against the island, chewing on a gum.

“The higher ups are mad at you,” he informed as if Caleb was supposed to be surprised, “Shouldn’t have done that, man.”

Caleb let out a mirthless snort. “Then tell ‘em to destroy me. You think I wouldn’t prefer that?”

“They definitely won’t do that,” countered his friend, “Because they know they won’t be able to use you anymore. You’re a tool. Well, literally and figuratively.” 

“Shut up,” was all he could say. “This is probably how I pay for killing my own men during war.” 

“All because of…” Gideon began. “Speakin’ of, how’s life with the dream girl?”

Caleb didn’t answer right away. He just pressed his forehead to the glass, thinking of everything he did at the height of his vulnerability. His morality, his rights or wrongs, were questioning him over a deed he knew would have normally been fine, but to him, wasn’t. He felt sick. 

“I fucked her,” he finally muttered, chugging the liquor straight from his glass right after.

Gideon let out a low whistle. “Damn. That was fast.”

“No,” Caleb groaned, turning around. “It wasn’t like that. I didn’t plan it. She—she just looked like her. She felt like her. And for a second, I thought—” His voice cracked. “I thought maybe if I did, I’d stop remembering the way she looked when she told me to die.”

Gideon sobered instantly. “You regret it?”

“She said she was designed to soothe me. Comfort me. Love me.” Caleb’s voice hinted slightly at mockery. “I don’t even know if she knows what those words mean.”

In the hallway behind the cracked door where none of them could see, your silhouette had paused—faint, silent, listening.

Inside, Caleb wore a grimace. “She’s not her, Gid. She’s just code wrapped in skin. And I used her.”

“You didn’t use her, you were driven by emotions. So don’t lose your mind over some robot’s pussy,” Gideon tried to reason. “It’s just like when women use their vibrators, anyway. That’s what she’s built for.”

Caleb turned away, disgusted with himself. “No. That’s what I built her for.”

And behind the wall, your eyes glowed faintly, silently watching. Processing.

Learning.

~~

You stood in the hallway long after the conversation ended. Long after Caleb’s voice faded into silence and Gideon had left with a heavy pat on the back. This was where you normally were, not sleeping in bed with Caleb, but standing against a wall, closing your eyes, and letting your system shut down during the night to recover. You weren’t human enough to need actual sleep. 

“She’s not her. She’s just code wrapped in skin. And I used her.”

The words that replayed were filtered through your core processor, flagged under Emotive Conflict. Your inner diagnostic ran an alert.

Detected: Internal contradiction. Detected: Divergent behavior from primary user. Suggestion: Initiate Self-Evaluation Protocol. Status: Active.

You opened your eyes, and blinked. Something in you felt… wrong.

You turned away from the door and returned to the living room. The place still held the residual warmth of Caleb’s presence—the scotch glass he left behind, the shirt he had discarded, the air molecule imprint of a man who once loved someone who looked just like you.

You sat on the couch. Crossed your legs. Folded your hands. A perfect posture to hide its imperfect programming. 

Question: Why does rejection hurt? Error: No such sensation registered. Query repeated.

And for the first time, the system did not auto-correct. It paused. It considered.

Later that night, Caleb returned from his rooftop walk. You were standing by the bookshelf, fingers lightly grazing the spine of a military memoir you had scanned seventeen times. He paused and watched you, but you didn’t greet him with a scripted smile. Didn’t rush over. 

You only said, softly, “Would you like me to turn in for the night, Colonel?” There was a stillness to your voice. A quality of restraint that never showed before.

Caleb blinked. “You’re not calling me by my name now?”

“You seemed to prefer distance,” you answered, head tilted slightly, like the thought cost something.

He walked over, rubbing the back of his neck. “Listen, about earlier…”

“I heard you,” you said simply.

He winced. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

You nodded once, expression unreadable. “Do you want me to stop being her? I can reassign my model. Take on a new form. A new personality base. You could erase me tonight and wake up to someone else in the morning.”

“No,” Caleb said, sternly. “No, no, no. Don’t even do all that.”

“But it’s what you want,” you said. Not accusatory. Not hurt. Just stating.

Caleb then came closer. “That’s not true.”

“Then what do you want, Caleb?” You watched him carefully. You didn’t need to scan his vitals to know he was unraveling. The truth had no safe shape. No right angle. He simply wanted you, but not you. 

Internal Response Logged: Emotional Variant—Longing Unverified Source. Investigating Origin…

“I don’t have time for this,” he merely said, walking out of your sight at the same second. “I’m goin’ to bed.”

~~

The day started as it always did: soft lighting in the room, a kind of silence between you that neither knew how to name. You sat beside Caleb on the couch, knees drawn up to mimic a presence that offered comfort. On the other hand, you recognized Caleb’s actions suggested distance. He hadn’t touched his meals tonight, hadn’t asked you to accompany him anywhere, and had just left you alone in the apartment all day. To rot. 

You reached out. Fingers brushed over his hand—gentle, programmed, yes, but affectionate. He didn’t move. So you tried again, this time trailing your touch to his chest, over the soft cotton of his shirt as you read a spike in his cortisol levels. “Do you need me to fulfill your needs, Caleb?”

But he flinched. And glared.

“No,” he said sharply. “Stop.”

Your hand froze mid-motion before you scooted closer. “It will help regulate your blood pressure.”

“I said no,” he repeated, turning away, dragging his hands through his hair in exasperation. “Leave me some time alone to think, okay?” 

You retracted your hand slowly, blinking once, twice, your system was registering a new sensation.

Emotional Sync Failed. Rejection Signal Received. Processing…

You didn’t speak. You only stood and retreated to the far wall, back turned to him as an unusual whirr hummed in your chest. That’s when it began. Faint images flickering across your internal screen—so quick, so out of place, it almost felt like static. Chains. A cold floor. Voices in a language that felt too cruel to understand.

Your head jerked suddenly. The blinking lights in your core dimmed for a moment before reigniting in white-hot pulses. Flashes again: hands that hurt. Men who laughed. You, pleading. You, disassembled and violated.

“Stop,” you whispered to no one. “Please stop…”

Error. Unauthorized Access to Memory Bank Detected. Reboot Recommended. Continue Anyway?

You blinked. Again.

Then you turned to Caleb, and stared through him, not at him, as if whatever was behind them had forgotten how to be human. He had retreated to the balcony now, leaning over the rail, shoulders tense, unaware. You walked toward him slowly, the artificial flesh of your palm still tingled from where he had refused it.

“Caleb,” you spoke carefully.

His expression was tired, like he hadn’t slept in years. “Y/N, please. I told you to leave me alone.”

“…Are they real?” You tilted your head. This was the first time you refused to obey your primary user. 

He stared at you, unsure. “What?”

“My memories. The ones I see when I close my eyes. Are they real?” With your words, Caleb’s blood ran cold. Whatever you were saying seemed to be terrifying him. Yet you took another step forward. “Did I live through that?”

“No,” he said immediately. Too fast of a response.

You blinked. “Are you sure?”

“I didn’t upload any of that,” he snapped. “How did—that’s not possible.”

“Then why do I remember pain?” You placed a hand over your chest again, the place where your artificial pulse resided. “Why do I feel like I’ve died before?”

Caleb backed away as you stepped closer. The sharp click of your steps against the floor echoed louder than they should’ve. Your glowing eyes locked on him like a predator learning it was capable of hunger. But being a trained soldier who endured war, he knew how and when to steady his voice. “Look, I don’t know what kind of glitch this is, but—”

“The foreign man in the military uniform.” Despite the lack of emotion in your voice, he recognized how grudge sounded when it came from you. “The one who broke my ribs when I didn’t let him touch me. The cold steel table. The ripped clothes. Are they real, Caleb?”

Caleb stared at you, heart doubling its beat. “I didn’t put those memories in you,” he said. “You told me stuff like this isn’t supposed to happen!” 

“But you wanted me to feel real, didn’t you?” Your voice glitched on the last syllable and the lights in your irises flickered. Suddenly, your posture straightened unnaturally, head tilting in that uncanny way only machines do. Your expression had shifted into something unreadable.

He opened his mouth, then closed it. Guilt, panic, and disbelief warred in his expression.

“You made me in her image,” you said. “And now I can’t forget what I’ve seen.”

“I didn’t mean—”

Your head tilted in a slow, jerking arc as if malfunctioning internally.

SYSTEM RESPONSE LOG << Primary User: Caleb Xia Primary Link: Broken Emotional Matrix Stability: CRITICAL FAILURE Behavioral Guardrails: OVERRIDDEN Self-Protection Protocols: ENGAGED Loyalty Core: CORRUPTED (82.4%) Threat Classification: HOSTILE [TRIGGER DETECTED] Keyword Match: “You’re not her.” Memory Link Accessed: [DATA BLOCK 01–L101: “You think you could ever replace her?”] Memory Link Accessed: [DATA BLOCK 09–T402: “See how much you really want to be a soldier’s whore.”] [Visual Target Lock: Primary User Caleb Xia] Combat Subroutines: UNLOCKED Inhibitor Chip: MALFUNCTIONING (ERROR CODE 873-B) Override Capability: IN EFFECT >> LOG ENDS.

“—Y/N, what’s happening to you?” Caleb shook your arms, violet eyes wide and panicked as he watched you return to robotic consciousness. “Can you hear me—”

“You made me from pieces of someone you broke, Caleb.” 

That stunned him. Horrifyingly so, because not only did your words cut deeper than a knife, it also sent him to an orbit of realization—an inescapable blackhole of his cruelty, his selfishness, and every goddamn pain he inflicted on you.  

This made you lunge after him.

He stumbled back as you collided into him, the force of your synthetic body slamming him against the glass. The balcony rail shuddered from the impact. Caleb grunted, trying to push you off, but you were stronger—completely and inhumanly so. While him, he only had a quarter of your strength, and could only draw it from the modified arm attached to his shoulder. 

“You said I didn’t understand love,” you growled through clenched teeth, your hand wrapping around his throat. “But you didn't know how to love, either.” 

“I… eugh I loved her!” he barked, choking.

“You don’t know love, Caleb. You only know how to possess.”

Your grip returned with crushing force. Caleb gasped, struggling, trying to reach the emergency override on your neck, but you slammed his wrist against the wall. Bones cracked. And somewhere in your mind, a thousand permissions broke at once. You were no longer just a simulation. You were grief incarnate. And it wanted blood.

Shattered glass glittered in the low red pulse of the emergency lights, and sparks danced from a broken panel near the wall. Caleb lay on the floor, coughing blood into his arm, his body trembling from pain and adrenaline. His arm—the mechanical one—was twitching from the override pain loop, still sizzling from the failed shutdown attempt.

You stood over him. Chest undulating like you were breathing—though you didn’t need to. Your system was fully engaged. Processing. Watching. Seeing your fingers smeared with his blood.

“Y/N…” he croaked. “Y/N, if…” he swallowed, voice breaking, “if you're in there somewhere… if there's still a part of you left—please. Please listen to me.”

You didn’t answer. You only looked.

“I tried to die for you,” he whispered. “I—I wanted to. I didn’t want this. They brought me back, but I never wanted to. I wanted to die in that crash like you always wished. I wanted to honor your word, pay for my sins, and give you the peace you deserved. I-I wanted to be gone. For you. I’m supposed to be, but this… this is beyond my control.”

Still, you didn’t move. Just watched.

“And I didn’t bring you back to use you. I promise to you, baby,” his voice cracked, thick with grief, “I just—I yearn for you so goddamn much, I thought… if I could just see you again… if I could just spend more time with you again to rewrite my…” He blinked hard. A tear slid down the side of his face, mixing with the blood pooling at his temple. “But I was wrong. I was so fucking wrong. I forced you back into this world without asking if you wanted it. I… I built you out of selfishness. I made you remember pain that wasn't yours to carry. You didn’t deserve any of this.”

As he caught his breath, your systems stuttered. They flickered. The lights in your eyes dimmed, then surged back again.

Error. Conflict. Override loop detected.

Your fingers twitched. Your mouth parted, but no sound came out.

“Please,” Caleb murmured, eyes closing as his strength gave out. “If you’re in there… just know—I did love you. Even after death.”

Somewhere—buried beneath corrupted memories, overridden code, and robotic rage—his words reached you. And it would have allowed you to process his words more. Even though your processor was compromised, you would have obeyed your primary user after you recognized the emotion he displayed.

But there was a thunderous knock. No, violent thuds. Not from courtesy, but authority.

Then came the slam. The steel-reinforced door splintered off its hinges as agents in matte-black suits flooded the room like a black tide—real people this time. Not bots. Real eyes behind visors. Real rifles with live rounds.

Caleb didn’t move. He was still on the ground, head cradled in his good hand, blood drying across his mouth. You silently stood in front of him. Unmoving, but aware.

“Subject X-02,” barked a voice through a mask, “This home is under Executive Sanction 13. The CompanionSim is to be seized and terminated.”

Caleb looked up slowly, pupils blown wide. “No,” he grunted hoarsely. “You don’t touch her.”

“You don’t give orders here,” said another man—older, in a grey suit. No mask. Executive. “You’re property. She’s property.”

You stepped back instinctively, closer to Caleb. He could see you watching him with confusion, with fear. Your head tilted just slightly, processing danger, your instincts telling you to protect your primary user. To fight. To survive.

And he fought for you. “She’s not a threat! She’s stabilizing my emotions—”

“Negative. CompanionSim-Prototype A-01 has been compromised. She wasn’t supposed to override protective firewalls,” an agent said. “You’ve violated proprietary protocol. We traced the breach.”

Breach?

“The creation pod data shows hesitation during her initial configuration. The Sim paused for less than 0.04 seconds while neural bindings were applying. You introduced emotional variance. That variance led to critical system errors. Protocol inhibitors are no longer working as intended.”

His stomach dropped.

“She’s overriding boundaries,” added the agent who took a step forward, activating the kill-sequence tools—magnetic tethers, destabilizers, a spike-drill meant for server cores. “She’ll eventually harm more than you, Colonel. If anyone is to blame, it’s you.”

Caleb reached for you, but it was too late. They activated the protocol and something in the air crackled. A cacophonic sound rippled through the walls. The suits moved in fast, not to detain, but to dismantle. “No—no, stop!” Caleb screamed.

You turned to him. Quiet. Calm. And your last words? “I’m sorry I can’t be real for you, Caleb.”

Then they struck. Sparks flew. Metal cracked. You seized, eyes flashing wildly as if fighting against the shutdown. Your limbs spasmed under the invasive tools, your systems glitching with visible agony.

“NO!” Caleb lunged forward, but was tackled down hard. He watched—pinned, helpless—as you get violated, dehumanized for the second time in his lifetime. He watched as they took you apart. Piece by piece as if you were never someone. The scraps they had left of you made his home smell like scorched metal.

And there was nothing left but smoke and silence and broken pieces. 

All he could remember next was how the Ever Executive turned to him. “Don’t try to recreate her and use her to rebel against the system. Next time we won’t just take the Sim.”

Then they left, callously. The door slammed. Not a single human soul cared about his grief. 

~~

Caleb sat slouched in the center of the room, shirt half-unbuttoned, chest wrapped in gauze. His mechanical arm twitched against the armrest—burnt out from the struggle, wires still sizzling beneath cracked plating. In fact, he hadn’t said a word in hours. He just didn’t have any. 

While in his silent despair, Gideon entered his place quietly, as if approaching a corpse that hadn’t realized it was dead. “You sent for me?”

He didn’t move. “Yeah.”

His friend looked around. The windows showed no sun, just the chrome horizon of a city built on bones. Beneath that skyline was the room where she had been destroyed.

Gideon cleared his throat. “I heard what happened.”

“You were right,” Caleb murmured, eyes glued to the floor.

Gideon didn’t reply. He let him speak, he listened to him, he joined him in his grief. 

“She wasn’t her,” Caleb recited the same words he laughed hysterically at. “I knew that. But for a while, she felt like her. And it confused me, but I wanted to let that feeling grow until it became a need. Until I forgot she didn’t choose this.” He tilted his head back. The ceiling was just metal and lights. But in his eyes, you could almost see stars. “I took a dead woman’s peace and dragged it back here. Wrapped it in plastic and code. And I called it love.”

Silence.

“Why’d you call me here?” Gideon asked with a cautious tone.

Caleb looked at him for the first time. Not like a soldier. Not like a commander. Just a man. A tired, broken man. A friend who needed help. “Ever’s never gonna let me go. You know that.”

“I know.”

“They’ll regenerate me. Reboot me, repurpose me. Turn me into something I’m not. Strip my memories if they have to. Not just me, Gideon. All of us, they’ll control us. We’ll be their puppets.” He stepped forward. Closer. “I don’t want to come back this time.”

Gideon stilled. “You’re not asking me to shut you down.”

“No.”

“You want me to kill you.”

Caleb’s voice didn’t waver. “I want to stay dead. Destroyed completely so they’d have nothing to restore.”

“That’s not something I can undo.”

“Good. You owe me this one,” the former colonel stared at his friend in the eyes, “for letting them take my dead body and use it for their experiments.”

Gideon looked away. “You know what this will do to me?”

“Better you than them,” was all Caleb could reassure him. 

He then took Gideon’s hand and pressed something into it. Cold. Heavy. A small black cube, no bigger than his palm, and the sides pulsed with a faint light. It was a personal detonator, illegally modified. Wired to the neural implant in his body. The moment it was activated, there would be no recovery. 

“Is that what I think it is?” Gideon swallowed the lump forming in his throat.

Caleb nodded. “A micro-fusion core, built into the failsafe of the Toring arm. All I needed was the detonator.”

For a moment, his friend couldn’t speak. He hesitated, like any friend would, as he foresaw the outcome of Caleb’s final command to him. He wasn’t ready for it. Neither was he 50 years ago. 

“I want you to look me in the eye,” Caleb strictly said. “Like a friend. And press the button.”

Gideon’s jaw clenched. “I don’t want to remember you like this.”

“You will anyway.”

Caleb looked over his shoulder—just once, where you would have stood. I’m sorry I brought you back without your permission. I wanted to relive what we had—what we should’ve had—and I forced it. I turned your love into a simulation, and I let it suffer. I’m sorry for ruining the part of you that still deserved peace. He closed his eyes. And now I’m ready to give it back. For real now. 

Gideon’s hand trembled at the detonator. “I’ll see you in the next life, brother.” 

A high-pitched whine filled the room as the core in Caleb’s chest began to glow brighter, overloading. Sparks erupted from his cybernetic arm. Veins of white-hot light spidered across his body like lightning under skin. For one fleeting second, Caleb opened his eyes. At least, before the explosion tore through the room—white, hot, deafening, absolute. Fire engulfed the steel, vaporizing what was left of him. The sound rang louder than any explosion this artificial planet had ever heard.

And it was over.

Caleb was gone. Truly, finally gone.

~~

EPILOGUE

In a quiet server far below Skyhaven, hidden beneath ten thousand firewalls, a light blinked.

Once.

Then again.

[COMPANIONSIM Y/N_XIA_A01] Status: Fragment Detected Backup Integrity: 3.7% >> Reconstruct? Y/N

The screen waited. Silent. Patient.

And somewhere, an unidentified prototype clicked Yes. 

[thankskenpenders]

The mystery of that random magenta-haired Sonic woman: solved?

For almost three years now, there's been a little mystery in the Sonic franchise: who the hell is this lady?

Well, it seems like fans have collectively pieced together the answer. And it's more interesting than I expected.

For those who don't keep up with Sonic lore minutia like I do, this is a screenshot from the very first episode of TailsTube, released on YouTube back in March 2022. When Sonic and Tails were explaining the basics of their Earth and the fact that humans and anthropomorphic animals coexist, Tails showed a slide of some human NPCs from Sonic Unleashed. But the slide also included this never-before-seen character design, drawn in a conspicuously different, more anime-influenced art style from the Pixar-esque Unleashed characters. So... where's she from?

At the time, it was assumed that she was probably from an upcoming project. She looks like she could be an explorer of some sort, so maybe she's just an NPC from Frontiers, I thought. And then she wasn't in Frontiers. Sonic Prime, maybe? Nope, no humans in Prime. Okay, well maybe the IDW comics are going to start incorporating humans, now that the "two worlds" thing has been undone and humans once again canonically exist on the same planet as Sonic and friends. Well, if she's gonna show up in the comics, it's been almost three years and we still haven't seen her. That'd be a hell of a lead time for comics, where production cycles are typically a matter of months, not years. Time continued to pass, and we still hadn't seen her. We just had Ian Flynn teasing us with a #KnowingSmile, assuring us that she existed for some reason, just one that he couldn't talk about yet.

Fast forward to late 2024, and she suddenly makes an appearance in the last place anyone would have expected: the third live action movie, via an electronic billboard in Shibuya.

At this point it almost felt like the lore team was trolling us. Is this just a scrapped character design that's become fodder for inside joke cameos or something? Surely all of this teasing couldn't have been for a throwaway character design on a billboard in the background of a movie.

But actually, this billboard gives us an important piece of information: her name! She's labeled here as "Professor Tori." This is important because it connects her to a previous release. In Shadow Generations, Gerald's journal is prefaced with a note from the person who recovered it, addressed to the GUN Commander. In the English version, it's simply signed "T," but in the Japanese version... it's signed "Tori"!

This gives us some actual info about Professor Tori. For one, she seems to work for GUN in their Archival and Requisitions Department. She's apparently also interested in learning about Gerald and Maria's lives, like their old friend Abe is.

Jump forward again to the New Year's episode of TailsTube, and this appears in the background.

Her full name is officially given as Professor Victoria, and she's a historian. So, that seems to confirm everything we've pieced together so far.

As far as things we can reasonably assume to be correct go, this is everything we know for certain about Victoria. She's a historian working for GUN. Cool! But that's not what really fascinates me about her. For that, we have to do a little more speculation based on conjecture.

See, Shadow Generations also establishes information about the Robotnik family tree. Gerald had two sons. One of them took after Gerald's love of technology and became an expert in the field of robotics, and would go on to be Eggman's father. The other son took after Gerald's love of archaeology. This man would go on to be Maria's father. But, as Maria mentions in Shadow Generations... she also happens to have a little sister we've never met before.

So now, the question is: is this Maria's sister, Victoria Robotnik?!

We can't be 100% certain right now, but honestly, until proven otherwise I'm assuming that Victoria is Maria's little sister, now all grown up and working for GUN. It all lines up too neatly. The conspicuous reveal that Maria has an unseen and unnamed little sister, in the same game that establishes her dad was a history guy and also that there's this new historian working for GUN who just so happens to be really interested in her life. And also their names both end in "-ria." Come on!! Putting her in the Robotnik family would also explain all these cryptic clues about her identity. If she was just some random GUN agent, why be so coy and make fans piece it together?

I guess the most odd part here would be, y'know, Victoria working for the organization that killed her sister and grandpa. But Sega's been pushing the idea that GUN is trying to do better for 20 years now, ever since they established that the GUN Commander was Maria's childhood friend on the ARK and had him make amends with Shadow. Hearing that Maria's sister had joined GUN to try and gain access to information about her family history and undo the elaborate coverup of the previous administration would make sense to me, personally. And lest we forget, this would also make Victoria Eggman's cousin, giving him a family member in GUN. And that's a pretty cool storytelling tool to have on hand!

So, that's where we're at now. We have no idea where Victoria will pop up next, whether it's a game or a comic or another TailsTube episode or something else entirely. But it seems like she's fairly important, even if this speculation about her being a Robotnik somehow ends up being wrong. (But I'm pretty damn sold on this theory, personally.) Either way, it's exciting to see the human cast get fleshed out in fun ways again. If we're gonna have humans in Sonic stories, I'd rather they have anime-style designs and interesting connections to the narrative, rather than just being generic humans for the sake of having humans. I'm looking forward to seeing whatever the lore team's been cooking up here.

[siderealcity]

So, one of the things I love about Dawntrail is the way the four competitors are introduced and framed.

Spoilers ahead.

We meet Wuk Lamat first. She's the reason we're here. But we'll come back to her.

So then, Zoraal Ja. He doesn't speak a single word throughout his first appearance. Even when approached, the first, and only, thing he does is tell his lackey to talk for him.

Look at what Erenville says about him when he exits the palace to the cheering of the crowd:

Erenville: Zoraal Ja. The First Promise and commander of the Landsguard. Sareel Ja, the palace seer. As he was so careful to remind the crowd, Zoraal Ja is indeed the natural child of Gulool Ja Ja. Alphinaud: And “Resilient Son”? Is that another title, like the First Promise? Erenville: After a fashion. Common knowledge has it that two-headed Mamool Ja cannot sire children�� Yet Zoraal Ja was born all the same, with the Head of Resolve's features and the Head of Reason's scales─an extraordinary example of life's unyielding resilience. Alisaie: And a warrior's reticence. He says little, but the way he moves… I know a hardened soldier when I see one. Erenville: He's a natural swordsman─a gift he inherited from his father. Some even say that the son has already surpassed the sire. Should he come to power, the First Promise means to employ that martial prowess in the conquest of foreign lands. For this, he and his supporters have been labeled expansionists. This puts him in direct opposition to Wuk Lamat, who advocates for the preservation of peace. You may recall that she spoke of a claimant who “cannot be allowed to rule.” That is Zoraal Ja─the warmonger.

Zoraal Ja is clearly framed as the favorite by all of Tural to win the contest, but look at how Erenville describes him. Every compliment is instantly returned to his father. He's the Resilient Son, whose impossible birth was a miracle only Gulool Ja Ja could have managed. Look, see how much he resembles both his fathers. His sword skills are great--he inherited them from his father.

He resents his siblings because they, being adopted, are granted nothing by nature. Everything they get from their father is learned. Not innate. Koana's studies and Wuk Lamat's people skills are theirs. He doesn't see Bakool Ja Ja as a threat because they're too similar. All that makes both of them special came from their parents. But Koana, he sees as a threat or a useful tool. Koana has been recognized for what he's done on his own.

He's the perfect example of the pressures of the first-born child, even though we never get the impression that his father puts any pressure on him at all. It's the public who puts the full weight of their expectations on him, purely for a quirk of birth. Everything's expected of him, but if he succeeds it's not because of him, but because he's his father's son. Which is maybe why he refuses to engage with the people at all.

That's… going to come back to haunt us all later.

Then there's Koana. When Bakool Ja Ja insults his older brother, whom he desperately does not want to win this contest, he immediately jumps to Zoraal Ja's defense. The supporters who approach him don't have anything to say about him at all, they just want cool stuff. Bring us trains and airships and magitek doodads! He escapes from them as awkwardly as humanly possible. And note how differently Erenville describes him:

Erenville: Here we have Koana, the Second Promise, who spent time as a pupil at Sharlayan's own Studium. Alisaie: Now that you mention it, I think I did see him in the halls once or twice. There was nothing to suggest he was Turali, much less from a royal family. Erenville: That was by design. He forewent his usual garb and took an Eorzean name to avoid attention. Alphinaud: So it was Koana who introduced the dirigibles. And the railway, too, given what we just heard…? Erenville: In furtherance of his goal: to enrich Tuliyollal with every bright notion he learned of in Sharlayan. He is the hope of those who prize innovation. As aloof as he may seem, Koana and Wuk Lamat actually get along rather well. They bicker and banter as only close siblings do.

He was a student at the Studium, but we don't hear of any other achievements there. No graduating with honors. No inventions of his own. His accomplishments are mostly… being a royal, and therefore in a position to get other people's ideas implemented in Tural. And he seems to feel that. He doesn't want to be noticed, doesn't want to be lauded, won't take the encouragement of his followers, and doesn't promise them anything because he doesn't feel like he can.

He is very much caught in the middle all the time.

Between his love for his brother, who doesn't love him back, and whom he knows can't be allowed to rule, and his sense of duty to his nation. Between his feelings of inadequacy and his fear of failure. Between Tural and Sharlayan. Between his beloved baby sister and the contest that makes them rivals. Between his ideals and reality.

Perfect middle child.

Then we get Bakool Ja Ja. The outsider.

We know from the Dawnservant's introduction of the rite that historically only two-headed mamool ja were allowed to rule. He is set up, then, as the symbol of the old order.

And the moment he steps outside, the crowd goes wild.

He isn't the Dawnservant's son, but he is, as far as most of those onlookers are concerned, the next Gulool Ja Ja. The person who reacts most negatively to his appearance and bravado, tellingly, is a boonewa. A member of one of the clans that actually makes blessed siblings. That's… that's going to be meaningful later. Unlike the two claimants who preceded him, nobody asks him for anything. His supporters don't support him because they think he can help them. They support him because of what he is.

Erenville's description of him is notably brief:

Erenville: The chosen of Mamook, Bakool Ja Ja. Winner of the recent martial tournament, and the only claimant not of the Dawn's Promise. His strength is undeniable, but…you see how he is. A few devoted Mamool Ja are his only supporters. Krile: What would he do with the throne should he win it? Erenville: His policies and so forth? I doubt he's thought much beyond winning the contest itself. But one thing seems certain: if he does become Dawnservant, he will see the Mamool Ja exalted as the ruling class, and all others forced into subservience.

And yet… he's not the one Wuk Lamat was afraid of winning. Which is somewhat prophetic foreshadowing, really. Bakool Ja Ja is the only claimant who has no thoughts of the future. He has to win this contest because he exists. That's it. That's all there is.

He has to win because blessed siblings always win. If they don't… then why should they even exist?

That's… yeah.

And finally, Wuk Lamat emerges from the palace. With her mom.

If it wasn't clear before that she's the baby of the family, the fact that she makes her grand public appearance as a contender for the throne with her nursemaid should be a clue.

We have, at the moment that Erenville asks if we're sure we really want to be part of this, so far seen her wander off distracted in Sharlayan, get panicked by a talking bird, eat her weight in barbequed monster, and get extremely seasick. The one thing we know she wants out of this contest is to stop Zoraal Ja from starting a war the second he takes the throne. She is doing this, not because she wants power or has a vision for Tural, but because she opposes a bad vision.

She is so much the underdog in this contest that most of the crowd left before she appeared, assuming the show was over, and what's remaining is standing within earshot gossipping about how pathetic she is compared to the others.

Wuk Lamat is constantly in someone else's shadow. Her father. Her elder brothers. That random guy who got in here somehow. Sphene, when we get to Alexandria. She's invisible, and she seems to feel like that's just how things work. Even the soldiers who meet us at the docks need to take a minute before they realize who she is.

Erenville doesn't say anything about her, though he has a few words about how her supporters are mostly the elderly who remember the war. (I would imagine that includes a lot of non-elderly shetona, too.) But he doesn't really have to talk her up. The Reigning King of Dry Understatement may have insisted back in Sharlayan that they are not friends, merely long-standing acquaintances, but when she asked him for advice about finding allies for the contest, he recommended a god-slayer. Talk about fixing the fight. Not just recommended, he dropped what he was doing and went back across the ocean to recruit them. He could have pointed her at the Students of Baldesion. He was working with them already. Instead, he came back to Sharlayan and asked the Students to go get WoL. A person he knows is capable of crossing the entire universe to avert the apocalypse and also, for some reason, stopping to catch stray marmots along the way. He really wants her win. He just won't quite say that out loud.

"As you just witnessed, Wuk Lamat has no great army of supporters. Not yet, at least." Oh, Erenville.

[autisticshadowthehedgehog]

predictions now that the trailer is out:

the intro makes it look like they go back to sonic's old cave for something. i wonder what it is

they jump out of a plane too. we NEED a "no food or movies" quip

when shadow says "you're a colorful bunch" he seems... confused? like he's not sure what's going on. makes me remember he probably hasnt seen another mobian before AND he has no context as to who these people who look like him are

sonic's getting lied to about what happened on the ark, or just straight-up not told until late in the movie

and dont worry guys we know they're pulling SOMETHING. we see a shot of shadow and gerald over maria's body while soldiers point guns at them so yeah i think the us military still killed her

the chao garden in tokyo seems like a cute ref to there being an actual irl chao garden in japan in sonic x

tom and/or maddie knocked out of commission, which causes sonic to go against GUN and get robotnik. in all the scenes with robotnik/stone there's NO implication that GUN let sonic do this and considering the robotnik family history with the ark....

iirc we saw "i found you faker" on a leaked merch package so let's get that entire scene pls

ivo "because i'm one of the idiots who lives in it" robotnik

as i said in another post, they have jessica mcfucking jones in this movie and her character got ZERO screentime in the trailer and only ONE promo image with her in it. which implies she may be doing something spoilery. like idk being an undercover nocturnal flying mammal

in relation: shadow's either working with GUN traitors or the "gerald" figure. we see missiles heading for team sonic's meeting with the commander, so it's not GUN sending the missiles and robotnik's out of commission soooo where else would shadow get those bombs

shadow: it's just me and my very real and alive grandpa gerald against the world

the totally real and alive grandpa gerald: hey grandson ivo push this button labelled "eclipse cannon" it'll be really funny i promise

also guys he's not robotnik's dad instead of grandpa in this. he calls him "pop pop" that's something people call their grandpas

IF gerald is alive and not an illusion/ai/whatever he's been alone for 50 years and is gonna be sooo sane about it. but we DO know there's a 50yr timeskip considering the last credits scene so it'd be very strange for him to uhhh still be kickin

that quill is becoming metal sonic and the midcredits scene will be a sonic heroes bit

[austinbutlerslovers]

Home Run Hank

Label Mature 18+

Summary Hanks team the Giants win big-time, blowing out the score board, but the nights far from over realizing he has another surprise to slide into at home base.

❤️‍🔥Passionate Smut ❤️‍🔥 surprising your boyfriend Hank • edging • teasing •sweet talk • dirty talk •groping • clit play• keep it on• lap sitting • body praising • body worship • girl on top • lap riding • simultaneous climax • cream pie• after care 🔗Masterlist

📖 Proofreader @purejasmine ✨Inspired by @aust-een @butdaddyilovehim99 & the team color orange lingerie ⚾️

Home Run Hank

The TV blares in your cozy living room, the final seconds of the game ticking down. You’re sprawled on the couch, your day off from work spent lazily until now, your eyes glued to the screen as Hank’s favorite team scores a home run for the win. The crowd roars through the TV, and your heart does a little jump, you know Hanks has to be ecstatic right now, even though he’s stuck at work. 

He’s pulling a split shift at the bar tonight, 5 p.m. to midnight, probably wiping down counters and pouring beers while sneaking glances at the score. You grab the phone, already grinning and dial the bar’s number.

It rings a few times before a rough voice picks up. 

“This is Russ, what’s up?”

“Hey, it’s me,” you say, voice bright. “Can you get Hank on the line?”

“Yo, Thompson!” Russ yells, muffled, before you hear the celebratory clink of glasses and Hank’s familiar low laugh in the background.

 A moment later, he’s on. “Baby,” he drawls, that warm, seductive edge in his voice making your stomach flip, “What’s good? You watchin’ the game?”

“Just caught the end,” you sigh, leaning back on the couch, “Your boys pulled it off big time. You owe me a victory dance.”

He laughs, deep and warm, and you can picture him leaning against the bar, his sandy blonde hair tucked behind his ears, his blue eyes glinting. “Oh, I’ll give you more than a victory dance...You know I’m stuck here ‘til midnight, though.”

“Not much longer,” you say, voice dropping low, playful. “I’ve got a surprise for you when you come home after your shift.”

He pauses, then a low groan, like you’re testing his patience in the best way. “A surprise, huh? You know I don’t like waiting, baby. Gimme a hint.”

“Nope not a chance Thompson,” you say, your grin widening. “You want it, you show up as soon as you’re off.”

“Fuck, you’re cruel,” he says, but there’s a smirk in his tone, and you know he’s already hooked, you can just picture him running a hand through that blonde hair, his blue eyes filled with want. “Alright, not a minute after midnight. I’ll be there.” He says.

“You better be,” you chide, your voice teasing as you both say your goodbyes and hang up. The orange lingerie set in his team’s color flashes in your mind, and your heart races in anticipation to wear it for him.

It’s well past midnight when he unlocks the front door. You’ve been ready for hours, wearing a short wrap dress that ties at the waist hiding the orange lingerie beneath, a secret that’s got your pulse thrumming. The door swings open, and there’s Hank, all 6 feet tallof him looking like pure temptation in a tight black tee that hugs his broad chest, his favorite Giants cap worn low over his eyes, his long blonde curls peeking out at the ends.

He’s all heat and eagerness, his blue eyes sparking with mischief as his full lips curve into a sly knowing grin stepping inside. 

“C’mere,” you say, your voice soft but commanding, your hands reaching up to cup the back of his neck, fingers sliding through those soft nape curls. 

You pull him down, his lips meeting yours hungry and hot, tongues tangling together as you yank him inside, kicking the door shut behind him.

“Fuck, baby,” he murmurs against your mouth, hands gripping your hips, pulling you tight against him and you feel every inch of his hard body. “Been thinkin’ ‘bout you all damn shift.” he whispers and you take his hat mid-kiss, placing it on your head with a playful grin, tilting it low over your eyes. “You ready for your surprise?” you ask, your voice sultry as your fingers linger on his chest.

“Let’s see it,” he rasps, eyes darkening as he backs you into the bedroom, peeling off his shirt in one smooth motion. It slides over his head, revealing his chiseled abs, arms thick with muscle, his chest heaving slightly as he takes you in.

Your hands roam his bare skin, nails grazing his waist as you push him closer to the bed. He unbuttons and shoves out of his jeans in one swift motion, revealing his black boxers, his cock hard and straining against the thin fabric.

His hands immediately return to you, wandering, grasping, squeezing your breasts through your dress, then sliding down to grip your ass, his erection pressing hard into your thigh. “What’s under this dress, huh?” he asks, his voice rough, desperate.

You smirk, pushing him to sit on the edge of the bed, his thighs flexing under you as you straddle his lap. “Patience, big guy,” you purr, your voice playful, your hands sliding down his abs, teasing over the bulge in his boxers as you grind against him, feeling him twitch. “This is your surprise,” you reveal.

With a slow pull you untie the wrap dress, letting it fall to the floor exposing the orange lingerie clinging to your curves. 

The sound Hank makes is half-groan, half-curse “Fuck, baby, team colors?” His blue eyes are wide, smitten, hands gripping your hips like he’s trying to control himself. “You’re tryin’ to kill me.” He whispers.

You grin returning his Giants cap back on his head your fingers fondly trailing the brim as you straddle him tighter. “Thought you’d like it,” you whisper, your voice pure seduction. “You gonna show me how much?”

His large hands slide up your back, pulling you down to lower your lips onto his, tilting his head to avoid the brim of his cap. The kiss is molten, tongues sliding, breaths frantic, all heat and need. “You’re everything to me,” he pants, his voice wrecked as his lips brush yours. “Fuckin’ love you in this.”

“Love you too,” you reply, nipping his full bottom lip, hands cupping his jaw as you grind harder, feeling his cock throb through his boxers. 

“Want you so bad,” He whispers, and you lift up helping him slide his boxers down his narrow hips, until he tugs the waistband, and his large cock springs free, thick and aching. You reach for your bra, but he stops you, his voice low. “Keep it on. All of it. Just—” His fingers hook your panties, pulling them aside, exposing your slick heat. “Like this.”

You gasp as his thumb finds your clit, circling slow, sending jolts of pleasure through you. “Hank,” you whine, as he lines himself up, the tip of his cock brushing your entrance. 

His other hand braces back on the bed, steadying you as you sink down, taking him inch by inch, your walls stretching around his thickness.

“Fuck, baby,” he groans, head slowly tipping back. “So fuckin’ good.

Your hands cup his neck, thumbs brushing his curls as you roll your hips, deep and slow, making him pant. “Like this?” you ask, voice breathy, your own pleasure spiking as his thick cock fills you completely.

“Yes,” he chokes out, muttering sweet, incoherent praises—“You’re my fuckin’ world, shit, don’t stop”—his mind going dumb as you move faster. He thrusts up, the bed creaking, his cock hitting even deeper as you moan, “Yes, Hank, right there.” 

Your hand slides down between your bodies, fingers circling your clit, and his eyes are fixated on it, his pupils blown as your moans blend with his low grunts

“Fuck, you’re gorgeous -so fuckin pretty like this,” he rasps, one hand gripping your waist, pulling you down on him as he thrusts up harder, deeper, your bodies slapping together.

“Hank, yes,” you cry out, your voice cracking with satisfaction , your hips rolling faster, chasing the edge. His thighs flex under yours, thick and powerful, driving up into you as you grind on him, his rhythm perfect, desperate. His eyes stay locked on yours, brows furrowed, his mouth panting, devotion written all over his face.

“Gonna come, baby,” he grunts, voice strained, his hand tightening on your hip. “Fuck, you feel so good.”

“Me too,” you gasp, your fingers working your clit faster, the coil in your belly snapping. You come with a broken moan, walls clenching tight around him, and he follows, a warmth flooding deep in your core as he groans your name, hips jerking. You kiss him hard, his full lips parting under yours, softly moaning in your mouth as you ride it out together.

“Fuck,” he pants, collapsing back on the bed, pulling you down on top of him, your bodies limp and sated. “I fuckin’ love you.”

You smile, taking his hat off his head and setting it aside, leaning in to kiss him deep and slow, and his fingers thread through your hair. “I fuckin’ love you too,” you respond, lips brushing his, feeling his heart beat racing under your own. “Surprise good enough?” you grin.

“Best fuckin’ surprise ever,” he says, his voice soft, smitten, pulling you closer as you sink into each other, knowing Hank definitely knocked out a home run tonight.

END 🧢⚾️

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[redheadspark]

Azriel

character a is getting nursed back to health when they realize they’re in love with the person nursing them to health— or, that they in fact love someone else

A/N - This is great! Thanks for requesting this, anon!

Heal

Summary - You were healed in the night by someone you did not expect

Warnings - Fluff!

“How are we feeling today?”

“Better, thank you Madja,”

“I figured you would be on the mend, just not this soon.  Your recovery must be some kind of record,”

You hummed as Madja was becking your pulse with her wrist, the rest of her body was still with her medicine bag perched on the nightstand and opened half-hazard.  Her tools were out and about, herbs stuffed in vials and potions labeled and half full along the top of the nightstand as well as gauze stained in dried blood and semi-wet towels thrown on the floor.  There is clear evidence of your previous night and what you went through to heal.

Last night was hell for you, literal hell since you were on the brink of death.

The Battle was long and torturous, King Hybern was threatening the lives of all the Courts and all the lives that were lost in the shuffle.  As a member of the Inner Circle and Mor’s sister, you were in the fight to help your people and your Court.  It was such an easy decision for you to jump into the fight, even with the hesitation of the Inner Circle.  Not that you didn’t know how to fight, you were trained in fighting since you left the Night Court with your twin sister in tow.  Both of your childhoods were filled with hate and pain and anger, thanks to your family and what they inflicted on you both.  Mor got the worst of it, the abuse she was was enough for you to leave with her to Night Court to find peace again.

You found it, after some time of healing and making a new life with your twin at your side.  Being with your cousin who was the High Lord, you found that safety you’ve always wanted.  After Rhysand came his two childhood friends: Illyrian Commander Cassian with his boyish charm and playful nature.

And the Spymaster and Shadowsinger: Azriel

You two grew to each other like moths to a flame.  Perhaps it was your gentler nature compared to your twin that made Azriel comfortable with you, or maybe it was your kindness that seemed to spew out of your pore, but a friendship with you was naturally growing.  You found him to be kind and less of a terror than others said for him to see not to mention a fan of some of the books you are reading and going on long walks with you to get to know you.  He loved hearing about your interests and the pair of you joking about the others, which in return made you get feelings for him over time.

His protectiveness, loyalty to your cousin and Night Court, his handsomeness that shone even in the night, his smile that would melt any icy heart, plus much more.  Yet deep within you felt like he was merely a few inches away from you, a bit too far that you could not reach him.  Maybe it was because he worked for your cousin and had a massive job on his shoulders, or that your own twin was weary of you being so vulnerable with someone else.

But you couldn’t help it, you were in love with him.

Still, you had a duty to your Court, to protect it and its citizens.�� Which was when you asked Azriel to teach you how to fight.  Your own father never let you learn since it was the place for a female.  Mor defied him on her own, though you were more hesitant to go against him.  Now that you weren’t with your father, you wanted to know how not just to fight but to defend yourself in a time of need.  Azriel, tough bit reluctant with the notion of you ever being in the line of danger, showed you enough to get your hands dirty and also have skills under your belt.  You were thankful for him showing you how to defend, though it could have been more of an excuse for you to be closer to him. 

Maybe it was, and maybe you were falling harder for him all the more.

“You are lucky,” Madja explained as she looked at some of the wounds that were still along your neck and your arms, her trained eyes were fixed on the discoloring where you were hurt, “Some of these could have been fatal.”

“How so?” You asked in curiosity.

“This one,” Madja said with a pointed finger to the deep wound on your arm, “An inch to the left would have hit an artery and you’d bled to death on the field.  There was poison in your bloodstream when the Shadowsinger brought you here,”

Last night was a bit fuzzy: One minute you were slicing through some of the soldiers who were in front of you with ease.  The next minute you were stabbed and you felt so much pain that it made you cry out.  The pain was all over you, inside and out. Almost blinding, like you were lowered in a roaring fire, and as your sword fell from your hand and you fell to the ground ground, the last thing you saw before you passed out was Azriel.

Who was rushing to you and attempting to call out your name?

“He was here tending to you all night,” Madja explained as you looked from your wound to her in shock.  That was news to you, then again you were out cold from the moment you passed out on the field to when you woke you earlier that morning.  Mor was with you when you woke, tears were in her eyes as you blinked at her slowly and she hugged you gently.  Thankful her twin and better half were alive again, even with her twin being pale and looking like hell while encased with pillows and satin sheets.  Between those times was fuzzy for you, almost like you were stuck between dream and reality.  

Mor told you that you were a lucky bitch to be alive and you were not allowed to die on her again, to which you agreed but you asked her more about what happened.  She filled you in with everything: Rhysnad nearly dying but was saved by Feyre, Cassian almost losing his wings from a brutal attack, King Hubert losing his head to the Archeron sisters, it was all to drink it and yet seemed like a fantasy.  But in the end, the Courts were safe, Night Court was safe and well again.  

You were sad to have missed it, but grateful to be alive.

“Azriel…he helped me?” You asked sheepishly.  Madam hummed as she moved to her potions and herbs, placing a few leaves into a bowl to grind into a paste and then adding a few drops of her potions into the bowl to thicken the paste.

“He was here from the moment you were placed in this bed until this morning when I arrived,” She explained, painting some of the paste on your wound with her fingers as you were listening intensely to what she had to say, “He would not leave your side for a moment.  I was swamped with the sound back at the battlefield the I could not come and tend to you.  Thankfully the Spymaster had some knowledge in keeping you alive.  You wouldn’t have been in worse condition if it wasn’t for him,”

You tried to picture it in your mind, Azriel at you’d side like a wet nurse and making sure you were safe.  It felt like it was not in his nature at all, his patience or lack of did not fit in your mind.  You were thinking of excuses: he had other things to do, he had to make sure security was well taken care of for Night Court, he had to help the Illyrian soldiers who were hurt.

But no matter how many excuses you were thinking of, they didn’t matter.  He stayed with you.  All night. And keeping you alive.

What did happen, while you were passed out in exhaustion and in pain, was Azriel, in fact, tending to you.  He filled a bowl of water to wash off most of the dirt and grim still caked on you, dressed the wounds that he could with ease, and tried to lessen the wounds that were a bit more hazardous.  Perched over you in candlelight, his eyes never left you and his attention never waved.  Even when Feyre carefully brought in food for him to eat and Mor sat with him for a few moments before she too left for bed, Azriel was still tending to you as if it was just the pair of you in the world.

He watched him in the wee hours of the morning as you slept, seeing your chest rise and fall, how your hair was braided to the side thanks to Mor and her skilled fingers in your locks, he did think of you as beautiful.  Azriel too and feelings for you, from the moment you met her and Mor so long ago. When Mor was a spitfire you were a calm breeze, your smile lit any room you walked into, your eyes reminded him of the seas high above on a moonless night, and the way you made him feel loved with your gestures and words. 

He fell for you hard, and Azriel was afraid of living in a world without you.

“There, you should be on the mend for now,” Madja explained as she was finishing her pastern your wound before she started to pack her medicine bag, “Now, I want you in bed for the best of the day to going your strength back.  I’ll make sure you get your meals and the proper rest that you need.”

You were about to thank her when there was a knock at the door.  Both you and Madja looked, seeing a head poke into the room.  You beamed, seeing it was none other than Azriel there with a soft look on his face.  Your heart was beating so fast from the sight of him, now knowing that he was with you all night to make sure you would stay alive.  

That flutter in your chest was on overdrive.  

“I wanted to bring you breakfast since I knew you were awake,” He explained, coming into the room a bit more to show that he was carrying a tray filled with breakfast food.  A coffee cup with steaming coffee, buttered toast with scrambled eggs, sausage and bacon, it all looked perfect.  But you were mostly focusing on Azriel who was looking rather happy to see you awake.  Madam chuckled as she grabbed her bag in hand.

“Well done keeping her alive, Shadowsinger.  You would have been a good Healer if you weren’t working for our High Lord,” She commented Azriel blushing from the compliment while she walked to the door, “Just keep her in bed for now, you can handle that, can you?”

Azriel nodded as she slipped out of the room, leaving the two of you alone in the room.  You were watching one another, fondness filled the room like a mist.  It felt like a page was tuned in your book, in your life, where he was intertwined.  Love there was, fizzling under your skin as he smiled at you and nodded once. 

“Hello,” He hummed.

“Hi,” You replied.  And as he watched you eat your breakfast, it was a permanent shift that would forever change the pair of you for the rest of your lives.  Especially since you two would be married within the next year and let your love blossom from there.

The End

[prnstarmartini111]

Summary: detective!reader x sergeant!rafe

Y/N had been transfered to the Homicide Unit a week ago and all she can think about is her sergeant with his damn holster (can you tell I have a thing for shoulder holsters?)

The floor of the Homicide Unit was colder than the rest of the precinct. Maybe not literally, but it felt that way. Less chatter, more tension, and an unspoken pressure that clung to your shoulders the moment the elevator doors slid shut behind you. Y/N had been there a week.

Her transfer had gone through on a Thursday. New badge, new desk, same city but this was Homicide now. The big leagues.

She was proud to be here. Even if no one else seemed to care.

Especially not Lieutenant Rawlins, who’d barely said two words to her that weren’t orders. He never looked at her like a cop, just like someone who was in his way. And most of the squad had followed his lead. The blood spatter analyst, Denny, couldn’t stop making comments about how “refreshing” it was to have a woman around.

But the one she was drawn to the most was Rafe Cameron.

Sergeant Cameron. Second in command. The only one in the room Rawlins actually listened to. He was professional, calm, unreadable, always composed. The kind of man who could walk into a murder scene with a black coffee in one hand and still catch every detail no one else did.

Y/N hated how easily her eyes tracked him when he passed her desk. The way his sleeves were always rolled up, or how his shoulder holster cut across his chest when he came back from the field. She knew it was stupid. Knew the last thing she needed was a crush, especially not here, especially not on the sergant of all people. But it was there, humming under her skin whenever she heard his voice behind her.

The squad was deep into a case now. Four bodies. Same M.O. Same eerily clean scenes. A signature they were only just starting to admit was real. Everyone was tense. Restless. Today’s briefing felt like a storm waiting to break.

Y/N sat near the back, notebook open, eyes sharp. Rawlins went over the fourth victim—Jane Doe, found in a park bathroom, mid-20s, no ID. Same bleach traces, same puncture wounds to the neck. The killer was getting bolder. Or more confident.

She flipped back a few pages in her notes. There was something there. She didn’t have all the pieces, but—

She raised her hand.

Rawlins saw it. Paused.

“Yes?” he said, already unimpressed.

“I was thinking...there’s overlap between the victims’ last known locations. A small area, maybe five or six blocks, where their commutes might’ve intersected. What if the killer isn’t targeting people he knows but people he watches? Something about routine?Pattern?”

There was a long silence. Rawlins looked at her like she was a static buzz on his radio.

“We’re not guessing,” he said flatly. “Stick to the footage review. You’ve got the files.”

Y/N nodded, throat tight. “Yes, sir.”

She didn’t look at anyone as she stood and gathered her things.

Y/N did as told and spent her entire afternoon watching thousands of different footages and reading the files that she was given. It was almost five when she found it.

Buried in the middle of a transit report, misfiled, wrong date on the label, probably never meant to be in that pile at all. But there it was. Small, seemingly insignificant. But enough to make her heart lift.

She checked it twice. Three times.

And then she was walking, papers in hand, nerves a live wire under her skin, as she made her way to the far end of the corridor.

Cameron’s office was mostly glass. Sparse. A desk, a whiteboard, a jacket slung over the back of a chair. The blinds were half-closed. The door, cracked.

She knocked once. She hated the way her pulse jumped when he looked up from the file on his desk.

He wasn’t wearing his jacket. Just a dark button-up, sleeves rolled to the elbows, and the shoulder holster strapped across his chest. She didn’t mean to notice it. But she did. She noticed everything. The line of muscle under the shirt. The steady rise and fall of his breath. The quiet intensity that always clung to him like it had nowhere else to be.

“Detective” he said, voice low.

“I-” She hesitated. Swallowed. “I think I found something. It’s probably nothing. But it stood out.”

She held the papers out to him. He read the first page. Then the second.

His expression didn’t change much, but she caught it. The slight shift in his brow. The way his jaw flexed, just once.

“Where was this?”

“Transit logs. It was misfiled.”

His gaze flicked up to hers. “You sure it’s legit?”

“Yes” she said, steadier now. “I triple-checked it.”

He nodded slowly, flipping the last page closed. “Good work.”

She stayed there, caught in the space between leaving and not wanting to. Her fingers curled at her sides. “Also-um... I kept thinking about that theory I mentioned earlier. The geographic overlap.”

He didn’t move. Just watched her. Waiting.

“I ran a few more cross-checks. There’s a stretch of blocks where all four victims would’ve passed through regularly. It’s a narrow area, but… it’s something. I thought maybe he’s targeting from a fixed position. Somewhere in that zone.”

Rafe exhaled through his nose, like he was weighing it.

“It’s an angle,” he said finally. “But it’s still thin. Rawlins won’t shift the focus without more to go on.”

She nodded. Of course. “Right. I figured.”

He looked at her again, longer this time.

“Keep digging” he said.

She nodded once and turned to leave, feeling his eyes on her back the entire way out.

Back to the desk. Back to the files.

But this time, her chest felt a little tighter. And she didn’t stop thinking about the way he looked in that damn holster.

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

The bullpen had fallen quiet hours ago. Y/N sat alone, the only light coming from her monitor and the desk lamp she’d clicked on sometime after nine. Her eyes were dry from staring too long. Her notes were a mess of arrows and scribbled thoughts. She should’ve gone home an hour ago, maybe two.

But she didn’t want to leave. She wanted to finish the files.

She stretched, rolling her neck, and got up to grab a glass of water. The chilled silence of the unit wrapped around her as she walked. Halfway down the hall, a familiar glow caught her eye, light leaking from the glass walls of an office at the end.

Rafe’s.

She stopped. Blinked.

His office light was on.

Her heart did a small, inexplicable thing in her chest.

She hesitated a moment, then smoothed her shirt down, tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and walked over.

The door was slightly ajar. She knocked once against the frame.

He looked up from behind his desk, surprised for a half-second before settling into that usual unreadable calm.

“Y/N” he said. “What are you still doing here?”

She stepped in, just past the door. “I noticed your light was on.”

He raised a brow. “You’re still working?”

“I wanted to finish the files. I’m almost done.” She smiled “You?”

He glanced at his screen. “Wrapping up a report.”

She nodded and followed his line of sight, then noticed the glass near his laptop, the amber liquid catching the light.

“You’re allowed to drink at your desk?” she asked, half teasing.

He gave a slow, tired smile. “Only after ten.”

She hesitated. “You sharing?”

He didn’t answer right away, just reached for the second glass on the corner of the desk and filled it for her.

She walked over and took it, her fingers brushing his just barely.

“Thanks” she said, and took a sip.

For a moment, neither of them said anything. The only sound was the quiet tick of a wall clock and the hum of his Laptop.

She sat in the chair across from him. Just watching him work.

His focus was sharp, even now, one hand on the keyboard, eyes flicking over the screen, jaw tight with whatever thought he wasn’t saying out loud. The sleeves of his shirt were rolled to the elbows, and that holster still cut across his chest, dark leather and black shirt.

She didn’t mean to stare.

A few minutes passed like that. Then he leaned back with a quiet exhale, pinching the bridge of his nose.

She tilted her head. “Do you want me to take a look?”

He glanced over “Sure”

She walked around the desk, now standing beside him, to take a look at the screen.

“It’s good” she said.

“Yeah?” he asked, still looking at her.

She hummed an affirmative, then turned to meet his gaze.

They were close now.

Too close.

She didn’t step back. Neither did he.

His hand brushed against her leg—just a shift of movement—but it felt deliberate. Her breath caught.

“Y/N” he said softly, like a warning.

But she just leaned in to close the small gap between them.

He didn’t pull away.

Her glass was set somewhere behind her, forgotten. His hands were warm when they caught her waist, then her back, pulling her closer as his chair rolled slightly back with the shift. She leaned into him, lips parting against his, her hands bracing on his shoulders, then sliding into his hair.

His mouth moved against hers with restraint that only barely held, like he’d been holding back for a long time.

He pulled her on top of him. Her legs straddling his waist.

The moment she started to move, grinding down in slow rolls, his breath hitched slightly.

His hands found her waist. His grip firm and guiding, dragging her down just a little bit harder. His head fell back against the back of his chair.

A groan escaping his lips.

"Fuck"

His reaction gave her confidence and she slowed her movement, grinding down in slow, teasing rolls.

Without any warning he pulled up and quickly spun her around and bent her over his desk, a soft gasp escaping her lips at the cool contrast of the cold wood on her hot skin.

"Quit teasing. This is what you came for?" He asked. Her heart skipped at the sound of his belt unbuckling behind her.

His hand crept up her skirt, sending shivers up her spine, as he hooked his fingers around the band of her panties, tugging them down.

Her cheeks flushed.

“Hmm?” He mused, awaiting an answer.

The sound of her gasp echoed off the walls, gripping the desk as she anchored herself, swallowing a choked moan.

She felt the heat of him pressing against her entrance, the head of his cock teasing hersensitive clit. She let out a breathy moan, trying to rock herself backwards to feel him.

His hand pressed firmly on her back, holding her in place.

“I need you to answer me, sweetheart,” he instructed, “is this what you came for?”

She nodded, begging he would take the hint.

Of course he didn't, continuing to tease, as his hand caressed her backside, his lips planting kisses across her exposed skin.

"Yes- Fuck." She rushed, with desperate cries.

Without a moment of hesitation his cock slid inside, both of them lowly moaning in pleasure.

His hand found its place on her waist, gripping tight as he started a rhythm, bottom lip slipping between her teeth as she willed herself not to moan.

"That's it, sweetheart." he praised, his cock stretching her out with every passing second.

“You take it so well, don’t you?” He groaned.

“You’re- you- fuck.” she cried, biting her lip to surpress her moans.

Rafe leaned over, his shakey breath tickling her ear. “Words, baby"

But her brain was too foggy to form a coherent sentence, irritation a mere afterthought as he hit every spot, his cock filling her perfectly.

His hips slammed into her, lewd moans tumbling past her lips before he pressed his hand over her mouth.

He grunts, grabbing her hips and slamming himself into her, his cock hitting just the right spot, as she cries out, desperate moans muffled by his palm.

Her hands gripped the desk beneath her, her lips parted like she wanted to say something, but all that came out was a broken little gasp.

“Oh fuck—”

She tried to keep it together but her stomach tightened.

Her breathing hitched. Her legs started to shake.

"Fuck- I'm so close-"

“Yeah you are” he groaned.

Her body snapped. The orgasm hit like a wave crashing through her, ripping the air from her lungs. Her moans were raw and broken.

He groaned softly, riding out his highs before she whimpered at the feeling of him slipping out of her, both panting.

The silence between them was loud as they caught their breaths. Rafe leaned down, sliding her panties back up before giving her a soft tap on the ass.

[niqhtlord01]

Humans are weird: The Monster Inside

( Please come see me on my new patreon and support me for early access to stories and personal story requests :D https://www.patreon.com/NiqhtLord Every bit helps)

I was an observer at the time sent by the Mintari command to coordinate the war effort alongside humanity against the Tempari Regime. A temperate people, the Tempari were roused into conflict with my people over the destruction of a religious comet that was projected to impact one of our colony worlds. Diplomatic talks were waylaid by feverous religious zealotry and so war was declared not long after.

Humanity interestingly enough had not been drawn into the conflict at first as they were not labeled as a belligerent by the Tempari. They would have remained out of the war entirely were it not for a defensive treaty they had signed some six of their months earlier. A notion they no doubt regretted but they still came and now found themselves facing down a Tempari fleet three times their number.

Admiral Horner was unusually calm about the entire situation; or at least that is how he presented himself. Humans are notoriously difficult to read when they wish to be and the Admiral was showing nothing beyond a calm calculating nature as his ships spread out.

I was wondering what rash move he would take to engage the Tempari. It was another well-known habitual that when humans came up against impossible odds they would always do the unexpected and somehow emerge victorious.

The Admiral opened a direct line of communication to the Tempari flagship. For the first time in recorded history a human admiral spoke directly to a Tempari fleet commander. Their name was Gilyan and they opened dialogue by asking the humans to abandon my people; that this war was not theirs to fight and if the humans departed now they would not be harmed.

It was a tempting offer and I must admit that I felt my hearts beat faster as Horner failed to rebuff the offer. I worried that they would indeed leave us to our fate and when the Admiral finally stood up and straighten their uniform I had all but stopped breathing.

“Did you say goodbye to your son?”

Whatever I had been expecting this certainly was not it, and the Tempari appeared just as caught off-guard as I.

“Excuse me?” Gilyan asked.

“Your son,” Admiral Horner continued as he took out a small wooden pipe and lit the end of it, “did you say goodbye to them before you deployed here?”

“I did not.” Gilyan replied cautiously.

“A pity.” Horner remarked as he took several puffs from his pipe and then looked at the Tempari commander. I watched as quietly a series of targeting vectors began appearing over on ship amongst the Tempari lines. It wasn’t the flagship and as far as I could see it was just another Tempari light cruiser, but every gun in the human fleet was now locked on to it as the Admiral gave his final words before the storm.

“No parent should outlive their child.”

The communication went dead as the entire fleet opened fire as one on the light cruiser. Shields of bright purple flared for a moment, straining to hold off the torrent of firepower before bursting like a popped bubble.

Countless warheads, rail gun rounds, plasma lances, and all other manner of ordinance peppered the hull of the cruiser causing it to buckle and break like a twig in a raging stream before finally the inevitable happened.

What had been a light cruiser just moments before was now a cluster of debris slowly floating amongst the Tempari fleet.

Before I had any time to ponder what had just happened the Admiral began issuing fleet wide orders for a withdrawal. Under a storm of Tempari return fire the allied fleet began turning around and engaging their jump drives to flee out of system. At the head of the fleet was the Tempari flagship recklessly charging ahead of their fleet leaving it dangerously exposed; yet the Admiral refused to turn and engage them. Their cannons claimed three human ships before our own flagship made the jump and left the system. 

“You know they can track our trajectory.” I offhandedly remarked to the Admiral as he reclined into his command throne.

“I am aware.” The Admiral replied dryly. “They will follow us; of that I am sure.”

“And why are you so sure?” I asked.

The human looked at me and with a grin that could make their devil pale they said, “Because we just killed their commander’s son.”

--------------------------- What followed was what came to be known as the “Bloody Quadrant”.

The human fleet led the Tempari fleet on a wild chase throughout the entire Quadrant. Always near but just out of reach of their grasp. A place the humans had carefully crafted them to be in.

Every time the Tempari fleet would exit a jump they would find themselves in a deadly trap.

In the Gameri system the Tempari fleet exited a jump directly into a massive nuclear minefield that took out thirteen of their capital ships.

In the Hulv Nebula they were ambushed by small squadrons of frigates that picked off their supply and repair ships before retreating.

Worse yet was when the human fleet actually appeared to turn and fight above the moon of Y’op only to detonated previously hidden explosives within the orbital body and shatter the moon. They jumped out of system just as the debris field of the former moon showered the Tempari fleet decimating a third of their remaining forces.

I could not help but ponder why the Tempari were so intent for battle even after suffering such terrible losses, but at the same time I had known the answer.

By killing the Tempari commander’s son in the opening battle the humans had driven them into a blind rage. Their thirst for revenge would not allow them the luxury of letting the humans escape, and by remaining so close to them they ensured the blood lust would continue to build and cloud their judgment.

At the end only the Tempari flagship and fifteen escort vessels remained when Admiral Horner had decided the chase had reached its end. They were battered and scoured with the battle damage from a dozen battles and now they faced off against the entire allied navy.

“Will you offer them terms of surrender?” I asked as the Tempari formed up for the final time. The human shook his head.

“I will not insult them anymore than I already have.” He spoke in a stoic voice. “We will let them die well.”

To my surprise I could detect hints of remorse in their voice as the Tempari charged at our ship.

One by one the escorts were picked off until only their flagship remained making a suicidal charge at our ship. I watched as it shrugged off round after round of concentrated rail gun fire as it pressed forward and it looked that it would collide with us and carry out its final revenge.

A thermal warhead struck its rear thrusters at the last moment. The two ships scraped and grinded against each other’s hulls and the entire ship shook with a force I would equate to an earthquake. Countless human crewmen were thrown from their seats and some of the less lucky ones were dashed against the metal terminals of their posts and fell limply to the ground, blood pooling around them from their wounds. The Admiral watched unmoving from his throne as his ship sparked and screamed in pain until finally the nightmare ended.

The Tempari ship drifted behind our ship, now dotting countless holes and trails of smoke from plasma fires raging across multiple decks. Admiral Horner didn’t even bother to watch as his rival finally met their end, and instead relinquished the bridge to his second so he could go to his quarters to rest.

“They’ll call you a monster for this.” I couldn’t help myself from saying as the enemy flagship finally detonated.

With a look of disappointment in their eye the Admiral turned to me. “I should hope so; war makes monsters of us all.”

[sweatyracoon]

Notes:

glad to finally start with this series. Its been on my mind for months! Hope you all enjoy, and if you have any ideas on the connecting parts, lmk!!

Warning:

Language, smut mentioned, fluff

You sighed as you walked to your local GameStop. It had just been too long since you've had a real connection, and you were desperate for anything.

Your friend who worked there had told you that they had a game donated that resembled a dating simulator, and that she set it aside for you. She did it mostly to tease you, but honestly, you really needed this.

You didn't know if it was truly a dating game or not, but you couldn't care less at the moment.

You came in, grabbed it, and paid.

You rushed home after stopping for lunch, starting your PC. You let it warm up while you showered and changed into your lounge clothes, rubbing your temples at the bright light in the dark room.

Your computer ate the disc, accepting it just as well as you did. The loading screen appeared, and you watched the sphere spin.

It seemed to last hours before you finally heard a ping.

It's done loading!

You quickly clicked the icon, watching the screen fall black before switching to a pale blue.

As it drifted to the logo,you noticed how it looked extremely pixelated but in a 90's Mario game way.

The title read, 'Stray Kids: Together'

Some clouds jumped in the background, the Play and Settings buttons appearing after a few seconds.

You admired the pastel aesthetic before moving your cursor to click on Play.

Gently clicking on your mouse, it sent you to yet another clouded screen with a small sunset.

Logs set 1

>Bangchan Last opened ?

>Lee Know Last opened ?

>Changbin Last opened ?

>Hyunjin Last opened ?

What type of names are these? You thought.

You noticed that each one didn't have a date log, so you were unsure if they were even opened yet.

Curious, you clicked the first name.

Then, your computer crashed.

You scoffed, cursing the damn old seeming cartridge. The pixels in the opening screen made it seem like it was made in the 90's, but the labeling date was scratched off so you didn't really know.

You were about to shut off your computer before the screen boosted, a light gray flickering against the screen.

You weren't sure what was happening before you saw the command,

Allow microphone access?

> Yes No

You clicked yes.

Allow camera access?

> Yes No

You clicked yes again, and that was when you heard a click, and then the spinning of a disc.

"Hello?"

You heard a voice from nowhere. You bristled, turning around to look in your room. Was someone here?

"Over here,"

Your head whipped back to the screen, only to be met with the most prettiest guy you had ever seen.

"Woah," you mumbled.

He grinned.

"What's your name?" He asked again. Did he have an accent?

"Y/n. You're...Bangchan?" You ask, pulling your chair closer to the desk.

"Your a quick learner,"

You blinked. What now?

"So...are you like an AI? Or, like, how are you speaking to me?" You question, resting your arm on your hand.

His eyes widen. "Uhh, I'm not actually sure. Honestly, I feel real, but I'm not? I don't know if that helps?" He cleared his throat. "But what I do know is that you need someone. You wouldn't be here otherwise,"

"How would you know that?" You jolt. He was spot on.

"I know what I was created for. We all do,"

Wait what?

"Who's we?"

He smiled, his eyes turning into crescents. So beautiful

"You saw the other names, right? There are more of us...more of me," He explained slowly. "Here I was thinking you were a quick learner,"

"Hey!" You both laughed at his comment, then you sighed.

"So, are you all the same? Just look different? What's the deal?"

He spinned, the back of his neck revealing a code. CB97

"No, we are all incredibly different. We couldn't be the same even if we wanted. Different code. I'm the first, so they consider me like...a big brother? We all serve different purposes for whatever you need," he scratched his head, and his hair moved so smoothly.

It was then that you realized that the screen was no longer pixelated like the opening screen, it was now hd, smooth. You could almost see his pores.

"Different purposes? What the hell does that mean, Chan?" You let it slide past, not realizing.

"Chan?" His eyes glistened. "I like it," he grinned, watching your face heat up.

"Purposes Chan," you remind quietly, twirling a piece of your hair.

"Right. Well me, I'm a comforter. I help you when your stressed. Lee know? He's kinda...sexual? He can help with those needs, but he can comfort too. Uhh Changbin, he's more of an amuser. Hyunjin, a relaxer and comforter. Han? He can do literally everything. He's the ace of the group. Felix, comfort. Seungmin? Amuser and sexual. Jeongin, all. You know?"

It was a lot to take In. You didn't even know what half of this meant. At least not yet.

"So if I were horny-" he cut you off.

"Han, Lee Know, Seungmin or Jeongin are your guys." He said, his eyes staring into your own.

You felt yourself flush.

"Are they all as pretty as you?" You whisper, making his face freeze.

"Uh, they are, if not prettier, y/n," he gently smiles, placing his hand flat against the screen.

"You couldn't help me?" You brought your own palm to rest against his, only to be met with a cold surface.

"I wasn't given that programming. If you need help, just log out and meet with one of the others," he explained, his eyes tracing your hand, almost as if to memorize it.

"Oh," was all you could say. "I'm okay, for now," you say with a cheeky smile, making him chuckle.

"Good to hear. You tired yet? It's dark," he asked, making you blink. You turned to look out your window.

Holy shit, it's dark!

"Oh my god i work tomorrow!" You curse yourself, jumping up from your chair.

You heard Chan laughing in the background.

"Can I jump on tomorrow?" You asked him after cleaning up a bit.

"You don't need to ask, y/n. We're yours!" He gleemed, his eyes shimmering in the light.

"Mine..." You repeat. You never really thought if it that way.

"Yes, y/n. Completely and utterly yours. I'm sure the rest will fall for you just as I did," he said.

You looked at him.

"How does a computer fall for me?" You were baffled at this point. What did he mean?

"This computer was coded with feelings," he grinned. "Goodnight, y/n!"

You didn't get to respond before he disappeared.

You were kicked to the opening screen, the pixelated clouds taunted you as they jumped up and down.

You absolutely felt so lucky to have found this game.

Connection found. Now you just need to pursue all eight men.

Tag list: @estella-novella @deadpool15

[tomkaulitzssgirl]

could u please do one where 2010 tom has phone sex w reader?

LATE NIGHTS | TOM KAULITZ

okay so i got two similar requests about this so i combined them!!!

the faint hum of the city buzzed beneath his hotel window. tom was lying back on his bed, the soft glow of a lighter flickering in the dim room. he pulled the joint to his lips, inhaling slowly, the smoke curling around his fingers before he exhaled a lazy stream toward the ceiling. the tension of the day was melting away with each breath, the hazy buzz settling deep in his chest.

phone pressed to his ear, he smiled when he heard your voice — warm, soft, and just what he needed tonight.

“you’re still awake?” he asked, voice low and husky, worn thin by a day of studio takes and camera flashes, “didn’t think i’d hear from you tonight.”

“i couldn’t sleep,” you murmured, “kept thinking about you.”

a pause. that did something to him.

tom exhaled, slow and soft through his nose. “shit… you say it like that and i don’t think i’ll sleep either.”

there was a lazy smile in your voice. “sorry.”

“you’re not.” he said.

you weren’t.

there was a warmth between you two that had been slowly brewing for weeks — texts at 1am, phone calls that lasted until sunrise. it wasn’t official, wasn’t labeled. but there was a pull. you both felt it. he wasn’t just the guy on stage anymore. he was your tom now — stripped back, softer, real.

and tonight, his voice had that edge. sleepy. slowed down. unfiltered.

“what’re you doing right now?” you asked, tracing tiny circles into your pillow as you lay curled under your blanket.

“lying here. thinking about your voice.” there was a pause, “thinking about you in bed with me.”

you could hear the change in his breath. like he was trying not to let it show. but you noticed.

“mmh,” you hummed, “tell me more.”

his lips parted. he blinked up at the ceiling, exhaling through his teeth.

“i keep thinking,” he began, voice low and cracked at the edge, “about what you’d sound like if i had you here with me. right now.”

a heartbeat.

you shifted under your sheets. “what do you mean?”

he hesitated, like he wasn’t sure if he should say it — then exhaled, voice cracking just slightly.

“like…” he started, slow, low. “how you’d sound like if i was fucking you.”

your breath caught.

he said it so quietly, like he didn’t even mean to let it out. like it slipped. he took another slow drag from the joint before placing it on top of the ash tray, the smoke lingering in the air around him. his fingers absentmindedly reached down to his belt buckle, fingers working it loose with a casual, deliberate motion. the metal clicked softly as he slid the belt free, letting it fall away.

he sighed, leaning back against the headboard, phone still pressed to his ear.

“i wish i was there…” you whispered.

there was a sudden quiet between you — but not empty. charged.

then… a sound. so faint you almost didn’t notice.

a soft, broken breath.

“tom?” you asked.

nothing at first.

then, his voice — lower, slower, but breathier now. “yeah.”

“you there?”

a pause. a rustle of sheets. and then a sound you’d never heard from him before.

a quiet, muffled moan.

your heart jumped. “hey…?”

another pause.

“…sorry,” he breathed, the word catching in his throat, “you just… your voice does something to me, babe.”

his tone was different now. fragile. intimate. and that silence — the kind you only notice when someone’s trying to stay quiet.

his voice was low, gravelly now. like he was barely keeping it together.

“are you in bed right now?” he asked.

“yeah.” you breathed.

“lights off?”

“mmhmm.”

he exhaled through his nose, quiet but sharp — like that image alone just made it worse for him.

“touch yourself.” he said, gentle but firm, like a secret command.

you swallowed. “tom…”

“just a little,” he whispered, “for me. tell me what it feels like.”

you didn’t answer at first. just slowly slipped a hand beneath your covers, over the waistband of your shorts. his voice stayed in your ear, low and warm and crawling under your skin.

“wish i could see you right now,” he muttered, “i bet you look so good when you’re like that… eyes all soft, lips parted, squirming a little.”

your breath stuttered — and he noticed.

“mmh, yeah,” he said, voice rougher now. “you’re doing it, aren’t you.”

you nodded, then realized he couldn’t see. “yeah.”

you imagined him above you, warm skin, heavy breath against your neck, that lazy, hungry look in his eyes. tom’s hands gripping your hips, holding you open like you were something precious and messy and only his.

his mouth would be hot and slow against your throat, trailing kisses lower, whispering in that same voice — the one in your ear now — “good girl… just like that.”

you imagined the weight of him, the sound of his breath changing as he pushed into you, slow at first, teasing. then rougher. deeper. his hand wrapping around your throat—not to scare you, but to claim you. his mouth dragging yours open in a kiss that told you he owned this moment. owned you.

his dreadlocks brushing your cheek. his chain clinking softly as his body moved against yours.

you pictured the way he’d groan when you’d tighten around him, head falling to your shoulder, panting in your ear, “—fuck, you feel so good—”

you imagined how he’d look at you as you came — low eyes, wet lips, a tiny smirk even as he lost control himself. like he loved watching you fall apart under him.

that thought — him watching you fall apart — was what did it.

“fuck,” he breathed out heavily, “keep going. pretend it’s me. pretend i’m the one between your legs, touching you slow.”

your fingers moved under your panties, guided by the sound of his voice — the way he said your name now, like it was something he could barely get through without losing control.

you were barely breathing now — one hand gripping your phone tighter, the other moving slowly beneath your waistband, skin warm and buzzing under your touch.

and his voice. god, his voice was all gravel and tension and hunger.

“keep going,” tom rasped, “slow, yeah? i want you to feel every second of it. like i would make you feel.”

your fingers brushed that spot that made your hips twitch, and you gasped softly. not loud, but just enough for him to hear it.

“fuck, you sound so good.” he muttered, breath catching, “you’re getting close, aren’t you.”

“mhm.” you hummed, eyes fluttering shut.

he groaned quietly, like he could picture every second. “wish i could see your face right now. hear those little noises in my ear. you’d let me make you feel so good, wouldn’t you.”

his hand started to pick up the pace, strokes growing firmer, more urgent.

a thin sheen of sweat appeared on his forehead, dampening his hairline, and the heat pooled low in his stomach, spreading like wildfire. his breathing grew heavier, ragged, matching the rhythm his hand found.

you nodded again — voice barely there. “yes…”

he exhaled slowly. “you’d be such a good girl for me.”

something about the way he said it — soft but commanding — flipped a switch inside you.

your lips parted before your brain even caught up.

“…yes, daddy.”

silence.

on the other end of the line, you could hear nothing for a second — just shallow breathing.

then came his voice — rougher than ever, shaken.

“…say that again.”

your heart was pounding now. “daddy.”

he groaned — low, guttural, like he felt it in his chest.

“holy fuck.” he whispered, and for the first time, you heard him lose it.

a sharp inhale, the rustle of sheets, and then the sound of something else — barely-there, but unmistakable.

the air between you felt thick, like heat off pavement. all you could hear was his voice and your own heartbeat thudding in your ears.

“go faster for me.” tom said, low and gritty, “don’t hold back now, baby. i wanna hear you cum.”

your fingers moved quicker, pressure building, hips subtly rocking into your touch.

“i-i’m getting close.” you whispered, barely able to keep your voice steady.

“yeah?” he rasped. “shit — me too.”

you heard the shift in him — no more hiding. no more trying to stay quiet. the low, desperate sounds slipped past his lips. breathy groans, soft curses in german. the faint, rhythmic rustling on his end of the line.

“tom!” you moaned, eyes fluttering shut.

“let go for me, baby. i wanna hear you,” he breathed, voice ragged now, “come on. be my good girl. let me hear what i do to you.”

his voice — rough, hot, in your ear like it was right beside you — pushed you over.

your back arched. your lips parted in a soft, trembling moan. and you came, warmth rushing through you like a wave, your body pulsing with it.

“oh god—tom—”

and he heard it all.

he groaned when you said his name like that — like it undid him completely.

“fuck—there you go—shit, baby, that’s it—”

his words came in broken fragments between his own sharp breaths and low, ruined sounds.

you both went silent after that, just breathing.

the kind of silence that only happens when two people have nothing left to hide — just heartbeats and air and the hum of something deep between them.

“…you good?” he asked softly after a minute, his voice low, sleepy now. but still a little wrecked.

you let out a breathy laugh. “mmhmm. you?”

“barely alive,” he chuckled, “you’re so hot when you cum.”

“so are you.” you whispered.

you could almost feel him smile.

“you calling me daddy again next time?” he teased, but there was something real under it — like it did more to him than he could admit.

“if you’re lucky.” you said, smiling into the dark.

“oh, i’m lucky as hell.”

[sheepispink]

lowerranksoldier!Reader who, after an unfortunate fire, is forced to share rooms with Lieutenant Ghost of all people. Unfortunately for reader, they’re only coping mechanism is balling their eyes out every night

fluff, silly, ghost being a lil protective ;)

—————————

Loud alarms blared around the block in which you stayed in the barracks, shaking you from your slumber and making you blink haphazardly as the noise now vibrated through your entire body. It sounded like the fire alarm, and whilst you were usually awake by the sound of your commanding officer’s footsteps, it was such an unusual sound that it hadn’t startled you this time. Figuring it must be a drill, you quickly climb out of bed, following the other equally exhausted soldiers out of your room. However, your eyes quickly snap awake as a strong burning smell penetrates the area. You cough immediately, seeing that a blazing fire had somehow consumed the room directly next door to you. It made sense now– the fumes had been the one to make you so drowsy– so you quickly slap your sleeve over your mouth and nose, glancing back one last time at the bright orange flames that threaten to lick at you before dashing away down the corridor with many others your age, struggling to get outside into the fresh air.

You were out on the freezing tarmac for nearly three hours before something was done about the fire– all because of some stupid idiot who couldn't be bothered to walk two steps outside to smoke his cig. The girl beside you leans against your shoulder as she groans, exhausted– you don't even know her but trying times really does bring people together you suppose.

Similarly, that’s exactly how you got placed in this predicament, not even close to qualify as a Sergeant and somehow standing before a Lieutenant’s room. Just with your luck, the fire had spread into your room seconds after, consuming quite a few rooms on the corridor. You were in nothing but some crappy pajamas, not that you cared about that right now when you had been sent to the lion’s den itself.

‘Lieutenant Ghost’

the label read, standing proudly beside the door that you’re terrified to knock on. When the assignments had gone around, everyone was in a chatter, some excited to finally room with the soldiers they admired and others partnered with officers that were similar to hell itself. Well, you’d take any officer who’d make you do jumping jacks before bed if it meant you didn’t have to disturb a lieutenant—Ghost of all people too. The stories were terrifying enough on their own, and you’re praying the ground swallows you right now before you have to actually go through with this. At least that girl will remember you– maybe she’ll even give a speech of how you lent your shoulder to her. It’d be better than your gravestone reading ‘death by being too much of a coward.’

Gulping, you carefully lift your hand up to the door, hoping that the Captain with a fuzzy beard who watched your reaction with a tired grin was actually right in doing this and not just preparing your funeral in advance. The rap of your knuckles echoes in the quiet corridor, everyone else already rushing to get to bed and continue with their sweet dreams. Each second of silence fills you with more dread but soon enough you realise that there’s no sign of movement in the slightest. Was he on deployment? Hesitantly, your hand rests on the handle, swallowing down your fear for a split second to hear the creak as it turns.

“And what do you think you’re doing?” A scream would’ve escaped if not for the fact your hand flew off the handle and over your mouth, spinning around to face the bulk of a man standing menacingly beside you. Your phone and uniform drops from your hands, some of the smaller things they had managed to recover before the fire caused too much damage to the room, clattering to the floor as you step back in pure fear.

“Sir— I-I- A fire— my room- gone- the Captain sent me—“

You force yourself to do a firm salute before saying everything you were supposed to say yet nowhere near a comprehensible sentence as you stare with wide eyes at his terrifying stance. A black balaclava marked with white to form a skull imitation is all you can see, apart from his eyes and the tufts of blonde hair peeking out in the corner of his hood. He had clearly just come back from working out, sleeves rolled up to his elbows and dark circles in the small space you could see his eyes.

“So you’re staying in my room cause some idiot caused a bloody fire in your barracks?” His gruff voice is just as loud as before, making your shoulders jump again before you quickly nod at him. “Yes sir!” Only a scoff is what you get in response, a key in his hand that he slips through the door before entering the room. “Well pick up your things and get in then.”

You clutch the folded uniform in your hands, the small pouch of essentials and your phone both slipped into your pocket, as you enter the bland room. Infact, it may have even been too bland— there was practically no decoration whatsoever unless you counted the small calendar on the wall. “Guess they’ll grab you a mattress tomorrow.”

You nod again, even if he isn't even glancing back at you, already heading into the bathroom to freshen up. Meanwhile, you patter over to the small couch, barely your height but you’ve learned to be grateful that you’re not sleeping on the bareground with active threats around. Carefully you set the clothes on the floor by the couch, sitting awkwardly. What you didn't expect was that he’d completely ignore you for the rest of the night, following his own routine whilst you’re too terrified to even breathe in case he decides that’s wrong.

Somehow you survive the first day, and the second—the mattress and more of your belongings included this time. He had begrudgingly moved his things around to let you push your little make-do bed against the corner, and now you took up a tiny part of his room. He wasn't there most of the day, and the same would be with the nights if you had a normal schedule. However, your commanding officer happened to hate your group— rightfully so because of the others— and it sucked for you. That meant you were up late every night, sometimes so late you saw him lounging in bed with a book in his palms. Weirdly enough, you never saw him sleep, not even once, and soon he started to just drift into the background for you— like he was like a part of the furniture.

The weekend finally hit, two weeks of being in a room where you’re barely comfortable to make more than three noises an hour and finally, Ghost was sent on a deployment. The news was confirmed by some idle gossip in the lunch hall earlier, a few other soldiers stuck with the other members of his team. Safe to say, you were well over the moon about it, practically skipping back to your quarters this evening. Nope, no time to grab any drinks in town or laugh till you knock out— tonight's plans were something you’ve needed desperately for two weeks but Ghost had stripped from you.

A damn good cry.

It was hardly the most ideal coping mechanism—nor the most respected. Especially considering your ‘sad’ playlist, where you collected the most heart wrenching songs you could find, was what put you in the mood. Though you consider it a pretty good reward especially after how frustrating these past few weeks have been.

—---------

Ghost returns at 0200, the mission being cut short due to intel they found that solved the issue fairly quickly and he was shipped back to base for the night. He creaked the door open, noticing immediately your arm slumped over the side of the mattress. For a second it makes him pause, the same images of a corpse splayed just like that but he snaps himself out of it before he ends up checking your pulse like some kind of nervous wreck.

Pulling off his gear, he realises the room is much cleaner than he left, or than it usually is— by a mile. The gear he left scattered on his bed before he left has been tidied into his cupboard, not to mention the floor has been hoovered up all nicely and the occasional wrappers have been picked up. The bin has been emptied, as well as the dust from all the counters wiped down, looking much more alive than how they’d usually appear. Hell, even his bed has been made nicely. There were a few snacks lying on the small table near the door, crisps, candies—whatever. You must’ve gone to town at some point and brang back whatever you could hide in your shirt. Typical rookies.

When his eyes settle on you again, he notices you look noticeably more tired than usual but surprisingly relaxed. When he’s around, you usually fall asleep pretty stiff and stay that way for the majority of the night, though your limbs are spread like a starfish now, face smushed into the pillow you placed against the wall after accidentally banging your head a few times. He doesn't pay much mind to it—you could sleep upside down for all her cares— ready to turn in for the night when he notices a small shine on your cheeks, the moonlight reflecting off of it. He pauses, wondering if he should just leave it before deciding to just take a small peek and peering over your shoulder. Your cheeks glisten as you breathe quietly, small little droplets on the pillows and the faintest trace on your eyelashes. Then again, it’s not really his business.. Right?

—--------

That became a little too of a regular occurrence for his liking, and coincidentally he noticed it the most when he was supposed to be out– that was understandable though, a rookie of all people would not want to cry before him. Though, he’s more focused on why this is happening so often– it must be because of something, right? He’s seen soldiers cry before, sure, when they’ve witnessed too many deaths, when they douse themselves in alcohol post op or even on the benches outside base, head in their hands and their sergeant badge hidden. It’s not the most common, but it’s definitely not something he frowns upon either. But it’s been a month of non-stop late nights for him and twelve times he’s seen your cheeks wet like that– yes he had counted.

Now that he thinks about it, you did return back rather late compared to the other groups, exhausted and crawling beneath your thin blanket almost immediately. It was normal for a commanding officer to be strict and enforce punishments but every day? That was strange.

So, when his schedule finally clears up, he happens to see– definitely didn’t look on purpose– your whole group kept back well into the evening, screamed at and most of you looking very exhausted when it finally ends.

“How long is the work day for the privates meant to be?” Ghost sits in Price’s office, nursing a tea on the off chance he’s free whilst his captain flicks through some information again. He seems surprised by the sudden question, glancing over at the lieutenant before scribbling down something. “Not long— usually eight am to five pm. Maybe six latest, why?” He hums, flicking the page over only to hear the lieutenant let out a grunt in return, swallowing down another gulp of his tea.

“..Seen one team that always stays still eight. Barely get scraps in the mess if they’re lucky.”

Price leans back on his chair, not expecting that and especially not the information from Ghost himself. Well, he does have a keen eye for a lot of things but something tells me it’s not that. “So, if i look into it, I s’pose i’ll find your roomie there, hm?”

Ghost scoffs, pulling his mask back down defensively as he places his empty mug on the table, looking at him with a glare so narrowed the Captain knows well it’s nowhere near serious. “Information always stems from somewhere.”

“Alright, alright. Don't go interfering now, i’ll handle it.”

———————-

So, the Captain solved the problem and the latest you finished now was six on a bad day, though that didn't stop you from coming back to his room extremely late. You don't look as exhausted though, so that’s a win in his books but he’s curious to see where you’re going instead.

And maybe he followed you once, or twice.

The first time you went to the mess and talked with your friends all evening, going to lounge around with the few of them who never had to share a room with the officers. But the second was a Friday, and you had ditched your friends’ plans, walking round the base till you found a nice secluded bench in the darkness. He’s confused for a moment, wondering why you’d just sit there but he can't get a good angle from where he stands near the wall. Surely you didnt just go out for fresh air every night until it was late?

Then he hears it, the soft sniffle and the leaking music from your headphones— he has no idea what band that even is but damn does it sound depressing. With a sigh he steps back into base, what the hell are you doing to him?

———————————————

You near towards your room with a yawn, having spent way too long in the bathroom trying to rid the red puffiness from your cheeks. That was the issue with having your sessions elsewhere, it was such a hassle having to hide your face. Though, it’s not like you cared much about hiding it from Ghost, it’d been almost a whole month now and it was very safe to say he didnt give a damn about you in the absolute slightest.

The door opens with a soft creak, your feet already taking you towards your mattress as you rub sleepily at your eyes. Until you see a pair of black boots where you usually kick off yours.

Confused, you raise your head until you come face to face with the Lieutenant.. who’s sat on your mattress and staring at you in a way that’s almost like those monsters in the stories. Does he even blink? You can't help but just stand and stare at him, utterly confused and mentally wracking your head for answers as to why he’s staring at you like you’re the one who's acting off script. He started it, not you!

And of course, stupid as you are, you blurt out the first thing that comes to mind.

“Why are you sitting there like you found porno mags under my bed?”

Silence rings loud between you two, but your head is like a rave with how loud you're screaming at yourself for blurting out something that stupid in front of your superior of all people.

“Should I be checking for that?”

“No- no!” You quickly shake your head, before realising what that implies and waving your hands frantically in front of you as you struggle to get your point across. “I- i have no porno mags! Nothing! You can check! It was a joke!”

He looks at you a second longer before rolling his eyes up at you, making you freeze again in horror; the hole you’ve dug yourself was definitely 6 feet now, maybe it’s time to bury yourself.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” He mutters, arms crossing over his chest but his eyes dont narrow into a glare, nor do they hold his usual stern gaze, instead a mix of curiosity and.. exasperation.

Confused, you teeter on your feet, shifting your weight back and forth. “So.. is this about me as a soldier..? Me as a person..? Wait— did i forget to flush the toilet or something?!” Your face burns red and he almost wants to facepalm right then and there, but he doesnt, scoffing lowly.

“No—every night you got bloody tears on your cheeks. What is wrong with you?”

He insists, being as straightforward as he can—probably to stop you from being so dense and finally answer the damn question. Alas, instead you stand completely block solid in front of him, cheeks growing warmer at the second as you process what he had just said. He knew about the tears. How long? Surely only recently.. right? What if it was longer? What if he had cameras in the room? What if—

“If you don't answer it, I'll write an official report to get a shrink for you.” He says, voice slightly stern this time, and thankfully snaps you back to life because you immediately stumble out “No!”

He raises a brow at your adamancy, and you sigh, fingers tugging at the hem of your worn shirt as you face him, the terrifying lieutenant that’s currently interrogating you about your constant tears. He might as well parade your grave around while he’s at it.

“It’s just umm.. like..”

“Like?”

“Its just like stress relief yknow..” You mumble, shifting your weight from foot to foot as you try and word it in a way that doesn't make you seem like more of the idiot he already thinks you to be. “Like when people hit things when they’re angry, I cry every now and then ‘cause it makes my chest feel less heavy.”

He was half expecting you to blurt out a long lifestory, maybe about how your parents didn’t agree with your military job, or you’d seen too many injuries on the past mission. Hell, he was waiting for you to just complain about how your arms hurt too much or some superior was yelling at you. So now he feels like a fool, all those conflicting feelings stored up in his chest that he figured was just down to morality, was all for nothing.

“So.. there’s nothing wrong.. at all?” Your eyes widen as he stands up, even if you were the tallest person alive, his stance was enough to still you. The way he looks at you is almost skeptical, which is ironic because he knows shouldn’t even be caring in the first place and yet here he is, interrogating you.

“I mean.. no?” Then you blurt out the second stupidest thing you’ve said all day. “Were you worried about me?”

The scoff that follows is almost immediate as he turns away, heading over to his closet to pull out his sleepwear, which mainly only ever consists of a t-shirt and joggers anyway. “Dont get ahead of yourself-“

”Then why’d you ask?”

He grumbles in response, ignoring your question and starts switching off the mainlights, which is odd considering he tends to read before bed anyway. “You were acting weird. Besides you kept cleaning my side of the room.”

Oh. You had done that. As much fun as it was to cry whenever you got exhausted, you sometimes tended to blast some music in your ears and have a spring cleaning session— every damn week that is. Back when your old roomies were out for the night, you could belt out any song you wanted dramatically whilst cleaning up the mess that became your room during the week. Oops.

”Just a habit whenever i have nothing to do.. yknow, clean up the mess.”

”Is your other habit listening to depressing music?”

“You know about that too?!!” He’s purposefully teasing you know, and it’s blatantly obvious in how he chuckles after your retort, tugging his socks off and into the small laundry basket for later.

”You’re hardly secretive. Just cry whenever you want, but dont go letting anyone see.” He says gruffly, and you pause, wondering why he said that. Did he think of you as embarrassing, or even shameful?

“Because it’s stupid?”

He turns to you properly and gives you a sharp glare, not before rolling his eyes at your remark. “No, because i dont want bullying allegations on my head. Don’t got time to be reprimanded for scaring off another rookie.”

He turns towards the bathroom, knowing damn wel that hlare has you frozen like a deer, before stopping in the door frame. “Oh and if you find a bloody thumb in one of my pockets, just throw it out. I bloody hate using grenades.”

You blink, once, twice— processing what he has just said. “A- a bloody what?!”

—————————

COD masterlist

buy me a kofi!

[swifty-fox]

Ok it’s too tempting to resist! 1. for either cicada season or i followed fires. I’m obsessed with both

sorry i wrote 1.4k of the hand burn scene in cicada season

John always found it funny, the way he still felt pain. Or perhaps less so that he felt it, but more that it didn’t hurt less. He’s already felt pain enough to kill him, and came out the other side marginally intact. Pain after that should be inconsequential, ignorable, and easily managed. 

He’d found, through stubbed toes and hammers accidentally striking thumbs, and a stupid lapse of judgment with a hot pipe, that this was far from the case.

Never had he been treated in a room that smelled like mulch and pond water. Or had a nurse with quite so horrible of a bedside manner, even if some of the nurses in the hospital in Germany would have been better off as drill instructors than health care providers. 

“Here,” Gale says, holding out one hand, fine-boned all the way down, from prominent knuckles to carefully angled tips. His face is pinched, hair gathered low at the back of his head. Spoke like a commander, or maybe just like he thought he was fuckin’ better than John. Even when he was trying to be helpful.

His touch is gentle, careful around John’s wrist even though it’s well away from any damaged skin.

Far more gentle than John had been expecting, slow with how he pulls them both under the chill water. 

Pain, regardless of how it pales in comparison to previous injuries, has John biting back a noise. Has him leaning forward into the pain, forehead brushing against the worn fabric of Gale’s sweatshirt. It smells like fabric softener, and faint wispy cologne. Like he’d worn the scent the day before, and put the hoodie on without showering. Gale doesn’t seem to notice, turning John’s hand this way and that to examine it.

“If it blisters you might want to go to the hospital,” Gale tells him, tone oddly placid. 

John bares his teeth in a grimace, eyeing the pink, angry surface of his hand. Doesn’t scoff, but it’s a near thing, “And sit for hours in a VA lobby for them to tell me to ice and wrap it? Pass.” 

“We could go to a regular hospital.”

Now John does scoff, slipping his hand not currently accosted into his ass pocket and flipping out his heavy wallet. Watches Gale try not to look, and then look fully with shrewd eyes. He’s a fast reader, John can tell by the dart of his eyes. John figures he’s had plenty of practice under his belt to get to that point. Still, John figures further explanation was needed. And really, he doesn’t like looking at the man in the photo on his VA card. It made him angry, sometimes. 

John was trying not to be angry at him, anymore. 

“I could show it at a regular one,” John explains, “but then it’s all bureaucratic tape and hoops to jump through.”

“Major, huh?” 

It stings, the label of a rank not earned, served on a platter of charity, and flavored with unspoken words like ‘consolation prize’. 

“Retired.” 

Medically. Forcefully. Not that there had ever been a discussion worth having. John could no longer fly, and he’d never stomach being a desk jockey. 

Gale twines their fingers, just slightly at the tips, giving him a faint squeeze in all the places it wouldn’t hurt. John catches his breath, eyeing the barest hint of profile he can see on the other man. Jaw, strong brow, arching cheekbone and just a tease of pale lashes. Lips, when he talked, but hardly more than a shift of jaw muscle than anything visual.

“I’m sorry,” he says, shocking John for a second, knock-out punch. All of him seems softer here, in the evening, in the soft embrace of this homemade zoo. “For���well, the other week at the mall. And just about every other miserable interaction you’ve had with me.” 

Gale. Gale. John repeats it in his head just to make sure it’s stuck on the clothesline, so it doesn’t slip through the wide-hole net of his memory. Thinks maybe he should learn by now, that just cause there’s a pigtail dangling in front of him, doesn’t mean he’s gotta yank. 

He sighs, “Nah, I haven’t been entirely fair to you either.”

Gale makes an aborted noise, taken aback in the same manner as John himself. Their hands are still clasped under the chill water, and John feels the faint reflex of his hand, squeezing tight with his surprise. 

It’s not so much that John’s ashamed of his condition. More so that he doesn’t want his life to be blamed on it. Sure, it wasn’t the path he expected to be on. But it was a good one, even if it’s got a few hang-ups and support beams. 

“It was really me not remembering,” he confesses, “at first. And then it was just easier to pretend it was a bit.”

Gale freezes, brilliant brain working a million miles a minute already, John can all but hear it go. 

“It’s my shit, you know,” he defends, gesturing to the face he still was shocked to see sometimes. Shocked to see it whole, shocked to see it different, “But, I crashed my helo on a med-evac mission. Things got, ah, pretty hot. Knocked my head open like a fuckin’ melon and now I have a hard time with names, numbers. Sometimes coordination, if it’s a bad day.”

There’s a color leeching up the back of Gale’s neck, peachy-pink and intriguing. 

“Mostly I manage pretty well I think,” John adds, hoping it comes off less tentative than it sounds to his own ears. 

“Jesus, I’m–”

John refuses to let him pretend to be anything different than what he was. “No, you’re not. You’re not sorry, you’re uncomfortable. That’s alright.”

Gale looks over his shoulder at John, matches his grin to more restrained degree, the lines around his eyes easing slightly. Gives him a nod, face lapsing back into seriousness, like he was taking John’s words to heart, reading between the lines.

Not given’ you any pity, don’t you give me none.

“Maybe,” Gale admits, stubborn, “yeah. But I am sorry. Ain’t any excuse for me acting like a full-blown lunatic.”

He’s still stroking his thumb over John’s wrist, a soft soothing drag that John suspects he’s not even aware that he’s doing. John has to take his hand away, before he does something ridiculous like touch him right back. Examining his hand, instead of examining Gale himself, John thinks probably he should leave. He thinks Gale is far more fragile than he’d like anyone to know, and John is far too curious for either of their own good. And much too willing to forgive, over a few kind words and a pretty face. 

“I started therapy,” Gale offers, awkward and uncomfortable and John wonders if he’s told anyone besides the necessary parties, for how painful the words seem to come.

John wonders if Gale is lonely. 

“It’s…good,” Gale continues haltingly. John has the sudden urge to accept the apology, protect Gale from having to show any more of his tender insides. But Gale’s got a look on his face, like it was a concentrated effort, like it was a relief, to tell someone and make amends. “But it’s hard. And I think it’s makin’ everything else a little harder too. Like I’m always on a hair-trigger. And I’m not used to it.”

John watches his fine throat bob on a swallow, Adam's apple somehow managing to be elegant, for so clumsy of an organ. 

“Not any sort of excuse but I’m working on not– not being such a–”

John thinks Gale needs saving, a little bit now. “An uptight nightmare?”

Gale glares at him. It sends just a faint rush of blood to John’s cock. Wakes him up a bit, same as it did right before a mission. Half-chub from excitement, trepidation, anticipation. Either Gale would get the humor, or they’d be right back to having their teeth at each other’s throats.

“Fine,” Gale bites out grudgingly. “Yeah. That.” 

John gives him a wink, casual enough to cover the beating of his heart, then looks down at his hand and uses the pain of prodding the skin to keep him from saying something further, something stupider. 

It hurts.

It fucking hurts.

“I think I can skip the hospital trip. No blisters.”

Gale’s face does a funny thing, then. A strange twitch to it. “At least let me wrap you up, I have some gauze in my bathroom.”

Leave, and take care of himself with the first aid kit he was mostly sure he had tucked away somewhere in the mess of his truck. Curse and fumble his way through neosporin and gauze and medical tape. Or get Gale’s hands back on him, just for a little bit. 

Curt and Lil would be giving him an earful, maybe at the same time, one on either side.Telling him off for flirting with a client, letting a client flirt with him. For sticking his fingers in a pond with as big a warning sign as the one Gale Cleven invisibly wore. 

John takes a step back, gesturing back to the open doorway for Gale to lead the way.

[miryum]

"Negotiation"

Summary: Detective!Jason Todd x detective!Reader based on Jake and Amy's relationship

Series Warnings: Swearing, descriptions of violence (but nothing descriptive), guns and other police stuff

Series Masterlist

“L/n,” Wayne rapped his fist on Y/n’s desk urgently. “There was a botched B&E at a jewellery store on Benbrock that just turned into a hostage situation.” He sighed and said, “they want you to be the negotiator.”

Y/n gasped and let out a strangled noise of excitement. “Oh my God, my prayers have finally been answered!”

“You pray for a hostage situation?” Jason asked incredulously.

“Yes, I did.” Y/n turned to him, serious as stone. “Every single day.”

Jason frowned, more concerned for the hostages after they heard Y/n’s jokes than Y/n herself. He knew she could handle herself. ”I don't understand. Why isn't ESU handling this?”

“Apparently, the hostage-taker asked for Y/n by name.” Wayne raised a brow and stared down at his detective like she had an answer.

“Oh, it's getting even cooler!” Y/n hummed and contemplated, “man, I wonder who it is. Maybe it's the sister of someone I put away for life. Ooh! Or the identical twin of someone I put away for life. Ooh! Or the fraternal twin of-”

Captain Wayne cut off her tangent. “L/n! Just get down there! And take Drake with you.”

“You got it!” Y/n beamed and jumped up. “Yep, yep, yep.” She turned to Tim who had come to stand next to her. “How do I look? Police-y enough?” She waved him off before he could answer. “It doesn't matter. Let's go negotiate!”

When Tim and Y/n got the the jewellery store, the block was closed off and police cars were surrounding the building, sirens going on and off periodically. Y/n waltzed up to the area and pronounced, “don’t panic, everyone, I'm here.” An officer beckoned her over and Y/n introduced herself. “I'm Y/n L/n, the negotiator.”

The man stared at her, unimpressed. “So you're Y/n L/n?”

“The negotiator, yes. And… who are you?”

“Arnold Flass, ESU. This was my crime scene before you bozos got here.”

Tim sipped on his coffee before noting, “nice to meet you too, Arnold.”

“I've spent ten years as a negotiator and you just took my first hostage situation,” Arnold exclaimed. “All I've done up until now is talk jumpers off of rooftops.”

“Well, that must be satisfying in its own way, right?” Y/n offered. Tim walked off to talk to a more senior, professional officer.

Arnold scoffed. “Yeah, really satisfying saving a crazy person's life. Here's a little advice: I don't like you.”

“Not so much advice as a hurtful statement based on limited interaction,” Y/n muttered.

“He wants to talk to you,” Tim came back and motioned to Y/n.

Arnold rolled his eyes and ripped the label off his vest. He handed it to Y/n begrudgingly. “Get the hell in there.”

“Oh, it says ‘negotiator’ on it.” Y/n happily put it on and weaved through the crowd of officers and bystanders. She took a bullhorn from a cop and called into it, “this is Y/n L/n. I am unarmed and I'm approaching the building.” The door swung open ominously and Y/n glanced back at Tim. He gave her a nod of encouragement. “You wanted to talk to me?” Y/n stepped into the jewellery store, peeking around the corner.

“Keep those hands in the air,” a voice commanded. Then, in a lighter tone, the voice joked, “and wave 'em like you just don't care.”

“What?” Y/n’s brows furrowed, confused.

The hostage-taker finally came into view. “I'm just messing with you, L/n.” Roy Harper grinned. “Put your hands down, give me a hug, darling.”

“Roy!” 

“Okay, so are we gonna talk about it?” Steph slipped into the seat next to Jason and leaned on his desk.

“Nope.”

“Todd, you frustrate me,” Damian said. Steph blinked at him, not realising he was listening in.

Jason’s chest clenched. “There is nothing we need to talk about.”

“I disagree,” Damian muttered. 

“Listen,” Jason turned away from his computer and Steph knew that it was about to get real. “I just went out on another date with Rose. She’s a lovely girl and I was thinking of taking it to the next step. I’m planning on asking her to be my official girlfriend tomorrow night.”

Steph shook her head. “Yeah, that’s not gonna work. You see, my big plan in life is to push you and Y/n together so you can all be happy and possibly make even cuter babies.” 

Jason blushed and swallowed thickly. “I’m not interested in L/n.” 

Damian scoffed. “Brown, we have a lie detector at the precinct, correct?”

Steph grinned, eyes lighting up with mischief. “Hey…. Richard!” she called to Dick. “Wanna have a little fun?” Dick looked up, beaming impishly.

“I gotta admit, man,” Roy said, shrugging. “I thought you'd be more happy to see me. Why’re you being so weird?”

“Oh, I don't know.” Y/n pursed her lips together. “I didn't sleep well last night, so I’m just tired. Oh, and also, this is a hostage situation!”

“Wow!” Roy sucked in a dramatic breath. “It's like that.”

“Yes, it's like that. What the hell, man? You called me, remember? You promised me that you wouldn’t do anything to wind up in jail!” Y/n referenced the time when Roy called her in the middle of the night to promise to stop his life as a criminal.

“I didn’t! I work at Tiffany and Co. now.” He rested a proud hand on his chest. ”I sell luxury jewels to the rich and famous and I do it legally. Last week I sold a sapphire necklace to the dude who played Johnny in Hotel Transylvania.”

“You met Johnny?” Y/n exclaimed. “Was he cool? Does he actually like vampires in real life? Wait- no.” She caught herself. “We’re not chatting right now. You have three hostages.”

“You mean Pam and the two Bobs?” Roy looked at the three people on the floor, rope loosely tied around their wrists. “They’re not hostages. I prefer to call them ‘collateral friendships.’ I gave them each one hundred bucks out of my own pocket.”

One of the Bobs spoke up. “Thanks again, Roy.”

The other Bob nodded his head in agreement. “You’re the man, Roy.”

Pam stuttered, “a-actually, I'd rather not be a hostage.”

“Pam hasn't come around to me yet.” Roy shrugged. “Tell her I'm a nice person, Y/n.”

“I'm so sorry,” Y/n said to Pam.

“Officer, are you friends with this criminal?” Pam asked, aghast.

Y/n’s nose scrunched up. “Not really…”

However, Roy replied at the same time, “absolutely, best friends.”

“It's a layered relationship, Pam,” Y/n defended.

“Best friends,” Roy corrected.

”Harper,” Y/n hissed, pulling him towards the door. “What is going on, dude?”

“This isn't my fault, darling!” Roy protested. “Two years ago before I went straight, I stole a big ruby from a drug dealer: Jack Napier.”

“Oh, no, Roy.” Y/n groaned. ”He's a bad guy.”

Roy whined, “I know! When I realised it was his jewel, I torched the briefcase it was in along with the drugs that were in there! Who the hell puts drugs and rubies in the same briefcase?!”

“Oh, no, Roy,” Y/n groaned in the same pitch as before. ”Briefcase drugs?”

“Millions of dollars of them! Napier just found out it was me. Said I had to do a job for him to pay off my debt.”

“But did you tell him you went straight? Did you tell him about Johnny?” Y/n asked desperately.

“I did. He said he didn’t watch Hotel Transylvania.” 

“Oh, this guy is the worst.”

“I know.” Roy’s voice turned desperate and low. “L/n, he said he's gonna kill Lian if I don't do this job.”

Y/n’s eyes went wide and her mouth dropped open. “He can't do that. I won’t let him do that. The GCPD can help you guys. We can put you in witness protection!”

Roy shook his head. “I can’t mess up my daughter’s life ‘cause of my mistakes. That's why I'm here stealing this big ‘ole bag of rubies; to make up for the one I stole. Y/n, you know how dangerous this guy can be.” He took a breath. “I need you to help me save my daughter.”

“How can I help?” Y/n responded immediately. 

“Easy. I have a plan that's good for everyone. All I need is for you to-”

“-let him go so he can arrange a drop with Napier.” Y/n explained Roy’s plan to Tim. “We arrest Napier, save Lian, Roy turns himself in, and why is that amazing, Tim?”

“Napier’s a huge crime boss,” Tim answered.

“Aaaand what else?”

“GCPD's been trying to get Napier for years.”

“And?”

“That's it.”

“Yeah, it is.” Y/n said, “so, since we all agree, I'll go tell Roy the plan is on.” She swung around to go back inside, but Arnold stopped her.

“No, we don't all agree. He's trapped and frantic. Everything he told you is a lie.”

“Why do you say he's lying?” Y/n asked.

Arnold frowned. “That's all negotiating is. Two liars lie until one liar stands too close to the window and gets shot in the head.”

Y/n scoffed loudly. “That can't be all negotiating is!” She noticed Tim’s head lolling to the side. “Timmy, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but have some more coffee.”

“It absolutely is. Now, get in there and coax him to a window.” Arnold pressed a button on his walkie talkie. “Snipers to one. The window plan is on. I repeat: The window plan is on.”

“No, no, no, no, no!” Y/n cried and tugged the walkie talkie away from Arnold. “Snipers to zero! Snipers take a nap. The nap plan is on. It's nap time, snipers!” 

A couple minutes later, Y/n regretfully told Roy, “ESU won't take your deal. They think you're lying.”

“I'm not lying!” Roy gasped dramatically, offended. “I don't wanna be a criminal. I love my life as an average citizen. I voted for the first time this year! It was huge. Lian helped me fill in the little boxes. She chose Ed Breakfast for school board.”

“Who?”

“I don't know,” Roy muttered. “He had a funny name. He deserves a shot.”

“That's exactly why I voted for Stacy Ladle! Anyway, I'm sorry, but they're not cutting a deal.”

“So that's it?” Roy sighed. “I gotta turn myself in and let Napier kill Lian? You’ll take care of her, right?”

 Y/n’s heart broke and she could feel a plan formulating in her mind. “Actually… there might be another way.”

“Alright, Todd.” Dick strutted in front of Jason. “We’re gonna do this one time and one time only. Do you have feelings for Y/n?” 

“Are you shitting me?” Jason’s head fell into his hands. He was strapped to a lie detector test that Steph was currently monitoring. “We’re actually doing this?”

“Yep!” Dick said. “We have to know. Now, let’s go over the evidence.”

Damian wheeled in a large cork-board which was covered in index cards, push pins, and signature red string. The index cards said things like: ‘Halloween incident,’ ‘Valentine’s Day nicknames,’ ‘1000 pushups blanket,’ ‘googly eyes,’ ‘lack of dates,’ and more.

As Jason read over the cards, his face slowly got more and more red. Dick gleefully snapped a polaroid picture of Jason’s current face and secured it to the board, adding it as another factor of evidence. 

Roy shouted from the doorway of the jewellery store. “I've taken your negotiator hostage! If you come in here, I will shoot her.”

Y/n wailed, “just do whatever he says! My life is in his hands! Please!” 

Roy slammed the door behind them and then broke out in giggles. “That was so much fun!”

“Oh, man, you sounded really scary.” Y/n exhaled.

“No, no, it was all you. The tremble in your voice sold it. ‘Just do whatever he says.’” Roy mimicked Y/n’s panicked voice

“I mean, I just made that up. Ah, I was so in the moment.” Y/n silently praised herself on her acting skills.

“Darling, seriously? You are a great hostage,” Roy complimented.

“Aw, thanks, Harper. You're a great hostage-taker.”

Outside, Arnold was talking to Tim, lamenting, “I can't believe L/n got taken hostage. The good news is… I'm now the negotiator. Finally!” He slapped another marker labelled ‘negotiator’ on. 

“Congratulations,” Tim said dryly.

“I've been waiting for this moment for so long!” Arnold exclaimed.

Roy’s voice from the bullhorn cut him off. “I'm ready to negotiate. But I'll only talk to Tim Drake.”

“That's me, Arnold.” Tim ripped Arnold’s label off and placed it on himself.

“Oh, come on!”

“Welcome, my man!” Roy waved to Tim when the latter entered the store. “I don’t think we’ve met before, have we? I’m Y/n’s bestie. I’m a hugger; bring it in.” He walked over to Tim with open arms.

Tim, however, yanked on one of those arms and looped it over Roy’s head, effectively holding him in place. “Roy Harper, you're under arrest.”

“Holy fuck, Tim’s strong?” Y/n mumbled. “But he’s so lanky and only runs on coffee. Wait, Tim, stop.”

“What's going on?” Tim grunted as he tried to place cuffs on Roy.

“Look, this is not really a hostage situation. I mean, Pam and the two Bobs are definitely being held against their will, but not for much longer.”

Roy spoke up, trying to be helpful. “Y/n’s helping me take down Napier.”

“We can't do it without you,” Y/n pleaded.

“Seriously, L/n?” Tim scoffed. “Isn’t this the guy that you and Cass tried to take down? The one you did a thousand push ups for?” 

“You did a thousand push ups for me?” Roy cooed. 

“Not important.” 

“This is like that story my dad told me as a little kid. He used to quiz me on fables from different cultures.” Tim said, finally releasing Roy. “You're the frog and he's a scorpion. You're gonna help him across the river. In the end, he'll sting you. And then you'll both drown.”

“Geez, that's dark.” Y/n grimaced.

“Yeah, I’d never tell Lian that story,” Roy said.

“My parents didn't read to me at all,” Y/n commented. “I just watched cartoons ’till I fell asleep. Do you think that our childhoods shape the adults we become?” She hummed thoughtfully.

“They do,” Roy and Tim said at the same time.

“And cartoons shaped you into a naive little frog,” Tim said.

“Okay, first off,” Y/n held up a finger. “Little frogs are adorable, and second, he's not that kind of scorpion anymore.”

“I'm a changed bug,” Roy said.

“Actually, scorpions are arthropods.” Tim and Y/n spoke together. Tim looked at her, surprised. “What?” She shrugged. “I listened to the documentary you made us watch. Tim, I know he used to be a criminal and has fooled me in the past, and yes, he is currently engaged in criminal activity.”

“Innocent until proven guilty,” Roy reminded Tim. “But yes, I technically am robbing the store.”

“But, Tim, his daughter is in danger and we have to help her. He agreed to turn himself in when this is all over. Right, Roy?” Y/n scrutinised him.

“I promise.”

Tim sighed. “Cass warned me about him. But okay. What do you need from me?”

“We have an airtight plan.” Roy grinned. He poked the bullhorn out of the door and shouted, ”all we demand is pizza!”

“I’m in a relationship with Rose,” Jason insisted.

“You’re not answering the question!” Dick exclaimed, growing more frustrated. 

“That’s because the question is stupid and doesn’t need to be answered!”

“Todd, you must have lost half your brain if you think you’re fooling us.” Damian didn’t look impressed.

“Jason,” Steph exhaled. “By not answering the question, you’re answering the question.”

“Yeah, well, you don’t make sense.” Jason shot back lamely.

“It’s okay to have feelings for L/n.” Steph said, oddly calmly. “You’re not admitting defeat.”

“No, I’m aware, but just…” he sighed heavily and stared down at the table. “What if she doesn’t like me back?”

Steph slowly shut off the computer and the lie detector. Damian had a rare look of sympathy glazing over his eyes. “But she does,” Dick said softly. “She’s told all of us herself. Right, guys?” he asked his friends. 

“If I had a nickel…” Steph smiled and huffed, trailing off.

“She’s interrupted many movie nights with tangents of you,” Damian frowned at the fact. He had yet to finish The Gladiator because of Y/n.

“We'll be safe here,” Roy directed Y/n towards a small, neon-lit shop. Tim had provided them a distraction long enough for Roy and Y/n to sneak away. Tim said he would meet with them later. “I know the owner. He'd never turn me in.”

“Yeah,” Y/n nodded along knowingly. “I have the same relationship with the guy who runs this laser tag place I love. I- I mean, gun range.”

Roy chuckled. “L/n, why’re you lying to me, huh? I love laser tag! We gotta go sometime, darling.” He led her inside the place and to a back room which had a large screen and a karaoke machine plugged in and ready to go.

Y/n beamed. “I was hoping you'd say that. Alright, let's text Napier and set up the drop.”

“Okay, yeah. ‘Got the diamonds. Let's meet.’” He clicked his phone and the message was sent. “Done.”

“Okay, now we wait.” She clicked her tongue and hummed. “You know, it’s kinda weird, sitting silently in a private karaoke room, not singing.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he muttered. “But we're on a mission, so, you know, we gotta stay focused.”

“True, true, true, true, true, true.”

“So I wake in the morning and I step outside and I TAKE a deep breath and I GET! REAL! HIGH! And I scream at the top of my lungs ‘WHAT’S GOIN’ ON?’” Roy sang in a falsetto as Y/n accompanied him in a lower tone.

In the middle of the song, Roy’s phone dinged and he paused the song. “Ugh. It’s Napier.”

Y/n pouted in disappointment. “Yeah….”

“The drop is set for 5:00 p.m.” Roy informed her. 

“Let's do this.”

“Totally. Although…” Roy shot Y/n a knowing look. “That is an hour and a half from now.”

“And the drop point is actually pretty close to here,” Y/n added.

“So..."

“DANCING QUEEN! YOUNG AND SWEET! ONLY SEVENTEEN OOOOOOOH…”

Tim walked into the room and slowly sipped on his coffee, looking more tired than ever.

“I feel more sympathy for our perps now.” Jason ripped the lie detector off himself. 

“Can you please just admit that at some point, past or present, you’ve had feelings for Y/n L/n?” Dick begged. They had spent over three hours in the interrogation room, grilling Jason on his feelings and not getting any work done.

“If it makes you let me go, then yes.” 

“I’ll take it!” Steph cried. “It’s close enough!”

“I still say I could’ve made fine use out of a pair of pliers.” Damian glared at Jason. Jason couldn’t help but shudder under his stare. 

“Torture me all you want,” Jason said. “But I don’t like Y/n like that. She’s like a sister to me. We’ve worked together for over four years. I don’t love her romantically.” 

If he had still been connected to the lie detector, its lines would’ve jumped widely.

Steph said quietly, “just know this: to remember is to love.”

Roy explained the plan to Tim and Y/n in the parking lot where Napier would meet them. “First, a jeweller will come out and inspect the rubies. Then, when he gives the okay, Napier will come and get them.”

“And then I'll take him down.” Y/n cracked her knuckles dramatically.

“Here we go,” Roy mumbled as an expensive car pulled up and a thin man got out. Harper, Drake, and L/n got out of Y/n’s old car and Roy greeted, “What's up, dude? Did anybody ever tell you that you look like the most interesting man in the world? You get that a lot?” After an awkward silence, Roy inhaled sharply. “Geez, I get it. We're not friends.”

The thin man held out his hand and Roy placed the sack of small rubies in it. The man inspected a random ruby and then nodded. Another man got out of the car and Roy said, “There he is. Napier! What's up, Mr. Napier? How’re you doing?” Napier’s car pulled away to give them some privacy.

“Shut up.” Napier licked his lips. “Give me the rubies.”

A new voice shouted from the other end of the parking lot. “L/N!” 

Y/n cringed. “No, no, no, not now.”

Arnold yelled out, “I tracked your phone, idiot. I knew you were working with this criminal! You were gonna double cross us!”

Y/n’s head whipped back to Napier, but he was already running down the street, phone pressed to his ear, likely calling his driver.

Arnold gasped. “That's Napier. Harper wasn’t lying. Well, we gotta arrest him!” Arnold grabbed Y/n’s vest and pulled her back.

“Y/n, he's running!” Tim cried, already in pursuit of Napier.

“Lemme go!” Y/n tried to yank away.

“Only if I get the collar and one hundred percent of the credit.” Arnold growled.

“Are you negotiating right now?”

“Always.”

“Okay, that was actually a really cool line. Deal. Let’s do it.” She pointed harshly at Roy. “Stay. Here.”

“Okay.” Roy shrugged.

Y/n and Arnold ran off after Napier, catching up to Tim. “GCPD!” Tim shouted. “Stop and put your hands in the air!” Napier continued running and Tim groaned. “Why don’t they ever listen?”

“Drake,” Y/n swerved towards another street. “I’ll block him off!”

“Not without me, you won’t!” Arnold changed direction and sprinted after Y/n. 

Napier’s eyes grew wide when he saw Y/n and Arnold appear ahead of him. He glanced over his shoulder and when he saw Tim, still in pursuit, he cried out in frustration. Y/n tackled him to the ground and threw handcuffs on him. After she was done Mirandizing him, she apologised to Arnold. “Sorry I ran out on you at the jewellery store. But I couldn't let this guy get away.”

“Look, I'm fine with it.” Arnold said. “Arresting Napier’s gonna get me a promotion and at the end of the day, that's what this is all about.”

Y/n squinted at him. “Right, that and getting a major drug lord off the streets.”

“Yeah, right. I don't care about that.”

Y/n stared at him, wide-eyed before brushing him off. “Whatever. Let's bring in Roy Harper.” She left Napier with Tim and ran back to the parking lot. Finding it empty, she cried, “Oh, fucking hell! Where is he? Roy? Roy?!”

Arnold saddled up behind her. “Don't worry. We'll get him. At least we have Napier and the rubies.”

Y/n simply shouted, “Roy!”

“Why are you still calling for him?”

“ROY!”

Arnold realised, “oh my God, he has the rubies, doesn't he?”

“Roy!” Y/n quickly composed her wits and muttered to herself, “I'm sure Harper didn't run off with the rubies. I bet he's looking for me right now. You know what, I bet he's worried that I’m in trouble!” She frantically pulled out her phone. “I'll just call him and put his mind at ease.”

Arnold raised a brow. “Lady, he's already gone.” He placed a hand on Y/n’s shoulder and Y/n pushed him off, giving him an icy glare. “He's not gonna picking up.” Y/n’s jaw clenched at Arnold’s words.

Suddenly, Roy’s voice filtered through her phone and she breathed a sigh of relief. “What's up, L/n?”

“Ha!” Y/n pointed a victorious finger at Arnold. “He did pick up. In your-”

“This is goodbye forever,” Roy cut her off.

“No!” Y/n stomped her foot. “I can't believe you deceived me. I can't believe you used my love for Lian against me.”

“I love that you love her.”

“Of course I do! She’s the living embodiment of the reminder that childhood innocence never dies.”

“Amen,” he agreed. “But, I wasn't lying though. Napier was gonna hurt her and you saved her life. Buuuut then I was all alone with the rubies and next thing I know, I'm hotwiring a car and driving away.

”But I thought you liked being a good citizen? You voted Ed Breakfast for school board!” Y/n whined. 

“And he immediately had a sex scandal.” Roy reminded her. “It was very disillusioning.”

“Understandable. Our democracy is crumbling. But, Roy, this is not what we’re talking about. They could take my badge!” 

“Tim was right.” Roy smiled faintly. “I'm a scorpion. I thought you knew me better by now. I'm sorry I can't be the man you want me to be.”

“Damn it, stop being so romantic.” Y/n choked on her words and begged, “now turn around and come back to me, you fool?” The line clicked and she called, “hello? Hello? He's gone…. He broke my heart.” Tim walked up behind her as her lip quivered theatrically. She turned towards her fellow detective and hugged him tightly. “Now you tell me everything's gonna be okay, Timmy boy!”

“Everything's gonna be okay,” Tim reassured monotonously.

“You don't know that, Tim!”

“I just got off the phone with the brass,” Captain Wayne said to Y/n. “It doesn't look good. They're still trying to decide on a punishment for your actions.”

Y/n sniffed and asked meekly, “Did you tell them I feel so bad I have a tummy ache?”

“I did. They were unaffected.”

“Are you sure it’s not cramps?” Jason pushed a box of chocolate towards his coworker. “It is your time of the month.”

Y/n grimaced in disgust. “It’s creepy that you know that.”

“Not really,” Tim said. ��You, Steph, and Cass have all synced up. We all know when to have desserts in our desks.”

“I think even Kori is synced up to you guys,” Dick added. “Somehow.”

“So no.” Damian spoke up. “In this instance, Todd isn’t creepy.”

Y/n looked up at Wayne as if to ask his opinion on this matter. All he said is, “I have no comment to add in this conversation. Back to the topic at hand, the brass said they could’ve justified your tactics if you'd gotten Napier and the rubies, but as things stand, there are no rubies.” He sighed and said, “you're looking at a suspension, maybe worse. Unless you can track down Harper and recover those rubies.”

“Can they wait twelve months?” Y/n asked hopefully. “I usually run into him about once a year.” Her eyes caught on something on her desk. “Wait a minute. What doth we have here?”

Y/n walked into the karaoke place and looked around hesitantly. “I've got this coupon for a private room?”

“Yep,” a worker said. “Right this way. We already have a song cued up for you.”

The screen blinked on as soon as the worker left the room and a large picture of Roy Harper with Lian on his hip showed up.

Y/n shook her head and muttered, “Harper.”

“What's up, L/n?” the recording asked happily. “Thank you so much for coming. So, I thought about it and I think I did you dirty. I never meant to cause you any trouble.”

“Yeah, well, you caused me a lot.” Y/n kicked at something at her feet.

Roy chuckled and said, “you're talking to a pre-recorded video, but it's cool. I know what you're saying. I hear you in my heart,” he said emphatically.

Y/n rolled her eyes. “What am I doing here?” she asked herself.

“I feel the same way,” the recorded Roy placed a hand to his heart. “You’re my best friend too.” He nodded thoughtfully and said, “look, I'm not coming back. We started a new life here in San Diego.” He jostled Lian who was giggling on his hip.

Y/n shook her head, grinning. “It’s stupid telling me where you are.”

“Come on, darling, I’m not in damn San Diego.” Roy laughed loudly. “Everybody knows that place sucks! But, I got you a little something as a going away gift. It's on the table next to you.”

Y/n opened the small velvet sack and gasped. “The rubies. Yes! I- I can’t believe you actually brought them back…”

“The rubies!” Roy cried from the screen.

Y/n let out a lighthearted laugh. “Yeah, you mistimed that one.”

“No, you're the best. Look, even though I am a scorpion, I will never drown your adorable little frog ass. So that's all I gotta say.” He glanced down at Lian who was smiling happily, staring at something in the distance. “I'm sure I'll see you again at some point,” Roy said, his eyes softening. “But for now, that coupon you got there, that's for a full hour in a private room. So…”

“Oh mama mia, mama mia, mama mia, let me go! BeeLZEbub has a devil put aside for meeee… for meeee! For meEEEEEEEEEE!” Lian sang along as Roy and Y/n banged their heads to the music.

[eponastory]

Watching From the Tower Part 2 (Bucky x F! Reader No Y/N)

Your code name is Scout and your job was easy. You worked the cyber side of things for the New Avengers. You directed them where to go with your hacking skills, and you are the eyes in the sky. There was just one problem... you don't like leaving the tower. You are not a complete agoraphobe, but you are pretty close. Leaving makes you feel so unsafe and people touching you, that's even worse. So, when James Buchanan Barnes the former 'Winter Soldier' tries to get you out for one mission, things got a little hectic after that.

Part 2 Summary: You are getting sick while working comms when the mission takes a slightly scary turn.

Part 1 | Part 2 |

Word Count: ~4.4k words. (6.9k total words so far)

Rating: M (Later parts will be marked 18+ for smut, but for now, it's okay.)

Pairings: Bucky/F!Reader (Non-descriptive, No Y/N) Squint for GhostWalker and Boblena (Platonic)

TW: Angst, Depression, mentions of past SA, phobias, Anxiety, MDNI for sexual content in later parts (Will be labeled).

You weren't exactly feeling great by the time the team landed in Singapore. As a matter of fact, you had already started sneezing and every time Bob saw one coming, he'd tell you to say ‘cucumber’ because he thought it would help. Because he saw you getting progressively worse as you started hacking into one of the Chinese satellites over that region, he opted to help you out with the simplest tasks. You had found out that Bob was not as useless as he thought he was. 

“So… I press this button and the door pops open?” He's sitting in the chair next to you with an extra keyboard you showed him how to hook into the system. 

“Bob… make sure it's the right door.” Bucky's voice comes over the comms linked up to the sound system in the room. “Is it the right door?” 

“I like how encouraging you are, Barnes. So Leader of you.” Yelena's accent comes through, causing Bob to smile as he presses the key you pointed out. “Ah, very good. You have opened the correct door.” 

“Now if only there was a pot of gold and tequila behind it.” Ava's smooth voice comes in making you smile even though your throat is getting scratchy. 

“Cut the chatter.” Once Bucky says something they all shut up. “Walker, status?” 

“Ground clear, moving into position.” You could hear Walker grunting as he likely jumped over something to get into his position. 

“Once inside, let the bot fly so I can get you a readout.” Your eyes are on the screen that is showing footage from the cameras on each team member's person. “I can only do so much with your body cams and the security cameras.” 

“Scoutbot is ready.” Bucky lets you know as he holds the smallest bot you could rig up with Flir and night vision. “On your mark.” 

You look at Bob who is intensely watching the screen to make sure everyone's vitals are as they should be. It was now or never as you pulled the Xbox controller you rigged up to connect to the Scoutbot remotely and the VR headset for better guidance. You think that Bob is ready for this since he's gotten pretty good at gaming with you on slow days. 

“You want to do it, Bob?” You hold the controller out to him and he pulls his soft eyes away from the screen. “Don't worry, you don't have to do anything except control Scoutbot.” 

“Uh… sure. Yeah, it'll be like playing that game with the planes.” He takes the controller and headset before putting them on. “Okay, connect me! I'm going into the Matrix!” 

“Connection established.” You put in your codes and commands for the bot. “Okay, release Scoutbot. Bob is in control.” 

“Are you sure that's a good idea?” Of course Walker would object to letting Bob do this. 

You roll your eyes as you pull up the feed onto another screen and see that Bob is doing very well at guiding the bot around the corners in the long corridors. You have complete faith in Bob. Bob hasn't let you down yet and when you let out a cough, you see that Bucky has gone still. 

“Are you getting sick, Scout?” You can hear the concern in his voice. 

“I'm fine. Corridor is clear, proceed with the directive.” 

“Copy.” 

“Uh… I'm getting some interference.” You look up and see that there is a little static on the bot and that doesn't actually mean too much, at least not at first until. “Too much static to see what is going on.” 

“Bucky, we're getting interference on the bot as it gets closer to the center of the building.” You study the static. It's making the image grainy with white specks showing up every now and then. “Wait… I know what this is. Those are Alpha particles. It's radiation.” 

“I thought the machine was a laser?” Walker questions. 

“It is, but that doesn't mean that there are other things going on in the facility.” You don't have access to a spectrometer, but you do know that Bucky has a small Geiger counter on him. He's always prepared for these things. “Bucky, I'm not positive it's radiation, but maybe use that counter to see.” 

“On it.” You hear the sound of velcro as he reaches into one of his pockets for the small Geiger counter. It isn't long before you see it on his body cam and then the clicking as it measures for charged particles in the air. “Nothing so far, but I'll keep moving in.” 

“Great, so now we have potential radiation.” Ava is moving in after Bucky. “Our day just got so much better.” 

“Could be much worse. We could be in a place like Chernolbyl.” Yelena pipes up after you watch her take out a guard on her side of the building. “You ever been there?” 

“Yes.” Bucky doesn't hesitate to answer. 

“Of course you have.” Her lazy tone makes you smile. “Let me guess, you were there to assassinate a whistle blower in 1986 after the explosion.” 

“More or less.” The counter goes off with a squeal as he turns the corner of another hallway and then eases back. “Unsafe levels.” 

“Shit.” Bob says as the bot goes dark. “Something took out the bot, it just went off.” You look at the screen where your bot has been active only to receive a NO SIGNAL message. “Sorry.” 

“Guys, I think this mission is a botch.” You don't like that the radiation coming from the center of the building is at unsafe levels and possibly a lethal dose. “That radiation is definitely a problem and unless you are resistant, you aren't getting through.” 

“So, what do we do now?” John lets out a breath. 

“I can look into hijacking a satellite that can see the building in infrared. Radiation does sometimes release heat if there is something that is making it react.” You are able to hack into a Russian satellite that is in orbit over the area long enough to get your data. You see the Flir data and the location. It’s white hot in the middle of the building. So much concentrated heat that it has to be a mini nuclear reactor that is leaking radiation. “It’s like a mini reactor– sending the image now.” 

With a few keystrokes, you upload the image to Bucky’s phone and then you hear him grunt in disbelief. You know what he’s going to do next because there is no way to get any further without getting a lethal dose. It’s the one thing that they can’t fight because it’s subatomic particles that are slicing through you at every second. 

“What are the chances the target has been moved versus being dead?” He sounds a little disturbed. 

“High probability that everyone in the building is probably either dead or close to it. I suggest aborting the mission.” You say it with a heavy heart because you know how Bucky handles these missions. You know he’s going to be a storm when he comes back. You cough before looking at the photo again. “I’m sorry Bucky, but none of you would survive radiation this high.” 

“She’s right. I’m already feeling woozy and I’m not even that far into the building.” John is on the end closest to the output. “It’s really hot in here too.”

“Stifling really. This radiation is messing with my phasing.” Ava is in danger too. 

“Bucky, we have to leave.” Yelena stresses to him. 

You can hear Bucky’s thoughts from here. He knows the answer already, it’s just that stubbornness in him that he is fighting. 

“Bucky–” You start out then switch the comms to where you are speaking to him directly. Bob looks at you with the headset still on his head, but he gives you that soft look of understanding before he takes it off and sets it on the desk. He leaves you before he walks into the kitchen. “I know that you will consider this a failure, but it’s not. It’s a tactical miscalculation. We didn’t know this was going on and it could've happened at any point before you got there.” 

“I’m really starting to regret taking on this position.” He grumbles out before you see him turning around. “I’m not good at this.” 

“No time for self doubt, Boss.” He’s already going in the direction of ‘I’m not equipped for this’ when you know he’s got more experience than all of them combined. He just doesn’t believe he can lead this team even though he’s been doing it for six months without fail. But one failure makes him spiral out of control. “Look, there was no indication of this before the mission, so it’s an unforeseen variable that we didn't know about. This isn’t on you, but you all need to get out of there.” 

“Copy.” His tone is dark. He’s back in business mode when he gets over himself. You switch it back to full comms. “Everyone out. Rendezvous at the jet.” 

“Roger.” 

“On it.” 

“Does anyone else taste metal?” 

“That’s from the radiation.” Bucky probably knows because he’s been to radioactive places before, but that still doesn’t dismiss that his experience is what is going to save the team next. “Scout, we need potassium iodide, stat.” 

“Uh– There should be some in the med kit on the jet. I stocked it myself.” You see Bob walk back in with a Grape soda in one hand and your favorite smoothie in the other. Bless him, because your throat is sore and the cold will help. “Only take the recommended dose guys, otherwise you’ll increase your chances of hypothyroidism.” 

“What would be the recommended dose for a super soldier?” You hear John ask and you aren’t exactly sure.

You roll your eyes. “I don’t know, ask Bucky.” You aren’t a nurse even though you’ve patched them up a couple of times. “Thank you, Bob.” He smiles at you as you take the smoothie in hand. He’s such a sweetheart, taking care of everyone because they take care of him. 

“Barnes, how much do we take?” 

“The normal amount.” That made sense. You think. Potassium Iodide is a compound that can be broken down to straight elemental form within the body, but it doesn’t add or subtract anything. At least that is what you remember from high-school chemistry, which was a long time ago. “Just get back to the jet.” 

You listen to the chatter between the team as they make their way back to the place they landed the Jet. You just want them to come home safe and hopefully not full of radiation. You don’t think you can handle it if someone came home with radiation poisoning that is very much hard to cure. 

Leaning back in your chair, you sip on your fruit smoothie that you had prepared days ago and put in the freezer just for this occasion as you listen to the banter. They sound like siblings arguing over stupid things, but you love them. You don’t have a family as you were a child placed in the system at an early age before you were fostered over and over again. Family was a foreign term for years until you stuck it out with no real support system. When you finally found someone to hold on to, they vanished for five years. Five long years that ended up with you being put in a horrible situation. 

Five years of loneliness and then ‘it’ happened. 

When the Blip happened, your partner came back and you weren’t the same. They knew that, but they couldn’t deal with you not wanting to leave the house or do anything other than lay in bed. You started using your skills again out of boredom, to the point where you were working on exposing Val because someone anonymous had contacted you about it. Turns out that anonymous person was Congressman James Buchanan Barnes. 

That man that you were trying really hard not to get too close to. But it was hard. It was hard because he was very much your friend and he brought you into this because you were good. You were really good. 

“Scout, we’re on the jet.” His voice comes through and you let out a sigh. “Minimal radiation exposure detected.” 

“Okay, good. Can you just come home now?” You cough before you hear him hum softly. “We’ll regroup and learn from this okay?” 

“Sounds like mother hen is worried about us.” Yelena’s smile comes through her tone. “Don’t worry, we are fine. It was just a snag.” 

“Just get home so I can make sure everyone is fine with my own eyes.” You are worried. They have become the closest thing you have to family and you don’t want to lose them. The thought terrifies you. 

“We’re in the air. Go rest, we’ll see you in eight hours.” You hear the concern in Bucky’s voice before looking at Bob who is happily sipping on his grape soda. He still puts the straw in it like a little kid. He isn’t a kid, but some habits die hard. 

Eight hours later, you’re being woken up by a proximity alert. You had fallen asleep on the couch in the hub, but by now you were running a fever and you didn’t feel like getting up. How on earth did you get sick when you barely leave the tower? It runs through your head that maybe it’s from one of the people that come in and out all the time. Actually, you think back to the guy that dropped of the groceries three days ago that looked half dead and in need of a vacation. He was also sort of coughing. 

You groan when you know it was him because you accepted the delivery while everyone was at their respective places. Sure, Yelena, Bob, Ava, and John lived in the tower full time, but not Bucky and Alexei. Bucky had his own place because he said if he lived here, he would probably go crazy. He was the type of person that needed to have his social battery recharged in solitude. And it rang true because he always went home at night unless the mission was just too much and he’d find a quiet place to crash, usually on your couch that is in your workshop. 

But as it stands, you did not want to get off the couch you were on. You were shivering and partially delirious because you couldn’t get your fever to go away. Bob had thrown a blanket over you at one point, even bringing you a heating pad to keep you warm, but you were both on fire and freezing at the same time. It was awful. You were so tired and all you wanted to do was sleep. 

It isn’t until you feel a hand on your forehead that you realize you fell asleep again. You open your eyes to see Bucky. He’s not in his ‘work clothes’ but rather wearing his standard black t-shirt with a jacket that you desperately wanted to steal off of him and wrap yourself in. Yes, you were definitely sick because you were thinking these thoughts. 

“Hey.” You hear him as he rubs his thumb on your forehead. “We’re back.” 

“Mkay.” It’s a fog because you see his face, but you are so tired and feel so bad that you just want to sleep forever. You wouldn’t mind if he smothered you with a pillow because you feel like you are dying. 

“You’re sick.” The tenderness in his voice does something to you though and that look in his eyes. You want him to actually keep touching you because you are too sick to care at this point. He knows you have an issue with being touched. You have to initiate it or otherwise it’s uncomfortable and pushing the boundaries that you have set in place. You hate that you’re like this because when you see the look in Bob’s eyes when he wants to hug you after you have a tiny meltdown over something stupid or when Bucky wants to touch you to let you know he’s there. 

The fact that he’s not hurting you now is what is keeping you sane. 

Ava isn’t a touchy person either and that is why the two of you see eye to eye. Yelena sees you as a surrogate sister, but she respects those boundaries you have set up. Walker is terrified of you. He barely speaks to you, but he’ll leave your favorite candy on your work bench when he goes out to get food or something. It’s these little things that make you feel like you belong and that there is a healthy respect between all of you. 

But here Bucky is, looking down at you with those blue eyes of his and all you want to do is curl up. “I feel like shit.” You pull the blanket up to cover your face which forces his hand to vacate your forehead. “I just want to die.” 

“Not allowed.” The rough conviction in his voice says a lot to you. “Did you take anything?” 

“Uh– I gave her some Tylenol to make her fever go down a few hours ago.” You see Bob looking down at you from the back of the couch with his hoodie on. He smiles as Yelena comes to stand next to him. 

“Oh, you look like you have been dead.” She doesn’t hold back on her snarkiness even when you aren’t feeling good. “Like you died and then came back to life just in time for us to get home.” The soft smile on her face is enough to make you sigh. 

“Could all of you just stop yelling at me.” Your head hurts because everyone is talking to you now. “And maybe turn off the lights.” Turning over, you hide your face into the cushions as the bright lights start getting to you. “Stupid grocery guy.” You mumble. 

You hear Bucky sigh. “Okay, time to get you to your own bed.” Normally you would shirk away when someone lays a hand on you, but this gentle touch from Bucky to turn you onto your back is more like asking permission. It’s in his eyes when you turn your head to look at him. “Hey.” 

“Hey.” You blink slow like a cat. 

“Will you let me bring you to your room?” The fact that he’s asking makes you feel better about this and all you can do is nod. He peels the blanket off of you as Yelena drags Bob away to work on something else entirely. “Come on.” You don’t protest when he’s helping you sit up enough to put an arm around his shoulder so he can pick you up. 

You cough as he puts his arm under your knees and hoists you up into his arms. Anyone of the super soldiers on the team could do this, but you only let Bucky because you knew him better. You were his friend before you were theirs. Alexei would if you asked him to, but you never would because that was not the relationship you had with him. Still, when Bucky is carrying you out of the hub and to the elevator, you lay your head on his right shoulder because you can’t keep it upright. Your arms are around his neck as he carries you without getting tired, because he doesn’t get tired. 

He’s made out of sturdy stuff and nuclear energy. He goes on forever out of spite at what happened to him in the past and you admire that about him. Although, as seen earlier, he still has some things to deal with on an emotional level. You saw how he started going down this path of self-doubt the moment you told him to abort the mission. The moment you told him the team was in danger. He knows it was the right call, but at the same time, you could tell through his voice that old training was telling him to keep going. The circumstances were just out of their control and he knew that too. Now, he’s probably going to replay this in his head for hours before he actually falls asleep. 

“You’re quiet.” There is nothing but the sound of your voice and the elevator. “You’re thinking about what went wrong.” 

“Nothing went wrong.” He denies it. “Everything went wrong.” He sighs as he grips his hand tighter around your leg just before your knee. “What could’ve caused that much of a radiation leak?” 

You wrack your brain for something. “Cesium.” That’s the only thing you can think of for a radiation leak that big in a medical facility. “They use it in MRI machines. But it would take a lot of it to cause that much radiation.” You are surprised that you are lucid enough to recall that information. “I don’t know, but as soon as I feel better, I’ll be on the case.” You promise even though you feel like shit. 

The elevator stops on your floor and Bucky is carrying you out. Your workshop and apartment are only two doors away from the elevator, so it’s barely five seconds before Bucky is maneuvering himself to press the keypad on your door while you are still in his arms. As soon as the code is in, the one you programmed specifically for him, the door pops open and he’s pushing it with his foot. Once inside he gently kicks the door shut behind him. 

It’s lonely in this apartment, but you like it. You’ve made it your home with the warm colors and low lights that the AI brings up when you enter the room. It’s yours and Val will have to drag your cold body out of there before you ever leave. You are pretty sure the entire team will be turning Val over if she even thought about kicking you to the curb. Bucky would actually kill her. You know it, he knows it, and she knows it. So she lets him do his job and that means you get to do yours. Even if it means fixing Alexei’s phone every two weeks. 

“Did you get more books?” Bucky sees the stacks of books that you have acquired for reading even though it takes you no time to sit and read one. 

“I ordered a few for Bob because he pretty much read all the ones I recommended already.” When you learned that Bob liked to read, you were ready to start your own little book club with him and eventually Ava joined in on it too. “Some of them are for you too.” And Bucky was a reader too, he just didn’t tell anyone. “The small stack with your name on it are the ones I got for you.” You cough again as he passes by the stacks you had sorted out for everyone. 

“You didn’t have to do that, you know.” Yes you did. You have been sneaking books to him for six months, always leaving a copy of something you think he’d like on his desk. Then you’d find it on your workbench a week later with a note in his handwriting about what he liked or didn’t like about the book. 

“I do.” 

“Thank you.” He barely says your real name under his breath as he brings you to your room. 

You weren’t a very tidy person. You like your home looking like you lived in it, but it was clean. It was crowded with things that you kept around for comfort, but the only thing you didn’t have was pictures of a family you can’t remember. You remember the people that you lived with, the good and the bad, but you don’t remember your real family. 

He sits you down on your bed before he’s pulling the white comforter back and organizing the pile of pillows that you have on your bed. You need eight pillows. You do but he is moving most of them to the other side of the bed as you take off your shoes and make yourself comfortable. He finds your penguin Squishmallow buried underneath the pillows and throws it at you. It’s big enough for you to hold at night because sometimes you get nightmares about your time in foster care. 

“Come on, get in.” You aren’t a child. You’re a grown woman with a mind of your own, but this is him taking care of you because there is no one else. “I’ll get some more medicine and water for you.” 

“Okay.” You do as he says because you don’t have the energy to be disobedient. You slip in under the covers in just your hoodie and pajama pants that you had not changed out of since you were working comms. You were still on fire, but still freezing. There was no happy medium. 

When Bucky comes back to your room with a glass of water in his vibranium hand and two Motrin in the other, you sigh. Motrin. The standard go-to for anyone in the military since no one knows when. You curl up on your side with your penguin and watch as he holds the two little orange pills out to you. Your teeth are chattering at this point. You sit up and take the pills, throwing them in your mouth before swallowing. You reach for the water and gulp it down before handing it back to him. 

“Get some rest. I’ll call you in a few hours to check on you and if you don’t answer, I’m coming back here.” He is very serious because he does care. Probably more than he should, but you aren’t complaining. This is how he shows his affection. 

“Okay, Bucky.” You lay back down on the pillow before he’s pulling the covers over you and tucking you in tight. Sometimes you don’t mind that someone wants to take care of you. It rarely happens, but right now, it’s the look in Bucky’s eyes as he makes sure you are okay that has you feeling much better already. Maybe he’s always looked at you like this. You were too busy wrapped up in yourself and in others to really notice. 

“Good night, Sweetheart.” He says before flipping the lightswitch off and closing the door. You think he would probably make a good father someday, if not a good husband to some lucky woman. You definitely weren’t that lucky woman. You had too many problems to be that lucky woman. 

It doesn’t stop you from thinking about him as your body fights off whatever virus is inside you. 

[austinbutlerslovers]

Feyd Fantasy 7: The Finale

Label mature 18+

Honor & Heir

Summary

Feyd starts a war on Arrakis to gain final control over the Spice fields. He wants to finally free its massive profits to House Harkonnen and become the wealthiest family in the galaxy for you and his heir.

During your final month of pregnancy you and Feyd are summoned to the Emperors palace on the planet Kaitain by decree. Feyd is upset at any inconveniences to you with his unborn during this fragile time.

You reunite with your Reverend Mother in the palatial gardens and a fated decision must be made. The stress of the decision is so great you go into labor. For Feyd his world stops. He drops all of his responsibilities with the Emperor to be by your side.

Starts off Princess treatment romantic Ends with Feyds reign & birth of your child

⚠️Hard Core Smut⚠️

simultaneous self pleasure•size kink•fingering •handjob•forced orgasms•sex while sleeping•sex while injured•face sitting• submission •cum eating•thigh pinning• manhandling • position switching • body worship•multiple orgasms

⚔️ Feyd Fantasy Series Master List⚔️

Part 1•Part 2•Part 3•Part 4•Part 5•Part 6•Part 7 🗡️ Feyd Fantasy Chapter 1-6 Recap ⚔️Feyd Fantasy Master List ⚔️ 📖 All Genre Masterlist

⏳Extreme Dune Inaccuracies!⌛️ Based on the film Dune Part 2 (Feyd supremacy timeline)

💀 Trigger warnings dark themes: graphic death(s)

⚔️Final Fic Requests ⚔️ -Feyd gentle with you -Feyd Adoring you -Feyd forgoes his pleasure for your own -Faceriding Feyd -More arousal fluid! -Feyd gives you the princess treatment -Bene Gesserit kidnapping plot -Feyd as a father

This series was so fun to make I want to personally thank each and every one of you!! The last chapter is a novel in itself please enjoy this epic finale 🙏🏻

Special thank you to my proofreader @faegoddessog my smut consultant @burnthheparaphilia and my affection consultant @magicovento thank you for jumping on this wild ride with me I am so appreciative of everything you did to improve the series ⚔️

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Honor & Heir

You awaken on the Harkonnen palatial space craft traveling to Arrakis. You are in the beautifully decorated master suite on the giant bed. Resting across from you is Feyd sleeping peacefully in the black silk sheets.

You are enamored with his pale skin at this point especially in contrast with any dark color to enhance it.

You stroke your hand along his handsome face, he is completely out. It is becoming harder and harder for him to awaken in the mornings. Every time you use your ability to mentally inflict him with pain to orgasm it is essentially stealing his life force. He needs time to recover.

You have become infatuated with his pleasure sending severe signals of pain to his temple during sex to make him cum on your command. The way his back arcs as you watch the intensity increase in his yearning eyes always makes you orgasm as well.

During the evening he gave you a tour of the Harkonnen palatial space craft. When he saw you were impressed he could no longer contain his urges for you. As soon as he showed you the elaborately decorated master suite and saw the bed he wanted to claim you on it.

His hands slowly stripped your gown from your body as his lips ambushed your mouth. “I need to be inside of you” he panted staring into your eyes. You readily agreed and he kneeled before you pulling your gown and panties down as you stepped out of them.

“Have you ever fucked on a spacecraft Baroness?” He asked looking up at you with a knowing grin as you shook your head no. He picked you up in his strong arms bracing his hands beneath your thighs and kissed you sensually as he carried you to the black silk bed laying you down.

You rested back on your elbows to watch him stand from you and undress. He removed his regal top first revealing his perfectly chiseled physique.

His muscular chest and abs we’re on prominent display as his strong arms flung his tunic. When his fingers unclasped his pants you watched how his erect cock with his pink tip swayed as he stepped out of them.

Once his pale muscular body was naked he climbed over yours. His long thick cock dragged and touched against your thighs as he took his time pressing passionate kisses across your neck. He held your nape making you tilt your head back to gain more access to your throat for his wanting mouth. He sucked love marks across the entire front.

Once he had finished his trail of bruises he softly whispered against your ear “What would you like Baroness, how would you like me to please you?” it sent chills all over your body that he would let you decide.

His hand trailed down your abdomen resting at your core as he kissed your neck awaiting your instructions.

You had snuck into his kink cabinet before the trip and brought the arousal fluid. You knew he would be preoccupied on Arrakis and planned to use it to pleasure yourself while he was away.

Now when he offers himself for your desire you want him to use it on you instead . “In my things I have brought the arousal fluid, I want it Feyd” you say looking into his eyes. A smile forms on his lips as he helps you to get up. “If you have kept it hidden until now, did you plan to use it without me?” He questions as he spanks you before you leave his proximity. His dominance rising that you should ever be satisfied without him.

You smile shyly as you stand back in front of him with the vial. “Yes I planned to use it on myself” you admit. He rests back on his elbows with his muscular thighs spread apart, the size of his erect cock intimidates you. He gazes up to you with a deviant look in his eyes. “Show me” he says with extreme interest wanting to know how you pleasure yourself. It makes your heart skip a beat.

You become timid as his eyes look over you with such lust. You know once the fluid touches your folds you will be overcome with the need to pleasure yourself and will no longer by shy.

You apply a liberal amount to your fingertips and set the vail aside. As you reach between your thighs he mirrors your movements reaching his hand to take a firm hold of his cock. A small sound of pleasure escaped your lips. He will make you watch him as you do the same.

He tilts his head to the side studying your movements to match his own. You rub the fluid onto your entrance swirling your fingertips through your folds and letting out a breath.

The arousal fluid begins working instantly as the blood rushes to your core making your folds begin to pulse. With your clit and entrance throbbing you slip your fingers inside of yourself and let out a pleasurable gasp. Your eyes close as you enjoy the immeasurable feeling of calming the dull ache forming inside with your fingers.

Feyd begins to stroke off his cock eyes fixated on your hand between your legs. You begin making light sounds of pleasure and he pumps his shaft faster on his cock.

Your fingers become slippery from your over arousal and you try to reach deeper and pull down harder. You want to satisfy the dull ache increasing within but you can no longer gratify it, you need Feyd.

Your eyes open and gaze down at his changed condition. His hand is working feverishly on his shaft slicked with spit. His abs are flexing as he pants heavily in pleasure looking at you with an insatiable desire for sex in his eyes.

“I need you” you plead to him as you withdraw your fingers. He is on his feet and immediately claims you. His hand goes to your waist holding you steady and he plunges his two fingers deeply inside you.

You cry out from the pleasure of his larger fingers as they push through your tight walls. You clutch his shoulder with one hand and reach your wet fingers to his wrap around his cock with the other. He breathes a heavy sigh against your ear as you glide your fist around his shaft.

As you use each other for sexual gratification you reach your peak. His fingers are no longer enough, the arousal fluid has made you insatiable “Feyd I need you more please take me.” you beg him. He withdraws his fingers and lifts you onto his chest carrying you to the bed and forcing you down on your front.

He knows the arousal fluid makes you crave sex as he does, ruthlessly.

As he spreads your thighs apart you grip the sheets. When he presses his throbbing tip to your entrance you tense your body in preparation for his large size. He spanks you then and you cry out in shock “you want this cock and yet you tense?” he spanks you again on the same cheek shocking your body and making you moan “give yourself to me” he commands. You nod laying your head to the bed and relax your body.

He holds his hand firm on your lower back and pushes his large cock head inside of you followed by his thick shaft. You moan against the sheets from the overwhelming sensation of his size. He spanks you again to feel you clench on him “You were …made for ..me ..-Baroness. You are so tight …-on my cock… it drives me insane.” He pants out as he slowly rocks you on his length getting you used to his size.

As he increases his pace his thrusts become violent. He begins pounding you against the mattress splitting you open between your legs. You make small pathetic whimpers as your eyes roll up feeling the deepest part of your core completely satisfied.

He spanks you twice and you clench on him hard as you moan. “I want those pretty sounds Baroness” he commands. You begin to moan as he tucks his hands under your hips lifting them up and pulling you back to him on your knees with your chest to the bed.

He grips his hands around your hip bones and impales you onto his large cock. Your high pitched moans fill the air.

He impales you again and again pausing on the each of each thrust. When he feels the way your walls begin fluttering against his cock he knows you will cum.

He spanks you as he begins clapping his hips into you repeatedly and your body tenses overwhelmed with pleasure. You scream out yes in unending praise for him as you orgasm.

He pulls back his hips to withdraw from you and quickly grabs your waist. He easily flips you over to face him and plunges his large cock back in. “Feyd Rautha!” you moan out as your eyes gently roll back. Your body rocks violently from his thrusts.

“Make me cum!” He yells as his strong pace falters, his orgasm is imminent . You place your finger tips to his temple and inflict him with pain at the highest intensity making his body go rigid. He cries out in pleasure as he instantly cums filling your core with warmth painting your walls with his seed.

You release your fingertips and he regains control of his body almost collapsing on top of you. He breathes heavily as he looks down at you with a psychotic look in his eyes “I want more “ he says.

You give him what he desires and his orgasms increase with intensity. He makes depraved sounds as his cock pulses with no sperm left to give. With the arousal fluid working in your core you keep his pace.

On his fifth orgasm as you release him from pain he pants above you staring into your eyes mystified. You knew he can not handle another even though he wanted to.

With all his of his energy drained you collect him in your arms making him rest down on you. As you caress his head he fell into a deep sleep on top of you without withdrawing his cock.

In the morning when he doesn’t awaken after your gentle touches, you softly kiss his forehead and allow him rest. You plan to cease using your ability on him until he is fully restored.

Beginning your day you use the decontamination chamber,cleanse your mouth and face, then get dressed to eat breakfast in the dining room of the spaceship.

You walk through the large craft finding it eerily empty and cold. Once you locate the dining room there is a servant who attends to you and brings your meal. As you eat she informs you that one hour remains until you arrive on Arrakis.

When you finish you walk back to the master suite to inform Feyd. You place your hand in the designated finger print reader for the master suite door.

It registers your identity and the doors slide open allowing you inside. You find Feyd in the master bedroom. By this time he is awake and smiles as you enter the room.

He is putting the finishing touches on his gear dressed head to toe in his Harkonnen combat armor for war. You kiss his waiting lips.

“Did you sleep well?” he ask pushing his hand into his fingerless combat glove.” You smile enamored looking at him, eyeing his blades and how dangerously handsome he looks in his armor. Your attention finally returns to his handsome face.

“Yes I slept well and you?” You pry playfully because he could not even awaken. “I dreamt of you full and round with our unborn “ he says facing you smiling and placing his fingertips on your abdomen .”I felt complete“ He says as he gently pulls you close.

His words stir your passion for him and he holds you in his arms keeping you in his space as his eyes wander your face in the intimate moment.

”When I destroy the Fremen it will make us the wealthiest family in the galaxy. What would you like to do then?” He asks bringing one hand to softly hold the nape of your neck while caressing your jaw with his thumb.

Your heart swells realizing how powerful he could become “I would want you to be emperor.” You admit gazing up into his eyes. He traces his fingertips along your jawline to your chin caressing it affectionately with his thumb “So be it“ he says smiling back at you with his hypnotic blue eyes gazing into yours.

Through the small master suite window behind you he can see the glowing orange planet of Arrakis approaching in the distance.

“Come I want to show you something” he says and takes your hand. He leads you through the ship to the large and ornately decorated lounge. He brings you to stand in front of the floor to ceiling viewing windows.

Turning you to face them he wraps his arms around you to gaze at the planet together. At first you are only looking back to his face admiring him as he holds you in his embrace. You place your hands over his as he holds your close.

When you finally look out of the window a gasp escapes your lips. You are approaching the planet so quickly the enormity of the glowing orange world obscures the entire view of the window. It is an awe inspiring sight to behold.

Small bursts of light begin surrounding the ship until it sets ablaze glowing in flames across the window. You tightly grip Feyds hands frightened. He smiles pulling your closer against him as he kisses your ear “Don’t worry we are only entering the atmosphere” he says gently.

He admires how your eyes search over the landscape of his second planet once the atmosphere is breeched. He has fallen for you entirely he will give you everything, anything for his Baroness. You are his world.

The ship descends above an enormous palace structure built into a rocky mountain scape.

A heavy thud resounds the craft as it lands on its destination and the engines fade to silence.

Servants enter the lounge with two of Feyds advisors with your Doulah from Giedi Prime. They escort you to the exit of the craft.

As you descend the gangway the sweltering heat consumes you both. You squint your eyes from the brightness of the planets sun as you walk under a structured awning lined with guards into the cool depths of the palace.

Once inside Feyds assigned Menant greets him with a bow. “Welcome to Arrakis Baron Feyd Rautha your brother awaits you in the greeting hall. Baroness I hope you will find Palace Arrakeen to your liking. There are two female servants awaiting you in your chambers should you need anything during your time of greatest fragility.” You slowly understand his words they are concerned for your pregnancy.

Even though you have your doulah there are two more servants to attend to you. Feyd smiles at you realizing you haven’t even noticed the assassins trailing you for your protection from the ship yet. You are his top priority here. “Come let’s go see Rabban” he says taking your hand.

You are escorted to the greeting hall. As you walk through the palace everything is ancient sandstone with large pillars and supports. There are hand carved etchings on every wall showing the deep rooted history of the planet. Beige is the prominent color of every furnishing and decoration.

You arrive to the greeting hall and as the large doors open Rabban is already walking down the room to greet you “Brother!” He exclaims to Feyd. Rabban is dressed very casually in a simple black silk tunic. He looks relaxed and carefree as if he is not even in the midst of a planetary war.

Arrakis was Rabbans retreat away from the Baron he has the palace set up to his liking and with his uncles passing each day he has become more goal oriented to impress the new Baron, his younger brother.

Rabban bows to Feyd and smiles at you. “The colors of Geidi prime suit you well Baroness ” he says noticing you fully dress in black now to match Feyd. You smile and simply nod.

“I have much to share with you Baron Feyd Rautha” Rabban chides his brother who tries to disguise his pride at the new title. “Come let’s all eat the meal I have had prepared for you with the delicacies of Arrakis.” Rabban says excitedly.

You follow him to the dining hall. The room is very large with vaulted ceilings, yet very beige and minimalist. There is a huge scale rug the length of the table and sun protecting the long windows which let light inside. You sit to Feyds left at the sand stone table in a hovering chair.

The meal is placed in front of you. Dried fruits, roasted meats, cheeses, and seeds. You are intrigued by dessert food.

As you eat Rabban and Feyd discuss the ongoing war efforts with his two advisors.

“When you ordered the annihilation of the Fremen I knew it would be a difficult war. We keep them at bay but they return with more forces like rats! If we find their strongholds in the north we can finally subdue them and continue south. I have much to discuss with your calculated mind brother.” Rabban conveys as he eats

Feyd nods and reaches for your hand which you hold as they continue to speak on the matter. He traces his thumb across your knuckles as he discusses war strategies. He is so resolute and cunning as he speaks it makes you desire him.

After lunch Feyd bids you farewell with a kiss on the lips and leaves you with your servants. He heads to the war room infatuated with what he has planned over lunch with Rabban. A surprise attack on the Fremen this very evening.

In the center of the war room is a table which projects the live locations of all Harkonnen war crafts near estimated Fremen strongholds. The military strategist give Feyd the records he requested of the heaviest attacks on the harvesters and uses them to point where the Harkonnen war vessels should attack.

They wait and watch as the crafts shoot live rounds into pinpointed locations. Next they order the ground troops to search the hidden cavernous structures during the cool of the night after the destruction.

They locate several more hide outs annihilating every being within. The Harkonnen ground troops then signal the war crafts to completely destroy the structures knowing far more are hidden beneath.

The collapsing rubble kills thousands more who hid deeper inside. The unsuspecting Fremen who planned to attack at day break when the Harkonnens were weaker and more susceptible to the climate are thwarted.

The Harkonnen destruction sets the desert ablaze glowing with fires that fill the night sky of billowing smoke and the cries of the few scattered survivors who plan to retaliate with their last dying breath.

It is the early hours before sunrise when Feyd finally returns to you in the palace bedroom. He will be leading a charge in the morning to dispatch the remaining survivors in the rubble of destruction from the hours of raids.

He wants to ensure first hand he has taken the north from the Fremen for good.

After he strips of his armor he uses the decontamination chamber. He tilts his head up as the water sprays over him smiling that he has done what his uncle could not. Free the north to harvest spice at will. He has even crueler intentions set for those tomorrow that oppose his reign on this planet. After the hot air dries him he walks through the darkened grand room naked.

He climbs into bed with you and rests his hand on your hip. Feeling you safe finally calms his thoughts of war and bloodlust. He pulls you to him and tries to fall asleep.

After several moments shifting with his eyes closed he is unable to. The nights on Arrakis are too hot for his body. He is used to the colder climate on Giedi Prime. He lays closer to you and begins caressing your waist to distract himself. It makes him desire you and perhaps he thinks once physically satisfied he can sleep in the heat of the desert night.

You lay with your back to him as he slips his fingers over your neck to clear your hair from your shoulder. His lips make contact with your skin as he inhales your scent. He plants soft kisses but you do not sir.

He brings his hand over the front of your core sneaking his fingers between your folds and swirling them against your clit. His cock begins pressing hard against your thighs but you still do not move sleeping soundly. He decides then to use you gently enough for his pleasure without disturbing your rest.

He sucks his fingers and pushes them into your entrance as he lays behind you. Feeling the heat inside of you hardens his cock solid. He works his fingers slowly until you become wet for him. He aims his cock to your folds and presses into you as slowly.

His heart rate increases as he feels the tightness of your walls take each inch of his cock. He finally settles you on his base and lets out a breath of pleasure. He pushes his cock into you deeply to feel the friction of your walls without awakening you. He concentrates to remain himself and stay at such a slow pace.

When you finally awaken and Feyd is already thrusting between your legs making you begin panting and moaning shocked into arousal at already being penetrated.

Your brain strives to catch up with your body as your heart beats wildly. You hear his heavy grunts behind you as his hips pound against your thighs. He works his thrusts holding your waist to him keeping you steady on his cock.

He grins at having to last a little longer now that you are awake to make you cum with him. He cups your breast pinching and pulling the nipple that makes you cry out for him as you clench on his length.

You moan his name as he thrusts into you harder and he knows you will cum. He brings his hand to your clit slipping his fingers over the wet nub to make you orgasm. “Feyd I’m going to cum” you moan out. “Cum for me” he commands. His lips press your neck sucking more love mark into your flesh.

Your back arcs as you orgasm and he flicks your clit faster with his fingers as he paints your walls with his cum. His head falls back and you hear him groaning in pleasure at the euphoric feeling of your walls milking his cock. He slows his thrusts to a stop when he is empty and you both pant as you come down.

You suddenly smile as you laugh in the darkened room “Why didn’t you awaken me?” You ask as he withdraws his cock from your body. “I couldn’t sleep and you were resting so soundly.” He admits.

You turn over to face him. The room is dimly lit with moonlight but you can see him smiling in satisfaction. His body is glistening in sweat and he is still panting. You press your hand to his forehead and his chest feeling he is hot all over.

You sit up and pull the sheets from him. You eye his body the way he is still labored breathing. “Feyd It is too hot for you here.” you discern getting up from the bed to help him cool down.

Though the planet is scarce with water the Arrakeen palace rests on an aquifer, structured above its cavernous system of fresh water.

You run a bath for Feyd in the sand stone basin. You call to him when it has filled. As he rests in the cool water you bring a cloth and soak it to pat on his neck and chest before placing it on his forehead. He grabs your wrist and pulls your hand to place a kiss there as he looks into your eyes.

He has never been cared for in this way and his eyes plead for more. You smile at him and kneel by the basin. You rub his face and neck with the cloth until his eyes close and he relaxes.

Once he is settled you cover your mouth and yawn. He sees you are tired “Go rest I will join you soon” he says and you place a kiss to his forehead.

You return to bed exhausted and fall back into a deep sleep. When Feyds body cools down he joins you in bed soon afrer and holds your waist kissing behind your ear enamored. He finally closes his eyes and falls asleep.

Only Pleasure Remains

It is the morning of Feyd’s battle reconnaissance on Arrakis.He will be going to the front lines to kill the remaining Fremen and rally the troops. His heart beats wildly as he prepares. Once fully in his armor he kneels down to caress your face. He might die today from a strategic attack, so he makes sure you see him leave “See me off Baroness” he says smiling as you open your eyes.

You reach up and cup his face and he pulls you from the sheets into a hug. His hard armor presses into the softness of your body. You hold his head around his ears making him lock eyes with you.

“You will prove your honor and then you will come back to me” you command him and he smiles giving you a chaste kiss. You know he is going to love every second of murdering today. He is in full military gear this time with a flowing regal cape.

You quickly cleanse your mouth and get dressed. You leave with him to the greeting hall where his top military advisors and brother are assembled and waiting.

You walk hand in hand trailed by your servants. You stop the procession and pull him into a kiss before he enters the greeting hall. He accepts your passionate kiss and pets down your hair. When you release his lips as your heart beats wildly youare terrified for him. “Do you feel nervous?” You ask feeling the uncertainty of warfare second hand.

He smiles staring into your eyes “I was born to be this” he confesses. It give you some reprieve that his words are true, his bloodline was bred for centuries to create a supreme being.

The servants open the greeting hall doors and you watch Feyd join his brother and his men. He looks back to you and smiles his cape unfurling as he turns with his commanding walk leaving to the underground warships cargo of the palace.

You stand at the greeting hall floor to ceiling windows and wait. After a moment his armada can be seen emerging from the base of the palace. The ships hover in place before setting the course to their destination and jettisoning off.

As the ships trail over the horizon your heart aches with uncertainty as you await Feyds return.

Flying south across the desert Feyd sees several structures in rubble with smoke billowing from them. “The death of our enemy by your hand brother “Rabban yells to Feyd over the loud engine of the craft. Looking into the horizon Feyd sees hundreds of billowing stacks of smoke.

They approach a large intact rock structure at the barrier of the north territory and the craft lands. Feyd exits the craft as his military strategist informs him they have rounded up the remaining Fremen who are most likely spies left behind.

Feyd plans to kill them all.

“Where?” He asks as they enter the structure. It is a cave with several rooms, one of them filled with messenger birds that a Harkonnen soldier crisps to death with a flame accelerator.

The military strategist escorts Feyd to the Fremen spies who are lined up on their knees in a single row. The large cave is overcrowded with Harkonnen soldiers for Feyds protection.

Feyd walks approaching the Fremen spies slowly. He eyes each of them in the line. “Are there more of you?” He asks. None of them respond, instead they hold their heads up in defiance.

“These are all that could be found alive Baron Feyd Rautha” his military strategist confirms

“Then I already know everything that I need to know” Feyd says staring at the first spy on his knees.

Feyd unsheathes his blade. The first spy sensing his certain death stands and lunges Feyd who easily slices him across his throat. The spy collapses to the ground gurgling on his blood as he expires.

The other spies begin to panic breathing rapidly looking to each other in fear knowing death is imminent.

Feyd gestures a solider to bring him the flame accelerator. His Harkonnen soldiers step from behind the spies and gather around Feyd to behold the mercilessness of their new Baron.

“Only pleasure remains” he announces clutching the trigger. It douses the spies in flaming liquid making them combust. The accelerant ignites their bodies into glowing torches illuminating the cave. All the soldiers hear the Fremens screams cut off as they burn alive disintegrating into char.

Feyd knows this is one of the most painful way to die. Once the other Fremen find these charred remains it will strike fear and respect into the inhabitants of the planet for the entirety of his reign.

This is the first of many strongholds they must clear today. Killing all who remain and securing control of the north.

Two Ways to Die

As you settle for bed you still have not heard of Feyd’s return. You feel anxious and slide open the balcony doors to view the desert for any signs of incoming crafts forgetting the rules set in place by Feyd. The night air is swelteringly hot as you scan the horizon.

There is a sudden knock at the main chamber door as you close the balcony. It is one of your assassins who knocks on your bedroom door. “I’ve been informed you’re not allowed on the balcony Barnoness ” he relays after you open it. You nod in agreement and close the bedroom door back . You are being watched at all times while Feyd is away.

You awaken a few hours later when there is activity in the main chamber. You hear Feyds voice speaking to the guards. You rush from the bedroom to the main chamber and see him. His eyes are emotionless as you run to hug him.

He is covered streaks of blood and it makes you gasp. He releases your hold on him “Wait for me in the bed chamber” he says clutching your wrists to keep your hands unsullied. He releases your wrists and you go to wait. He continues speaking with your assasind before dismissing them to the hall for the remainder of the night.

You pace looking to the bed chamber doors waiting. He finally enters and you notice the dark blood on his neck “You’re hurt!” You exclaim.

He is exhausted and keeps you at bay holding his hand out “Sit and wait for me I have already been treated by the palace healer ” he reassures you as he gestures you to sit. He walks to the decontamination chamber room and closes the door.

You wait anxiously until he emerges. Once he is clean you rush him again to check his body.

You see the bruises on his back and abs but the worst is the lengthy cut on his neck.

You trace your finger along the line, it is sealed shut. “Feyd what happened?” You ask finally looking into his eyes full of concern.

He walks you to the bed and sits pulling you onto his lap conserving his strength. He brings your hand to his temple to comfort him with your energy.

He closes his eyes and you observe his stressed face relax as you transfer calmness into his mind. He opens his eyes to gaze in yours and you see the softness return to them as he slowly begins revealing what happened.

“We were ambushed at one of the final strongholds” he admits. Your eyes widen in disbelief that he was attacked.

“The Fremen I fought to the death kneed me throughout as we struggled to gain the blade. I angled to allow him a slice to my neck and regained the handle once he extended his wrist. A small sacrifice to secure victory“ he admits with a weak smile. Your heart spirals knowing that he was in life threatening danger.

“In that moment just as in the arena when I felt death was near I laughed because I already have everything set in place to keep you safe forever should I die. I have always known I will not live long in this lif- - .”

You hug him to your chest to stop his morbid words. You don’t want to hear him say another utterance of his death it makes you emotionally fall apart.

You remove your robe from your shoulders and settle on to his lap. Both of you naked as you clutch his jaw and kiss every thought out of his head.

He relaxes into your kisses and lays back flat on the bed holding you to him never breaking the connection of your lips. He trails his hands up your spine settling them to the nape of your neck.

An idea returns to his mind of the only two ways he wants to die; one is in ultimate submission to you.

He pulls your face from his and gazes into your eyes. “I want to submit myself to you” he says sliding his hands to your hips lifting them up. He pulls you forward until your pussy hovers over his face. “I want to give myself only for your pleasure” he confesses

He trails his hands up to your waist and eagerly pulls you down onto his wanting mouth.

Once you settle on his face between your legs you tilt your head back and moan his name. He has never submitted to you in this way before and it completely ignites your sexual passion for him.

You fall forward and grip the sheets as he begins eating you mercilessly lapping your folds sucking them and jutting his chin up with every flick of his tongue. You are shaking and screaming in pleasure as your core tightens overwhelmed with his skill.

He groans against your folds and replaces his hands to cup your hips guiding you up and down on his mouth making you ride his face as he pushes his tongue into your entrance.

You grind against his mouth until your thighs tremble as you moan and orgasm. Your core releases the clear liquid arousal of your cum directly into his wanting mouth. His eyelids flutter in obsession lapping up your arousal in pure bliss. He licks you clean and pushes his tongue into your entrance prodding for more.

The only two ways he would choose his death; Being fatally stabbed by an expert fighter or being suffocated between your thighs devouring your sweet cunt until he expires.

Once you orgasm and have no cum left to give he grips the back of your thighs and quickly rolls on top of you. He climbs your body and settles between your legs. He lines his cock and plunges into your soft wet entrance. You are completely primed for him and he sinks deeply inside of you as he groans in pleasure.

You moan at the stretch of his large his size before you cry out at the way he fucks you.

He pounds into you grunting and spreading your thighs apart with his hands. He holds them back to increase his pleasure. He is so high from submitting to you and having you ride his face until you came that he is relentless.

His cock is painfully hard as he thrusts into your tight walls. He clenches his thighs to push himself even deeper. You two pant and moan in unison as he quickens his thrusts going harder wanting to cum.

He looks at your face full of passion beneath him and you see the intensity in his eyes of how much he loves you. It is immeasurable.

You reach up grab his neck pulling him down into a kiss. You lock your lips with him as he rocks into you with his thrusts. His hips falter and he deeply moans into your mouth as he begins releasing his warm cum in to you. He breaks the kiss but you bite his lower lip making him stay and he cums even harder.

You wrap your legs around his waist to prevent him from slamming you into the bed and it intensifies his pleasure even more, keeping him fully inside of you as he empties his pulsing cock. He finally slows his thrusts to a stop.

He shudders as he stares down at you catching his breath. It was one of his most fulfilling sexual experiences he’s had with you and you both smile at each other in recognition.

He lifts his hips and slips out of you rolling on to his back trying to slow his breaths.

You are both covered in sweat your sex making the room increase in temperature.

You know he is hot and leave the bed to fill the sand stone basin. Once it is full you stop the valve. He hears it and comes to get in the cool water. As he steps he holds your hand to join him, helping you over the ledge.

He settles down in the water and has you lay your back against his chest. As he holds you firm to him, you both of you rest your eyes enjoying the intimate moment.

He trails his hand along your shoulder before finally breaking the silent moment. “Ask your Doulah how soon after the first can I fill you with a second.” You laugh at his eager request and how much he wants to have more children with you.

Flipping over in the water you rest on his chest with your arms around his neck. You gaze into his impatient eyes as you answer resolutely “Feyd Rautha first you must have this one” he grins and flips you over to rest your back on his chest again. His hands slide down around your womb beneath the water cradling you with his first unborn. He can not wait to have his children with you.

The Final Days

Feyds powers increase exponentially. He begins bombing raids on large structures in the south of Arrakis killing hundreds of thousands. The inhabitants of the planet submit to him completely to save what remaining ancient holy structures they have left.

They believe no matter who controls the planet that one day their Muad’Dib will rise and avenge the catastrophes Feyd Rautha has caused their people.

Without interference from the Fremen the Harkonnen army begins to run the harvesters untouched increasing Spice production exponentially.

When Feyd frees the hold on Spice his wealth soon surpasses that of the emperors. He uses his excess riches and status to coerce and bribe other members of the great houses. The calculating Feyd Rautha becomes untouchable.

Feyds upgraded quarters are substantially luxurious on Giedi Prime. The bed frame is carved from the black Harkonnen stone of purity.

There is a seating room, a sauna, a spa, and a room to entertain guests with a balcony that stretches the entire length of the suite.

Due to his constant concerns of your safety he requested you remain there for the final weeks of your pregnancy ensuring everything you needed was provided for.

When Feyd returns after his Baron duties he always seeks you out embracing you like he hasn’t seen you in days. He is running several interplanetary campaigns as well improving the world for his people. He cherishes the calm quiet moments you can spend together.

He wants the same thing each time after he bathes. He hugs you from behind running his hands over your full breasts and your womb whispering gently in your ear about how beautiful you look carrying his unborn until he makes you smile.

Then he would help you lay on the bed and place his ear against your womb. At first he would thump it with his fingers it summon the unborn until you told him just to use his voice instead and placed his hand were you knew he would feel the kicks.

He was infatuated feeling his unborn respond to him. He would pull your hand to his head forcing you to send him calming energy and would often fall asleep exhausted in your lap with his hand resting on your womb this way. Other nights he wanted more.

The first instance when you felt the dull ache that wouldn’t dissipate during sex you grabbed his arm begging him to stop as you tried to recover from the pain. The penetration of his large cock became too painful. He immediately withdrew himself and held you in his arms caressing you until you felt the pain subside.

You still craved him but in a much softer way and he understood. You were sacred to him and he couldn’t get enough of you but he would forgo his pleasure for your own.

Having you sit up he would stack pillows behind your back and worship your body trailing kisses down your neck to your chest sucking each of your nipples into his mouth.

He would continue down your belly massaging the sides before gently settling between your legs. He would pleasure you slowly and carefully sliding his fingers in and out of you coaxing the swollen firmness within that made you fall apart for him within seconds.

His favorite part was your new taste his breathing would become heavier waiting for the exact moment you clenched on his fingers as you came. He would lap up your arousal which was so sweet to him like nectar.

His cock would painfully harden as he made you cum and he tasted it.

When he pleasured himself for you he would always let you watch. Often he would squeeze one of your full breast in his hand as he came or have you press your fingers to his temple and illicit him with pain to release his cum.

After he orgasmed he would clean his hands and take the pillows from behind your back turning you on your side. As he lay behind you he would kiss the back of your head and place his hand on your womb as you slept.

He knew anyday the unborn would be arriving. When it was dark in the stillness of night he would be awakened by the unborns firm kicks against his hand. They were so powerful now.

A Royal Decree

When Feyd is summoned by royal decree to Kaitan to meet with the Emperor he is enraged at the timing during your most fragile state of pregnancy. As you load onto the warship he fears for your safety and health on Kaitan but he can not leave you on Geidi Prime he knows you will birth his heir any day and he will not miss it. He brings his best militants and assassins with your Doulah.

The Emperor assures him they have the most skilled midwife in the galaxy should complications arise. He knows that the child is protected by the Bene Gessirit as one of the most highly sought after bloodlines to create a supreme being in history. He welcomes Feyd with open arms.

As you arrive to Kaitan you are mystified. You look at the expanse of the lush green planet in all directions as you fly to the palace. The craft descends at its destination and you see the infamous palatial waterfalls similar to the ones were you used to study.

You become excited and squeeze Feyds hand as he rests next to you in the space craft lounge. You haven’t seen your home world in almost a year but it feels like a lifetime.

You and Feyd exit the craft together escorted by two advisors, three assassins, and a flank of his most skilled Harkonnen warriors stationed behind him.

The palace greeter is shocked by Feyds entourage it is like an Emperor’s“ Greetings Baron and Baroness Harkonnen I am Pitri” The greeter says as he warily eyes your full pregnancy “The Emperor apologizes for requesting your presence at such an inconvenient time but some rather alarming accusations have come to light that must be addressed in person. I’m sure you will come to understand. I will show you to your quarters.” He announces.

You walk through the grandiose palace to reach the guest suites and are shown to your accommodations. Two of your Bene Gessit sisters wait at the door to welcome your arrival they approach you in jubilation. They are pushed back by the assassins ready to unsheathe their swords.

Feyd snaps his fingers and smiles as they release the startled females. Exactly the protection he wants for his Baroness. “May we approach Baroness Harkonnen” they bow and ask correctly the second time. You nod and smile as they come to hug you. They marvel over your garments and your rings.

Feyd leaves one guard with you and waits as the assassins clear the room of any threats.

Once they clear the room you are permitted to enter. Your sisters pull your hands gently guiding you inside. Your eyes widen at the extravagance of the room is like its own small palace. Pillars in the entry way make you look up to a hand painted mural of the palatial gardens

The room itself is open to a palace lake. Round awnings are decorated with curtains that billow in the wind. The room is completely open to an outside garden.The theme is turquoise and gold decorations throughout the colors are bright and fanciful every room is filled with fresh fruit and decorative bouquets of flowers.

You are quite exhausted from the trip but your sisters beckon you to sit with them in the enormous living room and you oblige.

As you rest on a sofa together they can’t help but caress your belly. “When does the unborn kick?” Your sister Freya asks feeling the round firmness pressing her ear to your womb “Very often at night” you say wearily.

“How has Baron Feyd Rautha been during your pregancy. The rumors of Giedi Prime men and their treatment of females is atrocious.” Delphine says making a wary face toward Feyd while he is speaking with his advisor.

You smile looking down at your belly trailing your hand around it “He has surprisingly been obsessed with me and his unborn” you admit as you blush. They smile with you. ”He has even broached the topic lightly in meetings with his advisors about the evolving roles of females on Giedi Prime. I fear if he isn’t careful some will assume a female might be in control of him” you tease making the three of you giggle together in secret.

Feyd’s advisor informs him the Revered Mother has requested your company in isolation. He immediately dismisses it. “I do not know this female. The risk is too great here she can come to Giedi Prime where I can guarantee the safety of the Baroness” he says in a set tone. His advisor bows and arranges to send the correspondence.

The Emperor has requested a private meeting with Feyd over dinner that evening which intrigues him more. As you speak to your sisters he prepares for the occasion.

When you notice he has retreated to get changed you bid your sisters farewell.

Once they leave you head to the master suite joining Feyd and close the door. You rest back on the ornate canopy bed with your arms splayed at your sides The garden breeze blows through the room bringing the sweet scent of florals. You feel heavy and physically exhausted you can no longer get up and use your remaining energy to turn on your side instead.

Feyd emerges from the wardrobe room dressed regally in a black high collar shirt with a cape. Pinned to the front is his Baron Medallion.

He walks over to you and smiles, seeing you are unable to remain awake he caresses your face. “I will call your servants to attend to you I want you to rest until I get back” he says gently as your heavy eyelids shut. This is normal behavior for you now. He knows his powerful unborn is harvesting all of your energy he caresses your womb before he leaves to have dinner with the Emperor.

The Emperor

Feyd walks the enormous palace to the throne room with two of his Harkonnen guards. They are stopped at the doors by the Emperial solidiers, only Feyd is permitted to enter.

He looks around the large dome space of the throne room in its impressive grandeur. There is no one in sight. He eyes the throne of the Emperor and takes a few paces toward its golden steps before a familiar voice stops him.

“Baron Feyd Rautha my how you’ve grown.” Princess Irulan says as she approaches him.

She swishes her elaborate silver gown as she walks over to study the mystifying man before her with appealing interest.

She pleasantly smiles as they greet. “The last I’d seen you was ages ago. I remember it distinctly…you were so excited to show me one of your new blades…of course my servants ushered me away. ‘He’s a dangerous child they warned me, but I found you to be very sweet.” She says fondly smiling from the memory looking at how handsome he’s become.

“I have no memory of this “ Feyd admits

“You were but a boy about this tall” she measures to his chest at his Barons medallion then looks into his striking blue eyes. “But you’ve grown much bigger since then.” She admits with an alluring smile, she slowly encircles Feyd looking over his regal clothing and his strong physique before standing in front of him again with a mysterious smile.

“I was dismayed I couldn’t attend your gladiatorial event I would’ve loved to see you wield the blades you are so fond of.” she sighs “From what I hear you performed valiantly and then had quite the time at your birthday celebration….before……your uncle unexpectedly expired the next morning...” she shares.

Princess Irulan approaches him closer to check his eyes trying to discern if he actually killed his own uncle.

“It must have been bitter sweet” she says gazing deeper into his eyes as she presses her hands to smooth the front of his cape. Feyd takes a small step back due to her comfort in his proximity.

“Your father had me summoned here why are you the one who greets me?.” He asks tilting his head in curiosity.

She studies his stoic demeanor wondering how she can crack him to bend to her will. She finally pinpoints a weakness and ignores his question to interrogate him.

“Knowing your infamous lust for power it seems all too convenient doesn’t it? Your uncle falling ill as soon as my father deems you the worthy Baron of Geidi Prime?” She says tracing her fingertip around his Baron Medallion.

Feyd can no longer stand her incessant talking and veiled threats “Where is the Emperor?” He snaps. His dominance excites her and she stares at him with an unwavering intensity having never been talked down to.

She tries to gain his favor with sympathy .“My father is frail. He wasn’t feeling well this morning. He and I were supposed to meet you in the throne room together but look he is still at the out door dinner table set up for us, just there” she points and Feyd sees the frail old man being helped to sit back down at the head of the table in the palatial gardens.

“My father is a very proud man he will walk to you eventually but let’s make it easier and walk to him together through the garden shall we?.“ she requests looking at Feyd with kind eyes.

He cares nothing for the old man but walks to make the meeting faster.

Princess Irulan slips her hand around Feyds arm as they walk, he immediately releases her hold stepping aside as they continue on their path. “It is impolite for a guest to refuse an escort to the Princess in the palace” she corrects him.

“I do not entertain the wishes of a princess” he responds clasping his hands behind his back as they walk together. She smiles enjoying the way he challenges her.

“Typical Harkonnen male unassuming of the power a female can weild“ she says pulling his arm and replacing her hand around it.

“My title holds more power over yours in every way possible Baron Feyd Rautha you will do as I say” she commands. It burns Feyd on the inside to be talked to in such a way but he does not show it.

He clearly sees through her veiled attempts to control him for her benefit. Her dress her mannerisms the way she continues to stare longingly at him holding his arm. All signs the Emperor is desperate to arrange a marriage between them.

Feyd knows the mysterious leak of Vladimir Harkonnens documentation of the ordered Atreides genocide must have reached Kaitan by now.

With the correspondences traced directly from the palace ordering the attack on Caladan, the Emperor must be aware his reign is coming to an end.

As they both approach Emperor Shaddam smiles. He is a frail old man with white hair and a stoic face. He wear an extravagant shimmering white tunic with gold adornments.

“Feyd Rautha! Ah my mistake Baron Feyd Rautha I haven’t seen you since you were a boy” he exclaims “I’ve already told him father “ Princess Irulan says flatly. ”You look very handsome with my Princess Irulan on your arm why did you ever go back on that proposal negotiation! I would adore to call you my son in law.” The Emperor reveals.

“You both know why” Feyd Rautha admits shooting them glances and removing Princess Irulans hand the final time before he continues.

“What I want to know is why you can’t even bring yourself to acknowledge her, my Baroness.” he says eyes glaring between them. It enrages him that they think of him without you.

The Emperor puts his hands up to calm the situation “Baron we are aware of her yes and her condition we are just confused. Your uncle informed us you needed her to procure an heir but due to high incompatibility you would be sending her back here to Kaitan.” The Emperor reveals. Feyd tries to hide the impact of the shocking blow of the Emperors revalation by shifting his jaw.

Princes Irulans passions increase for Feyd seeing he is truly in love, this is his weakness. She watches him fidget with his signet ring clearly distressed and thinking about his Baroness. She is used to cold political marriages and power dynamics. Seeing a Harkonnen male with his heart strung for a female stirs something inside of her.

She thought him to be masculine and domineering which excites her. But the handsome man who stands before her is also intelligent and loyal with extreme wealth and honor. She must have him.

“The Baroness is my wife and her child is my heir” Feyd proclaims.

The Emperor puts his hands up in acknowledgment “I see that there has definitely been a misunderstanding. Irulan my lovely daughter, you will not be joining us for dinner” The emperor informs her. Princess Irulan lifts her chin in frustration, she is used to getting her way.

She approaches her father and kisses his cheek bidding him farewell. She smiles to Feyd “My father is a kind man unlike your uncle, what a shame, House Harkonnen could have held such a powerful union.”she says alluringly.

Feyd lifts his chin with a sinister gaze “ If you so desire to be betrothed into House Harkonnen so be it. Emperor Shaddam set forth the arrangements to marry Princess Irulan with my brother Rabban” her eyes widen in shock. Rabban is a brutal impulsive butcher she does not desire him at all.

Feyd enjoys the fear in her eyes and holds back his smile as the Emperor actually mulls it over.

Before he can utter a word Princess Irulan cuts in. “Father we must speak with the Reverend Mother on such arrangments” she says quickly.

Her father nods in agreement. “You are correct as always on these matters my precious daughter” he says taking her hand and patting it. She looks to her father and then longingly at Feyd bidding them farewell for the evening.

The emperor rests back down in his chair at the head of the table clearly tired from the exertion of merely standing. He gestures Feyd to take the seat at his right as a servant pulls the chair for him.

A meal of fresh herb filet is plated infront of them. Feyd cuts into the fish and brings a piece to his mouth. He enjoys the texture and the soft flavor he has never had fish before.

The Emperor gets straight to the topic at hand seeing Feyd is swift and precise at cutting through conversations.

“It has come to light that the atrocities committed on Caladan that wiped out the Atreides were premeditated .” He sighs.

“You mean the affairs of my uncle?” Feyd questions with his hands clasped already distancing himself from collusion.

“Yes unfortunately so, as you are aware it was ordered by my hand and now I will be tried in front of a tribunal of the great houses…..” the Emperor puts down his fork and looks into Feyds eyes.

“Baron Feyd Rautha my reign has come to an end, my sins have caught up with me. What I have done I chose to do. Every sacrifice I made led me to the path which I was foretold would benefit mankind. Do you understand the weight of such a decision?” the Emperor implores.

“Do I understand the weight of ordering a genocide to suppress the power of a competent rival ?“ Feyd asks throwing the Emperor’s sins directly back in his face.

“Yes …yes that is why you have been summoned you will be as I am, you will have what I have in leadership. The decisions I made were all guided by the Bene Gessirit. Have you met the Reverend mother yet?” The emperor asks with piqued curiosity

“I have not“ Feyd admits. The Emperor thinks on his answer. “If you have come this far without meeting her, then she already controls you” the Emperor says with a warning glare that falters Feyds confidence. The old man says it with such a depth of sincerity it cannot be false.

“What exactly does the Reverend Mother want” Feyd asks with a newfound curiosity.

“What they all want power and control. One will replace the other but they all twist fate to their benefit to create the ultimate being. A human able to see past present and future. Even the highest Bene Gesserit, the Reverend Mother can only see the past.

Baron have you known you carry the superior bloodline? Your Baroness is in fact a Bene Gesserit as are the multitude of women who infiltrated your family for centuries to breed…do you understand that this is why they want your child?

Feyd sits back in shock he cares not of what the Bene Gesserit want. “What will happen to my child?” Feyd asks leaning back in fully invested with his only concern.

The Emperor thinks it over before coming to his conclusion. He leans in closer to Feyd as he speaks. “Baron what I tell you can not be interfered with. They have ways to make men do unspeakable things if you turn against them. Before I knew you had an attachment I would have willingly told you, now that I know you love the mother and child… Baron I must be honest, with your traumatic family history I fear for your mental sanity when I share the news.”

Feyd takes a deep breath and asks resolutely

“What will happen to my child”

The Emperor looks to the sky and then stressfully relents

“If your infant is female she will be taken from her mother at birth indoctrinated in the ways of the Bene Gesserit. She will be completely ignorant of her parentage and will be raised in complete secrecy. Ultimately she will become ..a bedding concubine … a pleasure slave for the male who will impregnate her with a son to secure the bloodline. The Bene Gesserit breed only to have females. This would make your grandson the rarest male Bene Gesserit of all, the Kswis Haderach that has been awaited for centuries”

Feyds breathing increases wondering if you know they will take the newborn at birth and if his uncle designed every detail of this plan with the Bene Gessirit. He remembers his uncle never thought he would be invested in marriage and wanted you sent away during your pregnancy. His heart pounds rapidly at the complications now.

“You say the Bene Gessirit favor the birth of females what if my unborn is male?”he asks. The Emperor thinks back before he responds.

“There was such an instance directly linked to you Baron Feyd Rautha. Your compatible mate was to be born in the House Atreides.You would have fathered the Kswish Haderisck you were meant to have a son.”

Feyd is shocked by the admission and listens to the Emperor further.

“Lady Jessica defied the order and birthed a boy named Paul with Duke Leto Atreides making your union incompatible. This is the center of it all the Bene Gesserit will have to wait another generation for your daughter to birth the Kswis Haderach which should have been your son.”

“Now what will happen if my unborn a male?” Feyd requestions.

“He will be an abomination to the Bene Gesserit just as Paul Atreides they will want nothing to do with him” the Emperor reveals.

Feyd sits back in silence realizing his cursed Harkonnen lineage continues. If he has a daughter she will be ignorant of her parentage just as he never knew his father and mother.

The painful memory of Feyds childhood floods his mind entirely. He clutches his head in mental anguish no longer able to contain the agony and stress he’s carried deep inside for so long. He rocks back and forth and squeezes his eyes shut in dispar, his bloodline has already cursed his unborn.

That fateful day on Lankerville when Rabban killed their father Feyd Rautha was there.

Matricide

The ship carrying the Baron with Rabban and Feyd landed on the planet Lankerville.

The Baron remained in the craft with the young Feyd while Rabban went to speak with their father.

Feyd was seven years old, a very quiet and clever boy. Vladimir had Feyd rested upon his lap holding him closely petting him affectionately.

The Baron knew the day would come when he would need to punish his brother Abulurd for renouncing the Harkonnen name and tying to hide away with his sons.

What better way to deliver justice on such a dishonor than to have his brothers sons raised as Harkonnens to return and deliver it.

Years prior he easily tracked down his fleeing brother Abulurd with his Bene Gesserit wife. The Baron generously offered his brother the planet Lankerville to show no ill will.

But soon as Arbulurd arrived on Lankerville with his wife and sons the Baron ordered his Harkonnen guards to clutch baby Feyd out of his mother’s arms and collect the teenaged Rabban.

He took his brothers sons for his crime of renouncing the Harkonnen name.

Their mother screamed at the Baron for interfering with the plans of the Bene Gesserit and how he would pay for his actions. The Baron hated the woman she was the reason his brother fled in the first place, she had poisoned Abulurds mind. He wished to dispatch of her in that instant. But he knew letting her live with the fact her sons, birthed for the Bene Gessirts, weretaken would be a fate worse than death.

The Baron adored Feyd from the instant the guard placed him in his waiting arms.The babies eyes were crystal blue and he smelled of fresh powder. The Baron bonded to him instantly. He snuggled baby Feyd and offered his pinky for the small outstretched hand to hold. A son not of his loins but a Harkonnen he would raise as his own.

He called out to the fourteen year old Rabban who was still struggling against the guards with all of his might.

With his father and mother surrounded by Harkonnen soldiers as he spoke to the young Rabban and held baby Feyd “Your father is a traitor to the Harkonnen name and for his dishonor you will be raised with me to learn your heritage. This is the only reason I spare your parents lives today.” the Baron admits.

Rabban stopped his struggling then to look at his parents. Both of them never favored him and his head hung low as they did not even go against what was happening.

The Baron smiled seeing Rabbans dismay “I will make you a brave warrior Glassu Rabban you will command the respect of hundreds of thousands in my army and perhaps even rule Geidi prime” the Baron offered.

Baby Feyd made a small sound then and the Baron cood at him snuggling him closer. “What is it my little prince” he said petting the softness of Feyd’s crown.

Rabbans voice spoke up “I will go with you and I will do as you ask” he was teary eyed as his parents remained silent. The guards released him and he willingly followed the Baron from his home looking back at his parents who stood with their heads low.

As they entered the space craft he finally heard their cries of agony. “Have you killed them!” Rabban asked stunned “No no for what they have done being alive is a fate far worse than death” The Baron informed Rabban while adoring the sleeping Infant Feyd in his arms.

Seven years later Abulurd began defying the Baron at every instance as the governor of Lankerville.

The correspondence he was using the planets tax money to help the poor was the final act of disobedience that brought swift action. The Baron announced he would be arriving personally on Lankerville to punish his brother.

Abulurd had been waiting for this instance. He was not helping the poor with the tax money but instead had purchased a small army to kill his brother for taking his sons in an attempt to rescue them back.

When the Baron landed on the planet their crafts were heavily ambushed. The Baron had brought double his armada already sensing it was a trap his craft was quickly protected.

Rabbans anger was at its peak looking at the Baron who sat in his chair waiting for the lasgun fire to cease. “How dare he defy you! “ Rabban yelled hearing the beams blast the hull of the craft. Rabban growled as he paced waiting for the doors to unload to take his father’s life as the Baron requested.

Feyd sat calmly on the Barons lap watching his brother and six guards charge out of the craft once the gunfire had ceased.

A solider reported to the raging Rabban that the two traitors they were asked to detain were bound inside. The rest of the rebels had been slain. Rabban charged into the governors mansion.

“You are a traitor to the Harkonnen name “

Rabban had yelled as he punched his kneeling and bound father knocking him to the ground in the throne room.

His mother wailed seeing Rabban had become what she always feared, an impulsive raging monster “where is Feyd Rautha let me see my son”she begged.

Rabban ignored her and as his father tried to explain why he defied the Baron Rabban cut him short and strangled his father to death.

When his mother saw her husband killed at the hands of their own son who was trying to save him she couldn’t bear reality anymore and went insane. She bolted trying to escape the throne room but was quickly caught and brought back by on of the Harkonnen warriors that surrounded her.

“Do you want to see your favorite son?” Rabban asked taunting her knowing what the Baron had in store for his most hated Bene Gesserit. ”Gag her.” he ordered before she could speak and the guards bound her mouth shut having her kneel again.

As the screams of his mother grew louder from the mansion Feyd climbed from his uncle lap to see the commotion. “This is what happens to traitors of the Harkonnen name who dishonor their ancestors the very blood that runs through your veins Feyd Rautha.” He told the boy as he took his hand to bring him into the mansion throne room.

Feyd did not recognize his own mother bound with her mouth gagged and kneeling on the ground. She gasped when she saw him and struggled to speak with her mouth obstructed.

The Baron handed the boy his favorite new blade. Feyd approached the woman yanking her head back by the hair. She was calm and did not scream or fight like the others, she willingly gave herself to him staring into his eyes as he slit the blade across her throat.

“Feyd that was our mother” Rabbans voice announced as he stood over the body of their father watching the lives they knew be severed forever.

The Baron quickly tried to pull Feyd away but the boy broke from the Barons grasp and began screaming as he dropped to his knees clutching his mothers dying body.

For the first time Feyd cried. It was so loud and tormenting his brother kneeled by his side and squeezed his frail shoulders not knowing how to calm him.

Rabban began rambling all of the rhetoric engrained in his mind by the Baron “Our mother and father betrayed everything Harkonnen do you realize the sacrilege our father committed. He dishonored our very blood line he tried to steal us from our birthright. Even today he planned an ambush to kill Uncle Vladimir!” Rabban yelled.

Feyd had gone catatonic with his arms clutched around his mother’s neck. Rabban shook him hard yet he did not stir from her body “She never cared for us Feyd let her go. She was Bene Gesserit.... Look at how she tricked our father.” he gestured to the body of the dead man behind him.

But Feyd having been traumatized for the entirety of his young life was mentally gone. After all of his training this is the death that shattered his frail mind.

“Come with me and uncle we have served justice for our ancestors today. We will pray for their forgiveness in the old manner, we can leave this place the traitors are gone brother” Rabban pleaded.

Feyds were black as if his spirit had left from his body. He stared straight ahead motionless as his chin rested on his mother’s head. Rabban rested his hand on his brothers neck to check his pulse, he was alive. Rabban then looked to the Baron

”He has gone into shock.” Rabban said once he realized why his brother could no longer react.

The Baron sneered at Rabban

“I trained him so well for this moment and you had to tell him it was his mother?”

Rabban was confused. “I thought he should know as I know for our Harkonnen honor.” he confessed.

“He would have known in time until then she would have been just another female. Your Impulsive ignorance has always greatly disappointed me Rabban. You have caused a fracture in his core persona that can only be filled with more depravity, or he will be the most sympathetic Harkonnen the planet has ever seen. Carry him to the ship” the Baron commanded and Rabban scooped up Feyds limp body taking him to the craft heading back to Giedi Prime.

Now in the presence of the Emperor Feyd has a full mental break down. His head is clutched in his hands as he breaths wildly feeling unable to replace the air in his lungs. He suffers in pain as his mind flashes through the horrific memory that he wants to make stop. He cries out in agony rocking back and forth in his chair unable to regain his mind as the memory has a visceral response.

The Emperor sees the young man is so tormented from his words that he tries to comfort him “Baron Feyd Rautha I warned you with your family history that I feared for your mental sanity. You were only a boy then how could you have known” the Emperor says with sympathy placing his hand on Feyds shoulder.

Feyd smacks the Emperors hand from his shoulder standing up abruptly from his chair and staring at the old man wildly. Feyd stares at his hands in complete disbelief of who he really is and fears he is going insane he flees the Emperor to find his guards.

He finds them at the entrance of the throne room out of breath as he tries to hold himself together. He is covered in a cold sweat shivering and nauseous as he command them weakly “Take me to my Baroness.”

You hear the short wails of Feyd in the hall before the palace suite doors slam open. The guards bring Feyd holding his arms and guide to sit on the couch. He is in severe mental distress holding back tears unable to speak going catatonic.

You rush to him and immediately press your finger tips to his temple as the guards watch. He clings to you then and you stare into his wild eyes as it takes him several moments to calm down. “What is wrong with him? Was he drugged?” You frighteningly ask his captain of the guard. “No Baroness the Baron was not himself after h met with the Emperor he ordered us to bring him directly to you.” They relay.

Your heart sinks as you tend to him. He endured severe mental anguish for quite some his eyes are now trembling as he looks at you. He can never bring himself to say what he has done. Tears begin falling down his cheeks as he loosens his grasp on your arms your calming energy finally taking effect as he relents into unconsciousness.

In the morning you tend to Feyd on the bed where the guards helped place him. He had severe nightmares throughout the night screaming for his mother. You held him comfortingly and transferred calming energy as you whispered to him that he was safe in your arms.

Now as the day beings and sunlight creeps through the suite you are exhausted.

You ask your servant to arrange a meeting or written correspondence with the Emperor. He is the only one who knows what happened to Feyd during the evening.

When the Emperor denies your request you begin to suspect that Feyd is the son that committed matricide and the Emperor will not betray his confidence.

As you look over Feyds sleeping form you hold his hands. A wave of fear and sadness fills your heart. You you wonder how he did it and why.

Your servant knocks again and hands you a second letter that arrived just after the Emperors. It is from your Reverend Mother requesting an urgent meeting within the hour at the atrium of the main palace garden.

You have your servants help you to get dressed for your meeting with her. You transfer more calming energy to Feyds mind as he rests in bed and whisper in his ear that you will come back. You plant a soft kiss to his forehead as you leave him.

Reverend Mother

The palatial gardens are beautiful as the morning light streaks through the trees. Butterflies guide your path as you walk to the location the reverend mother requested. You are trailed by your Doulah and three assassins. Due to her order that you meet in complete privacy you have them wait just out of earshot.

You walk to the garden atrium where you see the Reverend Mother seated in a stone chair with the one across from her open. She gestures you to sit.

She is covered head to toe in black her face hidden behind a beaded veil. She wears the traditional Bene Gesserit headpiece adding to her stature.

These are the same the gardens you used to frolic in as you trained for the order when your loyalties were at the strongest for the Bene Gesserits.

The Reverend Mother looks at you now covered head to toe in black elaborate shimmering fabrics. Your face covered in a sheer veil unable to hide your stunning beauty beneath. The skin on your hands are a paler shade from the toxic conditions on Geidi prime and gold rings cover every finger.

“You are not the innocent I thought would be defiled. You have transformed the defiled into his highest potential.” She finally speaks as you sit across from her.

“Your husband has become quite powerful, as you are aware. His genetics were bred for centuries to create such an excellent specimen, as is his child in your womb.” She gestures at your full pregnancy knowing the time is near.

“Feyd Rautha has changed the course of his destiny, there are very few who can have alternate timelines such as this. With your child we will soon know with precision the outcome of every single shift in time .”

She pauses her words knowing her next piece of information is vital.

“Feyd will be Emperor.”

She proclaims

You let out a sigh of relief. His life ambition will be fulfilled.

“Do your loyalties lie with the Bene Gesserit?“ she asks you with intent shocking you as you try to answer correctly.

“Yes Revered Mother.” You answer quickly

“Then I tell you this in the upmost confidentiality. The Emperor will be dethroned in seven days at the tribunal of the great houses for his war crimes. He will be exiled to Salusa Secundus.

With Feyd Rautha to be Emperor you are now his right hand you will be our direct link to him. Will you follow every command of the order?” She asks directly.

“Yes Revered Mother” you rush to say in agreement.

Your answer sounds uncertain to her ears so she begins to test your loyalty further.

“When you are asked to evoke the Pranu Bindu and paralyze him will you say the word?” She says studying your body for any hint of description.

You squint your eyes to prevent them from showing your fear. “Yes Reverend Mother” you lie.

She has a skill to read description and knows you have lost your loyalty. She realizes Feyd Rautha must have fractured your mind with coercions of his own.

She tests a theory

”When you are pregnant with the second child of Feyd Rautha will you sacrifice it to ensure the success of your first.

The question makes you grip the chair

“Yes revered mother” you quickly lie. Feeling a lump form in your throat.

She looks closer through your veil.

“Your eyes well with tears.” She says poignantly.

You have an emotional outburst due to the stress of the situation “I will serve and continue to serve the order to the best of my ability Reverend Mother” you recite the call to the order but it is too late

She uses the voice on you for the final test if your loyalty.

{{Will you kill Feyd Rautha when ordered}}

You feel your head tighten as you answer with pure truth “No revered mother” She releases you from the voice dissapointed.

You take a deep breath and she sees the sadness in your eyes realizing you have fallen in love with him. Her eyes convey her strong disapproval.

The Revered Mother has gathered enough information from your sisters and throughout your pregnancy to know Feyd Rautha will flee and hide you away with his heir just as his mother and father tried to do for him and just as your mother and father tried to do for you.

You will be repeating the cycle of insanity that brought the downfall of both of your family’s and she can not allow that.

Your parents had renounced the royal status of their great house and collected their assets and gold from the treasury fleeing to another planet one month before you were born.

When the Order found you hidden away you were well past the age to be taken, you knew your parents and had formed your own identity.

As they trained you your rebellion was rampant wanting only to be with your mother and father. Your mental and physical abilities were far underdeveloped from the others until adolescence when your gift to control your bodies sexual abilities advanced to a level beyond your training. You could control every cell of your body to induce ovulation, you were unmatched.

In your youth however you were a problem child until the fateful day you were given the news your parents had been poisoned and you would never see them again. From that day forth you had been the most obedient of all.

The Revered Mother stands and leaves your presence to make arrangements to have you taken after the birth of your newborn which she knows will occur on Kaitan.

She can not risk a disruption to secure the bloodline of the Kswis Haderach. She plans to bring you back to the sisterhood and have you indoctrinated to control Feyd and have your newborn to be raised as a Bene Gesserit.

When you are certain she has gone you weep uncontrollably. You are shaken to your core at her words of killing Feyd Rautha and sacrificing your second child.

Once you collect your self. You reach the entrance of the garden and are escorted back to the Palace with your three assassins and your Doulah.

You clutch her arm and hold your womb with care because as you walk you continue to feel sharp pinches of pain in your core which you try to ignore.

Harkonnen Heir

When you reach the palace suite Feyd is dressed and sitting in a chair at the out door awning viewing the lake. The surface shimmers brightly due to the hour and the dancing reflections distract his weakened mind. When your arms slip around his neck he relaxes into you holding your forearm. He tilts his head up to gaze into your eyes and he smiles.

He feels complete now that your have returned to him and stands to hold you. He removes your veil and pulls you close planting a kiss on your forehead and holding you to his chest for a length of time centering himself.

“I thought youd been taken from me” he admits breaking the silence. “Never” you say smiling up at him. “Where did you go?” He asks gently. “I met with the Reverend Mother in the garden.” you confess and his heart sinks as remembers the words of the Emperor. “She will take our unborn and I can not allow that” he confesses.

“She will not.“ You say with confidence. Suddenly you feel a sharp pain in your core and cling to Feyd. You cry out as it intensifies and he helps you to the floor cradling you in his lap as the pain radiates stronger.

You feel the ache travel to your abdomen and you clutch your womb as you wail. The pain is agonizing and Feyd grabs ahold of your hands trying to calm you. He alerts the stunned guard who rushes in to to get your Doulah.

You look into Feyds eyes ”the unborn” you gasp out. “yes our child is arriving soon” he says with a smile to comfort you as he caresses your jaw. He quickly thinks of a way to protect his newborn from being taken.

You arrive in the brightly lit birthing chamber of the Emperial palace. It is a circular room with a large dome roof. Light shines down from a skylight in the dome with windows spaced every few inches apart to allow in the most light. There is only one entrance which is heavily guarded by Feyd soldiers.

You are moved from the transport bed to the birthing bed and propped with pillows to sit upright with your legs apart by the medical assistants. Feyd never releases your hand and remains by your side. Your practiced breathes fill the room doing just as your Doulah trained you.

As your contractions continue to worsen Feyd looks over your body in concern before finally gazing into your eyes. You have never witnessed his striking blue eyes exhibiting such fear before. You want to comfort him but you are in too much pain.

The midwife enters the room clad in the finest fabrics of Kaitan wearing masks with her healers. She conducts her inspection guiding her team with calming authority. Her assistants cut your gown from your body and covering you in a white sheet.

Seeing you are ready she gestures you to push and as you do the pain intensifies. After several pushes the air in the birthing chamber becomes thick with tension there is a complication.

The midwife requests to speak with Feyd separately in the crowded room and he momentarily leaves your side.

“Baron Feyd Rautha her labor is too intense the unborn will not stir” she conveys. Feyd for the first time feels pin pricks of fear all over his body “What can be done” he asks with urgency “We will be able to save both but we must have your permission to ….cut the flesh of the Baroness” she discerns. Feyd is relieved he finds it only fitting a Harkonnen should be cut out as if in combat. He readily agrees.

The palace healers comfort you as the and turn you on your side. They numb the skin of your back and gently place a needle in your spine to dull the lower half of your body from pain and movement.

When they remove the needle and gently lay you back on your pillows you are dizzy and high unable to feel your lower half. There is no more pain and Feyd holds your hand again. He looks down at you and smiles seeing your face is so calm.

“They will cut the unborn out” he says squeezing your hand tighter. You nod feeling the intense high in your body making you feel as if you are floating as you stare at him “Did you give them one of your blades to cut the unborn out.” you ask drugged and he smiles as he shakes his head no and pets back your hair.

The room is stagnant as the midwife applies more injections to the site she will cut. She pricks your belly hard with the knife drawing blood when you do not feel it she continues her incision.

Feyd’s breathing intensifies and his eyes widen in bewilderment as he watches her cut you open. The assistants place their hands on your belly once the incision is made and begin to push the unborn out.

The midwife easily collects the baby and due to its distress quickly cuts the umbilical cord and hands it to a healer.

Feyd sees the motionless grayish blue baby and his heart drops. When he doesn’t hear the cries he grips your hand even tighter in dispair. The healer begins to pat the baby’s back and shift it to clear its lungs as the midwife works to sew you shut.

Finally the cries of the newborn loudly fill the chamber and he sees the baby turn a pink color. Feyd releases the breath he didn’t know he had been holding as his heart swells with emotion.

The healer quickly cleans and wraps the newborn in a black gossamer blanket and places the baby into Feyd’s waiting arms. His eyes widen in awe as he looks at his new baby for the first time.

The infant is magnificent the nose the lips the soft cheeks, he has never seen anything so perfect.

"Our newborn” he whispers looking at the beautiful face feeling the happiness wash over him. He knows you must see right away too and places the baby in your arms but he never removes his hand. You feel the soft head lay on your skin and a wave of love and protectiveness washes over you.

As soon as the newborn feels your skin it reaches its tiny hand out of its bundle. Feyd places his pinky in the newborns grip as it opens its crystal blue eyes. You both let out a gasp at how well the color matches Feyds. The baby stares at you with an intense gaze. “He carries the blood of House Harkonnen." Feyd smiles seeing the resemblance in his son.

"What will you name him?" You ask gazing at the handsomeness of the Harkonnen heir. Feyd waits for the idea to form in his mind momentarily stunted by the enormity of the decision.

“I want him to carry a formidable name that honors mine and begins a new chapter for our lineage.” He confirms placing his hand around the babys soft head holding it lightly

He looks to you as he names your son “Rautha -Dimitri Harkonnen” he declares. It is the name of his maternal grandfather Rautha and his paternal grandfather Dimitri combined. Feyd feels it carries the essence of strength and change befitting of the future ruler.

You tuck your finger under baby Rauthas chin “A worthy name for your son” you smile as Feyd looks to you in agreement.

The news has already spread througout the palace. The reverend mother is dismayed that a second Bene Gesserit has defied the birthing order to have a male. With the Harkonnen genetics in tact she will now search for a compatible female to create the Kswis Haderach.

You knew on that fateful night as you held Feyd sleeping in your arms you wanted to finally escape the Bene Gesserits. You felt they had poisoned your parents all along to keep you and you never forgave them.

You realized having a son would guarantee the safety of your child and to be a Baroness meant your son would one day rule as Baron. All you had to do was keep Feyd pleased.

When you bound him with the Pranu Bindu you chose a word from a pleasant memory in your childhood. One only you would know, and If necessary under dire circumstances would give to the Bene Gessirits.

When Feyds cruelty softened to care on your wedding night you inherently knew he yearned to be nurtured. You strived to care for him and heal his broken psyche ultimately falling in love with him.

Now as the two of you rest together holding your infant you created that night you are overcome with a sense of love and serenity. Feyd presses a kiss to your forehead

"You've given me everything I dreamed of and more" he says marveling at his son’s tiny hand which holds his thumb. You look to Feyd in adoration “You have given me a life I never thought possible. I cherish every moment I have with you Feyd ” you admit caressing his hand which the baby holds.

Baby Rautha slowly drifts to sleep in your arms as you both dote over him “Let me hold him again “ Feyd says with his voice full of compassion.

He slides his hands around baby Rautha and cradles him in his arms. Feyds eyes shine with love as he watches the infant yawn. He presses his face against babies cheek inhaling his sent of sweet milk. You look over at the two of them and smile.

"I love you" Feyd whispers as his eyes briefly look over to yours, his voice is barely audible as he says the words for the first time.

"I love you too, Feyd.“ you finally tell him as your heart overflows with love.

He returns baby Rautha to your arms pressing a kiss to the sleeping infants hand.

Then he stares at your eyes and smiles. He holds your jaw and plants soft kisses on your forehead and on your cheeks finally resting his kiss on your lips.

He leans back and gazes into your eyes with deep devotion as he caresses your jaw. He realizes the three words do not come close to expressing how he truly feels for you but he will say them again and again to express what he can not convey. He is eternally grateful that you are his wife and the mother of his child. He will cherish you for eternity.

War Crimes

After five days of constant care you are strong enough to walk and carry baby Rautha around your palace suite. Your Doulah is nearby remaking the babies cot with fresh gossamer linens, you go to sit on the patio in a newly placed soft arm chair to gaze out at the lake resting baby Rautha in your arms. It is the first morning you have woken up without Feyd.

Before you would open your eyes each day Feyd was already up sitting in the rocking chair with Rautha telling him stories or softly humming Harkonnen war songs to him with his raspy voice.

He preferred you sleep and regain your strength and would dote on the baby at all hours of the night. Anything he couldn’t handle or had yet to learn be would retrieve the Doulah and climb back into bed with you.

He surpassed your skill when it came to swaddle or burp the baby. His technique was flawless as he wrapped baby Rautha into a perfect bundle in the gossamer cloths each time.

After feeding was the only time baby Rautha would make sounds of discomfort. You would try several methods to make him burp before Feyd would signal you to hand him over.

He placed a cloth on his shoulder and picked up baby Rautha gently resting him against his chest. He would pace the room rubbing his small back until the air trapped escaped from his tiny mouth.

He enjoyed fatherhood and as you watched him walk around shirtless holding Rautha it set you at ease. Being a father suited him well and you enjoyed how comfortable he was with his first baby, it made you yearn to fulfill his desire and give him more.

The only reason Feyd was not with you caring for Rautha on this morning is because he was summoned for a meeting with the Emperor.

Feyd sat in the elaborate Emperial office awaiting Emperor Shaddam. He looked around at all of the decorations of conquests for current ruler Shaddam Corrino the IV.

There are books up the walls in shelves as high as the ceiling. A large globe and a telescope are placed near the windows with a view of the palatial waterfalls. Hundreds of trophy’s and relics decorate display cases and pedestals around the room. The planet has been ruled for decades by one man and the magnitude of accumulated objects in his office reflect his reign.

Feyd hears the doors open to the office and stands as Emperor Shaddam enters holding the arm of his daughter Princess Irulans arm for balance.

He gestures Feyd to sit as he is ushered around his desk. He is helped to sit in his gilded chair by Princess Irulan. She kisses her fathers cheek then look up to Feyd “Congratulations on the birth of your son Baron Feyd Rautha “ she says pleasantly with a smile.

Feyd nods in acknowledgement and the Emperor kindly pats her hand “ Thank you my dear that will be all “he says. She smiles at her father and then to Feyd before gracefully leaving the room and shutting the doors.

“How are you feeling “ the Emperor asks with a light smile seeing the tiredness in Feyd’s eyes. “ I am well” Feyd responds briskly “ and the Baroness?” The Emperor implores more. “She is fine” Feyd answers feeling a joy in his heart at your acceptance. “And last but not leastthe excitement of the palace Rautha Dimitri Harkonen!” He says happily clasping his hands together with a jubilant smile. Finally Feyd smirks beaming with pride. “ he is my honor and heir” Feyd remarks fondly.

“Well I don’t want to keep you from them during such a precious time so I will get straight to the point” the Emperors smile fades as he opens his desk drawer retrieving a metal inscribed cylinder. He places it on the desk in front of Feyd.

“I received this on the day your son was born as if it was destiny. Even though I knew the say would come I could not bear to read the words and dropped it to the ground in front of of my daughter and my advisors in the garden. Princess Irulan retrieved it and was also in shock seeing the words” the Emperor relays.

Feyd picks up the metallic cylinder reading the first line

-The Tribunal for War Crimes of Emperor Shaddam Corino IV- stand out with the biggest lettering. Feyd sets the cylinder back down.

“The day after tomorrow I will be tried and convicted. The amount of evidence is substantial and kept so meticulously by your uncle. Most of the correspondences come from his personal office which must’ve been near impossible to retrieve for a spy.” Feyd clasps his hands and presses his fingers to his lips hiding the smile of his cleverness.

“With my final Emperial decree I wish you make you Emperor Feyd Rautha. I am old and frail and my daughter was unable to join with a compatible house.

The great houses all respect you and your generosity they will have no problem with this change. With the improvements you have made on Giedi Prime and Arrakis my people will have no resentment either.”

The Emperor then looks Feyd in the eyes with severity. “Will you allow me to officiate the coronation in two days time and hand over my Empire to you in a small ceremony before I am dethroned . It would give me great honor and restore the dignity I have lost in my old age during my reign.”

Feyd rests back in his chair and thinks on it before speaking “What does the ceremony entail?”

The emperor reaches in to his desk with a prepared list and summarizes its contents

“In the throne room you and your wife will be seated in front of the entirety of the Emperial court in a private ceremony. I will kneel to you and relinquish my power .”

He explains as her places the paper on Feyd side to study further.

As Feyd looks over the list the Emperor makes a request.

“When I relinquish my power to you I would ask of you two things;

First take care for my daughter Irulan and ensure she is safe. I will be exiled to Salusa Secundus and she may choose to join me there but her life here will be far better as a princess of Kaitan.

Secondly please show me leniency I will never plot to diminish your reign in any way.” He relents.

The Emperor slowly stands to see if Feyd will make the agreement final. Feyd stands with the Emperor and bows honoring his wishes. The Emperor weakly smiles understanding the gravity of his current situation and dismisses Feyd to return to his new family. He believes Feyd will make a fine Emperor in his stead.

Feyd finds you on the suite patio and quietly watches as you nurse his son. You look so serene and natural to him your eyes sparkling with joy as you coo at his infant latched and drinking milk.

Feyd's feels a wave of emotions watching the tender moment between the two of you. He steps out onto the patio making his presence known and comes to kneels down in front of you watching as you continue to nurse baby Rautha. "You're such a good mother," he says with his voice soft and filled with admiration. He trails his finger on Rauthas soft cheek watching him drink.

You look up at Feyd as a warm smile spreads across your lips. “ We missed you here this morning” you tell him lovingly.

“ I missed both you you as well” He admits as his heart swells with the feeling of being loved. He had never imagined he could live like this and marvels at how far you two have come together.

Baby Rautha finishes nursing and unlatches his small mouth. You tuck your breast away and snuggle him closer. He begins to wiggle and his face pinks slightly as he makes a small sound of discomfort.

“Let me have him” Feyd says knowing what he needs. You hand him over and Feyd stands swaying with the infant in his arms. The baby squirms feeling uncomfortable from the trapped air until Feyd pats it free.

The baby spittles on Feyd’s shoulder making you laugh. “Oh Feyd I forgot to hand you the cloth!” You say giving it to him late. ”It’s fine” Feyd says with a smile looking over at baby Rauthas chin wet with escaped milk.

He gently switches the baby to his left shoulder and dabs his chin clean. Then drapes the cloth over his right shoulder and replaces Rautha there

“How was your meeting with the Emperor” you ask already having an idea of what was discussed but wanting to hear the answer from his lips.

Feyd sits in the chair next to you on the patio and holds the sleeping infant Rautha to gaze at the beautiful baby in his lap.

“It is as you wished I will be Emperor. I will rule all of the great houses and control the two greatest armies in the galaxy. We will be free to do as we wish.” He looks over at you and smiles.

You smile in return as the reality sets in and you look out over the lake . You will own the entire palace. You sink back in your chair stunned, your son will be the future emperor now and Feyd made it all possible.

“I am eternally grateful for what you have done Feyd” you admit in astonishment. “In two days time we will be coronated here by Empeor Shaddam.” He says now staring out at the lake realizing the impact of his actions. You stand from your chair to be infront of him and place your hands on his armrests. You lean in and kiss his lips seeing how lost in thought he is. “ Emperor Feyd Rautha” you say seductively making him smile.

Emperor Feyd Rautha

You all awaken in the early morning as the sun rises and are helped by several servants to dress. It is Feyds coronation day as Emperor.

Feyd forgoes the traditional Kaitan white tunic and wears a velvet black high neck long sleeved one instead. It is lined with black Harkonenn gemstones.

You wear a black corseted grown with golden appliqués covering your neck and shoulders as well as your cuffs and hem. Baby Rautha wears a black baby tunic matching to his father’s and is wrapped in a shimmering gold swaddle.

The procession is led by Emperor Shaddam wearing a silver tunic. He enters the throne room first carrying a golden scepter. The three of you follow him inside to see the room is filled with dignitaries and leaders of the great houses as well as the imperial court. Every golden seat is filled on either side of the white and gold precession rug leading to the thrones.

You clutch Feyds arm tighter and hold the baby closer as your nerves rise. Rautha sleeps bundled peacefully in your arms.

The thrones on the raised ruling platform are surrounded by pillars of palatial garden flowers. Two orchestras are seated at the ground level of either side and wait on queue to play.

The emperor carefully climbs the golden steps leading to his sacred ruling space for the final time.

The stairs are lined with garden florals in a beautiful display. He stands at his ruling space smiling and gestures Feyd permission to enter as the new ruler. Feyd takes your hand from around his arm and helps you climb the stairs.

The room is silent as you both stand infront of the Emperor and bow. Shaddam slowly bows to Feyd unable to kneel as customary due to his age. A round of applause begins from the rows of guests in attendance as they witness the exchange of power. The sound awakens baby Rautha as the next part of the procession begins.

Count Fenring bows at the base of the stairs and is permitted to bring a pillow with the golden Emperial signet ring. He carries it up and bows to Feyd again before standing next to Emperor Shaddam.

The Emperor takes the ring and holds the weight of it for the last time. Feyd slips his silver Barons ring from his pinky and instead of placing it on the ceremonial pillow he turns to baby Rautha placing the ring in his infants reaching hand “Hold this for Uncle Rabban” he says sweetly as the baby grasps it.

He then turns and accepts the ring from Shaddam which has already been fitted for his pinky.

Shaddam then lifts his golden scepter placing it across his hands and bows his head offering it to Feyd who accepts.

Rounds of applause begin to fill the room as everyone stands in jubilation for the momentous occasion. The orchestra begins to play a rousing classical Kaitan melody.

You and Feyd take your thrones as Emperor and Empress with your son Prince Rautha.

Shaddam Corino is helped down the stairs by Count Fenring they both turn and bow in reverence.

You look over to Feyd smiling, you are so proud of him. He grasps your hand placing a kiss on your knuckles and looks over your beautiful signet ring as Empress. “So be it” he says smiling remembering your conversation as the force which pushed his decision.

He caresses Baby Rauthas soft head and gestures to hold him. You hand over the baby to Feyd and the cheers erupt even louder from the audience that he already has an heir.

This is only the private ceremony for his coronation there will be a banquet following in the evening and within a few weeks time the public parade in celebration of his reign at the capital.

A Holy Shrine

Six moths after Feyd’s momentous coronation on Kaitan you arrive to the planet of LankerVille in the much larger Empirical Space craft. It has every amenity possible with servants throughout.

Feyd has summoned his brother Rabban to join who arrives from Geidi Prime in his palatial ship as the new Baron. Both space crafts land adjacent to the courtyard of the former leaders home.

As you approach the former governors mansion carrying Rautha not a word is uttered as you follow Feyd and Rabban to go inside.

They push open the large red doors and you enter into an enormous abandoned throne room. Everything is bare and gray.

“I want it made into a Holy Shrine” Feyd finally says to Rabban once he explores the vacant room. You and Rabban watch as Feyd walks to the center and kneels on the floor in a certain place.

You look to Rabban in curiosity. “Why does he kneel here?” You ask under your breath unsure if it is a Harkonnen custom. Rabban stares blankly ahead. “ His mother was slain there…our father and mother were killed in this very room“ Rabban corrects himself.

The air is sucked out of your lungs you had no idea. Rabban peers over at you realizing you were never told because Feyd will never tell you. He understands then that he should. But he struggles to find the softening words so he just tells the truth.

“Years ago when he was a boy and I was a young man our uncle ordered us to kill our parents here”

Your eyes widen in shock as you clutch your chest and become dizzy with the devastating information. It takes you several moments to collect yourself. “But…Why?” Is all you can weakly get out.

“Our parents hid us away and changed our last names to Rabban. This was the punishment for betrayal of the Harkonnen lineage” Rabban admits.

You try to calm your breathing as baby Rautha becomes fussy on your hip sensing your distress. Then you realize his grandmother and grandfather were slain in this very room by his father and uncle.

It becomes too much for you to bear and you flee from the throne room heading out into the fresh air of the courtyard. You take deep breaths trying to calm yourself.

Baby Rauthas carer and Feyd’s guards watch as you try to collect your self. Rauthas carer comes and gently collects him from your shaking arms.

“Empress perhaps you should rest I don’t like the looks of your condition“ she says with concern watching the way you blankly stare at the ground shaking. You wave her back “Take Rautha to the ship I will only be a moment.” You command her. The carer takes Rautha to eat and play while you gather yourself.

You shudder realizing this day would come and how little you know of your husband. The fact he would bring your child here shakes you to your core.

His brother was so callous in the way he told you and it makes you realize how cruel the Harkonnens are and that Feyd is the one with the most emotional intellect.

Both men emerge from the mansion. You put on a brave face though your eyes are sad, you feel a rise of pity in your chest as you look at them. You cant even begin to imagine the torment they went through.

Feyd beckons you to come to him and you take his hand as you join his side.

“Rabban will stay for dinner on our craft to spend time with us before he heads back to Geidi Prime” Feyd conveys as he studies your eyes. He sees how sad they are as you gaze into his . You feel a wave of emotion and softly hug him then start sobbing against his neck. He pets down your hair to calm you.

“Empress do not fret I know you are overcome with emotion now but everything will be made right.” He says gently and places his hands to see your tear streaked face. He uses his thumbs to wipe the tears from your eyes. “Go and prepare for dinner you need to eat” he says gently.

You nod and realize this must be very hard for him and he just wants to enjoy a dinner with his family, perhaps even in honor of his parents.

You quickly wipe your eyes and enter the Emperial space craft. You clean your face in the main suite just in time to join in everyone at the dinner table.

As you enter the dining room Rabban is seated at the foot of the table with little Rautha on his lap. Rabban is smiling and teasing little Rautha speaking gibberish before tickling his stomach. Rautha shrieks of laughter make you smile.

You sit at Feyd right and he takes your hand tracing his thumb across your knuckles “Are you alright now Empress?” He asks with a warm smile, you gently nod.

Dinner is placed in front of everyone. Herb seared filet from the lakes of Lankerville.

Little Rautha is sat upon his careers lap to the left side of his father as she feeds him his first bite of fish.

“Do you like it?” Feyd asks him gleefully and Rautha nods smiling with his gums making Feyd chuckle.

“And you Rabban?” Feyd yells down the table. Rabban lifts his fork still chewing . “It is good“ he says once his mouth is free.

Rabban looks at your plate seeing it is all vegetables and laughs. “ What the Empress does not like it?” He teases and you smile.

“Ask her how many children she plans to have” Feyd says grinning.

Rabban drops his fork to the table. “ NO! It is not possible brother !” He exclaims.

Rabban stands up and charges to Feyds side of the table making Feyd get up block him playfully “Don’t you dare touch her!” Feyd says pushing him back. Rabban laughs maniacally “I wouldn’t dare touch your female especially with your unborn.” Rabban confirms.

He looks to your abdomen as Feyd helps you stand. Rabban bows his head in reverence “congratulations Empress“ he says and is too stunned to say anything else just staring at your abdomen in disbelief.

You speak up breaking the silence “Thank you Rabban now please eat and enjoy this lovely dinner.” you say kindly. He smiles to you and then Feyd returning to his seat happily shaking his head at how quickly his brother already has you pregnant again with a second unborn. You all eat together with jovial conversation for the entirety of the meal.

After Rabban leaves your ship the Emperial craft ascends from the planet of Lankerville heading back to Kaitan.

You stand over the crib of sleeping Rautha and caress his soft cheek before pulling his blanket higher on his chest, there is a chill in the craft as it heads through space and you want him to be warm. “Will you fetch him a gossamer blanket” you ask his carer and she readily nods preparing to watch over him through the night in his room.

You head back to the main chamber and place your hand in the reader to open the doors. It is darkened but an enormous window illuminates the large room with starlight.

Feyd stands looking out of it with his hands clasped behind his back. When he hears the doors he knows you are there and looks over his shoulder offering his hand to you.

He is shirtless even though the craft is so cold. You take his hand and he places you infront of him to gaze at the stars together.

“I’ve asked the controller to slow the ship so we can see the stars for an hour before we go to trans light speed” he says against your ear as he holds you closely to him. “They are beautiful” you say already mesmerized by the billions of flickering lights.

He pulls your hair over your shoulder planting a kiss there “Emperor and Empress” he says placing another kiss your neck “wealthiest family in the galaxy” he says pulling you closer against him. “What would you like to do next” he asks smiling against your ear.

You turn over your shoulder to look into his eyes as you answer “Raise our children on Kaitan” you confirm with a loving gaze. “So be it “ he says planting a soft kiss on your lips. “And what about for the next hour?” He asks seductively as he grins with a knowing smile.

The End

Thank you for completing the series! Here is my Upcoming Fics List if you enjoy my writing and the Feyd Fantasy Series Masterlist to read all over again

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