#or made her decide she'd take no chances either way and try to push them elsewhere

[twilit-tragedy]

And what’s funnier is that the prophecies DO come true. It’s just that characters made the wrong assumptions about them. A man wielding a spear leads the armies at Ragnarök and a bearded, bald man dies in Atreus’ arms. Brilliant.

“Fate only binds you if you let it”- no, but, actually. The characters kept saying it but only in hindsight do I realize how deep it goes. Truly the best way forward, even with some hint of the future, is to proceed as you would regardless. Make your own story and ignore if it matches the prophecies or it doesn’t. Or else you end consumed by thoughts of it (cough, Odin). And in the end it’ll come somewhat true without the details that YOU projected onto it.

[farity]

Sorrow, part 10

"The announcement shall take place in the morrow - many rumors swirl regarding the king and we must end them."

Aemond nodded, watching as his grandfather unrolled the parchment that proclaimed him, officially, Prince Regent. His eye landed on his wife, who was watching him. She'd gained some color in the last few days, he thought, not so pale as she had been when she'd first arrived at King's Landing, her ribs not as visible when she undressed.

He felt the stirrings of lust at the thought of Elyse removing her clothing. He'd had her that morning, yet he felt as if he had not bedded his wife in days.

"Sign."

Aemond took the quill, added his signature and some flourishes to the bottom of the parchment.

"What news of that whore, my sister?"

Ser Otto closed his eyes at the language, but merely said, "we have yet to hear anything. She has certainly heard of Daemon's death and she will be more dangerous than ever."

"Let her try. We shall be ready for her."

Elyse stood, and joined him at the desk, looking down at the proclamation.

Ser Otto left, and Aemond wrapped his arm around his wife's shoulders. "And you, Princess, shall we have a crown made for you as well?"

"Aemond," she chided gently. "I want no such thing."

He kissed her until she was clinging to his shoulders, her mouth demanding on his. She had lost some of her timid nature around him, and he would do everything in his power to encourage her. "I wish to take you while riding Vhagar," he whispered in her ear, and felt the shiver that went through her. "Have you ride me while I ride the greatest dragon in the realm."

Her arms went around his neck and he grabbed her, lifting her off the ground as he walked to their chambers.

"Maybe some other time," he muttered, once he had closed the door, "I have to have you now."

He kept his eye on her face while he tore the clothes from her body, ready to stop if he saw fear in her eyes, but she was as frenzied as he, pulling at his tunic and the laces on his breeches until he could take it no more and drove inside her, not caring that he still had one leg mostly in his trousers and the leather tie was hanging from his hair.

She moaned as he filled her, arching her back, and he pressed his forehead to hers, trying desperately not to rut into her mindlessly like the animal he was. He kissed her upturned lips, and felt her fingertips caressing his cheek.

She was life and warmth and he would push aside all thoughts of war and death when he was with her. "Mine," he whispered as she kissed his jaw. "Mine."

* * * * *

Alicent stood, once again, as a son of hers was crowned as ruler of the realm.

Regent. Ruler. It was the same, she thought. Her father would always be plotting behind the scenes, except this time she hoped he would meet some resistance. Aemond wasn't as willing to let go of the reins as Aegon had been, and she wanted to see her middle son prove himself.

She watched Elyse, dressed in grey, standing next to Aemond. She'd gently but firmly declined to wear any sort of crown or headpiece, and wore her blond locks down, held back only by a black ribbon. She wore no jewels, either, and Alicent decided to choose her battles when it came to the young woman and she would not fight this one.

She had ordered more suitable gowns to be sewn and embroidered for her. It would not do for the wife of the regent to walk around like a peasant in those simple dresses she wore. She might talk to Aemond, appeal to his vanity to take pride in his wife.

The crown of Aegon the Conqueror was placed on Aemond's head by Ser Criston Cole and the crowd cheered. Here there was no chance of a dragon tearing through the floor like when that bitch Rhaenys had nearly killed them all. Still, she knew her father had ordered extra men to keep watch, not only here, but all the way to Dragonstone.

To her surprise, after Aemond raised a hand to thank the crowd, he turned and grabbed his wife's hand, placing a kiss on it, and the crowd roared in approval.

Elyse had turned a bright shade of pink, but Aemond wasn't letting go of her hand.

Alicent considered, maybe Aemond was already playing the game. Aegon would certainly never had made any sort of loving gesture towards Helaena, but here was a young couple clearly in tune with each other.

Too bad about Elyse, though. A child might have cemented Aemond's legacy as regent until little Jaehaerys came of age, but if Elyse was right, there would be no children for them.

Aemond took Elyse back into the keep, and Alicent followed. Helaena had chosen to stay with her children and Aegon, well, Aegon was probably not even aware of what was happening. His beautiful face often wore a mask of confusion and pain, his mind dulled by milk of the poppy.

"Daeron might have made an appearance."

She turned to her father. "At least he gets to live away from all of this. Leave him be. He will be in your clutches soon enough." She spoke without looking at him, and walked faster to put distance between them.

* * * * *

"Dragonstone is far too close."

Otto watched as his grandson issued his first challenge.

"I do not want that bitch and her remaining bastards so close."

He saw Aemond's point. Dragonstone was a short dragon ride away from Westeros and they would always live under the threat of Rhaenyra amassing some semblance of power.

"Where do you suggest, then, Prince Regent?"

Aemond didn't bother to hide a smirk. "Pentos? Volantis? The middle of the sea?" He laced his fingers together. "She can live where we choose, surrounded by our people, in case she begins to plot."

"Then Pentos would be ideal. I shall draft terms and head to Dragonstone."

"I will go."

Otto shook his head. "I cannot risk that. They might be waiting for us, Aemond, and you going would be giving them a prize we cannot afford."

"I'm glad you have such heartfelt feelings for your flesh and blood," Aemond said mockingly. "Fine, but take enough men so that you do not become a prize yourself."

When Aemond stood, Otto simply stared. "We are not finished here-"

"I'm finished here, grandfather, but if you wish to stay here until dawn, you are within your right."

* * * * *

Elyse said nothing as the seamstress adjusted the neckline on her new dress. "Not too low, please," she had said, and the young woman had nodded and pulled up the fabric until Elyse felt more comfortable.

The dress was simple but it was nicer than anything she had ever worn. The silk alone shimmered whenever she moved, a silvery blue that made the earbobs Alicent had given her sparkle even more. She had never been one for jewels or adornments, but she was well aware of her position and how she might reflect on Aemond, and more than anything she wanted to be of help to him. If it meant dressing up, so be it.

Alicent had also given her a small pendant shaped like the star of the Seven, and Elyse had dutifully worn it every single day since.

Once the seamstress was finished, the helped Elyse remove the gown and put her own dress back on.

She would be visiting the orphanage in Flea Bottom later and she felt better wearing one of her plainer dresses. It would almost be an insult to go see the poor, destitute children wearing priceless jewels and dazzling fabrics.

Ser Criston would go with her. He was loyal and a fierce warrior, and although he was hardly needed when she was going to see children, Aemond would not agree to this outing unless she took Ser Criston with her.

"Princess."

She turned at the sound of his voice, and nodded, making sure the bag of sweets was safe in her pocket.

"Thank you for accompanying me, Ser Criston."

"It is my honor, Your Highness. It is very kind of you to bring some joy to those poor souls."

Once at the orphanage, the children watched her warily at first, until a little girl bravely walked up to her as she extended a hand containing a sweet. Elyse smile as the girl unwrapped the sweet and put it in her mouth, and then turned to the other kids and called them over.

Ser Criston hovered, but Elyse never stopped smiling as the children surrounded her, their soft murmurs of "princess" giving way to laughter as she tickled them or ruffled their hair. She ran out of sweets but promised to return, and then headed down the corridor to speak to some of the septas that ran the orphanage.

She meant to donate as much as Aemond would allow, make this a place of joy, not just survival, make sure the children were not only educated but could also play and thrive. When she knocked on the office door, Ser Criston took his place nearby.

The door opened and Elyse walked in, a warmth filling her at having seen so many children smiling and knowing she would be doing more for them. She could make a difference, she had access to resources that might not mean much to others but they would change so much in these children's lives. If she could not have her own children, then she would do whatever she could for others.

When the door closed behind her, she saw there was no one at the desk and she turned around and found herself facing a woman, holding a dagger toward her.

* * * * *

[transpersian]

Poppy leaked DMs about you and her talking about the situation with NF and I... sincerely think Poppy has lost the ability to read and comprehend words. She's peddling the messages as you "believing" that NF r@ped her, when reading the messages the conclusion you came to in them was "whatever happened, clearly you feel betrayed on a level similar to that". That isn't you agreeing that NF r@ped her, that is just affirmation that Poppy's feelings are hurt. Which... is the truth! Poppy's feelings are hurt but feelings aren't always reality. I can feel like someone is doing XYZ, but that doesn't always mean they ARE.

Thanks, anon. I agree, and I'm honestly amazed that she thinks that anything I've said there is damning.

One of the trickiest parts about doing something like I did was walking a careful line between truth and lies; honestly, a lot of it was truth, like what she's shown there.

What she posted there? It was all genuine.

I'd like to take this opportunity to explain the other part of the accusation: the donation to Saige

She had posted the following offer in response to me asking [REDACTED] for a chance to talk to her. This was her reiterating it on 12/24.

While I did send Saige that much money, it was for her dog's medical expenses that she was asking money for on ko-fi.

I don't have to like someone or be on good terms with them to send them money that they need.

I really did want it to be no strings attached. She even reached out to me to try to talk.

I said no.

And again, at this point, this was all true. Everything I was saying here was real and honest.

The conflict with my friends was real. The nightmare of a BPD spiral was real. The slippery thoughts were real.

And even then, I still knew what I was doing.

What I find particularly interesting is this:

Firstly, let's get that last bit out of the way: "our" "rapists"? As in plural?

Are they counting what happened between Saige and Aztec as rape now???

Honey. Honey, no.

That aside, like I said above: everything I said in those screenshots was me being honest. This is not mutually exclusive with pointing it in a strategic direction.

Like I said: nobody knows the level I was playing on yet.

And yes, I did want to reconnect with her. We still had unfinished business and if part of what I got out of this gamble was finally getting the fucking conversation that she'd promised me last June, I was going to fucking take it.

If there was even a smidgen of a chance of her admitting that she was wrong and for me to get some kind of healing, I wanted to take it.

But it wasn't the only reason I did it, and it certainly wasn't the deciding factor.

That was real, and I pointed it in the right direction.

As for her understanding of why I went on the offensive again, I was prepared to stay under for even longer, but there were three factors that pushed it to the point where I couldn't keep the facade up any longer:

When going over the events of Noehflake's story and Poppy's "r*pe" with my new friend Kriese, I decided, "You know what, fuck it. This is a good opportunity to finally review the chat logs with some company (you wouldn't believe how hard it was sometimes to go over this stuff alone). What we discovered was so much worse than either of us had imagined, and so much more damning than we'd thought it could be. That led to the need to create and release the first Poppyamory doc, which in turn finally gave us the ramp-up I'd been waiting for to compile and release the first Spawn doc.

As predicted, my previous defense of "I promised not to say anything publicly about either side" finally stopped mattering to Poppy and Zena, and they started pressuring me to make a public statement. At this point, yes, I had fallen back in love with Poppy. The cognitive dissonance of letting that exist was extremely taxing. Knowing that the end was coming, I decided to go for broke. Try to make her leave. Each time I tried, she stuck by me, which made it hurt even more the next time, so I pushed harder. I needed her to abandon me, and she fought harder against me and for me to not than most of my real friends ever have. I can't even begin to explain how much that twisted me up. I was committed to ending it, so I decided to use the chance to push her on all of the topics I'd been careful with for over two months. Trying to get her to accept any responsibility for the harm she causes. Which resulted in exchanges like these:

The center cannot hold.

3. I'd been speaking to Luxander since early January, well before I'd started speaking to Poppy. While it had made it clear that it didn't want to address anything that wasn't stated publicly, we kept in touch. The release of the prior two docs opened the door for it to stream about it.

So I got to work preparing what would become Abusive Hypocrites 2, although at the time I still wasn't certain if I'd be burning that bridge completely. I wanted Poppy to push me away and give me an out. Finally, it reached a point where I was determined to end it, so I told Lux to go ahead and schedule the stream.

That's when I went for broke and really started pushing. I pushed about Spawn, about Zena, about Hayleigh, about me. But Poppy still wouldn't let me go. So that whole "mentally unwell" "Joker moment" tone of the final breakdown... Yeah, that was real, too, because I'd not only pushed her so hard and still gotten nothing in return, but she'd also mixed her refusal to abandon me with a negation of her original apology to me. She'd shown patience, but no willingness to budge on anything.

It was frustration and pain and betrayal and anger. I leaned into it and allowed it to embellish itself, but it came from very real feelings.

I set fire to the bridge by telling her that I'd written the Hayleigh and Spawn docs.

What she calls "gaslighting" not only wasn't that, it only came about on that level because I'd already made the decision to go all-in.

That's it.

Thanks for writing, anon.

[myhappyxending]

Chris and Regina for the sexy ABC!

🍎 ｡:*• ─ SEXY ABC.    ›   ( a list of questions, from A to Z, to help develop some headcanons about our muses. most questions are nsfɯ, so please make sure you’re not a minor and read at your own risk ! ) - send a pairing + one or more letters for some headcanons regarding our muses’ sex life ! - @that-obsessed-gay-girl

A ─ After care. Do they take care of each other after sex ? How ?

Regina is a cuddler if it's not a quickie so she'll want to cuddle and be affectionate even after sex. So she'll likely test the waters to see if Chris is receptive or wants to be left alone to get up. She's not going to be upset either way so long as sometimes she is allowed to cuddle. If Chris always gets up and goes out to smoke every time, she'll start to wonder if it's something she's doing wrong.

B ─ Breeding. Is this one of their kinks ? Do they often have unprotected sex ? Have they ever had any pregnancy scares ?

It is absolutely not one of their kinks. Or it's not one of Regina's. As for the other two, protection isn't much needed because pregnancy isn't an option for Regina, and last she knew, two women couldn't make a child. So there's no need for it. So no pregnancy scares.

C ─ Condoms. Do they use them ?  Do they have a preference ( color, flavour, etc… ) ? Have they ever had an accident ?  Would they continue anyway, if they’ve forgotten/run out of them ?

No. No need for them.

D ─ Dreams. A wet dream my muse has had about yours, and whether they’d want to make it come true.

Regina hasn't really had any dreams about Chris other than the bad dream here and there upon first meeting her. She had a lot of dreams back then about Emma taking Henry from her forever.

E ─ Experimenting. Are they willing to experiment new things ?  Is there something they’d like to try with their partner, but haven’t had the chance yet ?  Any experiments gone wrong ?

Regina is willing to experiment to a degree. She won't experiment with butt stuff. Ever. That is definitely off the table. She'd like to touch Chris more, but only if that was okay with her. She would never do anything Chris wasn't comfortable with. She would never push or do anything to break that trust.

F ─ First time. How was their first time together ?  Was any of them nervous ?  Did it live up to their expectations ?

The first time together had Regina nervous as hell. She didn't know if she was dreaming or what was real. She wanted it so badly, but her emotions were overwhelming. She had to take several shaky breaths and slow Chris down from time to time to regain her footing. In the end, it was one of the most memorable moments she's ever had with a partner. And at the time, she wasn't sure what was going to happen after. And that it made it terrifying, but she didn't want to not take the moment when it came.

G ─ Games. Do they play any games involving sex  ( like adult board games, throwing dice to decide what’s their next position, engaging in roleplay, food play, etc… ) ?

Regina doesn't like to play games where human emotions and sexual encounters are occurring. She would rather keep her eye on the prize and her mind in the moment.

H ─ Humour. Are they the kind to share a laugh during sex ?  Has something funny already happened to them ( breaking the bed, one of them falling off the couch, funny noises, etc… ) ?

Regina would definitely share a laugh if something happened like one of them fell off the bed or whatever surface they were having sex on or if the bed broke because of how vigorous they were being.

I ─ Infidelity. Has any of them ever cheated on their partner ?  Whom have they cheated with ?  If not, is it something they could do ?  If yes, have they told them or has the other found out ?  Could they forgive and forget ? 

Regina isn't a cheater, and she wouldn't put up with being cheated on. That would break her trust completely, and she's not sure if she would ever be able to move past it and trust them enough to let them in that intimately again.

J ─ Jewelry. Do they own any sexy jewelry  ( like butt plugs with rhinestones, piercings in intimate areas, cock rings, collars, etc… ) ?  What do they think about it ? 

No. There are not butt plugs. And there's no need for razzle dazzle on toys that are designed to make couples closer. She may have toys for solo play, but she's really not interested in using them with a partner. Not often anyway.

K ─ Kissing. How important are kisses in their relationship ?  Any favourite kind of kisses ?  Do they have any rituals involving kissing ( never leaving for work without kissing the other, always sharing a kiss goodnight, etc… ) ?

Kissing is very important. She needs all types of kisses. She needs the short pecks when leaving one another whether it be on the mouth or the cheek. She needs the desperate kisses when they've been apart or something traumatic has happened. She needs the slow and languid ones that are just them enjoying one another. She needs them. She craves them. They are important. Kissing goodbye is always a must. It takes a couple seconds and won't kill the other person. And it doesn't matter who is around.

L ─ Lingerie. Do they enjoy wearing it and/or seeing their partner in lingerie ?  What kind of lingerie do they find the sexiest ? Any other clothing they love seeing their partner in  ( like grey sweater pants, wearing nothing but an apron, really short shorts, etc… ) ?  Do they often wear what the other likes, just to please them ?

Regina is very much a lingerie woman. She'll wear it all day and snap teasing pics to send to Chris if the moment allows it. She likes to hide that lingerie under her business attire and only hint at it in Chris' presence to try and make her squirm when others are around. She likes to see Chris in form fitting pants and shirts. She likes to see her figure.

M ─ Masturbation. Do they engage in it ?  Together or alone ?  Do they enjoy watching their partner masturbating ?  Do they use any toys, or just their hands ?

Regina has engaged in it. Mostly when she's without a partner, so if her and Chris are actively sexual there will be no need for it unless Chris asks for her to touch herself, then she might oblige her. And she would only use her hands and her moans.

N ─ Nudes. Do they send them to each other ?  Do they save them on their phones ?  Do they keep them to themselves, or do they show them to their friends ?  Have they ever sent one to a wrong number ?  

Regain would most definitely send Chris nudes. Maybe the first one would appear to be an accident, but she would know better. And would confess eventually that it was on purpose. She's very meticulous about triple checking who she is sending images to so accidents do not happen. If Chris ever sent her anything, she would not show it to anyone. And she would hope that Chris would practice the same self control and respect for Regina's privacy.

O ─ O’clock. What time do they usually have sex  ( mornings, late at night, during lunch break, etc… ) ?  Are they usually in a rush, or do they take their time ? How about on weekends / holidays ?  

The time of day varies depending on the situation and the day of the week. So there is no set time for coupling. So whenever the mood arises and it's possible for them to engage, it will and does happen.

P ─ Public. Have they ever done it in public ?  Were they caught ?  Do they have a favourite public place to do it ?

Regina has allowed it to happen in her office from time to time. They have been nearly caught a couple of times. Or maybe a couple handfuls of times. She cannot remember. Her office would be her favorite public place.

Q ─ Questions. Is there anything they’d like to ask their partner, but never had the courage to ?  Any questions they’d rather avoid ?  Do they discuss everything as a couple, or are there any taboo themes ?

Regina is never upfront and expects Chris to be the same way. If they need to take their time in answering, she's okay with that, but no topic is off the table.

R ─ Recording. Have they ever filmed themselves having sex ?  Did they watch it together afterwards ?  Has anyone else seen their videos ? 

No. That is not something that Regina would allow because it could fall in the wrong hands, and she's not okay with that.

S ─ Spanking. Is this one of their kinks ?  If yes, who’s the spanker and who’s the spankee ?  Any favourite positions ?  Do they use just the hand or any other spanking implements  ( like the paddle, belt, whip, hairbrush, etc… ) ?

Light spanking with the hand would be welcome from Chris. And she would hope she could return the favor whether it be outside the bedroom or inside. She's open to that. Regina will not allow implements to be used. It is the hand or nothing at all. And it can be done from the position of being on her all fours with Chris being behind her or maybe even bent over Chris' lap.

T ─ Turn ons & offs. What do they do to turn each other on ?  Is there something the other does that turns them off ?  Have they told them about it ?

There are a lot of things that turn Regina on. So there's really not a set list of tun ons. But there is a short list of turn offs. That includes being degraded. That's the main one. She's sure there are more that would be added if they ever arise.

U ─ Unusual. What’s the most unusual place they’ve had sex at/in ?  Was it a good experience ?  Would they repeat it ?  Is there an unusual place they’d like to try ?

The most unusual place would be in the woods after being transported there on accident from a spell gone wrong on Regina's part. An argument ensued and well sex happened. It was a good experience, but then ended up with leaves and twigs and dirt in places that it shouldn't be and tree bark biting into her ass and the back of her thighs. So she's not fond of having a repeat performance.

V ─ Video call. Have they ever shared a sexy moment with each other during a video call ? What were the circumstances ( long distance, trying to cheer up/tease the other while at work, etc… ) ?  Did they enjoy it ?

Regina has welcomed a video call where Chris was out of Storybrooke to happen and take a sexual turn. She's not against it, and it's not her favorite way of being intimate with Chris, but once in a while, it's okay.

W ─ Walk of shame. Has one of them  ( or both )  ever done a walk of shame  ( trying to leave the place the other shared with roommates/family members unnoticed but being caught ) ?  How was it ?  What were the reactions ?

Chris has had the walk of shame a couple times before she moved in with her and Henry when Henry came home from Emma's unexpectedly and caught her leaving the next morning. The first time Regina had an awkward breakfast with Henry that was soon assuaged when Henry told her that he was happy that she had found someone to love and care about her.

X ─ X-rated. Do they watch any x-rated movies ( porn ) ?  Together or alone ?  Do they have a favourite type ?  Do they try to reenact them afterwards ?

No. Absolutely not. There's no need for it when they have one another.

Y ─ Yucky. Is there something they find particular disgusting or unpleasant in regards to sex ? Something they’d absolutely refuse to do, even if the other really wanted it ?  Have they already denied the other some kinks because of this ? 

Butt stuff, for sure. And anything that requires bodily fluids like excrement and urine. That's a big no thank you. Completely off the table. No degradation either.

Z ─ Zones. What are their most erogenous zones ?  Does their partner know all of them ?  Do they make sure to stimulate each other in said zones ?

Regina's most erogenous zones are behind her ears where Chris kisses and breaths hotly on her neck. She's also very sensitive on her inner thighs and stomach. Chris has no problem obliging Regina's needs and desires.

[limbusrailway]

Hey, give me a rundown on your bus! I'd love to know what the squad is doing down there and a general dynamic for their interactions.

Too much goes down on the railway. Okay, maybe not THAT much, it's hard to beat the canon bus, but. They certainly aren't having a "good" time.

Kai is essentially a sociopath. He wasn't always that way, something happened in his childhood that eventually just kinda. Took away all his empathy and emotions. He claims to be searching for something but can't define what, and his body is always eerily cold. Despite being one of the youngest members on the bus that's already very young in general, he feels distinctly separated from everyone else and weirdly older.

Pan is definitely er... The Quixote, I suppose? At least at first brush. I have a friend who has a Peter Pan on their helicopter bus too, so I decided to take mine a slightly different way and lean into the second half of the name. He appears innocent and childish enough at first but he's kinda. An active agent of madness and chaos who wants things to be as interesting as possible, and the childishness is a pleasant filter people can put over things to excuse it. If he pries into your backstory it's easier to think of it as a young person not realizing you're uncomfortable and they're being rude rather than him actively trying to poke at you, y'know? He won't often physically hurt the other sinners but he will absolutely push everyone mentally and even play devil's advocate in arguments for the sake of it.

Dorothy, meanwhile, perhaps gives people too much credit. She believes Kai actually cares, she believes Pan has secret good intentions even if he knows how harmful he's being, that sort of thing. If someone is hostile to her she often just gives them the benefit of the doubt. What gets her angry/concerned it when people are particularly mean to other innocents. When it comes to what people on the bus count as people she'd get made for the sake of, I'd say the Manager, Momo, Aino, Billy, Charles Wallace, Candide, and under very specific circumstances Orpheus and Hallward. She will turn you into goop if you get on her bad side it's just not an easy thing to do. She's relatively motherly, and will try to calm down arguments between her coworkers.

Orpheus is a depressed man I haven't even decided if there's a chance of him getting his wife back. She might've distorted or she might just be actually dead it's TBD. Frankly I think he might not be sure what happened to her either, and his character is based off a sort of blind hope he holds onto despite everything, but he's willing to do a lot of selfish and questionable things to achieve his hopes under the justification that "so much has happened to him." He was originally (before the company) a relatively well-known and talkative person but now he's quiet and hides his music and such from everyone else. He hits shit with his guitar.

Aino doesn't trust anyone, even the people that seem to care for her most. Frankly, he barely even trusts the Manager. The only thing encouraging her to trust anyone else on the team is that most of them have been forced into this job as well rather than being here willingly. Before joining, she was being backed into a forced marriage, almost distorted over it. Her choices were essentially that or the company. And she was backed in by her family, who she thought genuinely loved her. So she turned the only other way she could and escaped as a Sinner.

Charles Wallace is... A weird kid? I'd say "resident company autism" but let's be honest like. Most sinners have some form of the divergence. He's detached but not in the way Kai is, he seems genuinely interested in everyone and all the things that are happening but to the point that he can sometimes get drawn into worrying ideas and topics, and could be convinced to betray the group with the right logic presented to him. Often what he talks about can sound like circular reasoning or mad blabbering to others.

Hallward is tired he's so tired. This man basically accidentally created an abnormality and is living with the consequences. He's scared to get too close to anyone else in fear that he'll ruin their life as well and push them into depravity. He's personable with everyone he has to have manners he can't be a degenerate himself but he keeps everyone at arms length, even more so if he thinks he holds genuine affection for someone or finds them "beautiful." Unlike Orpheus, who still has a passion for his art but isn't public with it, Hallward has essentially stopped altogether.

Momo is another weird child like, even younger than Kai, some people question if she ages? She's the resident group tank, and. Actually she's probably the resident group Meursault but a very different flavor. She is silent and will listen to you rant for hours on end until you solve a problem yourself, but if she thinks an order sounds wrong? She will question her manager about it. She wants people to be able to live a happy and carefree life as themselves, but doesn't necessarily articulate things like that, more by just questioning the necessity of a lot of things people say are just the way things are and similar means. She will genuinely listen to anyone on the bus even if she doesn't understand a word of it.

Candide is somehow even more tired than Hallward this man has been actively tortured. Multiple times. He got made homeless for kissing a girl all of one time. He's been through a lot. At this point he doesn't... Not care? His attitude is to just kind of keep trudging on and take what life throws at him, try to make the best of things even if everything in the world isn't for the best. He shits on optimism and pessimism alive, things are just what they are. For this reason he actually doesn't get along with Kai because Kai will actively look for the worst outcome of anything and Candide is like. "Bro. Bro."

Billy Pilgrim is... Er... Wow I truly have a bus full of weirdos, I mean, every single bus is full of weirdos but you know what I mean. He's constantly spacing out and not there because he's time traveling. Sort of. It's complicated. He believes he's had an experience with some sort of higher power and as such also just goes with things because he believes he's lesser as a human. It's not that he doesn't want to connect with those around him and more that they find it difficult to connect to him because he seems to see the world in such an incomprehensible way. I think he and Charles Wallace are actually weirdly familial and the bus is mildly... Confused? Disturbed? Unclear.

Darcy doesn't want to be here he's better than this most of this bus has no manners why is he here good lord. Like Hong Lu but if Hong Lu knew what life was like for other people and understood it fucking sucked but still clung to the status he has. He'd help people - he wants to - but he believes it kind of has to be done from within the system, and gets very uncomfortable if the gang ever has to actively defy a wing or another higher power. Like, he has things to go back to, a home and stuff, he just wants this over with and every bit of nonsense that happens is straining his good will.

Riviera is Pan but worse so much worse like not even just chaos agent active malice agent he will give another sinner torturous drug trip nightmares just because he thought it'd be neat and wants to see what happens. His claws are built into his hands and it wasn't something forced on him he actively got that of his own accord as with every other body mod on him. He might be an addict now because he'd die from withdrawal but he absolutely walked into every problem knowing the consequences and wanted them anyways. And yet he still tries to act suave and like an artist of some sort. If you don't look too hard you can get drawn into his depravity so easily by his silver tongue and then you're done for.

Alice has a horrible headache. She's lost her memory like Dante but not her head - as far as she's concerned, she doesn't even think she's from The City. She doesn't understand how she resurrects her team at all, she just kind of blacks out some of the time and comes to what they assure her is no more than a minute later and everyone is fine. They don't entirely get it either but are glad to have her. Half of the time she's just standing there with an absolutely baffled expression on her face, or absolutely terrified. This is in direct contrast to Lily who is only serious when she absolutely needs to be and is extremely blase about things for being a guide and a powerful Fixer. She acts like everyone on the bus is fine and gets along neither of these things are true. She will probably get in trouble with a higher up some day for spending money frivolously.

Nemo... Er... Drives the train and tries to stay out of all of this. They've tried talking to him a few times, he does answer their questions but all the answers seem contradictory or he carefully avoids revealing literally anything about himself.

[herearedragons]

3, 25, 40, 65 from the DA asks? :3

...this ended up as a long post, so I'm putting the answers under the cut. Thanks for the ask!

Short summary: I try to remember how long it took me to finish the DA series; I am very normal about Emprise du Lion; several instances of Kyana Amell being not okay.

3. How long did it take you to finish the series?

I don't remember exactly, but it must have been several years. I remember discovering DA:O and DA2, not getting very far in either bc there was some point I didn't know how to progress from, and then coming back months or maybe years??? later, having discovered online gaming communities, and most of all, the power of The Wiki. I then finished those games and also played Inquisition a whole lot. I've only finished each game once, so far.

25. Favorite DA:I place?

I am very normal about Emprise du Lion.

...I haven't replayed DA:I in a couple of years, though, so I wonder if I'd have another favorite if I played it now.

40. A moment/action you regret in-game?

I'm currently replaying DA:O with Kyana (my OG Warden) while trying to stay in character, which means I'll probably have several of these before I'm done. The standouts so far:

encouraging that one girl to become Tranquil, Kyana just doesn't understand why the rite of Tranquility is evil yet. She spent a lot of time with the Tranquil as a child and that kind of shaped her positive opinion of them, and also she's never been taught how to Process An Emotion and never having to worry about that, plus having "unwavering focus" or whatever the Codex says, sounds pretty good to her. She would go on record saying that she'd ask to be made Tranquil herself, if it didn't stop her from doing magic. She's... missing the point.

killing the Brecilian forest hermit after sucessfuly bartering with him for the acorn, by provoking him by touching the tree stump. On purpose. Solely because she heard from Zathrian that he was a blood mage. Something something she's desperate to prove to herself that all blood mages are evil, so she kept pushing this one until he snapped and attacked her first. I'm not really sure if i'll keep this one as canon, because that's kind of evil, and I'm the one who has to come up with a redemption arc for her at some point. But it made sense in my head at that point in the game and I'm not replaying the Brecilian Forest to fix it if I do decide to retcon it.

...also, honorable mention: siding with the templars in DA:I. Champions of the Just is a really good quest (YOU GET YOUR IDENTITY STOLEN. KIND OF.) and it makes sense for some of my Inquisitors to choose the templars, but... Alistair's mom gets red-lyriumed. Never getting a chance to meet her son. WHY.

65. Any epic game play moments in any DA game?

Today I went into the Brecilian ruins with Kyana. During the drake fight, she dealt so much damage to it from afar that it ended up ignoring Sten and Alistair and making a beeline directly for her. At the last sliver of her health, she yells "I'm taking you down with me" and casts Earthquake on both the drake and herself. The drake died soon after (I think maybe Leliana finished it off), but the rumbling went on for a few more seconds, and I suddenly remembered that this entire thing is happening underground. Kyana wasn't just taking the drake down with her, she was going to potentially collapse the entire place. I'm not sure which idea I like better, her doing this intentionally, out of spite and due to being Very Not Okay, or of her lashing out unconsciously and not really thinking her actions through. Either way, there probably were a few terrified seconds where the party worked together to snap her out of it before she brings the ceiling down.

[atticinthecafe]

Another random One shot for my Phantom Thief Leader Akechi AU

[more beneath the cut, not proof read or edited i just write for fun]

---

"Even if they do exactly as they say," Sae set down her cup with a soft clink, eyes glancing to the barista that was speaking to her, "are the Phantom Thieves such a good thing anyways?" 

He spoke with a soft hum. Seems like he's thought about it a lot. He was focused on his work ahead of him, the final touches to curry she had ordered. This place was peaceful, and though she hadn't been able to learn anything from the owner, the boy was pleasant company. 

"Hm? And what do you mean by that?" She paused to take a sip of her drink, "They came to your school, didn't they? Most kids your age are fans of them."

Even Akechi seemed to have softened up on them, in private at least. Though, she had to admit, it was refreshing to hear she wasn't the only one doubting them. Especially after Makoto's turn towards them. 

"No one will learn to solve their problems alone if they exist. What motivation will there be to improve if you know someone will just make things better for you if you don't?" He let out a soft exhale, "Things will fall into ruin if this is left to continue."

Sae watched him for a moment. Akira Kurusu was his name. She had learned this in his explanation of working here. How he had been wrongfully accused, and now was on probation. He spoke like he saw everything around him but didn't think it necessary to share. He knew more than he said, and led a life that left him seeming plain. They had made a deal, or that's what he called it at least, where he would be a sounding board, and offer any insight he overheard, and she would try and help his case in return once this was all over. He was a good kid. 

"That's a take I haven't heard before."

"... When they first struck, I wanted to believe in them. Then I thought more about it. How do we trust them to decide who is good and bad?" He finished up the curry, sliding the plate over to her before relaxing against the shelf behind him, "A friend of mine, someone I'm helping overcome her challenges, told me that idea first. I thought about how unfair it'd be to her, if they changed her heart, fixed her problems. She'd be better, they would get the credit, and she would've never learned how to handle that sadness in case it ever returns." 

"I see. There's no telling if they are trustworthy in the first place, a good track record can only say so much, but even if they were, good intentions can still be dangerous. They need to be stopped either way."

He nodded. His eyes had an intense focus to them, "It is good, how much crime they've gotten off the street," he paused. Of course, she knew what he was talking about, the reports upon reports of suspects turning themselves in. Not all of them major, but all unusual cases, it had made headlines with how many cases were occuring "but they don't give people like you the chance to grow and succeed, and people rely on you more than some anonymous group. It's weird to even think about how they found out about all of this."

Sae took the plate pushed in front of her. Taking a few bites as more thoughts occurred to her. The dedicated site to them could only provide them with so much information. They had to have another source. Maybe this was the clue she needed. 

"Maybe I care too much. Boss tells me I have a bad habit of sticking my nose into other people's problems," He shook his head, before letting out a soft laugh, "I don't think I'm much better than them in that regard."

Sae hummed. If that was true, then the thieves could just be misguided, pushing naive attempts to help others. It would fit the profiling she had of them. Kurusu being a teen likely their age made the idea seem more reasonable. She got to see in action that some kids desperately want to help in any way they can. 

"Maybe so, but you're a kid. You have time to learn," She offered him a kind smile, which he returned, "You've given me a lot to think about, thank you."

"I'll let you get to it then," he seemed reassured, if his uplifted tone was any indication, and he took her mostly empty cup to pour her another, a quick comment of it being on the house.

She looked to her computer, which had sat forgotten for their entire conversation. Maybe, the thieves had someone in the justice system's sphere to provide them information. She knew too well how easily people could be swayed, whether by money or hopeless optimism. There was a chance this could be a dead end entirely, but until she knew, it was worth looking into.

—

"I don't believe they're that bad, despite what I'm pressured to say for the media," Akechi huffed, as he worked on a case across the table from her. 

"So enforcing your own sense of justice with no-one to keep you in check is something you agree with now?" She gave him a questioning look before returning to writing notes.

"Isn't that what we do? Interpret the order of things and enforce it?"

"We have people to keep us in check, they do not," Sae put emphasis on the "we" and "they" as she spoke, slight irritation slipping into her tone. With all of Akechi's insight into how cruel the world could be, he was just a kid after all.

"You've got me there, but nothing they've done so far implies flawed morals. Let's face it, we were never going to be able to catch Kaneshiro. I am in this field to let people live peaceful lives, and as far as I can see, they share that goal."

"They made fools of us!" Sae slapped her pen down on the table, staring towards Akechi, "They prevent us from being able to solve cases and gain more information and tactics to solve future cases! Even if they are on the side of justice, their methods mean people rather turn to them than take initiative and bring things to us, which might lead to worse problems than we have now! Some fairytale of stolen hearts and gentlemen thieves isn't reliable!"

Akechi seemed stunned. After moment he looked away, gathering his materials back towards his brief case. She could see disagreement on his face. The focus in his eyes was too determined for him to be giving in, or even listening to her.

"My apologies Sae-san. I didn't mean to upset you," He put his papers away, and in the silence moved to stand up, "Perhaps I should take my leave. I will consider what you've said."

She watched Akechi turn his back and go. For a moment, she saw hesitation in his eyes. Maybe he was considering him being in the wrong, or maybe he wanted to try and convince her more. Either way, she shouldn't expect him to think like a rational adult. He had a ways to go, and shouldn't have been accepted into his role in the first place. 

— 

Someone had stolen data from her computer. 

There wasn't much, but traces of it remained. 

Someone close to her would've been the only ones able. She doubted Makoto would do that. Her younger sister had no reason to, despite their disagreements. 

Not many others would've had the chance to get close. The only other person who came to her mind was Akechi.

She wasn't sure why. Maybe he wanted a leg up against her in the investigation. Despite his views he still pressed hard for information on the Phantom Thieves. 

Or maybe he was a naive kid, and had somehow been contacted by them. His defense of them could be loyalty. Maybe he was their source for information on the multitude of cases. 

She couldn't rule out the possibility. 

Not now. Not while she was so close to their trail.

— 

It seemed like the world was against her. A losing game. Rigged. 

The only way to win was to take things into her own hands.

So that is exactly what she did. 

If others would snoop into her devices and privacy, she could do the same. It started out a simple curiosity. She heard Makoto on the other end of a call Akechi took. She just checked her sister's phone to see if they were in fact contacts. They were.

She didn't linger long. Just long enough for a notification from a group chat her sister was in to go off.

She read the names of those involved.

Goro Akechi. Her coworker. Heavily involved in an investigation against the Phantom Thieves.

Ann Takamaki. A student at Shujin. If she remembered right, a close friend of a victim in the case there, as well as a victim herself.

Ryuji Sakamoto. Another student at Shujin. Kamoshida's reports mentioned the name, something about a broken leg and track team. 

Yusuke Kitagawa. Not an incredible familiar name, but it rang a bell. Kitagawa sounded like the name of Maderame's pupil.

Makoto Niijima. Her younger sister. 

Futaba Sakura. The daughter of the woman who had suffered a mental shutdown, and had research in the cognitive field. 

She had to check. She set down her sister's phone, made it seem like she hadn't touched it at all. She didn't even read the messages that were sent. If she could confidently confirm everything she thought she knew about these people. 

This could be big.

This could be it. 

— 

"I need you to tell me what you know about Ryuji Sakamoto and Ann Takamaki. They go to your school, correct?"

Sae didn't waste time as she sat down in the cafe. Kurusu looked a bit surprised before nodding, starting on her coffee. 

"Yep. It seems like you found a lead. I don't know how much I can help…" 

He told her how the two were definitely friends, and very involved with the Kamoshida case. Sakamoto almost getting himself expelled during it. He mentioned how he would see them with all sorts of people. Akechi and an artist, likely to be Kitagawa, on that list. She didn't learn much more that she could use, but it solidified her foundation. 

She was going to catch the Phantom Thieves. No matter the cost. 

—

"You need to watch your back."

Akira kept his voice low as he pushed his way into the back area of the Jazz Jin. Shocked eyes flicked up to meet him. Morgana was at his feet, guiding him in. 

Akechi stood to meet him first, clearly alarmed, but when Morgana nodded to him, he eased. They trusted each other.

"Sae is onto you. She must've found out about you all being friends somehow," Akira's arms crossed as he stood against the door. 

"How'd you find out about us?" Ryuji's voice broke the quiet first, filled with shock. 

"You weren't that subtle. Kind of loud actually. It's okay, I didn't spill anything." 

"How do we know we can trust you," Makoto was next, and it looked like Akechi had the same question on his mind.

"I have a recording of Sae. She knows. She came to Le Blanc asking about you all."

"Oh my god." A quiet voice, a girl with orange hair in the back, spoke up, "he's right."

A recording rang out of Sae asking about Ryuji and Ann. The intensity of her voice was clear. Morgana seemed awkward in the tension, tail waving a bit. 

"Plus. He's with me!" Morgana finally piped up, voice building in confidence as he went on "He has a persona, and I've been training him on my own time. Everyone! Meet Akira Kurusu. The newest member of our team!" 

Everyone hesitated, before easing up. If Morgana trusted him, and he could understand Morgana, then he already was a promising option. There were chimes of "welcome" and "can't wait to see what you can do". Akechi's stare dug into him, before eventually softening into a smile.

"Change your mind on the Phantom Thieves?" He asked, amusement in his tone. They had spoken too many times on their ideals. 

"Not yet, but, I'm willing to see for myself," Akira returned his smile. 

He still thought they were good. That they had good intentions at least. He didn't think the thieves should continue, but he wanted to try and stop them peacefully first. 

Igor warned total ruin if they weren't stopped. He had to stop them. If this didn't work… then in anyway he could. 

[madaboutmunson]

Don't Stand So Close To Me - Part 13 - Perfect Day

Part 12 | Part 14 | Chapter list | Eddie Munson Fanfiction Masterlist

Warnings: Swearing, crude humour, romance, angst, food, bullying

Summary: Its Eddie and Lyra’s first official day together. Eddie has the plot, but Lyra has to keep it on the rails.

Word Count: 7.4K

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Eddie's alarm beeps, but he's already been lying awake for at least an hour thinking about this past week, but mostly last night. He still had so much he wanted to ask her, but he didn't want to come across as too much.

He'd been reading over the approximate outline for tonight's Hellfire session, which made him a little nervous. Yesterday at lunchtime, when he'd invited her to a game, she'd just been Lyra, someone who needed some help navigating the Hellmouth that is Hawkins High, but now? Now she was Lyra, someone he couldn't wait to be that close to again. The way she pulled him into her just so she could lay against him made him feel so wanted. Not just in the usual lustful way a taster of an intimacy he also craved. A gentle one. A protective one.

Eddie checks over his extra bag for Hellfire again, ensuring he's covered for as many different scenarios as possible. Whatever he had planned and expected to happen during the game rarely did. A table full of teenage variables would do that to a plan. He shakes his head and smiles, but he wouldn't have it any other way. He was listening to the story as it unfolded as much as anyone else at the table. The difference was he had to wrangle it to hit the main beats of the plot here and there and make sure the challenges weren't so imbalanced it would wipe out the party or give them a chance to run away.

Eddie zips up the huge second bag and heads out of his room to the bathroom.

"Hey, son", a tired voice rings out from the living room.

Eddie looks towards the voice of Uncle Wayne on his camp bed covered in blankets. He had probably only intended a greeting exchange, but Eddie decides to rip off the band-aid.

Eddie leans his batman pyjama-ed self against the wall outside the bathroom with his arms folded, "So...I'm...Me and Lyra, we're like a thing now" he points a finger at Wayne before he can open his mouth, "I will allow you to gloat, provided you help me because I'm pretty nervous about it all. It's gonna be different, I think" Eddie looks at Wayne while talking but finishes with a look to the floor and a little smile.

"Different as in. I might actually get to meet her on purpose?" Wayne says with surprise sitting up.

Eddie laughs, rubbing the back of his neck, "I mean, sure, if you want to, but there are some things you should probably know first."

Wayne's expression turns from surprise to concern as he moves from his bed to the comforts of his armchair, lighting a cigarette, "Go on then", he waves Eddie on to continue.

Eddie uses his shoulder to push himself up from the wall, his hands tucked under his arms on either side of his chest. His eyes wander around the kitchen and living room as he paces towards Wayne slowly, "So, she's very, very rich. I had a tour of her house, and it is out of this world, honestly," Eddie says, still somewhat in disbelief himself.

"Well, I kinda guessed that much", Wayne huffs a little, "Made you feel small, did it?"

"You know, at first, yeah, it did, but then I think she was kind of embarrassed about it almost?" He speaks slowly and deliberately, "Like she was trying to get it out of the way. When she showed me around, she was in a hurry, but if I asked anything, she'd stop and take time to tell me all about it. I saw the sewing room, and we played music together and ate dinner. It was...um...nice, you know? Which was good, considering how badly things had been going before we got there."

Wayne raises an eyebrow at Eddie, and in response, Eddie raises his hands, "For a change, not completely my fault. Her ex turned up, and when I tell you he's a piece of shit, I mean that objectively."

"Eddie, please don't tell me you're gonna get into trouble over some girl. You don't need that. We don't need that," Wayne says in an exasperated tone, slightly pleading.

"I swear, not my intention at all, sir. She asked him to leave, but he wouldn't. So I asked, and he wouldn't. Then he put his hands on her, and I moved her out of the way." He looks at the floor sadly and then back up at Wayne, "You know I can't stand by and watch that happen. Not again"

Wayne gets up from his chair, puts his hand on Eddie's shoulder and looks him in the eyes, "That wasn't your fault, ok? Nothing you could do back then, alright?" Wayne says carefully, "I understand why you stepped in for Lyra, but be careful is all I'm asking. Be smart, Eddie."

"I hear ya." Eddie nods and then changes the subject, "She's not allowed back there until further notice now anyway. So yeah, I just wanted to let you know that...A few of us will be going there after Hellfire Club tonight."

Wayne smiles proudly at Eddie, "I'm here for you, whatever you need. So she's a musician, is she?"

"Well, she kept up with me, but on the piano." Eddie smiles back.

Wayne makes an agreeable grumble, "Hmmm, anything else you two have in common?"

"So far?" Eddie starts wistfully, making Wayne laugh and shake his head. "We both play musical instruments, we both really like music, we like our safety foods, we both like fantasy books, we both like the theatre, we both get animated about our special interests, we both don't have great relationship track records, um...we've both got big dreams."

"Honestly, for a so far, I was expecting something like we both got heads, so I'd say that's a pretty good list. I can't see what you're gonna need my help with, son. You do just fine on your own, well, in your own way." Wayne smiles.

"Like I said, it's different this time," Eddie says, a little frustrated he can't articulate what he means precisely because, if he was being honest with himself, he wasn't exactly sure either, "I want it to stay different too" he tries and looks to his uncle for assistance.

"Oh, I see." Wayne nods his head and smiles, "You can't force love, Eddie. If it's meant to happen, it'll happen."

Eddie half smiles in appreciation for Wayne helping him decipher his thoughts, "I know, and for all its shit start, I'm not sure if that will happen either. We've agreed on some things...things I haven't had before or at least haven't had it explicitly said"

"What things?" Wayne asks, folding his arms slowly.

"That me and Lyra are a thing. It's exclusive, and it's not a secret" Eddie looks to his uncle, whose arms, now unfolded, drop to his hips and gives Eddie a sympathetic look.

"Now, listen to me good. It's great you talked about them things, ok. But do not let 'em make you stick around too long in something not meant for you, you hear me? I'm not saying this girl is or isn't right for you. I just want you to know that out there, lots of people want those things, Eddie. You've just not had the best run or the best role models either" Wayne's voice cracks a little in that last part, so Eddie rushes to make it ok again.

"Yeah, well, I just wanted to ask ahead of time, you know. If I mess up, which I probably will. Also, now you know and seem ok with it, I'd like her to visit sometime. Maybe I could make that roast venison you like after a hunt? We could all eat together?" Eddie twists his rings around his fingers, worried Wayne wouldn't want someone like Lyra here. Wayne had his own Munson doctrine on the wealthy, privileged people of the world.

"You wanna bring her here? To the trailer park?!" Wayne asks, not so much in anger but in surprise.

Eddie shrugs, "I mean, yeah, I've been to her house, and it's nice and all, but I feel I can be more myself here. Plus, it would be good for me to hear what you think of her," Eddie enthuses.

"Eddie, it doesn't matter what I-" Wayne starts to say, but he gets cut off.

"What you think about her means a lot to me," he says genuinely before an impish grin spreads across his face, "But will I listen? Hmmm, probably not. It's not like your right about everything. Your taste in music is abysmal."

Wayne laughs, nodding, seeing his nephew return to his usual mischievous self. He heads back to bed whilst Eddie gets ready for school.

Eddie just can't help himself this morning. He is cleaning and preening like a man possessed. Showered and dried. Not a hair out of place, taming a few curls and waves individually, scrunching at his crown to give it that little bit of volume. Face and neck cleanly shaven and scented. Teeth scrubbed, flossed and examined. Fresh, well-fitted hellfire shirt from the box, lucky boxers, lucky Garfield socks, jeans, leather, vest, and finally, his belt and chained wallet.

He strums his fingers over the strings of his BC Rich Warlock guitar and caresses the paintwork on its body. "Wish me luck today, sweetheart", he says before taking a last look in the mirror.

"It's a new day, Eddie. You got this." He says to his reflection, tugging his vest into place before finally turning around, picking up his bags and heading to the van.

Eddie reaches for the cassette box under the passenger seat and rifles through his mood enhancers. All with no tracklisting, just a secret code for Eddie, so he knew what each of them helped with.

His ocean sound tapes had a flat horizontal line for calm. For slowing down, an arrow pointing down. For chilling out due to some herbal assistance, a down arrow with wiggly lines on either side. There were tapes for romance, anger, happiness, sadness, and finally, the one he wanted, the up arrow with tyre tracks next to it. He fires up the van, slams in the cassette, and accelerates out of the trailer park to Black Sabbath's Turn Up The Night.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Lyra had been standing at Phil's wall of security monitors for about an hour, ready to go. Eddie wasn't late, not by a long shot. She just couldn't sleep any longer. The excitement bubbling up inside her had just been unbearable.

Chef had asked her to leave the kitchen area due to asking so many questions and scared him so severely when peering over his shoulder he nearly cut his finger. However, she managed to negotiate an extra lunch from him and the ingredients for the two sauces from yesterday.

She'd then moved around the house, trying to find the best view up the road to the house. Phil had caught her and offered her a sneak peek at the security office if she would just stop bustling around for a bit.

Lyra has had her eyes moving between the same two monitors for the past sixty minutes, but they honestly felt like decades, just watching an empty tree-lined road.

She checks over her new outfit, straight-leg blue jeans, a mustard cropped sweater and a black bomber jacket waiting on the back of the chair. She'd ensured the sweater was demure enough for her to be comfortable at school. So she wouldn't have her midriff on display all day. Accessories with the new white sneakers, her handmade mustard fabric-covered earrings, and a spray of her most expensive perfume Coco.

She'd tried to keep her makeup and hair as normal as possible, but she had spent twice as much time trying to make an effort look effortless. But after yesterday, lipstick was off the table, just some lip balm in its place. She'd even painted her nails, which was somewhat challenging until Phil helped her out.

Eventually, the van comes into view at a relatively slow pace, Lyra notes. She throws her coat on and hurtles towards the front door. She comes to an abrupt stop as Phil stops her in her tracks. She frowns. Phil smiles, counts down from 3 on his fingers and then steps away. Only for the doorbell to chime, he waves her towards it.

She opens the door, and it frames him perfectly. He looked so good. His face was soft as his decadent chocolate eyes trailed over her. As the door swung in, the aroma that hit her nearly knocked her clean onto her backside. His usual light-sweetened tobacco aroma, but also leather, pine and some sort of cologne. Eddie had successfully forced two of Lyra's senses into submission.

And then he went for the third, "Well, I was gonna wish you good morning, but I think I'm getting all the good this morning has to offer", he purrs as he scans her over again, "but I digress." he gestures over to his van.

As she steps out the door, she feels her backpack slip off her shoulder, and something else appears in its place. Eddie's hand at the small of her back. Four, she thinks. Lyra smiles hugely as she notices Eddie sling her bag over his shoulder, "It was in my way", he says, struggling to repress his grin.

He opens the passenger door for Lyra and offers his hand to help her inside. Once on the seat, she looks back to him for her bag, but he's just staring up at her, eyes twinkling, a gentle but wide closed-mouth smile on his face.

She can't help but mirror him. The happiness she was feeling, mixed with nervous energy, all that waiting was over, and the butterflies in her tummy were already at maximum flutter.

"I can take that now," she says, leaning down to take the bag from him.

Eddie slowly blinks once and then shakes his head, "Yeah, sure." He hands the bag up to her and closes the door before going back to his side of the van and hopping in.

"You look great," they say in almost perfect unison, which causes them both to laugh. Then, Eddie starts up the van, and the cassette tape kicks in, the loudness of which makes Lyra pin herself back into her seat.

Eddie chuckles at her reaction and turns it down.

"Well, I suppose that's one way to wake up in the morning", she laughs, now over her initial shock.

"I can always put the radio on instead", Eddie offers kindly.

"Absolutely not!" Lyra blurts out.

Eddie raises his eyebrows and quickly looks at her before looking back at the road, "Ok, that was a sudden reaction. You're gonna have to tell me why."

Lyra adjusts in her seat to present her case. "Ok, well, first of all, it would be nice to hear what you like to listen to. Secondly, I know it's their job, but I mostly loathe all the talking on the radio, especially when-"

"-they talk over the song", Eddie joins in with the last bit of Lyra's sentence.

"Is that a 'you agree' joining in or 'you are so used to hearing that argument' joining in?" Lyra asks.

"I...wholeheartedly agree," he says, pausing for emphasis. Lyra couldn't decide if Eddie was just acting up generally or purposefully finding all manner of ways to charm her.

"You excited for today?" Lyra says brightly and quickly clarifies, "For the game, I mean."

"Every week, but this one might be a little more difficult than others," Lyra notices. Eddie runs his tongue along his bottom lip. She rustles in her bag, pulls out her mint chocolate lip balm and offers it over.

Eddie smiles, "Whilst that's very thoughtful, my hands are kinda busy driving at the moment."

"Of course...right," Lyra says, feeling a little dumb and putting it back in her pocket.

Eddie dramatically sighs, "Buuuuut, your hands aren't busy, right?" Lyra sees an impish smirk appear on his face that is totally infectious, and she does not need to be invited twice to get in his space. She shuffles over the best she can, leaning over the gap between them, wielding the lip balm.

It's awkward, but it's fun. Eddie pouts out his lips like a little fish, making Lyra giggle, "Not like that, relax your mouth, goofball" Eddie overly slackens his mouth and makes a zombie-type sound, making her giggle again, "This must be what those makeup women felt like with me in the chair".

Lyra takes matters into her own hands and, placing her thumb on one side of his mouth, and her finger on the other, manages to form a regular Eddie mouth, which she swipes the lip balm across gently, "There you go. All done" she uses her thumb to remove any excess from around his mouth. At least that is what she has set out to do, but due to how soft his skin feels, her motion slows, and her stare intensifies for maybe slightly too long. Eddie looks at her from the corner of his eye for a split second. It pulls her out of her trance and back into her own seat.

"Are you wearing this one too?" Eddie asks, rubbing his lips together.

"Yeah, why do you ask?" Lyra asks, a little puzzled.

There is a small silence, and Lyra can see Eddie's tongue poking out, resting against his top lip, in some sort of concentrated decision-making.

"How about a little answer trade? I'll answer your question if you answer mine?" Eddie suggests, his fingers release and then wrap around the steering wheel again.

"You can ask me whatever you like, Eddie. You don't need to trade" Lyra smiles over at him.

Eddie reaches his hand out to hold hers, "I guess I kinda knew that already. I just thought if it was a deal, you couldn't wiggle out of the answer."

"And I thought your hands were busy driving" Lyra half smiles.

"They were...at the time...besides...you set me up. I had an opportunity to get you over here, and you think I was just gonna wave at that opportunity as it passed me by?!" Eddie says with fake alarm.

"You can just ask, you know? Not everything has to be a trick, Eddie," Lyra laughs.

"Yeah, but it's so much more fun that way. But you know, now you've said it, I might just do that...at some point...maybe," He says, teasing.

Lyra wiggles her fingers in-between Eddie's and asks, "Are you gonna answer the question then?"

"Well," Eddie says, as he reruns his tongue along his lip and flicks his hair back, "I just wondered if it was the same as yours because if it was, then this is what your lips taste like" Eddie gives a quick side glance at Lyra for her reaction.

It has suddenly got a lot warmer in the van, well, at least to Lyra, anyway.

Jesus Christ. This guy. Today was a five senses assault. She absolutely did not know where to look right now, but naturally, her eyes gave her away and were drawn immediately to his mouth.

They hadn't even made it to school. No, it was worse than that. They hadn't even picked up Kevin. How was she going to get through today, and then a whole evening, without grabbing and smooching him into oblivion?

She attempts a change of subject, "So er..." Her voice is much too high from nervousness, making Eddie grin, and she clears her throat, "Yeah, what was your question?"

Lyra observes Eddie running his thumb across one of his rings, twisting it around as it rested on the steering wheel, "So in scoops yesterday, you said something, and I was wondering if you said it because you were trying to make that asshole feel like shit, which is too good for him by the way! Or if you meant it?"

Lyra wracks her brain. She said many things to Curt yesterday, some things she might live to regret, but it was done now, "What exactly did I say?"

"You said," Eddie clears his throat, "about me, I think...you said...He's a hundred times the man you'll ever be in your wildest dreams." He sounded nervous to ask.

"Of course, I meant that. A pretty bold thing to say about someone standing right next to me, especially if I didn't mean it." Lyra thinks for a moment, "It was just a comparison, Eddie. You don't need to pressure yourself to live up to that or anything. That isn't why I said it. You're great, just the way you are. I just didn't like that he thought he was better than you. He isn't. Not in any way."

Eddie wiggles in his seat and adjusts his fingers between hers with excitable energy, "Great, huh?" He asks.

A little mischief infects Lyra'a thoughts, and she leans back into Eddie's space, tucks some hair behind his ear, and whispers in it, "The greatest" she leans back into her seat and giggles at Eddie's wide eyes.

Eddie nods a few times and taps the steering wheel, "Oh, I see how it is now. Well, you just remember you started this"

"Me???!! I didn't start this. You did!!! Arriving at my house like all this, you started it," she gestures at him with her free hand agast.

She can hardly believe those words left her mouth and swallows hard. He's probably gonna start to realise what a weirdo she is. She shuts up really quickly and leaves a small silence.

Eddie's eyebrows are raised in surprise, "Lyra! I can't believe you are insinuating that I would purposefully do something like that to you." He says in false astonishment, "This is just, you know, standard me. You've just seen me through different eyes, is all" he shrugs.

Lyra thinks for a moment he was probably right. That can happen. Like the minute you fall out with someone, everything they do is a new pet peeve. So it must work the other way too.

"I guess that could be true, but I could have sworn something was a little different at least, but you know. Like you enhanced your beauty, you know?" she shrugs and looks out the window as more houses come into view.

"Beauty?" Eddie asks gently, a slight sideways glance at Lyra.

Lyra scoffs, "As if you didn't know, Eddie. Look at you. Jesus!"

"Know what?" Eddie teases.

"Urgh, fine. I'll say it." Lyra huffs and turns to Eddie, "You are very beautiful, Eddie. With your molten chocolate eyes, eyelashes I cannot recreate without the aid of the pharmaceutical industry, a jawline I could probably do architectural drawings with, perfect little pout and sweet little nose. Beautiful. There I said it. Ok?"

There is silence from Eddie, but Lyra notices he blushes, "Oh great, I guess we can add that to the list now, then too!" She says, pretending to be annoyed, "Is extremely cute because they blush when complimented."

Eddie mumbles something as they pause at the train crossing.

"What did you say?" Lyra asks. Eddie replies, but the passing train drowns him out.

Lyra frowns and shouts, "I can't hear you over the train!!"

"I SAID I COULD KISS YOU RIGHT...now..." Eddie shouts back, but the train noise dies down pretty much as soon as he starts shouting.

"You wanna kiss me?" Lyra asks coyly.

"Well, yes...of course...I-" Eddie starts to say nervously.

BEEP BEEP "Move along the show, Romeo!!" Someone shouts from the traffic behind.

Eddie blushes again, flips the bird out of the window back at the people behind him, and continues to Kevin's.

Eddie clears his throat, "So, yes, I do wanna do that, kiss you, I mean."

Lyra's brain goes into total panic stations. It was gonna happen. Fucking hell. Oh my god. Say something, Lyra! Jesus!!

"So why don't you then?" She asks, not in a seductive way, just in the tone of a genuine question.

"Well...I...um..ok, so, I wanna, but I'm not gonna", Eddie says awkwardly.

Lyra's instinct is to throw a "Why?" at him or take action herself, but she remembered what Eddie said about being the first person to ask to touch him. So she decided to try and respect his boundaries but simultaneously figure out what he meant.

"Well, ok, but just so I know, do you mean like never?" Lyra asks carefully.

Eddie laughs, "No, I don't mean never, just you know, not on the school run, on our way to pick up Kevin, that's all" he sighs, "But now I have to know what if I did mean never. Would that have been it? Goodbye, Eddie!" He laughs as he parks the van at the side of the road.

"Of course not!! Maybe you just didn't want to do that, and you know, that's fine. Like you said, we don't have to do anything we don't want to do, right?" Lyra explains

Lyra feels Eddie squeeze her hand, "Right", Eddie parks up the van, "You're kinda sweet, did you know that?"

Lyra just smiles back at him.

"You aren't gonna go get Kevin?" Lyra asks, still staring at him.

"No. Kevin said in no uncertain terms that I was to not knock on his door. His Dad is a bit, um, let's just say he's not very liberal. Kevin was sure my whole look would definitely prevent him from attending Hellfire. So it's better if I just-" Eddie raises his hand to beep the van's horn, and Lyra stops him.

"Maybe I could go get him?" Lyra offers, "If he doesn't take too kindly to clothing, he'll probably lose his mind about you making a lot of noise outside his house."

Lyra lets go of Eddie's hand and heads to the front door. She brushes down her clothes and rings the doorbell.

From inside the house, Lyra can hear a lot of yelling, but it's muffled until it gets closer. "KEVIN! STOP FUCKING AROUND WITH YOUR HAIR AND GET DOWN HERE, NOW!" Then at a lower volume, "Maybe if he wasn't so busy flouncing around the place, he could answer the goddamn door himself!" Then a series of locks and bolts.

The door opens to a short, balding man in a suit minus the blazer, a deep frown on his face greets Lyra, but it quickly melts away.

"Well, hello. I was expecting one of my son's friends, sorry about all that. Can I help you miss?" He says in a softer tone leaning against the door frame.

Lyra gives a closed mouth smile back, "Hi, I'm Lyra. I am Kevin's friend. w - I've come to pick him up for school."

"Well, this is a surprise" he looks Lyra up and down before turning back to the staircase, "Kevin!! Get your ass down here. There's a girl for ya."

He turns back to Lyra, "You know I was beginning to lose all hope that he might have an interest in girls."

Lyra just smiles awkwardly. Thankfully Kevin saves her from further conversation.

"Oh hey, Lyra. Sorry, I'm late. I was going to meet you out front, but I couldn't tame this cowlick," Kevin says, looking awkwardly between his Dad and Lyra.

"Not to worry. You all ready to go?" Lyra gives Kevin a big genuine smile.

"He sure is", his Dad answers for him and shoves him into Lyra. Lyra stumbles back a little, feigns a giggle, and starts walking to the van.

Under his breath, with their backs to the front door that has just been slammed, Kevin says, "Mortifying, honestly. I'm so sorry you had to converse with that troglodyte. Are you ok?"

"Me, I'm fine, are you ok? He doesn't seem the easiest to live with," Lyra says, opening the van door for Kevin and hopping in the front herself.

Kevin plugs his seat belt in. "Morning, Eddie." He says quickly before turning back to Lyra, "Honestly, he's the worst, but he's kind of all I've got since mom passed, and I'm all he's got too. Besides, I don't have to engage him too much. In the evening, he's either out or unconscious."

"Yeah, well, buddy, tonight it's Hellfire, baby! So you don't need to worry about the ogre in your house when you'll be fighting for your life against some epic monsters later," Eddie says with a big smile, wiggling his eyebrows at Kevin in the mirror.

Lyra hears Kevin laugh and sends Eddie a massive smile of admiration. He catches it out of the corner of his eye and smacks his lips. "Mmmm", before chuckling to himself and reaching for Lyra's hand again.

"Um...excuse me...what in the fresh hell is going on here in this van?" Kevin asks in disbelief.

"Er..." Lyra starts, but Eddie interrupts with a few tuts.

"He's my friend. Thank you, Lyra. I'll handle this." Eddie holds their joined hands aloft so Kevin can see, "Lyra and I are dating."

Lyra smiles bashfully out of the window.

"How many prices did the poor girl have to pay to join this club, Eddie? Are you feeling ok, Lyra? Blink thrice if you need help," Kevin teases.

"Oh ha-ha, hilarious, Kevin. I like to believe she considers this a bonus, actually," Eddie retorts.

"What was that? Bogus?" Kevin laughs, and Eddie flips him the bird with their joined hands.

"I'm sorry. I couldn't help it. Though just so I'm clear, this is a proper, official thing?" Kevin asks genuinely.

"It sure is", Eddie answers with a big grin shaking his hair.

Kevin's hand comes forward and pats Eddie's shoulder. They don't say anything else about it the whole ride to school. It's mainly Eddie dropping hints about the game later or past retelling games they've played that Lyra might need to know about for tonight.

They pull up in the school parking lot and leave the van waiting for the others to show up. Lyra notices Eddie look at the doors to the school, and he starts to get fidgety. Maybe he was nervous about going in there today? Perhaps he wasn't as ready to be as not secret as he thought he was? The truth was Lyra was a little nervous too. In the real world, it wasn't an issue, but in there, in high school? That might be a whole other obstacle course.

Lyra moves closer to Eddie and gently puts her hand on his back, speaking quietly, "Hey, I will not be offended in any way if you don't want to be on show in there. Remember, we don't have to do anything we don't want to do?"

Eddie looks bewildered and laughs, "Are you kidding me? I'm not worried. I can't fucking wait!" He grabs both of her hands and crosses one set of their linked hands around her in a twirl until her back is against his chest and their arms are crossed in front of her.

Eddie leans his chin on Lyra's shoulder, "I'm gonna step through those doors with you on my arm. We're gonna flirt outrageously with one another in front of your locker, then maybe my locker. Then I guess we oughta go to a class or two. Then lunch, where your gonna feed me your fancy food like I'm a goddamn Roman emperor. Then blah blah class blah. Oooh, and then your gonna be in my domain. I'll weave you a tale of adventure so enthralling you'll be completely obsessed with me by the end of it. Even though it's going to be sooo fuckin' distracting that you're gonna be sitting right there the whole time and I'm gonna have to concentrate on a bunch of other little hellions. Then we'll pack up and head to yours" he smiles and gives a little shrug.

Lyra definitely heard everything Eddie said. He was saying it right next to her ear, but his being so close that she could smell the lip balm on him mixing with his already intoxicating mixture of aromas made her head spin. Also, team that with him being so close and his arms wrapped around her. Lyra was practically in heaven. Eventually, she forms a sentence, "Sounds like you've really thought this through. Also, sounds like I'm gonna have to share you all day."

Eddie lets out a little dorky giggle, "Want me all to yourself aga-" he starts before he is interrupted by a wolf whistle.

Lyra looks to the noise and sees the rest of Hellfire being led by Gareth, "Noise privileges are back in effect! Ah, good, she's restrained" Gareth laughs and steps towards Lyra with his eyes shut tight and lips puckered, only to receive a hard flick in the middle of his forehead from Eddie.

Eddie releases Lyra's hands but keeps one arm around her so he's still pulling her tight against him, "Sorry buddy, you're too late. She is totally into me and has been for months" Lyra rolls her eyes and laughs.

Clara lowers her book, "I left you alone for a few hours?? I knew it would happen eventually, but that was quicker than I had expected. I still win, though. Guys, pay up."

Lyra is shocked and looks at Eddie, but he's equally surprised, "Wait, you all thought we were gonna get together?" Lyra asks, thinking Eddie is absolutely right. The pair of them were indeed the last to realise.

"No, well, I did. I bet these guys that Eddie would find a...how can I put this... a stable relationship...within a month. They nearly laughed me out of the car. Fortunately, they were all wrong, and I win" the guys all hand over quite a few dollars each. Clara looks pleased.

"It's not fair. Clearly, you had insider information Clara." Gareth whines, begrudgingly handing over the money.

Clara laughs long and loud, "I made this bet on Tuesday morning before school. I had the same thing you all have. Fucking eyes, alright?"

Lyra could not resist laughing at Clara, but it wasn't just because what she said was funny. Lyra looked around at the surrounding group and the great American smile exchange that was going on between Eddie and them right now. This little bunch of outcasts really cared about one another.

Etched on each of the faces she can see is a sort of proud happiness. Whenever they turn towards Eddie in conversation, they'll glance down at where his arm is around her, smile at her and then look back to Eddie, who is still merrily chatting away about the percentage of spell chances or why power chords are great but sometimes it's nice to branch out.

The conversation gets louder and more animated, but Eddie's one arm still hasn't moved. Then, finally, he says quietly so only she can hear, "You know, you didn't mention your ideas for today, Lyra."

"Well, that's because someone already beat me to it," Lyra says quietly as she turns to him, looks up into his eyes, and runs her hand up the inside of the sleeve of his leather jacket to caress the arm holding her.

Eddie tilts his head and holds her gaze, "You know, I don't think I'm gonna be able to concentrate on a single thing in class today." He utters softly.

"Good", Lyra jokes.

Eddie's eyes go wide with disbelief, "Good?! Aren't you supposed to say something like, "Eddie, you should really pay attention in class. It's important" ?"

Lyra softly puts her hands on either side of his face and squeezes his cheeks towards one another, saying, "Awww...I mean...I wanna...but I'm not gonna" Lyra giggles and releases his face.

Eddie pokes his tongue into the inside of his cheek and nods, realising he'd been got, "Mmhmm. Ok, ok. I see that phrase is gonna haunt me, huh?"

Lyra raises her eyebrows at Eddie in a very snooty way, "I can neither confirm nor deny that, at this time, Mr Munson."

Eddie grins, "I know you're teasing me about it now, but I think you're gonna be glad that it wasn't just random in the van" he looks very sure of himself.

Lyra can't help but marvel at him. A day ago, she would never have dreamed that Eddie would do anything as romantic as to plan a kiss, or at very least not take one when it was offered on a plate. She wondered what other weird and wonderful things she hadn't found out about him yet.

"Shall we?" Eddie offers her his hand, and he nods toward the school.

Lyra takes his hand and walks with him and the rest of Hellfire toward the school doors. Lyra feels her heartbeat pick up speed. She adjusts her grip on Eddie's hand and moves closer to him.

"Hey, don't worry. It's gonna be just like I said, ok?" Eddie smiles down at Lyra and walks her to her locker, which has been cleaned of graffiti.

There are a few passing glances here and there towards the two of them, but nothing worrisome.

"Sorry, I just got nervous. I...um...you know, haven't done this before in public," Lyra says quietly, gently swaying their hands and then holding them up to Eddie.

"That's not a problem. You don't need to apologise" Eddie gets a bit closer to whisper to her, "You know, I haven't either. Why do you think I'd given us so many plot points today?"

Then it all starts to make sense. Eddie was using his dungeon master skills to plan the day because that's the bit of his life he has the most control. He'd given Lyra the story and was surprised when she didn't want to deviate from his plan.

"Oh, I get it now!" A huge smile erupts across her face as she scoops Eddie's face in her hands, "How about just for today, I give the DM a break and just follow his story to the letter?"

"All of it?" He asks in hopeful surprise.

"All of it", she nods, her eyes searching his as they crease at the corners.

"Fuckin' Freaks", someone shouts over, Eddie turns towards the interruption, but Lyra holds his face firmly in place.

"All of it! No deviation. No one gets to spoil it for you, ok? Not on my watch," She says seriously.

Eddie's bottom lip pouts out for a moment before he tucks it back into his mouth. His eyes look a little watery, but he blinks a few times and takes a deep breath. Next, his hands find the sides of her waist, "You got everything you need from here?" Lyra nods, and that mischievous Munson grin appears again, "Right then, onto point two on the agenda".

Eddie picks Lyra up over his shoulder, and she scrambles to keep hold of her bag and books. Lyra is initially a little embarrassed being publicly carried around like this, but everyone else soon melts away, and it just feels like it's the two of them. There is an unbridled joy forming within Lyra that she can't remember the last time she felt. Her giggling starts quietly, and she tries to cover her mouth, but soon it's almost belly laughter. As Eddie lowers her back down to the floor, still in his arms, she wipes the tears of laughter away and notices he's laughing too. Intermittent laughs he's trying to hold behind his pleased smile, his eyes tracing over her face.

"You're so beautiful, you know that?" He says. It's a phrase Lyra hasn't heard said in over six months, but the person, the delivery and the meaning are entirely different.

Lyra wasn't great at reading people, but when Eddie said it, she really felt it. It almost made her forget to breathe. How could someone as beautiful as he think that of her?

Lyra knew she wasn't conventionally pretty. She'd been called plain more times than she could count, even when she was made up. Her body didn't look like the cheerleaders' or the more popular girls at school, but as far as she could tell, Eddie meant it, and that was blowing her mind.

"You ok?" He says, a slight look of concern on his face.

"Yeah, I'm good" she smiles up at him and plays with the pins on his vest just to avoid his eyes for a few seconds, "What am I supposed to be doing now, flirting with you outrageously, was it?"

Eddie laughs, "Yep, I believe that's what the agenda said".

Lyra backs out of his arms and leans up against the locker next to his. She tucks her hair behind her ear and looks him up and down before finishing with some eye contact and saying, "Want me to help you with your locker?"

Eddie's eyebrows raise, "Oh, you're making fun, are you? That was not on the list, you know."

"I'm just showing you what I've learned about flirting from a grand master. Making fun appears to be very much part of it from my notes," Lyra laughs, hooking his chin between her fingers and wiggling it.

Surprisingly the following few classes flew by, with a small intermission of Eddie pretending he'd walked into the wrong class and sending her a wink before the teacher hurriedly ushered him out.

On her way to the cafeteria, Lyra sees Tabatha walking the other way. Sure she was still not ok with what she did, but she knew why now, and in all honesty, if Eddie became interested in some other girl in front of Lyra, on day one of this whole thing, Lyra would be pretty upset about that too, let alone however long they'd had together, even though it wasn't serious according to Eddie at least.

So when Tabatha knocks into Lyra's shoulder hard, she takes it and doesn't engage, either way, anger or submission.

A hand joins in to assist as she collects her things from the floor.

"She's a fucking bitch. More so lately," Clara says, handing Lyra one of her books.

Lyra shrugs, "You know, maybe she's just having a bad time?"

Clara stops mid-lunchbag handover, "On your worst day would you want to make someone cry, be painfully hurt, treat them like they were worthless?"

"I feel like I kind of already did that to her yesterday," Lyra says regretfully.

"That was one day, Lyra. Not for at least a whole year." Lyra stands up with her armfuls of items, and they exchange a knowing look.

"What she did to you was shitty, but it was one day, and you retaliated for one day. Imagine seeing that happen to someone you care about but slowly chipping away every day. They won't talk about it, they don't retaliate, they just absorb it, so you just have to stand by and watch them get slowly dragged down." Clara says quietly to Lyra, but her voice's anger is clear enough to detect.

Lyra feels a worry creep over her. The concern is selfish. Clearly, this relationship between Eddie and Tabatha had been going on for much longer than Lyra imagined. Another thing she couldn't compare to. Her stomach churned. It's just day one, she tried to tell herself.

"So I repeat, she's a fucking bitch." Then Clara looks Lyra directly in the eye, "And I hope you're not fucking bitch, part two, you hear me?" She says seriously.

Lyra nods urgently, "Yep, loud and clear. It's not my intention in any way. I swear it."

Clara smiles, "Good. I didn't think so. You seem sappy enough, but I thought I'd check. I'm just gonna go hand in this assignment, and I'll catch up with the rest of you."

Lyra nods and smiles back, heading towards the cafeteria, and heads towards a seat at the hellfire table next to Eddie.

"Ah, here she is!" Eddie springs out of his seat, clapping his hands together before pulling out a chair for Lyra and then quickly sitting back down while grabbing her hand and holding it atop the table.

"So what's on the menu today, my dear? Anything that needs a pre-warning?" He grins as Lyra pulls out a salad.

Eddie frowns, "Salad?"

Lyra nods and opens the container, "Just try some, and if you hate it, don't eat it, right?"

Eddie opens his mouth and waits. Lyra rolls her eyes but smiles, taking a fig from the salad and feeding it to him. His expression is a mixture, but it lands on pleased. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the rest of the table, possibly the cafeteria, who seem grossed out by the whole thing, making Lyra and Eddie laugh and play up to it more.

Talk turns to tonight's game, and Eddie suddenly looks concerned, "Wheres Clara? Ah, speak her name, and she shall appear."

Clara is speed walking toward the table and pretty much lifts Lyra out of her seat, "I need to talk to you in private about something very urgent and very girl related", she over emphasises.

Lyra doesn't have time to say anything before getting dragged out of the cafeteria. She looks back to see Eddie shrugging. "Clara! What the hell?"

Clara says nothing but keeps marching her down the hall and out to the parking lot. She gestures towards Eddie's van. Lyra lifts her eyes to it. A window is smashed, the tires slashed, and graffiti is all over the side facing them. 'Freak' in big letters, amongst some other horrible slurs.

"I told you she's a fucking bitch", Clara says.

Lyra puts her hands to her head, "No, not today. Fuck!" She urgently turns to Clara, "Do you have a few quarters? I promise I'll pay you back with interest!"

[dcydrecmings]

❝ love when you’re ready — not when you’re lonely. ❞ drumroll… demarco and Lilly😈

the day had certainly been full of lessons - primarily should you break up with someone, always make your friends pick a side. that way, you wouldn't end up having to sit beside your ex - one who still very much held the heart you liked to pretend you didn't have - while you watched two of your other friends get married. nor would you be stuck beside them during the meal, because the wedding planner didn't rearrange the seats after you broke up.

lilly and demarco had a script to follow - accidentally, or not so accidentally bump into each other, try and make the other jealous with the aid of some unsuspecting person to ultimately end up tangled up in each other by the time morning rolled around. what they didn't do was mundane everyday conversations. what they certainly didn't do, was go out and have things seem so much like old times. getting through a wedding together very much felt like old times - and all it did was drive a dagger into the heart she once more wished didn't exist. especially not after demarco had once more said that he couldn't keep spiralling with her - and she had to pick if she was truly in or out.

when demarco had excused himself to talk to the lucky couple after dinner, lilly had taken the chance to grab a bottle of champagne and head up to the balcony overlooking the festivities. after a few drinks, she climbed up on the balcony railing, deciding it would be the dose of adrenaline she needed to shock her mind back into 'carefree lilly' mode. she wasn't entirely sure how long she'd spend walking over the railing, as though it was her very own tightrope before she felt an arm around her waist and one at her legs, lifting her back down to the ground.

she didn't need to turn around to know who it was, she'd know that touch anywhere. it also didn't hurt that there was only one person under that roof, brave enough to take the bottle of champagne from her. spinning to fix a glare on to him, he simply gave a small shake of her head, dismissing whatever snarky comment her hazy mind was trying to create.

❝ love when you’re ready — not when you’re lonely. ❞

despite the smirk on his face, she could easily see the concern shining in his eyes - something she chose to ignore as her arms folded in front of her, almost like a petulant child. "i'm not lonely - the world loves me remember? or some love to hate me... either way, i'm on their mind." the words coming out far too fast, not that it mattered with the 'i don't believe you' look on his face. in lieu of responding, he placed his hand on her shoulders, turning her around before ushering her through the hotel towards her room.

when he took the key card from her to unlock the door, she decided to take the chance to put herself between the door and him, pushing herself up to meet his lips - only for his finger to land on her lips. anger flooding her at the apparent rejection, despite the fact she was more than aware of the flash of hurt in his eyes. once he had the door open, he nudged her inside, moving back so that he was firmly in the hallway.

she barely heard him say that she knew where he was when she was ready to talk, once she'd made up her mind if she needed someone 'better' or not.

"but...." her voice quiet and far too vulnerable for her liking, as pleading eyes met his. "can't you.... come in if i promise to keep my hands to myself? because.... maybe... maybe i have an entire world who loves me but... it... i... maybe i... maybe i'm not entirely unlonely." @batshtmuses

[sirenedusud]

don't let the vampire in (lestat x female character)

@writing.prompt.s on IG

RIP Anne Rice, you would've gotten this taken down.

AN: I edited this like three times so if someone whose read it before reads it again: plot twist henny I'm feeling 3rd person POV.

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The cold evening air was unforgiving as Lena trudged to her apartment. New Orleans was at its lowest temperatures for the first time in a while, which sucked for her who dressed light out of habit. She doubted the weather would reach this point earlier that day, and now muttered curses to herself while shivering down the sidewalk. The only person who seemed very pleased with the forecast was her neighbor, Lestat.

She already decided he was a strange man from the moment he moved in next door. His fashion was outdated to say the least, and he did not speak colloquially. She assumed he was a theater actor, always in practice, or he was in a Victorian LARPing group. Although most of his attributes seemed out of place, he was surprisingly into the metal scene. She knew this because she was the one suffering from sleeplessness as he blasted loud music next door, but none of this really bothered her due to one reason. He was gorgeous. Sounds shallow, but it was true.

She finally made it to her door, rubbing her shoes onto the cheap Welcome mat as she fiddled with her keys. Just as she unlocked the door, a voice spoke behind her causing her to stiffen. She peered behind her shoulder and relaxed at the sight of her blond neighbor.

"I said good evening, Lena. Did I startle you?" Lestat asked slyly. He took a small step closer to her yet seemed to tower over her.

Christ he's perfect.

"Yes, you did actually. Were you waiting out here for me?" she replied. Frankly, she couldn't flirt. During most of her interactions with men she'd treat them like a brick wall or speak in a sardonic tone, but whatever power Lestat had over her it made her want to try.

Lestat's eyes squinted as he grinned at her.

"Yes actually, I left something of mine in your kitchen. I anticipated getting here the same time as you so that I may retrieve it without bothering you too much." He explained.

"Oh...okay come on in then," she said as she turned back to the door. He had been inside her apartment several times in the past, but the thought of it made her giggle like a schoolgirl every time. She pushed the door open and entered, her neighbor following behind her.

"Sorry it's a bit of a mess, I've been taking longer shifts so I don't have any time in here. Do you want something to eat? Are you thirsty? Wait what did you even leave in here? Is it this cord?" She rambles more to herself than to Lestat, but he didn't seem to mind and took the cord from her hand. Their hands brush momentarily. Her body shivered, face flushing with the hope he didn't notice.

Why is he so cold? Probably from standing outside all day and enjoying the shitty weather...

"So.." she begins. She pondered between spilling her heart's deepest desires or offering him hot tea. Either way, she didn't have a chance because Lestat was already stalking out the door.

"Thank you Lena I am so pleased to have a neighbor like you," he replied rather plainly. He turned to look at her once more, cracking an even wider smile this time. Before she could answer back, he shuts the door.

***

The next day rolled by, which was Lena's only off day for the entire week. She cleaned, cooked, washed, ironed, decluttered, and dusted the day into night. As the sun disappeared over the horizon, she tossed over the final trash bag into the communal dumpster.

She dusted off her hands satisfactorily and headed back upstairs. Before entering her apartment, she looked down at the Welcome mat. It was ugly, lime green, and shriveled at the edges. With a grimace, she picks it up by the corner and goes inside. She opens the living room window and aims at the bin below. She was only three stories high; she couldn't possibly miss a drop straight down. She tosses the mat out and watches it glide down. It landed beside the dumpster.

"Man." she said defeatedly. While locking the window back shut, a knock came from the door. She checked the time, it was 9pm. Slightly suspicious hour.

She makes it over to the door and cracks it open a tad bit, using one eye to peek out only to swing it wide open at the sight of Lestat. He lifted his head to reveal his (naturally) smirking face.

"Heyy Lestat!" she greeted him sing-songishly while mentally face palming. She stepped to the side to let him in, but he stood there quietly and looked at the floor before him.

"Good evening Lena, may I come in?" he asked without taking a step forward. She blinked at him, confused, but remembered his Victorian thing.

"Why yes of course, please do come in," she said with a small bow to the head. She thought he was being playful, but Lestat seemed to relax back into himself and enter with confident strides. He had his back to her as she shut the door, she could tell he was measuring up her now clean apartment. She pitifully hoped he wasn't thinking she cleaned because of the mess he had seen yesterday.

"So, what's going o-"

"I'm going out of town for a few months, a sort of.... tour with the band, for the new album, you understand?" he interrupts her with the news. Her eyebrows raised slightly. He never left the city for that long; he would usually return in a couple weeks at most because he hated driving long distances.

"That sounds exciting!" she replied, trying not to seem crestfallen. He looked at her, looked into her, for longer than usual. Her face began to heat up.

I cannot have possibly said something wrong. Is there something on my face? What-?

"Sure," he finally said with a shrug, "I wanted to let you know now since I am leaving early in the morning. I did not want you to misunderstand my abrupt departure."

Her cheeks burned for the millionth time at this, creeping down to her neck. He cared about what she thought. Maybe he cared about her.

"Oh no don't worry I wouldn't think anything negative of you..." she began, trailing off as Lestat took a step towards her. Here he was again, towering over her. His golden locks hung low near the edges of her face. She looked up and looked away from him, swallowing thickly as he used a finger to prop her chin up to him. His orange eyes burned into hers. She felt her limbs liquefy, heartbeat roaring in her ears. His eyes swept over her face to her neck, landing on her pulse point. It was as if he could hear the blood pumping through her veins. He brought his face closer, his wavy hair tickling her cheeks as he inhaled deeply, but she didn't pay attention to any of it. All she could focus on were his blown out pupils, his pink lips, which parted to say something. She thought she'd seen drool forming on his tongue before he snapped his head back and pulled his hand away from her.

"I was also hoping if I may ask a small favor from you. Just to keep my mail with you until I return. Here, this is the key to my box," he places a key in her palm, the small engraving of his room number facing up. She stares at the key in her hand, her mind still buzzing with adrenaline from what she thought was the most tension she'd felt in ages. Lestat brushed his hand over her hair, making her return her attention to him.

"You'll be good while I am gone, won't you darling?" he was close to her again, half whispering. You could feel his hot breath on your skin.

Please just rip my clothes off please I have loved you since I have known you, I beg of you Lesta-

"Yes..." is all she can muster as a reply. Weak. He's flirting right? That's beyond her now since she can't function anymore. She thought he'd leave, but he stared at every inch of her face. His eyes landed on her mouth. God, her lips were chapped, weren't they? He looks back up at her with a smile, a perfect smile.

"I must go." His hand slid down to her shoulder before he completely pulled away and left the apartment.

She felt cold. Lestat was not exactly a warm hearth, but the intimacy they shared a moment ago lit something ablaze in her soul.

***

Weeks went by and Lena kept her promise to Lestat. She'd pick up both their mails and leave his in a basket in her kitchen. If Lestat was to be gone for a few months, then he should be returning soon. She smiled at the memory of the last interaction with him as she returned from the postal box. Maybe he felt the same towards her.

She was on a shorter schedule at work and enjoyed the time off. The weather was finally beginning to be agreeable, so she spent most of her time going out with a friend or two. Today her friend Anya was over. She knew everything about Lena's insane crush on her neighbor and relished in her glee as much as she did.

"You HAVE to ask him out when he comes back! You know he doesn't seem the type to ask a girl out... he's a bit cocky. Personally, I wouldn't be into him, but you clearly are!" Anya said as Lena joined her on the couch. Lena gave her an unamused look and shrugged.

"But if he isn't into me then I would just ruin the relationship we already have," Lena said with a pout. Anya rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to speak, but stopped as a loud thudding interrupted her. It was coming from the other next-door neighbor. The two girls looked at the wall and back at each other as the thudding continued.

"That's weird, that neighbor is always quiet." Lena said. The thudding suddenly reached an alarming volume and pace.

"Maybe they're fucking." Anya states matter-of-factly. Lena's head whipped to look at her friend and she bursted into laughter.

"Hell no, she's an old ass lady living alone!"

"Oh, then maybe we should go see what's up. It would be the good neighborly thing to do."

"I mean, I guess." They both remain seated after this decision, but jump right up as the thudding gets louder. Lena and Anya rush out the door and knock the neighbor's door quickly.

"Hello? Ms. Hill? It's me Lena, from next door!" she yelled into the door. The thudding stops immediately, and the two girls press their ears against the door. A quiet sob could be heard on the other side. Her eyes widen and she pulls at the doorknob. No use, it was locked. The thuds grow weaker.

"I'm gonna kick it down." Anya decides. Lena pushes her friend away from the door and shakes her head.

"Don't be stupid, we can just get someone to help, and if that's not enough then we'll call 911," Lena said. She rushes to the door across the hall and knocks.

"Hello? It's your neighbor, someone's in trouble!" She twists at the doorknob without thinking and the door clicks open. She freezes for a second but pushes it open to reveal the dark apartment. Anya peeks from behind her.

"Anyone home...?" she said. Lena shrugs and reaches around to turn on a light. She muffles a shriek with her hand as the light reveals a dried up corpse in the middle of the room. Turning away from the body, Lena watches Anya who was already down by the next door, her phone pressed onto her ear. Anya slams her free hand against the door.

"Why the fuck is my call not going through? Lena you know you have really shitty service in this building? Oh, fuck this, come on" she paces around the hallway, her phone flat against her face. Lena walks slowly to the door Anya was just at. Lena breaks out in cold sweat, her hands shivering as she twisted the doorknob. Rotting stench of flesh filled her nose this time.

She panicked. Two dead neighbors on her floor? How long have they been dead? Who killed them? Questions whizz through her mind as she goes down the hall, one hand on the wall to keep her from collapsing. She turned the corner to find Anya still cussing out the slow service.

"Lena this entire fucking floor is full of dead people! Fuck this, I'm gonna go outside where there's better cell service," she grabs Lena's hand to leave, but Lena pulls back.

"What if the killer is in the old lady’s room right now? We can't leave her...we have to try something," Lena whispered urgently. If she were sane, she'd have run away the moment she opened that old lady's door, but a dreadful idea crept into her mind, and she had to know if it was true. Anya looks at her with worry, but sighed and agreed, saying she wouldn't want to leave Lena alone in this fucked up building.

The two return to Hill’s door. Quiet sobs could still be heard from the other side, slowly ebbing into silent, ragged breaths. Lena's hand reaches for the doorknob, she began to feel dizzy as the door unlocked this time. She opens it slowly, both her and Anya leaning as far back as possible.

Ms. Hill’s was strewn across a couch, coughing up blood and muttering to herself. Lena and Anya approached her once they saw it was clear. Lena tried sitting Hill up to get her out, but the old woman pushed Lena away in defeat. She whispered something hoarsely.

"What did you say?" Lena said leaning in.

"That man’s face...Lena did you see that man...his eyes were glowing and orang..." Hill coughs, tears slipping down her wrinkled face.

"What face Ms. Hill? Please we need to know who did this to you! Miss?" Lena never got her answer and the elderly woman slumps over.

"She's dead." Anya says blankly.

"I know that."

"Look at her neck. The hell is that?"

Lena cranes her neck to view what Anya was pointing at on the old woman's nape of her neck. A snake bite, but these were much bigger. They had human teeth marks around them too.

Lena stilled.

"Anya you should go home." Lena said quietly. Anya whips her head around, a bewildered look on her face.

"Hell no! Do you not see what's happened? All these people have the same marks on them. I swear if this is some sci-fi nerd's idea of a prank. A vampire stunt or some shit? You can wake up grandma!" She shakes the dead woman and looks at Lena, but Lena gives her a stern look and tells Anya to leave again. She looks at Lena incredulously.

"Fine, I'll go! Since I know this is some bullshit joke your lovely neighbors pulled on us! Vampires for Christ’s sake!" Lena follows Anya back to Lena's apartment, averting her gaze from the open doors of the dead neighbors. Lena stands inside her doorway as Anya grabs her bag. Anya gives Lena a hug before heading towards the elevator with quick steps.

Lena began to shut her door but stop as her eyes land down in front of her. It was the ugly trashed Welcome mat. She grabs it frantically, shut the door, and sticks the mat in a closet. She felt sick, dirty. She decides to shower, but hot water couldn't burn the gross feeling that crawled all over her. The cold body that she once yearned to feel around her now filled her with fear. After washing away the impressions death left on her, she wrapped herself in a bathrobe and sat on the edge of her bed. She shivers for a while, eyes heavy with fatigue, not realizing when she eventually went to sleep.

***

Lena snapped awake at the sound of a knock. Was it the next day? She jumps up and change into day clothes. The knock repeated, she felt a hammering at her skull, she knew that knock. She stares into her vanity, practicing a very normal smile, before slowly walking into the main room. Her hands begin to shake. She didn't have to open it, but she had to know. She stands in front of the door for several seconds. A third, loud knock. She musters that smile and opens the door.

The room from across her apartment was closed shut, but that did not distract Lena for long. Lestat stood in front of her. His eyes glinting something she couldn't make out. She was beginning to drown in fear. She didn't have to know.

"Hello Lena, it's good to see you're well. May I come in?" Lestat said smoothly, almost as if he was forcing it. She doesn't speak and steps aside, but Lestat remains standing outside of her door. He holds back a huff.

"You're not upset with me for being gone so long are you, darling? I'm back now so let me make it up to you, alright?" He leans on her door frame yet avoids crossing the threshold. She simply smiles and steps back. She look at him innocently as his gaze begins to darken.

"Lena. Let me in." He commanded. Why doesn't he just say it? Why is he still trying to act like everything is normal?

"No." she said faintly. His face twists into an annoyed grimace at this. He sighs as he places his hands on his hips, shaking his head.

"You're being ridiculous, darling," he spits out the last word, "I'm not going to hurt you, never you, alright? Just let me in now so I can get my mail."

She stares at him, her mouth slightly agape. He admitted it so casually. Should she call the police? Shut the door? Throw garlic at the handsome bastard? Her mind was spinning. She felt that obsession she spring back to life. Here he was, the object of her desire, promising he wouldn't hurt her. She closes her mouth and begins to tremble, opening her mouth once more to answer:

"Come in."

[dabifixation]

the importance of knocking

dabi x fem!reader

summary: When Dabi told you to wait at the bar because he was going to "Take care of things" you shouldn't have humored him. You shouldn't have gotten drunk on a mission. And most of all you shouldn't have ignored your gut feeling by looking for the blue flame user and discovering exactly what he meant by taking care of things.

warnings: nsfw, smut, voyeurism, unprotected sex, squirting, MINORS DNI

word count: 2.4k

~

You really didn't like villains. They were temperamental bigots who were hard to work with and cared very little about their environment.

Blue eyed, flame wielding, two-toned nuisances were not the exception to this.

If anything, having Dabi tag along on your mission didn't really help with your dwindling impression of the man.

Said mission was going downhill very fast, losing your chance to achieve funds from your organization's formidable benefactors, all because somebody thought it was funny to set Mr Park's hair on fire after the man passed a comment on somebody's unprofessional attire.

You hated him for that. Truly hated him. However you knew he wasn't just messing up your mission for his own amusement. You weren't stupid, you knew a field test when you saw one. This mission was set up to see how well you'd do now that the Meta Liberation Army was under siege from the League of Villains. Dabi was your examiner.

And you failed the test.

So it came as a surprise to you when the bane of your existence suggested that he'd take care of things, which made you wonder if he was a comedian in his past life cause what could he possibly do to fix things.

You spent the next hour by yourself with an endless supply of whisky in hopes of coming up with a good plan in order to leave Japan undetected.

When the next hour passed by you began to wonder where your flame wielding partner went and how long he'd be. You were convinced that he was just hunting down one of the benefactor's and stole their suitcase filled with money. But you doubt killing someone took a full two hours, so you began to worry.

Not for him of course. That would be out of character for you. You were just worried about disappointing Shigaraki by coming empty handed and not on time. At the end of the day, you were a sucker for praise and didn't mind getting it from someone who ruined the goals and reputation of the Meta Liberation Army.

You had a serious problem.

Checking your wristwatch one last time, you decided now was a good time to phone Dabi. Snickering to yourself when you saw his contact was saved under 'If Menstruational Pain Was A Person'. You clicked on his contact, hoping he wouldn't be those annoying people who answered after the fifth ring on purpose.

He wasn't.

"Whoever this is, it better be important. I'm in the middle of something." He sounded slightly out of breath, and from the soft rustling of something in the background you could tell he wasn't in any danger. It made you sigh in relief.

"Where the fuck are you?"

"Oh it's you. Miss me already?" You didn't need to see him smirking on the other end, cause you knew he was.

You ignored his question, "Where are you?"

There was pause that lasted long enough for you to hear a muffled cry in the background and an unknown squelching sound. You didn't take him for someone that tortured his victims.

You learn new things everyday.

"Room 3406." You heard a groan this time, making you frown. Why was he dragging his torture session out so long, the least he could do was put the poor person out of their misery and take their money.

Wait.

"You're still in the hotel. You damn asshole I thought you were dead in a ditch!" You raised your voice, not caring that people passing by gave you concerning looks.

"Didn't realize you cared so much about little old me." He let out a sound crossed between surprise and a laugh, which caught you off guard.

He hung up before you could give a response.

That was weird.

You looked down at your naked arms, noticing the goosebumps.

Yeah, very weird.

❦

It didn't take you long to find the hotel room, thanking your lucky stars when you found out the room was unlocked and didn't require a key card.

Once you entered the room, you glanced around noticing that nothing was out of place or broken. There was no signs of struggle, which was a good thing. It made cleaning up easier.

Your eyes landed on a pair of familiar boots placed adjacent to a pair of red bottom heels that were laying on its side.

You picked the heel up, examining it to see if there was any blood on it. There wasn't.

That's strange.

"Uhnnnggg~"

Your head snapped in the direction of the main bedroom when you heard the sounds of someone whimpering in pain. The warning bells in your head grew louder when you decided to check out what was going on.

The bedroom door was slightly ajar but not enough for you to see what was on the other side. You heard a deep groan as your fingers brushed the doorframe, your heart in your throat at what you'd find. So you pushed forward expecting everything but what was in front of you.

You didn't dare move.

There Dabi was, hands gripping tightly on some woman's hips. The muscle in his arms flexing, and his legs out stretched beneath her. Her hands were buried in his obsidian locks as he set the pace for her, bouncing her up and down his cock. Each time he brought her down, she'd let out a R-rated moan. She swiveled her hips as best as she could, but from the way her thighs trembled from the pleasure, you could tell it was too much for her.

Dabi's eyes were shut in bliss, letting out a breathy moan when she opted for grounding on his cock instead. From her quick movements, you could tell she was close.

"Yes, yes, yes –oh fuck!"

Dabi immediately flipped her over, preventing her from reaching her climax. His heavy cock slapped against his abdomen, smearing moisture against his defined stomach. You quickly looked away, focusing on the woman instead.

It immediately clicked in. You knew who she was.

Yui Murukami, the 34 year old heiress and CEO to the company that supplied our friends in capes with support items. She was a rich and powerful woman known throughout Japan, and one of the benefactor's that pulled out their sponsorship after finding out that the Meta Liberation Army was infiltrated with "heretics."

The same heretic that's narrow hips she currently had her long milky legs wrapped around.

What a hypocrite.

You got a good look at Dabi for the first time tonight. Your eyes traveled down his lean form. What he lacked in muscle, he made up for in flexibility. The position he was in was a testimony to that.

The subtle red hair trailing down towards his impressive length caught your attention. So he was a natural redhead? That or he had some weird hobby of dyeing his pubes.

It made you shudder.

He pumped at his veiny cock, gathering the pre-come dripping from the pink and angry head, and used it to lubricate himself further. The golden piercings keeping his two skin types together stretched as he did so.

You thanked whatever God was out there for Dabi not noticing you. They surely had your back. Now was the perfect time to escape. Dabi was clearly lost in the throes of pleasure. But just as you stepped back, the floor beneath your feet decided now was a good time to announce your presence.

Dabi's eyes immediately snapped open in your direction.

Those ocean blues stared at you intensely without a hint of shame. You were frozen in place as you held his heated gaze, eyes falling to his lips when his tongue jotted out to lick them. It had you entranced and you almost missed the way his lips broke out into a full grin when he knew exactly what position he had you in.

Hook, line and sinker.

He was taunting you, waiting on you to storm out of this room in embarrassment and anger. Dabi was a sick individual who'd take any and every opportunity to test you and your loyalty to the Paranormal Liberation Front. If you walked out now, despite how badly you really wanted to, that would be the same as failing. You weren't about to fail twice in one night.

He raised an eyebrow when you didn't barge at his challenge. Shrugging, he guided his cock back inside the woman with a soft sigh. He broke eye contact first, looking down at where their bodies joined and bottomed out into her. She let out a ridiculously high-pitched moan.

He kept her thighs far apart as he continued his ministrations despite knowing you were watching.

Your face was hot as you clenched your fists tightly.

Slapping and squelching sounds filled the room as their movements picked up. The air growing heavy with the smell of sex. Dabi was rutting into her in a way that had her breasts bouncing in a particular rhythm.

There was something so enticing about the way she pushed herself back onto him every time he gave short deep thrusts. She clawed at his chest, trying to push him away but he wasn't having it. Instead he drove into her faster and more ruthlessly as a warning.

This moment was too intimate and private, but you couldn't bring yourself to look away either.

It was intoxicating.

Suddenly a long keening sound left her lips, hands digging into the once pristine sheets, almost tearing them apart. Dabi hit a special spot inside of her that neither of you could see.

Heat rushed to your belly in an all too familiar feeling.

He continued hitting that spot, her body violently shaking and writhing. The way his hips were angled, it brushed against the little button at the top of her mound perfectly.

That was the last straw.

She came so hard, no doubt clamping tightly around his cock. Causing him to throw his head back in eye rolling pleasure with a deep throaty groan. His movements began to filter in order to prolong the feeling, but he quickly regained his composure and picked up where he left off. Triggering her into squirting all over his abdomen. Not once, twice but thrice.

His abdomen glistened with her juices and his added sweat. The way his hair fell into his eyes and clung to his neck had your heart skipping a beat.

"Does this make you feel good?" He asked her as his hips bucked up. Voice deep, too deep.

Fuck yes.

She responded in a tired moan.

"I could have you like this underneath me every night if you just–" he snapped his hips into hers to accentuate his point, "–begged nicely."

Jesus.

She continued to mewl, clawing into the sheets as she neared her second orgasm.

"All you got to —fuck— say is please and I'll be scratching every itch inside of you that those fingers can't reach." He toppled over her, dropping both hands on either side of the her head.

"Uh huh." She let out, eyes squeezed shut in concentration.

"I don't like being ignored." He looked at you this time, making you jolt. One of his hands reached out to grip around her throat, making her gasp as he controlled her airway.

When she responded in a broken moan, he ignored her and kept his eyes focused on you instead. He narrowed his eyes, something dark flashing in them before he looked back down at her. A deep growl in his throat.

Oh.

He was talking to you the entire time.

You rubbed your thighs together to ease the aching between your legs.

It didn't go by unnoticed, as much as you hoped. Dabi gave you a look that made him seem so vulnerable at that moment. All his walls came crashing down and for once you could read his facial expression. He desperately wanted you to be the one underneath him.

"Touch yourself." He commanded, hips bucking in urgency.

He was close.

Yui was long forgotten as it felt like it was just the two of you in the room. You did as he said, ignoring the voice in your head that was calling you a 'fucking idiot.'

You unzipped your pants, enough to give him a view of the shape of your pussy and the increasing wet patch at the center of your lace panties. You pushed your hand into your pants, while the other bunched your shirt up. The moment your fingers brushed against your drenched folds through your panties, you closed your eyes and let out a silent moan. Everything felt hypersensitive. You didn't care that this wasn't enough to send you over the edge, all you cared about was imagining it was him touching you like this, rubbing your clit in tight circles as he fucked you into next week.

"Fuck." He let out after a long time of being silent. "Good girl, just like that–"

A loud groan ripped out of his throat before he could finish his rambling.

Not too long and the rhythm Dabi started with began to stutter when his hips bucked up irregularly. The woman underneath him putting on a whole performance but he continued to ignore her in favor of you.

He gave you a needy look as he gave one last sloppy thrust, waves of pleasure being sent to your pussy.

Dabi let out a moan that was so guttural and so deep as he came inside of her wishing it was you instead. He chased his high in quick juvenile thrusts, making sure every last drop was emptied inside of her.

His hips continued to twitch from his intense climax, a pained hiss leaving his lips. The oversensitivity finally catching up to him.

He gave her a slow open mouthed kiss after they regained their breaths. Pulling his softening cock out of her with a wet pop. He nuzzled his face into her neck, causing her to giggle and hug his form closer to hers. And he allowed it.

He looked back up at you, an indescribable look passing through his eyes. It was quickly gone as it had come, being replaced by a smirk and knowing wink that said everything you needed to know.

Bastard

Dabi was an incredible actor and you were just another one of his victims.

You left just as Dabi started getting hard again, obviously he could go for another round, a round you wanted no part in witnessing.

You weren't going to be used by him again in order for him to find a quick release. To hell with him and his twisted version of testing someone's loyalty. You felt utterly humiliated and dirty. All you wanted was to go back to the PLF hideout and crawl into your bed and forget this all happened.

How could you be so stupid. He had this all planned out from the start. No wonder he was so quick to help you when the mission started going downhill.

You hated him so much.

You wanted to scream when you realized he told you the room number on purpose despite being in the middle of that. He wanted you come up and catch him in the act, and that's why he had no problem in you watching him do those things to her. He wanted to see what you'd do in that situation. This was all one big joke to him.

Yet you couldn't understand why you were still so horny and soaking wet.

[buggiesbuzzing]

First Dates with The BAU

• It took absolutely forever for Rossi to ask you out — he only came to his senses after Hotchner cornered him.

DAVID ROSSI

• Both of you are BAU agents and you had only been on the team for a few months; Aaron started to see Dave get distracted by you and he finally confronted him about it.

• David invited you over to his place for dinner and a movie, and honestly when he asked you over, you nearly fainted.

• You arrived 15 minutes early, so you ended up sitting in your car giving yourself a pep talk until it was exactly 6:30, which was the time agreed upon.

• When he opened the door, he was speechless.

• You were dressed like you'd been going to a charity ball. You were absolutely dazzling.

• He didn't hesitate to step aside and let you into his home.

• The smells. The warmth. Everything felt like something out of a dream.

• Rossi told you stories and charming jokes over dinner; he made you his favorite meal, carbonara.

• The evening was going really well and your face had started to ache from how much you'd been smiling.

• Overall the night felt like a dream, other than the fact that you'd drank a bit too much wine when you were trying ease your nerves.

• Rossi ended up snatched your keys and gave you a pair of pajamas to change into.

• He'd picked out some classic Italian film for you guys to watch after your meal, and you snuggled up to Dave's side to watch it.

• After the movie, he led you to a guest room in his self-proclaimed mansion and got you into bed before saying goodnight and leaving.

• Unbeknownst to you, he checked in on you every half hour for the next 3 hours before passing out in his own room a couple doors down from the one you were in.

• You woke up the next morning to Dave with a cup of coffee and an over the counter pain pill.

• Dave gave you back your keys and said his goodbyes before letting you head off to work.

• You always had a go bag stashed in your car, so you didn't bother driving home, and you headed off to Quantico.

• When you had gotten into work, Derek approached you, but before he could say anything about your sunglasses or your clearly disheveled appearance, you held your hand up to silence him and scuttled to the bathroom, go bag in hand and dreading all the questions you'd be asked today.

• Aaron had met you during a case, seeing as your brother was their unsub.

AARON HOTCHNER

• You instantly felt a connection when he first spoke to you, but didn't act on it until nearly 6 months after the case was closed.

• Agent Hotchner gave you his personal number if you'd ever needed to talk and one day, you took advantage of that.

• It was the anniversary of your brother being put in prison and you were exceptionally emotional - which ended up in a sad and tipsy call to the agent.

• Aaron's day was just going to be dedicated to paperwork from his latest case, but he decided he'd get to it another time.

• You were a hot mess when Hotchner arrived, but you couldn't bring yourself to get off of the couch and fix yourself up.

• He quickly picked up on what you were going through; a few cans of fruity flavored beer were semi-crushed and sitting on your coffee table along with a pint of sugary sweet ice cream and what looked like a nest of blankets was piled up on your couch.

• He easily made his way through your apartment since he'd been there before and got you a glass of water to try and help sober you up.

• He talked you through your tears and pain, all while making sure you were well taken care of.

• Before you realized it, it was 5pm and Aaron was still sitting beside you on your couch.

• For the last few minutes, you'd been watching some old kids shows in silence; it was just something that helped you calm down and he was actually enjoying the time he'd spent with you.

• You got up from the dent in the couch that you'd been wallowing in and stretched.

• There was no way you were going to cook tonight, so you ordered a couple of large pizzas to be delivered.

• Both of you had eaten pizza and you chattered about some whacked out theory about the show Rugrats, while Aaron just listened and made sure you were distracted from whatever turmoil that your brothers villainy had caused.

• When the day was over and Aaron was ready to return home to his son, he gave you a card for a support group that he thought would benefit you.

• And that's where you expected it to end; after all this was just him doing his job, right?

• Wrong.

• He showed a kind of bashfulness that you absolutely did not expect from the stern man, and he asked if he could take you out on an actual date.

• Obviously, you said yes.

• Your first date wasn't ideal, but, both of you enjoyed your time together.

DEREK MORGAN

• Derek went to a club with Penelope and Emily when he first met you and right off the bat he was into you.

• You started talking and instantly clicked — unfortunately, he couldn't spend the night with you due to being called into work, but you set up a date to see each other again, then you exchanged numbers and he disappeared.

• The first few times you'd try to go out on a proper date with him, he'd keep getting called into work beforehand, so he'd have to take a rain check.

• Finally, he was actually free for a night and you invited him over to your apartment for dinner and some drinks.

• He arrived only seconds after the clock struck 5PM and god you were awestruck as soon as you seen him.

• This man made you question how clothes could be tight and yet, still seem loose.

• Happily, you let him into your home which had a warm glow and atmosphere; your lights were dimmed, soft music was playing throughout the house, the delicious scent of food being cooked was in the air — it was amazing.

• You made an array of drinks for the both of you and conversed about anything either of you could think of.

• Derek charmed his way into dancing around the room with you before you'd have to take the food you were cooking off the heat.

• Dinner was about the same; the male joked and chattered, throwing out compliments here and there.

• The night seemed perfect, you even got in a couple of smooches — and then his phone started ringing.

• You understood when he had to leave, which was around 10PM.

• He promised he'd make it up to you and take a full vacation day for you, so you could have a date night at his place next.

JENNIFER JAREAU

• Originally, the plan was for you to be Henry's caretaker while JJ was working — though it deviated sometime after about 6 months of being employed by her.

• You had major crush on your boss, and sometimes, it felt like she was in the same situation; though you doubted it.

• One night before tucking Henry in for bed, he said he wanted to tell you a secret.

• “Mommy really likes you. . .”

• That simple phrase made butterflies become trapped in your stomach, but you tried to push them down.

• “I really like her too. . .”

• It felt good to actually say it.

• Now, confiding in a little kid about you liking their mom wasn't too wise; the secret wasn't kept for more than a week.

• Jennifer approached you one night after she'd came home from work — Henry was already asleep in his room and you were doing coursework for college when she asked to have dinner with you tomorrow night.

• You didn't even hesitate to accept her invitation.

• The place wasn't very fancy, but that was 100% fine with you.

• It was a small 24 hour diner outside of town that had the best breakfast that you'd ever eaten.

• The two of you chattered about how Henry's fine motor skills and how his speech was developing, and how your classes were going.

• The night was perfect, she even went out of her way to drive yourself to your place — even though she insisted you stay at hers because it was rather late, but you needed to get some housework done, and chose to go home.

• That night, you spent nearly an hour thinking about the date before passing out.

SPENCER REID

• The good doctor met you during a case not too far off from Quantico.

• You were doing an hands on internship with a medical examiner and Dr. Reid happened to come by to get autopsy details and the toxicology report from a recent string of homicides that the BAU was investigating.

• Almost instantly, he struck something in you and you couldn't keep your eyes off of him.

• The way he spoke so factually on the unusual way that this ‘unsub’ tortured his victims before they succumbed to death, just made you more interested in the supposed genius.

• Sooner than you'd hoped, the BAU wrapped their case up and you were in fear that the chance to actually talk to Spencer was about to slip between your fingers.

• That was until Spencer and Agent Rossi came in one last time.

• You swallowed the nervousness bubbling inside of you and quickly asked him for his number.

• To your surprise, he actually gave it to you rather quickly.

• He was just as entranced with you as you were with him.

• One night, you'd gotten off early and decided to invite Spencer over to your apartment.

• You'd fixed up a simple meal for the two of you and make sure your apartment was in tip-top shape.

• When he arrived, you were in awe. He was dressed up in a suit, which wasn't far from what you'd first seen him in, however he was glowing.

• He looked like he'd slept pretty well, he was donning a soft smile and holding out a small bouquet made up of red carnations, yellow jasmine flowers, and multicolored hibiscuses. They complimented each other well.

• You, of course, gracefully accepted the bouquet and welcomed him into your home, situating the flowers in an elegant vase at the table.

• You and Spencer spent the night talking about anything and everything; you found his knowledge fascinating and beautiful.

• The date ended in you both passing out intertwined in each others limbs on the couch while a cheesy rom-com played out on the TV.

EMILY PRENTISS

• Emily first seen you while you were doing an interview with Hotchner to join the BAU.

• The agents of the BAU sat, staring into the office as you smiled sweetly and spoke to Hotchner about your experience in criminal psychology and communications, and thus far he seemed intrigued.

• It was almost instantly that Emily was enamored; you were just too beautiful for her to ignore.

• About half an hour later, you and Hotch exited the office, he shook your hand with a look of accomplishment on both of your faces.

• With a loud clearing of his throat, any remaining agents or passerbys turned their attention to the head agent as he prepared to make an announcement.

• Applause erupted as your eyes scanned the room, landing on the black haired beauty that was SSA Emily Prentiss.

• “Will you please welcome our new agent, Y/n L/n, to the BAU.”

• You situated your new desk with the few belongings that you'd had in your bag.

• The work day was coming to an end while other agents put away any remaining paperwork that they'd been working on and out of the corner of your eye, you spotted the pretty agent from before approaching your desk.

• Obviously, you agreed and headed out with the rest of the group.

• “Hey, a few of us were going out to get drinks, and we were wondering if you'd like to come with us to celebrate you joining the BAU?”

• Agent Hotchner bought the first round of celebration drinks and made a toast in honor of their new agent.

• Not too long after the toast, Emily sat beside you and formally introduced herself before making conversation.

• The two of you spent the night learning about each other and talking about what your job may entail.

• After a while, and about 4 drinks, you were taking a cab with her back to her place.

• She insisted that you spend the night at her place and meet her cat, Sergio, and you agreed.

• The rest of the night was fuzzy, but you woke up in a bed that was unfamiliar with a cat laying on top of you and the smell of pancakes and bacon filling your nostrils.

• You carefully moved, the cat hopping off once he'd realized you woke up.

• Gently, you walked to the kitchen to find Emily cooking breakfest looking lively as ever.

• “Good morning, hotcakes.”

• With a nervous chuckle, you awkwardly asked if anything had happened between the two of you the night prior.

• “Oh heavens, no; we were both much too drunk. I slept on the couch.”

• A huge sigh of relief came from you as Emily sat a plate of food in front of you along with a couple asprin and a coffee.

• You thanked her for her kindness, but she waved it off with a pink tint rising to her cheeks and ears.

• You ate breakfast and headed to work together.

• Once you entered the BAU, SSA Morgan began wiggling his brows at Emily, earning a playful punch to the shoulder.

PENELOPE GARCIA

• You first met the effervescent Penelope Garcia when SSA Derek Morgan came into the ER with some minor injuries due to their latest mission; she, of course, was freaking out.

• “What if he's really hurt? Or — or —”

• She enveloped you in a hug, thanking you for your effort to calm her down, and you hugged her back with a comforting squeeze.

• “Don't worry, Miss Garcia, he only has some scrapes and bruises, he'll be back to normal before you know it. We're just making sure that he gets the proper care he needs before he can return to work.”

• After guiding her through some simple breathing exercises, her heart rate began to lower.

• Only moments passed before Derek came out with a smile and they had a small chat, which included Penelope scolding him for being reckless.

• Savannah came and picked Derek up, leaving you and Penelope alone in the empty waiting room.

• “Hey, so Miss nurse - sorry I didn't get your name. . .”

• “Well, Miss L/n, would you perhaps like to go out and get a drink with me, sometime?”

• “It's Y/n, Y/n L/n.”

• And with that, you got her number and met her the next week at a high end restaurant.

• You brought her some assorted roses and made sure the meal was paid for, although she tried to pay you, but you told her not to worry about it.

• You spent the night listening her speak about the things she was passionate about.

• Unfortunately, about half an hour passed by before you'd gotten called back in by the hospital.

• You drove Penelope to her apartment and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

• “I really enjoyed tonight, Penelope.”

• “I did too, Y/n, but next time I'm paying the bill.”

• She giggled and gave you a quick smooch before shuffling into the apartment, leaving you flushed as you headed back to work.

• “So there's going to be a next time?”

tags :: @wordvomit-foryourmind

[poguestvff]

Used To The Cold — S. Cameron

In which Sarah Cameron comes to a realization after her girlfriend moves across the country.

taglist | main masterlist | 2.0k words

warning(s): none, fluff, i heart sarah <33

Have you ever lost something that held either so many memories or brought a sort of happiness that just warmed you immediately even at the sight of it? Most people have something like that. Such as for children when it comes to losing stuffed animals or action figures that were a source of comfort, they missed it like hell. Said children grow up and look for a new source of comfort. Some teenagers found it in weed and alchohol, others in sports. For Sarah Cameron, she grew out of the beautiful pink blanket her father had gotten her as a toddler. As she grew into a teenager, she found a new solace.

Her girlfriend.

Sarah made it very apparent to show her love to her girlfriend who, at one point, was just her best friend who she could hardly even bare to be away from. Sarah had known she'd loved Y/n before they even got together by the way Sarah had never felt claustrophobic in the friendship that she held with the other girl. She said the three words within the first six months of being with her, words she had never spoken to another being other than her family. It was a word she, personally, took seriously. For her to say it to Y/n showed the amount of trust she held within her. Trust to not feel so closed off with Y/n.

At the beginning of the relationship, Sarah was glad that not much had changed between the two of them. That Y/n let her have her space whenever she needed it without the dependent need to be together all day though it quickly became backwards. Sarah grew even more clingy to Y/n, hardly able to deal without her hands being stuck to her girlfriend like glue. Whenever they went out to lunch, Sarah played a one sided game of footsies that only brought a smile upon Y/n’s features, one of Sarah’s favorite traits about her. Sarah loved the idea of always having a person to call her own, Y/n seeming to be the one person who could bring out her newfound touchiness. Though, sometimes she pondered on whether Y/n herself was even handling it or if she just ‘put up’ with it. If she did have an indifference towards Sarah’s actions, she surely never showed her disinterest in it.

Though the last time Sarah had held on to her girlfriend felt soul crushing and gut wrenching. As the two of them stood on the creaky, wooden dock just before the ferry, Sarah felt drained. Between the amount of crying she’d done in just the past few days had been enough to make her want to sleep forever and the comfort of her girlfriends arms around her hadn’t helped that feeling. Tears held a steady stream down both of their faces though Sarah was the one who was unable to contain her sobs. People passed around them, solemn looks given to the two of them as they listened in on the sniffles and soft wails.

Y/n didn’t need to be a genius to understand that this was twice as hard for Sarah as it would be for her. Y/n was leaving, miles away that Sarah couldn’t even pin on when the next time she’d being able to hold on to her would be. All she knew was that this embrace that Y/n held on her would be the last one for months and there wasn’t a thing that would be able to make up for it between now and then.

It evoked an indescribable sort of fear within Sarah but she knew it was immutable. If Sarah could, she'd even drop her whole life within Outer Banks to follow her girlfriend across the world. There wasn't much Sarah wouldn't do and there wasn't much Y/n wouldn't do for Sarah either, including the moving date having already been pushed back a month because of Y/n's several arguments with her parents.

"I don't want you to go." sarah whispered as y/n kissed her neck. She could hear the blonde's pained and wavering voice, how affected she already was even as Y/n hadn't even stood on the boat yet.

"I know, lover." the y/h/c girl spoke in a low tone, only sarah able to hear her words of affirmation. Y/n was first to pull back, placing her hands on Sarah's cheeks. The sight of Sarah with puffy eyes and a quivering lip made y/n's heart throb and a guilty feeling blanket over her like a raising tide. "i'll visit. Every chance I get, you know I will."

"It won't be the same." she lamented. Y/n placed her lips against Sarah’s, delicately as if the blonde were made of porcelain. When Y/n's parents had called for her and Ward and Rose had called Sarah away from the dock, Sarah only seemed to want to cling further, fingers pressing further into the thin jacket Y/n worse, but their time had finally run out. Even after weeks of pretending that they had all the time in the world, like nothing could pull the two of them apart, it had happened.

The first few weeks, the whole Cameron house had known Sarah spent most of her nights crying herself to sleep and the entire Y/l/n house knew Y/n was not going to be speaking to them for a little while due to their newest decision. Both groups of parents hadn't known that pulling the duo away from one another would become such a quagmire for each of them.

When Y/n did finally decide to talk to her parents, it was usually to say she was leaving to explore the area in which she refused to get to know the first few days. With a driver license, it gave her just a bit of freedom from her parents who's impromptu decisions had still caused for a tearing in their familial relationship.

Y/n sat in her parked car, a hot beverage in hand to adjust to the cold in which she'd just stood in for five minutes. All of it for a drink that wasn't even that good in her opinion but she dealt with it. With the hand not holding the steaming drink, she opened her phone, smiling immediately at the photo of her and sarah as her background. She unlocked it, scrolling around to find Sarah's contact and setting her phone up against the dashboard. While it began to ring, Y/n situated herself to begin to drive. "Hi, Y/n/n!" Sarah shouted excitedly the second she'd answered.

At her tone of voice did Y/n laugh. The enthusiasm was no surprise but it was funny to Y/n every time. "Hi, baby." She replied, fhe smile remaining on her face as she looked towards the screen. Sarah sat at her desk, her hands under her jaw though a pencil between her fingers. She had focused all of her attention from the papers in front of her to the driver on the other end of the phone. "What are you doing?"

The sound of whizzing paper had made Y/n glance to the phone seeing a math sheet now replacing Sarah's face before she placed it back down, a frown appearing on her features. "Math."

"Didn't you just start like two days ago?" Y/n asked, taking a sip from her drink.

"Yes and this teacher is an absolute bitch. You're just lucky you don't start for another week. You would hate Mr. Henley."

Y/n let out an awfully dramatic gasp. "Um, hello, Mr. Henley was literally my home room teacher last year, I'll have you know. Show some respect." She said, almost missing Sarah's chagrined look as she smiled.

"You're supposed to be on my side here."

"Sorry, i don't believe in biases, Sar." She joked for sarah to let out a small snicker.

"So tell me, how's minnesota?" Sarah asked, trying to spark up a conversation even if the distance was the same thing she wanted to keep her mind off of.

"Oh, it's so great. So many hot people." she remarked.

"You're not funny, no one has ever found you funny." Sarah replied though unable to hold in her laugh along with her girlfriend. "I'm serious. we haven't talked much about it and i don't want to like... avoid your new life now."

Y/n sighed, looking towards the phone to see Sarah looking back down at her work in front of her. "Fine. Well, it doesn't particularly suck. The no surfing part definitely does, though, but what can you do. And the coffee here... no, its just so bad, babe. granted, i only had one, and it's in my cup holder right now but it's gross."

"My coffee making is better, right?" Sarah asked as Y/n gave a hefty nod.

"So much better, even if it is the only thing you're good at making." Y/n laughed and Sarah attempted to refuse a smile, her cheeks quivering from trying to keep it down. "But the weather dropped today, randomly. It was seventy yesterday, fifty today but i think i'm getting used to the cold."

Sarah lifted her head back to the phone, watching Y/n focus on driving, her eyes diverting on places away from the screen. Sarah but at her inner cheek, drumming her fingers against the white wood that rested under her forearms. "Used to it?" Sarah asked. She knew Y/n's move was permanent at least until she was eighteen but something about those words made it seem more realistic. She was getting used to a place that wasn't home.

Y/n hummed. "Yeah, i'm probably being dramatic. I saw a guy walking around in a tank top and shorts while i'm wearing double pair of socks right now." she grinned at her own comment though picking up on Sarah's sudden discomfort when she replied with a small 'wow'. "Lover?"

"Yeah?"

"What's going on?" Y/n asked, the car slowing to a stop at a red light.

Sarah quickly shook her head. "No, it's nothing. Just... the work. Keep your eye on the road."

"Sarah." The blond recognized the tone of voice quickly.

"Just... I just fully realized how permanent this is. I won't see you until, what? December? That's a long time, Y/n! And, i get it, it's your home now and i can't do anything about it but—"

Y/n was quick to cut her off. "I never said this is home. Sure I live here but it's just a couple walls and a roof. It's not home, Sarah." Y/n began. "Home is you. And trust me, i've been missing home the second i got on that ferry."

Despite them having to look at one another through a glass screen the feeling—the connection between the two of them was still felt. Sarah could feel the normal warm feeling she would've gotten whenever Y/n would simply hold her hand or brush her hair over her ear. she held that much of an effect on Sarah in person and somehow even thousands of miles away.

Sarah hadn't even realized she had been staring for a total of twenty seconds until a singular tear fell down her blushing cheeks. she quickly sniffled, recomposing herself as she wiped it away. "Are you seriously making me cry right now?" She muttered with the way the atmosphere had become though relishing in the way Y/n laughed in response.

"Yes, thank you for ignoring everything i just said, lover." Y/n put the car back in drive as the light went green. Due to the steets being relatively empty in her new small town, she took the time to look back over at the phone to Sarah. "I love you."

Sarah's smile widened in thag very moment, pursing her lips before pushing them out. "I love you more."

"And don't worry. I won't get to used to it. I'll be back home, to you, before you even know it." Y/n took a small glance to the phone, enjoying Sarah's gaze that showed even with the distance put between the two of them, they'd be fine.

[slashbitch2]

The Very Nosy Neighbour

this fic was 100% inspired by this one here , but I mean it practically wrote itself I couldn't resist

NSFW

You can't remember much past waking up in an unfamiliar room- though 'room' is really a sugarcoated description, as in reality it qualifies more as some kind of cavern. You're sitting in a chair, ankles and wrists bound by an indistinguishable material. Whatever the binds are made of feels strong, so any attempts to struggle against it are futile. Yet, in spite of what really should be an extremely stressful situation, you find yourself completely relaxed. You briefly wonder whether you've been drugged, but with every sense feeling fully operational, that theory is soon dismissed.

Instead of choosing a more logical response to the circumstances you've found yourself in, you decided to focus more on your surroundings: not to form any resemblance of an escape plan, but simply out of curiosity. Although, the investigation is equally as ineffective. You're unable to name anything around you except for stone walls, strange (glowing?) vines and weird symbols carved above a few archways. Everything beyond that is either entirely lost to you, or shrouded in darkness.

With little else to do, you start to think back on the events that led you there, trying to glean any useful information from the blurry memories. The clearest image, therefore the most recent, is the smirking face of a woman, Agnes you realise. Though the malicious glint in her eyes doesn't quite match your perception of the nosy neighbour. But where is she now? Is she also in danger? You may not have known Agnes for very long, but are reluctant to let any harm come to her regardless.

With a clearer head, you consider calling for help, but a small voice at the back of your subconscious warns you against this. And the voice sounds smart, so you elect to listen to it. But what should you do instead? Where did this voice come from? And most importantly, should you trust it? Luckily, you aren't given much time to overthink the decision.

While trying to tune into this voice, footsteps echo in the distance, gradually drawing nearer. You hold your breath as the sound suddenly stops, leaving your eyes scanning the vicinity for any movement. The unpleasant reality dawns on you all too quickly: the footsteps were approaching from behind you.

“Well, well, well.” Someone says playfully, then snorts as they start walking closer. "Sorry to be a total cliché. I couldn't resist." It's Agnes. She narrows her eyes and smirks, folding her arms as she examines your constrained form. Subjected to her scrutiny, you find yourself swallowing, but your throat is too dry. Other small discomforts also become noticeable; your cramped limbs, aching back and the bruises on your hands. Well at least you put up a fight. The more rational part of you, however, realises that your hands are no longer bound. You stare down at them, flexing each finger as if checking they were all still fully functional.

Something suddenly knocks into your head and you grimace. Left reeling from the impact, you realise that you're slightly nauseated. Though not enough to stop you from reaching out to grasp the floating cup of water. The fact that the glass is suspended in mid-air doesn't go unnoticed, rather ignored, since there's too much happening simultaneously to comprehend any of it in sufficient detail. You swirl the liquid round, hesitant to drink, unwilling to trust your captor's apparent mercy.

"Drink up, dear." Agnes drags a chair forward, which seems to have just appeared out of thin air. She sits backwards on it, legs spread and arms resting on the back casually. "That's all you're getting until we're done here." The tone of her voice is both threatening and teasing. You're reluctant to admit it's quite a turn on.

One glance up at her prying expression and you relent, downing the chilled water way too quickly. Though you aren't given a chance to mourn your impatience, as with an effortless wave of her hand, Agnes refills the glass. While you sip at the water, she refuses to tear her eyes away from you for even a second. It's slightly disconcerting.

“Now," She claps her hands, startling you. "I assume you know why you’re here?”

“Not really.” You confess, unable to pinpoint why anyone would go to so much effort to kidnap you, especially Agnes, who up to this point had been an eccentric yet kind neighbour.

She sighs, more for show than anything else, and rubs at her temple. "Come on Y/N, let's not play dumb now."

Embarrassingly, a heat begins to pool deep in your gut, but you quickly dismiss the unwarranted lust. "I don't know what you mean."

"Oh really?" She quirks an eyebrow, sitting upright. "You really have no idea?" The inquiry is ridiculing, and you can see that your naivety is starting to annoy her.

All you can do is shake your head and pray the sincerity is reflected in your eyes.

"Okay." She slams her hands down on her thighs. "I guess we'll have to go about this the hard way then, toots." A sharp gesture and your hands are bound before you once again.

By the time you're looking up, she's striding toward you with purpose, which does nothing to ease the building heat between your legs. Her hands clasp on the armrests either side, essentially trapping you, not like escape would've been possible without the extra precaution. Up close you finally recognize this isn't Agnes- in fact it never has been. There's a feral yet wise appearance to her, the facade of nosy neighbour dissolved in an instance to be replaced by a deranged, frighteningly powerful woman (or witch, you're undecided).

Despite your better judgement, you're unable to stop yourself from asking. "Who are you?" Your voice barely breaches a whisper, but she's standing close enough that nothing less intimate is required.

She looks mildly impressed, the corner of her mouth twitching almost indiscernibly. "Agatha Harkness." She extends a hand, smirking upon realisation that you're a little too tied up at the minute to reciprocate. "Lovely to meet you."

You swallow again, finding your throat to be a little less dry. "Likewise." Then decide to take another risk. "So what do you want from me?"

“Wanda's true identity.” She replies so quickly that you almost miss it, looking at you with an eagerly expectant expression.

Agatha's question confuses you further. “I don’t know what you mean.” Although your answer is honest, something at the back of your mind hisses lies.

"There's no need to lie here." Her patient humour had disappeared. "Trust me, no one will hear you, so drop the act."

For some unbeknown reason, her accusation angers you. "I'm not putting on an act, I don't know why I'm here or what you want from me." The bravery dissipates all of a sudden as you remember that you're not exactly in the position to command such authority. "Please, stop this."

Agatha purses her lips, stands up and turns away from you. She calmly moves forwards a few paces, and in the short amount of time you manage to convince yourself that she's given up. Until in a completely unprovoked move, she swings her hands to the left, sending her chair crashing into the wall in frustration. Whether this is part of her interrogation performance or not, it works. Your heart starts racing, and confusingly, the awkward heat between your legs pulses.

She runs a hand through her hair, still facing away from you. "Don't make this any harder harder than it needs to be." You can practically hear her grinding her teeth, but don't doubt that she was getting some enjoyment out of the situation.

"I can tell you that Wanda is my sister and only real family, that I moved to Westview with her and that I couldn't live without her." You start listing off some basic facts, desperate to prove to Agatha that nothing is hidden. That you're normal.

"What about your brother?" She swivels round, clicking her fingers as she tries to recall something. "Pietro!" She exclaims.

"Pietro..." You falter. Why does the name sound so familiar? The nausea worsens. You shake off the feeling. "Never heard of him."

“Liar.” In one swift movement, Agatha is right by your ear. The feeling of her lips brushing against your skin causes you to close your eyes. The close proximity was becoming overwhelming, and your body had chosen to react in a rather unfortunate way. Admittedly, you'd always had a thing for Agnes, but Agatha was on a whole other level. You dreaded to open your eyes, worried that she'd noticed your current state. Instead, you internally begged for mercy.

“Don't go all shy on me now.” She pushes your shoulder into the chair, compelling you to open your eyes. "If you don't want to talk, I have other methods." Her hand raises, a purple flow emanating from the tips of her fingers. It crackles and sparks, as if the power was barely contained, yet as she shifts closer to brush the hair out of your face, you don't flinch. One finger remained touching your forehead, then traced down to your jaw, and finally along to grasp your chin.

While the vaguely sinister movement terrified you, it also forced you hold your breath and grip onto the armrests for dear life. Why you'd decided this was hot was beyond you considering the many connotations of her words, yet your thighs pressed tighter together as she drew closer. You attempted to turn your head to the side, longing for distraction, but her hold on you kept your head still.

"This won't be much fun for you, dear." She sighed in mock pity, her breath hot against your skin... Which just tipped you over the edge. As hard as you tried to stifle the noise, a broken moan escaped your lips. You'd definitely hit a low point here. Too ashamed to face your apparent arousal, you screwed your eyes shut. Although, at Agatha's silence, you relented and opened them barely a minute later.

To your relief, or perhaps dismay, the woman was grinning like a maniac. Her eyes flickered down to your parted lips as she chewed on her own. Then carefully, as if she were testing the waters, her fingers began to rub against your jaw, and upwards to your mouth. Your breath deceives you by hitching as her thumb slips between your lips, stroking your tongue. At the contact, you can't help but arch into the touch. Agatha chuckles.

"I take it back." She murmurs, removing her hand. "This will be fun." Although the intimidation factor prevails, there's a certain desire mirrored in Agatha's expression which cancels out any remaining common sense. Your entire body felt like it was on fire, and even if you wanted to, there was little you could do to stop her. So, you give into your yearning, sighing as she climbs to sit on your lap. Immediately, her hand switches to gripping the back of your neck as she slams her mouth onto yours. You willingly indulge by opening further, allowing her tongue to slide between your lips. Her other hand lowers to grab at your chest, like she were trying to tug herself impossibly closer.

Without removing her lips, the hand massaging your chest shifts to your thigh. She still keeps her lips firmly pressed to yours, and with the lack of oxygen, you can feel yourself growing lightheaded. It almost feels like a challenge, one which you're determined to succeed at. Though when she eventually does break away, her hand suddenly slips between your thighs, and your breath is stolen from you once more. Wasting no time, she massages you through your clothes, dragging out an inevitable whine. The touch is both too much, and not enough. But judging by her malevolent smirk, that was exactly her intention.

Even though you were currently incapable of producing any reasonable thought, you still noticed that Agatha wasn't entirely unaffected. Her breathing was laboured, hips occasionally jerking against your thigh and eyes struggling to stay open. The influence you were having on her only encouraged you to moan louder, craving to see her equally dishevelled. Your plan seemed to momentarily fail as her hand retreated. But you'd certainly earned her attention.

She licks her lips, then abruptly changes her expression to look disturbingly like that of Agnes. "You wouldn't leave me out of the fun now, would you dear?" Her voice is high pitched as she basically sings her words. Although the question must've been rhetorical as doesn't await a response, instead you find your hands unbound, flung behind your back and bound together all in a matter of seconds. Then, she shifted her position, yanking your bodies closer so that your crotches were pressed together. She grunts, heaving forward to rest against you for a moment and regain her composure. And finally, without warning, starts to grind your hips together.

It doesn't take long for her movement to become more frantic, accompanied by her hair spilling onto her face. She remains impressively quiet, however, or perhaps you were just comparably loud. With the little pride you have left, you decide to take matters into your own hands, and start meeting each thrust with equal vigour. Miraculously, it works. She throws her head back with a remarkably loud moan, proceeded by change in strategy as she starts almost bouncing on top of you, hips losing their rhythm, pleasure overwhelming her. Startled by her lack of self-control, the heat in your stomach begins building exponentially fast. Your eyes slam shut.

A hand grasps onto your face. “Look at me!” She growls, then emphasises her demand by rolling her hips torturously slowly. The movement ceases. She leans her forehead against yours, staring directly into your eyes. “Come with me.” To your surprise, there's an audible plea in her voice.

At a loss for words, you nod. The pleasure had been building for so long that you knew it'd only take a few more grinds to push you over the edge. With your confirmation, Agatha resumes her thrusting, though soon succumbs, throwing her head back and uttering an exceptionally loud, high-pitched moan. She arches her back, pressing herself so far into you that the pleasure peaks. You groan, lurching backwards in a moment of pure bliss. All you can feel is Agatha, all you can think about is Agatha. Coming down from the high, you sigh and collapse forward to bury your face in the crook of her neck.

She tenses slightly at the contact, but soon relaxes into the strange embrace. You gently press your lips against her skin and feel her shiver, confirming your suspicion that it'd been a while since Agatha had received such affection. Motivated by a new, more innocent desire, you continue to pepper light kisses across her throat and behind her ear, simply enjoying the unexpectedly intimate moment.

Agatha finally breaks the silence, leaning away from your touch to look down at you curiously. "Wanda really has you under her mind control too, huh?"

Although still stuck in a post-coital haze, you muster enough brainpower to consider her words. "Mind control?"

"Oh, right." She smirks, a slight sadness perceptible in her eyes. "Forgot to mention." Before you can say anything, she swings one leg to the side, stiffly sliding off your lap and clasping her hands together. "You might want to reconsider where your loyalties lie, dear." She glances at you, then ambles to the opposite side of the room. "That's one fucked up family situation right there." Her voice teasingly calls out.

You feel yourself flush, strangely offended by her comment, and annoyed by her vagueness. "Like you can talk." Your response is a total shot in the dark, but must've hit a nerve since she slowly turns back to you, a suspicious expression upon her face. "Just a guess." You add, unwilling to know the details of whatever sensitive topic you'd just touched upon. Agatha easily shrugs it off, leaving behind a stifling silence. Eventually, it's a mixture of your own boredom and concern that prompts you to end the lull in conversation. "Are you still planning on interrogating me about something I know nothing about?"

"Oh, no I read your mind." She waves a dismissive hand over her shoulder. "Got all I needed."

Again, you're left suffocating in the confusion her ambiguity provokes, with nothing else to ask except. "How...?"

The inquiry must've been exactly what Agatha wanted to hear as she immediately dropped what she was doing to turn around and lean on the wall, arms folded in a casually smug pose. "Sex leaves you vulnerable." She smirked. "All I did was take advantage of the opportunity- but I'll spare you the boring details." With a flourish of her hand and a flash of purple, the binds holding your ankles and wrists disappeared. "You can go now. First door on the left."

Without sparing you another glance, she busied herself with some witchy task, allowing you to see yourself out. Massaging your wrists, you stood slowly, watching her expectantly. Surely she wouldn't just let you leave? Yet as you sauntered over to the door she'd directed you to, she made no move to stop you. "Bye then?"

Agatha looked up at you and winked. "See you around, neighbour."

[visd3stele]

magic and kids

summary:

A/N: I really hope you like it. Thank you for your requests. Loved writing it.

art credit: @phantomrin

TW: none

@britishbookworm2 requested (if you want to leave a request as well, click)

masterlist

°•▪︎~▪︎•°

It's been four years since Taryn decided the mortal world would be a more suitable place to raise her child than Elfhame. Even if her sister was now High Queen, the fairies would still make life hard for her and her baby. Maybe not on purpose, she admits it. But magic runs wild, free and unstoppable. Used to it, the Fae Folk barely notices the dangers. And frankly, they don't care. Not allowed to use it on humans as cruelly as before, some meaner courts claim innocent ignorance. How can an entire society of enchanted beings change overnight? How could they be expected to adjust to human fragility all of a sudden?

So Taryn took her baby, promised her sister to visit and fled to Heather and Vivi's. It wasn't as hard as she'd thought. Getting used to the mortal world, that's it. And if her baby had longer canine than normal, or his ears sharpened to pointy edges to the top, it passed unnoticed. Her son certainly didn't stood out the way Vivi did, even with light brown eyes that looked orange in the sun and rusty red hair. He didn't need much glamouring either, not like Oak, Oriana or Madoc. By the time she sent him to preschool his hair was long enough to cover the ears and no one seemed to notice the teeth even without magic.

For all the talk Taryn did on how she wanted her son to be free of his father in all ways, snapping at Oak when the boy tried to teach him magic before he knew how to properly walk and forbidding her family to bring Fairyland up, she named him Renard.

Fitting, though not what she should have done. Maybe part of her can't let Locke go, not entirely. She knew he didn't particularly wanted the baby, that everything he promised her were pretty lies. But for a few months, it has been real. Their marriage, their love, their lives. She saw her dreams come true, one after another: the mistress of an important household, throwing parties for courtiers, motherhood.

Now that everything she wanted snaped broken in tiny little pieces carried away by harsh winter wind, Taryn Duarte couldn't phantom having her child become like his father.

"It has nothing to do with magic, for fuck's sake!" Vivi exploded once, after Taryn better than not threw Oak and Oriana - who came to visit - out of the apartment for trying to reach Renard's magic. "He won't become a sly, selfish fox if he can change appearance or grow horses out of leaves. It's all about his up-bringing!"

"I want him to be normal, Vivi! That's why I took him here!"

Renard has been barely one year old when the argument happened. But it was enough to take his mother's words to heart.

°•▪︎~▪︎•°

Four years old Renard and twelve years old Oak played outside, jumping in crusty piles of autumn leaves. The princeling hadn't given up his plans to teach his cousin magic. He refused to let go of such opportunity: a friend he didn't have to hide of, one he could play with like he used to in Elfhame.

"Hey, Ren-Ren," Oak said, "check this out!" The older boy held up his hand, brows furrowed in concentration, lip grazed between his teeth. Nothing happened for an alarming amount of time. And then... the leaves twirl around the two cousins, splashing then with guts of wind and scarce dew as it swept them up in a friendly tornado.

Renard chuckled in delight, stretching to catch some of the closer leaves. But as soon as he touched one, the whole thing fell apart. "No!" Do it again, Oak. Do it again."

"I'm sorry, Ren-Ren," Oak faked a yawned and laid on the ground. "Magic is very serious business. Very consuming. I'm too tired to even move." He let his eyes close dramatically, watching Renard between his lashes. Truth be told, every time he did magic Oak felt good. Vibrant. As if the earth itself reached out and gave him life. But Renard didn't need to know that yet. He can definitely learn it by himself if Oak's plan works out.

The younger boy pouted and dropped on the ground. "Not fair," he muttered to himself.

"You know, Ren-Ren, you're half fae. That means there's a pretty good chance you're magic too."

"No, I'm not."

"You can't know that. Come on, give it a try!"

"No, Oak! I'm not magic. I'm not like Father, I'm like Mom. Like Mom, just like that."

Oak straightened himself, but didn't rose from the ground. "Ok, Ren-Ren. Listen up. Magic is not bad. It's fun. Don't you think it's fun?"

"Yes!" Renard nodded enthusiastically. "It's super fun. When you do it, Oak." At that the named boy own enthusiasm faded away in an instant.

"Thank you, Ren-Ren," he deadpanned. "But do you know what's more fun than watching me practice magic?" Not giving the kid a chance to answer, to even take in the question, really, Oak said "To do it yourself."

"Do you really think I should try, Oak?" Clearly, the little boy was attracted to magic. And clearly something was stopping him. But his older cousin slowly made whatever that was seem less big and scary, dragging him along in his qualms.

"Totally!"

Renard pushed his lips forward with his tongue, sticking it out through the gap in his teeth. Caramel eyes shone with desire, his red hair flown around by a cold, pleasant wind. "Ok," he gave in, as expected. "How do I do it?"

The smirk that lightened up Oak's face can only be describes as evil. Though no ill intention hid behind it. Only the knowledge his plan worked out, just like his sister, Jude's.

"Listen to me very carefully, alright? There is not just one way to make magic, Ren-Ren. You have to find your own. But for now, try the basics. Think really hard on what you want to happen. Something easy. Got anything in mind?" Renard frowned, then his eyes landed on a tree which still had some green leaves on its branches and nodded.

"Perfect! Now, imagine whatever you want to happen. Imagine it happening. Are you imagining?"

"Yes."

"No!" Oak groaned. "If you're paying attention to me, then it means you're not focusing on magic."

"But how will I know what to do if I don't listen to you?"

"I told you! Magic is your own, Ren-Ren. It comes naturally. So, dig it up. Use your imagination."

Renard tried to shut out the world around him, picturing the sole tree in his mind. A warm pull tugged at him and he followed. His magic, he tried not to dwell on the joy, but instead focusing on his practice. His magic reaching out. Because he reached out first.

The boy allowed the warmth to take control, guiding him through it. The tree now carved in his mind by detail wasn't enough. He needed action. But just imagining the leaves to fall wouldn't do. Renard couldn't say how exactly he knew it. He just did. Something more tender was needed. The half fae kid had to imply what he wants and trust his magic to follow his lead.

So Renard made himself cold. Chilly. Feeling a breeze of wind creeping inside his clothes, whipping his skin gently. Enough to rip a leaf off a tree, though. Which it did. The wind he summoned couldn't be felt, not really. Only by himself and the green leaves that departed one by one from their branch as if plucked by an invisible hand.

Oak gasped. Then grinned. And then he laughed. Renard broke free of his concentration, pleased to see his magic didn't falter. Not until every and each green leaf from his chosen tree didn't fall. The sight made him still in awe for a couple of seconds. But soon enough he joined his cousin with a bubble laugh, jumping up and down and running to tackle Oak in a tight hug.

"I did it, Oak! I did it!"

"Yes, you did, Rem-Ren. Indeed, you did. Congrats!"

"Can we show auntie Vivi? And auntie Oriana?"

When Madoc and Oriana first came in the mortal world, Taryn wanted nothing to do with them. But years of being cared for by the blue skinned, white haired, pink eyes woman showed their tale. She agreed to see her, but only her. She could be part of her child life, if she wanted.

"Sure. But don't you want to show your mom first?"

"Mom and auntie Heather work a lot. We can show them later." Renard said, but he felt his magic shrinking at the thought of his mother. His Mom didn't like his father. And his magic comes from his father. Is that why his magic doesn't want to reveal itself near Taryn? He hoped it was just him overthinking it, because he loves his Mom and wants to share this with her.

°•▪︎~▪︎•°

Oak stayed with auntie Oriana, who was his mother, so Renard couldn't bring himself to be upset over it. He would want to be with his mother as much as he can as well. So he did a little trick for auntie Vivi, who told him to stay where he was, brought a camera and ordered him to glamour the tea cups again. Renard made them look like pumpkins, since the Halloween being over the corner made him impossibly anxious - in a good way.

Turns out even mortal technology can be fooled by fae's magic. Vivi showed the clip to Heather, who coed over him until Taryn came home.

"Hello, treasure. How was your day? Wanna give mommy a kiss?"

Renard jumped into his mother's arms, pressing a strong kiss on her cheek before starting to tell her about all the fun he had with cousin Oak. "And then he said I should try magic too."

Tamryn stilled. "And?"

"Look, Mom!"

Renard broke a vase, then, with a twitch of his fingers put it back together. "Auntie Vivi says I'm a natural."

"Does she? That's amazing, sweetheart."

But his mother didn't sound thrilled. In fact, her smile wasn't even a smile at all, but a thin line. "I'm sorry, mommy. I knew I shouldn't've done it, but I didn't know why. Now I know: you don't want me using my magic. It'll make me bad, like father."

Renard pushed his lips up front, scrunched his nose up, wiggled his toes, all in an atempt to stop the tears hurting his eyes from falling. When he realized it was in vain, he took off running to his room.

When Taryn entered minutes later she found her son curled on his left side in the middle of the bed, hugging a black goat plushie his uncle Cardan gave him on his birthday tight to his chest. She hated herself for causing the pain struck look on her son's face.

"Hey, sweetie."

"Hi, Mom." Renard wiped his nose with his jumper's sleeve.

"I'm so sorry, sweetie. Mommy was just scared, but that's not your fault. You could never be bad. Magic is not bad. Of course you can practice all you want, but we'll settle some ground, basic rules first. Ok?"

"Really?"

"Rules you can never, ever break. Really."

"Thank you, Mommy! You're the best! Just wait until Oak hears about it."

A/N: Renard means fox in french. Also: oops, guess I finished it earlier than expected and didn't really felt like waiting days to post it 😅

[we-have-bangtan]

Fall together

Pairing: Jimin x reader

Genre: fluff, angst, best friends to lovers au

Warning: Swearing, smoking, mature content(no smut tho)

Synopsis: Jimin decides to kiss his bestfriend who he was in love with not knowing if she felt the same way.

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

Jimin sat on the terrace, the rain pouring down on him, the drops of water falling fast and hard on his back, his body drenched to the bone. He didn't flinch when the rain drops fell on him, he had adjusted to the pain. The cigarette he had been smoking earlier was nothing more than ash now, too drenched to keep burning. He recalled the events of today as he lifted his chin up, feeling the rain drops pouring on him. Yn pushed up against the wall, her chest against his own, his lips descending upon her, hot and needy tongues meeting to dance together, his hands on her hips and hers around his neck, holding onto him while he devoured her. She had moaned for him, the sound so sinfully beautiful, it had him hooked; and then she had pulled away from him, cheeks red and eyes shaky, lips swollen and panting. Breathless as she opened the closet door and walked out, putting on a facade as she joined the rest of the group as if nothing happened. He wondered how long she'd play with him, how long she'd pretend like his feelings didn't exist, he was putting everything on the line for her and here she was, refusing to accept the fact that he was in love with her. He knew why she was pretending, she didn't want to throw away years of friendship for one chance at being something more. He knew there was no going back from here, no going back to the way thing were, he never planned on going back either. He didn't think he could stand being just friends with her anymore, he couldn't stand around, watching as others try and maybe even succeed in taking what he wanted the most in his life away from him. He had hoped that she'd push him away, stop him, tell hi this was not what she wanted, give him a clear fucking sign that she didn't want him, he didn't want to be given hope if he didn't have a chance with her. And yet she had strung him along, making him think that he did have a chance when she had let him kiss her like THAT. Now he didn't know how to feel, he wanted to hear her moan again, wanted to feel the euphoric high that kissing her made him feel, and at the same time, he didn't know if he could do this anymore. What if she didn't like him like that, what if she left, what if she decided he wasn't worth it. It worried him, the though of her leaving. He hear the door to the terrace swing open, he didn't turn around, knowing who it was already. "Why are you here?" he asked her, he couldn't bring himself to not care, it had become a habit. "I was looking for you" she answered, walking closer so her umbrella could shade him from the rain. "Why??" he asked, pulling himself onto his feet. "Why not" she shrugged as he took the umbrella from her so they both would be covered, her small height wasn't ideal for this. "Why do you do this to me?" he groaned as she pulled out a napkin from her pocket, dabbing at his face. "Do what?" she asked, genuinely confused as to what she was doing that was driving Jimin up the wall. "This!" He said as he pointed to the space between the two of them. "How long will you keep stringing me along?, how long will you keep pretending like I'm not right next to you proclaiming my love for every chance I can ?" he demanded as he dropped the umbrella, pacing around as he spoke, never giving Yn a chance to say anything. "I'm not pretending" Yn said quietly, almost too quietly but Jimin still heard, "Then why don't you just tell me if falling for you is waste of my time, am I just riling myself up for heartbreak Yn?" he asked, stopping right in front of her to grab her shoulders. "Should I give up?" he asked as he stood infront of her, she reached out to push his wet hair out of his face, "Come back downstairs, you'll fall sick if you're here" she said as she turned around to leave. But Jimin was not ready to let this go, not today at least, "how long will you keep putting it off Yn, just tell me if I should give up and I will" he pleaded gripping onto her wrist to stop her from leaving , she didn't say anything, moving his hand from her wrist into her hand, pulling him with her, the umbrella forgotten

as she dragged him into the warmth of the building. "Answer me please" he pleaded as he followed after her, his hand still in hers, she ignored his words, making her way down to Jimin's apartment. She unlocked the door, dragging him inside his bedroom before coming to a halt. Her hair and clothes stuck to her body from the rain, hugging each curve like it was meant to. "Go take a shower, you'll fall sick" She demanded, pulling out clothes from the closet for the two of them, "Yn you can't do that, you can't pretend to care and then refuse to answer me" Jimin huffed as he grabbed the clothes from Yn's hands, spinning her around to look at him, desperation in his eyes. "But I'm not pretending to care" she replied, looking up into his eyes, it hurt that Jimin thought she was pretending to care, there had never been a time when she hadn't cared, she always cared about him. He looked at her, searching for any insincerity, anything that would make him love her less and yet, he found nothing, all he found was genuine affection, a tenderness that he had fallen for a long time ago, it just made him love her more and it hurt to love her more, not knowing if she accepted his love or not was a risk h had planned to take, but it was still hard. "Are my feelings a joke to you?" Jimin finally snapped, he was tired of playing this game, trying to get her to realize that he wanted more, that he wanted to love as more than her best friend. "Why do you do this? How could say things like that and expect me to not fall in love? why do you not realize that I am in love with you? And that kiss, that freaking kiss, why the hell did you not pull away, why didn't you tell me to stop? Why do you keep giving me hope that I actually have a chance with you? Why do you keep making me fall if you're not going to fall with me?" Jimin yelled in one single breath as Yn stared at him, his heart pounding and out of breath. "Not falling? NOT FALLING? ARE YOU INSANE PARK JIMIN? HOLY FUCK! NOT FALLING?? YOU GO AHEAD AND CALL ME OBLIVIOUS AND ALL BUT WHAT ABOUT YOU - YOU FUCKING HYPOCRITE, DO YOU HAVE ANY CLUE HOW HARD I FELL? I'M NOT READY TO GIVE AWAY NEARLY A DECADE OF FRIENDSHIP FOR LITERALLY ONE CHANCE AT SOMETHING MORE, WE HAVE SO MUCH TO LOSE YOU ASSHOLE, THERE IS NO GOING BACK ONCE WE TIP OVER THE EDGE. DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD IT IS TO PRETEND TO NOT KNOW THAT YOU HAVE FEELINGS FOR ME?? I NEARLY CONFESSED LIKE 9 TIMES IN THE PAST 10 DAYS AND YOU HAVE THE AUDACITY TO YELL AT ME, WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE HUH? AND THAT KISS, THAT FREAKING KISS, I DIDN'T STOP YOU BECAUSE I WANTED IT AS MUCH AS YOU DID, HOW THE HELL DO YOU WANT ME TO ASK YOU TO STOP WHEN MY TONGUE IS SHOVED DOWN YOUR THROAT??" she yelled back as Jimin slowly backed away from her as tears streamed down her already wet cheeks. Well that certainly backfired, Jimin thought as he tried to process everything she had yelled, waiiitttt, did she just say she fell?, "Wait did you just say you fell, like fell in love?" Jimin asked a fuming Yn. "Boy, I will crack you like a glowstick if you tell me you didn't listen to a word I've been saying" Yn hissed, but Jimin was too busy making his way forward to take heed of the threat, pushing her up against the closet door, caging her in between before capturing her lips with his own, he felt euphoria all over again. "I've been waiting so fucking long for this" He whispered, pulling away from her, their damp bodies pressed against each other as he looked down into her eyes. "Jimin we can't" Yn pleaded as she reached up to caress his face, her palm soft against his stubble, "Why not, I fucking love you, so why the fuck not?" Jimin asked, no, begged. "There's too much to lose, it could go so wrong JImin, it could destroy both of us" she mumbled as he brushed his nose against hers. Jimin pulled away, looking down at her, "You really think I didn't think of that? I thought of it every night, I thought of it everytime I saw you, I weighted everything before I decided that I'm willing to risk it all, you're worth the risk Yn, our friendship is

worth the risk because I can't see myself being just friends with you". He retorted, Jimin had never lied to Yn and he was never going to, he was going to tell her everything he felt. "You know what fuck this shit" Yn groaned, grabbing him by the collar and latching her lips to his, Jimin was very happy to oblige, quickly taking control. Their tongues danced in harmony, what started as a sweet kiss, prolonging into a heated make-out session, what dragged Yn out of the daze was the coldness of Jimin's shirt against her skin. She quickly pulled away, earning a whine from him, "Go shower, you'll fall sick" she demanded, pushing him off her and shoving the clothes she had pulled out into his hands. "Care to join me sweetheart?" he teased as she tugged on her wet shirt, "Woahh, slow down chim, you shower in a temperature that is more than the boiling water of hell, so no thank you" she answered, turning away from him to search through the closet for a shirt for herself. Jimin pouted like a child as he stormed into the bathroom, he seemed to remember something in the middle of undressing because he popped his head out of the door, shirtless and his pants unbuttoned. "Do not leave while I'm in the bathroom, we still need to talk" He warned before going back inside, Yn shrugged, it wasn't like she was planning to leave. She went to the bathroom in the guest room to shower and get changed into one of Jimin's shirts. Jimin was still not out of the bathroom by the time Yn ordered the two of them takeout. She had no clue what took Jimin this long. Jimin's mind was going into over-drive as he thought about all the possibilities that he and Yn wouldn't work out. He had even used a love calculator in the past and it had showed him a solid 69% but he didn't have much faith in that calculator, personally, he thought he and Yn were 100% compatible, but that was just his opinion. He had already thought of the names of his three kids and two cats, the location of their house and what colors the walls would be. He was brought back to reality when the hot water ran out. Never letting hot water run out at my place, he thought to himself as he walked out of the bathroom, drying himself off before putting on the clothes Yn picked out. He walked into the living room to see Yn chowing down a plate of jajangmeon and he felt a little guilty for making her wait. "What took you so long?" she asked as she gulped down the noodles, picking at the side dishes, "The hot water was too nice to get out of" he lied, joining her side as she passed him a plate of japchae too. The two of them ate in silence, stealing a bite of each other's food once in a while before settling down to talk. "So, girlfriend~" Jimin drawled, "Girlfriend??" Yn questioned, "What you wanna be the boyfriend? I'm okay with that." Jimin said with a thoughtful nod. "Don't you think you're getting ahead of yourself Jimin?" Yn teased, rolling from her spot to his before wrapping her arms around him, "At least buy me dinner first" she jested, "Yah, didn't you pay the delivery man with my money? technically I already bought you dinner" he defended, wrapping his arm around her. Yn decided to be bold, swinging her leg onto the other side of Jimin before placing herself on his lap, a mischievous grin on her lips. Jimin was very pleased. "Well then Boyfriend~" she started, Jimin's hands finding their way to her hips, gripping her firmly in place, humming encouragingly when he heard her call him boyfriend. "I need to get home, it's getting late" she finished, ruining the whole mood, "Very romantic" Jimin quipped with a roll of his eye as she tried to get off his lap, his hands firmly holding her in place. "I try!" her retort was paired with a flirty wink. "Well girlfriend, might as well stay the night since it is so late, can't have the love of my life go home when it's so dark outside" he continued, sitting a little straighter so there was less space between the two of them. "Cute, but that won't work, try again tomorrow when I don't have work" she answered as she wiggled to get

out of his grip, "Yn darling, you might want to stop wiggling if you don't want to cause me problems" Jimin groaned as he felt Yn's core grinding against him, holy fuck this woman would drive him insane. "So Jimin-ssi are you taking me home or not?" She asked as she finally managed to get away from him, gathering her things from all over the house, "Only if you kiss me goodbye" he bargained, Yn nodded, fair enough, she was going to do it anyway. Jimin happily whistled as he lead the way to his car, Yn's hand in his as she followed behind him, dressed in his shirt and the heels she had worn when she had come to his apartment. He felt giddy, praying that they would part for the rest of their lives.

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