#she’d used her mother and father’s houses made one from the age of ? eight to sixteen

[halfyearsqueen]

rhaenyra’s coat of arms was something that was technically ‘ undone’ until the year 114AC, when she was married to laenor velaryon, and the design was something she fine tuned and perfected during the months of her pregnancy with her son, and heir. before her marriage it was merely ? the sigils of house arryn and house targaryen split into halves forming one. she used her quartered banners from the ages of sixteen to thirty three, when she was killed.

[vivalarevolution]

𝓕𝓪𝓶𝓲𝓵𝔂 𝓣𝓲𝓮𝓼

Aemond Targaryen x Bastard-Targaryen Oc    

Summary: Aemond had never felt the emotion that she meade him feel, and he had never felt such bitterness when she left him. But when he was able to see her again years later, he couldn't let her run away again. Never again.

A/N: I hope you all gonna like it. It is quite a long fic. Also it contains smut, so please be aware of that part and don't read it if you're minor.

English is not my native language, so I am sorry for any mistakes.

Part 2

A child's life should never be easy. But how much Daenaera wanted it to be otherwise.

Being not only an half-orphan but a bastard was exhausting enough. The streets of King's Landing were not safe for girls like her, they were not safe for any girl.

Daenaera hasn't lived her whole life that way, no.

She used to have a house, small but it was still hers. She lived with her mother and three siblings and her stepfather, who, learning about her true origin, nearly killed her, throwing her onto the doorstep so that at the age of eight she could cope as an adult.

Disguised as a boy, she tried to survive, always somehow managed, until she fell under the feet of King Viserys's daughter.

Rhaenyra was going on one of her secret journeys then, just like years ago with her uncle. But she wasn't expecting a child to run into her while running away from a bunch of boys.

Due to the force of impact, the brown cap fell from the child's head, revealing waves of snow-white locks that fell freely on her shoulders.

The princess did not believe what she saw, but looking at the icy blue irises of the girl who was looking at her intensely with hidden flames so deep inside her, she was convinced of their distant relationship.

Daenaera had never been so terrified in her life. She wasn't sure why she'd agreed to go with the woman to the castle. Maybe it was because of the softness of her voice, maybe becuse it was better everywhere than on the street.

Sitting in a fair-haired bedroom, she stared at the landscape outside the window before her eyes moved to the opening door, in which the king himself stood with her eldest daughter.

At first Viserys thought he had seen Aemma. He still remembered their first encounters as children, and her reflection sat on Rhaenyra's bed, only dirtier and scared.

His pale face twisted into a gentle smile, and his eyes were filled with the first little tears. The girl was watching him as intensely, only to look at the nearby princess who came up to her, standing next to her and placing one of her hands on her shoulder.

- Aemma - the ailing king whispered.

-This is the girl I told you about -the purple-eyed woman said, avoiding the subject of her dead mother- I'm sure she has our blood in her. She is one of us.

Daenaera wanted to question many things, tell them the truth, but she kept silent, just watching.

-What do you want me to do with that information Rhaenyra? We are not sure, and bringing an unknown child from the street will not do any good - said her father, although his eyes told a completely different story.

-Even her name. Why would she have a Valyrian name? - she asked, trying to convince her father.

-Why do you want to take her, daughter? - asked the king.

-I do not want to leave her alone on the street - she confessed after a long moment - I will take care of her like my own daughter. We owe her that.

White-haired girl wanted to say that it's not true. They didn't owe her anything, they didn't know her, but the woman's soothing touch made her body finally feel relaxed, calm. So in the next moment she was pressed against Rhaenyra, her forehead resting on her stomach.

-I don't want to go back there - she confessed quietly, closing her eyes in fear of rejection.

-You won't - the woman assured in a soft voice, stroking her hair and glancing at Viserys, who only sighed, his heart being his greatest asset as well as his greatest curse.

Two years have passed since the girl was taken into the care of Princess Rhaenyra Targareyn. She grew up with her two sons Lucerys and Jacaerys, who surprisingly quickly accepted her as their sister, not leaving her even for a step.

Her new family loved and defended her, proving their true intentions at every turn. Blue-eyed girl often questioned their actions, but her mother always shooed that thoughts away, which made Daenaera unknowingly come closer and closer to the point that she did not leave her foster mother side, feeling the safest in her embrace.

Violet-eyed woman felt the same emotions, becoming very close to the child, protecting her from the eyes of Queen Alicent and her three children. She couldn't do that with her sons, they were princes, and her father wanted the boys raised together, but Daenaera's nature made her quiet, almost distrustful, and Rhaenyra used it to her advantage.

The fair-haired child did not mind this, she preferred the older company and blamed her stepfather for it, because she couldn't longer perceived the joy in her childhood activities, often wandering around the garden or reading thick , old books.

This is why she was named the White Flower in honor of her snow-white hair and delicate like flower-petals personality.

Aemond sometimes had wonder if her title fully applieded to her. As a second son, he was often overlooked, lonely. So he observed her. And the sight of the princess, watched over by Harwin Strong himself, aroused his interest, growing more and more, so much so that the boy desperately waited for the moment when Daenaera was alone to be able to speak with her ,even if it was meant to be a single word.

Her blue and ice-cold eyes did not match the warm tone of her voice and red lips, which he found even more beautiful up close. The king's son found a common language with her, amazed at how good a listener the girl next to him was, ready to hear him without hesitation. But he quickly found that he preferred to listen to her rather than speak. Aemond's ear may have faded from the amount of words that came into him, but his mind was never fed up.

Their friendship was a secret, something forbidden. Their mothers could not find a common language with each other while putting their children on opposite sides of the wall they had built over the years.

And that was one reason their relationship collapsed. Aemond could've claimed the greatest dragon, he could've been injured and lose an eye, but the moment Alicent tried to attack Daenaery's siblings, injuring their mother during the process, everything in between them was lost. The Blacks and the Greens formed their sides, and the little girl joined her mother without hesitation, silently announcing that she would live and fight by her side, ignoring the young Targaryen's wounded heart, which had not fully healed even after the middle of a decade.

At that time, Daemon Tragaryen and his two daughters Baela and Rhaena joined her family. The man, to the surprise of many, treated Daenaera the same as her mother. He was just as loving and caring but much more dangerous.

The blue-eyed girl has matured over the years, turning into a beautiful woman with the same delicate features and blue irises. In addition, the egg she had received from the king himself had recently hatched upon their arrival at Dragonstone, making it a legitimate and worthy Targaryen.

Meraxes and she were inseparable, from the day the reptile was born, she spent time on the girl's shoulder, never leaving her, even for a moment, as Daenaera used to do with Rhaenyra. 

Their siblings liked to mock her and called her the mother of dragons because of her approach to the animal, but the white-haired girl did not mind in any way.  Deep dwon she was proud of the title and the fact that, even as a bastard, the dragon's blood still ran strongly in her veins.

The wind in her hair, the warm sun, the sound of the sea, and the flapping of wings were a sweet tune that young Targaryen genuinely loved.

She called it her personal definition of freedom.

Soaring above the bright clouds, she dove down as quickly as she appeared above them. The sea landscape stretched out beneath her body.

Blue eyes followed everything around her until Dragonstone appeared in the distance, towards which the young woman was heading. Passing through small islets, she flew past the stone structure before ordering Meraxes to land. The reptile's wings swirled in the air, scattering the blades of grass to the sides, her dragon may have been small, but it had a lot of strength in it.

As she descended from the dragon, she was greeted with the sight of Jacaerys standing near them.

-What are you doing here? - asked the girl, after a moment grabbing one of the gloves in her teeth to take it off her hand.

-We're going to King's Landing soon - he confessed, and she frowned in consternation.

Daenaera turned her head towards her companion.

-Jikagon riña (Go girl) - she said, patting her neck before she spread her wings above the ground.

The fair-haired girl did not miss a small murmur of irritation, which made her want to laugh. Valyrian has never been an easy language, especially for those who have not met it since birth, but the girl's hard work with her father made her use the old language extremely fluent, much to the discomfort of her younger brother.

-Mother told us to get ready - he continued, waiting for her to reach him.

-Sounds serious - his sister said, before a slight, malicious smile appeared on her face -But it does not stop you from irritating ,my dear brother.

-What do you mean?- He asked her, staring at her sparkling irises.

-Kessi sagon jēda skori kesā ȳdragon Valyrio Eglie lēkia (They will be time when you will speak high Valyrian brother) - notified Daenaera, staring straight ahead.

-Kosten ȳdragon Valyrio Eglie, mandia (I can speak High Valyrian, sister) - the brunet replied confidently.

-Kostan- the white-haired girl corrected him, and he looked at her stealthily, causing her to laugh.

-You know, you are supposed to be my wife, and the wife should support her husband, not stand against him - the boy noticed, watching as the facial expressions of her changed.

-It's just wishful thinking Jace. Nothing more -Rhaenyra's daughter announced before she quickened her pace, running away from further conversation.

The fair-haired girl's journey to King's Landing passed in silence. Standing away from her family members, she stared at the waves hitting the ship. Her peace of mind was disturbed when her parents decided to have a chat with her, as if sensing that something was bothering her young mind, but she reassured her that everything was fine, avoiding telling the truth.

When they finally arrived, no one knew about their presence in the castle. The courtyard was only filled with guards until one of the lords appeared at the door, surprised by their arrival.

Daemon and Rhaenyra visited King Viserys while the rest of the siblings were led into their chambers.

Daenaera did not stay long in it. Her curiosity forced her to leave the room. As she strolled through the corridors, she looked at the place she once called home. She tried to remember the way to the gardens, which had once been her favorite place.

As she walked forward, she watched her surroundings, noticing how many things had changed.

At one point, in the corner of her eye, she noticed something bright, contrasting with the dark corridors of Red Keep. Turning her eyes in that direction, she saw the man. He had long hair, he was tall, slim, but something mysterious and dark was beaming from him.

The girl frowned. She wondered who the stranger was, but when her eyes saw a leather band around the man's eye, she paused, speechless.

-Aemond?- she whispered, but he heard her anyway, her silky voice too hard to forget.

Boy in front of her turned fully towards her and she had to hold back a gasp that wanted to escape from her throat. Targaryen looked nothing like himself from years ago, he didn't even looked like a boy, but a man. His posture, clothes, face. He was radiating maturity.

Her uncle's eyes rested on her.

Her body was wrapped in a black dress that emphasized the figure of the white-haired girl, pushing her bust forward, on which rested a necklace with aquamarine in the middle, accentuating the color of her eyes. The snow-white hair was pulled back in a bun from which curly strands spilled out. She looked like a living masterpiece, something that should be forbidden, inaccessible to the ordinary eye.

Aemond narrowed their distance. The difference in height was significant as she tilted her head up and he tilted her head down so they could meet each other's eyes.

Neither of them spoke for a long time, only standing, facing each other. Daenaera's heart was beating so hard she could hear it in her ears, wondering if the boy could hear it as well.

-Niece -he replied after a long moment, shivers passed down her spine.

-It’s good to see you - Daemon's daughter confessed softly, suddenly losing all the remnants of her confidence.

-You too - he confessed, unexpectedly tucking a strand of her white hair behind her ear to find an excuse to move even closer so that his lips almost touched her ear - You look beautiful -he whispered, kissing her earlobe before he left without a word, disappearing out of Daenaera's view.

Suddenly, her original destination was long forgotten.

Blue-eyed girl stood by her mother's side, listening to political matters. She would have been bored if it weren't for the man who spoke about Driftmark's legitimate affiliation with her younger brother. Blood was boiling inside her as she heard sieges and slander about her family. Even the sudden arrival of the king, who was barely on his feet, did not help.

Everything in her was torn in different directions, the mind and heart could not reconcile with each other, so she stood stiffly, staring stubbornly at the swords adorning the iron throne.

-Her children are bastards! - suddenly there was a loud scream from Vaemond Velaryon -One that doesn't even belong to her, looks more like a Targaryen than her own sons! - he drawled through his teeth, and the girl closed her eyes, feeling anxiety penetrate under her skin - And she ... is a whore.

As the words left the man's mouth, everyone in the room held their breath, the atmosphere heavy, almost unbearable.

-For these words ... I'll take your tongue - Viserys announced menacingly, taking out his dagger.

But before he had time to execute his threat, Daemon's blade sliced the Lord's face in half. Daenaera stared at the severed piece of head until her mother grabbed her, shielding her body from seeing lying corpse.

-He can keep his tongue - her father said, but she no longer listened.

Holding on to Rhaenyra's arm, she waited for the end that came faster than she expected. Leaving the room under the care of her mother and siblings, she became absent, even more than usual.

The dead lord's words rumbled in her ears, reminding her of the painful truth. No matter how hard she tried, no matter how much she studied or how expensive dresses she wore, she was still someone else's bastard, raised by a family that wasn't really hers.

-I need to refresh- she whispered after a while to the fair-haired woman.

-Daenaera- began the princess, when she noticed a shadow of tears in her eyes - Do not listen to people who wish you to fall, do you understand? Nothing that was said towards us mattered.

-I know - she said with a slight smile. - I just want to freshen up -she repeated. -Calm down -she added before disappearing from Rhaenyra's sight.

The white-haired girl was pushing forward, without any specific target. She had missed her room a long time ago, eventually ending up in the royal gardens she had once so sincerely adored. Standing under Weirwood, she stared at the scarlet leaves aimlessly until she felt a presence behind her back.

One of the hands crept up on her hip, while the other gently grabbed her chin, twisting it to the side so that the girl's eyes could see behind her. Aemond was staring at her face, his eye closely watching the emotions bubbling inside her.

After a while the princess daughter felt the boy's thumb wiping away the tears running down her cheek, the ones she did not even notice, to bring their faces closer in the next moment, so that the noses of both touched each other.

-I do not like when you cry- he said with a surprisingly warm tone of voice -I would have killed him if my uncle had not been faster -he said suddenly, and she widened her eyes in surprise.

-You really changed- the girl whispered.

-As you did - he said, and she turned her head back, staring at the tree in front of them - I would like to show you something- he confessed after a long moment- Or actually someone.

Daenaera merely nodded her consent, allowing Aemond to lead her to the secret passage, right outside the city's outskirts. They both walked for a long time, until they were only surrounded by a meadow and a beach where the great reptile, Vhagar, was resting.

The girl widened her eyes, stopping in place. The dragon in front of her aroused interest in her as well as the fear that her own animal sensed. The sound of Meraxes echoed in her ears and a white dragon appeared in the sky.

-I believe he is yours - murmured the king's son.

-Yes- she replied, looking at her companion, who landed near them- She is very protective of me - girl added after she saw how creature was landing.

-When we were children, I promised you that I would fly with you on the back of a dragon whenever you wanted - he said nostalgically -But I see you don't need to stick to that promise any longer.

-I never said I didn't want to ride with you just because my dragon egg finally hatched - she remarked quickly -You are a Vhagar rider, it is an honor to fly with someone like you.

Targaryen led her towards the sleeping beast, which had time to open it's great eyes when they faced her. Reptile greeted her with a low grunt. Her hand involuntarily ran through the hot scales of a creature that was nothing like the monster that wreaked havoc so many years ago.

Aemond helped the blue-eyed climb up on the back, sitting behind her himself. Soon after, the dragon rose heavily and soared upward. Meraxes followed them, faithfully guarding her rider.

Daenaera, despite the fact that she flew so many times, felt as if it was her first time. As the old dragon's legs touched the ground, she could've feel her heart beating against her ribs, and pounded in her ears becuse of the amount of emotion.

-Where are we?-  asked Rhaenera's daughter.

-On some island, I believe -the boy said, helping her down.

-It seems deserted - said the white-haired girl, walking with Aemond, while their dragons were resting next to each other.

-It's good- he replied - Nobody will disturb us.

-With what exactly Aemond? - she asked, looking at him out of the corner of her eye - I can't believe we've gone, the gods know where to talk.

-You should believe it - he said, returning to his arrogant and cool disposition -We haven't seen each other for a long time.

-Exactly. We are different people - continued the blue-eyed stubbornly - The last thing I expect from you is a conversation.

-You're right - he said after a moment, stoping -I'm a different man, I've changed. I used to be afraid to hold your hand, but now I realized that if you want something in this world, you just have to reach for it - he announced before he grabbed her waist, pulling her into a sensual kiss, the heat of which almost burned her lips.

Her own hands rested in his long hair, trying to keep up with the purple-eyed, who was attacking her mouth in the sweetest way, causing her to just want more. Standing on her tiptoes, she tried to cling to the body of the young man, whose own hands began to shamelessly wander across the fair-haired figure, stopping at the bindings of her dress.

After a while, heavy material began to slide down her shoulders, no longer protecting her naked body underneath. Aemond pulled it down without hesitation, too greedy to stop. His niece shivered at the cold air that enveloped her body, then sat down on her clothes.

Without a word, she broke the kiss, helping the boy in front of her remove the clothes that were in their way. Her hands were working quickly, impatiently wanting to see the white-haired man fully, but he stopped her by grabbing her cheek. She looked into his eye, waiting for the words that didn't came. Her uncle just smirked before attacking her naked neck.

A flush covered her cheeks as Aemond covered her skin with wet kisses. Daenaera had to bite her lip to keep the moans from escaping from her mouth. She felt a little nervous, she was not used to the kind of feeling that was flooding her veins now. The white-haired girl could not stop a sigh from escaping her mouth as the boy's cold fingers traveled over her skin. -You're so soft - he whispered lovingly.

-Aemond - blue-eyed moaned softly

The young woman had to close her eyes. His touch and the feeling of his irises against her skin made her dizzy, she hadn't expected it to be so intense for the first time.

-So beautiful...and only mine to be ruined- he said in a deep voice that sent shivers down her spine.

She lay down on the prince's silent command, closing her eyes in anticipation, and as soon as he began sucking and fingering her womanhood, all her worries left her mind.

-More. Please -she whispered between moans as he, taking his time, tortured her in a sweet manner.

Daenaera could've no longer control her mouth, her instincts taking over her body, making her want Targaryen with all her might.

She felt a strange feeling that she couldn't really put into words. Unknowingly she tightened around his fingers, and as her moans grew louder urging him even more, he began to add another finger, causing her to be almost on the verge of orgasm.

Her stomach was clenched, a strange feeling began to build up in her lower parts, blood began to rush to her ears. The white-haired girl's head fell back to the ground, her muscles tightened around his fingers.

-Cum for me - he muttered hoarsely.

When she did exactly that, her body stiffened, only to be picked up by the purple-eyed man who sat her on his lap moments later. The girl rested her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes and breathing deeply before Aemond started to move her again, this time directing her to his manhood. Daenaera felt her middle being ripped apart and she sobbed as she pressed against the young man's neck beneath her. The silver-haired boy stroked her back, trying to chase away the pain, and the same time trying to keep himself from pressing his hips into her's. After a long moment, the blue-eyed beauty began to slowly move her loins, letting Targaryen know that he could also move. He grabbed her thighs, lifting her body up and down, and she fully let him do it, feeling  the same familiar feeling warms her lower abdomen. They became one, and they both took full advantage of this feeling, too lost in each other to worry about the consequences. -Aemond - she gasped, tugging hard on his hair, making the prince growled loudly. -Let go - he said straight into her ear -Be a good little flower, and make a mess for me- he added, biting her neck.

Daenaera came almost screaming in ecstasy, causing Aemond to end up with her, unable to stop himself as her velvet walls pressed against him so deliciously and tightly.

Their eyes met in silent conversation until the young woman's soft lips rested on the prince's rough ones. -I missed you so much - she whispered before she pressed their foreheads together, drawing as much of the moment as she could.

The youngest son of the king breathed at her words, feeling the gap in his dark heart being filled with feelings for his beloved woman, which had been hidden for years, now ready to burst into flames.

[nininikki]

𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐘 𝐁𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐇𝐃𝐀𝐘, 𝐌𝐑. 𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐈𝐃𝐄𝐍𝐓 | eren jaeger x black

II. what did i tell you?

✧ summary! — following a blundered primary and a heated argument with his wife, eren knows exactly who to call.

✧ warnings! — mentions of alcohol consumption, suggestive sexual language, adultery (eren is an aspiring cheater again), age gap—reader is 29 and eren is 40

✧ author’s note! — part 2 is here! so happy that you all are loving this series & i thank you for all the support!! 🤎🪽 lmk if i missed anything in the warnings!

✧ word count! — 2.5k

AUGUST 12, THREE MONTHS BEFORE THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION 

“i can’t even…” mikasa sputtered, running a shaky hand through the sable—and once perfectly coiffed—hair atop her head. “i can’t believe you, eren.” she let the sleek mop of her fur coat droop down her arms, seemingly indifferent as to whether or not it landed on the nearby coat rack. as he watched it collide with the tile floor of their foyer, eren recalled the eight thousand dollar price with a scoff.

“save it, mika.” eren huffed, trying to drown out the sounds of her heels clicking against the floor as she tailed him into the living room.

“oh, trust me, i have. i saved it on the bus. i saved it on the plane. i even saved it on the ride home when it was just the two of us.”

“i meant save it for someone who wants to hear it, ‘cause i sure as hell don’t, mikasa.” he blew the words out as an exasperated sigh.

mikasa barked, the tone of her voice akin to a creaky window. “i’m gonna speak now, and you will hear every word!” 

eren could tell just by the way the words scratched against her throat that she was about to lay it on thick. and mikasa had a very poor habit of not knowing when to fucking stop. if he wanted to listen to someone berate him for every mistake he’d ever made, he’d pick up the phone and call his father.

“honestly, eren, do you even want this election?”

“of course i do. do you not see how hard i’ve been working?”

“oh, is that what that was? were you working hard at that primary, because all you managed to do was piss me off.”

“don’t start with me right now. i’m not in the damn mood for this.”

“and you think i am? you think i’m in the mood to be having this conversation?” mikasa laughed, but it felt more like a sarcastically delighted scoff. her eyes went glossy with something familiarly maniacal, and eren could more than tell what she was getting ready to do. arranging a beautiful artillery of words at the tip of her tongue for the sole purpose of destroying him in that very moment. “i mean, do you not realize how lucky you are? you’re smart, you’re rich, you’re handsome, you come from one of the most powerful families in the country. you could have the office right now if you wanted. but you don’t want it.

“i had dreams, y’know. i could’ve been a partner at my firm, but i gave it up. and for what? so you could screw around behind that podium?” mikasa kicked out of her shoes before hooking the heels under her fingers.

eren released the bridge of his nose from the pressing grip of his fingers. “i’ll be at the guest house tonight.”

mikasa only sighed. they seldom got in fights that led to them sleeping separately, but in those rare instances, it was the best (and sometimes the only) option. “right. well, get some rest. we’re meeting with levi tomorrow.”

he took a chance glance into his wife’s eyes—an oasis of grey, brimming with thoughts and emotions of which she had barred his access. save for the frustration evident on all the other parts of her face.

it was so eerily similar to that of his mother. he could count on both hands the number of times she blinked that same world-weary gaze in his father’s direction. how long had she been sleeping in the guest bedroom before she’d considered a divorce?

“yeah. you too.”

14 MAY, SIX MONTHS AFTER THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

“don’t even try to deny it.” mikasa said. a sick, wifely part of her burned with satisfaction at the sight of your infuriatingly beautiful face—cracked into a myriad of distressing pieces, like a plate she’d just struck with a hammer. “and before you ask, no. i don’t have proof.” if she were being a hundred percent honest with herself, it hadn’t even crossed her mind to gather any proof. what had her marriage done to her? she was a lawyer, and top of her class, godamnit! if eren’s classless affair reduced her to a point of throwing around baseless accusations, then she was just as bad as him. which meant that she needn’t waste any more time on this than absolutely necessary. “but i don’t need any, either. i mean, look at you two.”

you scoffed, seeming to forget that your glass was empty and being met with a jarring (and actually rather rude) slurping noise. thankfully, the waiter was there to swipe the glass from your hand before any more damage to her ears could be done. although, mikasa was almost sick with pleasure as she watched your futile attempt at trying not to crumble. “look at—look at what, exactly?”

“i don’t know what it was, but part of me could just tell he wanted you. maybe it was me being his wife and such, but i just knew. that first night i introduced you two, he had this—this hard-on in his eyes whenever he looked at you.” she thought back to that very night. where you’d seemingly been oblivious to her husband ogling you like you were a piece of meat. “but i could deal with that. i could screw him a little more often. we were supposed to be trying anyway. but then,” at the mention of them trying, mikasa caught you shifting uncomfortably in your seat, and thought to herself, good. she hoped your mind would run itself wild imagining all the trying they did.

“but then?”

mikasa had to brace herself. because eren could be as horny for as many twenty year olds as he wanted. he could have as many stupid, meaningless affairs as he wanted. him being unhappy in their marriage, she could handle that. her husband being careless enough to risk his presidency over some college freshman, she could handle that. none of it would’ve been worse than what he actually did. “i think he actually started to like you.”

AUGUST 12, THREE MONTHS BEFORE THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

you put your house phone out of its ringing misery with a clipped, “hello,” for you had barely graced past your front door and kicked off your heels when it began it’s treacherous trill.

“bad time?” the voice on the other end answered, a voice you immediately (and with some chagrin) recognized to be governor eren jaeger. it’s smooth and relaxed, like he’s just ran a glass of whiskey down his throat. your drunken timbre feels clumsy in comparison.

“oh.” you realize aloud, situating yourself at the foot of your bed. “hi, mr. governor.”

“unh-unh. what did i tell you?”

almost giddily, you plunged your head backwards into your plush, messy comforter, your house phone still clutched in your fingers. “eren.” a low hum rumbled through the receiver, as palpable as though your ear was pressed against his chest. this was an unbelievably bad time for you. your body was still mangled with remnants of fun. you were drunk, sprinkled in party glitter, and you had sporadically made out with jean kirschtein, so you were a little horny too.

“that’s better.” this was so incredibly bad for you. eren was so incredibly bad for you. he was even more enticing over the phone, if not more so. you were so stupid, and you were so screwed if you stayed on the phone with him any longer.

but, really, you couldn’t help yourself. “well, eren, how’d you get my number?” 

“uh, mikasa, actually. she wrote it in my planner.”

“that sounds like her. are you forgetful like that?” in the background, you heard the almost hypnotizing sounds of ice clink-ing against a glass. somehow, you just knew it was scotch he was drinking, and you couldn’t fight the various mental images that came with that knowing. 

eren only chuckled, and you could practically feel the scotch roll down his throat. “oh, she doesn’t do it for me. it’s in case her planner gets caught in a fire or something.”

at that, a clumsy laugh punched from your throat. “can’t tell if you’re funny or if i’m just drunk.”

“which do you think it is?” your dress suddenly began to feel like a thousand pounds of hot fur on your body rather than the skimpy piece of sequins that it was. eren did that to you. and when you left an ecstatic giggle in the form of your answer, he only further egged you on in your flustered state. “what, you think i’m funny? c’mon tell me.”

if he were in front of you at that moment, you would’ve slipped from your dress without a second’s hesitation. how crazy would it be for you to take your dress off while you were on the phone with him? it’s not like he’d see it or anything. but you so desperately wanted him to, and the fact that he wouldn’t made you so fucking crazy. “i think that you’re lots of things, eren.”

“mhm, like what?”

“can’t say. i’m too drunk.” you let your eyes press shut for a bit, trying almost futilely to think of anything that didn’t involve flashing the governor of california. “and, hey, why’d you call me, anyway? not that i mind or anything, but don’t you have, like, an election to win?”

eren breathed a sigh—docile, yet so strangely and dangerously persuasive. “yeah, but…talking to you is a lot more fun.”

“noooo, come on. tell me the real reason.”

“that is the real reason. i swear on it. we actually were supposed to call you at some point and congratulate you on the premiere. just figured i should get around to it now.”

“do you call all your famous actress friends at—” you cut your eyes over to the alarm clock on your bedside table. “—almost one in the morning? i mean, you’re lucky i was coming home from a party, and not dead asleep or something.”

“party, huh?”

“yeah.” you actually couldn’t help the way your thighs pressed together. “still got my dress on and everything.”

“really?” the muffled sound of him shuffling in his seat made you pinch your lip between your teeth.

you giggled, a reaction you’d probably have to start getting used to for as long as you were around him. “yeah.”

“bet you look real pretty.” he thinks i’m pretty. you could’ve moaned at the thought. 

suddenly, your voice was a higher, breathier octave. like you were whispering the words in his ears. “are you thinking about what i look like in my dress?”

“why wouldn’t i be?”

you wanted to take it further. you wanted to ask him what he was wearing. you wanted to ask him if you were making him hard, although a part of you knew you were. you wanted to slide your fingers under your panties and let him hear just how bad he was for you.

just as desire began to pool in your belly, so did a sharp pang of guilt. married man, married man, married man. but he had thrown a few compliments your way and you managed to forget all about that.

“eren,” how wrong would it be for you to slide your dress up your legs until it bunched at your waist? “you know we...” if you slipped the straps off your shoulders and let the rest fall from there, what then? “we c—”

“i know, i know.” he cooed, and his voice crawled out of the receiver and laced you with something. you needed him to whisper those words over your ears, or between your lips, or against whatever body part of yours he’d just finished kissing. you needed it so bad you could’ve cried. “i’m sorry.”

you sat upright, feeling immediately more sober than you had all night. “don’t be.”

“let me. let me be sorry, because i am.” the way he spoke to you was so toothachingly sweet, you think you would walk yourself off a cliff if he was talking you through it. “‘m sorry.”

your eyes close, and you were not sure if they were fluttering shut from tiredness or pressing closed from angst. the only thing you were sure of was that this conversation couldn’t possibly continue any longer. “it’s alright. i think i should be getting to bed anyway. i don’t usually stay up this late talking to future presidents.”

eren chuckled. “maybe you should do it more often.”

“maybe i should.”

AUGUST 12, THREE MONTHS BEFORE THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

“what the fuck,” was how you answered the phone the following morning. you had fallen asleep with it still tucked against your ear and clutched between your fingers, so you’d felt its ringing in all of its chirruping treachery. 

“bad time again?” eren responded, his voice tiptoeing over a laugh. 

“extremely.” you sat up in bed and took a chance glance at your bedside clock. the only person who could get a pre-eleven o’clock answer from you on one of your off days was hange. and even they knew that the resulting response was usually so grouchy that they’d be better off not bothering. so it all but bewildered you as to why you’d even let eren stay on the phone long enough to come to this realization. “it’s barely ten.”

“so i gather you’re not a morning person?” eren seemed to be the exact opposite. his voice was as brilliantly ecstatic at ten in the morning as yours would normally be after a shot of tequila. it made you want to swing your curtains open and stand tall in the sun, even with the headache spearing through your skull.

despite the small onslaught of revelations, you answered, “if it wasn’t obvious enough.”

“sooo, i’m assuming this is a really bad time to invite you to dinner with mikasa and i.”

“dinner?”

you’re only briefly surprised at his audacity to ask you to dinner with his wife after the night you two had. but then again, you doubt he would’ve even called you if she hadn’t planted your number in his planner. the realization was an emotional whiplash that wasn’t helped by your hungover state. 

“uh, yeah. i meant to ask last night, but i guess i didn’t really get around to it.”

i wonder why, you’d wanted to say, but suppressed the urge with a cough. “oh, well, i—”

“and don’t feel pressured to say yes. i know my wife can be a force.”

his wife. the woman who probably awoke him this morning with a smattering of kisses. the woman who felt his arms wrap around her in the comfort of their bed not two minutes after he’d gotten off the phone with you. the same woman whose eyes were filled with nothing but guilt-inducing kindness when she invited you over for golf that night.

the answer should be a flat no. sorry, eren. i don’t think i can do dinner with you and your wife. partly because i’m very obviously and very, very inappropriately sexually attracted to you. and partly because i think i’m a little jealous of your wife. i haven’t quite unpacked that part yet, but i’m sure here—on the phone with you—is probably the worst place to do it. yeah, uh, bye. so, when you fix your stupid lips to say, “eren, the last thing you could ever do is pressure me. of course i’ll go.” you can only assume it’s for those same reasons.

tags ✧˖*°࿐ — @nyanglock @beyondsuki @westcinny @taylarxse @ittostan @rensbby @madsoncrack @shawtynoire @braxxinterlude @kai7911

© NININIKKI. do not translate, copy, or modify my works in any way shape or form.

[mj-102009]

When the Stars Align (Bakugou x oc)

The little girl gazed up at her mother, green irises filled with wonder and love. She’d always been a perceptive child, always asking questions on how the world worked, always getting into things she shouldn’t. 

“Momma,” she said softly with her feather light tap to her shoulder. “I have a-“

The woman lifted the eight year old on her lap. “-question? Go ahead Rae.”

She beamed and curled into her arms. “Why didn’t you and Dad get married like Ashlyn’s parents?”

Her mother chuckled. “I knew you’d ask that soon,” the girl opened her mouth to speak but got cut off. “Your father and I didn’t need to get married because when we were born we were meant to be together.”

“Why?” She chirped.

“Well our families have what’s called soulmates,” She saw the confusion on her daughter's face. “That means fate made us to be a match.”

Rae’s eyes blew wide. “Do I have a soulmate?”

She smiled and kissed Rae on the forehead. “Yes, yes you do.”

It started showing when she was 13, on her birthday at 12am exactly:

She had a dream.

In the dream she saw a boy about her age, he had dark green hair and eyes, for a brief moment she thought this was the boy she was meant to love forever, but the moment she truly looked at him she knew he wasn’t.

“Stupid Deku,” it was her mouth yet not her voice. “You’ll never be good enough to be a hero like me.”

A hero? She thought. This sure as heck doesn’t sound like one.

“Cmon Kacchan you know a quirk doesn’t make you a hero.”

Kid makes a point.

(Switching to first person)

I woke in a cold sweat, Anika shaking me quickly with wide eyes. “RAE!”

“I'M UP!” 

She sighed. “Dude your quirk started in your sleep and shit started shifting in my room.”

I was wide awake running into the hall. “Mom!”

My dad opened the door with a stern look. “Someone better explain to me why our house is backwards.”

I winced and looked down. “That would be me.”

Concern filled his eyes, replacing the anger. “What happened?”

So I told him and my mother what I saw, by the end Anika was jumping up and down. “I’m so excited.”

I frowned. “For what?”

Mom and dad made eye contact. “You remember how we came from families of soulmates?”

My breath hitched. “You mean-“

She smiled and Ani squealed. “You and your soulmate are both 13 now!”

I’d given up on the whole soulmate thing for a while. I saw his memories every night, most of which were about victory in some form, or about the boy named Deku. 

I came back to it after I turned 15.

All leading up to afternoon was tame, that was until I happened to glance at my wrist.

Train at 3 today 

Tell Mom to buy pens

Call Na-

I watched in fascination as the sentence finished before me, the only thing I felt was a light press of a pen.

Dad saw my baffled gaze and followed my eyes to my forearm. “Moora come in the kitchen!”

Soon the whole family gathered around my arm.

Anika, now 17, elbowed my stomach. “That means your his age too.”

I made a curious face and seized a pen. “What if I…”

Hello :)

Mom chuckled. “Our little girl’s all grown up.”

It took him a few hours to respond but I felt it.

Hey 

I picked up my pen and scribbled the answer with a small smile.

Hey

Sorry I didn’t say anything the first time

It’s okay no rush

He was silent for a moment, as was I.

I’m I frowned as my name faded from my skin.

You’re what

It won’t let me write my name 

I tried again and groaned as the entire sentence faded into the carmel tan of my skin.

Me either

Damn I pulled myself up from my window sill and sat in the nest of pillows on my bed.

Won’t allow my number either

It’s like it doesn’t want us to meet

I’m getting mixed signals from fate or some shit

I snorted and wiped down my arm, Question

Shoot

Do you see my memories when you sleep?

No tf i have a little red string on my pinky telling me which way to go

BRO WE CAN DEADASS GET THIS OVER WITH IF YOU JUST FOLLOW IT

I tried but it disappears if I do 

Fuck fate fr

Lol

We talked into the early hours of the morning, I learned Deku’s name was really Izuku and he was his old friend, I learned Kacchan was a stupid nickname he came up with when they were kids, I learned he wanted to be a hero when he grows up, I learned that he didn’t want a soulmate in the beginning.

Oh I wrote when he told me.

Not now tho after i got your first message I felt like it would be wrong to push you away

So I’m not an extra

Of course u r

Tf

Just not the worst one

I’ll take it

I told him about my family and my friends, I told him about my quirk and that I too wanted to be a hero, I told him about how I didn’t believe my soulmate was real until I saw the writing.

Why? He asked when I told him.

A lot of what I saw in my dreams was just yelling and explosions so I was convinced I was insane it took a while for my parents to really get me to understand but even then I was afraid you’d be someone who hates me like other people

I’ll kill anyone who hurts you

Thank you seemed like the wrong thing to say to that, any sane person would’ve called the police and gotten scared, but I laughed and rolled over with a smile. Immediately groaning when I saw the sun peaking out my window.

The sun just came up here

Same

Do you live in, the word Japan faded and I smacked my forehead.

I live in

I’m not even gonna try and put down what school I go too

Fate sucks fr

Not that bad

How so?

I met a girl who doesn’t give a fuck that I’m an ass

I flushed from head to toe Lucky girl

I'm the lucky one

Nope

Yup

Nope

Yup

No I’m far luckier for meeting someone who doesn’t care that I’m strange

You’re not strange whoever believes that is wrong

And you’re not an ass

I woke to the ceiling with the blank stare, my face in a tired frown, bags practically tattooed under my eyes.

Morning

That got me up, I slid out of bed and reached for my pen.

How’d you sleep?

Good and you?

Meh some extras blowing up my phone all night,

I giggle and walk down stairs with the pen, Anika rolls her eyes at my cheerful state. “Sup fucknugget.”

With a frown I use my quirk and spin her chair around, the floorboards rippling around at my command. Dad came down stairs and lightly hit me on the back of my head. “Fix my floor Rae.”

I turned the wood back to its original position with a huff, Dad mumbling a thank you and pouring me a cup of coffee. “What’s on the agenda Rae?”

Shrugging, I tell him. “I’m off work, might just take a nap.”

Anika gasps. “No! You told me we’d train for my admissions test.”

My idiot sister waited until she was 21 to become a licensed hero, so now she was asking me to train her on everything before the big test.

“Sure, what time?” I truly didn’t care when we went, I just needed the training.

“After breakfast?”

“‘Kay, just be ready.”

“C’mon Bakugou!” Denki begged again.

“No.”

“Really bro?” Kirishima deadpanned. “He can go with-”

He glared at him. “No, don’t side with Dunce Face.”

“Pleeeeease, my friend and I went to a pretty beach just a few minutes away, it’s super hidden so no one will film.”

Kiri rolled his eyes. “You can go Denki.”

Bakugou whirled on him but after these years Kiri had far outgrown him, now towering the blonde. “Fine,” he grumbled, turning to leave. “Hurry the fuck up.”

“Yay!”

“I took my friend to the beach yesterday to train. It was so much fun,” Anika chirped as I drove down the road. 

I shot her a look. “Did you tell him about-”

“No Rae I didn’t,” she said exasperated. “I wouldn’t tell a secret like that.”

“Sure.”

She smacked my arm. “I wouldn’t.”

“Mhm.”

“Rae,” She said dead serious. “I’m your older sister and I’m so proud of your accomplishments, I would never jeopardize your job.”

I laughed softly. “I know, I just worry for the day people find out I’m Atlas, hell even my soulmate doesn’t know, it won’t let me tell him.”

“Sometimes the filter really bothers me,” She told me. “I understand the pain of not being able to tell him the full story.”

I nodded solemnly, pulling into the public beach parking spot. “C’mon time to walk.”

“Only thing I hate about this beach.”

“What the hell Kami!” Kiri shouted, throwing his hands up around him. “You said you knew where we were going.”

He chuckled nervously under the glares of his friends. “Oops.”

Bakugou was practically boiling in rage and frustrating. “Thanks a lot Dunce Face, now we’re lost and our phones aren’t working.”

“What if we make a flare?” Kiri mused. “Would that work?”

He flicked his forehead. “No stupid, we’d light the whole forest on fire.”

The boys were just giving up hope, in the middle of the woods with barely enough water to last the day and one granola bar.

Bakugou’s head perked up when he saw his wrist.

Are you okay I feel like something’s wrong

He rifled for a pen and wrote down an answer.

Denki got us lost on a hike

The fuck? Are you okay???

Yeah just angry

I’m mad there’s nothing I can do

Lol

“AWEEEEEE,” Kiri squealed looking over his shoulder. “She’s so nice!”

Bakugou got ready to punch his best friend but got cut off.

“OW, YOU BITCH!” The yell came from the right of them.

Denki sighed and looked at the boys. “Told you we weren’t lost,” but stopped when he saw Bakugou’s sparking hands.

“Let’s just ask for directions and get out of here.”

Anika rubbed here arm and swore after I punched her arm. “That was uncalled for.”

“What if I’d stabbed your arm,” I told her. “You wouldn’t be complaining then.”

“Uh no, I’d definitely complain either way.”

I rolled my eyes and dropped into a fighting stance. “Round four, three-nothing.”

She groaned but raised herself into an acceptable stance. “Ready.”

We circled each other, I called upon my quirk, the sand shifted with me as I stepped, neither of us made a move  to attack. She lunged forward to grab me but I spun away with grace of a dancer, under my feet the sands balanced me.

I watched as she pulled in air and released it in a loud WHOOSH, pushing me over closer to the water.

She continued to throw gusts of wind at me, each more forceful than the last.

“You’ve been practicing, haven’t you?” I shouted over the roaring wind, a grin forming on my face.

Her eyes sparkled with mischief. “Just a little,” she replied, sending another gust, this time aimed at my feet, causing me to momentarily lose balance.

Using my quirk, I swiftly transformed the sand beneath my feet into a firmer platform, allowing me to stand my ground. I then molded the sand into a series of barriers, hoping to deflect her relentless attacks.

But Anika was quick. She directed her gusts upwards, sending spirals of sand high into the night sky. I watched, a bit awed by her skill, as the sand took the form of large birds, flapping and soaring over the beach, aiming at me.

Laughing, I decided to up the ante. I pulled moisture from the surrounding air, turning it into droplets of water which quickly crystallized into sharp, gleaming icicles. With a flick of my wrist, I sent them darting around Anika, not to hurt, but to challenge.

She deftly manipulated the wind to create a vortex around her, causing my icicles to swirl harmlessly before melting away. "Is that the best you can do?" she teased.

Taking a deep breath, I focused my energy. The sand around Anika began to ripple, forming a series of walls, which quickly transformed into a box to hold her. She looked around, momentarily surprised, before a sly grin formed on her face. She summoned wind currents to lift her up, attempting to get a bird's-eye view of my creation.

I wasn’t about to make it that easy for her. As she ascended, I manipulated the atoms in the air, creating a dense fog, obscuring her vision. I could hear her groan of frustration.

Descending back to the ground, she tried to break through, I reshaped and shifted the walls constantly, making it a challenge for her. But after some time she tore through the ground blowing up the box from below.

A migraine fuzed the corners of my vision, Ani saw this and darted forward, I stubbornly fought hand to hand until one of us lost. She threw poor punches and I frowned trying to amp her up to be better than that.

Needs work… I thought to myself.

I could see as she became tired of my toying around, finally stopping the hitting, she spun around to kick me with a round house. 

“Too slow,” I whispered, catching her foot and knocking her over. “I taught you better Ani.”

She huffed angrily and tried to sit up, but exhaustion weighed down on her and she laid flat to the floor. “I give.”

I laughed and gave her my hand. “Puss.”

“That’s not fair, you're a trained hero!” She exclaimed taking it, she opened her mouth to say something else but something caught her eye. “Hey this is private property!”

My face turned confused and I turned to the tree line. “Who’s there?”

A man easily over 6ft came out of the woods with a blush. “Sorry I got a little lost.”

I grin and shift my weight onto my right leg. “Sure man, where’s the others?”

A shorter guy with sunshine yellow hair came after him. “Ani!”

My sister’s face beamed and she ran up to him. “Kami!”

I deadpanned at her. “Really?”

“Bakugou! Over here!”

“Three of you…” My voice trailed off as I saw him for the first time.

Seeing him was like breathing for the first time, it was like a blind man seeing the sun for the first time, it was like my body got plugged in and electricity was flowing through me. My eyes widened and I knew he felt it too as he stumbled out nearly tripping over a tree branch, never once taking his eyes off me.

“Rae?” Anika said with worried eyes. “You okay?”

I didn’t answer, my lips were magnetized to each other, so I nodded numbly. I stepped forward because it just felt right, at this point Ani was next to me and the red head was with him.

“You’re scaring me Rae,” She said nervously. “I don’t wanna tell dad his favorite child died.”

He faintly gasped when she said my name, his hand sparking.

“Screw it.”

Suddenly a powerful outburst of wind threw me off the beach into the water, my instincts kicked in and I solidified the air under my feet. “Anika what the fuck.”

She crosses her arms smugly and grinned. “There she is.”

The boys gaped as I stepped down from the air. “That was a bit excessive.”

“Nah, worth it.”

“You good Bakubro?” The red head asked him.

‘Bakubro?’ I mouthed to myself. That doesn’t sound ri-

“It’s Bakugou.”

I looked up at his vermillion eyes, they bore into me but I held my ground.

“I’m Rae.”

Anika gave me an unsure look. “Uhhhhhh, ya’ll good?”

“Mhm,” I nodded. “I’m great.”

“So you’re Atlas?” He asked me later.

We’d taken them out to the beach house just around the corner. “Mhm, and you’re Dynamite?”

“Yeah.”

The silence wasn’t awkward but rather comforting. 

“All these years, we've been going to goddamn meetings together,” I laughed. “Who knew?”

“If we’d talked at all this could’ve been done with this a lot sooner.”

I shook my head in amusement. “Who knew?”

On the beach was Ani and the other two, they were teaching her how to punch properly. I gave up and went to the porch.

From what I could tell he wasn’t great with feelings, I think I’ve known that since we first spoke. So I took the first step and gently took his hand.

“Is this okay?”

He took a steady breath. “Yes.”

[bloodyknucklesforme]

Carnal Ch. V | Don't You Ever Tame Your Demon

Carnal (adjective): relating to or given to crude bodily pleasures and appetites

Simon was born with what his father called 'The Curse'. A wanton craving for taboo meat. Since meeting the similarly cursed Johnny, the two had formed a bond. They didn't just fight together, they ate together, slept together, and shared everything.

When a favor to Price reveals another cursed person, Simon worries she could destroy everything.

A horror AU inspired by Bones and All and Raw among other works. TW: Blood, gore, cannibalism, smut, violence,

Masterpost | AO3

Title Credit: Arsonist's Lullaby - Hozier

She didn’t make a habit of thinking about her mother. It wasn’t like they were anything more than acquaintances if that. It felt strange to even call her a mother. She died minutes after Nina lived. She had twenty-eight years before that. Twenty-eight years reduced to the five minutes it took for her to hemorrhage. 

It was best not to think about her too much. It only made Nina sad. She could only imagine a much different life if she’d only had a mother. A mother to explain to her why blood spilled from between her legs and why she wanted to tear into flesh. She imagined her mother had the same affliction and it could only exist in one of them at the same time. Her father never talked about her but he also never remarried. She never asked why. Was he content in having her as his only child or did he believe his seed was tainted and it was best not to try again? 

“Nina! Come up here!” Price’s voice tore her gaze from the photo on the wall. The only photo of her mother in the whole house. She looked like Nina. Blonde hair and brown eyes. She looked just as sad. Maybe there was a time when she also sat on this old couch with damp hair and blood still thick in her throat. 

She stood up and headed upstairs. He’d obviously seen Arthur’s body. The stairs creaked under her as she walked to her sentencing. The hallway felt longer as she crept along. Two men left the room as she walked in. Cedar and rosemary. It made her nauseous. She didn’t like the way the masked one looked at her like she was in his house and not the other way around. The other one, with the dumb haircut, seemed avoidant all together. She could feel his gaze drift to her as she shut the door behind them.

Shame came flooding back as she saw Price. His head in his hands, sitting on the edge of her bed. 

“Tell me what happened Nina.” He turned to her. He’d aged too much for his age. Barely forty but greying in his hair and under his eyes. War had taken its toll but so had she. 

“We had an argument, he grabbed me and was screaming. I told him to leave and he chased me up here.”

“No. What happened to him? Where’s his face, Nina?”

She felt the need to wipe her mouth on the back of her hand. She’d never lied to him, not directly. She tried to look at the floor and was met with Arthur’s feet. His shoes were still on. God, she hated he never took his fucking shoes off. 

“Nina, answer me.” His hard stare dug into her chest to pull on her ribs. 

“You weren’t supposed to see this.” She never should have called. There was a lake nearby. It was deep enough. She’d fill his pockets with rockets and let him sink. Tell the lie that he was suicidal, she’d broken up with him and he’d offed himself out of spite. Fewer questions. 

“I thought your father was crazy.” He murmured. She flicked her eyes back to him. 

“What?”

“He left me a letter when he died. Said you were sick. ” He patted the space beside him. She sat down next to him. “Used words like ravenous and cannibalistic. ”

That word made her cringe. 

“He said that you would hurt someone one day.” He laid a hand on her shoulder. “I need you to tell me if you’ve done this before.”

“Never.”

“Don’t lie.” The first time he’d ever given her an order.

“I’m not. I swear. This is the first time.” 

“Okay. I’m going to fix this but it can never happen again, understand?” His hand was on the back of her neck, forcing her to make eye contact. “Never again. Nothing between us has changed. I still love you, Nina. I can’t make this disappear twice.”

“I know,” her voice cracked under the weight of his palm. “I’m sorry. I didn’t want to kill him. I just didn’t want him to touch me anymore.”

He pulled her into his arms, letting her head rest on his shoulder. 

“It’s okay, lamb. I got you. It’ll be okay.” She was a child again, being carried away from the horrors she helped create. “I’ll have one of the lads stay with you while we get rid of him. Is the guest room made up? Go rest, I’ll clean up.”

He patted her back as she stood back up. She was careful not to step in the mess on the floor. 

“I’m sorry,” She said again. 

“If you didn’t do it, I would have.” 

She had to pass the two men again on her way out. They’d probably heard everything. 

“You’re bleeding,” the masked one said as she walked away. She turned to stare at him. The bite mark on her arm had stung but she robe had covered the wound and no blood was showing on her hand. Cedar and rosemary. He wouldn’t even look at her, his back against the wall staring straight ahead. 

Mohawk was glaring at his friend. She felt a rush of territorialness. She wanted them out of her house. They were bigger but so was Arthur. 

“Ghost, Soap, get in here.” 

Mask straightened and went into her room with Mohawk close at his heels. He turned one last time and gave an apologetic look. 

She was alone again. 

The guest room was made, albeit dusty on every surface. She opened up a window to let the air in. It was cool but all she could smell was cedar and rosemary. No one had ever smelled like that before. It wasn’t a scent that made her mouth water, instead her skin prickled. 

She laid on the bed, her feet dragging across the floor. She could hear them carry Arthur down the stairs. Improvised pallbearers taking a tarp covered body to its final resting place. The sound of a boot opening, a thud, the boot slamming shut. Two cars starting. She watched the lights dance on the ceiling as they drove away.

Her phone vibrated.

“Get some rest. I’ll be back in the morning.” From Price.

She needed a smoke. The hallway was dark but from the top of the stairs she could see the dining room light was still one. Which lad was left behind?

Mohawk sat in her seat at the dining table. He was staring out the windows toward the front of the house. 

“I’m gonna go smoke.” She announced. He turned to her, barely registering her presence. A quick nod before turning back to the window.

Price hadn’t reclaimed the remaining cigar in the living room. He knew she’d use it. 

She always liked the garden. Her grandmother had spent most of her marriage planning it out. Pink Rose bushes, stone path ways in the perfect gray, trees and bushes trimmed to the right shape and size. She hadn’t take the care it deserved in the past couple years. Little green plants grew between the stones and the shrubs looked like actual shrubs instead of rectangles. 

She sat on the carved stone wall and re lit the cigar. She needed to buy cigarettes again. Cigars were such a fucking hassel. 

“I don’t know how you and Price are able to smoke those things.” He said, closing french doors behind him. 

“Its not my usual but he,” she looked up to her bedroom window, “didn’t like cigarettes in the house. I just steal Price’s when I can.”

“You’re in luck.” He pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket. He laid them flat in his plam as he offered it to her. 

“He’ll be pissed that I wasted it but fuck it.” She stubbed the cigar out on the stone. She took two out and set them between her lips before lighting them. 

“Thanks,” he chuckled, taking one from her.

“What?” 

“I was gonna offer the light, is all.”

“I can take care of myself.”

“Obviously.” His smile fell. “I’m sorry. You probably still upset.”

“Not really. I am but not in a ‘my boyfriend died’ way.”

“Price said he’s prick.”

“He was.”

They stood there smoking. Menthol and rosemary mixing in the night air. It was nice to have company for once. Where she didn’t feel the need to pretend or be on her best behavior. He’d already seen what she did and here he was, smoking next to her.

“You still bleeding?” He asked as they made their way back inside. 

“I don’t think so.”

“Can I look?”

He rolled up the sleeve of her robe to examine the bite on her arm. He didn’t even raise an eyebrow as he ran his finger over her teeth marks. It wasn’t deep and the bleeding had stopped but her skin was crusted in dried and jellied blood. He sat her on the edge of the bathtub and knelt between her legs as he took a wet cloth to her arm.

“Can I ask you something?”

“What is it?” She’d forgotten to ask for his name. 

“Did it taste good?”

Rosemary. The way her skin prickled under his touch. She felt like she could meld into him. There flesh would stick together until they were one. Because they were one, one in the same. He didn’t smell like food.

“Yes.” It did. She knew it shouldn’t have but it did. It tasted so fucking good. It didn’t matter that she through up most of it. That she sobbed as she ate. She wanted to consume and be consumed. Devour until her jaw broke and crumbled. 

He held her arm delicately, locking eyes with her. She gave him a nod.

He licked her wound, gathering up any remaining blood on his tongue. She felt his teeth scrape against her flesh. She blinked and he had stood up, digging through the medicine cabinet.

“I always thought I was alone,” she said. “Didn’t think there was anyone like me.”

“You’re not alone. Not anymore.” He finished wrapping the bandage around her arm. 

‘What about mask?’ she thought. 

Pray for Price's heart rate. He needs it.

Tag list: @gogh-with-the-flow @queen-ilmaree

Comment or DM me if you want to be added

[acefms]

MEET ANTONIA CORTES ESTRADA !

if you’re hearing TIRED OF CALIFORNIA by NESSA BARRETT playing, you have to know ANTONIA CORTES ESTRADA (SHE/HER; CIS FEMALE) is near by! the 28 year old CELLIST has been in denver for, like, 1 WEEK. they’re known to be quite SECRETIVE, but being METICULOUS seems to balance that out. or maybe it’s the fact that they resemble CIERRA RAMIREZ. personally, i’d love to know more about them seeing as how they’ve got those THE UNRAVELLING OF A PERFECTLY TIED BOW, PLAY UNTIL YOUR FINGERS ACHE, THE GLIMPSE OF A FALTERING SMILE vibes. and maybe i’ll get my chance if i hang out around the MONTBELLO DISTRICT long enough!

NAME: antonia cortes estrada

AGE: twenty-eight

BIRTHDAY: november 7th

ZODIAC: scorpio

OCCUPATION: professional cellist / cello teacher

HOMETOWN: los angles, california

SEXUALITY: bisexual

POSITIVES: meticulous, disciplined, intuitive, protective

NEGATIVES: secretive, critical, competitive

about.

antonia grew up in los angles, california. the first thing she knew was that perfection was expected and keeping up the imagine of a perfect family took precedence above all else. when she was eight years old her older brother was kicked out of the house and she was continuously told he wasn’t worth knowing, thought part of her couldn’t help but wonder what had happened to him. still, she trusted her parents and took their word for it.

antonia was made to try a lot of activities in her younger years, and seemed to be in a group or a class almost every day of the week. cello was the one that really stuck. a natural talent it would seem, leading her to land a place at j.uilliard once she’d graduated high school. she’d spend four years there gaining her bachelor of music degree before returning to la. she’d spend the next four years taking on various jobs, from preforming with orchestra’s, to galas and weddings. she also began to teach (and that’s what she’s doing as of right now, or at least hoping to do in Denver.)

growing up she had a decent, if not slightly strained relationship with her mother (there always seemed to be a secret she had to keep, or a lie she had to tell), though her father never seemed to like her at all and treated her as though her mere presence was a major inconvenience. she’d later come to realize (this past Christmas) when she overheard her parents private conversation, that he wasn’t her father at all, and that she had in fact been the byproduct of an affair. this information would spur antonia to take off, go in search of her brother and throw a middle finger up to her parents who she’d spent so long trying to please.

headcanons | extra info.

lying comes extremely easy to her, only for the fact that it always seemed like she had to. she doesn’t exactly like that about herself, but it does come in useful sometimes. but if there is no need to lie she can be a little tactless at times. sometimes comes across as overly critical but she just likes things done a certain way.

antonia was always a top preforming student, and was valedictorian at her high school graduation.

once returning to la after college, antonia fell back in with old friends and went through a partying stage, which at times got pretty dark. she soon realized most of the people around her were being fake, and despite wanting to get out she seemed to get stuck in a rut.

classical music soothes her soul. you won’t find her listening to t-swift after a major life event (though she does like her) it’ll be a classical piece.

wanted connections.

roommate - she’s absolutely going to hate having to live with someone especially if they’re not as neat as she is, but moving to a new place requires it for now.

the boy she dated mainly because of their parents - after college I see her having dated the son of her parents friends. while both of them knew what it was, there potentially could have been real feelings there/developing feelings.

the person she wanted but felt like she should never have - on the flip side someone her parents absolutely would agree with, and despite their spark antonia, for the most part managed to keep away from them. this could change now that she no longer cares for her parents approval.

best friend - preferably also from la, this would be the one person she truly confides in/doesn’t feel the need to keep up the front. the person that gets to see all of her quirks and knows how much for a nerd she truly is.

friends from New York - people she met during her time at college. very open to expand on this one !

old/current rival - from high school, for college, anything really ! Just two people who secretly enjoy being competitive.

her real dad — will make this wc but I definitely think eventually she’ll try and find him.

[diamandodusto]

A FEAST TO THE GODS : CHAPTER V (FINAL FANTASY XVI)

CHARACTERS

Clive Rosfield : Eldest son of Anabella and Elwin Rosfield. House Rosfield. Dominant of Ifrit. 

Joshua Rosfield : Second son of Elwin and Anabella Rosfield. House Rosfield. Dominant of Phoenix. 

Jill Warrick : A ward of Rosaria and the Rosfield’. Dominant of Shiva. House Rosfield by alliance. 

Cid Telamon : Ex Lord Commander of Waloed, and leader of the Hideaway. Dominant of Ramuh. 

Dyanne Hidgins : Second daughter of Beatrix and Josiah. House Hidgins. Dominant of Leviathan. 

Dion Lesage : Prince of Sanbreque and eldest son. House Lesage, Dominant of Bahamut. 

Barnabas Tharmr : King of Waloed and Ash. House Tharmr. Dominant of Odin.

Sir Terence : Lord Commander of Dion and his lover. 

Sleipnir Harbard : Lord Commander of Barnabas and physical incarnation of his steed as Odin. 

Benedikta Harman : Ally of Barnabas and Chief of the Intelligencers. Dominant of Garuda. 

Hugo Kupka : Economic adviser of Dhalmekian Republic and lover of Benedikta. Dominant of Titan. House Kupka. 

Gav : Cid’s sidekick and scooter. 

Darius Hidgins : Eldest son of the Hidgins. Dyanne’s Shield. House Hidgins. 

Jacob Aryn : 

Bastin Aryn : First heir of the Aryn’. House Aryn. 

Ornela Aryn : Second heir of the Aryn’. House Aryn. 

Anael Aryn : Third heir of the Aryn’. House Aryn. 

Beatrix Hidgins : Darius and Dyanne’s mother. House Hidgins. 

Josiah Hidgins : Darius and Dyanne’s father. House Hidgins. 

Anabella Rosfield : Clive and Joshua’s mother. House Rosfield then Lesage. 

Elwin Rosfield : Archduke of Rosaria. Father of Clive and Joshua. House Rosfield. 

THE HOUSES 

House Rosfield : The Phoenix. Lords and governs Rosaria. Faith of the Eikons. Current head : Clive Rosfield. 

House Lesage : The Dragon. From the Holy Empire of Sanbreque. Governs the same region. Faith of Greagor. Current head : Sylvestre Lesage.

House Hidgins : The Sea Snake. Allies of the Rosfield and has lands in the same regions. Later alleged to Sanbreque. Faith of Leviathan, Eikons. Current head : Josiah Hidgins. 

House Tharmr : The Knight. Possesses Ash and Waloed. Faith of Ultima. Current head : Barnabas Tharmr. 

House Kupka : The Titan. From the Dhalmekian Empire. Current head : Hugo Kupka

House Aryn : The Stag. From Waloed. Faith of Eikons. Military house of Waloed and allies of House Tharmr. 

Thanks to : @aria-lesage​ and @damatheirin​ for their help and support. 

CHAPTER V 

FOUR YEARS LATER 

DYANNE 

She closed her journal, 

Four years had passed. Each of them, she did as she told Clive : she visited him, brought him comfort and talked with him about his thoughts. His sadness, his loss. They've grown closer and each day that passed, her feelings towards him grew inexorably bigger. That would almost trigger her, if she didn’t have to keep it shut. Since then, Anabella gave birth to a second boy to Sylvestre. Olivier Lesage. A wayward child whose mother protected him beyond limits. That made her want to throw up : poor Joshua, he didn’t have half the attention his mother gave to Olivier. At this sole instant. 

Ever since she talked with Dion, the two became friends; Since four years, she was one to have a said “relationship” with the Prince. Nothing romantic of course, but to the small folks and Sylvestre, it was enough to not bat an eye on the Dragon’s doing. As well as leaving Dion, alone. Now ten and eight, Dyanne was coming to an age when people spoke about her. Her face, her hair, her curves. Therefore, Dion and herself appreciated each other’s company : they would spend time, she’d cover him when he was seeing Terence, and he did the exact same whenever she went visiting the man who used to be her betrothed. Or, even her brother. It was a mutual agreement. 

However, she still didn’t see her parents. Though, as told, they’ve given away the Deccan, that didn’t help their cause. If not one of their children, the brunette was still trying to harvest information here and there, but found nothing if not silence itself. She remembered gasping when she saw the clear and white sails of the ship. That, now, had also been taken by Sanbreque. 

Tragic. 

“What’s the plan with it, do you know anything ?” 

Dion rose his face from his book, “They plan on dispatching the Dragoons near the Waloean’ coasts so we can invade them from the behinds. Their fleets are nearby Stonhyrr, therefore we’ll have to make our way from the south. Father said he needed a bigger ship to get safely to the coasts, therefore he wants to use the Deccan. It won’t berth directly on the coasts, we’ll have smaller ones to paddle, it’s just to have a ship to base ourselves on,” explained the blond man. 

Dyanne awed for a second. She didn’t want the ship destroyed and used as bait. The Deccan was visible. It was fierce and clear, and a big part of her heritage. “And Sanbreque’s lands?” Dion closed his book. “It’ll be protected by the Bearers and the Branded’. Dyanne glanced at Oriflamme, from the window. What did she expect ? War was war, and it had its rules and laws. Some quickly outlawed, surpassed by the need of blood. “Will this war with Waloed be over one day ? And, I imagine Darius’s will be dispatched as well, if not Clive with him, am I wrong ?” 

Dion nodded with a sad smile. “I fear not, Dyanne. Waloed wants Sanbreque, Sanbreque wants Waloed. But its King also possesses Ash. It is a never-ending fight. About Darius and Clive, most likely, yes. I won’t lie to you. But I will do everything in my power to keep them well. Be assured of that.” 

She sighed, letting herself fall in her chair. “Do as you see fit. But, please, I just want Clive and Darius to get out of this alive. Yourself included, I would be very much pleased.” 

Dion laughed out loud, him, too, was to go for a fight again. He wouldn’t say he wasn’t tired of it. But that was his only role, he feared. Being the nation’s champion. “Glad you think a bit of me, at least. I guess you haven’t told Clive yet, did you?” Dyanne blushed furiously, no. No, she didn’t. And, that scared her to death. “No, I haven’t. But it’s been seventeen years, I never told him. Why should I? There’s no reason to rush in. I have plenty of time.” 

Dion massaged his temples. This girl, three years knowing her, three years he attempted to push her to speak to Clive. But no, all she did was to tell him all this tension she felt, she was testing his patience. “You do not, Dany’. One day, he might fall upon a fight, and you would regret it all your life. Look, with Terence, I feared that. We’ve come far, please, do not waste it.” 

She let a new sigh leave her lips. Dion thought she was beautiful, not the romantic beautiful, but her personality seemed stuck upon her traits. Sure, she was already pretty when she was younger, but Dyanne reflected what was expected of her :  her hair was shorter than her previous semi-thigh length, but her curves developed into a woman that's so be courted by those who were interested in her. But only she had eyes for Rosfield. Nothing more than a Branded by now on, not even a knight. He had no rights, no lands, nor titles. But Dion knew how much he meant to her. It wasn’t Lord Rosfield she was interested in, but Clive. And this, was the source of his respect for her, their understanding of what love was. “I simply do not wish focusing on that, at the moment. It can and shall wait, I have more shenanigans to go after than this one, although I love Clive, I can’t imagine having my attention on him only. It is my duty to take care of the Deccan, myself, and Darius. Clive comes after, unfortunately. He can look after himself.” 

Dion smiled. “ Duty comes first, isn’t ?” she nodded. Yes, duty came first and foremost to her. Whatever it was, that was what her family taught her since she was a babe. And Dyanne, as much she loved freedom, respected that code. Dion got on his legs, raising calmly from his seat. Approaching the brunette, his smiled more apparent than before. “We should go see the Deccan. Shall we?”

Dyanne pulled back a hair from his forehead. “We shall.” 

CLIVE 

If the sun could kill, Clive would’ve been dead a long time ago. Pulling the ropes out, he knew barely of what was to come. Yesterday, he was assigned to the Gates of Oriflamme; now, he was in a cave, leading to the Port of Oriflamme, where boats landed. Darius was mumbling, not far from him. The two got close during four years of training together, and mostly defended each other. As if their friendly rivalry vanished and became a brotherly bond he liked. “It makes me sick,” announced Darius. 

Clive rose his eyebrows, in wait for further answers. “What’s the matter?” Darius turned around, sighing soundly as wind blew off both their manes. The white-eyed Erysean looked straight at this friend. “They are going to sail the Deccan, I heard. The family’s biggest ship. I don’t know about our entire fleet yet, but they took the Deccan first. Which means they plan on something. It’s an artifact, we never use it, it’s nothing but shame. If not lame, even.” Clive almost choked. He rarely had seen the Deccan, he barely remembered from the time he was ten. But his recall of the ship, was that of a big, white sea-fortress, a city upon water. Blessed by Leviathan, so it would never drown in the depth. Planned to make the entire survivors the Erysean’ to live on its docks. 

He nodded. 

Thus, his mother really rose this high in terms of power… 

“I am sorry, Darius. That she’s most likely done that,” Darius shrugged. He was sorry, but this was all but poor Clive’s fault. “I don’t understand how she can causes such fuss and downfalls just by breathing. She has my sister and our parents hostages, and I fucking can’t do anything. So can’t you. What is that ? She deserves to fucking rot in the streets.”

But he regretted saying that. Clive looked at the ground. Sure, his mother was awful, but she was still… His mother. And Darius felt immediate remorse, pronouncing these words before his friend. Clive never understood how she could become such an atrocity. A thorn in everybody’s foot. “I’m sorry, Clive. It’s still your mother. I can’t say that.” 

But he brushed it off. Clive smiled instead, in all his understanding. “I get it. She wasn’t like that before Josh’… But I guess it’s only been a facade all long. I haven’t seen your sister in a while, is she alright ?” 

Darius sighed, in retaliation. “Barely. Somewhere in between right and unwell. She’s busy trying to keep your mother shut and helping as she can without falling back on her Eikon. She confessed Leviathan was wrathful these days and hard to control within herself,” Clive furrowed his brows, Darius chuckled. “Don’t worry, oddly enough they’re both… Good, friends. She wouldn’t cause harm to my sister. Except if it would cause her survival. She likes her, it’s been long since the Sea Snake had an Eikon.” 

Clive relaxed. He didn’t want to lose anybody else. Moreover, the ones he grew up with. He couldn’t bare with Dyanne’s death. He could simply never. If he sought revenge, he wouldn’t bear with her loved one's death. The ones that remained alive. And if that meant letting Anabella have a glance over Dyanne and keeping her in a gold cage. (Her parents included), he had to close eyes on this. Sure, every single morning he feared a tragedy would've occurred, but he couldn’t keep living in fear. “I know the story, a bit. But, what happened actually ? To the Erysean’ ?” 

Darius stopped himself for a bit. “To our people ? Millenaries ago, they used to live apart from Valisthea. On the sea. A city like no others, white, columns, marbles. We relied on fish and seaweeds to feed ourselves. Meat was found on bigger species. We were independent, and worshipped Leviathan as our main deity. But, the Erysean’ became smug and crossed lines with their Dominant at the time : Emrys. Leviathan didn’t like men, and guess what ?” 

Clive took a break himself. “It was men that caused harm?” Darius nodded, a slight smirk on his lips. “Exactly. But Leviathan was vindictive. She caused a tidal wave upon Erysea, the Sea Wonder, and caused its Doom. Our ancestors got lucky, they survived and reached Valisthea’s lands. They were a handful of people from various families at the time. They united to create the Deccan and the Deccan got reckoned for its potential.” 

Clive sat. “And Emrys ? What about the Dominant?” Darius imitated him. “She died. Leviathan specifically invested in womanly hosts rather than men. But the Tidal Wave made her lose control and killed her in the process. She was also a Priestess of Leviathan and used to communicate her words. Her commands. Ever since, Leviathan fell into slumber until…” 

“—Until she chose Dyanne as her host.  I remember Beatrix telling me that when I was a child. But why not before ? I mean, there were women prior to Dyanne who could be deemed worthy of her presence, no?” Darius shook his head, shrugging again. “Not of my knowledge at least. And, according to my sister. Leviathan likes them… Pure. Genuinely good. And they must be beautiful. Like, outrageously beautiful. To the point you wonder if they’re human or not. To this day, I still wonder why she decided on our family and no others. But the day she was born, and we heard a vibration in the sea, we knew. She must’ve thought no women were worthy of her presence until then. And my family, to make amends, was worshipping Leviathan again.”

Clive nodded. “That must’ve helped. Hence, why your family became nobles: thanks to the Deccan. Is that right ?” Darius smiled to the Rosfield. “Yes, the Deccan and our knowledge of the seas propelled our ancestors to the role of Minister of Ships. Or Master of Ships, if you prefer. We sail, we fight. Not long after, we were given Rosaria thanks to our friendship to your house. We helped you secure your borders from the seas. They built Hydrean’s Hill. But before, we used to live on the Deccan. Explaining why we’re named House Hidgins of the Great Sea.” 

“Who used to live on the Deccan?” asked a feminine voice, followed close by another male frame. Clive and Darius kneeled immediately before Dion, but the latter asked them to get up almost right away. He didn’t like such gestures towards people he appreciated. “Sweet sister, well, Clive was curious, and I was telling him the story of the Eryseans.” 

Dyanne sighed, laughing heartily at her brother’s words, Clive straightened his back. He found her outrageously beautiful. Her face slimmed through age, her hips developed, her chest as well, but what struck him was the presence of the light in her eyes. Always present, always, remaining. As if she had hope near her. Clive found comfort looking at Dyanne’s gaze, how she would always be tender towards him. He had the fire of the Phoenix, but the Water of the Leviathan. 

“Oh, old tales, brother. I’m sorry he bothered you with that, dear Clive.” Clive shocked his head, whilst Dion rolled his eyes. These two, decidedly. “No issue with that, your Grace. He was just doing as I told, don’t worry,” Dyanne sighed. Clive, oh, dear Clive, would always fake their proximity when there were people nearby. Because, the lord didn’t exactly trust Bahamut. Moreover, when his guards were all around them. She profoundly despised when he would call her names. Names higher than his. 

“I… see. Well, if everything goes well. And, what were you two up to before we came?” She curiously asked. Dion looked behind them, keeping an eye open on their surroundings. “Preparing the roping for the Deccan. For the paddles.” 

Dyanne quickly gazed at the ground, saddened. “Oh, how ironic, they've chosen my brother to sail the Deccan…” 

Dion landed a hand upon her shoulder, in comfort, whilst Clive tensed his arms at the sight. He didn’t like how people used to touch her, how they used to take her for granted most times. “Be rested. It is better for the Deccan to be taken care of by the ones you trust rather than utter strangers, don’t you think ?” 

Dyanne raised an eyebrow, thinking after Dion’s words. Yes, he wasn’t that wrong. But still, she would’ve preferred it to remain nearby Hydrean Hill and nowhere else. “Yes… Probably. I guess I will never be satisfied until I see Rosaria back in the hands of its rightful owners and walk the halls of my home again,” she claimed. Clive lowered his head for a handful of seconds as well. “Lower your voice,” started Dion. “If one hears you, I can’t do much any further.” 

She apologized quickly. Walking towards her brother, she hugged him tightly and did the same to Clive, whilst the latter, more embarrassed than Darius, held her lightly. Tenderly even. But, soon after a couple of minutes passed, one guard near the dock approached, noticing how intertwined the two were. “Oy! Backoff, Branded.”

But, before Clive could obey, the man stepped forward to them and dispatched the four, so their embrace could stop. Yet, Dyanne didn’t hear this way, feeling her blood boil, she indeed took a step back, whilst the guard turned around to see her and Dion. “I am sorry, your Graces. These two shan’t remain too close, of those who will make the crown go on. Moreover, the Leviathan and Bahamut themselves.” 

Clive almost choked on these words. Thus, was it true ? Darius paled, trying to understand what was happening. “These are my close ones, I do not like the way you treat other beings. You must treat everything and everyone as your equal.” 

It was the guard’s turn to fade away, his skin becoming grey-white as Dyanne raised her hand discreetly towards the water. Soon, the soldiers ran away from the docks, gaining the heights of the cave, and Clive twirled his fingers in anxiety. Dion didn’t say a word, he agreed with her, even. 

A large wave engulfed the docks and hands formed out of it, holding on the poor guard and drawing him in and out of the water several times before being let down cowardly where he initially stood. Coughing with all his lungs, the Dominant of Water kneeled towards him, approaching her face close to his, so only the four would. “You will speak no word to anyone about this, will you?” she rhetorically asked. That was more a command than an actual request. 

Dion took her back in, before adding. “Remember, her brother is her Shield and very own Branded. If anything, she can complain about you, and he would get every right whatsoever to punish the wrongs you’ve caused. That’s law.” 

Dyanne smiled at his support, before asking Darius to get him out of her way. The latter executed himself, pulling the guard out of his collar to put him aside. Dyanne walked towards Clive, holding on his wrist where the guard previously hit him. “I’m sorry, really…” 

Clive didn’t know what to do. But, his only thought remaining was to get away from her. To protect her. To get away, so she could be safe. 

“So, am I…” 

Rosfield then vanished, leaving the Dominant of Water and the one of Light, all by themselves. She turned around, looking at Dion, whilst the latter slightly sighed. Dyanne’s eyes watered almost immediately after, sensitive to Clive’s departure. “I just wish I could see him more, you know.” 

But Dyanne knew that was already barely possible. The unique moments, she would, were when she visited Darius, and they’d reunite almost every single time. Dion stands straight. He understood her, the same was happening with Terence, their ranks being the only reason they could spend some time together. He sympathized with Dyanne’s position, what her thoughts were. “I may know of a way. But you will need to come with me, and we will need to do it by night.” 

“You know what will happen if we do,” suggested a whispering Dyanne. Dion nodded. Yes, he knew. But wasn’t it an unparalleled way to save their situations ? Putting an illusion so they would live peacefully ? “I know. But I find no other means to get what we both want. They will think I bedded you, but I don’t care. If this is the only proposition to shut the rumours about me and you, then so be it.” 

He let her think for a bit. Sure, that wasn’t ideal, but it was all they’ve had. “… Do you promise me we’ll be safe?” 

“As long I am breathing, we will.” 

She walked towards him and put her arms around him. Yes, she felt she had someone she could trust. 

CLIVE 

He was tensed. 

He didn’t know why he was tense. 

But his stiff muscles gave him a hint. 

Clive rolled on his side, looking at the moon through the window of his room. Some furniture was given by Dyanne, through the cover of a “generous” gift. A rug, a proper mattress, covers, and even a pillow to lay his head on. He also had a couple changes. Nothing fancy, but he held strong to it. Clive recovered himself better, a slight wind falling on his face. The night was smooth, no clouds, just the stars to live by and the sheer light of the Mothercrystal. 

“I am sorry, your Graces. These two shan’t remain too close, of those who will make the crown go on. Moreover, the Leviathan and Bahamut themselves.” 

Clive thought back of this. This, which made his chest tighten, caused him pain. He was hardly capable of describing his feelings towards the brunette he had known since they were babes. But, Clive remembered the sentiment of wanting the woman against him, when that bastard of a guard slapped slightly his calloused hands from her thin back. 

How much he respected her, when she almost drowned this man for him and her brother. For their rights. She didn’t change for a bit, and he liked that. She likes them genuinely good, he remembered from Darius. And Clive thought he was lucky to have such good people remaining around him, though they were a few. 

But the fact she was with Dion from now on, the fact all of these words he heard about them, were true, made him clench his fists. He was jealous. There, he said it. Of course, that would make sense, otherwise, his mother wouldn’t have kept sweet Dyanne this near. If not dead due to how much she hated her. Yet, Clive envied Dion. Because he had all he was supposed to. 

As if he stole her away from him. 

But wasn’t it a bit the case ? 

Neither did he appreciate the way Dyanne smiled this softly to him. How he laid his hand on her shoulder, he could’ve sworn on everything he had left, that he even ran his finger on her skin. Clive shook his head, the thought of it making him gloom more than he should’ve. Maybe he was bitter, but the more he lived, the more he realized how Anabella was shifting everything he’s ever got away from him. Including his dearest friend, and overall freedom. He wasn’t fond of sailing the Deccan, though, next to Darius. But for the Hidgins’ sake, what his life could’ve been, he wished he would cast off the moorings the day after. 

But no, only on the after-morrow. 

On the other hand, she would be on her own. Sure, Leviathan would protect her no matter what, but Clive was sceptical. Knowing how the Phoenix couldn’t resist against the other creature, he feared. His mother was the devil in disguise. “To hell everything you’ve done, mother…” he whispered more for himself than anybody else. 

Clive stared at the moon, closing his eyes to get some rest. But even in his very dreams, he kept thinking about the Night of Flames, Joshua, his father, Jill, and how he could’ve saved them all. But, then, would he be obligated to give up on Dyanne too ? 

Clive wished he would not.

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[simonsrosebud]

@queenofcrazy27 Some high school Jack Young excerpts!!

(AFTER MOVING INTO TEMPORARY FOSTER CARE)

Jack stayed home while Ryan and Lindsay took the twins and Drew to the park. The thought of talking with them while the kids weren’t around was exhausting, he’d been avoiding having to do so for the past two weeks.

Instead, he put earbuds in and grabbed his stick. Ryan had a lacrosse rebounder in the backyard from when Katie used to play, though Jack didn’t think he mentioned her playing in college. Why waste the money on something so big?

And why choose lacrosse over exy?

With his music blasting it was impossible to hear a car pull into the driveway, or someone shouting Anyone home? through the front door.

If he’d turn away from the rebounder he’d see a tall brunette watching through the kitchen window. She slid the back door open and leaned against the door frame.

When Katie was told that her parents had gotten a foster placement, she assumed it would be a kid. Singular, and under the age of eight. She wasn’t expecting three kids to drop in. And she surely didn’t think she’d ever share a wall with a seventeen year old boy.

Jack slammed his ball into the rebounder until he lost control of it, and threw his stick down as he turned. He wanted to go home. Where there was no rebounder, no father figure in the household, and no social worker invading his life and personal space. He didn’t want to say that he regretted his decisions, but that was before he was basically forced to do it. How was he supposed to know how his mother was doing without being there? He didn’t trust other people to help her get better.

Jack jumped at the movement in the corner of his eye. He ripped his ear buds out. “Who are you?”

She stood a little straighter but didn’t uncross her arms. “Katie. I’m Ryan and Lindsay’s daughter.” They’d told Jack and his siblings about their daughter, but he thought she wasn’t coming home until the winter. “Who are you?”

“Jack,” he said. Jack picked up his stick and put his ear buds back in, and scooped up another ball. He lodged it at the rebounder and jumped to catch it, then spun from the force of it and shot the ball again. He caught it and let it drop to the ground. Before he could pick up another he just barely heard Katie speak.

He took one ear bud out. “What?”

She raised her eyebrows. “You play at school?” He pursed his lips and nodded. “Cool. Wanna order food? I’m hungry.”

Jack glanced between her and the rebounder. “Is that allowed?”

She turned back to him where she had a hand on the door handle. “Is what allowed?”

Katie frowned to herself on the way inside. “Ordering food? Yeah?”

Jack sighed and followed her inside.

For the week that Katie was home, she made it her mission to befriend Jack. She didn’t have much else to do.

Jack didn’t take a liking to her until the third day she was home. He couldn’t sleep in the too quiet house in his too nice room. He wanted his bed at home.

So he tried sneaking out. And as quiet as he was, Jack still got caught.

Katie was in the kitchen on her laptop as he snuck down the stairs, and stood when he headed for the door. “What are you doing?”

Jack jumped and froze with his hand on the handle. He thought about it for a second, and decided he didn’t care to lie. “Going home for the night.”

She walked slowly towards him. “I’m guessing you’re not allowed to do that if you’re sneaking out… Poorly, might I add.”

He scoffed. “Whatever.” He yanked the door open and left.

Katie went after him. “Jack, it’ll take you forever like that!” She stood in front of him and held onto his bike handles before he could climb on.

“Move.”

“No. You’re gonna get yourself hurt.”

“Leave me alone.”

“No,” she grunted as he tried moving out of her way. “You’re gonna get in trouble, you’re gonna get your mom in trouble!”

He stopped at that and leveled her with a stare. “You don’t know anything about me.”

“Yes I do. Hello, who do you think their first foster kid was?”

Jack froze, surprised and suddenly more interested in what she was saying. “What?”

“I was only a baby, and got adopted a year later, but my birth mom killed herself when I was a baby and my dad just couldn’t provide for us, so he did some illegal stuff that got him locked up instead. He gave up his parental rights so I could have a normal life. It’s what your mom’s doing in a way, letting you guys stay here and be normal until she can get back on track.” She dropped her arms. Please don’t run.

Jack pulled his lips to a thin line. As inspiring as some may have thought, he wasn’t moved by her speech. He swung a leg over his bike and let it fall to the ground. He took a step towards the house, then swiveled around and pointed a finger at her. “We are not the same- You don’t know shit about me and my family. Don’t pretend that you do,” he said, and stomped back into the house- this time with no attempt at being silent.

(MOVING BACK HOME)

Jack was excited to move back home, but when they did he had a few realizations. The first, was that he felt like he was babysitting his mother, which she did not like. She was stable and steady, but he’d spent too long playing grown up that he didn’t trust her anymore. As much as he wanted to have faith in her, he kept thinking ‘what if’?

He kept worrying she’d forget to pick the kids up at school. Every time he saw her sitting on the couch his mind went right to the worry that she was depressed again, or that she’d lost motivation. When he was at Exy he wondered what was for dinner and then wondered if she made something- if she even remembered that Tristan was allergic to bananas. For the first few weeks he double checked that his siblings had snacks in their bags for school.

Secondly, he hated their house.

It wasn’t any different than when he left, only a little more cluttered. What was different was that he suddenly couldn’t stand his mother coming in and out of his room to use the washing machine. He wasn’t used to the creak of the floors upstairs anymore, nevermind the laundry, and hated that he barely had any privacy. He missed the roof outside his window at Ryan and Lindsay’s, and having Katie next door when she was home for breaks. He missed being able to lock the door during the day when he was in a mood and the big backyard with the rebounder, and that Ryan was good at math and helped him with his work.

He missed not worrying about his siblings schedules and if they had everything they needed. Their car was left with his mother, since it was in her name, but Jack missed knowing he’d have a ride home from his Exy games because Ryan went to every one.

He wanted so badly to be normal. To have a normal family again and a father figure who cared, a mother figure who never had him worrying. He didn’t even realize how much he did worry about stuff until CPS forced him into Ryan and Lindsay’s home in the first place.

The third realization he had was that his relationship with his mother was practically ruined.

The love was there. The care was there. But Jack caught himself being irritated and annoyed with her more than he cared to admit. She was awkward around him because she was trying to make things up, or he was awkward around her because they both knew he was the one who called CPS. And on top of it all, after having a period of normalcy a part of him hated her and his father for robbing him of that, despite knowing that it wasn’t her fault she had a mental disorder. Just like it wasn’t either of their faults that his dad was a dick.

It didn’t take him long to recognize this, but when he did he hid out in his room for the most part. It took him two weeks of being home to take a different route home from Exy practice.

Lindsay opened the door with surprise and took a step outside to hug the sweaty athlete. “How are you, sweetheart?” She pulled away with her hands on his shoulders. “How's being home?”

He caught himself smiling, but not because of her questions. It just felt normal, being there. He hated himself for preferring it.

“It’s alright. Kinda weird.”

She nodded and opened the door wider to follow him inside. “Can’t imagine. Does your mom like her job?”

He followed her into the kitchen where she was prepping dinner. “Did you have foster kids before us?”

She turned. She wasn’t quite frowning, but there was a pull between her eyebrows. “One other before you guys. Why?”

Something about the way Jack stood in her kitchen made her guide him to sit at the table. She sat across from him. “Jack,” she said softly. “What’s going on?”

“It’s nothing bad, it’s just…” He put his face in his hands and huffed. “I fucked up everything, it feels so weird living there, now.”

“Why, honey?” She moved to sit beside him instead and put a hand on his back. “Jackson, look at me.” It took him a second, but he eventually pulled his head up and looked at her. “You did nothing wrong. You kept your siblings safe, and as a result your mom got healthy again. What feels weird about living there?”

He shrugged, shaking his head. “I don’t… It was just easier here. I feel like I’m always worrying if she’s gonna fuck up again or go down the rabbit hole. I love her, but just being around her knowing she fucked up so bad makes me… like… angry, or something.”

She hummed. “Is your therapist still covered by insurance?” He nodded. “Will you start going again, then?” He opened his mouth to argue. “I know, but these are things she can answer and help you with. I’m not gonna tell you this whole back and forth transition is easy, it’ll probably suck for a bit, but you have people at your back. Me and Ryan are always close by, too. Don’t think just ‘cause you don’t live here anymore means we don’t care about you guys. I love you like my own, no matter how much you absolutely reek.”

Jack laughed a little and jostled her shoulder with a hey.

“Use us, please, Jack. Mom needs babysitters, someone needs a ride somewhere, or you just wanna come over and hang, whatever.” She gave hum a pointed look. “Okay?”

Feeling better, his lips quirked up. “Kay,” he mumbled. He watched her stand and let her shake his head and kiss the top of it. “Are you staying for dinner?”

“What is it?”

“Chicken kabobs, mashed potatoes and corn.”

“Do I still have to set the table if I technically don’t live here?” Lindsay laughed. “I’m technically a guest.”

“Uh, yeah, no. Go shower first, I’ll even leave the table empty just for you.”

He nearly hopped over the bannister jogging up the stairs, and took them two at a time until he reached the top. Katie’s door was cracked open, so it was easy for him to shove his way inside and jump on her bed, jolting her phone from her hand. “Ew! Get the fuck off, you smell like death!”

Jack rolled on top of her, to which she screamed under her blanket and faked gagging noises. He sat up after enough torture and stood. “Miss me? When do you go to school?”

Katie glared at him. “Two weeks. It boggles my mind how early you guys start Exy.”

“Just summer sessions. Tryouts are next week, then we’ll start scrimmages and stuff for real.”

She hummed. “Have you heard from any schools yet?” Jack’s smile faltered just enough for her to notice. “We’ll figure it out.” She shot him the least pitying smile she could manage and watched him walk down the hall to the bathroom.

The next time Katie asked about college scouts and Exy recruiters, it was when she was home for winter break. Except then it wasn’t because she had faith in these big fancy schools, but because she was waiting desperately for a call from David Wymack. Not to her, but to Jack.

David Wymack was the coach of the Palmetto State University Foxes, a Class 1 Exy team that hadn’t deserved the title until this year. Dead last every season since they were formed because the coach recruited athletes who had no chance of going anywhere else. It wasn’t the fate she necessarily saw for Jack, but considering the schools that had come to watch him pulled out because he needed a full ride they couldn’t offer.

With Kevin Day and this new Neil Josten on the line, though, the Foxes had been the talk of the Exy world all season. Katie didn’t know enough about Exy and couldn’t follow a game other than if the ball was going in the right way, but she knew this much: Kevin Day was the best of the Exy world, Jack had the background to qualify as one of these Foxes, and David Wymack was looking for strikers.

[shalheretical]

Cursing Your Eyes With: Sakari

Name: Means "sweet" in Inuktitut and "little cherry blossoms" in Japanese. The Chinese character that make up her name means "brilliant victory," respectively. Her parents chose her name because they thought it was pretty.

Nicknames/Titles: Sakii (by her family and friends), Ri-Ri (also by her family and friends). Her title is Gulun Gongzhu which means "Princess under Heaven," but she can also be addressed as Sakari-denka, Sakari-ue, and Sakari no Kimi (though the last one is used slightly disparagingly when she's acting spoiled by her friends and family). Her family also calls her Saki-chan, Saki-tan--normal embarrassing nicknames parents call their children.

She's a cis woman, bisexual and basically feminine.

She gets along with her parents. She gets into smaller arguments with her father sometimes, but they’re not awful (they’re not even that awkward to witness, since neither of them believe they should have to raise their voices to be heard by others - and, of course, Katara would kill him if he ever yelled at one of their children). She feels pretty comfortable telling both of them about the going ons in her life without (too) much judgement. It's pretty clear they both love her, and have done their best to raise her well, so she can’t hold too many grudges against them for her childhood. Her relationship with her father became a bit strained after Aang’s death, but she was old enough to try and be empathetic about it (she’d be upset if she lost her best friend - and so horrifically - too); but she’s always super close to her mother. 

She was a very quiet, inquisitive child. She had some abandonment issues and was very sensitive, but other than that, she didn’t cry too often. Her first word was ‘Baba,’ and perhaps it was an omen because she’s always been her father’s daughter. She was a very bossy, prissy child,  though you would be hard-pressed to find an instance of her acting spoiled or bratty (beyond the usual for a child, anyway). She prides herself on being ‘mature for her age,’ and liked to sit and listen to the adults when they talked. She convinced herself she likes politics and likes talking about politics when she was around ten,  and aside from that, she read constantly - during parties, under her desk at school, at the dinner table, when she was supposed to be sleeping, when she was walking. She became friends with two Academy girls, Yinaze and Xiule, when she was eight, and they’ve managed to stay friends ever since. She and Akiak would rough-house sometimes. She was an incredibly bossy, impetuous teenager. She was a very gifted firebender and very, very studious. She decided she actually hated talking about politics around this time, but also - unfortunately - she was also required to start talking about politics around this time. She wasn’t very rebellious or much of a trouble-maker, though, by  her own nature, she could get pretty easily roped into such things. When she was sixteen and seventeen, she spent two years at the Fire Nation Officers’ Academy in the Phoenix District of Republic City for some military experience, which she graduated with honours in, as she did in the Royal Firebending Academy for Girls. It was after the Officers’ Academy that she decided she wanted to go to an academic university and not have more military experience, which her parents obliged. She went to Republic City University and graduated with two doctors, one in law and one in history, and from ages twenty to twenty-six she had a book-keeping job at the university to learn accounting and record-keeping and also to teach her financial responsibility and how to live independently. There she made friends with the son of a duke from the SE Earth Kingdom named Lihen and a Fifth-Rank Princess from Ba Sing Se named Meyang, who went to the university as well. Anyway, she did learn to have a little bit more fun around this time, and would go to parties and events, so long as they wouldn't damage her family’s reputation. 

She's aloof, polite, graceful, but she's also incredibly bossy and also a bit standoffish. She's pretty reserved, though she doesn't experience much social anxiety. She has a fun quirk of never showing any emotion on her face, which gives her a permanent case of RBF. But let it be known, she lives up to her name--she's very sweet and delicate, past her abrasive exterior. She's incredibly smart and incredibly, very competitive. She's responsible and family oriented. Seemingly in contrast to her workaholic personality, she's very romantic and fashionable, and she quite likes small cute things like kids and animals. Despite that, her friends (namely, Bumi and Akiak) still lovingly call her "the most boring person on the planet." Bumi likes to say "she's very funny, but she doesn't even know it." It's fine, she's brutally honest and destroyed their--and her other friends'--senses of self worth multiple times, on multiple occasions, without mercy.

She's a super-talented firebender. Makes sense, considering she's the lord of it. She's also good at sewing, embroidery, weaving, beadwork and dancing. She's not great with music, but she has a pretty singing voice. She has two doctorates in history and law. She's a huge nerd. She likes reading and theatre and listening to radio programs. She's always been annoyingly political in conversation. She's fiercely protective of her family and friends - especially her little brother.

She's also knock out beautiful. Drop-dead gorgeous. Prettiest lady ever. Radiant as the sun. Literally stunning.

And, obviously, her LI is Bumi. She's had a crush on him since they were teenagers, and everyone knew she did because she showed it exactly like her mother - with crippling scrutiny and unending resentment. It was actually kind of hilarious. And, may I reiterate, super obvious.

Also not pictured is that she needs glasses. She never wears them because she hates the way they make her look. She's far-sighted, so it doesn't affect her most of the time when she's reading or writing. She's truly terrifying to drive with (and, make no mistake—aside from Lin—she is the only person in the Gaang's brood that can drive).

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[imnotoverlyobsessive]

Number Nine

Chapter Six: Echoes of You

AO3 author’s note/info one two three four five six seven eight epilogue extra

All my work is 18+.

You cut me up like a knife and hung me out here to dry. You’re the reason I can’t sleep through the night… I wanna forget, I remember how it was; even though you’re dead to me, you’re always showin’ up. You’re my poltergeist; demon in my head, keep me up at night. I feel you when the room gets cold as ice, sinking your teeth in a bruise. You got nothing to lose, you’re my poltergeist. Consume me, I’ll be your sacrifice.- Blackbear, Poltergeist

Three Years Later

At nearly three years old, Cassie looked nothing like her father. Her skin was darker than his, her hair straight. She had bright blue eyes framed by dark lashes, just like her mother.

Theo, on the other hand, looked exactly like Tim. At two and a half, Theodore Hal Blanchard appeared to not take after his mother hardly at all. He had his father’s bone structure, his unruly curls, even his eyes.

He was ridiculously intelligent and well-spoken for his age, too.

Tim provided Livvy with a downright ungodly amount of child support. It wasn’t even court-ordered; he just sent her the money every month. Lea assumed that this was because the bastard’s net worth seemed to double every year, bringing it up to its current state of $160 million. It was with the money he gave them that they paid the mortgage on their three bedroom house (Lea had managed to swing the master bedroom so Livvy and Cassie could have separate rooms). Her job as a theatrical costume designer at the local theater was going well, and she loved it. Her life wasn’t so bad, considering. 

Tim came to visit Cassie regularly, but Lea was always sure to leave the house well before he got there. He was consistent in giving them a few days’ notice, and she used this to her advantage.

Livvy occasionally tried to convince her to stay and talk to him, insisting that it must have been a misunderstanding. Lea didn’t see how it could be, though. He’d made it abundantly clear that he wasn’t interested in being part of Theo’s life, and if she were honest with herself, she liked it that way.

Why would she want to reconnect with the man who broke her heart? Why would she want Theo to find out his father didn’t want him? There was simply no up side.

It was fine. It was for the best. It was fine.

Cassie’s third birthday party was that afternoon, and Lea was looking forward to it. She always looked forward to having over her mother and sisters as well as her other best friend, Sam. Plus, Theo and Cassie got to see their friends from daycare. Tim hadn’t been able to be there for Cassie’s birthday the day of the previous two years, instead coming to see her a few days later. When he hadn’t contacted Livvy about his plans for their daughter’s birthday, both she and Lea had deduced that things would be the same as the previous years.

Lea was showered, her makeup carefully applied. Her outfit was nothing special: a nude bra from Torrid, pale pink panties she’d gotten in a discount bin at Target, a white patterned Artizia dress she’d splurged on the previous year, the soft fabric reaching her calves. She wore flat white sandals from Nine West that wouldn’t be too difficult to chase Theo in and studs from Icing in the same color as the pendant on the necklace Tim had given her. She wore that, too. She usually wore it, wanting to keep a piece of him close to her in some way.

Lea fluffed her hair in her bedroom mirror, adjusting the tied straps of her dress.

“You look pretty, Mama,” Theo said happily.

“Thank you, baby,” she told him, ruffling his hair and holding out her hand for him to take. “Are you ready for Sissy’s party?”

“Yes!” he squealed with delight.

Lea smiled down at her son, leading him out the door. 

It was going to be a good day. 

The first time Timothée saw her again, he half-thought she was a ghost.

He’d never been able to be there the day of Cassie’s birthday before, so he was thrilled that his schedule finally allowed for it. Since Olivia was forever teasing him about his inability to show up for his daughter's actual birthday, he thought he’d surprise the two of them. Maybe he’d actually get to meet Olivia’s roommate. 

It was clear that the little girl’s birthday party was going on at the one story house, because there was a princess carriage bounce house in the yard. No kids were out front, though, so he knocked on the door, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet and shoving his hands in his pockets, fiddling with the velvet ring box he carried with him out of habit.

There was music and children's laughter coming from inside, and he was just about to knock a second time when someone shouted, “It’s open!”

So he went inside, letting the door shut behind him, and turned to the dining room directly to his right where most of the chatter was coming from.

And there she was.

She was wearing a white dress that fell well past her knees, leaning forward and instructing Cassie how to blow out the candles once they were lit. Her hair was longer than it had been before, past her waist now, and her back was to him, but that didn’t matter. He’d know her ass anywhere.

It had been so long, but even now, even after over three years of not having her, the second he saw her pale skin, his fingers itched to touch it.

Timothée couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think, because he’d been yearning for her for so long, it felt like, and there she was, right in front of him. Then, to his astonishment, a small child emerged from the group of similarly aged children and tugged on her dress.

“Mama!” the child said. “Mama!”

Mama? he thought in a daze. She has a kid? Is she married? He considered this for a moment, but quickly decided that it didn’t matter if she was married or not, if she was with anyone or not. She was his and that was that.

“Okay, okay,” she said with an exasperated-sounding chuckle, leaning down to pick the child up.

Before she’d stood all the way up, however, Cassie took notice of him. “Daddy!” his daughter exclaimed in delight.

Lea didn’t turn around, only leaning forward to brush Cassie’s hair from her face. “Not yet, Cas,” she told her patiently. “Daddy will be here in a few days, remember?”

Cassie shook her head, pointing over where Tim stood, and all the children and adults at the table turned towards where Timothée stood by the door. All except Lea. “Daddy’s here!”

“Hey birthday girl,” he greeted, and he knew the second Lea had fully registered his presence, because the muscles of her back tensed up, her spine ramrod straight.

Lea reached over, patted Cassie’s head swiftly, then grabbed a purse that was hanging on a hook by the archway leading to the kitchen.

“Where are we going, Mama?” asked the child—Timothée was fairly certain it was a boy—Lea held.

“Grandma’s house,” Lea informed him as she moved into the kitchen. Her voice was quiet, but he could still hear it under the chatter in the room.

“But Grandma’s here,” the boy pointed out.

Lea said something in response, but he couldn’t quite hear it.

He greeted Olivia, smiling politely at her. They weren’t together for very long, but she knew him pretty well. She knew about the divorce and that the flings he’d had since Lea had left were to make up for her absence.

“Hi, sweetie,” he told Cassie, giving her a hug and the present he’d brought with him from the car before standing back up. “Liv,” he addressed softly, “is that— is it really—“

“Yes,” Olivia confirmed with a nod.

“Why didn’t you—“

“She wouldn’t let me. Go talk to her. I’ll handle the party; give me a few minutes and I’ll come get Theo, too.”

“Theo?” Timothée asked, glancing at Lea’s retreating firm. “Is that her—“

Olivia fixed him with a look. “Talk. To. Her. If she gets to her car, I’m telling you right now: she’s not coming back. Go.”

He moved around the table, watching Lea hurry towards what he knew was a back door, and he stepped through the threshold into the kitchen. 

“Lea?” he asked hesitantly, and the child—Theo, he assumed—turned to look at him over Lea’s shoulder.

It took a few seconds for him to recognize his own eyes staring back at him. 

Theo was babbling at her even as she’d opened the door and rushed outside, but she’d tuned him out. She had to. She was still reeling from hearing the man she’d gotten remotely close to getting over say her name. He’d sounded hopeful, even, like he wanted it to be her. She was fairly certain that she’d confirmed her identity for him just by ignoring him and exiting the house without so much as turning around, but she didn’t have much of a choice. She couldn’t handle seeing him. 

She’d had a contingency plan in place in the event Tim showed up unannounced, one she hadn’t told Livvy about. 

She trusted her friend not to spill the beans to their mutual ex right up to this particular moment. After that point, however, Livvy was a wild card. She was too far in the camp of “Tim would absolutely want Theo if you just gave him a chance!”, completely disregarding three very important facts.

First, that she had already given him a chance three years and one month ago. Second, that Livvy shipped Lea and Tim just a little too hard to be taken entirely seriously. Third, but perhaps most significantly, Tim had made it abundantly clear that he wanted nothing to do with Lea or her pregnancy, which included Theo by extension. Fourth, the truth was, Lea didn’t want Tim in their lives any more than he seemed to want to be there. In fact, she probably wanted to see him even less than he wanted to see her.

Oh, sure, he’d be polite and say hi and all that garbage, but she knew it was just pleasantries. He was too good of a person to refuse interacting with someone if they were right in front of him. 

She wasn’t above that sort of refusal, though.

Which was why she knew that the Super 8 motel nearby would give her a room for eighty bucks or less, and that she could pay in cash, and if she slipped the clerk at the front desk an extra twenty, he wouldn’t ask for her ID. It was why she carried cash in the first place. It was why she kept a few essentials for both her and Theo in her car. It was why she was parked around the corner of the house instead of in front, so there would be less of a walk for her once she got out the side door.

She knew what she was doing, and she knew how essential it was—for Tim, for Theo, and most especially for her—that he not get the chance to say hello to her. Knowing Tim, he might do something catastrophic, like suggest they hang out or catch up or something. Either way, his politeness didn’t bode well for anyone involved, and Lea really, really didn’t want to turn Cassie’s third birthday—the first one she might actually remember—into a verbal bloodbath, which it was likely going to become if she didn’t get out of there, and fast.

She was starting towards her car, ignoring the way the grass got between the soles of her feet and the sandals she wore. She didn’t have time to worry about that now. In a few seconds, she’d be in her car and—

And then the back door opened. It seemed Tim had deigned it necessary to follow after her, because she walked faster, and he called out, “Lea!”

Lea was actually pretty good at running while holding Theo, all things considered, but not in sandals. Unfortunately, this combined with his infuriatingly long legs meant that he caught up to her with relative ease, and she was only a few yards away from her car by the time he captured her wrist in his hand.

“Lea,” came Tim’s firm voice, and she could’ve sworn it sent her back in time. Back to sharing his breaths and touching his skin and feeling him between her legs, where he belonged, where she belonged. Back to his arms around her and his fingers in her hair and his skin against her lips and her back pressed against the wall of the dressing room of some high end retailer or another as he fucked her so hard she could barely stand afterwards, the way he said her name when he first slid into her, I love you I love you I love you I love you—

She tried to jerk her wrist out of his grip, but he held fast. “Who’s that, mama?” Theo asked cheerfully.

She was about to turn around and kick the bastard in the shin when the back door opened a third time, and Lea used Tim’s surprise to wrench herself free and start marching towards her car again.

Tragically, Livvy had run track. And she was wearing sneakers. As a result, she was in front of Lea fast enough to make her head spin.

Lea stared at her friend with wide, terrified eyes, pleading with her silently to get Tim to go away, just get him to leave, for the love of god, she didn’t even care where he went as long as she never had to see him again, speak to him again.

Instead of answering Lea’s pleading gaze, however, Livvy held out her arms to Theo. “C’mon, buddy. Let’s get you some cake and ice cream. You don’t wanna miss Sissy’s party, right?”

“And then bounce?” Theo asked excitedly.

“Of course!” Livvy assured him, and he lunged for her. Livvy took him, and then Theo was staring back at Lea happily, a smile on his chubby face. Livvy covered his ears, looking over Lea’s shoulder.

So he hasn’t disappeared into thin air, then, Lea thought mournfully.

“Quit trying to run,” Livvy told her firmly. “I’ll watch Theo for however long you need, just— just talk to him, for fuck’s sake.”

Theo looked a bit confused, but it was far from the first time adults had covered his ears while they spoke.

Maybe Lea could follow after her vile traitorous excuse for a friend. They had cried over this man together, dammit. They’d spent hours sobbing in each other’s arms until their throats were sore and their eyelids were raw, and this was how Livvy treated their kinship?

Still, though, following after her was infinitely better than being left alone with the absolute last person on the face of the earth she wanted to have a conversation with, let alone a private conversation. Maybe he wouldn’t bother her as much if she was in the house around a bunch of kids.

So as soon as Livvy started back towards the door, Lea was heading after her, fully intending to walk in a very large circle around Tim so she wouldn’t have to look at him—if she played this right, she could get through this without ever having to look at him—which was an absolute necessity due to the fact that she simply could not handle seeing him. Not in person. She’d heard his voice, he’d touched her skin, and that was more than enough, thank you very fucking much. She could handle seeing him on a screen, whether it was large or small, but she couldn’t handle seeing him in the flesh.

She didn’t get very far in her attempts to follow Livvy and a chattering Theo, because Tim had grabbed her hand this time, and his grip was firm and steady and familiar and warm and—

No, she told herself firmly. Nope. Not that. We’re not doing that. We are past that.

“Lea,” he said softly. “Look at me. Please.”

She shook her head, tears falling from her eyes, and she realized for the first time that she was crying. When had that started? She wasn’t sure. Whatever, it didn’t matter.

“Lea,” he repeated, sounding frustrated. “Turn around.”

“No,” she finally snapped, yanking on her hand to try and get free. “Let go! Don’t touch me!”

“It is you,” Tim breathed. “I wasn’t sure I hadn’t lost my mind until I heard your voice, I—“ he cut himself off. “Turn around.”

She didn’t, turning her face to the ground and letting her hair fall around her in a protective curtain.

She heard the crunch of grass under his feet as he circled around her until she saw his sneakers directly in front of her. She clenched her eyes shut, hoping against hope that he would just go away, but he still hadn’t released her hand.

“Look at me,” he pleaded, and she shook her head again. He sighed, then reached down to lift her chin up, his grip gentle but firm, and then she had no choice but to look at him, and he was smiling softly down at her. “Lea,” he breathed, sounding… relieved, almost.

The memories came rushing back like a flood— when he’d first said her name, their first kiss, and god, their last, the way he’d touched her when she’d told him she loved him, the way he thrust inside her when he said it back, oh, god, Tim—

She was paralyzed by the emotions and the memories and the overwhelmingly desperate yearning that another tear slid down her cheek, and Tim frowned, moving to wipe the tear away, but she lurched back from him like he’d burn her, which she half-thought he might.

His frown deepened as she backed away from him fearfully. From his expression and behavior, she was starting to wonder if Livvy had been right, if everything really was a misunderstanding, but the truth was, she didn’t really care. She really, really didn’t want anything to do with him. He shattered her once. He’d do it again, and he’d do it with the casual smile of someone who absolutely did not understand what they were doing. 

Watching him look down at her, an expression of genuine offense on his face, her mind was essentially split into two camps: one was screaming a litany of, I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you— whereas the other was an equally loud, Get away get away get away get away get away get away—

He looked deflated, like he hadn’t known how very clear she’d made it that she only wanted to put as much distance between the two of them as physically possible. “Who’s, uh.” He ran a hand through his hair. “Who’s Theo?”

Lea crossed her arms over herself, taking another few steps back. “My son,” she informed Tim’s feet.

“Your son,” he parroted back at her. She nodded wordlessly. “And how old is he, exactly?”

Lea scratched her arm. “Two.”

“When’s his birthday?”

She was silent for several seconds. “January.”

She felt his gaze on her. “He has my eyes,” Tim pointed out.  “And my hair. And my bone structure, it looked like.”

Lea scoffed. “I have a type. So what?”

“He literally has my face, and you’re going to try and tell me he isn’t mine?” Tim hissed.

“Oh, I’m so sorry you don’t get to add to your count of fifteen bazillion kids,” she said sarcastically.

“I have two,” he snapped, holding up two fingers, then cocked his head slightly, considering. “Well, three, apparently.”

“Ugh,” she groaned in frustration. “He could be anyone’s. Just ‘cause you were my first doesn’t mean you were special.”

“I was to you,” he insisted. “You loved me, and I loved you.”

Lea rolled her eyes so hard she wondered if she’d actually damage them. “Yeah, sure. Whatever. Can I go now?”

“No!” he snapped. “No, you can’t go now. Tell me if he’s mine or not. I know you, and you’re being evasive. Tell me the truth.”

Something inside of her snapped, and she finally looked up at him. “I did, jackass!” she hissed. “I did tell you the truth! I told you the truth three years ago, and you didn’t want any part of it, so you don’t get to storm in and make demands.” She deflated, panting. “Just go away.”

“No,” Tim repeated, much to her dismay. “I’m not going away. Not ever again.” He examined her face. “And when did you tell me?” he demanded. “You never told me—“

She watched his expression change as he remembered something— the voicemail she’d left him, presumably. He was gaping at her, and she nodded smugly at him. “Uh huh. Yeah, now you remember.” She scoffed. “Well, too bad, so sad. I don’t care. I didn’t want to tell you anything, but I did. I gave you a chance to be in Theo’s life if you wanted to, and you said no. I don’t want child support, I don’t want you here, I don’t want anything to do with you. Just leave me be.”

“I didn’t know it was you!” He raised his voice. He never raised his voice. She forced her surprise down, however, putting on a thoroughly unimpressed air. “I thought someone had found my number somehow. I didn’t know it was you,” he was babbling. Then, he saw the expression on her face. “No, really!” he insisted. “It came from a number I didn’t recognize, your voice sounded different, you didn’t tell me your name— how was I supposed to know it was you?”

Lea groaned, raking a hand through her curls to push them away from her face. He stared at her, seemingly just as mesmerized by her as she was trying so very hard not to be by him. “I don’t care,” she informed him flatly. “I don’t care that you didn’t know. I don’t care that you wouldn’t have told me not to contact you again if you had known it was me. I. Don’t. Care. I don’t want anything from you. I don’t want your time and I definitely don’t want your money. Go away.”

This made Tim snort lightly, and he lifted his chin in the direction of the house she shared with Livvy. “So this is paid for entirely with you and Olivia’s salaries, huh?”

Lea bristled. “It was less than $210,000, Tim.”

“Right, yeah,” he nodded agreeably. “And how much of that are you having to pay off?”

She pursed her lips at him. “I don’t know exactly.”

“Uh huh.” He smirked, and she knew from his expression that before he’d even mentioned the house, he’d been fully cognizant of the fact that thanks to the money she and Livvy had saved up (most of it from the downright appalling sum of money he sent every month), they had put half of the total cost of the house as a down payment, which meant that they split the mortgage, each covering just over four hundred a month.

So their lives were a bit easier because of the money he gave Livvy. Big deal. It didn’t matter. He didn’t matter. 

That’s what she’d spent the last thirty-seven months telling herself. He didn’t matter. He was irrelevant.

Tim was looking at her still, and she fidgeted nervously under his gaze. “I divorced Crystal,” he told her finally.

Lea stared at him. “Congratulations,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

He didn’t look away from her, just took a step closer. She took one back, and he sighed. “I’m not… I’m not with anyone right now, either.”

Lea snorted, finding that very hard to believe. “Did your harem up and leave? How sad for you.”

He shook his head, taking another step towards her. She took two back, and his lips set into a firm line. “No,” he said softly, “I told the other girls that there was someone I wanted that I had lost, and I wanted her more than I wanted anyone else.”

Tears filled her eyes again, and she shook her head firmly, backing away further. “No,” she insisted. “Nope. Not… not listening to this. I’m not.”

“Lea,” he breathed, sounding very miserable indeed, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry I hurt you. I didn’t mean to hurt you. Hurting you was the last thing I wanted. I never wanted to leave you alone when you were pregnant. If I had known…” he trailed off, watching her cover her face with her hands so he wouldn’t see her crying. “If I had known, I would’ve been there.”

“I didn’t want you there,” Lea snapped through her tears. “I don’t want you here now, either.”

“I know,” he told her gently, placatingly, “but I’m here and I’m not going anywhere. Never again. I never forgot you, y’know.” He reached out to brush his fingertips against the pendant she wore. “I’m glad you didn’t forget me, either.”

As soon as she felt the necklace shift under his touch, however, her hands fell from her face and she backed away further, until she was standing against the side of the house. Tim followed after her, his steps slow, almost hesitant.

She was shaking her head emphatically at him, but still, he kept speaking. “I could get a lawyer and take you to court,” he pointed out. “I could have a judge order a paternity test so I could sue for custody to see my son, but I don’t want to do that.”

“You’re not taking him from me,” she growled, glaring fiercely up at him as he came to a stop in front of her.

“That’s not what I want,” Tim told her again.

She was terrified—petrified, really—to ask, but she had to. “What do you want?”

Her palms were flat against the bricks of the house, and he reached out to take one of her hands in his. She knew what he was up to, though, and hastily shoved her hands behind her back. With him so close, she felt that tingling she knew so well between her thighs, but she steadfastly ignored it.

Tim sighed in frustration, leaning one shoulder against the wall. “You,” he murmured, looking down at her with hooded eyes. “I’ve always wanted you. I can’t let you go again.”

The bastard was damned and determined to rip her to shreds all over again, wasn’t he?

“I’m not getting back with you,” she snapped. “I’m not subjecting Theo to whatever… disgusting lifestyle you have in mind. I’m not doing it.”

“I don’t think you’re picturing what I’m picturing, sweetheart,” he told her. “Besides, you really think I’m letting you get away from me a second time?” Tim asked incredulously. “You are mine. I am never, never, letting you go. If you try to disappear on me again, I’ll find you. I’ve found you and I’m not giving you up again. Start thinking about what kind of dress you wanna wear, because I’m not letting you refuse me.”

“Are you crazy?” Lea demanded, continuing to disregard the desire pooling in her stomach, in her panties. “While you’re still fucking other girls? You’re— you’re married, for fuck’s sake!”

He shook his head, grinning down at her. “One, no, I’m divorced, remember? And two, if I wasn’t, you’d still let me have you and we both know it. Three, if you do try to get away from me, I don’t care. It doesn’t matter. I spent three years aching for you, and I’m not spending another fucking second without you next to me. I won’t do it. You’re mine, you’ve always been mine, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

“I am not—“

He leaned closer, cutting her off before she’d even finished her sentence. “If I told you to get on your knees and let me fuck your mouth right here and now, you would. If I told you to get in my car and let me take you somewhere I can remind you who owns you, you would. You wouldn’t even question it. Don’t try and tell me otherwise. We both know it would be a lie.”

He fished around in his pocket, pulling a small ring box out. “What the hell is that?” Lea demanded shrilly.

He opened the box, pulled a ring out, snapped the box shut again, and shoved it back in his pocket. “Y’know,” he began quietly, “I told myself, ‘if I ever find Lea again, I’m going to give her a ring that shows her how much she means to me. How much I love her.’” He looked up at her, smiling softly as his gaze fixed upon her left hand. “I thought for awhile that nothing could possibly be good enough.” He took her shaking hand in his, holding it gently, and slid the ring on her finger.

It was silver, covered in diamonds, and had a large stone the same shade of cornflower blue as the necklace. 

She wasn’t sure why she hadn’t thought of it before, but she remembered what he’d said when he’d given it to her, that Zendaya had pulled some strings; a half-forgotten ad in a fashion magazine with Zendaya wearing what looked suspiciously like—

She didn’t know why it had never occurred to her that the large blue stone might be a sapphire. She truly had no idea. Maybe she hadn’t wanted to consider it.

He was watching her face, observing the expressions that crossed over it with rapt attention.

“What is this, Tim?” she breathed, staring at the ring with some strange mix of shock, awe, and horror, reaching up to touch the sapphire.

A sapphire the size of her thumb, what the fuck—

“It’s called the Serpenti Ocean Treasure necklace,” he informed her. “And this—“ he brushed his thumb over the ring he’d slid onto her finger— “is the matching ring.”

“I don’t understand,” she breathed shakily. “I— I don’t understand.”

“We’re getting married,” he informed her simply.

“No,” Lea said immediately. “No, we’re not. You can’t make me.”

“I could,” he corrected casually, “but I won’t have to. You’re mine. I’ll bet you haven’t even fucked anyone else, have you?”

She winced, looking away from him. It was true—why bother with anyone else? No one could compare to him, and she wasn’t exactly eager to bother with men a second time around—, but she hadn’t intended to tell him that.

He caged her in against the wall of the house. “You’re mine,” he repeated. “I don’t care if you’ve forgotten. You’re still mine, and I’ll take great pleasure in reminding you of that fact.”

The worst part of all this was, in Lea’s opinion, the fact that Tim knew her so goddamn well, even after all this time, because this meant that whatever he said about her thoughts and feelings was almost certainly true.

Which was why she was so irritated when he said, “I’ll bet you’re wet for me right now, thinking about how good I can give it to you.” She shifted from one foot to the other, rubbing her thighs together without thinking about it. He noticed, though. “God, you are, aren’t you? All you have to do is ask, angel. You know I’d give you anything you wanted.”

“All I want,” Lea began shakily, “is for you to leave me and my son alone.”

“First of all,” he started, “he’s my son, too. And second, that’s unfortunate, because that’s the only thing I’m not willing to give you.” She scoffed, looking off to the side. They were in the shadow of the house, the sunlight shining brightly around them. “But I don’t think you want that. Not really.”

She didn’t. She could admit that to herself, in her own mind. But she wasn’t about to say it out loud. She might want to give into him, but she knew—she knew—what being with him would do to her, and she couldn’t afford to go through it again. “He’s barely your son,” she informed him. “You were there for his conception and, like, a month of the pregnancy and that’s it.”

“You mean I was with you for a whole month while you were pregnant,” he began slowly, “and I didn’t even get to enjoy it properly?”

Lea rolled her eyes. “Boo hoo,” she whined mockingly, “poor Timmy, didn’t get to see one of his fifteen thousand girlfriends pregnant. Cry me a goddamn river.”

“Okay,” he decided with a frown, “let me explain something to you, because I don’t think you fully understand.” She raised an eyebrow at him expectantly, and he continued. “I don’t have any girlfriends. Once you left me, I realized I couldn’t see anyone else romantically. Not at all. I wanted you and no one else.”

“Don’t tell me you haven’t—“

“Oh, I’ve slept with other people since you, yeah,” he confirmed, “but I think of you the entire time. Every single time I’m with someone, I close my eyes and pretend she’s you.”

Lea shook her head firmly, but he cupped her cheek to hold her steady.

“I never stopped loving you, Lea,” he told her quietly as she looked up at him with wide eyes, “and now that I’ve found you again, I’m not letting you go. Not even if you want me to. I’m sorry. I love you too much to let you leave me again.”

Her lips parted, and Tim’s eyes flitted down to them. “I can’t,” she breathed, her tone almost apologetic. “I can’t watch you with other girls again. I can’t do it. It almost killed me last time.”

He smiled softly at her, stroking her cheek with his thumb. “So as long as I promise never to touch another woman outside of work, you’ll say yes?”

Lea shook her head, clenching her eyes shut. “No,” she told him. “Not even then. I’m sorry.”

He stepped back. “Why?” She opened her eyes, and he looked frustrated. Angry, even. “Why not? You still love me, I can see it in your eyes when you look at me. So why?”

She sighed, crossing an arm over herself to cup her elbow and lowering her gaze to his feet. “I believe that you would try,” she admitted. “I think you really would try to stick with just me.” Then the tears started again, and she wiped them away. “But you wouldn’t be able to for very long, Tim,” she sniffled. “I know you, and I know you’d really give it your best, but then you’ll be faced with the prospect of going back to your hotel room alone again, and you’ll give in because that’s how you are.” He started to interrupt her, but she rushed on. “And because you’re such an unfailingly good person, you’d come back home to me and Theo and tell me immediately, because I know you’d want to be honest with me, and I’d just—“ she cut herself off on a sob. “I’d fall apart. You'd rip me to shreds, and I have a kid now. I can’t afford to let you do that to me again.” A deep, shuddering breath. “The worst thing is, a concerningly large part of me wants to say yes, to follow you anywhere the way we used to talk about, but I can’t. I don’t get to have that. It’s not in the cards for me.”

Tim was silent for a few moments, listening to her soft sniffles. “Then get new cards.”

She blinked tearfully at him. “Wh— what?”

Stepping towards her again, he repeated, “Get new cards.” She stared at him in disbelief, so he took her hands in his, rubbing the sapphire in her ring with his thumb. “You’re worried about who I’m with? That’s fine. Come with me. You can come with me everywhere I go. You want me to take a few years off work so I can spend them with you and Theo, I will. You want me to come forward about being with you, I will.”

More tears slid down her cheeks, and when he reached up to brush them away, she closed her eyes, trying not to lean into his touch. “I couldn’t ask you to do that,” she breathed. “I don’t want you to put doing what you love on hold, and I know you value your privacy.”

“Yeah,” he agreed, “but I value you more.”

His hand was on her waist, his breath was on her lips, and she realized that she was going to give into him. He wanted her, maybe even loved her in his own way, and she was going to let him make her his again.

Lea had just started to lift her chin, a sure sign that yes, she wanted this, she wanted this desperately, but then the door opened, and she was promptly brought back to her senses.

Her head whipped around, and she immediately recognized the long skirts of her mother, Rosalie, who stepped out onto the concrete, Theo on her hip.

Rosalie only required one look at the pair of them for her to deduce what was happening. Before she could make any sort of remark, however, Theo asked brightly, “What’re you doing, Mama?”

Lea swallowed, and Tim stepped back from her. “Hey, sweetie,” she addressed her son shakily, holding her arms out for him. 

He went to her happily, immediately nestling against her. Rosalie’s gaze was fixed on Tim, however. “Lea,” she began without taking her eyes off him, “I don’t believe you’ve introduced me to our guest.”

She recognized it immediately when he switched into charm mode, because he cranked it all the way up. “Hi,” he exclaimed with a wide smile. “I’m Timothée. It’s so nice to meet you.” Instead of shaking her proffered hand, he took it in both of his. Rosalie pursed her lips, but Lea knew her mother well enough to recognize the smile she was fighting. “I’m an old friend of your daughter’s,” he explained.

Despite being nearly a foot shorter than he was, Rosalie still managed to look down her nose at him. “I have three daughters,” she pointed out. “Which one are you referring to?”

“Lea,” he said with a good-natured laugh. “I spoke with Lina briefly a few years ago, but I’m afraid I haven’t had the chance to meet Ari yet.”

Rosalie smiled a bit at that, clearly appreciating that he paid attention to Lea when she talked about her family. She must’ve known the second she saw Tim, but still, she took a moment to look between him and Theo before addressing Lea directly. “It’s him, isn’t it?”

Tim winced slightly.

Lea said nothing.

Rosalie nodded before turning back around. “Well,” she sighed, “if you want any cake, you’d better get inside before it’s gone.”

“Give me a few minutes with Theo here,” Lea said. “Tim, go spend some time with Cassie. She’s been asking for you all day.”

Rosalie turned back around. “Why would Cassie be asking for him?”

Lea glared at her mother wordlessly, motioning for Tim to follow her inside.

“You’re Cassie’s father, too, I take it?”

Lea watched as his Adam’s apple bobbed. “Um. Yes ma’am.”

Rosalie pursed her lips again, but didn’t voice her opinion. Lea was most grateful for this.

She stared after them as the door shut. Now for the daunting task of explaining to her two and a half year old that the man he’d just met was his father.

Joy.

Theo had handled it remarkably well. He was all excitement and bubbly energy, eager to get to know his daddy.

He’d marched right up to where Tim was standing in front of where Cassie sat, waiting patiently for her candles to be lit so she could eat her cake. Theo put his hands on his hips, looking very much like his mother, grandmother, and even his aunts, looked Tim in the eye, and demanded, “Are you my daddy?”

All chatter at the party stopped, save for the children who were too young to understand. Tim knelt down, getting on Theo’s level, and said, “Hello, Theo. It’s very nice to meet you. My name is Timothée.” Lea watched as Tim’s shoulders tensed in anticipation for their son’s reaction. “And yeah, I’m your daddy.”

Theo stared at his father for a few seconds before throwing his arms around him. “What took you so long?” he asked into Tim’s neck.

Tim’s arms circled around him, holding the little boy close. “I’m sorry, buddy. I’m here now.”

“You’re gonna stay?” Theo asked tearfully.

“Yeah,” Tim told him softly, lifting his gaze to meet Lea’s. “I’m not going anywhere.” He stood, holding Theo for the first time, and Lea looked away, tears in her eyes. She wasn’t sure if they were from joy, sorrow, or some fucked up blend of the two. Taking a deep breath, Tim addressed the room. “Um… hi, everyone. For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Timothée.”

He was met with wordless stares. 

Gulping, he went on, “I just found out that Theo is my son, which is very exciting.” He paused. More silence. “And I’m also thrilled to announce that now that I’ve found the love of my life again, we’re engaged.”

Lea forced out an awkward, nervous laugh. “He’s joking,” she assured the gawking crowd of guests. “He’s not Theo’s father, and we are absolutely not engaged. It’s a misunderstanding.”

“What’s endaged?” Theo asked cheerfully.

“It’s when someone is gonna marry someone else,” Tim informed him with a smile.

“You’re gonna be married?” the little boy clarified, his eyes wide.

“I am.”

“Who?” Theo demanded.

Tim gestured to Lea.

“Mama?!” their son exclaimed.

“No, honey,” Lea interrupted gently, even as Tim nodded. “He’s being silly.”

Theo’s eyes filled with tears. “You’re not marrying Daddy?”

At this point, Lea’s sisters appeared to have heard enough. All the Blanchard women had a tendency to be fiercely protective of each other. It was therefore no surprise whatsoever that both her quiet older sister, Lina, as well as her carefree younger sister, Ari, stepped forward to examine the interaction between father and son, their eyes narrowed suspiciously in a way resembling Lea—even Rosalie—so closely that Timothée was downright astonished at how similar their mannerisms were.

Ari opened her mouth to say something, but Livvy spoke first. “Okay,” she said cheerfully, “everybody outside! Cake and presents in a bit!”

“But why?” Cassie whined.

“Because you want to play in the princess carriage,” Livvy informed her daughter helpfully.

“I want to play after I have cake,” Cassie corrected.

“All your friends want to play in the princess carriage,” her mother said, leading her outside by the hand. The other parents took the hint, leading their grumbling children out the door until Lea and found herself alone with Tim, who was still holding their son.

He looked like he was about to cry. “Why won’t you marry daddy?” he asked, his lower lip wobbling pitifully.

“Daddy used to be my… special friend,” she said delicately.

Tim snorted. 

She glared at him.

“Are you special friends now?”

Lea moved into the living room, collapsing on the couch in exhaustion. Tim followed her, watching her expression closely. “No, baby,” she told him softly. “No, we’re not.”

Theo considered this. “Why not?”

“I don’t think your mama wants to be special friends with Daddy anymore,” Tim explained, sitting down across from Lea.

Their son frowned outright now. “Why not?” he repeated. “Did you used to kiss like other mommies and daddies?”

Lea winced, but Tim answered on her behalf. “We did.”

“The daddies at school tell the mommies they love them,” Theo pointed out. “Do you tell Mama you love her?

“I haven’t seen your mama in a long time,” he said slowly, “but yes, I told her before you were born, and I told her when I saw her again.”

Theo crossed his arms, pouting at his mother. “Then why won’t you marry Daddy?”

Tim answered for her again. “She doesn’t believe me.”

“Would you lie to Mama?” Theo demanded, angry on his mother’s behalf.

“No,” his father said simply, fixing his gaze on Lea. “I’d never lie to her. It’s okay that she doesn’t believe me, though. I’ll tell her I love her until she does. She’s going to marry me anyway.”

“You’re delusional,” she snapped.

Her tone made Theo decide to jump down from Tim’s lap and run over to her, clutching the skirt of her dress. “Mama,” he started, but then the front door opened.

Livvy came in, carrying a duffel bag Lea knew all too well. She shoved it into Lea’s arms, grabbing her keys and wallet from her purse. “Here,” her traitorous friend panted, “it’s your stupid escape bag.”

“How did you—“

“I’m your best friend and roommate,” she snapped impatiently. “Theo, cover your ears.” He did so obediently, looking on with wide eyes. “This man,” Livvy started, pointing her finger at Tim, “has been in love with you for a very long time. He bought that ridiculous ring before you were even in the third trimester, and if you don’t spend some goddamn time with him, I swear I’ll change the fucking locks so you can’t get back in.” Lea clutched the duffel bag, staring up at her friend in shock. “I’m sick of hearing his mopey ass lovesick bullshit. Neither of you are moving on, so you’re going to go with him to whatever stupid rich boy hotel he’s staying at, and you’re not going to come back until Monday.”

“But Theo—“

“Theo will be fine,” Livvy insisted, crossing her arms. “Go talk this out like adults. Or fuck it out. I don’t care. Just deal with it.”

With that, she took Theo by the hand and led him outside.

Tim was silent and motionless for a few seconds before pulling out his phone and tapping away at it. “My driver will be here in a minute or two.”

Lea tensed. “I’m not going with you.” 

He arched an eyebrow at her, skepticism written all over his face. “Seems to me like you don’t have anywhere else to go.”

Lea rolled her eyes. “I could stay at my mom’s,” she ticked off a finger, “I could stay at Lina’s,” another finger, “or I could stay at Ari’s.” A third finger. “I’ll just tell Livvy I went with you and things didn’t work out and we’ll never, ever see each other again. Everybody wins.”

Tim stood slowly, walking towards her like she was going to book it at any second. “No,” he said flatly. She bristled, about to object, but he continued before she could speak. “No, that’s not what’s going to happen. You’re going to come back to my hotel with me. We’re going to talk about this. We’re going to decide on how long of an engagement we want, and then we’re going to start planning the move.”

“The move?!” she sputtered furiously. “I have a life here, you jackass, you can’t just uproot it—“

He frowned. “You told me when we first met that your dream was to design costumes for Broadway. Is that still true?”

Lea tensed.

“I thought so,” he said with a single nod. “I can get you that job, you realize. Very, very easily. All I’d have to do is make a phone call.”

“I don’t need your stupid nepotism—“

Tim rolled his eyes. “Why not?” he asked. “You deserve everything you want, and what I want is to be the one to give it to you.”

“I don’t—“

He knelt down in front of her, taking her hands in his, and her words were cut off the second she felt the warmth of his skin, his large hands holding hers. “Think about it,” he begged. “Just— just think about it for a second, okay?” He searched her face, his eyes flitting between both of hers. “Whatever kind of childhood you want Theo to have, I can give him. Whatever life you want for yourself, I can give you. You wanna travel? I'll take you anywhere you want. You want Theo to attend the best private schools in the world? He’ll attend the best private schools in the world. You want a job? You can have any job you want. You never want to work another day in your life? That sounds fucking fantastic, I’d get to keep you in my bed all the goddamn time—“

Lea bristled at the mention of their history, what she’d wanted three years ago.

“Just tell me what you want, sweetheart. Ask me for the world and it’s yours.”

She lowered her gaze to where his hands clasped hers in her lap. “Tim…”

“Come with me, mon amour,” he begged. “Come with me. Let me show you how good we can have it. Let me remind you what we were meant for. Please, baby.”

Her lower lip wobbled, and a tear slipped from her eye. “I can’t,” she breathed. “I wish— I wish I could. God, do I wish I could.”

“I’m not letting you go again,” he reminded her, his voice firm and gentle at the same time. “I’m asking you because I love you and I want you to choose to come with me, but even if you don’t agree, you’re coming with me anyway.”

She rolled her eyes, another tear sliding down her cheek. “You’re so goddamn controlling—“

“Yep,” he agreed happily, “I’m very controlling when it comes to you. But I know you, and you think it’s hot, so.”

Lea pursed her lips, scrunching up her nose at him with a glare. “I do not,” she insisted firmly, steadfastly ignoring the ever-present desire she felt whenever he was near. He just did that to her. It was fine. He’d always done that to her.

“You do,” he said with that stupidly overconfident smirk of his. “You very much do. I’m not oblivious to the effect I have on you, y’know.”

Lea looked away, blushing bright red.

“Fucking hell, you’re adorable,” he muttered. Then, shaking his head as if to dispel thoughts of her apparent adorableness from his mind, he decided, “Okay, time to go,” and pulled her to her feet.

“What?” Lea squeaked, lurching away from him. “No, I most certainly am not going with you!”

He groaned in frustration, putting his hands on his hips. “Lea,” he began with what was very obviously forced patience, “do you want our son to see his father carry his mother to the car kicking and screaming? Because it sounds to me like that’s what you’re going for here.”

She blanched, mentally weighing her options. After a tense beat of silence, she sighed. “Fine.”

Tim reached over to wrap an arm around her waist, but she backed away from him with a scowl.

“I do not want to stay with you until Monday,” she griped.

“Why not?” he asked with a pout. “It’s Wednesday, so we’ll get lots of time together.”

“Yes,” Lea said slowly, as if he were a child who didn’t understand something she’d just told him, “that’s largely why I’m so against this.”

He hummed, taking the duffel back from her despite her protests. “Hush, I’m carrying it,” he brushed her off with a dismissive wave of his hand. “And anyway, you want to know what I think?”

She very much did not, actually, but he didn’t give her the chance to say so.

“I think,” he continued as he strolled towards the door, “that you’re fully aware of the fact that you’re going to say yes. I think you’re fully aware of the fact that in…” He furrowed his brows in thought. “Two hours or less, I’m thinking? Yeah, that sounds about right. In two hours or less, you’re going to be begging me to touch you. You know this, and it both scares and embarrasses you. It’s okay, though,” he reassured with a grin. “You know you never have to be embarrassed with me.”

She wanted to point out that he’d said that three years ago, and therefore it no longer applied. Her body was… it was different than when he’d seen it last. It had changed with her pregnancy. She had stretch marks in places she didn’t before. It didn’t matter, though. She had no intention of getting involved with him again. Sure, he’d fuck her, but it would be in more ways than one, and she couldn’t deal with any of them.

The party was going on in front of the house, and only Livvy seemed to notice the pair heading towards the ridiculously fancy, ridiculously shiny black car. She grinned, and Lea flipped her off. Livvy outright laughed at that.

Tim opened the door for her, and she slid in, holding her purse firmly in her lap. He popped open the trunk, closed it again, and slid in next to her with a bright smile. “Mr. Chalamet,” his driver—a burly man with a bushy mustache—greeted before meeting Lea’s eyes in the rear view mirror. “Ma’am.”

“Hello,” she greeted awkwardly, buckling herself in.

“Lea, meet Jerry,” Tim said cheerfully. “Jerry, meet my fiancée, Lea.”

Lea swatted his arm, hissing, “I am not—“

He grinned indulgently at her. “Whatever you say.”

She glared at him, but he just nodded at Jerry, who started the engine and raised the partition. She didn’t even know cars that weren’t limos could have partitions.

She heard him tapping on his phone. “Who are you texting?” she demanded. He insisted she come with him and he was gonna text on the drive over?

“My mom,” he told her, sounding very pleased with himself indeed. “I’m thinking a house here, one in New York, and one in LA. What do you think? Do you want more than that, or is that good?”

She stared at him, gaping. “Wh— what?”

Tim paused, lifting his gaze to hers. “Well,” he said slowly, “we’ll need a house. Definitely more than one, since I travel so much and I don’t intend to let you stay at home all the time. We never got to travel as much as I wanted.”

“You took me to Greece on a private jet,” she reminded him, her voice flat.

“Ah, yes,” he recalled with a smile, leaning back against his seat. “I remember. You were so loud that the flight attendants wouldn’t look directly at us when we disembarked—“

“Timothée!” she gasped, horrified.

He shrugged, continuing to text. “Well you were!” 

“I don’t like to remember those things,” Lea snapped sharply, staring out the window and watching the houses pass by as they moved closer to downtown.

“Why not?” he asked softly, sadly. “I think about them almost constantly. For a long time, those memories were all I had left of you.”

“I had plenty to remember you by,” she pointed out, leaning her forehead against the tinted glass of the window. “If I could’ve erased the memories, erased all connection to you, believe me, I would’ve.”

He was silent for a moment. “Even Theo?”

“No,” Lea told him quietly. Then, a bit louder, “I’d definitely erase his genetic ties to his sperm donor, however.”

“You can say Dad,” he reminded her, sounding dejected. “I’m… I’m his dad. I want to be his dad.”

She closed her eyes, fighting back the tears that stung behind her eyelids. “I know, Tim,” she whispered, barely loud enough for him to hear her. “I know.”

When they rolled to a stop in front of what she surmised was his hotel, he rushed to open the door for her, insisting on carrying her duffel bag again, as well. She rolled his eyes at his pointless attempts at chivalry. 

Her feelings about the whole situation changed very quickly upon looking up and seeing the hotel he was staying at, however. She looked up at it, and there it was: a tall building covered in blue windows. He held out a hand to her, and she was so shocked by what she was seeing that she reverted back to her long-gone habit of putting her hand in his and letting him lead her anywhere he liked.

He was wearing sunglasses and a hoodie, the way he often did when he didn’t want to be noticed. They walked to the hotel entrance, and looking up at him now, with the late afternoon sun glinting off his sunglasses and his hair blowing slightly in the summer breeze, it occurred to her that he was even sexier at twenty-nine than he’d been at twenty-six, which was saying something because she used to joke that he could impregnate someone from a look alone. Turns out it required a bit more than that, but y’know. You live and you learn.

“Tim,” she said quietly, and he looked down at her with a smile. 

She pulled her hand away, and his face fell a bit, but he still looked hopeful. Like a puppy, almost. Ugh.

“What, uh…” She gulped nervously as they stepped inside the ridiculously swanky hotel. “What hotel is this, exactly?”

He thought for a second, pushing his sunglasses up onto his head. “Ritz-Carlton, I think. Why?”

Her head was spinning. “This is a really fancy hotel,” she pointed out weakly.

He shrugged, walking towards the elevator with the long, confident strides of someone who did not feel at all out of place.

They rode the elevator, and he rocked back and forth on his feet. Lea fidgeted with her hair anxiously. At the very top floor, there were three sets of doors, all very far apart from one another. Tim hummed a tune she didn’t recognize as he fished in his back pocket for his wallet and before locating the keycard necessary to open the carved double doors.

When she stepped inside, her heart stopped.

Patterned marble tile in the entryway, a study to her right, a bathroom to her left, and in front of her… in front of her was a large archway, and what looked to be a living room. A large sectional sofa occupied a good chunk of the space, and a crystal chandelier hung from the vaulted ceiling. There was a TV, as well as several large floor-length windows, it looked like. She stepped inside hesitantly, feeling unsure of herself despite the ginormous-ass sapphires she was wearing.

“This…” She gulped. “This is your hotel room?”

“Yeah,” he confirmed cheerfully, then paused. “Why, do you not like it? We can get a different one—“

Lea shook her head. “No, there’s no need to… to do that. It’s just… it’s a lot. I guess I kinda forgot that you just… live like this.”

His smile widened. “Now you can again, too.”

She blushed at the implication that they were back together and examined her feet. “So, um… where’s my room?”

A suite that huge must have more than one room, right?

He ran off to their right briefly before returning without his hoodie, sunglasses, or her duffel bag. Lea blinked at him, and he was beaming down at her. He was just so goddamn happy.

“C’mon, I’ll show you around,” he said with a grin. “Office through there,” he declared, pointing to the right of the entryway. Then he pointed to the left. “Bathroom is there.” He took her hand then, and she found herself following him again. “This is the living room, obviously,” he said, gesturing around them before pointing directly ahead. “Balconies have some cool views of the city, but there are no chairs or anything.”

She stared up at him in disbelief. “Sorry— balconies?”

“Yeah,” Tim confirmed casually, sounding mildly impatient to get on with things, leading her left. “Bar,” he pointed out as he passed a wet bar pressed against the wall. “Though knowing you, you probably still don’t drink, huh? That’s fine. I am definitely having a cigarette with something later, though.”

Lea couldn’t really blame him for that. It had been a pretty stressful day, and all he’d signed up for was his daughter’s third birthday party.

“Dining room,” he said as they neared a large table that sat under a proportionately large chandelier. He strolled through a doorway, pulling her after him. “Kitchen,” he declared with a wave towards a small but fully equipped kitchen. Actually, she couldn’t very well call it small, really, because it was approximately the same size as her own kitchen.

“And, uh…” She gulped, though she wasn’t entirely sure why, exactly. “What about my room?”

Tim nodded, smiling over his shoulder at her, mischief dancing in his eyes, and her heart pounded in her chest.

He led her across the living room, past the TV, and through a set of French doors. Directly ahead of her were two sliding doors that met in the middle, leading down a hallway lined with shelves. She gathered from the clothes he had hanging up that it was a closet, but wasn’t this supposed to be her room? Maybe it was a shared closet. Surely that’s what it was. It had to be; he’d put her duffel bag in there. 

On the other side of the closet, there was a chair sitting in front of a vanity table, it looked like. Closer to her, however, directly to her left, there was an archway through which she caught sight of what looked like an exceptionally large bathtub. 

“That’s the main bathroom,” Tim explained when he saw her looking at it. “It has two of everything: two toilets, two sinks, two showers. Only one bathtub, though.” He glanced down at her briefly. “Not that I mind, of course.”

Memories of the last time she’d ridden him in the bath flashed behind her eyelids with every blink— water splashing, him licking droplets of it off her breasts before capturing a nipple between his lips and sucking, him moaning her name, her moaning his, begging him for more, god, Tim—

She shook her head slightly, and he smirked as if he knew exactly what memory she’d been visiting.

Tim gestured to an archway directly across from the one leading to the bathroom. “This is the bedroom.”

The bedroom. Not your bedroom. Not my bedroom. The bedroom.

Heart thudding insistently against her ribcage, Lea tucked her hair behind her ears. “So… where do we, like.” She laughed awkwardly. “Where do we sleep?”

He frowned at her. “In the bed…?”

She’d been afraid of this. Pursing her lips, she grabbed her duffel bag.

“Where are you going?” Tim asked, sounding a bit concerned. 

“To change. None of these rooms have any real doors,” she pointed out, heading off in the direction of the half-bath in the entryway.

“Oh,” he said. “There's sliding doors and stuff…” His voice was a bit hesitant when he called after her.

“I’d prefer something with a lock.”

With that, she locked herself in the small bathroom. Actually, in retrospect, this “tiny” half-bath in her ex-boyfriend’s unnecessarily large hotel suite was approximately the same size as her own bathroom, and she had the master, for god’s sake. Ugh.

Either way, she changed into her most modest nightgown, choosing to leave her bra on.

There was a blanket in her duffle bag that she had every intention of wrapping around her so he couldn’t see her in her nightgown. It wasn’t even that immodest, really. It reached just above her knees, showed no cleavage whatsoever, and had a cute ruffle at the bottom. Plus, she’d gotten it on clearance at Target. The issue was that it was partially see-through. This meant he’d be able to see her panties and bra through the thin white linen, which was… unacceptable, quite frankly. Hence, blanket.

But still, her makeup. Especially that lipstain and mascara, ho boy. She needed some kind of remover before she went to sleep or she’d break out like she was thirteen all over again. 

“Tim,” she called once she’d fished through her entire duffel bag. By the time she stuck her head out of the bathroom door to call for him again, he was standing right outside, looking entirely too pleased that she’d called for him. Lea fought the urge to roll her eyes. He was so transparent. “I don’t suppose you have any makeup remover?”

He furrowed his brows, considering this before nodding and running off again. When he returned,

It was with a bag of cotton balls and a small bottle of what was likely very expensive makeup remover. She took one look at it and decided immediately that she’d use it very sparingly. It felt… wrong to use his things when they weren’t together, weren’t even friends. The more expensive the thing in question, the more wrong it felt.

“Do you need anything else?” Tim asked eagerly.

“No thank you,” she told him politely, smiling tightly and shutting the door again. She heard him sigh once the lock clicked into place, and it was a good thirty seconds before he walked off again.

By the time Lea finished removing her makeup, she had decided that she had long since earned a nap. She liked to be cocooned in when she slept, and since she couldn’t very well sleep in his bed, the shorter side of the sectional would do perfectly. She had to curl her legs up slightly in order to lay down, but once she’d covered herself in her fuzzy blanket and lay her head on one of the throw pillows, she sighed with contentment.

Yeah, she was essentially in hell. In fact, despite being agnostic and therefore thoroughly undecided on the concept of an afterlife, Lea wasn’t entirely sure she hadn’t died and promptly descended into an eternity of being around her ridiculously attractive ex-boyfriend that she was very much still in love with but not allowed to have for her own sanity and the well-being of her child. In any case, if hell existed, this exact scenario was likely hers. 

However, despite that, she was comfortable. She was warm, she was cozy. Maybe it was her exhaustion, but even her bra wasn’t bothering her. She’d just started to drift off to sleep when a voice startled her.

“Lea?” Tim asked, sounding concerned. “Shit, sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you, but what’re you doing out here? The bed is way softer, and the pillows are just the way you like them. It even has curtains around it to block out light.”

She was so tired. So very, very tired. And sleeping in a bed that smelled like Tim after so long? Forget hell, that sounded like heaven.

“You don’t have to sleep here, sweetheart,” he told her gently. “Will you let me carry you to bed?”

Lea’s eyes were half-closed, but she nodded at him, too sleepy to remember why agreeing was a bad idea. “Mhm,” she hummed, smiling softly at him.

He smiled back at her, gently pulling the blanket from her body. She didn’t notice the way his breath hitched when he saw her nightgown riding up her thighs, or the way one of her breasts appeared to be falling out of her bra because she was laying on her side.

When he picked her up, cradling her to him, she nestled her head into his shirt, inhaling deeply with a contented smile. She was barely awake, and with him holding her like that, it was like the past three years hadn’t happened and he was carrying her to bed after a long day.

“Tim,” she signed happily.

“I’m here, baby,” he murmured, pressing a gentle kiss to her hairline. “I’m here.”

He lay her down, pulling the covers up over her. She nestled in, then frowned when the underwire of her bra constricted against her ribcage, the straps digging into her shoulders. “Tim,” she complained lazily.

“Yeah?” he asked as he pulled the balcony curtains closed.

“Can you help me with my bra?”

He took a deep, shuddering breath. “Of course, angel.”

Lea turned over, and he reached beneath her nightgown to undo her bra expertly, sliding the straps from her shoulders. She pulled the offending garment the rest of the way off, flinging it across the room in annoyance. It landed on a couch that was up against the wall, and Tim stared at where he could now see the shadows of her nipples through the fabric of her nightgown, the way her breasts moved as she breathed, and he couldn’t help it. He stripped down to his boxers and got in next to her, pulling the curtains around the bed closed.

She immediately nestled in close to him, assuming the sudden weight on the mattress was Theo. “Did you have a nightmare, sweetie?” she asked, almost entirely asleep.

Tim cupped her cheek, tracing the lines of her face with gentle fingertips. “It’s me, Lea.”

She smiled softly, shifting closer to him. “Tim.”

“Yeah,” he breathed. “God, I missed this with you. I missed you so much, baby.”

Lea hummed, mumbling, “‘m here.” She yawned, burying her face in his neck. “Love you.”

He wrapped an arm around her, pulling her as close to him as she could possibly get. “I love you, too.”

Yeah this chapter is over 11k don’t worry about it

Tag list: @meetmyothersouls @ellamaianderson @shika1200 @blackqueenstarseed1 @gatoenlaciudad @esmaada @mariaelizabeth21-blog1 @softhecreator @timolaurence @timmymyluv @oddlyenoughiamweird @leecrunchybones @s-we-e-t-t-ea @almostg @vampire-reanimator

To be added, please ask 💗

[ofwrxth]

BASICS

Name: Katherine “Kat” Anderson

Age & Birthday: 37, May 2, 1986

Gender/Pronouns: cis woman, she & her

Birthplace: Atlanta, Georgia

Time in Atlanta: 37 Years

Neighborhood: Center Hill

Association: Reapers

Occupation: Member & Owner of Center Hill Cuts

Positive personality traits:  devoted, realistic, reliable, resourceful, scrappy 

Negative personality traits: caustic, stubborn, uncompromising, vindictive 

Faceclaim: Emmy Rossum

ABOUT

tw: domestic abuse, verbal abuse

Kat’s mom never wanted to be a mom and she spent most of Kat's life reminding her of it. Abby Anderson had wanted to get the hell out of dodge but every time she tried to leave, Pete would find a way to drag her back. Still, she was unhappy and made sure Kat knew just how much. After all, she hadn't wanted to get stuck with an abusive piece of shit, have him show face around town, only to come home and let loose his anger. Kat remembers the first time her mom tried to leave and how her dad slashed her tires. She'd only been eight at the time but she didn't blame her. She'd have gotten out too if she could.

Instead, she found ways to be out of the house, running around Center Hill with her three cousins Dusty, Danny and DJ, who needed out of a broken home too. Mischief was never far when she was with them, chaos outside the home providing a welcome distraction from the chaos within. She’d waste hours with them and their friends, avoiding going home when she could until she was sure Pete would be passed out on the couch or her mother was holed up in the main bedroom. Kat would sneak into her room and hope he was gone in the morning and that her mom had forgotten she existed.

Her dad had had a shitty life and he, like his brother, decided to take it out on the people closest to him. Her mother had always wanted a different life, free of the things that kept her tied to Center Hill. Kat got used to shattered glass and angry back hands from her father and blunt comments about how she'd ruined her mother's life (and figure) by being born. She got used to both, but she got angry. She used to curl up with a pack of six-month old frozen peas pressed to her cheek and dream of the ways her dad could die and her mother disappear.

As she got older, Kat finally found her voice. Like a wild thing, she’d scream and throw things back at her dad, their house alight with noise and brimming with anger. She's spit venom at her mom. She resented her but she hated him. She hated Bobby. She hated the fact that their shitty lives became her and her cousins’ shitty lives. 

Eventually her dad didn't come home one day, skipping town because he owed money to the Reapers. Her mother was besides herself, blaming Kat and her recently revealed teen pregnancy by way of one Hunter Cross. She kicked Kat out before eventually skipping town herself. Kat was faced with a tough choice, knowing that one option would forever change her life. It would've been easier to terminate but Kat wanted to prove she was different than her mother and father. She'd raise her kid to be better than she was, and she'd love them harder than she'd ever been loved herself.

It didn't matter that Asher was born early, or that there were complications, Kat knew she'd do anything for him. And so she did. The rest of her life was devoted to giving him a better one than she had. For two years she had her grandmother around, helping out with him while Kat worked hard to pay medical bills, taking any job she could before settling in at Center Hill Cuts.

But nothing is ever easy and the Reapers came calling for payment on behalf of her father, having given a grace period. Eventually she worked out a deal and when the owner of Center Hill Cuts retired and left it to her, she was able to pay off her dad's debts faster.

Over the next few years, Kat kept the shop up and running in Center Hill, paying up to the Reapers and, eventually, deciding to join in. She needed support and the community they provided meant more to her during her early years raising Asher than she could admit.

Since then, the shop has become a Center Hill staple, painstakingly revitalized to be a place where people could hang, doors open and music playing into the late hours of the night. In the past few years, it’s also become a secondary cache for some Repears goods (drugs and weapons) as a front and back up in case of any raids on the clubhouse. What had started out as a shitty debt to pay has paid for itself in what she’s gained through the Reapers: a community of people who looked out for each other. And while she doesn't want Asher involved directly, she's comforted by the fact that she knows that they'll look out for him as one of their own as well.

EXTRA

Kat doesn’t have a fancy degree, but she knows how to hustle and has an abundance of  common sense, both of which have led to a successful business she’s proud to call her own. 

She hadn’t spent as much time watching her dad work but thankfully, he had one employee, an older man named Bernard, who showed her the ropes when she inherited the shop.   

There’s a cat that comes by the barber shop and sits on the stoop every day. She’s named him Stoop Cat officially but most people call him Stoop. 

When her dad left, she tossed all of his shit and claimed the trailer for herself. It became a space where her cousins could crash too since her uncle was like a dark cloud that wouldn’t let up. 

She’s remained close to her cousins and thinks of them more like weird pseudo-brothers. Hiding her spare key from Dusty, she still relents when he needs a place to crash, but only after hosing him down (if she can get to him before he sneaks in…). When Danny was in prison, she’d visit, bringing comics (even though they’re stupid) and was there to pick him up when he got out. With DJ, she gives advice when he asks (and sometimes when he doesn’t) and has been known to stop into Little Goat to lend a hand if she can. She’s also been known to chase Dusty down when he’s snagged some cash, or make fun of Danny’s mispronunciations for a week, or jokingly give DJ a bottle of Xanax with a giant bow for his birthday.

[spctlights]

(—) ★ spotted!! JAMES "JIMMY"  DELANEY on the cover of this week’s most recent tabloid! many say that the 35 year old looks like SAM CLAFLIN, but i don’t really see it. while  the SINGER is known for being VISIONARY my inside sources say that they have a tendency to be IMPULSIVE i swear, every time i think of them, i hear the song ONE DAY AT A TIME –– JOE WALSH

BASIC INFORMATION:

name: james ‘jimmy’ gabriel delaney.

nicknames: jim.

pronouns: he / him.

gender: cis male.

age: thirty-five.

date of birth: august 22nd , ‘87.

place of birth: wicklow , ireland.

astrological sign: leo.

orientation: bisexual.

APPEARANCE:

height: 6 foot 1.

hair colour: light brown , reddish undertones.

eye colour: green.

wardrobe style: think boho 70s aesthetic.

tattoos: various.

piercings: none.

HEALTH:

physical ailments: celiac allergy.

mental ailments: depression , anxiety.

alcohol use: alcoholic.

drug use: uses drugs ( specifically cocaine ) regularly.

addictions: alcohol.

PERSONALITY:

positive traits: visionary , creative , calming.

negative traits: stubborn , self - absorbed , grumpy.

ACTIVITIES & SKILLS:

skills: singing , guitar , songwriting.

weaknesses: impulse control.

languages spoken: english ( fluent ) , irish gaelic ( proficient ).

FAMILY:

father: adam delaney ( deceased , sixty - two  )

mother: unknown ( unknown )

wife: leah delaney nee jones ( deceased , twenty - eight )

pets: collin , border collie ( alive , two )

CAREER/LIFE DETAILS ( tw: cancer , alcoholism , abortion ) :

jimmy was born to ... he doesn’t know. he was born in wicklow , ireland and was raised by his father adam delaney after being placed on his doorstep. his father was an author and columnist , always working from home , and jimmy was never alone. despite not knowing who his mother was , a sore topic for his father and the only subject that he ever avoided , they had a happy life. jimmy was good at school , took guitar and piano lessons , and was overall a pretty happy kid.

when he turned 16 , the interest in who his mother was piqued. he requested his birth records from the county and tracked down a name he found on his records , but when he stood in front of the flat door in dublin , the person that opened the door could not possibly be his mother. grey - haired , walking stick , in her late sixties. however , seeing him at her doorstep didn’t seem to be a surprise. she invited him in and explained.

his mother , someone who had been a close friend of hers but who she was no longer in contact with , had gotten pregnant by his father on accident. she’d panicked. she didn’t want to be a mother , and didn’t want to be found. when he was born , on the side of the road in a car , she’d made the friend promise to help her out. the lady had taken him to the hospital , said she’d found the baby with a note that said adam was the father , but nothing else. no matter how much he pressed , she would not reveal anything more.

some answers but more questions. he returned to his home in wicklow with his dad , and began writing. first journals , to write away his frustration and grief at how it seemed he would never find out who his mother was –– this being long before the time where testing dna and ancestry was easily available. once he’d processed some of the issues , he began writing poetry and putting them over melodies.

however , music always remained a hobby to him. he trained to become an accountant , and met leah on a night out with friends. she was studying to be a nurse , and they hit it off straight away. every minute they had to spare was spent with each other , often even seeking each other out just to sit next to each other and study when exams were coming up. he didn’t mind. as long as he could be near her , he was happy. when they finished school , they moved in together and were engaged soon after.

jimmy was offered a job in the states , and they relocated to san francisco. they bought a house and on the day they got the keys , he leaned down on one knee in their empty living room and proposed. the first few months , the evenings were spent with windows open to the late summer breeze , trying to air out the paint fumes. candles lit despite the electric work being done weeks before , and jimmy playing her every new song he wrote.

three months later , and they got the worst news after leah had been experiencing a cough that wouldn’t go away. stage 4 lung cancer. not only that , but when they found it , she was 8 weeks pregnant. in order to treat the cancer and give her a chance at survival , they decided to terminate the pregnancy. adam moved from ireland to the us to help support them. five months later , he’d lost both of them. his father , first , out of the blue. in the morning , instead of in the kitchen , making them some breakfast , he hadn’t been there. they’d found him cold in the guest room. peaceful , but long gone. three weeks later , he lost leah. on her death bed , she asked him to never give up music , as that was theirs , and that was where she would always be.

he sold the house. it was tained with death. he found a part time job as an accountant and used the sales from the san francisco house to buy a small apartment in pasadena. he drank to drown out the pain. worked on his music. drank more. recorded demos. worked on his music again. recorded his record , got a deal.

his first record , from eden , released in september 2022 , dedicated to leah , and his name has been everywhere ever since , labelling him as the newest ‘up - and - comer ‘.

[xtruss]

How One Black Doctor Brought the Pap to the People! Helen Dickens Was a Crusader Whose Cancer Van Saved Hundreds of Lives

— March 7, 2024 | Kirstin Butler

A Collage Featuring Dr. Helen Octavia Dickens, Hospital Beds, a Microscope, Cancer Cells, and a Van with the Words "American Cancer Society" on the side. Art by Colin Mahoney. Source images from the National Library of Medicine, National Museum of Health and Medicine, Wikimedia.

In 1926, 17-year-old Helen Dickens would sit in the front row of her pre med courses at Crane Junior College in Chicago. Dickens was a dedicated student, but her seating choice in a majority-white academic environment was strategic. “If other students wanted a good seat they had to sit beside me,” she recalled in an interview years later. “This way I didn’t have to look at them or the gestures made that were directed against me.” Dickens went on to become the one Black woman in her graduating class at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, where she met further bigotry with quiet determination. “Her frame of mind was, ‘I'll work through it,’” her daughter Jayne Henderson Brown, also a doctor, told American Experience. “Which she did. It didn't stop her.”

As Dr. Dickens was wrapping up her two-year obstetrics residency, she encountered the next hurdle to her childhood dream of practicing medicine: As a Black woman, white hospitals that employed female doctors didn’t want her, and hospitals serving the Black community hired only men. She was unsure where to go next until, one day, she read a notice on a bulletin board that changed the course of her professional life. It was a letter from Dr. Virginia Alexander, another young Black female doctor, looking for women to join her practice. Alexander ran the Aspiranto Health Home as an alternative birthing center out of her three-story row house in Philadelphia, using her living room as the waiting room and her dining room for treatment. Expectant mothers—some of whom were Black and impoverished, and without other access to care—came to Alexander’s home and received unusually long postpartum care and access to birth control.

Aspiranto was “community service in private practice,” Alexander wrote to Dickens, a “socialized practice of medicine.” Dickens went to Philly, and one year after her arrival took over the home altogether at age 27. The principles behind Aspiranto would guide the way she practiced medicine for the rest of her career. “Alexander helped Dickens to formulate a consciousness around how healthcare could be used as a site of activism,” said Dr. Amina Shakir, who wrote her dissertation about Dickens.

In many ways, Dickens’s background had already primed her to be community-conscious. Her father, Charles, had been born into slavery before escaping and teaching himself to read; he passed when Helen was only eight. “I know when he died,” Dickens later told an interviewer, “he had mortgaged our house to help build a Black meeting hall.” Her father’s death resulted from an infection after a tooth extraction—antibiotics didn’t yet exist—and yet when Dickens was 12, she talked to the family dentist about the possibility of going into medicine. Her father had wanted her to be a nurse, “[b]ut somewhere along the way,” she said, “I decided that if I was going to be a nurse, I might as well become a doctor.”

Dr. Helen Octavia Dickens at her desk. Image courtesy Jayne Henderson Brown.

Over the next seven years of her directorship of Aspiranto, she got the community interaction that she’d always wanted. “It was very exciting,” Dickens remembered of her time leading the birthing center. “You were going into the homes. You were seeing all these people. You were taking responsibility for care of people.” And as one of the first Black female doctors in the city, Dickens saw firsthand the inequity of the healthcare system and the extent to which medicine often marginalized Black women. She dedicated the rest of her life to bringing the best and newest models of care to her own community.

That dedication, during the next chapter of her career, involved getting as many Black women as possible to take a brand new medical test: the pap smear. The test’s namesake was Dr. George Papanicolaou, a Greek immigrant physician who with his wife and lab technician Mary worked for decades to document its efficacy in detecting cervical cancer, then the highest-killing cancer for women. Before the pap smear, cervical cancer was detected by biopsy, which often meant it was too late to treat the disease. “By the time you have symptoms, there's already a mass,” Dr. Henderson Brown explains. “It's already metastasized—liver, lung—and it kills. So the earlier it is detected, the easier it is to prevent the spread.” Dickens, who by the early 1950s had become the first African American board-certified OB/GYN in Philadelphia, proselytized the pap smear’s potential to save her patients’ lives.

Dr. George Papanicolaou Pioneered the Lifesaving Cervical Cancer Screening that now Bears his Name.

First, though, she had to get beyond their historically well-earned distrust of gynecological treatment. The legacy of experimentation and forced sterilization of Black women made them wary of receiving care. “A lot of women are reluctant to get medical checkups that include pelvic exams,” she told the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin—which meant Dickens had to bring the test to them. She did so through clinics and workshops at Black churches; in later years, Dickens even provided free pap tests out of a mobile unit, parking an American Cancer Society van in church parking lots. Dickens also got the National Institutes of Health to fund a program to train other doctors to perform pap tests. “But she doesn't just stop there,” Shakir adds. “She also uses her work to provide statistics on Black women patients for the first time…She's really a forerunner. We take this for granted today because of the ways in which we use patient data.”

Dickens continued her crusade of improving Black women’s medical access in a variety of ways. After joining the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Medicine in 1965, she pioneered a program for pregnant teens. And as the university’s dean for minority affairs, Dickens recruited other potential doctors from underserved communities, as she herself had once been.

All of this work she did matter-of-factly. It was, says Dr. Shakir, “her unrelenting way of making sure that the dignity and humanity of Black women was respected.” Or as her daughter notes, “I meet people all the time who say, ‘your mother delivered me’ or, ‘we really loved your mother.’ So I think her legacy is the gift she gave of healthcare to every woman who came within 10 feet of her.”

[partum-memoriae-muses]

Name: Kairi Hanajima

Series: SK8 The Infinity

Faceclaim: Kyoka Jiro from My Hero Academia

Age: 16

Height: 5'2"

Birthday: January 10th

Birthplace: Los Angeles, California

Orientation: Heterosexual

Species: Human

Occupation: High School Student

"S" name: Tempo

Father: Kenji Hanajima (deceased)

Mother: Minako Hanajima (deceased)

Bio:

Kairi was born to a mother who was a professional figure skater and a father who made a career as a solo musician, celebrities in and of themselves. She grew up seeing cameras around her house and going with her parents to all kind of award shows her father was performing at or was nominated for.

Kairi was their beloved daughter and someone they spoiled immensely, always telling her how special she was due to her heterochromia. Even the press went wild with how she has her father’s green eye and her mother’s teal.

All in all, her childhood was happy and loving, if you saw her back then, you’d think they were completely different girls. She used to be all smiles and laughter, a girl happy to socialize with others and shared her father’s love of music. Yet this happiness wouldn’t last for long.

At the age of eight, Kairi’s parents were going out for dinner to celebrate their anniversary. She was left at home with a caretaker while they had their special night, but something was wrong when she woke up that morning as the staff around their big house scrambled around.

She quickly ran to the television where it was shown her parents died in a car accident caused by a paparazzi photographer slamming into them. Kairi was absolutely devastated, inconsolable as her caretaker had been scrambling around trying to contact her parents lawyer and family members.

Her father, Kenji, only had his parents who were far too old to raise Kairi and he didn’t have any other relatives that were capable of raising a child. Her mother, Minako, did have parents who were capable but she had a strained relationship with them and they wanted nothing to do with their daughter or her child.

She was scared she’d have no one left to raise her, until her parents lawyer had told her that she had a godfather her parents entrusted in their will. It was a man named Daisuke Fujimura, a wealthy lawyer in Okinawa.

Growing up, Kairi was raised in Los Angeles due to her father’s profession as a singer so she would have to leave California goodbye and live in Okinawa. It wasn’t like Japan was foreign to her or that she didn’t know the language, she grew up bilingual and often visited Japan with her parents in the Summer, but to say goodbye to the place she was raised by her loving parents was hard on her.

On the flight to Okinawa, Kairi was mostly confused on why she was never told about her Godfather, Daisuke. Her parents lawyer wasn’t sure himself on why they choose him, frankly he was told that he was someone her mother knew as a teenager only for a little bit. Why she would entrust this man with her daughter was completely unknown.

Upon arriving in Okinawa, she was greeted by Daisuke who seemed friendly and nice to her, but even he seemed confused. He tried making small talk with her on the way to his estate, as he really did seem like he was ready and open to being a father to her, but Kairi wasn’t budging.

Inside his home, it turned out that Daisuke had lived with his old father and even older grandmother. As she waited outside the mainroom, she could hear Daisuke arguing with his father who wanted to abandon her because she wasn’t a proper ‘heir’ to the Fujimura line. Daisuke’s old grandmother even calling her mother a ‘backstabbing flimsy ice dancer’ who married a ‘daydreaming fool’. This caused a hurt and angry Kairi to burst into the room and yell at them for insulting her parents, where Daisuke’s father had pushed her out the room.

Things from then on really weren’t better, and she hated that Daisuke never tried to defend her parents. For months she was on her own while her adopted father was busy with work and trying to please his father and grandmother. At least she had one thing, a piano in one of the rooms. Kairi would sneak into the room to play the piano, playing songs and imagining her father playing with her like what he’d do just a few months ago.

Daisuke would often hear her play in the doorway, feeling relief she had something to comfort her. At one point, he would come into the room to play with her. That’s when he’d finally have a chance to tell her why he was her godfather in the first place. Her mother and Daisuke come from prestigious families and were meant to be married as part of an arranged marriage, yet neither of them wanted this. Minako wanted to run away from home and live her dreams, so Daisuke helped her run away from home while he had to face the full brunt of the fury of his parents and Minako’s parents.

He explained that she was likely so grateful to him that she entrusted him with her child, though he had no idea until her parents lawyer gave him a call. Kairi began to open up to him a little bit but she still wouldn’t smile. Not much could make her smile, aside from music and skating on the ice. Yet she couldn't skate on the ice, Okinawa didn't have any rinks avaliable.

As the years would go by and she grew into a teenager, Daisuke would continue to be a good father to her but he was never there for her physically. It didn't help that she had to quietly endure Daisuke's father and grandmother's verbal assaults on her existence and how odd looking she was for having different colored eyes. At least his father and grandmother would leave when she was fifteen, but it didn’t make Daisuke come home. Strange as it was, it made her resent her adopted father for acting like this loving parent when he was around but was almost always nowhere to be found.

She turned to music again by slowly gaining popularity online as an independent musician, especially with her fame as a beloved singer’s daughter but it only vocally expressed how she felt and not in a physical sense. She wished she could’ve been on the ice again. Being able to glide against a cold wind was probably the most freeing thing she could possibly feel.

That’s when whispers in school spoke about a skateboarding club called “S”, where she decided to try skateboarding. She was pretty bad at first, often slipping and falling on the board but soon enough she became a pretty good skateboarder, and finally entered “S”.

Her name in “S” is Tempo, based on the music terminology for the speed at which a song is played or sung. She thought it was fitting for a place all about racing down an abandoned mine.

Her outfit is a light blue oversized hoodie that has sleeves where the arms drape down to her knees, neon green gym shorts with a black stripe on the side and light green sneakers with graffiti-like designs on the side.

Her board is dark purple on top and light blue on the bottom with overly colorful music notes and 8’s covered all over the bottom to show her love of music and her mother’s infamous figure 8’s on the ice. It’s the one thing that’s been able to make her smile for the first time in years, the thrill of skateboarding down hills and making risky turns almost frightens people from the way she gets a crazy look in her eyes as she smiles.

Yet during the day, she’s a student who does decently well in school and makes independent music online for others to listen to. Her relationship with Daisuke still hasn’t improved much though. He's been especially busy lately trying to defend some politians involved with Ainosuke Shindo, even offering the famous politician his service if he needs it.

Kairi is a quiet and soft spoke girl. She doesn’t say much and she has a bit of an attitude when she does, but she can be easy to speak to if you talk about music or sports she interested in. Yet in “S”? Careful because her tactic before a race is to emotionally beat someone down so they have no motivation when skating with her.

It's not even like her to normally point out someone's insecurities and insult them for it, but it does make her feel better over her own home situation.

[retaliationrp]

You need me, there ain't no leaving me behind. Just want to get up outta here.

𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄: Andrea Romero 𝐆𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑 & 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐒: cis woman & she/her 𝐀𝐆𝐄: 30 𝐎𝐂𝐂𝐔𝐏𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍: Bartender at Wonderland 𝐀𝐅𝐅𝐈𝐋𝐈𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍: Sinful Ones 𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐊: drug manufacturer 𝐅𝐀𝐂𝐄𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐈𝐌:  Priscilla Quintana

+ disciplined, intelligent, crafty - hyper independent, sarcastic, skeptical

TW CANCER, DEATH

The only child to a young mother abandoned by the man that had promised her everything, Andrea Romero surprisingly never felt lonely or without while her mother had been around. Her grandparents had emigrated to Lancaster, Arizona and raised her mother to be a strong but loving woman. To little Andrea everything her mother touched was given just a little bit of her soft and made better for it and perhaps most people would’ve agreed, or at least those that had been fortunate enough to have known her. At least that was how her step father had come into the picture. Mitch was a little older than her mother and had a horrible reputation. He ran a porn business and had a bad attitude but his money and his decent looks took him far. It was Andrea’s mother that changed him and softened him up a little bit he had wanted nothing to do with the child the apple of his eye had always tried to put first.

When Andrea was eight years old she lost her mother to a rough battle with breast cancer. At that time she was sent to live with her grandparents but the loss had affected her so greatly that Andrea had stopped talking altogether. She’d heard her grandparents talking about Mitch and had found some letters from him in with her mothers things and sought him out. Somehow at her young age she decided he was going to be the one that took care of her because he hadn’t taken proper care of her mother. Not like he had promised. Andrea hitched to the address on the envelope and stood silent on his front steps and finally spoke after he tried to shoo her off, screaming at him that he owed her mother. Taken aback he brought her inside and eventually agreed that Andrea could stay at his house but that she had to learn to take care of herself because he was not going to do it.

What amazed everyone was that Andrea did just that. She fed herself, got herself to school, and as she got older took care of things around the house. While her grandparents had fought against this living arrangement they thought it best not to force Andrea believing that she was doing her best to cope with losing her mother. She still visited them and went to them when things were at their most difficult with Mitch. The man just didn’t really know how to be a decent human most of the time. Thankfully the influence from her grandparents and Andrea’s knack for chemistry, Mitch ended up paying for her to go to university and earn a degree in the subject. During her time in university Andrea worked as a bartender and loved the tips and the social atmosphere the job provided. Unsure what she wanted to do with her degree, through a connection of Mitch’s she was introduced to a player in the game of drug manufacturing and the rest is almost history.

At first she was very much opposed to being apart of such a thing and pushed back at the thought of being part of the drug problem even if the money was good. It was her close connection with a friend that ended up as a causality to the violence between the gangs that Andrea prospected as soon as she could with the sinful ones and did so initially for the purpose of revenge but found a family instead. The process of prospecting was grueling and long, she spent years proving herself to be valuable but it wasn’t like anything else in her life. This was a common theme and reality. So when the time came and she became a patched member, Andrea finally felt as though she’d really accomplished something. Plus upon prospecting she had a skill set to offer, something that she felt would make her useful to the sinful ones and she began making drugs for them.

Eventually, Andrea hopes to move up the ranks of the club. Not only does she have a near blind loyalty, she also has gleaned some business savvy off of Mitch and is looking ahead to further securing her future.

[talubld-a]

NAME.   aidan. AGE.   35. HEIGHT.   5′8. GENDER.   cis  female  (she/her). SEXUALITY.   pansexual. REGION.   born:  galar,  grew  up:  johto. NOTICIBLE SCARS.   on  the  side  of  her  jaw  and  one  down  her  right  eyebrow. CAREER.  high  ranking  member  of  the  pokémon  g-men.

POKEMON  TEAM.

nicknames  /  moveset  to  be  added  at  a  later  time  . 

BIO.

born  to  cellena  (  mother  )  &  brooke  (  father  )  in  galar  before  moving  to  blackthorn  city  at  the  age  of  two  when  brooke’s  job  required  them  to  do  so  .  doesn’t  remember  anything  ,  associates  her  life  always  being  in  johto  .  

grows  up  being  petrified  of  pokémon  but  especially  more  so  the  dragon  types  .  whenever  she  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  elders  she’d  run  and  hide  ,  much  to  the  disappointment  of  her  parents  ,  both  quite  esteemed  trainers  in  their  own  right  .  they  never  forced  her  to  change  her  ways  though  .  

she  becomes  even  more  terrified  after  an  incident  late  one  night  .  aged  seven  she  doesn’t  remember  anything  .  only  masked  men  ,  laughing  ,  her  parents  fighting  ,  and  the  house  going  up  in  flames  after  a  pokémon  team  were  ordered  to  use  flamethrower  .  being  rescued  by  her  neighbours  she  discovers  the  following  day  her  parents  never  made  it  out  .  

refusing  to  budge  or  be  moved  ,  she  ends  up  becoming  a  somewhat  homeless  orphan  in  blackthorn  .  not  many  spoke  to  her  nor  did  she  try  to  speak  to  others  .  but  some  took  pity  on  her  and  that’s  mostly  how  she  survived  .  

when  she  turned  eleven  she  had  been  out  exploring  the  forests  surrounding  blackthorn  and  discovered  an  injured  houndour  .  petrified  of  them  ,  but  feeling  an  overwhelming  sense  of  protection  ,  aidan  set  out  to  rescue  the  poor  thing  .  she  fed  ,  bandaged  ,  and  cared  for  him  for  months  until  he  got  better  .  during  that  time  he’d  helped  her  too  ,  now  less  flinchy  around  pokémon  ,  more  accepting  to  those  who  wandered  around  her  ....  less  frightened  of  those  soaring  the  skies  .  

houndour  became  her  first  team  mate  .  she  couldn’t  capture  him  for  a  while  though  ,  but  it  gave  her  a  step  in  the  right  direction  to  go  to  trainer  school  and  better  herself  .  after  a  while  she  was  gifted  a  pokéball  by  her  school  teachers  and  the  duo  became  unstoppable  .  

years  pass  and  she’s  collected  all  eight  badges  from  johto  ,  plus  all  from  kanto  and  hoenn  .  around  age  24  she  discovers  the  foundings  of  the  g-men  and  after  what  happened  with  her  parents  ,  decided  to  try  and  join  them  .  relentless  training  over  and  done  ,  within  two  years  had  passed  the  tests  to  join  ,  and  thus  began  her  ascent  .  

fun  fact  .  through  rocket’s  take  over  of  goldenrod’s  radio  tower  she  discovered  her  father  had  survived  but  was  the  one  to  initiate  the  original  attack  on  their  home  .  i’ve  yet  to  plot  this  out  further  but  :)