#shoot your shot king i respect it!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[sadmages]

Gale stabilizing all 3 party members from death after not getting hit himself at all and then dropping this bomb while everyone's on the verge of death. So funny of him

[itneverendshere]

I've had thots about Toppers girlfriend with Rafe and his wandering hands and yall are so turned on you both can't stop touching one another you're practically dry humping in front of everyone (ya know the whole hiding in plain sight)

hiii, tried my best, although I wrote this between 6 and 8 am bc my ass can't sleep lmao. hope you enjoy🥹

i was also in fact listening to Taylor's song when I wrote this.

pt 2 is here

i did something bad - rafe cameron (one shot)

warnings: rafe cameron x kook!reader; kook!reader x topper (only mentions of them); cheating; boyfriend!topper (not really lmao poor thing); public sex?; dry humping; mentions of alcohol and drugs; possessive!rafe; almost having sex in the middle of a party I guess;

You don’t know how you ended up here, with him.

You don’t know what the fuck to do with your hands, or your gaze, or your mind, or anything. You feel truly lost for words. And yet, there’s nowhere else you’d rather be than where you were now, pressed between Rafe Cameron’s firm tights. 

As if you weren’t dating his best friend. As if you’re not in the middle of a roaring party, filled to the brim, at Topper’s house.

His thumb makes a cautious sweep over your hip. “Comfortable?”

You can only nod dumbly, “I am.”

“Look at me.”

Fuck. 

Of course, Rafe Cameron, of all people would notice every little thing you did. Probably tracked every tiny movement you’ve made since you entered the house. You feel lightheaded as you meet his stare head-on.

That hand at your hip grows more confident, every finger now tracing your skin in gentle circles. If you died now, you’d die happy. So, maybe... your biggest turn-on is feeling respected and being listened to. And maybe, Rafe always made you feel exactly that, unlike Topper.

“’Been trying to get your attention all night, you know that?”

You are just about able to breathe out a quiet, “Really?

This attraction between you two is everything you’ve ever needed and wanted, and yet in moments like these, you panic all the same.

You know it’s safer to run from him than to run to him like you always seem to do, but the truth is, you can’t stop. Your steady composure evaporates around him.

Rafe nods, utter confidence in the gesture. Not that you’d expect any less from the kook king himself, he always knew what he thought and felt, and wasn’t afraid to let people know. He owns every single bit of himself.

Unlike you.

“Why are you surprised, flower?” he murmurs, “You know I only got eyes for you.”

You stare back at him, mouth dry and head empty. You want to call him out on his bullshit, put the truth on a silver platter, and hand it to him, but you’d be a hypocrite. How can you tell him you hate seeing him with other people when you’ve got a boyfriend yourself? His fucking best friend, of all people.

So you stay quiet and pretend you believe him. If you close your eyes, ignore the party around you, and pretend you’re back in your bedroom, you can do it.

“Is that so?”

He's now grasping both your hips, “Don’t look at me like that. You know I mean it.”

A thrill shoots through you. His touch is scorching your skin, “Not doing anything.”

Cheating on a relationship is a distraction, a self-delusional addiction.

This will end in a breakup or breakdown... or worse. You haven’t crossed that line, not physically at least. Not yet. But you feel like you are about to.

“Trust me, you’re doing just enough.”

The grit of desire that lay behind every word he said has you in a chokehold.

You’re crazy. His lips are so pretty, just thinking about them sends your mind into a sensual state of intoxication. Of course, your blush is a dead giveaway.

“Where’s your date?”

“Don’t know,” one hand moves down, “Don’t care.”

“You should.”

His lips twitch, fingers skirting down, “Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

His eyebrows rise, eyes flickering over the room curiously.

“Where’s your boyfriend, flower?” He all but purrs in your ear. Your face is most definitely on fire. 

He stares at you, and you simply stare back. The tension that clouds the air is almost too much. 

“Outside.”

“Now, what would he think if he walked in here and saw you in my lap?” Rafe’s voice is raspy, “Hmm?”

Every bit of confidence you had is nowhere to be found. He always knows how to play your strings. The thought of Topper walking in makes you feel like you are on fire. You’re sick. 

“You think about that?” You ask breathlessly, and the hard outline of his cock through his jeans is confirmation enough.

“You are really trying to make me fuck you right here, aren’t you?” His voice is lethal, he all but groans, leaning down and sinking his teeth into the side of your neck, just above your pulse, “I’m trying to be good, flower.”

“You’re not good, Rafe Cameron.”

The solid press of his body on yours is all too much. His lips on your neck are everything you’ve fantasized about and more.

“I could be,” Those blue eyes fill with mischief, “For you, I would.”

Your stomach drops and you shove him off, ignoring your flushed cheeks. But then he grins, that shit-eating, sarcastic grin of his, and your glare pierces through him, attempting to keep some space between you.

“Don’t be an asshole.”

“You think I can’t be good?”

“I don’t think,” Your reply is mockingly sweet, and for once he doesn’t smirk, in fact, his grin is half-hearted now, “I know for a fact, you can’t.”

“Right,” His hand works its way from your cleavage, down to your stomach where he lingers for some time, “Good thing you’re dating a good guy, yeah?”

The urge to touch, to be inside you is overwhelming. He’s never felt so desperate to feel someone. 

“Yeah, good thing,” You breathe, body pressing into his.  Your heart thumps wildly between your ribs and you know you’re going straight to hell.

“Do you want me?” he whispers, arm snaking around your waist to bring you even closer. Again.

“Please.”

In one swift movement, he pulls you down to the couch he’s sitting on. He supports your body with one hand under your upper thigh, whilst his free hand cups the back of your head, fingers interlacing with your hair. The way you situate yourself on his thigh so quickly is truly laughable, and he does give a little condescending laugh.

The room is full.

And none of you give a single fuck.

You stare into each other’s eyes, panting shakily – lips inching closer and closer together. Rafe lingers there, flushed lips parted, waiting patiently for your move. 

“Rafe?” Your voice is quiet, and yet he still hears you despite the music. You’re not sure how much longer you can stand so close without devouring him whole.

His eyes flicker to yours, “Yes?”

“Kiss me.”

Before you know it, his lips crash into yours roughly, almost bruising them. He’s so hungry for you. For your touch. He has wanted this for so, so, so long.

And fuck, so have you.

The hard press of his cock pushing right against your center is torturous. As if his stupid muscular thigh wasn’t enough. You ground yourself down on him, breathing a moan against his lips. 

“My flower,” He pants into your mouth, tongue swiping against your bottom lip, “Gonna be good for me?”

“So good.” You rock against him, your teeth grazing his lips. His fingers untangle from your hair, and cup your cheek, pulling you in closer to deepen the kiss. You push yourself further against him, rocking your hips. He groans against your cheek, thrusting up. 

A large hand slides down your neck and grips it gently, earning him a sudden, breathy moan, “Want me that bad?” 

Your legs tighten around his waist, “Yes.”

“'Ya sure, flower?”

“Yes.”

“More than him?”

“Don’t tease,” you whine lengthily, frustration so pent up it leaves you breathless, “You know my answer.”

“Do I?” Rafe hums, fingers rubbing tight circles into your clothed clit.

“Rafe.”

“Keep talking.”

You try hard to focus on the budding feeling in your core, to chase it so you can finally know what a proper orgasm feels like. Can’t remember the last time you had one, delivered by a man. 

“I want you,” You mumble, grazing your teeth on his pulsing throat as you suckle on his skin, leaving behind a bruise-like mark, “Always want you more.”

“Fuck—” he gasps, hips giving an involuntary jerk, “I’m never letting you go back to him, you know that right?”

Your grip around his neck tightens, fingernails digging into his tanned skin, “All yours.”

You’re so, so wet and you haven’t discarded a single piece of clothing. All he wants to do is replace his thigh with his cock but, he can’t. Not here anyway, so he settles for this. He’d settle for anything you give him right now. Lost to the sensation his head falls back, his eyes screw shut, his breath coming out in short pants. 

“C-Can we–Oh!– Can we leave?”

“Easy,” He hums, eyes still squeezed shut, brows gathering, “Not yet.”

“Please,” you beg quietly, squeezing his waist with your legs as your body tries to shove him closer.

Your pussy swells with pleasure, moans becoming deeper and more strained. He knows you’re close. He’s not far behind and there’s something so primal about making you cum in a room full of people, who’ve yet to take a second look at you two. The alcohol and the drugs in their veins become your accomplices. 

He feels the tension in your body, the way it seizes up, trying to fight the unbearable heat pooling in your pelvis. The sound of his husky moans in your ear is about to send you over the edge – heated coil unraveling, stomach muscles relaxing.

He relishes in the way you’re staring into his eyes with your mouth open. It feels so good, so right. The way his body completely envelopes yours.

You can’t believe you’re about to cum from dry-humping Rafe Cameron.

“This what you want?” He mutters.

You nod as best you can with his palm on your throat.

“Couldn’t fuckin’ wait, huh?” His jaw ticks. “That desperate?”

You nod again. Fuck, you’ll tell him whatever he wants if he’ll just touch you.

Focusing on the budding feeling, your hands grip his veiny forearm. His sleeves are shoved up to the elbows, cuffed there and you can feel a muscle twitch in his forearm. 

It turns you on. You let go of any thoughts, allowing your body to take over. You moan into his shoulder, grinding erratically into his hand.

“Good girl,” His voice is thick with desire, shaky from the buck of his hips. He has your face in his hands before you can shrink away. He's gripping your jaw between desperate fingers and tilting to your chin up, “So fucking good, flower.”

When Rafe begins to bounce his leg up and down and you bite your lip to silence your moans.

“If you ever let him touch you again, I’ll break his fuckin’ arms.” 

A whine seems to be the only thing that your brain can come up with.

You can feel the fire pulsating through his lips; you can feel it radiate off his body. 

He leans in to brush his lips against yours—feverish and light. His tongue swirls through your mouth from desperation starting to lock inside his chest. You have made him feel all kinds of things over the years. He needs to feel you, needs to touch you, constantly. After the searing memory of Topper’s hand on your waist, lips dangerously close to yours, he needs to be close to you.

"M'gonna cum—baby, please let me cum,” You cry out and dig your nails into his skin, chest heaving rapidly.

"Go ahead," He gulps, ready to take you home, he presses his forehead against yours and you wrap your arms around his neck, "'M right here."

Your stomach churns as the thin thread that is holding your composure together snaps. The tip of his nose drags over your jaw, a soft kiss pressed there as he nudges your head to fall back onto his shoulder. And then he has you shaking, hurtling towards an orgasm that leaves your mind spinning. His lips move to your neck, tongue, and teeth stinging and soothing, mumbling praises and filthy promises.

“Oh, my fuckin'—God!”

He doesn't let up, not when your clit begins to throb, or walls pulse.

Not until you're shaking so hard through your orgasm that you are all but crawling up his lap, leaving you unable to breathe.

“C’mere,” he says, softly, although you haven’t moved. He lifts a hand to your face to brush the hair back from your eyes, lingering for a moment before his gaze slides up to yours.

“You’re mine.” 

[mirai-e-jump]

TV Guide Dan Vol.51, April 2024 Issue ft. Sakai Taisei x Higuchi Kouhei Interview (translations below)

Publication: April 5, 2024

UNIQUE

"Could you please introduce the role the other plays in the V-Cinext films King-Ohger VS Donbrothers and King-Ohger VS Kyoryuger?"

Higuchi: Gira Husty, played by Taisei, is a character that has the right characteristics of being a so called main character, and I thought he was a completely different Red from the one in Donbrothers. The atmosphere Gira created was one you couldn't find in Donbrothers.

Sakai: Gira and Higuchi-kun's role of Momoi Tarou are the exact opposite in terms of character design. Tarou is an absolute ruler who brings everyone together, which is different from King-Ohger, where everyone has their own individuality but are still able to keep up with each other. In a way, I also feel "jealous."

Higuchi: Still, I think all Super Sentai members feel "jealous." The Producers and Scriptwriters give other Sentai "colors" we don't have, so it's only natural for us to think, "I like those colors."

Sakai: That's why the history of Super Sentai continues, and the fans enjoy it every year. I definitely wanted a "color" I don't have. That's why I'm happy to have the opportunity to be involved with other Super Sentai members like this!

"What were your impressions of each other before you met? Did your impressions change after meeting?"

Sakai: At first, I thought he was a cool guy, but on set, all the two of us would do was talk!

Higuchi: I felt the same way, and thought Taisei was a quiet guy (laughs). Actually, that wasn't the case at all, as I was surprised and happy to find that we were compatible when we talked in the dressing room. During this shoot, even though I had my own dressing room, I would go to Taisei's dressing room instead.

Sakai: I thought Kouhei was cool and manly, and my impression of his manliness is probably the same as it was before we met. We're similar in that we both get carried away.

"How would you describe your relationship?"

Higuchi: This is just my opinion, but in the context of our relationship in Super Sentai, I'm his senior Red, but in terms of our age, I'm his junior. In my case, regardless of age, as long as there's mutual respect, I want our relationship to be that we're like friends. That's why I unconsciously treated Taisei like he was already my friend. I'm sorry!

Sakai: It was also easier to say things like, "Let's go out to eat." I'm the same as Kouhei, I think it's easier that way. It makes me happier if you come to me without hesitation, rather than be cautious because I'm older than you, I think it makes it easier to talk about the performance and acting.

"Have you seen each other's shows, King-Ohger and Donbrothers? Please tell us about any episodes that were most memorable for you."

Higuchi: I remember very well when the first episode of King-Ohger aired while we were performing at Theatre G-Rosso. We saw it on the TV backstage at G-Rosso, and everyone was envious of it, saying, "It's really cool!" (laughs). I still love the first episode.

Sakai: For me it has to be the final episode, I thought it was really great that it ended with the very memorable, "We've formed a bond." I thought it was nice that it started and ended with those words. It's also easy to use at things like events! It's hard to find a place to say, "I'm going to rule the world!" (laughs). I like the fact that the first episode established the bond, and while the ending came, it was also a beginning.

"Were there any challenging or fun parts during filming?"

Higuchi: Speaking of challenges, the filming location was at the King-Ohger's studio, and it was my first time using a green screen that covered all sides. So, on my first day in the studio, I was surprised and thought to myself, "How do we do this?!" Once you get a feel for it though, you get used to it.

Sakai: Donbrothers was shot entirely on location. On the other hand, we had the pleasure of filming on a set. As for difficult scenes, Kouhei seemed to have a hard time in the scene where Gira choked on some mochi. It's because he had to put his hand firmly in my mouth (laughs).

Higuchi: It was harder for Taisei, wasn't it?! Wouldn't it have been easier to simply put it in? If it were the other way around, I think I would've felt awkward afterwards (laughs).

"What did you feel after watching each other's performance?"

Higuchi: I thought Taisei always took his acting seriously. Also, his eyes are incredibly pretty and distinct. I think he's got alot of strong points.

Sakai: I thought Kouhei was a stoic person in his performance. He spent alot of time thinking on his own, doing things like sorting out his emotions abit before the cameras started rolling. Even after he was given the OK, he studied things from the side the moment after and thought, "I could've done this better," so I respect that stoicism.

"Please tell us some of the highlights this time."

Sakai: They're both Super Sentai with tons of personality that rival each other for first and second place of this generation, so I think it'll be a highlight to see how they'll unite and how the story will progress. Also, this time, both Reds are characters that laugh out loud. Within the battle scene is a scene where the two of us are laughing loudly, and it was pretty difficult to film, so I want you to see it. It was a long scene, about 30 seconds, and we were laughing the whole time (laughs).

Higuchi: It's as if two Super Sentai were combined to form a new Sentai, and I think this is a movie where each member has their own highlights. Also, the King-Ohger's costumes are really cool, so it's worth seeing. Among us, Jiro, the Noto, and Inuzuka's costumes might be as good as the Kings. The other four are in ordinary clothing (laughs).

"You both have experience playing soccer, and you kicked a ball around during the photoshoot, so what are your thoughts on each other's skills?"

Sakai: I think this is probably common in soccer clubs, but I can tell just from the ball rolling alittle bit if someone is "good."

Higuchi: I get that! The moment someone kicks a ball and stops it with their foot, an experienced player can tell that, "This guy's good." However, I'm sure this is a feeling that baseball and basketball teams also have.

"Did you talk about soccer during filming?"

Higuchi: If I'm remembering right, after filming finished for Donbrothers and King-Ohger was about to start, Taisei said to me, "You used to play soccer, didn't you? Let's play futsal!"

Sakai: Right, I just thought since you had experience playing soccer. Futsal is fun, so I'd love to do it again!

"This issue also features Iuchi Haruhi-kun and Hayama Yuki-kun from the currently airing Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger. As their seniors in the Super Sentai series, please give them a message."

Higuchi: The quality of Super Sentai is really different each generation, but I think the one thing they all have in common is that they're "very challenging." That's why, when it comes to acting, I can never say, "It's better like this." The only thing I can think of to say is, "Please have fun in Oizumigakuen, where the filming studio is located." I enjoyed it tremendously (laughs).

Sakai: Right! Depending on whether or not you have fun in Oizumigakuen and at the filming studio, the story could change. The more favorite places and stores you have, the better, and you can go out to eat with ease. As Kouhei said, it's challenging to film every day, so I think it's good to find a place you can "rely on." It'd be nice if after enjoying Oizumigakuen, you go to a different site for another job and end up thinking, "I want to come back here someday."

"And finally, when speaking of Donbrothers, oden may come to mind, so please tell us what both of your favorite ingredients are."

Higuchi: Chikuwa!

Sakai: I love eggs, and I also love daikon radishes!

Higuchi: In the end, which one's the very best?! (laughs).

[darthgloris]

Anakin and male y/n have been best friends for a few years, they met on a mission and you know how it’s like you’ve known someone forever at first meet? They both admit they’re in love with each other and smut please

Under The Stars

Pairing: Anakin Skywalker x fem!Jedi!reader

A/N: I'm really, really sorry for not being able to give you the fic you want sweetie 😭😭 I really don't know how to write male x male relationships and I'm very afraid of misrepresenting the smut, still soo soo sorry 😫 @dashingaudacity I hope you can forgive me and I really hope this one will do 🥺

Summary: Y/N's Padawan, Rose, risks her life during a battle and is saved at the last possible minute by another Jedi. When Y/N goes to thank him after the battle, she sees just how attractive and respectful he is. Out one night, away from the eyes of the Order, their stargazing becomes a moment to share they way the have felt about each other all this time.

Warnings: suggestive themes, fluffy asf, making out, Anakin having better pickup lines than "I don't like sand", Anakin being the romance king (cause in a world where he doesn't turn dark he is)

☆☆☆

"Rosesava Stawil, you get back here this instant!" Y/N yelled at her Padawan, who had already raced off into battle with a death grip on her lightsaber.

She sighed in exasperation, following her Padawan into the chaos. That girl is way too reckless, she thought with a huff.

A scream rang out through the battle, a voice she could recognize anywhere. Y/N perked up as her eyes widened in panic and she ran through the clouds of dust, frantically looking around for the girl. "Rose?"

"Master!"

"Rose!" She leapfrogged from stone to stone, panting as she reached out to the Force to find her Padawan.

Y/N gasped as a droid towered over Rose's figure, stranded on the ground with a fearful look in her eyes before she screwed them closed, waiting for the pain to come, but it never did. Her eyes flew open as the swash of a lightsaber filled her ears, skillfully deflecting all the blaster shots.

"Rose!" Y/N called and rushed to pull the girl up from the ground, while looking for the person that had saved Rose's life. A few feet away from them was another Jedi, a curly haired young man with a scar running down his left eye, and a young Togruta around Rose's age trailing behind him.

She let out a breath of relief, shooting him a thankful glance, to which he replied with a nod and a gentle smile before disappearing into the chaos, his blue lightsaber illuminating his path through the dense sand clouds.

As the relief flooded her, she glared down at Rose. "Sorry, Master."

"One unnerving and life-threatening issue at a time, Rose. Now, come on, this isn't over yet."

...

Y/N wiped a few beads of sweat from her forehead and ran a hand through her tousled hair as she looked at the campsite. Countless wounded soldiers were being carried to the medbay as she walked around, looking for anyone that she could help.

After a few minutes she spotted the guy from before, the very same that had saved Rose's life oh, so selflessly. She looked at him for a few seconds to admire him: she noticed the small curls that framed his face, his big, soulful blue eyes, his jawline that seemed sculpted in marble, his broad shoulders that shaped the rest of his flawless physique.

"Hi, um, it's me," she said as she approached him and he smiled softly as he caught sight of her. "I just wanted to thank you for saving Rose, she's a bit difficult to deal with sometimes."

"Don't thank me, my Padawan is a bit quirky as well," he chuckled, looking at the Togruta, who was talking with Rex. "What's your name?"

"Y/N. Y/N Vantri." She smiled, extending her hand for him to shake.

"Anakin Skywalker. Nice to meet, you, Y/N." He replied, taking her hand and pressing a feartherlight kiss to her knuckles. She smiled, blushing a pale shade of pink at his gesture.

The feeling of his delicate lips brushing the soft skin made her feel like she had known him forever, like she was meant to feel his touch, to be embraced by him. And she most certainly couldn't deny her attraction towards him, it was a bit fuzzy at first but it became crystal clear when her throat ran dry at the sight of the bulging veins on his wrist.

She didn't know it, but he was thinking the exact same thing. He felt a tinge of pride spark inside him, and to his surprise, her blush made his insides do backflips in a way he'd never thought possible, especially when they were triggered by someone he'd know for approximately two minutes. Holding her hand, slipping his fingers under hers to kiss her baby-smooth skin had a certain familiarity and comfort to it, as if he was meant to kiss her until she forgot her own name.

"Did your Padawan get hurt?" He asked, breaking the silence.

"Just a small wound on her arm. She should be out soon." Y/N replied, looking over at the medbay on the other side of the campsite.

"May I walk you there?" He offered with a smile.

"Oh, that's very kind of you, but you really don't have-"

"Please?" He pouted, his puppy eyes twinkling with hope. It was too strong of a weapon for her to refuse.

"Sure." She chuckled at how powerful his pleading expression was.

"After you." He said, stepping back to let her take the lead.

"Such a gentleman, thank you." She smiled, a teenage-like giddiness overtaking her. The feeling only triplicated when he held her hand as she stepped over a rocky area, making sure she didn't trip and get hurt.

...

Years later

The two Jedi laid side by side as they looked up at the night sky, admiring the constellations.

"Look, that one looks like a little kitten!" Anakin giggled, pointing at an outline of starts.

"You're right, it's so cute!" Y/N squealed.

Anakin smiled so hard at her. Her undying love for animals and her kindness towards them only made his heart melt further.

"Hey, do you see those two bright stars over there?" He asked, pointing at a small cluster of twinkling stars.

"Uh-huh." She nodded, looking at him curiously.

"Their names are Altair and Vega," he said, propping himself up on one elbow to look down at her. "And it is said that they were deeply in love, but separated by an entire galaxy."

"Oh..." she said, vocalizing her sympathy.

"But once a year, on the seventh day of the seven month..." he took her hand and held it between his own, the flesh hand drawing small circles on her palm with his thumb. "...Vega cries so hard that all the magpies in the world fly up and make a bridge with their wings, so that the two lovers could be reunited for a single night of passion."

She breathed out, speechless. She fell just a little harder for him, looking into his eyes as his fingertips brushed the hair away from her forehead. "Anakin..."

"Hmm?"

"If you keep doing that, I might just fall in love with you." She said quietly, her doe eyes boring into his.

"Does that scare you?" He asked, running his thumb over the back over her hand again.

"It does," she admitted. "But not enough to avoid it."

"Good. Whatever you're afraid of, we can face together." He smiled gently.

She interlocked their fingers, tilting her head slightly. "Thank you."

"You having nothing to thank me for." He said, giving into the temptation of running his thumb over her bottom lip. "May I kiss you, stardust?"

The nickname sent chills down her spine.

As soon as she let out a "yes", his lips softly met hers.

The feeling was divine. The way his lips would mold with hers, a little unsure, but still so passionate and loving... it was simply Anakin. Everything from his scent, to the taste of his lips, to his Force signature intertwining with hers, it engulfed her like a giant embrace from the universe. It was a comfort she never thought she'd be granted the privilege to feel.

"Maker, you're so beautiful." He breathed out, his hand now caressing her cheek.

This time Y/N was the one to initiate the kiss, now with less hesitation and more firmness, sparks lighting up their skin. Anakin experimented by running his tongue over her bottom lip, at which she let out a silent gasp, then began to open her mouth for him. The kiss deepening only made her insides tremble, and she audibly moaned and buried her fingers in his short hair when he gently suckled on the tip of her tongue.

She laid back down on the ground, pulling him down with her without breaking the kiss. He tentatively rested two hands at her sides, and she only responded by pulling him on top of her, which made him squeal adorably in surprise.

His hands began to roam her upper body, and when his warm flesh hand trailed up from her stomach to her face, grazing her breast and her neck in the process, a wave of anxiety made her stomach churn.

She hurriedly pulled away from the kiss, putting her hands to his chest to create a bit of space between them.

"Hey," Anakin cooed, soft pants escaping his mouth. "You okay, angel?"

"Yeah... no." She sat up as he lifted himself off her, terrified of having made her uncomfortable.

"Sorry, Ani, I... I though I could handle it, but I can't, I'm just not ready yet..." she tried to explain, stuttering over her words. "I want this, I really do, but- but then I felt you touching me and as good as it felt, it freaked me out-"

"Hey, sweetie, it's okay. You don't need to justify yourself." He soothed, smiling to try to comfort her.

"I- I'm sorry, Anakin." She sighed, burying her face in her hands.

"Hey, hey, listen to me, I don't want to hear you apologise, understand?" He said, gently prying her hands away from her face. "I want this, too, but it doesn't have to be now. I'm not going anywhere, sweetheart."

"Do you promise?" She asked.

"I promise." He smiled, squeezing her hand. "Take your time, angel. Whenever you're ready, I'll be right here, yeah?"

She smiled brightly at him, nestling her face in the crook of his neck. "You're amazing."

"You're much more amazing than I am, my angel."

[fortheloveofwonderland]

No Distance Left to Run | Part 4 | S.R

Previous Part | Next Part

Chapter Summary - As you prepare to return to the BAU you find yourself hot water and this time Spencer might not be able to save you. As the BAU work to find you, your secrets come to light.

A/N - some canon elements of Date Night used but I mostly rewrote it.

Pairing - Spencer Reid / BAU Fem! Reader

Category - friends to lovers | mutual pining | angst with happy ending | smut minors DNI

Warnings - spoilers for 14.15 Truth or Dare and for 15.06 Date Night, abusive relationship, kidnapping, guns, hostage situations, Cat Adams, panic attacks, tears, swearing.

WC - 9.1k

Part 4 - Dominoes

Present Day

After fifteen days off work, you were more than ready to get back to the BAU tomorrow. 

You loved the extra time you got to spend with your children but it was anything but a relaxing vacation time. 

Between meeting with lawyers in regards to your marriage and your husband who remained in jail pending trial, and trying to be super mom, you were more drained than you would be from a normal case load. 

It had been nearly three weeks since Jared’s arrest and two weeks since the hostage situation in which you’d confessed your love for your best friend. Your best friend who hadn’t once tried to contact you since Rossi’s wedding.

You’d told him you needed time apart but Spencer was stubborn and you were sure he would try to call, maybe even show up at the house, but he never did. 

You’d missed him, missed how things used to be. For the past seven months since Varnville things hadn’t been the same between you. 

They’d just started to get better, the iciness starting to thaw when you’d made your confession. Time had begun to heal the wounds you caused Spencer by falling into bed with him and you’d been amicable again, friendly even. 

Right before you’d been called out to LA where two murders had been committed in two days with similar MO’s, the case which would lead to you being held hostage, you’d been having a game of poker as a team. 

“You guys, you should have seen Reid. He shot a one hundred.” Luke spoke as he and Spencer entered the round table room. The rest of you gasped and made appreciative sounds. “Yeah, he qualified to shoot a possum.” 

“That’s like a perfect score. What, like, two hundred agents have made the wall of glory?” Matt sounded rightfully impressed.

“He hit everything, I mean at one point I thought he must have two guns.” Luke shook his head as he slid into one of the vacant chairs. 

“Maybe I did.” Spencer smiled knowingly, sitting in the space opposite you. 

You looked at him with curiosity and he simply smiled at you. 

You’d gone two days without a case which was a nice reprieve but it left you all a little on edge. You’d worked your way through a backlog of reports until Garcia suggested a round of poker with jelly beans for chips. 

Rossi was the only one not in attendance as he was helping Krystall with last minute wedding preparations. 

The game began, slowly one by one the team members folded, finally leaving only you, Spencer and Luke still in. 

You glanced at your cards before placing them back face down on the table. You cupped your pile of jelly beans you’d procured and pushed them all to the centre of the table, looking Spencer dead in the eye. 

“Do you think the lady is bluffing?” Luke looked between the two of you. 

“I know the lady is bluffing because she has a tell.” He gave you that knowing smile once more. 

“No I don’t.” You shook your head but Spencer continued to smile and pushed his own pile of candy towards the centre. 

“I’m gonna go all in.” He sat back in his chair. 

“Oh I like it.” Luke smirked. “Live by the sword, die by the sword. I call.” 

“Alright, lets see ‘em.” Tara encouraged.

Luke turned his card over and placed them on the table top. 

“Three of a kind, king high.”

“Perfectly respectable but not getting it done.” Tara shook her head. 

Spencer opened his hand, placing his cards down with a smug smile gracing his lips. 

“Pair of kings, pair of sevens. Oh I’m sorry, uh, three sevens.” His smile grew. 

“Oh, a full boat from the sassy Doctor Reid.” Tara chuckled. 

Spencer focused on you, his smile in full bloom. You felt your own tugging at your lips as you placed your own cards down for them to see. 

A four, five, six, seven and eight of spades. Spencer's face fell, his smile vanishing in an instant. 

“A straight flush, that has to hurt.” Tara chuckled. 

“I think Doctor Reid is speechless.” Matt laughed too. 

You shrugged, reaching out to collect your winnings. 

“Guess I’m a better liar than you thought.”

Spencer had continued to stare at you in disbelief until Emily announced you had a case which was taking you to LA. At that moment, high from your win, you never could have foreseen where that case would lead. 

Unpredictability was unfortunately a part of life. Thirteen years ago you never would have anticipated the nice man you met in a bar on your birthday would go on to abuse you. 

Fifteen years ago when you’d first been introduced to the dorky Doctor Spencer Reid, you had no way to know you would still harbour feelings for him all these years later. 

“Yo, pretty boy?” 

“Huh?” 

“Let’s not make the new girl feel uncomfortable on her very first day.” 

“I wasn’t…I wasn’t…” 

“Don’t mind him, he doesn’t get out much.” 

“Everyone this is our new agent Y/N Y/L/N, please can you all make her feel welcome. Not too welcome though, ok, Reid?” 

“Got it.”

He’d changed so much since then, it was only really now you realised that. When you saw someone every day it was hard to notice those little changes they went through until you took a step back and saw how big those changes really were.

You’d both gone from being in your early twenties, innocent and green to now somehow circling forty, much less naive than you had been back then. A whole lifetime had passed in those years. You’d gotten married, had two children and you and Spencer had both suffered your share of trauma. 

You and Spencer were long overdue for a painful conversation. It would make or break your relationship, it would dictate where the two of your futures were headed and if they were entwined with one another's. 

It was only a matter of time before he would ask you again, and you had to decide if you were willing to be honest with him or lie to him. 

“Y/N?” He rolled his lip between his teeth. “Truth or dare?” 

You sucked in a breath, closing your eyes for a fraction of a second before opening them and looking at him again.

“Truth.” You croaked. 

“Did you mean it?” 

Your eyes flit down to your bracelet, eyeing the inscription for a moment or two before you looked back at Spencer. There was a simple answer and a complicated one, neither of which you wanted to get into right now.

“Spencer I-”

What had you planned on saying before Adie interrupted you? You weren’t even sure of that yourself. Because you had meant it, but being in love with Spencer Reid was far too complicated for words. 

You wanted to keep those thoughts at bay, at least for one more day. You had one last day off work before you had to see Spencer again and you needed to not burden yourself with any unnecessary stress.

You dropped the kids at school before running some errands. You did the grocery shopping for the week, knowing it was likely you would be pulled in on a case once you went back and wouldn’t have time to do it otherwise. 

You’d arranged for your cousin Olivia to sit the kids while you worked, after explaining to her why Jared suddenly wasn’t around. She was more than happy to stay at the house with your children while you were off fighting crime. 

You picked up extra ice cream and a bottle of nice wine for Olivia as a thank you, dropped off your dry cleaning and drove back home where you planned to clean the house until it was time to pick your kids up from school. 

You parked on the drive and exited the car, going over to the house and opening the door before getting the bags out of the trunk so you didn’t have to try and wrestle it open with your hands full.

Heading back to your SUV, you felt the hairs on the back of your neck stand to attention. You slowed your steps, honing your senses onto your surroundings. Something felt off, but you didn’t know why. But your instincts were telling you something was amiss. 

Your hand instinctively went to your firearm but of course it wasn’t there, it was tucked away in the safe in the house. 

You cautiously continued back to the car, eyes rapidly searching the street, your front yard and the front yards of your neighbours houses. You kept your footsteps soft and quiet so you could pick up on any little noise. 

You reached the SUV and popped the trunk, feeling your nerves start to fade a little. You were paranoid, that’s all it was. You tried to shake it off but you couldn’t quite let it go, the hairs on your neck refusing to go down. 

You collected up the paper bags in your arms, cradling them on one hip so you could close the trunk with the other. You turned and tried to rebalance the bags but found yourself looking down the barrel of a revolver. 

You fumbled with the bags and dropped them all on the ground, partially conscious of hearing the wine bottle smash as it hit the concrete. You swallowed, trying to focus yourself on the long dark hair of the woman pointing the gun at you. 

“What do you want?” You croaked. “I have money, I have connections. I’m an FBI Agent, you don’t want to do this.” 

“Oh, I know exactly who you are.” The woman chuckled. “Jared says hello.” 

You whimpered, taking a step back to your car but then you were taking a blow to the head from the muzzle of the gun and soon the world went dark.

Life was certainly unpredictable. 

***

When Penelope Garcia initially received the call from a friendly woman named Linda at the Hyde-Addison Elementary School, she was confused to say the least. Her confusion turned into panic when Linda informed her that two students, Adleine and Finley Haines had not been collected from school.

Linda, the school’s administrator had tried calling their mother several times when she didn’t come to pick up her kids but kept getting her voicemail. The school had been informed that Jared Haines was not reachable at present.

The school required pre-approval for anyone to collect kids from the school who weren’t the children’s legal carers. As godparents to Adie and Fin, Penelope and Spencer along with your cousin Olivia were the only people pre-approved.

Garcia had been the first person called and she’d been sitting at her desk in her bat cave when she’d received the call. The rest of the team were in the bullpen working on paperwork as they didn’t have an active case. 

Before Penelope allowed herself to spiral into fear, she called Olivia and asked if she could pick the kids up from school, trying not to say too much to alarm the young girl. Penelope needed to be at the BAU, because she knew if you hadn’t picked up the kids, there was a sinister reason for it. 

She tried to remain calm while she headed through to the bullpen, head down and focused solely on Emily Prentiss’ office. She knocked on the door but didn’t wait for an answer before she tottered inside.

“We’ve got a case?” Emily looked up from her paperwork.

“Uh, yes and no.” Garcia closed the door behind her. “I just had an interesting call from Hyde-Addison.”

Emily’s eyebrows furrowed as she turned that name over in her head a few times. 

“Adie and Fin’s school?” 

“Yes.”

Emily’s back straightened in her chair, knowing whatever Garcia was going to say wouldn’t be good.

“Should I be worried?” The raven haired Unit Chief’s heart was already pounding.

“Maybe,” Garcia nodded. “Y/N wasn’t there to collect the kids today. She would never forget to pick the kids up. I’ve called Liv, she’s going to get them. But I think something has happened to Y/N.” 

“Why didn’t they call Jared?” Emily narrowed her eyes on the blonde. 

“I…uh, it's complicated?” 

“Has something happened between them? She didn’t really give me much detail of why she needed time off.” 

“I think that’s going to be a story I can only tell once.”

Emily was out of her seat and heading to the door before Penelope even finished her sentence. She swung the door open so forcefully it caused all the agents in the bullpen to look up at her.

Garcia pushed open Rossi’s door, motioning him out. The old man got up from his desk and padded outside. 

“What’s going on?” He spoke, looking between Emily and Garcia. 

“A bad one?” JJ spoke up from her desk. 

Emily let out a shaky breath, ready to deliver the news to her waiting team and wishing things like this didn’t always fall on her shoulders. 

“Garcia received a call just now from Adeline and Finley’s school when Y/N failed to show up to collect them.” Emily spoke, trying to keep her voice measured. 

Spencer immediately shot out of his chair, glaring at Emily.

“What?” His face was drained of colour. “Why?”

“We don’t know, that’s what we need to find out.” Emily nodded sternly.

“Why did they call you?” Luke asked, directing his question to Garcia. “Where’s their dad?”

Penelope looked at Spencer, her expression pleading him to help her. She didn’t want to have to relay this story for you, not that Spencer did either. He huffed out a breath and slowly headed up the stairs to join Garcia, Emily and Rossi while they all looked at him in slight confusion.

“A few weeks ago Penelope discovered that Jared Haines had been arrested.” Spencer began, his voice cracking as he spoke. “For a domestic disturbance turned attempted murder.” 

The rest of the team gasped at his words, exchanging looks and silently asking each other if anyone knew. Penelope was on her phone, tapping at the keys.

“He was abusing her?” Emily looked at Spencer, her expression one of sorrow.

“For a long time.” He nodded sadly. “I knew he was hurting her, I tried to help her but she refused me every time. Adeline called the cops when Jared got hold of Y/N’s gun. He shot the wall, not Y/N. When DC Metro showed up, he had his hand around her throat.” 

“Jeez,” Rossi shook his head. “That poor girl.” 

“I had no idea.” JJ pouted, her eyes filling with tears.

“You think this has something to do with him?” Luke asked, his nostrils flared in anger.

“He’s still in jail, I just checked.” Garcia waved her phone. 

“What is this about then?” Tara frowned. “Do we really think something has happened to her?”

“She would never leave the kids like that. No way.” Spencer shook his head. 

“This might not be a case, there may be a reasonable explanation.” Emily didn’t look as though she believed that herself. 

“Can I go and check on her?” Spencer begged. 

“Ok.” Emily nodded. “You have your car?” 

“No,” he raked his fingers through his hair. 

“I’ll take you kid,” Rossi nodded at him. 

“I’ll try and ping her cell phone.” Garcia hurriedly started back towards the stairs, Rossi and Spencer in tow. 

“Just in case something has happened, tell Y/N’s cousin to keep the kids away from her house.” Emily instructed. 

“Aye aye boss.” Penelope spoke as she carried on walking. 

Spencer was soon over taking her, walking as fast as he could towards the elevators while Rossi struggled to keep up. 

He was blinded by his emotions and he knew it. And he also knew if anything had happened to you he would never be the same. 

***

“Why are you doing this?” You asked once you finally came to, tied to a chair in a nondescript room. 

The dark haired woman sat on an old desk, twirling her revolver in her hand. 

“I already told you, for your husband.” She clucked.

“I don’t buy it.” You shook your hazy head. “He’s too controlling to let someone else do his dirty work.” 

“But he’s in prison, so he can’t do his own dirty work.” 

“Fine, let’s pretend I believe you. How do you know my husband?” You sighed. 

“We were lovers.” She smirked dangerously at you but you simply rolled your eyes. 

“Sweetheart, we both know that’s not true. My husband is forty two years old, you can’t be more than late twenties. We’ve been together for thirteen years, so if you’re telling me you were together before I met him, that would have made you, at most, sixteen years old. I highly doubt that he would have dated a sixteen year old when he was almost thirty.” You argued. 

“Who said it was before you met him?” 

“So you’re proposing that my husband cheated on me with you?” You cocked an eyebrow at her. “Ok, let’s say that happened. Why would you be willing to do his dirty work for him? What is he offering you in return for killing me? Let me guess, with me dead he has no one to testify against him and he goes free? And then what? The two of you run off into the sunset together with two kids?” 

You saw something flicker in her eyes. 

“Something like that.” She shrugged. 

You knew what you’d seen. She hadn’t given your kids a second thought. You decided to take a leaf from Spencer’s book. When he’d faced off with Cat Adams after prison he’d tricked her by giving the wrong name of Morgan’s son, proving she didn’t know as much about him as she thought.

“You think you’re equipped to look after Sammy and Kylie?” You scoffed. 

“I can be surprisingly maternal.” She smirked at you.

That cleared that up. This was most certainly not about Jared. If she was really his lover or whatever she claimed to be, surely she would know about his kids and this woman certainly did not. 

It was a small victory, but a victory nonetheless. 

“Where are my kids now?” You asked. 

“How should I know? I’m not interested in them, I’m interested in you.” The woman pushed herself up from the desk suddenly and you held your breath as she came closer to you. It was then you noticed the camera set up on a table top tripod, pointing your way.

She came behind you and you flinched when she wrapped her arm around your neck, gun dangling by your chest.

“Say cheese,” the woman chirruped, seconds before a camera flash went off.

***

Upon arrival at 184 Calvert Street it was immediately clear there had been a struggle. 

Several bags of groceries were on the drive, a smashed bottle of wine, cracked eggs and a partially split box of cereal. Your car was unlocked and your front door was wide open. 

Spencer drew his weapon, as did Rossi, as they headed towards the house. Without a word, Spencer took the ground floor and Rossi the first. A few minutes later Rossi called out, “clear.” 

“Clear here too.” Spencer holstered his weapon.

Nothing in the house appeared to be out of place, it looked the same as it usually did. He moved some books aside on the bookshelf to reveal the safe hidden behind. He heard Rossi’s footsteps on the stairs as he input the code.

He popped the safe door and reached inside, locating your gun with ease. He turned and held it up to Rossi who was looking at him with a frown. 

“You know her combination?” The older man asked. 

“It’s Adie’s birthday.” Spencer shrugged. “Makes sense she wouldn’t have had her gun, she wasn’t working.”

He put the firearm back in the safe as the two of them headed back outside. 

“It looks like she opened the door before getting the groceries. She had a lot to carry and I guess she figured it was easier to open the door first.” Rossi mused.

“She gets the door open, heads back to the car and grabs the bags, but someone waits until after she’s got them and closes the trunk to strike.” Spencer added. “There’s no other signs of a struggle or a fight. She’s startled and drops the bags and then what?”

“First blush? If it were me, a gun in my face would startle me enough to drop my bags.” Rossi speculated. 

Spencer roughly rubbed his palm across his jaw, shaking his head.

“This can’t be happening, Rossi. Not after everything she’s been through.” 

“Kid, take a breath.” Rossi put his hand on Spencer’s shoulder. “What’s going on here?”

“Clearly someone has stalked her, learnt her patterns and-”

“Not what I mean.” Rossi cut him off. 

“I can’t let anything else bad happen to her, Dave. Not after I sat by for years and did nothing while her jerk husband beat her.” Spencer spat. 

“Reid, you can’t blame yourself for that.”

“Yet I do.” 

“We’re going to get to the bottom of this and we’re gonna find her.” Rossi looked determined. “And when we do, maybe the two of you will finally stop playing this exhausting little game and finally admit you’re crazy about each other.” 

Rossi strolled away towards his car and Spencer watched him go. He couldn’t help the dry chuckle that left his lips at the old man’s words.

If only you knew, Rossi. If only you knew.

***

Two Weeks Ago

“Garcia, any luck with Judge Hamilton?” Spencer leant forward in the chair, speaking into the car’s microphone while you drove. 

Judge Melissa Hamilton was one of the people who the team suspected might be their unsub, Casey Allen Pinkner’s next target. But so far Garcia hadn’t been able to get hold of her. 

“No, we’ve reached everyone else involved she won’t pick up. I’ve pinged her phone, you guys are close.” Garcia informed you both. 

“She’s gotta be his end game, he knows we’re onto him and time is limited.” You huffed, continuing down the street and keeping your eyes peeled for Melissa Hamilton’s car.

“During sentencing she wanted to throw the book at him, she said that he needed to take responsibility for his actions.” Spencer spoke.

“That would have incensed him.” You sighed.

“Oh! she just pulled over.” Garcia’s voice came through the speakers again. 

You and Spencer both glanced around the busy LA street. Up ahead Spencer noticed a car stopped, frowning he leant further forward. 

“That’s her, that’s Judge Hamilton. Turn around.” He quickly told you. 

He held on tight while you made a sharp and somewhat precarious U-turn in the middle of a busy intersection. As you closed in on the vehicle it started moving again. 

You were hot on its tail, Spencer keeping a close eye on the sedan weaving in and out of traffic. Suddenly a tanker pulled out of a side road and Hamilton’s car came to an abrupt stop before they collided.

You pulled in behind it as the doors were opening on the other vehicle. Casey Allen Pinkner slid out of the back seat and instantly fired his gun in Spencer’s direction. Spencer was quick to duck behind the open door and narrowly avoided the bullet that hit the side of the SUV. 

You drew your own weapon but didn’t return fire given the amount of people on the street. Instead the two of you hurried after where he ran off with Judge Hamilton in tow. He’d run inside a jewellery store and you both followed him in, weapons pointed in his direction. 

“Everybody out!” Spencer yelled as he entered, waving the customers towards the door. 

Pinkner aimed his gun at the ceiling and pulled the trigger, making the store clerk who he held by the shoulder scream.

“Go, get out.” You motioned to the other customers before turning to Pinkner. “FBI!” 

“Put them down.” Pinkner growled. “On the ground.” 

You and Spencer exchanged a look, lowering your gun just a little. 

“It’s ok,” Spencer whispered, lowering his also and tossing it on the floor before you followed suit.

Pinkner made the clerk close the shutters while he had Hamilton force you and Spencer to the floor and tape your wrists behind your back. She was shaking as she taped up Spencer’s arms. 

“Don’t worry, it's going to be ok.” He whispered to her. 

What ensued was the two of you sitting back and witnessing Pinkner try and force Hamiliton to play his sick game of truth or dare whilst threatening if she didn’t play, he would kill her daughter. 

His dare for Hamilton entailed her shooting Spencer. But to his credit, Spencer didn’t even flinch with the gun pointing at him.

“Casey…” You spoke up, sensing the judge’s hesitancy whilst trying to push yourself to your feet.. “Uh, if Melissa won’t play, I will. Truth or dare? That’s your game right? I’ll play.” 

“Casey, I know what it's like, to be wrongly accused, sent to prison for a crime you didn’t commit.” Spencer spoke now, obviously trying to buy you all some time. 

“Yeah right, you went to jail?” Pinkner scoffed but Spencer simply nodded. “Yeah, I’d like to see that pretty boy.” 

Meanwhile behind his back Spencer had located a shard of glass from a broken display. He had it between his fingers as he attempted to cut through his tape. It was tricky at this angle and could feel the glass cutting into his palm but he powered through. 

“Ok, agent…” Casey turned to you with the gun, trailing off when he realised he didn’t know your name. 

“Y/L/N.”

“Agent Y/L/N, truth or dare?” He spat. 

“Truth.” You sucked in a breath. 

“If I think you’re lying, or stretching the truth in the slightest, I’ll kill him.” He turned the gun on Spencer briefly before pointing it back at you. “You ever shoot anybody before?” 

“Yes I have.” You nodded. 

“You enjoy it?” Pinkner smirked at you. 

“No.”

“LIAR!” He yelled, turning the gun back to Spencer and pulling the trigger.

You screamed at the sound, your heart instantly pounding. But soon enough you realised the bullet hadn’t hit him, not quite. 

“No, no I’m not lying!” You were quick to say, tears now flooding your vision. “The people I shot, I had no choice. But I did not enjoy it, I didn’t. You asked, and I told the truth ok? So, uh, now it's my turn? That’s how this game’s played. We take turns. Truth or dare?”

You tried to keep your tears at bay but if he shot at Spencer like that again they would certainly fall. You glanced at him, he looked a little shell shocked from the ordeal, no doubt he’d heard the bullet whirring past his head. But at least he was unscathed. 

“Truth.” Casey replied and you looked back at him. 

“What’s it going to take for all of us to walk out of here alive? For this to end peacefully?” You pleaded with him. 

“I ain’t going back to prison. My turn. Truth or dare?” 

“Truth.” You clenched your jaw. 

In your peripheral vision you could see Spencer moving ever so slightly. Hopefully you were buying you both enough time for him to come up with a way out of here. 

“I want you to say something you’re afraid to say. That you’d never tell anybody and you better make it good because if it's not it's gonna be the last thing you ever say. What’s it gonna be?” Pinkner spat, proffering the gun closer to you. 

“There are only four people I trust in this world.” You swallowed. 

“Boring.” Pinkner turned and quickly fired a bullet into Judge Hamilton's leg. She screamed and fell to the floor. “Next.” 

Your heart was thumping against your chest. You knew you had to say something good and this was certainly something you didn’t want to say. 

“My, uh…my husband…he uh…he hits me. He’s abusive.” You choked as tears started streaming down your face. 

“Wrong. Come on, you can do better than that.” Pinkner scoffed. 

“Casey,” Spencer spoke now, the pain in his voice evident. 

He’d know about what Jared did to you but you’d never said it out loud in quite as many words. He hated the way he felt so powerless against what your husband had done to you. 

“Shut up!” Casey screamed at him, grabbing you by the shoulder and forcing you back to the floor. 

“Ok, ok.” You cried. 

“Last chance. Something you would never say aloud, not even to your partner here. Your deepest, darkest secret. Impress me or I kill him.” He turned the gun back on Spencer. 

You looked at your best friend through watery eyes. There was only one thing left to say. A secret you never thought you’d say out loud, especially to Spencer. 

But it would certainly be enough to get Casey’s attention and with any luck it would save your lives. 

“Come on!” Casey screamed.

You kept your eyes on Spencer, tears getting heavier. His brow furrowed at you, sensing the weight of what you were about to say. 

“Spence, uh…” you swallowed. “I have always loved you. I was too scared to say it before... and now things are just really too complicated to say it now. I'm sorry, but you should know.”

The look that washed over him could only be described as pure heart break as the world seemed to freeze around you. He’d wanted to hear those words for so many years but not here, not like this. 

For five seconds the two of you stared at each other, five gut wrenching, life altering seconds. This was going to change everything, life would never be the same again. 

***

Present Day

Upon receiving the email from the anonymous server, things started to make a little more sense. 

It didn’t make the situation any less terrifying, but it did at least point the team in the right direction.

Your phone had been found in a dumpster a few blocks from your house and hadn’t rendered anything useful. It was the email that had landed in Garcia’s inbox a few minutes after Spencer and Rossi returned from your home which was interesting. 

It was a photograph of you with your abductor's arm around your shoulder. The woman next to you wasn’t trying to obscure her face telling the team she wasn’t scared of being identified. You had dried blood on the side of your face but other than that you looked to be unscathed. 

But the most alarming part was the demand in the email. 

Release Catherine Adams in twenty four hours. 

And that was how Spencer found himself behind the glass in the little room next to the interrogation room in which Cat Adams currently occupied. 

“You sure you can do this?” JJ was at his side, much like she had been last time he’d had to face off with his nemesis. 

“I don’t have a choice, Jennifer.” He wouldn’t look at her, keeping his eyes on Cat in her bright orange jumpsuit. “She’s made it personal. Again. If I don’t go in there she’s going to have Y/N killed.” 

“I’ll be right here.” JJ tried to calm him. 

“I don’t need you to wait for me. This is something I need to do alone. Go and help the team.” He didn’t look at her as he headed for the door and violently swung it open. 

He slammed it behind him, glaring manically at Cat. 

She was relaxed back in the chair, arms folded across her chest, jumpsuit sleeves rolled up to her elbows. Her dark hair was stringy and lifeless, tied back off of her face. 

Those infectious eyes he remembered having so much spark when they played their little game in the restaurant, even after his release from prison with his hand around her throat, were dull like someone had switched a light off. 

He’d seen that look mirrored on his own eyes when he was incarcerated. Day by day prison stripped him of life, and his eyes had slowly lost their sparkle. 

She’d been inside much longer than him, he wasn’t exactly surprised to see the effects she wore. But even when she looked at him they remained dark and cold. 

He could see the resignation. She’d given up. It happened in prison, when you stopped believing there was a way out. He’d reached that point too, he’d gotten himself into solitary for his own protection, but he’d been so sure he’d die there. 

She stared at him, waiting for him to speak. If he didn’t know any better he would have been sure she didn’t have anything to do with this. She didn’t seem as though she had the energy for these kinds of games anymore. 

“Where is she?” He spat at her, not wanting to waste any time. 

“Because I’m going to make it that easy on you?” Cat scoffed, lifeless eyes rolling in her head. 

“The demand of releasing you from prison is never going to happen, so why don’t we save ourselves both some time and tell me what this is really about.” He moved closer to the metal table but didn’t sit down. 

“You haven’t heard,” her lips turned up at the corner. 

“Heard?” He cocked an eyebrow at her. 

“I stopped fighting. The state versus Catherine Adams.” She unfolded her arms, exhaled heavily. 

“You’ve grown a conscience? Unlikely.” He rolled his eyes. 

“I’m bored.” She huffed. “Death has got to be more interesting.” 

“Why am I here, Cat? And where is Y/N?” He tried to keep his voice levelled but he knew it was only a matter of time before he lost his cool. “I’m not playing your games this time, tell me where she is.” 

“You know that’s not how this works, Spencie.” She offered him a sweet smile. Her eyes were still void of emotion. 

“Tell me what you want.” He folded his arms across his chest. 

“My final request,” she sat back in her chair leisurely. “Before I’m put to death. I want to go on a date. With you.” 

Spencer felt his stomach turn violently. Of course there was always something. But she did really think she would get her own way, be released from prison so he could take her out? 

He supposed having an FBI Agent kidnapped was one way to ensure she got what she wanted. 

He unfolded his arms before kneeling in front of her. He moved close to her ear. 

“The only date I will be there for is the one where they stick a needle in your vein.” He spat before pushing himself back up. 

“I hear you have a thing for damaged women, I thought I was just your type.” She smirked wildly at him. 

His teeth ground together furiously, but he tried not to let her see he was coming unravelled. He couldn’t give anything away. She was the master of reading people, him specifically. In another life she would have made a great profiler. 

“I have no idea what you mean.” He sucked in a breath, desperate not to let her see she’d hit a nerve. 

Cat chuckled, an evil and maniacal sound that made Spencer’s stomach lurch. 

“After all this time? Always.” She quoted with a wide smile on her face. 

Spencer’s nostrils flared and he felt his heart leap into his throat. 

How did she know about that? How could she possibly know? 

The only conceivable way would be from your bracelet. The bracelet you’d handed him back at Rossi’s wedding which he’d come to discover when he got home he no longer had in his possession. 

He’d assumed it had fallen out of his pocket, even called the venue the next day but as of yet no one had found it. Even if he’d lost it, it was out of the question that she could have gotten her hands on it. 

“Did you hear me?” Cat spoke again, snapping him out of his thoughts. 

“Yes.” He nodded.

“You’re going to take me on a date or I will have her killed.” She spoke in a sickly sweet tone that made Spencer want to throw up. “I want to look pretty! I wanna have fun! And I won’t even get physical. Unless you want me to.” 

He felt dizzy out of nowhere, his vision starting to blur. The walls of the interrogation room seemed like they were getting closer. He suddenly felt as though he couldn’t breath, like a heavy weight was pressing down on his chest. 

I’m having a panic attack. 

Before he could let Cat see his devolution, he threw open the door and fled the small room. He crossed the corridor in two strides, letting himself into a disused office. 

He fought to loosen his tie which felt like it was strangling him. He managed to get it over his head and tossed it aside while trying to focus on his breathing. 

A large scream ripped through him, involuntarily erupting from his throat and he reached out and swiped a pile of books and papers off the desk in his rage. 

He collapsed to the floor soon after that, hot tears streaming down his face. He sobbed loudly, not caring if anyone was to hear him. He didn’t even care if Cat heard him, even though that was unlikely through the reinforced glass.

He’d had so many emotions pent up for so many years and it was finally all coming to surface. Cat having you kidnapped was the straw that broke the camel's back. The thin piece of thread holding him together all these years snapped. 

You’d told him you loved him and he hadn’t said it back. What if he never got to say it back? You were finally free of the clutches of your abusive husband but now you might die because of Cat’s vendetta against him. 

He’d allow himself this moment. One moment in which he crumbled. Then he would push it all down and focus everything he had on finding you. 

And if he didn’t find you? That didn’t bear thinking about it. 

***

Hours ticked by. Slow, painful hours. There was something familiar about this room but you couldn’t quite place it, couldn’t quite see the bigger picture. 

The room was small, barely larger than your en-suite bathroom at home. The walls were painted white, chipped and peeling at the corners. 

The floor was damp and dusty, clearly having gone unused for years. The table in the corner which your kidnapped sat on was more like a counter than an actual table. 

Behind the counter was a set of thick red velvet curtains which were moth eared and mouldy. You swore you could see a sliver of light behind the thick fabric but maybe that was just wishful thinking. 

A window maybe? 

There was one door, to the left of the counter but it didn’t offer any clues. 

Debris was littered on the floor, torn sheets of paper for which you couldn’t quite piece together to work out what was on them. Small brown beads of something scattered between the paper but you couldn’t ascertain what they were. 

You probably had a concussion. If the blow to the head hadn’t done it you were sure the fall to the ground after you’d been rendered unconscious had. Your brain was foggy, you knew you were missing something right in front of you but you couldn’t work out what. 

The woman didn’t speak much, she mostly sat in silence on her cell phone. None of this made sense. Surely if she’d kidnapped you she wanted something from you? But she was yet to make any demands. 

By now you were sure the team must be looking for you. When you failed to pick up the kids from school either Liv, Penelope or Spencer would have been called. By now they must realise something had happened to you. 

The profiler in you couldn’t stop trying to run through it all in your head despite how much it hurt to do so. 

If this was somehow about Jared, even though you doubted that, where would their paths have crossed? Jared liked to drink, he frequented a lot of bars in the district. She could have been a bartender that he spilled his life to over one too many beers. 

But if that were true wouldn’t she know your kids names? 

She could have gotten hold of your FBI file. It would tell her your husband's name and the fact you had two kids but not their names. But that would open up the very real and very terrifying idea she was working for someone on the inside. 

She could have simply stalked you. If she’d been following you she would know about your husband, your kids, but not necessarily their names. 

But then it just came back to the why. Why was she doing this? Who had she taken that photo for? What did she want from you? 

You swallowed, your mouth was so dry and your throat was scratchy. You wiggled a little against your binds, this whole being held hostage thing was becoming too much of a regular occurance. 

“Look, seeing as we’re going to be here a while, why don’t you tell me what this is about.” You barely recognised your own voice.

The woman’s eyes snapped away from her phone and she looked at you, regarding you curiously. She put down the device and pushed herself to her feet. 

She had a slightly crazed smile on her lips as she approached you. There was something vaguely familiar about her, like you’d seen her somewhere before. Had you noticed her watching you? Somewhere in the deep recesses of your mind did you recognise her? 

“You need to see what he’s really like.” She told you, rummaging around in her pocket. 

“Jared? I already know what he’s really like.” You scoffed, with a frown. 

“Not Jared.” She chucked, fishing something out of her pocket and holding it up in front of your eyes. 

Your poor and tired eyes took a moment to focus on the silver item dangling from her fingers. But when you did, you felt your whole world stop turning. 

***

Spencer collected himself, pushed down his emotions and washed his face so the team wouldn’t know he’d been crying. When he walked into the round table room, all eyes were on him.

“How did it go, kid?” Rossi asked.

“About as well as you would expect.” He croaked. 

“We’ve run the woman through facial recognition but so far we haven’t got anything.” Garcia told him sadly. 

“I’ve seen her before.” Spencer focused on the photograph of you and your captor on the big screen. “I know I have, I just can’t figure out where.” 

“It makes sense for her to use a partner again, but her victimology is off. Cat is a black widow, she targets abusive men who remind her of her father.” JJ spoke now. 

“Could this be about Jared? Maybe she thinks in some kind of warped way, she’s saving Y/N?” Luke frowned as he spoke. 

“She doesn’t need saving, he’s already in jail.” Emily shook her head. 

“It’s not about Jared.” Spencer heaved a sigh. “I know exactly what this is about. This is about me.” 

“Well yeah it’s always been about you. But with Cat there is always the presenting agenda and the hidden one. If she sticks to pattern this isn’t just about going on a date with Spence.” JJ shook her head. 

So she was listening, at least to part of it. 

“No, this is about me. Me and Y/N.” Spencer closed his eyes, his gut churning. 

“What do you mean?” Tara asked with a hint of confusion in her tone. 

He opened his eyes again and looked at her, trying to find some kind of solace in her soft brown eyes. This was the last thing he wanted to open about right now but it was inevitable he would have to. 

If this was really about you and him, the team needed all the facts. 

“A few weeks ago on the case in LA, the guy who liked to play truth or dare. When he held us hostage, Y/N agreed to play.” Spencer looked away from Tara, focused his vision on your image on the big screen. 

“Ok?” Rossi frowned. 

“What does that have to do with anything? I read your report.” Emily frowned too. 

“I left something out of my report. Something she said that I didn’t think was pertinent. Not to the case anyway.” 

“But you think it’s relevant now?” Matt gave him an equally confused look. 

“I think somehow, and I don’t know how, Cat found out. Or she guessed, maybe, I’m not sure. But I think it’s why she took Y/N and how I know this about me and nothing else.” Spencer raked his fingers through his hair, a similar dizziness to that he’d experienced in the interrogation room washing over him. 

He needed to get this out before he had another panic attack. 

“Are you gonna tell us what she said or do we have to drag it out of you?” Luke was the one to ask. 

“She said…” he closed his eyes, taking himself back to the jewellery store. “Spence, uh…I have always loved you. I was too scared to say it before... and now things are just really too complicated to say it now. I'm sorry, but you should know.”

He kept his eyes closed as he quoted you verbatim. He could feel all the eyes of his team members on him, watching, waiting. 

When he opened his eyes he looked straight back at your photograph. There were a couple of exchanged glances but to their credit they didn’t seem all that surprised. 

“But you said it yourself, you left that out of the report.” Emily’s brows furrowed. 

“And the security camera from the store didn’t have audio. So even if she has someone on the inside working for her again, how would she know about that?” JJ looked at him quizzically.

“I have no idea.” He shrugged. 

“Did you tell anyone about it? Anyone at all?” Tara asked now.

“No,” Spencer shook his head. 

“Then how can this be about that?” Garcia questioned him. 

“I don’t know!” He sounded exasperated. “But I’m sure that it is, I know that it is.” 

“You’re sure you didn’t tell anyone?” JJ spoke calmly. “Even if it doesn’t seem relevant. Are you sure you didn’t-”

“Shit,” he cut her off. “I did tell someone.” 

“Who?” Emily was quick to ask. 

He looked from your photograph to his Unit Chief. 

“Max. I told Max.” 

“I’ve been in love with her for so long it’s just become a part of who I am.” He confessed. “I never let myself get close to anyone on the off chance she might have one day decided she felt the same. Just before I met you we…we, uh, slept together and she just up and left while I was asleep and never mentioned it again. It told me everything I needed to know, and so I made the decision to finally move on. I opened myself up to being with someone else and there you were. 

I really like you Max, I think we could have had something really amazing. But I can’t lie to you and tell you that I’m not always going to have feelings for Y/N, because at this point I’m sure they will never go away. And that’s not fair on you.” 

“No, it's not.” She shook her head. 

“I got held hostage yesterday, Y/N and I did.” He sighed, scratching at the back of his neck. “The unsub liked to play truth or dare. He had a gun pointed at her and made her confess to a secret she would never admit outloud.” 

Max narrowed her eyes on him, despite not being a profiler she could easily read between the lines.

“She told you she has feelings for you?” 

“She did.” Spencer nodded. “I still don’t know if she meant it or not, or if she was just trying to shock the guy.”

“You think she could be a part of this?” Luke leaned forward on the table. 

“No, no way.” Spencer shook his head frantically. 

“How can you be so sure? You only dated a few months, did you really know her?” JJ sounded somewhat accusatory. 

“I knew her.” He spat at his friend. “There is no way she is part of this.”

“Ok, ok kid calm down.” Rossi held his hands up. “If Max isn’t a part of this, we have to assume this woman who’s holding Y/N hostage overheard what you said to her. Where were you when you talked to Max?” 

Spencer’s eyes snapped onto the older man, frantic and wild. His heart pounded in his chest as his blood turned to ice. 

“At your wedding.” Spencer croaked. “I told Max that at your wedding.” 

In his peripheral vision he noticed someone pass by, dressed in a caterer's uniform. He waited for them to leave before he spoke again.

His eyes quickly found the image on the screen again only this time he didn’t look at you, he looked at the woman with her arm around your neck. 

“Fuck,” Spencer choked on his breath. “She was there! She was dressed as a freaking caterer!” 

All eyes turned to the screen while the others tried to deduce if they recognised her. 

“You’re sure?” Luke was the one to ask. 

“Yes.” Spencer nodded defiantly. “I saw her throughout the day, didn’t really pay her much attention. But she was there when I was talking to Max. I saw her. I thought she walked off but it’s safe to say I wasn’t exactly focused on her. She could have just been out of view, listening while I told Max what happened.” 

“Her name is Juliette Weaver.” Penelope suddenly looked up from her laptop. “I just got over the prison visitor records. She’s visited Cat five times in the last two weeks. And before that, she was an inmate at the same correctional facility. She was released a little over a month ago.” 

“Ok, I’ll bite. If this woman was really at my wedding, watching you and listening to your conversations, I’m still not sure what Cat has to gain by kidnapping Y/N.” Rossi pulled a face. 

“She got back at me for arresting her by having me arrested.” Spencer started to pace as he let the thoughts flow. “Then we destroyed her relationship with Lindsey, exposed her affair with Wilkins, to the one person who ever loved her. We proved playing the game with me was more important than being faithful to Lindsey.” 

“So you think she wants to kill Y/N, take away the one person who loves you just like you did to her?” JJ mused. 

Spencer suddenly stopped pacing, eyes landed on JJ. 

“No,” he shook his head. “She doesn’t want her dead.” 

“So what does she want?” Matt frowned. 

“Last time she wanted to prove that we’re the same. Me and Cat. This time she wants to prove I’m like him.” 

“Him?” Garcia questioned. 

“Jared.” Spencer exhaled. “At the wedding you told me how Y/N had been found with Jared’s hand around her throat. I bet Juliette overhead that too.” 

“So?” Garcia shrugged. 

“She was found being strangled, just like when I had Cat up against the wall in the interrogation room by her throat.” Spencer clenched his jaw. 

He saw some confused eyes, the whole team had not been privy to that part of his encounter with Cat. Emily hadn’t let the others see the video footage, thinking the fewer people knew of it the better. 

“Cat wants to prove to Y/N that I am no better than her husband. She doesn’t want to kill her, it would be too easy. It would be worse for me for Y/N to live and never be able to look at me the same.” Spencer’s whole body deflated. 

“Or let you live knowing you couldn’t save her.” Luke spoke, his tone morose. 

“Either way we need to find her.” Emily turned stern. “And the best way to do that would be…”

“No,” Spencer shook his head, whining. “Please? There must be another way.” 

“If we give her what she wants she could slip up. We can profile what she says on the date. She’d be out of her comfort zone.” Emily shrugged as if there was no other way. 

Maybe there wasn’t. 

“Fucking hell,” Spencer groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Fine.” 

“Alvez and Simmons, you'll go with them.” Emily instructed. “Garcia, see if you can find any more on Juliette Weaver.”

Soon the five of them, Spencer, Luke, Matt, Emily and Garcia exited the room, the others staying behind to continue pursuing other leads. As they passed by Emily’s office, the Unit Chief spoke again. 

“Reid, a word?” 

Spencer halted in his tracks, inhaling deeply before slowly following her into her office. 

She closed the door behind him, moved over to her desk which she leant back against.

“You sure you can do this?” She folded her arms across her chest. 

Spencer took a beat, thought about that question for a moment or two before he responded with a simple, “no.” 

“If there was another way…”

“I know.” He nodded stiffly. “I just need a minute to compose myself. If I have to see Cat right now I will undoubtedly kill her.” 

The gumption to his tone frightened Emily for a second. She knew he wasn’t exaggerating, he would most certainly kill her. 

“If you kill her we may never find Y/N. Just try and remember that.” Emily spoke softly, trying to calm him.

“If we don’t find her,” he clenched his jaw. “If she dies, I will murder Cat Adams with my bare hands. And rest assured I will sleep well afterwards.” 

With that he turned and forced the door open, fleeing the room before Emily could even so much as blink. 

And she knew more than ever that they had to bring you back unharmed, or she would inevitably lose two members from her team. 

@andiebeaword @measure-in-pain @muffin-cup @dreatine @matthew-gray-gubler-lover @justreadingficsdontmindme @spencer-reid-wonderland @thebloomingeagle @frostandflamesfanfic @pixiehex1985 @release-your-sweets @mavel-fan-for-life @megan-mars @hales-17 @onlyspence @werewolfbansheelove @gubsi @vivian-555 @ropickle @meowiemari @dil3mma @wolfstar-17 @kylakins88 @shqwqrma

[oksana-moods]

Queens of Promise - Final Part

Summary: The journey is a work of art, they say. And if to grow one needs to bleed, then you certainly paid your price. 

A/N: Writing this part was one of the hardest things I’ve done. Nothing seemed fit, nothing seemed good enough for a Last Part. There were some feelings or emotions that I couldn’t quite grasp, unfortunately, so to give you this part without stalling any further, I decided to move on with what I had. Hope you guys like it. Thank you to the ones who stayed or kept asking for the end of this story. Thank you everyone who spared a time of your life to read my work. And to the ones who shared some love, thank you.

As always, it means the world to me. 

Previous Parts here

Warnings: Game of Thrones kind of violence, language. Mentions of blood and death.

“We were the Kings and Queens of promise We are the Queens”

Your limbs hurt, it feels like daggers are piercing through your skin with every step taken, yet you’re standing. It’s astounding.

Just like the people of Taharr, who gathered under the castle walls alongside the river shores from both sides. From your point of view they looked like ants, but there were more than thousands willing to pay their respects, their last courtesy to Queen Calanthe. The Strong Lioness.

The Lords, Ladies and other knights were allowed inside the castle walls and would attend the ceremony on the inner patio, the one with the river view.

However, you and a very selected few were in the winter garden, where there were statues of the former kings and queens, soon there would be one of Calanthe too. Too soon for your liking.

Many rivers grew or were born from a mountain of rocks, but the “Castle River” started from inside the boulders and rocks where Triskelion Castle was built in, its first appearance was, in fact, in the winter garden.

This spot of crystal clear water had a coffin boat on it, beautifully decorated with golden lionesses and adorned with chrysanthemums, your mother’s favorite flowers. They were simple - misunderstood she used to say, but they were always pretty.

Usually, the ceremony occurred on the seashore, at Pierce Coast, however, contemplating the attacks and the coup attempt, you had decided to stay and proceed with the burial in the capital, from the castle.

You knew how far you could shoot an arrow from this height and considering the winter garden stood close to fifty meters from the ground, would be a long shot. She deserved no less.

Three women covered from head to toe in full white gowns with golden lines forming some sort of pattern arrived at the garden where you stood and started to enchant their elder song.

It was always beautiful to watch, but the lines of the old druid poem touched a little too close this time.

The elder song was meant to guide the spirit to afterlife, the lines referred to the circle of life provided by the water. Every energy, every soul, everything was water. The flow of the universe.

You tried, but it was impossible not to share a tear or two as the last verse was sung. The song was about to end, your mother’s time as ruler was about to end. This was a reality that you did not want to acknowledge.

Your mother was gone.

And you were alone.

As the song ended, the men close to the boat looked at you expectantly, looking for your signal to release your mother on the river, to go down with the flow. As her boat was released, you tightened the grip around the bow on your hand.

Your knuckles hurt, but everything in you hurts, there’s nothing new.

You casted your eyes downwards, following the boat but also watching as the others knelt as it passed by, never stopping, the water flow was inexorable just as life was. 

It was painful, it was raw. It was true.

The seconds passed and your eyes burned just as your heart was, it was time for you to shoot your arrow in flames, only you couldn’t. After your shot, there was no turning back.

Maria, who stood several steps ahead, looked back at you. Even without words you knew what she meant. It was time. But you couldn’t.

She nodded, encouraging you to lift your useless arm and loose the arrow as you were supposed to. But you couldn’t.

You looked down at the fire pit in front of you, waiting to kiss your arrow and, as the flames danced, you blinked your tears away. Your hands were shaken.

“How can you shoot so far, mother?” The childish voice made the woman look down at you and she smiled that tender smile of hers.

“Practice, love.” She approached you with her bow, beautifully crafted and adorned with rubies, she extended it to you and encouraged you to hold it properly.

Now, standing right behind you, she commanded. “Take a deep breath and, as you do, pull the string with your other arm.” You did as you were told and she kind of guided, kind of corrected your movement. “Take your aim and release.”

Your movement faltered. “How do I aim, mother?” You heard a snort a second later after your question.

“Both eyes open, love. Choose your target and point the arrow at it, that’s your aim.” She instructed and guided your little hands. “Never lose sight of it. inhale, exhale, release.” Her voice was soft in your ear.

It was a little overwhelming. Only ten summers had passed for you, but your training was intensive. You wanted to play gobstones, wanted to play pass the ball, throw your hat, all the games the other kids were playing, yet, you couldn’t. Your free time was scarce as a breeze during summer. As a future ruler, you were supposed to train, study, observe, learn. There was no time for anything else.

“I can’t do this, momma.” You muttered after a second, for your arms got too stiff and shaken, you lowered them before you could loosen the arrow.

“Why not?” She inquired, never leaving her place behind you.

“My arms hurt. I’m terrible at this.” You confessed. From all the activities she requested for you to take, bow and arrow was the worst. You were the worst at it.

A second snort was heard and she squeezed your shoulder lightly. “Your arms will hurt if you overthink. Do it swiftly.” After a light tap on your chin, you turned your face to her. “And you’re not terrible, you’re afraid of failure. Don’t be.”

“What if I miss?” You blinked as she laughed lightly at your question.

“If you miss, you go and take another shot.” Her smile could light up the whole world. “Failing is to give up, so there’s no failing, as long as you try again. Be stubborn.”

At this, your face lit up like a tree during the summer festivals. “I can be stubborn!” You offered as if this was all that was missing in your life for you to accomplish your goals. Maybe it was.

With renewed interest and spirit, you turned to your target once more and pulled the string again, following her guidance as if it was a recipe.

“Don’t overthink.” She muttered behind your ear and hell, you heard her smile when you did as told. Your hand let go of the string and your eyes followed your arrow until it reached the target, almost a hand away from the bullseye, it wasn’t perfect, but you were content.

You could be stubborn.

A hand on your shoulder brought you back to reality and you blinked again at the arrow on your hand, begging for you to bathe it in flames and let it paint the blue sky.

“You can do this.” Carol Danvers smiled softly by your side and you clenched your jaw.

Taking a deep breath, your arm pulled the string until it reached your cheek and you could see the flame dancing on the tip of your arrow, the boat caught on your blurred vision.

Inhale. Exhale. Release.

Thousands of eyes followed as the arrow crossed the sky on that pale morning. As it flew, your heart hammered your ribcage.

You let out a low whistle when the arrow missed the boat and dived a foot away from the boat where your mother slowly and continuously flowed with the waters.

You had missed.

You had failed.

All of a sudden, you felt a light breeze hit your face and you sworn by all heavens that your nostrils were invaded by your mother’s perfume. Your lungs burned as chrysanthemums claimed the air around you.

Another light squeeze on your shoulder and, handling you another arrow, Danvers stubbornly said. “You can do this.”

Stubborn.

“I can be stubborn.” You muttered, doing the same thing you did seconds before. You lowered the point of the arrow on the fire pit and soon pulled the string until it touched your cheek again.

Inhale. Exhale. Release.

The people on the banks of the river resumed the chant started by the White Ladies as the boat was engulfed in flames. It was beautiful, it was disheartening.

As the boat sank, you retreated into the castle. Your steps were heavy, stiffy as if walking took a toll on you.

Your mother’s sun sank into the fate's waters.

Your sun had just begun its ascension.

– – –

The chill in the air could almost be touched. The Winter Garden was taken by a thick haze, yet you could still see what was in front of you.

The stone, carved to resemble the woman your mother once was, felt cold, probably colder than it should be, but you touched it, nonetheless.

Almost a moon had passed and the crafters worked non-stop until this memorial statue was ready, you were adamant that it should be before your coronation. And here you were, hours away from officially being crowned the new Queen of Taharr, in front of the last queen, seeking comfort.

“I never really gave much thought of how this would be,” You spoke to the stone, it remained immovable, as you knew it would. “But I never thought it’d be this hard.” 

Even with all the things you had to do after the last battle, known as the Battle of the Failed Coup, your head didn’t rest or stopped thinking about your mother. After a while, it became pretty common for you to speak out loud as if she was present and would engage the conversation. 

You were past the point of feeling silly, now it brought you a mild sense of comfort. It was odd, you knew, but one should work with what they got and if you had to go through your grieving, you’d do it your own way.

“How am I supposed to move on?” You asked but your words were engulfed by the fog and died in nothingness just like all the others. You felt so not ready for this, completely unprepared and the urgency only drove you a little bit closer to the brink of the edge of your sanity.

She would hate to see you stuck in the mud like you were, and you’re afraid you’re becoming everything you hate. However, day after day, the weight of your decisions and their aftermath sometimes felt a burden too heavy for your shoulders. And you hated to feel so incapable, so defeated. 

First, you thought you were listening to things, but then the unmistakable sound of shoes scraping the wet grass properly reached your ears and you knew you were not alone anymore, a person - not a ghost - was about to arrive where you were. 

“Thought I’d find you here.” Maria Rambeau's voice filled the silence after she stopped right behind you.

You ignored her choice of greeting and fired. “What have I done, Maria?” 

“I’m afraid I don’t follow, my queen.” The woman shifted, side walking to level her eyes with yours. You all but flinch at the measure, you’re still not prepared to be called the supreme ruler of Tahar. Still feeling undeserving of the title you’re supposed to bear. 

“All this time, all the lessons and I feel like it was all for nothing. She’s dead and that’s because of me. It’s all my fault.” There you were, digging deeper into the mud of remorse and guilt. You felt like a wreck, beyond repair. 

“If I may, I don’t see it that way, my lady.” Maria starts. “Queen Calanthe died a true queen’s death, fighting for her people feistily, as she always did.” She paused for a second to make sure you were listening. “Your mistakes or even Loki’s betrayal can’t and won’t diminish the importance of her sacrifice, of her strength.”

Her hands pointed to the castle you were standing on, as to emphasize her next words. “The enemy had us in a chokehold, yet Triskelion resisted, she endured and Taharr prevailed. There will be so many songs about this feature, my lady.” 

“What will I do with songs?” You retorted like a petty child.  

“Revel in them! For she’ll always be alive, in every ballad sang from a bard and in our hearts. In your heart.” She replied without missing a beat, adamant in making her point of view crystal clear.

“And now?” You inquired. Unsure to whom, if to the wind, to your friend or to the memory of your mother, you did not know. “There was so much to learn. There’s a whole kingdom waiting for me to guide them but I feel so lost.

“I don’t know if I should gather the army and seek revenge or if I should prepare for winter and reinforce the borders.” You continued your rant. “If I should reunite with the other kings to hold Hydrarr’s plans or if I should just stand here, waiting.” You balled your fists, irritated with one of the feelings inside your heart. 

Being indecisive wasn’t a trait usually associated with you. Before, you’d say that is best to ask forgiveness than living a lifetime wondering what could have been. Before, you had your mind made up and set with a plan. Before, if things went wrong, you’d just go with the flow. 

That was before. 

“There are so many decisions, so many lives depending on me and said decisions. I feel like I’m crushing with the burden and crushing even further with each passing second.” You finish, now looking back to the stone, jaw clenched. 

“Heavy is the head that wears the crown.” Maria interjected. “I used to say these words to your mother and it is only fitting to keep saying it, because it’s still the truth.” 

Her words made you avert your eyes to your friend and there were so many thoughts running in your head, that it seemed difficult to organize or even prioritize given there was so much to be done.

Deciding on taking one step at a time, you shot. “Maria, remember that promise that you made me that you’d comply with everything I said after I became queen?” 

“Of course I do, my queen.” Maria smiled softly. “Is this the moment where I pledge to follow every single command of yours, no matter how silly they are?” She humored, not really knowing why the hell you brought this up. 

“No.” You turned back and looked at her. Your tone was so serious that you can see her forehead frowning. “I want you to be you. I want you to be my conscience… Would you do the honor of serving Taharr as High Advisor?” 

She’s taken back by your bluntness. This wasn’t small, actually, you were asking a lot of her but giving just as much. It was the second most powerful position in this Kingdom, losing only, of course, to the queen herself. “M-My queen? Are you sure?” 

“I am.” Few times in your life you felt that sure. 

She’s speechless for a moment. Perhaps trying to read the catch on your request, maybe weighing her options. 

“I won’t take shit from you if you try to play the queen card on me. If you want me to step in as Advisor, I want my voice to be heard and I don’t want blindspots.” Her face was devoid of that humor from seconds ago. She meant business and if you wanted her to take this job, there would be conditions. She wouldn’t pose as a mannequin    

“Deal.” You offered your hand for her to shake and seal the offer. “That’s exactly why I need you. I want to be as good as my mother was, and to do that I need someone to keep me on my toes.” You sighed, now deflated. “There’s no one else here to do that.”

“You are good.” She intervened. “You’re worried about the right things, everyone makes mistakes.” Maria squeezed your shoulder affectionately, trying to pull you back from the sorrow abyss you were floundering in. “We just have to learn how to pick ourselves up now. We’ll do this together.”

You nod, but let her words simmer through your head while you take a few steps until the edge of the Garden, where you could see the city below. The sun had only started to rise and the fog was slowly dissipating around you or the city. 

“Learn.” You try the word in your mouth as if a wine for you to taste. You had learnt so much in this past year. Hate. Love. Fear. Heartbreak. Grief.  

“Can I ask you something personal, Maria?” You asked, briefly glancing at your friend then looking back down, to the small buildings bathing on the first light of the day. Maria barely nodded her head to signal for you to go on, then you fired. “How did you know Carol was the one?

She remained silent for a few seconds, looking down, you knew she had heard you, for this was her telltale that her brain was working on an answer. “Do you remember when your mother created the High Guard?”

“She asked for the mightest and greatest knights from every village in Taharr. It didn’t matter their status. First it was a tournament, then the best were selected so you’d fight against each other until only the best kept standing.” You remembered, despite being relatively young. It lasted for weeks and you were mesmerized by many warriors displaying incredible techniques and skills.  

“Exactly. Carol and I were from different villages, so the tournament was the reason why we met and she challenged me in every possible way.” Maria began, eyes flashing with memories of a brilliant past, if the smile on her lips said anything. 

“In the tournament she was my rival, but after, at the sparring turns, she came with everything she had. She was marvelous indeed: strong, fast, powerful, yet, I could always find a way to counter her attacks.

“We kept our little competition, even after the tournament, even after we were both granted our current titles for bravery and skill set, but there had always been this pull between us, you know?

“I’d both hate and love that smile of hers and she later confessed she both hated and loved my bossy face. When she finally let her guard down, I saw the woman behind the title, behind the Marvelous and she was beautiful - I simply knew Carol was my person.”

You nod as if to thank her for her explanation while you stood there contemplating her words and their meaning. Eyes still cast down, you’re able to discern some dots that you knew were people, moving around the streets starting, preparing for another day. Completely unaware of your inner queries. 

“May I ask why you wonder, my queen?” Perhaps not only your citizens were unaware of the doubts clawing your guts. 

“I-.” You sighed, unsure of what words to use in an attempt to explain the turmoil in your head and chest concerning a certain princess that has already been spoken for. “I thought Wanda was the one.” You felt stupid for still giving thought to a woman who misled you. “For me.” 

Out of a sudden, you felt your back hurt again due the burden pressuring you as if to remind you of where your focus should be. It was not the time to think about Wanda. 

And speaking of hurt, you stared at the burnt mark on your hand, a last minute gift from your pal Lord Vision, as punishment for your audacity of touching Wanda in a way you were not supposed to. 

“For the first time in my life, I let myself be vulnerable and she did the same.” Your eyes met concerned obsidian orbs intently looking at you. “I swear she did and she showed me how wonderful she was on the inside.” 

Fidgeting with your hands and the hem of your tunic, you continued, eyes cast once more on the people moving on with their lives. The way you couldn’t. “There were so many flaws, Maria, fears… I loved that Wanda no one else knew.” 

A sad smile now adorned your lips. “And I hate to know she played me like a doll in a sick game. I hate to understand that I was just stupid for falling in love and believing that she loved me back.”

“You shouldn’t think that way, dear.” Turning to look at her again, you could see her eyes were soft, but there wasn’t a single trace of pity. “What your heart felt was your truth. I, myself, had a hard time believing that Princess Wanda was capable of something like this. But if she deceived you, that’s on her. She’s the one losing.” 

Her lips twitched a little, trying to give way to a small but sincere smile. “You are a wonderful person and whoever you choose to be your queen will be the luckiest woman for sure.”

You narrowed your eyes a little. Maria wasn’t one known for throwing compliments at the wind for no reason. With a slight smirk, you asked. “Are you saying this because you’re my friend?” 

She gasped, offended. “Of course not!” Then, the lines in her face turned a little less grave. “I’m telling you this because you are the Queen, my boss. Why else would I lie?” 

At her words, a laugh erupted from your chest as if a bubble wanted to set free. Your whole body shook and you could see hers did as well. 

For some reason, after this unexpected section of laughter, you felt a little less burdened, it was just tiny, but you felt a little bit lighter. 

As the laugh died down, she elbowed you lightly and called. “Come. There’s a coronation for you to get prepared for.” 

Wordlessly, you started to follow her, casually walking towards your chambers. Before your mind could travel to an unwanted, dark place of sorrow or worry, Maria’s voice found you again. 

“Have you heard your friend Aria Stark is here for your ceremony?” She never gave you the time to reply, for she completed her own thoughts. “And that her sister, aka your ex-fiancé, Queen Sansa, came as well?” 

“Oh.” It was all that you could mutter. You knew Aria should arrive soon, for she sent you a raven when she heard the news. Funny how a powerful friendship developed after you stumbled on a lost grieving girl in Braavos. 

But you were specially surprised by Sansa’s presence, you supposed she wouldn’t want anything to do with you after you, politely, declined her proposal offer. 

“‘Oh’” Maria mocked your tone. “I swear, you and your redheads.” 

– – – 

The raging storm knocked at the walls mercilessly, the thunder shook the whole castle as the lightning flashed the room alit every now and then. The fire in the fireplace danced erratically and you were surprised it still continued alive despite the wind making force through the cracks of the windows.

Staring at the cup of wine in your hand, you thought that maybe the weather was just mirroring the feelings in your chest. The taste of the wine faded from your tongue, but you could still taste Wanda’s love on your very lips. 

It was amazing, actually, how you could all but remember your time with her when confined in your chambers alone. If not sad, it would be mesmerizing the way you missed her lips and not even the strongest alcohol could numb it in your skin, in your mind or heart.

You wished you could escape the assault of memories and tender moments together, however, all you seemed to be capable of was to stumble on the ashes of your once upon a time with the northern princess. 

So much for your happy ending. 

Heavy knocks on the door broke your miserable daze and you cursed them, and entertained the idea of asking for their head on a spike for interrupting your sulking, but you assumed it’d be Maria. It would be more likely for her to have your head in one. 

Without waiting for your response, you were proven right, when she barged into the room as if she had run for miles. Her rapid breath made you anxious, for she hadn’t given you a single clue as to why she was so nervous and breathless. 

“My Queen, you won’t believe-.” She paused for air, but you hated the drama she created. There were thousands of things you wouldn’t believe in, but they were all running through your head. 

You wouldn’t believe it, but you entertained the idea of a dragon rampaging your realm. Or about flying whales passing above the city, with this storm, who could say?! Perhaps the Kree or Skrulls had organized and orchestrated a secret invasion and the city was doomed. Highly unlikely, but what if the same iced zombies that infected Westeros came to Noveria? After all, no one really knows what happens in Vormir. 

“My Queen-” She resumed, putting your imagination to rest. “Barton is here, alive. And the Black Widow is here with him.” Her eyes portrayed nothing, and you did hear the second part. Lady Natasha, your enemy’s loyalist was in your castle, the nerve. 

But you chose to focus on the first part, for lately, good news was just scarce as the leaves during winter. Your beloved friend, the one that taught you so much, the very one you thought you had lost - just another casualty to your naivety and recklessness, was back and alive. 

At least this was definitely good news and yeah, this was something you couldn’t believe in. 

You started to move around your room, gathering the minimum of clothes to be presentable before your subjects and you thought how much you have changed, a few months ago and you wouldn’t have minded if you were half naked. 

As you approached your closet, you barked at Maria. “Take Clint and Romanoff to the Great Hall. Call the cooks and bring whatever they can prepare this fast and get a barrel of our finest wine.” The High Advisor nodded and started to leave the room, but stopped when you spoke once more. 

“And for fuck’s sake send a word to Lady Laura, immediately.” A sharp nod and she fled to comply with your orders. 

The fire cracked calmly in the fireplace, giving the foolish idea that everything was calm despite the thunderstorm raging against the walls, despite the storm increasing inside your chest.

As soon as you entered, you spotted three figures standing, close to the fireplace - Maria, Carol and Sam. And another two figures seated at the table, one in front of another, eating rather fast - they were starving. 

The quietness of the Hall was violently interrupted by your heels clacking against the marble floor as you marched towards the people gathered and saw their heads rising from their meals to look at you. 

Even a few meters away, you saw Clint limping from his chair and sunk his knees on the floor, looking directly at your eyes. “My Queen.” The weight of his eyes and tone showed you his grief, his – your ruefulness. 

Before your hand could touch his shoulder, you saw Natasha Romanoff also kneeling slightly behind Clint, eyes cast on the floor and voiced. “Queen Lioness, my condolences.” The action surprises you, surely, but you’re mostly stunned because of her tone. 

It almost seemed that she meanted what she had just said, that she was indeed sad about your mother’s death, even though her Kingdom, her army, was responsible for this fact. 

Confused, you nodded. Then, resumed your previous action and pulled Clint by his shoulders, so he could get to his feet, and hugged him. 

“I thought you were dead.” You confided, voice as far from a queen’s as possible, twice as weak. “I’m so glad you’re not.” 

He returned your embrace just as tight. You knew what you had suffered, only the gods could know what this man had endured. “I’m sorry I couldn’t make it faster.” And by his words you knew he blamed himself for not being here during the battle, the coup attempt. Or the burial. He, too, blamed himself for Queen Calanthe’s death. 

“You’re here now.” You patted his cheek and gave him a weak smile. You meant your words, but it still hurt, you wouldn’t deny it. 

Taking a deep breath to help you fall into the character you were supposed to play, you raised your chin slightly and directed a hard glare at Natasha, with a matching hard tone directed at Clint. “Now you want to explain why there is an enemy, a Sokovian no less, still breathing inside my castle?” 

– – – 

“You’re lying.” You hissed, for the thousandth time. You just couldn’t believe what they, especially Natasha, were trying to say to you. 

“Why would I lie?” She asked, tiredly, arms crossed in her chest. You amused the idea of putting her in chains, to make her understand her position, you even entertained the idea of taking her to her room, a cell in the dungeons, to retribute the hospitality. 

But in the end, you gave in after Barton pledged on your friendship’s name for you to listen to them, to the both of them. The only problem is that they were suggesting absurd things to a very jaded woman. 

“Oh.” You mocked confusion. “Why would a Sokovian lie, Romanoff?” You shot back venomously. “You’ve been lying this whole time! I don’t even know your reasons anymore!” At this, you threw the decorated invitation you had received earlier at the table. 

The marks of burnt and crinkles of a parchment recently crumbled in a paper ball were visible, but also visible was its content. Without even trying to hide your disgust, you started to spat the words engraved not only in the paper, but also in your mind.

“Prince Vision, heir of Hydrarr, son of Red Skull, proudly announces his marriage to Princess Wanda Maximoff, heir of Sokovia, daughter of King Django and Queen Marya Maximoff, with the blessings of King Pietro, who announces his retirement due critical illness. The ceremony will be due in two moons. This invitation is extended to the friendly realms to Sokovia.”

Taharr wasn’t, obviously, a friendly realm to Sokovia. This was probably Vision’s way of taking an opportunity of messing with your head a little further. Or, perhaps, this could be Wanda’s doing. Who knew?

Whoever sent this, did on the sole purpose of fucking with you. And they succeeded. 

Maria, Carol and Sam gasped at your words, they were just as shocked as you were. You knew about the marriage, it hurt like hell to see a confirmation, but you were completely in the dark about Lord Vision’s - now Prince Vision - origins. 

Not to mention the news about Pietro’s retirement, since when does a King or Queen retire? All the ones you knew died and their rest would be in the afterlife. What the fuck was going on?

A more rational part of your brain understood the geopolitics involved in this marriage: Hydrarr and Sokovia would become one united Kingdom, with its forces and ruthlessness combined, who knew where they’d stop? With King Pietro’s retirement, Wanda and Vision would, respectively, become Queen and King of the combined territory. 

With a start, you realized the only ones who did not bore impressed looks were Clint and Natasha. They already knew about this. And, for a split second, you almost doubted your friend. Almost. 

“And that’s a coup.” Clint pointed at the paper while the Black Widow simply wrinkled her nose as if the parchment had a bad smell. “A very well orchestrated one, might I add. They’re overthrowing Pietro.” 

Your eyes darted back to him and he continued. “I told you, Lord Vision has been contaminating Sokovia for years. Day after day, he’s working to make it more Hydrarr’s. And with this marriage? He’ll achieve it.” 

“Harv Krickitt told you this?” You asked about the man, the jeweler, who crafted the piece of jewel the Black Widow assigned to kill you had received as payment. Barely a year has passed, but it felt so, so long ago, almost another life. 

Remembering that day, that night, your eyes were hard and jaw so clenched it hurt, still, a pale contrast to the pain brought by the memories dancing behind your eyes. 

“Kricket told us Vision was the one to ask for the necklace, with the lioness’ pendant. But he was asked to deliver it to Barnes’ care.” Natasha answered, voice as if made of stone. “He killed Steve during the attack. Those men, that day? They were a Hydrarr unit, a cover up.”

“As everything so far, my queen, this was a set up.” Clint completed. And you laughed at the absurd image they were trying to paint. Inwardly. Outside it looked more like a snort that could very well be mistaken with a choke.

“You want me to believe that Pietro, that Wanda,” Your voice failed, it’s been months since you last spoke her name out loud. You tried not to show any weaknesses, but your heart still skipped a beat and you hated it. “-had nothing to do with this?” 

“Precisely.” His words were unwavering. He was certain and you seriously wondered how badly your friend had been compromised. 

If you were the older you, this thought wouldn’t have even popped into your head, because it'd be straight away unfathomable, but the older you died after facing the treason of people so dear to you. Wanda’s betrayal was a stab in the guts, for sure, but Loki’s? It killed your heart. 

So, who could blame you for asking? 

“Did you turn?” Your tone was flat, devoid of emotion. 

Across the room, your peripheral sight caught heads snapping at you or even the sound of an intake of a good amount of air. The other occupants of this room judged you had gone too far on your assumption and that this was not what someone with Clint’s reputation should hear upon returning home. 

But you didn’t care that this could offend him or even if you were calling him traitor right on his face, you were the queen, weren’t you? You were entitled to. 

To his credit, Lord Barton didn’t even flinch at your question, his voice, still unwavering. “I would never!”

Your eyes searched for his, scrutinized his soul looking for any sign of deceit but you found nothing. He was speaking the truth. 

Nodding as to show you accepted his answer, you resumed the conversation. “What are you suggesting?” 

“Vision has the Maximoff twins in a hook.” He fired back without wasting a second, if you were willing to hear him, there was no time to waste. And, as if on cue, Natasha expanded the idea started by Clint. 

“Pietro is ill, that part is true, but Vision is threatening Wanda’s life if he does not step back.” This sentence ignited a fire in your whole being, even though you didn’t know what to believe. If all of this is true or not, it didn’t matter, the idea of someone hurting Wanda made you very angry. “And Wanda has to marry Vision, otherwise he’ll kill Pietro.” 

Your head snapped at the redhead seated in front of you so fast it felt like a whiplash, at the same time, your heart rate skyrocketed to the moon. 

“You mean she hadn’t agreed with this marriage on her own?” You carefully chose your next words, you wanted to make sure your ears and your brain were not playing games with you. “Are you telling me that she won’t marry him because she wants, but obliged to keep her brother safe?” 

“I am.” Her confirmation blew the air out of your lungs. 

Alarmed, you got off your seat and retreated to the fireplace, which still cracked, unbothered by the revelations these walls have just witnessed. You tried to remind yourself to keep breathing, because these past minutes were beyond intense. 

Your head was still trying to wrap itself around the proposition the spies were presenting to you and, at the same time, your heart was trying to grasp the meaning behind these implications. 

Wanda was about to marry a man because of her duty to her brother, to protect the last blood attachment she has with her family. And if she was forced to marry him, if Pietro was not involved, then could this mean-? 

“Wanda would never betray you, My Queen.” Clint’s voice reached your ears as if he spoke from miles away, but he knew how fast your head and heart were running, he knew what sort of questions plagued your mind. “She was devastated, went berserk after she found the house you shared empty.” 

Contradictory emotions clashed on your chest and you didn’t even know what those emotions were, for there were so many. And just like that, you didn’t know what to think or what to make out of this. 

For so long, you believed and were led to believe that Wanda had participated, organized this ploy like a brilliant sociopath. You blamed her for your suffering, you hated her and called names in the confines of your room at night while tears ran free down your cheek. 

You cursed the feeling she made you feel and now someone dares to say otherwise. Someone dares to say you got it all wrong, that you were lied to and the woman you loved had nothing to do with this? 

“This is profanity.” You whispered, but somehow Clint heard, despite the heavy rain outside. 

“I’m not lying.” He confirmed, as if this was all that you needed to accept this plot twist. 

“You can’t possibly think that I’ll believe this, Clint. I was put through hell.” You cried, disregarding the others still present, you didn’t care if they saw you weak right now. This wasn’t news to them after all.

Without a word, Natasha pulled something from her battered purse and you were about to turn away again when she opened her hand, palm flat upwards, offering you its content. Your eyes narrowed due the feeble light, tiredness and to try and keep the tears from falling. 

“Wanda gave me this.” The Black Widow spoke solely to you, for she knew the others didn’t know what was in her hand nor its meaning. “She said you would understand-” And by the looks of it, Natasha herself didn’t really know what was the meaning of what she was carrying either. “and I quote ‘It’s impossible to hold back the wind”. 

It was dirty, but with a step or two you could very well distinguish the trace and pattern of a tied knot in a rope, it was unmistakable that it was the same piece of Aberdeen rope you had given Wanda in what felt like a lifetime ago. 

The memory, though, surfaced as if it was yesterday. 

Wanda watched as you absentmindedly ran a hand through your hair. “Why do I feel so tied to you?” She wondered out loud, after you settled down close to her at the cushions sprawled on the floor.

“I don’t know.” You smiled softly, offering her a cup of tea. “But if it makes you feel better, I feel just the same.” You countered and she smiled away. 

It was unclear if your answer had pleased her or not. Sometimes you felt as though you knew Wanda like the palm of your hand and others, just like now, it was as if she was a stranger that had just arrived in the room. 

Sometimes it was impossible to decipher her silence. 

After a while, she turned to you with a bittersweet smile gracing her heavenly lips. “Do you think this will last forever?”  

You were touched, paralyzed even, for you didn’t really know what she specifically meant with ‘this’. It could be the feeling of being tied or the tie itself - conversations like these with Wanda were like treading on thin ice or holding on a breakable thread. So you remained muted, waiting for further context. 

“Forever. Don’t you think this is such a strange concept?” She chuckled humorlessly. “Forever doesn’t even exist, if we think about it.” She rambled with brows furrowed. 

“Forever could last a lifetime.” You tried tentatively, still unsure of where this conversation was heading to. 

“Forever could last a whole minute.” She retaliated without missing a beat. She wasn’t even looking at you anymore, but to a fix point at the wall as if it could show her the future if she stared at it for long enough. 

“You don’t know how long your forever will last.” Now, your brows were also crinkled only your eyes were cast on the mug nested on your hands. “No one knows.” 

“What do people do, then?” You looked at her, but her inquiry seemed genuine. 

You laughed at the absurd. You had no clue about what they do with their forevers. To be honest, you didn’t know anything about this. “I don’t know. I guess, they live the best they can, nonetheless?” You supplied. 

It was so strange, because during your whole life you’ve learnt a lot of things, but no one stopped even a second to explain to you what it was to like someone. To love someone. The ‘what to dos’ and the ‘hows’ were completely overlooked as you grew up. 

Tilting your head up, as if the sky could be of any help, your eyes caught sight of a rope loosely tied to the canopy, it wasn’t big, but you took a piece with your knife and expertly started to knot it down, your skills from your time as sailor showing off, and you were highly aware of Wanda’s eyes focused on you.

You pulled the tip of the rope from both sides but the knot remained untouched, the tie was still perfectly strong, as if made of stone. Then, you offered it to her, heart pounding in your chest as if you were handing her your own heart on a silver plate. 

She took it in her hands with a tenderness yet unseen, as if it was made of glass. “This tie could last forever.” Though you pointed to the piece of rope in Wanda’s hands, you both knew what tie you meant with your words. You just hoped she wouldn’t freak out with your naive, yet brave attempt to wish for impossible things. 

You were completely conscious that a future with Wanda was highly improbable. Still, you couldn’t help but dream that the two of you would find a way and make it work. Somehow.

“Can we stop this?” She asked, but this time she stressed the last words of her sentence and moved her hand between the two of you. This time, she was crystal clear about what she meant. 

“It’d be like holding back the wind.”

You touched it with a gentleness that no one in the room judged you’d possess. It burst a fire in your chest and it was getting harder and harder to hold back the emotion slipping through the cracks of your heart. 

It was impossible to ignore the hammering thoughts shooting through your head and there were so many, so loud that you thought you’d go crazy. 

This piece of fabric meant nothing and everything at the same time. 

“I need to think.” Without another word, your fingers closed around the material and your feet stormed out of the room to collect yourself in your own chambers, so you could ruminate about the implications laid upon you this night. 

— — 

“Stop this wedding!” Lady Danvers’ voice resonated throughout the Hall. “I’ve got an objection.” She looked sheepishly to the side and revealed a sly smirk and whispered for only you and her own wife to hear. “I always wanted to say this.” 

If the moment wasn’t so daunting, you’d probably laugh or retort some snide remark, but your eyes were solely focused on the woman dressed in white in front of the makeshift altar prepared for the occasion. 

There were shocked murmurs, metal clanging against metal, for you dragged the fight from the inner gates into the main hall of the castle, where the wedding was taking place. There were voices speaking, screaming words devoid of any meaning, for your ears ignored any and all of them. 

Her eyes were locked on yours and your knees felt weak; she was a sight to behold and worship. Like a true goddess, Wanda Maximoff’s dress made her look ethereal, as if she was sent from another dimension to cleanse this Earth’s sins and her eyes cast on yours burn with something you couldn’t know.

The contrast of white and red, from her auburn hair cascading down her shoulders, was mesmerizing and it only made it difficult for you to think coherently. For a whole second you forgot where you were and what you should be doing. 

“What do you think you’re doing?” Vision shot his hand to his sword, but with one look he realized he was outnumbered. 

A sly smirk crossed your lips, tongue as sharp as usual. “Well, you did send me the invitation, have you not?” With a start, you realized that your sarcastic self hadn’t vanished for good. 

You could make anyone mad with only a couple of words. And, oh, Prince Vision red with anger was one of your favorite sports. Just like he was. 

“You’re invading my castle!” His voice boomed throughout the room, in a futile attempt to intimidate and stop your advance. Poor him. 

“Last time I checked this was Maximoff’s.” You provoked, walking towards his direction, with the conviction that his goons would know better than to come your way. You were a woman on a mission and they wouldn’t stand a chance. 

In fact, there weren’t many goons available anymore. Rumlow was dead after all, and Natasha had her dagger dangerously close to Bucky’s throat rendering him immovable. And the others… Well, they wouldn’t dare to cross paths with you right now. 

Drawing his sword, Vision took one step towards you, but you could see that this action was just an automatic response, for his eyes darting around told you his head was running all the possible outcomes and, more importantly, how he’d get away from this. 

He wouldn’t. 

You were adamant in making him pay for every single word, or minute he made you suffer. For every lie, every single action and all the blood shared that he was responsible for. Especially your mother’s. Oh, you’d make sure he’d pay. 

“One shouldn’t draw a sword if not ready to bathe in blood.” Your words were marked by each step you took, hand with a tight grip on your own sword. To be honest, it looked like he wanted to try his chances with jumping from the window instead of facing you, but you had cornered him now. 

“You think I won’t kill you?” He threatened, lifting his sword so it’d be between you. Perhaps in his head this could make you stop.

It wouldn’t. 

“Will you try it by yourself or will you ask someone else to do what you can’t?” You jabbed back, but remained immovable only a few steps away from him. You were ready to take matters into your own hands, you were ready to go to hell and back. 

However you were a queen, threatening a prince under another king’s roof. Again, the older you, would be hands deep into Vision’s throat squeezing the life out of him, but your new version knew better. This was not your castle, nor your land. 

No matter how much this man had made you suffer, no matter how many crimes he committed to you and to your people. This was still Sokovia, another man’s realm, there were rules and you should step down on shedding blood at your will.

“You should surrender, Vision.” King Pietro rose to his feet, taking the cue from your pause. It was visible how this illness had an effect on him even though he was trying to be tough. 

The man, on the other hand, decided to ignore this modest warning and took another step, ready to clash his sword on yours, but before he could, another blade appeared under his chin, kissing the skin on his throat which made him stop in his tracks. 

Perhaps Wanda had that sword under her dress this whole time, perhaps she took from some random guard around her. In fact, it didn’t matter where that blade came from, because her intentions were clear and menace was evident in every inch of her being. 

“You’ll do what you were told.” Not that it was needed, but her eyes screamed danger. Vision could be many things, but he wasn’t crazy enough to ignore the threat underlining her words. “You’ll abide to the King’s order.” 

Visibly cornered and defeated, the prince dropped his sword and looked up with a sorrowful eye, ready to beg for one of the Maximoffs for mercy. 

“Take this idiot out of my face.” Pietro commanded no one in particular, not that he needed, and two guards pushed Prince Vision out of the hall, closely followed by Clint and Carol. They certainly would make sure he’d stay locked. 

By then, all the guards loyal to Vision or Hydrarr were dead or arrested. It was the first part of the plan, designed in Triskelion: to take down Vision, they’d need to undermine his influence, take his minions to be able to weaken his power inside the castle.

The last part was the invasion itself and the dramatic wedding interruption.  

Your head was highly aware that you were needed to stop this plot orchestrated by Red Skull. After all, Taharr was one of the most powerful realms in Noveria, even though shaken, Triskelion was still a stronghold against enemies in this continent. Taharr was the only realm that could prevent this coup. 

No one else would be this effective, this fast or this invested. One could say that it was the smartest thing to do, that no other vengeance would be greater, but your heart hammered your ribcage looking at the redhead barely meters away from you. 

There was nothing else greater than the way she was looking at you. 

With a start, you didn’t know what to do now. All this time, you and your friends thought what needed to be done to stop the coup, your mind didn’t wander to the moment after it. Again, you were used to fighting, but what was expected to be done after the fight?

Even more, after those wonderful days in that cozy house, you’ve been running from her memories and the feelings she’d made you feel. You were clueless about what you and Wanda were - are. 

Suddenly, you felt a body colliding with yours and it took you a second to understand what was happening and you closed your arms around her. And, once more, it felt as though you had been locked out of heaven.  

The woman roamed her hands all over your body, your hair, assessing every single part to make sure you weren’t hurt. To make sure you were in one piece. When satisfied she rested it on both sides of your cheeks. Holding you in place. Eyes set on yours, centimeters away. 

“By the gods, please, don’t tell me you believe in him.” Her voice sounded strangled, as if trying to keep herself composed was a strenuous effort. 

“He was pretty convincing.” You replied without missing a beat. How could you think, when breathing her breath was so intoxicating? You were incapable of speaking something more elaborated and you knew she’d be upset with your answer, but Vision pulled quite the number. 

For a second, she said nothing. She closed her eyes and rested her forehead on yours, letting her hands fall to your shoulder as yours instinctively found her waist. As if they belonged there, as if they have never left at all. 

When she opened her eyes, it was perfectly clear how sad she was. “I can’t even begin to imagine what he put you through.” They were so genuine that your heart clenched. “I’m so sorry. For everything.” She whispered the last part and it was hard for you not to kiss her right then and there. 

But you were a queen now and this was not your castle. You couldn’t just do whatever your heart desires. With a chaste kiss on her forehead, you disentangled yourself from her embrace and walked towards the limping form of King Pietro, only to realize Wanda had taken your hand on hers to hold as you walked. 

“Lioness, I apologize for everything Vision did and I condoned.” The man was weak, very different from the one you met in his dungeons. But he was still as regal as someone of his position should be. “I know it can’t be erased, but your presence will be appreciated during his trials.” 

Taking your nod as the only answer he’d receive, he turned to the crowd standing awkwardly in the hall, most of them without a single clue as to what had just transpired. Raising his voice, he said. “Now, I understand that there’s a feast to be served and I see no reason for us to starve.” Then, he turned to a maiden in sokovian’s colors and ordered. “Take half to the city and bring the rest for us, there’s an army to feed.” 

– – – 

You looked up to the sky and tried to spot any cloud but there was none. It was so impressive, because you swore you have never seen this shade of blue, it was as if the sky had been painted. 

Wanda had told you that this was a rare occurrence during winter, but it was a welcome change to the permanent gray, common for the colder season. Also, she said that if the blue showed up more than once in a week, then it meant that spring was slowly lurching towards Sokovia. 

It was the second time you were mesmerized by this impressive color and beauty. Surely spring was on its way. 

Ironic, you thought. 

‘I’ve learned to let myself get cut to always return whole with spring’. You felt as if you could hear your mother speaking these exact words to you. You felt as if you were a whole new person and somehow, these words made more sense now than ever. 

It had been a rough winter. Metaphorical and not. The weather proved to be a ruthless enemy, without mercy, it wiped the crops, farms and you thanked the gods for the crown’s reserve, so there was food enough to aid the whole kingdom. 

And, as a matter of speaking, your winter was just as hard. Funny to think you used to complain about all the training and study you had received when younger, because right now, you felt as though you should have been pushed harder. 

Mastering all weapons, learning numbers and languages, geography and geopolitics, religion and history, nothing really gave you the mere idea of how to bear the weight of a crown. The younger lioness couldn’t even grasp the importance or the challenges a ruler would experience. 

Granted, as the days passed by, you understood what you should do and knew what variables you were supposed to think of before making a decision. But nothing, and you do mean nothing, prepared you to understand that there is no right move. 

People will get hurt, people will suffer. No matter what you choose, there will always be consequences. The trick is to look for the lesser of two evils and accept what you can’t change. It was this trick that you struggled the most, though. 

It was ironic, indeed, how much you have grown after your trim. After your mother’s death, Loki’s betrayal and even Wanda’s, even though it was just another ruse, you had felt that, mourned that love, after all of these cuts and trims, you didn’t even know you could endure this much. 

Life took so much from you, yet, here you were. Still standing. 

Persevering. 

Just another irony, if someone asked you, because that's what Pietro had said to you earlier in the meeting: ‘Spring is life persevering after a long winter.’ And you agreed. 

Your philosophical moment was cut short with the arrival of no one other than Wanda. Her perfume announced her presence seconds before her hands found your back as she slid them until she was hugging you from behind. You snacked your arms around hers and closed your eyes for a moment, savoring her warmth, her scent, her company. 

Right after the wedding-stopping thing, you learnt that Wanda basically became your shadow. Wherever you went, she was probably following not far behind. Unconsciously, she was probably scared of losing you again if she let you out of her sight. 

And there was a shift in your relationship after the very much needed, long and exhaustive conversation about everything that transpired since that morning she left you in that house. Your point of view and hers. 

It was hard. She had cried and you had cried, it was obvious that she was blaming herself for basically everything you had suffered. It was unfair for her to think like this, but she was adamant. And you knew, deep down, she was sad you had doubted her. 

However, there was nothing that could be done on that matter. It was in the past. 

With a kiss on your cheek, she let go of your waist and stepped to the side so she could take a look at you. Basking in the sun like this, she felt as though you were an angel sent from above. 

You and your army saved her kingdom from certain doom. Funny, though, for Wanda never saw herself as a damsel in distress kind of princess, but her own and her people’s freedom was a gift, delivered by your hands. 

“Pietro said you wanted to talk to me?” She started, tilting her head to the side in evident curiosity. When you left her this morning after breakfast because you had a meeting with her brother, she was quite surprised. Not that you two didn’t bode well, but because she wasn’t invited. 

In fact, she was told to not interrupt. 

“Yes. Thank you for coming.” You said, turning your body so now you were facing her, the balcony serving as a body support. “I was wondering if you’d take me on that horse ride to see the waterfalls?” 

She smiled softly, her curious self giving way to the old Wanda who wouldn’t stop talking about the amazing waterfalls close to the castle. She thought about how endering you were right now, asking for her to fulfill a promise she never imagined would really become true. 

“Say no more.” She grabbed your hand and fled the room. Not long till you were each on a horseback, riding to one of her favorite places in the world. 

The ride to Ms Marvel waterfall was barely an hour long, but perpassing through fields, trees and the most beautiful sightseeing rivers. It was so pretty, so particular, that you felt as though you were walking inside Wanda’s memories, for she had described this place over and over. 

The moment you set foot on your destination, you realized how thoroughly Wanda had been when speaking about this place. Every single pebble, rock, grass and the magnificent waterfall was just as she painted with words. 

It was beautiful and magical. 

Despite the weather, you shed your clothes and jumped into the cristaline water, followed suit by the princess. The redhead, however, was far more used to the cold waters than you were, but you always liked cold baths. 

This one felt as though you were being cleansed. It was welcoming. 

As Wanda swum towards you, it was easy to see a soft smile gracing her lips and a predatory look on her eyes. Hair slick back due the water, some droplets covering her face and you wondered if she wasn’t a siren, trying to lure into unknown waters, to your demise. 

Somehow, her body was warm even though you were both chin deep into the waters and her embrace was something that you couldn’t find words to describe. And seeing this new side of her, so carefree, and not preoccupied with everything, made your heart soar in your chest. 

Surely, your relationship wasn’t exactly a secret, but it was plain to see that, right now, there were no worries about who could find out. You were not the enemy anymore, there was no war and there was no one targeting you. 

For Wanda, this was almost living her fairy tale dreams, right after emerging from her worst nightmares. First, she had lost you. She was a wreck after she realized she had not been as careful as she thought she was. 

It was no mystery to her who had taken you but much to her dismay, Vision had convinced Pietro that you were secretly invading Wolfgang, taking advantage of her innocence to demoralize his image and power. 

Wanda tried to explain to her brother, but to no avail for his mind was impregnated with lies and deceit. She tried to make Pietro understand that she loved you and though you had never used words, she pretty much knew you also had strong feelings for her, and you were definitely not using her as the Advisor had informed the king. 

It was all part of the plan. It was a mess. However, the final strike was yet his boldest. Vision pledged Wanda was impure and no one would want her as wife, but he could take this burden for the sake of their friendship. 

The nerve. 

Curious enough, things got worse when Pietro started to believe her. One day, he showed up at her door and was utterly embarrassed for not believing her, he then explained to her that he had talked to you and there were no reasons for him to think you were lying. 

Wanda’s heart broke all over, for she could only imagine how bad it must have been in the dungeons with the care of the likes of Vision and his loyalists. She was scared, she was hurt and she was desperate to set you free. 

She schemed a plan with Natasha and Clint for you to escape, but her brother fell ill, probably poisoned by Vision even though they could not prove it, and they became hostages too. On their own castle. Each of them had a sword on their throats, each of them were ready to lose everything in order to keep the other safe. 

Among all the other things, Wanda would lose the love of her life. 

“I know I never said this to you.” Your voice brought her head out of her reverie. It was even and melodic, she found herself smiling. “And I think this is so silly now, trying to mask my feelings.” She felt, more than heard you chuckling, even under the water, your whole body shook. “I love you, Wanda.” 

Her head snapped backwards so she could have a better look at your face. After all the time you spent together, she came to decipher whether you were mocking or not, yet, this voice, this tone was different. It was new altogether. 

You were older, wiser and sadlier too, she realized, you were not the Young Lioness anymore.  

“I mean it.” You finished, trying to convince her that you were not messing around. 

Realizing her lack of answer might have led you to believe she was searching your eyes for a lie, she shook her head and smiled softly. “I know.” She did believe you. She really knew, she really felt. 

You have told her, just not with words. 

You couldn’t help but lean in and capture her lips with yours. When Wanda was about to deepen the kiss, you pulled back and looked down in time to see a small pout and you smiled softly at her attitude. 

“There’s something else I want to talk to you about.” You ran your hand down her cheek, mesmerized with the perfection glued to your body. “Did Pietro say his plans for his future to you?” 

Despite the intimate moment, or position, Wanda felt a slight shift in your stance and certainly the topic of the conversation. Seconds ago you were talking about feelings and now you returned to politics. 

She didn’t not know what exactly you were talking about. Or what you really wanted to. But this question was just a preamble, that much she was certain. 

“That he desires to step down from the throne to look for treatment and healing?” She asked, head tilting to the side and she was so adorable wearing that confused look of hers that your heart skipped a beat. 

You only nodded and she asked. “Why?” 

For hours, you had been trying to think of the best form to ask her. Being blunt, straightforward as usual or perhaps with a romantic flourish, but in the end, anxiety took the best of you and you were not sure of how to do it. 

There were two Wandas. The one you were in love with, the simple woman with a heart, you usually knew what she’d do or say. But then, there was the feisty and strong princess, who will always think about her duty to her people before anything else. Even her own heart. 

And that woman? She could virtually say or do anything, she was indomable and you were irrevocably devoted to her.  

“I was thinking about what we always said…” You mentally kicked yourself for being so stupid and not knowing the right words. To be honest, you were afraid of her reply or even her decision. “About a time or place where we could simply be, where we’d have a choice.” 

A quirk of brow told you she did not understand what your words meant and you sighed heavily. Deciding to take the bandage off, you shot. “Wanda Maximoff, will you marry me?” 

She opened her mouth, but then the words hit her and you saw her eyes grasping their meaning as it sank in what you were asking. What you were really asking her. What you were really asking of her.

“How?” She asked, doubt written all over her face. 

For sure, you had hoped for an easy ‘yes’ even though you already knew it wouldn’t come. However, a how it was far better than a no.

A smart comeback made its way to your tongue, but you swallowed it down just as fast. “If you’ll step up as the new queen of Sokovia, why wouldn’t you as Novi Grad’s?” 

Her jaw dropped a few inches at your proposal and everything that would surely entail, regaining her composure after her stupor, she fired back. “Is this political?” 

She tried to disguise the hurt perpassing her being. She wanted you, but were you suggesting just a political maneuver?

“No.” You were quick to clarify. “I want to marry you because of what I feel for you. But I understand that this is not simple. Between the two of us, we can’t take one thing without the other.” 

For several seconds she looked at you and said nothing. Her eyes scrutinized every freckle, every inch of your face and eyes. You were so beautiful and she hated how much she loved you, how desperate she was for your touch. 

The possibility laid upon her was far too tempting. She was aware of her needs and duty and for a long time she wished she could split her heart from her responsibilities, but right then and there, this was her chance, your chance to finally combine both. 

It wouldn’t be needed to sever one thing from another, the both of you could take your place as required without breaking your hearts in the process. 

“Are you sure?” You were not convinced of what she was really asking. What should you be certain about? Your love, your offer or everything in between? 

“I’m sure of what I feel for you.” You replied and her eyes, once lost, finally focused on yours. A soft snort told you that this was not of her concern. Good. 

“I know, darling. I love you too, you know this already.” Her smile was soft but not more than her words. “I was just… Do you think we can reunite the realm?” She asked more directly this time and you understood her fears. 

The Golden Accords existed for a long time and there would be resistance, there would be fear, but there would also be reunion, there would be peace. And that was the very thread you were holding on. 

“In my humble opinion? You and I together can do anything.” Certainty coated every single word rolling out of your mouth and that made Wanda’s smile go wider. She always loved - after she had hated - your confidence. 

– – – 

If you squinted, her dress looked like a waterfall, cascading down her back, feet and beyond and Wanda, once more in full white, looked like a fallen angel. Her eyes, her smile… everything in her glowed brighter than a star. She was perfect. 

After your vows, Pietro took your hand and Wanda’s and laced it with a red piece of satin. It represented your bloods, your souls intertwining themselves, tying the eternal knot between your lives. 

Her smile was broad and you were certain it shone for miles, when Pietro spoke the last sentences of the ceremony. “I now present you the Queen of Taharr and Queen of Sokovia. All rise to the Queens of the Great Realm of Novi Grad.” 

The crowd was loud to the point you couldn’t even hear your own thoughts and you swore the earth shook when you leaned in and Wanda sealed your promise with a kiss. 

The promise of union, the promise of peace, prosperity and love. 

After all, you were the Queens of Promise.

taglist: @californianwhiterabbit, @cowxpoke

[sireditsalot4]

Only She’ll Know

Summary: After Viserys’s death, Alicent goes to pay her respects in the candle room. When someone unexpectedly shows up to do the same thing, something happens that both parties will regret.

Warning: Smut, riding, Sister in law/Brother in law relation, Semi-non-consent

A/N: If you don’t like Alicent or don’t want these characters to happen don’t read! 🤷🏽‍♀️ TRIGGER WARNING for semi non consent

If any grammar error I apologize. This was rushed lol

It was Viserys’s burial day. The king laid to rest.

After the funeral and everyone said their ‘apologies’, Alicent strolled to the prayer room where she knelt in front of the goddess statue and lit a long match with one of the small candles and turned the fire towards a black, long candle made especially for the king for a situation like this with dried up white wax around it. Tears fell from her big brown eyes. Hearing footsteps, she stopped and right away knew who it was from their presence. “This is new,” Alicent says lowly. Turning her head, she sees who she expected to be there. Daemon remains quiet. Turning back to the statue, she puts her hands together, closes her eyes and starts to pray. Alicent feels Daemon kneel next to her, not looking up she feels him rustle to pray- or so she thought.

The next second she feels a hand on her waist pulling her towards him and she quickly opens her eyes “Nope-No,” and is captured in a kiss. Pulling away, Daemon keeps her trapped against him in a vice like grip, clenching his hand on her waist. Alicent pulls her face to the side trying to avoid him but he doesn’t light up. “He was your brother.” She protests, pushing against his chest. Daemon sits on the floor with his back fully against the stone candle wall and he pulls her onto him, one leg on either side of him. “Please,” she pleads one last time.

“He never deserved you, any of them.” He confesses before reaching down underneath her black, mixed with green in the front, color dress rustling with it to get to where he needs. Next thing a tear comes from her underwear. A shot of arousal shoots to her core.

She shakes her head in denial at his words, even though some part of it is true, she deep down knows Viserys loved her. Part of her is telling her to call the guards, to knee him in the crotch and have him beheaded for his crimes. Damn the consequences with Rheanyra. Letting go of the red head, Daemon works on his pants, a little smirk on his lips as he sees Alicent still on him even after he’s let go of her, and pulls himself free. Gods, forgive them. Grabbing a hold of his shoulder, she lifts herself, aligns her sinfully dripping cunt entrance with the tip of his cock and looks up at the Goddess statue, feeling a bit of shame as she slides down on him until their hips meet. Daemon lets out a growl, gritting his teeth as he fills her, feeling her, his dead brother’s wife stretch for him. Just for him now. He grabs a handful of her ginger locks and roughly pulls her head back while thrusting up into her as he licks and bites her neck. Only she’ll know.

[marblemoonstones]

stiletto 👠

summary: bangtan may think they’re the mafia kings, but little do they know you are the rising queen. mafia!au I apologize if there are any minor holes or grammatical errors. feedback is welcome, but please be respectful. :)

main masterlist

*any similarities to other fics are accidental*

bts x reader

mafia!au 

*warnings: ❗️any characters in the story have nothing to do with their real life counterparts❗️f reader, use of ‘bitch,’ ‘ass’, ‘shit’ (still don’t know if it counts as a warning lol), mentions of killing (nothing happens), tae and kook threatened by reader (nothing happens), shooting of guns (no injuries)*

sorry I haven’t posted in forever 🥲 I’ve been so busy, but I’m still working on catharsis 🩵 

this is just a silly little mafia one shot because I wanted to try something different. reader is a bad bitch bc I wanted her to beat bangtan in a fic for once ;) also pretty tame in terms of violence and such for a mafia fic. hope you enjoy!

word count: ~2.3k

Opening my eyes, I immediately sense that someone’s watching me. I pretend to not notice it, going about my daily morning routine. The cameras are subtle, but my eyes catch them quickly. These boys may be smart but I’m always one step ahead. I knew that they were going to watch/trail me the second I turned down their business proposal. 

~ Two days ago

“Stiletto, you have a business meeting with Bangtan today,” my assistant tells me. 

“Oh, it totally slipped my mind,” I say, knowing full well about the meeting. You have to act forgetful once in a while or else people assume that you know everything and don’t tell you anything. 

“It’s in an hour in your office.” I nod at the reminder, and wave her off. Venus is a hard-working girl and not a snitch, so I’ve kept her around as my assistant. She knows the consequences of betraying me.

An hour passes by quickly, dealing with my product shipping and whatnot. I’ve been involved for a good seven years; in both the technology industry and the mafia. My technology is top notch, and this led many mafia bosses to want to buy my products. I’m happy to oblige, as this makes me a pretty penny.

A sharp knock on my door makes me smirk. 

I call out, “Come in.” 

Seven men dressed in suits enter and shut the door behind them. 

Bangtan. 

“Hello Stiletto, it’s good to finally meet you,” Kim Namjoon says cordially.

“Likewise. Now, let’s get to it. I’m a busy woman, so if you please, give me your deal.” My face is blank, eyes steely, scrutinizing them as they do the same to me. 

(a/n, I didn’t go into specifics with the deal because I’m not good with that sort of thing, so sorry for being so vague :’)) 

I listen to their proposal, knowing from the first sentence that it’s not going to happen. At least, not with me. The deal has minor holes and could easily be executed with another company. My price is also not met. 

“I’m sorry to interrupt Mr. Kim, but this isn’t going to work. Have a good day,” I dismiss them, seeing the looks of anger flash in their eyes.

“What do you mean it won’t work, Stiletto?” Min Yoongi asks, barely concealing his anger.

“Are you deaf? I mean it won’t work. Find another company. Goodbye.” I’m about to call for security, but they keep pushing on. Well. Looks like they have some bark in them. But I have more important things to be doing than entertain some boys and I know I’ll see them again soon enough.

“You’ll regret this later,” Park Jimin says, and before he can say more I interrupt. 

“I know that I won’t. Goodbye.” And with that, I have security escort them out. Granted, they don’t put up much of a fight, but instead I see them clench their fists if only for a brief second. Good. They’re mad. I hope that they learned that I can be a bitch, exactly as everyone says. 

Hence the nickname Stiletto. Stilettos may be pretty looking but they’re also powerful. I bet you’ve never seen someone walk in stilettos and not look like a bad bitch. 

Ever since this nickname was given to me, I have worn a pair every day. Why not give the people what they want? 

I had to kill everyone who knew my actual name, so now only a select few remain who know my actual name; Y/n.

~ Present Day

Bangtan is so mad that they are trailing me to try to find weaknesses to make me bend to their deal. Their attempt is almost comical. Almost. I don’t have weaknesses. Growing up in an orphanage led me to learn and figure out things by myself. 

My black suit is waiting for me, and I slip on my signature stilettos. They have red soles, an exclusive one-of-a-kind shoe made especially for me. Little does the brand know that I made some alterations to the shoes. I made the tips be steel and each shoe has a small dagger hidden inside the stiletto. 

My black purse is waiting and I check my inbox as I make my way downstairs and into my garage where my chauffeur is waiting. 

The cameras inside the house have already been disabled, courtesy of Venus’s hacking skills. That girl is shaping up to me more and more like me everyday. I smile inside at the thought of toying with Bangtan. Some say they’re the most powerful mafia, even going as far to call them the ‘mafia kings’ but I know better than that. They may be more known in the industry, but my name is still influential and slowly climbing the ranks. I blame me being a woman for the reason why I’m not on top. Most of the mafia bosses think I’m just a pretty face who can’t be taken seriously. Someday I’ll destroy all their empires and watch them burn. (she says nonchalantly lol)

I get out of the car at my office and head inside. Venus greets me, showing me my schedule of the day. I thank her, the only person I ever do, and head off to my office. It’s a peaceful workday, considering that I haven’t had to hurt/kill anyone yet. 

It’s around 2:00pm when I get a notification on my phone saying that there are two unidentifiable figures that breached our building. I dismiss getting security to investigate as I know that it’s Bangtan. Perfect. They’re coming just as I knew they would. I know it’ll take them about a half an hour to reach my office so I wait eagerly. 

Half an hour later I’m sending an email when I can feel their eyes on me. Based on my research I can guess that it’s Jungkook and Taehyung in the vents. These two are the deadly duo and also the sneakiest. 

While Yoongi and Hoseok are the best at weaponry, Namjoon and Seokjin are the best fighters (with Seokjin doubling as a doctor), Jimin is a master manipulator, and Taehyung and Jungkook are the stealthiest. Jungkook is their ace though, good at everything. 

I internally feel giddy, but on the outside I pretend that I don’t notice them.

I let this go on for another half hour, knowing that they’re watching every move. So I send boring emails and don’t do any actually work. I already shut down their hacking and can’t wait to shut down their camera that’s been in my office all day. But that comes later in my plan. 

After hitting send on another email, I start typing up an rsvp and say, “Boys, it’s time to come down now. I know you’re up there, so be good and come out.” 

There aren’t any noises but I can tell that they didn’t expect this. 

Bangtan doesn’t expect me to know their every move. I have tabs on all of them at all times, and they don’t know I know all their tricks in the book. Including trailing business owners who don’t accept their deals.

Since they aren’t responding, I decide to have some fun and use their names. 

“Kim Taehyung and Jeon Jungkook…the maknaes of Bangtan. Be good boys and come out, okay? We don’t want this getting out of hand,” I say sweetly, imagining their eyes widen at me calling them out by name. 

I count slowly in my head…three…two…one…

Bang! The vents come open and they drop down silently behind me. I turn around in my chair and see the two culprits. 

“Hello boys. Have a seat.” I say, leaving them no room for argument. They sit down and don’t speak. I know they’re searching for ways to escape, but I won’t let them. They’re not the only ones good at planning.

“Look, I’m not going to force you to talk about anything. But just know that you shouldn’t try to-“

Before I can finish Jungkook brings out a gun and fires it at me. I dodge it and pull out a gun of my own.

“Don’t even think about it buddy. I have dozens of weapons aimed at you that could fire at any moment, so sit your ass down.” This makes him slightly wary, and he lowers his gun. 

“Give me your weapons boys,” I demand next, knowing that I could still win against them in a heartbeat but don’t want to take that chance.

They get them out for me but I notice Jungkook forgot two and Taehyung forgot one.

“Jungkook, give me the dagger in your hair and behind your ear and Taehyung, give me your ankle dagger,” I sigh impatiently. 

They do as I say, surprised at my knowledge. 

“Perfect. Good boys, thank you,” I praise, knowing that this makes them uncomfortable. And it works. Jungkook looks down slightly while I see Taehyung swallow. 

I stalk over to the filing cabinet and pull out the camera recording all of this. I smirk slightly into it and place it down in front of the boys and I. 

“Hello Bangtan, thanks for sending your maknaes to me. We’ve been having a jolly good time,” I say into the camera, noticing Jungkook and Taehyung exchange glances.

“Anyways, better come get them before something happens to them…that would be horrible,” I say, my tone a hint darker than before. Then I crush and destroy the camera. 

I turn back to Jungkook and Taehyung.

“I’ll guess…thirty-four minutes until they come for you. In the meantime, do make yourselves comfortable. I have snacks and shit in the mini fridge if you’re feeling peckish. But don’t try anything!” I singsong, going back to my desk. 

They look at each other, confused at what’s going on. One second I’m threatening them the next I’m offering them food. I ignore their looks and continue typing and responding to emails.

Precisely thirty-four minutes later the rest of Bangtan comes bursting through my office door.

“Where are they?!” Namjoon booms, gun in hand.

“They are right there,” I say, pointing to the two boys who haven’t moved from their sitting positions.

I see Bangtan freeze, if only for a split second. I know that they’re shocked I didn’t harm them/tie them up somehow.

“Did you do anything to them? Because if you did, I swear to god Stiletto I’ll-“

“Calm down Hoseok, can’t you see they’re unharmed?” I state boredly, gesturing to the maknaes.

“It’s true Hobi,” Jin says, rushing over to inspect his babies. 

“Aw, such a happy reunion,” I say, then sharpen my tone. “Looks, you idiots need to learn that no means no. I don’t want your business deal, so stop trying. It’s not working.”

“You sure, Stiletto?” Jimin asks me, a calculating grin on his face, “Because it seems to me that you care a lot about our babies, not even harming them. What does that show?”

I roll my eyes. “Jimin, quit it. Your tactics don’t work on me.” 

“Ooh, feisty. I like you, Stiletto,” Jimin says, sidling up to me and putting his arm around my shoulder.

Quick as a wink I take his arm off my shoulder and twist him so we’re now face-to-face. 

“Isn’t it obvious? I like you too Jimin,” I say, staring deep into his eyes. Oh how I love toying with them.

He falters for a millisecond then regains his composure and licks his lips.

“Great, so let’s make a deal-“

“You silly boy,” I push him away much to his dismay, “I already told you, no means no. Now, get out of here before I shoot you all.” I’ve had my fun and it’s time for them to go.

“Look, Stiletto, we don’t mean to cause issues with-“

“Trailing me? Putting cameras up in my own home and office? Attempting to hack my technology? Sending your babies to spy on me? It seems that you have caused issues. While I like to mess with you, I’m done playing.” I’m dead serious as I look them each in the eye.

“Get out of my sight and don’t bother trying to contact me again. I’m done with Bangtan. Oh, and keep in mind that I know more than you think,” I warn.

“Like what?” Namjoon scoffs, not believing me.

“I know that you and the rest of the boys have feelings for each other,” I say casually, noticing their looks of shock, “What, you don’t think I noticed? It’s pretty obvious to me and honestly you’re all perfect for each other anyway.” 

“But…no one knows that…” Jin stammers, showing the first sign of weakness since their arrival.

“Look, I’m not a snitch when it comes to that topic, so I won’t tell anyone, but you best believe I know so much more,” I say, watching them all breathe a small sigh of relief.

“Okay, point made Stiletto. We’ll leave you alone.” Namjoon caves, nodding to the rest of the boys.

“Great, now get out.” I point to the door and they all file out.

Ever since my spy in Bangtan told me that they were planning on meeting with me, I planned on the outcome. 

I knew their deals were usually good at hiding the holes, so I took the liberty of finding out what deal they were going to offer to me. It wasn’t bad from the outside but I knew that in the end it would benefit them more than me. 

I knew they wouldn’t accept my ‘no’ so I planned on them following me. Taehyung and Jungkook coming wasn’t a surprise in the least and I knew that revealing their biggest secret would make them leave me alone. 

I now hold power over the ‘mafia kings.’ 

That makes me be able to control all the groups in my area. 

Perfect. 

Now I can grow my empire and slowly but surely take over and show everyone who their mafia ruler really is.

The mafia queen, Y/n.

sorry for kinda rushing through this. it’s not perfect but I just love the scenario! anyways, as always, thanks for reading! 🩷🫶🏼

[shangchiswife]

din djarin- knight in shining beskar (part 1)

hi guys this is part 1 to my new series inspired by tangled! right now there won't be any smut until later parts and when there is I'll add a warning. hope you guys enjoy!

asiya

....

summary: you were the princess of Corellia until a group of criminals infiltrated the kingdom and forced you to run away to Naboo where you have lived for sixteen years without going outside. din djarin is assigned the task of retrieving you as bounty for that group of criminals.

din djarin x fem!reader

warnings: cursing, death

word count: 3203

....

You awoke with a jolt, a shiver running down your spine from the nightmare you just had.

Your face was slick with sweat and your chest heaved.

You switched on the lamp next to you and swung your feet off your bed, out of breath.

You started towards the giant window at the center of the room and swung the doors apart, allowing a breeze to enter the tower you were more or less trapped in.

….

At a young age, you had lived a very privileged and lavish life as a princess on the planet Corellia. You were very close with your family and had been given so much love from them.

That was before forces of bandits and pirates entered your home planet and started terrorizing innocents and vandalizing Corellian monuments.

One day, these attacks escalated further and the criminals infiltrated the castle. 

Your family had taken shelter in the palace’s heart: the throne room.

You remembered the way your mother had squeezed you close to her while your father held a gun to his heart, holding his wife's hand.  

Your father’s guards had their guns aimed at the large stone doors of the throne room.

The bandits banged on the door trying to urge it open.

Your heart pounded as the entrance started to nudge open.

Your mother pressed a long kiss to your forehead as you started to feel her wet tears slip down her cheeks, dripping onto your face.

The doors opened with a bang, the sound of gunshots filling the air.

Your mother turned your head away from the violence while she watched with horror as the King’s knights fell with brutal wounds.

You peeked through her fingers and watched as the crooks (who had caused problems for the entire kingdom) entered the throne room with an Abyssin with dark regal robes at the front, a smirk plastered on his green face.

“Well, well, well, what do we have here?” the Abyssin offered your father a wicked grin before turning to you and your mother.

“If you touch either of them I will shoot you, Astrin,” your father growled angrily as he aimed his gun at the cyclops, causing him to chuckle.

“Such powerful words coming from someone who is so outnumbered,” he approached closer and closer to you.

Your father’s face contorted with anger as he gripped the weapon in a manner that made his knuckles turn ghostly white.

“My, my, what a pretty woman you have,” he complimented your mother who turned her head away from the creature in disgust.

The Abyssin crouched down in front of the two of you and gripped your mother’s chin roughly, pulling her attention back to him.

“When I’m talking to you, you address me with respect,” Astrin growled, her eyes widening at his action.

“Get your hands off my wife, you dirty pirate!” your father screamed with rage as he cocked his gun.

The green man in front of you looked at his men as they started towards the Corellian King who aimed his weapon wildly at the approaching men.

You watched with fear as you shared a look with your father before he pulled the trigger,shooting all of the criminals around him.

The Abyssin’s men collapsed on the ground from your father’s powerful shots.

Your father had a fierce look that you’d rarely seen, a look that was only reserved for protecting his family.

With one quick motion, the Abyssin leader pulled out a revolver and shot your father straight in the head.

You watched in horror as he fell onto the floor almost immediately, blood pooling around his head.

Your mother let out a gut-wrenching scream before she stood up and charged toward the Abyssin who looked her up and down before shooting her.

Your lip trembled as you watched both of your parent’s bloodied bodies.

Your mother’s eyes, once filled with mirth and care, were now lifeless. Your father, who used to carry you over his shoulder to watch the fireworks and lanterns when there were festivals and would carry your mother as if she weighed nothing into the gardens, was now the weakest you’ve ever seen him.

Tears leaked from your horrified eyes as you couldn’t look away from your dead parents.

“And now, for the dear darling princess,” Astrin simpered as he bent down to your level.

“Poor little princess…her whole family is dead,” he said in an unforgiving tone as the men that surrounded him laughed.

You said nothing, lifting your eyes up to shoot him a nasty glare as hot tears streamed down your face.

He tutted as he locked eyes with you.

“Now, what are we going to do to you…hmm…you’re young so we’ll play a game you’ll surely enjoy. Hide and seek! You’ll have thirty minutes to run and hide and then we’ll seek you out and when we do, we’ll kill you,” the green cyclops had a sinister look on his face that made your heart pound hard in your chest.

“Now, run along, the time starts now unless you want to get killed,” he grinned.

You immediately stood up, holding the skirt of your gown, and ran. You ran as fast as you could out of the palace.

Tears blurred your vision as you replayed the moments of your parents dying in front of you in your mind.

You were frozen in place. You did nothing to stop them from getting killed.

You were only seven but you still could’ve done something.

Your heart pounded fast as you ran through the streets of Corellia. Past the once-green gardens that were now burnt to a crisp. Past the city market that was once bustling with bubbly customers but was now deserted. And finally past the once lit-up homes that were now dark.

What had these criminals done to your city? What had they done to your home?

Suddenly, you felt yourself being pulled into a home.

Your screams were muffled by a large callused hand.

You were flipped so that you were face-to-face with your captor.

He was a man around your father’s age and had dark curly locks on top of his head, a patchy beard, and steel gray eyes.

“Look,” he whispered as he pointed to a window where you saw a sea of bandits running on the streets.

Your heart sunk.

They had lied.

“Please don’t scream. I’m not going to kill you,” the man took his hand off of your mouth and stared at you as you continued to watch the men on the streets.

“He told me that he was going to wait thirty minutes and then chase me,” you whispered.

“It’s no surprise that they lied, they work with the Sith,” the man ran a hand through his hair frustratedly as your eyes widened.

“I thought the Sith were a myth?” you questioned.

“We told all of you children that it was just a fairytale so that you’d all get proper sleep but that clearly isn’t the case,” the man said as you regarded him with suspicion.

“Who even are you?”

“I’m a friend of your father’s,” he had noticed your wariness and watched as your shoulders relaxed.

“He’s never mentioned you before,” you said softly, looking at the floor.

“That’s the way it was meant to be. Your father knew that the Aero gang would infiltrate the palace one day and wanted a person outside to be able to help you all so I had to keep it a secret,”

You said nothing, kicking at the floor.

“Alright…well today you can stay here at the house but tomorrow I will be taking you someplace else where you’ll be living…your father has a tower in Naboo for you,” the man cleared his throat.

You remembered a year before when your family had stayed in that tower during a business trip for your father.

“How long will I be living there?” your voice was small.

“Until things become better on Corellia,” his answer was firm as you opened your mouth to say something, but couldn’t say anything.

How long was that truly going to be? 

Yes, you were young but you also weren’t stupid to how powerful the Aero gang was. You had sometimes heard your parents frantically discussing them in hushed whispers, fear written on their faces.

You must’ve had a scared look on your face because the man crouched down at your level.

“Your new living quarters are nice and if you ever need anything, I will always be there for you. I made a promise to your father and I intend to keep it,” his dark eyes bore into yours as you felt tears threatening to spill from your waterline.

“What is your name?” you gulped.

“Glenn,” he answered as you wrapped your hands around his neck.

“Thank you, Glenn,” your voice wavered as your grief of losing your family, home, and planet overcame you and a stream of tears raced down your cheeks.

The dark-haired man rubbed your back gently allowing you some comfort.

“It’ll be alright, princess, it’ll be alright, I promise,” 

….

Glenn had made that promise sixteen years ago and nothing had changed on your planet according to him and the local newspapers he gave you.

You had followed all of his strict rules of not leaving your tower, not making any noise, and not interacting with a single soul, despite Nabooians being some of the kindest people you had ever met.

Glenn had become a guardian for you and you loved him dearly for all the care and affection he showered you with, but you wanted to see the outside world and return to your home planet.

You dreamt of touching the green blades of grass, the feeling of the turquoise sea against your bare legs, and most of all talking to real people.

Despite your excitement, you were also filled with a sense of apprehension. You had never traveled alone before, and the thought of venturing into the unknown was both thrilling and scary, especially with the Aero gang still searching for you.

Regardless of your fear, you were ready to embrace the unknown of the new Corellia. You wanted to lead your people against the harsh gang. You longed for revenge against them after they ruined your childhood and killed your parents mercilessly in front of you. 

You especially wanted to see Astrin and murder him in cold blood.

At the thought of Astrin, you felt your hands clench into tight fists.

You pushed your thoughts of him aside and stared out the window, gazing at the sun that began to rise slowly over the horizon, casting a soft golden glow across the sky. The first rays of light illuminated the sky, painting it in shades of pink, orange, and red. As the sun continued to rise, the colors intensified, creating a breathtaking display of natural beauty. 

Birds from shades of red and blue chirped and sang as they flitted from tree to tree, welcoming the new day with joyful melodies. The air was fresh and cool, and a gentle breeze rustled through the leaves, carrying with it the sweet scent of blooming flowers.

As the sun rose higher in the sky, its warm rays began to spread across the land, bringing life and energy to everything it touched. The fields and meadows shimmered with dew, and the trees and plants stretched toward the light.

In the distance, you could hear the sound of waves crashing against the golden sands you used to run along as a child.

You let out a deep breath, inhaling the fresh scent before making your way back into the tower and starting your day.

….

Din Djarin had never been offered such a high amount of credits before in his lifetime. He didn’t know whether to be surprised or not, considering that he was taking a deal from the king of Corellia.

“So will you take the job?” the Abyssin in front of him asked, arching his eyebrow.

The green baby in his lap cooed at the cyclop’s words as he looked up at his father’s shiny helmet.

Din pat Grogu’s wrinkly head once before shaking the king’s hand.

“You have a deal,”

“Excellent, well then, Mandalorian, I hope you are as good as they say because if not, I’m afraid I will have to execute you,” King Astrin smirked as the man nodded in response without a sign of hesitation or fear.

Din always got his bounties. This was known to everyone he has ever worked for. He was always good at what he did.

“This princess of yours shouldn’t be too hard to find, your majesty,” Din stated, scooping Grogu in his arms and standing up.

The baby giggled at the action.

“Alright then, good luck,” the king said as the Mandalorian bowed his head and turned to exit the polished throne room.

“You’ll need it,”

….

You had just finished making your dinner which was a bowl of Hazelnut soup with a side of stale bread and sat at your tiny circular dinner table that was specifically designed for one person.

You ate in silence the way you always did.

Sometimes Glenn would join you but it was different now that he had a family.

They would never know about you and you would never meet them for their own safety.

You sighed as you took your empty bowl and went to the kitchen.

While you scrubbed your bowl in the sink, you looked outside at the big night sky that was littered with bright white stars. The night had always been a comfort to you even when you were younger. They had helped you through the loss of your parents who always used to show you them on particularly dark nights like these.

You hummed to yourself before you heard a loud crash, making your heart stop.

You frantically grabbed the knife that sat at the edge of the kitchen counter and held it up defensively.

“Maybe it’s just a bird,” you whispered, walking around your tower cautiously.

Suddenly your waist was grabbed and you were spun around.

You screamed as you used one of your legs to kick your captor in the stomach.

Your captor stumbled back as you turned to face them.

Your jaw dropped as you found yourself face to face with a Mandalorian.

“Who are you and what are you doing in my tower,” you pushed him against one of the walls of the tower and pressed your knife against his helmet.

“If you’re part of the Aero gang I swear to God I will-”

You were interrupted by the sound of cooing.

Your eyebrows furrowed as you looked down at the Mandalorian’s satchel where a tiny green head poked out.

The creature looked up and offered you a toothy grin which made you drop your weapon.

“I’m not,” the Mandalorian’s voice was deep which made you snap your gaze up and lock eyes with his helmet.

“Then who are you and how did you get inside?” you demanded, widening your eyes to make you look more intimidating.

The Mandalorian sighed.

“I’m a friend of Glenn’s, he sent me to get you and take you back to Corellia,” he lied, using the words that Astrin had told him to use.

You hadn’t interacted with anyone besides Glenn in years so you instantly believed every word he said.

“Really? It’s gotten better?” you cocked your head to the side.

“There’s been more resistance from the public…Glenn believes that if you go over there then you can overtake the Aeros,” the armored man cleared his throat.

You smiled at the thought of going back to your planet and saving the Corellian people whom you so desperately missed.

You wanted to go home. And you wanted to do it now. 

“Alright then, let’s do it,” you said, offering your hand out for the Beskar-covered man to take.

After a beat the Mandalorian shook your hand, a twinge of guilt filling his body as he watched you offer an innocent smile.

“Let’s go then,” you grinned as the Mandalorian tucked his squealing child back in his satchel and motioned for you to come behind him.

He walked over to your large window and stepped off it.

You hesitated for a moment as you watched the man in front of you swing his legs off the edge.

“C’mon we need to hurry,” he said, a prick of annoyance present in his voice.

“I-It’s just that I haven’t been outside in sixteen years,” you blurted out as you picked at your nail nervously, as you walked over to him and sat beside him at the edge of the tower.

Din didn’t know what to say quite frankly.

None of his bounties had ever been comfortable around him.

Heck, you’d barely even known him for ten minutes and you were already sitting next to him like you were friends and not bounty and bounty hunter.

“Well if you want to save your planet then there’s only one way to go,” he angled his helmet to you in acknowledgment as you nodded.

“You’re right,” you said.

The tiny green baby poked his head out and babbled as if they were words of encouragement.

You offered a gentle smile at the brown-eyed baby before taking a deep breath.

You didn’t say another word as you started climbing down your tower, holding onto the bricks as if your life depended on it which it did.

The Mandalorian followed shortly after.

The moment you reached the bottom your bare feet brushed against the grass making you gasp with delight as you curled your toes around it.

You giggled as you started to walk into the darkness enjoying the feeling of the green blades tickling your feet.

Din watched you with confusion before he turned on a flashlight illuminating your surroundings with a yellowish glow.

“Come on,” he urged as you nodded your head, snapping out of your blissful daze.

You continued walking until a large ship was in view.

“Woah nice ship,” you complimented as the Mandalorian said nothing, and pressed a code onto the side of the vessel allowing for an entrance to open for you.

You entered the ship and looked around.

It was spacious. More than enough room for the Mandalorian and his child.

You walked into the large cockpit and were shocked by the number of multicolored buttons and joysticks there.

“Don’t touch anything,” the Mandalorian said before he sat in the pilot’s chair.

“I wasn’t going to,” you muttered before taking a seat beside his in the co-pilot’s chair, spinning it once.

The baby crawled out of the man’s satchel and hit the floor with a loud bang.

“Ouch,” you winced as you bent down and helped the little fella up.

“You okay, kid?” the Mandalorian questioned the brown-eyed baby who looked up at the two of you and gave you a smile.

The man in the Beskar started pushing lots of buttons, urging the ship into the night sky.

“Alright let’s go get those sons of bitches,” 

[lily-orchard]

Courtney claims she kept accusing your father of enjoying hitting you until he stopped using spanking as a punishment. I don't know how true that is, but I'm wondering if there was any similar action taken to stop him spanking her. She claims she only got hit twice.

If Courtney ever stood up for me, she did it when I couldn't see it. My parents themselves make the same claim, that they supposedly argued about several of my suspensions from school. Conveniently, I was never around when this happened.

I only saw it happen once in 5th Grade when I was sent home, was walking home, and the principal was following me in his van demanding I get in (which is actually really fucked up now that I'm thinking about it, no wonder my mother screamed at him).

Other than that, I doubt Courtney's sincerity. The last time I was ever spanked was when I was eleven, because my father was convinced I had purposefully caused a burn in the carpet.

Ironically what kept Courtney from getting spanked was me. I didn't actively get in the way, just that if she did something that would have provoked violence or even screaming, my father usually just assumed I had done it instead.

The truth of the matter is that my father always had a scapegoat. Before it was me, it was my brother. He was ALWAYS getting into these petty power struggles with my brother that often ended in fistfights. My father raised his three children to be like him. So they were rude, they were nasty, they were combative, and reacted very poorly to other people pushing them around. And he was the one pushing them around.

Part of my father's damage is that his father treated his kids like shit on the basis that "It's my house and when you have your house you can call that shots." So he clearly looked forward to being King of the Castle. And when his children routinely responded very negatively to his "Fuck you I do what I want" attitude, in his mind a very personal slight had occurred because some unspoken deal had been broken.

I talked about this in the Turning Red video. Parenting isn't logical, it's ideological (did you like that sentence? I thought it flowed rather well). It's not about whether something works. It SHOULD work, and that's all that matters.

Spanking children SHOULD work, and if it doesn't you just didn't spank them hard enough.

Remember that guy who got so angry that his daughter complained about him on Facebook so he filmed himself shooting her laptop? That's the kind of nutcase we're talking about. Someone who throws a mantrum when a teenage girl bitches about him.

The reality is my parents wheeled me into every single doctor they could find trying to fix my behavioural issues. And it didn't work. Even when I saw huge progress in the inpatient facility, once I got back home I was right back to being rude and disrespectful.

Because the truth is no amount of medication or therapy is going to make you respect someone who has a completely unlikeable personality.

The core fundamental problem in the house is that my parents were complete cunts. And they wanted their kids to just ignore that and respect them anyway. But nobody ever respects someone who behaves the way they did. And no amount of demanding respect is going to warp reality and make you respectable.

You can yammer on about how you own the house and pay the mortgage, but children have no concept of what those are. What they do know is you're mean, so they don't have to be nice to you. Because that is 90% of the lessons we teach children.

But none of this computes to a man whose entire worldview is "He who owns the house is entitled to treat the occupants like shit." In his world, he was entitled to do these things, and you weren't entitled to complain about it. But we don't live in his world.

[star-girl69]

I Loved You Like the Sun

Daemon x Rhaenyra x Reader

a/n: i’m feeling nice so you all get a second chapter today lmao. this is not my best work and i might end up taking it down but… i hope you all enjoy

warnings: incest, slight violence, mentions of death, tell me if i missed anything!

Chapter Four- To Live

—-

Perhaps it was something in the wine, but you felt emboldened. You took another sip, placing it back down on the table in front of you.

Your husband still had not arrived yet, too preoccupied with one of his whores if you could tell by the sounds you heard in his chambers.

Wearing this dress was a risk, you knew, but you could not find it in yourself to care. Your husband could starve you, lock you in your chambers, but you would have this last night of freedom.

You looked up at the sound of a huff, a chair being pulled out next to you.

Your husband looked to you with a bored expression, the smell of ale evident in his breath. He took a breath, before angrily grabbing a few cubes of cheese from the board in the middle of the table, shoving them into his mouth greedily.

He leaned back in his chair, mumbling something and putting a hand over his stomach.

You were on the opposite side of the hall, and you could barely make out Rhaenyra through the crowds of people.

You had found yourself trying not to think about her, the excitement eating away at you. She was so, so close.

This was all you had ever wanted these past years, and it was right in front of you, ripe for the taking. It took everything in you not to run to her, tripping over yourself and fall into her arms.

How you missed her embrace, the scar on her lip, the feel of her hands.

You looked down at your lap, seeing your hands ache for something to hold. Her. To hold her.

“Come on,” you husband stood up with another heavy sigh, grabbing your arm tightly to drag you up. “Gotta go pay our fucking respect.” He spit the words out, and you were grateful no one seemed to take notice of his treason.

“Of course, husband.”

“Try not to fuck it up, wife.” He sneered, eyes flicking to you with a vengeance as you weaved through the crowd next to him.

“I would never dream of it, husband.”

“You can at least pretend to be happy.”

“Of course, husband!” You fought the urge to roll your eyes and he shot you a sarcastic laugh, arm wrapping around your waist and unkempt nails digging into your side. You winced, and he chuckled.

You wondered how long he would starve you if you slapped him across the face.

“Stupid whore,”

Before you could think of a polite insult to shoot back, the King spoke.

“Lord and Lady Chambers! What a pleasure it is to see you here.”

“Thank you, my king.” Your husband tugged you closer, bowing slightly. You could feel his and the King’s eyes on you, but you were only looking at her.

How is it possible that she had only become more beautiful with all these years?

She was seated to the right of her father, bright red dress highlighting every curve motherhood had given her. Her soft lips were slightly parted with shock, and she stared at you with that pure fire in her eyes.

In her gaze, you felt not quite burned- but sun touched.

“Y/N.” A squeeze to your hips. “Y/N.” You yelped as his fingers dug in, sure to leave a bruise.

“I-I’m sorry-” You tore your eyes away from Rhaenyra, looking to the concerned King. “I’m s-sorry, I- I got distracted.”

The king offered you a kind smile, before proceeding to ask your husband about his illness. The arm around you fell lose, and your eyes drifted back fo Rhaenyra. Her stare had never left you, and now she seemed to be undressing you with her eyes, raking over each and ever bit of visible and invisible skin.

She cleared her throat. “That’s a lovely dress, Lady Chambers.”

You might fall over. Her voice was just as sweet as you remembered, and you were surprised birds didn’t start singing and flowers didn’t fall from her mouth as she spoke.

“Thank you, Your Grace.”

Her mouth parted again, and you watched each move she made with eagerness.

You wanted to relearn her face, trace every lines with your fingers, kiss her until you physically couldn’t anymore. It almost broke you to be this far from her.

Now that you are this close to her, staring into her lilac eyes, you don’t know how you survived away from her so long.

“Come, Y/N.” Your husbands arm is around your waist again and you reach your hand out to Rhaenyra, but quickly hide it.

You think you see her hands shaking as you are led away.

—-

Rhaenyra stares at your retreating figure until she can’t anymore, the blue of your dress disappearing into the crowd.

“How do you feel?” Daemon chuckles from beside her, no doubt thinking this is such a happy occasion.

“Like I might kill Lord Chambers.” She turns to her husband, and he frowns. “Did you not see? The way he was so cruel with her, fingers digging into her side-” Rhaenyra has to press a hand to her lips, feeling like she might throw up. “I condemned her to this. It is my fault. I should have saved her, stole her away, something, Gods-”

“Rhaenyra.” She flinches at her husbands tone, but it shocks her back into reality. “You cannot change the past. Do not blame yourself for actions that were not yours. Take a drink, and a breath, my love.”

She nods, mind still spiraling.

As soon as she heard her father greet you, she had whipped her head to you, staring into those beautiful eyes of yours that were like a beacon, always ready to lead her back to you.

Under the shadow of your husband she hadn’t been able to see you.

So, she did what Daemon said. She took a drink of wine, took a breath, and simmered in her anger, trying to pick you out in the crowd.

—-

Seeing Rhaenyra again might have been the most terrifying thing you had ever done. You traced the conversation in your mind over and over again, the way she looked, the sound of her voice.

Even if she did not love you anymore you might follow her back to Dragonstone anyways, like a puppy following it’s master.

You were shamelessly giddy as you sat down, legs unable to keep still and a smile on your face.

“It was just the fucking King, calm your tits.” He rolled his eyes, grabbing more cheese and crackers. You softly shook your head. Your husband had never loved anyone, he could never understand.

“Lord Chambers!” Your eyes flicked into the direction of a voice, a young Lady Mooton perhaps. You could never quite remember her name, but she always seemed to spend the night in your lord husband’s bedroom.

He licked his lips like a man starved, standing up quickly. “It would be rude of me to deny a charming young lady a dance, right?” His question was rhetorical, and you didn’t answer. He grabbed your chin, roughly tilting your head towards him. You tried to put as much derision into your face as you could, glaring at him. “I’ll think of you when I fuck her, hm?”

“What an honor.” He let out a hearty laugh, and you watched him lead Lady Mooton to the dance floor out of the corner of your eye.

You rubbed your sore jaw, before someone grabbed your hand.

“Let me see.” You stared at Rhaenyra with wide eyes as she sat in your husbands seat, carefully tracing the redness on your chin and intwining her fingers with your own.

“Rhaenyra…” You whimpered, and she smiled, bringing your intwined hands up to rest against her face.

“I know.” She whispered, smiling greedily into your touch. She pressed a feather light kiss to your palm, and your mind wandered back to Daemon.

“How is your husband?”

“Not you.”

“I thought of you everyday. I missed you so much, Rhaenyra.”

“You did?” She mused with a smile, hand leaving your chin to caress your waist. “I thought of you every second of everyday, you know. I doubt you missed me more than I missed you.”

God, not only did you miss her touch, but you missed her conversation and her wit. Her comforting presence.

Her fingers softly carasses your side, where your husband had surely left bruises.

“You…” she trailed off, seemingly unable to find the right words. “Have you been eating? You seem very… frail. Pale, too. Have you been getting much sun?”

“I thought you would compliment me on my beauty, not my flaws.”

“Sweetness, you don’t have any flaws. And you do have beauty. You might be the most beautiful girl in the world.” She placed her hand on your thigh, staring into your eyes and igniting a fire deep in her stomach. She rolls her eyes playfully. “Will you not let me worry about you? You’ve been away for so long… let me take care of you, make it better.”

“Rhaenyra…” You closed her eyes, leaning into her touch as she cupped your face with her hand. “You don’t want to know about my husband. Just be with me, here, right now.”

“If he’s hurt you, I’ll kill him.”

You let your smile fall, your eyes drift away from her.

She squeezed your hand tightly, making you look back up at her. “Don’t look away, Y/N. Even if you hate me, don’t look away. Please… I can’t, Y/N. Not again.”

You nodded, settling your eyes back onto her.

Her presence is so comforting, her voice so soft, you feel the need to tell her before you burst. She deserves to know, you suppose, and you want to tell her. You want her to kiss the scars and red marks, soothe your broken soul, fix your lonely heart.

“H-he starves me. Locks me in my room. He’s… he’s not a good man. So, please, don’t make me think about him right now, not while you’re here, Rhaenyra.”

“He does fucking what?” Your eyes look over to the source of the new voice, and Daemon’s lean warrior body is fraught with rage.

You look back to Rhaenyra, who has just the same rage simmering beneath her skin.

“I’ll kill him,” she whispers, pressing her face next to yours to speak into your ear. “I’ll kill him, I’ll kill him,”

Your eyes flick helplessly to Daemon, hoping that someone will perhaps have a less murderous outlook.

At that moment, your husband chooses to walk by with Lady Mooton, hand pressed to her back dangerously low. Rhaenyra looks at you with anger and sympathy in her eyes, not noticing. But Daemon does.

He licks his lips, turning as if to follow your husband, hand resting on the hilt of his sword. You hiss, grabbing his hand.

“Don’t. Dont, you can’t. He’s sick. He’ll die soon. Don’t throw your lives away for me.” Rhaenyra takes your face in both of her hands, staring at you in a way that makes the fire inside flare.

“You don’t get it.” Her voice is a whisper, not quite a question. “There is no life without you, Y/N.”

—-

taglist: (message me, send an ask, or comment if you want to be added!!)

@wondergal2001

@akiraquote

@a-lil-bit-nuts

[fincalinde]

random question friday: what sport do you think lxc would play?

Random question Friday I answer several Tuesdays later! This fox cannot be tamed.

So lucky for you this happens to be a subject near to my heart and those closest to me are at dire risk of having it outlined to them at any given moment that LXC is without a doubt a tennis player. Here are my reasons three:

Tennis is a sport associated with wealth and social status. It has traditionally been a sport of the middle classes and above, which I have been informed is also true in China and is one of the reasons for the tennis boom there in recent years. As the leader of a prestigious clan, LXC is at the pinnacle of his society and in a modern AU would therefore participate in such sports.

Tennis requires extraordinary mental discipline. When you're on the singles court you have to solve your own problems and your own mental strength is vital because there's no team playing around you and every single point counts. That mental discipline is not a million miles from the kind of discipline required to become a truly powerful cultivator making maximum use of their talent.

Sexy Wimbledon whites.

I happen to love tennis so I'm aware I have a shocking bias, but I think it's just two keen interests I have happening to fit together surprisingly well.

As a bonus, this is my opinion on professional playing styles for the tennis AU I will never write but have bored on about privately for the past three years:

LXC - your classic elegant all court player, the most powerful one-handed backhand on the tour, as much as he enjoys singles in his heart of hearts he never has more fun than when he's playing doubles with a good partner

JGY - counterpuncher, scrambles like you would not believe, literally never knows when he is beaten and has pulled out more wins from match point down than any other player, has a completely undeserved reputation for gamesmanship via taking bathroom breaks and medical timeouts as a strategy (EVERYONE DOES IT)

LWJ - technically an all court player but drifts into pusher territory a little too often because he likes to hit perfect shots until his opponent makes a mistake - however when he does step up to play offensively, beware

WWX - loses points he should win because he's hitting tweeners for the lolz, gets seriously injured playing doubles with JC and changes his playing style drastically to shorten points, becomes serve and volley king and still hits tweeners and underarm serves whenever he wants, literally the worst doubles player known to man

JC - offensive baseliner constantly being berated by his mother (coach) to COME TO THE NET and can never volley as well as WWX does, hugely outstrips WWX in ranking after the Incident and is constantly paranoid that without said injury WWX would always have beaten/outranked him

NMJ - servebot, breaks rackets on court, has been defaulted from matches for rage hitting balls, is the toughest prospect out there on grass and hugely respected for it, retires early due to health and becomes his brother's very ineffective coach

NHS - defensive baseliner bc that's the farthest position from the balls shooting at him at 200kmph, hasn't even cracked the top 200 and all his tour-related costs are covered by NMJ, has won a couple of doubles titles where NMJ did all the work, still somehow makes more in endorsement deals than most of the rest of the cast put together

[mirai-e-jump]

Animage November 2023 Issue ft. Murakami Erica Interview (translation below)

Publication: October 10, 2023 (between episodes 32-33)

"I'll do as I want and follow my own path!"

Hymeno Ran, the young queen of Ishabana and a remarkable doctor, is extremely selfish. Although Hymeno sometimes acts out of the ordinary, for her, being selfish is a way of life to get what she wants.

Her aesthetics can be seen in the words she once said, "No one can make your wishes come true, only you can make them come true," and, "Dreams, as well as the future, starts with being selfish."

Hymeno's parents were murdered by the perpetrator of the "Wrath of God," and she ascended to the throne at a very young age. As she tries to avenge her parents, she grows and deepens her bonds as she clashes with the kings of other countries.

Rita Kaniska, who tried to seal off "Tranquility Grodie," the culprit behind the Wrath of God, by sacrificing themself, was stopped, and together with Hymeno and the others, were sent to Earth by the Uchu King Dagded Dujardin, a planet with the same name as Chikyu, where the Zyuden Sentai Kyoryugers and Deboth Army were fighting. Not only is it a concern about whether they can safely return, but also the present situation in Chikyu without its kings.

After a fierce battle on Earth, the battle between the Royal Sentai and the Uchu King will advance to a new stage!

-The secret birth of "The muscles that protect people"-

"Please tell us how you're feeling now that we've crossed the halfway point."

Murakami: After interacting with fans at the Summer event, I realized that the opportunities to meet everyone, and the time the 6 of us have together for filming is running out, so now, I'm just trying to cherish the few remaining film shoots we have left. In particular, the trip to Kyushu for the movie campaign was a big part of my life. After spending some private time with everyone for the first time, I realized once again that, "I really do love these members." Since we were all together the whole time, we got along really well, and it felt like we were on a school field trip (laughs). I wanted to give something back to the fans to preserve these memories with them, so I made a conscious effort to take pictures of people other than myself and post them on SNS.

"That might be why the two shot photo of Taisei Sakai-san and Masashi Ikeda-san taken by Murakami-san became a hot topic."

Murakami: That's right! I took it right after the event at TV Asahi, and I felt a sense of responsibility to, "Deliver it to everyone!" (laughs). Posting photos to SNS is a great way for everyone to remember these events, as the photos will be preserved.

"What are you conscious of when expressing the relationships between the other kings?"

Murakami: I think that the current way of thinking is not to go out and fight alone, but to fight together. In the beginning, everyone was strong in their own way, and their own interests came first, so it was difficult to come up with a plan to join forces, but gradually, as the enemy became bigger, I think the mindset changed to one of working together to defeat them. Because we've gained each other's trust, we can now rely on each other in our respective areas of expertise. For Hymeno, such people with whom she can trust and with whom she can be in a mutual relationship with is a valuable thing. The butler Sebastian and the maids are all very lenient with Hymeno, so there's no one at Ishabana who's willing to speak their mind. I think that's why having someone like Rita, who she can honestly call a friend, is a positive thing for her.

"Episode 30, where the truth of the Wrath of God was revealed, was the climax episode of the drama between Hymeno and Rita."

Murakami: For scenes between the two of them, I was impressed by episode 30, where Hymeno excitedly invites Rita to tea when they come to pick up the repaired royal seal. She's developed a deep relationship with Rita over the Wrath of God incident, and since they went out of their way to come see her, I think she may be under the impression that they want to spend time with her. I personally think it would've been cute if she thought, "Hmmm~?, They want to get along, do they? Alright, I'll invite them over then" (laughs).

"We get the impression that, especially in the beginning, Gira and Yanma were always together."

Murakami: That's right. I really like the combination of Gira and Yanma alot, although we haven't seen much of it recently. There's a perfect balance between Gira, who's honest and straightforward, Hymeno, who thinks that she has no choice but to stop him, and Yanma, who gives him ideas. Just like Hymeno and Rita, I think the interesting thing about King-Ohger is that you can see completely different sides of the characters depending on the combination.

"How about Jeramie, who appeared over the course of the story?"

Murakami: I think Hymeno has the impression that he's an amazing guy who's also between the lines (laughs). Like Gira, who's always moving ahead, Jeramie is always in his own little world, and from my point of view is very cute, but for Hymeno, he's more like a troublesome little brother. Hymeno is able to say what she thinks without hesitation, so when Gira uses his evil talk, she says, "I don't understand, translate for me," and she'll cut off Jeramie's story by saying, "Get rid of reading between the lines." On the other hand, Rita and Yanma are reasonable, so they're easy for Hymeno to talk to. She used to not know what Kaguragi was thinking, but I think her impression of him has changed when she learned of his compassionate side when they swapped bodies (episode 28).

"We heard that the dumbbell lifting in the scene where the 6 of you were gathered was improvised."

Murakami: That's right. I was thinking of Kaguragi's line, "For the sake of my people, I'll get my hands dirty," so I said, "The muscles that protect people." Even though he tends to intervene and pushes through with power, I was alittle nervous because there hasn't been any depictions of him doing muscle training. But, since I was given the OK on set and it was aired, I guess it was fine for his character (laughs). Considering the depictions of her dancing, I also thought that Hymeno's inner muscles were well developed and that she'd be able to lift dumbbells.

"It was a scene that you performed after thinking about it logically."

Murakami: Yeah, I already had some ideas in mind. I also consulted with Kaku So-san, and we showed each other how we'd act in our original roles. When Kaku-san told me, "In Kaguragi's case, I think he's planning to use the swap for something," I thought, "I see." That's why I decided to do muscle training to compensate for the lack of outer muscles in Hymeno's body (laughs). I wouldn't have known unless I had become Kaguragi myself, and I felt like I saw a side of Kaku-san that I didn't know before. I felt the pressure to exaggerate and make it interesting without destroying his character, but I think we were able to make that body swap episode happen because we're all friends who can talk about the performance and say, "This is how I want to do it."

-Hymeno's way of life seen through a collaborative effort-

"Is there anything you're conscious of in your interactions with Sebastian and the rest of your entourage?"

Murakami: For Sebas and the head maid Cleo, I try to be natural. I think that Sebas and the others are like family to Hymeno, those she can show her weakness to that she wouldn't show in public, and who she can entrust everything about herself to. Unlike the other kings, who are equals and share their opinions with each other, I often speak to Sebas and my entourage as if I'm throwing them off. In episode 25, Hymeno's decision to go into battle with Sebas and the others was a very serious one for her, as she had lost her family, and I acted with those feelings in mind.

"What are your impressions of KamakiriOhger, played by Suit Actor Sakanashi Yume-san?"

Murakami: She's so cool! I especially loved the scene in episode 27 where she wields the giant sickle. Seeing Yume-san's beautiful and cool actions makes me feel like I can't lose to her, and I get really fired up during the dubbing. While discussing it with Yume-san, I challenged myself with the pre transformation action scenes in episodes 32 and 33, which were done in collaboration with Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger.

"Episodes 32 and 33 were directed by Sakamoto Koichi, who's known for his action direction."

Murakami: It was fun to challenge myself with actions that I put my whole heart and soul into, and everyone else was really cool too! I even performed an Ina Bauer (laughs). In the scene where I fight with the Ohger Calibur, I didn't swing it around quickly, rather, I thought about the sword's center of gravity as I performed. When I was talking with Yume-san, she mentioned that she was conscious of sword driven movements, where the weight of the sword can be felt, so I also wanted to keep that in mind.

"Other than Hymeno, who's your favorite character?"

Murakami: It's Grodie! I love characters who are apathetic but the strongest, like Kiyotaka Ayanokoji from "Classroom of the Elite," or Levi from "Attack on Titan." I especially like characters who are mindless but can do anything, and who think the world is boring because they can do anything. That's why Grodie, who’s despairing of the world but also strong, is exactly what I like, although, for Hymeno, he's someone she can't help but want to perform surgery on (laughs).

"Please tell us about some of the most memorable scenes you've filmed."

Murakami: In episode 33, when Ian called out to Hymeno, she said something really cool in response, and I thought, "What is this line? 100 points!" (laughs). I think it showed Hymeno's idea that she'll live her life on her own terms. I myself will also keep these words in my heart as I live my life. I think that the unique combination of Hymeno and Ian is what made that interaction so interesting.

"We're looking forward to that broadcast! Finally, what are some highlights of future events?"

Murakami: The king's pasts will be depicted during the upcoming battle between the Uchu King and the Five Jesters, so make sure you pay attention to that. And, just as I felt during the movie, you’ll also see the unique aspects of Sentai, where the characters advance together with their friends, and the 6 members work together to face the enemy. Please look forward to seeing how the kings will conquer their extremely overpowered enemies! _

Question to Hirakawa Yuzuki-san! (Rita Kaniska's Actor)

During the tea party with Rita in episode 30, I think I asked them, "Do you like sweets?" I know that Yuzuyan herself really likes Japanese sweets, but I wonder what Rita likes. When I invite Rita to a tea party in the future, if you know what they like, I can prepare it and entertain them. Also, I need help designing a coat for when I go to Gokkan (laughs). I would love to hear Rita's ideas. (-Murakami)

Question from Watanabe Aoto-san! (Yanma Gast's Actor)

Q: What does Hymeno currently think of Yanma?

She didn't pay much attention to Yanma in the beginning, but when he talked about the Wrath of God in episode 7, he gave Hymeno a different perspective and values that she didn't have before, and now she trusts him. That was the first scene where Hymeno had a realization to what someone said to her. But it's not just Yanma that she trust, it's everyone. I want to tell him that. (-Murakami)

[half-truths-and-hyperbole-louk]

Louk's Bad Batch rewatch part 15 !!! AND part 16 !!!

TWO IN ONE WHAT these eps are kinda short ?? or my thoughts are idk ?? so I put them both together on one post 😬 but anyway let's go batcherssss 🤟

The Bad Batch 1x11

Crosshair you little gremlin 💕

ELENI AND HOWZER 🥺😭🥰👑

can someone please explain to me why Orn Free Taa has extra lekku, weird tiny ears and three fingers instead of four ??? mans looks like a different species 👀

"They fought for us and they have earned our respect" settle down Cham we all know you're gonna change your mind in 5 minutes hush

HERA AND CHOPPER MY BELOVEDS 💕💕💕

"uncle Gobi" 🥺

Hera watching the birds in the sky 🤲 following them with her hands 🥺

Howzer you absolute king 👑

Eleni and Gobi scheming together hehehe

I just know Eleni is SO proud of Hera 🥲 she's so much like her mom fr

"my hope is that you won't ever have to live a life like mine" ~ General Cham Syndulla ... meet General Hera Syndulla

"no take offs or landings" this is actually so adorable tho

Wrecker carrying all the weapons himself like he's only doing one trip with the groceries from the car to the house hehehe

Hera asks about the Marauder and Omega's like 'this beauty' *pat pat*

I wanna see Hunter's face watching Hera and Omega together 🥺

they're besties forever 💕

it's Hera's dream to live on a starship 😭

lmao could've had a bad batch reunion rn but Crosshair had other plans

Omega: ☝"did you know flying is about a feeling?" Tech: I have no idea what this means

Howzer being the only one to question imprisoning a child 😭

Eleni didn't even wait for the speeder to stop moving before jumping out 💅

"attempted assassination of Orn Free Taa" ??? attempted ?? did he not just die ???

The Bad Batch 1x12

"how unfortunate for your people to see your fall" LMAO Rampart I've seen s2 👀

Howzer immediately plotting to save Hera 💕

Hera and Chopper are absolute menaces and I respect them both for it

Gonky being part of the bad batch family 🤲

"you gave her our comm channel?" ~ Hunter is so done pls 😂

Tech: "children often overreact" Omega: "no we don't" YES OMEGA 🙌👑 she is so passionate and caring and loving and loyal I genuinely feel so proud of her 💕

Omega: "isn't that what soldiers do" Hunter: 😯

Wrecker @ Chopper: "what's his problem" how long do you have buddy?

Hera asking them all so desperately to save her family 😭😭😭 she has always cared so deeply

y'all I'm confused did Orn Free Taa actually survive that shot to the head? I feel like Rampart has no reason to lie about it?

they all peeking with their binoculars

Hunter's little 'let's move' gesture 🥰

Hunter hearing the droid and his sneak attack just dropping down on it 👌 bro how did you get up there so fast ??

knife knife knife knife knife knife knife kni-

Tech: "oh good" lolol

Wrecker's face when Hunter says Crosshair knows they're there 😭

Omega grabbing Hera's hand 🤲

Echo's face explaining to Hera why they're after Cham 😭😭

"I don't care about any of that, I just want my parents back" she's just a little kid in the middle of a war she doesn't understand 💔 this is too real and absolutely heartbreaking

"She's trying to save her family Hunter. I'd do the same for you" you tell him Omega 💪👑

Howzer and Crosshair staring at each other.....

Chopper and Hera having a lil chat 🥺

Omega: "he's my brother, they all are" Hera: "you're lucky" she really is 🥺

Howzer is trying so hard to protect Hera even with Cham hating on him and refusing to help save his own daughter 🙃

Omega and Hera came up with a strategic plan and now Hunter's on board 🥰

Tech is worried about them going by themselves 🥲

Echo getting caught scaling the wall: "a little help?" lmaooo

AND Hunter's little "hey" to distract the reg before pulling Echo up 💀

"I won't tell if you wont" lmao I love these two together 💕

Omega: "don't shoot down our shuttle" Tech: "wait what shuttle?!" ~ how many heart attacks does Omega want to give Tech this episode 😂

Hera blowing up an imperial refinery........ 👀

Tech: 'Omega what was that explosion?!?! Omega: hehe don't worry about it 💀

Omega: "do some damage Wrecker" Wrecker: "that I can do!" Wrecker happy makes me happy 🥰

THE TECH TURN THE TECH TURN THR TECH TURN THE RECH TUENCJDIWJXNW

Hunter telling Cham and Gobi that Hera hired them 💀

Hera: "we're getting the hang of this" Tech: "yes your dangerous and uncontrolled manoeuvring is as confusing to them as it is to us 🙂" he is so far past done with them oml 😂

Howzer 💕💕💕💕💕💕

Hunter looking back at him before they leave 😭

Howzer's whole speech in this scene 😭😭😭 it reminds me of Fives giving his pep talk to the cadets 🥲

Hunter sensing Crosshair??? and what if I never stop crying ??

my heart is breaking for Howzer I love him so bad 💔

Wrecker Omega high five 🥺

Tech teaching Hera and Omega 🤲💕

"Tech showed me how to scramble a ships signature" TECH TAUGHT HERA ONE SKILL THAT SAVED HER ASS A MILLION TIMES 😭

"keep an eye on your brothers, they need it" ~ Hera, the wisest person in the show fr

...did Chopper just say "Chopper out"

Crosshair has too many expressions to count this last scene, asking to hunt the batch down... my theory is he never had his chip removed but that venator engine fried it and it slowly stops working... we know that a lot of the chips are slowly starting to stop working in other clones, maybe its the same for Crosshair ?? so he's feeling a lot of confusion at hunting them down ?? maybe idk lol

two more down!!! my internet is still shocking and it's taking me like an hour to watch each ep bc of all the buffering 🥲 but anywayyy thank yalls for joining 💕💕💕

[smokeypeaches-and-honeyplums]

Could you do a request with mk, redson, sun Wukong and macaque where the readers family doesn't support them. Maybe in monkey kings and macaque case the reader family saw what the monkeys did in the past and don't trust them and like that?

Been dead. Dying. Deceased. Sorry just been juggling a bunch of shit irl and only lego monkie, demons and delivery men are the cure

Note 1/25/23: lol so I’m gonna be finishing requests while recovering, long story short, keeping myself sane while my body does the opposite, sorry like ALL the requests are as late as they are

Reader is Gender Neutral by default

MK/Qí Xiǎotiān (Monkey Kid)

MK means well, he really does!

It's just that

When your family saw him on the news looking extremely intimidating and given he has a tendancy to STEAMROLL the city,,,,

He's not the most trustworth

I mean, he destroyed the city playing PING PONG of all games while BLINDFOLDED

BLINDFOLDED

PING. PONG.

MK couldn't really,,, give himself the best of images if he tried now could he

It's PIN-

Anyways

Your family is VERY disapproving of the most destructive 'hero' beside monkey king that they've ever met/heard of

Makes him being the Monkey Kid all that more ironic in the worst ways for them

You're an adult though so it's not like they can control who you date like they could/would when you were still a minor

You both of course still continued to date but it did still sting to know your parents didn't approve of MK.

He was a wonderful guy! He made you laugh, he was really caring and made sure you were safe and okay. And he can surprisingly cook!

So you thought maybe you needed to have them figure that he's as great as you see him

Not doing a dinner because that's a one shot kill with any sort of chance-- it will so quickly become awkward especially given MK's nature

He's not really a traditional guy

You talked to MK about it and suggested taking it one step at a time, not like you wanted to rush this anyways. You wanted your parents to like him!

Doing it one at a time with your parents and doing it in small doses did something. They didn't shoot a killing glare at him anymore at least

They still didn't approve of it, but at this point in your relationship, you weren't going to relent from being with MK, so they threw in the towel. Plus, he’s beaming sunshine, it’s hard to hate him

They warm up to him when they stop trying to cherry pick, but it's still VERY gradual

In the meantime, he stays very respectful and tries to tone down on his usual choatic behaviour, taking in the fact of just how important it is to you that they like him/get along with him

He takes note of what they like and don't like, and given his artistic abilities, tries to make something for them as gifts!

Eventually he's treated like a part of the family, even if it took a while

In your eyes, it's all worth it

Your mother(s)(ly figure(s)) dote on him

Same with your father(s)(ly figure(s))

It eventually gets to the point they start teasing about marriage, which is easy to fluster MK

All in All, he's accepted and cherished by your parents, and you couldn't be happier, most positive note out of the four

Redson

Ok so like

This is more granted because it is literally a demon, nevertheless the son of THE Demon Bull King. I doubt anyone who remembers about the legends and then what happened to the city like. Twice by his hand wouldn't be standoffish

So when your parents catch wind about your going ons with Redson, they're,,,,

Less than excited to say the least

They try to keep you away from him, thinking that there has to be some double meaning to why he would want to date you, what it might be was up in the air

When Redson found out about that though, he was quite irritated

Though giving it some thought (and some calming down from you) he thought it made sense from a protective parental figure's POV

It still didn't feel good to be deprived of his lover more often than he would like, even with their reasons

It's harder to get into their good graces compared to MK, given he's terrorized the city more than once and made his face known for it

Sure MK is,,, MK but at least he's doing it to save everyone and stop the threats to the city, albeit very recklessly

Redson has been mostly known to be the cause of that in the first place

So with your help (which is mainly to keep him from burning anything) you decide to speak over dinner

It's awkward at first, especially since your parents are not quite hesitant to throw shade at him, but his way with word and bit of charm does get the ball rolling in the right direction

The dinner ends off with a nice note, despite the rocky start

It helps ease them up enough to Redson to be able to tolerate seeing him with you

But they are still cautious

Knowing how prone he is to his literal flaming outbursts

You can come to an understanding about it, given how infamous he made himself out to be

But you try to assure them to the best of your ability that all is fine and you are fine

He treats you pretty well, and is very sweet. A traditional sweetheart given his long period of living which tugs at the right heartstrings

Like MK, they come to terms with the demon, given just how much you cherish him and him to you

Which, gives you the first glimpse at a relatively publicly giddy Redson

Sun Wukong (Monkey King)

I think this one is a

given

I mean like

Sun Wukong is known for being really fucking unhinged

Even when he isn't being unhinged

So when your parents catch wind, they are LIVID

He's disgraced everything in his path at least once when he was younger, so it's only natural that even if he's 'wiser' your parents are far from buying it

I mean he's Sun Wukong

He picked a fight with Buddha frame 1

Who knows what he might do

Unlike MK and Redson, Sun Wukong isn't as inclined to try and get in their good graces

Sure he'd do things relatively traditional, but he's more loose about it than the former two

He also would suggest to let your parents come around naturally instead of intervening, thinking that his image is as tainted as it could possibly get

”Besides, I am THE Monkey King, they’re bound to come around!”

It reassures you a little, which WAS the main goal anyways

He brushes it off and makes jokes about it like he does everything else, so you consider his advice

Though, you aren't completely opposed to nudging your parents in the direction you want, just enough to not make it so obvious

You want your parents to be involved with your life to at least some degree, so having them at least tolerate your relationship would ease you a good deal

It takes some time, given nothing being direct and Sun Wukong being... Sun Wukong, but you manage

You do get your parents to tolerate it the relationship, but years of detestment and vitriol isn't that easy to get past

You know what battles to fight, so you throw in the towel in terms of your involvement. You got at least one milestone out of the way so that's all that matters in the long run

Unlike the other two, Sun Wukong and your parents' relationship is on a bittersweet note, more bitter than sweet.

Sun Wukong respects your wants, but being rational foronce he insists to let things run their course

Especially when, between him and Macaque, he’s the more respectful simian

"Besides, we have plenty of years ahead of us! We'll take it one step at a time."

Yeah

One step at a time.

Six-Eared Macaque/Liù ěr míhóu

He's a trickster

Manipulator

Bastard™

So it's understandable that your parents feel the way they do about Macaque

He's not hung up about it either

If anything, it doesn’t bother him at all!

Though, with this being Macaque, that worries you more than it reassures you

He would be a self admitted asshole and wear it with pride even, so some comments from some less than influential people (to him at least) would be nothing more than dust off his back

He technically didn’t live as long as Sun Wukong and was in a form of hiding soon after revival, so his track record isn’t as disastrously long as Sun Wukong’s to hold over his head and remind you of

Still bad though

And, Macaque having that beloved sass of his, makes his lack of care known, whether or not your parents are nearby at first

He slipped up once about how “Your parents have a stick so far up their ass you’d think it was Wukong’s staff.”

Ok that at least got a chuckle from you

But, you still scolded him, telling to at the very least tone it down when they’re around, especially when you’re also around

He agrees to the terms, although reluctantly with much hesitation at first on the brink of refusal

But you ARE the least toxic thing/the person who cares about him the most in years, and with walls being broken and in no mood or state to build them back up, he’ll at least TRY for your sake to keep you around

It’s an effort you really care about, so he’ll so some care for the sake of you than anything else

Though, despite all of this, the relationship between your parents and Macaque would probably be on the worst note out of the four.

He’s soured by the sands of time and you had to pry his heart open with a crowbar. So he’s not going to be kind or complacent. At least so easily if at all, and that comes in degrees

And how he sees it, if your parents don’t plan to extend the olive branch, why reach for something that ain’t there

You feel bad about it, and Macaque reassures you best he can, but now you know, firmly, there’s no way Macaque and your parents would ever be in an actually positive relationship

[michelleleewise]

Long Live The King

Pairing: King Jotun Loki x Asgardian F!reader

Warnings: forced imprisonment, public shaming, restraints, innuendos, threats, mild violence, very minor mention of blood (not graphic), swearing.

Summary: you wake in a small cell and begin plotting your escape....

Part One --Part Two-

You shot up holding your head feeling a pounding behind your eyes. "That bastard.." you said to yourself looking around. The room was completely bare, not even a bed you realized when you felt the cold stone seeping through your clothes. You looked down seeing your boots and extra layers were gone, leaving you in only a thin tunic and leather pants. "Shit.." you muttered huddling in a ball in the corner feeling the cold blowing in through the one tiny window by the ceiling.

You heard voices outside the thick wooden door putting you on edge. "Do you think he'll kill her?" You heard one ask "no, he'll use her first, if you know what I mean." You heard another as they started laughing. "I have to get out of here." You said to yourself standing up walking to the window, the cold stone hurting your feet, looking up at it seeing it well above twelve feet high you sighed, this was a dungeon for giants. You looked at the wall for any loose bricks you could use to climb up when the lock on the door clicked and two giants walked in.

"Asgardian, the king demands your presence." One said holding a set of chains. "Could you tell him I'm quite busy at the moment, maybe he could try..." you started when the other back handed you knocking you down. Wiping the blood off your lip you stood back up "Well, I guess if he insists I could make time." You said as the other hooked a collar around your neck, attaching the chain to it cuffing your wrists. "Let's go Asgardian." He said yanking you behind him. "I have a name you know." You said trying to keep up with his long strides neither of them responding. You walked down a long hallway filled with paintings "so tell me, how do you feel about having a runt for a king?" You asked earning another slap across the face "you will watch your tongue Asgardian." The one growled as you were dragged along.

After what seemed like forever you stood in front of two large wooden doors, the handsy one opened the doors as you were jerked hard inside by your collar. You looked around the massive room, ice pillars shooting up from the floor to the ceiling, the ice beginning to burn your feet the longer you walked. "Whose your decorator?" You asked getting no response when your eyes landed on a large dais at the end of the room with a massive thrown made of ice sat on top with him sitting on it, legs spread wide leaning to one side, an ice horned helm on his head gripping a golden spear, you had to admit he looked regal. "King Loki we have brought the prisoner as you've asked." The handsy one said as they both kneeled.

You remained standing as the king stood walking down the steps, his dark green cloak billowing behind him as he walked. "Hello asgardian." He said, his voice carrying through the large hall "hello...runt." You snarked earning a harder slap from the giant next to you knocking you down "you will show respect." He growled. You spat out blood wiping your mouth "how did you know I like it rough?" You snarked sitting up on your knees as he raised his hand again "Enough! Leave us." The King said grabbing the chain from the other giant. You stood up looking him in the eye seeing him smirk "you have fire in you asgardian." He said circling you "I will snuff it out." He snarled in your ear sending a shiver down your spine.

"Tell me, who sent you?" He demanded coming to stand in front of you. "No one." You said holding your head up, you wouldn't betray your king. "I have ways of making you talk." He said stepping closer. "Sounds kinky." You snarked back hearing him growl, you knew you were getting on his nerves but you refused to relent. "No asgardian has set foot here in centuries, I want to know why you are here." He demanded. "Well...I think that was obvious." You said smiling. "Who is behind your weak assassination attempt?" He asked again. "No one." You said again.

He walked closer to you, his bare chest pressing to yours as he gripped the chain pulling you into him, lowering his face close to yours making you anxious. "I could make your life pleasant here, make things more...comfortable for you." He said running his fingers along your collar as his red eyes bored into yours. "As tempting as that is, Im afraid i must pass." You said smiling "I may be crazy but I'm not desperate." You snarked hearing him growl again dropping his hand. "Very well, If that's how you want it, so be it." He snarled yanking the chain dragging you up the steps to the throne. Leaning down he hooked it to a loop sticking out of the ice, only giving you enough slack to barely sit up "you will sit there until I say different." He said taking his seat on the throne.

You sat with your back leaning on the throne hearing others filing into the room. "You are in for a treat asgardian, we are having a feast in your honor." You heard the king say. Rolling your eyes you pulled your knees up to your chest trying to stay warm, laying your head on them. You jumped hearing a loud bang next to you. Looking around seeing tables and chairs set up, all filled with the monsters that held you prisoner. "Did I fall asleep?" You asked yourself rubbing your eyes. You looked over seeing their king stand holding his arms out "Thank you all for coming, as you know this weak creature infiltrated our realm and tried to murder me in my sleep." He announced when boos erupted from the room.

He walked behind you crouching down grabbing your hair he pulled your head back "but as you can see, we captured the beast." He called out, cheers filling the room. "Let's show it how hospitable we can be yes?" He called out again pushing your head away from him standing up. "And let it be known, no creature who enters this realm will leave it alive." He called out holding his arms out hearing everyone chant "Loki...Loki...Loki...." you looked out to the room seeing a sea of red eyes glaring at you making you shiver when something hit you in the head. Looking down seeing a piece of bread next to you when they all started laughing. "Alright enough, enjoy the festivities." Loki called out returning to his seat on the throne.

You curled back into a ball feeling yourself shiver with the cold, your skin felt like it was on fire. "Are you sure I couldn't make you more....comfortable." You heard Loki pur, looking up your eyes met his "I would rather be impaled on a spike then recieve your comfort." You snarled. Hearing him laugh you looked down. "Oh asgardian I admire your will, we shall see how long it endures." He said snapping his fingers, the two giants from earlier came up kneeling "my king." They said in unison "take this creature back to her cell, she's ruining my appetite." He snarked waving his hand. The handsy one reached down unhooking the chain pulling you forward, but the cold had made your legs numb.

"Get up you useless worm." He snapped pulling on the chain again "I can't! My legs are frozen." You said grabbing the chain "carry her." Loki demanded as the giant hoisted you over his shoulder "don't break her, I have plans for her." Loki said smiling "yes my king." The handsy one said walking towards the doors. Boos and hisses erupted through the room as you were walked down the isle being pelted with food along the way. You covered your head as you were carried back to the dungeons. He opened the door tossing you onto the floor, landing with a thud you hissed "I'm not a sack of flour you know." You said rubbing your backside. "Your right, flour is more valuable." He snarked walking to the door "Hey, aren't you going to take these off?" You called out rattling the chains, he turned looking down at you "no, I don't think I will." He smiled walking out shutting the door.

@vbecker10 @lokisgoodgirl @sinsandguilt @high-functioning-lokipath @mochie85 @slytherclaw1227 @jaidenhawke @budugu @xorpsbane @schizonephilim @lokidokieokie @holdmytesseract @your-taste-on-my-lips @lokixryss @asgardianprincess1050 @tallseaweed @aniar4wniak @sekaishell @lokispetblogs @loopsisloops @trojanaurora @lonadane @all-envy-suyu @yelkmelk @stupidthoughtsinwriting @123forgottherest @silverfire475 @bbmommy0902 @goblingirlsarah @commanding-officer @unabashed-lover-of-fictional-men @mcufan72 @glitterylokislut @tjellisworld @kkdvkyya @cueloki @daggers-and-mischief @sititran @witchyblue @verycollectivecreator @nixymarvelkins @chantsdemarins @shinraski @usagishira @nightshadelm @filthyhiddles @dukes2581 @assemblingavenger @huntress-artemiss @yuu-chan-is-still-a-student12

Hearing it lock you slumped down in the corner looking out the window "Heimdall....can you see me?" You said aloud hearing only silence. "Please....bring me back." You said louder hearing a bang on the door "shut it in there!" You heard. You pulled your legs up resting your head on them. For the first time since you arrived you realized you are completely alone.....