#so he can see all those pretty redhaired babies

[mrs-barnes-rogers-writes]

Pretty As A Picture - Chapter 10

Marvel

Pairing: Steve Rogers x Reader x Bucky Barnes

Theme: Soulmates - Feeling the connection as soon as you see each other.

Summary: When Bucky fell from the train, their soulmate was told he was gone. When Steve Rogers disappeared into the ice, their soulmate was again told one of her soulmates were gone. But she didn't believe it. Couldn't believe it. Committed to a mental health institute, she dies of a broken heart. That's at least what the hidden S.H.I.E.LD files say, but if that's the case than why is there a photo of her. A photo that shows her side by side two redhaired Avengers.

Warnings will be per chapter.

For this fic reader will be British, but let your imagination replace if needed.

Chapter Summary: The reader wakes up.

Chapter Warning: Mentions of hospital care.

“So, I’m gonna make it really clear, you’re going to have your work cut out with her. She’s stubborn, a know it all, unfortunately because she does know it all, photographic memory and all that, the situations she sometimes gets herself in aren’t always great but she always and I mean always has a way out. She doesn’t eat right. Her sleep pattern is worse than a teething toddler and believe me I know” He said looking down at Nathanial in his arms, “but she is fiercely loyal, if you call her for anything, she could be having tea with a royal and she’d drop everything to save your ass or in Laura’s case so you can have a shower without a screaming child and take a nap in peace. She’ll hold you through your nightmares, be your biggest supporter and snap a guys neck if they’ve hurt you. She feels all her emotions at ten times the level we do. Sometimes that’s great, sometimes it’s really not. Now, I’m gonna ask you, don’t pursue this unless you’re sure. Please.”

“She’s our soulmate Clint, there’s no way we aren’t pursuing this.” Replied Steve.

“I know she’s your soulmate but….”

“But what?” Asked Bucky.

“She sometimes, well it’s not my place to say.”

Steve and Bucky both huffed in response. They’d been sick of those words over the last few days. When you’d gripped the bed rail and bent it right in front of them it was clear you were different in some way. Match that with carrying Pietro like you did, Steve and Bucky were sure you were like them. A super soldier.

When Helen Cho entered the room after you’d been sedated, and spoke quietly to Bruce as they set up the cradle, they didn’t miss Bruce’s whispered “accelerated healing” or the mention of having to possibly rebreak some of your bones as they’d have already have set wrong. When they asked Bruce the response was “it’s not my place to say”. The same words were uttered when Steve asked Natasha why her and Clint were her emergency contacts and next of kin.

“You know I’m sick of hearing those words.” Steve told Clint.

“You know what fine, fuck it, yes I know language in front of the baby. He’s heard worse. Natasha and Y/N are his godmothers, he probably knows the f bomb in six different languages already. Look she struggles with the whole soul mate thing.”

Bucky’s head snapped up.

“How so?” Asked Steve.

Before Clint had chance to answer you groaned from the bed, causing the three men to jump to their feet, Nathanial jostling in Clint’s arms.

“Lightsssss, bright light, bright light.” You groaned, squeezing your eyes tightly.

“Shit, I forgot, F.R.I.D.A.Y dim the lights.” Clint instructed. “Good morning you little gremlin.”

“Gremlin?” Steve asked. “Sweetheart can you hear us?”

“It’s from a movie.” Bucky answered “Don’t put it on your damn list, it’s awful. Babydoll?”

“It is not. It’s a cult piece.” Clint replied.

“Whatever. Doll, can you hear us?”

You groaned again and muttered Clint’s name. He pushed past Steve and handed him a wiggling Nathanial, squeezing your hand and stroking your face affectionately. Bucky wasn’t sure how he felt about that.

“Hey kid, I’m here, open your eyes, you’ve had us all worried. Laura’s even started knitting again, you know how she hates it, only does it to keep herself busy, and don’t get me started on Natasha. I thought we’d have to sedate her at one point.”

“Natty.” You replied as your eyes started to flicker open.

“She’s upstairs, probably already on her way down.”

Bucky huffed. He didn’t want everyone in here. He wanted to speak to you, hold you, take care of you, figure out how the hell you were here. You started to look around, still squinting, jumping when you saw you were in the Med Bay.

“Easy kid. You’re in the compound Med Bay. You've been out for three days.”

You started to fidget in the bed.

“Y/N, listen.” and he gently cupped your jaw, moving your face to look at him. “You’re gonna be OK kid, you scared the shit out of us all, but you’ll be OK. You’re in the compound. Only Banner and Cho have looked at you. OK?”

You nodded in reply, your eyes full of tears. Clint kissed your forehead.

“Pietro? Did he? Is he?”

“He’s alive. See?” Clint stood upright and pointed to the next room in the bay. You followed his pointing to see you were separated by a glass wall but sure enough there was Pietro. Wanda and Vision at his bedside. He waved weakly at you and you attempted to wave back.

“Careful sweetheart.” You glanced up at the voice, meeting Steve’s eyes. “Hi honey.”

Spotting baby Nathanial in his arms, you reached out and made a gesture for Steve to pass him to you.

“Gimme.”

“Y/N,” Clint said as he perched on the bed “really?”

“Baby, gimme please.” You looked up at Steve with puppy eyes, who realised he immediately had no defence against your sad face and he turned to Clint, not knowing what to do. You pushed out your bottom lip for added effect and looked back at Clint.

“Fine, but you’re gonna need to sit up a little. Clint replied, before gathering up some pillows.

You tried to push yourself up as much as possible and Bucky silently tried to help. Why were you ignoring them? Clint moved around to the side of the bed Bucky was at and placed a pillow under your arm, saying something about it being the best side as your drip was gone, before whispering to you.

“Maybe stop being a brat and acknowledge your soulmates.”

You shifted uneasily and glanced at Clint as he gave you a knowing look, before he gestured at Steve to come around with Nathanial.

“Hello.” You said quietly, not making eye contact.

“Babydoll” “Sweetheart.”

Bucky placed a kiss on your head as you side eyed him.

“Is this a good idea?” Steve asked as Nathanial wiggled in his arms some more. “You said yourself how unsettled he is.”

“Just watch.” Clint laid Nathanial in the crook of your arm, making sure the pillow took most the weight. Nathanial snuggled into you, taking out his pacifier to give you a drool filled grin.

“Hi baby.” You said softly. Nathanial snuggled down more and closed his eyes, gripping on to the blanket Clint had placed over him.

The three watched you fondly as Nathanial drifted off to sleep, as you stroked his face affectionately. Bucky and Steve both felt a lump form in their throat as they watched. Thoughts of what could have been and what could be filling their heads. White picket fences seemed so far away now but there was something about you, their soulmate, with a baby in her arms.

Clint slipped back discreetly from between the two and moved to the other side of the bed. Spotting Natasha and Bruce hurrying down the corridor he gestured for them to slow down and wait, nodding back at Steve and Bucky. Steve slipped his arm around Bucky’s shoulder and Bucky mirrored his actions in return.

“We got her back bud.”

Bucky went to speak but let out a sob instead, as tears began to run down his face. Steve pulled him into a hug. You side eyed them not really knowing what to do. Clint noticed your uncomfortableness and squeezed your hand affectionately as tears formed in your eyes. You leaned back into the pillows, shaking your head.

“It doesn’t make any sense.” You almost whispered. “I can’t be their soulmate.”

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TAGLIST

@abaker74 @animegirlgeeky @calwitch @slowlyshycomputer @paasrin @cjand10 @otterlycanadian

[separatist-apologist]

Lucien and Elain from Don't Blame Me, do you think they would have 5 kids?

The way I have to keep looking up my own fics to see who you're talking about. After elucien week, lets all agree that I'm retiring, okay?

YEAH THEY DO. First of all, did he EVER use a condom? I don't think he did. Second of all, Elain wanted to be a housewife, wanted to be domestic. I think Lucien would have LOVED bringing her back to that chili cook-off just to rub her pregnant stomach in Graysen's ugly face

[squishytenya]

𝔻𝕒𝕪 𝟙 - 𝕊𝕚𝕩 𝕆𝕗 ℍ𝕖𝕒𝕣𝕥𝕤

↬ Parings: Bakusquad (Kirishima, Mina, Bakugou, Sero + Denki) x reader

↬ Reader: Gender Neutral but AFAB

↬ Warnings: Teasing, smut, Light spanking, Very light degradation, Double penetration, Oral (m + f recieving), gangbang, finger sucking (like a lot) , sub reader

It was the scheduled bakusquad movie night. Ever since you guys had become pro heroes you discovered the pay for start ups wasn’t amazing and your group was split between three neighbouring apartments. It was Bakugou and Kirishima in the first one, you and Mina in the second one and Denki and Sero in the last one. Every Friday night you guys show up to Bakugou and Kirishima’s apartment (they have the biggest couch) and have a movie night.

This night they had stuck on some random horror film and you had taken your usual seating. You were sitting on Eijirou’s lap on one end of the sofa, next to you was Sero and then Bakugou. The latter two had your legs thrown over them, bare in your sleep shorts that were really just a repurposed pair of Katsuki’s boxers. Denki was curled in the arm chair that was next to the couch, arm reached out to play with your fingers. While Mina was sitting on a bean bag in front of you, perfect height for you to run your fingers through her hair. Was this a little touchy for friends? Yeah probably. But you guys have always been close and the walls are thin so you know just how far their relationships have progressed. Yet nobody had ever reached that level with you.

It wasn’t like you didn’t want it. I mean why else would you be sitting on Kiri’s lap in a pair of his blonde counterparts boxers. Hell, you were even wearing one of Hanta’s oversized hoodies. You could not get anymore obvious without wearing a sign instructing them to ram you into the mattress. Denki’s lithe fingers dragged up your arm, shocking you on the way up. Suppressing a whimper, you turned towards the culprit.

“Getting distracted y/n?” he teased, cute smirk on his face

Your face warmed and you stuck your tongue out childishly. The horror film was suddenly a lot more interesting and you actually found yourself getting engrossed, jumping slightly at the jump scares. A rather loud one caused you to jump and squirm further into the redhaired man's lap. A small grunt was heard above you but you ignored it in favour of the grinning girl who was staring at you from the floor.

“Scared baby?

You went warm again and swatted at her, once again shifting in Kiri’s lap and rubbing your leg up against Sero’s. The nickname had a heat pooling in your stomach. Mina always had that effect on you. Determined to ignore it, you pulled your eyes away from here and settle them back on the tv. Where it just so happens to be showing a sex scene. Who even has sex when someone is trying to kill them? Just your luck. You decided the hairs slipping from Kirishima’s ponytail were much more interesting.

It’s not normally something that would affect you but with Sero’s hand rubbing your thigh like that and the view of Katsuki’s side profile, you were beginning to get hot and bothered. You felt his fingers dance across your thigh, causing you to clench around nothing, and decided it was best if you went to the kitchen. 

“Anyone want a drink?” you asked

A few requests rang out but you were too focused on the way Denki’s eyes were raking up and down your body. To be completely fair on him, Sero’s hoodie had slipped down and was now exposing your shoulder and collar bones. Not to mention the boxers which had rode up your leg a little to show off most of your thigh. Hastily pulling them down your leg, you scampered off to the kitchen.

Once there you began to get people’s drinks requests and paused. It wasn’t long before you were leant  over the sink splashing your face with water as if you were washing away those thoughts from your head. In your rush you didn’t hear the kitchen door opening until a large hand was placed on your waist and bulky hips pressed against your ass. Pushing back on them, you whimpered at the hardness pressing against you.

“You weren’t being very nice in there you little tease” growled the deep voice of Bakugou into your ear.

You shivered. Of all the things you had done tonight, none of them were intentional and none of them were directed towards Bakugou. Still, you couldn’t help but grind back onto him.

“Leaving shitty hair in there with the biggest boner he’s ever had and walking around with this out” he punctuated his growl with a hand that slid down your ass and grabbed it in his hand.

Groaning, you pushed back against his hand. Moans turned to squeaks when his palm came down on your cheek, landing a harsh spank on the warm skin. Another set of footsteps entered the kitchen and you turned away from the blonde to see a smirking Mina at the door. The pink girl walked over and slid her hand up your jaw, pulling you in for a kiss. At the same time she ran her hand up the inside of Sero’s hoodie, leaving a trail of goosebumps in her wake, and began circling your nipple with her fingers. Whimpers and moans escaped through where your lips were locked until another growl from Bakugou had her breaking away and staring at the blonde.

“Hey you guys” Denki’s voice rang from the living room, “if you’re gonna fuck then at least come in here and share”

The sound of a shoe connecting with skin echoed around the house. Mina grabbed your chin gently and turned you to face her, sincere look in her eyes.

“You don’t have to do this y/n” she whispered, “we will stop if you tell us to and nobody will be mad, we can even go home if you want”

You melted into the sincerity of her words and the softness of her hand against your face. It felt like your brain was going fuzzy but you looked her in the eyes and nodded. 

“It’s okay Mina, it would be a lie to say I haven’t been thinking about it” you admitted shyly, “just go easy on me?”

With that confirmation, Bakugou grabbed your shoulders and started leading you to the living room. You felt a thin hand slide down your waist and pat your ass where the blonde had spanked. Whines that escaped you at the motion had Mina cooing at you. The moment you entered the living room again, 3 sets of eyes were on you. 

The hardon you had left Kiri with was straining obviously against his shorts from between him and Sero, who had replaced you on his lap. Denki was off to the side, obviously having been leaving hickeys on the tape users neck. You shuddered at his swollen lips when they moved into a smirk, swift tongue licking across them at the sight of you. Bakugou moved his hands to the small of your back and pushed you down onto the sofa, causing another squeak of surprise.

It was cut off by a flurry of red hair and soft lips pressing against yours. You were soon heaved back into your original spot on his lap, facing him this time. The bulge in his pants rubbed up against your core which caused you to moa into his mouth. Hands that were gently stroking your arm earlier slid up your hoodie and pulled it off of you, successfully exposing your naked chest to the cold room.

“Aw no shirt for us baby, it’s like you were asking for this” teased Denki, biting at your ear.

It was like you were on fire and it was starting to ache between your legs, Kirishima’s bulge felt good against you as you rolled your hips down on it. Denki continued his assault on your neck but you felt a set of lips kissing down your chest and looked down to see a head of black hair. Sero nipped and sucked at your soft skin the entire way down until he reached your nipple. Then, without warning, he wrapped his lips around it and sucked it into his mouth, using his tongue to swirl it round until you were groaning. Your fingers slid through his hair and tugged at the nape to try and get him to let up a but but it only succeeded in making him groan and his tongue vibrated against your nipple.

“C’mon assholes stop hogging them” growled Bakugou from the other end of the sofa, “you’re all still fully clothed tch”

Well you weren’t. He was well aware if the red eyes dragging up and down your naked torso was anything to go by. You stood on shaky legs and looked around for Mina. Pink arms snaked around your torso and her own naked chest pressed up against your back. The giggle she let out against your neck made your knees go weak.

“Lets get these things off baby, I can already tell how wet you are”

Fingers toyed with the waistband of your borrowed underwear to exaggerate her sentence. All of their comments had like commanding, teasing lilt to them and she was right about how soaked through it made you. You were pretty sure there was a noticeable patch on your underwear which was only confirmed when Sero’s hands slid up your thighs and pulled them down. Denki smiled from the other side of Mina and slid a couple fingers down the front of them

“Katsuki look, they’re soaking”

You whimpered and buried your face into Mina’s neck the best you could from this angle. All of them were now staring as Kaminari’s fingers were pulled out of the fabric and shown to the room. It became apparent just how worked up you had gotten by the glisten of his fingers. Shyly, you looked up only for the fingers in question to be tapped against your bottom lip. Instinctively, you wrapped your lips around his fingers, lapping up every trace of you on them. 

“Fuck that was so hot” you heard Sero whisper from below you and suddenly you were being layed on the floor. Kirishima and Bakugou spared no expense on their house so the rug was fluffy and seemed to hug you as you were laid on it, a comfort in your nervous state. Looking up from between your hands, you saw Mina kneeling next to your head, Kirishima and bakugou either side of your waist and Sero between your legs. Denki was somewhere walking around, probably finding a place to settle. They were all naked, leaving your underwear the only clothing on.

“This has been a long time coming y/n” Sero purred, resting his head on your knee.

“Mhm” agreed Katsuki, “walking around and teasing us like a little slut, thinking we wouldn’t notice”

Whimpering, you squeezed your thighs together in an effort to relieve some pressure. A thick hand stopped you from your mission and began to spread your legs. Hanta’s warm breath fanned over the fabric resting on your pussy. The wet patch was obvious by now and you were expecting him to remove the fabric. Instead, he liked a stripe over the it, wetting it more. Your head shot back onto Mina’s thigh at the sensation. 

“Hanta please don’t tease” you begged, hand coming up to run through his black locks

You felt him smirk against you and heard the others moan at the sound of you begging. Bucking your hips into his face made him finally give in but, these were these guys so they couldn't just do it normally. Instead, Kirishima hardened his finger and used the sharp edge to tear the offending fabric from you. The torn underwear were thrown somewhere in the room and you were about to protest when Mina knelt over your face and cupped your cheek from above you.

“You okay for me to sit on your face, kitten?” she asks, smirking when you nod and whine

Sero chooses the exact moment she sits to slide his tongue up your slit and you moan into Mina. She moans herself and grinds down on your tongue, although your mind is all fuzzy and all you can do is lay there while she uses your face. A delicate hand grabs yours and you immediately know its Denki. The electric user wraps your hand around his dick, using it to thrust into while he watches the other two work over your body. 

Sero circled his tongue around your clit and smirked against you again when you did your best to grind onto his face. Mina brought your attention back to her when she moved up, landing your tongue inside her while what you assumed to be Katsuki’s fingers rubbed against her clit for her. Your strokes around Kaminari had become sloppy but the look of desperation on his face showed you that he didn’t really mind. Sero hummed while latching his lips around your clit and it made you see stars, screaming against Mina. Your hand moved frantically against Kaminari and the blonde boys' ragged moans made your ears burn with embarrassment.

The added stimulation of your noises and Bakugou’s fingers sent the pinkette over the edge and she came with a groan all over your face. Through the haze of pleasure, you could feel her get off of you, swiping her fingers through the mess on your face and pushing them into your pliant mouth. Moaning, you swirled your tongue around her fingers. You felt Hanta move from between your legs and whined. Strong arms heaved you up again until you were back to chest with your redheaded friend.

“Oh is somebody desperate?” Kirishima teased, nipping your ear

“Please Ei” you begged, rolling your hips against him

He chuckled and pulled you up further till you were dangling over his lap. A grunt was heard from beside you and you turned to see Sero and Katsuki making out, the tape user had seated himself in the others lap and was grinding their dicks together. A harsh slap on your thigh brought you back to Kirishima. 

“I thought you wanted to be touched beautiful” he cooed at your puppy eyes

Strong fingers danced up your thigh and came up to circle your clit, still sensitive from Hanta’s previous attacks. What you didn’t know is that it was a distraction from the feeling of his large cock slowly sliding into you. The stretch was aided by a mix of your slick and Sero’s spit but it didn’t mask the full burn and you whimpered at the feeling. Mina pulled herself off of the couch and came over to help you, sliding a hand up your chest and toying with your nipple.

“You’re doing so good for us y/n, so pretty on Eiji’s dick” 

You whined at her words and felt Kirishima’s hips meet your ass. His fingers had stopped playing with your clit and instead moved to grip your hips. Grunts and whines filled the air as he began to thrust into you, murmuring.

“God you feel so good, so tight for me y/n” he grunted

Denki had moved and was stood in front of you, stroking his cock in a thin hand. Straining hands gripped his thighs and pulled him closer to you so you could lean on him for balance. Your head rested on his hip, sucking red marks along his hip bone.

“Think you can suck me off cutie?” he questioned, thumbing at your lower lip.

He had no right to be as hot as he was. The jolting movements of kirishima’s hips was making your mind go fuzzy with pleasure and the thought of sucking the electric mans dick sent sparks down your core. Gently, you wrapped your lips around the head of his dick, pressing a kiss to the tip before enveloping it in your mouth. Kirishima lifted your hips slightly off the floor, suspending you between where his hips slapped against yours and where your mouth was working on Kaminari’s dick. 

The new angle moved you so that he was hitting the right spot with every thrust, the one that made you see stars. The thrusts pushed you further down on Kaminari’s dick and it wasn’t long before he was letting out a melodic moan, pushing your head down and filling your mouth with his cum. Lithe arms continued to hold you up as you looked at him and swallowed. 

“Well that's hot” he murmured, sitting on the couch next to and equally as tired Mina

Him moving away caused you to drop on the floor. Your hips were still being held up and mercilessly pounded into by the redheaded man. The angle left you helpless and you were stuck moaning into the plush carpet, drool pooling underneath your cheek. 

“Eijirou you feel so good” you moaned “m’gonna come”

Thick fingers snaked down to toy with you clit, sending you over the edge. Shudders wracked your body at the pleasure and your thighs shook at the force of your orgasm. Tightening around him proved too much for the redhead and he was soon reaching the same feeling, filling you to the brim with his come. Wincing as he pulled out, you remained with your head in the carpet to catch your breath.

“It’s our turn now mi amor” the sweet voice of Sero crooned in your ear.

The gravelly tone in his voice made you shudder, he must have been sucking Bakugou’s dick while you were...occupied. Your thoughts didn’t linger for very long because Katsuki had begun to lift you up, hooking an arm around your waist to keep you up.

“You’re so hot like this, fuck” he growled, “all fucked out and pretty for us huh?”

Two of his fingers pressed into your mouth, pressing down on your tongue. Spit pooled around them and Bakugou let out a tch sound. As he moved away, Sero gripped your chin and kissed you, languidly sliding your tongues over each other. The two fingers that were in your mouth trailed down your body and towards your pussy, where thick liquid had started to run down your leg. Bakugou used two fingers to scoop up a trail and pushed it between you and Sero’s tongues, the two of you moaning at the taste. 

Through the haze of your pleasure you felt them maneuvering you until Bakugou was sat against your back and Sero your front. They were of similar length but Bakugou was slightly shorter. He made up for it in thickness though and you were shaking with anticipation at what the position meant for you.

“Think you can take the both of us babe?” Katsuki growled in your ear

You froze for a second, if kiri was a tight fit how would they both fit inside you? Your thoughts were overpowered by the feeling of pleasure at Sero sucking and biting at your neck. Nodding, you closed your eyes and leant back onto the blonde’s shoulder. He went first considering he was the thickest and it would be easier to fit Sero in. Him alone made you writhe in leisure, the position making him press up against your walls in just the right way. His fingers snuck forward to draw circles over your clit, distracting you from the stretch of Hanta’s fingers sliding in against his dick. 

The more fingers he added, the fuller you felt. It was like your whole body was on fire and you felt Katsuki wrap his arm around your waist to keep you from bucking into Sero’s touch. Once three fingers were successfully in, pushing in and out, they decided it was good to go.

“You gonna make me feel good huh my love?” Hanta hummed into your ear “is that okay?”

“Yes, yes hanta please” you whined as he pulled his fingers out “I feel so empty please fill me up, let me make you feel good”

You melted into mindless babbling as the raven haired man pushed his length into you next to Bakugou. The added cum left over from Kirishima plus the remnants from your first orgasm made it easier and soon he was fully seated inside of you. Gasping at the feeling of being so full, you rolled your hips down on both men's lap and they moaned simultaneously. Sparks began to pop against your thigh and a large palm cracked against your ass.

“Stay still or you won’t get to come again” growled a deep voice in your ear

You whimpered at the thought and stayed still. When you had relaxed enough the two men started thrusting into you, setting a pace that made your eyes roll back and mouth hang open. You felt so stretched around the two of them and there was no way they weren’t hitting every spot inside you with their thrusts.

“Holy shit, fuck you feel so good for us y/n” Sero moaned, head bruised in your neck

The praise made your head spin and you felt yourself getting closer. 

“Please let me come, Katsuki” you begged “Hanta please” 

Sero’s swollen lips wrapped around one of your nipples, the other being toyed with by his still slick fingers. This, paired with Bakugou’s fingers sent waves of pleasure over you and you crashed into another orgasm. This time you came even harder than before and was left gasping and breathless between two bodies. Sero finished next, strings of hot cum mixing with whatever hadn’t been pushed out of you by them both. He stayed in you, laying on the floor and pulling you onto his chest, legs spread either side of his hips. The new angle let Katsuki have free reign of the pace and you and Sero both whined at the oversensitivity of him rubbing against you. Sensitive walls fluttered around his dick, causing his hips to stutter. The palm that was previously playing with your clit gripped your waist, pulling you against his stuttering hips and he released inside you. 

Oversensitivity wracked your body and you bruised your neck into the neck of the slender body beneath you. Whining as they both pulled out, you snuggled further into his arms and he wrapped them gently around your waist. A small hand that you recognised as mina’s ran down your back and she started cooing over how good you did for them. She pecked your lips when you pulled your face out of Sero’s neck and you felt your face burn. After all that just happened, they still found ways to fluster you.

“I hope your bathtub is big enough for us all blasty” yelled Denki from the sofa, followed by the sound of a small explosion.

Chuckling at their antics, you closed your eyes closed your eyes, laying between Sero and Mina on the carpet. There was a wet patch beneath you and a stickiness between your thighs but you couldn’t help but think there was no place you’d rather be.

There is probably a bunch of spelling mistakes but oops? Hope you enjoy

Remember Reblogs help content creators

[fanficflaneuse]

One Day - Part 6

A/n (and disclaimer): Dear magical tumblr friends, I’m really moved by the great reception this series has had. It is my baby, my first series and also my way of  navigating through these trying times. I hold it dear to my heart and knowing you guys like it just makes me ten times happier. Thanks for all the love and support. 

Having said that, please don’t hate me for this chapter. It’s peak drama. It can’t get much worse than this (in this series, at least). It broke my heart a little, tbh, but it is important. There’s angst. Both Draco and Ernie behave like arseholes. A little bit of swearing...I’m crossing my fingers for you to like this. 

I have also have some news. Remember when I said on the last A/N that chapter 5 was the middle of the series? I lied a tiny bit. I had planned for 10 parts. Now we have 12 lol So this is the actual half of the series.

Dear anon who sent me that angsty / fluffy request, if you’re reading this, last night I came up with a very detailed story line which I’m really excited about. I’ll write that as soon as I finish all of this. 

This part includes a quote of Wuthering Heights by Emily Brönte. Also, one or two quotes come from the actual movie.  

Anyway, enjoy! 

Draco x reader (she/her pronouns) Word count: 2184  Summary: One day AU. Post-war. Since The Battle of Hogwarts, Draco and y/n meet one day a year.

Masterlist

3 May, 2003

(Y/N) sat in the farthest corner of an intimate muggle restaurant. She looked at her wristwatch for what had to be the twentieth time. Draco was two hours late. By now, (Y/N) figured she shouldn’t be surprised. What disconcerted her the most was the fact that she had waited for him. She was about to ask for the check and apparate back home when he waltzed into the restaurant. The man who (Y/N) saw approaching to her was not the sweet and very troubled friend she cuddled with, but rather the asshole that used to bully her and her friends back in school. He walked with his chest puffed, a cocky smile on his lips and an arrogant expression on his face. He was not her Dray, but rather Malfoy.

It took her no time to figure out he had been drinking. (Y/N) rolled her eyes, trying to disguise the hurt and disappointment she felt. He regarded her seriously for a minute. Draco hadn’t seen (Y/N) since that incident at the manor. They tried really hard to keep in touch. Draco’s life at the moment, though, didn’t allow for a lot of profound communication, mainly because he wasn’t honest, not even with himself. He’d drink every single day and party every other night. He’d wake up with strangers, squander his fortune in casinos and pick up stupid fights. Without fail, their owls would travel back and forth every week, but the letters sometimes mounted to absolutely nothing.

Seeing her in front of him, Draco found (Y/N) as beautiful as ever. He realized he was still in love with her, despite his efforts to drown his feelings for her – along with everything else. Perhaps, as contradictory as it sounds, the frustration he felt while having (Y/N) (Y/L/N) in front of him, made him behave like his old self. She was a symbol of everything he wanted and couldn’t have, of every bad thing he thought about himself, of how undeserving and inadequate he was. Much like when he was in school, all of that turned him into an absolute prick. 

Draco asked for a whiskey. As he did so, he checked the waitress out. (Y/N) scoffed.

“What?” he defended, as the redhaired waitress walked away, “she’s pretty for a muggle.”

(Y/N)’s eyes widened. He had changed so much in three years after the war…and now he made comments that took her back to her first few years at Hogwarts. (Y/N) wondered why had she accepted his invitation for dinner in the first place. What was she expecting, really? Her friend – if you could call him that at this point – was not there anymore. He was replaced with the insufferable git Draco Malfoy was meant to be all along.

“So,” he said, trying to diffuse the tension, “what’s new with you?”

(Y/N) didn’t feel much like speaking to him right now. She looked away. Draco was hurt by this, but he pressed on. He needed her confirmation that he was a tosser. He needed her to tell him that he was worthless, that she didn’t love him or believed in him. He needed that reminder because he wanted to kiss her so badly, but he knew he wasn’t good enough for her. He wasn’t good enough for her love or her forgiveness or faith. He wasn’t good enough for redemption. He was a villain. He had been, anyway. And people believed it. So, he had to play his part.

“Are you still with MacMillan?” he asked, trying to act nonchalant, as if the news of her relationship hadn’t affected him deeply.

As (Y/N) nodded, Draco’s whole body was filled with jealousy. He knew he couldn’t be with her. He knew she was better off with someone like Ernie MacMillan than himself.

And yet.

(The combination of those two words seemed to haunt him whenever (Y/N) was the topic).

“Even you can do better than that,” he spat.

He was being so nasty that his self-hatred was reaching dangerous levels. People believed this façade to be his true colours, even more than when he actually tried to reveal himself as he truly was. Why, then, wasn’t (Y/N) leaving? Why was she still sitting in front of him? Why would she look at him with those wounded eyes, with that broken heart, and yet keep giving him chances?

The waitress came back with their drinks. The brief interruption allowed (Y/N) to take a deep breath. She still didn’t know what she was doing there. Even if it was her love for him that glued her to the table, at this point he had already exceeded what was acceptable and even healthy. She was on the verge of tears.

“Why are you behaving like your idiotic Hogwarts self?” she asked.

“Speaking about Hogwarts, how’s the teaching?” he countered, completely ignoring her question.

(Y/N) sighed and for some reason decided tell him. Maybe that would shift the atmosphere a little. She told him that her approach to DADA tried to resemble professor Lupin’s: theory and practice in every single class. (Y/N) talked so passionately about her job and her students that it was hard for Draco not to hang onto her every word. For a second there, (Y/N) saw the ghost of a genuine smile playing on his lips. In that fleeting moment, she felt satisfied.

This feeling, of course, came crashing down with his scornful remark: “that’s good enough, I guess”.

“What is that supposed to mean?” she asked through gritted teeth. She wished he had just shrugged it off again, but he had an answer ready and he shot to kill.

“Well, (Y/N), you know what they say,” he said, not even meeting her eyes. His finger was playing with the rim of his empty glass.

“No, Draco, enlighten me. What do they say?” she asked, bracing herself for a scathing remark.

“Those who can, do; those who can’t, teach,” he answered offhandedly.

(Y/N) felt the anger scorching her insides. She glared at him, a fire in her eyes Draco hadn’t seen in the longest time. In that moment, all of her sadness fuelled her irritation as she stood up. The seat fell behind her.

“And she who can’t will hex you,” she stammered before stomping out of the restaurant.

Draco had finally pushed away the only person that believed in him. He thought he was going to feel a bit better, given that had sacrificed himself for her safety. She deserved better. Then why was he feeling so empty and stupid? Leaving more money than he had to on the table, he rushed after his best friend. Draco followed her to an alley where she was about to apparate. He grabbed her by her hand and noticed she was crying.

“What do you want, Draco? What else do you want?” her voice was hoarse and desperate.

“I – I’m sorry,” he murmured.

(Y/N) had to conjure all of her self control to answer to him. “I don’t know what’s the reason for you to put up this horrible façade, Draco. I can read right through you and I trust this…this git I had the misfortune of spending my evening with is not the real you. But I can’t do much about it. Do you want to live your life as the entitled prick you were back in school? So be it.”

“(Y/N)…”

“I love you, Draco. I really do. I just don’t like you anymore.”

(Y/N) didn’t even spare him a second glance before apparating. Once alone, Draco broke down completely. This was not what it was supposed to be like. 

...

(Y/N) wiped away the tears in her eyes as she opened the door to her flat. The lights were on, every single one of them. She specifically recalled turning everything off before leaving, so she clutched her wand and walked cautiously around her duplex. Much to her relief, all she found was Ernie sitting crossed-legged in the middle of her bed. She relaxed at first, but then she realized that was also a very strange sight. (Y/N) noticed that he was clutching a notebook in his hands and was eyeing it furiously.

“What are you doing?” Ernie’s eyes shot up. She realized that the notebook he was reading was her diary and her heart almost stopped.

“What is this?” he shouted, tossing her diary at her.

(Y/N) flinched. She knew exactly what he had read and guilt started to eat her up.

“(Y/N),” he roared.

She didn’t meet his eyes, fresh tears welling on her own. Ernie picked the notebook from the ground and started reading out loud.

“I love Draco. I love him with every beat of my broken heart?!” he pressed all of his anger into very single word, “Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same.”

(Y/N) didn’t want to listen to her own foolish words. “Stop! Stop, Ernie!”

“I believe Draco feels undeserving of a good life,” he carried on anyway, “I, (Y/N), know he is undeserving of a good life.”

“Ernie, please,” she said, her voice barely audible at this point. She tried to take the book from him, but he just ran out of the room, reading and mocking her in the process.

“I hope those self-destructive behaviours don’t consume him,” he continued, “I, on the other hand, sincerely hope they do.”

When (Y/N) could finally retrieve her diary, they were engulfed by a rancorous silence. They stared at each other for the longest time, not moving an inch. She was inconsolable. His heartbreak pushed him to behave like Draco less than an hour before him.

“I am also a pureblood, (Y/N).”

“What?” the comment seemed very out of place.

“My last name is on the list of the Sacred Twenty-Eight,” he said, adopting a haughtiness she had never seen in him, “My family can be traced back to nine generations of wizards and witches.”

“Ernie, what does that have to do with anything?”

“For the past three hours or so I’ve been racking my brain, trying to think what in the world could you possibly see in Malfoy. The only logical solution I see is that you’re more biased towards blood purity than what you actually admit. Now, I can’t blame you, but –“ (Y/N)’s hand collided spectacularly with Ernie’s cheek.

Had it been a different situation, she would even feel proud about the print of her palm on his face. But rage was seeping from his every pore and (Y/N) felt humiliated. Before he could retort, she barked:

“How dare you!”

“I’ve given you everything. I tried to make this work, (Y/N). I really fancy you, love you even. But not even once have you said those three words to me and yet that…that death eater trash gets all the praise and love and poems and multiple entries on your diary? Bloody hell!” 

(Y/N) didn’t know why, but the first thing that occurred to her was to defend Draco Malfoy from Ernie: “he’s not death eater trash.” In that moment, she seriously wanted to slap herself.

Ernie looked at her as though she was insane. “Is that seriously all you got from what I just said?” he said in disbelief.

Before she could even answer he just shook his head. “You know what? Just forget about us, (Y/L/N),” he said before storming off.

(Y/N) sat down in the middle of her room. She felt like a bad person, a very stupid bad person. She had let Draco stomp all over her feelings and broke Ernie’s heart in the process. Why were feelings and relationships so hard and confusing?

All of a sudden, she felt a pair of arms engulf her in a hug. She smelled Ernie’s cologne and sobbed loudly into his chest.

“I am very sorry,” she said.

“Listen to me, (Y/N). I hope we can be friends in the future. I’m much too hurt right now…and I’d be lying if I told you I don’t resent you,” he said wiping away the tears from her eyes and forcing her to look at him. He was also crying.

“But you’re precious and I’d be honoured to have you in my life in whatever capacity,” he finished.

“I feel terrible, Ernie,” she sniffled, “but it would be an honour and a pleasure to have you as my friend…eventually.” They shared a hug and cried a little more.

When they both calmed down, things were strangely nice and light between them. Ernie praised her writing and encouraged her to publish even more.

“I know you adore your job as a teacher, love, but this,” he said pointing at the catastrophic diary, “is really your thing and the world needs more of your writing.”

(Y/N) couldn’t believe her luck. The fact that he was still here, regardless of what had just happened between them, made her heart swell. She was mesmerized by his Hufflepuff traits, his loyalty and friendliness showing up even when he was hurting.  

Before he left, he kissed her forehead and told her a few words that would haunt her dreams:  

“Be careful, princess. Malfoy really doesn’t deserve you.”

Tags: @fandomscombine @okaydraco @naomi02hook @iliketoast23 @winnsmills @oldfashionedlovergirlsblog @happycomb

[kshitij1997]

Chapter 8: Childhood, stories and role models

A late evening in Midsummer, 1825, Arendelle

King Agnarr's passion for books and stories was legendary. He had been collecting books since the age of five. He had books on all subjects, be it tales of ancient times, philosophy, nature, mathematics, the skies above, the sciences that dealt with the functioning of the world. Not to mention the private histories that he had collected of various people across the world. The lives o great people who lived centuries before him from lands as far as the hermit kingdom of Korea, the isolated lands of Japan, the protectorate of India and the Dutch East Indies (Modern day Indonesia). Stories that appealed to the greater good in all humanity.

Stories of Warlords like Yi Sun Shin, the naval commander who defeated a fleet of nearly five hundred enemy Japanese warships, with only twenty-three ships under his command, using the ingenious turtleships, a fighting vessel of war centuries ahead of its time, when the Japanese invaded in 1592 to 1598, even as he was being hunted down by his own master, the king. Stories of supreme courage to fight against all odds for your homeland, be it the enemy or your own government.

Then there were stories like that of Ashoka the Great, the ruthless emperor, warlord and warmonger whose name meant 'the one who never mourned', whose expansive policies brought all ancient India under his control, save for Kalinga. Said emperor was fair to his people and cruel to his enemies. Said usurper waged war against his hundred brothers when they were between him and the throne. Said conqueror vanquished the state of Kalinga when he declared war on Kalinga, where he was defeated even in victory. The cries of the mauled, dying and mourning forever left an impression on the emperor who hadn't known sorrow ever before in his life, who spent the rest of his life shunning conquest, embracing Buddhism, taking the path of non-violence and allowing his children to abandon their royal titles and become monks to spread the faith. Stories of war, conquest and eventual repentance, sacrifice, forgiveness and redemption.

Tales of extreme dedication and unbreakable vows, like the one taken by Gajah Mada, the Prime Minister of the empire of Majapahit, who swore not to touch spice and experience pleasure until all the Indonesian islands were under Majapahit's control. It took him twenty-one years, but he did it.

Tales of Kings, queens, warlords, soldiers and even a few common people with extraordinary fates.

King Agnarr felt proud to have such stories of such people from around the world. How throughout history, people face similar problems and situations and how they rise to face them. He felt even prouder when he realized that his wife Iduna also loved stories. But the proudest moment for him was when he found out that his children had an even greater passion for reading than him. Elsa and Olva were nearly inseparable, taking great joy in reciting their favourite stories and playacting their favourite characters. The fact that Olva had an almost academic interest in Elsa's ice powers was also found to be very charming by the king. She would often challenge Elsa to make something out of ice, usually a new word or name of an object she just learned, and Elsa usually rose to the occasion and made it as if it was second nature.

'How can you make that, Elsie?'

'I don't know Olba, it just came to me.'

'Is that what a pearl looks like, Pa?' Olva asked her father.

'I'm sorry sweetheart, but it doesn't.' Corrected the king. 'This is a pearl' Said the king as he showed the corner jewel of his ring.

Elsa's face fell as she realized her crystal of ice was not the right shape for a pearl.

Agnarr asked Olva 'Well little one, where did you hear the word?'

Olva replied sheepishly a book 'In this big book, it was the only word I could get.'

Agnarr laughed inwardly as he realised that his five-year-old and three-and-a-half-year-old kids had stumbled upon a book written in middle English. Olva helpfully guided him to the place where she had read the curious word. He read the sentence in all the middle English that he could remember, which was ample in this case. It was a beautiful sentence:

'The smooth pearl doesn't pretend to shine, for it knows that it is close to the heart.'

Agnarr smiled, my kids are too precious.

He sat alongside them and said ' Well Elsa, the shape may be off, but it is a pearl for sure. Your ice is close to you isn't it?'

Elsa replied with a small voice ' I think so?'

'Yes, it is! She makes pretty things all the time. She loves it.' Olva chimed in.

Elsa blushed with a small smile 'It is very pretty, and I like doing it, so I guess it is close to me.'

'It is close to both of us, it is a pearl to us.' Olva added as she hugged Elsa from behind. Elsa didn't admit it, but she loved a good hug. She also loved to mess with Olva at times. She waved her little hands over Olva's head and declared 'I name this: vanilla on black forest.'

'Hey! Not fair Elsie!' said Olva as she brushed the thin snow frosting from her dark brown hair.

'Bahahaha, it's so much fun messing with you.' Laughed Elsa even as Olva stuck her tongue out. Elsa responded in kind with a raspberry.

'Alright girls, calm down, ma's here.' Iduna said as she entered the royal chambers with princess Anna, who had just turned two years old, and was learning to speak her first words.

'Snow!' cried the baby princess as she held her head with both her tiny hands.

'Hey Anna!' Both Elsa and Olva chimed in unison as they were beside their baby sister in no time.

'Hey Anna, want to see something?' Elsa spoke to Anna, always one to ask even though Anna never said no to her.

Elsa waved her hands to form a ball of ice, but the difference was that it glowed with a luminescence of its own, as if she had tamed a star into her hands.

'Whoa! Elsie, that's beautiful' Olva said, clearly taken in by the glowing ball of ice.

'Mine!' cried Anna as she reached out to it with her baby hands. She tried to bite into it, alas she was not prepared for the cold.

'Ow!' She yelped and started crying, as the ball of ice fell to the floor and was smashed into a thousand little pieces.

'Oh no!' Elsa wailed as she grabbed Anna and proceeded to comfort her in her arms. Olva joined in and tried to coo her and made clicking sounds with her tongue to calm her down. Eventually the redhaired princess, a quality she had inherited from her father, managed to calm down and started giggling in Elsa's arms as tears of relief ebbed from Elsa's face.

'I'm so sorry Anna.' Elsa wept quietly, even as Olva had now started to comfort her.

'She's all right Elsa, it was just a little chill.' Olva reassured the platinum blonde.

The king and queen watched the scene play out from a small distance, curious to see how they would handle it. The princesses were all right in the end, the royal couple breathed a sigh of relief.

Agnarr's thoughts drifted back to when they had first gotten pregnant with Anna; Dr. Klaus had advised the king not to conceive so quickly after Olva's birth. However, with the deed done, the good doctor advised the king to go for a caesarean operation when the time of delivery came. The king was vary about the procedure at first, but Dr. Klaus had pacified him by saying that it would be easier and safer for both the queen and the doctor. So, the third child was born and named Anna by them together. Elsa and Olva were almost immediately taken in by their baby sister and made sure to always keep her happy and entertained and make her feel loved.

Iduna's thoughts were drifting too, albeit in a different direction. Sure, this was just a small accident, but who knew what could happen with Elsa's powers. She felt foolish in that moment; there was a time when she was comforting Agnarr in his moments of doubt, and now she felt the same fears, only much, much worse. She prayed to all the gods she knew to please let her children have a normal childhood. To not panic when in moment of vulnerability, to not abandon those who believed in her, not to give in to hate when the world was against her. How could her gifted, cursed child even begin to understand these things, much less take the correct decision when the situation arose?

Well, as her mother, she could cultivate a sense of responsibility in her eldest.

'Olva' Iduna called 'Today you and Anna shall sleep with Pa, Elsa will sleep with me.'

'Aw Ma why?' Anna asked even as Olva, who held her, was already snuggled beside her father.

'I need to talk with Elsa, she needs to know something. Good night.' The queen answered quietly. With that, she left the royal chambers to sleep in her own private quarters with Elsa.

'It's okay Anna, sleep with big sister Olva tonight' Olva said, then gave a small kiss on Anna's forehead as they both snuggled close to their father.

'Are you cross with Pa?' Elsa asked nervously when mother and daughter reached their chamber.

'No sweetheart' Iduna comforted her 'I'm here to tell you a story. I promised to tell you a story when you were ready, remember? Well, I think you're ready now.'

Elsa's face lit up as she remembered 'Oh yes! This should be fun! I'm ready.'

The little princess huddled to her mother's side as the duo settled in for the night.

'So, what's the story, Ma?'

'Well, this is a slightly different story than you are used to, little one. It isn't a story of magic; or of princesses being saved by their princes. No, this is a story of survival and sacrifice. The story of a woman who battled the world to protect her family, even if it cost her everything. It might be a story based on true events.'

'Oh, a true story?' Elsa perked up; true stories were a special occasion.

'Yes sweetheart' Iduna whispered.

Iduna proceeded to tell the story of a girl like Elsa, her real name lost to time. The girl was in her late teens, had powers over water and lived with her family in Avignon, France in the 14h century, at the height of pope Innocent the third's rule in the catholic church of Rome. One year, the rains had failed, and famine threatened follow, leading to peasants dying in the thousands from thirst and rising in protest. The girl stepped forward to help the needy, using her powers of water to help those in need and to improve the scene. The pope did not approve; this girl was going to spoil the carefully laid out narrative he had created to destroy the heretic cathars by citing the drought as god's fury. How dare that pipsqueak stand in his way? To discredit her, Innocent the third branded her as a witch, and sent the papal armies and inquisitors after her. The girl had anticipated this and advised her parents and her little brother to escape as quickly as they could. As fate would have it, she was captured and tortured for weeks on end, as the inquisitors wanted the whole family to be vanquished for the crime of nurturing a witch. But the girl held strong, as her family escaped the clutches of the pope away from France with a heavy heart, the girl was sentenced to burn at the stake. The girl went to her death quite bravely, but her screams as she burnt continued to haunt the memories of the local people for centuries afterwards and in time, the girl was canonized as saint Vida of Avignon. Her parents died from the grief, however her little brother survived and found himself in Arendelle. In due course of time, he became a powerful official, and his descendants went on to inherit the crown of Arendelle.

Elsa listened to the story in stunned silence, and once Iduna was finished with the story, she asked one question 'So the little brother is my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather?'

'Yes, most likely.'

'I wonder what the girl felt as she died, did she feel sad or happy?' Elsa mused

'Why would she feel sad or happy, Elsa? I think she was very scared.'

'Alright, but was she sad or scared that she was going to die, or happy that she saved her family?'

'I think she felt both at the same time.'

'Can you feel sad and happy at the same time, Ma?' Elsa asked. Iduna began to worry that with questions like that, Elsa was not going to go to sleep. Maybe she chose the wrong story to tell?

'You will find out on your own someday, now close your eyes snowflake.'

As Elsa settled down to sleep, she murmured 'I think, if I was in her place, I would do the same.'

Iduna thought, god forbid should the day come, I fear you might have to.

Across the North Sea towards the south, in the Southern Isles

Queen Paulina was reeling with frustration and anger after another attempt at insurgency into Russia had failed. Her trusted aide, one she had personally broken bread with and had appointed in her service, had tried to poison prince Nicholas in order to prevent him from coming to the Russian throne. If it had gone to plan, the military man would die along with the aging emperor who himself was knocking on death's door, and prince Pokhilarpov, the weakling that he was, would be her puppet as Poland would come back to Europe. Alas it was not so, as her vassal had been intercepted and caught by the prince's private guard. At least he had the decency to poison himself to death before he could be questioned, so she was safe for now. Nevertheless, it was a source of anxiety and anger.

Queen Paulina was counting her losses and planning her next move when her son, prince Hans came running and crying to her. He was wet from head to toe, his fine tunic was tattered, and his face was swollen from the beating he had received in a scuffle, blood ebbing from his forehead. In his hand, he held a torn piece of paper that once had been a paper boat. 'Ma!' cried the young prince of five years of age 'Look at what they have done!'

'What are you crying about now?' Asked the exasperated queen. This boy needs toughening up, he never ceases to cry, the insufferable coward.

'I was near the pool, playing with the boat I made, when the triplets came and pushed me into the pool!' The prince wailed.

'And?' The queen asked.

'When I climbed out to fight them, they punched me in the face, tore my clothes and, and me boat.' The prince finished and started crying again.

'So instead of taking out an eye, you came running back to me? What are you going to do in life? Hmm?' Hissed the irritated queen 'I have bigger troubles to deal with than a squabble between toddlers.'

'Please, Ma. Help me' The prince begged as big tears rolled down.

'Not until you stop crying. Even then why should I help you? This is between you and the triplets. Ask help from your elder siblings if you're so desperate.'

'They hate me, I heard them say that they wished I was dead.'

'What?!' The queen screamed, it was not enough that she had enemies all over Europe, now she had these runts threatening her own child? 'Alright, stop crying, I'll take them to task.'

It was a heated conversation between king and queen when she badgered him in front of their children and ministers, in the imperial court. The king had always avoided conflict, so it was natural that he was severely outclassed by his determined wife.

'Please calm down, Paulina, I can't discuss this here. Please understand.' The king pleaded.

The queen would not back down this time 'I'm supposed to calm down?! When YOU've ignored your children and have failed to see that they are at each other's throats?! I'm supposed to care for decorum and understand your position, when YOU plan for an early grave, while your children are waiting to be let loose and go picnicking on each other?! You nurse snakes in your garden, and cry when you get bitten, who the fuck do you think you are?!' The impossibly irate queen finished her rebuke even as the king's officials and ministers quietly bid their leave.

'Please breathe sweetheart, are they not your children as well?' The king tried to pacify and prod his queen at the same time. A spectacularly poor decision on his part.

'My children?! If they were my children, they wouldn't ever dare say such things. Admit it, you are at your wit's end, aren't you? You don't know how to raise your own children anymore, do you? Looks like I'll have to deal with them personally.' The queen finished with a growl, implying dire consequences for those who had stirred her wrath.

The king was terrified. Of all his wives, she was the only woman who had reduced him to such a quivering, pathetic state. He was scared in general of her, but there were moments like these, when he was truly frightened of her. At one point, he was formidable, unbeatable, invincible. This woman had reduced him to a scraggy, whining fool. At one point in his life, he had known how to laugh, now all he knew was fear.

'No, Paulina, please do nothing of the sort, I'll talk to them personally, I promise.' The king pleaded with folded hands.

'You better do so, lest I strip these baboons myself and have them made into shoes.' The queen relented, in her own way.

Outside the courtroom, Janus was in a corner hearing everything with an expression of horror.

An island off Northern Cyprus, the Ottoman Empire

It was a curious place to be sure, the tower was black like obsidian glass, smack in the middle of the dense forest. Who thought a small island could have such a jungle? But the tower had a treacherous secret of its own; if anyone had tried to touch the stony tower in order to climb it, the unfortunate person was reduced to ash and powder in a matter of seconds. If anyone was lucky, they may leave a skeleton behind as a terrible warning to all. At one point the six-year-old girl living in the tower wanted to remove the bones, but her mother advised against it; she may catch a curse herself if she touched the remains. So, the little girl had little in the way of distraction; Maybe paint a bit, frolic around the castle for a bit, trying not to trip over her golden blonde hair even as her hair grew longer than her body, often using the same hair to bring back to life the young birds who had been killed while perching on the tower, while telling them to avoid her mother's vegetable patch.

She loved how the hair glowed like the sun when she read the incantation in her head. She enjoyed seeing the little birds wake up as if from a deep slumber, before flying away. She also loved taking care of the vegetable patch, feeling a great sense of pride when the land produced good legumes. But her mind always wandered back to the remains, how she felt that perhaps, the people lying there didn't deserve to die. Unknown to her mother, she had tried to bring the skeletons back to life, but she fainted, and all she saw was black. When she came to her senses, she found her mother holding her on by her bundle of hair for dear life, her face wet from tears.

It was then she understood, it was too late for them, and she had nearly died in the process of reviving them. Never again would she touch the remains.

All in all, it wasn't a bad life in the tower; she had everything she needed, a soft bed, good food, and materials for creating art. Once she found out how far her mother had to travel for said materials, she appreciated them even more. However, there was one thing that wasn't there in the tower.

The only thing she wanted, was to go outside the tower, to see the world, to get out of the tower. If she was to choose the day she wanted to go, it would be the day the people in the distance let loose thousands of lanterns every year. It was a special day for another reason, the lanterns always flew up on her birthday. Oh, to experience that in person!

She was broken from her thoughts when her mother called out 'Rapunzel! Time for lunch.' The owner of the voice was a dark-haired woman with exotic features, with eyes that revealed a life lived far longer than what the face showed.

The little girl responded 'Yes, Gothel.' It felt strange calling her mother by her name, but if she preferred it that way, who was she to complain?

Oh, this was a big one, I think.

We're getting close!

As always, feel free to tell me how you feel with regards to the story. Love it or hate it, please feel free in letting me know :D

Until next time.

[bakugou-ou]

I know how you said you wouldn't do the bakugou angst part 2 but can your pretty please with a smol deku on top with a almight onesie on do a part 2. I've probably read it like 7 times. Pleaaaaassee consider it~💓💓 p.s you are a really good writer

You and literally 56 other anons, cause I’m assuming you’re all different people lol, have requested a part 2 to the Bakugou bet angst, so here it is. Part one can be found here! Also, asdfghjkl thank you, you’re too nice. I’m mediocre at best ;~; 《Part Three》

I originally really didn’t want to do this, but the idea of having Baks with his mom got to me, and I felt bad about being so inactive on here… And then I was like, fuck it, I love Masaru too, I want both of his parents comforting him.

It’s less angsty, and more parenting fluff/comfort, but there’s not really a happy ending in this for my main boy. I hope you enjoy this! I may do a part three if people want to see the former couple interacting, but I can tell you right now that it won’t be a happy ending where everything is fixed and they get back together, it wouldn’t feel right, and I love inflicting pain on my favorite son; 2,667 words of Bakugou and his parents going through his first heartbreak, oh boy.

Mitsuki Bakugou arrived at UA half an hour after getting offthe phone with her distraught son Katsuki. He’d called her twice, begging herto hurry up because he was having a hard time trying to keep his shit together.She loved her son, but everyone went through heartbreak at some point in theirlife, and it was his turn that day. She had called her husband, Masaru, andtold him to come home from work early so that they could be there for theirson, and she had called the school to tell them she was taking her son home forthe day and that he’d be back in time for classes the following day. She neededto take care of her son, he couldn’t be left there like that, not until he’dfigured everything out.

When she pulled up by the school, Katsuki was standinginside the school gates, accompanied by Kirishima, his best friend. She rolleddown the window of the car and leaned out, “Katsuki! Let’s go!”

Katsuki was relieved to see his mother, but it also sentanother wave of agony through him as Kirishima started to walk him to the car.He shoved his hands deep into his pockets and bit down hard on his lip to keephimself from crying, trying not to seem like such fucking baby in front of hismother or his best friend. He was thankful for Kirishima walking him outthough, knowing that what had happened in the kitchen wasn’t his fault, Kirishima had been defending the relationship andhis feelings for his— no, not girlfriend, not anymore; ex-girlfriend. He rippedthe rear driver’s side door open and fell into the backseat, unable to look atKirishima or his mother.

“Thank you for walking him out, Kirishima-kun.” Mitsuki saidsweetly to the redhaired boy.

“No problem, Ma’am.” Kirishima replied, smilinglyapologetically to her before turning his attention to Katsuki, “It’s gonna beokay, Bakugou, you’ll figure this out.”

Kirishima made sure his friend was all the way in the carbefore shutting the door, and he stood watch as the car pulled away from the curband headed to wherever they were going.

Almost as soon as Kirishima had shut the door and he had puthis seatbelt on, Katsuki was doubled over in his seat, crying again. It waspathetic, he was back to a sniveling mess just as soon as he’d come out ofbeing one. He’d only managed to put himself together long enough to hear Kirishimaproperly explain the Baku Squad’s side of things, and to leave the dormitory.It had been easy to leave, he wanted to leave, he needed to get out of there,and she wasn’t around, holed up inher own room, so that made it easier to get away.

“So, you wanna give me a quick rundown of what happened, ordo you wanna wait until we get home?” Mitsuki asked her son, though she figuredit would probably be the latter, “Your dad is on his way home, too.”

“You told the Old Man too?” Katsuki asked, groaning as hisfingers found their way into his ash blond locks, gripping horribly tight ontohimself.

“We’re your parents, we’re worried about you. And you’re amess.” Mitsuki responded, glancing back in the rear view mirror and seeing herson crumpled up with his hands pulling at his hair, “Tell you what, I’ll makeakaton miso ramen and you can have as much of it as you want, I’ll even makethose spicy croquet you like so much. It’s been a while since you’ve been home…”

Katsuki was, apart from the sobbing, silent for the rest of theride back to his family home; it had been months since the last time he’d beenhome for more than an hour or two, and this was not the ideal circumstance tobe back under. His father got home before the two of them did, and was waitingat the front door for them when they walked up. Katsuki knew better than toslam the car door, his mother would yell at him about not breaking shit thatdidn’t belong to him, so he closed it with the most normal amount of force hecould manage before stomping off into the house, past his father who ruffledhis hair. The two adults lingered in the doorway and whispered something toeach other, something he didn’t hear nor cared to hear, and then followed himin. He threw himself down on couch that faced the front door, where his fatherhad already left him a large bottle of water.

Mitsuki finished cooking the meal that Masaru had started,with him staying in the living room with their son to keep an eye on him.Katsuki stopped crying, at least until lunch was ready, but then he went andlooked at his phone, it had gone off with another text from her, even worse than the other one he’dgotten while still in the dormitory, locked in his room; now everyone is mad at me!Fuck you, you didn’t even like me, and now you’re trying to make me look like the bad guy?! You’re theone who’s shit here, Bakugou, you’re the one who asked me out with no intentionof ever liking me back! God, you’re the worst! Some fucking hero you are.

With that, his phone was chucked hard at the ground, thescreen cracking as it hit the wooden floor and skidded a couple of feet to thekitchen entrance. Masaru leaned down and grabbed the phone, looking over thetext message that had just sent his son into another sobbing fit. He didn’tlike this girl, not with the way she was talking to him. Maybe that was justhim being a parent, being biased towards his son, but she sounded nasty, and itwas probably for the best that they’d broken up that early on, but it was awfulto see Katsuki torn up like that. He scrolled up and saw the first message, theone where she dumped him. It was long, angry, full of things that were very,very low blows, that he knew would get far too deep under his son’s skin,especially coming from this girl. A girl he’d been looking forward tointroducing to them, that he’d told them all about. They knew how much he lovedher, even if he’d gone about it in a very strange, somewhat poor way.

Masaru sighed, putting the phone down on the coffee tablebefore sitting down on the couch next to his son and putting his arm over hisshoulders. He brought Katsuki close to him, rubbing his arm and letting Katsukilean into him. Normally Katsuki only ever let his mother comfort him like that,but in that moment, it didn’t matter which parent tried to make him feelbetter, he just needed help. So, his father soothed him as his mother watchedfrom the kitchen doorway, looking at the two of them, such different peoplefrom each other despite the smaller one being half of herself and the otherone. A few minutes later, they moved into the kitchen, and Katsuki ate what hecould in silence, enjoying his mother’s cooking for the first time in twomonths. His head was splitting from all the crying, he was dehydrated, and hewas exhausted.

“So, Kid, let’s talk about this.” Mitsuki said as Katsukiset his empty bowl down on the table and wiped his mouth with his forearm. Shedidn’t bother scolding him about his manners, not with him in as fragile acondition as he was in, “What happened?”

“Kirishima said that everyone was in the kitchen talkingabout us, and how everything had turned out great… I didn’t like her at first,it was a stupid bet, but I ended up reallyliking her… So that’s when I decided to actually ask her out, cause I likedher, and everything’s been great, but she only heard the part about it being abet,” Katsuki began, putting his face in his hands and letting out a groan ofdispleasure, “Of course she wouldn’t fucking listen to me, she was pissed, andthat’s fine, I’d be pissed too if I were in her shoes, but she wouldn’t even talkto me about shit, wouldn’t even let me explain…”

Mitsuki got out of her seat and walked to her son, putting ahand gently on his spiky blond hair, petting him and letting him lean into heras he tried to continue explaining the situation without crying again. Neitherof his parents wanted to tell him how stupid that sort of thing was, but theyboth knew how sincere he was about his feelings, they knew this wasn’t just himbeing upset he’d been caught doing something stupid, he was genuinelyheartbroken. He couldn’t keep himself from crying as he continued.

“She wouldn’t… She wouldn’t talk to me, she said she wished she’d never met me, that I was theworst thing that… Ever happened to her!” He inhaled sharply after saying that,his lip quivering as he tried to stop himself from sobbing outright, “I wentback to my room, a-and I fucking cried, a ton, and then she… She dumped me, ina fucking text! And she… Said allsorts of really awful shit, and… I don’t wanna go back, Mom, don’t make me goback!”

Katsuki broke down, clinging to his mother and crying intoher stomach as she hugged him back; the last time they’d seen him like this waswhen he got back from being kidnapped by the League of Villains, and even then,he kept it to himself, waiting until he was alone in his room, refusing toshare the burden of his feelings with them. He was learning and growing, theyknew it, and they appreciated him opening up, even if it was because everythingwas just too much for him to bear on his own that afternoon.

Masaru left the two of them to retrieve the phone and showMitsuki the text messages that Katsuki had been talking, and once she was donereading, she knelt in front of her son and took his puffy, reddened,tear-stained face in her hands and forced him to look her in the eyes.

“Do you really like that girl?” She asked, to which heresponded with a nod and a choked sob, “Do you want to be with her still?”

The question hit him hard; did he? She’d said some reallyfucked up shit, stuff that was totally uncalled for in his opinion. And he knewshe was mad, that’s why she’d said it, but she kept laying it on, piling theinsults higher and higher, and then there was the most recent message. Hereally liked her, but she was hurting him so damn bad. He knew she felt likeshit, but he wouldn’t have ever talked to her the way she talked to him, evenwith as pissed off as he could be. She had been his girlfriend, he would nevertalk to her like that…

“I-I don’t know…” He mumbled, blinking to clear his eyes ofsome tears that had formed, “She hates me.”

“Maybe she does, but do you wanna be with someone who talksto you like that, and turns your biggest insecurities on you like that?”Mitsuki asked, brushing the spikes framing his face behind his ear, lookinginto those distressed crimson eyes that had come from her. “You’re not perfect,you’ve made a lot of mistakes, but you’re my son, and I don’t want you bendingyourself this far out of shape over someone who clearly has no control overtheir emotions. You already have enough of a problem with that on your own, youdon’t need a psycho girlfriend.”

Masaru disagreed slightly with his wife’s analysis of thesituation, but he wasn’t going to say anything; he did, however, agree with herthat their son shouldn’t hope for this relationship to work out, especially ifshe talked like that. The girl seemed to be the type that purposefully lookedfor flaws and brought them out to hurt people when they were at their worst formaximum damage. Katsuki was already a relatively unstable person as it was, hedidn’t need to deal with someone else’s issues at the same time.

“But I really like her! I was… I was really happy!” Katsuki objected, crying harder.

“You fucked up, Kid, and she showed her true colors. It’snot a good spot for either of you, I think you should both part ways. That’sthis Old Bat’s opinion, as someone who has been where you are quite a fewtimes, and been where she is a few times too.” Mitsuki responded, wiping awayhis tears with her thumbs, “You’re gonna keep making mistakes and learning, andyou’ve got your whole life ahead of you to date other people, she’s not the onlyperson out there. Someday you’re gonna find someone that’s not going to tearyou down when you do something that upsets them, that is gonna believe that youreally do love them. You’ll find someone that’s for you like Dad is for me,Katsuki, it’s not the end of the world, even if it feels like it right now.”

Katsuki listened to everything she said, knowing she wasright, but it didn’t make him feel any better; both his parents knew that itwouldn’t, but they needed to tell him anyway.

“T-Thanks, Baba…” Katsuki mumbled, hugging her as his fatherwalked over and rubbed his back.

“For what it’s worth, I agree with your mom on most of that.The choice is up to you, but it’s probably for the best if you and that girl goseparate ways.” Masaru said quietly.

Katsuki continued to cry into his mother’s shoulder; itreally was shit, he hated it, he didn’t want to go back to school and have todeal with her. Not yet. Fortunately for him, though, he was staying overnightat home. He had the whole night to spend with his parents, or by himself, doingwhatever he wanted, and he’d go back to the school in the morning, after havingsome time to calm down and rest…  But,first, he needed a new phone, since the other one was broken.

Masaru took the phone to the nearest shop and got it swappedfor a newer, nicer model from the same line, one that Katsuki had been savingup for, and made sure that all of his data got switched over to the new phone.Katsuki spent a lot of time going through and deleting things that reminded himof her, like their texts, and pictures he had of her. He changed his phonebackground from her to a picture of the view from the beach park nearest wherehe lived. It was a nice shot, it complimented the color of his new phone.

He spent most of his time alone in his bedroom that night,napping off all the emotions he’d spent, and coming down to have dinner withhis parents, who did a great job of keeping him distracted by talking abouttheir jobs. He liked hearing about their work, even if he had no interest ingoing into it. After dinner, the three of them settled onto the couch in theliving room for a family movie night, they watched several movies, all of whichKatsuki picked, and all three of them fell asleep together on the couch.Katsuki’s head rested on his mother’s chest, his legs draped over his father’slap; it was like he was a little kid again, only much, much larger than he hadbeen the last time they’d all been like that. His parents were glad that hewas, for the time being, okay. The second he needed them again, they’d be rightthere; that’s what parents are for.

[keldae]

What’s My Age Again?

Theron sleepily rolled over in the bed as his implants gave him his queue to wake up, feeling his movement hampered by a redhaired woman clinging to his side. “Morning,” he slurred out as he kissed Xaja’s mussed-up hair, a fond smile touching his lips at how innocent and vulnerable and beautiful his tiny Jedi looked at this particular moment, still mostly-asleep and quite unwilling to change that state of being.

“Mmmph.” Xaja draped an arm across Theron’s waist and snuggled him closer like an oversized pillow. She liked mornings about as much as she liked spiders… which was to say, not at all. Theron had always believed that Jedi tended to be early risers (going off his childhood with Master Zho), but Xaja seemed to be the exact counter of that belief.

Theron softly chuckled, ignoring her displeased grunt as the motion made his chest (apparently her new favourite pillow) move. “You gonna let me up so I can shower?”

“Mmm…” Xaja shook her head and tightened her grip.

“Would coming with me in said shower make you a bit more willing to let me up?” Theron grinned, desperately trying to not laugh outright at the Jedi’s early-morning clinginess.

“... That means getting up,” Xaja finally mumbled, cracking one green eye open to stare drowsily up at Theron.

“Yeah, but then getting up now means Lana doesn’t come by banging on the door and yelling for us to get presentable because we’re skipping important briefings. Again.”

Xaja made some noise that could have been best described as a protesting whine, but apparently the reminder that Lana’s morning personality was twice as grouchy as her normal persona finally encouraged her to release Theron from her hold and let him into the significantly-cooler air outside of the bed. “Whose idea was it to do early briefings at unholy hours like this?”

“Hers.” Theron shivered in the cool air of her room and had to fight the urge to get back into the warm bed with his sleepy human blanket. “C’mon- if I have to be awake and coherent, so do you.”

“Can’t I just order you to do all my work for me today?”

“Nope.” Theron chuckled as he leaned down to pepper Xaja’s cheek with soft, gentle kisses, then moved to her jaw and lips, finally getting her a bit more awake and functional. “You coming with me? Shower’s big enough for two people.”

“Fine, I’m up.” Xaja kissed Theron back and finally sat up, the old shirt (one of Theron’s old shirts that she’d stolen) she’d worn to bed hanging off her slim frame. It had been dislodged enough to give Theron a nice, tantalizing reminder of what exactly hid underneath the black fabric, what he’d hopefully see if she ever woke up enough to join him in the shower.

He grinned and bent to kiss her again as he remembered the date. It would be the first time in five years that he hadn’t spent this anniversary in a cantina with two drinks in front of him, one left untouched and one being constantly refilled. “Oh, by the way- happy birthday, Xaja.”

“Happy birthday, Commander!” was the resounding chorus in the command centre as soon as Xaja’s bright hair was spotted by the rest of the command crew, punctuated by Nico and Koth joining forces to throw a couple of bags of confetti in Xaja’s wake (and Theron decided it best to not ask too closely about Nico’s sources).

The Jedi in question yelped as she found herself doused in little colourful flecks of paper- or perhaps from hearing a greeting like that. “Uh, thanks all!” she said with a laugh as she turned to give Theron a questioning look. “Did you-?”

“Me?” Theron raised his hands. “I only told Lana what day it was, trying to get you the day off. Apparently Sith don’t celebrate things like this.”

“They don’t,” Sorand called over. “I can confirm this. But we’re not in the Empire anymore, are we?” The last question was directed to Lana with a smirk.

Lana rolled her eyes and looked back to Xaja. “Do you have any idea how long it took me to convince Vette that putting Alliance resources to a party instead of ammunition and supplies was not a sound strategy for keeping you alive until your next birthday celebration?”

“It’s for morale purposes!” Vette protested as she shoot Lana a mutinous look. “Everyone needs a reason to celebrate, and the Commander making it alive for another year’s a good cause!”

“Can’t argue with that,” Koth agreed. “So, Commander, how old are ya today?”

“Twenty-six! Old enough to know better, and too young to care, or some such nonsense.” Xaja grinned as she claimed what had been unofficially designated as ‘her’ chair, taking a quick moment to check for any suspiciously-fresh adhesives on the seat. Everyone had learned well from Theron’s misfortune (which was still being laughed about), and the prank war was still ongoing.

“Damn, girl, how old were you when you started doing all those heroic Jedi things before the war? Twelve?” Koth shook his head in amazement.

“I was Knighted at twenty-three and-” Xaja suddenly froze, eyes wide. “... wait, that can’t be right. I’m missing five years.”

And that one sentence killed the festive mood as fast as a blaster bolt. “... So, you’re thirty-one now,” Lana finally said. “Welcome to being old and mature like the rest of us.”

“Is she thirty-one though?” Korin asked as he leaned against the holoterminal. “I’m pretty sure the birthdays she missed in carbonite don’t count.”

“But chronologically she’s that age, given that her year of birth hasn’t changed.” Reanden frowned at his mug of caf in thought. “Her body’s still that old, even if mentally she’s still in her twenties. I was there when she was born thirty-one years ago, remember?”

“Technically she didn’t age while she was frozen,” Sorand pointed out. “She still looks like she’s in her late twenties.”

“... That’s a valid point.” Reanden eyed his daughter studiously, never minding that the subject in question appeared to be shifting uncomfortably in her seat at this analysis of her age. “But legally she’s still thirty-one.”

“Dr. Oggurobb probably could analyze her biosigns and figure out what those put her as,” Theron said as he stepped behind Xaja, absently picking a few stray bits of confetti out of her hair. “Although- Commander, are you going to take it very offensively if I say that I really hope his results say you’re thirty-one?”

“That depends on why you’re hoping so,” Xaja looked up at her lover, one eyebrow quirked in a frown. “Because I still feel like I’m twenty-six. Why are you so desperately hoping I’m older?”

“Because I’m thirty-seven, and I’d really rather not feel like a pedophile, thank you.”

Xaja’s eyes widened as Koth hooted with laughter, Reanden’s eye twitched, and Lana facepalmed. “... Blast it. I didn’t think about that!”

Korin turned to stare at Theron in shock, although there was an unmistakable note of mischief in his eyes. “I don’t know what I’m more scandalized about, boss… the fact that you’re a shameless cradle-robber an’ have my older-little sister in your sights, or that you got old as hell. When the hell did you turn thirty-seven?”

“Shut up, Korin,” Theron growled out, trying to ignore the deathglare Reanden was shooting at him.

“... You know what?” Sorand suddenly said an hour or so later, after Dr. Oggurobb had already collected a sample of Xaja’s cells and gone back to his laboratory for analysis. “I’m personally hoping she’s still biologically twenty-six.”

“Why’s that?” Theron asked as he glanced over at the former Sith.

“Because I turned twenty-seven three weeks before arriving on Odessen. If she’s twenty-seven, I won’t be the youngest sibling!”

Theron set his datapad down to look at Sorand incredulously. “Is that seriously your biggest concern with this entire thing?”

“Would you rather my biggest concern be that my older-little sister is apparently with a guy way the frack older than her?”

Theron scowled and turned back to his work. “You know, no matter what the results of that test are going to be, I’m pretty sure she’s always going to claim you’re her baby brother forever.” He paused. “Besides, if that theory’s correct, then Korin becomes the oldest sibling, and do you really want that inflating his ego?”

“I grew up thinking he was my only older sibling. But you’re right, he’d never let Xaja live it down.” Sorand shook his head and sighed. “Maybe her being thirty-one is a good thing.”

“Besides,” Nico added as he walked by, “I’ve got a fifty credit bet riding on the Commander’s age with your brother. She’d better be thirty-one or I’m never gonna hear the end of it.”

Sorand and Theron exchanged a look as the old smuggler left the room, sighed, and went back to work.

The results were… inconclusive, as decided by all of the Alliance specialist leaders.

“Biologically, her cells are only twenty-six standard years old. It’s a remarkable discovery.” Dr. Oggurobb flourished his large data display proudly, never minding that the endless streams of biological data flowing over the screen were making Theron’s eyes glaze over. “Even with the carbon freezing being flawed, her aging still halted entirely. Do you have any idea what this could shed light on in the scientific communities?”

“Her spirit is old,” Sana-Rae countered, her blue-white eyes staring at Xaja as the Jedi pretended to ignore everyone else while reading up on the latest Star Fortress intel. “She has seen great sorrow and it has aged her soul in the Force. Her body may be young, but her spirit belongs to that of an older woman.”

“Could that aging in her spirit be that ghost taking up space in her brain?” Lana asked curiously.

“It is… possible,” the Mystic admitted. “But Valkorion is not the only reason she is aged. Her spirit is scarred and worn from what she has faced already, long before she learned of Zakuul. That aging is all her own.”

Bey’wan agreed with the Voss. “Battle like what she’s seen ages you in a bad way. You look at her eyes, and she looks way older than even thirty-one. I don’t care what sort of things they say about Jedi aging slower than most folks- she’s old.”

Theron thought back to his few memories of his mother and had to agree- Satele Shan had aged remarkably well, and still looked like she was at least a few decades younger than she actually was. He’d thought it was just the Shan genes (hell, he looked relatively young for being thirty-seven), but maybe it was a Force-thing for the Jedi. Or maybe Satele Shan was just unreasonably lucky with her apparent lack of aging.

Hylo merely shrugged. “Age is just a number. The Commander thinks she’s twenty-six? Then she’s twenty-six- even if she’s the most mature twenty-six-year-old I’ve ever met. I guess it’s a Jedi thing for that.”

“Why must Vette be so selective when listening to me?” Lana asked as Xaja found herself being swarmed by a pack of Alliance soldiers singing a birthday song to her (loudly and off-key in a way that would have made Korin proud).

“At least it was just a surprise birthday party, and relatively low-key by her standards,” Theron muttered as he leaned back against the wall. “You know she wanted to make this the event of the year here, right? I heard of a plan to confer with Bey’wan’s parents to get another band out here to perform.”

Lana winced. “There aren’t enough morale arguments in the sector to convince me that would be a good idea.” She paused, lips pursed in the way that Theron knew to mean she was deep in thought. “Has there been any agreement as to how old she actually is?”

Theron shook his head. “She’s not letting us pass around a general survey of the base population, and I don’t really blame her. Some of Hylo’s pilots already had a running bet going as to her age, and you probably don’t want to know how many of them were pegging her for seventeen or eighteen. The highest guess there was twenty-four.”

“If she did actually start her ‘heroic Jedi feats’ at age twelve, as Koth was suggesting, she might pass for a twenty-four-year-old. But seventeen?” Lana glanced over at Theron, and now the spy could see the slight twitch of the Sith’s lips. “I would have to join in all the pedophile jokes about you.”

“Thanks, Lana.” Theron scowled, although the expression eased when he felt a smaller, slighter hand take his. “Hey, you,” he addressed the pretty Commander at his side. “How’re you feeling?”

“Old,” Xaja grumped. “Not quite thirty-one, but old.”

There were only a few instances when Theron would direct one of his scowls at Xaja Taerich, and this moment was one of them. “You think you feel old?!” On his other side, Lana pressed her fingers to her mouth as though trying to not laugh out loud.

“... Sorry.” Xaja looked sheepish for a minute as she stretched up to kiss Theron’s cheek. “You’re not old, Theron. Just… ruggedly and maturely handsome.” The petite Jedi nodded firmly at her new analysis of her lover’s age. “I’m sure Lana will agree with me- right, Lana?”

“I’m staying out of this!” Lana protested, hands raised in surrender and laughter hidden in her voice. “You two can argue about how age looks on Theron on your own time.”

Theron helplessly looked at the ceiling, as though begging for salvation from some invisible deity. “You wound my self-confidence, Commander. I don’t know how your apparently-old-looking spymaster will ever recover from this.”

“I have a suggestion for how I can possibly help your recovery from this wound I’ve given you and am therefore responsible for…” Xaja winked. “It’s not one that would work well in this cantina though. People would talk about your poor shattered self-assurance.”

“Can’t have that happen, can we?” Theron leaned down to kiss Xaja’s pulse point on her jaw, then teasingly nipped at her earlobe, making her shiver. “Have we been here for a socially-acceptable long enough time for us to be able to leave?”

“So you two can get on with your less-than-public behavior, please,” Lana groaned, her back having turned to the couple behind her. “I’m already feeling nauseous, and I don’t think that was the juma Kaliyo found.”

Xaja winked and gave Theron another soft kiss to the corner of his mouth, then looked back at Lana. “To be entirely fair, I’m not sure that was juma, and I really don’t want to look too hard into it.”

“Probably wise of you.” Theron draped his arm across Xaja’s shoulders and tugged her against his side. “So, any conclusions regarding how old you actually are now? Because I do need to know, for reasons.”

“Reasons that include you not getting a reputation as a cradle-robber?” Xaja asked with a laugh.

“That, and resolving the betting pool Korin and Nico may or may not have started, and apparently there’s a tradition on some planets for birthday spankings…” Theron smirked as Xaja blushed to approximately the same colour as his jacket.

Lana facepalmed. “Ugh. Why do I associate myself with you two?”

“We’re adorable, Lana. Or so says everyone else in the base.” Xaja glanced back up, her cheeks still as red as her hair. “But in seriousness, I think I have actually figured out my age for real.”

Despite herself, Lana glanced back at the Jedi. “And how old are you, Commander?”

“Thirty.”

Theron opened his mouth, closed it again, then looked at Lana and shrugged. “Well, it works, I guess…”

“Somewhere in the middle ground to accommodate your chronological and your mental ages. It’s not the worst idea you’ve had,” Lana nodded in agreement. “I don’t know that we can get all of your identification easily altered for your new age, but it’ll work at least for now.”

“And thank you for rounding up,” Theron quickly added to Xaja with a heartfelt tone. “A seven-year age gap is way easier to work with than eleven years.”

“The things I do for you,” Xaja laughed as she leaned into Theron’s side. “So now you just rob playgrounds instead of cradles?”

Theron sighed, then shrugged. “Either way, you’re at the Republic age of consent, which is the most important thing for what I’ve got planned for you.” He winked as Xaja blushed again. “Remember what I mentioned about traditional span-”

“Out!” Lana whirled around to give both Jedi and spy a firm shove toward the door. “I don’t want to see either of you until that’s out of your systems!”

Xaja laughed and gave Lana a cheeky wave as she pulled Theron out of the cantina and toward the lift. “So how does this presumably very sacred tradition go? One spank per year of life?”

“Normally, yes.” Theron grinned as he sent the lift down to the Commander’s quarters. “But I figure there’s a couple of bonuses in there for unaccounted years…”