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They had been running for some time now, chasing after Gem and Scott ever since proclaiming themselves allies. Chasing, without end, prey that was an expert at evading. It was frustrating, and not to mention exhausting.

Pearl took a moment to gasp for air, her footsteps stumbling to a halt. It took Scar a moment to notice, but when he did he stopped as well, turning to look back at her. “You good, Pearl?” he asked, tilting his head slightly in question.

“Yeah,” she got out, “doin’ lovely, mate. Don’t worry about me, just need a second.” She bent over, resting her hands on her knees as she gasped. Her lungs and legs burned from the strain, and despite his calm demeanor she knew Scar was feeling the same.

It took Pearl a moment to realize that her hair was cascading down around her, falling into her face despite the fact that she had tied her hair back earlier. With a groan, she realized her ponytail had come loose, the ribbon she had used still tangled in her hair. “Hold on,” she got out, straightening back up, “I have to tie my hair back up. Can’t be fighting with my hair down.”

“Wait!” Scar set down his shield and bow before stepping forward. “I have a better idea.” Before Pearl could protest, he gently took the tangled ribbon from her hair.

Pearl frowned. “What are you planning, Scar?”

“Sit down, Pearl.” Scar lowered himself to the ground and sat with his legs folded beneath him. “I’ll braid your hair.”

Pearl raised an eyebrow, laughing. She still clutched her bow in her hand, looking around nervously– they were almost a full death game in, and she still was on edge. As if she was planning on winning. “You know we don’t have that kind of time, Scar. Gem and Scott are still out there, and who knows what they’re planning?”

Scar shook his head, patting the ground in front of him. “Sit down. We need this rest, you know. Can’t fight too well if we’re exhausted.”

Pearl sighed, reluctantly setting down her bow as she sat. She kept her shield in her hand, laying it across her lap and fidgeting with the handle. “Alright.” She felt Scar pull her hair back, gently beginning to comb his fingers through her tangled locks. “Y’know, the final fight would go a lot easier if you killed me.”

Scar shook his head, still continuing to carefully brush through Pearl’s hair. “You know why I won’t do that, Pearl. I don’t like all those ‘heroic sacrifices’.”

Pearl laughed, continuing to fidget with her shield. Something about her laughter sounded a little bitter, nostalgic for something that had never happened. “Yeah, I can’t imagine why.”

Scar began dividing her hair up into sections, humming softly as he began to braid. “You have nice hair,” he commented, “very shiny. And soft.”

“You think so?” Pearl asked, free hand drifting up to play with one of her free locks. “Honestly, it just gets in the way during these games. I’m thinking of cutting it.”

Scar gasped, though the smile remained on his face. “Oh, I can only imagine… this game hasn’t even given us hairbrushes, the nerve!” After a moment of silence, he continued. “If you cut your hair, I won’t have any to braid, you know. How’s a man supposed to keep his hands busy like that?”

Pearl laughed, finally seeming to relax slightly as she set her shield to the side. “Grow out your own hair, you goof.” There was a sadness in her voice that Scar couldn’t physically understand– he’d never had long hair, so why did she sound like she was grieving something that never happened? And something so small at that.

For Pearl, the reason why was simple. How could she not grieve the parts of her friends that they’d forgotten they’d ever had? A smile that was missing its mischievousness, a laugh that was missing its depth. A look that had no recognition, no shared secrets. Memories like missing puzzle pieces, lost somewhere unknown. That was what she saw every time blood stained the ground, every time family was pitted against one another like soldiers at war.

Scar continued to braid Pearl’s hair, humming a cheery tune that Pearl knew he couldn’t recall learning. Deft hands paused, lightly holding the strands of hair, before Scar pulled away to grab something. Pearl heard him pick up his sword then hesitate, considering something.

“Aren’t you afraid of me stabbing you in the back?” he asked, to which Pearl laughed. “What? It’s a serious question!”

Pearl turned slightly to look at Scar, giving him a smile. “If you were going to stab me, Scar, it would’ve been when I asked you to. Besides,” she added, turning back around, “even if you did stab me now, I wouldn’t be upset. You’d get ten extra hearts.”

“Eh,” Scar dismissed, far too nonchalant for a discussion of death, “I don’t need ten extra hearts.”

Pearl raised an eyebrow, though she knew he wouldn’t be able to see that. “You might not think the same when we’re fighting against Gem and Scott, mate.”

Scar cut something with his sword before setting it back to the side, his hands taking Pearl’s hair in them again. “That’s a problem for future Scar. Present Scar doesn’t kill his only friend in the entire server.”

Pearl felt a pang of guilt shoot through her. She knew that feeling well– loneliness, grief. Loneliness was an old friend that had once been her only companion. She recognized that in Scar, in his voice and his eyes. She had seen it once before, in the second game. Not that he would remember it.

He might, soon. The voice that whispered to her was none other than her own, her deepest thoughts given words. He could win this. He could become like us.

I wouldn’t wish that on anyone, she shot back, unknowingly tensing up. It was a little silly, getting into an argument with herself, but Pearl had always been a rather silly person. Unconventional, even. At one point, she’d been called insane. Perhaps it was fitting.

And yet you want him to win. The voice made a good point– she made a good point. If she didn’t want Scar to win, she could easily just kill him now. She should kill him now if she so desperately wanted to spare him the fate of the victors. He’d put up a fight, and he was good with a sword. Pearl knew that much, knew that there would be a moment of surprise before his eyes narrowed and heart hardened and the battle began. She also knew that he wouldn’t win against her on the chance she did try her hardest, that she fought with all her might.

Scar knew this too, and perhaps that was why he teamed up with her in the first place. Maybe he had found kinship in their shared loneliness. Maybe he’d wanted protection. Maybe he needed a friend. It was unlikely, but maybe he’d felt drawn to her by a bond he couldn’t quite understand, one made by witnessing the violent and sudden end of a server he couldn’t remember. There were a thousand possible reasons as to why he’d chosen her, and perhaps she’d truly never left the tower after all, because the fact he had chosen her at all still slightly baffled her.

Well. No matter. He chose her, and in the end they’d all die anyway.

“You have gentle hands,” she commented. “Joel tried braiding my hair before. Nearly tugged my whole head off my neck, that man. It’s a wonder Lizzie’s put up with him this long.” No matter what memories they lost, it always seemed like Joel and Lizzie’s marriage remained an unchangeable fact. Maybe it had something to do with “‘til Death do us part’”, though Pearl wasn’t really sure.

Maybe she’d try marrying someone when they got back to Hermitcraft, just to see if it carried over to the next death game. And wasn’t that a strange thought, the next death game? There would be another, Pearl knew, if Grian had anything to say about it. He was a little strange like that, but she’d come to expect those kinds of things from her brother.

“Why thank you!” Scar was beaming, she could tell by his voice. “This just comes so naturally to me. Maybe I should’ve been a hairdresser instead of a trader.”

Pearl laughed, remembering the intricate braids Scar would put his hair in during Last Life and their home server, Hermitcraft. Although he couldn’t remember them, he remembered how to do them. That was a small relief, at the very least. It was nice to know that her friends kept some parts of themselves, instead of being the blank slates she had originally thought when she first regained her memories.

“Maybe,” she responded, starting to pick at the grass in front of her, plucking a small flower from the ground. “I’d go to you all the time if you were my hairdresser.” Her voice took on a teasing lilt as she continued. “Just as long as you promise not to do anything too crazy with my hair, alright?”

Scar giggled, his laughter another part of himself that he had kept even after the loss of his memories. “I can’t promise anything, sunflower! Who knows what might happen if you stop paying attention? I might turn you blonde if you aren’t careful.”

Pearl snorted, twirling a strand of grass around her finger idly. “And where do you suppose you’ll get the dye for that, mate? Or the means to make my hair lighter so it’s easier to dye? We’re not exactly exploding with resources here.”

“Hmm, true…” Scar hummed thoughtfully. “We’ve found ourselves in a bit of a pickle, Pearl!”

Pearl shook her head, rolling her eyes. “No, Scar, we aren’t. I didn’t want to go blonde in the first place, so there’s no need to get the materials we’d need for it. Just keep braiding my hair, you goof!”

“Aww, alright!” Scar laughed softly as he went back to braiding Pearl’s hair. “Almost done.” His voice took on an uncharacteristically serious tone. “How are you feeling? Injuries, exhaustion? General… mental state?” He gave a small chuckle on the last one. “I mean, other than the obvious. This game has been… a trip.”

Pearl groaned, stretching out her arms in front of her. “Tell me about it. I lost all of my Mounders.” Her shoulders slumped. “I really wanted them to win, Scar. I really did.”

“I know,” Scar murmured, “and I’m sorry you didn’t get to see that through. You did your best, Pearl.” He paused. “And what about you? I would’ve thought that after all your allies… got out… that you would want to take up the sword and win for them. But you haven’t really… been doing that. You even offered to let me kill you.”

Pearl held back a shudder, wanting to wrap her arms around herself to fight off the sudden cold that had settled over her. “I don’t want to win,” she mumbled, “Even if I did, I don’t think they’d be too happy if I tried.”

Scar made a confused noise. “What was that? I couldn’t quite catch it.”

Pearl shook her head. “Nothing. Don’t worry about it.” She took a breath. “I just don’t want to win. Don’t see the point in all this, really. Never have. What’s a victory when everyone else around you is dead?”

Scar hummed thoughtfully, thinking about it. “I suppose you’re right. But in the end, isn’t it better for it to be them than me?”

Pearl chuckled sadly. “Not when you have to live with the consequences.”

Scar paused for a moment, as if struck by a sudden revelation. “...I think I understand. Thanks for, uh, answering my questions.” He continued braiding for another moment. “Alright, I think we’re all done!”

Pearl stood with Scar, reaching back to gently touch her braid. There was a shallow pool of water nearby, and she walked over to check her reflection. “Really, Scar?” Woven into her braid was a sunflower, which must’ve been what Scar cut with his sword earlier.

Scar laughed, joining her by the water. “Doesn’t it look pretty? I thought it was fitting. And!” he continued, over Pearl’s soft laughter, “it adds some brightness to the whole ensemble!” He gestured at Pearl’s outfit, the same she had worn in her past games.

Maybe she would change up her red look next game. If there was a next game. “It does, it does,” she agreed, stifling her laughter. “Thank you, Scar. I look very pretty now, and my hair is out of the way.”

Scar looked over at her, eyes wide. “You mean you won’t cut it? You promise?”

Pearl smiled, reaching out and putting a hand on Scar’s shoulder. “I promise I won’t cut my hair, Scar. Not after you put so much effort into braiding it. I wouldn’t do that to ya, mate. That’s just cruel.”

Scar grinned. “I knew I could trust you!” With that, he turned away from the water and walked back to where he had left his sword and shield.

Pearl spent another moment there, gazing out at the water. Did he really mean that? Did Scar truly trust her? If so, had it just been this small moment that made him let down his guard? No, surely not. Scar was intelligent and cunning, and rarely did he let his walls down for anyone. Something must’ve happened for him to feel this way towards her. Something she had done, or said, maybe.

And that was just if he was being truthful with his words– she knew Scar wasn’t one to ignore the benefits of weaving lies and charm into his speech. He was a masterful manipulator, she knew many underestimated him for the cheery, unassuming front he put up. But that was just another reason as to why he was dangerous.

“Pearl?” Scar’s voice snapped her out of her thoughts, and she looked back at her ally. “You comin’?”

“Yeah.” Pearl jogged over, feeling much more energized than before. Picking up her bow and her shield, she did one last check to make sure everything she had was in order. Once she was certain, she turned to Scar with a smile. “Lets win this one, Scar.”

Scar grinned in return, red eyes shining. “Why, I think that’s a wonderful idea!”

Lightning struck the ground as Gem took Scott’s sacrifice, and once again Pearl stopped Scar. “My offer still stands, you know. Kill me and take the hearts, you’ll stand a better chance against Gem if you do.”

Scar pretended to think about it. “I think I’ll stand a better chance against Gem if I have you on my team. So, no thank you! But thanks for the offer. Come on, we can’t let Gem get away!”

The chase continued, feeling much more light-hearted than the ones at the end of Double Life had been. To be fair, she had gone a little insane in the last few days, but still. Maybe it was Scar’s jovial attitude about killing. Maybe it was the fact that she still had an ally this late into the game. Maybe it was something Pearl would never be able to put her finger on, no matter how hard she tried to think of a reason.

The two inevitably caught up with Gem, who had grown exhausted from the chase. Despite being enemies now, Pearl still felt guilty as she raised her sword to attack, Gem’s wide eyes and shouts of an unfair fight making her hesitate and pull back. It was two against one after all, and Pearl had no intentions of winning. Ganging up on Gem like that felt wrong, but maybe that was just her old bond to the other holding her back. Scar had no such qualms, swooping in when she pulled back to quickly cut Gem down.

Pearl could hardly believe it had happened until lightning struck the ground, and silence rang between the two as Scar stood over Gem’s body. They’d discovered that bodies remained after the last death when Jimmy had died, but it was still a little disturbing to just see Gem laying there. Like she was asleep.

It didn’t feel right.

Pearl had to bite back a snort. Four death games in, and she was still disturbed by the sight of dead bodies. Honestly, it was a little pathetic. She’d killed, and been killed, and yet… somehow, it never got any easier. Somehow, it just got harder. The blood staining her hands had become so much that it was hard to hold onto her weapon, and her scars ached whenever she killed.

Pearl brushed her braid back over her shoulder and lowered her bow, offering Scar a weak smile. “You did it, Scar. Good job.”

Scar laughed softly, not turning around to face her just yet. “It’s just us two left, then. The last ones alive.” “Mhm. What’s your plan now, Scar?” Pearl kept her voice casual, trying to hide the trembling in her hands. How are you going to do it?

How are you going to kill me?

Scar answered her question by turning and raising his bow. Pearl hardly had any time to blink before he shot her, the force of the arrow sending her stumbling back with a shout. Instinct took over then, and she ran as Scar continued to shoot at her. All thoughts of sacrifice fled her mind as she dodged the flying arrows that missed her just barely, reminding her just how good of a shot Scar was.

“Going for it immediately, huh?” she shouted back as she ran, pulling her sword. Not that she intended to use it, not to kill. But she would put up a fight. If Scar wouldn’t let her sacrifice herself for him, then she would do the next best thing. She would fight him, and he would earn his victory. Not like the hollow sacrifice Scott made for her, where victory was force-fed to Pearl by his hands. No, she wouldn’t do that to Scar. She respected him too much to throw the fight.

That didn’t mean she would try to win, not in the slightest. But she would do her best to not make it easy for him. His victory would be painful no matter what she did, but at the very least she could make sure it wasn’t a hollow one.

The next arrow hit her as she ran through the field of sunflowers they had been sitting in just earlier, when Scar had offered to braid her hair. It felt like a lifetime ago as she crashed into the ground, yelping in pain as she tried to scramble back up. “Really, Scar?” She couldn’t help but laugh as she ran, the pain shocking as adrenaline flowed through her veins.

“This game!” Scar called, continuing the chase as he spoke. “There were more of them, weren’t there? And you won.”

Pearl stumbled, surprise catching her off guard mid-stride. She cursed and turned back, swinging her sword down and catching Scar in the side. He stumbled back, granting her more time to flee– but not enough. As she ran, Scar drew back the bowstring, aiming carefully. A running target was harder to hit, but Pearl was moving in a relatively straight path. All he had to do was aim a little ahead, steady, then release.

It was over the moment the arrow flew, striking Pearl in the chest and pushing her over the edge of a cliff, sending her plummeting into the caves below. Lightning struck, and then all was silent.

Scar stood, clutching his bow in a white-knuckle grip. “Pearl?” He took a step forward. The wind blew around him, rustling through his hair and shawl. Sunflowers bowed against the breeze, gesturing in the direction where she’d fallen. “Pearl?! Pearl, sunflower, where are you?”

The breeze led him a few steps further in a stumbling haze, until he stood at the edge of the caves that he’d sent his friend? Enemy? falling into. He didn’t know what he expected– maybe to see Pearl gazing back up at him, a smile on her face and weapon drawn, hurt but alive– but as he looked down into the caves, he found only the body of his first and final ally.

A presence danced around him, heavier than the wind but acting just like it. She’s dead, Scar. You won. Five words whispered in his ear, as thin as the passing breeze. Five words that would’ve meant the world to Scar, once upon a time. Five words that now meant nothing to him as he gazed down at the body of his only friend.

Crouching, Scar swung his legs over the edge of the cave, slowly and carefully lowering himself down. He had to find footholds so that he wouldn’t fall and possibly lose his life as well– the fight with Pearl had left him with fewer hearts than he would’ve liked. “Hold on, Pearl,” he mumbled as he made his way down to where Pearl lay. “I’m coming to get you, I’m… I’m coming, don’t worry, I’ll be right there.”

He dropped the last few feet, wincing as pain shot up his legs and sapped at his strength. Luckily, the drop wasn’t far enough to cause any actual injury, but it was closer than he would’ve liked. He stumbled to catch himself, pulling himself to a halt in front of Pearl’s body.

It was hard to look at her like this. Pearl was someone who was so full of life, always. She was strong and fierce, fighting for what she wanted every day, every moment. She never gave up, not once in all the time that Scar knew her. It hadn’t been long, and it was hard to really get to know someone during a death game like this, but Scar had always been pretty good at reading people.

He knelt by Pearl’s body, brushing her hair out of her face and gently closing her eyes. He didn’t delude himself with pretending she was asleep– what was the point of avoiding death now, when he had caused so much of it? His hands were stained red with blood that he would never be able to wash off.

Scar lingered a moment longer before shrugging off his shawl and gently wrapping it around Pearl. He was careful with her body, handling her as gently as he could as he settled her back against the stone. There wasn’t as much blood as Scar thought there should’ve been, but he wiped the blood that was there off Pearl’s face as best he could.

Then, his hands went to the braid. It had held up well, keeping the sunflower he had woven in secured in her hair. He hesitated for a moment before untying the ribbon that held it in place and beginning to undo the braid.

He began to hum while he worked. Slowly, reverently. A song that came from a place he couldn’t quite remember, a home he once thought he’d never forget. In another world, he would know he was humming the last rites for a loved one, to send them off into the stars. In this world, all he knew of it was the deep, longing ache in his chest and the tears that it caused to spring to his eyes.

Carefully, Scar took the sunflower from Pearl’s hair, placing it down in his lap. He gently combed his fingers through her hair one last time, before tucking it into the shawl. Picking the sunflower back up, he leaned forward and gently kissed her on the forehead. “Good night, sweet sunflower. And goodbye.”

He stood and once more began humming softly, climbing out of the ravine with the sunflower still in his hand. Scar took extra care to not crush the delicate flower as he pulled himself up onto solid ground. The sun was just beginning to set as he made his way toward the Secret Keeper, the intimidating statue that reigned over the entire server. The towering tyrant seemed to gaze down at Scar with eyes he knew he couldn’t see, taunting him with a victory that tasted at best bittersweet.

It grew dark as Scar approached the buttons, but he held tight to the reminder of the sun’s light in his hand. It gave him the strength to push forward even as his legs threatened to give out from under him. He could not hide the trembling, however, that came from the rush of adrenaline and fear.

He raised his eyes to meet the invisible ones looking down on him, a challenge held in his gaze, “You wanted me to be the villain?!” he called out, the weight of being watched settling on his shoulders. “Fine! Here I am!” He reached out and pressed the button to succeed.

Welcome home.

And Scar… remembered. What sounded like thousands of voices overlapping filled his mind, causing him to stumble back with a yelp. He dropped the sunflower, clutching at his head as he was forced to his knees in front of the Secret Keeper.

Sacrifices offered and refused. Atonement rejected, forgiveness given. Arms outstretched, to offer a helping hand. Tears falling into blood-stained water as the two left locked eyes. “For all you have done to keep me alive this long, you may slay me and take the enchanter.”

Bloodied sand, prickling cactus spines, heat waves and cool nights. Two impossible friends, against the world. Traitorous actions, painful fists, a killing blow. “Scar, whatever happens, I think we can count this as a double victory.”

A loneliness that echoed in the silence around him, howling as the wind at night. Bonds broken off entirely, leaving him with only the stars for company. “Everything that happened last season is null and void. Doesn’t count, okay?”

A bitterness that came from once tasting too much sweetness, like slightly burnt cookies. A loneliness that ached worse than when he had been truly alone, for this ache was born of lies and deceit. “I made them, they’re for your secret soulmate.”

A moment of joy, in the midst. A time of family, friendship, and security. Before the secrets, before the lies and the pain, before the fire and the red wars. “We’re the cockers!”

Allies for the first time in what felt like forever. People who truly had his back, no matter what. A place where he could let his guard down and smile, laugh, and live. If only for a moment, he knew what it was like to be loved. He was protected, and he was protective. “You don't go against the family.”

You are seated in a field, surrounded by grass blades, ebbing and flowing through the gusts of your imagination. Each of those blades represent a past life. Memories. Desires. Dreams. And past loves… By plucking one you shall reveal–

“Home,” Scar gasped out, eyes snapping open. “I need to go home.”

You are home.

The presence became louder, more unbearable. Each voice clamored for attention, every new memory begging to be heard. The weight of the universe pushed him into the ground, making him gasp for air in a strained panic.

It was too much. All the memories, all the emotions– it was too much. Scar yelled in pain as it just grew louder and louder, the pressure growing as the weight pushing him down increased. Just like a volcano, it felt as though he was going to erupt at any minute.

And then a cold wind brushed up against Scar’s skin, weaving and dancing around him. “Enough.”

The voices instantly quieted, the pressure vanishing as Scar collapsed to the ground gasping for air. He tried blinking away the tears and black spots that cluttered his vision, making it difficult to see properly.

What he could see, though, took his breath away.

Pearl stood in front of him as a shimmering silver spirit, facing the Secret Keeper with her wings flared out to their full span. She glowed as if she were made from moonlight and stardust, and Scar couldn’t help but stare at her in awe.

“He belongs with us. You will leave him alone.” Her voice was thin and brittle– as if it might snap were someone able to reach out and grab it. There was an echo to it as well, ringing in Scar’s mind as she spoke.

The feeling of being watched vanished completely, and Pearl turned back to Scar. She smiled a silvery smile, and held out her hand to him. “C’mon, mate. Let's go home.”

Scar took her hand, gasping at the sudden coldness that flooded his body– Death. He stood up, trying not to look down at his body that lay where he had fallen just moments earlier. As he stepped forward to join his friend, he couldn’t help but glance back and notice the sunflower lying beside his body, just inches away from his open hand. Nothing he could do about it now.

Scar turned back to face Pearl, noticing the three other spirits that had gathered. He remembered them all now. The winners of the previous games. His allies, his enemies, his friends. His eyes caught Grian’s, and he couldn’t help but smile.

“Well hello there,” he greeted his old ally with a grin, letting go of Pearl’s hand to bow dramatically. “Guess we finally cashed in on that double victory, huh?”

Grian laughed, rolling his eyes. His expression warmed as he took a step forward, reaching out to take Scar’s hand in his. “Little late, but I’ll accept it. How are you, Scar?”

“Well, he’s very dead, so I can’t imagine he’s doing great,” Scott interjected, ignoring the glare the two avians gave him. “What? I’m not wrong.”

Scar shook his head. “That you are! I’m actually doing much better now that I remember everyone’s going to come back. Makes me feel a lot less guilty about killing all those people!”

Pearl sighed, though she couldn’t hide the smile on her face. “Y’know, I felt the same way after I won Double Life. And now the games are so much easier for me! It’s nice to get all the murderous urges out now that I know everyone’s going to be fine eventually.”

“This is why everyone calls you two insane,” Martyn muttered, crossing his arms. “Now can we go back home now? I don’t like hanging out in these servers longer than I have to.”

Grian let go of Scar’s hand to pull up some sort of screen, typing commands into it. “Sure, just give me one second.” He continued typing on the screen, swiping through various options and closing others. “Good game, by the way,” he added, without looking up, “I don’t think anyone expected you to win.”

Scar gave a half shrug. “To be honest, G, I didn’t either! Totally thought Gem was going to get this one.”

Grian nodded. “But that’s just how these games go, mhm? Expect the unexpected. Pearl’s win should’ve taught us that much.” He spent another moment typing before closing the screen. “…Alright, we should be heading back to our respective servers soon enough.” He reached out to take Scar’s hand again, taking Pearl’s hand in his other.

“Can’t believe we almost have all of the Boatem crew here,” Scar blurted out, “do you think Impulse will join us next time?”

Pearl laughed. “I hope so! I don’t think Mumbo will be winning any time soon, though. So we might just have to settle for four out of five.”

Scar nodded sagely. “You speak very wise words, Pearl. I fear Mumbo may be too… how do people say it? I fear he may be too much of a wet cat.”

Martyn groaned. “Oh, don’t remind me.”

Laughter rose from the group as the code began its work, and they all began to fade away. Grian held tightly to Scar and Pearl’s hands, locking eyes with the both of them. “I’ll see you both soon, okay?”

Pearl giggled, squeezing Grian’s hand in return. “See you soon, Griba!”

“Goodbye!” Scar called to Martyn and Scott, their responding farewells faint as the server faded away around him.

And then there was darkness.

And then Scar woke up.

#my writing #pearlescentmoon #goodtimeswithscar #geminitay #grian #martyn inthelittlewood #scott smajor #secret life #secret life fanfic

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moonastrogirl · 6 months

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💘 Some important tips for each Nakshatra : Never to Do Tips 💘

DISCLAIMER The author name is at the end. I do not remember where I found it unfortunately (it was in my notes app for months fr 😭) tho I know I am supposed to share my knowledge as much as I can and not be a gatekeeper so here it is . I hope it will help you (if you know the author let me know too with the name down below) 💜

Ashwini : Never loose an opportunity to help people in your life, you will meet and learn some very important techniques from a reputed and respected person.

Bharani : Do not share your secrets with anyone. Self control is must.

Krittika : Stand by Truth. Do not entertain, liars, fakers or cheaters or not even try to possess those traits.

Rohini : Don't get too much attached with anything, attachment will cause havoc.

Mrigashira : Do not get disconnected with your parents or family.

Ardra : Learn to work under distractions and pressure. Stay calm in chaos.

Punarvasu : Never disobey Dharma (purpose), always stick to your commitments, you get divine support of universe.

Pushya : Do not ignore your family or your dear one needs while handling bigger responsibilities or social cause. Take out time for them.

Ashlesha : Never misuse your power & Never Curse anyone.

Magha : Never ignore your Pitris (your ancestors). Always do charity in their names.

Purva Phalguni : Avoid getting too much indulgent in pleasures, do your duty faithfully.

Uttara Phalguni : Never break your relationship & Be Kartavya Prayan (loyal).

Hasta : Never get carried away with failure, that's ladder of success for you.

Chitra : Never doubt your potential & don't act impulsive, else you will end up hurting with self.

Swati : Do not poke powerful authorities. Try to stay away from leg pulling.

Vishaka : Never leave the Marg of Bhakti (total faith and devotion) & Keep remembering Bhagwan (the Most High/God).

Anuradha: Never get distracted with too much darkness, sooner or later it's worth experiencing.

Jyeshta : Never misuse your authorities & power, one single mistake can ruin everything.

Mula : Don't get panic, when burdened with lots of negativity, that's the process of bringing clarity, like storm before calm.

Purva Ashadha : Not every war is to win, some are supposed to lift you up. In both victory or defeat you gonna be the same.

Uttara Ashadha : Following Dharma (career/purpose) is right but having a superiority complex can harm you in longer run.

Shravana : Tied up with lots of responsibilities & helplessness, we are born to live or die for a divine purpose, just give your best.

Dhanishta : Never boast or avoid beating the drum of success before its completion.

Shatabhisha : Never sell your soul for gains and profit. Things will turn negative for you.

Purva Bhadrapada : Never rush into conclusion cause what looks on the surface might not be real, try to see deep within. There lies solution.

Uttara Bhadrapada : Simplicity beautifies you, wear it and own it.

Revati : You are the Messenger of God & Bhakt (faith/worship/love). Showing path to directionless people is your real gem. Never sell superstition or blind faiths.

Author :

Mann ki Baat Trishna

Note from the author : Above points are just an observation with my best of understanding.

682 notes · View notes

dallaji · 7 months

Note

can you do bada lee smut, where bada wants to film while 🤟🏻 with reader HEHE i'm gonna leave the others to u:*

♡ bada lee x idol!reader / NSFW❗

WORD COUNT: 5k

CW: exactly what it sounds like tbh!! established relationship, porn without plot, once again giver!bada, filming 🔞 (consensually)

AUTHOR'S NOTE: this is loosely a part two of this / "Hope we make it to the Cloud". i received these two requests and felt they were alike enough to "combine" the two, hopefully that's ok! 🩷 thanks for the request and hope you enjoy. (ꈍ꒳ꈍ) ┆ ┆ ┆ ┆⋆

Living alone wasn’t so bad.

When spending a long month performing, interacting with hundreds of people every day and flitting from one schedule to the other, getting to wind down in the comforts of your humble apartment almost felt like a privilege. And as soon as your promotions had ended, you had to take the time to get reacquainted with the place that you called home; time spent away, sleeping in cars or planes, almost made you forget what it felt like to have your own bed.

Sometimes you felt pangs of loneliness, when you were no longer experiencing the rush of backstage and the fleeting interactions with other celebrities, some of whom you now considered friends. The feeling was especially present when you were on break, fighting the urge to get a pet to keep you company on several occasions. Though calling it a “break” was a bit premature, your team always surprising with a last minute schedule on your calendar.

Still, living alone wasn’t so bad when you finally got a break from bright stage lights, sore limbs and buzzing eardrums.

Besides, you aren't so lonely nowadays.

It was the middle of the day and you were watching a game show, feet propped up on the table and hair tied together, when you heard your front door unlock.

“Honey, I’m home,” A tired voice sounded.

Tossing the spare key you had given her a few weeks prior into the little bowl on the table next to the door, Bada entered the room with the nonchalance only a person who spent a lot of time here could have. And well, she did spend a lot of time here.

As you beamed up at her from your seat, Bada was kicking her shoes off: donned in her practice cargos and a comfortable sweater, she looked as effortlessly attractive as ever. If you didn’t know her well enough by now, you would’ve almost missed the metaphorical thunder cloud hanging over her head.

You patted your lap eagerly. “C’mere!”

And with quick shuffling footsteps, Bada made a beeline for where you were seated, first dropping her backpack to the floor with a sigh and then unceremoniously flopping onto the couch, her head snuggling into your lap.

Your hands immediately caressed along her face, fingers gently pushing her bangs aside as you ran them through the pink streaks.

“Long day?” You asked as you fanned her hair over your lap, combing through and detangling the knots.

Her eyes were shut, zoning in on your soothing touches. “Maybe I need a manager,” She muttered quietly, “I don’t know why I thought three choreo sessions in one day would be doable.”

You placed your forefinger between her eyebrows, smoothing over the frown that had started to form there. “Try not to hire mine. Before you know it, three sessions become six.”

Bada laughed at that, eyes opening to gaze up at you affectionately. “Missed you.” She mumbled, head turning to nuzzle into the palm of your hand.

“Is that so?”

She sat up slowly upon hearing your playful words, turning to face you with half-lidded eyes. Leaning in, gaze dropping to your lips, she placed her hand atop your thigh and gave it a firm, meaningful squeeze. “Want me to show you how much I missed you?”

You held your breath expectantly, leaning closer with a barely-there nod as Bada inched towards you to close the gap; she tilted her head and your eyes fluttered shut.

But then, the growling of a stomach sounded through the room.

Bada groaned as you erupted into giggles, shoving her off of you: “Please go eat! There’s some leftover rice and salmon in the kitchen.”

Her disgruntlement faded immediately at your words and she swept down to press a peck to your lips. “You’re the best.”

“I know...” You hummed against her mouth, tugging her down again to steal seconds, feeling self-satisfied when Bada complied without hesitation.

You let her scurry off to the kitchen with a smitten grin plastered across your face.

“Did you finish the routine for that boy group?” You asked, watching her scavenge with your chin propped on the palm of your hand.

Bada dug into the rice cooker as she nodded, already chewing on a piece of salmon: “Yeah, it came together nicely! Wanna see?”

Clasping your hands together, you perked up. “Yes, please!”

“Laptop’s in my bag. All my recent recordings should be on it.”

Bending over to unzip her backpack, you carefully pulled her laptop out and set it on your lap. You heard Bada heat up the remaining salmon as you booted up the computer. Her password was just her birthday, which she had sheepishly confessed to when you were still practicing your choreography together. As you opened her files, a screen popping up with over fifty recordings, Bada came to stand behind you, shoveling food into her mouth as if the bowl would sprout legs and run away from her.

You scrolled through the recordings, which were arranged chronologically, until you noticed a thumbnail with a very familiar practice room.

As your mouth fell open in disbelief, your mouse hovered over the picture of what was undoubtedly Bada hunched over you in front of your practice room’s mirror; both your backs turned to the camera, but the scene all too recognizable.

You didn’t know why, but you felt your lower stomach warm up at the thought of her having kept the recording. You barely registered the audible gasp behind you, and you turned around.

Bada was frozen in her tracks, chopsticks motionless at her lips as she stared at the laptop on your lap.

“Oh my god, I—” She began, eyes searching the room for a place to set her bowl down as your eyes scrutinized her, “I could’ve sworn I deleted that! How did that— How did that get on my laptop?” She was stumbling over her words, and always had been a terrible liar.

You wordlessly navigated to the top of the screen and clicked on ‘Sort by last opened’, the videos reorganizing at your command.

The video was the third one on the list, even though it was over two months old. Once again your stomach curled, face heating up at the implication spread out in front of you.

Bada pressed her lips together in a fine line, face beet red as she was unable to meet your eyes, entirely unaware of your inner turmoil and instead cowering away from you. “I’m sorry, you— you can delete it. I shouldn’t have—”

“I never told you to delete it, back then.” You cut in hurriedly, and it was true, but you felt embarrassed at the words leaving your mouth all the same. “You’ve watched it?”

Bada stared at you in bewilderment, but she nodded, perhaps comforted by your words and thus no longer seeing the point in lying: “Several times.” She admitted bashfully, gaze moving back to the laptop.

You felt lightheaded, briefly imagining Bada alone in her studio with her hand between her legs and her eyes glued to the screen.

“Oh,” You responded, “Why didn’t you...?” Unsure of how you were even trying to finish that sentence, you trailed off.

“We’ve just been so busy…” She said, sounding solemn, leaning over the backrest of the couch as her arms draped themselves over your shoulders. You leaned back into her embrace, your hands curling over her arms.

It was true: between a grueling comeback schedule and the heightening demand for Bada, especially following the release of your single, made it difficult to see each other regularly. Bada had visited you backstage a handful of times, the both of you savoring your short moments together, hungry lips meeting while hiding away in your dressing room, until you were inevitably whisked away for your next schedule. Similarly, you dropped by her studio whenever there was an opening on your calendar, but the curious eyes of her students made it difficult to do much of anything. It was then when you had given her a spare key to your apartment, hoping you could meet each other halfway more often.

“I miss you so much.” She murmured, cheek resting against your temple, and the way she said it left you breathless. It had a hidden meaning to it, clear to no one but you. It almost sounded like a plea with the way she nosed into you.

“You were gonna show me how much you missed me.” You whispered, angling your head to look up at her properly. Her eyes were already on you, gaze heavy. You didn’t have to say the words back to her with the way you looked at her.

She barely gave you a moment to let the words hang in the air before she pressed her lips against yours with a desperate inhale, hand curling over the crook of your neck. The position you were in brought you right back to your first time together; Bada crowding over you with an insatiableness she only reserved for you as your mouths fit together, her warmth washing over you. You felt her nails scrape along the nape of your neck, her lips parting against yours, pleading, as you slipped your tongue past. She hummed pleasantly, lips closing around the wet muscle and sucking as her fingers dug into your hair.

Suddenly overwhelmed with the need of wanting her all over you, the couch separating your body from the comfort of her lean figure, you parted the kiss unwillingly. Before you could beg her for anything more, however, she moved her lips to your neck; immediately sucking a bruise against the unmarked skin. You gasped, instinctively baring your neck for her.

“Bada-” You began, but the words died in your throat as the tip of her tongue circled the mark.

“Click on the video.” She spoke in a hushed voice and only then did you become cognizant of the laptop resting on your lap, cursor still hovering over the video. “Fast forward a bit.”

With your eyes locked onto the screen and without moving your head, afraid you would lose the warmth of her mouth against your skin, you did as you were told; skipping through the recording until you found the exact moment Bada had turned you around, her chest pressed against your back. The sounds that came from the laptop speakers after you unpaused the video were sinful: the smack of lips gliding together and your quiet gasps as Bada smoothened her hands along your figure. You were feeling overwhelmed already and the two of you had barely done anything.

“You’re so beautiful.” Bada spoke as she watched the video from over your shoulder, still pressing soft kisses against your neck.

You could say the same about her with the way she was, and still is, able to command your body like an instrument. You were putty in her hands then and now, turning whichever way she conducted you.

She straightened her back slightly, looking down at you as her hands lowered to your front. In tandem with the Bada in the video, she found the hem of your shirt and pulled upwards, your arms raising to aid the process. You weren’t wearing a bra, and the cool air of the room made a shiver run down your spine. Bada, however, was delighted, warm hands immediately cupping over your breasts.

You craned your neck, chasing after her lips and she let you indulge: with your head tilted backwards your tongues met before your lips did, Bada angling her head to deepen the kiss impossibly more, fingers pinching your nipples inquisitively and stiffening them. You were sensitive straightaway, gasping into her mouth.

Then, an idea. Your fingers managed to find the space button and pressed, effectively pausing the video. Bada parted the kiss reluctantly, curiously peeking at the screen before looking down at you.

“Do you have your camera with you?” You asked, voice breathless.

She blinked at you in wonder but nodded: “Yes, in my backpack.”

You gave her a suggestive look, hands coming up to rest atop hers; still covering your breasts. “Do you… want to film a new one?”

You hoped you hadn’t misjudged Bada, and for the few seconds she was silent you feared you had ruined the atmosphere, but that feeling didn’t last long. The look she gave you was nothing short of infatuated.

Bada smiled, albeit entirely flustered, before giving you another kiss and you sighed in relief. She walked to her backpack, where it still laid on the floor, and began searching through it for the camera. As you shut the laptop and moved it off your lap, Bada reemerged with the familiar device.

The display was already flipped open, Bada’s fingers fiddling with the buttons with an almost childlike excitement that made you giggle. She looked up at you as if breaking out of a daze, and softened instantly at the sight of you: topless and patiently waiting for her. She lowered the device.

“You’re certain you’re okay with this?” Her eyes looked into yours, searching for any hints of doubt or apprehension.

“More than okay,” you assured, “Just tell me what to do.”

And as soon as the words had left you, Bada hit record. “Be you.”

She slowly walked around you, angling the camera as her eyes were glued to her display, taking in your appearance with the delicacy of someone who practiced this often enough in their head. You were starting to feel skittish, despite her attention on you almost feeling reverent, and fought the urge to cover yourself up.

Instead you crossed your legs, head tilting to the side as you looked straight into the lens of the camera: “I hope this doesn’t mean you’re going to keep your distance the whole time.”

You heard the buzzing sound of the lens zooming in on you, though you had no clue what exact part of you it was focusing on. “That would be impossible when you look like this, baby.”

The nickname, which was usually reserved for when the two of you spent time tangled up in each other, visibly flustered you. You sucked in your lower lip to hide a growing smile and glanced down, Bada smirking at your reaction.

“Trying to set the scene for my future self.” Bada added meaningfully, and the implication made you feel warm.

She strode over towards you, eyes still focused on the camera display as she sat down on the table in front of you. You followed her movements intently, anticipating whatever request was burning on her lips. But instead of asking anything of you, Bada wordlessly nudged her knees in between your thighs, forcing your legs apart, and you adhered.

“Take your pants off.” She commanded and virtually immediately your hands dropped to the waistband of your trousers, tugging it below your hips. You would have time to ponder how embarrassing your submission to her was later, but for now you wanted to give her everything she asked for.

With her unoccupied hand she helped you pull the fabric all the way off, with an almost impatient tug, and you made sure to stretch your legs as elegantly as possible, doe eyes never losing track of the lens; hyper aware of the camera following your every move as if this were just another music video recording.

You let your hands slide up your thighs, fingers momentarily hooking into the straps of your panties before snapping them against your skin. Bada angled her camera, tracking the movements of your hands intently as her tongue peeked past her lips; wetting them. The palms of your hands moved along the curve of your waist, trailing them higher and higher, until you were pushing your breasts together ever-so-slightly. Then, you brought one hand behind your neck and leaned back into the couch. Your other hand dropped back to the strap of your panties, toying with the fabric between your fingertips, granting a sneak peek for the skin underneath - not that there was much more left to the imagination.

For a moment Bada’s eyes moved away from the display, zoning in on your ministrations, and then she leaned back herself, the movements forcing your thighs further apart by the dull push of her knees against yours.

“You’re a natural.” Bada said teasingly, but remained cemented in her spot, much to your frustration.

You pulled the strap of your underwear below your hip, blinking up at the lens through long eyelashes, and pressed your crotch down into the couch. Subsequently, you slid your hand to your front, fingertips digging below the waistband of your panties; your eyes never losing track of the lens. You went lower and lower, gauging the taller girl’s reaction.

Once again you heard the noise of the lens zooming in, and your fingers finally found the top of your heat. You were already wet, spreading your folds with a quiet hum, and began lightly rocking against the fabric of the couch. The friction made you gasp, the thrill of your predicament making you feel increasingly more responsive to any touches.

Bada parted her lips, watching on in awe. “Take those off.” Her voice was almost uncharacteristically deep, dripping with want.

And because you knew her well enough to know she couldn’t hold off for much longer, you gave her the most coy look you could muster and answered: “Come do it yourself.”

The sound of the table moving backwards echoed through the living room, Bada using her body to push it away. You didn’t cease your movements however, dragging your crotch against the couch again as you watched Bada in anticipation. She had placed the camera on top of a stack of books lying on the table, pointing the lens at you in a sideways angle, and stepped towards you. She towered over you before pulling her sweater over her head, and you watched as her slender frame appeared; still touching yourself. She was unbelievably pretty.

Then, she dropped to her knees, arms hooking under your legs as she pulled you to the edge of the couch in such a sudden motion you couldn’t help the soft yelp that fell from your lips. Her thumbs hooked under the straps of your underwear and pulled them off brusquely, leaving you completely bare in front of her.

She settled in between your thighs like she belonged there and leaned up, her hand on the side of your neck as she brought you in for a hungry kiss. The noise you made was desperate, but she silenced it immediately by plunging her tongue into your mouth; licking into it with a groan. Your fingers tangled into her hair, clinging onto her as your body begged for more, tongue gliding back against hers through parted lips.

Bada cupped your jaw tightly as she swallowed the sweet noises you made, and parted the kiss to catch her breath; your own chest rising in exhilaration. Her thumb trailed along your bottom lip, moist from saliva, and pulled it down: “Just look pretty for me.” She muttered.

With that she slid down your body, lips leaving a trail of wet kisses down your neck and to your cleavage, her hands feeling along the shape of your upper thighs, squeezing them. You felt your lower stomach curl when her lips pressed to your navel, and you put your arms at either side of your body; palms pressing into the couch as you gave your body away to her.

Her thumbs pressed into your hip bones when her mouth got closer to your core, but she immediately pivoted to the inside of your thigh, teeth grazing the skin before parted lips began to suck down a bruise.

Your head lolled to the side, letting out another soft gasp as her lips covered every area except the one where you needed her the most. You were going mad, wondering if you should start begging.

Her eyes met yours and she had the audacity to smile, a happy glow dusting her cheeks as her fingers dug deeper into the skin of your thighs. She pressed another openmouthed kiss near your hip bone before speaking: “Anything you want me to do?”

Your hand automatically moved in between your legs, but Bada stopped you with a firm hold on your wrist.

“Nuh-uh,” she tutted, “I’m directing here. Tell me what you want.” Her gaze was intense, smile growing wider as you grew more flustered, thighs twitching.

“I—” You began, struggling to find the words, “I want you to touch me. However you want.”

“However I want?” She tilted her head to the side, feigning confusion in a sweet voice.

“With your hands.” You added quickly, something in you stirring at the way her grip on your wrist remained resolute. “Please, I need it so bad.” More words escaped you before you could dwell on the humiliation: “I’m so wet for you.”

The look in Bada’s eyes darkened as she placed your hand back onto the couch, grabbing onto your thigh once again. She looked down at your glistening heat, momentarily sucking in her lower lips before meeting your eyes again. “For me?” She asked again, knowing the answer well enough.

“Only for you.” You near whimpered, and she finally released you from your misery.

Bringing her hand to her mouth, she lapped at her fingers before promptly lowering it to your vagina; spit-slicked fingers moving along your folds to spread your wetness with a purpose as her other hand held down your thigh, making sure you kept your legs apart for her. A groan of relief escaped you before you could realize and you bit down on your lower lip, feeling her explore. You heard her suck in a breath between her teeth as you glistened underneath her, marveling.

You felt yourself get impossibly more wet from her touch, and Bada immediately took advantage of that. She started to rub against you in slow, circular motions as your hips involuntarily jerked from the sensitivity. With a soothing shush, her grip on your thigh tightened as she let her fingers dig into your folds with more pressure, a soft moan falling from your lips.

“I’m starting to think you like begging.” Bada whispered longingly, fingers that knew exactly where to be circling against you with a deepening pace.

Unable and unwilling to answer, you brought a hand up to your mouth and pushed two fingers past your lips; you sucked around them, muffling your moans. The look Bada gave you was simply ravenous, and you then realized you were here to put on a show for her camera. Her thumb brushed down against your clit, and your eyes fell shut in pleasure, the ministration sending electric shocks across your lower belly as you were unable to stop your hips from rutting into her touch. You withdrew your fingers from your mouth and brought them to your breast, rolling your nipple under them.

You heard the taller girl cuss between your thighs, her fingers dropping lower as she followed the noises you made; spurring you on. Then, you felt her forefinger catch at your entrance, drawing circles around and all you could do was hold your breath.

Bada sank a finger into you, slow enough that the burn wasn’t overwhelming you, but you moaned all the same. She tentatively crooked her finger inside of you, intently watching your reactions, the grip she had on your thigh almost bruising. She began pumping her finger in and out of you, not too fast but fast enough to have you gasp her name, rewarding every honeyed moan with a curl of her finger.

“More…” You begged, toes curling.

“Yeah?” She whispered, pressing a kiss right where your inner thigh and core met before handing you exactly what you wished for.

Her middle finger pushed into you along with her index finger, and this time you felt the stretch more acutely. You audibly keened, nails digging into the fabric of the couch as she scissored her fingers inside of you, whispering soft praises encouraging you.

“That’s it, baby, let me make you feel good.”

Soon enough the burn was barely present, making way for an electrifying bundle of pleasure running up your spine. You rocked into her touch as much as Bada’s iron grip on you allowed, and she met you halfway, fingers pumping in and out of you at a steadily building pace.

The way she looked up at you was maddening: somewhere between wondrous amazement and self-satisfied smugness, drinking in every second of the way you opened up to her in more ways than one. She gave a sharp curl of her fingers, and your thighs twitched dangerously. Bada caught on immediately and began moving her fingers inside you in a come-hither motion, pulling every sweet noise from you that she could. You thrusted down harder, mouth agape as you zoned in on the ecstasy that overtook you.

“Third finger, baby girl.” And you somehow found a way to part your thighs almost impossibly further, your body eager to receive more.

While her two fingers were still curling inside you, the third one joined, and you choked on a moan. This time Bada didn’t give you time to get used to the stretch, as all three fingers curled inside you over and over again.

Feeling overwhelmed almost instantaneously, hushed cusses spilling from your mouth, you inadvertently wriggled backwards; but Bada immediately pulled you back, keeping you locked in place as she pumped her fingers in and out of you at an unforgiving pace. She knew your body too well, because soon enough you had your head thrown back and thrusted back into her motions, her long fingers finding the spot to curl into.

“You’re so fucking hot.” She mumbled, and before you knew it her mouth was on you, tongue digging between your folds as she continued pumping her wrist.

With her arm still curled around your thigh, she brought you closer to the edge of the couch; she wanted to dig in. Her name came out as a yelp as her lips closed around your bundle of nerves, sucking harshly as her moans began to reverberate against you. You brought a hand to the back of her head, fingers digging against her scalp as you held her in place, needing unfathomably more from her. Anything she was willing to give.

She swallowed around you so eagerly, so greedily, and then her hand let go of your thigh: she brought it between her own legs instead, fingers digging into her trousers.

You had to force yourself to look away or you would orgasm right then and there, feeling your eyes roll back instead. She was touching herself, rocking into her own hand as her mouth bobbed against you; her other hand still fucking into you. She was getting off to getting you off.

You thought you were going insane, only able to give into your instincts and rock into her movements, all the while pulling on her hair which she seemed to relish in: the both of you building up to a pace where she pushed in exactly as you thrusted. You felt your toes curl again as that familiar pressure in your lower stomach began building up, and your head lolled to the side. You were a sweaty, writhing mess, and Bada was moaning against you so loudly it made you lightheaded.

You noticed her own movements getting messier, too. Her wrist circled against herself as she slurped around you, and you brushed her bangs from her forehead to watch her own desperation overcome her. She curled her fingers inside of you again just as she sucked down on your clit, and you could've sworn you saw stars.

“Bada, I—” You began, warningly, as you fucked back against her, chasing after the uncoiling of your lower stomach.

Bada hummed encouragingly, nodding against you in a frenzied state herself and crooked her fingers sharply, beckoning you to let yourself go.

Something about the way she gasped and moaned against you, yet still remained so dedicated to give you exactly what you wanted, is what did it for you. You felt your orgasm ripple through you so sharply you felt dizzy. You clutched onto Bada’s head between your thighs as you shook all over, her fingers curling into you harshly as she sucked on your clit through your implosion, until you felt her tremble against you too.

She fell forward, teeth pressing down on the inside of your thigh as she came with your name on her lips, rutting into her hand. You moaned, sensitive all over but running your hands through her hair soothingly, nails caressing along her scalp.

The both of you stayed like that for a solid minute, catching your breaths, until Bada leaned up on her trembling knees; far enough to wrap her arms around your waist and lean up for a tender kiss. Completely smitten, you kissed back despite the heaving of your chest and you wordlessly urged her to get on the couch with you. The taller girl obliged, immediately climbing on top of you and nuzzling into your hold with a tired smile, her cheek pressed against your collarbones.

The both of you giggled at nothing in particular, your fingers tracing delicate lines along the side of her face.

As if experiencing a déjà vu, your eyes went to the camera perched on the table, inevitably recording, but the both of you too spent to do anything about it.

“You know,” you began, fingertips still absentmindedly caressing along Bada’s jawline, “You’re gonna need a better password for your laptop.”

#bada lee x reader #swf2 #bada lee #street woman fighter 2 #bada lee smut #dalla!writes #requests #ask

622 notes · View notes

roosterforme · 9 months

Text

The Younger Kind Part 28 | Rooster x Reader

Summary: Bradley is leaving soon, and everything is changing for you. As your graduation approaches, he takes some matters into his own hands. He wants to share everything with you, and sometimes it's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission.

Warnings: Angst, swearing, fluff, smut, and age gap (18+)

Length: 4700 words

Pairing: Single dad!Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw x babysitter!female reader

Check out my masterlist for more! The Younger Kind masterlist.

Sunday night ended up being family night, and Bradley was hoping it could become a regular occurrence. The three of you went to see a movie, and Noah sat in the middle. Or at least he started out there. About halfway through, Bradley scooped Noah up onto his lap and slid over one seat, wanting to be closer to you.

So when the movie wrapped up and you had your fingers laced with his and your head resting on his shoulder, Bradley made it a point to say this should happen all the time.

You kissed Noah's cheek and then his before you stood. "But you'll be deployed soon, Daddy."

He eyed you up and down as he stood with Noah's arms wrapped around his neck. "Trust me. I know how much I'll be missing out on when I'm gone. The two of you will be eating homemade food and taking nature hikes."

"And coloring," Noah supplied.

"Can't forget about that," Bradley said, reaching for your hand. "Now let's get you home. One of you has daycare in the morning, and one of you has finals."

"I still wish you could come with me," you whispered, letting your cheek rest on his bicep on the way to the parking lot. "I'm sure I'd do much better if I got to sit on your lap and eat Skittles the whole time."

After Bradley buckled Noah into his carseat, he wrapped his hands around your hips and pulled your body to his. "No reason we can't keep having sexy Skittles time at home," he rasped. "There's something magical about you and me and the living room couch."

You whimpered as your hands came to rest on his chest. When you pressed your glossy lips together, Bradley wanted to take you right up against the Bronco again. But he knew everyone needed to call it an early night, which probably meant no sex.

So he opened your door for you and helped you inside and then drove home. When you and he were in bed for the night, he kept his hands in innocent enough places as you studied a few more things on your phone. He quizzed you on a few topics, and when you started yawning, he insisted it was time to go to sleep.

"You'll do great, Princess," he whispered, gathering you up in front of his big body and spooning you. "I love you."

"Love you, Daddy," you sighed softly as you fell asleep. Truth be told, he was less worried about your day than he was his, because he knew you'd do great. Meanwhile Bradley was going to have to run across town during lunch to meet with Tracy. He already had a case of Red Bull in the back of the Bronco that you insisted he should take to her. And he had to follow through with everything related to Meredith, which were some loose ends he was anxious to get tied up.

He usually slept great with your body tucked against his and his hand resting on your belly, but not tonight. Noah was old enough now that the deployments were going to get harder. And Bradley didn't know what he was going to do if you wouldn't move in with him. Or if you found a job outside of San Diego and moved away. You told him you applied to a world-renowned hospital in Arizona. What exactly was he supposed to do with that information? Demand that you stay here in California and continue to love the two of them forever?

His lips came to rest on your neck, and you whimpered in your sleep. This was the first time Bradley had ever felt this way. He supposed he'd loved Meredith. He'd been in love with another of his exes, too. But this was insane. And you were so young, Bradley could feel you holding back when he talked too much about the future. So he knew he was going to have to keep things exactly where they were for a few more months, at least until he got home.

He must have dozed off eventually, because he woke to you kissing his forehead and whispering, "I'm heading to campus. Good luck with Tracy."

"Wait," he grunted, sitting up and reaching for you. He tugged on your hand until you were sprawled across him in bed giggling softly. Bradley cupped your neck with one hand and stroked your cheek with his thumb. "You'll do great today, Baby. You're incredible."

With a kiss to the tip of his nose, you were running out of his bedroom, and Bradley decided to just get up for the day as well. And when he went into the kitchen, he found a full breakfast spread for him and Noah on the table. Fruit, bagels, jelly and muffins. And a little note for him to read to Noah saying you had to leave too early to say good morning, but that you'd be back in time for dinner.

"Fuck," Bradley groaned, holding the note in one hand and cradling his face in the other. He needed you here. They both did. It was startling that he could hardly remember what it was like before he met you.

"Daddy?" Noah called from the hallway, and then Bradley got started on the morning routine.

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

When Tracy's receptionist opened her office door for him, Bradley strolled in wearing his flight suit and carrying the case of cans of Red Bulls. Tracy looked up from her small conference table and started laughing.

"You're a client," she informed him. "I shouldn't accept gifts from clients."

He shook his head. "Not from me. From my girlfriend."

"Ah," she said, reaching out to take it from him. "Then I accept. Have a seat."

Then Bradley was presented with a huge folder of things to read and sign. Tracy went through all of it with him and answered what seemed like a hundred questions, and after an hour, he'd worked his way to the end. "So what does that all mean exactly?"

She ran a purple highlighter over his name on the last sheet and said, "Means you are Noah's sole legal guardian. The only one who has rights to anything related to custody. As soon as you pay me and I file the paperwork, that is."

Bradley was reaching for his checkbook right away, but Tracy held up a hand. "Not yet. You asked me to look into appointing a temporary guardian for Noah? And what it would take to get a protective order?"

"Three protective orders," Bradley clarified. "All against Meredith."

Tracy sighed and leaned back in her seat. "You want to appoint your girlfriend as a temporary guardian? While you're deployed?"

"Yes."

"No problem. We can fill that paperwork out right now."

Bradley's heart soared in his chest. But only until Tracy said, "However... getting protective orders against Meredith for all three of you is going to be a little bit tricky."

"How?" Bradley demanded. "She attacked my family when they were at a playground! I can't be around to watch them all the time."

She shook her head. "I'm not talking about them. I'm talking about you. If you know you're leaving for deployment, you'll have to disclose that information to the clerk. And if you try to lie about it, then I won't be able to represent you any further."

"What does my deployment have to do with the fact that I know my girlfriend still thinks about slamming into the parking lot at Myers Park? I was picking asphalt out of her arm."

She shrugged like she knew he was right. "Exactly. But the only times you saw Meredith were when you invited her into your house and when she accidentally ran into you at the coffee shop."

"I doubt that was an accident," Bradley ground out through gritted teeth.

"Be that as it may," Tracy said, walking across the room for two water bottles, "when you combine that with the fact that you'll be out of the country, you may be denied."

Bradley sat quietly for a moment and sipped the water bottle he was given. "Well, can I file for the three of us anyway?"

"Sure. The filing fees will total around $1,300. And you can sign for Noah. She will have to sign and submit hers on her own behalf."

"Give me the papers," he said, and she stood to print them out. "And if you have the time, I'd like to ask you what exactly would be involved if I ever get married and decide I want someone to adopt Noah."

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

Bradley and Noah were already home when you got there, and you went running inside with your tote bag smacking your hip. "Bradley?" you shouted, sprinting into the kitchen and right into his arms. "I aced my anatomy exam," you whispered against his lips as you threw your arms around his neck.

He slipped his hands around your waist and held you as he kissed you. "I knew it," he said with a smile as you kissed him a little harder. Your fingers were in his hair and you were tasting his mouth with your body pressed again his hard chest and abs. And then you heard Noah scoot his chair across the floor, and he came over to investigate.

With a soft grunt, Bradley let go of you. Then you knelt down and kissed the top of Noah's head. But when you looked back up at Bradley, his eyes were needy as he planted his hands on his hips.

"I didn't even get to the best news yet," you told him as Noah hugged you. "I have two job interviews tomorrow. One in the morning and one in the afternoon."

Bradley pulled you to your feet, and Noah was sandwiched between you. "Where are the jobs?" he asked, his voice a little rough.

You licked your lips and smiled at him, but he looked apprehensive. "One is in a hospital and the other is private practice. I'm excited about both of them."

"Are they here?" he asked, his left hand gripping your waist a little tight. "In San Diego?"

"Yes," you replied. You turned down interviews with a few out of state jobs already. It was a no brainer at this point; you wouldn't be this happy anywhere else. "I want to stay in San Diego."

After that, Bradley didn't leave your side for the rest of the night. He helped you make dinner, he helped you get Noah ready for bed, and then he helped you get organized for both of your interviews. And he kept kissing you as often as he could. "You're clingy tonight, Daddy," you said as he pulled you onto his lap on the couch. "Not that I mind, really."

His hands were up inside your shirt, his big palms flat on your waist. "You scared me with that Arizona bullshit the other day."

You snorted and kissed his cheek. "I applied for that one after I thought you and Helen were hooking up."

"Shhh." He shushed you and then kissed your lips. "Don't say that. You belong right here."

You licked his lips and wiggled yourself against him. "Right here? With your dick poking at me?"

He was trying not to laugh. You could tell. You always got a good laugh out of him, and this time he chuckled before he ground himself up against you. "Yes, Princess. Right here on my dick."

He let you tilt his head back against the couch so you could take control of kissing him. It was sloppy and hot, and he had your shirt and bra off in no time. He used his big hands to slow down the rolling of your hips as he dipped his lips down to tease your breasts. He wasn't rushing anything, just gently sucking and releasing you with soft moans and grunts. But you were going to lose it. Your fingers were tugging on his hair, and you thought you might cum with your jeans on.

"You're so sensitive," he whispered, nibbling on the underside of your left breast. His tongue flicked over your nipple and you whined his name. "Gorgeous tits."

When you slipped down to the floor between his legs, intending to suck his dick here like that very first night, you only got your lips around his cock for a few seconds before he wrapped his hand around the front of your neck and stopped you. "What are you doing? I want your daddy dick."

"Fuck," Bradley growled. "You're gonna get it." He eased you back onto the floor and stripped your jeans off you and pulled his own pants down to his knees. "I said you belong on my dick. You didn't disagree."

He kissed the valley between your breasts before rolling to your side. He looked cocky, laying next to the snag in the area rug with his arms folded behind his head. But he had every right to lay there with a smug expression, because his cock was huge, and he knew how to use it.

"I don't disagree," you whispered, straddling him and slipping him inside where he stretched you until you were gasping and grabbing at his shirt. With the fabric balled up in both fists, you leaned down to kiss him and whisper, "You're huge, Daddy."

"Mmm," he hummed, kissing you back but making no move to touch you. "Show me what you got, Baby."

You were clenching just from his words alone, and when you started riding him, you teased your own clit with your middle finger. He had you doing all the work to get yourself off. Not that it was difficult with his cock inside you and his handsome face to look at. When you squeezed your breasts, it looked like he was going to reach for you, but instead he just let himself relax and watch. It shouldn't have surprised you that you got off twice on him like this, moaning and jerking your body along. You were sweating and shaking after the second time you came, and Bradley eventually reached up and stroked his fingers along your neck again.

"Did you get enough?" he asked, and you nodded vigorously. "You ready for me to cum in that pussy?"

"God, yes," you moaned, and he brought his hands to your hips and guided you in a smooth rolling motion that would have been enough for you to finish again if you weren't so wrung out.

"I'll cum for you," he grunted. "Every fucking time." And then he was gritting his teeth, the veins in his neck and forehead so prominent against his skin. And he came with your raspy name on his lips.

You snuggled against his chest, thoroughly exhausted but honestly having the best day. He rubbed your back gently and kissed the top of your head. "God, you're such a good girl," he whispered, and you let out the most embarrassing sound in response that just made him chuckle.

"I'm ready for bed," you informed him a minute later as you let his soft cock slip out of you.

When you met his eyes, he kissed you softly and said, "Can you do one thing for me first? In the kitchen?"

So you pulled your underwear and shirt back on and shuffled into the kitchen with his hand on your hip. He nodded at the table, and you sank down, exhausted, into one of the chairs.

"Would you mind filling this out?" he asked, handing you a pen and some paperwork. But you froze when you really looked at it.

"You want me to fill out a petition for an order of protection?" you asked, looking up at him. "Against Meredith? Did Tracy say this was a good idea?"

He kissed you so well, you decided to stop questioning everything. And when he said, "Yes, Princess. Please fill it out," he stood next to your chair as you started writing your name at the top. You filled everything out all the way to the bottom. You wrote a bit about Meredith at Myers Park which gave you chills. When you filled out your social security number, Bradley removed his hand from your back to type something up in his phone. But when you got to the end and saw that it would require over four hundred bucks to process this form, you pushed it aside.

"You know, I don't think this is actually necessary." You set the pen down on top of it and added, "I think the most important thing is that you and Noah have some sort of protection in place like-"

Bradley silenced you with a lingering kiss that trailed off into a dozen tiny kisses before he pulled his lips away from yours. "It's necessary. I need to know that I did everything I could to keep you and Noah protected, okay? And I'll pay for it."

But you didn't want him to. You should be able to do things like that for yourself. And you would! In a few weeks you'd hopefully have a steady income. Things would be different then. You could buy new clothes, and it wouldn't be the end of the world if your car died. But right now, paying to have this form processed would be a stretch beyond what you could afford. And you were about to tell Bradley no and rip it up, but he was holding his phone screen in front of your face.

"Pick a design," he said, placing the phone in your hand. "They have one with a princess crown I thought you might enjoy."

"What's this for?" you asked, completely puzzled while looking at the Mastercard website. "I don't need another credit card."

"I added you to my account," he said confidently. "Just pick a design so I can order your card and have it arrive before I deploy."

"What?" you gasped, handing the phone right back to him and standing up. "No, you don't have to do that. Don't add me."

"I already did, Baby. I just read your social security number off the form you filled out. Choosing a card design is the last step, and the page is going to time out in a minute. You want the one with the princess crown?"

"You shouldn't be paying for things for me," you protested. "I'll use my own credit card while you're away. I'll have a job!"

"No," he said, shaking his head and holding up his phone. "When I'm gone, you'll be one hundred percent responsible for Noah. I'm adding you as a temporary guardian for him. I'm paying for an order of protection for you. I'm paying for everything. You have thirty four seconds left to pick a card design, by the way."

You glanced at the screen and looked at the timer before meeting his eyes again. "I can use my own card, and you can pay me back later."

"Absolutely not. You're making my life easier. Just knowing that Noah is with you of all people serves a dual purpose. I know he'll be taken care of, and I know you won't be too lonely. Twelve seconds."

"But, Bradley-"

"Pick a card, or I'll leave Noah with Penny."

You glared at him and reached out to tap the purple credit card design with the gold crown on it.

"Now was that really so hard?" he asked with a satisfied smile.

"You're obnoxious." But you kissed his cheek, and then he followed you to the bathroom for a shower, reminding you that he put five hundred dollars cash behind the TV.

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

Your graduation was coming up on Friday night, and you'd been so busy all week, Bradley had barely seen you. You told him both of your interviews had gone well when you got home on Tuesday, but you hadn't shared much more beyond that. He got the sense that you were hoping for one or two job offers, but you didn't want to jinx anything. So he just asked you a few open ended questions as you snuggled on the couch with him.

Then you told him he and Noah would have to eat leftovers for dinner on Wednesday, because you were going out with some people you knew from school.

"Will Greyson be there?" he asked immediately, wrapping his hands around your waist. "Or those other fraternity idiots who deserve to feel my fists connect with their faces?"

You placed open mouthed kisses along his scarred neck in response before promising it was only a few girls going out together. "Just some ladies who will drool on themselves if I mention how sexy you are. But I appreciate your enthusiasm, Daddy."

"You want me to drop you off and pick you up? Just in case? And that way you can drink as much as you want?" He knew he sounded clingy. He felt fucking clingy. It must be the result of his upcoming deployment weighing so heavily on his mind, but he didn't really care. He wanted you with him all the damn time, and he wanted you to know it.

You responded by raking your fingers through his hair and sucking on his neck. "You're such a Daddy," you whined, dragging your lips along his skin and kissing his stubbled jaw. "You always want to take care of me, but I always want to take care of you."

And a minute later, you were sucking his dick like only you could. Soft, innocent eyes that just made him harder, and long lashes that brushed your cheeks when you gagged on him. After he came for you, he watched you swallow him down and then lay with your cheek on his bare thigh with your fingers softly brushing along his trimmed hair up to his abs.

"You take care of me," he whispered after a few silent beats, earning him a smirk as your lips grazed his soft cock. "And not just like that. You make my house feel warm. You adore my kid." As he ran his knuckles softly along your cheek, he watched your eyes flutter closed. "I've never loved someone like this before."

"You haven't?" you asked softly as your warm breath teased his thigh.

"No," he promised. "Nothing even close to this, Princess."

So when Wednesday night came, and you went out, Bradley put Noah to bed after he whined about how he missed you. Then he settled on the couch alone and put a movie on. When the movie ended, and you still weren't back, he thought about texting you. Had he misunderstood about you going back to your forgotten rental for the night or something? The idea made him uncomfortable. You didn't belong there any longer.

Bradley responded to some texts from Nat so his phone would already be in his hand if you tried to contact him. He was just deleting some old emails when he heard your car pull into the driveway, and then your key was in the door.

"Hi," you whispered, rushing inside and gently closing the door before heading his way in your pretty dress. You were smiling as you climbed right on top of him where he was stretched out on the couch.

"Hi," he replied before your lips met his. "Did you have fun?"

You grinned and braced your hands on the arm of the couch behind his head. "Yes, but I missed you. And I logged in to check my grades when they posted at six o'clock."

He let his hands rest on your back. "And? How did you do?"

"I had a 4.0 this semester, probably because you're the best study partner, Daddy."

He smiled up at you. "Or maybe you got perfect grades, because you're perfect. And Noah and I will be in the front row at your graduation on Friday. Can't wait to watch my perfect girlfriend in action."

"Are you really going to sit in the front row?" you asked with a kiss to his cheek.

"Yeah. I'll push my way up there. I'll knock over elderly people if I have to."

"Oh," you said with a snicker, "so you'll knock over people your own age for a better seat?"

Bradley smacked your ass while you laughed, and he hauled you to bed.

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

You wanted to tell Bradley your good news in person, but you didn't get a chance to see him before your commencement ceremony started. Where you were standing off to the side backstage, you could see the front row starting to fill up. When you saw someone's elderly grandmother hustling along with a walker, you had to bite back your laughter. Because a moment later, Bradley came rushing for one of the only remaining empty seats left up front with Noah in his arms.

As soon as they were settled in, you pulled out your phone and texted him.

Nice work. You didn't even have to trip that old lady to get a seat.

You watched him take his phone out of his pocket and smile as he entered his passcode. Then his shoulders shook with laughter as he eyed the woman and her walker where she sat right next to him. And then he started to look around the room, clearly trying to figure out where you were, but it was time for you to collect your diploma.

Bradley Bradshaw: Nothing is going to keep us from watching our Princess. Noah is very excited.

You were excited, too. For so many reasons. When your name was called, and you walked across the stage to collect your diploma, you could hear Bradley's voice over the rest of the crowd in the auditorium. As you turned back toward your seat, you blew them a kiss. And you barely heard a word of the speeches, because you couldn't keep your eyes off them.

And then it was all over, and you were no longer a student. Anxious to get to them so you could get home and talk to Bradley, you nearly tripped over the old lady's walker yourself. "Careful," Bradley said, laughing harder than you thought was necessary as he caught you. "Or you'll be the one who needs a walker."

You ignored him and kissed Noah's chubby cheek as he hugged you around your neck. He tried to say congratulations a few times, but then he just went back to hugging you instead.

"I love you, sweet Noah. And I love you too, Daddy."

"Ready?" Bradley asked, taking Noah from your arms and leading the way out to the parking lot with his hand resting on your back.

You followed them in your car, and when you pulled into the driveway, Bradley was scooping Noah out of his carseat. "He's out," he muttered as you opened the front door for them.

You gasped. The house smelled like fresh flowers and something sweet. When you turned on the light, there were flowers everywhere. Noah had made a banner out of construction paper that was all taped together. And when you went into the kitchen, you found champagne, a stack of adult coloring books, and a small cake decorated with Skittles. It took Bradley a minute to get Noah in his bed, but when he strolled into the kitchen still wearing his sexy suit, you threw yourself at him.

"Let's open the champagne," he muttered next to your ear. "And then we can eat some Skittles cake. And you can take me to bed and do whatever you want with me."

You giggled as he backed you up to the counter. "I have more good news."

It wasn't lost on you the way Bradley's lips parted in silence before his eyes dipped down to your belly. "Do you?"

You nodded and bit your lip. Maybe what you had to say wasn't actually that exciting at all, but you blurted out, "I got two job offers."

"Princess!" Bradley gasped, gathering you up into his arms. "Of course you did, Baby. Everyone wants a piece of you." He set you down on the counter and kissed you about a thousand times. He told you he was proud of you. He told you he would help you make a decision by next week. And then he fed you some Skittles cake, but you insisted on splitting it with him 50/50.

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

Daddy will be gone soon. I have a lot of asks about dirty/sweet/loving/rough goodbye sex with Daddy and Princess. So stay tuned for that. Hope you enjoy your fic, @beyondthesefourwalls And thank you @mak-32 !

PART 29

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omarcitoloves · 2 months

Text

simon's arc and growth in s3 was one of my favorite storylines and is one of the main reasons i like s3 so much.

in s1 we got to see the foundations of such a beautiful complex character - a boy who loves his family and those who have earned their way into his heart almost more than himself, loyal to a fault, vibrant and not afraid to make himself more of an outsider by standing by his ethos and personality.

and simon being his truest self taught the 2 most important ppl in his life their key lessons. sara now understands the gift of giving ppl second chances and wanting to hope they wont always fuck it all up. and wille learned everything from simon. how to love unashamedly. how to believe in yourself. how to look outside of yourself. how to speak your mind. how to forgive. how to live freely

idk i think there is something so missing in ppl who cant understand his character in s3 and maybe its a lack of life experience but knowing when you need to remove yourself from a situation that is destroying you and the ppl you love is important and real. he made himself so small to try and fit for willes life and that hurt them both, wille needed shining simon as much as simon did.

love is not always enough and simon was brave for recognizing that. for continuing to stand by issues and ideals that were deeply important to him. to recognize when his own actions were causing ppl harm. to continue to forgive and give ppl more chances despite being hurt but also knowing when he needs to put himself first

on my first watch of s3ep6 it something i couldnt stop thinking abt and i stand by it on a few rewatches, for someone so integral to everyone's personal growth bc he was that catalyst or lesson for them, he felt a bit forgotten. and i get there was a lot of loose ends to be tied up but im ngl he felt a little rushed/in limbo bc of it but i still think he had a full beautiful arc in s3. and the way ppl still damn him for every move makes me wish he had even more time to develop throughout esp s2 i wish everyone could see just how beautiful and complex simon is and how he is the base of everyone around him

#simon eriksson #he is my son and i will stand by him until i die #rambles at 2 am idek if this is fully coherent but oh well #was reading the song of achilles and it reminded me a bit too much of my love for yr at the beginning #he deserves just as much empathy and grace as every other character #he is not villain #young royals #young royals s3 #young royals analysis #young royals character analysis

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hey-kae · 1 year

Note

request for max, if possible: you live together and your male best friend stays for like 2 days and max gets real jealous, becuase you have inside jokes and so if you‘re up to it, maybe ending in smut, but you ofc don‘t have to 😚

Got it through

Pairing: Max Verstappen x female reader

Warnings: Language, unprotected sex, fingering, oral sex (female receiving), PDA, probably has lots of mistakes.

a/n: i hope you enjoy this and i’m sorry for how long it took for me to write it. PS: my laptop deleted the proofread version but i wanted to post it still so i will proofread it again tomorrow…

When you first broke the news to Max that an old friend of yours was gonna visit the two of you over the weekend, he was excited as he always was whenever he got to meet any of the people close to you. He went grocery shopping with you and was quite helpful in helping you prepare the guest bedroom for your visitor.

One detail that you had spared him was the fact that the person visiting was your best friend, your guy best friend, so when he offered to pick him up at the airport while you finished up cooking the food you two had started preparing, you bit back a smile and agreed, giving Max a nod and a quick kiss before rushing back to the stove when a burning smell had started originating.

With that, Max disappeared out the door, keys jiggling in his hand as he got going. Meanwhile, the smile on your face was quite prominent as you envisioned Max's reaction when he would come face to face with Marc.

There was two possible outcomes to this: hell would break loose or you would get a good laugh out of it.

A while later, your phone pinged, notifying you of a message that came through. You rushed to it, wiping your hands against the apron tied around your waist before picking up the device and reading the notification.

Max: It's a he?!

You could've told me

And just like that, the most interesting days you've had in a while began.

An hour passed before they arrived home, Max trailing behind Marc with a frown on his face, watching very closely as your friend wrapped his arms around you in a tight hug that, much to your boyfriend's distaste, you returned with just as much affection. Then, as Marc followed you to the kitchen, kindly offering to lend you a hand as you sliced a loaf of bread, Max followed in his footsteps, eyeing him up and down with his fisted hands tucked in his pockets, a funny scowl never leaving his face.

"I think you should shower, mate." He said out of the blue, taking you by utter surprise while tapping Marc's shoulders with a tight-lipped smile, "Don't misunderstand me. I don't think you're dirty or smelly." He gave him a once over, "It's just what we do after being at the airport, kind of a law around our house."

Your brows furrowed as you watched Max come up with a rule on the spot, all while Marc looked immensely taken back, glancing at you from the corner of his eye, looking intimidated by your boyfriend. You could swear you saw a glimpse of fear in his eyes.

Max followed his gaze to you and you could practically see him trying not to roll his eyes.

"Come on. I will show you to the guest room and bathroom." He practically guiding Marc away from the kitchen and you had to bite back a laugh that was begging to push past your lips.

You could hear the commotion of what seemed to be Marc being clueless to how the shower works and Max explaining that to him and it went on for several minutes before you felt Max's hands plant themselves on your hips as he turned your around to face him.

"Marc, huh?" He asked, half seriously. However, despite his apparent question, he didn't give you time to answer. His lips met yours possessively in a messy kiss. It barely took seconds until his tongue was meeting yours halfway, his teeth occasionally pulling and nibbling on your lips as he trailed his hands down to your ass, squeezing it in a surprising manner that made you let out a small moan.

He took the opportunity and used the small moment of uncertainty on your part to push you up onto the counter, his body pushing your legs apart until he was stood between them, his hands kneading the inside of your thighs and holding them apart while he continued claiming your lips aggressively.

A straggled breath got stuck in your throat when his hand cupped your pussy, one finger pushing harder than the rest, applying perfect pressure onto your clothed clit.

"Max..." You gasped, you hand latching onto his hair as you head fell back and his kisses traveled down onto your neck.

"Fucking love hearing you like this, you know?" He breathlessly said.

"I know, but you have to stop. Marc might..." He didn't care for what you were saying. His slipped his hand into your pants and panties and applied teasing pressure onto your pulsating entrance, leaving you to subconsciously grind against his fingers, your body now with a mind of its own, asking him for more.

He responded with just what you needed, his thumb played and rubbed your clit as he pushed to fingers into your warm and wet pussy, your walls immediately clenching around his digits and your body arching towards him.

"Fuck." You whined and moved your hips in accordance to his fingers' thrusts, already chasing a high, a thought in the very back of your mind convincing you that you would get to come before Marc came back.

Max was desperate to prove you wrong and leave you flustered in front of your friend, therefore he kept his movements slow until the sound of the guest bathroom's lock echoed from a distance. He pulled away from you and sucked your wetness off his fingers, as you watched him breathlessly, somewhat pissed.

"Marc, my man!" He welcomed your friend back in the room, "I already can feel it, these two days are gonna be so fun!" Max's fake cheer filled the room, his cheesy smile looking very obviously fake to you as he took a seat on a chair, one leg crossed over the other with pure confidence.

The rest of the day went on fine until dinner came around and the three of you took seats around the dining table.

"So..." Max started as he ate, "How long have you known my girlfriend?" He looked at Marc, directing the question to him.

"We were like... 14 when we met. We've been friends for a while." Marc smiled at you and you smiled back before taking a much needed sip of your drink.

"Ah, 14. Right at the beginning of teenage years and shit, right?"

"Yeah!" Marc excitedly agreed, "We had so many teen adventures together. The first time we got drunk, we were together!"

Max's brow's rose in fake pleasantry as he gave you a weird smile, "You were quite naughty kids, you two!"

"Max, what?" You masked your annoyance with a giggle and started a mental countdown until this dinner was over, but it went on for way longer that it should've as Max dragged out the conversation with a fake cheer you'd never seen him have but when Marc excused himself and retreated to him room, and after cleaning everything quickly, Max practically carried you to your room, pushing you onto the bed and immediately climbing on top of you, kissing you as he slipped his hand into your shirt, yanked down the cups of your bra and pinched a nipple, making you moan into his mouth, your mind still not comprehending the quick pace Max was setting.

Within a few minutes, your clothes were scattered on the floor and he was lodged between your thighs, his tongue working its way between your folds, toying with your clit like he wanted to do that for a while. Your back was almost always arched off the bed, your eyes screwed shut as you turned into a moaning mess, the only sounds leaving your mouth besides that being begs for more.

"Max, please. Please, more." You whined, pulling on his hair as you firmly held you down on the mattress.

"Be specific, baby." He teased, swiping his tongue slowly up and down, teasing your entrance then sucking on your clit again, leaving you breathless.

"Your fingers, please."

"What about them?" He acted clueless.

"Max, i want you to fuck me with your fingers, i want them inside me." You sternly said, having had enough of his shit.

He smirked at your demanding tone, held your legs apart and pushed in two fingers that were quick to disappear into your soaking wet pussy.

A loud moan left your mouth and you immediately got lost in the pleasure he was giving you, the feeling bubbling inside you almost euphoric that the moans just kept coming, some of them riskily high in volume.

Your eyes screwed tight-shut and your head dug back into the mattress as your hands clamped over your mouth to muffle the sounds that you had practically lost control over. Just in time, Max glanced up at you and instantly disliked what you were doing.

"Let me hear you, babe." He sternly instructed.

"Max, Marc could hear." You pushed the words past your heavy breaths and locked eyes with him in warning.

"I swear to fucking God, I'll stop all this and leave you whining and begging." He spoke with determination and you could almost see his anger bubbling, "Take your hands off your mouth."

Just like that, your hands were back clutching onto the sheets as Max's fingers continued being thrusted into your contracting pussy, giving you an orgasm that left you writhing on the bed, breathing heavily as you struggled to regain your composure since your boyfriend's tongue was immediately lapping at your clit after that first release, eager to bring you to another, more powerful one, the only thought on his mind being making this night as uncomfortable as possible for Marc.

He moved his tongue up and down your slit, then teased your entrance with it, pushing it into your pussy a little more every time until your hands dug through his hair and you forced him into a consistent movement. Max also didn't hesitate to put his fingers to use, toying and playing slowly with your clit as if he was doing it for his own enjoyment.

"Fuck, i'm gonna cum again." You whimpered and Max had to resist the urge to smirk immediately. Instead, he guided you through your orgasm, taking ultimate pleasure in the pornographic moans leaving your mouth as your body trashed beneath him.

"That's it, let go." He reassured and he moved a hand up to pinch your erect nipple. The pleasure exploded in the pit of your stomach and your back arched off the bed as you released once again.

Max shifted his gaze toward you with a hidden smirk on his face and judging only by his expression and the glimmer in his eyes, you knew this would be a long night, one that would only go up from here, and as the hours rolled, you figured out you were right.

Several other orgasms later and after various different positions Max had you in, you found yourself exhausted, face down on the bed, your hands desperately gripping onto the pillows in front of you while your moans turned to whimpers as Max pushed into you repeatedly and at a perfect pace, feeling you clench onto his cock every time he hit your sensitive spot with a steady pace until you came again and he released inside you with a loud, straggled moan before he collapsed beside you on the mattress.

"Fuck." You exhaled as you relaxed your body and turned to face your panting boyfriend, the look on your face lazy and worn out. You just laid there in your post orgasm calm, blinking slowly and catching your breath until Max pulled you closer and wrapped his arm around you, giving your forehead a kiss and combing his fingers through your tangled hair.

"What was all that about?" You chuckled and held tighter onto him.

His eyes closed as he let out a small laugh, replacing an actual answer with three simple words, "I love you."

"I love you too, Max." You pushed yourself up and kissed his lips then proceeded to sit up, "I need a shower, i'll be back in a little." You explained to him and left the bed in search of your towels and bath essentials then rushed to the bathroom connected to the bedroom.

Just as you were closing the door, Max's head poked through, a silly smile on his face.

"I'm joining, babe."

The next morning, as you woke up in Max's arm, the fact that your friend was visiting seemed to be completely off your mind but as you fiddled around the room, grabbing something to wear, it washed over you that Marc could've heard at least part of last night's shenanigans. How could he not when the aftermath, even hours later, was shaky legs?

You pulled some comfortable clothes on and jumped back into the bed, shaking Max awake.

"Max, wake up." You patted his bare back in urgency, "Max! C'mon."

"Good morning to you too." He groaned into his pillow, burying himself further under the sheets.

"Max, what if Marc heard us?" You gave in and laid on his back, asking the question right into his ear.

With his eyes still shut, he laughed at that. The fucker laughed and suddenly you understood why he insisted you don't muffle the sounds yesterday.

"Oh my fucking god, you did not!" You swatted his shoulder, "How am i supposed to look him in the eye now?" Just like that, you were back on your feet.

"I don't care. For all i know, i would have gotten it through, that he has no chance with you." He boasted and he turned onto his back, "Plus, i was enjoying your sounds too much for you to hold them back for that guy's comfort. This is our place after all."

Your thoughts started racing and for a minute, deep down, you had to admit that the situation was amusing in some twisted way, even more to you than it was to Max but you let that go for now. It was gonna be embarrassing nonetheless to spend the day with Marc now. Deep down you still had hope you would get away with this, that he didn't hear a single thing. Maybe he was the kind of people that slept with earbuds in or something of that sort.

Clinging onto that hope, you emerged out of the room and made your way to the kitchen, needing a cup of coffee. Thankfully, the kitchen was still empty and quiet, warm with soft sunshine peaking through the window.

As soon as the coffee machine was on, you peaked your head into the hallway, checking for any traces that Marc might've woken up, but his bedroom door was still shut and no sounds were heard from him.

Taking a seat by the kitchen table, you pulled out your phone to keep yourself occupied, scrolling through your social media pages and the various posts on there until Max, now dressed in sweats and a t-shirt, joined you in the kitchen with a stupid grin on his face.

The minutes passed and before you knew it, you heard Marc's door unlock, the sound quickly being followed by the one of his footsteps in the hallway.

"Max, don't make him uncomfortable, okay?" You warned your boyfriend in a rushed whisper and received a smirk from him just as Marc walked in.

"Uhh," he stared weirdly at the difference between your expression and Max's, "hello- Good morning, i mean." Marc scratched the back of his head in discomfort.

"Good morning, mate!" Max cheerily said, leaving his chair and walking toward your friend, "You slept well?" He patted his shoulder in a bit of a too rough greeting.

You flashed him a glare immediately but it went unnoticed.

"Yeah, i slept okay." Marc took a few steps away from Max's towering figure. It really wasn't helping, the fact that Max was quite taller than him.

"Marc, do you still take your coffee black?" You left your mug on the table and got up to serve your guest.

"Black is fine." He replied shortly with a tight lipped smile so you poured him a cup and the three of you sat in the kitchen for a while.

It was safe to say that breakfast was the most uncomfortable of your life. Max's hand was firm on your thigh every time you sat and every time you got up, he found an excuse to then allowed his hands to wander either to your waist or shoulders. He was being touchier than he has ever been and Marc was obviously noticing the clinginess, his body language portraying easily how uncomfortable he felt, especially since Max wasn't sparing him of the quick smirks and challenging eyes he repeatedly shot his way.

Luckily, Marc had a few things to do around the city throughout the day so he left the apartment shortly after breakfast, leaving you and Max alone to lounge around, the laziness only interrupted for an hour when Max decided to work out and you decided yo watch him, what mildly turned you on, leading to a bit of making out on the living room couch, only to be startled by the doorbell just as it started getting heated.

"Fucking hell..." Max groaned into your mouth and sat up, reaching for a cushion to hide his boner as you fixed your shirt and got up to open the door.

Obviously, Marc was stood there, smiling with takeout containers in his hands, his smile turning awkward when he took notice of your messy hair, plump lips and Max's weird sitting position.

"I brought lunch, i guess." He treaded in carefully.

"Thank you, Marc! You really didn't have to." You thanked as you walked behind him, attempting to fix your hair with your hands.

"Oh, it's nothing!" He reassured.

Minutes later, the three of you were gathered around the dining table, eating and chatting, the latter only being done occasionally to break the silence.

"Thanks for the food, mate." Max, the first to finish eating thanked and got up, "I think I'm gonna take a nap. I slept awful last night." He excused himself and left the room.

You quickly took notice of Marc’s blushing face.

Silence reigned until it could be heard that Max was in the room with the door closed. That’s when Marc started talking again.

“Girl, i though you were getting murdered last night! He can’t be that good, right?”

“Shit, i’m so so sorry. We just got a bit carried away. I think he sees you as a competition and wants to prove a point.” You rubbed at your forehead in embarrassment.

“Wait…” Marc dragged the word on, “You didn’t tell him?”

“No! I didn’t know if you wanted me to! You’re not out to many people yet and i didn’t want to cross any boundaries.” You explained yourself and watched Marc burst out laughing.

“Oh my god.” He wheezed, “This is fucking hilarious! And i was out here thinking why the fuck he was almost groping you.” He leaned back in his chair, holding his stomach as he laughed.

“Oh, shut up!” You pouted away a smile, “You want me to tell him? That’s okay with you?”

“Yeah, that’s okay! But this is funny, honestly. Wait until i leave and tell him.”

And just like that you had a deal.

Over the next two days that Marc was staying for, Max got more and more possessive but that was only because your friend was also going out of his way to act extra affectionate towards you, for example ruffling your hair as he passed by you, or putting on your favorite songs while he helped you cook.

Then, Marc would be struggling to contain his laughter when after those acts, Max would pull you onto his lap while watching movies in the evening and kiss you for a bit too long when he left for the bathroom.

The day Marc left, as he was saying his goodbyes and thank yous, he whispered quickly in your ear to let him know how Max reacts and right them and there, you almost lost it and burst out in laughter but you bit your tongue and pushed the urge away, watched the firm handshake Max was giving Marc with a glare and a smirk on his face.

When he shut the door and turned towards you, he was quick to complain again.

“Even his name is fucking similar to mine.” He huffed and started walking back to the living room.

Smiling, you trailed after him slowly.

“Max…” you started, dragging his name on.

“What’s with the tone?” He sat on the couch and gestured for you to join him.

Taking a seat by him, you spoke: “I need to tell you something.”

With an anxious look now on his face, he told you to continue.

“Marc is gay.” You giggled and watched his expression change into disbelief.

“No.” He said in surprise.

“Yes, babe.” You burst out laughing.

“That’s not funny. You should’ve told me.” He pouted.

You moved onto his lap and wrapped your arms around his neck.

“Oh, c’mon. It’s kinda funny.”

“No, it’s not.”

“It is.” You kissed his pouting lips, laughing a bit into the kiss.

“It kinda is. And i like it when you’re jealous.” You reassured between pecks.

“You do?” He smiled slightly.

“I do.”

“I can still be jealous, you know?”

You tried arguing that there was no excuse for him to be now but as he carried you to the bedroom, he insisted that he could still act as if he was, a suggestion you agreed on quickly, feeling him start to kiss your neck.

“It’s kinda funny though, right?” You tried again as he pushed the bedroom door open then laid you down on the bed.

“It’s not.” He kissed you deeply, biting on your lip, “and i suggest you stop saying it is so you don’t make our next activities” he smirked, “harder for yourself.”

Laughing, you nodded and relaxed into the kiss, knowing that the past few days were something you’d remember forever and that Max would start to find the humor in their happenings soon enough.

#max verstappen x reader #max verstappen x you #max verstappen imagine #max verstappen imagines #max verstappen oneshot #max verstappen smut #f1 imagines #f1 x reader #f1 oneshots #f1 x you #f1 smut

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web-novel-polls · 3 months

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MXTX Side Characters Tournament

[Image ID - two images. The first is a cropped image of Shang Qinghua from the cover of the English Scum Villain novel. He has brown hair tied up in a loose bun. He is wearing a light blue-gray ribbon in his hair the same color as his robes as he glances over his shoulder at the viewer.

The second image is a drawn image of Jiang Cheng from MDZS looking at the viewer with apparent disgust or contempt. He has long dark hair tied up by a silver hairpiece with bangs framing his face. His eyes are a pale blue. /End ID]

Shang Qinghua / Airplane from SVSSS

Submission: He's a sidekick and he's so sidelined that despite creating the universe he's treated as an afterthought - doubly a side character! But also? So relateable. He would absolutely have been on tumblr in his first life, he gets so excited about his blorbo who treats him terribly (until they finally get a happy ending in the extras - also! he has to wait for the extras to get his happy ending! very side-character of him). He holds the fascinating position of being mostly irrelevant to the story and yet without him the themes would totally fail. He deserves a win on something for once, okay?

Jiang Cheng from MDZS

Submission 1: Extremely traumatized yet also somehow the most normal and functional by the end. Huge bitch but I (and at least one of the other characters) think he deserves to be even worse after everything he's been through

Submission 2: Simultaneously badass and the most cringefail man. Extremely funny and stylish but still manages to be very uncool. Cries a lot. Also he's lost a lot of tumblr polls—let's give him another shot! We definitely love him more than his dad did!

Submission 3: He's got mommy issues AND daddy issues. He loves his sister and his shige so much. He's traumatised and incredibly competent. He rebuilt his whole sect! He's an asshole (affectionate). He's purple! He's got the coolest weapon ever conceived. I'm so worried about his blood pressure basically all the time.

["Anti-Propaganda" that attacks other characters is NOT allowed. Please only give reasons to vote FOR a character.]

#shang qinghua #svsss #jiang cheng #mdzs #mxtx #polls #mxtx side characters tournament #mxtx side characters grand finals #queue

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teshamerkel · 2 months

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Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Seekers of Soul

[Chapter 55]

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AO3 Link

Tobias and Nia tie up some loose ends around the guild in preparation for their journey to find Will, and Tobias shares a special pastime with his partner.

Team Evergreen doesn’t make an appearance after their mission in the tunnels, though Jaz stops by Tobias and Nia’s room at dawn two days later to give them an update on Andyn's mood.

“She was quiet for a while,” the stufful says. “Thinking, I suppose. But otherwise she's acting fine again.”

“Did I actually get through that thick skull of hers?” Tobias grumbles. He’s tying Nia’s scarf around her arm before they leave for the day, and it’s slipping annoyingly through his fingers.

Jaz sighs. “No, unfortunately not. It’s going to take more than a few heated words to get her to change her mind about this. Ezra and I have tried. But...”

Nia’s ears perk. “But..?”

“Something you said did make her think, Tobias. Maybe you planted some seeds that just need a bit of time to bloom.”

Pretty words for such a nasty conversation, Tobias thinks idly as he finally ties Nia’s scarf tight. He doesn’t have nearly as much faith that Andyn will turn over a new leaf any time soon.

Nia smiles at Jaz. “Well, I’m happy to hear she’s back to her normal self, at least. Sorry again that our group mission wasn’t, uh…as fun as we might’ve hoped.”

Tobias opens his mouth to say that that was Andyn’s fault, not theirs.

Jaz beats him to it, laughing softly. “Not your fault. Neither of your faults, really.”

Nia doesn’t argue that point, and the stufful leaves shortly after with a word of luck for their mission today and a promise to pass their hellos on to Ezra.

“Well, I’m glad we don’t have to worry about Andyn too much,” Nia says as the two of them pack up for the day and head down the Lexym Tree to the mission boards. “Are you still doing okay?”

Tobias is doing fine. Probably better than he should be, honestly. While Andyn hit a sore spot and he was much harsher than Nia would’ve been regarding the deerling’s parents, he stands firm by his conviction that Andyn needs a wake-up call. His words didn’t manage to get through to her, but he doesn’t really regret what he said, either.

“I’m fine. Just wish she’d wake up and realize her parents are the problem here.”

Nia is behind him on the steps, but Tobias can feel her attention on him, laser-focused. “You fought about her parents?”

Belatedly, Tobias realizes that this is the first time he’s said what his argument with the deerling was even about. Nia has been careful not to push.

“They suck, okay?” Tobias growls. “If they’re the reason she’s like that, then she should know that that’s messed up.”

Nia hums, but otherwise falls silent. That’s as good as an agreement for her, so Tobias doesn’t let the issue linger as they reach the ground floor where the mission boards are posted.

They’re still waiting to hear back from August about traveling to Will’s human settlement, so they’ve been avoiding any missions that would wear them out too much just in case they need to leave on short notice. Still, Tobias does have to swallow his pride when he realizes that leaves them with just a few very basic mission options for the day.

It’s not that he thinks the jobs are beneath him or anything, but they are undeniably…boring. And they give them less Seeker points, too. But he refuses to throw a fit like Andyn did.

“Well, let’s get this over with.”

“Hey, it might be fun!” Nia says, looking genuinely excited about the mission she’d picked out for them. “I haven’t tried cooking since waking up in this world.”

Tobias gives her an appraising look as they make their way back up the tree’s staircase. “Did you cook a lot as a human?”

Nia shakes her head. “Just basic stuff. Baking, mostly. But if it’s a low-level mission, it can’t be anything too complex, right?”

Tobias shrugs. For all his years at the guild, he’s never actually helped out in the cafeteria kitchen, always too busy trailing after Maggie and helping with medicinal duties.

He’s surprised to find that the day is actually pretty interesting, tucked away in the guild’s sprawling kitchen. They’re put to work under the command of the cooking staff, and their mission for the day is to provide breakfast and lunch for the entirety of the guild.

The vespiquen in charge has Tobias use his flames often, lighting fires in clay ovens and carefully toasting nuts and vegetables. He isn’t sure whether to be offended or proud when the chef looks at him with delight halfway through the morning with a clap of her hands and proclaims that they must make occa berry flambé for dessert today, with a fire type’s flames so readily on-hand.

He is proud, in an embarrassed sort of way, when the bug type compliments him on his temperature control with his flames. He manages to avoid burning a single pot or dish. While it’s a strange feeling, he likes the appreciative looks he gets from the other workers when he uses his fire, rather than the guild's usual wariness.

Tobias actually ends up enjoying the day more than Nia does, if the way she drags herself to the stairs at the end of their shift is any gauge. Her fur is caked in flour from a few ingredient mishaps, and Tobias has to bite back a laugh at her appearance.

She gives him a tired, playful glare in return. “Want to share with the class?”

“You look like a fidough.”

“Fidough,” Nia echoes, squinting. “Is that…a dog Pokemon? Oh my God, is that a bread pun?"

“It’s their species name. They are kind of…doughy, though. Yeah. That's the joke.”

Nia barks a laugh, and Tobias grins.

“Pokemon names are so silly! Hahaha!”

Tobias shakes his head as he leads the way up the stairs to their quarters. “Hey, at least they make sense. Who looks at a riolu and calls it a dog? What even is a dog?”

“Me! I’m a dog!”

“Yeah, yeah. And I’m Reshiram. C’mon, I want to have time to clean up before supper. You wanna eat with Maggie tonight? We can brag about the food we helped make.”

“Oh, that’d be perfect!” Nia says. Her fatigued posture lifts at the prospect, like a flower wilting in reverse. “Don’t let me forget, though, that I really need to talk to Avery sometime about the whole species naming thing. And the Pokemon language in general. Ordirune? It makes no sense that you and I can talk and read the same language when it’s, well…not the same language!”

Tobias vaguely remembers Nia mentioning this before, when they were in Ghatha with Junie. “Does it need to make sense? It works. We can understand each other. That’s what matters.”

“How are you not curious about it? It’s so wild to me!”

“It just doesn’t seem like something you’re gonna be able to figure out, so why waste time thinking about it?”

“Because it’s fun!” Nia counters. “I like trying to figure stuff out, even if it doesn’t really matter.”

Tobias can’t really argue with that. Nia’s just different than him in that regard. Still, as a nincada and surskit pass them on the stairs, he gives it a moment of thought.

“Giratina said that Mew made your Pokemon body, right? She probably did something with your brain so you could understand Ordirune, so you wouldn’t be totally lost in our world.”

“But language isn’t genetic,” Nia argues. “It’s something you learn. That’s true for Pokemon too, right?”

“Yeah?”

“Then it doesn’t really make sense that she could just…imprint it onto our brains, does it?”

Tobias frowns as they finally reach their floor, his legs a bit tired as usual from the climb. “It doesn’t make sense that she could just make you a whole body, either, but here you are. If she made your brain for you, why couldn’t she make it familiar with our language? Pokemon hatch knowing survival instincts because those things were ingrained into our bodies from birth. Like…charmander hatchlings knowing to keep their tail flames small if they’re in danger. Maybe Mew did something similar and built your body so you already know Ordirune and your brain sorta just…translates for you without you realizing it.”

Nia stops behind him right before they reach their door, and Tobias turns to look at her.

She’s staring at him with wide, almost awestruck eyes. “Tobias, that’s such a cool way of thinking about it! Oh man, you should come with me when I meet up with Avery. They'd find that idea super interesting. Plus, I’m sure Xander and the others would love to see you! I think you and Kry are like…bros or something now, after your spar the other day?”

Tobias snorts and turns back to the door. “Yeah, I’m sure they’re all dying to see me.”

His hand settles on the knob, but Nia reaches out to cover it with her own paw. She gives him a long, searching look. “Hey, you know I’m not joking, right?”

“They’re your friends.”

“Well, yeah, maybe first. But they want to be your friend, too. They aren’t just…putting up with you to hang out with me.”

Tobias feels all too seen, suddenly. Like his scarf got lost somewhere and left his neck naked and vulnerable. Tobias shifts on his feet, looking away.

That…doesn’t feel right. But aside from Nia, he hasn’t had a friend his own age since he was nine—and that was his sister. He isn’t exactly an expert on how friends work.

“They’re kind of stuck with me, if they want to be friends with you.”

Nia gives him a light bat of her paw and a scolding smile. “They’re not stuck with you. You’re fun to be around, Tobias. Whether you want to acknowledge that or not.”

Tobias thinks of how he yelled at Andyn just two days ago. “Sure.”

Then, unwittingly, he thinks about the rest of that mission. Thinks about Ezra’s cheeky, playful comments and Jaz’s calm confidence when she encouraged him talk to Andyn alone. Thinks further back, to Kry punching his shoulder during training and Xander and Felix’s lighthearted smack-talk and easy conversation. Thinks about Avery’s gentle smile and full attention when Tobias spoke.

He doesn’t think he’s their friend, not really. But the idea that he might be, someday, doesn’t seem quite as ridiculous as it once was. Tobias has…a lot of mixed feelings about that. Fear that he’s going to royally screw it up is somewhere near the top, though, so he shoves away the warmth the idea brings. No use worrying about it unless it actually happens, after all.

Tobias finally opens the door to their room, only to stop as soon as he notices a piece of paper resting on the floor near his feet. Tobias picks it up, and feels his fingers tighten around the sheet as he realizes what it is.

“What is it?” Nia asks, peering over his shoulder.

“It’s from August,” he summarizes, skimming through the short message. “We have permission to head overseas and find Will first thing in the morning.”

“Giratina was telling the truth, then?”

“Or they think it’s too big a risk to ignore, if nothing else,” Tobias murmurs. The bottom of the note says that the funds for their flight have been dropped into their mailbox, so Tobias digs that pouch out right away to add to their own money. He moves to where their satchel was left to rest against the wall for the day.

“Tomorrow,” Nia says, sitting heavily in her nest and wrapping herself up in one of their blankets like a swadloon. “That’s…so soon. I know we were waiting to hear back from them, but…well. I guess we’d better let everyone know we’re leaving again?”

Tobias drags their bag over and sits to sort through it, catching the disappointed note in his partner’s voice. He doesn’t really mind traveling again, even if their time back at the guild has been fine. Good, even, for the most part. But knowing they’ll have to say goodbye to Maggie again so soon does have something in his heart squeezing tight. He hopes she doesn’t cry.

“Yeah,” he finally answers, pulling out their meager collection of items to sort through. “We can tell Maggie when we eat with her later.”

Nia voices her agreement, watching Tobias as he puts everything together. Her mind is clearly miles away, though.

Tobias leaves her to her thoughts, making sure they have the usual essentials that they travel with: apples and berries for food and status ailments, their map, and a canteen of water for Nia. He would grab some hydration berries for himself if they didn’t shrivel so quickly, but at least fire types don’t dehydrate easily.

Anything else? They could go down to the item dispensary and peruse the orbs and seeds available, but their funds still aren’t overly impressive. And they aren’t planning on getting caught in any dungeons or intense battles.

...Okay, he knows better by now than to assume that will hold true. Still, by this point they’ve mostly gotten by without items, so he thinks they'll be all right without any fancy aids.

Besides, Nia will probably want to bring a book, and their sparse packing leaves plenty of room for that. They could almost pack up Nia’s beloved new blanket too, if they wanted to squish everything in, but that feels like a waste of space if they'll be indoors most nights. He’s basically a walking heater for the riolu at this point anyways.

Tobias looks around the room and his gaze catches on his guitar, leaning carefully against the wall by the window. He frowns at the instrument, fingers flexing as he itches to hold it. He’s been enjoying relearning it, and it calms him down on late nights, but it isn’t really an essential item. Their pack would be better off carrying something actually useful.

“You’re taking your guitar along, right?” Nia asks, startling Tobias out of his thoughts. She must've followed his gaze and guessed what he was thinking.

Tobias shrugs, looking back at their satchel. “Probably not. It’s not exactly useful.”

“It makes you happy,” Nia protests, like that makes it useful, somehow. “Plus, I like hearing you play. So if we’re taking a vote…”

Tobias flushes, falling still. Part of him still wants to argue, rationality over sentimentality and all that, but. Well. If Nia doesn’t mind him taking up the space, then…

Tobias silently gets up to retrieve the guitar. He tucks it away in their bag amongst the other items, pleased with how neatly it slots in between their supplies and a book about abilities that Nia had handed him to bring along.

Packing complete.

It’s only a few short hours later that they go to the medical floor with trays of food in hand, including some of the occa berry flambé that they’d helped make earlier in the day. They call a greeting to Fen and drop off a meal with the leafeon that has them purring their thanks. Next door, Maggie seems pleasantly surprised by their appearance.

"Hello, you two! Good to see you."

“You eat yet?” Tobias asks, holding up one of the two heavy trays he’s carrying.

Maggie smiles, taking the meal with a single vine and settling down in her nest to eat. “I was just starting to feel peckish, actually. Thank you, dear. Will you stay and eat with us tonight?”

“If that’s all right!” Nia says, holding her second tray—which she was insistent on—out to Sage with a smile.

The ivysaur, who had been eyeing the door as if it was just expected for him to leave any time Tobias showed up, blinks in surprise. Then, with a bashful smile and a murmur of thanks, he takes the meal with his own vines.

Tobias and Nia sit down close to Maggie and dig in.

Off to the side, Sage shifts awkwardly on his short legs. His leaves sway with the motion.

“Sit down already,” Tobias grumbles. “We aren’t chasing you out.”

Sage looks even more thrown by the peace offering, but with a glance at Maggie and Nia, he finally settles down as well on Nia’s other side. Maggie smiles soothingly at her apprentice's nerves, and Tobias is surprised that the open affection doesn’t feel…grating, this time. In fact, it feels kind of ridiculous when Maggie immediately turns her attention back to Tobias and Nia with bright eyes, clearly thrilled to have them here.

Tobias wonders how he was ever threatened by Sage’s appearance. Maggie has more than enough love to go around.

As they eat, Maggie questions what they’ve been up to today with a note of amusement in her voice. Her gaze lingers on the patches of flour still caught stubbornly in Nia’s soft fur, even after the riolu had scrubbed at them for a solid half-hour earlier.

Nia groans and dives into her mishaps in the kitchen, including when she’d tripped over a morelull and knocked over a slurpuff who was busy mixing up dry ingredients for a crust. Tobias laughs as he replays the scene in his head, but flushes when Nia follows it up with an exasperated comparison to Tobias basically being “Gordon Ramsay” in the kitchen, whatever that means. It’s clearly a compliment.

Maggie laughs. “That doesn’t surprise me, actually. Tobias was always very careful with measurements when he helped me make our medicines, even when he was small. He has a good eye for detail, when he’s invested.”

Tobias feels his face grow hotter as Nia and Sage look at him with astonished expressions.

“You don’t have to look that surprised."

The ivysaur winces and looks back to his meal with a quiet, “Sorry.”

Nia just shrugs with an easy laugh, as if to ask if he could blame her.

The conversation flows smoothly as they catch up. Sage is quiet, almost silent, but he’s clearly listening, tracking the conversation with pricked ears and sharp garnet eyes as he picks delicately at his meal. Tobias isn’t sure if it’s because the ivysaur is still cautious after Tobias’ initial hostility, or if he’s just that quiet by nature.

Nia tries to pull the grass type into the conversation a few times, but after a few short, almost shy answers, she relents and lets him bask in the conversation without necessarily participating. Maggie doesn’t seem worried about the ivysaur’s silence, so Tobias doesn’t concern himself with it either.

During a lull in the conversation, Maggie says, “You know, your mission from today has me thinking. Sage and I might have to steal you for ourselves soon—we could use some extra hands to gather the last of the autumn herbs later this week. The northern part of the Haven will likely have its first heavy frost soon.”

“Oh. About that…” Nia trails off, giving Tobias a pleading look.

Tobias sighs, putting his fork back onto his tray. Leaving it up to him, huh? “We’re actually heading out again tomorrow morning.”

“So soon?” Maggie asks with a bewildered expression.

“August dropped off a letter today approving our travel, so…” Nia says, dejected.

Maggie smiles, leaning over to brush her muzzle over the top of the riolu’s head. “You’re fine, dear. I knew as soon as we spoke with August that you would be traveling again soon. I’m just going to miss you. And worry, of course.”

“We’ll be fine,” Tobias says. “We always are.”

“You’re always getting into trouble, you mean,” Maggie corrects with a playful glare. “Let a mother worry, Tobias. And just do your best to come home without any new scars, all right?”

Tobias’ hand drifts up to his scarf. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Nia wince and trail a paw over the scarf on her own arm, right where she’d gotten bit by that panpour outlaw moons ago.

“We’ll be careful!” Nia finally says, though her smile doesn’t look nearly as confident as she sounds.

Maggie doesn’t seem convinced either, but drops the conversation to return to lighter topics. Such as how, just yesterday, Sage had given his first bitter medicine to some of the guild children who had come down with a cold.

Tobias laughs at the distraught expression on the ivysaur’s face, more than familiar with the experience after years of doing it himself. “How’d you like giving Bella her dose?”

The little bellsprout could be a menace when she wanted to be. Tobias can still feel the phantom smacking of her tiny root-arms.

Sage groans and drops his face into his tray.

“He made a valiant effort,” Maggie says, patting the ivysaur’s shoulder with a vine. Which means that Sage was surely near tears by the time they were finished.

Tobias uses his fork to point a bite of occa berry dessert in Sage’s direction. “Word of advice? Honey. Drown her dose in the stuff, but don’t tell her it’s anything but what it is. She can’t resist honey, but she won’t eat it if you try to trick her. Stubborn as a mudbray, that one.”

Tobias half-expects the ivysaur to dismiss his words, since Sage is older than him and the one actually in the medicinal role now. Instead, the ivysaur perks up and nods, reaching over his shoulder with a vine to pull a notepad and inkwell off the nearby desk and start writing something down.

Tobias blinks. He didn’t mean to actually take notes. The earnest faith in the gesture has his face heating. He looks away, stuffing a bite of occa berry flambé into his mouth. It’s delicious.

Soon enough, they’re all finished eating and it’s time to head out. Sage quietly insists that he can take the trays down to the cafeteria, leaving Maggie alone with Tobias and Nia.

“You two be careful on your trip, you hear?” Maggie says, voice firmer as she pulls them into a hug. “I don’t want to hear about you getting caught in any more fires or deadly fights.”

“No promises,” Tobias mumbles.

Maggie gives him an extra hard squeeze before releasing him.

“We’ll be careful, Maggie,” Nia says, stepping away with misty eyes. “See you soon, okay?”

Tobias can’t seem to say anything. The words stick like sap in his throat. He swallows against the lump of them and bumps his head against Maggie’s leg once more before stepping away.

The meganium sees them off as they pad down the hall and back down the tree.

“Xander’s team next?” Nia asks.

“You could go on your own, you know.”

“I could. But..?”

Tobias huffs, but doesn’t argue as he follows Nia to Team Shellshock’s quarters. The riolu knocks on the door, and childish shrieks rise up from behind the wood. Luca’s distinct little voice yells, “Hide! Hide!” and Tobias grins.

Avery is the one to answer, the kirlia’s gentle expression lighting up. “Nia! And Tobias. Lovely to see you two.”

“Good to see you too,” Nia says warmly. “Could we come in for a sec?”

Avery steps aside for Nia and Tobias, and as soon as Tobias crosses the room’s threshold he’s tackled by a writhing mass of blue and black fur.

“Gotcha!”

“Surrender, outlaw!”

“Lainey, sit on his head!”

Tobias puts up a halfhearted fight as the shinx cubs work to hold him down. Tiny paws step on his arms and belly and legs and his vision is taken over by lashing tails and gleaming, golden eyes.

“Don’t suffocate him, kids,” Xander calls idly, before his voice is drowned out by childish peals of laughter.

Tobias lets the cubs think they’ve won for a few moments, before twisting and gently throwing them off with an exaggerated roar. Leor squeaks and scrambles away to dive behind Team Shellshock’s items chest. Laine and Luca hiss playfully at Tobias before following their more timid brother, probably to come up with a new plan of attack.

Tobias smirks and moves to join the other occupants of the room.

Xander, Avery, and Nia are watching the cubs peek over the items chest with fond, amused looks. Felix is crouching beside the kids’ hiding place and murmuring something that quickly catches their attention. Kry is nowhere to be seen, probably out training or something while the cubs are here wreaking havoc. She doesn’t seem like much of a kid person.

Tobias stops at Nia’s side, purposefully putting his back to the shinx cubs to make himself an easy target.

“So you’re heading out again already?” Avery is asking.

“You two are the most restless ‘mons I’ve ever met,” Felix calls idly from beside the chest. “Try not to come back all banged up again, all right?”

“I’ll second that,” Xander says, and Tobias is surprised when the luxio’s golden gaze focuses not only on Nia, but Tobias as well. “Be careful.”

“Always!”

Xander chuffs a quiet laugh, as if well aware of how untrue that statement is. “Regardless. Do you two have everything packed up already?”

“I think so?”

“We travel light,” Tobias says.

Xander flicks his tail, looking thoughtful. His eyes stray over to the items chest on the side of the room, though Tobias thinks he isn’t focused on his siblings at the moment. Avery follows his gaze, and Tobias wonders if the kirlia is reading the luxio’s mind, since they apparently use telepathy with each other fairly often.

Avery must be, because they smile at Xander as if pleased with something he’d suggested, then back at Nia and Tobias. “Do you two have any orbs in your inventory?”

Nia looks to Tobias. He shakes his head.

Xander nods, and Avery goes to the chest, murmuring a quiet, “Excuse me,” to shoo the kids off the lid before opening the top and rummaging through it. They find what they’re looking for quickly, returning to Tobias and Nia with a shiny blue wonder orb in hand. Without hesitation, they hold it out.

“Take this with you. Just in case.”

After a beat of surprise, Tobias reaches out to take it, rolling the surprisingly heavy orb around his hands. “What kind is it?”

“An all power-up orb,” Avery answers. “It raises your team’s attack and special attack for a few minutes.”

“But...aren't these really rare or expensive or something?” Nia asks, gently taking the orb from Tobias’ hands to peer closer at it.

“The two of you seem to attract danger wherever you go,” Xander says, not answering the question. “I’ll sleep better if you take it.”

“We both will,” Avery amends.

Tobias’ immediate impulse is to reject such a rare, pricey item just being dropped into their laps. However, he remembers how desperately he’d wanted any kind of helpful item back on the Aqua Jet, when they were traveling via the river and the mystery dungeon hit. It would be undeniably good to have as a back-up measure.

Nia seems equally unsure for a moment, but then she smiles and cradles the orb closer. “Well...thank you, then. It’s really too much.”

"Not at all," Avery says.

Xander’s shoulders lose some of their tension once they accept the gift, and that's what convinces Tobias not to put up a fight. They mean it. They're just worried about their safety, about Nia and maybe even a little about Tobias. And somehow, their concern doesn't feel like pity, but something warmer. Something easier to stomach.

Nia gently bumps Tobias with her hip, so he rolls his eyes and tacks on a quiet, “Yeah. Thanks.”

Xander opens his mouth to respond, but before he can say anything, his ears swivel in the direction of the chest.

That’s Tobias’ only warning before the shinx cubs yell, “Attack!” and charge Tobias once more. Felix must’ve been giving them battle tips, because this time they move as a coordinated unit, tackling Tobias’ legs. The charmander lets himself go down with an exaggerated oof, and the kids shriek as they swarm his chest, pinning him down with their soft little bodies. While he could still wriggle free if he really wanted to, their combined weight does hold him down pretty effectively. Tobias “struggles” for a few moments more before going limp with a dramatic groan.

“Victory!” Leor says.

“Drag him to jail!” Luca shouts.

“Throw him in the pit!” Laine adds.

“Whoa, where’d you hear that last one?” Felix asks, startled.

“From a cool story Bella found in the archives!"

Bella. Of course. Tobias has said it before and he’ll say it again: that bellsprout is a menace.

“Looks like I’ll be having another chat with Arlo,” Xander sighs, sounding all too much like a father.

Nia and Tobias head out shortly after, despite the shinx cubs’ whining over losing their playmate. At the door, Xander catches Nia in a one-armed hug, brushing the top of her head with his chin. The familiarity of the gesture catches Tobias off-guard, but Nia simply hugs the luxio back, unsurprised by the open affection.

As they leave, Felix and the kids’ loud goodbyes and Avery’s much quieter farewell following them into the hall, Nia hesitates.

“I feel like we should tell Team Evergreen that we’re heading out again, but…”

Tobias can only imagine the awkward tension that would rise if he was shoved into the same room as Andyn right now.

“I’ll leave that one to you.”

“That...might be for the best. I won’t be too long.”

Tobias waves her off, turning to head back to their room. He can get some more practice in on his guitar before they sleep. “Just remember that we head out early.”

“When do we not?” Nia counters, giving a wave of her own before setting off towards Team Evergreen’s quarters.

Tobias is relieved that Nia didn’t want him to join for that last visit. Between working in the kitchen this morning and seeing Team Shellshock and the shinx kids earlier, Tobias is just about done socializing for the day. He’s more than content to flop down in his nest and strum at his guitar for the rest of the night before they get back on the road tomorrow.

To Tobias’ surprise, Nia returns not long after they parted ways, when the moon is just starting to rise into the sky. She assures him that it went well, even if Andyn was a little quieter than usual, and that they all wished the two of them safe travels.

“Wished you safe travels, you mean,” Tobias snorts as he plucks away at an aimless melody. “Andyn probably hopes I fall off our flight ‘mon and into the ocean.”

“I don’t think she’s that upset,” Nia says, lying down herself. She eyes Tobias for a moment before reaching into their satchel and pulling out her book.

The night is peaceful, after that. Tobias works his way through some of the simple melodies from the music book they’d picked up in the archives, familiarizing himself with the easier tunes before trying anything more advanced. Nia reads her book, kicking her legs and occasionally mumbling something to herself.

It’s getting close to midnight when Nia finally yawns and slides her book back into their satchel. She curls up in her nest, blanket pulled tight over her shoulders until it bunches up by her chin, and watches as Tobias plays.

Eventually, Tobias figures he’d better get some rest too and slides the guitar and music book back into their satchel. He closes the curtain until the room is only dimly lit by his own tail flame, and curls up in his nest. He doesn’t realize until he's settled in that Nia isn’t actually asleep yet. Instead, she’s watching Tobias, clearly still wide awake.

“What’s up?” Tobias asks.

Nia shrugs. “Just…can’t sleep.”

Tobias knows the feeling. While it was easy to get lost in his music for the evening, Tobias won’t be surprised if he’s up for a while yet. Especially with their flight tomorrow, he has a lot on his mind.

For a moment Tobias just gazes back at Nia in the dim light, wondering if either of them are going to be well-rested come dawn. Then, he thinks of similar nights long, long ago, of looking at his sister or parents with a similar restless itch under his skin.

An idea pops into his mind.

For a moment, he hesitates. This is something…sacred. Something he hasn’t shared with anyone else since he lost his family. It feels wrong to even think about sharing it.

Then again, that’s what he’d thought about discussing Vivi and his parents at all, before the cart ride from Asra to Shivergleam. And that was…nice. Really nice. Swapping sibling stories with Nia. It hurt, but it also made something in him feel…looser. Like stretching out a stiff muscle that he hadn’t exercised in forever.

Tobias sits up before he can second-guess himself. “C’mon. I have an idea.”

Nia props herself up on an arm. “What?”

He climbs out of their nest and holds out a hand. “Trust me. It’ll help.”

For a moment Nia looks unsure, but then a smile crosses her face. Tobias helps her to her paws, and she doesn’t let go once she’s standing. He decides not to think about it too hard and gives her paw a squeeze, grabbing Nia’s beloved new blanket and slinging it over his shoulder.

“C’mon.”

Nia laughs under her breath as they leave the room, making sure to shut the door extra quiet behind her so they don’t disturb the other Pokemon on the floor.

“Where are we going?”

“Sure, just let me ruin the surprise.”

Nia's brows raise, but she doesn’t ask any more questions and just follows with an air of palpable curiosity. Tobias leads them to the staircase and starts climbing up, up, up through the guild.

“Are we visiting Maggie again?” Nia whispers.

“No.”

Tobias has done this many times over the years, since first arriving at the guild. But he’s always done it alone, sneaking past Maggie’s sleeping form to climb up to his favorite spot. He’d thought about asking Maggie to join before—she would’ve indulged him. But somehow it had always seemed a bit too painful before now. Before Nia. Now it feels less like chasing something he can’t get back and more like…sharing something he loves. Making it new again.

They finally reach the mail floor, evident by the cool breeze blowing into the staircase. There aren’t many fliers that work at night, so the floor is empty, the platforms bordering the edges of the room opening up to patches of clear night sky.

“Oh,” Nia breathes, registering where they are.

She follows him wordlessly as he goes to one of the far platforms and sits down at the end of it. She sits beside him, then casts a nervous glance below them to the Haven's trees, black and spindly and thin with the coming winter. She scoots back an inch.

Like this, they’re sitting at the edge of the world, the sprawling forest below and an ocean of stars above.

Tobias hands over Nia’s blanket, now heated by his own scales, and she gladly takes it to wrap herself up. He’s hardly surprised when she still scooches over to press against his side. The night air is cold, after all, chilly enough that he won’t argue against a little extra warmth himself.

“It’s beautiful out here,” Nia says, hushed. “I couldn’t really appreciate the stars in Asra, since we were on a stakeout. But here…”

“Peaceful, right?”

Nia hums her agreement.

For a moment, they’re quiet. The wind whistles by them this high up, stronger without the blocking force of the forest and carrying with it the crisp scent of the Silenfroar Mountains. Tobias can kind of see where the mountain range sits, a void of pointed black on the horizon that blots out the sky.

Tobias moves his eyes up to stare at the stars, feeling something in his throat tighten even as the rest of him relaxes. Even when he was a child, scared of nothing more than shadows on cave walls, his parents would lead him to the mouth of their cave to look up at the stars when he couldn’t sleep.

It makes him feel small. But in a comforting way.

“This is where we became a team.”

Tobias looks at Nia. “What?”

“Well. Technically we became a team down in the tunnels.” Nia smiles at Tobias. “But I consider this to be where we actually became one. For real.”

Right. After Afon’s Cap, when Nia finally stood up for herself and Tobias agreed to stop being so awful to her. They shook on it. Tobias can still see Nia in the pink evening light, paw outstretched and smile hopeful.

He flushes and looks away. He gestures vaguely with a hand. “Sorry. For. Y’know.”

Nia barks a laugh. “Being a bit of a jerk at first?”

He grunts.

“It’s fine. You’re much sweeter now.”

Tobias shoots her a look. “I’m not sweet.”

“Of course you aren’t,” Nia coos, giving his arm a patronizing pat. He shoves her away, and she laughs, immediately swaying back to his side.

“You have been so sassy lately,” he grumbles.

“Sorry, sorry. I’ll be nice.”

A brief moment of quiet. Then, a giggle from Nia.

“What?”

“I was just thinking about when we first met.”

Tobias has a brief flash of memory, from months ago. Spotting a strange, unfamiliar Pokemon—a riolu—unconscious in the middle of a nearby field. Waking her up to make sure she wasn’t hurt. Getting a blank stare and rising panic in return before Nia bolted into the woods and right into a mystery dungeon, Tobias hot on her heels.

Tobias snorts. “You were a mess.”

"I was!" Nia laughs. "I'm actually kind of embarrassed by it now. Can you imagine Kry’s reaction to seeing me run away from everything like that?”

“You were terrified of a seedot,” Tobias agrees, amused by the thought.

Although, knowing now how wildly different the Pokemon world is from Nia’s own, Tobias can’t blame her for being so freaked out. If anything, he’s a little embarrassed by how harshly he’d treated her. He wasn’t exactly a comforting presence at the time.

“But look at you now. Taking down steelixes all on your own.”

“Are you ever going to let that go?” Nia whines, paws coming up to hide her face.

“Nope. It's objectively awesome. And you aren’t going to tell anyone, so.”

Nia snorts another laugh. “I can’t believe I was so close to becoming a researcher instead of a Seeker. I can’t believe I fight on a daily basis!”

Tobias blinks, looking over at her. “You almost became a researcher?”

“I never told you that? Before I thought of teaming up with you, I thought becoming a Seeker was too scary, so I was going to become a researcher instead. Like Alistair and Tawny.”

Tobias wrinkles his snout, trying to picture it. On one hand, Nia would be right at home surrounded by all those books and the cozy environment of the guild every day. He could see her getting along well with the gardevoir and ribombee down in the archives.

But on the other hand, Tobias has also seen Nia’s eyes light up when she travels somewhere new. Seen how insatiably curious she is about the world and all the Pokemon in it. He's seen how her riolu nature shines through when she’s defending someone in a fight, and how genuinely happy she is when she can help out a client. All of that good would be smothered, stuck here at the guild.

And where would he be, if Nia hadn’t decided to come rescue him in that dungeon? Dead, at worst. Stuck in the medicinal quarters and miserable at best. Maybe Nia would’ve been happy as a researcher, but Tobias is immeasurably glad that they’re here together instead, as a team.

They both fall quiet again, looking up at the stars. The moon overhead is bright, painting everything in shades of black and silver.

“Humans went to the moon, y’know,” Nia eventually says.

Tobias gives her a dry look. “Ha ha. Funny.”

Nia blinks, looking genuinely caught off-guard. “No, really! Not, like. All of us. It was only a few. But we really did.”

Tobias squints at her, doubtful. But Nia doesn’t break. “…I thought you said humans couldn’t fly.”

“We can‘t. Or, well. Not on our own. But we built machines that can!”

Machines. Right. “Like…the cars you were talking about on the way to Asra?”

“Yes!” Tobias can hear Nia's tail give a happy thump against the wood. “Cars are great—they're so much faster than walking. And I loved the train in Ghatha. It was really similar to our own trains, so I wonder if a human had a hand in inventing that.”

“Probably. Don’t know if a Pokemon would’ve come up with something like that on their own. It was…kind of cool, I guess.”

“Oh, just you wait. There are so many cool human things I wanna show you! When I—"

Nia’s words cut off abruptly. Tobias feels a jab at his heart, knowing exactly why she'd clamped her mouth shut so suddenly. He wouldn’t ever get to visit, of course. And Nia wouldn’t get to visit him, either, if she left and went back to the human world. Giratina made that pretty clear. Tobias’ hand drifts up to his scarf, skimming the worn material comfortingly through his fingers.

The dark feels heavier, suddenly. Pressing down on them. Suffocating.

“I’m scared,” Nia eventually murmurs, curling tighter into her blanket. Her breath billows into the night air. “Of what will happen if we can’t do this. If we fail.”

Tobias knows the feeling. While Nia has two worlds’ safety on her mind, Tobias is struggling with just the one. He tries not to think about it too often, or it settles on his chest like a rock slide.

“Do you really think we’ll be able to find Xerneas?” Nia whispers, eyes trained on the mountains in the distance.

Tobias takes a moment to think before responding. “I don’t know. It’s not a great sign that Xerneas and Yveltal have been hidden for so long without anyone stumbling across them, but…”

“They’re the only lead we’ve got.”

Tobias swallows. “Yeah. But if worse comes to worst…we’ll just have to figure something else out. Failing isn’t really an option.”

Not with how much is on the line. They have to find a way to fix this if they want to keep everyone and everything in both of their worlds safe.

Nia turns to tuck her head into Tobias’ shoulder, her breath tickling his skin. The touch is grounding, somehow. Distracting enough to keep him out of his own head. They need a distraction. They can’t do anything until dawn anyways.

“Have I told you how much my family loved stars?” He blurts.

Nia’s breath catches, audible with her so close. “…No?”

Tobias wants to tell her. Wants to share. It’s still a terrifying feeling. His heart beats hard in his chest.

“We…lived in the mountains. Not the Silenfroar range here, but across the sea. Near a little village. But we lived way up, in a cave.”

Nia is silent. Tobias thinks she might be holding her breath.

“The sky was really clear, up there. It felt like we could reach out and touch the stars at night. Like…like it was just us and them.”

Tobias kind of feels like that now, actually. It’s a strange sensation. Deja vu, in a way. A little painful. A little sweet.

“And if it was ever too cloudy to see them from our cave, my…our parents would take Vivi and I flying. It was…”

The most magical thing he’d ever experienced. Something that makes a deep longing ache in his chest, even now. He hates that the world took that away from him. Won’t let him evolve to fly himself.

Nia’s hand slips free of the blanket to hold his own, her fur almost as warm as him.

Tobias takes a deep breath. “It was one of my favorite things. Vivi’s, too. When we couldn’t sleep, we’d sit at the mouth of the cave and they would teach us about constellations. Sing us stories.”

Nia is silent, hanging onto Tobias’ every word. Tobias closes his eyes. He can almost imagine it, fuzzy but warm. His father’s wing around him and his sister, keeping them sheltered from the chilly mountain breeze. Their mother humming and singing folk tales about the constellations. Tobias’ head bobbing as his eyes slipped closed and sleep washed over him.

“Do you remember any of the stories?” Nia asks.

Does he? He’s kept his memories locked away in the back of his mind for so long that trying to excavate them feels like wading through a sea of cobwebs. His eyes scan the sky, landing on a bright constellation vaguely resembling a head with big, round ears. He points at it with his free hand.

“That’s the teddiursa cub.”

Nia follows his gesture. “Teddiursa?”

“We saved one on our first mission. Uh. Small. Orange fur. Claws.”

“Oh! The cute little teddy bear!”

"Yup. He pairs with the ursaring.”

Nia follows Tobias’ finger as he trails up and to the right, where another collection of stars create the larger, blockier form of an ursaring head.

“Ursaring?”

“It’s what teddiursa evolves into. The story…” What was it again? “The story says that the teddiursa got lost one day. The ursaring was his mother, and she looked for him frantically, for three endless nights.”

Nia makes a sad sound in her throat.

“Desperate, the ursaring prayed to the stars, asking Jirachi to help her find her cub. Jirachi, the wishmaker, heard her and made her a part of the night sky, to be seen by all. The teddiursa saw his mother in the night sky, and wished to join her. Jirachi granted it, and the two have lived together in the sky ever since.”

Nia hums. “We have a similar set of constellations in our world, actually. Ursa Minor and Ursa Major.”

“Really?”

Nia nods, stars reflecting in her eyes. “I don’t remember much about the story associated with it, but…I think it’s sad.” She turns a smile onto Tobias. “I can’t decide if your world’s version is happier or not.”

Tobias blinks. He’d always assumed the story was a happy one, because the mother and child were reunited. “What do you mean?”

“I mean…they’re trapped in the sky, right? Are they happy there?”

Tobias frowns, looking back at the constellations. “…I like to think they are.”

Nia laughs softly. “Look at me, being the pessimist. I like your way of thinking better.”

Tobias makes a vague noise in his throat. They have enough things going wrong with the real world. Why not choose to believe that at least the teddiursa and ursaring got a happy ending?

“Thanks, Tobias. For sharing with me.”

Tobias isn’t sure if she means the story, or his memories, or his spot here, looking at the stars. Maybe all of it. He shrugs, embarrassed. “Who else ‘m I gonna tell? Xander?”

Nia gives him an exasperated, fond look. “I wasn’t kidding earlier. Maybe you can’t see it, but they really do want to be your friend. You guys seemed to be having a lot of fun when we sparred the other day.”

It can’t be that easy to make friends. Not when Tobias has spent the last eight years of his life almost entirely alone. But Nia is better at emotions than he is, so…

“It wouldn’t be…too terrible. Training with them again sometime.”

Nia grins, a teasing glint in her eyes. “Come on. Is it really so bad to have a few friends? You and I are friends, right?”

Tobias scoffs. “Duh. You’re my best friend.”

Nia’s smile drops with surprise, and Tobias tenses. His face burns with heat, and he snaps his gaze out to look over the trees, mortified.

Why did he say that? And so naturally, too. Best friend. What is he, five?

(Then again, it’s kind of obvious, isn’t it?)

Tobias can still feel Nia’s eyes on him, and steals a glance to find her eyes a little shiny, her expression a bit wobbly. “Tobias…”

“We should get some sleep!” Tobias says, too loud as he jumps to his feet. Nia nearly falls over in his haste. He doesn’t offer her a hand up this time, pacing a few steps into the flight floor and willing his stupid nerves to calm down.

He doesn’t hear Nia follow after him, but in a few short seconds she’s at his side again and stepping in front of him. “Tobias?”

He grunts, staring at his feet. At least the night hides how red his face is.

“Hey, I'm...I'm going to try something, okay? Feel free to tell me to stop.”

Tobias looks up, confused.

Nia looks just as embarrassed as he feels, somehow, shuffling in her blanket. But slowly, slow enough for him to stop her, she steps closer to wrap him up in a hug, cheek pressed into his scarf and blanket enveloping them both in warmth.

“I’m really glad you’re the one who found me in that field,” she murmurs. “You’re the best friend I could’ve asked for.”

Tobias feels his throat tighten up. As much as he knows that that’s not true—he’s a pain to be around more often than not—he also believes that she means it. His hands fall to the arms around his torso. His chest feels uncomfortably warm, a completely different sensation than when he uses his flames.

Nia squeezes him once before stepping back, closer to the stairs. She has a shy smile on her face. “C’mon, we should get to bed. One of us needs to be awake for tomorrow’s flight.”

Tobias relaxes, relieved to settle back into their usual banter. He moves to follow her down the stairs, ignoring the heat lingering in his cheeks. “I still don’t get how your two modes for flight are either screaming in terror or passing out.”

“It’s exhausting to be scared out of my mind! And I’m not scared when I’m sleeping.”

“Until you slip off our flight ‘mon and fall into the ocean.”

“You wouldn’t let that happen.”

“I might, if you insist we meet up with Junie in Stonebrook.”

Nia laughs. “C’mon, avoiding her won’t do you any good. You know she’d find us eventually anyways. And if you don’t want to fend her off alone, then you have to keep me alive.”

“Darn. All my plans, foiled.”

Nia laughs. Her tail wags as she talks, the blanket over her shoulders swishing with the motion. Tobias will never admit to finding it adorable. "Hey, do you think we’ll get to see Fliss tomorrow?”

“The braviary? Sure, if she’s around.”

“I hope so,” Nia says, “She was so nice, and she knew a lot! And she didn’t change how she treated us after she found out I was human, either. I wonder if—”

Tobias listens idly as Nia chatters on, the sound of her voice a comforting background noise for the short trip back to their room. Sleep sounds less daunting, after getting to unwind with Nia a bit. He’d been worried that sharing his space, his memories, would feel wrong, but instead it’s the opposite.

He feels…lighter. Ready for the journey ahead, no matter what it may hold.

#pmd #pokemon mystery dungeon #riolu #charmander #pokemon #pmd seekers of soul #tesha draws #tesha writes

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johnslittlespoon · 2 months

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plsssss can we talk about bucky getting his revenge and edging gale

gale edging john post | yes we cannnnn !! eta: ykw. i need to just turn this into a proper oneshot since this ended up being over 1k words. new wip created </3

john may be a man of little self control, but after that incident, he decides he can be at least a tiny bit patient so he can catch gale off guard with it when he gets his revenge. because the next few times they're fooling around, gale's expecting a retaliation, john can see it in the way he tenses up and glances at his face before he comes like he's waiting for it, but john never follows through with it. he wants gale to let his guard down, and that he does.

so a week or so later when john's kissing him and feeling him up and asks ever so sweetly if he can tie gale's wrists behind his back, gale doesn't think anything of it. john likes to take control occasionally and gale sometimes likes the feeling of not having to worry about making decisions, getting to let john call the shots, and john always puts extra time and effort into the way he touches gale when he's restrained because he likes to watch his darling blondie squirm.

john has him sit in his lap facing him, letting gale lean against his shoulder to take the pressure off his legs while john works him open on his fingers, already riled up from the pretty gasps gale's making against his neck but reigning himself in because he's gonna need to have some self control for once.

he sweet–talks gale through it, telling him how good he sounds, how well he's doing as he sinks down on his cock, guiding him with hands on his hips so he doesn't unbalance himself without the use of his own hands where they're tied behind his back with a belt. he stays still at first, letting gale ride him slowly, keeping his hands loosely on his waist while praising him and talking him into that foggy needy headspace until gale's thighs are trembling and john takes pity on him (and frankly is so hard he doesn't have the patience to keep his own hips still anymore).

so he runs his hands down from gale's waist to his ass to hold him in place while he rolls his hips up into him, watching the way gale's eyebrows pinch and his pretty lips fall open in a silent oh as john angles himself in a way gale couldn't with his own movements. lets his mouth run as he slowly picks up his pace, all the coos of "so pretty", "you're taking me so well", "you feel so fucking good", loving how reactive gale is to every word and every thrust.

he moves his hands to gale's hips to get a better grip, can tell gale's getting close because he gets noisier, losing his filter and letting out breathy little "fuck"s and "john"s, head rolling back on his shoulders to bare his neck, rocking his hips down to meet john every time he fucks up into him. and then just as he gets the warning of "close", he pulls gale down by his hips to bury himself deep in him and stops moving completely.

the whine of desperation that tears out of gale's throat when he lifts his head has john knocking his skull back against the wall, cock twitching hard enough inside gale that he's sure the blond can feel it. he watches gale's biceps flex when he instinctively tries to get his hands free, feels his hips try to squirm out of his hands to keep moving, but he keeps him pinned firmly down, dizzy at the way he clenches down around him.

a plaintive "john" pulls a groan from him, but he composes himself, lifts his gaze back up to gale's face and lets the corners of his lips quirk up, purrs out a "yeah, sweetheart? something wrong?"

laughs at the way gale cusses him out, a rare sight of his little spitfire with a mouth on him, though the effect is a lot closer to being hissed at by a kitty than actually being convinced to move. john lets him run his mouth, murmurs a "cute" once gale's done, and then promptly hammers his hips up into him just once, swearing under his breath at the way it punches an open–mouthed moan from gale. rocks his hips up into him a few times before going back to a quick and rough pace, the sound of skin on skin getting both of them flushed.

it only takes a minute before gale's hips are twitching into his hands and whispered pleas are falling from his mouth and john thinks he's never had to use as much self restraint in his life as he does when he forces himself to stop moving again, once again yanking gale down against him, holding him still in his lap.

gale really fights it this time, enough so that it's a merciful distraction for john from how close he himself is (trust his idea to backfire as he ends up edging himself along with gale, he thinks) when he has to use proper strength to keep him in place. any blood that might've still been lurking around his brain rushes south the moment he sees gale's eyes getting shiny with frustration, cheeks all pink and lips red and flushed from biting down on them.

"not so fun, is it?" john taunts, but his voice comes out a bit more raspy than he would've liked, evident how much the stop and start is getting to him too. it's probably karma, because he knows he's being more mean than gale was to him, but he can't help it; those blue eyes look so pretty when tears are threatening to spill over when he's desperate and needy like this.

gale wriggles in his lap the best he can, still furiously chasing his orgasm, head finally falling back in frustration before he lifts it again, looking john in the eyes, pulling his bottom lip between his teeth and letting it go. he whines quietly and whimpers out the sweetest "please, johnny," almost crying in his impatience, and fuck.

john doesn't mean for his hips to twitch up at that, but they do, hard. gale sobs out a broken sound at the way john's cock hits just where he needs it to in his accidental movement, and gale spills over his stomach completely untouched, just like that. john swears and drives his hips up into him in an attempt to quickly amend his slip up, moaning loud at the wrecked noises that immediately start bubbling up out of gale as he fucks him through his orgasm.

he tips over the edge himself from the desperate sounds the blond starts to make as he crosses the line into overstimulation, feeling gale's hips jerk frantically in his hands, fighting to get away from the incessant rhythm of his cock inside him as john shudders through his own orgasm, fingers digging into gale's sides.

he slows down to a gentle grind of his hips when gale collapses against his chest, face pressed to his neck, shivering at the slow drag inside him and whining pitifully when john eventually pulls out, settling him down on his thighs while he reaches around to undo the belt and free his hands. his heart bursts at the way gale instantly wraps his arms around him, clinging to him as they both catch their breath, john petting his hair and showering him with praise.

he eventually huffs out a laugh, murmuring a "sorry buck. payback's a bitch, but that was an accident, i swear." gale groans against him in complaint, lightly nipping at his shoulder in retaliation, too tired to fight back, but john's sure he'll pay for it eventually.

it's confirmed with the "better watch your back, darling" that he gets when they're both pulling their clothes back on, but to john, that sounds less like a threat and more like a good time, and he shoots gale a crooked grin to let him know as much.

#bruh this was 1.3k i did not mean to get into so much detail #the keep reading button has never been more necessary #i wish i could crank out long drabbles like this for all the asks #but they take sooo long for me to write i am NOT a fast writer lol hence why i post a fic like once a month #but sometimes certain asks just itch my brain some type of way and then boom i've thrown up onto a tumblr post #anyway dacryphilia my beloved <3 #in any other scenario john hates to see gale cry. but i think in bed he would have an affinity for making him feel so good that he cries #have i thought about this extensively? perhaps.#i just think that pretty boys with pretty eyes and pink lips deserve to cry during sex sometimes. as a treat #johnslittlespoon asks #johnslittlespoon brainrot #johnslittlespoon spicy #buck x bucky #buckbucky #johnslittlespoon writes

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spideystevie · 1 year

Text

single thread of gold (tied me to you)

word count: 1.2k

a/n: tell jesus...that the bitch is back. HIII have had insane amounts of writer's block lately but have been getting into the groove again and thus, this was born. truly just overly "poetic" fluff with, like, no plot. i've missed steve and i've missed YOU guys!!!! i hope you like <3

Fate wasn’t an idea you bought into. Invisible strings, serendipitous meetings, everything happened with cause and effect.

Then, you met Steve and fate seemed to be something that had a lot more pull in your life than you ever realized. How else could you explain a mini version of your Steve pouting in the background of a childhood photo of you at the park? Or the distinct color of the green jacket you wore all the time in the corner of a picture of Steve on vacation his junior year?

You’re sure there had to be signs you were oblivious to. Twists of fate tugging on the respective end of the string that tied the two of you together, pulling this way and that until you fell together. It seems like the stars aligned the day you met, everything slowly starting to fall into place the more you wove your lives together.

It’s a pretty thought now, the idea of fate and serendipity.

A tethering thread, thin as fishing wire and painted gold, is wrapped snug around your hearts. It’s naked to the eye but you can feel it give your heart a gentle squeeze whenever Steve smiles, each time he brushes his thumb over the curve of your cheek, down to your jaw.

It digs into the flesh even now, sets your skin alive as he stands behind you, arms wrapping around your shoulders and holding you close against him. It’s instinctive the way your hands come up to hold onto his forearms. Your head lolls to one side, nearly resting against the pillow of muscle in his bicep near your ear.

You wonder if this is too much for the grocery store on a Sunday. After all, you’re just trying to pick out a new cereal to try for breakfast. Steve wants anything chocolate and your nose crinkles, unsure if you agree. He tries his best to smooth the wrinkle along the bridge of your nose away with a kiss.

It works, though his kiss presses more so to the skin beneath your eye than your actual nose. You don’t mind. You never mind when it comes to Steve’s kisses on your skin.

He talks you into cocoa puffs, keeps one arm wrapped around you as he reaches to grab the box and put it in your shopping cart. He spoon feeds you a couple mouthfuls when you get home and all the groceries have been put away. When he kisses you it’s almost artificially sweet like the chocolate from his cereal.

You push his hair back from his forehead, dipping to press a kiss between his brow. His eyes close on contact and a wispy smile creeps onto his face. When you straighten, his hair falls back into place and you ruffle it with your hand. He swats it away with a playful scrunch of his nose that makes you laugh.

“I was thinking tonight we could go out for dinner, see a movie maybe,” you say, leaning against the counter. Steve swivels on the barstool, his knee nudging your thigh. The spoon clinks against the bowl, stirring up the last few lonely pieces of cereal floating in the milk.

He reaches for your waist, pulling you to his lap with an ease that’s grown over the years. You sit on his thigh, back against the edge of the counter and both legs dangling in the space between his. Like some kind of magnetic force, your hand comes back to his hair, pushing the loose strands of fringe away from his forehead again.

A gooey admiration pools like honey in his eyes as he looks up at you. He smiles, a little dopey, when your nails scratch against his scalp.

“Hmm, do I get to pick the movie?”

“I think that can be arranged,” you murmur, a smile etched on your face. You seem to do that a lot you realize, a near permanent upturn of your lips whenever Steve’s around. You can’t help it, a reflex after this many years together.

Steve feels the tug of that thread around his heart right now, with your hand fallen against the back of his neck and the sweetest lovesick smile on your face. He can’t get enough of you, not that he’d ever want to. Steve loves the insatiable feeling that comes with loving you.

“Then it’s a date,” he responds, the insides of his body feeling heavy and warm from the amount of adoration coursing through him. He’s not sure he’ll ever get used to it. Like he can’t take it anymore, he pinches at your side and relishes in the giggling squeal that escapes you as you fold at the side and lean away.

“Steve,” you try to go for chastising, your hand smushing against his face and pushing him away when he tries to pinch again, but it comes out half-hearted and through a laugh. It mixes with his, a hearty melodic sound that you never tire of hearing.

You move to stand, your feet just barely touching the ground before you’re pulled back tight against him. He noses against your neck, lips ghosting against the skin there. You twist your neck to face him as his face comes up from its spot against your neck.

Steve’s eyes scan your face, redrawing each feature from memory each time he blinks. His nose nudges against yours, squishes against your cheek when he presses his lips to yours. A feeling like coming home, a mutual squeeze around your hearts that comes each time you kiss.

When you pull back, he steals one, two, three more kisses from you until you’re left a giggling mess, smile wide and blinding and eyes shining like the stars. He’s never seen a prettier sight. Another kiss is stolen, this one silencing your giggles with the intensity of it. You blink hard, a little dazed when he pulls away.

Steve’s nose brushes against your hairline, his lips ghosting over your temple. That same cheek-aching smile returns to your face, a bit softer this time, fuzzy around the edges. Your whole body feels that way, a whole gaussian blur of a lover as you look at your boyfriend.

His eyes soften and his head tilts in question, “What?”

“Jus’ love looking’ at you,” you say, voice a gentle hug. I love you is what it means, til the end of time and then some. Steve understands, of course he does. Your serendipitous, fated love. His eyes crinkle at the corners from how big his smile grows, your favorite sight. One of your hands reaches to hold his face, thumb brushing against the wrinkled skin.

“Funny,” he muses, voice dripping with fondness for you, “was just thinking the same thing ‘bout you.”

Your heart soars and you can feel yourself sinking further into the deep end of the pool of his adoration for you. Positively lovesick, you bring his face down to yours again to kiss him silly.

That tethering string wraps almost painfully, suffocatingly tight around your hearts. If you could die from so much love, well, it wouldn’t be such a bad way to go.

#steve harrington #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington x y/n #steve harrington x you #steve harrington fluff #steve harrington imagine #steve harrington fanfic #📝: a writes!

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suzukiblu · 7 months

Text

Day seven of fic NaNoWriMo, obligatory sugar daddy Tim/sugar baby Kon AU.

Kon zips up to Tim, puts the little clay goat in his hands with a quick "hold this," because he is clearly not aware of how the oils on people's hands can damage this kind of thing or concerned about how magic or cursed it may or may not be, and deals with the panicked thieves. Tim shakes the sleeves of his jacket down over his hands to hold the goat more carefully and watches attentively as Kon tosses them all into a pile and then ties them up with a combination of TTK and velvet divider ropes. Tim would not typically use velvet divider ropes as restraints, but imagines that choice probably works better with telekinetic reinforcement behind it.

Actually, it definitely does, because Kon just whapped Lisa upside the back of the head with a loose end of the heavy velvet divider rope when she started trying to squirm free.

"Ow!" she yells indignantly.

"How's that whole 'the idol will protect us!' thing going for you now?" Kon asks curiously.

"You don't know the shape of its blessing!" Mark snarls, attempting to kick him. The effort is futile and pathetic and also pretty stupid, since if he actually managed to hit Kon he'd probably just break his foot on him, but whatever, not Tim's problem.

"The shape of its blessing is a cute goat and a jail cell," Kon says.

"We should probably find a staff member to take this, on that note," Tim says, glancing around for one. There's got to be somebody. The guards are an option, he guesses, once Kon gets around to untying them. But he definitely should not still be holding this goat, even with his sleeves tucked over his hands and him being as careful as he reasonably can about it.

Seriously. Somewhere a museum curator is crying and doesn't even know why.

"Oh, sure," Kon says. The guards' restraints all simultaneously fall off. Unfortunately, none of them happen to be wearing gloves or have sleeves as long as Tim's, so that's going to be an issue.

"Thanks," Tim says anyway.

"Eh, it was nothing," Kon replies with a shrug. "Literally, this whole situation was nothing. Like, this situation was the opposite of a situation. Nothing even happened."

And then Tim just . . . has an idea, almost. Or at least the nucleus of one.

"You did save my life, actually," he points out, making his tone politely appreciative but also carefully casual.

"No offense, but I save a lot of people's lives, that doesn't really stick out in my day-to-day activities," Kon says.

"I don't know, it stuck out a bit for me," Tim says, and Kon laughs.

"Okay, fair," he says, flashing him a grin. "You're not actually hurt or anything, right? Eardrum didn't rupture when the gun went off?"

"Doubt it," Tim says. Frankly he's unspeakably lucky that it didn't, but Kon's TTK probably did block at least some of the sound.

He really didn't know Kon could use it like this, to be honest. Kon cracks out his TTK every chance he gets and brags the whole time he does, obviously, but Tim's never seen him manipulate it quite this way.

It occurs to him to wonder if that means it's a new trick, or if Kon just always wraps up hostages or threatened civilians in his aura like that and just never mentions it. It seems likelier it'd be a new trick, considering literally everything he knows about Kon and his desperate and unsubtle need for validation and attention, but Kon was so unshakeably confident in the move–and not in a brash or blustering way, but in an obvious, matter-of-fact certainty. Like he'd done it a thousand times and it hadn't failed him yet.

Tim should definitely figure out a way to follow up on that later.

"Cool," Kon says, then looks around the gallery again. Tim feels oddly bereft without his immediate focus.

Stupid, stupid inadvisable crush. Ugh. Bats don't want to be the center of anyone's attention unless they're deliberately drawing fire away from someone else. Tim definitely doesn't want to be the center of anyone's attention.

Except, apparently, for Kon's.

This incident report is going to be nothing but lies. Filthy, shameless lies.

#timkon #tim drake #kon el #conner kent #dc robin #superboy #young just us #young justice #rinfic #wip: obligatory sugar baby kon

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nonetoon · 1 year

Text

✨ Big Comic Recommendation List! ✨

I’ve been wanting to compile some of my favorite comics into one big list in no particular order for a while. Again, I just want to reiterate that I’m in no way any sort of comic critic and all of these are just books that I personally enjoy, and if they seem up your alley I hope you’ll enjoy them too!

I also want to state that these are definitely more adult oriented books and not for kids. A lot of these stories have pretty graphic violence and tackle more adult topics like sexual or physical assault, so I’ll also be putting content warnings for where it applies.

1. Afternoon at McBurger’s by Ana Galvañ

Afternoon at McBurger’s takes place in a bright, colorful future where a group of young girls finally have the opportunity to participate in the Once Party provided by McBurger’s, a fast food restaurant. The Once Party offers a fantastical opportunity for anyone who turns eleven years old: the chance to visit themselves in the future!

The limited color palette of pink, teal, and yellow make for a very nice aesthetic that lends itself to the strange, futuristic world you get just a glimpse into. For such a short story there is a lot to keep track of that makes rereading fun and I felt like I discovered something new every time I went through it again.

CW: physical abuse

2. No One Else by R. Kikuo Johnson

Another short one but is definitely one of the more impactful. No One Else is about a woman (a nurse and full time caretaker for her elderly father) and her brother (a musician who has a much more strained relationship with their father) trying to process the sudden, accidental death of their father while also looking after her son. A very honest, holds-no-punches look at family, abuse, and neglect as each character struggles to cope with this sudden situation they find themselves in.

The artwork is beautifully done and the use of blues with a splash of orange makes for a great visual impact. I’m a big fan of character driven stories, and this book provides an interesting and messy glimpse into these characters lives. Very down to earth, very honest, and nicely tied together.

CW: physical abuse

3. Birds of Maine by Michael DeForge

A fun and meandering story about a society of birds that migrated to the moon to form their own world, away from human involvement. Birds of Maine follows both a group of young birds trying to find their place in this giant, complex world as well as gives glimpses of the many different facets of bird society and how they function.

This comic gives a very funny, matter-of-fact look into the absurd world of birds! It’s overall a great read if you like world building, and it’s presented with beautiful line work, bright pops of color, and abstract shapes that make up the bustling world and characters. The story overall feels like a stroll: it generally follows along a specific story with certain characters, but isn’t afraid to wander off to other points of interest.

4. Coyote Doggirl by Lisa Hanawalt

Set in the wild west, Coyote Doggirl follows said character as she tries to escape a group of bandits after she kills their leader’s brother. Along the way she meets new allies and has to decide to confront the past she is trying desperately to get away from or keep on running. It’s a funny yet honest book set in the beauty of the desert.

The story and characters in Coyote Doggirl are both hilarious and crude, which makes the more serious and genuine moments even more impactful. The loose style of the watercolors throughout this comic perfectly match the beautiful colors of the desert landscape. This comic also has probably one of my favorite endings (which I’m not going to spoil here).

CW: nudity, sexual assault, graphic violence

5. Eight-Lane Runaways by Henry McCausland

Eight-Lane Runaways follows a group of runners participating in a marathon through a fantastical and lively world. Each have their own motivations and desires for entering the race, and we get to see how each resolves as the race goes on.

The quirky and oddball characters and their ever-changing, winding landscape go perfectly hand-in-hand. It’s always amusing when clearly bizarre fantasy worlds, characters, and events are treated very plainly within the story. The characters are simple but fun to follow along with, from a character who is a frog, to a character who follows the instructions of a magical coat, to a character simply looking for two missing cats. Along with the beautifully done artwork and sprawling pages of landscapes, it feels as though you are only getting the smallest look into this big, wild world you want to learn more about.

6. The Book Tour by Andi Watson

The Book Tour follows a rather unlucky new author as, not only is his debut book not selling well, but a string of murders is following his exact tour route, leaving all signs pointing at him as the culprit.

It’s a very dry but still incredibly entertaining and suspenseful story. It’s hilarious, quaint, and baffling to watch the poor man get hit with bad luck after bad luck, only for him to be very proper, if not completely lost, about the whole ordeal. There are also many moving parts and details going on in the background that make for a great murder mystery story, definitely deserving of a reread to connect all the pieces that might have been missed on the first read through (I know I definitely did).

7. Heaven No Hell by Michael DeForge

A collection of 17 amazing short stories looking at a variety of characters and concepts. Everything from a woman pretending to be a surgeon, a karaoke party, a family killed in a car crash, and the creation of a hypothetical child.

My favorite stories of the bunch are “One Of My Students Is A Murderer… But Which?”, “Surprise Party”, “Album”, “Road Trip”, and “Soap Opera.” All of the stories in this comic are perfectly bite-sized looks into a variety of interesting visuals and concepts that keep you engaged from segment to segment.

CW: mild nudity

8. Flavor Girls by Loïc Locatelli-Kournwsky and Angel De Santiago

In Flavor Girls, a mysterious alien ship appears in Earth’s orbit, and its passengers cause death and destruction for life on earth. Luckily, a group of women dubbed “Flavor Girls” by their fans are gifted magical, fruit themed powers that aid them in fighting off the alien army. The newest, unexpected member of the group, however, is having trouble catching up.

By far one of the most visually stunning comics I have ever read. Very, very reminiscent of Sailor Moon in its characters, aesthetic, and story. This comic has some of my favorite character designs, the alien designs in particular are extremely fun to look at. Unlike the other comics on this list, it is not a complete story but at least it gives you something to look forward to!

CW: mild graphic violence

9. Beautiful Darkness by Fabien Vehlmann and Kerascoët

Last but absolutely not least, Beautiful Darkness is a surprisingly horrifying and violent story about cute and fun looking fairy-like characters trying to survive out in the woods. The less you know going in to this comic, the better.

The incredible beauty and meticulous detail of the environment in this comic lends itself well as a stark contrast to the horrific deaths littered throughout this story. It is bizarre watching how unfeeling and unbothered these cutesy fairytale creatures are with their friends dropping around them like flies, but it’s impossible to look away. Seeing how all of it shapes and warps the genuinely kind main character, Aurora, and the darker implications going on in the background make this a must read. By far one of the best openings to any comic I have ever read.

CW: gore, body horror

(That’s all I have for now! Hope to recommend more in the future ✌️)

#text #long post #excuse any typos I have been staring at this for too long #comic recommendations #book recommendations #beautiful darkness #flavor girls #Heaven no hell #birds of Maine #the book tour #eight lane runaways #coyote doggirl #afternoon at mcburgers #no one else

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adventuringblind · 8 months

Text

Drive With You Forever

Chapter 12.5: Max and His Stamina

Max Verstappen x Charles Leclerc x Lando Norris x Reader x Oscar Piastri

Chapter summary: Lando is a pain and Max takes everyone apart because of it

Warnings: sexual things ahead, very little description os said sexual things because y'all can use your imagination, definate Dom/sub things going on, rope, a lot of rope,

Notes: I wrote this with the intention of shamless smut, and then I ended up with this. I actually really enjoyed just writing the interactions between all five of them.

Previous <-

Masterlist

"This is you're fault Lando."

"Is not!"

"It definitely is."

"Pretty sure we wouldn't be here if you didn't antagonize Max."

"Is Max normally like this?"

"Only with Lando. We're innocent bystanders."

Having one person tied to each bed post is not how they envisioned ending their day. Max is nowhere is sight, and they've been waiting for him in nothing but undergarments for at least twenty minutes.

Three of them had no clue what they'd done wrong. Sure, Max had won another rave, but he'd very clearly said 'punishment' in his text after the race.

Lando had done a stupid thing a whispered in Max's ear while walking past one of his interviews. He'd yet to fess up what he'd said.

Charles is sitting with only one hand tied to the post because he'd done the other three. The other hand still has his phone to communicate with Max.

Consent is still important even if he's not in the room. And he was mildly worried that the female was going to panic that she'd done something wrong.

Oscar had only watched them do things like this and joined in a couple of times when he felt like he understood what was going on. One thing he learned early on is that Lando doesn't do what he's told unless he's in the mood to comply, and Max has less patience for that.

Charles is incredibly patient and can handle Lando. It's always shocking when Oscar sees him piss off the Dutch instead.

Oscar doesn't know where he falls yet. He's been going with the flow of things, and despite being the youngest, he quite likes telling people what to do.

"Os, Max wants me to go over rules with you while me wait." Says the Monegasque who is sitting comfortably with his knees bent.

Oscar shifts his gaze from the Brit to him. This looks much nicer than the one Lando had been receiving. "Didn't we already do this?"

"Yes, but he's being cautious."

"It's because of the Daniel incident." Says the female with no hesitation. She'd told him about it on their way to meet up at Max's hotel room a while back. They'd invited him in on something intimate for the first time, and she thought it best he knew.

They'd had discussions about everything prior. A few times, at least. But when he actually joined the first time, Max was incredibly hesitant. But he understood why and didn't take it as an insult.

"Safe words?" Charles quizzes him.

"Green for good. Yellow for slow. Red for stop." It's simple and universal for all of them. "No choking unless it's light for Charles and Lando. Don't put Y/N on her knees. Also, keep ties loose unless it's Lando. Make sure Lando communicates because otherwise, he'll let himself get hurt..." he thinks for a moment if he's missing anything.

"Anything you want to add to the list for yourself?" Asks the female.

"I've learned I don't like being hit or choked or things like that." He confesses. He's watched Charles and Lando get hit a couple of times and spanking is fun to give less fun to recieve.

"I'll add it to the list and make sure Max know as well."

They communicate so well like this. There is no shame and no secrets here.

"Lando, what did you whisper to Max to put him in a mood?" He asks. Both out of curiosity and for future reference.

"Possibly something about him not being able to take all four of us." Lando gives Oscar a cheeky smile. The other three collectively role their eyes.

"So we're here because Max has a point to prove." Charles shakes his head.

"You're not even completely tied up!" Complains the Brit.

"Max will do the other hand when he gets here, relax."

The girl pulls her knees to her chest. Her look is a bit distant, but not in an incredibly concerning way. “Max is on his way up.”

“Why do you look scared, chéri?”

She shrugs at the question. “Don’t want him to be mad.”

“Luckily for you, I think he’s only frustrated with Lando. He’s doing this as his podium celebration.” Explains Charles. She nods her head in understanding and relaxes a bit.

They hear the door unlock and Max leans in the opening of the of the room. He can perfectly see all four of them. “Everyone alright?”

Despite three saying yes, Charles begins to list off everything they’d talked about. “Os has the rules memorized now, Lando is still being petty, I couldn’t get my other hand done and needed to text you anyway, and y/n thinks you might be mad at her so reassurance is in order.”

Max makes his way over to them and gently takes Charles’ other hand. He uses the leftover rope to secure his once free hand. When he’s done he plants a kiss on Charlie’s head. “Thank you.”

Charles looks at Lando and eyes him smugly.

“So here’s what I’m thinking.” Max crosses his arms and stands at the foot of the bed. “I’m going to start with one of you, then add another, then a third, then Lando.”

“Why am I last?!”

Max shoots a glare at the Brit causing him to shut his mouth. “Because you started this. I could not let you off the rope at all.” Lando casts his eyes downward. Being last is better then nothing.

Max steps next to the female and unties Charles’ knots. He gently tugs them away from then kisses her wrists. “You’re not in trouble and I’m not mad at you.” Max pulls her into him and runs his finger across the bare spots on her body.

She sighs in content. Her body leans into him more just from the contact. Max could spend hours just memorizing her body, but he won’t torcher her. She’s done nothing wrong so there’s no need for it.

He’s got her finishing with just his tongue. The other three boys are now squirming.

Shockingly, Max goes for Oscar next. He unties his wrists and kisses them.

“Maxy, did I do something wrong?” Charles asks. It’s not whining, just confusion lacing his voice.

“Not at all, I just want things to be even, and you have been tied as long.” Max winks at him, and Charles nods in understanding.

"Perfectly honest, I have no idea what we're doing." Oscar trying to look confident but failing miserably. It doesn't help that Max is both tall and broad.

"Letting me take care of you."

Oscar hates it when his knees get weak. But he loves it when Max and Y/N are pulling him apart. Even more so as he gets to reciprocate.

To say that Charles and Lando are struggling would be an understatment. There is much more squirming then there was before.

Soon, Max is repeating his actions. Albeit more sweaty this time.

Charles had done his time and now is having his ropes untied and wrists kissed.

Charles definitely knows what he's doing as he's all over Max the second his hands are free. Charles is much more exploitative with his tongue than the rest. An advantage he uses over the other four.

It's not long until Max is picking him apart as well.

When four are heavily panting and all of them are shocked that Max is going to go another round. He eyes Lando with a cheeky smile. "Have you learned your lesson?"

Lando looks like he might cry if he doesn't have any physical contact in the next thirty seconds. He's begging Max to let him go.

When Max feels satisfied, he repeats his actions a fourth and final time. His kisses the Brit's wrists where he had been rubbing them against the rope.

Max takes his sweet time undoing Lando. His patience is immense. He's showing him just how good he takes all for them. It's meticulous, really.

Max almost collapses after everything. He didn't even know he could go for so long.

Charles disappears from the main room and comes back with towels for everyone. He passes them around and then helps Max move into something more comfortable. Practically putting on clothes for him, them covering him with a blanket. It takes thirty seconds until they can hear him snoring.

Charles sighs and shakes his head. "I hope you're proud of yourself, Lan."

Lando is still on the floor, catching his breath. He gives a thumbs up to show that he is, in fact, very proud.

Charles knows the routine and makes sure his three younger counterparts are taken care of. The female doing the same for him after she's done in the bathroom.

She hates it, but they'd learned their lesson after her first UTI.

Oscar and Lando are curled up next to Max. They leave no room on the bed for the other two.

"Max should start booking his own hotel rooms." She whispers over to Charles. "Maybe then we'll have a bigger bed."

Charles just laughs and drags her to the couch. It's not ideal, but it works.

Soon, the five are asleep. Much to the displeasure of a certain tall Australian who'd been trying to get a hold of any of them.

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once-upon-an-imagine · 1 year

Text

Here Is Gone - Charlie Weasley

A/N: ahhhh xD I am back, baby! as promised here is our winner, Mr. Charlie Weasley! :D I hope you loves liked it! this turned out suuuuuper long so :) also, we are all going to pretend that Sirius and Remus are a lot older in this fic (like Molly’s age) because they have a daughter that is Charlie’s age AND Bill never worked in Egypt he always stayed at Gringotts!

Request - Anonymous asked: Hi, love! I saw you wanted some angsty Charlie request, and although I'm not so good at coming up with angsty ideas I'll try... How about Charlie and you are best friends at Hogwarts, both pining for each other but neither says nothing, so when you graduate Charlie goes to Romania and you stay there, so don't see each other again for years. When he comes home, you are engaged to someone else, but you both still like each other. Okay, I don't know if that makes any sense at all and you can ignore it 🙈 Also, if you decide to write it, you can make the ending whatever you want (I love a happy ending, but you choose). Thank you ❤️

Warnings: wolfstar!daughter! this is a bit angsty but Bill is here to diffuse the tension xD jealous!Charlie, reader cheats on boyfriend with Charlie (one kiss) and please let me know if I missed anything!

Disclaimer: I don’t own Harry Potter :D gif isn’t mine :)

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Here Is Gone

And I want to get free, talk to me I can feel you falling And I wanted to be all you need Somehow here is gone

You weren’t sure what was the weirdest part of coming back to your childhood home. That your father hadn’t taken down the portrait of your stupid grandma. That it was now invaded by members of the order. Or…

“Love?”

Five years. It had been five years since you heard that nickname. Nobody else called you that. You made sure of it because that nickname was reserved for him. You slowly turned around, holding on to your mug to make your hand stop shaking and there he was.

“Charlie” you smiled. You always smiled when you saw Charlie.

He looked the same. But not really. He looked absolutely enthralling. His fiery red hair was longer than when you last saw him and tied in a small bun with some loose strands. There were burn marks on his (very) muscular arms and several tattoos were visible, peeking from under his shirtsleeves and collar. His eyes were the same deep blue eyes you loved so much. And now, the top of his face was covered in freckles, but the bottom part was decorated with a lazy beard.

You didn’t know it was possible. You couldn’t understand how your heart still fell to your stomach and your knees went weak just by looking at him, flashing you that bright smile he always had when he looked at you.

“Hello, sunshine” he said, opening his arms to you. “Don’t I get a hug?”

“Of course, you get a hug” you smiled, walking closer to him. You were going to wrap your arms around his waist but his arms quickly wrapped around yours and lifted you up, twirling you around, making your mug fall out of your hand and break on the floor.

“Shit! I’m sorry, love” he said, pointing his wand at your mug and fixing it in no time, placing it on the counter. “Please don’t tell your dad I broke your favorite mug” he chuckled, making you do the same.

“Your secret’s safe with me, Charlie” you smiled, feeling horrible at the fact that the word ‘love’ almost came out of your mouth so casually.

“It’s been so long, my little Hungarian Horntail” he laughed.

“Seriously? It’s been five years, Charles, I think we can retire that nickname” you smiled nervously, hating how much you had always loved that nickname too.

“No, never. That is the best way to describe you” he smiled, placing his hand on your cheek. He felt his heart racing as fast as it did every single time he saw you. He hadn’t felt that in five years and when Bill told him that they would be seeing you, he was 100% certain his feelings would come back. Well, not really because they never left. But this time, he was not going to let you go again. “I’ve missed you so much” he whispered.

The words were stuck in your throat. You wanted to say them out loud but something wasn’t letting you. You sighed in relief when you were quickly interrupted by your other favorite Weasley.

“CASSIOPEIA!” Bill burst into the room, pulling you away from Charlie and wrapping you in a bone-crushing hug like he always did. You couldn’t even protest at the fact that he still used your stupid middle name, which you hated. And Bill knew he was the only one that could get away with it. Other than your parents when they were reprimanding you for something.

“William” you laughed, trying to unglue yourself from him. Since he used your middle name, you used his full name, which he didn’t particularly love. “I kind of… need to breathe” you smiled.

“Oh, Merlin, I haven’t seen you in forever!” he said, finally putting you down.

“I literally saw you like two weeks ago” you laughed.

“You look bloody amazing!”

“Thanks, Bill, so do you” you smiled. “B-both of you” you said, turning to Charlie.

“Oh look, honey. The Weasleys are here” Sirius said, walking into the kitchen with his husband following him. “Broken any windows yet, boys?”

“Sirius” Remus warned him. “I’m sure these Weasleys are old enough now to not break any more of our windows” he smiled. “Hello Bill, Charlie” he smiled.

You noticed Charlie widening his eyes at you and then at your now-fixed mug, making you laugh a little.

“Mr. Lupin” Bill and Charlie nodded at him. “M-Mr. Black” they said, looking at your other dad. You knew they were still a bit afraid of him. Or maybe a lot. “Sorry about that, again” Bill smiled nervously.

“It’s okay, boys” Sirius smirked at them. “It’s been a very long time since you’ve broken something of ours” he said, glaring a little bit at Charlie.

“Dad!” you rolled your eyes.

“Sirius, love, come help me in the other room” Remus quickly pulled him away and you thanked him with your eyes. Bill quickly followed them, nodding his head towards you to Charlie without you noticing.

“So, I see your father still hates me” Charlie told you.

“He doesn’t hate you” you chuckled.

“He doesn’t love me” he argued.

“Don’t take it personally. He doesn’t love anybody who’s not my dad, me, or Harry” you told them.

“Fair enough” he chuckled, walking closer to you. “I was wondering if… uh-” he said, suddenly getting nervous. “We could talk?”

“Talk?” you asked. “About what?” you smiled nervously.

“W-well-”

“Hey, there you are pumpkin” Charlie felt your hand fall from his the minute a guy stepped into the kitchen. A very handsome man, with dark hair, blue eyes, and about as tall as Charlie, made his way towards you and kissed your cheek, hugging you to him, and making Charlie’s stomach drop. “Hi, you must be one of Bill’s brothers” he said, offering his hand to Charlie.

“Oh, darling” you smiled nervously and then looked at Charlie. “Um, this is Charlie” you corrected him. “Charlie, this is Nicholas” you said, looking back at the redhead. “My boyfriend” you informed him.

“Oh, right! The one that works with dragons” he smiled at the redhead, as Charlie shook his hand, still dumbfounded. “She has told me all about you and your brothers, but it might take me some time to get it correctly” he chuckled.

“R-right. No worries, mate, everyone gets us mixed up” Charlie said, still looking between the two of you. “Wait ‘till you meet Fred and George, they’re twins” he laughed slightly.

“Sounds fun” Nicholas smiled at you, kissing your head and pulling you closer by your waist. You quickly looked at Charlie and noticed his ears were getting the same color as his hair and beard. He was angry. “Your father says the meeting’s about to start, pumpkin” he told you.

“Oh, r-right. I’ll be right there, I’m just getting some tea” you said, motioning to your empty mug on the counter.

“I’ll save you a seat” he smiled before he gave you a small peck on the lips before he left and you smiled nervously. Why were you nervous? Why did you feel the need to explain this to Charlie? You didn’t owe him an explanation.

“So… pumpkin” Charlie smirked at you.

“Don’t be an asshole, Weasley” you glared at him as you started preparing your tea.

“I’m not being an asshole” he defended himself. “I just… thought you hated pumpkin” he said as he walked through your kitchen as if it was his own house and he grabbed the milk to bring it to you. “Milk and no sugar. Right, love?”

“Um… yes, thanks” you said, feeling your heart flutter at the thought that he still remembered. “And for your information, I don’t hate pumpkin!”

“You hate pumpkin juice, pumpkin pastries, and even that princess from the muggle story your dad used to read to you where her carriage turns into a pumpkin” he laughed.

“Well, I don’t mind the word pumpkin” you informed him as you finished making your tea and you started walking out of the kitchen.

“Mhm, sure you don’t” Charlie smirked to himself, following you.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

It was currently day five. The day when the ‘kids’ (making you feel like 100 years old) left for school. Each passing day was worse than the last. You tried your hardest to avoid him. You really did. But it was easier said than done. He wasn’t even supposed to be here. Your father told you that Charlie was going to stay in Romania and recruit foreign wizards to join the Order. But at the last minute, he changed his mind. And you knew exactly what that meant. Bill told Charlie you were coming, and then, suddenly, Charlie was coming.

During the days, you tried to keep yourself busy and did whatever you could not to be in any room alone with Charlie. Because, if you were being honest, you didn’t trust yourself around him. You were with Nicholas. And you loved him. You were sure. On paper, he was probably the best boyfriend you could ask for. But Charlie had this stupid magnetic force that made you want to go back to him. Because that’s what he told you when the two of you went your separate ways. ‘We will always make our way back to each other.’ And now here you were. And you were with someone else. And you felt extremely guilty for the way your heart did a leap every time you saw Charlie. You hated the fact that you felt at home when he hugged you or when he smiled at you.

And at night. That was the worst time. You were staying in your old childhood bedroom and you knew Charlie was just a room away. With Bill. Like they shared when they spent their summers with you. And he would always sneak out of his room and come over to yours to spend the nights with you. And it made you sick to your stomach that some part of you still kept eyeing the door. Waiting for him. Not only because Nicholas was lying next to you. But because Charlie was no longer yours. He hadn’t been for five years.

When you walked into the room where today’s meeting was being held, you saw that your seat was between Nicholas and Charlie.

“Alright, now that we’re all here. We can begin” your father, Remus, started.

You tried extremely hard to concentrate on what your father was saying. You really did. But it was very hard when Charlie ‘casually’ threw his arm on the back of your seat. He was closer to you than Nicholas was and you started feeling extremely guilty for just wanting to lean into Charlie’s shoulder. Like you always did.

While your father kept explaining about the first order and what the ideas for this one were, Charlie finally removed his arm from behind you and placed it on his leg. You shifted uncomfortably in your seat, hating the fact of how nervous Charlie still made you. But, surprisingly enough, Charlie wasn’t even your worst problem. It was Bill. The fact that Bill was sitting in front of you, with a look you knew all too well wasn’t helping.

“Sweetheart, did you hear what your father said?” you heard your other father snapping you out of your thoughts.

“Uh, what? Um, sorry I was distracted” you smiled nervously.

“Really? By what? Care to share this with the rest of the room?” Bill asked, fascinated, resting his head on his hand and you glared at him.

“Yeah. I was distracted by that stupid ugly fang in your ear” you smirked.

“Kids!” Mrs. Weasley warned the two of you, knowing how quickly you could get back into your old antics with Bill.

“Ah, you leave my fang out of this, Cassie” he laughed, making you roll your eyes.

“Cassie?” Nicholas asked, confused.

“That’s… uh your girlfriend’s middle name, mate” Charlie said as if it was obvious.

“No, I know that” you saw him glaring a little at Charlie. “But… she hates it when people call her that” he said.

“I do” you intervened. “Bill just doesn’t care” you informed him.

“Wrong! She gave me permission to be the only one to call her that” he smirked. “Isn’t that right, little Horntail?” he mocked you and you heard Charlie laugh next to you while Nicholas looked confused between them and you.

“WILLIAM!” you said, getting up. Could I see you for a moment?” you asked as politely as you could. You saw your fathers share a look between them but none of them said anything so you walked out of the room with Bill behind you. “What are you doing?”

“Nothing” he shrugged innocently.

“Bill!”

“Why are you with him?” he blurted out.

“Excuse me?”

Bill knew about your relationship with Nicholas. Actually, you had met him through Bill since Nicholas worked at Gringotts. He had never seemed happy about you two being together and you assumed he had told Charlie, but apparently, he never did.

“You heard me. Why are you still with Nicholas?”

“What do you mean still? Because I love him!”

“Do you? Really? Because I honestly cannot think of two more opposite people in this world!”

“Yes! Really! How is this any of your business?”

“I have heard you like a billion times, whenever someone asks you about him, like my mum, saying how lucky you are to be with him” he said.

“I am lucky” you argued.

“Right, lucky, not happy” he said, making you frown your eyebrows at your best friend. You sometimes hated how much Bill could read you. “You know? When you have to remind yourself how lucky you are over and over again, it’s because you’re afraid to ask yourself how happy you truly are” he told you.

“That’s not true” you argued, nervously.

“Isn’t it? How happy are you, Cass?”

“I know that Nicholas has never been your favorite person, but I am plenty happy, thank you very much!”

“You sound so convincing” he said, sarcastically “Look, love” he said getting serious, making you pay closer attention since he rarely talked to you like that. “I am not saying this to be an asshole to you or your boyfriend. But I have known you for a very long time and I love you, and I care about you, and I just want what’s best for you.”

“Bill, why are you even doing this?”

“Because I love you, and I care about you. And I have seen how much this relationship has changed you. I’m not saying is a bad thing, but each day you become a completely different person! I know you think that being with Nicholas is the right thing to do because he’s like a grown-up that has his shit together-”

“He’s like your age” you interrupted.

“But is that what you really want? I have heard him many times referring to your job as a hobby. A job that I know you love, and I know that because you gave up going to Romania with Charlie so you could pursue it. You rarely come to the Burrow anymore, do you have any idea how much everyone missed you? The twins were so excited to see you and you didn’t even play one stupid prank with them! You never say no to them, especially when they prank Charlie!” he reminded you. “Look, if you can honestly tell me that Nicholas is the man of your life and you are the happiest woman on Earth being this way, I’ll back down but we both know that the man that you’re supposed to be with, was sitting on your other side, don’t we?”

“Hey kids, we kind of need you back in there because your father wants…” Sirius said, walking out and looking at you. “Honestly, I don’t know what he wanted. I didn’t pay attention, just come back, okay?”

“Sure, Mr. Black” Bill smiled before he walked back in. You were about to follow him but your dad stopped you.

“Princess, are you okay?”

“I’m fine, dad” you said, trying to smile at him.

“Are you sure? Did the Weasley boy do something? Because-”

“No dad, Bill didn’t do anything” you rolled your eyes.

“Okay” he said, still hugging you. “You let me know if one of them is bugging you-”

“Dad!”

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

You were exhausted and you spent the rest of the day avoiding everyone, really. You just wanted to be by yourself but it was hard when your house was filled with people. So, you hid in your fathers’ bedroom, knowing nobody would go there. When it was late, you finally went over to your room, hoping to find some peace, but when you opened the door you saw candles and rose petals everywhere, as Nicholas stood in the middle. Shit. You felt your stomach get twisted in knots.

“Um… honey, what’s going on?” you chuckled nervously.

“Hey, pumpkin” he said, as you walked closer to him. “I know that you have been stressed these couple of days and I wanted to do something special” he smiled.

“Oh, that’s… very sweet of you” you said, walking closer to him.

“Also, I kind of had a whole thing planned for our anniversary a few weeks ago but, then you had to go back to work and I didn’t get to do it there, and then we came here so… I thought there’s no better time than this” he said, starting to kneel down.

Oh no.

“Um, N-Nicholas,-”

“Would you make me the happiest man alive and marry me?” he asked, smiling at you and getting out a small ring box, opening it.

“I- uh” you sighed. “I don’t know what to say” you admitted.

“This is kind of the part where you say yes” he chuckled nervously.

“Honey” you said, kneeling down to his level. “I love you very much, it’s just… this is too much right now” you tried to reason with him.

“Why? I can’t think of a better time” he insisted.

“Nicholas, I… I don’t know if I’m ready for such a big step” you told him.

“So… you’re saying no?”

“N-no, I just… I guess I need to think about it” you told him.

“You need to think about it?” he asked a little upset. “We’ve been together for two years!” he said, closing the ring box and standing up. “Is it because of Weasley?”

“W-what?”

“Bill’s brother, the one that works with dragons” he continued. Maybe you hadn’t been as subtle as you thought you were.

“Charlie has nothing to do with this!”

“Doesn’t he? Do you think I haven’t noticed the way he looks at you? How he talks to you, the little nickname him and Bill have for you?”

“Bill calls me Cassiopeia! That is my least favorite name” you argued.

“You don’t even let me call you that! But you don’t seem to mind when Bill does-”

“I’ve known Bill my entire life! He’s like my annoying old brother!”

“And what about Charlie?”

“What about Charlie?”

“What went on with you two?”

“I told you we dated in school and then he left for Romania!”

“And that’s it?”

“Yes, that’s it!” you lied.

“There’s nothing else there?”

“No!”

“So, why won’t you marry me?”

“Excuse me?” you scoffed. “Is that what this is about? Are you asking me to marry you because you what? You feel threatened by Charlie?”

“That’s not what I said-”

“What is this, some sort of possessive thing that you need me to flaunt a ring around so everyone knows that I’m yours?”

“How can you say that? I want to marry you because I love you! And I want to be with you!”

“And I told you a million times that I am not ready to get married right now! I told you I love my job and I have so many opportunities now where I can travel or even move-”

“Well, yes, but we both know that once we get married and have kids your job will be more like a hobby” he chuckled. You felt your entire heart shatter as you kept repeating Bill’s words in your head. ‘We both know that the man that you’re supposed to be with, was sitting on your other side, don’t we?’

“Nicholas” you said, quietly. “I love you, but I can’t give you an answer right now” you told him. He sighed, running a hand through his dark hair.

“Fine” he said, grabbing the small box and placing it in your hand. “Then, think about it okay? I love you and I want us to be together” he insisted.

“Okay. I will think about it” you said, as he stood to give you a peck on the lips before he made his way over to your bathroom.

As soon as the door closed, you grabbed one of your sweaters, which just happened to be Charlie’s Christmas jumper you had stolen at some point, and you made your way down to the kitchen to clear your mind. You were glad that it was empty because it was already a bit late and you started making yourself some tea. When you sat on the kitchen table you heard some footsteps coming towards you and you sighed.

“Nicholas, I don’t really want to talk right now-” you stopped when you noticed someone else standing there.

“Not Nicholas, love” Charlie smiled sweetly at you. “You alright?”

“I’m fine” you said, looking at your hands as the kettle announced that the water was ready. You were going to stand up but Charlie quickly stopped you.

“Let me” he said, making his way around your kitchen as he brought two cups of tea. Yours with milk and no sugar. You smiled grabbing the mug in your hands. “So… what’s wrong?”

“Nothing-”

“Love I have known you long enough to know that you can’t sleep when you’re upset” he told you. “Remember how you always sneaked into my dorm when you couldn’t?” he smirked.

“I just… have a lot on my mind, I guess” you said, quietly, taking a sip of your perfectly prepared tea.

“So, are you going to tell me about it or are you just going to keep avoiding me?”

“What are you talking about? I haven’t been avoiding you?”

“Really? This is the first conversation we’ve had since I got here” he told you. “Come on, love, please stop pushing me away” he said, placing his hand on yours. When he did, he noticed something under your arm. “Hey, what’s that?”

“Oh, n-nothing” you said, trying to keep your arm in place but Charlie pulled it up, revealing the ring box.

“Is that what I think it is?” he asked, quietly. You felt your heart racing.

“Charlie I uh-”

“You’re getting married?” he asked, grabbing the box and smirking. But you could see in his eyes that he was far from happy about this. “Congratulations, Mrs. Pumpkin” he mocked you. You glared at him, grabbing the box from his hand.

“You’re an asshole” you said, starting to get up but he quickly followed and pulled you back.

“No, come on, love. I’m only joking” he chuckled.

“Well, it is not funny!”

“Fine. Why are you so upset? Aren’t you marrying Mr. Perfect?”

“Why do you even care about this? Is not like you have any idea what’s going on since you have been away for the past five years!”

“That is not fair! We both made that decision!”

“Exactly! So why do you even care if I am with someone else?”

“Because you can’t marry him!”

“Oh, really?” you asked starting to breathe heavily. “And why not?”

“Look, even if I am not yours, you are still my best friend and I am allowed to care about you and say something when you’re about to make the biggest mistake of your life!”

“Excuse me?”

“I did not leave you here for you to follow you to get your fucking dream job and then throw it all away when someone asks you to be his trophy wife!”

“How dare you, Charles!? How can you claim you know me so well and then assume that’s what I’m gonna do!” you snapped.

“That’s how you’re acting! Whenever you’re around him you’re an entirely different person!”

“Well, then I guess it’s a good thing we didn’t end up together!”

“Oh, believe me, love. Best idea I ever made!” he snapped at you.

“And for the record, Bill is my best friend” you smirked evilly at him and he gasped offended.

“Take that back!”

“No” you shrugged and he started slowly walking closer to you.

“Take.It.Back.” he said with his deep voice between clenched teeth as you bumped into the counter behind you and he placed his hands on each side of you.

You were no longer able to ignore this. You felt how heavy your heart was pounding and you knew Charlie was the only one that made it beat like this.

“Make me” was the only thing that you were able to say before Charlie grabbed your face between his hands and he pulled you to his lips.

When his lips touched yours, the world seemed to melt away around you. Nothing mattered. Just you and him. His hands quickly started roaming around your body bringing you closer as he started deepening the kiss. It was like the first time he kissed you. Like the first time that he said he loved you. Like the first time that the two of you had sex. Nothing had changed. You couldn’t keep on denying it any longer. Your heart belonged to Charlie Weasley. You belonged with Charlie Weasley.

But then, you felt a pang of guilt pull at your heart. This was wrong. You were with Nicholas. Nicholas who had just asked you to marry him. Nicholas who was upstairs, waiting for you in your room. So, you pushed Charlie away.

“L-love” he said, breathing heavily.

“No!” you said, pushing yourself away from him and he finally let go. “I c-can’t do this, this isn’t right” you said, starting to feel sick to your stomach. You were a horrible person. “Fuck, what have I done?”

“Love, look at me” he tried, getting closer to you.

“No, don’t get near me!” you cried. “I can’t- I can’t think straight when you’re around me!” you said stepping closer to the entrance. “I need to leave” you muttered to yourself, running out of the kitchen and upstairs.

“Fuck” Charlie muttered to himself before he punched the counter.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

“Hi, bug” you turned around to see one of your fathers, Remus, staring at you through his window.

“Hi dad” you smiled weakly as he climbed through the window and sat down next to you.

“What are you doing out here? Hiding?”

“No” you chuckled.

“You do know this is where you hid every time you stole the chocolate chip cookies, right?”

“Right” you smiled, looking down at yourself.

“What’s going on, bug?”

“Dad… do you think I'm a bad person?”

“What? Of course not, love why would you ask me that?”

“I did a terrible thing” you said, feeling tears streaming down your face.

“Sweetheart, whatever it is, you are not a bad person and your father and I love you very much” he insisted.

“Nicholas proposed to me” you said, taking out the small box and showing him the ring.

“And… you’re not happy about that?” he asked.

“I don’t know! I wasn’t expecting it. I don’t want to get married right now” you told him. “There are still so many things I want to do and so many places I want to go and…” you cried.

“You told him no?”

“I told him I’d think about it” you explained. “And he said it was fine, but I could tell he was upset” you said. “And so I said I needed some space and I went down to the kitchen to make some tea and then I ran into Charlie and I-” you took a deep breath. “We kissed” you told him.

“You kissed Charlie Weasley?!” the two of you turned around to find Sirius standing at the window.

“DAD!” you complained.

“Sirius, how long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough” he said, climbing outside and sitting on your other side.

“Dad, please don’t make me feel worse than I already do” you begged him.

“Sweetheart, what are you doing? Are you not happy with Nicholas?”

“I don’t know!”

“What do you mean you don’t know?”

“Sirius” Remus warned.

“You two have been together for two years now and you seem perfect! You are lucky to have a guy like that!”

“See, that’s the thing! I don’t think I am! I thought I was and then Bill started saying how if I have to remind myself how lucky I am, it’s because I am afraid to ask myself how happy I really am! And then… I can’t believe I got Bill stuck in my head! But he was right! I started to question how happy I really am and I realized how much I have changed since I have been with Nicholas, and… this isn’t me! I haven’t felt like myself in so long! Since… since I was with Charlie! And so, that’s why I told him I would think about it and then I ran into Charlie and he started saying that I shouldn’t marry Nicholas and I got mad at him and we started arguing and then… we kissed and now I don’t know what to do!” you cried as Remus hugged you closer to him. “Why can't I stop thinking about Charlie?”

“Because you're scared of the first real adult relationship with the perfect man” Sirius told you.

“Or because you and Charlie still have a special connection and you still love him” Remus said, widening his eyes at his husband.

“Honey, she’s with Nicholas. We like Nicholas. Stop defending Charlie!”

“Charlie would die for our daughter, and you know that!”

“Can you guys not talk about me as if I’m not here-?”

“Why are you rooting for him? He broke our girl’s heart! And I will be dammed if I let him do it again!” Sirius snapped, making you look at your dad.

He looked defeated. And then it clicked, why your father never liked Charlie. He didn’t seem to mind him when you were in school. Only the ‘hurt my little girl and I’ll kill you’ way. But after Charlie left for Romania, you came back home and stayed with your fathers for weeks. And you had cried every single day.

“Dad… Charlie didn’t break my heart” you said, pulling out of Remus’ embrace. “We both decided to break up. I didn’t want to stop him from following his dreams of working with dragons. And I was going to go with him. But he wouldn’t let me because he knew I wanted to stay here to follow my dream” you explained. “He said that if we were meant to be together we would always make our way back to each other” you told him. “I know you don’t like him and I know that you saw how hurt I was… but that wasn’t Charlie’s fault” you insisted.

“You see, Sirius? Charlie did everything he could so our girl would follow her dreams and do what she wanted instead of following him all the way to Romania. I’m sure you would have hated that” he said as Sirius hugged you.

“Of course, I would have hated that! He would have torn my only daughter away from me” he said, kissing your head.

“See? So, it is actually thanks to Charlie that she didn’t leave. So maybe cut the boy some slack” Remus said.

“Fine” Sirius said begrudgingly. “I guess… he’s not that bad” he admitted as Remus hugged the both of you.

“Can we go back to my problem please?” you said, pushing both of them away. “I still have no idea what to do! I feel like a horrible person!”

“Sweetheart, you’re not a horrible person” Sirius insisted. “As much as it pains me to say it… I guess… I kind of understand why you still feel drawn to Charlie” he sighed. “And… you should always be able to feel like yourself with the person you love” he told you.

“You’re going to have to make a decision, honey” Remus told you.

“They are both great guys but so different! How did you guys do it?”

“I’m not gonna be any help here from the minute I saw your dad I was done for” Sirius smiled at Remus. “I knew that I had met the person that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with and I did everything I could to make him as happy as he made me” he admitted.

“That was really sweet, dad” you smiled at Sirius before you turned to your other father. “What about you?”

“Well, first of all, I’m a sucker for guys who say things like that” Remus admitted. “And… he always helps me find the fun in life” he smiled at his husband.

“Look, sweetheart, you should just ignore everything we said and try to imagine your life with each of them and… if there’s one of the two that you just can’t live without” Sirius told you.

“Well…” you said, taking a deep breath. “With Nicholas, I guess I see a big beautiful house lined with books and interesting people coming in and out, raising kids with a brilliant man” you said with a soft smile. “And with Charlie…” you said as your parents noticed your smile getting bigger. “I see us in a cute little place that needs a ton of work” you chuckled. “And we may not have all the nicest things but… there's music and laughing and I know I can always be myself and he’ll always love me for it” you finished with a few more tears running down your cheeks. “And as much as I love Nicholas, I can see myself living without him but… I don’t think I can picture my life without Charlie” you admitted.

“Well, sweetheart, I think you just answered your question” Remus said, as he and Sirius wrapped you in a hug.

“And we support you no matter what” Sirius assured you, kissing your head. “We just want you to be happy” he said.

“I know” you smiled back at them as you stood up. “Thank you” you said, kissing each of them on the cheek. “I love you guys” you told them, moving over to the window.

Remus turned back to hug Sirius closer to him. “That was very mature of you, Pads” he said, kissing his temple.

“Please, Moony, you act as if I am still the same immature boy from school” he laughed.

“You do know that since she is choosing Charlie and she can now easily move in her job, there’s a chance this might end up with her moving to Romania, right?”

“WHAT!? I never agreed to that!”

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

“Hi” you said, walking inside your room, and finding Nicholas sitting on your window nook.

“Hey” he smiled sadly at you. “I take it you couldn’t sleep either?”

“No” you admitted. “Um… I think… we need to talk” you said, grabbing the small ring box and placing it on your bed. You saw the look on Nicholas’ face and you were certain he knew what was coming was not good.

After about two hours, and the hardest conversation you had ever had since saying goodbye to Charlie, Nicholas was done packing all of his things and he walked towards the door. You had tears streaming down your face and he stopped in front of you, cupping your cheek one last time.

“I��m really sorry” you repeated. “I want you to know that I really did love you” you assured him.

“I know” he smiled like the gentleman he always was as his thumb brushed your cheek. “Just… not as much as him, right?” he said, kissing your temple. “I loved you too” he said before he opened the door and exited the room.

You followed him down the stairs where you found your fathers waiting for you. Acting as if they hadn’t just been outside your door, listening to your entire conversation.

Nicholas smiled awkwardly at them as he made his way out. “Uh, thanks for everything Mr. Lupin and Mr. Black” he told them.

“Take care, kid” Sirius told him.

"Keep in touch" Remus said, kindly before the door closed.

"I don't really see us keeping in touch" Sirius told his husband as you walked down the stairs. “How are you feeling, bug?”

“I’ve been better” you admitted, wiping away the remaining tears on your cheeks and yo sat down at the sofa. Your fathers quickly sitting next to you.

“You did the right thing, sweetheart” Remus said, kissing your head. “We’re really proud of you” he told you.

“We love you, bug” Sirius added before the three of you heard the door burst open and you saw Bill and Charlie walking in, laughing about something.

Their laughter quickly died down when they spotted you. You knew they were a bit drunk. Most likely, Charlie told Bill about what happened and Bill’s solution was to go out and drink.

“Boys” Sirius said, standing up. “Just coming in, are you?” he smirked.

“Y-you’re not gonna tell our mum, right?” Bill asked, a bit worried.

“Well-” Sirius started.

“No, we’re not” Remus said, standing up as well. Charlie’s eyes were glued to you. And your dad noticed. “Why don’t we make some coffee?” he suggested pulling his husband and the oldest Weasley with him into the kitchen. “Let these two talk” he said, ignoring the complaints from both of them.

“Hi” Charlie said, sitting down on the coffee table in front of you.

“Hi” you smiled at him as you tried to wipe some new tears away.

“Are you okay? Why are you crying?” he asked, worriedly, kneeling in front of you and placing his big hand on your cheek, making you smile sweetly at him.

“I’m okay, Charlie” you assured him.

“Love, I am really sorry for what I did” he started. “And for what I said, I had no right to talk to you that way and I had no right to kiss you, I know that I just-” he sighed.

“Charlie” you started but he kept rambling on.

“I was just scared because you are my favorite person in the entire world and not a day goes by that I don’t regret leaving you. I should have stayed here with you! I should have fought for you! Because I love you!”

“Charlie-!”

“I know I have no right to dump all of this on you right now, but I at least owe you the truth. And the truth is that I am completely, madly, and hopelessly in love with you Cassiopeia Lupin-Black” he said, making you glare at him a little. “I have been my entire life. And I know I may not be able to give you the life that Nicholas can give you but, I love you more than I ever thought I could love someone and I promise to try and make you as happy as you make me if you let me and-”

You cut him off by leaning in closer and placing your lips softly against his. Charlie was taken aback for a moment before he wrapped his arms around your waist and hugged you closer as you pulled away.

“I broke up with Nicholas” you told him.

“Y-you did?” he asked with hope waving over his heart as you nodded.

“I told him I couldn’t marry him” you explained. “A-and I love you so much, Charlie, it’s just…I just got out of a relationship. I’m a complete mess right now” you cried, smiling at him.

“I love messes. We can take this as slow as you need to, my little Horntail” he said, brushing your tears away as you chuckled. “So… that means that…”

"It's you" you said with a weary smile as Charlie wrapped his arms around your waist and you rested your head on his shoulder. "It's always been you, love" you told him, making his heart race faster when you called him that.

“Fucking finally!” Bill shouted.

The two of you turned around to see him at the entrance of the kitchen standing with Sirius and Remus before they disappeared into the room.

“We… kinda have to face them now, don’t we?” Charlie asked you, standing up and pulling you with him.

“We kinda do” you said, kissing his cheek.

“Are your dads gonna kill me?” he asked as you held his hand and started pulling him towards the kitchen.

“No” you assured him. “I promise they won’t” you smiled. You were about to enter the kitchen but Charlie pulled you to him once more, wrapping one arm around your waist and placing his hand softly on your cheek. “What?”

“I told you we will always make our way back to each other, my love” he smiled, kissing your temple. You smiled placing your head on his chest feeling completely content in his arms. This felt like home. You had never been more certain to have made the right decision. “I love you” he whispered.

“I love you too” you smiled, looking at him.

“My little Hungarian Horntail” he chuckled.

“I hate you again!”

“You love me!”

The End

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

A/N: ahhh I missed writing for Charlie so much xD I hope you all liked it! let me know what you think! Spencer’s coming up next!

#harry potter #harry potter imagine #charlie weasley #charlie weasley imagine #charlie weasley x reader #charlie weasley oneshot

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