#so when they were like FUCK the secret passageways we used to sneak out are blocked off bc we got caught last year

[in-tua-deep]

man i have really been thinking about worldbuilding and exposition in books recently

when i was like, i don’t know, twelve-ish, I picked up this book about a teenage girl in a spy school. and i absolutely fell in love with it - I thought it was incredibly neat how the book just seemed to drop me into the middle of the story, even starting in the girl’s second year. in fact, the main character frequently referenced events from her first year (falling in love with a civilian, things ending badly, finding secret passageways, losing her mother’s trust etc.) 

and I actually really enjoyed the fact that the character had a rich and vibrant life outside of what i had read and that the book didn’t go out of its way to explain her past in flashbacks or anything. i understood the main takeaways and why she was reacting to things based on what i gleaned, and more than that i understood the growth of the character, why she was cautious in certain places but reckless in others, etc and i felt smarter for not being handed the answer on a silver platter

anyway it wasn’t until i finished the book and realized there was a sequel that i looked it up and found out that. in fact. i had started with the second book in the series.

oops.

[peachymilkandcream]

My mind is filled with au ideas lol. So how about an au where Evelyn is a princess in a rival Kingdom and they are at war with Levi's Kingdom. Levi wins the war and Evelyn gets captured. He decides to keep her as his concubine as a final "fuck you" to his enemy. He liked the idea of humiliating his enemy's daughter by making her his slut but it also helped that she was pretty.

Levi x Evelyn AU -> Kingdom of Ash And Greed

(A/N: Anon out here rotting in their own brain with AU ideas, I don't know anymore if I'm enabling or helping XD But I'll keep providing regardless ;) Also we get to see slightly bimbo Evelyn and I'm here for it. This one is going to be a smidgey smidge more fucked than normal Levi so please please please read the warnings! I'm doing my due diligence letting you know what's in it do yours and read em before continuing!)

WARNINGS: implied noncon/dubcon, big age difference, kidnapping, slavery, violence, power imbalance, implied somnophilia, forced pregnancies, mind breaking, yandere behaviour, yandere themes, etc.

==========================================

Years of war and terror finally came to an end, all of Evelyn's teenage years she remembered thinking of the fighting in the East that took so many brave young men from their homes only to be mutilated on the battlefield. Her father, the king, had been drained from it, too old to fight he took pride in his only child, the miracle baby after too many years of infertility. She had watched her father become grey and depressed as the rival king's armies continued to push forward, she had heard rumours that the king was a mighty warrior himself, his bloodlust on the battlefield unmatched. All lived in fear of him, some of her father's advisors were so terrified they begged the king to offer her up in marriage as a plea for mercy. Thankfully he refused, claiming that as long as he had breath his daughter would not be in the hands of such a monster.

Now as the fires raged outside of her castle home Evelyn almost half-wished he had made the deal.

Chaos swarmed the scene below, blood and flames created the awful smell of burning flesh. Evelyn was frozen in fear, looking out that window until her mother grabbed her hand and pulled her along.

"Come quickly dear, we've got to get you out of here before they find you."

"Why Mama? What are they going to do?"

"No telling, that devil king is as ruthless as they come. He could slaughter us all without breaking a sweat-"

Evelyn followed her mother down the twisted and dark secret passageways that she used to explore as a child, how long ago that was, when the days were carefree and easy. Death and bloodshed weren't a part of her thought process, only daydreaming about a prince who would come and marry her.

She snapped back to reality to keep focused on all the turns that her mother led her through, if she didn't have her wits about her she'd get lost in the endless maze. Hope soared as light appeared at the end of the tunnel, they were going to be alright, they would survive this.

Or so she thought until rough hands grabbed her, Evelyn screamed but a hand over her mouth quickly shut her up.

She was dragged towards the castle steps, thrown to the ground like a cheap doll, her chin hitting the stone. Trying to stand only led to being pushed back with a leather boot on her head. Evelyn dared to sneak a peek at her captor, staring into the cold and dead eyes of their rival king. His jet black hair rustled slightly in the wind, his grey eye only slightly different than the blind one. The ugly and crude scar on his face ran from his forehead to chin, a second and smaller one just behind. Who could've had enough skill to wound him that severely was beyond her imagination.

He was covered in blood, his red and black robes practically dipped in it. He sneered at her, taking in her appearance, it felt like he was judging each of her sins.

A few feet away stood her parents, in the same shape she was, held back and terrified, forced to kneel before this monster of a man.

"So Fritz, it seems like we can finally put this bloodbath to an end." He spoke, his voice low and smooth as his gaze shifted from them to her. "I guess your bitch did manage to give you an heir." His sword made her tilt her chin up. "And not a bad looking one at that."

"I'm begging you, do what you will with me, just please don't hurt my daughter. She's still just a child-"

"She looks old enough to me." Levi seems to consider something for a moment before nodding to his guards. "Take her."

They lift Evelyn up, dragging her to a horse, despite her fighting back.

"Please don't I'll give you anything-"

"You should've thought of that before coming against me."

She's set on the front of a horse, Levi saddling behind her, it all happened so fast, what could she do? She was being stripped of everything she knew and held dear in an instant. Fighting was pointless, he would kill her without thought or remorse.

He turned to face her sobbing parents one more time. "Take comfort in the fact I won't kill her, your one and only heir will be nothing more than a breeding bitch in heat, made to warm my bed and have my children. Your grandchildren will sit on my throne one day and rule over the greatest nation known to man. Your legacy will live on, through my blood and seed." He chuckles. "May your days be filled with rot and suffering."

With that he rides off, one hand protectively holding her across the waist, his breath was hot and heavy in her ear, and she couldn't tell whether hardness against her bottom was the saddle or something else.

============================================

His kingdom was as cold and grey as he was, but nothing compared to the hell that was his chambers.

The first night she had lost her innocence to him, she had dreamed of it being different, sweet and romantic. Levi took what was his without a second thought, her beautiful dress ripped to shreds, forced to live day in and day out with nothing to cover her shame. When she wasn't warming his bed she was forced to work and clean, never having a moments rest from his mockery and lust. He spit on her, beat her, whatever it took to humiliate her. She even had the suspicion that he waited until she collapsed with exhaustion to do more vile and defiled things to her.

Unlike her mother, Evelyn was very fertile, popping out children left and right. His behaviour didn't change with her pregnancies, remaining the cold and disgusting ruler she knew him as. His subjects lived in fear of him, and she was less than that, a slave, a tool, forced to carry his children. They were taken from her once they were weaned, starting the cycle all over again.

She was once a princess, now nothing. A warm body for this cold and despicable man until she took her last breath.

[thessalian]

Council Deputies vs Burden of Proof

In the secret passageway:

Alisaie: So we’re sure we’re not going into their lair, right?

Jallira: Well, I figure if they’re coming in via the courtyard, there’s a way out through the outside as well as through the inside of the fort. So maybe, but most of them are probably trying to beat the door down.

Mychae: But they might have left guards so please keep your voices down. Gods, you’d think you people never had to sneak around before.

Daliat: Excuse you?

Mychae: Not you, shifty-dude. You’re fine. Just make sure to put the daggers in the bad guys instead of our backs and we’re good.

Jallira: Indeed. I would, with great regret, smite you with holy fire if you tried to backstab us.

Daliat: Keep one little secret and maybe leave your fellow scouts to die and you’re tarred with a reputation the rest of your life.

Alisaie: Shut. Up.

Jallira: Shush. I see a campfire. ...They cook their food, then. That’s ... unexpected...

Astrid: You wouldn’t think it with those teeth, would you?

Alisaie: How about we just sneak into good positions and kill the shit out of them?

Mychae: I really do like the way you think, y’know that?

Jallira: We’ll handle this. You two ... try to stay back and out of sight.

Daliat: Is this a “you still don’t trust me” thing?

Jallira: No, this is a “you’re in shock and probably traumatised” ... thing.

Mychae: Also an “if you die in here and we don’t, we’ve got nobody to back our story to the Council” thing. I’m not going out like Drunkard McGrumpyPants, okay?

Stabnation ensues and...

Two of the Soraks: *go invisible*

Alisaie: Ooooooooh FUCK YOU BOTH RUNNING!

Astrid: I really need to learn that spell someday...

Invisible Soraks: *SNEAK ATTACK*

Mychae: See ... I respect the tactic, but STOP CLAWING OUR MEAT SHIELD!

Alisaie: *cuts the two soraks neatly in twain now that they are in fact visible*

Mychae: ...Or piss her off and engage Blood Rage Mode; either way.

Finally getting out of the tunnels

Jallira: We really should have travelled with those two to get back to Caer Cyflen. They had a lot of badness this last week or so and if that Daliat’s shifty...

Mychae: Look, they were insisting. And watch gets a lot harder when there’s someone you don’t trust in camp.

Jallira: I know, but ... oh. Fellow travellers. Humans. Two of them. ...Heavily armed.

Glory-Seeking Idiots: We want to fight you!

Jallira: ...Excuse me?

Glory-Seeking Idiots: You heard me!

Mychae: So ... you don’t want to rob us; you just want to fight us.

Glory-Seeking Idiots: Yeah, basically!

Jallira: And ... there’s no way we can talk you out of this?

Glory-Seeking Idiots: Nope!

Jallira: *sigh* Very well. Alisaie?

Glory-Seeking Idiots: Waitwut--

Alisaie: *exits underbrush with axe at the ready* So I hear you wanted to fight us. BRING IT, ASSHOLES.

Glory-Seeking Idiots: oshit

Astrid: *holding a palm full of fire* I should probably warn you that this is going to hurt you far more than it’s going to hurt us. Except for Jallira. Jallira will be sad. You’re making us make Jallira sad. This is not good.

Glory-Seeking Idiots: .......fuck...

Mychae: *emerges from shadow to shank one of the Glory-Seeking Idiots* Thanks for the distraction, ladies. This other dude’s all yours.

Remaining Glory-Seeking Idiot: *regrets this for the rest of his very short but very eventful life*

Back in Caer Cyflen, donkey-piss inn

Lord Carron: So how’d it go?

Alisaie: Soraks ate your squad.

Lord Carron: ofuck. Council chamber. Now. We’ll be interrupting but fuck it.

Council Chamber

Some Other Deputy: So yeah, we found this stone but lost most of the squad to Soraks.

Council: *scoffs a lot*

One Heavily-Armoured Dude: You’re still going to scoff about this? Really?!?

Jallira: No, seriously; we actually saw them in Caer Lem. They ate your squad, by the way. Stonebeard and the other one can back us up here too.

Particularly snotty Councillor: Did you happen to bring proof of any of this?

Jallira: I’ve been picking up the claws - mostly for Mychae; she does like working with poisons so--

Particularly snotty Councillor: That could be from anything. You didn’t bring back a body, or something?

Mychae: They take the bodies. Ours and theirs. They really don’t want people to know they exist.

Jallira: Not to mention claws are one thing but whole bodies are cumbersome and heads, while ... portable, sort of ... well ... it’s kind of unsanitary.

Particularly snotty Councillor: Well, there you go, then. Your next mission is to bring us the head of a Sorak. Dismissed.

Mychae: Fine, but dude, it’s gonna leak on the carpet and we are not cleaning it up.

Alisaie: Don’t things stop leaking after awhile?

Jallira: Blood, yes, since that dries, but meat does tend to go liquid when it rots and--

Astrid: Please don’t. I’d like to eat sometime this week.

Jallira: Sorry. And thanks for staying calm, Alisaie. It’s not an ideal situation, but...

Alisaie: I’m in this to kill big challenging things. I’m good. I did want to feed that one guy his own teeth, though.

Mychae: Want to do that with goblins, maybe some ogres? Whatever moved into that old goblin cave? Apparently somebody wants proof of a goblin written language. Also Soraks artefacts so maybe we can hit that campsite of theirs while we’re at it.

Alisaie: Maybe we can get one of their heads?

Beryl Stonebeard: You’d have way better luck at this tower excavation I’ve heard tell about. Apparently it’s gone weird there. I think I’m just going to stick with the bureaucracy from now on, but good luck.

Astrid: ...I need better walking boots for this...

[izzy-b-hands]

Stede comes back to The Revenge, he and Ed make up (fuck it out, etc) and he suddenly thinks

'I never did show Ed the other secret passageways here. Usually I check on them at least but surely over so little time-'

He sneaks into one and comes running out with a small army of rats behind him and three ideas:

1. He shows Ed the map of the passageways bc they do accumulate Friends like the rats if not walked through regularly to scare them off

2. Fang is getting another dog, something that will help keep the rat population under control (he doesn't totally hate them after they just sorta. sit on the deck staring as he relays all this to the crew. They seem attentive. It's nice.)

3. They either need to relocate these rats or-

Before he can finish Idea Three, Frenchie has suggested a small rat battalion to assist with raids. He offers to train them with Buttons' help (he claims he both fought and trained rats for naval battle, and if anyone actually did that it would be Buttons) and there's a surprising number of the crew interested in the idea too (even Izzy, who admits a begrudging fondness for them, 'since Fang and I were usually the only ones dealing with them on the Queen Anne, and after Fang's dog...' He won't admit he doesn't want to kill them, or that he doesn't mind when they crawl up his arm-)

Cut to Izzy going wait. wait. Did we not agree to deliver a bunch of domesticated rats to that last port? (Stede has no money, and while Ed does have a fuck ton of it they still wanted a little source of income streaming in)

They had. These are not ship's rats. These are Different Rats, that almost definitely fucked the Ship Rats.

The rat army is rethought in the form of 'okay so if the domesticated rats get turned against us, we need to be ready to fight. Or go buy Fang his new dog and maybe a couple of cats'

That latter option ends up winning in part bc Ed can see how badly Fang wants this, he keeps giving Ed looks of 'please?' and man...the Kraken would say no. Blackbeard? Yeah, that's a no, with evidence to back it up. But he can focus on Being Ed Now, and figuring out what that means.

And that means maybe they'll try having pets again. Especially considering that the ship rats, while also adorable, are much more territorial and honestly really seem like they want to take over the ship, so-

In doing all this they completely forget abt checking the other passages, and instead sail for another port to drop off the domesticated rats to whoever wants them for a pet and to find a new puppy and some cats.

Not far, in yet another passageway (it's secret passageways all the way down), a ship/domestic rat orgy is going just wonderfully with a smorgasbord of mostly empty marmalade jars and rum bottles.

[minsyal]

The Fugitive: Finding Home, Pt. 4

Karl Heisenberg x Reader

Warnings: strong language, Resident Evil-esque violence and descriptions of gore, and dark/sexual themes

Summary: A once-in-a-lifetime trip turned dark. You’re quickly exposed to the sinister and mysterious world of a cursed village under the control of dark leaders. How long will you last and will you ever return home in one piece?

The Fugitive: Finding Home Masterlist

It was a few days prior to Alcina’s curt meeting with you. Meandering about the hallways, you straightened pictures, dusted shelves, and adjusted curtains to hang just as the Lady liked. It had been awhile since your last clash with her, the last being the awkward dinner between brother and sister. Heisenberg had been lingering in the hallways, always narrowly avoiding Alcina as she moved from room to room. He was like a kid sneaking about the school when he was supposed to be in class.

Making your way down one of the velvet lined halls, a hand caught your arm, tugging you into the shadows of the sharp corner. Another covered your mouth, smelling distinctly of silver and oil. “Shh.” He hushed, hot air brushing over the tips of your ears. “Don’t make a sound.”

He moved with ease, slipping backward into one of the many secret passageways that the maids used to stay out of the main halls. How did he know this was here, you ignorantly asked yourself, ignoring the fact that this was like a second home to him. Planting your feet firmly on the ground, he kelp a finger to your lips and moved his other from your arm to your waist. You wanted to slap him. Encounters with him had been growing more frequent as the weeks went on. He seemed to be everywhere when you found yourself alone. He’d pop by for only a moment, keeping you on your feet.

“We had a family meeting.”

You waited, hair rising at the nape of your neck as he continued.

“You’re going to be offered something.”

His grip around your waist tightened.

“Don’t accept it.”

Somebody had been lurking around the grounds, he could feel it. The sensation was something he’d grown accustomed to. Afterall, having electricity coursing through ones veins isn’t exactly normal. Soft steps of booted heels walked cautiously over the forest floor just outside the factory’s gates. It wasn’t the lycans. Movement was easily distinguishable. If the steps were heavy and in fours, it was likely one of the wolf beasts that patrolled the exterior of the factory grounds. If they were wheeled, the likeliness of it being the Duke delivering goods was high. But these, these steps were different. They were alarmingly delicate.

Spurred on by curiosity, he found himself riding the slow-moving elevator upward to the surface. Whoever it was, he intended on scaring them into never seeking the place out again. Often, children or teenagers who were becoming increasingly distant from their parents would disregard any warnings and attempt to go to the factory. He’d scare them, they’d run off and only return in a body bag at some later date.

He was surprised to see who it was.

“I am getting so fed up.” You aimed the pistol in the direction of yet another lycan as it hunched over, approaching with small forward movements. “Can’t you idiots just,” you shot it, stirring it up, causing it to rush, “fuck off!”

With a loud bloody scream, it crumbled to the ground alongside the other that had attacked minutes prior. One of the beasts had already given you a nasty wound to the shoulder nearing the place where you’d been shot a month preceding. Nothing to wrap it with and no time to stop, you had to forego any bit of medical treatment.

The day had gone down hill like a tumbling boulder after you left The Duke. Lycans lined the forest, unwilling to move out from the trees, but ready to pounce should you step closer. Yellowed eyes locked onto you, keeping close watch, almost guiding you to where they wanted you to be. The townspeople wandered about, their chatter of zombified nonsense was enough to drive you over the edge.

“Mother Miranda” this, and “Mother Miranda” that. It was positively shocking that there were so many people left in the village given the amount of bodies you’d seen strewed about perched in any barren place. They were downright maniacal here, playing right into the lunacy that spewed from Miranda’s mouth. Men were tied by the wrists on crosses, their legs missing, their bodies stuffed, to appear as scarecrows. Was stuffing a pair of pants and a shirt really that much more difficult?

After a few hours of traversing the Romanian backroads, you grew tired. It felt as though you were moving in circles, pathways blended into one that held striking similarities to ones you thought you’d crossed before. A group of men sat on one of the docks of what looked to be a Reservoir. They conversed loudly, their voices carrying great distances telling tales of a large beast that lurked through the murky waters.

It seemed like you were nearing the village outskirts when homes became sparce and villagers disappeared altogether.

“Here I was thinking you were burnt to a crisp.” Heisenberg’s chest was almost pressed to your back, an occurrence you’d grown used to by now. The heat radiating from his body permeated the thin material of your shirt, a false safety accompanied the uneasy chill.

Twirling where you stood, you beat a hand against his upper body, your gun dropping from his temple. Your finger left the trigger. God, he was lucky. He chuckled.

“As far as anyone’s concerned, I’m lying dead in that storage room.” You dropped your hand from the surprisingly soft material. The man never strayed from his cartoon-like fashion sense, no doubt he’d chosen something that was comfortable.

“I’m surprised you could pull that off. I honestly thought you took my advice as a death sentence.” His hand grazed your bleeding shoulder. The blackened crisp of hardened blood and puss was crushed beneath his fingers as he retracted. “You should get that looked at.”

Dead eyes met his, spurring on his amusement like a bull in a rodeo. “You know, I thought it would be more fun to let it get infected.”

“Whatever you want, sweetheart. Don’t come crying to daddy when your arm has to be amputated.”

You cringed at his use of the rather taboo word. “You said something similar last time you helped me.”

“I suppose I did.” He turned on his heel. “Come on.”

Unsure of where he was leading you, but much preferring being by his side opposed to out in the cold, you followed.

“Home sweet home.”

Gray doors stained with times cruel hand opened, scraping roughly against the cracked concrete of an entry room. It was...rather humble. The exterior resembled that of a run down or abandoned factory in the urban districts of a dying city. Broken cars, rusted bikes, and large sheets of metal lay against one another in a neglected pile that seeped further into the ground earn morning.

“Nobody visits.” He stepped through the threshold, discarding his oiled hammer against a white-topped table that sectioned the room in two. It was a wreck. Deflated and torn tires sat around in crowds of garbage, trinkets were stashed on shelves, and planks of wood were stacked in various places. To the rear of the room was another, blocked by a large metal door with prison-like bars as windows. To the left, a light illuminated what looked to be a laundry area of sorts. “So, I don’t bother keeping the place tidy.”

“You live here?” You followed behind, keeping a close distance in this profoundly new place. In contrast to the castle, this was a dump. No wonder Heisenberg held such disdain toward Alcina, she lived in luxury while he lived...well, here.

He gave a thoughtful hum as reply, pushing past the scrap door as the two of you descended a short staircase. The next hall was eerie to say the least. Dead wires twisted overhead giving the appearance of snakes dangling just above eye level. A single light was positioned against the wall, only allowing for viewing of the back half of the hallway. Beyond that, you couldn’t see.

You were cast from his attention as if he hadn’t been seeking you out ever since you entered the village. His head was welded forward, the only time it strayed was from a habitual glance at the various doorways leading god knows where. Everything from his taught posture to his slunken disposition screamed conflict. Beneath his glasses, his nose scrunched, and his hand found itself scratching relentlessly at his beard. Each breath that left his lungs felt as though it was laced with acid. His throat burned, and not just from the bitter taste of tobacco. Yet, a tiny string tugged at the back of his mind controlling him like a marionette. When he saw you, he felt something, but he couldn’t quite place his finger on what that something was. It was the exact opposite of the feeling he had when Alcina had told of your death. That was painful, uncomfortable even. A weight had dropped from his throat to his stomach, causing his limbs to feel weighted. This feeling was light.

Bringing you here, to the factory, may have been the wrong decision.

But then, what would have been the right one?

“So, what do you do here?” You inquired, sight following the shadows of white light that disbursed from the corner.

This room was more quaint, and set up in what could be described as a homier feel. Lighting remained minimal, leaving blackened areas in the corners where the fingers of brightness could not reach. A shrine-of-sorts was made up in the back of the room. Pictures similar to those of the villagers’ homes and Castle Dimitrescu hung cluttered together on the garnet brick wall.

He was snit, pure annoyance at the pictures itched and crawled up his back, pecking at what little control he felt he had. “Eulgh.” A miffed grumble played on his lips as his hand disappeared behind a hanging cloth, tugging something before it fell unraveled over the photos.

“Anyway,” Heisenberg started, removing his hat and glasses. His hair was greyer than you initially thought. Strands of dark brown could still be isolated, but for the most part his hair was silver. “Have a seat, and tell me...how’d you do it?”

“Do what?”

A rusted folding chair was offered. You felt utterly out of place, even more so when your mind wandered to the castle. There you’d known your fate, you’d known of what was expected of you, how to get along, and the complete layout. Here was a mystery. The women at the castle spoke rarely of Heisenberg. They’d not comment on his outwardly individualism nor his appearance. How they didn’t find him entrancing was an enigma.

“Escape, of course.” He clicked his teeth, shedding the dirtied trench coat from his shoulders to reveal the long sleeves of a yellowed tan shirt bundled around his elbows. “You had Alcina fooled.”

You had prepared what you needed in there.

The room was one you were often assigned to as the other girls disliked the “creepy” skeleton that lay flat against the cobblestone floor. Barrels of assorted foods that the Dimitrescu’s rarely ate sat undisturbed, some filled with ripe apples, others with rotting corn. It was a getaway of sorts, a place you could get off your aching feet even if for just a moment. After the horrors you’d witnessed in the village, you didn’t mind the company.

After Alcina’s ultimatum, you went straight to the storage room only accessible through the hole in the wine cellar or a door that led to the east wing of the castle. Slabs of bloodied meats had been delivered just hours prior, all stacked in woven baskets, waiting for transportation to the kitchen.

Your company, the Dimitrescu victim, lay in the center of the room. The chunks of reddened meats lay over top the arms, legs, and torso area. Gunpowder was not a normal commodity within the castle’s walls, but you managed to scrounge some up from one of the old barracks. Dried leaves and lint were stuffed in every crack you could manage. The more you thought of it, the dumber the plan seemed. Surely, the Lady or someone else would realize it wasn’t you. They’d be smarter than that, right?

The room was as you left it when you shuffled your body through the tunnel opening. Stripping of your maids’ clothes quickly, the dress soaked with the fluids escaping the rare muscle, the headscarf lay flat against the ground near its skull.

You ditched the short heels, pulling your old boots over your feet, not bothering to lace them up. A thin line of gunpowder was sprinkled around the “body,” a match waited at the hollowed-out doorway you planned on leaving from.

“Then what?” Hatred spewed from her lips. She was growing frustrated, there was no way she’d fit through the opening, and to her knowledge the room had only one exit that led back into the castle.

The squeeze was tight, but doable. With two flicks against the rough wall, the match ignited. You moved further out and tossed it into the room. A fake scream of agony escaped your lips as you watched the room engulf in flame. Alcina boomed with anger yelling of how furious Mother Miranda would be.

“She fell for that?” His upper lip lifted in a look of disgust. “What a fucking idiot. She’s been gutting men long enough now that she should be fully aware bones don’t just separate from muscle.” With a final crescendo of his voice, he fell back to a normal volume. His, now ungloved, fingers pinched harshly at the skin between his eyes. “If they find out you’ve lived, you know what’ll happen t’ you, right?”

You shook your head truthfully.

“I assume they’d kill me.”

“Bingo.” A metal chair let out an awful noise as he flipped it backward, straddling it to rest his folded arms across the frame. “But,” he enunciated the “t” and shot a finger in your direction, “I don’t think it’ll be in that dungeon.”

“Alcina mentioned an experiment.”

“An experiment, indeed.” His chin rested on his forearms. “Wasn’t going t’ be pretty.”

“You told me to not take the deal.”

He nodded, picking at the inside of his lip. “I did. Theyhad big plans for you, darlin’.”

“They...does that include you?”

He thought for a brooding moment, rocking his head from side to side as he chewed at the inside of his cheek. “No.”

“That didn’t sound convincing.”

“I mean,” he straightened his back, “I am one of them, but I’m not one of them.” The fast moment without response had him on edge, he didn’t want you to get the wrong picture. “You see, I’m not here to play Miranda’r any of the others, little game. I’m a son in title only... and I’d do anything to get under their skin.” You craned your neck as his face lurked closer. He was standing now, almost kneeling, just inches from you. “Even if it means housing a fugitive.”

“So what?” You breathed slowly, “You’re going to force me to live with you now?”

“Ah ah ah,” he wagged a finger in your face, “not force. But rather,” your heartbeat picked up as he moved further in, trapping you between the rear of the chair and his body, “encourage you to stay.” His hand rested against the seat of the chair; his thumb was danced on the hem of your jeans, his nail grazed at your thigh. He was maddeningly good at this.

You didn’t want to say it, knowing it was only going to egg him on, but your words and festering curiosity got the better of you.

“How?”

“Well,” goosebumps trailed up your arm as a featherlight finger crawled from your wrist to your shoulder, landing at the base of your neck. “I have my ways.” Hot breath coasted over your ear.

He shot backward quickly leaving you flushed a bright shade of pink. This was the effect he wanted; the reaction to his actions he desired. You looked flustered. Your body was stiff from pent up anticipation only for nothing to come.

“Anyway, you’d not fare well out there at this point. The entire village has vilified you. They’d want nothing more than to hunt you for sport. You already know what Miranda wants, and if you still managed to escape that, the lycans would get t’ you. You don’t want to be out there when they let them loose.”

In a few brief steps, he had crossed the room to open a tarnished cabinet. “C’mon.” Grabbing something from within, he tucked it into his pocket and made for another door that had been hidden in the midnight shadows. The man had quite the affinity for cigars, you thought to yourself as you noticed what he had taken. It never seemed like he finished them. “I’m not going to wait forever.”

Before the door could slam, you were on your feet, following behind as he made his way back to the room you entered from. The factory was much larger than he put on, that much you could tell. A quick tour of the living area was given. He was, once again, surprisingly normal.

The top floor of the factory, sealed behind that large metal door, contained a few rooms that had no apparent flow from one to the other. Wooden floors were stained the color of Cyprus, a wood with slight red hues that swirled into yellows and browns. Small slits for windows lined one wall, allowing for the illusion of a deepened hall. Metal appliances were set about in no special order, and the kitchen sink climbed high with glass plates and bowls. You recognized one from the castle.

“Bed’s there.” His lips parted as he took the cigar between his fingers. “Food is stored there.” He motioned to a small room to the back. “Bathroom is there. All the necessities.”

A cabinet door opened on its own. He’s just a man, you reminded yourself. “Now,” he pulled a chair out at the kitchen table and waved his hand, indicating he wanted you to sit, “let’s look at that nasty bite you’ve gotten.”

Heisenberg had a startlingly gentle and steady hand. You’d expect different from a man with toughened callouses lining the base of his fingers and round the hook of his thumb. Hair darkened the back of his hand, only disturbed by a small patch of roughened skin from a burn he had gotten while working.

“No bandages.” He rummaged through another drawer. “Guess this’ll have to do.” The awful tear of fabric made you turn your head, spotting him as he ripped through one of his green t-shirts. “What? I promise, it’s clean.”

You winced, recoiling at the gritty feeling of a wetted towel against your shoulder. The cigar that hung slack from his teeth was left with bite marks, pushing some of the tobacco out and onto the floor. It didn’t bother him.

“Why have you been helping me?” Alcohol poured over your wound, eliciting a yelp that paired with a strong snort on his end. The leaden sting and was immediately soothed by the same salve he had given you at the castle. Two fingers smeared a generous amount over your skin, replaced by the green shirt scrap he had collected.

“Entertainment.” He knew it was a lie.

If he wasn’t an engineer, or builder, or whatever he did in his spare time, he’d make for a great medic. The man had you bandaged and sewn up just before the sun broke the horizon, leaving behind the dimming night.

“Eat.” He commanded, throwing a broken piece of bread from the loaf he bit a chunk from. “Here.” Leaning to the countertop, he snatched a portion of cured meat and offered it to you.

“Thanks.” The meat looked somewhat fresh, the smoky aroma of garlic lingered on your fingertips.

“Pork.” He said between bites, mouth still full as he spoke, “I think.”

You hoped.

Taking a tentative bite into the meat, your shoulders fell lax. It was, in fact, pork.

Karl watched you from where he stood against the countertop, he had shed yet another layer sometime in the evening, only wearing a green t-shirt and his pants. What was he getting himself into? If Miranda were to find out you’d lived, she’d surely have search parties out looking. Her selfish desires blinded her to any shred of humanity that could have possibly squeezed its way into her blackened heart. He didn’t want to see anyone else fall into her trap. It was that he didn’t want any other siblings to deal with, he assured himself. Nothing more.

That was the problem with you.

You came stumbling into the town like an American idiot, with a bimbo in tow. He had spotted the two of you from a distance. He expected you to conform immediately or meet a swift demise like the others always had, dawning new names and personalities dictated by the ever-ruling Mother Miranda. But you hadn’t. Now, here you were, bloodied, beaten, and put through mental obstacle courses, eating dinner with him as if it was a comfortable Friday night in. As if he wasn’t one of the monsters that he was trying to save you from.

“Karl?” You pulled him from his thoughts.

“Hmm?” Blinking a few times, he hooked his finger through the handle of a glass, bringing it to his lips then offering it to you.

“What is it?” He smiled when you took it from him, drinking without waiting for an answer. A haughty chuckle dueted with your constrained choke. The acidic liquid burnt your throat, leaving a blazing trail in its wake. It was alcohol.

“You’re too trusting.”

“It looked like water.”

“It’s tuică.” He took the glass from you and downed the rest. “Or as you Americans would call it, moonshine.”

“I’ll add AA meetings to your ‘to do’ list.”

After eating, he somehow managed to shed another layer, leaving him shirtless. The bread he had been eating was discarded on a cutting board that had seen better days. It would stale overnight. You weren’t sure that would bother him, though. The meat was rehung from a rope that danged from a shelf above. He had left the glass on the counter. Heisenberg moseyed over to the bed that he had pointed out earlier, kicking his boots from his feet in a rather ungraceful fashion, leaving a trail of shoes and socks behind.

The bed was… something. Two twin-sized mattresses were pushed together to form a queen. He was a creature of habit. On the left-side, the mattress slumped from the years of sleeping in the same position. The right was still full and bouncy. Wool blankets lay against the mattresses, acting as bedsheets. On top of that was a blanket of cotton and polyester. It looked to be unwashed and made for a king-sized bed or larger.

He flopped into the bed, scratched at his beard, and closed his eyes as if you hadn’t just spent the day together. He had his routine set in stone, apparently.

“Karl?”

He raised a brow but kept his eyes closed.

“Where do I sleep?”

His brow lowered and a thought tugged at his mind. If a leaderboard existed for pompous smirks, he’d never be dethroned from first. The blanket was thrown from his body, allowing for a spot next to him on the other mattress.

“I suppose I can share.” He was happy with himself, a smile painted on his face. “If it’s for you.”

Part 5 - Turning Gears

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[moldisgoodforyou]

bahamas (iv)

warning: everyone is drunk ! , sexual references

wordcount: 6k

_________

The next morning, Allie strolled out of the bedroom with a messy braid, a cheesy grin and a blush that started the second James began to whistle. Colin flipped him off immediately, still as sullen as the night before. “Nice of you to show up.”

“I was busy.” She retorted, then immediately shook her head. “Not like - I just showered.”

“Did loverboy join? What’s his name again?” James questioned, sliding Allie a full plate.

“Carloooooos.” Julia sang, laughing as Allie glared at her. “I saw him sneak out this morning. He said hello. Nice guy.”

“He said he had to get to his shift, he teaches scuba lessons during the day. If we’re interested he said he could snag us a discount.” Allie shrugged, popping a blueberry into her mouth.

“Does he teach underwater basket weaving too?” Colin asked dryly, scowling.

“Is that a real thing?” Rafe asked, looking like he was actually considering the activity for a moment.

Sophie glanced over at him, concerned. “Baby.”

“It’s not?”

Julia shook her head at the couple. “I thought we had a boat today?”

“We do. We’re going sailing.” Rafe confirmed, glancing at his watch. “We’ve got an hour, but we need to pack snacks and drinks. Colin, can you help me grab the cooler from the attic?”

“You can’t grab it yourself?” Colin grumbled, pushing away from the table to follow Rafe up.

“No. It’s too big.” Rafe glanced behind him, making sure they were out of earshot of the group as he led him up the stairs. “What the fuck is your problem?”

“My problem?” Colin repeated, immediately getting defensive. “What the fuck?”

“Yeah, you’re being a dick about Allie’s hookup. No one would say a word if you brought a girl home.” He coughed as he unlocked the attic door and a small layer of dust flew up, the house unused since the beginning of summer. “Actually, maybe you should get laid, you’ll chill out.”

“I don’t have a problem.”

“Then quit being an asshole to Allie. She doesn’t deserve that.”

Colin sighed, helping Rafe tug the Yeti cooler down from one of the shelves. Once it was down, he glanced over at Rafe. “I didn’t mean to be rude. Sorry.”

“Apologize to her, not me.” Rafe told him, looking Colin dead in the eye like he could figure out some hidden secret if he stared at him long enough.

“I will.”

“Good. Just because you’re jealous -”

“I’m not jealous, just don’t like this guy -”

“Ha!” Rafe pointed his finger in Colin’s face, eyebrows raised. “I knew it! You like Allie.”

Colin froze, immediately looking towards the door then lowered his voice. “You can’t tell.”

“Wait, shit, seriously? I was just trying to get a rise out of you...Colin. Seriously? You mean it?”

“The tiniest of crushes. She’s cute.” Colin affirmed, regretting telling him already. “Just - you can’t say anything.”

“I won’t. Brother swear.” Rafe nodded, extending his hand to Colin. “Don’t you dare fuck with her though.”

“I won’t, I won’t.” Colin paused, not taking his hand to shake. “That includes Sophie.”

“Fuck, Colin, for real? You know she doesn’t count.” Rafe whined, running his hand through his hair. “She’s gonna get it out of me. Somehow. She always knows when I’m hiding something.”

“I mean it.” Colin shook his head. “No Sophie. No James, and especially no Julia.”

“Damnit.” Rafe sighed, but grabbed Colin’s hand and shook it. “Fine. You’d better apologize and start making moves or shut the fuck up and let her do her thing, though. No judging.”

“I will, I promise.”

“Good.”

The door banged open, startling them both as James stood in the doorway. “Yo. You two can’t handle this thing?”

“No, we got it.” Rafe shook his head, lifting it easily on his own to haul downstairs. “They send you up here to check?”

“Yeah, Jules started asking questions about last night and Allie clearly didn’t want to gossip with me around, so Sophie sent me up here to get you guys.” James paused, thinking. “She muttered something about you probably getting stuck in some secret fancy passageway. You gonna tell her this house is your dad’s company house, not some family heirloom?”

“I’m pretty sure Sophie wants to know as little as possible about what my family owns. I think she cried for a solid hour on the first night here.” Rafe frowned, taking each step one at a time.

“You tell her about the deb thing yet?” James asked.

“Deb thing?” Colin echoed. “Sarah’s ball? What does Sophie have to do with that?”

“...No. I’m not sure. I think she’ll either agree or rip my head off, no in between.” Rafe sighed. “Sarah’s getting presented at the debutante ball in the spring, Rose suggested Sophie gets presented as well with me as her escort, and somehow my dad thought that was a good idea. Establish her with high society, or whatever. I don’t think he’s forgiven me for breaking up with Brooklyn a week before her deb ball. Apparently me being her escort would have been good for us. Our family.”

James cocked his head. “She broke up with you.”

“Whatever.”

“Huh. Well. That conversation should be fun for you.” Colin patted Rafe on the shoulder just as they got down the attic stairs. Rafe now sported a thin layer of sweat from hauling the cooler down alone, despite him already having no shirt on.

“Oh yeah. Looking forward to it.” Rafe deadpanned, then put on a grin as they all re-entered the kitchen. He didn’t miss the way Sophie’s eyes trailed over his exposed chest, the way she leaned forward on the counter and bit her lip a little. “Found it!”

“Excellent.” Julia clapped her hands together and began filling it with a selection of drinks she’d laid out on the counter. “Sophie, stop eye-fucking your boyfriend and help me out.”

Sophie snapped to attention as Rafe held back a laugh at Julia’s lack of tact. “I wasn’t -”

“Yes you were. Drinks.”

Sophie shook her head, handing Julia drinks with a rising blush on her cheeks.

“I don’t mind, sweetheart.” Rafe murmured to her lowly with a grin, trailing his hand down her spine ‘til he rested his palm on her lower back.

“Ew, we just ate.” Allie complained, pushing her plate away from her. “Thank you for pancakes, though.”

“No problem. It’s my specialty.” Rafe beamed, gathering up the plates and sticking them in the dishwasher.

“Only ‘cause you can’t cook anything else.” Colin pointed out, dodging as Rafe aimed a square punch at his arm.

“He’s not wrong.” Sophie agreed, reaching up to kiss Rafe’s cheek.

“Aw. Thanks for breakfast, Mom and Dad.” James grinned, patting them both on the head.

Sophie whirled on James immediately, only held back by Rafe slipping his arm around her waist (more to protect James than her). “Stop. I mean it.”

“What are you gonna do?” James taunted, grinning. “Hit me? Rafe won’t let you.”

“I will, if you don’t shut up.” Rafe replied, shaking his head imperceptibly behind Sophie’s back.

“What? You weren’t pregnant, it was just the flu - hey!” James took off running the second Rafe let Sophie go, who immediately sprinted after him through the house.

“Fuck off, James!” She yelled, chasing him down the hall.

“I didn’t mean it!” He yelped as she threw someone’s flip flop at him, nailing him in the shoulder with surprising aim. “I’m sorry! Rafe! Help me!”

Everyone else watched from the kitchen, thoroughly entertained. “You gonna help?” Allie asked, glancing at Rafe.

“Nah. He deserves it.” Rafe shrugged. “They’ll get tired soon enough.”

“She only likes fighting when she’s flirting anyways.” Julia added. “I swear all your arguments before you two were dating was just foreplay.”

“Doubt it. She could be pretty mean.” Rafe grinned at Sophie fondly as she strolled back into the kitchen with a triumphant smile, then looped his arm around her shoulders and pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

“Who’s mean?” Sophie asked.

“You.” James informed her as he followed her back to the group, dramatically rubbing a red mark on his shoulder.

“Okay, both of you, knock it off.” Rafe took charge like always, glancing at his watch. “Everyone go get ready, we’re getting picked up in twenty to get to the dock. Don’t forget sunscreen.”

“You really make it too easy.” Julia rolled her eyes, but chose to refrain from calling him Dad again for the fourth time that morning.

“So everyone knows?” Sophie asked the group, frowning.

“For the record, I was team baby. I think you guys would have very cute kids.” James said, already flinching away as Sophie lifted her hand toward him.

“Yeah. Rafe accidentally let it slip when I asked why you looked like hell that weekend.” Colin confirmed. Sophie had stayed at Rafe’s instead of her house so he could take care of her, and Colin had found her sleeping on the bathroom floor curled up in a ball at 2pm when Rafe was in class. (He decided not to wake her up, thinking she was just wildly hungover, and had texted Rafe a photo instead.)

“Great. Fantastic. But if one more person calls me Mom this week, I’m going to rip your heads off.”

“I told you you’re mean.” James grumbled, clutching his shoulder. “I’m gonna have a bruise. How am I supposed to explain that to whoever I’m hooking up with tonight?”

“Tell her you’re into pain.” Allie suggested, shrugging when everyone gave her a look. “What? It could work.”

“...Alright. Everyone go get ready, I don’t want to hear another word from anyone about their sex lives.” Rafe instructed, shooing everyone out of the kitchen as he and Sophie made it toward their room. “Sorry, baby.”

“It’s fine. I’d be more upset if we actually had a kid on the way.” Sophie conceded with a shudder at the thought. “How much did you talk about it with the boys?”

Rafe thought about it, about how James kept going on and on about how he wanted to be a godfather and how their kids would be adorable, and how Colin said he wasn’t really a huge fan of kids but obviously their kid would be family. He thought about how he shared with the guys how nice it would be to have a big family and know their kids would have several metaphorical aunts and uncles, and how much love and support they’d be surrounded by. It made him excited for the future - the far future, of course, but still.

“Not much.” He finally settled on answering, giving her a small smile. “You gonna wear my favorite suit today?”

“The pink one?”

“No, the blue one with the daisies. The one you wore in Nice?” He grinned. “Or, I guess, didn’t wear?”

She blushed, shaking her head. “I think that one’s dangerous to wear around you with our friends.”

“Any bikini is, sweetheart.”

“Control yourself.” She flicked his shoulder in warning. “I have a surprise for you tonight. Don’t let me forget.”

He perked up immediately, smirking. “A surprise? What kind of surprise?”

Sophie just shrugged. “You’ll see.”

“I’ll see...is it a leave-the-bar-early kind of a surprise? A need-the-house-empty kind of surprise?” He asked eagerly, his smirk broadening as she pulled out the light blue bikini from her suitcase.

She laughed, pulling off her shirt before she fumbled with untangling the bikini strings. “I think you can stay quiet enough that we’ll be fine.”

“Will you be able to stay quiet?” He teased, beaming in appreciation as she stood there shirtless in front of him, tongue in between her teeth as she concentrated on fixing the bikini. (He didn’t bother to help.)

Sophie ignored him, rolling her eyes, but glanced up and caught him staring. “Take a picture, it’ll last longer.”

“Don’t tempt me, you know I will.” He shot back. “I know you brought your film camera I got you for Christmas.”

“The last person I want seeing my nudes is the freshman art student that develops my film in the photo studio on campus.” She replied with an eyeroll. “Though I’m sure he’d enjoy it.”

Rafe’s face dropped as he immediately grew protective, grabbing the bikini top away from her and deftly untangled the strings. “Get dressed. We’re gonna be late.”

“Okay, Daddy.” She replied innocently, biting the inside of her cheek to hide back a grin.

He paused, considering, then shook his head. “No. Sorry, no, can’t vibe with that. Find a different kink please.”

She burst out laughing, shaking her head. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, James paid me $10 to tell you that.”

Rafe huffed, tugging on his swim trunks and shoved his feet back into his boat shoes, then promptly slammed open the door, striding back to the group. “James! Fuck you!”

________

Later, once everyone gathered their things and made it down to the dock after their driver for the week picked them up, the boat driver helped them all onto the boat, offering his hand. He was younger, around their age or a little bit older, and Rafe scowled as the driver’s eyes lingered maybe a little too long on Sophie’s bikini top. Then the driver politely leaned over to Rafe to inform him that Sophie had the tag sticking out of her top, hanging on by a thread, and he dropped his scowl quicker than it had appeared.

It only took them twenty minutes before they cracked into the cooler, everyone satisfied with a drink in hand, and two failed attempts to go head-to-head in a shotgun contest with James left Sophie drunk within the hour. She had her sunglasses perched askew on her nose, eyes closed as she rested her head in Rafe’s lap, lying down on the seat next to him.

“This trip is good for you. I think this is the most relaxed I’ve seen you all year.” Julia commented, snapping a quick photo of the couple.

“I do feel very relaxed.” Sophie hummed, taking Rafe’s hand and starting to play with his fingers. “Hm. Relaxed. Relaxation. That’s nice.”

“You’re hammered.” Rafe pointed out, but looked down on her fondly. “I want you to eat soon.”

“Snacks.” She affirmed. “You’ll have to feed me. I’m not sure my jaw works anymore.”

James giggled, more tipsy than anything, but still lacked any filter. “Better for dick sucking.”

“Hey.” Rafe warned. “Watch your mouth.”

“Sorry. Just came out.” James shrugged, having zero remorse. “Can we go swimming? I wanna see dolphins. Do they have dolphins here?”

“Some dolphins. I’ll take you.” Their driver interjected, changing direction of their boat.

“Dolphins can travel up to 80 miles a day,” Allie informed them, confused when she got weird looks from the groups. “What? I’m from Florida, I wanted to be a dolphin trainer growing up. Everyone did.”

“Aw. You would have been good at that, Al.” Julia told her, topping off her drink. “Sophie, no sleeping.”

“M’ not sleeping.”

“No drunk napping.”

“M’ not drunk.”

“Well now you’re just lying.” Rafe told her with a smile, gently nudging her up. “C’mon, I need you to drink water for me. Have some snacks.”

“Here, Sophie.” Colin waved the bag of Sun Chips under her nose, grinning. “Try some. Yummy.”

She batted it away, frowning as she leaned back into Rafe. “Everyone leave me alone.”

He pushed her back upright immediately, ignoring her frown, and pressed a water bottle to her lips. “Drink.”

“Do the thing.” She lowered her voice, challenging him with a smirk.

“Sweetheart, I’m not gonna -”

“Then I’m not drinking.”

He sighed, resigned. “Drink water or I’m not letting you go out tonight.”

“Let me? You don’t let me do anything.” She argued, grabbing the water bottle away and took a long drink.

Rafe just nodded, clearly not in the mood for a fight. He knew Sophie was in charge of the relationship, but the second he said he wasn’t comfortable with something, she listened right away. “Okay. Sure.”

“Trouble in paradise,” James sing-songed, only to receive a glare from Sophie.

“You’re still on my hit list.”

“Me? What did I do?”

“You and Julia are on it.”

Julia sighed, glancing over. “You’re really still hung up on that?”

Sophie sat up a little more, her eyes lighting up, and Rafe braced for an argument. “I told you no -”

“And we’re both grown adults, Soph, we can make our own decisions -”

“You don’t even like him -”

“Ouch.” James mumbled, shrinking back into his seat as if he couldn’t be seen.

“Hey!” Allie clapped, standing and putting herself in between the girls. “Both of you, let it go. We’re not doing this again. Julia, drink more. Sophie, no more drinking.”

“But -”

“No.” She crossed her arms, staring them both down until they sighed, mumbling apologies. “Thank you.”

The boys all watched in silence, impressed, until Colin spoke up. “Right, well, I’m gonna go swim.” He and James nodded, jumping off the back of the boat, and Allie and Julia took a second but followed suit.

Sophie moved to join in until Rafe grabbed her around the waist, protective as he pulled her onto his lap. “Hey. You okay?”

“Yes. I feel good.” She promised, but couldn’t fully meet his gaze and was swaying with the rocking of the boat. “Can we go swim?”

“Will you wear a life jacket?”

“That’s embarrassing.”

“It’ll be more embarrassing if you drown.” He pushed her hair back, out of her face, and kissed her forehead. “You’re way too drunk right now, you’re making me nervous.”

She frowned, placing her hand on his cheek. “I make you nervous?”

“No, I’m just worried something’s gonna happen. Life jacket? Please?” He pulled it from under the seat, offering it to her.

Sophie rolled her eyes but let him put it on, strapping it tight across her chest for good measure. “Now can we go?”

He scooped her up with a grin and stood on the seat, ready to jump. “Now we can go.”

“No, Rafe - wait no!” She screamed, grabbing around his neck as he jumped into the water with her in his arms, plunging down and letting her go to float back up.

James snorted, splashing water toward her. “Nice life jacket.”

“I’d like a life jacket.” Allie interjected, closing her eyes and floating on her back. “Wouldn’t have to do any work.”

“Hold on - Allie, are you high?” Colin questioned, swimming closer and poking her arm. She’d only had half of a drink since they were on the boat, but was still acting strange and zoned out the whole day.

“Carlos gave me an edible. I ate it before we got on the boat.” She mumbled in reply. “I have more if you want it.”

“You took sketchy drugs from a sketchy guy?!” Colin exclaimed, much louder than necessary.

Rafe swam over with a frown, shaking his head like a dog. “Who’s taking drugs?”

“The bartender -”

“Carlos.” Allie corrected.

“The bartender gave Allie drugs.” Colin cut her off. “And now she’s high and probably something else.”

Rafe cocked his head, looking over Allie. “Al? You good?”

“I feel nice.” She replied, moving to tread water and smiled at them. “So nice.”

“Jesus Christ.” Colin cursed, while Rafe kicked him under the water.

Julia swam over, tugging Sophie’s hand to drag her along. “Oh, it’s finally kicking in?”

“You knew?” Rafe questioned, pulling Sophie into his arms as she tried to be subtle and unclip the life jacket.

“Of course I knew.” Julia replied. “Don’t freak out, I looked at it, it’s fine.”

“Oh, you looked at it, great. Thanks, Julia, I didn’t know you were the resident expert on drugs.” Colin huffed.

“Just weed, actually, I haven’t done anything else -”

James seemed to finally realize the whole group was congregated instead of doing their own thing, like he was. He swam under the water, grabbing Rafe’s ankle - who immediately screamed like a child and kicked James in the face. James bobbed up straightaway with his hand clapped to his nose and blood trickling from it like a leaky faucet. “What the fuck?!”

“Why’d you grab me?!” Rafe defended, letting go of Sophie. “This is on you.”

James launched himself onto Rafe, grabbing at him, and the two promptly started wrestling in the water, despite everyone’s protests. Colin stuck his arm in between them to break them up after a few minutes, tugging Rafe off of James and being careful not to hit James’ nose again. “Hey! Hey. Everyone back on the boat.”

“C’mon, Colin.” James argued, but hauled himself back up onto the boat anyways when Colin tapped his watch and reminded them all of their dinner reservations.

Once they all clambered back onto the boat and James had a towel and a can of beer pressed to his nose, the boat driver started taking them back to the shore. Sophie had sobered up somewhat and Allie was asleep with her head in Julia’s lap, with Julia absent-mindedly stroking her hair. “Hey, Rafe? Do you have any good recs for somewhere we could go for dinner?”

Rafe furrowed his brow, confused. “We’re going to dinner tonight, what do you mean?”

“No, no, tomorrow. I was thinking it could be just the girls, you guys could do something else -”

“No.” He replied, firm. “None of you are going anywhere alone. I don’t trust any of you when you’re drinking.”

Allie stirred, finally opening her eyes as she’d been listening in on the conversation. “We could invite Carlos to chaperone,” she mumbled.

“Yeah, I’m sure he’d love to tag along. Drag you into some trafficking ring too.” Colin grumbled.

James pulled the towel away from his face, confused. “So that’s a no to guy’s night?”

“No one is splitting up.” Rafe insisted, firm, and reached over to press the towel back to James’ nose.

Sophie cocked her head at her boyfriend. “Where is this coming from?”

“Look, I don’t even let Sarah go out alone here, and we’ve been coming here for years, she knows this place like the back of her hand. I don’t want something to happen to you guys.” He slung his arm around Sophie’s shoulders, pulling her close. “Any of you. I mean it.”

“Man, even my own father isn’t this protective.” Julia remarked casually, then immediately regretted it upon seeing Rafe’s wince. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine. But that’s final say.”

“Okay, got it.” Julia raised her hands in defense. “So. Back to Carlos. Do you think he’d get all of us drugs if we had a threesome with him?” She suggested, only for everyone to stare blankly at her. “Oh my god, I’m just asking. It’s not like I suggested meth.”

“Who’s in the threesome?” James questioned, cocking his head.

Julia ignored him, barreling on. “That’s, like, an appropriate thing to ask, right? It feels like an island vibe. He’s gotta know where to get something.”

“Something.” Rafe repeated.

“Yeah.” She directed her question back toward him. “Hypothetically, if he could get us coke, would you say no? That’s like a rich person drug.”

“Rafe hasn’t done coke.” Sophie interrupted, assuredly, then frowned as Rafe seemed contemplative. “Right?”

“...No. Had to think. Been in the room, though, so probably got something secondhand.”

“That’s literally not how coke works.” Julia dismissed.

“I wouldn’t. I’m pretty sure that ruins the lining of your nose.” James supplied helpfully - Julia nodded in agreement, considering this newfound information.

“I’d consider doing molly.” Colin added. “But not from him.”

“Oh, like that makes a difference.” Allie deadpanned, always quick with the comeback while the rest of the group registered their surprise, because - Colin? Drugs? Two words that didn’t go together.

“It does, actually, but I get drug tested at NASA every single week, so.” Colin shrugged. “Not worth losing my future job.”

“Right. No one answered my question.” Julia sighed. “I’m open to a threesome with Allie or James. Rafe and Sophie, you’re out. Colin, I -”

“Yeah. Agreed.” Colin nodded, then hurriedly added, “I’m not saying I’m down for a threesome -”

“Hold on, why are we out?” Sophie frowned. “We’re hot.”

“Neither of you would share. It wouldn’t be fun.” James pointed out, only for Julia to nod enthusiastically in agreement.

“Exactly. You two are too, like, in love or whatever. It’s sick.”

“We would be great in a threesome.” Sophie argued, crossing her arms.

“You are too damn competitive.” Rafe mumbled to himself, shaking his head. “No one is having a threesome, no one is doing drugs. Not until we’re back under American laws. I’m not bailing anyone out of jail here.”

“Boo, Dad.” James grumbled, making Sophie lean toward him and raise her hand.

“James -”

“Okay, Sophie, chill, you can be the only one to call him Daddy -”

“Oh god, gross -”

“Home again!” Their driver announced with a grin, bumping the boat a little against the dock. The group snapped to attention, with James and Colin grabbing the coolers and Rafe helping the girls off the boat. He clapped the driver on the back as he was last to get off, murmuring something in his ear and slipped a wad of cash into his hand.

_____

After dinner, the group was dropped back at the house with the same driver they’d had all week, who now knew them all by name and knew way too much gossip about each of them. He knew that Rafe always sat in the front, the girls crammed into the back and James and Colin shared the middle, unless the girls were too drunk to crawl all the way back safely, and the boys would trade. They were all tired from a long day in the sun and agreed to call it with a lowkey night back at the house.

Once they’d all changed into comfier clothes, rather than how they dressed up for dinner, they congregated in the living room, sprawled out on the couches.

“All right, games. I have...uh…” Rafe rifled through the cabinet under the television, coming up short with only a deck of cards. “There’s just this and a poker set. We didn’t exactly play family games growing up.”

“That’s alright. We can play B.S.” Julia concluded, clapping her hands together with a grin.

“Last time we played B.S. it ended in a screaming match, and you and Colin didn’t talk for a week.” Allie reminded her, wary. Drunken card games in their group usually resulted in made-up rules that were only kept on track if someone wrote down the rules to lock down any possible room for arguments.

James and Sophie returned from the kitchen with two bottles of Sprite, two bottles of lemonade, a handle of vodka and six shot glasses. “Okay! Ready!”

“What the - guys, I said a chill game night.” Rafe raised his eyebrows as Sophie passed out the shot glasses.

“Yeah, we decided it’s our only senior spring break so we want to enjoy it.” Sophie told him, smacking a kiss to his cheek. “We’re playing B.S? Whose rules?”

“Normal rules, for the first round. Second round everyone adds a rule as you get away with bullshit.” Julia declared, shuffling and dealing the cards out to everyone with a surprising amount of skill. “Next birthday goes first, and if you don’t get away with it you have to take a shot. Or chug your drink for five seconds?”

“That’s me. And player’s choice, I think.” Sophie decided, sitting up and angling her cards away from everyone, looking a little too contemplative. She placed her card down, and Colin immediately shook his head. “Bull.”

“Nuh uh.”

“Take the shot, Sophie.” Colin insisted, flipping her card to reveal a jack instead of the needed 2.

“Fuck.” She muttered, following suit.

Rafe shoved her cup of water closer to her before she could pour herself a vodka lemonade instead, shaking his head. “You’re not even sober right now. Finish this first.”

“It’s alright, I’m fine.” She waved him off. “You’re next.”

The game continued on, escalating dramatically as they kept playing. By the time the first big bullshit was called, Allie had to accept at least 30 cards, the group had all taken at least one shot, Julia had been banished to the corner for a whole round, James was wearing Julia’s pink sunglasses upside down and Rafe had made out with Sophie three times, due to a rule he’d made up.

“Total bullshit.” Allie giggled as James placed five cards down at once on top of a huge stack. She was rivaling Sophie for drunkest of the group by far, slumped on the couch with her arms wrapped around one of the pillows as she wore a happy grin.

“Is not.”

“Is too!”

“Challenge!” Julia exclaimed, setting up two cups at the end of the table and handed them each a ping pong ball. (No one was sure when this was added to the rules, but everyone accepted it easily.) “Ladies and gentlemen, please stand.”

The two stood and took each other’s hands, laughing as they followed the customary pre-pong rule of spinning each other three times before taking their aim. “That was four! That was four.” Allie protested, having to grab James’ arm for balance as the room spun behind her eyes. “You need an extra spin.”

“Wait, dude, you put five down.” Colin pointed out, cocking his head. “Fucking idiot, take the cards.”

“Julia said challenge!”

“But you cheated!”

“The whole point of the game is cheating, dumbass!” James retorted, shaking his head. “She said challenge!”

“I said challenge!” Julia cried out, tapping her shot glass against the glass table to regain order. “Now throw.”

Both of them missed their mark terribly, James’ ball falling short and Allie accidentally nailing Rafe in the forehead with hers. “Sorry! Shit, sorry!”

“Oh, no, baby, are you okay?” Sophie asked worriedly, smoothing her hand over Rafe’s forehead as she combed through his hair with her fingers.

“I’m fine. I’m not sober.” He replied, humming with a smile as he leaned into her touch.

Everyone stared at the two of them with grins as they realized Rafe’s mistake in his own rule that he’d made up. The couple took too long to realize, slowly glancing around at the group. “What?” Sophie asked, sitting up straight. “What happened?”

“James missed the shot.” Colin grinned at Rafe, way too smug. “Pucker up.”

Rafe’s face dropped as it clicked for him - he’d made up the rule that a missed shot from falling short meant that person had to make out with the player who’d gone before for at least two minutes. It was a carefully calculated rule, he’d played pong with everyone in the group countless times and knew that everyone besides Sophie tended to overshoot, almost every single time.

Almost.

James laughed at Rafe’s expression, crooking a finger toward him. “Come here, buddy. Do you want me to get chapstick? Soph, do you have chapstick?”

“Do I have to?” Rafe groaned, standing up and striding over to sit next to James on the couch.

“It’s your rule.” Julia pointed out. Sophie shrugged in agreement, not quite putting together all the pieces.

“I’m really honored to be doing this with you, seriously.” James joked. “Sophie, can I touch him?”

“Just the head.”

Julia snorted, and she and James exchanged equally delighted grins at Sophie’s accidental innuendo.

Colin pulled up the timer on his phone, flashing it toward them. “Okay...alright. Whenever you’re ready.”

“Fucking hell.” Rafe sighed, but leaned in to make the first move, eager to get it over with. Both of them had their eyes closed and the kiss was relatively tame, albeit impossibly long.

“Oh.” Sophie murmured quietly, unsure how she felt, but uttered a warning “hey” when James’ hand automatically went to Rafe’s face. She decided she felt mainly neutral about it, but would be a lot more neutral if it was James and Colin kissing instead.

Julia was quiet for the first time all night, unable to tear her eyes away as she watched. Allie couldn’t resist a quick photo but giggled, hiding her face in Colin’s shoulder.

“Hey. Hey! Hey!” Sophie yelled the second the timer went off, leaning over and grabbing at Rafe’s arm to tear him away. “No more.”

James had his eyes closed and had unconsciously chased Rafe’s lips with his as they were pulled apart, but made a show of wiping his mouth afterward. “Okay. Well. Mark that under something I thought I’d never do.”

“And you’ll never do it again, so I hope you enjoyed it.” Sophie scowled, wrapping her arms around Rafe from behind and pulled him back to lean against her chest. “Stupid fucking rule, Rafe.”

“Sorry. Wasn’t thinking.” Rafe laughed, clearly unbothered as he tilted his head to press a short kiss to Sophie’s neck.

She grasped his head in both her hands, leaning down to press a sound kiss to his lips, as if it was a mark of ownership. “There. No one kiss my boyfriend again, I’m getting more snacks.” Sophie declared, getting up and heading into the kitchen.

“I don’t know about y’all, but I’m lowkey horny right now.” Julia muttered much louder than she intended.

“Thanks for sharing, Jules.” Allie laughed.

Julia glanced toward James with a desperate look, pressing her legs together. “Are we done playing? Or do you guys want to keep going?”

Oblivious as always, James shrugged, unfazed, moving back to his seat beside Julia. “Whatever you want. I’m down to keep playing.”

“Fuck, I need to get laid.” Julia mumbled much quieter so only he could hear, and he straightened up immediately like a bolt of lightning had shot up his spine.

“Actually, I’m good. Tired, actually. Yeah. I’m gonna - yeah.” He stood, offering his hand to Julia. “You look tired too.”

“Guys.” Rafe warned, glancing toward the kitchen where Sophie was still raiding the cabinet for any leftover snacks.

“Night, y’all.” Julia grinned, ignoring Rafe’s warning as the two strode off hand in hand to Julia’s room, making sure to go around so Sophie wouldn’t catch them.

Rafe sighed, but bit back a smile as he saw a dirty text pop up from Sophie, with a very detailed idea of how they could use up the rest of the whipped cream in the fridge. “Alright. Night, guys.” He promptly got up and left, leaving Colin and Allie alone.

“And then there were two.” The tension hung thick in the air as Allie leaned on Colin, giggly. “Fuck, I am so drunk.”

“Yeah?” He didn’t dare move, especially as she took his arm into her lap and started tracing lines as she connected freckles on his skin.

“I think I’m gonna call the bartender.”

“No you’re not.” Colin frowned, shaking his head. “No. You need sleep.”

She yawned, blinking up at him. “I’m pretty sure my room’s occupied.”

“You can take my bed.” He offered immediately, resisting the weird urge to tuck a stray piece of hair behind her ear. “It’s fine.”

“Where are you gonna sleep?” She asked, reaching up and tracing her finger along his cheekbone. “Your eyes are pretty, did you know that? You have a freckle in your right eye.”

“A freckle?” He smiled. “I’m not sure that’s right.”

“It is.” She insisted. “I can go in your bed?”

“Yeah, I’ll take the couch.”

“Okay.” She agreed right away, hauling herself up. “I gotta brush my teeth.”

“Good thing your bathroom’s shared with mine.” Colin reminded her, following her down the hallway. “Unless you really want to go into your room while...that’s going on.”

“No, thank you.” She shook her head quickly, stretching and nearly smacking him in the face. “Sorry! Sorry.”

“It’s alright, just be careful.” He laughed, ushering her into the bathroom. “Do your thing, I’ll fix my bed.”

They’d all changed into comfortable clothes and showered before playing the game, anticipating intoxication, but Colin still wished he had a reason to offer her something of his to wear to bed. He re-made his bed, even fluffing the pillow, before tugging on a hoodie.

Allie returned a few minutes later, giving him a grateful smile. “Thanks, Colin.” She touched his arm as she passed, crawling into bed.

“Of course. No problem. Yell if you need something, yeah?” He told her, smiling back before leaving and turning out the light, resigned to a night on the couch.

taglist: @drewstarkey @lemur46 @jjmaybanksbaby @edgeofgr8 @quxxnxfhxll @obxtess @hoodpankow @vtgirl802 @outerbankies @messagesinthesky @nicolecarsley @svechnikolan @ilovejjmaybank @obxtess @abbyj1822 @oopsiedoopsie23 @g4bster @jjmaybankzz @freddymaybank @dontjinx-it @illbesafeforyou @moniamaybank @tovvaa @jailcalledlife @sunshineitsfine44 @randomficsandshit @outerbankspreferences @outerbanksbro @karsinner @kkmaybank @whoeveniskendall @lemur46 @outerbankies

[forthehpfanboys]

Match Already Made

Pair: Draco Malfoy x Reader; he/him.

Summary: Hermione tries to play match maker. She is so determined to see you and Harry get together she's obvious to the fact you're already taken. Even if you’ve kept it a secret.

Warnings: Swears, arguing, sass

Notes: I absolutely adore this holy fu ck

~DO NOT REPOST ANYWHERE~

-

“Drop it!” You slammed your book shut with aggravation, your hands running through your hair as you stared down at the cover. Your friends didn’t even flinch- well, Ron did a little but would never admit it. “There isn’t anything between me and Harry.”

“Harry and I-”

“Do not. Seriously, Hermione. He’s like my brother and this isn’t Alabama.”

“What?”

“Never mind, Ron.” You sighed. Your hands ran through your hair before gripping the locks and tugging. It was far less painful than hearing your best friend talk about how you could be exchanging saliva with your other best friend. 

On that note, why in the flying, flip flapping fuck was Hermione so damn determined to get you and her bestie together? Don’t get me wrong, you love Harry, sure, but like a brother, and that’s where it ends. Everyone around you assumed since the two of you were so buddy buddy that you were basically made for each other, but no one knew a specific snake had slithered his way into your heart and was determined to keep it that way.

See, you’d gotten along with Harry and Co. because you were put in Gryffindor and, naturally, that begs the question of how you started dating said snake. Well, one day you decided you had enough of Harry and Ron fighting over the dumb Tri-Wizard Tournament and literally dragged the specks wearing boy by his ear across the dining hall and forced the two friends to apologize. 

Instead of focusing on the scene and laughing at the Gryffindor’s embarrassment, Draco was busy falling head over heels for you. The blonde realized just how attractive Harry’s stupid friend was and nothing could stop him from wanting to see you react like that again. Something about you hit him differently than any wizard or witch he’d ever met. 

Since then, he made it his daily mission to tease you at least once a day. Whether it was sitting next to you at the library to ask if he could borrow your legs as earmuffs or calling to you across the dining hall asking if you used the stupefy charm or if you were a natural stunner, he did it all. He’d snicker when you’d solute the middle finger in his direction, but he noticed the blush across your cheeks and kept up the game, determined to have you swooning for him.

Eventually, the blonde realized he’d have to make the move first, leading to him approaching you after potions when the class was empty and, much to Snape’s dismay, asked you to a Hogsmead date. What surprised Draco the most was when you actually said yes without making fun of him. Since then, you have been dating the Slytherin. You two would sneak out after curfew, go swimming in the Black Lake together and spend particularly hard nights in his dorm room all while using the hidden passageways the Weasley Twins trusted you with. They were probably the only Gryffindors that knew you were kissing the lips of their little brother's best friend's rival and they kept it to themselves.

When you started dating the blonde, you both made a pact. You would keep the relationship a secret from the residents of Gryffindor tower and he’d cut the ‘mudblood’ bull crap and at least try to be nice to Harry and his friends. He doesn’t have to be their best friend but just, don’t be rude. He kept up his side of the promise easily, as did you. Except you were so close to yelling it from a fucking mountain top- or the astromony tower. 

Hermione had this idea stuck in her head and Ron agreed too. See, the idea was that you and Harry would make the best couple for many reasons and she was, once again, trying to get you two to at least try. She would go on and on about how there was a spark, whatever that meant.

“Oh come on, (Y/n)! One date! What harm could it possibly have?” Hermione was basically begging- she had been for weeks. She wasn’t one to go for this but ever since Ginny noticed how you two would bump hips in the hallway or wrap your arms around each other's shoulders, she was convinced there was a spark.

“Mione, I love you, I do, but please, drop it.” You spoke up, shoving your book off to the side to cross your arms over the table. “The spark doesn’t exist.” You and Harry both knew it was true. 

“(Y/n). We all know you don’t have eyes on anyone so why not? The spark could form over time.. Right?” Ron added in, his chin resting in his hand as he shrugged his shoulders. You held your breath at his statement. It almost slipped out that you did, in fact, have someone.

“What? Like it did with you and Lavender?” Harry spoke up, causing you to snicker. The male in specks had barely spoken two words since the conversation turned from potions essays and charms homework to love lives.

“I thought we agreed not to bring that up again..” Ron mumbled, looking back down at his book.

“Anyway, I could still see it! I really do think you guys have potential.” Hermione shrugged her shoulders, before going back to her book. You could tell she was tapping her foot against the wooden floor. She must’ve reread the page seven times before looking back up to you. “But seriously! You guys could have quidditch dates! The seeker and the fanboy.”

“Hermione, stop. There’s nothing here. Trust me.” You were rubbing your temples in anguish. You knew she was a determined witch but holy hell. You and Harry let out a collective sigh of physical pain when she went on anyway. Stubborn girl, seriously. 

“But there could be, (Y/n)! That’s my point! Could you imagine how amazing this could be for you two? You both need an amazing partner! Someone who cares! Someone who’ll take care of you! Someone who’s willing to themselves on the wire for a chang-” She stopped abruptly, causing you to glance side to side. What caused her to stop like that and how do you keep it around you? 

You squealed in surprise and jumped when a hand landed on your chin and the other landed on the back of your chair. You were about to throw a nice right hook, but the hand on your chin directed your gaze upward, showing Draco with a smirk.

“Hello, love.” He planted a hard kiss against your lips, leading the entire library to become, somehow, quieter. Like, before it was drop-a-pin quiet, but now it was like drop-a-hair-follicle quiet. When he pulled away, he chuckled at your confused expression. “How was divination today? I heard you have a test tomorrow. Is that what you’re studying for? I could help.” He removed his hands from you and pulled the empty chair out next to you before sitting down and wrapping his arm around you. 

Your eyes stared at your boyfriend in shock, your jaw hanging like you had a broken hinge. When his icy blue eyes met yours, you could see the jealousy burning in his irises. He must’ve heard Hermione talking about how perfect you and Harry would be. Of course he did, everyone in the library heard it.

“What the bloody fuck just happened?!” Ron yelled, earning himself a few glares from studying students. Your head whipped over to your friends, almost forgetting about them. Hermione’s jaw was practically against the floor while Harry didn’t look the slightest bit shocked. “No, I take that back. When did this fucking happen?!”

“Language, Ronald.” Draco spoke up, his arm tightening around your shoulder while his eyebrow raised. The blonde put a curled finger to his lips, counting the time in his head. “About four months ago.”

“Four. Four?” The fuming red-head held up said number of fingers. “Four months and you just.. What? You didn’t tell us? What kind of bloody frie-” 

“Godric, Ron! This is why we didn’t say anything.” You kicked the leg of the table and turned to look away from your friends, trying to ignore the soft ache in your chest. It hurt that your friends didn’t really accept the relationship and, why would they? Draco has been a twat to them for years. Suddenly it felt like you were in a sauna as your eyes slowly pricked with tears. Were they ever going to talk to you again? Did you just lose the friends you have? The twins took it so well-

“That and my father would disown me faster than a fire bolt flies.” Draco shrugged casually, a smile coming across his lips when you turned to him. 

“Wait, you guys didn’t know?” Harry asked, lifting his head up to turn to his friends, who turned to him quickly. “Oh, come on! It was so obvious!” Harry’s words left Ron, Hermione and yourself struggling to find something to say back.

“What?” Was all you could manage out.

“If Harry noticed, we might have an issue.” Draco snickered out. “I wonder who el-” The blonde was cut off by your hand covering his mouth.

“Wait, Harry, you knew? And you didn’t tell me?” You stared at him.

“Well.. Yeah. I figured it out when you were doodling his name all over your parchment in transfiguration and when you guys were making goo goo eyes at each other that afternoon.” Harry scoffed, rolling his eyes. Right, he.. He sat next to you in that class. Your cheeks turned bright red before you could hide it. “I didn’t wanna say anything in case you guys kept it a secret on purpose, so you’re welcome.” 

“Gee, thanks Potter. I’ll keep that in mind.” Draco snickered out, a grin spread across his face when you gently shoved him in his chair.

“So, I still have one question.” Ron grumbled out, raising his hand halfway like he did in all his classes. “Why?”

“Same reason you’re dating Granger.” Draco paused, looking down to avoid anyone's gaze before licking his suddenly dry lips. He cleared his throat and glanced back up, choosing to look Ron right in the eyes. Ron nodded, waving his hand in a circular motion in a ‘go on, spit it out’ kind of way. The blonde could feel your eyes gaze on him, but chose to ignore it.  “I love (Y/n). I thought that was obvious.” 

Your eyes grew wider somehow. Ron blinked a few times, as if understanding but also not understanding. He’d only seen Draco as a cold, heartless beast and Hermione was in the same boat, but now they were confused. Or maybe it was just Ron. Hermione was smiling at you. This was the first time he’d said it out loud. You looked down at the desk, before looking at Harry, who was hiding a grin behind the now standing book, before turning to Draco. 

“Wait, really?”

“Of course. Why do you think I basically ran over here when I heard Hermione speaking about you and Potter going on a quidditch date? No offense to you, Potter, I’m sure you’re a lovely partner.” 

“None taken.”

“What universe am I in?”

“Ron, listen, please? We all know Draco has said some shit in his past, ok?” You turned to him. “We know and-and he’s trying to change and Godric, please don’t hate me when I say this. He.. Look, he-” You started stumbling over words, not wanting to put any in Draco’s mouth. He decided to speak up for you, hoping to put you out of your misery.

“I’m sorry. I know that doesn’t fix what I’ve said, how I’ve acted and what not, but a lot has changed in these four months and I’d rather not see my boyfriend lose his best friends over who he’s dating. He deserves the best of the best.”

Now even Harry seemed shocked. Ron looked down at his book before shutting it. He took a deep breath before letting it out slowly. 

“You’re lucky you make him happy or else I would throw you off the astronomy tower.” Ron spoke up.

“Oh thank Godric.” You sighed out, your body slumping back in the chair. 

“But if you hurt his feelings, I swear to Merlin and who’s.. Who’s that muggle one?” Ron turned to his girl, confusion etched across his features, leading to giggle a tiny bit.

“Jesus?” Hermione grabbed Ron’s hand from the table.

“Yeah, him!” Ron pointed to his girl again for emphasis. “I swear on both of them I will not hesitate to do so.”

“Not if I do it first. If I do hurt him, I don’t think I’d be able to live with myself.” Draco nodded his head a tiny bit and pulled you closer into his side, a grin across his features. 

“.. I’m not gonna get used to this.” Ron shook his head. The brunette witch sitting next to him elbowed him in the side gently. “Ow! I’m just being honest!”

“Ronald, you can’t just say stuff like that!” She countered, rolling her eyes.

“Why not? It’s the truth!”

“Because it’s rude..”

The couples arguing faded when Draco leaned into your bubble, whispering under the arguing so only you heard.

“Is this ok?” Draco’s arm was around your waist now, his eyes glancing into yours when you turned to him. You were so close to him, you could feel his tiny puffs of breathing brush across your lips. 

“Of course, just not how I expected it to go.” You twiddled your fingers. “But I’m glad we told them.” You smiled, leaning up to brush your nose against his.

“So you feel the same way then?”

“Is it not obvious?”

“Nope. you haven’t said it yet, (Y/n). I must hear you admit it.” Draco smiled at you, his eyes fluttering shut. He smiled wider when you sighed dramatically. 

“I love you too, Draco.” You pressed your lips against his and ignored the fake gagging noises from the red-head across the table. When you pulled away, you pressed your forehead against his, a matching smile across your lips.

“So does that mean I get to be the best man at the wedding?”

“Harry!”

“What? I’m just curious!”

[the196thbattalion]

star wars human! high school! au

i’ve seen so many headcanons circling throughout the star wars tumblr about high school au’s, so i wanted to share my bit with all of you :D

anakin skywalker

five words: REBEL CHILD ON A MOTORCYCLE.

he doesn’t like riding the school bus because it makes him feel extremely claustrophobic, so he scrapped and scavenged up parts to make his own customized motorcycle, which he lovingly dubbed artoo.

the blue and silver detailing was the joint effort of ahsoka and obi-wan, because anakin doesn’t know how to paint.

if he can catch up to the bus, he’ll ride alongside it and flip off the students on it before revving on ahead of them. (the freshmen think it’s the funniest thing in the universe)

probably one of the most well-known juniors in the entirety of temple high school (mostly because of his shenanigans but partly because he’s dating padme fuckiNG AMIDALA, PRETTIEST GIRL IN THE DAMN SCHOOL)

he always wears this worn-down leather jacket his mom gave to him before she passed away, and refuses to take it off, even though it’s somehow “a violation of the dress code and should be outlawed.”

his hair alone has seduced eight different students (boys and girls)

sometimes during study hall, ahsoka or padme will get a hold of his hair and style it into little braids or make a super rad ponytail.

he really likes iced coffee with milk and sugar. he puts in the milk to make it nice and light (it’s aesthetically pleasing, obi-wan!), and then like eight tablespoons of sugar to make it actually taste good.

his favorite class is mechanics, taught by kit fisto.

anakin spent months on a mechanical arm project to replace his clunky plastic prosthetic, and he was so freaking happy when it was finished; he almost cried. (he did cry and ahsoka got it on video)

obi-wan kenobi

a mixture of the soft™, pretty™, hippie™, grunge™, vsco™ and nerd™ tropes.

he really likes peppermint tea with lots of honey but takes his coffee black.

he has had too much tea.

someone needs to stop him.

almost all of his classes are ap courses, and if cody hadn’t been watching when obi-wan was making his schedule, all of them would be.

him, cody and padme have ap english with mace windu, and cody knows how much his classes stress him out, so he lets obi-wan sleep during class and sends him the notes

the only ap class obi-wan doesn’t take is mechanics, and he shares that class with anakin.

anakin and obi-wan are super close with each other. kenobi was there when ahsoka was adopted, and anakin was there when kenobi got his cat. (they were like 5 okay)

“NAME IT C3PO OBI-WAN, OR I SWEAR TO FUCK-” “what kind of name is that, and why would i - anAKIN PUT HIM DOWN!?”.

mr. fisto constantly has to split them up for disrupting the class, but it’s almost like they can communicate telepathically, and the teachers have a running bet

mace windu literally bet $50 on these fucking nerds so you know it’s for realsies

in reality, they’ve just gotten super creative with passing notes.

kind of off topic, but he has these brown harry potter glasses that he uses (kinda for reading???? but mostly so he can do that anime pushing up glasses thing)

cody thinks it’s the funniest shit ever

whenever cody is feeling stressed, obi-wan just does the thing™ and BOOM! happiness.

people think he’s a goodie two shoes, and honestly, it’s really easy to think that. if the iconics are trying to do something stupid, he’s usually the voice of reason.

but parties?

…

you know what, just ask anakin for the video footage.

ahsoka tano

this hs!au ahsoka tano turned me bisexual confirmed ✔

okay before i go into her style, which is mainly what made me drool over my computer, can i just put skatergirl!ahsoka out there?

spray painting of the rebellion symbol all over the bottom of her board and on items in a couple of the places where she skates the most (like the back of an abandoned car yard)

her instagram is filled with these super cool vhs-tape recorded skate videos (u know)

lots crackhead 3am visits (starring anakin, rex, kenobi and barris) to a gas station to get slushies and grind the shit out of the curb connecting the store to the parking lot

trying to teach anakin how to skateboard but he just can’t figure it out? uh yes

“try to balance skyguy!” “HOW DO I MOVE? DO I SCOOT? SNIPS THIS ISN’T FUNNY AND I WANT TO GET OFF – GUYS, STOP LAUGHING!”

okay okay okay i’m done

for now

anyway, her style???? is so???? fucking????? cool!!!!!

her genetics gave her a 80% of having vitiligo, so it really wasn’t a surprise when patches of her skin got lighter, but it still freaked her out a little bit.

basically, went like this: “DAD, I’M TURNING WHITE!” “???? oh my gosh ‘soka, no.”

she has long braided dreadlocks she dyed a super bright orange with various colored beads woven into them with the help of anakin and padme. she usually styles them into little space buns atop her head.

her entire clothing wardrobe consists of fishnets, neon bomber jackets, at least 11 bisexual beanies™, handmade patchy jeans, white tank tops, and light-up platform shoes.

she doesn’t give two flying fucks about the dress code, and – IN THE MIDDLE OF THE MOST BUSY HALLWAY - punched principal sidious over whether or not she “could wear shorts that short” (anakin may or may not have cheered when she broke his nose).

the fetts (chuck have mercy)

*cracks le knuckles* i’ve put it off long enough

we have: fox (24), wolffe (19), cody (17), rex (17), echo (16), fives (16), boil (15), waxer (14), hardcase (13), jesse (12), longshot (8), kix (6), tup (3), gree (2) and boba (9mo)

wolffe is off at college - fox already graduated and moved out, that cheeky little fucking shit - but both still keep in good contact with the fam, and it’s a constant clamor between eleven of the siblings of who gets to talk to them first

fox majored in government/politics, bly is majoring in space/astronomy, and wolffe is majoring in police/law enforcement shit (i don’t know how college works, so sue me)

cody and rex are juniors, and despite their similar looks, the amount of schoolwork each of them completes drastically varies

cody is the honor roll student, valedictorian, whatever you want to call it

rex kinda just either does the work really well or 9/10 times gets distracted by anakin or ahsoka sending him some nice spicy memes

cody tried to tutor rex but it ended up almost landing tup in the hospital

“that’s really simple, actually. if you – vod? rex, are you okay? what are you oH NO TUP DON’T PUT THAT IN YOUR MOUTH-”

fetts on the varsity football team is like a right of passage in the family

right now, only the juniors of the fett family are on the team, but the coach has eyes on fives and echo for next years team

SPEAKING OF

echo, fives and boil are the infamous sophomore trio that pulled the milk bucket prank on the gym teacher, pong krell.

they had to help the janitor (99) clean up afterwards, but they genuinely enjoyed 99’s company, because he’s rad as shit and knows all the secret school passageways.

to be honest, not one person (except maybe sidious) was complaining

that motherfucker makes everyone run like eight laps during gym class

even mr. windu gives them a small smile in the hallways after that

boil says he was blackmailed into it

waxer is a freshman (the poor dude, i’m so sorry), and he always looks out for the nervous freshies

if someone is having a bad day, he’ll give them a lollipop (he carries around a whole bag), a place to sit during lunch, and a shoulder to cry on

all you need to do to find waxer is to locate this long ass line of children

the school counselor, plo koon, sometimes brings his niece numa into school during the day because he can’t find a babysitter, and waxer. fucking. loves. her. PERIOD.

w+n pull these tiny little pranks on teachers, and the staff pretends not to notice, but numa always giggles and gives them away.

boil has a soft spot for numa too, and sneaks her rice krispies.

bonus shit i want to add in but can’t figure out where to put it (or i’m just gonna add it on and shit)

plo koon adopted anakin after his mother died (him and anakin’s mother were good friends), and found ahsoka on the side of the street, shivering like a maniac.

he doesn’t know where ahsoka came from, but he loves her so gOD DAMN MUCH.

he’s the school counselor, and still keeps in touch with a lot of students even after the graduated (he thinks that majoring in law enforcement/police is a bit dangerous for wolffe but he still supports his unofficial but basically son 100%)

yoda is the super old but radically rad english teacher.

his entire point of existence in my mind fic is to troll the shit out of palpatine.

a recent conversation starring yoda and palps: “did you give the students the mountain of extra work i assigned them?” “for the students, that was?” i’m sorry. my bad, that is.” “this is the seventh time, yoda.”

okay but for real

mace windu violently roots for the school football team.

“BEAT THE SHIT OUT OF HIM, CODY! YOU TOO...OTHER CODY!”

“THAT’S A HOLDING! THAT’S A HOLDING!”

“REF IF YOU DON’T COUNT THAT TOUCHDOWN THEN I SWEAR TO SAMUEL L. JACKSON I WILL COME DOWN THERE AND BEAT YOUR SORRY PINSTRIPED ASS!”

[roonilwazlibimagines]

James Potter Mini Series - My Brother’s Best Friend (Part Seven)

Pairing: James Potter x Sirius Black’s Sister Word Count: 2.6k Blurb: Rosalind Black has always thought James Potter was cute, but that never mattered because he was in love with her best friend. Although, it seems that everything has been changing since her and her twin Sirius Black ran away from home and found themselves at James’ house. A/N: I hate this chapter, but I wanted to finish it, and this is done! I hate how it ended, but I’m so happy that I finally finished this :)))

PART ONE | PART TWO | PART THREE | PART FOUR | PART FIVE | PART SIX

Based off this ‘Would Include’ Sirius lagged behind James and I as we made our way towards the train. James looked down at me and we both gave each other small smiles before I intertwined our hands together. We had both decided that it was probably safe to tell people about us now considering we both were serious about our relationship. 

When we finally found the compartment with Remus and Lily in it we made our way in and released our hands as we sat down. I sat next to Lily and James sat next to me with Remus on the opposite side. 

Remus’ eyes flickered between our hands and ourselves before Sirius came in and exclaimed, “Guys I had the worst break, James and Rosalind are dating now.”

Lily let out a tiny squeal as she nudged my arm while Remus just chuckled. 

“Was it worse than the break when we got kicked out of our house?” I asked innocently, getting an awkward cough from James and an eye roll from Sirius. 

“Yes,” he held his head up a bit higher, “it was, Rosalind.” 

I rolled my eyes at him before Remus changed the subject and I began to tell Lily everything that had happened during the break while she did the same. 

About halfway through the train ride James’ hand found mine and I gave it a small squeeze turning to see the way his eyes flickered towards me as he gave me a small smile before continuing to focus on Sirius’ story. 

Sirius continued to stay at our side whenever we were together and the only time we were alone was when we went on dates to Hogsmeade (James was more than happy now to go to Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop because Sirius refused to go in there with us) and when James used his invisibility cloak at night to sneak me out to the Astronomy Tower. 

The first time was exceptionally awkward as there was not a lot of room under the Invisibility Cloak for two people, especially when James was so tall. I was constantly trying to hold my breath because I didn’t want James to hear how fast my breath was when I was this close to him. He had his wand illuminated and he had a piece of parchment which he kept looking at. 

When we finally got to The Astronomy Tower James looked over at me before he took the cloak off. Our faces were millimeters apart and I could hear his breathing. He grinned at me before he took it off. 

“I quite like being that close to you, love,” he smirked as he folded the cloak and sat down. 

“Oh, shut up,” I rolled my eyes at him as I sat down next to him. He placed an arm around me and I leant in closer to his chest. We sat in comfortable silence for a moment before I decided to ask, “what was that piece of parchment that you had?” 

“What piece of parchment?” James’ response was too quick for him to be that oblivious. I raised an eyebrow at him and he sighed before replying, “I just want you to know that Sirius, Remus and Peter would absolutely kill me if I showed you.”

“That’s okay with me,” I gave him a cheeky smile as he pouted. I pressed a small kiss upon his lips as he pulled out the paper. 

“It’s just a map,” even though he was originally reluctant to show me, he happily passed it over to me, “point your wand at it and say, ‘I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.’” 

I furrowed my eyebrows at him. 

“Why don’t I believe you?” it sounded ridiculous. 

“Trust me,” he sounded sincere and thinking that I really had nothing to lose I pointed my wand at the map and said it. 

Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers are proud to present THE MARAUDER'S MAP

I looked up at him, even more confused than I had originally been. When I looked back down a map of the school had suddenly appeared with lots of little dots and names. 

“What is it?”

“It’s a map of the school, shows you where everyone is,” he paused, “and shows you all the secret passageways.”

“Hogwarts has secret passageways?” I squinted my eyes at him and he nodded. 

“I’ll show them to you one day,” he bit his lip and I returned my attention to the map, “see,” he pointed to two dots on the Astronomy Tower, “that’s us.”

“Where did you get this?” my attention was focused on the map, trying to take in every detail.

“You wouldn’t believe me,” I scoffed. 

“Why not?” 

“Because Sirius, Remus, Peter and I made it,” I squinted my eyes at him. 

“I don’t believe you,” he rolled his eyes as he tried to convince me that they had made it.

“But who are Wormtail and Padfoot and the other people?” a red tinge appeared on James’ face as he realised his mistake. 

“That’s us,” he admitted, his stare was on the map trying to avoid making eye contact with me. 

“Why do you have such odd nicknames?” I let out a small laugh, not really sure if I believed it or not. 

“I can’t tell you much, because it isn’t really my place to tell you,” he defended when I gave him a disappointed look, “but would you like to see something else cool?” I raised an eyebrow at him. 

“I’m really not sure,” I laughed as he finally looked up at him. 

“Just, don’t be scared okay, I won’t hurt you,” a wave of terror suddenly washed over me as he stood up and I started imagining what he was going to do. My mouth dropped when James turned into a stag in front of me. 

“What the fuck,” I brought my legs closer to my body as the stag looked at me. My eyes widened and the stag must have realised that I was absolutely terrified because it turned back into James. 

“What was that?”

“My animagus,” he sat back down next to me, “that’s why my nickname is Prongs,” he laughed as I stared at him with an open mouth. 

“Are you telling me that my brother is an animagus and he didn’t tell me?” James seemed to relax as he realised that I was more focused on my brother, “that git!” he chuckled before putting his arm back around me, “what is his animagus?” 

“I can’t tell you about the rest of them, it isn’t my place,” he gave me an apologetic smile but I already knew that as soon as I saw him at breakfast the next day I was going to confront him. 

*** 

“Why didn’t you tell me you were an animagus?” I asked in a loud whisper as I sat next to Sirius in The Great Hall the next day at breakfast. Remus, who was sitting on the opposite side of us choked on his food. 

“Who the bloody hell told you?” Sirius gave me an indignant look to which I smiled at. 

“None of your business.”

“It was James, wasn’t it?” Sirius rolled his eyes as he went back to eating. 

“Might’ve been,” I shrugged my shoulders and started grabbing food to put on my plate. 

“Well I didn’t tell you because it is none of your business,” his chest puffed out a bit and I rolled my eyes. 

“Are you an animagus too, Remus?” he choked again on his food and Sirius looked at him with wide eyes. 

“I’m going to kill James,” Sirius groaned as I slapped his shoulder to shut up. 

“Uhm, I’m not,” Remus muttered as he put down his glass of water. 

“Good morning,” James sat down next to me and placed a kiss on my cheek. 

“Why did you tell her about our animagus form?” Sirius whacked James on his shoulder making us both turn to glare at him. 

“I never said he did,” I pointed my finger at Sirius as I went to grab James’ hand. 

“No one else knows, Rosie,” Sirius clenched his teeth and not having anything else to say I just rolled my eyes at him. 

“She wanted to know,” James shrugged his shoulders as he timidly started getting food for breakfast. 

“Or did you just want to show off?” Sirius raised his eyebrows at James who was making an effort not to look at either Remus or Sirius. 

“A little bit of both,” James said quietly, making Remus snigger and Sirius groan as I let out a small giggle. 

“Well I guess you better tell her the whole story then,” Remus gave James a small smile. 

“I’m sorry Remus,” James gave him an apologetic look. 

“He wouldn’t tell me about you guys though,” I tried to defend him, “he said it wasn’t his business to tell me.”

“Stop trying to defend him,” I sneered at Sirius whose attention was back on his breakfast. 

But Remus said he trusted me so James was whispering to me why they had become animagi and soon I was telling them that I wanted to be an animagi too. 

“No!” both James and Sirius exclaimed as my attention flickered between them. I tried to protest, but they claimed that the matter was settled. 

But that didn’t stop me from racing to the Hospital Wing every full moon to look after them. It gave me an excuse to see James shirtless as I cleaned up all his cuts. He would look down and give me a lazy smile which always made me blush. He swore it didn’t hurt but he always asked to hold my hand and there were times where he squeezed it a little harder. 

Our relationship continued to develop and was supported by Sirius’ less frequent presence who had suddenly become more okay with James and me.

A week before the Quidditch final I was sitting in The Common Room with James. My head was on his lap as he was playing with my hair and staring at the fire. 

“You’re sure you’re going to be there, right?” James had asked for the second time that night. 

“Yes James,” I opened my eyes at him to see him staring down at me with his eyebrows furrowed. 

“Okay good,” he bit his lip, “I can’t play without my lucky charm,” he looked down and gave me a wink making me giggle. 

“Sure,” James was stressed about the Quidditch Cup, especially being captain. No one knew that he was this stressed, he was very good at hiding it, but when it was just us he suddenly went from the confident and chilled person everyone knew to a complete nervous wreck. 

“This stress isn’t good for you,” I sat up from my position so I could look at him better, “you’ve been killing your team in practice,” I grabbed his hands in mine, “you’re going to be fine.”

He pulled me closer to him and placed a kiss on the top of my head, “thank you, love,” he rested his head on top of mine and even though he changed the subject I knew that it hadn’t left his mind. 

I had been hyping him up all week in the lead up to it and when we sat down at breakfast on the day of the game I made sure that his hand was interlaced with mind so I could give it a reassuring squeeze. 

“Today’s the big game, mate,” Sirius beamed as he sat across from us, I squeezed James’ hand as he gave Sirius a weak smile, “are you excited? Nervous?” Sirius was placing food in his plate unaware of my glare. 

“Well he will have his good luck charm there so there is nothing for him to be nervous about,” James gave me a thankful smile. 

“You’re disgusting,” Sirius rolled his eyes as he began shoving food in his mouth. 

“Are you cold?” James asked as he used his other hand to caress my arm. 

“No, I’m okay,” I smiled at him as he furrowed his eyebrows at me. 

“But you’re going to change when I play, yeah?”

“No, why?” I gave him a confused look as I ate a spoonful of my breakfast. 

“Because it will be freezing,” he stressed, “give me a minute,” he released his hand from mine and stood up, leaving the Great Hall. 

“He seems stressed,” Sirius commented, making me roll my eyes. 

Remus, Peter and Lily had arrived before James, but he was back within minutes with one of his coats and his Gryffindor scarf. 

“Here,” James handed them to me as he sat back down next to me. 

“What are these?”

“To keep you warm,” when I didn’t put them on he took them back and started placing it over my shoulders making Remus and Sirius snigger. 

“James, really,” I let him dress me, “I’m okay,” he pressed a kiss to my nose when he had finished putting them on me. 

“I don’t want you to get cold,” he mumbled as I wrapped the coat around me and moved my head down into his scarf. It smelt like him. 

“Thank you,” I pressed a kiss to his cheek watching the heat rise to his cheeks as he intertwined our hands together again under the table. 

In the stands with the wind rushing against my skin, I was thankful that James’ way of getting his mind off the stress was looking after me. I was grateful I had James' coat and his scarf to bury my face in, even if it was ridiculously too big for me. 

When he walked on the field I saw him search the crowds and smile when it landed on me. I waved at him and smiled but frowned when I saw Sirius glaring at me. 

I made sure to cheer extra loud whenever James scored a goal, knowing how much this game was stressing him out and I cheered with Sirius when Gryffindor won. When they started making their way back to the ground and everyone was cheering I couldn’t help but make my way down, wanting to wrap my arms around James and congratulate him.

It was a long walk to get down to the field but as soon as James saw me he opened his arms and I ran towards him. I must have looked ridiculous in my too large coat and Gryffindor scarf covering most of my face but James lifted me up in his arms and started cheering and I couldn’t help but giggle when he spun me around feeling nothing but pride and love for the boy in front of me. 

For a moment I forgot that the whole school was watching us. I forgot that Sirius was probably rolling his eyes at us still in the stands, but as James stopped spinning me and we both beamed at the other it didn’t really bother me. 

I wished at that moment that I could tell my sixteen year old self, cold and scared, on the Potter’s front door, the one who was in love with her brother’s best friend, that she really had nothing to worry about. That she was going to find someone who loved her, despite her family. That she had great friends who supported her and loved her and even if her family hated them, it didn’t matter because they had become her new family. 

James put me down and cupped my head in his hands, his palms were warm against my bold cheeks and he pulled me closer into a kiss. I couldn’t hear the crowd’s cheering get louder because all I could focus on was the boy in front of me and the way that even after all this time, he still managed to make my heart rate quicken. 

[ackerslut]

Prompt, Angst, The titan gets badly damaged and a lot of the crew are dead or injured, mariner goes AWOL from the cerritos to find out if boimler is okay and there's a scene with boimler unconscious on a biobed and Mariner is like "you have to live so I can feed you to an armus for leaving the cerritos!"

A/N: you sent this prompt ages ago, but the words just wouldn't happen lmao. So six months late and a few thousand words short, here you go:

ao3

Okay, so here’s the thing.

Beckett keeps files on everyone. Not physical files of course--too insecure and hackable (she should know). But a mental file. Still hackable if she runs into a telepath, but still slightly more secure from the rest of her coworkers.

It’s not as if they’re particularly like. Creepy files. She isn’t snooping into anyone’s actual physical file onboard or obtaining any info illegally. She just observes things and passively marks them for later. Tendi likes peanut-butter sandwiches. Janice gets her neck tattoos re-inked every few months. Captain Mom has a stick up her ass. That kind of thing.

It’s a fine tuned compartmentalization that’s useful in a variety of situations, whether it’s knowing what to say in a social situation or who to trust during a red alert (tip: always go with Rutherford, he’s anxious but the least likely to betray you and throw you out of an airlock. Bonus: he’s the most likely crew member on this trashcan to actually have a working idea).

Some mental files are incredibly detailed. For instance, the one on her mom is about as thick as a handbound copy of War & Peace and just as boring. Everything from her favorite flavor of ice cream to her first response to an emergency situation is in there-incredibly accurate and incredibly detailed. She’s sure her mom has a similar mental file on her as well, but resolutely does Not think about it.

Some mental files are almost empty. Ensign Gent’s toothbrush is pink. First Officer Ransom has nice abs I guess. That dude who’s name I can’t remember opened his third eye and ascended into the afterlife or something I wasn’t actually there Tendi told me and I was on my fourth drink.

And then some are medium sized but entirely unremarkable.

Like Bradward Boimler’s, for instance.

Loves classic rock. Dyes his hair purple. Stickler for rules. Needs to loosen up a bit. A lot. Probably needs to get laid. Definitely needs to get laid.

That’s it, that’s the entire file. Beckett doesn’t really concern herself with whatever’s going on with Boimler beyond the occasional ribbing or co-assignment. It’s not because she doesn’t like the dork. She would tentatively (but never to his face) call him her friend if cornered. And she enjoyed riling him up.

She updates the file about a year (almost two) into her acquaintance with him. FUCKING BACKSTABBING TRAITOR. (That’s it now, that's the entire file.) She doesn’t revisit it again, not for almost eight months, despite Tendi’s cheerful updates on how he’s doing--they’re still in constant contact, despite his ghosting Beckett--and Rutherford’s worried comments on his well-being.

“It’s not our job to babysit him,” she snapped one day. “Hell, it wasn’t our job when he was here. Just let it go.”

And that was the end of that.

______

Okay, that was very much not the end of that.

It starts like this:

“Something’s going on, on the Titan,” Tendi hisses, dropping down into Beckett’s bunk at like 2am. Time doesn’t work the same out here as it does on Beckett’s home planet, but it feels like 2am so she’s calling it 2am. Everyone who’d been on the Alpha shift were pretty much dead to the world anyway, so it might as well have been. The point was, Beckett was sleeping, Tendi should have been sleeping, but instead the two of them are having an anxious stare off in the dark.

And Beckett’s currently having cardiac arrest from being startled so soundly. After her heart starts working again like a human heart is supposed to, the words begin to register. Sort of. “What?”

Tendi flips her padd around. Beckett blinks at the bright light from the screen, squinting to see what’s there.

“Is that morse code? Why the fuck is the Titian using morse code.”

Tendi stares at her unblinkingly, face flat.

Then,

“Oh. Oh shit. Shit!” Beckett sits straight up, throwing the covers off. There’s a few protesting noises and shushes that ensue around the room, but Beckett is already making a blind grab for her pants and shoes. “The fuck didn’t you lead with that?”

“Because people are sleeping,” Tendi whispers. Loudly. She rolls off the bunk and onto the floor, shoes already on. “So we’re going, right?”

“Of course we’re fucking going,” Beckett hisses. “Why wouldn’t-”

“Because you’ve been all hung up over him for the past eight months.”

“He ghosted me!”

“Okay yeah-”

“After accepting a promotion that he promised he wouldn’t-”

“Mariner-”

“He’s a backstabbing, little weasel who climbs over his friends-”

“Is this about that or the fact that you miss him?”

Beckett finishes pulling her shoes on and stands up, scowling. “I don’t miss him. Why are you defending him?”

“I’m pissed too. Don’t get me wrong, when we see him I’m gonna kill him. But I think this is more than that.”

“Whatever.” Beckett turns on her heel. “Are we stealing a shuttle or what?”

“Rutherford’s already on it.” Tendi taps rapidly on her data padd, keeping pace with Beckett’s light job easily. “We were hoping you could like. Let your mom know-”

“Oh for fuck’s sake.” Beckett pulls out her comm, quickly typing out a quick message to her mother. “This is gonna be a shitshow.” The two of them enter the shuttle bay, which is pretty much deserted due to it being beta-shift.

“I have no idea how we’re even going to sneak onto the planet. It’s been on lockdown since the Titian crashed there.” Tendi’s shoulders slump.

“Leave it to me, I know a guy.”

“Of course you do,” Rutherford says, popping head out the shuttle door. “Good to go?”

Tendi gives him a thumbs up.

Beckett straps herself into a chair, stomach churning. “He’s fine though, right? Like, we would have gotten a call. Who’s his emergency contact anyway?”

Tendi worries her lip between her teeth. “His mom? I don’t know, it never came up and I don’t have access to his file.”

“He wasn’t on the list of deceased. Just the missing persons list,” Rutherford offers helpfully, punching in some coordinates.

“Well that’s reassuring,” Beckett mutters under her breath. She stares down at her comm, stomach churning.

_______

“Seriously, what are the odds of this even happening?” Tendi asks, dragging Rutherford by the arm behind them. A severely concussed, disgruntled Rutherford makes a grunt of what Beckett assumes is agreement.

“Do you really want to be arguing about the odds right now?” Boimler shrieks, sliding to an uncoordinated stop as the four of them run directly into the maze wall.

“Fuck,” Beckett says, eloquently.

“I thought you said you knew which way we were going!” Boimler runs a hand through his wet hair, face going through a series of complicated expressions before settling on frustration.

Beckett crosses her arms. “I did know where we were going. When I had the fucking map!”

“Why are you yelling at me about that? I didn’t even have it!”

“I don’t see anyone else here dumb enough to have lost it.”

“Guys-”

“You were the last person with the map, Mariner.”

“Unless some idiot took it out of my pack when I wasn’t looking.”

“Guys.”

“I didn’t touch your stupid map! Why are you so fixated on this!”

“Because if we had the map, maybe we wouldn’t be about to die via giant space spider!”

“Guys!” Rutherford shouts.

Beckett jumps at the unexpected shout from the usually quiet ensign. She turns on her heel, meeting Tendi and Rutherford’s unimpressed stares.

“Lookie, secret passage.” Rutherford waves a hand to a hole in the wall that hadn’t been there like two seconds ago. “You two good? Can we go?”

Beckett pushes past Boimler, lightly shoulder checking him and jumps through the doorway after her two annoyed friends. She doesn’t listen worriedly to see if Boimler follows her (she doesn’t) and she doesn’t resist the urge to turn around and make sure he’s close.

She balls her hands into tight fists and stomps past Tendi and Rutherford, ignoring the exchanged glances. “Please tell me this is a way out.” Her flat voice has the barest hint of a tremble in it.

You’re losing your touch, Mariner, get it together, she tells herself.

Tendi pulls a lighter out of her back pocket. (Because of course D’Vana Tendi has an old timey lighter on hand. There was a reason Beckett liked her after all.) It takes a couple of flicks, but she manages to get it to catch. The small source of light barely lights up their passageway, but it’s enough to see that it leads deeper into the planet.

“Well, here goes nothing,” Tendi sighs. “I’ll take the lead, I guess. You good, Sam?”

Rutherford grimaces, but nods. “Nothing I can’t handle. Let’s just get out of here.”

_______

It would be Beckett’s luck that she and Bomlier get separated from the other two. And it would just be their luck that there’s a cave in just before they reach the end of the catacombs. And of course, of fucking course, the Cerritos’ ETA on getting them out is anywhere from 2-6 hours, depending on how fast they can get the ship up and running again.

If anyone is using buffer time, Beckett is going to put spiders in their pillowcase.

“This is bullshit,” she mutters, dropping into a seated lotus position. She plays with Tendi’s lighter, flickering it on and off again.

Boimler grimaces from across her. “Can you stop that? It’s giving me a headache.”

Beckett makes steady eye contact again and flicks it off again.

“Fuck you.”

“Fuck yourself. Or whatever,” Beckett mutters. She flicks the lighter back on.

Boimler makes a face like he’s swallowing back a retort. Instead of snapping back, he jams his hands into his pockets. “Can we- can we just talk about it? Like actually talk about it, not passive aggressively pretend like-”

“Like passive aggressively avoiding your best friend’s calls is okay?” Lighter flicks off again. “Yeah, that seems like bitch move, for sure. Glad I don’t know anyone who does that.”

“I’m sorry,” Boimler says into the dark, voice cracking.

“Fuck you.” Beckett flicks the lighter back on. Boimler’s eyes follow it, eyes dilating slightly as the light hits them. She flicks it off again, plunging the cave into darkness again. She flicks it back on. Boimler leans heavily against the cave wall, not looking at her or the light. He starting to look very pale. Paler than usual.

Beckett wonders about that headache.

“How long were you out here before we got your distress signal?” she asks, keeping her eyes glued to the lighter. She sees him shrug in her peripheral.

“Dunno. A while.”

Her stomach tightens. “You didn’t like. See anything weird?”

“You mean besides you and Tendi hauling ass? Not really.” He pinches the bridge of his nose. “Why?”

“What about strange smells-”

“Mariner.”

“You look pale,” she snaps. “And like super clammy. And I’m not talking about your stressed out will Mariner stop talking clammy, I’m talking like I think you inhaled a deadly neurotoxin kind of clammy.”

“I feel fine! Just the headache. Aaand maybe a slight stomach ache,” he adds at her flat expression. “I always have a stomach ache though-”

“-yeah, yeah, it’s the ulcer you’ve had since you were, like, two, you’re a goddamn medical marvel Boims. Budge over.” She shoves the lighter into his hands and grabs his face. “Are you dizzy,” she asks, peering in closely at his pupils.

Boimler tries to shove her away, but she’s stronger and more stubborn. “A little. Look, it’s just the headache and str-”

“Yeah, do you usually get pink eye from stress?” she asks dryly, pulling back to giving him some breathing room.

“I-what.”

“Your white are like. Super inflamed or whatever. Boimler, I think something’s wrong.”

“Shit.” He rubs his temples. “What’s that ETA again?”

“Six hours. Give or take some buffer time.” Mariner stands up. She’s not worried, she’s not. “Maybe you should lie down.”

Boimler glowers at her in the dim light, hands tightly wrapped around her lighter. “I’m fine.”

______

“Good thing you pulled him out when you did,” Dr T’Ana tells Ransom. “Any longer-” she pauses, seeing Beckett’s expression. “Do you want to know what it was?” she asks her.

Beckett, who’s currently white knuckling the back of the plastic chair by the biobed, shakes her head. “Not really,” she replies, stiffly. “Long-term effects?”

“None,” T’Ana replies, scratchy voice almost gentle. Almost. “So feel free to be as hard on him as you want when he wakes up.”

Ransom barks a laugh, clapping Beckett’s shoulder. “Oh, Mariner knows how to be-”

“If you make a single hard joke in my presence, I’m tossing you back onto that planet,” Beckett replies flatly.

Ransom removes his hand. “Right! Right, I’ll just be on my-”

“Out,” T’Ana and Beckett snap.

There’s a pause after the turbolift doors close after Ransom. Dr. T’Ana eyes Beckett warily for a moment. Then, “Call me if he wakes up with any symptoms.”

“You said-”

“Yeah, well. He has a lot of surprises in him, doesn’t he?” She gives Beckett a pointed look before leaving, grumbling down at her clipboard.

Beckett glares down at the unconscious Boimler. “The shit I go through for your dumb ass.” She flops into the uncomfortable chair. “Wake up already. It’s no fun yelling at you like this.”

____

Surprisingly, Beckett does not yell at Boimler when he wakes up. It’s a near thing, though.

“Well, thanks for not letting me die, I guess,” he says, watching her warily after she’s done ranting. Not yelling, ranting.

“I wouldn’t have let you die,” she scoffs. “You’re still my friend, dumbass.”

Boimler perks up in surprise. “What?”

“Look, just because you pulled the ultimate shitty move, doesn’t stop us from being friends. You’re still on notice, though.”

“Right! Right.” He pauses, blinking up at her. “Does it help that I submitted a transfer back to the Cerritos before any of this went down?”

Beckett freezes. “Wait, what?”

“Yeah. I mean, don’t get me wrong that was my actual dream job, buuuut-”

“Riker is crazy?” Beckett dryly supplies.

“I thought you were crazy,” Boimler lets out a whooshing breath. “Like I seriously thought you were the most batshit, insane person I’d ever met, hands down. But Riker is certifiable.”

Beckett grins. She can’t suppress it and she’s too tired to try. “So you’re saying I’m preferable.”

“I will take you any day of the week over that.”

“Sounds like a compliment.”

“It is.”

“Hmm.” She eyes him critically.

“Soooo,” he draws out the word. “Am I forgiven?”

Beckett picks his shirt up off the end of the biobed and throws it at his face. “Maybe.”

“Maybe?” He pulls it over his head, causing his hair to stick up in the back. Beckett suppresses the urge to smooth it down.

“I like watching you squirm,” she replies. “It soothes my massively inflated ego.”

Boimler barks out a laugh, easing himself out of the biobed carefully. Beckett turns to go--he still has to talk with Dr. T’Ana and possibly her mom over the transfer, and give his full report to Riker--but stops as he catches her wrist in one hand.

“Hey. Thanks.”

Beckett’s heartbeat rackets up a few notches. Stop that, she thinks at it and then stops because thinking at your own organs is weird. “Don’t worry about it,” she says, voice even. “You would have done the same for me.”

It’s true. Boimler may be a bit of a bastard and sometimes a shitty friend, but she has no doubt he’d have come running if it’d been the Cerritos accosted.

“Yeah,” he replies. “Sometimes I feel like that’s all I do with you.”

“What?”

He drops his gentle grip on her wrist. “Nothing. Just.” He shrugs, looking cagey. “I know I’ve been a bit of a-”

“Bitch?”

“--yeah, that lately. But. There’s not much I wouldn’t do for you. And that’s why I’m coming back. Because-because you deserve to know that. That you're my best friend, too.”

Her face heats up. “Yeah, well,” she mumbles. “Whatever.” Jams her hands into her pockets. “Don’t think I’m just gonna forget everything because you-”

“Yeah, I know. It’s fine.” He gives her a lopsided smile. “I just thought you should know.”

____

Beckett can feel the blush on her cheekbones until she reaches her bunk. Fuck, she thinks. Fuuuuuck.

She opens up her mental file on Boimler, crossing out whatever she had in there before. Best friend, she replaces it with. Stares at it for a long moment. Erases it. Puts it back.

Bradward “Brad” Boimler. Best friend. Loves classic rock. Dyes his hair purple. Has made some improvements, but still needs to loosen up a bit. Probably needs to get laid. Definitely needs to get laid.

You could help with that.

Best friend. She underlines in the file. You don’t have feelings like that for your friends.

Beckett throws herself into her bunk. She had the horrible, sneaking suspicion that Brad Boimler’s file was about to get a lot longer.

_______

[itslieutenanthawkeye]

Jeankasa Royal AU: A Knight's Mission

Sir Jean Kirstein has been sent to hizuru by the Yaegar brothers with one goal: become princess Azumabito’s close guard and pave the way to betray and conquest the eastern country. But the hizuran princess is much lovelier than what he imagined. Can Jean’s loyalty stay with the yaegar brothers or will it tilt towards the woman he may, or may not, be falling in love with?

AO3

The capital city of Hizuru, Heian-kyo, is thrice as large as some eldian cities. Flanked on all sides by tall, snowy-peaked mountains and home to about two million citizens, it is the largest city in the eastern country. Despite the high altitude, the noise and music and laughter in the city equal –or maybe rival— the cold winds blowing from the mountains.

The royal palace, built beautifully halfway up one of the tallest peaks, is nothing like it.

I curse lowly as I’m being led through the passageways of the Azumabito palace, with its sliding doors, quiet servants, and even quieter rooms. There’s the sound of running water coming from somewhere to my right, perhaps it’s the famous gardens I was told about on my induction —a gift from one of the previous empresses to her emperor, a place of peace and quietness so they could grow old together. Although in all honesty, the last things this place needs are peace and quiet.

Some faint music would be fine, I think as I find myself missing the horrid sound from Reiner’s little cousin practicing the violin. I guess I would even take a whole concert of that if it meant breaking the perpetual silence of the palace.

I look to my right, noticing that Marco looks calmer than Reiner and I put together. I’m not surprised; he helped the Yaegar brothers concoct the plan to gain Hizuru’s vast territory, free its people from a monarchy and, above all, get Eldia’s claws on their precious mines.

“Take a deep breath,” Marco whispers, his voice as serene as the rest of the palace. The servant, a tiny girl in a simple kimono, is far away from us that she won’t hear. “She will be pleased with us.”

We’re presents, gifts sent to look after the princess by her fiancée in Eldia, her political alliance once she comes of age, Eren. He chose us well; the three of us are nice to the eyes, charming to a degree. If the princess takes a liking for any of us, we might be granted the charge of close guard for either the princess or her guardian, and then it’ll be an easy task to learn the secrets of the castle, be aware of its military routes… all in all, we’ll know more details how to overthrow the teenage ruler and free the people.

By taking over Hizuru, we will give Zeke Yaegar access to the hizuran mines, and we’llhave our hands filled with silver. Enough silver to leave knighthood, enough silver to convince a nice girl to marry me, enough silver to buy a whole castle.

If we manage to keep our heads on our shoulders, the grimmer side of my brain chirps in.

I shake my head, quite enjoying the fact that it is still attached to my body. This must work. It cannot go awry. If it does go awry and we manage to escape, I can imagine Zeke and Eren condemning us to a lifetime of menial tasks within the military, without a chance to become rich through any of their colonization schemes.

And if we don’t manage to escape…well, we all became acquainted with hizuran torture methods before coming. I’m not looking forward to dying, let alone be tortured.

“Jean,” Marco calls, giving me a sideways glance. We are standing at the doors of the throne room, where the princess and her guardian await us. The servant girls leading us have disappeared beyond the doors, perhaps to announce our presence us to the princess. “You need to stand straighter than that.”

Again, I do as Marco says. He’s much more put together than I, and a bit of me feels a twinge of jealousy of how good of a leader he is among our tiny group. He’s told me before I have much more leader material, however Zeke chose him to lead this expedition, not me.

“Are you okay?” Reiner asks at my side. “You look like you’re about to puke.”

I glare. “I’ve never met a proper royal before.”

“What about all those fancy folks in Eldia?”

“I meant I’ve never met a princess.” I say, shrugging, wondering what awaits us behind the door. Not much is known about hizuran royalty back home, and there are no pictures nor paintings of the hidden flower of Hizuru.

She might be hideous for all we know. All chances point to her being hideous if she refuses to get pictures or paintings of her face. Although I’m not sure if her being hideous will help or damage our attempts at charming our way into her private guard. If she’s hideous, I pity that poor Yaegar bastard.

“It doesn’t matter what she looks like,” Marco said, guessing his thoughts. “Remember we were sent for a reason.”

I look around, wondering what is up with his sudden burst of information, or if a group of guards will come get us from sniffing our betrayal in the air. But nobody comes; in fact, the palace is as quiet as before. Maybe it’s the way Marco talks, maybe that soft purr of his voice makes his words mingle with the eerie peace of the palace.

“What’s taking so long?” I say, looking away from Marco, clearing my throat.

“There’s an extremely specific etiquette to informing the princess of new guests in the palace. And then you add the etiquette of the Pine Room, it’ll take a few minutes,” Reiner replies, giving me a frown at the confusion in my face. “The Pine Room? The throne room, Jean. Do you not remember anything from our lessons? Did you not read the booklet?”

To be fair, I didn’t. We stopped by a seaside city on our way over, and that beautiful redhead had kept my attention from studying our booklets on the way before discarding them. “I’m an idiot.”

“Just remember, bow deeply, don’t raise your head until she allows you, let her speak first, call her imperial majesty when greeting her, then just call her princess,” Marco lists with a soft smile. “Walk ahead of her only when you are allowed, let her call you by your name.”

“Seems like a lot of fucking rules for a kid.” I reply.

“She’s not a kid,” Reiner says with an exasperated sigh. “She’s seventeen. Aren’t you eighteen yourself?”

“I have more life experience than a princess could ever have,” I say with a flirting smile, but then drop my stance at Marco and Reiner’s concerned gazes. “Alright, alright. I won’t screw up. I never do, remember?”

“Which is why Eren chose you as her present too.” Marco says with a wink, making me blush.

“Any other rules I should remember?”

This time it’s Reiner who answers. “Never call her by her name, never touch her.”

“What’s her name anyways?”

Marco leans into me, whispering even lower, almost looking fearful to pronounce the princess’ name too loud. “Mikasa, that’s her name.”

I mouth the syllables underneath. Mi-ka-sa. Huh. Doesn’t sound like a too awful name; not hard to pronounce anyways. Not that I’ll be using it much, mind you. Out of the three, it’s Marco the one who is more likely to charm the princess, to become her friend or lover, whatever he needs to get the information we need about Hizuru. He’s got a much softer demeanor; it doesn’t work much with girls at bars, but it will surely work with a princess. I can see the confidence in his face as the servant girl slides the door open.

We got this, that’s what his face says.

Two, three years, and we’ll be richer than god. Bless Eren for choosing us for this plan.

“The princess is ready to see you.”

We are led across an enormous room with wide windows at both sides, from which I can clearly see the city sprawled in a thousand different colors below. There are some people gathered in the chamber that stare at us as we walk by. From their clothes and expressions by seeing foreigners, I figure they’re not all royals. The princess must be holding audiences for her people.

I see her throne at the end of the room, and her sitting on it. But we are too far away for me to see anything but the deep blue color of her kimono. I stifle laughter; if she sits this far away from everyone, she must be horrid.

Two guards flank our way as we moved forward, and I fear troubles have begun already. We are taller than the hizuran guards, but they train for decades to become skilled at combat, and I’ve no doubt we would not win against them.

“Princess,” the servant girl says, talking in her direction. “Your gifts have arrived.”

“Please, let them come before me.” She says, and the soft cadence of her voice surprises me. She must be a good singer, I think hazily. And this must be some sort of ritual.

We walk ahead until we are standing about ten feet away from a screen seemingly made from crystal, which impedes anyone from walking any closer to her throne. Ah, it must be a security measure. A bulletproof screen to guard the princess form any madman that might sneak their way in the Pine Room while she holds audiences.

The three of us fall to our knees and bow, pressing our foreheads against the pristine floor. Again, I haven’t seen her royal face.

There is the soft shift of fabric on the wooden floor, and then tiny steps. “Rise, eldian knights, gifts of my future husband,” she says, in perfect eldian, to my surprise. “I would look upon your faces.”

I smile slightly at the silliness of it all, at the fancy words she is using to perfection, but my smile freezes the moment my gaze lands upon her face. And my first thought is that Eren Yaegar is the luckiest bastard in the world.

This princess is the most beautiful, perfect woman I’ve ever seen. Ever. She has gray eyes, jet black hair and is not as small as I thought she would be. Her face isn’t precisely hizuran, but it isn’t quite eldian either. It’s strange, but not unpleasant to the eye.

Who am I kidding? She’s a vision to look at.

“Thank you for your journey, knights of Eldia,” she says, her expression serene, giving away not much emotion. “Please, bring forth the bread and salt.”

Servants scurry around the room and bring us jade platters full of bread and salt. I blink, realizing they’ve accommodated to the eldian custom of sharing a meal with your guests to assure their lives will be well guarded while under the host’s roof.

I look at her as the servants make the long way from the entrance to the throne room. She wears no jewelry, and her kimono is of a wonderful shade of purple and silver. Her hair is not combed upwards in the traditional hizuran fashion. It’s long, beautiful and darker than night itself. I’ve seen dark before, but not like this. It is deep, tantalizing, beautiful.

Her gaze catches mine during the seconds we wait for the bread to arrive, and I look away instinctively. She noticed I was staring, I curse myself. Staring like an idiot is not the way to get her trust.

My eyes trail to the throne, and I notice another woman has been looking at me the whole time. I’m guessing that’s her guardian, Kiyomi Azumabito, and curse myself again. She won’t want a staring creep near her protégée.

The bread comes on a platter for each, and Mikasa —no, the princess. The princess has a platter too. We eat the tiny salted bread buns while looking at each other in silence. Once we are done, Mikasa cleans her hands on a towel one of her servants offers to her.

“Now, we have done your eldian tradition and you must know you are safe and welcome,” she says in that serious tone of voice. I wonder if she ever laughs. “I would like to know your names. Blond sir, please go first.”

“Reiner Braun, your imperial majesty,” Reiner says, bowing slightly. I hold the need to roll my eyes. We won’t have to bow each time we speak to her, will we?

“And I must call you?”

Another custom. I really should’ve read that booklet.

“Either is fine, your majesty.”

“You may call me princess.”

“Thank you, princess.”

Mikasa, the princess turns to Marco and he gives her a polite smile. Her face proposes the name question to him, and Marco catches the intention of her face quickly. “Marco Bodt, your imperial highness. You may call me as you wish.”

“Your face, I don’t know the eldian word for the dots,” she says, gesturing to the bridge of her own nose. I hold back another smile. She’s so cute. “What is the word? Oh, you may call me princess.”

Marco smiles charmingly, and I feel jealousy again. “Freckles, your highness.”

“Freckles,” the princess says, pronouncing the word as if she were tasting a new meal. So pretty. She looks at Marco, gives him a tight smile, stirring the fire of jealousy in my chest. Damn his freckles to hell. “Thank you, Sir Marco. You’ve given me the gift of a new word.”

Marco bows, and now I roll my eyes. What am I supposed to do after that? He just gave the princess knowledge. For a royal that owns a thousand mines, knowledge is the one thing one can give her to make her smile is knowledge.

“And you, sir?” She says expectantly. Our eyes meet again, and I feel the rush of blood to my cheeks. I gather my thoughts; I’m a knight. I’m here to betray her and get rich, not stare at her pretty self or get jealous from Marco making her smile.

I bow in the same way Reiner did. “Jean Kirstein, your imperial majesty.”

“Nice to meet you, Jean,” she says, then opens her eyes slightly, seemingly catching herself. Out of the corner of my eye, I notice Kiyomi Azumabito narrowing hers. “How may I call you, sir?”

Yours, the rawest part of my mind shouts.

“You may use either, your imperial majesty.” I say, feeling my breath quicken at the thought of her slipping. What was it about me that made her slip? My looks? Or maybe she’s just trying to intimidate the creep that’s been ogling her?

“You may call me princess, Je—Sir Jean.” She says, stumbling a little with her words. She clears her throat. “You’re taller than most, aren’t you?”

Heads turn in our direction, and I guess this isn’t part of the protocol. My height has made her curious, which makes me feel like a proud little kid. “I am, princess.”

“Good sparring partner.” She mutters, more to herself than to the crowd, but the three of us hear her clearly. She looks at me again, and this time there’s nothing I can do to hide my blush. “Good knights, it seems. I am grateful to my future husband for his gift. We will see that you are well taken care of within court.”

“Thank you, princess.” We say at unison.

“I hear my husband wants to make you three part of my personal guard,” she says thoughtfully.

“Yes, princess.” Marco says.

“I appreciate my future husband’s will to look after me,” Mikasa says, and something in me suspects she’s keeping the protocol once again. “We will discuss these matters in future meetings. For now, please enjoy your dinner in your quarters and have a rest, my knights.”

Hearing her call us my knights almost turns me into a puddle. But I hide my feelings behind a mask of proudly knighthood. This mission isn’t to lust after a princess. This mission is to get rich. After I claim my part of the silver mines, I can woo as many princesses as I want.

“Thank you, princess.” We say at unison, and we are dismissed from the throne room.

The servant girl leads us to our room, a big, furniture-less chamber overlooking a series of hot spring pools for us alone. She explains to us how to lay out our futons on the curious tatami flooring, but my mind is on Mikasa. On the princess and her purple kimono and how much I would enjoy seeing it on the floor of our chambers. And her in the hot spring pool with me.

“Stop it,” Marco says after the servant girl leaves.

“Stop what?”

“Lusting after her. Crushing on her,” Marco says in a disapproving tone of voice. He’s figured it out. He knows me too well and knows when a woman catches my eye. “Jean, we are not here to crush out on a woman. We are here to—”

“I won’t try and sleep with her, Marco,” I reply, closing my eyes and throwing my back against the floor. “Just let me have my mind fun for a little while. She’s a beautiful girl.”

“She is indeed,” Reiner agrees as he examines the clothes they’d prepared for us. I wonder if they’ll let us wear our uniforms if we do manage to become her close guards. “Pretty eyes, and not even you can deny that, Marco.”

I open my eyes and notice that Marco raises his eyebrows. “She is a cute little thing.”

I frown. “I thought we weren’t here to just after her? Also, don’t call her a thing.”

“Now you’re protective of her?” Reiner asks, crossing his arms over his chest. “Stop giving me that face, Kirstein. You were the one who was ogling her today. You cannot compromise the mission.”

“He won’t,” Marco assures him, patting my shoulder. “Jean just has an eye for pretty girls. The moment he sees another servant that catches his eye, he’ll stop being weird about the princess. Won’t you, Jean?”

“Yeah,” I shrug. “We should just stop talking about the princess altogether, though.”

“Why’s that?”

“If anyone hears us calling her a pretty little thing, we’ll get in trouble.” I reply with another shrug, and that seems to convince them. My intentions are slightly devious, though. Maybe I don’t want them to think of her the way I am. I don’t want them to call her pretty or think about her at all. I know we have a mission, and my eyes are on the silver at the end of the rainbow. But for now, the thoughts of the princess are all mine.

“How’s the liaison?” Reiner asks Marco. “Do we know who it is yet?”

“I’m sure they’ll show themselves soon.” Marco replies, and their conversation diverges into territory that isn’t related to women, far away from the princess. I sigh, trying to focus on their talk of hizuran customs and the architecture of the palace (subjects that might seem innocent to any casual listener) but my mind is on the princess and her pretty, serious face. It’d be fun to see her laugh at a point, but I don’t say this out loud.

For now, I want the image of her to be mine alone.

Maybe I’ll try to beat Marco at being her close guard.

___________________________

I enter the royal chamber and get rid of my kimono to walk about in my undergarments. Kiyomi is sitting on the far end of the room, and she gestures me to sit at her side to have our afternoon tea. I take the cup and walk out towards my garden, cringing at the idea of sitting down a moment longer.

I understand the need for audiences, and it is not that I don’t enjoy listening to queries from the citizens and solving as many problems as I’m allowed…but I’m not one to made for sitting down.

“That boy,” I hear myself saying before I can stop myself, looking at Kiyomi over my shoulder. “The tall one.”

“What about him?” Kiyomi asks, in that casual tone I know so well. She’s curious to know what I’m thinking, because she already formed an idea of the boy herself.

“He’s got a good height,” I say, turning again towards the gardens. “I haven’t sparred with someone so tall in a while.”

“He’s an eldian knight,” Kiyomi replies calmly. “He could harm you.”

“He was sent by Eren, wasn’t he? I doubt they mean any harm.”

“I don’t trust Yaegar.”

The words make me arch an eyebrow, and I’m persuaded to go sit at her side. I’ve met the Yaegar boy sporadically since I was brought back into the castle and became Kiyomi’s protégée. He was a loud child and, for a while, an even louder teenager. It’s been a while since I saw him last, and I wonder if he’s quieter now; a quieter demeanor would fit those green eyes of him much better. “Why don’t you trust him?”

“He’s sent handsome men.”

I snort. “Are you scared of handsome men, Kiyomi?”

“It concerns me he’s sent them to test you,” Kiyomi says, taking a sip of her tea, closing her eyes. “Three handsome men, all sent to be your close guards.”

Ah, my noble future husband, I think sarcastically. For a political alliance, it seems like too much trouble to test my loyalty for him this way. It’s not like we will always live together after we are married; we will have our wedding night, and a few months together every year afterwards. Because he is bound to Eldia as much as I am to Hizuru.

“I won’t jump into bed with them, you know. Not at first, at least.” I reply, and my words cause Kiyomi to choke on her tea. I cover my mouth with a hand, stifling a giggle. “I’m sorry, Kiyomi. Let me help you clean.”

“Don’t.” she warns, narrowing her eyes. She knows I just said that to shock her, but she does not like the ring of my words. An unmarried and young princess is a dangerous thing, she has told me. She and my servants told me I am lovely to look at. According to her, I am ripe for picking.

According to my skills, whoever comes near me will end with a broken neck.

“About the sparring,” I mention again. “I really haven’t had a tall fighting partner.”

Kiyomi smiles and narrows her eyes again, this time playfully. “You are rather set on that boy,” she says. I shoot her a questioning look, but all I get in return is the same placid, cheerful smile of hers that tells me she’s seeing something I am not. “You were looking at him since they walked into the room.”

“Because he is tall. I haven’t practiced against someone that tall,” I reply, but Kiyomi remains silent. Her silence hurts my pride. “Do you really think me capable of jumping into bed with the presents Eren sent me? Why do you think I would act this way?”

The hurt tone of my words placates her teasing somewhat. She puts her porcelain cup down and places a hand atop my own, a loving gesture that’s not uncommon among families behind closed doors. I smile; I barely remember my family before Kiyomi. In a way, she’s the closest I’ve ever had to a mother.

“He just reminds me of someone, dear princess, that is all. I trust your judgment with these gifts as much as I trust your judgement with the council,” she says. Her words swell my pride as easy as they hurt it a moment ago.

“Who does he remind you of?” I ask, curious. “That Jean knight.”

She shakes her head. “Not important at the moment,” she sighs, using a piece of silk cloth to clean some of the crumbs around us. “What is important is you choosing which one of the three will be your close guard.”

“Must I choose?” I ask. The last thing I want is a close guard; someone to accompany me everywhere, stand by my tub when I wash, stand by me when I eat, watch over me while I sleep. It seems invasive, at best. “I can defend myself. We could give them the treatment we give ambassadors. They will much prefer that.”

“This is not for you. Your future husband has clearly gone out of his way to send you protection,” Kiyomi says. “Not allowing at least one of them as your close guard will mean offending him. The Yaegar brothers are the head of a powerful nation, a conquering nation. A nation we must keep in our good graces.”

Unlike the Yaegar brothers, the two eldians who rose to the head of the Eldian empire in a mere five years, I do not care much about conquering. The emperor before me, a distant uncle of mine, resembled them more than I ever will. He spread our dominion to the islands on the shallow waters to the west, and the vast horse plains to the north…lands I intend to return once I ascend to the throne of Hizuru and clean out my council.

Having an empress who doesn’t want to conquer won’t settle well with most royals, and it will surely make us weak in the face of Eldian prowess. So, my marriage must keep us in Eldia’s good graces for a generation or two, depending on how many heirs Eren and I produce. He has displayed every hizuran gift we’ve sent him, so I must do the same. Although I’ve never sent him humans as presents, to be fair.

This must’ve been his older brother’s idea. As little as I’ve treated him, I can’t conceive the idea of Eren sending three humans as presents. He values freedom of will too much.

“So, how will I choose my close guard?” I ask.

“We will give you time with the three, on your own,” Kiyomim says easily. “It’ll be a trial period, of sorts. You will choose in the end. I trust you will choose wisely, and go for the one who will tempt you the least.”

“None of them tempts me.” I reply, again hurt in my pride. Why does she think I will act like a giddy teenager? The three men are not bad to look upon, but I value my commitment to Hizuru far too much to put it at risk for a foreign man. My own mother already did, and it did not end well.

“Do you have one you’d prefer me to choose?” I ask, curious to know about her impression of the three knights. “One you think would make a good job?”

“I do,” she says. I look at her expectantly, but Kiyomi remains focused on pouring more tea for the both us. “I won’t tell you, Mikasa. You are bound for a throne and decisions will be your daily living. We start small, but important: you must choose this close guard of yours mindfully and responsibly.”

I sigh, sipping a little more tea, finding it bitter. I’ve taken decisions before but choosing a man who will guard me day and night is not high on my list of priorities. “Can I still have the tall one for sparring? Even if I don’t choose him.”

“I’m sure he won’t mind.”

“He can’t mind if he’s a present,” I quip back, thinking there must be a flaw to Eren’s logic. Why someone who loves the concept of being free so badly send three humans as presents for his future wife?

“Even so,” Kiyomi says with a soft smile. “I’m sure the Kirstein knight won’t mind.”

I frown, there’s a playful tone to her voice that I don’t recognize. Is she trying to imply Jean will agree because he will think I am not strong enough to beat him? I take another determined sip of my tea. Kiyomi is good at reading people, and if she thinks the tall knight considers me weak, then it must be so.

“I will show him.”

“What, princess?” Kiyomi asks.

I shake my head, undermining the matter, my head filled with thoughts of the tall knight.

__________________

The next morning, Kiyomi sends a message with one of her servant girls. Princess Mikasa will meet with us one at a time throughout an unspecified period of time, and then she will make her decision before the summer festivities.

Marco is called first, although I am not surprised. He did impress her first with his vast knowledge of the word freckles.

He comes back and tells us how he and the princess went visiting the art museum within the palace. They talked for hours about hizuran artists, and then see a small play together, in which he met the members of the council that handle cultural affairs within her palace and the city.

The next day, Reiner is called. Mikasa takes him to the silk market in one of her official visits, and they have lunch in the hanging gardens at one of the mountains, where he meets the minister of trade.

Despite their vastly different experiences, both Marco and Reiner agree on something.

“She’s quiet.” Reiner says from the pool of hot water in our garden. “She’s like an old volcano.”

“Did you just call her old?” I blurt out.

“He’s right,” Marco says, putting an appeasing hand on my shoulder. “She does come off as an old volcano. Never make a sound, and when they do, it’s important.”

I frown. “Could you not make conversation with her then?”

“You need to know the right things to say.” Reiner says, arching his eyebrow. “Do you think you can handle it?”

I scoff and roll my eyes. Reiner wants to be her close guard. Out of the three, he perhaps wanted it from before we even reached Hizuru. This is a mission to not only get rich, but also to get honor. He wants to be the hero that conquered Hizuru, perhaps he wants to conquer the whole country for himself. “Are you forgetting who you’re talking to?” I say, with an amount of confidence that I do not feel. “I can catch anything she throws my way.”

The next day, I get a call to go to the northmost garden in the castle, and a group of servants to accompany me to boot. Marco and Reiner both give me a thumbs up as the group of servants leads me away from the room; I smile confidently at them, but in reality, there’s a hole in my stomach that seems to be growing bigger.

The servants take me to a changing room first, and they hand me clothes that seem too cold for the weather outside. Black pants and a black, sleeveless shirt. I don’t ask questions, mostly because I know they won’t be answered by the group of silent servants.

I don’t want to think why she chose me last. On one hand, she might’ve not wanted to deal with my annoying ass for the first couple of days. On the other, she and Kiyomi might think to leave the best for last. Either thought is equally terrifying. Reiner and Marco met important people, and I can’t help but to wonder who I will meet todayu, or how I must act around them. I studied the members of her council, yes, but I reading about a person and meeting a person are two different things.

I find Mikasa –the princes— in a large, barren stretch of land that overlooks the mountains, talking to a man a few decades older. She wears pants and a sleeveless top much like mine, all black. I have to look at the ground as I walk forward; I’m not a prude by any means, but the clothes she has on would be considered scandalous for any hizuran royal. There is something in her hands, a black, metal-looking stick, and the man at her side holds it too.

It must be some sort of test, I tell myself. She wants to see if I can keep my mouth shut, my eyes to myself, and my face expressionless, qualities any future empress would want for a close guard. So, I must not, by all means, let my eyes wander to the curves of her body in that black ensemble, which matches so perfectly with her ponytailed hair.

I catch her eye and she gestures us all forward. The servants lead me until we’re standing six feet away from each other. I bend forward, meaning to bow, but the man with her presses the butt of his stick against my chin, stopping me.

“What?” he says in a booming voice, using eldian for my sake. “Do you intend on fighting right away?”

I blink, stepping back in an attempt of self-preservation. “Come again?”

“Sir Jean,” Mikasa —the princess says, greeting me with a polite smile I barely manage to give back. “I’m happy I look upon your face this morning.”

“Thank you, princess,” I say, stopping myself before I bow again, giving the long, heavy stick in their hands a fleeting look. “Thank you for this opportunity, princess, for letting me accompany you for the morning.”

The princess blinks at me and gives me a tight-lipped smile. “This is Yoshida Kururugi,” she says, giving the man next to her a look. “He was a head drill instructor for the hizuran troops. He became my personal teacher when I turned nine.”

The trainer looks hardened by the years, to say the least. Long scars traverse his face, prints from Hizuru’s bloody past. He stands straight, and I take that as a permission to bow before him. I do so, feeling more angered than confused. I might’ve been slightly out of line when meeting her, but that didn’t mean she had to give me this treatment.

Marco and Reiner met ministers, council members. And here I am, stuck with an old, bittered trainer for the frail princess. “Princess, I am confused,” I say after I finish greeting the man. “What are we doing today?”

She nods, acknowledging my question as valid, and takes a deep breath before answering. “We are sparring, Sir Jean,” she says, putting both hands on her long stick.

I blink, confused. “Princess, I do not wish to hurt you.”

Mikasa arches an eyebrow, in a surprisingly proud expression. “I will be fine.”

“But, princess—”

“I have not had a tall sparring partner in a while. You won’t be in trouble if you hurt me,” she says haughtily, and her voice reminds me I have no say in the discussion, no authority. If the princess wishes to spar with his shiny new present, so she shall. I hate it. “I am not familiar with eldian swordplay, and you are not familiar with eastern fighting styles.”

In that she is mistaken, I think as I try to force myself not to smile. I perhaps know more about hizuran fighting styles than she does. As much as a war veteran this man may be, Mikasa is still a princess. And no mere princess can stand against an eldian soldier.

“It shall be done as you say.” I say. The metal stick is against my chin before I can bow before her. I look at Yoshida, barely containing my frown. “I know, I know. No bowing before a fight.”

“A smart eldian,” he tells Mikasa, who nods in agreement.

“Let us begin,” she says. “You can have Kururugi’s weapon.”

Yoshida goes to the side of the training arena and Mikasa stands before me, regal, beautiful and, above all, unthreatening. I can’t say my pride isn’t more than a little hurt by her decision to make me a sparring partner, but I won’t say it aloud. If the princess wants a puppet to play sword with, I won’t make it easy for her. If the princess wants sparring, sparring she shall have. We bow to each other, and thus our fight begins without giving me a second to gloat to myself at the fact that the powerful hizuran flower has bowed for me.

She lifts her weapon and waits, her back straight, her body waiting. Ah, she wants to play the waiting game, wants me to lure her out into the struggle. Alright, I’ll give in. I charge forward with my weapon, dodging in the very last second to hit her behind her legs, thinking that if I make her loose balance, we can be done with the silly fight and move onto meeting members of her council.

To my utter shock, Mikasa jumps and avoids my stockade. She twirls, defying physics, and lands a kick to my chest that sends me stumbling back. I fall on my bottom, cursing lowly, and it is only then that I notice the muscles shifting in her arms, the way she isn’t even out of breath from her jump.

“Come, Sir Jean,” she says. “We are not finished yet.”

I stand again, feeling heat rushing to my cheeks. She’s a proud royal, and she is mocking me for having thought I could be a match to her. My pride overwhelms my sense of logic, and I charge forward again. I was the sixth best cadet in my generation; I’ve beaten Reiner at sparring, and I’ve even beaten Eren Yaegar himself at a fist fight. A mere princess with a few muscles isn’t a challenge.

She blocks my stockade again and tries hitting me with her stick, but I avoid it as good as she did it before. I hear her sighing in surprise, but I give myself no time to be proud. I kick forward, connecting my feet to her chest, and she steps back a few steps. Unlike me, however, she does not fall to the ground.

Mikasa stays at a safe distance. “You are tall, but slow.”

“You want conversation now?” I ask as we circle each other, both trying to find an opening.

“It is good to have conversation with the opponent,” she says seriously.

“Not when we’re fighting,” I reply, feeling my temper rise. “What are you hoping to get out of this?”

Mikasa blinks in confusion. She opens her mouth to answer, but I take an advantage of that brief moment of distraction to charge at her. Our weapons touch and I kick forward, but she is smaller than I am and, just as she said, I perhaps am too slow for her. She slithers away, aiming a blow at my hip, which I stop with my own weapon.

I attack once again and swing at her ankles, but she jumps and avoids the blow easily, as if she’s skipping rope. I go for her again, and my weapon connects with the muscles of her abdomen. Mikasa gives out a startled yelp, but she doesn’t back down. She charges at me with the most serene expression I’ve ever seen in a fighter and her weapon connects with my lower back.

I cry out from the pain from the sheer weight of the weapon, wondering why she isn’t crying from the blow I gave her.

“Damn you!” I shout, using my arms to grab her by the waist and lift her in the air. Not even that startles the princess, however. Letting go of her weapon, Mikasa wraps both of her legs around me and, using all her weight, brings us both down against the floor.

For a second, all I see is white flashes of light pass over my eyes, all I can feel is the throb of where her weapon connected with mine. After a moment of heavy breathing, I look down to realize she’s caught under my weight, her eyes wide in surprise and her face flushed from our fight. “You’re full of surprises, aren’t you?”

“You-you—”

“I’m a great fighter?” I guess. “I know. I was sixth of my class.”

“You…”

“What is it?” I ask, my head thumping from exasperation. “You were all confidence back then. What ate your tongue?”

She flushes harder, and it is then that all the hizuran rules about physical touch flood my brain. I’m keenly aware of how little fabric we’re both using, how well I can feel the curve of her breasts against my body.

“You can’t touch me,” she pants, finding her ground and pushing me back. I move without protest, reeling still from the fact that I had her so close. Yoshida is at the princess’ side in less than five seconds, but, to my relief, I see no wish to punish me for touching the princess in his face. He eyes me up and down as the princess comes to her feet.

“Tall, slow,” he says, and I feel myself flushing in embarrassment. “Good fighter, though. Strong, good with your arms. Under whose command did you use to be?”

“Commander Smith,” I reply reluctantly. “Erwin Smith.”

“Ah, Smith,” Yoshida replies thoughtfully. “He did a good job. He must be disappointed to have lost such a good fighter.”

No, he’s looking forward to collecting another victory for Eldia, I think, but keep my mouth shut. Most of my attention is on the princess anyways. On the princess and her reddened face, the reddened shoulders, the feel of her body against mine. She averts her gaze from mine and part of me wonders if this is an accomplishment or a terrible mistake.

“Need help, boy?” Yoshida asks, his tone jovial, almost friendly, grabbing my hand to bring me to my feet. I stand, but the princess remains silent. “You sure are tall! What do people eat in Eldia?”

“I’m taller than most.” I say, giving him a half smile.

“It’s been a while since I saw the princess struggle in a fight,” Yoshida says, giving Mikasa a wide, friendly smile that she doesn’t return. I frown; it didn’t feel like she was struggling at all. “Princess?”

“Kururugi, do I have permission to leave?” she says, her eyes barely meeting mine.

Her master opens his mouth, as if recalling the rules and etiquette when it came to Mikasa. Now, he knows why she seems so upset, and why she refuses to look at me directly. “Of course, child,” he says with a nod. “You may leave. We will talk about your fight later.”

The princess runs past by me to enter the palace, and she is soon surrounded by three handmaids dressed in gray kimonos.

“I didn’t even apologize.” I say as the handmaids dress the princess with a beautiful green gown. I’m so focused on the movements of the muscles in her back that I barely have time to notice that one of the handmaids has a head of yellow hair. The liaison Zeke talked about, perhaps?

“I’m sure she will apologize to you in due time,” Yoshida says, bringing my attention back to him. “You just need to give her a little time. She is proud, but she is fair. She knows she forced your hand into the fight, and thus you broke the rules that bind her so.”

“How do you know her so well?” I venture.

Kururugi smiles at me. “Why, I’m Kiyomi’s partner. We raised her. She’s practically my daughter.” he says with an amused smile, and I curse myself for not having studied the booklet with all the information about the royals of Hizuru more thoroughly. “Don’t worry, boy, she will come around. In the meantime, I’m guessing you and I can have tea out in the gardens.”

I swallow saliva. Sure, she can’t stay shy forever, but I have a mission to fulfill. A timed mission, a mission that will make me richer than God. I don’t have time for the princess to be shy, or to be offended. What if she stays mad for the whole year?

I look at Kururugi, feeling the hole in my stomach become true and deep. This is the man who has raised her, the man who has trained her in the hizuran arts of combat. And I just embarrassed the princess in front of him. No, I touched the princess in front of him. I had her under my body in front of him, which must be the royal hizuran equivalent of getting caught half-naked by your own father in a barn, with a boy.

I feel lightheaded suddenly. I definitely screwed up.

[chaoticowlpost]

hello, a prompt for you :) how about the golden and silver trio plus the others all in one house? like they're all holed up in one of draco's family manor or harry's impulsively-bought house and basically chaos ensues

“I told you this was a stupid idea.”

Draco was pacing in his - unreasonably large - bedroom, if that’s what you could call it. Really, it was more like a personal mini-sitting area that was attached to an actual bedroom.

“I blame Ronald,” Blaise snorted, lounging casually on one of the settees. 

“Me?” Harry’s best friend yelped indignantly from where he was lying down on the carpet. “I wasn’t the one who said that there’s no way his parents would come back to find us here.”

“Don’t push that on me, now,” Pansy said haughtily, lying on one side of the large bed. “I wasn’t the one who suggested spending the day indoors.”

“I only suggested it because there’s a lot to do here,” Hermione defended herself. “I forgot that he wasn’t allowed to have people over when I said it. If anything, we should blame Harry.”

“What?” Harry asked, slowly processing that the blame had somehow been passed onto him. “What did I do?”

“You were the one who suggested going through the floo anyway,” Hermione huffed.

“I was just joking!” he said defensively, before snorting. “Besides, it’s not like I pushed you through your own fireplaces while Draco wasn’t looking,”

Harry focused his attention back onto Draco, who was still panicking silently. He felt himself frown at the sight, feeling bad for the other boy. 

“Peer pressure.”

“Oh my gods!” Draco finally said aloud, wailing. “They’re going to kill me.”

“Relax, Draco,” Pansy said softly, empathizing with their friend. “What are the chances they’d come in here?”

“High!” Draco exclaimed, his eyes wide and frenzied. The image was also heightened by how messy his hair had become from running his hand through it repeatedly over the course of the past few minutes. “Very High!”

“Well, what do you suppose we do?” Hermione asked, getting up. “Maybe we can find a way to escape.”

“You’d think with how large your room is, they’d have bothered to link your fireplace to the floo network,” Ron snorted. He had a point, Harry conceded.

They all went silent after that, each one of them thinking of a possible solution before someone decides to come looking for Draco.

“Jump out of the window!”

“What?” Blaise demanded, looking appropriately concerned. 

“Jump out of the window,” Draco repeated, his face showing that he was serious. “It’s the only other way.”

“I’ll break my legs!” Ron protested. “We’re on the third floor!”

“I’’ll break your legs, Weasley, if you lot get caught in here!” Draco hissed, glaring at the redhead. 

“Surely, there’s another solution,” Hermoine interrupted, sounding uncertain.

“Nope,” Draco shrugged before finally plopping himself down on one of the sofas. “There are balconies below that you could land on, which should break your fall.”

“That’s assuming we actually land on them,” Pansy pointed out, an eyebrow raised.

“Sounds like your problem,” Draco huffed, raising a neat eyebrow back at her. “Because I told you not to come here.”‘

This was not how Harry thought he would die.

It was either death by Lucius Malfoy, who would probably make his death more painful once he realizes that Harry has feelings for his son, or death by jumping off a balcony.

Somehow, the balcony option began to look more appealing.

“This is an old, magic house, isn’t it?” Hermione asked rhetorically. “Maybe there’s a secret passageway somewhere?”

“And, pray tell, what makes you think that my magical ancestors would want to use secret passageways when they have magic?” Draco asked, looking like he was on the verge of imploding. 

“It was just a suggestion, mate,” Ron shrugged, somewhat less bothered. He began walking around the room, examining for something. What he was looking for was entirely lost on Harry.

“We’re magic!” Blaise suddenly said out loud, sitting up abruptly.

“Yes, as I’ve been informed at the ripe age of 11,” Harry said, rolling his eyes.

“Watch the tone, Potter,” Blaise said with no malice. “I just mean that we could cast a disillusionment charm on all of us and sneak out of the manor.”

“First of all,” Draco said, exhaling loudly through his nostrils. “The path from here to any possible exit is far; much farther than it would be if you’d jump out of the balcony-”

“Not happening,” Pansy huffed, interrupting him.

“-Secondly, none of us are good enough at that charm to go completely undetected,” Draco said pointedly. “And, really, five teenagers trying to creep out quietly? Fat chance.”

“We’re gonna die before we graduate. Mum is going to kill me,” Ron wailed dramatically, giving up on his investigation. “Maybe if we-”

A knock sounded from the door.

“Hide!” Draco instructed, throwing insults at them under his breath as he moved around the room. 

“Where?” Harry asked, looking around. They could shut the doors to the bedroom so Lucius would only see the sitting area, but they’d still be in plain sight.

“The bathroom!” Draco said, pointing towards one of the doors on the side of the room.

“But-”

“Not now, Harry,” Hermione sighed, grabbing him by the arm. She practically dragged him into the bathroom while the others followed closely behind them before shutting the door.

“We’re still pretty obvious,” Harry pointed out, a sense of dread filling him. Maybe it was time to accept their fate.

“The shower,” Pansy suggested. “It’s mostly hidden by the wall, so they’d have to actually go in to see us.”

“Are we going to fit?” Harry asked worriedly. They were 5 teenagers, after all. 

“Draco has a large bathroom,” Blaise shrugged, stepping in. They could have stood, but who knew how long they were going to be in there. So that’s how they found themselves practically pressed against one another - shoulder to shoulder - with their knees drawn up on the dry, shower floor.

“Father!” They could hear Draco’s voice through the walls.

“You’d think that the door would be thicker, all things considered,” Ron snorted before promptly getting smacked upside the head by his girlfriend.

“Quiet,” she hissed. “If we can hear them, there’s a chance that they can hear us.”

“Maybe we should just come out and confess,” Harry said, feeling himself start to panic. He hasn’t even asked Draco out yet, and his parents would already hate him.

Fuck, this was not how he wanted their first meeting to go. 

“Are you mad?” Blaise asked him, his voice a harsh whisper. “Draco’s dad might actually kill us. There’s no way I’m stepping out there.”

“Same here,” Ron shrugged, looking at him apologetically. 

“But at least if we just admit that we’re here, we wouldn’t look as bad as we do getting caught like this,” Harry pointed out.

“Trying to make a good impression, are you?” Pansy scoffed. If only she knew how true that statement rang. 

“Shut up,” Harry said instead. “I don’t want to die.”

“Well, we’re going to die anyway because-”

“-Tell me honestly, Draco,” the older Malfoy’s voice drawled through the walls. “Is there someone else in here?”

-————————————————-

Masterlist

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Also based on true events JFJHSBF Thank you for reading <3

[toonbly]

ALL FLOWER EMOJIS FOR NATHAN GO !

BJKFSHKJFHSKDF DAMN ALRIGHT HERE WE GO!!!

🌸- What's this oc's favorite and least favorite color?

Favorite color is green, least favorite color is orange

🌹- What's this oc's biggest fear

Nathan’s biggest fear is anyone finding out what he’s never told anyone.

🌷- How does this oc take their coffee?

Nathan doesn’t drink coffee! He has ADHD so caffeine doesn’t really do anything for him. His brother Wilbur LOVED it though.

🌻- What's this oc's mental health state?

UH. BAD??? DFJHKDSJHFSDKJFKJDSF

Like he’s always been a little on the rocky side but like. After Wilbur died he just became constantly fatigued and is very clearly just exhausted, he seems like he’s lost a lot of his old spark. The way Nathan sees it, death is just another part of life but like. That doesn’t mean losing his twin still doesn’t fucking hurt yknow? He’s going through a lot

🌼- What's your favorite thing about this oc?

GOD I WISH I COULD RAMBLE ABOUT THIS IN DEPTH. BECAUSE OF SPOILERS I CAN’T BUT MAN. Nathan is LEGIT my favorite protagonist I’ve ever written man he’s got layers. He’s got such a good heart and doesn’t even realize it. Genuinely all he wants to do is make people happy and help them feel safe that’s all he wants to do man

🌺- Which family member(if any) is this oc closest to?

When he was alive it was defo Wilbur, but now he’s closest to his nephew Joey! He took the kid in after Wilbur died so he’s basically his son now

💐- Where is this oc's favorite place to relax?

Wil and Nate used to like to sneak onto the roof when they were kids whenever things were just becoming too much, it’s a habit Nathan keeps up to this day. He built his current home himself and theres a buncha little secret passageways up to the roof!

[bobawriteslove]

Helpless (Pro-hero) Kirishima X reader pt. 2

Warning: Intense fluff  That night you laid in bed staring at the ceiling. You began to wonder if (f/n) was right, maybe you should give dating a chance. Experience the ups and downs about being in a relationship, but then again you don't need to rely on someone else to make you happy. Your thoughts kept you awake the majority of the night until you finally crashed around 3 am.  The following morning, your friend's voice echoed throughout your house waking you up. You groaned in irritation as you sat up in your bed rubbing around your bed hair. She opened your door looking directly at your bed. “Oh good (y/n) You’re awake! Get dressed, they're going to be there in an hour!” (F/n) pulled your blankets off your body exposing you to the cold. “Up and at em’ we need to get you all pretty for Mr. Riot!” You sighed getting up from your bed walking to your bathroom to wash up.  The clothes (F/n) picked out for you were surprisingly not as revealing as you had assumed them to be. You got dressed in a pair of dark blue ripped jeans, a white blouse that tied on the end exposing just a bit of your stomach and a pair of brown knee high boots. You hated to admit it but you looked damn good with a little bit of effort. Styling your hair into a half up-half down look curling the ends. You didn't bother with a whole bunch of makeup, just simple eyeliner and gloss. You came out of the bathroom revealing the clothes. (F/N)’s eyes lit up at the sight of you. “Holy shit (Y/n) you look cute--no not cute. Sexy. If I was a guy I’d definitely try to fuck you.” (F/N)’s complement was a bit extreme but you knew she meant well. You actually felt confident in the way you looked. But you’d never tell her that cause you’d never hear the end of it. (F/N) pulled out her phone searching something up. “So from your place its only a 20 minute walk. If we wanna get there earlier than the rest we should head out now.” She grabbed all of your essentials including her own rushing out towards the front door. You followed closely behind her heading towards the mall, evidently by the time you arrived there was around a line wrapping around the building. (F/N) groaned in defeat looking at the time. “They beat us here?! How, there’s no way! They must have camped here all night.” You eyed the crowd of girls whose faces were buried in their mirrors as they prepared for the event. The amount of makeup caked up on their skin made yours crawl and itch. (F/N) dragged her feet towards the back of the never ending line, tears about to spill from her eyes. You reached a hand out grabbing her arm catching her attention. You quickly dragged her out of sight towards the back of the back gate. You pulled back the clipped metal ushering your friend inside. “Okay we’re gonna have a serious talk about this later but for now I.FUCKING.LOVE.YOU!”  Laughing to yourself you went through behind her carefully closing it back up to look complete. You brought her to the back door of the wall and it was busy enough at the right moment for you to sneak inside without catching any attention from the patrons. The two of you walked to the event section, it was relatively empty which allowed you to find a place to rest your legs on the indoor fountain. You were surprisingly tired, meaning you used a lot more of your energy than you anticipated.(F/N) took her place next to you staring at you suspiciously.  “So (y/n), we gonna talk about it?” “Hm, talk about what?” you answered casually as you people watched. “You know what! How did you know about that secret passageway?” “Oh that, well remember when i was trying to buy that new fighting game? I didn't feel like waiting on the line that day and I discovered it when a bunch of boys cut the wire. Guess they didn't feel like waiting either. So when I saw how sad you were it reminded me of where it was and I snuck us inside.”  (F/N) hugged you tightly, practically suffocating you in her chest! “Who's my precious little criminal!” She squealed out. “You went through with it too, that makes you just as guilty as I am!” you said in a gasped voice. “Oh hey I guess you’re right---WHO’S MY PRECIOUS LITTLE PARTNER IN CRIME?” she cooed at you. You rolled your eyes, shrugging her off. You couldn't help but laugh at her nickname for you. “What time are they supposed to be here again?” “I think the flyer said between 2 or 3 o'clock, so they should be arriving any moment now--”  As if on cue the sound of screaming girls echoed through the halls. You covered your ears watching as a sea of girls flooded the entrance to the mall. You and (F/N) stood on the fountain trying to see over the horde that was only growing in size. The only thing visible was a blonde and red fluff among the crowd. (F/N) squealed pointing in their direction. “IT REALLY IS THEM! WE GOTTA GET OVER THERE” You felt a bit more determined now that the odds of getting to them seemed nearly impossible. The crowd began to move towards the staircase, you grabbed your friends wrist again hopping off the fountain rushing to the staff only escalator. It was much faster than the regular stairs that were currently being occupied. The two of you made your way around the crowd, luckily the crowd wasn't too aggressive but it was obvious that no girl wanted to lose their spots in front of the stage. The small staging area upstairs was set up rather nicely but it was meant to keep some kind of order among the girls. The staff only allowed 4 girls at a time to go up on stage to meet the boys, even exchanging the gifts they brought. The lines were moving pretty quickly and it was almost your turn. The wait wasn't bad at all, but it seemed like the girls in front of you didn't feel the same way. They were becoming extremely rowdy as the girls before them took their time carrying on a conversation longer than what was allowed. Soon the girls before you began to shout absurdities towards the girls on the stage which caused them to respond back resulting in an argument. Most of the girls cleared out, backing away to give the girls some space but you and (F/N) stayed put. You weren't  worried about the fight turning physical because that would cause a bigger issue for the rest of you. You worked too hard to lose your spot now. (F/N) stood close by but unfortunately the fight took a turn for the worse. You tried to move out of the way stepping up on the stairs to the stage , the girls fighting pushed and shoved each other even landing a few hits here and there. However you were caught in the crossfire and were pushed off the staging area, you fell towards the crowd of girls at the bottom making the scream, You braced yourself for impact, closing your eyes tightly. The sound of your friends voice and a loud “fuck” echoed in your ears. You felt yourself being engulfed in a tight embrace, you head being tucked into a shoulder and shielded from behind. You and your savior hit the ground rather hard but you didn't get a chance to feel it due to the person cushioning your fall. You looked up and gasped, getting a good look at their face. Bakugo stared down at you grinding his teeth angrily. “Stupid women.” He winced in pain as he stood up turning to face the girls who started the fighting cracking his knuckles. “Listen here you idiots, you pull something like this again and you’ll have to answer to me you got that! AND THAT GOES FOR THE REST OF YOU!” He smashed his fist to his palm activating his quirk. The girls behind the ropes squealed completely ignoring what just happened. He walked off leaving you on the ground as he walked towards the stage. Your eyes followed him as he ascended. Kirishima looked at his friend before hopping off the stage himself walking over to you reaching a hand out. “Are you alright Miss?” It took all your willpower to now gawk at him, he was gorgeous up close but you pushed the thought to the back of your mind grabbing his hand to pull yourself up. He helped you with no effort, his muscle rippling as he assisted you. He scanned over your body for injury as he spoke softly to you. “I'm sorry about him, he’s not too great at consoling a victim but at least you’re safe now. Unless you require medical help?” Your friend watched from behind him giving you the ‘I told you face’ wiggling her eyebrows. You turned back to him giving him a friendly smile which shocked him a bit. “I’m fine, thank you Red Riot.” “Ah--” He gave you one  of his boyish smiles in return rubbing the back of his neck. “You can call me Eijiro okay, What’s your name?”. You suddenly forgot how to speak and fumbled to find your words which made him laugh loudly. “Relax! Breathe, everything's cool.” You took a deep breath with his help finally introducing yourself. 

 “My names (y/n)”  “(Y/N)?” he repeated back to you.  “Yeah.” “That’s beautiful--I mean cool! Anyways, I better be going but um, are you gonna be alright (y/n)?” Your friend signaled over his shoulder for you to pretend to be injured and you shook your head at her. He leaned back into your view and looked at you with genuine concern. “So you’re not okay? “ he questioned. Your eyes snapped back to his concerned red ones. “Oh no! I mean, I’m fine.” “Oh okay, for a second there it looked like you said you were still hurt?” “No I’m okay, thank you for asking!” “Well alright. I’ll see you on stage okay. Try not to fall again”

He escorted you back to the line with your friend who was pretending to be as casual as possible. She looked at you and dramatically threw her arms around your body. “Oh my baby! Are you alright?” you arched your brow at her acting and sighed going along with it. “I’m fine. You can rest easy now.” He nodded leaving you two to talk things out. The girls who started the fight were removed from the mall allowing the two of you to walk up for your turn officially. You watched as your friend ran over to Bakugo wrapping her arms around his neck. He pulled away from her body with a blush on his cheeks. “Let go of me, you dumb ass….” “Aww come on, I’m just really grateful that you saved my best friend's life!” she finished kissing his cheek. He continued to pull away from her advances in disgust. “I couldn’t give a rats ass! Let go!”  You and Kirishima watched the scene unfold shaking your head at your friends' antics. You pulled out your phone in which he took it from your hands holding it above your heads. He wrapped his arm around your waist pulling you closely. “Here let me do it. I’m taller anyways.” he leaned down closely pressing his head against yours smiling brightly.You blushed but smiled a bit as he snapped the image. The sound of Bakugos groans caught your attention. Your friend continued to grab him by his shirt collar to kiss his cheek as she took her own photo. You held in a laugh, turning your attention to your phone that was in Kirishima's hands. He was busy typing something in before turning it back to you. You looked at the screen in shock. You looked back up at him and he turned his face with a clear blush matching his friends.You saved the number on the screen and tucked your phone into your back pocket. You grabbed your friend's arm pulling her away from Bakugo who wiped the lipstick off his cheek shuddering. The two of you exited off the stage, your friend blew him a goodbye kiss as you dragged her back to the water fountain.  “So?” You heard her say.  “So what?”  “Did you have a moment with him~” (F/N) leaned in closely to your face poking your cheek. “Ah, kinda...you especially had a good time didn’t” “BUT YOU DID HAVE A MOMENT!!! I TOLD YOU” You pulled your phone out scrolling through the contacts showing her the new addition. She screamed wrapping her arms around you bouncing up and down. “I’m so proud of you!!!”  You tapped her arm realizing that this was the moment she would never let you live down. 

[bramblepeltao3]

HBD Ardyn

A tiny ficlet that came to me this morning for the trash man’s birthday

Del smirked, very much pleased with her hiding place. She wondered quietly what she would do the day she was no longer small enough to fit anywhere and everywhere. Perhaps by then she could simply make people do whatever she wanted, no sneaking required. Wouldn’t that be cool?

She worked on controlling her breathing to make sure she was as quiet as possible. There weren’t as many workstations in this office, just the one, so not enough fans were buzzing to mask the inconvenient sounds her body made to exist.

Man, having no body at all would be the most cool.

Finally she could hear the door open and two sets of footsteps walking towards her. ‘Yes,’ she thought to herself, ‘he brought the student in this time.’ That was perfect, it meant the lead scientist would be saying all the important stuff out loud to them. The pair of nice, polished shoes sat in the desk chair while the clean but cheap shoes stood next to it.

“There are a number of clearance steps you have to pass to get into this information,” the lead scientist man began, “first is a username that’s different from your standard one. It’s your first initial, last name, and year of birth.”

Del grinned. She could easily figure out that information for the majority of the employees here.

“And the default password is capital M Magitek1234. Make sure you change it when you get started.”

Jackpot! There was no way every single employee took the time to change their password. She was as good as in now.

“Next you need to enter the security clearance code. Write this down but eventually you should probably memorize it…”

Del closed her eyes and listened intently, knowing the pen and paper that was her own memory would capture it with ease. 

“And finally you have to click the dialogue box asking if you accept responsibility for what you do on the terminal.”

Oh, yes she would happily accept responsibility on someone else’s behalf.

“And you’re in. Now,”

The six year old listened to the tutorial on how to use the charting system. She would probably be able to figure it out herself, given enough time, but she wanted to spend as much of it as possible reading everything she could.

Halfway through the navigation button explanation, the lead scientist adjusted his legs and kicked the bottom of the desk she was hiding under. She flinched instinctively, but successfully stayed quiet.

Until some dust broke loose into the air and made its way to her. She tried to hold back, even keeping her hands held over her nose and mouth. But the reflexes of the human body could not be stopped, and in spite of herself she sneezed. It was small, barely a squeak, but as soon as she made it the man in charge stopped talking. He pushed his chair back from the desk and whispered something she couldn’t make out.

He knew. 

The student bent over, eyes going wide when he saw her. 

“Uh, yes Doctor, there is a-”

“I know, her name is Delphia and she’s a rotten little brat. Her room is in the north hallway, number 375. Take her back there and lock the door.”

Del had a single moment to make a decision: she could easily escape from this situation if she so chose to. She could squirm back up the way she came between the wall and the back of the desk (the gap existed so the computer could be plugged into the wall outlet, she only needed to push it a tiny bit to get through). From there she could jump back to the ventilation opening and escape. But then everyone would know her secret passageways and there would certainly be repercussions. So the other option was to simply make this idiot teenager think she was an innocent little girl and ditch his grasp the moment the door opened.

Del put on her best innocent little kid face and crawled out from under the desk. Luckily the dust was already making her eyes water, and she used that to make herself look even more pathetic.

“I’m sorry doctor! I was scared and needed to hide!” She said, laying it on even thicker when she looked towards the younger man.

“You’re a liar and a waste of everyone’s time. This isn’t a daycare, go back to your room!” The old man who had no power over her commanded.

Del temporarily stifled her pride and sniffled. “Yes Sir.” She took the boy’s hand and let him walk her to the door. She had everything she needed now anyway.

“So, Delphia right? How old are you?” The boy asked as they walked through the doorway.

“I’m six years old…” she answered quietly.

“You’re kind of young to be in a place like this. What were you hiding from?”

Del forced her lip to tremble. “The monsters,” she whispered, “they’re all over and they said they’re gonna get me.”

“Awe, I’m sure nothing here would want to hurt a cute little kid like you!”

She tired of this exchange. Pretending to be a big baby made her skin crawl but it certainly had its benefits.

“You can just leave me here, I can get back by myself,” she said while rubbing her eyes with her free hand.

“Oh it’s no trouble Delly.”

WHAT did this guy just call her?

“I’m sorry for being a bother, I know all of you guys are super busy.” She could feel herself willing him to let go of her hand.

The boy looked at her, then back towards the office, and spent a long amount of time trying to think. Del swore she could see smoke coming out of his ears.

“I’d better do what he said. It’s okay though, do you want to sing a song while we walk to make it less scary?”

Fuck. Time for Operation Shock Value.

“No, I don’t want to fucking sing, are you stupid?” Del asked in her normal voice.

The words had their intended effect as the boy let go of her hand and stepped back in disbelief at what he heard.

Del took a moment to stick her tongue out, expose her middle finger, and took off running.

“W-wait, hey, Delphia!” His loud footsteps were quick behind her. The older scientists were much easier to run from.

She turned a corner slightly too fast and slid, barely recovering before falling and continuing on. It gave him enough time to close the gap she’d pushed so hard to create. Just as she thought her fun today was over with, she turned another corner and-

“Uncle Ardyn!” She squealed, slowing to a stop and reaching her arms up to the only adult in the whole star who was worth a damn.

“Well well, what sort of trouble have you gotten yourself into today, Delphia?” The Chancellor asked as the boy’s footsteps stopped behind her.

“Ch-chancellor Izunia?” He asked.

“One and the same,” Ardyn answered with a grin, scooping Del up into his arms. She turned and spit out her tongue once again in a show of victory. “Has my little niece been giving you trouble?”

“N-nie-? Uh, Chancellor, Sir, I was asked to-”

“He was chasing me! I was just trying to play a game and he was so mean.” Del turned to give her puppy dog eyes to Uncle Ardyn. It was simply for the fun of it, as she knew the man could always see right through her.

“Tsk tsk,” Ardyn wagged his finger at her before poking her on the nose, “now what have we said about lying, little finch?”

“That it’s a normal coping mechanism for children from abusive households,” she repeated from memory.

“Indeed it is. And?”

Del huffed. “And it’s still a bad behavior and I should do better to stop relying on it…”

“Very good. You can return to your business now, young man,” Ardyn said politely. He turned around and began to walk down the long hallway, still carrying Del gently. 

“Uncle Ardyn I didn’t know you’d be here today!” Del chirped.

He chuckled. “Your father asked me to come by for a special presentation. And one you shouldn’t even think about listening in on.”

“Aaawe,” Del whined. He was the one person she didn’t want to disappoint. So if he said she shouldn’t do something, she would usually behave.

Usually. 

“Now now, you wouldn’t mope about on your Uncle Ardyn’s birthday would you?” 

“Birthday?” Del asked. She knew in theory that birthdays were an important thing. Her birthdays until now were an excuse for her mother to throw another big party to show her off like a prop. Her sixth birthday came and went with nothing but a simple gift from Uncle Ardyn: a small orange cake. It was the best thing she’d ever eaten in her whole life.

She began to feel a distressing disappointment. “I...I didn’t get you anything!” 

Uncle Ardyn laughed before kneeling and putting her down in front of her personal computer terminal. “I have no need of material possessions, but if you would like to do something nice for me on this day, perhaps you could mind your manners at tonight’s dinner?”

She rolled her eyes and stifled a whine. If that’s what he wanted then that was what she would do.

“Okay…” She forgot tonight was her weekly Dinner with Dad night. She much preferred eating in the cafeteria with the interns who found her wit and sass charming. Also they had better food in the cafeteria. “What should I study today?” She asked before climbing into her chair and turning on her terminal.

“Hmm, why don’t you learn how an engine works? And give me a full report at the end of the day.”

She nodded enthusiastically. She loved updating the Chancellor with everything she learned between his visits.

“Yes! I can do that!”

“Very good, now that’s why you’re my favorite niece.” He gave her another gentle tap on the nose, eliciting a snorting giggle.

“Do you have any other nieces?” She asked.

“Oh, now and then.” He gave her a quick pat on the head, and made his way to her father’s workroom.

Uncle Ardyn was so weird. That’s why she loved him.

[fuwafuwamedb]

False Norns Pt 2 (Rin, Merlin, Sigurd, Hakuno, CasGil, Gudako, Romani)

Part One

___

“Let me get this straight.”

Rin perched herself on the table’s edge, sipping at her cup as the magician before her sat uselessly. There was no missing the longing gazes he gave the door. There was no misunderstanding that he really didn’t want to be here, being interrogated by her about escaping from what had to be a terrifying situation. However, she wasn’t like Gudako and the others. She didn’t throw pity around and coddle those that knew information that she needed.

Right now, despite Merlin being her ally, she had two friends and their companions in danger. They could be squashed and chopped and served up in a mead that would give those that took a drink the gifts and the magecraft talents that they possessed.

Compared to Merlin’s feelings, those lives were far more important.                                      

“So my friends are taken in by dwarves. Little furry men who make people into mead.”

“I could have told you that,” the masked servant told her, his glasses flashing in the low light. “We need to locate the ones that have been taken and return them to here.”

“How long does it take to turn someone into mead?”

“Two… three hours based on preparation. What’s important is the eyes. You have to begin with the eyes. It’s always with the eyes that one peers into the cosmos of the universe and divines with the ancient powers that be.”

So there was a chance that they were dead already.

This was Gudako and Hakuno that they were talking about alongside the two men, but that didn’t mean they were infallible. What’s more, the women’s servants were fatigued. She wouldn’t have the team that she wanted out of all her options.

Taking any servants of theirs was a shady move at best. The two could be dead.

“We must act quickly,” the strange servant, Sigurd, insisted again.

“Sigurd,” Rin glanced over at the man. “I have no doubt in my mind that Gilgamesh and Arjuna are outside this room. I want you to tell them to bring the Cu Chulainns that I command to the rayshift.”

“Rayshift?”

Rin glanced at Merlin, noting the twitch in that gaze.

They didn’t rayshift here.

Merlin had shifted them here through other means. It was an interesting concept and one she would keep in mind if the Mages Association ever betrayed her trust, but that was for another time.

“Yes, they’ll know where that is,” Rin told the man. “Can I trust you to consult for this?”

“You have my sword,” he told her simply.

You have my sword. What an eloquent thing to tell someone. It got points in his favor, but she didn’t trust it.

Hence-

“Merlin,” Rin looked down at the magician, setting her teacup aside. “You’re going to lead myself and the Cu directly to wherever these beasts took you. I want you to accept me as your master because, if you don’t, I will make sure that the next and final few minutes of your life are so painful that you’ll wish you had taken up Gudako’s offer for becoming her magician instead of skimping around her summoning attempts and having to be dragged here forcibly by Caster Gilgamesh. Do I make myself clear?”

“Miss Rin-“

She pressed her high heel between his legs, just short of where anything would be.

The magician hesitated, those eyes looking up at her.

“My friends are in danger,” Rin pointed out. “Possibly dead. A couple of beasts think they’re going to make a great and powerful mead out of the doctor and that caster. The only person allowed to make mana or power infused anything would be me and I stick well to my morals.”

“What if they are dead?”

“If they’re dead?”

The magician nodded, whole body tensing as Rin leaned in.

“Then I would recommend you think of a good resurrection spell, grand caster, Merlin.”

She held up her hand.

“Do I need to say the words for a contract?”

A light burning sensation came. A three petaled flower pattern formed on the back of her hand a moment before the magician sighed.

“I need them alive as well.”

“Welcome to the team of Celts, Merlin.”

A knock came at the door and Rin pulled away, tugging her sleeve over her hand.

It was time to take command over Chaldea.

~~~

“Gudako?”

“Shhh,” Gudako moved the man into a corner, pulling one of the blankets from a corner of the room and placing it over his body. “I want you to stay just like that for a few minutes, alright, Romani?”

“Where are you going?”

She was going to investigate this floor. Each and every room of this floor needed to be searched until she had a good grasp on where they were and how they could get the hell out of this place. In order to best be able to do that, she needed Romani to be covered up and protected.

A blanket wouldn’t do much, but- like all good horror films often portrayed- a blanket could block a lot of enemies from seeing you.

The man fidgeted for a while though, complaining about his eyes again before she promised to bring him some water to flush them out.

“Just keep your eyes closed.”

She didn’t like the fact that they were looking a little irritated. He was probably allergic to something in the stuff. It was a good thing that she’d gotten a majority of the shit off.

He’d survive.

But they wouldn’t if they didn’t find an exit and a way back to Chaldea.

A first glance around the space showed her a hunter’s cabin. Lots of messed up symbols that would have had Cu Caster probably geeking out, lots of antlers and things that would have made several others of her servant collection pleased. A second glance showed her one trap door, four doors, and a staircase they’d taken to get down to this floor.

Trap doors were neat. She started with that.

There was blood on the ladder rungs. It looked like it was a small drop, but the splatterings that coated the sides to climb down and the ground that was illuminated by firelight below showed a lot of crimson color.

It was definitely no area she wanted to go into.

Later, when she had a team, she’d make that leap. Whatever was going on here may have answers in the depths of this earthen passageway below.

The sounds of something in pain could be heard as she began to close the trapdoor.

Oh yeah. That’s not somewhere I want to go with Romani like he is.

Door closed, investigation resumed.

There were no pictures, only paintings of what looked to be strange, hairy men. Two in particular, holding up a jar between the two of them.

There was something rather messed up about the pile of bones they stood upon, but she wasn’t going to look too deep. Her hands tried at the fireplace décor and at moving books along the shelf nearby.

No secret passages revealed.

She opened the door to find a wooden seated toilet space.

The darkened room didn’t show any signs of a sink or of toilet paper. There was merely leaves and a raised square space where one would sit in order to do their business. The walls looked to be stone, only making her that much more confident that they would not be lingering in this place.

Call it first world problems, but she liked her butt tissue and her fluorescent bathroom lights.

Also, ass splinters had a nasty sound to it.

Her hands closed the door quietly, her feet pattering softly across the wood floors to the next door on the wall beside this one.

The room looked to be a storage space. Hundreds of jars were there. Piles of clothing were along the side. She could see a jar with that goop from before, the stuff glistening and shifting within its glass container.

The stuff changed from a blue hue to silver, the silver almost looking like…

Are there insects in that jar?

Gudako grimaced, closing the door with one last look to the pile of clothing.

The darkened stains and the strange burned part of the attire left a bad feeling in her gut. She didn’t want to see who dabbled in such a room. Not now, probably not ever.

Two rooms down and one trap door finished.

“Fifty fifty shot,” Gudako murmured to herself.

She pulled the next wall’s door open, looking out only to sigh in relief.

Woods met her gaze.

There was an endless sea of trees out there in the darkest of dark nights, a breeze rustling through them as she looked out at it all. It didn’t look like there was a particular pathway away from the house she was in, but that didn’t matter. It meant she could escape from the place with Romani and then get back to Chaldea.

Her eyes drifted back to the storage area again.

If she was a betting woman, then the rings that Romani wanted were in that room. She could see if there was water in there before they made their way out of the building and into the forest.

Forest or rings though…

“Romani,” Gudako slipped over to the man’s side again, pulling the blanket from over him. “Romani, we’re going to leave.”

“My ring-“

“I need you out of this building. If I’m caught, then that means that you can get to Hakuno, Rin, and the others so that they can find me. If I leave you here like this, then you may get caught with me and then we’re both fucked.”

The man winced. “Alright.”

She pulled him up slowly, hugging him close to her side and leading him to the doorway with the exit. The moved outside slowly, staying pressed to the side of the building as she closed the door and looked around.

There were no paths.

The thicket around the building looked like it had never been touched. That meant that whomever lived here may be using the tunnels under that trap door to get to and from the place. That wasn’t a comforting thought, but if they could sneak out of the area and to a nearby village or city, then they’d be pretty safe.

Also, judging by the sounds she’d heard in the trap door area, whomever lived here was most likely in that tunnel-like area.

“Come on,” Gudako bid, leading the doctor onwards from the building. Her eyes strayed up towards the building, taking in the dark windows and feeling thankfulness that it was dark outside.

She shifted the brush behind them as they made it to the trees. She had to fix where they walked, knowing that whomever was after them would be looking for where they had run off. The thick vegetation would mean they would have more cover, but…

It also meant that there would be a path that they made.

A babbling in the distance came like the celestial bells of a church tower.

Gudako felt her mood lift immediately, her hands pulling the doctor along around the trees and the greenery until they could make it to the break in the trees.

She didn’t see the house anymore.

The river looked like it came from a cliffside waterfall, no doubt a cliffside that went all the way to that house.

She didn’t see any pathway still. That probably meant they were safe.

“Let’s flush out your eyes,” Gudako told the doctor, leading him down to the water’s edge and cupping some of the water in her hands.

It was hard work, cleaning the goop.

The shit had hardened along his eyelids, leaving the man to whimper and grab her hands as she tried to help.

“Roman-“

“It’s ripping.”

Ripping?

She watched the man lean down, shoving his whole head into the waters. He came up, gasping and cursing, a dark stream coming down from his eyes.

“Romani!”

“We need to get me some bandages for now. At least until we find me a healer.”

“Did you just rip your damn-“

“Gudako!”

“Damn man,” She yanked her tanktop off from beneath her jacket, pulling the fabric around his eyes and once more leaving him to be stuck blind. “Do you know what it was that was even keeping your eyes shut?”

“Gudako, I don’t even know where we are, but we have to find that bag of rings.”

“What is so special about those damn rings?”

“They’ll heal me.”

Oh.

“They’re extremely powerful rings with a power and mana concentration that makes your friend Rin’s gems look like regular rocks.”

“Damn, Romani. You’ve been holding out on me.”

Her gaze still shifted towards the direction they’d come from though, her mind retracing the path as best she could. It would be harder to get back with how they’d abruptly made a turn and come this way to the river… however, she did have the cliffside nearby.

She’d take the cliff way, since it would at least give her direction back to Romani if she couldn’t find her way back.

“I’m going to have to leave you here again,” she warned him.

“I won’t leave without knowing the rings are safe, Gudako. Whatever you have to do, just do it.”

###

“Come on,” Hakuno murmured. “Just a little further.”

The man had stopped responding, even if his initial responses had been more grunts than words. She’d seen him attempting to touch his eyes, but she didn’t want him to do that. At least, not yet. She didn’t like the look of the goo as they came into the lighted area.

Not that anything else looked better.

Her heart was weeping at the sight. The blood running down his body were from wounds that were on the back of his arms and more along his back than anything else. The ones that were on his chest were jagged, like the person had held no control of the knife he’d possessed in hand. The blood was oozing out, quickening with certain movements.

“Just a little further,” Hakuno told him again, turning her eyes to the area they’d come from. There was no signs of the ones that had been meandering through the caves, but that wouldn’t last.

Caves only went on for so long and, even if that wasn’t the case, the two would suspect her and Gil not to be idiots wandering into the depths of the darkness forever.

The tunnel lights would help them get spotted now. They had to keep-

“The goo,” Gilgamesh gasped, grasping her arms. “It’s burning at my eyes.”

“It’s what?!”

“You have to get it off.”

They couldn’t stop though! What was-

“Hakuno, Hakuno, don’t do this.”

“I’ll get it off. I just need something to get it off. Can you open the gates-“

The man shook his head. “I can’t focus. I can’t see. Hakuno-“

“I know,” Hakuno replied, pulling him closer. “I know. I need to think of what to use.”

She’d already ripped his vest, but if the group saw his flashy vest back here then they’d know for sure that they’d doubled back. She couldn’t use that.

Her hands went to her own shirt, pulling it off without a second thought. The stained white fabric was wrapped thickly around her fingers. She settled the man along the rocks on the side of the tunnel, leaning in close.

“Keep your eyes as tight as you can.”

“I’m aware of what will need to be done. Get it before it burns my eyes out.”

The stuff didn’t want to move.

She wasn’t sure what it was made of, but the moment she pushed at it, she could hear Gilgamesh cursing under his breath. She could see the tugging it was doing to his eyelids.

“Hakuno-“

“It won’t come off.”

“Hakuno, do something. It’s getting in!”

“SHHHH!”

She glanced around again, taking in the sounds of the tunnels. Any sound in the space would no doubt carry. It was hard to tell if the two had gotten wise or simply gone too far into the earth in order to hunt them down.

Either way, it meant time was slim.

“I have an idea,” Hakuno told him, glancing around a little more. “It’s going to hurt.”

“Hakuno, I would rather have my eyes than be given reprieve from your bit of pain.”

He needed to keep that in mind.

There was something she could do, but it was going to be immensely painful and she was going to need to make sure her magecraft was working before she did anything. Her eyes drifted over the scene, noting a few jagged rocks. Her eyes drifted to the cuts on the king, a sickly feeling running through her as she made her decision despite her stomach aching.

He took one of the lamps illuminating the tunnels and brought it to the floor, scurrying quietly from there to grab a rather nice sharp rock.

“Hakuno-“

“I need you listening while I do this. Wave your hands if you hear them coming,” Hakuno whispered to the king.

The rock’s edge sounded dreadful against the metal lamp’s side. It was working as a whetstone though. Over and over, she scraped the rock along the jagged side, her eyes focused on the two directions of the tunnel part they were in.

Each scrape sounded like a tear in the seam of her wellbeing. Each second she crouched there, half dressed and trembling, she could feel another piece of her spirit ebbing away.

She held the rock over the fire for a few seconds, letting it warm and any bacteria burn.

Well, she hoped that was how this worked.

“Hakuno, it’s getting worse,” Gil warned.

She could see it getting that way. There was something about it, as she drew closer, that was making her skin crawl. The small symbols in the goo were moving, almost like tiny limbs.

For all she knew, it was eating at his eyelids. Most likely, it was.

That meant, if she wanted to save his eyes at all, then she needed to act fast and she needed to make a decision about how to help him.

Her hands went to one of the wounds on his arm, testing out her healing.

The wound closed slowly, but her mana was still there.

“Gilgamesh,” Hakuno spoke quietly, brushing his bangs back. “Gil, I need you to give me your mana. Can you do that for me? I can’t help you without it.”

“My mana? Hakuno-“

“Not a full transfer, just- as much as you can give me.”

He pulled her onto his lap, the small nod working as the best indicator of agreement that she would probably get.

“I need you to trust me,” she warned him before she moved the rock’s sharp edge to just below his eyebrow.

“My fate rests in your hands.”

But that didn’t do a thing when the first cut began. She had to urge him to give her his mana, her fingers in the wrapped fabric tugging at the goo that had gotten over his eyes. She could feel her heart beginning to race as the blood came. Her stomach began to reel as she forced herself to cut along one side and move the rock to the lower lid. She was healing him, gods knew she was, but the sight of the king bleeding and the feel of his arms tight around her body was telling her that this wasn’t simple.

It wasn’t a bit of pain like he had mentioned.

One red eye opened though, the newly healed and formed eyelids blinking up at her from that side before she looked at the other.

“…We must be quicker with the other.”

“I’m sorry, Gil.”

The goo had eaten away at the fabric, the skin that had been his eyelids was completely melted within the goo as she glanced down at where she’d thrown it.

“Hakuno, focus.”

Focus…

It was hard not to focus when she was carving around the eyes of the man she’d gone through so much with. It was hard to think about anything else when she could feel his fingers digging into her skin. She should have healed him more when he had first sat down.

The second eye was open and her shirt was a mess from having to stop twice to use new fabric to pull and tug the goo away from his face. Like with the last original set of eyelids, the goo was melting it down, leaving a glistening residue that made her stomach churn.

A pair of red eyes looked up at her as she checked his face for any further signs of the residue.

“How is your sight?”

“The view is average, at least.”

She leaned in, pressing her forehead to his. The feeling of his arms holding her was nice. The feeling of him no longer being threatened by that slop that had been over his eyes was enough to bring her anxiety down. She could breathe again.

“We still need to heal me,” he murmured.

“Heal… The wounds-“

“Shh,” he reminded her, leaning in close. “Do not fully heal, just in case. Just close the wounds and we’ll move.”

Close…

She got half of them healed.

The worst of them were closed. She didn’t need to worry about him bleeding to death, but…

Bloodsoaked and clothed in tattered garments, the great king that she knew so well rose up from the debris and rubble of the tunnel and glanced around them, his eyes drifting to the lighter part of the tunnels.

“We’re going that way?”

“As quickly as we can,” Hakuno murmured, moving to stand only to feel a wave of nausea was over her.

“Hakuno?”

“It’s fine. I’m just a little tired. When we get out of here, I want to lay in our room in Chaldea and stuff my face with an entire cake before taking a nap.”

“I will personally find you the finest Uruk butter cake when we do,” he promised, wrapping his hand around hers. “Let’s move.”