#sorry y'all i know i've been talking in the tags a lot lately

[nanpecan]

₊✩‧₊˚once more to see you˚₊✩‧₊ pt 3

{nanami x f!reader}

pt 1.  pt 2. pt 4.

˚₊✩‧₊summary: You’re a manager at Jujutsu Kaisen and you've now had two extremely intimate encounters with grade 1 sorcerer Nanami Kento. You're doing your best to go back to work like nothing happened. You're attending meetings, running a few errands, and having a very very close call with a curse and an ancient relic.

˚₊✩‧₊tags: nanami x fem!reader, slight angst, gore kinda (you're fighting a curse and it gets intense fast)

˚₊✩‧₊word count: 6.8k (do i even have to apologize at this point)

˚₊✩‧₊author’s note: this chapter is a little more centered around Y/N as a character. Nanami IS in it but i feel like he isn't the focus so i apologize. but ! i've attached pt. 4 as well because that does have nanami and a fun little hook up hehe. I won't be offended if a lot of y'all skip this to get to the next part. I know i would

˚₊✩‧₊this is the mitski song i had in mind for this chapter idk

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You shut the car door and put your seat belt on wordlessly. “You okay? I’ve never seen you so quiet after drinking.” Akari said, breaking you out of your daze. 

You looked at her and considered telling her everything. “Akari…” she looked at you with a questioning look. She smiled. 

“You know, Nanami was asking questions about you while you were up singing with Ijichi.” 

“What?” 

“It was little things. Like he kept asking for clarity on things whenever we brought you up. I don’t know if you even noticed.” 

“What kind of things?” 

“Well he was asking how long you’ve been here. He seemed to know that you’d joined the school when you were 16, during Ijichi’s third year. But he wanted to know how you did.” 

“What did you tell him?” you asked. 

“Eh, I said something about how your classmates were assholes. But that doesn’t matter. He also asked about your relationship status.” She glanced at you with a cheeky smile. You gave her a blank stare. “Well, not directly, but Shoko asked about my dating life and I told them how we were both hopeless, and I may have mentioned that date you went on where the American called you exotic and tried to grab your ass.” She laughed as she remembered. “He smiled when I mentioned you kicked his ass.” 

You smiled and she seemed happy that you were more relaxed. “I could just tell he was interested in you, and you know I’m good at reading people.” 

“You’re too flattering.” You said. “I don’t think he’s interested in me like that.” 

“You’d be surprised, maybe he feels connected with you after he saw your IBS crisis.” She laughed. “Too soon? I’m sorry.” 

You smiled and shook your head. You felt a burning in your chest. “You don’t think he was talking so much because he was into you? He didn’t talk to me at all.” 

Akari scoffed. “If he was into me I’d turn him down immediately.” She frowned. “If I didn’t know his age I would have thought he was in his late thirties, and I’m not into dudes that much older. You know I like them hot and stupid.” 

“That hasn’t worked out so well for you in the past, maybe it’s time to change it up.” 

Akari furrowed her brows. “Why are you pushing him on me, fight for your man, girl.” 

You slumped back into your seat. “I’m telling you he doesn’t like me like that.” 

She rolled her eyes. “And why are you so sure?” 

“Because he told me so.” You muttered. 

“What?” She suddenly got serious. 

“...Can you keep a secret?” 

“What happened? Y/N??” She looked over at you. “Hang on, we're almost at my place. I need to be all ears.” 

“You can’t tell anyone, and you can’t judge me.” 

“Wait! Don’t tell me anymore!” 

Akari quickly parked the car and ran out. She practically pushed you all the way into her apartment and onto her couch. She quickly poured you another drink before pouring one for herself. 

“Okay,” she handed you the cup. “I had a feeling something happened, you’ve been acting so weird.” 

“You wanna take a guess?” You said before taking a drink. 

She hesitated. “My gut was telling me that something happened with the curse he exorcised yesterday. And I thought that maybe it had gotten to you and you were overly flirty and confessed or something.” 

“We had sex.” 

She choked on her drink. “What!” 

You buried your head in your hands and groaned. “The curse injured him and infected him with lust. I was just standing outside the barrier. I was checking my phone when he came stumbling out into the car, and well…things escalated and…yeah.” 

Akari looked at you in shock. She put her drink down. “He didn’t report an injury. Was he in his right mind?” 

You understood what she was implying. “He wasn’t violent. The opposite actually. I was surprised too, he wouldn’t let me tend to his wound.” You took another drink. “It was great.” 

She still looked concerned. “But he told you he wasn’t into you.” 

You frowned. “We didn’t really talk much afterwards. I think he was more embarrassed or maybe he regretted it… Anyway I ran into him at the bakery that I like and we talked for a bit there.” You sighed as you remembered. “I confessed that I liked him and he said he wasn’t interested in a relationship with me, so I said we should forget everything that happened.” 

“I’m sorry.” Akari said. “What an asshole, I bet he said it just like that too. He’s so blunt. You didn’t deserve that.” She looked at you. “I’m sorry he showed up tonight. I can’t imagine how awkward that must have been for you. But I’m serious. He was asking little things about you. So maybe there’s hope?” She turned her head and scowled, “If it was me I wouldn’t want to see the bastard.” 

You took a deep breath, you didn’t want to tell her about the bathroom. Not that it was wrong, you just wanted time to process everything. You frowned. You had just ruined his chances with her, you were painting him out to be a villain. “He was very sweet though. I understand where he’s coming from. I mean, I don’t think he really had any control over his mood and I should have turned him down. I have regrets too. I think it’ll be easier to just forget. If he does want something he should be the one to approach me.” You lay back on the couch. “The shittier thing to do would have been not to acknowledge it at all. He’s a good guy, it’s just like you said. He’s blunt.” You smiled at Akari. “This is our secret, okay?” 

Akari nodded looking at you sympathetically. “Of course.” She came closer to you and hugged you. “Other than the mess, I’m glad he was nice to you. You pulled your long-time crush, that’s powerful girl.” 

You smiled and hugged her back silently. 

You both went to bed shortly after and you were left alone with your thoughts. 

The bathroom. He had said he didn’t want to talk, fucked you, and even wanted to take you home. This sort of contradicted your theory of him liking Akari, right? No, he just thinks you’re easy. You frowned. You should have let him speak before you cut him off…twice. You’d just been afraid that what he’d say would hurt your feelings. 

You tossed and turned thinking about him, remembering his touch, his lips. Despite it all he had been so gentle, so desperate to have you again. It hurt your feelings thinking about it. He had done all that but he didn’t really want you. You sighed, if he asked to have you again, would you do it?, you wondered. Yes, you decided, feeling hopeless. You felt very strongly about him and despite him not reciprocating your feelings, yours hadn’t diminished. You might have liked him more, or at least the idea of him more. You slowly dozed off. 

You were pretty quiet the next morning and Akari let you just exist. She drove you to work, talking about things here and there but not bringing him up. You were grateful for her. “You know I do love you.” 

Akari smiled as she turned off the ignition to the car. “I’ve always got your back.” 

You both rushed into the meeting room afraid of being late but when you got there, there were only two other managers including Ijichi, and Principle Yaga sitting silently with a frown on his face. 

You checked your watch. There were two minutes until the meeting was supposed to start. No other sorcerers were here. You sat down next to Akari and Ijichi. You looked at the empty chair beside you and for a moment thought about switching sides with Akari but you decided it was too much. You were thinking too much about it. He was not going to sit next to you, that would have been bold and stupid. 

Suddenly the door opened and Shoko walked in giving you and Akari a smile. Two more sorcerers came in with a minute to spare. You watched the clock strike 7 and the door opened again. You didn’t have to look up to know who it was, his aura gave him away. You heard him head in your direction and you whipped your head in surprise as you heard the chair next to you slide out and Nanami sit down. 

You clenched your jaw and felt Akari poke you from the other side. You looked at her.

 You okay? She asked with her eyes. You nodded and rolled your eyes with a smile. She smiled back. You didn’t turn to look at him. 

This wasn’t the first time he had sat next to you in a meeting. The first time you had been way more nervous. It was about a year and a half ago; after he had just rejoined Jujutsu society. You had already started crushing on him and he had asked you for a pen to jot down some small detail about a schedule change. The rest was history.

Your thoughts were interrupted when the doors burst open and you heard a familiar chuckle. “Okay, okay, we can start now. I’m here!” Gojo. He walked in cockily and sat down in the front row of seats. Yaga gave him a scrutinizing look before standing up, ready to start. 

“You’re just the man I wanted to see, I have a mission for you.” Yaga grumbled. Gojo yawned in response. “Good morning everyone, I’ll make this short.” He shuffled some papers. “An update on the Okkotsu case, the boy’s violence has escalated resulting in the death of three high school students on Thursday evening. Yesterday Kisagari and Harutomi were sent to investigate and were instructed to bring the boy back.” He clenched his jaw. “They did not check in last night and upon further investigation Harutomi was found dead this morning a little outside the school grounds.” 

The room went silent. You frowned, this was more serious than anticipated. Both of the sorcerers were grade two, it came as a shock that one of them was dead.

“Satoru, can I rely on you to pick up where they left off?” 

Gojo stretched his arms and leaned back on his chair. “Of course,” he responded. 

Yaga went over some other brief reminders before dismissing the meeting. You’d volunteered to deliver some items the school was exchanging with the Kanagawa Prefecture Cultural Museum. You stayed in your chair a little longer reading over the file Akari handed you. Nanami slowly got up from his chair and you could sense him staring at you. He probably wanted to talk. You owed him that much. You turned to look at him but before you could say anything Ijichi appeared next to him. 

“I’m ready to head out whenever you are.” He said to Nanami. 

Nanami turned to him and nodded. “Let’s go.” 

You looked at Nanami but he turned away and started heading towards the door. You frowned and turned back to the papers in front of you. 

“You okay?” Akari said. 

You looked at her and smiled. “Yeah, I think I’m over it. It was a one night stand situation, I’m overthinking it.” She didn’t look convinced but you shook your head. “Believe me I’m not angry or hurt. Life’s too short for that.” 

    -

You headed out to your school assigned car and sat down. You glanced at the back seat in the rear view mirror. You felt your cheeks get hot as you remembered what had happened, and smacked your hands to the sides of your face. You could try to talk to him later…maybe.

As you drove towards Naka you thought about what you might eat for lunch. Along with bringing the items to the museum and picking up the ones they were trading, you were to go around and check the shrines in the area. You’d had a mission around here a while ago and remembered a soba restaurant close to the museum. Since you had spent the night at Akari’s you didn’t have the sandwich you had planned to eat today. Oh well, you thought, at least I wasn't the one that paid for it. 

You noticed you were getting close and called ahead to the museum. “Good morning, this is Y/N with Jujutsu Tech. I'm about 30 minutes away.” 

“Oh perfect,” A woman answered. “Head towards the employee parking, we’ve told the guard to let you in. By the way, we came across a new artifact donated by the estate of one of our late patrons. It looks very old and was kept in a special box, would you be able to take it to get it assessed?” 

“Yes of course!” You were a little hesitant to pick up unregistered cursed objects but usually it was no big deal. Especially if it was kept in a special box. It would be fine. 

As you walked into the back of the museum, a shiver went up your spine and you got a terrible feeling in your gut. You took a deep breath and went in, a little on edge. You went to the room you’d been instructed to and waited. Some of the items you were expecting to pick up were already laid out. An old cursed katana in need of restoration and a few Edo period items. You put down the box you were carrying. You were exchanging these items for an ancient tea set from the Nara period that was in prime condition and a painting scroll from around the same time. 

“Sorry for running a little late.” You jumped as a voice came from behind you. You tensed as you turned, you hadn’t even felt the person’s presence. 

“Oh, no problem, I’m Y/N.” 

“Yes, yes, this is the item I spoke to you on the phone about.” 

The lady put down an intricately decorated green box about 6 inches long and 4 wide. “We just got it in this morning. Our staff decided to open it to see what was inside, but only found one small object wrapped in a sort of paper wrap with writing on it. We couldn’t decipher the language, but right after we opened it the lights in the museum went out so we closed it.” She laughed nervously. “None of us are very superstitious, but we did get spooked.” 

She picked up the box to hand it to you. You grabbed it but felt that she had a tight grip on it. You pulled a little harder to take it from her but she just stared at the box. “Ma’am?” You pulled again but her grip hadn’t faltered. 

“I just…would like to see it one more time.” 

“I don’t think that’s a good-“ she yanked the box back and quickly lifted the locking notch to open the box. She stared inside. 

You went around her to look inside as well and gasped. You knew what this was. You had only seen one brought to the school when you were a student. It was one of Ryomen Sukuna’s fingers. You quickly shut the box and yanked it out of her hands. 

“I’ll take it from here.” She seemed to snap out of her daze and nodded. 

“Yes- uh. Let me find a box to put these loose items in so you can carry them easier. Excuse me.” The lady left the room and you stared at the box in shock. You needed to get this out of here.  

You quickly pulled your phone out and called the school. 

“Hello, this is Y/N. I’m picking up items from the Kanagawa Cultural Museum and they have given me one of Ryomen Sukuna’s fingers.” 

The person on the other end let out a small noise. “Is it bound?” 

“It’s wrapped in a talisman and contained in an emerald box.” 

“Okay... We can send the closest available sorcerers to assist you in ensuring it gets returned to the school without interruptions. Do not worry about your other tasks, the finger is the new priority.” You looked back at the box nervously. “Do you know if they unraveled the talisman?” 

“They opened the box and examined the finger but quickly closed it back up. The finger appears to still be partially wrapped in the box.” 

“We should assume they unwrapped the finger, even if it was only for a little bit, so there might be curses coming that way, and the talisman is probably weakened if not all together useless.” The guy sighed on the phone. “You said this was Y/N correct.” 

“Yes.” 

He was silent. “Take the finger and run, you won’t be able to handle whatever curses are coming your way.” 

You were hurt by his comments but knew it was true. You thanked him and hung up. You looked at the door. The lady was taking a while. You quickly began to unload your box and started loading the other contents into it. The sword was going to stick out too much so you quickly stuck it to your hip using your belt. You placed the finger in last and picked up the box. You went back into the hallway and once again felt the energy sour. 

You headed towards the exit when you noticed a shoe in the hallway. You clenched your teeth. It was a woman’s high heel, the same kind the lady had been wearing earlier. Your instincts told you to run to the car but then a smell hit your nose. Blood. Blood and the sickeningly bitter scent of a curse. 

Run. Your body was telling you to run. You were close to the exit, the car was parked right outside the door. You started to move your legs and turned towards the exit. You had been told the nearest sorcerers were heading your way. Someone else would be here to help. You would just get in the way and end up dying. You couldn’t fight, not well anyway. You didn’t have any weapons, you needed to leave, you needed to - you stopped in your tracks as you heard a small noise. You listened intently. 

“Help!” It was a whisper. “Please.” An agonizing voice coming from behind you. You turned trying to find the voice. “Help.” It was coming from the hallway to your left. You hesitated. You blinked and took a deep breath. You clutched the boxed items closer to yourself and your hand went to the katana on your hip. It was old and rusted but it was something, you weren’t completely unarmed. You quickly went toward the noise and peeked around the corner. 

You stood there shocked. The lady was sitting on the floor, her back to the wall, her face twisted in pain. She had a deep purple bruise on her right ankle and her left foot was gone. It looked like it had been hastily bit off. Where she was bleeding there was a small yellow curse lapping up the blood. 

“Help! Help me! Help.” She started yelling as she saw you approach. You ran over to her and shushed her. The little yellow curse didn’t even notice you, it was too busy drinking the blood, but it was growing in size. You put the box down next to her and looked at her wound. It was big, an injury like this required immediate attention. Your mind raced as you thought about what to do. You could try to heal it, try to use your RCT. However you had no medical knowledge whatsoever so the chances of you messing it up were greater than you fixing it. But you had to do something. Even if you didn’t understand, stopping the bleeding or scabbing it over would help tremendously. 

I don’t have enough CE for this, you thought bitterly. It would take a lot. You looked at the little creature in front of you and something clicked in your brain. You couldn’t explain it but you just knew what to do. You grabbed the creature by the base of its neck. It didn’t even flinch, it was too preoccupied consuming the trickling blood. That was until it started shrinking, its fingers curling, the tips of its ears wilting and then it started thrashing in your hands. 

You were absorbing its cursed energy. Your hand burned as you felt the rotten energy enter you. Your veins ached and you winced, feeling like you were going to be sick. The input was foul, you felt like you needed to expel it, quickly. You placed your other hand on the bloody stump and tried to focus on your reverse cursed technique. You laughed when you noticed something was happening only to flinch as the creature started to kick and scratch at you. You slammed it onto the floor trying to subdue it. It became more and more withered as you became accustomed to the feeling of absorbing its energy. The wound was looking much better. Almost. 

The yellow creature let out one final shriek before it completely deflated. The lady’s ankle was now a hardened scab. You knew it hadn’t healed completely but it wasn’t going to get any worse. You looked up and saw that she was staring horrified at your hand wrapped around the stump. In your other hand, the curse was now a grey lump of flesh. You clenched your fist and it disintegrated into ash. 

You looked up at the lady and let go of her leg. “We need to get outside.” Once outside you could make a veil and prevent whatever was inside from getting out. You had quickly deduced that the small yellow curse was not the one that had done the damage. There was something bigger and stronger and it was looking for the finger. 

You grabbed the green box with the finger, tucking it under your arm as you helped the lady up, letting her lean on you as you started for the door. You quickly hobbled there together. You were going to make it. You were two feet from the door. One foot. Your hand reached out to push when you suddenly felt the wind get knocked out of you. Your mouth flew open and released a stream of blood. The world went black for a second and you felt yourself falling. You came to, right before you hit the ground and regained your balance. You turned around quickly but your body was overcome with pain. Your hand went to your abdomen, you had broken some ribs. But what had hit you? You looked over at the lady and saw she was unconscious. “Shit.” You slid her off your shoulder and looked around for a curse. Nothing. You quickly checked her pulse. She was breathing. You sighed and stood up looking around. 

The box! You looked around the floor for it. You had dropped it when you had been hit. It was nowhere to be found. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.” You realized now the curse had probably slammed into you while trying to get the box. You had to get it back and fast. You stopped. No this isn’t right. I need to get this lady to safety and set a veil. I need to wait for the closest sorcerer to arrive, I can’t fight. You heard screaming from the hallway again. You clenched your jaw. You were terrified. 

You looked down at the lady and quickly picked her up. You were right by the door. You pushed open the door wheezing a little and trying your best to ignore the pain as she leaned into your broken ribs. You set her down on the steps outside and turned to the building. The curtain! you needed to put one up. You lifted a hand and muttered your phrase. 

You opened your phone and dialed the school. The same person picked up. “The situation has escalated. I was attacked and the curse got a hold of the finger. So far there's only been one confirmed injury, but I think many others are in danger. I’ve placed a veil for now,” you said.

“Stay put, help is almost there.” You looked back at the building and frowned. You hung up. You heard another yell and your stomach dropped. You felt yourself tearing up. There had to be something you could do. You needed to do something, anything, you couldn’t just stand there while everyone inside was in danger. It wasn’t fair. 

You felt your body move and before you realized, you found yourself stepping into the veil. You quickly went to the door and stepped back into the building. You saw more of the little yellow creatures climbing up and down the walls. You counted seven. They were all moving towards the same place. Looking along the wall, you spotted what you were looking for and quickly hobbled over to push the fire alarm. 

The alarm rang in your ears. You coughed and winced as more blood came out of your mouth. Your chest ached with every step, every breath, but you kept going. Someone was yelling for help. Without thinking you snatched one of the little yellow curses and started absorbing it. You were careful not to heal your own wounds. You’d been able to help the lady, but with little understanding of internal anatomy, something told you you’d do more damage than good. 

You turned the corner and found a man in shock staring at where his hand once was. You rushed over and grabbed it with your free hand exerting the cursed energy into it. The little fiend shriveled in your hand again as the wound scabbed over.

As the alarm cycled you hoped people in the museum were evacuating. Since you were in the employee backrooms you couldn’t tell. The man stared at his hand traumatized and you left him there to try to find the creature. The closer you felt you got, the more of the little yellow demons swarmed the walls, like vultures waiting for prey. You pushed past twenty trying to get through a door frame and you were surprised to see that there were at least a hundred in the next room. The curse you were looking for was there too. 

It was a large pudgy creature, around 6 feet tall with frog-like features. It had grubby hands and ornate green stripes along its back. It was muttering something, you couldn’t make out the phrase. It had a disembodied human hand in its mouth and it was sucking on the exposed wrist draining it of blood. Every time it slurped, the fingers of the hand would contract open and closed. It made your stomach uneasy. 

The curse didn’t notice you coming in, it was too preoccupied trying to open the emerald box. You noted the curse had it backwards and was trying to pry it open on the side with the hinges. You didn’t know how much longer you had. You debated what to do. In this room the curse was isolated, it couldn’t access any more victims and hopefully a majority, if not all, of the people in the museum had evacuated. There was a sorcerer on the way, you could leave it here or wait outside of the door to direct them towards the curse. 

But the finger….You could get it while it was distracted, or at least try to. You had the katana and even though it was old, it was still a weapon. As you pondered what to do you noticed the room had gone silent. The creature was still mumbling and trying to get the box open but the other small yellow creatures had gone quiet. You put your hand on the hilt of the katana once again uneasy. You made your decision. Even if you were useless you could buy some time. You slowly crept closer and closer to the curse. You took a quiet breath before pulling out the sword and swinging it at the monster's neck. 

The sword hit the curse’s flesh with a loud thunk. It was blunt. Practically useless. The creature stopped struggling with the box and its head quickly turned to look at you. It had two sets of eyes, although they all seemed to be looking in different directions. Suddenly the curse made a dive at you, mouth open ready to bite. 

You attempted to dodge to the right but you were too slow to completely move out of the way. You felt a cool sensation on your arm and you turned to see your left arm in a sorry state. The skin on your forearm and elbow was gone. Blood poured out and you could only stare in horror. The pain hit you all at once and you barely managed to turn away from your arm, trying to locate where the curse was now. It was staring at you seemingly confused as to how it had missed you, the sliver of your flesh hanging down out of its mouth like a tongue. 

It looked like it was going to charge at you again and as you started backing away you realized your back was to the wall. It realized this too and moved forward at a ridiculous speed. All you managed to do was bring up the old katana. You shut your eyes embracing yourself for the fatal blow but you only felt the curses’ plump body falling into you, wriggling around. The sword was in your hand but your wrists were twisted awkwardly around the handle and you realized it had become stuck in the creature's mouth. You let go and pushed against the creature with your leg. 

In its shocked state, it stumbled backwards and you were able to see what had happened. It had opened its mouth wide and lodged the katana between the top of his mouth and his jaw. He couldn’t shut it. It reached desperately to try to pry it out but its stubby arms couldn’t reach inside its own mouth. 

You quickly took advantage of its distraction to try to locate the green box. You spotted it on the ground in the middle of the room.You looked back at the creature making sure it was still distracted and started sneaking away. 

It suddenly let out a loud screech and its body started contorting. Its head grew bigger and smaller, arms longer and shorter. It seemed to be trying to molt out of its body to get rid of the sword. But no matter how much it twisted and yelled the sword wouldn’t come out. You wondered for a second, what kind of curse was imbued on the sword. 

You took another step away and suddenly the creature’s attention snapped back to you. You tried to make a run for it but it hurtled its way in front of you and slammed you back into the wall. 

You yelled out weakly, more blood spilling from your mouth and your left arm sending a shooting pain throughout your body as your exposed muscle stained the wall with your blood. The curse moved its hands to your neck and lifted you up, choking you against the wall. You desperately tried to inhale and tried not to panic, but the combination of the pain and lack of oxygen wasn’t letting you think clearly. You kicked desperately at the curse but it wasn’t budging. You put your hands up to its wrists and tried to budge them to no avail.   

As you started to see dots, your kicks got weaker. You felt its grip tighten and your hands fell weakly onto its arms. You began trying to take the energy out. Your body felt almost as if it was on autopilot. No air and feeling defeated, you started to allow the cursed energy you were absorbing into you entirely. You felt a burning sensation on your arm and coming from inside your chest. Your entire body felt hot as you felt things fixing themselves. You also noticed the grip around your neck had faltered some as you took a desperate and choppy gulp of air. That little flow of oxygen allowed you to think a little more clearly as you kept absorbing the CE. 

You didn’t want to finish healing yourself but you needed to put the energy somewhere. You looked at the curse in front of you. Its face was right in front of your chest. You reached down with your right hand and grabbed the blade of the katana. You began transferring the energy into it. You felt the sword get hot and push back, almost as if it was refusing the new input of CE, but after gripping the steel tighter you felt the sword lose its dullness. 

The rust started to fall away and the metallic sheen of the blade began to glow. The edge of the sword was becoming very sharp. You wanted to let go but found that your hand was bound to it, the transfer requiring more and more CE and blood and pain. You felt the blade cut into your palm and you ground your teeth. You needed to stop. You ripped your hand away from the blade and removed your hand from the curse’s arm. You quickly put your hands into the curse’s mouth and grabbed its teeth and lip. You pulled its upper jaw down hard for it to close its mouth and watched as the newly sharpened sword point pierce through the creature’s palate and skewered out through the top of its head. As the tip of the blade suddenly appeared through its skull, the grip around your neck loosened and the curse dropped flat on the ground, twitching. 

You could only stare in shock at what had just happened. 

Suddenly a rush of the small yellow curses began moving forward to consume the liquids oozing out of the curse. You felt your stomach churn as you watched them lap everything up. You turned away from the sight and looked for the box. You took a staggering step towards the item, still laying in the middle of the room, and let out a yelp. Your entire body felt heavy and tired. You felt sick. You still had an excess of CE and your body couldn’t handle it. You collapsed to your knees as you neared the box. You placed your palms on the floor and tried to expel the energy from your body. The floor beneath you turned black and cracked. You poured it all out and felt slight relief, but still felt sore and achy. You looked back up at the box and reached for it. You took it in your hands and sat back. You took a shaky breath and laughed. That could have been bad. 

You jumped as you heard the door open and quickly turned towards it. You felt a slight pang of relief as you realized it was a pair of sorcerers. That relief turned to anger as you realized it was two students. 

Inumaki and Maki. They stared at you curiously and looked around trying to make sense of what had happened. You looked around too. The place was crawling with little yellow curses, a horde of them concentrated on the still twitching body of the large curse with a katana stuck through his skull. There was a human hand just laying limp to your right and you were sitting in the middle of the room. You bet you were a sight to see. Your suit was torn in various places, soaked in blood from wounds that had healed. 

“Are you okay?” Maki asked. 

“The curse-“ you stopped and put a hand up to your throat. It was burning and speaking felt difficult. Your voice had a heavy rasp to it due to your windpipe almost being crushed. You tried to clear your throat but it sent a sharp pain down it. “The curse has been defeated, I secured the finger.” You finally said fighting against the fire in your throat. You held up the box. “Are you two the only ones here?” 

“Daisuke is outside, he drove us here.” Another manager. 

“Tuna.” 

“We’ll take care of these creatures, Daisuke is waiting with another secure container to put the finger in.” 

You sighed and nodded. “Any casualties?” 

“None, almost everyone was evacuated. Police and firemen have arrived on scene. The veil you placed is very good.” Maki said. 

You slowly got to your feet and tucked the box under your right arm. You had healed your previously flayed left arm but it still felt sore. You put your hand on your left elbow to try to comfort it. “Be careful. He’s down but he’s got razor sharp teeth. Also we need that sword. If you could get it for me that would be great,” you said with a smile. You could tell from their faces that it wasn’t very convincing.

You limped out of the room and collapsed against the wall once you were out. They sent students? If the curse had gotten a hold of the finger the students would have been in serious danger. You would have surely been killed, and they wouldn’t have known what they were walking into. You were going to say something when you got back. You got back to your feet and started heading towards the exit. 

You spotted Daisuke talking with some policemen as you emerged from the veil. He looked at you shocked to see the state you were in and quickly pulled out a wooden box to put the cursed item in. You dropped the box into it and he quickly shut it, muttering some kind of extra enchantment on it. 

You leaned against the car exhausted and still feeling off. “Are you okay?” 

You looked at him and nodded. “Yes,” you hesitated. “But I think I’m going to need you to give me a ride back to the school.” 

The students finished up quickly and you sat in the passenger seat sleeping the whole way back. You felt uneasy still. Your bones creaking and your entire body sore. 

Once inside the school you insisted on taking the box and delivering it to the main office. You wanted to talk to the staff member you had talked with over the phone. 

You swung open the door to his office and stormed up to his desk. You dropped the box onto the infront of him and stared the worker down. “Here it is. One of the legendary Ryomei Sukuna fingers, one of the most powerful relics in the world, previously unwrapped and unbound less than an hour ago.” 

The guy looked at the box and then up at you giving you a criticizing glare. “You seem upset.”

“Why the fuck would you send two students instead of a high ranked sorcerer?”

The guy looked away from you and smirked. “They were the closest available and besides, if you were able to handle it why would I waste someone’s time?” He gave you a snarky smile. 

Your blood boiled. He had a point but you had gotten so lucky. “They could have gotten hurt if the curse had been able to get the finger, you didn’t know the whole situation of what was going on.” 

He shrugged. “It looks like I made the right decision. If you, out of anyone, was able to defeat the curse, there was no real danger. The curse even cauterized the wounds. None of the victims were in grave danger.” 

“What?” 

“Two of the victims were found with missing limbs but not even bleeding out or anything.” He started to act annoyed. “Look I have things to do, I expect your report by tomorrow, let us know your thoughts in the appropriate feedback section. Have a nice day. Get out.” 

You stared at him frustrated before storming out of the room and almost running into someone. “Sorry,” you muttered before looking up. It was Nanami. 

He looked down at you concerned by the state you were in, bloodied and sweaty. “Y/N are you okay?” 

For some reason that was your last straw. His question made your eyes start watering. You rolled your eyes blinking hard to try to stop the tears. “I’m fine.” You said not meeting his gaze. He didn’t move. 

“You should go see Shoko.” He said, his voice now softer. He moved his hand to your face, carefully placing it under your chin to make you look at him. His thumb grazed your cheek. You looked up at him and frowned, tears leaking from your eyes. It wasn’t fair. None of this was fair. Nothing had been going your way and you were exhausted. You took a step forward towards Nanami and wrapped your arms around him. 

It was stupid, but you desperately needed some kind of comfort. He didn’t move at first but he eventually put his arms around you. You buried your face into his shirt and felt yourself relax for the first time in hours. You felt your eyes close right as your legs gave out beneath you.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

˚₊✩‧₊nana here: okay okay i got a little (a lot) carried away with the fight scene. I just love making Y/N a badass and I promise it makes sense later. Again theres a lot added in thats part of a longer story but idk...if anything i'll cross post here and ao3. Thank yall for reading and as always if you saw a typo, no you didn't.

please click on through to pt. 4 and if you did read this all, I love you.

super duper shout out to @zoldsick for reading and editing my crazy ideas, thank you cath<3

pt. 1 pt. 2. pt. 4

˚₊✩‧₊ taglist: @wrldtups @rjreins @phattyboo90 @tnyblacklesbo @silkija @justwantedachange @inthedarkshadows000 @nniiyyaa @starkmila09 @sikuthealien @wifenanami @bloombb @kentos-glasses @inciteterr0r

[indestructibleheart]

Hi, fam! Okay, so I'm going to be out at an appointment tomorrow morning, so I'm kicking this off a little bit early. It's technically Wednesday in several timezones and very nearly Wednesday in mine. I'm... also a bit eager to share this, ngl.

I know that I've shared a lot of angst lately, but I swear that's not all I'm doing. 😅 In fact, the actor/playwright AU decided to wallop me in the face out of nowhere after sitting in my WIP folder for months. I'm really excited about it, so I'm gonna share the first scene!

(Also, those of you who have been to New York with me will recognize my favorite brunch spot in this scene lmao.)

---

You probably didn't even know I was in the room, but I noticed you straight away. You were talking with your friends, happy and animated and fully alive—a person living in dimensions I couldn’t access—and so beautiful. Your hair was longer then. You were the center of attention, but you weren’t afraid. You had a yellow ipê-amarelo in your pocket. I thought, this is the most incredible thing I have ever seen; I'd better keep it a safe distance away from me. I thought, if someone like that ever loved me, it would set me on fire.

INT. MOM'S KITCHEN & BAR - HELL'S KITCHEN - LATE MORNING

"I'm telling y'all," Alex is saying, punctuating with dangerously large bites of his pancake burrito. "The dude's a dick." 

It's been two hours since the nightmare audition, but Alex has been on this tirade since June and Nora first slid into the retro diner chairs across from him (at least forty-five minutes ago).

They're at Mom's: a restaurant-bar in midtown that can only be described as millennial nostalgia incarnate. The trio fell in love with it two years back—post-karaoke, stumbling in right before closing—when Alex saw God in their Fruity Pebble pancakes.  Since then, it's been his favorite place to eat his feelings.

Mom's is just really fucking comforting in general, honestly; whether it's the televisions cycling through episodes of 'Rugrats,' 'Dexter's Laboratory,' and 'Hey, Arnold!' or  the rainbow straws and Lisa-Frank-looking menus, Alex can't be sure. It doesn't hurt that they've made friends with several of the waitstaff, including an eccentric bartender, Pez, whose pink hair and painted nails fit right in with the decor. 

Today, it's the combination of breakfast sausage, bacon, eggs and cheese wrapped up in a syrup-soaked pancake that's really doing something for him. It could also be the margarita the size of his face, which Pez placed in front of him before making himself uncharacteristically scarce. But it's fine. He's probably just busy.

Alex won't admit it out loud, but what really helps is having June and Nora here to talk to… even though Nora is scrolling on her phone.

"I'm sorry," June says. She pokes an ice cube with her straw, and Alex watches as it bobs around her mimosa like a buoy. "That sounds like it sucked, but if he's really that rude… maybe you didn't want to work with him anyway."

Nora doesn't look up as she pops a home fry into her mouth. 

"Several sources say he's difficult to work with," she adds, evidently reading about Henry on the internet. "Though, in his defense, his dad did just die, like, three years ago… and there was that whole thing when he came out after. Remember?"

Alex does remember. Henry's grandmother, Mary Mountchristen, runs a pretty major company that used to own half the theatres on the West End. When Henry came out last year, she tried blacklisting his shows from her properties to punish him—which totally backfired when it got around. At least a dozen other queer writers and producers started talking about how they were also denied the space, and Mary was stoned on the streets of the theatre district. Like, metaphorically. 

Alex, Nora, and June had just moved to New York, but between June's position at Newsday and both Alex and Nora on the audition circuit, it was all anyone in their new circles could talk about. They were some of the first to know when the Mountchristens were bought out of their properties and Henry moved to the States.

This show is the first of Henry's being produced here—and it's autobiographical, which Alex has to admit is pretty fucking baller. So, yeah, Nora's not wrong. He has reason to be standoffish. Still, it doesn't explain why Alex was only halfway through his audition monologue when Henry abruptly stood up and exited stage left as if pursued by a bear.

He shoves another forkful into his mouth. "It's just, like, they're the only people who let me into the room," he says, barely finishing chewing. "Nobody wants to take me seriously, and I really thought this was my shot, you know?"

June and Nora both know Alex is having a hard time landing serious roles after growing up on a sitcom—Nora more than most, as his former co-star. What they don't know is that losing this role, specifically, feels like a kick to the stomach. From the moment Alex saw the script, he wanted to be a part of it. He can't even explain why, and now he'll never figure it out. Henry wouldn't give him a chance.

"It wasn't your only shot, and you know it." Nora fixes him with a look. "Seriously, I get it—I do—but it's just one play, buddy."

June nods. "Something will happen for you, baby brother."

At that, Alex finally groans. "Okay, calling me baby brother doesn't help me feel better about the entertainment industry infantili—"

"—itty bitty, teeny weeny—"

Alex throws a home fry at her face. 

It bounces off her forehead and into the giant gauntlet holding her mimosa with a very unappetizing splash. Just as Alex throws his hands into the air with a victorious whoop, his phone buzzes on the table. 

A glance is all it takes for him to see that it's his agent, Zahra.

"Damn," he says, deflating. There goes that upswing. "You answer it."

June balks. "Me?"

"I don't need to hear how fucking badly it went. Trust me, I got the message." Alex blinks innocently, like he's six years old again, asking her to lie to their mom about that broken vase. "Please, Bug? Besides, Zahra actually likes you."

"Everyone likes me." June rolls her eyes, but she caves—answering the phone with a haughty, "Alex Claremont-Diaz's office," before breaking into a smile. "Yeah, Z. It's me… No, Alex is feeling a little sensitive today."

(He throws another home fry at her. This one misses.)

To her credit, June's face remains totally blank as Zahra no doubt tells her how Alex insulted Henry Fox's name and all of his inbred ancestors just by showing up, or whatever—which is extremely annoying and unhelpful—but, once she says goodbye and sets the phone back down on the table, her face breaks out into a grin.

"Guess you didn't suck too bad," she says. "They want you for the part."

He doesn't know if it's Nora throwing herself at him or the shock that knocks him onto the floor.

Tagging some lovelies. If you haven't been tagged and you want to be, consider this your tag!

@anchoredarchangel, @barbiediaz, @cha-melodius, @cricketnationrise, @guillermosfamiliar, @hgejfmw-hgejhsf, @hippolotamus, @inexplicablymine, @jettestar, @junebugclaremontdiaz, @kiwiana-writes, @lizzie-bennetdarcy, @missgeevious, @mulderscully, @myheartalivewrites, @ninzied, @nontoxic-writes, @notspecialbabe, @priincebutt, @rmd-writes, @rosedavid, @three-drink-amy, @treluna4, @vanillahigh00, @welcometololaland, @orchidscript, @ships-to-sail, @stereopticons

[vroombeams]

tagged by @freeuselandonorris & @glasscushion thanks bbs!!!

1. Do you make your bed? not every day but i've been trying to do it more lately!! i do a lot of sleep-thrashing so remaking it is a bit of a production. but also it's so nice to crawl into a bed with everything all properly aligned lol

2. Favourite number? 8 or 28!

3. What's your job? as vaguely as possible... i move film gear around

4. If you could go back to school, would you? if money was no object and i could just learn varying levels of useful information for the rest of my life i would probably spend... the rest of my life doing that. would not go back in time to do any schooling over again though

5. Can you parallel park? i parallel parked once perfectly for my driving test and then have never done it ever again

6. Do you think aliens are real? oh defo. can't think about it too hard otherwise i'll descend into the madness of trying to comprehend the Vastness of Space and Eternity but hell yeah they out there

7. Can you drive a manual car? absolutely not

8. Guilty pleasure? oh boy. reality tv. oh my god i love it. my worst kept secret is that i'm obsessed with selling sunset like what do you MEAN i can look at the most egregiously expensive real estate while also watching beautiful women be horrible to each other?? crazy. also 90 day fiance. sometimes it's so warm. sometimes it's so awful. mankind contains multitudes

9. Tattoos? i have seven (or six depending on if you count a pair of thigh pieces as one piece?) and am in talks for number eight (or seven?) as we speak

10. Favourite colour? greeeeeeeeN

11. Favourite type of music? i was def one of those people who did the metal -> dubstep -> general all over electronic music pipeline. now i lean toward probably like, metalcore? and industrial or trancey techno (things like blutrot and narciss and rikhter?? among others) but also hip-hop and house, sometimes ambient stuff??? also acoustic?? bitch i don't know i'll listen to anything literally

12. Do you like puzzles? LOVE a puzzle big fan of sudoku in particular. also crosswords

13. Favourite childhood sport? i was a sports hater arts only kid but i did play basketball so let's say that

14. Do you talk to yourself? semi-frequently yes!!

15. Tea or coffee? time and a place for both but coffee. coffee wins every time i'm sorry

16. First thing you wanted to be when growing up? marine biologist HAHA

17. What movies do you adore? this is always such a question to answer i have such mid taste considering i went to film school lol but UHHH danny boyle's Sunshine was the film that made me want to be involved in film so that's like the ult-fave. 28 Days Later, Dredd, more recently Civil War? (the alex garland theme! you can see it!) The Fountain also changed me fundamentally. Moulin Rouge & Romeo + Juliet, duh. uhhh. the LotR series, Silent Hill also?? Black Swan???? Midsommar??? To Wong Foo????? i don't know what's a movie. never seen one clearly

tagging @dumbf1sketches @wigglesforonce @fewtrell @wanderingblindly @piastrisms @miamimaiden @albonoooo i don't know how many of y'all have been tagged already but!!

[cookinguptales]

I'm stressed (I put off doing taxes for too long lmao) but @formaldehyde--face tagged me to talk about five things that make me happy.

(I'm... sorry. I saw the tag and then promptly forgot. lmao)

soooo

~five things that make me happy~

stardew valley 1.6 I have been playing this nonstop lately, and that's what's been keeping me sane. I'm about halfway through year 2 and I'm making good headway! I've got the community center done, most people in town love me, and I'm exploring ginger island!

my current wip truthfully, the past week or two have been a real struggle. I got quite a bit of bad news, plus my chronic illnesses have been flaring badly. but through all that, I still managed to get an important chapter of my WIP done and I'm proud of that. almost done!! and then I get to introduce you all to the characters that I've really fallen in love with over the past two months. 💜💜💜

my kitty-cat geist is so cute. ;A; she's so warm and soft and friendly, and she's asleep on the couch next to me rn which makes it far easier to love her than when she's knocking shit off my bed.

my parents I have a... complicated relationship with most of my family, but I get along well with my parents. they know that I've been struggling for the past few weeks, so they've been calling and texting me a lot to help cheer me up. and dad and I have already started planning our next few trips. :o

my friends from the friends who are currently reading my WIP and cheering me on to the ones who let me cry on them when things are rotten to the ones I trade memes with to the ones I go out for drinks with. y'all help keep me afloat. 💜

also, a bonus, I'm just really grateful for streaming services that help keep me sane when I'm flaring lmao. being able to listen to whatever music I want and watch whatever movie I want does help keep me sane when I'm in as much pain as I have been.

(right now: listening to a bossa nova playlist on spotify and I have the ghost and mrs. muir queued up to watch soon on criterion.)

[ziipzeepzop-eez]

here is your ask detailing what i think of you based off of your most recent reblog!!

very, very kind hearted. you care a lot about the people around you and the things you love and it shows. it really,, REALLY shows. you're considerate and caring to an extent of which everyone around you appreciates, the energy you bring with each reblog, post, and comment (no matter how minimal you think it is) is welcoming and all-around awesome. i see the tags of your reblogs from me and it makes me smile,, i love seeing you talk about whatever /pos

you're friendly and approachable through and through, but you're not afraid to speak your mind and call things out as they are. (yeah!! yeah!!!!) your presence is very soothing. you have a lot to say and all of it is worth listening. /pos!!

you know those thingies, uhhh, what were they called again? homeric epithets? if you were one, you'd be bright-tongued and dew-eyed.

your ability to imbue text and writing with emotion and feeling is impeccable,, even the way you talk in general is visually pleasing.

i genuinely have nothing bad to say about you.

if i talked about a body and it's functions or whatever, you'd be the heart. the epitome of love and fondness and continual beating despite, despite, despite. does that make sense? mmm,, i'll try to figure out how to word this later.

we love you, zee. you're doing great.

My goodness. My, my goodness.

😭😭 I... don't even know what to s a y?? Like, what can I even say at this point??

I'm going to be completely honest, it's been a few days. I received this a while ago and I'm so sorry I'm getting back to it late, but when I first read it, I was completely dumbfounded. This needed to MARINATE. Needed to SINK IN.

and I'm okay now. 🥹 Gosh, do you know how liberating it is to say that? In any aspect of the word, no matter how little or how deep it goes.

Lemme just...,,,

This is probably the most poetic way anyone's ever described something about me. Like, if I ever had the pleasure of being remembered by equally as beautiful and poetic people in this lifetime, I do believe it would look and read like this.

I always say it, I think, but I'll say it again because I'm not tired of it: seeing myself through other people's eyes is an essential thing to my being and this has caused an entire nebula of serotonin to explode from the crown of my head and has reached every single nerve ending throughout my body, and it spreads like liquid gold: warm and viscous and boy, it has left me shining.

I thank you from the bottom of my heart (("you'd be the heart" THAT PART??? 😭😭🫀 DO YOU TRULY MEAN THAT?? IM PUTTING THIS AS MY OFFICIAL PROFILE DESCRIPTION FOR THE REST OF. FOREVER!! YEAH!!)), and for you? I'll always do my best to remain bright-tongued and dew-eyed.

Because if I've got shawtys out here describing me like this?? It means I've done something very, very right, and I never want to let that go or give anyone whom I love dearly ANY reason to believe otherwise.

Of course I know people make mistakes— and I know I'm far from perfect. But just being here and doing my best is enough. You guys helped teach me this, and I am forever grateful.

Y'all make me better 🥹🥰.

I love you so, so much. Thank you for being my friend. I love you. 🥰😭🧡

[hechiima]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Thought this would be fun with the end of the year!

1. How many works do you have on A03?

31.

2. What's your total A03 word count?

398,723. I'm really proud of this number tbh; never thought I'd write this much. Was hoping to hit 400k by the end of 2023 but I don't think that's gonna happen. Here's to hoping I hit half a million by this time next year!

3. What fandoms do you write for?

AA/DGS

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

You Ever Been In Love?

Things Are As They Are

On the Morality of Birds

Awkward Business

The View from the Gallery

No DGS fics. I know its a smaller fandom so it makes sense but still. 🥲 Also I swear I'll finish Awkward Business someday I'm just. So deep into Sherlock Holmes/DGS hell atm. ;A;

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I never do unless it's a specific question. I used to but then I got overwhelmed/I never knew what to say so I just stopped. That said, I read all of them and they really mean a ton to me!!!

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Prob Running Late or Shoulder Pain. I'm not really good with angsty endings so I usually only keep it angsty in the shorter fics lmao.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Lololol I think most of my fics have happy endings so that's a hard one.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Nope! Thankfully, I think the hate on fics trend has died down a lot since the ff.net days.

9. Do you write smut?

Hell yeah. Please read my smut I'm so proud of it. I'm also on a quest to boost the hmmk smut tag on ao3 so if y'all have any smut you wanna see for them lmk.

10. Do you write crossovers?

Nope. My dream fic of a holmesverse crossover will happen someday though.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Thankfully no.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes! I've had a few translated to Russian and Chinese. Honestly it's insanely flattering when ppl ask to translate a fic like ough you liked my story so much you wanted to share it with others who don't speak English? It's so sweet. ;A;

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Okay so Mango and Krissey and I started an amazing pirate AU and l adore it. And someday. We will finish it. I believe in us. I'd love to co-write a fic tho so if anyone's interested please hmu I think it'd be so so fun.

14. What's your all-time favourite ship?

Ugh. Johnlock/Hmmk or Nrmt have to be like. The only ships that made me insane enough to write multiple fics over so it's def them. I love insanely codependant relationships.

15. What's the WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

There's so many. But off the top of my head, I have a fantasy AU that Beau and I came up with that I still love a ton (Finding You) and want to finish and a Edgeworth ends up in a Gregory lives AU (In Another Life) that I'm not sure if I'll ever finish. The former is just so much work and the latter I've kinda lost the plot thread so. Ough. Sorry.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Dialogue!

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

aksfjjalsjflsjf everything else LMAO. That's why we practice!

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I don't love doing it? I've done it like once for a fic where language was important but other than that I try to avoid doing it.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

....hetalia..........it was the only other fandom i wrote for before AA. This was like in 2009/2010 tho I know better now but those fics ARE still up on fanfiction.net (: It sucks b/c sometimes I wanna compare my old writing to my current writing but I'm like ough. I cannot read these old fics.

20. Favourite fic you've ever written?

I'd have to say A Study In Gold. I genuinely love that one so much. Thinking about hmmk early days makes me insane. I also really liked On the Morality of Birds b/c it was just such a supremely stupid fic.

@anyone who sees this and writes fic please feel free to do it! I'd love to see others talk about their fics <3

[candyskiez]

20 questions for fic authors

thank you to my lovely mutual @zyrafowe-sny for the tag! for my no pressure tagging, only if you wanna, @phantasmaltrain @thousand-winters @kolapon @msbadatnamingthings @violet-prism-creatively @sir-ballister-boldheart @bleezebrew and anyone else who wants to join in!

how many fics do you have on ao3?

18! most are shoved to pseuds because I do not want them associated w me anymore but I don't want to make it so people who like the fics can't find more by me because that shit drives me insane.

what's your total ao3 word count?

29,876

what fandoms do you write for?

the owl house, mostly. I'm planning on expanding to more, writing for several more fandoms now in fact. but I mean if you've seen one of my fics somewhere, it's probably from owl house.

what are your top five fics by kudos?

an open book (with a torn out page) is very much in the lead still, stubborn is in second, loyal is in third, eggwart salad in fourth, and identity in fifth. I do think most of that is the toh fics being that popular because hunter + they were made during the show being super !!!!!, so when I post more fics the rating will probably change more. one day I'll actually finish more lmao I'm sorry guys I'm busy as shit.

do you respond to comments? why or why not?

I try to! because when I'm commenting I'm always worried I'm being annoying andbtoo much about the fic and bugging the author so me replying is me trying to say "hey!!! I really appreciate this!!!!", although sometimes I just don't know what to say and ghost (sorry!!!!)

what's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

ohhh god I gotta talk about my old fics great /lh, cold probably. I think it's the only FULLY hurt no comfort I've ever written? it and settle for a ghost. I'm leaning towards cold because

A. I hate settle for a ghost /lh

B. cold is literally about Pure Pain. there is no silver lining there is no "this character in canon gets a happy ending", it's just "this character is gonna die horribly in a few days, here's some angst"

what's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I mean, eggwart salad is entirely father son fluff. it's just darius loving his weird son for several thousand words. but if we're talking fics with some sadder parts with a happier ending, probably happy new year, dear, or maybbbeeeee roses and lilies? I used to write a lot of that shit. man I need to write more of it.

do you get hate on fics?

not yet

do you write smut? if so, what kind?

none published no. that is all I'm gonna say and y'all can mind your business on everything else /lh

do you write crossovers? what's the craziest one you've written?

nope! never been my forte besides shit like in the setting of another media. ex, what if [x] character was a pokemon trainer and that shit.

have you ever had a fic stolen?

not to my knowledge but they've probably been gobbled up by an ai at least once 😔

have you ever had a fic translated?

nope

have you ever cowriten a fic before?

that depends on your definition! I've done a lot of things where me and a group will brainstorm an idea together, make into a fully fledged thing and we'll all suggest dialogue. some of those conversations have become fics, sometimes even with my dialogue and a lot of my ideas. so I guess...yeah, I've cowriten fics! if that's your definition.

what's your all-time favorite ship?

hmmm, I'm not as much of a shipper anymore. but I did love twohina back in 2020-2021-2022 (ifykyk) and I do have a soft spot for raeda. goldenheart is currently blorboing though and I do love huntlow. and oh I love zukka! I don't know if I really have a favorite ship, though.

what's a wip you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

I really really really REALLY wanna finish dadrius week and am trying so hard. but ohhh my god my life is on fucking fire lately July just kind of exploded and it's been downhill from there lmao. but I'm slowly getting back up again so hopefully I do finish it. sorry gang my life's been on fire. as y'all have probably noticed lmao.

what's your writing strengths?

INTROSPECTION!!!! ohhh my god. character studies I like to think I can do pretty well! character analysis is my special interest. give me a character and I will find a way to give them depth so help me god.

what's your writing weaknesses?

ohhhh god. describing actions. like hand motions, fight motions, movements, expressions, visual shit, or anything descriptive, or just! shit like that! it's insane!! I don't fuckin know how!!!!

thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I have no fucking clue how and considering I want to write more luz stuff I really should learn. the problem is I Have No Fucking Clue How. do you see the issue.

first fandom you wrote for?

warriors, not on ao3. first fandom bb.

favorite fic you've ever written?

open book! I think it holds up pretty well, although I do wish I focused more on how the secret effects gus. one day I really want to sit down and write something with him , I just need to get in his head more. I do think my hunter characterization was pretty good there? I think? I hope so. I need to work on him again, he's tough to nail down.

thanks for the tag, and I hope you enjoyed seeing my thoughts :D

for anyone curious, my ao3 is here! mind the spoilers!

[ourstaturestouchtheskies]

an update 🥰

hi everyone!

I hope you're all doing well! it occurs to me that I never actually said this, but I was on vacation with limited access to internet this past week and just got back this afternoon which is why I haven't been super active (all of my posts are on a queue which is why I still posted every day lol)

but I just wanted to give you all a little update on some fun stuff coming to this blog in the near future 💙

info posts!!

just to kick things off, I'm going to start out with one of my favorite motifs: vanitas/memento mori (hoping to get this one out tomorrow)

then, based on the polls, most folks were interested in seeing overviews of whole periods/styles and the most popular of those were the gothic/medieval revival of the late 1800s and then the high gothic/international gothic period of the middle ages itself. however, I received a special request to do carravagesque baroque (thanks so much for your interest and enthusiasm @ilikeitbetterangsty 🥰), so I think I'll start with that one and then go onto the others

eras tour!!

I'm going to the eras tour in minneapolis, and to celebrate I wanted to do like a ten day countdown, with each day being somehow themed to one of taylor swift's albums. I decided to edit each album cover with a historical painting that resembled the original cover art, so I will be posting one of those a day starting the 13th, along with an edit of a lyric from that album (non taylor swift fans I'm so sorry about this - feel free to block the tag "taylor swift eras (art history version)" if you don't want ten days of these edits on your dash)

art history tarot!!

lastly, idk if I've ever mentioned it here before, but I really love tarot art and I have a growing collection of absolutely stunning tarot decks. since I love both art history and tarot, I thought I would make a little tarot deck of my own and post the cards here! I have the first few already made and I'm thinking I'll probably post one every other day, and then just have normal edits on the non-tarot days. I'll start with the major arcana, and I can keep going if y'all want to see the rest, or I can stop there

okay, I know that was a lot, but I just wanted to update you all on some of the fun stuff I have planned!

as always, feel free to reach out if you have any questions, comments, requests, etc. - I'm always happy to talk! ☺️

yours in art,

charlotte 💙

[hobbitinneverland]

Hi everyone! I know I'm not too much active on here anymore. This has couple important (for me) reasons.

Firstly my university (YOU CAN'T DISTURB ME ON HERE GTU!) literally loves make my life miserable.

Well the second reason is connected with the first one. Lab reports! They take my whole week most of the times. Also I study a lot for making my GPA between 3.0-4.0, and I'm not gonna lie, in my university making your GPA 3 is really f*cking hard if I compare with other universities in my country. Not a great reputation isn't it? Lol

Third reason is when I have some time for relaxing I try to use this time with sleeping and watching movies/series.

I'll try to come here on this week because I have something's going on and I'm really excited about it.

Well I'm going to see CAT STEVENS/YUSUF ISLAM in this week!!! I'm this 🤏 close from losing my mind while thinking about it! I hope I could go to see him without any problems. I bought my ticket for a month ago but didn't want to talk about it because of bad luck even I don't believe that much, i didn't want to risk it. 😅

The other good news I got in Rover Team! This was really important for me and I've been waiting response for three weeks. So that means most of my time will go there to beside from my university.

I'm definitely not leaving here but I really don't have enough time for looking every post of my lovely mutuals ,even though i love to read and look everything they post, some weeks so I'm sorry for answering the things you had tagged me very late.

I love y'all, take care of yourselves! 💕

[exar547]

Didn't think i'd see myself making this anytime soon since for a while i've just been a small Tumblr artist, but since i'm gaining a bit of attention lately might as well. Read below to know some stuff about me!!

Howdy, shalom, however y'all greet. I'm Exar. I'm a neurodivergent unlabeled artist who moved from Twitter to Tumblr a bit ago! My pronouns are he/him, they/them and ey/em. I don't really have any kind of sona or blog mascot or anything (though i do have original characters), so you'll have to rely on a no-facer to recognize me

I mostly count as a fandom artist as of writing since i've yet to post any OC content, but that's subject to change. I'm an everything artist. My interests change pretty quickly, but no matter what: I love robots. A lot. Think Wheatley or Fandrew or Wall-E or Axis 014, those kinds of robots. If something i see has a robot with a personality, i am immediately going to like that character.

Here's some of my personal tags to organize stuff:

#exar artwork - I tag all my fully finished artwork here! If you wanna see some of the stuff i've drawn i recommend browsing this one.

#exar doodles - This is similar to the one above, but it's for artwork that might be just a sketch, or unshaded or simply a doodle as said. Thought i'd separate them for those that only wanna see the fully shaded/rendered stuff.

#exar talks - Just me rambling. Not much to it.

#exar reblogs - I tag this on everything i reblog! I have forgotten to do so a few times, but i think it's become enough of a habit to not be forgotten at this point. (also, i usually have something to say in the tags of my reblogs, but not always)

#exar shitposts - Name is self-explanatory; i post whatever dumb shit i feel like posting.

#exar writing - Very very recently made tag, i'll mostly post links to my AO3 or Wattpad fics here. Though, i might post some other writing-related stuff other than that.

#exar asks - The tag i'll use every time i answer an ask!

Hope this post tells you a bit about who i am, feel free to explore my blog. Or don't.

(P.S. sorry that clicking on the tags doesn't send you straight to searching them, i don't know how to put tags on Tumblr posts outside of the actual tags section below this text. help appreciated)

[khoicesbyk]

The Royal Romance.

Love Everlasting.

A/N: I had a different name and plot for this fic over a year ago. But after being in the RP community for more than a year, I've decided to write the current Royal Life of my favorite OTP.

Rated: Mature (at times can and will be Explicit. I'll be sure to change the rating when and if that happens). | Contains sexual content and strong language. (You know? The usual. Y'all should be used to this from me by now 😁) | Bolded and/or italicized words are conversations and thoughts of the characters. | Main Characters: King Marquise Rys (LI) and Queen Shanelle Miller-Rys (MC) | All Characters and names: (except MC and original characters created by me and/or other authors [their characters have been mentioned and/or used in the story with their permission] ) are property of Pixelberry.

Current Word Count: 50K words. (may be slightly more or may be slightly less. Look, I stop counting after editing and re-editing and driving myself insane. 🤷🏾‍♀️)

If you’d like to be added to my tag list. Just reblog or dm me and I will gladly add you! 😁😘

This series is rated Mature and/or Explicit. It is NOT reading material that is safe for those under 18. Reader discretion is STRONGLY advised!

Missing a chapter or want to read a chapter again? I got you covered! Click ——> Here!

Tag List: @choicesficwriterscreations

TW: Mentions of Cancer. Reader Discretion is STRONGLY ADVISED!

Matrimony. Part 3.

The next day came bright and early and before Shanelle knew it she was at her duchy, with Marquise, her parents, and especially her girls. She and the girls were all congregated on her bed.

“Girl!!! How many rooms do you have in this place?” Bron asked.

“36 bedrooms with 56 bathrooms in total in the main estate. Plus 14 guest cottages and 10 servants' quarters.” Shanelle replied.

“And it's all yours?” Dee asked.

“All. Mine!” Shanelle replied.

“Since it's all yours, can we go back to the wine cellar?” Nina asked.

“Which one? I got like 12 of them here.” Shanelle replied.

“Well shit! In that case, let's go through all of them!” Nina said. 

“Drunk. Ass.” Rob said to her. 

“H! A! P! P! I! L! Y!” Nina sang. 

The girls laughed. 

“Seriously. Thank y'all so much for coming to Cordonia.” Shanelle said to her girls.

“Chile! Thank your boyfriend. He flew us out on private jets.” Rob replied.

“You mean he spoiled you?” Shanelle asked.

“Yeah pretty much. I don't wanna fly any other way.” Rob replied. 

The girls laughed. 

“It's so good to have a friendly face around here.”

“What do you mean Shan?” Aly asked.

Shanelle sighed.

“A lot of the nobles here are still loyal to Marquise’s father and my uncle. So they're being petty and intentionally distant. Oh and then there's the floozie. She's been floating around lately.”

“Why?” Chutney asked.

“Because she's still trying to win my man back. Oh and she tried me yesterday,” Shanelle replied.

The girls all looked at her.

“Don't look at me like that. Y'all heard me loud and clear.” 

“What happened?” Nina asked.

Shanelle told the girls everything that happened the day before. 

“Excuse me?” Bron asked.

Nina looked around. 

“I'm sorry. I must've heard you incorrectly.” Nina said.

“Lemme get this straight: this bitch talked shit about your family and she's still breathing?!” Robin asked.

Shanelle just looked at Robin.

“Oh hell no!” Dee piped up.

“No, she fucking didn't!” Aly hissed.

“This bitch!” Chut seethed.

“Yup. If Marquise hadn't jumped in between us. She'd be dead by now.”

“Why is he defending her?” Nina asked.

“He's not. As much as I don't like the bitch, she's a big fish here. She can put a bug in people’s ears and turn the court against me.” Shanelle replied.

Nina nodded slowly.

“So we are gonna set a trap for the bitch.” Shanelle announced. 

“How?!” the girls asked.

“At the tea next weekend we're going to get her to show her ass right before we beat her ass,” Shanelle replied.

The girls cheered.

“In the meantime, get your best Southern Belle ready, ladies. We are going to the Derby tomorrow.”

The next day dawned bright and early. And after a good breakfast with the ones she loved the most, Shanelle was ready to seize the day. She made sure to coordinate her outfit with the outfits of her girls. She was determined to make sure she and her girls stood out. 

They arrived after Marquise and stole the show. Many were clamoring for a chance with the kingdom’s new Queen Regent. No one had ever seen a Queen dress the way she did. Many were intrigued, some were appalled, and others applauded her boldness to break the mold and standard of what a Queen should be. But all eyes were on her and her girls. Cameras flashed as they walked the red carpet. 

Marquise watched proudly as Shanelle and the girls owned the cameras, the carpet, and the paparazzi. When they got to the private box, there was champagne waiting and the girls were over the moon.

“Oh. My. God! That was amazing!” Bron squealed.

“So much fun!” Nina and Chut agreed.

“Those cameras loved us!” Rob quipped.

“That was so exciting.” Dee added.

“I will never get tired of that,” Aly said proudly.

Marquise chuckled at the girls’ excitement.

“I am very glad to hear you girls had fun walking the red carpet. This event is a big deal.”

“I don't see my parents,” Shanelle said.

“They have their own private box next to this one. See?” 

Marquise showed Shanelle and the girls where her parents were sitting.

“Awwww!” the girls said in unison.

“The box to the right of theirs is where King Edward and Queen Genevieve are sitting. And the box to the left of this one is where Regina and my father are sitting. As I said, The Derby is a big deal. A lot of money is raised and won. And since this is our first event as the new Regents, all eyes are on the two of us.” 

“I like the sound of that.”

“Good. Now get comfortable ladies. The first set of races is about to begin.”

“Question! Do we get to bet on the races?” Rob asked.

Marquise snapped his fingers and a primly dressed man appeared.

“Place your bets with Gustav. And here's hoping one if not all of you win a little money.”

Shanelle watched as the girls scrambled to Gustav and placed bets on the race. 

“How many bets have you placed?” Shanelle asked Marquise.

“A couple. The main race is the one to watch, bet on, and win.” Marquise replied.

“Have fun y'all?” Shanelle asked her crew. 

The girls all answered at once.

“I'll take that as a yes,” Shanelle said with a laugh.

Just then the first race was announced and began shortly after that. The race ended with Nina winning a little money. 

“Congratulations Nina. A $500.00 bet in the Cordonian Dollar converts to a $1,000.00 win in the American dollar.” Marquise said to her. 

“I just won $1,000.00 on one horse?!” Nina asked him.

“Place your bets, ladies. The next race will start soon,” Marquise replied.

Marquise watched the girls place a frenzy of bets. 

“Satisfying isn't it?” he asked Shanelle.

“Yes, it is. Also, I didn't know the Cordonian Dollar was ½ that of the American dollar,” she replied.

“It used to be ¾ of the American dollar but it's depreciated over the years. Thanks to those who shall not be named.”

Shanelle nodded before looking over his shoulder at her parents.

“Is it okay if I go check on them?” Shanelle asked.

“Be my guest,” Marquiss replied. 

Marquise motioned to the guard standing by the door that connected the suites. Shanelle quietly slipped into her parents' suite.

“Well don't you two lovebirds look cozy?” she said to her parents as she sat down next to them.

“It has been a long time since your father took me to a horse race,” Shantel replied. 

“I thought you two used to go to the races all the time.”

“We did until you showed up.” her father piped up.

“Not my fault you two decided to be a couple of horny rabbits.”

Damien rolled his eyes with a smile. 

“How are you enjoying yourself at the race my darling?” he asked Shanelle.

“Me and the girls are having a blast. Nina even won a little money in the last race,” she replied.

“She did? That's wonderful. Now if only your mother would quit being so stubborn.”

Shantel scoffed.

“Oh no, you don't Damien! You are not about to gamble away my retirement money!” 

Damien grumbled under his breath.

“It's okay, Daddy. I'll put a bet in for you.”

“Thank you, my darling.” 

Just then Queen Genevieve walked in. 

“Well isn't this just adorable? The two parasites I mean parents of the woman who will doom us all look mighty comfortable.” she sneered.

Shanelle set her jaw and Shantel rolled her eyes.

“Hello, sister-in-law. Do you need something? Does Edward?” Damien asked.

“No no. I just wanted to see how much damage and destruction Her Regency has done to the kingdom.” Genevieve replied.

“Anything I do for and to Cordonia can't be any worse than the havoc you and your husband have wreaked over the years.” Shanelle snapped at her.

Genevieve scoffed. 

“You'll fail soon enough child. You don't belong here.” Genevieve sneered before walking back into her suite. 

“Don't you dare let what that snake said get to you Shanelle,” Shantel said to her.

“I'm not worried about her momma. I can handle her. I'm worried about you and Daddy. I don't want her or Edward coming after you two.” 

Damien waved her away.

“You don't have to worry about us. Your mother and I can take care of ourselves.” 

“Your dad’s right. We will be just fine.”

“Okay. How was your visit to your duchy Daddy?” Shanelle asked her father.

“It was great. Your mother and I had an amazing time in Granier.” Damien replied.

“We really did. We visited a new vineyard there. It was named after your grandmother.”

Shanelle cleared her throat. 

“Speaking of…Marquise and I went to see them. Well, we went to see where they are buried.”

Damien nodded.

“Good. I have been meaning to take you and your mother to where they were laid to rest for years.”

“I know. It was good to see them. I even saw the inscription of their nicknames. I know that you had something to do with that.” 

“Of course I did. Edward Dominic Miller may be the oldest child and the one who became King but he has never been the only child. Our father's final wishes made sure that I had as much input on his and our mother’s burial as he did.” 

“It made me smile to see it.”

Damien smiled at her.

“Good. The last thing your grandfather said to me was to make sure you got everything you deserved to have.” 

Shanelle smiled softly at Damien. 

“I wish I could've gotten to know them.”

Damien nodded slowly.

“As do I, my darling.”

The race began and ended winning Shanelle money. 

“I knew Starfall Lane would win!” 

“Congratulations my darling. The owners of that horse are also the owners of the odds-on favorite to win the main race, Marabelle’s Dream. They're old friends of mine. They'll be happy to know you went with their horses.”

“I should go. I'll check on you two later.”

“Alright, baby. Have fun.”

Shanelle took one last look at her parents before heading back to her own suite. When she got back she was greeted by a very drunk Bronwyn.

“Princessssssssssss!” she said as she ran up and attached herself to Shanelle. 

“Oh, Good Lord,” Shanelle said as she peeled Bron off of her, “Bron! Baby, how much alcohol have you had?” 

Bron hiccuped.

“Including this glass? Maybeeeeee a bottle and a half?” she replied while swaying and near losing her balance. “Whoooooaaaaaaaaa! Good save Princess!”

Shanelle looked at the girls.

“Why y'all let this child drink so much? You know this girl’s a lightweight!” Shanelle asked as she guided Bron back to her seat.

“They kept serving. We kept drinking.” Nina replied.

“That's it! No more alcohol for y'all!” Shanelle says. 

The girls booed.

“Don't boo me! Y'all are drunk. Off your asses mind you. I don't need y'all wobbling all over the place.”

“Whatever! Where'd you run off to anyway?” Robin asked.

“Went to check on my parents. And while I was there my dad’s monster-in-law showed up.” Shanelle replied.

“His monster-in-law?” Dee asked.

“His brother's wife,” Shanelle replied.

The girls groaned.

“What did she want?” Nina asked.

“Nothing other than to give me my daily reminder that I’m going to destroy Cordonia,” Shanelle replied.

The girls groaned. 

“Exactly,” Shanelle said as she swiped a glass of champagne.

“She won't be at this tea thing next week will she?” Aly asked.

“Unfortunately. She and Queen Regina are required to attend. But that doesn't mean we can't have a little fun at their expense.” Shanelle replies.

“So does that mean we have Carte Blanche to act a fool?” Chut asked.

“As long as you're subtle about it. We want those who don't like me to jump first.” Shanelle replies.

“Say no more.” the girls say to Shanelle. 

“That's why y'all are my squad,” Shanelle said before taking a sip of her champagne, “this is good. No wonder little miss lightweight is drunk.” 

Bronwyn rolled her eyes.

“Ya, mama!” 

“I dare you to walk yo drunk ass over to her suite and say it to her face!” Shanelle dared her.

“Umm, I’m brave, not stupid.”

The girls dissolved into cackles.

“Now can I have another glass please?” Bron asked.

“Just one!” Shanelle replied. 

Bron waved one of the staff members over and plucked a champagne flute off their tray.

“Thank you, Johann!” Bron said to the server.

“Ooh! Look at you being all prim and proper!” Shanelle teased.

“Marquise taught us how to flag down the staff. They're really nice. They call us each Lady.” Bron said before taking a swig of her champagne. 

“Speaking of which, where'd he run off to?” Shanelle asked.

“He was summoned by his dad,” Dee replied.

Shanelle groaned. 

“That is not going to end well,” Shanelle muttered.

“What do you mean by that Shan?” Aly asked.

“To put it mildly, those two hate each other,” Shanelle replied.

“WHAT?!” the girls exclaimed.

“Yeah. They have no relationship. Marquise literally wants nothing to do with Constantine. But he has to deal with him until we're married.” Shanelle replied.

“How bad is it between them?” Robin asked.

“When I came here with him a few months ago, we were in the throne room when Connie threatened to have him hung. So if that isn't a prime example of how bad it is between them then I don’t know what is or will be.” Shanelle replies.

“Yooooooo! Are you serious?” Robin asked.

“Yeah. That was the same day I had met Edward.” Shanelle replies.

“Geez! I can't imagine what that's like.” Bron said.

“Same.” Nina agreed.

That's when raised voices were heard coming from Constantine’s box.

“That's not good. They must be arguing about something major.” 

Just then Marquise walked into the suite. Annoyance and agitation clearly written on his face. With a deep breath and a frustrated hand running down his face, the look on his face changed. 

“Everything okay?” Shanelle asked him.

“Nope. Not even close. But there's nothing I can do about it.” Marquise replies.

“Do you want us to jump him?” Robin asked.

Marquise snorted. 

“While I appreciate your offer, you'd never get past his guards. And I would never forgive myself if they hurt any of you.” Marquise replied.

“That's why we'll get our chance next week.” Shanelle quipped.

“Indeed. Now have any of you made your final bets?” Marquise asked.

“Yep!” the girls replied.

“Good. Because you are in for a surprise.” Marquise said to Shanelle.

“What surprise?” Shanelle asked.

“The winning horse of the main race will be gifted to Her Regency.” He replied.

“I get the winning horse?” Shanelle asked.

“That's what I said,” he replied.

The girls looked at each other.

“Umm, Your Majesty!” Bron said.

“Your Regency actually.” Marquise corrected her.

“Yeah, that too. Umm, is your Spanish Prince friend still available?” Bron asked him.

The girls cackled.

“Bronwyn Davis you just got engaged!” Shanelle said to her.

“I know but still! If that offer of a 90-day marriage still stands, I'm taking it!” Bron said.

“Logan would be so mad at you!” Nina said to Bron.

“Yeah well, when he sees the million-dollar alimony checks start to roll in he'll get over it real quick.”

Shanelle shook her head with a smirk. Just as the main race was announced.

“Let's take our seats and watch who wins,” Marquise said to Shanelle. 

They watched as the horses lined up and soon were off. The winner Marabelle’s Dream won the entire box a lot of money. 

“Congratulations ladies! Enjoy your winnings.” Marquise said to the girls as they cheered.

Shanelle watched her girls collect their winnings before turning her attention to her fiance.

“So are you gonna tell me what you and your father were arguing about?” she asked him.

“Trivial bullshit,” Marquise replies.

“Marquise…”

Marquise shook his head.

“He's pissed that the Derby is going to be given to you and not Regina or Genevieve like it would normally be.”

“He's pissed about a horse?” she asked.

“Yup. Under normal circumstances, the Derby winner is gifted to the Queen. But the owners of this Derby winner have decided to give the horse to you. As a sign of good faith.” he replies.

“You mean as a sign of good faith for the new Monarchy?” she asks.

“Precisely. Now, are you ready to meet your new horse?” he replied.

“Let's go.” 

Marquise led the girls from the suite down to the track, where Shanelle was presented with a dozen red roses and her new horse. 

“First you get me a Corgi and now you get me a horse. Not bad, Your Regency.” Shanelle whispered to him.

“I'm just getting started,” he whispered back. 

The couple snapped a few pictures together before she called her friends over and got a few pictures in with them. When they returned to Shanelle’s duchy everyone was buzzing. Later that night while everyone was off in their rooms, Shanelle was standing on her balcony with Marquise with a glass of wine in her hand. 

“Today went well, don't you think?” she asked him. 

“I think so. A lot of money was won and raised today.” he replied.

“How much of the money raised will go to charity and how much of it will go to the nobility?” she asked.

“Ideally, none of it would go to the nobility but since it does for now, half and half,” he replied before taking a sip of his drink. 

“Just imagine this time next year, all of the money raised will go to charity,” Shanelle said to him. 

“What a glorious future that will be. Did you have fun today?” he asked.

“Yes. I've never been to a Derby before. This was an amazing experience for me. And to be able to share it with you, my parents, and especially the girls, I couldn't ask for anything more.” she replied.

“You can always ask for more. I will always give you more, my love.”

The two smiled at each other as they clinked their glasses together. They spent that Sunday with her friends and her parents touring the new vineyard at her father's duchy. The next week Shanelle and the girls spent the week in Paris strategizing over the Queen’s tea, sightseeing, and even doing a little retail therapy, while Marquise was in Cordonia starting the process of forming the new Monarchy. Her friends were there, he didn’t want her to stress. 

That Saturday was the Queen’s tea. And Shanelle was nervous and excited at the same time. But she was thankful for her girls being there and having her back. As they each got ready, the girls went over the plan to Naya to show her ass.

“Okay so let's go over this one more time, nobody makes a move until she does.” Shanelle said to the girls.

“Yeah yeah, whatever! Just let me know when we get to beat her ass.” Nina replied.

Shanelle snickered.

“Chile! You gonna give me a bad name,” Shanelle said to Nina.

“As you always say bestie, if you stay ready and y’aint gotta get ready.” Nina said with a shrug. 

Shanelle nodded. 

“Amen! Well, ladies, I’m ready. Let's go turn this shit out.” Shanelle announced.

With one final look in the mirror, the girls were out the boutique door and headed to the main dining room where the tea is being held. After looking around and appraising the theme and decor, Shanelle was impressed.

“Alright, y'all. This is it. You ready?” she asked her girls.

“Hell yeah!” they replied.

Shanelle nodded before turning to Gladys.

“Open the doors, Gladys.”

Gladys nodded before opening the doors. Soon the dining room was filled with many of the ladies of the court. Including Naya, Queen Genevieve, and Queen Regina. Once everyone was seated Shanelle stood up to give her welcome remarks.

“Good afternoon one and all! I am truly honored and humbled that many of you have joined me here at my duchy for this tea. This is the first of many events that I will be hosting. I know that many of you don't know me and I don't know you, but after today I hope to change that. That way we can begin to form a strong and thriving Cordonia. So please do enjoy yourselves this afternoon.” Shanelle said to the ladies in the room.

As the crowd began to mill about, Shanelle returned to her friends.

“Well, that was nerve-wracking but I did it!” 

“You did great! I heard so many people compliment your outfit.” Robin told her. 

“Thank you, babe. Now the game really begins.” 

Shanelle looked across the room at the many different ladies.

“So now comes the fun. So ladies, how about a game of divide and conquer?” Shanelle asked the girls. “And no throwing drinks on people. Yet.”

The girls laughed before dispersing into the crowd. Shanelle was reminded of what Marquise had told her, that this tea was also a great networking opportunity for her. She spent most of the time at the tea making the rounds. Meeting and greeting as many of the ladies as possible.

As Shanelle was in the garden speaking to a Duchess of a lesser-known noble house, Naya struck.

“Hello, Duchess Mildred! It's been too long.” Naya said to the Duchess.

“Hello, Princess Naya. Indeed it has been. May I help you?” the Duchess asked.

“Yes actually. Do you mind if I steal Her Regency for a moment?” Naya asked the Duchess. Shanelle silently prayed the Duchess would say no, but unfortunately, she obliged Naya.

“Sure. I'm sure Her Regency and I will get the chance to speak again.” the Duchess said as she left. Leaving Shanelle with Naya and her cronies. 

“Well, this event isn't as much of a disaster as I thought it would be. Although you still don't belong here or with him.” Naya sneered. 

“And yet here I am. And I’m still engaged to His Regency.” Shanelle shot back.

Naya scoffed. 

“Not for long.” Naya spat at Shanelle.

“You rejected my invitation weeks ago. So what are you doing here Naya?” Shanelle asked.

“Oh, I was always going to turn you down. I wouldn't be caught dead attending any event that you’re hosting. But I was invited to a tea by the actual Queens of Cordonia and I would never disrespect them by saying no.” Naya replied.

Shanelle looked through the doors to see the Queens who were whispering to each other at a table and rolled her eyes.

“Are you here to antagonize me or does this conversation have a point?” Shanelle asked.

“Although I should just sit back, relax, and watch you inevitably crash and burn like the failure that you are, I’m actually here to help you out,” Naya replied.

“How generous of you Princess,” Shanelle said as she rolled her eyes.

“Yes, quite. Not that you deserve my help, allow me to introduce you to a few of the ladies of the court. Meet Duchess Kayla Nottingham of House Vescovi, Duchess Kaitlyn Winslow of House Fierro, Lady Jacqueline Yearling of House Weathermane, Lady Patricia Cullen of House Aster, Baroness Diana Ericson of House DiVello, Baroness Bianca Varness of Comery Isle, and lastly, Countess Madeleine Amaranth of House Amaranth.” Naya said as she introduced each of the ladies.

Shanelle smiled politely.

“It's nice to meet each of you, ladies.”

Naya scoffed.

“My dears, meet the woman who will plunge us all into debt, death, and despair,” Naya said to the ladies as she introduced Shanelle. 

“It must really bother you that Marquise is my soon-to-be husband.” Shanelle quipped. 

Naya waved her off.

“Oh please. You two won't make it to a year.”

Shanelle shook her head.

“It must really bother you that he chose someone who isn't a drunk just like her mother.”

“Excuse me?!” Naya’s voice raised. 

“Yes, I know all about her and how she died. I even know about the ladies you brought with you. I also know you thought bringing them with you would intimidate me but it doesn't. Take Countess Madeleine for example. I know she was engaged to Marquise’s older brother Leo. But thanks to their dad it was a disaster and inevitably it fell apart. Shortly thereafter, Leo abdicated. I also know that Lady Jacqueline’s older brother was convicted in Italy of a double murder. I also know that both Baronesses are half-sisters because their father couldn't keep it in his pants or to Baroness Diana’s mother. Lady Patricia’s father and uncle are under investigation by Interpol, for their business dealings with the Saudi government. Duchess Kayla has all but squandered her family’s fortune on get-rich-quick schemes, and Duchess Kaitlyn has been accused of being a spy for the kingdom of Gemmora. But I bet you didn't think I would know any of that, did you, Princess?” Shanelle asked. 

Naya was stuck.

“That's what I thought.”

“Why you insolent little mutt!” Naya sneered as she stepped to Shanelle.

“Who you calling a mutt?” Nina asked as she and the girls walked up.

“This is a private conversation that doesn’t involve you!” Naya snapped at Nina.

“Actually it does. Princess Naya meet Nina Keane.” Shanelle said. 

“Why the hell would I want to meet her?” Naya asked.

“Because I thought it was pertinent that Nina meet the woman who set her brother up.” Shanelle replies.

“I don’t even know her brother!”

“You know how you called my ex and lied to him? That very same ex is her twin brother.” Shanelle said.

Naya cleared her throat.

“Not that I owe either one of you an explanation, but I've already apologized to Marquise for my indiscretion.”

“You mean you stood in his bedroom doorway and tried to play the victim?” Shanelle asked.

Shanelle's crew cackled, and she knew Naya was close to snapping; she just needed to push her a little more over the edge.

“You know it's sad that you, a woman who's supposed to be of such high regard and social status, would degrade and humiliate herself for a man who has repeatedly told her that he doesn't want her. As a matter of fact, I wonder what your husband would think if he found out you were actively continuing to throw yourself at Marquise.” 

Shanelle could see Naya was about to break.

“It must really truly bother you that at the end of this tea, I'll be the one in his bed. I'll be the one he wakes up to tomorrow morning. It must infuriate you that I'm the one he loves. And it must break your heart that I'm the one he'll be marrying. Not you. You made your decision, Naya. And Marquise made his. His decision is me and me alone. Not. You.”

Naya seethed before she shoulder-checked Shanelle as she stomped back inside the estate with her friends behind her. 

“Now can we beat her ass?” Nina asked impatiently.

“Patience my young grasshopper. Besides, it's time for my closing remarks. We are gonna end this thing with a bang. So get ready.” Shanelle replies as she leads the girls back inside. 

As they made their way back inside, whispered words could be heard. Most of them are positive and in Shanelle’s favor. One positive word, in particular, came from Olivia Nevrakis, the Duchess of Lythikos. Marquise told her Olivia is extremely hard to impress but it seems that she's achieved the seemingly impossible. 

As the girls made their way back to their seats, Nina took the opportunity to have a little fun. She walked past Queen Genevieve and hip-checked her, causing her to spill her drink all over the table.

“Why you clumsy little!” Queen Genevieve seethed. “Look at what you've done!” 

“Oh my goodness! I'm so sorry! It was an accident!” Nina apologized.

“I should have you arrested for this!” Genevieve sneered.

“Come now, Genevieve. It was an accident. It's not like she meant to do it on purpose.” Shanelle said to Queen Genevieve.

Shanelle walked away with Nina while hiding stifling her laugh

“Have fun babe?” Shanelle asked her best friend.

“I sure did,” Nina replied proudly.

“Good. Now let's head back to our seats.”

She and Nina walked to their table where Nina took her seat, and Shanelle remained standing to give her ending remarks. 

“Once again, I would like to thank all of you for joining me here today. I know that many of you had a preconceived notion about me and I accept that. I'm a newcomer here. Many of you have been here for decades. But it is my sincere hope that I was able to change your minds, at least some of your minds, about me. So again, thank you so much for spending your afternoon with me here at my duchy.”

That's when Naya stood up and walked over to Shanelle.

“If I may, I'd like to propose a toast to Her Regency. If she doesn't mind?”

Shanelle internally rolled her eyes.

“Go right ahead, Princess.”

Naya smiled venomously at Shanelle. Luckily, her girls were ready to jump.

“Your Regency I'd like to toast to you. May you not be the common American mutt you've always been. Although I don't have any high hopes for you as Queen, here's to praying that you don't doom us all to hell. Because let's all be honest, you don't belong here or with His Regency. But here you proudly stand with your god-awful-looking goons at your side. Ready to ruin the only kingdom many of us call home. Cheers.”

Naya ended her toast by throwing her drink at Shanelle. That's when her girls stood up ready to throw hands.

“OH HELL NO!” Rob shouted. 

“Oops! It seems I've accidentally spilled my drink. Do forgive me for being so clumsy, Your Regency.” Naya said mockingly.

“NOW CAN WE BEAT HER ASS?!” Nina asked.

“You know what?” Shanelle replied.

That was all it took for Shanelle to swing on Naya. Naya stumbled back then looked at Shanelle in shock.

“Something you need to know about this American mutt and her goons: Bitch…we fight.” Shanelle said before she tackled Naya to the ground. 

And the fight was on. 

When Naya’s friends tried to intervene, Shanelle’s crew was right there to back her up. Many of the guests had to get out of dodge as shoes, glasses, and other objects were thrown as well as fists. You would've thought that it was an episode of Bad Girls Club. It took over three dozen guards to separate the two groups of women. And when the dust settled, Shanelle and her crew stood tall.

“Gladys!” Shanelle shouted.

“Yes, Your Regency?” Gladys asked.

“Get this bitch and her scallywags the fuck out of my estate!” Shanelle replies.

Gladys nodded resolutely.

“And oh! One more thing, Gladys. You see those two old crones cowering in the corner over there?” Shanelle asked, pointing to Regina and Genevieve.”You can throw their no good asses out too!” Shanelle growled. 

“At once Your Regency!”

“Are you insane, child?” Queen Genevieve asked.

“This is outrageous!” Queen Regina shouted. 

That's when Shanelle put her foot down. 

“Shut up! Both of you! I have had all I am going to take out of the two of you! Whether you two or anyone else likes it or not: I am the next Queen! And I will not be disrespected! Not by you two, not by Naya, not by her scallywag friends or anyone else for that fucking matter! And since you two invited the bitch, you can leave with her.”

Shanelle looked at Naya.

“And you! If you ever step to me and mine again…” Shanelle sneered.

“Bitch it's on sight!” Nina said.

“All fucking day!” Robin added.

“Y’all fucked around and found out!” Bron quipped

“GET THEM OUT OF HERE NOW!” Shanelle shouted. 

Everyone left in attendance watched as Regina, Genevieve, Naya, and her friends all screamed and shouted in protest as they were dragged out of Shanelle’s estate. Once they were gone Shanelle turned to her friends behind her. 

“Y’all good?” she asked.

“Yeah. We good.” Rob answered. 

Shanelle turned to Nina with a smirk.

“You feel better?” Shanelle said to her. 

“Yeah. It felt really good to beat her ass.” Nina replied. 

The two smiled at each other. That's when Olivia spoke up.

“Well, it's about damn time someone put that spoiled brat and those two bats in their places. You did well, Your Regency.”

Shanelle nodded.

“Thank you, Duchess Olivia. I appreciate your kind words.”

“Please. Call me Olivia. And you're welcome. Now I don’t know about the others that are still here but, if you need it, you have a friend in Lythikos.”

“Duchess Olivia is right.” Duchess Mildred spoke up, “we stand with you, Your Regency. You have comported yourself admirably. I honestly don’t know that I would have had the grace to put up with the Princess and her incessant pestering.” 

Shanelle nodded. 

“Thank you, everyone. And Olivia, I'm sorry about your dress.”

Olivia waved her off. 

“It's a dress. I'll be fine. Now I think you have a mess to clean up but I also think you sent one hell of a message.”

Shanelle chuckled softly.

“And what message is that?” she asked Olivia. 

“Don't fuck with me,” Olivia replied with a wink before leaving. 

Shanelle watched as the rest of the guests filed out. When everyone was gone, Shanelle let out a breath she didn't know she was holding before turning to her friends. 

“I don’t know what I would've done if you girls weren't here. I appreciate y'all more than you know.” Shanelle said as her voice hitched. 

“There was no way we would let you do this by yourself, babe. Especially me. It's been us against the world for years. And that's the way it's gonna stay.”  Nina said to her.

“Hell yeah!” the girls say in agreement. 

Shanelle shook her head with a smile.

“FabBabes for life!” Shanelle said to her girls.

“All day bitches!” the girls say back. 

The girls laughed together. 

“Now there's glass and shit everywhere and we're all barefoot. So be careful where you step.” Shanelle said as she and the girls began to make their way out of the dining room.

After a trip to the infirmary, a good long hot soaking bath, a good meal, and a change of clothes, Shanelle and the girls were sitting on her bed enjoying some wine. They may have been battered and bruised but the girls were victorious. 

“Whew! What a goddamn day. Amirite?” Shanelle asked her crew.

“Chile! We proved why we're the baddest today.” Bron replied.

“Come on somebody!” Rob agreed. 

“So just so we're clear. She's been calling you an American mutt this whole time?” Aly asked.

“Yup. The entire time that I've been here I've been an American mutt.” Shanelle replied.

“Mmmhmm. She needed her ass beat.” Dee quipped.

“Agreed.” Chutney agreed. 

Shanelle snickered.

“Y’all are the greatest support system a girl could ever ask for.”

“I just have one question. What do you think your fiance will do when he finds out?” Rob asks.

“He already knows,” Marquise replied as he walked into the room.

The girls all look at him as he walks into the room. 

“How do you know what happened?” Nina asked.

“A.) it's my job to know. B.) I had hidden cameras installed on the off chance Naya would show her ass. And apparently, I was right.” Marquise replies.

The girls looked at each other. 

“I'm gonna say this now, you sir, are weird as hell,” Bron said to him.

Marquise shrugged.

“Maybe. Or maybe it's the fact that I know how Naya operates. She is the type that will instigate a fight or argument and then play the victim. And I knew she wouldn't pass up an opportunity to try and humiliate Shanelle in public.” 

“Your ex has issues.” Rob pipes up.

“Ones that I'm so happy to unsubscribed from,” he said as he poured himself a glass of wine.

“So what happens now?” Dee asked.

Marquise reached into his pocket and pulled out a small flash drive.

“Simple. I make a phone call and the camera footage on this flash drive exposes Naya and stops whatever attempt she’ll try to make, to make Shanelle look bad.” Marquise replied.

Marquise smirked before pulling out his phone and dialing a number.

“Who are you calling?” Shanelle asked.

“Donnie! Listen I’m sorry to call you so late but you know that one favor you owe me? Yeah, that one…” he said as he walked away. 

“Who's Donnie?” Chut asked.

“Donnie is the Editor-in-Chief for the CBC,” Shanelle replies.

“What's that?” Dee asked.

“Think CNN but strictly Cordonian. According to Marquise, Donnie has covered the Royal Families for years.” 

“You mean he's talking to the press?” Nina asked.

“Talked to and convinced him to run a counter-story to the press release that Naya is having drafted that says she and her entourage were unfairly attacked by Shanelle and her friends.” Marquise replied. 

The girls all started talking at once. 

“Whoa! Whoa! Calm down ladies! By this time tomorrow, Donnie will have the footage and the story ready to publish on Monday. So you all have nothing to worry about.”

“Except for finishing this bottle of wine,” Nina said as she poured herself a glass. 

“You are gonna drink me out of house and home!” Shanelle said to her.

“And your point?” Nina asked before downing her drink.

Everyone in the room broke out into laughter. The girls spent the rest of the night gossiping and giggling. The next day it was time to say goodbye. And the girls weren't ready to say goodbye. 

“I don't wanna goooooo!” Bron whined.

“We knowwwwww!” Rob, Dee, and Chut agreed.

“Hmmmm…maybe I can convince Thom to film a movie here.” Aly quipped.

Shanelle shook her head with a smile.

“Awww! C’mere girls!” Shanelle said to her friends. 

They all came together for one big group hug.

“You girls don't have to leave.” 

“Really?” Nina asked.

“Yes really. Y'all don't have to leave. But y'all getting the fuck up outta here! Bye! Get out!” Shanelle replied.

The girls booed as Shanelle cackled.

“Look I’m trying to fuck my fiance at all hours of the night and I’m not trying to have an audience.” 

The girls each made a face.

“But in all seriousness, thank you all so much. I had the greatest time. And we got to whoop that trick.”

“Ayyy!” the girls replied.

Shanelle laughed as the private cars came around. 

“Y’all be sure to text me when each of you lands.”

The girls saluted before getting into their respective cars and pulling off. Shanelle watched until the cars were out of view before she walked back to the entrance where Marquise was waiting with open arms. 

“I hope you had fun this weekend my love.”

She felt him wrap his arms around her.

“I did. Having them here meant the world to me. Fighting and all.”

He kissed her forehead.

“Stop that,” she said to him.

“Why?” he asked.

“Because I’m beginning to love it,” she whispered.

He smirked before kissing her forehead softly again.

“That's the point, my love. I want you to love it.”

She slid her arms around his neck. 

“Why are we still outside? The faster we get inside, the faster I get to rip this suit off of you,” she said to him.

He shook his head before leading her inside the estate. Once inside he picked her up and carried her back to her bedroom. Once inside her bedroom, she wasted no time pulling him into a deep kiss. As he walked her backward to the bed their legs got tangled and they tumbled onto the mattress causing the two to break out into laughter. 

“Have I told you I love you?” he asked her.

“Lately?” she replied 

He rolled his eyes with a smirk.

“Yes, Tyrese. Lately.”

“No. But you can always tell me now.”

“Why tell you when I can show you?” he asked.

“Show me how?” she asked.

“Like this…” he trailed off. 

He crashed his lips into hers. She felt his passion, his hunger, and especially his lust for her at that moment. He went from kissing her lips, to kissing down her jaw and neck. Only stopping to nibble on her earlobe. He trailed soft slow kisses down her neck until he was sucking and gently scraping on her pulse line with his teeth. She moaned softly. He stopped long enough to look into her eyes.

"God I love making you do that."

He kissed her again before pulling her down towards the giant mattress under the stars.

"I am yours, Your Regency."

"Damn right you're mine. Now, let's get you out of this outfit."

His mouth found hers as they quickly undressed each other. He kissed his way from her lips, down her neck, and across her collarbone. He placed hungry and heated kisses all down and across her breasts. He listened to her chest rise and fall with each breath that she took.

"God I need you," she whispered. 

"As you wish, my Queen."

He went back to kissing down her lower body. He rolled over onto his back with her sitting on his face.

"Marquise!" she moaned softly.

"Try not to scream so loud we wouldn't want to scare the staff. Ohhh and you might want to hang on."

When he descended onto her clit she nearly jumped out of her skin. All she could feel was his mouth.

"Fuck yes! Feels so good!" She screamed as she leaned back on her knees as she rode his tongue.

Her body was on fire. His mouth felt like heaven. Every time he made a sound it would send shockwaves shooting through her. Her clit throbbed harder and harder every time she felt his tongue slide over it.

"Mmmmmmm..." he hummed as he feasted on her.

"Shit! Marquise! Don't stop! Don't stop! God! Don't! Stop!” She shouted.

Shanelle was about to break and he knew it. With his arms tightened around her thighs he went for it. He drove his tongue inside her hot core and didn't stop until he heard her scream. Her thighs twitched and her body shuddered as her orgasm shredded everything in its path. When he let her go he could still taste her on his lips.

"So fucking good!" He said as he licked his fingers and winked at her.

"God, you don't play fair!" She said while trying to catch her breath.

"You forget Kings don't play fair."

She rolled her eyes at him.

He slowly dragged his tongue up her body. Stopping only to play with her breasts. At this point, he wanted and needed to be inside her in the worst way possible.

"Fuck! Come here." He said to her.

He needed to feel her. He wanted to feel her vaginal muscles clench and release. When he brought her to her feet he plunged his tongue into her mouth. With his lips still on hers he positioned himself between her legs.

With a condom on, he inhaled sharply as he circled her entrance.

"You ready?" He asked.

When she nodded her head, he thrust his hips forward plunging himself inside her. As he threw her legs over his shoulders, she grabbed the rug underneath her.

"Oh My God! Oh My God! Oh My God! Yes! Yes! Yes!" She shouted.

"That's it, love! Tell me what you want! Tell me how good it feels! Tell me how you like it! I want to hear you, baby!"

He was doing it to her. Just like she always knew him to do. He was using his words to ignite her fire and desire.

"Marquise! Give it to me! Fuck me! I need you! I need this!" She shouted.

"Yeah! That's it, baby! Take it! Take this dick!"

When she looked into his eyes he had this raw carnality in them. Every thrust was more powerful than the last. The grip he had on her thighs tightened. She begged him to give it to her and he was more than happy to oblige. She was getting dangerously close to her climax and he wasn't too far off from his own.

"I-I'm about to cum! I—!" She struggled to say.

"That's it cum on this dick! Let it out! Let it all out! Cum for me!"

He was barely hanging on himself. One final thrust of his hips was all it took to throw her over her edge. Her eyes rolled back and her body shuddered as her orgasm ran through her.

"Yes! Cum on this dick! Cum for me!" He encouraged her. One last roll of his hips was all it took; to take him out.

"Shit!" He hissed as he lost himself with her.

When it was all said and done; they were both breathless, tired, and satisfied.

"Well, that was fun!" He piped up.

Shanelle just shook her head and chuckled.

"You have no idea what you mean to me, do you?" He asked.

"After what just happened I have a pretty good idea. Although it never hurts to compare notes." She replied.

 They snuggled together under the covers.

“This is all I want. You. In my arms. Every night.” 

“Is this before or after you blow my back out?” she asked.

He just snickered.

“Both,” he replied.

“Of course. I want it to be this way every night as well.”

“Good. Now I have to get some sleep. I have to be back at the palace tomorrow.”

“Why can't you stay?” she asked.

“Well, interviews for commission and council heads start tomorrow,” he replied.

Shanelle nodded.

“Now you don't have to come back right away if you don't want to, my love.” 

“So I can stay here for a few days?” she asked.

“Mmhmm. You'll have to be back by Thursday. Because come Saturday I have a title to retain.” he replied.

“What title is that?” she asked.

“I have been Master Of The Hunt for 4 years running. If and when I win Saturday I will not only have won 5 years straight but I will become Grand Master Of The Hunt.” he replied. 

“Exciting.”

“Indeed, and once I win I will get to celebrate with the most beautiful woman in the world on my arm.”

Shanelle blushed. 

“I like seeing this side of you.”

“What side?” he asked.

“This highly confident, strong, takes no prisoners' side. Very sexy,” she replied.

“Thank you, my love. You have to remember that I was groomed for this. Readied and prepared on the off chance that I would be called upon to lead and now? That time has come.”

Shanelle softly kissed his shoulder as she snuggled against him.

“Don't do that.”

“Why not?” she asked.

“Because I need to get some sleep. Not go rounds, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8,” he replied.

Shanelle giggled.

“Fine. I'll play with you later.”

“Thank you.”

She drifted off to sleep listening to the beat of his heart. When she woke up the next morning, he was already gone. But he left her a cute note and a vase filled with beautiful red roses on her nightstand.

These roses are red. And violets are blue. Never forget my love, my heart belongs to you. XOXO

She shook her head with a smile. 

Meanwhile, Marquise was in his office at the palace interviewing candidates for several different council positions. While he had a moment to himself he pulled out his phone to text Shanelle to check-in. Just as he got ready to text her, there was a loud banging on his office door. He smiled to himself because he knew who it was.

“Just open the door Naya,” he called out.

Naya stormed in. Her face contorted with rage. 

“What the entire hell is this?!” she asked.

“Whatever do you mean Naya?” he replied.

She slammed a newspaper down on his desk.

“Princess Naya Laurent-Sauvageon of House Sauvageon attacks Her Regency in a fit of jealous rage!” Naya read the headline to him.

Marquise looks at her totally unfazed.

“Maybe next time you'll learn to pick on someone your own size,” he said with a smirk.

That's when it clicked for her. 

“You! You did this! You’re the one having the press run this smear campaign, aren't you?” Naya asked.

Marquise shrugged.

“It's not a smear campaign if it's true,” he replies.

“This will ruin my reputation, Marquise!”

“Funny. You weren't thinking about your reputation when you attacked Shanelle for no reason other than you wanted to.”

“You reckless bastard! How could you be so damn cruel?!” Naya asked.

“Because you decided to be stupid enough to test my patience. I told you to stay away from her but you won't and don't listen. So now it's time for you to learn the hard way.” he replied.

“I can't believe you would do this to me. I thought you loved me!”

“I did. I loved you dearly. But now I don’t care. And that's your fault.” Marquise said nonchalantly.

Naya was flabbergasted. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. 

“What happened to you? This isn't who you are Marquise. You would never be this cruel to me. What the hell did that mutt do to you?” Naya asked.

Marquise slammed his fist down on his desk, causing Naya to jump slightly. 

“Don't you ever call her that again!” he growled at her. 

“I will call her whatever the hell I want. And there's nothing you can do about it!” Naya sneered. 

Marquise cocked his head to the side as he leaned back in his chair.

“Are you threatening me?” he asked.

Naya crossed her arms and glared at him.

“Not only am I threatening you, Your Regency. But I am here to tell you that I will use all of my influence on the court to make sure that this frivolous engagement of yours is seen as a farce and that your mutt is humiliated!” Naya replied.

“Be careful what you say to me Naya,” he warned her.

“Or what?” Naya asked.

Marquise smirked.

“I heard your husband is returning from his Humanitarian fellowship to Ethiopia today. It's been a long time since he and I have spoken.”

Naya gave him a death glare

“Perhaps we'll have a chance to speak on Saturday. After all, you and him will be hosting the Grand Hunt this weekend.”

Marquise watched the fire drain out of Naya. 

“Now that we have that settled, I have other matters to attend to. You can see yourself out.”

“This is not over you son of a bitch!” Naya hissed. 

That's when Marquise cleared his throat, stood up, and walked over to the door to close and lock it before turning back to face her.

“You never learn do you?” he asked her. 

Naya glared at him without saying a thing.

“I have tried to give you grace but you continue to try me. You continue to defy me. And now I've had enough.” he sneered. 

“I'm not afraid of you!”

Marquise shrugged.

“Maybe not but you do hold a mountain of debt that is still owed. And if you continue on like this, even with Tariq’s money in your corner I promise to make that debt impossible to pay back.”

“You wouldn't dare!” 

“I wouldn't dare what?” he asked.

“You wouldn't dare intentionally bankrupt me just to protect some commoner!” she replied.

He grabbed her chin roughly and brought her face close to him.

“I will not be defied, Naya. Not even by you. So as long as you do as I say, you have nothing to worry about. But if you intend to defy me, you and your father will get a summons of repayment with an amount that neither of you can pay.” 

Seeing the tears of fear shining in her eyes was all the answer he needed.

“You will not defy me, will you Princess?” he asked.

“No, Your Regency. I won't defy you,” she whispered.

He let go of her chin and moved her hair behind her ear.

“Good girl. Now go home. You and your husband have guests to prepare for.”

Naya took a step back from him before he opened the door for her and she left his office without any further incident. Later that night, Marquise was just about to leave his office when he got a knock at the door. It was Constantine.

“I hope I'm not interrupting His Regency.”

“What do you want?” Marquise asked him.

Connie took a seat across from Marquise.

“I had an interesting conversation with Princess Naya. You’re blackmailing her?!” Constantine asked.

“And here comes the moral police,” Marquise replied.

“As if that article wasn't bad enough, you threaten blackmail?!” 

Marquise downed the drink he had in his hand before glaring at Constantine.

“Oh fuck off! Blackmail has always been your bread and butter. So don't you dare sit here and chastise me! She and her father wouldn't even have the debt if it wasn't for you!” Marquise spat at Connie. 

“For someone who hates me so much, you act just like me, my son.”

Marquise chuckled dryly.

“So I've made our people suffer under high taxes, shuttered our borders, destroyed our kingdom’s economy, all while drinking myself into cirrhosis, and sleeping with any hole that had a pair of legs attached to it like you?”  Marquise asked.

“What I do in my life is my business!” Constantine replied.

“And yet you flaunt it for the world to see. Making it everyone’s business.” 

Connie looked disgusted at Marquise.

“I bet you enjoy this. You finally get the power you have always whined about having. You finally have the throne you always dreamed of. To think everything I worked for, everything I strived for as King will now go to you.” 

“Is there a point to this?” Marquise asked.

“Yes. Pretty soon you'll find out that you can't have it all. You will have to make decisions that you won't like. Ones that will haunt you. And you'll have no one to blame but yourself and that girl you're so in love with.” Connie answered. 

“You think I'll rule the same way you do, is that what you're saying?” Marquise asked.

“Ruling is hereditary, my son. You will pledge your life to serve the people just like I did. And whether you like it or not, I will always be your father.” Connie replied.

Marquise nodded.

“You're right it is. And thankfully for me I have my mother to thank for how I will rule. Not you.”

Constantine stared venomously at his son.

“You're lucky I have no power now. Otherwise, you'd be in chains!” Connie hissed.

“Ahhh yes. Where would I be without Constantine Rys and his now truly idle threats?” Marquise asked mockingly.

“You have always been an ungrateful brat!” Connie replies.

“And you've always been a piss poor excuse of a father. Never any good to either one of your sons.”

“I have always been good to you and Leo!”

Marquise poured himself another drink.

“Then tell me again how and why Leo and Maddie’s engagement fell apart.”

Connie went quiet.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Did I hit a nerve?” Marquise asked. 

“You keep your mouth shut boy!” Connie hissed.

“Why of course, Your Majesty. We wouldn't want the world to find out the actual reason Leo abdicated is because you slept with his fiancee and got her pregnant. It's a good thing that Regina convinced her to terminate the pregnancy and how fortuitous for you that you got her and Leo to each sign an NDA. Just to protect your image.”

Constantine’s nostrils flared. 

“Now get out!” Marquise sneered.

Connie got up to walk away and as he did he said this.

“Try as you might, my son. You will never be ANYTHING like Eleanor. But you will always be a part of me and I of you. We are much more alike than you think.” 

Marquise watched Connie walk out the door. He took a few minutes to compose himself before he went to bed. The next morning he was just waking up the next morning when he noticed steam coming from under the bathroom door. When he looked up, Shanelle was coming out of the bathroom in her robe with her hair wet.

“Well, good morning handsome,” she said with a smile.

“What are you doing here?” he asked. 

“I missed you,” she replied.

“What time did you get in?” he asked.

“I got to the palace late last night and when I got here you were already asleep. I didn't want to disturb you so I crawled into bed with you. I woke up about an hour ago and decided to get in the shower.” she replied.

Marquise shook his head with a smile.

“Come here,” he said to her.

She crawled into bed with him. When she felt his arms around her she shivered. 

“Well, you smell good.”

“Thank you. So how was your day yesterday?” she asked.

“It was fine until Naya and my father each paid me a visit,” he replied.

Shanelle winced.

“Yikes on yikes on yikes.”

“Imagine how I felt. Thankfully, she's gone home because her husband came back from Ethiopia yesterday. And the former King is in Fydelia with Regina so I shouldn't have to deal with either of them until the Grand Hunt Saturday.” 

“You mean we shouldn't. I want to sit in on the interviews if that's okay.”

“Of course my love. I would love to have your input on the selections.” 

“I want to know who it is we're working with when it comes to the kingdom and the new Monarchy. I need to know that we can trust them to put the people’s needs first.”

That put a smile on Marquise’s face.

“Well let's get dressed, my Queen. We have a busy day ahead of us.” 

Marquise hopped in the shower, the two got dressed and then had breakfast before they tackled the selection interviews. The interview process went smoothly. Some of the leaders Shanelle liked and others she could do without. And one interview shocked her. It was the first time she met Marquise’s cousin, Giancarlo Rys.

“Carlo! It's good to see you, cousin!” Marquise said as he greeted his cousin.

“It's good to see you too, cousin. Thank you for the opportunity to interview. Although I’m not sure what position it is you want me to fill.” Giancarlo said to him.

“I'll be happy to tell you. But first, allow me to introduce you to my fiancee,” Marquise said before turning to Shanelle, “my love I know this is a shock but I want you to meet my cousin, Giancarlo Rys.”

Giancarlo bowed.

“It is an honor to meet you, Your Regency.”

“The pleasure’s all mine. I had no idea he had a cousin.”

“Yes. My father Sebastian was Connie's younger brother. He tragically passed away when Marquise was barely 2 months old.” 

“Oh goodness. Please sit down.” Shanelle says to Giancarlo.

Giancarlo smiled. 

“Thank you, Your Regency,” he said as he took his seat.

“How is Nadia doing?” Marquise asked Carlo.

“My mother is doing well. When I told her you reached out she was so excited. She wanted to come but she's still recovering from her hip surgery.” Carlo replied.

“I understand. Please give her my love.”

“I will do that.”

Giancarlo looked at Marquise with an eyebrow raised.

“Alright cousin. You have me here. What do you have up your sleeve?” Giancarlo asked Marquise. 

Marquise snickers.

“You know me well. I'll get straight to the point. I want you to join the new Monarchy that Shanelle and I are forming. More specifically I want you to have your father’s old post as Keeper Of The Royal Archives.

Giancarlo blinked at him.

“You want me?! Marquise, I'm a history professor! Not a noble.” 

“I know. But you have been a historian your whole life. You are perfect for this role. And I’m sure Sebastian would be proud to have you follow in his footsteps.” 

“Does it really mean that much to you?” Carlo asked him.

“Of course. Again you are perfect for this role. Besides, Errol has got to go. He's a relic at this point.” Marquise replies.

Carlo shook his head with a chuckle. 

“And what does my dear uncle say about it?” Carlo asked.

“He's got his own problems to deal with,” Marquise replied.

“Speaking of which,” Giancarlo began to say before looking toward Shanelle, “before I go any further does she know?” 

Marquise shook his head no.

“Know what?” Shanelle asked.

“My father has cancer,” Marquise answered. 

Shanelle was stunned. 

“What?! Cancer?” Shanelle asked.

“Yes. He has a rare and aggressive form of lung cancer.” Marquise replied.

“Oh my God. I had no idea.” 

“Not many people know about it.” 

“Mariana told me that the surgery was unsuccessful.”

Marquise nodded before looking to Shanelle.

“Giancarlo’s wife Mariana is the Surgical Oncologist who performed his surgery. Unfortunately, the surgery wasn't successful and it metastasized to his liver.”

“Meaning what?” Shanelle asked.

“He's dying. He has maybe 6-8 months left to live according to him.” Marquise replied.

Shanelle was stunned. 

“I'm sorry to surprise you, my love. I wasn't trying to hide this from you. I just wanted to find the right moment to tell you.”

Shanelle nodded slowly.

“No, I get it. It's just…a lot. And I now have so many questions but they can wait for later.”

Marquise squeezed her hand gratefully.

“I appreciate that. And I promise to answer all the questions you have. Now back to the matter at hand.”

Marquise looked at Giancarlo.

“What do you say, Carlo? Are you in?” Marquise asked.

“I don’t know, cousin. It is an amazing opportunity. But I don’t know if I can give up my job as a professor.” Giancarlo replied.

“I understand that. And I would never ask you to give up your teaching job. But I need you, Carlo. I will even give you a light schedule so you don't have to give up your students at the university.” Marquise said to him.

Giancarlo laughed.

“You drive a hard bargain cousin.”

Marquise rolled his eyes with a smirk.

“Quit being an old man and say yes.”

Giancarlo shook his head and then turned to Shanelle.

“If you'll have me Your Regency, I will happily accept the position.”

“Since it means that much to His Regency, I would love to have you.” 

Giancarlo nodded.

“Alright cousin. I'm in. And besides, it's like you said, Errol is an old relic. I'm sure he still uses filing cabinets and floppy disks to keep official records.”

Marquise extended his hand and shook Giancarlo’s hand.

“It'll be good to have you here, cousin,” Marquise said to his cousin.

“Indeed it will. Now if you and Her Regency will excuse me, I have some good news to deliver.”

“It was good to meet you, Giancarlo.” Shanelle said to him.

“Likewise. And since we're practically family, please call me Carlo.” Giancarlo replies.

“Will do.”

Giancarlo smiled at Shanelle.

“I'll see you soon…Your Majesty.” Giancarlo said to Marquise before taking his leave.

[allsassnoclass]

...

[three--rings]

Hey, I'm sorry you're receiving hate for that m/m post. I hope you're doing well, and I also wanted to say that your posts & reblogs actually educated me and changed my view in a lot of things regarding to fanfiction. Sending virtual hugs and hoping that shitshow ends soon 💖

Appreciated! Thank you!

TBH most responses to that post are really positive, but every time it starts getting notes some people decide they're going to take the position that Eww Girls Have Cooties or whatever. Or "I'm totally better that you because I don't have any gender hangups" or whatever. Or "just stop liking the things you like and like these other things that are more Morally Pure."

And it's tiring. Lately apparently I'm a TERF because I talked about what I feel like as a woman and to mention that gender exists is a terf position. (Please see my terf tag and anti terf tags. I hope my record stands here.) Again because I mentioned that sexism has affected me and didn't put a disclaimer on the post that I support trans people and gender is a societal construct, people want to make this a radfem thing?

I mean, it doesn't like UPSET me anymore because it's been literal years I've been dealing with the fallout from that post but also I've blocked notifications on that post multiple times but that extension doesn't work anymore.

Y'all know I'm a fighty bitch and it makes me really want to argue with people but instead I just block them, which doesn't help my activity page at all.

[softsebnbuckystan]

Soul ties - Part 5 (Bucky Barnes au)

“And I'll use you as a focal point

So I don't lose sight of what I want”

"Oh! I didn't expect you so soon after the wedding," Bruce Banner said as you  walked into his lab. "Is everything alright?"

"Of course, thanks for asking, though. I just ran into Steve, and he said you'd actually found something while I was gone?"

A spark lit in Banner's eyes as he went around all his papers and tablets, searching for the information he wanted to share with you. Working with someone who was as passionate about science as you were was delightful : there was never an unproductive moment. You two were always thinking, bouncing off each other's ideas and coming up with useful inventions. You'd once helped two S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists, Fitz and Simmons, design "icers". They were non-lethal guns who could knock out theoretically anyone.

"See, we were talking about neural termination restaurations the other day. We thought it was next to impossible, since neurons are gone forever. But I was thinking..."

And off you started... It would be hard to get you two to stop before dinner time. You were so caught up in your work, lab goggles over your eyes, that Bruce had to tap on your shoulder to show you someone was there. You shot your head up, ready to say you were busy, but your body froze as you saw Bucky. You  didn't expect to run into him so quickly.

"Hey! Need anything?" you asked as he leaned against the door frame, hands in his pockets.

"No, I just... You guys are impressive."

Bucky looked all around the lab and his mouth didn't seem to be able to close.

"All this...is you two?"

You let out a small laugh. "Stark helped out a lot, we have to admit. He provides us with the tech, and we handle the other sciences, you know."

"What's your area?" he asked, his eyes coming back on you.

"Biochem and astrophysics."

"So like...planets and stuff too?"

"Yeah, basically."

At the other side of the room, Bruce was trying not to smile : he could only imagine how hard it was for you not to get carried away by details and explaining how amazing and compelling constellations, solar systems and galaxies were.

"I love that stuff," Bucky breathed out.

"Alright, since you're not alone, y/n, I'll go grab some lunch."

"Lunch already?"

Bruce nodded and left the room after making sure you'd be up to work again in the afternoon. You  most certainly hadn't seen time go by and a sudden soreness in your eyes made you aware of what time it was.

"I should probably take a break as well," you admitted. You fiddled with your fingers, a little awkward now that you weren't busy working, before a brilliant idea came to your mind. "Do you want to see something, like...really cool?"

"Obviously I do."

"Okay, follow me."

You instinctively grabbed Bucky's hand and jumped with surprise at the texture of it. You lowered your eyes to look at it and he immediately moved his arm away from you. It was...metal. Well, you didn't expect that, but who cared?

"I didn't know you had this," you said in a what wanted to be a casual tone.

"Yeah, long story." His elusive answer proved he wasn't ready to tell you about it.

"I'll hear it anytime," you said with a smile to reassure him before grabbing his hand again. The last thing you wanted him to think was that it scared you off. "Let's go now."

He didn't pull back this time, and you dragged him a few floors down, taking the stairs so you  didn't have to wait for the elevator. You were walking fast, impatient as the thought of showing Bucky your passion made you.  You ended up letting go of his hand to open a big door and hurried him in.

"What is this room, y/n?"

Ignoring the sound of your name in his mouth, you closed the door, plunging the room in pitch black.

"Don't move, I just have to grab the remote."

You easily found it, then carefully made your way back to him. Hearing his breath picking up, you laid a hand on his back.

"Breathe. I promise you'll love this."

With the press of a button,  billions of stars surrounded you, lightning Bucky's  face as he stared in amazement.

"I told you you'd like this," you whispered.

"This...wow." Bucky was speechless. He'd been staying here for a while and had never seen this room before, apparently.

You went to sit on one of the bean bag chairs you'd brought  yourself and Bucky decided to follow you, unable to take his eyes off the fake sky in front of him.

"Are those...real constellations?"

"Absolutely." This was your time : talking about this always made you happy. "See  the ones that are kinda forming a V? If you look closely, they form the Capricorn constellation. Right above it is Aquarius. And on the left, that's Cernus, the one that looks like a whale. And then...sorry. I talk too much."

"No, no. Keep going."

Bucky leaned back in his chair, still looking up. A huge smile split your face as  you kept on telling him about constellations, showing him well known ones as much as others, less famous. You had no idea how long it had been when you got out, and a glance at your phone told you it'd been over an hour.

"I'm sorry if that bored you,"  you told him while closing the door. "When I start talking about stars..."

"Not at all. I get that. I could have listened for five more hours."

You chuckled nervously and gulped, joining your hand in your back as you  walked along the hallway to the elevator. "I'm glad you enjoyed it. I've got to get back to work, but if you want to see the stars again some time, you know where to find me."

---

"I'm eating at Brad's  tonight. I think there's pizza left in the fridge."

You'd been looking at Darren's text for five minutes : what were you supposed to say  to that? At least he had the decency to warn you...thirty minutes before your usual dinner time.

"You okay there?"

You looked away from your phone screen and gave Steve a bitter smile. "Not really. Darren bailed. Again."

Steve shook his head. You could tell he was angry at him. It's not like they had ever been wonderful friends, but you'd hoped Darren would make efforts to get to know Steve and the rest of the gang. They'd done their part ; Darren just never seemed to deem it necessary.

"I'm sure Wanda will be available for a pizza and movie night. You can stay here as long as you-"

Your ringtone interrupted Steve's sentence : Darren was calling you.

"Hello?"

"It's me, honey. Just wanted to tell you I'm staying over at Brad's. We had a few beers so I don't want to take the risk to drive."

"Oh, huh... Yeah. That's safer."

Your friend rolled his eyes – a thing he rarely did as bitterly.

"I'm not home either anyway," you said, hoping it would get a reaction out of him.

"Really? Where are you?"

"At the compound." You heard Darren make a mocking noise.

"I don't even know why I asked. Of course that's where you are."

You let out an angry breath and decided to end the phone call.

"I don't know what time you'll get home tomorrow, but don't worry if I'm not there. I'll probably come back late in the afternoon. Bye."

"By-"

You hung up. You didn't want to hear his voice any longer.  Steve grabbed you by the shoulder to comfort you.

"I'll get a room ready for you."

"Thanks, Steve."

"This guy is such a dick."

And that was your sister's reaction as she walked in, learning what had happened from your mind.  She sure was less civil than Steve, but have someone be as upset as you helped you understand that you were right to be mad at Darren.

"I'm sorry,  I know you married the guy, but-"

"No, you're right," you interrupted her as she sat at your other side. "He is behaving like a dick."

Wanda laughed as she pulled you in for a warm hug. "Men are the worst. Don't feel like it's your fault."

"You know I'm here, and a man, right?" Steve joked.

You and Wanda shot him fake ferocious looks and he held up his hands as a sign of peace.

"Fine, fine, men are the worst," he said solemnly.

--- Thanks again for the support y'all gave to the 4 previous parts. I hope this one is good! :) Tell me if you want to be added to the tag list ^^

Tag list

@ginger-swag-rapunzel @joscelyn02

[fckwritersblock]

Act 1: While We’re Young

Chapter 5

Erik ‘Killmonger’ Stevens x Black OC

(Unedited.)

Tuesday

January 10th 2005

Last night was the only night I'm allowing myself to cry over him and his 'return'. What good would it do me? No, I was gonna take Erik and whatever he had to throw at me by storm.

Waking up the next day, I feel refreshed. Like a brand new person with a more positive mindset. Today I had 3 classes and I'm determined to have a good Erik free day.

That whole Erik free thing went out the window as soon as I got to my first class.

Double O Computer Programming 1 was a junior class, however I'd taken it during the summer during my first year at UC Berkeley. DOCP 2 wouldn't be available until next semester but I needed to have a class since this was my first year on the actual campus. Thankfully Miss Hill really needed a T.A and the fact that I could help with an algorithm that tied into thermal nuclear astrophysics had her sold.

Right after I finished taking attendance, she barely got a word out before the door swung open revealing Erik as our late comer. I quickly glanced at the sheet in front of me, scanning for his name. I was so use to calling him N’dajaka when we were kids, I completely skipped over ‘Erik Stevens’. I huffed rolling my eyes, arms crossed over my chest. His timbs were the only thing heard shuffling across the room making hid way toward the front of the class. Wordlessly he handed Miss Hill before his eyes were on me. They scanned me from top to bottom, before locking with me a smug grin on his lips.

"Hey Lona," my jaw dropped.

Before I could get out a word, Miss Hill opened her mouth, looking up from the paper he handed her.

"Welcome Erik, sorry for the confusion."

"It's all good," he shrugged.

"Im Miss Hill, and I see you already know my aid. As I explained to the class prior to taking attendance, If I'm unavailable feel free to email or call her during the hours listed on the sheet." She is then took a sheet from me and handed him to me. "Other than that, find a seat."

He nodded pretending look over the sheet before averting his gaze back on me.

"I'm definitely gon do that."

Fuck my life right?

Well, Erik just so happened to be in the Calculus class I skipped two days ago. I thank God my record was squeaky clean and Mr. Kennedy accepted my poor excuse before I was quickly reminded the man upstairs has a sense of humor as the only available seat was next to Erik.

"The person next to you will be your partner for the remainder of the semester so let's take the next 15 minutes getting know one another hmm?." Mr. Kennedy instructed.

I couldn't suppress the groan that slipped as Erik casually leaned back in his chair, examining me.

"You heard the man, get to know me."

"I know all I need this know about you Erik."

"Oh so I'm Erik now? Like that?" He spoke cool, calm, and collected like our exchanged was normal.

I gripped my pencils tight, my knee bouncing up and down my body tense.

"Let me set things straight now. We don't need to talk to one another. If it doesn't have anything to do with any of the classes we take together, don't want to hear it. When you see me act like you don't know me. We clear?"

The expression on his face was unreadable before his lip twitched slight him responding.

"Crystal."

Wednesday

January 24th, 2005

It had been two weeks since Erik showed up here.

Ok that's a lie.

Apparently this man has been here. And to top it off, this mans name was in every bitch mouth like the second coming of Jesus Christ. From what I've observed though, he doesn't say much, or gives any of these broads much attention. He don't say much in general actually, he's really good at blending in. He got that laid back, mysterious, bad boy vibe going for him and these females out here hella into that.

But when he opens his mouth, that cocky bastard sure knows how to disrupt my entire soul at least while we're in class.

Outside of class though, he acts like I'm invisible.

It was like he never knew me. And honestly, I don't know how to feel about it. I know that's what I said I wanted but it bothers me just the same.

Today in particular though, he argued me down during our Calculus class. We had one problem to figure out before we could leave class today. You and your partner were supposed agree on the answer, and heaven forbid he just agree with me so we can get out of here. Math was always my subject when we were kids, nothing has changed. I was damn near about to say fuck it when he started laughing.

What in the entire fuck it so funny?" I was fuming.

"You," he shook his head. "You really hella mad."

"Um, YES!" I damn near shouted fed up. "You literally been tryna convince me it's 5 when it's-"

"Chill. I know the answer is 3 girl. C'mon, let's go." So smoothly he closed the book, grabbed his bag and headed to the front.

I was so upset, I had to let him do all the talking when it came to explain to the teacher I'll answer and how we got there. I know I open my mouth I wasn't going to say anything nice.

"Girl what crawled up your ass and died?" Donise questioned with a stank look as we sat at one of the benches outside of the library.

"Yeah What did Erik do now," I could hear teasing in Tatiana's tone so I flipped her off.

Only giving a brief explanation, I went on a mini rant about what happened in class 20 minutes ago. Donise's thought it was funny, while Tati just shook her head.

"I still can't believe it him," Tatianna glanced as a group of guys from across the quad headed our way, Erik included.

"Yes, and I wish it wasn't."

Tatianna was the first real friend I made in a while. I was actually tutoring her online for a while before she found out I was 4 years younger than her. Our friendship started off as a trade. I was her tutor and she both convinced and enrolled in a mentor program to help me with my social skills. I didn't speak to anyone much when Erik left, but I got into a lot of fights. According to the school counselor I was taking out my anger and abandonment issues on.I have meds to tame the anger, and while I haven't had to take them in a while Eric definitely bring that anger out of me.

"Girl that's just sexual tension. You got to fuck all that out." Ashley put in her unwanted two cents.

"Trust me when I tell you on God it isn't."

"Well if you out to holla, then trust and believe I will." She tossed her hair over her shoulder

I didn't really mess with Ashley like that, but she was Tati's frat sister which made them 'friends'. That little thot pocket will screw anything with legs, D, and a pulse and I'm not bout that life. Plus she messy as fuck and I don't trust her as far as I can throw her.

"I don't doubt it," I smirked as Donise said exactly what I was thinking.

Donise was coo' though, I meet her when I first got here 2 months ago. Believe It or not she was apart of the welcome comity for MIT and turned out her and Tatiana were already friends. Once she figured out  who I was, I was shot to the front line during registration and everything.

"Anyways, y'all going Ant and them party tomorrow?" Ashley questioned probably tryna bum a ride.

"What party?"

"The Que's," Donise answered. "The dudes with Erik are frat."

Now this was news to me. I met most of them before but I had no idea there were in a sorority. Examining them, I guess it all made sense. Most in the clique sported some sort of purple and yellow lanyard either around their neck or on their keychain that hung from their jean pocket as if  they wanted everybody to know who they were. Which I wouldn't doubt.

"Ladies! What we chattin about?" Moses questions every bit of his thick English accent tapering off every word.

"Our plans for mañana," Tati answered l

"Word. Y'all coming to the party tomorrow?" Jay spoke playing with a few strands of Donise's curls.

"Tomorrow? It's Thursday." I said confused. "Ain't there class the next day?"

"What's the matter, you can't hang?" I glared at Jay, knowing he was only chastising me because him and Erik were close, according to Tati.

I swear to God men gossip more than women do. Rolling my eyes I spared Erik a glance and he looked like he was waiting on me to respond.

"Oh, I can definitely hang."

I couldn't hang.

Around midnight I was  in the bathroom throwing up everything, damn near hug in the toilet as my surrounding looks so blurry and I can barely function. Im not sure when I'd finally finished, but I could feel someone picks me up and out the bathroom and soon everything goes blurry and then black.

Tag list: @kitesatforestp @xsweetdellzx @justgetitoverwith0 @letsshamelessqueen-m @cmkcolove @readingaddict1290

[rogue-barnes-16]

МОЯ ЛЮБОВЬ

Summary: Natasha was planning on going on the run alone, but when Y/n found out where the redhead was heading, it became a trip for two.

Pairing: Yelena Belova x fem!Reader

Genre: angst

Tags:

Yelena Belova: @justmebeingtheweirdmeiam @thetiniestfangirl

Permanent taglist: @notexactlythatgirl @thisismysecrethappyplace @sofreakinmanyfandoms @pizzarollpatrol @bubblycypress87 @1a-girl-has-no-name1 @loislp @lovenaturefirst @dyanna-corona @2ptonpt @goodnightmode @disneyprincessbuffyannesummers @mannls @cutie1365 @catch22inareddress @mybooradley @sebastianisasnack @butifulsoul125 @unlikelygalaxygiver @angelh1 @justmebeingtheweirdmeiam

Warnings: language, violence, guns, feels

A/N: it's late but I wanted to post this ASAP bc I've been a L O T without posting so here it comes some Yelena angsty shit with a happy ending. Oneshot of Natasha and a request for Bucky coming your way <3.

Rogue-barnes-16 masterlist

"You sure she's there?" I asked the redhead, checking I could easily grab my knives.

"100%." she confirmed, checking the load of her gun. "Stay put."

Ding!

Natasha was the first one to exit the elevator, careful and silent even though we knew Yelena would realize the Black Widow was there the moment we put a foot in the apartment.

I left the security of the elevator too, but not right away. I waited until Natasha was inside the apartment before coming close.

She peeked at me right after I had joined her and I nodded to signal her I was ready.

"I know you're out there." we heard Yelena's voice while we were scouting the largest hall.

Our bodies tensed again and Natasha silently warned me to stay behind and quiet. "I know you know I'm out here." She stated, going from one door to another, trying to find out were the blonde was. "so are we gonna talk like grown-ups?"

I stopped walking when Natasha, instead of moving on to the next door, gripped the gun tighter.

"Is that what we are?"

"Put down the gun."

"you first."

"Put down your gun."

"why should I?" she inquired in a low, calm tone. "you beat me in a lot of things but shooting is not one of them."

Natasha tilted her head to the side, which for Yelena meant nothing, but to me was a signal to move away from them.

She needed to get Yelena under control as soon as possible, and right now that wasn't happening.

"I wanna talk." the redhead spoke, taking a step forward into the room, her hands still before her holding up the gun in front of the younger girl face.

"I don't."

"Yelena-"

I wasn't expecting for Yelena to make a move that soon.

She kicked Natasha's gun up and Natasha, out of instinct, did the same without realizing that would expose me.

Fast as lighting, I grabbed my pistol and aimed at the blond Russian.

"Yelena, stop." I begged more than demanded, watching the girl's feelings crossing her face.

Her eyes went wide, her mouth, firstly in awe, was shut as she tried to get herself together in front of us.

"Put down the gun and-" she aimed at me as if Natasha wasn't there with us and, biting her lower lip for it not to tremble, she pulled the trigger.

I gasped, my gun falling to the floor due to the shock, my hands going to my chest to cover the wound that wasn't there.

The same shock plastered in my face had taken over hers as she glanced at me and then at the gun.

Natasha's gun.

A black boot appeared in my peripheral vision as Yelena and I stared into each other's eyes, kicking back the latter and making her land on her back.

When I picked up on Natasha's intentions of shooting at Yelena, I kicked her gun.

Now the three of us were unarmed and on our feet.

"What are you doing?" Natasha hissed at me.

"We all should calm the fuck down." I spoke loudly, ignoring the question clearly directed to me. "Yelena-"

My defenses weren't up yet, so when Yelena threw the first kick, was Natasha who had to stop her.

Chaos was begun, and soon we were all on each other's throat.

I was thrown against the counter right after hitting Yelena's head against the wall and just an instant before Natasha's back was slammed with a stool.

I took a deep breath, my head spinning as I helped myself get up with the same counter I was thrown against.

Yelena had grabbed a knife but before I could do anything, said knife was on the floor, so were they.

"Стоп! Вы оба (stop! Both of you.)" I yelled, approaching them both just an instant away from Natasha going across the glass of the door. "Елена..."

I hadn't even offered her a hand to get up before she grabbed both my arms and made me fall over her, just for her to spin us, making her the one on top. "you left me and went with her!"

"I'm back now" I calmly spoke, as if I didn't have one of the most dangerous women in the world right above me.

"I don't care." she spit back taking her hand to her boot, presumably to grab a blade.

I took that as an advantage and threw her off me, got up and grabbed my own blade just in time.

She incorporated and tried to attack me.

Emphasis on tried.

"You obviously care!" I shouted to her face as I pinned her hands against the wall.

She attempted to shake me off but only gave me the chance to get a better grip on her. "БЛЯДЬ!"

"I don't want to hurt you." I whispered sincerely, letting my blade fall.

"You already did." she replied with tears blurring her green eyes.

"This is not fair. You didn't look for me." I stated.

"You ran away from me!" She hissed, twisting my hand and pushing me down with her knee. "with he-"

As she pointed at Natasha, I sat up and threw myself over her, caging her body against the floor for good, I hoped.

"I was trying to PROTECT YOU" I spat. "I'm here now please, stop- Yelena!" I scolded her, as she wouldn't stop struggling. "Моя любовь."

She let out a loud, raging cry of pain when she heard my words.

"I HATE YOU!" She yelled, breaking down to tears.

"I love you." I replied, catching Natasha moving with the corner of my eye.

"I HATE YOU SO MUCH!!"

"That's why I'm back."

"NO!"

" 'Cause I love you."

"STOP!!"

"Please."

Her fists loosened and I noticed how she was no longer struggling to get up, but to take her hands to her face, so I freed her for my grip. "You left me for her... You left me- You- I waited for-- I thought you'd come back and you didn't... I--"

I got off her and pulled her to my embrace. "I'm sorry." I apologized, wrapping my arms around her as she cried, we both sat on the floor. "I'm really sorry, моя любовь... You weren't safe... I'm- I'm sorry I left you behind, if I could turn back time-- I'm so sorry."

"I t-thought you forgot about me"

I pulled her chin up to plant a kiss on her lips. "Never would I forget about you, you hear me?" she nodded with her eyes shut and her forehead resting against mine. "never."

"Please don't leave me again." she muttered so quiet I barely was able to hear her. "Death is better than living without you."

I kissed her forehead, pulling her for another hug.

"I'm sorry for shooting you."

"Yeah, I can't blame you."

"But you're not sorry for throw me through a fucking door." Natasha's voice caught our attention. "Okay," she walked to the kitchen counter and grabbed the Vodka. "okay I see how it is."

"I don't hear you saying sorry for slamming me against all my fucking furniture, Sis." Yelena replied, pulling away from me and getting up. "What the fuck are you doing? There are glasses in the top shelf, don't drink from the bottle."

"Thought Y/n made them shatter."

"haha, funny." I walked to the both of them and hopped over the counter, accepting the glass of vodka Yelena offered me.

"So" Natasha started, chuckling the whole drink. "that's why Madame B wouldn't let y'all sleep in the same compartment?"

"Woah, you're really smart." I teased, leaving the glass aside and lying on my back over the counter.

"Yeah, just took you like fifteen years to pick up on it."

"Fuck you both."