#they do in family shatters. thank you spin off of a spin off

[deltafruit]

so. AI East.

[heavysighing-dreamyeyes]

A Step Towards Him

Part Two of Betrayal. Or how meeting Gothams Vigilantes leads you to look for your ex. Does it count as a Fix-it fic if it's my own work? I do not follow the canon timeline in this. ~2.8k words

The world changes for you after that night, after finding out your boyfriend is a crime lord. And not just any crime lord. Gotham's biggest. It shatters you. You take some time off of work, request to be transferred off the case. Gordan gives you strange, worried looks over it, but doesn't ask. It makes you want to hide in your office and sob.

The world changes around you too. You try to ignore the reports about Red Hood, but you can't. Not when helicopters catch footage of him confronting Batman. Not when he's sighted entering an abandoned building before it explodes. (No, you don't throw up when you hear the news. Or let out uncontrollable sobs in the bed that he used to share.) Not when he comes back as some sort of vigilante, a protector of crime alley. (No, you don't drop to your knees in relief in front of the television.)

Your life finds some rhythm of normal. You go to work. You cook dinner alone. You curl under your comforter. You convince yourself the bed doesn't feel empty. That life is normal. Except some things aren't. 

It starts with Nightwing. He drops down next to you when you're picking through an active crime scene. It doesn't set off any warning bells at first, the Bats always seem to be where they're needed. Then he speaks.

"So, you and Red Hood?" He asks, voice light and teasing.

You nearly jump out of your skin to look at him wide eyed, before your head whips around to see if anyone's heard. They haven't, the crime scene is empty save for the two of you. You turn back to him, hackles raised and eyes narrowed. "How do you–"

He shrugs, smiling easily like he's not dragging the shattered pieces of your heart across the coals. "Found out by accident."

"Well, we aren't together anymore." You huff, averting your gaze from him and back to the crime scene. You know he's analyzing you, even under his relaxed demeanor. You're just not sure what he's looking for. 

"That's a shame." Nightwing chirps, spinning the sticks in his hands you know are equipped with enough electricity to bring down a rhino. 

You can't help the wince you make at that. "Why?"

"It seems like he really liked you." 

You tap your fingers against your thigh anxiously, a mannerism he definitely sees. You know Jason– Red Hood liked you. He used to say all that and more against your skin when he thought you were sleeping. (You don't relive that memory when everything's heavy and your stomach twists and you need something good.) "It's in the past." You answer instead. 

He opens his mouth to answer, but you never hear what he wanted to say. The sound of lab techs arriving at the crime scene draws your attention. By the time you turn back to him, he's already gone. You shake your head, trying not to read into the vigilantes' words. Damn Bats.

There's a kid in your office. Not just any kid. Red Robin. Ok, sure, he's not exactly a child, but he's definitely a teenager and definitely should not be sitting at your desk, in your office, and typing on your computer.

"Um, hello, Red Robin. Is there something I can do for you...?" You ask, lingering in the middle of the room. 

He looks up, turning your computer slightly towards you. You step closer to look. "Have you thought about using this cipher here?"

You glance over the screen. Huh. He's right. That code had been troubling you for a week. Leave it to a Bat to get it done in a day. "Oh. Thanks, that's pretty impressive work."

He grins at you and sits back in your seat. "That means you have some free time to talk to me?"

You eye him wearily, remembering your encounter with Nightwing. "I– yeah. Sure. Of course I do."

"Great!" He practically lights up and starts rambling. "Did you know Red Hood has a direct comlink to the batcave? And he saved that family from the Park Row explosion last week. Did you know he likes to read? He's kind of a nerd but–"

"Woah, woah, hey." You cut him off. "Look, I heard about the rescue and I know about the– uh, reading stuff, okay? What's this about?" He studies you, he can probably read your emotions better than you know them yourself. He probably knows exactly what you're feeling about Red Hood.

He smiles wider at you, like he's found what he was looking for, and stands up, almost bouncing to the window. "No reason. Just wanted you to know." He's launched his grappling hook and is out of sight before you can get another word in.

You groan, burying your face in your hands. Bats.

You're almost expecting it when you find yourself in the presence of the next vigilante. Sitting alone in an unmarked car, the most boring stakeout of your life isn't so boring anymore when Batgirl drops herself onto the hood of your car. You only embarrass yourself a little bit by yelping, spilling what's left of your coffee on the dashboard. She's at the door and tugging the handle by the time you've frantically wiped down the lukewarm liquid off the car. 

You unlock the door. If you didn't know better you would have said the stitches in her mask turned upward. 

She slides into the passenger seat.

It's quiet for a long time. So long you actually start to get comfortable with her being in the car with you. 

"Brother."

Your gaze snaps to her. "What?"

"Tries." 

You blink at her. She's already leaving the car as gracefully as she entered it. Okay. Okay. Definitely nothing to read into there. There's no way she was talking about him. Jason– 'no' you correct yourself– Red Hood is definitely not related to Batgirl and he's definitely not anything else she says he is. 

Work was particularly long today, your shoulders ache, your head is pounding. It's a relief when you finally open the door to your apartment.

"I understand why Todd likes you so much."

"Motherfu–" You half shout, reaching for the baseball bat by the door before you stop short, gaze settling on Robin, who seemed to have made himself comfortable in your home. 

He waves a picture at you, one with you and Jason together, the one you took during a date to Gothams botanical garden. The one you know you had tucked away under your bed. 

You exhale heavily, far too tired to find the energy to scold the kid and lecture him about boundaries. "What are you doing here, Robin?"

"I am here to join the others in their endeavors to reconnect you and Todd."

You tense, jaw dropping a little before you can gather yourself. "No one's doing that."

He places the picture carefully down on the counter. "Of course they are. You're good for Todd. And he asked for you when he was coming out of the fear toxin hallucinations. That shows trust."

"He what?" You ask, voice pitched and startled.

"He asked for you." Robin responds, voice steady and factual. "You didn't know?"

You shake your head, thoughts racing. 

"Oh." He looks unsure, you've never seen any of the Bats look unsure, it snaps you out of your spiraling. "Perhaps, don't mention I told you?"

"Course, Robin. I won't." You answer, and you're relieved when your voice doesn't shake.

He nods, like he expected that answer, but you're not sure if he did. 

"Can I get you anything?" You ask and he actually looks surprised. 

"No. I need to return to patrol. Technically my route doesn't cover this area."

"Oh?" You prompt, unable to keep yourself from prying. "Whose does?"

He scoffs like it's obvious on his way out your window. 

Despite your exhaustion, sleep doesn't come easily that night.

Your final straw is Batman, because of course it is. 

Gordan had handed you a stack of files. "Detective, I need you to take this to the roof, I have the mayor waiting in my office to hear more about the Freeze situation." He rolls his eyes, dark circles and lack of sleep evident on his eyes. "Though he should know by now hounding my officers won't change anything."

"Sir," You start, "can Montoya do it?"

He gives you a pitying look. "Sorry, Detective. Montoya's in archives. You're the only one I can trust with this."

That's how you ended up on the roof of the GCPD precinct. 

"Detective." A low, distinct voice behind you nearly makes you jump out of your skin, even if you knew he was coming. 

You whip around, only relaxing when your gaze settles on Gothams Dark Knight. You silently offer him the files. He takes them, but doesn't look at them, watching you instead. Analyzing you. Studying. It's starting to get nerve wracking being judged by every vigilante Gotham has to offer.

"I know you and Red Hood–"

"Please don't." You cut him off with more bravery than you knew you had.

He doesn't. You look away. But the time you've found the courage to turn back, he's gone. 

You're walking through crime alley, alone, at night, just a few days later. You're not completely sure what your plan is, what you want out of this. But settling whatever is lingering between you and Jason is worth the danger. 

But, danger never finds you. You don't make it two minutes into crime alley before the sound of boots hitting the ground behind you reaches your ears. You know it's him. You know he could have done that soundlessly, but he let you hear him. It steadies some of the unease in your chest.

"What are you doing here?" His voice sounds robotic through the voice modulator, but his shoulders are stiff, body tense, when you turn to face him. You notice his fingers twitch towards you, that soothes another ache in your chest. 

"I wanted to talk to you." You say slowly, carefully. It feels more daunting now that you're here, in his element. 

He looks around. "It's too open."

You follow his gaze, the streets seem empty, but you know Gotham well enough that the shadows have ears. "Then where?"

He considers you for a moment. "The roof. Can I– can I carry you? Just to get us to the roof faster. Or I could drop a fire escape for you?"

"Oh. Um, sure, I don't mind you carrying me. How do you plan on getting us up there, exactly?" You ask, voice pitching slightly at the thought of being close to him again.

He holds up something you recognize as a grappling gun as he steps to your side, hooking an arm around you and firmly tugging you against him. "Hold on."

You wrap your arms around his neck and air is flying past your ears before you've even realized your feet have left the ground. 

He lets go of you slowly once you're both settled on the roof, hand lingering at your waist to make sure you don't fall over. "Good?"

"Good." You echo, and he reluctantly moves to give you space. 

"So, why are you putting yourself in danger just to talk to me? You know these streets aren't safe." He crosses his arms over his chest, it would seem defensive if you didn't recognize the stiffness in his shoulders, like he's bracing for the worst. You wish you could see behind his mask.

"I– could you talk to your family? They keep coming to see me and I think they have the wrong idea." You tell him, voice careful and even.

"Wait, wait. My family?" His arms drop to his side, confusion apparent even through the modulator his helmet.

"Yes? Some of the other vigilantes came to see me a few times–" 

He curses softly, shifting and clenching his fists. "I'm sorry. I didn't know. They shouldn't have done that."

You falter, "I didn't mean it in a bad way."

He sighs heavily, like he's carrying all of life's burdens as he unclenches his fists. "I know. It's not you I'm mad at." He shifts his weight, unsure. "It's just– you should have meant it. I'm not good."

You straighten out, upset he would even consider himself that after how much he's changed, tried to be good, succeeded at being good. You'll never admit it, but you can't help but follow every story about him, every tiny detail about what he does. "That's not true. I'm the one that's not good."

He levels you with look. "Don't act like I don't know you. You are good. You wouldn't have given up running my case if you weren't. You could have run me out of Gotham."

"You know about that?" You ask softly.

"No shit, I know about it. I know you." He says it like it's a fact, a universal truth. 

"But I– I broke up with you. Without really listening. I didn't try to understand." You protest, because with all the bad he's ever done, the good he's done– the fact that he's trying– outweighs it all.

He tilts his helmet towards you. "Because Iied to you. I was using you."

"You said you stopped that."

"I did." He answers, firm and resolute, then sighs out your name. "But I still did that to you, I still hurt you." He pauses, "Look, I'll talk to the others. They won't bother you again, okay? Just– Let me take you home."

"I don't want to go home." You step closer to him. You've decided what you want.

He seems to freeze at the movement. "You don't want to go home?" He repeats slowly, carefully like the words don't make sense to him.

"Red Hood– Jason. I'd like– I miss you, okay? I miss waking up next to you, I miss making dumb jokes with you when we cook, I miss cuddling with you while we make fun of movies together. I want to– I want to try again. If you'd let me."

"If I'd let you?" He echoes your words again. It makes your face fall, how stoic he seems. Then, his mask is clattering against the roof, his gloves tugged off and dropped haphazardly so he can cup your face with his hands. He leans his forehead against yours, and breathes out your name. "I'd let you take anything you wanted from me."

You grab his wrists, intent on keeping him close after so long apart, as your heart races, your breath catches and everything centers on him. Your eyes dart over his face, trying to see the truth in his eyes. 

"I mean it. If all you ever wanted from me was friendship, just someone to keep your bed warm at night, or something more. I'd give that to you." His eyes dart over your face in return, wanting to make sure you understand his words, his feelings for you. 

"I want more. I want you." You say quickly, because he needs to know he's important to you. That he matters to you and what he does as Red Hood didn't and can't change that. 

He lets out a breathless laugh and kisses you. It sets your nerves on end and for the first time since you told him you didn't want to see him, you feel grounded. You kiss him back, hands leaving his wrists to grab the leather of his jacket and draw him closer. 

He only pulls away when you're both gasping for air. "I know I have a lot to make up for–."

"So do I." You cut off.

"Then maybe we're even, yeah? A fresh start." He says softly, tracing the curve of your jaw with his thumb.

You smile and tilt your head up to kiss him again, sweet and lazy before leaning back. "I'd like that."

He's smiling when he kisses you again, and neither of you move to untangle yourselves until you hear whooping and cheering coming from the rooftop across the street.

It's been a few weeks since then. And your relationship is good, better than before, if that's even possible. You're picking over snacks in the grocery store with Jason when an elderly, but alert looking man walks up to the two of you. 

"Ah, I see this is your partner you've been trying to hide from us?" 

Jason straightens out, "Alfred? What are you– uh, yes. Yes. This is them." 

You grin, pulling your fingers from Jason's to reach out and shake Alfred's hand, offering him your name as you do. 

Alfred's eyes seem to twinkle and he nods approvingly as he introduces himself. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you. You're welcome to dinner any night, I know the others are eager to officially meet you."

Jason groans a little, and he rests his hand against the small of your back. "We'll think about it, Alfred."

Alfred smiles knowingly at you, "Of course. Take your time."

And as you lean into Jason's side, you have a feeling you'll be making it to that dinner sooner rather than later. 

A Side Story

[inlovewithpandora]

- One Of Them -

Pairing: Sully Family x fem!human!reader || Kiri x twin!sister!reader

Request: [ @avatar4eva ] Hello, I was wondering if I could request a Sully Family x Kiri’s Human Twin Sister, where the reader is being raised by the scientists along with Spider. And as she gets older, she starts being jealous of Kiri because she has a family while she doesn’t. One day she overhears Neytiri talking to Jake about her saying that she rather the reader stays away from them while she hangs out with her sister and the Sully children. So, the reader gets upset and runs off into the forest and gets violently attacked by a thanator. The ending is to you if she lives or dies.🤭 Thank you for all the amazing work that you have made, much love to you🫶🏾🫶🏾

Synopsis: You were slightly envious of your sister Kiri because she had the life you wanted, a loving family. Neytiri was a mother figure to you but that all shattered when you heard the hateful things she said about you.

Content: Full angst, Hurt w/ no comfort, reader attacked by thanator (descriptive), mention of injuries/wounds, mention of blood, crying, emotional read

Author’s Note: thank you for requesting! I’m sorry it took so long to complete but it’s here! This is my first Sully Family work so I was excited to write it (especially since I like angst). I hope it meets your expectations and that you enjoy🩷!

Word Count: 1.7k

Glossary: Palulukan - Thanator || Yerik - Hexapede

Extra: Requests are open! Please read rules before requesting! || Likes, comments, and reblogs are highly appreciated🩷!

Links: Navigation || Avatar Masterlist || Main Masterlist || Taglist

Being raised by the scientists with Spider wasn’t your idle choice. It’s not that you didn’t like Spider, Norm, or Max because you do, but you wish you could’ve been raised with your sister and her family. Every time you see Kiri and her family bonding or doing normal domestic things, you feel a little envious because you wish you had a family like hers, just people who are blood relatives and look similar to you. Yes, Kiri is your blood sister, but she’s Na’vi, a hybrid. And some nights, you wished you would’ve been born a hybrid too so you could live out the luxuries she has.

You so love when Kiri and her siblings invite you and Spider to their marui to hang out with them. It’s always fun to be around them because in addition to Kiri, the rest of her siblings treat you as if you are their sister as well. They would look out for you, protect you if anyone ever tries to bully you, and most of all love you.

As of this moment you are frolicking in the forest, taking a break from being in the biolab all day. As you see the Sully family marui from a distance, you wonder if they’re home so you and the Sully kids could hang out. As you walk to the entrance, about to lift open the flap, you hear Neytiri raising her voice, which makes you retreat your hand and listen to what she is saying.

“I do not want that demon in my home, Jake. She is not one of us!” She hisses, her tail thrashing in the air as she tells Jake how she feels about your presence in her home.

“‘tiri, we can’t just not let her come over. She’s Kiri’s sister and the rest of the kids see her as one.”

“I do not care! She is not Na’vi, she is one of them.” As you listen to the rest of Neytiri’s rant, she talks about how much she dislikes you and that she feels like you could infect her children with your “demon ways”. Hearing her talk so poorly about you makes you feel like stones are sinking deep in your heart. Your head is spinning, filled with all Neytiri’s harsh words. Instead of walking in and telling her and Jake how you feel about what you just heard, you run into the forest at full speed with tears freely flowing down your cheeks.

You run, and run, and run. The forest is never ending, you always find a different path to turn to. You just can’t have any idea that this path would cause you a worse traumatic experience than what you just heard. As you run, the sound of bushes being shaken echoes in the forest. You turn your head and within a split second, your life flashes before your eyes. An angry Palulukan jumps out of its hiding place and pounces on your small, frail body.

You scream and cry out in pain as it attacks you, praying to Eywa that someone hears your loud piercing cry or your screams of pure terror. The Palulukan digs its claws in your skin, scratching every place they have access to, all but the one action that makes your body shut down completely.

—

As Neytiri walks through the forest, bow in hand trying to find a Yerik to cook her family for dinner, she sees droplets of blood along the grass. She tracks the trail, the blood splatters grow larger which makes her think it’s just a random animal that got dragged along the ground once it was killed, but that idea was busted once she saw your lifeless looking body sprawled across the forest floor.

“Y/N!” She immediately drops her bow and runs over to you. When she lays your body in her lap, she watches your chest slowly rise, indicating the flicker of life you still got, but your shallow breathing worries her. Your body is covered in numerous wounds and you are losing ample amounts of blood by every passing second. She frantically picks you up and runs into the village to get you some help.

“Jake! Ma’Jake!” Neytiri knows Jake is somewhere in the village because today is the day he usually does his rounds to make sure everything is running smoothly. When he finally hears her, he runs up with a worried expression, which turns to terror upon seeing your current state.

“What the hell happened?!”

“I found her like this in the forest. It looks like she got attacked by an animal.”

“We need to get her to the lab now! If she doesn’t get there soon she will die!” Jake scoops you out of Neytiri’s arms and runs you to the bio lab, hoping that Norm and Max would be able to save you.

__

When Jake brought you to the lab, the scientists immediately went to work, doing everything they could to keep you in the land of the living. They rushed you into surgery and it took hours, they didn’t know if you were going to survive due to all the blood you lost and how severe your injuries were, but by the grace of Eywa, you pulled through.

When the Sully Family hear the news that you are going to be okay, a sense of relief and joy washes over them. When it is okay for you to have visitors, all of them swarm by your bedside.

“Sister, I’m so glad you’re okay.” Kiri is so happy that Eywa spared your life, she didn’t know what she would do without you. The rest of the Sully kids and even Jake shows how much they missed you and that they are glad you made it through. Your body is still pretty banged up. Lots of bruises and gashes, but they’ll heal eventually, which you were happy about because you don’t want to be bed-ridden for too long.

You talk to them for almost two hours, laughing and talking about fun memories you’ve all had together. As you laugh at something Lo’ak said, the door to your room opens. When you see Neytiri walk inside, your whole demeanor changes. No more laughs or smiles, just Neytiri words playing over and over in your head about how much of a nuisance you are.

Neytiri comes by your bed, asking you how you feel, but you don’t respond. Instead you look in the opposite direction, not wanting to look at her pretend she cares about you. As everyone watches the interaction between you and Neytiri they get confused as to why you are acting cold towards her because you’ve always been happy to see and talk to Neytiri.

“y/n, I just wanted to see if you were okay.” She genuinely wants to know how you are doing because seeing how brutally injured you were made a feeling of concern rise within her.

You scoff at her words and roll your eyes. You don't want to hear anything she has to say and her talking to you as if she never called you a demon makes you upset. “Neytiri, I don’t want you here.” Before Neytiri can respond, you add another sentence to your previous statement. “I heard everything you said today. If you feel so strongly about me, I don’t want you standing here as if you care for me.” Neytiri and Jake's eyes widen as they realize you heard their conversation.

Neytiri feels her heart drop to the pit of her stomach knowing that you heard her harsh words. It took this experience to happen and for her to see how much the rest of her family loves you to try and come around to the idea of you being around them, but now it’s too late. The seed of her hatred has already been planted.

“y/n, I did not mean-”

“Stop, Neytiri, okay?! Just stop! You meant everything you said. Saying that I’m a demon, that I could infect your children with my wicked ways, not one thing you said about me was good.” When the kids hear that, you can hear gasps from around the room. They didn’t know their mother said those things or felt that way about you.

“You know Neytiri, I’ve looked up to you for years. I saw you as a mother figure, so to hear you talk so poorly of me hurts to the core. The hurt I feel can’t be fixed and you’re the one who inflicted it upon me. I couldn’t believe you would say those things about me, sometimes I thought you saw me as a daughter like how you see Kiri but I was wrong.” Whenever Neytiri had duties within the village or doing an activity at home like weaving, cooking, or cleaning, you were right by her side watching her as if she was the most perfect woman on Pandora. Neytiri gave you a sense of motherly nurturing that you couldn’t get from the scientists which made you glued to her.

Neytiri never knew you felt this way and she didn’t know the impact she had on your life until now. As you talk, your tone is cold and sharp, your words twisting knives into her heart. She wishes she could take back each word she said about you, but that’s not the way things work. The words were already out in the atmosphere and have resonated with you.

The whole room is silent. There are so many things said and everyone is trying to get a grasp of the situation. Neytiri tells you that she is sorry and that she finally sees you for who you are: a sweet soul who is a part of their family, but you don’t want to hear that, at least not now. A few days ago, if you would’ve heard that, you would’ve been ecstatic, but now her words mean nothing.

“Leave. I don’t want to see you anymore.” You turn your back to Neytiri and close your eyes, not wanting to cry in front of her and show how much emotional pain you are in from her words.

Neytiri is going to say something, but Jake comes behind her and places his hand on her shoulder, telling her that you need space.

When she looks at her children, each one of them gives her mean glares, highly upset about how she treated you. Neytiri sighs before leaving the room and walking back to her marui. And as she walks back, she prays that you and her children would forgive her, but only Eywa knows if your forgiveness should be given.

I hope you enjoyed🩷!

Previous Fic

Editor - @justmemyselfandthemoon

Taglist: @teyamsbitch @kasai-https @neteyamyawne @hc-geralt-23 @yetanotherattemptatanaccount @myh3artttt @savagemickey03 @number1gal @headsincloud9 @buble787635 @normspellmann @em-x0 @sliqeramx @eywas-heir

[geezmarty]

id love to know more about any backstory u've been spinning for ur tav ! i love their design sm

Thank you! I’ve been holding off thinking about a backstory proper until I finish the game bc I know Vaguely that the dark urge gets into some plot shit and I like the prompt at the beginning of the game that tells durge they have no memories of their past…that being said, one headcanon I have is that Whatever her guardian is (no spoilers pls I have no idea yet!) they took the shape of one of her parents to try and make her trust them, even if she just has like, the shadow of a recollection on who her parents were or what they looked like.

It makes role playing the scenes with the guardian very tense and conflicting bc Brigha does Not trust them but she can’t bring herself to do anything but be wary of them and try to keep her distance even though there is something strangely familiar and comforting about them. canon events may render this headcanon null but I think it's juicy larian don't shatter my dreams

(another small thing is that the choker/amulet I keep drawing her in feels very important to her and is probably a family heirloom - she never takes it off. Maybe I’ll land on a proper design for it lol)

[simp-ly-writes]

Betting on Hearts (pt.2)

Cross-over: Contemporary! Peaky Blinders x The Gentlemen (2024)

Pairing: Edward "Eddie" Horniman x afab!Shelby!Reader,

Summary: It has been some time since you had last seen the Duke of Halstead and his business partner, Susie Glass. With the help of your family, you invite yourself to a surprise meeting, striking up a potential deal while dealing with the aftermath of your's and Eddie's earlier encounter. What will result from it all?

Warnings: 4000~ words, mentions of drinking, drugs, and anxiety.

A/N: Thank you for the ask and messages @kyros420! :)

Masterlist | Taglist Request | un-edited.

You wear a blue double-breasted blazer, the fabric is wool to match the pants of your suit; the articles fighting against the crisp English weather in early spring. A breeze gusts down an alleyway, crashing into your side as you huff out in annoyance, heels picking up their pace as you navigate the city streets.

Red light. Tapping your foot against the pavement as you look at your watch, still making good time if you don't get stopped at another intersection. Feeling around your handbag, your fingers slip past the cool metal of your gun, locked and loaded- ready for a misadvernture. You sigh out in relief once feeling the double-stapled papers, and with that, a green light flickers above your head as you shove through the crowd and towards the newest "Garrison" location.

Arthur is already making his rounds around the bar, the late lunch crowd has the space filled to the brim. The bell rings above the door as you step inside, smiling at a few of the employees who greet you and point towards your brother currently leaning over a table. Suit a bit wrinkled but his leather shoes freshly polished as he claps an officer on the shoulder, setting down another shot before he spins around your way to the sound of your voice.

"Arthur!" you shout, walking towards him, dodging various bar-goers already drunk on a late Tuesday afternoon.

"No need to shout now, haven't lost my hearing yet," he retorts, loosening his bowtie while tipping his head up the stairs towards his office and the staff break-room. You nod, gripping the banister as you make your way up the uneven stairs. "You really must get these fixed, Arthur. I have no clue how these got approved by the health inspector."

"Says the smuggler," your eldest brother fires back, pausing on the stairs as you crash into his back. He sends you a toothy smile, leg rising backwards as if to kick you down the stairs, "you wouldn't dare-"

"-or would I?' he voices back childishly, leg extending back further as you start to lean back with a grimace.

"Arthur," you strain his name in a tight tone, "I can't believe you are the eldest at times," telling him off like mother used to as his hands come up, leg falling back to the stair before he more swiftly continues the climb. Shaking your head you enter his office, locking the door behind you both. Arthur moves towards the bar cart, "Gin, Whiskey, or lukewarm wine?"

"Do you have tea?" Taking a seat in one of the leather chairs positioned in front of his desk. You cross your legs, a tea cup almost shattering with the force it gets slammed down with into your hands. "Wonderful service," you sarcastically comment, ripping one of the sugar bags placed on the saucer before delicately stirring it into your drink.

"Only the best for family, now why come to me and not fuck off to Tommy like you usually do?" You take a long drink of your tea before setting it on the desk, disregarding his comment and throwing the files onto the table. Arthur leans forward, squinting at the papers before you shove his glasses in front of him.

You watch as he nods along to the printed text, skipping a few pages before falling down to the empty signature line. He taps the dots in a row, eyes looking over the white pages as you level his stare. "You want me to sign this or somethin'?"

"No. Just... need some help is all," you mumble the rest, eyes falling to your lap as you pick at your nail-polish.

"Come again?" Arthur asks, hiding his grin behind the papers as he taps his ear, faking not being able to hear you. "Fucking hell, Arthur, I need your help! There," you huff out, falling back into your chair, gripping your tea as you choke down the rest of it.

"Then help is what you shall receive." Arthur drops the papers on the desk, standing before crouching down beside you. "Happy you came to me for this," he states in a softer voice, head tilted- awaiting your response.

"Don't let it get to your head now," you say back, hating the way the his soft words crack through your anxious-feelings. "What can I do?"

"Can you fit into your old uniform?"

--

And to think Tommy's house was outrageous- was an understatement, you say to yourself while walking up to the Halstead estate. The gravel crunches under each step of Arthurs boots as you held onto his arm- doing your best not to break an ankle. A swift three hard knocks across the wooden door sounded in the countryside as you took a step back to the sounds of footsteps approaching.

Plastering a smile, you tipped your head towards the member of staff as Arthur removed his hat in greeting. "Good afternoon, sir."

"Afternoon, ma'am, officer. Is there a reason for your appearance here today?" The butler's eyes furrow, examining Arthurs uniform with a raised brow before scanning over your designer handbag, meeting your eyes as you flash him another smile as he quickly adverts his gaze.

You tap your brothers arm thoughtfully, casting your head down, smiling fading. "Yes, we are some of Eddie's friends when he was deployed, is he in today? We would love to see him before my brother here gets called back and my vacation time gets used up."

"Ah, I see. I hate to report to you but-"

"What guests do we have here today?" An older woman comes down the stairs, practically gliding across the tile floors as the staff member prompt bows their head and moves to the side of the door. "Your grace, they are here to see the Duke- friends from overseas."

The woman looks over you both, clapping her hands together before inviting you inside the home. Your shoulders drop once hearing the door close behind you both. "Eddie never told me of his friends from deployment, it is a great pleasure to meet you both, I am Sabrina, Edward's mother. I'm sure you have many stories to share but please, is there anything we can serve you?"

"Thank you for your kindness and for allowing us into your home, your grace," eyes casting down to the waiting chairs in the foyer yet you stay standing. "I'm alright, Is there something you would like brother?"

"No, I'm fine," Arthur comments, eyes distracted over viewing every rare collectable and hand-crafted accent in the home. "Is there any where my brother and I could sit and wait for Eddie? I hate to intrude on such short notice, your grace, but-"

"Oh! Yes, I do apologies, you both must be tired from your travels, Edward always went straight to his room after coming back home. If you will follow me, the study is just up the stairs here." Sabrina leads you both further inside the house as you admire the wainscoting and rich-wood's of the hall. The group stops to a pair of heavy oak doors that groan to open.

The space if further divided into a desk room with a bay-window looking towards the pond as a small waiting space is already prepared with tea and lunch, hot on the coffee table before you. You crinkle yours eyes in confusion, wondering how quickly the staff were able to prepare everything before your arrival. Eyeing the room, a bookshelf is offset against the wall answering your question as you and Arthur take your seats.

Pouring out the teapot, Lady Sabrina leaves you both, the oak doors softly closing behind her as you lean back into the leather sofa, it creaks as you shit your weight, placing one leg on top of the other. Arthur stands, already restless as he unbuttons the top of his uniform and rolls up his sleeves. "Fuckin' puts Tom's office to shame," he comments, moving to stand in front of the window.

You shake your head, opening your handbag as move towards the desk room, settling the papers across its surface and un-caping your pen atop the stack. Seating yourself into the nearby chair, Arthur walks over to you, leaning on its arm- observing your precise actions. Next you place your gun in your lap, safety is on, the weight of the metal in your lap helping to ease your nerves as Arthur sniffles, feeling into the various pockets of his jacket.

"I am fine now, brother. If you need powder, smokes, or whatever-" your hand circling in his face, "you can leave through the staff-halls to outside, just don't take the car."

"You sure, I can stay-"

"I am fine, Arthur. Thank you for serving your role," you say with a smile, reaching up to tussle his hair as he huffs out, mockingly reaching out to mess with your own. The glare you send has him standing straight, casting you a playful wave goodbye as he exits the space. The newfound silence of the room catches you off-guard, the ticking of the clock getting on your nerves as you fix your appearance in your phones camera.

Yet that silence is swiftly broken as horridly-somewhat-hushed voice and footsteps cast down the hall, making their way into the room. You keep fixing yourself up, smirking at the hitching of a breath as your phone clicks closed, falling back into your bag by your foot. "Hello, your grace, Susan," you greet them both, not bothering to stand as they both still in the doorframe.

The Duke is dressed in a three piece suit, a brown with blue plaid running through it. His neck-tie is delicately patterned around his neck, complimenting his handkerchief and light blue dress-shirt. Your smile only grows seeing the distant mark of all those night ago just barley visible underneath the left side of his jaw that current clenches and unclenching, drinking in the appearance of you.

To ensure he remembers your last meeting with one another, you lean your body towards the arm of the chair. Your suit flexing more skin down your chest, his eyes trail upwards, seeing that all-too familiar mark against your skin. He shifts his necktie, eyes refusing to meet you own as he makes his way around the desk, the sun casting an outline of his broad shoulders. Your fingers begin tracing the chairs carvings, your head tipped towards him, you bite your lower lip, letting it fall slowly just as your hand moves from the chair, down to your thighs.

Eddie gulps, eyes now trained on the black metal settled in your lap, pointing outwards in a crude manor as you caress the weapon, circling your finger muzzle. You emit a few soft laughs through your nose, enjoying the attention of the room being casted upon you.

Susie walks up to the desk, footsteps never faltering in precise movements before leaning against the wood. Her hands settled in front of her body, eyes watching your own as you cast her a wink. Enjoying the way her eyes snap away from your own only to return a split-second later, darkly glaring as you lick your lips in delight.

Her grey pin-stripped suit does wonders for her long legs as your foot shifts closer to her own, heels barley touching each other. You hold one another's gaze, searching each others eyes for who would be the first to dare speak. Yet Edward beats you both to the trigger, "I see you have brought forward the contract we discussed during out last... meeting. I hope that your presence also allows for Miss. Glass and I to offer a proposition?"

Your tone loses humour as your sentence progresses, "I am not one to break my word, your grace. Now speak."

--

Arthur would be lying if he was not relieved to be out of the walls and greeted by the crisp English air. His cigarette smoke floated out of his mouth as his fingertips relished the burn of the bud before stomping out the remaining sparks with his boot. Starting to reach into his jacket pocket, looking for phone a cough makes him fumble with the device, flicking his head upwards- his hair flipping back into place as he glares towards a dishevelled man, cigarette unlit in his hands.

"Mid if I borrow your lighter?" Freddy asks, already beginning to walk over to Arthur, standing at full height as he adjusts his uniform, eyeing the other eldest son from head to toe. "Here," Arthur holds out the metal lighter, a gift from his wife that holds an engraving of their wedding day. Freddy hums out, pressing his cigarette closer to the flame, blowing his smoke away from the two.

"So..." Freddy takes another drag, cigarette dancing between his fingers as he swashes it near Arthur. "...What are you doing here? I didn't think Eddie hired any new staff recently, nor mum."

"M'not staff, here with my sister who is currently speaking to your brother," Arthur clarify, attention now drawn back to his phone, checking it over for any cracks before sorting through his emails and text messages. John had sent yet another cryptic message of emojis and phrases that he couldn't quite grasp.

"I'm Freddy," the robed-man introduces himself, not bothering to stop out the remainder of his cigarette once dropped to the floor. He extends his hand as Arthur looks it over, "Arthur." His hand is smooth, hardly a callus or scar to displace the skin the Shelby notes, yet holds a firm few shakes.

Freddy proceeds to open and close his mouth, trying to start conversation as Arthur turns back to his work, absent-mindedly nodding along to whatever he says before walking away to take a call through the stables. Freddy walks behind him, continuing his one-sided conversation about his newest investment idea that was sure to work this time.

--

You pick up your gun, going to stand just as Susie straightens beside you, stepping closer to interfere as Eddie raises his hand, the room in a pause to your chuckle. You place the gun in the back waistband of your pants, wiggling your hands in a playful gesture. "A pity, how much trust you lack in me, I did patch you up, your grace," you tease, now walking around the office, hands drifting over the various collectables before setting on a record to fill the remaining space in the room.

You lean against the bookshelves, looking between the pair and then the table where fresh ink stains the papers with the Duke's signature. "So, you wish to give me a undisclosed share of your... medical business for me to manage your import/export AND get you a meeting with the rest of the Shelby clan. My oh my, Edward I know you are new to this business but Susie-darling, I expected better of you. But! I respect your father, I am willing to be lenient with your brothers antics in my industry yet you surely must understand that your side does not hold enough for me to accept this deal. I already have given you my presence for no added cost but this, this is rather silly, for lack of a better word."

Susie flings herself off the desk as she walks across the room to stand in front of you. Her eyes squinted into slits, cutting through your words as you swallow down the rest of your speech. Her mouth is tipped in a rehearsed smirk as you stand up straight, head tilting upwards to look at her. Leaning forwards, you watch as her shoulders tense, foreheads nocking against one another before shifting your head closer to her ear. You bathe in her ruining composure, her manicured hands pulling into fists at her side, you are fed by the chaos of it all as Eddie rounds the desk, watching in need to separate the both of you if necessary.

You lift up your hand, her breath hitching in wait as you place a hand on her shoulder, your lips part as she takes a sharp breath inwards. "Don't make me have to talk to your father about this deal, Susie. I know you can figure something out. You both can, but until then my time has been served here."

You drop your touch from the woman, moving around her towards your bag to pack the contract away yet you are stopped by her voice, commanding you to turn back around to face her. "I will go up to 15% of revenue share and will take the tax of any operations cost for our product's travel."

"20%," you counter-offer with a knowing smile, watching as her eyes flick up towards the ceiling before closing, working out the details in her head. You can imagine the words and numbers floating around her head as Eddie comes to your side, bag and contract in hand. You press a kiss to his cheek in thanks.

"The highest I can go is 18-"

"25% then," you state, making your way towards the door, hand starting to turn the door handle. You can hear their posh mumblings behind you. Eddie fixes the watch on his wrist as Miss. Glass's tone strains, fabric shifting before the room stills once more. "23%, taxes paid, and product for your brother's."

The door clicks open, you can see the hall, the sun dipping through the windows as evening nears. The downstairs lobby is pattering with house staff preparing for dinner, you can her the Lady of the House ordering things around and the familiar gruff tones of your brother conversing with another. Yet you turn around, both of your hands clasped around the handle of your bag.

You allow the suspense to build, the song slowly fading to an end and just as the last note falls. Eddie takes a long blink, Susie grips the back of the couch, "offer taken," you smile at them both and with that, the double doors slam behind you, heels clicking against the wood down the hall as your car dings open. "Lets go Arthur!" you shout into the lobby, his hurried footsteps follow after you as he voices his thanks to the house before closing the passengers door.

"We got ourselves a deal?" He questions, looking at the side of your face for an indicator as you hold solid, turning the car into drive, the gravel crunching underneath your wheels once more.

You don't give him an answer right away, "Put everyone on call for me please." His hand move across the dash, a series of three rings before a Birmingham accent allows you to release a held in breath. A smile coating your lips as you lean back into your seat. "Give me news, sister," Tommy demands, you can hear his children running rampant in the background. "No bath, no!"

"I think you should help your lovely wife before I-"

Johns voice squashes your conversation as he enters the call, "Who's dead, married, or havin' a child? I sure hope its you Arthur, your wife has been looking at Tom's kids with those eyes again..."

Arthur groans beside you, "Fuck off John."

"I don't think this family needs anymore children, we already have three boys," Ada pops up.

"Hey Ada," you greet her.

"Don't you 'Hey Ada' me now, how did the meeting go?" she asks, you can hear the giggle in her voice, the underlying tone that you both would be having another wine-filled event in your living room later tonight.

"Yes, how did the meeting go," Tommy asks, his tone rigid before he mutes himself, probably telling the children off. You can hear the banging of metal in the back of the call, John still at work, you shake your head knowing his wife was already preparing yet another speech about sharing enough time together, 'as a family,' just the same way that Arthurs wife did.

"I got us a deal Tom, yet Bobby wants to see you again. Didn't specify to me no matter how much I pried," you comment with annoyance, fingers tapping against the steering wheel as you wait at the lights, the streets empty yet you had been in your fare share of accidents to know not to cross the lights without a signal.

"Good," Tommy simply says back, "Now go home."

"Already on it," you answer sweetly just as he jumps off the call.

"Hey- I got a few last meetings, we still doing dinner at your place sis?" John asks Ada as you turn down the next street, dropping Arthur off as he shouts his goodnights to everyone before slamming your car door close. You wince, worrying the damage to the body of your car before backing out of the driveway and back towards your place.

"Yes, remember 4pm sharp everyone!" Ada announces and with that, you end the call, sighing to yourself, eyes casting heavy as you exit the vehicle and enter your near silent home. Your pets greet you at the door, their feet tapping against the floor, tails wagging back in forth within your presence.

--

Coming out of the shower, towel wrapped around your body and head you startle seeing a delicately placed box at the foot of your bed. Cautiously looking around the room, no signs of forced entrance or violence appear. You examine the box, checking each side without touching in case it was a placed bomb yet you feel or hear nothing coming from it.

Slowly you pull the bow away, letting it fall onto your covers as you gently lift the top off and your breath hitches. You see Eddies signature once more, your fingers trace over the dried ink with thoughtfulness as you take in every handwritten letter pressed into the card-stock.

Miss. (Name) Shelby, I owe you many thanks in recent times, for helping to mend on old soldiers wounds, for accepting Miss. Glass's and I's deal, and for reigniting a part of myself I haven't felt in such time. I hope that it is not too selfish of me in asking for more of your time and in requesting for you to join me for dinner within my social circle. Within this box, you will find the dress I owe as I await your answer. Your Grace, Edward Horniman.

You read over the note a few dozen times, a smile only growing as your cheeks warm. Pressing the card to your chest, you catch the faintest scent of his cologne coming off the card as you chuckle through your nose at the detail. Setting it delicately on your bedside table, you pull off the paper to find an elegant dress. You pull it out, letting it unravel to your feet as you spin around to the mirror, inspecting it over your body.

Stepping back you curse out, picking up your foot abruptly with a hiss. Looking down a small pin, a set of two birds looks up at you, gleaming in the warm lighting of the room. You settle down on your knees, picking up the accessory while looking back towards your closet where the original dress hung, freshly washed yet still stained and you didn't have the heart to rid yourself of it.

Looking back towards the nightstand, your smile only grows before you are dressing yourself and darting to find your handbag. A small business card poking out between the papers. Oh Edward, you sigh out to yourself, already pressing the numbers into your device.

The phone rings, anxiety starts to overtake you as you walk up and down the halls before moving back into your room- worried to waking any of the staff within the residence. "This is Edward," his baritone voice fills your ears as you look out your window, fingers playing with the bottom of your shirt.

"Hello, your grace," you tease out, doing your best to hide the growing giggles overcoming your anxiety, filling up with excitement as you bite your lip.

"Hello, Miss. Shelby. I do hope this call means well..." His voice trails off just as yours starts once more, "It will if you can answer something for me?"

"Anything."

"Can you take the dress off me too?"

↳ Taglist: @daffodilstark @leavemeslowly @iamasimpingh0e @kneelarmhstrung @surazim @milllieeee

↳ A/N: Hope you all enjoyed this!!! I am running out of ideas, I have a few sentences for different ideas but cannot come up with something I am happy with for an episode-by-episode series... always open for ideas like usual!

[mulders-too-large-shirt]

s2 episode 6 thoughts

sighs as if i just ran a marathon.

so, you know i take a LOT of notes. but this episode was SUCH a ride that i'm gonna try a new method of copying all this down. stick with me and let's see how it goes.

okay here we are. back after our brief and sorrow-filled separation yesterday, in which i had no time to watch an episode. it’s Scully hours. hopefully.

first thing we see is mulder walking into his place in the rain. first thing i do is pause and see if i can analyze the art on his walls. they’re some sort of prints of houses? not noticing anything in particular in terms of style or artist. and it’s definitely a new place where he lives, rip the sleep couch from s1

he takes off his jacket and listens to the message she left him and oh fuck. oh fuck. her voice. the sound of duane yelling. shattering glass.

he goes to her house and sees blood and the open window!!!! the TERROR that man must have been feeling. and he uses that FBI id to sneak right in there.

now he’s prowling about her house in search of clues and looking at her blood and hair left behind which is fucked up, even by my standards 

it was at this point i wrote "he’s like a bloodhound" which is a statement i stand by and can elaborate on if prompted

OH! we see a familiar face. he meets scully's mom. while his hands are soaked in her daughter’s blood. that's okay that's fine (said in a shaking and squeaky voice).

THE OPENING SAID SOMETHING DIFFERENT: DENY EVERYTHING. WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

(at this point i made a note expressing concern that we were gonna watch scully get tortured for 45 minutes straight and thank god that isn't what actually went down. because i would have been deeply upset if that had happened and would have launched upon an unstoppable rant for the next few generations)

scully's mom dreamed about her being taken away and Mulder WRAPS HIS ARMS AROUND HER. again. while still covered in her blood. what a way to meet her family. not how anyone had pictured this going down.

so it's the next morning and alex is in this meeting while mulder is having a come apart. don’t wish him to be here. and no, alex does not get the respect of being referred to by his last name like a good agent on MY account where i make the rules and the rules are that he sucks.

when rationalizing what duane is going through, skinner said “so he’s following orders from the alien voices in his head? That’s an interesting spin on the Nuremberg defense” and yeah! i chuckled. was he wrong there?

skinner made me laugh with that little remark but then went back to pissing me off by telling mulder he was too close to the case and needed to go home. like yes, he’s right, but mulder's gonna put his bloodhound skills to destructive purposes. he's gonna rip up the couch if left home alone. in a dog metaphorical sense.

so alex takes him home which was bad enough (alex must know where mulder lives to do that) and we see CIGARETTE MAN IN THE BACKGROUND????? my original notes had a lot stronger language at this reveal that i felt i needed to tone down but i will keep the "i'll have ur head im sooo serious" part in

okay, back to duane cam. he’s cruising. he cranks his window down when he’s pulled over which is still funny to me. crank windows. how novel. but don't think i've forgotten the situation at hand just because 90's technology is funny to me.

a cop pulls him over and i felt a flicker of hope inside my chest but i knew deep down it was still too early in the episode for anything to be resolved. still, duane pulling out his gun and SHOOTING the cop made my jaw drop

(my jaw kept dropping this episode to an extent that was painful. i just got my wisdom teeth out and while i love enjoying this show, the constant twists and turns are NOT leading to a pleasant mouth experience)

SCULLY IN THE TRUNK REVEAL? <- that was all i wrote when i saw here in there. i feel it sums up the situation.

mulder, somehow, taps into where she's located and gets a visual on her. he is intensely effected and this is why i support his bloodhound-like tendencies being channeled. the man gets results.

alex, don’t ask how he slept. you are a rat and should be banished from his presence during his state of mourning and forever after. 

mulder: doesn't route 229 lead to the blue ridge parkway?

alex: I don’t know <- okay lmao I get that. i get that alex. like directions are hard. you haven't won me over but you did make me laugh here.

mulder figured out where they’re going and says GET THE CAR ALEX and that “he’ll deal with skinner”. ohhh i wanna see this furious mulder deal with skinner. OHHHH i'm so on the edge of my seat this sleep deprived man is gonna <- didn't even finish that sentence due to the next reveal

WHO THE HELL IS ALEX TALKING TO ABOUT “HOLDING HIM OFF” WHY IS CIGGY MAN HERE (can you hear the desperation in all of the notes i was taking. also i don't know his name and i don't care. that's cigarette man or ciggy man if i need to use shorthand and his government name is probably "rat bastard" but i don't care enough to use it)

mulder was, at this point, falling asleep and almost hitting a truck but insisting he can still drive. wild. on the one hand, i get it, because alex is probably gonna drive them off the road and something, but then on the other hand buddy. u almost got plowed in the negative context. someone fetch him a red bull

(and yeah i googled "red bull origins" to see if that would have been possible at the time for mulder to have a sip and can confirm it would have been IF he had gotten it imported from another country. because it wasn't in the us yet. i am a scholar)

alex is listing how many awful things are caused by sleep deprivation. which i understand and again, a good argument to be made, but this grease weasel just wants to get behind the wheel so he can total the thing and i'm not having it 

(he said some like after this and it was just “there’s our turn off” but my hatred for him reached a crescendo at this point like I could have started pummeling)

so they get to the place on the mountain that takes you up- the ski lift thingy. and the guy who works it is like "you can't use it, we don't test it in the summer" and wow. when i tell you what happens next, i hope you are seated. because i had to pause and breathe for a bit.

MULDER PULLS HIS GUN OUT AND THREATENS THE DUDE WHO SAYS HE CAN’T TAKE THE CABLE SKI THINGY UP OHHHHH MY GAWDDDDD 

so he gets access to the lift thingy and he locked alex out… yes exactly right!

the lift operator is like "don't go over 15 miles per hour" and we all know what mulder is gonna do next. he cranks it up way too fast and he’s gonna fall into the mountain and i’m looking around my room like what is going on here. the cuts to Alex’s snaky eyes are freaking me tf out. Why is alex reaching for his gun. WHAT THE FUCK WHY FID HE KNOCK THAT GIY OUT HE CIT THE GENERATOR AND LEFT MULDER UP THERE WHO IS HE CALLONH 

(<- leaving that one verbatim from my notes, too, because i feel it really captures the experience, if you can work out those typos. basically alex took his gun out and knocked the lift operator out, leaving mulder stranded on the ski lift in the sky, then called someone like "i've got him trapped" and i. was experiencing all of this very quickly.)

scully cam. she’s still in the trunk.

so the power's cut on the ski lift and mulder is not gonna just sit around and wait for somebody to help him! he's climbing up the tower and once he’s up there ALEX TURNS THE MACHINE BACK ON SERIOUSLY WHAT IS GOING ON

mulder survives the journey to the mountain's peak, despite almost falling off because he was hanging from outside!! and alex looks soooooooooooo mad.

sad man in the rain finds a car with blood in the wheel and...

HER NECKLACE IN THE BACK!!! AN EPISODE 3 CALL BACK!!! to when he knew eugene tooms was going after her because he found her necklace. oh i'm gonna be SICK

back to our worstie duane, who is in the woods screaming that they took her and that he’s free and I had to pause to breathe a lil. because if mulder lost scully and his sister to aliens...... 

after what was intended to be a commercial break and some wrestling on behalf of mulder, we see duane in custody, but receive no answers on what exactly is going on. he is, however, in a small room with mulder, who looks entirely diabolical.

mulder is stalking this guy- "stalking" in the sense that he is like a predator waiting for a chance to pounce on a rabbit- and he gets up and SEES SCULLY'S BLOOD AND HAIR ON DUANE'S HOSPITAL WRISTBAND???

next occurs what i described in my notes as the "DID YOU HURT HER SCREAMING AND TORTURE SESSION. JAW IS ON THE FLOOR" (my poor jaw. who will think of her in these trying times)

again, mulder is in his animal era, because he starts choking duane. REALLY choking him. i'm shocked. between this and the showing his gun to get to the top of the mountain, we are really seeing how he will throw all of the rules to the side and spit on them to keep the people he loves safe.

(i was also thinking to myself at this point, his ass is gonna get fired)

duane was taunting him, saying "i hope they’re not hurting her too much with the tests” which is. obviously evil. but HOW evil? it's still unclear if he is lying about the whole alien thing, because remember, scully said the bullet in his brain makes him a liar who is unpredictable. and i guess a bullet could maybe do that. i have no experience in such matters.

mulder says everyone STAY OUT OF THERE and yet. alex goes in to see duane. and is like "well i went in there because he was gagging". sure yeah. suspicious. why were you close enough to hear him gag? how do you know the sound of another man gagging, alex? heard it before?

okay this next part was. pretty messed up. i'll let my reactions from being in the moment speak for themselves because i have little desire to relive the matter:

SCULLY IN A WEIRD ASS ROOM???? THE ALIENS? What the hell I’m deeply uncomfortable are they blowing her up like a balloon. Oh I got chills. Negative 

(i never want to see a character blown up like a balloon it's just not for me. i am always gonna be good on that front)

((who is blowing her up and why. i was convinced it was aliens at first but now i think it was actually the Evil Government which has me thinking, what kind of situation led them to developing that technology in the first place?))

mulder pulls alex out of the room “NO ONE is to interrogate the suspect” “except you?” “except me” <- mulder with a god complex because scully is missing and he will do ANYTHING to find her. oh yeah that's juicy. i'm gonna dive into that at a later date.

skinner yells at mulder. yeah he had it coming. even if i enjoy his character arc i do think choking your only suspect comes across as a bit. well. unprofessional, shall we say.

mulder is shocked that duane is gagging like he didn’t just choke the guy and he might have KILLED his own best lead and has to live with whatever knowledge duane had on her whereabouts dying with him 

mulder staring at the corpse. cause of death: asphyxiation. oh he killed that dude. he is gonna be in trouble. 

(that was my first thought, anyway. i wasn't picking up what mulder was putting down, requesting a toxicology report. to me, if you show a scene of a guy getting choked, and then he dies a few minutes later, it's another situation of "i don't know enough about medical stuff to dispute that". mulder, however, WILL dispute that)

next part is copied and pasted from the rough notes again because it's funny:

"alex go fuck yourself i don’t even wanna look at you. getting in the car with ciggy man. “what about scully?” “we’ve taken care of that” ARE YOU THE MFER BLOWING HER UP LIKE A BALLOON CIGGY MAN???? alex is questioning things but idgaf if he’s morally conflicted"

(i saw the seeds of an alex redemption arc being sown here and i didn't care for it. condemn him. to the dungeons.)

mulder’s super insistent that he did NOT kill duane and again i was like. well are you sure. because it kinda looks like you did.

they want him to take a lie detector test which always makes me cringe. if polygraphs have no haters its because i'm dead.

mulder believes that duane was actually poisoned by the government to hide Something and he presents this theory to skinner and his panel which was Bold but you know our boy mulder. bold is what he does.

“why are you so paranoid Mulder” asks some random guy from the council in an annoyed fashion << terribly insensitive thing to say to guy who just had his best friend kidnapped

“I find it hard to trust anybody” (cutscene to asking Alex for his keys) NAURRR YOU CANNOT TRUST THE WEASEL 

alex gives him the keys and leaves with a long lingering stare. okay. freak.

mulder's going to the senator!!!! i was hoping we would get more info on that whole deal- why does this guy sponsor mulder? why does he do it if he knows it's a bad idea? how do they even know each other? is he a republican? - but we really don't gain any insight. he runs into Deep Throat 2.0, who I believe to be a handsome fellow, and he says that They will deny everything

who is they, i mumble quietly to the screen. why do they know all the things??

mulder is in visible and irreparable agony when getting in the car but he still has a funky tie on. despite the horrors his swag must persist.

GASP!! Mulder opens the car drawer and sees the cigarettes of famed ciggy man. alex is too pretty to smoke...

Mulder puts two and two together FAST and accuses alex of being a rat to skinner (which he’s right about!) he says he stands behind his accusation on the record and skinner tries to call alex up

(which was so funny to me because if he was a secret double agent- which he is- and mulder is accusing him of something adjacent to treason- what is a talk in skinner's office gonna do to solve the problem? again skinner is giving me high school principal energy. ur not gonna talk that one out babe but it's sweet you gave it a go xx)

mulder says that scully got too close to whatever the truth is when she had that little tracker thing and so they got her. i find myself agreeing with the guy who believes elvis faked his death. funny how he's often the level headed one

skinner, to my surprise, is taking this accusation of his agents being of the double variety quite well. he actually seems pretty reasonable about the whole thing, and like he truly believes there is some ulterior motives at play here.

but sympathy isn't enough for mulder: “What CAN you do” he asks Skinner, thrusting a finger in his face. “There’s only one thing I can do,” skinner sighs, and he... REOPENS THE X FILES?

(now this did shock me, but i was excited! don't get me wrong, i was just a bit surprised. i was thinking maybe he'd call up ciggy man and try to have a nice dignified chat since he seems so hell-bent on solving things through the power of discussion, but i suppose that reauthorizing the investigation into aliens while a top agent is missing for doing just that is. certainly an approach to the problem at hand?)

mulder walks sadly beneath a water fountain. it was sad enough as it was but then scully's mom walks up and things get even More sad

to somewhat break the air of tragedy: for some reason his face is crystal clear but hers is superrrrr blurry. like i've mentioned before, some shots are normal tv quality, and others look like they were ripped from a VHS. it throws me off each time.

but back to the matter at hand: he gives her scully’s cross necklace and he’s like "why did she wear that if she was such a skeptic" (which is a question i keep pointing out!!!!!!) and we learn the answer:

it was a gift from her mother on her 15th birthday. which i can and Will analyze in depth at a later date. the gift of a religious object to further solidify the need from her family to be Perfect and never fail and do exactly as they say. but scully choosing to wear it anyway, decades later, to hold her family close, no matter the pain of disappointing them. when she mindlessly reaches for the pendant to roll in her fingers, does she feel the warmth of family or the chill of their expectations she can never meet?

but. mulder tries to give her the necklace. and she says that he can give it to her when he finds her. not if. when.

he goes to a hill and looks up at the sky.

this episode was intense, and i will be gnawing on it like a bone for a while. seeing mulder and scully's mom together made me incredibly emo. seeing him break all the rules to find her also made me emo. trying to figure out if skinner is a real one and the ratio to which alex is genuinely evil vs just stupid were some serious cases of mental chess. and duane. we all wanna know what his deal is. and where is alex! he doesn't have to come back, don't get me wrong, but... did he fall off the face of the earth? go back to massachusetts for a dunkin run? i know that smug new englander look he has about him. don't sit here and tell me he grew up in kansas i won't buy it.

anyway, i saw the description of the next episode- so we're going back to an x file. i find it hard to imagine that mulder will have emerged from bloodhound mode by then, so maybe he thinks it's connected somehow and will go on a quest for answers in that direction- a vampire direction? hmm. guess i'll just have to tune back in!

[roseadleyn]

𝙁𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙣 𝘼𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙡. || 𝘾𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙨 𝙋𝙚𝙙𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙖𝙣.

for @that-one-pretty-bitch as a part of my event. thank you so much for being a constant inspiration baby, ily <3

‼️ cassis in this is after chapter 36. because of this, he's more eerie and.. ah, unsettling, than his season 1 character. ‼️

yes i'm actually doing a non flower related title, can you believe it?? anyways enjoy 💞

— rose.

back to event masterlist!

affection — how do they show their love and affection?

cassis shows his affection through quality time or acts of service. invites you over for tea, offers to help you with your work, makes time to tell you old stories about his family. you take his monopolizing nature at surface level; brushing it off as light possessiveness. nothing more.

well, you got one part right. it's nothing less than possession.

blood — how messy are they willing to get when it comes to their darling?

cassis tries to avoid killing; he's not very bloodthirsty and prefers to solve the problem through talking. however, if there is any sort of physical threat to you, he's not opposed to snapping a few necks.

cruelty — how would they treat their darling once abducted?

he's not cruel! ...most of the times. he's kind towards you but is so fast to turn on you that it leaves your head spinning. demands the knights who are stalking you, at sword-point, to tell him about every little thing you did in your day, from what you ate to who you talked to.

the thing is, you can't even remember the last time cassis allowed you to interact with anyone who wasn't him or your handmaidens.

darling — aside from abduction, would they do anything against their darling’s will?

no. he doesn't like seeing you cry and sob hysterically so he'd rather not. as for sex, that can wait. he doesn't want to shatter you completely, so it's better if you want him to before he tries to get you in the sheets.

exposed — how vulnerable are they when it comes to their darling?

you thought dion felt vulnerable? with cassis, it's like a constant wound, always bleeding, the blood dissolving the bandages so that he never quite stops worrying about you. something as simple as coming late to bed and his mind is already conjuring up horrible scenarios of you being snatched away by the agriche and —

very, very, very vulnerable. he's not this vulnerable with anyone else and even tries to hide it from you — vulnerability is a new thing for his proud, haughty spirit.

fight — how would they feel if their darling fought back?

hurt. because when you fight, he ends up having to force you, which inevitably ends in tears and broken bones. he doesn't want to hurt you! just obey, just listen to him and do as he says, don't resist as he hugs you close or grabs your wrist so tight that you have to beg him to let you go because he got too jealous and —

if, just if, you manage to appease his jealousy, you'll be fine.

game — is this a game to them? how much would they enjoy watching their darling try to escape?

it annoys him. he barely gets to see you because of how busy he is, and when he does get to see you, you scream and thrash around and make ridiculous attempts to escape. it's tiresome and he will shut these escape attempts down faster than dion killed ashil.

hell — what would be their darling’s worst experience with them?

you once made a very bad deal with one of your handmaidens once in a desperate bid of freedom. not only did cassis catch you, he decapitated her on the spot, rubbing in the fact that it was your fault. and even that wasn't all — cassis kept you captive to his bed with a chain just long enough to give you access to the bathroom.

you can't remember the last time you moved on your own.

ideals — what kind of future do they have in mind for their darling?

cassis wants to marry you. he's always been the romanticist type of guy, and there's something so.. heavenly about marrying you — this way, he'll get to bind you to him forever through the marital vows.

and unlike callisto, who gives you a choice, cassis will marry you regardless. the most he'll do is postpone it.

jealousy — do they get jealous? how do they handle it?

he feels jealous, of course, yet he's not going to act on it in public. the minute he gets an opening, he steers you away, his grip unyielding on your shoulders, offering a tight smile to the person causing his jealousy. handles it by isolating you more than ever, spending most of his time with you, just to convince himself further that you're here and you're not ever leaving.

kisses — how do they act around or with their darling?

obsessive. he adores you. kisses you until you're breathless, wraps his coats around you, never lets one moment in your rather unwilling company pass without reminding you of just how much he loves you.

you'd really rather he didn't.

love letters — how would they go about approaching their darling?

like a picture perfect gentleman. asks if he can greet you, dances with you at every party, his touches on your waist featherlight. once you agree to let him court you, he's ecstatic, spoiling you with everything and anything you ever dreamed of, wrapping his arms around you, as though unable to believe just how he got so lucky. (author: cassis, if you hurt jacqueline, i — and a whole cult — will murder you.)

mask — are their true colors drastically different from the way they act around everyone else?

well, nobody would ever guess this side of the heir of pedelian, right? that he locked you up against your will and ignored your sobbing as he explained your situation? that he has spies all around to make sure you don't lift a finger the wrong way? that he holds you close, turning a deaf ear to your quiet crying?

why would anyone suspect that?

naughty — how would they punish their darling?

small things, but long punishments. his favorite one is isolation. he'll give you the cold shoulder for as long as it takes for you to come back — and you will. you can only spend so long, completely alone, before losing your will to fight, right? and you're always so sweet about it too — lifting up the covers to his bed, placing yourself beside him, tapping him on the shoulder with a pretty, careful finger, letting him welcome you back with open arms.

oppression — how many rights would they take away from their darling?

at first, he's very open with it — he lets you roam the gardens with your maids and very, very, very rarely (infact, it only happened once) lets you go to town — in disguise and with him, of course. but eventually his jealousy might take hold of him, or some kind of threat would be detected towards you, which, of course, would make him paranoid. then you're lucky if he allows you to leave the bedroom.

patience — how patient are they with their darling?

up to a certain extent, cassis is patient. he's fine if you struggle and thrash about and cry and scream — these are fruitless efforts and he can crush them easily, but words — if you say anything, whether it's pitying or mocking, that makes his heart twist in on itself with that horrible empty feeling —

do that and he'll give you a real reason to cry.

quiet — if their darling dies, leaves, or successfully escapes, would they ever be able to move on?

no. he quite possibly will never enter into a relationship ever again, completely complacent, absolutely hollow. if you managed to escape or leave, and he couldn't find you, he'll blame himself day and night, u able to get you out of his head even still. and if death was the one who came for you, he would just... yeah, he would never recover.

regret — would they ever feel guilty about abducting their darling?

often — when you curl up and sob, nursing injuries or fighting nightmares — cassis feels an inexpressible urge to just hold you, to just stay there, until you stop weeping. he's no soft kind guy, but this — this hurts. just stop. just accept that this is now your life, and that it's not goingto change.

stigma — what brought about this side of them (childhood, curiosity, etc)?

harsh expectations and the agriche. he needs to protect you, to make sure you never, ever, ever go through what he did — ever again. blame the agriche if you want but they're honestly more amused than sympathetic 🫶 have fun babes

tears — how do they feel about seeing their darling scream, cry, and/or isolate themselves?

he feels terrible. don't you understand that it doesn't have to be like this? that there's no reason to cry? why are you so unwilling to stay with him, what can he not give you that everyone else can? he doesn't get it.

unique — would they do anything different from the classic yandere?

cassis would never steal your belongings or build some kind of creepy shrine or downright devote himself to you. it creeps him out to be honest — even his adoration doesn't fly to those particular levels. this might be due to what he saw of maria at his time with the agriche — and it honestly terrifies him to this day.

vice — what weakness can their darling exploit in order to escape?

his love for you, obviously. sob and cry about how you need one particular thing, and watch him leave immediately to get it. you can seize the time to run!

i'm warning you though — he will find you.

wit’s end — would they ever hurt their darling?

not willingly. even though his punishments can be severe, they're very rarely physical, and never brutally damaging. after the agriche, he dislikes physical violence and tries to avoid it — only when it comes to you.

xoanon — how much would they revere their darling?

too much. there are times when he just looks at you — truly looks, as though just taking in the fact that you exist — and he feels his heart flutter like the wings of a butterfly. you're so perfectly beautiful with pretty eyes, and satin soft hair, and the tears running down your face — it's not art, but it feels divine , all the same.

yearn — how long do they pine after their darling before they snap?

roughly 2 years. he steps up a year after meeting you and stars courting you normally — but this lasts only for another year. he gives in on you two's anniversary, knocking you out painlessly, already feeling regret and guilt sift and twinge in his gut.

“ ... i'm sorry. but i needed to do this. for you, it was all for you, it is all for you. ”

zenith — would they ever break their darling?

as much as he doesn't want to — yes. cassis is delusional and obsessive and manipulative and possessive — and he grows more and more demented than ever. he rarely lets you out of the shared bedroom, claiming that anywhere else is too dangerous. he doesn't let you shower on your own, and everytime you try to take one by yourself, he decides that perhaps it's time for a soak anyways. it hollows you out, reducing you to an empty shell of yourself, just lying there on the waves.

realization hits cassis fast and hard — when was the last time you tried escape? why does he want you to escape? the smile he loved so much is as good as dead because he's never ever gonna see it again.

you don't react when he buries his face in the crook of your neck and cries.

—

tagging ; @writerig, @loekas, @nxccolo, @ykassu, @dion-s-lawyer, @ithil-lucien, @that-one-pretty-bitch (obv, this is hers), @sidra-29, @hmerus, @cerisearan, @dxmoness, @chxrrylxdy, @d10nsaint, @meow-meow-potato, @parkykwho, @izumi-astra-123 and @palaceofghosts.

[ i didn't tag the mutuals who don't like yandere content (that's why @/crownxie isn't tagged) but i did tag those who are on hiatus rn since they tagged me when i was inactive and everyone else still does ]

i hate this! but! here you go, jacqueline!

—

[whats-her-quirk]

hot chocolate

jean kirstein x fem!reader rating: M (my blog is 18+, minors do not interact) warnings/tags: Fluff, comfort, mention of past breakup, Christmas, friends to lovers word count: ~700

Adorable dividers by @saradika

“Did you know that the elf with the glasses is the same guy who played Ralphie in A Christmas Story?” The movie is already starting as you carefully return to the living room with two mugs of hot chocolate.

“Is not,” Jean chuckles. He carefully accepts his mug before slorping some mini marshmallows off the top.

“I’m serious.” You settle in on the couch next to him before taking your first sip. “When Buddy says he’s only made 85 Etch-A-Sketches, the guy who tells him he’s behind is Peter Billingsley. Look it up on IMDB, I’m right.”

“Wait, you’re serious? How did I never know this?” Jean cradles his mug to his chest and squints at the TV, waiting for Ralphie to appear in Santa’s workshop. He’s wearing a festive red and green turtleneck with cozy joggers, and the big bowl of kettle corn he brought over sits on the coffee table between you.

It’s been a weird December. You would have said it was a bad one if it weren’t for Jean. It was supposed to be your first Christmas alone—the first since the breakup that shattered your world, miles away from the family you wouldn’t see until you flew out on the 23rd. You were bracing for a much harder month, but your friends, especially Jean, made it more than bearable. He made it light.

When you expressed doubt about putting up your tree alone, he showed up with a bottle of wine and a new string of lights in case yours were burnt out (they were). When you wanted to go see lights, he took you out for a drive in the ritzy neighborhood on town over, where you didn’t even know the good displays were. He let you make a mess in his kitchen decorating cookies and wrangled Connie and Sasha for an ice skating night all together, and now here he was, the week of Christmas, hunkered down for a movie night just because you said you were feeling a little down.

“Oh shit, that’s totally Ralphie. I can’t believe I never realized—”

“Thank you.” You set your mug on the table, half gone already despite how hot it still is.

He laughs. “I mostly believed you. I was just giving you a hard time until I saw it for myself.”

“No, I mean, that’s fine too. But I was saying…” You’re fumbling. “Thank you for hanging out with me so much. I really needed this.”

He shifts in his seat, leaning forward for another sip of cocoa when the liquid sloshes before setting down his own mug. “Of course. We’re friends.” He sounds a little nervous, uncharacteristically.

“It’s just—” Words you’ve been thinking for days, maybe longer, start to come forward, and you choose to let them. “It’s your Christmas too. There are other things you could be doing. Other people you could be with. Family or… whoever.”

“Well, yeah, but I… like hanging out with you. I always have fun. Even if you make me wear silly reindeer antlers in public.”

You knock his shoulder. “I did not make you.”

Jean rolls his eyes. “Fine, you’re right.”

You feel your face lighting up. “What’s that? Can I get that again?”

Jean’s own smile blooms, his eyes darting up and down your face, and then you feel it—heat and butterflies as he leans closer, breathing a laugh before hesitating, looking down his nose at your lips. Your chest pounds, but yes, you want this as bad as he does, and you seal your lips to his in a kiss that overtakes you. Jean inhales sharply, hands sliding up your arms to gently hold your shoulders. He tastes like chocolate and salt. After a few blissful moments, you pull back, your head spinning.

Your eyes flutter open, searching for his. You’re shaking, pleasantly surprised. “Friends, huh?”

Jean cracks up, pulls you back in, mumbles against your lips. “Maybe more.”

[herzzgeist]

Hey I'd love to request a knight!Lawx princess!Female!Reader if you're comfortable writing that? Your work is so amazing 😍

And NSFW if you're ok with that too!

Pairing: Knight Law x Princess fem!reader | Word count: 8.5k | Warnings: violence/gore, angst, smut in the end - praise kinkish

Synopsis: As princess of the Red line kingdoms, life is peaceful. So you thought. Neighboring empires are in desperation, threatend to be overtaken by an infamous family - the Donquixote. After the king of Flevance passed, the successor, Trafalgar Law, asks the ruler of the gate keep kingdoms for support, your father. There is no way you can trust this man, can you?

A/N: MEDIEVAL AU! - I'm glad you like my works! I must apologize for the long wait, I got too invested in this. (I was close in making a multi chapter out of this one) Hope you like my little epiphany I had here, dear Wolfe! Big thanks for the request

(Before I forget, I'm german and I was CRAVING to write Law with snippets of his apparent native tongue - because medieval screams germanic)

Dividers by cafekitsune ~

The ambience is omnious . .

Each step taken reverberates through the imperial walls of the castle, your home. The air is filled with the scent of candles, oak wood and old leather bound books, herbs and lavish silken fabrics. Ornamented in bronze and golden flowering, pillars reach up high, standing tall in the castle's halls. Every now and then, the sunlight gets caught in the shimmering metal, reflecting directly towards you, blinding and restricting your vision to the slightest.

Down the corridor, leading to the throne hall, you hear a man announcing the arrival of a person unbeknownst to you. "My king, Lord Trafalgar, the knight of heart seeks your presence!", the voice raspy and old, calls out to your father, Eric VanDoth the third, ruler of the Red line empires, who gleefully receives the arriving: "Ah, Trafalgar old friend! I am glad to see your safe return. How are matters in the north?"

Leaning against the massive door, opened to free the way to the throne, you listen to the familiar tone, chills running down your spine - how you despise him. "Your highness, I am inconsolable, the north is at it's worst state - I wasn't able to fullfil your bidding, for that I must humbly apologize."

The north - a place as cold as it's former king, so you were told. It was supposed to be ruled by this very man, kneeling before your father, lowering his head in reverance. Trafalgar Law, rightful heir of the now shattered kingdom of Flevance. To this day, he is nothing more than a wandering knight, known for his cunning and controlled fighting strategies.

"Tis a shame indeed. Do not fret, I am fully aware of your homeland's situation, so please, quiet down your concerns. Were your followers successful to cognise the countries suffering?", the king straightens, lifting himself off the throne and approaches Law, him still remained on one knee.

Nodding his head, he confirms and raises from the ground, properly facing his highness. "My scouts managed to discern my land's circumstances. It is a matter of a forced overtake from my father's bloodline.", he explains, low and audibly torn.

"My Lady?", a feeble voice tears you out of focus, an indication for you to stop your eavesdropping immedatiely. In a quick spin you turn around and your gaze falls upon a young woman, it is your chamber maid, bowing courteously. "Apologies my Lady, I do not mean to pry, but isn't it unheard of listening to the unknowing people's conversations?" - "Valeria, you scared me. But yes, it isn't exactly a very profound manner. I'll see to my father and the knight this instant."

Before you make your way to the halls, you glance over your shoulder with a soft smile: "Oh please, would you be so kind and prepare my outdoor garments and parasol? It is a beautiful day outside." Your chamber maid bows once more, her head low in respect: "Of course, Princess." - "Thank you, Valeria."

Thus you tread nearer to the two men speaking of reports and strategies to win over the north - it is then where you take a closer look at Trafalgar, the wandering knight. His armor is made out of white cold steel, the flourish ornaments on his chestplate formed into a curling heart, beginning from his sternum. The cloak swaying from his shoulders is as pitch black as his hair, white spots spread over the dark fabric here and there.

Hanging on his back appears to be the cloak's hood, it's rim sewed with fur of a white animal to protect from the cold at northern plains. To your notice, now that Law's gauntlets are off, you see letters punctured into his knuckles - saying: DEATH.

It leaves you appalled, come to think this is a highly regarded knight and the king's ambassador. Not to mention his sinister glare, freezing your blood. His face enframed by raven sideburns and a chin beard, only enhancing those storm grey eyes to your horrification. And the skin, as expected from a northerner - as pale as snow.

It is only a matter of time, until your father might consider to grade this shadow of a man as Commander of his garrison. How terrific . . purely to your misery, you already know it is bound to happen.

"What about the barriers, are there enough- ah my dearest (Y/n), Lord Trafalgar and I were merely discussing the current state of afairs in the Flevance kingdom.", the king greets you with open arms, as soon as he comes to realise your approach. All the same goes for Law, his demeanor stiff and haughty, yet still respectful.

"So I heard. Lord Trafalgar?", you give a deft curtsy to the knight, who turns to you and bows in return, greeting with a low 'your grace'. Mid movement, Law lifts his head, his stare meeting your deep e/c eyes, eliciting a skip of your heart in response. Absurd, you detest this man, so much so your skin bares in gooseflesh. Something about him tells you - he has seen and done things. Not to your kingdom's benevolence.

Your father continues: "Be that as it may, you are welcome to stay, friend. And I dearly hope you to consider my offer."

Offer? Did you overhear that part of their conversation, while talking to Valeria. Keeping your composure, standing straight, though the corsette wouldn't allow otherwise, you supress the urge to shoot a glare towards your dear father.

"You shall hear my answer the coming day, your highness.", Law reassures, saluting to the king as gesture of declaration. So the king brings his servant over to lead the knight to his chamber. "Silas will show you the way. You are free to join us at tonight's dinner, I'll look foward to more detailed matters of plans."

The tall man follows the compared to him dwarvish seeming servant, waving his thanks. To the rhythm of his metallic sabatons, the chainmail clinks against his armor with each and every step, letting your neck hair stand on end. The black cloak on his back sways from left to right from his fast paced walk.

As he vanishes, this is where your utmost worries unfold: "Father, I don't trust this man! He is dreary and cold, there is that sinister feeling about him." - "My sweet, calm down. I am aware you aren't fond of him, but he is in need of our assistance. I cannot decline an old friend's legacy. Please have faith, (Y/n)."

Exhaling deeply, you losen up and place your palm onto your father's shoulder, accepting his decision. "I truly hope you are right . . I will see you tonight." - "Yes dear.", and with those words you go ready yourself for a stroll in the castle gardens.

-_

Roses, tulips, violets . .

. . all flowers pool over the royal backyard like an ocean of colours and shapes. In midst stands a enormous fountain, adorned with a sculpture of your country's symbol, the bronze dove.

The sun's radiance warms you from within.

Sitting on an stone bench, adjoining the gravel path leading back to the castle, you flip through the pages of an newly received novel, reading "Deceitful Silhouettes".

It's prologue roils up emotions inside you, the letters weaving you in and reaching for your now alarmed instincts regarding the knight of the north.

Speaking of the devil. In the distance, Law saunters through the garden, his gaze hovering over the red and violet sea of flowers. He is headed your direction. Nervous, you stick your nose deep into the pages, not keen on meeting the king's ambassador one on one.

Although the golden orb in the sky grants you the needed warmth, the freezing cold coming from this human being deflects it without effort, to say the least.

"Your grace, still spell bound by mere black on white as always I see.", it's too late, he calls out to you, defining your weakness for literature. Peeking over the bound papers, you scoff: "I see you didn't change from the last time we met, Lord Trafalgar."

Quick to retort your remark, the tall man huffs a short 'perhaps', pulling aside the cloak to seat beside you. The last sun rays cast upon his armor, making you whince subtly from the light's sting. "I believe things haven't changed between you and me, Princess." - "How troublesome, there I thougth there was hope for the both of us.", your sarcasm throws a shadow of contrast against Law's more serious statement.

The knight's eyes land on your book's label, deciphering the name and persuming it's content. A smirk grows over his lips and he comments nonchalantly: "If you are in attempt to school yourself in deceitful doings, I suggest you to undertake the trainings somewhere your victim cannot see what you are up to."

An eery aura looms over you, staring down the man on the neighboring seat. He lifts his hands in defense: "Oh, with all due respect, your highness." - "Save your courtesy for tonight's dinner, knight of heart."

How much you despise his sarcastic mannerism, not that you are any better, yet it won't get over your head, that it actually enlightens you, a rather exciting banter given the fact how eyes mirror the truth. Nonetheless, you decide to set aside the undesirable, he is not to be trusted.

About to make your way back to the castle, you close the book with a loud snap and open the parasol, leaned against the stone bench. "I hopefully won't see you tonight, my Lord." - "You might.", as you click your tongue, you turn on your heels and carefully tread the path.

However, you hear a mused voice chuckle behind you: "I am looking foward to further intriguing discussions with you, your grace."

The gravel underneath your feet cracks and pops by the impact of your soles, quickening your step, the sound grows louder.

This man . .

Law shakes his head in disbelief, internally smiling to himself. Just when he was to get off the bench, a shadow scurrying along the forest's edge catches his attention. Squinting his dark circles enframed eyes, the feeling of unease makes a vacant appearance.

"Wie beunruhigend . .", he mutters in his native language, rubbing his neck before sighing in discontent.

(Translation: "How concerning . .")

-_

Safran pastry, wine, dried vegetables and fruit, ham and rosemary potatoes . .

. . fill the table, plates assorted over every empty surface. The loud snaps coming from the fireplace echo in the dining room.

"You are the first to arrive my Lady, shall I bring anything to drink?", Valeria leads you towards the bountiful table. Thanking your chamber maid, you ask for a goblet of wine in hopes to shorten the wait for the other's arrival.

Taking a seat by side the chimney, you watch as the flames dance and flicker, hypnotizing you to a certain extent. The smell of the delicacies lets your insides growl in hunger, impatience growing stronger each second.

Valeria returns with your beverage, a smile tugging on her lips as she hands it over to you. One sip of the red liquid is enough to make your head spin, given by an empty stomach.

Behind the closed door, you hear a well-known voice laughing and discussing vividly. "I'm sure she'll be delighted to hear- oh you're already here love!", who would have thought it to be your father, entering with none other than Trafalgar?

Didn't you politely wish for him not to attend earlier this afternoon? Must be something about his hearing. Your pout enhances your sour mood, leaving Valeria amused - smirking to the display of you practically burning holes into the king's ambassador.

"My Lady, he is quite the looker no? I heard he's much so adored amongst women.", she snickers, leaning towards you. It is only until now, that you notice Law wearing a black vest, buttons undone far too low for your taste. Is that the same symbol like the one on his armor's chest plate, tattooed on his torso?

The lines embellish his porcelain like skin, enhancing the muscles. Every breath shows over his heaving rib cage. Heat shoots up your face. You're not certain wether to blame it on your rage or . . abashment from your insolent staring.

Steel eyes catch your slip, lids falling and forming into an intrigued glint, with a hint of curiosity. Law's blown pupils avert back to the conversation he's holding with your father.

Audibley gulping, you curse inwardly for letting your guard down this way, asking Valeria for more wine to deter the matter. Your chamber maid titters.

The food is as delicious as ever. "My compliments to the chef. This is Alfred's work I assume?" - "Yes, your highness.", the king praises the culinary experience, fowarding them to Valeria, who bows deftly and begins to bring the amassing empty plates back to the kitchen.

As if prey to the predator, you avoid Trafalgar's cold glare, him fleetingly observing you by noticing your each and every move.

"(Y/n), I would like to announce rather good news!", is what you hear, coming from the other end of the table. A proud grin plasters over your father's mouth and he continues: "Lord Trafalgar will be your guard for the time being." Did your hearing just falter?

Back and forth, switching between your father and Law you gape at them in disbelief. Without a word, you sip on your golden goblet and set it onto the table - provocatively slow. "Father, I cannot accept this.", you hiss and straighten yourself, about to leave the room.

Out of patience already, the king uses his privilege of hierarchy: "This wasn't a question young lady! It is final, he will be your guard!"

Close to throwing a tantrum, you control your burst of emotion - deep breaths holding in the bitter words lingering on your tongue.

Diffusing the tension, the knight gets off his seat and approaches you, dispersing the undeclared: "Your grace, it is only for the time I stay at your castle. It won't be for long, I can assure you."

The way he stands infront of you, his head held in veneration, which you doubt is in honesty, he places his palm against his heart. Loud enough only for your ears to hear, he hushes: "I'd be honoured, if I gained a mere speck of your trust, Princess."

Discomfort is vacant on your demeanor, fidgeting and twirling your fingers - it is then, where you come to realise that Valeria was right, he is a looker. In addition, his voice brings your body to unknown territory, feeling weak to the knees out of the blue.

No! Stay strong (Y/n). He is not to be trusted. He is not to be-

"Ich stehe Euch zu Diensten, euer Hoheit.", Law hums in his native tongue, his hand asking for yours in order to demonstrate his respect - his seriousness in all this. This truly isn’t not a joke, is it?

(Translation: "I am at your service, your Highness.")

Gently, you put your trust in him, though with abiding doubts, however the lips that enticingly sought your acceptance, press onto the silken skin on the back of your hand. At that, it lasts far too long to your liking.

The gooseflesh that usually forms out of pure horrification, now bears a completely different meaning - you are flustered, roused even. "Th-That's enough Lord Trafalgar! Quit making an utter fool of yourself, I accept . ."

-_

People gather and follow the brightly lit lanters, leading to your kingsdom‘s capital. The air stings your skin - winter's first greeting this year.

Horses pull wagons, filled with wares and goods to be sold on the market, their hooves clopping over the cobble stone streets.

Passers by look at you in curiosity, for you pulled the rim of your hood a tad bit too further down your face. Annoyance growls your way, as Trafalgar mutters: "Are you trying to torture me? It's the fourth time this week we tread among civilians."

"Why isn't that tedious? I thought you are at my service, my Lord.", is what chuckles out of you, fidgeting at your cloak. Law only clicks his tongue to your insolent and conceited behaviour, these walks to the capital not exactly being in his book.

The high pitch and grating squeals from a group of women rips the both of you out the conversation, or instead distasteful chaff. You turn to see the source of commotion and notice a green haired man seated on his charger, leading a patrol team.

Three fully grown stallions take a halt beside you two and the leader addresses you: "Up and about to visit the markets, my Lady?" - "Commander Roronoa! What a pleasant surprise! Indeed, I am headed to see the jewelery and pottery stands. And I assume you are here to keep everything under control?"

Nervous, you shuffle in place, feeling lightheaded and your heart picks up the pace by the sight of your royal guards' high chief. The red tint on your cheeks begins to glow and you give your brightest of smiles.

The king's ambassador isn't a fool, fully comprehending that you are fond of this man. Law watches you closely, realising how your demeanor changed in a sheer instant - leaving him to question 'why you nuture such hatred towards him?'

Trafalgar's attention averts to the green haired smirking bastard. His armor is shimmering onyx, adorned with a dark red cloak falling from his shoulders. Counting three golden earrings on his left ear, in addition, Law is taken aback by the long grazing scar eternalised onto Roronoa's left eye.

You practically swoon for this simple Commander. How ridiculous, the raven next to you thinks to himself. Nonetheless, why do you seem so . . approachable, loving? It goes beyond your temporary body guard's comprehesion.

Now confirming your assumption, Roronoa nods and grins over both ears. His horse's impatience shows by it's uneasy scuffs of it's hoove against the ground. Reins are getting pulled to calm the stallion, all while in the process of giving Law a long lasting stare, the Commander scoffs: "The scary dog privilege should keep you safe. Be seeing you, Princess."

"I beg your pardon?", the knight of heart tears open his eyes, shook about the term that lowly 'Soldier' Roronoa spat at him a moment ago. Yet, the occassion to counter his insolence passed it's point, as the patrolling group rides ahead to the capital.

You beckon: "Come along now, my Lord. It isn't far now." Walking the path, heavy footsteps catch up to you and the raspy voice of the man you oh so curse gives you more reason to incite. "Interesting, your highness is about to drop the hankerchief for a mere royal guard.", Law muses, not a care in the world of exposing you.

"Oh hush, this is none of your business, mere ambassador.", is what you pout, lifting your nose in arrogance. There is a feeling of success, subconsciously aware that you are victorious in this game of childish ribbing.

Admittedly, this sinister man has grown on you, given the fact he ended up as your personal guard about two months ago. Still, never would you concede to those hidden innuendos in his steel glare, looking at you in ways you wish to misinterpret from the beginning.

There is that certain . . spark.

Your body guard isn't keen on being called a 'mere ambassador'. Why, you do seem to know your way in hierarchy, (Y/n). Ignoring your insult, Trafalgar escorts you further to the village, only minutes away on foot.

-_

Merchants call out to the potential customers, roaming across the market's streets.

The smell of freshly baked bread, mead, smoked ham and all kinds of herbs fills your nostrils as you pass stalls.

Sauntering, you take in the ambience, inhaling the scents and enjoying the peace and calm the time brings.

Occupied with the opposite concept, Law worriedly lets his gaze hover over the crowd, not wholly indulging in the cheerful of this event. "My lord, you appear distant. Something the matter?" - "Just vigilant. The situation isn't as tranquil as it looks.", his concern is contagious, your question bounces off a wall of stubborn and discipline.

Suddenly, a piece of turkish delight restricts Trafalgar's vision, for you hold it up right infront of his face: "Calm your senses and taste this! I am sure you simply are too overattentive."

Eyebrows furrow, skeptical about your offer, the knight declines. "I can turn this into an order very quickly, if you won't abide.", using your hierarchy card against him, there is no use in refusing you.

The powdered sugar gathers around his chapped lips, spreading over his black chin beard. If you wouldn't know it any better, this display of your guard chewing on the sugary delight is more than appeasing to you.

There he stands. A fully armored knight, carrying around a long sword on his shoulders. A man so intimidating, people genuinley think of him to be an evil creature, the princess's scary guard dog.

The so called scary guard dog apparently is tamed by your unexpected gesture, suckling on the honey and wiping away the sugar from his chin. "This isn't very lady like to feed someone lower than you, your grace.", he utters, but his comment falls on deaf ears. So you retort: "It isn't very guard like either, to eat out of the princess's hands."

Logic is non existent in that case. Rolling his eyes, Law turns away from you and steps away from the merchant stall.

The more time you spend together like this, the more you learn about the knight of heart. All forenoon, until the sun reaches it's highest peak, teasing banters and chaffs dispersed into thin air, as if there were none to begin with . . as if Lord Trafalgar was a good friend.

Friend? Is that how you wish to call him that?

Your heart sets out a beat, considering the idea of declaring your point of view of this relationship between him and you. Law walks a few feet before you, making sure anything in front is secured, yet it is his position to be at fault in less crowded alleys you find yourself in, not noticing the following immediately.

About to speak your mind, a giant and calloused hand slams onto your mouth, to silence your muffled gasp of shock.

You can hear your blood rushing through your ears, the lungs in your ribcage tighten and push out the remaining air in panic.

"You are far too pretty to wander around these parts of the kingdom, Lady VanDoth.", sounds from the back, a nasty snarl hushes over your shoulder and the tinge of alcohol wafts around you.

Black silhouettes your vision, recognizing Trafalgar turning around, instantly unsheathing his blade: "You! Get your filthy hands off the princess!" - "Princess?" The stranger snorts in gutteral gloat and presses a dagger against your throat, responding in Law's native language.

"Habt Ihr es nicht gehört, Ritter des Todes? Der Herrscher dieses Königreichs ist tot. Diese Frau, die Ihr hier seht ist nun die Königin, Narr!", he spits in amusement, the blade gnawing on your skin, blood trickles down your gorge from it‘s puncture.

(Translation: "Didn't you hear, knight of death? The ruler of this kingdom is dead. This Woman here is now the queen, fool!")

Noticing a distinct tattoo on the masked man's hand, a grinning skull being split in half, your guard gets enraged and approaches the maniac behind you in threateningly slow motion, his sword ready to slice it's target: "Scheisse . . ich bin derjenige den Ihr sucht, räudiger Sohn einer Hündin! Lasst sie gehen! Sie hat nichts mit dem Grinsenden Schädel, weder der Donquixote Familie zu tun!"

(Translation: "Shit . . I'm the one you're looking for, son of a bitch! Let her go! She has nothing to do with the Grinning Skull, nor the Donquixote family!")

The stranger chuckles sinisterly, deftly paying no mind to Trafalgar's threats. "Did you hear that little girl? Your father is dead!", so he states, earning a whimper of distress out of you. Dread widens the windows to your now vulnerable soul, emotions forming into salty droplets flowing down your cheek. You don't trust your hearing.

Out of impulse, you aim your fist for his groin, but there is no chance you are able to reach him, his stronghold keeping you in place. "Now now, let's not get hasty, bitch. My master will be pleased upon your arrival in Flevance."

"I said hands off!", you hear the atagonizing scream coming from Law, who storms at you in full spead. The dagger fends of the longsword, though only barely and the maniac pulls you along, yelling to back off. Fingers claw into your neck, limiting your ability to breathe - already close to passing out.

The knight is tied, he cannot advance without you getting fataly hurt, thus he stays at a safe distance.

So the masked one grabs you by the wrist and makes a run for it, throwing insults and curses at you among the escape attempt. You hold out to your guard: "Law!" All is left to see, is Lord Trafalgar clenching his teeth and sprinting the opposite direction.

No . . please. This cannot end this way. Those words cloud your thoughts, bringing you to a state of overwhelming doubts and fear, your limbs becoming numb.

In terror, you see how your people get assassinated by other countless men with hoods hiding their faces, the grinning skull imprinted on either their arms, hands or necks.

Women screech out of horror, children cry and men fend off the ambush with all the power they're able to muster. It is a picture of nightmares, blood and intestines spread across the ground to those bastard's sheer pleasure, hearing them snicker as they murder one after the other.

The assassin roars at you furiously: "Run faster you whor-" Just before he gets to end his provocation, the stranger's head rolls over the cobble stone next to your feet, for a blade quick and sharp separated it from those ragged shoulders mid movement.

"Princess, we must make haste! The king has been assaulted and the castle is still under siege!", a loud voice calls out to you on the back of a horse, riling in place from the hectic. It's Commander Roronoa. His hand holds out to you, heaving you onto his stallions's back and animates it to gallop straight to the palace.

Scurrying and aimlessly running from the danger, the village folk seek shelter, dodging Roronoa's charge. In the distance you identify an archer, the bow taught and prepared to shoot it's arrow, aimed towards you.

In fret, you squeeze your eyes shut and you hear the Commander cursing under his hitched breath.

Yet, the arrow doesn't find it's target. A tall man, armored in cold steel thrusts his longsword through the enemy's stomach, shredding the archer's bellows. Boneless, the body sinks to the ground and the man saving your getaway yells: "Go secure the castle! I will hold the line here!.

Trafalgar enables your escape, covering your back and ridding anyone who dares to follow you. In the corner of your eye, you watch as he fights a group of assassins trying to come after you.

He saved your life . .

-_

Countless moons passed since the Donquixote intrusion.

Luckily, your army was prepared for such atrocious attacks. It wasn't enough to save your dearest father whatsoever.

The goodbyes were painful, the grief only grew by the fact you weren't able to protect him. Doubts about Lord Trafalgar overwhelmed you, to think it was his doing, which turned into a burden he understood will never be forgiven that easily by you.

The knight of heart, or as it came to pass, knight of death, was in fact seeking shelter for the time being, instructed as an under cover body guard of yours. Your father took him in, granting him shelter, to gather and plan the reclaim of his kingdom.

Where security was surmised, chaos induced along this man's path. You knew he wasn't to be trusted, however was he truly to blame? Eric VanDoth was a generous and peaceful man, a king to look up to, although the risk of being used for kindness - which in this world was never a good weapon to begin with - not ever was disputed.

Lord Trafalgar appreciated VanDoth's support, deeming him a honorable and trustworthy man, these words said to you in his utmost condolensces.

All this, Law explained to you through the years of renewal and acceptance of your rulership. What would have happend, if you knew these plans sooner? It is uncertain to you why they have been kept from you, but you assume it was for your own protection.

So to this day, you are the queen of the Red line empires, (Y/n) VanDoth the fourth, ruler of the gate kingdom. A great responsibility has been bestowed upon you, as the keeper of the celestial directions and seas.

And Law? It was a great announcement, one you actually were glad and overjoyed to hear - Trafalgar Law, reclaimed his place as king of Flevance, for him and his people countered the Donquixote overtake.

Life turned for the better - peace once more was restored to the northern empires, as the rightful ruler returned home.

Nevertheless, you unlikely admit that a feeling of longing filled your mind, as your thoughts spinned around the king of heart. Only letters, inscripted with the obvious interest and lovable banters, a spark, left you yearning for more - and the day of his visit was finally about to occur.

-_

"My queen, Lord Trafalgar has arrived!", Silas reports while walking towards the throne, on which you are seated.

"Bring his followers to the gathering halls and let Trafalgar enter the gardens, I'll await him there." - "Yes, your highness.", you thank your servant with a warm smile, nodding at him and straightening yourself off the throne.

Valeria follows you silently, her attention never wavering from you. You turn to face her: "Please dear, bring me my parasol." Deftly accepting your request with a low 'my queen' she makes her way to the cabins.

The sun's grace enlightens the castles halls, crystal clear windows deflecting the rays in all kinds of colours onto the bronzen embellishments. It reminds of the times you entered the throne halls, whenever he sought your father.

Today wasn't any different, for at long last you are able to see him again.

Greeted by the usual garden of red and purple, you breathe in the crisp and warm air surrounding you, reminiscing the past and looking foward to the future all the same. The parasol provides you with protection, it's shade cooling your skin.

You take a seat at the stone bench and admire the scenery before you. It hasn't changed, not at all. After all these years, it is as if time stood still, solely for this moment.

"Your grace, I think you are missing your usual literature. Shall I bring it to you?", a voice deep, makes your head spin hastily to the source of familiarity. His name hushes out of you in whisper and you cannot help but laugh at his remark.

There he stands, Trafalgar, the king of heart. Of course you haven't forgotten your courtesy and get off the bench to bow subtly as greeting.

Glimmering in the afternoon's shine, his armor reflects the heart upon his chest, which he wears in pride. It's colour has been changed to anthracite grey, the pauldrons heavy on his shoulders and every edge of noble plate is adorned with fine lines of bright gold.

Only the cloak remained the same, haging on his back elegantly, throwing off a threatening shadow beneath his feet. How you wish to pull the hood over his head and draw him in . . yet, what makes you think you are allowed to?

His hand gently holds out to yours and leads it to his lips, respecting the regards a queen of your calibre deserves to earn. "Except for your title, nothing has changed about you, my lord." - "I can say the same about you, your majesty.", knowing glints of hidden love interest is what you share, seeing the man in front of you kiss the back of your hand with utmost care.

Strolling through the royal gardens, you walk side by side of one another, speaking of your empires' new era, Flevance's reclaim and the Red line's capital restoration. Much has happend the time Lord Trafalgar saw you last - in honesty a shame, he thinks to himself, nonetheless the saving of his kingdom was inevitable.

"Have you considered entering the bond of matrimony, your grace?", Law questions you out of the blue, a shiver running down your spine in surprise. It wasn't what you ought to hear from a man of his stature, thus you answer earnestly: "Not yet, not properly. I must admit it would be of convenience."

Heavy footsteps inch your direction as the both of you come to a stand, sturdy chains clank against his sabatons in the rhythm of his approach. He lowers: "May I have the honor?"

Dumbfounded you watch him kneel down before you, embracing your tender palm: "I humbly ask for your hand in marriage." Full of expectations, his steel eyes wander up to witness your reaction.

It skipped, the beat of your heart - blood rushing through your veins in high speed, the air bearly leaving your lungs. All your nobility, all the the royal grace you have to represent melts off of you. Emotions strongly washing over, hearing his declaration.

Will you accept?

-_

He remembers it as if it was yesterday.

You, in a gown competing the beauty of nature, it's white silk embracing your delicate frame. The bells rang and people cheered in glee. It was the happiest day of his life, for he swore an oath to his loving bride, to protect her, to be her supporting hand and shelter.

This is the day, the Red line empire has been united with Flevance, emerging as a powerful kingdom over the northern seas. Bound by marriage, a king and a queen reign over the lands that once were shattered, rebuilding hope and solitude.

At that, it is a strong bond, a matrimony sought in reason of love, which is a seldom, but not uncommon case. You welcome the warm feeling of your doting husband being your pillar, your base of unwinding.

The white fabric glides off your shoulders, exposing your soft skin. A shiver runs down Law's spine, entranced by your allure. Pupils dilate due to tremendous attraction towards you and he gruadually steps closer. "Ich habe keine Worte um Eure Schönheit zu beschreiben . .", he mutters in his tongue, to that you solely manage to chuckle in reply.

(Translation: "I have no words for your beauty to describe . .")

This is where you decide to prove your ability to provide an answer in kind: "Kein Grund, so förmlich zu sein, mein König. Ich bin ganz die deine." - "Auch noch sprachbegabt? Ihr steckt voller Überraschungen." The man looks you up and down, a shaky breath escaping him, knowing too well, what is about to occur.

(Translation: "No need to be so formal, my king. I am all yours." - "Also gifted with languages?" You are full of surprises.")

Lips, that Trafalgar yearned for to taste, finally conceal his, silencing every thought in his mind. To think, that the both of you harbored such hatred for each other, love has conquered your hearts in the end, the sense behind it inexplicable.

Hands, that longed to touch you, graze your waist and neck, pulling you in nearer, as if holding on for dear life. Close, is what he needs you to be this instant, his warmth engulfing you as he tilts his head to deepen the kiss.

A voice, that whispers your name and foreign words as if chanting a spell. Not all is beknownst to you, however one sentence reverberates in your ears as he purrs: "Ihr seid das Schönste, das unter der Sonne wandelt, meine Herzdame." His sweet nothings elicits a low moan out of you, what Law deems as a melody to his senses.

(Translation: "You are the most beautiful thing that walks under the sun, my queen of hearts.")

Garments are spread across the floor. Two lovers found their way to the bed, intertwined, driven by desire. For the first time, your eyes feast upon his lean body, embellished with dark, fine lined tribal ink all across his torso.

Tracing the imprinted ornaments, your fingers hover over them with utmost care, earning a satisifed sigh out of your spouse. "I dearly hope you are not all too appalled by-", before he can finish his sentence with hinted sarcasm, you hush him with your index, pressing those precious lips shut. So you coo: "Quit your foolery, you know I love you, all of you"

Affectionately, he lowers himself onto you, heart to heart, chests heaving against each other - nervosity evident in both of you. Peppered kisses along your ear let your back arch, leaving you in languish as he pulls away to groan huskily: "Dann gehört dies Euch, meine Königin."

(Translation: "Then this belongs to you, my queen.")

Leading your palm to his wildly beating muscle in his ribcage, he romantically offers you his heart, confessing his feelings towards you yet again, knocking the air out of your lungs.

Now one, his length penetrates your velvet walls in a painstakingly slow and passionate manner. You squirm and tremble to the rhythm of his grinds, filling you up completely. Cresent prints trail down his back, the scrapes flushing in a sarutated red.

You purr his name into the crook of his neck, sideburns tickling you in the process. Subsequently, you tug on his golden earrings, taking Law off guard, as he moans in response. Those gestures madden the former knight, bringing him to gain in volume.

Sweat trickles along his hairline, for he picks up the pace and lifts your leg by grabbing the plush of your thigh. Now deeper, the tip of his hardness hits you in spots that lets you see stars, in combination with his delightful hums of pleasure it sets your core ablaze.

A bit more forceful, his hand takes hold of your breast, squeezing it out of pure lust, watching you as your head rolls back in bliss. You are reaching your climax, lulling incomprehesive words to your lover. Gently pulling on your hardened and pink tinted bud, he cannot supress his vast impulsives, listening to your pleas: „Yes, let go for me . .“

From overstimulation, your free leg slings over his thrusting hip, drawing Law‘s frame even closer. Lips clash onto one another, muffling the enticing sounds of your high. His teeth prod against the plump and the tongue twirls along yours.

A rush of sensation washes over you - feeling animal, feral - as your orgasm spills out of you, dripping down his groin. Law is chasing, not far from his own release for the scene infront of him lures him into all out ecstasy.

Giving in the crave to make you his entirely, he pours out the love he long dreamed about indulging you in. Weakend, his whole physique stutters and quakes, overwhelmed with the idea of claiming his beloved queen.

Warm air brushes against your skin, coming from Law nuzzling your cheek, panting: „Ich liebe dich.“

(Translation: "I love you.")

[kyberblade]

Fall In (Din x Reader) - Shatter Drabble

A/N: This is for Dincember 2022 days 15-19, Ice, Family, Home, Joy, and Star. It’s set in the Shatter universe. Basically a Part 2. I missed these idiots! Some slight angst but mostly just fluff and goodness and everything I love about these two.

I do not own Star Wars or it’s characters. Sadly. But I carry them in my heart. Does that count for something? My soul says yes.

Warnings: Tooth rotting fluff, Grogu being the cutest thing you ever did see, and Din is once again a warning in and of himself in this one. Maybe like one or two light swear words? Space swearing. Banter. Mando’a.

Word count: 3,909

Series Masterlist | Dincember 2022 Masterlist | Next

Thank you to @grippingbeskar​​​ who heard the still small voice in the back of my head and gently pushed along with it and said, “What if you wrote something from Shatter….?” (I missed these idiots….)

Thank you to @deceiverofgodss​​ for helping me with Mando’a. A life saver as always. (Any mistakes are my own. It’s hard, okay?)

Xxx

“A quarter turn to the right!” Peli yelled from the other side of the ship, her voice carrying extremely well with little effort. “No, no- A quarter. Do you not know-”

“Peli,” you froze, glancing down to the side in the small crawl space you were tucked into on the old Razor Crest. “I haven’t even turned it at all.”

It’d been a week of this. In all honesty, you and Peli got along just fine, great even, but when it came to working with her…. She was very meticulous in her approach. Din had backed away halfway through day one, hands held up in surrender as he made his way slyly towards his N1, taking the kid and BD with him.

“This is your ship, Mando!” You’d called after him. “You leave it in my hands and I’m liable to fly off without you.”

“I’d like to see you try,” he said calmly, barely looking over his shoulder. “You’d last five minutes without me telling you how to stop that thumping in the cockpit.”

“Damn it, he’s right,” you grumbled under your breath, turning with a low growl to start back in on the panel Peli had set you to work on. 

“Are you turning now?” Peli’s voice was calm, but you could tell it wouldn’t stay that way for long.

Reaching out, you began to slowly turn the mechanism at the end of the shaft. “Yeah, hang on. Almost…. There….” Clang. “Shit!” Hiss.

“What? What happened?!” Peli scrambled around to the opening, pulling on your legs to help get you out of there fast.

You’d gone in without your helmet, so when she pulled you out and saw ice on your hair and eyelashes, she swore under her breath, barely containing her laughter. 

“Knob broke. Coolant leaked. I’m cold.” Your teeth chattered as you spoke, and you cradled your upper body with your arms. Luckily you had kept your beskar on in case you had to make a last minute run if you and Din were found, so the rest of you was unscathed. 

Din was just jogging over, grabbing your shoulder to spin you around and inspect the damage while Peli was ordering her pit droids around to fix the leak. “Are you okay? Are you hurt? What happened?”

“Din, Din, I’m fine,” you spoke lowly to keep his name between you. Bracing your hands on his shoulders while he still held your upper arms, he brought one gloved hand to your face to inspect the ice. “I’m just cold, is all. Actually felt kinda nice, compared to what I’ve gotten used to here on Tatooine.” You chuckled at his huff. “Din, I’m fine.”

BD skidded to a stop behind him, having made the dash across the hangar at the same time, but its short legs took twice as long. Beeping and trilling at you in a series of sounds that sounded just as concerned as Din, it circled you anxiously, bobbing up and down as it scanned you for injuries. 

“I’m okay, buddy. It was mostly the ship that got hit, not me. See?” You held your arms out in front of you for the droid to scan, which it did promptly. It let out a relieved sounding bloop, and you smiled gently down at it. “Everything’s fine, little guy.”

Content for now, the droid bobbed up and down, in almost a nod, before turning and heading back toward the N1, trilling and beeping mindlessly as it went.

“This is going to take the rest of the day to fix,” Peli announced on a sigh, slapping the ship near the panel entrance you’d just come out of. One of her pit droids emerged with its eyeglass coated in a thick layer of ice, it’s joints stiff as it all but fell out of the shaft in clumsy movements, shivering violently once it righted itself and began to walk slowly through the hangar. “We’re going to have to let it all drain out where it busted then go in and fix it. There’s too much pressure buildup before that point to have any time to get anything done in there so long as that thing is spraying icicles. Once it’s out of coolant, I’ll send a droid in to fix it, then we’ll refill it. Free of charge.” She chuckled nervously. “I should have known yet another part on this ship was rusted silly.”

Grogu began to try and scale your armor, babbling as he did in concern. Lowering to your haunches, you scooped him up before getting back to your feet. “Don’t worry, ad’ika, I’m fine. Just a little accident. I bet I look funny, huh?”

He only blinked at you, leaning forward to brace his hands on your cheeks, pushing them back gently as he cooed softly at you with a tilt of his head.

You laughed. “Thank you?” A tingling sensation began to wash over your skin. “Kid?” His eyes slowly drifted shut while yours drifted over to Din. “Mando?”

Coming forward to take the kid gently from your arms, Din spoke softly. “Kid, hey. Grogu.” He didn’t respond, so Din physically removed him from you, watching as he blinked big disoriented eyes before they focused on his helmet. “She’s not hurt, you don’t have to heal her.” Grogu looked over at you, unconvinced. “I think you need a nap.” The child whined, but his eyes could barely stay open as he blinked bleary up at you, holding his arms out toward you.

Laughing softly you took him back from Din, walking up the ramp into the interior of the Crest. “Sleep now, ad’ika. You’ve had a long day. I’ll work on something right over here so I won’t be far, okay?” He was barely awake as you set him in his hammock, falling asleep within seconds.

Din’s footsteps behind you were the only other sound on the ship. “Night, kid.” Reaching out he pressed the button to close the door to the bunk. “You’re good with him.”

You scoffed softly. “He makes it easy.” Turning to the panel you had abandoned when Peli asked you to go in the shaft, you began to work on the wiring again.

“No, I mean, it seems like you’ve done it before. Did you have siblings before….” He didn't finish the sentence.

“Before the Empire basically destroyed everything I knew?” He nodded. “Yes, I did. I don’t know what happened to them. If they got away, or….” You swallowed roughly before letting out a laugh. “Hell, they may be covered in beskar, too, somewhere, and I just don’t know it.” Your grin faltered slightly. “But yes. I had siblings. A family.”

Silence settled comfortably between you before he spoke again, his voice soft. “What’s the name?”

“Of what?” You turned your head to look at him.

“Your home planet.”

Turning back to the wires, you shrugged. “I don’t even know anymore. I was so young. Everything about that place feels like I dreamt it.”

“Distant?” His voice dropped with understanding.

“No.” You smiled sadly to yourself. “Too good to be true.”

“Well you know you’re family to him, right?” You glanced at him over your shoulder, brow raised. “To me?”

“Aliit ori’shya tal’din,” you murmured, nodding gently with the words. (“Family is more than blood.”)

“Aliit ori’shya tal’din,” he repeated.

“Ibic te haat.” ((Lit.) “This is the truth.”/(Approx.) “This is the way.”)

“Ibic te haat.”

You went back to the wires while he lingered by your shoulder. “He doesn’t heal just anybody. Only people he thinks of as family or friends. At least, that’s what it’s seemed like so far.”

“I didn’t know he could do that,” you mused, tugging a cap off a wire.

“I’m surprised Karga didn’t mention it,” he said on a chuckle. “Kid saved his life early on- first time I saw him do it, actually. Now he brags that the kid chose him, or some bantha shit like that.” You both laughed softly.

“While I’ve got you in here,” you dropped the wires, signaling him to follow you. “I got the kitchen/workbench area mostly installed, all that’s left is the sink. I need an extra set of hands, think you could help?”

Only nodding, Din stood on the opposite side of the little basin from you, waiting for instruction.

“The water storage isn't that big, but it refills from condensation off of the….” You stared at the sink blankly for a moment before looking back up at Din. “You know what? I don’t know. Peli talked really fast, and it was a lot of information…. I know how it works, I just couldn’t explain it to you…. But!” You walked over to the toolbox, digging around for what you needed as you continued. “We just need to tighten those bolts underneath, then test for leaks- Ah-ha!” You pulled the tool out that you needed, going back to the sink. “So I’m going to tighten them, and when I ask you to, turn that knob on the wall, then turn the water on. Got it?”

Again, only nodding in response, Din leaned one hip against the counter across from where you were, leaning his elbow on the countertop.

Dropping to the ground with a groan, you squished up under the fixture, turning everything as tight as it would go. “Okay. Try that.”

You heard the valve on the wall squeak as it turned, then the water turned on, the swoosh sound traveling along the wall before it reached the fixture, then all you heard was the hiss as water sprayed everywhere at high pressure around each bolt.

“Dank farrik! Din! Turn it off! Kriff! Son of a mud scuffer!”

Din’s head popped into view after the water went off, his voice warbling on a held back laugh. “Are you okay?”

Pulling a gloved hand down your face, you flicked it toward his visor with a curl of your lip, spraying his helmet with water droplets.

“Today is just not my day,” you mumbled, going back to tighten the bolts further and puffing water off your lips as you did. 

“At least it was just water this time and not coolant.”

You leveled a dry glare on him, moving only your eyes his way as you kept at your work under the sink, voice droll. “At least.”

Rising to your feet, you swiped some wet strands of hair back out of your face. “Okay, try that- You know what? Actually, let me.”

Flicking the switch on the wall on, you reached for the movable spout and pulled on the little extendable hose, pointing it directly at Din and pulling the trigger. It hit his beskar with a hollow, drawn out ping until the stream stopped, and you tilted your head. “This was much more satisfying in my mind.” Your eyes flicked up to his helmet. “This probably wasn’t the smartest thing to do, was it?”

“You’re my head of strategy and tactics. You tell me.”

You straightened your head to look up at him. “What are the odds I’m not walking out of here before you do something in retaliation?” Resigned to your fate, it was more of a statement than anything.

His head tilted like yours had been. “I like those odds.”

You both stared at one another for a long moment before jerking into action.

Din was much faster than you. He pulled you down to the floor as you laughed loudly, protesting as he pinned you close to the pipes and loosened one of the bolts, water shooting all over the floor underneath you. Then he grabbed the hose, spraying you like you had him.

You’d just gotten the nozzle turned back on him when the water began to peter out, turning to only drops. 

Both of you were breathing hard, chuckles tumbling out in spurts as you stared at each other. 

“Happiness looks good on you, Din. You should run for your life more often if it brings you this much joy.”

He snorted out a laugh, shaking his head as he sat across from you in the puddle of water on the floor. Reaching down, he splashed some of it on you, making you drop your jaw in shock, quickly snapping it shut before returning the favor.

The laughter died out on softer chuckles, both of you staring at the other in companionable silence. 

“Do you want to go back?”

The question caught you off guard, making you scrunch your nose in confusion. “Back? Back where?”

“Home.”

You arched a brow. “To Mandalore? I mean, yeah, eventually, when it’s safe for you and the kid, but-”

“No, not there. Home.”

“Oh.” You looked down at your hands. “I hadn’t thought about it much.” That’s a lie. You thought about it most nights right before you fell asleep. Your mind would betray you, wandering down long forgotten lanes of memory and nostalgia when your defenses were low. 

“That’s a lie,” you admit softly, looking back up into his visor. “I think about it. Often. Not on purpose. Not longingly. Just….” You look back down to your fingers as you worry them, smiling fondly. “I had this place I liked to hide when I’d play with my friends. They never found me. I turned it into my own secret little base of operations. Stored snacks, stashed little treasures like rocks and odds and ends I’d found.” 

Your smile slipped slightly. “It’s where I went when…. It was the only time someone found me there. They knocked over my pile of treasures.” You looked back up at his visor with a weak smile. “I know that sounds stupid, with everything that was going on, but…. I just remember,” your gaze flitted over his shoulder, “I got so mad. How dare they.” 

Eyes floating back over his T, you let out a huff of broken laughter. “The Mandalorians took care of the troopers before they took me too far. Jet packed me out of there before I could even think to ask about my family. I had no idea what was going on…. By the time I realized, no one knew anything, and we were already in hyperspace.”

“If you remember the name, we can go back-”

“We can’t,” you interrupted. “It doesn’t matter.” Tightening the bolt under the sink needlessly, you spoke quickly. “I appreciate it, Din, I really do, but the Empire erased all mentions of my planet shortly after. All the charts, gone. Only maps of star systems with giant voids where my home used to be.”

Din reached out to put his gloved hand on yours, stilling your movement. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine.” You shrugged, turning back to the pipes. “I’m fine.” The tool clicked as it ratcheted the bolt tighter. “I’ve moved on.”

“If it helps, you’ve made this bucket of rust a home for me and the kid.”

Grunting with the last turn of the bolt, you let your arms fall to your lap with a plop. Turning your gaze over to him, you stayed silent.

“Ever since the last Crest was blown up, we haven’t had a stable place. Even Mandalore didn’t feel like home, just somewhere that was safe for the time being. And that safety was mostly due to you.” You looked down at your hands, needlessly studying the tool. “Now, we’ve been on the run for a week in this shitty ship- yes, I said shitty- working to get it livable, and I haven’t felt so at home in months.”

“Din-”

“I’m not done.” You snapped your jaw shut, nodding once. “Before the kid, I was alone. Then it was just me and him. We didn’t need anyone else. Now…. Now I don’t know. Somehow you found a way under my armor, and it’s like I carry you everywhere I go, even when you’re not with me.”

Looking up at him through your lashes, a lopsided grin started up your face. “Are you comparing me to a virus?”

He sighed, sitting back. “One of the nasty ones that’s hard to shake.”

You held a hand over your heart in mock flattery. “Why, I think that’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”

Both of you laughed softly, Din leaning back on one hand, the other propped up on his bent knee while you sat cross legged, tossing the tool back and forth between your hands. 

It was comfortable. You’d never been one for silence, even though the life of a Mandalorian often contained multitudes of it. But as you sat there across from your ruler, your charge, your friend…. The silence almost seemed to flicker, like the birth of a star on some distant chart. Something both foreign and familiar. And you didn’t want to look away.

“You know,” Din began, his voice softer than all the times before, “I know it’s only been a week, and I’ll admit, you drove me absolutely crazy those first few weeks back on Mandalore.” You laughed softly. “But there is no doubt in my mind, after everything we’ve been through in such a short time, and how much Grogu absolutely trusts you and thinks you hung the moon….”

“He’s a good kid,” you mumbled, looking over your shoulder toward the bunk.

“It would be an honor to have you join our clan.”

You froze, your eyes drifting to the side as you stared absently at the wall. “Din, I couldn’t-” You turned to face him again, but he cut you off.

“You have no signet yet. Whatever you choose, I will respect. If you want to forge your own path, that’s fine. But if you want to go forward wearing a mudhorn, nothing you could do would make me regret that.”

You thought for a moment, head tilting as you looked at him. Leaning back, you rested on the palms of your hands behind you. “Anything I do over our time away from Mandalore, I would do in service of the Mand’alor or to protect his clan. I can think of nothing nobler than protecting one’s own.” You bowed your head with a small smile. “I would wear it with honor.”

Din gave a single, firm nod, leaning forward to extend his right hand. You mirrored him, clutching his arm just above his vambrace tightly as he did yours. 

“Ni dinui ner runi at gar bal te adiik. Ni ven’cuyi cabur bal aliit. Ni ven’dinui ner oya’cye bah gar.” You grinned at him and winked. “Gar ru’gaanade jatnese be te jatnese.” (“I give my soul to you and the child. I will be protector and family. I give my life for you. You have chosen the best of the best.”)

“Cabur. Aliit. Ni dinui ner runi at gar. Ni ven’cuyi cabur bal aliit. Ni ven’dinui ner oya’cye bah gar.” He tilted his head to the side teasingly. “Gar ru’gaanade jatnese be te jatnese.” (“Protector. Family. I give my soul to you and the child. I will be protector and family. I give my life for you. You have chosen the best of the best.”)

You chuckled. “Only the best will do when it comes to family.”

A soft huff of amusement passed through his modulator. “Couldn’t agree more.”

Just then, Grogu began to climb up over your free arm, babbling about something as he went. “Well, hello there,” you mused quietly with a smile, looking down at him as you cradled him to you with the arm he was scaling. “Did we wake you up by being too loud while we were trying to fix the water?”

Looking over to his father, the child saw your arms still clasped, and his eyes widened. Jumping down out of your arms, he walked over under your grasp, and reached up when he was in the middle with his right hand, almost as if supporting both your arms from below. He looked between the two of you with sparkling eyes and a growing grin.

You were a clan of three.

Xxx

Finishing up the last shelves above the workbench area that also doubled as a small kitchen, you turned your head at the sound of footsteps coming up the ramp.

You smiled when you saw Din making his way toward you, BD running the opposite way down the ramp after helping you get everything level. His visor followed after the droid as they passed, BD looking up at him with a chirp while it continued on, before Din gave a gentle shake of his head in amusement, then turned back to focus on you.

“Just finishing up these shelves then this whole side of the Crest is done.” Turning back to the shelf, you made sure it was stable as you continued. “I thought we could move on to the bunks next, maybe dual task with the cockpit. I think I could drag Peli in here while her droids work outside. We should make a trip to the market for supplies now that we have some storage in case we need to make a run for it anytime. I don’t want to get too comfortable here….”

Looking across your shoulder at him, you arched a brow. “You’re quiet.” Your brows narrowed together. “Even for you.” You turned to face him fully, both brows raising in concern. “Something wrong?”

Glancing down at his hands as he closed the distance left between you, you noticed his right hand splayed fully open, fingers stretched to their limit, before they curled in slowly, making a relaxed fist like his left hand, which clutched something loosely at his side.

Taking your hand in his, he pressed his palm to yours, something with pointed edges digging into the fabric of your glove. “I know it’s not beskar, but until we get back and can do this properly, I hoped this would work.” 

Closing your hand around the object, a string hung down haphazardly through your fingers. Pulling your hand toward yourself, you turned your palm up and opened your fingers to reveal a pendant of a mudhorn made from various ship parts. 

A gear was the large part of the head, two halves of a broken gear made the jaws, and a few other parts you couldn’t recognize as they were hammered down flat to make up the horn and the rest of the head. The shiny silver caught the light of Tatooine’s dual suns as it poured in from the open ramp and you moved the pendant gently side to side to admire it. 

“I made it with…. It’s parts from the Crest and the N1,” he explained, before mumbling, “Shiniest things in this place.”

You laughed. “There’s one thing shiner.” Reaching out you thumped the side of his helmet with your finger, earning you a soft snort of laughter.

“Thank you,” you spoke quietly, studying the T of his visor before looking back down to the pendant in your hand with a lopsided grin. “It’s perfect.”

Slipping the cord over your head, it sat just above your chest plate, over your flight suit, the gleaming metal a sharp contrast to the dark material. Looking down at it, making sure it sat right, you tilted your head back to look at him straight on. “Aliit ori’shya tal’din.” You held his gaze while adding softly, “A clan of three.” (“Family is more than blood.”)

His head tilted to the side just slightly. “Jatnese be te jatnese.” (“The best of the best.”)

Xxx

Tags: @lam-ila​, @oliviajdjarin​, @peonyophelia​, @what-the-heckin-heck​, @Itsavicf, @just-shut-up-kid​, @noodlesavailable​, @mildlyhopeless​, @multifandomsw​, @professionalfangrrl​, @tizylish​​, @whoodattt​​, @heyitsaloy​​, @djarinsimp​​, @athenasproverbs​​, @aliens-apricot​​, @snow30285​​, @jallen0126​​, @jxvipike​​, @kodzuvk​​ What’s This?

[littleguyconnor]

Hey what if HeavyMedic adopted Scout. I wrote about that

“3, 2… 1.” 

The camera flashed, whirring quietly while it spat the film out. The photographer took it from the dispenser and shook it a little, showing the family that had now crowded around them the just-starting results of the photo. They couldn’t see it clearly yet, but this didn’t dim their excitement. 

“The photo will be clear in an hour,” they said, handing it over. 

“Gut, danke schön!” 

“Heavy also thanks you.” 

The photographer gave a formal bow and packed their equipment, bidding their slightly strange customers farewell. It didn’t much matter to them, though, because they paid good money.

Once alone the new family yelled and cheered ecstatically, crushing themselves into a massive and deliriously overjoyed bear hug with Scout in the middle of it. They couldn’t see each other through the laughter, or tears, but they clung to each other. This little family, this bond formed from chance and the unyielding determination to make it, was finally official. The paperwork had been signed, approved, and a photo was taken to permanently seal this moment in history. 

Scout was their son.

Heavy had a sudden surge of overwhelming affection, hoisting up both his husband and son and spinning them around, an act done out of unbridled love. It only stopped short when Scout choked out that he was crushing him to death, but it was taken in good humor. Medic fixed Scout’s clothes, and then let him run off to tell the others about his adoption. He was better than all of them now; he had two freakin’ dads! That was more than he’d had in his entire life and probably more than they had in theirs. And he had a mom. He was truly the superior man. All he was missing now was a girlfriend, but, y’know, that could wait. 

The other two mercs talked quietly amongst themselves, discussing their decision and the excitement and nervousness about being parents. Medic reassured Heavy that there would be no need to buy bottles because Scout was already an adult, which was a hard sentence to say without laughing. Heavy had been so anxious he’d simply forgotten, and mildly stewed in embarrassment for a moment. All was quickly forgotten when his husband kissed him, something sweet and simple, and he mellowed out again. He leaned down to return the favor when they were both interrupted. 

“I see you’ve adopted my son.” 

They turned, mild surprise turning into annoyance and disinterest. A tense beat of silence passed as Spy paused to light a cigarette. 

“You’ve known about it,” Medic said stiffly, and the Frenchman held up his hands. 

“Of course. I’m not looking to start a fight. I only wish to ask of you one thing,” he said. The other mercenaries stared him down, expressions and stances hostile. Spy was very aware of this, and submitted to it. 

“Please …Be better men than I was. Take care of him.” 

Gravel crunched under Heavy’s feet as he took a few steps forward, Medic trailing behind him with a hand on his shoulder. 

“You were not “man”. You abandoned our son like coward, and you are telling us to be men?” 

“Yes. We are offering him something you were never capable of giving. Even now, you can’t get past your pride enough to tell him you were an idiot. It’s quite insulting.” 

Spy did not say anything for a long while. Emotions he had worked so hard to bottle up were resurfacing like shattered glass in his stomach. Shame. Anger. 

Regret.

“Es tut mir leid, Ludwig.”

“Don’t. This discussion is over. I feel it fair to say to leave our family alone. We are coworkers at most and this matter does not concern you. If you have as much wit as you say you do, you will understand this.” 

Heavy only had one other thing to say. Spy did not deserve his wasted breath.

“Do not apologize to Doctor. Apologize to Scout.” 

And with that, there was nothing more any of them had to say. 

Spy had lost his wife, his son, Medic, and Heavy. They were never “friends”, not really, but it felt like something irreversible had been chipped off, sunk to the bottom like a chunk of ice in the ocean. Something already fragile. Something already hard to hold on to, easy to slip up, to ruin. And he had done all of it. There was nothing left of his and Scout’s relationship to repair. One had never been fostered in the first place. It was all just unthinking selfishness, the need to preserve his dignity over letting his son heal. He thought about it. About what it must feel like. To know you had a dad, but not if he ever loved you. If he was there at all. 

Scout would never know.

[goldeneyedgirl]

TwiFicmas NYE Edition: Variable Stars

Okay, since I got some very desperate DMs, you all win and we'll celebrate the end of 2023 with Variable Stars, and the beginning of 2024 with STL snippets.

This is a few pieces from Ch 7 of Variable Stars. It's close to done, and the bare bones of Ch 8 has been set up. I look forward to getting back into the swing of VS because friends to lovers is just so damn wholesome.

I hope you all have a brilliant NYE and I'll see you next year ;)

She’s not sure when everything changed. 

When it stopped being the Cullen home and it stopped being Jasper’s home and it started being hers too. When she started seeing her own face in the photographs on the walls, when the other family members called for her, she wasn’t just an extension of Jasper. 

She knows the house (which step is cracked because one of them stepped down too hard, but there’s been a lot of damage lately, so they’re all gingerly avoiding it in the hopes it can hold out a few weeks so that Esme doesn’t get too mad. Which bathroom never has hot water after midnight. That Carlisle moved all the travel books from the top-most shelves in the library down  to her eye-level so she could take them without lingering. That the spinning chair in the living room is shoved in the corner near the window because it’s her favourite but she won’t sit in it if her back is exposed.)

She knows that Esme is fiercely protective of her garden, that the stepping-stones are there for a reason. There’s a greenhouse that’s about to be built; and that Bella sulks if anyone is in the hammock when she wants to use it. (She also knows that Emmett and Rose are banned from the hammock because of what they did to the last one.)

And the forest. She knows it better than anything. That’s where they hunt, where her and Jasper go running. Where he found her that day, washing off the blood. Where they play-fight and she plays on the ice at the end of winter and it’s all broken up in pieces.

Then there is Jasper. There are a million different ways to explain Jasper and who he is to her, how he soothes all the raw spots and open wounds just by being there. Everything is easier with him, and there's never a day when she doesn't thank whatever higher power exists that they crossed paths.  

(Peace is a funny thing; it feels solid but she’s so intensely aware of how easily it could shatter. Eight vampires in one place is a recipe for disaster; she never forgets that. But for now, she just savours every single moment.)

It’s home. She’s finally home.

//

Some things are inevitable; Alice knows this well enough. Her death, for instance - setting foot in that hospital when she was a newborn, where the doctor knew who she was… that was a place people went to die, not to heal.

Realising that the only thing her gift would bestow upon her was death, destruction, and the legacy of a monster was another. 

Oh, and Jasper being someone important. There had always been something about him, even when he was a nomadic grump. 

But Alice has accepted that certain things are inevitable and avoiding them, or pretending they aren’t going to happen. The only thing she can really do is accept them, and face them head on, no matter how nervous or uncomfortable she might be. 

That is to say, she’s heard about Peter and Charlotte before; Jasper’s got lots of stories about them and it’s nice to hear to his stories - she’d like to set Maria ablaze for some of the things she did to him, and she’s more than a little bit sorry that she never made it for enough into Mexican to make the woman burn for her sins, but Jasper seems to be mostly at peace with everything that happened to him. 

(He worries more over her stories, which she finds funny. A couple of bites is nothing, and she makes it abundantly clear that she walked away the victor in those battles. When she says that, he always relaxes, like he’s worrying for her in that actual moment even when she’s sitting opposite him playing Go Fish in pom-pom socks.)

Sometimes she wonders what he would say if she told him the real story about how she woke up. About the one named James and the woman with him, about what she did to him, about finding the hospital and going inside and decimating it, killing every single person she found. If he’d be mad at her, or disgusted, or angry for her or what. 

It’s purely academic of course; she’s never, ever going to tell him all of that. As much as the past doesn’t bother him, she still remembers how he used to look, how he used to carry himself all those decades ago. She doesn’t want to add more violence, more rage to the burdens he carries. 

(She never wants to become one of his stories, like Maria.)

//

There’s more and more talk about their next move. That makes Alice nervous, he realizes. For a second, that’s confusing because there’s no way that moving will change anything - it’s still their family, just in a new place (there’s a vigorous debate between Montana, Minnesota, and Maine - he’s hoping for Minnesota because the home there is on a huge parcel of land where they can roam without being disturbed. Maine is the most claustrophobic option, a place where they will be under the most scrutiny, and Alice isn’t ready for that yet.)

But he takes a second and realises, for Alice, this is a huge change. The utter unknown - this house is the only home she’s ever known. She might have heard about high school and college, and posing as human, but she’s never had to play that part. 

(He’s already cornered Carlisle and told him that Alice isn’t going to school yet. Her reading and writing are good, but not enough to deal with a high school class. Not to mention that he got almost a decade before he was forced to play his part in their charade; Alice deserves the same.)

Esme is making adjustments to the house model in the family meeting, her stylus darting over the screen as everyone throws out requirements (or demands) about their new residence - Edward wants a music room, Rosalie wants space for at least twelve cars, Carlisle and Bella had grand plans for the scale and design of the library. 

His requests are the same as always - his study, and a bathroom he doesn’t have to share. Esme is doting and amused as she confirms his space, the exact requirements he gives for every single new house. 

“Alice, what do you need?” she asks, and Alice has been very quiet; Bella and Carlisle are still debating the two-story library of their dreams. 

She looks like a deer in the headlights as Esme looks at her expectantly, and looks at him for help. 

“Another bedroom and ensuite, maybe with an extra-giant closet for all your clothes,” he says teasingly, and Esme is already nodding, already sketching. 

“I don’t have that many.” She’s trying to sound flippant but she’s already looking relieved as Emmett begins negotiating a gaming room of his own. It’s true, she rarely asks Esme for anything more complicated than help navigating the washer and dryer. It’s him that she goes to for money, with questions, everything. And it’s Esme and Carlisle that come to him when they need her to know something, especially if it’s a delicate topic. 

And he likes it that way, likes that he can be useful, be important for a purpose.

//

The thing that they all like to ignore is that Bella’s change wasn’t without its difficulties. The Volturi had hovered in the peripheral right up until she had reawakened; it was that tangible risk that had allowed them to form a formal, ongoing alliance with the Pack, and allowed Bella to keep Charlie in her life. It was messy and uneasy but Edward was convinced that Aro held no malice for the entire debacle - Bella was changed, her shield gift only interested Aro in how it had manifested when Bella was human, and everyone had parted friends. 

(Well, Caius and Jane were still looking for reasons to destroy the lot of them, but the linchpin in the whole thing was Aro, and he was suitably amused and affectionate towards Carlisle that they were safe.)

Alice had been bewildered and scared when they’d told her the entire story, her unease syrupy as they spoke about Volterra and the agreements, Victoria and James, the Pack. She was slack-jawed when Carlisle explained that he had been close friends with the Volturi for decades before he had his family. 

He has his arm tight around her as the story is told, and quietly reassures her that they have no reason to ever see Aro, the Volturi, or even set foot in Italy. 

“They only punish those that break the laws,” he says and she nods, but the fear is still there. 

[carmenized-onions]

Okay, lemme start off by saying; if there was a button to make all of “Chicago’s kindest” an internationally famous fic, I would’ve pressed it as soon as I was half way done with the first chapter. It took me 6 ish? hours, quite literally 1 am till 7 am to catch up to the most recent chapter. and Oh my God; what a damn rollercoaster on a vibrating seat. I was BUZZZINGGGGG. When I say I’ve read mostly all of the Carmy fics there are; I would be lying cause my life was so incomplete without this fic and now, with whole one night of sleep missing, I can say it was so worth it.

I was giggling, and crying and laughing and I am pretty sure I’ve never disturbed my household more in a night than I did last night, you are such an amazing writer and this fic is just so right. It fits so well with what my brain thinks when it thinks of a ‘Bear fic. The pacing, the dialogue, the CHARACTERS- Tony- damn even Micheal fucking Berzatto. You got every moment, every emotion, every punctuation to a T. And I am so proud to say that you are probably one of my favourite writers on here now. Please please please never ever stop writing. And you bet your fine ass I’m gonna be reblogging each chapter (after re reading it all cause why the fuck not?) once it’s finished.

thank you so much for saying i have a fine ass. it means a lot. the other stuff too but mostly the ass.

But really, oh my goodness, internationally famous is wild-- I'm SORRY I FUCKING SHATTERED YOUR SLEEPING SCHEDULE THOUGH JESUS CHRIST TALK ABOUT A FUCKING NIGHT SHIFT. Thank you for loving it so! I'm so glad you liked it enough to ruin your fucking morning LMAO.

My apologies to your household, let them know it was mb i take full responsibility. It really means a lot to hear this is hitting all the notes for you!! I really wrote this series quite honestly for me so the fact that anyone fucking likes it and thinks I'm doing good really means da world. I have no idea what I will write for the bear after this series is over-- Other than spin offs. Cause this is just the canon I live in now. Tony is actually just centimeters off screen to the left in all of S3 if you didn't know actually, that's real and that's true and that's factual.

I can't wait to hear your thoughts on the next chapter when it comes out! It's long as fuck I am sure I will once again ruin your sleep schedule please again tell your family: mb.

[kirstenonic05]

I can't believe I got tagged for this. Thank you @rottenpumpkin13!

Rules: post the names of the files of your WIP folder, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send you asks with the title that most intrigues them, and then post a little snippet or tell them something about it. If you want, tag as many people as you have WIPS.

I'm gonna tag people now and then put the WIP names under the read more because I wasn't lying when I said I have an unholy amount of WIPs!

@nibwhipdragon @idolcrescent @shadowsageingempress and anyone else who wants to do this! No pressure, though! :D

I have this many stories:

And this many finished:

So uh. This'll be fun. (I won't do all my WIPs but... it's still a lot...)

I think this would be a lot funnier if I took screenshots of the names/adding the pictures that are attached to the Keep notes, but there are just too many to do that. Anything in italic isn't in the title, it's just present me screaming

(Sadly all my finished fics have funnier titles since I finish crackfics in a day, and sorry for the weird formatting! I reached the paragraph cap apparently :()

Star of the Sea 2 (No name)

"What should we do with its corpse?" (Rewritten) (Two ghosts discuss throwing away a dead centipede. One throws it at the other)

Encounter with the Local Dark Mage (I only have a title... I don't even know who the characters will be yet... Why am I like this...)

Comfort (I'M A SENTENCE OFF OF FINISHING I THINK)

The Demon and the Boy (I am SO CLOSE to finishing this. Just need to edit. Might end up on Ao3)

The Dark Mage and the Dark Alchemist

I don't have a title but Sig cheers up Schezo

A New Cave???

A Len, Two Lens (Waiting on Ink to send me some of the script, collab moment)

Scarf

Also no name, smth abt Allen and Hibiya but fantasy???

The Closet's Other Door (Continuation of a fic named The Closet)

Also no name, Armani (OC)'s birthday

Photos

The Master of the Heavenly Yard

I don't want to die

Nightmare (I thought this was done...)

A Glitch's Musings (I DON'T REMEMBER WRITING MORE ECHOED TIME STUFF HELLO??)

Times Two (I wrote so much for Echoed Time and. Forgot)

Repression

No name but continuation of Joseph has a dragon spirit that goes out of control (Aurora Dragon)

Plush

No name, everyone's animal hybrids except Sonic

Sick

Interrogation

I'm so sorry Mayday (I'm so sorry for doing this to you Mayday...)

No name, Joseph post apocalypse(?)

Me, the Stall Wall, and You

Three Wings, Five (OUGH THE AU UPDATED. NOW IT HAS TO BE 7 WINGS)

You tried (That sounds so angsty without the context of Chrom walks into a Minecraft desert temple and blows up...)

Digitalis

Spin a Tale of Silk and Cotton

Chase

Isle of Destiny

Reality Check

Guardian Angel

To the Pure Body, to the Perfect Existence

Volume Control (Help how do you write sad Tsukasa)

Last One Standing

Dualheart

Different

Twist of Fate

Dimensional Scream

Before Disaster

Fighting a King

Red String

At Dawn (DD edition)

Bottoms Up

Themes

What's in a name?

Couple of Strays

Stuck in Stone

Heterochromia

City Boy Lost (Joseph gets lost: The story)

Merry Chrimpus

Tales from the Shattered Star

Birth... marks? (This was meant for Caejose week but I was busy rip)

From the Dark World

Dark Fear

Night in the Desert

So, do you like him? (Huh Joseph? Do you like him? It looks like you do)

Corrupted Code

Crumbling Stars

Hotel (My lord I was on a full SoSS spree after Frontiers, that's like 6 in a row including two others that are here somewhere)

Tension

Heads Up! (Local hedgehog yeets ghost friend's head at people)

Ridgegate Rumble (Also the name of the song I'm turning in as an assignment lol)

Redeemed Flame

Light of the Sun

Out of Known Time (Almost done...)

Swords

Carriage (The only Shrimp fic that isn't finished, set before Soggy Shrimp and Emotional Support Shrimp)

Another Life

The Ultimate

Faded Light

Wish Come Through - Wish Fall

Meeting

Aurora Dragon

Family

Reflection

Instinct

Murky Water

Land of Ice (Light, Butterflies and the Never-Ending Winter)

Refracted Invader

"Best Coffee to ever grace the earth"

The Boy

Enter: The Ripple

Skirmish Pack

At what cost?

Silence

Your Turn

Copy (OH RIGHT JOSEPH CLONE AU. I SHOULD FINISH THAT.)

A New World

Clothes

Threaded Stars (SOSS DD crossover I forgot about...)

Sugar Rush

To Turn Back Time

Arachnophobia

BOY I DIE The End (I've finished BOY I DIE the first and almost finished this one :3)

BOY I DIE the middle one (I have not started this one though...)

Yearn For Home

Wait ghosts can't-

A Totally Normal Day (Putting my OCs on a date...)

Insight

Sweet Treat

Logical Stimulus (HELP BATTLE SCENES ARE SO HARD TO WRITE. HOW DO YOU WRITE VANITAS.)

Blue Eyes, Red Stone (I forgot to finish this one sorry Nibwhip... It's the Monster Hunter JoJo fic)

Photo Ghost

Unfounded Kingdom

Two

Not so Dark

Similar (Hedgehog and Human)

Popsicles (Will be on the Caejose collection once it's done. If I finish it, of course)

Just a Familiar

Final Battle...?

Time Stops

Barista

Heart's Pulse

Immortal

Welcome to Vivosaur Island

The Heroes

Fireflies

Like Surviving the Apocalypse (OC edition)

Like Surviving the Apocalypse (AU Joseph edition)

Live Play

Aragami - 荒神

Reunion

It's Time (Kirsten finish Echoed Time fics challenge: impossible. Literally this is the beginning of the series and I STILL haven't finished it.)

Chaos Warp (OH HELLO SOSS FIC THAT IGNORES ALL THE RULES OF SOSS)

Light in the Dark

My Own Hands (Rerun)

My Own Hands

Comrades No More (Rerun)

Comrades No More (OG CitS edition)

Distorted Graffiti (It's literally just Comrades No More with a different name and they dance before killing each other... what the heck past me...)

Winter Wonderland

The Supernatural

【End of Days】 (Kirsten don't write the end of the AU before the start challenge: Impossible impossible)

Midnight Dancing

Arena (I think I never finished this because the characters changed names 3 times during writing lol)

Learn to Dance

Ruins Deep

How to say "I love you" (Learn to dance from Caesar's POV)

Tsunami

Snow Tower

Phone

Time, again and again

Heart Burn (Probably gonna split this into 4 different oneshots ngl)

Cast Away (I THOUGHT I FINISHED THIS D:)

Eternamax

Cute? (Not in the way you think)

Mission

Jail of Burning Hell (An actual mission name from Sonic Adventure. How.)

Treading the Needle (I wrote the start to OG CitS and never finished it, then proceeded to write everything in between and the end. Ok me.)

Legendary Heroes II

Beautiful One Day

Lock

Table Tennis Table (OH RIGHT THE JOSEPH AND SONIC BREAK A TV AND ALLEN IS DISAPPOINTED FIC. I NEED TO FINISH THIS.)

Brioche (I have like 3 fics named brioche. Which fic is this.)

Braving Lightning

Meet the Ghosts

Rift Token Pendent

Joe's Diary 2

Zombies at Port

Zombies at Port (Dream accurate) (Technically done?)

The Start of Origins

Beast on World's End (The day I figure out how to write DIO, the day I will finish this fic)

Shuniji (EotD version)

Shuniji (Minecraft accurate)

Lunch

Mice on Venus

Anigame

Anigame 2 (Kirsten name your fics-)

Ridgegate Rock (OG CitS version)

Night Market

Arrival (i wrote this playing Stardew) (The previous brackets is actually in the title...)

Butterfly House (Valentines 2021) (NOOO I NEVER FINISHED THIS D:)

Water's Edge

Turtle Beach

Allen, Joseph, and the Mizutsune (I need to. Finish this.)

Streak of Lightning

Guest

(Not So) Secret Island

Son of a Champion (Nuzlocke gone wrong not clickbait)

Kars' 100% Accurate Retelling of Meeting Joseph (It's not accurate)

Through Ghost Eye

Dance of the Decorous

March of the Profane (So I made this challenge where I wrote two fics at the same time (This and Dance of the Decorous) that share the same amount of sentences, and chose two songs that are the same but remixes as the titles. I wanna continue these fics sometime cause I'm kinda proud of them ngl...)

Purest Sky and Sea (Started this with Ink and. Forgot abt it)

Wrong Seat, Right Timing (Ink and I have to finish this! :D)

Blue on the Run

Dawn (Another fic named Dawn??? It's... Stardew???)

Temporal Rift (THIS WASN'T EVEN TAGGED AS STORY I JUST STUMBLED ACROSS IT WHILE TRYING TO FIND SMTH. HELP I MIGHT HAVE A LOT OF FICS I'M MISSING)

Shadows on the East (This is one of my most important fics and it wasn't tagged as story...)

Up towards the sky (I wrote a Caejose New Years fic??? What??? When???)

Where it all went wrong

Poffins (Continuation to Underground on Ao3!)

Eye of Memory

Sunflowers Spring Forth Day

~ℜ𝔢𝔴𝔯𝔦𝔱𝔢~ Bluebells Sound Death

Sunset Orange (I think I've written more oneshots for this AU than the actual main story...)

Sunrise Yellow

EC x SDV (Aka Boredom/Commas everywhere) (I REMEMBER THAT I COULDN'T FINISH THIS BECAUSE IT WENT OVER THE GOOGLE KEEP WORD LIMIT LOL)

The Mystery of the Two Pranksters

Lost Memory

I know who you are (Well that's not cryptic as heck)

Token

Dreaming of Shooting Stars

Dreams (3 SoSS fics in a row again. Huh.)

Love?

Name

Nest

Golden Friendships

No name, Eye of the Sea intro for EotD

Who are you?

Valentines (ANOTHER VALENTINES FIC???)

Stairwell (This was a story where anything stupid that happened to me at this stairwell would be rewritten with characters but... I'm not at that school anymore... this might be finished...)

Full

Orchid

The Legendary Wolf Likes Coke (COCA COLA. NOT COCAINE)

America? (America is not real)

JOeStar rEcreation: Project Hamon (J.O.S.E.P.H ;) )

Rain under the Trees

It feels like midnight

The Revolution Comes Around Again

Before I say goodbye to you

Collab Story

The end of the 10 year story (10 years irl)

Null

Rumours

The Mentor Servant's Name

Who's She? (Sounds kinda angsty but it's not... It's SoSS)

Shadows of the Past (White Deal)

Scarf (OH LOL I'VE USED THIS TITLE TWICE)

Sea of Fire

Visit

Left in Ruins

The Concept of Love

A little spider goes a long way (Eden why did you name the spider that) (My friend named a spider Joseph and then we talked abt it and a crackfic spawned...)

Safari Zone

Another

DD rewritten

Around the World

One and the Same

Royalty is not for us

Entralinked

Servant of the Worlds

The Evillious Chair

Why does a flaming arrow hold a curse instead of killing the victim straight away?

Strengths and Weaknesses

Christmas Snack

Happy birthday Sonic!

Back in Time

Blossom Storm

Hanahaki

A day in the life of the Kagamine/Lucifin Twins (TYPO SPOTTED. IT'S SPELT "LUCIFEN")

Tricksters in the Lucifenia Palace

Slice of Life - Ancestral Bonds (I'm 100% sure there's a continuation to this somewhere that's unfinished but I can't find it...)

As Faith Foretold

Dimensional Defenders - 1 (My first ever fic!!! Wow!!!)

Experiment TS-#042 (Sad that I didn't get far in this, I had so many ideas for this AU as a kid)

Mirai

A day in the Lucifenian Castle

Len's Adventures at Gakupo's Sushiria (Collab with my friend, who wrote Miku's Scooperia)

Tuna why did you make me do this you peckneck smh (Speaking of said friend...)

Shattered Mirrors

One

Through the desert's flames

Pocky

Earthen Guardians

Ships on a Spaceship (There are 3 separate stories for this, and 2 more planned. Why would I do that to myself)

Azure Gold

Azure Wind (These two fics are not related to each other. Azure Gold and In Love with a Wyvern are. What.)

Mirror Cave

In love with a wyvern

New World, New Beginnings (JOJO MINECRAFT ISEKAI FIC I WROTE AND FORGOT ABT??? HELLO???)

Lab AU??? (The AU has a name y'know, past me)

Among Us there are Two (Part 3) (ONE DAY I WILL FINISH THIS)

Cookies

And that's all! If you made it this far, thank you for dealing with my disaster!

[decadentpandawasteland]

Hello, this is the next installment of my Revenge series. This section does come with a content warning that I will be posting again before the story starts. Thank you to everyone who's seemed to really be enjoying this crazy thing that's playing in my head. I'm very happy to be a part of this community. Any and all feedback is encouraged and helpful. As always, thank you for reading :)

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

CW: Death, Assault, Implied R*pe

Wryn told Damien she'd be in contact with him shortly before abruptly leaving, not even stopping for a goodbye. Saying the woman was strange was barely scratching the surface, but she burned with that same fire as Damien. He could feel it radiating off of her, waves of rage and unceasing anguish. It encompassed her, formed her from who she was to who she is, the same as what had happened to him. 

The house was nothing special. Nothing was special to him anymore. Houses were just wood and blocks held together with cement and nails. A home is who you share it with, who brought you up and loved you through all of your triumphs and disgraces equally. They had stripped him of it three times already and blinded one eye for good measure. The powerful don't kick someone while they're down unless they're terrified of who they're kicking. 

“A dragon? Fuck a dragon. Fuck The Brood. Fuck the Bastard. Fuck this town, this kingdom, and this country!” Damien screamed, punching the wall of his house and immediately regretting it. He hit a stud and thought he felt his knuckles crack. Pain shot through his hand, but it was just a bee sting compared to being gutted. 

He walked into the kitchen and poured himself a cup of ale, chugging it down just to refill it. He repeated this process until the jug was half empty. Rhea had always hated when he drank, but since they had taken her it was the only way he was sleeping. If he didn't, that's usually when the nightmares started. In a drunken stupor Damien fumbled his way into bed. He placed a hand on the floor to stop his world from spinning and drifted off. Sadly tonight was one of those nights the drink didn't help. 

Damien was walking to his parents house. It was a little cottage near the edge of the woods. It's where he'd grown up, had fights with his family, laughed and cried, celebrated and mourned. The woods behind the house were filled with memories. It's where he had slain dragons, fought off hordes of monsters single handedly. As he had gotten older it became a sanctuary for him. A meeting ground for the girl on the other side of the woods. It's where he met her. It's when they had fallen in love. Seeing the sight of it warmed his heart but also shattered it. 

Suddenly that serene setting darkened. A blood curdling scream came from the cottage. The incongruity of the cottage and that scream was the first thing that truly changed Damien. It was the first time he had seen the world for what it truly was, an infestation that needed to be burned out. 

In a blink a group of men dragging his mother outside by a fistful of hair. Their cloaks and armor showed a black dragon holding wheat while the other held a person. The Brood. They were yelling something at her. 

“You're a lying you fucking bitch. Where is he? Where?!” The man holding his mother demanded, throwing her down into the dirt. He kicked at her side. All his mother did was scream. Damien watched, having figured out a long time ago what she was doing. Her screams weren't for someone to help. They were to warn Damien to not come home. To stay in the woods. He glanced over at the woods as a dark haired boy looking from behind a tree. There he was, watching someone assault his mother, her screams getting weaker and weaker. They became a wet sound and Damien knew what was coming next. 

“Flip the bitch over!” The one who was holding her hair screamed, as he ripped his belt off. The man's hands were shaking. Damien had thought they were shaking like that because of the frustration of his mother refusing to give up his father's location. As the years went on though, he realized it wasn't just the frustration that caused it, but excitement. One of the other men frantically cut away at her dress, another shoved her face into the ground in an attempt to stop the screams. Damien couldn't watch. He crouched down, squeezing his eyes shut, and his hands clamped over his ears. The exact same position his younger self had taken behind the tree. 

Silence. 

That was the only thing that could possibly be worse than her screaming. It was the knowledge that he'd never hear her say I love you again. That all he'd be left with is never ending silence and an echo of her scream. 

Damien shot out of bed, his head pounding. The entire bed was drenched in sweat. The only thing throbbing more than his head was his hand. He tried to make a fist but a sharp shooting pain erupted out, halting the movement and causing him to let out a grunt of pain. Damien looked out the window, the sun just starting to break the horizon. 

“This is going to be a long fucking day,” Damien said to himself, as he got a drink of water and tried to get his thoughts in order. Today was the day of plans and schemes, a hangover wasn't going to stop him from making every second count.

[talkfastromance4]

Homecoming--Luke&Lily oneshot

a/n: we are officially caught up! again, I apologize for it taking me so long to update.

warnings: mentions of blood/passing out (very near the end), allusion to smut

word count: 2.2k

masterlist

Luke & Lily Masterlist

Enjoy!

PSA: if you’re using mobile and are on dark mode, change to true blue. The words aren’t showing up in white for me on mobile and idk how to fix it☹️ I’m sorry.

****

Luke had originally said he wouldn’t be home until July 26th because they always had a big celebration with the crew for end of tour. He and the guys took everyone out for a special dinner as a thank you for all of their hard work and support

It was a rough morning for mama getting the kids out of bed, to eat breakfast, and to get dressed. But, it’s the first day of Lily’s day camp for the Summer so you know she’s nervous and you try to tell her how much fun she’s going to have; meanwhile Posy is crying about how she wanted to wear her butterfly shirt not her ladybug one. Once at the drop-off for the day camp, all three kids are hanging onto you. You see Ronan and his moms, he shows Lily a sticker book he got that they can do on the bus. If you would have known he was going, you would have mentioned him earlier to ease Lily because she gets on the bus no problem with him. Posy pouts that she can’t go with Lily to camp, you assure her she’s going to have fun at her own summer class. She’s reluctant to go but you promise Lily will tell her all about her day 

Oliver doesn’t get fussy until you arrive at daycare. “It’s been quite the morning,” you sigh to his teacher, Miss Honey. “His sisters were upset and now he’s being extra clingy…” 

“It’s okay, sometimes we have those days, right Oliver?” Oliver is trying to climb up your legs from his spot on the floor as you put his lunch in the fridge. You pick him up and he snuggles into your neck. 

“Mama has to go now, you’re going to have such a fun day.” You kiss his cheeks repeatedly and rub his tears from under his glasses. He’s wailing for you and even though you know he’ll be fine and his smiley self in a few minutes, it still shatters your heart to hear him crying like that. 

Once in the car, you close your eyes and take deep breaths trying not to let the rough morning get to you. Then, you touch your stomach, “Please don’t make me even more emotional, baby.” This pregnancy has really been making you exhausted and your emotions are an incessant rollercoaster. 

When you’re at work, you get through your to do list and emails pretty quickly so by midmorning you were getting a cup of tea from the breakroom when the other women in the office start chattering loudly. When you step out, the chattering stops but they’re all grinning at you, even your boss.

 “What?” You ask. 

“There’s a delivery in your office,” Pamela smirks. When you enter your office there’s a large bouquet of flowers in a crystal vase. Knowing it’s from Luke, you smile and set your mug down next to the flowers when your chair spins around and Luke is sitting there, beaming up at you.

“Hello, Mrs. Hemmings, I have a very important delivery for you.”

“Luke!” You fall onto his lap, your chair knocking into the wall but Luke braces his feet on the floor. You breathe him in feeling tears spike in your eyes.

“Hi lovie,” he murmurs wrapping his arms tightly around you. He kisses your shoulder.

“I thought you weren’t coming home until tomorrow night?”

“We finished things early with the crew. They surprised us actually with a late night buffet. Said they knew me and Michael have families to get running home to.”

“I’m so glad you’re home,” you sniff. He pulls your head back, his hands holding your face gently.

“What’s wrong, lovie?”

“It was a rough morning that’s all,” you give him a teary smile. “And I’m happy you’re here and I’m…emotional. And pregnant.” 

“Tell me about it on the way home,” he kisses your nose then drops a hand to your stomach. “This little one has a lot of emotions, hm?”

“Yeah,” you place your hand over his, and the way your hands are atop of each other it places your wedding rings next to each other. “What do you mean home?”

“Cheri said I can kidnap you,” he smiles.

The flowers are on the floor between your feet as Luke drives your car home, he had Ashton drop him off at your work. You tell him about the morning with the kids, mention how this pregnancy really is bringing out your emotions.

“How else are you feeling? Any morning sickness?”

“No, not yet,” you sigh. “Which is strange. I had morning sickness already when I was pregnant with Lily, Posy and Oliver.”

“Maybe your body’s gotten into the swing of things by now,” he chuckles and you lean over to pinch his cheek. “I’m sorry you had a rough morning, but I promise to make it better for you.”

“It’s already better because you’re home.”

When you arrive home he hugs and kisses Petunia then leads you to your bedroom where he turns the blinds a little so you’re in a comfortable shade. 

“Are we going back to sleep?” you smile kicking off your heels.

“We can after.”

“After what?”

He smiles deviously then starts to unbutton your red silk top. “Do you need another hint?” He quirked an eyebrow before pressing his lips to yours then onto your neck. 

You remove each other’s clothes slowly, Luke’s fingers are always on you and you’re always touching as well. You fall together on your bed, joining together and it’s always like the first time and the last time with every time in between and future ones to come. Your moans alternate and you orgasm (rather quickly, again thanks to being pregnant) he’s not too far behind because you clench around him so tightly. 

He’s panting as he holds himself above you, his curls falling over his eyes. “I forgot your sex drive is heightened when you’re pregnant.”

“And you’re way better than the vibrator.”

He barks out a laugh and falls to his back. “Thank goodness I’m better than the vibe.”

You roll over and trace the perimeter of his chest hair, feeling the rise and fall of his chest as he catches his breath. “Wanna go get it while you recoup?” 

Luke lets out a long exhale staring at you. “Seriously?”

“Yeah, let’s see if you can get me off quicker than I can with it.” 

“Fuck,” he groans giving you a hard kiss and rolls you over. “I love you so damned much. Where is it?”

“Bathroom, top shelf,” you giggle as he kisses you again then leaps off the bed. 

You do end up falling asleep after a rigorous romp in the sheets but then you’re awoken by your stomach growling. Luke isn’t in bed next to you. You wash up quickly in the bathroom then slip on one of his new tour shirts then find him in the kitchen making a late lunch. Your phone is on the counter, with his back still turned you take a photo then call out, ‘hey handsome.’ When he turns around with a smile, you capture it perfectly. 

You spend the rest of the afternoon cuddling while listening to him tell you more about tour, how much he missed being onstage with the boys but also how he missed you. He mentions he wants you and the kids to go to Australia with them on the third leg of tour.

“I’ll be very pregnant by then, Luke,” you answer sadly.

“Just an idea,” he responds lightheartedly but you can tell he’s faking it. 

“We can discuss it with my doctor, but it’ll be the end of my second trimester.”

“Like I said, just an idea,” he kisses your forehead. “Your health and the baby’s is more important.”

You bite your lip because you know he’s putting up a front, you can’t help but feel like you’re constantly disappointing him. 

You take a quick shower together before you pick Oliver up from daycare. He’s so excited to see you both that he’s crawling as fast as he can towards you, excited grunts and squeals coming from him. Somehow in his excitement, he pushes up on his feet and walks to you and Luke. You’re cheering him on but when he stumbles, Luke catches him quickly.

This is the first time he’s walked, you’re crying again because those were his first steps and you and Luke were both present to see it. As you’re gathering his things, Miss Honey approaches you congratulating you on Oliver’s walking but then she mentions she’s noticed how nonverbal he is. She questions if he says simple words like ‘mama’ or ‘dada’ or even ‘dog’ and you frown because he hasn’t said anything like that.

When he’s excited he sort of hums which sounds like ‘mama’. 

“He was premature, right?”

“Yes, and he was in the NICU for twelve weeks. Is that common for premature babies not to speak?”

“Every child is different, maybe it’s going to take him a little bit longer,” Miss Honey says kindly.

“Well, we’ll be seeing his doctor soon so I’ll ask her. Thank you for telling me, I’ll make sure to keep an eye on it.”

When you tell Luke he gets angry at first defending that nothing is wrong with him then frowns at Oliver in his carseat through the rearview mirror. He’s playing with his toy keys, humming around them and gazing out the window. 

“We talk to him all the time, so do the girls…”

“It really could be because he was born so early, it could take him longer than most to reach his milestones.”

“But he walked today! That’s a big milestone and he’s 15 months old now.” 

“Luke, it’s okay. We’ll ask his doctor and see what she says,” you rub at the back of his neck.

Posy is equally thrilled to see Luke and starts chatting away about her day explaining how she wanted her butterfly shirt but Luke thinks her ladybug shirt is just as good. She beams at him.

The four of you are standing on the curb at school waiting for Lily’s bus to arrive. When it does and parks, Lily is talking with Roman and another little boy, when she sees Luke, her face brightens and she runs with her arms wide open screaming, “Daddy!”

Luke lifts her up effortlessly, his hand rubbing at her back and hair affectionately. 

“Hi my sweet,” he smiles kissing the side of her head. “How was camp?”

She tells him and you all about it while you walk to the car. Luke sets Lily down to help Posy get buckled in her booster seat.

“How about we go swimming when we get home and we have…McDonald’s for dinner?” Luke asks excitedly. Lily and Posy cheer, then you inform them that Oliver walked today. 

“Good job, Olly!” Lily tells him patting his hand.

Posy asks if Chloe and Maddox will be coming over too, she loves the twins.

“No, bug, they gotta stay home with Uncle Michael and Auntie Crystal. Maybe we can all get together this weekend.”

You all have fun playing in the pool, Luke tosses the ball for Petunia in the grass then she lays at the edge of the pool when she’s tired. Posy and Lily take turns swimming by her and kissing her nose while she pants. For the rest of the week, Luke and you take the kids to their desired places and you watch Oliver more carefully. He makes noises but no coherent words have formed yet. 

You spend the Saturday at Michael and Crystal’s where you ask about the babies. Luke’s eyes meet yours, he smiles and lets his gaze shift to your belly. You still haven’t told anyone else yet.

In August, you agree to tell everyone about the new baby but when you’re out with Crystal you feel a little off. Michael and Luke are with the kids so you and Crystal had a pamper day of mani pedis then went to lunch. You went to the bathroom and Crystal sat waiting. She texted Michael asking how Chloe and Maddox were doing, she scrolled through some stories on Instagram and noticed how long you’ve been gone.

Crystal makes her way towards the bathroom to check on you and knocks on the door.

“y/n?” 

“Can…can you call Luke?” you ask, your voice shaky.

“Why? What’s wrong?”

“I’m…” you look down at your fingers holding the wad of tissue as you try to stop it but all you see is red. “I’m bleeding. Call an ambulance…please.” 

Crystal panics and calls 911 right away while also ordering a worker to open the door. She tries to open it herself by shoving on it with all her might but it’s locked. She tries to call for you to unlock it but you’re not responding and Crystal panics more. 

The dispatcher says someone will be there in three minutes. Crystal is still demanding the manager to open the door, he’s fumbling for the correct key as she calls Luke simultaneously smacking the door calling out to you. He doesn’t pick up the first time so she calls again.

Back at Michael’s house, Luke finds his phone wedged between the couch and sees Crystal calling him. 

“Hey, Crys, what’s–” he answers but she’s talking so fast he can’t keep up. 

The only thing he hears is, “get to the hospital now. y/n’s bleeding. Hurry!”

Wails of sirens are heard in the background. Luke freezes. Crystal is crying. Lily’s eyes meet Luke’s. The bathroom door finally breaks open from a paramedic who kicked it down.

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