#thick mass of fluff

[pumpkin-patch-cat]

I'm in love with how much hair Satan has. It's like a fluffy stuffed animal on his head.

Imma hug it :|

[em1i2a3]

I Feel You

Pairing: The Sentry/Bob/Robert Reynolds/TheVoid x Thunderbolts!Fem!Reader!

Summary: The new medication you’re taking is making your sexual cravings unbearable, and when Sentry returns to the compound from a mission, it tests every inch of composure you have.

Warnings: 18+ Minors DNI! Smut and Fluff, The medication is technically sex pollen (but not really, it’s not the central focus of this but it’s what’s makin the reader a little on edge) Reference to Medication Use, Reader was sick prior to this and the science behind the medication is referenced to and explained.

Smut Warnings: Unprotected P in V Sex (Y’all…You know what I’m gonna say lol), Breeding Kink, Praise/Worshipping Kink, Reader is taking additional measures to not get pregnant (Birth Control Shots), Dirty Talk, Sentry is a tease and a little bit ‘bratty’, Oral Sex (fem! Receiving), Is this a little feral? I would think so.

Author’s Note: I got an idea from a semi-request/statement from an anon by the name ‘book reader’ and a lot of other people. I literally couldn’t write this any faster! It was so fun to write, and I mean…Sentry with a breeding kink is something else, so I had to. Can’t resist pleasing the masses. I can’t wait for tomorrow’s update though!

Word Count: 6,395

The elevator doors dinged down the hall, and your ears practically perked up from the notification-like sound. You didn’t need to check the time, or the monitors that you had on your tablet. You knew exactly who it was that had arrived.

The heavy booted footsteps confirmed it completely for you–one heavier than the other, slow, grounded, and familiar in a way that made your heartbeat spike. The quiet thud of his body weight, the hum of his energy radiating through the hallways, and the buzzing that came from each ceiling light he passed due to the reservoir of power that was still slipping out of him from the mission he had just returned from.

You could practically track him from the elevator, to the kitchen, to the start of the hallway that led to your shared quarters. And unfortunately for your dignity, you could already feel yourself squirming in your spot.

You tried to stay still, buried under the blankets with your book held high like it might block out the oncoming disaster. But the second the door cracked open, and you peeked over the top of those long forgotten pages–any hold you had on your composure shattered.

Sentry stepped inside, still in his full mission suit. You had seen him in it a hundred times, you’d seen him take it off, you’d also seen the multiple variations he had gone through to get the correct fit, and every time he was in it he looked phenomenal, there was no question about that. But right now, laying in the bed you shared with Bob, the image in front of you made every fiber of your being tense up.

The gold fabric clung to Sentry's body like it had been vacuum-sealed against him. There were faint dirt stains and burn marks that were scattered along the shiny golden landscape which only emphasized the thick curves of his shoulders and the strain of his biceps beneath the sleeves. His cape had slipped down one side, draping behind him like an afterthought, it was dark, a sharp contrast to the sun-kissed yellow that he displayed on his body. His chest was rising with effort, muscles shifting with every exhale as he dragged one boot off, then the other.

You could feel your jaw slacken slightly, and you tried your best not to let out a moan at the sight.

“I know,” Sentry muttered suddenly, glancing briefly toward you with a sheepish breath, “I know. You told Bob that when I come back from missions, I need to use the other door to get to the washroom so I don’t get our room dirty. I just…Need more space right now and I don’t want to accidentally wreck the bathroom.” You didn’t respond. You were too busy watching the way his arms raised behind him as he tried–and failed–to reach the latch of his cape. His triceps flexed hard, rolling under the gold, every movement slow, strained, and achingly distracting. You swallowed hard, feeling the heat crawling down your neck.

He grunted in frustration, “This damn thing…” God, even the noises he was making were causing you to shift against the mattress for some sort of relief. He shook the cape loose a bit, but it got stuck again. You could practically see every detail of his shoulder blades shifting under the suit, and each time his muscles flexed it felt like real-time torture. Your stomach clenched, and your thighs pressed together beneath the blankets.

Then he let out a defeated sigh, turning halfway towards you again.

“My sunshine…” He started softly, voice coaxing, like he could feel your stare, “Can you please help me out of this thing? I’m getting very annoyed by it.” The nickname made your gut twist. It was the one he always used when he thought you were angry at him, the one that always forced a smile onto your lips because it was just too hard to stay in a bad mood around him, even if he did stupid things. You weren’t mad this time though, and if anything, that soft, familiar tone just made your stomach twist up even more.

You remained frozen, eyes devouring every inch of him like you hadn’t touched him a thousand times before…Like this was the first time you were seeing what his body could do, or how it moved so…Nicely.

When Sentry didn’t hear any shuffling of sheets, or your usual reluctant sigh you made when you had to leave the fortress of blankets you created around you, he spun around to look at you fully.

”Sunshine?” He repeated, a hint of confusion and concern lacing his words–then he stopped dead in his tracks. Your eyes were wide and glossy, practically shimmering with need. You looked like you weren’t even breathing, and he could see a faint sheen of sweat glazing your skin. You were locked on him like he was your prey, and you were about to pounce.

His eyebrows raised at you, “Um…Why are you looking at me like you’re going to eat me?” He asked, taking one step toward the bed. Your hand shot out like a warning.

“Sentry, I will rip you out of your suit,” You choked out, half-laughing, half-pleasing, “Don’t come any closer.” A grin appeared on his lips, the warmth immediately radiating off of it.

”What’s going on with you?” He asked teasingly, crouching down beside the bed, voice dipped low, “You look all sweaty and…Stressed.” He reached out, and placed one of his large, warm hands on your cheek. You flinched slightly at the contact, not from discomfort–but because the heat between you doubled immediately. Your skin felt like it was vibrating beneath his touch.

”And you’re boiling hot,” He murmured, “Are you sick again?” You shook your head quickly, turning slightly as he leaned closer to you, his nose brushing against your cheek. But then he breathed in–slow and deep–and you could instantly see the way his face changed, his eyebrows raising in surprise.

Something soft and ripe lingered in the air around you–faintly fruity, like the first bite of an overripe peach or the skin of a plum warmed by the sun. It wasn’t artificial in any sense of the word, and it certainly wasn’t perfume. It was just skin and hormones bleeding quietly into his senses.

He knew that scent very well because he had smelled it once before. When stolen kisses and late-night touches between you and Sentry didn’t exist. Before you ever pressed your forehead to his and whispered his name in pure ecstasy. Before you got on the birth control shot that muted everything and dulled it out, flatting it to a faint sweetness that he could only smell if he had his face buried between your legs.

Now that he was smelling it again it brought on the ache of nostalgia. But it also made him hyper aware that something had changed.

”You’re ovulating” He said dryly, swallowing the thick saliva that began to coat his tongue.

”No Sentry, I’m not ovulating. I’m on the shot, remember?” You responded, which instantly earned a very stern shake of his head.

”No, no…This is not your usual scent. I would know. I’m all over you all the time basically. You smell like how you used to smell before you were on those birth control shots. Have you…Have you stopped taking them or something? Were you thinking of surprising me?” He asks, with a smirk coming up on his lips.

You let out a groan, dragging your hands down your face like that might save you.

”Of course I’m still taking the shots…It’s just this stupid medication has put me down the path of becoming a feral animal.” He let out a small laugh, and he realized it seemed like he had missed a chapter of your life–because he didn’t remember what medication you would be taking that could cause something like this.

”What medicine did they give you?” You threw your head back against the pillow, with a huff.

”It’s this stupid antibiotic-antiviral crossover thing. The med bay said it’ll help me heal quicker from that stupid systemic infection I got from that lab a few weeks back–but they also mentioned that the chemical makeup of the drug technically has similar derivatives from sex pollen plants. So here we are now…Going through the side effects.” Sentry moved back slightly, and his brows knitted together.

”And you thought you could override the effects? What did you think was going to happen?” He asked jokingly. You groaned, placing your palm against his chest, trying to push him back slightly.

”They told me all the side effects were manageable, and for the most part they are…Sue me for trusting the medical professionals. And move back–for the love of god, you’re literally exuding your hormones onto me.” He laughed harder this time, bringing one of his hands to wrap around your wrist, rubbing his thumb gently across your forearm.

“I’m not doing anything,” He said with feigned innocence, eyes gleaming, “I’m just sitting here checking on my girlfriend.”

”Sentry, shut up,” You gritted through your teeth, jaw tight. He leaned in again, lips ghosting against your boiling hot cheek.

”What’re you going to do if I don’t?” His voice was smooth like honey, and his breath fanned over your skin, sticking against it. You squinted, eyes narrowing at the questions.

”Maybe I won’t take off that annoying cape you were complaining about.” You shot back, and his eyebrows lifted, grin spreading even wider.

”And keep me in the suit that turns you on enough that it makes you look at me like you’re about to jump my bones?” He tilted his head slightly, golden eyes glowing with barely restrained amusement, “Please…I can already tell I’ll need to give the designers a call to order me a new suit with those eyes you’re giving me right now.” There was a pause. The kind that stretched and hummed with too much heat and too little space.

You could feel his eyes tracing over your face and you couldn’t look away. Your jaw clenched, tight like you were trying to bite back everything you wanted to say–and everything your body was already begging to do.

Then your voice cracked softly through the air.

“You’re right.”

He blinked, not fully processing the shift until you moved–quick and sudden, like gravity had finally won. You surged forward and grabbed his face between your hands, tilting it just enough to crash your mouth against his.

The kiss hit hard. No warning. No patience.

Sentry let out a small grunt of surprise but met you without hesitation. His lips were hot, tasting faintly of smoke and salt, still buzzing faintly with power. His hands flew to your waist, then one slid up your back with desperate care, cradling the back of your head like he was afraid to let you go.

Your fingers slipped into his hair, threading through those soft light brown strands you loved, tugging gently. He groaned into your mouth at that, the sound cracking open something inside him as he tilted his head to deepen the kiss—tongue brushing yours, kiss turning rough, messy, addictive.

You whimpered against his mouth, your whole body rising off the mattress, arms locked around his neck, knees bumping into him from beneath the blanket that had began to slip off of you.

His breath hitched. Then broke.

Sentry pulled back only slightly, lips swollen, panting softly, his pupils blown wide as his forehead leaned into yours.

“Okay,” He exhaled, voice ragged, almost trembling with restraint. “Okay–please take the cape off. I need to get this suit off in one piece before you kill me.” You were dazed and flushed warm, your thumbs dragging across his smooth cheeks, “I was just joking about calling the suit designers,” He added quickly, a breathless, nervous little laugh escaping him, “If I wreck another one Val is actually going to tear my head off…So please. Spare me that.”

You laughed into his mouth and reached up, fingers sliding under the collar of the cape. He sat back on his knees and let you pull at the fastenings. Your hands were trembling slightly, not from nerves–but need. The second the clasp popped loose, the fabric slipped away from his shoulder like silk.

His shoulders heaved as he exhaled hard, finally freed.

“Thank god,” Sentry groaned, “Now let me take the–“

You didn’t let him finish. Your hands curled around the edges of his face, and you kissed him again–hot and fast, like the ache in your body had officially taken the wheel.

”The–“ Another kiss, more demanding this time, your mouth pressing against his again.

”Rest of the–“ Your lips moved to his jaw now, biting softly as your hands ran over the fabric that caressed his shoulders.

“S-Suit off–“ He gasped when you kissed the corner of his mouth again, slowly–torturous even–your hand sliding down his chest as the golden fabric shifted beneath your fingers.

”Before you–“ You kissed him once more, longer this time. Tongue grazing his lower lip, pulling a shudder from deep inside his chest.

“Kill me–“ He breathed against your mouth, voice hoarse with a laugh, his forehead pressing against yours. You reached behind him, fingers finding the hidden zipper of his suit with ease–due to muscle memory, and need–dragging it down with a soft tug. The sound it made was practically obscene, echoing loud in the quiet room. You wrapped your other arm around his lower back to guide the rest of the zipper down, knuckles grazing skin that was already burning.

Sentry let out a low, breathy laugh against your mouth.

“I guess now I know how you feel,” he murmured, his voice still laced with warm amusement, “when I’m in such a rush to get your clothes off I get all shaky and stuff.”

You smirked against his jaw, kissing the corner of his mouth again.

“How the tables have turned, hmm?”

His laugh deepened, husky and half-gasped as the zipper caught just above his hips. “I would say it’s karma…But who’s paying attention to terminology right now?”

You leaned into him, kissing him once more before undoing the large crest-shaped belt that wrapped around his waist. The buckle clicked free with a satisfying snap, and the heavy piece dropped to the floor with a muted thud. His arms wrapped around you, momentarily startled by the sound, then eased again as you pushed the blankets fully off your legs.

You shifted upward onto your knees, the hem of your oversized t-shirt lifting with the movement–settling just at the tops of your thighs, tickling the overheated skin there.

Sentry’s breath shook against your lips as you kissed him again, this time slow and devastating, your hands peeling the gold fabric down his shoulders. He let it happen, arms slack, breath catching as the top of the suit was pulled away completely, revealing the flushed skin beneath.

His muscles were tight and still pulsing from exertion–shoulders broad and slick from the leftover heat of the mission, chest rising fast with each pant. His collarbone glistened faintly under the dim lighting, skin smelling like ozone and sweat and the faintest trace of smoke. That post-mission scent you always craved but never admitted to. You pulled back slightly, eyes drifting downwards, as you lost your words.

No matter how many times you saw him naked–or half-naked like this–it still drove you insane. It didn’t matter how many nights you’d spent curled against his chest, how many times you’d touched him. Your body always reacted like it was the first time.

And somehow, there was always something new.

Your eyes caught it as he shifted–just below his right pectoral, near the delicate curve of his ribcage. A tiny cluster of freckles. Soft, scattered like constellations you’d never noticed before.

You reached out, fingertips brushing lightly over them.

Sentry went still, his chest tightening under your touch.

“What…?” He asked softly, looking down at your hand.

“You’ve got freckles here,” You murmured, voice dazed with awe. “I’ve never seen them before.”

He looked down too, brow furrowing slightly. “Huh. I didn’t even know I had those.”

You ran your fingers over them again, slower this time, watching the way his skin twitched. “They’re really cute.”

His breath hitched under your touch, and you looked up just in time to catch the small smile twitching at the corner of his mouth.

“Must be that medication making you hyper aware of all my little features,” He commented, eyes flicking to yours with playful fondness.

You tilted your head, your voice soft but laced with teasing. “Or I just pay attention to you all the time and never thought to point out the new things I’ve seen until now.”

He groaned quietly at that–overwhelmed in the way he always got when you were like this. Not when you were wrecked and needy, but when you were quiet. Focused. When your eyes saw more than just his body–when they saw him.

“Ever the attentive lover, Y/N.” He whispered, brushing his nose along yours, kissing you again–slow and unhurried, despite the tension buzzing between you. You smiled into his mouth and leaned back just enough to rest your hands on his hips, fingers curling against the thick golden fabric that still clung to them.

“Take the rest of the suit off, please.” His eyes darkened slightly, the golden hue turning a slight caramel colour. He was happy to play along.

”Command heard, Sunshine,” He said with a grin, backing up a bit. You watched as he reached for the waistband of the suit and pushed it lower, easing the fabric down over his hips slowly.

The moment it dropped far enough for you to see the curve of him pressing hard against the tight black briefs beneath, your breath caught.

He was already half-hard–thick and heavy, straining against the material like he’d been on the edge ever since you kissed him.

You let out a soft, involuntary “Mmm,” and he chuckled, amused and smug.

“You really are losing it for me, huh?”

You nodded instantly, words spilling out with zero shame. “Can’t help it. You bring it out of me.”

His smirk softened into something more gentle, something a little stunned, as if that sort of confession still knocked the wind out of him. Then he leaned in again, mouth finding your jaw, lips brushing a kiss just under it.

“I think I can get used to this.” Your stomach fluttered as his hands slid up–slow, teasing–under the hem of your oversized shirt. The pads of his fingers were light, tracing over your heated skin like they had all the time in the world. Your breath stuttered at the sensation. He kissed down the column of your neck, slow and methodical, like he was marking out territory with his mouth.

”You’re wearing too many clothes,” He said, voice rick and low against your skin, “Especially for someone who wants to be fucked into the mattress.” A sharp, shaky breath escaped you, your fingers digging into his arms as he whispered the next part, almost sweetly–

“Let me help you. Hmm?”

Your voice broke around his name. “God–Sentry. Please.”

That was all it took.

He grinned, one hand sliding to your waist while the other gripped the hem of your shirt and tugged it up, over your head in one clean motion. He tossed it aside without even looking, his eyes locked on the newly exposed skin in front of him.

Your breasts were soft and full, rising with each shallow breath you took. Your nipples were already peaked from the cool air in the room–even though you felt like you were on fire from the inside out. Heat was radiating off your skin, sweat slicking your sternum in a sheen he knew the taste of far too well. His mouth had been there many times, had claimed that skin like sacred ground, had suckled and bitten and worshipped you in every state imaginable–but somehow this still stole the breath from his lungs.

And then his eyes dipped lower.

The black lace underwear you wore clung to your hips like a secret he wasn’t supposed to know. They were cheeky in the back, riding high on your curves, and dipped just low enough in the front to tease him with a hint of what was underneath. The lace was delicate, sheer in some places, and it hugged you like it had been made for his hands to slide beneath.

A puff of air escaped his lips–barely controlled, like he’d just been given the first glimpse of heaven again. “My god,” he breathed, golden eyes burning, “You’re so beautiful. As always.”

Your arms slipped around his neck like instinct, pulling him close, your lips finding his with a heat that almost knocked him back. The kiss was messy and greedy–tongue and teeth and too much want spilling into it. His hands slid down your back, fingertips pressing into the arch of your spine, pulling you against him. He groaned into your mouth, shifting forward, his hands slipping under the edge of your lace waistband just enough to feel skin–just enough to tease. And then he pulled back slightly, his nose brushing against yours as he spoke.

His voice dropped, thick and sensual, velvet-drenched and trembling with restraint.

“Lay back for me, sunshine,” He murmured, “Let me taste the sweetness that’s driving you mad. Let me worship the ache between your thighs until you forget your own name.” His eyes were shimmering and the air around you pulsed like it was responding to the divine hunger that was curling within you, “I want to see how wet you are just from watching me breathe.” Your head fell back on a gasp, the words so obscene and godly at once it made your thighs twitch, your breath catch, and your soul stutter. You met his gaze again with a fire that matched his own and slowly laid back against the pillows, legs parting slightly in invitation.

Sentry inhaled sharply, almost broken.

And then he descended.

His palm pressed flat over the lace between your thighs, and he groaned.

A long, broken sound that cracked in his throat like he couldn’t believe what he was feeling. The fabric was soaked–utterly drenched–and the heat radiating off your body made it stick wetly to your core like a second skin.

Sentry’s eyes fluttered shut for a split second as his fingers dragged slowly over the slick fabric, then pressed in harder, rubbing a circle just above your entrance.

“Oh–fuck,” You gasped, your hips arching up involuntarily.

His jaw clenched at the sound. His mouth watered so fast it made his tongue press against his teeth, and he dropped his head with a strained grunt.

“This is–“ He breathed, voice ragged as his fingers curled into the waistband and yanked them down off your legs in one rough motion. “These are ruined.”

He balled the soaked lace in his fist, his knuckles going white, and brought them to his nose before you could say a word.

Then he moaned.

It was shameless, guttural–like something unholy had crawled up his throat and made a home there. He inhaled again, eyes fluttering, golden lashes trembling.

“Jesus Christ,” He growled, voice thick with something feral. “I’m keeping these. You smell so…” He trailed off, groaning again, deeper this time. “So fucking good. Fuck.”

He was panting now and before you knew it he was on the bed fully, his massive frame pressing you down into the mattress as he settled between your legs. His shoulders pushed them open a little wider with zero effort, spreading you like a meal he’d been starved of.

“I want to see all of it. I want your scent in my lungs until I can’t fucking think anymore.”

You whimpered, already gasping before his mouth even touched you.

And then it did.

It wasn’t soft.

It wasn’t slow.

He dove in like a man possessed.

The first drag of his tongue was obscene–long, hard, and flat from your entrance all the way up to your clit. He groaned again, louder now, into you, like the taste was more than he could bear.

His tongue circled, then flicked, then sucked—mouth latching to you with greedy, wet pressure, and your fingers immediately tangled in his hair. You pushed it out of his face, the strands clinging to your sweaty palms as you cried out beneath him.

“Oh my god, Sentry–!”

He didn’t stop.

Didn’t even pause.

He growled into you again, biting softly at the inside of your thigh before licking back up and sucking again, harder now–no rhythm, no restraint. He lapped you open, tongue dragging and curling and licking so deep and rough it had your legs shaking within seconds.

He was messy with it–face slick, chin soaked, groaning constantly as he devoured you like a feast he hadn’t earned, like this was divine punishment for something and he wanted more of it.

“Sentry–fuck, it’s–oh God, oh God–I can’t–!”

You were writhing, hips rolling against his mouth, and he just held you there, huge hands locking over your thighs, pinning you wide open while his tongue fucked into you, lapping greedily at your soaked heat before pulling up to suck your clit between his lips again.

And he wouldn’t stop moaning.

It was constant–this low, vibrating, starving sound, like you were pouring into him, drowning him in it, and he wanted to sink deeper.

Your nails scraped his scalp and he groaned again–louder, sloppier, tongue dragging harder and faster, chasing your high like it would save him. His mouth was fucking soaked. Your slick was everywhere–coating his lips, dripping down his chin, making obscene wet sounds every time he dragged his tongue through your folds again.

When he pulled back just barely, panting, face wet and eyes completely wild, he growled–

“You smell so fucking good right now. I can’t think–I can’t breathe.” And then he bit your inner thigh. Hard.

You yelped, the jolt shooting through you like lightning, and he soothed it with a slow, open-mouthed kiss, tongue flicking over the mark like an apology he didn’t mean.

“You taste like everything,” he whispered, voice trembling. “I need to come with your taste still on my tongue.”

Then he ducked down again, and this time he didn’t tease.

He buried his mouth against your core like he was staking a claim. Tongue thrusting deep and curling inside you while his nose bumped your clit. You could feel the moans vibrating through you as he sucked and licked and fucked you with his mouth like he was trying to crawl inside your body and live there.

Your vision whited out.

The sounds echoing off the walls–wet, vulgar, desperate–were barely human anymore. Your thighs were shaking uncontrollably, and your hands were tangled in his hair like lifelines.

“Sentry–Sentry, I’m gonna–!”

He growled against your clit and then sucked so hard your back arched clean off the bed as you screamed his name, the orgasm tearing through you so violently you swore you blacked out for a moment.

But he didn’t stop.

He licked through it, into it, mouth still worshipping, dragging every last tremor out of you until your legs buckled and your thighs clenched hard around his head.

Only then did he slow–kissing gently now, reverently, dragging his tongue over your sensitive folds with soft flicks, breathing ragged into your skin as he groaned again.

“Sweetest thing I’ve ever tasted,” He murmured hoarsely, eyes half-lidded and golden. “Sunshine…I’m fucking addicted to you.”

You could barely form words–panting, dazed, your body trembling in the aftermath.

And still, his hands cradled your thighs like you were sacred, kissing them like they were altar stone, soft and warm under his lips. He nipped gently at the skin, then soothed the bite with his tongue, waiting for your breathing to even out.

“Did that give you a little bit of relief?” He murmured, his voice low, thick with satisfaction and reverence as he looked up at you. Your fingers combed slowly through his hair, and the soft strands seemed to ground you. The way you touched him–gentle, languid–made his chest ache. He kissed you again, higher up your inner thigh this time, and whispered, “Y/N…Still with me?” Your eyes fluttered open, dazed and glossy, and you gave a breathless laugh, voice cracking as you exhaled:

“God, you’re so good with that mouth of yours.” A slow, bashful smile appeared on his lips, but it didn’t last long–because your hand was already tugging at him, pulling him up your body with a hunger that made his heart stutter.

He kissed up your stomach as he moved, slow and hot, letting his tongue swirl in a line past your navel, over the sweat-slick curve of your ribs, before finally claiming your lips again. The moment his mouth met yours, you tasted it—your own sweetness still on his tongue—and the sound you let out was pure sin.

Your fingers hooked under the waistband of his briefs, tugging firmly.

“I need you to fuck me, Sentry,” you breathed against his lips, eyes blazing with the kind of desperation that made his cock throb painfully hard inside the tight fabric.

He cupped your cheek, thumbing gently at your jaw, his voice reverent and dark.

“I’ll do way more than that.”

You gave a breathy little laugh, and he kissed the sound right off your mouth.

Then his hand dipped low, pushing his briefs down and off with one swift movement before tossing them aside without care. The moment he was free, your breath caught.

He was painfully hard–thick and flushed, the head a deep red and glistening with precum. You whimpered, hips twitching, thighs falling open for him on instinct.

“Fuck,” you whispered.

Sentry gave himself a few slow, teasing strokes, his erection heavy in his hand as he guided it toward your soaked heat. He dragged the head up and down your folds, collecting your wetness, smearing it over your clit in lazy, sinful strokes that had your entire body tightening.

Then, finally, finally–he lined himself up and pushed in.

You both gasped.

The stretch was overwhelming. You could feel every ridge of him, every thick inch dragging against your fluttering walls as he sank in slow and deep, inch by devastating inch.

Sentry groaned above you, burying his face in your neck. “God, you’re so fucking wet,” he breathed, his voice strangled, almost wrecked already. “You’re clenching around me already–fuck–like you were made to take me.”

Your back arched at the words, your hands gripping his biceps so hard your nails left marks.

“Sentry–please–move–” You begged, gasping against the shell of his ear.

He growled and started to thrust.

Hard.

He didn’t ease into it–he didn’t need to. Your body pulled him in like a vice, slick and hot and pulsing around him. His hips snapped into yours, his cock dragging against your sweet spot every time he slammed in, and it made you cry out.

The sound only drove him harder.

“Fuck–fuck–you feel perfect,” He snarled, grinding into you, his lips brushing your jaw. “So fucking warm and wet–tightening around me like it wants to keep me forever.” Sentry grunted as he bottomed out again, cock twitching inside your soaked walls. His hands were braced beside your head, caging you in, and the look in his eyes made your breath hitch–feral, starved, and glowing with something divine and dangerous.

“You sure that birth control works well enough?” He murmured low against your ear, thrusting deep and hard, dragging another desperate cry from your lips. “Because you feel like you’re begging to get knocked up.”

You gasped, nails raking down his back. “Maybe I am.”

He stilled–just for a heartbeat.

Then he snarled.

“Oh, fuck–you want me to do it, huh?” he hissed, grinding his hips in slow, brutal circles. “Fill this pussy so full of cum it takes root? Fuck a baby into you while you’re this wet and needy?”

You whimpered, head falling back against the pillow as your thighs shook around his waist. “Fuck, Sentry–yes–please–”

His jaw clenched. “You know I’ll do it,” he panted, hips snapping harder now, punching gasps out of your chest. “I’ll give it to you, sunshine. I’ll fill you so deep you’ll never be able to get rid of me.” He grabbed your hands suddenly, intertwining your fingers with his, and slammed them down into the mattress beside your head. The weight of him over you, the way his grip locked yours in, made you cry out with need.

“That little shot won’t stand a fucking chance when I’m done with you.” He hissed, mouth brushing your ear.

“Oh my God–fuck–do it,” You gasped, voice cracking into something filthy. “Do it, Sentry–fill me up–fuck your cum into me until it takes–make me yours.”

That broke him.

He let out a feral, animalistic sound, driving into you harder, faster, each thrust slamming you against the bed with enough force to make the headboard rattle.

“You’re mine,” He growled. “You’re mine, you hear me? I’m gonna fuck you until you scream with it–‘til there’s so much of me inside you your body won’t know what to do but keep it.” You cried out again, the coil inside you twisting impossibly tight. Your legs were trembling violently now, your vision going hazy around the edges.

He could feel it.

He knew.

“Fuck, sunshine–come for me,” He groaned, still pinning your hands. “Come while I fuck a baby into this perfect little pussy of yours–let me feel you break.” You shattered.

Your body arched violently, walls clenching down so hard it made him curse, your orgasm crashing through you in white-hot waves that made your toes curl and your eyes roll back.

He fucked you through it.

Harder.

“Fuck–fuck–you’re squeezing me so tight–God–I’m gonna–”

One final grind of his hips, deep and brutal–

And he came.

Hot, pulsing streams of cum spilled inside you, thick and endless, coating your walls with such pressure you felt it flood you. It didn’t stop. He kept grinding, deeper, groaning against your throat, body shaking with each twitch as more and more poured out of him.

“Oh my fucking god,” He gasped, biting down on your neck, not to hurt–but to ground himself. You whimpered, breathless, and ruined. He groaned into your skin, hips twitching one more time as he pushed forward, sinking his cock just a fraction deeper–pressing every last drop inside like he couldn’t bear the thought of pulling out yet.

A long, shaky sigh escaped his lips as he finally stilled, chest rising and falling with each heavy breath. His grip on your hands loosened, and slowly–almost reluctantly–he shifted his weight to one side so he could look at you properly.

Your face was flushed and dewy, lashes fluttered half-closed, mouth parted slightly as you panted through the aftershocks. Completely dazed. Wrecked. Glowing.

He blinked, then let out a soft, breathless laugh, brushing your hair gently back with the knuckles of his hand. “How was that?”

You blinked slowly, then gave him the laziest, most satisfied grin imaginable.

“So fucking good,” You murmured, your voice rough from how much you’d been crying out his name.

He smiled, warm and proud, and leaned down to kiss you gently–long and sweet. His hand came up to cradle your cheek, thumb brushing slowly across your damp skin. And just as your lips parted with a hum, your walls fluttered around him–still full, still holding him deep.

He pulled back with a groan, resting his forehead against yours.

“It’s like you have a spell on me,” he whispered, golden eyes flickering, “All I want to do is be inside you… Or buried between your thighs. You must be a sorcerer of sorts.”

You let out a hoarse little laugh, breath hitching as your fingers pushed back the sweaty strands clinging to his forehead. “Or,” You murmured, “You just love me very much…That could also be the thing, too.”

He nodded solemnly. “That too…” And the two of you broke into quiet laughter.

Then he started pressing kisses all over your face. Your cheeks. Your forehead. The tip of your nose. “If it wasn’t for the fact that it would require you getting sick again,” he said between kisses, “I’d want you to be on that medication more often. Feral you is very interesting.”

You giggled softly, voice light but worn out. “Sentry�� I’m practically always feral for you and Bob. This just heightens everything.”

He smirked at that, nuzzling his nose along your cheek. “It also makes you a siren,” he muttered. “I felt like a sailor who was about to die at sea.”

You snorted and pulled him into another kiss, soft and lingering. “I’m going to boast to Yelena that I almost killed a God.”

His laugh rumbled against your mouth, warm and low. “By all means…Boast all you want, You’re deadly.” He replied, dragging his lips down your jaw, planting one last kiss on your throat as you both sank into the mattress–warm, tangled, and thoroughly undone.

[dmitriene]

cw: tooth rotting fluff, comfort, shameless smut, established relationship, obviously ooc simon, domestic things, cuddling, intimacy, simply getting off to simon, pinv, pet names, praising, creampie, brief mention of multiple orgasms and overstimulation, aftercare. pairing: bf simon ghost riley x gf fem reader

simon riley is a bulky man.

a large mass of pumped up muscles that he has honed with diligence and hard work, wide biceps and thighs, a large chest that looks proudly forward when he folds his arms behind his back and straightens, bulging veins, rippling muscles with every movement, full pack of chiseled abs, a beautiful back and strong shoulder blades.

but he's also a soft man.

a small, accumulated over the years layers of fat on his sides, gathering into small folds when his body turns sideways or leans down, a slightly protruding, soft belly that is covered with a slight scattering of blonde hair and white, pale pink scars, his chest and shoulders still wide, but paired with the acquired softness, look softer, and feel the same.

he eats well and feels comfortable in his body, not stopping to exercise in the morning and swinging in his free time, but nevertheless not losing weight, but only continuing to gain, and this is definitely to your credit, because he cannot refuse a plate of steak and vegetables held out from your hands, standing before his eyes in your charming apron and murmuring so sweetly — “made this for you, si, i noticed you liked the meat last time„

and simon can't refuse, especially when you like his new body shape so much, where your hands gently stroke his sides, and your head is almost always on his soft belly uf you're relaxing on the couch, and once you're in bed, you can't get away from his chest, snuggling up and nuzzling against his body until you fall asleep, letting his hands squeeze you harder than gently because you asked for it — “don't be afraid, si, i like it„

and fuck, you would be the death of him, especially when you bend so sluttily to arch your back for him and rise your plush ass to the air, pleading him with sweet mewls and tiny wriggle of your hips so he would fuck your dripping pussy from behind, just so you would feel how the fat on his stomach rubs against your back with gentle drags as simon curls on top of you, his hand intertwined with yours, his meaty cock bottoms in your weeping cunt fully as he hisses cursed praises — “good, good fucking girl, feel so nice and snug for me„

your eyes fly to the back of your head immediately as he picks up the pace, fucking in to you fully and knocking your cervix with each sharp thrust as his broad hips and soft thighs snap against your reddening ass, cunt clenching around his meaty shaft rapidly, sucking him in snuggly as you fuck yourself back on him vigorously, just so simon would pin you down with his soft, big body against the messy sheets, rolling his hips and taunting you when you drool beneath him — “fuck, look a' you, drooling and clamping on me like that, that's wha' i do to you, lovie?„

and you just nod dumbly, brain is a mush that he fucked out long ago with each drag of his fat cock inside your gummy walls that try to milk him for all his worth and each spurt of thick milky seed, letting it leak out just so simon would fuck it back, his body sweaty, muscles constricting and thick, bear like palm squeeze your breast, almost crushing, as you mewl and whine pitifully, begging him not to stop — “yea — yeeah, pleasepleaseplease, d — don't stop, sii!„

and simon wouldn't, until you lay unmoving beneath him, gargling some delirious moans when he pushes his cum deep in you even through his cock aching from overstimulation, till he slips out to wipe you both and tuck your naked body against his under the covers, letting you nuzzle satisfiengly against him with soft sighs.

that's more than enough for simon to never think for once to start lose weight, because fuck, he sees what it does to his filthy girl.

✎ 𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵. 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴. 𝘢𝘰3.

[kathaelipwse]

Not just a work crush || L.Jihoon (Woozi)

Pairing: Woozi (Lee Jihoon) x Reader (Single Mom!Staff)

Warnings: Mentions of exhaustion| past heartbreak {not with woozi} | workplace struggles | protective Woozi | fluff overload | slow burn | single parent struggle | petnames {zi, zizi, munchkin, sweetheart, baby} | NO PROOF READING WAS DONE. Trope: Secret Single Mom | Found Family | Slow Burn to Love Word Count: 6268 words ; Reading Time: 23 mins-ish Synopsis: You’ve spent years keeping your biggest secret—your daughter—hidden from your work life. As a dedicated staff member for SEVENTEEN, exhaustion is second nature, but Woozi starts noticing. When he stumbles upon a picture of your daughter, everything clicks. He doesn’t ask, doesn’t pry—he just starts showing up. In quiet moments, in unspoken gestures, in the way your little girl calls him "Zizi" before you can even admit what’s happening. Author’s Note: This is a soft, slow-burn story about love that sneaks up on you, about finding a home in unexpected places, and about a tiny human who unknowingly sets everything into motion. Expect protective Woozi, adorable child moments, and fluff that will melt your heart. Requests are open!!

The studio, usually a vibrant hub of creative energy, was shrouded in a hushed, almost reverent stillness. The digital displays on the mixing consoles cast faint, flickering lights, painting the room in a spectrum of soft blues and greens. The air, thick with the lingering scent of electronic equipment and late-night coffee, seemed to vibrate with a quiet intensity. You, however, were oblivious to the subtle symphony of the space, lost in the depths of a weariness that permeated your very bones.

The day had been a relentless marathon, a blur of back-to-back meetings, urgent phone calls, and the constant, gnawing pressure to maintain a semblance of order amidst the chaos of the entertainment industry. Each task, each demand, had chipped away at your reserves, leaving you feeling stretched thin and utterly drained. Yet, the thought of your daughter, her bright, innocent eyes and infectious laughter, had provided a fragile anchor, a reminder of the purpose that fueled your every move.

Your fingers, calloused and weary from hours of typing and scribbling, lay still on the scattered papers before you. The tour schedules, the promotional plans, the endless stream of logistical details blurred into an indistinguishable mass, reflecting the fog that had settled over your mind. Your eyelids, heavy as lead, fluttered closed, and your head, aching with a dull, throbbing rhythm, finally succumbed to the irresistible pull of exhaustion. The cool, smooth surface of the desk offered a momentary respite, a fleeting sanctuary from the relentless demands of your life.

The silence of the studio was broken only by the low hum of the ventilation system and the distant, muffled sounds of the city, a symphony of urban life that usually went unnoticed. Tonight, however, the quiet hum became a soothing drone, a lullaby that gently coaxed you into a state of semi-consciousness.

Woozi, drawn back to the studio by the nagging feeling of an unfinished task, entered the room with his usual quiet precision. He expected to find you immersed in your work, a whirlwind of focused energy, your brow furrowed in concentration as you navigated the complexities of the group’s schedule. He had a half-formed, wry comment ready, a playful jab about your legendary work ethic.

But the scene that unfolded before him was a stark contrast to his expectations. He found you motionless, your head resting on the desk, your breath soft and steady. A flicker of concern, a rare and unfamiliar sensation, stirred within him. He approached with cautious steps, his movements as silent as the shadows that danced across the room.

He paused, his gaze lingering on your peaceful expression. There was a vulnerability in your stillness, a quiet fragility that he had never witnessed before. It was a stark reminder of the human beneath the ever-efficient professional. Then, the soft glow of your phone illuminated the darkness, pulling his attention to the image displayed on the lock screen.

The face of a young girl, her eyes wide with a curious innocence, stared back at him. The resemblance was undeniable, a striking echo of your own features. The same delicate curve of the cheek, the same determined set of the jaw, the same spark of intelligence in the eyes. A realization, sharp and sudden, pierced through his thoughts, illuminating a hidden dimension of your life.

He sank into the chair opposite you, his gaze fixed on the glowing screen, his mind reeling with the implications of this unexpected discovery. The pieces of the puzzle, the hurried exits, the late-night phone calls, the subtle weariness that clung to you like a shadow, finally fell into place. He remembered the faint, almost imperceptible tremor in your voice when you spoke of deadlines and responsibilities, the way your eyes held a depth of unspoken emotion.

He thought about the tiny jackets he had seen you quickly hide into a bag, and the small snacks that you had hidden in your desk drawer. He thought about the small drawings that sometimes were left on your desk, that he had thought were just random sketches.

His fingers hovered over your phone, a silent temptation to delve deeper into this hidden world. But a sense of respect, a quiet understanding of the boundaries you had erected, held him back. This was your story, your secret, a part of your life that you had chosen to keep private.

He sat there, in the quiet solitude of the studio, his gaze tracing the delicate features of your daughter’s face. A strange, unfamiliar warmth spread through his chest, a sense of protectiveness that he couldn’t quite comprehend. He felt a newfound respect for your strength, your resilience, the quiet determination that enabled you to navigate the demanding world of the entertainment industry while raising a child.

The silence of the room was heavy with unspoken emotions, with the weight of a secret revealed. Woozi, the master of carefully crafted words and calculated expressions, found himself speechless, his mind a whirlwind of conflicting thoughts and unfamiliar feelings. He was a composer of emotions, a weaver of melodies, but in this moment, he was lost in a symphony of his own making, a composition of newfound understanding and quiet admiration.

The studio, once a place solely defined by the rhythm of music and the demands of production, began to transform into a space imbued with a quiet, almost palpable sense of understanding. The day after Woozi's discovery was a delicate dance of unspoken acknowledgment, a subtle shift in the atmosphere that permeated every corner of the room. You were acutely aware of his presence, a gentle undercurrent that flowed beneath the surface of his usual focused demeanor. His gaze, usually sharp and analytical, now held a softer, more contemplative quality, lingering on you for fleeting moments before he'd quickly divert his attention back to his work.

You found yourself constantly questioning his newfound attentiveness, your mind swirling with a mix of gratitude and anxiety. Had he seen the lock screen? Did he judge your situation? Was this a temporary phase, a fleeting expression of sympathy that would eventually fade? The thought of your private life being exposed, the vulnerability it implied, sent a shiver down your spine. Yet, he remained silent, offering no explicit confirmation, no intrusive questions.

Instead, his actions spoke volumes. Small, almost imperceptible gestures began to accumulate, a quiet symphony of unspoken understanding. A bottle of chilled water, precisely the temperature you preferred, would appear beside your workspace, as if conjured by an unseen hand. A neatly packed lunchbox, filled with healthy and balanced ingredients, materialized during the lunch break, a subtle nudge towards self-care amidst the chaos of the day. And when the pressure from management threatened to overwhelm you, when their demands became unreasonable, Woozi would step in, his voice a calm, firm barrier between you and their frustration.

He did not raise his voice, nor did he offer platitudes. He simply presented logical counterarguments, calmly dismantling their unreasonable demands with his sharp intellect and unwavering composure. It was a subtle act of protection, a silent acknowledgment of the burdens you carried.

The unspoken communication between you became a delicate dance, a series of subtle cues and unspoken acknowledgments. You’d catch his eye across the room, a fleeting glance that held a depth of understanding, a silent reassurance that you weren’t alone. He’d leave small notes on your desk, scribbled on scrap paper, containing encouraging words or a simple drawing, a small token of support amidst the whirlwind of your day.

His presence, once a source of professional respect, now became a source of quiet comfort. He was still Woozi, the meticulous producer, the genius songwriter, but there was a newfound gentleness in his demeanor, a quiet understanding that made you feel seen, truly seen, beyond the roles you played within the studio.

One evening, as the recording session stretched into the late hours, your phone rang, its insistent chime cutting through the quiet hum of the studio equipment. The caller ID displayed the familiar number of your daughter’s daycare, and a wave of anxiety washed over you.

“I have to go,” you said, your voice tight with urgency. “There’s an emergency.”

Woozi’s gaze met yours, his expression calm and reassuring. He didn’t ask questions, didn’t demand explanations. He simply reached into his pocket and slid his car keys across the desk.

“Go,” he said, his voice soft but firm. “I’ll cover for you.”

The gesture, so simple yet so profound, took your breath away. It was a silent acknowledgment of your responsibilities, a quiet reassurance that he understood the delicate balance you maintained. You stared at the keys, your throat tightening with emotion, unable to articulate the gratitude that swelled within you.

“Thank you,” you whispered, your voice barely audible.

He nodded, a silent acknowledgment, and turned back to the mixing console, his focus unwavering. You grabbed the keys and rushed out, your mind a whirlwind of anxiety and gratitude.

The drive to the daycare was a blur, your hands gripping the steering wheel, your mind racing with worst-case scenarios. When you arrived, you found your daughter safe and sound, her feverish brow cooled by a damp cloth. The daycare staff explained that it was a brief spike in temperature, a common occurrence in young children.

Relief washed over you, a wave so intense that it left you weak. You held your daughter close, her small body warm against yours, and whispered reassurances into her hair, a silent promise to protect her from all harm.

As you drove home, your thoughts turned to Woozi. He had covered for you, without hesitation, without question. He had given you the time and space you needed, without expecting anything in return. It was a selfless act, a quiet demonstration of his understanding and support.

When you returned to the studio the next day, he was working as if nothing had happened. He didn’t mention the previous night, didn’t ask about your daughter. He simply continued with his work, his focus unwavering.

But you knew, deep down, that something had irrevocably changed. He had seen you, truly seen you, not just as a colleague, but as a person, a mother, a woman with a life beyond the studio walls. And in that quiet understanding, a connection began to form, a bond that was both fragile and profound.

The studio, once a place of work, began to feel like a sanctuary, a place where you were seen, understood, and supported. The unspoken communication between you and Woozi became a silent language, a symphony of understanding that resonated deeper than any words could convey. You began to look forward to seeing him, to hearing his voice, to feeling the quiet reassurance of his presence. And even though the fear of eventual change lingered, you allowed yourself to savor the peace, the quiet comfort, that he offered. You began to feel a warmth grow in your heart, a feeling you had long suppressed, a flicker of hope that perhaps, just perhaps, you weren’t alone after all.

The decision to invite Woozi into your home, into the sanctuary you’d built for yourself and your daughter, was a tightrope walk between hope and fear. It was a leap of faith, a fragile attempt to open a door that had been slammed shut years ago. The echoes of your past, the sharp sting of broken promises and abandoned dreams, still lingered, casting long shadows over your present.

You remembered the way he had looked at you when you told him about the ex-boyfriend, the man who had promised forever and then vanished like smoke in the wind. The way he’d gripped your hand, his own knuckles white, as you described the lonely nights, the silent tears that soaked your pillow, the crushing weight of single parenthood. He had listened without judgment, without pity, his eyes filled with a quiet understanding that resonated deep within you.

The wounds from that old betrayal had never fully healed. They were scars, invisible to the world, but deeply etched into your soul. You had built walls around your heart, brick by careful brick, protecting yourself and your daughter from further pain. The thought of trusting someone again, of letting them into your carefully constructed world, was both terrifying and exhilarating.

Yet, Woozi had chipped away at those walls, piece by piece, with his quiet kindness and unwavering support. He had seen your strength, your resilience, the quiet determination that enabled you to navigate the chaos of your life. He had offered a safe harbor, a quiet understanding that made you feel seen, truly seen, beyond the roles you played in the studio.

And so, you had invited him into your home, a tentative step towards allowing yourself to hope again. But the fear remained, a persistent whisper in the back of your mind, reminding you of the fragility of trust, the potential for heartbreak.

There he stood, in your doorway, a hesitant smile on his face. The scent of rain clung to his clothes, a reminder of the storm that had mirrored your emotional turmoil the night before. You ushered him inside, your heart pounding a frantic rhythm against your ribs, a mixture of anticipation and dread.

Your daughter, ever curious and fearless, peeked out from behind your legs, her big, expressive eyes fixed on the unfamiliar figure. She was your masterpiece, your reason for everything, a tiny echo of your own strength and determination. The thought of introducing her to someone new, of allowing another person to become a part of her world, filled you with a protective instinct so fierce it almost choked you.

Woozi, usually so composed and self-assured, seemed awkward, unsure of how to navigate this unexpected encounter. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other, his hands clasped behind his back, a silent testament to his own vulnerability.

He knelt down, his gaze meeting your daughter’s, and held out a small plushie – a fluffy, pastel-colored sheep he’d impulsively grabbed from a nearby store. It was a gesture of peace, a silent offering to this tiny, unknown entity.

She frowned, her brow furrowed in suspicion, mirroring your own cautious approach to new relationships. “Mommy said don’t take things from strangers.” Her voice was small but firm, a testament to your consistent teachings, a reflection of the lessons you’d learned the hard way.

A laugh bubbled in your throat, a mixture of amusement and relief. You had raised a cautious and intelligent child. Before you could intervene, Woozi’s voice, usually so measured, softened, taking on a gentle, almost hesitant tone.

“I’m your mom’s friend,” he said, his eyes meeting yours for a brief, reassuring moment, a silent plea for your trust.

Your daughter’s gaze flickered between you and Woozi, seeking confirmation. You nodded, a small, encouraging smile on your face, a silent acknowledgment of the leap of faith you were taking.

Only then did she cautiously reach out and take the plushie, her small fingers gently brushing against his. “Thank you, Zizi,” she mumbled, her eyes still fixed on him, assessing him with the same careful scrutiny you had employed for years.

The nickname, so innocent and unexpected, broke the tension in the room, a gentle reminder of the simple, unadulterated trust of a child. A genuine smile spread across Woozi’s face, a warmth that reached his eyes, a silent promise to be worthy of that trust. In that moment, he was no longer Woozi, the renowned producer, the stoic songwriter. He was Zizi, a friend, a potential figure in this little girl’s world, a chance for you to rewrite the narrative of your past.

The studio, once a realm of pure musical creation, transformed into a covert operation, a fortress of affection guarded by the silent, watchful eyes of Lee Jihoon. He moved with a newfound purpose, a quiet determination that radiated from him like a subtle hum. He became a protector, a silent guardian, his actions driven by a fierce, almost primal instinct to shield you and your daughter from any harm.

He guarded your secret with a fervor that bordered on obsessive, his actions a testament to his growing affection. He didn’t just keep it; he fortified it, erecting an invisible barrier around your privacy. He deflected prying questions with a sharp wit, his eyes flashing a silent warning to anyone who dared to delve too deep. He became a master of misdirection, weaving elaborate tales of late-night studio sessions and urgent deadlines to explain his increasingly frequent absences.

He became a connoisseur of children’s snacks, a silent provider of tiny treasures. He’d surreptitiously slip fruit pouches and organic crackers into his bag, his expression a picture of studied nonchalance. He’d scour toy stores for the perfect plushie, the ideal coloring book, his usually focused gaze softening as he imagined your daughter’s delighted squeals.

But the members, ever perceptive, began to notice the subtle shifts in his behavior. Seungcheol, the leader, the ever-watchful patriarch of their chaotic family, observed Woozi’s increasingly erratic schedule with a furrowed brow. “Jihoon, you’re acting… strangely. You’re always disappearing, you’re hoarding children’s snacks, and you’re radiating an aura of… secretiveness,” he said, his voice laced with concern.

Mingyu, the group’s resident gossip and fashion enthusiast, held up a tiny, sequined jacket, his eyes wide with disbelief. “And this? This is clearly for a miniature diva. Who are you dressing, Jihoon? A tiny influencer?”

Jeonghan, the master of playful manipulation, the orchestrator of subtle chaos, raised an eyebrow, a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Lee Jihoon. Confess. Who is this tiny human who has captured your heart? And why are you so… protective?”

Cornered, Woozi sighed, a mixture of exasperation and affection in his eyes. He knew he couldn’t keep the secret forever, not from the men who knew him better than he knew himself. He gathered them in the studio’s lounge, the air thick with anticipation, and told them everything. He explained your situation, your struggles, the quiet strength that had captivated him, and the unexpected joy that had blossomed in your daughter’s presence.

Instead of the teasing and playful jabs he had braced himself for, he was met with a chorus of genuine support, a wave of warmth that surprised even him. Joshua, the romantic, the sentimental soul of the group, clutched his chest dramatically, his eyes wide with emotion. “This is… a masterpiece of human connection! You’re like a secret superhero dad!”

Mingyu, his usual boisterous energy amplified, was practically vibrating with excitement. “This is amazing! We need to throw a welcome party! We can get her tiny designer outfits! I know a guy who makes custom mini jackets!”

Seungcheol, his expression softening, placed a hand on Woozi’s shoulder, his voice filled with genuine affection. “Jihoon, this is your happiness. You’ve found something precious, and we’re all here for you, always. We will protect her, and you, with everything we have.”

The members’ reactions were a testament to their deep bond, their unwavering support for one another. They showered Woozi with questions, eager to learn every detail about your daughter, her personality, her favorite toys. They offered to help in any way they could, from babysitting to building elaborate play forts in the studio.

Woozi, usually so guarded, found himself opening up, sharing anecdotes and stories about your daughter’s infectious laughter, her boundless curiosity, and the way she had transformed his perception of the world. He spoke of your strength, your resilience, the quiet determination that had captivated him, and the way you had built a safe haven for your small family.

But beneath the surface of his newfound openness, a quiet conflict raged within him. He was still grappling with the unfamiliar emotions that had stirred within him, the sense of responsibility and protectiveness that had taken root in his heart. He was a composer of emotions, a weaver of melodies, but he was still learning to navigate the complexities of his own heart.

He was hopelessly, utterly, and completely whipped for you. He’d been harboring a crush for years, admiring your quiet strength and unwavering dedication. Now, seeing you as a mother, as a woman who had faced adversity and emerged stronger, had amplified his feelings tenfold. He found himself wanting to protect you, to cherish you, to erase the shadows of your past.

He loved your daughter, her innocent joy and unwavering trust. And he loved you, your quiet strength, the way you had built a world for yourself and your daughter. But the fear remained, a persistent whisper in the back of his mind, reminding him of the fragility of trust, the potential for heartbreak. He was still haunted by the idea of repeating the mistakes of the past, of causing you and your daughter pain.

He didn’t answer Seungcheol’s question, the question that hung in the air like a silent challenge. He simply smiled, a small, hesitant smile that held a mixture of hope and uncertainty. He knew that he cared deeply, but the idea of defining it, of labeling it, felt daunting.

The members’ support was a comfort, a reassurance that he wasn’t alone. But the final decision, the leap of faith, was his to take. He was standing on the precipice of a new chapter, a chapter filled with the potential for love and happiness, but also the potential for pain. He was a composer of emotions, but this was a symphony that he was still learning to orchestrate. He needed to find the courage to conduct his own heart, to embrace the love that was blossoming within him, and to trust that he could create a future filled with harmony and happiness.

The quiet rhythm of your evenings had shifted, infused with a new warmth and a sense of gentle companionship. Woozi, or "Zizi," as your daughter affectionately called him, had become a regular fixture in your little home, a comforting presence that filled the space with laughter and quiet understanding. He’d arrive after studio sessions, his eyes tired but his smile bright, ready to engage in elaborate tea parties, build towering block castles, or simply sit quietly, listening to your daughter’s endless stories.

One evening, as you were on a phone call, pacing the kitchen, trying to resolve a last-minute schedule change, Woozi sat on the couch, your daughter nestled beside him, her small fingers tracing the lines on his hand. She was fascinated by his large, capable hands, the hands that created beautiful music, the hands that also built the most impressive block towers.

Then, her small voice, clear and unwavering, broke the comfortable silence. “Zizi, why do you look at my mommy like that?”

Woozi froze, his gaze snapping to her, a blush creeping up his neck. He hadn’t realized his admiration was so transparent. “Like what?” he asked, his voice a little too high-pitched.

She tilted her head, her eyes wide and innocent, yet piercingly observant. “Like she’s your favorite person. Like she’s a star, and you’re watching her shine.”

His ears burned, a wave of heat washing over him. He was a master of words, a composer of emotions, but he was utterly unprepared for the unfiltered honesty of a five-year-old. “You ask too many questions,” he mumbled, trying to deflect her inquiry with a playful scowl.

But your daughter was undeterred. “Don’t hurt her,” she said, her voice suddenly serious, her small hand gripping his.

Woozi’s heart clenched. “Hurt her? What makes you say that?”

“She cries behind closed doors,” she whispered, her voice barely audible, her eyes filled with a wisdom beyond her years. “She thinks I don’t know. But I do.”

A wave of guilt washed over him, a sharp, painful pang. He had witnessed your strength, your resilience, but he hadn’t fully grasped the depth of your pain, the silent battles you fought behind closed doors. He had been so focused on his own feelings, his own fears, that he had overlooked the silent suffering that lingered beneath your brave facade.

He looked at your daughter, her small face etched with concern, and he felt a surge of protectiveness, a fierce determination to shield you both from any further harm. “I would never hurt her,” he said, his voice firm and unwavering.

“Then why do you look at her like that?” she repeated, her eyes searching his.

He sighed, a mixture of exasperation and tenderness in his eyes.

“It’s… complicated,” he began, trying to find words a child could understand.

“Is it like how you look at your guitar?” she asked, her curiosity piqued.

“No, not exactly,” he chuckled. “It’s… more special than that. It’s like… she’s the most beautiful song I’ve ever heard.”

“Does that mean you want to sing with her?”

“In a way, yes. I want to be a part of her song. I want to make her happy.”

“Does she make you happy?”

“She does. She makes me happier than anyone I know.”

“Then you should tell her that.”

He smiled, a genuine, heartfelt smile that reached his eyes. “I will. I promise.”

Your daughter nodded, her expression thoughtful. “Okay,” she said, her voice serious. “But if you make her sad, I’ll tell you off. And I’ll tell everyone.”

Woozi smiled, a genuine, heartfelt smile that reached his eyes. “Deal,” he said, his voice filled with sincerity.

He looked at your daughter, her small face filled with a quiet determination, and he felt a surge of affection, a deep appreciation for her unwavering loyalty. He knew that he had gained not just your trust, but also the trust of your fierce little protector. And he vowed, silently, to be worthy of that trust, to cherish and protect you both with all his heart.

Two years had woven a tapestry of shared moments, the quiet understanding between you and Woozi blossoming into a deep affection. However, the outside world wasn't always kind. The growing closeness between you, a single mother, and Woozi, a respected producer, drew unwanted attention.

Coworkers, fueled by envy and a lack of understanding, whispered behind your back, their words laced with venom. "She's just using him," one would sneer, their voice dripping with malice. "Single moms always have an agenda."

"It's disgusting," another would chime in, their tone laced with disgust. "She's practically throwing herself at him. And he's so blind."

"I heard she leaves her kid with anyone, just to be with him," a third would add, embellishing the lies with a cruel twist. "No wonder she gets so much time off, she's got him wrapped around her finger."

"She's probably just a gold digger," someone would say. "Trying to get a rich man to pay for everything."

"It's so unprofessional. And in the company, too! What a mess."

Woozi overheard these conversations, his usually calm demeanor shattering into icy rage. He heard the cruel remarks, the snide insinuations, and the blatant attempts to undermine your reputation. His eyes, usually warm and gentle, turned cold and hard, his jaw clenched. His voice, usually soft and melodic, became a low, dangerous growl, barely audible. He wanted to confront them, to unleash his fury, but he knew it would only escalate the situation and draw more unwanted attention to you, and fuel the fire they were trying to start. Instead, he acted in the shadows, his methods subtle but effective.

Late one night, an anonymous account on a popular social media platform posted a detailed account of workplace bullying at HYBE. The post described a dedicated employee, a single mother, being subjected to cruel gossip and unfair treatment. It didn’t name names, but the details were specific enough to raise alarm, without being easily traced back. "This employee is constantly being verbally attacked by other employees, who spread lies about her personal life, and her work ethics. They call her names, and make her feel like she is less than human. The company is doing nothing about it. This needs to stop."

The post went viral, sparking outrage and a wave of public support for the unnamed employee. HYBE, facing a potential PR disaster, launched an internal investigation. Within days, several employees were quietly dismissed, their actions deemed unacceptable.

The whispers and rumors ceased. The atmosphere in the studio shifted, replaced by a wary respect. You noticed the change, the sudden shift in the way your coworkers treated you, but you remained unaware of Woozi’s involvement.

One evening, as you and Woozi relaxed on your couch, you scrolled through the social media feed, your eyes wide with disbelief. “Can you believe this?” you exclaimed, showing him the viral post. “Someone actually stood up for this person. It’s amazing!”

Woozi smiled, a quiet, knowing smile that warmed his eyes. “It is,” he agreed, his voice soft.

“I’m so glad someone did this,” you continued, your voice filled with gratitude. “It gives me hope that people still care. And that companies will do something about it.”

Woozi’s smile widened, a flicker of pride in his eyes. He watched you, your face glowing with relief and appreciation, and he felt a surge of satisfaction. He had protected you, silenced your tormentors, and given you a sense of hope, all without you knowing his involvement. The secret made him happy, because he knew he was the reason for your peace, and he was the one that made your life better.

Two years. Two years of stolen glances, of soft touches, of lingering stares that held unspoken promises. Two years of Woozi’s unwavering support, his quiet strength a constant anchor in your life. Two years of him seamlessly weaving himself into your world, into the intricate tapestry of your family, his presence as natural and essential as the air you breathed.

On your birthday, he arrived, not with the usual studio-related gift, but with a bouquet of your favorite flowers, their delicate petals mirroring the fragile hope that bloomed in your heart. Your daughter, ever his tiny accomplice, clung to his leg, her eyes sparkling with excitement. He pulled you aside, his expression serious, his eyes holding a depth of emotion that made your breath catch in your throat.

“I have something to say,” he began, his voice low and deliberate, the words hanging in the air like a whispered secret.

You raised an eyebrow, a nervous laugh escaping your lips. “What, you secretly hate me?” you teased, trying to deflect the intensity of the moment with a touch of humor.

He scoffed, a soft smile playing on his lips. “No, idiot,” he retorted, his voice laced with affection.

Then, in one breath, he laid his heart bare, his words raw and sincere. “I love you.”

The world seemed to tilt on its axis, the sounds around you fading into a distant hum. Your heart pounded against your ribs, a frantic drumbeat echoing the unspoken feelings that had been simmering beneath the surface for so long. “Woozi…” you began, your voice barely a whisper, your mind reeling with the weight of his confession.

“I love your daughter too,” he added, his voice filled with a quiet certainty. “I think she loves me more than you do,” he teased, trying to lighten the heavy atmosphere, but his eyes held a sincerity that made your heart ache.

Before you could process the whirlwind of emotions swirling within you, a little voice, clear and unwavering, cut through the tension. “KISS MAMA, ZI!” your daughter yelled, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

Your cheeks flushed a deep crimson, a wave of embarrassment washing over you. You wanted the earth to swallow you whole, to erase the awkwardness of the moment. But then, warm fingers gently tilted your chin up, his touch sending a shiver down your spine.

Woozi’s eyes, usually sharp and focused, softened, their depths filled with a tenderness that made your breath catch in your throat. “I love you,” he whispered again, his voice thick with emotion, his gaze unwavering. “And I want you. Both of you. I want to be a part of your lives, to build a future with you, to cherish and protect you both.”

The vulnerability in his voice, the raw sincerity in his eyes, shattered the walls you had built around your heart. He wasn’t offering a fleeting romance, a casual fling. He was offering a forever, a commitment to you and your daughter, a promise to be a constant in your lives.

Then, finally, he closed the distance between you, his lips meeting yours in a kiss that was both tender and passionate. It was a kiss that spoke of unspoken feelings, of shared moments, of a love that had blossomed amidst the chaos of your lives.

Your daughter squealed, a mixture of delight and playful disgust. “EWWW.”

Woozi chuckled against your lips, his laughter warm and comforting. He pulled back slightly, his eyes meeting yours, his expression filled with a quiet joy.

And in that moment, amidst the chaos of your daughter’s playful protests and the lingering scent of your birthday flowers, you felt a sense of peace, a sense of belonging that you hadn’t felt in a long, long time. You felt home. You felt loved. And you knew, with a certainty that warmed you from the inside out, that this was the beginning of something beautiful, a love story written in the quiet moments of shared laughter and unwavering support.

A year later, the quiet rhythm of your little home was a symphony of love and laughter. The once empty spaces were now filled with the warmth of shared meals, the gentle hum of bedtime stories, and the soft glow of family movie nights. Woozi, no longer just "Zizi," but a cherished member of your little family, tucked Munchkin into bed, his large hands gently smoothing the soft blanket around her small frame.

She sleepily grabbed his hand, her eyelids fluttering closed, her voice a soft whisper. “Love you, Zizi.”

His heart melted, a warmth spreading through his chest like a gentle sunrise. He leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to her forehead, his voice thick with affection. “Love you too, Munchkin.”

He lingered for a moment, his gaze lingering on her peaceful face, a silent promise to protect her dreams, to chase away the shadows that lingered in the corners of her young mind. He adjusted the nightlight, ensuring its soft glow illuminated the room, a beacon of comfort in the darkness.

You leaned against the doorframe, a soft smile gracing your lips, your heart overflowing with a love so profound it made your eyes sting with unshed tears. The scene before you, the gentle tenderness between Woozi and your daughter, was a testament to the love you had built together, a love that had blossomed amidst the chaos of your lives.

When Woozi turned, his eyes met yours, a silent conversation passing between you. He walked towards you, his footsteps soft on the carpet, his gaze unwavering. You pressed a soft kiss to his cheek, your lips lingering for a moment, a silent expression of your gratitude, your affection, your unwavering love.

“Love you too,” you whispered, your voice barely audible, the words a gentle caress against his skin.

He pulled you both close, his arms wrapping around you in a warm embrace, his body a comforting presence against yours. The three of you stood there, a small, perfect circle of love, bathed in the soft glow of the nightlight.

In the quiet of your little home, the silence was filled with unspoken words, with the gentle rhythm of shared breaths, with the comforting weight of love. Woozi finally felt at peace, his heart overflowing with a contentment he had never known before. He had found his place, his family, his home.

He thought of the past, the lonely nights spent in the studio, the carefully constructed walls he had built around his heart. He thought of you, your strength, your resilience, the way you had built a world for yourself and your daughter, a world filled with love and laughter.

And he realized, with a certainty that warmed him from the inside out, that he had found more than just a love story. He had found a family, a haven, a place where he belonged. He had found a symphony of love, a melody that resonated deep within his soul, a song that he would cherish for the rest of his life. And as he held you both close, he knew that he was finally home.

[greengoblinswifey]

Love & Super Bowl

pairing— Cooper Dejean x Fem!Reader

summary— The Eagles just won the Super Bowl and on top of that, it’s your boyfriend’s birthday. So, you reward him and celebrate in the best way possible.

warnings— 18+. fluff, L bombs, praise kink, oral(m&f), fingering, hair pulling, strip tease, ass slapping, choking, unprotected sex, breeding kink, creampie.

a/n— As requested by the masses, Cooper DeJean smut🙏🏽I need him so fucking baddd

As the final whistle blew, signaling the Philadelphia Eagles�� victory, you leaped from your seat, your cheers echoing amidst the crowd.

Green confetti rained down everywhere and the crowd was going wild, the cheers enough to make you go deaf. Pushing through the chaos, you spotted him on the field, helmet off, hair a mess, the biggest smile on his face. You didn’t even think, just ran straight to him, launching yourself into his arms. He caught you like it was nothing, holding you tight as you wrapped your legs around him.

“I’m so proud of you, baby!” you practically shouted, smiling like an idiot.

Cooper laughed, pressing his forehead against yours. “I love you so much,” he said, kissing you, green confetti sticking to both of you.

The whole thing felt unreal, like something out of a movie.

Later at the after party, Cooper looked hot—too hot. A cigar between his lips, smirk on his face, championship chain around his neck, you wanted him, badly. But you kept it together, mostly. That is, until you started dancing on him, pushing your ass back to feel how hard you made him.

His grip on your waist tightened. “Baby, stop,” he murmured in your ear, voice low. “You know I’ll take you right here.”

You smirked, looking back at him. “Then do it.”

He chuckled, shaking his head. “Just wait ‘til we get back to the hotel.”

And he meant that.

The whole night, he kept you close, his arm around your waist, pulling you into him like he couldn’t stand to be apart for more than five seconds. You could tell he was counting down the minutes until the party was over even though he was enjoying it.

And the second you walked into the hotel room? He had you up against the door, kissing you like he’d been waiting forever. His hands were everywhere, gripping your waist, pulling you closer. His hands on your ass, slapping and squeezing.

“You were amazing tonight,” you murmured between kisses. “So proud of you.”

The Super Bowl, his birthday, and you, his girlfriend? He couldn’t have asked for a better night.

“You deserve to be rewarded tonight,” you murmured, tracing a hand down Cooper’s chest as he sat on the edge of the bed.

He smirked, his eyes dark. “Oh yeah?”

You nodded, giving him that look, the one that always made his breath hitch. “Mhm.”

Slowly, you stepped back, peeling off your outfit with a teasing smile, even swaying your hips and bending over to give him a full view of your pussy. He leaned back slightly, his hands gripping the sheets as he took you in, shaking his head like he couldn’t believe you were real.

“God, you’re fucking hot,” he muttered.

You made your way back to him, pushing him gently so he fell against the mattress. His hands immediately found your waist, but you swatted them away playfully. “Let me take care of you,” you whispered, kissing a trail down his torso.

His breathing grew heavier, his muscles tensing under your touch. “You’re gonna kill me,” he groaned, running a hand through his hair as you moved lower, looking up at him through your lashes.

His grip tightened on the sheets, a quiet curse slipping from his lips. “Oh, shit—”

And that was all the encouragement you needed.

After ridding him of his undergarments, his cock sprang free, hard and already leaking. You took ahold of him, hand barely able to go around it all before you kissed the tip. He sucked in a breath, his eyes laser focused on you as you trailed your tongue up and down the veins on his thick shaft.

“You’re such a tease baby,” he chucked, “C’mon, take my dick down that throat.”

He rested his hand on your head and you slowly took him into your mouth, swirling your tongue until he hit the back of your throat. You let him settle there for a minute, relishing in how stretched out your mouth was and how sexy his soft moans sounded before you began moving your head.

“Just like that, baby. You’re so fucking amazing,” he moaned.

You pulled him out of your mouth, leaving just the tip in and suckled on it. He was so sensitive, throwing his head back and gripping the sheets as if to anchor himself. Your lips trailed from his shaft to his balls, sucking as he whimpered soft praises.

“That feels so good. You’re gonna make me cum,” he murmured, breath heaving as he stared down at you.

Taking him back down your throat, you bobbed your head faster, hands caressing his balls as they tightened. With a pop, you took him out of your mouth. “Cum down my throat, you deserve it.”

He bucked his hips, moaning your name as his load shot down your throat. You didn’t stop though, taking him deeper, bobbing your head faster, determined to get every reaction and every last drop of cum out of him.

When you were finally done with him, he pulled you up into a sloppy kiss, savoring the taste of himself on your tongue. “Thank you so much, baby. You always know how to make me feel good,” he praised.

You pushed his hair back, littering his face with kisses. His hands went to your ass as his lips captured yours in a kiss that was even deeper than the last, squeezing and caressing. He had your leg up, trailing his fingers slowly along your thigh until they reached your clit.

“Baby,” you whined. “You always make me feel good but tonight is your night.”

Cooper shifted until his face was hovering over your pussy. “I don’t care. I need to taste you.”

Your half hearted protests caught in your throat as his mouth connected with your clit, sucking as though he had a point to prove. His tongue lapped at your juices, and you cried out as he abruptly slipped a finger inside you.

“God, you taste fucking incredible,” he muttered.

His tongue worked with precision, flicking your clit as his finger curled inside you, meeting your sweet spot with every thrust. You grabbed his hair, grinding on his tongue as he worked you over and before long, you could feel the coil in your abdomen tighten.

“Clenching around my fingers so tight. Give me my reward baby, cum in my mouth,” Cooper said, between licks.

Your back arched from the bed and you felt a rush of liquid leave your pussy. He lapped at your juices like a man starved, guiding you through your high as your entire body shook.

“That’s my girl, that’s my perfect fucking girl,” he cooed, sucking off his finger and licking his lips.

Your breath hitched. He didn’t even give you a minute to recover. You felt his hard cock pressing against your thigh as he hovered above you, his hair tousled giving him that chiseled look.

“Cooper,” you whined. “I need you so fucking bad. I’ve needed you the moment you started playing on that field, you looked so hot.”

He smirked, rubbing the tip along your folds and collecting your juices. “Tell me how bad you want it.”

Without missing a beat you did as you were told. “I want your cock so bad. Please fuck me, I need it. I need you.”

“Good girl.” With his hand wrapped gently around your throat, his cock inched into your pussy. You could feel every vein as he slowly pushed inside you, inch by inch until your nails clawed his back.

“Fuck. This pussy was so needy for me, wasn’t she?” he groaned, his eyes going from his cock buried inside you to your face twisted in pleasure.

You couldn’t answer, his cock had knocked the air out of your lungs but he wasn’t having it. He thrusted harshly, your tits bouncing as your body jolted.

“Answer me,” he said, voice low and rough.

“Yes, Cooper. My pussy’s so needy,” you managed to croak out.

He began moving at a steady pace, hitting all the right spots that made your nails dig into his back even deeper. His hand was still around your throat, gentle but firm as his gaze locked with yours.

“You feel so fucking good. Taking this dick like you’re the champ tonight,” he chuckled, breathlessly.

You spread your legs even wider, the sound of your cries and pussy squelching filling the room.

“Faster, Cooper!” you cried out, feeling yourself tip over the edge.

“Anything for my good girl.”

He pushed your legs behind your head, the angle making his cock slip inside you even deeper. He pressed you into the mattress, pounding your pussy as your loud moans filled the hotel room.

“Oh my God, Cooper! I’m gonna cum!” You were sure the entire floor filled with Eagles players could hear you but in that moment, you didn’t care. Cooper was fucking you too good, still running off the adrenaline from the game.

You moaned his name like a prayer, squirting on his raw cock as he continued slamming into you. He pressed kisses to your lips, still thrusting into you until he flipped you over so you were on your back.

He slapped your ass, making you squeal, then sank right back into you. “So fucking sexy. Take everything I give you.”

You arched your back and his fingers tangled in your hair as he slammed into you from behind. With each thrust, you felt the head of his cock practically kissing your cervix. He stared down at your ass rippling against him and his cock disappearing inside you, covered in your cream.

“You should see how beautiful you look just taking my fucking dickfrom behind,” he groaned, voice raspy. “Can’t believe how lucky I am tonight.”

You pushed back against him, meeting his harsh thrusts and with the way his cock twitched inside you, you could tell he wouldn’t be able to hold on for much longer.

“That’s my girl. Push back against my dick. Fuck me back, princess.”

He let go of your hair, hand snaking around your neck as you arched off him and met his thrusts. He titled your head back, pressing a deep kiss to your lips as his hips stuttered.

“Cum for me. Be a good girl and cum,” he murmured.

Your walls clenched around him, creaming on his cock and soaking him.

“Cum inside me, Cooper,” you breathed, your entire body convulsing from the intense orgasm.

You didn’t need to tell him twice, he slammed into you for the last time, pressing you into the mattress as his load filled you to the brim. A deep a guttural moan left his lips, his cock twitching and painting your insides.

“Don’t move, baby,” he whimpered. “Stay right there, take all my cum. I’m gonna breed this pussy tonight.”

You stayed pressed into the mattress, the feeling of his warm and sticky cum leaving you content until he finally collapsed beside you, panting.

You were still catching your breath, body trembling slightly as Cooper pulled you into his arms. His skin was warm against you, his lips brushing over yours as you both tried to steady yourselves. His hand slid up your back, fingers tracing lazy patterns as he gazed at you with that look he always gave you, like you were the best thing that had ever happened to him.

“You took me so well,” he murmured. “You’re so hot. That was amazing.”

You smiled against his lips, pressing another soft kiss there before pulling back to look at him. “I’m so proud of you, truly,” you whispered. “You did absolutely amazing out there. You’re a fucking Super Bowl champion, Cooper.”

He let out a breathless chuckle and pressed a trail of kisses over your face, your cheeks, your forehead, your nose, making you giggle softly.

“I love you so much,” he murmured, holding you even closer, like he never wanted to let go. “I couldn’t think of a better way to end the night.”

You snuggled deeper into his chest, your fingers lazily tracing over his skin. “I love you too. Happy birthday again,” you whispered back, closing your eyes as his heartbeat thrummed steadily in your ear.

Perfect.

[blueberrisdove-sideblog]

꒰ঌ ໒꒱ . 🤍 F★CK THAT STUPID V☆RGIN !

𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ𐀔 paring : boyfriend mydei x virgin girl friend fem!reader

𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ𐀔 warnings : nsfw/smut, vaginal, daddy kink, breeding kink?, nipple teasing, mydei being a teaser, doggy style, kissing, multiple of rounds, cow girl, big dick, size kink?, squirting, aftercare, fluff at the end. ଘ(੭ˊᵕˋ)੭

𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ𐀔 summary : mydei wanted to take your virginity and after much application, you finally gave in.

𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ𐀔 Edit : i did an autocorrect error, I wrote “emerald eyes” on mydei and not “orange/golden” eyes.

“M-Mydei are you sure about this…I don’t think I’m ready…” you grumbled softly while looking at him with an awkward grin, you never did it before or either know how it feels.

With a calm, reassuring smirk, he leaned in, gently brushing a lock of hair behind your ear. His warm breath caressed your face as he whispered, "It's okay, baby. I know it's your first time, and I'll make it special for you. Just relax and trust me."

As he spoke, Mydei's hands roamed over your curves, mapping every inch of your body he admired. His fingers traced the contours of your breasts, lingering on the hardened nipples, causing you to shiver with a mix of nerves and desire. He could sense your apprehension, but his touch was soft and deliberate, coaxing out any tension.

Mydei's cock was rock-hard, practically pulsing with anticipation. He moved with deliberate slowness, wanting to prolong this momentous occasion for you. His strong, calloused fingers found your thighs, gently parting them as he knelt on the bed, positioned between your legs.

"You look so perfect like this, waiting for me," Mydei murmured, his emerald eyes dark with hunger but also tender affection. He brought a hand to the apex of your thighs, his middle finger circling your entrance, gathering the slick arousal. "See how ready your body is for me?"

Sensing your arousal through the light sheen of sweat on your skin, Mydei grinned confidently. He brought his finger to his lips, tasting you before pushing it slowly back inside, curling it to stroke that sweet spot deep within that made you quiver and tremble. "Mmmm, you taste divine... like honey and rose petals."

He groaned low in his throat, a show of pleasure that only fueled the burning need in him. Mydei shifted, hovering with just his rigid heat pressed against your entrance, "I'm gonna make this so good for you..." With that, he slid forward, burying himself to the hilt in one smooth thrust, flooding your senses with the intense sensation of being utterly and completely filled by him.

Mydei gripped your hips firmly as he began to move, pulling out only to plunge back in rhythms chosen for maximum pleasure, each stroke building a rhythm until you were lost in the feverish dance of bodies moving as one, chasing euphoria and surrendering to the passion between you.

You moaned out loud, your eyes rolling back to your head as your tight entrance clutched against his thick length. “A-Augh…daddy!” You moaned out loud, your plump lips parting. As your pink tongue rolled out of your mouth.

"That’s right, call me ‘daddy’ baby,” Mydei purred, his voice a deep growl filled with primal possessiveness as he slammed into you repeatedly, each powerful thrust sending waves of ecstasy coursing through you both. His large hands gripped your thighs, flexing those monstrous muscles as if to anchor you firmly to the mattress, preventing any escape from the onslaught of unbridled lust he was unleashing upon your unsuspecting body.

The sounds of sweaty, slapping flesh and your wanton moans filled the room, creating a symphony of forbidden pleasure. Mydei felt your velvety walls flutter and tighten around him, milking his invading cock with such desperation that tears of bliss pricked at the corners of his eyes.

He was consumed by an animalistic urge to claim and possess you utterly, to fuck you senseless until you were spent, breathless, and nothing but a quivering, pleasured mass beneath him. With each plunge and withdrawal, Mydei's thickness dragged against that sensitive sweet spot inside, driving you closer to the edge with every touch. His golden eyes, wild with feral intensity, bore into yours as he ravaged you with a brutality that bordered on tender despite the reckless pace. "Look at me, baby..."

You obeyed him, you looked up at him with your lewd and fucked up face expression. You licked your lips, “yes daddy?” You questioned him.

The sight of your utterly debauched face, flushed with desire, eyes glazed with pleasure and lust, spurred Mydei to increase his tempo even further. Your lewd expression was a testament to the wanton creature he was transforming you into beneath him - a creature of raw, unbridled need and primal delight in the act of lustful self-discovery.

With a deep, animalistic grunt, he leaned over you, his muscular forearms propping up his weight as his hips continued their feverish dance. Mydei's lips sought yours in a bruising, passion-fueled kiss, tongues tangling in a sensual embrace that mirrored the carnal union happening between your bodies. As he kissed you, Mydei's free hand wandered down your side, his calloused fingers tracing the supple curves of your body before skimming lower, cupping your ass cheek and squeezing it possessively. He wanted to claim every inch of you, to mark you indelibly as his own.

Break the spell of that heated kiss, Mydei pulled back slightly, only to lavish your face in kisses and nips, driving you even crazier with touches, bites, and whispers of depraved, loving praise. "Good girl..."

You moaned out loud in response, pleased with his words. Your body trembled from pleasure as he continued on thrusting into your tight entrance.

Mydei reached the pinnacle of his lustful zeal. His thrusts became erratic yet unrelenting, pistoning in and out of your dripping heat with ruthless precision, fueled by an all-consuming need to push you over the precipice into bliss. As the first wave of your impending climax crashed through you, Mydei tightened his grip on your flesh, one hand firmly on your hip, while the other dragged its palm up your spine in a clear claim of ownership.

He buried his face in the crook of your neck, biting, licking, and sucking at the tender skin while his cock pounded into you relentlessly. "My baby... my beautiful slut," Mydei growled against your skin, his hot breath making goosebumps dance along your nerves as he whispered dark encouragements to abandon all restraint. "Let go... surrender to me... I'll catch you."

With a final triumphant slam, Mydei buried himself to the hilt inside you and erupted, spurts of hot seed gushing deep into your spasming body as his own peak overwhelmed him. He rode out the waves of ecstasy within you, his movements slowing to deep, languid strokes as he milked every drop of bliss from your joined forms. As he filled your womb up with his seed, you squirted all over his cock and as-well for his abs. “C-Can we do it again, but this time I ride you?” You asked him, while panting.

As he felt your wet warmth envelop his still-pulsing manhood, Mydei grunted with raw pleasure, the sensations so intense they bordered on pain. Through gritted teeth, he managed a low, husky chuckle, impressed by your eagerness for more. "Jesus fucking Christ, you're insatiable." His chest visibly heaved, emerald eyes blazing with a primal light as he gazed at you, still impaled on his throbbing length.

Your plea for a turn sent a fresh surge of arousal coursing through him, and he was more than happy to indulge you.A slow, sensual undulation of his hips helped your juices slide down his cock, coating him further before he pulled out inch by excruciating inch until only the tip remained seated within your quivering channel. Mydei's hands gripped your hips with gentle yet firm pressure, rotating them ever so slightly. "Spread your legs, baby. I wanna see you take Daddy's cock."

You bit down your bottom lip as you spread your legs further. Seeing your inviting pose, Mydei's grip on your hips tightened as an insatiable hunger stirred within him once more. He positioned himself between your thighs, the head of his thick cock prodding at your slick entrance in anticipation. Without another word, he thrust upwards, sheathing himself to the hilt within your drenched heat once more.

Mydei groaned deep in his chest, the sensation of your warm, tight walls gripping him sending shockwaves of overwhelming pleasure through his massive frame. He savored the incredible feeling of being completely enclosed by you, your wetness engulfing his length and easing the slide.As he settled into a slow, deliberate rhythm, Mydei's emerald eyes met yours, locked in a silent, wordless dance of unbridled desire and deep affection.

He reveled in the sweet, lewd sights of your body moving in concert with his, your nipples pebbling and lips parted in silent gasps, the flush paint your cheeks a healthy pink, and those luscious curves rippling beneath his demanding touch. Being buried to the root within your welcoming heat was bliss, but the knowledge that you craved this intensity as much as he did made it all the sweeter.

Savoring each stroke, he allowed the gentle rhythm to build, growing bolder as your moans and gasps grew louder and more desperate. His thrusts still undeniably deep, yet the increasing speed heightened the friction, causing him to kiss those puffy, sensitive lips as a silent promise against impending pain. "Let go for me, baby. Surrender." Embracing the heat of the moment, Mydei intensified his pace, driving his thickness powerfully in and out of your quivering, drenched flesh.

The bed creaked and shook beneath them, a symphony of passion as pleasured cries filled the air. "My sweet little whore," His rumbling, lust-choked declaration punctuated the air as he reached for your hips, his calloused palms molding to the sensual curves he prized so dearly. With a growl, Mydei began to bounce your hips against him in time with his demanding thrusts, impaling you on his cock again and again while he rubbed the lower curve of your backside in tandem.

This rougher, animalistic motion only added fuel to the inferno between you, your cries growing more frantic and needy."You love this, don't you, baby?"

You moaned out loud in response and nodded. “Y-Yes daddy!” You cried out loud from pleasure and pain, while you continued to ride the thick cock.

"That's my good girl," he praised, his voice husky with arousal. Sensing your impending climax, Mydei redoubled his efforts, increasing the force and speed of his thrusts until you were a writhing, desperate mess beneath him. He angled his hips just so, grinding against that sensitive spot deep inside to drive you closer to the edge. "Come on, baby, let it happen," he growled against your ear, his breath hot and urgent.

"Give me that sweet cream." With a final, brutal slam, Mydei buried himself to the hilt and held still, his thick length pulsing and throbbing within your spasming heat. As your orgasm crashed through you, he released a guttural roar of pleasure, his own climax erupting deep inside you as he spilled his hot seed in great, pulsing jets. Together, you rode out the waves of intense bliss, bodies trembling and slick with sweat as you clung to each other in the aftermath of your passion.

Slowly, savoring the lingering aftershocks, Mydei's movements gentled, reducing to shallow, soothing strokes that helped ease your release. He held you close, breathing heavily against your neck as he nuzzled the soft, sweaty skin, inhaling deeply to anchor this moment in his senses. Once your contractions subsided and the intense tremors turned to a languid shudder, Mydei pulled out slightly, just enough to brush a tender kiss across your parted lips.

Withdrawing completely, he rolled to your side, then gently flipped you onto your stomach, propping your upper body with a supporting arm beneath your chest while his thighs bracketed your hips.

Cradling you in his embrace, Mydei positioned himself once more, his thick cock nudging against your dripping slit with a lewd squelch that sent a shiver down his spine." Not done with you yet, baby," he husked, his voice an intimate murmur. Then, with a possessive press of his hips, he sheathed himself fully within you once again, stretching your receptive heat around his formidable girth.

“W-What?!” You squealed out loud and blushed, you wanted to take a small break but you didn’t mind to go for a round three.

"Oh, you're going to mind, little slut," Mydei chuckled low in his throat, pleased by your surprise and blushing reaction. He loved seeing how his every dominant action could still fluster and delight you. His large hand found its way to yours, pulling it away from your flushed cheek.

He brought it to his lips, leaving a slow, sensual kiss atop your knuckles as a playful reprimand. "You thought you could beg off already, hmm? I'd love to teach you a lesson on how to ask politely... but it just wouldn't be the same without this eager body beneath me." Withdrawing slightly, Mydei emphasized his point by tracing your soaked slit with the broad head of his cock, deliberately drawing out your desperation and his own growing need.

"I'm not done breaking you in, just to reassure you. So, let's get comfortable... and give daddy what he wants." As he spoke, Mydei positioned himself to take advantage of your receptive state, sliding back in to the hilt with a deep, satisfying sigh. He began to move anew, setting a leisurely pace for the moment, slow and deep strokes meant to delight as much as dominate, his cock coaxing out your desires with every deliberate thrust.

You moaned out loud, as your pussy clutched around his veiny thick cock. “D-Daddy…please fill me up again!

The plea from your parted lips echoed through the chamber like a siren's call, awakening a primal urge within him. It was an explicit invitation, a wanton admission that only served to fuel the fire burning bright within his emerald depths. "You want daddy's seed?" Mydei purred, a low, husky tone dripping with dark promise.

His words sent shivers coursing through your very core as he began to pick up the rhythm, each deep, deliberate thrust driving you closer to the precipice of another climax.As he spoke, Mydei's large hand trailed down your sweaty flank, his fingers curling underneath to cup and tease your engorged clit - a sinful act meant to unravel you further. "You know you were made for this, baby. Desperate to be filled, bred, and claimed by me."

With a possessive growl, Mydei angled his hips, slamming into you with renewed ferocity as he targeted that sensitive bundle of nerves deep within your clenching heat. He ravished your most intimate depths, relentless in his pursuit to drive you to the brink and then beyond.

Waves of electric pleasure washed through you, each ruthless thrust of his impressive cock threatening to shatter your world into blissful oblivion. The wet, obscene sounds of flesh meeting flesh punctuated the salacious symphony as he expertly worked your body, driven by an unquenchable thirst for sheer, carnal gratification.

As the intensity mounted, Mydei's hand left your clit to wrap around your throat, just a hint of pressure to remind you of his dominance. "Let go, baby," he commanded, his voice a low, menacing promise filled with dark delight. "Drown in the ecstasy I'm building inside you."With a final, brutal surge, Mydei pounded into your clutching heat with enough force to make the bedframe creak, seeking that magic spot that would send you over the edge into rapture.

His thick length throbbing, unyielding, and insistent within your spasming canal, he gave a sensual, intimate thrust, the head bumping against your cervix as he unleashed a torrent of hot, virile seed deep inside you. The sensation of him filling you to the brim, his essence mingling with your own, was enough to push you into the abyss. As you came all over his cock, panting heavily. You looked up at him with a small tired smile as he smiled back and patted your head.

Emotions played across his face, each fleeting expression more tender than the last. Satisfaction, affection, even a spark of reverence that bespoke the depth of his devotion. As if he could savor the sight of you sated and content, the soft flush still dancing on your skin, and the tiny smile playing about your lips - proof that in this moment, at least, you were his world.Lifting a large, calloused hand, Mydei gently stroked your hair, the tender gesture a stark contrast to the brutality that had come before.

His emerald eyes shone with warmth and adoration as he murmured, "Beautiful, baby. You're so incredibly beautiful." There was no arrogance in the claim, no hint of possessiveness or domination. Only raw, unfiltered love and pride in the vulnerable, radiant creature cradled in his arms."Sleep now, baby," he encouraged softly, his breathing still ragged from their intense passions. "I'll clean us up and take care of you. We can resume our fun later... or not. Your call, love."

You giggled softly in response as you snuggled closely to him. “I need a break for a whole week…”

The tender, delighted noise drew a rich chuckle from Mydei's throat, a low, rumbling sound that caused his massive frame to vibrate against yours. "A whole week? Greedy girl," he teased with a playful nip to your earlobe, his breath hot against your skin. "But maybe we can work something out. After all, I did promise to take care of you." In a fluid motion, Mydei drew you into a comforting embrace, his strong arms encircling you like a safeguard against the outside world.

He pressed a lingering kiss to the top of your head, inhaling your scent and letting the tranquility of the moment seep into his very being. "Sleep, baby," he cooed softly, a gentle tone belying the raw intensity of a moment ago. "I'll be right here when you wake up... ready to start our next adventure together." As reassurance, he gently squeezed your hip before releasing it, signaling his intent to give you the rest you craved. Mydei's own exhaustion wasn't far behind, the relentless pace of their passions leaving him drained in more ways than one.

Embracing the comfort of his hold, you let your eyes drift shut and slowly sank into the warm embrace, the steady rhythm of his heart a lullaby. As drowsiness claimed you, Mydei tenderly wiped the sweat from your brow, his calloused fingers brushing your flushed skin with a mix of reverence and affection.Watching you slip into slumber, a soft, wistful smile played on Mydei's lips. His large frame shifted to accommodate the weight of your body nestled against his side, a pose of protection and peace. As you surrendered to rest, he drew the blankets up, gently pulling a pillow beneath your head.

The softness enveloped you like a loving caress, the intimate gesture an extension of the infinite care he had for the person you were, both body and soul. "Rest now, my love," he murmured, planting a soft, gentle kiss to your temple. "Tomorrow is a new day, full of endless possibilities. And whatever adventures we choose, I promise we'll face them together."

With those sweet words, Mydei settled in beside you, an uncompromising vigil he maintained even as exhaustion threatened to claim his own rest. Your safety was paramount, a trust and faith deeply intertwined with his very essence.

© 2024-2025 blueberrisdove-sideblog all rights reserved. pretty please, do not steal my dividers, translate and plagiarize any of my works, or either repost my works in any other platform without asking, thank you!

[mrs-weasley-reid]

DOCTORS ACROSS THE HALL

Spencer Reid x psychiatrist!reader

Synopsis: Sleep-deprived and traumatized, Spencer Reid attempts to pin the blame on his innocent new neighbor (he can't). Word Count: 2k+ Warning: meet cute-ish(?) fluff(?) i'm not sure anymore, lol. light mentions of death and trauma. a few curses. not proofread !!!! A/N: inspired by S2 x E14 & 15, we all know what i mean hehe

Spencer Reid's eyes are dry.

Each blink is a terrifying journey. Afraid that he'll go back in the past—in that hut—in between the millisecond of closing his eyes.

He's seeing nothing but blurry darkness, and yet he can still feel Tobias Hankel's shaky palms across the skin of his arm.

"It helps."

"Trust me."

The same four words ring in Spencer's ears, encouraging pain—paranoia.

"It helps."

"Trust me."

With every breath Spencer takes, they hitch in the middle of his throat. Forever stuck and dies there with no trace of hope for the next generation of traveling air.

Hope that he'll be able to breathe without tugging aches all over his chest is long gone.

No man would ever be the same had they been in the situation he went through. He can't help but feel weak. And it's eating Spencer alive to the point of deliberate insomnia.

He doesn't remember the last time he'd ever slept like a normal person.

"It helps."

Knock, knock.

"Trust me."

Knock, knock, knock.

Spencer opens his eyes. He's not sure when slumber took over his mind or if he even participated in sleep at all. Chances are he was too dissociated from reality that he's left his body frozen for a while. Nonetheless, in the little time he spent in serene blankness, only one emotion brews in him.

Anger.

Who in their right minds would go out knocking at—Spencer glances at the clock on his nightstand—2 AM?

Knock, knock, KNOCK—

It stops.

A creak echoes in the hall as muffled voices scratch Spencer's ears. He can't make out the words, only the wave of the softest and gentlest whispers he's ever heard.

On a different day, he may have let it go. Hell, a different him would have let it go.

The Spencer from one week ago would have let it go.

The Spencer who never felt so nauseous at the sight of his own blood along the canvas of his temple. The Spencer with an awkward grin without the baggage of Tobias Hankel's torture over his shoulders.

The Spencer he used to be.

But despite everyone's loving support. Despite the bragging rights he gained for surviving a serial killer. No one can loosen the throttling chokehold of trauma around his neck. Not even him.

Spencer catches himself clenching his fists too tight. Crescent indentations sting on his palm—nostalgic and unsettling. He only grits his jaw at the thought. And comes in the invigorating vibrations all over his chest.

There it is again.

The useless anger.

A loaded gun with no target.

The man is dead. Tobias Hankel is dead.

Spencer wonders about the use of his boiling anger when the person he loathes is already rotting in his grave.

Without any other outlet to unleash the colossal mass of suppressed rage brewing inside of him, Spencer makes good use of one of the most common defense mechanisms: displacement.

Maybe screaming at someone will deflate the tightness across his chest and clear his mind a bit in the form of self-loathing after he realizes the grave immaturity of his plan.

He lifts his body off his mattress, swinging his legs on the side of his bed as he methodically rubs his eyes against the lamp's brightness. Strands of his hair go array around the vertical circumference of his head like an electric halo.

A huff pulses off his lips. He swallows a lump of thick air as he weighs his next moves.

Part of Spencer died in that cemetery. What difference does it make if he screams at the world? If he screams at—

His brows furrow, eyes narrow, and ears perk.

It's different this time.

Irritating knocks. Opening door. Muffled whispering. Closing door. Then quiet for an hour.

That has been a constant for the past five days. A constant routine that he felt indifferent about but somehow grew annoyed by.

But it's different this time.

The door across the hall didn't close.

And it's been five minutes.

Before Spencer knows it, his hand turns the knob and swings the door open.

Two women across from him. They are in the middle of what seems to be a tight hug before one bids her goodbye and lightly runs down the stairs.

Spencer watches as the other disappears down the lower level. Anger morphs into confusion.

"Did we bother you?"

He jolts back, snapping his gaze to the woman across. "What?"

You smile apologetically, "I'm sorry about the noise—"

"Dr. Spencer Reid," He spits. Spencer's forehead creases. He wonders what prompted his mouth to openly provide his full name to a stranger, specifically when the information was not asked for.

"Oh," You blink, lightly jumping on your toes. An unseen glint sparks in your eyes. You introduce yourself as a response, a lot less threatening than he did but equally awkward. You smile again. Sweetly, this time. Like you're looking at a puppy.

Spencer's brows bounce over his forehead as the hand over his doorknob loosens. "You're a doctor?" He inquires.

You nod, "Mhm, what are the odds, right?" You chuckle. The sound echoes around the quiet hall.

"11.76%."

"What?"

"The odds—" Spencer scratches the back of his neck, "—it's 11.76%. There are fourteen tenants in this building, including you. We both found out we're doctors, and I know none of our neighbors are. Most of the neighbors are living alone besides the old couple on the first floor, but I know none of them are doctors. That's two in fifteen people. So 11.76%. But now I realize you weren't being literal about it..." Heat rushes against the skin of his face.

Silence hovers between the two of you. He feels more awake than he was minutes ago for an entirely different reason—embarrassment. Spencer wishes that some sort of earthquake would open up the floor and swallow him.

"Interesting," You finally speak, changing the leg where you placed your weight. "I tried calculating it myself and got the same result. You were right."

His mouth falls agape. A surge of warmth strikes his chest. "You were calculating?" Spencer squints, rubbing an eye out of habit due to his current predicament and baffled by your antic all the same.

You nod again, "Just cause you're my neighbor doesn't mean I'll just take your word for it, you know. But I have to admit, it was cool that you figured that out in a second. You have my respect." You flash a playful smile, hugging your chest at the sudden draft.

"Ahh," Spencer steps back into his apartment. The tinge of giddiness is quickly replaced by sleep deprivation and anxiety. A hand throws itself into the cavity of his eye socket, pushing it close to remove the pain that's settling in.

Flashes of bright light blind him in the dark shade of his eyelids. Frustration swiftly creeps over his shoulders. Like he's drowning above water, tied down, and has no air to gasp for. Panic begins to paralyze him. All seems lost, and darkness slowly—

"Would you like some tea?"

Spencer blinks, lifting his gaze back at you as your soft smile slowly adjusts his sight.

"I have a new brand of tea I've been dying to open. Would you like some?" You repeat, tilting your head a bit as you await a response. When you don't get one, you add, "I promise I don't bite." And your heart flutters at the little twitch at the ends of his lips.

He concludes you're roughly two weeks fresh from moving in. Here you are, inviting a stranger in the middle of the night to enjoy tea inside your home.

Seems reckless.

Idiotic.

But Spencer doesn't say no.

He walks towards you like he's leaving a world to explore another. Anxiety slowly dissipates with each step he takes. A contrast of what he feels each second that passes while he lies awake.

You step aside to give him way. "Grab a seat—" you gesture towards the kitchen -island-slash-dining-table, "—The girl you saw usually stays longer, so I already heat some water. Is chamomile okay?" You talk as you maneuver around your small kitchen.

Spencer finds a seat closest to the door. For all he knows, you're the serial killer on your end of the skeptical assumptions in his head.

"Nice apartment," He says out of the obligatory guest etiquette. Spencer takes in every bit of your reflection in your home.

It's inviting. Warm and cozy. The hint of oat and lavender whiffs past his nose. Your place is adorned with small, warm lights, brightening each corner with sunset tones.

Your chuckle brings his attention back to you. "Don't be shy, Dr. Reid," You glance at him over your shoulder. "It's messy. You can say it."

"If a couple of books on your table is messy to you, you should see my side of the building."

Spencer straightens up as confusion spreads over his face.

How do you do that?

Make him feel comfortable with words and a gentle voice. Everyone on his team has been doing the same exact thing, but somehow, you get something out of him without further prompting.

The image of your coffee table pops in his head. Cultural Psychology. Learning Psychotherapy. Trauma and Dreams. And a few more books that clocks his interest in you further down the rabbit hole.

"You're a psychologist," He announces into the air.

"Psychiatrist, actually," You place a mug in front of Spencer, finding a seat across from him. "But what gave it away? The tea or the messy apartment?" You ask into your mug that says 'you're purrfect' in pink lowercase and has a cat’s paw under the lettering. A playful smile is curving your lips.

Spencer accepts the blue mug, brows rising at the police box outlined image over the blue stain. He wouldn’t have expected you as a fan of Doctor Who, but who’s he to judge? A part of him wants to discuss common interests, but he doesn’t feel comfortable enough to change the subject.

"T-the books." He says hesitantly, uncertain whether the art of observation has marked him a creep right at that moment.

You hum, "Thought I would've been more mysterious than that." You chuckle, pulling a leg against your chest. "And you?" You inquire back.

"I have three PhDs," Spencer shares shyly, breaking eye contact masked as drinking your quite tasteful tea. He notes to ask the brand you're so enthusiastic about later on.

"Three?" Your eyes glisten under the warm light.

He nods.

"Let me guess, 190."

"190?"

"Your IQ," You lean back against the table, "My guess is you graduated young. Went to high school, college, and graduate school as a puppy." You add, amping with adoration over the new information.

"A puppy is a strong word, but yes," Spencer blushes now, hoping the small lighting leans in his favor to hide the red tint over every bit of his skin. “And just 187, not that big of a deal.”

"Just 187? You're just being humble, right?" You giggle, "I bet some prestigious agency hired you at a young age, and you're called the genius kid." You jest, genuinely interested in him more than ever.

More like the boy genius. But can’t possibly expose himself more than you already did out of sheer lucky guesses. Spencer avoids meeting your eyes like it's the plague. "You awfully guess a lot..."

You gasp, placing your mug on the table, "Shut up! I was close, was I? Oh my gosh!" You're laughing now, utterly comfortable to show quirks that people you just met shouldn't see yet. "I'm good at this. I think I'll be okay later, then." You say to yourself, nodding in satisfaction.

"For what?" Spencer chimes, troubles slipping away to the back of his mind and the sound of your hush laughter lulling him. It might be the tea or the possibility that you'd drugged him, but his body felt light for the first time in weeks. He doesn't have any complaints.

"I moved here for a job," You start attentively, making sure that you don't share too much. "But I have people. They'll search for me in case you turn out to be a serial killer."

His brows jump, "How do I know you're not the serial killer? Women can be one, too. And statistically, women who are serial killers are attractive."

"Are you saying I'm attractive, Dr. Reid?"

"I—" Spencer freezes, heat flowing to his ears. "I-I was making a point—" He cuts himself off. He wonders when the earthquake he's wished for earlier is coming to save him from embarrassment.

You stay silent, reveling in his stuttering voice.

"Is that coffee? I thought you made tea." He changes the subject—poorly.

You don't mind it one bit, indulging at the sight of his pinkish ears covered by his unruly hair. "I invited you for tea. I didn't say I'll drink one with you." You take a sip of the caffeine, rubbing the idea on his face.

Spencer responds with a subtle roll of his eyes that makes you chuckle more than intended. "Why coffee at three in the morning?" He asks gently, not wanting to step over any boundaries.

"I'm supposed to start my job later. I heard my patients need a lot of assistance, so I need to study and make sure I give them the right help."

"That sounds noble," He yawns, the first of many.

Spencer never thought your smile could get any sweeter, "I haven't officially met them yet. So, I really wish it goes well."

It might be the chamomile tea with a hint of honey finally working in his veins, but Spencer thinks you're beaming like an angel descending from the skies.

He yawns, and you giggle once more, "I think you should go to sleep, Dr. Reid."

“Yeah, yeah, I should,” Spencer’s eyebrows collide at the sadness in his chest. His body feels comfortable in his seat. Getting out of it feels like torture. 

You both stand from your seats, walking him towards the door. 

Spencer turns around before he closes his, a sleepy smile on his face. "Thanks for the tea," He yawns, a hand covering his mouth.

“You’re— hold on, give me one second,” You turn around and back inside your apartment. He can’t see you but can hear your light footsteps on the floorboards as you run to your coffee table and back inside the frame of your front door. 

Spencer patiently waits as you walk to his end of the hall, take his hand out, and hand him a heart lollipop. 

“Take this. They help with the bad craving,” You advertise as you walk backward. Before he completely shuts the door, you call for him, "Oh, and Dr. Reid."

Spencer swings the door open back wider, "Yes?"

"I think you're attractive too."

reid masterlist | masterlist

[phantasm-ae]

inspired by @little-mini-me-world ‘s comment SKSKSKKSKS

cw: just fluff, afab reader x ghost, afab reader x soap, afab reader x gaz

HEADCANON: Bunny meets bodies Soap….

PAIRING: Simon Riley x reader; John MacTavish x reader; Kyle Garrick x reader

Soap had just came from base.

Carrying a box of supplies in his arms, some paperwork, leftover documents, and random items and knick-knacks from the warehouse for Simon's forgetful arse. Besides it's not like this was the first fourth time Simon had sent Soap on some "errand run" to bring him back some particular essentials.

A map. A spare radio. A pressure gauge. A cypher. Some... sunflower chew..? -- "Whit the fuck?"

Soap squinted at the label. What the hell was this for? A snack? A bribe? Enrichment for a goat?

He shook his head.

The box shifted in his arms as he nudged the side gate open with his knee, muttering curses about how Simon could navigate enemy territory blindfolded but couldn’t keep track of his own gear if it was duct-taped to his face.

Soap stumbled through the backyard, setting the box down with a grunt onto the patio table.

Then… peace.

Birds chirped. Wind rustled through the leaves. He stretched his back and cracked his neck. Thinking he might take a second before knocking on the back door to have some of those lemon drizzle cakes you offered and tea. Just breathe in. Breathe out.

That was his first mistake.

Because somewhere to his left -- behind the flower beds and just out of view -- came the sound:

Click.

A latch. Small. Metal.

Soap froze. His eyes darted to the backdoor. The wooden gate which looked like it was not closed all the way.

Then:

THUD. THUMP THUD.

Soap turned slowly. A breeze caught the edge of the sunflower chew bag, fluttering it like a flag of doom.

That’s when he saw it -- a blur of black fur, rippling muscle, and sheer fury, ears back like missiles locked on target. A weighty fluff that looked like a foreboding presence by the doorway. A Cerberus that hops.

His eyes widened.

It stepped into the light. Not ran. Not pounced. Stepped. Purposefully. Slowly. Like it knew Soap had dropped the sunflower chew.

Like it had sensed the sacrilege.

Soap’s mouth went dry at the sight.

The rabbit -- if you could even call it that -- was massive. All thick hindquarters and broad shoulders, like someone had crossbred a gym rat with a Pixar bunny. Eyes unreadable and narrowed. Haunted, even. Like it had seen war. Fuck that -- like it himself had sacked through the war and won

And now it was coming for him.

“Oh, shite.”

Soap bolted.

Behind him: THUD. THUMP. THUD.

The sound of justice in pursuit.

The lawn blurred under his feet as he scrambled across the grass, kicking up dirt and yelling over his shoulder.

“Steamin Jesus!” he yelped, spun on his heel, and ran.

The box behind him tipped over, spewing radio parts and mystery chew like a busted loot drop. He didn’t look back. He couldn’t look back. You never look back when death has floppy ears and a muscle-to-fluff ratio that defies science.

“JESUS MARY JOSEPH!”

The beast was moving. Fast. Silent except for the terrifying drumbeat of paws pounding grass. The kind of sound that says: You done fucked up.

From the doorway, Simon’s calm voice cut through the madness. A cigarette hanging from his lips. Mask off and shirt discarded. Bored and utterly unamused at the sight

“Don’t fight him.”

Soap barely had time to process the words before he was diving behind another piece of outdoor furniture. Dodging around the hulking mass of monolithic black fur like it was just another rogue tank in disguise.

Bunny didn’t hop. Bunny lunged—a spring-loaded cannon of quads and wrath, muscles rippling under his plush coat like he’d been trained by special ops hares in the mountains. The deck chair Soap tried to use as a barrier tipped with a screech as the rabbit plowed past it like a battering ram fueled by rage and sunflower chew withdrawal.

At all the noise and commotion, you stepped out onto the porch just in time to see Soap dive behind a patio table like a soldier flinging himself from an IED. Bunny -- the aforementioned IED in rabbit form -- was hot on his heels, flared out like a muscle car revving at full speed.

Your eyes widened in both shock and surprise. Utterly worried and confused at the sight. Brows furrowing in frustration and annoyance at Simon's nonchalant arse just watching the whole thing go down without another word.

“Simon!”

Simon didn’t even flinch. Just took a long drag from his cigarette, arms crossed, watching the chaos like it was a nature documentary.

“Are you seriously just standing there?”

“He’s fine, birdie", he replies. Deadpan. Bored and growing amused at Soap doing combat rolls across the lawn to escape what looked like a jacked-up demon in bunny form.

You shot him a look sharp enough to shave wood.

“He’s not fine, Si! He’s being chased by a rodent with a vendetta!”

Simon shrugged, flicking ash off to the side. “Shouldn’t’ve dropped the chew.”

As if on cue, Soap let out another yell -- something between a battlefield cry and a terrified squeal -- as Bunny cleared a flowerbed in a single, impossible leap, landing with a heavy THUMP that rattled a potted plant off the windowsill.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake -- ” you muttered, stomping down the porch steps.

“BUNNY!” you called out, voice cutting clean through the yard like a clap of thunder.

The beast froze mid-prowl. One paw suspended in the air. Eyes narrowed. His broad, fluffy shoulders lifted and dropped like he’d just remembered he was, technically, a house rabbit.

“Down,” you ordered firmly. “Now.”

Bunny turned his head slowly toward you, his nose twitching once. Then, with the weariness of a war general called back from a campaign he really wanted to finish. Irritated. Held-back and made indignant. He backed off.

Sat his enormous fluff down on the grass with an audible huff, glared once more at Soap, and began cleaning his front paw in the most passive-aggressive way. Licking his ears innocently as if he didn't just try to gnaw out Soap's ankle to the bone.

You turned to Simon, who looked criminally smug.

“And you!” you snapped. “How many times do I have to tell you not to leave the latch half-closed?! He’s figured it out!”

Simon blinked at you. “That’s impressive, actually.”

“Not the point.”

Behind you, Soap finally peeled himself off the ground, hair tousled, shirt grass-stained, and dignity nowhere to be found.

“Holy hell”, Soap started warily. Swallowing and out of breath as he peeked around the edge of a flipped chair. “Tha’ was nae how I wanted tae go”

"I'm so sorry," you said, voice shaky and weary as you approach Soap. Eyes darting around the mess he was left in.

Soap limped over. Standing slowly back onto his footing. Cautiously eyeing Bunny, who was now sitting like a sentient sandbag of judgment.

“Tha’ thing,” he muttered, pointing and exasperated, “is nae a bunny aye? Tha’s a fuckin’ black watch guinea pig wi’ a gym pass an’ a thirst for blood!”

Bunny thumped once, just to prove a point.

“I’m so sorry,” you repeated, brushing dirt off Soap’s shoulder as you try to help him stay on his feet, “he’s just super territorial. Doesn’t like high-pitched screaming is all. It stresses him out.”

“Ah wis the one stressed out!”

Bunny sneezed.

Simon stubbed out his cigarette. “He probably thought you were a threat, mate”

“Simon—“

“Tae what?! The ecosystem?!”

At all the yelping, wheezing, exasperated grunts, and creaking of broken furniture, Gaz opens the back door cautiously. Cuppa already in hand from your said tea. “Everything alright?”

“Naw,” Soap snapped. “Naw, everythin’s no alright.”

“He met Bunny,” Simon said with a shrug. Lips quirking a bit like that explained it all.

Gaz sipped his tea at the entire scenery, stifling a humored smile. “Lucky you. He’s never chased me.”

At his words, Bunny turned his head toward Gaz slowly, ears perked. Position poised and nose twitching in interest.

Gaz. Quiet. Calm and Wise.

Immediately stepped back inside and closed the door.

You sighed, hands on your hips as you wave your hands in annoyance. “Okay. That’s it. Everyone back in the house. No one touches the chew. And Simon, you’re fixing the latch. Properly this time.”

Simon nodded solemnly at your scolding. Never one to argue with his birdie when he knows he did her wrong. “Aye. Before he learns to use keys.”

Bunny blinked slowly but obeyed without another huff. Then hopped — thumped — Regally. Menacingly. Triumphantly. Back into the house as well like a king returning to his throne.

Soap just stood there, winded. “I’m bringin’ a stun baton next time.”

You patted his arm reassuringly. Feeling a sense of guilt. “I'm so sorry darling. Just bring an apology gift next time. And maybe... kneepads yeah?”, you add.

Side-eyeing Simon as you two walk past him. Shooting him a warning look before leading Soap inside.

"One more word and you're sleeping on the couch"

"I didn't even say anything"

"That's the point"

masterlist

[manicmanuscription]

Don’t Be Mad Sweetheart

PolySJM Week: Day Three

Prompt: Will There Be Enough Room?

Parings: Azriel / Eris / Fenrys / Reader

Summary: Your mates refuse to leave your side even after a fight, your old bedroom might not be able to fight all of them.

Tags: Fluff, Angst, (In-Couple fighting??) a little spicey but no smut.

Word Count: 1229

PolySJM Week 2025 Masterlist | Acotar Masterlist

I woke to a heavy weight settled against my chest. I wasn’t able to move and panic quickly replaced grogginess as I opened my eyes. The moonlight illuminating Eris tucked in on my left, Fenrys on my right and Azriel laying on top of me, his wings spread out across the three of us and touching the floor. 

They looked rather pitiful. It was an incredibly small bed, Fenrys hulking body smashed against the wall and one of Eris’ legs and arms were hanging outside of it. I think Azriel’s feet might be hanging off the bed. 

I had cried myself to sleep last night in my old bed chambers, tucked away in the back rooms of the Forest House. Eris had gifted them to me when my mates and I were all still courting. He had given Fenrys a similar sad room and we had come to the conclusion that he had done that for the sole purpose of making us run to his bedroom instead, although the sly male would never admit it. 

I can’t believe they had the audacity to come sneak into my bed in the middle of the night after I told them I wanted space after our fight. Guilt and anger clouded my mind, they’d been neglecting me lately. Late nights spent doing their respective court duties and it had turned into a full blown argument, the worst one we’d have since being mated. 

They were confusing me, it warmed my heart they had all crammed their muscular warrior bodies into this tiny bed just to be with me but at the same time it only enraged me further. Now they want to be with me? And spent time with me? After I yelled at them and forced them too? Fuck. Off. 

Small swirling shadows curled up against my ear, comforting me and a few slithered down to my mates as well slowly stirring him. I tried to untangle myself from the mass of bodies but it made it difficult. It didn't help that an illyrian warrior had his face tucked on my stomach. I was surprised he wasn’t crushing me to death. 

I tried to lift him off of me again but he only tightened his grip on my waist.  Mumbling something and I groaned in annoyance. “What the hell are you oafs doing.” I snapped out, Azriel lifted his head blinking the sleep from his eyes. “What does it look like we’re doing?”

“Don’t smartmouth me.” 

“I wasn’t-”

“We haven’t spent a night apart, do you think we’re going to start now sweetheart.” Fenrys mumbled, his voice thick with exhaustion and he started running his fingers through my hair. Butterflies erupted in my stomach at the touch and I pushed it away.

“Surprised you even had the time to walk all the way down here.” I hissed. “Just, get off of me.” I said pushing at Azriel’s shoulders again, I knew they could feel the hurt down my bond, Azriel lifted himself on his forearms but made no move to fully remove himself. With Eris in the way I couldn’t exactly slide out from under him. I think the asshole was purposely blocking my exit.

“We’re not spending a night away from you.” Eris growled.

“No. I’m mad at you. Go sleep with the dryads for all I care.” Fuck them honestly. I already felt guilty for the things I’d said yet I was still angry at them. It wasn’t a good mix of emotions and it made my bad mood even worse. 

I crawled out from under Azriel, removing his arm and rolling myself on top of Eris. -Gods this mattress was tiny- All I had to do was roll down to the floor and find a different room to sleep in. One with a lock. 

Eris was faster than me and he trapped me close to him with his arms. He then flipped us around so he was pinning me to the mattress below him. Knocking Azriel into Fenrys in the process. “Ouch.” Azriel mumbled and Fenrys pressed a comforting kiss to the male’s forehead, then the corner of his mouth. 

“You can be mad at us and still share the same bed.” Eris demanded, it only made me angrier and I lifted myself, pressing my weight into my arms and elbows, our faces close together. “No, you don’t get to just command that of me you selfish, egomaniacal prick I-” 

Eris slammed his lips to mine, pulling a moan from me unbidden. I let it continue a few moments longer than it should’ve. Momentarily forgetting about everything that had transpired. 

When I did remember however I shoved him off me, pushing him into the duo tucked away to the corner of the mattress. Someone made a small ‘oomph’ sound and I swore a few pieces of the wall splintered as Fenrys got tucked further into it. 

God I was such a bitch- guilt made me start angry crying and I wiped away the tears as fast as I could. “You don’t get to just- don’t get to just fucking pretend I don’t exist and then demand we continue as if everything is normal.” I sobbed out, my breaths coming out unevenly and I tucked my knees to my chest. 

Movement stirred behind me, the mattress shifting with the males weight. One settled me into his chest and I recognized Fenrys by his scent. Eris by my side and Azriel in front of me, all somehow touching me and making the hurt worse and simultaneously calm me down. 

“We’re sorry baby.” Fenrys spoke softly, pressing a kiss to the juncture of my throat. “We want to  make it up to you.” Azriel agreed, running a hand up and down my leg. 

“I’m sorry love.” Eris was next to speak after a moment of hesitation he continued. “I didn’t mean to push you aside, I just- got wrapped up in my own head, in the court and pushed everyone past their limits. I didn’t mean to-” His voice broke slightly and I lifted me head so I could wrap my arms around his neck. “I’m sorry too.” 

“You have nothing to apologize for.”

“I was mean.”

“We were all mean.” Azriel uttered, his tone regretful. 

“We’re going to take a vacation, I promise.” Eris vowed, Fenrys smirked,  eyeing my body up and down. “Where we’re definitely going to try and make it up to you.” 

“Can we go back to bed now please.” The Illyrian yawned and I giggled at the sight of the three massive males all crammed into my tiny bed. 

Fenrys eyed the mattress as if it offended him. “Our bed please, I think this thing gave me permanent back issues.” 

“If Eris hadn’t stuck me in this room when I first arrived at Court your back would be saved from turmoil.” 

Eris smirked, leaning his head against the wall. “What can I say? I wanted you three in my bed.” 

“I fucking knew it!” Fenrys exclaimed and I just gave the red headed male an exasperated look. My mate picked me up and carried me from the dusty room. “We’re going to get him back for this.” He whispered softly in my ear, sending tingles down my spine. 

Eris and Azriel walked behind us hand in hand and I giggled against Fenrys’ chest. “One hundred percent.”

[norrissm]

⌗ under the city lights — ln4

stranger!lando x reader. fluff. accidental meeting. meeting a handsome stranger one night wasn’t what you expected after a rough day but the universe got your back. ★ LIBRARY

the thing about strangers is that they remain strangers. unknown, masked and blurred faces walking in masses from places unknown to destinations unremarkable to us. a brief moment of eyes contract, muffled excuse mes, thank yous and maybe even a smile, if you meet a particularly nice one, otherwise they remain unnamed. just another face in a myriad group of faces.

they pass you by on dimly lit streets, their hands buried in coat pockets, their minds preoccupied with places they need to be, people they need to see. most of the time, you don’t stop. you don’t turn around. you don’t wonder about the way their mouth curls slightly at the corners, like they know a secret the rest of the world hasn’t figured out yet.

its unremarkable really.

except tonight you do. particularly— you walk into him.

a hurried pace destined to the station, neck peeping out the thick sweater, mind preoccupied by a thousand thoughts. maybe he was the same. eyes looking forward but not really. eyes hiding the roar of thoughts and feelings, walking on default, legs moving with a determination of their own— knowing exactly where to stop. albeit failing to see you. a body coming from the opposite.

“shit—sorry,” you say, stumbling back a step.

“no, that was—yeah, my bad,” he replies at the exact same time.

out of habit or maybe manners or maybe both, we bend down to retrieve what had fallen with a dull thud — the keys or your book, something unmemorable really — when our fingers grazed. suddenly it was remarkable.

i looked up to find him looking at me already.

strangers don’t do that. there’s no emotion behind the accidental eye contacts while walking or sitting in the train. it’s just a brush of eyes with no real motive. this was different. he looked at me with a motive.

his hair is a little messy, like he’s run his hands through it too many times today. there’s a faint crease between his brows, the kind that suggests he overthinks things, and his lips part slightly like he has something to say but isn’t sure if he should say it.

he was the first one to ask. “are you okay?” no one’s moved to leave yet. why?

“yeah i’m alright, you?” i ask too. he nods, his hands in his pocket again. his eyes stayed on mine. no that’s not right, right?

“do you, uh…” he hesitated, rubbing the back of his neck. “do you always bump into strangers like this, or am i just lucky?”

you want to tell him that this is ridiculous, that strangers don’t linger on sidewalks and exchange unnecessary words about nothing in particular—but you don’t. instead, you look at him, and for the first time tonight, you don’t feel like you need to be anywhere else.

“depends,” i say instead. shocked at myself. “do you make small talk with people you knocked down?” he’s a stranger.

“depends, are you worth knowing?”

my smile deepens, slow and knowing, and suddenly, the night doesn’t seem so quiet anymore.

its remarkable really.

a/n :: i think this is my favourite one ive written so far

reblog and follow <3 all rights reserved ©️norrissm please do not copy, save, or translate my stories.

[motthe]

hiii !! just read like ,, a BUNCH of ur lumen au stuff ,,,, truly i am brainrotted now because i'm just thinking of so many different scenarios involving the lumens and i am just . EXCITED !!! its SUCHHHH a good concept im a big big sucker for soulmate stuff ,,,,

i was just wondering how you feel about jayvik x reader ,,,, TWO lumens ,,,,,,,, idk if you write for anything poly or not, but id love to hear your thoughts on it !!! either through headcanons or a ficlet, whichever you feel like :]

my first viktor x reader x jayce piece i’ve ever written… wait is this my first poly drabble?? it might be actually! i hope it’s fun to read ♥️

warnings: fem!reader, slight negative feelings of not being good enough, but overall fluff!!!

The scientific jargon that came with having not one but both of your fated being inventors was overwhelming. The words they tossed around became an entire other language since you’d all gotten closer. It left you feeling unbearably empty-headed, wondering why the universe would bond you to such intelligent men.

They were already changing an entire city with their ideas, and you would bet the world would soon bear their mark as well. In comparison, you were a meager artist making ends meet at festivals and street corners. Sure, maybe your work could be seen on a few shop signs or covering a wall or two in a cafe, but that was as famous as you’d ever be—a stranger to the passing eye.

“We need to widen the cylindrical chamber, maybe add an exhaust pipe to help with the cooldown.”

Jayce’s voice slipped through your head, smooth and confident and making no sense. You’d gotten rather good and tuning out the meat of the conversations, only recognizing the tones and emotions.

The heavy, warm accent of Viktor’s replied, swirling in the back of your mind as your pencil swiped over the heavy parchment against your thighs.

Recently, they’d begun inviting you to their lab to spend your free time in their company. There were two desks to choose from, though they were usually piled high with blueprints or notes. Jayce had moved a couch into the space for your comfort, placed in the corner and under a window, well away from any dangerous work they had their hands on, though they usually took anything too precarious into another portion of the building.

Their assistant, Sky, was in and out, always double-checking if you needed anything. She was a kind young woman, curly hair and glasses and a smile that made anyone feel at home. She brought you your own coffee and snacks, promising it was no trouble since she was already bringing them to Viktor and Jayce, anyway.

“You actually eat them,” she chuckled. “Jayce will if he notices they’re there, but it’s a long shot most days.”

You understood what she meant, seeing how focused the men became on their gadgets and studies. You’re sure if you got up and left they wouldn’t notice for a good, long while.

Today was one of those days, though there was peace in your private little corner as you sketched away. You squinted over the top of your sketchbook, skimming the outline of Viktor’s goggles pressed into his thick, winding hair and quickly adding the little licks of tresses to the paper before he was moving again.

You switched targets, taking in Jayce’s side profile and adding a bit more depth to his eyebrow and under eye.

Taking a moment to look between both drawings, you were hit with their beauty once more.

Jayce was deemed the academy’s “pretty boy,” with his strong jaw and perfect smile. He was a clean cut handsome, peak health and built with broad shoulders. He knew how to use those looks to his advantage.

On the other end was Viktor. He was a haunting beauty, sleek and angular. If he had the same charisma with speaking to the masses as Jayce did, that accent would gain him more than a fair share of admirers, but his confidence and skills lied elsewhere. He had a sharp eye and wore his emotions rather loudly on his face.

Where Jayce had faint lines from how much he smiled, Viktor had a feather soft crease between his brows from how often he furrowed them. Where the golden boy’s hands were always warm, his partner’s was cold. They made such gorgeous opposites, yet they held so many comparisons in mannerisms when it came to their shared hobbies and passions.

It was safe to say you adored them and their intricacies.

Taking a slow, deep breath you checked both shoulders before moving the tuft of black in your periphery into your hand. Gold shimmered between the dark mass that made up Jayce’s lumen, settling deeper into your palm as you raised your arms and stretched.

When you moved your drawing pad to the side, you spotted Viktor’s wedged between the apex of your thighs. Swallowing your gasp, you scooped it up, praying it hadn’t been smushed the entire time.

“When did you get there?” you whispered, rubbing your pointer finger into the tawny fuzz of his light. His lumen had always had a bit more give to it, leaving it to wedge itself under your leg or your shirt collar. Viktor’s preferred to be as close as possible to you, even if it left his lumen squished.

Jayce’s lumen was firmer, still soft but in a velveteen sort of sensation. It was bigger, taking up a good portion of your palm. Now your second month with it, you’d learned if it wasn’t on one of your shoulders, it was likely circling your head. His never went far either.

You wondered if you’d received Jayce’s lumen first, if it would have more of an attachment to you. As it stood, you’d had Viktor’s since you were young while he’d held Jayce’s and Jayce yours. The three of you being tied together had become quite the story as there went many outward poly fateds in Piltover, but luckily the gawking had passed after the first handful of weeks.

It was only a few days ago that Viktor confessed he’d been rather confused when he’d met Jayce and the lumens had flashed against one another.

“There were no similarities,” he’d explained, holding up one long, thin finger for your lumen to rest on as it hovered in front of him. The three of you were cozied up in your lackluster apartment—a studio more than a bedroom but it had a nice pullout couch and plenty of blankets to rest on in front of your heater. “Jayce was ecstatic, of course, but I was ruminating over your lumen when we first met.”

“I thought he hated me,” Jayce had murmured, breath warm against your ear as you laughed.

“I did not hate you,” huffed Viktor on your other side, rolling his eyes as he dropped his hand, your lumen resting within. “I wasn’t aware we had a third, yet—it was puzzling.”

“I had to explain it to him,” Jayce chuckled. “One of my old friends was in a poly.”

“And, then, he was even more ecstatic,” Viktor sighed but there was affection in it. “I thought you’d follow him home some nights.”

“And leave you all by yourself?” You laid your head on his shoulder, grinning as his eyes fled. It was still so early into the relationship, and he grew flustered with physical affection whereas Jayce sought it every chance. “I’d never.”

“It’s better now, we’re all together,” Jayce hummed, lowering to lay his head in your lap. You brushed your hand through his hair, smiling as his lumen lit up in Viktor’s lap.

“Yes,” Viktor had agreed, careful as he laid his head against yours. “It all feels…complete.”

Your chest warmed at the memory as you held both of their lumens in your hands, giving a fleeting kiss to each. Viktor’s snuggled happily into your palm while Jayce’s pulsed a happy gold before flying off, likely to check in with Viktor.

As your eyes lifted to follow its journey, you jumped when you found Jayce smiling from a few feet away by his desk. He seemed to be shuffling through some papers. Your lumen floated just nice his head, twinkling in the sunlight that shone through the windows behind you.

“Didn’t see you there,” you said, stretching your legs out before standing. Viktor’s lumen left your hand, keeping close to your neck.

“I hope you’re not bored.” He opened an arm up and you approached. You still grew giddy with any chance to be wrapped in his embrace, quick to accept the invitation.

“I like spending time here with you both,” you assured, giggling as he bent down to kiss your forehead. “Gives me plenty of practice.”

His eyes lit up, one of those dark eyebrows lifting. “Oh?”

“I know what you’re about to ask—”

“Please?” His arm wrapped tighter around your waist. “I wanna see.”

“They’re just rough sketches!” you laughed, pushing against his chest.

“C’mon, I bet they’re great! I’m sure Viktor wants to see them, too.”

You shook your head, a mess of giggles as he wrapped both arms around you and slowly edged his way towards the couch.

“Did someone call my name?” asked Viktor, turning from the machine he was working on. A torch was in his hand but luckily still off for the time being. Jayce’s lumen was sitting on his knee.

“Viktor tell her you want to see her art!” Jayce goaded.

“Tell him he needs to wait for a real piece,” you threw back, wrinkling your nose at him as he stuck his tongue out.

“You’ve been drawing us?” Viktor’s voice seeped with awe and innocent curiosity. “May we see?”

Jayce bounced his eyebrows at you, all too smug. “Told you.”

“Fine—fine!” you sighed, throwing your hands up and wiggling out of his hold as you went to grab your canvas notebook. “Don’t gripe when you see your half-finished faces.”

The tap of Viktor’s crutch intermingled with Jayce’s footsteps as they met you by the couch. As you handed over your work, Viktor was the one to accept it as Jace stood over him. Both their eyes went wide at the current page and your hand went straight to your arm as you shuffled in place.

“Those are just warmups, so…”

“Warmups?” Jayce breathed, looking up from the notebook. “These are amazing!”

“I have to agree, the detail is astounding,” Viktor hummed, looking to turn back a page. He caught your eyes before he did. “Is this all right? Tell us if we’re overstepping.”

“No, it’s okay! I’m used to people watching me draw on the street, it’s just… I don’t know.” You shrugged, bringing a hand up as Viktor’s lumen rubbed against your neck. Jayce’s was just settling on your shoulder again. “I care about what you guys think. It’s not anything big like you do, but…”

“Big?” Jayce echoed, both of their sights set on you.

“Well, it’s not as important as what you both do is what I mean.”

“Of course it’s important,” Viktor argued, expression stern.

“But it’s art!” you laughed, waving off the sudden seriousness growing from them. “It’s helping a bunch of people like your creations do. That’s much more important.”

“Art is just as, if not more, important,” he continued, passing the notebook to Jayce. “We are helping people in different ways, but do not do yourself the disservice and think what you create is anything less than what we do.”

“He’s right,” Jayce agreed, holding up your work. “This? This speaks to people. Your work can bring life to a room and lets people save a special moment in time.”

“Okay, don’t butter me up so much or I’ll melt!” you squeaked, too embarrassed to look at them as they chuckled and continued flipping through your sketches. It wasn’t long before the three of you were on the couch, both of them pointing out their favorites.

“Is my hair truly that messy?” Viktor grumbled, raising a hand to it. “Perhaps I should cut it.”

“No, I like it,” you said, grabbing his wrist. “You twirl it when you’re thinking! It’s so sweet.”

He blinked at you. “I do?”

Jayce whistled and you turned and gasped, completely forgetting the drawing you’d done of him in the forge. It was more from memory so your imagination had left it a bit more detailed than the rest.

“Okay, that’s enough!”

You swiped for the book, shutting it as Jayce laughed. Viktor rolled his eyes, smirking as he nudged your shoulder.

“Should I be worried of any scandalous pieces of me in there?”

You pouted, holding the notebook tighter to your chest.

“Oh?” Jayce breathed. “She didn’t say no!”

“You two are the worst!” you groaned, unable to help yourself from smiling as they both laughed in tandem.

[homestylehughes]

forbidden love

pairing(s): nico hischier x fem!hughes sister

summary: what happens when they both want a love that's forbidden? 

warnings: fluff, sooo much flufffff. nicos a cute little baby in this. shy, nervous and cute reader. use of pet names and y/n. cussing, implied smut 18+ intense makeout, nothing too heavy.

wc: 3.6k 

an: hiiiiii loves!!! NICO FIC NICO FIC NICO FIC!!!! about damn time!! loveeee nico. hes so ?? to many words. i really enjoyed writing this. this is my first hughes sister story i've written, and i loveeee, hopefully you guys do too! i had trouble deciding if i should make this a cliffhanger or not... i kinda did but i think i want a part 2 if you guys want that!!! share your opinions, i love hearing them!! anyways i hope you enjoy, this might be my favorite piece yet. i hope you guys enjoy! like and reblog if you do, much love as always<3

happy reading <3

Nico knew he couldn't have you, but he wanted you anyway. Being Luke and Jack's older sister, made you off limits to anybody on the team, older or not. Nico had not always felt this way about you until recently. 

Ever since Jack got drafted to the devils, and then luke, he started to see you at more fundraising events held by the devils, team outings whenever you were in town visiting. Stealing little glances at you when you were in the same room, being pulled in by your smile and how you moved your hands as you talked to anyone and everyone. 

If that didn't already pull him into you even more, what did was, how you acted with the rest of the team treating all of the boys like they're our own family. Always greeting nico with a shy smile and hi, making conversation about anything, hockey related or not. 

Nico was enhanced by you, but he couldn't have you, which brings you guys to this moment. 

– 

“Jack if you don't answer your phone, god help me” I yell shout out, as I call Jack for the 10th time in the span of 15 minutes. Already calling Luke’s phone around 30 times, still no answer. My hands are shaking as I type out random masses of texts to both of them.

So maybe taking an impromptu trip to see my brothers wasn't the best idea. living in vancouver had its perks, being close to Quinn was one of them but i missed my two younger brothers, or maybe i should say assholes since neither of them can answer their phones. 

I'm standing outside their apartment soaked from head to toe, not thinking about the rain, nor was I thinking about the fact that they had moved, leaving me with no key to their place.

 So I'm stuck, knowing there's nothing I can do. I pull my suitcase over to the wall, slowly and dramatically slide down the wall, letting out a deep sigh as I do. My phone is almost dead, I'm hungry, jetlagged, annoyed, cold, wet and so many other words right now. 

Dropping my head into my arms that rest on my knees, deciding that this will be my final resting place, for tonight. I hear the elevator door ding open on the floor, not bothering to look up knowing it's neither jack or luke walking down the hall.

“y/n” I hear my voice with a thick accent say, knowing the voice I slowly lift my head up, locking eyes with the one and only Nico Hischier “Hi..” I mutter back embarrassed at the fact that look like a lost wet dog right now in front of him.

“Are you okay, did something happen?” he asks back as he begins to walk closer to me. “I uhh…wanted to surprise Jack and Luke but it seems like they aren't here.” i sign out, “to make it worse i don't have a key to their apartment, they're not answering my calls or texts. My phones almost dead and i'm covered in wet rain and i'm cold.'' I huff out the last part, my eyes beginning to fill with tears. I close my eyes quickly not wanting to look like a fool even more and cry in front of nico.

“Oh y/n”, expecting him to just stand there, instead he makes his way to me taking a seat on the ground next to me. "What are you doing nico?” I say, opening my eyes again, turning my head to lock my eyes with his. I get a good look at him for the first time since this, and fuck is he beatiful. 

His deep voice snapping me out of my trance as he speaks, “sitting with you, what else does it look like.” he says followed with a soft chuckle. “Nico, you don't have to do that, I'm okay, you can go home, I'm sure you're tired.” instantly feeling bad he's wasting his night away with me out here. 

“Jack and Luke would kill me if I left you out here by yourself”, “if I don't kill them myself” I say back my eyes now dropping back my feet. That earns a laugh from Nico, he has such a nice laugh, I think to myself. y/n, snap out of it and get it together. 

Sitting up straighter, pulling my head to lean against the wall, mirroring nicos position. “Are you sure? You don't have too, i'm not even sure when they'll be back.'' I say looking at Nico, who's looking back at me. “Well I do have another idea,” he says, licking his lips before speaking again. “I live right down the hall, if you'd like you can stay with me until they come back.” 

“Nico i can't do that, i feel bad”, “don't feel bad, i'm offering. I'm leaving you out here by yourself.” he repeated to me again. My heart picks up at his words. Taking a deep breath, I weigh my options in my head, knowing that this is probably the best option, but also my worst. 

How am i going to survive with very, sweet, hot, sexy, nice, handsome, pretty, swiss caption of the new jersey devils, nico hischier? I'm probably not, but at least I'll die happy and not here. 

“Okay, I'll come. Thank you so much nico.” I finally answered him, “dont worry about it, come on let's get you changed and warmed up i can't imagine how cold and tired you are” he says with a soft loving look on his face. Getting up before me, holding out his hand for me to grab, pulling me up from the floor. His hand feels so soft and warm in mine, I don't want to let go. 

Pulling my hand out of Nico’s, I go to grab my suitcase, to follow him down the hall, before I can fully grab it Nico has it in his hands. “Nico..i can grab my own suitcase” “i know you can, but i want to do it, so i am” he says as he looks back at me smiling. 

Ignoring how his smile made my whole body tingle, I sigh out and shake my head as a small smile breaks through on my lips, as I follow Nico down the hall. 

Stopping at his place, only a few doors down from my brothers, popping in the key and turning the lock, quickly opening the door. He motions for me to go in first, I give him a small smile as I enter the apartment. 

Taking in the place around me, pictures of his family and teammates over the walls, little nicnacs that fill the space, it feels like home. “Does my place give you your approval?” he says from behind me, “yes it does, jack and luke need to take a few home decor lessons from you.” that earns me another laugh from nico. 

“Let me show you the guest bedroom” he says, leading me through the apartment, down a hall, opening a door which I assume is in the guest room. “Here's the guest room, hopefully it's okay and comfortable for you, I wasn't expecting anyone over anytime soon and i-” “Nico'' I say, cutting off his ramble. “It's perfect, thank you” I say walking in front of him, pulling him into a hug. 

God, he smells so good. The way his warm body is wrapped around me like a warm blanket, I don't want to pull away, but I do after a few moments. 

“You're welcome y/n” he says looking at me again, i can feel my heart beginning to heat up. Clearing his throat before looking away, “the bathroom is at the end of the hall, my room is at the beginning of the hall.” he says, while pointing in the direction. Nodding in understanding even though he can't see me. 

“Feel free to shower and get changed, i'm going to head to the kitchen to start making dinner” he says now turning back to face me, “nicooo… you don't have to cook anything. You're already doing so much for me by letting me stay here, really” 

“Now what kind of host would I be, if I let a pretty girl like you starve under my watch.” Nico replies with a teasing smile on his face. “A bad one i guess” I smile breaking through my face. “You called me pretty” I said again, my eyes never leaving his. “I did, because you are.” he says before walking out of the room, leaving me stunned.

“Do you have any special requests for dinner?” I hear him shout from the kitchen, popping my head out of the room, “no! Surprise me!” I replied. 

This is dangerous, I can not think or find him attractive. He’s my brother's captain, teammate and also one of their closest friends. I have to keep it together. 

I gather my things to take a shower, making my way to the bathroom, shutting the door and turning the shower on. I then work on peeling off my semi- wet clothes off my body, the relief filling my veins once they're finally off, finally making my way into the shower. The hot water relaxes my body instantly. Throughout the whole shower all of my thoughts are about Nico, and I'm going to act once I get out of here, making me nervous and feeling things. Things i shouldn't feel. 

Turning off the shower, getting out and drying myself quickly. I began getting redressed again, clearing the mirror to take a look at myself, the old devils shirt i've had for god knows how long, that's probably three sizes too big, and shorts that you cant even see. Not bothering to pack pants, because I thought I would be staying with my brothers, not Nico.

 Inserucies start to plague my mind but I push them down. brushing my hair, fixing my shirt, deciding that it's good enough. Grabbing my things before making my back to the guest bedroom. dropping off my things in the room before taking a deep breath making my way towards the kitchen. 

Walking into the kitchen, nicos back is turned to me. A sight that I'm not complaining about seeing. The way his mussels are ripping through his shirt, is enough to make my mouth water. What I'm doing. Get it together. 

Walking further into the kitchen, I get a better look at what he's cooking, pasta boiling the water and it looks like he's making a type of sauce. Smiling softly to myself, at how sweet he is. 

“Do you need any help?” I say breaking the silence. Nico turned around quickly, a smile dancing on his face. “No, I'm okay, thank you though. How was your shower?” he asks before turning back to the stove again. 

“It was good, thank you” I say, still standing awkwardly in the kitchen, not sure where to go or what to do. “I can feel your nerves from over here y/n.” nicos voice breaks through the kitchen as he speaks, “I'm sorry, I'm nervous.” I nervously laughed out loud. “Why?” Nico says as he circles his way around the counter leaning against it, in front of me. 

“You make me nervous, I don't know how to act around you.'' I said truthfully to him, while looking in his eyes. “You make me nervous too, don't worry” he says as he looks me up and down, his gaze feels like summer sun on my skin, leaving trails of heat throughout my body. 

“Dinner will be ready in 15 minutes, feel free to take a seat, or keep standing there checking me out. Either work for me” nico says to me, winking as he walks around the kitchen again. I'm frozen in place. What just happened? Is Nico flirting with me? The wink? Holy shit.

My mind and body are on fire, as I walk over to the island to sit down. Tension fills the air, I sit there for a few minutes trying to wrack my brain of something to say.

Nico beats me to it before I have the chance to open my mouth. “You look different” he says, back still turned towards me. “What do you mean by different? Is that a good or bad thing?”. “Not bad,” he replies now, turning to look at me, “just older, I'm not sure how to explain it, but you look good.” 

“Thank you?” i say my cheeks are warming with blush. “You’re welcome” he hums back. “You look really good too” I say, Nico chuckles at me “shit, sorry. You look good like everything you know? Mussels, everything. I'm rambling, shit. this is embarrassing." I say, dropping my head into my hands with a groan. 

“I found it cute, don't worry pretty girl.'' Turning around to get plates out of the cabinet.  Pretty girl. Gosh he's making it harder to not go pounce on him right this second. 

“Dinners done, are you ready to eat?” he says a few moments later, nodding my head at nico as he looks my way. Grabbing two plates filling them with the pasta he made , which looked so good. My stomach growling, reminding me how hungry I am. 

Placing my plate in front of me, along with a glass of wine that I didn't even see him pour. “I think you might need this after today” he says justering to the wine, as he takes a seat next to me. “How'd you know?” I slowly laughed to him, “this food looks so good, nico. Thank you so much” 

“You don't have to thank me, y/n but, you're very welcome.” he says to me. “Now eat, I heard your stomach growl in the kitchen.” he says in a teasing tone. My eyes widened, quickly grabbing my fork, and digging in. the flavors, melting on my tongue. I internally moan at the taste.”fuck this is so good” i say with a mouth half full. Forgetting Nico is right next to me, I'm quick to cover my mouth with my hand. 

“I'm glad you enjoy it.” Nico says, smiling at me before taking another bite. Nico and I make small talk as we eat, talking about anything from hockey and my brothers to my job in Vancouver, and everything in between. Finding myself laughing and blushing more than I would have liked. Nicos charm pulled me in, and I couldn't find a care in me to stop falling for it. 

“Thank you again for dinner nico” I say as he clears the plates. “Of course, not everyday I get to cook for thee, y/n hughes” “shut up” I laugh back at him. 

“At least let me do those dishes, since you made dinner,” I say , making my way to the sink where Nico is standing. “No way, go sit back down,” Nico says, looking down at me. “I'm not taking no for an answer nico.” I say placing my hands on my hips, “fine, but I'll dry them.” he says, narrowing his eyes at me.

 “I know why Jack and Luke say you're bossy”. “Hey now. I'm not that bossy, shut it” turning my body away from him as I speak. Turning on the sink, grabbing the sponge and soap, and began washing the plates in the sink.

Nico just chuckles in response. We began a system of wash, dry, wash dry. The silence is comfortable as we work in peace. It almost feels domestic? Something that I could get used to. y/n stop thinking about that. It will never happen.

“y/n” nico says snapping me out of my day dream, “hmm?” “You've been washing the same plate for the last 2 minutes. I'm pretty sure that it's clean ""oh!" I say looking down at the practically shiny plate in my hands, “here you go I'm sorry” handing him the plate, our hands grazing, making my heart rate speed up. 

I have to get out of the kitchen, I say to myself. Turning off the water and drying my hands on the towel, stepping away from the sink, locking my eyes on my sock covered feet. 

“Are you okay?” Nico asks me, raising my head to look at him. “Yes I'm okay, just tired,” I say softly. “I think I might head to bed, see if Jack or Luke responded to me or not.” 

“Of course, feel free.” Nico says, while putting the dishes away. “Okay..thank you again for dinner, again. Goodnight.” I say as I make my way out of the kitchen, Nico following behind me. “Good night y/n.” he says to me with a small smile on his face, i smile in return and make my way to the guest room for the night. 

Closing the door behind me, I let out a breath I didn't even know I was holding in. making my way over to the phone to see that neither jack or luke have responded to me, a frown falling on my face. I call them each again, even sending Quinn a text asking if he's heard of them. 

Locking my phone, setting it back on the bedside table, I pull back the blankets settling into the bed. Slowly sinking into the comfort of the bed, I can feel the effects of today hitting my body. My eyes slowly closing, the one thing crossing my mind is nico. 

Just as I'm able to fully close my eyes, I hear a knock on the door. Getting out of bed, opening the door to see a now shirtless nico in sweatpants standing in front me. Hair messy, like he's been running his hand constantly through it. 

“Everything okay, did you need something?” I ask him, trying to keep my eyes on his face only. “Everything is fine, yes” he replies to me quickly. “Are you sure?” I ask again, feeling like he hasn't told me the whole story yet.

“Can I do something?” He asks me if I can feel his eyes looking at my lips, “yes?” I say swallowing quickly. Nico takes a step more, until he's directly in front of me, his face a few inches from mine. 

“I shouldn't want to kiss you y/n '' he begins, my breath hitching as he places both of his hands on my hips, his thumbs tracing small circles on them. “I shouldn't have these thoughts about you. Youre jack and lukes older sister, fuck i should be thinking about you like this.” he says now locking his eyes with mine.

“I can't help myself though, everything about you is perfect. I want you all to myself.” one of his hands begins tracing up my side, making its way to the side of my neck holding it place, lifting my head to meet his face better. 

“I want you so bad. I can't have you though. You're like a forbidden fruit that i want to taste and kiss and love so bad but i can't have you, and it's killing me.” he finishes dropping his head lower to mine, our faces now only a few centimeters apart. 

“Who says you can't have me?” I say softly, not trusting my voice, trailing my hands around his neck. “What if I want you too?” I whisper out before connecting our lips together. 

Nico is quick to respond, pulling my body flush against his, our lips dancing together. His hand trailing down to my ass, grabbing a handful of it before pulling away, smiling at me, “I've wanted to do that all day” he smirked at me, before connecting our lips together again. His tongue enters my mouth as we fight for dominance, deciding to let Nico win. 

I began to walk backwards towards the bed, hoping Nico would follow. Before I know it he's picking me up, throwing me over his shoulder, walking down the hallway and tossing me on the bed in his bedroom. 

I look at the room around me, taking in every detail, before locking eyes with nico who's now looking at me from above. The way his chain dangles in my face, and his brown eyes look in the dimly lit room, and how his chest rises and falls is a sight I want to see forever and forever.

“Take a picture, it'll last longer.” he smirks to me, “you're just so pretty” i say as i run my hands through his hair. “Isn't that something i'm supposed to say?” he asks as he begins to place soft kisses down my exposed neck. 

“Maybe you could show me instead?” I say, pushing my lips to his again. His hands quickly fell underneath my shirt, tracing up my bare sides. I remove my hands from nicos hair, pushing myself up from the bed. Pulling off my shirt, throwing it somewhere behind us, clipping my bra, tossing it in the same direction as my shirt. Now leaving myself completely bare in front of nico besides my shorts. 

Our chests are raising and falling together, our eyes locked. “y/n..” nico says to me breathlessly. “Fuck you’re so beautiful” his hands running along my bare sides and underneath my breasts. “Are you sure about this?” he asks me, our faces close together again, “i've never been so sure about anything in my life, Nico please touch me.” desperation in my voice dripping like honey. 

A growl like noise rips through nico, as he reconnects our lips together again. His hands are everywhere, heat spreading all throughout my body. I feel him everywhere. I want him everywhere. 

If he's a forbidden fruit, then why does it feel so good? 

[ssvbse]

Suit & Tie

Logan Howlett (Wolverine) x F!Reader | 1.2k

Summary: Attempting to impress you, Logan gets tangled in a suit.

Warnings/Tags: fluff, Logan's self conscious, reader works in some kind of a prestigious environment

"Logan?" you called, announcing yourself. You brushed your knuckles across the cracked door. "Are you almost ready?"

Audibly bristling in frustration, he halted your probing with a strike to the door. Wood to wood, the door rattled within its frame, a hairline fracture sprouting from the fitted handle.

His voice was muffled by a screwed jaw: "Don't come in."

You frowned, trying the loosened handle only to feel a countering weight keeping the door closed.

"Do you need help with anything?" you asked.

"No!" he snarled, a second thud shuddering the entirety of the door. The metallic handle promptly fell from its compromised cavity, just missing your foot as it dented the cheap wood flooring. "No, I don't need your help."

You pursed your lips. "Do you want me to call Wade? I know he's not great at helping with..." You thought for a moment. "...anything I s'pose, but maybe–"

"No!" he repeated. "No, I don't need help. Just—just give me a damn second–"

The door dipped beneath his weight, and he growled out of frustration, the crack webbing out along the strain.

"Logan," you murmured, sliding your finger along the splitting wood. "Why don't you open up."

He sighed, exasperation tearing a whine from his throat and the dent in the door lifted. You gently insisted it open, his tower shadow consuming you.

"Now, don't tell me you're getting cold feet about this–" you murmured lightly, only to struggle to complete the humorous attempt as your mouth dried.

Burned by a razor, hair slicked back to his skull, and a tie wound around his suit collar like a noose, Logan looked like he had been banished to Hell.

"'Picture would last longer," he grunted, crossing his arms. The poorly tailored fabric strained around the mass of his muscle, the taunt stitches wrinkling the sleeves.

"Logan..." you said, approaching him.

"Don't 'Logan' me," he snapped, turning away as his neck flushed red. "I look like an idiot."

"You don't look like an idiot," you said, struggling to fight off the smile crinkling your eyes as you smoothed your hand down his jacket. The blazer struggled to stretch over the expanse of his chest, hugging tight to the cups of his shoulders and surely digging into the hollows of his arms.

You flicked the tie knotted around his neck, eyes flitting up to his.

"Were you trying to hang yourself?"

The blush crept up to his cheeks, and he grunted.

"Funny," he bit, looking away as you untangled the fabric from his irritated throat. "'Soundin' better and better by the second."

"I must've gotten here just in time then," you said, watching the hair along his neck raise as you freed him of the constriction. He swallowed, defined Apple bobbing around a thick wad of embarrassment.

You smoothed your thumb over the tie, straightening the wrinkles. "'Wade put you up to this?"

You received only a stiff nod in response as you tossed the tie back around his neck.

"I'm assuming the hair is his handy-work, too?"

His heavy eyes bore into yours.

"You're teasing me."

"No," you said, the tips of your lips riding the apples of your cheeks. "Just curious of what he thought when he saw you like this."

He watched your fingers artfully braid the tie.

"'Doesn't matter what he thinks," Logan said, looking away again. "Wasn't tryin' to do it for him."

You straightened the flaps of his blazer and tucked the tie behind them. "All this suffering just for me then, huh?"

"'m not sufferin'," he murmured, though the stutter in his exhale said differently. "'Just wanted to–" He swallowed "–look normal..." his eyes found yours, "for you," and they flickered away, "for once."

Your lips rounded around an expression of surprise and collapsed a moment later.

"Oh," you said. "Did Wade say something?"

"'Course he fucking did," he huffed as he rolled his shoulders back. His imposing posture nearly split the seam along his bulging delts. "'Moron can't keep his damn mouth shut. 'Just lookin' to piss me off."

You followed the fold of his coat, straightening the flaps and adjusting his twisted, undershirt collar.

"Little brothers tend to do that," you said, smoothing your hand over the tense line of his shoulders. His nostrils flared as he warmed your face with a heated exhale. "Especially when they know they'll get a big reaction."

His chin jutted out in stubbornness.

"'Not that big of a reaction."

You caught his arm as he drew them to his chest in an attempt to shield your subtle prying, slipping your hot thumb beneath the cuff of his undershirt and pressing the pad to his pulse point.

"You're in a suit, Logan," you said, a smile blessing your face as you slid your hand along his smooth cheek, caressing the fresh skin. "You shaved. What did that poor man say to you?"

Firm lines marred his reluctant expression, his messily trimmed brows knitting together with a tangle of sheepish wrinkles.

"'s nothin'," he murmured, brushing you off. "'Just mentioned one of your coworker's 's all."

Your brows brushed your hairline.

"'Said you'd—" relaying the words seemed to pain him, "been... showing interest lately." He inhaled sharply, rolling his jaw. "'Said you deserved a proper man," he said, gesturing to the invisible foe, "like one of them."

His frown dug deep into his cheeks as his arm fell back to his side. "Not a hairy, sweaty beast," he said, finally meeting your eyes, "like me."

You studied his face, watching the way his jaw jumped to the rhythm of his bouncing lip.

"So you... borrowed Wade's suit and..." you gently insisted his chin up, studying the damage the razor had done to the line of his jaw, "and shaved?"

"If you want a proper man, I'll give you a proper man."

You pursed your lips, finally taking in the entirety of what this was.

A mask—a facade of peer-induced self loathing.

Gently, you insisted the front of his blazer open, undoing the top buttons of his undershirt. Under the restricting white fabric was the expanse of his freed, sun-kissed skin. A grove of soft, curly black hair rolled over the golden fields of his chest.

You leaned in closer, nose prickly at the comforting, woodsy smell of Logan, his musk no longer suffocated by the artificial smell Wade had surely lent him.

You dragged your nose up, pressing a sweet kiss to the pit of his collarbone, humming at the way his breath hitched.

"It's a good thing I don't want a proper man then," you murmured, raking your hand through his hair and breaking up the greasy mess, "isn't it?"

He blinked, taut expression finally giving some slack. Where once lay doubt, now settled resolve, and a relieved smile tugged at his lips.

"Yeah," he murmured, barely biting back his grin, "'spose that's good."

"Good," you said, ensuring the top buttons of his dress shirt remained undone and making quick work of undoing the tie.

"Shave again, and I'll kill you, Howlett, understand?"

"Yes, ma'am."

[captain-joongz]

On the wind of morning; Dragonheart ch.1

Pairing: OT7 dragon!BTS x knightess!reader

Genre: dragon rider AU, high fantasy, soulmate adjacent, slight enemies to lovers (if you squint), angst, fluff and humour, eventual smut

Chapter summary: The capital is as unwelcoming as ever, father as disappointed as one can be and the new unit dynamics are challenging, but you finally meet your dragon.

Word count: 22.1k

Warnings: some bad family dynamics, toxic father shenanigans, some displays of slavery, talks of slavery, there's a pov switch near the end so watch out for that, otherwise not much

Series masterlist | Next part | Lore | Dictionary

A/N: here comes the first chapter!! i hope it meets the expectations and you enjoy yourself while reading! don't be shy, tell me what you think and how you like it! <3 PS: the words that are underlined are linked to chapter notes with explanations and a dictionary ;) they're a little messy atm but i'm trying to find a way to make it easier

I disliked the royal castle. It was a dark hulking mass of stone that blocked out all the sunlight and drained all warmth from everything and everyone inside. It casted a massive shadow over its surroundings, and you were never free of the feelings of oppressiveness as soon as you were in its vicinity.

The moment you stepped in, you shivered and with every passing second you’d be colder and bitterer, sitting in a dark hallway feeling your fingers slowly freeze while the silence crushed you from all sides. The atmosphere was always sombre and tinged with the sour note of fear, you could see it in the way no one dared to speak, no one felt like smiling and all the servants were walking briskly with their heads down.

I disliked the castle, and I hated staying in it.

While of course, it was sitting on a big black rock by one of the rockiest and coldest shores in the empire, and the weather often reflected that with harsh winds and heavy rains; but the worst were the occupants, who managed to be colder and more inhospitable than the heavens themselves. They were the ones who made the structure so unwelcoming, who made you feel uncomfortable and who enjoyed belittling others until no one laughed unless it was at someone else’s expense. It was a hard world of ruthlessness and survival, but it was us who made all the beasts and the prey.

I disliked the castle, but I hated the people within even more.

You could almost taste all the blood and suffering soaked into these thick stone walls, the centuries of atrocities that took place inside looming over you and constricting your lungs, making you fight for every breath of stale joyless air.

But with my father being needed here so often, I couldn’t escape it no matter how much I wanted that. And now finally earning my acceptance between the elite ranks, I would be spending even more time here, would have to come to terms with moving onto the castle grounds, into the secluded barracks away in the farther corner of the royal training grounds.

I had grown up far away from the capital city. When I was born, it was still at the old house in the north, where there were just as many plains and meadows as there were mountains, and the summers were pleasant and warm and winters freezing and cruel.

Those were our lands and our estate, gifted to my great great-grandfather for his achievements in battles against the northern invasion, as he was considered a well respected general close to the emperor – and that’s where our family legacy began. We have always been a military family, but since then the Kang generals have always stayed as close to the royal family as possible, climbing the ranks and sticking their claws in deep.

And as fief lords, our patriarchs have never been particularly benevolent either, which might be a reason for why they got along with the nobles so well. The cruelty and coldness ran in their veins, just like all the powerful men that shared between each other the same arrogance and feelings of superiority, supporting each other in their worldviews and their own dominance.

It all was very embarrassing to witness – the pride of old men strutting around like peacocks and preening under each other’s compliments of their evildoing.

And my father was one of them.

He was one of the three generals closest to the throne, one of the right-hand men and a monster, much like the man with the crown himself.  I scoffed at the image of him in my head – the pompous ass that thought he was infallible and carried himself like he was god, ruled his fief and his family with a cruel unforgiving hand and expected infallible loyalty and subservience of his children.

All of the men that were currently sitting in the room next to me, holding a meeting and discussing war, they were all cut from the same cloth. Power hungry, back-stabbing. And they wouldn’t hesitate to devour each other alive if the opportunity rose no matter how much they pretended to be allies.

Footsteps down the hall drew my attention and I looked up from my miserable little corner by the massive dark double door to see a small group of knights walk in. They crossed the hall in several quick strides and soon were knocking on the door by my left, giving me the opportunity to observe them for a moment.

They were the kingsguard, the white tiger insignia embroidered on their black and white uniforms giving their position away. It wasn’t that unusual seeing big clumps of the soldiers running around the castle, as the emperor was extremely paranoid about his safety, but these men seemed to be escorting someone else.

In the middle of the group there stood a beautiful tall man, elegant and lean with long silvery white hair. He didn’t even have to turn towards me for me to know he was a dragon, but when he did and I saw those cold steely eyes with vertical slit pupils, centuries of wisdom and pain reflecting through them, I knew for sure he was one of the sovereign’s own.

I nodded at him solemnly in sympathy, offering him at least a little decency, but the dragon just regarded me expressionlessly before turning forward again and waiting for the order to step in. I turned back to lean into my chair to give him peace, and only listened to the creak and shuffle of the opening door and the thunder of iron clad feet. Then the door slammed shut again and I was once more left alone in the hall.

This time it didn’t take long though, only a few minutes later the door opened once more, and this time stayed opened. With a long deep breath, I stood up and made my way in. I saw other young hopefuls slowly trickle in, filling in the counsel room and finding their way to their benefactor’s sides.

While the counsel is in a meeting, no one else is allowed inside, but after they are dismissed, usually there is some socialising and many of these men take the opportunity to flaunt their children or disciples. It’s all very boring and humiliating for the younglings involved, being paraded like a piece of meat or a trained monkey, but it was all to give these men face – the only thing they really cared about. Especially when it came to their children.

“Y/N, stop with the dilly-dallying!” a thunderous voice sounded from my right. It was the kind that demanded respect and attention, and the man knew very well how to use his aura to intimidate and break people into obedience. After all, confidence was half of the trick, I thought bitterly.

Taking a second to right my uniform, I steeled myself and turned, coming face to face with my father. His face was in that grimace that I’ve already come to know meant he was very close to getting angry because he thought my behaviour to be humiliating to him. I fought the scoff off of my face and walked over with confident strides.

My brother was already standing by our father’s side, face an unreadable mask and back as straight as a rod, only his eyes shooting subtle warnings my way. Great, that meant that the general was already in a bad mood from the meeting, and I was bound to lose no matter what I did.

As soon as I made it over to them, a hand clasped onto my shoulder in an iron grip and wrangled me to father’s side, as his face melted into an aggressively polite grimace, his smile turning almost shark-like.

“Gentlemen, I believe you haven’t been introduced to my daughter officially yet,” he started towards three men of similar age as my father, “she has just entered the Academy.” I sighed internally at the way their smiles turned sharp, sensing the weak spot in my father’s impeccable armour.

You see, I was somewhat of a disappointment to him. Well, I’ve been for a really long time, but back then it was a private affair. Now he had to face the ridicule in public, as I was a little bit of a late bloomer.

“Oh?” one of the men perked up, mean smile playing on his lips as he looked me over with condescension, “Congratulations, General Kang. What unit is she with?” Sensing the game the man was playing, I felt my father’s grip tighten until it was painful, constricting the movement of my wrist.

I winced, hoping I was able to keep the hurt expression off of my face, but nobody was really watching me anyway. Everyone was focused on the general, waiting with bated breath for his answer. The sounds of chatter from the room around us flowed freely around the tense atmosphere of our little corner, making the silence sound even louder.

Then he turned to me, stormy dark eyes signalling me that this was my battle to win. I forced my face into a similar polite smile, feeling kind of rusty at pandering to men I didn’t care about and hoping people couldn’t see how much I despised being here.

“I am with the Qinglong unit,” the answer finally fell out of my lips, my voice slightly weak and scratchy after sitting in silence for such a long time and I cleared my throat, embarrassed. The several sets of eyes jumped to me for a second, before redirecting to my father again.

“Ah, the dragon riders,” a different man stated, and I couldn’t tell from his voice whether he was impressed or not, which very obviously ruffled my father’s feathers. This was one of the few things he could boast about when it came to me, he’ll be damned if others didn’t recognise that.

“Yes, she will be attending a banquet very soon,” he supplied quickly, grip still strong on my arm and keeping me in place when I started nervously fidgeting. I looked to my brother, but he stood there without a single care for the conversation, eyes trained somewhere else in the room. Before I could follow his gaze, I was pulled back.

“Well, that is incredible,” the first man spoke again, the smirk still plastered on his face, “You must be so proud, you’ll surely award your daughter well with her 22nd birthday coming this year.” There were some snickers around and I knew we were in for something. This here was the killing point.

As many young people in this empire, I entered the military with my 16th birthday, which was the earliest one could start training at a base. While for me it was inevitable with the nature of our family, many other people chose to join just for the basic reason of needing food and shelter and soldiering was one of the easiest and surest ways to earn a stable keep for yourself and your family, so the input of fresh blood into the system was never-ending. The empire fought many wars and never had enough of willing knights, so entering the military was also very enthusiastically encouraged, leaving behind generations of mourning parents and social problems.

And yes, there were many opportunities for a knight to rise in ranks without ever stepping foot off of their mother base, they could climb quite high between the regional officials. But only a few dozens ever made it to the true top – and the only way there was through the Academy, situated in the capital and each year accepting only a handful of lucky knights.

There were several elite units, amongst which were the kingsguard and dragon riders, or the shadows as they were known – spies. Those who made it into this room were only the ones that went through there.

And the earliest age you could enlist into the Academy was 22. My brother was 27, therefore he’s been training there for 5 years now, which gained him quite the recognition in these circles (enough to allow him to listen in to these council meetings to learn). He of course made in on the first try, which was enough to not absolutely embarrass our father. Something, I wasn’t able to achieve.

The Qinglong unit, or as it was colloquially known as the horns, was one of the more elite and exclusive ones, harder to enter and harder to stay, just like shadows were, but that wasn’t something our father was interested in hearing.

And I failed in enlisting. Twice. I was now slightly over 24 years old, still young and still fully capable of making a name for myself, but not good enough to make my father proud to be associated with me.

As the highest standing general and one of the closest men to the emperor himself, he couldn’t afford to have children that didn’t succeed in everything on their first try. And of course, once the other elites caught the wind of this, it became a constant point of mockery for him. The only flaw in this man’s otherwise perfect life.

Which is why he was currently shooting daggers in my directions, the hateful stare burning into the side of my face as the question of my age was brought up. Once again, he made it clear that this was my mess to clean up, so I took a deep breath and turned back to the three men.

“Well… I uh- I have actually been training at the mother base for two additional years,” I stuttered out, trying to ignore my father’s embarrassed angry face. It was the nicest way to say that I wasn’t accepted two years in a row, but it still stung his pride, especially when the others started smirking.

One of them soon after launched into a story of how his daughter was actually accepted while she was still 20 years old, because they just had to make an exception for her, which then prompted all the others to share their own stories of success and talent coming from their protégées. It was absolutely disgusting, and I felt my father fuming next to me the whole time, in my mind begging the men to stop as I will have to face the consequences of his anger once home.

The jealousy and envy ran so thick that even the slightest sight of imperfection was shamelessly mocked and inspected over and over again, as everyone latched on the one thing they could feel better at than a general that climbed far higher than they could ever hope for. That’s why my father’s embarrassed anger burned even more – I knew he blamed me for this behaviour, since if I hadn’t failed, he wouldn’t have to face these things – he’d stay at the top, untouchable.

I silently swallowed, no longer daring to speak, knowing it would make the aftermath of my official introduction into high society less heavy.

The rest of the afternoon was painful and dragged on as I was forced to stay by my father’s side and listen to the mindless chatter and the occasional bragging about my brother. The general ignored me after the initial conversation and tried his best to pretend I wasn’t there, immediately derailing any enquiries that were raised about me and changing the topic before anyone could find the opportunity to make him admit my shortcomings again.

It didn’t particularly hurt, and it wasn’t especially punishing; I was used to such reception from the man, but it was painfully awkward and I wasn’t allowed to leave.

Instead I focused on catching glimpses of the silver haired dragon and the man whose side he similarly wasn’t allowed to leave. In contrast to his companion, he was clad all in gold, his robes heavily embroidered with leaves and other floral motifs, hands clasped elegantly in front of his stomach as he conversed with the crowd that was formed around him. His hair burned with a golden glow, but that might have been partly due to the crown sitting high on his head, adorned with blood red rubies. He was young, just two or three years older than my brother, freshly appointed but just as cruel (if not more) as his recently deceased father. You could see it in the lines of his face, in the cold glint in his eyes, the arrogance written into his every gesture and the permanent slip of a smirk.

Just from seeing him I knew he wasn’t a person worth knowing. How lovely that he was the one that sat on our throne.

The dragon by his side looked on with a practiced vacant glaze over his eyes, corners of his mouth weighted down by shadows only he knew of and carried in his heart and soul. My eyes slipped to his neck where a tattoo sat. It was in a spot that would always be visible, no matter how hard you tried, it was too high up to cover by clothing comfortably, forever showcasing who you were. A branding, a mark of slavery – a black chain wrapped around the neck. Every dragon bore it, some were even born with it. It was what bound them to the royal family and enforced their loyalty, what made them nothing more than unwilling puppets.

The man shifted and I quickly averted my eyes, not wanting him to see me looking at his mark. It was incredibly sensitive for dragons, and it brought them great shame when people ogled it, knowing this was what took away their freedom and bound them unconditionally to an uncaring master.

My heart bled for him, and it brought feelings of uneasiness about my own banquet that was about to take place in a few days. There I would choose my own dragon to bond with and start my formal training, but the queasiness about putting similar shackles on another being never quite ceased to bother me, no matter how much I knew my heart. I could treat the dragon as nice as possible; it wouldn’t erase the fact that formally we were a master and a slave.

Snippets of memories of my childhood resurfaced to my mind – a brown-haired man with warm eyes and a blinding smile, little slips of magic that endlessly fascinated me and all the lessons I’d learnt with him. The first dragon I ever knew. The kindest teacher I ever knew. The moments of warmth, love and laughter in the meadows and the forests up in the north.

A hand clasping my shoulder jolted me from my daydreaming and I flinched, a gasp leaving my mouth as I turned to the source of my sudden panic – coming face to face with my brother.

“Come, sister,” he said with voice neutral and a stone mask, the perfect picture of a promising young captain, “We’ve begun moving to the dining hall for dinner. You’re not paying attention again.”

I couldn’t even find it in me to be irritated by his slight jab, so I simply tightly pursed my lips shut and gave him a curt nod. He wrestled me into position so that he was leading me on his arm, trying to prevent any more delays and potentially adding to the long list of reasons why our father’s day was going as badly as it was. Bonus points for flashing our strong camaraderie to the lords.

“Don’t push him anymore, today’s been hard for him,” the young knight whispered lightly as we joined others slowly moving through the castle corridors. That had me ruffled a little, but I swallowed any remarks and nodded. Some days you truly did need to choose your battles and today was such day. And deep down I knew my brother was trying to look out for me in his own way, but that didn’t make it sting any less whenever he chided me in favour of our father.

“Yes, brother,” came my faux demure reply before I sealed my lips shut once more. That earned me a side-eye from the dark-haired man, who knew I was the furthest one could be from a quiet obedient lady, but chose not to call me out on the obvious piss-taking. He only sighed, shoulders sagging lightly, no doubt grateful I at least agreed with him so readily.

There’s been some dramatic scenes in my past as I reached my “rebellious phase” as father put it, but quickly that fire died within me when I realised it made everything only worse. As I grew, I chose silence as the survival method – causing scenes, screaming matches and throwing tantrums only served to humiliate us both; and perhaps I did have a little piece of my father in me – I also cared about my face.

Once I entered the base, it reflected on me badly amongst peers and instructors, giving me the reputation of a spoiled little brat. No matter the emotional turmoil I had been going through at that time, I knew it was time for a change of tactic – I needed respect to survive in the military and I would get it. Not for my father, but for myself.

Upon entering the room, I looked up and immediately found the eyes of the man himself trained on me, some new vague warning reflecting in them trying to keep me quiet and not causing any problems.

I sighed and resigned myself for the worst evening in recent history.

The reflection in my mirror stared back at me as I tried to push my clothes around to look as presentable as they could, the uniform still a little foreign to me. It was black silk cheollik with silver embroidery and it was tied at the side into an elegant bow. As tradition dictated, my father had given me a gift for the successful entry into Academy and it now adorned my waist – a deep red intricately woven string with a prosperity knot and grey jade pearls at the end – they jingled lightly at every nervous shift of my body.

This was the ceremonial uniform, as I still haven’t gotten my unit’s specific one – not until I bonded with a dragon – and it was brand new, it still smelt unworn and fit strangely over me, still adapting to my physique.

I would keep this one, but wear it rarely – usually there weren’t many instances when people wouldn’t take the chance to flaunt their unit, especially if they were at the top of the food chain, but I liked it. It was simple and elegant, and while the Qinglong also wore a similar one, it wasn’t embroidered and had azure details, and I found it a little too eye-catching.

Giving myself another look, I ended up sighing deeply, hands smoothing over the cold silk for the thousandth time in a last attempt to make it look a little more natural, thoughts finding their way towards the image of my mother. My sweet mother, who if she was here would tell me everything would be alright, that it looked perfect and I would do well. I imagined the feel of her gentle hands in my hair and on my shoulders, letting the memories of her soft voice soothe me.

The train of thought pierced my heart with pain that always manifested itself when I fell down this rabbit hole, my eyes naturally sliding towards the table which held all of her kind-hearted words in the form of letters she’s send over the years I haven’t seen her. But as always, everything I ever felt left a little aftertaste of rage towards my father, so I quickly abandoned this line of thought as well. Syphoning all the emotions out of me, I turned back into my numbed self that always surfaced around the family home.

Picking up the ceremonial dagger I finally set out, swiftly moving through the house in hopes of not bumping into the man himself. What rotten luck I had, as always.

The moment I stepped foot into the inner yard, there he was, sitting on the terrace by his study, sipping tea and watching me with his critical eyes. I could feel them sliding over me, making sure everything was in place. I said nothing, steadily returning his gaze while I wordlessly worked on the dagger strap, fashioning it under the red string.

“Remember what I told you last week, Y/N,” the general spoke, his face impassive even though there was fire underneath it all, and I could feel it all too well, “You are to make good impressions. I expect you to excel in this unit. Your brother is already being considered for corporal, do not stain this for him. Your unit has higher ranks too. One of them better be of my blood.”

I kept my mouth shut, just bowing to him in lieu of answer, but I was sure he could see the cocktail of anger and resentment brewing in my eyes. Choosing not to address that, he waved me off as if I was waiting for his permission to leave. Without a second glance I bowed again and promptly walked out the main gate.

If tonight went well, this was potentially one of the last times I walked out this specific house – our residence while we stayed in the capital city of Wuyun, close to the castle and royal grounds with the Academy in tow. If tonight went well, soon I’d find myself in the barracks, and I dreaded that day.

Unfortunately, family legacy tended to follow us all, no matter where we went and what we did. Children often went in their parents’ footsteps, making the Academy the breeding ground of resentment and generation long slights and fights. And there was a lot accumulated against the Kangs.

Back when my brother first joined, before he turned into the man he is today – while he still talked to me, he told me how disliked he was for the simple association. No matter what he did, he couldn’t escape his father’s shadow. I was next.

I would be able to walk over the distance from our house towards the main entrance of the castle blind-folded, and it passed quicker than I was ready for, suddenly finding myself standing at the foot of the entrance hall. Just at the end was the entryway towards the throne room, where the emperor accepted hearings, and I made sure to avoid it at the off chance that the man was present there currently.

It took me little time to arrive at the Eastern Grand Hall, but I found that most have already gathered there. It was a flurry of black and blue robes with the occasional splash of colour from other present lords, the hum of chatter and clinking of cutlery on metal plates that were typically used for military events, as if we were a bunch of animals that couldn’t be trusted with porcelain. I couldn’t spot anyone else wearing the plain Academy robes and I had no idea how many were accepted this year, so I slowly inserted myself into the frenzy hoping to blend in.

Turns out, it’s hard to do that when everyone either knows you’re the newbie or even realises which family you belong to, and I was getting a lot of looks as I leisurely walked along the table laid out with foods and drinks pretending not to notice. Some were mocking, some were apprehensive, and some were calculative, either way I had no interest in socialising.

It felt like ages have passed while I quietly ate by the end of the main table, gaze trained on a painting on the opposite wall, high above everybody’s head, but it wasn’t even time to officially begin the banquet yet. I was already feeling tired by all this, hoping this would be over with quickly so I could leave.

“I see that you’re getting some attention as well,” a cheery voice from my left shook me out of my reverie as I traced the golden lines of the knight portraiture for the thousandth time, and I turned somewhat dramatically, eyes open wide.

A woman stood there, it was hard to gauge her age, but she wore the same black and silver uniform, signalling she was also a first-year. Her pretty face was split by a friendly smile, eyes crinkling at the corners and her chestnut brown hair was shoved into a messy bun, clearly without a care for propriety. Her joy was quite disarming and before I even realised what I was doing, I was shaking her outstretched hand, still in shock. Her grip was strong, hands sure and decisive.

“Im Hwa-young, nice to meet you,” she said confidently, and I gaped at her slightly. Im was a disgraced surname, and no one who still had the curse of bearing it said it out loud anymore for fear of being recognised as a part of the Im clan after its fall and near annihilation. Whispers about treason and God’s punishment still followed those who survived, and many of the family disappeared from the public, hoping to escape the burden.

“I know, in the flesh,” Hwa-young continued with good spirits, obviously used to people’s reactions, “he was my uncle, before you ask.” I saw a flash of annoyance in her, something maybe like disappointment crossing her face as she began to withdraw her hand. In a split-second decision I grabbed it again, just as hard as she did before.

“Kang Y/N,” I gave her my name, making sure to look into her eyes, “and I wasn’t about to ask.” Hwa-young beamed at me, relief seeping into her as she sidled over to me almost as if we’ve known each other for years.

“Good to know I won’t be suffering here alone,” she remarked with a conspiratorial lilt, “I was afraid I’d be the only outcast in this unit.” I scoffed at her words, bringing a biscuit to my lips to mask my amusement from the others who were watching us with rapt interest.

“I never disappoint when it comes to disappointment,” there was something bitter creeping into my voice, tainting the joke with a smudge of reality, but Hwa-young was a good sport. She laughed lightly, head tilting back, looking so care-free it was helping me wind down.

Just as my shoulders begun to untense, a gong sounded through the Hall, tearing me away from the budding conversation. We both jolted and looked towards the head of the table where a greying man stood, his stance proud and strong. Light stubble decorated his wearied face, but it didn’t hide the handsomeness of an experienced warrior. I could feel the authority and respect radiating off of him, as everyone in the room turned to give him their undivided attention without needing a single word.

“Welcome novices,” he said simply, his voice was a little rough, but it held stead-fast and strong, booming through the silent hall, “to your first mating banquet. May your hunt be successful.” Clearly a man of few words, he quickly raised his glass and drank it in one go, a thunderous clap tearing through the space before the hungry faces turned to those who were the main interest of the evening.

I quickly scanned through the room, almost breaking my neck with how much I strained to see everywhere, hoping to catch a glimpse of other first-years. There was a young man standing alone by one of the entrances, and another group of two guardedly conversing closer to the head of the table, where the silver-haired man sat now completely uninterested in anything except for his food. To his right sat a dragoness, watching him with amusement and playing with her bright red hair, lips moving in what seemed to be teasing manner.

I watched their interaction for a moment longer, before Hwa-young turned my attention back to her, hand lightly grabbing onto my forearm as the woman leaned in closer to whisper: “The dragons have arrived.”

Snapping my head back towards the crowd, truly I could see newcomers – men and women with strong stances and shackles around their necks, faces either very carefully neutral or openly scowling at being paraded so openly. They mingled through the crowd, not really entertaining any looks or conversations.

“How many of us do you think there is?” I asked her, no longer being able to see the three students I discovered before. Hwa-young hummed, but ultimately shrugged her shoulders – I could feel the motion of them against my side more than I saw her.

“We should probably split up,” she whispered in the end, leaning away once more and slowly taking a step back, sending a cheeky smile my way, “See you around, fellow outcast.” With that she disappeared into the crowd so quickly I was actually concerned for several seconds before snapping out of it.

Left alone again, I had no other choice but to face the most challenging part of this event – socialising with my peers. All around me, people were conversing freely, some dragons even joining in their circles (most probably with their own bondeds) and the mood started rising again; though I could see some still watching me like vultures, curious who I’d choose to talk to.

For the moment, the most suitable strategy seemed to step back and observe, so I quickly manoeuvred myself through the throngs of people until I was leaning against a back wall. Right across me, across the whole hall, was the high-table where people tended to congregate more.

A flash of black and silver uniform alerted me to a novice that was conversing with a group of older students, but I couldn’t recognise whether it was one of the few I saw before or not. Slumping against the cold stone, I started searching through the crowds for someone that would be easy to approach.

I had no idea how much time I spent standing there, but at some point I started feeling the soreness and pain in my legs and feet crying for me to sit down. Shuffling slowly by the wall to the side towards chairs, my plan was suddenly thwarted by two men who made short of the distance with quick long strides, situating themselves into the corner.

Lucky bastards, the lot of them.

I stayed where I was, sighing tiredly and still undecided, when their conversation started up again.

“I hate that they call it a mating banquet,” the bigger of the two grumbled with a pout, “that’s clearly not what this is.” His head was shrouded in a very messy black bob haircut and small dark horns were protruding from his forehead, standing proudly with some strands tangled up around them and sticking out in weird angles. I held back a chuckle, bringing a glass with some sweet drink I’d managed to grab from the table to my lips quickly.

The other man sat more angled towards me and when he looked up, I had the best view in the entire room at his otherworldly beautiful face. I couldn’t hold back the gasp when I laid my eyes on him, the elegance and beauty he was exuding was truly almost too much for a mere mortal to handle. At first it seemed like his face actually glimmered, a slight shimmering catching my eyes constantly, before I realised his cheekbones and temples were covered in silvery blue scales. They blended into his skin perfectly and I found myself fighting a blush without him even having to look my way, that kind of effect he had on his surroundings.

Time to get it together, I told myself, slowly shuffling away and reprimanding myself internally for being a weirdo. And then he spoke.

“Bonding banquet doesn’t have such a ring to it, I suppose,” a melodic voice piped up, fading into a slight giggle at the end, “Though, something tells me if you were to show them what mating looks like, they wouldn’t be very entertained.” The horned dragon grumbled some more, clearly over this whole thing already.

“I wish Yoongi hyung came,” his voice sounded really pouty and whiney, making me silently snicker to myself again, “I bet he would have found a way to leave already. Or he’d terrify people enough to leave us alone.” At least we clearly were in the same boat, cheers to that.

Before I realised what was happening, because I was not so discreetly watching the two interact with a slight smile on my face like a dummy, there were quick heavy footsteps heading my way. I quickly snapped out of it as soon as I clocked that the person was aiming at me, and cursed under my breath when I saw Lord Kim with his fake predatory grin.

“The Kang youngling, what a surprise to see you here finally,” the man spoke loudly enough to have everyone in our vicinity snapping their heads to him and pushing all the attention to me. I pressed myself harder into the wall, the polite smile somewhat malfunctioning when he barrelled all the way into my personal space.

“Baron Kim, to what do I owe the pleasure?” came out through gritted teeth, the man clearly not understanding the meaning of boundaries. With every step away I took, he came closer, leaving us in an awkward shuffling match.

“Well, of course I have to welcome General Kang’s daughter to our unit, he wouldn’t want it any other way," the elderly man said sleazily, a disgusting grin plastered on his ugly mug. I had to fight not to laugh at his words – our unit? He’s never been a part of Qinglong, but he always wished for it – so instead he bought his way in. As a benefactor he was always invited and properly talked up with sweet, honeyed words, he even managed to wheedle a dragon out of them (though from what I understand, he didn’t ride as he was afraid of hights). I could only imagine what that poor man went through with this lowlife as his master.

“I’m sure my father would be happy to know I’m in such good hands,” I punched out of myself, the lie almost causing me physical pain. With most people who tried to gain the Kangs’ favour, it was hard to tell whether they really admired my father so much they turned insane or whether they secretly hated him and hated that they had to simper up to him; and that much could be said about Lord Kim as well.

Who knows where that old man’s loyalty lied and what his goals were, but the truth was that my father despised him and thought him to be an idiot.

While he started poetically voicing his well wishes and praises of the unit, I had a goal. Just a few metres away from me was an arch with glass doors open wide. As the second part of this event would take place outside, the garden there was already prepared and all I had to do was slip out and disappear quietly.

But between me and the open door sat the two dragons I had been listening to earlier, both of which had shut up now and watched my plight with varying degrees of interest and amusement, much like many others around us. When I glanced at the door again and happened to see the dark-haired dragon badly covering a cheeky smirk, clearly laughing at my expense, my eyes narrowed at him in faux anger.

The man had whole three seconds to realise I had seen him and take in my expression, before I side-stepped with the brightest smile I could muster and gestured towards the duo. Both of them froze like I just caught them stealing my grandma’s jewellery, wide eyes regarding me.

“Well, I was just about to come speak with these gentlemen, would you mind introducing me?” the overly sugary tone of my voice made the dragon’s eyes narrow at me in turn and when Lord Kim wasn’t watching I turned to him with a shit-eating grin. Truly, the baron was a curse that had to be shared, who was I to deny them the pleasure of his company?

The old man was clearly surprised with me jumping into his monologuing, eyes hopping between the three of us with his mouth hanging open slightly before he recovered and put on another polite smile.

“But of course!” he took it in stride, immediately sliding to the horned dragon’s side and clapping him on the shoulder lightly, which made the young man straighten. The obvious strength of his muscles and the wideness of his shoulders stood out even more like that, and it looked almost comical next to the stuttering Lord. He looked mildly afraid, but soldiered on, like a cursed auctioneer.

“Only the best for the general’s daughter, I see,” the flattery slipped out of his mouth with practiced ease before he once again gestured to the two young men, “these are two of the members of the Bangtan thunder.” Now it was my turn to freeze as those words poured over me.

Everything screeched to a halt and my eyes involuntarily jumped to the dragons who looked significantly more smug, sending cheeky teasing grins my way at having the rug pulled from under me like that. I could only imagine what kind of shock displayed on my face, but they seemed to be thoroughly enjoying it.

After the emperor’s personal thunder of dragons, which wasn’t a true thunder due to the fact that he was the one who collected them instead of them bonding naturally, Bangtan was the second most known. They’ve been mated for as long as anyone currently alive (and many generations before that) could remember and hosted seven of some of the most powerful dragons known to be currently existing. And while they’ve had riders before, everyone was aware that the sovereign himself didn’t like to see when people bonded them due to their strength and unbreakable pack loyalty.

Thus some of the dragons from the thunder were known as their own entities, based on their powers and achievements, turning into a sort of living legends that walked among humans but could rarely be seen or touched. Really, I should have known the second one of them mentioned Yoongi, but I didn’t even realise that was the name uttered.

Everybody who was interested in dragons knew of these seven, even if the chances of seeing them were low.

“This one here is Jungkook,” Lord Kim continued completely unperturbed, clapping the bigger dragon on his back again, although much more hesitantly, and then he pointed at the ethereally beautiful man, “and that one is Jimin.”

The blush was back under the intense scrutiny of the silver-scaled man, and all I could think of while I put the face to the name was that it made perfect sense. Of course he was someone this unreal, with all the stories about his charms and seductions that were being told by people who encountered the thunder.

He seemed to be satisfied with flustering me, a small smile setting onto his lips in victory.

Now that I thought about it, it was true that people naturally avoided these two, and there was a circle of empty space around the armchairs as even now people hesitated to move closer and join in the conversation. Everyone seemed to be aware of their identity.

I mentally face-palmed myself. I was supposed to be a knight, perception was supposed to be one of my strong suits.

“Come on boys,” Lord Kim drawled out again, “Greet the young Kang.” Silence followed, stretching between us awkwardly while the elderly man became more wooden with each second passing, red setting into his face in embarrassment and indignation at being ignored so blatantly. Then, both of them nodded slightly.

I bowed to them fully, bending at the waist in a (hopefully) perfect 90 degrees angle, hands clasped in front of my chest in a gesture of respect.

“It is an honour to meet you, sir Jimin and sir Jungkook,” it’s obvious my politeness shocked them, as the moment I come back up their eyes are wide and staring at me. Lord Kim started grumbling something about ungrateful dragons, feeling ashamed at such a lukewarm welcome from the boys, and the moment he wasn’t looking, I flashed them a teasing smirk.

Thankfully Lord Kim got interrupted once again in the middle of his tearful tirade and with many apologies he rushed off, the relief visible as his shoulders sagged the moment he wasn’t anywhere near the Bangtan dragons.

The three of us watched him for a moment before our eyes redirected back to each other, a strange but not unpleasant atmosphere hanging over us. Before I could start feeling the silence turn awkward, Jimin’s eyes narrowed at me, but there was still a slight upwards curl to his lips.

“Now, that wasn’t very nice,” he drawled out in his melodic hypnotic voice, eyes dark and stormy. I flushed from head to toe, thoughts stuttering, still not used to being perceived by someone like him, and it still served to amuse him greatly as he leaned back into the armchair.

Jungkook over at his chair watched me with a mischievous expression, his big dark eyes making him seem so innocent if it wasn’t for the cheeky curl to his lips. I realised there were several piercings all over his face and ears, strangely fitting his persona quite well, and as he squirmed in his seat, I could see tattoos peeking out of his robe’s sleeves. His tongue peeked out a little as he smirked at me, preparing to speak as well.

“You were laughing at me,” I beat him to it, batting my eyelashes in faux sweetness, “Of course I had to repay you for that.” The two dragons scoffed, making themselves more comfortable and I could see the exact moment the apprehension bled out of them, and I wasn’t deemed a threat anymore.

“Well, welcome to the unit newling,” Jungkook said, and it hit me that even though he looked very young for a dragon, he was still most likely hundreds of years old, and I choked a little on the smart retort. The man must have realised that’s what happened, because he was smirking up a storm like a little shit.

To my surprise, I also found myself relaxing in their presence, the ease with which we interacted never really came to me this readily. I was mostly stiff and nervous and dancing around topics and words in fear of offending or giving people excuses to spread rumours and mock my father. Not that I particularly cared about his image, but because I knew I would be the one to reap the consequences if something uncouth started making its way through the high society. I didn’t feel such pressure with these two, who watched me with curious but frank eyes.

“That is most definitely a nicer welcome than Lord Kim,” I muttered absent-mindedly, half-way lost in thought, wracking my brain for the last time I talked with someone with this much elation. Jimin giggled at that, drawing my attention back to him with a little bit of a leftover fluster from before.

“Don’t worry, everyone in this room shares that opinion,” he said leisurely, laid back in his chair elegantly, “He tends to annoy everyone he speaks to. Especially our kin.” Jungkook nodded at that, something dark and solemn creeping into his eyes.

“He doesn’t know the meaning of manners,” the horned dragon supplied darkly, face hard and unfriendly as he caught sight of the older human man again. I nodded in sympathy, knowing very well how the man could get.

“Lord Kim is one of those people who never leave you alone once they realise they can benefit from you,” I added to the conversation, moving a little closer to the armchairs so that I could lower my voice and make sure none of the nosey onlookers caught onto our conversation. The man might be generally disliked, but I still wouldn’t be taking any chances while gossiping like this.

“He’s been trying to get into my father’s favour for years, but he absolutely despises him,” I shared with them, the open secret not really something that had to be kept hush even though no one normally said it out loud, “Father thinks he’s a right dunce.”

The boys grinned. “Well, he’s right about that. I’ve known the man for decades and he hasn’t changed a single bit,” Jimin added his two cents, once again reminding me that I was speaking to nigh immortal beings that have been around for far longer than I was able to comprehend, “He’s a snake. A rat.” I hummed and nodded again, the conversation dying down after that.

I looked through the room from my new vantage point, finally far enough to observe as no one really wanted to approach the corner with the two Bangtan dragons.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t just about them being powerful and dangerous, but the emperor’s habit to control who rode them in fear of losing his power over them generally scared people away from interacting. Therefore, the only ones that were bonded to them were either recruited by the ruler himself or found themselves under his intense scrutiny. Because of that, riders tended to stray away from the Bangtan thunder, too afraid to bring unto themselves the sovereign’s ire.

My eyes were caught on a flash of black and silver, messy bun now somehow even more messed up as Hwa-young cheerfully conversed with another woman. The power was radiating off of her powerful stance and proud straight shoulders, dark charcoal hair falling freely over them and sometimes giving off dark green flashes when the light reflected off of them just right. Their stance was relaxed, and it seemed that their chat was going well and amicably.

“Your friend is conversing with Yong,” Jimin intercepted my shameless staring, and I realised both of the dragons were watching me raptly, “She is a righteous dragoness. A good one, strong and brave, even though a little hard-headed.” Jungkook snickered at that, hiding his smile behind his hand as the dragoness threw the subtlest little amused look their way, and I realised she must have heard them all across the room with her enhanced senses.

“The old ones always are,” the tattooed man added with a teasing lilt to his voice and both dragons watched giggling as the one called Yong discreetly flipped them off while pretending to dust off her shoulder. Hwa-young at this point seemed to catch on, I saw her confused face as she turned around and immediately brightened up the moment she noticed me, waving her hand enthusiastically. I returned it, just as amused as my companions.

“Are you not interested in ‘the hunt’?” Jimin asked me suddenly, something bitter creeping into his expression as he signalled air quotes around the word. I gazed at him for a few quiet moments, taking in the abrupt tenseness in his posture.

“I was trying to observe and find someone easy to approach,” I answered truthfully, “but then Lord Kim found me. I never got around to walking up to someone.” All three of us focused back onto the place swarming with people, the boys now amusing themselves by pointing out dragons that weren’t talking to anyone and had “good potential”.

“Are you trying to get rid of me right now?” I asked laughing, jumping into Jungkook’s long monologue about a young fire dragon standing alone in a corner few metres away from us. He halted in the middle of a word, giving me a cheeky glance and I already started recognising the mischievous glint in his smile.

“Well, I wouldn’t want to keep you from finding your dragon,” he drawled out in a playful manner, looking like he was two seconds away from batting his eyelashes at me, “and since you didn’t officially declare your intent to try a bond with us, I assume you must be wanting to be on your way to meet another one.” That took all the wind from my sails, the witty retort dying on my tongue as the dragons both looked at me with mischievous eyes.

“I honestly didn’t know that was an option,” came out a little scratchy and quiet, immediately making my cheeks burst into flames as the two dragons regarded me with teasing eyes.

“Well, there’s only one way to find out,” Jungkook proclaimed cheerily and stood up abruptly. Suddenly he was towering good two heads over me, his wide sturdy shoulders almost casting a shadow over my form. I gulped, seeing him now in his full glory, it suddenly made sense as to why people thought him to be intimidating. Even though he seemed to be a little goof.

Jungkook then did something that shocked not only me and Jimin, but also everyone standing around keeping an eye on the interaction – he offered me his hand, free of gloves that dragons always wore. Stunned speechless I eyed the outstretched appendage for a few tense moments, out of the corner of my eye noting Jimin’s mouth hanging open, face wearing an expression of such open surprise it was almost comical. There were some gasps and whisperings from behind us, Jungkook’s gaze ever so often jumping over my shoulder and levelling someone with a glare.

The reason for such reaction was a quite simple one – this plain action was the whole purpose of this banquet. Well, at least partly.

I for once wasn’t expecting to get a handshake this easily, usually dragons guarded themselves and needed a lot more persuading before they even considered taking such a step with the potential riders, but here we were – Jungkook’s hand awkwardly hanging in the air between us as he grew exponentially more nervous with every second I didn’t take it.

The easiest way to describe the link between a dragon and its rider would be to call it a magical bond, one very similar to that of mated pairs and thunders. Bonds like these linked the two beings together closer than most humans could imagine. It was very important to cultivate the bond and grow it strong, to intertwine the two hearts and support the care and trust that needed to exist between the two, otherwise even strong bonds could easily deteriorate or the connection wouldn’t reach its full potential.

It also allowed the human part of the bond to benefit from the dragon’s magic (while vast majority of humans weren’t magic, we were pretty compatible with it if borrowed) – it enhanced the rider’s senses and strength, established a mind link and enabled telepathic communication, which was sorely needed while on dragonback (believe it or not, it was hard to talk to someone while flying at high velocity sitting on their back).

And a bond like this, like any other, required a certain compatibility. Dragons, as the higher level magical beings of the two, were mostly the ones who felt the potential someone carried to successfully establish a bond, but the easiest way to find out was physical contact. Once you touched, the potential would most definitely be felt (according to what I heard, it felt a little like an electric hum passing through the place of contact) – or not, based on the situation.

That’s why they usually wore their hands covered, to avoid accidental connections and half-way there bonds.

A dragon could have several potential bondeds, it wasn’t exclusive until one was chosen to take the next step, but once this compatibility was discovered, it was crucial to try and learn the person to aid in the process of decision making. It was slightly similar to the process of courting.

Due to these reasons, it was quite rare for a dragon to offer someone the opportunity to touch them – and find out whether they were potentially compatible.

This banquet, even though it was called the mating banquet (as the boys pointed out it should be more of a bonding banquet as mating happened exclusively between couples and thunders), this banquet was more of a getting to meet your options kind of deal. Rarely someone offered you their hand after only a few exchanged sentences.

Thus, the stunned silence stretched between the three of us and an expectant kind of hunger reflected in eyes of those around us. Had I been more in the headspace to take notice of my surroundings, I’d have realised the hum of conversation somewhat lulled as people noted the situation and kept one eye on us while they pretended to keep the chatter up.

Jimin sat frozen in his chair, his face mortified, as if Jungkook committed some cardinal faux-pas (which he probably did to be honest, dragon etiquette was a little bit different than the human one), and I would almost take offence to it if I wasn’t completely stupefied myself.

The cheeky dragon in question though seemed completely unperturbed, even as nervousness started tugging at his handsome smile, but he valiantly tried to withstand it, keeping the hand hanging and his face a picture of mischief.

And I found that I quite liked the total disregard of rules he presented.

Finally gathering my bearings, I felt my own face stretch into a sassy grin and without a moment more of hesitation I grabbed his hand and squeezed it firmly in a sure handshake. And the rumours were in fact true, though the extent was sorely understated – our energies merging in a single burst of raw potential felt like a shock of electricity running from the tips of my fingers all the way up to my shoulder, the aftershocks buzzing through me like I got hit by lightning.

I gasped, a little too loud, and instinctively went to rip my hand away from the grip, but Jungkook didn’t let me. His eyes were trained on me, subtly glowing with a dark purple haze, grin turning a little sharper. But it didn’t put me on edge, quite the opposite – it felt like I won something.

Then our hands let go and the spell was broken, the remnants of a shimmering haze setting into my mind and bones. I could still feel the phantom tingles in my fingers, and they flexed almost subconsciously, trying to chase away the foreign sensation.

“Wow,” came a quiet breathless exclamation from Jimin, the smaller man still sitting in his place but now looking at our hands with wonder and disbelief, “that was strong.” The flush immediately flooded my cheeks once more (truly, it was starting to be embarrassing, I’d never been like this around anyone, though it could have something to do with the fact that I generally liked dragons a little more than I did humans) and I took a tiny step back, fighting my lungs to expand and take in more breath, my whole body feeling like I had to manually haul it back into working order.

Though one look at my now potential bonded showed me that he was similarly blushing, cheeks a healthy pink colour, lips pursed in a shy smile and eyes watching me full of emotion that was entirely too fragile and tender.

Before I could blurt out something that could potentially either embarrass or straight hurt the man, Jimin immediately jumped in, probably sensing his mate’s emotional state.

“Sorry about that,” he told me, gently looking over his lover, “Bonds of this strength can sometimes put us into a strange mindset. He’ll be back to himself in a few moments.” The silvery dragon’s mouth opened and closed a few times, the man deliberating whether he should speak more or not, but ultimately he only gave me a tight smile and started manhandling Jungkook back into the chair.

I felt that there was something crucial that wasn’t shared to me, but if Jimin thought it too personal to say, I didn’t want to push him. I myself still felt the little bursts of our energies merging, the aura around my hand suddenly feeling cold and empty, as if it was missing a significant piece.

Leave it to me to be the one person that even has a clingy aura. I glared at the offending appendage as if scolding it, quickly folding both my arms behind my back and trying to make is as natural as possible. Even my hair felt singed with the potential bond manifesting, and I swore I could smell something burnt, only hoping it either wasn’t something visible or my mind was just playing tricks on me.

“I’ve never felt anything like that before,” a hushed whisper made it to me and I was torn away from my own musings, attention now back to the two men who seemed to be locked in a very private exchange, both leaned towards each other and whispering so that nothing but a hum could be heard.

Realising the words weren’t meant for me, I cleared my throat and took another step back, the singed hand quickly thrown in the direction of the buffet table in a last hail mary attempt to find an appropriate escape. “I am going to…” I started, voice still a little breathless, “I want something to drink, would you also like something?”

I could see on Jimin’s face before he even opened his mouth to speak that he was going to decline, but Jungkook quickly jumped in, his volume rising a little more than he was anticipating.

“I’ll have water!” the horned dragon seemed a little embarrassed by the outburst too, but when Jimin stared at him incredulously he seemed quite unapologetic. I nodded slowly, taking another step, then nodded again like the words just registered in my mind.

“Sure.” With that I woodenly walked over to the main table that dominated the Grand Hall.

I felt the looks, some curious, some envious and some outright raging, but I ignored them all. This, for now, still meant nothing. Even though the power of it shocked us both (all three if counted Jimin), it meant nothing. I was still one of many that could vie for the young dragon’s attention.

The thought left a bad aftertaste in my mouth, a strange uncomfortable feeling setting in my stomach at the prospect of someone else trying to be Jungkook’s bonded, and I quickly pushed those feelings away, grumbling to myself.

I thought I knew what to expect, but no one told me a bond felt like this. No one warned me it would mess with my head and with my mind, send my heart racing when I faced the image of losing the chance to bring this to a successful end. I only knew the man for barely an hour, for fuck’s sake! He didn’t even express an intention to pursue this!

I slowly begun to understand why it was generally more accepted to wait to know the person a little bit more, if this was how the link manifested.

Giving myself a metaphorical slap I swiftly wrangled the reigns safely back into my logical side’s hands and fully focused on finding a cup and water.

I more felt than saw a presence at my right, someone sidling up to me closer than necessary with how much space this table took up. Still a little emotionally charged, when I turned to confront this person, I was already irritated.

What greeted me was a sleazy smile on a middle-aged face, a greying stubble and a mop of dark slowly silvering hair. The man was human, that much was obvious, and there was a woman with a judgemental look on her face hanging off of his arm, most probably his wife. I gave them both a once-over, trying to take in as many details as possible to clue me in to the man’s identity, but he would no doubt introduce himself.

My eyes promptly caught on an insignia with a burning rising sun, meaning he was one of the councilmen – he must have been very well acquainted with my family, though his name continued to escape me. I sighed, shoulders slumping and then I forced on a polite smile.

“To what do I owe the pleasure?” despite the words, my voice didn’t speak of pleasure nor joy, instead the annoyance bled in quite heavily, almost to a point of being rude. The duo didn’t seem phased, the man’s smile maybe even brightening at my words and the woman’s face still in the same grimace as before.

“I don’t think we’ve been formally introduced yet,” he started immediately, ignoring my words and tone completely, “Please, call me Lord Lee.” He offered me his hand and I had a very brief but a very intense flashback to Jungkook’s, before I shook it off and very reluctantly took it.

“Are you perhaps the Duke of Western territories?” I enquired, forcing my attention back to the table to show him I wasn’t interested in him and his words, trying to sound as bored as possible.

A chuckle came from him, the woman still completely silent, before he shuffled even closer.

“The one and only,” there was a showman lilt to his intonation, and I felt a wave of distaste towards this man so strong I almost visibly shuddered. He thought he was so charismatic, the poor sod. I only hummed, hands now moving onto one of the few untouched platters of small desserts and quickly plating some.

A moment of silence, then more shuffling – this time thankfully not closer to me as that would entail him brushing my side, though I wasn’t entirely sure he wouldn’t do that even in the middle of a room full of armed knights.

“I just felt that congratulations were in order,” he said finally, a lot more bite to his words now that I’ve managed to offend him, “We all saw you with that dragon.” My hands paused minutely before resuming their actions. The disrespectful address to Jungkook didn’t escape me neither.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Lord Lee,” I answered sweetly, “It was just an introduction. It can still go in a very different direction. Nothing is set in stone. Yet.”

It seemed that the man didn’t come over to suck my father’s dick as my sass was very much not appreciated by him and I could see his face turn into an unfriendly scowl.

“Well, of course that the Kang family cannot disappoint by not aiming straight at Bangtan,” the hostility in his stance suddenly doubled as he spit this out, forcing me to take a step back from the unfiltered fury, “Only the best for the general’s daughter.” He was mocking me, but the anger made it hard to decipher it as anything else than pure envy.

I tried to keep my face neutral, even as my own anger and resentment resurfaced. Father made many enemies, and thanks to his attitude we as his children often caught the brunt of resentful disgruntled councilmen and their offspring trying to cope with their bruised egos by punishing us instead of the untouchable man.

And we were expected to just go with it, lest our behaviour reflects badly on him.

I stared at the duke for a moment longer, trying to look as unimpressed as humanly possible, until the fire died down within him a little and he started shuffling on his spot. “Lord Lee,” I started, channelling the disappointed teacher energy that my father often had whenever we displeased him, “as I said, and you should know this, anyone can come up to them and strike up a connection. I might not be the only person this year compatible to them.”

The man pursed his lips and didn’t speak any further, though the unspoken rebuttal hung in the air between us. And I knew that the words stuck in his throat were true, but he couldn’t say them for they were too daring.

Anyone couldn’t, I did because the emperor approved of my father. I would be allowed near Bangtan thanks to my father’s position.

I raised my eyebrow at the suddenly silent man, challenging him to speak his mind, but he knew if he said those words, it would be speaking out against the crown just as much as against my father. And that could cost him his life.

“Let’s hope the most suitable person wins this race, then,” he settled on finally, and without even looking for my reaction he turned on his heel and walked away, dragging the still quiet woman with him. I scoffed loudly, not bothering to hide it as everyone saw our interaction anyway, and finally was able to leave the table.

People moved out of my way cautiously as I walked through the room, trying to pretend that they weren’t paying attention to me and still making sure to clear the spot as soon as I neared them like I had some terrible contagious disease. It was quite ridiculous, and it left a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach.

My feet carried me across the room without any clear goal in my mind, not quite ready to return to the two dragons, especially since everyone saw the scene now. Them two no doubt also heard it with their strong hearing, and it would be too awkward to speak to them now.

The moment I spotted a slender figure talking to a green-haired dragon, I immediately swerved to go talk to them for a moment, hoping to escape the situation for a moment longer.

Somewhat clumsily crashing into their conversation, balancing two glasses and a plate of sweets, that most definitely got their attention, Hwa-young turning to grin at me while the dragoness kept her face a carefully sculpted mask of aloof interest.

“Cake?” I blurted out abruptly, raising the plate between us like an offering, instantly feeling the heat in my cheeks in embarrassment.

“Oh my god, please,” my schoolmate groaned in joy, hand already reaching for one of the small chocolate treats. The dragoness, Yong as I learnt, was watching us, face impassive, but I could see a glint of something soft in her eyes when her gaze fell onto the cheerful petite woman currently stuffing her face next to us.

Even though I met Hwa-young maybe an hour ago, I was glad Yong seemed to be interested in the young woman’s well-being.

But then her eyes suddenly jumped back to me, boring deep into my soul.

“Bangtan are honourable dragons,” she said finally, her voice a little lower than I anticipated, but smooth as velvet, “They strive for good, maybe more than most.” Her words brought a little smile to my face, reminiscent of the earlier conversation that went basically along the same lines.

My eyes flitted over to the corner where the two men sat hoping to catch their reaction to her words, only to find it empty and the dragons nowhere to be found. I frowned instinctively, hands tightening over the glass of water that Jungkook asked for with heart squeezing, but quickly tampered those thoughts down.

The connection must have been really messing with my head.

I ended up trailing after Hwa-young and her dragoness after that, like a lost puppy, until the greying man stood up once more and announced it was time to move outside. With a deep heaving sigh I abandoned the glass and plates and steeled myself for the true pinnacle of the afternoon.

Hwa-young, once she noticed my uneasiness, gave me an empathetic smile, hand patting me a few times on my shoulder, before she confidently walked up to the glass door and out to the patio, followed by Yong with her curious eyes trained on the knightess.

While the first part of the banquet was mostly for introductions and fraternising, the second part moved outside – that’s why the perfect weather was needed for the day of the event and the court seers and astronomers worked hard to pick an auspicious date to ensure that.

Now the attention from the dragons, a novelty to some and a delicious masquerade to others, the spotlight would shift purely on the novices as we were to partake in several “friendly” competitions to show off our skills.

It was all also a part of the bond creating process, as the show was mostly for the dragons to see their prospective riders and help them choose who’d they like to approach – basically a talent show under the guise of some silly little sportsmanship.

It was also the part I was, surprisingly, even more nervous about than the talking.

When I got outside, most people were already sitting around on the prepared benches, leisurely chatting with the poise only the bored and the filthy rich could have. Five people were already standing in the designated area, fiddling with bows and quivers full of arrows. Quickly, I made my way towards Hwa-young, grabbing my own weapons on the way.

So there was six of us this year. I tried to steal glances at the others to see if maybe I recognised someone, but all of their faces were escaping me. I might have seen them somewhere, but I couldn’t put any names to them, nor their factions or alliances or families.

One man stood all the way in the other corner by himself, air of pompousness and arrogance so thick around him I could sense it all across the field. It bled into every single one of his movements, into the expression on his pale elegant face, even into the way he flicked his long straight black hair out of his face.

Two others stood a little away from him, closer to each other but not interacting in any way. Their faces were carefully sculpted cold expressionless masks as they held the bows in their hands ready for the contest, not talking, not looking out into crowd, nothing.

The last man stood the closest to us, all by himself but with his shoulders relaxed and a positive aura surrounding him. His hands were casually drumming a rhythm into the wood of the bow, foot tapping happily into the dense dirt compacted by thousands upon thousands of armoured shoes walking over it every day. When he noticed me looking his way, he suddenly brightened and gave me a happy smile.

That was enough to shock me into turning back to my own bow and I ignored the cheery man, not that he seemed very offended by that. Instead he immediately changed targets to Hwa-young standing next to me and the two fell into a hushed conversation after a few smiles exchanged.

The bow in my hand was worn, it wouldn’t be impossible to use it, but it was obvious they were some old weapons taken from some forgotten unloved storage. The royal palace insisted that we would use the military’s tools to ensure fairness, but I truly wasn’t expecting them to pull out bows that were probably older than half the men standing around the edges of the training area. And there were dragons present.

Speaking of which, on my next cursory look over the gathered crowd I was able to spot the two Bangtan boys (men?) standing on one side a little bit away from everyone else, eyes already trained on me.

In a split second I noticed and realised three things – Jimin’s hair was actually a really deep dark blue, he was looking at me with a much unfriendlier look than before and Jungkook sent me a shit-eating grin before waving cheekily. I scoffed, kind of amused by his attitude, but also significantly weirded out by the change in vibe in his companion.

While yes, it was very unusual to be dishing out handshakes left right front and centre, but I just kind of assumed Jungkook was one of those who didn’t really care about propriety all too much. He had a vibe of a man that loved to see the world burn, and I had to deeply respect that. His whole aura screamed of youth and mischief, so I chalked up his unusual behaviour up to that. But it seemed that Jimin wasn’t exactly impressed with him, as he eyed me with mistrust like I brainwashed his mate into bonding with me.

Loud clinking brought my attention away from those two and my eyes slowly drifted back to the greying man and who I presumed was his dragoness. That was another mystery to me – it was obvious he was in some sort of position of power, but I’ve never met him nor seen him before – I knew he wasn’t in charge of the unit, and he wasn’t even between the teachers that we met during the trials – and I went through them a few times, as we previously established.

He stood up, the same detached expression on his face, and cleared his throat. “Let the games begin,” he proclaimed simply, “We will start with a shooting competition.” Then he shuffled a little under all that attention before sitting back down. I hid my smile behind my palm while watching his bonded laugh at him. You had to love the way he didn’t want to be here as much as everyone else.

The mirth quickly drained out of me though when I realised with our positioning I would end up going first. I cursed under my breath, my hands growing clammy and shaking, desperately gripping the bow and attempting to look as collected as possible. If we at least started with sword fighting, but we had to jump straight into shooting.

This was exactly what I was afraid of, the mounting shame of what was about to come already drowning me and pulling me under the sea of emotions, leaving me helplessly gasping for air. My lungs painfully constricted, but I got into position nonetheless.

There was a reason for why I struggled to enter this unit in particular, even when I was hell-bent on joining the horns. Growing up with a general for a father, I had been trained from small age – I knew how to properly hold a sword before I learned to use the toilet on my own, but my father was a master of heavy weaponry. He was known for his massive bagua-dao swords, occasionally reaching for scimitars or sabres – not too much for his marksmanship. He was still an incredibly efficient archer, but he preferred not to be stuck with a bow and arrows where there could be blood spilt.

Therefore I somewhat gravitated towards those weapons as well – and well, I wasn’t as sufficient with long-range attacks. I’d always achieve a ‘just close enough’, but I rarely hit the mark precisely. But on dragonback, you had no choice but to aid your troops with ranged attacks.

As one of the trainers back during my first trial put it – ‘A dragon rider that can’t shoot a bow and arrow is like a whore without a pussy’. Truly, what a charming man.

I’d improved a lot, enough to manage to weasel my way into the elite unit, but still my shooting wasn’t perfect. And when you wore a name like Kang, that was a social suicide.

My ears all out of nowhere picked up how the crowd quieted, through the roaring blood and the anxious thoughts, and I realised they all hungrily anticipated my performance. Taking a few stabilising breaths, I tried to reinforce my hands and stop their shaking.

Through the bundle of nerves lodged into my throat and the stones slowly setting into my stomach, I fought to empty myself – my heart, my head – to bring about that one-track focus to the centre of the target that stood off to the distance.

Time slowed down, my heart pumped wildly and my head spun and I let go. The arrow elegantly swished through the air, faster than many were able to see, and embedded itself deep into the straw target, just shy of the red circle dominating it.

Even anticipating those results, my heart still sank knowing that everyone saw. Murmurs rose and the pit of humiliation threatened to swallow me. I hated how I was already berating myself for not doing better, how I was already fearing what would my father say once I got home, how I was too scared to turn around and face their mocking eyes and sneers.

I hated the castle, and I knew that I was on the precipice of getting devoured whole by it.

With shaky sweaty hands I stood there and watched all the other novices hit perfect mark, the waves of polite ovations reaching my ears through the cotton of my inner turmoil.

The second round came, all the eyes turned to me again, and I knew the moment I released the bowstring that the nerves won over me, barrelled through my psyche and I was lost to the chant of insecurities going through my head.

The arrow hit a little to the left of the first one, a tiny bit further from the centre than before.

The weight on my shoulders was pulling them down and I was tenser, more uncomfortable, but I kept my composure. It was crucial that I showed no weakness now, that would be inviting even more trouble. I felt bile rising through my pharynx but swallowed it down and instead forced myself to stand tall with head held high.

I didn’t gather the courage to turn around until the last arrow was released.

I let myself be ushered towards a different area prepared for us while the target practice was moved around and prepared for the final spectacle of the afternoon. In the meanwhile, we were to fight with swords. That was more of a stable ground for me.

Perfectly there was just the right amount of us to compete in twos and I was already hoping that I wouldn’t end up with the snotty kid from the end of the line lest I might try to kill him for sure. Trying to avoid any polite chatter between us and also pointedly not look towards the crowd, I started perusing the weapons offered, thinking of what the best strategy would be to take.

A shortsword was a classic, but nothing too impressive. A longsword a similar case. Though if I had to choose, I’d preferred the two-handed longsword, I had a tendency to get a little too swingy with one-handed weapons. There was a scimitar, which was a solid option even though more suited for horseback – but once again, I’d prefer two-handed weapons.

All the way at the end of the prepared rack (it didn’t escape my attention there was only one for all of us) sat a dadao and bagua-dao right next to each other, glinting in the sun like cruel smiles. As far as I was aware, no one here would actually reach for those – they weren’t standard weapons people were taught to operate.

They were there for me. For family legacy.

That was enough for me to make my choice.

While the others just made it over to the rack and started paying it more attention, I grabbed the plain longsword and moved towards the area fenced off for a duel. I sensed the confused, surprised and mocking gazes rolling off of my back, but I didn’t let their disappointment muddle my already arguably shitty day any more.

I wasn’t here to give them a show. I was here to bond with a dragon.

When everyone had chosen their weapons (I was right, no one went for the dao swords), we all stood there for a moment, too nervous to actually say anything. The arrogant prick was acting like we were all beneath him, but the rest of us eyed the others apprehensively, trying to gauge with who we’d like to end up in a duel.

The puppy boy was now hanging about Hwa-young, the two of them seemed to make fast friends, and honestly, I understood that. I was also drawn into her aura quite quickly, though my current stress prevented me from relaxing around anyone at the moment.

Taking notice of the weapons others chose, I started realising that something didn’t add up. There was only one of each, and it would be impossible to have a proper duel if one person has a longsword and the other a scimitar. It wasn’t that unusual for the battlefield, but in duelling it wasn’t done.

Looking around, there was another rack of weapons on the other side of the fenced area – where we wouldn’t be able to go at the moment due to the fences. It all started clicking in my mind just as Lord Kim of all people stepped up on a little platform and gestured to get the attention of the slowly quieting crowd.

“As was tradition for the second discipline,” he started pompously, chest puffed up and face painted with a sleazy smile, “the novices would duel each other. This year we chose to make a little change for the entertainment of those watching.” I could see a few of us looking confused or slightly uncomfortable, and my own heart tightened for a moment.

Lord Kim gestured somewhere behind him and six people walked up to the rack of weapons on the other side. Three men and three women, all looking coldly towards the baron, standing side by side and anxiously awaiting the order to grab their weapons. It wasn’t that hard to deduce they were all dragons.

Silence fell over us while the crowd clapped happily, the vile joy reflected in their gazes, while we exchanged worried glances. Hwa-young’s face was drawn into a tight serious expression, a stark difference to how she was just a few minutes ago, while the guy by her side shuffled from foot to foot wordlessly.

The only one that didn’t seem to be bothered by the revelation was the smug bastard who stood a little away from us, serenely holding a sabre in his hand and looking straight at a man with flaming red spiky hair, who steadily ignored his attention.

How curious.

I watched as Kim gave the order with a flick of his wrist and the selected six moved with a purpose straight to their chosen weapons. The redhead without hesitation reached for the sabre, eyes glued to the ground and trying to blend in as much as possible, not stand out at all.

I felt a simmer of rage bubble up inside my chest and turned to stare daggers at the newbie only to see that he was already looking at me with a stupid smirk on his face.

So he already knew. He must have been close to someone high up in the unit then – that would make things difficult.

Swearing to myself to find out who was his patron, I made my distaste known on my face all for him to see and then turned back to our chosen opponents, searching for the one with a longsword. Eyes jumping from one to other, I finally found the weapon in the hands of a tall dragoness, her curly ginger hair falling down her back all the way to her tailbone. She as well was already watching me, but her eyes were unreadable, her lips a thin straight line.

The baron’s chuckle had our tense eyes drawing back to him. He stood there, with an awful sharp grin on his face, arms thrown out in a grand gesture, gaze jumping around our faces.

“Well, let the second discipline begin,” Lord Kim announced, “Happy fighting!” He laughed loudly, gestures dramatic and over the top, and then leisurely made his way back to sit next to… Duke Lee. What was it… birds of a feather?

I scoffed at the two men sitting there and acting like old chaps, all chummy and cozy next to each other. Baron Kim was really getting better at dick sucking, look at him, making his way all the way to the duke. Talent had to be recognised.

“Young mistress Kang!” the exclamation of my name startled me into stumbling to turn around, suddenly aware that everyone was looking at me. The dragoness was standing in the middle of the fighting arena, sword hanging from her hands limply. There was a touch of annoyance displayed on her face, but it was obvious she was trying to tamper it down as to not get into trouble.

I flushed lightly but diligently moved into the arena without any more stalling. Of course I’d go first again, we were probably going to keep the order from the first discipline. My nerves were skyrocketing, and I held the sword in my clammy hands.

Fighting in a duel against a same-aged human wasn’t something that brought too much stress to me, it was actually the one discipline of the three I was very confident in and looked forward to. General Kang never went easy on anyone, including his small children even during the first years of our training and I knew I could probably take on half the people from the military and be fine.

Duelling against a centuries old dragon with so much more strength and sharper senses though, that was a completely different story. Defeating a dragon, even in a sword fight, was virtually impossible. It took a lot of training, mostly with specific dragons, and most people resorted to underhanded tactics to gain an upper hand.

So the desired effect of this duel was most likely to present well with tactics, endurance and skill, not to actually aim to win. It was hard entering a ring knowing you will lose the fight, hard to muster up the courage to the absolute most to win when you know it’s a done deal from before you even stepped in, but this, like many other things, was mostly about appearances.

With a sigh I took my position and gestured to my opponent that I was ready. She did the same immediately and in a second a whistle sounded through the air, letting us know the match had started.

Nobody made a move at first, both of us holding our stance and slowly circling the arena, gauging the other and calculating the best approach.

I admittedly wasn’t the type to jump in headfirst into offensive, it usually took me a while to attack. Sometimes it was to psych the other out, sometimes I just wanted to see what they would do first and adapt to their strategy accordingly. But she seemed to be doing the same thing, so for a few long moments silence enveloped the crowd as they watched us with bated breaths.

I held the sword in a front guard, tip pointing right at her neck, and I just had a split second to register the tightening of her hands on the grip before she was suddenly lunging forward with a straight strike, aiming for my abdomen.

The habit kicked in and I cockstepped to the side, sword immediately flying in a circle guard to parry her attack before I retreated again. There was determination in her face, and she didn’t seem to be terribly appalled by my stance, so I counted that as a win.

This went on for a long while, one of us suddenly lunging forward in an attack to surprise the other, then parry, counter-attack and then retreat, circling around the edges of the arena. I couldn’t hear anything from outside those fences, I had no idea if people were entertained or not, if they watched or not, if they even said anything at all. All my attention was poured into the form of my opponent, watching her every single move.

Longsword was about agility, being quick on your feet and keeping your contender appropriately far to be able to land a hit but not close enough for them to land it back, and I used my small stature and quickness to my advantage a lot when fighting, but even though I was able to stand my ground, I felt the disparity in our strengths.

She was taking it easy on me, I was aware of that. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to parry that easily against a blow with full dragon power behind it, and while she was able to keep her composure, I already felt my body faltering. There was sweat streaming down my face, I felt it soaking through the uniform and making my grip sloppy. My legs were starting to get tired, and I stumbled a few times while side-stepping away from her attacks.

Her movements stayed effortless and fluid, her sword steady and sharp. I started to slip up.

As our patience ran out, the number of attacks increased and finally we were giving the audience what it wanted – an offensive after an offensive, barely giving the other time to counter. She must have tested my strength, because suddenly her blows became much more heavy-handed – she aimed to end this match soon.

She almost overpowered me with a diagonal cut, and my ankle twisted as I turned. Pain burst through me, face turning into a grimace. Her face reflected sure victory, sword already aiming for abdominal horizontal cut.

Last minute I turned my sword into downward guard, turned around it and swung for her right side. There was a split second of surprise on her features, the edge just a hair away from her clothes when she managed to jump away, and I gambled.

Turning my legs into a stable stance I lunged forward, ignoring the throbbing in my ankle. The dull tip aimed straight at the side of her lower abdomen, sword flying through the air. The element of surprise did a lot for me, but she managed to evade.

I cursed, sweat slipping into my eyes and making it hard to see. I didn’t even have the moment to wipe it away. The dragoness disappeared from my field of vision, and I fought my own body to turn quickly, but it wasn’t enough.

When I turned, sword already in position to take upwards diagonal cut at her, there was a tip aimed at my neck. I felt it prick the skin when I stumbled with the momentum, eyes trained on her hands on the handle.

Everything froze for a few seconds, few long seconds during which I only heard my own heaving breath and the roaring hum of blood in my veins. The heat started catching up with me and I shivered under the sudden wave of hotness over my whole body.

Then a thunder of clapping broke through the trance, and I looked up to see her eyes. They weren’t as cold anymore, but I wouldn’t dare to guess what she was feeling. She gave me a curt nod and stepped away, swiftly lowering her sword. Almost involuntarily I let go of my own and my glove went with it, hands too wet to stick to them.

I was still trying to catch my breath, the heavy intakes jerking my whole body and all I wished to do was to tear this stupid uniform off and jump into a cold creek, but I was suddenly grabbed by Lord Kim who materialised on stage and dragged me closer to the expectant crowd.

On instinct I started bowing, dragoness in tow even though there wasn’t even an ounce of the usual winner’s joy in her being, and then we were both sent away.

I stumbled over to our side again, wondering if I could maybe be suffering from heatstroke, when two small but very strong hands pulled me into a hug. Hwa-young squealed right into my ear, but I was too sluggish to actually recoil from the sound.

Before I even fully clocked in the situation, she was already pulling away with a huge grin, hand now patting me on the shoulder.

“That was amazing!” she exclaimed, visibly vibrating in excitement, “It felt like nobody was breathing for the entire time you two fought, the tension was insane!” A single syllable laugh fell out of my tired mouth, a somewhat slanted smile pulling at my lips, before I gestured back inside.

“I need water,” was all that came out of me, very eloquently might I add, and then I steered my shaky knees in the right direction and walked off. With every step I retained a little bit of my previous strength, my body finally acclimatising and slowly pumping the brakes on the excitement and pain.

As I was stepping in, the strangely happy guy from before was just stepping into the ring with his shortsword firmly clutched in his hands and a face full of determination.

Thankfully, no one bothered me while I was inside replenishing my strength, and I re-emerged a few minutes later in a much better shape. The fact that there was one more discipline left already drained me in advance. If I could at least take one layer off, that would make it much better, but it would be improper.

I must have been inside for longer than I thought, because it seemed that two matches have happened in the meantime, with the third now already in motion. The only ones still waiting for theirs was Hwa-young and the peacock with a sabre, both standing next to each other but ostentatiously ignoring the other.

Sitting down in the shade, I watched on. During Hwa-young’s turn I appreciated her form a lot. She was a great fighter, and it was obvious she put her absolute best into the match. Her opponent seemed to be a measured laid-back fighter, and he balanced her energetic offensive very well. When she lost, it was after a good fight and she went down honourably. The dragon even accepted her offered handshake (gloves on, of course, to prevent any skin-to-skin contact and accidentally establish a potential bond) and then they both moved to their respective sides.

The last man stepped in, flaming red hair reflecting the sun and making him almost shine in the middle of the summer garden. Peacock walked up to him and immediately took his stance. Once the whistle was blowed, he flew into an attack within split second, and the match from then on was a wild mess of heavy offensive.

While the dragon seemed to be surprised, like the others he didn’t have much trouble standing his ground and matched the energy given well. As much as I disliked people who valued offensive over anything and expected to win fights just by endlessly swinging their swords around without rhyme or reason, the display of power between the two fighters was quite fascinating to watch.

Their forms were beautiful, and their sabres met with loud clinks, almost hard enough to see sparks flying about. It was a wild flurry of movement, of red and silver flashes and fast footwork that would be hard on even experienced knights.

And that was exactly what got him in the end. The peacock was extremely confident in the first few minutes of the match, but as it dragged on, the dragon refusing to concede and dealing back just as much power, the toll it was taking on the human to keep up started to be visible.

I watched his legs increasingly more stumble and react slower to the attacks and for a brief moment I wondered whether I looked the same when I started losing the fight.

But then he suddenly threw himself at the redhead, sword pushing his to the side and body slamming into him full force. There were a few gasps around in the audience as confusion set in. Aside the fact that this was a sword duel, he definitely couldn’t win against him in a fistfight. And once they got this close, the dragon could really knock him out with a single blow. It was pure insanity.

And I could see the redheaded man preparing to do just that, hand dropping his sabre and body twisting in preparation to take a full swing, when the bastard shot his hand out and grasped around the dragon’s neck.

I was on my feet faster than I could comprehend doing that, dread making my heart stop beating and my stomach to drop all the way down to the ground. His hand was bare, he must have shucked the glove off somewhere during the lunge.

The poor dragon froze under the touch, body going into panic. He tried to twist out of his grasp, and I saw the hand visibly squeeze the flesh tattooed with shackles.

“Kneel!” the human’s booming voice carried over the shocked crowd without a problem, loud enough to even scare off some birds off of the nearby trees.

The redhead locked into place, eyes glazing over and shame seeping out of the very pores of his skin. Then he slowly kneeled, mechanically like he was fighting against his body every step of the way. Once he was on the ground his head hung low, whether it be in humiliation or obedience, and it was a terrible heart-wrenching sight.

The boy let go and then victoriously turned to the audience, smug grin wide on his face, leaving the dragon sitting in the dirt. Then there was an abrupt wave of cheering and clapping, a thunderous sound that swept through the whole garden and Lord Kim was running towards the arena, screaming praises for the only one of us who managed to defeat their dragon.

Shock, disgust and dread kept me frozen in my place, heart squeezing painfully in my chest and lungs constricted. I felt like I was going to be sick, like all that was going to come out of me would be black poisonous sludge from the display we bore witness to.

I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the lone being shamefully kneeled there, unable to stand up until another command came. A wave of emotions swept through me – rage, compassion, pain – and tears almost sprung into my eyes, but I quickly blinked them away.

When my eyes swept through the crowd, there wasn’t enough horror in people for this to have taken place. Most were sitting around, pleased and happy and talking about the champion. The dragons looked uncomfortable, eyes avoidant and their postures tense. Hard and frozen.

I saw Hwa-young, her face serious and troubled, lips a thin line as she stared at the man who was happily conversing with a bunch of good-for-nothing lords.

It was hard to compute he did something like that. And even harder to compute that it was allowed, in a friendly duel, against a dragon that wasn’t even his bonded.

Even though people liked to pretend that dragons were here all on the accord of their own free will, pretend like they weren’t forced and enslaved, pretend like they wouldn’t get punished if they didn’t go along with their whims, the shackles still remained a stark reminder of their status.

And while the only person who could directly command them was the emperor, or the dragon’s bonded, anyone could really force the dragon into obedience by grabbing their neck. The shackle was a ‘mark of magic’ (among others) – it showcased the place where the dragon was touched with a curse.

And this curse forced them into obedience to humankind. They couldn’t fight against a human and wish him serious harm, they couldn’t go against the emperor or anyone in the position of power, and they couldn’t not obey direct commands coming to them. The magic in their blood enforced their behaviour and there was nothing they could do about it.

So if you wanted to command a dragon and have him be coerced into listening to you, all you had to do was grab their neck where their shackle was, thus activating the curse.

That redhead wouldn’t be able to stand up until he was similarly commanded to do so, because he couldn’t break the order to kneel. It was absolutely disgusting and barbaric.

The conversation really seemed to have moved on, no one paying attention to him. Peacock left with Lord Kim, along with some other novices. Hwa-young and puppy boy stood frozen by the fence for a moment before they guiltily avoided their eyes and moved towards the fray of festivities too. Not that I could blame them.

I didn’t know anything about his background, but Hwa-young certainly couldn’t make a scene about a dragon given the precarious situation she was in.

At least one thing my stupid fucking surname was good for. Sometimes I could get away with being untouchable (sans the consequences my father would give when I got home, but that was a private affair – what they don’t know… can’t hurt me).

Not being able to take it anymore, I steeled myself and made my way towards the arena displaying much more confidence than I actually felt. Presentation was key, I endlessly told myself, in a voice that suspiciously sounded like my father. Subtly checking my surroundings, it seemed that no one was really paying attention to me yet. Which was good, but it would change quickly.

When I got to him, his shoulders were slumped, head still down and refusing to look up. The dragon probably assumed I’d come to mock him, and it broke my heart a little. Once more looking around to make sure nobody cared what I was doing, I kneeled in front him too.

I heard his little gasp of surprise, but he didn’t move in the slightest.

People considered it to be humiliating to kneel in front of a slave, which is why he probably didn’t see often people drop down to his level instead of commanding him to look up. I cleared my throat somewhat awkwardly.

“Pardon the intrusion,” I mumbled softly, making sure he was the only one who heard me, “Don’t panic, I’m going to touch your neck in a moment, okay?” For a few silent moments I waited for him to nod, and he finally realised that as well when no touch came after my words.

After his confirmation I brough my hand to his shackle gently, trying to be as unintrusive as possible, but no matter how much I tried this would always be a violation of them. I felt the magic come alive under my fingertips, thrumming violently through my blood. It was an ugly kind of magic and it made me sick when it filled my being with its aura.

Swallowing the noise of protest at the sensation, I didn’t want to stress him more, I quickly said: “You can stand, and you’re free of commands.” I saw his shoulders relaxing, and he shivered lightly. I quickly tore my hand away from his skin and stood up again, knees protesting at the swift movement.

I offered him my hand, but he ignored it as he himself stood up. His knees must have been in even worse shape after sitting on the rough ground like that, but he carried himself gracefully, shame persistently seeping in at the edges. When our eyes met, he curtly nodded my way and then swiftly walked off, leaving the gathering behind him.

I couldn’t blame him.

A good half an hour went by before I heard Lord Kim’s voice exclaim: “Oh no! Where did our dragon disappear to?” By then I had already moved closer to the shooting range and watched servants bring out and prepare the six horses that would be involved in the next discipline.

There were some general gasps, people looking around with disappointment painting their faces, but no one spoke out against me. No one looked at me, or even cared that I still sat by the side, leading me to assume that my actions haven’t been noticed, thankfully.

As the commotion slowly quietened, I willed my heart to calm down, body sagging lightly against the stone bench.

While I was looking forward to the last discipline, horseback shooting at moving targets, the atmosphere hung heavy over us after the last match, and it was hard to have any enjoyment from anything taking place. Peacock of course was in great spirits and the two expressionless guys that haven’t said a single word as far as I was concerned didn’t seem to care at all, but we the remaining three all showed different signs of uneasiness, the good mood sapped out of us in the blink of an eye.

We stood in a hushed group, still processing everything, while the others were already claiming horses and preparing their bows.

“I was kind of expecting it and it still caught me off guard that he’d just… go there,” finally Hwa-young broke the silence, looking at me solemnly. I gave her a confused look, tilting my head slightly.

“What do you mean ‘expecting it’?” the question fell out my lips and it drew the attention of the boy.

“The blond one tried to reach for the neck, but got quickly overpowered,” he jumped in to explain, “I thought it was more like a tactic to scare her or psych her out, at the moment it didn’t look like he’d really go for it.” His gaze was pointing to one of those silent two, a tall blond with cold blue eyes.

“Oh!” he suddenly exclaimed, hand flying to me in an offered handshake, “I forgot to introduce myself! I’m Choi Siwoo, of the southeast clan.” I only hesitated for a split second before I took it, attempting a small smile even with my heart still heavy.

I was kind of already beginning to like Hwa, her story and attitude made me trust in her good side a little more, and this guy seemed to be just a ball of sunshine. She evidently got along with him and for the moment I’ve decided to tentatively trust her judgement.

God knows I’d need as many allies on my side as possible and I trusted that Hwa-young of all people wouldn’t have a problem with me based on my clan. Plus both of them most probably had the same opinion as me about the violating display peacock put on.

It was quite sad, but once you found people who actually believed dragons to be real beings with real rights, you’d better hand onto them and not let them go. I myself was painfully aware of how meagre the numbers of those were.

Siwoo’s face brightened with a toothy grin, hand briefly squeezing mine before he pulled back. There was a little bit of relief on his face and I wondered whether he was worried I’d reject his friendship offer. He and Hwa exchanged a short happy look, she nodded a little, and then turned to beam at me. A little snicker escaped my lips at their shenanigans, but I didn’t stick around to see their faces split with wide smiles.

Instead I finally started making my way towards one of the still available horses, choosing a white one with black and brown spots, absentmindedly picking up the bow and quiver with arrows. Once we were all on horseback and ready, Lord Kim once again climbed up to a little platform and with a few pompous words blew the whistle.

I was miles away in my mind, just going with the flow of the horse’s movement. I’ve always loved horses since little, and anytime I found myself on one I usually relaxed very quickly, which combined with my troubled heart and mind had me escaping away from this awful little banquet, my mind carrying me to the green pastures and meadows of our fief.

Thus I ended up missing my first shot, just breezing past the target without even pulling out my bow. A quick shout of my name later I was confusedly looking around only to see Hwa-young’s worried face. She gestured to her bow and I immediately realised I must have not even seen where I was supposed to be shooting.

The discipline went on, and after a few circle arounds I even managed to hit a bullseye, more or less on accident. The crowd gave me some polite applause, but I found myself as shocked as half the people sitting there on that garden.

By the time they finally called us back, I was already prepared to disappear home the next second I could. I was over all this, mentally and physically drained and I hated the audience watching our every move, my skin crawling with every curious or hateful glance.

Of course, we were meant to be socialising more, but I planned to slink off the moment people stopped paying attention to me. Having led the horse back to the stables, I was back in the crowd, slowly making my way inside to grab some more refreshments. I ignored the hum of murmurs around me, mocking my score or whispering about my father.

When someone threw a glare at me, I returned it with a polite smile, the tiredness pulling the attitude back onto the surface. Today had quite enough of diplomatic and courteous encounters, now I was done.

Making it over to the almost empty buffet table, a scowl was already pulling down at my lips, making me look even more unfriendly than usual. When somebody’s presence suddenly made itself known behind me, I was ready to snark at them until they left. They couldn’t even let me eat in peace.

For a few moments I continued to ignore the person, even though I knew they were messing around with something on the table, hoping they weren’t here for me after all, but all those hopes got shattered the moment they walked up straight to me and tapped my shoulder.

I started turning around, a smart retort already about to slip off of my tongue when I came face to face with a broad chest and shoulders, tattoos peeking from his tunic and pierced lips, and it promptly withered and died in my throat. He had tattoos there as well? How did I miss that?

Lightly flustered I quickly snapped my head up, searching for the dragon’s eyes. Jungkook was grinning at me from up above, gaze sparkling just like before. I stumbled a step or two back, putting some more space between us to make the height gap less blaringly obvious. He snickered at me, but stayed put, leisurely leaning with his hip on the table.

“Looked like you were booking it, so I wanted to catch you before you disappear,” the dragon explained with a knowing smile, “just to set some things straight.” A soft questioning noise left my mouth, a mixture of anxiety and confusion hitting me. Sudden fear that he’d come here to let me down gently gripped me and I desperately tried to temper it down, not even recognising myself and the strange behaviour I’d been exhibiting since I accepted his handshake.

Jungkook seemed blissfully oblivious though and kept cooly leaning on the table, completely relaxed in his stance and expression. My calculative gaze slid from his head to his toes, trying to gauge what he’d feel the need to tell me this urgently. Preparing myself for the worst, I invited him to speak with a gesture of my arm.

“I want to reserve your noon three days from now,” the dragon told me, body language still quite laid-back, lulling me into believing that maybe this wasn’t bad news after all, “A personal training, after that we’ll talk.”

Even though I tried to keep my expression in check, I couldn’t eliminate the chance that he heard my heart happily jump in my chest and skip a few beats. The expression on his face was earnest when I lost to myself and checked it just to be sure, but I also noticed a light dusting of a blush over his cheekbones while his fingers tried to detangle his bangs from the little horns coming out of his forehead. With a start I realised that his hair actually wasn’t black, but there was a deep purple metallic sheen to it that gave off little coloured flashes when it was hit by the light right.

He cleared his throat, somewhat awkwardly, and started shuffling. Immediately I realised I haven’t actually answered to him and instead just stood there staring at him. I couldn’t help the rush of colour to my cheeks and briefly I wondered whether his blush meant he was feeling similar effects of the established connection.

I’d have to research bonds a little, I’d never known it could influence you like this. Wistfully I thought back to the memory of my teacher, the desperate desire to know where he was or that he’d be still here with me manifesting again. He’d tell me everything, answer all of my questions without hesitation.

But before I could get too off track in my thoughts and leave Jungkook even more hanging, I cleared my throat as well. “Does- Does that mean you are interested in pursuing the connection?” I squeaked out, throat a little dry and my flustered state making it hard to speak seriously.

The dragon grinned at me, boyish and free with a hint of mischief, and it did make me thaw a little in face of such a display. It made him look young and on top of the world, and I couldn’t stop my eyes from briefly jumping to his shackled neck with a painful pang to my heart.

“Of course!” he exclaimed loudly, “You seem pretty cool.” I raised my eyebrow at him, but ultimately chose to not answer to that. Taking another step back I let food be food and returned an impish grin of my own.

“Sure then, see you in three days.” Jungkook seemed very satisfied by that answer and without further ado turned around to leave.

I watched him go with my heart quivering in both hope and nerves as I found myself so close to the edge of something great. Of something meaningful. I couldn’t mess it up now.

Of course my father would be beyond overjoyed that I’d managed to catch the attention of Bangtan, as it would catapult me straight to the top. It would cement me as something special from the very beginning, and that was all he ever wanted of us. The emperor would surely allow me to ride him, because I was a Kang and that was all that mattered. I’d finally make myself useful and aide my father in his power-hungry ways.

But that wasn’t what I wanted.

No. I wanted to change the world. Change would always have to start at the top.

And I would bring this empire down, once and for all.

With a true genuine smile I also turned on my heel, in a completely different direction, and swiftly left the banquet behind me. It was time to learn how to impress a dragon.

Jungkook was slowly getting fed up with Jimin’s disconcerted looks thrown his way, the older dragon making it well known for the several past hours just how upset he was with the youngest.

“Okay, god, I get it, can you stop staring at me like that?” he grumbled out, flinching at his mate’s disbelieving expression. The smaller man had basically smoke rising from his head with how angry he seemed to be, and that was a feat considering he was a water dragon.

“Excuse me?!” he exclaimed wildly, “So dare you explain to me what the hell was that?!” Something strange and tense settled between them the moment Jungkook offered the Kang girl his hand, and he knew this was long time coming, the blue-haired man very obviously just looking for an opportunity to have a private chat with him.

Jungkook shrugged, and in hindsight, that wasn’t the best reaction judging by the frustrated noise he got from Jimin in answer, but he himself didn’t really know. Honestly, he was just as confused as everyone else, but something just… compelled him?

“I- I don’t know,” he quickly remedied, not wanting to provoke the other dragon even more, “it just felt like the thing to do.” That earned him a frown. Jimin stopped in his tracks, turning to look at his youngest mate with something slightly alarming making itself home in his eyes.

“What do you mean?” he asked quietly, gaze imploring and looking for answers, “Jungkook, this wasn’t just ‘something to do’, you could have made a huge fool out of yourself. Not to mention that you don’t just go around offering handshakes to riders! You skipped several steps of a whole process that’s there for a reason!”

Jungkook shrunk under the barrage of Jimin’s upset words, the inkling need to start defending himself and get upset back wiggling into his bones, but on a rational level he knew his mate was more worried than anything.

“Bonds are fickle things, you don’t simply jump headfirst into it with a complete stranger!” the water dragon continued, determined to let it all out now that they were gone from public and had space to hash it out, “It could have made you sick, it could have felt awful, it could have connected you to a terrible person. It’s not as simple as introducing yourself, bonds are strong and deep and they can influence you. You don’t go around doing that with everyone, you wait until you meet a person that feels right to offer it to!” That was Jungkook’s opening.

“But didn’t you feel it too, hyung?” he whispered, knowing he succeeded in worming some doubt into his hyung’s mind, “It was there even before we touched. That’s what I meant when I said it just felt… right to do. I can’t explain it, I just knew it was meant to happen somehow. And you know how gullible I am to instincts!” He threw in a good pout as well, grabbing onto Jimin’s sleeve and selling the cuteness to the max.

Jimin gave him a chastising look, but it was obvious his resolve was breaking and he was fighting his own smile at the cute display.

“I saw how you reacted, hyung,” Jungkook whispered again, hand sliding down to lock their fingers together, “I know you felt something.”

Both dragons were very well aware that something about this bond was strange, but neither knew how to explain to the other the sensations and feelings that ran through them in that moment they touched. Jimin pursed his lips, not finding the right words and feeling in way over his head.

“Let’s get home, I want to talk to hyungs about it,” he simply murmured and started dragging the other with him through the silent dark streets of the capital city. This part was always dead quiet in the middle of the night, the proximity of the royal palace scaring all nightly activities away into more shady parts. The shadow of the empire just always hung over this district, turning its atmosphere into something rotten and heavy.

It wasn’t far to their town house, the building that they reluctantly used whenever they needed to stay over in the capital as opposed to flying two hours back to their den, and both quickly found themselves enveloped in a much warmer aura of their combined scents. Even this deep into the night there was a hum of activity heard, signalling that the whole thunder was still awake and most likely waiting for their return.

Tae was sitting with Hoseok outside in the tiny yard, but they immediately moved inside the moment they heard the two sets of footsteps. The rest of the mates were all already sitting by the dining table, small refreshments waiting for them while Yoongi peacefully read something, and Namjoon was intensely staring at a couple of glowing rocks.

Seokjin’s head suddenly popped into the room from the adjacent study, warm smile already in place.

“How was Jungkook’s first choosing?” he asked eagerly, quickly padding over to the table and sitting down along with a very interested Tae and a smiling Hoseok. And as shaken as Jungkook and Jimin were from the whole afternoon, they noticed a small strain in their thunder’s expressions as well, deepening the concerned feelings already swirling through their own chests.

“We have to talk,” jumped Jimin straight in without a preamble, choosing the least comforting words anyone could ever say. The other dragons in the room didn’t seem to be very surprised though, only indication of the statement being heard was Jin’s soft sigh and the soft thud of Yoongi closing his book and putting it away.

Five sets of eyes trained on them, waiting for the explanation, and Jungkook helplessly looked towards his hyung to start.

“Jungkook found a potential rider,” Jimin started, eyes never leaving Jungkook’s face, his own troubled when he finally turned to the others.

“Isn’t that sort of a happy occasion?” Namjoon tested out, but as they all noticed before, the hyungs already seemed to be aware of something happening during the afternoon.

“Well, he just stuck his hand out to her within ten minutes of meeting her,” Jimin suddenly snitched petulantly, leaving Jungkook standing there with his mouth hanging wide open at the betrayal.

“Hyung!” he whined out at the same time as Jin’s horrified “Jungkook!” floated through the room.

“It felt right!” he shouted frustrated, feeling like he’s been endlessly repeating himself forever now and everyone just ignored that and focused on the more blaring fact of him completely disregarding age-old rules and making his potential bond into a public spectacle.

But despite his expectations, Jimin didn’t protest, or even got into a needless fight with him about it. Instead, he looked towards the older dragons, unsure and nervous. All of them were suddenly shifting in their seats, drawn closer by Jimin’s obvious distress and ready to jump in and comfort him at the drop of the hat.

“That’s the thing,” the water dragon whispered, “it did. I felt it too.” Silence set over the room. The rug’s been suddenly pulled from under his feet as he thought back to the moment, to the lighting of pure energy zapping through his entire being, feeling as if his fingers were about to burst into flames. To the moment he finally tore his eyes from Y/N and saw his hyung’s horror and shock, immediately pulling him close to whisper if he was okay as Jungkook just stared and tried to comprehend what happened.

It explained a lot.

“What?” was what came out of his mouth though, “You felt the bond through me?” The man in question silently nodded, opening his mouth and considering whether he should speak more. In the end he sighed and resigned himself to this conversation fully.

“Yeah, I felt it through our bond,” Jimin explained closely, “It was strong enough that even I felt the power of it. It’s never happened to me before. I’d never felt any of your bondings, let alone the first contact.” The troubled expression on the faces of the other dragons doubled and the two finally noticed it.

“Do you know what that means?” the question was aimed towards Yoongi and Namjoon who had arguably the most knowledge on most things, and if they didn’t know it currently, they definitely had a book detailing it, but everyone at the table shifted uncomfortably. Jungkook started having the sense of what must have happened.

“You felt it too, didn’t you?” he whispered, the disbelief creeping into his tired voice. There was a beat of silence, a slight hesitation and then Yoongi nodded.

“Yes, but it wasn’t anywhere near as strong as what you said,” the black-haired man explained, voice soothing to attempt and calm the rising emotions, “it was more like an echo of what you two were experiencing.”

For a moment they all just let that information sink in, exchanging nervous glances. Hoseok released a long deep breath, drawing the attention to himself.

“So Jungkookie felt a pull towards someone, immediately went ahead and established a connection and everyone felt an amount of an echo of it through the bond,” he summarised, gesturing towards the two solemn bookworms sitting at the head of the table, “and I’m assuming you’ve also never heard of anything like that happening.”

Both of them shook their head at the same time, and their synchronisation would have been adorable if it wasn’t for the heavy atmosphere in the room.

“What do we do then?” Tae broke the silence tentatively, looking around everyone with his deep soothing eyes.

“Well,” Seokjin sighed again, slapping one hand on the table and startling poor Yoongi that was up to that point lost in thought sitting next to him, “We keep an eye on the bond. Jungkook, you just go about it as normally as possible. Jimin, you tag along with him and observe. Yoongi, Namjoon, please tell me you know where to dig up information about this?” Namjoon hummed thoughtfully, golden eyes glazing over in the same way they always did when he started mentally going through the never-ending catalogue of books they’ve managed amass in their hoard over the centuries.

“I’m certain we have a whole section of the library about bonds, it is a very researched subject, but I don’t remember ever encountering a mention of this,” he said finally, determination setting into his shoulders along with excitement to tackle something that was potentially unknown to them. Even though he’d prefer if this completely new phenomenon happened to someone else and not to his own packmate so he could study it in peace and not worry about them all the time.

Yoongi suddenly stood up, back cracking from being slouched over the table for god knows how long, and he started slowly making his way for his usual travel backpack.

“We have to go back to the den to go through all that though, are you all going to be okay here?” he said, face turning a little softer when he threw a look at his thunder. He was always worrying about them, and they all threw him fond looks back, bringing a slight reddish tint to the top of his ears.

“Of course, the universe won’t fall apart if you’re not here all the time, Yoongi,” Jin sassed him back, but making sure to throw him a little wink in teasing. The black-haired dragon smirked. “You don’t know that,” he rumbled back and then he was swiftly walking out onto the street, leaving Namjoon to scramble out behind him, shouting some apologetic goodbyes as he ran after his hyung.

As the situation settled a little bit and the remaining five sat around the table and played with the prepared food, there was still tension hanging over them. Jungkook especially was lost in thought, wondering about what this meant for him and his fate, and the fate of his mates.

He’d never had a bonded before, he was so far out of his zone here, and it made him nervous that his all-powerful, all-knowing hyungs seemed to be just as surprised by the situation.

His thoughts inevitably carried him to the image of his potential bond, to the expressive eyes screaming out even through the carefully crafted mask of indifference, to the memory of her fighting in the ring. To her kneeling for a dragon and whispering to him softly to make him more comfortable.

He knew Jimin didn’t catch that, too busy being lost in thought and upset about Jungkook’s blunder, and it felt wrong bringing something like that up, but it helped him feel that this person was right to bond with. Jungkook has always been close to his instincts, and currently they were telling him this was where they were supposed to be.

His thunder would disagree, they would scold him and call him too naïve, but against the better judgement of his hyungs, he already felt the beginnings of trust establishing between him and who he hoped would be his rider by the end of the week.

He knew he would go along with this, he only had to persuade the others to believe in him and his instincts too.

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[risuola]

ENTRY #5 ♡ F. READER X GOJO SATORU // There's sugar to your kisses, it tastes like dessert.

contents: arranged marriage!au, fluff — wc. 2093

a/n: you welcomed the series so warmly and lovely, that I made this part longer. it's sickly sweet, it's fluffy — enjoy!

series masterlist

“What the hell am I doing–“

You groaned. Again and again. Sighing and throwing your hands into the air, helpless and hopeless. Resignation crawling up your skin, threatening to fight and win with your stubbornness and determination. You felt the characteristics you proud yourself with falter and peel away along with your pride and dignity and you found it ironic — pathetic — that years of harsh trainings, of bloody torture you endured, years of fights and pain did nothing to break you and now you’re losing your mind over a goddamn mochi.

Mochi.

A dessert made of rice dough, sweet and objectively adorable with its round shape and sugary filling. If someone asked you how much time you spent in the kitchen already, heating up the glutinous rice flour, mixing and kneading the dough, you wouldn’t know. Hours, most likely. Fighting a battle that you weren’t ready for, mixing ingredients, adding water, whisking, and then kneading again, burning your fingers and pads of your palms more times than you’d ever admit. And you hated it. Hated the corn starch that dusted all around the place, the sticky mass of heated rice flour that you tried to get just right and above all, you hated how much time it took you before it finally started to look like something you can work with.

“There we go,” you mumbled, kneading and stretching the dough between your hands and the marble countertop. There was a reason you were a fighter, not a cook and the current state of your kitchen made enough of a proof. Mochi now, cleaning later.

The fillings were delicious, you had to pat yourself on the back. You were very lucky today to grab the sweetest strawberries you ever ate. They tasted like summer, like hot, tropical heaven and you fought with yourself before you ate them all. The cream you whipped turned out just perfectly thick and fluffy. Then the green edamame paste — your husband’s favorite — came out just as good. Decadent almost, smooth and sweet, with perfect, bright green color and texture of a cloud. Half of your cream you mixed up with melted chocolate and while happy with the insides, you were still a little concerned about the dough.

You’re not gonna be defeated by a rice dough.

You managed to roll out the mass very thinly, perfectly, and began forming mochi, which turned out to be much easier to do than you anticipated.

Take the dough.

Scoop on the filling.

Close the dough.

Roll.

Repeat.

You filled up a tray, all of the balls prettily displayed on top of a parchment paper and you took it upon yourself to have a taste of each one. Delicious. Absolutely mind-blowing.

To the fridge they go.

Now clean.

* * *

Satoru got home around 7 pm — typical, if nothing comes up or hold him at work. His job as a teacher, you learned it quickly, was repetitive, predictable. He’s out the door just shy of 10 am and back near the evening, before the soft pinks and oranges of the summer turn into nightly blues and greys and you grew to appreciate the routine that settled into your lives. Spending most of the days separately made the first weeks of marriage much more bearable. It gave you and him enough time to get used to the new situation and cool off after many fights you had. But that was about to change and you were meaning to tell him today, sweetening the deal with mochi.

Oh right, mochi!

It got you a little too excited for Satoru to ignore, you looked a little brighter than usually, nervous even and he found it concerningly amusing. You’re rarely happy to see him back, he’s more used to see you ignore him than to greet him, and even if so – you’d usually pass him with a hi or an attempt of a small talk that he hated. Gojo couldn’t tell what was it that made you so much more vibrant that evening, you looked thrilled, your eyes glimmered in the dim lights of the house. You almost looked… happy? To see him? No, that couldn’t be it.

“Did something happen today? You look oddly excited,” he spoke, following his usual routine of taking off his uniform jacket and putting it neatly on a hanger in the hallway, folding his blindfold in half to have it ready in the morning and washing his hands and face. The soft, dry towel soaked up the excess wetness from his skin as he patted it away, pointing his ocean-blue eyes toward you expectantly.

“Well, yes, kind of,” you replied and dropped onto the soft cushions of the sofa in the living room. You twisted your body slightly and looked at him, and he got the hint because few seconds later, he sat down next to you. “Two things. First, I got an offer to work as a teacher in your school. Yaga contacted me–“

“You are the new teacher for the second years?” Satoru cut you and you couldn’t read him. A slight surprise was all you could decipher from the expression of his features.

“Yes. Well, not yet,” you sighed, “before I agree I wanted to ask you what you think.”

“And you’ll do as I say? Since when you’re doing as you’re told?” He teased and for a moment you considered eating all the mochi yourself. Maybe tying him to the chair and devouring it right in front of his eyes? You opened your mouth to say something rather unpleasant before he spoke again. “If you’re asking me for permission, we both know you don’t need it. I’m sure kids will benefit from having you to lead them.”

“Are you willing to be civil with me if we spend more time along each other during the day? Last thing I need is to argue with you more than we already do.”

“We don’t argue that much lately,” he protested and you huffed out a chuckle, nodding in agreement. You didn’t fight at all, if you think about it. It seemed as if slowly you were getting used to… everything.

“So, you’re fine with the idea?”

“I’m fine with the idea, yes,” he said, running a hand through his white, slightly damp hair and brushing it back. You took in his features, allowing yourself to just stare at the man you married, because even if wedded, you see him no more than his students are. He still sleeps on the couch; he still spends most of his time outside. “You’re staring.”

“I am,” you confirmed, shamelessly and it made him chuckle. “Talking about staring, close your eyes.”

“Why would I–“

“Close your eyes and open your mouth,” you ordered, getting up from the comfortable seat you were sunken into. “Please?”

“I’m honestly concerned,” he said but reluctantly lowered his eyelids. As if it made him any less aware of his surroundings. “What are you planning?”

“Don’t peek.”

Quickly, you padded into the kitchen and uncovered the mochi you kept out of the fridge for about ten minutes now. You took the tray and a glass of water and got back to where Satoru was situated. With his eyes closed, comfortable against the cushions. He felt your weight sinking onto the pillows next to him and a hint of something sweet in the air.

“Open up,” your voice made him hum, still uncertain but curious nonetheless. ‘Open up’ was such a foreign command for him to follow and the small amount of trust that was secure between you and him had to suffice for him to comply. “There we go,” you almost whispered and Satoru slightly flinched at the first contact of his mouth with, what felt like, a blob of cold unknown substance. For a reason he couldn’t really rationalize, he grabbed onto your waist to balance himself, even if there was nothing to throw him off.

Slowly, with caution, Gojo closed his mouth, allowing his teeth to meet the dough, go through it. Mochi. He recognized the sweet taste of his very favorite treat immediately but something about what was just melting against his tongue felt different to what he’s used to. The rice envelope was softer but chewy, sweetened just perfectly and the paste inside — green bean — had a texture of silk and butter, a luscious heaven itself. He felt it spreading along his taste buds, warming against the insides of his cheeks. A perfect mixture of fluffy inside and glutinous outside. So sweet, so delicious.

“Oh my god,” he whimpered. A sound so foreign, that it almost surprised you if not for the very vibrant wash of pleasure that relaxed his features. Just as the mochi melted in his mouth, he melted against the couch.

“Was it good?” You asked, while the answer was relatively clear from what you had a chance to witness. “I made them for you and they are not perfect yet but–“

“You made this mochi for me?”

Satoru’s bright blue eyes snapped open and his grip on your waist tightened. A shock pushed to the front of his expression, he blinked — once, twice — before you nodded slowly. Then he followed the direction of your gaze; his own landing on the tray full neat rows of plump rice balls, so perfectly imperfect against the dark wood below them. He could tell some had a green undertone, the edamame filling, and some were looking white and plain. Next row seemed to have chocolate inside and he could catch the hint of it in the air.

“You made all of this? With your hands?”

“From scratch, yeah,” you nodded, reaching for another one. “Chocolate.”

Being fed by you — his wife — felt odd, unfamiliar, and yet the subtle brush of your fingers against his lips whenever you gently pushed the doughy ball into his open mouth felt just right. Satoru thought he could get used to it, and the mochi.

“So you’re not only a good cook,” you’re not, but you hummed. “But also you can make mochi? If we weren’t already married, I would have asked you to marry me now.”

“That easy, huh?”

“That easy.”

You shook your head, visibly suppressing a giggle and Gojo hoped you wouldn’t hold it. It’s only now that he’s learning how pretty is your smile, how your eyes crinkle every time you allow your face to relax and take on a pattern of joy. He likes the shape your lips form, how they stretch whenever you’re happy and how your brows lift up just slightly above your half-closed lids. He wished you’d let yourself burst out laughing, but instead you shook your head yet again and let out a sigh of content. Good enough.

You reached onto the tray again. This time it was the white blob of doughy goodness hanging heavy between your dainty fingers. “This one is my favorite.”

There was no need to tell him twice. Satoru opened his mouth, eager for the sweetness you called your favorite although from your words he had a suspicion what was inside. Strawberries. You love strawberries. He learned that during the wedding celebration, when you eyed the fruit on his piece of the cake with the most adorable envy he’s ever seen – and then, those very same eyes glittered with pleasure when he exchanged his plate with yours. He remembers how you left the red, plump strawberry for the last bite, how you sighed with content as you bit into the juicy flesh of the fruit, how you nearly purred despite the stressful predicament you were placed into.

“Divine,” Gojo purred himself, as the flavors mixed in his mouth. The crisp, fresh strawberry, along the velvety cream and chewy dough made for an experience he could only compare to orgasm.

He wanted more.

Craved more and he blames it on you that the moment you sunk your teeth into the sweet treat, he leaned closer. His mind went blank when he wrapped his own mouth around the half mochi that sticked out, his lips brushed against yours. A drop of red juice run down his chin, wet and sticky against his skin. He didn’t care. Greedy for more, for you, he leaned in even more, tempted by the sweet taste of your sugar-powdered lips flush to his own.

You gasped. Purred. In surprise, in pleasure, or both.

The feeling unfamiliar, addicting, syrupy.

You should stop it.

You wanted more.

He should stop it.

He wanted more.

It was slow, sloppy and nothing but strawberry and cream.

taglist: @kinny-away , @anan-baban , @lotomber , @netflix-imagines , @kawliflo , @nishloves , @ghostfacefricker6969 , @thejujvtsupost , @yozora7154 , @cherrycolabarbedwirebedpost , @ae-mius , @ropickle , @chokesonspit

[scorpioriesling]

I was reading through your works, and I am going FERAL. I was wondering if you were still taking requests for your prompt list? If not, feel free to completely ignore this, but I was thinking reader/Xaden/Liam? Like, established relationship? I was thinking the reader has like, really bad anxiety all the time? But despite that is a decent Rider? (I was thinking she could have a signet that let's her create/control plantlife? Like Poison Ivy from DC but feel free to make your own or ignore this part) But maybe get's really hurt during a mission or an attack or something; maybe trying to save one of the loves of her life? But during the healing/mending, while she's unconscious, they find out she's pregnant? Hurt/comfort with a LOT of comfort, with prompts 33 & 40?

If you're too busy though, I completely understand! I just love your work and saw the list and went a little crazy

In The Wake of Tragedy

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *

Pairing(s): Xaden x Liam x reader

Warnings: angst, injury, violence, pregnancy, some fluff

Summary: Many times, it is not the battle that we remember, but the cataclysmic shift that follows it.

SR’s Note: This was... interesting, lol. I actually really enjoyed it, I haven't yet written anything with an established 3-person relationship but this turned out to be really sweet! I hope you all like it, and it's what the requester was looking for. This also uses prompts 33 and 40 from my masterlist.

Tags: @mellowmusings @rcarbo1 @lilah-asteria @kitsunetori @velarisdusk @nctsawrus @lreadsstuff @desprrssooo-espresssooooo @freakishfandomfiend (inbox me or comment if you'd like to be added!)

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *

"Y/N -- I said fall back!"

Xaden's angry, mental shout had you gritting your teeth harder as you swerved through the mass of Wyvern. You'd been training so hard for this, Hell you'd stayed up half the night anxiously awaiting daybreak. You ignored his shout as you navigated Moira deeper into their territory.

Ahead, you watched as two Wyvern rose closely to the ground. Perfect. Quickly, you drew all of Moira's power as every vein in your body tingled with anxiety -- hopefully, this would work. Two stalks speared from the Earth in an instant, and you held steadfast as they speared directly through the Wyver's torso's.

A jolt of excitement flared within you, and you felt your anxious thoughts fading away as Moira praised you mentally.

"Fantastic work!" Her upbeat tone sounded. "Now, let's take care of the rest."

She bobbed and wove through the dense fog, searching for her mates. Neither were seen anywhere, but you were at least close enough to communicate with Xaden mentally.

"Did you catch that?" You flaunted, hoping the message would reach him. "Two more down, if I do take credit for myself."

"Fantastic." You could practically feel his eyeroll, much at odds with the way Moira reacted. "Now please, there's only a few left -- take cover, Y/N."

You huffed. "Do you not trust me? I just took out two in one go for Gods sakes -- an I incapable?"

Xaden was more than just your Wingleader, he was one of the absolute loves of your life. You felt, to him, you were only his girlfriend, a relationship he had to share due to his dragon's relationship. But right now, he was simply one thing; in charge.

"I don't have time to debate this right now," he said mentally, his tone softening. "Please, Y/N, I can't stand the thought of loosing you. Get out of sight or else-"

"They're incoming!" Moira's mental voice was more panicked than you'd liked. Your eyes widened as a group of three ugly, gray Wyvern soared ahead, aiming right for you. Pulling on your power, you managed to uproot a few thick, thorny vines and wrap them around one of the beasts, pulling it down to the ground as it thrashed in pain. A small victory, yes -- however, there were still two more coming. And fast.

Moira roared and prepared to torch them, but something below held her back. You looked down, trying to understand what would halt her in this situation.

Your breath caught in your throat when you saw it. Between the heavy white fog, and beats of Moira's green wings... there was red. And it was ascending quickly.

"Liam! No-"

You shouted mentally, anxiety making an unwelcome approach once again when you found his mental shields blocked. Moira forged ahead, careful to avoid the impending drive of her mate, but to stay close to assist.

"Moira, we have to do something, we can't let him-"

The plea was too late, though. Deigh drove straight up into both bodies of the Wyvern, his teeth ensnaring both of them. They clawed and writhed to escape, however their attempts were fruitless. The large red creature dropped both to the ground below, where they landed with a disgusting crunch.

You were speechless as Deigh pivoted above, soaring back down toward you. However, a million thoughts and voices rang unheard ikn your head as you took in what just happened before you.

"Y/N, look out!"

"Now, Y/N, now! Get down now-"

You turned, not having enough time to even allow a scream to take form in your throat as a large, gray talon swung toward you. It knocked the wind out of you, as well as completely ripped you from Moira's saddle. In seconds, you felt the wind all around you, under you, over you as you free-fell down, down, down.

You heard Moira's roar, but your eyes couldn't focus as you tumbled head over heels toward the ground. Panicked shouting rang through your mind, adding to the pounding headache taking form as you conitnued to lose altitude.

There was a quick moment that you faced the ground, watching as it came closer and closer to you. On instinct, you thrust your hand out, attempting to channel any sort of power to help break your fall. You were yards, then meters, then feet before the Earth as soft petals bloomed, but it wasn't quick enough to provide much aid.

Your shoulder hit first, then your abdomen, then everything else. You'd careened directly toward the thorny mass that encased the dead Wyvern from earlier, and though a few lush roses had began to bloom with your efforts -- it just wasn't enough. The short relief of the velvety petals was fleeting as you passed the petal layer, your body twisting and tangling and crashing through the thick, thorny vines. You'd fallen, branch after branch until you hung only a few inches from the dusty ground, suspended as thorns ripped away at your skin.

You stared face-down at the ground, your nose nearly brushing the dirt as pain made it self all the more aware throughout your body. As adrenaline faded and the sheer amount of pain stabbing at you emerged; you slowly slid your eyes closed.

The dusty, cracking ground was the last thing you saw before darkness enveloped you in whole.

✧･ﾟ: *

Your breathing shallowed as consciousness came back, the waves of reality and real life flowing back into you. Blinking against the severe, blinding lights above, you slowly inched your eyes open, drawing in breath after breath through your nose.

When you finally focused on the scene around you, confusion twisted in your mind. You began to panic as you looked around, first meeting Xaden's warm brown eyes and then Liam's calm blue. Both men were dirty, covered in dust and dried blood -- however, they sat silently to your right, simply looking at you. Xaden sat closest, your right hand clutching his as Liam sat next to him, his thumb brushing over your knee beneath the blanket.

"Oh good! She's awake."

Your gaze slid to the left, and you caught sight of a tall women dressed in mending attire. Her hair was in a tight bun behind her head, and opposite of the males in the room, she appeared pristine.

Xaden sighed, and Liam's hand gently rested on your thigh.

"What's the damage?" Liam asked, and you only glanced at him before the woman spoke again.

"Well," she began, flipping through the papers attached to her clipboard. "Her vitals are surprisingly doing well, all things considered."

Xaden sighed heavily, resting his forehead on his hand as he shook his head slowly.

"However, she has suffered massive blood loss, but-" the mender reassured. "Keeping her here for a few days should be enough to get her back to the level she needs to be at. She is providing for two after all."

Xaden's head shot up, and Liam's hand stilled.

"As far as memory, there's no telling what she does and doesn't remember, so that might just come with some questioning. Light damage to her left leg, and scarring of the torso but we've mended-"

"Woah woah woah," Liam waved his hands. "What did you say?"

The mender stopped, blinking at him.

"Which part?"

Xaden huffed a short laugh. "Uh, providing for two? That part?"

The mender tilted her head, as though the incinuation was the most unmomumental thing in the world.

"Yes? She's with child?" She said, more confused as to why they were confused. Flipping back through her charts, Xaden chuckles.

"Yeah right. I think she'd know if-"

"Sure. It's listed just here," the woman flips to the third page, turning the board as both men leaned in to look. You sat up straighter, but winced at the pain still evident in your side. Xaden stared intently as Liam's eyes widened, straying from the outstretched hand of the mender to instead look directly at you.

"No way-"

"Yeah, no way." Xaden said heatedly. He turned to face you once more, his brows rising as he tried to understand. "Y/N, how long have you known?"

Your face flushed as you were immediately put on the spot, anxiety welling deep within you. Had you known? Sure, you missed a period or two, but-

"She surely would have known prior to this incident -- says here she's four months along," the mender says, and you narrow your eyes in her direction. Since your voice didn't seem to be working, you tried to reach out mentally.

I wish to be alone, please. Can we talk about this alone?

Both boys immediately straightened, and Liam gulped.

"I don't quite appreciate the accusation you're waging, mender." Xaden said, his eyes narrowing on the woman. Her mouth fell open, and his stare intensified. "She didn't know, obviously; and I don't like you putting words in my girlfriend's mouth, thank you very much." Your heart clenched at his words, the way he was so ready to defend you.

The woman's mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, and Liam swallowed before speaking.

"What he means to say," he says calmly. "Is that this is a very delicate situation, and we'd appreciate some time alone with Y/N as we navigate this new information."

Your heart swelled at Liam's words -- ever the smooth talker. She forcefully blew a breath out of her nose as her lips pursed, and she flipped the papers back to their natural stack on her clipboard.

"I'll leave you to it, then."

With that, she made a quick exit, and only when the door had clicked shut behind her did Xaden sigh and run a hand over his face.

"So... is it true?" Liam asked gently, scootching closer. "Did you know you were..." he struggles to say the word, and Xaden glances at him.

"Of course she didn't know, Mairi, or else she would've told us." He turns to look you in the eye again. "Right?"

You gulp, trying to reign in your racing thoughts as anxiety tangles your stomach into knots.

"N-no," you say weakly, your vice raw with unuse. "No, I didn't know. I mean, I don't know... I missed a couple periods, but nothing really feels too different. Not different enough for me think that... I'm pregnant," You explain. Liam nods empathetically, and Xaden gets a far-off look in his eyes.

"Well, you don't look four months pregnant," Liam clears his throat, cluckling humorlessly. "So, I wouldn't blame you for not knowing."

His palm squeezed your thigh, and you felt a few of the anxious nerves recede when you shared a small smile with him.

"Do you remember what happened-"

"I'm going to be a father." Xaden said, and the room fell quiet. He continued staring at the wall, trying to wrap his head around this new reality.

Liam clapped him on the shoulder reassuringly. "We are going to be fathers," he said, looking to you again. "And Y/N is going to be the best mother to the beautiful little thing."

That got Xaden's attention again, and he finally looked back at you. The wetness in his eyes caused tears to sting the backs of yours, and you allowed one to fall as you grounded yourself in the knowledge that your baby would have the best support system when it finally did come.

Liam smiled, breaking out into a joyous laugh. "We're going to have a family!"

His happiness made both you and Xaden smile, and Xaden chuckled along with Liam as tears flowed over your smiling cheeks. Liam stood, flanking the top of the bed as he leaned in to press a kiss to your cheek, wrapping his arms around your shoulders.

"I'm so happy for you, Y/N," he admitted, burying his face in your hair.

"All of us," Xaden corrected, raising your knuckles to his lips as he too pressed a soft kiss to your skin. "I'm happy for all of us."

✧･ﾟ: *

5 months later

"Oh, before you put her to sleep I needed to change-"

"I've already done it."

"And her bottle? She needs her warm milk before bed-"

"I'm on it!"

You stood, no other bedtime tasks coming to mind as Xaden redressed the little girl in her pajamas and Liam worked in the kitchen, preparing a bottle for the little one before bed. You sighed, wondering what you could do to help when Liam's gaze locked on you.

"Come on, mama," he said gently, pausing the bottle preparation to make his way to you. He took your hands in his, guiding you to your shared bedroom. A small smile played on your lips as he gently helped you into your favorite reading chair, grabbing your current read from your nightstand and handing it to you. "You just take some time to relax, yes?"

You blushed when he draped a soft cover over your legs, then reached to open the blinds so you could catch the rest of the sunset. Your eyes met and he leaned in, pressing a kiss to the tip of your nose before making for the door once more.

"You're sure you don't need-"

"We've got it handled, Y/N," he said, winking at you. "Take some time for yourself."

You did just that, opening your novel to continue where you'd left off. One month post-partum was apparently not long enough to recover before you could engage in rider training again -- so, you'd taken up reading as a hobby instead.

That was, when you were not dedicating all your time to the new precious girl in your life.

You listened as Xaden murmured in the hallway, passing the open doorway with the pink bundle in his arms. He bounced as he walked, whispering a bedtime tale to her as he made for her room.

"...and then, your mom fearlessly dredged two big vines right from the ground, heading right for those ugly Wyvern..."

You smiled as you recounted that day. Your final battle before discovering your pregnancy to begin with, and the day you and the guys realized how much your life was about to change.

In 10 minutes, Xaden was flanking your doorway once more, this time leaning seductively against the frame with a steaming mug in his hand.

You gasped in fake-shock, though your heart swelled at the action.

"Is that for me?"

He smirked, crossing the room in a few long strides before handing the fresh-brewed tea to you. Taking it greedily, you brought it to your lips, groaning as the honey-sweet liquid glided down your throat. Xaden kneeled before you, and you giggled as you lowered the mug.

"She went down okay?"

He nodded, leaning in to press a tender kiss to your lips. You grinned, and his fingers moved to tuck your hair behind your ear.

"She is just fine." He assured, smiling to himself.

You sighed before brushing his cheek with your thumb.

"You're a great father, Xaden. You and Liam both."

A faint rose blush colored his cheeks, and he leaned in to kiss you again.

"Couldn't do it without you."

You smiled, and his hands moved, taking one of your feet in his hands as he began massaging. Your head tilted back at the instant relief, but you still felt a tinge of guilt.

"You're sure I can't do anything for you? Liam said to relax, and the two of you have really taken on the new 'dad' title, but-"

Xaden sighed, looking at you pointedly.

"You know, I think Poppy gets a lot of wonderful things from her mother; for example, her beauty, just to name one." He said, and you instantly closed your mouth.

"But, if she never worries half as much as her mother, I think she'll be just fine."

✧･ﾟ: *