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#this family is full of street smart and book smarts kids so watch your back
cocopineo · 4 years
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Can we know about the Hexpanda cubs?
Of course! This one will probably be a long post since these two have like 8 kids probably more since Seraphina is probably the girl to want a big family since her biological family didn't give so much. Xiang doesn't mind it besides seeing Seraphina with all their little kiddos is adorable and seeing her happy puts a smile on his face. I didn't do art for this one cause I have no idea how I wanna design these kids. So later on I'll try and come up with designs and show concepts.
Name: Za'Niyah Akande
Age: 16
Powers: Potion Making
Info: Za'Niyah is the first born child of Seraphina and Xiang. She did not inherit her mother's powers but she does have a great skill in potions and hexes. She has a good balance of her parents personality she is a geek like her mother but is very chill. However she does have a temper on her and isn't afraid to be straight forward with someone. The girl has a big soft spot for her family and her littke siblings they're just too cute! Za'Niyah also has a big interest in different species and cultures, she is occasionally in Mewni and works as a witch. Za'Niyah is also talented in drawung and is a spelling bee champ. Za'Niyah is closer to her mom since her mom does also have a knack for potions and trinkets and both share a great interest in them.
Name: Taiyang Akande
Age: 14
Power: N/A
Info: The second born if the family. Like her sister she did not inherit her mither's powers, yet she does train with her father and is a very skilled fighter. Taiyang is also very adventurous and usually Dylan and her get into trouble with their adventures. Taiyang tries to act cool and collected but Seraphina's geek/dork genes run strong in the family. Taiyang is a little more close to her father and a lot say she's his little mini me. She is also a very talented cook and makes treats for her friends and family. Even though Taiyang is a very adventurous person she sometimes does like to sit down and just soak in a moment reading a book or being with her family.
Name: Hiro Akande
Age: 12
Powers: Chaos Manipulation
Info: Hiro is the third eldest and is the one to inherit his mother's powers. However they are far more tamed from his mothers, Hiro has actually trained with her and is almost at mastery of them. Big ol mama's boy and this boy is almost a carbon copy of her if it wasn't for Xiang's infamous eyebrows popping through. Overall a good kid but he does have his moments, he's the perfect balance of his mother and father's personalities. Having his mother's wit and timidness but also has charm like his father and can be stand off ish at times. Can make any of his siblings laugh when they're not feeling so well he's a good ol jokester. (Kinda gives me Josuke Higashikata vibes when he's older but also some Koichi in there)
Name: Nila and Naomi Akande
Age: 9
Powers: Reality Manipulation (Naomi) Telekinesis (Nila)
Info: These two are the foruth eldest. Yet Nila is 5 minutes older than Naomi. If you were to recognize how Nila is she is the splitting personality of Louise Belcher. This family maybe be full if smart kids but Nila is at another level of smart. Out of all her siblings she's up there with her mother and added to Xiang and his charm. You got a whole little trickster, yet Nila is a sweet girl and has some soft spots especially for her twin. Naomi is a very energetic girl and is with her sister most of the time. With that energeticness she is known to be all over the place, but she's also a really quick learner and thinker. Though she's energetic she's actually shy when meeting new people and hides her personality at times. Both twins love their parents they can and will not choose who they'd rather be with. If you make them they will cry.
Name: Kuo Akande
Age: 6
Powers: Elemental Manipulation
Info: Kuo is fifth eldest and inherted part of his mother's powers. This kid is so calm it's hard to hear him at times (even scaring his dad at times). Kuo likes to read most of the time but that doesn't mean he doesn't enjoy running around. Kuo really enjoys observing his father spar or just practice his fighting. He does wish to use his powers but also combine them with his father's. He usually is seen with his father more and has a closer bond with him. He also has a knack for building tech and has made his own rocket boots.
Name: Feng Akande
Age: 4
Powers: N/A
Info: Feng is just vibin with his family. He is only a toddler and like his brother Kuo he's a chill kiddo too. In the future he's gonna have his daddy's suaveness, but for now he's just a little charmer trying to help mama do whatever he can around the house and even outside the house. He loves to help no matter what and has a very gentle soul when he's older. He doesn't really have an interest in fighting at the moment or powers. Yet it is sensed he may get some but training isn't even in a 4 year olds mind. Right now he lives for napping and eating the desserts he sneaks when his parents ain't looking.
Name: Jackson Akande
Age: 3
Powers: Atomkinesis
Info: Jackson is very good with his powers at the age of 3. But not as in he can control all the weather around them for now it only follows him if that makes sense. Like he'll have a little rain cloud on top of his head or something. He's a hyper kid too and has to be in the action with his siblings. Also like his mom and Kuo the boy has shown an interest in gadgets. Right now he's trying to make his own little robot pet but nothing's going as planned. Has more of a closer bond to his mother and has more of her personality when he gets older.
Name: Renay Akande
Age: 7 months
Powers: Chaos Manipulation
Info: The lil baby of the family and just the cutest. Gotta be watched every millisecond if you don't keep an eye on her she finds a way to be on the roof or inside a wall. Giggles and giggles she rarely cries and is a very outgoing baby, but when she's cranky she gets very shy and will cling to her mama or daddy. Seriously watch her every second she found her way into another dimension some how when one of the kids weren't watching her.
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baecvlt · 3 years
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Stalker Nagito Komaeda x Milf!Reader
this was requested via my twitter:
“Hey! i’ve seen your works and I’m in love. Can I request smut where a stalker Nagito Komaeda becomes obsessed with a milf reader who moves into the neighborhood who’s like a dom in bed and ya know just large bust and taller than him. Thank youuu🤍”
a/n: ofc. but I have my own idea of a dom which i’ll use involving certain things (heed warnings)
warnings: he is so obviously a virgin in this, degradation, slight masochism, asphyxiation, spit, also Nagito calls the reader mommy (side note: nagito is in his early 20s in this, he lives alone. age of reader isn’t specified BUT I say she’s in her late 20s/early 30s)
• • •
It was a bright day...which Nagito despised. It was summer. He hated the sun, hated the mosquitoes, and the unnecessary humidity. It was days like these he wishes he was back at his university dorm. The A/C, the tall tree covering his window and blocking the sun...it was perfect. Hell, he didn’t even hate classes. Yet, he couldn’t live in the dorms forever. When it came time to buy a home, he stupidly did so in fall, moved in during the winter.
Well, no shit the home seemed perfect then. It wasn’t fucking summer. His A/C decided to break, his windows has a great view of the sun, and most of his friends were out of town (all except Hajime, but Hajime is fucking boring and a bummer). Nagito sat on his couch, watching reruns of old tv shows. He took a sip from his nearby glass (cold water), suddenly hearing sounds of what appeared to be a loading van. He looked outside his window.
A moving van?
Right, that one old man who lived there passed away. Freak accident, by the way. Oh well, may he rest in peace. Meanwhile, Nagito was being himself and trying to see who it was. Pretty much, the dude was being nosy. He saw another car pull up. That must’ve been the family’s car. Out jumped 3 kids, what appeared to be 2 girls and 1 boy. An adult stepped out. Nagito decided he’d get a better look at the situation. He put on his shirt, black jeans, and his green hood.
He was “going for a walk”.
Without being noticed, he made his way to the other side of the street. It was a woman, she was taking boxes out of the truck. The minute Nagito saw her it was if he was stricken by Cupid’s arrow. She was tall and beautiful. Her skin complimented her hair and her legs, he couldn’t take his eyes off them. Her breasts...he needed to stop—
“Hi!”
She was in front of him, a warm and inviting smile on her face. “H-Hi,” he muttered. She didn’t hear him well, so it helped that he waved. “I’m new in the neighborhood. We just moved in,” she added, putting the box down. She stuck her hand out, going for a handshake. He shook her hand, her warm hand against his cold ones. Why are his hands always cold? “I see,” he responded, getting his shit together,“I’m Nagito Komaeda. I live across the street”. She introduced herself and complimented his house.
“What a lovely home. I hope the neighborhood is just as lovely”
“It should be. It’s pretty quiet. There’s not many families here. Say, can I help you pack?”
“You’re too sweet! I’d really appreciate it”
He helped take all the boxes in her home, helping load a couch too, and help with other large objects. They finished in 9 hours, taking a majority of the day. “Thanks for helping out, Nagito”. She made a lemonade, handing him a glass.
“Don’t mention it! Also, thank you”
One of the kids ran in the living room where they sat on the couch. He gasped when he saw Nagito. “Mommy! That man looks dead!!!”. Nagito smiled, but his mom was not amused. “Michael! Apologize..”. The kid kept smiling and said,“Sorry!”. He ran to another room. “I’m so sorry,” she muttered. Nagito shook his head.
“Hey, I’m rather malnourished”
“Ha. On an unrelated topic, are you hungry? I could make us something”
“Oh, I shouldn’t linger any longer. I wouldn’t want to disturb your husband”
She laughed. “I know you mean no harm, but I’m not married,” she added. “Oh,” Nagito muttered,“I’m sorry, I really didn’t mean it in any way”. She shook her head and reassured him it was fine. “Sit, Nagito,” she pulled out a chair,“I’m not letting you refuse having dinner with us. Especially since you were such help”. She rubbed his back before heading back into the kitchen to begin cooking.
She made him a bowl of pasta, adding chicken on the side. Nagito was quite happy. He hadn’t eaten a good meal in so long. Her kids didn’t eat at the table, but on the counter. Meanwhile, she ate with Nagito. Just as Nagito thought he couldn’t grow fonder of her, he did just that. All she did was let him talk about himself.
“Jesus, I’m sorry about your parents? How are you keeping yourself afloat with university and expenses?”
“Academic scholarships”
“Wow, you’re such a smart boy”
The way she phrased it made him flustered. “Thank you for the meal, ma’am,” he muttered,“I haven’t eaten like this in who knows how long”. She smiled tenderly, picking up his empty plate. “Seconds?”. He shook his head.
“No, thank you. I’m already so full”
“I’m glad. You know, there’s always a meal for you in store if you can do me a favor”
“What’s that?”
“My oldest daughter has her final test this week. You think you can help her study? I’ll make you a nice, warm meal every time you come over”
Nagito thought about it. He would also have time around her. Plus, she wasn’t a bad cook. “Of course, I look forward to it,” he told her. “Lovely”. He got up and excused himself to go home. “It was nice having you over, Nagito,” she said softly. He could tell she was getting sleepy. When people are tired, Nagito has noticed that their tone is rather sheepish. She walked him to the door, ruffling his hair playfully and he blushed. “Goodnight, neighbor”.
“Goodnight, you”
Before he left, she stopped him and handed him a paper: (xxx) xxx-xxxx ♡
“Call me when you get home so I have your number saved. Then, I can call you when my daughter, Vanessa, needs help. Take care, okay?”
He nodded.
She closed the door, his thoughts racing on his way home. He picked up some things about her, things she didn’t even tell him. He went home and opened a notebook, writing all of it down. He called her and she answered, her voice as sweet as when he left (only sleepier). “Hello?”. His breath was heavy without realizing it as he spoke. “H-Hey, you told me to call you,” he breathed,“It’s Nagito...Komaeda”
“Oh, hey, angel! I’m not interrupting anything am I?”
“What? No, it’s all good— why’d you think so?”
“You sound like you need to catch your breath, but anyway, thanks for calling me. I’ve saved your number now”
“Oh, great! Well, if that’s all, I’ll let you go to bed now”
“It was. Goodnight, Nagito”
“G-Goodnight”
He hung up, flustered more than ever as he continued to jot down his thoughts on paper. The next day, he woke up at 6am to wait in his car. He knew what he was doing was wrong, but he couldn’t help it. At around 7:41am, his front neighbor and kids headed for their car. Nagito, who had taken a light nap in the driver’s seat, was awoken by the car starting. He waited for the car to drive away just slightly past his house to start his own car, slowly tailing behind her.
He dropped her kids off at the nearby elementary. She got off, kissed them on their forehead (all minus the eldest, who walked swiftly through the gates). Seeing how she cared for them made Nagito feel bad, but all he did was brush that feeling off. Next, he followed her through her daily. As he did, his notes from last night echoed through his mind, adding new detail.
“She works at an office not everyday She doesn’t have allergies but is sensitive to dust Red seems to be her favorite color but always in a darker shade Her daughter is around 10 years old She isn’t vegan but enjoys almond milk Maybe has an issues with abandonment but I can’t assume that either She buys many apples but not the same amount of bananas at the store so maybe she only eats the bananas—”
Just more to add to his notebook.
He got home before she did, writing down what he had learned. His phone rang about an hour later of him getting home. He picked it up,“Hello?”. “Nagito, hi!”. It was her. He started having a mini-panic attack, because why would she be calling him? “H-Hey, how are you?”
“I’m doing alright. I was wondering if you could come over and tutor Vanessa”
Oh, thank god.
“Yes, of course. I’ll be down there right now”
“Great. See you then!”
He was relieved, heading to her home happily. He knocked on the door. When she opened it, she did so with the same warm smile as yesterday. “Thank you for coming over,” she said,“She’s in her room”. Nagito nodded, freezing when she grabbed his hand and took him to the room. Her touch was so soft, noted. They got to the room, where a girl was reading a book on a desk. “Nessa?”. The girl turned around.
“Nagito is going to be here for a few hours to help you out with homework and studying. He’s really smart, so pay attention and be respectful”
“Okay, mom”
She nodded, squeezing Nagito’s shoulder before leaving. Nagito approached the girl, she took her things out. Before he could speak, she stopped him. “Please don’t call me ‘Nessa’,” she whispered,“It’s bad enough my mom does, but not you, Please”.
“Don’t worry. I wasn’t planning on referring to you at all”
“Bastard”
“Nessa”
“I guess I walked right into that one”
Nagito laughed, grabbing a chair and sitting next to her. Her work wasn’t what he expected. Is this what they’re teaching kids now? He could’ve sworn he hadn’t seen this type of stuff until he hit middle school. It wasn’t anything he couldn’t do, but damn. All in all, tutoring went well. Vanessa actually learned something today. “Good job!,” he said. “Thank you,” she smiled and hugged him,“I felt so stupid”.
“Hey, its okay not to understand things”
Her mom walked in. “Dinner’s ready”. Vanessa got up and went to the kitchen. “How’d it go?,” she asked Nagito. “Went well, she gets the math now,” he answered. She smiled, thanking him for his help and asking him to join them for dinner. He’d be foolish not to, so he accepted the invite.
Fish tacos were served tonight with rice and beans, another lemonade made. It was different than anything Nagito had ever had, but that doesn’t equate to bad. He actually enjoyed the meal. The kids sat at the main table today, much more respectful than yesterday. “Michael how was school?”. He put a thumbs up, getting back to eating. “And Adrianna?”. She looked up from her meal and shrugged. “What’s wrong?”.
“I’m tired, but class was okay”
“Oh, okay. When you’re done, just take a quick shower and get to bed”
“Thanks”
Nagito thought it was endearing. Seeing how understanding and loving she was, it was refreshing. The kids all eventually left, Nagito finishing his meal. “Did you like it?”. He looked at her, nodding. “Great! Seconds?”.
“Full again. I don’t usually eat, but your food is always so good”
“Oh, you’re just saying things...”
“No, really! Thank you”
He said his goodbyes to the family, walking back home. It was as if he was falling for this woman more and more everyday. He went to sleep, this time dreaming of her. He never dreams, but this time he dreamt she was on her knees for him. Then, nothing else. It was as if his dream teased him.
The next morning, he woke up to some knocking on the door. He looked at the time. 8:23am. He put on a pair of jeans and his shirt, walking to his door. He opened it and there she stood, wearing a black dress and red heels. He assumed she had work and needed a favor before going. “Good morning,” he said.
“Were you following me yesterday?”
Shit.
“I, uh...,” he didn’t know what to answer. He was indeed following her yesterday. He also liked her, so if he straight up said that he was to following her, it’d ruin things. His face was glowing a shade of pink to a slight red as he thought of the right answer. He was still stumbling over his words. “I think it’s kinda cute,” she added. The fuck? “Huh?”. She pushed him inside the house, closing and locking the door behind him. “When a boy follows someone around, it’s because he wants something,” she added, but her tone was so sultry,“Well, Nagito—”. She pushed him onto the couch, leaning in front of him with her hands on his chest.
“—What do you want?”
None of what was happening felt real. Nagito couldn’t find the words to express what exactly he wanted. This was the first time he’d ever been in a situation like this, it wasn’t a bad one either. He began to panic when she straddled him. “Could it be that you wanted me?,” she asked. He frantically nodded and she laughed as she locked her lips with his. He gasped against her lips, kissing back. She slowly trailed her kisses down to his neck, cupping his jaw while grinding on his lap. Nagito moaned, his shaky hands grabbing her ass. She grabbed his hands and put them away from her. “It’s cute that you’re getting this carried away”.
“I’m sorry”
“No time to apologize. Get on your knees for mommy”
Nagito was about to lose his mind when she said that, but he obeyed. Her presence was domineering as he stood on his knees against his carpeted floor. She spread her legs, noticing Nagito desperately trying to get a look. Her red heel stopped him, stepping on his head lightly. “Am I teasing you?,” she asked,“It’s okay to be honest”.
“Y-You are, but its okay. I want to be teased by you”
“You’re adorable,” she took her heel off his head,“Let’s go to your room”.
He practically ran to his bed. He sat and waited patiently. She entered the room, heading to his bed. She began to take off his shirt, admiring his frame. She then unbuckled his belt and unzipped his jeans. He kicked them off and sat down. She sat next to him. “Give me your hands”. She held them, frowning slightly. “Boo, they’re so cold,” she teased,“I’ll warm them up for you”. Carefully, she grabbed his left hand, putting his middle and ring finger in her mouth. She licked to his fingertips, leaving him tense and speechless. She stopped and smiled at him.
“This is your first time, isn’t it?”
He nodded shyly. “Don’t be shy,” she said,“I’m going to guide you, but I’m also going to have my fun”. He gulped, nodded. She stood up and removed her dress. She wore a lacy black bra and panties. She brought his hands to her breasts, allowing him to fondle them. They were huge in his hands. “You like them, baby?”. “Y-Yes,” he muttered,“Can you, uh, take....the bra off?”. He was ashamed when asking, he felt desperate. She smiled and nodded, unhooking it and allowing the bra to fall to the ground. He gasped at the sight of her tits, grabbing them. She straddled him.
“Do you know what to do with them?”
He nodded, rubbing one and sucking the other. She moaned sweetly, grinding on his lap. He popped his mouth off them. That was when she took the opportunity to knock him onto the bed. She began to make out with him, shoving his tongue down her throat. They lay sideways. Her hand was on his neck, slightly choking him. He couldn’t resist but try to grind on her lap. She laughed. “Look at you,” she mocked,“Humping my leg like a desperate little puppy”. She didn’t let him speak, sitting up and pushing him back down. “I’m going to give you what you want,” she whispered in his ear,“Take your cock out”.
He was nervous as he did, hands shaky. She blushed a bit at his size. “It’s so big,” she said, straddling him,“I’m going to have my way with it”. “Please, do what you want to me,” he begged,“Abuse me, please”. She didn’t speak, sinking down on it. Nagito gasped, she was extremely wet. She began to bring her hips up and land straight down on it, repeatedly. She put her hands around his throat, now being rougher. Nagito gasped for air, grabbing her hands.
That was a mistake.
“Hands down,” she ordered, striking him across the face. “Sorr-”. He was slapped once again. “Only speak when you’re spoken to”. He nodded as his stomach began to cave in. His cock twitched each time she slapped him, making her moan. She leaned forward, capturing his earlobe between her teeth. He winced, his hands tangling in the sheets. He felt as though his entire body was blushing.
“You’re so sensitive there”
She teased him, kissing the skin and nibbling. His hips involuntarily snapped upward, making her whine. “You’re so desperate, baby,” she laughed,“it’s so cute”. He could feel her warmth running along his cock. He bit into his hand, trying to stop himself from cumming inside her. It worked, but she didn’t like him doing that. She grabbed his hands and kissed them.
“Don’t hurt yourself, put them right here”
She placed them on her boobs. He watched them bounce up and down, grabbing them gently. His rather large hands seemed small on her tits. He was extremely flushed. He took them off her and placed them on her hips. “Open your mouth”. He lay back more and did as he was told. She leaned forward, grabbing his jaw again as she spit into it and kissed him. He moaned when she did, his urges getting the best to him and thrusting upward. He hit her cervix every time, causing her to produce the sweetest and sluttiest of moans. Her walls tightened around him and now he was whining. “Are you gonna cum, honeybun?,” she asked.
“Y-Yes..”
“Where do you wanna cum?”
“I wanna cum...everywhere. I want it. I want it so bad. I wanna cum inside and on your tits, on your ass, y-your face..mouth. Please let me cum, mommy”
She motivated him, riding him harder. “Come on, Nagito,” she whispered,“Cum for mommy. Cum all the way inside her”. He lost his mind after that, groaning as he shot his load(s) inside her. He was still inside her as he tried catching his breath. She rubbed his chest, shushing him. “Good boy, you did so well,” she cooed,“Such a good boy.” He was covering his face, embarrassed and still hard. “I wasn’t too rough, was I?,” she asked. He shook his head, thinking,“Not rough enough”. He whined when she got off, revealing he was still erect. She noticed.
“You wanna go again, baby? Kids don’t leave school till 2:30. We have time for an extra fuck”
“C-Can I?”
“Yes, dummy”
She let Nagito choose how to fuck her. He wanted missionary, mostly because he craved intimacy and she did not disappoint. She kissed and praised him, telling him he was good. She held onto him the whole time and cuddled him afterwards. Nagito felt so special, he felt loved. “I can come over when I don’t have work,” she said,“Would you like that?”.
“I’d love that actually”
“You make me happy, Nagito. I could stay here and cuddle all day”
“I feel so lucky”
He yawned, looking at the clock. “Its 10,” he told her. She nuzzled his chest, humming. “Mmmm, let’s take a small nap,” she whispered,“Okay?”. “Okay”. He kissed the top of her head and held her to him, slowly joining her in slumber.
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spockandawe · 3 years
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Hmm. What if. An mdzs au (definitely the book, not the show) where timelines diverge when a small, angry street kid with a missing finger and a desire to watch the world burn makes his way over to the burial mounds, because fuck it, he’s going to learn from the yiling laozu or die trying.
I have put no consideration into this whatsoever, and I know coherent timelines are the hardest part of involving Xue Yang in anything, but I think that if Xue Yang is like, a preteen, the other parts of the timeline may still fit into place? Honestly, I don’t really care if they don’t, I’m just also too lazy to check this very long book for the specific empathy flashback with the details of Xue Yang’s jinlintai cameo. If he has to be a few years younger than canon allows, it’s all good, baybee, cql fucked the timeline so I wouldn’t have to!
But anyways, consider a young Xue Yang, who’s not really old enough to be making his way in the world as a rogue pseudo-semi-cultivator, but is old enough to survive the attempt and learn more cultivation as he goes. And he doesn’t have family or money to back him up (not that those would have made an impact on Wei Wuxian), but I think he’s aware that he has extremely grand ambitions for someone in his position, and is very cheerfully willing to take risks to achieve them, even knowing that his odds of success are low and his odds of dying are high.
I’m thinking that he reaches Yiling, however he gets there. He sees the knockoff Yiling Laozu apprentices (and is Full of scorn), he sees the wards Wei Wuxian has raised around the Burial Mounds, and he’s not all that trained and is mostly self-taught, but has just enough raw talent that he manages to bust in through the wards himself.
I don’t want to try sorting out the exact details of how he convinces Wei Wuxian to let him stay, because this idea popped into my head like, legitimately thirty seconds before I started writing the post. But I don’t think it would hurt the Wens to have another pair of helping hands, I think Wei Wuxian is weak against children in general (especially children who are trying to learn a thing), and I think he’s also weak against a street kid struggling on his own in the world (and Xue Yang is smart enough to lean into the look-pitiful-to-gain-sympathy-points angle)
Additional point one: Wen Qing can look at his hand and his health in general, and I think Xue Yang could benefit a LOT from having a big sister in his life
Additional point two: Xue Yang would think that Wen Ning is the coolest thing, and it would benefit me emotionally if he sees Wen Ning as his super cool older brother and not as a fascinating science project he wants to copy on Song Lan later ;u;
Exact events would vary based on when Xue Yang made his arrival (before or after Wen Ning wakes up? before or after Lan Wangji visits Yiling? etc), and I would have to consider that carefully because I do want canon to diverge, and Xue Yang dying with the Wens would be so fucking tragic (kind of in a fascinating way? we the readers know that it prevents future atrocities, but here, he’s a different person than the one who committed those atrocities, and it’s like giving him a family only to have it yanked away (so, canon), but this is a tangent because I have to emphasize I have not plotted out anything)
I don’t know how I would want canon to diverge is part of the trouble. But like... one of my first details on the book that really, really got me good is the way that Wei Wuxian is superficially cheerful but is also poised on the edge of having a really rough time early in the book. After he casually tells Jin Ling ‘lmao, what, you didn’t have parents to teach you manners?’ he goes off on his own to have Regrets. What really starts pulling him out of his funk is when the kids need protection and education. And he thrives! Even when he’s roleplaying Mo Xuanyu, he’s in his element as an experienced cultivator helping guide the juniors to a solution so that they learn for themselves, but also ready to be a safety net so they don’t die in the process!
A-Yuan plays a little bit of this role for him in the Burial Mounds, but like... he’s a toddler, and is both too young to be taught at the level and depth that Wei Wuxian adores, and is yes an adorable sweet kid, but also exhausting and demanding in the way that all small children are. You can’t just put away a toddler and lay face-down on the floor for a week, even if you want to. Yes there are other people around to help, but everyone is working really, really hard just to survive in the Burial Mounds.
So. Give Wei Wuxian a preteen! Give him a kid who is saying ‘take me as your apprentice, gege, i’m gonna keep studying demonic cultivation whether you help me or not uwu’ and let Wei Wuxian convince himself that okay, stupid adults are free to do stupid shit and he isn’t responsible for them, but maybe he ought to keep an eye on this kid to make sure he doesn’t accidentally die trying to learn Wei Wuxian’s methods. Xue Yang is smart, quick, and demanding, but also capable of independence. It’s ideal. Give Wei Wuxian a kid to teach, give me them passionately arguing about theory, give me Xue Yang reading all of Wei Wuxian’s manuscripts, and forcing Wei Wuxian to engage a little more with the world around him instead of sinking down into himself. Give me Xue Yang still young enough that he can be convinced to trust the idea of a family. Give me Lan Wangji accompanying Wei Wuxian back to the burial mounds and Xue Yang trying to be all ‘hey, you’d better step off if you know what’s good for you’ and being ‘!!! >:O’ when he finds out Wei Wuxian let this stranger hold A-Yuan and it being the cutest thing ever. It would be so good for my heart, but my god, am i unequipped to write it.
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laurie-stark · 4 years
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Unwanted-Peter Parker
Summary: Y/n Stark gets more than she bargains for when she joins her Pops, Captian America, for the civil war of the century.
Pairings: Tony Stark x Daughter!Reader, Natasha Romanoff x Daughter!Reader, Steve Rogers x Daughter!Reader, Peter Parker x Stark!Reader
Warnings: swearing, fighting
A/N: Just so you don't get too confused, Y/n is Tony Stark's biological child, however, she was raised by the Avengers and refers to Natasha and Steve as Mama and Pops. Also I wrote this a year ago LOL. Enjoy x
Part Two
New York, 2016
This was bad. Very, very bad. I had seen the secretary come in the compound over the screen of the security monitors. He marched into my home, unannounced and unwelcome, holding himself with purpose. I followed him over the screens, tracking his movements. I watched as he was led through the building, up the elevator and into...the conference room? Oh this was bad. Very, very bad.
I raced as fast as I could. By the time I got the to conference room, the whole group was already sitting in front of the secretary. I saw Wanda first. Her back was to me, but I could see her rigid frame and I knew something was happening. My  father saw me approaching through the glass walls. He shot me a look that said "Don't do it. Don't come in here." I didn't obey.
The secretary stopped speaking abruptly when I walked through the doors. He gave me a quizzical look, did a once over and immediately looked at my father. Surely I don't look that much like Tony.
"Sorry I'm late, no one informed me about this team meeting," I gasped, short of breath from all the running. Of course, this was pushing it. As much as I wanted to be a part of the group, fighting was not my style, so I often got left out of important Avengers activities. I got to live with them, but that was it. Tony rose from his seat. He mumbled an apology to the secretary and gently ushered I out of the room. I would have fought back, but seeing the look on my father's face was enough to shut me up. And I never shut up. The secretary resumed his story. Something about golf and a heart attack.
My dad turned to face me. "Look kid, I get that you want to know what's going on, and you will, but today isn't the day."
"Okay," I said. "I'm sorry."
"Don't be, it's okay to be curious," he replied, walking back into the meeting. "Stay upstairs, okay hun?" I nodded and started the trek back up to my room. I shut the door and flopped onto my bed. Out of my long list of pet peeves, this was number one. Sure, I didn't want to fight, but come on family, I should at least get to be in on what's going on! Maybe I could help. I have powers for God sake. I am more than capable of helping the Avengers. But they always saw me as the little girl who needs protection.
"April, pull up security footage of the conference room please," I asked. April, the AI I built, that was modeled after Friday, projected the video surveillance from the ceiling. "Volume up." The group was in the same position as from when I left. The secretary was passing around the room. There was a thick white book being passed around the table.
"The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place," Steve said quietly. "I feel we've done that."
The secretary looked down at him. "Tell me Cap, do you know where Thor and Banner are right now?" What? You were so confused. Why did the secretary care where my uncles were? No one answered the secretary's question, so he kept talking. I racked your brain to find the answers on my own. "...this is the middle ground." The secretary pointed at the book, now lying untouched on the table.
"And if we come to a decision you don't like?" Natasha asked.
"The you retire," the secretary responded. With that, he left the room and I scurried back downstairs.
Everyone was in the living room. I sat in the stairwell, again being uninvited to this group discussion. I listened to them fight. I figured out what was going on. The United Nations were being ungrateful little bitches and hated that they didn't have control over my family. So they gave an ultimatum: give in or give up. From the sounds of it, Uncle Rhodes, Vision and two of my four parents were in agreement with the accords. Steve and Sam were against it. Wanda hadn't said a word. Tension was growing high, I could feel it. I heard my father conclude that he won and a thud of the accords being tossed on the coffee table. Someone got up and left. Before I had the chance to act, the door to the stairwell was torn open. Steve pushed through and nearly stepped on me.
"Eavesdropping?" He smiled.
"You kicked me out, what else am I supposed to do?" I retorted. I noticed the tears welling in Steve's eyes. "Pops, what's wrong?"
Steve's glance fluttered to the ground. "Peggy. She, um..." was all he said. All he had to say. I  was smart enough to read between the lines. I stepped forward and hugged Steve. He smiled, grateful that he had me. I knew how much Peggy meant to him. When I was little, he'd always tell me the story about how they met, how they never got that dance. And every time I would make him dance with me. He even took me to visit her once. I was ten and it was Christmas time. Steve told me that he wanted his favorite girl to meet his favorite niece. Now that was all but a memory. I held him tight before telling him to go. It was okay, I could handle the others. He left without a second glance.
Within days the team was scattered. Steve and Sam had gone to Peggy's funeral. Natasha was off to the signing of the Accords in Vienna. And then all hell broke loose when the bombs went off at the signing ceremony. As always, I  were left home. I had no idea what was going on. At first this break in the team was about the Accords, but somehow Steve's old pal Bucky got involved. I didn't know what to think. The next thing I knew, everyone left for Berlin to rescue Steve and Sam from jail, leaving myself, Wanda and Vision at home.
When night fell, I was in my room, sulking as one would say. I was spending my evening flipping through Tumblr. There was a new superhero everyone was talking about. He called himself Spider-Man. New York based, focused on small neighborhood crimes. By YouTube footage alone, it was obvious he was a rookie. Soon enough, though, I accidentally conducted a full fledged search on this guy. He seemed shady. Sure, he's helping old ladies cross the street and all, but he just has a vibe. I couldn't put my finger on it. April broke me out of my research when she told me that there was a security breach in the compound. I pulled up the security camera footage and saw Clint Barton in my living room with Wanda levitating a knife at his nose.
I rushed downstairs. When I got to the living room Vision was holding Clint by the neck. I watched in silence as Wanda used her powers on Vision. She made it look easy. Slowly, Vision sunk to his knees. Wanda pushed further and the floor gave way. Vision was pushed through all seventy-four thousand levels of the compound. Wanda and Clint were about to turn to run out when you revealed yourself.
"Now was that really necessary?" I smirked. "We just had the floors waxed."
"Y/n," Clint warned.
"I'm not sitting on my ass," I said. Clint smirked and nodded. He knew he couldn't stop me anyways.
One car ride, plane flight and van trip later, I was in Germany. As it turns out, Steve wanted Clint and Wanda on his side, along with some ant dude named Scott. Scott was cool. Him and I sat together on the plane ride and watched Die Hard. He was asleep in the van when we pulled over in the airport parking lot. Clint told me to stay in the van. For once, I listened. I heard voices belonging to Steve and Sam. Clint slid open the van doors abruptly, shaking Scott awake. I chuckled to myself as he fangirled over my Pops. A voice over the intercom said something in a language I didn't know. A voice I didn't recognize said that the airport was being evacuated.
"Stark." Sam muttered.
Scott looked puzzled. Clearly he hadn't been filled in either. "Stark?" he asked.
I step out of the van. "Yes?" Steve and Sam look at me with wide eyes. Clint gave Steve a sheepish shrug. Behind their little blue car stood Bucky Barnes. I knew who he was. I learned about him in school. I knew he was some evil super soldier that attacked Natasha and Steve. He looked scary. He looked exactly like the type of guy to hurt my Mama and Pops. I held his glance until Steve spoke up.
"Y/n, what are you doing here?" Steve whisper-shouted. His voice always got quiet when he 'yelled' at me.
"I hitchhiked." I replied, knowing that at this point Steve didn't have the time to argue with me. He shook his head in defeat and took a deep breath.
"Suit up."
The airport was huge. Our group got suited up and started for the runway. I didn't know how Steve knew where to find my dad, but I followed him anyways. Before I could get any closer, Bucky held me back.
"It's, uh, not gonna be safe. You should stay here and keep low," he said. I frowned. I did not come all this way to not fight. But even still, I nodded. Bucky scared me. He and Sam took off in another direction to find the getaway jet. I laughed. This whole thing was ridiculous. My attention turned to the sound of my father and Rhodey flying down from the sky.
"Ross gave me 36 hours to bring you in," Tony started. "That was 24 hours ago. Can you help a brother out?"
"You're after the wrong guy," Steve replied nonchalantly.
"Your judgement is askew. Your old war buddy killed innocent people yesterday-"
"And there are five more super soldiers just like him. I can't let the doctor find 'em first Tony. I can't."
"Steve," Natasha approached him slowly. "You know what's about to happen. Do you really wanna punch your way out of this one?"
I took this as my cue. "No, but I will," I said, emerging from my hiding spot. I looked at the faces of your family. My gaze fell on Tony and my smile dropped. He looked angry.
"You brought my daughter into this?" Tony yelled, turning to Steve.
"Technically, I brought myself," I said. "You really think you were gonna leave me out of all the fun?"
Tony pinched his brow. "Y/n, this is serious."
"No it's not," I objected. "No, this got personal the second you thought you were gonna loose Pops to Bucky." No one moved after I said that.
"Alright, I've run out of patience," my father finally spoke. He cupped his hands around his mouth. "Underoos!"
Before I had a chance to process, a red and black blur whipped past my head. It landed on top of a nearby van. It was Spider-Man. As in the Spider-Man. He had taken Cap's shield from him. I said nothing. My father could have recruited me, but instead he chose this little neighborhood nobody. That hurt a little. The Spider-thing and my father bantered for a minute. So he's never even been in a real fight before, I thought.
"You've been busy," Steve smirked.
Tony turned back to Steve. "And you've been a complete idiot. Dragging in Clint and Y/n, rescuing Wanda from a place she doesn't even want to leave, a safe place. I'm trying to keep-" he paused, sighing. "I'm trying to keep to keep you from tearing the Avengers apart."
"You did that when you signed." Steve kept his cool. My father did not.
"Alright, we're done. You're gonna turn Barnes over, you're gonna come with us, now, because it's us! Or squad of J-SOC guys with no compunction of being polite. Come on."
Everyone stood still, waiting. Steve put his web-cuffed hands in the air. Clint shot them free from a mile away. I saw Scott -or a tiny version of him. Spider-Man noticed too, right before Scott grew and kicked him in the face. My dad flew off to retrieve Wanda and Rhodey was ready to take on Cap.
"Hey Mr. Stark, what should I do?" Spider-Man asked. He sounded young.
"What we discussed, keep your distance, web 'em up!" My father barked, as he flew towards Clint and Wanda.
"Okay, copy that," Spider-Man replied. He shot a web at me first. It caught my arm and I got whipped to the ground. I glared at him.
"Really?" I hissed.
"Just following Mr. Stark's orders," He said before swinging off after Bucky. I was left on the ground once everyone dispersed. I tried pulling my hand out of the sticky material that was shot at me, but it was stronger than glue. I was forced to watch the action unfold and wait until Natasha ran past me.
"Mama, a little help here?" I called out to her.
She stopped for a second. "Sorry honey, I really don't want you getting hurt." She ran off and I groaned. No one ever wants me to get hurt. I suppose I should be grateful, but in a moment like this, gratitude is hard to find. I started toying with the web. I wondered if I could break down the molecules. Surely there had to be some sort of H2O compound in it somewhere.
My power surged through me, the current flowing to the hand webbed to the ground. I managed to manipulate the water out, just as I predicted I would. The substance melted off my hands. Gross, I thought. I wiped the remaining web on my pants and got up. The water from the webbing fell to the ground with a splash.
I stood up and examined my surroundings. Natasha was on the ground fighting Scott, who shrunk down and flipped her over her own head. The Black Panther was on the other side of the roof, battling Steve. I didn't move. As much as I wanted to be included, I couldn't bring myself to fight. Not now at least.
The two teams assembled, divided by a line on the pavement. How cinematic. I was on Cap's side. I never meant to fight against my father. If anything, I thought it was funny. I looked out at the team in front of me. They were all lined up, Rhodey, the cat, Tony, Nat, the Spider-brat. Vision hovered above them. A bead of sweat trickled down the back of my neck. I were scared. I wasn't made to fight.
"What do we do Cap?" Sam asked.
"We fight." Steve moved first. We followed in suit. My dad's team mimicked my team's actions and walked closer. We  broke into a jog and then a full out run. This was really about to happen. I hoped that my family would go easy on me. I knew what I was doing. I reassured myself of that. I have done a bunch of training, especially with Wanda. I could move the freaking elements with my mind and manipulate gravity! As if the Spider-Man could beat that. I am Y/n fricking Stark. I can do this.
I put a smile on your face, contrasting everyone else's bitter looks. "I call the spider!" I yelled, just as everyone began the battle. Spider-Man heard me and slowed down just a bit. I cocked an eyebrow. He resumed his pace and ran straight for me. I ran headfirst towards him. He threw out his arm to web me, but I was faster. With a swish of my hands, I changed his gravitational pull and made his feet flip out from under him. He landed on his back with a hard thud. As gently as I could, I morphed the pavement under him to trap his hands. "Careful there, Spider-boy. Don't wanna get stepped on." I walked away. I made it about ten steps before I heard the sound of concrete cracking. I turned around and saw that Spider-Man was breaking free of his restraints. I was shocked. He has super strength. Great. I should have moved out of his way because the second he got one hand free, I was webbed against a truck.
"For the record," he said, getting up in my face. "It's Spider-Man." He swung off into the airport through a glass window. I watched the glass rained onto the ground. Taking a deep breath, I quickly removed myself from the webs. I needed a plan. A strategy. I thought about at the opposing team. Everyone was scattered around the airport. I thought about who would be easiest to fight. But then I realized, the strategy wasn't about how they'd fight, but who. There was no way in hell that my parents or Uncle Rhodey would even think about fighting me. The Black Panther didn't know me, so he was a threat. The worst Vision could do was pick me up and fly away, so he was in thr safe zone. That left the spider. I smiled to myself. Rematch time.
By the time I found Spider-Man, he had already webbed Sam and Bucky to the floor. He was perched on top of a light post, saying something about impressing my father. Sam's mini falcon whizzed past me and grabbed Spider-Man by the web. He got pulled out a window, banging his side into the pane on the way out. I ran over to Sam and Bucky. Quickly, I destroyed the webbing and helped them up. They both gave me a quick "Thanks kid," before running back out. I followed them, staying loose on their trail.
Once I got outside my eyes scanned the area for the Spider. I saw Wanda piling cars on my father and Natasha fighting Clint. Then I spotted him, fighting Cap. He was underneath a jet bridge . Cap threw his shield at the support beams and the whole thing fell on top of Spider-Man. He caught it of course, but Cap ran away. I formed my plan.
"Hey!" I called out. I walked around the collapsing jet bridge. I stood in front of the struggling boy. Or man, I didn't know. "Remember me?"
"Heh, how could I forget such a pretty face," he grunted, starting to fold under the weight of the jet bridge. "You wanna give me a hand?" I glared at his face comment, but lifted the jet bridge anyway. He ran out and I let it fall. Both of us stopped for a minute, gasping for breath beside the rubble. He was close enough to hit. So I did. Without warning I threw a punch of air at him. It hit him right in the chest and he got blown back into the side of a van. "What the hell man?" He got up and shot a web at me. I dodged and threw another gust of wind. It shot him out of the air. He webbed at a pole and swung past my face. I redirected his gravitational pull, but not before he got a kick to my face. We both got thrown in different directions. I landed hard on the ground, pain shooting up my spine. I got up first, now angry. Forgetting about my powers, I lunged at him and threw a punch. I missed and he shot webs at my feet, holding me down. Immediately, I dissolved them and Spider-Man's eyes widened. Well, his mask's eye holes did anyway.
"How did you do that?" He yelled. "What kind of witchcraft-"
"Its not witchcraft," I spat. "It's called manipulation of the elements, look it up. I figured there had to be some water compound in this and I was right. All I had to do was remove it."
"That's so cool! And how did you do the foot thing earlier? Was that just the wind you do or do you have telekinesis too? Are you like the Scarlet Witch?" He rambled on. I took this to my advantage and caught him off guard. I used the van he'd hit earlier to become his gravitational pull and yanked. He went slamming into it and groaned. When he tried to get back up, I was already five steps ahead of him. Morphing the earth metals in the van, I contorted it into a shell that crushed Spider-Man until he was covered and stuck.
I heard Scott say that he was gonna tear himself in half over the earpiece. I got distracted from holding Spider-Man down and turned to see a giant Scott. Spider-Man broke free. He tore the shell off himself and threw it at me. I was wacked across the side and fell the the ground again.
"Holy shit!" he says, looking at Scott. His back was to me and I gave him one last wind push. He fell on his face and I laughed. "Oh come on, don't you have some dolls to play with or something?" I just scoffed and walked past him, stepping past his hand that was on the ground. He let out a yelp and you kept walking. Dolls, I thought. I'm thirteen I don't play with dolls. I watched as the rest of the battle went down. I wasn't quite sure what to do. I jumped when I felt a hand on my shoulder.
Natasha was standing just behind me. "Come with me." We started jogging off. It was natural for me to listen to her. I realized about five seconds in that technically she was my enemy right about now, but I shrugged it off. I ran through the fight, past the big Scott and towards a warehouse. I could see the outline of a jet get bigger as I approached it. Natasha stopped behind the entrance. She was waiting.
"So what do we do?" I asked.
"We wait to fight," She replied, not taking her eyes off the horizon. I came to realize this probably means I would be fighting her. Maybe she wanted to use me as a hostage or something. No, that's silly. Right?
Steve and Bucky got closer to the building I was in. They nearly made it until Vision laser beamed the shit out of a nearby communications tower. Wanda caught it before it fell, giving the two men time to race towards the jet. I stepped out to help Wanda. The both of us were able to hold the rubble long enough for Steve and Bucky to get through. I panted, proud of myself for getting this far.
A searing pain sliced through my brain. Both myself and Wanda fell to the ground, screaming. I could barely look up to see that Rhodey was sending some sort of wave through the air. The tower fell and Natasha was quick to haul me out of the way before I got crushed. I might be better than Spider-Man, but I definitely don't have his super strength.
Steve and Bucky still managed to get through the falling paces of metal and concrete. Natasha left my side and marched swiftly towards the two men. I couldn't hear them, but I could sense the tension from a mile away. Natasha lifted her arm, taser aimed and ready. Steve held his shield up in defense as Natasha shoots....the Black Panther? I guess she's on our side now? The jet started to take off and you watch an Natasha continues to battle the Panther. I fell to my side, wiped out.
My father flew into the warehouse just as the jet leaves. You thought maybe he was going to fight Natasha for betraying him. I was wrong. He was coming for me. He landed beside me and dropped to his knees. His helmet closed and I could see the worry plastered on his cut up face. He knelt beside me and gently held me up.
"Are you okay?" he asked. I nodded, not really able to make words. He looked over at Natasha, who was looking at us. She had an apologetic look, but I know she doesn't regret letting Cap go. My father let me go and charged off after the jet plane. I lied down, enjoying the feeling of cold concrete against your skin. I closed my eyes.
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I paced around the living room, driving Nat crazy. I knew that the second my father got home I would be in deep shit. So when Friday alerted me that Tony was home my heart rate went up 29373%. The battle, this fight, it ended worse then I could have imagined. Natasha told me that my father could have died. Rhodey was paralyzed from the waist down. I had no idea if I'd ever see my Pops again. This was bad. Very, very bad.
I slowly walked down the main hall towards the front doors. I was scared. My hands and the back of my neck were sweating. I knew exactly what was coming. Every time I had asked my dad if I could be an honorary Avenger, I got the same lecture. That it was too dangerous, I didn't have the proper training and it's too much for his little girl to handle. Even when I asked to just be a part of the business side of the team, Tony laughed and said no. I've broken a lot of my father's rules, but this was the line. And I had gone so far over.
As I approached the front door, I could hear my father speaking. I heard another voice too. My heart dropped. It was Spider-Man. Why was Spider-Man here? I ducked behind a wall and listened in to the conversation.
"...outstanding job kid. Your fighting technique was on par. And, listen, I know we're not allowed to have kids on this team, but if we need you again, we'll call." I heard my father say.
"Thanks Mr. Stark. This was so cool," Spider-Man replied. I wondered if he had his suit on or not. I wanted to know who this guy was. I revealed myself from behind the wall. The two looked at me. I looked at my father first and fought the urge to burst into tears. He looked awful. His face was all cut up and the black eye he got was still a little swollen. I glanced at the figure beside him and frowned. Spider-Man was a kid. He looked like he was my age. He had a mop of curly brown hair and doe eyes. He was almost equally as beat up as my dad and I gracefully took credit for that.
"Y/n, this is Peter. He's, uh, one of my interns. Kid, this is Y/n," Tony said. My annoyance turned to anger. Now my father was lying to me?
"How old are you?" I asked, eyes narrowing. I knew that I sounded rude, but this kid had kicked me in the face twice. I didn't think he deserved my manners.
"I'm fourteen," Peter gulped. A year older than me. And I kicked his ass, I thought. "You gave me quite a fight back in Berlin."
"Yeah and I beat your ass doing it."
"Speaking of which," Tony spoke up, "I have to talk to Y/n about that. Happy will take you home Peter." Peter nodded and said goodbye to my father. He said goodbye to me, to which I didn't reply. Peter frowned at that as he walked out the door.
My dad turned to me when the door shut. "What," he began, "were you thinking?"
"Well I-"
"No. This is where you listen. Do you know how dangerous that mission was. Do you know how many people got hurt? You saw what happened to Rhodey, that could have been you!"
"But it wasn't" I retorted.
Tony's frown deepened. "That is not the point. You put yourself in serious danger, and for what? So you could feel a little more included? You could have died. This was my one rule, my one ask of you, and your broke it."
"Oh, come on now, I'm a Stark, it's in our blood to not listen to our fathers." My father gave me the coldest look and I shut down. I took a deep breath. "Look, I didn't know that it was gonna be this bad. You know me, daddy, I'm not a fighter, I'm not some hero. You think I would have gone if I knew it would turn out like this? I thought this was just gonna be another one your you and Pops' stupid fights. And yes, I could have gotten hurt, but I think I handled myself pretty well. You saw what I did you that little protege of yours. I beat him to the curb."
"Y/n you were reckless. Peter was prepared for this, he was ready."
"And I still beat him."
"Y/n you're not listening to me. This is why I chose Peter over you. I would have taken you if I knew you wouldn't do something stupid. But you did anyway." And with that he walked away, leaving me, teary-eyed in the front hall.
Tony came by my room later that night to apologize. He said that he was sorry for being harsh, that he just cared about me and I scared him. I knew he meant it and I forgave him, because that's what we do. Besides, it wasn't Tony I was angry with. This is why I chose Peter over you. Tony's words echoed through my head. I knew that he loved me more, I'm his daughter, he had to. But I were jealous. Jealous that stupid Peter Parker got the praise for the work I've wanted to hear for ages. And mad at that stupid spider for being stupid.
This is when I decided that I hate Peter Parker.
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The Fall of King Romulus Part 9
Summary: Twin Princes Remus and Romulus are cursed at birth with Honesty and Obedience. When Romulus, who cannot disobey any order, is told to kill his brother the next time he lays eyes on him, he changes his name to Roman and runs away. Roman joins up with a misfit group of adventures and plans to never return to his homeland. But the fae have other plans for him… Warnings (for whole fic not necessarily individual chapters): Violence, mind whammying/memory altering, curse of obedience related consent issues, references to sex, references to war related injuries/PTSD, references to child abuse/neglect (YMMV on that one but just in case), antagonstic-but-not-exactly villian!Janus, Extremly-moraly-dubious-but-not-exacty-unsympathetic-Remus
Feedback appreciated.
NOW ON AO3 :D
Prologue Chapter 1   Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8
Roman kept his back straight and his gaze cold and aloof as he watched his proclamation sink in.
It was a simple thing, to be Romulus again.
Virgil and Patton had been sent to fight and die by their Kings. Roman had listened to Logan rant, many times, about his distain of the noble classes and their control over the common men. Whatever affection they had for Roman – it wouldn’t extend to Romulus.
They would leave.
“Well yes,” Logan said, sounding annoyed “I was getting to that.”
“What?!” Roman shrieked.
“Not require our services?” Virgil stared at him incredulously, “Didn’t we hire you?”
“Logan, you knew?” Patton said admiringly, “You’re so smart!”
“Oh, he did not.” Roman grumbled.
“Well.” Logan shuffled his feet, not looking directly at him, “The Marquis de Ornella called you Romulus. And you attempted to call him by his first name, so I assumed you knew each other- a noble connection was not out of the question.”
“Ha!” Roman pointed at him, vindicated “But you didn’t guess I was a prince, did you?”
“Well, no-” Logan looked on the verge of pouting.
“What services are we even providing? In this scenario?”
“-but If I had had time to do more research then- “
“You know what! That’s a great idea.” Patton smiled brightly, “I think we could all use a little cool down time – Logan why don’t you go back to the library and read up on Nothalevaele”.
“Notaleveale.” Logan corrected.
Patton frowned. “It’s not -aleveale? I swear that’s what he said.”
“It’s not Nothalevaele it’s Notaleveale”.
“Then what is it?”
Roman stuffed most of his good hand into his mouth to muffle a scream.
“Seriously.” Virgil smirked at him even as he leant over to adjust Roman’s pillow. “You just can’t get service like this anywhere else.”
Roman glared at him.
“He-” Virgil jerked his head at Logan, utterly unbothered by Roman’s glare – “shouldn’t go to the library alone.”
Patton nodded seriously and gave Vigil a wide smile.
Virgil glared back.
Patton raised both eyebrows.
Virgil folded his arms.
“No one needs to go anywhere – I told you I’m leaving.” Roman complained.
They ignored him.
Eventually whatever silent argument the two men were having ended with Virgil rolling his eyes and throwing his hands up in exasperation.
“Go find your bag.” He told Logan, who nodded jerkily and all but fled the room.
Roman flopped back against the pillows with a thump, too tired to maintain his princely posture any longer. “He can go by himself, can’t he,” he muttered sulkily, “we’re not actually kids.”
Virgil and Patton exchanged another glance before Virgil turned away to the bedside table, fussing with his pots and potions.
“We’re not sure how many guards got a look at our faces before we got out of the bathhouse.” Patton told him, “Better not to risk traveling alone.”
“Oh.” Roman replied, his voice small.
He remembered the bathhouse. The screams from above. Virgil’s panic-stricken face as he glanced between them and the stairs. Logan with a blade at his throat.
He swallowed hard and cast his eyes down, picked idly at a loose thread of the blanket.
“We should be back before the bandages needs changing, but if you smell anything or see any new pus there’s some ointment left in this one.” Virgil held up a blue-green jar for Patton to see, “Just wash it out first with boiled water.”
“Pus!” Roman squeaked, looking up.
“Your hand was pretty screwed up.” Virgil told him gruffly, “The infection’s what gave you the fever. You need to drink more willow tea, at least one cup every hour – we’ll have to pick up some more salve whilst we’re out.” This last part he directed at Patton, who dutifully rummaged in their stack of bags and handed over their coin purse.
It looked worryingly empty. Roman remembered the extra nights they had booked at the inn – nights which they clearly hadn’t even ended up using - and winced.
“We should look for some road food too, Virgil continued “and a map if we’re really going nor – Oh!” He looked at Roman, eyes wide “Er – about the tea, I mean, you need to drink it every hour but only If you -want to? I mean you definitely should but” he waved his hands as if trying to physically shape the instruction into something optional. “You get it.”
Roman bit down hard on the inside of his cheek and tried to ignore the fondness bubbling up inside him. He had hardly even noticed the order.
“How long was I asleep?” He asked.
“Nearly two days.” Patton said softly. “You really scared us for a minute there kiddo.”
“I’m sorry.” He mumbled, “And- thank you. For taking care of me.”
“Aw Roman! You don’t have to be sorry for anything!” Patton said, “Or thank us – that’s what family’s for.”
“You’re not my family.” Roman said quietly, thinking of his father’s cool detachment and a castle full of empty rooms.
Virgil snorted. “Yeah whatever. Listen you gotta – you should eat. And sleep some more. And we are going to have to talk about all this when we’re back, okay Ro – er, Romulus?”
He wrinkled his nose. “Jeez do we have to call you that now?”
“I think it’s a nice name.” Patton interjected “It’s very umm. Regal.”
“Surely ‘Princey’ still works as a nickname?" Logan asked, returning to the room. He threw a pale green coat at Virgil, who made a face but obediently shrugged it on, pulling an orange knit cap down over the pointed tips of his ears.
Almost as an afterthought, he licked is thumb and rubbed at the dark kohl under each eye. He smirked down at Roman. “You ran away from being a prince and called yourself ‘Princey’?
“You called me that.” Roman said sulkily, deciding not to tell Virgil that he’d only succeeded in smearing the make-up.
“Umm.” Logan stood at the head of the bed. Roman braced himself for another round of interrogation, twisting the blanket between his hands. “I suspect I should apologise for– I was just trying to test my hypothesis before started making outlandish accusations. Obviously, I didn’t realise how long you have been dealing with- I mean, it’s actually quite impressive you maintained your sanity for this long given that-”
“Okay! Less talking!” Virgil declared, as Romans knuckles started to turn white. The elf slung one arm around Logan’s shoulders, propelling him towards the door.
“I was only trying to-”
“Later.”
The door closed behind them with a resounding thud.
“So” Patton said after a moment, casually reaching out with one thumb to wipe away the tears collecting in the bard’s eyes, “Would you like food first or a nap?”
***
The library of Steveange was the crowning jewel of the city. A towering hexagonal building that sat upon the cities highest peak, directly across from the gates to the royal palace.
Which meant the journey was almost all uphill.
Typical.
Virgil huffed, breathing heavily as he stomped his way through the streets, Logan practically trotting to keep up with his long strides.
Prince Romulus of Notaleveale.
Honestly, what the fuck.
At least it explained the whole armed guards thing.
Except actually it explained nothing because if you found a runaway member of the royal family, why in the hell would you then tie them up in a bathhouse basement?
Unless they were traitors working against the royal family – but then why go after a runaway prince at all? Ransom? They hadn’t exactly looked strapped for cash….
And why a bathhouse? Why not one the extremely defensible manor houses that were scattered throughout the upper echelons of the city??
Virgil let out a growl of frustration and came to a stop.
Roman’s injuries had been too systematic to have come from a fight. The northerners had tortured him.
And now he wanted to go back there?
It didn’t make any sense…unless of course the kidnappers had ordered him to go back…
Virgil took a deep breath and dug the heels of his palms into his eyes, trying to banish that thought. If he started thinking about the curse again he was going to lose it; end up in a spiral of what had they done and what had they missed and HOW were they supposed to protect him if-
“Virgil? Do you need me to count for seven?”
He forced his eyes open to meet Logan’s worried face and let out the breath he’d been holding in a rush.
“I’m good.” He told the younger man unconvincingly.
“We could go back-” Logan started, but Virgil shook his head.
As much as he bristled at being managed, he didn’t think Patton had been wrong to split the group.
Roman – or whatever they were calling him now– was barley recovered. He’d looked so small, propped up against the pillows without a lute or sword or smile between himself and the world.
Small and scared. And puffing himself up like a songbird trying to look big for a cat.
The four of them yelling for answers at once was only going to freak him out more. Patton had a much better chance getting information out of him one on one.
Still…
“You think we’re going got get anything useful out of this trip?” he asked Logan bluntly.
“The library of Stevenage is one of the greatest collections of written knowledge on the entire continent and in times of uncertainty, knowledge is our greatest weapon... and our greatest defence.” Logan told him, a serious look in his eye.
“Right.” Virgil nodded absently, “Do you think they’ve got a copy of ‘curse breaking for idiots?”
***
Roman woke up for the second time that day with a throbbing headache on top of his other aches and pains. He spent a few minutes cursing himself for not taking up Patton’s offer of willow tea before he’d gone back to sleep and then swung his legs out of the bed.
He needed to get up. He needed to relieve himself and wash and eat and and-
And figure out what to do next.
He needed to know if Remus was safe. If he was on the throne or locked up somewhere or worse.
Which meant going home.
Which meant getting away from his friends.
No one else was going to get hurt because of him and his petty little problems.
Nodding decisively to himself he sprung to his feet. And then swiftly sat back down as the world tilted alarmingly around him.
“Roman?” There was a polite knock at the door and Patton stuck his head in.
“Hey kiddo!” the big man smiled at him, “Are you hungry?”
Roman felt his heart rate speed up and tried to summon some of Romulus’ cool detachment. Patton knew about his curse.  If anyone learned about his curse, they would try to exploit it. They would use it to hurt his family, to hurt-
Roman bit down hard on the inside of his cheek to stop the flow of anxiety. This was Patton.
Roman was more likely to be a burden to him then an opportunity.
Before he could manage to come up with a suitable greeting his stomach growled, loudly, making him blush and Patton laugh.
“Shall I bring something up? Or do you want to come sit at the table?”
“…Table.” Roman mumbled, keeping his eyes locked somewhere in the vicinity of Patton’s left ear. Even though he knew, in his head and in his heart, that Patton wasn’t going to hurt him - he still felt oddly vulnerable with his secret sitting between them. Attempting eye contact made something inside him twist uncomfortably.
His mother had always said Romulus was shy.
If Patton noticed his odd behaviour he didn’t mention it, nor did he insist on carrying Roman down the stairs or otherwise manhandling him.  Instead he hovered at his elbow as he made his way from the room, keeping up a running commentary of the house as they descended the stairs.
The room that Roman had been staying in was the attic. Immediately outside the door was a set of stairs so steep they may as well have been a ladder. Patton must have been perched out here, Roman thought guilty, giving him space but close enough to hear him get up. At the base of these stairs was a short landing where most of the items normally stored in the attic were now haphazardly stacked.
“That’s Mama’s room.” Patton nodded at a closed door, as he gingerly ducked under a rolled-up carpet which was wedged against the wall. “And that’s the store cupboard”. At the base of the next steep flight was a hallway Roman recognised: kitchen at one end, main door at the other. There was another door opposite the stairs that he hadn’t noticed on his first visit, with a moon and stars motif painted at eye level.
“That’s her work room.” Patton told him, seeing Romans curious glance, “She’s asked us to stay out of there- it’s where she sees customers.”
Customers. Roman filed that thought away. He had almost forgotten they were in a witch’s house.
Patton took him straight through the kitchen, where a back door led into a narrow garden. The herb bed was surprisingly neat, given the haphazard nature of the house, with small labels pinned neatly next to each plant. At the far end were two wooden structures. “Storage shed.” Patton pointed, “Outhouse. Do you need help using it?”
Roman shook his head vehemently - clung to Patton’s arm briefly when the movement made him dizzy – and stomped to the outhouse to relieve himself.
After a few steps though he stopped.
Patton knew about the curse. And Patton wouldn’t hurt him so-
He could ask.
“Pat?“
“Yeah?” Patton – or at least his ear – looked concerned.
“I. um. My arm is…”
Virgil had instructed him to keep his arm still in his sling until the herbs had done their work and clearly, they hadn’t happened yet. The thing was still pinned across his chest.
Not that he couldn’t navigate the outhouse one handed if he had too. But his balance wasn’t exactly great at the moment and tripping in there was one humiliation he would have liked to avoid.
But then again, it’s not like his hand was any use. He would really just be freeing up the use of his elbow and why was even bothering Patton with something so stupid and embarrassing an-
“Roman. Hold your… hold your whole body however you like.”
He nodded jerkily as his shoulder relaxed for the first time since waking up, letting his arm drop a little lower.
He didn’t look at Patton as he made his escape to the outhouse.
***
When he returned Patton had pulled a tin bathtub from who-knows-where onto the slab of paving stone by the kitchen door and was testing the water’s temperature with his elbow.
“Virgil left us some potions.” He told Roman as he approached – “This is another one to help healing and this-” he held up a red tinted bottle “-should give us bubbles!”
Roman stared at the bath almost hungrily. Hot water was a luxury under normal circumstances and between the travel, the bath house and the fever he knew he must reek of sweat and dirt. Surely, he deserved a little pampering before the journey North?
“It’s still too hot.” Patton warned him before he could launch himself into the water. Instead, the other man gestured to a pretty wrought iron table and two chairs set against the left side fence. He produced bread and jam alongside a mug of tea, advising him to eat slowly as went to grab another bucket of water from the cauldron simmering away in Tay’s kitchen.
Although Patton had been careful not to make an order, Roman still made sure he followed his instructions carefully. He had no desire to make himself sick. Or to make more work for the other man.
He pulled his bread apart into small bites and ate them one at a time, watching Patton critically as he limped his way back to the table.
“Did you get hurt…in the bathhouse?”
“…A few bruises.” Patton told him honestly, spreading a thick layer of jam on his own bread, “Nothing too bad”
“I’m sorry.” Roman said again, pulling his remaining bread into smaller and smaller pieces.
“Ro-man!” Patton said cheerfully – “you don’t need to apologise! It was those Ornelly guys that hit me not you!”
“Right. Yeah. Sorry.”
Roman hunched and cursed himself. Sorry sorry sorry. Couldn’t he say anything useful?
“Roman hey – can you look at me please?”
It took more effort than he would have liked, but Roman did. Patton’s eyes were big and blue and very, very kind. Roman jerked his gaze away immediately.
“None of us blame you for what happened. Okay?”
“You got hurt because of me.” Roman blurted. “Logan nearly died- “
“I told you, that was on the Ornellans, not you-“
“Who were there specifically because of me! That excuse doesn’t work Pat I-“
He cut himself off, eyes glued to the floor once more. Hadn’t he just decided he didn’t want to cause any more trouble?
“Sorry.”
He heard Patton sigh and tried not to flinch, but when the other man spoke his voice was still gentle. “How many bubbles do you want?”
***
Whenever Virgil got upset, he always wanted space. It was something Patton found difficult, as his instinct was to smother the other man with affection until he smiled again, but experience had given him the patience to wait until his friend was ready.
When Logan got upset, he always claimed he needed space – but what he really wanted was an audience. He needed to talk through the problem, often at length, and know that someone was listening, even if he didn’t always want their advice.
Roman though – Roman liked attention. Roman liked fuss and pampering and his favourite food and to know, demonstrably, that someone was worried about him.
It didn’t mean he was great at asking for it. Patton remembered vividly his insistence on hopping half a mile on a twisted ankle before Patton had all but begged him to accept a piggyback.
He also remembered a time after a poorly received show when Roman had spent the evening sulking, sighing loudly and dramatically and slumping against each of them in turn until Patton had laughingly pulled him into a hug. Oh my god Vigil had snarked were you not hugged enough as a child?
It had been funny. At the time. Sort of.
Not so much now.
Since lying back against the tub’s rim would aggravate the wounds on his back, Roman was hunched forward in the tub, his bandaged arm hanging over the edge.
“Did I ever tell you how Virgil and I met?” Patton asked, settling on his knees next to the tub.
Roman twitched. There was a tactic agreement amongst the four of them not to discuss their pasts. This was more than fine with Patton, who was much more concerned with making new, happy memories then revisiting old ones, but he didn’t blame Roman and Logan for being curious.
Whenever the pair were on watch together, conversation often turned to whispered debate over the southern pair’s origin. Whilst he felt a bit bad for pretending to be asleep, Patton quite enjoyed their speculation.
His favourite was the circus performer theory. Virgil would probably has made a good acrobat.
“It was in the war.” he continued, scooping up some of the water and wetting Roman’s hair.
“I um. I volunteered you know? All the boys in my town did. I think we thought- well I know I thought it was the right thing to do. Finaley’ed was the enemy after all, we had to keep our families safe.”
He chuckled sadly, focusing on making sure every strand of Roman’s hair was damp before gently capturing a handful of bubbles and placing them on the other man’s head.
“Made you a crown.” he giggled.
Roman turned just enough to peak at him incredulously through one eye and Patton winced.
“Right. Sorry.”
Roman turned away again but Patton though he saw him suppressing a smile. Score!
“Um anyway” – he poured a measure of oil from one of Virgil’s bottles and rubbed it between his fingers before leaning over to begin massaging Roman’s scalp – “It was okay at first. I was in a regiment with all my friends, it was a bit of an adventure honestly.”
“And then there was this Major. He came to inspect us before we got done training and he – he said I was good. That I should get a chance to really make a difference in the war.”
He dragged his fingers through Roman’s hair, gently detangling the strands.
“He put me in a new regiment. All big guys. Like me. And they- they gave us this – I’m not even sure what it was. My buddy Micha used to say it was ground up swamp frogs but I don’t know.”
He started scooping up water again, rinsing some of the bubbles and oil from Roman’s hair.
“It made us…strong. Angry. Scary. Berserk well– that was the point. I don’t. um.” Some of the water sloshed over his cupped palms and Patton realised he was shivering.
“I killed a lot of people…. I mean I definitely made a difference to them.” He finished bitterly.
“…s’not your fault.” Patton glanced up to see Roman had twisted to look at him, was doing his best to maintain eye contact despite Patton’s confession. Patton smiled at him. Roman really was a sweet kid.
“It’s what I signed up for kiddo. Just faster.”
He sighed, nudging Roman gently to turn around so that he could finish rinsing his hair. “I’m not. I’m not saying it’s the same as what you’ve gone through. I know it isn’t. Just – I get it. A little. What it’s like not having any control.”
For a moment they sat in silence, the only sound the trickle of water as Patton continued lifting handfuls to Roman’s scalp.
Then the bard let out a shuddering breath and said: “My major’s name was Julius.”
“Oh?” Patton whispered.
“He was my dad’s friend. He was supposed to find a way to break the curse, but he didn’t. Then he just…started helping me figure out how to live with it. He was helping me. He was supposed to be…”
Roman took a deep breath “He’s the reason I-ack.” He broke off, coughing. Patton reached forward to hold him up, alarmed.
“Ro?”
“I’m okay.” But he didn’t look it, red faced and scowling. “I-” he gripped Patton’s arm looking right into his eyes. “I can’t tell you.”
Patton nodded slowly, understanding. “You can’t – not because you don’t want to.”
Roman nodded.
Patton frowned. “Can I – could I order you too? I could undo what Virgil said about your arm right?”
Roman sighed shaking his head. “The curse is. It’s fickle. But words are important -if you don’t know what you’re contradicting it’s almost impossible and Julius he – he was very good at giving orders.”
“Right.” Patton frowned. “What if I guess? Like Logan figured out the curse?”
“You can try.” Roman laughed bitterly.
“Hmm okay – was he the reason you left home?”
Roman span around so quickly water splashed over the side of the tub. “Patton! How’d you know?”
“Well gee kiddo! The frog pills didn’t rattle too many cells loose!” Patton laughed tapping the side of his head. Then frowned. “Well, I hope not…”
Roman winced. “Patton I – I’m sorry about what happened to you.”
“Well.” Patton smiled sadly, “Likewise Ro-Romulus.”
The other man sighed, sinking low in the tub again. “I liked being Roman.” he blurted out suddenly, a look of abject misery on his face.
“Then – why stop?” Patton whispered.
“I-” He frowned. “I would like to not be naked for this conversation.”
“That’s fair.” Patton nodded and helped him to his feet.
***
By the time Roman was up, towelled off and dressed in one of Patton’s old shirts that he had long ago claimed as a sleep shirt, he looked about ready to pass out again. Patton left him sitting at the table to finish drying in the sunshine whilst he dashed upstairs to change the sheets on the attic bed. When he returned with the laundry pile, he found that Mittens had emerged and settled himself on the bard’s– the prince’s – lap.
Roman looked up at him guilty - “Your allergies.”
“It’s easier outside.” Patton waved him off. Mittens had been the key to them finding Roman, as far as Patton on was concerned, the cat’s comfort was worth a few sneezes.
He took a seat at the table and nudged the remaining bread towards Roman, who took it hungrily, eating with much more enthusiasm than before the bath.
“So you were saying...” Patton prompted.
Roman pouted at him, cheeks stuffed with bread.
“’u first.” he swallowed, “You never got to how you met Virgil. Was he in the berserkers – in the special regiment too?”
“Oh, no.” Patton shook his head vehemently. “Virgil wasn’t like me. He was a conscript – for the other side.”
An exceptionally fat bumble bee had found Tay’s herb garden and was repeatedly bouncing off the side of some chives. Patton focused on the bewildered looking insect rather than Roman’s face and his finished the story.
“A small group of us had got separated from the rest. It was quite deep in the forest, away from the main battle. We were meant to find their camp and pick them off there, but we couldn’t find them. And then we couldn’t find the way back.”
The bee, finally free of the chives, crashed headfirst into a Rosemary bush.
“It was like… like my blood was on fire. We hadn’t been so long without it before. And then...”
“And then?”
“We stumbled on a group of them. Of Finaley’ii soldiers. And there was a fight.” Patton closed his eyes. Screams and sobs and blood on his sword and in his eyes and Micha gasping uselessly around the arrow in his throat “I don’t remember it much. But when it was over it was like I…woke up.”
He smiled.
“And there he was. Virgil. Pointing s crossbow right at my face.”
“He what!” Roman yelped and Patton laughed.
“Well, we were on opposite sides kiddo and I had just…well. The thing was, it was only us left then. No one was ordering to kill each other and so we just…didn’t. Neither of us was in any big rush to find our armies again so….”
“Virgil asked me to help him find his mom, so we headed east. We couldn’t find her, so he said he’d help me find my town and we went west. That was gone too.”
“The whole town?” Roman as looking at him with sorrowful eyes.
“That’s the problems with wars kiddo – they don’t stay in one place.”
“What about your family?”
Patton shrugged. Mittens hopped down from Roman’s lap and began to stalk the errant bee.
“Maybe they got away. I hope so.” He glanced at Roman again. “Virgil was the one who suggested we keep going west. Get away entirely, see if we could find any refugees, look for our families.” He smiled fondly. “He’s always been the brave one, not me.”
“And – and did you?” Roman asked. He was bent forward, eyes fixed on Patton’s own.
“No.” Patton sighed. “I like to think they’re safe and sound somewhere. Set up a new house, found new people to care for. Like I did. But… “
He trailed off. But most likely they were dead. Like Patton should be.
“What if…if you knew where they were.” Roman said quietly, “Would you go see them- check on them?”
Patton rubbed his hand over his face, feeling the multitude of scars that littered the right side. “I don’t know.” He told Roman honestly. “I would like to know if they were okay but…I don’t know if they’d want to see me.”
Roman nodded.
On the other side of the garden, there was a sudden yowling from the rosemary bush. Mittens came charging towards them with his tail fluffed up and circled Roman’s chair twice before leaping onto the fence.
Patton giggled – “Well that’s what you get for trying to fight a bee you silly cat!”
“I think my brothers in danger.” Roman said in a rush.
Patton blinked.
“Your brother?”
He was back to staring down. Both fists clenched tightly together. “I left him. Back home. I thought I-” he coughed again. “I thought he would be safe but now I’m not sure.”
“In danger from what kiddo?”
“From Julius.” Roman breathed. “I saw him. Or. Or I think I did.”
Slowly, haltingly, Roman told him about meeting the Marquis. About the bathhouse basement and the northern soldiers and the figure he called the grey man who had slipped in and out of Julius’ face.
Patton did his best to keep his own face clam as Roman casually described being forced to hurt himself, even as his own knuckles turned white from his grip on the chairs’ arm.
“He said he had sent Lucius to the inn after some – some escaped prisoner? And he found me. But Lucius knew about the curse and he never did before so- “
“Roman?” Patton interrupted. “Sorry - can I give you a hug?”
“Oh!” Roman blinked at him, blushing slightly, “If you – if you want to?”
“I really do.” Patton scrambled to his feet, wrapping the younger man in his arms and feeling Roman sag against him. He resisted the urge to squeeze, mindful of his injuries. “You’re safe now.” He whispered. “I gottcha.”
Roman giggled wetly against his chest. “Julius. He said he’d assumed I’d died.” He mumbled.  “But now that he knows I’m around? He’ll try again Pat I know he will. I- “
He drew back, looking up at Patton with tear filled eyes. “I can’t risk you all getting hurt because of me.”
“That’s not your decision to make Roman.” Patton told him softly. “We think you’re worth the risk.”
“But I’m not Roman.” He whimpered. He hadn’t relinquished his grip on Patton, who began to run his hand soothingly up and down the prince’s back.
“Well, if we’re being technical, I’m not Patton.” Patton rested his head on top of Roman’s own. “Me and Vigil picked new names after we left the war and I – I like being Patton.”
There was a pause. Roman squeezed a little tighter.
“I like Patton too.”
Patton laughed; some tension he hadn’t realised he was holding draining away. When Roman drew back this time, he had a shaky smile on his face.
“So.” He stepped back, wiping his eyes with the back of his wrist. “I need to…go back north. Check on my brother. Avoid Julius and Lucius and anyone connected with Romulus. You sure that’s worth the risk?”
“Yep!” Patton said instantly. “And we need to break the curse!”
“I guess.” Roman shrugged. “I really do think it’s impossible Pat’.”
“Eh.” Patton waved a hand dismissively “That’s never stopped Logan before.”
When Roman laughed then, he almost sounded like himself.
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rimaiahwrites · 3 years
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Chapter six
Erik slowly pulled his arm from underneath Israel's head without waking her then pulled the covers up to her face, since he had it freezing in his loft.
He swung his Heavy leg over the edge of his bed and stepped on his hard wood stairs that laid up to his bed slowly so it wouldn't creek or crack. He slipped away from the comfort of his bed and made it out of his room without a sound. Even though the sounds of his bare feet slapping against the floor in the hallway was still heard, Israel didn't make a move.
He flicked the lights on in the kitchen, and snatched the refrigerator door open. He mostly had vegetables, fruit and water.  It had been like that since He had started a healthy life style after he came back from the navy.
He grabbed his glass bottle of water and chugged it down. That early morning thrust was real. After he was done he refilled the bottle of water before putting it back in the fridge for his afternoon workout.
Erik went back into the living room and pulled his rug back to reveal his hardwood floors. He pulled one of the wooden boards up and reach up inside to grab his father's old leather Journal. It was slightly beaten up from the many years of his father using it but none the less it was still very beautiful.
his balcony doors blow open from the Wind and he pulled the cream white Curtains back and stepped out. The air was cool but not to cold.
It felt good against his skin. Over the few markings that he had on his  torso- about 400 plus, all in rows around his torso. Some were still healing and sensitive.
Erik was actually still surprised that Israel's nosey ass hadn't spotted them on him yet. He knew that once she had, she will ask him a Thousand and one questions about them. And Erik wasn't really ready for that since he knew he couldn't tell her the real reason he marked himself, at least not yet.
He sat in the big chair that he had hanging to the top of his roof. It swayed from side to side when it was windy or when ever Erik sown it himself. It was soothing though. His balcony was one of the places he liked to meditate and clear his mind. He could look down below, and see businessmen in suits and looking for a taxi, and kids heading off to school with big backpack bouncing against them from running to the bus stop. It was regular city life for him.
He loved the city but hated the memories it came with. He had lost to much in it. First his mother then his father, and so many of his childhood friends had lost their lives to the city they called home. So many time had the city almost taken his life as well, from being beaten on the street by police officers, or being held at gun point at 15, by a local drug dealer that Erik had considered one of his niggas.
The city had done him so wrong but yet here he was, still living in Oakland. Just in a better spot then the apartment that he had spent ten years of his life in.
Erik sighed and sat back down and open his father book. He liked to reread it to keep him motivated and focused on his Destiny. The foreign words of his father language, that he had learned to read over the years, popped out against the old- now brownish- paper. Erik flipped to the page titled, the prince is here.
My son, my prince, my happiness have finally arrived. More Beautiful then I could ever imagine, dark brown eyes like his mother and a head full of thick black kinky hair like me.
The happiness that spread through my body the moment my eyes laid on him I knew I was in love. This was a different type of love, not like the kind of love you have for your mother or your wife it was a kind of love that only a mother or father could have for their child-
Erik read with tears beaming his eyes. Not letting them fall once. Erik slammed the book shut clenching it in his hands, as he leaned forward staring at it. It didn't make him sad, it made his angry. He was so angry at his father and it confused him so deeply since he knew his father had no control over what happened to him.
Maybe it wasn't anger towards his father, but pain that he turned into anger like he always did. And he was tired of it, the anger that had been building up inside him ever since he found his father dead, on his Apartment floor with panther Panther  claw marks in his chest, that came from the man his father called brother.
That's where his real anger was towards, his family. Erik couldn't even call it anger, it was rage. He knew that once he met his uncle all hell was going to break loss. All the pain and rage he had inside of him was going to be released. As soon as he got to wrap his hands around T'chaka fat ass neck, and hear that satisfying crunk that came after he squeeze with all his might. And then his cousin t'challa, was next because he knew that once he killed T'chaka his son was going to go after him. But he was going to prepared.
Israel rolled over on the bed and look over the loft bed. Erik wasn't in the living room or kitchen. She had thought that maybe he had left, until she saw the balcony curtains blow up from the door being open. She smiled slightly and peeled the thick blankets back and headed down the stairs. The little cracking sounds the wooden stairs made as she tip-toed down  sparked Erik's interest, he closed the opened book again, and sat it behind the pillow he had on his swinging chair.
He leaned back into the door frame and spotted Israel on the stairs with a grin on her face. "Hi." She whispered softly so her voice didn't sound raspy from not talking for hours at a time.
"You always wake up in a good mood?" He asked getting up from the balcony ground and walking up to her. She chuckled and shrugged. "When I get a good night of sleep, yeah." She said looking down at him into his eyes, that were still slightly red from earlier. Since she was about three stairs above him, She placed her hands on his shoulders and leaned towards him. "Um...Thank you for last night, I had fun. It was the first time in a long time that I have felt like someone actually wanted to hang and spend time with me..." she admitted, looking down at his chest as she fiddled with his shirt. He rested his hands on her waist and squeezed lightly. "You don't have to thank me princess, I enjoy hanging wit' you." He spoke softly, brushing her face with his knuckles. Slightly pushing her face to the side.
Her gut felt bubbly with happiness, and her cheeks were starting to hurt with how hard she was smiling. And Erik only made it harder for her to stop from the way he was looking at her.
That look he gave her. The one were he would title his head like a puppy and lick his lips while keeping Direct eye contact.
The thigh clenching look if you will.
"You hungry?" He asked, picking her up and swinging her off the stairs to the bottom. "No not really, I don't like to eat breakfast that much because I'm never that hungry." She said sitting at the kitchen counter. His eyes raised and he turned to her.
"You gotta eat breakfast Israel, that's the most important meal of the day." She rolled her eyes because she had heard it so many time before from her mother. "I know I just don't like breakfast-"
"I'm making you breakfast, and you gon' eat it." Erik said turning around to the refrigerator to grab the stuff he needed.
And A word wasn't said as Erik handed Israel the plate of two prices of Turkey bacon one pancake, and a small glass of a mango kiwi and strawberry smoothie that he sweetened with orange juice.
He tried not to give her much but she still felt like it was to much food for right now. It he gave it to her at like 12 am in the afternoon she would most likely still be hungry afterwards.
She stared at the plate and then back at Erik, a pout on her lips. He nodded his head, as if telling her to go ahead and start eating. She sighed and grabbed a fork and began to eat, Erik as well. But his plate was stuffed. Three pancakes, three prices of bacon, and the rest of the plate was taken up by the four scrambled eggs. He was a big boy and needed all the food he could get.
"Is it good?" He asked, month full of food.
"Yeah, it's good even though your Force feeding me it." She chuckled taking another small bite. Erik gave her a close month smile, chewing his bacon aggressively.
"You'll get used to it, eventually your body will want to eat in the morning, anyway your parents call you yet?" She shook her head, taking a sip of her smoothie. "No, I don't know what's going on but hopefully my mother calls soon to fill me in and let me know they made it there safe." She said her thoughts wondering off a bit.
After they were done eating Erik decided he wanted to workout at his favorite boxing gym. So they both got dressed quickly, Israel just put on a white oversized t-shirt and a pair of gray leggings and her white nike sneakers, while Erik wore black baseball shorts a dark gray workout shirt and black running shoes.
Once Erik grabbed his bag they were at the door and headed to the gym.
Erik turned into the parking lot Of his boxing gym named the home of Apollo Creed. Israel raised her eyebrows but she went with it. Erik opened her door while he throwing his gym bag over his shoulder. "A boxing gym?" She questioned following him inside the cold building. There was about ten different sweating men hitting at punching bags or at their couch Gloved hands.
"Yes, that's what the sign says right?" He chuckled dropping his bag on the floor. She rolled her eyes at his slick reply and plopped Down on the bench near his gym bag, "you didn't tell me it was a boxing gym but k, smart ass." She mumbled, watching him watch her while he put on the thin black gloves that fighters put on before the actual boxing gloves. He was clearly not new at this because he wasn't paying much attention to his movements, he was staring at Israel. Something she had noticed he tends to do a lot. But they were even because she caught herself staring at him today more times then she'll like to amid.
"Come on," he smiled pulling her across the gym catching some of the busy men eyes, there was a couple of "damn Erik who dis?" And "this yo new girl?" Erik only grinned, winking at them. While Israel tried to hide herself behind him. Erik noticed and chuckled softly before hugging her to his side.
"You bout to get a couple of boxing lessons for free, by thee Erik Stevens." He sang playfully making her crack a smile. He turned around to look in the big box of gloves and found some pink ones from the little 15 year old girl that used to box here. They looked like they could fit. "Come here, gimme your hand." She slide both her hands in the glove and smiled at how cute they looked on her. "Tiny ass hands," Erik mumbled jokily making her roll her eyes and giggle. "Big ass hands...hulk smash face ass 'I'm Wreck-It' neck ass-" She shot back. he laughed loudly throwing his head back before telling her to "shut the hell up before I knock you out." She just rolled her eyes.
" Ok we're gonna start with a simple, 1,2." He explained taking jabs at the air, making his Biceps and man Titties bounce, In the form fitted workout shirt he changed into in the car. She copied the simple move but aiming at his hands this time. "Ok we gonna do that same move but with a duck added to it," he beamed, excited that she was catching on so soon. "Hit, hit, duck." She moved fast dodging his hand. "This is kinda fun but-" Israel began but was cut short by a high pitched voice and a light skin girl with long loss curls came walking to Erik.
"Erik?! Is that you?!? I haven't seen you in so long," she was so tall that she was almost Erik's height. Israel felt like a child standing next to them.
"This is my homegirl from back in the day, Erie." Israel smiled and waved shyly. "Aw is this your little sister?" Erie smiled sarcastically bending down a bit sticking her hand out for Israel to shake, Israel's smile dropped and things got awkward quickly when Israel didn't grab her hand and only stared at the girl.
"Um Nah this is a good friend of mine, but uh it was nice seeing you Erie." Erik chuckled while dismissing the girl trying to hold in his laughter.
"Oh...well I'll see you later I guess, you should Dm some Time so we can really catch up without..." She tailed off glancing at Israel before smirking at Erik and walking off, making sure to make her ass bounce with every step she took. Israel tore her eyes from her and rolled them. While Erik was busy starring at her ass Israel began to take her gloves off, using her teeth to undo the Velcro on her gloves. The tearing sound brought Erik's attention back to Israel. "What are you doing we still-"
"I'm not really feeling it anymore plus my arms are already getting tired." She huffed swinging her arms back and fourth trying to shake the 'soreness' out of them. Erik mumbled a "yeah already." knowing why she wasn't really feeling it anymore, he left her to sit on the ground while he went and found his trainer, RJ. Erik had been working with Him since he was 15, RJ was one of the only people that Erik felt like care for him when he was Foster care. RJ had found Erik fighting a boy a little older then him outside of a gas station and praised him for how good of a fight was and encouraged him to get into. Erik was definitely hesitant about it at first but RJ eventually convince Erik to do it especially since he was going to be training him for free. It was a way for Erik to blow off some steam with all the Pent up anger he had for the world, RJ was just happy to keep him off the streets. He knew the kid was A genius, he was too smart to end up in jail or dead.
-
It had been two hours since Erik had been training and two hours since Israel been sitting on the hard floor but she barely noticed the numbness in her butt and legs because she was to busy drooling over Erik's delicious body, it was shiny in sweat and his movements were Swift and fast. The faster he hit the punching bag the more his muscles jumped and bounced, Israel don't know how many she licked her lips or clinched her thighs together but she knew her lips were going to be raw and she would have to take a shower as soon as she got home, she didn't care though it was Worth it. She'll sit here all day and night if that meant she could watch him. She wasn't the only one enjoying this whole situation so was Erik. he knew she was watching his every move, she tried to act like she wasn't but she made it very obvious that she was checking him out, but he liked the attention. He liked how easily he can drawl women's attention without even trying. He had her eyes glued to him, not only hers but Erie's too. He caught her staring at him multiple times but instead of scaring away whenever he caught her she locked eyes with him, giving him very seductive look. Erik only chuckled at her Poor attempt and backed over to Israel to grab his ice cold water bottle. Her breath hitched as he reached over her, his hot body almost pressing against her. The scent of his sweat and actual body odor mix with his deodorant made her mouth water. She wanted so badly to reach up and touch his torso but held herself back, sparing herself the embarrassment of rejection. "Are you done?" "Yeah Come on someone wants to meet you before we leave," he said grabbing her hand to help her off the ground. The feeling in her legs started to come back finally as she made her way over to the punching bag. "Israel this my nigga RJ, we go way back." RJ smile brightly at the girl and extended his hand out to her. "Nice to meet you." She beamed at the handsome older man, holding his hand longer then she intended to. RJ didn't mind at all though. They both broke apart when Erik cleared his throat real obnoxiously eyeing the both of them like they stole something from him. "Nigga Y'all tryin' fuck later or what? The fuck." Erik hissed bluntly more so towards RJ, he was way to old to be looking at Israel any type way. He was in his early 40s and Israel was in her late teens, that shit didn't really sit right with Erik. Israel became tense and RJ just dismissed Erik's out burst rolling his eyes and punching him In the arm with the foam glove.
"Shut yo dumb ass up Erik, anyway it I was just trying to see what your name was and shit for later..." Erik's face scrunch up in discussed as he pulled Israel behind his back. "Nigga you old as dirt still trying to flirt with young girls....grow up." Erik chuckled grabbing his bag and Israel's hand pulling her behind him. "Ok and? I'm aging like fine wine, ain't that right baby girl?" He raised a eyebrow at Israel making her turn her face away to hide her smile from the both of them knowing that they'll probably just clown her. "More like milk, anyway I'll see yo old ass later." Erik dabbed him up and left making sure Israel was right behind him. He opened the door for her and she climbed in, putting her Seatbelt on without him having to tell her too this time. Erik got in next making the car bounce a little from how big he was. "Don't pay that old ass nigga no attention, he do that to all the girls that come in to the gym. He swear he's charming-"
"Welllllll......" Israel tailed off
"Woooooow....." was all Erik said before slumping down into his seat. "He fine." Israel laughed widely shrugged her shoulders. "Hell Nah He could be your dad or some shit he's like that old ass uncle at the cookout that get drunk before the party even start." Israel giggled wildly because she does really have a uncle that showed up to the family events already drunk. After their laughter died down things got quite. Like it always seemed to happen when they were by their selves. It wasn't necessarily a awkward Silent just a little uncomfortable, the type when you don't know what Else to say to keep the conversation going but Israel still enjoyed his company.
It was nice finally being around a man, it felt familiar to her. She was always only around boys and men growing up most of the time since she had no younger or older sister in the house, plus the girls that she did have In her family like her aunts and older female cousins were rude and bitchy for no reason so she stuck with just hanging around the boys. it was what she was used to and most comfortable with.
Erik's deep voice shook her out of her train of thought and now her eyes were staring into his trying to focus on what he was talking about. "Huh?" She said trying to process what he said. "I'm gonna drop you off at home."
She pouted and huffed out her breath before mumbling "I don't want to go home, why can't I just stay with you?" Erik chuckled dryly. "Because I got other shit to do Israel." The sternness in his voice jumped out and Israel was just about to let her bratty personality show but quickly caught herself.
She was really quite the rest of the ride this time, extremely quite. Erik only chuckled at her for being mad that she was going home instead of with him, but he didn't give a fuck. He had other shit to do like he said.
"So you not gon' talk?" She shrugged before turning on the radio. Erik turned it off. "Don't touch my radio, answer my question."
"What?" She asked as if she didn't hear him the first time round. "You wanna stay with me?" She nodded with puppy dog eyes. He almost melted. Almost.
"Mm." He hummed pulling up to her house. She pouted And huffed, annoyed with him playing with her.  "Whatever." She snapped before grabbing her phone out of his lap and slamming his car door shut. She heard Erik's annoying laugh loud and clear as she stomped her way up the steps to her door. Erik's slowly pulled away making sure she got in safely and when she did he speed away.
Soon as he stopped at a red light he grabbed his phone and went to his new contact: Israel (with the pleading face emoji) since it described her best. His fingers work at the speed of light as he tried to send the text before the lights turn green.
Good night, princess. Imma see you soon so you don't gotta pout and shit alright? He sent and almost instantly she read it. The gray dots appeared and vanished then reappeared and then her rely popped on his screen. Ok :) it was simple but it made him smile.
He almost sent her a text back but decided to just leave it at that. She was happy and fine now so there was no need to reply back.
_________
Sorry about the weird spacing in some areas Tumblr be weird sometimes with that. 
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sarahjkl82-blog · 3 years
Text
Artistic Instinct Chapter Nine
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Header thanks to the lovely @yespolkadotkitty
Summary: Marcus Pike and OC Anushka Pierce have been selected to work on a 5 eyes (Australia, Canada, NZ, the UK and US) intelligence team to track down art forgeries as a part of taking down an international white terrorism cell. Marcus is trying to escape his broken heart, Anushka is just trying to escape what the world expects of her.
Word count: 6500
Warnings: Language as always, warning of racist language (Nush talking about her mother's experiences), yearning, fluff to second base (yes, my darlings- IT IS ON!), alcohol is mentioned, food, anxiety attacks.
Pairing: Marcus Pike x reader (OC)
This comes with a MASSIVE THANK YOU to the lovely @yespolkadotkitty , who read, re-read, pointed out the constant flipping between tenses and gave me the confidence to try to write something. This is the first thing I have written since angsty poetry as a teenager. Apologies if it is shit!
People often think artists
Create with their hands
But really they create
with their hearts
So please be gentle
For we wear our vulnerability
On our sleeves
And freely give all we have
Hoping someone will fall
In love with the parts we offer
R. Evelyn
Chapter Nine
The sharp buzz of the door startles you out of your daydream. Laden with roughly the entire contents of your spice cupboard, vegetables, meat and prawns, your hands are crisscrossed with creases from where the weight of the totes has gouged at your skin. A smart-looking kindly gentleman greets you, “You must be Ms Pierce. Mr Pike has asked for you to wait here for him.”
Wow! Marcus’ place has a concierge - who did he have to blow to get a place like this?!
Throwing the bags onto one of the hotel lounge-like chairs, you slump into another as you rub soreness from your hands. A small ping tells you that the lift has arrived - you look over in the direction of the noise, a tremor of excitement rippling through you. An adorably scruffy Marcus, wearing old jeans and a t-shirt, steps out - his face utterly beaming on seeing you. “Hey! How are you doing?” he leans in to kiss your cheek twice - hang on, when did this start being a thing?
“Why didn’t you let me pick you up? You’ve carried so much over- lemme see your hands,” his brow knits on seeing the rapidly reddening welts as he takes your hands in his, brushing his thumbs gently across your palms.
“You live four roads away from me - they’re not that bad! And anyway, you can help me now- which floor do you live on?” You outwardly roll your eyes at the sweetness Marcus shows you, secretly enjoying the stroke of his fingers and the ghostly press of his lips still burning a hole in your cheek.
Marcus takes all of the bags from the chair, refusing point blank to entertain you helping him to take them upstairs - you watch as his arms twitch under the weight, enjoying the mixture of confusion and shock at your strength across his face, “you carried all of this?”
Nodding at him, you try to take a bag again, but he dangles it just out of reach, “Watch it - you do realise that I have two other brothers apart from Ads? I will think nothing of rugby tackling you to the floor and pinning you down,” you warn, enjoying the flush brought to his cheeks.
“You’ll be the death of me,” Marcus flusters as he calls the lift, handing you the smallest, lightest bag.
✪✪✪✪✪
Exiting at the top floor, you’re taken aback by the amount of light and quiet that washes throughout the building. Feeling so removed from the shadows cast from the tower blocks and the hustle and bustle of the streets below, the broad daylight offers a sense of serenity, a peace that invites itself into the soul and makes itself at home. As Marcus unlocks the door to his flat, you kick off your shoes at the entrance, “You don’t have to do that,” he offers through the keys in his mouth, holding the door open with his elbow, still refusing any help from you.
“Oh believe me, if I didn’t, my mum’s radar would go off and I would be cruising for a bruising,” you giggle, taking in the glorious spaciousness of his apartment, “I promise my feet aren’t too stinky and that I put on clean socks.”
“Whatever makes you comfortable,” Marcus’ eyes crinkle at you, “Can I get you something to drink or eat?”
“A coffee would be ace - strong and black please,” you reply, your gaze drinking in the details of his home. Books line the shelves along one wall - such a mixture of titles ranging from airport bestsellers to obscure art catalogues - the relief to see actual paper and hardbacks adorning the shelves rather than trinkets and plants when so many keep their books electronically in their pockets.
A couple of large canvases lie propped against another - long hours preventing them from being hung - their bright colours sure to bring joyful hues to quite a stark room. There are a few photo frames dotted around - mostly pictures of a moment in time rather than poses - of people you assume are friends and family from back in the States. Handing you a steaming mug, Marcus looks over your shoulder as you look at a photo of an older couple dancing and laughing at a wedding, “That’s my mamá and papá at my oldest sister’s wedding. It was such a magical day - just so much love in the air.”
“You can feel the joy radiating from them,” you offer, lowering your gaze from him to grab the frame next to the picture of his parents, “Are these your sisters or cousins? You all look very alike.”
“Yeah, my little sisters,” he grins proudly. “This one is Beth - she’s two years younger and is a paediatrician in Texas. Has two kids with her wife, Sophie. And this one is Cat - she’s doing her own thing out on the West Coast as a musician. They definitely inherited all the clever and cool genes.”
“Hah! You’re kinder to your sisters than I am to my brothers,” you grin, “They’re all total idiots but due to some weird genetic and biological insistence, I still love them.”
Taking a gulp of your coffee, you turn back towards him, “Come on you, we’d better get to work if you want a curry this evening.”
He pouts, looking more like a sulky little boy than a middle aged man. You can’t help but laugh at the sad puppy dog eyes he is conjuring at the thought of work, “Oh poppet, what’s wrong?” you teasingly mock.
“I kinda hoped you were a magician who could just magic a curry outta nowhere so we could watch films til the others arrive,” Marcus grumps shoving his hands in his pockets.
“Well, there is UberEats for that but you horrible lot put me up to this so you’re going to help,” you wag your finger at him, “But as you’re the only one here, you get the honour of being the chief taster,” you add, tapping him playfully on the nose.
With a soft huff and a furrow of the brow, Marcus guides you into the kitchen where, whilst he was making your coffee, he has helpfully already put all the fresh produce in his fridge as the sides are delightfully blank apart from the bags of spices.
“What are we making today, Chef?”
“Ok, meat dishes are a spiced yoghurt leg of lamb, a keema - don’t you give me that look, a cardamom butter chicken, and, a prawn and courgette curry,” you turn to Marcus’ fridge to find the lamb, “Needs to come to room temperature before we cook it.”
“My tummy is rumbling already,” Marcus adds, his eyes glinting excitedly as he licks along his lower lip, the skin glistening damply. You have never quite figured out whether your love of his lips is due to their fullness or the association with the kindness of his words.
“Hah- you’re not getting away without having some veggies, too, mister,” you cluck as you hand him a bag of onions and several bulbs of garlic to skin, chop and crush for the various dishes.
“Ok, Moooom,” Marcus dramatically rolls his eyes at your dictate, “I admit, I’d rather eat sugary or salty things over green stuff but I can make an exception for curried veg.”
The arch of your eyebrow virtually reaches your hairline at him teasingly calling you mom, so you reach for the towel, twist it and flick him hard on what you’d hoped would be his hip but catch him square on his arse instead.
A yelp of pain and wide eyes greet your action, “Did you just…? Oh, it is on.! You might think you’re tough from your brothers but my sisters taught me sneaky tactics.”
“Come at me, bro!” you taunt from the other side of the kitchen, putting up a boxing stance.
Brandishing the hand without the paring knife in your general direction, he answers, “Nope, gonna use the element of surprise and attack when you least expect it!”
Tutting your tongue at Marcus’ weak ass response, you grab the spices you need to prepare under the power of your pestle and mortar. With the waft of roasting cumin soaring through the air and your battle with your boss at a supposedly declared ceasefire, everything starts to feel comfortable and easy again. You could be six years old and standing on the chair next to your mum, watching like a hawk as she lovingly prepared meals for your family with an ever burgeoning belly. It was then, during those hours shared in the galley kitchen that became your time with her when normally it felt pretty split between her work as a GP and your brothers.
What the fuck… You jump out of your skin when a warm, solid wall presses you out of your nostalgic reverie, “Hah! Pinned ya! Sneaky tactics- told ya they worked,” a deep, soft voice whispers in your ear.
Your heart flutters like a bird trying to escape its rib cage with the closeness of Marcus, the heat rising through your body from your proximity to him - a visceral response to the glorious cocktail of masculine smell from his aftershave and body wash.
What do I do next?
Why can’t I bloody think straight?
Wiggling yourself around so that you face him, his face now so close that you can feel his warm breath upon your cheeks. Your eyes playfully catch the steady gaze of Marcus’ deep soulful pools. It would only take the smallest of movements to reach forwards and kiss him right on that stupidly gorgeous, plush Cupid’s bow and crease. But… what if he doesn’t want that? He’s my fucking boss - that would be a stellar move to make…
Instead of the tiny incline forwards to press your lips against his as every inch of you screams to do so, you drop to the floor and crawl out from between his legs, “Not pinned well enough it seems,” you tease haltingly as your tongue sticks in your dry throat.
As you check the browning of the cumin seeds, out of the corner of your eye you see Marcus’ head drop sadly, hearing a small sigh - his hands still upon the work surface and feet not having moved from the position he had pinned you in moments earlier.
Did he want to...? No, surely not.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that, Nush,” Marcus humbly apologises, pushing himself off the side, “I hope that I haven’t made things awkward.”
“Don’t be an idiot,” you softly say, pouring the roasted cumin into the mortar, ready to be ground, “I was the one who flicked you on your arse - I am the one who should be apologising.”
You beckon gently to Marcus, who has now taken refuge in the furthest corner of the kitchen from you - wringing his hands instead of chopping the onions, “Come over here - I want you to experience one of my most favourite smells of childhood. These are roasted cumin seeds and when you grind them, they release the most heavenly scent.”
After a few grinds, you offer the bowl towards Marcus’ face as he closes the gap between you, “I… Wow! I wouldn’t have thought it would make such a difference but it’s almost like you’ve entirely transformed it. See,” the dimple deepens in that right cheek of his, “you are a magician.”
“I love how spices - a bit like paint - can take on completely different characters depending on how you treat them. Leave the spice whole and you have this mild and fragrant taste. If you crush them, then their attitude comes back tenfold with a vengeance. Toast them, and they may as well be Clark Kent in a phone booth.”
Looking up you see Marcus gazing at you with a sweet half smile on his face - could he like me… like that?
“Sorry, you don’t need to hear me blathering on,” you fluster, waving your hand in a dismissive gesture as the heat rises through your face.
Shaking his head gently without dropping your regard, “No. No, please don’t ever stop. Your passion for things is beautiful.”
“Growing up, I didn’t realise that other people didn’t have whole cupboards filled to the brim with herbs, spices and seasonings. I mean, for all the damage the British Empire reeked, you’d have hoped that the spices would have entered more of their culture, but no! Apparently, my family was the weird one for having food with a flavour,” you shrug your shoulders at some of the ridiculous things you’d heard as a child - accusations of differences you’d never thought to be of note.
Marcus chuckles at your indignance, “It’s funny you should say that. I didn’t realise that my mamá had an accent until it was pointed out to me when I was a kid.”
Noting your slightly confused expression, Marcus explains, “She’s Argentinian- came to the States as a political refugee as she was a journalist following the disappearances during the Dirty War. Met my dad, and I came along very soon after, and the rest is history..”
You can’t help but laugh at the flush on Marcus’ cheeks as he recounts his personal history to you, “Love can’t be held back when it hits and it’s obvious that they’re still crazy about each other now from that photo.”
“Exactly, no point in wasting time when you know what you want,” Marcus grins, looking at his feet.
“My parents have a similar story. My dad is as English as they come - I mean we’re on a freaking island so there’s no true thing as being completely English. My mum is from Pakistan - Karachi - it’s in the South.”
“She came over due to the fighting between East and West Pakistan - the two countries that are now Pakistan and Bangladesh. It kept interrupting her studies to become a doctor so she came to England and restarted her degree here.”
Marcus’ brow creases in thought, “Why did she restart her degree? Could the credits not just be transferred to the college she moved to in the UK?”
“Hah- yeah. It was the seventies, during a time where all Southern Asians were P*kis - no matter where they were from on the Indian subcontinent- and thought of as dirty, lesser beings. There were constant race riots for anyone who wasn’t ethnically white or English. She would never have been taken seriously with her mediocre medical training from some Adobe hut in the middle of a jungle,” you fume, pounding the seeds into fragments. The mortar being threatened with the same fate too.
Marcus’ fingers wrap around your wrist to try and prevent your rage at the ignorance of others from causing you an injury, “I am so sorry,” he pulls you into a warm, tender hug, tucking your head under his chin, “How long before food can take care of itself so we can put a film on? I think we both need a rest.”
“Hmmm, ten minutes and then most things can simmer or be switched off ready for a reheat or proper cook this evening,” you say, leaning reluctantly out of his comforting arms to go check on the bubbling saucepans of food.
“‘K. I’ll go get things set up so you can flop for a bit,” Marcus touches you gently on your shoulder as he goes to set up the front room. You go to squeeze his hand but it’s removed from your shoulder too quickly for your response.
✪✪✪✪✪
“You ready?” Marcus calls through the wall as you turn off the heat from the final pans.
“Mhm,” you mumble in response to his question - double, triple checking that everything is off. Too many fire alarms ruining perfectly lovely meals or moments.
“What did you pick?” You ask, curling up on the other end of the sofa to Marcus, “Do you have no cushions?”
“Shit, no -I’m a guy, what can I say? - lemme grab the pillows from the bed,” Marcus jumps up, calling through from his bedroom, “Bet you have loads on your couch.”
“A fuckload, but, mainly to hide the fact the springs have gone. It’s like a precarious balancing act of comfort on there,” you surreptitiously sniff the pillow, inhaling the smell of Marcus’ shampoo, “Did you give me your pillow?”
A confused look is shot at you from the other end of the sofa, “Whaddya mean?”
“Smells of your hair,” you say as you squish it into the perfect comfy shape, “Like a mixture of lemon and eucalyptus.”
“That’s a sharp nose you’ve got. I gave you the other side though,” Marcus huffs through a chuckles he shakes his head at your somewhat strange comment, “Guess I’ve been sleeping across both sides then.”
“Best thing about sleeping alone- getting to starfish across the bed. Unless of course…”
Marcus can’t help but laugh at your awkward dig to find out whether he’d brought home the goddess from Friday’s antics, “So you wanna know if I brought home Kemi?”
“She was very beautiful. You’d have been mad not to,” you try to school your expression as best you can, keeping your eyes glued to Bing Crosby and Grace Kelly singing about true love, desperate to hide the jealousy coursing through your veins.
“Must be mad then. Didn’t even kiss her,” Marcus honestly answers whilst copying your tactic of staring at the tv, “She could see that there was someone else I liked so it would have been cruel to have done anything.”
You mull this over in silence, trying not to speak, to ask a million questions.
“Nush.”
“Mhm?”
“Can I talk to y…”
You both jump as an alarm goes off on your phone to remind you to turn the lamb down in the oven.
“Oh shit. Hold that thought,” you jump up from the sofa, heading in the direction of the kitchen with zero thought of what the man at the end of the sofa is desperately trying to tell you. Fiddling with Marcus’ ridiculously swanky oven until it looks like it is doing what you want it to do, you walk back in with two ice cold beers from his fridge.
“Raided your fridge,” you cheekily grin, holding one out to Marcus, the condensation running, down your fingers, “Hope you don’t mind!”
“Good thinking, Batman,” Marcus nods in appreciation, “Any more alarms set to scare us both?”
“Only due to go off when the film is done, so…” you yawn widely, “We’ve got a while yet.”
Marcus’ hand that was slung over the back of the sofa, lifts to stroke your shoulder, “You sleepy? C'mere, you.” With a soft tug of your t-shirt sleeve, he pulls you into his side - your willingness to sink into his broad chest very apparent. Your ear is pressed against him, his heartbeat singing a lullaby to you as his fingers stroke and caress the silken waves of your hair. You wonder at how this man - a total stranger a week ago - has seemingly knitted himself into becoming a cocoon of safety for you, his gentleness and calm offering a haven of tranquility in your otherwise cacophonous world, as the light in the room slowly fades to black.
✪✪✪✪✪
“Uh oh.”
“Hey, welcome back, sunshine!” a gentle pair of fingers stroke back the hair that had drifted into your face as you dozed.
“Sorry for falling asleep. Again,” trying to finesse your way through the heat flaming your cheeks, you offer an awkward grin towards your chuckling pillow, “Guess we’d better start getting things finished as we’ve only got a couple of hours until everyone arrives.
“Oh, don’t give me that look, Marcus! I don’t want to move either but this curry won’t finish cooking itself.”
“Spit spot, there’s work to be done,” Marcus trills as he adopts his best attempt at a British accent.
“What the fuck was that? Did you just turn into Dick Van Dyke or something?” You tease mercilessly at the appalling sound coming from those lips, choking back laughter at his mock offended face.
“C’mon, you’re right. We’d better get moving,” Marcus stands with a stretch and a creak before reaching back to tug you to your feet.
Back under the glowing lights of Marcus’ kitchen, his presence is now constantly close to yours as you glide together around the space - stirring, chopping and checking. Every time he passes, above the general aroma of cumin and coriander, the onions and garlic, you can smell the cedar and amber upon his skin- a deliciously masculine scent that only seeks to entangle your senses further.
“Here, try this,” you hold out a heaped teaspoon of mince curry to Marcus, “This is the keema - I promise that I only put in the two chillies you chopped for me, this time.”
“Mmm, that’s so good,” he says thickly between chews, stealing the spoon from you as he dives in for a second, third, fourth spoonful.
“Hahaha! Leave some for the others- and you need to try it with some raita and fried onions too,” you check through your dog-eared, yellowed and slightly sticky recipe book that your mum had handed you the day you’d left home at eighteen - a memo of all the times you had cooked them together.
“Shit, I’d better start the chicken,” going through the spices in front of you, you search for the cardamoms that would make the butter chicken sing, “Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck!”
Marcus’ head snaps up from the green beans he was preparing towards you, “What’s up, sweetheart?”
“I can’t find the cardamoms for the butter chicken - gah I knew I’d fuck this up!” you cry, scraping your trembling hands through your hair, eyes flashing around the room wildly as your cortisol rises, making you want to run and scream at your failure to feed your friends.
“Whoa - where’s this coming from? C’mon, look at me. Look at me, Nush,” Marcus has his hands on either side of your shoulders, squeezing them gently, “There’s enough here to feed our whole office for the week with the daals you prepared yesterday, the vegetables we’re about to make and the meats that we’ve cooked up already here. Andy is bringing all the rice and naan, Kiri is bringing beers and Dian is on gin and tonic duty. You have done more than enough and I will not allow you to get this upset over one missing ingredient especially when there is a small store downstairs that I’m sure will have it, if we cannot find it after we look for it together.”
After seeing your numb nod as an agreement, Marcus moves his hands to the side of your head to focus your gaze on him rather than the panic seeping through you. As he strokes his thumbs across your cheeks, you allow your eyes to close and your breathing to regain a normal pattern.
“I’m sorry.”
“Why are you apologising?” Marcus searches your now open eyes.
“My reactions are ridiculous. Most people tell me to stop being so stupid and that just whips the storm inside my head even more,” you whisper, “But you. You know how to slow everything down and stop the spinning.”
The corner of Marcus’ mouth twitches, “D’ya wanna know a secret?” You nod at him, “As you know, I was married before. When it ended, I totally spiralled. The world kept spinning too fast and I experienced constant anxiety, very nearly burning out of my role.
“I was lucky. My boss was understanding but made me promise to get some support. He knew of someone mental health trained within the FBI who was there for mainly hostage negotiations - not part of the true psych team but someone who could help without it turning up on your record.
“Kwame worked with me for almost a year - pretty much to the point my decree absolute came through. Our sessions were done on a track - by running with me, he was teaching me the skills I needed to control my fears. By my feet hitting the tarmac, he was grounding me. By going over running techniques, he was teaching me how to control my breathing- taking longer and deeper breaths. And running is just repetition. A mindful repetition that allows your brain to have a bit of a break.
“So when I see you start to spiral, I try to give you the same steps he taught me. Get you grounded, opposite me so you copy my breathing and hope that gets you on the right track.”
“Thank you,” you drop your head forwards, relaxing onto his chest. He feels so - safe.
“You don’t need to thank me. Well, okay maybe you do as look what I’ve just spotted,” Marcus holds the offending spice aloft.
“Oh my god, I could fucking kiss you. You have just saved the curry,” you dramatically declare, clutching the cardamom jar to your heart before placing it next to the other ingredients on the counter.
“Go on then.”
What?
His comment makes you snap your head over to catch Marcus’ tremulous gaze, his eyes darting between the floor and your lips. He takes a small step, closing the small distance between the two of you, threading his fingers between yours. Each slow movement offers an unspoken opportunity for you to step away. To tease him and move on with the day.
But why on Earth would you?
With your heart racing faster and faster, you lure him ever closer with your eyes, soft but absolute in their conviction of what was about to pass between you. A small part of you understands that when you kiss him, something will change forever. That within his lips you may find the place to call home - the aching in your stomach may cease and life could start to make sense again. The anxieties of the week washing away, the pain of your collective pasts and the hint of a brighter, happier future before you.
When he doesn’t move again, you seize the moment. Pushing up onto your socked tiptoes, you tilt your chin, inclining your face until your lips come to rest upon his in the sweetest, chastest kiss. Drawing back slightly to check that Marcus is okay with a raise of your eyebrows and widened eyes, he holds your gaze steadily, similarly stunned - a mirror of each other with racing hearts and slightly parted lips. It’s like in that moment everything around you ceases to exist as anything other than extraneous nonsense - all the noise inside your head silenced by that one touch.
A small dumbstruck smile creeps across Marcus’ lips before he lowers his head to press another gentle kiss upon you. Then another. Then another. Each press of your lips a little longer. A little deeper. Your lips part to allow his tongue entry as every single thought is quietened by the taste of him. Dropping hands for his to cradle your face and yours to thread through his hair as your bodies press together tightly.
Oh the taste of him is utterly exquisite! From where you’ve been using him as chief curry taster, there’s an element of spices with the tiniest hint of mint. And how you have missed having that beautifully solid warmth of his body next to yours. Inhaling his breaths that fall upon you, your hearts match each other’s rhythms as your lips explore each other, every sensation drawing together to create a humming ball of energy, like you are standing at the point where lightning strikes the Earth.
✪✪✪✪✪
Hands fisted tightly in each other’s clothing - both stuck in the quandary of wanting to tear the fabric from your bodies but also frightened of pushing the other too far. Finally pulling apart, you gaze upon Marcus - all lust blown pupils and dopey smiles. Your foreheads come back to rest against each other, unable to quite let go just yet, not wanting to break the spell and return to reality.
“I have wanted to kiss you since perhaps the first time I met you,” Marcus murmurs as his lips gently ghost over your cheeks, “Maybe even from seeing the photo in your file when Andy drove me here from the airport.”
“Was the person, me?” You quietly ask, finally with the confidence to finish that conversation, “The reason you didn’t kiss or sleep with the goddess?”
He drops his eyes as he gives you a small nod, “Normally, I’d have just asked you out but I was scared of fucking up. It’s been a long time since I felt a spark with anyone.
“You’ve entered my life in this whirlwind of intelligence, beauty and tenderness - I didn’t want to frighten you or make you feel uncomfortable if you didn’t reciprocate.”
A thousand thoughts flood your mind as Marcus says those words. All at once, you want to tell him how safe he makes you feel. How much now that you’ve started kissing him, you never want to stop. How the cruel critics of slumber, silence themselves when you feel his heartbeat against your cheek.
Instead you stand there, silent.
Trying to stroke out the creases you’ve created in his t-shirt as you attempt to find words to put into a logical order, you notice his face twitching when the material under your fingers makes contact with his sides, “Oh Marcus, are you ticklish?”
“Um, no,” Marcus tries to deny breezily as he takes a small, hesitant step back from you, pretending to steady himself.
Making a small movement towards him, your hands at the same level as the point of the bunched fabric - you ask, “Are you sure about that?”
“Yeah,” Marcus is now eyeing you suspiciously - desperate to kiss you again but also a little worried as to what havoc your fingers might reek.
“Then, why are you moving away from me?”
“No reason…” his usually deep voice now a little tighter and higher, “Nush… What are you about to ARGH!”
His knees crumble beneath him as you attack his sensitive sides, “Gah! Quit it, woman,” he weakly commands between wheezes and hoots of laughter.
Taking full advantage of Marcus’ prone and vulnerable position, you take the opportunity to straddle him - effectively pinning him to the floor, “This is how you pin someone.”
“I let you pin me,” Marcus corrects you with a wink.
“Oh really?” you contest, entirely unconvinced by his bravado.
“Yeah,” he says with a small wiggle, bringing his hands to the back of your head, “Cos y’see, I can flip our positions quite easily.”
Suddenly, you find yourself flat on your back in Marcus’ kitchen with zero air in your lungs to form any sensible thought other than to kiss him hard. His large hands cradle your head as he props himself gently above you on his elbows. You feel his entire body covering yours. Deliciously pressing against every single inch of you and oh how it takes every bit of the minutismal amount of self control you have to not beg him to fuck you senseless into that floor.
✪✪✪✪✪
“Shit, is that your door?”
“Fuck,” Marcus pushes himself up to kneeling between your legs, “Can we pretend we’re not in?”
The harsh realisation of an evening with your colleagues, albeit lovely people, sinks in to you both.
“Nope,” you groan, popping the p with a deflated gusto, “Hang on, don’t buzz them up until I’ve tucked my boobs back into my bra.”
“I dunno, makes for easier access,” Marcus lopsidedly grins with a wink as he heads for the door.
“You certainly didn’t seem to make hard work of it earlier,” you mumble at him, before you affix a smile to your face, “Hey! How are you all doing?”
A sea of never ending hugs envelopes and separates you from Marcus as everyone piles into his apartment. The stupid grin still firmly in place on your face since you’d first kissed, you find that every time you look over at him, he’s gazing right back, mirroring that lovestruck smile.
“Oh my god, it all smells so amazing,” Dian waxes lyrical, squeezing you tightly as she inhales a lungful of exotically scented air, “What’ve we got?”
You take her by the hand into the kitchen to show all the different things you had bubbling away. Andy ducks into the kitchen behind you, laden with bags filled with pilau rice, naan and chapatis, and a beautiful small bunch of spring flowers in his other hand - tiny tête-à-tête daffodils with multiple heads along each stalk, brilliant yellow and red tulips standing like soldiers and the otherworldly looking stems of hyacinth, wickedly scenting the air under your nose as he thrusts them under there.
“Hey pretty girl, here’s all the bits you asked for. You deserve a much bigger bunch for what I’ve roped you into but I know you love the early blooms,” he offers by way of apology, sticking a kiss to the side of your forehead, “Smells fucking good though as ever. Hope you don’t mind but I’ve brought a box to take some home for Greg - he was a jealous arse this evening so I suppose I should share.”
“You know the way I cook, enough for several small armies,” you wonkily grin at him, truly thankful for the part he’d had to play, “‘Fraid there’s no easy way to say this and you will have to be the one to break it to Greg, but there’s no butter chicken tonight.”
“You’d better have a damn good excuse for this slatternly behaviour, madam,” Andy gives you a serious side eye for this infraction.
“Well…”
“Initially Nush couldn’t find the cardamoms but then we ran out of time. Plenty of food here, though,” Marcus answers for you, his hand gently holding your hip as he reaches around you to grab a couple of beers from the fridge.
You see Andy catch Marcus’ hand lightly stroking your side as he walks back to Kiritopa, but are entirely grateful when his expression and mouth say nothing. The light chatter in the kitchen, whilst Dian dips a teaspoon into all the pots, is interrupted by a small knock at the door. Sticking your head around the kitchen door, you spot Marcus opening the door to a nervous-looking Harper. Andy sidles past you, to pull her into the main room, rather than her previous position of standing on the doorstep, utterly awkward and obviously feeling quite out of place.
“Hi, I hope you don’t mind me coming. I know I wasn’t there Friday but I don’t really do large crowds and drinking.”
You walk over to her amidst the chorus of “not to worry”s and “lovely to see you”s, “Fancy something to drink now? Got plenty of soft options and I think I’ll stick alongside you as I’ve got to make sure I don’t burn stuff.”
“Including yourself, this time,” Harper retorts quickly with a small smile and a raise of her eyebrows.
“Hah, chance’d be a fine thing,” Andy laughs, slapping your shoulder before turning back to clink bottles and talk with Kiri and Marcus.
✪✪✪✪✪
Through the full length doors of Marcus’ balcony, evening spring sunshine streams through, bathing the group of your co-workers in a gentle, diffused light that flows around the room coating you in a golden glow. You all eat your fill and then some, with full tummies and tired eyes - the kitchen still full of half eaten dishes.
“Can we make this a weekly thing?” Kiritopa asks through a mouthful of food, hopefully.
“Not unless we take it in turns or get a take away - I don’t have the physical or emotional energy to make this level of curry every weekend,” you pointedly remark, looking up from your coke to meet Marcus’ eyes.
You’ve spent the evening barely speaking to each other for fear of alerting the others but surreptitiously brushing past so that you can sneak touches. Tender hidden strokes that feel like the kindest stitches on hidden, gaping wounds.
Marcus stands up to help usher the evening to an end and get you to himself again, “I have some boxes for y’all to take food home as otherwise, I’ll be eating this for weeks - delicious as it is.”
Everyone thankfully takes their boss’ hint and head into the kitchen to grab platefuls to reheat after long days. Slowly saying their goodbyes, your friends drift off in the direction of their homes as you throw yourself in an exhausted heap of bones on his sofa. Two strong hands grip you under your arms, to drape your torso across his lap.
“Hey tired girl,” you slightly open your eyes to spy a smiling Marcus gazing down at you. His fingers draw lazy patterns over the sensitive skin of your neck.
“I’d like to take you on a proper date this week. Wanna do this properly. Make a bit of a fuss.”
“Yeah? Not just pin me down and ravish me on the kitchen floor?” you grin widely at him.
“Well, I’d hardly call that a ravishing…” your eyes widen, eyebrows raising at Marcus’ comment, excitement pooling in your tummy, “Yeah, I saw there’s an Argentinian restaurant in Blackheath so how about steak, Malbec and homemade ice cream before I bring you back to either yours, or mine, for another, even better ravishing?”
“That sounds amazing, although with the amount of food in my belly, I may never have to eat again,” you give your stomach a rub, “But the ravishing…”
Hauling you up to sitting across his lap, you protest loudly, “I am going to crush your legs.”
“Stop making ridiculous comments and c’mere,” Marcus demands as he gently turns your head towards him, stealing a delicate kiss from you.
“I...should… - argh! Stop kissing me for a second,” you beg halfheartedly, “I should go home.”
“Stay.”
“Please stay,” Marcus desperately entreats you, “I’m not expecting anything but I’d love it if you stayed. I know you’ve got nothing here but give me two minutes and I can have a spare toothbrush for you. I’ll drop you home early tomorrow morning so you can grab some clothes and then we can go into work together?”
It feels as though the wind is knocked out of your lungs with the depth of Marcus’ need to be around you.
How does he do it?
“There’s no games with you, are there?” you twist in Marcus’ lap so that you now straddle his thighs, placing your hands on either side of his ridiculously handsome face.
“No,” he shakes head slowly, all the while holding eye contact with you, “I’m too old and I know what I want.”
“What’s that?”
Stroking his hands up and down your sides as he nuzzles your neck, he clearly and confidently declares,
“You.”
Tag list of glory (as ever, please ask to be put on or dropped from the list): @astroboots @silverwolf319@sirowsky @leonieb @disgruntledspacedad @bison-writes @the-ginger-hedge-witch @danniburgh @sugarontherims @green-socks @tardisfangurl @absurdthirst @pedropascalito-deactivated20210 @mouthymandalorian @mrsparknuts @zukoyonce @agirllovespancakes @yespolkadotkitty @lunaserenade @theravenreads @lv7867 @songsformonkeys
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cuuno-moved · 3 years
Text
Friends Forever
Or: How Sapnap met and lost his family.
@the-gay-is-back
The first time Sapnap saw Dream, he was 5. 
He was sitting under one of the tables at his dad’s cafe with a coloring book, coloring in a little panda, humming to himself, when there was a kid crouching in front of him.
They froze, staring at each other, sizing each other up for a bit.
The kid had long blond hair, and freckles scattered across their face and arms. They wore a massive green t-shirt and a pair of cargo shorts, and a pair of flip flops. They looked a couple years older than Sapnap, but probably weighed half as much as he did.
They tilted their head, narrowing their eyes, but then Sapnap’s dad called for him, and they bolted, leaving him blinking in confusion.
They came back nearly every day after that, just to sit there and watch Sapnap draw. At one point, Sapnap asked his dad where he thought the kid lived, and he looked sad as he explained he probably didn’t have a home, he probably lived on the streets.
Sapnap frowned at that. He couldn’t imagine not having a home, not having a family.
The next time the kid came by and sat in the corner, Sapnap stood up and walked over to him, watching him tense up and eye the door.
“Hi,” He said, simply. “What’s your name?”
“...Dream.”
He smiled happily, introduced himself, and sat down across from him, peacefully going back to drawing.
A couple weeks later, Dream stopped showing up.
Sapnap was terrified that he’d gotten hurt, or worse, but after a week and a half of the corner being empty, suddenly, he was back.
He looked different from the second he burst through the door. His face was clean, and Sapnap could admire the freckles scattered across his cheekbones easier. His hair was still long, but now it was even, and brushed. When Sapnap hugged him, he smelled like rose shampoo.
“I got a dad,” He beamed. “I got a dad, and a brother! I have a family!”
He met his family the next day when he dragged them through the door with a smile and happily introduced them to Sapnap.
His dad was a short man with curly hair, half white half brown. She smiled sweetly at Sapnap, and gave him a warm hug that smelled like the ocean breeze. Dream’s new brother was made of gold, and tall, almost as tall as Sapnap’s dad, who had come out from the back to say hello.
When Sapnap was 7 and Dream was 9, Dream explained nonbinary to Sapnap, and said they used all pronouns, not just he.
Sapnap shrugged, said that was cool or whatever.
A week later, he nervously asked Dream if he could be a boy, if he felt like it.
Dream nodded, and Sapnap grinned, and that night, he told his dad, who hugged him and said he was proud of him.
For a while, it was just the two of them, until Dream met George.
George was smart, and funny, and snarky. He and Sapnap got along wonderfully.
One day, as they sat together, in the playground, watching their dads talk, George pointed out he was the oldest.
“That makes me the leader, doesn’t it?”
“No,” Sapnap scoffed. “I’m the biggest. I’m the leader.”
“No,” George bit back, crossing his skinny arms over his chest. “I’m the oldest, the smartest.”
“You’re not smart.”
“Oh come on, guys,” Dream chuckled, shaking her head. “Why do we need a leader?”
The other two looked at each other for a moment, before nodding. And just like that, Dream was the leader.
George had a little brother, a shapeshifter called Alex. Sapnap didn’t meet him for the first month or so of knowing George, he was always out with their dad when Sapnap came over.
Then, one day, when Sapnap was 9, Dream was 11 and George was 12, they sat on George’s bed, watching a bad horror movie on Dream’s laptop- or rather, George and Dream watched the movie as Sapnap hid his face in George’s shoulder.
There was a knock on the door, and George sighed. “Come in.”
Alex poked his head in. He was Sapnap’s age, with fluffy black hair with little golden feathers sticking out every here and there. His shiny dark eyes flickered over all of them, before he grinned brightly, revealing a missing tooth. “Dad says I have to hang out with you guys.”
George whined, and groaned, but Sapnap was more than happy to hang out with the smaller boy, he was funny and he fit in Sapnap’s lap perfectly.
He started hanging out with them more after that, trailing behind them on their trips to the gas station to grab sodas and laughing when Dream failed on skateboarding tricks.
At one point, Alex started calling himself Quackity, and Sapnap made a joke about it, but he just flipped him off and grinned. “You’re just jealous cause it’s such a cooler name than Sapnap.”
The four were impossible to pry apart.
And then, only three years later, the fifth arrived. 
He was small, with fluffy brown hair, and pale skin. His eyes were green (years later, Sapnap would discover they actually weren’t, they were mostly blue, but there were chunks of green and brown, although early in the morning, when he was only half awake, they were a brilliant sapphire color with streaks of orange) and his hands were anxious, twisting in his plain white hoodie.
“Hi,” Dream said, simply, hopping off her swing easily, sending woodchips flying. “I’m Dream.”
The boy nodded back, but didn’t speak as they introduced themselves. After a moment, he pointed at the empty swing next to George. 
He started following them around, always a few feet behind, always watching silently. He never spoke, and they never made him.
Until one day, when George paused, sending him a weird look and asked, calmly. “How do you spell your name, again? Is it a K or a C?”
He blinked.
“Okay, cool,” The older boy nodded, satisfied. “I don’t know many Karls with a K.”
Later, they asked George how he knew what his name was, and he just shrugged. Karl didn’t care about them finding out his name, apparently, it was never a secret, he just didn’t talk.
“Can you speak?” Quackity asked one night, after dinner, when they all sat in a circle in Sapnap’s livingroom.
Karl nodded.
“You just don’t want to?”
He nodded again.
“Why?” George asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
He shrugged.
“Is it cause you don’t like us?” Sapnap asked.
At that, his eyes went wide and he desperately shook his head.
“You just don’t like to talk,” Dream said. “Like… I don’t like coffee, you don’t like to talk.”
Karl nodded again, relieved.
“Makes sense,” Quackity nodded sagely. “I don’t like George.”
The first time Karl spoke, Dream’s dad was ordering lunch.
“What kind of sub do you guys want?” She asked, opening the app on her phone and patiently waiting for their orders.
Karl was last, per usual, but instead of reaching for his dry erase board, he just… opened his mouth.
“Can I have a meatball sub, please?”
She froze, staring at him. “Uh… sure, kid. You want cheese on that?”
He shook his head, and went back to the game he was playing on Sapnap’s old gameboy.
Karl was odd, they realized. 
He didn’t like talking, unless he was completely comfortable and felt safe. He hummed creepy old songs that sounded like they were from a horror movie, and he liked to drink monster energies, even though, at 15 years old, he really should not have an addiction.
He also liked to steal people’s clothes, cut them up, and sew them together into a Frankenstein hoodie.
Sapnap would happily “forget” to take his hoodies back from Karl, and happily watch him jog up to them the next day with a new patch on his shoulder the same color as the missing jacket.
They all slept over at George’s house on the weekends. His dad would carry an old mattress down from the attic, and all five of them would cram together, with Karl’s around Sapnap’s waist and George’s face in Dream’s spine and Quackity’s feet in all of their faces. It was warm, and it was safe.
One night, Sapnap asked them if they were going to stick together forever.
“Yeah, of course,” Dream whispered. “We’re not going anywhere.”
“Friends forever.” Quackity laughed.
“Yeah,” George hummed, already half asleep. “Forever…”
Karl just giggled, nudging Sapnap’s head with his own.
He shouldn’t have believed them.
Eight years shouldn’t have been enough time to ruin everything.
He was barely 19, still a kid in all honesty.
He sighed, rubbing his eyes, stirring the rice. It was getting cold, he realised faintly. He should eat now, but…
They’d said they were coming over. They said they were going to be here.
Dream couldn’t make it, of course. They were still in prison. He didn’t expect them to show up. He didn’t want them to show up. He still remembered Tommy’s funeral.
George was probably asleep. That was alright, he needed it, he’d been staying up too late again recently, just watching the stars.
But the other two…
Quackity had left earlier that morning, pulling on his eyepatch and hat, tying his tie and nodding goodbye to Sapnap at the door. Around noon, he’d stumbled back, covered in blood, his eyes full of anger and mirth. Sapnap had tried to talk to him, but he’d just shoved past him, grabbed a pickaxe and vanished out the door again.
Karl had been gone for a couple days now. The last Sapnap had seen of him, he’d been sitting on the dining room floor, sobbing as he ripped the faded lime green fabric from his hoodie. Sapnap had left him, let him be alone, and then he was gone.
Sapnap wasn’t hungry.
He stood, grabbing a tub from the cabinet and started to dump the fried rice in.
The front door opened.
He hesitated. “Babe?”
There was silence, then tentative footsteps.
Karl stood there, his hair almost grey, eyes almost lifeless. His hoodie damp, and Sapnap frowned at the lack of shoes on his feet.
“Are you okay? What happened? Are you cold?”
Karl didn’t speak, just staring at him, and he sighed, turning away.
“You missed dinner. I can heat this back up for you, but it’s not going to be as good-”
A pair of arms wrapped around his chest and he jumped, until he felt a familiar face press between his shoulder blades.
“Karl?”
Nothing.
He turned, wrapping his arms around his husband and sighing. “It’s going to be okay. I promise.”
He wasn’t sure what he was saying, or why it made Karl start to shake, but it felt right, and he repeated it. “It’s ok. You’re ok. We’re going to be alright.”
Quackity came home that night from tearing down his old home to find his husbands curled up in bed without him, and he sighed. 
They probably hadn’t even noticed he left.
He turned to leave, to go to the couch, but a pale hand caught onto his and he froze, staring down at Karl.
“Hey.”
No response, just wide eyes.
“... want me to join ya?”
A nod.
They weren’t friends forever. Dream had made sure of that when he betrayed Sapnap at the Battle of the Lake, when he ripped George’s crown from his head, when he called Quackity a terrorist, when he killed a kid. They weren’t the same as they’d been back and they never would be.
But as Sapnap cuddled his boys to his chest, burying his face in Quackity’s hair, he thought that this wasn’t so bad.
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a-libra-writes · 4 years
Note
Hey! Could you do these headcanons [💖,💐] for Jaime, or Tyrion? I've been in the GoT fandom “recently” (like a month or two ago?), and I don't see much of them; especially Tyrion (I don't know book-Tyrion yet 👀). I've been reading your blog for a while, and I really like your writings; I'm taking my time to read them again jsjsj. I understand if you don't want to, or doesn't catch your eye; I hope I'm not being rude or anything, but I wanted to try my luck. Please take care and be safe! <3
welcome to our cluuuub! welcome to our cluuuuuub! 
im glad youre enjoying GoT so much, and my blog! You should def give the books a try if you ever have a chance! Book Tyrion is rlly diff in many cool ways, same with Jaime. 
also i uh ... did the thing where i confused the emojis again, so I did “date” for both of them as well LOL oops
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💘 Tyrion Date HC
Once Tyrion really starts liking you, he takes you to the loveliest places. We’re talking walks through gardens with little ponds and animals, a covered boat ride on a river, or walking through an exciting market full of Essosi traders. The thing is, he’d never call this “courting”. That makes it too official, too serious. He plays it off as simple visits two friends would make.
He’s excellent at finding out the things you’re interested in. You aren’t aware of it, but Tyrion really pays attention to what you respond to and what you like the most. I mean, he’s already watching you because he loves you, but if you aren’t vibing with an activity and location he’ll take that into consideration for next time.
He has lots of fun experiencing new things with you, period - after you’re together, after you’re married. If he finds out about something new, he’ll tell you so you both can do it together.
Tyrion prefers more private locations, since the court is exhausting and nearly all people he meets don’t like him anyway... but there’s something exciting about having such a pretty girl on his arm, someone who clearly adores him and wants to spend time with him.
Gifts! You tell him he doesn’t have to, but he likes presenting you with little things at the beginning or end of a date. First it’s practical things, so he can brush it off as “You seemed like you could use that”, before it’s just outright pretty jewels and dresses and he has no excuse. At that point it’s because he clearly loves you.
When it’s your name day, he has such a great evening planned out. If you’re married, make that a weekend or a week to travel and enjoy a little mini-vacation. Tyrion is excellent at planning an event in secret, so you have no idea what he has in store until the morning of your birthday.
In a modern AU, he’s not too different - he wants to explore new places and new things. He’d probably live in a city and would always find the strangest hole in the wall places to eat and shop at. If you like books, or records, or clothes, he’s gonna find something really out of the way and specific.
💖Tyrion Pregnancy HC
From the time you announced your pregnancy to the entire 9 months, it was like the worst emotional whiplash he’s ever had. There are SO many thoughts going through his head. Some of them are:
One, he’s delighted you want to have a family with him. Yes, you two are married, but it’s not out of duty to the Lannisters. It’s the ultimate proof you love him, he decides - because there’s a real chance your child could turn out like him, and you don’t care. And he knows you’ll love the child if that happens. He just knows you’ll be a wonderful mother. Second, you clearly express your joy to his family and the courtiers. You’re proud and you don’t care who knows. Third, he thinks about how horrid his own upbringing was, and he’s absolutely 100% determined to be an excellent father. Fourth ...
You get the point. He’s so torn between worry - what if the child is born with a problem, what if you die in childbed, what if he turns out to be a terrible father - and absolute, unbelievable devotion. You thought he was protective and doting before? Nothing is too good for you. You have to tell Tyrion to dial it back a bit, you don’t need new clothes every month and ten sets of silken bedsheets and all this jewelry....
He’s a bundle of nerves the closer the due date is. You two might actually get into spats because you’re exhausted and achey, and he’s just a mess. Jaime actually has to knock sense into him and get him to calm down.
But once your child is born...  it all washes away, like a wave carrying him. He’s so happy. He can’t even function. He wants the hold the child all the time, he wants to see them, talk to them - and he asks so many questions to you and the maester. When will the child talk? When will they walk? Can they understand him? Do they know he’s their father? And so on.
Also, his protectiveness would go through the roof. He would never forbid you from going anywhere or doing anything, but.. he would be obviously nervous if you mentioned you were going travelling or something. 
And it goes without saying he’s keeping extra tabs on Cersei, certain courtiers, maybe his own father. He doesn’t trust any of them for anything.
Bronn will probably get assigned to bodyguard duty for you. He’s clearly not pleased, and you just sigh and dismiss him for the day so you don’t have to listen to his smart mouth.
He likes to feel your stomach, especially when the babe kicks! It relieves his worries that the child might be born “wrong” somehow. The fact they’re kicking, wiggling and moving, seemingly in response to him, makes him feel much better.
💐 Tyrion Family & Kids HC
He’s an excellent father, even though he has his moments of emotional hang-ups. He wants to ensure his child is educated, empathetic and uses their damn head. While he’d be doting and affection, he wouldn’t be a total pushover and can reasonably discipline them. Tyrion is great at talking to children respectfully and treating them like people.
On that note, he has no patience for someone like Cersei or his father trying to butt in on his parenting. He’ll stand up to them and firmly insist he can raise his child on his own, thank you. He won’t take any “advice” or threats from them.
He’d be quite good at figuring out what his children are talented in, and encouraging them. He’s seen what it’s like when a child is forced into a single box and hinge all their worth on that (Jaime) and when they’re looked over and ignored (him and Cersei). 
Yes, he basically decides to do the opposite of whatever his father did.
There would be times when he’d want to educate his children himself, but only on certain subjects - reading and writing, for example. He trusts the maester just fine, he just wants to have that bonding opportunity with them. 
(He’s so proud of all of them no matter what though 😭)
If you’d be up for it, Tyrion would like several children. He’s not 100% on how many, since he’s never really given himself a chance to hope and daydream for a family. He knows he needs a son for the Lannister line to continue, but he’d never force you to continue risking your health for that. Ultimately, however many you want, that’s what he’ll be happy with. If it’s all girls, he’ll love them the same.
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💘 Jaime Date HC
It’s actually amusing how bad he is at taking you somewhere interesting. It ends up being an accident - you run into him in a beautiful garden or some obscure part of the Red Keep, and he offers to show you something interesting he found. From there, you two get lost and take a while to find your way back.
... Or you take him somewhere you thought was interesting, and he goes along with it. When you point out that Jaime is pretty bad at this “courting” business, he just scoffs and says that’s definitely not what he’s doing. He’s just visiting with ... a friend ... .... just a friend. Yup.
Another aspect is the fact he’s a Whitecloak, and he might be having to avoid Cersei. That kind of makes things dicey.
However, when he returns from the Dreadfort and that absolute hell of a journey, he’s doesn’t care so much who sees you two. He wants to get away from the Red Keep, even if that’s his duty, so he starts wandering out with you. When Jaime is patrolling on his own and sees a place of interest, he makes a mental note to bring it up to you later. And when he does, and you offer to go with him ... Well, he won’t complain.
Since you two have been so many places, he starts to associate them with you. When he’ll pass by it on his own, he thinks about something you laughed at, or something you told him there. If you ever touched his hand or his face while you two visited a garden, he will remember that touch every single time he passes by. 
After you’ve known each other for a while, and he’s feeling sentimental, he’ll ask, “Do you remember those docks a mile away from the Red Keep? There was a man pushing a cart that had these colorful glasses and wares. You were wearing a blue dress, and when you dirtied it, I carried you around down the street?”
You have no idea where he’s talking about, but that’s the sort of road his memory lane is.
In the modern AU, he’s still pretty terrible at dates. He’s more of the type who wants to wander around with you and just pop into a place that seems interesting - and then he’ll associate you with it. Anytime he sees that cafe chain again, even in a different city, he remembers the hot cocoa you ordered and the little marshmallow mustache you gave yourself.
And honestly, he prefers to stay home with you, cuddling and watching something. He can be as bad as a needy cat when he wants cuddles and attention; you aren’t escaping anytime soon.
💖Jaime Pregnancy HC
Oh no.
Back when Jaime was a boy and lectured endlessly on the duties of a Lannister heir, he didn’t truly understand what that meant. Especially after Cersei coerced him into taking the white cloak, he figured he’d never have children of his own.
... Well. Then there was three. but they never felt like his, which was Cersei’s intention. It was so strange, even if they looked like him, he couldn’t connect Joffrey, Myrcella and Tommen to himself.
Also, look who his father is. That’s a lot to unpack.
It’s not until he’s completely left Cersei and lost his sword hand that he starts thinking and seeing things differently. It feels different when you play with the children, when you look longingly at mothers, when he’s intimate with you and you let him finish inside. He starts thinking what it’s like, and that’s scary, considering it never crossed his mind before.
And then he thinks about how his mother died, and what it did to his father. He never openly discusses it with you, but he has nightmares about it. Jaime doesn’t sleep well for a lot of your pregnancy, especially toward the last few months. He does a little better with each child. To distract himself, he takes care of you.
He likes the idea of having two children, a boy and girl, or two boys, but he’s fine with one or more than two. Anything more than four would probably overwhelm him.
Gods save the person who threatens you, even if it’s his sister. His protective instincts go into overdrive, to the point where someone being disrespectful to you on the street will make him want to fight.
💐 Jaime Family & Kids HC
When you tell him, honestly... his first thought is what an awful parent he’d be. He had one example for what a father is like, and he was hardly an influential part in the lives of the three children he sired. You’d have to reassure Jaime and give him confidence, because he has none where this is concerned. He’s positive he’ll screw it up somehow, he’ll be too distant, or too cruel. How do you even hold a baby? What do you say to little ones? He’s going to take care of you, there’s no question of that, but his nervousness is palpable. 
Still, he has such a cute smile when he holds his child - what he considers his first real one - and he right away sees you in them. Their nose, and smile, and eyes. It’s amazing, he decides.
Jaime is a terribly indulgent father. He tries to scold where he can, but more often than not he’s amused by his kid being mischievous. When they pull pranks on guests or get into fights with other kids, he’ll let them off easy if he felt like it was justified. If you’re the more disciplinary parent, the kids totally learn to go to Jaime when they want something.
He’s not overly physically affectionate, but he often ruffles their hair (even if they’re a girl with hair you just braided), gives them rides on his shoulders and lets them sit on his lap and fall asleep. He also has a habit of patting their cheeks or shoulders when he’s pleased.
Jaime didn’t think he’d be excited to teach swordplay and horseback, but he’s so happy when one of his kiddos is interested in both or either. Even if they’re a girl, he can’t help but teach her everything he knows. It also makes him feel better that he has something to teach and pass on even if he lost his sword hand.
Also ... he’s a terrifying papa lion. Do not ever even slightly threaten his children or wife in front of him. His temper and pride will flare and he’ll start a fight right there. 
Related to that, he can fight off Cersei’s cruelty and coldness to you and your children together because he knows how to deal with her. If Tywin disapproved of you in some way, or was trying to take control of how the children were reared, Jaime would genuinely struggle to stand up to him. He doesn’t want his kids to go through the childhood he had, but it’s difficult for him. He won’t go into full “fuck this” mode unless the children are seriously threatened. 
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avengerscompound · 4 years
Text
Running to a Standstill - 18
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Running to a Standstill: A Captain America Fanfic
Masterlist PREVIOUS //
Buy me a ☕ Character Pairing:  Bucky Barnes x Steve Rogers x F!Reader
Word Count:  2893
Rating:  E
Warnings: Smut (mmf bisexual threesome, oral sex, vaginal sex, anal sex)
Synopsis: While on the run from an unknown organization trying to take your son, you meet two super-soldiers.  While they try to help you get to the bottom of who is hunting you and your son, feelings come out and admissions are made that make your personal life even more tricky.
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Epilogue
Your feet hurt a little and you were hungry to the point that you were considering just tearing a piece off the sourdough loaf you’d bought, and eating it plain before you even finished your ride up in the elevator.  Even with these minor discomforts, you felt really good.  You had just ventured out to the nearest bodega alone for the first time since moving to the Tower.
It had been eight months since the raid on Madripoor and while everyone had doubts that HYDRA was gone for good the new rightful ruler of Madripoor was pretty thorough with cleaning the NAZI organization out of their nation.  Not for any particular need to clear out all criminal organizations mind you, just to clear out the one creating the most competition.  Madripoor was for all accounts, still lawless.
All the people involved in the production and distribution of the super-soldier drug had been arrested.  You had hopes that the drug might end up virtually extinct the way the Quaalude was now.  However, you logically knew someone who still had them would try and replicate them.  Given the fact that the drugs existed in the first place because someone was trying to replicate what they’d done to Steve way back in 1943.
What you’d stopped being worried about was them bothering you anymore.  The Avengers, thanks to Tony, Vision, FRIDAY, and with a little help from Geo, had managed to remove any details regarding the names of people who were experimented on.  Which meant there was no one left to know that Geo had powers and no one left to hunt you.  You were safe and you could finally have some semblance of a normal life.
It had taken you a while for any of you to trust that.  For a month you still didn’t want to go out at all just in case there was some kind of retaliation or last-ditch effort to grab you.  When you finally did it was with Bucky and a group of guards.  Gradually the guards dropped in number.   When all the HYDRA members were convicted you started to go out with just Bucky and every time you went out, there was no one watching you that shouldn’t be.  No one followed you or made you feel unsafe.  Sure, Bucky would get looks but you could tell the difference between Avengers groupies and the people who had been trying to kidnap your son.
Today was the first time you’d ventured out alone.  It was only down the street and you still weren’t brave enough to take Geo out without at least Bucky or Steve with you, but it was a start. You’d only looked over your shoulder a few times.  You’d done this alone for years, you knew what to look out for and it wasn’t there.  You were safe.
More than safe, you were happy.  With all that weight off your shoulders, you were able to just enjoy life again.  Every part of it.  Being a mother wasn’t just a case of protection and high alert twenty-four/seven.  You played with Geo more.  You let your guard down and let him get on with the job of being a kid.  You started to look back into the things you had studied in college and were seriously beginning to consider studying again so you might be able to have an actual career and not just a cash-under-the-table job that paid your bills but kept you off the books.  You were looking at schools for Geo.  You were letting yourself be a girlfriend and opening yourself up to the fact that this could be it.  You might have actually found two people that were your people the same way your husband had been.
The apartment was alive with sound and smells as you stepped in.  Bucky was cooking, he’d just started when you’d ducked down to the bodega for a couple of missing ingredients and now the whole place was full of the scent of garlic, herbs, and cooking tomato.  Music was playing over the speaker and Geo seemed to be talking animatedly with the AI as the two of them played some digital version of snap using his tablet.  Steve sat with a sketchbook on his knee.  There were crayons scattered over the table from when he’d been drawing with Geo but now he was just sitting with his pencil poised but not actually drawing anything.
“He looked up when you came in and smiled.  “Hey, sweetheart.  How did you go?”
“Good,” you said, as Bucky abandoned whatever it was he was stirring and rushed over to you.  “Got a little jumpy at the alleys but there was nothing to worry about.”
“Did you get what I needed?” Bucky asked, digging around your fabric bag while it still hung from your elbow and fishing out items as he found them.
“Yes, honey,” you said, pushing the whole bag into his hands.  “Here take it.”
Bucky took the bag and you went to sit down with Steve and Geo.  Steve took your hand as you went to pass him, and you let him pull you down into his lap.  “I’m proud of you,” he whispered.
“It wasn’t that big of a deal,” you said.  “I used to go out on my own all the time when I was on the run.  I didn’t have a lot of other choices.”
Steve’s arm circled your waist and he nosed at the side of your neck.  “I know.  Still.  I’m glad you're starting to feel safe.”
You relaxed in his lap and Geo climbed up onto you.  You did feel safe.  And loved.  And all the things you had missed for three years.  Despite the fact you had been trying to go slow for Geo’s sake, it was hard when you felt like this with them.  It was clear that Geo was feeling just as safe and at home as you were.
When he was very upset he was still the mommy’s boy he’d always been, but more and more he was turning to Steve and Bucky.  Not just when he wanted to be comforted.  He did it when he was excited about something, or wanted to play a game, or have a story told to him.  He’d ask them to take him out or take him up to the pool.  As scary as it was for you to see Geo starting to treat these two men the way he would have his own father, as melancholy as that hit, it was still happening.  Geo now had two father figures where he once had none.
Even though neither had said anything about it, you could tell they were seeing Geo as a son too.  This was your family now and some moments terrified you, but mostly you couldn’t believe how lucky you were.  There were days where you thanked whatever force it was that had led you to not only apply for a lease in Clint Barton’s apartment block but to begin dog sitting for him so that you just happened to be dropping Lucky off at the same time Steve and Bucky were there.
Bucky called you all for dinner and you ate around a table sharing stories about your day and making plans for the following day.  Just like a family on an old sitcom, only with extra dads and you all genuinely liked each other.
After dinner you gave Geo his bath and took him to bed, reading to him from a comic about Figment the dragon from that old Disney ride at Epcot.  It was a comic that Bucky owned for some reason which was odd because he would have been in cryo freeze during the entire time that ride even existed, yet he had it none-the-less.  Geo spent a lot of time looking at each picture so that the thin comic that would normally only take five minutes to get through was being dragged out so it was closer to twenty.
“Bug-key sayed dat dis dwagons was a robod,” Geo said, tapping the cover when you were done reading.
You chuckled.  “It was, and it’s weird he even knows that,” you confirmed.  “The robot dragon is gone now.  We can take you to Disney World some time, then you can see all the different robots.  I don’t think any of them will be as smart as FRIDAY though.”
“No…”  Geo said, shaking his head.  “FWIDAY is da smartest.”
“Thank you, Geo,” FRIDAY replied, the fondness of the little boy evident in her voice.
“Alright, you,” you said, putting the comic away.  “Lie down.  Time to sleep.”
He flopped back onto the pillow and you kissed his forehead. “Good night, I love you,” you said.
“Wuv you too, mommy,” he replied.  “Have sweed dreams.”
“You too, little one.”
“Mommy,” he said as you got up.  “I dotta say goodnight to Bug-key and Steeb.”
You chuckled.  “I’ll send them in.”
You stepped out of the bedroom to find Bucky and Steve sharing the recliner as they watched the news.  “He wants to say goodnight to both of you too.”
“We can manage that,” Steve said as they both got up.
Bucky and Steve went into Geo’s room as you went and got ready for bed too.  It was still early but you figured whatever the plans were for tonight, they’d be more enjoyable in your pajamas.  When you came out into the bedroom you shared with Bucky and Steve, they were there getting undressed.
“He didn’t cause you any trouble?”  You asked.
“No.  He just said goodnight and had FRIDAY turn out the lights,” Steve answered.
“I like when I’m here to say goodnight to him,” Bucky added.  “He’s so funny how he wishes you sweet dreams too.”
“Yeah, we can use them,” Steve added.
“Speaking of,” you said and looked over at Steve.  Lately, when you and Steve had been alone, you’d started talking about Bucky moving in.  He was here a lot anyway and the times he wasn’t it felt like he was missing.  The three of you still took time to enjoy each other one-on-one, but now you were all happier and more relaxed when it was the three of you.
Bucky froze in the process of stepping out of his jeans and stared at you like a deer in headlights.  “What?  What did I do?”
“Nothing, Buck,” Steve chuckled.  “We were wondering… hoping really, that you’d move in here with us.”
“What?  Really?”  Bucky said, standing up straight and looking between the two of you.
“Yeah.  You don’t have to decide right now…” Steve said.
“No, I want to,” Bucky said, lurching forward, completely forgetting he was still in his jeans and falling flat on his face.
“Bucky!” You yelped, rushing to his side and helping him back up, while Steve watched on with a slightly bemused look on his face.
“I’m okay.  I’m good,” Bucky assured you as he got back up and kicked off his pants.  “I want to move in.  When?”
“Whenever you like,” Steve said.  “We can bring your stuff down tomorrow if you like.”
“I do like,” Bucky said.  He pulled you close and cradled your face.  “Yes, I want to.”  He leaned in and kissed you deeply.  As the two of you kissed, Bucky reached out to Steve, pulling him closer, so when Bucky pulled back from you, he moved straight to kissing him.   You ran your hands down Steve’s chest and nuzzled at Bucky’s neck, nipping at his throat gently.
Bucky pulled back and smirked at you.  “You tryin’ to start up some celebrations, huh?”
“Maybe?”  You giggled, tugging on his boxers.
“I think that might be something that can be arranged,” Steve teased.  He picked you up like you weighed nothing and tossed you onto the bed.  You squealed and quickly spread your legs and opened your arms to Bucky as he crawled up your body.  He began to unbutton your flannel pajama top and kissed your skin along each new part that became exposed to him.  His fingers brushed over your breasts as he pulled the fabric apart and your right nipple, puckered and hardened under the cool metal of his left hand.
Steve took off his boxers and moved up beside you.  He leaned in and kissed you.  His lips moved slowly against yours and his tongue teased the corner of your mouth.  You reached down and massaged his cock.  He was already semi-hard and as your palm moved up and down his length and you curled your fingers around his shaft, the blood rushed to it.
Bucky began to grind down against your cunt.  You could feel the press of his cock through the fabric of your pants, the thick shaft pushing between your folds and rubbing up and down against your pussy, making your whole body tingle and your cunt start to drip.  He leaned down and pulled one of your nipples into his mouth.  His teeth pressed against it and you moaned, breaking the kiss with Steve and arching your back so you pushed your breast up into Bucky’s greedy mouth.
Steve moved to his knees, pumping his cock as he looked down at you.  You leaned up and lapped over the head as it disappeared and reappeared under the foreskin with each pump of Steve’s hand.  He teased the head over your lips and you opened your mouth, letting him guide his cock into your mouth.
As you sucked hard up and down Steve’s shaft, Bucky moved from one breast to the other.  His hand slipped down into your pajama pants and he quickly fingered your clit in small circles as he ground his cock against you.
Your whole body buzzed like an electric current was swirling through your veins, making your body thrum.  You moaned into Steve’s cock as a hot pit pressed down inside you and your fluids slicked your folds.  Bucky pulled back and pulled your pajama pants off.  You released Steve’s cock and no sooner had you sat up that Steve was up beside you and pulling you into his lap.
“Mmm… did you want something?”  You asked as you straddled his lap and started to grind down on his cock.
Steve cradled your jaw.  “I think you know,” he teased.  You smirked and leaned in and kissed him deeply.  As you dipped your tongue into his mouth, you guided him inside of you.
You both moaned into the kiss and you slowly rolled your hips with his, appreciating the way he stretched and filled you.  Bucky got up and grabbed the lube.  He moved behind you and kissed your shoulder as he put his hand on Steve’s chest and pushed him back on the bed.  You lay down with him, pressing your body against his chest and continuing to bounce on his cock as Bucky lifted Steve’s legs and pushing them up against your sides.  He began to apply lube to Steve’s ass, sinking a finger into Steve’s ass.
Steve gasped and bucked up under you.  You broke the kiss with Steve and you looked down into his blue eyes.  “Feel good, Steve?” You purred.
He groaned and closed his eyes.  “Yes.  Oh god, yes.”
“You want my cock, Stevie?”  Bucky teased.
“Please,” Steve groaned arching his back and forcing his cock up into you deeper.
Bucky took his hand away and slicked his cock.  Steve raised his hips needily and as Bucky sunk in Steve groaned and dug his fingers into your hips.  You started kissing Steve again and moved with Bucky as he started to thrust.  Bucky’s stomach pushed your forward with every snap of his hips, pushing you up and down on Steve’s cock.  Steve was breathless and moaning under you both.  He reached up and grabbed Bucky’s hand, holding it against your back as the two of you fucked him.
A sheen of sweat began to cling to your skin and your skin prickled.  A dull ache built in your cunt, making your walls clench and spasm around Steve’s thick shaft.  Steve groaned and his hands opened and closed on your back.   You slipped your hand between the two of you and began to finger your clit.
It brought you over.  Your orgasm shuddered through you and you moaned loudly.  Steve gasped and jerked up under you, coming deep inside your pussy.  Bucky kept thrusting.  His hand tightened in Steve’s and his hips began to stutter.  You kept being bounced forward on Steve’s now softening cock with each thrust of Bucky’s hips.  With a groan and a hard thrust, Bucky came.
The three of you slithered into a pile, your breathing coming much more labored than theirs.  Bucky rolled on his side and ran his metal fingers down your stomach.  “We break you?”
“Mm-hmm…”  You hummed.  “In the best way.”
“Well we can now do that any time,” he said.
You laughed and pushed him.  “Did you forget I have a toddler?”
Bucky hummed and kissed your shoulder.
“Big changes,” Steve said.  “It’ll be good though.  Us together.”
You smiled and cuddled in between us.  He was right.  It was a big change. You had been through a lot of change in the last five years, but this was the first one since Geo was born that you felt truly excited about one.
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To be continued in Until the End of the World...
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mediocre--writing · 4 years
Note
Hey! I'd like to request a Harry x Gryffindor!reader where y/n is a member of the Golden trio (well now quartet) and is basically about her friendship with them and how her and harry eventually fall in love and end up together, like is a slow burn (it can be either a oneshot or headcanons, it's your choice) thank you! 💕
Harry Potter x Gryffindor!Muggleborn!Reader
Summary: You and Harry have been friends since first year, so how will you tell him that you have deeper feelings for him than just friendship?
Word Count: 6665
Warnings: mentions of scars, umbridge (which is a warning for obvious reasons), hints of depression, doing badly in school
Ok I know that this was supposed to be a small headcannon, but I kinda went overboard so now this is 6k... oops!
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so you both met on the train to hogwarts in first year
you physically ran into harry when you were trying to find a spot to sit before the train started moving
you kinda squashed him because, let’s admit it, harry was probably abnormally skinny for an eleven year old and could be pinned down by an aggravated squirrel
but it caused the two of you to have an inside joke and become friends, even before you got to hogwarts
you also became friends with ron weasley on the train ride
he was also a scrawny little twerp, and you felt like a mother looking after two idiotic children
there was also hermione granger, who immediately rubbed you the wrong way
she was bossy and seemed to be a know it all
at the sorting ceremony, harry, ron, and hermione had all gone before you
so you were kinda just chilling in the group of kids that you didn’t talk to on the train, secretly sending all your hopes into getting into gryffindor
thank godric that you did
you all sat together and ate
you also met ron’s brothers: fred, george, and percy, and apparently he had two more, bill and charlie, and a younger sister, ginny
wow his mother made a bold choice
but they were all kind
though fred and george seemed a bit too mischievous for their own good
and percy was kinda snarky
but everyone has their own flaws, and you should look past them
and you and hermione were roommates
(oh my god they were roommates)
so you tried to deal with hermione’s nagging and obsession with success
it’s firmly believed by all the girls in that dorm that if she wasn’t in gryffindor, she probably would have been in slytherin because she was so ambitious 
but school was fun
you all had classes together
because you’re first years and didn’t have electives yet
hermione, of course, was amazing at just about everything
ron and harry were decent at most things, of course they had to learn but they caught on quick
the only class you liked was the flying lessons, but it only happened once  every week
and astronomy
you just liked going out at night and staring at the stars
but who wouldn’t
so hermione tried to help you in class, but she talked far too fast and already knew everything
she was smart, but she wasn’t a good teacher
so you went to harry, because he was doing good in classes and wasn’t psycho-smart
he actually helped a ton more
you were actually passing your classes now
the both of you bonded over quidditch, as he became seeker and you longed to be a chaser for gryffindor
so you went to all his games and cheered him on
(you also tried out in second year and made it, to the shock of most people)
through your first year, things were relatively normal, right up until you discovered the locked room that housed a large, three headed dog
then harry decided it would be a grand idea for you all to go into a trap door underneath the dog
but of course you followed
as you entered, you got past the dog with relative ease, then hermione helped you all out of the devil’s snare
then you got on the broom and caught the key needed to get through the next door
then ron aided in beating the killer chess board
hermione had to carry him back to the main hallway, and up to madam pince
but you went with harry to find the sorcerer's stone
and when you walked into the room, you stopped at the top of the stairs, seeing quirrel
after a few moments of talking, when the fighting broke out, you were hit with a jinx that sent you flying across the room
which knocked you out
so when you woke up in the hospital wing with a few bruises
ron to your left, still asleep
harry to your right, also asleep
you could say that you were a bit confused at the goings-on of the night before
hermione showed up only a few moments later and explained everything from what she knew
when you all left after first year, it’s safe to say a tear may or may not have fallen at the idea of not seeing your friends for a whole three months
but that summer, you were invited to the burrow at the end of summer
and you went
after begging your parents for the entire month prior
but you got there
and you went along with, ron, fred, and george in their dad’s car to go rescue harry
and you almost fell out of the car while trying to pull him inside, away from his porky looking uncle
but you guys were fine
and when you got back to the house
mrs. weasley chewed you all out
except harry
but she gave you quite the talking to because you’d been there for the past few weeks and she was comfortable treating you like her own
which included a good scolding
but it was all ok
because you were all back together
at least you and the boys
but you would see hermione very soon
when you went to diagon alley
but there was a small hiccup in the day
when you ran into the malfoys
literally
you slammed into draco’s back
very hard
and he fell over
and you fell on top of him
and his dad saw it all
and screamed at you in front of everyone in the bookshop
“you filthy, vile, little mudblood!”
he had his wand pulled in your face and everything
draco was smirking behind him
it was humiliating
but
the weasleys had your back
the twins came to help you stand up and were glaring at the malfoys
arthur began yelling at lucius
though you were embarrassed, you felt loved all the same
all the girls were obsessing over some gildy-guy
you didn’t find him all that appealing
he seemed too full of himself
but hogwarts was going good that year
besides the little thing with you, ron, and harry stealing a flying car and crashing it into the whomping willow
though it did give you all a bit of street cred given that...
ya know, three 12 year olds stole a flying car and drove it to hogwarts
as mentioned before, you made it onto the gryffindor quidditch team as chaser
you were also benched for half a game for trying to knock malfoy off his broom when he called hermione and you mudbloods while trying to smack talk harry
which didn’t make sense because the slytherins cheat every game and you try to assault one kid and suddenly you're benched
though malfoy doesn’t really say much to your group when your around now
you also got closer to the twins, helping them with pranks and diversions
after the malfoy/bookstore incident, they felt more protective of you
you became like an older sister to ginny
and she always felt like she could open up to you
but she had a weird little book she wouldn’t let you see
as she got worse through the year, you told hermione
but she suggested that you shouldn’t tell her brothers
because maybe she didn’t want anyone knowing
when it was revealed that harry was a parseltongue, you most definitely yelled at people who badmouthed him
you also punched one kid, but you didn’t get a detention for it because the kid was too scared to tell anyone
you and harry were even closer than before
between quidditch and you staying close to him everywhere because you were scared of being petrified
and when hermione got petrified you broke down in the middle of the common room
harry hugged you, a little awkwardly, but he was trying
then ginny got taken down to the chamber
and you felt more numb than anything
so when you, ron, and harry ventured down to the chamber of secrets to find ginny
with lockhart
who wasn’t much help
ever
but ron and lockhart were stuck behind fallen rocks so you and harry went on
and you found ginny
and young voldemort
...or his ghost
either way
it was voldemort
and though you would never tell another soul, he was a lot more handsome when he had his face in tact and looked, well, human
but besides that, he was trying to kill you, harry, and ginny, so his appeal was pushed to the side when you considered that little factor
but as the basilisk chased harry around the chamber, tom riddle had you in a headlock
you were on your knees
and he was basically just forcing you to watch harry be chased by a killer snake
ginny was still passed out after harry defeated the basilisk with the sword of gryffindor, brought by the phoenix, fawkes
you still couldn’t catch your breath after tom riddle had let you go, given that he had been choking you slowly
you hugged harry and were gripping onto the backs of his robes as tight as possible, still feeling light headed and grateful that you actually survived
but you helped harry carry ginny out as quick as possible
ron and lockhart had cleared away most of the rubble, well mostly ron, lockhart was still crazy
when the end of the year came and hermione, among others, were no longer petrified, you enveloped her in the biggest hug imaginable
the train ride back was, once again, a bit sad, but you promised to come over to the burrow during the summer
you went to the leaky cauldron with hermione and her family, since yours didn’t exactly like that you were a witch
they loved you, but all this stuff was to dangerous for their taste
but you and hermione went to the leaky cauldron for a few nights
met the weasleys there for a day of shopping and such
also met harry there, since he was brought by the minister of magic for using magic underaged outside of school
which was kind of a stupid rule
but whatever
you got to spend more time with your friends
because the weasleys were in egypt visiting bill, ron’s older brother,
but you got your little (well, large, really) family back
you and harry talked about everything that the dursley’s had done to him, how he blew up his aunt, and how he was sick and tired of feeling alone during summers
you told him about how your parents were complaining about you leaving for most of the year and, all around, didn’t like magic, like his aunt and uncle
you also talked about how ron’s rat and hermione’s cat were going to kill each other, which meant that ron and hermione would end up killing each other
you never really realized how much you talked to harry until you didn’t get to everyday
on the train ride to hogwarts, you sat with the twins and their friend, lee jordan, and a few of the girls from the quidditch team that you’d known before
you were planning a big prank for the start of the year
harry, ron, and hermione, however, were stuck with an old, sleepy man in their compartment
harry was also moping because you were spending time with the twins
again
he missed you more than he thought he would and wanted to spend time with you, but he couldn’t just say that
they were your friends too
then the dementors came onto the train, which woke up the old man in their compartment and he was able to fend them off
and harry passed out
and then he woke up a few moments later
with chocolate being shoved in his face
(not a bad way to be woken up)
but the first thing he did was try and get up to look for you
which hermione offered to do so he could rest
in your compartment, you had fallen over, not passed out, but your knees had gone weak and you blacked out for a moment, still awake though
fred and george were on either side of you on the floor
they both had an arm over your shoulder, trying to warm you up
angelina johnson was giving you kind words
and then hermione walked in
your head shot up
“are you all alright?”
“harry passed out,”
there was a chuckle heard from outside the compartment
malfoy
“potter passed out? some brave gryffindor he is!”
everyone just kinda rolled their eyes and continued to ignore him
“is harry ok?”
“should be, there was a man in there, i assume he was a teacher or something, he had it handled”
“you’re sure he’s alright?”
“yes, he’s perfectly ok, y/n,”
hermione definitely knew about your crush on harry now
she had her suspicions before
but it was just obvious now
hermione left, probably going back to harry and ron
“you wanna go see him?” one of the twins asked from your right in a concerned but also suggestive voice
you shook your head
“i’ll see him at dinner, fred,”
both the twins gasped, along with the others in the compartment
“you can tell us apart?” george asked
yes, that’s right, you had learned the difference between the twins and could tell them apart, something their best friend, lee, couldn’t even do
you were quite proud of yourself
“of course, what do you take me for? your mother?” you chuckled
both the twins knew, at that moment, they’d hit the jackpot
they knew you had a great sense for attention to detail in pranks, but this just showed how much you knew
“how do you know which is which?”
“fred has more freckles, george slouches more when he walks, fred also has a little scar right at the top of his hairline that you can just barely see, but it’s usually how i can tell. also you have sides when you go places together, george is left and fred is right, though i’m sure you’ll change it up from now on to trip me up,”
“ahhh, little y/n, you are a good best friend,” -fred
“lee, take notes,” -george
“fuck all of  you,” -lee
the rest of the ride was not as eventful after that, though the twins were still trying to make you slip up
they left to put their uniforms and asked you to guess who was who, you were correct, they were crybabies about it
when hermione went back to harry, he was a little sad to hear that fred and george were comforting you so closely
lupin kinda smirked because it reminded him of how james would get mad when lily was with other boys
then he wasn’t smirking because he was all sad
when the train got back to hogwarts, you met up with ron and hermione and harry
they told you all about cool professor lupin
third year was great
professor lupin was your favorite professor, which was a similar theme around school
you pranked more people with fred and george
you played quidditch, getting better at your skills when practicing with angelina and katie
lupin grew to love your little quartet
because you were like his friends
hermione reminded him of himself because of her good morals and need to excel in classes, even though she still had her own dark side
ron was like peter, one of the funniest, kindest friends he’d ever seen, while also being underspoken, letting his friends speak first in most situations
james and harry were practically the same person, with their entire personas mirroring the others, though harry was much more modest than james had ever been, but also seemed to have his mischievous side much more hidden than his father, who would boast about his accomplishments and pranks
you reminded him of sirius, with how you always found a way to make others laugh, and your chameleon-like personality that could fit in with multiple groups, you never seemed to be alone, along with the way that you could never seem to wear your uniform correctly: always choosing a t-shirt instead of the button down or regular trainers over the uncomfortable uniform shoes
he made sure to pay extra attention to harry and his friends through the year
you became more popular as you hug out with fred and george more
hermione and ron seemed to bicker more and more like an old married couple
harry was stressing over sirius black constantly, especially after finding out that he was his godfather
you and harry went to see lupin together to discuss what he knew of sirius black, along with just getting your minds cleared
he accepted you both into his office and you all chatted for hours
he also offered to teach you how to cast a patronus, like he had been doing with harry
you gleefully accepted
harry had been at his wits end with malfoy at this point, sick of the taunts and jokes tossed his way
so you and fred and george pranked him
turned his hair red and glittery
only lasted until you washed it out but it was very funny to see him freak out
as patronus practice went on with harry and lupin, you got closer and closer to casting a full patronus, only after your second lesson
during the third time you went, your patronus was cast fully, a mighty lioness that roared loudly as you, harry, and lupin laughed in pure delight at the sight of the mighty beast
you told fred and george what your patronus was and they were jealous, because you got the house mascot and they couldn’t even produce the charm
when the day came that you, harry, ron, and hermione all went down to hagrid’s for buckbeaks’ execution
then scabbers was pulled away by a large black dog
and you all went into the whomping willow
and found sirius black
who was being quite dramatic for a wanted killer
or maybe that was just how killers were
just murdering people but with ✨pizzazz✨
but when lupin turned up, and explained the situation, then ron’s rat turns into peter pettigrew, who was supposed to be dead, then snape showed up
god this was a really long night
once you had everything taken care of (ron was going to be taken to the hospital wing for his leg injury, peter pettigrew was in restraints, it was acknowledged that sirius was framed, and everyone knew lupin was a werewolf) you walked back up to the opening of the whomping willow
then the moon came out
lupin began transforming, everyone backed away slightly, but you were stunned to your spot
sirius and snape were protecting harry ron and hermione
but you were just standing there, watching
peter got away by transforming into a rat, again
lupin was now in full wolf form though, so that was the bigger problem
sirius approached him slowly before lupin turned around quickly, scratching your arm and hand as he ran off, sirius chasing after him in his dog form
but you were scratched by a werewolf
and it hurt
snape had to be a crutch for ron because his leg was messed up
and you were wobbling as you walked from the pain
but you both made it to the hospital wing
pomfrey attended to you first, and she explained, while she worked, that since it was only a scratch, you shouldn’t suffer any detrimental side effects aside from the scarring, which would never go away
it wasn’t too bad after she gave you a few medicines
you worried about hermione and harry, and while ron was being tended to, you glanced out of the windows looking for a peak at your friends
they ended up coming up to the hospital wing after seeing the dementors try to kill sirius, but then they disappeared again, leaving you and ron confused when, just seconds later, they walked through the doors into the hospital wing
but they told you that they saved sirius and buckbeak
school was pretty calm after that
you and harry went to see lupin when you heard that he was quitting
he explained that word got out about him being a werewolf
by snape
the bitch
and that he hurt a student
but he wasn’t aware of that part
until he saw your arm wrapped up
and asked what happened
and he looked like he was going to cry
but you assured him that it didn’t hurt
of course it hurt but you weren’t going to tell him that
for some reason you felt bad that he hurt you
because he was kind and gentle and didn’t deserve the prejudice he got
the scar was healing, but it was from your elbow to the back of your hand, and it was about an inch wide, so there wasn’t much hope of you covering it up or saying it was no big deal
lupin was worried though
how were you going to explain this to your parents?
they were muggles, wouldn’t they pull you out of school?
apparently not, because when, that summer, you were invited to the quidditch world cup with the weasleys and hermione and harry, they let you go
which was very out of character but you didn’t really mind
the quidditch cup was… interesting
you and hermione were pretty spooked afterwards because of the death eater symbol that hung over the crowd
along with the fact that you were muggleborn
but the beginning of the school year was sure to take your mind off of it
the triwizard tournament seemed interesting enough for the older teens to compete in
you couldn’t play quidditch but this was fine
it was a relaxing year to just chill
right?
wrong!
because you got two months of relative peace until harry’s name was pulled out of the cup and most of the school turned on him
you were still staying close to harry because you trusted him
and you knew that ron wasn’t so much mad at his friend as much as he was a mix of jealous and worried for harry’s safety
you also helped harry train for the first task once you found out what it was
fuckin dragons
you brought him out to the quidditch pitch a few days a week and made him run drills so that he’d be quicker on his feet
ya know
running from a dragon
and you made sure that he knew basic spells
you made hermione research dragons and common ways to get past them
after a little conversation with moody, you also practiced the summoning charm so he could get his broom
you still made sure he was doing running drills because he could always fall
but you included some flying practice
“i don’t care if you're the youngest seeker in a century, harry, this is a dragon!!!! it breathes fire!!!”
because you were helping harry so much
you kinda began slipping in class
just a little
ok maybe a lot
but you were also practicing spells with harry so you were learning like 6/7th year charms
though your teachers didn’t see it that way
sadly
so you had to ditch harry a few times due to detentions
mostly with mcgonnangal because she pitied you and how you were worried about your friend dying, which you prioritized over lessons
though snape was getting fed up with you
he was yelling at you more
but you were used to it at this point
the day of the first task you had been with harry in the tent for as long as you could stay there, worried for his safety
to be honest he was getting more nervous because of you
he wanted you to calm down
and you wanted him to live
so it was quite the stressful situation
especially when, while you were sitting on one of the hospital beds moved down there (for precaution) you rested your head on his shoulder and he wrapped an arm around your shoulder and rita skeeter snapped a quick picture
but she got told off by krum
which was kinda refreshing
he was quiet, but he would stand up for what was right
you liked that about him
it reminded you of harry
harry did really well in the task, getting really high marks for his agility and skill on a broom
you gleamed with pride
a few days later, at breakfast, ron had a parcel delivered to him
dress robes
that were beyond hideous
then you heard all about the yule ball
where you had to dress up and converse with the other schools and such
it didn’t sound all that appealing to you
you loved hanging out with friends and such
but you weren’t exactly thrilled with the idea of dressing up for hours on christmas, the day of relaxation
and becuase you didn’t really think that you were gonna go, you gave ron the money your parents sent you for a dress so he could buy new, nice dress robes
he thanked you a million times
you were also helping harry with the egg
let's say that cedric found out about the egg and told harry a bit sooner
so you were trying to get him to swim in the black lake
he wasn’t pleased
but he needed to be quick in the water
he was mad at you for pushing him in one day
but he got over it
hermione was losing her mind because you and harry were basically flirting 
constantly
and touching one another with looks of affection
but harry wouldn’t man up and ask you out
and you didn’t believe he would actually like you
hermione about slapped you when you said that
you also told her that you didn’t really want to go because of the elegant air that wasn’t your style
so she made it her personal mission to get you and harry together
she wasn’t subtle
was she ever?
but nothing happene
one day at breakfast, while the boys were complaining about not having dates
fred, who was sitting next to you, asks angelina to the dance to show ron and harry that it was that easy
ron made some snarky comment about how hermione and you wouldn’t have dates
and hermione was mildly offended by ron and stormed off
but you knew he was right
nobody had even asked you
you thought about asking harry
multiple times
but you just knew he wouldn’t want to go with you
especially when he had practically every girl in hogwarts to choose from
so that night, in the common room, you asked george if he had a date
he didn’t
so you went as friends
because you thought of the twins as family
and didn’t like them that way
but you knew that they were a good option, and with george you would be able to joke all night and have a good time
you bought a cheap-ish, but nice, dress from money you’d already had in your trunk
harry was pissed
he knew you liked one of the twins
and he was mad at himself more than anything
but he went with one of the patil twins, ron taking the other
but when you came downstairs to george, looking more gorgeous than ever
with the help of hermione
you wore a dress with short sleeves, which made you slightly insecure because you still had the scar from professor lupin that was a few shades off from your normal skin tone
but hermione, fred, george, and angelina assured you that you were still beautiful
he couldn't take his eyes off you
“potter seems to be staring at you,” george teased
you rolled your eyes and didn’t bother to look back because you didn’t want to be disappointed
the ball was fun
you caught up with the twins since you hadn’t spent much time with them since you were helping harry
the next weeks you were still training with harry
he was still reluctant about getting in the black lake
but he lived
and when, the night before the task, you and hermione disappeared when he had a question, he felt more helpless than ever
he felt even more helpless when, during the task, he could make out your figure at the bottom of the lake, in between hermione and a little blonde girl
after he helped you and the little blonde girl, who turned out to be fleur’s little sister, you and harry were huddled together…. 
“warming up”
he got high marks again for rescuing both you and gabrielle, even though he took a long time to finish
he was tied for first place
you jumped up and hugged him so tight he could barely breathe
you loosened your grip and stared him in the eyes
your faces were so close together you could feel the other’s breath
then ron came up and grabbed harry
#fuckyouron
it was awkward between you and harry for about a day and a half until you were in the common room together and were joking like old times
after that, you waited until the month before the final task, when you found out it was a maze with creatures and spells
you made harry start running again
he said he was going to curse you
you laughed
but when the task came up, you felt a little weird about everything
things just seemed off
and when harry reappeared with a dead cedric and the triwizard cup and there was a deafning silence between everyone
cedric's father was screaming
you were trying to shove your way down the stands to harry
because he looked numb yet also going through so many emotions
when you finally got to harry he was pulled away by dumbledore, who told you to go back to your friends
you wanted to hit him
but you talked to harry the next day
well, you didn’t talk much
he collapsed, crying the tears he was holding in since the end of the third task
you held him, letting him sob
you started whispering kind words to him when his sobbing became slower and his breathing was more regular
“i’m--”
“you don’t need to be, you shouldn’t be sorry, it’s nothing you did, i promise,”
over the summer, not very much happened
until, while you were at the weasleys, harry was attacked by dementors and was being put on trial for using magic outside of school
he came to sirius’ parents old house before his trial, then, after he was free to go back to school, spent the rest of the summer with you, ron, and hermione
you spent a good bit of time over the summer working on prank products with the twins
you got a lot of progress made on the extendable ears and a few of the skiving snackboxes products were almost perfect
while on your way back to school, while ron and hermione were at the prefects carriage, you caught up with harry and what you had been doing over the summer, talking about whatever you didn’t say while at grimmauld place
they talk about how harry is sick of the pity stares he's getting, and that’s just from getting on the train and sitting down
you talk about your adventures with the twins over the summer, how they tried to do side-by-side apparition with you and you puked
the rest of the train ride was mediocre at best, but the real fun started at the end of the first dinner
namely, a woman called delores umbridge, who was the defense teacher
nobody found her likeable, especially after she interrupted dumbledore
nobody interrupts dumbledore
but you wanted to give her a chance
that chance didn’t get you too far
you and the twins were planning to prank her by day 3
she yelled at harry and gave him a torture quill for his punishmet
nasty bitch
but by the end of the fourth day at school, her cat portraits had been let out around the school, milling around in other paintings and it took her a few days to finally put them all back
the best pranks are ones that linger, driving the person mad
she didn't know it was you three, of course she didn’t, she had only been there four days
but she started to catch on when you and the twins were seen whispering in the great hall, writing on a piece of paper that was shoved under a desk and whispering stopped as she walked by
she knew for a fact that it was you three when you had all used the same annoying phrase in class, multiple times, just to drive her mad
your first detention this year, though it was with fred and george, went unknown by your friends
you didn’t want them to worry, since you couldn’t get your hand to stop bleeding when you would stretch or scratch the healing skin, but you had no intentions of stopping your pursuit of pranking
it wasn’t until dumbledore’s army was having their first practice that harry noticed the scabbed writing on your hand, which was written over your werewolf-scratch scar from third year
‘i must respect my superiors’
he got kinda really mad at you when you’d told him that it was from the last 7 detentions with umbridge, though he didn’t know you even had one
quidditch practice was awkward, harry wouldn’t talk to you, unless it was to critique your playing, and the twins weren’t really there to mediate, since they had to practice too
though the awkwardness didn’t last for too long
umbridge had kicked you, harry, fred, and george off the team indefinitely
dumbledore’s army meetings were the only thing to look forward to
though, when you were working on patronus charms, yours was no longer the mighty lion, but a doe that pranced around with grace
hermione pointed out that harry’s was a stag, and yours was a doe, and then she wiggled her eyebrows
you were #confused
you continued getting detentions with umbridge, for speaking out in class or not doing the work
you finally understand a class but it's everything you already knew from first year… but easier
so you just don’t do it
grades can’t get worse
fred and george leave, so you don’t have many people to talk to, besides hermione
harry’s still a bit aggravated with you
but you're starting to get mad at him as well, he keeps talking to cho
and the worst part is that you completely understood
she was pretty and nice and going through something only harry understood at the moment
you talked to hermione about it
she said to confess your feelings
and you were
really you were
until harry came back and told you the good news
he kissed cho
congrats to you
you just avoided him
until he claimed that sirius black was being tortured by voldemort and you, along with select dumbledore’s army members, had to go save him
you were intercepted by the umbridge prats
you punched draco malfoy so hard his nose bled all over his face and robes
which felt like a win, even though you were still caught and brought to her office in a headlock by malfoy
though you all escaped and went off to the ministry of magic, where sirius was
except he wasn’t
but you know who was?
death eaters
totally not the same thing
but you all made it to this room with a huge archway, where you were then put back in a headlock, by a malfoy…. again
you were sick of this family
the order members showed up soon, however, and sirius was actually here this time
and he was standing next to you in front of the arch, fighting
until he was hit by a curse by bellatrix, which caused him to collapse into the veil
you heard harry scream, and he started to sprint towards the veil, but you collided with his body, pushing him away and wrapping your arms around him
you didn’t know what the veil thing was but you didn't think that it was something you came back from
harry was trying to get out of your arms to the veil
he was stronger than he looked, and you ended up pushing him to the floor so he would stop trying to run
the whole battle was a mess, harry had gotten possessed by voldemort, which entailed a lot of screaming and a creepy deep voice coming from harry
as you were all brought back to hogwarts, you were dragging harry’s body over yours, and he was heavier than he looked
but you knew he was tired and out of it, so you bared with it
that summer was the longest of all
harry and you didn’t talk much
neither would make the first move to send a letter
everyone knew voldemort was back
and harry was transported to the burrow by dumbledore
and even though you had been at the burrow most of the summer, including when harry was there the next morning
he still wouldn’t even look at you
you really didn’t know what you did
he was the one who flirted and kissed cho
sure you didn’t tell him about detentions and were kind of the reason that he didn’t chase after sirius to his death
but that didn’t seem like something he should be mad about
not for this long
fred and george opened their shop
and you were proud of them
so so proud because you helped with half the products there
but you couldn’t use the extent of your happiness because harry still wasn’t talking to you
and you felt like death
all the time
that year went relatively quick
you were studying a lot more, mostly to ignore harry, but also because you didn’t have fred and george to occupy your time and had nothing else to do
by the time christmas came around, you hadn’t talked to harry much
maybe a few times in classes that you were in together
but you weren’t in any newt classes with them
oh well i guess
you didn’t make other friends either
you just kinda closed off
didn’t sleep much because you kept thinking about harry
thinking about kissing him
thinking about holding his hand
about joking with him like you used to
about how he must be feeling about everything going on
about how you can’t lose him now
he can’t die because of some no-nose-supremacist
and you looked exactly how you felt, you were sluggish and lethargic, it took you awhile to react when people spoke to you, and your usual charisma wasn’t as prominent
during christmas, fred and george noticed your lack of energy
they tried to cheer you up but you just wanted harry to talk to you
so they did what they did best
smacked some sense into harry
literally
hit him in the head and told him to talk to you
you both sat on the couch awkwardly, neither feeling the air of comfort that you used to have
it took about five minutes of silence before george opened the door and screamed at you both
not any words, just screamed
then shut the door
neither of you could hold in the snorts of laughter from the unsolicited screaming
you turned to face one another at last
“so….”
“so…”
“i’m sorry i ignored you”
“me too, i was worried about you and i felt like i couldn’t talk to you but i should have just written you a letter or something because i miss you so much, you don’t even know. after the twins left hogwarts, i always felt lonely and i wasn’t speaking to you for whatever reason and i’ve been doing really dreadful in class so i've been studying but i never retain anything or understand anything and--”
harry grabbed your hands and moved closer to you
“i think i’m in love with you”
“you’re kidding?”
“....
..
no????”
“i think i love you too?”
“yeah, i have been for a while, then we fought, and i didn’t know how to talk to you anymore--”
beforehe could have another word, you crashed your lips to his
it was amazing
you’ve been waiting for this for literal years
the past few months were torture
but everything was alright
things were getting worse out there, with voldemort rising to power, but you could die happy because of this moment
because harry wasn’t just someone who was in love with you, he was your best friend in the world and the only person who made you feel comfortable in any situation
and he loved you back
252 notes · View notes
the-fiction-witch · 3 years
Text
IVY P6 Cosy
TV SHOW THE QUEENS GAMBIT COUPLE: BENNY X READER RATING: SWEET AF!
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I had grown rather used to having my little audience. Y/n came over almost everyday for at least an hour just to sit and watch me play chess making all her little notes and working on ivy as she slowly brought her equipment over every time she visited so I know had half a computer in my living room. But today honestly I wasn't expecting her there was a horrible storm over new york.
The subway has been down for days, no taxis working, barely a car could get thought, my poor little beatle is burried under the snow, my apartment as cold as ice as the heating was now working but not working all that well, at least I had hot water now, the windows blocked completely by snow and where one slightly leaks it has frozen shut with icicles on the inside as the water leaking in had frozen on the way in, I could hear the wind rushing through, the news reports I was getting on my tiny tv weren't good so I turned it off trying not to think about the cold.
I had two pairs of socks on, fluffy socks. My jeans on with a blanket over my legs, my black t shirt, then my black turtleneck shirt, then my green button down then my jacket and I still had to wrap a blanket around my shoulders to stop me shivering. I jumped as I heard the phone I begrudgingly got up from my chair and went to answer it trying not to loose a blanket on the way I picked it up trying not to shiver in my voice
"Hello?"
"Hi Benny" I heard her familiar voice but she had called me before from her dorm but it sounded different
"Hey y/n, what's up?"
"Quick question do you have heating?"
"Well yes. It's not very good but yes. Why?"
"Uhhh could you maybe put it on full. And also put the kettle on"
".... Ohh my god you crazy girl are you actually coming?'
"Yes"
"I thought we'd work from your from today on the phones and all"
"I was going too but most everyone else has gone home for the holidays and the dorms are so so cold."
"Where are you?"
"Uhh the payphone about a block down the street from yours"
"You're walking! Y/n you must be frozen half to death get off the phone get here as quick as you can I'll get the kettle on" I told her quickly hanging up I didn't want her on the phone any longer then she had to be I got up going to the kitchen to put the kettle on hell I'll have a hot drink as I'n turning it on and soon enough I heard fast shaking little taps, I rushed over and quickly pulled the door open having to fight against the ice around it but I got it open and she stood there on my doorstep covered in an inch of snow shivering in her usual purple coat "oohh get in here you silly girl you'll freeze" I laughed quickly letting her in and shutting the door behind us to keep the cold out
"Benny I can't feel my toes"
"I imagine you can't. Those boots don't look like snow boots?"
"There not I didn't have snow boots so I just put my thermal boots and some extra socks"
"Here let me get your coat off" I smiled helping her with her coat knocking all the snow off her revealing how cute she looked she had a little purple hat under her hood, and a long purple scarf wrapped around her about four times and had a long knee length knitted purple dress with pockets, she had little black mittens and what looked like four or five layers of thermal tights and these little boots I helped her get her boots off as somehow she had gotten snow inside her boots and she had three pairs of socks on top of her tights she slipped her mittens off and her scarf sitting them with her coat
"May I steal a blanket?" She asks noticing I had two
"You may" I laughed giving her one of my blankets
"You wanna mini hot water bottle?" She smiled pulling a pocket sized hot water bottle out of her pocket I took it curiously and it was hot I held it close feeling how warm it was
"Uuummm I will sell you my car for this tiny hand sized hot water bottle"
"It's okay Benny you can borrow it while I'm borrowing your blanket" she smiled we went over to the sofa having a sit together trying not to be too far apart as we where both warm, I feched her a tea and a I had my usual coffee "clink" she giggled tapping my mug with her own
"Clink" I laughed "fuck it's cold. Sorry I made you walk all this way"
"It's okay I wanted to come"
"I'm really not in the mood for chess today. Which sounds nuts but I'm just way too cold. Sorry for making you walk all this way for nothing"
"Not nothing, I got to see you" she smiled "and steal your blanket"
"I guess so. Guess it's kinda nice to have someone to wait out the storm with"
"Yeah someone to wait the storm out with" she smiled "why don't you get the duvet?"
"The duvet!" I jumped dashing to my bedroom and getting my duvet we both readjusted our blankets and then I threw the duvet over us both I smiled looking at her wrapped up so well against the sofa with the blanket around her shoulders and my duvet tucked up to her sipping the tea that she held so close "I like your scarf. And your little hat"
"Aww thank you" she blushed "I knitted them myself"
"You did? that's impressive. Can you make me a scarf?"
"Yeah, actually. I did bring my stuff with me" she laughed grabbing her bag getting some large needles "I have… black and white wool?"
"Can you make me a chess scarf?"
"Uhhh I don't see why not" she smiled sitting her tea on the side
"I'm going to get a book, want anything as I'm leaving the warm corner?"
"No thanks benny, Im cosy" she smiled
"Alright" I smiled back giving her temple a little kiss before leaving the duvet I already hated it I'm so cold out here, I grabbed a book or three before I remembered I jumped in my wardrobe and I saw it "ohh my god! I forgot about you!"
"About what?" Y/n giggled
"My long hot water bottle" I laughed showing her the thing i bought it years ago before going to Moscow on the assumption moscow would be cold and I ended up leaving it here it took a while to fill up as it was almost a meter long but I did it up and put the fluffy cover over it and came back beside her getting under the duvet and in the blankets laying the bottle across both our laps between the duvet and us I smiled as I sat getting cosy watching her slowly knit
"Why was your dorm so cold?' I asked her
"Most of them have gone home for the holidays, cheap place only keeps the heat on if more then two people are there and it was just me" she says "I tried to get on the bus to come see you but I had to walk"
"Why didn't you go home? For the holidays?"
"Not really much if a home to go to?"
"What do you mean?"
"My mother died in childbirth. My dad looked after me alone for most of my life. He passed away a few years ago now." She explained
"Ohh y/n. I'm so sorry, his did he die?"
She smiled slightly "he was working at nasa. In the space race and all, he was an engineer so they sent him onna test flight but… they never came back" she explained
"Must have been an amazingly smart man. I see where you get it from"
"Thank you, what about you? Why aren't you flying off somewhere to see your family?"
"Don't really have a family. Never really did. My dad died before I was even born, my mum like yours died in childbirth so my uncle took care of me he was a single guy no kids or anything but he had a heart attack when I was ten, been on my own since"
"I'm so sorry Benny"
"Its okay. Life goes on you know. Of course I miss them but… me sitting here bawling isn't gonna bring them back, lifes going to go on weather I sit here crying or weather I get on with it. So I better just get on with it"
"Yeah I see what you mean" she says "how about we play a game" she smiled
"Sure" I laughed
"Truth or dare"
"Damn it okay truth"
"Do you really love chess?'
"Not as much as I did once. I do really love chess but there is bullshit too it, the traveling sucks, there's alot of snobbery around it, I think I adored it once but… I still love it just not as much as I did" I explain "truth or dare?"
"Truth"
"... Do you really think ivy will work?'
"I'm sure of it. I know it. More then anything else in this world" she smiled "your turn"
"Okay truth again"
"What's the last thing you cried at?"
"Cried? Uhhh ohh god ugh lord of the rings"
"What?'
'the ending makes me cry okay"
"Awww that's so sweet. Yeah I cried when I read it too"
"I think everyone does. If you don't cry your kinda a dick" I laughed "your turn"
"Uhhh dare"
"Oooohhh uuuuuuughhh…. I dare you to," I began before I spotted an empty note pad so I grabbed the page and crumpled it up "eat a page"
"Why?"
"Because I dared you"
"Fine" she sighed taking it ripping it up small and slowly swallowing it "oww. That was mean"
"To be fair I really didn't have a dare set. Uuhh and I pick truth"
"You have to pick dare at some point Benny"
'ill pick dare next turn"
"Fine." She smiled "... Did you love beth?"
"What? How do you know about me and beth?"
"It's not a secret. I read about it in chess review"
"No. Honestly I don't know how I feel about beth. I don't think I love her. She's ignoring me at the moment anyway, I don't know. No. I think. I care about her but I get the feeling she doesn't care about me all that much"
"You shouldn't be with someone who doesn't care about you benny. Your better then that your worth so much more then that. You deserve a girl who adores you."
"Aww thanks y/n" I smiled "your turn"
".. truth"
"Do you…. Have a crush on someone?"
"What is this Benny a girl's sleepover?'
'come on I'm curious?"
"No"
"No you don't or no you don't wanna answer the question?"
"The second one"
"If you don't wanna answer it means you do"
"I never said that"
"Who is he? Some boy in your science class? Some cute boy who lives in your dorm?"
"No" she giggled "your turn"
"No you never answered my question"
"I do but I'm not telling you"
"Why not?" I laughed but I saw how red she was "y/n… do you"
"It's not your turn to ask questions Benny" she says hurrying her head in her knitting
"Fine. Dare"
"I dare you. To… not ask anymore questions"
"Why not?"
"That's a question"
"No, that's not how the game works. A proper dare"
"Fine I dare you go up there an stick your dick in the snow"
"Ahhhhh nooooo I don't wanna do that"
"I didn't wanna eat paper"
"NOOOO"
"Go or no questions"
"Fine" I sighed getting up already too cold without the duvet around me maybe I can just go up and climb I did it but she put her knitting down and got up too wrapping her scarf around her and getting her gloves and hat on as well as her coat keeping her hood down this time as she slipped on her boots I put some shoes on and begrudgingly unlocked my door the snow was now building up badly down my stairs so much it was up to my knees each time I took a step y/n using my holes in the snow to walk through till we got to the street it really was a blizzard I could barely see anything, my car burried the lights not even working on that streets
"Go on" she says
"No looking" I warn her undoing my jeans she looked away already turning red my whole brain screaming at me every self preservation element in my brain going nuts why am I getting my dick out in a Blizzard! I did it and by God I had never been colder in my life I of course screamed making her giggle like crazy I quickly did my jeans up in an attempted to get warm again shw tried to run inside from the cold but I grabbed her "ohh no you don't if I had to go in the snow your going in too!" I told her pushing her in the snow
"Ahhhhh!! Benny" she squealed "this. Means. War" she glared grabbing some snow and throwing it at me luckily she missed
"Ha you-" I began but she got another and got me right in the face before I even finished "fine. You wanna play this game. Fine let's play"
"No no no! You can't hit a girl Benny" she giggled
"Ohh no you threw first that rule Is irrelevant" I told her grabbing some snow and throwing it at her and it managed to get her just as she was getting up right on the butt
"AAAHHH! Benny! That went up my dress!" She screamed before she ran at me with a handful of snow and shoved it down the back of my jeans
"Ahhhhh! Y/n!" I complained grabbing as much as I could and filling her hood with it throwing it over her
"Ahhhhh!" She screamed pushing me into the snow so I pulled her down with me and we ended up with her on top of me on the snow "hi"
"Hi, you wanna go back in before we freeze to death?"
"Yes please" she nods happily getting up and helping me up out the snow too we hurried down and locked the apartment up hangout stuff by the door and getting cosy back on the sofa trying to warm up again
"So… I did my dare."
"Yep"
"So, it's your turn"
"Truth" she rolled her eyes as she began to knit again
"Do you have a crush…. On me?"
"Maybe"
"Maybe?"
"Maybe" she blushed
"No come on yes or no answer?"
"Yes" she blushed "I just… I saw you in the tournament a few years back and I just, I kinda did and when we met I couldn't help it"
"That's really sweet" I smiled giving her head a kiss "uhh y/n"
"Yes Benny?"
"The snows got no sign of stopping and I really don't want you walking back to your freezing cold dorm"
"What are you saying?'
"I'm saying. I think you should stay here tonight. Are how the snow looks in the morning."
"Where will I sleep?"
" I'll make the airbed up for you if you want, or… you can come cosy in my bed with me so we keep warm"
"I'd like that Benny" she smiled shuffling closer and resting her head in my chest I smiled wrapping an arm around her
"Y/n?"
"Yes Benny?"
"... I kinda had a crush on you too"
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clan-sayeed-fic · 4 years
Text
Business (Kamilah Sayeed & MC)
Previous chapters: 1, 2, 3
Book: Bloodbound (property of Pixelberry Studios)
Pairing: Kamilah Sayeed & MC: Amy (I do not own those characters, they’re the property of Pixelberry Studios as well)
Warnings: angst, strong language, illustrative descriptions of situations full of violence and brutality, might cause distress
Rating: Mature
Author’s note:  I’m not a native English speaker, I’m sorry for any mistakes (feel free to correct me).
It's been a month or so since I've posted the previous chapter. From what I remember, we've ended the last part on Kamilah and Amy having an intimate moment. At one point, the girl got second thoughts and left Kamilah's penthouse.
So, here we are, in chapter 4th, right after the situation. I hope you'll enjoy the continuation of the story 💕  
Also, I'd like to thank Anons that have been asking me about the fic, and @saratustra4 for asking me about the next chapter 💕 For some reason, it helped me come back to the writing. Also, if I fail my study because of that, I know who to blame hahah *kidding* 😂😂
~2300 words
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Chapter 4
"Fuck..."
Harsh tone flew all the way to smooth surface of the car window, hitting it hard, only to bounce off the reflection of green eyes trapped inside.
Amy brushed stubborn hair away from her blushing face. Blonde strands left marks behind as if they had burned her skin permanently. Her lips were red and hot after the kiss she had shared only a few moments before.
The kiss to which she agreed so foolishly.
What were you thinking, she cursed herself in thoughts, letting anger rage inside her veins. She was slowly losing control over her body as a small spark dared to shine inside her irises.
The girl closed her eyes, leaning against something that felt like a block of ice, rather than her car. Coldness reached nerves under her skin, easing the tension, helping collect thoughts on what she should do next.
Because it didn't seem like fate was on her side that day. Amy forgot to grab her purse from the dresser at Kamilah's penthouse, so she didn't have keys to her car and phone to call for a lift.
But most of all,
she had no courage to come back and face the woman.
What if she suspected anything? Question screamed inside her mind, forcing her to move away from the car. Fear pulled her closer into the embrace of a much greater danger, fooling her judgement.
It tricked her mind enough to make her forget about the threat waiting in the darkness.
***
New York City was resting after a full day of events. It was then that Amy found herself alone in the street, left in the company of her loud thoughts.
The girl considered asking someone for help, but the idea seemed almost equally risky as walking on her own at this hour. It would only call unnecessary attention, not mentioning what could happen if she came across people who wished harm to her family.
Being one of the Paines had its consequences.
Amy moved toward the dark alley. She finally got out of the sight of warm light peeking outside from apartments. It seemed to watch her every move, trying to hunt her down at all costs.
One of the girl's hands moved to her mouth. Fingers subtly traced over her lower lip as to remind themselves of the previous desire. The desire that made Amy feel things she never expected to experience.
Not when it went to vampires.
Her body should have reacted differently. It shouldn't have let her fall for tricks of these beasts. She was supposed to be better than that. Too smart to get fooled by their attractiveness. Too powerful to get fed with their poisonous words.
So what happened this time? What made her give in to Kamilah's touch? What was responsible for this feeling inside, this...
Suddenly Amy heard a noise coming from behind. The urge to turn around and follow the sound was tempting, but she managed to fight it. She had been through the training before, so she knew the most important rule.
Never rely on your sight.
The girl closed her eyes, focusing on the feeling overwhelming her body. Listening to her accelerated heartbeat, accompanied by the growing tension in her muscles as her body sensed attackers.
They were passing through the alley like a shadow desperately seeking for the opportunity to escape the moonlight. To finally creep up on both sides, cutting off only ways of escape. It was too late, and at once, too soon to react, so Amy stood in place patiently, preparing herself for what was to come.
"Who do we have here?" shudders travelled down her spine.
As soon as the voice pierced through her ears, all of the colours vanished from the world around. Values of the surroundings became muted as if they were just a useless distraction for her eyes. Instead, everything took the tones of grey, leaving the earth on its own in the fight between light and darkness.
"She looks familiar, huh?" her eyes moved, following the second voice.
Only to catch a spark of crimson in the man's stare. No one else but vampires could make her body react this way. Their presence heightened her senses, changing them into something inhuman.
The girl raised her hands, showing an act of surrender. She needed to buy herself more time because they still didn't come close enough.
The adrenaline was not high enough.
"Look, guys, I am not looking for trouble," calm tone of her voice hid fear growing inside her chest.
But both men ignored her words, continuing getting closer. It was clear that they didn't realize how big of a mistake it was. Because with each of their step, she was getting better access to thoughts inside their heads.
"Oh, I got this," the one behind her spoke again. "Blonde hair, sweet voice, and even sweeter smell of blood. It must be Paine's daughter."
"I guess we found her without company," the one in front of her tilted his head slightly. "Our master will be so pleased to meet you."
Amy turned her body to the side enough to have a clear view of both of them.
"One more step," the girl growled, feeling every muscle in her body tense.
But it only made them more amused.
"Uuu, I feel threatened," a sarcastic tone challenged her nerves.
It came from the one on her right, a total blabbermouth. Amy squinted her eyes and gazed into his, spotting this characteristic glow inside them, a remnant of humanity. That was a clue to recognize a newly turned vampire.
"You should be," a tiny smile danced in the corner of her mouth.
She turned away from him, focusing all her attention on his friend instead.
And the game began.
Sounds of vampires' talk faded away into the darkness, blending with shadows. As the world around her calmed down significantly, moving in slow motion from then on. The wind on her shoulder became barely noticeable as coldness lost all its intensity in the air. Amy's heartbeat was steady and loud, drumming inside her head, not giving peace. Her blood seemed to stop running inside her veins, replaced by the adrenaline instead.
The same adrenaline that made her green eyes shine with gold, creating a bridge of connection between her and the man. Giving her a sense of his principal thoughts. How badly he wanted to..., kidnap her.
Her mind raced on the wires of his thoughts as she slowly lost herself in the labyrinth of memories. But she stayed there, travelling through his life until she reached the part with his weaknesses. Amy grabbed them with her mind, ready to manipulate his fears. There was only a hint of hesitation before she twisted the most painful memory inside his head, playing with it like a toy.
Until he had no other choice left, but to surrender.
His stare lacked previous confidence, showing unsureness that she planted all over his chest. The roots of anxiety grew deep inside him, almost reaching his dead heart.
That's how the hunter became her prey.
"I am not," Amy whispered, putting the idea inside his head.
"She's not," words left his mouth emotionless.
"I am not your target," her breathing got sharp and unstable, her body was getting weaker one second after another.
"We've made a mistake," he spoke aloud, staring emptily at the darkness.
"What?" the other man's high pitched tone reached them from behind. "What the hell are you talking about, man?"
Amy almost had him wrapped around her little finger, locking the idea inside his mind. Making him realize that she was not the person they had been looking for, that they should let her go free.
But then something interrupted her.
Wires of his mind twisted unexpectedly, pulling her out of this part of the brain. Instead, she witnessed a different memory, finding herself in front of a stranger hidden under a black cloak. A deep shadow covered the person's face, keeping all the features unrecognizable.
But something about the scene seemed so wrong.
"It's not a memory," she spoke, forgetting about attackers. "It's a vision."
She had no control over things appearing before her eyes. Amy wanted to leave the scene, but it was holding her tight in its claws, draining too much energy from her body. The pressure inside her head was growing as the bridge between her, and the vampire was falling apart.
But then the vision deformed, drawing her attention to the figure's movements. Black fabric flew in the air, dancing and twisting in front of her, increasing dizziness. Presence of the mysterious person brought back coldness on Amy's body, stabbing her deep under the skin.
She looked at the stranger one last time to spot a smirk dancing on their pale lips, a smile of victory and pride. But then the vision went blurry, filling her head with unbearable pain.
And at the same time, breaking her connection with the vampire.
"You...you are..." the man stuttered, waking up from the trance. And as soon as he fully realized the threat, his eyes flashed red. "Get her!"
His partner jumped toward Amy immediately, using his vampire speed, leaving her no time to react. So before she even thought about avoiding the attack, he was already there, pushing her away. The force of the hit sent her body high in the air until it met a hard surface of the wall before finally landing on the ground.
Blonde strands of hair changed into light red, dyed by the liquid running down from the wound on her temple. It leaked on her cheek, leaving a mark before her shaky hand wiped it away from the skin. A hiss of pain accompanied by fear escaped her mouth when she realized what happened.
As those green eyes stared emptily at her fingers covered in blood.
"That explains why you're so valuable," the vampire spoke aloud, freed from her influence.
In a flash, both men were standing next to her, tempted by the smell. The flavour of iron tortured their throats, begging to satisfy the thirst.
The leading vampire grabbed her throat, lifting her body against the wall with no mercy. Amy's feet were hanging above the ground, desperately searching for balance. The growing pressure around her trachea caused her to choke in a last-ditch attempt to catch a breath.
"I need to taste it," the younger one licked his lips hungrily, hypnotized by the path of blood on her neck.
Go ahead, Amy's thoughts screamed, challenging, drink, and it's going to be the last thing you ever taste.
"We will deliver her to our master first," the older one interrupted harshly. "That was the plan."
Against these words, his temptation was not any weaker. The desire to dip fangs into the girl's neck was messing with years of training. But at that moment, nothing mattered more than the idea of blood running down his throat as he drinks every single drop from her mortal body.
If only both vampires weren't so distracted, they would have noticed a stranger emerging from shadows.
"I'll take it from here," an icy tone sounded behind their back, drawing attention.
But it was too late.
In one moment, both of them were pushed far away from the girl who fell on the ground heavily, unable to keep balance.
As soon as the grip around Amy's throat loosened up, her lungs began screaming for help. She was desperately searching for air, but it seemed to avoid her chest, leaving her breathless and weak instead. All she saw were blurred figures moving with impossible speed before her eyes. There was no way to guess which ones were her attackers and which one the saviour, no way to figure out who was on the winning side.
But there was no point of knowing that, no hope left for her.
Amy's eyes filled with tears because of the lack of air until she shut them down completely. That's when noises of cracking bones flew through the alley before leaving it alone with silence.
The fight was over.
Hers was over too.
"Amy, I need you to calm down," a familiar voice echoed inside her head followed by a soft hand on her arm. "I need you to focus on my breathing. With me, in..." the woman took a breath, and let it out with the other words," and out."
Amy opened her eyes, but there was nothing else than darkness in front of her. The soothing touch on her shoulder eased her anxiety, helping to follow the advice. Her first attempt failed but soon after the air filled her lungs, giving long-awaited peace.
"Take it easy," Kamilah said when the girl tried to move too rapidly.
"How did you..." her voice was shaky, lacking its previous sweetness.
She looked through the alley nervously, but bodies of vampires were nowhere to find. There was no sign left after the situation that had put her life at risk.
"You forgot your purse," Kamilah interrupted with an explanation as her eyes travelled through Amy's body, searching for injuries. At least other than the obvious one. "I saw your car in the garage, so I knew I have to track you down" she swallowed hard. "Your bleeding made it much easier."
It made Amy realize that she still had her temple and hair covered in blood. Her eyes stared at Kamilah with mistrust, watching her moves.
"Let me take care of it," Kamilah pulled a handkerchief out of the pocket and carefully placed it on the injury.
Amy's hand moved there hurriedly, taking the cloth from her. But as soon as their hands touched, some spark of electricity ran through both women's bodies. Their eyes connected again, gazing deeply into one another with a sudden understanding.
"Apply pressure right here," Kamilah whispered, moving away.
"Let's take you home, shall we?"
----------------------
Next chapter: 5
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tag list: @evexofxtime  @kamilah-is-queen @scarletheart @helpconfusedpersonhere @ayushixo @nydeiri @vonda-b-real
76 notes · View notes
mahvaladara · 3 years
Note
For the OC questions (Sorry for being so late, been a busy.. gaming wise, weekend!) 90-100 for Mal 1-10 for Annika 20-30 for Maeve 40-50 for a teenage Syra perhaps?
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[Ga]Mal[l] Sullyvan
90. What is their occupation?
Gamall is a full-time Wanderer, which is a type of Valasyr who specializes in wandering between cities, countries, planets, and even universes seeking to harness as much knowledge and power as possible. They are also often called knowledge and power devourers.
Currently, Gamall is a full-time Biologist and freelance Gardener.
91. Do other characters respect your OC, if so, is it out of fear? Or do they respect your OC because they like them?
Depends. His family respects him dearly. From where he came he was respected out of utter fear. But those days are in the past and he is living a new life and earning respect by hard labor.
92. If they were given minutes to live, what would they do? Who would they want to see and say?
Gamall once was in this position, and he had wanted back then to see his former wife Caitlyn and former son Seimei before disappearing. He went and got a few last minutes with them, but he didn't die. He wished he did. For time came to claim Caitlyn eventually, and as for Seimei, he killed the boy when he came seeking "revenge" for the death of his father.
He now has come to the conclusion that if death ever comes for him, it's not like he can prepare for it. So he lives every day as if he only had minutes to live, seeking to amass as much fulfillment as he can, rather by the form of material goods, personal knowledge, spiritual power, hedonistic pleasure, or life experiences.
93. How do they deal with stress?
Gamall is already quite the shittalker and blabbermouth, but when under stress that becomes worse. But he is paradoxal and it mostly depends on the type of stress, it can either be met with agression or silence and either of the two are always foreboding.
94. Do they have a more submissive or dominate personality type?
Versatile personality. Gamall adapts well to the people around him, but he is not a pushover and he despises whoever tries to dominate him by force. He does enjoys playing the sub as much as the dom and though Gamall can actually be very manipulative, it is not on his interests to dominate or command others, usually his manipulation only working to make sure people don't bother him.
95. Do they have a pet?
Currently no. But they'll have a lot of chickens and a lot of cows.
Gamall used to have a horse called Eggplant, but there's a running gag that if he gets a horse it'll die, so... yea, that happened.
96. Do they have a stash of weapons?
Pffft. They don't exactly need too, they can kill you with their mind alone, but this is the type of asshole who will kill you with a duck if you tell him he can't.
97. Where do they live? Who do they live with?
The farmlands. Gamall isn't keen on big cities or places with a lot of people around because it usually means trouble and pain for him and he'd rather not.
98. How do they calm themselves down?
Depends. He has found out that addressing a fireball to whom it may concern is a great way to calm down, but he can't exactly commit capital murder everytime someone annoys him. Gardening currently has been providing him a lot of calm and quiet he needs.
99. Are they co-dependent?
No.
100. Are they a day, or night person?
Night person, it helps that he doesn't need sleep.
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1. How do they present themselves to others?
Anika comes off as a smart, kind and fun girl, your level-headed rich girl who's always had everything she needed.
To her dad however, she's a rebelious teenager finally breaking free from a sheltered and controled life. She is finally learning magic rather he wants her to or not and continuing on his footsteps trying to find a way to return Apollo's heart and find a way to save Arlo.
2. Do they like animals?
Yes. Anika had a cat as a child, but due to her mother's illness she had to give away the cat. After her mother passed away, Anika and Apollo adopted a dog. Anika ended up being the one to keep the dog, since Arlo hurt their dog when they tried to take it to Apollo's home.
3. How do they dress?
Anika dresses in a very sporty rich way. She prefers wearing high end sports clothes, leggings, crop tops and track suits, anything she can move well in and exercise in. Sometimes she pairs them with fishnets and accessories that give her a more sporty witch feel.
4. How many languages do they know?
Anika speaks english and spanish.
5. How big is their family?
Currently it's just her and her father. Her mother used to be around but she was killed by an unknown dragon who her father refuses to name.
6. What is their purpose in the story?
Anika is Apollo's best friend and girlfriend, she is also a witch and a dragon hunter, who is currently aiding Apollo in finding a cure for Arlo's rot the same way her father before sought her mothers. After her mother's death, Anika decided she had a duty to Apollo to help him save her brother, as it was Anika who lured Arlo to the trap.
7. Do they know how to fight?
Anika is petite, but Anika can kick your ass. Her father taught her kickboxing.
8. What is their back story?
Anika is the only daughter of Isaiah and Melantha Lorenn, she moved with her father to Windenburg when he was offered a position as a principle at the school. She lived a pretty uneventful life despite her father's side work as a dragon hunter and spellcaster. Anika herself was a powerful spellcaster but her father kept her away from the major things he was doing. Eventually, Anika fell to a trick to capture the two child dragons, her best friend Apollo and Arlo.
9. Why is their name, their name?
I really liked the sound of Anika, and since Isaiah and Melantha also had unique names, I wanted Anika to have a name that would feel like she's a girl born into the 1%.
10. Do they have any nick names?
Ani, by Apollo, Queen B(itch) by Arlo. Princess by many of her school peers.
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20. What do they look like?
See thee above.
21. What are their hobbies?
Maeve's hobbies include watching football and baseball games, writting research law papers, cooking and working out.
22. What are their ticks?
Their what?
23. Do they like children?
Maeve has five children, her eldest twins Arlo and Apollo, her middle daughter, Syracusia, and her youngest twins Talia and Dimitri.
24. How do they react to being around wild animals?
Maeve is pretty brave and adventurous but as most people she tends to avoid wild foxes and other animals.
25. If they were given the task to prank someone, who would it be, what would they do, and would the prank work?
It would be Mal and it would be the yelling "I feel good!" prank when he was busy spraying bugs, doing the laundry or when he's vacumming.
26. Do they have any survival skills?
Yes, she can pitch a tent, filter water and cook most wilderness food. She also knows how to hunt, since her father enjoyed hunting pigeons, ducks and rabbits. She knows how to make a snare trap.
27. Are they more book smart or street smart?
50/50. She's very book smart when it comes to education and law, but has a lot of street smart when dealing with her clients, and the cases she has. She knows what the jury are more likely to simpathise with and usually builds her case defense around this.
28. How do they get out of a difficult situation?
Usually by trying to solve it. If she can't solve it, she asks for help, but she is not one to run away from a situation.
29. Do they use their body, mind, personality or force to get what they want?
Personality and smarts.
30. What music do they enjoy?
Maeve enjoys rock, old school rock and roll.
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40. How do they become who they are?
Syra is the lucky three. She has a very calm and uneventfull life despite what luck befalls are siblings, and she is lucky to get two younger siblings, so she never got very cotroling parents breathing over her shoulder, so she was allowed to be herself. She has a very supporting father in Mal, who supports her every decision, and a big brother who loves her and whenever he is well, Arlo will go with her to do whatever she wants.
41. How was their childhood?
She had a happy childhood. Though they moved when she was a kid, she was young enough for it to not cause a negative impact on her growing up. At the contrary of her older siblings, Syra wasn't forced to go to a private school, and being in public school allowed her to be a regular girl without the pressure of being examplar.
42. Are they close with anyone who is going to screw them over?
One of her friends is a mooch, who's only around her to get good grades and to steal her stuff, she doesn't know this yet.
43.How do they adapt to different situations? Do they adapt at all?
Syra adapts pretty well to her surroundings and situations. She's a versatile girl who knows she has parents and siblings who will help her if she needs.
44. How do they speak? Examples - Are they soft spoken, hot heated, vulgar
Syra is soft spoken, quiet and calm.
45. Are they opposed to violence?
Very much. Syra grew up watching her two older brothers getting into very violent altercations, especially when Arlo was feeling well. She usually would get in the middle of the two. She now knows why they'd fight.
46. When is their birthday?
Syra was born in Autumn, I think.
47. Are they quick to judge?
Not really. Syra is very empathetic.
48. Do they have anything they are trying to hide from others?
No.
49. Do they act different around different people?
No.
50.Do they enjoy the arts?
Syra enjoys theater, film and music.
10 notes · View notes
aphrodisians · 3 years
Text
◜     choi  yerim  ,  ciswoman  ,  twenty .     ◞     ┈     through     her     all     -     seeing     crystal     ball,     [     𝚁𝙴𝙳𝙰𝙲𝚃𝙴𝙳     ]     has     her     winking     eye     trained     on     hestia     jones.     the     ever - enigmatic     fifth     year     is     infamous     for     her     righteous     ways,     but     something     new     seems     to     be     weighing     our     resident     au     courant     down.     a     rumor     is     spreading     through     these     ancient     halls     like     fiendfyre,     &     even     their     erudite     face     can't     save     them     from     the     flames.     she     can     try     to     drown     out     their     sorrows     to     the     tune     of     goddess,     but     xana     can't     fix     everything     ⏤     much     less     something     as     grim     as     [     𝚁𝙴𝙳𝙰𝙲𝚃𝙴𝙳     ].     but     ten     points     to     ravenclaw     for     trying.
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hey  besties <3  i’m  cc  &  i’m  super  excited  2  be  here!  i’m  writing  your  local  hater,  hestia  jones,  who  i’ve  actually  never  written  before  but  i’m  really  excited  for  her.  anywhomstdve,  i’d  love  to  plot  w  all  of  you  &  i’m  ecstatic  for  this!
⠀ ⠀ ﹟𝐚𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬.⠀ ⠀
an  accidental  crack  of  a  book  spine  that  echoes  throughout  an  otherwise  silent  library,  never  letting  anything  pass  you  by  –  never  letting  yourself  be  unaware,  unwelcome  surprises  that  you  greet  with  flushed  cheeks  and  clenched  fists,  a  collection  of  skirts  stolen  from  a  mother  that  has  seemed  to  have  forgotten  you,  bruises  forming  next  to  the  scrapes  on  almost - broken  knees,  passing  tears  off  as  just  ‘my  eyes  are  sweating’  &  heavy,  heavy,  bags  underneath  eyes  that  just  never  seem  to  sleep.
⠀ ﹟𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐲
birth  name.    jeong  hyun - ae nickname(s)  /  alias(es).    hestia  jones. preferred  name.    hestia  jones,  only  hyun - ae  to  family  +  very  close  friends age  +  dob.    twenty  +  dec.  23 hometown.    belfast,  ireland blood  status.    half  -  blood house.    ravenclaw activities.    fifth  year  prefect,  ravenclaw  chaser,  chess  +  duelling label.    au  courant  –    aware  of  what  is  going  on;  well  informed ethnicity.    korean nationality.    irish gender.    cis  woman pronouns.    she  +  her face  claim.    choi  yerim
⠀ ⠀ ﹟𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝.⠀ ⠀
height.    five  feet,  seven  inches  /  170cm tattoos.    none piercings.    earlobes  only scars.    a  two  cm  line  that  lays  horizontally  above  her  left  eyebrow  from  falling  off  her  broomstick  during  her  third  year  at  hogwarts hair.    never  dyed,  meticulously  taken  care  of  but  rarely  styled.  naturally  falls  straight  and  is  often  left  down eyes.    round  and  dark,  accompanied  often  by  dark  bags  underneath  and  an  absence  of  makeup usual  expression.    stressed.  just  like,  if  you  look  at  her  you  can  tell  she’s  going  through  it  (  and  has  been  for  like  the  past  three  years  ),,,  she  needs a  break  but  she  will  not  be  getting  one  <3 distinguishing  features.    cheeks  that  always  seem  to  be  flushed  a  rosy  hue  of  pink,  bags  underneath  her  eyes  that  are  haphazardly  covered  with  fake  glasses or  makeup,  brown  -  hued  hair  that  just  always  falls  correctly
⠀ ⠀ ﹟𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧.⠀ ⠀
( + )  positive.    erudite,  bluestocking,  intuitive,  heedful ( - ) negative.    righteous,  hubristic,  zealous,  moralistic natal  chart.    triple  capricorn,  pour  one  out mbti.    istj  -  a,  investigator moral  alignment.    neutral  good godly  parent.    athena languages  spoken.    korean  +  english likes.    quiet  -  the  kind  of quiet  that  comes  only  in  the  early  hours  of  the  morning  +  in  restricted  access  zones  where  it’s  close  to  silence  (  but  not  quite  ),  victory  in  all  forms,  feeling  appreciated  tbh,  sleeping  but  genuinely  hasn’t  gotten  a  good  night  of  sleep  in  years,  the  color  yellow,  scarves  that  are  long  enough  to  wrap  her  entire  head  <3,  being  a  hater dislikes.    attention  (  though  she  is  overjoyed  /  obsessed  with  winning  ),  losing  -  a  notoriously  sore  loser,  being  out  of  control  in  any  situation  -  even  if  she  can  have  no  humanly  control  over  it,  nail  polish  (  because  she  bites  her  nails  :/  ),  actually  reading  i’ll  be  honest,  staircases quirks.    as  mentioned  above,  bites  her  nails  often,  doodles  when  stressed  (  which  is  all  the  time  )  -  is  halfway  decent  at  it  too  thanks  to  all  of  the  practice,  can  fall  asleep  in  two  seconds  if  given  the  opportunity,  taps  her  foot  a  lot hobbies.    being  a  hater,  being  obnoxious  enough  to  have  attention  (  aka  dramatic  )  n  then  having  the  audacity  to  complain  about  the  stress
⠀ ﹟𝐝𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐞𝐫
when  he  meets  your  mother,  he  tells  you  it’s  like  the  world  stopped  turning.  she  was  enchanting,  he  says,  like  a  rose  blooming  in  the  dead  of  winter,  a  blossom  of  red  among  a  blanket  of  white  -  and  he  swears  that  he  has  never  loved  anyone  more.  their  romance  is  swift,  a  bouquet  of  flowers  traded  for  an  engagement  ring  and  a  passionate  kiss  exchanged  for  the  start  of  a  family.  your  father  never  says  anything  bad  about  your  mother,  raising  you  on  his  own  with  a  faint  line  on  his  ring  finger.  she  will  be  back  soon,  he  says  with  glazed  eyes  and  love-flushed  cheeks  that  you  seem  to  inherit.  she  will  come  back  soon,  he  tucks  you  in  with  a  faraway  look  on  his  features  and  you  realize  with  a  ceiling  full  of  glow-in-the-dark  stars  that  he  isn’t  okay.  but,  you  hold  his  hand  when  crossing  the  streets  with  you  leading  and  you  let  him  dawdle  about  your  mother  and  you  pat  the  top  of  his  head  when  he  falls  asleep  waiting  for  your  mother.  she’ll  be  back,  he  says,  unaware  that  she  only  visits  when  he’s  not  around.  she  will  come  back  soon,  he  waits  for  her,  a  stranger  in  his  own  body.
you  yearn  for  control  the  way  your  peers  yearn  for  freedom.  freedom,  you  have  enough  of,  but  everything  in  your  life  is  just  out  of  reach.  for  your  entire  childhood,  you  grasp  at  everything  and  nothing,  your  fingers  brushing  past  the  things  you  desire  most.  you  are  a  young  girl  with  magic  in  your  blood,  but  you  watch  from  the  end  of  your  driveway  as  life  seems  to  spin  so  wildly  out  of  control.  your  father  isn’t  okay,  but  you  don’t  understand  why.  your  mother  comes  around  wearing  guilt  like  one  wears  a  birthmark  and  you  can’t  fathom  why.  you  are  left  alone  on  playgrounds  and  with  scrapes  on  your  knees  and  people  whisper  about  you  but  you  don’t  understand  why.  life  goes  on  with  or  without  you,  and  you  think  it  unacceptable.  it’s  infuriating  being  in  the  backseat,  unable  to  control,  unable  to  know.  when  a letter  falls  into  your  hands,  you  swear  to  use  it  to  your  advantage.  you  refuse  to  ever  be  in  the  dark  again.
you  arrive  on  your  own,  a  year  older  than  your  peers,  a  sheltered  girl  from  a  muggle  world  and  you  look  around,  determined  to  change  your  life.  it’s  obvious  to  anyone  early  on  that  you’re  a  bright  girl,  ambition  tied  into  your  intelligence,  potential  pouring  over  every  single  one  of  your  edges.  for  a  while,  it  comes  easily.  you  know  things,  you  understand  things;  most  of  all,  you  learn  how  terribly  things  can  go  wrong.  you  swear  to  never  let  that  happen  to  you,  but  of  course,  life  has  bigger  plans  for  you.  the  first  few  years  fly  by  quick  and  your  hands  build  up  a  reputation  that  you’re  eager  to  upkeep.  you  wipe  the  sweat  off  of  your  palms  onto  your  skirts,  you  might  use  magic  to  make  sure  your  hair  always  looks  good,  you  always  know  the  latest  news,  you  always  pass  your  classes.  then,  you  go  home  during  your  third  year  to  an  empty  house  and  your  father  is gone.
when  you  return  after  the  winter  holidays,  it’s  obvious  that  something  is  -  wrong,  but  you  do  your  thing  and  you  pretend  everything  is  okay.  your  mother  in  all  of  her  magic  and  love  writes  you  a  letter,  telling  you  that  you’ll  be  in  her  care  and  that  only  stresses  you  out  more,  giving  you  gray  hair  and  bags  underneath  your  eyes  that  never  seem  to  away  from  that  point  on.  every  blink  is  heavier  now,  every  sliver  of  information  repeated  as  least  three  more  times,  everything  you  learn  adds  a  little  more  weight  to  your  shoulders.  but  you  soldier  on.  you  become  more  and  more  high  strung,  more  sharp,  more  wretched  with  stress  that  shouldn’t  be  yours  to  shoulder.  you  are  still  an  intelligent  girl,  still  a  bright  witch,  still  gleaming  with  potential;  but  you  almost  permanently  look  like  you’ve  been  handled  an  impossible  task  and  worse,  you  wear  your  flushed  cheeks  almost  as  your  father  did,  a  fact  that  you  dislike  whenever  you  see  yourself  in  the  mirror.
⠀ ﹟𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧𝐬
⠀ ⠀  ﹟𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧.⠀ ⠀ has  a relatively  tough  exterior,  but  wow,  words  hurt  and  hestia  is  a  lot  more  sensitive  than  she  cares  to  admit.  say  one  off  thing  about  her  and  she’ll  be  all  “i  can’t  stand  it  here!”  and  storm  off  angrily,  but  she’s  really  just  gonna  go  cry  in  the  owlery  and  talk  to  the  owls  as  if  they  can  understand  her  through  her  snot  bubbles.
  ⠀ ⠀ ﹟𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧.⠀ ⠀ is  this  genius  of  a  witch,  right,  but  is  the  messiest  person  ever.  her  area  in  her  dorm  is  just  .  .  .  yeah,  it’s  messy.  she  comes  to  the  library,  throws  seven  books  down,  loses  ten  pages  of  notes;  is  disorganized  and  completely  messy,  but  at  least  she  always  looks  put  together.
  ⠀ ⠀ ﹟𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧.⠀ ⠀ coming  right  off  of  the  last  one,  because  she  cares  most  about  her  image  +  her  reputation  than  she  does  anything  else,  mostly  because  it’s  all  that  she  thinks  she  has.  so,  yeah,  she  may  be  consistently  stressed  out  and  on  the  brink  of  a  breakdown,  but  at  least  she  looks  GOOD.
  ⠀ ⠀ ﹟𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧.⠀ ⠀ her  style  is  a  little   .  .  .  amateur,  if  i’m  being  honest. very  season  one  rachel  berry.  always  looks  in  uniform  even  if  she’s  out  of  uniform  and  it’s  because  she  has  no  personality  than  being  a  ravenclaw  prefect  idk  what  you  want  me  to  tell  you.  she  has  never  been  normal  once.
  ⠀ ⠀ ﹟𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧.⠀ ⠀ i  laugh  and  kid,  but  she’s  genuinely  a  genius.  might  have  a  bit  of  dyslexia,  but  is  just,,,  a  smart  kid.  also  makes  it  her  entire  personality  though,  so  i’m  not  sure  what  to  do  about  that.
 ⠀ ⠀ ﹟𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧.⠀ ⠀ also,  not  to  be  That  Girl  that’s  so  quirk  n  clumsy,  but  hestia  is  always  injured.  not  gravely,  but  a  scrape  on  her  knee,  a  cut  on  her  cheek,  tape  around  her  fingers,  etc.  etc.  she’s  a  problem,  to  say  the  least,  and  always  hastily  takes  care  of  herself  (  aka,  cleans  it,  leaves  it  ).
 ⠀ ⠀ ﹟𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧.⠀ ⠀ in  general,  is  a  hater,  but  is  so  STRESSED  from  having  a  #missing  father  that  she’s  just  like  :|  in  every  situation.  i  wouldn’t  call  her  awkward  per  se,  but  she  definitely  just  says  what  she  wants  when  she  wants  cause  there’s  “no  point  in  quieting  myself  for  someone’s  comfort”  idk?
⠀ ⠀ ﹟𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧.⠀ ⠀ in  MY  canon,  hestia  actually  conjures  up  a  fox  patronus,  but  it’s  non  corporeal  for  now  simply  because  she  literally  cannot  focus  long  enough  to  cast  the  charm  correctly  –  in  fact,  a  lot  of  her  magic  has  been  suffering  for  the  past  few  years  due  to  her  stress,  something  that  really  only  stresses  her  out  more  rip  in  pieces.
⠀ ﹟𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝  𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬
academic  rival:   personally,  i’d  love  for  someone  who’s  just  naturally  good  at  academia  to  be  her  rival,  like  the  person  who  doesn’t  study  and  “doesn’t  care”  but  always  just  manages  to  beat  her  in  scores;  yeah,  i  think  that’d  be  fun  to  watch  her  spontaneously  combust.
significant  annoyance:  someone  who  really  just  is  the  person  to  tell  hestia  she’s  wound  up  too  tight  all  the  time  and  tries  to  get  her  to  live  her  life,  but  she  just  sees  them  as  someone  who’s  ANNOYING  HER  because  maybe  her  entire  life  is  being  uptight,  ever  think  of  that?  rabastan
quidditch  rival:  because  quidditch  is  really  the  only  time  she  lets  her  hair  down  per  se,  this  rivalry  is  more  friendly  than  it  is  serious like  the  academic  rival,  but  there’s  still  a  lot  of  trash  talk  involved  and  meet  ups  in  the  corridors  to  talk  shit  <3
best  friend:  the  one  person  who  she’s  like  .  .  .  super  grateful  for  because  they’re  always  there,  no  matter  what  she  goes  through  or  does  to  them  through  her  stress  induced  breakdowns.  you  know.  they’re  bffs  and  always  eat  together  and  spend  time  together  n  gossip  together.  eloise
tutee:  someone  that  either  hestia’s  offered  to  help  or  has  been  forced  to  help,  either  way,  she’s  as  strict  as  any  professor  and  takes  her  job  completely  seriously.  as  in,  will  approach  them  in  the  great  hall  and  ask  if  they’ve  done  the  work  they’re  supposed  to  do.
stress  reliever:  imagine  this  -  hestia  comes  up  to  your  muse  and  is  like  we  need  to  talk,  but  they  just  find  a  nice  seat  underneath  one  of  the  archways  and  talk  into  the  night,  they  make  hestia  laugh,  hestia  makes  them  laugh,  they  have  flushed  cheeks  by  the  end  of  it  and  she  doesn’t  speak  to  them  otherwise.  xenophilius 
their  biggest  anti:  ur  muse’s  #1  hater???  hestia  jones  <3  why?  probably  because  they’re  better  than  she  is  and  she’s  a  nightmare  of  a  person  so  it’s  just  her  being  their  biggest  anti,  probably  runs  a  hate  account  dedicated  toward  them  tbh  <3  rodolphus
The  Ex:  you  know.  the  ex.  didn’t  end  the  way  they  wanted  it  to  so  there’s  A  Lot  There.  longing  glances,  awkward  bumps,  lots  of  what-ifs  .  .  .  a  lot  of  sad  headcanons,  a  lot  of  wholesome  headcanons.  yeah
like  family:  just  someone  who  hestia  is  so  comfortable  with  that  it  feels  like  they’re  family.  and  by  family,  i  mean  like  the  kind  to  tackle  her  on  sight  just  for  fun,  the  sort  to  tease  her  and  make  everyone  believe  it’s  her  birthday.  you  know?
also  a  barely  filled  tag  here  n  anything  u  can  possibly  brainstorm  i’d  love  <3  thank  u  love  u 
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misiwrites · 3 years
Text
Beyblade Week Day 1
joining @beybladeweek2021 late but i’ll probably be doing these belatedly all may so, whatever! it is what it is.
i’ve never participated in a fandom challenge with writing before, but i was feeling adventurous this time and the seasonal themes were just perfect for the 4kingdoms AU-verse (which is this), i haven’t been writing much anything in so long that i’m mega rusty and thought i could use the bey week to do some warm-up oneshots. these aren’t going to be particularly interesting because i’m really bad at doing oneshots actually, but i like the idea myself and. that’s the only thing that really matters. right. (i’m not even sure if AUs are allowed for the beyblade week?? but the rules didn’t say anything about it so /shrug)
the day 1 oneshot is a little story from takao’s childhood about how he first met kyouju. this was inspired by my own childhood memories as the youngest sibling when i just wanted to hang out around my big sisters because i thought everything they were doing was Cool Big Sister Stuff.
~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~
Firsts / Childhood / Spring
”Takao! I’m trying to read this! Leave me alone already, will you?”
A groan of disappointment. Reluctantly, Takao backs away from his older brother by the desk, shooting him a frown of judgment and betrayal. Now, a quick change of tactics: he figures that, just maybe, Hitoshi allows him to stay in the room if he zips his lips to his best ability.
Wrong. Two silent minutes pass in the small study room until Hitoshi bellows at his brother again, swinging an arm in the door’s direction.
“I’m serious, you can’t keep doing this when I’m trying to do my homework!”
“I’ll just watch and keep quiet, I promise,” Takao insists, giving his brother his best puppy eyes.
“I can’t focus if you’re standing there! Now get out!”
Takao’s frown deepens; with heavy feet and a heavy heart, he trudges toward the sliding door. He doesn’t like this recent change in his brother, all this emphasis on what Hitoshi refers to as “important stuff”. Just because he’s now seventeen. Acting all high and mighty, pretending to be so adult and so important, too adult and too important to play with his younger sibling.
“It’s a very important time for your brother,” their grandfather responded to Takao’s fraternal laments once. “In one year, he will officially inherit the crown of the Seiryuu-ou. There’s much for him to do to grow into the role of the king before his coronation.”
Important this, important that. What about having fun, wasn’t fun important at all? And fencing – surely instructing Takao with the basics of fencing has to be important? Hitoshi’s fencing skills are second to only their grandfather’s, and Takao cannot imagine – doesn’t want to imagine – anyone else teaching him the art of the bamboo sword. And now Hitoshi is “too busy” to teach him, all of a sudden.
“But I’m boooored,” Takao whines from the doors, balancing his weight on his heels back and forth.
“How about you go study something too for once? You really should be reading a lot more than you do, you know. I don’t want my little brother to end up being a dumb prince who doesn’t know anything about the way the world works.”
Takao’s nose wrinkles in disapproval. The word “study” smells like old paper and dust and boredom.
“It’s the Sowmoon holiday now! And what the hell would I study?” he barks.
“Don’t cuss. Anything – whatever interests you. How about the history of the city?”
“Bahhhh.”
“The history of fencing, then. I don’t know – go to the library, take a look at the books or whatever, just leave me alone. I don’t have time for this.” Hitoshi lifts the yellowish document in front of his face and disappears behind it. A wall has risen between the two brothers.
* * * * * *
In the country of spring and year-round greenery, it’s difficult to stay sullen under the tranquil blue of the Eastern sky. Moments later Takao is skipping down the road that leads to the town of Tsuno below, his child’s heart already ignited with new-found hope and aspiration, his feelings of frustration shed by the sturdy wooden gates of the Cherrywood Castle and he's moving on, literally.
At first, the idea was dull at best; reading sounds like just about the flattest thing he could be doing on this beautiful Sowmoon day, a warm breeze blowing through his indigo hair as he carefully hops from one cobblestone to the other… but, in the end, it’s the wish to please his brother that has won him over. Now a plan is taking shape in his mind, the idea swelling like a balloon by each step he takes down the road, and soon his head is racing with the ambition of studying as many topics as he can think of; he’s dreaming up scenarios of impressing his brother with all his newly acquired knowledge, his brain buzzing and his proud heart thumping with all the imaginary praise from Hitoshi… and, just maybe, he’ll then agree to do something fun with his cool and smart little brother again.
So caught up in his daydreams, Takao hardly pays attention to all the familiar townspeople greeting him as he passes by their wooden dwellings and shops and stalls, and he prances past several flocks of tourists lingering on the streets of Tsuno, too busy taking pictures of the cherry blossom trees in their rare blue Sowmoon bloom to notice the royal prince walking right past them. Even if they did see him, not many would pay attention to him; people from outside the city would never imagine a member of the royal Seiryuu-ou family strolling around in a simple hakama without making a scene; but in the royal capital of the Country of East, this was a mundane everyday sight, and Takao was a regular guest of the pastry stalls on the main street of Tsuno. The townspeople loved to pamper this bold and friendly little prince, who hadn’t yet been spoiled by the privileges of the royalty.
Takao reaches the tall glass doors of the main library, only to face the reality of the numbers painted on the glass panel. Five minutes to closing time. So caught up in the rollercoaster of his imagination as he left the Cherrywood Castle, checking the opening hours of the library didn’t even pass his mind.
“Oh, hello, Your Highness,” he’s greeted by one of the kimono-clad library workers who spots him. (The surprise is evident; Takao is not a usual guest in the library.) “How wonderful to see you here. Are you looking for something?”
“Well, yeah, for something to read… but it looks like you’re about to close.”
But coincidence is on Takao’s side today, for the clerk tells him that the library is staying open for one extra hour every day this week.
“The reading hall has been reserved by Professor, a local researcher – but I’m positive he won’t be disturbed by Your Highness’s presence.”
“Really? Okay.” Relieved and triumphant, Takao enters the old-fashioned yet admittedly curiosity-inducing depths of the city library.
He quickly comes to the conclusion that he has underestimated the number of books in the world. Expecting there to be one of each subject of his admittedly limited academic imagination, he is instead hit by an entire universe of paper and ink and covers and words. The map of the library layout alone is full of complex characters that Takao hasn’t yet come across in his schooling.
Dammit.
In the end, Takao finds himself pacing back and forth a narrow aisle of local history books, looking for one with a cover that sparks interest. Perhaps he cannot read all the text, but at least he can look at the pictures.
That’s when he notices another person sharing the space with him, at the far end of the hall, where the shelves have been moved to hug the walls to make room for a reading area in the middle and the ceiling seems to climb up impossibly high under the arch of a dome roof. This person is another kid, hardly older than Takao, and he’s not paying the prince any attention in return; the boy is glued to the screen of a laptop computer that sits on a table in front of him along with several books, one of which has been spread open. Every now and then, his fingers dance across the keyboard at a speed that Takao didn’t even know a computer keyboard could be used with; then the boy crouches over to take a quick glance at the open book before turning back to the laptop again.
A curious sight. For a moment, Takao is tempted by the allure of calling out to this strange boy, to ask him why he’s still there after closing hours. He decides against it and swallows his curiosity. If there’s one thing that his older brother has recently taught him, it is to mind his own business and not bother other people hard at work.
* * * * * *
The next day Takao returns to the library, a pile of books in his lap that he leafed through all night last night. Hundreds of pages of buildings so old they probably stayed up in the pictures with willpower alone – so old that Takao half-expected them to crumble and disappear by the turn of a page, leaving empty picture frame squares behind.
He came to the conclusion that Tsuno’s history was perhaps not the subject to start from.
Takao returns the books, decides to try and find something about fencing, a subject he’s already in some way familiar with. (Between the important-looking books, he secretly slips in a story about Southern pirates; this one he’s not going to tell Hitoshi about.)
In the hall with the dome ceiling, the kid with the laptop is by the exact same table again. Only the array of books next to him is a little different… maybe. Takao is nearly seized by his curiosity again, but something about the air around this boy holds the lingering scent of “do not disturb”, so he bites his tongue once more.
* * * * * *
How could even books about fencing slap him in the face with all this wall of text?! The following day Takao once again turns up at the library, to return his previous findings that had only briefly managed to capture his interest with images of old fencing gear that were not only ancient but, as he ultimately decided, very ugly and stupid-looking.
What about archery, the other national sport of the East? Takao finds it boring and repetitive compared to fencing, but since books about fencing turned out to be boring, did it mean that books about the boring sport were, in turn, more interesting? It makes perfect sense, in Takao’s eight-year-old mind.
However, as he makes his way to the library at the cusp of closing hours again, he no longer pays much heed to the books. Instead, his feet take him to the reading hall under the dome right away.
Sure enough, the kid with the big round glasses and a laptop in front of him is there in his usual spot, all alone. And again the boy’s fingers are hammering at the keyboard faster than Takao can form a coherent thought about computers, the strange machinery that originates from the technically advanced Country of West for all he knows.
It’s been three days now, and Takao can no longer hold back his burning curiosity. Eyes on the strange boy, he takes small sideway steps between the bookshelves, inching his way closer and closer, until he reaches the open reading area under the arched skylights above.
“Hey,” Takao says as he enters the boy’s proximity by the table.
The boy doesn’t do as much as raise his eyes from the computer screen.
“Is there something I can do for you?” he asks, still typing away. The tone of his high-pitched voice is just slightly aggravated but his choice of words oozes formality, a strange speech pattern for someone his age. It throws Takao off a little.
“Umm, I’ve seen you here every day this week and was wondering what you’re doing, that’s all. You know the library was already closed, right?”
After saying this, the thought then passes Takao’s mind that perhaps this kid never leaves the library. Perhaps he’s not even aware that he’s in a closed library. What if Takao is talking to a ghost, haunting this remote corner of the library all day and night? Or, maybe, he’s nothing but a product of Takao’s imagination?
The boy’s voice is now so blunt in response that these phantasmagoric thoughts immediately vanish from Takao’s mind.
“Yes, of course I know. The library personnel was very kind to allow me this one working hour without other people disturbing me. So really, I should be asking – what are you doing here?” Now the stranger’s hands finally leave the keyboard and he lifts his eyes to Takao.
A moment of confused silence. Then the boy’s face begins to resemble the colour of a strawberry.
“Oh!” he squeaks and jumps up to his feet, only to bow his head toward the floor. “Oh, Your, uh, Your Highness! I am terribly sorry for being so rude! Oh, goodness me, how could I…!”
“Wow, calm down,” Takao interrupts, startled himself by the suddenness of the boy’s reaction. “And raise your head – I don’t like people bowing at me, it makes me feel weird. More importantly, what you said just now – are you saying you booked this extra hour from the library?”
Hesitantly, the boy straightens his back, which doesn’t increase his height significantly; now that they’re standing next to each other, Takao notices how small the person he’s talking to is, his head barely on level with Takao’s shoulders.
“Yes, Your Highness,” he says. “I wasn’t aware I was sharing it with the royal family, though. How thoughtless of me.”
“No, well, I kinda just walked in on my own, to be fair. So… you’re a researcher?”
“You could say so, I am indeed carrying out some research here. My name is Saien Manabu, but everyone calls me Professor.”
“Oh, wow. What exactly are you researching?”
“Right now I am writing a paper on the goddess cult of the Country of North. I know, it’s not exactly a topic that interests most children, but I find it so terribly fascinating…”
The mention of children – a nod to the fact that this boy, too, is a child just like him – makes Takao immediately feel more at ease. This person, albeit strange and overly formal and clearly too smart for his age, really is just a child after all. This notion alone is enough to make the kind-hearted and fairly simple-minded Takao like this boy more.
“Sure, that sounds cool,” he says with a grin. “Hey – you said you’re Saien, right? Like that ramen shop on the main street?”
“Yes, it is owned by my parents.”
“Well, it’d be real interesting to hear more about your research and all, but I’m kinda hungry, to be honest – the Saien noodles sound awesome just about now. How about we go there and then you tell me more?”
“Hmm. Well, I wasn’t making as much progress today as I wanted, in any case.” The boy, visibly at least a little relieved to get a break from staring at the screen, slams his laptop shut and tucks it under his arm. Then he flashes a friendly smile at Takao. “Very well, Your Highness. But my mother may pass out if I bring a member of the royal family to their shop all of a sudden, so please prepare for that.”
“Bah, just call me Takao, I’m not so into that formal stuff.”
“Alright, and you can call me Professor.”
* * * * * *
Once back in the Cherrywood Castle, Takao told both his brother and grandfather how much he’d learned about the Northern goddess Hiromi of time and space already; and from that day onward, Hitoshi never needed to refer to his younger brother as the dumb prince again, as Takao, who became a frequent visitor of the Saien family ramen shop both inside and outside business hours, never ran out of curious stories to share about all the things he learned from his new friend.
And while the royal Seiryuu-ou family wasn’t to stay together for much longer from the moment of this story, Takao and Professor remained best friends for many years to come.
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