#this post brought to you by me pleating my hair for bed and my whole brain going AAAAUGH at the length

[tmae3114]

my hair is Slightly too short and I’m fine it’s fine everything’s fine

[b00t-s]

We're all gossip-y bitches sometimes

this is part two

Janus xey/xem

Roman she/he

Patton he/him

Virgil he/him

See the character intros for more info

TW. Swearing, arguments, alcohol, drunk characters, the word v//mit is used once, characters being characters, past trauma mentioned, tiny tiny tiny sprinkle of angst but just a passing of it at end, and nothing to intense

Again, tell me if I'm being insensitive. Shout at me if I am.

Summary: Patton goes to talk to Janus about Roman. The group opens...'some' bottles. Virgil adds on some...interesting opinions.

Events occur few hours after this.

Janus just finished xeir nightly shift when Patton came bounding up to xem. Janus raised an eyebrow at how ecstatic he looked.

"Yes?" Xey managed out, forcing back the hundreds of snarky comments xey could of said right then.

"Can you hang out at My house later?" Patton practically beamed out.

"why would I want to 'hang out'? It's just a social construct created to give people a higher sense of being." Janus remarked, flipping to closed/open side to closed.

"So you'll be there?"

"hmm. Will doom-and-gloom be there?

"doom and---ohhh, Virge. Yeah, probably," Patton realised now that this was a bad mix of people to invite "probably-probably not for long though!"

"Fine" Janus replied, taking off xeir apron. Xey ignored the obvious lie. "I'll be there in an hour." Xey knew one way or another xey would end up there due to Patton's... effective persuading.

"Great!" Patton exclaimed "oh yeah, and...um...it's raining outside so..take my umbrella, kay?"

His tone more serious all of a sudden, Patton nodded to Janus' heavily made up face, so well done an ignorant bystander wouldn't of noticed the thick layers of foundation on xeir face.

Patton handed xem a translucent umbrella, patterned with cute frogs and flowers, to Janus. Ignoring the distasteful cartoons, Janus nodded and took the umbrella.

"See you soon, Jan!" Patton cheerily waved as he bounced off.

Janus folded xeir apron, opened Patton's umbrella and braved the outdoors.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Janus arrived at Patton's house exactly on time, bone dry, despite the heavily flowing rain. Patton expected nothing less of his friend. He invited xem inside, amazed as always by his friend's everyday fashion.

Jan was wearing a casual yellow shirt over a long sleeved black shirt. Fishnet gloves adorned xeir hands, and xeir ruffled hair was let lose.

Xeir fashionably messy hair was topped with a neatly placed black fedora, which of xey never took off. Xey even scarred persuaded Thomas to let xem wear it to work.

Patton offered xem a smile, and walked xem upstairs. "Hi Jan!" He grinned.

"Hello" xey replied mundanely.

Xey absent-mindedly glanced at Patton's outfit, which contained a violet cashmere sweater, bell bottomed jeans, circular silver glasses and a sunflower clip in his perfect curls.

It was a good look, xey had to admit.

When they both reached Patton's room, Janus stood still, taking in xeir surroundings.

Patton's room was covered with things from the 2000's; Tamagotchi's, stickers pressed up against the pastel wall, stuffed animals, wristbands, old CD's, care bears posters and butterfly clips littering the floor in a deadly trap.

A trans flag was pinned above the single bed with blue tack, right next to some inspirational and motivational quotes.

The whole place looked like it had been puked on by unicorns.

It hurt Janus' eyes.

Xey was a little overwhelmed by all the spiraling colours and nostalgia-inducing objects, so xey sat cross-legged in the middle of the pink carpet. The world slowed down.

Janus wondered, not for the first time, how a 29 year old could be this cheerful.

.

Or appear this cheerful.

"Jan?"

Janus gave a small twitch of xeir head, realising that xey had spaced out. "Hmm?" Xey replied.

"Hey, you were up with the clouds! I was just saying, I think Virge is here" Patton chirped.

"oh"

"he...might be staying for a little longer then i said"

"How wonderful." Janus muttered, knowing this would happen but hating it anyway.

"oh, don't be like that! I'm sure you guys could become friends!" Janus snorted. "Or...at least not kill at each other whenever you're in the same general area" Patton corrected.

"Anyway! I'm going to greet him at the door!" He suddenly proclaimed, skipping downstairs.

Janus was disgusted at how naïve this man was.

But that was a lie.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Patton slowed his happy skip to a casual walk. His grin slipped into a content smile as he reached the end of the stairs. Being so happy takes its toll on people, he thought. Soft tapping of the door interrupted his thoughts as he opened the door to reveal Virgil.

The first thing you notice about this man was his unfair tall-ness. He nearly had to duck to get inside; being too skinny didn't help. Virgil was wearing a plain black hoodie over a mcr top, completing the look with a short, pleated skirt and docs. His face was slathered in white foundation, accompanied with dark eyeshadow under his eyes.

"Virge!! I'm glad you could make it, even if you are late!!Again!" Patton hugged his friend, genuinely glad for his presence. The taller man patted Patton's curls awkwardly.

"Heyyyy Pat-" Virgil did the awkward pats on the back everyone does when they want to get out of a hug but don't want to say it in fear of hurting ones feelings. "Traffic-"

Patton withdrew from the hug and smiled. "okay! at least you're here safe! Can't control the traffic"

"Janus is waiting for us upstairs" Patton continued. He hurriedly carried on speaking before Virgil could spit out an insult about xem "say, you know what I hate about stairs? They're always up to something!" Patton laughed at his own joke, whilst Virgil pretended to face-palm, hiding a snigger.

"Alright, Alright dAd, didn't you say snake face was waiting for us?" Virgil mocked. Patton chuckled uncomfortably at the nickname, but nodded nonetheless.

"Yeah, we shouldn't leave xem waiting"

They both entered his room, having walked the short journey there in a comfortable silence. Patton noted Janus had not moved from were he left xem; xey had just shifted to read a book xey most likely found lying around. Janus looked up upon their arrival, xeir face immediately twisting into a mocking grimace upon seeing Virgil. "ah, you brought the racoon"

"Janus play nice--"

"you're one to talk, you participated in 2012 Tumblr" Virgil threw back

"must you be so wounding" Janus dramatically threw xeir hand against xeir forehead.

"okAY, that's enough guys." Patton firmly said. Janus pulled a face in reply, and Virgil returned the favour. Patton sighed. He just wanted them to get along, which was probably a high expectation by itself.

Perhaps he had booze leftover somewhere.

--------------------------------

Twelve near fist fights, two crying sessions and many, many, many bottles of alcohol later, it was nearing eleven pm and the group was drunker than a litter of catnip high kittens.

They all crowded into a close-knit circle on the bed, nearly falling off but not caring.

"ssso your telling me that flashy asss hhimbo sssssaid I wasss hot but then rude and that I wore too muchh makeup? What a *hic* bitchh" Janus hissed.

Patton giggled. "yeeeeee, be nice though! She was kindaaaa alllllllll over the place!" Patton continued bluntly, "But how would you feel if I set you guys up????~"

"oh pleassssse do, I would just love that" Janus may be trashed but xey still knew sarcasm. Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending who you are, Patton did not.

"yayyy! This is gonna be great!!"

Virgil butted in then, waving around the bottle he was holding "hold on, just holllld on a minute there, you're planning to set up that" he vaugly gestured in Janus' direction "with Princy??? Xey've known her for what, 4 minutes? Life isn't a disney movie"

"Dare I detect a hint of jealousy there emo?" Janus purred "am I that lovable?" Xey hiccuped.

"ooooooooh" Patton leaned into the circle, loving the drunk drama.

"wouldn't you like to know weather boy" Virgil droned back, finishing off the bottle.

"Honey, I would dare ssay that was a yesss"

"nO"

"oooooo, you liiiiike meeeEe"

"you disgust me"

"kinky"

Patton shook his hands excitingly at them, nearly hitting Virgil, causing them to shut up. "I can't believe you're finally open to a relationship after what happened! With my best friend no least! Boy did I try to get you to go on more dat--" Patton suddenly clasped his hands over his mouth as if he just said something nasty.

.

.

Everyone went silent. Janus stared at Patron, xeir mouth slightly parted. Virgil laughed nervously to try and break the tension. It sounded strained.

Janus began to speak to stop Patton from starting to spout drunken apologies. "Well thatssss jusst a liee, I've dated pleeenty of people over..well...that...period..of time."

Everyone went silent again, not quite sure on what to say.

Virgil's anxiety was heightening due to the social awkwardness and the influence of the alcohol.

Patton was fidgeting in his lap.

It was Janus yet again who broke the uncomfortable atmosphere.

"Sssso, *hic* you ssaid you wanted me to go out with thisss idiot?"

----------------------------------

first-previous-next

updated masterpost

tag list: @arrowthenon-binaryroyalty, @spellingwillbethedeathofme,

ask if you want to be added or removed from tag list

and we meet our boi virgil

context is for losers

i could of probably cut out unnecessary things in that but y'know I'm new and I like it

these posts will be in chronological order, unless flashback, but it's not following a set-in-stone story line, so asks are, yet again, much appreciated.

I procrastinated too much during the making of this

[uncommoncold]

My Beautiful Yeosang

Summary: Halloween is the perfect time for trick or treating. Seonghwa's trick? Yeosang's school girl uniform. Seonghwa's treat? The toy he placed placed inside his lover for the evening's festivities. (This is a post script to Lesson's Learned and the whole series doesn't need to be read to enjoy this)

Word Count: 3.2k

Content Warning: Sub Kang Yeosang, Dom Park Seonghwa, Exhibitionism, Sex Toys Under Clothing, Boys in Skirts, Masturbation, Cock Slapping, Public Sex Anal Sex

The roar of the train echoed through the nearly empty station. Yeosang pressed a little more closely to Seonghwa’s back. It was something that Seonghwa had originally mentioned doing more than two years prior but had never said anything else about it, until tonight. Yeosang had been sitting on the couch playing a game when Seonghwa told him they were going to a Halloween party on the island. He wasn’t entirely sure what he had been expecting but it certainly wasn’t what laid on the bed before him. There was a school uniform, that would be fine but it was a girl’s school uniform, complete with short pleated plaid skirt and thigh high stockings. He turned and looked at Seonghwa in disbelief.

The older man quirked a questioning brow and slipped behind him, his arms stealing around his waist, one hand dropping to press against his cock which instantly hardened at the attention. He pushed against him, “What’s the matter baby? Don’t you like your costume?” His voice dropped in timbre and carried a shiver down Yeosang’s spine. When he talked to him like that, there was little that he couldn’t get him to do and somehow, with a magic all of his own, he would make him love it or even beg for it.

“I-” Christ, he didn’t even know what to say. He pressed back against his lover’s long lean body. “I wasn’t expecting it.”

“It’s not just the outfit, it’s a game .”

Yeosang’s heart skipped a beat.

Another train rocketed past the station, the breeze caught the edge of Yeosang’s skirt and he hurriedly reached to push it back down. It was bad enough that his little lace panties barely kept his cock contained enough to keep the pleats in place but he didn’t really want to show them off to anyone but Seonghwa. He was sure he had been blushing since the moment they had stepped out of the car and onto the street. He clung desperately to his lover, trying to hide. Seonghwa reached behind him and caressed Yeosang’s hip soothingly. “What time is the next train?”

“It should be soon. What’s the matter? Don’t you like the idea that someone might see how hard you are right now?” Seonghwa’s light touch found him easily and pressed against his cock, then he started to lift the hem of his skirt.

“Seonghwa!” He hissed his name anxiously. “Someone will call the police on us.”

He laughed, “Only if they see us and they don’t want to just watch me playing with your pretty cock.”

For just a moment, his thumb brushed across the bare and leaking head and Yeosang shivered violently. “Please.”

Seonghwa turned, trapping him against a pillar. “Please what? You can’t want me to fuck you here, or do you? Or maybe you’re going to start begging me to let you cum. Is that it?”

Now that Yeosang was blocked from the view of the few other people on the platform, Seonghwa slid his hand shamelessly beneath his little lover’s skirt and over the curve of his ass. He traced the outline of the toy that was deep inside of him, his fingers slipped under the edge of the panties Yeosang was wearing to play with the toy.

Yeosang raised a pleading gaze but whatever he saw in his lover’s eyes stilled the words on his lips and instead he gasped, letting his head fall forward onto Seonghwa’s shoulder. He was doing his best to keep still but he found himself rocking, caught between the toy in his ass and grinding his cock against Seonghwa’s hip. God he wanted nothing more than to feel Seonghwa throbbing inside of him but he couldn’t, not here.

Another train roared into the station Seonghwa looked over at it before smiling back at him, “Our train is here.”

As Seonghwa stepped away, he noticed how obvious his cock was as his panties had worked their way down. He held viciously onto Seonghwa as he struggled to adjust them. Seonghwa lifted a hand to half suppress a laugh, “But your cock is so pretty, you should let everyone see how hard your dick is… and this little wet spot.”

Yeosang winced and pulled at his little pink sweater to cover the wet spot his leaking cock had left on his skirt. Every last minute of this was a thousand kinds of torture and somehow he just wanted more, he needed to see how this game ended. He managed to rein in his cock enough so that it was no longer obvious. Again, Seonghwa laughed and this time moved away to fall into step beside him. “You’re blushing.”  

“Whose fault do you think that is?” Yeosang hissed and lowered his chin to his chest, hoping for his hair to hide his burning cheeks. He could barely see where he was going, each step shifted the toy inside of him. He halted his step and whimpered as it touched that place inside of him. His legs were shaking, Seonghwa put an arm around his waist to help steady him.

“Are you okay?” His lips brushed against his ear.

“No.” Yeosang whispered as his hand fisted in his lover’s sleeve.

“Do you want to stop?”

This answer was longer in coming as he fought with himself, finally he shook his head. He looked up at Seonghwa, a light sheen of sweat glistened on his skin and his eyes were half glazed as he panted. “No.”

Seonghwa smiled and licked his lips, “God you’re so fucking gorgeous right now. Let’s go.”

They settled into seats on the train, he took the seat nearest the wall and Seonghwa sat beside him, shielding him at least a little. When he dared peek up, he saw a small group of teens at the far end, all of them in costume. There were a few others scattered here and there. One man was seated on the bench across from them one bench over. The train began to move.

Seonghwa leaned over and whispered, “Do you know how much I want to pull you onto my lap right now and fuck you? I don’t care who watches, I want them to see me making you cum. Do you want to cum on my cock baby? Do you want them to all see you riding me and moaning like a fucking whore? Like my fucking whore?”

Despite himself, a little moan fell from his lips. He felt the trickle of precum drip from his cock down over his thigh and between his legs to soak into the fabric of his skirt. He peeked up through the curtain of his hair that half covered his eyes and saw the man looking at him. He couldn’t help but think that the man knew, he knew what they were doing and what he was going through. A surge of alarm shot through him and he clenched Seonghwa’s hand that rested on his leg.

“Is he watching you?” Seonghwa asked in that same barely there whisper that was worming it’s way into his brain, down his spine, and straight to his cock. “Do you think he knows that I’m going to make you cum on this train?”

Yeosang whimpered.

The train came to a stop at the next station and the man took a last look at them and got off the train. No one else took his place, no one else got into their car. He peeked up and the teens had gone as well as one of the others.

“This is probably as empty as the train is going to get, baby. You better make yourself cum before before the next stop or who knows how many people will be watching you cum.” Seonghwa slid his fingers up over the edge of his stockings and beneath the edge of his skirt. He cupped his hand against Yeosang’s balls which were held neatly in the thin lace of his chaste white panties with their little pink bow. A good third of his cock extended over the top, leaking a steady stream of precum. “Do it.”

Yeosang began to flex his muscles, fucking himself on the toy. He watched in a mix of horror and fascination as Seonghwa brought his glistening fingers, wet with Yeosang’s precum, to his lips and licked them clean. He took a desperate look over Seonghwa’s shoulder and saw a woman looking their way but she didn’t seem to see or realize what was going on. All of these people were so close and none of them knew.

Seonghwa looked back and looked back at him, his lips still wet. “What? Are you sad they don’t know? I can pull you onto my lap right now.”

“NO!” He said a bit more loudly than he had intended. He bit his lips together and smothered the groan that wanted to escape. The hand that was wrapped around Seonghwa’s tightened and he buried his face against his shoulder. The rocking and vibration of the train combined with his own motions were driving him ever closer to that perilous edge. “I wish you were fucking me.”

“You would like that wouldn’t you? If I laid you down on this bench and made you scream for the entire train to hear? Would you scream for me?”

“Yes… God - Seo- I want…” He swallowed his words and bit against Seonghwa’s shoulder.

It was so hard to talk while trying not to scream or at least cry out. Seonghwa understood and whispered, “Are you going to come for me? Are you going to make yourself cum for me? Do it baby.”

One of his hands tightened against his shirt, rhythmically flexing and shaking with his grinding. Seonghwa’s fingers wrapped around the head of his cock, stroking his length inside of his panties. That was a step too far, he made a small choking sound as his balls tightened and the first wave of his seed shot into his lover’s hand. He was shaking all over and clinging desperately to Seonghwa as the last of his spasms subsided. Certain that his heart was going to beat right out of his chest, he panted trying to regain his breath. He felt Seonghwa’s lips against his, parting them with the gentle pressure of his tongue.

Yeosang melted against him, suckling his tongue and tasting himself. He couldn’t help himself and he didn’t care anymore as he whimpered into that kiss. When he looked up, he realized they were almost at their stop and at least two people were looking their way curiously though it seemed that even they had no idea what had occurred. Seonghwa was sitting with his back to them so that he shielded Yeosang nearly completely. “I don’t know if I can walk.”

“I can carry you if you can’t but your skirt might ride up if I do.” Seonghwa said mischievously.

“I’ll manage.” Yeosang said with a confidence he didn’t feel.

“Are you sure.” Seonghwa’s eyes sparkled.

“I’m sure.”

The train coasted into the station and Seonghwa stood up and offered him his hand, helping him to his feet. It took him a few seconds to steady himself as he leaned against his lover. Amazingly, people didn’t even look twice at them. It was funny how most people just accepted what they saw without looking deeper. They saw a man dressed like a vampire and someone in a school girl’s outfit and didn’t look any deeper. They made their way through the airport and within 20 minutes they were seated on the private plane to the island and in the air. They weren’t the only ones on the plane, there were maybe ten others but the moment they were seated, Seonghwa pulled Yeosang into a heated kiss.

Yeosang heard someone in the seat behind them make a surprised sound and say something about how they clearly couldn’t wait until they got there. If he knew his lover, and he did, then he was beyond hard and probably aching to be inside of him. He reached out and indeed, he was hard as blue steel and at Yeosang’s touch, he hissed and nipped at his lips. “You see what you did to me?”

“Yes… I like it. I like knowing that I can do this to you. Can I…?” He peeked around and though the seats were much further apart than on a commercial airline, there were indeed other people around. He had never been to the island on the plane and wasn’t sure whether or not such things were frowned upon or not.

A teasing smile tugged at Seonghwa’s lips, “Can you what?”

“Can I suck you?” He leaned closer and whispered it.

“Don’t you care who sees you? You are shameless aren’t you?” His dark eyes were absolutely riveted onto Yeosang’s.

“I don’t care … I belong to you. If you want to use me, then I don’t care who sees.”

“Jesus, you’re going to make me fuck you right here in front of these people. Is that what you want me to do?” He was driving him out of his mind and he had the feeling that he knew exactly what he was doing and loved every minute of it. Yeosang held every bit as much power over him as he did over his young lover. His slender fingers pressed against him, stroking him through the fabric of his sleek suit.

“Are you going to make me scream or do you want me to bite the seat to keep quiet?” He knew he was pushing him to the edge, the edge was where he might do anything. He could be unpredictable and maybe even a little dangerous when pushed but he loved to do it. He loved to see Park Seonghwa lose control and better yet, knowing he was the one who did it.

Seonghwa reached out like a flash, his hand winding in Yeosang’s hair and yanking his head back. Using the fake vampire teeth he was wearing, he raked them down the side of his neck, leaving two angry red lines. Yeosang yelped and then made a startled sound as he was pulled up into Seonghwa’s lap, his knees moving between Yeosang’s and forcing his legs apart and keeping them apart. He yanked up his skirt and rubbed his hand against the soft curve of his lover’s balls and half hard cock. He pulled down the top edge of the sticky panties and began to stroke until Yeosang was writhing and again leaking. Then there was a sharp slap. The first slap brought forth a startled cry. Then he slapped again and again and again, Yeosang tried to close his legs but Seonghwa’s held them firmly apart. He tried to bend forward, to get away but there was nowhere to go.

Then the stroking resumed but it lasted only a moment before the slaps returned twice as hard. He tried to keep quiet but as the pain grew it became impossible. Tears sprang to his eyes and trickled down his cheeks. Seonghwa turned his head to kiss him. The next slap came to his balls and his cry was lost in his lover’s kiss.  

Every nerve in his body screamed in agony and told him to fight, to try to get away. Seonghwa’s fingers closed around him once more and stroked, “I love you.” The breath that carried those sweet words tickled against his ear and against his neck, he found himself rocking back against his lover’s cock. He felt a drop of sweat fall from Seonghwa’s hair to his neck.

Seonghwa shifted beneath him and opened his pants. The toy slipped from him and for a moment he felt it’s loss, his body open and waiting. Seonghwa plunged into his depths, then another slap. Yeosang bucked back against him, fucking himself on the cock he was impaled upon. The more intense the pain, the more he moved. Just as he was sure he couldn’t take a single strike more, the stroking returned. He could no longer think, it was just a haze of sensation and the craving for more. His head fell back against Seonghwa’s shoulder, “I love you too.”

“Cum for me.”

The words rocketed through him with another strike and another deep penetrating thrust. He no longer knew where the pain began and the pleasure ended; they were one in the same. They built up inside him screaming to be released. His balls tightened and he arched forward screaming his release. He heard a dark growl at his ear as Seonghwa slammed up into him viciously. He felt him cum inside of him, the pulsing of his cock.

Soft lips caressed his lips and his face. Gentle arms turned him, enfolded him and rocked him. He lowered his head onto Seonghwa’s shoulder and closed his eyes. Whispered words of tenderness and love soothed the aches and wrapped his heart. “My baby is so good, so sweet. I’m so proud of you.”

He heard someone else’s voice asking if he was for sharing and he smiled sleepily as he heard Seonghwa turn them down, “No, he’s not my toy, he’s my lover.”

“That’s a shame, he’s beautiful.”

Seonghwa cast a loving eye on him, “Yes, he is.”

He heard their step retreating to wherever the questioner had come from.

“I love him and he’s all mine.” Seonghwa sounded almost dreamy himself as he spoke his thoughts aloud. One of his fingers traced over Yeosang’s lips and Yeosang kissed and suckled at it.

“Mm… I didn’t think you were awake.”

“I am… I think.” He still didn’t open his eyes, just snuggled closer to Seonghwa’s warmth. He felt a blanket pulled over him. “I thought you were going to wait until we got to the island.”

“I couldn’t help it. You drive me crazy and you know it. I think you did it on purpose.”

Yeosang smiled and hid his face giving a little giggle. “Maybe.”

“I know you did.”

“I like knowing that I’m the only one who can make you lose control.” Yeosang opened his eyes and looked up at the man he loved with all of his being. “I did make you lose control didn’t I?”

“You know you did. If we had still been on the train, we’d probably be in jail now.” Seonghwa chuckled and brushed Yeosang’s hair from his face, caressing his thumb over his birthmark which was still wet with his mingled sweat and tears.

“Seonghwa.” Yeosang lifted his head to press a kiss to his lips.

“Yeosang.”

“Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For loving me and for what you told that lady. You’re the only one I could ever belong to. You’re the only one I ever lose control for and give control to. Every last part of me is yours.”

“What am I going to do with you?” Seonghwa said with a quaver in his voice.

“Love me forever?” Yeosang offered with a sweet and almost shy smile.

“Forever.” Seonghwa kissed the end of Yeosang’s nose and cuddled him close. They sat together like that, wrapped in each other’s arms and slept, flying through the star filled night.

Other works can be found on my Master List

[quirkdotcom]

The Arrangement //

Shoto Todoroki x Fem! Reader

Part One: The Mall Incident

Part Two

Summary: Your father is a particularly strong pro hero, and owns his own agency, however, he seemingly has picked an opportunity for you to be the tie between his agency, and pro hero Endeavor's agency.

Authors Note:

One; I'm planning this to be a three part fic, my next update hopefully on Friday May 15th ! Let me know if you'd like to be on this specific taglist, or even a taglist for anything I post !

Two; I wanted to have a little fun in this, so I added in an OC of mine! I made the reader attend an unnamed school, where her friends wouldn't be main characters from MHA, and decided to throw in Maiko (my OC) anyways, I hope you enjoy !

"A student from UA? Is father okay? I thought he hated that school?" You had to stop yourself, had you really heard your mother right?

She sighed heavily, shaking her head slightly, "He does, however, your father is willing to look past the fact as long as everything goes according to plan" 

This time, it was your turn to sigh.

This 'plan' was one of you meeting some student, your parents meeting, and at the end of the day, agreeing to a marriage after graduation.

You knew that you really had no choice in the matter, which is why you had never put up a fight about it, but it didn't mean that you were particularly happy about it.

Quietly, you stood up, excusing yourself from the table and your mother, leaving the dainty tea cup where it sat.

"Well, since the meeting with this student will be this weekend, I'm going to go out and buy an outfit for it." You bowed your head slightly before turning and leaving the room.

Now out of sight of your mother, you stretched, stifling a yawn as you made your way to your room, grabbing your phone from your pocket, sending a quick message to your closest friend, asking if she'd accompany you to the mall.

The two of you attended a private academy focused on teaching it's students to not only strengthen their quirks, or accelerate their academics, but also in etiquette and manners. Everything was about being proper and elite.

It was the very same school that your father had transferred to after his time at UA.

You personally didn't quite like it there, at times some students tried to pick on you, or the teachers would reprimand you for even the slightest mistake.

But, just like the marriage arrangement, you had no choice in what school you attended, your father was hellbent on you following his steps, and staying the hell away from UA.

Regardless, you had eventually made some friends, and for the first few years, you scored in the top of your class.

"Oh, (Y/n) while you're out, would you mind picking up a few things for me?" Your mother's voice rang out from behind your door, breaking your train of thoughts.

"Just make me a list, and leave it on the counter!" 

It didn't take long for you to change out of your uniform and into something comfier, or for you to grab your messenger style purse, or to find the list from your mother. With your father gone, there were no distractions or unnecessary lectures.

What took the most time was getting to the mall. You could have driven, but it was nice out, the sky was clear of clouds, and there was a light breeze that flowed through the leaves in the trees.

So, you took to walking. Though, when you got to the mall, your best friend was standing with her arms crossed and a bored look on her face.

"(Y/N)! There you are! I've been waiting for hours!" She gave a dramatic sigh as you walked over.

"Calm down Maiko ! " you chuckled, she was almost always over dramatic, something that had drawn you to her in the first place.

She gave you a playful wink, and nodded her head to the doors, starting to walk inside, "Whatever, we both know that I can't calm down," she paused, giving small jazz hands, "I've got constant anxiety" 

"Ah, the curse of having a third eye quirk," You followed behind, then moved to the side of her. 

"Oh! What's the occasion for today's trip?" Maiko tucked a piece of light brown hair behind her ear, eyeing you as she waited for a response.

You hesitated, she still didn't know about the whole arranged marriage, and it had been about a month since you had found out.

"Oh...my family and I are meeting another family for some business thing, so I needed to get a new outfit in case they have a son or daughter our age, " You spouted off a lie, knowing that she'd fall for it, only because she trusted you.

"Ooooh another potential merger for your dad's hero agency?" 

You nodded, pausing as your stomach gave a quiet rumble. 

Despite the lunch you were having with your mother earlier, you didn't really eat. 

"Hey, let's get something to eat first," You point to the nearest food outlet.

Before you know it, Maiko and you are each tossing fries to the other, both failing to catch most in your mouth, but you are having a good time regardless.

Once out of fries, you and her are left with your milkshakes, hers chocolate, and your's strawberry. Something kind of impulsive as you haven't had one strawberry flavored in a few years.

"Hey, I think we could probably take these with us to go look for an outfit," Maiko picks hers up, already a third of it gone.

With a nod, you stand up, grabbing your shake and bag, waiting for Maiko before heading off to your favorite store.

"Hey what about this?" She held up a pleated, light blue skirt, it would stop just above your knees, and complimented you very well, "It even has real pockets!"

"And I could wear it with this shirt...and maybe the jean jacket we found earlier?" You smiled happily, holding up a plain white t-shirt, a small v neck cut, nothing too extreme but not too plain.

Your friend placed the skirt into your basket, and you followed suit with the shirt. All that was needed now, would be to grab the jean jacket from earlier.

However, as you turned, you ran into a...hard surface and along with you, came your half finished milkshake.

You stumbled back, eyes wide as you realized what had just happened.

"Oh my gosh, I am so-"

But the male cut you off, his voice monotone as he did, "Save it, just move out of the way, I need to clean my shirt," 

You quietly moved to the side, watching as the moody stranger walked away, leaving you and Maiko to recover.

He had red hair...well only half of his hair was red, and the other half was white, leaving you to wonder how much hair dye it had taken to get it to look so perfect. 

"Well...I wish I could've helped you see that coming...but uh..I got the jacket?" She smiled sheepishly, causing you to let out a nervous laugh, releasing the tension you didn't know you had.

"Okay, cmon lets go pay!" You turned, still reeling from the encounter with that guy..but hey, at least you wouldn't be seeing him again! 

So, with that thought in mind, Maiko and yourself brought your chosen outfit to the front counters, paid and left the store.

"Hey, are you doing anything tonight?" You turned to Maiko after some five minutes, a thought in the back of your mind, nagging at you since you had left the house to meet her. 

"I don't think so! Why, is your mom cooking tonight? Anything she makes is always better than your dads...or yours," she poked her tongue out at you.

"Wha?! Hey! Im not that bad of a cook!" You pouted and crossed your arms, turning away from her, "Well I did have something to tell you but now its not happening," 

She immediately moved in front of you, "Wait no! Your cooking is good! Just tell me the news!" 

"It'll have to wait for my house, it's kind of big news…"

And with that, the two of you set off for your house, Maiko calling her mom and letting her know where she'd be for the night. 

The walk was spent talking about anything and everything, and at one point Maiko tripping and you having to catch her, but hey, that's what friends are for. 

As you approached your house, you spotted your fathers car in the driveway, causing you to screw your face up in dread. 

Hopefully he didn't have a lecture for you, especially if Maiko was here. You had always hated how he seemed to pick on you whenever your friends were over.

And much to your dismay, when you walked inside he met you with a sour look, "(Y/n), where have you been? Don't forget about this weekend's meeting, not to mention the exams coming up," 

You bit back a response about how the exams were two months away, and instead just nodded your head, busying yourself with slipping your shoes off, "I was buying a new outfit for our meeting. I told mother before I left."

He paused, now eyeing you and Maiko, "And came home with...Fujino was it?" 

She nodded, even though she practically lived at your house for a week at a time due to the amount of sleep overs you had, your father had barely bothered to remember her name. 

"Im sorry for not telling you ahead of time, Sir." She bowed her head slightly, only really apologizing because she knew that if she didn't, it would come down on you. 

"Make your way to (Y/n)'s room, I still need to have a few words with her," he commanded, waiting for her to go up the stairs before he continued.

"And (Y/n), do not forget how important this marriage arrangement is. The Todoroki family is powerful, Endeavor is rising in his ranks as a hero, and his son will follow suit. You have to make sure that you are seen as exemplary, no mistakes can be made. Do you understand?" 

You paused, heart hanging heavy, "Yes father…" 

Once he let you go, you made your way to the top of the stairs, seeing that Maiko was waiting for you, a worried look in her eyes, "So...a marriage proposal?" 

"Welcome to the news I had for you…" 

You two moved into your room, the bag of clothes dropped onto the floor, and you climbed onto your bed, grabbing an orange bunny plush, hugging it to your chest.

"Okay so I wanted to tell you about the arrangement but...I dunno, its hard. I'm having my choice taken away from me and for what? So my father and this other hero to have a more powerful agency?" 

"(Y/n)...im so sorry that you've been going through this alone. I'm here for you, whatever you need!" She moved to a swinging chair you had, sitting in it carefully as she thought for a moment, "So, you've never met this guy or his family?" 

"At most I know his family name. But Im too busy focusing on school work to pay attention to how his father is "So high up the ranks" or whatever. Its like my father thinks that this 'Endeavor' guy is the number two pro hero or something…" You puffed out a breath of air, pursing your lips as you thought quietly. 

Maiko stared at you for a few minutes, blinking a few times as she tried to break the news to you. 

"Uhh..Endeavor...as in Enji Todoroki?" 

You looked up, nodding quietly at her puzzled look. 

"(Y/n) he is the number two hero...or wait..if All Might retired a few years back... then number one actually!" She hummed as she herself started to think but eventually shook her head, eyes widening. 

Maiko quickly pulled out her phone, typing hurriedly into it and gasping, "(Y/n) wait! His son goes to UA! His son is reportedly one of the Big Three of his class!" She stopped, scrolling, "uh oh…" 

At this, you scrambled from your spot to her, pulling the phone from her hand to look at what the cause of this 'uh oh' was. 

It was a picture.  A picture of Endeavour's son. He had red and white hair, and a glare so deadly it probably would kill someone on sight. 

But what got you more was the fact that this was the guy from the mall earlier.  You had totally spilled a strawberry shake all over the number one hero's son, and the guy who you would be marrying after graduation. 

"This is...this is fucked. Im so screwed! Not only did I embarrass myself but now I've probably made it seem like im a clumsy girl who likes to shop all the time and now this...Todoroki guy is going to tell his father about me and then it'll ruin the arrangement and my father will kill me." You spouted off more worries until Maiko grabbed your shoulders, shaking you lightly.

"Hey! We aren't planning your funeral yet! Maybe we can meet up with him before you have to meet with his dad! I think I know one of the students at UA!" 

You looked to her, your breathing returning to normal as you nodded along, maybe that could work after all.

"Okay so, we ask whoever you know to get his number and text him about how it was me who spilled the drink and I wanted to apologize...and that Im also the girl he's meeting this weekend!" 

Maiko punched her fist into the palm of her hand, "Okay, lets set this plan into action! I'll text Kirishima!" 

You eyed her, realizing that you had never questioned how she knew anyone at UA, "While you do that, mind explaining to me about whoever this Kirishima is?" 

She only smiled for a moment, putting her phone down after sending him a message about Todoroki, "Oh! He and I work in the same coffee shop! Not everyone is super rich you know, but he's pretty nice guy, kinda cute too. But, you know how my mom is. Im surprised that she let me be friends with you, I swear, she's scared of anyone!" 

You gave a 'Mhhm' to her, knowing full and well that this was the coworker who she tended to talk about but never named, knowing that you'd probably show up to her work to try and get more information.  But hey, you'd leave it at that for now. 

"Well...I guess that now we wait for Kirishima to hopefully send us Todoroki's number?' 

"Now we wait! And with our good luck, by Wednesday we can smoothen out what happened at the mall…" 

You nodded once, as much as this plan seemed rickety, you were willing to take the chance. While you hated the idea of a marriage to whoever this young hero may be, you know that if you messed it up, your father would never let you live it down. 

[romewritingshop]

Say you won’t let go

Fandom: Choices, Perfect Match

Relationship: Damien Nazario X F!MC (Name: Peach Park)

Warnings: Slight talk of smut, fluff, vomit, graphic death, alcohol drinking

Word Count Total: 2797

A/N: I’ve been in an emotional mood and so I was listening to Markiplier’s cover of ‘Say you won’t let go’. The song makes me so emotional and I thought Damien and Peach needed it. So I wrote this fic and posted it. I’d recommend listening to the instrumental or the lyrical version while reading. Instead of posting a sneak peek, I thought I could post the whole fic so here it is.

Markiplier Cover - Say you won’t let go

Instrumental Say you won’t let go

CHOICES MASTERLIST

Tagged: @ravenpuff02​ @ephemeralsunsets​

A low jazz voice hummed in the air of his office as Damien examined the evidence for his current case. This stalker was impressive in covering their tracks and Damien was struggling to connect the strings of graphic art and threatening love letters. His office was strewn with red tape and papers, almost as if his evidence board had come to life. Nadia Park’s case was proving to be his biggest challenge yet. He ran his hand through his hair and stood away from his desk, trying to see the case from a different angle.

A knock rang on the door as Damien grunted and opened the door, only to see the familiar dark hair that faded into light curls. The person turned to Damien and he held his breath in his neck. It was his client’s cousin, Peach Park, dressed in a fitted light pink button shirt that seemed to make her stature taller than she actually was. Accompanied with a bright orange pleated skirt that made her legs glow. She certainly looked amazing and different, she was usually dressed down in a t-shirt and jeans or a denim dress.

It was a welcome change and Damien gave a brisk nod to let Peach in. He assumed she wanted to see the progress of his case and he had no qualms about it. The client has a right after all, he glanced back through the door and noticed Nadia Park wasn’t there. He furrowed his eyebrows and turned between Peach and the empty hallway. Damien closed the door and took in Peach and realised that her face had more of a shine as usual. He felt a little hot under the collar but the window was closed. He had never been alone with Peach and no matter how many times he thought about it, he hadn’t believed it would happen. Until now that is.

“Hello Miss Park, what brings you to my office tonight?”

Deep down he hoped she came for him but a man can only dream. Remaining professional with her helped dampen his desire and need to know her more.

“How many times have I told you to call me Peach? If you don’t call me Peach, then I’ll start calling you, Mr. Nazario.”

As much as Damien would love to be called that, it also reminded him of how much older he was as he rubbed the back of his neck. He could never get over saying her name, he’d often repeat it to himself in the dead of night. He could never understand the power she had over him as he gave her a small smile.

“Sorry, Peach.”

“That’s better.”

“So do you want the run-down for what I’ve got so far?”

Damien went around her to grab a list of potential suspects when he felt her hand on his wrist. Damien almost audibly gasped at her sudden contact as he took in her slim fingers around his wrist.

“Actually Damien, I’m here for something else.”

Damien felt his heart rate increase steadily as his brain ran through different scenarios, some good but mostly bad. She probably doesn’t want Damien on the case anymore; she found out about Beitan; she doesn’t need him anymore. He must have gotten lost in his head as he felt a shake against his wrist. Damien escaped his mental hell to see Peach in front of him, a soft comforting smile. Her eyes were a cave full of life and wonders and Damien could feel himself getting lost in them.

“I wanted to ask if you were free to have a drink with me?”

Damien blinked as he slowly took in her words. A drink? With him? Was he dreaming? He hoped not as he repeated the words.

“A drink?”

A soft laugh came out as Peach smiled.

“Yes, a drink.”

He wasn’t meant to say that aloud as he felt his cheeks and ears heat up at her words. She had the softest sweetest laugh that reminded Damien of wind chimes blowing in the wind. He never felt like this with Alana and it really riled him up in the core of his soul. She took her wrist away to straighten her skirt and Damien was close to begging her to bring her touch back but he held back. It wouldn’t seem professional as she went on.

“You’ve been working so hard for my cousin, I thought I’d offer you a drink as a way to say thanks. And to probably give you a break from looking at photos all day.” His heart warmed at the fact that she was concerned for him. It was a redeeming quality of hers as she gave him one of her sweet smiles. “It’s on me the drink.”

Damien would’ve gladly given her his soul, even before she asked. Damien smiled and took Peach up on her offer, grabbing his jacket and keys and locking his office door.

Several hours later, Damien and Peach swayed from side to side, trudging up the steps to her apartment. The both of them giggling about the moving wallpaper and the rainbow cats. Damien could not remember anything as Peach reached into her clutch, pulling out her apartment key. She missed the keyhole three times and only managed to get it in with Damien’s help, They pushed the door open and stumbled in, Peach blindly tapped the walls for the switch. With pure luck she found them as she turned to Damien with a finger to her lips.

“Sh! You’re going to wake up Nadia!”

“Nadia doesn’t live with you!”

“I know! You’re going to wake her up!”

“Okay.”

The both of them wobbled against each other and just about reached the living room, Damien plopped himself on the sofa and Peach followed, falling face first onto Damien’s lap.

“Ah! My cojones!”

“What’s that?”

“My drawers!”

They giggled at the word and took a moment to breath. There was a comfortable silence as Damien ran his hands through her hair. It was coarse but she purred at the slow contact, he smiled in his drunken haze. It has been a while since he was in such a happy state as he glanced down at her but Peach had a slight grimace on her face. Her stomach grumbled as she pushed herself up to face him.

“I’m gonna vomit.”

Damien registered the word vomit and slowly got up, helping her stand and taking her to the bathroom. He could feel the alcohol muddling his brain as he just about opened the bathroom door. She dropped away from him and brought her face close to the toilet seat. Sounds of bile splashed against the water as Damien dropped to his knees beside her and grabbed her hair into a pony, with one hand. The other rubbed her back in an upwards motion to help her get the vomit out and Damien watched her hair. 

He had seen worse things in his life but he’d take the sight of her vomiting over anything else. He cooed at her softly and once the groans of pain lowered, he grabbed some toilet roll for Peach to clean her mouth. After emptying her stomach, Peach took the tissue to clean her face and lifted her head to look back at Damien. He felt all the alcohol in his system flush as she threw him a loving smile that he felt she only gave to intimate lovers. She murmured a soft thank you that had Damien heart pump harder, she was sitting back and she brought her head close to his sternum. Damien placed a tentative hand on her arm as he hummed at the close contact. He shouldn’t take advantage of her like this but he wanted to indulge in his deep fantasy. He felt her lips brush against his button shirt as she spoke.

“Do you want to stay over tonight?”

Damien felt his heart melt at her sweet request. Many times a night he had dreamed about staying in Peach’s house, in her bed but he looked down at her drunken state. She wasn’t in the right state of mind and she was only a client. She was a client’s relative and Damien knew it would be overstepping boundaries. As much as he deeply wanted to, he knew he couldn’t so he shook his head softly.

“I think that you should get some rest.”

~~~~~~

Damien heard the train whistle of his kettle go off as he put away his newspaper and grabbed two coffee mugs, placing the filter paper on top and the beans. He poured the green coloured kettle into the mugs and got rid of the filter papers, letting the mugs sit and stew with the rich caffeine. He glanced at his bedroom door, hoping Peach wouldn’t get up and ruin his surprise but the door hadn’t moved. He grabbed the two mugs and walked out of the kitchen and straight into his bedroom, a warm smile grew on his face.

Peach was still asleep soundly as her curves heaved up and down slowly. The comforter was off her body and her body was spread into a misshapen starfish. Damien shook his head as Peach often loved spreading her body out and popping her behind into the air. He could never understand how she was able to sleep in that position but she looked adorable. Her mint green shorts had ridden up to show the zebra stripes of stretch marks on her back thigh and the bumpy surface. He went around the bed to his side, placing the coffee mugs on his bedside drawer and leaning on his arm to take a better look at Peach.

He brought his hand to the edge of her shorts and pulled it down slightly so Peach wouldn’t complain about her shorts riding up. She loved the way they felt but they often caused more harm than good as Damien smiled to himself about the complaints she’s made. Her navy blue camisole brought more prominence in her love handles and sleeping on her front, pushed her breasts together. She looked utterly stunning in the morning, it is because it was the first raw thing that Damien would see. He was so glad she was his.

As if sensing something, Peach forced her eyes open to see her love, Damien leaning beside her. A full chest of dark curls on display and dark horn rimmed glasses sitting on the bridge of his nose. There was a slight softness near his stomach yet he still looked built and lean in the many years before they were together. His grey sweatpants hung low on his waist and that sweet trail of hair disappeared into the waistband of the pants. The both of them took in the other with unashamed, unjudging eyes as they gave a soft greeting to one another.

“Hi.”

“Hi.”

Damien brought his lips to press a short kiss to the brow of her hair and reach behind him to present her with her mug of coffee. It had a picture of Damien on it and she was able to wake up even more. She pushed herself up slightly snuggled into Damien’s side, kissing his collarbone and wrapping her hands around the mug.

“Just what I need.”

“I know.”

She took a deep sip and exhaled blissfully, letting the warm coffee seep into her blood and liven her soul. Damien too took a sip of his coffee and purred with content at the sweet warmth.

“This is amazing.”

“Isn’t it?”

Damien curved his eyebrow up as if suggesting he was amazing. Peach rolled her eyes and took another sip.

“I meant the coffee.”

“What about the company?”

“Could be better.” Damien pinched the side of her waist as she yelped excitedly, before she nestled further. “It’s perfect. you’re perfect.”

“That I am.”

A few minutes later, they both had finished their coffee as Damien took his and her cup to place on the bedside table. He had a cheshire smile on his face as he brought his hand to her shoulder for her to lay down, he held himself over her as a few strands of hair drooped down. Peach smiled and brought her hands to his cheek, taking in the slightly overgrown beard.

“Now we’ve got a few minutes before the morning really starts.”

“What are you going to do about it, Nazario?”

“I’m going to have my way with you.”

“Think you can be quick about it, old man?”

Damien smirked as he slotted himself in between Peach’s legs as the hair on her legs tickled Damien’s waist. Damien loved Peach’s body hair, the way it would brush against the back of his thighs when she’d wrap her legs around his waist, it would send chills through his body. Peach is really his. Before he could lean in to kiss her, the door opened and small footsteps thumped in the room. Followed by high pitched squeals, tiny bodies jumped on the bed, latching onto Damien and Peach.

Small round faces and bright eyes as a boy and girl jumped with unbelievable hyperness. Damien and Peach’s kids: Sofía and Gael. Both were seven and six years of age, they had Damien’s looks but Peach’s excitable personality. Damien rolled off of Peach and sat up on the bed, taking his daughter into his arms and Peach took Gael into hers. Damien turned to Peach and raised an eyebrow at her, as if blaming her for their kids interrupting their moment.

She rolled her eyes and brought Gael close, kissing his forehead and cheeks. He repeated many ‘I love yous’ and ‘Mummys’ while Sofía watched her dad with curiosity. She had her excitable moments but at this current moment, she was just like her dad. Perceptive and clever as she spoke up in spanish.

“Papa, qué hacías?” Dad, what were you doing?

Damien glanced nervously from his daughter to Peach, who watched the both of them with amusement.

“Nada, Princesa.” Nothing, Princess.

Peach stood up from the bed and arched her back, stretching the knots made in her sleep. She got both her kids to go out the room and told them to get dressed so that they could go to school. Damien watched his love care so deeply and once the kids went to the other room, Peach stood in the doorway of their bedroom. Their kids are the best thing that has ever happened to him and he could never dream about anyone else. Damien got up to Peach and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close to his chest.

“I wanna dance with you right now.” Peach laughed her sweet laugh as she swayed along with Damien. “I love you and I wanna stay with you until we’re grey and old.”

“I think that’s already starting to happen. I can see a little grey in your beard.”

At that she rubbed her palm over his cheek, fingers brushing against his lip. Damien opened his mouth and took a bite at her finger before placing a soft kiss and nuzzling his head into her shoulder. She was the one for him, her soft smile and bright eyes gave light to Damien’s life. He was so glad to bare his soul to her.

~~~~~~

“NO!”

It was too late as Damien pushed against the restraining hold of Hayden. Harley had Peach in his grasp and he pressed his fingers deep in her neck, a loud crunch of bones echoed in the room. They were back at EROS and just as they were about to break free and blow the facility up, Cecile had activated the hive mind control which took over the minds of all the matches. Hayden included. Damien felt his heart smash to pieces and time moved slowly, as Peach’s round body fell to the ground. There were no emotions for Damien to express the scene in front of him as he stared at Peach. Her bright hue was gone and replaced by a grey sickening colour and death claimed her bright lively soul. The love of his life was gone right before him, he closed his eyes to purge the uncomfortable thoughts of Peach.

~~~~~~

Damien opened his eyes to see himself in a clear tiled room, not the EROS facility or at home with Peach. Soon he heard the loud taps of heels and found the devil in front him. A smartly dressed woman with piercing green eyes and angry red hair: Cecile Contreras. She looked down at Damien with a sickening smile and turned her face forward to the screen behind Damien.

“Response is good. Up the dosage and add twenty milligrams of delysid. You’re doing very good, Damien. We’re close to creating the perfect match.”

[thefairygodmotheryoudeserve]

Thank You, Dear Last Night’s Mental Breakdown.

| Barista!Han Jisung Au |

 💌  Requested? Yes --  @jone-00​

🌸  Genre: Fluff, a hint of a hint of Angst. As much angst as a Strawberry flavored La Croix has Strawberry.

✏️ Word Count: 2,600

!GIFS ARE NOT MINE!

T/W: Mentions of a mental breakdown, doesn’t go into detail.

A/N: Get ready, you bean. We about to enter some emotional and fluffy territory. Bring yo shades-- to look cool AND to make sure people can’t see you crying.

Also I’m sorry if this secretly sucks and I have no idea. Leave your thoughts so I can improve and know what’s good and what isn’t! I read all feedback and they all are important to me! <3

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You breathe out, the light sunshine kissing your lashes as your eyes flutter open. The buzz of your alarm fills the air.

Your eyes glide softly to the dress you hung up on your bedroom doorknob. The early sunrise sets the warm shadows of your room across the lightly pleated skirt. The fabric’s rosy pastel-pink hues are cast onto the white paint of your door.

You breath in, and out again. Let’s begin.

You had a mental breakdown the night before. They aren’t an irregular thing for you, but you wish badly they are. After crying, trembling, and crumbling slowly for hours, you stopped suddenly. You clenched your fists and stared, determined, into your very own eyes through that mirror.

I’m not going to let you fall apart like this anymore. I can’t-- I won’t.

So you stood up, breathing shakily. Scared, you started making preparations for what you were determined to be a better tomorrow.

What can I do that would make my younger self proud? You jot down ideas that would suddenly come to you as you set clothes out, put trash in a bin, and tried your best to write reminders.

“Making your younger self proud” has always been a way to measure how happy you are with where you’re at in life. You saw it in a newspaper, or maybe your mother heard it-- it might have even been a popular Tumblr text post, who knows! You just know it’s been your compass to point you in the right direction for about three years now.

You have an emotional attachment to the things you went through as a child, and if you could go back in time and just hold her, and tell her everything would be okay, you would. Doing things that would make younger-you smile is your way of doing that.

I’ll go to the cafe in a pretty dress that makes me feel happy, you wrote carefully. You remembered as a child dreaming about romantic cafes and old books. You sighed, releasing pent up air, feeling your muscles relax, little by little. If I did that, I think that would make my younger self proud...

By the time you made it to your bed that night, it was only 9:12pm. You fell down in your bed and closed your eyes, feeling your space. Your favorite-but-forgotten dress that now hung there on your door; the sneakers you once bought yourself and have finally decided to wear; the alarm clock that, for the first time in three years, was set for 6:00am; and a notebook full of ideas to return to the person you never were but always wanted to be, that sits on your bedside table.

You fell asleep, muscles relaxing. You, melting into your bed, almost becoming one with it.

* * *

Fast forward to where we started-- you are sitting upright in bed and staring at your dress. It seems to stare right back at you. Can you really do this, Y/N?

“Can I do this?”

Yes. I will.

You swing your legs over your bed, and you feel the fear begin to fall away like an old skin being shed from a new body. Suddenly, you feel light and happy, slipping on the bright-white wedge sneakers. The dress glides down your body, the fabric sending shivers up your spine as it falls into place.

As you pull the zipper up the side of your torso. you think about what you’re going to order when you get to the cafe. I haven’t been there since my mother came to the university to drop me off. I miss her... what did she order that day? I hope I can remember once I get there.

* * *

The jingle of tiny bells above the door tickles your ears as you swing the glass door open. The cafe is mostly empty, other than a mother and her child quietly sitting in a booth by the window. Succulents and aged books lined hanging shelves on either side of the room. The hanging lights gave the cafe a soft industrial feel, and the glass pastry displays made the room that much sweeter. Mom had chosen this cafe because she said it felt like a secret place that only few knew about... She liked how special it felt because of that. You smile softly at the thought of your mother. I think ill come here more often. I miss her.

A boy from behind the counter snaps his head up to look at you, his blond bangs tossing lightly as he does so. “W.. would you like something?”

You snap out of your daze and realize how long you’ve been just standing there in the doorway, staring at everything. You lock eyes with the boy.

“Oh! Uh-- yeah, I’m sorry! Ahm...” You stutter.

“Don’t worry about it!” He waves it off.

You brush your hair behind your ears and walk to the counter. You quickly read his name tag. Jisung.

His bright smile puts you at a light and airy ease. Maybe I wasn’t as awkward as I thought I was being...?

“Have you been here before...?” He tilted his head to the side like a little kid, eyebrows raised curiously.

Wow. That was attractive.

“Um, kind of... i’ve only been here once. When my brother-- mother!-- brought me... yeah, haha..”

Sparkling conversationalist.

...Wait-- don’t insult yourself! Be positive, Y/N!! You can make your younger self proud today!!!!

You open your mouth to speak, but you don’t know what to say, so you immediately shut it again.

Why is talking to pretty boys so hard?

NO! JUST GO FOR IT! F L I r T !! WHAT DO YOU WANT IN LIFE, HAH?

“...So anyway, that’s basically all we’ve got at this cafe right now.” He looks at you, smiling patiently.

Wait, has he been talking to me this whole time? Agh! I haven’t even been listening!

“Oh! I forgot, we also have--”

“Do you come here often?”

Well. You just made things worse, didn’t you?

“What?”

CODE RED CODE RED CODEREDCODEREDCODEREDCODEREDCODEREDCODEREDCODEREDCO

This is not a thing that makes your younger self proud, Y/N. This is the opposite.

YOU JUST ASKED THE BARISTA IF HE COMES HERE OFTEN. YOU NOW HAVE PERMISSION TO RIP OFF YOUR ANKLES.

You watch in horror as he stares at you, frozen to the touch, with those eyes.

“Oh! Did you ask me if I come here often? I thought I didn’t hear what you said at first. Yeah-- I work here actually! Thanks for asking!” I smiles, oblivious to your failed flirting.

“Oh, um. S-sure thing!”

Mission... not abort..ed?

Well-- This means I don’t ever have to think what happened ever again! Wonderful.

You aren’t sure if he’s actually dumb or if you just suck at reading him-- but either way, there’s no escaping the situation now. Unless you’re willing to literally sprint out of the cafe and run all the way back to your apartment, lock the door, and cry in the shower.

But, unfortunately for everyone else, you aren’t willing to do that.

“Um, when my mom came here, she ordered something really specific, but I can’t remember what it was called or anything...,” You say hesitantly.

“Yeah-- Don’t worry at all! Do you remember what it looked or tasted like at all?”

His enthusiasm encourages you and you feel brighter. “Yeah! Uh, it had strawberries in it, and a special kind of cream-- I think? And then there was this special topping she got on it. It was green? The topping? Sorry if that sounds totally dumb, but I just now that it-- they-- were green, I guess, haha!” You feel your heart start to beat faster the more you talk to him. Why am I nervous? and stuttering?? It’s just a drink, jeez.

Suddenly excited, his eyes squint with a wide smile. “Ooohhh! Were they mint spirals, maybe? I love those soooo much!!!”. You don’t even know what those are, but that isn’t gonna stop you from nodding excitedly with him. It would have been hard not to. When he smiles you kind of just want to join on the thrill, I guess.

You notice a whisper of heat brushing against your cheeks as he turns to the chalkboard behind him and points at a meticulous drawing of a fluffy pink drink. “Did it look like that??”

Excited to have found your mom’s favorite drink, you nod, a big smile leaving your eyes in the shape of giggling crescents. “Yes! Yeah! That’s exactly it, I think!”

His sunshine-smile turns half shy. “Great! I’ll get that just for you then...,” He softly says. He turns his back to you as he hurries around behind the counter to concoct the drink.

Were his cheeks flushed like that this whole time?

... Whatever...

You carefully sit down at one of the pretty little cafe tables closest to the counter so you can be ready to grab your drink as soon as it’s ready. You have maybe a few minutes, so you pull your notebook with the chestnut leather cover out from your purse. You open the middle of the book to where you urgently wrote down the ideas the night before.

things that would make my younger self proud of me:

- keeping a journal

- keeping my body clean

- wearing the clothes that make me feel peaceful

- waking up at a time that makes me feel happy

- wearing the clothes I’m scared others will judge me for

- going to the cafe in a pretty dress that makes me feel happy

- talking to people I feel like talking to but am scared to

- going on a cute date say sike rn

Smiling to yourself, you use a pencil to put a check next to the third-to-last one. You thought of scratching it out, but you didn’t want it to be gone from your precious list completely... you feel you’ll be coming back soon. You like how it feels.

Nevertheless, you are glad you’re here. You’ve gathered the courage to come here when it’s been so hard for you lately! You look down at your lap and give a sigh of relief. Closing your eyes, you take in how it feels to be here.

It’s different, but warm here. It smells of both exotic and familiar flavors. The lullaby effect of the fluffy low-fi music overhead mixed with the gentle metallic sounds of Jisung working behind the counter is somehow comforting. You lift your head and peak over at him slyly, watching as he leans against the mixing machine. He seems to be waiting on something.

You watch almost in shock as he slowly peeks over his shoulder to look at you, making quick eye-contact on accident. You smile instinctively-- not even knowing why.

He turns his face back to what he was doing as soon as this moment happens and you notice a smile he’s hiding and the blush that’s growing on his face. You turn your body to see more of his turned-away face from where you’re at, and as you do, you spy the massive smile he’s desperately trying to hide. Oh dear, he’s adorable.

Bubbles rise in your stomach and your lungs seem to fill with cotton candy as his undeniably-cute, blushing self hits you all at once.

-- o h. Oh n o.

You lean back in your chair again, suddenly very worried.

No? No. No!

It always gets bad once I get crushes on people.

You make an immediate promise to yourself to not at all drop any hints that you kind of want to mayhaps hold this almost-stranger’s hand. Flirting is fine when you don’t actually like the person-- once you genuinely develop feelings, it’s absolutely not a good idea anymore. Everyone knows that. Good, cute things with crushes only happen in fan-fiction and Wattpad stories.

Sike.

All of a sudden, you notice the sound of clinking and whirring has stopped from behind the counter.

“Am-- uh-- am I interrupting you... at all, or something?”

Reality crashes into your view again as you tilt your head up and to the side to lock eyes with Jisung. Ah.

“W--what?”

“Ahm, you just looked kind of... really worried about something.” He furrows his brows, confused. “Anyway-- here’s your drink!”

“Oh-- thank you! Yeah, I was just-- thinking about something! Haha!

He sets your drink on the table and pauses for a moment. “By the way, your dress is really pretty, I think.” Jisung Blush: Activated. “Don’t mean that in a weird way! I just thought you maybe might like to know...”

🎵 KISS KISS FALL IN LOOOVE 🎵🎵🎵🎵

“Oh, thanks! I actually tried this morning, haha!”

“Oh, yeah? Well I think you look great. But you already know that, i guess, haha..” Jisung Confidence: Boosted-- Reason: Compliment Accepted.

You feel your ears heat up as you avert your eyes, looking down at your drink. “Thanks again! It’s funny because I didn’t even have an occasion to dress up for. I just sort of did it to treat myself, I guess.” You smile softly, proud.

“Isn’t that enough of an occasion? I think celebrating yourself is a worthwhile thing.” He sits down across from you, muttering something about how nobody is going to show up to the cafe in a while.

You look up at him, smiling in agreement. “Right? It really helps to take care of yourself. I think it’s one of the best ways to pick yourself back up from something hard.”

He tilts his head like he did before, but this time with worry. “Are you going through something..?... Oh, you don’t have to answer! I pry without thinking first sometimes...”

“No, no! It’s okay. I don’t mind talking about it to others, it’s good for people who need to hear it...” Why do I feel so comfortable with telling him about this..? I’m sure it won’t do any harm. He’s being genuine after all...

“Well, if you really do feel like telling me, we won’t be having customers again until about 10:30-ish. I’m all ears!”

Your heart said: Oof.

As soon as you start explaining the night before and all that lead up to it, he leans in, his hands cupping his face, intent on every word you say. You tell him about all the stress, issues, and fears-- both self-inflicted and otherwise-- that are holding you down lately. He nods and listens, asking clarifying questions.

You notice how his reactions remain compassionate when you talk about the hard things that are happening because of your own mistakes. A feeling of warmth and safety sets in after you finishing your monologue. You apologize for taking so long-- maybe thirty minutes?-- but he immediately tells you it’s all okay.

“No, please don’t say sorry!! I really am grateful when people share what they are going through with me... It helps me to connect with them better and find ways to help them feel better. Don’t be sorry.” He softly smiles and gently asks if you are all done.

“Yeah-- heh-- i’m done. Thank you so much for listening! I’m really grateful I have-- had-- someone to listen to me...” You rub your eyes worriedly, afraid you might have started crying at some point while telling him the whole story.

He stares down at the table for a moment, quiet. “Hey, wanna be random?”

You giggle. “Always.”

“Wanna go on a date?”

“What?”

“I understand if you don’t want to. You seem to be working through a lot of things right now... I don’t want to--” Jisung Blush: Reactivated And Intensified.

“Yes.”

“WhAT?”

“Yeah!.. I think that would be awesome.”

Jisung is suddenly beaming, which makes you instantly happier. Dang, mirror neurons are so cute.

[galadrieljones]

A Funeral: Chapter 1 (Arthur x Mary Beth)

Fandom: Red Dead Redemption 2 | Pairing: Arthur x Mary Beth | Rating: Mature

Content: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Touch-Starved, Humor, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Angst, Violence, Hurt/Comfort, Fake Marriage, Epiphanies, Backstory, Banter, Deep Emotions, Sharing a Bed, Swimming, Arthur to the Rescue, Forests, Abduction, Angst, Heavy Angst, Mutual Pining

Summary: To help her process Sean’s death, Mary Beth asks Arthur to take her on a hunting trip, somewhere far away. He agrees, and on their journey, they find quietude and take comfort in their easy bond. In their desperate search for meaning together, they endure a number of trials, some small, some big—all of which bring them closer to one another as well as to the future, and to the unchecked dangers of the natural world.

Thanks @bearly-tolerable for the lovely banner!! <3

For the rest of this story, you can visit the masterpost, or find me on AO3 as galadrieljones. Links to both can be found in the replies to this post. ^_^

Chapter 1: A Proposal

It was morning, and the sun was creeping, and he was on his third cigarette with his hands in the soil, picking thyme flowers. They grew like wild out here. He had removed his gloves and set them back on the saddle where Sarah shuffled against the brush, her big hooves. He took enormous comfort in the sounds of her hooves like they were a mother’s voice or the touch of a woman.

When he returned to camp, it was still quiet. This swamp country stank. He did not take well to it. In ways he wished to return to the mountains where at least the air felt clean of infectious filth. His lungs hardened. In the swamp everything was soft and this made it feel like sinking. Even his internal organs felt soft. His skin, his eyes. Everything but his hands, which were hard leather mitts, but that was an old complaint that only women noticed anymore. The other day, he picked up a bucket of water for Mary Beth, and she commented on them, asking if she could see.

“Your knuckles are cracked to high heaven, Arthur Morgan.” That is what she said as she held one of his big stupid hands in hers. He knew it was not a compliment. Mary Beth was canny. She would read her books and write in their margins with the fountain pen he had brought for her, a thing he’d found in a dark corner of some abandoned cottage near Emerald Station. Sometimes, she got the ink on her hands, which were much softer than his, in the winter regions and in the swamps. He carried that bucket for her that day and he filled it for the wash, which she would later do, and any time she did it, he swore his shirts came out smelling more like lavender than before.

He put all the thyme in a basket, which he carried back to camp, holding Sarah by her reins. He spat and smoked and chewed a little tobacco and then he found a little mint, which he chewed as well and some of which he stored for later. His eyes were tired but his back still felt strong. He did not think of himself as a young man or old. In fact, he did not think of himself much at all.

He gave the thyme to Miss Grimshaw. Tilly said hello to him and showed him some of her knitting. She was good at little things like that, he so often thought. He fed the horses with help from Lenny who then went away to brood quietly beneath a Tupelo. The day was coming alive. He heard Jack’s voice somewhere and the dog. He did not want to go too near the fire for fear that he would be harangued by one of the boys, and he was not in the mood. He did not feel like robbing that day.

He went back to the house to find Mary Beth, a sort of habit. She was out on the porch, doing her reading and her writing in the margins as usual. She had her hair out of her braids and a cup of coffee and a piece of bread on a tin plate. When he came out onto the porch the floorboards creaked, and she looked up as if alarmed. But she kind of smiled a little sly when she saw him, and as usual, he felt a little dumb but it was all right. He lit another cigarette and stood out there, just looking at the unlucky country that was the swamp. He breathed and felt that smoke rattling in his swampy lungs.

“Hi, Arthur,” she said, not looking up from her book.

He had his hands on his hips. He went and sat down on the other side of the sofa. It was a cold and ragged sofa. It barely had any stuffing left at all. “My lady,” he said, absentminded. He rested his elbows on his knees for a minute. He leaned and took his journal out his back pocket. He thought he might maybe sketch a dumb plant or something. Maybe the surface of the water and how it did not hardly move.

They sat like that for a while. No talking. It was only the scratching of their pencils. Out front of the house you could hear Bill getting his bullshit on first thing in the morning, and Karen who seemed to cackle, and more Jack playing round with the dog. Abigail had grown a little sullen since his kidnapping and return. John went to her each night now. Arthur didn’t much know or care what had begun to rekindle between them, if anything at all, but he did notice a change. For the better, of course, when it came to the happiness of the boy.

“Arthur,” said Mary Beth after a little while.

“Yes,” said Arthur. He had sketched a dense stretch of pussy willow. For all of its despair, the swamp did make for nice scenery.

Mary Beth closed her book. She straightened up then as if she were about to say something important. Arthur looked at her. “What’s the matter?” he said.

“Remember when Sean died,” she said, looking at him. She was concerned.

He bit the insides of his cheeks like an old habit. “I do.”

She sighed like she felt stupid. “I’m sorry.”

“Go on, Mary Beth. What’s on your mind?”

She turned to him with her knees. Somewhere, there was a big, ugly sound like a gaggle of birds, pitching off into the daylight. “Afterward, you kind of…disappeared.”

“I don’t know that I’d call that disappearing, Mary Beth,” said Arthur. “Disappearing is disappearing. You don’t come back.”

“You know what I mean,” she said. “It was almost two weeks before you returned.

“And?”

“Where did you go?” she said. She had begun to examine her fingernails. “We was all wondering. The girls. You know we worry about you.”

“I know.” He waved her off. He fashioned a toothpick from behind his ear and set it between his teeth. “Ain’t no reason to worry.”

“Yeah well, you would say that.”

“I was hunting,” said Arthur. He looked at her. She had a calm disposition but there were storms inside. “I took my old horse, Diana. We rode north of the Grizzlies. We camped the whole way and we hunted a bison.”

“A bison?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Mary Beth got quiet in her hands and face. “That is what you did, then? To process his passing.”

Arthur sighed. He wrung his hands a little. “I suppose. It wasn’t much.”

“It is though,” she said. She was getting earnest now. She had red cheeks. “Was it something?”

“Excuse me?”

“I said, was it something? Getting away like that. Being up there, just you and Diana.”

“Diana didn’t much like it,” said Arthur, smiling. “I retired her shortly thereafter. Her hooves took a beating on those trails.”

“You know what I mean.”

“I do,” he said, chewing that toothpick. “You holding up okay? I know you and Sean was close.”

“I wouldn’t say that,” said Mary Beth, shrugging. She set the book aside and looked out at the swampy expanse. “He was kind of a fuck-up.”

Arthur laughed. “Ain’t we all.”

“You held him tight though,” she said, looking. “You were good to him, even though he had it coming.”

“He was young,” said Arthur.

“Some of the girls said you felt responsible. But it wasn’t your doing. It wasn’t Arthur. Nobody blames you but you.”

Arthur did not speak.

Flies were buzzing everywhere all around them, like a symphony. It was hot out, and very humid.

“I should say, I would like to go hunting,” said Mary Beth, after a little while.

“You?” he said. “A hunter?”

“After mama died I hunted some.”

Arthur laughed. “Shooting snakes with bb guns ain’t hunting, Mary Beth.”

She shoved him. “It was a rifle,” she said. “And it wasn’t snakes. I shot a squirrel.”

“A squirrel?” He acted impressed. “That would be a sight to see.”

They both smiled. “I would like to go hunting for something big,” she said. “Arthur. I need to process all of this, too. I am so bored, I think the pleats in my skirt have lost their stick.”

“That would be the humidity, I expect,” he said.

“Please?” she said.

“Please what?”

“Next time you go, hunting. For something big, far away. Camping and such. Breathing the air. Let me come with you.”

He gave her a look. “You’re serious?”

“Yes, sir.”

He raised his eyebrows, considering her offer. “It ain’t all romantic in the sights of nature,” he said. “It ain’t comfortable living out there, Mary Beth. The way I do things.”

“I know that,” she said. “You don’t think I understand uncomfortable living, Arthur Morgan?”

“No, I didn’t mean that,” said Arthur. “I know you can hold your own.”

“Then let me come with you.”

“I don’t know the next time I’ll be going, Mary Beth. These ain’t really affairs that take much planning. I pretty much just get on my horse and ride.”

“I am just as good at that as you are.”

“Riding horses?”

“No, Arthur. Living spontaneously.”

Arthur thought on this. He had never considered his way of life to be spontaneous. He often felt over-encumbered by the knowledge he was forced to use forever when stepping into the dangers of the wilderness. “You may be right,” he said after a little while. “And I suppose you have a point.”

“So you’ll take me with you?”

“That, I will,” said Arthur, sending a smile. “I don’t know when. Could be tomorrow. Could be in two weeks.”

Mary Beth was overtaken with excitement. She grabbed his face. She kissed him on the temple, smelling like apples. “I will be ready,” she said, and she got up to go, like she was going to get ready right now.

“Where you going?” he said, still sitting there. He liked her company.

“Got to prepare,” she said. “Mentally. I got another book I want to read.”

“We ain’t going this instant.”

“I know, Arthur Morgan,” she said, smiling. She left her book. “I know.”

When she was gone, he looked at her book and how it was perfectly sitting there, some shimmery thread in the binding. Out on the swamp he saw one of those gators then, just sitting there like a lump. It was a dumbass but it was a danger to the undiscerning. He got up to go warn the caretakers of the camp, and then to get his rifle off his horse, for he was going to shoot it dead.

[imagineclaireandjamie]

More Mute please? Happy holidays everyone!

Previous parts can be found: HERE.

Mute Part 8.i - Leaving Leoch:

Sliding his hand along the soft expanse of Claire’s leg, Jamie let the gentle sounds of the tweeting birds pull him awake. Still sleepy and half intoxicated he remembered the events of the night before.

Their wedding had been an incredible thing. It was supposed to have been small and intimate but the moment that Mrs Fitz took over things had gotten out of hand. Not that he minded of course, anything to show his love for Claire publically and without apology wasn’t something to be sniffed at but he’d seen the stress alight on Claire’s face as the day had worn on.

They had said their vows first thing, pledging themselves to one another with Murtagh translating Claire’s signs for the priest and from there on out most of the day was a blur of food, liquor, conversation and dancing. For the most part the inhabitants of Leoch had let their guards down in relation to Claire. Watching her dance, her head neatly lain on Jamie’s shoulder as the piper had played well into the night, his notes as flawless as the bards singing, each and everyone of them saw nothing but love emanating from the newlyweds.

Even Dougal had kept his hands to himself, thank goodness.

But Jamie got the feeling that their stay at Leoch was about to come to an end. With Dougals’ continued interest and Claire’s growing fatigue, Jamie sensed that it might be nearing the time to take Claire back to his home by birthright. There, at least, he could properly investigate gaining a pardon as well as surrounding Claire with a more familial warmth.

Slipping her legs apart, Claire gasped soundlessly as Jamie’s hands roamed freely. He was lost, she could tell, to the drunk haze that surrounded them both but she was hyper aware of him. Rolling her hips backwards, she thrust her naked behind against his groin using her foot to link through his calf - pulling him closer still.

Licking her lips she felt him slip between her thighs, his hard flesh suddenly anchored solidly between her legs. But she didn’t want it like this, not on the first morning of their marriage. She wanted to turn herself around, lie flat and pull him over her but the weight of him beside her, pushing her deeper into their homemade cot, stopped her from being able to. Unable to voice the words required to wake Jamie and have him move with her, Claire opted for rocking them to and fro, her hands keeping Jamie firmly against her as she tried to use the motion to pull him from his slumber.

She could feel his hot breath on her neck as his fingers gripped her hips. It bordered painful, but just as the sensations began to drag Claire under, Jamie would magically calm loosening his hands as if compelled to do so.

Claire was on the brink. The maddening sensations of Jamie thrusting unconsciously between her legs leaving her desperate and wanting whilst *nearly* tipping her over the edge. Opening her mouth, she turned her head to the side, gripped him with as much force as she dared to use and silently cried out as she used his body to aid her own climax. Her heart was thrumming in her chest by the time she realised her release had -finally- pulled Jamie from sleep.

Gathering her up in his arms, Jamie gently turned Claire over, moving himself over her as she let her legs flop bonelessly against the thick straw bedding beneath them. “Morning, mo nighean donn,” Jamie whispered, no need to raise his voice in the dim morning light. “Good morning...my wife.”

Cracking her eyes open as much as she could, Claire read his lips as he rolled his groin against hers. She was sated, shattered from her own surprise orgasm but the sight of him above her, his eyes trained solely on her as she shook involuntarily beneath him, brought her round a little.

“Ye can rest longer,” Jamie sighed, nudging his nose against hers in a cute motion that made Claire smile softly.

She shook her head, her thighs keeping Jamie pinned in place as her skin prickled with goosebumps. ‘No.’ She mouthed, running one hand along the length of her supine body as the other brushed through the short stubble that had arisen on Jamie’s face through the night.

“Canna leave me wanting, lass?” He returned, adjusting himself so that he lay poised and ready.

Claire let her head tip to the side, her smile widening as she nudged him on with the base of her foot against the roundest part of his arse.

“Jamie!!” The mad knocking on the door made Jamie twist his head as he grasped the bedclothes tight, thinking that at any minute he might need to cover Claire.

“What is it Dougal, can I no’ have the morning wi’ my wife?”

Lying calmly beneath Jamie, Claire ran her hands over the length of his taut stomach, waiting patiently for him to shoo away whoever was disturbing them. She could feel the distinct rumble of irritation run through Jamie as he spoke with the invisible visitor but she wasn’t about to give up on their amorous morning joining just yet.

“I think ye’ve had enough time wi’ that one, aye? Collum has asked for us. Get yer lazy arse out of bed and up to his rooms...and fast lad!”

“Collum willna mind if I’m a wee bit late. Bugger off, Dougal. Leave us be. I’ll be wi’ ye in a few hours. Whatever is it, it can wait.” He cooed, turning and leaning in to kiss Claire, a long languid kiss that assured her that he wasn’t getting up to leave any time soon.

“Fine, laddie. But on yer head be it.” Dougal grumbled, leaving the pair alone once more.

As Jamie turned, Claire slid her hands down to rest on his arse and pulled him flat against her, not wishing for the moment to be interrupted again. It was quick; Jamie set a punishing rhythm as soon as he entered Claire, his hip bones hitting the inside of her thighs over and over as he lost himself to the joint sensations of lust and love racing through the blood in his veins. He wanted to go slow, to watch and feel as her whole lower half rose up to meet him but there was something primal about the way she’d brought him to and he couldn’t hold back.

With a short sharp cry, Jamie came apart, his hands almost tearing the thin sheets apart as he shook. Claire, still half-sated beneath him, wrapped her arms around him and brought him to her chest slowly, basking in the heat emanating from him. She knew that once he woke from his post-orgasmic haze he’d have to dress and go and find out what Collum wanted from him. But for now he was hers.

“I haveta go, mo nighean,” he panted, falling to the side as he peeled his left eye open and smiled softly.

Claire nodded, her hand coming up to rest gently against the slope of Jamie’s face.

| ‘Come back soon though, alright?’ | She signed with her free hand knowing that he probably couldn’t understand most of what she was trying to communicate.

But he had, at least, gotten the gist of it.

“I’ll be home soon, promise.” He whispered, forcing himself from their cot and dressing (purposefully) very slowly, giving Claire a very clear view of his bottom as he re-pleated his kilt.

Unwilling to brave Leoch on her own, Claire pottered around their self-made home above the stables, making sure everything was clean and tidy. She knew that there was always the surgery if she needed another task to keep her occupied but the space was sullied now by the various assaults on her person. Hopefully, though, now she was actually married to Jamie he would leave her alone but until she’d been assured of that, she would keep out of the way.

Making her way down into the stables themselves, Claire grabbed the broom and continued her housekeeping with the horses as company. She found some small pleasure in their musty smell and by the time Jamie marched back inside, Claire had cleaned out every stall and made sure each mare had been groomed thoroughly.

| ‘What’s the matter?’ | She signed, seeing Jamie’s distress the minute she looked up to take him in.

“Claire,” he began, taking hold of her hands and rubbing her warm fingers softly, “I have to leave for a wee while.”

Claire’s mouth gaped open, her pulse racing all of a sudden at the thought of Jamie not being by her side.

| ‘But we’ve only just been married? Did Collum say you *had* to go?’ |

“I have to, Claire. If there was any way out of it I’d have spoke up, ken?”

She nodded sadly, her eyes filling with moisture.

“Murtagh will stay here wi’ ye, alright? He’ll take good care of ye lass, him and Mrs Fitz. Ye can stay out here or go back to the castle for yer lodgings should ye wish no’ to be alone at night.” He continued, bringing her their joined hands to his lips and kissing them reverently. “The only blessing is that Dougal is leading the party, aye? It means he willna be left here to cause ye any distress.”

Feeling her stomach settle a little, Claire clenched her jaw. She wanted to pull her hands away and rant and rave at how unfair it was that Jamie was to be taken from her at such short notice, but it would do no good. That and she was enjoying the last close comforts she might have for a while.

| ‘How long?’ | She mouthed, unwilling to take her hands from his.

“Dinna ken,” Jamie returned, paying attention to her mouth and deciphering her soundless words, “hopefully no’ too long but it’s best to plan for at least a month.”

Claire shook her head violently and ripped her hands from his as she stormed wildly up and down the small aisle of the stables. She was furious, her hair flying about in the wee breeze that filtered in through the gaps in the slats. Stomping her feet and grinding her teeth she fought the urge to scream.

A pair of strong arms wrapped around her from behind, twisting her around and surrounding her in warmth and Jamie tried to quash her irritation. Whispering directly into her ear he tried to speak clearly so that she might hear his voice. Sensing that she needed something more than physical contact to calm her ire.

“I’m always wi’ ye, Claire,” he sighed, “in yer heart. I ken what terrible timing this is, but I love you...so much.”

Pulling back a little, Claire looked up at Jamie with tears in her eyes.

| ‘When do you have to leave?’ | She signed slowly.

“As soon as I’m ready.” He replied sadly.

Squeezing her eyes shut, Claire let the tears fall as her nose and cheeks begun to turn a sorrowful shade of maroon. The overwhelming urge to scream and shout had lessened but she still wanted to race to Collum’s quarters and plead with him not to send Jamie away though she got the distinct feeling that it was some sort of test of his metal. Collum hadn’t actually objected to her presence but nor had he castigated his brother or punished him for his wayward behaviour towards her. And aside from their one run in during the conflict resolutions in the grand hall he had barely acknowledged her at all. But she was still English and now she’d married his nephew.

| ‘Be safe, please?’ | She asked, hiccuping as she pulled herself fully from Jamie’s grasp and mouthed across at him. Wrapping her arms around herself now she rubbed her suddenly cool arms and ran her feet across the incredibly clean floor.

“I will, my Sassenach. Look after yerself, aye?”

Nodding, Claire waited until Jamie was safely away before falling to the floor and going thoroughly and completely to pieces.

[my-sweetest-creature]

Britney and the Schoolgirls

I like Britney, I feel like I should state this before I dive deeper into this post. My sister, who is eight years my senior, always listened to Britney, so her music made its way into my every day routine. My mom was hardcore Britney-Justin shipper back in the day, hence even her personal life became common knowledge. Honestly, I felt like Britney Spears was like that distant relative that you’d hear news about from your gossip-loving aunt. 

While she may not have powerhouse vocals, the girl is a true performer. She’s one of the biggest female popstars of our time, landing numerous top positions on the charts over the span of her career. There’s something about her that makes it difficult to turn away. Lana Del Rey puts it perfectly when she said, “I’m not interested in a ton of female musicians, but something about Britney compels me.” She displays sexual appeal and edge, which is evident whenever she performs. “When I was 13, she was the most provocative performer of my time,” says Charli XCX. Despite how provocative some of her performances may have been, I never saw an issue...well not until a few years ago.

If there’s one complaint I have about Britney Spears, it would be her effect on the school uniform image. I’ll tell you right now that you’ve been living under a rock if you’ve never watched the music video for …Baby One More Time. In the off chance that you haven’t, the whole video sexualizes schoolgirls. You can go to Party City and buy a bunch of things-turned-sexy costumes. The sexy librarian, sexy ladybug, sexy nun (WTF), the list goes on. What really annoys me about this Britney music video is that I, myself wore a school uniform for seven years, so let me be the first one to tell you that there was absolutely NOTHING sexy or flattering about it. Let’s break down the daily OOTD from head to toe.

Hairstyle: Our hair varied from falling freely down our backs to being in a bun so high and messy, you’d get the impression that all of us had just rolled out of bed. And you’d be correct.

Face: I don’t think I can count the number of times I walked into school looking like Rudolph, and I’m not ashamed of that. No one really wore makeup, maybe just some mascara and eyeliner, for that undead look. The most I’d effort to was eyebrows, because brows are life. 

Top: Unlike the tops Britney and her backup dancers wore, we were stuck with loose fitting polos that were big enough to smuggle a small puppy in. Layered on top of that was either an itchy sweater or a sweater vest. 

Bottom: This aspect bothers me the most about the video because I can’t even begin to tell you how awful that skirt was. No matter how much some of us chose to roll it up, nothing could hide the fact that the pleated piece of clothing was atrocious. 

Legs: Despite my animosity towards the skirt, the most annoying part about the uniform was whatever we chose to cover our legs with. In the fall/spring, we were constantly pulling up knee socks in fear that we’d receive a demerit. During the winters, there was abundance of picking out wedgies caused by those god-forsaken tights. I can’t even begin to describe the feeling of wearing tights with unshaved legs, it’s awful- painful even. 

Shoes: Okay, this part wasn’t bad at all. For the most part, we wore comfortable flats, so I really can’t complain about the shoes. 

With the little description of my uniform above, can we really say that a schoolgirl’s uniform is sexy? I’m not going to put the sole blame on Britney because I highly doubt she alone thought about the concept for the video. It’s not the video itself that stresses me out, but the percussions that followed. 

The hit CW show, Gossip Girl, was yet another schoolgirl fantasy brought to life. I’ve never met anyone, in my school or anywhere else, that dressed like Blair Waldorf or Serena Van der Woodsen. If I were to make any noticeable alterations to the uniform, you can bet that the wicked demerit lady would have my ass.

A single music video sparked the schoolgirl fantasy that refuses to fade away. The fact that we have people sexualizing the image of a student is disturbing. I don’t think I’d feel this strongly about it, had the video been a more accurate representation of the average regulation uniform. There are people that are looking at real students and holding this expectation of vanity, when in reality we all look like walking zombies trying to make it past first period Spanish. Sexy, right?

[kanrakixystix]

Promptis "Noct I know you like the way my legs look in the skirt but you have to pay attention to where you're walking this is the 3rd time you've walked into a lamp post" Prompto sighed as they walked towards the school gates.

LOL I had too much fun with this one. 

Word count: 875

“Noct, I know you like the way my legs look in the skirt,but you have to pay attention to where you’re walking. This is the third timeyou’ve walked into a lamp post,” Prompto sighed as they walked towards theschool gates. Said prince glared, then pouted when Prompto tossed him anunimpressed glance over his shoulder. Sheepishly, he scratched the back of hishead.

“Sorry,” he muttered lamely, “it’s just…”

Prompto huffed, cheeks pink and arms crossed, definitelymore adorable than he should have been. His bangs were clipped back with limegreen barrettes, ‘for aesthetic purposes,’ he insisted when he emerged fromNoctis’s bathroom earlier that morning.

“Just what?” he prodded, and he got in Noctis’s face as helowered an accusatory look on him that made the prince squirm. Try as Promptomight – and against Noctis’s better judgment – blue eyes traveled lower onceagain, drinking in the small gap of flesh between the hem of the skirt and theblack, knee-high socks.

A snap of fingers in front of him brought his attention backup to Prompto, who looked even more annoyed than before.

“This is why I’m doing this to begin with, you know. Becauseof perverts like you.”

Noctis’s jaw hit the ground, clearly offended.

“Hey! I don’t make a habit of looking at girls’ legs!”

At that, they had drawn something of an audience, and Noctisfelt heat rush to his cheeks. Though the crowd quickly dissipated in favor ofgetting to class on time, it wasn’t without a round of sneers from a group ofgirls and a few of the other skirt-wearing boys. Sighing, they fell in linebehind their classmates, silent again for a while, at least until they had madeit into the classroom.

Sure enough, there were several other boys dressed inpleated skirts and knee-highs, though admittedly, none of them looked nearly asgood as Prompto did. Again, Noctis found himself watching the skirt swish backand forth as he walked, and he cursed to himself under his breath.

“You say something?” Prompto took the seat in front of himand made it a point to sit on top of the desk with his legs pressed tightlytogether. It was with a groan that, as he took the seat behind him, that heswore Prompto was purposely taunting him now. He shook his head, though, andsat his bag down beside him.

“Tell me again why you aren’t participating in the dresscode strike.” There was that accusatory tone in his voice again, and Noctisfrowned.

“It’s not that I don’t want to, I can’t,” he explained, butPrompto didn’t look convinced. Sighing, he went on. “I’m the Prince of Lucis,Prompto, royalty, and as such I’m forced to keep up a certain level of dignity.”Noctis bad barely gotten the words out before Prompto scoffed and grinned at himin a way that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.

“Dignity? Says the prince who was on his knees last night.”

If Noctis had flushed earlier under the scrutiny of hispeers, he was practically on fire now. He stood quickly and slapped a hand overPrompto’s mouth, a look of panic rising in his features. He didn’t think it hadbeen loud enough for anyone to hear it, but that was something he didn’t needgetting around the school.

“Did he just…?”

Both boys whipped their heads in the direction of thefeminine voice. Alice, a girl in their class, a decently attractive blond withglasses seemed to be eyeing them up. Clearly, she had heard Prompto’s comment,but Prompto just rolled his eyes and moved Noctis’s hand away from his mouth.

“What? Say he was on his knees last night? Yeah! Fromtraining!” He had said it so matter-of-factly that even Noctis almost boughtthe story. “Really busts up his knees, but don’t worry about him. The other guygot a pretty good lickin’.”

And that’s when Noctis’s heart nearly stopped in his chest.This wasn’t happening. He was still in bed. This whole thing was just oneembarrassing scenario after another, and he was going to wake up to Promptostill in his bed, half naked and fast asleep, and it was going to happen rightnow. …Right now.

Noctis hung his head and wished he was anywhere but where hewas in that moment, but Alice seemed to have bought the story all the same, andleft them alone without any further inquiries. The look Noctis leveled onPrompto was something akin to murderous, and Prompto laughed sheepishly.

“Okay, okay! That was a little out of hand,” he admitted,and put his hands on Noctis’s shoulders. “Tell you what.” Prompto leanedcloser, lips almost brushing the shell of his ear as he whispered, “be goodduring school and I’ll let you do whatever you want with me after.”

A mix of excitement and shock bubbled in Noctis’s stomach,but slowly, he nodded in agreement. Prompto placed a quick, discreet kiss on ischeek and turned back around just in time for class to begin.

At least now Noctis had an incentive for keeping his eyesoff of Prompto for a few hours.

Send me a pairing and the first sentence and I’ll write you a drabble.

Current turnaround time: 2 weeks

First Sentence Drabble Master Post

Celebration of Episode Prompto fics

[birooksun]

So I made a story based on this Riddler Fangirl picture. I’m stopping it now because if I don’t it’ll become a whole novel and I’ve already got 2 giant WIP’s right now. 

She first saw him on the news, a story about a criminal now locked up who used riddles to lead Batman to solves his crimes. They posted a clip of his face and she couldn't tear her eyes away from the screen until it was pulled down. He apparently was killing people with death traps they had to escape from. She debated missing school just to find out more about this man, but decided not to. 

She needed to expand her mind and learn more. Something just pulled her towards him, this man was a genius and instead of being bullied for it, he was testing and killing off those who couldn't pass his tests. 

By the time she returned home she was carrying a bag full of books of riddles, trivia, and a few self-help books on sharpening her mind. She also had a newspaper with an article on Gotham and the rogues. There was a description and picture of each of the main ones on it. She cut out the one of Riddler and pinned it to her wall. She gave a smile just looking at his smirk as he held up the sign with his name and prisoner designation number. "I'm going to prove to everyone I can be just as smart as you."  

She spent the next few years sharpening her mind, attending community college with her AP classes and finding information on the Riddler at the same time. Her parents worried a little bit about her obsession, but decided to leave it be since it was making her into a model student even if she still had only a few friends. Hannah was startled by her dad one day when he opened the door to her room. "What smells like smoke?" She jumped and bumped the soldering iron against her hands and gave a hiss of pain. "Sorry dear! I was worried you had burned something." He grabbed the ice pack from her dorm fridge they had gotten her for her birthday. "What are you making this time?" He unplugged the soldering iron as he sat next to her and placed the ice pack on her hand. 

"Oh um, I saw the Riddler trophies mentioned on the news and how he was using them to mark how many people could solves his problems and death traps. I decided to make one myself as a night light." She bit her lip and looked up at her dad, wondering how he would react. He gave a small sigh and looked over at her wall. There were newspaper clippings and even photos printed out from the internet. There was a corkboard filled with riddles and location answers. He gave a frown and looked back at his daughter with concerned eyes.

"Hannah, I love how much you've applied yourself to being a good student and I know you already got accepted to Gotham University, but I just ask you don't do anything to get yourself killed. I know you look up to this man, and it's probably because of the bullying you used to receive at school, but remember we will love you no matter what. I just don't want to turn on the Gotham News Channel and see your name listed as a victim, alright?" He placed a hand on her shoulder and walked out of her room. He turned and gave her a smile as he closed the door. "Also, don't burn anything down."

"It was one time!" She shouted back. She looked back to her tv, glad her parents had satellite so she could watch the news in Gotham. She gave a smile looking at the reports of the latest breakout. "Life must be so exciting there." Hannah stood up and plugged the iron back in, working on the last bit of wiring. She gave a squeal of excitement when she flipped the switch and it came to life. "I did it! I made my own Riddler Trophy!" She placed it next to her nightstand and decided to work on her book of crossword puzzles some more before dinner. She was so excited that in a couple months she'd be living in Gotham. Who knows, she could even meet her idol in person. Maybe she'd even be smart enough to solve his riddles in real time and track him down, or solve one of his death trap puzzles and get her own trophy.

Dinner was a quiet affair, her mother reminding her to pack her things light enough to load on the dolly and carry into the penthouse. Hannah smiling and nodding along because she was glad to have such supportive parents. "But Hannah dear, you must attend a few of Wayne's events if you can. Show that our family supports his causes of course." Hannah gave a tight smile. She hated the parties, she hated hearing whispers of how plain looking she was, how she had to be from money because why else would she be there? As she looked at her plate she thought of how Riddler wouldn't judge her for her plain looks. He'd see how brilliant she was. He wouldn't whisper behind her back like others did. "Yes mother. I'll be sure to attend a few charity events, but I will be busy with school." She looked pointedly at her parents, reminding them that for her the mind always came first.

Her father spoke up as he handed her a few pamphlets. "I also found some martial arts schools near where you'll live. Darling I know you've wanted to move to Gotham since you started highschool, but it's not safe and even with the driver we hired to take you to and from campus I'd like for you to be able to defend yourself if need be. There's also a few pamphlets for near the university if you'd like to be closer to school. It's entirely up to you. Just tell us who to write the check to honey." 

Hannah smiled and looked up at him. "Thanks Daddy, that really means alot to me." She thought to herself as she ate. Should she search him out? Or just find and follow his riddles like Batman did and keep the knowledge to herself. A daring thought entered her head- what if she instead left riddles for him to find her? They'd have to be challenging, she'd have to prove how brilliant she really could be. She finished her dinner and left for her room, looking around the boxes and her eyes fell upon the Riddler trophy she built. Maybe if she left her own for him? They couldn't be green, but what about purple? 

A plan started to form in her mind but first she needed to get to Gotham and start learning martial arts just in case. It never hurt to be prepared.

Two months later found her and the movers her parents hired carrying everything into her penthouse. She went to the second bedroom and started to set up her computer system as the movers placed all her boxes in the marked rooms. One of them stopped and stared in surprise as she started drilling into the wall to place the primary monitor and then proceeded to set up the other two monitors. 

"That is an impressive looking set up there miss. Three monitors?" He gave a whistle. She felt slight annoyance he'd be checking out her computer instead of working.

"Thank you, I've built the computer into the desk so it was easier to set up." She went back to work, ignoring the worker who left the room. She grabbed her step-ladder and set up the fourth monitor and made sure to tilt it enough she could see while sitting down. Humming a song to herself she turned it on and started some system tests to make sure everything went well in the move. She had one monitor showing the diagnostics and knowing it would keep running and recording the data she left the room to check over the movers work. After they had brought the last thing up, the bed she thanked them for their help and tipped them before watching them all walk out of place.

She walked over to one of her boxes labeled BD#1 and opened it, giving a sigh of relief that everything was intact. She carefully pulled out the framed photo, the magazine cover from when he developed the award winning game, and newspaper clippings. She devotedly put up the framed picture of him smirking as he held his cane out. It had been a picture someone snapped of him facing off Batman. She placed near it the very first photo she hung up of him, his mugshot, then on the other side the magazine cover and surrounding it all clippings from the Gotham News and various articles mentioning him. She stood back when her work was done, smiling to herself. She's made it to Gotham, she was dual majoring in Computer Sciences and Business. Though she was only taking Business classes for her parents benefit though. She didn't want to take over the Realty Empire they had. She just wanted to meet The Riddler. 

Hannah stepped back and sat down on her bed looking around the penthouse that would be her home for at least the next four or five years. She curled up on herself, arms wrapping her arms around her long legs. Her college orientation was tomorrow and she wondered if she'd make any friends here. She knew of course she'd get a few people trying to climb the ladder by being her friend, but those were easy to pick out. They never cared until they heard the 'Vanderbilt' name; that's when they perked up and started being kind to plain-jane Hannah. Usually her reading or asking of puzzles and spouting trivia facts made them leave her in the end. She looked up at her collage of Riddler clippings and memorabilia, she bet he'd answer her questions, solve the puzzles with her, and even respond to her with trivia of his own. 

She smiled to herself, letting that warm hopeful feeling grow in her chest as she uncurled and started unpacking. She did make sure to pull out clothes for tomorrow. Deciding on her striped thigh highs, a pleated skirt, her green blouse and her gray sweater vest. She might get the usual Slytherin jokes, but while she'll happily wear her green and purple striped socks she wasn't sure on going completely in Riddlers colors. 

The next morning she stood in front of her full length mirror, smoothing her hair one last time and wondering if she should have tried to do something to make herself look nicer. Her mother always thought the pigtails were cute on her. She gave a sigh and adjusted the book bag while looking over herself. A tall scrawny girl stared back in the mirror. Her face was 'too pale' as her mother put it, light brown hair, pale green eyes and to top it all off she had freckles covering most of her face. Once again she wondered if she should try to wear makeup but she didn't know the first thing about it. Her mother always paid for her to get her face and hair done for events. She pushed her green rectangle glasses back up her nose. She gave herself a forced smile and was glad for years of braces at least giving her nice teeth before exiting to the university.

The driver dropped her off with a nod and a smile, she gave him a wave and left to find her orientation group. She saw a couple that looked her age standing nearby. "I don't know why you have to go to this orientation Babs, you've lived here your whole life!"

"It's for students to find where they'll be going and learn more about the school Dick! Plus, you're not even attending, you're still finishing high school." 

"Not every graduates early Babs." 

The beautiful red head turned away from her boyfriend, Hannah felt intimidated just being near the couple. She blushed when the tan skinned blue eyed man saw her and gave a charming smile. The redhead looked back and gave a soft smile to Hannah. "Hi there! I'm Barbara Gordon, you're here for orientation too?" She walked up and gave a firm handshake.

Hannah sucked in a breath and really hoped she wasn't blushing too hard. "Hannah Vanderbilt, yes I am. I just moved into town yesterday." She gave a weak smile as she looked down at Barbara Gordon. "I'm studying computer sciences and business management, you?"

"Pre-law and computer sciences." Hannah sagged in relief at meeting someone else double majoring. Barbara turned and smirked at Dick. "See Dick? First person I meet is also double majoring. So take that." She looked back at Hannah and gave a small laugh. "Sorry, my boyfriend was making fun of me for double majoring. He says I don't have to prove myself, but we know all us girls have to, right?" She winked at Hannah.

Hannah was surprised, this beautiful woman was actually talking to her still? She was double majoring as well? She blinked and realized the two of them were still looking at her expecting a response. "I'm sorry, it's just that people have one of two reactions towards me and you've both given neither." She gave a short giggle and curled in on herself. "I'm a bit of a nerd and not even pretty so the fact that someone so pretty is still talking to me without even reacting to my last name is weird." She bit her lip as the two looked at each other.

Dick snapped his fingers, "Vanderbilt! Bruce has worked with your parents before. I thought it sounded familiar." He looked her over. "Being a nerd isn't bad. My little brother Tim's the biggest nerd I know." He turned and gave Barbara a kiss on the cheek. "See you later Babs. Let me know how it all goes." He waved towards Hannah and gave another smile as she blushed.

"Come on Hannah, let's find our orientation group. Maybe since we're both computer sciences we'll be grouped together." Barbara guided Hannah to one of the orientation leaders, taking faster steps to keep up the four inches of height difference. 

"So um Barbara, I heard you say you live in Gotham? Are there any martial arts dojos you recommend? My parents wanted me to study one for general safety." She threw back her hair and laughed. "You just asked the daughter of the police commissioner about general safety. Yeah I can recommend a few. There's also a women's self defence class my dad makes me go to."

-- She'd done it, she solved one of Riddler's riddles and gotten there in time. Months of following the leads, of finding and solving the puzzles to collect his trophies, this was her moment! When she snuck in she saw Riddler fighting Batman and had to hold her hands over her mouth. He was beautiful, he moved fluidly and quipped at Batman while fighting, mocking his ability to solve his puzzles without help. She saw Batgirl jump in to fight as well. 

She couldn't fight back the anger that welled up inside her. "No cheating allowed on Quizzes!" She shouted as she jumped in and blocked a kick Batgirl had aimed at Riddler. He gave her a puzzled glance and went back to his fight while Batman ignored her. She focused on Batgirl and the two of them fought against each other. Hannah was trying to move the two of them away from Batman and Riddler. 

"Who are you and why are you defending this creep?" Batgirl's voice sounded familiar. Hannah blocked a punch and kicked her in the stomach while moving back to keep a distance. She knew the mask and makeup she applied hid her face, this girl wouldn't figure her out. She was glad she'd been getting herself used to moving around and fighting in combat boots. It was very different than in a dojo. She was also glad she'd put on her purple leggings under her green skirt as opposed to her usual thigh highs. Batgirl was making her do some high kicks and rolls during this fight. "You're obviously not officially with him. That's a homemade costume! Who wears a skirt while fighting?"

Hannah grinned as she grabbed Batgirl's cape during a roll and pulled her down hard. "Who wears a cape while crime fighting? The Scarlet Pimpernel surely didn't, written in 1905 by Baroness Emma Orczy." She jumped back while Batgirl pulled herself up, "She had the sense to write a masked vigilante without a cape."

"Trivia? Really during a fight?" Batgirl almost caught a hit on Hannah when she decided to try a new move she had seen recently in a movie. She dropped to the ground and swung her leg out while spinning in a circle. She made sure to keep the leg above the ground so Batgirl couldn't jump over it. She ended up being knocked down and hitting her head. Hannah paused, lightly massaging her leg while waiting to see if Batgirl would get up. She didn't and Hannah knelt by her to check her pulse while making sure she wasn't bleeding. 

Satisfied Batgirl would be alright she ran over to where Riddler was starting to lose his fight with Batman. "Need a player two?" She asked while knocking aside a fist Batman had aimed for Riddler's head.

"If you can be obliged." She tried to fight back against Batman, but his punches and kicks were a lot harder than Batgirls. Hannah quickly learned she couldn't block against him, she had to evade or redirect his blows. She got a lucky shot in against Batman and made him step back. Riddler used the moment to wrap his arm around her waist and pull her with him as he ran for an escape. "Time to bid you adieu Batman!" She felt her heart racing as he pulled her along. This was her moment, she was finally meeting The Riddler. She had actually helped him fight against both Batman and Batgirl. 

She felt herself gasping for air by the time they stopped and he pulled her behind a pillar. He placed a gloved hand over her mouth to keep her silent as they heard someone running past them. She closed her eyes to burn this feeling in her memory. Her back against Riddler's chest, his arm heavy around her waist and pulling her close, the softness of his leather glove as he held it over her mouth. She could feel his heart racing as well. They stayed like that for a minute before he let go of her. 

This was the moment, this was her idol, he was standing right in front of her and she couldn't think of a proper opening sentence. "You have me today. Tomorrow you'll have more; as your time passes, I'm not easy to store. I don't take up space, but I'm only in one place; I am what you saw, but not what you see. What am I?" Her face was flushed as he laughed, throwing his head back and placing one hand on his chest.

"Why memories my little Quizlet." He gave that roguish smirk she'd only seen in pictures and on tv, it made her knees tremble. "Is this one you never want to forget?" Hannah just nodded, her throat tight and she knew even through all the makeup he could probably see her blush.

"I-" Speak hannah speak! "I've admired you for years Mr. Riddler." She wanted to slap herself, did she really just say that?

He looked a touch surprised and gave her a soft smile. "So you strived to become as intelligent as me? You make a costume and actually came looking for me?" He placed a hand on her shoulder, she could feel the warmth through his glove and her blouse. "I liked your entrance. Very impressive." She wondered if there was blood anywhere in her body except her face. "Come on little Quizlet. You should head home." She felt cold, he didn't want her? She was sure the disappointment was evident as he gave another soft smile. "Of course I shall have to escort you to ensure your safety." She smiled at him.

"Of course, that seems like the logical conclusion to all of this." She looked around where they were and sighed in defeat. "I've gotten turned around and have no idea where we are sadly. I used a map to get to your location."

"Well I know Gotham very well, just tell me the adress." When she told him he raised an eyebrow. "Little rich girl too? That's an expensive area." She bit her lip and blushed in shame, he couldn't be like everyone else, could he? 

"That's all anyone sees me as. They don't see my brain." He moved her out to the street with his hand still on her shoulder and guided her several blocks to a simple looking sedan before climbing in the driver's side. She walked around and sat down in the passenger seat, looking down at her hands. She failed somehow, he didn't see her intellect and passion. She was still plain-jane Hannah, even if he kept calling her Quizlet. 

"Riddle me this little Quizlet, what can travel around the world yet stay in one spot?"

"Easy, a stamp." She gave a smile, "You use a knife to slice my head and weep beside me when I am dead.”

"Onion of course. How do you make seven even with adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing?"

She gave a small laugh, "Drop the S." She looked from her lap to his face, she could only see his profile but he was beautiful, he was smiling now and she loved it. "What has a foot on each side and one in the middle?"

"Yardstick. Marking mortal privation, when firmly in place. An enduring summation, inscribed in my face."

"Tombstone." She couldn't look away from him and glanced up at his hair escaping from the bowler cap. "I move very slowly at an imperceptible rate, although I take my time, I am never late. I accompany life, and survive past demise, I am viewed with esteem in many women's eyes. What am I?"

He glanced over at her at a red light and gave a smirk. She was glad to be sitting still because her knees felt even weaker and she felt so warm. "Would that be hair?" She gave a small nod. They drove in silence with her looking between him and her hands. He smirked to himself noticing her ears and neck were red, her face wasn't because of all that makeup caked on to hide her appearance. He wanted to laugh at the Questionmark she had placed on one cheek. It was so childishly adorable. They pulled up to the building and she thanked him and he decided to press his luck. "Aren't I invited in?"

She stumbled out of the car when he asked that, stuttering over her words. "O-Oh! Of cou- of course you are. I didn't- sure? Yeah." She coughed into her fist and cleared her throat, taking a deep breath. "Of course you are Riddler." She gave a smile, trying to regain that confidence she had when fighting Batgirl.  He stepped out of his car and walked up to her, noticing how he barely needed to look down to meet her eyes. Now that he really looked, they were a pale green. "Is there a way in without being seen?" He looked over the building, both hands behind his back as he rocked on his heels. 

"Only for me." She reached into her blouse and pulled out a small ring before walking up to an elevator. "It's a private entrance to my place." She bent down to place it against the scanner and after a single beep the doors opened. They both stepped inside and he gave a nod of appreciation as it went straight up without her needing to hit any buttons. 

"Fancy. So little Quizlet. Why did you jump in on the fight?" His bright green eyes were piercing as he looked down at her. He had a slight frown and she took a step back from the intensity of his gaze.

"Two on one is cheating. They were cheating!" She felt her hands make fists and could hear the blood rushing in her ears. "I hate when people cheat! If Batman really could defeat you himself he wouldn't need Batgirl to sneak up on you! He wouldn't need his gadgets! He shouldn't need help if he was really a worthy rival for you!" She was yelling. She couldn't believe she'd just yelled at her idol. Her hands quickly covered her mouth before she said anything else. 

His frown softened into a neutral expression as he looked back towards the doors. "Interesting." The doors opened and he walked into her penthouse. Hannah followed him into her own place, her head hung down in shame. "You should change out of that costume Quizlet. I want to see who you really are." 

She nodded and quickly walked into a room off to the side. While she scrubbed off the make up and cried to herself he looked around the livingroom. It felt barely lived in. There was a couch, a coffee table and a tv. No pictures of friends or family, no trinkets, just the bare minimum. He walked over to the kitchen, a bowl with only a few pieces of fruit sitting on a countertop, a mug placed next to a bottle of pills. He picked up the bottle and looked at it. 

"Hannah Vanderbilt, cyproheptadine, Initial dose: 2 mg orally four times a day, may increase gradually over 3 weeks to 8 mg orally four times a day. Hmm. Didn't take her for an anorexic." He looked over the kitchen and turned back to the main room, opening and looking in the other room. He paused in surprise at the screens and computer setup. One showed a red dot moving in a map of Gotham before it went out, another screen showed the CPU usage and a basic computer check up, the third screen was the internet with tabs open for homework, he looked over at the fourth screen and it showed an excel document listing his past crime locations and how close she had gotten. He gave a chuckle to himself at that one.

He looked around the dimly lit room, realizing the color was green he looked in a corner and saw a row of shelving with ten riddler trophies on it. He was shocked, he thought Batman was the only one out there collecting the trophies to stop the bombs from going off and assumed he was somehow cheating to get so many. He turned when more light entered the room and saw the little Quizlet, Hannah standing at the doorway.

"I wanted to prove I could be as smart as you. So I decided to start collecting the trophies. I wanted to leave my own and try to get you to notice me, but-" She paused and nervously twisted one foot on the floor. "I was too scared to." He looked at her, really looked at her and simply stated, "Yet you jumped into a fight with no issue?"

"I was angry. She was going to hurt you." She flipped the light switch on and glanced at the top monitor. "Oh, I guess he found my tracking device." She walked over to him slowly. He noticed she was pale and very thin for her height. She kept her face towards the ground but he saw the freckles covering it and had looked into her pale green eyes earlier. She was wearing a tanktop and a pair of waist high shorts with thigh high socks. He raised an eyebrow and smirked at the colors.

"They actually make purple and green striped socks?" 

"I custom ordered them. Most of my clothing is custom made." He walked over to meet her, placing a gloved hand under her chin.

"Look at me when you speak." Her head snapped up and he could see those pale eyes widen. She gave a small nod and he circled her, looking over her. He took off a glove and felt her light brown hair. "You don't take care of yourself. You are much too thin and your hair is dry."

She gave a sigh and narrowed her eyes at him. "My mother's said the same thing for years. I'm sure a man as intelligent as you has noticed the medication on my counter. They hope it'll increase my appetite and remind me to eat. I'm not anorexic, I'm not too thin, and yes my hair is always dry!" 

He placed one finger on her chest and pushed her lightly as he walked out of the room, forcing her to step backwards. "You will start drinking nutritional supplements if only to help you from losing weight with the martial arts you are obviously still taking." She pursed her lips. "It was obvious from the way you and Batgirl fought.  She's a student in your class, there were moments you two dropped into forms during the fight." He chuckled to himself. "Although I did like how you yanked her down with her cape. Well played. Though she will learn from that now."

"I know damn well who she is. I figured it out easily." She placed one hand back and pushed against him to keep from falling over the couch. 

"Good. Keep that puzzle to yourself, you never know when it'll come in handy." "I'm sure she figured out who I was, but I won't be positive until I see her in class tomorrow." He looked at her and saw the bruises forming from blocking Batman's punches. She looked at them as well. "I wear sweaters or longsleeved blouses all the time to begin with. Hiding the bruising won't be an issue Riddler." 

She gave a sigh and moved to sit on the couch. He sat down on the arm and placed his feet on the cushion next to her. He saw the small quirk of her lips, not the usual rich girl then. "By the way, as I'm sure you saw on the pill bottle. My name is Hannah Vanderbilt. I'm not entirely sure my parents would pay if you kidnapped me which is why I don't mind you knowing I'm an heiress."

"Surely they care enough about you to supply you with this penthouse and all the funds necessary." He leaned forward and rested one arm on his knee. "Or is it because they know you're doing this?"

She looked deep in thought for a moment then sighed. "Follow me." She stood up and began walking towards her bedroom. He took a second to follow her, wondering what exactly was going on now. She opened the door and he looked around the room, his eyes locking on one of the walls. It was almost a shrine to himself. "This is all they know." He slowly walked towards it. A framed magazine of him as Edward Nashton, hailing his video game, a framed copy of the game itself alongside it. His very first mugshot, newspaper clippings of articles mentioning him, pictures of him. It was all shocking. He backed up and sat down on her bed, just staring at the wall. Near the collage was a corkboard filled with riddles, reading them he realized they were the one's he's publicly used. His morse code riddle was even there. She sat down next to him. "You inspired me to become more. This wall, it's your transformation into something great, something legendary and looking at it reminds me I can become more. I can use my brain to prove myself."

"I'm honestly shocked." He jumped slightly when she placed her hand over his. 

"What are you-" She cut him off by placing a hand on his face.

"You're even more amazing in person. Seeing the way you move, those smiles you give. I have a feeling you could have any woman you wanted."

He regained his mental footing and moved her hand from his face, he still held it, unsure of where to put her hand. It was all surprising. "Now Hannah. Think of what you're trying to do." He thought back to the bottle and her date of birth on it. "You are 19, I'm in my 30's. We have a rather large age gap. I'm a wanted criminal, you have your whole life ahead of you and so many possibilities I never could have had. Why do you want to throw it all away?"

Her eyes watered up and she pulled her hands away to wrap them around her knees. "Validation. I had hoped you would look past my name, look past the fact that I'm a plain-jane, and see me for my mind." She sniffled and rubbed her eye. "I don't know, I had this stupid childish thought you'd meet me and become enamoured by my intellect. We could trade riddles back and forth like in the car and you wouldn't mind my spouting of trivia. I even thought that we could have something romantic."

He gave a sigh and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Everyone is disappointed when they meet their idol. I may not be enamoured by you, but I am impressed. You did a good job out there tonight. I really did love the no cheating on quizzes line. Fit perfectly." 

She looked to him. "Where do we go from here? I'm a criminal now, aren't I? You don't want someone like me holding you back, and I never planned past this moment." 

He squeezed her shoulder. "You're only a criminal if you get caught, and Batgirl can't implicate you without implicating herself. You are safe. I'm the only criminal in this room. As for what to do from here? If you really want to prove yourself, stick to your studies."

"I'm a dual major with a 4.0 average. I actually already earned my associate degree in high school through dual enrollment." He could see her hands turn into fists, the knuckles turning white. "It's never enough for those fucking socialites! I'm so sick of them all judging me for my looks over my intellect." He just pulled her against his chest in a hug. 

"People like those never matter. They're mere ants, nothing worth your time." He patted her on the back and she sat back up, wiping away silent tears. "Take the nutritional supplements, they and a proper diet will help your appearance. Skin and bones only works for Scarecrow."

"They won't change pale eyes, a bland hair color, or all these freckles." 

He looked back at the many pictures and articles on the wall. "There's one thing never mentioned in those articles. My parents, but only one is worth mentioning right now. As I'm sure you know I'm a natural redhead, even though I've colored my hair several times." He flicked his eyes over to hers and saw her nod. "My mother was Irish. I got my red hair and green eyes from her. What I didn't get were her freckles, sure I've got a few, but she had a face full of them like you do. She used to call them 'Angel kisses'." He paused and looked over at the 19 year old. "I always wondered as a kid why she would cover up so many kisses from The Angels. Of course I never realized it was just something said to make people feel better."

She gave a laugh. "It made me feel better. Thanks Riddler." She stood up and looked at the costume she had hanging in the closet. "So, Quizlet's retired for now?"

He stood up and placed a hand on her shoulder. "For now. Graduate first, schmooze with the elite and see if you can survive their world. Also if your hair bothers you that much, just color it." He turned her towards her full length mirror and placed his head on her shoulder pulling some of his hair over her face, "How about a nice auburn?" They both laughed and she smiled at him. "I'll see myself out, but take care of yourself. Graduate college, then we'll talk." He put his hat back on and replaced the glove he had in his pocket. "I suppose you do deserve an award for doing such a good job at your first attempt." He turned and gave her a smirk, it grew when he saw her face turn red. "Also, keep collecting those trophies. Use them as proof you're a good guy if you get caught." He placed his fingers under her chin and pulled her the few inches forward to kiss her. 

"Goodbye for now Hannah." She stood there in surprise as he walked away and into the elevator. 

"Goodbye Riddler." She smiled to herself and did a little dance as she skipped back to her bedroom. "What a night!" She tossed herself back on the bed. She giggled to herself and placed her hand on her lips. "My first kiss, from the Riddler! Wow." She sat back up and looked over at the costume, frowning. "If I know who Batgirl is, she has to have figured out who Quizlet was." She stood up and looked it over, taking the hanger off of the closet door and hiding it far in the back, behind all the evening gowns and shawls her mother insisted on her having. "I'll show the whole world who Hannah Vanderbuilt can really be. Then I can take up Quizlet again." -- Years later she got to see him in person, he was standing in the crowd as she stood next to Barbara Gordon, the two of them sharing a valedictorian speech. They'd both gotten 4.5 GPA with their dual majors and even separate internships. He gave her a smile and a nod, which she returned as she watched him turn and walk away. They both knew she'd don on a new costume soon. 

She wondered if Enigma was a better title than Quizlet.