#this was the stream where he starts digging up the garden outside his house like a madman looking for a disc he had no memory of taking

[atrium-hq]

ranboo :)

[queen-ofsunflowers]

"You're Magic Now" WIP Preview: Chapters 1 - 5

Since these are still works-in-progress, it is likely that the following excerpts will change between now and the final draft! Please keep that in mind while reading.

Chapter 1: A Fairy on Earth

(The girls follow Dain outside into the backyard, leading the troll out of the house with them. Barbara casts a spell to try and fend off the troll. Dain looks back at Lumine, the gears in his mind twisting and turning as he tries to figure out what to do next.)

Lumine: What do we do?

Dain: I’m not sure if there’s anything that you can do right now.

Barbara: Whisper of Water! (She casts the spell at the troll, only for it to backhand her across the yard.)

Lumine: Barbara! (Luckily, Barbara manages to stabilize herself mid-air.)

Barbara: I’m alright! (Dain’s right arm is trembling. He holds his wrist steady, as if holding something back. It takes Dain a second to figure out exactly what he needs to do. He rushes past the troll, dodging out of the way of its attempt to swipe at him. He grabs the hose from where it’s wound up nearby, working quickly to uncoil it. Using the hose as a makeshift rope, he throws it, the nozzle giving it enough weight to circle around the troll’s neck.)

Lumine: Awesome! (Dain grabs the hose, digging his heel into the ground.)

Dain: This isn’t over! Don’t let your guard down! (The troll thrashes against the hose. Dain grips his arm, and in the dark of the evening, Lumine can make out some strange bluish glow.) And do something! (Barbara nods. She begins to launch a steady stream of magic at the troll, but it’s not as strong as it could be. Lumine feels that electrical zing as she looks at the stars above. She draws in a breath. It’s instinct… Just instinct, simple as that. She shuts her eyes, holds out her hands and…!)

(A small flicker of a blast shoots out of her palms, almost like a burst of starlight. It hits the troll in the face, stunning it long enough for Dain to get the hose to Lumine’s and Barbara’s hands. Immediately, they struggle to keep the troll in place.)

Lumine: Dain!

Dain: I know! Just hold on! (The girls struggle.)

Lumine: DAIN! (Dain grabs the shovel that’s situated near the garden and— CLANG! He swings it as hard as possible to collide with the back of the troll’s skull. There’s a sharp crack and it drops. The girls pant heavily as the adrenaline starts to fade. The troll disappears in a shimmer of light. Dain drops to his knee, his right arm trembling.)

Chapter 2: Welcome to Magix!

Tartaglia: It’s a pity that you had to meet us like this. Who knows? Maybe we could’ve been good friends under different circumstances. (He raises the dagger, and Lumine begins to panic, trying to call upon her magic to help her to defend herself, but it’s not working.)

Lumine: Stay away! (An electrically-charged shard strikes Tartaglia’s wrist, making him drop the dagger so it dissipates. At the mouth of the alleyway are Barbara, Keqing and Ayaka — all three of them transformed into their fairy forms.) 

Keqing: If you want to fight a fairy, then we’re right here!

Scaramouche: Tch…

Signora: Pathetic… Huh…? (Her eyes land on Barbara.) The lyre… (Tartaglia gets a wicked grin on his face.)

Lumine: Barbara, watch out! 

Barbara: Melody Loop! (Tartaglia rushes at her, creating two new daggers. Thanks to Lumine’s warning, Barbara is able to put up a barrier in time to trap him like a rope.)

Tartaglia: Do you really think that this can hold me? (Electricity crackles over the barrier, allowing him to break it.)

Keqing: Then try this on for size. Lightning Stiletto! (She casts the same spell that disarmed Tartaglia earlier. He faces the shards head on, most of them shattering upon impact as he summons a shield of his own to protect him.)

Ayaka: Ice Flower! (A large snowflake forms underneath Tartaglia, catching him a bit off guard as a flurry of ice and snow shoots up and surrounds him, making him stumble back a little and unable to see.)

Barbara: Lumine! (She holds out her hand, and Lumine doesn’t waste another moment rushing over to them. She grabs Barbara’s hand, and Barbara pulls her close.)

Signora: Fool…

Scaramouche: Idiot.

Tartaglia: I don’t see you two doing anything! (Signora and Scaramouche exchange looks with each other before stepping forward, calling forth a spray of ice and lightning to attack the girls.)

Keqing: Get behind me! (The girls do.) Beckoning Clouds! (She summons a bunch of clouds to surround the group in a sort of barrier.)

Scaramouche: You won’t leave alive! (Lightning fiercely crackles around him in anger.)

Tartaglia: Scaramouche! Watch it!

Scaramouche: Don’t tell me to— (Barbara takes out her Lyre and starts to play a tune.)

Barbara: Hold onto me! (All the girls grab onto her. Magic swirls around them. Tartaglia grows and rushes forward, trying to grab a hold of her, but misses as the spell finally takes hold and whisks them away to safety on the outskirts of Magix. They drop, the other girls flashing out of their fairy forms in the process. It’s more because of the adrenaline rush than anything else.)

Chapter 3: The Holy Lyre

Lumine: If I scream, everyone will come running.

Scaramouche: Are you sure about that? Can’t even face me on your own? Face it, you’re alone! (Sparks and bolts of lightning come crashing down around Lumine, trying to hit her and hurt her. Panic starts to surge in her heart.) That’s what I thought. (Wind swirls around Lumine, keeping her in place. He calmly walks towards her, taking her face into his hands.) You know, I’m getting pretty tired of you messing with our plans.

Lumine: Who the heck are you…?

Scaramouche: Wouldn’t you like to know? (The spell disperses.) I don’t even need to use my full power to take you on. (He hits the ground, causing a void to open up in it. Lumine shouts as she gets caught in the vortex, spinning and feeling fear race in her heart. She grabs the edge, holding on for dear life. Scaramouche stands over her.) Pathetic… I thought I saw something in you. I was wrong. So long, fairy.

Lumine: No! (She shuts her eyes, trying to call upon every ounce of magic in her system. something zips through her veins, rushing like electricity as Scaramouche steps on her fingers, loosening their grip to allow her to get sucked in. Golden eyes widen in panic. She can’t… She can’t let him get away! She won’t… She was a fairy. She couldn’t fail! Not again… Never again! She falls into the vortex, her eyes focused on the stars and the moon above as the vortex steals away her breath. They glow so bright… shining in the sky. The flower falls from her hair and into Lumine’s vision. Her eyes widen as she takes a hold of it. A faint memory… a faint memory of a field filled with these flowers. The magic within her moves faster, making it feel like every part of Lumine like a livewire. The field of flowers, the stars and the moon… and a golden-haired boy who’s face is incomprehensible to her, but he’s holding out his hand to her and she feels happy. She reaches out in the memory, taking the boy’s hand as he pulls her along through the flowers.)

(And then… Lumine feels like something shatters within her. A sense of euphoria overcomes her, the feeling of stardust cascades over her body, and the coolness of the moonlight seeps into her skin. She can’t recall this feeling, but everything about it feels so right.)

(Lumine can feel her clothes melt away, replaced with new ones as magic spirals around her as bright as a supernova. There’s something strange and new that glitters up on her back, and in a flash, she’s shooting straight out of the vortex that she was trapped in. She blinks once… twice… and then realizes what’s going on. She’s flying. She looks down at herself, at her new outfit, her wings and even the flower that nestles itself in her hair. She smiles.)

Not so wingless anymore, am I?

Scaramouche: Are you kidding me?!

Lumine: Looks like you shouldn’t have pushed me too far.

Chapter 4: The Melmamora Swamp

Ayaka: I have a bad feeling about this… (Kazuha puts a hand over Ayaka’s mouth.)

Kazuha: (whispering) Be careful. (He gestures over to some of the bushes nearby.) Those are Cryo Whopperflowers. They disguise themselves as other plants to trick passersby and absorb their magic.

Lumine: Really?

Kazuha: (whispering) Lumine!

Lumine: What? I don’t get what the big deal is-- (She yelps as something bursts out from the ground, throwing the girls back as it goes for Lumine. She scrambles back, dodging out of the way as the creature lowers itself to the ground, spinning around to try and knock her back with its icy petals.)

Bennett: Hold on! (He tries to conjure a spell to do something, but Keqing takes his wrist.)

Keqing: We’re not supposed to use magic, remember?!

Bennett: But! (The pair duck as a few icy projectiles come their way. Oh boy. Kazuha gathers some of the water from the swamp, flinging as much mud as possible at the flower. It hits it directly in the head, and Lumine kicks it in the face. It stuns it long enough for her to run to the group, and for them to race away. They double over once they’re far enough away, trying to catch their breath.)

Kazuha: As I was saying, they react to noise. Getting too close can also set them off. So it’s best if we stick together. (Lumine sighs and nods.)

Lumine: Thanks for that. (Kazuha only nods in return. In the distance, they can hear the sounds of fighting. It seems like they’re not the only ones who ran afoul of the whopperflowers. They race ahead to find the specialists from before, not doing too well against the flowers.)

Alhaitham: Will you stop throwing yourself into battle like that? Trying to cover for you is making it difficult to think.

Childe: At least I’m doing something! (Xiao growls as he fights with a spear alone, while Alhaitham tries to cut down the flowers.)

Xiao: If you haven’t noticed, water and ice don’t mix! (Childe huffs in irritation.)

Lumine: So that’s where they went.

Chapter 5: A Blind Date

(They’re careful, hovering a bit off of the ground as they enter the building. From the shadows, they hear a slow and sinister applause.)

Strange Man: Well, well, well… you three sure took the scenic route. (He steps out of the shadows.)

Barbara?: I’ll say. You took your time. (With a flick of her wrist, the door slams shut. They’ve walked right into a trap. The illusion on them both disappears, revealing the true perpetrators -- Scaramouche and Tartaglia.)

Scaramouche: The Fatui will have the Holy Lyre, and you’re going to hand it over one way or another! (He leaps into the air, summoning a crackling ball of dark energy before blasting them with it. The girls dodge, Keqing and Lumine taking refuge behind a pillar while Ayaka ducks behind an upturned table. Scaramouche continues to blast at the pillar, chipping away at it bit by bit while Tartaglia summons two daggers to combine into a polearm. He makes his way over to Ayaka.)

Ayaka: No, you don’t… (She zips out towards Keqing and Lumine, creating a shield of ice to protect the three of them.)

Lumine: Thanks, Ayaka. (The pillar shattered, and Scaramouche cackles.)

Scaramouche: I suggest you surrender now. (Magic swirls and gathers in his palm.) Or they’ll have to drag what’s left of you from the rubble! (The girls gear up, channeling their own magic and readying to counter when--)

Signora: That’s enough. Or did you forget that if you destroy this building, you’ll bring it down right on top of us? (Tartaglia snickers as Scaramouche’s spell dwindles and vanishes. Signora steps out of the shadows, and wrapped in frozen restraints is--)

Lumine: Barbara! (Barbara groans a little at the call of her name, opening her eyes and looking towards her friends. The look of panic immediately surges when she sees them. She’s scared. To Signora:) Let her go!

Signora: Don’t worry, we will… as soon as you hand over the Holy Lyre. (The girls grow nervous.) Poor little princess… Those coils will keep squeezing her tighter and tighter until she pops. (Barbra groans in pain as Signora spins her finger in the air, tightening the coils around her.)

Tartaglia: If you want to save your friend that badly, I suggest you listen.

Signora: Time’s running out. What will it be: your friend's life or the Lyre?

[babyflossy]

long overdue | l.dh

pairing: haechan x reader

requested: yes! sorry this took so long :(

summary: when you move back home after a few years apart, haechan starts to see you in a different light, and eventually the tension between you overpowers your worries about ruining your friendship.

genre/warnings: bestfriend to lovers au, smut (dirty talk, slight overstim if you squint?), fluff

word count: 4k

since your first day of elementary school, donghyuck had been your best friend. on that very first day, he had shared his animal crackers with you on the playground bench when you'd dropped yours, and you'd been inseparable ever since. even when your parents moved you away for the majority of middle school, you talked over the phone, you'd even sent each other handwritten letters through the post until donghyuck got his first phone.

the summer before high school started, your parents decided it was best to move back, and suddenly things were different between you and donghyuck. for one, he'd adopted haechan as a nickname, which you couldn't deny suited him more than you'd ever admit, but those four years had seen a lot of changes in the both of you. changes you couldn't ignore.

that stupid smirk he was always wearing was one. the growth-spurt and the jawline and the attractive shape of his shoulders had just been the things you noticed first, let alone the flirty humour he was so comfortable with. nevertheless, the two of you fell back into your old best-friend ways since elementary school; ice cream on fridays, although now they were at two in the morning instead of the afternoon, burgers at the diner on wednesdays because wednesdays are the worst day of the week.

these thoughts cross your mind once again as the boy in question slides into the chair opposite you in the cafeteria, pushing a tray towards you. "they had fries," is the only thing he says to you before he turns to jaemin and starts talking quietly about how they're going to cheat on their chemistry test. you murmur a thank you, picking a few up and stuffing them into your mouth as you continue your conversation with mark, your replacement whilst you were gone, as hyuck had so elegantly put it.

"are you coming to lucas' party tonight?" he asks, stealing some of the fries in front of you before you can swat his hand away. opposite you, haechan has blocked jaemin's voice out of his head so he can hear your answer, hating the way his heart skips a beat in anticipation. these parties were nothing new, you went to almost every single one, but haechan never got used to the clothes you wore, so much more revealing than the ones you to school. it was undeniable in those moments the way his cheeks flushed at the sight of you.

when he had first noticed these thoughts about you, he had been terrified. you were his childhood friend, how could he think of you as anything more than that? surely it would break the two of you apart if he so much as mentioned it to you? over the years since you moved back, however, the two of you had fallen into a comfortable state of flirtatiousness. he would say something suggestive and you would simply laugh and retort with a quip equally as witty. it was second nature, now; the longing glances, the way your hands brushed together when you walked side by side, the way his heart fluttered whenever you stole his hoodies, but only the ones that still smelt of him. your voice brings him back to the present.

"as if i would miss a party," you laugh, and the sound seems brighter every time to haechan, "are you driving everyone?" when mark shakes his head you raise your eyebrows in question and he nods to jeno, the dedicated sober friend for this week. the one good thing about not having your driver's license is that you were never denoted to that role.

as the school day comes to a close you meet haechan outside the back entrance, ready to walk home. the proximity of your houses meant it was always convenient for you both to walk home together, and it made haechan feel better to see you get home safe, he would never tell you that, though. he stands to the side of the crowd streaming out the door and waves you over when he spots your head in the sea of pupils. you shoot him a sunny smile that has his heartbeat pumping in his eardrums.

"you ready, princess?" the familiar smirk is present and you roll your eyes at the nickname, not allowing him the satisfaction of knowing how much it affected you, "you going home after tonight?" he asks as you break out the school car park and onto the pavement, steps falling into rhythm.

"i'm not sure yet, i doubt i'll be able to sneak back in," you scrunch your nose in contemplation, weighing up your options, "i'll probably tell my parents i'm staying at yeri's or something."

you miss the frown that settles on his face, "and stay at lucas'? alone?" haechan tries not to show how much he doesn't like that idea. lucas was a good person, he knows, but he would worry about you no matter who's house you would stay at. it was just part of your relationship at this point.

"yeah?" you stare at him in confusion, oblivious to the way his eyes flicker away when you try to meet his gaze. "what, you want me to come and sleep with you?" as soon as the words left your mouth you realised the second meaning to them and tried to ignore how your face blazed. it was your turn to avoid his eyes as you tried to pretend you had meant that word choice.

"if that's what you want, babygirl," a wink punctuates his words and heat spreads through you. you roll your eyes at him again.

jeno had, as promised, come to collect you from your house, laughing as you ran through your garden to avoid being spotted by your parents. jeno's car is smaller than mark's, all the seats already taken, but before you can ask where you're supposed to sit he presses on the accelerator. hands come to brace you as you nearly fall and your placed onto someone's lap. you can tell it's haechan from the expensive cologne that overwhelms your senses, the warm hands on your waist maintaining their position even after jeno's driving at a normal speed again.

the drive to lucas' house is short but bumpy and you grasp the seat in front of you to stop the jostling. when the car speeds over a bump haechan's fingers dig into your sides, his forehead falling onto your shoulder. you try and turn around to face him but his hands dig in further, stopping you from moving anymore. just as you're about to ask him what's wrong you feel a hardness pressing against the inside of your thigh and your eyes widen.

the flirty jokes you always exchanged meant something, you knew, but the feeling of him underneath you makes you heat up. you're frozen for a moment before a wave of smugness washes through you. haechan was always the one to make you flustered, and to know you had the same effect on him was something you wouldn't forget.

when the car finally stops in front of lucas' house, the others pile out before you two and you face him, raising your eyebrows. you open your mouth to tease him but he beats you to it, "fuck off." is all he says before he stalks towards the front door. you have to jog to keep up with him.

"really? in the car?" haehan rolls his eyes but the blush on his cheeks and the darkness in his eyes is obvious.

"if you weren't wiggling your ass, this wouldn't have happened–"

"i was not wiggling my ass, it's not my fault you're just needy," he stops walking at your words and spins around to face you, eyes narrowed in a look you assume is supposed to be intimidating. it's kinda hot, though, you think.

"i am not needy!" the laugh you let out only seems to upset him further and he takes a step towards you, "i can show you what needy is–"

"are you guys coming or what?" jaemin shouts from the doorway and haechan’s eyes flicker away from you to glare at him. before you can get another word out he’s walking as fast as he can away from you, shoulders squared of defensively. you can hear the pounding music from the house and you decided to forget about his attitude for the night and have as much fun as you can.

five drinks in and haechan is the last thing on your mind. the harsh liquid had burned at first but as lucas offers you a sixth you don't feel it slip down your throat. he grins and you match it, head spinning and vision blurring, the bassline of the music pounding in your ears. lucas has always been a great host, and he laughs at the way stumble from the kitchen counter he sits on. litres upon litres of free alcohol fills the table in front of you and you reach for a colourful blue bottle that fizzes when you twist the top off. he passes you a red plastic cup and the drink spills over the sides as you try and pour it, lucas' laugh piercing through your head which starts throbbing with the beginnings of a headache.

as if he can sense the state you're in, jeno appears in your line of sight, head shaking disapprovingly. you put up a fight when he takes the cup out of your hand and tips it down the sink but give up quickly when jeno shoots you a stern stare. lucas has already slinked off back to his living room where the rest of the guests reside, hands waving at people as a pretty brunette pulls him to the corner of the room. "you're already drunk, y/n."

"no i'm not," you insist but you can hear the way they slur together. the sound of them is foreign to your ears and they make you giggle, the sixth shot you had taken moments before starting to take effect. when you try and walk towards the drink's table your knees buckle under you and jeno has to catch you to stop you falling to the floor.

"this is why i hate being the sober friend," he mumbles as he sets you down on the floor to prevent you from hurting yourself, pulling your hands away when they reach to pull on his hair, muttering about his hair colour.

"now that, i whole-heartedly agree with," the new voice belongs to johnny, who frowns in amusement at the position you're in, giggling hysterically at jeno's hair. "hyuck's in a similar shape, we just put him upstairs in the spare room."

"can you help me take her up? she can't walk properly." their conversation falls on deaf ears to you and you're staring at everything in the kitchen and yet nothing at all as they both take one of your arms, hoisting you into an upright position. standing up, you last all but five seconds on your own before you put all your weight into them and allow yourself to be carried up the stairs.

true to johnny's word, haechan is sat on the edge of the bed, head between his knees whilst jaehyun crouches to talk to him, rubbing his back with a sympathetic smile on his face.

you call out when you see him, "haechannie!" and his head shoots up at the sound of your voice, all the darkness of his eyes from earlier dissipated.

"y/n!" johnny and jeno place you carefully on the bed next to him and meet jaehyun by the door to watch you. haechan's arm is already around your shoulder, your head planted on his shoulder, unclear if you're passed out already or not.

"where are they staying?" jaehyun asks, eyes not leaving the pair in front of him, grimacing when you bump heads with each other.

"i think here?"

"you really wanna leave them alone like this?" johnny questions as he watches you press kisses to the side of haechan's neck, turning to face him.

jeno considers his options for a moment. leave the two of you alone drunk and clearly ready to omit any rational thoughts, or stay here and try to keep you off each other. or, he supposes, he could bribe someone else to do it for him. yes, that's what he'll do. he'll find jaemin.

once the others leave and you're left alone, hands are immediately on your waist, pulling you into a kiss. haechan rubs his thumbs into the exposed skin of your middle, pressing his lips to yours in such a desperate manner you can do nothing but sit and kiss back. the hands pull you onto his lap and you waste no time threading your fingers into his hair, deepening the kiss, subconsciously grinding your hips down onto him.

"i've wanted to do this for ages," he moans into your neck, fingers hastily skimming over your skin, trying to touch you everywhere at once.

"i told you you were needy," the reminder does nothing to halt his actions, accepting your words with nothing but a hum, hands now making their way up your shirt to the clasp of your bra.

just as he's battling with the article of clothing, the door shoots open again and you fall off his lap and onto the matress. jaemin walks in, snickering at nothing and plops himself in between you on the bed, head falling onto haechan's shoulder.

"hi guys!" the tone of his voice gives away just how much he's drunk already, and you eye haechan over jaemin's mop of blue hair, pouting in disappointment.

a pounding head greets you in the morning and even though you and haechan both remember what had happened the night before, neither of you can stop blushing for long enough to bring it up. so you don't, the fear of ruining your friendship too great a risk for you.

it's a hot summer day and you meet haechan and jeno along with jaemin and renjun at the ice cream shop near your house. it's a brightly decorated new place that offers a mammoth selection of different toppings, which is partly the reason you get bullied when you choose an ice lolly instead. in your defense, it was boiling outside and ice cream is dehydrating.

haechan is cursing every god he knows of as you sit opposite him in the booth, lips wrapped so prettily around your ice lolly. he blinks harshly when you lick the side to stop the juice dripping onto your hand, still talking to renjun. in front of him sits the tub of ice cream he previously been so excited to try and yet now he can't seem to eat it, thoughts elsewhere.

in his head, he curses himself for thinking like this, for thinking about how amazing your lips would feel wrapped around his–

"dude are you okay? you're staring at your ice cream like it holds the secrets to the universe." jeno's laugh cuts through his mind and his cheeks burn. he nods wordlessly, searching for something, anything, else to think of, instead of the blood rushing straight to his dick.

later that same day, when he's back in his bedroom alone, you're the only thought that crosses his mind. he thinks about that night at lucas' party, how you had both been so ready to forget anything holding you back, he thinks about the car ride there, how cocky you had been when he got hard from you sitting on his lap. it was clear you felt the same way, at least, he hoped you did.

in your own bedroom, you're having a similar crisis to your best friend. it hadn't been easy to ignore to way he was staring at you earlier, you had even exaggerated your eating just to tease him. you wondered if he wanted you just as bad as you wanted him. maybe you should ask. no, that was too risky. you needed something less obvious.

"you wanna come over to watch that new movie? i'm bored."

haehcan reads the words over and over again, trying to decipher any ulterior motives you might have, yet again that may just be him wishing for some. he takes a moment to reply, choosing his response carefully, even though he knew immediately he would be saying yes.

"sure, when?"

"tonight?"

once you had confirmed a meeting time, haechan had but two hours to compose himself. he didn't know what to expect, after all, you could have invited him over simply to watch the movie, however much he hoped that was only a cover. a cover for an empty apartment, and some suppressed desires.

when you open your front door, you're already worked up enough. it takes all the self restraint in you to not pounce on the boy in front of as soon as he steps into your hallway. he seems to be having a similar internal debate and you feel the air shift as he drops his bag next to your door, stepping towards you.

neither of you want to make the first move, the tension growing until you can’t stand in anymore, reaching towards him, knotting your fingers behind his neck and pulling him down to you. he closes the gap between you, lips smashing against yours in such desperation you would tease him if you didn’t feel the same way.

“where?” he mumbles against your lips, hands gripping up and down your sides.

“bedroom.” is all you reply before he wraps his arms around your waist, shuffling the both of you into your bedroom and shutting the door with his foot. he pushes you onto the bed and you let yourself fall, hair splaying out underneath you in a way he likes maybe too much.

his body follows yours and he slots between your legs perfectly, hands reclaiming their grip on your middle, fingers toying with the hem of your shirt. wherever his fingers slide over, goosebumps rise in their wake, sending shivers through you at their coldness.

your lips return to his and you tilt his head up to deepen the kiss, only breaking away to press open-mouthed kisses to the space under his ear, relishing in the way his breathing hitches in his throat. the kisses trail down his neck to his collarbone, biting down before sucking the area into your mouth. haechan lets out a sinful moan that goes straight to your core.

as soon as you pull you lips away from his body he pulls your shirt over your head, cursing at the lack of underwear, gaze locking in on the swell of your breasts, nipples hard in the cold air. “you had such a hard time taking it off last time,” you reason into his ear, pulling the lobe into your mouth and pulling before continuing, “i thought i would save you the trouble.”

“fuck, baby, you’re so hot,” his words are silenced by the moan you let out when his fingers come to toy with your nipples, rolling one between his digits. you can’t help but arch into him, legs closing around the thigh spreading them apart. it’s clear you’re already so turned on that haechan almost pities you as you grind against his thigh. “so hot, and needy it seems.”

“haechan,” you moan, hands coming to tug on his own shirt, pulling the material over his head and throwing it somewhere else in the room. “i need you so bad.”

“i know, baby,” he cooes, dropping his mouth to envelope your nipple in between his lips, “i’ll take care of you, don’t worry, princess.” the filthful nature of his words make your body heat up, the coldness of fingers now toying with the waistline of your shorts so much more noticeable.

the shorts are removed quickly, your panties following quickly. before you can process what he’s doing, his fingers are spreading your lips apart, lips blowing on your clit to watch the way you clench around nothing. you shiver, hands moving to grip his hair.

after admiring your pussy for a moment, he licks a thick stripe from your hole to your clit, stopping to suck the bud into his mouth, hands coming to press you into the matress when you buck up into him. his tongue laps over your most sensitive spot and he rubs your wetness over his fingers before pushing one into you, moaning at the tightness of your walls. the vibrations of his moan travel straight through your clit and you let out a shameful whine.

after working his finger in you for a few moments, he adds a second, closely followed by a third as he continues his assault on your clit. your moans are loud and non-stop, only stopping to warn him how close you are.

“cum on my tongue, babygirl,” the dirty words dripping from his tongue push you over the edge and you let go with a cry, tugging on the strands of haechan’s hair so hard it nearly hurts him.

“fuck, fuck, fuck,” is all you can say as haechan makes his way back up your body, pressing his lips back to yours. on his tongue, you can taste the sweetness of your own cum and you move away from him only to tug his bottom lip in between your teeth, pulling then sucking on it to numb the pain.

you make quick work of his jeans, helping him out of them and chucking them to the floor, shortly followed by his own underwear. from his view, you look stunning, eyes hooded and blown out with lust, lips red and wet from kissing, bruised almost.

he doesn’t say anything as he lines himself up with your enterance, rocking his hips forwards and filling you completely. the pleasure is almost too much for you, still sensitive from your orgasm only minutes prior, eyes rolling back at the way he fills you so well. haechan’s head falls to your shoulder as he gives himself a moment to calm down, biting into your shoulder when he pulls out to the tip.

“you take me so well, baby,” the words are hot in your ear, his breath fanning down your neck, “look at you, all spread out for me.”

you wrap your arms around his shoulders to steady yourself as he pushed back in, moaning into your shoulder at the feeling of you around him, tight, wet, hot. he can sense he won’t last long as he sets a fast pace, chasing his own high.

to make up for his fast-approaching orgasm, he takes your ankle into his hand, pulling your leg up to rest over his shoulder, the new angle allowing him to hit every sweet spot possible. the feeling leaves you paralyzed in pleasure, unable to do anything but chant his name.

“i’m gonna cum,” you mumble against him, whining out when his thumb comes down to rub fast circles on your clit.

“fuck,” haechan’s eyes are screwed shut and the sight is so other-wordly beautiful it almost makes you tear up. “i’m cumming.”

his hips stutter and the feeling of his cum filling you, some leaking onto the tops of your thigs, pushes you over the edge. your back arches as you cum over his cock, his hips still easing the both of you through your highs.

when you’ve calmed down, chest heaving as the aftershocks of your second orgasm ripple through you, he pulls out, wincing at the first flicker of overstimulation. he turns and presses a gentle kiss to your ankle, rubbing the fingers of his other hand over your cheekbone, relishing the fucked out expression on your face. he thinks this is the most beautiful you’ve ever looked, so exhuasted underneath him, sweat glistening over your skin.

“that was–”

“long overdue.”

he laughs an agreement out, falling next to you on the bed and lacing your fingers together. “we should watch movies together more often.”

a/n: the only thing i have to say is yikes at this point.

[whumpasaurus101]

19th April, Plant Day!

I cannot tell you how tempted I was to write abt fungi but I didn’t want @brutal-nemesis to kill me :) so I can safely say that there is no fungi do not worry :D

Cw: plant whump / ‘stabbing’ sort of / deep cuts / caretaking after / fluff / angst / my gaey boys not having a good time tbh / Alicia being a bitch as usual /

Asher wasn’t happy. He was in Alicia’s house and Jack was right at her feet, kneeling. She raked her hands through his hair. Aaher looked at her in disgust from where he knelt, far away from them both. Why did Rodger have to leave him with this bitch? He would have prefered anyone, anyone over her. Jesus, he’d rather stick a fork in his own fucking eye than be here.

“Anyways,” Alicia sighed, “I want to go to the garden centre to revamp this house and whatnot and the two of you can come if you behave, Asher, I’m looking straight at you. Think of all the fun you could have if you don't throw a fucking tantrum, huh? I’ll even let you two go off for a bit if you're good. But keep in mind, I throw knives like a fucking champ so if one of you decides to try and run, you’ll get a knife in your fucking neck, understood?”

The garden centre was huge, Asher’s eyes lit up as he saw the building. And then there were people, normal people, not sick psychos! Couples, families, you name it! A sudden yank ripped Asher from his thoughts as Alicia pulled back on his top. He stumbled back and Alicia spoke in his ear, “Listen up big boy, you make one single sound to any other people and I will fucking kill you, got it?” Asher quickly nodded, scared to speak.

She forced a smile, “Good, now, let’s not waste any time!” The three walked into the centre, Asher standing in between the pair as he was least trusted. Alicia had her handbag rested against her forearm as she strode in.

There were plants everywhere. Some crawled up the wall, some hung from the ceiling and some were neatly potted and shelved. Asher, completely lost in his thoughts, didn't realise how fast he was walking until Alicia yanked him back, “What the fuck did I just tell you?!” Asher lowered his head, “Sorry.”

Both Jack and Asher followed Alicia obediently as she strolled around the store. Eventually, she had had enough. “Alright, alright! You're starting to piss me off! Just- just- ugh, just go -and stick together. But I swear that if either one of you tries something funny, I will slit both of your throats. Asher looked to Jack who smiled at him. He followed him to the outside area as they held hands in front of them so Alicia couldn't see.

Jack pulled Asher into a corner that was hidden by trees and kissed him gently, wrapping his arms around his waist. Asher chuckled, “Nothing funny, huh?” Jack smiled, “Fine, we can just stop you know, look at these… trees?” Asher chortled, snorting slightly at the end. He traced his hand against Jack’s cheek and jaw, rubbing it slightly, feeling the short stubble.

He brought Jack’s face closer and pecked him on the nose. Jack brought Asher’s hips closer, they kissed again as Jack raked his hands through Asher’s hazelnut hair. “What. the. Fuck?” They both pulled away with a jolt.

Alicia stood there, gobsmacked, “I-you.” She couldn’t form any other words than, “What the fuck.” Asher couldn’t breathe, “Pl-please don’t tell Rodger!! Please!!” That’s when Alicia smiled and chuckled, looking at Jack, “So you’re into Asher, huh? You like the ‘bad boys’?” Jack gulped, blinking fast, “Alicia, please! I-”

Alicia slapped him hard across the face, “I asked you a fucking question!” Jack whimpered. Asher looked in shock, finding himself frozen in shock. “Yes! Okay! I love him, I mean, what is there not to love about him? He’s perfect! He’s brave and he’s handsome. He’s there for me when I need him and he makes me happy every fucking day!”

Asher felt his cheeks flush a deep red. Alicia looked at him blankly, “How sweet. But you know this is simply just not allowed.” The two boys gulped. “Alicia plea-”

“Shut up!!” Asher flinched as she took a step towards him, caressing her sharp nails scraping against his cheek, “Now, now Asher, you know he’s way out of your league!” She cackled, “I mean, what’s the fucking age gap?” Asher clenched his jaw. Her thumb’s nail slightly pressing into his cheek as he let out a yelp.

“Alicia,” Jack raised his voice. Alicia turned to him, nails still digging into Asher’s skin. “Please, he didn’t-”

“You know what?” Alicia sneered, “I don’t think you understand. You are mine and Asher is Rodger’s. You are not permitted to even touch him.” Her grip tightened as blood now ran from Asher’s cut.

“I know, I know, Alicia, please, don’t do this, it was all my fault! I started this! He still doesn’t understand the rules!” Alicia sighed, yanking her hand away, making the cut bigger. “No, he doesn’t, but he will.”

Asher had no clue what she meant until an hour later when he was tied to a chair in Alicia’s kitchen. Alicia circled him, shopping bag in hand. “Have you ever heard of a honey locust?” Asher just glared at her in response, dried blood stuck to his cheek form earlier. “No?” She hummed, taking out what looked like branches of a tree. “Hmmm, well, I was going to give these to Rodger to use them on you, but I guess I can just get more and use these bad boys now!!”

Jack pulled at his cuffs which kept his hands right at the fridge’s handle, “Alicia I-“

“SHUT UP!!!!” Both boys flinched at how loud Alicia was. “Stop sticking up for your bitch all the time! You are mine and he is Rodger’s. And the bast way for you to understand things is to hurt people that you love.”

And with that, she got a thorn and quickly moved it down Asher’s collarbone, leaving a dark red line which blood fell from. Asher let out a howl of pain. His restraints left him unable to double over and protect himself.

Alicia snickered, “Oof, that’s a deep one. Oops?” She did the same thing on the exact another side. This continued until deep gashes covered his abdomen.

When she got bored, she picked up the thorns one by one, piling them into her hand. She dropped the branch and grinned at Jack. She approached a trembling Asher and traced one of the sharp thorns all across and down Asher’s arm, causing goosebumps to rise on his skin.

Without warning, she quickly stabbed a thorn straight into his arm. He yelled, he couldn’t take all of this pain. “P-please, no more! I- AGH!” He was interrupted when she poked another one right under the previous thorn. He felt his vision starting to blur.

Alicia, noticing he was starting to blackout, decided it was enough, for now. “Oh what now? No ‘smart comments’? You see, after a while, I do start to miss them. Its quite satisfying to be honest! You know, Rodger being unable to control his mutt while Jack just sits right at my side like a good bitch.”

Asher saw Jack flinch through his blurred vision. Jack had never heard Alicia call him that. It was always Rodger who did, never Alicia. Did she prefer Asher? No, no, she couldn’t! She loved Jack… right? He looked to the two, Alicia was running a hand through Asher’s hair with a smile as the other’s head lolled to the side as he slowly drifted out of it.

---

Jack was allowed to clean Asher’s wounds. He had a tweezers and was trying to pluck the thorns out from Asher’s delicate skin. Asher let out painful moans as he rocked back and forward. Jack blinked away his tears, “Ash- Asher please, I need you to stay still.” Asher did but once the tweezers were back on the last thorn, he flinched. Jack rolled his eyes, “ASHER! I NEED YOU TO FUCKING-” He froze the minute Asher’ tear-stained face and puffy eyes turned to him. He looked as if he was about to absolutely ball crying.

“Asher, oh my god, Asher, I am so sorry!” Asher blinked and the tears followed. They streamed down his cheeks as his chest rose and fell fast. He whimpered and bit his lip to stop himself from sobbing. “Asher, please I- I didn’t mean to! I’m so sorry!!”

Asher sniffed and blinked rapidly, “ ‘s alright, y-you didnt m-mean to.” Jack’s heart felt heavy but he had to keep cleaning the wounds before Alicia would come in and make some snarky comments. “This is going to sting- wait, I might have some pain killer I can give you, mkay?”

Asher nodded weakly. “Alright, give me a second.” He got up out of the empty bath they sat in and walked to the bathroom cabinet. He scanned through the shelves and his eyes landed on one of the orange containers.

He opened it up and poured two pills into his palm. He then got a glass and filled it with water, knowing the water from the bathroom probably wasn’t the best but it was better to get rid of all of the pain Asher was in already.

He handed Asher the pills and glass. Asher looked at him, waiting for a nod of approval before putting the pills in his mouth and washing them down with the water. “Th-thank you” His voice was hoarse. Jack wiped tears of his own and sat back behind Asher.

Asher’s flinches were less violent. Jack smiled, knowing that his love was in less pain. No- no, not his. Rodger’s. The heaviness settled in his heart once more. Surely there was some way of keeping Asher. Keeping? What the hell was wrong with him?! Maybe he didn’t deserve Asher. Maybe it was for the best.

He looked down as he felt Asher’s back press against him. He was asleep. His adorable face looked so peaceful. His eyes were closed and he wasn’t in pain. His angry face was relaxed and the usual crease in his eyebrows was gone.

Jack gently traced his cheek with his finger. His scar had been reopened and looked painful. After a few moments of peace, Alicia burst through the door, “Jesus fucking Christ, you cant keep your hands off him, can you? After what he went through because of you!” Jack’s head snapped up to her, “Alicia, please, let him sleep, he never sleeps! Please, I’ll do anything!” Alicia fake smiled at him for a moment before shoving her arms under Asher’s arms and dragging him out of the bathtub. Asher let out a yell of shock as he was brought out of his sweet peaceful dreams back to this phscho bitch.

“Alicia, leave him, alone, please!” Alicia just giggled in excitement, “No way, this is a fun thing to play with. You two think you're so in love. But none of you knows what love is!” Asher hung his head in shame and embarrassment. Jack noticed, he knew that Asher had absolutely no memories of his childhood, he didn't know what love was. Jack felt terrible.

Alicia looked between the pair with a shit-eating grin, “Well, you guys must be tired! Asher, you can sleep on the floor in the kitchen. Jack, you're sleeping in with me!” Jack knew better than to refuse. Asher was dragged out of the room and Jack was left sitting in the bathtub, waiting for Alicia to come and show him who he really belonged to.

—-

Taglist:

@as-a-matter-of-whump @yesthisiswhump @appy-polly-loggies @jordanstrophe @just-a-whumping-racoon-with-wifi @likeit-or-whumpit @milk-carton-offical

[sw124]

Ambrosia

[Reader is Female, for the record there is a rare phenomenon known as Golden Blood where a individual is RHnull having no RH factor which means they have no - or + in their blood. For more information please research it further on your preferred method. This is an Undertale original Vampire AU done by @taytay2656 ]

Here you were, standing in the lions den. The lion in question was staring you down, sizing you up. Lord Xyrus, owner of this lovely castle and noble of the area. You came here looking for work, knowing full-well that this was not the place for you...but you didn’t have much choice.

It was either this or return to your home and be forced into a political marriage to a man who would turn you into another trinket in his growing harem of ‘brides’ so to speak. You did everything in your power to look like a peasant girl, giving away your clothes, bartering for any scraps of clothing and even rolling in dirt. Well it worked, by the time you go there you looked like some vagabond tossed out of their home.

Now here you were asking for help... before a person you knew would be dangerous...especially if he found out your secret. You flinched as he stood up and walked around you, you held your breath as he took his seat again.

“Well you seem to be in good health, you’ll be put to work outside on the grounds. Do well and you may work your way up to being a maid in the house...or be apart of my...nobles.”

He smirked at you, you cursed your face...your mother always told you that you were born with a ‘youthful’ face. Round and cute, you shook your head and bowed to him.

“I will do my best out on the grounds my lord, I promise not to be a disappointment to you.”

He gave you a stern nod and lead you outside, he introduced you to a senior member of the groundskeepers. He was a tall, older man but had such a welcoming smile, his name was Arthur and he took you under his wing. You didn’t have much trouble adapting really, true you were born into nobility you snuck away to help the maids and servants with chores as a way to pass the time. Your favorite thing to do was go outside in the garden an help tend to the flower beds and vegetable patches.

You felt truly at ease here, yes it was dangerous to be in the presents of Lord Xyrus but you’d take this over being a harem girl any day.

.....But this ease would not last long...

[six months later]

It was one particularly nice day that you were outside, one of the workers...a young girl came running up and telling you the lord wished to see you. You waisted no time stepping down off the ladder with your basket of apples, handing them to the girl you made your way to the castle where Lord Xyrus was waiting.

“Ah, there you are. I need you to do me a special chore, my brother who lives up the way needs his home cleaned and since I can’t spare any of my indoor servants at the moment an you seem to be the most...studious you seem to be the most qualified for this.”

You tilted your head, he had plenty enough servants to spare...but then again it was best not to argue. You nodded and listened closely to his instructions on where to find his home. You listened carefully and headed off into the woods.

Odd that the two don’t live together given their family but then again sometimes family are better living their own lives. The path towards the home spiraled through the woods, you didn’t mind really. It was so nice to see the beauty of the woods here, for a moment you stopped, extend your arms and breathed in the luscious air of the woods.....

That was a mistake...

The wind was knocked out of you when arms wrapped around your midsection, next thing was the sharp prick of teeth sinking into your skin. You got a look at your attacker, his burnt umber kimono slowly staining with your blood. You noted he was rather large frame...that and you were practically lifted off the ground into his hold. You could feel his tongue dig into the muscles, ripping them to produce more blood, he took flesh that was for sure. Yes he got a taste of your blood...and he wasn’t letting go any time soon.

“.......Are you done yet?” You groaned, folding your arms across your chest.

You felt him jump a little as he let you go, you fell flat on your butt. You turned and glared at him but it faded when you saw his...scared expression. Slowly you stood up, slightly dizzy from the loss of blood but it was slowly coming back. Along with your wound closing up.

“Next time don’t drop me, you must be the masters brother. He didn’t give me your name so mind telling it to me?”

He didn’t answer...he just stared....you stared back and sighed. You looked around and just barely through the tree’s you spotted a small cottage, probably his home. You turned to him, took his hand and started pulling him towards the cottage in question. He needed to clean up and so did you...funny he didn’t resist.

“Well I suppose we can get you cleaned up and we can do introductions then hm?”

You weren’t sure what to say, poor thing looked lost...alright sure he just tried to kill you but you just survived his attack. That probably not only surprised him but scared him, the cottage inside was small but it felt like you stepped into the story book.

The floors inside were lined with tatami mats, there was a cute little square filled with sand and a fire going in it. There was a line from the top of the ceiling holding a pot, a nice place to cook a stew. There was a smaller room where a futon mat was laid out for sleep, you doubted he slept much but it was still nice. There were scrolls and books on shelves about.

This place was truly a little slice of heaven, if things were different you would have loved to live here...even if you had to live with someone who just tried to take half of your neck off. You walked to the little washbasin in the corner of the room, it was half filled with water. Taking up a rag you dipped it in the water and walked over to him, he backed away when you came close.

“Now don’t be difficult, your brother Xyrus sent me to take care of things around here an my guess is also take care of you. So be still please, if you leave blood sitting on your face it’ll get sticky.” You managed to get pull him close and dabbed his stained mouth clean.

Once he was clean you washed off around your neck, you poured some water into the washbasin and let the rag soak. You went to the smaller room and proceeded to look for a clean kimono to change your....right you didn’t know his name.

“Whats your name please, I need to call you something.”

“C-Cayden!” He practically hiccuped his name, you almost giggled at it but kept your composure.

“Very good then, come here master Cayden I got a clean kimono for you. Please change an I’ll go wash that one, don’t want it staining.”

In a daze he took the kimono, walked into the smaller room and proceeded to change, you waited till he came out. Seems all his kimonos had the same color, orange. You took his sullied kimono and headed outside, just a few steps away was a stream. Kneeling you began washing and scrubbing the kimono clean of your blood. You heard him come up behind you, he knelt down beside you.

“Y-you shouldn’t be at my home, does my brother know about you?!” You couldn’t miss the waver in his tone.

“No your brother doesn’t know, doubt if he did he’d send me to you. An if your referring to my blood...I took great measures to make sure no one found out about my blood, golden blood isn’t exactly something you want others to know about.” You smiled at him and patted his head, he was so sweet.

“Well...when your finished with that we must head back to his castle, my brother would be very cross with me if I kept you.”

That made you sad, you kinda hoped you’d stay and be ‘his’ servant but its not like you had a choice, you were obligated to obey.

“Alright master Cayden, as you wish...if its not too much trouble do you have a cloak or anything I could wear. Don’t wanna walk into his home covered in blood, might scare the others.”

He nodded and ran back to his cottage, by the time he got back you were just hanging his kimono on tree branch to dry in the sun. It was adorable how he put it over you and fastened the clasped around the front. He took you by your hand and swiftly lead you down a carved path towards the castle, if you knew this was here it would have made the trek to the cottage easier...but you digressed. The sun was starting to set by the time you reached the castle, you barely stepped foot into the castle grounds when you saw master Xyrus.

He was damn near running towards the both of you, you were tempted to hide but then why? You didn’t do anything wrong, in a blink he was before you tearing the cloak from you. He gripped the part of your clothes that were still stained with blood, he inhaled and turned to you. Eyes widening, you could have sword you saw a glint of saliva forming in the corner of his mouth...

“Inside...please.” He whispered to you as he fixed the cloak back on you.

Doing as you were told you walked back in, looking back to be sure Cayden wasn’t getting yelled at. But instead Xyrus was simply patting his brother’s arm and sending him on his way, thats good at least there wasn’t bad feelings between the two. You were careful to avoid the maids and servants around, just because your clothes were covered didn’t mean they couldn’t smell your blood. Finally you reached master Xyrus’ quarters, you closed the door and were about to sit down before it opened again, the master stepping inside.

He closed and locked the door, again the cloak torn from you. His arm swiftly wrapped around you and pulled you into an embrace, his fangs the color of ocean pearls gingerly pierced your flesh. Compared to Cayden it was a change, to steady yourself you held on to him. This did feel a lot less painful, after a moment he pulled his head away. Kissing the mark he left, already starting to heal.

“Hmm yes...to think I had you in my possession and never knew.” He purred, he cradled the back of your head as he tilted it forward.

“You’ll live among my nobles from now on, on top of that I think I’ll give you a name.”

You blinked at him. “An..what name is that?”

You watched as a Cheshire grin formed on his face as he leaned in to your neck.

“Ambrosia...” he hissly moaned as he again pressed his fangs into you..for another drink.

End, more to come if you wish to have more.

[freedom-of-writing]

Life turned her that way

Just a nice heart to heart between Nicole and Wynonna taking place after the intervention at the beginning of episode 4x10

“Do you want me to stay?”

“No, you have to go.”

Nicole leaves the house with a heavy heart. Today’s her first day back as sheriff. She didn’t think she had it in her to walk in those shoes again. In the past, her uniform had always made her feel strong and in control, but for 18 months all she could feel was alone, and completely lost. Wynonna went into the Garden to save Waverly, and Doc, while she had to go home, alone and broken. Literally broken. And, yes, it’s true, she wasn’t actually alone, Rachel was with her. But half her family was gone. And then Black Badge showed up, Nedley disappeared, and Jeremy went MIA. Little by little, she’d lost everything: her job, her dignity, her hope. Her heart. Waverly Earp was her heart, and she was beginning to fear she’d lost her forever. At last, she was so afraid of losing Rachel as well that she put all her strength into protecting her, to the point that it was consuming her. Growing up she had always been a loner. She was used to being independent, but here in Purgatory she had finally found a team to work and fight with. And yet in that moment, she was all alone against the world. Again. She had nobody to talk to about the darkness inside her, because Rachel was still just a kid, who’d gone through a lot herself, and she didn’t want her to deal with her own shit as well. In the end, she was so blinded by fear and despair that she couldn’t even see it was Nedley she’d been haunting for so long. And she even traded Doc to the Clantons to get Waverly back. She knew he would’ve been able to take care of himself, he always does, but still. If she weren’t so desperate, she would’ve looked for some more options for sure. She’s not the type to betray her friends and family like that. But 18 months is a long time to be alone. And she couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t sleep anymore. She could barely live. The only thing keeping her going was Rachel. That kid was the only reason to get out of bed every morning, and not let herself slip away.

Nicole is about to get into her car to go to the station, when she hears some noises coming from the barn. For a second she tells herself that Wynonna needs time, and she should just leave her alone. But then a voice inside her head makes her change her mind. You might lose her again, and you didn’t even try. Swallowing the lump in her throat, she walks to the barn door, and knocks lightly calling for her friend.

“Wynonna…”

“Get back to your perfect life, Haught!” A voice answers from the inside in a very harsh tone.

Nicole ignores it, and lets herself in. Screw time, she is not going to risk losing her best friend again, not when she can try and save her. Once she’s in, she finds Wynonna sitting on her bed and playing with a bullet in her hands.

“Perfect… if you really think my life is perfect, then you don’t know me at all.”

“What do you want from me, huh?” Wynonna tries to sound annoyed, but the emotion in her voice makes her sound more broken than anything. “I thought me storming out was a clear sign of ‘intervention’s over’.”

“Wynonna, we’re just worried about you...”

“Well, you can stop worrying now because I’m fine.” The small crack in her voice made her sound all but convincing.

“Sure you are…” Nicole says with a scoff as she moves to sit on the bed next to Wynonna.

“Can you just leave, please?” Wynonna begs in the smallest of voices as tears come streaming down her face.

Nicole looks at her for a moment, and then she turns to stare at somewhere in front of her. She takes a deep breath, gathering the strength to say what she’s about to say. It’s a secret she’s been keeping from everybody, even Waverly. But maybe talking about it could help both her and Wynonna. Ignoring her friend’s request, she starts speaking.

“I wake up every day in the middle of the night and have to check on Waverly and Rachel to see if they’re still with me. I even check on you most nights.” She pauses a second, waiting for Wynonna’s reaction. She expected her to say something mean, or to tell her to leave again, but she doesn’t. She doesn’t need to turn towards her to see that her words have gotten Wynonna’s attention, and she’s now looking at her. Taking that as an invitation to continue, she takes a deep breath and she resumes her tale. “One night it was 4am and you weren’t in your bed… I panicked so bad I couldn’t breathe. Then I looked better and saw you were passed out on the floor in a corner of the barn. I didn’t want to wake you, so I got the blanket from your bed to cover you up, and then, I put the pillow under your head. The truth is, you were so out of it, I don’t think a bomb could’ve waken you. But my heart was racing so bad, my hands were shaking, and it was still hard for me to breathe. So I left you there on the floor, and went back to sleep. Well, to bed. I forced myself to stay awake. I just didn’t want to see it again.” Nicole’s voice is so small and broken when she says that last part.

Wynonna doesn’t need to see the look in her eyes to know Nicole’s lost somewhere in her mind. And by the sound of her voice, it must be a really dark place that she’s in. All of a sudden, a rush of worry hits her, because she’s never seen Nicole like this. Not even when she was vomiting frogs all over the place.

“How bad is Nicole?”

“She was alone for a really long time.”

As she recalls Rachel’s words, her attention moves from Nicole’s face down to her hand on her thigh. It’s curled up in a fist, and her nails are digging hard into the flesh of her palm. As gently as she can, Wynonna slips her hand under her friend’s forcing her own fingers into the fist. She waits for Nicole to let go of the tight grip, and when she does she clasps her hand giving it a reassuring squeeze. She would like to say something to bring her friend back to reality, but she doesn’t know what to say. She has absolutely no idea what is happening inside her head, or what she meant when she said she didn’t want to see it again. But at least the touch seems to have worked because she can feel Nicole squeezing back lightly. Wynonna doesn’t push her to continue, she just waits for her to be ready to speak again. At last, with a deep breath, Nicole goes on with her story.

“I have the same nightmare every night... I’m at the homestead, it’s morning and I’m making breakfast. I go upstairs to wake Rachel up, but she’s not in her room. So I start calling out for her, but I get no answer. I start panicking as I look for her in every room of the house. But I can’t find her anywhere. She’s not there. It’s just me. I’m alone. By then, I can hardly breathe, but I still take the shotgun and start looking for her outside. I don’t know where I’m going. My eyes are blurred with tears, and my lungs are burning, but I keep running, and calling... And then suddenly I’m on Dolls’s grave. I take a step back in confusion, and I see there are other tombstones next to his. I start reading the names: you, Doc, Jeremy, Nedley... I’m afraid to look but there’s two more. Rachel... and Waverly. Then a voice comes out of nowhere: They’re all dead because you were too weak to even try to save them. They trusted you, and you did nothing to protect them. You deserve to be alone. You were never worthy of their love. I turn to see where it’s coming from, but... all I see are the ghosts of the people I love. But when I take a step towards you, you all disappear. All but Waverly. She stands there, looking at me with tears in her eyes. Why? I thought you loved me... So why didn’t you fight? She asks, and then she’s gone too.” Nicole becomes suddenly aware of the wetness on her cheeks.

“Nicole...” Wynonna tries to call her back to reality. She can hear her ragged breathing as she’s struggling to get air into her lungs. She’s never seen Nicole so broken before, and it is scaring her. She doesn’t know what to do, how to help, she’s usually the broken one.

“You’re all dead because of me...” Nicole’s voice is barely above a whisper, but Wynonna hears it loud and clear, and those words break her heart.

That’s it. She has to bring her back. She can’t take seeing her best friend like this anymore. Without letting go of Nicole’s hand, she falls onto her knees in front of her. Then she brings her free hand up to her chin to tilt her head up gently.

“Nicole, hey, look at me.” Nothing.

“Haught!” She screams this time, and at last, Nicole snaps out of it. “We’re not dead. Do you hear me? No one. Is dead.” She says staring straight into Nicole’s eyes, which are completely welled up in tears.

As gently as she can, she brushes her thumb onto her cheeks to wipe away the tears that keep streaming down her face. She can feel the tears forming in her eyes as well, but she doesn’t let them fall. She can’t cry now. Nicole needs her to be strong.

“We’re here.” Wynonna says grabbing both of Nicole’s hands and giving them a squeeze. She hopes the touch will further prove her words. “I’m here.”

She takes a sigh of relief when she sees Nicole’s eyes starting to focus on hers. She’s back.

“You can breathe now.”

And with that, Nicole slumps forward into Wynonna’s arms, sobbing hard in the crook of her neck. Everything she’s been holding back in the past 18 months, the pain, the loss, the fear, the despair... all that she’s been hiding from both Waverly and Rachel has finally come to the surface. And it’s the strangest feeling ever, because for the first time in so long, she can actually breathe again, even if the sobs are wrecking and chocking her.

“I’m here. We’re all here.” Wynonna says over and over in her ear in an attempt to calm her down.

And it is in that moment, as she holds a broken Nicole in her arms, that Wynonna makes a promise to herself and to her friends: no matter how hard it is, she will overcome this darkness inside her and she will start to take care of herself, because her family is worth staying for.

“We’re gonna be okay. I promise.”

[ruubles]

A Bundle of Crimson Roses (Pt.3)

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Pairing: Chuuya Nakahara x Reader

Warnings: Cursing , Alcohol , Suggestive Themes , Gore , Blood, Violence

Word Count: 6790

Y/N) stood at the back of the gazebo, her body leaned atop the white wooden rail as she stared out across the well maintained garden. Flowers twisted in the moonlight and swayed in the gentle breeze, rose bushes stood without a branch out of place and recently pruned, and the fountain brought a continuous stream of sound. These little details had been the focus of her attention, the only thing dragging her mind away from the bodiless head sitting on the ground behind her.

She hadn’t brought herself to do anything with it yet, leaving it there in hopes that maybe it was just a hallucination, but the longer she stood the more the realization came crashing down. In her time under the Port Mafia she’d seen, and done, horrible things that were considerably worse than this. Even so, she was shocked that someone would risk their life to get the corpse only to leave its head behind as a warning. 

That’s what this was. A warning.

A warning to stay away. A warning to not track these people down. Whoever had been responsible for this murder was dangerous and they wanted the mafia to know that. They not only created a drug that could remove someone’s ability, but they went through all the trouble of tracking the victim down to keep this information from them. It was a basic strategy but well thought for this situation. As long as they left behind as little traceable evidence as possible then it would be near impossible to find the culprit.

“Fuck. That sure explains the missing body.” (Y/N) had lost herself in thoughts of the situation and hadn’t noticed Chuuya’s approach. She didn’t bother to turn around and listened as he approached her, his steps were shallow light as he took the longest route around the head. After a moment she felt him beside her, his arms crossed and laid on the railing. “You should have told me you found something, I was still searching the house!”

He huffed a little as he spoke, eyes focused ahead just as hers were. “Sorry, I guess I got caught up thinking about something. I haven’t had a partner in quite some time.”

“Tch. You don’t have to apologize, I’m not used to a partner either. Last time I had one, it was that shitty Dazai.” 

(Y/N) chuckled, her grim face shifting to one with a slight smile. She shook her head at the mention of the suicidal man, he was quite the topic in the Port Mafia, even after he abandoned them. “I was never that close with Dazai, but I knew of him through a friend. It would seem many people perceive him in different ways.”

“Many people don’t like him, and I couldn’t agree with those people more.” Chuuya turned to look at (Y/N), finally acknowledging that she had at some point turned to face him. Her (E/C) eyes met his and he could see that glint in them, not the one of seriousness from this morning, but the playfulness he’d seen in her last night.

“Who are you Chuuya Nakahara?”

The question was a strange question, similar to the ones he’d been asked when they first met only twenty-four hours before. “That’s a dumb question for someone Mori spoke so highly of.”

“I’m no fool Chuuya Nakahara, I’ve looked into the case files of almost every high ranking member of the Port Mafia. You are the person with the least amount of information. I was able to get more from Mori’s own public file than your private one.” (Y/N) backed away from the ledge and took a few steps away from Chuuya, carefully watching her movements to stay a good distance from the head. “I’m working with someone who I know nothing about. Mori knows you’re loyal to him, but I have no reason to believe that you wouldn’t shoot me if the opportunity provided itself.”

“Now why would I do that? Mori made you my partner, and I’m not going to disobey a direct order from him.” Chuuya scoffed and turned to face her. “Plus you’re one to talk about minimal information when your file doesn’t exist. I may not be the most strategic person in this mafia, but I do like knowing who I’m dealing with.”

“It would seem we’ve hit a roadblock then. My files, both public and private, were burned upon request and I assume the missing information from yours is also ash.” (Y/N) stepped towards Chuuya, their eyes locked in a challenge with one another. Her eyes changed rapidly to a dark piercing gaze, as if the trust she’d gained for him had drained at a rapid pace. “I have no doubt that our partnership will be beneficial in this case, but if neither of us trust one another then I see no reason for us to be friends.”

~x~

Chuuya’s eyes remained glued to the road ahead, his ears honed in on the quiet breathing of the seat diagonal to his own. If he focused he could see the faint outline of a person in his peripheral vision, but their body still remained shrouded in darkness. (Y/N) had chosen to sit in the back of his car, to the seat opposite of her was a bloody bag securely buckled down. 

They hadn’t spoken even a word after their show down in the gazebo, perhaps newfound apprehension had been built between both parties. Few people knew of Chuuya’s past, but he understood that the mystery made any relations he had with another person difficult. For all (Y/N) knew he was a treacherous fiend that would stab her at moments notice. Though that statement applied for him as well, he had done his digging in the hours before he’d seen her standing alone outside and the stories of her did not disappoint.

The woman without a face, that was the constant whenever they mentioned her. He hadn’t a clue what it meant but whatever it was made her dangerous. Far more than most people of the mafia. Tidbits of information wormed their way into his mind, some of which were likely untrue, but the more he learned the less he really knew. From what he’d been told she’d joined the mafia at a fairly young age, just a little bit before the Dragon’s Head Conflict, and during the conflict was when her true strength had come to light. Mori promoted her just after the whole fight started, but he told no one but Daza and a few people who knew of her.

“Tomorrow I propose we go to the scene of the fight. We could likely find some bullet casings or leftover blood. It could be a lead for where to find these people.” Chuuya could see in his eyes that even though she was speaking to him, she hadn’t turned away from the window. 

“We could go in the morning and-”

“Afternoon.” She cut him off. “I have business to attend tomorrow morning and I would much rather not be forced to reschedule. My apologies for cutting you off, but please continue.”

Chuuya rolled his eyes but made no comment on her rude interruption. “Then we can meet up tomorrow afternoon; Do you need a ride?”

(Y/N) hummed to herself for a moment before answering him. “If it isn’t too much trouble. My business is at a bakery on Southwest Street: Kim’s Kreamy Delights. They have some of the best sweets I’ve ever tried, I’m a big fan of their Dasik, but Mrs.Kim only makes them on Lunar New Year. When it’s not around that time, I usually get a kkwabaegi.”

“You seem well acquainted with sweet treats, I assume you know that they aren’t healthy.” Chuuya’s comment was somewhat judgmental, but it seemed to fly over (Y/N)’s head. Her mind still focused on the warm treats she would get whenever she was in town.

“I know that, but I do things for the enjoyment of myself. We are members of a mafia Chuuya, I’ve never expected to live a long life, nor a happy one. If you wish to judge then do so but I will not be changing my habits based on your criticism.” He had thought she hadn’t noticed the backhanded rudeness he’d displayed but it seems as though she had. 

There was a strange silence that fluttered through the air of the car as the light of the city finally made its way through the car's windows. Slowly the trees on the outer rim of the city turned to buildings and the streetlamps illuminated the faces, every post passing by in a fleeting second before another one replaced the eerie orange light. Chuuya’s car sped down the street, not one to abide by normal street laws, and every sharp turn brought them closer to the mafia’s headquarters. 

After a couple of minutes he pulled up in front of the towering building, its floors spiralling upwards into the stars. Several windows could be seen alive with a blazing light, not a strange sight considering many of the mafia’s business matters occurred during this time of night. Usually Chuuya would be in there monitoring what went on in every crevice of that building, but instead he was heading home to an empty apartment where he’d be receiving regularly spaced messages updating him on what was going on. It had been Mori’s order for him to get some rest, but the work of a mafia member was never done when night fell.

“Are you sure I can’t drop you off at the place you’re staying at? I don’t mind driving a little further.” Chuuya had extended his offer not because he was kind, but because Mori had been clear that someone should be looking out for this woman. He’d gone as far as assigning Hirotsu to monitor her, there had to be a reason he’d want someone of such importance to watch out for someone as capable as an executive.

“I’ll be fine, but thank you for the offer. There’s some papers I want to take a look at before going to my residence.” (Y/N) opened the door of the car, bringing both her legs out onto the sidewalk with a gentle click of her heels. She hesitated before turning back around. Her hand latched onto the top of the sheet that they had used as a handle and dragged the head towards her. “I truly am sorry for my words earlier. One of my bad habits is trying to forget my past, and I let that get to me. If it’s okay, I would like to take back my rude words.”

That was surprising. In the garden, (Y/N) had been so serious and gave off the same feeling that Mori gave off whenever someone questioned his authority. She was authoritative when she spoke of her burned files and her going back on her word of their relationship being nothing more than partners was something he hadn't expected. Thirty minutes ago he’d fully been prepared for her to be just another person he sees at work, but yet here she was apologizing. Every time they spoke it was like talking to another person, but this is the one who he’d met that had no apprehensions brought about by their job; This was the woman who was behind the mask of the mafia.

“I’m not one for friends.” (Y/N) had tried to hide the slight slump of her shoulders at his words, but he noticed the slight change before she stepped out of his car. She closed the door without turning around and began to walk towards the building's entrance. Chuuya rolled the window down and called out. “But I would like to try one of those kkwabaegi you were telling me about.”

She stopped her motions and turned to face him with the smallest of smiles on her face. “You butchered that name.”

“Oh shut up!” He snapped before rolling up the window and speeding off. (Y/N) watched as his car went down the street and eventually turned the corner. Her (E/C) bleary with a tiredness she’d held for so long. They were far from friends, but in the mafia did anyone really have a friend? A life like theirs was not made for relationships greater than the ones they formed at work and that was a fact (Y/N) had learned a long time ago. She didn’t expect anything from Chuuya, but she hoped that maybe when this was all over that there might be someone who wants her to stick around.

“So are you enjoying your new partner?” The voice was deep and sudden, there had been no one around moments before. (Y/N) showed no surprise of this person's newfound presence; She had known the moment he had appeared behind her. “The kids aren’t mad, but they are expecting you to take them out for ice cream. You’d better not disappoint them or I’ll pour all your wine into a bush.”

“Oh come on Isaac, I may not be the most caring person in the world but I wouldn’t disappoint those kids. Not again.” (Y/N) turned to face her friend. Isaac stood with his head turned up as he let out a puff of air and watched as it turned white and then disappeared. He wore the same outfit he wore whenever he was bartending: A dark gray button up tucked into a pair of pitch black jeans, simple but with the added spice of five undone buttons to reveal a well sculpted body beneath. He was a person of habit. “Did you just finish a shift?”

“No? What gave you that idea?” They walked side by side to one another, Isaac’s hand buried in his pocket as they approached the building. 

(Y/N) stopped in her tracks, a deadpan expression replacing the sly smile she’d worn moments before. “You cannot tell me that outfit is the extent of your closet.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean!” Isaac snapped, hand pulled from his pocket as he balled his fingers into a fist. “I have better fashion than you Ms.I-Dress-Like-An-Cubicle-Worker.”

“Oh quit it, you’re acting so childish, Isaac.” (Y/N) shook her head and walked into the building, neither of the guards questioning her presence much. Her comrade followed her lead and stayed close as though fearful of being found for being out of place. “I thought better of you.”

“Oh shut it you hag, let’s just get this over with.”

~x~

“I doubt there’s anything left at the scene of the fight. Especially if you say it's a city owned warehouse.” Isaac sighed and fell back on his chair before continuing. “They’re easy to access and I doubt that someone willing to go through all the trouble of disposing the body wouldn’t clear that place out.”

Mori sat at his usual spot at the head of the table, silent as he listened to both (Y/N) and Isaac shoot ideas off one another. He seemed enthralled in his own thoughts as he considered a plan of action. They all sat close to one another, Mori at the head of his table with one of them sitting in a chair on either side of the table. So close there was no need for their voices to be raised and that meant that anyone outside would have a hard time listening in.

It was strange for someone so strong and hated like Mori to allow an outsider like Isaac to ever be near him, but after all Mori had done for them both he trusted them more than a lot of the members of the mafia. (Y/N) was his executive and by extension Isaac was loyal, though he would not hold his tongue around him like she would.

“(Y/N), you must have an assumption as to who is behind this. Please clarify who it is.” Mori wanted to hear all the information, even if it might be wrong.

“Is that really even a question, Ougai? You’ve had the same assumption considering you didn’t only bring me back here, but you called a meeting with my old partner.” (Y/N) was apprehensive to continue, her idea had a lot of backing and would likely be true. For now it was only that, an idea, but the more they investigate the closer she’ll get to the life she used to have. “I think it was them. That old man is smart and a drug like this isn’t far from something he’d do.”

Isaac gritted his teeth, trying to find an argument for why it wouldn’t be them. Anything to keep the idea of them coming back out of his mind. They’d spent so much effort to escape their past and join Mori that even a possibility of the past coming back to haunt them was pestilent. “There wasn’t anything left with the part of the body they left behind. It’s protocol to leave them with every single body, you know that.”

“Of course I do, but there are exceptions to that rule! Given a direct order from him you don’t have to-”

“And if it is absolutely impossible, I know.” Isaac cut her off to continue his idea. “Something like this, so large, the old man wouldn’t want to let anyone take credit for it. He wants people to know it's them so they’ll be afraid.”

“There were roses in her garden.”

“You said she had a garden full of flowers of all kinds.” He argued back, hand hitting the table a bit too harshly. “A couple of roses bushes doesn’t fucking matter!”

“Enough.” Mori interjected. He’d taken both Isaac and (Y/N) in at a young age, but they both had a tough time before he found them. They may not have been together these past few years but they are still better partners than any two people who ever graced the mafia. Above all Mori sought to keep things neutral between them both so that they wouldn’t say anything they’d regret when things calmed down. “We have to think rationally and take a moment to talk it over. Neither of you are foolish, I’ve seen the things you can accomplish together but tensions are high right now. For now we assume it’s  one of the recent organizations who have stood against us.”

It was silent for a moment as the pair thought things over. They’d lived a long life with shared pains but they both had managed to come out better for it. Isaac was raising five kids and smiled everyday as though it were his last, on the other hand (Y/N) buried herself in work and drowned herself with expensive delicacies to erase it all. They were like family and neither of them would blame the other for how things went after Oda’s death.

“If it’s not?” Isaac’s voice was low and gravelly as though he were on the verge of tears. It was weak and pitiful, but it explained exactly how they were feeling. “What if it is them, Mori? Do we fight them? We won’t win that.”

“It isn’t them.” (Y/N) cut in before Mori could say a word. “It can’t be. We went through so much to slaughter them during the Dragon’s Head Conflict. The numbers don’t lie, nearly every branch was pruned because of us. To come back now, and with enough people to even consider facing the Port Mafia, is impossible.”

Isaac slid his chair back and stood up, dark eyes more gloomy than they were glossy. “You seem to forget (Y/N), pruning is done to help a plant grow.”

~x~

Chuuya looked from his phone to the fancy hotel he’d parked across the street from. His eyes held hesitation as he scanned across the messages on his device one final time. Part of him wanted to ignore the messages and just go home, but doing this had become a ritual. A guilty pleasure that helped calm his riled nerves.

‘I don’t have work tonight if you want to drop by our special spot.’

‘C’mon Chuuya, at least let me know if you’re going to show up. I need to know if I should open the champagne sooner rather than later.’

‘Fine. I’ll be waiting, but until then let me leave you with a special present.”

‘Attachment: 1 Image’

Chuuya’s eyes scanned across the image once again, to say it was scandalous was an understatement. There was no face presented in the image, instead the picture captured a woman’s body adorned in a set of elegant hand-woven red lace lingerie. He wasn’t unfamiliar with the outfit considering he’d been the one to take it off her many times before.

Their relationship was nothing more than a late at night call whenever they needed to relieve some stress. Neither of them knew much of the other, their names had come the first night they’d grabbed a drink and their sexual desires came soon after. Though there were a few things he noticed: Her schedule was not linear, he’d get spontaneous messages throughout the month asking if he were free. Most of the time he could clear just a bit of time and make his way here to meet with her for a few hours.

They’d been doing this for months at this point and he still couldn’t wrap his head around the stupidity of his actions. Everytime he said he would end things off and never see her again, then as though he were wrapped around her finger he would be back here: Car parked in the same spot as always and his route to the room the same. A member of the mafia took a risk two or three times a month to visit a woman whose life he hadn’t a clue of.

Using his memory, Chuuya made his way through the lobby, passing by a clerk who offered a knowing nod in his direction. It was the same thing time after time but that familiarity was something he clung to. No one questioned him. No one asked why he did something. No one looked to him for answers. It was the opposite of what he did for work, but it was so much more freeing. 

Taking the elevator up, Chuuya watched as the red numbers changed, going up one by one until finally the number fifteen. One final chime echoed through the metal cage and the doors slid open into a long spiraling hallway. Three steps out of the elevator, three doors to the right, and on his left. That path he’d memorized after his third meeting with this strange woman.

With a deep breath Chuuya tried to prepare himself to end this debacle that could become scurrilous if things were to go wrong. He opened the door and slid into the room quietly as though trying to go unnoticed. The sound of a running shwoer gently swayed throughout the room and he knew that she was getting ready for what she presumed to be his imminent arrival. He slid off his cape and hung it on the coat rack besides the door, his hat following suit.

The water shut off and a voice called out to him from somewhere beyond sight. “Oh Chuuya~”

Her voice was sweet as it called, drawing out the a at the end of his name to grab his attention. Getting the message he walked from the main room into the small, but still fairly large, bedroom. There she stood, body wrapped in a white towel that barely covered the most private portions of her body. 

Alberta Einstein. She was a beauty to behold; her almond shaped eyes holding the deepest most dark irises you might ever see as if they were shadows coming to life with no light reflecting off of them. Long  white hair would usually be flowing down her back and sway gently every time she took a step. Her figure was lean but she seemed to have curves in places that would make any man fall in a matter of moments. Now, standing bare in a bath towel, she was ravishing. Droplets of water dripping from her body and onto the floor, running from her neck down to her towel, and more littering the floor of the bathroom.

“I wasn’t sure you would show.” Her feet sunk into the carpet as she walked towards Chuuya, imprints of water marking her chosen pathway. Once close enough, her hand danced around his top button before easily sliding it undone. Slowly she moved to the second button and slowly began to undo it as well, but she hesitated. “Something wrong?”

Her eyes danced up to meet his, a shade so dark that his light blue eyes could never fathom their depths. “We should stop this.”

“You’re quite right, Chuuya. This relationship is going no where and it never will: We’ve been having casual sex for months but neither of us have caught an ounce of feelings.” She leaned into his lips, heat fanning across his face as she spoke, still continuing to fiddle with his buttons. “But isn’t that the fun part, my dearest Nakahara? Life isn’t about love even if people wish it was; It’s about enjoying yourself so much that you can’t possibly find it in your soul to frown.”

She leaned in and finally met his lips in the softest most gentle kiss she’d ever given to him. Her lips were warm as she pressed her body flush against his. With quick hands she undid the buttons at a much faster pace than the one she’d set before. Chuuya knew better than to let her do this once again but he quickly melted into her touch. Their lips entwined with one another as her mouth parted to let a gentle moan escape.

“I must say your sexual prowess surprises me. For such a short man you truly are skilled in bed.” She taunted his height, attempting to mask it with a compliment. They’d played this game time and time before.

“Tch. Same as always Ally, crude and judgemental so much so that you can’t even acknowledge your own shortcomings.” He moved from her lips to just under her ear, teeth grazing against her earlobe and sending a shudder down and throughout her body. “Last time we were together I specifically remember you getting so worked up that you could barely beg for more.”

She smirked and gulped down a large portion of air. Ally was not nervous, it was apparent on her face, instead she was excited. “That’s because I’m not a beggar.”

Chuuya had a response gliding across his tongue but before it could come out the incessant ringing of a phone bleared through the room. Ally let out an audible groan and pushed Chuuya away, hand lingering on his unbuttoned shirt for just a bit too long. Part of him wanted to pull her back but then he reasoned with himself and realized that his wish of ending things could still come true. With the interference of an outsider he had caught the slipup he’d made many times before.

“What the hell do you want, Thomas?” Ally snapped through her phone, she paced back and forth as she listened to the person on the other line. After a moment she stopped dead in her tracks. “You really are useless without me. Fine, fine I didn’t mean it.”

She turned to Chuuya and gave that smile, the same one he’d often give her when his work called him away from the hotel room. Though this time he was pleasantly surprised by the situation. Furthering contact with someone so wrapped in mystery was not beneficial in any way. If anything it was dangerous and reckless. She meant nothing to him and that feeling was mutual, so neither of them had any real attachments to one another. It was best to end things here so that neither of them had too many hard feelings when things would inevitably go bad in a few more months. Casual sex and a freind with benefits was the closest he’d ever get to a real relationship given his line of work, but even that was something he hadn’t saught after much in his time.

“I was busy.” She growled into her phone before taking a deep breath and calming her nerves. After a moment her resolve and anger faded in one swift motion and she sighed. “I’ll be there in fifteen minutes, just wait for me in the meeting room okay?”

With a final goodbye she hung up the phone and tossed it onto the bed. She followed suit with her phone and fell onto the white bedding, face smashing against the soft comforter they would usually be tangled in by now. “This is for the best Alberta. I meant what I said. My job isn’t the most lenient and I don’t need distractions right now, so this is my final goodbye to you.”

She turned to look at him, watching as he redid the buttons she’d worked to undo. Turning over she spread her arms across the bed and closed her eyes. A soft smile tugged at the corner of her lips. “That’s true, my job is also picking up pace right now. We have a big projecting starting and I’d hate to miss out on it because of an outside relationship. Perhaps when things settle down we could meet up again, relive the first we met.”

“That won’t be necessary, when I say final goodbye I mean it.” Her ears perked up and she sat up, realizing now that he had already left the room and slid on his jacket. She heard the door open and then once again his voice rang through her ears. “Find yourself someone who’s actually in love with you, okay? Someone who’s worth your time.”

With those final words, the door closed to the hotel room and she was left alone to her thoughts. Intrigued by the man who she’d enraptured by her beauty. She had no romantic feelings towards him, but she was quite sad that their days of booty calls would no longer be happening.

~x~

Chuuya walked through the halls of the Port Mafia’s building, against the order he’d been giving he returned to headquarters in hopes of catching Mori before he left. Though after travelling up to the top floor he’d come to the conclusion that his boss had already left. He’d likely have gone to get rest for the night or take Elise to do something better than sit around his office.

“Chuuya.” Kouyou’s appearance behind him was sudden, her steps quiet as ever as she approached with her usual long strides. Her dress swayed as she continued by his side. As usual she spoke and moved in a way so elegant that she resembled a goddess. “How is your evening? I could have sworn Mori told you to return to your residence.”

“It’s late Kouyou, you should’ve gone home hours ago.” Chuuya tried to divert the subject from his disobedience, but he knew that even so Kouyou would insist. She was a Port Mafia executive above all else but that did not mean she was heartless. It was fleeting comments that passed by ever so often that reminded him of this; She cared about him in a similar sense to how she cares for Kyouka. “Do you have any idea where Mori might be? It’s late but usually he wouldn’t have left by this time.”

“Last time I saw him, he was meeting with (Y/N) and that handsome young bartender. I always forget his name but he makes the most wonderful cocktails.” Her voice sounded nearly dreamy as she recalled the delicious drinks she’d enjoy ever so often. Kouyou was the type of person who could handle her liquor well, unlike himself, and he’d seen her drink a dozen fruity drinks without ever slurring a single word. It was honestly somewhat startling. “Though I do remember he stormed out and your partner followed close behind. They sounded as though they were having a heated discussion but I was too caught up in a phone call to hear much of what they said.”

“Isaac.” Chuuya said slowly , Kouyou perked up and turned to him with a soft questioning hum. “That’s his name. Why would Mori want to meet with a random bartender? I thought (Y/N) said she was going home.”

The woman next to him chuckled, she pressed the button to call the elevator before turning to him. “I have no clue why Mori would want to speak with that man but I assume he has a reason and we should not question him. As for (Y/N), I’m glad to see you’re getting along with her. You were quite opposed to your partnership during the meeting this morning.”

“Getting along isn’t the phrasing I’d use.” Chuuya grumbled, arms crossing as he turned to face the elevator instead of his mentor. “I don’t trust that woman. She’s hiding something and I’d rather not be staring down the barrel of a gun when I find out what it is.”

They fell into silence, neither of them knowing what to say. Chuuya wasn’t in the wrong for believing she was hiding something, no one who can switch their personality as quick as her is being genuine. Mori trusts her and that is abundantly clear but what isn’t is why he’d never heard of her. Another executive that no one knew of was strange to say the very least. For now he wouldn’t question her much, instead seeing what he can find out without her realizing he’s digging around for information.

Kouyou knew a little of (Y/N), Mori had told her some of the stories about the feats she’d completed during her time in Russia. She knew there was more to the story but if Mori had trust in her to stay loyal to them then it was not her place to question it. One thing was clear to her from the way that her boss spoke: (Y/N) was strong and she is not foolish, and keeping her hidden from everyone was a strategy of the finest creation. He hadn’t told her what his ability is but whatever it was it made her abnormally strong compared to a regular mafioso.

“Your accusation is likely true, she is hiding something from us but I believe that Mori knows exactly what it is. We’ve pledged our lives to the mafia which means we are to have faith in our boss.” Finally after what felt like minutes the elevator door dinged and began to open. “I have a strong feeling that you and your new partner aren’t nearly as different as you’d like to believe… Perhaps I’m just being foolish.”

“You really should be getting some rest, my dear (Y/N).” The voice of Mori coed from the elevator, his slender hands wrapped around her shoulders as he gave them a gentle squeeze. She tried to shrug him off but the further she got from his grasp the tighter his hold became. It was almost as though watching a father taking care of his young daughter, but below the surface they were hiding something. Chuuya and Kouyou had been so enraptured with their own conversation that they hadn’t bore witness to the quiet whisper Mori had slipped to (Y/N) before the doors were all the way open.

“Get off of me you old man!” She shouted, bringing her foot back on his before whirling around. Not noticing his presence, her back bumped against Chuuya’s chest. He stumbled a bit at the sudden added weight but his arms caught around her and steadied them both. Surprised, she turned to face her hero with an utterly sweet smile. “Oh? Hello Chuuya, I didn’t expect to see you again this evening. Did you not have plans to attend?”

Mori perked up at the mention of one of his executives, specifically the one he’d told to take the night off. “Plans fall through often, no big deal. I just thought I’d come to make sure that Mori had been given a full report on what we found.”

“There’s no need to worry Chuuya, (Y/N) has given me a full report and I have faith that your digging tomorrow will bring more information to light.” Mori straightened himself from the endearing man they’d seen moments ago. His voice had a cold demeanor as it always had when he spoke with them, though when he spoke with her it seemed he had a similar attitude to the one he used when communicating with Elise. “I have faith in the both of you to prove your worth as executives. May you prove my assumptions right that your partnership was not in vain, then perhaps I could be persuaded to give you both a raise befitting your work.”

(Y/N)’s eyes searched up Mori, her gaze travelling from his gloved hands up to his rigid smiling face. It was clear to her that he was faking every word and gesture as if hoping to give his two closest advisors a false sense of security. His whisper still rang in her ear, ‘For now, act as if our conversation with Isaac never happened. You are, and only are, an executive of the Port Mafia.’ The message was clear with what he wanted but the intent behind it was a mystery. Had he meant it as a form of comfort to remind her that her past was not to stop her from having a future, or was it a warning to keep up the act as a perfect mafia princess and play the diplomat role, perhaps it was neither and simply a reminder that her life has only ever been that of a pawn. Any way he went about saying it, there was obvious fabrication of joy in his face.

“Thank you, sir.” Chuuya took a low bow before his boss and Kouyou offered a small courtesy. “Though I would like to speak with you about a few things when you have the time.”

Mori looked from Chuuya to (Y/N) as though he were asking her what questions she’d brought about from Chuuya, but all she did was shrug in response. He would either ask about her past and her file or he would bring up the fact that their partnership was not in the best of graces. “I truly would love to speak with you about this Chuuya, but Elise has been waiting on me for hours! Tomorrow morning I should have a bit of free time if that’s okay.”

“That will be fine, thank you sir.”

“Now, as your boss, I must request that you all get some rest. Specifically you (Y/N). I know that bad habit of yours and I’d prefer it if it didn’t interfere with your work.” Mori’s words confused the two people who didn’t know much about her habits, but she understood it well enough. He had made a jab at her constant desire to work and the way she would stay awake until the point of utter exhaustion. It was a bad habit she’d had for a long time; But it was part of the reason she got so much work done. “Please do watch your phones in case there’s an emergency, but if there is not then enjoy your time off.”

Mori stalked away from the group and in the direction of his meeting room. “Well I should be going as well, I’ve got some place to be. May you both have a goodnight.” (Y/N) wasted no time in excusing herself from the situation, wanting nothing more than to find her way to a place she’d been meaning to visit since she returned to Yokohama.

“Do you need a ride?” Chuuya was not fond of (Y/N), and that feeling went both ways, but his partner had done nothing to wrong him yet. Until she did so, he would be kind and offer her a ride. Kouyou smiled to herself but used her fan to hide it; The gesture earned a glare from Chuuya. “I don’t mind, I’ve got a stop to make before I return to my apartment anyway.”

“That won’t be necessary, but thank you for the offer Chuuya.” (Y/N) stepped into the elevator and gave a small wave before the doors began to close and seal her away from them both. “Tomorrow afternoon, don’t forget okay?”

With that she was gone.

[tuttifuckinfruttifriday]

First part

Harmless Playing

Pairings: Archie x Malon x Justin(not romantic, evidently),side the Voorheese’s family(MJ and Jason) and Archie’s(Pennywise and Aquarius)

Warnings: some kiddies talks, angst, gore and decay, description of decay smell and decomposition(kinda goes in gore but i'm not taking chances), plain horror, guilt

This is kinda dark l: hehe-

I always can't help myself, I love me some good ol' angst and horror

(There is a reference to the story of when MJ was bitten by a snake.)

Don't hesitate to tell me any mistakes I made! It would be greatly appreciated.

-

When Archie and Justin came back the next day, the two of them and Malon (The Friendly Trio :D) discussed and played in the clubhouse, like normal kids do. Yesterday was nice, Archie would say definitely say that, but for the rest of the day he felt bad for his first friend, correction: best friend. He knew she didn't have the same interests as them, but it didn't seem like Justin did, at least yesterday. He was so captivated by the insects that Archie didn't know if he thought about what he said or about how they left Malon. He remembered the thing about how he said he was his only friend and knew it wasn't to be mean or anything, but he knew too that Malon would probably be sad if she paid attention and heard it. So that's why the small clown payed more attention to his female friend, still paying attention to Justin though. Strangely but fortunately, when they seemed to be getting more and more into the bugs' subject, Justin stole some glances at Malon and changed the subject, making the small girl smile thankfully. The first time it surprised Archie, but he was really happy about it because he wouldn't have to talk to Justin about it. Maybe he saw how their interests differs after all...

It was almost dinner and MJ looked through the window, seeing the three friends running around with smiles and laughing faces. A worrying look immediately came onto the woman's face as she put the plate she was washing onto the counter, drying her hands before opening the window. It was cute and all that they were happily playing and that her daughter didn't seem sad anymore, but the woods were pretty dangerous and they didn't really have a clear spot around the clubhouse, which made the situation even more dangerous and kind of stressful for her. Leaning towards the now opened window with a small smile but furrowed brows as she heard the laughters, MJ yelled out to them; ''Be careful, kids! If you're playing around like that, it would be better if you were somewhere I can see you. '' They looked back at MJ before nodding, Malon yells back an ''Okay mom! '' before they move towards an empty spot where there was the fire pit Malon and her parents used to make fires. Archie and Justin sat on each side of Malon on the wooden chairs that were around the pit and calmed down, deciding that they would continue their conversations they had earlier. Seeing them sit down, the older woman closed the window as she felt the wind entering, looking back one more time before she continued to do the dishes and occupied herself before her husband came home.

--

''You really don't have a TV??'' ''You have been into my house, you know I don't, silly!'' Malon and Justin were currently talking about her not having a tv and about how she missed a lot of things that were on the screen, from what Justin and Archie told her. The latter was just listening to them since he didn't know what to say, so he contented himself to listening.

They started to talk about cartoons though, which finally made Archie talk. ''You two should come to my house sometime, we could watch some! '' The Friendly Trio smiled, the three still talking as the mood was soft and joyful. ''So-'' ​There was a sharp silence as the wind picked up and they were suddenly attacked by a strong smell, which wasn't pleasant at all. The kids whimpered and got up as they smelt the air as it carried the smell towards them. It was like rotten meat and eggs with a hint of sickly sweet smell that didn't reassure them at all. Imagine rotten meat ang fruits plus a hint of really sweet perfume. ''What is that??!! Ewww!-'' Justin said as he looked around with his eyes wide opened and his brows furrowed. Malon was looking pale as she backed away a little from the pit, her eyes looking into the distance. For Archie though, a small panic entered him. He knew this smell was probably bad, he wasn't stupid. Strangely, it seemed kind of familiar too... While his friends mumbled and whimpered, nobody moving, a lot of ungodly guesses took place into his head as he followed the smell, making the two behind him curiously follow him. It wasn't the brightest idea, but you can't help the mischief of a child's curiosity..

The farther they went, the more the smell turned terrible, which (sadly) almost made them go back. ''I think... I think it's here-''

Every noises stopped as he did.

As soon as his eyes landed on the disfigured and decaying, but still bloody, corpse of what looked like a woman, he knew he had been right from the start. That's why the smell was familiar... Without helping himself, his scared and disgusted gaze moved up and down the body, noting all the small insects crawling in and out of her now rotten and lifeless figure. Archie's first reflex was to turn around, engulfing his friends as he told them to go back now and not look.Only for them to do that.Justin was the first to scream, barfing on the ground two seconds later. He immediately ran towards the house, alerting some animals and someone who was fortunately nearby; Jason. When he then heard Malon screaming, he immediately ran as fast as he could towards the noise, his machete at the ready and his eyes wide open. The noises he made as he ran towards them alerted Archie, who fearfully hid Malon behind him, thinking it might be the person or thing that killed that woman.

However, it was Jason who literally ran towards them, his head moving back and forth as he tried to search for the source of what made Malon scream. As soon as his eyes fell onto the corpse, he stopped in his tracks and went slowly towards a really scared Archie and Malon and took Malon in his arms, hugging her tightly as he let Archie hug him, a hand on his back. The scared whimpers and sniffles made him take Archie in his arms too, balancing the too kids in his arms as he walked towards the cabin, seeing MJ running towards them at full speed with a scared and teary-eyed Justin behind her. Her motherly instincts immediately told her something was wrong as soon as she didn’t saw them playing outside, even more when she saw Justin running here with tears streaming down his face.

The poor boy couldn’t even form words, the image of what he had seen still in his mind. So MJ had tried to calm him, hugging him and letting him cry on her shoulder as her worry increased for Archie and her daughter. That’s why as soon as he could form words and said that there was a body, she ran towards the way he showed her with him at her trail.

“Malon????” Jason put Malon down as he almost heard his wife screeching and she took her, the little girl still crying and shaking. Archie cuddled closer to Jason as he now had the two of his arms to cradle him in. The two adults, and Justin, walked towards the house and put the two crying kids on the couch, the two having now a little bit calmed. As soon as they seemed calm enough, Jason cradling Archie and Malon close to him and they cling onto his jacket, MJ asked them to tell her what happened, a frown on her face as she hugged Justin close. “We smelt something... funny... and we... w-we found a... a dead body.......” Jason held them close as Archie sniffled, putting his head back onto Jason’s chest. The boy had evidently seen dead bodies, but none at this stage of decomposition, which is why he was probably now in shock. Malon had never even thought she would see something like this, even if she knew her father killed people. And for poor Justin... Well, let’s just say he was probably traumatized.

—

After MJ had gotten Justin home safely and Archie decided that he wanted to stay with Malon, Jason decided that he would get rid of the corpse while his wife called Archie’s parents. He was absolutely shocked when he saw the body, it not being his because he remembered the person who killed them. Michael. F ing Micheal Myers.

His eyes travelled all over the woman’s body as he noticed some broken ribs and noticeable stab wounds where there was still skin. There was evidently the blonde hair, which made him remember of that day when he had to look for plants to help MJ.

(Flashback kinda-

Michael seemed concentrated, his eyes focused on a whimpering woman who seems to be limping and coming this way, making Jason’s body tense. It was probably why Michael was so silent and seemed to be stalking something when he saw him earlier, so he decided not to interfere, watching him stalking away. Guess he didn’t have anybody to help him then .. As the screams of the girl could finally be heard, Jason walked towards where the last item was, his steps hurried and bigger than normal. He really hoped he wasn’t too late...)

The undead man shook his head, trying not to think of that day as he looked at the woman’s broken leg, the source of her limping that day. Without hesitation, he took the body in his arms and tried not to breath it’s disgusting smell as he walked towards a clear place where he could bury it. He didn’t know how to get rid of it, so it was an idea. His daughter and wife would probably approve of this method too, since it’s more humane.

Guilt filled him as soon as he finished digging a hole, the shovel he took from the small homemade shed they keep MJ’s gardening tools in stuck in the ground. He pushed the body down the hole, his jacket now smelling of dead body juices (ew idk how it’s called) and making him almost throw up, which is the reason why he decided to put it in the hole too, his bare arms revealed to the world as he immediately started to put the dirt back in. Each time he put a shovel of dirt his guilt grew bigger and bigger, thoughts swirling in his head. He should have made sure to come back that day, so he could have made sure Micheal had gotten rid of the body, which he obviously didn’t do.

Now was too late anyway, so as soon as he got home, he put the shovel back where it belonged and looked at the two sleeping kids on the ground, a small smile on his face even if he was still thinking about the body. Archie and Malon were cuddled together, blankets and pillows on the carpeted floor of the living room as a small night light illuminated the room a bit with his daughter’s favourite colour. Jason didn’t know how those two could get along so good, but he was really happy about it. He couldn’t imagine Malon having her parents for friends, which saddened him even more than he was thinking about it. He silently and carefully got out of his boots and washed his hands that were still covered in dead body fluids before he got into his PJs and into bed with his peacefully sleeping wife, wrapping an arm around her protectively like always. This life wasn’t one he wanted his kid, or any children, to live in, but he couldn’t do anything about it except his job of protecting them and getting rid of trespassers...

He hoped he could do more than that one day.

[dreamingofmilk]

Prompt: cockwarming MBaku or Thor

We had so much fun writing this!, we hope you like it! Thank you so much for sending the request.

All that you could hear was the rain hitting the window pane. Your eyes fixed on your phone screen as you lay in you and your husband’s California king bed, your ears listened to the hard rain outside. It had been raining all day and most of last night, but you didn’t mind the rainy day, in fact, you enjoyed the natural sounds it gave off.

From the constant rush of rain to the sound of the happy toads and frogs when the rain let up a little. You were at your most relaxed when it was raining like this, so you tried your best to enjoy it.

Despite your other senses focusing on the atmosphere around you, all you could feel was your husband under you. And you were thoroughly enjoying it, but from the grunt of your husband you felt like he was enjoying it more, even though he was asleep. You adjusted yourself on top of him, whimpering quietly at the delicious stretch his dick provided. His hands quickly gripped your hips. His thick fingers digging into your skin.

Thor groaned at your slight movement. His hands instinctively reaching up to grab your hips. Only the God of thunder could make you weak even in his sleep. He thrusted up slightly, causing all your nerves to stand at attention. A cry left your lips at the movement, you couldn’t breath with how good he felt within you.

You squirmed, uncontrollably clenching around him.

His rough voice broke the silence, “I believe I told you not to move last night, little one.” He lifted you up slightly then dropped you back down, his thumb brushing your clit, a small lightning static charge almost brought you to orgasm.

“That’s not fair. When you do things like that, I can’t help it.” You squirmed, clenching around him.

“It’s not.” Thor chuckled then brushed a soft finger across your face. “But you look so pretty just sitting here on my dick. So full of me.” He caressed your stomach. “You feel, ugh, you feel so good too.” Thor felt you tighten around him at his words. “Besides, aren't you the one who wanted to sit calmly and listen to the rain?”

You did want to lay with your husband and listen to the rain, but being stuffed full of him didn’t sound like a good idea, especially if you couldn’t ride him the way you wanted. But whatever Thor wanted he got, especially if he ripped your panties off and rubbed your clit to an orgasm.

So here you sat full of him all night.

“Well.” You shifted on him ready to break his rules because it felt like he would be bringing you to another orgasm with just his zippy fingers on your clit. And honestly you just couldn’t take it anymore.

“I need you to fuck me. Not just bask in my warmth.” Thor smiles broadly at you and thrusted into you gently. Then with more force. His strokes constant and powerful, you couldn’t help the sounds that slipped from your lips.

“Whatever you want my love.” It didn’t take long for the two of you to reach your climax as you had both been on edge for a long time. But when you came twice you almost lost it. A tear streamed down your face, causing Thor to smile as he coated your walls with his cum. His arms wrapped around your waist, holding you in place. You rolled your eyes when you felt him get hard again.

You both settled down again for several minutes, just basking in each other’s company. Your peace was ruined when you felt a drop on your head, then another, followed by another fat drop on your scalp. You looked up at the ceiling only to be blinded by another water drop.

You quickly stood from the bed, despite Thor’s protests, and grabbed one of your cleaning buckets from under the bathroom sink. Putting it in place, the steady drops of water into the bucket did nothing to calm your nerves.

“Fuck.” You whispered to yourself.

Thor stands in all his naked glory and embraces you. “I’ll never understand why you wanted this house. I have more than enough money to get you the house of your dreams.”

You shrugged, “This will be my dream home. It just felt right. Don’t worry about the leak, I’ll take care of it. There’s a bucket.” Thor nods and heads into the bathroom to get freshened up.

You walk as quietly as you can into Thor’s upstairs tool closet and get the items you think you’ll need to fix the roof and another bucket.

You grab a step stool from the laundry room and place it in the right spot to reach the main leaky area.

“Stop.” Thor’s authoritarian voice stops you in your tracks. You hand flies to your stomach protectively.

“I was just going to do it myself.” You say meekly as Thor approaches you and glances up at the ceiling. He quietly takes the items from your hand and climbs the step stool to start the work.

“You would not have even been able to reach this anyway. What were you thinking?” Thor starts patching up the roof the best he can.

“That our roof was leaking.” You respond with a slight attitude. “You didn’t seem all that motivated to fix it.”

“Yes my love, because everyday there is something wrong with this house. And I’ve told you before and will say it again. I do not want to raise our child here. It’s not safe for you or the baby.” Thor glances down at you and points at a tool he needs.

You glance at your three month pregnant belly and sigh. He was right. You just fell in love with the house and the idea of being able to make it a home for the three of you.

“I know you love the house, my love. But… I just.” You cut him off.

“I know. I made a mistake. I had these grand dreams of you and I working together to build this house into something wonderful. But I know now we can’t make it work.”

You smile sadly while looking at the poorly decorated room. The walls were bare because you wanted to paint them. The carpet needed to be ripped up and replaced. And the furniture had nothing on it because you wanted to make it easier for things to be moved out for when you finally chose your hardwood floor.

Thor’s fingers gently touched your chin forcing you to look at him.

“My love, I’ll do anything you ask of me. You know I’ll move the world for you. But this.” He gestured to the house around you. “Not right now. Please.” His large hand cupped your cheek. You sighed and closed your eyes finding comfort in the warmth of your large husband.

“Okay. I’ll move the world for you too. And as much as I love this house. I love you more. So we can look for something else.” You smile up at your husband.

5 Years Later

“Okay, my love, keep your eyes closed It’s just a few more steps.” You kept your hand wrapped tight with your son’s. His giggles brought a smile to your face. As promised you and Thor bought a beautiful new home in the suburbs. It was far more expensive than you planned, but Thor insisted that it was one of the most important purchases you would ever make. The home you would raise your family in. Of course he was right, and you definitely got used to the modern amenities.

Thor held your other hand as he led you down the sidewalk. You could hear birds and tree branches rustling but you had no idea where he was taking you. He finally stopped and held you steady as he untied the blindfold behind your head.

“Ok, beautiful. Open your eyes.”

In front of you stood an adorable little cottage. It was the perfect blend of old charm and new construction. The garden out front was perfectly done, you could smell the sweet aroma of the flowers from the sidewalk. You didn’t understand why Thor brought you here though.

“Baby, I don’t understand, what are we doing here?”

His smile was bright, “Did you forget your dream home so quickly, my love?”

And just like that everything clicked. The long hours Thor spent on the weekends getting work done, the constant questions about furniture and color palettes, and architecture. Your eyes welled up at the thought.

“You… all this time you’ve been…”

He pulled you into his arms, “You said this was your dream home. It just wasn’t the right time back then. I said I would move the world for you. Fixing up a house kind of pales in comparison.”

Parker started jumping excitedly next to you. “Hugs hugs!”

Thor chuckled and picked him up, kissing his cheeks until Parker dissolved into a fit of giggles. “That’s right, son. There are going to be a lot of hugs in this house, and hopefully, a lot of little sisters and brothers.” Thor wiggled his eyebrows, his eyes full of humor.

“Yay! I’ll be a good big brother! Can we please momma?”

You could never say no to him. His eyes were just like his father’s. You snuggled your son, your eyes glaring at your husband as he laughed.

“We’ll see buddy. Let’s go pick out your room.”

That was all the four year old needed to hear. He shot off toward the front door, you and Thor following behind him as a much slower pace.

You looked over at your husband, “Want to explain why my son is begging for a baby?"

Thor smirked, “I may or may not have shown him the nursery. He got really attached to the idea of a little sister."

"Of course he did. Seriously though, thank you for all of this. I'll never be able to thank you enough."

Thor scoffed, "Just grow with me forever in this house. That's all I want, Y/N."

You smiled, "Of course, but if the roof leaks, I'm leaving you."

Thor's booming laugh carried through the home, the sound softened your heart in a way you'd never felt before.

"Deal."

Taglist: @chaneajoyyy @aislinnsilver @marvelmaree @wawakanda-btch

[cruelangelstheses]

with quiet courage

fandom: coraline rating: G characters: coraline, wybie words: 2.1k additional tags: canon compliant, post-canon, fluff, angst, mental health issues, character study description: years later, wybie gives coraline a gift. a/n: hi, this was written for the @ethereal-zine! i just thought it would be interesting to explore the long-term effects that the whole ordeal with the other world could have on coraline’s mental health. title from “with quiet courage” by larry daehn

read it on ao3

—

Something feels...wrong.

She can’t explain it, can’t even fully comprehend it herself, but the house feels different tonight, like it’s just waiting for the right moment to pounce. Every creak sends chills down her spine. This isn’t right.

Coraline glances out the kitchen window at their garden, but finds that she can’t really see it, despite the fact that the moon is close to full, last time she checked. She raises her gaze to the sky, squinting in confusion, and her heart nearly stops at what she sees: a shadow passing over the moon in the shape of a button, holes and all.

Gasping, Coraline pushes herself away from the window, every inch of her suddenly on high alert. That’s when she hears it: a familiar metallic skittering across the floor, a sound she knows all too well.

She bolts out of the kitchen and up the stairs, leaping into her bedroom and slamming the door shut behind her. Her blood rushes in her ears.

It only gives her a few moments’ reprieve before she hears the skittering again, even closer and louder than before. Coraline backs away from the door, frantically searching her room for anything she could use as a weapon. She digs underneath her pillow for the pocketknife she bought in secret a year or two ago, but inexplicably, it’s nowhere to be found. Her heart nearly stops when she sees the hand crawl in from underneath.

The hand is severed at first, but from its wrist seems to grow an arm, a torso, another arm, all made out of needles. Coraline steels herself as the Beldam materializes before her eyes.

“You are my daughter,” she hisses, as something else appears in one of her hands. “You’re going to stay with me forever.”

In one hand, she holds another needle, already threaded. In the other is a gift box, and inside it sits a pair of black buttons.

“Hold still,” the Beldam continues. Coraline tries to move, to fight, to do anything, but her whole body is suddenly frozen. “This will only hurt a bit.” She takes a step forward, needle pointing at Coraline’s face, and then—

Coraline jolts awake and sits up rapidly, trying to catch her breath. The morning light streams through her bedroom window, a reminder of where she is: not the Other World, but the real one. Reaching under her pillow, she feels for her pocketknife. She is seventeen now, but still the events of her childhood plague her dreams.

She still has her stuffed animals. Most of the time, they sit on her shelf, watching over her like guardian angels, ensuring that danger doesn’t even make it through the doorway. Sometimes, though, on nights where the house creaks more than usual, on nights where Coraline swears she can feel a sinister gaze burning into her back, she grabs a few of them and sleeps with them in her bed, holding them tight against her chest, as if they will cast a bubble around her body that protects her from any harm. Sometimes she doesn’t even sleep, just lies awake in terror for hours on end. She’s far too old to sleep in her parents’ bed, but some nights, she tiptoes over to their bedroom and cracks the door open, just enough so she can see that they’re still there, safe and sound.

Coraline loves her parents, but they don’t completely understand everything. It’s not their fault; they have no memory of being kidnapped by the Beldam, and they weren’t witness to anything else that happened that fateful year. She tried to explain bits and pieces when she was younger, but they dismissed it as a child’s wild imagination or particularly vivid dreams, and she’s not sure she can really blame them. After all, it hardly sounds believable.

She’s made some other friends at her new school, and they’re wonderful, but none of them get it, either. They don’t understand why she cringes every time they point out the tiny door that leads to nowhere when they come over to her house. They don’t understand why buttons and dolls disturb her to this day, or why when she looks at a snow globe, it always takes her a moment to register that there is nothing frightening inside of it. “Something happened to me when I was a kid,” she told them once, to allay their concerns. “It was really scary. I could’ve died. So if I ever do something...weird, that’s probably why.” None of them questioned her, then, when she bought that pocketknife. If nothing else, she’s grateful for that.

Wybie and his grandmother are the only ones she can actually talk to about what happened, and she’s not going to come to them every single time she has a paranoid thought (which is, unfortunately, fairly often). Usually she can calm herself down, anyway; she just has to take deep breaths and remind herself that the key is gone, at the bottom of a bottomless well, and the Beldam can never open that godforsaken portal ever again.

It takes lying there for another ten minutes, eyes closed and focusing on nothing but the sound of her own breathing, for Coraline to finally muster up the energy to pull herself out of bed. At least it’s a Friday, she tells herself. She has to work a bit this weekend, but her job involves more stocking shelves than interacting with other people, so it’s still better than school.

It’s not that she hates school. She likes learning when it’s interesting, and she likes seeing her friends. It’s not even that she dislikes other people, because she doesn’t, really. Even people she thought were weird or annoying at first, like Wybie, have grown on her with time. It’s just that she fears she’ll have a flashback or a panic attack in the middle of class and embarrass herself. It’s happened before—in middle school she was branded a freak when a sewing project in her home economics class brought her to tears for reasons she didn’t know how to explain. Strangely enough, she feels safer in her neighborhood. It’s an environment she knows well, and as odd as her neighbors are, she trusts them to protect her, even if they might not be aware of it. She remembers Mr. Bobinsky’s warning not to go through the little door, and she remembers the adder stone given to her by Misses Spink and Forcible—and, of course, she remembers Wybie, who once called her crazy before he saw the Beldam’s severed hand for himself, before he helped her dispose of the key for good. Technically, he’s the one who found the Coraline doll that spied on her in the first place—a fact that she hates him for on her worst days—but she knows that he had no idea, and it doesn’t do any good to blame him. After all, even if he may have inadvertently introduced Coraline to the Other Mother, he also helped to defeat her.

While Coraline is choosing her outfit for the day, her phone buzzes: a text from Wybie. Hey Jonesy, it reads, meet me outside then. I got something for ya.

Coraline raises an eyebrow. That could mean anything. Still, she sends him a quick Ok and slips her clothes on. If it happens to be a slug or something, at least she can say her day got off to an interesting start.

Being writers, her parents don’t have to wake up as early as she does, so Coraline usually fixes her own breakfast—often something quick, like a muffin—and heads out the door. Today is no exception, her meal a bowl of cereal and a glass of orange juice. It sort of makes her feel like a kid again, in a good way. Sitting alone at the kitchen table, Cheerios in her spoon, the sun rising over the foggy mountains, a feeling of quiet peace and even innocence settles over her like dust on a bookshelf. In this moment, there is no fear, no nightmares, no flashbacks. In this moment, she is not a teenager doing her best to survive even while her mind begs to differ. She is the little girl she once was, before she was forced to be brave in the face of true horror. The sky glows pink and orange, a phenomenon unknown to the Other World. She’s grown to appreciate daylight more since then.

Finally, Coraline vaults her backpack over her shoulder and pushes the front door open, saying a silent goodbye to her parents in her head. Sure enough, at the bottom of the hill, leaning up against the Pink Palace sign, is Wybie, who looks like he’s playing a game on his phone. When he hears the sound of her footsteps, he looks up and waves to her.

“You’re back,” she says once she’s close enough to him to talk without having to shout. For the past two weeks, Wybie has been on a school trip to Germany. (Coraline couldn’t go because she’s taking Spanish instead of German.) It’s pretty stupid for them to get back on a Friday and then have to go to regular school for one day, in her opinion, but that’s just how it worked out. “You said you have something for me?” She can’t help but wonder if it’s a souvenir of some sort. She’d joked about him getting her one, but she didn’t actually expect him to do it.

“Yeah,” Wybie says. As they start to walk down the path that leads to town and their school, he pulls something small out of his jeans pocket, holding it in both hands so she can’t see what it is. His voice sounds strangely solemn. “So, you know how you said Miss Spink and Miss Forcible gave you that stone that one time? The one with the hole in the middle?”

Coraline remembers it well: the adder stone that helped her find the ghost children’s eyes all those years ago. When she read up about them later on, she found that rocks with naturally occurring holes in them, called adder stones or hag stones, are said to have magical properties. One of them is the ability to see through a witch or fairy’s disguises or traps, but others include the prevention of nightmares and curing whooping cough.

Coraline certainly doesn’t have whooping cough, but she does have nightmares, and she’s already seen the power of an adder stone for herself. “Yeah,” she says slowly. “They’re pretty rare. The Other Mother destroyed the one I had.”

Wybie flashes her a little half-smile and opens his palms, revealing a round, grayish stone with a medium-sized hole in it. “We visited the north coast one day,” he says as she takes it from him, “and I just happened to stumble across it. Apparently that’s one of the places where they’re more common, in northern Germany.” He shrugs. “I saw it, and I knew I had to give it to you. Not like you’ll need to find any more ghost children’s eyes, but…”

Coraline holds the stone up to her eye, feeling an odd comfort when she looks through the hole, even though nothing seems different. Feeling a soft smile spread across her face, she slips the stone into her pocket and says, “Thank you, Wybie.” Then, to lighten the mood, she adds, “I guess taking German was a good decision after all.”

Wybie blows a raspberry at her. “Hey, who got to go to a foreign country? Not you.”

They banter back and forth like that for a while, but part of Coraline is still focused on the stone in her pocket and the thoughtfulness behind it. It’s so small, but both the stone and the gesture give her the burst of courage she needs to get through the rest of the day, the week, the month. It’s a different kind of courage from what she had to muster up to stop the Beldam. It’s subtler, quieter. It’s the courage of a girl who has seen real ugliness, who has felt the deepest and most primal sort of fear, who went through hell and came out alive but unsure where to go from there. How do you keep on going when you’ve been face to face with death?

The answer, she realizes, is simple: it takes courage. It might be the kind that only a few people can see, but it’s courage all the same.

[tsohl]

A bit of fun...

An Interview from village magazine. 2005

A model life

Monaghan-born Caitriona Balfe was recruited shaking a charity box outside a Dublin shopping centre. Now she is Ireland's most successful international model. Based in New York and the darling of some of the world's top designers, she talks to Ailbhe Jordan

It’s just after five on a Tuesday evening in Soho. Streams of harassed-looking people scurry in both directions along Spring Street, seeking escape from the mayhem of midweek Manhattan in the form of the nearest taxi or subway station.

Nobody but me seems to notice a tall, thin young woman leaning against the wall of a grey building. We have never met in person and a curtain of long, tousled brown hair obscures her face as she flicks through a notebook, but it’s definitely her.

Since Derek Daniels of Assets Modelling agency spotted her six years ago collecting money for charity outside the Swan Shopping Centre in Rathmines, Caitriona Balfe has quietly strutted her way to the upper echelons of the fashion industry.

Nineteen years old and intent on becoming an actress at the time, Balfe modelled part-time in Dublin for a year until a visiting scout from Ford Modelling agency asked her to work for them in Paris. She decided to take a year out from her drama course at the Dublin Institute of Technology to pursue the opportunity.

In her six years as a model, Balfe has strutted down the catwalk for every big name from Gucci to Marc Jacobs. Vogue are big fans too; the fashion bible has put her on the cover of its US, French, German, Spanish and Italian editions.

After Paris, Balfe moved to Milan, where she became the darling of Dolce & Gabanna, who still hire her to work exclusively at their spring and autumn shows. Three years ago, she moved to New York to work for US based Elite Modelling agency. One of her first castings was for Cuban-American designer Narciso Rodriguez, who was so impressed, he made her his muse.

Balfe is, without a doubt, the most successful international model Ireland has produced.

On this evening she looks up and smiles, revealing a heart-shaped face, with sharp, pixie-like features and bright blue eyes. Wearing not a scrap of makeup, she looks younger than her 26 years. Her complexion is pale, clear and spattered with light brown freckles.

She is around 5ft 10”, but seems smaller because of her narrow, thin frame. Dressed in a loose, taupe-colored top, skinny blue jeans that are not as tight as they should be and red flats, she personifies that casual glamour look to which all the downtown hipsters aspire.

She suggests we go to Balthazar, a French Bistro beloved of New York models and celebrities.

As we walk, she assumes a posture so elegant and so straight it looks as though she is leaning backwards slightly.

Balfe’s family comes from Tyvadet, a small town in Co Monaghan. Her accent is neutral from years of living abroad, but every now and then, the Monaghan dialect peeps through – when she says “cool”, for instance, which she says a lot.

Weekend reservations at Balthazar are nearly impossible to make if one is not famous and has not booked at least a couple of weeks in advance.

“Go on ahead,” she says, holding the door open. The hostess directs us to a small table at the window. Balfe glides into her booth without pushing the table out first. “I’m going to have some cake,” she says, lowering her voice.“I got my wisdom teeth out on Friday, so I’ve basically been eating soup all weekend,” she adds quickly, touching her jaws with both hands.

“I was supposed to go to LA today, but I cancelled that because my face was still a bit swollen.”

Conversations between any two people renting in New York City inevitably turn to apartments and – more importantly – locations. Balfe lives in Greenpoint, a trendy Polish neighbourhood in Brooklyn. “I was about three years in the city but I love Brooklyn,” she says.

“It’s just really cute. It’s kind of European, like most of the streets are all mom and pop stores, there’s not one McDonalds. They’ve got all cute little vegetable stores, there’s a meat market and a fish market.”

She pauses to take a sip of coffee.

“We’ve got the ground floor of a building. Its got like a back garden and a basement, which is really cool. My boyfriend has his studio in the basement.”

The boyfriend she refers to is Dave Milone, a guitarist with the band Radio4, who are releasing a new album in New York this week.

“I’ve been with him for three years, he’s from New Jersey,” she says rolling her eyes as New Yorkers often do at the mention of their neighbouring and, in their opinion, less cosmopolitan state.

“It’s a bit of a cliché, I know, a model and a rocker. It’s good though.”

At 26, Balfe has said she considers herself to be one of the “grannies” of the modeling industry.

“Of my five really close friends whom I started with, there’s only one whose still modeling,” she says.

“The rest have gone off to college or have real jobs. I still feel like I’m at college,” she says, stirring her coffee and putting the spoon down on the saucer with a loud clink.

“When I see some of these younger girls who are starting at 17 or so, it’s like being at school, you know. You’ve a bunch of girls who are like, teenagers and of course everyone’s like: ‘is she doing better than me?’ and all that. I was a little bit older when I started, I was 19 and I never really experienced that. I mean, you’re always going to come across a bitch but there’s nothing you can really do about that. I’m getting older now and it does feel weird when you come across someone who tries to intimidate you in that really high school way. It’s like: ‘why am I feeling insecure because of this?’ And it’s funny, because it’s all based on weight, it’s like: ‘you put on a few pounds,’ or something stupid.”

At this point the desserts arrive.

“I feel like the girls are getting very skinny again,” she says, following the movement of the plate with her eyes as the waitress places it in front of her.

“When I started it was like, a lot of the Brazilian girls were around, it was all about being voluptuous and I think in the last couple of seasons there’s been a lot of really, really skinny girls again. I mean, you can tell when somebody doesn’t eat, you can tell by the big rings under their eyes or when they’re kind of quiet, they’re whole personality is kind of...” she slouches down and drops her tongue out in a display of lifelessness.

She picks up her spoon and digs it into the cake, then turns the plate around and spears the scoop of vanilla ice-cream that is perched on top.

“I’ve always been thin, you know?” she says, while her mouth is full.

“My aunts and uncles will be like, ‘oh do you eat?’ but I’ve always been lucky that I can. I eat more than Dave. I go through very, very sporadic, once-in-a-blue-moon fits of going running and stuff, but I’m so lazy. When shows are coming up I just do some exercises at home and maybe not have so much chocolate cake the week before. A few more salads, that kind of thing.”

Next week, Balfe expects to be working in LA for a couple of days, from where she will fly to Miami for a photo shoot, before returning to New York on Sunday to do a shoot for Spanish Vogue.

“It sounds glamorous, it’s not though, it really isn’t,” she says, holding another spoonful of cake up to her lips.

“I am moving towards retirement now – from this,” she continues. “Every year I’m asked and I’m like, ‘oh another year or two.’ But, if I’m still doing this at the end of the next two years, somebody shoot me, please. I mean, it’s really good and it allows me to live a good life. I’m building a house in Monaghan, I can do stuff like that. I can set myself up for the future and stuff. But being an actress was the thing that I always wanted to do. Before I ever started modelling.”

Balfe has not yet found her perfect role, but played a convincing seductress in 2002 when she modelled for lingerie company Victoria’s Secret during their catwalk show, an annual TV spectacle that that has propelled models like Gisele Bundchen and Heidi Klum to international fame.

“Oh God, my poor Da,” she groans, cradling her head in her hands.

“I think it was the Sun or the Mirror back home had this headline: ‘Garda’s daughter goes und-y-cover.’ I wondered what I was doing in there, this pasty little Irish girl amongst all these Brazilian goddesses. I’d gotten a spray tan and they put full body make-up on me but I was 10 times whiter than anyone there. It took very little clothes and quite a lot of champagne to get through that one.”

She shakes her head, smiling at the memory. “Its funny you know? Normally when I’m out, I don’t really dress up. It’s amazing how people will absolutely not even notice you until they hear the word ‘model,’ and then they’re like: ‘Oh.’ And I’m like: ‘what?’ Two seconds ago, I was nothing, you know?”

[rainandhotchocolate]

Tension - Part 2

A/N Here is fun ol’ part 2! It’s a bit of a filler/ character building chapter, but I hope you still enjoy :) 

Part 2

Rain pounded on the windows of the library, a chill starting to creep into the castle as winter began. Y/N had always liked the rain, it meant that she could convince the house-elves in the kitchen to make her hot chocolates and cosy herself into the Slytherin Common Room with a blanket for the whole evening.

Thunder rumbled loudly, and Y/N couldn’t help but smile, thinking about finishing Slughorn’s essay on sleeping potions curled by one of their charmed windows. Remus knocked her shoulder, glaring at her.

“Can you please pay attention to me for one second?”

“Jeez, is someone on the edge of their cycle,” Y/N rolled her eyes exaggeratedly but Remus looked like he was about to growl at her.

“I asked you a question.”

“Yes, yes, sorry, I don’t know.”

“You should know, McGonagall said she was going to quiz us next week and I’d rather not get destroyed by the Gryffindors again, who, by the way, I literally never see in here, do they even study?”

“Ok, ok, calm down, I promise I will study before class ok?” Y/N reassured him, “And anyway, you’re ten times smarter than those twats.”

“I just wish they didn’t think they were gods gift to mankind, and with that little one following him around all the time boosting their egos…”

“Yeah I kinda feel sorry for him,” Y/N grabbed another book from the pile, “How bout I quiz you alright?”

“Yeah, yeah ok. Hit me.”

They studied for the rest of the afternoon, only heading to grab the end of dinner once Remus was satisfied. Y/N watched as Remus picked at the chunk of mashed potato he had on his plate, whilst she ate some chicken and broccoli, holding off a little for treacle tart later.

“You feeling ok?”

“Fine.”

“Oh yes, you look super fine Moon-boy.”

“Would you shut up with that,” Remus always was angrier around the full moon, but there was a little part of Y/N that enjoyed teasing him just a little. She wondered if one day she might get a smile out of him during the full moon, but so far she hadn’t quite broken through.

“Alright, well go lie down, I’ll meet you later, ok?” Remus nodded, standing up slowly, keeping his eyes down and walking out of the Great Hall.

“He’s sick again?” Y/N turned to see a Severus watching him closely as he left the hall, eyes narrowed.

“Yep.” 

She ignored his consistent stares and continued her dinner. Severus was always suspicious when Remus didn’t turn up at their dorm every month, and Y/N was sure he would figure it out before long. She doubted that their elaborate lies regarding different wizard-borne illnesses would stop him from researching further, though it was fun confusing him with the occasional charm to put Dragon pox scars on Remus’ face.

“Shove off, Snape,” Regulus pushed him sideways on the Slytherin benches and sat next to Y/N, “Getting a good feed there?”

“I’m a growing girl, Reggie.”

“You did always love those family dinners,” He winked and stole a potato of her plate.

“Oh yes, my favourite,” Y/N avoided rolling her eyes, knowing that Regulus was still in the Black’s good graces, even if he joked around about their similar family traditions. She quickly finished off her dinner and grabbed her bag, “See you around, Black.”

“Adios, Malfoy.”

He winked at her and she rolled her eyes, following Remus’s route out of the hall and towards the dungeons. It was nearly 7 pm and getting steadily darker outside, meaning that Remus would have already been escorted to the Shrieking Shack, or as he called it, his fun personal torture chamber. 

Y/N went up to the dorm and slipped into bed, waiting for the rest of the girls to come in and fall asleep before she got up/ Y/N glanced around the room to ensure the rest of the dorm was snoring loudly. She had a bag stashed underneath her bed with supplies for the evening, sneaking them out of the dorm and into the Slytherin Common Room.

She paused, waiting on the edge of the staircase, scanning the room carefully until she was sure it was clear to sneak out of the front door and out of the dungeons. She followed her way along the edge of the staircases until she reached the first-floor corridor, keeping her hands along the wall to avoid having to light up her wand and wake the portraits. 

Finally, she reached the portrait of Gregory the Smarmy. She pushed it aside and stepped through to a small hole to crawl through, leading to a small set of steps leading downwards.

They led to the side of the castle and into the gardens where she could easily sneak toward the Whomping Willow. Y/N could already hear the screams coming from inside, taking a deep breath before she stretched her back and turned into her Animagus form. It was still painful getting used to it, and she winced as she got down on all fours and stretched out her back before following the passage down and into the shack.

She waited in the entrance for a moment, keeping her breathing short and quiet to try to hide from Remus. Remus and Y/N had a deal when it came to her aiding his transformations. She had to wait a few hours until he had already transformed and eaten, basically until he was calm enough to not hurt her. 

Whilst Y/N had protested, telling him that he should have someone with him when he changed, but with there only being one of her there was no one to tag team if things got hairy.

Once Y/N could only hear Remus huffing, and the sound of him walking over the wooden floorboards, or potentially broken furniture, she crept out towards the shack, her feet padding softly on the ground, not making a sound.

She made a soft growl, warning him of her presence in advance before letting herself be seen by the huge wolf panting in the corner. It had taken over a year, and a butt-load of research, before Remus’ wolf form had allowed for Y/N to enter without a small fight. 

They had found that since Remus was technically the larger and physically stronger of the two, it would require Y/N to ‘submit’ to him, which made Y/N extremely irritated at first. But now, as long as Y/N didn’t try to pull rank, they were able to be together inside the shack and keep each other company, letting Remus exert energy by play-fighting instead of hurting himself.

Remus wore out around 3 or 4am, curling up in the corner and falling asleep, growling softly every few minutes. Y/N found a spot in the other corner to ensure he didn’t accidentally scratch her in the middle of the night and fell asleep quickly, very worn out from the evening’s activities. 

Hours later, light began to stream through the dirty windows and Y/N woke up quickly, looking over to make sure Remus had changed back and grabbed one of the blankets she’d left by his side.

He gave her a weak smile as Y/N turned back, pulling on a coat and pair of pants behind a chest of drawers before going out to join him.

“Ready to go?” Y/N held out a hand, and Remus stood up precariously, leaning on her side, shivering in his blanket. There was blood dripping out from underneath it and she silently cursed, hoping that he hadn’t cut himself too deep. 

She helped pull him out of the passageway from the shrieking shack and tapped the root of the Whomping Willow to stop thrashing around in front of them.

“So that’s how you do it” A voice gasped loudly, coming from just beyond the tree’s roots. Y/N looked around wildly, attempting to pull her wand from her rucksack and face whoever was watching them.

“Sirius, and posse. Of course,” Y/N huffed, lowering her wand as Remus leaned harder on her shoulder, the cut clearly deeper than Y/N had anticipated, “Look can we have whatever this is later? I need to get Remus to Hospital Wing ASAP.”

“Need a fun break from the full moon huh” James cocked an eyebrow, wand still raised at the two of them. Y/N narrowed her eyes at him, reaching back towards her wand.

“What is this an ambush?”

“We were just curious what mister Lupin does every month, on the full moon,” Sirius smiled uncomfortably, watching the two of them closely.

“Well it sounds like you’ve figured it out, aren’t you the smartest bean in Hogwarts. Can we not let Remus die here please?”

“He’s not going to-,“ James started, but as if on queue Remus passed out, falling fast onto the grass.

“Shit- could you guys please put away your wands and help?” Y/N glared at them and they paused, looking much less macho than they did a minute earlier.

“Yes, of course” James finally broke, elbowing Sirius. They both went down to help Y/N pick Remus up. They didn’t say another thing until they heaved him up into the castle and to the Hospital Wing to a waiting, and very confused, Madame Pomfrey.

“What on earth are all of you doing here?” Madame Pomfrey pushed them all away from Remus has they set him down on a bed, “Do you know how dangerous the grounds can be at night?”

“Yeah, in the full moon,” Sirius muttered, and Y/N kicked him in the shin.

“Ok, I need you all to leave and let this boy rest, you can visit him this afternoon,” Madame Pomfrey shuffled them out of the hospital wing quickly. The boys turned to face Y/N almost immediately, making Y/N say in exasperation for whatever they were about to say.

“What are you thinking?”

“He’s dangerous!”

“Why do either of you care?” Y/N was taken aback, expecting much more hate and less concern, “This is really not your problem.”

“He could hurt someone!” James looked bewildered.

“Why do you think he leaves the castle every month!” Y/N stepped forward, eyes flashing at the two boys, “You have no right to come harassing him like this, do you even know what he goes through? Did you ever stop to think how painful it would be to have your entire body contort into something twice your size? Stop digging your nose into things that don’t concern you.”

“We were just trying to -.”

“What? Help? Save Hogwarts from an unknown beast? You know I bet if Remus was in any other house you would have bothered to research more into his condition before you jumped to conclusions.” Y/N hissed at them, turning on her heel and storming away from the two of them, leaving them flabbergasted.

“Who knew a Malfoy could care about something other than themselves,” Sirius raised an eyebrow, watching after her curiously.

“Well not all purebloods are alike are they mate,” James elbowed Sirius grinning, “Come on stop staring at her, let's go see what Peter’s up to. Maybe he’ll help me practice catching the snitch.”

“Drool over you more like it,” Sirius cackled, following James towards the Gryffindor Common Room, but he was still thinking about the fiery look Y/N had given him moments before.

General Taglist: 

@averytruerayofsunshine @siriuslyjanhvi @blushingskywalker @blackpinkdolan @thebabblingbookworm @cherrie511 @imlukesnirvana @avengersassemblee @maraudersandco @sly-vixen-up2nogood @katbernoulli @sirius-lysad @evyiione @minerva26love @aikeia @gollyderek @greatwombatblaze  @songforhema

Tension Taglist

@laue-bb  @fk12b @slytherpuffgal  @fairtaldes @desideriaenigma @j-brielmalfoy

[konan720]

Lil’ Julia and MoonJumper shorts

@winttiagloam

(Short four: Field Trip)

Little legs kicked back and forth, a happy hum; end of the year Field Trip was always something to look forward to! She and the entire school were going to go camping for a week. What a fun time that would be!

Being able to see nature that's not just outside her house or around the school! The small child looked out the window now, watching as every blurred object pass by.

Above the moving bus, MoonJumper followed- swiftly through the air unseen. As stupid as this Field Trip sounded, he wasn't about to leave his human to a bunch of judgmental children. Who knows what they might pull on her! Pranks, get her lost in the woods..-!

Why did he care so much? He shouldn't care about this! Idiotic feelings are getting in his way-! Though he can't seem to muster up the energy to do anything to this child he's clinging onto. Why was she so different from the others? Was it the fact that she doesn't know about the troubles she carries, or..-

Stop!

Stop thinking about this!

All he needs to do is making sure this child doesn't get into trouble! She's a magnet for disastrous situations like these! Something is bound to happen, and he's here to make sure the child doesn't dig an early grave! ———————

Here they were, as all the children poured out of the bus in a semi-orderly fashion, they lined up. The campsite was located next to a lake that divided off into glades. The place looked old, yet had modern like buildings- instead of wood, concrete took its place.

Not much an old styled camp, now is it? However, they did have cabins in a way.. just not traditional ones. Little Julia was the last child off the bus, she stood to the side and everyone took role call. Five children will be called out and that was to be their designated group.

Julia was apart of an all-girls group. A few of them were apart of the advanced classes; A rather noise to the sky air about them. Of course, Julia had no idea of the matter, nor did she pay attention well. She was more excited to explore the area, this place was massive and she was happy to be someplace different for once!

Everyone was being led to their cabins, or rather, buildings that were made of cement and had proper air conditioning. It was almost like an apartment but smaller. The buildings had six rooms, all walled off, and a simple living room. Each group was following their, what would be called, 'gator mother' despite some 'mothers' being male.

Once every child was settled in, they were left to mosey about while their gator mother watched over them. Julia stayed in her room for a moment, making sure her tall dark green rubber boots were on correctly. She was planning on getting near the swampy areas of the glades.

"Julia.. what do you think you're doing?" She heard MoonJumper speak for the first time this afternoon.

"Exploring!" Was her reply, she was chipper and happy, remembering a long time ago that her grandfather said these parts were haunted! "I'm gonna go find a ghost!"

MoonJumper had to stop himself from laughing. Julia was unaware that she had been friends with a ghost for some time now. Oh, who is he to ruin her fun? "Just be careful, swamps are very dangerous, their denizens strong and or venomous." Saying this, perhaps he should stay close behind here.

MoonJumper was unfamiliar with the kinds of snakes that roam this world. To a child that could be fatal...

"On another hand, perhaps you should go sightseeing at the local garden?" MoonJumper turned his head, only to find Julia was gone. "Oh, dear." ——————

"Hey, look. There goes the fairytale kid.." one girl mumbled, to their gossiping group.

"I heard she pretty stupid." Another whispered, "Which is kinda disappointing since her dad is a really good cop."

The group nodded at each other, they were all outside watching as Julia skipped around, eyes to the ground looking for a rather large stick. This stick would aid her in finding safe ground during her adventures. Plus to beat of anything that tries to attack her, like raccoons! Julia hates raccoons with a passion; those dirty thieves stole her gram crackers a few times.

"Hey fairytale, what are you doing?" One girl approached the light orange-haired girl.

"Looking for a stick." She said, to busy to explain further. She picked up a rather thick branch, not one that was to clean however, it still had a certain kind of moss her grandfather told her not to touch. She tossed it away to find another one.

"Why?" Another asked with a disgusted face, just watching then Julia made her feel dirty.

"Because!" Julia picked up a perfect stick for her endeavor "haunted swamp! I'm gonna go find the swamp ghost!"

The group of girls looked at each other, trying their best to not laugh though snickers still escaped them. There were no such things as ghosts! Never was, and never will be! They assumed the small girl didn't know that, so what harm would it be to play a little trick on her?

"Mind if we come with?" The taller girl of the group asked, smiling a sickeningly sweet smile. "That sounds fun!"

Julia smiled at them, she had a ghost hunting crew now! Just like on television! ——————

Nighttime came, which was always the best time to go hunting for the supernatural. The group of girls had to make sure their gator mother was unaware of their plan to sneak out, the girls would have to make it back for campfire hours because everyone would be there for their first day.

Well almost everyone, surely no one would miss the local fairytale spinner, right?

Somehow MoonJumper had managed to lose sight of his child, he knows something was off when those girls had taken a liking to Julia. No one would like her unless they wanted something. He frowned at that; the fact he too was one of those people, which was why he knew.

Julia skipped and tapped her stick around, a small map and a headlamp to see where she was going, the girls followed behind. One made a gagging noise, the squishing of soft mud were unpleasant to them.

Once they had made it to the edge of the camp, they saw the swamp that was surrounded by glades. The trees hung over them like arms severing in the soft wind. To Julia, it was breathtaking, but to the girls? They saw it as an ugly backwater alleyway.

"So, what do we do when we find this... ghost?" One asked, looking at Julia, their headlamps crossing streams of light.

"We don't do anything! We just watch!" Julia smiled at them, "we don't know if the spirit is vengeful or not! So making any moves towards it would be bad."

"W-what if it is vengeful...?" One girl said, who was particularly afraid of the dark, asked. The forest was starting to get to them, clouding their judgment of ghosts being real or not.

"We run like the wind!" Julia stated.

"Okay!" The taller girl said, smiling at her, the gasped in surprise "is that it over there!?" She pointed at nothing, but Julia didn't know.

"What, where?!" She was afraid she had missed it, the small girl tried to move forward but a sudden tug and a push knocked her into a tree braking her headlamp and her sense of direction.

Julia gripped onto the bark, pushing herself off. She must have tripped again, the girls laughed at her. It must have been pretty funny!

"Wow! You are stupid!" The tall girl said to Julia, she was smirking but the girl on the ground couldn't tell with the light shining in her eyes. "Wake up fairytale! Ghosts don't exist!"

Julia held a confused, "what..?" They were so nice to her all day, why were they being mean now? "Of course they exist..."

"No, they don't." The group leader said, face no longer smirking "that's just some stupid things adults say to scare little kids!" She then pointed "which makes you a freak since you're not scared!"

"That's not being a freak, that's being brave!" Julia yelled at them.

"Let's see how brave you are when we leave you here then!" The tall girl waved, turning around to walk away.

"Hey, wait!" Julia called back, realizing they took her map and her source of light. "Why..?"

A sudden roar echoed around the forest, more near them then away. It didn't sound like a cougar or a bear. No, it sounded more dangerous than that. The mire had shaken from the sound alone. A flash of color in between teal and green zipped around trees, catching all the girls' attention. Fear told them to run and ran the did, But Julia was having a harder time with the mud.

A massive amount of energy escaped this being as Julia was able to get a clear look. It glowed in the dark, a soft light, yet bright enough for Julia to her entire body. The energy the surrounded the long being looked like lightning, claw-like hands floated in place with smaller coin-like objects acting as arms. Its scary mask with long wavy prods stuck out far.

The small child was amazed, So awestruck she refused to move. Though, the first thing out of her mouth was:

"Are you a dragon?" Such an innocent question from a girl looking up at a being she had no idea what they were capable of.

It looked down at Julia, almost mulling over the thought of what it should do.

"Thank you for scaring away those mean girls!" Julia smiled, finally able to stand up. "I thought they wanted to be my friends.." she mumbled, then she realized all this excitement had made her forget where she was.

Without her map, she was lost.

"...I'm lost now..." the girl quietly said, trying to figure out where she came from. "I'm gonna be in big trouble." She then turned to the large being "are you lost too? Where'd you come from?"

Still no reply.

"That's okay, we can find out way together!" Julia smiled again, Unafraid of the towering long serpentine. It's mask looked down at her, a questioning look.

Looking around Julia giggled "Let's go this way!" The child pointed, only to have the being quickly snap at something, this made Julia freeze when she realized that the being had snapped a water moccasin coming on land in half.

Julia was about to step on it.

"Wow! You're quick! Quicker than a snake!" She smiled, though she then looked away worried. "Moon was right... I shouldn't have done this." The being placed a clawed hand on her head, almost like it was trying to comfort her.

"Julia! Thank heavens I found you!" MoonJumper dashed in grabbing the child away from the being. "What on earth is a Dweller doing here?!" He whispered to himself in a panic, he'd never seen a dweller of this size before. It made him feel, uneasy, almost scared. Though not for himself, but for the child that was now safely in his arms.

"Moon!" The girl hugged him happily, both not minding the mud for now. "I'm sorry, I should have listened to you!"

"No... I'm sorry I wasn't able to be there." He looked down with a sad expression on his face.

"It's okay though, the ghost dragon saved me!" The child pointed out, but she then saw it drift away. Its job was done. "Oh.. it's leaving... bye-bye ghost dragon!" The child yelled waving, MoonJumper was still in shock about this dweller being here, or that it was way larger and dangerous looking.

"Let's... return, shall we?" MoonJumper said, slowly making their way back to camp.

"Let's scare the campfire meet up!" Julia giggled, looking up at him.

MoonJumper smiled "oh, I thought you'd never ask..."

[resonatingfern]

tell me for the ask box post! specifically nettle telling someone a secret? who they tell is any character of your choice :)

I hope you weren’t expecting something sweet…because this is a whole mess of angst. warning for suicide attempts and blood

-

Laranthir woke up from a frightening dream.

In it Nettle lay on the jungle floor, vines wrapped tight around his wrists and neck. His golden blood dulled even as Laranthir watched, losing the shimmer of life force until it was opaque and cold. Dread rose in Laranthir’s throat, and he snapped himself awake, doused in a chill sweat.

He was home in the Grove for a short time after making a report to the Commander and the Pale Tree. The jungle was far away, and for now he was safe from its clutches. Nettle was too, he assured himself. He had just seen the other second born earlier that day at his home.

Nettle had looked tired, though. There were bags beneath his eyes, his foliage pulled into a messy knot by his neck instead of its usual carefully tended tail and braid. While they shared lunch together he had been withdrawn. Laranthir hadn’t thought too much of it; Nettle had suffered, and he was still recovering.

Only now did Laranthir begin to worry. He remembered the few things Nettle said sounding slightly off — the request for Laranthir to look after the bees kept in his garden in the future, should something happen to him. The wistful way Nettle sipped at his tea and spoke of how it had always been his favorite and how he should miss it.

Tossing blankets aside, Laranthir jumped from his bed. He didn’t stop to dress more fully, only pausing at the door to hurriedly shove his feet into a pair of worn boots. Outside the tepid night air blew past him as he ran down the twisting lanes and paths to the ground level of the Grove. His heart beat in his ears, setting the tempo for his feet stomping into the soft moss and soil beneath him.

When he reached Nettle’s home the interior was dark. No light shone from the windows, no flicker of candlelight from his bedroom or kitchen. He knocked — loud once, then louder a second and third time. Another wave of dread washed over him, and Laranthir tasted bile rise in his throat.

“Nettle?” He called out, and gave up the knocking in favor of pushing the door inward. It opened, revealing the dark hallway leading to the kitchen. “Nisienn? Brother?”

Laranthir stepped further inside, his body now icy with chill and silence. He reached the kitchen, and by the faint light drifting in from the window above the sink he saw Nettle.

“Nettle!” He shouted, darting forward and lunging at the other sylvari who stood calm and still, a dagger digging deep into his wrist. He easily tore the weapon from Nettle’s grasp and tossed it far across the kitchen, where it landed with a sharp screech of metal. “Stop it, stop it! What are you doing?”

“Laranthir?” Nettle was limp in Laranthir’s hold, and his eyes were glazed over as he looked up at him. “I — what am I doing?”

Laranthir watched as Nettle looked down at his arms, one of them coated in the same thick, golden blood that had featured in his dream. Nettle’s hands — still scarred and deformed, though noticeably healing — were slick with the sap like substance, and it dripped perversely to the floor with a wet smack.

Reaching for a hanging towel by the sink, Laranthir wrapped the wound, compressing the area to stop the flow of blood before too much was lost.

“Put this on, brother,” He urged, deftly tying the fabric thanks to years on the battlefield. “Pale Mother, come here, come here.”

Nettle did as instructed and collapsed into Laranthir’s embrace. He began to sob, long, shuddering heaving of his body that pulled all the air from within him. They both slumped to the floor, Nettle’s legs giving out almost immediately. Through the wracking tears and howls of grief and pain Laranthir heard him repeat again and again he was sorry. His voice cracked and broke and found itself again, and each time it was the same mantra of apology.

Eventually Nettle quieted. Laranthir didn’t know how long it took, only that he would have sat there with his brother until the Grove grew over with moss and lichen and the world crumbled away. When his sobs turned to merely soft tears, Laranthir cupped Nettle’s cheek and brought his eyes to his own.

“Why?” he asked quietly, fearing to make too much noise now that the house was still again. “Why, Nisienn?”

Nettle looked at him for only a breath, then looked away. He shrugged, offering no explanation. Laranthir waited, continuing to rest his arms around Nettle’s shoulders.

“It should be me.” Nettle spoke so softly Laranthir had to bow his head in order to hear, even from his close distance. “I shouldn’t be alive.”

“That’s not true,” he answered without hesitation.

Nettle shook his head, the tangle of his foliage falling from its knot and tumbling over his shoulders.

“I killed them,” he said. His eyes were glazed over again, seeing something that wasn’t this room, but far away and lush with humid jungle air. “Aina, Duane, Varian… more. I remember each one. I — Laranthir, I tore into them.”

He broke away from Laranthir’s embrace and held up his hands. Fresh blood still seeped from the one bandaged wrist, but rest had dried to his hand, crackling and filling in the curves of his nails and the ravines of his many scars.

“I ripped them apart,” Nettle went on, each word shriller and more panicked than the last. “I felt their hearts beating in my hands when I tore them from their bodies. And I — and I…”

“Nisienn… ” Laranthir took Nettle’s hands in his own and lowered them. He felt him recoil from the touch, and quickly hid his hands from sight.

“I can’t keep hearing them.” Nettle shook his head again, this time his foliage covering his face. Neither moved to push it aside, instead letting it curtain him as he started to shake. “I can’t. I can’t live with this. I can’t. I can’t.”

The sobs returned anew, harder than the first time. Laranthir worried Nettle may choke, and he did spend a few moments coughing from the force of his crying, but it subsisted without incident. While Laranthir waited it out, rubbing at Nettle’s shoulders now and then and brushing back his foliage, he thought over the things he’d heard.

He knew Nettle’s time in the heart of Maguuma had been disastrous, but he had never heard the details. When the Pact found Nettle he had been crumpled and nearly lifeless, but he had been himself, which was more than many of the sylvari turned to Mordremoth’s call had been. Hearing now what his brother had gone through, what he had done, sent sparks of deep, aching pain through Laranthir’s chest. No one should have had to live through the things Nettle had, and yet here he was, alive and plagued by memories.

Laranthir tilted Nettle’s chin up once he had cried all he could. He looked into his eyes again, this time holding them tight.

“You must, Nisienn” he said. Maybe Nettle didn’t want to live anymore, but Laranthir had to believe that feeling could change. A world without him in it was too bleak to imagine. “The past will fade. I will help you. Mother will help you. We’ll get you help.”

Nettle’s face was still wet from tears, and the now rising sun streaming through the window caused them to catch the light and shimmer. His eyes — gentle, kind, filled with a sadness so deep it was hard to look at — were finally clear.  

“And if the help doesn’t lessen the pain?”

“It will,” Lanarthir answered. “I promise you. I always keep my promises to you, brother.”

Except that wasn’t true. Laranthir had promised to find him in the jungle if he were ever lost. He failed that, and because of it Nettle had suffered, and still suffered now. Laranthir couldn’t quell the feeling that part of the blame lie with him. He vowed then, Nettle still in his arms, his cheek now resting against his chest, that he would be part of the healing as well.

It was a moment before Nettle spoke again, and this time Laranthir felt his words vibrate aganist his chest.

“I’ll try.”

Laranthir held his hand to the back of Nettle’s head and slowly brushed over his foliage. He sighed, the exhaustion of the night hitting him all at once. Nettle would try, he thought. And that was enough for now.

[this-mightaswell-happen]

Lou and Cas: aka lesbian caretaker and her pure of heart dumb of ass best friend

Wanted to try out some boxboy stuff, so have some new characters and some caretaker shenanagins! Hurt/Comfort, nightmares, all that jazz. Not many Content Warnings other than past kidnapping and conditioning

Lou finds him on the roof again. It's late at night, late enough to be considered morning, but she doesn’t care. Actual mornings aren't a thing she gets around to seeing very often. Her mornings start at around one pm, and days consist of homework filled evenings and midnight Netflix binges. Cas is big on sunrises though; he likes to get up early to watch them. 

“Isn’t it pretty?” he had asked her, voice a little breathless, on the one occasion he had managed to get her up at seven o’clock in the goddamn morning to join him. Lou had looked at him, the sunlit freckles on his face, his small and easy smile, the softening around his dark brows that were always so bunched up with worry. “Yeah man,” she said, feeling a soft smile of her own tug at her lips, “Real pretty.” 

He should be sleeping now. Lou is always trying to gently bully him into getting more than three hours a night, and while he always nods along to her rants with his look at me I’m listening face, he also always slips out of bed every night to wander the halls like some sort of victorian ghost. Luckily, their rooms were right next to each other and, though he’s always careful and quiet, his door hasn't been oiled in years and sounds like a dying possum. Tonight, when she hears the tell-tale squeaking, she sighs, pauses her episode of Pokemon: Advanced Challenge, and heads straight to the roof. 

“Sir, this is private property,” Lou says, leaning out the window, feeling the cool breeze through her tank top. “Trespassers pay a fine. The fine is going the fuck to bed, so, chop chop.” 

“Thought you said I can’t trespass here,” Cas replies, turning his face ever so slightly towards her with a hint of a guilty smile. He’s sitting at the edge of the roof, too close, with his knees pulled up to his chest and his toes almost sticking out over the ledge. “Didn’t you tell me I could go anywhere in the house?” Lou snorts, pushing her torso through the window’s frame and wriggling her way outside. 

“Yeah, and I also told you I’m gonna look out for you, so could you stop making my job so hard? At least give me a raise.”

“I didn’t know I was paying you.”

“Well you’re not, so you’re actually millions of dollars indebted to me.” 

“Whoops.” His voice has died down to a mumble, now that he’s turned around and pressed his face into the soft arms of his sweatshirt. Lou sighs, because she knows this mood. She scooches her way down the gentle incline of the roof until her toes are almost in line with his. Goosebumps raise up on her bare shoulders, both from the chill and the view. It’s beautiful; from up here she can see all of her mom’s garden laid out like a paint, the small creek winding through the flower patches. Brilliant blooms of red and yellow, muted in the moonlight and so, so very small from up here. She inches her toes another half inch away from the edge. 

“So,” she says into the open air, “Are you gonna tell me what’s wrong?” Cas shrugs a bit, shoulders covering the tips of his ears that have gone red from the chill. 

“‘m okay,” he mumbles, in a decidedly not-okay fashion. Lou slides her hand a little closer to him, hoping that he’ll take the hint, and he does, unburying his face from his arms so he can place his palm next to hers. Never on top, he can never bring himself to fully initiate, so she’s the one who laces their fingers together and squeezes.

“Did you dream about him again?” She knows the answer before he nods, knows the spike of anger and sadness that rises within her every time. “That motherfucker.”

“Don't call him that.”

“Cas, he’s a motherfucker. He was assigned motherfucker at birth. The doctor took one look at him and said ‘ah yes, a motherfucker, send my condolences to the parents and any other poor soul who comes across him.’” Cas looks at her, laughing a bit, and now she can see the red in his eyes. She doesn’t comment on it; he hates letting people see him cry. The other guy liked it too much. When Cas (although he hadn’t named himself ‘Cas’ yet) first came here, shivering from rain and bundled up in her mom’s coat, he had been sobbing. Big heaving cries, the kind that used up all the air your lungs had to offer. He hadn’t stopped, for weeks. All it took was one wrong look, one harsh tone, and his eyes would start to blur with tears. I kind of envy you, Lou had told him, when she first found him hiding out in his closet, tears streaming silently down his cheeks. I never cry. Even when I feel like it. Shit just builds up inside me, you know? Cas had given her a weak, bitter smile. I never feel like it, he said, I just can’t turn it off. 

“He was holding me,” Cas says suddenly. He’s staring into the garden, eyes glassy and unfocused. “In the dream. He was holding me, so fucking close, and telling me that it’s okay because none of this life is real. That you and this house and everything else isn’t real. I never left. I was still there with him and-” He breaks off, swallowing, and Lou squeezes his hand so tight.

“Hey, I’m real. I’m right here baby.” Cas gives her a quick, sad smile.

“I know, it’s just...” He fades off, face clouding, before smiling again against the tears that build up in his eyes, wide and miserable. “For a little bit I believed him, after I woke up, and I was so relieved. I wanted it to be true.”

There’s a pressure in Lou’s chest that builds and builds and builds. It feels so tight, and so heavy, and she knows from experience that no matter what she does, it will not go away. Cas is kind. He’s funny; he’s got a whip-smart wit. He has a lopsided grin, and he snorts when he laughs, and she likes him so much. And there is someone out there who took all of that and buried it under a mountain of pain and factory made responses. A tilted head, an airy smile, empty eyes with not a hint of defiance. Lou wants to wrap him up in her arms and place him inside of her heart where nothing can touch him, to take away everything bad that has ever happened to him and burn it to ashes, but she can’t. She can excavate him though. She can dig around the planted thoughts in his head and unbury her best friend. 

“Make me not want to go back. Please make me not want to go back,” he whispers, eyes bright and glittering as they stare pleadingly into hers.

“I will,” Lou says, staring back with as much confidence as she can muster, and wishes that she could cry.