#too many canon divergence ideas not enough time | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

flokali · 8 months

Text

♢ I own you, I love you | Tartaglia

warnings: yandere, dub/con, male m.asturbation, violence, threats, corruption, unrealistic sound-isolation, delusional thoughts, possessive behavior (from childe), childe/tartaglia lore-spoilers, canon divergence (maybe?), misunderstanding/miscommunication, manipulative behavior (from ajax) , unreliable narrator (ajax), ask to tag more.

pairing: afab! fem! reader x childe

word count: 10.7k

a/n: after months... here it is;; i'm so sorry for taking so long (tt),, i'll make it up to you !! istg (huhuh)

— 18+

You had trouble falling asleep ever since the day Ajax went missing.

It was meant to be yet another normal day, one that would blend in with all the others – muddled with other memories of childhood. Instead, it became the day your life began to change in ways you hadn’t even fathomed possible.

It had heavily snowed the previous night, which left a brand new layer of pure white to cover the humble roads of Morepesok. Normally, after such a heavy storm, you and Ajax would go over to his house and play inside – making use of the fireplace his father had built and hot chocolate his mother would make to keep warm. You both would steal his father’s diary and read about his adventures across Teyvat, recreating the scenes in your minds with yourselves as the main characters, before sharing your dreams with one another.

You never had the courage back then to tell him your ideal adventure was a rather simple one, while you always dreamt of moving to a less snowy nation, one like Mondstatd or even Sumeru, you were content with peacefully traveling across Teyvat before settling down. You didn’t want to spend your life fighting monsters and exploring the world, you only really longed for a simple life, where you could work a safe job and create a new home for yourself and those you loved. It was fun to imagine yourself on a long, rewarding journey across the nation to complete a request, but you’d rather keep it as just that – a figment of your imagination.

Ajax, on the other hand, longed for the chance to become a warrior. While never too skilled with the blade, always too nervous to even kill an animal, his determination was enough to convince you he’d one day make a great adventurer like his father. He’d longed for the thrill of exploring every corner of Teyvat, roaming the land until there was nowhere in this world where he hadn’t been to. Meeting new people, learning about new cultures, fighting monsters and gaining the freedom that came with being an adventurer; Ajax’s dreams had been clear from a young age.

A part of you, albeit really, insignificantly small, always wished he’d never succeed, secretly hoping he’d leave those ambitions behind with age and become a fisherman or craftsman instead. You’d heard tales of men and women who’d joined the Adventurer’s Guild only to never come back, and even more about those who’d joined the Fatui’s ranks, and you didn’t like the idea of waking up one day to find out he’d passed in a foreign land. It was selfish, you knew that, but you hoped that maybe he’d choose a safer option, one where you two could live together, away from the cold winters of Snezhnaya and safe from the dangers of the world. Maybe you’d both move away from Morepesok, find a quaint town in Fontaine where you’d both settle down and continue being friends, or maybe more, with no worries for each other’s safety - only busy being happy and healthy.

While you were putting on your boots and coat, making sure to layer as many clothes as you could to avoid the freezing cold temperatures that came with such heavy snowfall, you remember feeling an odd sense of uneasiness, a queasy feeling settling down in your stomach making you feel sick and nauseous. At the time you had thought nothing of it, too focused on meeting up with your friend and the taste of his mother’s hot coco, but now, years later, you think it was the Tsaritsa’s way to warn you for what was to come.

You remember nearing his house, confused as to why he hadn’t met you halfway down the road like he always did. It was quiet, eerily so, only the sound of your boots and your labored breath as you battled your way through the snow. There were no kids out on the street, all the adults that would normally be on their way were missing, even the birds seemed hesitant to chirp.

Instead, you find his mother worriedly looking around the perimeters of their humble cabin, her normally neat appearance now disheveled. Her long, ginger hair was half-hazardly put up, her clothes were wrinkled, her coat wasn’t even buttoned up all the way, but she stood there, frantically looking around.Whenever you’d come over, you and Ajax would always bump into one another before racing home to see who’d get there first, but today there was his mother’s choked sobs where normally his laughter would ring.

“Auntie?” You asked, running the rest of the way as you saw her expression, the closer you got the clearer the worry in her face became and you felt yourself grow anxious.

“Sweetie,” she looks at you in surprise, not having seen you approaching - too preoccupied to hear your unsteady footsteps as you struggled to run towards her, you see her blue eyes frantically look behind you and you follow suit, “A-Ajax, he wouldn’t have been with you, right?”

“No…” You shake your head, the previous feeling in your stomach expanding across your body, your head felt fuzzy as you asked, “Isn’t he home?”

“I… I’m afraid not,” She looks distressed at your words, her eyes water as she ushers you inside while still trying to look around to see if she caught sight of her son’s bright ginger hair against the cold white that coated the roads, her hands are shaking as she holds yours and brings you into her home, “Come inside, come inside – it’s too cold out t-there, you’ll get sick.”

Behind you, you hear more people arrive, you’re almost certain you hear your parents as well, but you have no time to ask before the worried mother shakes her head at the curious adults that looked up at her – the atmosphere worsens at the realization he hadn’t snuck out to be with you, she tries to occupy herself by taking you inside so as to not give into hopelessness.

You’re confused, not too sure of what’s going on even as you see adults from around the village inside of the house, maps in their hands as they whisper about the boy’s possible whereabouts.

“Is Ajax… o-okay?” You ask, you start to feel afraid as you process their concerned faces, seeing all of these adults who’d always been smiling and assured look so worried and uncertain sent a chill down your spine.

Where was Ajax? Normally he’d be here, assuring you your imagination was running wild and that nothing was wrong, the empty space next you where he’d normally be felt awfully cold.

Nobody answers you, instead you’re taken to your friend’s room where his siblings were gathered. Their mom, who you've always called your auntie, kneels down in front of you, taking your smaller hands into hers and giving you a weak smile.

“Ajax will be fine, okay?” Her words are meant to comfort you but you feel like they’re more for herself in that moment, “He’s just… gone out for a while, but he’ll be back before you know it.”

You nod, not truly understanding what she meant but feeling as if that was the response she needed to hear.

She gives your forehead a small kiss, you feel a tear fall travel down her cheeks and into your hair but you say nothing as she leaves, noting how she desperately tried to conceal the tears in her eyes; You’d never seen her cry before and it’s only then, as you look at his siblings and the pained look in their faces, that you finally begin to grasp the severity of the situation.

He was missing. Your best friend was gone and no one had any idea where he had run off to.

That evening your parents came over and stayed the whole day with Ajax’s family, alongside the other townspeople who went and came as they searched for the young boy in the woods around the area. Normally, you had to fight tooth and nail to let them grant you permission to stay over but that night they’d been the ones to offer it first.

That night was the first and only time you had a sleepover without Ajax. You and his siblings huddled together in the living room, next to the fireplace as his mother looked over you all. You would wake up every so often to the sound of people coming and going as the search efforts seeped into the night and early morning.

The suffocating cycle repeated itself for three days. Three days, two nights, and one afternoon later, after countless hours crying to your parents in fear of losing your best friend; Ajax emerges from the woods in one piece, but he who returns is not the same boy.

The first thing that stood out was his disheveled hair, he was wearing the same clothes – which were in too good a condition for a kid who’d gotten lost in the woods by himself for three days –, and the hunting knife he’d stolen from his dad now dull as if it’d been used continuously for a long period of time. What shocked the men and women who’d found him was the blood on him – specks decorated his face and hands as he looked up at them from his position near the corpse of a bear, one easily three times his size, he’d somehow taken out.

They’d found him in a clearing close to his house, the smell of blood had been what had alerted the rescue party – they’d prepared for the worst case scenario where the blood came from Ajax’s body, instead they found him to be in good shape even after three days by himself in the wild – perhaps a little too good, for it seemed he’d somehow taken down a beast by himself with his hands and his father’s old hunting knife.

The news of his return quickly spreads, everyone gathered near his home as they awaited with bated breaths to see the young boy; you’re there as he’s reunited with his family, hugging your mother’s leg as tightly as you could.

Rumors spread about him having killed an animal, some claimed it had been a rabbit while others alleged it had been a beast the size of a horse, and you wondered if they had mistaken another kid for Ajax – he’d never had the guts to harm even a fly, you doubted he’d changed so much in the span of three days. But it seemed as if you’d been wrong.

He doesn’t shed a tear, he doesn’t say a word. Not even a squeak as his parents coddle him; nothing at all. The only sounds are hushed whispers as people discuss the absurd situation and gleeful congratulations from onlookers as they celebrate his arrival and well being while giving his family well wishes. Instead, his blue eyes find yours and you’re unnerved at the empty look in them. Where there’s once been a warm light, you found an empty void that seemingly sucked you in and refused to let you go. You felt goosebumps arise all over your body the longer he looked at you. Even as he’s embraced within his father’s arms, his family surrounding him as they cry from relief, it’s only when he makes eye contact with you that, the first time since arriving, he smiles.

You feel a chill travel down your spine as you realize Ajax hadn’t been the one to return that day. You unconsciously nestled closer into your mother’s coat, as if trying to hide from his unnerving gaze.

You did your best to ignore that unsettling feeling, opting to attribute it to the rumors you had heard instead of something your friend had done, you pushed it and as well as any doubts aside as you attempted to focus on the good news; he was here, home with his family and back next door to your own house, and that was all that really mattered.

Ever since then, he’d become more confident. His once timid personality completely disappeared and the days where you had been the stronger one, defending him from his older siblings’ teasing and the mocking from other kids, were now but hazy memories. The roles had switched quite suddenly, not that you minded it too much – there were times where it felt nice to be the one being protected rather than the protector, but it had been quite the surprise at first.

He’d become bolder and more protective, never afraid to throw a punch (and sometimes even more) if he felt like you had been disrespected. It came to a point where you’d sometimes grow suffocated by his mere presence; eventually it escalated to where he’d never let you hang out with anybody he didn’t approve of, afraid they’d hurt you and he wouldn’t be there to defend you, and he’d make sure to let it be known you were his friend first and foremost. Unknowingly, a set of rules had been implemented between the two of you. Rules that stated you were his responsibility to protect and care for, even if it meant it drove others away and left you two isolated from other kids your age.

There were times you missed the Ajax that’d gone into the woods, the freckled boy who was timid and polite – who’d rather be teased by his siblings than hurt even a bug the size of your pinky, you doubt that boy would have picked fights with kids twice his size because they’d made a joke or two that didn’t land too well. But you hesitated to dislike the new Ajax, after all, when it was only the two of you - it was as if that damned day had never occurred at all.

He was back to the sweet, delicate boy who’d blush at your jokes and avoid prolonged eye contact. Whose hand would grow warm from holding yours, who’d confess his feelings to you every night when he thought you’d fallen asleep.

A few years later, once you were both older – now settled into your teen years, he ended up joining the Fatui and leaving your humble seaside village to go to the capital to train as a soldier.

You cried the day he’d given you the news. As overbearing as he could be, the ginger had been your only friend that your parents consistently let you hang out with, you’d spent your whole lives together and the thought of being without him terrified you greatly.

You remember the look on his face, the way he desperately tried to look strong and not let a single tear get away, his hands that had once been soft were now calloused as he grabbed your own.

“I’ll come back for you, I promise.” He’d whispered, his lips near your ear as he enveloped you in a hug.

You don’t trust your voice not to break and so you nod, letting your nose burn from trying to contain your sobs and not worry him more than he already was.

“A-and I’ll write you letters, so you better not forget me,” he continues, and even if by now he’d long since grown taller than yourself – you’re amazed at how small and vulnerable he felt against your frame, “so please… wait for me.”

“Only if you always write to me first… ‘Cause I swear I’ll leave if you forget.” You try to lighten the mood, halfheartedly warning him as if you both didn’t know it’d take death itself for Ajax not to fulfill a promise from him to you. He tightens his arms around you and you feel a wave of nostalgia wash over you as you wonder how long it’ll be before you can both hug like this again.

“I promise.” He laughs softly, the sound warms your heart.

“Then I promise as well.”

Ever since the day Ajax went missing, you have had trouble falling asleep.

When you did manage to fall asleep, a task which took longer than you’d like to admit without external factors such as medicine, your dreams would be strange and cryptic, often times you’d wake up in the middle of the night with a racing heartbeat and a sense of urgency, as if you’d been in danger; you’d learned to hate the images your brain would concoct during your rest. Some nights, you’d dream about that day and what would have happened if Ajax had never been found, other times you’d open the door to soldiers grieving his death; whatever tragic scenario your mind decided to present you, it would always be so realistic you’d wake up with tears streaming down your cheeks and a devastated heart.

This time, however, your sleep had come easier than expected and there were no dreams or nightmares to haunt you. No earthly worries were present and, after such an unexpected day filled with reunions and world-shattering news, you wished to succumb to a never ending night; however, the fates had other plans for you.

As you’re forcibly awakened from your slumber you feel a familiar, pleasant hand gently caressing your head. It felt gentle, their touch delicate and sweet, as if they were afraid any more force would hurt you. If the owner of said limb wished to lure you into consciousness, their touch had the opposite effect as it almost seemed to beg you to go back to sleep and forget the world of the living.

You felt truly content as you laid there, the blanket that laid atop of you was heavy and cozy, a foreign feeling - nothing like the blankets you were used to, and the pillow smelt like an old friend, welcoming and nostalgic. It all felt like a perfect trap set out to catch you, if that were that case then you’d have to admit it was a little too good at its job as you resign yourself to cuddling closer to the fabrics that enveloped you.

If it hadn’t been for the gentle kiss pressed against your cheek, you probably would have never gotten up. You want to complain, already formulating a sentence of indignation and annoyance to throw at the perpetrator, but the warmth left behind by the gesture is cozy and fills you with a taste full of happiness and fulfillment you don’t want to sour. At the feeling of a pair of unknown, soft lips against your skin you become more alert, slowly your consciousness begins to enter the realm of the living once more while you grow aware of your surroundings. Your eyes open timidly, the leftover fatigue from such a deep rest keeping them heavy, it takes you a second or two to adjust to the light and another few to register the man that lovingly gazed down on you.

“Ajax…?” You call out, rubbing your eyes as you wonder if it really was him. You’re almost sure you’re dreaming, as embarrassing as it was to admit, it had been so long since you’d seen him in person you may have simply gone crazy and imagined the man to be here; You’re about to ask him what he was doing here, if he were real at all, but he beats you to the punch with a smile before answering you with a gleeful tone that reminds you of summers long gone.

“The one and only,” he laughs gently as the hand that laid atop your head began to ruffle your hair in a familiar gesture – reassuring you that he was, in fact, a real person and not a figment of your imagination you had come up with to deal with the loneliness, “… don’t tell me you forgot about earlier.”

He teases you, but there’s a hint of worry in his eyes as he awaits your answer; surely, you couldn’t have forgotten. It’d only been a couple of hours and he had been sure to be as thorough as possible so that he left a print on both your mind and body, there was no way you’d forget making love with your soulmate. Just the thought of it sent jolts of anger and frustration down his spine, not at you - never at you, but at himself as he wonders if maybe he’d underperformed and disappointed you to the point you’d try and act like nothing had happened. If that was the case, he was more than willing to go again just this instant to right any previous wrongs.

“Earlier?” You mumble, you wreck your brain trying to think of what he meant but it isn’t a full minute before you realize what he meant. If it hadn’t been for his words, maybe his coat laying on you and your sore body would have been enough to eventually jog your memory. You feel your cheeks grow hot as you remember what you two had done earlier, you’d been so tired by the end you’d fallen into a deep, dreamless slumber that momentarily left you empty-headed when you woke up, but now the memories are rushing in and you doubt you’ll be able to forget the feeling of Childe on top of you for a long time.

Your embarrassed gaze was enough for him to know you’d remembered the dance you’d both partaken in earlier that day, the way your eyes avoided his had his heart swooning and a warm, fuzzy feeling settling deep within his very soul.

He feels himself calm down the more he looks at your flustered face, his whole body light and intoxicated on your sweet expressions; his pants felt so tight as he watched you fiddle with his coat, he wonders if he’d be able to warm you up on the ride back to his place the same way he’d done so previously.

You were absolutely adorable to him, so very weak and fragile in comparison to him – if he wasn’t such a gentleman, he would have loved to destroy you until you were too scared to leave his side. Alas, he decided that you shouldn’t be the one to face the sharp end of his blade, instead, he’ll scar your psyche and those around you so violently you’ll have no want nor need for anything else other than him.

“So, ‘slept well, my love?” He asks, his tone sweet as to never betray his darker thoughts — you didn’t have to know about how deeply he wished to break you until you couldn’t function without him by your side. You nod while suppressing a yawn, blissfully unaware of the chaos that was unfolding due to the man in front of you, and he laughs, content with your naïveté; he missed you oh so very much, “That’s good.”

There’s a warm, almost euphoric feeling that invaded your senses as you both took the time to enjoy each other’s presence; it felt different from earlier, something had changed now that you both had finally indulged in each other’s bodies. It felt akin to drinking a warm cup of tea, comforting and pleasurable, a reminder of home and the feeling of familiarity after a long period of impersonal and foreign coldness.

“Let’s get going then,” he breaks the silence, finally standing up from his crouching position, he gives you one last pat in the head before he starts making his way through your room and inspecting your belongings – or what remained of your belongings, “the carriage will be here soon, it’s only an hour long ride away but I think it’s best we take as much as we can today and send someone to pick up what remains.”

That’s when you notice he’s fully dressed, other than for his cape that was laid on you, as if he was anxiously awaiting the time to leave. You’re confused; why was he so keen on leaving and so fastly – he’d barely been here a handful of hours. Did you misunderstand his intentions?

“What do you…?” You ask, you rub your eyes while you sit up, using the large coat as a cover once you feel chilly Snezhnayan air hit your sensitive skin. It’s then that you can finally look at the many bags and boxes that litter the floor, and the almost empty room you laid in. All of your belongings seemed to have been packed away, almost nothing remained other than old family portraits and gifts from your parents from across the years.

“Huh?” The sight of your room packed into boxes was enough to wake you up, you instinctively try to stand up but a firm hand keeps you in place; you look up and see Ajax looking down at you. Your eyes meet and a chill goes up your spine at the look in his, they look eerily empty. You barely feel the coat slip from your shoulders, too focused on the feeling of his fingers against your forearm and the fact he, as a soldier, could easily overpower you if he wished.

“You’re still sleepy, aren’t you?” He asks, the muscles on his arm flex slightly as he speaks to you - he sounds disappointed as he continues interrogating you, “Do you really not remember?”

You shake your head, trying to wrack your brain for any indications of what he could be referring to; you remember the news about your parents and what happened after, but moving out? You have no memory of such a thing being even discussed, lest he meant —

“You agreed to marry me,” he says, as if reading your mind, your arm is finally set free as he adjusts the gloves on his hands, “and as my wife, you’ll be living with me from now on; I assumed you wouldn’t want to stay… here for much longer, considering everything.”

“Marry you…?” You echo as you watch him parade around your room, sharp eyes taking in what was left of your belongings on display. You vaguely remember his proposal during the first half of your conversation, something about how it’d serve as an obstacle for the arranged marriage – after all, it’s not as if the wife of a Fatui Harbinger’s marriage could be easily questioned or objected to. You had agreed almost immediately, even if you had your doubts about the reasoning behind the arrangement, you’d rather marry someone you knew than a stranger.

You wished you’d thought things through better, waited a bit longer before giving your answer. Clearly Ajax had made up his mind but now, after the shock of the news began to wear off, you felt like you owed your parents and yourself a discussion. Even if you felt betrayed, like their decision degraded you to an object instead of their daughter, you wanted to head their side; if only to get closure for your own aching heart.

Instead of answering you, Ajax turns around to meet your eyes. His eyes had always had the ability to suck you in like a void, they’re never clear - always muddy, like there was a side of himself he hid from you; you could never find your reflection on them. It took you a while to get used to them, to their empty, numb look that sent chills down your spine all those years ago.

The room feels small as you both look at each other, you sit on the bed naked and he stands in front of the door as if he were trapping you in, it’s silent and intimate and it makes your skin crawl. His expression is one you can’t read, maybe all those years in the Fatui had taught him how to make his enemies cower thanks to his presence alone, because the harder you tried to understand what his gaze meant, the less you felt you knew about him.

“Yes, you said you’d marry me.” He states and, even if it wasn't phrased as such, it felt more like an order than a recalling of events.

“I know,” you mumble, “and I… I like you, Ajax, I really do, and I’d love to be with you, but… but I can’t run away from this without hearing them out, you know?”

“You said you loved me.” His expression changes into a frown; Had you lied to him?

He probably sounds childish, his sentences short and repetitive like that of a toddler throwing a tantrum, but the truth was he simply couldn’t believe that you’d even hesitate to marry him; his brain completely short-circuited as he tries to understand why on Earth you’d ever think of giving anybody a chance when you had him.

“I mean, I-I do,” your cheeks feel hot as you’re quick to answer, at least you think you love him, “but… mom and dad wouldn’t just do this without a reason and you know that. I can’t just leave and never see them again without their explanation, even if it’s bad… I need some sort of closure; I can’t accept they’d just do this to me for no reason.”

“As if that changed anything, they gave your hand away for Mora, my love” He retorts, completely bewildered at your words; they’d tried to give you away to some lowlife, they hadn’t consulted you, they were going to spring it up on you one day and expect you to get over it the next, “Does a reason even matter?”

“It does, at least I… I think it does,” you look down at yourself and notice droplets falling down against the coat, staining the heavy leather with your sorrow, you were crying and hadn’t even realized it, “I don’t want to hate them… I don’t want them to hate me.”

He goes quiet when he catches sight of your tears. He freezes, his chest tightens and he feels himself grow dizzy – it’s the same foreign feeling he got when he first heard of the engagement, he feels his knees buckle under his weight and himself sway with every step he takes in your direction. They were beautiful, your tears, so delicate and clear, they shone like crystals when the soft afternoon light came through the window just right; he wishes he could collect them in his palm and weave a necklace to keep with himself, a reminder of your fragile heart he desperately needed to protect.

You looked so vulnerable, naked and crying, covered only by his coat. It was an intoxicating sight, he wished he could take a photograph and engrave it on his eyelids so every time he blinked he’d see this scene play out. You broke so beautifully, it was haunting to hear your voice break into sobs and wails as you mourned the life you thought you had, but it sounded beautiful to his ears nonetheless. It makes him feel insane, it was taking too much self-control from his part not to jump on you.

He sits down once more next to you, shaking limbs trapping you in his arms as he rubbed your back softly. As you cried uncontrollably, he found his cheeks hurting from the large grin on his face; it couldn’t be helped, no matter how much he tried to will it away, the joy he felt as he saw you cry was too much for him to hide.

“It’s okay,” he makes no effort to quell your fears, instead he chooses vague words of comfort to let it fester in your heart, “you won’t need to see them ever again, you’ll have me instead.”

He feels you hiccup, too deep in your own despair to formulate words. Your shaking body clings to his, you felt so scared and alone; How were you supposed to accept such a cruel, unforgiving truth? What could you possibly do to ease the pain in your heart as you thought about your parents and siblings, who had so easily given you away to a stranger. They felt so far away from you, it felt as if your whole life had been a long dream, nothing but a fantasy you were unaware could break any second, leaving you afraid and confused as you awakened to a reality you could have never seen coming.

“Come, I’ll help you get dressed,” Ajax helps you up as he speaks, essentially forcing you to face reality and displace the fogginess in your mind, he’s gentle as he makes his way with you to your closet - you vaguely note that it was still full, unlike the rest of your room it seemed he hadn’t touched it save for a few drawers here and there -, “the sooner you get ready,” he keeps an arm around you while he goes through the rack of your clothes, making sure you stay close to him, “the sooner we can get out of here.”

You nod, your head hurts but you can’t seem to stop the tears.

Maybe he was right, maybe it was a bad idea for you to talk to them; there was truly no excuse, was there? You doubted anything they’d say would take the feeling of betrayal away, they had treated you like an object, completely forfeiting your own personhood and giving you away to a stranger for Mora. No matter how desperately you wanted to understand what they’d done and why they’d done it, the more your head and heart hurt – it was such a cruel, heartless thing to do, to throw away your own blood to whoever bid the highest for them.

You can’t even muster the strength to facilitate the Harbinger’s task of dressing you, your whole body felt heavy as he made sure to layer on your clothes, it was near impossible for you to even stand up by yourself without your legs swaying and your knees buckling under your weight. It’s only due to the ginger’s persistence and strength that you don’t collapse.

By the time you’re ready and boarding the carriage, you’re tired and too drunk in your own misery, to question why, even as it neared nighttime, your parents nor your siblings hadn’t come home yet. Not that you cared, at least not right now, seeing them was the last thing you wanted to do.

The ride home is peaceful, you’d fallen asleep early on and laid beside Childe as he caressed your sleeping cheek and gazed out the window. Your head laid on his lap, broad thighs becoming a make-shift pillow for the ride, a blanket covering your body to keep you warm while you both made your way to his residence in the capital through the cold night.

Bored, deep blue eyes mindlessly gaze at the scenery passing by, his thoughts too jumbled together for him to admire the scenery. His thoughts stray back to your mother’s horrified face as she walked in on you together in bed earlier, he chuckles to himself as he recalls the screech she let out; it felt nice to see her so uncomfortable, but it wasn’t nice enough he’d forgive her for what she’d tried to do to you; Separate you from him.

“Ajax?�� She finally gasps out, her hand points at him in an accusatory manner, “What… what is going on?”

When did that boy come back? He’d been gone for years, the last she remembered him was as a young teenager going off to join the Fatui; what was he doing in bed with you? You hadn’t mentioned him once during all these years, she had thought you’d long since forgotten about him. So why on Earth was he laying in bed with you - naked? Had he pressured you to do so? You two had such a close relationship, there was no way you wouldn’t have mentioned him to her if you two were dating - her mind was racing with a million thoughts and all of them left her worried and confused. It’s clear she’s not doing well, her breaths are visibly unsteady, her chest rising and falling unevenly while she audibly gasped for air, she’s shaking so hard you can see her knees wobble as she tries to steady herself against the doorframe; this wasn’t something she could have ever seen in coming.

Ajax couldn’t care less, the whole spectacle was boring and wholly unnecessary; she wouldn’t get to see you ever again, she should be grateful he hadn’t simply taken you home with him the minute he saw you.

“I came back for my beloved,” he answers carelessly, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, he makes a vague gesture towards your sleeping form as if to make the point clearer, “can’t have a wedding without a bride, after all.”

“Wedding? You and her… are getting married?”

“Yes, is it that hard to understand? Come on, ma’am, everyone could see that she and I were going to get married,” he scoffs, “you said so yourself multiple times.”

“But,” she looks visibly confused, “that was back when you two were together everyday, Ajax… you haven’t seen each other in years. You can’t seriously think that you’re getting married because you both said so when you were children.”

The audacity this woman had was near parody, clearly she knew nothing about you nor your life and it made him feel sick. She had the privilege to be a constant part of your life during all those years he was away and yet she clearly spent them doing Archons’ knows what, he was growing visibly angry the more she spoke.

“We’ve known each other long enough,” he shoots her a glare, “and I’ve known my whole life I’d marry her, whether we’ve been seeing each other everyday or not - we’re getting married and that’s final.”

“Did she agree to this?” Your mother asks, her voice rising until it was near a squeak.

“Of course she agreed to marry me!” He snaps, his tone venomous; Could she just shut the hell up already?

“Then why didn’t she mention it to her father nor myself?”

“Because we agreed to get married today,” he puts your sleeping body aside, slowly standing up and tying a loose blanket around his hips, “and neither of you were here.”

“Today?” She echos, “You came back today and asked her to marry you?”

“Yes, that’s exactly what I did,” he shoots her a glance as he picks up his clothes, slowly putting them on as he goes on, “and she said yes, I think you get the point by now.”

“You have got to be kidding me,” she mumbled to herself, she made her way inside the room, careful as to not wake you up, “there’s no way she was serious about marrying you. You… you’re practically a stranger to all of us at this point, Ajax.”

His pants were on at this point, his blouse now balled into his fist as he tried to control his annoyance. This was starting to get pathetic on her end.

“I will have you know,” he interrupts her, turning around to make eye contact with the woman once more to make his point clear, “that not only have we been in constant communication since I left, she agreed quite happily to the proposal - I don’t understand what exactly is not clicking, ma’am.”

“Of course she’d agree,” she exclaims, her hands flying up in desperation as she continues, “she has liked you all her life; but were you two dating until this point? What even was the relationship between you two; how am I supposed to support her getting engaged with a man we haven’t seen or heard from in years. Never once did she mention you, Ajax, she never spoke of a partner much less a marriage, all her life she’s made it clear that’s one of the least of her concerns and you want me to believe her mind changed in one day because you came and had sex with her? You’re insane if you think I’ll allow it.”

He feels himself freeze, most of what she’s said up until now feels like background noise the moment he finishes processing her words. You never mentioned him to your parents? He knew you hadn’t mentioned the letters, not all of them at least - he’s asked you not to, but never once in the almost eight years since he left had you mentioned him - not even as a potential suitor nor as a lover. That hag is lying, right? There’s no way you’d do this to him, right? You loved him, you said you did when he was fucking you just minutes ago, you wouldn’t lie to him, no.

“Listen to me, I don’t care if you want to get married to her - but there’s an order to how things are done,” your mother shoots your sleeping form a glance, “you could have at least let us know beforehand you’d be coming, you… you should have spoken to us; you know we would have given you our blessing if you’d waited a bit longer. This is the first time you’ve seen each other in years, emotions are running high - at least give her some more time to think this through, you already bedded her… don’t make this harder on her - she was beginning to move on, she’d been planning to move and now you’re telling me she’s throwing it all away? For a man she’s barely seen in years no less.”

“You’re… you’re wrong.” He mumbles under his breath, “You’re wrong, we both love each other.”

“Listen to me,” had your mother’s voice always been so grating to the ear, “she might have said yes to you now but how do you know she won’t regret it? When did you ask her? Today, the same day you come for the first time to see her? You think that under all the emotions that’ll come up seeing you again she’ll be thinking rationally? Was this even a conversation you both had previously, Ajax? How are you so sure she loves you like a wife and not just as a friend?”

His movements slow down, his hands feel heavy as he buttons up his shirt; can she just shut up? What did she think she was doing, lying to get him out of the way? Insinuating you’d ever regret him, what a joke - you needed him to survive.

“I’m saying this not just as a parent but as a wife, you can’t rush into these things, you can’t spring the question up suddenly and not take the time to consider it properly! You… you immediately had sex with her and you want me to believe this is out of love and not physical attraction? You couldn’t even wait for her father and I to get home. You’re telling me that both of you are completely sure of what you’re doing, you want me to believe that? I’m not letting my daughter make such a rash decision in a day -”

“So what if it was in only a day, huh? You’re just looking for any excuse to oppose us getting together,” he’s quick to interrupt her, “because you are trying to get her to marry some old fuck for some quick mora.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“You think I don’t know, huh? You don’t care about her at all, do you? Lying to me that she’d never mention me, as if you didn’t know we were together all this time… acting like you care about her when there’s some fucking bitch downstairs you sold her off to.”

“What… What's this about selling my daughter?” “Don’t act stupid on me,” he doesn’t even bother buttoning the rest of his shirt before he’s pushing your mother out of the room and following her out the door, “I tried to be civil, but I’m getting really damn tired of you criticizing us and you keep on lying.”

She hits her back against the wall, she yelps in surprise but the Harbinger makes no acknowledgement of any discomfort he may be causing. Instead, gloved hands shoot up and take hold of her shoulders as he continues going at her; there’s a crazed look in his eyes as he keeps on speaking, getting progressively annoyed the longer the conversation went on.

“We – I, we never sold her off,” your mother pants, she looks up at him in confusion and fear, “who do you take us for?”

“I have the records,” he pushes her down, “there’s no use in lying to me, ma’am – I know everything I need to know.”

“You’re crazy,” she spits out, “you’re fucking crazy… I don’t what the fuck happened to you, but I’m sure as hell now that you are absolutely not getting anywhere near my daughter!”

“Shut up!” He picks her up and throws her against the wall, there’s a loud thud as her body slowly sinks into the ground, he corners her with his body, “Shut the fuck up, you hag.”

“Let go!” Tears are streaming down her eyes as she pleads,“Help, someone help! Please, upstairs… come upstairs now!”

“Listen here,” his eyes are wide open, his posture threatening as he leans over her shaking body, he’s rough in his handling of her and he knows it but chooses not to care, “she said she’d marry me, she said she loves me, she said so and so it is. There’s no debate, got it? If I want to fuck her two minutes after seeing her, I do so, and if I want to marry her after not seeing her for years, I do so. We don’t need a lying bitch getting in our way, you understand that, right? I don’t need you taking her away from me to give her to someone else. She was mine before I left, she was mine when I left, she’s mine right now, and she’ll be mine as long as I’m alive, so you either shut up and accept it or I’ll get rid of you and your fucking mistake of a family.”

“Get off of her!”

Oh, your father was here.

It’s strange to think that at some point, Ajax would have considered him something akin to a second father - especially now as his stomach filled itself with venomous rage at the mere sight of the older man.

“I said get off,” he runs towards the younger soldier, at an impressive speed for a man his age, his hands lunge forward as if to tackle him but it takes one hydro blade’s slash for him to stop dead in his tracks, “I… what do you want?”

Your father looks visibly worried as the ginger brands his weapon, the sight of an unfamiliar vision user threatening your spouse is one that would make anyone think twice before taking their next step.

“Do you seriously not recognize me?” Tartaglia laughs incredulously, “Come on, sir… I was only gone for a couple of years.”

“Ajax?” Your mother nods her head frantically as your father finally puts a name to the face of the strange man in his house, “What the hell are you doing, boy?”

“He’s going on about,” your mother gasps for air, “marrying her and - and, us selling her or something!” The awkward position she found herself in made it hard for her to comfortably speak, even so, she made sure to spit it out as quickly as possible. Her chest is heaving while she desperately tries to make your father understand the absurdity of the situation, the hydro blade in his hand was simply too close to her skin for her comfort - the power of Harbinger was nothing to scoff at and she wanted nothing more than to never find herself in this position ever again.

“We can talk this out,” your father’s hands shake as he tries to slowly approach the ginger, “there’s clearly been a misunderstanding…”

“There has been no misunderstanding, sir,” he laughs, “I know damn well what I saw and what I heard.”

“We would never -” “Yes, you would!” He nearly shouts, but he restrains himself - if only because you’re still sleeping nearby, his whole body shakes as he tries to control the volume of his voice, “And I’m getting really fucking tired of you acting like you wouldn’t, you know? Just admit it and maybe, just maybe, we can work things out.”

“We would never hurt our daughter like that, Ajax,” the older man tries to explain, “please, understand that… let my wife go and we can talk this out properly, please.”

“Talk it out?” Ajax looks at him incredulously, “There’s nothing to talk about if you won’t admit to your mistakes, sir.” “B-but we didn’t -”

“Shut up!” His blue eyes are wide open, the crazed look in them was enough to send a chill down a grown man’s body. Why couldn’t they just admit to trying to separate the both of you? Why were they so desperate to lie? He knows what he heard, he knows they were trying to ruin his chances to be with you. They were clearly trying to get in his way, they had to be conspiring against the two of you - there was no other reason as to why you’d been so hesitant to agree to his proposal, why you’d been scared to see the truth; they were brainwashing you into forgetting him, doubting him. They had to have known he’d come back, there was no way he wouldn’t have, it’d take death itself for him to give up on you.

He couldn’t take it anymore, he couldn’t stand to listen to your parents’ pathetic attempts at covering up their lies.

Your mother’s words die in her throat as he knocks her out with a single blow, it’s by sheer luck the impact against her skull hadn’t straight up killed her. Your father doesn’t even get to react, not even a pip can be mumbled, before Tartaglia is making his way towards him at rapid speeds, the young man’s strength was enough to tackle him down. The Fatui soldier makes sure to use as much strength as possible, all in an attempt to get his opponent to knock his head against something and pass out with as little fuss as possible.

It’s almost pathetic how quickly he’d taken both of them down, in just a few minutes the couple was knocked out cold - not yet dead nor mortally injured but not awake, no longer able to annoy Ajax or disturb you.

It’s almost pathetic how quickly he’d taken both of them down, in just a few minutes the couple was knocked out cold, both lying motionless on the ground, their limbs sprawled awkwardly; not yet dead but no longer able to annoy Ajax or disturb you, much to the former’s delight.

Footsteps could be heard from the first floor as the guests downstairs started getting worried, standing up and roaming around calling your parents’ names - too polite to dare wander into the house but too anxious about their absence to stay completely still, the thick wooden floors muffled the sounds but not enough that the commotion upstairs couldn’t be heard. One of the many benefits of Snezhnayan architecture was the isolation you could achieve in a big enough house, he’ll keep it in mind when he picks a house to start a family with you in.

Due to your house’s size, Ajax wouldn’t have to worry too much about Andrei or his parents hearing too much, meaning he’d be able to keep the element of surprise.

The Vision user knew he’d have to avoid the dining room, the place where the guests currently found themselves, lest he lose control and kill his former subordinate the minute he laid eyes on him, however his reasoning was anything but noble; Tartaglia simply wasn’t too keen on the idea of letting him get away with his crimes just yet.

To him, death would be too soft a punishment, it would have to be a fate worse than, not just for Andrei but every single person who was involved in the scheme.

His gloved hands make their way to check their pulses, both weak but still there - good.

With a satisfied huff he makes his way down the hall and staircase, quick to dismiss his signature hydro blades as he purposely makes his presence known with loud, rhythmic footsteps any soldier who’d served under him would recognize.

Years of hanging out under this very roof meant Ajax knew exactly where your back entrance was, which meant that he could enjoy instilling a sense of dread into the people downstairs without risking being found.

With a lazy smirk, Ajax purposely lets a couple of framed pictures and paintings fall from the wall, his hand tracing the walls and making sure to create as much sound as possible. As he approaches the dining room, he can hear the confused, hushed whispers as someone tries to peek into the hallway but, by the time the young man finally reaches the door to look around, Ajax has long since exited the house as he makes his way to recall the soldiers he’d stationed around the neighborhood.

With a wave of his hand soldiers seemingly appeared from thin air, emerging from bushes and rounding dark corners, soon the Harbinger is surrounded by men awaiting his orders.

“Is the Galkin residency ready?” He asks, making direct eye contact with a shorter soldier.

“Yes, sir.” The man nods.

“Good,” he combs a hand through his hair as he looks at your childhood home, “there’s a knocked out couple on the second floor, the rest are in the dining room.”

“Yes, sir.” A chorus of voices respond, mechanically a group of the soldiers turn around and march into the house.

“Keep it down, will you? If they scream, knock them out,” he adds half-heartedly, “she’s sleeping, so don’t wake her up.”

The leader of the group nods enthusiastically, making sure to echo the sentiment to his men before making their way inside the house.

As their operation takes place, Tartaglia turns back around to address his remaining companions; “Make sure to make it look as realistic as possible, we need the charges to stick.”

“Yes, sir.”

He asks to see the boxes full of fabricated evidence one last time. There are at least six large boxes filled to the brim, but he focuses on one. The one that holds the most damning evidence for the most serious crime anyone could commit in the land of Cryo; Treason against the Tsaritsa. Cold, blue eyes look with a gleeful glint at the falsified letters, penned to look exactly like your family members’ handwriting, there’s more; photographs, bank records, falsified shipment records, and more.

He gives one final nod, officially sealing everyone’s fates. From this moment onwards, your family and the Galkin’s would be charged with treason against the Tsaritsa and conspiracy to overthrow the Fatui. Sure, many others, perhaps even innocent people, will unjustly be implicated but he’ll make sure to pin this on the worst people he can. He’ll get rid of two birds with one stone while he’s at it.

It takes only a couple of minutes before everyone is being pulled outside of the house and led into carriages. It’s a humiliating sight, the ones who were awake were panicked, some even crying, the ones who had to be subdued needed to be carried by two or more people as they were unceremoniously dragged away.

Ajax purposely hides away, making sure to make a mental note of who was being taken and their condition. Andrei and his father are the only Galkin family members out of the four present who hadn’t been knocked out. Your parents, your eldest sister, and younger brother are knocked out - your elder brother, and your other sister are the only ones awake. There are a couple of other people, their partners, and a few he didn’t recognize immediately. In total, there were 16 people taken from your home.

Tartaglia made a point to only reveal himself as they finally dragged Andrei out, the final person out the house. His hands were bound behind him, a confused look clear in his eyes as he desperately tried to understand what was going on. His green eyes finally make contact with Ajax’s, they widen.

“Sir? What is going on -” He’s cut off by a harsh shove from the soldier walking him, he stumbles.

Ajax almost feels bad at the sight, Andrei was a good man - if only he didn’t try to get with you. He was young, unlike the idea he’d planted into your head, Galkin had only recently turned 27 last month, and he’d been a promising soldier until he was honorably discharged after a failed mission took the lives of most of his troupe. However, if you found out about his closeness in age to yourself, you’d probably not have reacted as poorly - maybe you’d even think about giving the fucker a chance. After all, people like Andrei - honorable young men who sacrificed a part of himself for his nation - were always appealing to the masses. But never as appealing as Ajax was to you, he couldn’t be.

The Harbinger turns around on his heels, not even sparing another glance to the arrested individuals, before making his way inside your house.

It’s filled with strangers, their serious faces evident as they set up the scene - their movements calculated as they did their best to create the image of guilt. Even though there were easily five or more people in every room, the whole place felt eerily empty. In a way, he almost feels as if you two were the only people in the world - you, the sleeping beauty waiting for him to arrive.

There’s a spring in his step as he pushes the door to your room open, his eyes immediately find you buried within his coat. He’s not surprised you had managed to sleep through it all, you’d always been a heavy sleeper even during your youth.

He ushers a soldier in with a bunch of empty boxes, signaling for her to start packing your things up.

“Wake her up and you’re dead.” He adds while he makes his way towards you, a cheeky smile on his face as he makes himself comfortable next to you.

The soldier nods, making sure to be as quiet as humanly possible as to not anger the man in front of her - at this point, everyone in the house knew that he was not exaggerating when he said such things. When it came to you, the eleventh Fatui Harbinger knew no bounds. She turns around, making sure not to look too much at either of you in fear of upsetting him.

He patiently waits for the woman to finish packing all she could fit in the boxes. By now, he’s cuddling you in his arms, never allowing you the chance to so much as squirm away from him. It’s a suffocating, possessive hold he has on you, like he was scared if he let you go even for a second you’d leave him.

“Good, thank you.” He doesn’t even look at her - too focused gazing lovingly at your sleeping form. She says nothing but bows before leaving, desperate to leave the room as soon as possible.

The minute she closes the door he pulls himself away from you, making sure to not wake you up with any sudden movements - a concern he seemingly hadn’t had before when he’d been tormenting your parents.

He’d done his best to conceal himself but the truth was that the minute he saw you again, he felt himself growing hard again. Your naked body was hidden enough he didn’t feel the need to kick the soldier from before out, but he knew - he knew that beneath it you were still dirty with him, you were bruised from his handling of you, your neck filled with his kisses and bites. Just knowing that was enough for him to get dizzy, as if all the blood that was meant to flow to his brain had been redirected to his dick. His white pants were tented up, it almost hurts from how erect it was - just the memory of you taking him inside had a wet patch forming in his underwear.

“Look at what you do, baby,” he moans, his voice breathy as he pulls his zipper down, slowly freeing his hard-on, “ah… hah, I want to be inside you again.”

Just the cold air hitting his bare cock is enough to send a jolt of electricity down his spine, he just wants to feel you again, it’s all he wants - to be inside you again and to fuck you until all you can think of his your future husband’s cock. He takes your hand, so much smoother than his battle-worn one, and cautiously shoves two of your fingers into his mouth as a make-shift gag.

He keeps one hand there while the other one slowly caresses his slit, his touch almost a ghost on his skin as he makes sure to tease it until a glob of pre starts to form from how sensitive he already was. He takes a small amount of pre-cum and uses it as lube, making sure to spread it slowly across his tip and down his shaft with long strokes.

He’s trying his best not to bite down on your fingers but it was so hard not to, instead he occupies himself by sucking on them in sync with his hand.

“Mhm!” He accidentally touches his vein, the thick bump was extra sensitive against the cold air and your scent, his whole body twitches.

He can’t stop his hand from gaining speed and force, the longer he’s here with you the more his hand moves. It just not enough, his hips thrust upwards as he gives into himself, fucking into his balled up hand. His tongue laps at your fingers, his lips wrap tightly around them as he tries not to bite into your flesh; he can’t stop his hand from tightening against his cock.

He continues like this for a while, humping into the air like a bitch in heat, making sure to not cum - he didn’t want this to end too soon, he wanted to continue feeling like this next to you. In your room, a place that smelt so much like you it was overstimulating him, the taste of your lips against his tongue was intoxicating - he didn’t want today to end.

“Hah, mhm…” He chokes against his moan; it’s starting to get too much for him.

It’s then that he makes the mistake of looking over to you. Just the sight is enough for him to cum, it takes just a few strokes for him to finally spill.

“F-Fuck!” He can’t stop the moan that leaves his lips, he takes your fingers out of mouth in fear of hurting you but he refuses to let it go, gripping tightly while he lets himself ride the wave of pleasure he feels.

It takes him a second or two until he finally calms down, his dick growing sensitive as he slows down his strokes until he finally stops. His chest feels heavy as he pants, his heart beating painfully loud - he wonders if maybe you could hear it even in your sleep, a part of him hopes so. His whole body is on fire but he thinks this is the best he’s ever felt, just being near you was enough to make him feel like a God.

“I… I love you,” he pants, his fingers almost leave a dent in your hands from how tightly he’s gripping it, “hah… I love you so, so much…”

Almost a little too much.

#yandere genshin impact #yandere genshin #yandere ajax #yandere tartaglia #yandere childe #yandere x reader #yandere gi #yandere #yandere male #yandere x you #yandere boy x reader #male yandere #๋࣭ ancient scrolls #yandere genshin imagines

1K notes · View notes

blckbrrybasket · 4 months

Text

Disruption of Mind

Rafe Cameron x Autistic!Gn!reader

ᴡᴀʀɴɪɴɢꜱ: (quick) strangers to lovers, overstimulation, very slight angst, mainly fluff, Topper

ᴡᴏʀᴅ ᴄᴏᴜɴᴛ: 1.4k

ɴᴏᴛᴇ: canon divergent 🩶

Rafe and you had been dating for almost a year now. It was odd when he was finally left to find peace after Ward died. He had decided to stay in the Outer Banks, wanting to get serious. Obviously though, Rafe would still throw a party here and there. That’s how he met you.

He had found you speeding away from the party up the stairs. At first Rafe had assumed you were somewhat shady, running away so briskly, so he’d followed you. That thought was soon squashed when he saw your hand covering your ear, shoulder pressed to the other as you tried the knobs of different rooms. You definitely seemed more upset than trying to bang someone where you shouldn’t be.

Rafe’s brows furrowed when he followed you into his room that had swung open under your command. “You good?” He almost jumped when you did, your body pivoting towards him. Your eyes were wide and frantic and you sputtered over your words. “Shit- sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” You nodded rapidly, too rapid for comfort and jerked your head to the door. “Too loud,” was the first thing he heard from you and he automatically closed the door.

There was a pause as Rafe considered the odd situation. “Better?” He prompted and looked over his shoulder at you. You slowly nodded and sunk to the floor, Rafe mirroring you shortly thereafter. What else was he supposed to do? Sure he could kick you out but he wasn’t blind. Something was up. Somehow he picked up to be quiet and he made no move to speak, even when your breathing evened out. Eventually you had apologized, embarrassed, yet he hadn’t accepted it.

To him there was no reason to say sorry and that thought only solidified when you hurriedly explained that you were overstimulated, a somewhat common occurrence. A few years ago Rafe would probably have had a different reaction, not able to understand so easily, but nowadays he liked the silence. He could relate to not wanting to have so many people around you. And while that wasn’t the only thing your autism affected he didn’t care, it was just another part of you.

That night he’d brought food up to you, leaving you with his number when you inevitably left.

Months later Rafe found himself with four tickets to go see Gunna in concert. It was a given that he invited Kelce and Topper, but he also wanted to invite you. If he could he would take you everywhere with him. The two of you ran over how the venue would be smaller with no seating, but you’d prep and bring headphones in case of overstimulation. Rafe was hesitant, not wanting to force you into an uncomfortable encounter. However, it was one of his favorite rappers and you’d do damn near anything to make him happy. How could you pass up the once in a lifetime opportunity?

After hours of reassurance that you’d be fine he was finally at ease with the idea of you coming along. He was excited, truly. Rafe had made sure that the group would arrive a bit early to secure a good spot without being trapped against the railing. By the time you made it to the front of the space, Rafe kept his arm around your waist, promising enough room for you in the crowd.

His tall figure bent to rest his chin on your head. “Havin’ fun?” Rafe murmured to you as the opener started, and you were. It was effortless to become fully immersed, jumping when instructed, happily yelling the lyrics, and leaning against Rafe for support when the crowd shifted. Being lost in the excitement caused a challenge to tell when you were reaching your limits. Kelce and Topper had retreated to the back after a while to grab waters. When they hadn’t come back the two of you figured the crowd had closed in, and they wouldn’t be able to come back to the front again.

You didn’t pay too much attention to their absence as you sang along and bobbed next to Rafe. He was too captivated by how ecstatic you seemed to care about the others. Time seemed to pass on its own, hours ticking by in seconds. Neither of you noticed how long it’d been till the crowd erupted, demanding for an encore. Seemingly brought down to reality, Rafe intertwined his hand with yours and used his height to weave through the crowd. People eagerly made room for you to pass, eager to get slightly closer to the rails.

Dazed by the loud music and lights you felt like you were floating through the venue. Luckily, Rafe caught Kelce and Topper’s eye and nodded towards the exit, signaling it was time to leave. They didn’t put up a fight, aware that the crowd was about to get worse when everyone made their way out. Leaving a song or two early always helped avoid shoving their way back to Rafe’s truck.

Once you pushed open the doors, the cool night air brushed against your flushed face. Rafe immediately turned to check if you were doing okay. Seeing your radiant smile made his heart soar. “Doing okay?” He spun you around to face him, hand falling to the small of your back when you bumped into him with a giggle. “Yes! Oh my god, Rafe, that was amazing.” A grin spread across his face as he couldn’t resist scooping you into his arms, dashing to his truck.

Behind him, Topper and Kelce protested having to run. “Keep up then!” He shouted above your laughter. Maybe if you hadn’t been so swept up you would have realized the signs of overstimulation creeping in, or if you had taken a moment to breathe you would have recognized the overwhelming nature of the situation. Sometimes you aren't able to, nobody is perfect. As Rafe flung open the door and helped you in your seat you felt the high energy beginning to fade.

It was an almost dreadful feeling, but you pushed through it. Adapt and overcome, wasn’t that the saying? You didn’t want to spoil anyone’s night! Yet you certainly didn’t expect the volume of Topper and Kelce when they hopped into the truck. They went on to scold a smug Rafe who simply turned on the truck, engine revving and music coming on. The overlapping stimulants hit your ears all at once, your brain near spasming at the speed of the environment changing.

The conglomerate voices made it hard to discern who was talking and what was happening. “Yo, you good?” Kelce tried, but failed to get an answer from you. The question drew the attention of Rafe as you leaned forward to try and turn the music off. God why were there so many dials on his stereo? The frantic movement of your hands desperately shutting down the sound dawned on Rafe. You were overstimulated.

Far too overwhelmed to realize it was mainly quiet now, aside from the radio and Topper, you tapped away at the controls. Rafe reached over, making sure not to hit your hand in the process, and shut off the music entirely. “Shut the fuck up.” One sentence from Rafe but it was enough for Topper to snap his mouth shut. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” You whispered in embarrassment, covering your face with your shaking hands.

Rafe leaned over to press a chaste but tender kiss to the backs of them. “Can I touch you?” He murmured. Normally, he’d mull over how Topper and Kelce perceived him, but not now. Not when you needed him. You nodded slowly, tensing momentarily when the palm of his hand settled on your head. He didn’t stay still for long, gently stroking your hair down to sooth you. “Nothin’ to be sorry for. It happens.”

“But-“ you started, but Rafe shut it down. “Nah. No but’s. We’re all fine, and ‘m sure Top and Kelce are too.” Rafe’s stern look at the two had them stiffening. “Yeah, yeah. We’re all good as long as you’re good,” Kelce responded. Topper sighed as if he were going to protest until he conceded. Honestly he was more pissed at Rafe snapping at him. “I’m fine…can we still listen to music though?”

“Topper,” Kelce groaned in annoyance at his insistence. You looked between the seats and smiled at Topper. “It’s okay.” And maybe it was, but they were all thankful that you couldn’t see the deadly look in Rafe’s eye. “We’ll play your playlist a’ight babe?” Hearing the tension in his voice you peered up at Rafe. “Are you okay?” Instantly, he softened at your gaze. “Always when I’m with you.”

As Rafe began to drive, he left his hand open and inviting on the console for you to hold whenever you felt comfortable.

#rafe cameron x reader #rafe x reader #rafe x you #rafe cameron x you #rafe outer banks #rafe cameron outer banks #rafe cameron #rafe fanfiction #rafe fic #rafe cameron fluff #soft rafe cameron #rafe cameron fanfiction #autistic reader

225 notes · View notes

the-cookie-of-doom · 6 months

Text

Cookie's Fic Recs

I feel like no one really does rec lists anymore! But last night I was feeling and sappy and mushy and decide to put together my own little list of fics I love. These are in no particular order, and they don't follow any real theme/tropes other than I dearly love them all, and you should definitely give them a read!

*I tried to tag everyone I could find a blog for, but if I missed anyone, please let me know I can tag them!

The Instinctual Gravitation Towards Warmth by kimkhimhant (@kimkhimhant)

This is my comfort fic. No joke, this is what I read when I want to die. It’s angsty as all hell, it’s made me cry, but it is so indescribably good. Kim is an addict going through recovery, finding love and family along the way. He hits rock bottom—arguably multiple times—but always claws his way back, always with the support of the people that love him. It’s such a beautifully written and cathartic story, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve read it. But it’s almost certainly the fic I’ve reread the most.

Error in the Code by BlackwaterVial (@blackwatervial)

Sneaking this VegasPete onto my otherwise KimChay list bc it altered me. I think most people already know what it is, but jic: it’s a sci-fi/cyberpunk/android AU, and it’s one of the best things I’ve ever read. I go feral for androids and this fic delivers in all the best ways. The world building alone makes me weep. But all of the characters interactions, the way we get such an in depth feel for everyone despite the limited PoV, and the most satisfying take I’ve seen on android artificial intelligence ever—I can’t recommend this story enough.

Idiots & Idioms by snickerdoodlles (@snickerdoodlles)

This one is actually a series, and it's genuinely so much fun to read. For the most part it's a SocMed fic with Chay taking over Wik's twitter and making it everyone's problem, and it's fkn hysterical. This one is actually a series, and it's genuinely so much fun to read. For the most part it's a SocMed fic with Chay taking over Wik's twitter and making it everyone's problem, and it's fkn hysterical.

Silver for Truth by snickerdoodlles (@snickerdoodlles)

This fic is the Kim & Khun vs. Tawan team-up we deserve. Kim is a ruthless, demented bitch, that's too cool to beat Tawan to death bc what if he messes up his wrists right before a show?? Big, get 'im. Kim is the feral-est cat ever, leaving behind evidence and bodies for Kinn bc saying "hey bro, I still love you/look out for you" is too much emotion for him. The fic is also from Tawan's PoV which also makes it the funniest thing ever, for reason that I won't spoil <3

The Wiked Lies We Live by shubaka (@shubaka)

Oh my god, this fic. Canon divergence (technically??) where most things happen as normal... except KimChay have been bodyswaped at the start of it. The little twists Shu puts on the events of canon, given it isn't the correct characters experiencing them (such as Big being very confused about why Kim is suddenly nice to him??) are so much fun.

A Portrait of Affection by froginthesun (@froginthesun)

Kim is an artist and Chay is the part time nude model he hires. ‘Nuff said right there, except no it isn’t, this fic is beautiful. Kim’s frustration with his craft is palpable, and so is the way he rediscovers his passion through Chay. The writing is wonderfully detailed, every chapter felt like walking through a museum. And tension slowly building between them—unf.

Sunshine in My Closet by moneskin

This is an A/B/O AU that is so satisfying to read. Typical hilarious boundary violations (Chay stealing Kim’s clothes, a bewildered Kim handing over a freshly worn outfit, having barely any idea who this strange kid is) characteristic of the AU, but then the story also delves deeper into more serious topics. Chay has a history of abuse from a past alpha that he has to learn how to navigate with Kim, who is incredibly patient and works hard to make Chay feel safe and loved. Overall a very sweet and comforting read. Seriously, this fic makes me melt.

Your Body Feels Like Disrespect by Blue_Jay (@bluejayfiction)

This fic is so funny because it begins with Kim blurting out, in the middle of an Important Mafia MeetingTM, that he and Chay aren’t having sex, and then wanting to die about it. Followed by Kim’s family trying very hard to both support and terrorize him. It’s hilarious, sexy, and one of my favorite reads when I need a pick me up. (Bless Kinn’s determination to be a Good and Supportive Brother, and Vegas for being the Worst Person Ever.)

In Silent Screams (In Wildest Dreams) by BelladonnaWyck and StratsWrites

This is definitely a darker fic. There’s DubCon, Kim is generally Sketchy, but it’s very hot. And I love explorations of his character where he isn’t just outwardly psychotic and cruel. This fic shows the kind of dark that I think Kim could have been, if you just tilted his character a little to the left. He still seems very much the way he is in canon, but he’s also… a lot more calculating and cold, sometimes. I love it.

Forget-me-always by bisexualbard (@bisexualbard-writes)

I cannot sing the praises of this fic enough. I think it’s probably tied for IGTW for my most-read fics. I’ve probably read this one more often in reality, but only bc it’s shorter. But oh my god, does it hurt. Kim gets struck with amnesia post-break up, does a little light stalking, and gets Chay to help him learn/remember who he is. In the process realizes that wow his life sucks, and there’s no way he wants to go back to it. Especially if he’s the kind of person that hurt Chay. He would rather start over. (Ofc, he doesn’t get to). This fic makes me cry, it’s so good

Coffeehouse Play by AirgodSLV

This is a canon divergence AU that I adore. The KimChay characterization is on point. I love that despite everything going on around them, they also get to be two boys that hang out and play videogames and try to shove each other off the couch while Porsche makes dinner. Given the age difference it’s so easy to make Kim Older and MatureTM, but he’s still a kid, and this story never once forgets that. It felt so honest and true to his character that Kim does have a lot of plans, and he’s very smart, but he’s also still so young, and sometimes shit just goes wrong.

Want and Need by bisexualbard (@bisexualbard-writes)

God, this fic. T h i s f i c. Post-canon Chay goes to therapy and becomes a camboy (in that order) and it’s delicious. Watching the steady breakdown of his and Porsche’s relationship is so satisfying. Everything one of them does to make things worse feels awful, but is so in character that it’s hard to be mad at them for their decisions. Kim readily giving up control if it means he can be with Chay, and Chay getting a crash course in how to dom. All of it is just. So good. This is such a good fic

Your Look, Through This Lens by WildelyDawn (@wildelydawn)

AU where Chay becomes Kim’s photographer. This fic emotionally hobbled me. Just a fair warning. You will cry. But that said, the ending isn’t nearly as sad as the tags would have you believe! At least in my opinion. I think it’s fairly open/hopeful, and beautiful either way. I love the way this fic shows how Kim balances being Wik while also being part of the mafia. And I love how temperamental he is; always hot and cold, while remaining pretty even as far as how he expresses himself. Always very aloof/detached, just out of reach, with Chay never really sure where he stands/what Kim wants. But at the same time the fic happens just before Kim gets a big break, and the subtle ways he shows his excitement and nerves as things start coming together—it’s wonderful.

Love’s a Two-Way Dream by giraffeter (@giraffeter)

This fic is dark. Kim atticwife’s Chay and it’s not a good time. But!! It’s not just dark for the sake of it; Kim is a genuine sociopath, yes, but it unfolds slowly. You get a sense of creeping dread as he does things that are just a little bit off, until finally the Big Bad Thing happens. At first he seems normal, playing the part of good and respectful boyfriend. But it just goes downhill from there, and I love every word of it. The ending especially is very satisfying.

In the Dark of the Night by bisexualbard (@bisexualbard-writes)

Not to recc everything Bard writes, but… This is a rape recovery fic that I feel handles the subject matter incredibly well. There’s no gratuitous rape scenes, and even with the flashbacks, I don’t remember any of them being incredibly detailed. I think Bard handled the fic with incredible respect and grace. This is another one that’ll make you cry. The way Chay handles his past trauma while trying to have a relationship with Kim is so painfully real. And so is the way Kim wants to help him, but doesn’t really know how. But they figure it out together, and it’s amazing. (Also Kim acquires a stabby child in the form of an OC that I adore.) I just love the path Chay's recovery takes in this fic, it's so visceral and relatable. It's all around just. So good. I love this fic for the same reason I love IGTW and it's because both fics show an excellent depiction of recovery.

Chains and Crowns, A Flower Can Both Make by Sweet_William (@sweet-william-writes)

Incredibly Regency AU. Historical AUs are some of my all time favorites, and this is everything I didn’t know I needed. Sweet_William captures the essence of an Austen-esque style while still making this feel like the KinnPorsche characters. Chay is wonderfully feisty, Kim is delightfully complex, and the various family interactions always had me cackling.

Simple Little Secrets by CorvusCloudburst (@cloudburst-ink)

Chay sees the future when he touches people. Kim thinks he’s either insane, a spy, or a conman. Oh, and Chay’s visions of Kim? Always sex-related. The shenanigans are endless. What more do you need?? They’re both crazy4crazy and it’s my favorite thing ever. Their banter is snappy and fun, the writing is sexy, and it never once gave me second-hand embarrassment despite Chay’s horrible situations.

#cookie speaks #kimchay #kinnporche the series #fic rec #anyway i love all of you #I hope this makes people's days a lil brighter #<3<3<3

225 notes · View notes

xfancyuu · 1 year

Text

~ now i draw a luxury nxde. [aemond targaryen] 18+ SMUT

because it's the beginning of spring i wanted to post for that so in universe it is also warm and flowers are blooming! reader is afab with she/her pronouns & my requests are open! this could be read as though it's in the same universe as my other bolton!reader works, though she's married to aemond and is referred to as lady targaryen. there are no appearance indicators in this fic, this is kinda canon divergence. also i didn't bold the dialogue for this one and i actually think i'm gonna go and reformat my other fics to match! this fic is also known as frolicking and fucking so yeah that's what you're in for. smut will be indicated with a different coloured line break if you do not wish to read it. [1,757 words]

this fic contains: wall sex, public sex, dressed sex, choking, spitting, voyeurism, name-calling, corruption kink, attempted dirty talk? y'all are just newly married and experimenting tbh, y'all degrade each other, slight orgasm denial, cumming inside. if i missed any please lmk!

You had never imagined life as a married woman to be so blissful. You had heard from the ladies in court that they simply did their marital duty and did not enjoy spending time with their husbands. They had told you that the bliss would wear off within the year once you had children, and they would steal your beauty.

You had all but rolled your eyes at their commentary. They were rude and bitter, seeking your own mood to be as equally unhappy as their own. They nitpicked at everything you did, from reading too much to what you ate and how you conducted yourself. Loneliness truly was more appealing than spending ceaseless amounts of time with women who were your mother's age and almost as bitter. Being surrounded with unmarried women was improper, they had told you — not that you paid them mind, as your ladies in waiting were all unmarried and far better company.

You found yourself in the gardens with your ladies-in-waiting more often than not, the weather was pleasant, and you'd much rather be outside than wallow inside without much joy. Flowers had brought you much more joy than you had anticipated, they livened your mood from the dreaded time spent with the married ladies in court. They wouldn't be seen outside without reason, whereas you did not care much for the opinions and thoughts of others in court, despite being a Princess.

The book within your lap had become much more interesting than whatever your ladies were gossiping about, you hadn't cared much for the people they were talking about, but the adventure of Lady Sunderland and her times in the Reach were too addictive to put down. Your ladies' had tried to gain your attention one too many times, but you were too engrossed in the book to care for the outside world.

The book was abruptly taken from your hands, making you both lose the page you were ready and had caused your brain to be hazy. You were both mad and irritated by the actions of someone clearly trying to ruin your day. "Do you mind?" You had asked, not expecting to see your husband as you looked up.

"Is it a crime for me to want to spend time with my wife?" Aemond had asked you, extending his hand as if expecting you to take it despite disturbing your peace.

"It's a crime when you snatch my book off of me and expect me to be happy about it." You retorted, deciding it was probably better to go along with him, and took his help to get off the grass. "Lucky for you, I like you enough not to lock you up."

"Oh how merciful." Aemond responded, not removing your hand from his grasp, "the flowers are blooming, you should be looking at the world instead of living in your books."

"I'll have you know I can do both equally," You retorted, leading Aemond away from the prying eyes and sharp ears of your ladies, "Now you're here you might as well keep me company if you won't let me read, perhaps a walk around the garden would do us both some good."

"I have a better idea than touring the gardens," Aemond had pulled you into a secluded pathway leading away from the hustle and bustle of everybody else.

"Your ideas always end up with us in trouble." You weren't entirely wrong, the disapproving look of Queen Alicent would be forever engrained in your brain.

"They may be troublesome, but you always have fun." You couldn't disagree, instead you simply followed Aemond to whichever location he wanted to show you.

Aemond had abruptly left you in the morning, leaving you needy and begging for him to finish the job he'd started yet he had left you without a thought for your own well-being. You could somewhat blame your crankiness and willingness to do such a deviant act in public with the possibility of anybody seeing and reporting such acts to the Queen.

The thought that you shouldn't be doing this had crossed your mind — the words would not leave your mouth though, you had wanted to do this, neediness had seeped in, with your skirts and underclothes raised above your waist, your modesty was damned and so were you.

The carnal need and desire you felt within yourself had put all your thoughts out the window, if you were in your usual mind frame you would have told Aemond no, that it was improper but words would not form in your throat. Instead, you kissed him back with almost as much longing.

The insatiability you had felt was consuming you, yet it felt more so annoying, Aemond hadn't truly done anything to you to make you feel this way, little touches and long stares did not warrant you feeling so flustered by the man so much you'd let him take you any which way he wanted.

You were expecting the current position you were in — being in public had never been a boundary you crossed with each other, yet he had so little patience when it had come to you, not even checking if the garden was secluded enough not to have prying eyes follow you, "Who knew my lady wife could be such a whore?" Aemond had whispered in your ear, though you could not form words of your own, "Wanting me to take her right now with not a care in the world who witnesses it."

"I think you can only get your cock up with the thought of an audience, you leave me so frustrated when we're alone in our chamber."

"You may come to regret that, wife." Aemond had always had to get the last word, "Your tongue may be sharp, but I will fuck you until you can't form another sentence." He'd begun unlacing his trousers, and you truly knew you were in for it — whatever it entailed, you weren't sure.

"You keep saying what you're going to do, but you haven't even stuck it in yet, tell me husband, are you struggling? Do you need me to help you stick it in? Can you not find the hole?" You couldn't finish your light-hearted taunting Aemond had entered you with little care, it was sloppy and lustful as though he felt as much need as you did.

You couldn't stay quiet, not with how intoxicating Aemond had felt inside, thrusting himself as far as he could inside of you, the slow pace was comfortable but irritating, you wanted it fast and hard, you wanted Aemond to show you the side of himself he hid away, the side which would make you blush if you so much as thought about it.

You were so used to being in control, Aemond had ensured you always felt comfortable and could stop at any moment but seeing him so dominant had made you tingle, then gasp as you felt a hand around your throat. "You've got to be quiet, you don't want the world to hear you, do you? Don't want the world to hear what a whore you become for cock."

The sight of your ladies seeing you in such a position had the opposite effect than what you thought it would, the idea of corrupting them as much as you had been corrupted had you clenching around Aemond's cock.

"Not so fast, princess," Aemond spoke, his pace slowing and causing the momentum and build-up to your own orgasm to be depleted. "Good girls get to cum, you've not been a good girl, have you?"

You couldn't respond, the hand wrapped around your throat had become tighter, "Going to cum inside you, princess, have you got a problem with that?" You had tried to shake your head, but with the grip Aemond had on your throat, your head hadn't moved an inch.

Aemond had increased his speed, and you knew he was close to his own peak despite ruining your own, the pettiness within you had decided if you didn't get your release neither was Aemond. As if sensing your plans, Aemond thrust into you harder, keeping you in place as though you were a doll he could do what he pleased. "You're going to take my seed, and you're going to thank me for it."

Your orgasm was too sudden for you to realise what was happening, from the words Aemond spoke to the way he was fucking you, it was far too much to process and your body reacted entirely by itself. You knew disobeying Aemond would have consequences but in the depth of your own pleasure and Aemond continuing to fuck you, you didn't care. You'd take any punishment to feel a moment of the pleasure you were currently feeling.

"Naughty girl." Aemond whispered in your ear as you came down from your high, "I thought you'd finally be a good girl, though I suppose I set my standards too high for you. Open your mouth."

You did as he commanded, not wanting to make him more upset with you. However, you weren't prepared for him to spit in your mouth — or to like it as much as you did. "You belong to me and you do as I say."

It hadn't taken long for Aemond to spill his seed within you, his grip on your throat loosening and his teeth biting into your skin. It wasn't often you had allowed him to cum inside you — the prospect of what would follow being in the forefront of your mind. "I'm yours." You reassured Aemond as he came down from his climax.

"Are you okay there?" You had asked, not used to such an intense reaction from Aemond, "I really enjoyed myself." You reassured him, you were so close and the euphoria of the situation had you cradling Aemond within your arms.

"It was just a bit... much, I didn't hurt you, did I?" He asked, pulling out of you. At that moment, you knew you'd need to bathe. The feeling of his seed coming out of you had you almost recoiling.

"Trust me, you'd know if you were hurting me." You didn't want to approach the subject of being witnessed in such an act. "Your mother may be expecting more grandchildren soon."

"Moontea exists, my dear." You hadn't been married a year yet, it wasn't entirely suspicious that you had not shown signs of being pregnant. "And for what it's worth, I enjoy our time just being the two of us."

as always, thank you for reading this! i really appreciate it. i really enjoy writing for aemond so if y'all have any requests send them my way. my next hotd fic will be for helaena so if that interests you just message me! crossposted on ao3 under the name hedonism!

#aemond targaryen #aemond one eye #aemond targaryen imagine #aemond x reader #aemond targaryen x reader #hotd aemond #hotd x reader #hotd imagine #asoiaf x reader #asoiaf imagine #aemond smut #aemond targaryen smut #aemond x y/n #i just had fun writing this if you couldnt tell #basically i watched the tudors and yeah #i think this is the filthiest thing i've wrote

1K notes · View notes

atlasofthestaars · 1 year

Text

[MK X READER] New Era - Chapter .004

first part | previous part | next part

Note: I often try to plan out plot points while I’m at work, and I was like wow! I get why Kronika went insane because trying to keep all these plot points (especially the parts where I plan on diverging from canon) logical is wild.

This is the first chapter that doesn’t follow any of the main campaign events at all, so it was a bit more of a struggle to write for, but I hope you enjoy it regardless! There will be more chapters of this, building up the much needed foundation for the champions squad. Don’t worry Lin Kuei fans, there will be a few more Lin Kuei moments too during these times, allowing us to see them again before they disappear for a while during the tournament arc!

Shang Tsung deliberation is up until a week from when chapter 3 was released/aka when the tumblr poll ends.

Otherwise, I will accept any wants for any other love interests until we get closer towards the Outworld arc since I’m pretty sure all Earthrealm men are already confirmed.

For example, someone asked for Reiko, so here’s a poll for him to gauge interest, AO3 fans, please comment on your thoughts for him!

FROM THE EYES OF ONE WHO HELPED TRAIN SOME NEW CHAMPIONS

Turns out, thinking about the things that worried you leads to overthinking.

Pacing back and forth in your room, you felt the cool wood under your feet. With how much you paced around the room, you were surprised the wood had not been ruined at this point. You paused in your pacing and you looked outside the window to look at the moon.

You were never a good sleeper, finding it hard to sleep at night. But oddly enough you always found yourself awake for the sunrise due to routine. You often found naps were a good supplement for your tiredness, but some days you would suffer being awake without much rest.

Your memories buzzed around your head too much to rest easy. You paced back and forth once more for a few more minutes until you stopped at the door of your room, briefly considering going and seeing whether Liu Kang could help ease your troubled mind.

Your hand laid upon the handle, the metal knob cool to the touch. Goosebumps trailed up your arm as you stared at the doorknob. You tried to will yourself to move. To finally speak with Liu Kang about the memories that weighed upon you, to free yourself of this silly burn that you brought about upon yourself.

Unfortunately, you could not bring yourself to step outside your door.

You were too racked with guilt to do that.

You were afraid of the idea that you would slip up and mention the many other memories you had recovered, the timeline you were beginning to piece together, and Liu Kang would begin to realize this. You were afraid of upsetting the man who most generously took you in and allowed you to stay by his side despite your odd past.

You did not want to ruin the good thing you had going for yourself.

Your hand dropped from the doorknob. Sighing, you walked over to a particular floorboard and carefully lifted it up. You reached inside and pulled out the leather bound diary that you had found on yourself when you first awoke in this world. Along with it was a pen that somehow, despite the years, had not run out of its smooth ink.

This was your only confidant in the memories you had. Moving towards your desk, you adjusted the lantern in your room to hang over the desk, giving you more light to work with. You stared at your words, trying to look at what you recalled.

Your memories seemed to be linked with those you interacted with, so the Lin Kuei and Liu Kang and the memories surrounding them were the strongest. Even still, you had holes in what should be completed memories. Meeting the new people seemed to patch some of them up, though.

You sighed as you skimmed the pages. They were mostly short phrases describing what you remembered from these brief memories. It was hard to keep them in order since they were random and never in order whenever you got them.

You picked up the pen, spinning it with a flourish before you began to write.

Kung Lao, a cocky monk of the Shaolin with a razor hat. Once was friends with Liu Kang. Seems now he is a farmer and friends with Raiden.

Raiden, Thunder god. Seems to have once been what Liu Kang is now. Mortal now, and a farmer of Fengjian with Kung Lao.

Johnny Cage, actor. Was with Sonya Blade and had a kid. Still an actor, has a different wife, and no kid.

Kenshi Takahashi, once a blind swordsman with telekinesis and telepathy with a magic sword. Had a kid. Now seems that he has his vision, uncertain of abilities.

You sighed as you put down your pen, staring at the words in front of you. You tried to will yourself to conjure any memories you had of these men previously from just their name. Unfortunately, this just gave you a headache…and not the kind that gave you any helpful memories.

“Damn.” You muttered leaning back in your chair. You had never had control of your memories, even after all these years. They were rather inconvenient and useless, since they rarely gave you any insight on the ones you meet. They’re all so different.

The only constant was their names.

You closed your eyes as you thought of the four men you had written down. Who were they? What was their connection to you? You sighed as you rubbed your forehead, trying to ease the headache you had accidentally given yourself.

Ah shit, you were in charge of training them, weren’t you? Or at least, somewhat.

They were going to be a headache in more ways than one, it seemed.

“So, how, exactly, am I to train the four?” You inquire as you glance over to Liu Kang, briefly noting the way the sunlight landed on his features. It was another morning of watching the sunrise with the fire god. You had gotten a few hours of sleep, at least, before rising to meet up with Liu Kang as usual. A few hours was better than nothing.

You had started off quiet, before natural conversation hit the both of you. You discussed many things, mostly the events of the past few days, before the conversation naturally landed on the new recruits. You found out that they were going to be arriving at the Wu Shi academy in a few days time, giving them enough time to get their life sorted out before they drastically change theirs.

The god looked over to you. It seemed like he had been expecting this question, and you wondered just how easily he could read you.

“You are to simply oversee their training and test their skill. I know you are not all too familiar with the teaching of the monks, so they shall handle the bulk of it.” He explained, and you found yourself sighing with relief. “Not to mention, I shall also assist when I am able.” You were not ready to have to handle training four grown men, so hearing that you were mostly there to test them was great.

You were good at fighting, at least. It was a skill that people often commended you for.

Madam Bo often praised you as one of the best she had sparred with. The old Lin Kuei’s grandmaster often found value in the practice you gave his sons. You would never admit it, but you prided yourself on these compliments.

“That’s good.” You remarked, feeling your shoulders relax. You returned your gaze to the rising sun and the pretty colors that were painted in the sky. You paused, deliberating over the next words that were to leave your mouth. “Why me?” You asked, your voice almost shy. That question had been haunting you ever since you found out about this arrangement back in Fengjian.

“Because I can trust you.” Liu Kang began, his voice filled with certainty. You felt a pang of guilt, your gaze dropping to your hands. Your mind screamed with how you were unworthy of his trust with the memories you found yourself unable to confide in him with. “And I know you will provide a healthy challenge to them.” You chuckled at his words, pushing out the voice that whispered in your head.

“Why are we recruiting these people so late?” You inquired, asking another question that had been bugging you for a while now. You were glad that Liu Kang was a benevolent god, and never seemed to mind your questions. “Would it not be more wise to recruit them earlier since the tournament is mere months away?”

“Had we sought them before, none of them would be ready.” Liu Kang answered wisely, and you hummed. You knew better than to ask how he knew this, despite the years together there were some things you knew he kept secret, and his innate knowledge was one of those things. You supposed it was just a godly thing.. “It is only until now that an opportunity presented itself.”

“And so you decided that I was one of the best options to train them within a few months?”

“Indeed.”

“You have a lot of confidence in me, Liu Kang.”

“Should I not?” The god questioned. The tone in his voice surprised you, and you looked over to him instinctively. You were surprised to see such a strong look of confidence on his face. Gently, he put a hand on your shoulder. His thumb rubbed your shoulder comfortingly. Through your clothes and his hand wraps, you felt the comfort of his warmth.

“No, you should.” You said, your voice filled with a bit more confidence. You looked at his face, feeling oddly proud of yourself to have earned the god’s confidence. He nodded, seeming content with the shift in your attitude. “I shall do my best.” You said, bowing for the man.

“I know you will.”

“How are you boys doing?”

Striding into the courtyard of the Wu Shi academy, you looked at the four recruits. You noted how each of them wore the uniform, and how it all seemed to fit them, more or less. You walked with confidence in front of them, imbued with the words you had been given before from Liu Kang.

All of them were various degrees of exhaustion. Not surprisingly, the actor seemed to be having it the roughest. He was still fine, but it was easy to tell he was the most winded out of the four. You assumed his luxurious lifestyle had something to do with it.

You sucked in a breath as you fought the massive headache these four were giving you. Being stuck with overseeing their training, you assumed you’d be having this feeling a lot. It was no matter, you’d simply sleep it off right now.

Strangely enough, despite the intensity of the headache, you were unable to glean any memories easily. Probably something to do with so many people trying to resurface at once.

“Training has been rigorous, but enlightening.” Raiden replied, his face flush from exertion, and you noted how out of the four he was one of the ones faring a bit better. You assumed it was because he wasn’t underestimating the monks’ intense lessons. You smiled at him, nodding.

“Good, as it should be.” You said, humming as you clasped your hands behind your back, observing them all. Despite their tired state, you could tell they were at least eager. “As Lord Liu Kang has said, I will be partially in charge of your training.” You grinned at them, seeing them perk up at your words. “Today will be a…benchmark to see where your skills lie.”

“Who exactly are you again?” Johnny asked, still hunched over slightly, hands on his knees as he looked up at you. You saw the slight glares from the others, probably because they saw his words rude. He put up his hands defensively. “Hey, I didn’t get a proper introduction like you guys did.” He defended himself.

“Don’t worry, I don’t take offense.” You chuckled, shaking your head. You said your name, clearly and loudly so the others made sure what it was. “I’m a companion of Lord Liu Kang, and he has entrusted me with overseeing your training.” You explained before clearing your throat. “I’m not one for lectures, so I’ll get right to it, who wishes to go first?”

The four looked amongst themselves, seeming to deliberate amongst themselves silently on who would face this challenger they’ve never seen fight. You let out a silent chuckle, wondering how they sized you up. Eventually, you watched as Kung Lao strode up to take the challenge.

“Let me show the others how it’s done.” He declared, seeming confident. You saw the small smirk on his lips, and in return you smiled graciously at him. You gestured for the others to step to the side, and you watched as a few of the monks gathered around to watch. The monks were no stranger to your fighting prowess.

“Bold.” You commended, nodding as you walked into place with Kung Lao, settling into the all too familiar fighting pose that you were familiar with. You watched as he mimicked your actions, settling into his as well. “Now, allow me to show you why I was entrusted with this task.”

You watched as Kung Lao approached, confidence in his strides. Almost too confident. You held a defensive position. The point of this test was to gauge their abilities, so acting on the defensive first would allow you to see what their confidence and skills on the offense were like.

As he swung the first punch, you blocked it with ease. You supposed it was a bit unfair, having already known what Kung Lao’s fighting style was like after watching him in the teahouse along with the bits of memories you had of him. You allowed him to attempt to break your defense more, noting how he had a strong emphasis on his punches with their quick nature.

You had to commend him on his confidence, he knew he was a strong fighter. The farmer had a lot of potential.

It wasn’t until his major slip up with throwing a rather risky punch that you decided that it was time to go on the offensive. Ducking under the move, you went for a sweep, knocking the man off his feet. You waited until he got back up before you grabbed him. Taking him off his guard, you brought him close as you winded your leg back.

As you sent the kick flying into his stomach, you transformed your leg into that of a secretary bird’s, allowing you to put even more power than you would have normally.

“Holy shit!”

You disregarded the actor’s exclaim as you watched Kung Lao fly back, tumbling from the strike. As he stumbled up, he seemed surprised before hesitantly approaching once more. This time, he utilized more caution as he swung at you, trying to even employ the technique of grabbing you like you had. Easily you shoved him back, retaliating by whirling around and transforming yourself to have a kangaroo’s tail which you swung at him with.

This back and forth went on for a bit, with Kung Lao being easily fended off by you before he eventually conceded, calling for surrender.

“You fight well.” You commend, bowing towards Kung Lao. He did the same as he panted, nodding as he caught his breath. You stood up to look at him as he gestured towards you, a look of awe on his face.

“I am amazed at your transformation skills.” The farmer admitted, looking at you up and down with amazement as he continued to catch his breath. “Is it possible to learn that?” He asked, almost too eagerly as he walked over to the side to rest up.

“It is a skill I was born with, so unfortunately I cannot teach you.” You told him, grinning as you held out your arm to transform it into a bear’s with its claws out. “I have the ability to transform any part of my body, and all of me, into an animal.” You explained as you transformed your arm back as easily as you had changed it.

“Now, who is next?”

You causally stood there, only having barely broken a sweat as they stood to the side, catching their breath. A pleased look appeared on your face as you crossed your arms, noting how they each fought. Today you had gone easy on them, being more defensive than your usual aggressive fighting style. You surmised they’d only have a few bruises each because of this. You tried to stay away from anything that would rip and tear.

Honestly, your memories had been helpful for once. They helped clue you in on the fighting style of each man, the odd exception being Raiden who felt pretty different than the man you remembered. It was nice to know what to expect, unlike the first time you had fought the Lin Kuei in training…

Kung Lao had been interesting, being the most confident in his strikes and fighting style. That matched with his speed allowed you to see where he truly shone in his fighting. Taking defense against him was a challenge due to how swiftly he struck, but being able to defend well proved useful as you could counter him when he was left vulnerable after a failed attempt at breaking your defense.

You hummed, recalling how this version of the man lacked the iconic razor hat you remembered. You wondered briefly if you should suggest it to him, or if it’d be odd. You also noticed how despite his confidence in this life, he was at least a bit more humble than when you remembered him last.

Johnny Cage had been unique, his fighting style more flashy and all in than what you were used to. It felt like it should be impractical from just watching it, but the man made it work somehow. He also had interesting evasion, which almost took you off guard. You think you could definitely work with it, especially teaching him how to better evade the opponent since he seemed to grasp that concept well already.

Your eyes looked over to Kenshi. Kenshi had been odd to train with since he wielded a sword, and it felt like he had the most experience in fighting. Your eyes trailed down to his hands, noting the tattoos that littered his hands. You remembered how Liu Kang had briefed you in on his past. A yakuza…that explains the calculated way he fought.

You wondered if you’d ever have to deal with the telekinesis you remembered he had in his past life.

Raiden had been the most different from his past life. In both his fighting since he lacked the lightning powers you remembered so strongly, and how he carried himself. He was not as confident as you hoped, despite the obvious skill he had.

You’d have to work on that with him.

“Excellent work for day one with me.” You congratulated, causing the four men to look at you with varying degrees of confusion. You guessed they thought they had done not so well due to how you had battled them off easily. “As I said, this is a benchmark, so I know now how to best advise where to take your training, especially since the tournament is mere months away.”

“That was a benchmark?” Johnny Cage asked, sending you a disbelieving look. He had been one of the ones you had ended up fighting the most before he conceded. He had been stubborn against you, and you don’t know whether that was foolish or something to be commended for. Maybe it was both. “You kicked our asses.” You chuckled as you grinned at him.

“Did you expect anything less from someone who is allowed to stand by the Fire God’s side?” You asked, a hint of playfulness in your tone before you observed them once again. “We’ll meet again tomorrow after your training with the monks. For now, you are all dismissed.” You said, bowing towards them, your hands forming a fist into your palm similarly to how Liu Kang does.

You turned around, intending to go back to the Fire Temple for a well deserved nap, especially since the headache was getting nearly unbearable at this rate. Then, you heard your name being called. Turning around with a raised eyebrow, you watched as Johnny jogged to catch up with you.

Your head pounded as he neared, but you at least felt some relief as you felt a few more memories resurface.

You recalled how he had been very, very arrogant as a younger man. He had brazenly had his name tattooed across his chest, and for a moment you allowed your head to dip to his chest, curious if he still had it in this life. Somewhere, after what you could only remember a big event as a tragedy, you remembered he mellowed out.

You wondered how this one’s attitude laid on those scales.

“You know, you’d be a hit in Hollywood.” He told you, his breath still heavy with exertion. You raised an eyebrow, surprised at his words. You weren’t all too familiar with what he was talking about, but you assumed it had to do with his acting background which you vaguely remembered.

“Really?” You asked, holding back a chuckle as you looked at him with amusement. Even across the world, he was still thinking about his acting career. “What makes you say that?” You inquire, deciding to entertain his thoughts.

“People dig animals,” The actor started off, gesturing to you, “and not to mention how much you’d be valued there for being able to act as any animal?” He continued, acting as if he were trying to sell you on the offer. “Directors would be hitting you up left and right.” You felt yourself grin a bit more at his praise, but reminded yourself not to get caught up in his flattery.

“Are you implying I’d only be adored for my animal side? And not my own charisma?” You asked with faux offense, deciding to try and tease Johnny. You were surprised how he didn’t even flinch at your words and smoothly replied.

“Nah, you got that and more.” The actor admitted, shrugging as he pointed at you. “but it’s not often people meet an animal shapeshifter.” He pointed out with a nod, making you nod. “So if anything is your claim to fame, it’s that.”

“You’re interesting, Cage.”

“So I’ve been told.” The man replied wittily as he grinned at you, eagerness shining in his eyes. “So, you interested in becoming a star after all this blows over?” It was an innocent seeming question, but you narrowed your eyes, not certain on the intention of the question.

“Why are you so interested in my career path?” You inquired, your tone a touch more serious. You glanced over to see where the others had gone. All gone. No one to save you from this man’s questions. You crossed your arms as you gazed at him with skepticism.

You were hit with a wave of nostalgia as your mind reminded you all of a sudden how he had offered a similar gig in your past life.

Some things never change.

“Listen, I talked with Liu Kang, this shit has movie written all over it.” Johnny Cage decided to be a bit more transparent with you. You raised an eyebrow, and gestured for him to go on. “I think if what he says is true, I can make a box office hit!” He gestured towards you eagerly. “And I think you have what would make this movie superb, my friend.”

“Interesting…I’ll have to pass though.” You said, shutting him down. You watched as his glee dropped a bit, and you started to walk off. You were surprised as he still walked over to try and cut you off.

“Come on, hear me out-”

“Not right now, Cage.” You replied, putting a hand up to silence him. He huffed and you could tell he held back rolling his eyes. You sent him an unamused look. “Perhaps focus on your training first, then we can discuss it.” He perked up, and you decided it was best to start to walk off before he can try and talk to you about his movie shenanigans again.

“Really!?”

It was another sleepless night.

Sighing, you swung your legs over the side of the mattress as you sat up. Perhaps you should stop trying to take naps and fight through the sleepiness so you can actually sleep at night for once. You sigh as you slump over, rubbing your eyes.

You should go outside, maybe do something productive. It’s been a few days in a row of this, you had to try something.

Not knowing exactly what to do, you followed your sense of wanderlust. You left your room, down the halls and out the building. From there, you left and found yourself standing at the entrance of the Fire Temple. You hesitated as you stepped out onto the dirt path, hearing the rocks crunch beneath your feet.

You’ve never left in the middle of the night.

It’s not like you had a curfew, or that you had any promise to stay inside the Fire Temple at night. Far from it, you remembered how Liu Kang told you that you were allowed to come and go as you pleased. That was long ago. You never thought much of his words, thinking you would never stray far.

You wouldn’t, but you figured there was no harm in going and walking off your restless energy instead of staying cooped up within the Fire Temple.

With a burst of anxiety and what you could barely consider courage, you walked on. You followed what felt like an invisible trail, until you found yourself standing in front of the Wu Shi academy.

Strange, but you supposed maybe you could train. Walking carefully into the academy, you made sure to be quiet, as to not disturb the monks with any noise near their sleeping quarters. You found yourself making your way towards the training grounds where you were surprised to hear the faint noise of training.

Transforming your ears into bat ears, you tried to hone in on the sounds. You furrowed your eyebrows as you stood still, trying to make sure the person was not a threat, and if you could recognize them. You blinked as you suddenly came to a realization.

You walked quietly, making sure to follow the lessons Madam Bo and Bi-Han had pushed onto you to remain quiet and stealthy. Be stealthful as the night, and as deadly as the dawn. You peered from around a pillar, and spotted the person standing there alone, and you confirmed your suspicions.

It was Raiden.

You watched for a few minutes, changing your eyes to those of owl eyes to see better in the dark, to better observe. He was going over the basics, ever diligently. You pursed your lips, raising an eyebrow. You had thought he had been more…feeble, being more reserved than Kung Lao. And yet, he was here, training in the dead of night.

What a peculiar man.

After a few more minutes, you watched as he made a critical error in his form. He didn’t seem to notice, and you sighed. He kept on training, repeating the error. You cringed. That was going to form a nasty habit, and if you were to be the mentor Liu Kang trusted you to be, you couldn’t let that happen.

Moving out of position, you slinked closer towards him, stopping to lean against a pillar that was only a few feet away from him. You changed your eyes back, letting your eyesight return back to normal. You felt the all too familiar feeling of the headache return, and you grimaced.

Your memories for Raiden were confusing. He was like a completely different man in almost every way. If your memories didn’t trigger in such specific ways, you wouldn’t believe the man that appeared in your head was the same one that was training in front of you.

Maybe because he wasn’t the same man.

“You’re doing it wrong.” You spoke, your voice ringing clear in the quiet courtyard. You watched as Raiden jolted from surprise, stumbling as he whirled around in a fighting stance to face you. You smiled at him as you held your hands up. “Relax, Raiden.” You said softly, to try and calm him down from the sudden shock.

“Why are you…?” Raiden began, eyes wide in confusion as he stared at you, not processing the situation quickly. He swallowed as he tilted his head, mouth open as he tried to muster up the words to speak. You brushed off his confusion, gesturing to his stance.

“Your form was off.” You comment, gesturing to his body and pointing towards where he exactly had been incorrect. “You were practicing with it being wrong. That’ll be bad practice for you.” You point out. You watched as he tried to correct his form, and you hummed, gesturing to instruct him on how to fix it. As he finally shifted back into a proper stance, you nodded. “Better.”

“Um…thank you.” The farmer boy said, his awkward feeling at the situation obvious. Not only did it show on his body language, but it was shown plainly on his face. You had a feeling this man couldn’t obscure his feelings for the life of him.

It was good to be honest, but you were worried it might work against him.

“I have trouble sleeping at night.” You explained, crossing your arms as you sighed. Your eyes looked down at the ground as you noted how the moonlight fell and illuminated the area around you two. “I decided to go on a walk and wound up here. I thought it might be nice to try and train, then I saw you out here.” You looked up, and gestured to him.

“Oh.” Raiden said after a few moments of silence. His face flushed as he put two and two together that you were asking for him to explain why he was there too. “I…uh, couldn’t sleep.” He admitted, looking down to the ground in defeat. “It’s different here than in Fengjian.”

Ah. Homesickness.

“I see, so you decided to try and train and work off your restlessness?” You inquired, tilting your head as you tried to gauge his reaction. He paused, considering your words for a moment, before nodding hesitantly.

“A bit.” He said, nodding his head. “But I was also thinking about our sparring today.” The farmer admitted. You blinked in surprise, and nodded, wanting him to go on. “I just wanted to go over what the monks taught us today, so next time I would fare better against you.”

How humble and sweet.

“While I admire your determination, there’s two problems.” You said as you kicked off the pillar you had been leaning against. You strode over to stand closer to Raiden, gesturing to him. “One, you must be diligent in your forms. Practice without purpose only builds bad habits.” He nodded eagerly, seeming to take your words seriously. “Second, there is a thing such as over practicing.”

“I see.” Raiden said, letting your words sink in as he nodded. He stared at you with a mixture of admiration and attentiveness, and you smiled. Quickly, he bowed in appreciation. “I’ll keep this in mind, thank you.”

“No problem, what kind of mentor would I be if I let you practice such horrible habits?” You inquired, crossing your arms. You observed the man a few moments more, and you sensed that neither one of you were quite tired enough to go to bed. “I have a feeling neither one of us is ready to sleep, would you like me to run you through the forms again?”

“Yes please!”

Maybe you were cut out for this after all.

part five

438 notes · View notes

jettingtothemoon · 7 months

Text

Daughter of the Spirits; chapter 12

➳ pairing: zuko x f!reader ➳ genre: a retelling of the show from season 2 onwards with a heavy focus and expansion on zuko’s story (canon divergent) ➳ warnings: violence, swearing, smut (underaged if your age of consent is above 16), spoilers for anyone who hasn’t seen the show ➳ word count: 3570 ➳ rating: 18+ ➳ summary: In which y/n comes across the fire nation prince during her stay in Ba Sing Se. ➳ tags: @harmlessoffering, @lammello (i’m sorry if i’m forgetting anyone, lmk if i am or if you want to be added)

Chapters: 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07, 08, 09, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14,

A New Start

The western air temple, that is where Zuko was sure the avatar would go. It was the nearest place for them to regroup and recuperate. They would be safe there. Well, as safe as they could be. So, the western air temple was where you went.

“We should be careful. They, uh, they probably won’t be very happy to see me,” Zuko stated as he prepared the ropes, making sure they were tight enough for you to safely climb down into the temple.

“You’ve been chasing after them for the better half of a year now, but they haven’t seen you since Ba Sing Se. It was Azula who tried to kill the avatar, not you. I’m sure they’ll be able to find it in their hearts to give you a second chance.”

“Well,” his tone was almost high in guilt as he awkwardly scratched the back of his neck, “I might have hired an assassin to hunt him down when I found out he was still alive.”

“Zuko!” you yelled, scowling at him.

He hushed you, clearly afraid that someone nearby might hear you, and avoided your angry gaze. “I know, I know. It was a bad idea but it was before I… before I decided to be good.”

You sucked in a deep breath, held it for a few moments and dispelled your anger with a long exhale. A was a trick your mother had taught you when you were young, one that always helped you keep a cool head. It was a teaching Zuko could certainly learn from as well.

Zuko was quick to descend into the temple after that, tugging on the rope when he reached the bottom to let you know it was safe for you to follow. He seemed lost in thought when you landed beside him, the sound of your feet hitting the floor hadn’t even caused him to glance your way.

Then came the sound of a beast, a sound the both of you recognised all too well. Zuko grabbed you and jumped back, making sure to conceal you both as the avatar’s bison flew overhead. He narrowed his eyes before gesturing to a staircase behind you both. “Come on, up here.”

It didn’t take you long to realise that Zuko had been here before, likely on his search for the avatar, which meant the last time he had visited this temple was with his uncle by his side. You could only imagine how strange it must have felt for him to have been here now, still in search of the avatar but this time as a friend.

Zuko insisted you took a moment to rest before seeking out the avatar and his friends. He joked and said the two of you would need all your energy if they turned hostile and chased you away but you knew what was really troubling him.

He, Prince Zuko, was nervous. Nervous of how they were going to react when they found him. Nervous of how he would speak to them. He wasn’t the most sociable person, as you both knew, and he wanted it to be perfect. He wanted to be sure he wouldn’t say the wrong thing, especially when he knew that he was the last person any of them would want to see.

When he was ready and had finished practising his introduction to a nearby toad — much to your own amusement — he took a deep breath and slumped to the ground.

With a soft smile, you sat down in front of him. “It’ll be fine. Just speak from the heart, tell them that you want to help — that we want to help. He’ll need someone to teach him firebending and I doubt he’s got too many options. They’ll come around.”

“Yeah, okay. Speak from the heart. I can do that.” He smiled back at you and pulled himself to his feet with a newfound determination. At the very least, having you by his side helped boost his confidence.

You approached the flying bison as it came to land, frowning just a little when the two of you had gone unnoticed and the avatar and his friends began to climb off on the other side.

“Oh, and you’re gonna love the all-day echo chamber!” the avatar exclaimed, clearly excited to show his friends around one of his people’s temples.

Just hearing his voice almost made you excited too but the looming fear that the conversation you were about to have wouldn’t go well was weighing too heavily on your chest. Zuko only wanted to help, you only hoped they would understand that. At least they had no reason to doubt you, other than the fact that you were once again approaching them by Zuko’s side, but you had tried to help them back in Ba Sing Se. Surely they would remember that.

“I think that’ll have to wait,” the young girl whom you remembered to be called Toph spoke, clearly noticing your presence with her earthbending.

The bison moved aside, revealing both you and Zuko, who raised his hand with a smile. “Hello, Zuko here.”

All four of the group adopted a defensive stance with angry scowls on their faces, clearly expecting you and Zuko to attack. To try and show them you came in peace, you both stood at their mercy, neither of you raising your arms to fight.

“Hey, we heard you guys flying around down there so we just thought we’d wait for you here.”

The bison was the only one to move, roaring loudly before licking Zuko from his feet to the top of his head.

You chuckled as you watched the creature’s clear display of affection. “Looks like someone remembers you.”

When the bison licked his face again, the avatar finally lowered his staff with wide eyes. Not that you could blame them for their confusion since there was no way they could have known it was Zuko who had freed the bison back at Lake Laogai..

Zuko rubbed the slobber from his face as he spoke, “I know you must be surprised to see me here.”

The watertribe boy, Sokka, frowned. “Not really since you followed us all over the world.”

Awkwardly, Zuko looked away. “Right… Well, uh, anyway, what I wanted to tell you about is that I’ve changed… and I, uh, I’m good now and well, I think I should join your group,” he looked at you and corrected himself, “we should join your group. Oh, and I can teach firebending… to you.”

The four of them only grew more confused, their eyes flicking between you and Zuko. They seemed to be thinking but they had still not let down their guard. Getting them to trust either of you, especially Zuko, was going to be no easy task.

“See… I, uh—”

“You wanna what now?” Toph cut him off with far too much anger residing in her soft features, her jaw almost clenching as she made it clear she thought what Zuko was saying to be crazy.

“You can’t possibly think that any of us would trust you, can you? I mean how stupid do you think we are?” Katara snapped before turning her attention to you, “And you? You may have tried to help us back in Ba Sing Se but even now you’re still with him? Don’t you remember all the things he’s done?”

Sokka chimed in next, he too wishing to say his peace, “Yeah, all he’s ever done is try to hunt us down and capture Aang!”

“I’ve done some good things!” Zuko cut in, trying his hardest to defend himself, “I mean, I could have stolen your bison in Ba Sing Se, but I set him free. That’s something.”

The bison licked him once again, proving to them all that he at least approved of Zuko being there.

“Appa does seem to like him,” Toph concluded and finally began to let down her guard.

“He probably just covered himself in honey or something so that Appa would lick him,” Sokka shrugged, “I’m not buying it!”

You went to speak, hoping that you would be able to sway them, but Zuko beat you to it.

“I can understand why you wouldn’t trust me and I know I’ve made some mistakes in the past—”

“Like when you attacked our village?”

“Or when you stole my mother’s necklace and used it to track us down and capture us?”

The watertribe siblings both stepped forward as they hurled their accusations at him. Zuko had told you that he had hurt them and that they would not be likely to trust him but he hadn’t given all the details. Hearing directly from them some of the horrible things he had done somehow didn’t surprise you but it still hurt to think that he was capable of such things before. He wasn’t that person anymore though and you knew that, you just needed to convince the rest of them of that too.

“Look, I admit I’ve done some awful things,” he confessed and pushed a frustrated hand through his hair, “I was wrong to try and capture you and I’m sorry that I attacked the Water Tribe… and I never should have sent that Fire Nation assassin after you…”

You seemed to realise it before he had because Zuko kept rambling about how he had wronged them and was trying to make things right but all four of them had grown angry once again. They clearly didn’t know that he was the one who sent the assassin after them, not until now.

“Wait!” Sokka cut in again, reaching for his boomerang, “You sent combustion man after us?”

Zuko seemed startled as he realised he had only made things worse but knew that all he could do now was come clean and hope they would eventually come around to the idea of him helping them.

“Well, that’s not his name but—”

“Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to insult your friend!” Sokka remarked with a roll of his eyes, looking about ready to pounce.

“He’s not my friend!” Zuko snapped, clearly growing frustrated that they were still being so hostile toward him when he was all but wearing his heart on his sleeve. Not that you could blame them, in their shoes you would have felt the same.

Toph pointed an accusing finger at him with a scowl. “That guy locked me and Katara in jail and tried to blow us all up!”

Seeming to notice that the avatar was the only one not shouting at him, Zuko sighed and asked, “Why aren’t you saying anything? You once said you thought we could be friends. You know I have good in me.”

Without a word, Aang looked at his friends who all shook their heads with a frown. Then, he cast his eyes to you, someone he himself had seen as an ally once. You pleaded with him without words, silently begging him to give the two of you a chance.

Finally, he spoke, “There’s no way we can trust you after everything you’ve done. We’ll never let you join us!”

Your heart sank in your chest but you were nowhere near as crushed as Zuko. It was his actions that had brought him to this point. All his mistakes and bad decisions leading up to yet another rejection. It only hurt more this time because for once, he really was trying to do the right thing.

“You need to get out of here. Both of you.” Katara glowered at the both of you, her eyes two steely daggers.

Somewhat ready to admit defeat, you moved to place a hand on Zuko’s shoulder to urge him to leave. The two of you would be able to make a difference elsewhere, you were sure of it. Even if the avatar was refusing your help. Before your gentle touch could reach him, however, he burst again and began moving forwards as he flung his frustrated arms in the air.

“I’m trying to explain that I’m not that person anymore!” he cried out, trying one last time to convince them of his sincerity.

The four of them readied themselves once again, clearly taking his frustration as a sign of aggression. Once again, you couldn’t blame them. His notorious temper was getting the better of him again — a temper they had only seen before a fight.

“Either you leave, or we attack,” Sokka exclaimed, once again threatening Zuko.

The prince bowed his head before kneeling before them. “If you won’t accept me as a friend, then maybe you’ll take me as a prisoner.”

“Zuko…” you spoke with a soft breath, worried but also warmed by what he was willing to give up to help them.

“No! We won’t!” With a swing of her arm, Katara sent a force of water flying towards Zuko, knocking him back.

You ran to his side, kneeling in the puddle to help the drenched prince up.

“Get out of here and don’t come back!And if we ever see you again, well, we better not see you again!”

Dejected, he let you help him to his feet and shrugged you off, bowing his head as he walked away.

Before following him, you looked at the four of them, your eyes finally falling on the avatar as you spoke, “I know it might be hard to believe but he really is just trying to help.”

They didn’t utter a word as you followed after him, walking in silence as you left the western air temple.

You couldn’t blame them for their lack of trust in him, or you for that matter, but it still hurt to see Zuko so downtrodden. Finally, he decided to do what is right only to be ridiculed and chased away.

“Ugh, I can’t believe how stupid I am!” he began as he paced up and down, speaking more to himself than you, “I mean, what was I thinking? Telling them I sent an assassin after them? Why didn’t I just say Azula did that? They would have believed that! Stupid!” He groaned again and fell to his knees with a thud.

“You told them the truth, Zuko. That’s all you could have done. You tried and that’s better than not trying at all,” you tried to reassure him but he only flopped down onto his back, letting his hair spill out across the ground.

You sighed and moved to lay beside him, both of you watching the leaves sway in the canopy above. “Your uncle would be proud, you know.”

He turned his head towards you and waited until his eyes met yours before speaking, “You think so?”

With a tender smile tugging at the corners of your lips, you reached up to cup his cheek, smoothing your thumb across his skin. “I know so.”

He smiled back and pressed his forehead to yours, sinking into the warmth of your touch.

“I just… I don’t know what to do now. I can’t go home, not that I want to, and I can’t face my father alone. Not when it’s Aang’s destiny to stop him.”

You pulled back and sat up, stretching your limbs before rising to your feet. “We’ll find those that we’ve lost. We’ll find your uncle and then go search for my parents. If we can help anyone suffering at the hands of the Fire Nation along the way then we will. We don’t have to confront your father head on to make a difference.”

Zuko hummed and closed his eyes only for them to jolt back open when you lightly kicked his side.

“Well, come on then. If we’re going to be fighting firebenders I should at least know some basic moves.”

He crossed his brows and began to sit up, looking at you questioningly. “You want me to teach you?”

You only grinned. “Well, who else is going to?”

“Hmm, since you already know how to hold a flame I think we can start off with some basic techniques.” He returned your smile and stood before you, adopting a stance you had seen him use time and time again.

Standing opposite him, you tried your best to mimic his stance. He circled you, eyes scanning for any flaws, and nudged your knee forward, forcing you into a slightly lower squat. When he came back into sight again, he crossed his arms and hummed in approval.

“Good. Now, take a deep breath in. It is this breath that becomes the energy you need to extend from your body, creating fire.” He returned to his position and demonstrated, taking in a deep breath before punching a fist out in front of him. With a burst, flames shot from his fist, flickering around his knuckles and flew through the air beside you.

You steeled your expression and strengthened your stance, determined to learn at least some control over the element you feared most. As Zuko had done before you, you sucked in a deep breath, focusing on how it felt as it travelled through you. It was similar to the breath you had taken earlier to dispel your anger and you could feel the energy tingle under your skin as you focused it into your fist which curled at your side.

The prince watched on intently, moving to the side as you closed your eyes. When they opened again, you pushed your fist forward through the air with great force and, to your surprise, nailed the move first time.

Zuko clapped, applauding you as he stated, “You’re a natural.”

As the hours passed by, you were relieved to have managed to provide a good distraction for Zuko as he taught you move after move, honing your firebending skills. By the time the sun began to set and the cold night air closed in, you felt much more confident that you would be able to divert attacks from other firebenders by using their own flames against them.

You found some food for the night and made a small fire to keep you warm before cuddling up under a makeshift tent. Although you were worried Zuko would find it hard to sleep with so much still on his mind, you were relieved to find that teaching you had worn him out. His soft breaths hit your ear as he slept with one arm slung around you, holding you close.

The two of you slept for a while before you felt Zuko stirring beside you, sitting up slightly as he called out, “Who’s there?”

You sat up beside him, eyes peering through the darkness to see who or what was out amongst the trees. Before you could do anything though, Zuko pulled you behind him and sprung into action, conjuring a flame as he yelled, “Stay back!”

“It’s me!” a voice you recognised called out only just too late as the girl bended a wall in front of her to block Zuko’s attack.

Both yours and Zuko’s eyes widened when she stumbled back with a yelp, falling to the ground. “You burned my feet!”

Zuko was up before you. “I’m sorry, it was a mistake,” he protested as he began rushing towards her.

Toph backed up, crawling across the ground as she hurled boulders at Zuko. “Get away from me!”

“Let me help you! I’m sorry!” He tried again but the young earthbender only continued to flee.

You were finally on your feet as she yelled at him to get off of her and with one final move of offence, raised a pillar from the ground, sending Zuko flying. You were at his side in a second, already noticing he was hurt as he continued to yell after the girl.

“I didn’t know it was you!” he winced and grabbed his likely already bruising side, “Come back!”

With a cry of anguish he fell to his back and yelled at the world, “Why am I so bad at being good?”

You hushed him and pulled his head into your lap, already running your fingers through his hair. “It’s okay, she’ll be okay. Katara is a healer like me, she’ll be able to help Toph.”

He groaned and sat back up, holding in a sob of pain as he clutched again at his side. “I know, it’s just all I ever seem to do is make things worse.”

You squeezed his shoulder and moved to untie his shirt, reaching over for your waterskin as you pulled it open. The bruise was about as bad as you had expected from such a forceful impact. His skin was turning a dark shade of purple and was littered with painful scrapes and scratches. He sucked in a breath as you placed your hands against his skin, water already swirling around your fingers.

“Shhh,” you hushed him and smiled slightly as he visibly relaxed while the pain began to subside. It had been a while since you had been able to use your healing, what with having been in the Fire Nation for so long, but it felt good to be doing something to help someone again. You couldn’t relieve all of Zuko’s pain, but you could at least heal his physical wounds.

When you finished and whisked the water back into your waterskin, he pulled your hands back to him, placing them on his skin once again, and leaned forward until his head rested against your shoulder.

“They hate me,” he mumbled.

“They just don’t know you. Not the way I do.”

You smiled softly when he looked back up again, his amber eyes searching for refuge in your own. You were the only person who had ever looked at him like that, he realised. The only person to look at him with such tenderness in their eyes — such pure, unbridled love.

Chapters: 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07, 08, 09, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14,

#prince zuko x reader #zuko x you #zuko smut #zuko angst #zuko fanfic #zuko fluff #atla zuko #atla #zuko avatar the last airbender #avatar #sokka avatar the last airbender #prince zuko x you #prince zuko

269 notes · View notes

thespottedfeather · 7 months

Text

A Thousand Times, Yes.

Ominis x f!MC oneshot

Aged up, seventh year, mention of sex, possible spoilers for Hogwarts Legacy, canon divergent, major character death, grief, wet dreams, pining, room of requirement is the best wingman.

prompt: Y/N Y/L/N is in love with Ominis Gaunt and has no idea how to tell him. She decides to take him to the Room of Requirement so they won't be disturbed as she tries to confess.

words: 2998

Not beta read

You were determined this time you were going to tell him. You were going to tell Ominis Gaunt that you were in love with him. You just…needed to stop acting like a damn baby rabbit and running away every time you were alone together. Two years now that you had known him. Two years that you had gotten to know the proud, honest, kind and wickedly funny guy that Ominis Gaunt hid behind his stoic persona. It had taken time to get him to lower his walls around you enough to let you in, but that time had been worth it. Ominis Gaunt was going to go on to do great things, you just knew it. At first, you’d only been acquaintances because of your friendship with Sebastian, oh Sebastian. He hadn’t been the same since Anne died from her curse.

You’d tried to help him, you really had, but after he killed his Uncle and you, Ominis and Anne decided not to turn him in. Well…Anne had continued to decline. After she passed, you and Ominis had come together to help Sebastian. He had grieved, he had gotten really low to the point where you and Ominis had silently agreed to never leave the other boy alone. Through it all you hadn’t realised that Ominis too was grieving just as hard. Anne had been a sister to him as much as she had been to Sebastian. While you had only just met her, Ominis had been taken in by their family.

The night you’d walked into the undercroft, hoping for some peace from the new popularity that being the “hero of Hogwarts” had granted you, and found Ominis crying alone and begging Anne’s forgiveness for not trying harder, that night your heart had broken for him. You’d held him, and he had let you, and that was when it had started…the stirring in your chest for this boy who never showed his emotions to those he didn’t trust. He had let you hold him while he cried.

Time had passed since then, now your heart skipped a beat whenever you hear his voice, when you see his perfect opal eyes and styled hair, the smell of his cologne when you enter a room he’s occupied recently. You had it BAD and the worst part was, the stronger your feelings grew, the harder you found it to spend time with him alone, for fear you’ll do or say something that would permanently ruin your friendship.

But, you have decided you can’t live like this forever. You have to know if he feels the same. It is your final school year, and if you go on to live your life with Ominis Gaunt as only a memory then you needed to know how he felt in return. That was the problem though, every time you tried to tell him, you’d lose your nerve. He was just so out of your league that you didn’t think he’d ever think of you as more than a friend he relied on.

Not tonight, no, tonight you were determined to just get it out in the open and bear the consequences. Ominis was too kind to hurt you with a harsh rejection, he’d let you down gently and then you could move on. Move on, instead of pining for him night and day, and dreaming of his lips on your own, his body flush against yours, skin on skin. You groaned and rubbed your tired eyes as you remembered the particularly x-rated dream you’d had the previous night. You didn’t even know where the images had come from, you were a virgin, you’d never even seen anything like what your poor lovesick brain and come up with.

You had asked Ominis to meet you outside the room of requirement, though he had no idea what the hallway in question contained, you didn’t want to risk being interrupted by Sebastain in the undercroft like had happened so many times in your attempts to confess. As you leant against the tapestry opposite where you knew the door to be you took several deep breaths and attempted to go over the words you planned to speak to him. You were so absorbed in your thoughts that you didn’t even hear Ominis greet you as he came around the corner.

“Y/N, that is you, right?” he asked waving a hand in front of your face scaring you out of your thoughts.

“Ominis!” you squeaked, “I’m sorry, my mind was…somewhere else,” you said as your cheeks grew hot.

“It seems even when I do catch you alone your mind isn’t with me,” he joked with a chuckle.

“Well…you see…I’m…” you stutter trying to explain yourself.

“Y/N, I’m only teasing you,” he said with a lopsided grin as your face grows even redder, you’ve never been more thankful for the fact he couldn’t see you.

“Right,” you murmur and clear your throat, “Well, I wanted to show you something,”

“I’m afraid, you may be disappointed,” he stated dryly, “Since, I can’t see anything you show me,”

“Ominis!” you scolded with a laugh at yet another of his ‘blind jokes’.

“I apologise, I couldn’t help myself,” he said with a lopsided smile, “I’m sure I will be enamored by anything you have to show me,”

You blushed at his reassurance, “I sure hope so,” you said under your breath and began to pace the hallway. You didn’t realise but he heard your muttered words and as you paced away from him, he smiled to himself, he knew he would love it, because he was enamoured with everything about you. Ever since the scriptorium when you had taken the curse to spare him more pain, since watching you (figuratively) try and help Sebastian and Anne, since standing by your side to help his best friend through the grief of losing his sister, since all those times he had ‘seen’ and felt firsthand your genuine goodness, he had fallen deeper and deeper for you.

He’d do anything to ensure your happiness, that included not telling you about his feelings, because if he was ever brave enough to confess to you and if by some miracle you felt the same, he knew his family would never allow for you to be together, and if they did, it would only be so they could get their claws into the ‘hero of Hogwarts’ and try to somehow manipulate you into using our gifts for their greed. If he was ever able to extricate himself from his family, then maybe he could pursue you, but not until then.

However, despite knowing that keeping his distance from you would be for the best, he couldn’t help but hate how you had started to avoid him. He had tried not to let anyone see how upset he was about it, but the truth is, it hurt him deeply when you avoided spending time alone with him like you used to. So, when you had asked him to meet you in this empty corridor, he had to stop himself from running there to meet you, lest somebody see him and follow. He wanted to be alone with you, call him greedy if you wanted because that’s what he was, greedy for your attention, greedy for your kindness, just greedy for you.

You watched as the door to the room appeared on the wall of the corridor and smiled. The nerves threatened to catch up with you as you turned to see Ominis watching you with pale opal eyes. You knew he couldn’t see you but the way his head tilted slightly as he listened to the sounds of you made you cheeks heat up once more.

“What is that?” he asked raising his wand slightly, a look of wonder appearing on his face, “There’s a new door,”

“Welcome,” you say and open the door for him to walk in, “To the Room of Requirement,” You watch him move his blinking wand around as whatever magic that allowed the semi-sentient piece of wood to show him what places looked like showed him the room you had painstakingly built and decorated since fifth year. The door closed behind you both as you followed him deeper inside. The ceiling lit the room with warm sunlight despite the late hour outside, and plants grew from many plant pots dotted around the bookcases that lined the walls. If you had to describe it to somebody, you’d say it was a library crossed with a greenhouse. A staircase to the left led down to where your brewing stations were set up. There was only one vivarium now, as your need to protect the wild beasts surrounding Hogwarts wasn’t so dire since you eradicated the poacher rings.

The spaces they had once taken up held comfortable seating areas, but nothing else of real importance. You hadn’t spent a lot of time in the room since you had caught up with the other students in your year, preferring to study with Ominis and Sebastian in the Undercroft.

“This is…how did you find this place?” Ominis asked.

“Professor Weasley showed me in fifth year, it was supposed to be a quiet place where I could study and practice my spell work in order to catch up to the rest of you,” you explained, “of course, she didn’t know about the Undercroft, so…”

“You’ve known about this for two years and never told me?” he asked, the hurt in his voice evident.

“Ominis, I…” you began, instantly worried you had upset him, but you caught the slight twitch at the corner of his lips that gave away his teasing, “Damn you,” you hissed and he cracked up laughing. The sound made your breath catch, his laugh was music. “I was worried I’d hurt you,” you growled, “Don’t do that,”

“I’m sorry,” he said but you could tell he didn’t mean it.

“Why do you have to tease me?” you asked pushing at his shoulder gently.

“Because you’re so gullible,” he replied with a half shrug, and you scowled, pushing him again, slightly harder this time to his chuckle.

“I have a right mind to obliviate you and never show you this place again,” you muttered crossing your arms.

“You wouldn’t,” he said, so confident in his assertion that you had to push back.

“Oh? And how can you be so sure?” you asked turning towards him.

“Because, you like me too much,” he replied with a half shrug turning to face you too.

“Do I? because right now, I’m feeling very the urge to curse you,” you stepped closer and poked him in the chest.

“Oh, you do,” he stepped forward, smirking down at you, and suddenly you realized exactly how close to him you were. His chest nearly brushed against your own and you had to crane your neck to meet his blind gaze. Heat flooded your face and you took a step back from him nervously.

“How could you possibly know that?” you asked, voice small and breathy.

His brow furrowed slightly as he tilted his head, catching the sound of your voice, a beatific smile growing on his face, “Maybe I’m reading your mind,” he stated following your retreating steps.

“Ominis…” you warned…or maybe begged, you didn’t know anymore. Your heartbeat jack hammered against your breastbone, and you retreated again.

“Y/N…” he replied matching your movements, it almost sounded like a question.

“I brought you here for a reason…” you said quietly, the blood rushing in your ears making it hard to hear your own quiet voice.

“Oh?” he asked, still stalking you slowly across the room.

“I wanted to tell you something…but…” your nerves were getting the better of you at the look on his face as he followed you, like you were his prey,

“Then why are you running away?” he asked with a slight pout.

“…I don’t know…” you whispered, “I can’t stop,”

“Hmm…perhaps you should, I have a feeling you’ve done enough running from me lately Y/N,” he voice dropped slightly, temptingly, and you were transported back to your dreams from the previous night where he had whispered all sorts of things in that voice.

The backs of your legs bumped into something soft, and you turned your head slightly. You face burned as you realised the room had materialised a large fourposter bed with luxurious deep green bedding that looked like it would slide over your skin decadently.

“What’s this?” Ominis whispered against your ear. He’d reached you while you had been dumbstruck as the room, and how it spoke to exactly what you wanted in the most embarrassing way, “a bed? This wasn’t here a moment ago,”

“Ominis,” you squeaked at his sudden proximity.

“I guess you’re not running now,” he teased pressing into your space, “Now, y/n, tell me, why did you bring me here?”

“Ominis…” you gasped as he dropped his head into the crook of your neck, his breath brushing against your skin there.

“I’ve heard about the Room of Requirement,” he stated, you stood stock still as his lips just barely grazed against your throat, “It supposedly gives you whatever it is you want or need at the time,” he tilted his head so that his lips brushed your ear as he asked, “Why is there a bed here y/n?”

You shuddered at his quiet question and swallowed, gaining the courage to speak from his own boldness, “Because I want you,” you said, and just like that, the dam was broken, “I have admired you since the moment I met you and as time has gone by my feelings have only grown and now I can’t go a day without wanting to see you, hear you laugh, and bask in your presence, I dream about you and wake up wanting, I have never even looked at another guy because I have only ever wanted to be with you, to hold you, touch you…” you trailed off as you noticed how absolutely still he was, how his breath on your skin had grown ragged. “…Ominis?” you asked raising your had tentatively to touch his chest, feel his heart racing beneath the cotton of his shirt.

“Forgive me,” he whispered, “I just, never dared dream that you…” he took in a shaky breath, “…I told myself to stay away from you, but after your honesty…y/n…I can’t help myself any longer,” his wand clattered against the floor as his hands trailed up your arms to where your robes were secured at your neckline, with deft hands he removed the clasp and guided the material off of your shoulders, letting it fall to the floor. You were too astounded to react as he gripped your waist gently and half lifted, half threw you onto the bed. You gasped and raised up onto your elbows to see him removing his own robe and jacket, leaving him in his waistcoat and shirt, a sight you’d seen a few times while practicing spells in the Undercroft and had always had you staring.

“Ominis…” you crooned as he began to crawl over your body. He used his left hand to hold himself above you as his right skated up your body gently until he was cupping your neck and then your cheek.

“y/n…please…may I kiss you?” he asked, ever the gentleman, even after throwing you onto the bed.

“If you don’t, I might cry,” you said, half joking, half serious. He smirked and took a shaky breath. Using his thumb to trace your cheekbone, he trailed his fingers gently over your skin until he could trace the shape of your lips. He kept his thumb on your bottom lip and curled his fingers under your chin to guide you up to meet him.

And then he was kissing you.

His lips were soft and coaxing. It was unpractised and new, and absolutely wonderful. The taste of his breath in your lungs made your head spin. You didn’t know when you closed your eyes but you opened them as he pulled back. “y/n…” he whispered, “I have wanted to do that for a long time,”

“Me too,” you replied, just as quietly, not wanting to break the moment, or to have yourself waking up from yet another beautiful, agonizing dream.

“If I may…” he began.

“You may.” You cut him off making him chuckle.

“Oh y/n, the things I have dreamt of doing to you,” he purred and kissed the side of your neck, “but, I would court you first, take you for a fine meal, and walk hand in hand beneath the stars,” he trailed soft kisses along your skin until he reached your lips again, “Then I would woo you with romantic music, and light candles around our bed,”

The imagery made tears prick the corners of your eyes. As you opened your mouth to speak, to tell him you were happy to wait, the room creaked around you. The ceiling sunlight faded to the silvery glow of the moon and stars, the potting tables and vivarium disappeared to be replaced by a large table set for two with platters of amazing looking food and drink the room must have summoned from the kitchens, and floating candles flew from the bookshelves to light the room with a warm glow as the soft sound of string instruments filled the air.

“What’s happening?” Ominis asked as he tilted his head to listen to the new sounds in the room.

“The room, it supplied us with everything you described,” you whispered, “Including the meal, I didn’t know it could summon food from the kitchens,”

“Astonishing,” he whispered and slowly backed off you, leaving you cold from missing his warmth. Then he held out his hand to you, “Shall we enjoy our first date?” he asked with the biggest smile you had ever seen grace his perfect face.

“Yes, a thousand times, yes,” you replied and took his hand, allowing him to help you to your feet.

#hogwarts legacy #hogwarts legacy ominis #ominis gaunt #ominis x mc #ominisgaunt #ominis gaunt x mc #ominis gaunt x reader #hogwarts legacy headcanons #room of requirement #room of requirement is the best wingman #not beta read we die like Soloman

205 notes · View notes

asavt · 1 year

Text

Something I wanted to try and do that I've been working on these past few days.

Some months(? ago I watched Nezha(2019) and after listening to FightSong like... a thousand times I was plagued with ✨thoughts✨! Wanted to try to do something like a "fake" project of sorts...

Some more thoughts about this under read more~

Explaining a bit more in depth of the idea because it's been plagging my mind for some time now (it's been marinating there and every time I listened to that song it would just gain more flavor).

Post-movie, canon divergence I guess?? Maybe?? Does it counts as an AU?? idk. The main points are that

1: Ao Bing technically betrayed his family and I was wondering if he would ever try to go back with them (would they or his father even allowed), I'm guessing not. I'm taking the path of him never going back home.

2: Nezha, after years have passed and people around him passed away (I guess), decides to try and use his other form (the one where he??? looks like a teen??? even when he's like three in the movie??? deities are confusing sometimes tbh). He's been practicing his control over this form, so far it's good. Sometimes he will revert back to the child-like one too.

3: It's been CENTURIES. Things changed, the place where they live would be closer to a modern-time city.

4: They don't allineate with anything. Like, no heaven, no dragons no demons. They go around doing what they believe would be right.

I am so willing to find a way to do a short animation with the song if this recieves enough attention. When would it be done or how clean would it look is another thing... But I would like to try if you guys are interested!

Also I should do this with other thoughts I have too. I have too many...

#Nezha #nezha 2019 #Ao Bing #ouuhhh #idk what else to tag this with #don't tag as ship #please.#my art #digital art #fan art #asadraws #fakeprojects

543 notes · View notes

sprinklenoodles · 2 months

Note

I'm baaaaack! I got a doozy of a piece too! For The Heir of Despair!

Read all that was there and I am here to share my thoughts in a slightly coherent way! Sorry in advance if I repeat myself! First, Byakuya, my boy. Oh my gosh are you an irredeemable prick! I say this in a good way by the way! Like, you wrote him good in the sense that I am routing for his downfall in some way and was very excited near the end when he slightly didn't get his way. Bravo! You have succeeded in making me dislike my boy! (I still love him <3) But, anyway, reading what's here really got my brain thinking! Like, what might happen with Byakuya and Junko. In fact, Here's a lightning round of fun little questions that make my brain do acrobatics in a skating park! Not for answering of course! That's be lame! I must expel these out though haha!

There! Got it out of my system!! As for some other thoughts, I enjoy the canon divergences! Obviously the main gimmick is itself one, but you get what I mean! Also, I have no way to segway into this but I was no joke quoting and spouting a bunch of goofy crap and like, I can't just NOT give a peak into the innerworkings of my mind. So, here. Take those and a bit of tidbits on the context I said them in. "Leave that little guy alone!" - Said mostly for Chihiro and Makoto, both when Byakuya was manipulate, mansplain, malewife-ing his way through existence. Less malewife though. Or scratch it. No malewife-ing for him. Not in this time line u_u "Byakuya! Have you learned nothing!" - Just any time Byakuya was doing stuff I found worthy of mocking him for. Might have to re-read everything to find the specifics cus I unfortunately did not count those moments in a spread sheet T-T "You're no good, Byakuya! You'll never be shit! You're just like your father!" - I find this one funny cus I legit find Kijo a saint in this in comparison to his son. It's both because the man hasn't really done much and he's not the focus. I also had a realization though that the reason I want this Byakuya to suffer so much is because I know he can do better than this! Like, Byakuya as a character! Unlike Kijo, he has the potential for redeemable qualities which makes his reveling in his own ego less camp, more pathetic. Like, Kijo makes it fun because he sucks, he will never improve, and that's that! And it's not like Byakuya can't be that fun camp! He just has to not be a monster! I like this factor in this Byakuya though in this fic. It really encapsulates how bad he could be. How he can surpass his father in horrible behavior, and actions. Like, it's sick reading how much he enjoys all of this and you did a really good job at it! Also, I have no idea how to fit this either but I DID mentally joke to myself that I wouldn't mind Junko actually cutting of a limb from Kijo just to make Byakuya suffer a bit (even if it probably won't be much sadly) and I have no idea how to take that... I think that, weirdly enough, I like ridiculing this Byakuya. I want him to fail. And like, it's insane you're writing can do that!! Be proud!! Like, this isn't even the type of fic I normally read and I've been able to enjoy it. You wrote many variants of just one rich guy and they're all distinct enough to feel different about them but similar enough where you can see where the divergences lie and I really like that!! And, it's oddly cool reading something and knowing that I could never write this. This goes for all your fics by the way but like, it's really cool reading this and just knowing that someone's able to write something I could never. I'm too much of a softie for Byakuya, even when I'm mean to him heehee! No clue if this makes sense by the way. I'm kinda blabbering now so I might end it here! But yeah! You got some cool stuff!

Aaahhh!!! Thank you!!! LOVE the art as always, it looks AWESOME!!

And yeah, Byakuya is NOT a good guy. He's very much a prick and supposed to be like that.

As for your questions, I obviously can't answer those... Though, the answer to some are no and some are yes... That's all I'll say.

And Chihiro is really going through it, with Makoto joining him soon. Byakuya will unfortunately not be leaving them alone 😔

Kijo is strangely enough a better person here, though he still ain't good. Like, he is very much on board with the killing game. He doesn't really like that Byakuya is in it cuz he doesn't want his heir to die, but that's all.

He's also very petty tho and is quite offended Byakuya kept him in the dark about everything. It's why he agreed to the motive. And unfortunately, no missing limbs for Kijo. That is reserved for another dad only in an AU that isn't mine...

But Byakuya is not nice, yeah. And like you said, he could be much better but he simply doesn't want to. He likes the way things are and loves to manipulate some of his classmates.

And that makes people not like him, just as intended. He's the protagonist but one you want to fail. Cuz if he doesn't, that means something bad for the rest of the cast...

But thank you!! I really like writing these different versions of him and it's really not as hard as it might seem. Tbh, it comes kinda natural if anything! Though, I get being the softie to Byakuya, I myself would never hurt him... Other than the countless times he got injured in my fics... :D

#danganronpa #danganronpa trigger happy havoc #danganronpa fanfiction #fanart #AHHH #everything u draw is sooo good!!#byakuya togami #chihiro fujisaki #makoto naegi #kijo togami #junko enoshima #mastermind byakuya togami #the heir of despair #still very tired #like ugh

45 notes · View notes

tsukimefuku · 6 months

Text

Toxic endeavors

You and Higuruma are on your third mission, and you save him from getting injured, putting yourself in harm's way as you do so.

tags: Jujutsu Kaisen, f!reader, angst, canon-typical violence.

wc: 2.4K

This is part of my "Jujutsu Partners Canon Divergence AU". A sequence of short stories and random drabbles related to Nanami x Reader x Higuruma. To see the ever-growing list of one-shots and short stories, please visit my masterlist :)

Disclaimer: these stories are NOT written and posted in chronological order of events. To see where this story fits in the timeline, please check the masterlist mentioned above.

"How truly relevant is the job of a sorcerer?" Higuruma asked as you both walked down the corridor of a closed school.

"What do you mean?" You inquired, looking around for any sign of the curse you were both sent out to exorcize. Gladly, this curse had been detected by one of the windows before anyone went missing, which was a rare occurrence. You thought this had already started off pretty good, and all could be smooth sailing from there.

It wouldn't be.

"What I mean to say is that curses spawn cyclically, from what you and other sorcerers have told me, right?"

"Hm, yes?" You replied, unsure where he intended to lead this conversation. His rants usually arrived to cynical, pessimistic or nihilistic conclusions, though, as you had noticed from previous interactions.

"So, considering curses will always keep spawning, why do we bother sending people to die facing them?" Higuruma finally posed the question. "This is an incredibly risky line of work, after all."

"Because curses don't just disappear, they have to be exorcized. Otherwise, more people might die due to cursed activity."

"From what I could gather, there aren't that many jujutsu sorcerers, and the quantity of people disappearing due to cursed activity has stayed the same, even with Jujutsu sorcerers numbers increasing. I think it's fair to say we don't make a dent" Higuruma replied nonchalantly.

You sighed. "You might have a point. Even so, our job is to exorcize curses, and I don't see a downfall to that activity in and of itself. I mean..." you shrugged, "exorcizing curses is just that, exorcizing curses. Not saving lives or anything of the sort. Getting rid of the literal corporeal manifestation of bad feelings is surely something good to be doing."

He sighed heavily.

"Hey, I like it just as much as you do" you said.

"Really?" He asked.

"Yes. I'm here working for Jujutsu High somewhat against my own volition too. Not the same as you," you remarked, briefly looking at Higuruma, "but trust me, I would rather be doing something else with my time. Maybe even exorcizing curses, but not for them."

That poked just a little at his curiosity, but he didn't pay enough mind to it in order to ask you for further information. Higuruma still felt awkward to be working alongside someone he had nearly killed, and on top of that, from what he learned, had saved his life shortly after.

"What about this Jujutsu High, or Jujutsu Tech? Why are they in charge of making decisions regarding jujutsu and curses?" Higuruma asked.

"Beats me, I have no idea. What I know is that their headmaster, so to speak, has been building this alongside some very powerful clans for some centuries. That's about it."

He kept silent, and the awkward silence entangled the both of you.

"Let's just get the job done and get out of here" you concluded.

Shortly after, you both heard some noise coming from the floor above, and you looked at Higuruma as he increased the length of his gavel, turning it into a mid-range weapon. You conjured some grenades and kept them between your fingers, walking towards the stairs. The two of you stepped up quietly, and peered up.

Sliding on the ground, there was a purple creature with many tentacles and yellow eyes all over its body. As it moved, its tentacles were leaving some greenish substance all over the floor and walls.

It definitely rang some alarm bells in your head.

However, before you could talk to him, Higuruma had already jumped over to the top of the stairs and was lunging towards the curse, doing something he had been so accustomed to do by this point.

I could kill him myself with my bare hands right now.

Being a prodigy regarding his sorcerer abilities, Higuruma had exorcized successfully multiple high grade curses around Morioka before you found him. So his usual instinct by now was to charge against any found curse without assessing much about the situation. You had already warned him the previous two missions you both went together, having to run around trying to accompany him while Higuruma swung his gavel, tearing multiple holes and wounds on each and every curse along the way. He'd forget, many times, that the thing ricocheted, and almost hit you twice on your last mission.

"For fuck's sake, Higuruma! Wait up!" You yelled, jumping over and running towards him.

"'Let's just get the job done', right?!" He yelled back, swirling his weapon — now his size — to crush the curse on the ground. Yet, before he did so, the curse squirmed around with its tentacles, pinning itself to the ceiling, leaving a green trail of slobber on the walls as it did.

"Be careful!"

You suspected what the green goo oozing out the curse's tentacles might be, and you'd be proven right in just a few moments.

"Why?!" He shouted back, getting ready to propel himself upwards with his weapon. You were nearing him when the cursed spirit flung one of its tentacles in his direction, and you could see that it was covered in stings, spitting the green substance on its bottom side.

"Get away!" You yelled, as you pushed him out of the tentacle's trajectory. However, it wrapped around your arm before you could pull it back, and the spears pierced your skin, pumping your blood with cursed poison. Another tentacle came down rapidly and whipped your face, leaving a few cuts behind.

You let out a pained grunt before conjuring one of your grenades with your other hand and grabbing the thing that was around your arm, exploding it.

Underneath, your arm was bloody and starting to turn purple.

He looked at your arm and then at you. "Are you okay?"

"Of course I'm fucking not!" You gnarled, feeling the poison pumping through your veins like corrosive acid. You figured you'd only have some seconds before losing control over your muscles, given they were already twitching, so you mustered the strength to summon multiple grenades, throwing some of them upwards with one hand. As the curse tried to do the same move, sliding down towards the stairs you both came from to avoid impact, you threw the remainder of them in its direction, hitting the curse full force with the blasts. It was exorcized in an instant, leaving nothing but some bits and pieces around that slowly dissipated away.

This was the first time Higuruma actually witnessed you using your innate cursed technique with this much power, worthy of a Grade 1 sorcerer from what he had learned, and figured you wanted to end this quickly.

In your previous missions, you had let him beat the curses into oblivion, taking the time he needed to — which was fast, but not this fast. He thought you did so just to let him earn his 'pay', but now Higuruma figured that he had made it impossible for you to fight properly alongside him.

When he put himself in between you and the curses, just advancing without coordinating moves with you, you'd be unable to use an explosion technique like this without seriously injuring him.

Huffing, you tried walking, but your legs began failing you. Your body was about to fall when Higuruma hurried himself to hold you before you did.

"Take me b-back to Jujutsu High right n-now" you said, voice breaking at the burning sensation all throughout your body, as you tried your best to use your RCT to protect your organs, muscles, and bones from corroding or malfunctioning due to the poison.

Using RCT to deal with poison was very tricky, so the best strategy was protection of your own body while it worn out instead of trying to separate the poison from your blood and tissues, which required a super fine control of cursed energy that you absolutely could not do in this state.

He nodded, picking you up in his arms, feeling a pit of guilt forming in his gut. If he had waited before charging in, then maybe this could all have been avoided.

I'm an idiot.

***

"And here you are again, it seems" Shoko said, as she prepped a drip with analgesics while you healed yourself.

You nodded, chuckling softly, feeling every nerve in your body burn painfully in response. You were covered in cold sweat, had your jaw clenched and looked like 2 steps away from perishing. Even with your RCT, the poison had burned some damage through your body, and you knew you'd be facing a gnarly recovery period.

"Yeah, but this time it wasn't completely intentional" was all you mustered up the strength to say.

"I guess that's what people call 'an accident', then" Shoko answered, before she sighed. After she finally inserted the needle in your arm, securing it, Shoko stepped back, and said, "if your RCT starts to run out, let me know, I'll take over so you can rest."

You hummed in accordance, and she removed her gloves, throwing them in the trash before coming out of your room and closing the door. Outside, Higuruma sat, leaning his body lazily against the wall behind him.

"It's my fault, she pushed me out of harm's way because I was being careless," he mindlessly said to Shoko, "just like every damn thing that brought me here. It's all my fault."

Shoko scoffed, putting one hand on her pocket to search for her cigarettes.

"Feeling guilty is not healing her faster" Shoko said, looking straight at him.

Higuruma was slightly surprised at her comment.

Shoko proceeded, "carrying guilt like that because of some sense of penitence only leads to things like these. People get hurt while you're taking your time reveling in your guilt, acting recklessly. Do better."

Pursing his lips, he looked at the floor, embarrassed for the consequence of his actions. This guilt of ending up harming someone and endangering their life had him finally grasping upon the feelings he had buried deep shortly after killing the judge and the prosecutor.

It felt awful.

It seemed his humanity was slowly being rescued from the depths of his apathetic state, after all.

Both Shoko and Higuruma noticed some steps as someone approached them.

"Where is she? What happened?"

Higuruma heard a male voice and looked upwards, seeing a tall blond man with a blue formal shirt, equally formal beige pants and green goggles. One of his hands was wrapped up with what seemed like a yellow cloth with a black splatter pattern — was it a tie? — and he had a brown leather harness on his upper body, seemingly used to carry something in his back.

"She's stable, and as fine as she could be fighting cursed poison" Shoko replied, finally managing to fish out her pack of cigarettes from her pocket.

"It's my fault. She took the damage to save me" Higuruma said, looking at the man. "I'm Higuruma."

Nanami glared at him, knowing full well who it was. This was the curse user that had endangered your life when you went to take him into custody. Nanami had absolutely no idea why you thought you should save this man from execution, but held himself begrudgingly from making any especially harsh remarks as you tried to help the man.

"Nanami" he answered unceremoniously, still glaring at the other sorcerer. "If you plan to keep working for Jujutsu High in order to ease your punishment, then be considerate of your colleagues. We don't do well with recklessness in the field, as it can get other people killed."

The ratio sorcerer stabbed each word at Higuruma with a frosty bite of anger as he spoke.

Higuruma lowered his head and sighed. "You're right. I apologize."

Nanami scoffed silently. "You should apologize to her, and probably be grateful as well. It seems she might have saved you from many things, and not just from getting hit with cursed poison" he concluded, while getting into the room and closing the door behind him.

"Congratulations, you just earned your first Nanami lecture" Shoko chimed in, while calmly walking away. She stopped, however, and turned one last time to face Higuruma.

"Hm?"

"You should really thank her. She's really doing more than anyone here would do to help you."

"Why, though? Why did she help me?" He inquired, not really keen on asking you the same thing. Coming back into contact with his feelings rather than keep embracing apathy, like he had been ever since killing those people, was becoming increasingly uncomfortable.

Shoko shrugged. "No idea. I think it's because she's the martyr and good-hearted type" she said, while sighing. "Just... Don't be an ass" Shoko stated, right before finally stepping away.

***

"May I come in?" Higuruma asked, uncertain, as he stood by your door after Nanami left.

You rolled your eyes, ready to ask him to leave, but pondered for a moment. Looking back at the sorcerer, you noticed his usual lackadaisical expression had been chipped away, replaced by a somewhat worried frown.

"Fine, come in" you answered, still accompanying him with your eyes.

He walked in and sat on a chair by your bedside, with bated breath, as you glanced at him curious about what he wanted to speak.

You were almost at your wit's end with the man. He had been nothing but an irresponsible, inconsiderate jackass ever since you got his death sentence suspended with Gojo's help. You understood and sympathized with his contempt for corrupt powers in place, being yourself someone carrying such types of feelings most of the time.

However, it got you beyond angry the way he simply disregarded anyone's well-being and efforts when proceeding with the terms of his 'parole'. You were to work together, you were supposed to shepherd him, and even so, all he had done up until this point was endangering the both of you at the battlefield.

"I apologize" Higuruma said, earnestly, looking down.

"Hm. For what?" You inquired, wanting a proper apology.

"For my irresponsibility. And for attacking you the first time we crossed paths. Also for acting in a way in our previous missions that made your job of shepherding me harder than it should be" he said, sighing after. "I’m sorry."

Your anger had diminished, and you took a few moments before addressing him.

"I accept your apology, but you’ll definitely have to do better than you have been doing. Do you understand? I can’t have by my side a reckless, suicidal maniac. It’s a liability not only for you, but for me too."

Higuruma nodded, lifting his gaze to look at you.

"I understand."

"Do we have a deal?" You said, sliding your good hand under the gurney's side support grip for a makeshift handshake.

He took your hand in his, and avoided moving it too much, while he felt his tense body slightly relax as he did.

We have a deal.

#jjk #jujutsu kaisen #jjk fanfic #higuruma hiromi #jjk higuruma #jjk imagines #jjk hiromi #hiromi jjk #hiromi higuruma #higuruma #jujutsu kaisen higuruma #higuruma x reader #hiromi x reader #higuruma hiromi x reader #higuruma x y/n #higuruma x you

64 notes · View notes

daisynik7 · 1 year

Text

Pairing: Takashi Mitsuya x Original Female Character

Rating: Mature - MINORS DO NOT INTERACT

Genre: Romance, Canon-Divergent AU

cw: switching POVs (2nd and 3rd person), explicit language, angst, hurt/comfort, non-canon compliant, canon-typical violence, fluff, slow burn, eventual smut, eventual time-skip

Summary: Student, big brother, sewing expert, and Second Division Caption of the Tokyo Manji Gang. Takashi Mitsuya is an 18-year-old boy who wears many different hats. With graduation approaching in a few short months, he must decide what path he wants to follow into his future: continue his life as a delinquent or live in normalcy, a concept he’s never been familiar with, an idea he’s only chased but never captured. Until one day, he meets Hana Shimizu, the very definition of ordinary. That’s what he thinks, at first. Little does he know that this “ordinary” girl would change his life.

Author's Notes: I binged all two seasons of Tokyo Revengers within the past two weeks and I'm OBSESSED with Mitsuya! He is absolutely husband material, so I was inspired to write this, I hope you like it! It's my first time writing a female original character, but I'm keeping it formatted like a reader-insert because I genuinely enjoy writing in that style. Heads up, she does have a name and a few distinct qualities - she has hair and is chubby (similar to me!), but it's not the main focus of the story. Likes, reblogs, and/or comments are always appreciated! Thank you for reading!

Chapter Title and Summary (spoiler-free):

Chapter 1: Cut From the Same Cloth - Takashi Mitsuya has always lived his life being true to himself. Despite being the proud Second Division Captain of the notorious Tokyo Manji Gang, he never hides the softer side of him: He cares deeply for his two younger sisters and enjoys spending his free time sewing. When a classmate, Hana Shimizu, approaches him, asking for lessons in sewing, he agrees, not seeing any downsides to having some company.

Chapter 2: On Pins and Needles - Hana babysits Luna and Mana for the first time. Mitsuya catches up with Draken before attending a short, but tumultuous Toman meeting at Musashi Shrine.

Chapter 3: A Stitch Ahead - Mitsuya is asked to create jackets for the newly appointed captains, to which he reluctantly agrees. When the deadline arrives and he still hasn’t finished, he enlists your aid to help him complete his task. The same day, the two of you make dinner together for his sisters, leaving Mitsuya with a lasting impression.

Chapter 4: Cute as a Button - Mitsuya skips a session of sewing lessons, attempting to keep his distance after realizing his growing feelings for you. You’re left wondering where you stand with him, confused by his behavior the last time you saw him. Soon enough, you both realize that these feelings are too intense to ignore.

Chapter 5: Bursting at the Seams - You and Mitsuya make your newly blossomed relationship official. To commemorate this special occasion, he invites you to his house for breakfast, where you meet his mother.

Chapter 6: Heart on a Sleeve - You and Mitsuya make your budding relationship public and things only continue to grow from there. The Tokyo Manji gang successfully absorbs the Leviathans all thanks to the efforts of new captains Tetta Kisaki and Shuji Hanma. Despite Mikey’s praise for them during this month’s meeting, Mitsuya remains wary of the two. His suspicions only increase when he runs into them while on a date with you.

Chapter 7: Reap What You Sew - A dinner with you, Mitsuya, and your parents quickly goes south. Mitsuya makes a decision that could lead to dire consequences.

Chapter 8: Hanging by a Thread - After leaving the Tokyo Manji Gang, Mitsuya feels like his life is on the right track. They have their fearless leader Mikey back to his usual self and Mitsuya’s relationship with Hana grows stronger day by day. They graduate, ready for the next big step in their lives. But with everything said and done, the past will always haunt the brothers of Toman, for better and for worse.

Chapter 9: A Rough Patch (tbd)

Chapter 10: Mending What's Broken (tbd)

Please do not plagiarize any of my works or translate without my permission! Thank you!

#tokyo revengers #takashi mitsuya #mitsuya takashi #mitsuya x reader #mitsuya x you #mitsuya x y/n #mitsuya x f!reader #tokyo revengers mitsuya #mitsuya smut #mitsuya fluff #mitsuya x original character #tokyo revengers x you #tokyo revengers fanfiction #tokyo revengers smut #tokyo revengers x reader

168 notes · View notes

gingernut1314 · 9 months

Text

The Luck Child - Chapter 1: Superstitions of a Dying Age

Buggy x F!Reader

Summary: You are called back to Marine Headquarters after five years of working undercover within the crew of the Wild Wood Pirates. There, you are told by your superiors who they wish to grant the title of Warlord to and are assigned a new mission: join the Star Clown's crew and make sure he dies if he fails in his challenge.

Warnings: spoilers for the anime (Marineford Arc and onward), canon divergence

Word Count: 4.5K

A/N: This is done in collaboration with the wonderful @fanaticsnail and her Sapsorrow series--go read it if you haven't already!!! She also was brilliantly kind enough to beta-read this for me! And thank you @i-am-vita for creating the beautiful banner and storyteller collab masterlist!!

I actually haven't gotten to the Marineford Arc yet so please forgive me if anything is not completely right. I tried to leave things very vague for that reason but the events surrounding Buggy were just too perfect for this series! I hope you all enjoy!

“Not so long ago, in the depth of the Grand Line, where it is so cold, that very cold is considered quite warm, two cold hearts shadowed over the land. One beat cold in a cruel government, the other in a terrible beast: The Griffin. And it happened in a week with two Fridays, that the cruel government heard of a prophecy.”

The halls of Navy Headquarters were lit like they had allowed the very sun into its walls. No shadow graced its well-maintained halls, not even the likes of your own shadow to accompany you into the awaiting meeting hall. A meeting hall whose doors, which swirled with silver detailing, towered over you like some great, twin titans as you came to a stop before them.

Titans.

That was who sat, waiting for you behind those doors. Titans whose very will had sent for you days prior. Who had nearly torn the very delicate position in the pirate crew you had infiltrated to shreds.

The Wild Wood Pirates; a pack of wild women born from chaos and blood. Women whose power almost rivaled that of the Kuja Pirates and their Warlord Captain. They were a threat to the world government and all who bent the knee to their will.

A threat the government had not taken to so kindly.

Sending the Snake Princess of the Amazon Lily herself to destroy these wild women had been one of the many ideas sprung to deal with the hardened villains, but your superiors had thought of a different approach--a better, more calculated, and…gentler approach.

Spy on them. Become one of them. See how they slipped from the watchful eye of the Navy and how they could get from one side of the Grand Line to the other in a matter of hours.

And out of the thousands upon thousands of Marines to choose from for this task, they had chosen you.

You, the daughter of a well-respected Vice-Admiral and the strongest Marine produced from your class.

You, who was vicious in your attack upon the pirates that sailed the Grand Line.

You, who was bloodthirsty in your pursuit of the bandits and petty thieves that roamed the streets of the bases you occupied.

Wild. You were wild. Too wild, many a superior had spat, to be a Marine. So wild you had gotten yourself demoted and benched more times than you could care to count on your own two hands and feet.

It was why you had made the perfect candidate to infiltrate such a group of pirates. Unknown by most--overlooked--you and your savageness had been sent off to wander the Grand Line. Had been allowed to spread chaos and fear in your travels. Had been allowed to run wild.

You had earned your own little bounty, on the promise it would be cleared upon the success of your mission, and had been welcomed into the Wild Wood Pirates ranks with a few, messy kills.

It was crooked. Wicked of your superiors to allow you to do such horrid acts, but it was all in the name of discovery. Of committing little evils to behead that of a greater one.

You rose in rank gradually throughout the years you had joined their crew. Had gained favor with your new captain. Had gained such favor, you had been allowed on their main ship; The Robber’s Den. A grand vessel with a twisting and turning tunnel-like underbelly and home to a strange forest that grew over the deck.

Had just, after death and back-breaking labor, been allowed to be above deck as they traveled through the Grand Line at in-humanly fast speeds. The answers you sought had been in your grasp--your mission nearly complete when those very same superiors who had assigned you this years-long mission, sent a messenger bat to recall you.

You tugged at your white uniform. One you hadn’t worn in five years. Tugged and pulled and shifted it over your body, trying desperately to get comfortable in its hold.

Too tight, too thick, too itchy. It didn’t feel like your uniform any longer. It felt like a costume. A disguise. A poorly made disguise at that.

How had you ever had the patience to wear such a monstrosity?

The answer is you never had and coming fresh off the seas, where one did as they pleased, when they pleased it, the uniform was already trying your thin patience.

You shifted the cap upon your head, it having begun to itch right alongside your uniform, as you stared up at those giant doors before you.

In and out.

You willed--no prayed--for this meeting to be as swift as The Robber’s Den’s speed. An hour--an hour and a half at most is all you knew you had the tolerance for.

A progress report. That is what they had written in their letter. It would be a simple meeting. A very simple meeting, seeing as they had whisked you away from those Wild Wood Pirates before you could glean their biggest secret from them.

With a great, chest-expanding breath, you pushed your way into the meeting room full of glorified titans.

You wished beyond all hope to have your shadow by your side for company at that moment.

“Ah, so the feral girl finally makes her appearance.” The grating voice of Akainu spoke, stopping all idle conversation that had bounced around the rounded table and room. He was the first you spotted, signature pink rose on his breast and the basic, marine-sanctioned cap on his head, which led the eye to the large scars littering the right side of his body.

You let your eyes scan over the others around the table--all faces you recognized but many whose ranking seemed to have changed in your absence.

And Akainu, whose voice filled your ears with white-hot rage and made boiling magma to match that of his devil fruit powers roar through your veins, had been gifted the most gracious promotion. That of Fleet Admiral.

It did not surprise you he had climbed this high in rank. He was smart, cunning, and powerful. It did, however, have your curiosity stifling your coiling anger for a mere moment.

Why would a Fleet Admiral need to be present during a simple progress report?

You felt your muscles move on memory before your brain could rush to keep up with its sharp movements. Heels brought together, hips and shoulders on level, legs straight but not so firm as to lock up your knees, and right hand brought to meet your right brow in respect of your higher-ups.

“Forgive me, sir. I had been making my way to old headquarters before I realized its relocation.” The man let a mouth full of smoke escape his lips, which a half-smoked cigar still lay between.

“I didn’t expect anything else, Apprentice.” You hardly were able to refrain from outright snarling at the Fleet Admiral.

Seaman Apprentice. One rank up from being a lowly recruit. A rank you had received only a week before you were given your undercover assignment. “I see those wild women took every last ounce of civility from you.” He said, giving a wicked laugh at your reaction.

“With all due respect, Fleet Admiral.” Another member, sitting closest to the entrance, spoke up before you could lose your already lost temper. His chair blocked him from view, but you knew the dull voice of your father too well.

“Y/N took a great risk in joining the ranks of the Wild Wood Pirates. Took a greater risk still in coming here on such unexpected notice. It shows her dedication and devotion to our government.” Your father finished, making no such move as to look upon you. To see what had become of his only child in the time spent with the enemy.

Akainu let another mouthful of smoke filter out between his teeth, his dark eyes scanning over you from beneath his cap. Eyes that reignited that itch your uniform made crawl over your skin like a thousand ants had marched their way under it. It made your fingers twitch in want to relieve it.

“At ease.” He grated out, like he was disappointed in releasing you from the restricting position. You let your arm fall to your side before it joined your other behind your back, feet spread shoulders width apart. “I assume you have heard of the battle at Marineford and our…unfortunate happenings with the Warlords.”

Hardly. You had hardly heard such news had it not been for the News Coo bird you’d paid discreetly and at risk of your own personal being. You let your superiors know of your little knowledge of the battle.

“We are looking for others to fill the voids left by Teach, Jinbe, and Gecko Moria. We have filled two of these vacuums.” Akainu gestured for you to find a seat around the table. Your feet carried you to an opening next to the quiet likes of Tsuru, the Vice-Admiral hardly sparing you a glance. “The file before you holds all the information we currently hold on the pirate we believe might fill this last position.”

Your fingers smoothed over the fine-coursed blue file that sat before you, flipping it open you had not expected to be met with the sparkingly and laughing grin of a pirate whose reputation whispered around even the likes of the isolating Wild Wood Pirates. A reputation of cowardice and overall weakness that your crewmates had loathed.

A grin you had wanted to punch off his panted face ever since you had first met him in the flesh at the start of your five-year undercover mission.

You chuckled. No--not chuckled, laughed. A belly-shaking laugh as you grabbed at the edge of the wanted poster to tilt it towards your vision better.

“This is who you plan on granting the title of Warlord to? This bumbling fool?” You shook your head, wiping a stray tear from your eyes as your laughter continued to keep hold of you. “You are right, Fleet Admiral, I have been away from civilization far too long. You wish me to believe this clown is a threat to the Marines? To the World Government?”

“You have been gone far too long. You have forgotten your manners, Apprentice.” The rank had your laughter dying quickly in your throat. A rank hissed at you in a warning.

Manners. You truly did need to relearn your manners. If you didn’t, your higher-up would demote you to a lowly recruit--maybe even to that of chore boy and you would be nothing.

Nothing but a wild mess of a person--a failure. A reject. A disappointment.

“The Star Clown led a mass of prisoners out of Impel Down, of which he managed to escape with hardly a scratch.” You pursed your lips together to keep any remaining remarks down.

You hadn’t seen that in the news. Must have missed it in your isolation.

“He led those highly dangerous prisoners against us on the battlefield and still holds them under his command. He is becoming a threat.” Akainu all but spat your way.

“He’s just been lucky.” An admiral, sitting to the left of the Fleet Admiral, spoke, leaning back in his chair in dismission of the clown.

“Too lucky. We need to nib this luck at its source before it grows out of our power to control.” Akainu snapped at the admiral next to him, who hardly seemed phased. “If we--”

“A luck child,” Tsuru spoke from beside you, cutting off the Fleet Admiral. You almost threw the woman a wicked smile in approval had you not remembered she had a disliking of you right alongside the rest of her comrades. “Poor as penance, rich as snow, a great captain of a great captain. Wise men prophesied this child would one day achieve greatness.”

The room fell silent as the words fell heavy over the air. Words you had never heard once in your life, but ones that seemed to flicker in recognition in the eyes of the Marines around you.

“Have we fallen so low as to start believing old superstitions of a dying age?” The admiral to the left huffed. “It was no wise man who spoke those words. Gold Rodger was out of his mind by the time Death came for him. First this luck child, then that foolish proclamation about the One Piece. He was spewing utter nonsense.”

“Luck is a gift. A blessing. It cannot be undone.” The Admiral scoffed at Tsuru's words once more.

“Akainu, are you going to--”

“Then he is more of a threat than we originally thought. His escape, his ability to gather powerful individuals under his command, his connections to Red-Haired Shanks and the Rodger Pirates, and now this--prophecy.” The Admiral shook his head in disbelief at his superior’s words. “Something needs to be done about him.”

“Then why not just kill him?” You spoke on a gruff, gaining Akainu’s magma-filled gaze once more. “He is more trouble than he is worth. The other pirates mock him--he is their court jester, not their lord. Kill him and be done with it.” You all but hissed, throwing the clown's wanted poster down.

Akainu rapped his fingers against the marble table before him, deep in thought as he watched you. Watched you in a way you wished he would stop.

“You’ll find a map just beneath his bounty.” You pursed your lips together once more.

Manners. Remember your manners.

“As I am sure you have already gathered, we have not called you back for a simple progress report. You are to take that map to him as an offering to join his crew.” You pulled the map out from behind his bounty poster.

It was small. Old. Its detailing was lacking and few of the black lines that made up its image had faded with age.

How anyone was supposed to properly use it in its deteriorating state was beyond you.

“And what of the Wild Wood Pirates?” You asked, glancing back up to your superior.

“What of them?” He said, seeming utterly unworried. It fueled your anger once more.

“If they find out I left to join up with another crew they will not stop hunting me until I am dead.” You said, biting back the snap in your voice.

“Then sail clear of their territory.” Akainu snapped, uncaring to hold back his words’ own sharpness.

Sail clear of their territory--you almost scoffed. They had no territory. They didn’t care about such things. Power was all they cared about. Blood and chaos and pain. You went to tell him as such, but he was quick to shut your complaints down.

“You’re job, Apprentice, is to give him the map and join his crew. You are to take account of every last individual who has joined him, report it back to us, and make sure he finds this island. If he can find it and win the golden feather amongst its hordes of treasure, then he will receive a letter from us in due time telling of his new title. But if the beast that roams those lands defeats him, then we have nothing to worry about besides contacting the runner-up.”

You clenched your fist in your lap. Clenched it so hard you were almost certain you had broken the thin skin of your palm.

Join him. Join that fool? No. Never.

“Why would this feather be of any interest to him?” You asked, channeling all your frustrations into your grip.

“It is said to be of an opposing nature to that of the Devil Fruits. Legend says it frees its user from Mother Ocean’s hold forevermore. If the stories are to be believed, he would be able to swim as he pleased in her waters, never to drown. Maybe even be given the power to deify that of Seastone.” The Admiral to his left shook his head once more at the continued fairy tales and legends.

“And what happens when he fails to find this golden feather? When he fails to get eaten by this beast because he has run away like the slimy creature he is?” You asked, closing the file to keep those irritating green-blue eyes from staring at you any longer.

“Then you kill him as you see fit.” Akainu closed his own file. “You wild things do so love a bloody kill.”

Manners--oh but your manners were running very, very thin.

You pulled a thin-lipped smile to your features.

“As you command, Fleet Admiral.” Akainu chuckled darkly, releasing another mouthful of smoke.

“Very good.” He smirked, standing from his seat. “Then it is settled. Apprentice Y/N will see if our--Luck Child,” He said with another rumbling chuckle, “is fit for greatness as such wise men have prophecied. If not, he is better off dead and off the chess board.” You stood with the rest of the Marines around the table, right hand back on your brow as the Fleet Admiral moved through the room towards those great, giant doors.

The three admirals were quick to follow, and so on and so on until you were left standing in that too-bright, rounded meeting room with your father.

You felt no need for formal respect when it came to him, so you were quick to drop what little was left of your good manners and snarled like some raid animal in your frustrations.

You tugged and yanked at your uniform once more, loosening buttons and your necktie.

“Will you be--” You were quick to fix him with a daggered glare and a show of hissing teeth.

“I stopped needing your care long ago.” Your father hardly blinked at your wild behavior.

“You may have stopped needing it but I have yet to stop caring.” He sighed, standing from his seat.

Care. Like you were supposed to believe he truly cared for you.

You watched him pull something from the pocket of his white dress-pants. It was a rectangular envelope in a soft shade of periwinkle, with elegant and swirling handwriting that looped over the front.

You recognized it immediately for what it was. An invitation. One you had seen many times in the past.

“The Lady Aegea of the Magmere Isle is hosting her annual masquerade ball in three days time. Many ladies will be presented--” You held a hand up to stop him before he could continue to waste his breath.

“Have you forgotten I have been ordered to worm my way into yet another pirate crew by that time? If I am not killed for my betrayals, I will be no lady of any court you wish associations with.” Your father looked--tired. Older.

When had he gotten like that?

“I just want to see you happy.” That only had your anger spiking in your chest. A deep anger that had been building ever since your childhood.

“You raised me as if I was nothing more than another cadet under your command, remember?” They were words he had heard from you many times over. Words to rival that of the ballrooms and proper lady-like conversation and courtships he threw your way. Even when you had joined the Marines, he continued to offer you up on a silver platter to any lord brave enough to try for your hand and you continued to fight him. “I cannot help the path laid before me.”

“You can throw my biggest mistakes in my face, but it will not change my hopes for your future.” You scoffed at his words. Words that he spoke in a dull drawl that only had your anger coiling tighter around your heart. “Will you at least take the invitation? In case you change your mind. I will fight to have you removed from this assignment if you do.” Your eyes scanned over the invitation. You knew there was no way you would attend such an event, not unless it was forced upon you.

But if you took it now, it would keep him off your back for a little while longer.

“Fine.” You snapped, grabbing up the Star Clown’s file before making your way around the table to snag the invitation from your father’s awaiting grasp. “This means nothing of my attendance.” Your father only smiled--too excited for his own good.

“Of course, of course…though, I have been told Lady Aegea has invitited the great Lord Dacule Mihawk.” He was always invited. The swordsman was the most sought-after suitor in the blue sea and Lady Aegea had a strange fixation on him. Him and finding him a suitor. “And rumor has it he will be in attendance this year.”

“I find that very hard to believe.” You huffed, shoving the invitation amongst the rest of your newly gathered information, tucked away in the file you held. Though the Warlord had been invited to every last ball the Lady Aegea threw, he never once dared to show his face.

“He might be of some help to your mission. Him being a Warlord after all.” Your father said as you started out of the meeting hall, hardly sparing your father a final look. He was not saying this to be of any real help. It was his way of bringing the Warlord to your attention for potential courtship.

“Good day, Vice Admiral.”

“Wouldn’t you agree?” Your father called as you stormed out of those giant doors. Stormed out of those shadow-stealing lights and too-clean halls ways. Stormed passed fellow Marines making their way through the halls just as you did, though looking far less angered.

You yanked your cap from your head as you hit fresh air. Air that didn’t smell of cigar smoke and molten lava. Your uniform top was next, its persistent itching becoming far too much for you to handle.

Luck child, luck child, luck child.

Curse that foolish clown. Curse him and his horrid luck.

There was no reward in this for you. Nothing other than a death sentence, old wives' tales, your father's nags of marriage, and your submission to yet another power you had no interest in following.

Buggy the Clown was not that lucky. No man was that lucky and you would be the one to end this ridiculous string of good fortune.

Screams and shouting commands filled the roaring, storm-filled air as the Big Top was hit with yet another mountainous wave. Saltwater stung at Buggy’s eyes and made loose strands of blue hair stick to the sides of his face, which his make-up ran over, ruined. Saltwater that had his grip on the lines he had been retieing begin to grow weak, Mother Ocean’s power over him slowly starting to win.

“Shit, shit, shit!” Buggy screamed as he managed to retie the rigging despite his numbing fingers.

Screw Mother Ocean. Screw Devil Fruits and screw this freak storm that has come out of nowhere. A storm that had already claimed three of his men in its merciless hunger.

He spied Alvida, kneeling on the drenched deck, looking about ready to pass out. Her long, curling locks stuck to her smooth skin which looked all too pale in the muggy light the storm clouds allowed to slip through.

The water was no doubt taking its effect on her now, rendering her utterly useless.

Buggy grabbed for another loose line that was threatening to run free just as a large ball of wax rolled past dangerously, knocking a few of his freaks over as it headed toward the front of his ship.

Galdino, a fellow escapee from Impel Down and one of Buggy’s newest crew members, must have encapsulated himself before the water could do much to drain his own powers. Encapsulated himself in a rolling ball that, if didn’t kill someone, would surely roll straight into the ocean.

Stupid idiot.

Buggy’s muscles loosened then and, despite his best efforts, the line he had been holding fell from his grasp, shooting up into the rain and sea-spray-filled air. Something snapped and Buggy turned just in time to give a screeching curse as the main boom swayed low, knocking into him and sending Buggy flying.

“Captain!” The sound of his Chief of Staff, Cabaji, called as Buggy groaned at the pain zapping through his body.

“Get--get us out of this fucking storm!” Buggy hissed, his roaring coming out more breathy as he fought to regain the air in his lungs.

He hardly heard Cabaji’s response before the ship hit something solid.

Wood splintered and groaned and Buggy was, yet again, thrown through the air with a scream.

All he could do was scream as Mother Ocean stole all his fight and energy. Scream till his voice ran horse and his limp body was thrown overboard.

Buggy hit the cold water and was thrown in thrashing circles.

His lungs burned as he held his breath against the raging waters around him. Lungs and eyes and nostrils burned like fire had been poured into them. It was hell--and just when hell seemed to get the upper hand, to just begin to wrestle the air from his lungs, he was spat out onto a sandy shore.

Body unable to move, Buggy lay cursing the sea. Cursing Mother Ocean and the Grand Lines freakish weather. Weather that seemed was beginning to calm as if it had taken its pound of flesh from him, satisfied.

A wave crashed into Buggy, further numbing his body and sinking him into the wet sand beneath him.

Screw this. Screw sand. Screw water. Screw the air. Screw himself and his devil-blessed powers.

“Captain! Oh, thank the gods!” It was Cabaji’s voice again, growing nearer and nearer. Relief flooded through Buggy’s chest as his Chief of Staff came into view just as another wave crashed into him, stealing his breath once more before falling back into the vast sea.

“Get. Me. The hell. Up!” Buggy hissed as quickly as the saltwater would allow him.

“Right, yes. Yes, Captain.” Hands grabbed him under his shoulders and dragged his limp body further inland, away from the sea still wishing to drag him into their depths. “We thought you were dead, Captain,” Cabaji grunted as he continued to drag Buggy over the shore.

Of course he wasn’t dead. He was tougher then that.

The taste of salt water on his lips sent a shiver down Buggy’s spine.

From this angle, Buggy could just spot his precious ship laying on its side, beached like some great whale and looking like someone had taken some great hammer to its hull.

Whoever had been in the crow's nest was going to get murdered.

“You’re luck never ceases to amaze me, Captain Buggy.” Cabaji huffed, finally coming to a stop once he had made it to the rest of Buggy’s exhausted crew. He spotted Alvida slumped on the sand just as he was, teeth grit and hissing insults Mohji’s way, who had been trying to help her.

Luck--ha. Buggy laughed at such bullshit.

How was getting knocked into the ocean and nearly drowning lucky?

Tag list: @fanshavegottensotoxic , @lostfirefly

81 notes · View notes

aphroditesmoon · 1 year

Text

sea, swallow me (part II)

jacaerys velaryon x fem!velaryon!reader

part 3

summary: when jacaerys finally meets the hidden bastard of corlys velaryon, he loses interests in his betrothed Baela and intends to make her aunt his, but are you really what your family has made you up to be?

warnings: this fic is inspired by the movie 'song of the sea', CANON DIVERGENCE, slowburn, aged up jace (18 yrs old), reader has selective mutism (she CAN talk), reader is 5 years older than jace, selkie! reader, reader's race is NOT specified(adopted!reader), cursing, nsfw content in future chapters,typical ASOIAF sexism, typical asoiaf targcest.

a/n: if u can't swim irl its okay, me neither, thats why we have fanfics, to pretend we can.

taglist: @marytargaryen , @cdragons , @libdarkheart , @bellstwd , @dianxiaxiexie

♧♣︎♧

They'd all call you a liar and a child if you'd tell them that from where you're standing right now, inside of your father's study with Rhaena, you could hear the ocean waves vividly. You could feel them splash onto the sand as clear as it sounds in your ears.

But unfortunately, the enchanting sounds of the sea had been cut short once your father started to speak. "No." A short but loud enough answer to send shivers on your skin. "It doesn't have to be long, she could sail back here after a moon-"

"You wish her to leave for a whole moon?" He asks in a storm of a voice, silencing Rhaena. "I've kept her here for her own protection. You have no idea how much we've already compromised with the feast-"

"Then why have it at all?" The younger girl snaps, out of anyone's expectation. "Why go all the way for the damn feast just to lock her up again? Do you ever intended to ever let her see outside of Driftmark?" She challeges him boldly. He is quiet.

"And what of marriage? She is two and twenty. Will you ever wed her to anyone?"

You turn your face down, avoiding looks from either of them. "Never." You hear him whisper, too low for Rhaena's ears. "You don't understand anything, you are a child. "

"I am no child, and you shall not treat me as one! What will happen once you die? Who will she have then?" Corlys slaps his hand loudly againts the desk as he gets up. "That is enough, I'll have you here no more, go pack your things like you should. My answer is final." Rhaena opens her mouth to defy him again but pauses when she feels you pulling her by her arm. You gently lead her out the room and pressed a kiss by her temple before shutting the doors close.

You walk towards Corlys the same time you hear Rhaena walks away from the chamber. Your father eyes your movements, as if scared you'd jump him. "You think me cruel." He says matter of factly. You shook your head once you're in front of him. "I think you're irrational." The man sighs loudly at the sound of your voice and slumps himself on the chair.

"I can take care of myself." He raises a brow at you. "I don't doubt it. But these men, they- what if they started asking the wrong questions? What will you say then?"

You squeezed your eyes shut in frustration. "I'll say nothing. And I'll walk away."

"That's not good enough." The wind was howling so strongly that the curtains was flowing inside from the window. "It's good enough to me! Rhaena is right, I am trapped here, I have nothing, no purpose, no one who needs me." He nears you with a sadness in his gaze. "I need you." "No you don't." You roll your eyes. "In 5 days you'll leave to sail for god knows how many moons, and I'll be left alone again- and don't say I have Rhaenys, I do not."

Your father turns quiet again before turning his back from you. "I love you, and I know more than you do of this world. Leave and never ask me of this again."

You were stunned by his conclusion. A bitter laugh spills from your throat. "You're kidding me?" He says nothing.

"I ask for this one thing. One thing, and you can't even do this for me." You move towardd the door to leave him until he calls for you again. "Wait-"

You twist your neck to look at him, cheeks wet and eyes angry. "You were gone last night. Rhaena said she couldn't find you. At the same time Baela had trouble searching for Jacaerys-" you sigh loudly. "Are you really asking me what I think you are?" Your voice was hostile and mean. "I do not wish to make assumptions-"

"Then don't. I was in my chambers, I wasn't feeling well. And as for the prince, how would I know?" That seemed a good enough answer to satisfy Corlys as he asked nothing more before you slammed his door.

A cage was what these beautiful walls are to you. Once upon a time you had thought it enough. Now, you wanted more.

♧♣︎♧ what happened that night

The night of the feast was better than the eve of it. You weren't lying when you said that you've left to your chambers. You did for a good few minutes. Before you snatched your coat and slipped through the window.

Your feet was fast and strong, a swimmer's feet, Laenor once joked. A sharp pain attacked your chest. How peaceful the night sea was when everyone is inside. You could still hear the distant music and laughing crowds. It was beautiful.

The moon felt like a mirror as you stepped one foot at a time inside the water, walking towards the giant reflective shape. You slipped the coat over yourself, and then ducked into the water, swimming further and further before sinking down.

Jacaerys was slow. His hands were quicker, a knight's strength. His father once told him. He's not sure if it's true anymore.

He had hid behind the walls of the corridor that led to your room, waiting for you to leave. When he heard no sounds, he moved toward the stone railing that gives him direct view to the ocean. He sees something huddled on the sand, something that looked like your dress. So he doesn't think twice like he usually does and makes a quick escape down to the sea.

Once he's finally down to the sands, he jogs towards what he then confirmed are your clothes.

"My lady?" He calls out to nothing. There wasn't any sight of you anywhere. If you were swimming, how far could you have gone? "A pretty bad time to swim." He mutters to himself.

Picking up your dress, he puffes it and shook the sands out before swinging it over his shoulder. I'll wait. He tells himself. No one can swim underwater for that long.

So he does. Sitting down on the sand, he lets his eyes do the roaming, trying to spot you in the clear empty sea. Little waves were all there were for a while. Until soon a minute and two passes, and even the waves are dying down, he starts to worry.

Did you drown yourself? On purpose? Is that why this whole feast was held for? A last goodbye party before you killed yourself? He jumps up and throws your your dress off before taking his thickly sown clothes along.

Jacaerys is running into the water now, he's moving as fast as he can, searching through his left and right for any signs of you. The water was reaching his waist now, he takes a deep breath and dives in. He swims slowly, eyes wide open as he searches all around him. Once his lungs feels as though they've caught fire, he gives in and rises back up, coughing out water.

"My lady?" He yells slightly, still coughing. "My lady?" He tries again louder, walking further into the sea.

His heart was beating so fast he was sure it'd jump out. She's dead at the bottom of the ocean. Because you're too late.

His fingers were clenching at his side, shaking whilst also feeling the urge to punch someone. Once his breath has recovered themselves, he stares straight at the moon, and calls out for you again.

"My lady-" "Why are you yelling?" A voice beside him shouts.

Jacaerys jolts and turns to his left, taking in the view of your head above the water on his further left. "My lady." He gasps out, a relieved sigh leaving him.You watches as his body relaxes and he starts to walk towards you.

"What are you doing? Its half past midnight." He scolds you like a child, the strangeness between you both makes it feel worse, earning him a frown from you. "What's it to you?" You snapped, backing away from him when he's close. Jacaerys almost backs away when he remembers you were naked, but halts when he sees the white material covering you. "What- did you bring a coat? To swim?" Your eyes widen and your mouth opens to defend yourself but nothing came.

"It helps me swim." You decided finally.

He stares at you as if you're crazy. "Oh my god, I was right. You were trying to kill yourself." Your frown deepens and you raise your hand to slap his bicep before swimming further from him. "Why would I do that, you idiot? And what are you doing here? Following me and making accusations, I should tell my father of your behaviour." You yell louder at him.

He's startled by the confidence in your voice, a few minutes ago, he was certain you were mute, now he's been proven wrong. "You- you can talk." He breathes out, the realization hitting him late. "Why wouldn't you talk earlier?"

You shook off strands of your wet hair off your face. "Because I don't like talking to stupid men." Jacaerys bursts out laughing, againts his better judgement. "And such blatantly rude way of talking too!" He's bewildered by his discovery of you. "You think you're so funny? We'll see who's laughing when my father hears of this."

"I thought you tried to kill yourself! And with that heavy arse coat, you probably were. Have you tire of your life so much or did Dalton Greyjoy's annoying voice made you think the only way it could disappear from your memory is by death?"

He thought he'd done it then. Jacaerys was anything but courteous as the moment, but he had to ask, the whole situation was so amusing and bizarre that he had to. But then he notices your eyes squinting together whilst the frown had disappeared, and your lips were no longer pouting, it was grinning widely.

You were laughing. In fact, he's sure you could've woken up a deadly whale by your laugh. Not for how loud it was, but for how beautiful.

He's never heard anyone laugh like a melody. He understood now the songs he heard written of sirens luring sailors to their ends. For he'd drown there and then if you'd ask him to, with the same voice. You laughed again when you saw how stupidly he was smiling at you.

You're both in the deep waters, half naked with the moon at your feets. And you wondered if anyone had even noticed your disappearence or have wines made it's effect on them. "You're shirtless." You spoke then, after you've calmed down. His cheeks pinked as he puts on an annoyed face. "I- I was going to save you." You laughed again, right on his face as you finally swam closer.

"Alright, you can stop laughing now, we need to get back." You laughed louder, receiving a sigh from the young prince who finally gave up and moved toward the dry sands.

He snatched his clothing fast before putting it back on, squintinng at your floating head as you still stayed in the water. "Come on, get dressed." He tried to tell you as strict as he could sound. "I'm not changing in front of you, squid hands." His head jolts back at the insult. Were you calling him touchy or were you insulting his hands?

"Wha- you know, just- here's the dress, alright? I'll turn around."

He did as he said as you dressed yourself quickly and started walking to the castles without saying anything. The prince chases after you once he notices you've walked off, his footsteps making a mark on the sand. "What, no more talking?" You say nothing and shoved him off until he falls onto the sand when he tries to goad you.

Your face turns to your side as you try to hide your laugh when you hear him rolling off the grounds with a loud oof. "I'll get you for that-" he yells, voice sounding distant as you scrambled to the nearest stairs to your room, away from him.

♧♣︎♧

The first time you've been on a ship, was a few moons after you were claimed as Corlys' bastard. He wanted to see how you'd react to the sea. And his heart skipped when he sees how much you adored it and the ship. It was a sail to Kingslanding, you came with guards on your own, the queen's face was one so blurry, you can't recall how she looked like. But she was kind, despite the stern edge in her voice.

You were locked in a given chamber and had not seen or met anyone else besides the servants. Once time was up, you went back home with your father.

You never told him, or anyone. But being on that ship had brought back nightmares of your mother's death. Sailors were going mad that day. You were only 5, your mother and many other sea creatures had been caught by sailors. And not the usual ones.

Royal sailors.

They were more violent than the usual ones, they threw back many dead sea animals into the sea again. You presumed they weren't deemed good enough for the royalties. Your mother had disappeared for two days, she wasn't caught with the others and was instead snatched during her run from them. A singular harsh net pulled her up, and you saw the large but less noisy ship took her away from you.

When she finally came back, it was in the form of a corpse, and a woman. Her selkie coat was gone, and she had a straight line of a wound in between her chest. Dried up blood stained her along with your unseen tears.

If Corlys had known, he'd be much more insistent in seperatimg you fron the Targaryens, as it was their sigil on the ship.

But you were too young to be sure of what you'd seen, and too confused to point fingers towards anyone.

Evening had come, It was time for Rhaena to leave to Dragonstone with her family. You weren't going to send her off with your father as planned. You refuse to. That'll show him.

Dressed in your nightdress already, you groaned lowly when you heard a knock on the doors of your chambers.

You waited 10 seconds before walking up to answer it, counting with your fingers so you wouldn't seem desperate or too quick to accept your father's apology.

You almost flinch when the door opens to reveal Daemon Targaryen. He looks as confused as you are as he takes in your already sleepy appearance. "Why aren't you dressed to go yet?" You tilt your head in confusion.

"Ah." Daemon relaxes and hia knowing smirk returns to his face. "He purposely didn't tell you, that old cow. I've talked to your father, he's allowing you to come."

You continue to stare at him dumbly. Was he trying to kidnap you without your father's knowing. "I speak the truth when I tell you, he said yes. I also speak the truth when I say that the ship is leaving soon and you have barely half an hour to get dressed and packed."

Your eyes widen at the time given and spared him no thanks before you slam the door on his face and rush to your closet.

Was that all it took? A few insults (probably) from the rogue prince to get him to surrender? It didn't matter. You were leaving this box of a life, and you were going to make friends out of these people.

When the sharp memory of Jacaerys' face flashes on your mind. You took a deep breath and forced yourself to forget him. Soon enough after seeing his face on a daily, you'll tire of him. You're sure of it.

#jacaerys velaryon x reader #house of the dragon #jacaerys velaryon #hotd x reader #jace velaryon x reader #house of the dragon x reader #game of thrones #jace targaryen x reader #hotd #jacaerys targaryen

170 notes · View notes