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#unfortunately none of the friends I made in previous classes are taking the same classes as me this sem :(
iiigris · 2 years
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I think there is a certain kind of special bond created between two people finding out they’ve purchased the same set of D&D dice. Whether that bond is a good or bad thing I’ve yet to find out.
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bless-my-demons · 1 year
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Redamancy: Chapter Two
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Jasper Hale x Reader
Series Summary: What happens when your soulmate is a vampire that struggles to maintain a diet of trying not to kill you? Common sense says run for the hills, nothing is worth your life - but my heart is whispering why not, what’s there to lose?
Warnings: None
Notes: So sorry it took me more than a week to post, life kind of imploded and knocked me off the schedule I had planned. This chapter is honestly just filler so it can get to the good stuff… I plan to take this story all the way to Breaking Dawn at the very least. Thank you for all the love on the previous chapter!! Enjoy!
Word Count: 1695
Series Masterlist
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• January 24th, 2005 • Forks High School •
Reader
Thankfully the first half of the day went rather uneventful, although I am disappointed I haven’t had a class with the handsome Jasper Hale yet. I did however, make friends with his adopted siblings Alice and Emmett Cullen. Both of which are gorgeous in their own right, but nowhere near as attractive as their blonde brother.
In English I sat in the unoccupied seat next to Alice Cullen, gratefully so. She seems like just the kind of friend a new girl needs in order to survive high school. I transferred to this place at such a horrible time in the year - almost at the end of my 11th grade. But after just a few minutes of knowing her, Alice caught me up on everything I missed. Turns out I’ve pretty much read everything they had covered this year and then some, fingers crossed that it continues to be a trend in most of my classes.
I learned that the boy walking with Jasper Hale this morning when I so rudely almost killed him with the door to the front office, is his adopted brother Emmett Cullen. A hulking mass of muscle, but a complete teddy bear, he kept me entertained for most of Trig. I can already tell that sitting in front of him was probably a bad move on my part for my academic career, but the guy is an absolute comedian.
Parting ways with Emmett after Math, I made my way to my locker. Digging the wrinkled combination paper out of my pocket, I was studying the numbers right when I bumped into a thin scrap of a girl with brown hair and an orange backpack. Immediately cursing myself I dropped to the ground to gather her notes before they could be stepped on by the stampede of people rushing to the cafeteria for lunch.
“Oh my god I’m so sorry! I-I just wasn’t paying attention, I was looking at my stupid locker combination and-“ I scrambled for excuses, word vomit spilling from my lips.
“Oh um, it’s okay! I’m not the most graceful person, so no worries.” An awkward pause, “Hey, you’re the new girl right?” She asked.
“Unfortunately.” I replied, looking up with a sad smile. I stuck out my hand to shake, “I’m Y/n Y/l/n, you are?”
“Bella Swan, former new girl I guess.” She responded as she lightly shook my hand. “You can sit with me during lunch if you want, maybe us gracefully-challenged should stick together.”
“Oh absolutely.” I chuckled a little, “I’ll grab my lunch from my locker and find you in there.”
“Cool, see you then.” She replied with a half-wave as she continued down the hallway to the cafeteria.
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Jasper
One of the convenient things about being a vampire is that we really don’t necessarily need to breathe. In public places packed with humans, I can just hold my breath, but the challenge comes in making it still seem like I’m breathing.
Lost in my thoughts while Emmett and Rosalie drone on about plans after school, I spot the new girl - Y/n enter the cafeteria. I sit up straighter in my seat and observe her shamelessly as she walks unknowingly in my direction, switching paths as she spots the object of Edward’s latest desire: Isabella Swan. I spare a glance to my stoic adopted brother and see him rising from his seat, probably headed in the same direction as Y/n.
Walking up to the pair, I could tell his eyes were only on Isabella. Both girls stared up at him in awe, their emotions giving away that they were surprised to see him seeking them, or rather a certain one of them, out.
“Isabella-“ Edward started but was interrupted by Y/n.
“I’ll… go find us a seat.” Bella didn’t even spare her a glance as Y/n rushed away.
“Bro, you’re staring a little hard there, something catch your eye?” Emmett said, leaning over Rosalie to nudge my ribs. I turn to him and discreetly flash a crude gesture, causing him to chuckle. I love my brother, he just thrives on getting a rise out of me any chance he gets.
Alice smacks my shoulder, “You two behave, she’s shy and I’ll be upset if your rowdiness scares her off.” My adopted sister huffs in slight frustration at our antics.
“As if we need another human in our business.” Rosalie grumbles from her spot between myself and her mate. Crossing her arms, she stares daggers at the back of Edward’s head from where he’s talking to Bella Swan.
“Oh hush, I want more friends outside of you guys, plus Y/n is relatively safe. Cheer up Rose, I’ve already seen you get along with her rather nicely!” Alice fires back at Rose.
“I haven’t even met her yet-“ Rosalie leans forward to argue.
“But you will and you’ll love her, end of story.” Alice says matter-of-factly.
Rose leans back in her seat, huffing as Emmett pats her thigh. She swipes his hand away, not happy that he finds it amusing that she’ll have to deal with another one of her brother’s fixations on a human girl. It’s always so easy to read Rosalie’s emotions, she wears them so boldly and almost prefers to torture me with their intensity sometimes, as if to get her point across even more than her biting words.
I let out a sigh at their exchange concerning Y/n, she’s been here for half a day and already a hot topic for even us.
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I’ve been in a trance pretty much since lunch, the two classes following it were uneventful allowing my thoughts to fill with day-dreams of the new girl.
Her hair, the way her oversized sweater hangs from her shoulders, her intoxicating scent…
The bell ending sixth period startles me from my reverie. This girl almost put a me-sized-dent in the door to the front office this morning and here I am obsessing over minuscule details after only seeing her twice.
I gather my notes and writing utensils before filing out of the door behind my fellow classmates. I slow my walk to the next class in hopes that I might catch a glimpse of her before the end of the day. I don’t even know her emotional signature yet like I do my adopted siblings, a handy ability I’ve managed to teach myself to find them in busy situations.
My search for Y/n comes up short, the hallways are mostly empty by the time the warning bell rings for the final instruction of the day. With a small huff I enter my seventh period class keeping my eyes on the floor as I make my way to my assigned seat.
“Glad you could make it in the nick of time, Mister Hale.” Mr. Ellis states rather loudly in an accusatory tone, raising an eyebrow as I sit and the final tardy bell rings.
An almost imperceptible gasp to my right keeps me from replying, I clamp my mouth shut and force myself not to meet the gaze I could feel boring into my back as flames begin to lick down my throat.
Wonderful, not only was I late enough to garner the attention of everyone in the room, but Y/n Y/l/n is in my history class and I can’t breathe for the next forty-four minutes.
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• January 24th, 2005 • Home •
Reader
“How was school sweetheart?” My mother yells from the kitchen as I push open our front door, I swear that woman wastes no time when digging for information.
“Jeez, let me get in the door first!” I yell back with a light-hearted chuckle, setting my backpack on the ground by the couch just inside the living room.
“Sorry, I’m just excited to see how everything went.” Her voice is much closer this time and I turn to see her walking down the connecting hallway wiping her hands on a dish towel.
I flop onto my back on the couch as she leans over the back, folding her arms under her chest with an expectant look on her face ready for my response.
“Well, I don’t think it’ll be hard to catch up in-“ but my mom interrupts me excitedly.
“No, no, no! I need the good stuff! Did you make any friends? See any cute guys?” I could burst out laughing at the look on her face and the fact that she’s more concerned about my social life than my academics on the first day of school in a new town.
“Mom!” I drag the word out in exasperation as I smush a decorative pillow to my face to hide the slight heat in my cheeks.
“There’s a cute boy! I knew it!” She practically yells in victory, “tell me everything, baby girl!”
I pull the pillow down enough to reveal my eyes to her, “I almost killed him with a door.” I mumble in a rather sad tone.
“Oh dear God.” She immediately becomes serious, rounding the couch to push my legs off, forcing me upright so she can sit next to me, “it can’t be that bad!”
“I wasn’t looking while I pushed open the door to the front office and he barely caught it in time before it hit him square in the face!” I blurt out in a rush and drop the pillow to cover my face with my hands. “Definitely not the way to start off on the right foot.”
“Oh honey,” she tries to sooth me, guiding my hands away from my face and into her hold, “look at it this way - you’ve captured his attention in a way that’ll be memorable. Sure it isn’t without embarrassment, but now you’ve made a first impression he’ll never forget!”
“Yeah and I’ll probably never hear the end of it.” I mumble as I bury my face in her shoulder, sighing deeply. I hesitate, “We do have one class together.”
The gasp my mother lets out immediately sends me into a fit of giggles, forgetting all about my early morning embarrassment.
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doodles5555 · 3 months
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Mary's Song (Oh my my my)
Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Female!Reader, Steve Rogers x Adopted Sister!Reader
Summary: This fic will follow the lyrics of the song “Mary’s Song” by Taylor Swift
Word Count: 1500+
Warnings: None! A little angst at the end that is unresolved, but since this is just a blip in the character's lives, it will be ok by the beginning of the next chapter.
A/N: Here is some probably necessary information before starting: In this fic, all of our characters are a bit older than in the last one. Timelines and some details may be a bit wonky, but that's ok. I hope you enjoy!
p.s this is not a lyric fic, but instead, a fic that was inspired by the song
Chapter 2:
Sitting on the ground underneath the shade of the biggest tree in your backyard, you are focused on your favorite book, and your brother, Steve, is quietly humming to himself while working on some of his math homework. You can see the tip of his pencil moving around in smooth motions. You look over to the bright paper and see him doodling some pretty flowers on an expanding landscape, and you can imagine them in your mother's garden, the one your father built himself as a gift for your mother's birthday last year.
“That’s very pretty Stevie. You’re so talented, y’know that? I hope you do. One day, I’ll get to see your amazing artwork in a gallery. I just know it,” you ramble out before you even think about it. 
You see the corners of his smile tug upwards. You only wish he knew you really meant it. His skill is beyond his years. His teachers often comment about the doodles left on his classwork, about how he should take some art classes, to further his knowledge and skill. 
You had overheard your mother and father arguing about saving up some extra money, cutting any extra expenses to pay for any costs regarding the proposed extracurricular. Still, it ended up the same every time – Times were getting tougher, money was harder to come by, and panic was starting to settle like dust in the community. Any leftover profits from previous years were going to support your family. The stock market crashed only a few months ago, and you and Steve were none the wiser to how bad it truly had gotten.
“Maybe one day buttercup,” the nickname rolls off his tongue with ease for the commonality of its use, making his words sound sweeter than the undertones. Steve understood that your family was in an unfortunate situation and had grown poorer in the more recent months, noticing smaller dinners on the dining table and less familial outings, but he wouldn’t let that stop him from practicing and utilizing his drawing as a creative outlet. It helped him keep in touch with how he feels.
“Hey, Punk! Buttercup!” Shouting could be heard from the other side of the fence. As you turn toward the sound of the voice, you spot Bucky in the act of climbing over the worn-out fence surrounding your house. As his feet reach the ground, he races over to the shade the tree provides. He plops down at Steve’s feet, his eyes gazing upwards towards the paper in his hands. He snatches it, almost tearing the frail sheet with his tight grip. His blue eyes scan the paper intensely. The wide-eyed expression that lights up his face is priceless.
This wasn’t the first time that Bucky had seen one of Steve’s impressive drawings, but this one seemed to strike a chord in his brain. He just seems to be fascinated by the image.
“Wow, just wow,” Bucky is in awe of the gift that his best friend possesses. “So when will I be seeing this in a museum?” Bucky continues. Steve lets out a small chuckle, the idea absurd in his head.
“As cool as that would be, I already know that will not be my future.” You knew Steve always dreamed of joining the army and battling alongside other determined men and women defending the country, but that fantasy just wasn’t possible in his current state. You would never say anything to crush his persistence since the idea made him so happy, but you would always worry about his safety if he ever went through with it.
“As long as you’re happy, then we will support you, no matter what!” You smile. You meant what you said, and you know Bucky shares the sentiment. 
—--
As the sun passes through the sky and falls below the horizon line, you and the boys start running around the yard and playing tag. Steve was huffing and puffing, needing to sit out for a second to avoid an angry asthma attack. You and Bucky had been playfully bickering while the time-out was called on Steve’s behalf.
“I was goin’ to get you, I just know it!” You exclaimed through hard breaths.
“Yeah, yeah, sure you were,” Bucky said with a good-natured eye roll. 
Sensing his playful spirit, you sprint towards him intending to knock him to the ground, but you can only slightly shake him off the spot where he stands.
“Oh, you’re asking for it, Buttercup!” He tries to grab you from where you are, but you swiftly dodge his hands, barely escaping his grip. You run in towards Steve, trying to hide behind him while he is still recovering. Bucky wouldn’t want to hurt Steve by accident just to get to you, right?
Before you can even test that thought, Bucky manages to get a hold on the back of your shirt, slowing you down just enough for him to be able to strengthen his grasp on you. He throws you over his shoulder, and you shriek in surprise.
“Let me down, you goof!” Giggles are pouring from your mouth as Bucky carries you towards the big oak tree. You start to lightly hit his back as a signal for him to put you down on the solid dirt. As he starts to do so, your unstable legs accidentally make you stumble and start to fall. Unluckily for Bucky, he was still holding on to you, so you end up as a clump of bodies on the ground. You can hear Steve shout from the other side of the yard, most likely asking if you are both okay. You holler a confirmation before assessing the situation you have gotten yourself into.
Bucky adjusts himself so that his body is hovering over yours, his body being propped up above you. You can’t seem to stop staring at his eyes. They have you in some sort of powerful trance; you can’t escape if you try, but you don’t want to stop. Bucky seems to share the sentiment because your eye contact goes unbroken for what feels like minutes. You see Bucky’s mouth start to move, but what he says doesn’t register in your ears. Before you can process what you are about to say, it spills from your parted lips.
“Kiss me,” your words are breathless. Your face surely mirrors Bucky's expression; The shock is evident, but he isn’t off put by the idea. He nods, the motion so small that you barely catch it. 
He wants to kiss you. You want to kiss him. This recurring dream is coming to life right before you. This is all you have wanted since you realized your emotions for Bucky are more than platonic. He leans in, now inches from your face.
You freeze.
Every other thought bouncing around seized to a stop at that moment. You start to scramble out of Bucky’s gentle hold, untangling your body as quickly as you possibly can. Your panic is palpable. You hustle to your feet and book it towards Steve. You look over your shoulder to interpret the situation you ran away from. The regret starts to simmer beneath the flush on your skin.
Bucky’s face doesn’t show much emotion, but you can read the disappointment in his body language. His shoulders are slumped and his demeanor is troubled, almost as if he is grieving the loss of your body from under his. You automatically feel like a jerk. In your frenzy, you didn’t even think how Bucky would react to your sudden frantic disinterest in an innocent kiss.
The tears started to well in your eyes. You stammer out an excuse to head back inside the house to the comfort of your room before you let the drops roll down your cheeks.
—--
A few days have come and passed since the “incident” with Bucky, and you have been trying to avoid him. You know he feels whatever it is that is bubbling inside of you, but your embarrassment has stopped you from trying to fix the mess that you created. The consequences of your actions are starting to catch up with you. You are miserable without his companionship. Even Steve has started making comments about Bucky’s sudden absenteeism from your days under the oak tree. You want to mend the tear you created in your friendship, but the uncertainty of how Bucky may react is sending you in the complete opposite direction. 
Growing up alongside each other has created a special bond between the two of you. You never had many friends, seemingly always on the outside of everyone in your year at school. You were also not a stranger to rude remarks and getting into fights trying to defend your honor. Everything culminated in your only friends being your brother and his best friend. 
Were you lonely at school? Yes, but that didn’t matter because once you reached your front porch, you had everyone you needed at your fingertips. 
Now that one of the members of your tiny group was consistently missing, it felt as though a piece of the puzzle was missing, just shy of being complete. You know you need to fix the mess you created, but you are unsure of how to do so.
Oh my my my…
—--
A/N: Thanks for reading! I am a very busy college student, so it may take a while for me to get to writing and posting part 3, but I will do my best for it to come out sooner rather than later. Have a great rest of your day/night!
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kaidenya · 3 years
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Getting Caught ✧ MHA
Description: Headcanons for getting caught in a intimate moment with Hitoshi Shinso, Tenya Iida, Mirio Togata, & Tomura Shigaraki
WARNING: NSFW, suggestive content NOTE: This is a repost of an old SHITPOST headcanon I had on my previous account so if this looks familiar I hope you enjoy it the second time around!
“Nobody will know...”
Shinso
Shinso would go to his grave claiming that you were to blame for this situation
But in all honesty, he had been allowing things to build for far too long
You two weren’t necessarily a secret, but most people just assumed you were bEsT fRiEnDs 🥴
It was an honest misunderstanding
You had decided to keep physical contact to a minimum after an unfortunate attempt at holding his hand left you believing he didn’t enjoy any forms of PDA.
Shinso had just assumed the same about you.
However, as the two of you grew more serious, you found it more difficult to keep your hands to yourself
It just so happened your boyfriend had been working extremely hard in the hero course and it s h o w e d
You had found yourself admiring his changing physique and in turn, found you weren’t the only one admiring your boyfriend.
You weren’t necessarily jealous— you trusted him more than anything, but he tended to be socially constipated
And nobody seemed to know about you. Thus giving the other interested parties an unintentional greenlight to flirt with him. And there was one girl that had stood out among the sea of suitors.
Each time you saw the second-year girl perch next to Shinso it made your skin crawl, but no lines had been crossed.
Until they were.
Your knuckles were gripping the strap of your bag so tightly it ached when you made your way to where your boyfriend was perched outside
The second-year didn’t even acknowledge you as she continued her flirtatious ways and you don’t resist the urge to roll your eyes as you settle into the place next to him.
He had flashes you a lazy smile before focusing back on his phone screen.
Then her hand landed on his upper thigh
Let me tell you: sleepy boy was shocked when she touched him, but he was EVEN MORE SHOCKED when you took her by the wrist and tossed her hand to the side
You waste no time threading your fingers with his, rising to your feet and all but hauling him from his seat
His amusement only grew as he realized just how jealous you had gotten, a smirk forming over his lips as he set to teasing you
‘What’s the matter, kitty? You don’t like anyone touching daddy?’
NO, YOU DO NOT
You have no idea how you ended up on your knees in a supply closet??
Shinso is feeling very sure of himself above you, using the hand that was gripping the back of your neck as leverage to hold you down on his length
k i n g of dirty talk 🤭
Absolutely cannot help himself when it comes to telling you how pretty you look choking on his cock
Honestly doesn’t last long, but what do you expect? Seeing your jealous and possessive response to the girl he had given little to no acknowledgment had lit a fire in his chest
He was desperate to get his hands on you, to remind you that he was just as much yours as you were his.
And when he does— oh MAN he makes you forget all about the second-year girl
He has one of your legs draped over his shoulder as he goes down on you, licking and sucking at you in a way that had you trembling
You accidentally knock over a pile of brooms and mops, neither of you paying them any mind as your head lulled in bliss
If only you had remembered to flick the lock on the door…
Kirishima really thought someone was banging on the door for help. It wouldn’t have been manly— or heroic not to make sure someone wasn’t in trouble
Besides, why else would someone be making so much noise in a supply closet if they weren’t stuck??
So when the door swung open and he locked eyes with you, still panting and moaning as an all too familiar head of purple hair buried further into your heat—
He let out the loudest shout he could muster. Apologies poured from his mouth as he fumbled to shut the door
However, your boyfriend made no move to let you go. Instead, he hummed against your skin, only leaning back to nip at your inner thigh before speaking in a heavy voice
‘Better make this fast, kitty.’
Iida
So you’ve tried to keep your relationship on the down-low bc Iida doesn’t want anyone to think he’s distracted
We all know he just doesn’t wanna be called out for his obvious favoritism
Before you got together you were constantly pushing him, breaking minuscule rules in favor of gaining his attention. Nothing too immoral, but enough to get under his skin.
Like slipping into class just seconds after the bell had rung, nearly avoiding Aizawa’s attention, but never making it past Iida.
Or when a class had gotten a bit too stressful, the room filling with hot air as tensions rose and you had to pop open a few buttons of your uniform top
Then there was your favorite offense; desk sitting. If there was one sure way to get a reaction from your stickler of a boyfriend it was to place yourself on top of a desk.
Which is what you found yourself doing at the end of an unfavorable week. The two of you hadn’t gotten a moment together outside of your studies and you were growing needy.
So with a few moments of free time before class began, you decided to chat with Tsu and Uraraka, settling atop the desk between them when you had grown tired of standing
The desk belonging to none other than Tenya
Your ankles were crossed as you leaned forward to speak with Tsuyu and he was beyond s h o o k
Immediate hand chopping.
He’s towering over you, ranting about how your behavior was improper while keeping his hands clenched in an attempt to keep from running his fingertips along your thighs.
When was the last time you were this close to him? It had to have been longer than he realized for him to have such a strong reaction— are you biting your lip??
Any response between you died off as Aizawa addressed the class and you were sent back to your seat, leaving Iida far more frazzled than you realized
The moment class ends he has you tucked under an empty stairwell to continue his lecture
Only he doesn’t get very far
Tenya Iida has an authority kink. I take no criticism.
When you look up at him from under your lashes, muttering the words ‘yes sir’ as he chastised you, his resolve was shattered
Has you pressed against the wall immediately, fisting your blazer as he dips to press his forehead to yours
‘Why must you push me?’
Doesn’t even let you answer before his mouth is covering yours, hips arching to grind his obvious arousal against you
Knowing he had been just as affected by your as you had him was enough to spur a moan past your lips and he takes the chance to slide his tongue into your mouth
Although he was MORTIFIED at the impropriety of it all, he couldn’t resist the sweet noises you made as he expertly worked against you
His hand eventually slides between you, pushing past the waistband of your bottoms and grinding his palm against you teasingly
‘Now, who do you belong to, darling?’
You you youyouyou—
Your hand was rubbing along Iida’s hard cock, his length straining against his pants to the point you’re almost worried they’ll rip
Somehow the two of you had been so lost in one another that you hadn’t heard the door open at the top of the stairwell
Denki and Mineta honestly weren’t creeping this time— they just wanted a snack from the vending machine adjacent to you!
Got a whole ass meal instead 👁👄👁
A moan tore from your throat, quickly being smothered by Tenya’s parted lips as you came on his fingers
You had barely made out the echoing sound of objects clattering to the ground through the ringing in your ears
But your boyfriend had heard
His lips separated from you in an instant, shocked gaze shifting into something closer to anger as he recognized your classmates
Denki began stammering out an apology, looking close to short-circuiting as his attention flickered between you
Mineta had let his gaze linger on you for too long. His eyes taking in the way your exposed chest— Tenya must have pulled the buttons loose
You cringe away from his gaze, post-orgasm haze™ spurring you to tuck yourself closer to Tenya to avoid their stares rather than snap at them
It was your obvious discomfort that had kicked Iida into gear, twisting to thread your button your blouse together before rounding on the others
If embarrassment wasn’t enough, the thought of them having seen you in such a vulnerable position had him seething as he began his lecture
Attempts hand chopping them into submission, but they kept disregarding his words in favor of catching another glimpse of you in a fucked out state
All fondness for his classmates had vanished as he stepped into their line of sight, shielding you from their gazes. His eyes almost daring them to continue
Whatever words lingering on their tongues died off, heads bowing in shame as they agreed to keep the entire situation to themselves
After all, the potential wrath of Tenya Iida was not something to be taken lightly.
Mirio
Mirio’s love language is touch, without a doubt, so it’s honestly surprising when he’s NOT trying to get handsy with you
He’s always defended his obvious displays of affection by claiming he had so little free time— he’d be a fool to waste the opportunity to touch you!
Mirio jumped at the opportunity to feel you against him. Whether it was a heavy kiss to your lips after walking you to class, a hand slipping under your shirt to caress your back, or his fingers trailing teasingly along your thigh.
However, as much as he was attentive, he was also forgetful.
It was because of that forgetfulness that you found yourself alone in your dorm. Countless boxes of takeout were lined up on your desk and a pre-planned movie was ready to play on your small tv.
After a few hours and countless delivered messages, you succumbed to disappointment.
The following day Mirio can’t seem to figure out why you’re avoiding him, but he refuses to give up without a fight.
Definitely thinks it’s a game of some sort and takes it upon himself to break your silent streak
It wasn’t easy being upset with Mirio. He had an uncanny ability to brighten any room he stepped into and being irrevocably in love with him only strengthened his effect
He’s always hard for you and loves letting you know just how you affect him— so why not place a hand on your hand, pressing firmly against your back when he slips past?
You always look so stunning— why not feed you compliments at every given moment?
How could he not look at you with the most iNTENSE GAZE undressing you with his eyes in front of everyone?
It’s when he realizes that you aren’t reacting to his teasing and flirtatious behaviorist that he caves.
He finds you between classes, stirring you away from the crowd, despite your wordless protests. It isn’t until you’re tucked away in an abandoned hall that he finally asks what was wrong
You had fully intended on dragging it out, allowing anger to push you on. But he spoke to you in the softest voice, looked at you with eyes filled with so much devotion that it was nearly overwhelming
He is shocked when you shove him away— were you tearing up??
Actually gets super defensive because he doesn’t realize HES the one that made you upset
Once you finally cave and remind him about the date he had missed it hits him like a freight train.
The two of you so rarely got time together and he had stood you up.
‘I’m so sorry, baby. I’ve been so busy lately— I didn’t realize I was neglecting you.’
Does not waste time making it up to you. He cups your face in his hands as he starts placing soft kisses on your face, cooing softly as tears roll down your cheeks
Did somebody say praise kink?
How can you stay mad at him when he’s telling you how sorry he is and that he loves you and you’re the only one his dick will get hard for??
It isn’t long before he’s pinned you between him and the wall, hitching your legs around his waist while coaxing you into a heavy kiss
His hips flex to grind against you, his hot length slotting between your thighs as he digs his fingertips into the curve of your ass
Mirio does not care that somebody could see— his quirk leaves him naked all the time and he’s shameless 🥵
But again he’s so forgetful—
And he was meant to go straight to class 1A to talk with them alongside the other members of The Big Three
So when he didn’t show up Aizawa had sent Tamaki and Midoriya in search of their future number one hero
How were you supposed to know they would turn the corner just as you arched from the wall?
Mirio had no idea anyone was there as he used the hand that was wrapped around your throat as leverage to grind you over the edge—
bOY were you embarrassed when you heard the two boys audibly g a s p
Midoriya’s embarrassment nearly gave Tamaki a run for his money. You were quick to turn away, immediately hiding your face in his chest as he greeted the duo in an overly cheerful voice
Absolutely teases the three of you over the incident FOREVER!!
Shigaraki
Shigaraki was obsessed with you.
There was no way around how infatuated he had become and it only seemed to grow alongside your relationship
He was touch starved. The moment you began giving him physical affection and attention it was game over
He had no shame, especially when it came to his desire for you, which is how you often found yourself perched on his lap no matter the company.
That being said, the leader of the League of Villains became intolerable when the two of you were separated for long.
And a recent spiral of events has prevented you from returning to the hideout, thus leaving the others to deal with him
You weren’t expected to return until the following week. Aside from texting Shigaraki endlessly (didn’t he have anything better to do?) and assuring Twice and Toga that you’d be returning as soon as possible, you hadn’t had much contact with the League
Shigaraki was wound up tight, lashing out at the others far more than usual. That was how he ended up sitting at the bar, Father concealing his annoyance as Kurogiri took over the meeting.
And suddenly you were walking in, muttering a quick apology before taking the only available seat beside Toga
Shigaraki could not keep his eyes off of you, something that doesn’t go unnoticed by the others. It was the most present he had been since you left.
Of course, that meant Dabi has also noticed and never missing an opportunity to mess with their ruthless leader he shifted closer from his place behind you, muttering small talk into your ear
There is no doubt in my mind that Shigaraki was staring at you both like 😠 behind Father
Luckily the meeting had been wrapping up upon your arrival and the group was dismissed, many leaving to handle their own business.
However, the moment you had leaped to your feet Tomura had vanished from the room
With a sigh you moved over to the bar, sliding into the seat that had once been occupied by your man and Kurogiri placed a drink before you
By the time you had downed the last bit the bar had gotten eerily quiet, though when you shifted to speak to the Misty Man he was already looking over your shoulder. With a single nod, he had left the room.
The moment he was gone leather artist gloves shoved under your top, your heart racing at the all too familiar feeling as a palm settled between your shoulders
‘I’ve missed you, pet.’
There was a harsh tone to his voice, but it was contradicted by the trail of open-mouthed kisses he pressed along your neck and shoulder
Your entire body arched against him, head craning back to catch a glimpse of him, smiling widely as you met his gaze and returned the sentiment
A scoff slid past his lips, though you could see the amusement dancing in his gaze as his hand reached around to wrap around your throat
Despite the gloves, he kept a pinky in the air
His mouth covers yours in a sloppy kiss as his hips jolt sharply against you, knocking you against the countertop
Absolutely cannot control himself as he ruts against you, wasting little to no time in pushing your bottoms down past your thighs
Heat pooled in your stomach as his free hand reached between you to pull himself from his jeans
His dick slid between your thighs, a throaty whine sliding past your lips and despite the slick from your arousal the thick head stretched you perfectly
You had been completely lost in him, moaning and whining freely as he continued to rut against you.
There was a click throughout the room, similar to the door handle being twisted and your attention was adverted to the source
However, Shigaraki was faster.
He grabbed the back of your head and using his hold as leverage to press your face flat against the bar-top while his other hand worked against your sensitive center. A loud moan that was undoubtedly his name tumbled past your lips
‘There’s my little slut— louder, make sure they know who makes you feel this good.’
Unbeknownst to you, the person he wanted to be sure knew you were his had entered the room, Tomura meeting his gaze with a smirk as you began chanting his name like a prayer
A harsh thrust of his hips sent you over the edge as you came on his cock, filthy praises slipping past his lips as his hot release rolled down your thighs
He placed another sloppy kiss on the back of your neck before parting from you.
The moment you lift your head and begin adjusting yourself you lock eyes with Dabi
Embarrassed didn’t even begin to explain how you felt as Tomura let out a loud laugh, reaching down to pull your bottoms up after he had tucked himself away
‘Go wait on my bed while I speak with Dabi and I may let you come on my tongue.’
You wasted no time hurrying away from the two, heart pounding from both excitement and humiliation as you rushed to do as you were told
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randomshyperson · 3 years
Note
Hi!! Hope you're doing good and drinking water :) May i request something? 😁 I was listening to "the 1" by Taylor Swift (queen) and got me thinking about a Wanda X Reader story where maybe idk they dated in high school/college but ended cause whatever reason but they never actually stopped liking eachother (yknow, like the song) and then they just meet somewhere and get to talk and you know... happy ending lol But only if you like the idea really. Have a good one!
Hello anon! Here it is, hope you like it. It’s short but is sweet, i hope you like it.
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Wanda Maximoff x Reader - The One
Summary: Prompt based “A story where Reader and Wanda broke up and never stopped loving each other. Inspired by the song “The 1″ from Taylor Swift.
Words:  2.531k    ///// Read on AO3
Warnings: None.
Marks: @mionemymind @wandamaximoffpuppy
Wanda Maximoff came into your life during autumn.
You were both in the same art history class, and she lent you a pen.
All it took was two dates, and you were completely in love. Unfortunately, as quickly as it started, your relationship burned out.
You wish you had a big plot justification, with betrayals and twists and turns to justify to your friends your emotional misery when it ended, but the only reason was the complete emotional immaturity you had.
There were fights, and accusations, and so much jealousy. And you wish so much that you had gotten over it, but you couldn't. And then Wanda was gathering the clothes that she had in your dormitory, and throwing the key at you.
You swore you wouldn't cry anymore, because there were no more tears after so many weeks, but you kept going. Until all that was left was the bitter feeling that you had ruined everything and lost the most important person in your life.
It had been more than two years since you two had broken up, and you still had the number saved on your cell phone with a heart emoji, even though the conversation had been archived a long time ago. And then you were walking out of the main building at NYU, and your friend Natasha Romanoff called out to you as she walked quickly toward you.
- Hey, girl! - she said with a smile. - How are you?
You shrugged as you walked with her around the campus toward the secondary building, where the Philosophy classrooms were.
- I’m surviving. - You joke with a weak smile, Nat looked at you worriedly, but you shook your head, trying to reassure her. - And how are you doing? 
- Fine, I think. - She says, entwining your arms. - I miss you, but things are fine.
You nod, looking forward. You knew that you had been absent in your friends' lives, simply because it seemed that things no longer made much sense since you were no longer with Wanda.
- Did you hear about Bucky and Sam? - she asked, and you let out a sigh.
- Yes, I... I don't know if I'm going to make it.
- Ah, Y/N, please. - She says. - It won't be the same if you are not there.
Natasha was talking about your friends' engagement party, which you were invited to a week ago. You hesitated, because all of Bucky and Sam's friends were invited. And that included Wanda.
You let out a sigh.
- I will make an effort to be there, I promise. - You assure her with a smile. 
- You don't want to see Wanda, do you? - Nat asks. And you look at the ground. - Look, I just... I never really understood why you two broke up. But maybe it will be good to see her, you know. Maybe you two need to talk after all.
You shrug, feeling the familiar sadness take over your chest every time you think of Wanda. 
- Let's talk about something else okay? - You ask her with a weak smile and Natasha nods, changing the subject as you two walk along the campus.
//-//
You straightened your clothes before knocking on the door. It had been almost two weeks since you had spoken to Natasha, and the day of the party had finally arrived. You saw many cars parked outside the Barnes residence, and were not surprised when one of the family friends answered the door instead of the owners.
You smiled and greeted the gentleman, saying that you were a friend of the grooms, and he smiled back when he let you in. You overheard someone say that it was better to leave the door open because of the number of guests, and you let out a small laugh. 
The house was full, and it took a few minutes for you to find Bucky, who looked extremely happy. He smiled slightly surprised when he saw you.
- Hey, you're here! - he said, walking over to you. - It's so good to see you!
Bucky hugged you tight and you laughed lightly, saying that it was very good to see him too.
- How are things going? - you asked as you broke the embrace. - Are you feeling anxious?
Bucky laughed, putting his hands in his pockets.
- Everything is working well. My parents are helping me and Sammy to organize everything. - he says, smiling. - And damn, yes. I can't wait for the ceremony.
You laugh, nodding in understanding. You talk for a few more minutes until Sam comes to check on the groom.
- Wow, look at you Wilson! - You exclaim when you see him, and he opens his arms toward you, grinning contently. You hug each other tightly. - It's good to see you, my friend.
- Yeah, it's great to see you too, stranger. - He smiles back, and then you part. - Glad you could make it.
- I couldn't miss the first wedding of the group. - You joked and made them laugh. 
And then they were talking about the preparations for the wedding, and the family members who had come from far away, and you were smiling and laughing at the stories. But everything seemed to slow down when your gaze focused on someone behind Bucky, the only person who always had the ability to capture your full attention.
Wanda had just walked through the front door, and was taking off her coat. You barely noticed Pietro standing beside her, as your heart started racing at seeing her again. Sam called out to you a few times, until you blinked and looked at him.
- Wow, you really haven't changed at all. - he teased. - Three years and you are still completely out of breath when you see her.
You blushed, telling him to shut up, but Bucky and Sam just giggled. And then you swallowed hard, because Wanda was looking around and her gaze met yours.
Your gas in surprise, and you told the couple in front of you that you needed a drink, then you rushed to escape the room.
You ended up on the balcony, trying to recover from the intensity of the previous moment, completely affected by seeing Wanda again. 
You thought it was the best to greet the people you knew at the party, and after talking to Clint and his girlfriend Laura, and also to Steve, Tony and Bruce, you made your way to the family circles. Bucky's parents and siblings were very friendly, and Sam's family was very warm, and they all hugged you and smiled. And then you were walking around the house again, and Nat approached you, two drinks in her hands, and one of them she handed to you.
- You really came. - She said with a smile. - Bucky just told me and I didn't believe it.
- The faith you have in me is touching. - You sneered with irony and she laughed before taking a sip of her drink. You looked at your own glass suspiciously.
- Is this champagne? - you asked, and she nodded, making you sigh. You put the glass on the balcony table near you. - Thanks but I'm driving.
Nat grumbled in understanding.
- You're running away from her, aren't you? - She remarked when she noticed your gaze wandering around the room.
- Is it that obvious? 
Nat laughed lightly.
- I suppose you are going to be uncomfortable for the next few minutes, since I just told her I was coming to talk to you and invite her to join me. - She tells you and you turn your face to her sharply with a surprised expression.
- Wait what?
But Nat is smiling past you and then you feel your body tense up as Wanda's voice sounds behind your back. Nat is saying something about how nice it is that everyone is together, while you turn around and you’re probably staring, but you can't react to having Wanda in front of you. Just as beautiful as she was three years ago.
- Hi. - She said a moment later looking up at you, a slight blush on her cheeks. It took a gentle nudge from Nat's elbow on your rib for you to react.
- Hi. - you exclaimed surprised and slightly uncomfortable. - How... How are you?
Wanda smiled awkwardly.
- Good, I... i'm good. And you? - she asked hesitantly. You nodded frantically, trying to smile.
 - Good, good. I... Good.
- Jesus. - You heard Natasha say as she looked at the two of you with a frown. - Okay. I'll put our names in the gymkhana, and you can continue with whatever this is by yourselves.
You scratched your neck uncomfortably as Natasha hurried to leave. 
- So... how are things? - Wanda asked, putting her hands in her pockets.
Ignoring your current anxiety, you assumed a thoughtful expression for a few seconds.
- Things are fine. I’m... I... I'm graduating. - You tell clumsily, running your hands through your hair. - Yeah, I... I'm graduating in a few weeks. 
- Wow, that’s actually really cool. - She comments with a smile. 
- I think so. - You say, laughing nervously. - What about you, Wands, how are you? Are you still studying?
Wanda blushes at the way you call her, looking away. You barely notice the nickname escaping your lips. But then she is smiling, so you don't notice much beyond that.
- Yes, I still have a year to go, but I'm doing well. - she says. You nod in understanding, but then Pietro is joining you two, a smile on his face.
- Wow, it's really good to see you Y/N. - He remarks as soon as he reaches you two and hugs you. You laugh lightly. 
- It's good to see you too, Pietro. - you say when you let go. - I like the beard, by the way.
- Thanks, I'm trying to look older. - He comments with a cocky smile, and you laugh, ignoring the nervousness of having Wanda looking right at you. - I didn't know you would be here today, I heard you were going back to California.
- Oh, yes, I... I am. - You say clumsily, gazing at Wanda quickly. - After I graduate, I'm going back home. I don't really have anything to keep me here.
- That's a shame, really. - Pietro says and you try to focus on his face and not on Wanda's frown. - But I hope you will keep in touch with everyone by skype at least.
He jokes last, and you laugh, nodding. And then he starts asking you about college and your parents, and you answer politely, trying to ignore the nervousness in your stomach that has settled with Wanda's attentive look on you.
- Pietro, would you get me something to drink, please? - Wanda asked after a moment, and you and Pietro looked at her in surprise, but she just smiled innocently, and her brother grumbled, before nodding and leaving. - Can we talk for a moment?
You blinked in confusion, but agree. Wanda took your hand next, and you bit the inside of your cheek, feeling your face flush as she pulled you around the yard, toward a farther area.
When she stopped walking, she let go of your hand, and turned around to face you, looking nervous and a bit anxious.
- Are you really leaving? - She asked with a almost sorrowful expression.
You straightened your posture, frowning slightly.
- Yes, I... Wanda, what is it? 
- Okay, I’m.. I'm going to say this once, because I have to, and then we'll go back to our life as before, okay? - She said hurriedly, closing her eyes for a moment as she took a deep breath while you just stare her. - I'm still in love with you. And I know we broke up two years ago, but I just couldn't move on. And I guess a part of me never will. - She confesses and you feel the air escape from your lungs. - And I need you to know this before you leave, because I almost couldn't come to this party because I knew you would be here. And I can't believe that we were this intense and amazing thing only just for me. - She says last. But you are in shock, so Wanda swallows dryly. - Damn, I'm... I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything and…
- I love you. - You confess interrupting her, listening to your heart pounding in your ears.
- W-what?
- I love you. - You repeat breathlessly as you are moving forward and kissing Wanda firmly. She stumbles back in surprise, but you keep your hands on her face, until she sighs in delight and kisses you back with the same intensity. It feels as good as you remember, but eventually you part breathlessly and start talking with your forehead touching. - I'm sorry I ruined things between us. I was stupid, childish and a bloody idiot. But I'm completely in love with you and i have always been. 
Wanda lets out a surprised laugh, her eyes filled with tears. And then she kisses you again.
- God, we are a complete disaster. - She comments as you separate, making you laugh lightly. And then she swallows dryly, stroking your face with her thumbs. - What are we going to do now?
You smile, hugging her waist.
- I'm not going anywhere if you ask me to stay. - You tell her, making her sigh with surprise and happiness.
- Be my girlfriend, then. - She asks, and you let out a giggle. 
- I'd love to. - You say, and then back away a little. - We'll make it work this time, Wanda. I'm going to love you the right way now.
Wanda nods in understanding, looking at you tenderly.
- You have always loved me the right way. - she says. - We just didn't know how to show it properly.
You sigh.
- I missed you. - You say, bringing your foreheads together. 
- I missed you too. - She breathlessly retorts before kissing you again.
The kiss intensified in the next second, and you ended up pushing Wanda against the outer wall of the house, and she sighed into your mouth. God, you missed her taste. Then she sighed against your lips, and you slowed down, because you are literally in an engagement party.
When you parted, you let out a breathless giggle.
- We should get back to the party. - Wanda comments, her face close to yours. You grumble in agreement, before kissing her again, your tongue running slowly and sensually across her mouth, making a warmth rise in the pit of your stomach.
- Wow. - You say breathlessly a moment later, breaking the kiss for breath. Wanda's hands are dangerously low. She lets out a breathless chuckle, her face flushed. You swallow dryly, clearing your throat. - We'd better go before I can't stop.
Wanda smiles, nodding her head in agreement. And then you took a step back, and it was easier to breathe and think clearly.
When you returned to the party, holding hands, Natasha stared at you two and sighed, taking a twenty-dollar bill from her pocket and handing it to Pietro, who had a smug smile on his face. She complained that she had bet that you two would only get back together after the party, while Pietro had bet that it would be during. You and Wanda's faces reddened, but you laughed at the story.
Two years later, you visited Bucky and Sam, but now, the wedding invitation in your hand was yours.
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wildlyglittering · 3 years
Text
A Love for all Seasons Part 1 (Winter)
I said that I would write a piece for Nessian Month to be posted each Sunday so here is the first!
I’d hoped to have this up earlier but hey ho. I ended up scrapping 8,000 words of something that I’d previously done and re-wrote this in a day. It’s barely edited so I can only apologise for dubious quality and numerous spelling errors. 
I asked for prompt requests and this one is based on ‘modern au, Nesta as a ballerina.’ You’ll probably see that it’s not entirely modern au because I just can’t write modern au - sorry!
I’ve decided to link all 4 prompts received together as a 4 part series. Not all other sections will be as long as this one. Probably. I mean, I’ve not written them yet so....
***
Velaris at Solmas was a magical time and Nesta wasn’t thinking metaphorically – Solmas was literally a magical time.
Solmas was a blend of both fae and human traditions and, as a time for celebration, this meant spirits were up and magical shields were down. Active magic rippled through the air as did the leakage from those who had magic but never used it.
No one truly remembered when the lines between fae and human’s merged and there was the possibility the fae had decided to adjust the truth in collective memory to make it seem like they had always been part of the city.
Perhaps they had. Perhaps they hadn’t. Not a human amongst them could tell and not a fae amongst them would.
As centuries passed, or decades - no one was quite sure after all, the fae evolved to blend in. They shed talons, claws and teeth, and moulted wings and shimmering skin.
That wasn’t to say a good deal of them didn’t have remnants of their previous lineage; there were still those who had wings and those who were always followed by a mist. Some slipped from human form like their flesh was a dress.
There wasn’t a fae who didn’t have some magic, however small. But then, so did Nesta and her sisters, Feyre and Elain.
At some point in their collective past, the fae decided they liked the humans and vice versa and so romantic liaisons were not an uncommon occurrence. Despite a few differences, both species were compatible and that was how magic managed to bleed into some human veins. As Feyre said, they were human but with ‘added spice’.  
Sometimes all that magic, especially at this heightened time of year, was damned irritating.
That morning Nesta had been in a café, reading her book when a lady biting into a gingerbread man had to stop on account of her baked good starting to scream.
Then, when she’d left to make her way to the ballet, she’d been caught in a snow flurry where the snowflakes took the form of small fairies and danced around her. She’d slapped them away, ignoring their outraged cries.
The walk which should have been ten minutes from her favourite café down into the theatre district ended up taking forty after some enchanted horses pulling sleighs decided to protest and caused a blockage across three streets, causing numerous detours.
When she finally reached the theatre, the peace of her day shattered, Nesta stormed into her dressing room and slammed the door. “Fucking fae.”
Nesta didn’t hate the fae. Technically, you couldn’t. Anytime anyone had a negative thought there was a haze which descended over people’s minds to remind them how much they loved the fae and how pleased they were to live beside them.
The magic in her blood meant the haze was a pithy little thing which Nesta mentally told to shove its pleasantries up its non-existent asshole leading it to drift away, pretending it wasn’t offended.
No, she didn’t hate them but she found them so inconvenient.
Nesta had settled at her dressing table when her door opened following a knock. A head peeked round, long ruby-red hair streaming downwards. One of the fae Nesta did like.
“Nesta?”
“I’m here.”
“Viviane said she’s going to turn a portion of the Sidra into an ice rink later, fancy coming? I might also take an ice-dive. Good for the pores!”
Gwyn, the production assistant at the Velaris City Ballet Company was fae but was classified as a water nymph. Nesta had only discovered this when they took a trip to Adriata the beach city the previous year for a ‘hot girl summer’ and she realised Gwyn had a set of gills accompanying her lungs.
Nesta met Gwyn’s eyes in the mirror and raised an eyebrow.
“What? I can’t help myself; you know that. I take it the ice-rink is a no?”
Nesta shook her head in response as she began on her hair but smiled. Despite herself she really did like Gwyn and Viviane, and a lot of the production company too even though the company was riddled with nepotism and bias.
Few humans managed to win a place in the ballet. Arts and creative pursuits were hard to break into when you were auditioning against fae. The only reason Nesta was as successful as she had been was because of that drop of magical blood.
She reached for the headdress resting next to her make-up. The Solmas production was The Nutcracker which their performance director, Eris had choreographed and screamed over for weeks.
“Tchaikovsky was a close, personal friend of mine,” he’d bragged. “He was fae of course, well – half-fae, but then no one can be perfect.”
Nesta had rolled her eyes and ignored Eris’ glare, not at all intimidated since they both discovered she immune to glamours and spells.
Nesta hadn’t been able to score the prima ballerina role for the production but then she hadn’t for years. How can a human compete with fae who spun in the air and flew on invisible, gossamer wings?
She’d auditioned for the role of Sugar Plum Fairy and wasn’t offered the position on account of the actual fairies also auditioning. If Nesta had managed to win the role then she wouldn’t have lasted a week before a surprise accident befell her, regardless of the amount of protection charms she wore.
The role she had won suited her fine, the dance being one of her favourites – the Illyrian dance. The steps weren’t complex but the performance was all about attitude and frankly, Nesta had that in spades.
When she’d been offered the dance, Gwyn took her aside in the corridor, a frown on her face. “Are you sure you want to perform this Nesta?”
“I know what you’re going to say, the dance should have gone to an Illyrian and you’re right – it should have. I’ve been trying to petition Eris for years now about Illyrian ballerinas but he’s always up to his typical high-fae purist bullshit.”
Gwyn had given a nervous laugh and looked around them, making sure Eris wouldn’t somehow leap out of the wall at the comment. It was a fair suspicion; he’d done it to performers before if they had any critique of him to say.
“Just do the dance cultural justice.”
Nesta swore she would.
On the scale of species hierarchy, full humans remained at the bottom. They were aging mortals with no magic and poor immune systems. The fae laughed themselves silly at the concept of chicken pox and the common cold. However, it didn’t mean every fae species was revered.
High fae like Eris were basically royalty while lesser fae were their middle-class cousins. Nymphs were considered useful and the majority of other fae fell someplace in between.
Illyrians were almost a side step from the hierarchy.
As a species they were immortal, eternally youthful and ripe with magic as powerful as some of the high fae. Some of their bodies were like machines with what they did with them and they would have been able to perform ballet for days on end without breaking.
They also had those vast jet-black wings which were terrifying and enthralling at the same time. It was a shame Illyrian Air didn’t do well, but then there were far too many customer service issues.
The only reason they weren’t on par with the high-fae (in the eyes of the high-fae) was that they weren’t elegant enough. They moved with a violence underneath the surface of their flesh like their blood was fire.
They also had complex histories which no one understood because Illyrians refused to discuss anything about Illyria and their heritage with anyone who wasn’t an Illyrian.
She once asked Feyre about them to be told Illyrians had spent their entire lifetimes being looked down upon by other fae so when those same fae demanded Illyrian secrets, they refused to comply.
Feyre had said, “Cassian told me, ‘Why should we give them anything when we have to fight for everything,’” and Nesta conceded he had a point. Possibly the only point Cassian had ever had but a point nonetheless.
Why was she thinking all this now? Why was she thinking of her baby sister’s stupid friends? She knew very well why.
Gwyn had stepped into Nesta’s dressing room. “Isn’t tonight when your sister and her friends are coming to the show?”
Yes, that was why.
Gwyn leant against the wall, in Nesta’s line of sight in the mirror and Nesta shrugged keeping her voice nonchalant. “Yes, unfortunately.”
It wasn’t unfortunate Feyre was coming, Feyre who loved anything to do with art and ballet but Nesta wasn’t looking forward to the rest. Rhys, Feyre’s half high-fae, half Illyrian boyfriend had all the arrogant superiority of the high-fae and the volatility of the Illyrians with none of the manners.
Nesta was painfully aware Rhys didn’t like her.
The rest of the group were also non-human with Feyre seemingly abandoning humans completely, preferring the exclusive company of Rhys circle of fae friends. Elain was the opposite, living outside the walls of the city in her cottage, wanting nothing to do with fae at all.
Feyre had told Rhys a bunch of stories from their childhood and Rhys didn’t quite comprehend how human sisters worked, didn’t quite comprehend how complex their relationship had been.
The spit of magic in their blood had made things all the more difficult as humans were not the best containers for magic. In Nesta’s eyes what made it worse were all the tattoos Feyre had inked into her skin; amplifiers mostly.
Anger had been born from Nesta’s worry and her worry was from her love.
Feyre understood the root cause of Nesta’s peevishness even if she didn’t like it but Rhys saw disapproval and returned it in kind.
At the thought of some of the attendees Nesta’s heart started doing something change, fluttering away like it was a bird trapped in a cage. She remembered when Ianthe, one of the ensemble, had shown them the pet bird she’d brought.
“Isn’t it lovely?” she’d said, her eyes glittering as her fingernails grew sharp. “Such a pretty pet for me to love.”
Nesta remembered the poor thing desperately trying to fly out of its cage, smashing its wings and beak against the bars.
Ianthe ended up eating it. She’d sobbed she hadn’t meant to but she hadn’t grabbed her protein bar that morning when she’d left her apartment and she was starving.
They couldn’t help it; it was in their nature to consume. The fae were like locusts that way, consuming land, lives, birds. Hearts.
Gwyn’s smile at Nesta’s response stretched into one which took up most of her face and Nesta refrained from shuddering. Nymph embodied the gentle and the harsh of their element. Water nymphs had the ability to be as tranquil and soft as summer rain or as vicious and deadly as a shark in deep water.
“Uh-huh. Will Cassian be attending?”
“I don’t know, probably.”
“Are you nervous about doing the Illyrian dance in front of Illyrians?”
Yes. Terrified.
“No,” she said, “I’ve done my research.”
Eris’ choreography for the dance was lazy and aggressive, rooted in his high-fae misperceptions of Illyrian culture. Nesta convinced Eris to let her put together her own steps and when he let her, not giving a damn about the dance, Nesta sought out the sole Illyrian choreographer in Velaris - a woman named Emerie.
At least the dance would contain authentic steps, she’d just never performed it in front of any Illyrians who weren’t Emerie before.
Gwyn’s grin was still wide.
“Oh, go away would you,” Nesta said with a scowl. “I need to focus before the matinee.”
Gwyn laughed at Nesta’s scowl and Nesta knew Gwyn understood Nesta’s words were harsh but her meaning wasn’t.
“Fine, fine. I’ll see you later, my little witchy dancer.”
Nesta glared at her friends departing back. I’m not a witch, she wanted to say, just a human whose great grandma caught the eye of a high-fae and had at it.
The matinee performance went well. Performances at the Velaris City Ballet Company always went well. The city made it so, drawing in an audience like moths to lamplight.
For all its splendour, Velaris was ancient and small. What was once a human village at the base of the mountains with the Sidra River running wild aside it, grew in population and glamour once the fae came pushing through the veil.
Human technology and fae magic combined to turn the place into something unique which rippled out to other human towns and dwellings but Velaris remained the first and the original.
While other cities grew, Velaris kept its quaintness. Old buildings built from red stone were covered with trailing ivy which bloomed with different flowers depending on the inhabitants’ moods. Rooms would change their size and shape according to the number of people within and wallpapers would shift when required to become something new. A piece of furniture could be a chaise longue in the morning and a mahogany dresser by nightfall.
Outside was no different. The cobbled side streets were slightly off kilter and you could look back, having walked up a steep street only to realise the path you’d walked was now heading a different direction and upwards, not down.
The ballet house was one of the oldest buildings and contained concentrated magic the way a bottle contained liquid. It also meant, much like liquid, if the bottle was shaken then there would be spillage.
Truth told; they’d had some difficulties with previous performances.
The first performance of Sleeping Beauty had left the majority of the audience passed out in their red velvet chairs while thickets of thorns grew up from the stage floor, encompassing the dancers. Nesta had to hack through several vines to reach her dressing room to grab her apartment keys.
The Snow Queen last Solmas followed suit. Viviane had been their prima ballerina that year and was in her utmost element. That had been the worst winter Velaris had ever experienced with uncharacteristic heavy snowfalls and biting frosts. The less said about the temporary missing children and ominous women in sleighs, the better.
Aside from when Eris turned actual rats into human sized dancers and the whole city was put into a three-day long lockdown while fae exterminators went to work, The Nutcracker was going fairly well.
Magic whirled the audience through each act and they heard and tasted and smelt everything being shown to them. Music would drift into their ears as performers danced fluidly across the stage. Some of the audience sobbed, overcome by the magic which sank into their skin.
The experience took some time to get used to if you were human. The first time Nesta had performed ballet in Velaris she was dizzy with nausea and slick with sweat. Now she even managed to use some of her own dormant abilities to counter the effects, or even to add in some of her own.
Before the evening performance began, her phone beeped with a message from Feyre.
Can’t wait to see you dance! Catch up with you afterwards!
Nesta groaned. She’d agreed to go for a drink at the in-house bar with Feyre and the rest but now she wished she was going straight home.
The stage melted away from the dance before hers into Nesta’s scenery as she waited in the wings for her cue. She eyed up the boxes, knowing Rhys had sponsored one for Feyre but didn’t have a clue which one.
The Illyrian dance had a sparse stage, to demonstrate the Illyrian steppes but the painted backdrop was one of Ramiel, the revered Illyrian mountain. Despite the sparsity, the set pulsed with a dry heat; the scent of crackling wood fire and spice filling the air, the sensation of warm winds tickling her skin.
When the music started, she danced on, determined to prove to Illyrian eyes in the audience she would do it justice.
Nesta drew on the same magic which ran in Feyre and Elain’s bones, the same magic Feyre had permanently etched on the surface of her skin. When Nesta leapt, she cast imaginary wings on her back which carried her further forward and higher. When she pirouetted, she was spinning on ice. Her arms were graceful and her legs sharp.
Nesta formed herself into a blade of dance as she undulated her hips and curved her spine. She swore the heat under her skin caused the air to burn around her.
She finished to rapturous applause and resisted eyeing up the boxes again although she wanted to know if any particular hands were clapping.
In the wings Gwyn was waiting and handed her a towel and Nesta realised she was glistening with sweat, droplets highlighting her cleavage.
“Very nice,” Gwyn said, clapping. “A small fire broke out in one of the stalls.”
Before Nesta said anything, Eris walked by with a low whistle. “Great performance, Nesta. I now have a raging boner.”
The women shrieked in disgust and Nesta threw her towel at him. “Animal.”
Eris grinned, “You know it” and his eyes shone as he caught the towel. Nesta made a mental note to ask Elain for more rowan to put around her dressing room door.
Nesta watched the rest of the performances from the wings until curtain close. Usually she never dawdled, always wanting to remove her costume and dress into civilian clothes as quick as possible but tonight she took her time, idly drawing out each minute until she couldn’t avoid her fate forever.
Audience members with children, fae or human often left first, clearing the way for those who wanted to remain behind in the theatre bar. When the fae discovered alcohol a new set of problems arose. Regardless of what species you were, once you were drunk you did stupid things.
The bar was below ground level and took up a vast amount of space. Overstuffed seating was positioned around tables in compartments, each draped with their own set of thick, crimson red curtains with gold tassels. If the occupants wanted privacy, then they had it.
Nesta shimmied past groups; fae, human and mixed, who laughed and clinked their champagne flutes, none recognising her as a dancer they’d watched earlier.
Feyre was likely to have a private booth booked along with the theatre box as Rhys had so much gold he likely melted it down and bathed in it. The last time Nesta met up with Feyre, her little sister had been wearing a diamond encrusted corset top.
Ahead of her stood two figures, both leaning against the open fronted bar and deep in conversation. Cassian and Azriel. No one was able to miss them even if they tried to blend in. Illyrians were known for their size and their wings and not exactly known for their love of ballet.
Almost as though he sensed her arrival, Cassian stopped talking and turned, strands of his black hair falling from his messy bun. Her eyes met his and she felt how she always did whenever they glanced at each other – a little bit anxious, a little bit horny and a little bit excited.
Nesta was worried if she opened her mouth, a thousand butterflies would float upwards from her stomach.
The look on his face, one she couldn’t place, slipped into something familiar as she drew nearer. Cassian smirked at her and followed it up with a slow, obvious glance from head to toe.
“Hello, Nesta.” He drawled his words, husky and deep. His voice was a baritone which always had her itching to dance across his words. Illyrian magic wasn’t the strongest but those who wielded it were.
What Illyrians wielded their magic for was anyone’s guess but if she had to, Nesta would have guessed it was for making panties drop if the turning heads of the crowd and little sighs was any indication.
There had been occasions where she too was driven with the need to show him more skin of hers then he deserved, to beg him to lay her down and cover her body in honey before licking it off with rasps of his tongue.
Must have been magic.
“Cassian,” she said with barely a nod and turned to his companion. “Azriel.”
Azriel nodded back a polite hello while Cassian leant against the bar directly facing her, wearing a grin as sharkish as Gwyn’s. She was like a lamb on the ground being circled by a taloned beast.
“Interesting performance.”
Azriel coughed at Cassian’s words, spluttering on the beer he was drinking and Nesta frowned, heat flooding her cheeks. Was he mocking her?
If he was, she wouldn’t give his smugly handsome self the satisfaction of getting to her and instead she ignored his words asking who else was here and where her sister was.
“Feyre, Rhys, Az and me. Amren came to watch the ballet but didn’t stay for drinks.”
“And where’s my sister and Rhys now?”
Cassian jerked his head over to the direction of the compartments. “They’re having a private ‘conversation’ behind closed curtains.”
Nesta’s face twisted in disgust. Fucking fae. Always fucking.
“Why didn’t Amren stay?”
“She never sticks around after The Nutcracker. Says it’s derogatory and insulting and she only comes to refill her well of rage.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, what was it she said Az? That the performances were brimming with cultural appropriation?”
The heat on Nesta’s cheeks turned into furnace. It wasn’t as though Cassian explicitly referred to Nesta’s performance but his words had to crawled under her skin. Feyre’s fae friends weren’t fans of Nesta’s, not after Rhys had spilled to them everything Feyre had told him.
For a group so ancient, they acted like spoilt human teenagers. Nesta would take the high road and try and find dignity in silence.
The bartender brought out another beer for Azriel and a glass of dark liquor for Cassian. A glass of wine from the Rosehall vineyard was handed to her and she was surprised someone had the foresight to order for her before she arrived, and with her favourite drink.
“Did you not like it then?” Nesta asked after taking a sip, her voice light. Azriel coughed again and this time Cassian shot him a glare, his rough-hewn face growing solemn before sliding into his more casual expression.
“There were some authentic Illyrian steps involved which is impressive. Didn’t realise old Eris had it in him.”
“It wasn’t Eris,” Nesta said, “It was me. I found an Illyrian choreographer in the city and she taught me some steps.”
Cassian’s face stilled for a moment, motionless like stone before letting out a roaring laugh which reverberated around the bar. The lesser fae behind him jumped and splashed his drink on the counter, quivering in fright.
“Well, that explains it!”
Nesta’s flesh prickled, her skin chilling in the overly warm bar. Goodness knows what she’d been dancing. Some dance of self-mockery probably. Her throat was burning and she didn’t understand whether she was upset because she thought Emerie liked her or upset because Cassian had seen.
Nesta’s fingers clenched the stem of the wine glass and she took a gulp of her drink, downing almost half as her hand wavered and her eyes watered. Cassian immediately stopped grinning.
“It was a beautiful dance,” Azriel said from her right and she turned to him, his face serious. “Other performances of The Nutcracker have the Illyrian dance as the violent, hostile war dance. Yours was the best one I’ve seen. Cassian liked it very much.”
Nesta whispered her thanks, looking between the Illyrians standing at either side of her who were now glaring at each other. She was out-flanked next to their bulk and she wished her sister was done doing whatever the hell she was doing so Nesta could say her hellos and goodbyes and get out of there.
“There’s only one Illyrian choreographer in this city,” Cassian said, his voice softer as his fingers trailed around his glass rim. “No other Illyrian would ever bother with this place.”
Nesta looked around the theatre at its gilded gold décor and red curtains but somehow knew Cassian was referring to Velaris as a whole. Illyrians never came to the city to visit, let alone live.
She glanced at him and found his smile was gentler and his hazel eyes, which always bordered on lascivious, were kinder somehow. Perhaps he hadn’t meant to mock her, perhaps he realised his raucous laughter had hurt.
He had no reason to care if he’d hurt her feelings and she shouldn’t have cared either but there had been a sting to his words which sunk deeper than she’d liked. She wasn’t opposed if he wanted to soothe over his words.
But she wasn’t about to let him know that. Instead, she fixed a bored expression onto her face. “Oh,” she said, looking into her glass as she swirled her wine around, “and who would that be?”
Cassian, still leaning against the bar, mirrored her by looking into his own glass before taking a sip.
“A friend of mine from the old country moved here a couple of years ago because her attempt at bringing ballet into the township was less than successful. You know her human name as Emerie.”
Cassian was still leaning against the bar, now looking into his own deep amber coloured liquid before taking a sip.
Nesta’s head snapped up to find Cassian now looking intently at her. “Yes, that’s her.”
“Figured,” Cassian said with a chuckle and took another long sip.
His mood seemed less jovial than before, more pensive and Nesta glanced around to discover Azriel had gone from her side. She looked around the crowds but didn’t see sight of him. How she lost an Illyrian of his stature she didn’t know but when she whipped her head around to the booth Cassian gestured towards earlier, the curtains were still closed.
She didn’t even have it in her to be irritated. The whole night was a wash-out and because of the stupid enchanted horse incident earlier closing streets, she was now adding additional time to her walk home.
“Well, then,” she said. “It’s been a long day and I’m tired; I have another two performances tomorrow and I want to head out and avoid any festive idiots.”
Cassian stood upright, alert and facing her, his glass sloshing the liquid violently as he placed it back onto the bar a little too hard. His wings flexed. “You haven’t seen Feyre yet.”
“If Feyre wanted to catch up with me then she wouldn’t be playing hide the fae penis with her boyfriend right now.” Her tone was sharp and she glared at Cassian. “It doesn’t take much to say a quick hello to your sister.”
Did Nesta care if Cassian thought her rude? Not a fucking bit. Despite Elain living an hour outside the city and Feyre only living on the other side, a journey which took less than a minute travelling by Winnow Express, Feyre was the sister Nesta saw the least.
“If she comes out at any point,” Nesta continued, “tell her I’ll call her.”
It wasn’t a lie when she said she was tired. Two performances a day took it out of her let alone when magic clung in the air at Solmas and let alone the fact that Nesta had used a tiny amount of her own as some kind of performance enhancer.
Whatever energy reserves she had was depleted, the glass of wine making her feel like she’d drank the entire bottle.
Nesta didn’t bother saying goodbye to Cassian, just left her empty glass on the counter and spun around.
Being a ballerina was on her side as she wove through the crowd and up into the foyer which was blissfully empty. Sadly, the world outside the doors was not so much and Nesta took a breath before wrapping herself in her stole.
The statues guarding the entrance waved her a goodbye, one with a human Santa hat adorning its head and the other with a fae garland wrapped around its waist. Nesta rolled her eyes. Human and fae decorations were put on everything so management could say they’d met their Equal Opportunities criteria.
Nesta stepped onto the pavement and looked down the street of the theatre district.
She couldn’t deny Velaris at night was beautiful.
History books stated the first fae who settled in the city were night dwellers and while they were able to survive in the sun, it was under the starlit sky where they thrived. So, the stories went that they made the night spectacular.
The ink black sky was painted with whorls of galaxies and splashed with stars. At first glance everything appeared white but when Nesta looked closer it was clear they were silver and gold and the purest, palest blue.
Feyre had once told her fae eyes saw more colours than humans and the stars were a multitude of colours – the rainbow and beyond. One of Feyre’s tattoos was designed to allow her to see what the fae saw.
The theatre district was still buzzing with humans and fae alike. Because of the nature of the city, it was usual for the streets to be filled until the early hours of the morning and after any performance in the theatre district there was no time for relaxing.
There was always residual magic left over from the ballet. The ballet theatre was the largest of the theatre buildings and so the magic started strongest at the end Nesta now stood before dissipating the further away you walked.
Snowflakes and flowers alike drifted down from the empty, cloudless sky. The Waltz of the Snowflakes and the Waltz of the Flowers often combatted against each other for prominence in their audience’s minds and refused to give in to each even after the show was done.
Thankfully, the Land of the Sweets didn’t involve themselves in this battle. They had done one performance many weeks ago and when chocolate rained from the sky it was delightful. Boiling hot coffee? Not so much.
Nesta navigated her way though the cobbles and crowds as petals landed in her hair and snowflakes melted on her eyelashes. She heaved a sigh of relief when she made it to the end past the gathered individuals who spilled out of the smaller theatres and theatre bars.
She turned left to go into a side street and stopped, almost tripping over her own feet.
Leaning against the wall, silhouetted against the streetlamps and fae lights was the hulking shape of an Illyrian.
“What are you-? How did you-?”
Cassian laughed as he used his elbow to propel himself from the wall and stride towards her. “What am I doing here and how did I get here so fast?”
“Well... yeah.”
“Wings,” he said, jabbing his thumbs in the direction behind him. “They come in useful from time to time. I thought I would fly you home.”
Nesta eyed up the wings behind him, remembering all the news reports of Illyrian Air. “No thank you, I like the walk.”
“Ok, then I’ll walk with you. Make sure you get home safe.”
She frowned. Nesta had lived in this city all her life and despite the occasional fae related incident which was brought on by personal vendetta, unavoidable prophecy from birth or magic spell gone wrong, Velaris was a safe place.  
It also helped that Nesta had that splash of fae blood herself and a glare which froze bones. Literally. There had been an incident with an ex-boyfriend but she’d filed an explanation with the police and it was never brought up again.  
“I’m fine,” she said. “I don’t need babysitting.”
“I know you don’t but I’d still like to walk you. Please.” The last word was said so softly she almost didn’t hear it but she caught the imploration.
Cassian stepped further into the light of a streetlamp, a few pale pink petals falling from his shoulders, desperation in his eyes.
Nesta sighed. “Fine, but I’m on the other side of the Sidra. The quickest route is over Mermaid Bridge.”
Cassian paused for a moment, “Mermaid Bridge? There won’t be any actual mermaids on it right?”
“Not at this time of year, the water’s too cold and they travel south.”
“Thank god, one of my ex’s was a mermaid. They are terrifying.”
Nesta shook her head, not able to imagine a creature of his size being scared of anything. They started walking in companionable silence. The further away from the city centre they strode, the more the crowds thinned.
Some shops remained open, including the café Nesta sat in earlier and groups had gathered around tables to laugh over mugs of frothy hot chocolate which overflowed with cream. Cinnamon, gingerbread, and candy cane scented the air.
As they walked, humans and fae alike paled when they crossed paths with Cassian and many darted out of his way. One lesser fae flattened himself against the red brick wall while another gave a quiet yelp and ran down an alley.
Nesta glanced up at Cassian but either he was pretending he didn’t notice the running onlookers or he didn’t care.
“What do you do?” she asked. She knew nothing about any of Feyre’s friends in any detail. “For that matter what do any of you do?”
Cassian laughed. “Rhys has a lot of inherited wealth, Amren trades precious stones – we think from the old dragon mines, and no one has a clue what Azriel does. I’m a bounty hunter.”
Oh.
“Caught anyone I’d have heard of?”
“Heard of the Tooth Fairy?”
Nesta grimaced, quickly swooping her tongue over her teeth. “Yes.”
“He was one of mine. So was the Bone Carver, the Weaver and Lanthys.”
Nesta’s eyebrows shot up. “Lanthys? The gold miner? What did he do? Wait, I don’t want to know. He asked me out once.”
Cassian glanced over at her; his own eyebrows raised. “Yeah? Did you say yes?”
Nesta pulled a face. “Good grief, no. He kept sending me telepathic dick pics. It’s bad enough being sent dick pics across dating apps.”
They approached Mermaid Bridge, which was, as Nesta said, devoid of the creature it was named for. Lights twinkled on the other side of the city, the residential side where Nesta lived. There were shrieks of delight further up the river in the dark and Nesta wondered if Gwyn was ice-diving next to Viviane’s ice rink.
Cassian coughed. “You’re on dating apps?”
“Not many, I thought I’d give them a go. My sisters are busy, I only have a few friends and I need something other than work in my life.”
“Yeah, I understand. ‘All work and no play’ make Cassian a dull boy too. The play part of life is fun,” he looked at her from the side of his eye and winked.
Nesta felt the blush spread across her cheeks and she willed it down with whatever force she had left. She wasn’t a virgin so she wasn’t about to start blushing like one.
They climbed the steps to the bridge and walked across. Of all the bridges which connected the two halves of the city, this was Gwyn’s favourite. Nesta’s human eyes couldn’t pick out the colours at night but in the day the railings glittered gold and shimmered with turquoise gems.
“Do you date?” The words slipped out before she stopped them. “You mentioned a mermaid ex so....”
Cassian’s laugh was more a breath and he started to smooth down non-existent knots in his hair. “Yes. Well...no. I did but work is busy and I’m sort of interested in someone and I guess until I purge them from my system, I’m not interested in anyone else.”
“How long have you been interested in them?”
“A while.”
“Why don’t you ask them out rather than eradicate them from your options?”
Nesta wanted to slap herself in the face. Or pitch herself off the bridge into the black, ice-cold water. Even as she was speaking, she wanted to not be but it was as though her mouth and mind had fallen out and no longer wanted anything to do with each other.
Cassian shrugged, “I guess. They just never struck me as someone interested in dating fae.”
They came to the end of the bridge and Nesta looked upwards at the sky. On this side of the river without the city lights, the stars were clearer to her eyes, more defined. One shot across the sky.
“You should go for it,” Nesta said, “you might be surprised.”
“Maybe,” Cassian sighed. “She’s kind of intimidating though.”
“You’re over six foot tall with massive wings and can use magic. I’m sure you’re more intimidating.”
“Me? Nah, I’m sure she thinks I’m an oversized bat.”
Nesta cringed. Those had been her words once a couple of years ago when she was first introduced to Feyre’s new friendship group and the Illyrian’s within. She didn’t think they’d heard her say it but then again, fae hearing was something exceptional along with fae sight.
The streets they walked were now quieter, the hustle and bustle of the inner-city gone. The chill settled in easier on this side of the river and Nesta knew she’d wake to frost across her window panes in the morning.
They were silent until they reached her apartment building, halfway up one of the steepest lanes. It was a small four storey which wasn’t spacious or modern but it gave her brilliant view across the river and Velaris and most importantly, it was hers.
“This is me,” she said, stopping outside the steps leading to the red entrance door. “Thank you for walking me back.” It was on the tip of her tongue to invite Cassian in for coffee but she held back.
He smiled, his eyes warm and shining. “Honestly it was my pleasure.” He leant forward, the sheer bulk of him covering Nesta and for a moment she thought he would kiss her but instead he took her slim fingered hand in his larger one and brought it up to his mouth, kissing the back of her hand.
“Goodnight,” he said, “I hope you have a good Solmas Day when it comes.”
Cassian was no ballet dancer but he sure moved like one, letting go of her hand and swivelling to face the direction they’d walked in from, marching down the slope of her street while Nesta stared at his retreating back.
He was clad in black and would have easily blended into his surroundings if not for the red jewels he wore at his wrists.
Nesta gaped down at the back of her hand, her mouth open. She still felt his lips, warm and soft, on her skin.
“Wait!”
Cassian turned back to face her, tilting his head.
“I’m sorry if my performance in the ballet was offensive.  I know Azriel said it was beautiful and that you liked it but if that was a lie to save my feelings, it’s ok. I went to Emerie because I wanted to make it authentic. I should have left it alone.”
Cassian smiled but it wasn’t mocking. He took a few steps back up the street towards her. “You know I said Emerie was a friend from the old country?”
Nesta nodded.
“She’s a really good friend. I like her a lot. She’s no nonsense with a great heart. I was trying to set her up with Rhys’ cousin Mor and in the process we got talking about dating and relationships and she asked if there was anyone, I was interested in. As it happens, I discovered this evening that she knows the person I was talking about. I’m sure she saw this as her opportunity to do some matchmaking of her own.”
“Oh,” Nesta said, her throat dry.
“Yeah. I also happened to tell her in one conversation I would be watching The Nutcracker this year on account of it being Solmas. So, there you go.”
The butterflies were flittering in Nesta’s stomach again and Cassian’s words were taking shape in her mind and building a story. “The steps Emerie taught me for the Illyrian dance – was that an invitation?”
Cassian’s smile stretched wide and he tilted his head back and laughed, the dark column of his throat shining in the starlight. “Oh yes, a very specific invitation. Emerie must have had the day of her life when she pieced everything together.”
The flittering in her stomach was now pooling in her chest. This type of conversation should have her fleeing up the steps and racing through the foyer until she threw herself into her cold bed to hide under the covers.
Nesta wanted to know what she’d inadvertently done without meaning to. Not that she minded whatever it was she’d done.
“What did I dance then, Cassian?” Her voice was lower than usual and rich like the overflowing cream in the café.
Cassian’s throat bobbed as he swallowed, his hazel eyes were almost black. “The dance you performed half naked on a heated stage was most definitely an invitation, Nesta.” He smiled at her again, soft like before but there was something behind it. Suddenly he was a wolf and she the lamb again. He was all claws and teeth and animal.
A shiver of anticipation ran through her. Her pulse beating in her throat, drawing Cassian’s eye.
“Oh, Nesta,” Cassian said, his voice almost a growl. “You performed an Illyrian dance of seduction.”
74 notes · View notes
cocobeanncteez · 4 years
Text
ATEEZ Wooyoung- School President (Oneshot)
Genre: light angst, suggestive/steamy, high school au.
Pairing: SchoolPresident!Wooyoung x badgirl!reader
Warnings: none.
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"Miss L/N, detention after school till 4 p.m." your chemistry teacher said, making you mentally groan. It was the last class of the day and you were dying to go home, but now you had to stay for an extra hour. All your classmates turned to look at you, but they weren't surprised. "You still haven't submitted the assignment."
"Can I just submit it tomorrow?" you asked in a bored tone.
"No, you were supposed to submit it a week ago," she said, gathering her stuff to leave the class. "Detention with Mrs. Hwang today." You heard people around you snicker. Well, fuck. Mrs. Hwang was the strictest teacher in school. Even you were scared of her despite your badass attitude.
You got up from your seat, leaving the classroom with an annoyed expression on your face.
"Detention again, Y/N?" your bestfriend asked as she made her way to you with your other friends.
You rolled your eyes. "Ms. Jang will never fucking let me live in peace. I'll see you guys tomorrow," you said, making your way to detention.
You were surprised to find the room empty. Usually, there would always be about three or five students. Since no one was here, you decided to ditch; you would skip school the next day so that your teachers will forget about it. You turned around to leave, but ended up bumping into someone, slightly startling yourself.
"What are you doing here?" you asked, raising an eyebrow at your school president and heartthrob—also called 'senior's eye candy' at your school—Jung Wooyoung.
You had to admit, he was certainly the most handsome guy you've ever seen. Jung Wooyoung was absolutely perfect. Every girl wanted him and every guy wanted to be him. You were sure half your school tried to hit on him despite the fact that he has a girlfriend.
"Unfortunately, I'm here to make sure that you won't escape detention as Mrs. Hwang is busy, so take a seat," he said, moving around you to sit on a chair and taking a notebook out of his bag.
You always found Jung Wooyoung very interesting. Other guys like him—the nerdy ones—can't even talk to you, let alone look you in the eye. Jung Wooyoung was the complete opposite.
You sat on one of the chairs, immediately taking your phone out.
"You can't use your phone here," Wooyoung said, not looking up at you from his notebook. "Why don't you complete your assignment?"
You scoffed. "And if I don't? What are you gonna do about it?"
"Nothing," he said, looking at you. "It's not affecting me in any way, so I don't care. However, Ms. Jang is gonna fail you again if you don't submit your assignment."
You knew he was right. And that annoyed you; you really just wanted to shut his pretty mouth up.
"Whatever," you mumbled, taking out a notebook and the assignment sheet to start working on the reactions you had to write.
However, you were completely blank. You didn't know or understand a word given on the sheet. You bit your lip as you stared at the sheet, wondering what to do.
Finally, you took out your phone and googled all the reactions, easily finishing the assignment in less than half an hour.
"You know, you won't be able to copy during finals," Wooyoung said, closing his notebook. "Even if you're copying now, at least learn what you've copied."
"I didn't ask for your comments," you retort. He was about to say something, but his phone rang.
"Hey, baby," he answered. " . . . I'm in charge of detention today . . . Oh, that's okay," his face fell slightly. " . . . No, it's alright. We can go some other day . . . Hmm, I love you too. Bye!"
You snorted, feeling bad for the boy. You were surprised someone as smart as him hasn't figured out that his girlfriend has been cheating on him. You've seen his girlfriend shoving her tongue down random people in the club, and hitting on people at your school. You remembered how shocked you were when you first found out that she was cheating on him; because why would anyone cheat on someone as perfect as Jung Wooyoung?
"You can leave now," Wooyoung said, getting up from his seat. "Detention is over." You nodded, leaving as fast as you can, just wanting to go home and sleep.
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"Your grades aren't very bad, but they aren't great either, Y/N," your class teacher said. "You'll get into an average college with these grades. But I know you can do much better. So I've asked one of the prefects to tutor you in Chemistry and Physics."
You groaned. "Can I do it by myself?"
"You wouldn't do it by yourself," she said. "Anyway, Jung Wooyoung will be tutoring you. Discuss and decide your timings with him. I expect you to score well on the next exam. I do not want to see you fail in any subject again." Before you could say anything, the door to the staff room opened, revealing none other than Jung Wooyoung. "Ah, Wooyoung, I just told Y/N that you will be tutoring her," she said. "I'm expecting you to do a great job."
Wooyoung smiled. "I won't let you down, Mrs. Park. But Y/N must put in efforts or else there's no point," he stated in a polite tone, and you rolled your eyes.
"Yes, that's true," she turned to look at you. "I'm expecting nothing but your best efforts, Y/N." She's always expecting something, huh, you thought. You only smiled, bowing politely.
"I'll do my best."
-
"What the actual fuck is this?" you mumbled, staring at the lengthy derivation written in Wooyoung's notebook. He rolled his eyes, so tired of hearing you say that to literally everything you saw written in his notebook.
"Ah, why did they have to make me tutor you of all people?" he whined. "You clearly haven't paid attention in class for even half a second."
"No one told you to accept it," you said, ignoring his last comment.
"I had to," he scoffed, stretching his arms out, making you glance at the veins on his arms. "Extra credits, you know?"
"Nerd," you muttered under your breath. He heard you, but didn't say anything. He began teaching you how to derive it; you paid attention for the first few seconds before zoning out. When you zoned back in, he asked you to explain what he just explained. You bit your lip, thinking of what to say.
He sighed. "You didn't pay attention again."
"I zoned out, sorry."
"That's what you said for the previous derivation," he said, a disappointed look on his face while he packed up his things.
"You're leaving already?" you asked, glancing at the time on your phone; you still had twenty minutes left.
"I'm not going to waste my time teaching you right now," he said. "You clearly aren't in the mood to focus." You only scoffed, watching him leave the library. You bit your lip, feeling kinda bad for not paying attention when he was making an effort to teach you.
The look of disappointment he showed you had somehow made you determined to prove that you could focus and do better.
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You were at Wooyoung's house, sitting on his bed and scrolling through your social media while waiting for him to finish changing out of his uniform. You spent an entire two weeks studying your ass off, and you were proud you made a big improvement, thanks to Wooyoung. He was quite surprised that you were actually making an effort to understand whatever he taught you. You both even became friends, and you were quite happy about that.
"I'm done," he said, coming out of his bathroom, making you look up from your phone. You held your breath at the sight of Wooyoung dressed in grey sweatpants and a black tank top. You couldn't stop yourself from checking him out: the veins running down his muscled arms, his exposed collarbones, his sharp jawline, his plump lips . . .
You were so immersed into checking him out, you didn't realize he was doing the same to you. He loved how your uniform skirt rid up your thighs, and how another two buttons on your shirt were unbuttoned, exposing a little bit of your cleavage. Before you knew it, he was slowly making his way towards you, eyes now locked with yours.
"Let's start, hmm?" he said with a smirk; he knew you were checking him out.
You clear your throat a little. "Yeah, let's start."
You spent the next half an hour trying to pay attention to whatever Wooyoung was teaching you. It didn't help that he absentmindedly placed his hand on your knee, or brushed your hand with his; he knew exactly what he was doing to you. Your mind kept wandering to the things you want him to do to you right now on his bed.
" . . . and now you should tell me," he leaned a little close to you with a smirk, making your heartbeat speed up. "Which formula should be used?"
"Fuck this," you muttered, pushing the books aside before straddling Wooyoung's lap.
"Took you long enough," he chuckled, and you crashed your lips on his. He instantly kissed you back, hands moving to grip your waist. You wouldn't admit it to anyone, but you have been dreaming about kissing Wooyoung the second he talked back to you a year ago.
You pulled away to litter his neck in kisses, sucking the skin gently. He groaned softly, making you smirk. "Fan of neck kisses?"
"You have no idea," he said, hands moving underneath your skirt to grip your bare inner thighs. He gave it a squeeze, making you involuntarily grind down on him. He moaned at the feeling, encouraging you to do it again. You moved your lips back to his, grinding on him even more. Wooyoung's hands slipped into your panties, grabbing your ass to help you grind down on him faster. The friction made you moan, craving for more. You tugged on his shirt, breaking the kiss to let him pull it off. You ran your hand down his toned torso in awe, loving the feeling of his abs beneath your fingertips. Your eyes widened at the tattoo above his hip bone. "You have a tattoo?!"
Wooyoung gripped your hips, moving you off of him so that he could hover over you. "Mhmm, bet you never expected the nerdy school president to have a tattoo, huh?" Your hands moved to his hair, playing it with while he began to kiss your neck, driving you crazy.
Wooyoung kissed down your chest till where your shirt was unbuttoned. He glanced up at you, fingers toying with the buttons. "Can I?" he asked. You nodded, letting him unbutton your shirt and slip it off you. You sucked in a breath when he ran his fingers over the lacy material of your bra.
"Take it off," you whined, making him chuckle.
"Patience, baby," he said, one hand gently rubbing your thigh.
But you really didn't have any patience right now.
You brought his lips to yours while you moved his hand to touch you where you desperately needed him, surprising him a little. He kissed you back hungrily while his finger moved on your clothed clit, applying pressure, making you get wetter. Your moans made him smirk; he loved how he was the reason behind it.
You both got startled at the sudden sound of his garage opening. He halted his movements, pulling away from you instantly.
"One of my parents is back from work," he said, quickly putting on his tank top and handing you your uniform shirt. You quickly buttoned it and straightened out your hair; you really did not want Wooyoung's strict parents to suspect anything since they already did not like the idea of him tutoring you in his final year of high school.
Wooyoung's father knocked on his bedroom door before opening it, finding you and Wooyoung busy writing equations.
"Oh, hey, dad! How was work?" Wooyoung asked with a sweet, innocent smile like as if he wasn't smirking a few minutes ago while touching you.
"Hello, Mr. Jung," you said politely.
"Hello, Y/N," he said. "Work was all right, as usual. How is your tutoring session going?"
"Good, dad," Wooyoung said, trying to control himself from smirking. "It's going really great."
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wlntrsldler · 4 years
Note
Hii, was wondering if I could request you belong with me with oliver wood? Thank u :)
PROMPT: based on you belong with me by taylor swift (an installment of my taylor swift x harry potter series. to read more about it, click here) Y/N is in love with her friend with benefits, oliver wood. 
WARNINGS: light smut
WC: 1.8K+
HARRY POTTER MASTERLIST
-
you belong with me (o.w one shot)
“Always a pleasure, Y/L/N,” Oliver quipped, putting on his shirt as he shot you a flirty smile. 
You giggled under his stare, slipping on his discarded jumper to cover yourself. You inhaled his scent, feeling yourself fall deeper for the boy in front of you. “I can say the same about you, Wood.” 
He cocked an eyebrow, motioning over to the article of clothing you decide to drape over your body. “I take it that you’ll be adding this to the collection you have?” 
“Course,” you hummed, staring at him as he began to get ready to leave, as usual. “Need to have something to remember you by.”
Oliver cheekily snuck over next to you, pressing his lips against your neck, making you moan out. You pulled his neck back, connecting your lips together, making him groan. You pushed him down to the bed, straddling his thighs, your body bare from the waist down. He pushed you down onto his body, deepening the kiss. You pulled back, now peppering kisses down his exposed skin. 
He massaged the skin of your thighs, licking his lips, “And the marks I left on your body isn’t enough of a reminder?” 
“They are,” you murmured, sucking softly on his collarbone. He took in a breath, feeling himself growing hard under your rolling hips. “But it makes it easier to think about you when I touch myself when I can smell you.” 
Oliver threw his head back, taking all the strength he possessed to remove your body off him. You whined in protest, laying down on your back, defeated beside him. He propped his head with his hand, smirking at you, “You’ll be the death of me, Y/L/N.”
“Good.” 
Oliver left a few minutes after that conversation, making you sigh and bury your head in your pillow. You were so in love with the Quidditch captain and you knew you shouldn’t be. When you and him agreed to be friends with benefits, you both agreed that it meant absolutely no feelings, whatsoever. As far as you knew, Oliver was upholding his side of the bargain quite well, while you were failing miserably. 
It was hard not to fall for the boy. He was charming, kind, and not to mention, a great kisser. Whenever you two laid together, it almost didn’t feel like a mutual agreement. He has so much passion, so much care, every time you two were alone. Oliver would always ask you if you were okay, always made sure you were comfortable, and showered you with praise. He would bury his head in the crook of your neck, stating how good you made him feel. 
It’s been a few months since the start of your agreement and after each night, you felt yourself love him just a bit more than the previous night. In front of other people, you two acted like perfect friends, like everyone knew you as, but behind closed doors, you two couldn’t keep your hands off each other. He would pepper your face with soft kisses, tangle your fingers together, and murmur words of adoration in your ear the minute there were no eyes on you two. You knew it was a dangerous game you were playing but you couldn’t help but not care. Oliver Wood was addicting. 
The following morning, you winced as you hobbled down to the Great Hall, legs sore from last night's activities. You grimaced as you sat down at the table, across from Oliver who had a smirk on his face that he was trying to hide behind his cup. Fred chuckled beside you, nudging you, “Fun night, Y/N?”
“Shut it, Weasley,” you hissed, taking a bite from a piece of toast you plucked off his plate. “I may be feeling a bit injured at the moment, but I can still hex you into next Sunday.” 
“One day, Y/L/N, we’ll meet the bloke who’s making it difficult for you to walk.” George added.
“Why do you assume it’s because of a bloke?” you grumbled, stuffing your mouth with eggs. “What if I just fell off my broom at practice? Maybe I have cramps. Did you ever think about that, hmm?”
“Sure,” Fred said, he motioned at your neck, reminding you of the marks that probably littered your skin. “But I’m sure your fall didn’t cause all that.” 
You blushed under their gaze, lifting your fingers up to trace the tender skin. “Shut up.”
“I’m just saying, Y/L/N,” the younger twin shrugged, looking at you with a playful twinkle in his eye. “One day we’ll meet the bloke you say is the best lay of your life.” 
Your eyes widened at his words, completely forgetting that you confessed that to the twins during one party after drinking too much. You heard Oliver snort in front of you, smiling in a teasing manner. He raised his eyebrows as if saying, “The best lay of your life, huh?” You flipped off George, making him and his twin burst out in laughter. “Shut up, please.” 
“I think it’s cute,” Oliver chuckled, leaning over to stare at you. “You’re smitten with him, aren’t you?”
“You can shut up too, Wood.” 
The three boys howled in laughter. Oliver sent you a wink when the twins were too busy joking around to pay attention to the two of you. You blushed, feeling butterflies erupt in your stomach. Merlin, this is going to be difficult, you thought. 
-
Unfortunately, it’s been weeks since your last night with Oliver. The Quidditch team has been practicing more than ever and you were both too tired to really do much. When you weren’t practicing, you were doing homework, already behind on at least three of your classes because of your rigorous practice schedule. 
Oliver’s jumper no longer smelled like him, making you upset that you had to settle for friendly glances and secret touches in the hallways. Your love bites already faded as well, disappearing with time. You missed seeing the red marks on your skin, reminding you of your heated rendezvous. 
You were walking out of Potions when Blaise came up to you, a flirty smile on his face. He stopped you in your tracks, leaning against a pole. “Hey, Y/N.”
“Hello, Blaise,” you raised an eyebrow, confused as to why the Slytherin was talking to you. You clutched your books closer to your chest, “Anything I can help you with?”
“Actually yes,” he licked his lips, reaching down to grab your hand. “I was wondering if you could accompany me to Hogsmeade this weekend.” 
You looked down at your hand sitting idle in his palm, stuttering over your words and you spoke to him for conformation. “L-like a date?”
“Exactly like a date,” Blaise nodded, placing a kiss to your knuckles. “If you’re up for it.” 
“I-”
“Leannan,” A voice spoke from behind you. A hand snaked around your wait, pulling you close to them, and ripping your hand from Blaise’s grip at the same time. You turned your head to see Oliver, staring down Blaise. “What’s going on here?” 
Blaise stared back, “Just asking Y/N on a date, Wood. None of your concern.” 
“Actually it is,” Oliver replied, pulling you even closer to him. Your body grew hot, feeling Oliver’s protective grip on your waist. “We have plans this weekend. So I’m sorry that but she’ll have to decline.” 
He nodded, reluctantly, shifting his attention from Oliver to you. “Hm, maybe next time then.” 
Oliver grinned, a condescending smile on his face, “Sure, mate.” 
Blaise raised his hands up in defense, shooting you a confused wave before walking away. Oliver didn’t dare to remove his hand on you until Blaise was nowhere to be seen. When he finally let you go, you looked at him in disbelief, “What was that for?”
He rolled his eyes, “You should be thanking me, Y/N. I got you out of a date with him.”
“What if I wanted to go?”
“Please,” he chuckled, now taking Blaise’s original spot, “You wanted to go on a date with Zabini?”
“Maybe,” you huffed but you knew you had no interest in the Slytherin. 
“Why would you want to?” 
“He’s fit,” you stated simply, shrugging like it was no big deal. It wasn’t really a lie. Blaise was fit, but you weren’t interested. “Plus, I could get to know him and see for myself if I see something with him.”
Oliver scoffed, “Don’t waste your time with someone like him.”
“I don’t understand why you’re being so harsh right now.”
“Because you deserve better.” 
“Oh right,” you spat, “And better in your definition is to be hidden away as nothing more than a nice quickie, right?”
Oliver blinked a few times, trying to process your words. He held your upper arm, concern over his features, “What are you on about?”
“All I am is a friends with benefits right, Oliver? That’s all I’ll ever amount to? Merlin forbid that someone would find interest in me beyond that.” 
“Y/N, where is this coming from?”
“You really are thick,” you chuckled, tears now spilling from your eyes. “It stopped being a quick fuck for me a long time ago Oliver. I’m bloody in love with you.” 
You stood there in silence, breathing ragged as you spilled your feelings to Oliver. You shook your head, turning around to walk away from him. You took a couple steps before you felt him grab your hand, twirling you around to push you into his chest. He chuckled, ignoring the way your books fell from your hand, as he tucked a piece of hair behind your ear, “You wanna know why I told Blaise off?” 
“Why?”
“Because you belong with me, leannan,” he mumbled, lips ghosting over yours. “I’m in love with you, too.” 
You gulped, looking into his eyes, “You are?”
“Mhm.”
You placed your lips on his, sighing in content knowing you no longer had to hide your affections. Oliver wrapped his arms around your waist, lifting you up as he kissed you passionately. You squealed, sneaking short kisses on his lips as he laughed. He put you down, kissing your lips one last time before pulling away. 
“Oi, Fred!” George called his brother, a smirk on his lips as he hid behind a wall. 
Fred walked over to him, “What’s up, Georgie?”
George pointed at the two of you ahead of him, wrapped up in each other’s embrace. Oliver leaned down to kiss you again, this time backing you up against the wall to deepen the kiss. George grinned knowing that he won the bet. The younger twin held out his hand, “Five sickles, please.” 
Fred rolled his eyes, fishing in his pocket to get the money he now owed his brother, “Here.” 
George replied in a sing-song voice, “Thank you.”
“Shut up.”
TAGS:
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inarizakibabe · 3 years
Text
Beginning
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After weeks of testing and studying hard you finally made it into class four. Now time to make friends with your classmates and shoot up the ranks into popularity. Swallowing your nervousness you approached a group of people to introduce yourself.
"Good morning. I'm (l/n)(f/n) it's nice to meet you all." you gave them the biggest smile you could muster.
The group acknowledged your presence then continued their previous conversation ignoring you. After a few minutes you decided they'd be a lost cause and moved onto a different group. After successfully managing to make no friends you cut your losses and took a seat.
"Well that went well." a voice beside you said.
"Oh shut up. I don't see you trying to make friends." you replied irritated.
"Nah too much work. I have a team full of people to tolerate already."
"Wait why are you even here?" you asked the boy beside you.
"Rude. This is my class if you must know." he said annoyed.
"Hold on. You? Suna Rintaro? Class four? Is the world ending?" you asked apprehensively.
Suna grunted and ignored you. Slowly a smirk formed on your face, "Your mom threatened to come see you again didn't she?"
"You're in my business princess. Don't do that." Suna booped your nose.
You stuck your tongue out at him right as the teacher walked in to start homeroom.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Half the day and three periods later it was that weird period right before lunch and Suna's attention span couldn't keep up any longer. At this point you were taking notes for Suna to steal later when he could be bothered to write them down. The clock on the wall showed there were five minutes left until lunch so you decided to zone out.
Your thoughts ranged from getting homework on the first day of school to what you might be having for dinner tonight. Eventually they strayed to the boy napping beside you. You two had been friends for a long time. You met your second year of elementary school when Suna thought it would be funny to see how hard he could tug on your pigtail. After filling his shoes with sand you two became inseparable. Years later in your last year of junior high Suna was scouted by the coach of the Inarizaki High volleyball boys club in Hyogo. It was a great opportunity for him but it meant you guys would be separated. Unfortunately the club you joined didn't have a way for you to be recruited and even though your grades were good they weren't good enough for your parents to pack up and move all the way to Hyogo.
For your entire last year of junior high you mentally prepared to say goodbye to Suna until your mom's job decided to transfer her to Hyogo. Eventually your family moved to Hyogo, with a promise to the Sunas to take care of their eldest son, and thus your high school story began only it's not going the way you hoped. Suna was still your only friend and it seemed all your classmates knew each other since junior high leaving no room for you to shoot through the ranks. The bell rang interrupting your thoughts and your teacher dismissed your class to lunch.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
After a boring lunch period your next class felt like it dragged on. So far your dream to take over high school seemed more and more impossible to achieve. Maybe if you joined the right club some magic might just happen. The big question now was which club would you join. You were a woman of many talents but none great enough to make you the star of a club. Cooking club would give you the chance to perfect your recipes but cooking wasn't something you enjoyed to do. Maybe one of the sports clubs? Definitely not. Was there anything else to do?
Before long the school day ended and it was time to either head to your club's first meeting or go home. You turned to ask Suna if he wanted to stop at the convenience store before going home until you saw him loosening his tie. Right the volleyball club had its first meeting today so you'd have to go home alone today.
"Don't look so disappointed. I'll save all my homework for you to do." Suna said looking at you.
"Whatever Rintaro! What do I have to be disappointed about?!" you huffed and picked up your bag to leave.
"Don't get lost on the way home." Suna chuckled and watched you leave before leaving for the gym.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Stupid Rin. I got lost one time. And what the hell would I be disappointed about? If anything he should be disappointed he won't have company to walk home with later today. I should go to bed before he gets home too." You grumbled while trying to find the school's gate. "Maybe it's in the other direction. Man this school is huge."
Up ahead you saw a guy with brown hair going in the opposite direction. Maybe he knows the way out of this school.
"Excuse me? Do you know which way the gate is?"
The boy stopped and at looked at you funny. "Keep going straight and you'll see it."
"Thank you." you bowed and continued going in the direction he told you. After taking ten steps you stopped and gaped at who was in front of you. The exact same guy was walking towards you again. You looked behind you quickly but the guy from before had disappeared already. Was it a daydream or did you finally lose it?
"Something wrong?" The guy stopped in front of you. "Are you lost or something?"
"I'm sorry but didn't you just tell me how to find the gate less than a minute ago?" you asked.
The guy in front of you looked confused until a look of understanding crossed his face. "I doubt it was me but keep going straight and you'll find the gate."
You thanked the guy once again at least you think it's the second time and finally made it to the gate to leave for the day.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* The next day in class you remembered the run in you had after school the previous day and turned to ask Suna about it.
"Hey Rin this may sound crazy but I got directions from the guy twice yesterday."
Suna pouted trying to figure out what you were talking about. "You asked the guy to repeat himself?"
"No he helped me then I walked away and all of a sudden he was in front of me again and gave me directions again." you explained.
"So he chased you? Wow the year just began and you already got a guy to fall for you. Nice work (y/n)-chan. What do you plan to do with this new found information?" Suna asked with amusement in his voice.
"You are the worst human to walk this planet I swear. I'm serious. Maybe I accidentally walked in on someone's prank or something. I hope it wasn't recorded." you huffed.
Suna shrugged and checked his phone for new notifications, "Who knows. Maybe that was your ticket to popularity you were looking for. Did you pick a club yet or are you gonna let our homeroom teacher do that?"
"I don't wanna think about clubs right now. I can't think of one I wanna join. Help me find one. Please?" you put on your best puppy eyes and begged. Maybe for once he'll take mercy on you.
"Why should I? Just join the music club. You did it in Jr. high. I'm sure you can survive three more years." Suna said not looking at you.
"I would prefer if I didn't have to go through all of that again. I expected music club to be about music not how much spit I could clean out of a tuba." you shuddered remembering the unspeakable things you went through in music club.
"Don't do this to me (n/n). The stories were the highlight of my day. You gotta do it again for the fate of mankind." Suna gave you the saddest look he could produce before he laughed at how ridiculous he thought he looked. "Anime joke. I don't know what to tell you princess. I haven't picked a club since we left elementary. Why don't you see if one of the sports clubs needs a manager."
"Rin you're a genius! Does the volleyball club need a manger? I promise I won't screw up."
Suna stared at you with a deadpan expression and sighed. "Remember when I went to visit family one summer break and asked you to watch Bubbles? I came back and we all attended a fishy funeral that same day. Or when I asked you to pick up Asami because I couldn't and I came home to my parents yelling at me because she called them crying cause nii-san forgot her? I could go on but I think you get the picture. I don't trust your promises anymore."
"Yeah but Bubbles was a special case. Who knew he'd eat until he burst if I put all the food in the tank? He was suppose to eat it little by little. And I apologized to you and your that entire year and you guys forgave me. Bottom line is I was young and dumb, now I'm a high school student and I've learned a lot in my fifteen years of life. Just talk to the coach and see what he says. I could probably really help you guys."
Suna sighed for the umpteenth time and ran a hand through his bangs. "It's not really the coaches I'm worried about. I met some of our upperclassmen and some of the third years are kinda intense."
You frowned at his tone and tried to think of what they could've done to him. "i'm sure they're not as bad as you're making them sound. Maybe you need to look at them from a different angle."
"I doubt it. There were two first years that made me question my sanity. If they weren't fighting they played really well together. There was one other first year that could already do jump serves. The entire team is pretty good. Looks like it's gonna be an interesting year for volleyball. I hope I get to play in some official matches." As the last sentence left his lips Suna's eyes widened and he turned to look at you so quickly you almost thought he'd get whiplash. "You didn't hear that."
"Oh that's what the problem is. I'm sure you'll get to play in some matches and if you don't then there's no way the team is going to nationals." you smiled at him.
Before Suna could respond the bell rang signaling lunch was finished.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*
At the end of the day you followed Suna to the gym.
"Remember it's not a guarantee. We don't have a manager and Coach Oomi does what you would do." Suna reminded you when you were almost at the gym. "Talk to coach Kurosu he's the head coach and old enough to be our father so if you ware him down enough you might just get the position."
"Alright. I can definitely do this." You sounded more confident than you felt but there was no turning back now.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Hello sorry it took so long for this part to be uploaded but it's here now. Hopefully you enjoyed this and the next chapter comes out sooner than this one did. Until then don't hesitate to let me know what you think or if you just wanna say hi I don't bite I promise.
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nobodyfamousposts · 4 years
Text
Missing - Part 4.1
Remember the something bad coming I mentioned before?
This is that.
Fencing practice the next day had been a bit more intense. Fortunately, Kagami had been a perfect opponent to go all out with. She seemed to notice his emotional state and reacted in kind. Which he appreciated, certainly. Adrien had needed to work off the stress and anxiety from the previous incident with Lila.
It hadn’t helped that Plagg had also been unusually agitated that morning. He wouldn’t say what was going on, but he had told Adrien that they needed to see Master Fu immediately.
Plagg...had never gotten like that. Adrien didn’t understand what was going on, but whatever it was, it seemed quite serious. So he had bit back any complaint about the early morning or his schedule and attempted to reach Master Fu by phone. Unfortunately, it had gone to voicemail after several rings, and they couldn’t be sure if it was that Fu had been asleep or otherwise occupied. While Adrien had offered to find time to go to Fu’s place that day once there was a break in his schedule, Plagg insisted that whatever was going on couldn’t wait, and had decided to go to the man’s home himself.
Adrien wasn’t about to refuse Plagg if he felt it was truly necessary to go, but he felt anxious without his kwami and he still wasn’t back yet. He only hoped that there wouldn’t be another akuma attack before he returned.
He hoped everything was okay…
But at least Kagami was there. Both to challenge him physically and to support him when he explained what happened afterwards.
“So you came clean to them?“ Kagami asked, seated on a bench in the locker room as she listened to Adrien talk about what had happened.
He nodded, coming back to the present and admittedly still somewhat shaken from the entire ordeal the day before. “They deserved to know.“
“And how did they take it?“ While he certainly warranted some reprimand for the poor decision he had made on the matter, he did not deserve to be ostracized or blamed for the mess. Lila’s actions were her own, and while each of them held responsibility for their part in falling for her manipulations and the weakness that allowed her to get as far as she did, ultimately Lila was the only one to blame for her actions. With everything so recent and still so raw, the last thing they needed to have happen was for someone else to be made a scapegoat, which was still a possibility now that Lila was no longer present to take the brunt of their anger. Kagami knew the class was made of generally kind souls, but people could do regretful things in anger.
She for one was not inclined to sit by and allow him to be made into the villain for a situation he was not fully responsible for, and her tightening grip on her foil was indicative of that.
“They weren’t happy with me. They still aren’t. And I don’t blame them, really.“ He admitted. He had been kicking himself ever since his initial talk with Nino for...a lot of reasons, really. Having friends really helped with getting insight and other perspectives. And helped him notice things he hadn’t before.
“But what it comes down to is that even if we knew or suspected that Lila wasn’t being honest, none of us truly realized the depths of just how manipulative she could be.” Not until it was all laid out for them at any rate.
“Even when she snuck into your house and sent out that picture?“ Kagami asked, keeping her voice level.
He winced at the memory of the cause of her akumatization. But still...
“That was rotten of her, and I warned her afterwards.” He took a breath, realizing that his school friends hadn’t been the only ones hurt because of this. This just served as another reminder of his failure to act. “I should have done more then. I’m sorry, Kagami.”
She frowned, not necessarily pleased, but not angry either. “What was the reasoning then?” She asked. Because even if she didn’t agree with it, she knew he at least had some view that led to the choice he made.
He winced. “Honestly, that was the sort of thing I would see of a more extreme fangirl. But lying to police to try and keep someone from getting help is a whole new level of low. And one I thought she actually would not stoop to.” He frowned, looking up at Kagami. “Does that make me foolish?”
“Yes.” She replied bluntly. “You at least knew that she was capable of underhanded things. And when you know a tiger’s stripes, you should know what to expect.”
He winced and looked away, guiltily. “I know. Or—I didn’t? I just...”
She decided to take pity on him.
“That said,” She added, drawing his attention back to her. “While you may know a tiger’s stripes, that does not necessarily mean you would be able to see them in the wild.”
He smiled bitterly. “Are you trying to make me feel better?”
“Yes.” She admitted bluntly. “But that doesn’t make me wrong.”
He sighed. “I still should have done something then. I knew she was capable of bad things. There was no excuse for not warning anyone at least.” He gave a sad laugh. “I can’t even imagine how Marinette must have felt when I told her to leave things alone.”
Adrien hesitated, coming to a realization.
“I think I’ve been doing that a lot...” He admitted. “I did the same thing to her when it came to Chloe when she was being her worst.”
“I cannot speak regarding Chloe.” Kagami stated, and she couldn’t given her limited interaction with the bratty daughter of the mayor. Anything she had to say about the girl would likely be far from helpful and only get them off track. “But if I may ask...why keep putting it on Marinette then when you knew she wasn’t in the wrong?“
He shrugged, despondent and uncertain.
“I just felt safer with her.” He answered.
He was used to being friends with Chloe. Where he had been expected to give her what she wants. Whether it was completing whatever task she demanded of him or tell her what she wanted to hear.
Telling her what she wanted to hear...even if it wasn’t true.
But Marinette...
“I knew Marinette would listen to me. And she’s been good with reaching out and giving chances.”
When two parties were arguing, one of them needed to be willing to offer an olive branch if they were to reconcile and make things better. But so far, Marinette was the only one he could see in that role. The only one capable of it, to be honest.
Heaven knew how often she intervened for their classmates. She’d stood up for them, but she had also been willing to put her own feelings aside to come to a compromise. After all, she had helped Chloe more than once. Even in spite of everything Chloe had done.
“My thoughts were that if I could get Marinette to listen and agree, others would follow suit. And there could be compromise. But that was an unfair burden to keep putting on her and I ignored that there were times she shouldn’t have had to be the one to reach out first. And when Lila came along…”
He shrugged, helplessly.
“In a weird way, I thought I was supporting her by encouraging her to not fight back.”
That turned out to be a mistake. One that had hurt everyone.
It was never that she didn’t matter as much as anyone else, or that she was less important than keeping the peace. It was just that out of everyone, she was the only one who would take that first step and he knew that. He knew it wasn’t fair to keep putting such responsibility on her. But there was no one else he could count on to help or mediate things. And he just didn’t want the class to fall apart.
He kept telling himself he would make it up to her and that he would support her when she needed it, but he wasn’t the most observant of people and Marinette always seemed so strong, like she’d never needed his help.
“I wasn’t being fair to her.“
The fact that he knew Marinette could handle things did not necessarily mean that she should be expected to be the one to have to, or that he should expect her to.
Kagami hummed to her self, thinking for a moment.
“Did you consider that the longer Lila Rossi was allowed to continue on, the more hurt other people would be once her lies were revealed?“
He winced.
“Or did you think they would be revealed at all?“
He sighed and slowly nodded. “At the start, her lies seemed frivolous and only meant to make herself look better. I had figured that either she would get comfortable and stop, or that people would lose interest in listening to her.”
She nodded, considering. “It was a reasonable assumption, albeit an erroneous one.“
He looked away and nodded. “It was a mistake on my part for assuming that much. I wanted to believe that people can get better and learn from their mistakes. And I keep wanting to give second chances, even in situations where I really shouldn’t.”
He knew now that Lila went beyond that.
“Why I let it happen was a combination of a lot of reasons really. I thought she would quit on her own. I thought people would get tired of listening to her. I thought that she would come clean herself. I thought, if nothing else, people would catch on to her lies. I had so many reasons behind my decision, but at the end of the day, it was the choice I made and I will never know what would’ve happened if I had simply told someone sooner. Maybe this could’ve been avoided.”
“But there’s no point lingering on the possibilities of different decisions now that the moment for them has passed.“ She pointed out.
He gave her a slight smile at that. “Yeah. While we all feel bad about it, wallowing in that isn’t going to change anything at this point. We’ve decided to keep our focus on trying to find Marinette. And if nothing else, the reveal of Lila will ensure she can’t sabotage our efforts anymore.”
“Has there been any luck?“
“Alya said she found something. Nino and I are going to talk to her tonight to go over what she’s learned. Maybe she found something that could help?“
“How are things with them?” She asked.
“They’re doing all right. Better than they were with Lila around. The others were really forgiving.” More than he honestly felt he deserved.
Kagami seemed satisfied with that. “They are good friends. If you try to talk to them, they will listen.”
He frowned, a bit frustrated but it seemed to be mostly with himself. “I know.”
She rested a hand on his shoulder. “If there’s something wrong, or if something is troubling you, then you should be free tocommunicate it. If nothing else, it can allow you to get a second opinion on a Point of concern. And in many cases you can share information that other people may not know.“
He smiled at her gratefully.
She smiled back.
“One of the common mistakes in fencing is to hesitate and miss an opportunity to act. Once the moment is over, it’s too late. But if nothing else, you at least have the knowledge for next time.”
“I know.” He agreed. “It’s why I want to help find Marinette. I want to be able to apologize to her in person…and reassure her that things will be better now.”
He clenched his fists.
“She deserves that much, at least.”
Because she was…
To him she was…
Kagami nodded in understanding.
“Marinette is a good friend.” She stated. “If there is any way I could help, I would like to try.”
He smiled.
“Thank you, Kagami.”
______________________
Another day came with another search party. The available classmates gathered in another attempt to try to locate their missing friend. Unfortunately, life goes on even when it feels like the world should stop turning. As such, not all of them were able to make it this day.
Adrien had fencing, and with his hectic schedule and strict expectations, he couldn’t afford to keep missing appointments or he’d lose any freedom to help in the search. Max was busy with a project and was thus unable to join the group on what was steadily becoming a new after school activity of searching the city for any clues. Nathaniel needed to do chores and help his dad at home. Mylene wasn’t feeling well and nobody wanted to risk her coming down with a cold or other illness. Kim had swim practice followed by a date, and it didn’t feel fair to make him give up something positive that made him happy on a search that would likely leave them all feeling drained and depressed.
Chloe was...well, Chloe. And while she had been surprisingly willing to step up and pull a major victory against Lila when it mattered, that one good deed didn’t necessarily mean she wasn’t still her usual self absorbed self. And it certainly didn’t mean that she was willing to traverse around Paris in the cold for who knows how long on behalf of someone she has expressed nothing but dislike for. She made it clear she would be spending her afternoon in warmth and comfort.
Sabrina, naturally, went with her. Though she had wished the group luck with their search.
This left Alya and Nino, along with the members of Kitty Section for the search. To Alya’s surprise, this meant they were joined by Luka as well.
“Luka? You helping out as well?” Nino greeted.
Luka hefted his guitar on his back and nodded. “ I heard you were looking and I wanted to help out anyway I could.”
In normal circumstances, Alya would be gleeful at the show of concern by a cute guy for her friend and the sign of at least one of her ships moving forward. But as sweet as the gesture was, it was really just a reminder of the fact that her friend was still missing, so whatever joy she felt was short-lived.
She shivered.
Chloe did have a point though. As it was getting later into the year, the days were getting colder. It only made her all the more concerned that her friend could be out on the streets in winter.
It was all the more reason to find her sooner. And she straightened, bringing out her phone and planning to do just that.
Alya had spent most of the night and well into the early hours of the morning going through the data Max gave her regarding Marinette’s phone.
What she found was....strange.
The phone itself was gone. Possibly turned off. However, the signal was still there. It was blurry. Seemingly fading in and out, inconsistent, and frequently moving. But it was there.
The data showed the status of Marinette’s phone and its location over the past weeks. Which was…weird, to say the least. The signal was abnormally weak. And didn’t seem to stick to one set location which she would have expected if the phone had been lost. No, if anything, it seemed to be...almost roaming?
Which didn’t make sense. If she was kidnapped, the kidnappers surely would have tossed the phone. And if it had just been left somewhere while being left on, it still should have run out of battery by now.
Instead, it just...sort of kept cutting in and out at random. There seemed to be no rhyme or reason to it.
But what had caught Alya’s attention was just when and where this strange status first started, which she had decided would be the location of their search for the day.
The others followed her, letting her lead the way while they chatted amicably with one another. Alya only half paid attention to what they were saying, her focus primarily on her phone and the map it was showing.
“It’s getting colder out, huh?”
“Anyone want to grab a hot chocolate after this? Maybe just as a pick me up after the search?”
“That sounds nice! What do you think, Juleka?”
“I’m in.”
“Hey Luka, is it really a good idea to bring your guitar out here for this?“
“It helps me think. And besides, you never know when it might be needed.“
“I guess.”
Alya, for her part, only half minded the conversation behind her as she led the group to the last known location of Marinette’s phone before it started doing...this. This strange fuzzy image that didn’t seem to be all there.
Unfortunately, the map icon was only able to narrow down the location so much. She was able to find the general area Marinette had been in last, but the specific place...
She looked around.
Strangely, the map led her to a somewhat out of the way area. It was a normal street. Shops of various kinds were lined up along the sidewalk. There wasn’t much that stood out. This was a simple district with no real landmarks. There was no real draw. No tourist attractions. No fabric stores either to garner Marinette’s interest.
So why come here? What had she been doing? And where did she go?
“Does anything stick out to you guys?” Alya asked as she glanced around, trying to find anything that could indicate where Marinette had been.
The others started looking around as well, but for all intents and purposes, it was just a plain street. The split up amongst themselves to go into the shops and ask around for clues. But none of the stores seemed like places where Marinette would go. And none of the workers inside had seen her. Though if they had, there was no way for her to have stood out to them enough for them to recall her weeks later.
“Not with the akuma attack, anyway.” One clerk stated. “It was a distance away, sure, but still close enough that we all shut down and hid out in our stores.”
Alya had nodded in understanding. Because honestly, while Ladybug and Chat Noir did a great job stopping the akumas, the fights could take them all over Paris in the span of an hour. Even if a battle was on the other side of the city, there was no telling where they would end up by the end.
She thanked the man for his time and left the store. Nothing she didn’t already know, but still, any information was useful. Something about it had nagged at her, though, so she wrote it in her notes all the same.
“Any luck?” Ivan asked, causing her to look up at the assembled group. Nino had been chatting with Ivan while Luka had taken to strumming on his guitar while they waited. Rose and Juleka were talking to someone at a nearby kiosk, possibly to purchase one of the charms.
Alya shook her head, regretfully. “Nothing on my end. At least not anything new. How about you?”
The boys shook their heads sadly. Alya couldn’t help the disappointment at that.
“Do you think there’s something we missed?” Ivan asked, trying to be hopeful.
Luka frowned, playing a few notes on his guitar, a bit harshly in apparent agitation. It was probably his method of coping, Alya rationalized. A part of her wished she had some reassurance to give him, but she was feeling despondent herself. Whatever boost she had gotten from seeing justice served with Lila was starting to falter, and she didn’t know how much hope she’d be able to hold on to for her best friend.
“Hey guys!” Rose came running over, looking excited. Juleka followed along silently behind her at a somewhat slower but still faster than usual pace. “That guy selling charms said he saw Marinette that day!”
That got their attention as everyone perked up.
“Really?”
“Where?”
“It was right before the akuma attack.” Rose explained, practically bouncing as she told them. “She was looking at the charms at his kiosk and mumbling about different designs for them, so they had gotten to talking a bit.” She frowned, looking concerned. “But then they heard the akuma alert. The owner was shutting down his kiosk but pointed out the direction he saw Marinette run.”
Juleka reached out, pointing towards a gap between two particular stores. “In there.”
Alya turned to look. The stores in question were both the tallest buildings on the street, standing at four stories with a clear alleyway between them. They didn’t have much in the way of decorations, but with the awnings and balconies, did appear to provide cover. Maybe Marinette had hid in there during the fight?
The alleyway itself was empty. Other than a fire escape on one side, a dumpster, and a fence blocking the way through, there didn’t seem to be much else of notice. And the dumpster had to have been cleaned out in the weeks since Marinette’s disappearance.
Nino heaved a sigh of relief when Alya told him this before he could attempt to dumpster dive for clues. He wanted to find Marinette, sure. And he certainly would have been willing to loot a dumpster for her, but that didn’t mean he wanted to.
The group spread out along the alley, continuing to search for clues. While not searching within the dumpster itself, Nino and Ivan had gone so far as to lift the dumpster enough for Rose to do a quick search beneath for anything. Juleka checked the fence for any holes or ways through. Luka stood near the entrance to the alley as a lookout in case anyone noticed them, absently picking at notes on his guitar.
Alya, for her part, tried to check the fire escape. Was it reachable from the ground? No, it was at least a story up and the ladder leading to it wasn’t lowered if it was even there at all. Maybe if Marinette had stood on the dumpster? Hmm...what if there was a way to check for height on her map?
She pulled out her phone
And immediately froze.
There, on her phone’s map, was a blinking, fuzzy icon. The one that had been indicating Marinette. At some point without realizing it, she had switched from the image of Marinette’s last placement to the current. She saw her own indicator with her picture, as well as those of her other friends with her.
But amidst her searching, the icon symbolizing Marinette’s current location on her map had been moving.
It was moving here.
And suddenly...
It had stopped.
It...was here.
Marinette...it said she was here.
Alya froze.
She couldn’t breathe.
She couldn’t even move her body from her spot. At most, she was able to move her eyes, searching wildly for any trace of her best friend.
But...nothing.
Why was it saying she was here?
“Marinette?!”
All other sound ceased. The others turned to her, but she didn’t even notice because it was here! The signal was right here! Marinette was here!
But…she wasn’t.
It was just herself. Just Alya. Just Nino. Just Luka and Rose and the rest of Kitty Section. Just them. Just random people passing by on the street.
No Marinette.
But…
A quick glance to the phone showed it was still there. So Marinette had to be here, right?
But why?
Alya looked around frantically, calling out in desperation.
“MARINETTE?!”
Silence.
A few strange looks from the people nearby.
Not even her friends dared to speak.
And on her phone, the icon symbolizing Marinette’s signal started to fade and drift away.
Alya stared at the icon. Wishing it back.
“Babe…” Nino tried, approaching her cautiously. “What was that?”
She bit her lip.
“I…don’t know?”
______________________
Oh.
The music stopped.
Whatever strands of melody and lingering echoes of the tune had since faded from the rooftop where she stood.
It had been a beautiful melody. Something gentle and kind in its own way. And while she knew better than to take a break, she had a strange inclination to listen to the sweet yet heartbreaking tune while it lasted.
…it just hadn’t lasted very long.
The loss felt…sad, in a way. She couldn’t help but feel that it had been cut off all too soon.
And the silence bothered her.
It seemed…stifling, almost.
She shook it off.
It was time to go anyway. She had spent too much time here as it was. And she still needed to…do whatever it was she was here to do. Continue searching the city. Keep an eye out for any akumas. Be useful. Stay busy.
Until she could go back to wherever she had been before, at least.
She sighed and threw her yo-yo. As she approached the edge of the building, she allowed the low murmur of background noise and city life to erase that gnawing emptiness. She swung off, leaving the sounds of shouting behind her. Whatever it was, it didn’t sound important.
Back to work.
______________________
Evening came all too slowly for Adrien. The rest of the day seemed to drag on and made him all that much more eager for the end of school. And wasn’t that an irony that he actually wanted to be out of school for once?
But the only thing he was more eager about than school was his friends. And Alya seemed to think she had a lead on Marinette. If she had anything, he wanted to know. If there was even a chance, he’d happily take it if it meant getting to see her again.
Unfortunately, their differing schedules made meeting difficult. Alya had wanted to share her info with Nino, and knowing how affected Adrien was by everything, Nino had insisted Adrien be there as well. But Adrien had practice and lessons after school. And Nino and Alya both had obligations at their respective homes.
It had been decided that they would do a phone chat later in the evening. After Nino and Alya’s younger siblings were put to bed and when Adrien’s schedule was clear.
He was practically vibrating out of his chair with nervousness the longer he waited for their video chat.
“Boo!”
So much so that he actually fell out of his chair when Plagg returned.
“Plagg! Where have you been?!” Adrien demanded as he pushed himself up. He was of course happy that he had returned, but really!
The kwami snickered at Adrien’s expression. Could anyone blame him? That was hilarious.
...but back on point, Plagg remembered his news and quickly got serious.
“I couldn’t find the Guardian.”
Adrien’s eyes widened. “Did something happen to him?”
Plagg shrugged. “I don’t know. He could just be out running errands or something. We’ll need to try again.”
“I could try calling him now.” Adrien suggested. If he had just been busy when he tried before, then surely it would be all right to try again to reach him now? And as long as he had his phone, Fu should be able to get his call. Though in that case, Fu should already have known about his earlier call, right?
Adrien bit his lip in worry. So much had been happening lately. Marinette disappeared. The whole thing with Lila. Ladybug was...apparently in a bad mood for some reason. Now Plagg was agitated and they couldn’t reach Master Fu.
He took a breath to steady himself. They weren’t sure Fu was actually unreachable yet. He needed to call him first. And if that didn’t work, he could have Plagg lead him to the man’s place to check up on him.
Still...he couldn’t help the anxiety he was feeling, and it only seemed to be getting worse.
BRIIIIIING!
“AAH!”
As was evident when he panicked at the sudden alarm from his phone. So much so that it took him three tries to grab the phone as he kept dropping it due to his frantic fumbling. Ignoring Plagg’s commentary, he looked to the screen and saw it was a video call request from Alya.
Oh right. The video chat with Nino and Alya. It was supposed to start now. He had just gotten distracted.
He took a breath and answered the call.
“Hey! Hi! Hello! Glad you made it!”
Honestly, he could have smacked himself.
Somewhere off to the side, Plagg was snickering. On the video, both Alya and Nino seemed to be smiling at how frazzled he appeared. Adrien himself was much less amused.
“Did you find anything?” He asked, only partly to distract from himself.
Mostly because he was hoping for some news. That their excursion earlier had been successful. That they’d found something on their friend. Preferably the friend in question.
But their downhearted expressions told him the answer before they even had to say anything. The explanation that followed was short but detailed, and only seemed to further his confusion. Given their expressions, Adrien was sure that Alya and Nino were in the same boat.
“It was the weirdest thing...” Alya trailed off in a mutter.
“I’ll say.” Nino added with a laugh. “You were kind of freaking out. We all panicked when you started shouting.”
In any other instance, Alya might have been offended. As it was, though, she was quiet. Remaining deep in thought and seemingly oblivious to her boyfriend’s attempt to distract from her.
But Adrien noticed.
“Alya? What’s up?”
A moment of silence followed as she attempted to gather her thoughts.
Then...
“I have a theory.“ Alya started, looking apprehensive.
Adrien perked up. “A theory? What of?”
Nino, for his part, found in realization. “Does this have to do with what happened earlier?“
She nodded. “I’d been following her cell phone signal. After…” She hesitated for a second. “Well, when I was Lady Wifi, I managed to track Marinette’s phone signal and that same signal is on my phone now. But something isn’t right about it.”
She lifted her phone to the screen so Adrien could see what she meant. Sure enough, there was Marinette’s icon active on the map, but...it looked strange. Distorted. He struggled to tell that it was Marinette’s picture there at all.
“It’s been like this for a while. I’ve never seen any case like this, and there are no reports online of anything similar. Plus given how it’s been moving around…” She pulled her phone back and shrugged. “I think magic may be involved.”
Adrien straightened. “So you think she might have been akumatized?”
She shrugged. “Near as I can figure.“
Nino frowned. “But that doesn’t make sense. Hawk Moth can only akumatize one person at a time.“
Well, that wasn’t quite true, Adrien realized. There had been the Scarlet Moth incident when he had caused a mass akumatization with that illusion. Then it happened again that time Marinette had been expelled thanks to Lila’s schemes.
He bit back the rush of resentment and guilt at the memory to focus.
Could Hawk Moth akumatize more than one person at once? There had been the young twins who became Sapotis and when Alya and Nino became Oblivio, but those were cases where two people were essentially one akuma. And even in the case of multiple active akuma like the time Lady WiFi, Reflecta, and Princess Fragrance came after him thanks to his cousin, they all still only shared one akuma. Purifying that had been enough to restore all three, and in this case, he and Ladybug had already done that. So if that was the case, Marinette should have been restored as well, even if they hadn’t fought her.
“Could he have made Lady WiFi if Marinette was already an akuma?” Adrien asked.
“He’s akumatized more than one person at once though. There was the incident with the scarlet butterflies. And then there were also the time with my sisters.” Alya argued, remembering the same incidents Adrien had.
“And when Adrien’s jerk of a cousin caused you, Rose, and Juleka to be akumatized.” Nino added.
Alya groaned. “We just don’t know the extent of Hawk Moth’s power.”
Adrien nodded at that. Of course it was possible that Hawk Moth had discovered some new ability. But his power seemed to follow certain rules and have at least some limitations, so it didn’t make sense that he could suddenly do this.
Or why, for that matter? Hawk Moth did show some capability for planning—Scarlet Moth was proof of that. But what could he possibly gain from keeping Marinette as an akuma for this long?
But...hadn’t he targeted her before?
Adrien bit his lip.
There was too much uncertainty.
He sent a glance to Plagg, who saw his look and shook his head in response. The kwami looked particularly annoyed at the current train of the discussion. Clearly they were on the wrong track.
Adrien took a breath. “I don’t think that’s it. If it was Hawk Moth, what would be the purpose? We all know Marinette is gone now and would be looking for anything that could be behind it. If he had the ability to akumatize multiple people back to back, why use it like this? It doesn’t add up.”
“I don’t know if it is that Hawk Moth akumatized her.” Aly admitted. “It’s just that it has to be magic. There’s no other way to explain it. I mean, it’s not just Marinette that’s gone. Her cellphone…” She hesitated. “It isn’t stable. It’s there, but...not? And she was there today. I know she was.”
She had to give Max credit for his capabilities. The data was extensive and thorough despite the clear limits. And quite advanced. She hadn’t known it was possible to get as much data as he had, or even that it existed. But it was helpful to her search, and that was the important thing. With it, she was able to glean information. And slowly, a timeline started to form.
As did a theory.
“So her phone signal is still there, but she isn’t. And it’s been like this since...“
Since Marinette went missing.
The same day she disappeared, the biggest thing that happened that day was—
“The akuma.” Alya whispered. She frowned as she switched her browser on her computer to the Ladyblog and started looking through the archived footage and documentation of that attack.
There was an akuma attack that day. Someone feeling forgotten and overlooked was given the power to erase others.
She had watched a video of one such unfortunate victim. The poor guy didn’t even have a chance to wince at being hit. He just vanished the instant the attack made contact.
“But if Marinette was akumatized,” Nino continued, “why would Hawk Moth even make an akuma like that? If she’s not doing anything other than making herself disappear...that’s not useful for him, is it?”
Alya frowned, looking over the data again. “It’s not, no.”
Adrien also wasn’t convinced. From Plagg’s expression, it seemed he had some idea, though now wasn’t the time to press him. He’d have to wait until after the call was over. “It’s also much quieter, isn’t it? Every akuma up until now has been immediate and noticeable, otherwise Ladybug and Chat Noir wouldn’t know to come out and fight it, and Hawk Moth wouldn’t have a chance to target their Miraculous. The only exception was when Sabrina was akumatized the first time to be invisible, and even that was only for a couple of days.”
Nino shrugged but appeared to agree with him. “It’s been a couple of weeks since Marinette disappeared. If it was an akuma, wouldn’t we have noticed one by now? Akumas are generally fueled by emotions. They aren’t subtle.”
Alya looked back at her phone, reviewing the timeline. “But if she isn’t an akuma herself, then the only other option I can think of is that she was hit by that erasure akuma last month.” She shook her head, incredulous. “But that can’t be right. The Miraculous Cure would have brought her back, wouldn’t it?”
So caught in the discussion between his friends, Adrien didn’t see how Plagg looked stricken.
“It’s never failed before.” Nino stated.
“But what else could explain the state of her phone signal? It should either be there or not at all.
Adrien paused, tilting his head thoughtfully.  “That’s not normal.” He agreed.
“It does indicate that whatever happened to Marinette, it must be magical. And the only one with any sort of power along those lines would be Hawk Moth.”
“But why?”
She sighed.
“I guess that’s the question, isn’t it?”
None of them noticed Gabriel standing outside the door. Or the expression of dawning horror.
________________
Gabriel felt numb in a way he never thought he had been before.
The missing Dupain-Cheng girl? An akuma?
No. That was impossible.
Even if he was capable of akumatizing more than one person at a time outside of the Scarlet Moths, he would still have known. He would have made contact with her. And from his experience with his powers, he would have a link to the girl.
There was nothing.
But the only other explanation…
An official victim of an akuma attack. Someone that the Cure didn’t bring back.
How was it possible?
He entered the office in a daze. Nathalie followed him closely  in worry, but he barely took notice. He just shut the door quietly behind him once they had both entered, then leaned against it. He felt shaky. Off balance.
He had gone to his son’s room to see if he had access to any of the pictures or footage from the fashion show. Or if that journalist friend of his still had her video. Just...anything.
Audrey had called him in such a rage that day. Somehow, the shipments of her latest issue of Style Queen never made it out. Her attempt to recover the issue failed due to multiple holes and entire blank pages where pictures and articles should have been. So she had reached out to him through Nathalie, demanding his involvement and taking his attention away from his duties as Hawk Moth. At the time, he had begrudged her the missed opportunity at another akumatization.
But now…
“That can’t be right.” He murmured to himself. How could this be? How was this even possible?
“Sir?”
“The blank pages and missing pictures were those of myself and my son, as well as any of my son in that hat.”
“The one from the contest?” Nathalie asked, uncertainly.
“Made by a Marinette Dupain-Cheng. A girl who it seems is also missing. And has been for some time…”
He looked to his computer, wondering if he could pull up the information or if that would be gone as well. He had thought it a simple error at first, but the more he searched, the less he found. And now, after hearing his son’s conversation...what else could it be?
“But the Miraculous Cure restores everything.” He continued, almost monotone. “That’s what it does. That’s how it works.”
She hesitated.
“Maybe…not this time?”
He felt unsteady as he made his way to his desk. Perhaps he actually was, as Nathalie had quickly moved to his side to help him to his chair. Given how he felt, he could only assume he probably looked ready to fall over.
“Sir?”
It…it shouldn’t have happened. The Miraculous Cure always undid any damage of the akuma battles. It rebuilt any damaged or destroyed property. Healed injuries. Brought people back from any sort of unwelcome fate. It restored people from being half-melted ice cream sculptures, for crying out loud!
For anyone to have just…NOT been saved was unheard of.
Gabriel had thought he had been prepared for this. But now that he was actually experiencing it, he was…left shaken...
He had known going in that casualties would be a very real possibility, but had reassured himself. It was for the greater good. His family was worth it. Everything would work out in the end. He could just use the Wish to change the world and make it so that none of this had ever happened.
And then Ladybug had appeared with the power to restore things and he was only further convinced. There wouldn’t be any long term damage. No one would be really harmed. Whatever happened could be fixed.
No one would die.
It became almost like a game. He could go all out with little concern for the consequences. If he lost, Ladybug would just use her Cure to fix everything and he would get another chance to try again. And if he won, he could correct things himself.
As such, he ceased to worry about the “what if’s” and focused solely on his goal.
But now a child was gone. As good as dead. Possibly worse.
And this time, magic wouldn’t bring her back.
For not the first time since he had started on this path, Gabriel wondered if it was worth it.
Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng was an aspiring designer who showed great promise. From his limited interactions with her, he could see she had passion—both for her art and in her life. He had been impressed with what he had seen of her capability, and her level of care for his son was secret only to Adrien himself.
And now she was gone.
And Adrien…his own son was suffering for it.
He had heard from Nathalie how Adrien had been worried for her. How he had gone so far as to go out and search for her in some futile hope of finding her. How he had held onto that hope, trying to reassure himself each day that she would return safely.
Adrien…truly cared about this girl.
He wondered if it was any different to how he felt about Emilie?
What would he think if he learned the truth? If he discovered who Hawk Moth really was? If he knew his father was the reason his friend had been erased.
It was…too much.
Was this a sign?
Was this an indicator that he was going too far?
He should stop. Before more people were hurt. Before his son discovered the truth. He should…
He should stop this.
And yet…
Gabriel clenched his eyes shut.
…he couldn’t.
Stopping meant letting go of Emilie. It meant giving up on ever getting her back. Of ever making their family whole.
If he gave up now, that would make all he had done for nothing—including the child’s loss as well.
He was not completely heartless. A missing child would no doubt cause quite a bit of turmoil. It was no wonder Lady WiFi hadn’t listened to him, being too intent on searching for her friend. The feelings that had drawn his akuma to her...similar to the growing feelings settling on a number of Paris’s citizens.
Worry, sadness, fear, anger…all were emotions that would make perfect targets for his akumas. In any other circumstances, he would see fit to use that. However…given his part in this matter, the very thought of using the loss of a child to his advantage—especially when it was his fault—made him feel ill.
He would avoid targeting her friends or family. He owed her that much.
But he…he had to continue.
He had to make it worth it.
Once he saved Emilie, perhaps he could even use the Wish to bring back Miss Dupain-Cheng as well?
Then maybe…
Maybe they would forgive him someday.
________________
Sure enough, a few days later it all came to a head.
When Adrien arrived in class that day after yet another failed attempt at contacting Master Fu, it was to a group of some of his classmates looking particularly concerned and surrounding an upset Juleka. The girl wasn't crying, but she looked to be close as Rose kept an arm around her shoulder and was trying to whisper words of comfort to her. The only ones not present were Max and Nathaniel.
"Don't worry.” Rose reassured her. “I’m sure they've just been misplaced somewhere."
Juleka shook her head firmly. "No. I keep them on my wall. I never move them, but they're just gone."
"Maybe your mom or Luka moved them?" Kim suggested.
"Not without telling me. And I asked them. Neither of them knew anything."
Adrien grew more concerned as he approached the group. "Guys, what's going on?"
Alix glanced over to him and answered. "Juleka's photos are missing."
That was a surprise. He knew how much actually appearing in a photograph meant to the girl. It would have to be upsetting to her to lose any of them.
"They were all the ones from the class photograph.” Mylene explained. "Remember? The ones we took in the park.”
Adrien winced internally before nodding. He had remembered full well that entire incident...and the akuma she turned into because of it...and the heels (god, the heels). They had taken quite a number that day and Juleka had seemed so happy when she went home with copies in hand. "Do you recall where you last left them?"
Juleka appeared more morose. "They're on my wall. They're always right there and I can't miss them. I put them up immediately after getting home and haven't moved them since. I know I saw them there yesterday, but when I got up this morning, the wall was completely blank."
"That's really weird.” Alya chimed in. "And you're saying no one moved them?"
Juleka shook her head.
The other classmates glanced to each other, appearing more uncertain. Adrien himself started to gain an unsettling feeling.
"I keep them all posted on a board in my room. They're right there and I can't miss them, but when I looked this morning…” She shook her head.
"I never move them."
"Maybe it's a prank?” Kim asked, but he sounded uncertain. If it was a prank, it was a cruel and rather pointless one.
Alix seemed to share that sentiment. "It's not a funny one. Who would even do that?"
The group looked around at each other. They were really the only ones who even knew Juleka's "curse” or about the pictures. But each of them simply looked confused over the matter.
"It couldn't have been a prank.” Ivan insisted. "Luka would never do that and their mother would punch out anyone who tried."
Mylene frowned, considering. "Juleka's house is a boat. One housing three people and isn't that big that someone could sneak on board without being seen."
“It’d be a pointless thing to do—sneak onto a boat just to mess with pictures and nothing else.” Kim noted. “Was anything else missing?”
Juleka shook her head. “Not that I know of. Just my pictures.”
"It's okay." Rose said, trying to be cheerful and calm her upset friend. "I have a couple extras of the photos we took in my notebook. We can copy them and replace the ones that went missing."
It wasn’t quite the same, but it was a suitable alternative for now. So with a solution to the more immediate problem at hand, Rose shared a bright smile that Juleka tried to return—albeit with a much more strained and shaky one. Rose didn't comment, instead going to her desk and pulling out her book bag.
“I keep them right in—”
The others looked over in confusion as Rose suddenly cut off, her expression turning confused.
"Rose? Everything okay?” Alix asked, growing worried at the prolonged silence.
Rose bit her lip and turned back to the group. "Did one of you maybe already take my notebook?"
Confusion seemed to be the theme of the day, as the classmates again glanced at one another before looking back to Rose.
"I'm not mad or anything!” Rose said, attempting to reassure them. "Since it's for Juleka, but if you already have it, I'd like to know where it is."
"Wait...are you saying your notebook is missing, too?" Nino asked.
Rose bit her lip, uncertain. "I don't—I mean, I guess so?"
"That's strange." Adrien said with a frown. He turned to the rest of the group in growing concern. "Look around. Is anyone else missing anything?"
The rest of the class searched through their bags, but fortunately, no one else seemed to be missing anything.
“That is odd. First Juleka’s pictures, then Rose’s diary? Why those things?” Alya wondered. She muttered to herself about an akuma and checked her blog to see if anyone had posted any similar cases on the matter.
The rest of the class took it upon themselves to try and offer some reassurance to the two girls that their items would be found.
“Maybe we can check the cameras?” Ivan suggested.
“That’s a lot of footage to go through though.” Nino pointed out.
“I bet Markov could go through it pretty quick.” Kim replied with a grin.
Adrien looked around at his classmates. It was good to see them mostly recovered from the ordeal with Lila and trying to help each other. But he couldn’t shake the feeling something was strange.
He could almost get a sense for it before he was interrupted by the timely yet untimely arrival of Max.
Kim smiled in relief at the sight of his friend. “Hey, Max! Buddy! Think you and Markov could give us a hand with a little investigation? Rose and Juleka seem to be missing some things and we figured maybe you could help!”
Max, for his part, looked concerned and a bit guilty. "I'm sorry, but Markov and I are already busy trying to assist Nathaniel and Marc. It seems that somehow, their collaborative comic has been erased."
Multiple gasp and moans of horror and disappointment filled the room at that. Everyone really enjoyed that comic and they had been really looking forward to the next installment.
"Do you know what caused it?" Mylene asked.
"We've been doing everything we could, but we haven't been able to find anything about the comic in the computer. I suspect it may be a virus of some kind, but there's no trace of anything of the sort. We're trying to help them work this out. They had gotten a lot of work done on this comic and I'd hate to see it lost."
"I'm sure you'll figure it out. You're amazing when it comes to technology." Kim said with a grin, fully confident in his friend's capabilities.
But Max didn't look enthused. "I'm not so sure. Markov can't find any trace of an outside program or of the comic even being there.” He waved his hands. “It’s like it just…vanished!”
Adrien frowned. Three things in one day. It…couldn’t just be coincidence, could it?
“Can it do that?”
“Not like that. Not normally.”
"This is strange.” Mylene said anxiously, gripping Ivan’s hand. “A lot of things seem to be missing."
Alya frowned, looking at her phone. "Speaking of strange things, I just got a hit to the Ladyblog. It's Marinette's parents. They want to talk to Ladybug and Chat Noir as soon as possible."
Several of the classmates perked in surprise.
“Could it be an akuma?”
“Do you think they’re okay?”
“Did they find something about Marinette?”
“But why call for Ladybug and Chat Noir then?”
“Huh? Hey, Adrien, where are you going? Class is about to start!”
Adrien barely took notice. He was already out the door.
______________________
If he hadn't already received the message, Chat would have known immediately that something was wrong. Rolland and Gina Dupain were present at the bakery. He knew little regarding the Dupain family, but he had been under the impression that the two were not on good terms. But they were actually working together without issue, with Gina working the counter and Rolland working the kitchen with nary a grumble regarding the bread.
When Chat arrived, Gina immediately called for Tom. And within seconds, he was quickly rushed in by the much taller man, who…did not look well.
The giant, kind bear of a man looked like he had aged since the last time he had seen him. Not to any great or unnatural extent, but it was clear that stress had impacted him.
Losing a child would do that to you, he realized. But whatever else was going on was certainly doing him no favors.
"Thank you for coming." Tom said with clear relief as he opened the door.
Chat nodded in return as he entered. "It's not a problem. But your message sounded urgent. Has there been any word on Marinette?" Like hopefully that she returned and the bakery was closed so the parents could smother her in affection?
He was hopeful. He was a hopeful guy.
Tom shook his head. "I don't know how to explain it. It's best if you see it for yourself." With that, he led the way through the back. Chat followed with some growing trepidation and jumped when he entered the living area.
Sabine was there. Her gaze practically snapped to him the instant he appeared, though she didn't otherwise move. The woman was sitting on the couch, clutching a box of what appeared to contain an assortment of clothes and dolls. Marinette's things, he realized. But why? Comfort, perhaps?
But Sabine didn't look sad or in need of comfort. If anything, her expression made him wary to approach her. She looked upset no—not just upset, but downright angry. She was on guard and watching him with a strange sort of hypervigilance. Like she'd literally bite his hand off if he got too close. He had no doubt that magical suit or not, the woman probably could.
Chat had thought the grandparents had looked particularly tired. Like perhaps they hadn’t slept in a while. But Tom and Sabine both looked like they had slept even less.
For her part, Sabine’s eyes narrowed at him and she pulled the box closer to her and as out of his sight as possible. It bothered him, because it was strange for someone to be clutching a box like that. She wasn't looking to the things inside for solace, she was warily watching everything else around her.
Something was wrong.
More wrong, he amended.
"We noticed it after a few days, but we didn't know what to think." Tom said, softly as he continued to lead the hero up the stairs and through the house. "It looked like some of her things had been moved around. At first we thought that maybe she'd found a way back home. Or that she was trying to communicate with us somehow. But... “He opened the door and allowed Chat into the room.
When Chat finally entered Marinette's room, he couldn't help feeling bewildered.
Was it always this empty, he wondered? He glanced around at the different areas of Marinette's room, noting the differences and the overall"¦lacking. The walls were missing pictures. There was nothing on the desk. The mannequin that was normally adorned with the beginnings of some sort of outfit or new piece wasn't even present, leaving a sadly empty space in the room. There weren't even the knick knacks or textiles or yarn or cloth pieces that he remembered seeing previously. It looked like a room. It even looked like someone lived in it. But it was bare of a lot of what made it Marinette's.
Tom looked around the room in growing dismay. "It's getting worse."
Chat blinked in confusion. "What?"
"The posters are gone now. So are the gloves she had been working on. Several of the pictures changed before they disappeared." Tom looked to Chat, eyes begging for an answer. "We checked frequently, but bit by bit, they were gone before we realized it. It's like they're just...”
"They're fading." Chat realized in growing horror. He'd started to suspect, given Juleka's pictures and Rose's diary, but this confirmed it.
This wasn't natural.
Marinette didn't run away. Nothing so simple could explain what he had been seeing so far. No human could pull this off, and he knew Marinette was far from the sort to even try, no matter the reason. This was magic, he was sure of it.
"Sabine and I have been taking shifts. Whenever we looked away, something else was gone. So we just...” He shrugged helplessly before gesturing down the ladder.
Downstairs. To where Sabine sat hoarding a box with all the ferocity of a dragon guarding its gold.
He understood now. Marinette's mother wasn't holding onto Marinette's belongings out of missing her child, she was literally trying to keep them from disappearing!
Her room. The pictures. The notebook. The comic. They were all connected by her influence. Everything Marinette owned or had a part in was starting to fade away. Her parents figured it out and they were trying to protect what was left of their daughter.
He clenched his fists.
He had to talk to Ladybug.
______________________
How frustrating.
It had been weeks, but Ladybug had made little progress in her self appointed mission to track down Hawk Moth. And it had been vexing, especially given his recent silence. Other than Lady Wifi, there hadn’t been any other akuma attacks. Even in spite of the more despondent atmosphere she had noticed around the Francois Dupont school as of late.
He must be planning something...
Surely there had to be some minor issue he would consider escalating to akuma-worthy. That incident in the park with that strange old man certainly stood out in her mind as one such missed opportunity for the supervillain.
...who even was that man? He acted like he knew her and was spouting...the strangest things.
Who she was before she became Ladybug? Someone beneath the mask? He ‘knew’ her?
Ridiculous.
Clearly he had been suffering some ailment when he happened upon her.
She sighed.
It was unfortunate really. For a brief moment there, she had almost thought the man had known something valuable. He had seemed so earnest. And she could almost swear he seemed...familiar? Like she had met him somewhere before.
She rubbed her head, trying to recall. It wasn’t just this time or the one incident before. Maybe she had rescued him once? Maybe he was one of the civilians she had chatted with on some previous occasion? And that could be how he thought he knew her?
Maybe...
“Ladybug! LADYBUG!”
At the sound of someone calling for her, she stopped and turned around to see Chat running towards her. She was glad to see him again, but from his expression and the way he was running, it looked like this wasn’t a social visit.
“Chat? Is everything all right?” She asked once he had finally reached her. “Is there an akuma?”
“No! I mean yes! I mean—not exactly!” He shook his head. “Sorry, just…”
She couldn’t understand him through his babbling. Ladybug frowned and held her hands out, gesturing for his silence to get his attention.
“Chat, calm down and breathe. Then tell me what is wrong.”
To her further annoyance, he took a deep—somewhat exaggerated breath. If nothing else, however, it did serve to get him to settle and be able to speak normally.
“Listen, I think something may have gone wrong in the last akuma battle. Well—not the last one, but the last last one.”
…semi-normally.
At least she could understand him, at any rate.
Still, that was concerning. “What do you mean?”
She had stopped that akuma, hadn’t she?
“A friend of mine disappeared after that battle and never reappeared. Now she’s missing.”
“You mean that Marinette girl? Chat, it’s likely she may have run away.”
“NO. She didn’t. I was worried about that at first, but she wouldn’t and I was right. Other things are disappearing now! Everything of hers or that she had a hand in is literally fading away! She had to have been hit by that erasing akuma.”
“That’s impossible. The Miraculous Cure fixes all the damage caused by an akuma fight.”
“But Marinette hasn’t returned!”
“Then maybe she wasn’t involved with the akuma fight at all.”
“Her things are disappearing! Anything that reminds people of her are suddenly vanishing if people aren’t constantly watching them! That’s not normal! That’s magic.”
“Did you actually see anything disappear?”
He paused.
“Well—not directly myself, no.” He admitted, rubbing his head. “But a lot of people have said things are disappearing. And they all seem to be things she had some involvement or influence in.”
Marinette had come up with the idea for Rose’s journal after Chloe had insulted it. She had helped Juleka break her curse and take all those fun photos to make up for the class picture. Marc and Nathaniel’s comic only got started because Marinette had introduced them. And from what he saw at the bakery, the effect was expanding.
He froze, a creeping realization sinking in.
If it was expanding, just how much would be gone?
“But if you haven’t seen it, then how do you know that it’s an akuma?”
“But they said—”
She shook her head. “Chat, it could just be coincidence. People misplace things. Lose things. Throw things away and forget about them. It happens. That doesn’t make it noteworthy and doesn’t mean it’s magic. Sometimes, those things are just gone.”
“But they—”
“You have to face facts, Chat Noir. If she’s gone, she may not return.”
He’d had enough.
“What is WRONG with you?”
He had plenty of times where he felt annoyed or angry with Ladybug. When she rejected him. When she kept secrets. When she didn’t seem to take him seriously. Looking back, those instances seemed so incredibly petty compared to how he felt in this moment.
Never had he ever wanted to shake her the way he did now.
“A girl is missing! She is literally fading from existence and you don’t care!”
“Chat, you don’t even know that’s actually the case! There are other things to worry about right now!”
“This is a person’s LIFE AT STAKE!”
Ladybug simply looked unimpressed. “Everyone’s life is at stake against Hawk Moth, Chat! And you would have me put him on hold just for one person?”
“She isn’t just one person!”
She was a person! She had a name! And a family! And friends! And a dream! She was an up and coming designer! Jagged Stone’s artist! Their class representative! His classmate!
She...
She was his...
Now Ladybug looked almost...sad? Disappointed?
“You’re too attached to this girl to think about this objectively, Chat. You are letting your emotions cloud your judgement. As a hero, you need to be impartial.”
He grit his teeth.
He wanted to say something.
He wanted to say so much.
But instead, he turned tail and stormed off.
It was Ladybug. His partner. The person he would follow in any crisis. He knew to an extent that she had a point, because yeah, he had a tendency to act on his emotions rather than think things through. But...she sounded like she didn’t care.
What else could he do?
So he ran away.
But Ladybug...
She simply stood there. Her head tilted in confusion as she watched him go. She watched for a minute before she shrugged it off and turned away. She didn't try to go after him. Not once did she call out to him.
Her partner was running away from her...
...and she just let him.
______________________
Tom knew something was wrong.
It had been a busy day in the bakery. Despite the circumstances in the current situation with her daughter being missing, they couldn't just keep the bakery closed. After all, Marinette had to have a place to come back to at some point. And they needed to keep living.
But that didn't mean it wasn't hard.
Tom and Sabine had been torn. In their current state, they were hard pressed to keep the bakery running and also focus on efforts to find their daughter. It was even worse now that they had distinct reason to believe magic was involved.
It had been fortunate that both Gina and Rolland had been willing to put their differences and issues aside to come help. They had been a substantial support during this time. When Tom had reached out to them, Gina had cut short her trip to Peru to fly back to Paris and assist, mentioning using her connections to deal with some of the cartels in the area known for human trafficking on the chance they happened to be involved. And Rolland had taken to the traditional methods of posting Marinette’s MISSING picture at various locations.
Seeing the current situation with the parents, both had gone so far as to agree to help in the bakery. Gina had agreed to manage the storefront while Rolland had taken to helping in the kitchen. Surprisingly with minimal complaint about the bread. And even willing to close his own bakery in the meantime.
He was still difficult, but it was clear the man was trying. And he was more help than not.
This allowed Tom and Sabine to be able to breathe. There were points where one or the other would have to go to the back when things got to be too much. From the normal stress of the job itself to the pitying looks and questions they would sometimes get. And now to try to keep count of what else of their daughter’s had disappeared when they weren’t looking. Which meant they had taken to shifts during the night as well in hopes that their presence would slow down the process.
Sabine had been quite focused on this for the past few days, willing to leave the majority of the bakery work to the other three. But one could only spend so long staring at a box and a slowly emptying room, and she had eventually agreed to Tom’s pleas to just try to return to a regular work day if only to restore a sense of normalcy.
...he should have realized something was up the instant she had agreed.
She had switched with Gina in working the front and dealing with the customers. Plastering a perfect smile and jovial tone, as if her world wasn’t crumbling. He was concerned with her state, but Tom had wondered if this wasn’t her way of trying to cope. Sabine had long had a way of being a pillar of calm in any storm, so he had decided to trust in her.
But then there were the more...delicate customers.
Enrique Arnette was never an easy man to deal with. Pretentious, high-handed, and with a need to be catered to in a way that rivaled with Audrey Bourgeois. He could be her brother, all things considered. They were both loud and full of themselves. Only she, at least, had the power and capability to back her.
Unlike Audrey, Enrique was just loud. Loud and entitled. He was well known for being picky and making specific demands that some questioned might be less about what he actually wanted and more about looking for a reason to get upset and cause a fuss. But Tom and Sabine's Bakery seemed to be one of the few places capable of meeting his picky and overly extravagant standards.
Usually, Sabine was more than capable of handling him or any other contrary customer.
But today...
"What is this? Are you supposed to be a bakery or a crematorium?"
It was like nothing she did was satisfactory.
It might have been the stress getting to her. Tom would have believed that.
Except that the smile on her face was like ice. And her eyes were like steel. When he tried to step in to take over handling the order, Sabine clutched the plate in an iron grip. And as she looked up at him, her gaze was downright unnerving.
"Let me handle this."
Tom didn't dare disagree. He just watched and waited anxiously to the side as Sabine continued to try and fail to fulfill his order.
It was too cooked.
There was too much syrup.
The fruit was mashed.
The design was poorly done.
As Enrique became more frustrated, Tom noticed how Sabine neither stood up to the verbal tirade, nor did she apologize.
And his wife's expression was a knowing one.
It was...unusual for her. If he didn't know better...or maybe because he did know better, he couldn't stop himself from wondering if it was intentional?
The way she was messing up the order so many times was not like her, to the point he could swear it was on purpose. And her attitude and responses, while not outright rude, were not customer-friendly and were certainly far from her norm.
Was she...trying to upset him?
"What kind of service is this?!" The man demanded.
Tom stepped forward. "Dear, why don't I handle this and you can take a break, okay?"
But Sabine didn't even look at Tom. Her gaze remained fully on Enrique.
"If it is so displeasing to you, perhaps you would find service more befitting of your station in a dumpster?"
Everyone froze.
Sabine was many things. Matronly. Firm at times when needed. Soft at other times when it isn't. Fully willing to stand up to people.
But she was never rude. And she would never insult anyone like this.
Enrique’s face turned red in growing rage.
"What did you say?"
“Are you deaf?” She asked him congenially in a tone and manner as if she was commenting on the weather instead of actively insulting the man. “Or is there as much trash filling your ears as there is your mouth?”
Tom gaped momentarily before moving forward to intervene. “Sabine, why don’t you just—”
“HOW DARE YOU?!” Enrique shouted, almost on the verge of a shriek. “I have NEVER been so insulted in my life!”
“Then clearly people weren’t trying hard enough.” Sabine shot back derisively. “If you aren’t going to take your needlessly complicated and pretentious order, then get out and let someone else.”
Gasps and murmurs resounded.
He turned up his nose. “I won’t pay a euro for that mess or your attitude! If anything, you should be paying ME at this point for the insult! And trust me, I WILL be making you pay!”
Shouts of alarm got Tom’s attention, along with the sound of wings.
“Oh no!”
And akuma had gotten into the store, no doubt attracted to Enrique’s indignation as it fluttered its way towards the irate man.
Except that in the second before the akuma could reach him and assimilate into his watch—
SLAM!
Sabine had caught the akuma in midair before it could reach Enrique, her hand covered in an old worn oven mitt.
Everyone jerked back in shock and growing horror.
But Tom just stared in sorrowful realization.
He recognized that mitt. It was one of the first things Marinette had made and gifted to her mother.
It was one of her few possessions that remained.
One that Sabine had refused to part with.
"No." He murmured. "Sabine. Honey, no.”
His wife couldn't hear him.
The glowing mask was indicative that it was already too late.
323 notes · View notes
plumso · 4 years
Text
sweet escape
pairing: Draco Malfoy x Fem!reader
summary: Y/N, unhappy in her current relationship, seeks solace and silence to be alone with her thoughts. Thus, the Room of Requirement appears in her time of need. She has made it her escape from people and her problems, but she then quickly realizes that she is not the only one in the room.
warnings: angst, breakup, arguments
A/N: Hello! This is my first Draco fanfic, and I hope you like it! I have never been a major Draco fan, so it was a bit of a struggle to portray his image and character. I hope I did his complex personality justice!
I do not give permission for my work to be reposted!
music suggestion: Matter to You by Sasha Sloan
I do not own the image
Tumblr media
Surrounded by her warm and bustling group of friends, which have stuck together since the beginning of their first year at Hogwarts, Y/N sighed lamentably, her energy not matching that of her friends. They were all roaring in the excitement in the Great Hall; after all, it was the first breakfast of their sixth year, and though times were dark in the wizarding world, they were hopeful that they can make this year the best one yet. However, troubled by her worries and lost in her thoughts, she paid no mind to their conversation. Though she thought that she kept her sentiments hidden, they all noticed this.
“Y/N, are you okay? You’ve been down since we were on the train,” said Ginny worriedly.
Y/N snapped out of her thoughts and shook her head fervently. “I’m perfectly fine! It’s just… the weather is really affecting me today,” replied Y/N nervously. 
Her group of friends shared a look, wondering how the day's clear, blue sky could dampen her mood. They could sense that something was wrong; in fact, they noticed her change in behavior since the end of their fifth year. 
Y/N was an astonishingly kind person; she would comfort any student who approached her with their struggles, for she secreted this mysterious, soothing aura. It came as no surprise that everyone came to love and adore her sweet, honey-like demeanor. However, her friends, including her boyfriend Dean, noticed how she has never come to them with her troubles. And so, they waited till she felt comfortable in opening herself up. 
Dean, who sat next to her, wrapped one of his arms around her shoulder. “You know, you can always talk to me about your problems, right?” He said quietly into her ears.
 Y/N sheepishly smiled while gently rubbing his arm. “I’m fine!” exclaimed Y/N as she gives a reassuring look to all her friends. “Seriously, don’t worry about me. There’s nothing wrong. I’m just a bit tired these days, that’s all.” 
 Though it did not do much to ease their worries, they reluctantly dropped the subject and recapitulated their previous conversations. Y/N sighed to herself, pleased that she did not expose any more of her melancholy than she already did. And though she appreciated the worries from her boyfriend and friends, she could not stop the guilt-ridden in her heart. She glanced up to Dean and stared as he converses with their friends.
 Dating ever since their second year at Hogwarts, they were constantly seen holding hands or giggling in every class they shared. Multitudes of teachers and students even exclaimed how they were the cutest couple in their year. 
 It all started when a bludger headed towards Y/N during a quidditch match. Its speed was unmatched, struck by a beater known for their crazy strength. And when Dean, who sat next to her, pulled her away from it, the crowd roared. Not long after did they start to date, and fortunately, they both seriously liked each other. Dean adored her gentleness while she thought he was the perfect boyfriend; he was attentive, caring, and incredibly mature. Plus, he saved her life! She remembers how Lee Jordan explained that one knock from that bludger would have sent her straight to the grave. 
 ‘But if he’s the perfect boyfriend, then… why don’t I feel happy?’
 Still staring at his face, he turned his head towards her, shocked to catch her gaze but then giving her a sweet smile. She reciprocates his smile and then swiftly turns her head away, a pang of guilt hitting her chest. 
 Feeling overwhelmed with all her troubled thoughts and feelings, she stood up from her seat. “I completely forgot one of my books in my dorm!” She quickly gathered her stuff and brushed off her robes before placing a soft peck on Dean’s cheek. “Sorry, guys. I’ll see you all in class!” She exclaimed, not allowing her friends to say anything before she ran off in a hurry.
 Dean eyed her figure as she disappeared from the Great Hall, concern evident on his face. He felt the two starting to drift, but he did not know what he could do to stop it. Dean wondered if she had also noticed this, yet he was too afraid to ask. And so, he quickly pushed away his worries and continues conversing with their friends.
 Strolling down the bustling halls of Hogwarts, Y/N kept her head down, thoughts still swirling in her mind. She feared these feelings; after years of being together, she felt like she was betraying Dean and all his kindness. They did everything together, whether it be their homework or their summers. They even had the same friends! How is she going to chase away this strange, unhappy feeling when she is with Dean?
 Not realizing that she wandered off into a quieter area in the school, she looked up to see a strange door in a corridor. “Isn’t this…” Y/N said to herself as she studied its patterns, “the Room of Requirement?”
 The Room of Requirement was known to only be visible for those in great need of it. And so, it was not much of a shock when Dumbledore's Army utilized its space and secrecy to learn DADA, much to the scorn of Dolores Umbridge. However, as soon as the conflict ended with Umbridge kidnapped by centaurs near the end of their fifth year, it quietly vanished. And so, when its door randomly appeared in front of Y/N, she was shocked.
 “Am I that much in need for it…?” 
 She cautiously looked around, making sure that no one saw her before she entered the room. Seeing that the room was completely different from the time when she was learning DADA from Harry, her mouth hung open in awe. The room had towers of ancient, rare books that were declared lost, and filled with random gold objects that seem to cost a fortune. And though her life was ridden by witches and wizards that did wonders no muggle could ever imagine, she found the room to be the true epitome of magic. And so, it became her secret escape.
 For the next few days, Y/N would find ways to get out of hanging out with her friends and run to her new home. She would then use the time to gather up random furniture in the room and conjure up all her extra blankets and pillows to make a little nook for herself. It was the perfect place for her to relax and to forget all her worries.
 After weeks of frequent visits to the room, Y/N realizes that she was not the only one in need of a room. Hiding underneath one of her cozy blankets, she peaked out to see who the blonde visitor could be. Much to her shock, it was none other than Draco Malfoy. She observed from afar as the other blonde visitor frequently examined what she later figured out was a Vanishing Cabinet. 
 Y/N did not know much about Draco, involved too deeply in her personal life, but she found his actions incredibly suspicious. She wondered if the room was safe now that Draco was using it but increasing desperation to escape, especially when Dean was starting to get more suspicious of her actions, made it impossible to abandon it all. And so, she found it fit to investigate Draco and to figure out what his intentions with the cabinet were.
 “Draco is bad news,” Harry said as Y/N walked with him to their next class. “His whole family is aligned with Voldemort. I can assure that to you, Y/N.”
 “Don’t take Harry’s accusations too seriously, Y/N. He’s just weirdly suspicious of Draco this year.” Hermione said reassuringly, waving off Harry’s serious comments. “But… he is an awful person. He’s bullied countless people, even me! Who even cares if I’m a mudblood…” Hermione grumbles while she fiddles with the sleeves of her robe.
 Ron laughs. “You should have seen her, Y/N! She punched Draco’s stupid face in our third year. It was wicked!” He exclaimed proudly, causing Hermione to punch his shoulder, a hidden smile painted on her face.
 Y/N gulped. Though she expected numerous rumors about Draco, she did not expect him to be involved with He-who-shall-not-be-named. “Thanks, guys.”
Unfortunately, the investigation did not help as much as she thought it would. And so, she resorted to pure luck that she would arrive at the room before Draco. This meant sprinting to the room as fast as she could or peering at every corner, wary of his approaching figure. However, she quickly realizes that it was a faulty plan as she stares at the shocked blonde-haired boy before her.
 “Draco! What are you doing here?” Y/N nervously said while she tightly clutches the wand hidden in her robes.
 “I could ask you the same thing,” Draco spitefully retorted. He eyed Y/N up and down, incredibly shocked to see another person other than him in the Room of Requirement. “Wait… Aren’t you Dean Thompson’s girl?”
 Y/N smiled in response, but it was greatly strained. “Uh, yes. I’m Y/N.”
 “Don’t tell me this is where you and Dean Thompson come to snog,” he said with disgust.
   Y/N’s eyes widened. “No! Not at all! Dean doesn’t know about this place,” she quickly said. “I just… come here to think.”
 Draco looked at her in disbelief, seeing straight through her awkward façade. “I don’t believe you.” He eyed her for a while, suspicious as to what her purpose was. After all, his mission as a Death Eater was of utmost importance, according to his father. If anyone were to learn of his plans, it would completely expose him and his family. “... Are you spying on me?”
 “No! Why would I even spy on you?” Y/N exclaimed, glancing at the Vanishing Cabinet behind him. Draco noticed this and shuffled in front of it. “… What are you doing here?”
 “It’s none of your business,” Draco spats. Noticing Y/N’s growing suspicion, he started to panic. His mind raced with multiple excuses or retorts to reflect the attention away from the mysterious cabinet behind him. “… I also come here to think.” 
 The two stood in silence for a while, unsure of what to say or do. It was not until Draco coughed to break the silence that seemed to eat them up alive.
 “Well, I was just about to leave,” Draco said as he shoved Y/N away to get to the door. Before he opened it, he paused and looked back at her. “Don’t tell anyone about this place or the fact I was here... Y/L/N.” And with that, he quickly disappeared.
 After that weird encounter, Y/N and Draco kept running into each other in the Room of Requirement. Draco was annoyed by her presence and kept trying to scare her away. However, Y/N knew this was related to his strange connection with the cabinet, thus wanting to interfere. She could not quite figure out why she was suspicious of his actions, but Y/N knew that she had to stop him. Plus, she despairingly needed an outlet, and the Room of Requirement was her only sanctuary. 
 “Back again, Y/L/N? You must not have any friends.” Draco chortled as he laid against one of the furniture in Y/N’s little nook with one of her fluffy pillows behind his head. 
 Y/N laughed, casually taking a seat next to him. “What are you talking about? Aren’t you my friend, Draco?”
 He rolled his eyes, turning his head away to hide his smirk. “Who would want to be friends with a witch like you?”
 In the beginning, the two were constantly annoyed with each other. After all, the two had reasons why they were using the room, and their presence impeded it. However, the two were stubborn, and neither wanted to back down. Eventually, after days and weeks of short arguments (with Draco usually doing all the yelling while Y/N timidly tries to switch the conversation), they started becoming used to their company, now even expecting it. She even got over the fact that he was a Death Eater.
 Draco never told nor even planned on telling her, but she had already known for a while. She saw a glimpse of it when he rolled his sleeves up to move one of the tables for her to make their napping nook bigger. 
 She was incredibly shocked. Although Draco spoke of how his father used to be a Death Eater for Voldemort, he never told her that Draco, himself, associated with the evil bunch. After all, Y/N knew his mean exterior was a façade created by years of pressure and failed parenting from Lucius. While slowly getting to know him, she quickly grasped the depths of his insecurity plus her growing dislike for his father. However, when she saw his mark, it swiftly bogged down this image she had of him.
 With his figure turned away from her, she quickly clutched her wand hidden in her bag, ready to aim it at him. But, when he placed down the hefty table while genuinely laughing from a joke he made, Y/N’s glare softened. Guilt panged her heart as she slowly puts down her wand. 
 ‘No... Draco probably didn't have a choice,' Y/N thought. ‘He would never have wanted to be a Death Eater.’
 Y/N hurriedly hid her wand behind her back as Draco turned around, a grin plastered on his face.
 “So, you’re just going to sit there while I do all the hard work?” He sarcastically asked.
 Y/N laughed while shuffling the wand into her bag behind her before standing up to join him. “Sorry about that. Let me help you with that.” 
 Y/N knew he was reserved like her, and so she was not surprised that he never talked about it, though they shared almost everything about themselves. But then again, she has not even shared her biggest regret: she was not in love with Dean.
 ***
 Unfortunately, Y/N's fears started to become reality as her relationship with Dean strained with each sweet escape to the room. Ironically, it only increased her worries, causing her to yearn for her hidden spot even more. 
 “Y/N, talk to me! Are you just going to ignore what’s wrong between us?” Dean frustratingly asked as he holds on to her wrist, stopping her from running away from their argument. Not too long ago were they peacefully studying in the common room while their friends went to watch a quidditch friendly until Dean brought up the tension in their relationship. Y/N did not respond to it well.
 Y/N shook her head fervently, tears of frustration brimming her eyes. “What are you talking about? Nothing is wrong!” She exclaimed, shaking his hand off her.
 Dean groans as he scratches his head in frustration. “Why don’t you get real? Nothing has been right since the year began! You’ve been strangely down ever since, yet you never talk to me about it! Are you sure you even love me?!” 
 Y/N froze as her eyes widened out of shock. She was sure that Dean did not mean those words, yet they struck her like it was some sort of… revelation. Did she really love him? Is that why she felt so trapped? All kinds of thoughts start to swirl her mind, overwhelmed with the guilt that came with the questions. 
 “I-I have to go.”
 Before Dean could stop her again, she ran out of the room and headed to the only place she could go - the Room of Requirement. She prayed that Draco would not be there. She did not want him to see her at her weakest, most pathetic moment, but when she saw his sullen figure and mysterious blue eyes that widened at the sight of her tears, she sighed in relief as she ran into his arms.
 Though confused and greatly worried about her messy state, he did not question it. He continued to hold her tightly in his arms, combing her hair with his slender fingers as she continues to sob through his shirt. It pained him to see her cry like this, and he knew exactly the reason behind her tears. 
 After Y/N calmed down a bit, they both sat at the little nook in silence, excluding her sniffs. Draco gazed at Y/N as she kept rubbing the small tears that escaped her eyes, frustrated that she could not stop crying.
 “It’s Dean, isn’t it?” 
 Y/N froze. She did not expect Draco to be so upfront, considering how she never spoke of her worries about Dean. “How did you know?” She asked quietly.
 Draco sighed. “It's quite obvious. Every time you spoke of him, which was rare, you had this… sad look on your face. Plus, why else would you spend your time stuck with me and not with him?” He added with a little smile on his face.
 Y/N chuckled slightly at his comment. “Sometimes I forget that you’re smart, Draco.”
 In response, Draco shuffled away from Y/N, causing her to laugh and hold on to his arm, pulling him back closer to her. “I’m kidding! Please don’t get mad!”
 Draco shook his head as he lightly chuckled. “So, what are you going to do now?”
 “I… don’t know,” Y/N said with a heavy sigh. She bit her lip, wanting to finally share her deepest fear to Draco yet fearing that he will find it bothersome and annoying.
 Draco noticed this look and sighed. Though he adored her kindness and immense consideration, he found it frustratingly annoying how she always downplayed her problems. As the only person who did not turn away from him and genuinely laughed at his mean jokes, he thought she deserved the world. And so, it saddened him that she did not think highly of herself.
  “You know,” Draco said as he continues to gaze at her sullen figure, “you're incredibly stubborn. It doesn't matter if you find your problems annoying or not, I'll listen to them all. I thought you would know this by now, considering the weeks we've spent together. But now, I see that you need the affirmation, so here it is: When it comes to you, Y/N,” Draco placed a finger under her chin to turn her head to face his, thus locking their eyes into each other, “I could listen to all your problems.”
 Lost inside the deep, blue ocean that is his eyes, she felt her heart leap right to her throat, begging to escape. Electricity ran throughout her body, her cheeks flushed red, and her mind absolutely blank, yet she felt like she was melting under his gaze. She could not comprehend the immense emotion within her as she gawked at the incredibly handsome, blonde boy, but Y/N knew it was something she has never felt before.
 Snapping out of the trance she was in, Y/N hastily turned away from Draco and nodded in response. She took a few seconds to calm down from the blushing mess Draco made her before finally sharing her dreaded fears that she had been escaping for years. “Thank you, Draco.”
 ***
 "Dean... we need to talk."
 After pouring out her heart to Draco and embarrassingly sobbing in his arms, he helped her finally reach a revelation: she needs to break up with Dean.
 Dean sighed as he placed down his book, relieved that Y/N had finally come to her senses. He patted the seat next to him. "Sit."
 Y/N sighed as she sat down on the couch and fiddled with her fingers. "I'm sorry for how I've been acting these days. I've been completely rude to everyone, including you."
 Dean shook his head, wrapping his arms around her. "No, you don't have to apologize, Y/N. I completely understand. Things have... changed between us, and I think we both noticed."
 Y/N widened her eyes in shock. She never even fathomed that Dean has also been struggling with the same feeling. A rush of relief ran past through her, decreasing the stress that she never knew anchored her down. "Dean... I think we were both too young to know what love was. I-I mean, I cherished you greatly, and I was happy being with you, but I don't think we're truly in love with each other."
 Dean sighed in relief. "Honestly, I'm so glad you said that. I was thinking the same thing, but I was too guilty to realize it."
 The two looked at each other in shock for a while before falling into a burst of laughter. It was funny how the two struggled and avoided guilty emotions for a long time before finally confronting them, only realize that they felt the same way. It was a great relief to both of them.
 Y/N sighs in relief as she then rests her head on his shoulder. He responds by laying down his head on top of hers. "I know we're breaking up and all, but... I want to stay as friends. Though we weren't the perfect couple, we are incredibly great friends."
 Dean chuckled. "We really are, aren't we?" He gently rubbed her arms as he, too, sighed in relief. "I like the sound of that. Friends."
 The two continued to chat for a while, finally pouring out their thoughts and feelings that they have kept hidden. Though Dean was scared to tell her, Y/N was incredibly pleased and supportive when he told her that he started to fancy Ginny. Though she did not tell Dean about her feelings for Draco, she did reveal that she might have fallen in love.
 "Love? You're in love with someone?!" Dean said, shock and excitement evident in his voice.
 Y/N shook her head fervently, her cheeks flushing red. "Maybe! I don't know... it's different when I'm with him. I don't really understand these feelings, to be honest."
 "Well... whoever this person may be, I hope he treats you well," Dean said sweetly, affectionately placing a small kiss on her cheek. "You deserve it."
 Y/N smiled. "Thank you, Dean. You deserve to fall in love also... and I hope it goes well with Ginny." 
 Dean laughed, and the two continued to chatter away into the night.
 ***
 Days passed since the break-up, and everyone was incredibly shocked by the news of the Hogwart's favorite couple's break-up, especially when they saw the two still comfortably hanging out with each other. Their friends, too, were surprised to see the two still harmonious, but they eventually adjusted to the new dynamic. 
 Y/N, genuinely happy since she first entered her sixth year, stood in front of the familiar door. She took a deep breath before entering. As the door gently closed behind her, she looked around for the familiarly blonde streak. However, Draco was nowhere to be found.
 “He would usually be here by now,” Y/N said to herself as she continued to whip her head around, hoping to spot the blonde-haired boy. 
 After quite some time of searching, she gave up and walked to her quaint nook. Though planned to be a place for reading or studying, its warmth and comfiness were perfect for napping. And so, she was pleasantly surprised when she found the Slytherin boy fast asleep with a fuzzy blanket on top of him.
 Y/N quietly approached the sleeping boy before gently sitting next to his feet. She gazed at his peaceful face with a smile, wondering if he were happily dreaming. She thoroughly analyzed every detail of his features as if she were embedding the image in her mind forever. After all, this was one of the rare moments in which Draco let down his guard. She could not pass up this opportunity.
 Her eyes then wandered to his arm. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, revealing the Death Mark that he so desperately hated. Y/N then remembered the many time when she saw him staring sadly at his dreaded mark or when he would unconsciously scratch it when he was talking about his problems to her or when lost in thought. 
 Y/N snapped out of her thought when she heard Draco stirring awake next to her. He groaned as he stretched his body, his feet touching her arms. He realized this and gently nudged her with it, causing her to giggle. Draco then smirked before getting up and sitting up straight next to her.
 “Good afternoon, Sleeping Beauty. How was your sleep?” Y/N teasingly said with a huge smile on her face, staring at the wonderful bed head that he sported.
 Draco playfully glared at her while running a hand through his hair. Though he would never admit it to her, he was happy with her presence. She always eased his worries, her laughs immediately diminishing the pressures and expectations from his parents that seemed to eat him up bit by bit. “It was amazing… until you came along to ruin it,” he said as he gently nudges her with his shoulder.
 Y/N laughed as she shook her head. “How was your day?” Y/N said as she mindlessly looked elsewhere, particularly at the tower of books that leaned over their little nook.
 After a minute with no response from Draco, Y/N sighed in exasperation before repeating her question. “Draco, did you hear me? I asked how your da-“ 
                       “Did you see it?” Draco said with a stern tone. He stared at his death mark which was visible the whole time he was sleeping. He knew that Y/N would have for sure it. Yet, he was desperately hoping that she did not, afraid of what she would think of him if she knew that he had the mark.
 Sensing the serious tone in his voice, Y/N quickly turned her head towards Draco. Shocked and unsure of what to say, she sat in silence with her mouth hung open.
 “Y/N. Did you see it?” Draco repeated but louder and more sternly. He then turned to her, revealing the tears that were brimming his eyes. 
 It caught Y/N off guard, her heart banging against her chest. Draco has shown vulnerability to her before, but he has never cried in front of her. 
 She reached for his hands, but he instantly drew them away, causing her heart to ache even more. “…Yes. I did.”
 Draco groaned, burying his head into his hands. Y/N saw his tears of anguish falling onto the ground and staining it. Her eyes stung as Draco's sullen figure breaks down in front of her.
 “… Get away from me.” He muttered scornfully, but it sounded muffled between his tears. 
 This was his greatest fear; after getting closer to Y/N, he came to fear the day in which she would find out about his true identity. During lonely nights, he would imagine himself telling her about his mark. He knew that she would, for sure, run and tell Potter as soon as he told her, but he liked to imagine her embracing him, not caring about his mark but rather his pain and struggles. But he quickly dismissed the thought. After all, who would ever feel sorry for a Death Eater?
  “Go!” He exclaimed, anguish evident in his voice.
 Y/N adamantly shook her head, then hugging his figure from behind, much to Draco's shock. “No, Draco. I’m not leaving,” she quietly said, though shakingly. 
 Draco tried to shake her off, but that only made her hold onto him tighter. “Draco, I already knew about it!” She exclaimed.
 He froze. “…What?”
 “I saw it long before today,” she said with a sigh, “and I honestly don’t care about it.” 
 Draco turns to face her, his eyes were red from the tears. “What are you trying to say?”
 Y/N stared at his pain-ridden face and could not help but cup his cheek, wiping the remaining tears with her thumb. Soothed by her gentle touch, his gaze softened. 
 “I know we never talked about it, but… I knew what you were struggling with. I even knew what you were trying to do with the Vanishing Cabinet,” she said with a glance at the cabinet that stood a few feet away from them. “But this mark… it’s not you.”
 His eyes widened. He was in complete shock.  
 Y/N heavily sighed before taking his hands into hers. “Draco, you are much more amazing than you think, and I’m not talking about your status or family. I’m talking about you as a person. I honestly think you are the strongest person I have ever met. You go through so much crap with your family and have to follow whatever they want you to do, and I’m shocked by how you handle it all.” Y/N shakingly said with her head down, hiding the tears that were streaming down her cheeks. “I can’t even imagine how scary your life must be, and yet you continue to hang out with my lonely self,” she said with a little laugh, causing Draco to chuckle also. 
           Draco then puts his hand on her cheeks and lifts her head. Their eyes then lock into each other, and they both fall into a deep, intimate gaze. They often shared intimate gazes, usually when they are doing their homework or just sitting in silence, but this time, it felt different. Unspoken words that they were too often afraid to say aloud seemed to be expressed solely through their eyes. 
 Draco then shifts his gaze to her lips, causing Y/N to quiver. Then, as if there was a magnetic pull between them, their faces inches closer before their lips touched. 
 Time seemed to stop as the world around them grew quiet. Their minds were blank, their focus solely on the touch that they both yearned for quite some time. Y/N felt his tear fall onto her cheek, but she paid it no mind as she deepened their kiss.
 Then reluctantly breaking apart the kiss, they stared into each other's eyes in awe, the electricity that ran through them as they kissed still resonating.
 "Wow," Y/N quietly said. "We should have done this long ago."
 Draco chuckled before pulling her into an embrace, laying his head on top of hers. "Believe me, I wanted to, even when you were still with Thompson."
 Y/N laughed before playfully hitting his arm, then falling back into his arms. "Draco... I think I'm in love with you."
 Draco bit his lip, tears threatening to leave his eyes again. "...Are you sure? Even when I'm a-"
 "Yes," Y/N stated sternly as she rubbed the arm that held his mark. "I don't care if you are one or not. I am so incredibly in love with you."
 Draco laughed in relief. Never in his wildest imagination would the girl he so lovingly adores would accept him and his darkest fears. He could feel himself falling for the girl, even more so than he already has. 
 "You don't have to be so cheesy about it," said Draco teasingly, causing Y/N to hit his arm again, which causes him to laugh. "...But I love you also. More than you know."
 The two smile at each other, falling deeper into their embrace. The silence envelops the two as they continue to sway and hold tightly onto each other. They silently thanked whatever being or thing that fated the two to meet, for it led them to this perfect moment.
 "... Thank you," Draco said as he leaned his forehead gently against hers, gazing deeply into the eyes he swiftly fell in love with.
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Text
Silly Little Symphony - Bakugou Katsuki
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Track 1: Paralyzer- Finger Eleven
—/—
Bakugou is not a fan of half-assing things.
He hates it, despises it actually. Bakugou feels like anything worth doing deserves 100% effort, and if you give it any less than that you might as well not even attempt it in the first place. That’s his motto and that’s what he sticks with and that’s what he’s doing right now, too. Obviously.
Except- why does it feel like he has to convince himself?
It’s like there’s this lingering feeling in his mind that he’s taking the easy way out. That he’s taking the cheater’s way out, but it’s- there’s just no other choice, alright?
Bakugou knows he’s a brave guy, knows that he could shred anything he set his sights on, but by that very same logic, he’s knows even more that he’s not a very soft guy. His feelings for you are his feelings, and yes he might acknowledge them, but that doesn’t mean he could ever communicate them delicately. Even when he runs fantasy scenarios in his head, the words still come out all wrong. They’re too loud and too brash and too forceful and you always end up offended.
Bakugou doesn’t want you to end up offended- at leasy more than you already have. So, he quickly decided on a different method of communication.
A playlist.
A playlist full of songs that convey what he’s been wanting to, but also sound angry and scary and tough- because he’s a tough guy who listens to nothing but rock and punk and metal, and has definitely has not searched up songs with your name in the title before, and has definitely not then added those songs to his library. Because that’s ridiculous and soft, and like determined before, Bakugou Katsuki is not soft.
What he actually is, is a guy with a playlist full of specially-curated songs. And a guy with absolutely no idea how to give them to you.
The thing is, he’s read manga and watched movies and read all sorts of articles about these types of confessions (not that he’d ever admit that), but none of those felt like him. He was not a smooth talker or a brazen flirt or even just a kind guy- no, Bakugou was mean and loud, and he knew full well that he’d much sooner be cast as the antagonist than the romantic lead.
So all of that was a problem, and then you also currently didn’t even like him. You made it very clear, though every sneer and comment and biting comeback, that only feeling you held for him was begrudging respect- and even that was only on the battlefield. Once he stepped out of the hero uniform than you were back to hating him, and he only made it worse with every childish insult he threw your way. Bakugou knew it was a stupid way to get your attention, but it was also the most efficient one; and he was a man of efficiency.
So that left him here- pining the same way he had been for weeks, staring down into a playlist full of songs he couldn’t figure out how to play for you.
He sneaks a look at you, red eyes just barely skimming over top of the bus seats. You’re sitting a few rows ahead, sharing a snack with Tsuyu.
Bakugou thinks you’re stupid. He thinks you’re stupid for eating junk food right before a day of training, and he thinks you’re stupid for choosing to sit all the way in front like a nerd, and most of all he thinks you’re stupid for sharing your snack with that damn frog face when he’s right there. And obviously much better in every comparable, concievable way. Obviously.
Bakugou presses his headphones more securely into ears, and slouches down deep into his seat. All he can see now is the back of the seat, and he thinks that’s a better alternative. At least it won’t piss him off- not like the sight of you, sitting up front and laughing where he can’t hear, will.
With a grunt, he hits shuffle on his playlist, turning the volume to max. He closes his eyes dropping his head against the window. Drum fills and a guitar riff flood his ears, and he’s relaxing a bit, sinking into the sound, and all is well and good until-
Well just look at that girl with the lights coming up in her eyes. She's got to be somebody's baby.
God dammit.
Fuck Phantom Planet. Bakugou thinks. Fuck them.
Then he’s growling as he hits the skip button, throwing his phone onto the seat next to him.
—/—
As it turns out, all Bakugou needed was to beat the ever-loving shit out of something.
Cracking his palms and shaking his limbs, Bakugou launches at another robot. He thinks the machines feel weak under his explosions, almost offensively feeble in their construction. Like all of U.A’s staff went braindead that morning- like they couldn’t even bother to cook him up a worthy opponent.
When Bakugou looks around, that’s clearly not a shared statement. There’s the usual standouts of course, stupid deku and stupid icyhot and even stupid dunce face is doing well for once, but the rest of them are average. Mediocre. Completely and utterly inferior to him- and then you enter.
Your quirk, blink, is a bit useless in this scenario, but you’re not letting that stop you. There’s purpose in your movements, quick and controlled actions as you strap your home-made bombs around the base of each robot’s leg. Machines don’t blink, so you’re shit out of luck for your main speed ability, but your training makes up the difference. With practiced ease you’ve darted out from beneath the robot’s feet, and then you’re hitting the detonate on your remote.
Bakugou thinks you look unreasonably fucking cool as you sprint away from the blast. So cool in fact, that he might even consider your tech explosions as cool as his quirk ones. Maybe.
Bakugou wipes his palms, muffling a yawn. He’d blown up all his assigned robots ages ago, and now was left kicking rocks and generally doing nothing.
This training was supposed to act as a benchmark test- the idea was to drop a similar opponent into the ring, one that emulated the entrance exam, to test how far everyone had come since the beginning of the semester. It could’ve been good in theory, but Bakugou thought it was just a waste of time. Robot’s were easy for him then and they sure as hell were easy for him now.
Still though, he was the first one to kill all his robots, so not all was lost. Bakugou still walked away a winner and that meant he was feeling much better than earlier.
Smirking with shameless pride, Bakugou saunted to the exit area. More students began to file in after him, and he kept mostly quiet, but he couldn’t keep his mouth shut when you walked past him.
“Fuckin’ fifth? With your overpowered-ass quirk?” He sneers, voice loud. “Waste of talent.”
Bakugou watches spin on your heels, watches your face melt into something deadly. You’re storming towards him, and he can’t even think past hoping you’d get a little closer.
“Robot’s don’t fucking blink, you jackass.” You’re red in the face and glaring, hands curling into fists at your sides. “You try getting. anything done without your quirk. Asshole.”
Then you’re stomping away, hardly giving him a second look as you cheer on your friends.
Bakugou can’t even begin to decipher what possessed him, to say those words, but he’s also not surprised. His words always come out wrong and he can’t say anything nice without wanting to scratch away his skin.
What he really wanted to say was that you were impressive even without your quirk. That you were admirably smart and tactical and well-prepared with your own bombs, and he thought that you looked really hot sprinting away from the wreckage- but that’s not what he said. Of course that’s not what he said.
Well, there goes his good mood. No amount of previous wins could ever distract him from how much of a loss that interaction was.
Eventually the rest of the class finishes, and then they’re all gathering breathless and tired back to the bus. Unfortunately, Kaminari fried himself completely and Mineta managed to break an ankle and that meant that they needed their own seats. That also meant that two people who had their own seats on the ride there, would now be sharing on the way back.
As shitty luck would have it, the class chose drawing straws as the deciding factor, and even worse than that, Bakugou got the shortest straw. The day was already shaping up to be pretty frustrating, but when you pulled the second-shortest straw it got even worse.
“We can always share instead, L/n!” Tsuyu’s says, hand on your shoulder and voice mediating. “Really. I don’t mind.”
Bakugou watched you sigh for a moment, and then you’re turning your head towards him. Your eyes meet his and Bakugou can’t help the smirk that rolls across his face- you’re looking at him and paying attention to him and even if it’s just you making a point he still likes that attention. He watches you squint your eyes at him in response, voice hard and steely as you speak to Tsuyu.
“No. It’s alright. We picked staws, and fair is fair.” Your squint morphs into a glare. “And besides, I’m not gonna let that smug bastard throw a fit into getting out of this.”
The statement should piss him off, and if anyone else said it it would’ve, but Bakugou finds it does the opposite. It just reaffirms how brave you are and how you’re not scared of him like everyone else is and how much he likes you for it- not that he’d ever tell you any of those things.
To save face, Bakugou instead pretends to be pissed about your words, his palms popping and crackling as he glares right back. He hopes it looks like a genuine threat and not a panic reaction, because really he just thinks you look so cool talking back to him directly like that and he definitely doesn’t know what to do with that. So instead he does what always works; what always makes him feel better when he gets a feeling too big to handle- he preps to blow shit up.
“Calm down, man. It’s just a seat.” Kirishima comes up behind him, pressing a water bottle into Bakugou’s crackling palms. “Here, take this and please don’t blow up the bus. Or L/n. That’d be so totally not heroic of you.”
“Shut the hell up.”
“No I’m serious, dude. Chill out, okay? L/n’s actually pretty nice once you get to know her.”
“I said, shut the hell up, Shitty Hair!” Bakugou barks, gritting his teeth.
Then he’s shoving his palms into his pockets, leaving Kirishima and the water behind, and stalking towards the bus before anyone else does. Bakugou figures that if he’s got to share a seat, then at least he’s going to be the one sat next to the window. He’ll make sure of it.
Still, there’s something sitting heavy in his stomach though- how does Kirishima know you’re nice?
The comment made his blood boil. Bakugou thinks it’s strange because usually he’s pretty tolerant of his friend, and even finds himself enjoying his company sometimes, but those words pissed Bakugou off. Pissed him off a lot.
”Wow, don’t look so goddamn thrilled.” You say sardonically, and Bakugou watches you drop into the seat next to him. “Might accidentally think you tolerate me, blasty.”
“Don’t fuckin’ call me that. Useless extra.”
Bakugou wants to smash his head into a wall- because why the fuck did he just say that?
Oh yeah, because apparently his jealousy was plastered all over his face, clear enough for you to comment on it. And even if you didn’t know that’s what the expression was, he’d still rather bite your head clean off than admit it was there in the first place.
“Yeah, whatever. I don’t want to fight.” You say, clenching your jaw as you settle back into the seat. “Look, it’ll be easier for both of us if we don’t talk, so I’ll just sit here and not bother you, alright?”
“Fine. Shut the hell up then.”
Once again, Bakugou wants to obliterate himself.
He doesn’t know why he can’t just tell you- why he can’t just say that he wants you to keep talking to him and that he wants you to keep snarking back at him. Why he can’t just say that he thinks your voice is one of the least grating ones in the whole class.
He thinks all of those things, but says none. Instead he keeps a fist clenched as his sides, scowling as he pulls out his headphones. He makes an intentional effort not to play your playlist and instead hits shuffle on all his music. He’d hoped that the loud drums and guitars would settle his emotions, but they didn’t. Nearly 10 minutes have passed and Bakugou’s as riled up as ever, but he’s also now completely convinced you’re trying to kill him.
You’re shifting in your seat, your arms extending out as you slip on your jacket. There’s little room, and every time you shuffle the sleeves to adjust them, you’re knocking your shoulders into his.
Then you stop.
You just stop and you go still and his skin isn’t tingling anymore and Bakugou is all kinds of pissed all over again. Because of you he’s nervous and flustered and you have the audacity to just sit there, unaffected. He has to snarl just to keep himself from blushing when he speaks.
“Why the fuck were you touching me?”
“It’s a small seat and I was putting on a jacket.” You reply, short and clipped. “I don’t know what you expect me to do about it.”
“Tch. Just don’t do it again. And shut up the fuck up already.”
“You- you talked to me first!”
“And? Who the fuck cares?” Bakugou grunts, turning the volume of his music up. “Now shut up.”
Jesus christ. Bakugou thinks to himself. Maybe I should just blow myself up for once.
Another few minutes pass, and Bakugou swears he’s really is dying. You’re still so close to him and he’s feeling very, very flustered, and while he doesn’t love the idea that you’re mad at him, he can’t say he hates the look on your face right now either. You’ve got your jaw clenched and your eyebrows set low and your hands are balled into fists as you steadfastly ignore him. Bakugou thinks you look scary- fucking terrifying.
He likes terrifying.
“Hey.” You suddenly nudge him with your shoulder, pointing to his earbuds. “I can hear it- your music. Turn it down.”
“Why the fuck would I do that?”
“Because that’s basic courtesy.”
“What the fuck makes you think I have that, hah?”
“Oh my god, you’re fucking impossible.” You rolls your eyes, heaving a frustrated sigh. “Listen, if you’re gonna keep it up that loud then at least skip that song. It’s shit.”
Bakugou glances down at his screen.
Fucking Nickleback.
Jesus, could his day get any worse?
“Shut the hell up.” He snaps, squinting his eyes. “What the fuck do you know about good music? You don’t know shit.”
“I know that song sucks, so skip it. If you’re gonna accost me with loud music at least make it good.” You bite back, and then Bakugou watches as your face melts into an easy smirk. “Unless... all your music is that terrible?”
“Sounds like you’re pickin’ a fuckin’ fight!”
“I am, you asshole!”
Bakugou doesn’t know when the two of you got so close, but now you’re only inches away. He’s got his palms up and you’ve got your lips pulled back into a snarl and suddenly the bus seat seems so much smaller. It’s so much smaller and all Bakugou can think about is the red in your cheeks and the fire in your eyes and how much he likes the sight of both.
“Just skip the song or turn it down.” You finally huff, falling back in your seat, and all Bakugou can think about is how that breathe would’ve been on his cheek if it was two seconds ago.
Bakugou is mad. He’s mad at you and your stupid witch powers that leave the air feeling cold and your stupid breaths that he can’t stop focusing on and your stupid comment. Your stupid comment that had his blood burning in his veins and irritation settling in his temple.
Bakugou listened to cool music, okay? Cool, loud music for cool, loud guys. You just insulted that, insulted him so this wasn’t just a means of confessing feelings anymore, it was a pride thing and that’s why he says what he said next. It’s definitely not because this was the golden chance he’d been waiting for.
“My music is fuckin’ good.” He growls, and then he’s yanking an earbud out and shoving it towards you. “I’ll fucking show you. Now shut up and listen.”
“So goddamn pushy, jesus.”
“You gonna fuckin’ take it or not?”
“Oh my god. Fine.”
Bakugou watches you fit the earbud into your ear, his mouth set into a determined line. He knew he’d fucked up every other part of this conversation, monumentally fucked them up even, but he wouldn’t mess this up. He was prepared and this was the chance he was waiting for. Only an absolute idiot could mess this up and Bakugou Katsuki was not an idiot.
So he plays the first song he’d added to your playlist. Paralyzer.
To his surprise, you start nodding your head almost immeadiately. You know this song. The drum fill starts and then you’re looking over at him, giving him the tiniest little smirk of approval.
“Not bad, blasty.”
“Fucking told ya.” He can’t help the pride that swells in him at your validation. It’s warm and heavy in his chest, nearly drawing a smile out of him- and then he remembers he’s supposed to be mad. “And I told you, don’t fucking call me that.”
“I’ll call you by your name when you call me by mine.”
“Wipe the smirk off your stupid fucking face,” Bakugou growls. “Or I’ll blast it off.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes! Fuckin’ try me, extra!”
“Okay.” You huff a laugh at him. “Don’t blink then. Champ.”
Then you’re raising your hand, shoving it in his face and snapping before he can stop you. Bakugou flinches out of reflex and by the time he’s opened his eyes, you’ve already used your super-speed ability.
You’re sitting back against the seat, calm and collected and smirking, with both of Bakugou’s earbuds in your ears. You’ve got his phone in your hand and he watches you twist the cord around your finger, cross your legs casually and he’s stunned. He’s pissed that you got the better of him, but he also just really thinks you’re hot when you’ve won. He watches in dazed silence as you turn up the volume on his phone to max.
Well I'm not paralyzed, but I seem to be struck by you. I want to make you move because you're standing still.
Bakugou decides two things in that moment: One, he fucking hates Finger Eleven. And two, he wants to blow the entire fucking bus to smithereens.
—/—
eee i hope u all enjoy, but especially u @bakugouswh0r3 and @definitelynottrin :))
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moonlit-mizukage · 3 years
Text
Chapter twenty nine: 11 things I love about you 
Summary: Y/l/n Y/n, a third year at Sakura High School, is just a girl with a bad attitude towards anyone outside her small circle. When y/n’s younger sister starts first year, she gains a lot of attention. Unfortunately for everyone in school, the Y/l/n household has one rule, No dating till y/n does. Some people become just desperate enough to pay the leader of the “Monsters”, the trouble making group on campus, to date y/n. What will happen when she finds out? (All characters aged up to third year unless otherwise stated)
Tw: Swearing, mentions of past violence
An: The poem format once again do be bad cause tumblr wont let me make it look a certain way. 
AN: I made a server if anyone wants to join!! https://discord.gg/R4URagRF
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Third person Pov 
Y/n was laying on her bed staring at the ceiling, she let out a deep sigh as she heard her sister in the room laughing obnoxiously loud. 
“Mei!” She said slamming her hand on the wall. “Why are you being so loud?” She didn’t respond, so y/n stood up sighing. She walked into the hall. 
“Mei!” She yelled into her open door. “Who are you talking to at this hour?” 
“Yamaguchi.” She said. Y/n rolled her eyes. 
“Don’t keep each other up all night, and tell Yams I love him please.”  
“Of course Y/n.” Mei said as Y/n left the room and headed down stairs.
She went into the cupboard and grabbed a cup. Filling it up from the tap,  she looked out the window into the night. 
A tap on the glass startled her as she tossed the cup into the sink and looked at what the cause of the noise was. Standing in the window was Kyotani. She leaned over as she opened the window. 
“What the hell are you doing?!? You scared me half to death! Do you have any idea what time it is?”
“Tendou asked me to pick you up and take you to him.” He said ignoring her previous questions. 
“Why..?” She was skeptical of him. 
“Just fucking, come on.” He said clearly annoyed. 
“Fine. Next time use the door you psycho.” She said as she slammed the window. 
She walked over to the front door of her house. As she opened the door Kyotani stepped inside. 
“Hurry the fuck up. We have to go.” He said as he rolled his eyes. She turned as she yelled up the stairs. 
“Mei! I am going out. If any violence occurs where was I?”
“At home.” A voice yelled back. 
“Okay let’s go.” She said as she pushed him out the door. A car sat before them in her driveway. She gave him a clearly confused look. “You have a car?” 
“Just get in.” He got in the driver's side as you hopped in only for him to speed off immediately. 
“Slow down Sonic.” She said with a chuckle. 
“Fuck off. My car my fucking speed. My fucking music too.” He said as he slapped his radio on. A CD started to play as heavy metal began to blast throughout the car. 
“Nice song.” Y/n complimented. 
“Fuck yeah it is.” He said. 
The rest of the car ride was filled with Kyotani’s music. It seemed like hours but really it was such a short time. Kyotani pulled up to the view point where you and Tendou shared the deep and personal things the night you told him you liked him. He got out of the car as he walked around and ripped your door open. “Get the fuck out. Over there.” He pointed to what you now noticed was Tendou leaning up against a bike. It was dark, but he looked absolutely stunning in the moonlight. Y/n’s breath hitched as she approached him. 
A car pulled up with Terushima standing from the sun roof. 
“Don’t fuck this up Guess!” He yelled as Kyotani hopped in and the other four monsters sped off. 
The two who were now completely alone laughed at the previous situation they just saw.. 
“Hey Y/n.” He said as he passed you something from his pocket. 
“What’s this for?” She asked as she took it. 
“The car key if you want to leave at any time.” 
“Oh.” She said as she looked at it closer.
“I am sorry to bring you all the way out here, but I promise it will make sense if you are willing to hear me out.” 
“Satori, I just want us to be okay.” He looked her in the eyes. 
“I have something I wrote down. So please,” He began to say. Y/n had never heard his voice sound so fragile. “I’m not always great with this shit.” 
“It’s okay, take your time.” She said as she gave him a small smile. He pulled the paper ball  from his pocket. It was crumpled and torn around the edges when he pulled it open. He took a deep breath before he began to read.  
“I love the way you laugh and how it can instantly change my sour mood, 
I love the way you treat your friends and the strangers on the streets,
I love the way you hold yourself and how you never back down even when others would,
I love the way I feel when your hands are in mine.
I love the way you take my breath away and make me feel safe,  
I love the way you show me how much you care even through the little things you do,
 I love how you make me feel like I am important again and how much I really mean to you,
I love how your smile lights up your whole face and a whole street block of people can feel the warmth.
I love how you are always willing to try new things, like getting on my bike at 1am angry
I love how you confessed to me and even your angsty poem from class,
But most importantly I love you, not just with a small piece of my heart either, 
I would travel any distance, any planet or any galaxy, just to feel your love,
Cause you,
You are my Paradise.” 
“Satori,” He noticed the tears in her eyes while he shoved the paper back into his pocket. He wiped her tears away with his thumb. He moved in closer to her as their lips almost touched. 
“I’m sorry my poem sucked. I just wanted you to know that I love you Y/n.” He said as he started into her eyes. 
“I love you too Satori.” With that they pulled each other in for a passionate kiss.
When the two pulled back for air Tendou looked her in the eyes once again. 
“Do you think you could ever forgive me?” 
“I had the moment I saw you tonight. I just was worried you would speak to me the same way you did over text.” 
“I thought you would hate me by now. Especially after last night?” She laughed. 
“I shouldn’t encourage violence, but off the record, damn Satori, my hero in a leather jacket.” It was his turn to laugh now. 
“Did Mad tell you what happened exactly?” 
“Not really honestly.” He began to tell her about his night. After he was done she told him all the dumb stuff Oikawa tried to pull to get her. The two had a good laugh before Y/n stopped and looked panicked. 
“Wait what about the police? Oikawa’s parents?” 
“Oh I am sure none of that will be a bother to us now Y/n.” 
“Oh? ” He just laughed back pulling her back into a kiss again. 
“We should head back to town.” 
“Are we going separate or?” 
“I can call them if you want to come pick up the car if you want to ride with me?” 
“You already know I do.” 
As the two were getting ready to leave, they both failed to notice the paper fall out of Tendou’s pocket. The paper now laid on the ground as the two sped off as the paper flipped around, completely blank on the ground.
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cipheress-to-k-pop · 4 years
Text
Bus Rides and Sweet Times
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Pairing: Sam Alexander x Parker!Reader
Word Count: 2.6k
Warnings: None
Anon asked:  Can you do a Sam Alexander x Reader, but you're Peter Parker's sister??
A/N: Totally staying with the tradition of badmouthing Peter at the end of my oneshots and I’m proud of it. Sorry it’s so late btw, I was on a hiatus when you had requested it
On your first day of Advanced Biology you had been sweating buckets. You were attending a biology class ahead of your grade through the Accolades programme and were considering faking temporary illness to skip the day.
It was nerve wracking to have to go into a class where everybody was older than you and could bully you. Last thing you wanted was people to shove you in lockers like your older brother, Peter.
Well that was before he became friends with the school’s toughest football player but still. You didn’t really want to go through the embarrassment of being shoved in a locker for 5 years before finally making an unlikely friendship and then have a last good year of high school.
But when you stepped through the door, you were immediately relieved to see a familiar face.
Sam Alexander wasn’t a friend of yours, he was one to your brother and they weren’t even that close, but even then, seeing recognition on his face made you oddly relieved.
“Sit wherever, Miss Parker.” Said the teacher before returning to the board.
For a second you wondered about sitting next to Sam but then realized it probably wouldn’t be a good idea. So, you just moved to the back of the class and tried to blend in with the walls.
It was no secret that you were insecure about being the youngest person in the class. You never answered, never asked questions and always tried not to participate. That’s why the teacher was always surprised whenever you got the highest grades.
She always made sure to praise you in front of the entire class which made you embarrassed but still proud.
And that’s when she got the idea of you tutoring one of her students after school. And you being the innocent girl who just didn’t know how to say no to a teacher, agreed.
That’s when you started to spend more time with none other than Sam Alexander.
You should be annoyed but really you were relieved that it wasn’t any stranger.
Yet another time that Sam saved your sanity by just having a recognizable face.
**** 
“Hey do you mind keeping this whole tutoring thing a secret?”
“Why?”
A part in you was half expecting him to say something like he didn’t want people to know he was hanging out with a geeky younger girl even though you knew he wasn’t the type to be so rude, regardless of what Peter said about him.
“Well, your brother and my friends are really smart. If they found out I was getting tutored by a girl who was a grade below me...”
He scratched his cheek nervously and you melted. He was just as insecure and unsure as you were and while your intellect sometimes made you feel out of place, he felt the same way about his.
So, you nodded and set a hand on his shoulder, giving him a reassuring nod.
“I promise I won’t say anything.”
“Your brother won’t be curious?”
“I’ll think of something.”
Unfortunately, you wouldn’t have too long to come up with a suitable excuse.
You quickly got to work and explained the concepts and making sure he understood everything you were telling him, even drawing diagrams and things like that because you figured he was a visual learner more than textual.
After nearly an hour spent in the library together, you noticed your brother come in with Harry and MJ, probably wanting to get some lab manuals for chemistry. Once he saw you with his sort of friend, he immediately made his way over to the pair of you.
“What’s going on?”
“Tutoring session.”
Sam immediately shot you a betrayed look but you didn’t even blink, turning back to your notes.
Just as you knew he would, your brother laughed and pointed at a slightly embarrassed Sam which made you irritated on the inside but you covered it with a plain expression.
“You’re getting tutored by my little sister?”
“Actually, he’s the one tutoring me.”
The two boys turned to you with shocked faces and you folded your arms over each other, raising a brow at Peter.
“What?”
“Yeah, I keep missing class because I’m the lab assistant and I end up running late so Sam here promised to keep me in the loop.”
It wasn’t a lie, you were the lab assistant during Chemistry and as a result always had to clean up after your classmates after the period was over, but Peter didn’t need to know that you still managed to reach class on time because the teacher would spend the first 5 minutes reviewing the previous lesson.
Just as you knew he would, Peter bought the excuse, returning to his friends and telling you that he’d pick you up from your part-time job today, trying to be a good brother. But you knew it was because he found your co-worker cute.
“Thanks for that.” Sam spoke gently and you waved him off, leaning towards him again and pointing to the diagram of an operator.
“No problem, now back to Lac Operon.”
****
The next few weeks are spent the same way. Sam slowly brought his grades up in class tests and progress quizzes but the teacher still wanted you to continue with the tutoring sessions as your midterms were coming up.
That’s how you end up meeting and spending hours of your time with Sam, but it never really goes beyond tutoring and you never see each other outside of the library.
That is until one day you’re going straight home instead of going to your job like you usually do. You end up taking the same bus as Sam and sit beside him because it was the only seat open that wasn’t beside some older guy or a child.
Sitting next to you, he plans to do the same but when he glances at you, you’re slowly drifting off to sleep, letting your head lol to the side in an uncomfortable position.
So, he gently rests your head on his shoulder, his heart skipping a beat when you cuddled closer to him. He watched you on the ride home, just wondering when was the last time you got some rest.
You were beautiful, yes, but he wondered about the dark circles underneath your eyes and the tired frown on your face as you leaned against him, silently realizing how haggard you looked for such a young girl.
You were trying to take all advanced classes but wasn’t naturally intelligent like your older brother so you ended up working till all hours trying to keep your grades up. He always knew that you worked hard but it was obvious that it was taking a toll on you.
So why hadn’t you ever said anything?
He wanted to tell you that you were perfect just the way you were and that you should take it easy but he knew you liked working hard and he found that really admirable.
The rest of the bus ride was just spent with him making sure you weren’t stirring or getting uncomfortable. Silently thinking you were beautiful. At the time it felt like you were the only 2 on the planet.
But what he didn’t know was that everybody on the bus were fangirling about how cute the two of you looked cuddled up on the bus seat. An older man was musing something about young love but Sam just thought he was remembering the good old days.
When the bus pulls up to your street, Sam gently wakes you up and tells you that your home. He even gets off at your stop to walk your drowsy self to the door where he meets Aunt May for the first time.
You were so tired you barely remembered Sam’s arm wrapped around you as he pulled you to the door. You thought your eyes were open but they were definitely closed and so he rang the doorbell for you because you were not awake enough to fish for your keys in your bag.
****
Ever since that day, Sam began to pay more attention to you. He always looked out for you in a silent way, never trying to bring to your attention that he was thinking of you.
“Hey check it out! The vending machine gave me two strawberry milks! Do you want one?”
“I got this pack of nuts but it has peanuts in it and I’m allergic so you can have it.”
“I’ll do a practice test and you can check it after I’m done. In the mean time you can take a nap.”
He took the bus home with you every day since then, saying that he came to your work when you were getting off for a smoothie even though there were a hundred places in New York that didn’t need him to come so far out
But you never said that to him because you liked going home with him, sometimes falling asleep together and sometimes listening to music, sharing earphones or even just quietly talking.
In the beginning he was afraid that you’d sleep and end up missing your bus or that you’d end up with a crick in your neck because of the position you fell asleep in but he liked taking the bus home with you, playing with your fingers gently while you napped peacefully beside him.
Once after Sam dropped you off at your house, you said your goodbyes to him and went inside, telling him you’d see him tomorrow. He politely declined Aunt May’s invites for dinner, saying that he had to get home because he had chores to do (training).
Around 10 minutes later, you left home again, going to pick up some rolls for dinner when you notice someone walking ahead of you but it’s only when the person walks underneath the lamppost do you recognize him.
“Sam?” You call out, wondering where he’s heading late in the night when his house was in the opposite direction.
“Oh shit.” 
Sam freezes in his steps, silently contemplating whether he should just run for it or actually turn around to face you. You call his name again and wonder if you actually got it wrong and he was just some random kid in your neighbourhood.
But then he turns around and it’s him, blushing bright red that you could see it even in the dark and his heart began beating quickly, seeing you make your way over to him.
“What are you doing here? I thought your house was down the block?”
He tried to think of something but his mouth got really dry before he figured he should just give up.
“Well, about that, it.... isn’t.” He explained, rubbing the back of his neck nervously and trying to avoid making direct eye contact with you.
“What?”
“I live close to the school actually.”
“But you’ve been taking the bus home with me every day for like 2 weeks now.”
“Yeah, it’s just because I like taking the bus....and sitting next to you. Taking the bus was my excuse to spend more time with you.”
You could’ve sworn you swooned.
It was the first time you noticed just how crazy for you Sam was and it was exhilarating. To see this older boy standing in front of you and being vulnerable enough to be sweet and thoughtful.
It was kind of that little girl fantasy that you dreamt about back when you thought Cinderella and Rapunzel had been real. So, you can’t stop yourself from smiling when you notice how awkward Sam is beginning to get underneath your stare.
Sure, he wasn’t exactly prince charming but to be honest, to you, he was much better.
Prince Charming forgot what Cinderella looked like.
Like what the heck?
“You could’ve just asked me out on a date.”
“Well I wasn’t sure that you’d say yes.”
“Ask me now then.”
****
Dating Sam was everything you’d expect it to be. He was sweet and thoughtful, always taking you out and loving to spend time with you. Your tradition of him picking you up after work and taking the bus home turned into you greeting him after getting off with a kiss and then inviting him inside for dinner.
Even though you knew he didn’t live close here, he still wanted to drop you home. He said he was being considerate and loved spending time with you, which was true, but it was also because he was afraid you’d fall asleep on some other boy’s shoulder and fall in love with him.
Which was ridiculously specific but you still indulged him.
Peter didn’t find out initially because he always managed to miss Sam right when he got home because he was out crime fighting.
And you didn’t feel the need to bring it to his attention.
You knew he would find out one day though and the opportunity presented itself when he brought his friends home to live in the house because a fire had destroyed their dorms.
And with him came your boyfriend, outright grinning at the sight of you and you had to hide your laughter because you knew Sam was excited about having alone time with you at home without seeming suspicious.
But something was telling you with so many people in the house, you wouldn’t be getting any solitude for a long while.
May being kind of strict between the two of you, saying that you can’t close the doors was not surprising even though you knew she loved Sam. To Peter however, it was kind of startling.
The two of you manage to spend time without drawing suspicion. Going on grocery store runs quickly became your favourite kind of date because it was just the two of you roaming around the store with Sam pushing you in the shopping cart.
Peter one day sat the two of you down with a seriousness that made you want to laugh in his face because you could see how awkward it was, demanding to know exactly what was going on between the two of you.
What he wasn’t expecting was you to admit that you had been dating for nearly 4 months now.
Apparently neither were his teammates.
The rest of the night was like an interrogation while the two of you just curled up on the couch and ignored the rest of them until Aunt May came home and told them to stop bothering you.
At which point they all just shut up and decided to watch a movie.
Your boyfriend held you close to him underneath the blankets, holding your hand in his, clutched to his heart and you used your free hand to feed the two of you pizza without even looking away from the screen.
Half-way through the movie, just as you were beginning to drift off, Peter scared the shit out of you by jumping up and shouting.
“Oh my god! I left the two of you at home alone so many times because I didn’t think you liked each other!”
Your face burned and you just hid underneath the blankets, trying to avoid the teasing faces of the others and try not to combust.
“Oh, just can it Parker!”
“Excuse me?”
“I meant the other Parker and you know it!”
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yanderecrazysie · 3 years
Note
Hello, I just binge read everything on your blog. I’m so excited for that Scp thing! If you don’t mind could I please request the yandere alphabet with nishinoya? Thanks anyway!
Thank you so much, I'm so honored!!! And of course you can request that!
I hope you enjoy this! :D
Nishinoya Yū (Haikyuu) -The Yandere Alphabet
🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣
Warnings: yandere themes, kidnapping, violence, implied murder, mentions of suicide.
A is for Affection: How do they show their affection for their darling? How often do they show it?
💖 Nishinoya is EXTREMELY affectionate. Like, this boy would be hugging on you at all times if he could. He's kinda clingy.
💖 He just wants to be able to touch you. I think he'd prefer his arms around you with him cuddling his face into your hair, but as long as he's touching you in SOME way he's happy.
💖 When is he NOT affectionate? That's the real question. If he's not touching you, it's not by his choice and he's not happy about it.
B is for Blood: How messy are they willing to get for their darling? Why?
🔪 Nishnoya is loyal af. Like, if you're bullied or hit on, he's having none of that. Those bullies/flirts are in for a bad time.
🔪 Would he kill? I don't THINK so. Unless, of course, he HAS to. Or he goes overboard when beating someone who had the AUDACITY to grope you into a bloody pulp.
C is for Care or Cruelty: How would they treat their darling when they kidnap them? Would they mock them?
💔 Nishinoya is not going to mock you at all and he's not going to be cruel. He's a worshipper (have you SEEN him with Kiyoko?) and you'd be treated like a goddess.
💔 You'd be taken care of better than you've ever been. Everything you could ever want will be in your hand before you can ask for it. He knows you so well, after all!
D is for Delusion: How delusional are they when it comes to their darling? Do they believe their darling loves them?
💭 How delusional? Yes. Just yes. Nishinoya is one of the most delusional yanderes out there.
💭 He doesn't EXACTLY believe that you're in love with him, but he knows you will be soon. As long as he treats you right, and he sure as heck is, you'll see just how much you two are meant for each other.
💭 Nishinoya knows that you're happy with him! Your tears and begging to go home is just you being a little confused. It just means he has to try harder!
E is for Expose: How much of their heart do they bear to their darling? How vulnerable are they when it comes to their darling? How much time will it take to trust them?
💧 You can know anything you want to if you just ask him! Even if you don't ask, he'll at least rant and rave about how amazing you are and every minuscule reason you're absolutely perfect.
💧 Nishinoya doesn't even need a second thought, a single hesitation. He'll tell you anything, anything!
F is for Fight: How would they react if their darling fought back?
👊 Nishinoya would be HEARTBROKEN. But... you're just confused, right? You're... You're just confused, yeah! This is new for you! He'll do better, he swears!
👊 He'll sit back and let you tire yourself out, just dodging you or closing you away in your room until you calm down. He'd never raise a hand against you, even if you punch him to death.
G is for Guilt: What would it take for them to feel guilty about their actions? Or do they feel guilty from the start?
😔 Nishinoya probably will never feel guilt. He's extremely delusional, like I said. He honestly believes he's improving your life by removing you from society.
😔 The only time I can imagine Nishinoya feeling guilty is if you got hurt somehow. He's supposed to be improving your life, and now you're hurt? He screwed up-
H is for Hell: What would be their darling’s worst experience with them?
🔥 To be honest, it'd be hard to have a bad day with Nishinoya. He worships the ground you walk on, why would he make you miserable?
🔥 I guess resistance is futile though. You don't want to cuddle today? Well, he'll just squeeze tighter until you realize you do! You want to go home? This is your new home, silly!
I is for Ideals: What kind of future do they have in mind for/with their darling?
👩‍❤️‍👨 Nishinoya really believes in a forever with you. When you both die, you'll go to heaven together. But before then: you'll grow old together.
👩‍❤️‍👨 He really cares about what you want. If you don't want kids, he won't force them on you. If you want as many kids as possible, he's your man! And he'll be the best father in the entire world!
J is for Jealousy: How easily do they get jealous? Do they lash out or find a way to cope?
💢 It doesn't take much to get Nishinoya jealous. He's the one that loves you, adores you, and worships you. No one else treats you as well as he does, so they don't deserve to be in your vicinity, look at you, even breathe the same air as you!
💢 Did... did you just smile and laugh at his joke? Nononono- Nishinoya can be funny! And... and how DARE that guy tell you a joke? It better not have been a dirty joke either-
K is for Kidnap: How would they go about kidnapping their darling? How much do they plan it out?
🔒 Nishinoya wanted to kidnap you the moment he fell in love with you. That's probably not healthy (definitely not healthy) but he knew this twisted world could never take care of a goddess like you.
🔒 I think Nishinoya wouldn't be able to plan too far ahead. He's not exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer. All it takes is one good opportunity and you're suddenly finding yourself in a cozy bedroom decorated in your favorite color and filled with your favorite things.
L is for Love Letters: How would they go about courting or approaching their darling?
💌 One day you're living your normal life and the next day you've got a small guy with black hair (except that little blonde streak) trailing after you like a lovesick puppy.
💌 Can you really complain when he's giving you cute little plushies of your favorite animals, your favorite treats, lots of chocolate, and literally everything you like. Wait... how does he know what you like?
M is for Mask: Are their true colors drastically different from the way they acted before?
🎭 Uhhh kinda sorta? I mean, his friends wouldn't expect him to kidnap you BUT it just seems to them like Nishinoya moved on to the next Kiyoko. And, considering how he treated her, it's not all that surprising to see him acting obsessive towards you.
🎭 Honestly, I don't think anyone would notice the difference in obsessions. Tanaka would think it's totally normal and be super glad he no longer shows interest in Kiyoko or his older sister. Asahi might notice that Nishinoya's love for you is way beyond even his previous love for Kiyoko but I don't think it'd concern him too much.
N is for Naughty: How would they punish their darling?
🚓 He wouldn't. You're perfect in his eyes. The most I can see him doing is giving you some "alone time" in your room, but that's honestly just to calm you down if you're freaking out. You get a break and he can't access you. So it's more of a blessing for you and torture for him anyways.
O is for Oppression: How many rights would they take away from their darling? What rights can be earned with time and trust?
📜 You'd have free run of the house, mostly, but you aren't leaving. You're not safe out in the evil world out there, so please don't go near that locked door, okay?
P is for Patience: How patient are they with their darling?
🕊️ Nishinoya doesn't really know the meaning of patience but he'll do his best to give you the time you need. He genuinely doesn't understand why you're resisting his love so much and he keeps trying to speed up the process.
Q is for Quit: If their darling dies, leaves, or successfully escapes, would they ever be able to move on?
🏃‍♀️ If you die, so does he. He can't live without you, so he'll follow you into the afterlife.
🏃‍♀️ To be fair, you probably can take advantage of his delusional mind and unwavering trust to escape. But that wouldn't be the end, unfortunately. Nishinoya would literally search the ends of the earth for you until he finds you.
R is for Rage: How do they act when angry? How do they calm down?
👿 Picture a toddler throwing a fit because he didn't get the toy he wanted. That's Nishinoya.
👿 You aren't getting hurt or anything, don't worry about that. You do, however, have to deal with him wrapping his arms around your legs and sobbing into them.
👿 He'll calm down when he's got his arms around you, his face buried in your hair, and you finally going limp in his hold.
S is for Soulmate: What made them fall in love with their darling? How did they first meet? When did they realize they loved their darling?
💍 You're so beautiful in your own unique way, and Nishinoya can't get enough of you. His biggest wish, the moment he met you, was to stroke your hair and soft skin.
💍 If you're a smarty pants, you were tutoring him. He specifically asked for a girl tutor. If you're not a smarty pants, he met you in class or you were both getting tutored in some sort of study group. It'd probably have to do with tutoring, okay?
💍 It was love at first sight. And if you called him senpai you sealed your own fate, okay? That's on you.
T is for Tears: How do they feel about seeing their darling scream, cry, and/or isolate themselves?
😭 You absolutely shatter Nishinoya's heart when you cry. He wants you happy! Seeing you sad means he's failing. He wants to try harder but you keep saying nonsense about how you "want to go home" or that you "miss your family". Why isn't he enough? He thought he was doing so well!
😭 Isolating yourself is the biggest punishment for Nishinoya. Being unable to touch you is enough torture, being unable to see or hear you? God, are you TRYING to kill him? He can't take this- please come out- PLEASE- He just needs to know you're okay! He loves you so, so much!
U is for Unique: Would they do anything different from the classic yandere?
👌 Nishinoya is a worshipper x100. You could screw up as much as you want and he'll still think you're 100% perfect. You don't have to worry about him hurting or punishing you too harshly. Honestly, you're relatively safe with him.
👌 You actually have a good chance of escaping. He'll likely pick a house far away from society though and he DEFINITELY won't give up just because you got away. You better have a good plan because you really don't want him upping the security "until you get used to your new home a little more".
V is for Visit: Would they allow anyone else to visit their darling? Do they trust their darling to talk to their loved ones (in person, on the phone, etc.) or not at all?
🧳 Simple answer is no. You only need him. He's the only one worthy to be in your presence.
W is for Weakness: What weakness can their darling exploit in order to escape?
❌ You're literally the embodiment of his weakness. He's weak for you. Fake a pout or smile and he's wrapped around your finger in an instant.
❌ Although you can't negotiate your release or the ability to contact/visit the outside world, you CAN get practically anything you want. Which means you can use things he gives you to escape. Or you can just enjoy your life of being worshipped and spoiled.
X is for Xoanon: How much would they revere or worship their darling? To what length would they go to win their darling over?
���� Nishinoya would do ANYTHING for you. He would literally drop to his knees and kiss your feet- and he probably will. He may not be able to let you leave him or return to society, but he'll make up for it in every way possible.
Y is for Yearning: How long do they pine after their darling before they snap?
😍 Nishinoya wouldn't last long without you. He loves you so, so much and just wants you in his arms. The more you hang around others and the longer you go about your normal life, the more stressed you make him. He needs to rescue you from this awful world...
Z is for Zero Tolerance: What is the thing that always makes them snap? What things will they not allow their darling to do under any circumstances?
0️⃣ The thing that Nishinoya can't stand is you trying to escape, but he doesn't exactly "snap". It's more like a panic attack and tantrum as he drags you back into the house, begging you to explain what he can do better and what he did wrong.
🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣🐣
I hope I did okay! I think it was shorter than Akaashi's, but Noya's a simpler creature!
Thank you for the request, my lovely Anon!
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lonelyghosts-stuff · 4 years
Text
Peppermint and Pinewood
Peppermint and Pinewood (Draco Malfoy x Reader)
Premise:
Draco Malfoy x muggleborn, Slytherin! Reader
Although the time setting isn’t too important, I envisioned it taking place somewhere in the fifth year.
Warnings: none really? I mean, I guess bullying, mild angst, and fluff lol. I dunno if Draco goes a little off-canon character wise here but I tried to make his personality as close to the source material as possible.
Word count: 4,581
Note: This is my first ever fan fiction I’ve ever written so yea.
Read it on wattpad too:
https://www.wattpad.com/story/244556691-peppermint-and-pinewood
It was another bad day. After getting yet another berating from Snape due to putting one too many dried lavender flowers in the Calming Draught potion and subsequently losing five house points from Slytherin, y/n found herself once again the target of insults and sneers. As if being a muggle born placed in Slytherin wasn't bad enough, it seems like every single mistake made, no matter how simple or innocent it may have been, was held against her as if it was the highest insult to the wizarding world.
Following a long walk down the hallway to her next class, a cold and judgmental presence drew near. With his steely gray eyes, Draco Malfoy looked down upon y/n.
"Well well... looks like the mudblood lost us even more points! As if it wasn't enough of a plague upon wizard kind and the Slytherin House to have a mudblood part of it..." Draco leaned in towards y/n towering over her by at least 15cm (about 6 inches rounded up) and continued "we have to further suffer your utter lack of any practical skills in class. I mean, bloody hell y/l/n! We've been learning the calming draught for what, the past three days? And you still managed to screw that up. If it was up to me, your kind wouldn't even be allowed in the magical world much less Hogwarts; as pathetic as this school is."
After the cacophony of insults and belittlement, Draco continued onward, gesturing his cronies to follow...
Only, they didn't follow right away. Crabbe and Goyle decided that it was their time to shine and decided to push y/n around, knowing full well she wouldn't do anything to stop them. With some rude comments and pathetic chittering of a laugh, Crabbe gave y/n one final shove sending her onto the ground and spilling out her supplies including books, quills, and a jar of ink. Despite the squawking coming from Crabbe and Goyle, Draco looked more bemused than anything. While he should be laughing at a lowly mud blood getting what they deserved, he felt empty. He almost pitied y/l/n.
"Crabbe, Goyle, hurry up or we'll be late to D.A.D.A. and I sure as hell am not losing any house points because of you buffoons." Draco demanded, leaving y/n on the ground, scurrying to clean up the mess.
Eventually one Slytherin classmate and their Hufflepuff friend spotted y/n and helped her clean up.
"Scourgify! There you go! All better now!" The Hufflepuff chirped as the Slytherin handed y/n the last of her things.
"Are you sure you simply tripped and fell?" The Slytherin doubted y/n's story. "I mean, you aren't the most popular nor liked in Slytherin."
"Oh uh yea. I know where you're coming from but I promise it was just a little trip. Just me being clumsy is all!" Y/n fumbled through her response. "But thanks for the concern Mallory!"
Mallory was one of the few Slytherins who didn't despise y/n for her blood status. Coming from a home where her dad is a wizard and her mom's a muggle, not even muggle born, she found herself sympathizing with y/n.
"Hey y/n, promise us you'll come for help if you really need it, okay?" Susan Bones the Hufflepuff, a caring and hardworking witch who, while maybe initially coming across as weak and a pushover, is not one who is past fighting someone in order to defend her friends.
"Yea yea I promise I promise." Y/n chuckled. If only Mallory was in y/n's dorm room. Things would be a lot better for sure.
After a couple more minutes of reassuring Mallory and Susan that she was alright, y/n begrudgingly made her way to her next class with her fellow housemates of the same year, Defense Against the Dark Arts. While not her particular favorite due to the inconsistency of the instructors, y/n found herself enjoying D.A.D.A. more than most classes due to not only the wide variety of skills and spells learned, but the hands on approach of applying said new skills in practical situations. It was certainly a sight to behold when she transformed her boggart from Voldemort to a mere Pansy Parkinson, shackled by her ankles no doubt by Filch. Of course this only earned y/n more nasty comments hurled her way as well as an unappreciated "gift" from an owl left on her bed, but y/n felt that the site was worth it nonetheless.
D.A.D.A. was unfortunately highly uneventful that day as the class merely reviewed the basic defensive and combative spells from previous years (a shocking amount of students performed poorly on the review exam and thus the whole class had to suffer). On her way out of the class, y/n was met by another Slytherin, none other than the she-devil herself, Pansy Parkinson. As if on cue, the moment y/n stepped out of the classroom and was out of sight of any faculty, y/n was roughly pulled by the hand and pushed into the neighboring, empty classroom by Pany who promptly closed the door behind her, holding it shut.
"Hey let me out of here! Pansy you downright insufferable git!" Y/n burst out, an uncommon instance that was released due to pent up rage from days of harassment.
"Nuh uh! Maybe when you learn your lesson that Draco is mine and you'll neeeveeer be more than a pathetic, weak, and intolerable mudblood!" Pansy chortled in a sing-songy voice.
"Pansy I swear to Merlin..." y/n started before stopping themself to recompose and calm down. "Pansy, I'm asking nicely... please, open the door. I have no clue what you are talking about with Draco, but you don't need to worry. I want nothing to do with that cocky, rude, hair-gelling bastard, okay?!"
"Augh?! You think that pathetic excuse for an apology is gonna cut it? Nuh uh! Maybe you need some more time alone to think about your actions, y/l/n. Colloportus!" And with that, y/n heard the doors click locked, Pansy mumble the anti-alohomora charm, and the ever fading footsteps of Pansy proudly striding away.
Feeling all of her built up emotion come to a boil, y/n allowed herself to blow some steam off while she was alone. Casting one destructive spell after another, the classroom suffered greatly from the y/n’s rage.
"BOMBARDA! STUPEFY! DIFFINDO! INCENDIO!" Y/n proclaimed with much fervor before stepping back in fear.
The last spell carelessly cast quickly caught the ratted tapestry curtains over the windows, sending them ablaze. In the panic, y/n stumbled back to the door before pounding on it wildly for help. Fortunately for her, her absence in her next class and last class of the day was reported and McGonagall was passing by to look for her. Quickly reversing the rushed anti-alohomora charm on the door and then following up by unlocking it, the door swung open as y/n fell through, almost onto the ground before catching herself.
After extinguishing the fire with a quick flick of her wand and a mutter of 'aguamenti' and long winded conversation filled with explanations, denial, and intense pleading, McGonagall decided it was in the best interest to remove 100 points from Slytherin for the utter lack of safety and human decency.
Of course this didn't go well for y/n. That evening she found herself locked out of her own dorm room as her roommates found the blame for the points lost resting solely on y/n. Making her way to the empty common room, y/n sat on one of the couches in front of the green, crackling fire. Equipped with nothing outside of her button up, vest, and pants, y/n used her robe as a blanket and cuddled up on the couch.
At that moment, y/n's bottled up emotion overflowed and she sobbed into the couch cushion. Feeling more like a burden than a human, y/n repeated in her head the insults she's heard many times. "Hinderance. Pathetic. Weak. Worthless..." she choked out between sobs. "Filthy... little... mudblood."
Before y/n could even get one wink of sleep, a door creaked open revealing the prince of Slytherin himself, Draco. Only, unlike most other times, Draco was sans henchmen. Presumably, Draco snuck out for one reason or another and was only returning about now. As Draco stepped into the light, he noticed a covered figure on the couch. Draco glimpsed at y/n h/l h/c hair, quickly deducing it was y/n.
"What are you doing out here this late, y/l/n?" Interrogated Draco. "Shouldn't you be in your room?"
"I could ask you the same thing. Wandering about this late at night, you could lose us house points or worse depending on what suspicious activities you are into." Y/n mumbled as she tried to tune out the excess noise, not caring anymore about how she responded to Draco.
"Harsh, but fair." Draco let out a rare chuckle.
For some reason, hearing Draco chuckle sent warm tingles throughout her body from one hand to another. This is just barely a fraction of a side of Draco she wished she could see all the time. Before getting too caught up in daydreams, y/n remembered it was Draco's fault in the first place that she's even locked out of her room at all.
"Well, to put it short, I'm still a, as you say, a filthy mudblood and it would appear as if torturing me and locking me in an abandoned classroom wasn't enough for them so they decided to lock me out of our own room." Y/n vented with both a sense of exasperated relief as Draco stood silently, stiff as a board, as if he was shocked as to what he was hearing.
Draco took a moment to drink in y/n. Her e/c eyes, red and glossy from tormented crying. Even in this state she was still breathtaking. Wait, what? Breathtaking? Draco suddenly forgot how to speak as his mind raced from his sudden observation. She's not pretty, right? She's just a muggle born, a disgrace to the wizarding world! Is that all she is though? And only a muggle born, not a mudblood? Draco panicked internally for a brief moment before finally recollecting himself and regaining his composure.
"Oh." Was all Draco could manage at the moment. Appearing deep in thought, Draco organized a response. "As much as I would love to hear more of your life problems, I have a room to go back to. So... um... good night..."
Draco awkwardly turned around and shuffled towards his room, pausing only for a brief moment and throwing a quick glance over his shoulder as if he was contemplating something. He quickly shook off any feeling of turning back and entered his room for the night.
The school year progressed without much of anything significant happening outside of the common bullying and stress of the holidays approaching. It was almost winter break and, as usual, y/n would be staying at Hogwarts for Christmas. Her parents always took a long vacation over Christmas break and figured they would save money by leaving y/n at school where she would still get food and housing without them having to pay for an extra plane ticket. Y/n didn't mind too much. She had always been pretty independent from her parents, but she loved them nonetheless. They all loved each other but they weren't very affectionate about it, a factor that probably contributed to her apathetic approach to most things. While always hopeful to be invited to one of her parents annual holidays, y/n also looked forward to the more or less peace and quiet of having the common room and school mostly to herself with the exception of the other few students who also remained for the holidays.
Unbeknownst to y/n, ever since their interaction at night in the common room, Draco has been secretly watching her. While seeing her in such a devastated state should logically make him happy as she is only a muggle born, Draco felt anything but happy. It was almost like looking into a mirror for him, seeing her broken. It reminded him of his many nights of anxiety and depression after getting an earful from his father about how he wasn't "good enough" or constantly feeling inadequate compared to the "chosen one", Potter. From that moment on, Draco avoided y/n. Y/n didn't really think anything of it except that she appreciated the extended periods of peace and silence between the other students' insults. This of course only prompted Crabbe and Goyle to try to make up for their ring leader's apparent avoidance and growing distaste of picking on y/n. Fortunately for y/n however, Crabbe and Goyle were quite dim witted and easy to outsmart or avoid. Another development for y/n was that, after her time in the abandoned classroom allowing her to let off some steam, followed by her mini rant to Draco, she found herself able to stand up for herself a bit more, much to the chagrin of Pansy Parkinson. Now when Pansy strode up to y/n with a cocky and mischievous smirk plastered on her face, y/n simply looked on with a strong and unavoidable expression of mere annoyance and anticipation of disappointment. Pansy would try to insult y/n only for y/n to retort with a simple motion of dismissal or a clever comeback.
"Well if it isn't the local mudblood of Slytherin!" Pansy would shout with falsely placed pride.
"Well if it isn't the local tramp of Slytherin!" Y/n would respond with a mock curtsy. "What an absolute honor to be in your presence. Oh, and of course the presence of all the guys you try to hook up with."
Pansy would only stare on, gobsmacked and dumbfounded. She would walk away trying to act as if y/n's responses meant nothing to her, but her embarrassment would be evident with the bright red burning at her cheeks. Y/n would always take a silent pride in herself when she managed to hold her composure and deliver lines to Pansy that would shut her up without the need to stoop down the Pansy's level herself.
The days progressed even more until it was eventually the last day before the Christmas holiday. As the other students were packing their things and saying their goodbyes, y/n spent her time in the library or in the Slytherin common room, sitting next to one of the many windows looking out under the Black Lake. Y/n would often sit by the windows and look at the fish and grindylows swim by, almost entranced by the aquatic life that resides within the lake. Y/n always hoped to spot the giant squid someday, but outside of the rare silhouette of a tentacle, she was disappointed. Of course her biggest achievement of her many nights of lake gazing was when she spotted a mermaid right outside the window. The mermaid smiled a soft and ethereal smile before singing a peaceful song, lulling y/n to a restful sleep. Y/n would constantly be on the lookout for that same mermaid each night, even more so than the giant squid, but was unfortunately commonly met with mere fish or the occasional grindylow that would give her a wicked smile. At the end of the day, students began to turn in for the night in preparation for leaving bright and early in the morning to go home or wherever for their Christmas vacations. Y/n, on the other hand, stayed up, sitting on the couch and watching the green flames dance and in the fireplace. A wave of contentment washed over her as she looked forward to a peaceful break. She had just been told by Mallory that, while she was leaving for the holiday, Susan Bones would be staying as her she had no family to return to (her family having been killed personally by Voldemort in the First Wizarding War) outside of her aunt Amelia Bones who was attending to business all holiday. Y/n looked forward to spending some time with Susan, especially knowing how hard the holidays are for her due to her family's past. She has already planned on taking her to Hogsmeade for some quality time as a “girls’ day” together and to make sure that, despite her circumstances, she would still have the best Christmas possible.
As y/n sat alone, mesmerized by the fire and picturing her plans to hang out with Susan, none other than Draco Malfoy once again stepped into the picture. He didn't directly approach y/n, more or less standing off to the side and looking outward at the lake. Y/n eventually directed her attention away from the fire and noticed Draco staring out at the lake. He seemed a lot more fidgety than usual, almost as if he was nervous or dreading something. 'It couldn't possibly be he's not looking forward to going home, could it?' Y/n thought to herself as she observed Draco's body language. After a brief minute, Draco turned around as if to head to bed only to notice y/n staring at him.
"Ah! W-what are you doing here y/l/n?" Draco jumped slightly, caught off guard.
Y/n quickly looked away, feeling her cheeks burn in embarrassment from being caught. "I, uh, well..." she calmed down and recomposed herself, "if you don't remember, despite yours and most everyone else's wishes, I'm still in Slytherin so I have just as much of a right to be here as you!"
"Oh. Yea. I mean, that's not what I meant." Draco fumbled through his sentences, his nervousness becoming more and more obvious. "I meant, what are you doing here, here. Shouldn't you be in bed so you'll be ready for the holidays?"
Once again, y/n found herself saying, "I could ask you the same thing." Y/n gave a playful yet unconfident smirk.
Defying anyone's best guess, a faint pink rose to Draco's cheeks, completely catching y/n off guard. He quickly tried to laugh it off before continuing to uncharacteristically stumble his way through the conversation. "Uh, yea. My bad, sorry."
Once again, y/n was caught completely off guard. 'Did the Draco Malfoy just say, "sorry"?' Draco didn't even seem phased by the absurdity of what he just said.
Quickly moving on from what just happened, y/n spoke up, "Well, to answer your question. No. I'm not leaving for the holidays. I'll be here all Christmas break."
Almost as if without a second thought, Draco made his way over to the couch area, sitting on the chai directly across from y/n. His previous nervousness seemed to fade away as he responded, "So, why are you staying here? How come you're not going home or traveling somewhere?"
"Well, my parents like to go on big fancy trips for the holidays and they figure that they can save money by leaving me here."
"Oh. Does that bother you at all? That they just leave you behind while they go and have a great time?"
Y/n shrugged, trying to ignore how weird this whole situation is. "Not really. It's always been like this. They never really went on vacations outside of an occasional camping trip with me when I was still living at home and they wanted to take advantage of the situation of me being at a school away from home to go on a nice trip while I was being cared for. We still go camping over the summertime though, so that's fun."
Draco was amazed, listening intently to every word that came out of y/n's mouth. The concept of needing to save money was pretty foreign to him, but he found himself able to relate to her situation of not having the most affectionate family.
"So, what about you, Draco? Why aren't you in bed? No doubt your family has some extravagant plans for the holiday." Y/n asked, turning the tables on Draco.
As soon as she asked this, the previously present nervousness and dread returned to Draco's face. "Oh, uh, not tired yet. A lot on my mind..."
"Well, surely your family has something exciting planned. I mean, you are a Malfoy after all."
As if she just pushed a button, Draco seemed to flinch away at the mention of his family name. For a brief moment, his nervousness was overcome with an irritated, defensiveness as he snapped, "Well it's not all perfect like you so clearly think!"
Y/n flinched back as he shouted this, confused by the sudden change in attitude. Draco noticed her almost immediately shut down, losing any joy that previously graced her face.
"I-I'm... sorry... I didn't mean to shout." Draco sighed. "It's just that-"
"No, I'm sorry." Y/n interrupted. "I saw you were clearly uncomfortable at the first mention of your family and I shouldn't have asked again... you don't have to say anything you don't want to."
"Thank you." Draco simply said. He began to stand up to head to bed before y/n got to say one last thing
"Draco. I-", y/n cut herself off, questioning if she should really finish her sentence. "I'm... always here if you need anything. Okay? I may not know of your family's background or yours, but I'm no stranger to hardships. I'm always here if you need help with something or even just someone to talk to."
Draco looked at her with a face full of mixed emotions. Uncertainty, confusion, fear of letting someone in, fear of pushing her away, and more. He was quiet for about a whole minute as he stood there, looking at y/n.
"But, why? Would you care about me? I've been nothing but cruel and rude to you. Why would you care how I feel?" Draco suddenly asked, breaking the silence.
"Just because you may not be the most pleasant person in the world to be around doesn't mean you don't have your own battles and issues in life, nor does it mean your issues are any less valid than anyone else's. You're still a human and... I care about you just like anyone else...", y/n looked down at the floor as she quietly said the last part.
Draco stood there, silent and uncertain about how to respond. Another minute of silence passed and, without a second thought, Draco turned around and walked to his room. Y/n kept looking down, berating herself in her head. 'You went too far you idiot! You just had to push it and make him feel uncomfortable...'. Y/n lied down onto the couch and closed her eyes as she tried to fall asleep.
As Draco walked away, he stopped for a second and whispered under his breath, "Thank you... y/n. Merry Christmas."
The night was rough for Draco; he couldn't sleep as he replayed the conversation in his head over and over again. When the time reached 1:30 am, Draco decided to get up and go for a brief walk to clear his head. He opened the door from his dorm room and quietly snuck out so as to not awake his roommates. Making his way down into the common room, he spotted y/n still there, only asleep on the couch. He quickly deduced she must have been locked out of her room again and that was another reason she wasn't in bed yet when he first came across her. He quietly walked over to her and looked at her. Despite her messy hair and unconventional sleeping position, she had a peaceful look on her face as she slumbered. As he turned away to continue his short walk, he heard a noise come from y/n. When he turned around, he noticed her shivering in her sleep. The fire had died down since he was last here and y/n was without a blanket or anything else to keep her warm. He wanted to relight the fireplace but he also didn't want to risk the sudden light waking her up. He eventually turned back to head to his room as y/n laid there.
The next morning, Draco and his friends were getting ready to leave the school and board the trains. A smirk was plastered on Draco's face, one which did not go unnoticed by Pansy.
"Hey Drayyyy!" Pansy cooed in a sickeningly sweet tone of voice. "What's got you so happy this be-a-utiful morning?"
Even Pansy's annoying presence couldn't dampen Draco's mood. "Oh it's nothing. Just looking forward to leaving this joke of a school is all." Draco proudly lied, his thoughts clearly elsewhere.
Despite many more attempts of learning what the truth was from Pansy, Crabbe, and Goyle, Draco remained silent on the truth.
Back in the Slytherin common room, y/n began stirring awake. Surprisingly, she slept through the commotion of the other students leaving for Christmas. Stretching and yawning, y/n stood up off the couch, accidentally dropping the jumper that was draped across her onto the ground. Without hesitation she picked up the sweater and slid it on, quickly leaving to brush her hair and get ready for the day to take Susan to Hogsmeade.
Once in Hogsmeade, y/n lead Susan to Honeydukes to pick out an assortment of sweets.
"Thank you so much for all of this, y/n. I really appreciate it." Susan beamed as she grabbed a chocolate frog with one hand as her other held a box of treacle fudge.
"Of course. It's my pleasure and it's a nice change of pace from a normal school schedule. And one never needs an excuse to go to Honeydukes!" Y/n responded gleefully.
After they made their way back to Hogwarts with their bounty of sweets and a few items from Zonko's, Susan led y/n to the Hufflepuff common room so they could indulge themselves.
After taking a big bite from a liquorice wand, Susan spoke out, "oh I've been meaning to ask you, when did you get that jumper? It's been cold all winter but I haven't seen you wear it all!"
Y/n looked down at the jumper. It was green and silver in the Slytherin colors with a big, snake S in the center. "You know what? I don't know... I just woke up this morning and it was draped over me. I'm not sure how I got it."
"Weird. Maybe you made an impulse purchase and completely forgot?"
"No, I don't think that's it. It's a little big for me too. Maybe Mallory bought it for me and left it as a surprise? I know she's a bit bigger than me so that would explain it."
"No that can't be. She got you a new scarf and matching mittens for Christm-shoot!"
"Susan!!!" Y/n burst out laughing.
"Oh no I'm so so so sorry!!! Please don't tell Mallory I told you! She's been planning this for a week! Please act surprised when you get it! Aghhhh I'm so dumb!" Susan panicked as her face flushed from embarrassment.
"Don't worry don't worry!" Y/n chuckled loudly. "I'll act surprised I promise!"
"Thank you thank you thank you thank you!" Susan cried out as she stuffed her mouth with a pumpkin pasty.
The rest of the Christmas holiday was full of fun and funny times like this. For the first time in a while, y/n looked forward to getting up in the morning and seeing people. She would always wake up bright and early, brush her hair and her teeth, and slip on the mysterious oversized jumper. While it still bugged her and Susan as the jumper's origin remained a mystery, y/n was grateful to have it nonetheless on these cold, winter days.
It also had a pleasant scent of peppermint and pinewood cologne too.
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