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#usually i hate it when loose ends aren't tied
michelangelinden · 1 year
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I love many things about Glass Onion, but easily one of my favourites was how Derol is just some guy. He's just there, no explanation, no reason. He could have been the "omg it was the random guy all along" guy, but no, he is just some guy. Love it.
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joaquinwhorres · 1 year
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Hi!! What are some of your favorite Fanboy headcanons???
Ooooh this was harder than expected. I only have a few that aren't tied to my fics, so here they are:
His first name is actually Miguel, but he's gone by Mickey since he was about three. That's when his first "fanboy obsession" started with Disney. His father jokingly called him Mickey once and the name's stuck ever since.
When it comes to video games, Mickey prefers playing action-adventure games with a good story. He first got into gaming through Kingdom Hearts but his favorite game is The Last of Us even though it makes him cry at key points.
The boy is a dog lover. Like, down on the ground wrestling with a random dog he met at the park.
He never shows up to a party empty handed, and he always stays at the end to clean.
Fanboy's not a huge drinker, so he usually offers to be the DD. The major exception to this is weddings and holidays, where he really lets loose.
Payback and Fanboy graduated Top Gun at the same time as the number 1 and 2 of their class.
Fanboy hates conflict. Especially when it manifests in passive aggression. At least he can break up a fight, drama and hurt feelings are another thing.
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ack3rlady · 3 years
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The Universe Had His Back - Chapter 7
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Summer
Chapters: Six | Seven
Master List
Warnings: Fluff, Fluff and more Fluff
Word Count: ~2.74k
Inspiration: Don't Go - Exo
A/N: And with this chapter, I conclude this series. Thank you for all the love you all gave my baby project!
Tags: @sooibian, @queenofcurse, @red-n-tall, @badbitxhbuckybarnes , @sweet-assh0le
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‘Why am I nervous? We've done much more than just kiss. For fucks sake! I'm the mother of his child.’
You took a few deep breaths to calm yourself down before pushing the cart from behind your truck towards the large glass doors of the café. You had offered to take today’s batch of bread and pastries to Levi’s to snag a chance to see him, much to Mikasa’s annoyance.
“Oi, brat! You’re late.”, Levi remarked without looking up from his laptop when the bell above the door rang with your entrance, expecting her to have finally arrived.
“Levi, I’m so sorry! I made an impromptu decision to come here instead of Mikasa and -”, you emerged from behind the lofty stack of boxes.
Your hair was up in a messy bun, you were panting from hauling the weight and the resultant perspiration made you glow. Your continual rambling about why you were late, instantly gave him a feeling of Déjà vu, hurling him eight years back in time to the morning when he first laid his eyes on you.  Mirroring that day, he couldn’t focus on anything you were saying, gawking at you with unblinking eyes given how stupefied he was by the sight before his eyes and the sound of your voice.
“Levi? Are you listening?”, you waved your hand in front of his face, disrupting the mental movie playing in his head.
“Huh? Oh, y-yeah. Hi.” he shook his head vigorously and blinked a few times to bring himself back to the present.
Both a blushing mess, you stood by the entrance to the cafe, smiling at each other like two smitten high-schoolers.
“Are you finally back together?”, a shriek from the opposite end of the seating area made your ears ring.
The cacophony was loud enough that Erwin’s head immediately peaked out of his office; his face riddled with confusion. Both your necks snapped towards the source - Hange was running in your direction with the brightest grin on their face. Every head in the room was turned towards you. Eren and other new members of staff at the café, Armin, Jean, Sasha and Connie were slack jawed with their gaping eyes fixed on you after being subjected to this abrupt and unnecessary announcement. One look from Levi sent them scrambling back to work.
“Fucking four-eyes.” he mumbled as they came closer.
“I knew it! You lovebirds couldn’t stay apart for long!”, they squealed with joy enveloping you both in an spontaneous group hug, not giving Levi an opportunity to flinch away.
“Shhh! Calm down, Hange! We’re not back together. Yet.”, you tugged on their hands trying to free yourself from their clasp.
Levi's eyes met and stayed on yours when you uttered the last word, the way his heart fluttered at the sound of it clearly reflecting on his face.
Yet.
“But you were together last night. You have both put in way too much effort in your appearances today. And the color on Short-stack's cheeks can be spotted from Mars! What am I missing here?”, they observed, unaware of the heat rising within their two friends thinking about their final moments together at the Ackerman home yesterday.
Always the perceptive one, Hange. They weren’t entirely wrong. You did spend forty minutes in your closet hunting for the one floral lemon-yellow dress that Levi loved seeing you in; piling on deodorant while simultaneously cursing the hot summer. You picked your reflection in the mirror apart for way too long, fiddling with the necklace he bought you ages ago while rehearsing what you would say to him.
By the looks of it, he did too. He looked oh-so handsome today. Granted, he always did. But today was different. He wore your favorite navy-blue button-down shirt with slate grey slacks, sleeves folded to reveal his toned fore arms, and the top two buttons left open to aid with the sweltering heat; or was it because he knew that it made you weak in the knees when he wore his shirts that way? And his cheeks and ears were definitely a brighter shade of pink than the raspberry compote on the cheesecake you brought.
He stood pinching the bridge of his nose, his breathing starting to speed up. You figured it was his attempt at suppressing the strong urge to smack the grin right off Hange’s face.
“Hange, I promise, I’ll give you all the details later. But for now, Levi and I have things to discuss.”, you pulled him away before he could act on his impulse.
Taking a seat at the table by the large bay window, kissed by the morning sun, you watched the city slowly rise awake with your cheek resting on the palm of your hand. Levi, who was walking back from the kitchen with a cup of tea for himself and a caramel latte for you, stopped in his tracks to mentally frame this image. It was as if you were a different person than who he met over the last two days.
There were no signs of the anxious but adoring mother from yesterday nor the bewildered, pained ex-wife from the day before; you were the same clumsy, moody, garrulous, as well as kind, selfless and mesmerizing woman he fell madly in love with when you walked in through the doors of this very place eight years ago. How could one person flood his heart with a barrage of different emotions this way?
You acknowledged him with a soft ‘hi’ accompanied by a smile when he sat down on the chair opposite to you, nervous about the forthcoming conversation. You stole occasional glances at each other while sipping your beverages, hesitating to be the one to say the first word.
“Do you hate me?”, he asked out of the blue, his gaze locked on his cup.
“No! Why would you think that?”
“Uh- you obviously had a chance to think about what I said to you after going home last night. Why would you possibly want to still see me?”
“Well, I’m here, aren't I? I want to work on us if you’re willing to try as well, Levi. I want to see where this takes us.”, you smiled, placing your hand on his.
"Me too."
.
.
Four months later
The day of Suki and Furlan's wedding was finally here. The venue was set, guests had arrived and you were busy helping the bride get ready for her special day, having spent all morning with her, Isabel and the other bridesmaids in the bridal suite, chatting away in excitement and anticipation for the day ahead.
“Honestly speaking, Suki, I’d have a hard time keeping my hands off you if I were Furlan”, you teased while draping the veil into her hair, causing her to bury her face into her palms.
“You’re one to talk! Levi has been looking for reasons to see you all morning. I had to turn him away thrice already. I'm pretty sure he is going to murder me after the wedding is over.”, Isabel shot back with a smirk.
The last four months had been nothing short of a whirlwind. After that morning at the cafe, having breakfast with Levi turned into a routine. He brought Luna along on most days, and the three of you spent time chatting and admiring the toddler’s antics over tea and scones while sitting at your usual table by the bay window. Sometimes you’d have her accompany you to the patisserie to give Levi a much-deserved break.
Everyone there was enamored with the little firecracker. Her Uncle Miche had always been her favorite because the gentle giant ferried her around the large kitchen on his shoulders. Bertholdt and Reiner would happily comply to all the orders their mini boss belted out. Annie, although a little awkward around her, listened intently to her endless stories; Mikasa secretly pampered her with numerous treats even after several warnings from you, and Nanaba would fuss over her all the time and try to keep the little one all to herself, earning protests from the others.
The evenings varied between taking Luna to the park or the pier, or just spending time indoors at your place or his. You even celebrated her fourth birthday two weeks ago. All your friends and family, along with some little friends the birthday girl had made at the park were invited. You spent a beautiful evening in the backyard of your house around a bonfire, with a delectable meal and wonderful company.
Levi especially made sure you knew that you were being wooed by taking you out on date nights every now-and-then to the finest of restaurants, walks on the beach, to the drive-in theater a few miles outside your town, or star gazing from your favorite spot up the nearby hill. You both were working through your differences and had barely had any disagreements during the time spent together. Things were slowly falling in place; in fact, this newly re-built relationship with him felt much stronger than ever before.
The flashback ended when the wedding planner knocked on the door indicating it was time for the ceremony to begin. You, Isabel, and the other bridesmaids ushered Suki to her designated spot, making sure her dress, hair, make up and flowers looked perfect.
.
.
Standing at the altar by Furlan’s side as his best man, Levi was relieved that he would finally be seeing you soon after being apart all morning. Lately, the two of you spent most of your time together; and this sudden separation had him feeling restless.
On cue, the two harpists seated on either side of the rows began to play heavenly tune of ‘A Thousand Years’ by Christina Perry, a prompt for the bride’s party to start making their way towards the altar. He watched patiently as bridesmaids accompanied by groomsmen walked down the aisle, waiting for you to finally appear. He almost forgot to breathe when your form eventually entered the nave, walking a short distance behind Isabel and one of Furlan’s friends.
You wore the emerald gown from your encounter with him at the store four months ago, and looked a million times more beautiful this morning. Your usually open hair was tied into an elegant loose braid with some curly strands framing your face. The sun rays falling on your silhouette from the towering stained-glass windows of the church made you look like an angel descending solely upon him. He finally began breathing again when you smiled at him and mouthed “breathe”, after taking your position at the altar.
Levi only peeled his eyes away from you when Luna’s giggles reverberated off the stone walls as she waddled down the aisle, scattering petals of baby pink roses, about the same shade has her chubby cheeks, on the ivory carpet. You wiped a stray tear rolling down your face as you both proudly watched her play the part of a flower girl with utmost perfection. Upon making it to the end, she ran to you and buried her face in your gown, suddenly feeling shy from the cheers and applause she received from the smitten guests.
You instantly scooped her up and held her close, letting her nuzzle into the crook of your neck, cooing sweet words of encouragement into her ears. Levi was so taken by this divine scene before him that he failed to notice the bride's much awaited walk down the aisle; surprised to directly find Suki standing at the altar, facing Furlan with her lips curved into the widest smile before his attention found you and Luna again.
He lost track of how long he was marveling at his two perfect girls for, until he felt an elbow harshly crash into his ribs, knocking the wind out of his lungs.
“Is this revenge for your wedding?”, Furlan frowned.
Levi blankly stared at him, having no clue what he was talking about
“Ring, Levi!”, the fuming groom growled.
Oh, right. He pursed his lips in embarrassment melting under the scrutiny of the baffled guests while he handed over the ring that was in the safety of his blazer’s pocket. His eyes darted towards an alarmed Suki and silently apologized to her. Then his gaze moved back to you, an impish smirk on your face as you stared back at him, knowing exactly what was going on in his mind.
Fuck! Furlan was not going to let this go for a long time.
Luna had lost interest in the festivities midway through the nuptials and had fallen asleep in your arms. After the ceremony, when everyone began to make their way outside the chapel, Levi swiftly moved over to walk beside you and offered to carry the snoozing toddler. You groaned after her weight left your body, stretching your sore shoulders and aching back .
“Stop that. You have no idea how hard it is to control myself from jumping your bones, especially when you look this gorgeous.”, Levi whispered in your ear, snaking an arm around your waist.
You glanced around awkwardly making sure his words did not fall on any prying ears and gave him a quick smack on the shoulder, trying to suppress the heat creeping up your neck.
.
.
Time skip – Evening
The wedding reception was underway. You sat at a table sipping lemonade, watching the newlyweds grooving to the beats of music being played by DJ Zeke. Levi swapped his usual glass of Macallan for a cup of ginger lemon tea; His reason being that his throat was sore from carrying out best man duties. But you knew he was just being supportive of your goal to stay off alcohol.
Erwin and Hange sat by the bar, socializing with Furlan’s Boss, Mr. Pyxis while Luna was busy playing duck-duck-goose with some new toddler friends she made at the venue. Levi needed to be physically restrained from ambushing Isabel who he had discovered slow dancing with the same groomsman that walked alongside her at the ceremony. Miche and Nanaba were spotted in a rare public embrace, dancing leisurely to the slow music; and your army of helpers consisting of Eren, Mikasa, Armin, Jean, Sasha, Connie, Reiner, Bertholdt and Annie took the lead on setting up tables as yours and Levi’s patisserie and café were the official caterers for the evening.
The choice of DJ Zeke's next track brought a sparkle to your eyes. Your smile spread from ear to ear when ‘Fly me to the Moon' by Frank Sinatra emanated from the speakers. You sang along and began swaying cheerfully in your seat to the melody.
“Remember, Levi? This was the song we had our first dance to at our wedding.” you reminisced; a nostalgic smile spread across your face.
“How can I forget?”, he asked.
His eyes were unfocused, lost in memories of his own. He remembered how ethereal you looked in your white wedding dress. How your diamond jewelry shimmered under the spotlight, how you whispered honeyed words into his ears when he felt exceptionally uncomfortable dancing in public, how warm your hands felt wrapped around his body, how your breath tickled his neck. He’d give anything just to go back and relive that moment.
You gaze was still lost among people enjoying themselves on the dance floor when a stretched-out hand entered your line of vision. Your eyes followed it to land on Levi’s face. A quirk in your eyebrows wordlessly asked him what this action meant.
“Let's dance.”, he said.
“You, Levi Ackerman, are willingly asking me to dance? Did someone spike your tea?” You smirked, earning an eye roll from him.
“Oi, brat! Let’s go before I change my mind.”
“Only if you ask nicely.”
“May I have this dance with you, my love?”
You accepted and the pair of you headed towards the dance floor. He gently pulled you close to him and firmly held on to your hand. His other hand wrapped firmly around your waist and you rested yours on his shoulder. You both moved to the slow rhythm in perfect harmony, as you drowned in those gorgeous blue-grey eyes. It felt like the world around you had dissolved and it was just the two of you and the music.
“You look nice today. I see you bought the same gray suit you hated with a fiery passion.”, you teased.
“How could I not after you said you liked it?”
You looked over his shoulder to Suki and Furlan flashing you a wide grin from across the dance floor. And so did Hange, Miche and Nanaba from over that the bar. Erwin gently raised his drink in your direction. The heat from the from the sudden metaphorical spot light you stood under was cooled by the kiss Levi planted on your cheek.
“Did I tell you how lucky I feel to have you?”, he whispered into your ear as while brushing strands of hair off your face.
“I could stand to hear it more often.”, You hid your blush by resting your forehead on his shoulder, feeling too shy to keep his gaze.
“It's true. You’re the most beautiful woman is this room tonight, scratch that, you’ll be the most beautiful woman anywhere, any day; and I get the honor of calling you mine.” he cooed, drawing gentle circles on your back with his fingers.
“You’re awfully talkative today!”, you lifted your head again to reveal a contagious coy smile spread across your lips.
“Don’t be stupid. I’ve always been talkative.”,
“Come with me.”, he moved you off his chest and tugged at your hand.
“Where?”, you asked in utter confusion, and a bit of annoyance at the wonderful moment being ruined, just to receive silence in response.
Levi quickly glanced over to find Luna munching on garlic bread sticks with Erwin and Hange, as he guided you away from the venue and towards the lake nearby. The ripples in the water gleamed under the moonlight, resembling liquid silver. Warm yellow light from the lamps on either side of a wooden dock dimly illuminated the path that led to a gorgeous gazebo that stood at the end, its ceiling sprinkled with fairy lights that defined the intricate floral carvings in the wood. You stood in the center of the structure and slowly spun around, marveling at the work of whose ever brilliant hands built it.
“Levi, this is stunning!”, you said gazing in all directions, running your fingers over the sophisticated engravings.
“Yes, it is.”, Levi agreed, his eyes not on the architecture, but instead on the human embodiment of radiant sunny day that stood by his side.
Not remotely expecting anything to outshine the sight before you, your vision was captured by an extravagant display of red, green, and gold against the dark blanket of the night’s sky. You jumped when the sound of the first soaring explosion caught you off guard. An arm slid across your waist and a kiss was placed on your temple. You were enamored by the shattering sparks of the fireworks, eliciting frequent oohs and aahs, until a voice snapped you out of your reverie.
“Marry me.”
It took you a few seconds to fully register what you just heard. But when you did, overwhelming feelings of joy rendered you speechless; fingers absentmindedly running over the carved railing of the gazebo, stunned orbs darting between the brilliant sky and the love of your life.
This time Levi had to remind you to breathe.
Your eyes and lips both turned into wide Os, and you slapped your hands to cover your gaping mouth when he slowly lowered himself to kneel before you, opening a little black box containing the same gorgeous ruby ring from all those years ago, which he sneaked out of your nightstand during one of his visits.
“I know that you said you wanted to take this slow. But the last four months with you have been the most precious of my life, where I got a glimpse of what having a perfect family would be like. I learnt the hard way, what I lost when I lost you and you gave me a second chance at finding happiness when you decided to come back. I promise to love and protect you every single day for the rest of my life, and even after. You complete me, love, and you complete our family. So, will you do me the honor of being Mrs. Ackerman, again?”
“Levi...”, your trembling voice was barely audible.
“Yes.”, you breathed, letting the floodgates finally open when he slid the ring on your finger.
He got back on his feet and engulfed you into the tightest embrace as you wept joyous tears into his shoulders.
“I love you so much!”
“I love you too!”, moving to look into your eyes, he cupped your face with warm hands.
And finally, his lips found yours.
It felt... like home;
Like laying in a cozy bed after a long day of work, like the warm chocolate sauce on a cold scoop of ice-cream, like wearing a fuzzy sweater on a crisp autumn evening, like walking barefoot on the beach at sunset, like taking a cool shower on a blazing summer afternoon, like everything you ever needed.
After being torn apart from the one person who made your life perfect, you were finally back in the soothing confines of his strong arms, resting against his able chest, ready to fall apart; all while the fireworks in the sky mirrored the fireworks in your hearts.
“Mama! Papa!”
You were awoken from this surreal euphoria by the most beautiful squeal you had ever heard. Both your heads turned towards the source of it – a tiny figure running towards you with all her might while all your near and dear ones including the newlyweds watched from a distance, cheering merrily.
“They knew?”, you gasped, sobbing and sniffling from the joyous tears.
“Yeah, pretty much everyone but you knew.”
Luna flew into Levi’s open arms when he bent down to receive her. The three of you merged into one blob of a positively smothering family hug, only pulling away to pepper each other with more kisses. Levi held his two girls close. His sun and moon were now back together in the sky of his life. He looked into Luna’s crescent shaped eyes and whispered,
“Moon beam, Mama’s coming home.”
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Squeeze that bunny tail!
Part 5 (final part)
Description: The RAD student council as well as the exchange students help out at a bar where, oops, the staff´s dress codes are those sweet bunny outfits that we all know and thirst for. The MCs, Violet and Clover, play a game of who can touch the most bunny tails over the evening without getting caught. Prepare for fluff, funny innuendos as well as my thirst over hot boys in bunny outfits.
This is the finale of this way too long "one shot". Find the prior parts here!
Story continues under the cut. You´re almost finished!!
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Continuing to work at the bar for a while, Violet found a surprising guest on the other side of the counter.
“Clover! What are you doing here?"
Clover sank down on one of the chairs.
"A double shot, please" Clover joked, but probably wouldn't say no to a little refresher either.
"Tired?" Violet laughed, handing her a glass of water instead.
"Mhm..." Clover rubbed her face. "I´m slowly running out of energy... Well, how are your squeeze-points doing?"
They exchanged their data. While Violet was doing pretty well with a total of 17 points, Clover had (still) only gathered five points so far.
"Meh... I knew I'd loose" Clover mumbled.
"It's still not too late" Violet tried cheering her up. There's still plenty of time to touch Solom-"
"DONT." Clover shot her giggling friend a glare. "Look, it's not even anything personal, I just... Feel very weird inside when I imagine me walking up to Solomon like this."
Violet's smirk widened.
"You mean like... The fluttery feeling of butterflies in your stomach? Clover, could it be...?! That you lov-"
"I will eliminate you if you end this sentence."
She couldn't hide a smile at the joke, but soon Clover had to realise that her persistence to not squeeze Solomon's tail would have drastic consequences.
"You know...” Violet thought out loud at some point. "We never thought of a price for the winner of our challenge, did we?"
"... Nope."
The ideas kept processing in Violet's head. Then it hit her.
"Or maybe... Rather than thinking of a price, let's do a penalty for the loser."
Clover's eyes wandered up to meet hers, her face curling into a "I don't like where this is going" expression.
"How abooouut... The loser..." Violet began.
"Don't."
"... Has toooo..."
"Please don't."
"...Touch..."
"Why do you hate me."
"... Solomon's tail?" Violet grinned proudly.
"... You really hate me, don't you?"
"Come on, Clover" Violet cheered. "There's still time for you to score some points~!"
Clover wanted to reply something when a weird round of girly giggles caught their attention.
Around the dining tables, a group of female succubi where currently being served by Beel.
But they didn't seem to be interested in the drinks in his hand, but much rather in the man holding them. Even from the bar, the human girls could hear their excited squeals as they kept batting their eyes at the demon.
Clover's head landed on the bar counter in a depressed sigh.
"Whatever... I don't really care about the game anyway..."
In an instant, Violet's whole tone had changed.
"Clover..." She mumbled, voice soft as the patted her friend's head.
"It's been like this the whole evening" Clover grumbled, eyes pointing to the group of succubi. "I can't blame them, but... When I hear them thirsting over Beel, I…"
"Just go up to him" Violet said. "You know Beel, it's not like he'd be interested in some random demons."
The frown on Clover's face deepened. "... And in no random human, either..."
"Stop saying that. You know he likes your company. Likes you."
Clover shook her head.
"Just... Leave me, okay. Thank you, but... I'm just a little angry at myself. I also had so many chances to squeeze his tail but... Yeah..."
Violet clearly remained bothered, but Clover was quick to change the topic.
"Did you get that Luci-butt already?"
"... No" Violet cried. "He dashed away to grab Mammon, and they vanished in the staff room."
"... That's why Mammon was tied to the ceiling fan!" Clover called out. "Explains a lot."
Violet gave a nod, however continuing with her trail of thought.
"It's been quite a while, though... He should have been around the casino area, but wasn't there... And now he's on break, but, again, I have no idea where he is."
"Go search for him" Clover said. "I'll back you up here. I need something to do anyway, so... Go get your man. There's still his tail in need to be squished, right?"
--------------------------
They argued a little, but in the end, Violet accepted Clover's offer and excused herself into an early break. Violet was searching through the whole club. Asking some of the brothers, too, but none could give her a clue. She wasn't able to find him anywhere, so in her desperation, she went up to Simeon.
"Hey, Simeon? Have you seen Lucifer anywhere?"
The angel turned to greet her as well.
"Hello", he smiled. "Does he have a shift right now? If not, maybe he is using the restroom."
"Hm... I've been looking for him for a while now, though..."
Simeon mustered her for a moment.
"He might also be outside to catch some fresh air" he continued his trail of thought. "But I fear he might get a cold if he stays out for too long. Would you mind taking care of him?"
"Huh?" Violet's eyes widened in surprise.
"Lucy always had a bad habit of taking too little care of himself. So, could you check on him? I am sure he would be delighted to see you."
----------------------------------
When Violet pulled open the heavy doors of the bar's back entrance, a head turned towards her immediately.
"Lucifer...!" she called out, looking down on the demon sitting on the stairs.
"Violet... Did something happen?"
He was already in the movement of standing up, worry spreading in his face.
"No no, everything's fine!" Violet quickly assured him. "I just came looking for you."
He stopped mid-motion, but in the end sat down again.
"Why?"
Violet bit her lip. She decided to plonk down beside him.
"I'm also on break now. I thought we could spend it together and relax a little."
She felt his gaze on her, but as soon as she turned to face him, he was looking off into the distance.
"I am pleased to hear you decided to grand me your free time" he smiled. Then, he gave a sigh.
"However... I should probably head back in soon. Someone might need my help-"
"S-stay!"
Violet impulsively grabbed Lucifer's arm before he could escape.
They stared at each other. Until Lucifer let out a breathy laugh.
"Well, if you demand my presence that much... I fear I cannot turn down a request from you."
A little silence came over them. From the side glances Violet threw him, the demon looked kind of... Odd.
"Ah... Is there something you need from me, perhaps?" Lucifer asked. "Or why is it that you want me to stay so badly?"
And from how he looked at her, his perfect attire not shattered, but shreds of exhaustion glistening in his eyes, Violet knew that he wasn't okay.
"I'm good", she replied. "I simply... Wanted to check if you're doing good, too."
Surprise crossed Lucifer's face.
"Of course" he replied. "I am used to working until late."
However, Violet kept inspecting him.
"... Are you worried about me?" he asked. She did not really answer with more than a guilty glance off to the side. "Your worry is misplaced. I am nothing out of the usual."
Violet almost gave a grumbly noise. So he wasn't going to break through his perfect face so easily, huh?
"Okay", she said, tone almost as if she didn't really care. "You know, because I feel kind of exhausted."
Lucifer was hesitating. "... Explain."
"We've been running around for hours" Violet began to list. "The music inside is rather loud, especially near the dance hall. Mammon keeps causing trouble... Well, not only him. It's always tricky dealing with an angry Satan, too, or Beel when he's hungry, or with Asmo when he's... horny..."
The demon interrupted her by giving a huff. He had seen through her plan.
"... So you've come to pity me? Do I seem that weak to you?"
"What? No!" she exclaimed. "I would never think of you as weak!"
She made a little pause. A little nervous, she stretched out her hand to link her pinky finger with his.
"But I... Also don't think it's a sign of weakness to share your exhaustion with others... Let alone to be exhausted in the first place."
His crimson eyes met hers.
"... Why would I be exhausted?" he mumbled. "Dealing with this scumbag of a brother, keeping Beel from illegally eating food supplies without paying for them... Asmo groping strangers, Satan mocking me on purpose... Levi clinging to my side, whining that he wants to go home like some toddler... Oh, did you know Belphie locked himself in one of the toilet stalls to sleep? For two whole hours?" he was waiting for her to laugh, but had to endure her worried expression. "And then there's Lord Diavolo... Mixing his own sparks of crazy into this chaos..."
Mumbling the last part, he looked down on his clothing... Or rather the places where he normally would wear some.
Then his head perked up again.
"Why should I be exhausted?" he asked again. "All that is... Nothing out of the usual..."
Violet's lips curled into a sad smile.
Now she placed his whole hand into her palms.
"You work really hard, Lucifer."
He tried a cheeky smirk. "Words of flattery won't be enough to convince..."
But Lucifer's voice trailed off.
One could even debate that his mouth fell open just a slight bit, seeing the look Violet gave him.
So warm that it truly caught him off guard...
As if admitting his defeat, Lucifer went silent.
He enjoyed how her thumb gently brushed over his hand for a while as he was taking breaths of the fresh midnight air.
Violet was patiently waiting for him until eventually, he would speak up again.
"Aren't you cold?" Lucifer asked. "Your human body surely isn't used to the temperatures of Devildom nights..."
"Huh? No, I'm fine, don't worry about me."
"Oh, surely you are..." The teasing tone in his voice was back. "And I'm sure your outfit is only helping, isn't it~?"
He shot Violet some obvious glances, leading her to instinctively cover her body in a blush.
"Like you're one to talk...!" she mumbled.
"You got me there..." he chuckled. "I would lend you a jacket if I had one, but..."
Lucifer silently gestured at the arm sleeves, shrugging in a manner of "nothin doin".
He got a laugh out of her, and his relief immediately showed on his face.
"Your smiling face will have to keep me warm, then" he said.
Violet's smile turned into a blush immediately.
"Oh~?", he smirked. "A blush is fine as well, thank you~"
Struggling, Violet turned away slightly, trying not to embarrass herself even more.
Then, she felt arms being wrapped around her.
"However, I fear I have to take responsibility for keeping you warm as well..." he murmured close to her ear. "After all, it is my fault you have to sit here..."
The girl turned, and wrapping her arms around him as well, nuzzled her face into his warm skin.
"It's not your fault", she replied softly. "I chose to come and find you."
"... I still don't understand why."
"I told you" Violet smiled. "There's nothing wrong with taking a break from time to time. And if I, in any way, can help you with that, I'd love to do so."
She heard him breathe softly as he was searching for a response.
"... Thank you", he decided to say.
She squeezed him tightly. "You're welcome."
"...Stay like this for a little longer" Lucifer asked of her when it felt as if Violet was trying to pull away.
Of course, she agreed, and so they relaxed into each other’s embrace for a little longer.
Without meaning to, over time Violet's arms were sliding down his body a little, just enough to accidentally brush over something fluffy with her fingertip.
But, oh well, who would even mind gathering points for some silly game when there was something -- or rather, someone else to focus on...
---------------------------
They only parted after Lucifer's phone pulled them back into reality.
Sighing, he announced the end of their break.
"I'm glad we are closing soon..." he mumbled and helped Violet stand up. "Although, cleaning the place will probably leave us with another hour of work until we finally get to head home..."
"It will be exhausting… But we'll power through it" Violet assured, squishing his hand in encouragement.
"Yes..." Lucifer nodded.
Then, he pulled her closer one last time, wrapping one arm around her waist while looking down into her eyes.
"However... I would much appreciate it if we could keep our break a secret."
"Uhm..." the girl blinked, confused. "Sure, but may I ask why?"
"No reason in particular... I would simply ask that as a personal favour."
Then, he leaned in closer. Resting his chin on her shoulder, his hand reached to her lower back.
And Violet gave a gasp as she felt how he provocatively played with her bunny tail.
"In return, I will keep your secrets safe, too."
He pulled back, responding to her dazzled expression with a sly smirk, before passing her to open the door.
-------------------------
Being the gentleman he was, Lucifer held the door open, smiling at the lady as he gestured her to step inside.
"Thank y..." Violet was about to say,
Then both of them looked inside the kitchen.
Beel stood there, together with Clover, both giggling as they snacked on some sweets.
Violet wanted to smile at the sight… But the "shit, we got caught" expression on both of their faces, paired with Lucifer's tangible anger, made her frown instead.
"... Oops" Clover and Beel pressed out, simultaneously letting go of the meringues they had in their hands.
-----------------------
To understand how that situation came to existence, we should go back in time to take a look at Clover's side of the story.
She was cleaning the tables when yet another giggle pulled her out of her thoughts.
The girl felt tired, and had started to count down the minutes left until she could finally go home.
She was really done with life. And those certain giggles made it only worse. She would admit that she wasn't good with things like jealousy.
She just couldn't deal with it.
Not in a way like Mammon, for example, was expressing his tsundere feelings.
No, her way of coping was more... Self hating (like Levi I guess),
And hearing for yet another time how some hot demon girls called a certain waiter over to them drove her insane.
"Do you want to try my cake, Beel~?"
Clover flinched.
She peeked up to see how a demon caressed Beel's arm as she waited for his answer to her question.
Clover couldn't see his face, but, judging from his tone, he was wearing his usual frown.
"... I'm not allowed to eat the food we serve..."
"Oh, don't be like that..." The demon responded, loading some cake onto her fork. "It's my cake now, so I decide who gets to eat it. And I really want yooouuuu..."
She stopped, then one of her friends giggled.
"Are you going to finish that sentence?"
"It's already finished", she purred, seductively winking at Beel before leading the fork up to his face.
Beel was hesitating, for two whole seconds, before chomping down on both, cake and fork.
"Oh... Not again..." He mumbled.
The girls gave a giggle.
"Beel, you're such a beast!" The main (bitch) demon hummed. "That's no good, though... I wanted to feed you another bite, but how, without fork...?"
"Guess you´ll have to do mouth to mouth feeding...", Another chick chuckled.
And as the demon girl stood up to do exactly that, Clover stomped away impulsively.
In her fury, she didn't notice how someone was calling for her. She targeted the table in the most opposite corner possible as someone pulled her arm.
Belphie was staring at her, holding her by her wrist.
"... You're pathetic" he said.
"Thank you, tell me something I don't know yet." Clover pulled her arm out of his grip. "And, what, you've got nothing better to do then watch me be pathetic?"
Belphie blinked in surprise. “I would usually agree that it´s pretty funny to watch you get angry, but I´ve seen you be like this all night. What´s getting you this agitated?”
A deep frown spread on her face, but Clover didn´t answer. So Belphie looked back to Beel.
“Is it because of the succubi? Because of Beel?”
“… Please, leave me alone…”
She didn’t see his worried expression as Belphie was trying to figure the answer to his question.
“… Are you really this insecure?” He finally decided to ask.
As her only response was a short side glare with wet eyes, Belphie understood she wouldn´t talk about it.
“Really… Both of you can be such a pain to deal with…” Belphie breathed before leaving Clover alone.
And Clover felt even worse now.
Not only being so horrible inside, but Belphie tried to help her and she rejected it.
She fought tears as she furiously wiped the already clean table.
Pathetic. Yes, she was so pathetic. Honestly, Beel was probably in better company with those succubi than with an idiotic, childish human like her-
Clover got lifted off of the ground.
Squealing, she noticed too late how arms had wrapped around her thighs, leading her to now flail in the air in panic.
"Wh-what?!" Clover panicked.
"It's time for a break" She felt the culprit cheering into her back.
"... Beel?"
Beelzebub began to head through the local, the girl still in his arms.
"Let's go to the kitchen" he said. "Belphie just told you need a break, and I need your help with something..."
Clover gave some more confused noises, but it was impossible to move in the demon's grip anyway.
"O-okay, but... You don't have to carry me, I'm probably heavy..."
She felt him chuckle. "Heavy? I can carry you with one arm. Look!"
He stretched out his right arm to demonstrate. Beel led them into the kitchen.
The local wasn't serving any food at this late hour, so they appeared to be alone here.
"U-uhm... Beel, are you going to put me down somewhen soon, or...?"
"Yeah, soon..." he mumbled, then walked up to one of the shelves hanging on the wall. "Do you perhaps see anything on top of the shelf?"
Clover tilted her head.
"Yeah, there's a box of... What's that...? Meringues?"
Absolutely delicious meringues!"
Clover gave a little chuckle at the excitement in his voice, but her expression did a full turn when she saw the note attached to the box:
'BEEL. DO NOT EAT.'
"Could you get them for me?" Beel smiled innocently.
The girl hesitated, so Beel asked again. "Please, I can't reach them alone. The shelf is up too high."
"Well... I'm guessing someone hid them there on purpose..."
"Please, Clover... I'm so hungry..."
But as he realised she wasn't going to hand him the box that easily, he let her down to rest on the counter they had been standing in front of.
"Beel, I know you're hungry, but..." she began, however halted as she noticed how terribly tired he looked.“... Are you okay?"
The demon gave a little sigh. "No... I'm exhausted... Not like after training, but just... drained." He leaned against the counter next to her. "What about you? Aren't you tired? Have the customers been nice to you?"
"Huh? Yeah, they have."
"Good" he nodded. "We were afraid that some of the guests might harass you or Violet, but I guess Lucifer's official warning was enough to scare them off..."
Clover fiddled with her fingers.
"There was no need to worry, though. I don't think anyone would have approached us… or me, at least" she said, laughing awkwardly. "I don't have a fair share of people crushing on me like you, hahaha..."
Beel looked at her. "Good. You don't need any demons trying to seduce you. I wouldn't want you to go through a hassle like this..."
"... You don't like the attention?"
He shrugged. "Not really... But I have to be nice to them, so I tend to just ignore what they say. I won't say no to free food or extra money, but... I don't really see why they behave like this."
Clover chuckled, feeling relief at his words.
"Diavolo already said it... Good-looking staff makes more profit."
Beel blinked at her, processing her words. "... Thank you."
"Nothing to thank me for" Clover smiled shyly.
He went silent.
"No... No, there is", Beel then suddenly said, pushing himself off the counter to stand in front of her again. "I've been hit on the whole evening, but... somehow, it feels nice if you're the one to compliment me... You always make me feel nice inside. And for that, I should thank you."
He blessed her with a smile that, obviously, was directly followed by the girls' heart exploding in the love she felt for this man.
However, he still gave off odd vibes.
"...Beel?" Clover called out, seeing how he was deeply contemplating something.
"I was thinking of thanking you with some... Meringues" his smile widened.
"... Beel."
"They're supposed to be delicious! I could feed them to you... If I manage to contain myself. But I'd try really hard, because it´s for you.”
"Beel..." Clover sighed, watching as his puppy grin spread on his face more and more.
"Wouldn't that be nice to feed each other a nice treat...?" he changed into begging puppy eyes.
They stared at each other.
"Beel."
"Clover?"
"We both know you have wings, or could have simply climbed onto the counter if you wanted to get those sweets."
"... But I wanted to share them with you...?"
"We also both know how Lucifer tends to cast spells on the things that you are absolutely not allowed to eat. But those tend to apply to demons only most of the time."
Beelzebub went silent.
"What was that earlier?” Clover continued. “About you not wanting me to be lured by demons? And now, I find myself sweet-talked like this?"
His face had ultimately changed into sulking puppy mode.
"... But I... I'm... I really mean what I said…"
Clover crossed her arms.
"You're a sly demon, mister" she scolded. "And to think you'd take advantage of me like this...!" She fake cried in disbelief.
"I'm sorry..." he pouted.
Silence came over them, in which Clover fully knew that he was thinking of both, how to make it up to her AND how to achieve his goal anyway.
His idea surprised her, though.
"... Want to touch my bunny tail?"
"... Huh?"
"I've seen you and Violet do this to the others" Beel said. "I don't why, but you seemed to have fun, so..." He turned around to expose his tail. "AND I'll treat you with some of the meringues, of course", he added as he noticed Clover was seriously considering his offer.
Clover was grunting something. "Lucifer will kill us", she said.
"He doesn't have to find out."
"... You're evil..."
"Well, I AM a demon, after all" Beel laughed.
And as he teasingly wiggled his tail at her, Clover gave in to the temptation...
------------------------
"Beel... Clover... Would you care to explain what I have to look at right now...?"
Lucifer crossed his arms as he spoke.
Yeah, they were SO screwed.
"... Uhm..." Beel started to mumble while Clover felt her stomach turn in guilt.
"Beel" Lucifer called out again. "Could those be the meringues that I have personally bought and reserved for me to enjoy after work?"
"... There was no name written on it" the avatar of Gluttony said.
Lucifer pierced him with an angry stare. Then he turned towards Clover.
"And you" his tone had the girl shiver visibly. "Demons were unable to touch that box. Hence, I assume it was you who got them? AND ate them, as well?"
"I forced her to do it" Beel immediately chimed in.
"Huh?” Clover blinked in surprise. "Beel, no... I got them! And asked Beel to try them with me. It's my f-fault" she lied.
Now Beel was the one to look confused, and the two kind of drowned in a spiral of trying to protect the other one. But the ruckus only fueled Lucifer's displease.
Already stressed out, he felt like he was about to explode.
If not for Violet who kept him steady.
"Lucifer" she mumbled in a mellow voice, stroking over his arm in a calming gesture. "Don't stress yourself. They will buy you a new package."
Lucifer shot her about the same angered glare as he had done with the others, but softened as he mustered her comforting smile.
With a sigh, Lucifer stepped closer to Beel and Clover.
"... You are lucky to have Violet standing up for you..." he mumbled. "As compensation, I order three boxes of those meringues. Oh, and when we close the bar, do not expect to leave until everything is as tidy as can be."
"Y-yes, sir...!"
------------------------------
Slowly (very slowly I know) but steadily, the evening came to an end...
A lot has happened, way too much to fit into this... One shot... Story... * glances at the total approximate reading time of one hour*
...Well. Let's not talk about that...
A little after 4 AM, every last customer had left the bar/ had been carried out of the dancing hall (like, a few of the most drunk ones literally had to be yeeted out of the local.)
Now everything that was left was cleaning up the local.
Lucifer took it upon himself to punish all of his brothers - and Clover - for annoying him at some point during this event. So those appeared to have an extra load of work, while he pulled Violet aside with him for some more leisure cleaning.
Around five in the morning, it seemed like the bunny crew was finally finished.
"Alright..." Barbatos mumbled, stepping out of the last hall he needed to check. "It seems we are done. All that is left is to take out the trash as we go."
"... How are we supposed to take out the trash? Mammon is still tied to the ceiling" Belphie mumbled casually.
"WHO DID YOU JUST CALL TRASH?!" Some Mammon screamed from the staff's room.
Clover mustered them in amusement, when Violet walked up to her.
"Ooooh, Clooveerrrr...." the girl hummed in a rather... Scary tone.
"... I don't like the look on your face" Clover stated in growing fear.
"You know... We still need to see who's won the challenge" Violet grinned.
Clover crossed her arms. "... Do we really need to compare?"
"Yes."
"Uggghhh..." Clover frowned. She pulled out her phone:
-------
Clover: Lord Diavolo? May we ask how many points you have?
Diavolo: I managed to gather 12 points, fair and square. How many do you two have?
Violet: I have 20 points in total... Although I'm not 100% sure if Lucifer noticed me earlier...
Clover: ...
* Clover has left the chatroom *
------
"Violet, I don't want to do this."
Clover's friend mustered her with a smirk.
"Well..." Violet hummed. "I'm not forcing you, but... You did loose, after all..."
"Violeeet..."
"And look" she pointed at the hall in front of the dressing rooms. "He's standing there, alone, for some reason... It's fate, Clover."
Clover gave the ugliest growl.
But in the end she walked up to Solomon.
She didn't even know how to approach this. Should she try to make it sneaky, or just awkwardly ask?
Legs wobbly, Clover came to a stop behind the sorcerer, reaching out her hand in the same moment that he turned around to face her.
"Oh, hello", Solomon cheered. "Can I help you?"
She flinched backwards.
"Uuhhhh..."
Solomon gave her a confused look, but didn't get to say anything.
Coincidentally, Levi happened to walk up to them as well, wanting something from Solomon.
The human turned around as the two talked.
And finally…
Solomon's bunny tail got touched.
...
Clover escaped immediately. Avoiding any kind of interaction, at all costs.
----------------------------------------------------
The last thing to do before everyone could return home was getting dressed normally again.
And everyone felt so tired that they really just wanted to hit the hay, when...
A panicked scream rang out of the stall Clover was changing in.
"... Clover?" Violet called out, already dressed normally again.
The girl gave continuous panicked noises, pressed out random “What is happening-?!”´s.
Then, all of a sudden, silence came over them.
“Cl… Clover…?” Visibly concerned, Violet was standing in front of the stall´s door, unsure what to do. As she didn´t get an answer, she was trying to open the door, but it was locked.
She had to hurry to get someone to help, and as her face screamed “we have trouble”, most of her friends came to look what was going on.
Barbatos had to help open the stalls door, and when Violet carefully pushed it open…
They saw a small, brown bunny sitting on the floor.
Its green eyes were staring up into the countless pairs of puzzled eyes as they tried to understand the situation.
Violet was the first one to move again. She slowly lowered herself, reaching out to the animal.
“Is that you… Clover?”
“HUH?!”
Half of the people there stared at the girl in disbelief.
“You´re telling me THIS is CLOVER??” Mammon asked with big eyes. Violet had picked the bunny up and stepped out of the stall to get a better look at Clover.
“What happened to her?” Beel asked, worry spread over his face.
Bunny Clover seemed to understand their words. Or at least, she suddenly turned her fluffy head, staring directly at Solomon.
And, well, the sorcerer stared back, an amused smile on his face.
"Ah... So Clover DID touch my tail, after all!"
"... What."
The whole group was now demanding answers.
Solomon chuckled, placing his gaze on Violet now. "I was waiting until one of you would finally approach me and touch my tail... But oddly, none of you seemed to have interest in touching it... I thought I had made myself an easy target, but I must have made it too obvious..."
Violet´s mouth fell open a tad bit.
"... So you really knew of our challenge?" She dared to ask.
But Solomon would only continue to laugh.
"I honestly thought my efforts would go to waste..." He mustered the bunny in her arms. "Don't worry though, the spell will wear off eventually."
"Eventually??" Levi repeated.
"Yes, in a few days or so."
"WHAT?!"
---------------------
The whole way back to the house of Lamentation, Violet had to deal with this grumpy, pissed, simply angwy bunny in her arms. Clover couldn´t speak, but the little facial expression she could give said it all.
“Hey, Cloverrr…” Violet attempted to cheer her up. “Don´t look at me like that… It was fun, wasn´t it?”
Bunny Clover snuffled grumpily.
Yeah, yeah, she thought. It´s all fun and games until it´s about Solomon.
Meanwhile, Bunny Clover had to endure how the brothers kept poking her fluffy fur or took pictures of her.
If she could, Clover would have given a big sigh.
THIS is exactly why I don't trust Solomon... Never did, never will...
13 notes · View notes
callmeunstable · 4 years
Text
Angels & Demons - Chapter 3
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Chapter 3
Characters: Reader, Godling, Savilla
Summary: Alva tries her best to adapt to her current lifestyle. Savilla helps her by teaching her the ways around this world. But some dangerous forces are on their way. And a familiar face shows up.
Warnings: Monsters, Cursing, Blood
Words: 2.000+
A/N: Hey! This is the third part of my fic. I accidentally deleted this part as well as the second part so I had to reupload. I hate myself and I cried .
Disclaimer: GIF’s and PNG’s are taken from Tumblr and are not mine! Credits to the creators!
Tags: @marvelbrat @charliestuff
Song: I thought this fitted the scenery
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Alva adapted slowly. It was important that if she wanted to pass as a villager she had to develop. Where she came from, who her parents were and why she came.
And they came up with an easy background story. Alva was the daughter of two Medics, Drarnoz and Isada of Verden. Verden is one of the minor kingdoms in the North, located at the very mouth of the river Yaruga, with Kerack and Brokilon on its northern borders and Cintra in the south, just on the other side of the river. After her parents died in a brutal raid of their village Alva sought a sanctuary by a family friend Savilla living in Riverdell. She took the orphan in.
James brought Alva the Ducates he had collected over the years which made up a small fortune. He promised to bring her every coin he’ll find in the future.
That’s how Alva started her life in a small village. Savilla had an extra bed for her and she didn’t mind sharing her food and clothes.
“You are pretty bad at healing you know that? You’ve been here for almost a month.” Savilla always made fun of the way the girl was bandaging or trying to figure out which plant was good for the specific treatment.
“I just don’t understand how you can separate all of these. They look all the same.” Alva sighed and took a seat. Trying to figure out which herbs were able to calm a burn.
“This isn’t your desire and I get it. It’s not your fault. And I maybe have something set up for you.” The mage smirked while she picked big orange blossoms from her garden. “Merigold, Alva. One of the herbs that can potentially save lives.”
“Don’t change the subject. What did you do?” The girl gave her a doubtful look while watching her picking even more blossoms.
“The tavern in the village. They need a servant. The old one got scared off because the olds kept trying to seduce her and she felt uncomfortable. But I figured you’d be perfect for the job.” She walked inside with a full basket in her hands.
“Are you insulting me or what are you trying to say?” Alva hurried after her, stumbling while getting up.
“You need to get better at walking when you want to serve the folks.” The maid laughed and started to cut the flowers into small pieces.
“But to get back to your question, no. But you are tough and have a huge temperament. Exactly what a good servant needs. The old douches won't have it easy with you.”
Alva let out a loud sigh.
“And I should warn you. They acquire you to look … a certain way.”
“I’m not going to dress like slut and shake my booty.”
“Yes…alright. Anyway, that was not what I was trying to say. They want you to wear your hair down and a dress that will make you look pretty but still can get stained.”
“That’s fine by me but why exactly do they want me to keep my hair down?”
“Maybe they liked it. You know the time we got some bread? That’s when the tavern owner offered me this position.”
The girl hummed in agreement.
“They’ll pay you well. You need that money if you want to find a way back. Mages aren’t cheap. They usually work for kings and queens.” Sevilla stopped with the chopping and went still for a couple of seconds. Her gaze went up and she looked Alva straight into the eyes. She hated that look. It never meant something good.
“You want me to find a different mage?” The girl was confused. How was she supposed to find one? She has no contacts whatsoever and it’s not like she could call the information desk to give her a number.
“I’m not sure who I want you to find for now. It's dangerous out there. I need to find out who I can trust with you. I don’t want you to get captured.” The mage was serious. She liked the girl and felt the urge to protect her. She was sure it was her duty in this life. To help this girl around her world and keeping her safe until she found a way to get back.
“Why would they? I mean I’m not that special and I pretty got at acting old like you.”
“I know. But if they see anything strange in you, just some glance. They don’t need a good reason anymore to imprison the people. It’s getting rough out here. Cintra will lose the next battle. Nobody in this kingdom wants to hear it but you can feel the tension in the air. The Niflgaards are coming and we need to be prepared when they do.”
“Are they like Germany in the Second World War?”
“You do know that I have no information about that.”
“Let me explain. World War II was a global war involving fighting in most of the world and most countries. Like shit went down. Most of the world's countries, including all the great powers in our world, fought as part of two military alliances. They fucking hated each other. World War II was the largest and deadliest conflict in all of our history. It involved more countries, cost more money, involved more people, and killed more people than any other war in our history. About 80 million people died. It included massacres, the Holocaust, strategic bombing, starvation, disease, and the only use of nuclear weapons against civilians in history. Like they could fly bombs from one country to the other through the air and just let them explode wherever they wanted to. It was horrible but I wasn’t alive when that happened.”
The mage had listened carefully only to realize that their worlds aren't that different. “You have to understand that the Nilfgaardian Empire is the most powerful in the history of the known world. It is located in the southern part of the Continent and boasts both a thriving economy and a strong, well-trained army with talented commanders.
It has expanded mostly through the conquest of foreign countries, which were then turned into provinces of the Empire. The Empire's inhabitants believe that "real" Nilfgaardians are only those born in the heart of the Empire and not those born in the conquered provinces. All of them are ruthless. Killing anyone and anything that’ll come in their way. We need to be careful and prepared.”
“So you think they’ll just walk in here like they own this place.” The girl felt she was pulled into something like Lord of the Rings style. Everyone wants to kill the other race. What was happening in this world?
“They won’t pretend that they own these lands, they will fight until they own the whole continent. Saying they want to protect the citizens but slaughter the like an animal for fun. I want you to be prepared that not everyone in our world will respect you, especially because you’re a woman. I don’t want anything to happen to you.” Sevilla meant every word she said.
“That’s why I want you to be protected. Here.” She opened the wooden closet and pulled out a silky cloth. “Take it, I have my own. And I won’t need it, I still have the chaos inside of me that’ll help me if needed. I hope you never need it.”
Alva received the loth and lifted the cloth. Underneath there was bedded a silver dagger. It was heavy, but still manageable with one hand.
“Come on, I’m not going to stab anybody. This is not Assasin’s Creed.” She held up the dagger and inspected the weapon. It was beautiful, looking exactly like something a video game character would keep under their robe.
“I’m not joking around Alva! I want you to work so we have enough Ducates in the case of an emergency. If you’re not willing to protect your one life no one else will. I can protect you as far as my power goes but everything is limited. At this point, you don’t have a choice. If you want to get back to your world you need to adapt completely! Do you understand?” Sevilla handed her a scabbard possibly fitting for the dagger.
“No need to be rude.” Alva took and let the weapon slide smoothly into it.
“Attach it to your belt. It's best if you keep it on you at all times. Even while you sleep.”
The girl nodded and pulled her dress up to gain access to the pants she was always wearing underneath. She tied it around her waist and let loose of her dress.
“I understand but I hope I’ll never have to use it.”
“Me neither.”
-
The next weeks went on smoothly. Alva tried her best to lie to herself. If she realized that she left her entire family and friends behind, everything she loved. She didn’t know if she could handle the pain and panic that would appear again. She remembered her first week here. It was exhausting. She didn’t want to stand up and live in a world she didn’t belong. The only thing keeping her from ending it all was the promise Sevilla gave her.
She will bring her back. No matter what is going to happen. She’ll find a way out. And if she could get back, she can’t give up. That wasn’t an option. But she couldn’t think about it anymore. The pain that would crawl up into her chest even if she only thought about it for a second. It was unbearable.
Alva tried to act like new her role this life. At least for now. Her dad was Drarnoz of Verden and her mother was Isada of Verden. She was an orphan. Currently serving at the tavern where she was allowed to live with a family friend. Sevilla. That’s all she needed to remember.
Usually, no one asked about her past. That wasn’t a thing in this village. As soon as Alva said the word ‘orphan’ no more questions were asked.
She liked her job at the tavern. It was an easy way to meet new people and experience the world fully. Adapting day by day. But still being herself. Everyone loved the way she talked. Foolish but skeptical. No man was able to win her or flirt with her. She shut them down real quick.
Today was such a day
It was an afternoon and everyone was ending their work for the day coming to the tavern to get a well-deserving drink and sometimes a meal, but Alva knew by experience you shouldn’t eat the food of this tavern. Dossar, the owner, didn’t know how to cook but he surely wasn’t giving up on an opportunity of getting more money.
The folks around the area knew never to ask for a meal but it was always a pleasure to see the look on a travelers' face.
Alva was serving everyone with a kind smile but some men interpret this as a sign to flirt with her. Woldor, a farmer, decided to try his luck today. He was trying to gain her attention by whistling at her and holding up his cup of beer. Only for her to come and check if he needed a refill. But at his point, she was ignoring his calls and gestures.
But the man didn’t stop. So Alva thought it was her time to shine.
“I’m not an animal! You can’t win my attention by whistling at me and calling me with sloppy pick-up lines! Cut it before I start acting like one.”
“I’ve never been threatened so adorably before.” Woldor and the men sitting beside him star to burst out into laughter and continued drinking.
“Yes well, I’m about to adorably kick your fucking arse.” The laughter silenced and the men stared at the girl.
“This isn’t going to end well is it?” Her coworker Cozlo walked up to her and tried to calm her down, by laying his arm around her shoulder. Alva liked him. He was a good friend and was amazing at keeping her out of trouble when she had a tantrum. This was one of them.
“Fuck no.” The girl wanted to jump at the man and rip his eyes out. He was the one that couldn’t take no for an answer. He was harassing her since the day she started to work as a servant.
Getting ready to throw some punches Cozlo grabbed her by her waist and picked her up.
“Let me down! Let me show this bitch what my adorable hand can do around his throat! I want to see if he still thinks their pretty when I choke him!”
“I think I’m in love with you my dear!” Woldor called out for her while sipping on his beer.
“That’s fucking unfortunate!” Alva was yelling across the tavern while trying to fight her way out of Cozlo's grip.
“You are significantly more destructive than I was anticipating.” That was Cozlo's response after Alva successfully freed herself and was ready to throw fists.
“Enough!” The dark voice of Dossar echoed between the walls. “Woldor get your arse out of here before I tell your wife that you're harassing my servant again!” The tall and bear-like built man stepped in front of the counter and was ready to throw him out with his own hands.
“Can’t take a goddamn joke, can ya?” The farmer grumbled some swearings under his breath and tossed his payment on the table before leaving the bar with his men.
“Next time leave a fucking tip, bastard.”, Alva shouted out through one of the windows and held up her middle finger. “Fuck that dude.”
“You did well Alva, let me admit that.” Dossar gave her a thumbs up and headed back to the kitchen area.
The conflict calmed down and the girl started to clean the table the men had left as a mess. Scrubbing the sticky beer of the top.
“May I compliment you on your skill of handling this rude of a man, my beautiful Lady.”
Alva turned around and in front of her stood unmistakably a bard. The usual costume they were wearing gave it away in an instant. But the lute that was strapped on his back made it even clearer. The man wasn’t older than probably 30 years old. His clothing had seen better days and his brown hair was all messed up.
“Thanks, I guess.” The girl wasn’t in the mood for a conversation so she continued scrubbing the table.
“My name is Jaskier if I may introduce myself. I’m the new bard in town.”
“What brings a bard like you in a village like this?”
“I expected a job, which was me kindly offered by the master of this tavern. A nice man. Allowed me to show off my talent every evening.”
“Good for you Jaskier.” She wasn’t trying to be mean but the bard was definitely flirting and she just wasn’t in the mood for another thirsty mean.
“That makes us workmates if I’m not mistaken? I look forward to seeing more of you…?” It was obvious that he waited for her name and the girl let out her sigh while turning toward him.
“Jaskier, I don’t mean to be rude but I had men trying to marry me at least 4 times today. And a dozen of them were just trying to bring me to bed. So please, if you stop that flirty behavior I will see you as my workmate and friend. But that’s all I can offer.
“Of course, Alva. I didn’t mean to upset you in any way. I’m glad I found a friend already. My last company wasn’t that welcoming.” A half-hearted smile was on his face and he scratched the back of his head.
“Why? Were you trying to flirt with them too?” Alva smirked and put her hand friendly on the shoulder of Jaskier.
“Oh no. Trust me. That would have been very … disturbing, may I say so. I see around Alva.”
“Yes, Jaskier. I’ll see you around.”
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