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marvel-and-mischief · 3 years

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His Saving Grace Part VII

Title: His Saving Grace - Maxwell Lord x F!Reader Words: 3600 Warnings: conversation about feelings, reader talks about her dark thoughts in the past, kissing, detailed description of a panic attack Synopsis: You meet with Diana to discuss Maxwell’s options.

His Saving Grace Masterpost

The Smithsonian looked a lot different in the day, the imposing building loomed over you as you walked up the front steps. You knew it wasn’t the museum that was making you nervous, but the job you had to do and the woman you had to meet.

Maybe you should have ran the idea by Maxwell first, but a part of you knew he would be hesitant. After what you had seen on the night of the gala, Maxwell had been uncomfortable in Diana’s presence, and Diana was confrontational when she walked over to him. They obviously weren’t friends.

But it was literally your job to get Maxwell back into the workplace, and if this didn’t work, and you didn’t manage to convince him that it was the ideal solution, then you didn’t know what you were going to do.

You asked for Diana Prince at the information desk and was told by the man at the desk where she worked, pointing in the general direction of a staircase (you think) before answering a ringing telephone and dismissing you.

Trying to find your way to the Anthropology Department without a helpful staff member, or a map, was confusing and you ended up walking back on yourself more than a few times but you got to Diana’s office eventually.

You were about to knock when the door flung open, Diana pausing just before bumping into you, a look of confusion on her face as she tried to remember where she’d seen you before.

“Diana isn’t it? I’m Maxwell’s friend, we met at the gala,” you said casually and stuck out your hand towards her, reminding her of your name. She took it after a moment, shaking your hand and politely laughing. If she was wary of you being at her place of work she didn’t let on, instead she ushered you into her office and offered you a cold coffee which you gladly took.

“Look, I don’t know what Maxwell has told you but as long as he stays out of trouble, he will never hear from me again.”

Diana sat on one end of a velvety soft, maroon loveseat and you took a seat on the other end.

“Actually, I’m hoping that won’t be true,” you began, cradling your cold coffee on your lap, “you must have some idea that Maxwell is struggling. Black Gold is bust and it will never recover. No one will hire Maxwell Lord, for obvious reasons.”

“I don’t see how I can help him. I sympathise, but Maxwell is reaping the repercussions of what he sowed. You can understand why no one wants to help him,” Diana spoke to you gently, offering you a sympathetic smile.

You sighed as you looked around her office, a poster of human evolution, an old wind instrument that reminded you of the recorder you were taught to play at school, a long piece of parchment paper with what you could only guess were hieroglyphics or something similar. And on the wall next to where you sat was a diagram of a stone of some sort.

“Maxwell got his stone from here, right?”

Diana nodded but said no more.

“A Dreamstone?”

“Whatever Maxwell has told you, it needs to stay a secret.”

“Diana, the whole world saw him use it.”

“The world saw a madman,” at your look of offence Diana shook her head, “I’m telling you what everybody saw, not who he actually is. And that is my point.”

You weren’t going to get into an argument with Diana about the Maxwell you knew, not right now anyway, so you bit your tongue.

“But he has ties to this place.”

Diana thought for a moment, starting to understand that you weren’t going to give up easily. She slowly nodded, eyeing you curiously and weighed up how much she should say about what had gone down with Maxwell and the Dreamstone.

“Maxwell only has ties to the Smithsonian because he wanted the stone. He befriended a gemologist, Barbara Minerva, to get to it. He succeeded and then he became the stone. And I presume you know the rest.”

It took you a second to realise that Diana had said “he became the stone” but you filed it to the back of your mind for another time. Or maybe you would never bring it up. If you wanted Maxwell to get passed this part of his life, you would have to stop asking questions eventually.

“So let me get this straight, because he was the Maxwell Lord he could just walk into this place and take what he wanted?”

“Well, he was very persuasive. Plus he gave a lot of money to the department as a bribe.”

“So he’s given money to the museum before?” The cogs were starting to turn in your head as you realised it could work in Maxwell’s favor if he’s already shown support for the Smithsonian.

Diana tilted her head as she watched you, trying to work out what you were planning. She was clever enough to realise almost instantly.

“You can’t seriously be suggesting that Maxwell work here?”

“I am! He’s already proven his loyalty to the museum through a donation I assume was considerable. I’m sure it helped the museum a lot.”

Diana hesitantly nodded, knowing the money was much larger than any benefactor had given to the museum in years. She sighed in frustration and stood, walking over to her desk to rifle through a pile of papers. You placed your forgotten coffee on the table and followed.

“I know he can’t work in any of these departments. But he has a business degree, he’s got the experience. He’s someone the museum would jump at the chance to have work here.”

Diana laughed cynically.

“You said yourself, nobody will hire him, what makes you think we will?”

“I said no one will hire Maxwell Lord. But what about Maxwell Lorenzano?”

Diana looked up from her papers and gave you a quizzical look.

“He wants a fresh start and I think I can persuade him to leave the Lord name behind.” You swallowed the lump in your throat, wondering if you were overstepping. Maxwell had said to you at the diner that he wanted to be more like his old self, maybe this was the way forward?

It wasn’t unlike you, as a lawyer, to be persuasive to get the results you wanted, the results you thought were best for your clients. But Maxwell wasn’t a client, not in your heart. He was your friend, and hopefully more in the future. Were you being too pushy, putting out the idea of him changing back to his birth name? Even though he’d suggested that very thing to you at the diner?

You were starting to realise why it was frowned upon to begin relationships with clients, it made everything so complicated, it had you second guessing everything you were saying and doing whilst working for them. Because it wasn’t about getting results for the pay check at the end of the job, it was about getting results for the man you loved. It was about wanting the best for him, wanting him to be pleased with you and everything you were doing for him.

“Are you okay?” Diana’s voice jolted you out of your spiralling thoughts and had you laughing awkwardly.

“I’m fine,” your smile didn’t quite meet your eyes, but you cleared your throat as you pointed to the papers she was looking through, silently asking her to explain.

“There was a list of job vacancies the boss sent around to everybody on Friday, it was here somewhere… a-ha!” Diana produced the single piece of paper with titles and one-sentence job descriptions on it.

“Is there anything appropriate for Maxwell?” You asked hopefully, going on tip toes to try and peep over the paper. Diana shook her head as she read down the page, coming to a stop right at the bottom.

“Although…”

“What is it?” You asked, a little too forcefully. Too impatient to wait a moment longer you snatched the piece of paper from Diana’s fingers and skimmed through the titles until you saw the very last one.

“Do you think-“

“It’s perfect,” you shot Diana a beaming smile, “will you-“

“I’ll let the boss know I have the perfect guy for the job.”

Maxwell nervously shuffled from foot to foot outside your apartment door, holding a bouquet of wildflowers in his hands, similar to the ones you wore on your dress the night of the gala. His polo shirt felt too tight on him all of a sudden, and he wasn’t sure if he should button all four buttons or leave it at two.

The issue wasn’t that he had never been to your apartment before, or even that he was visiting unannounced, but entering into a new relationship. With you.

He loved you. He realised that at the gala when he watched you charming potential clients, giving away business cards until you had ran out of them, it had filled him with such a sense of pride that you had walked in on his arm. It wasn’t a slow realisation either. It was when he was seeing people notice you, laugh with you, agree with your advice, and then he thought yes, see this brilliant woman who can make your dreams come true? I love her.

It didn’t scare Maxwell, quite the opposite. He was excited. Because you both worked so well together already. It was all so natural, the way you joked with him over lunch, or grabbed his hand in the middle of conversation. And the kissing.

Maxwell hadn’t kissed anyone the way he’d kissed you in… forever. It was a kiss that lit a burning flame in his heart, warm in every way but persistent and wouldn’t burn out until you reignited it with another. He felt the ghost of your lips on his, even in his dreams and he would wake up with a smile on his face, ready to start the new day in the hopes that he would see you soon.

He felt young again, in a wide eyed, fresh faced kind of way. Like the world was his for the taking because he had you by his side to keep him grounded but also an encouraging voice in his ear telling him he could do anything if he just believed in himself.

Maxwell wished he’d met you so much sooner. Before the seed of the Dreamstone had been planted in his mind and he’d gone on his reign of self destruction. He thinks you would have been able to stop him, to persuade him that he had everything he needed already. You could have helped him through the financial difficulties of Black Gold. You would have saved him.

Maxwell shook his head of that thought and readjusted his collar. He couldn’t change the past. He could only look to the future.

He knocked on the door, realising he probably should have called before coming over. You might be working, or have friends over, or not be in at all-

The door flew open and you appeared, holding a wooden spoon in your hand and wearing an apron tied at the front covered in what looked and smelled like cocoa powder.

“Maxwell? What’re you doing here?” You asked, surprised to see him at your door.

“I should have called ahead, I apologise-“

“Don’t be silly. How many times have I come over to yours without warning? Come in,” you pointed towards the living room with your spoon and closed the door behind you.

Maxwell let you lead him into the open plan area. It was smaller than Maxwell’s apartment but the layout was almost the same. The furnishings however were trying to be less impressive, more rustic with dark, wooden furniture instead of brightly colored plastic. It was comfortable and had a homely feel to it that Maxwell didn’t realise he liked until now. There were papers strewn across the coffee table, bookshelves actually filled with books unlike his own, dozens of blankets laid across the top of the couch, coffee stains on side tables. It was a perfect mix of your head and your heart. Smart and kind. Hard working but also relaxed.

You went into the kitchen area, pulling open the oven and the smell of freshly baked chocolate cookies filled the air. Maxwell’s stomach rumbled but luckily you were too busy to hear. It was then that Maxwell remembered the flowers in his hand.

“I brought you flowers,” Maxwell placed them on top of the island, perching on a stool.

“Thank you, that’s very sweet,” you picked them up and went searching for a vase in the cupboards. You found a decanter with a thick neck and decided that would be sufficient, filling it with water from the tap and placing the flowers inside to display on the countertop.

“I wanted to talk to you about some things,” Maxwell cleared his throat and interlocked his hands together on top of the island, “about my future.”

“Yes,” you nodded, taking a seat on a stool opposite Maxwell, “I think I have a plan, the next step, maybe even permanently if you agree to it.”

“Can we talk about us first?”

You froze in your spot, ready with your speech that would sell your plan to him, but you could see he had come over for a reason and decided to let him talk first.

“I said I wanted to take things slow, and I still do. But I need things to be clear, out in the open so you know where I stand,” as much as Maxwell was nervous he kept eye contact with you, “I love you. I’m falling in love with you. These last couple of months have opened my eyes to how lonely and alone I am. And I’m not using that as an excuse for what I did but if I am going to succeed in being a good father, a good man, then I need you by my side. I think the world of you and everything you’ve done for me and I promise to try and make it up to you in any way I can.”

Your smile grew the more Maxwell talked, hearing everything you’d hoped he would say. You were on the same page, wanted the same things. Maxwell patiently waited for you to respond, even though the butterflies in his stomach were threatening to painfully burst out of him.

“Maxwell Lorenzano, I love you too.” You laughed, tears welling in your eyes, your chest full of happiness that things were looking up for the both of you.

You wiped at your eyes with the bottom of the apron you were still wearing, then placed both your hands over the top of his.

“You say I’ve helped you but you have no idea how much you’ve helped me too. I was at the bottom of a very dark pit of self hatred before I met you. And although I was getting better, I don’t know what would have happened in my life if you hadn’t called me that day. I’m not sure if I believe in fate or destiny or anything like that but I believe we met each other at the perfect moment so we could help each other through the worst time of our lives. And if we can pull each other out of that then we can do anything together.”

Maxwell’s watery smile grew as he stood from his stool and walked around the island to stand next to you. He leaned down and placed a chaste kiss to the top of your head, before placing another on the tip of your nose that had you giggling. You stood and used the sudden closeness to press a bold kiss to his lips, hands running through his hair as his hands came to naturally place themselves in the dip of your waist.

Maxwell pulled away to place small kisses to the corner of your mouth, tasting the remnants of the chocolate mixture you must have tasted whilst baking your cookies. When he got to your jaw he felt your hands on his shoulders gently pushing him away, an apologetic look in your eyes.

“I still need to talk to you about the plan I’ve put together.”

Maxwell groaned, keeping a hold of your waist as he playfully tickled the soft skin of your neck with his nose.

“Maxwell…” you chuckled, enjoying this playful side of Maxwell.

“You’re ruining the fun,” Maxwell removed his head from your neck and pouted. You tried to take him seriously but he looked like a grumpy child who had been told ‘no more sweets’. You kissed him sweetly on the cheek and motioned towards the couch in the living room.

His sigh was overly exaggerated as he took a seat on the couch. You had taken off your apron in the kitchen and sat next to Maxwell with a yellow sweater on, sleeves rolled up to the elbows. In amongst the rustic aesthetic of the living room, you looked like actual sunshine to Maxwell.

“I tried to find you a job that I thought you’d like, that wouldn’t necessarily be easy but would use your previous skills and still challenge you.”

You took a piece of paper from the side table and handed it to Maxwell. It detailed a job description, the kinds of jobs he’d be taking on and with what departments, and the key skills he would be using. Maxwell nodded the whole way through until he spotted where he would be working.

“The Smithsonian?” He asked, unsure and a little take aback that this would be the place you’d choose considering his connections to the place.

“Yes, it was much easier to find you a job at a place you’d already given a sizeable donation to,” you explained gently, you ran your fingernails along the lines in the palm of your hand, a nervous habit as you tried to gauge Maxwell’s reaction.

“I don’t know,” Maxwell re-read over the job description, which he was comfortable with, the annual salary that was more than enough to look after himself and Alistair, the job title ‘Financial Manager’ was more than suitable for his qualifications, everything was perfect, except the place of work. He would run into Diana probably, and was Barbara still working there? That would be awkward. That place held bad memories, Maxwell was trying to move away from his past not shoot head first towards it.

“Look, you would mostly be working in the offices away from other departments, Diana said-“

“You spoke to Diana?” Of course you had, how would this job be practically given to him without so much as an interview without Diana’s help? Maxwell eyed you suspiciously, wondering how much she’d told you about the incident, how much you’d told her about Maxwell’s situation. He trusted you, he loved you, there was no love without trust but he suddenly felt like the walls of your apartment were closing in on him and the piece of paper in his hand was shaking as though an earthquake was ripping through the building.

“Maxwell?” He heard your voice but it was so far away, where had you gone? It was like listening to someone shouting from the other end of a tunnel, had you left him? Maxwell’s eyes were closed tightly shut so he couldn’t see where you’d gone but he felt something soft and warm on either side of his face, and then his face was being pressed into something fluffy, it felt like how your sweater looked, was it you?

Your voice was getting clearer and his breathing was slowing down though he didn’t remember breathing so fast, why was he struggling to breathe?

Your hands, he could feel them now, moving over his shoulders, along his back, up and down his upper arms and the fog was slowly lifting from his mind, from his lungs, and there were tears falling from his eyes. And all he could hear were your apologies and his name leaving your lips. Your sweet lips that felt so good against his own, they were touching his ear as you spoke soothing words, he concentrated on that and then everything was clear.

He cautiously pulled away from you, just enough to see you looking at him full of concern. Maxwell placed his large hand against your cheek and guided you to press your foreheads together as he continued to breathe through the panic attack.

“I’m so sorry Maxwell,” you whispered but Maxwell shushed you softly, stroking your cheek, your hair, your neck until he wrapped his arms around your shoulders and brought you into a hug.

“You are perfect and have nothing to be sorry for,” he said, holding you close until he believed you were truly there and not a hallucination created out of his panic stricken mind, “it just all suddenly felt very real. I think I’m scared.”

He felt you nod against his chest, your hand was running up and down his side, soothing him, comforting him in any way that you could. You were nearly lying on top of him; Maxwell had leaned you both backwards, his head resting on the corner of the couch as he tried to relax and prevent another panic attack.

“I’m here. You don’t have to do any of this on your own. Or at all, I’ll call Diana and tell her the job isn’t suited to you. We’ll find something else.”

“No,” that made you look up from his chest, searching his eyes for what he meant, “it’s the kind of job I’d be good at. I just have to remember that I’m not alone.”

You didn’t know how long you stayed like that, holding each other close, but by the time you tried the cookies they were cold.

Permanent tag list: @autumnleaves1991-blog @kaelyn-lobrutto24 @galactic-rhi @phoenixhalliwell @thewayofthemandalorian @computeringturtle @lesbianlena @shikin83

#His Saving Grace #Maxwell Lord #Maxwell Lord fic #Maxwell Lord x Reader #WW1984 #Wonder Woman 1984 #Pedro Pascal

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whatissleepeven · 4 years

Note

Heya! Hope you're doing well! Just wondering if I could request the Obey Me brothers (maybe just Satan, Luci, or Asmo?) With an MC who proposes at the same time as they do? Remember to stay hydrated and take some time for yourself! Enjoy your day :)

Hi! Thank you for your kind words, I haven't been drinking a lot of water lately and this helped to remind me! I hope you have a good rest of your day as well!

(Of course I'll do all the brothers! I used 2nd POV, if that's alright - )

The brothers' reactions to an MC who proposes at the same time as them

Lucifer

It was all set in place. He invited you to his study to drink tea and chat, his brothers should be asleep at this time, and you two had been together for so long that he couldn't imagine a life without you. Today marked your anniversary, which was the perfect time to pop the question.

(No he was not nervous, Lucifer did not get nervous what are you talking about - )

Once they arrived and got settled, Lucifer cleared his throat to get their attention. Straightforward and honest was the most efficient approach, and he will not back out of this. "I have called you here because there is something I wished to tell you. Will you m- "

"Lucifer, will you marry me?"

There it was. The words he wanted to say, but directed at him instead with his own name falling from your lips. His eyes widened, the tiny box gripped in his hands as his eyes zeroed in on the box in yours.

"Looks like I beat you to the punch!" You laughed, the sudden but bright sound filling the room, and even though he felt annoyed at being cut off, he couldn't help but smile. You truly were one of a kind, weren't you?

"...So it seems. Now, come here; I need to put this on your finger."

And honestly? He finds it endearing that you had the same thoughts as him

He doesn't let it show though, and instead treats you to the rest of your date in his office

"Now that we are engaged, you will be the one to tell Lord Diavolo how the proposal occurred at our wedding."

"Wh- Lucifer!"

(Won't admit that he was nervous concerned for a hot second there)

Mammon

This was it. He was gonna do it.

Mammon had taken you for a night stroll throughout Devildom (getting kicked out/chased from casinos along the way), the two of you coming to a stop in front of a fountain sculpted in Lord Diavolo's image. He was nervous to the point that you had noticed, brushing your hand with his to get his attention.

"Mammon? Is something wrong?"

Mammon refused to look at you, taking your hands into his own. "When you first came here, I didn't want to associate with ya. You're just a human, after all, and why did I have to babysit ya?"

You snorted, holding back a laugh at the obvious direction this was going, but let him continue.

"A-And, somehow, I became your first. Not just for your pact; I became your first for lots of stuff."

He got to a knee, not realizing that you mirrored his actions with an amused look on your face. His own cheeks were a dark red, and you were proud of the courage he was displaying.

"I...want to keep being your first from here on out. S-So, will ya ma- "

"-rry me?"

Mammon blinked as your voice finished his sentence. He looked up to see - yep, you were proposing to him too.

This boi is all over the place after that

"YOU WERE PROPOSIN' TOO?!"

He then proceeds to yell at you of all things, but you're too busy laughing at the chaos of it all

Takes you by surprise when he slips the ring onto your finger with gentle care, a smile on his face as he puts your ring on by himself. "Stupid human, tryin' to outdue me...you're lucky I'm sayin' yes."

Leviathan

It took him a while to muster up his courage to tell you.

It made perfect sense to Levi: even though you were a normie, you were an amazing, attractive, and endearing human, while he was a disgusting otaku who barely left his room in favor of playing games. You were the one who initiated most of the romantic gestures, and he wouldn't admit it but he felt bad about it.

Still, though...this was one thing he wanted to do for you.

You two were playing Mononoke Land together, the overall quiet of the room being filled with the chimes from your devices as you farmed for xp.

"Hey, you know that you're the Henry to my Lord of Shadows, right?"

The question caught you off-guard. You raised a brow as you nodded, worried that Levi would start talking bad about himself again.

"Well, to me you're more than that. You've done a lot for me and my brothers - yeah yeah, "my brothers and I", stop laughing! - and go through the trouble of hanging out with me through the good and the bad."

He stands up, missing the blatant affection in your eyes for the demon in front of you as he fishes around his pocket. He, actually went out and bought it with Asmo, who was all-too-delighted to do so, and pulls it out.

"Thanks, for everything. Will you be my Player Two?"

"Will you marry me Levi?"

The phrases were said at the same time. Levi was shocked to see you holding a box of your own to him, and oh god is that a ring -

...Let's just say that he's still a tomato when dinner rolls around, unable to look at anyone or anything in favor of silently asking the higher beings to strike him where he sat

He feels ashamed. He feels like he's on cloud nine. Is that normal? Either way, you love him all the same.

Overall, a dorky yet endearing confession (which you still chuckle at to this day as you remember it).

Satan

"Well, this certainly is an interesting turn of events."

It was one of your stay-in dates at the library. You were fiddling around on your D.D.D., looking nervous for some reason, and Satan was contemplating the best way to bring up his proposal.

"Satan, I - "

"There's something - "

You both paused, chuckling at your timing. Satan had found out early on that one of the qualities he loved about you was the way your face dusted pink in embarrassment, a shy smile adorning your face.

The urge to carry out his plan at that moment grew stronger, but he was also curious about what was troubling you.

"Shall we say it on the count of three?"

You nodded. Satan couldn't help but smile at your bashfulness.

"1, 2...3."

"Will you marry me?"

You both stared at the other in shock. It was silent for 7 seconds before Satan's laugh, which was gentle and chimed like bells, filled the void.

"It seems we know each other a little bit too well."

You couldn't help but stare in awe. His laugh was precious, and you...you wanted to hear more of it.

You smiled. "I'm not hearing a no?"

Satan chuckled, slipping the ring onto your finger and letting you do the same to him. "How could I ever say no to you?"

In short? You both propose in a quiet spot at the exact same time, word for word, and he laughs because he knows he's so utterly in love with you. It makes retelling the whole ordeal at your wedding less embarrassing to do.

Asmodeus

To be honest, this man (demon) has never considered marriage before you came into his life.

He preferred to have no ties in relationships, but something about you makes him want to stay. You were good to him, and looked past his naturally alluring (and flirtatious) self. What more could he ask for?

He wanted to make you his, and his only. And, maybe...wanted more of that domestic life you brought to him and his family, where every day brings something new.

He set it all up. You two would go shopping at Majolish, then get a manicure, then on the way back to his room he'd propose. Today was a special day, after all; it marked the anniversary of when you first formed a pact with each other.

"Asmo? Hon, what's wrong?" You asked, carrying your bags as you turned back to look at him.

Asmo blinked. "Oh, sorry about that luv! I spaced out for a bit there. Here, let's take a break okay?"

He didn't wait for your input, dragging you over to a bench situated at the entrance of a park. Despite it being eternally night in Devildom, it was peaceful; he decided to finally pop the question.

"Babe, do you remember when we first met?"

You raised a brow. "When I first arrived, yes? Or do you mean when we formed our pact?"

Asmo smiled. You caught on quick, as usual. "Ever since then I've found you intriguing, and I never thought there'd come a day where a human could keep up with my shopping and then some. Dating you has made me so very happy, and I want you to know that I love you."

There were tears in your eyes. If you hadn't known him for as long as you did, you would've thought that he was only joking around, but the soft look in his eyes erased any doubts you might've had.

You were going to marry him.

"Asmo - "

"Will you marry me?" He interrupted, clasping your hands together. "That way, you can continue to look at me and only me, and I'll try to fight off anyone who wants a piece of this delicious body."

He winked, and you giggled. "Funny you say that; I was going to propose to you today."

Asmo stilled for .2 seconds but quickly recovered, immediately whipping out his D.D.D. to contact his brothers while giving you a chaste yet searing kiss. Be prepared to have a lavish wedding early!

Beelzebub

If he had to pick a point where he fell in love with you, it was probably when you held his hand in comfort.

You were just...so gentle, so kind, and so patient with him. You cared about him, and he wanted to give you the world.

When you two first started dating, it felt surreal. Quickly, though, he began to feel like he was on cloud nine every time he looked at you and thought "I was chosen out of all of my brothers. I get to have this experience all to myself."

And he wanted to be with you forever.

He had stumbled upon the idea of marriage on accident, but it made him euphoric to know that there was a tradition that let them be together forever. He decided to act once he got advice from both Asmo and Satan, currently watching you bake brownies with a hum.

"You look happy."

You turn to him with a smile. "How can I not be? I'm here with the most amazing boyfriend in the world. What more can I ask for?"

...When I tell you he is SOFT -

"About that..."

He wrings his hands, nervous. You seem to come to a realization, reaching up to kiss his cheek.

"Beel, you know I love you, right?"

His eyes widened. Wait...were you seriously...?

He dug into the pockets of his pants, watching you do the same in a bit of a stupor. You both pull out a small box at the same time.

No way. No way.

He sweeps you into the biggest bear hug ever, relieved that you had the same idea as him. He can't stop smiling, either, his chest warm and face aglow at the thought of just how lucky he is to have you in his life.

"I love you so so much."

Seriously though, he's so pure so please marry him

Belphegor

Blankets? Check.

Pillows? Check.

Clear view of the night sky? Triple check.

You, by his side? Quadruple check.

You both had decided to watch a meteor shower from the Observatory, a pile of soft blankets and pillows surrounding both of you on the floor.

You had been dating for a...longer time than he thought you'd be. After the whole "I-killed-you" thing, he assumed that you hated him, and for a bit you did. However, you forgave him, which is more than he could ever ask for, and somehow that led to the unbreakable trust you have now.

The past was the past; he wanted you to remain in his life, no matter what happened.

"I know I can be a bit much," He murmured, catching your attention, "But I really want to stay with you."

You smiled, pure and ethereal. "The feeling's mutual, Sleeping Beauty."

It was a nickname that, unfortunately, had stuck. He gave you a half smile at that, leaning in closer until your lips were barely brushing.

"No, I meant it in a different way."

You connect the dots. With laugh as you push him away, scrambling to explain once you see a flash of hurt in his eyes.

"It's funny you say that, 'cause - "

Something slid onto his ring finger. He looked down.

A...ring?

He pulled you in for a kiss, putting every euphoric emotion he was feeling into it. "You're to good for me," He whispered once he pulled away, resting his forehead against your own.

You lightly punch his shoulder. "Dork. It looks like you're stuck with me for life."

He snaked an arm around you as you both turned to look at the streaks flitting across the sky, fading fast but burning bright.

He glanced over at you, your face glowing in the low light of the stars and illuminating the childlike wonder in your eyes.

You are beautiful, he thought.

He kissed your temple, leaning against you. "How pissed do you think Lucifer will be to hear that we're engaged already?"

#thank you for the ask!#i had fun with this!#I'm sorry if it sucked #obey me headcanons #obey me thoughts #obey me shall we date #obey me #obey me luficer #obey me mammon #obey me leviathan #obey me satan #obey me asmodeus #obey me beelzebub #obey me belphie #obey me belphegor #long post #I'll try to shorten future ones

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rixxy8173571m3w1p3 · 4 years

Text

The Remembrance Of A Kiss

I was feeling nostalgic for a fic which I wrote almost three years ago called Zeta-7 and The Kiss; it was written back when I first started writing Rnm fics. While, I don't write how I used to, I am fond of it. So, here's this finished wip. I think I'm running on nostalgia these days, for things are changing faster then I can keep up with. Anyway, I hope you guys like it. It's guaranteed to be fluffy :3

In this fic the reader thinks about a past momentous moment.

_____________________

The trouble and light anxiety you had felt about the occasion had been insignificant compared to his. Back then you had been searching for an answer or rather a solution to a predicament; the problem at the time being that you weren't sure how to broach the subject of a certain display of affection. It was neither a lack or an abundance of affection, and it seems silly now when you thought of it, which was often, but when and where had your inclination to kiss him first begin? It might have always been there, but that statement in itself seemed like a lie, for you didn't want to kiss him when you initially met him, but he had been influential; recognizing you from another time, another life, but that wasn't what you came here to talk about. No, you wanted to think of that fateful day.

That day he had been in his usual delightful mood, the kind that came about because he got to see you and was genuinely having a good day; although, with him, he tended to find good in every day and as expected he was deliciously cheerful and had a smile which could last for days upon his thin lips. Oh, how you had loved that smile for it followed you everywhere, even when you couldn't seem him; that haircut which had been copied from an old clothing catalog advertisement and moved about when he spoke; buck teeth which dentists could only dream to keep as trophies, and the hint of lip bite when he'd finished talking; it was part of the draw. You fought, swallowed, and bided your time as you thought of the ways in which you could show him you loved him. For you, there was a momentum, a force which couldn't have been stopped; beginning with his hellos, and would build as you continued to be so affected and had been desperate to satisfy the longing and affection which pulled and drowned your senses whenever he was near; it made you reason that it was the right thing to do; to express and ask if it was alright to move forward; it was and he agreed, but he never quite recovered from being kissed.

No, you didn't mean all the kisses which occurred after and had taken place up to the present per se, but from the first one you had given him around the start of your relationship; having made such an impression, it was as though you had branded his heart and soul; that a string was tied to one of your ribs and to one of his ventricles which kept him alive only by his sheer will to withstand the forces and madness that threatened to tear him apart daily; he could never recover. You would say that he grew a little more mature that day; in mind, spirit, but not in age. To be sure, things had been so different then; Rick had been so shy when it came to romantic sensibilities, naive to others advances or otherwise natural attraction to him, believing he was unworthy of such while you had so much to learn about the mysteries of men; neither knew what the other had been going through. You hadn't known about his otherworldly adventures yet, his loneliness, or uniqueness, and he knew almost everything except your personality quirks, but as to how he knew was a different story.

Still, that was then, back when there was so much yet to be known, and you thought him to be human. You remembered how for days, he walked as though in a daze, bumping into things and hardly able to look you in the eyes without being lovestruck and tongue-tied; you were sure to watch after him to make sure you hadn't given him a stroke and assured him that he shouldn't deny his worth. Why it seemed even now he could barely function without being a little goofy after a kiss, but it was endearing; you hadn't known then about how he had been starved for affection due to lack of family and circumstances. Yet, if you had any doubts, they certainly were lessened by his attentiveness and wanting to please.

You were sure others might've tired of this behavior long ago, and you had your days in when you thought you weren't capable of managing it all, but for every time you came crashing down, he was there to help you even when you didn't want him to; for every tear and moment of grief, there was his affection which he returns out of love, gratitude, and fear all at once. Oh, if you knew then what you knew now, you would've confessed earlier; let him know how much you had cared, and tried harder to be a better friend. Still, you were making it up to him and doubted you'd ever finish making it up to him. And because he was forever grateful and happy when you kissed him, you decided to ask him one day what it was that he found so dazzling about it and to your shock, his answer endeared him to you all the more. "It's like saying h-hello." he answered matter of factly.

"Really? In what way?"

"Gosh," he wondered, scratching the back of his neck. "it's uh - it's like touching hands, but instead of the formality of a-a handshake, you touch lips to greet and exchange not only DNA but affection. Culture or whoever happens to partake in this ritual may affect its meaning, but in such an awe-inspiring way I believe it's a reminder of trust and union; albeit more intimate."

Was that how he had felt back then? Had it been a social experiment or a daydream that had come into fruition? Perhaps neither. Maybe, he was concerned that you'd be disappointed if that so-called spark wasn't there, but the good thing was you relied more on just sparks. "So, what you mean to say is that in a sense those who kiss are bonded?"

"I th-think so."

And you believed him, for when it came to such matters, he was sincere. Why it must've hit him harder than it ever will with you, but you blamed being a creature of natural circumstance for that; your childhood and life had been happy and general for the most part, while his had more loops in it then the Whirly Dirly. Thinking of it now, the consequence of your affection was that he took to you so strongly, you were sure that if something happened to you, it might kill him; the thought being burdensome in its own right.

You had never thought of pairing the word passionate with him, but his sensibilities to and of the world in which he existed in as well as to interactions with the beings in it made you wonder if there was anything or anyone he could truly hate; himself perhaps for that was who he was most affected by.

"Rick," you started, pushing away the unsettling thoughts as you set down the book you had been reading. "I think that's sweet. You certainly have a knack for seeing the poetic nature behind the reality, but what are your thoughts on the people who kiss for fun?"

He ruminated for a moment. It might've occurred to him that people didn't always kiss with the intention of forming serious relationships, but he would be sure to make a note of finding out later. "Gosh, I'm sure there are some benefits t-t-to it, though I haven't done much research on the matter."

Who knew where one would begin on such a subject. There were books on both physiology and psychology, but did any of them go into the happenstance of a kiss? You hadn't thought of checking, but knowing the intelligent man that he was, perhaps he had looked into it. "Research huh? Dear," you explained, "people don't just research kisses as though they are studies or hypothesized."

"Th-they don't?"

"At least not that I know of. I mean, people simply see and do. Don't they? Is there more?"

"Y-yes and no. It depends on the species."

"Hmm, I guess it does."

Again, you wouldn't know. There must've been planets, realities, and universes whose signs of affection transcended that of action, but while it was a fascinating thought, you were glad that in your reality that wasn't the case in its entirety. Searching his face, you found that his brow was scrunched up together, wondering if there was more to it. You had thought the question innocent enough, he, on the other hand, wouldn't be satisfied until he found the truth behind your inquiry. Not being one to try to disappoint him, you turned towards him and nodded. "However, I have my own answer. If you come closer I can show you what I mean."

Removing his glasses, he scooted closer; curious to see if the answer was somehow in your pocket or hiding on his face. The trust which allowed him to focus on you with conviction as you approached him was palpable. Lightly, you brushed back his bangs and passed your fingers lightly over his frown lines. Silly man, he thought too much for his own good, but if he had been unsure earlier, then the blush which dusted his ears and cheeks said otherwise. Stretching up, you pressed a light kiss on his forehead; not unlike the ones he'd give you when he thought you were asleep. And you smiled at him from the bottom of your heart. In turn, he chuckled in happy amusement; boyish in the way his eyes glimmered as though he had gotten a new toy. "Gee, that was - that was swell, but I-I don't understand. Wh-what was that for?"

"I see you and I must kiss you. It's practically the law." you giggled before repeating the action.

"Are y-y-you sure?" he wondered, tucking a lock of your hair behind your ear.

Pulling back a little, you nodded. "I'm positive. Especially since it's what you deserve."

The light chuckle which escaped him only fed your joy as you peppered him with kisses. And before you could see it, you felt him smiling and glowing with happiness as his goofy grin returned with a vengeance.

"Gosh," he sighed with contentment, "I-I learn something new everyday."

"I bet you do, but really a kiss is nothing to think too hard about."

"I-I know."

"If anything, I think it's based on a feeling. For example," you paused to give yourself a moment to gather your thoughts together. "the reason I kiss you is the same reason I've always had and it's because I care about you. In my own way, it's like I'm saying, 'Hello, I missed you, come here, I love you. Oh, I love you so very much. Thank you, for simply existing and being here with me.' Maybe we both have the same reason as to why words sometimes aren't enough, and while a kiss is simple, it's not always so easy to execute, but nothing is wrong with that. It's all done in its own time. In its own way. I am happy you let me kiss you way back when, because I adored you so much that it hurt. I still adore you, and you'll always be precious to me."

Glancing at you in wonderment, he played with his fingers then searched your face again. In his soul, he knew you weren't lying, but since you've first known him, he always seemed to be searching, as well as fighting his self-condemning mind and heart especially having been injured so many times. As though you had a world of answers for some of his simple questions that he would've otherwise been too embarrassed to ask, he'd open his mouth just to close it again. You had assured him on multiple occasions that he could ask you anything, but his bashful nature gave allowances for this; endearing in its own right. Once he seemed satisfied, he took out his notepad and wrote down some notes; if you didn't know any better, you'd think he was writing a thesis by the way the words slanted and blended into one another as he concentrated on the details, all the while sporting that lovestruck grin. "What are you writing dear? Is it a love letter? Is it about the trees, or bees, or whatever goes about in that wonderful head of yours?"

"I'm updating my notes."

This much you knew. "But on what? Not on kissing, right? That would be something." you teased.

"N-n-no," he answered softly, "but on you."

"Is that right? Is there any particular reason?"

"Mhm," he nodded. "so I won't forget."

What a silly man he was, you thought. "It's ok to forget things, but I'm sure you won't. Besides, who forgets the first person they kiss?"

"N-not me."

"Of course not, especially with all the reminders that come after. I doubt I will, but reminders are appreciated. I wouldn't want to forget how happy you make me."

Slowing down his note-taking, he mentioned. "I like reminders too."

Of course he did. From years of journal keeping to the multiple watches and small computers that were scattered about the house, for there was so much going on in his head he needed help keeping his train of thought straight. It was just another way of saying in so many words, how much he loved you. "So do I. And trust me, I'll be sure to remind you a lot. As much as you need, and as often as I can. Hopefully," you winked at him. "I'll be reminded soon."

Giving your hand a squeeze, he softened. "I um - I don't mind reminding you. I-I really like reminders."

"I know, but do you like them more than adventures, or as far as that ship in the garage will take you?" you teased.

Replacing the notepad in his pocket, he nodded. "As far as 238,855 miles w-will take me."

Miles or kilometers were but measurements and distance, but that distance you were sure was not on Earth. "Do you mean to the moon?"

Pressing a light kiss to your temple, he answered. "Por supuesto, y-y más allá de eso. Please, don't forget"

Forget? Why would you forget? If there was a prelude, it was the flutter and happy giddiness which occurred when you caught him off guard, but to whatever came after, it was effervescent, sweet, and addictive. And while it could be said about a lot of things, he was far more complex. You see, you never recovered from being kissed, because you were enticed by his charm, and won by his goodness, but a kiss sealed the deal; for now and forever you belonged to him and you weren't going to let him forget it. Cupping his cheek, you replied. "I won't and I never will Ricky. You can bet on that," as you leaned forward, you whispered. "and seal it with a kiss."

Fin

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adolanables · 5 years

Text

INFLUENCED -

PART 10

A/N:Sorry for how long this took :(

Warm fingers encompassed yours, a soothing thumb rubbing back and forth on the back of your hand. Grayson’s other hand was adjusting the camera in front of both of you, turning the viewing screen around to make sure you were centered in the frame. Ethan stood in the corner of the room to make sure the audio was alright and the lighting remained steady throughout filming.

“You ready?” Grayson looked over at you, his free hand nudging your chin up so you would look at him – a big smile on his face.

“As I’ll ever be.” You laughed nervously, squeezing his hand in yours and making sure your hair was placed over your shoulders perfectly.

Ethan gave you the nod and Grayson smiled at the camera - “I’m back!” He laughed awkwardly and looked over at you, “Well, Ethan is here too – just behind the camera.” He pointed behind the camera, rolling his eyes at his older brother. “I figured this would be the best video for us to come back with – to address a lot of speculations that have happened since we started our break.” Grayson took a deep breath and looked seriously at the camera. “We know this has been a long three months, but we figured the first of the new year would be a good time to start things back up.”

His hand squeezed yours again, glancing over at you momentarily before turning back to the camera.

“As many of you probably know, this is Y/N - she’s been a big part of our – well, my – life for the past few months.” His voice was shaky, clearly pretty nervous. “A lot of you noticed when we started following each other on Instagram, and a lot of you had some pretty serious opinions when those photos of me with someone else came out.” He sighed again, dropping his gaze to his lap for a few seconds. “Well, I’m not proud of those – or the consequences I had to face because of those choices. I’m 19 – well 20 now – but I was 19. I am going to make mistakes, and screw up.”

“It’s the same as all of you, except it gets broadcast to 10 million people.” You spoke up, smiling softly at Grayson as he nodded at you to continue. “I’m sure every one of you out there has had your heart broken to some extent – have screwed up royally at one point or another. Gray and E aren’t perfect humans – well not all the time at least.” You giggled, shooting Ethan a smile in the corner. “I’m sure a lot of you don’t understand why he’s with me, of all the girls he could possibly be with – sometimes I don’t either - but he is. I’m also sure some of you think I’m a clout chaser or a gold digger for staying with Gray after everything that’s happened, and that’s okay, because he knows how I feel about him – and that’s what matters.”

“Thanks, Y/N.” Grayson leaned over and softly kissed your cheek, knowing it would drive the fans insane. “We just wanted to fully address what is going on between us, because I don’t want to hide her anymore. She’s my girlfriend – period.”

Ethan and Grayson finished filming their come-back video without you, addressing other rumors and concerns they had dealt with over the past few months. You were grateful Grayson had wanted to do this with you. After two months of working on your relationship, building up to being able to officially date, you told him you weren’t willing to be hidden forever. It didn’t take much convincing for him to agree with you; calling his management and Ethan in to let them know they didn’t have a choice on the matter.

It had been a hard time – trying to rebuild trust and confidence. There were plenty of sleepless nights spent alone, crying over Grayson when he went back to New Jersey. He made a point to FaceTime you as much as he could, trying to ensure you he wasn’t doing anything wrong. It took a while for those calls to make you feel better, but eventually they did. You started to trust him again, you started to want to be around him all the time again – it was getting better.

Both of you knew it would probably be easier to give up sometimes. When you were screaming back and forth at each other over why you weren’t comfortable with Grayson coming into the bathroom while you were showering. When you were sitting in the back of the Jeep sobbing as Ethan tried to figure out what on Earth was wrong. When Grayson’s hand slipped between the two of you softly while kissing and you had a panic attack, flashing back to the horrible night with Cole. It would’ve been easier for both of you, but you didn’t want easy – you wanted each other.

Grayson had even brought you home with him for Christmas after finding out you had spent Thanksgiving alone – not actually making it back to Santa Barbara. He had been in New Jersey for a few weeks and you had promised him you would be going home – and you had planned to. The day you were meant to go back, your mom called and told you she had to work during the holiday, so you decided to just stay in LA. You didn’t immediately tell Gray, not wanting him to feel bad that you were alone, but of course he found out. Demanding you fly back with them to Jersey for Christmas, Lisa engulfing you in a hug as soon as you set foot into her house made your heart swell and you were so grateful to feel wanted somewhere.

New Year’s Eve was spent together on the couch back in LA. Charlotte, Ethan, and a few other – now shared – friends scattered around the room, watching the ball-drop on TV. A chaste kiss shared between the two of you before you both finished off a bottle of champagne alone in his room. You knew he wanted to make a move that night, but the way your head slowly swayed back and forth and the faint smile on your lips as you looked at him made him re-think. He wanted nothing more than to hold you close to him, forever – letting you know you were safe here. That no one would ever hurt you again.

The response to their come-back video was not what you were expecting at all. You hadn’t had an Instagram in months; knowing it was best for your mental health to avoid it. So when Grayson showed you the supportive comments on his most recent picture of the two of you sitting together on the couch – his eyes on the side of your face, lips curled into a smile as you laughed at the camera. The caption read:

*sorry if I’m not making eye contact with the camera from now on – have a lot better things to look at now*

As the two of you laid down in Grayson’s large bed for the night, you couldn’t help but smile at the man lying next to you. Often you spent more nights in Grayson’s bed than your own - something that bothered Charlotte at first, but now she was happy you were happy. His strong arms wrapped firmly around you and his willingness to drive you to classes in the morning made the incentive to stay even greater.

On top of that, Grayson never wanted you to leave. He wanted you to be with him at all times, his hand holding on to yous tightly as you got out of his Jeep to go to classes, even sitting on the bathroom counter while you showered to talk to you through the steam. Tonight was no exception, his legs swinging back and forth against the cabinets as you washed your hair - his voice traveling over the stream of water.

“People are begging for more videos with you in them, isn’t that so great?” Grayson giggled, you could almost picture his goofy grin.

“Fantastic, Gray.” You shouted back at him, shutting off the water and reaching your hand out of the shower, waiting for Grayson to hand you a towel. “Towel me, baby.”

“Yes ma’am.” Grayson’s voice was closer now, the soft fabric of the towel finding the palm of your hand. You pulled it inside and wrapped yourself up in it, stepping out into the steamy bathroom - directly into the bare chest of your very hot boyfriend.

“Hello there.” You smirked up at him, running your hands through your wet hair and reaching around him to grab another towel to tie your hair up with. Grayson’s hands rested on your waist as you tied your hair up and started doing your skincare in the mirror. Moments like this felt so normal for the two of you - like you’d been doing this your entire lives. His eyes were trained on your face as you finished brushing your teeth and letting your lotion dry onto your face.

“Beautiful, Y/N.” He leaned down and pressed a kiss to your temple before heading off into the bedroom - his sweatpants hanging low on his waist.

He tried so hard every day to make sure you felt comfortable around him - and you did, but it wasn’t always easy. Your insecurities overwhelmed you sometimes and flashbacks of unwanted sexual touching made it hard to feel hands on you. Other times you were completely fine, 100% unbothered by Grayson’s hands traveling all over you. You knew it was hard for him too, there was no way for either of you to know how you would react to him sometimes. Seeing you hyperventilate or start crying took a jab at his confidence, but he understood. He wasn’t going to push you further than you wanted to go.

So as you pulled the hairbrush through your damp hair for the last time and wandered into the bedroom, leaning against the doorframe in your towel, watching as he scrolled through his phone mindlessly. It reminded you of the first night you spent with him here; recovering from entirely too much drinking and covered in dirt. Both of you were such different people just a few months ago - you had grown so much, together and individually. He finally noticed you staring at him, a small smirk creeping up on his plump lips as a blush crept across your cheeks.

“Want some of my clothes or?”He raised an eyebrow at you, going to stand up to walk towards his dresser, but you stopped him - shaking your hand at him and walking towards the bed.

“Can you hold me?” You spoke softly,tucking your lip in between your teeth - leaning on the edge of the bed next to him - still clutching the towelto your chest.

“Of course, babe.” He tossed his phone to the side, pulling you into his chest - minding the towel. His hands wrapped around your lower back as you nuzzled your head into the crook of his neck, his soft lips pressing kisses to your collarbone. “I love you, Y/N.” He whispered, his arms tightening around you firmly. Grayson had said that to you before - pretty early on in your relationship actually. He was a hopeless romantic, but you knew that didn’t make it mean less to him. Every time he said it to you it made your heart flutter, he chose the right times to let you know. It wasn’t thrown around casually, only said when he knew you needed to hear it.

“I love you too, Gray.” You muttered, pressing a kiss to his neck - smiling softly as you heard his breath catch in his throat. It had taken you a long time to feel like you could say you loved him. Even if you did all along, you were terrified of being hurt again and telling him how you felt put you at even more risk. But you knew you did. You also knew he needed to hear it as much as you did, and you wanted to let him know that you finally felt comfortable telling him.

“Yeah?” Grayson pulled back from you slightly so he could look you in the eyes. His cheeks were flushed red, a giant smile on his face as he stared at you. The smile only grew as you nodded your head at him, smiling back. “Fuck yeah.” He giggled,nodding.

“I was wondering if you maybe… wanted to…?” You bit your lip again, hoping he would catch the hint you were tossing out. His eyes widened and he raised an eyebrow at you, wanting you to explain further. “Make love to me Gray.”Your voice was quiet and sincere, hoping he could understand how much you wanted to experience this with him.

Honestly, since the first time the two of you had fooled around, nothing much else had happened. Except some intense makeouts and heavy petting, it never went further. Grayson seemed to be okay with it, probably because he hadn’t yet been blessed enough to experience sex with you - or anyone. He was okay waiting as long as you felt like you wanted to. For you though, you were desperately craving Grayson’s touch, but you hadn’t been ready for a long time. Tonight you were sure this is what you wanted. He was smiling at you wildly, but ready and willing for you to make the first moves - for your comfort and because he wasn’t really sure what he was doing.

Grayson’s head was buried between your legs, his fingers carefully moving in and out of you as he pressed soft kisses against your thighs. His free hand was softing gripping your breast, his eyes glancing up at you every few seconds to make sure you were still enjoying yourself. He continued to pepper kisses closer to your core, pausing for a moment to look up at you. “I want to taste you, Y/N.”

Your breath caught in your throat as Gray leaned into you, pressing a soft kiss to your sensitive clit. You nodded at him and laced your fingers through his dark brown hair, pulling his face back to you with a smile. “Lick - soft, I’ll tell you if something doesn’t feel right.”

He nodded at you confidently, beginning to softly lick against your clit; soft kisses following after. He spent ample time down there, trying his best to make you finish, but you knew he needed more experience. You softly tugged on his hair, pulling his face to yours to sloppily kiss him - tasting your remnants on his soft lips. He looked at you expectingly, waiting for your direction.

“Condom?” You whispered as he nodded, leaning over you slightly to reach into his nightstand to open up a brand new back of condoms. He nervously slipped it on, his hands shaking softly as he made sure it was on correctly. “Calmmm Gray.” You smiled up at him, your hands rubbing soft circles on his bare chest as he positioned himself in front of you and took a deep breath.

“I’m just nervous I’m not going to last - or mess up - or”

“Shh.” You held his face between your hands and pressed a kiss to his nose. “You’ll be perfect.”

You helped him guide his way into you, slowly stretching you out as he started to press in. It has been months since someone had been inside of you and Grayson was anything but small. You kept your eyes glued to his face as he fully sheathed himself inside of you - his eyes were clenched tightly shut, gasps of pleasure leaving his lips as he held himself still for a moment. He flicked his eyes open and looked down at you, pure adoration in his hazel eyes. “I love you so much, Y/N.”

“I love you too.” You assured him, your hands tangling in your hair as you pulled his chest to yours, helping him lay against you and encouraging him to move his hips against yours. “Come on baby, make love to me.”

He grunted roughly and started pumping in and out of you, pained sighs falling from his lips as he felt himself coming unglued already. His head was buried in the crook of your neck, one arm tucked underneath your neck, the other gripping your hip firmly as he ground into you. “Fuck, Y/N, I’m not going to last.” He whined, attempting to slow down a bit to make it last longer

“Come for me baby, I want you to feel good.” You whispered in his ear, your hands tracing lightly on his back, squeezing your legs around his waist tightly.

He took your words as permission to thrust a little faster, working himself up to his very first orgasm inside of a woman. As he felt his balls tighten he let out little moans of your name, his grip on your hips tightening as he fell over the edge. Curse words and sighs leaving his mouth as he collapsed on top of you, his head buried in your neck, pressing kisses to your damp skin. “I love you so, so much.” He whined into your ear, wanting to be closer to you like this forever.

“I love you too Gray.” You smiled into him, holding the sweet man against you.

#grayson dolan #ethan dolan #dolan twins #adolanables #grayson dolan imagine #grayson dolan fanfic #grayson #grayson dolan smut #ethan #influenced!grayson #influenced

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crossdressingdeath · 4 years

Text

Okay I’ve had a very long day and people are being super defensive of JC on my dash so uh. I’m gonna talk shit about him for a bit. Because it’ll make me feel better. And I don’t want anyone arguing with me about this so I’ll put it behind a cut and if you don’t want to read someone talking shit about JC in a super unstructured manner then... don’t click read more, I guess?

So here’s one thing, to start. In The Untamed specifically, I can argue with near-absolute certainty that JC killed WWX. LWJ had him, and that guy is insanely strong; I don’t doubt for a second he could’ve pulled WWX up if he’d been given the chance. Maybe JC didn’t put a blade through WWX’s heart himself, but if he had stayed out of it WWX probably would’ve lived. I don’t know how long he would’ve lived, and I doubt he would’ve thanked LWJ for saving him, but he probably wouldn’t have died on that cliff. Hell, killing him quickly might have been a kindness; I’m not an expert on how far you have to fall to die instantly on impact and I don’t know how high that cliff was, but depending on how he landed and if he bounced off anything on the way down it’s possible (though maybe not likely) that WWX wouldn’t have died right away. If I had to choose between a quick death via a blade through a vital part or a more lasting death via serious internal damage from a very long fall... Yeah, I’d take the stabbing. Obviously I’m not saying that not being able to go through with killing his brother makes JC a bad person; I’m just saying that when his choices were doing nothing (which, reminder, here means letting LWJ pull WWX up (or at least try to)), helping LWJ save his brother, finishing WWX off quickly (JC is trained in combat, I’m sure he knows where to stab for the most merciful death possible under those circumstances), or letting WWX fall to his death... I just find it interesting that JC chose the latter.

Hell, even before that, if JC had done something sooner a whole lot of pain could’ve been avoided. (We’re out of the Untamed-exclusive stuff, by the way.) Now, I get that as a very new sect leader of a sect that was almost obliterated JC’s position is... precarious, to say the least. However! An awkward position doesn’t automatically mean he can pretty much abandon his brother! That is not how familial ties work! Especially when he never takes WWX’s position (which was equally precarious if not more so) into account while talking about how WWX abandoned him.

Put yourself in JC’s shoes for a moment, here. Most of your family is dead. Your brother, you know, was thrown into a hell pit and hasn’t been seen for three months. Then, joy of joys, you find him again! Except now your ever-cheerful, ever-kindhearted brother can raise the dead and, oh yeah, has spent all his time since escaping the hell pit that no one survives torturing people to death with demonic cultivation. What do you do in this situation? I’m fairly sure your answer was not “Throw him on the front lines as your most valuable weapon without giving him so much as a chance to come to terms with all the horrible things that have clearly happened to him”. Yes, yes, they were in the middle of war, but you don’t get to throw your very obviously messed up brother onto the front lines and then be shocked when there are serious consequences for doing that.

Also, going back to positions: People talk a lot about how JC’s position was so difficult, and I’m not saying it wasn’t, but... here’s the thing. WWX’s position was so much worse. JC is the sect leader of an old and powerful sect. The Jiangs might have lost a great deal, but there are still alliances he could call on, favours he could probably cash in, treasures reclaimed from the Wens he could use... He’s not exactly helpless. He has to be careful, but he’s not entirely defenseless. Meanwhile, WWX is the incredibly powerful demonic cultivator with a dangerous weapon everyone wants to get their hands on and a brother he’s known to have a somewhat strained relationship with. We see in canon that the sects are actively hunting for a chance to get their teeth into him after the Sunshot Campaign wraps up. All WWX has is his own power and JC’s support. I keep coming back to what JGY says at the temple, about how JC made WWX an easy target by making it obvious their relationship was rocky, and... he’s right. I doubt JC intended to do it, but he made it very easy for the sects to split WWX off from him. And while JC was still a sect leader and largely untouchable, WWX was infinitely more vulnerable. Again, I doubt he meant to paint a target on his brother’s back, but the fact that he missed it in favour of getting pissy about WWX being better than him yet again says something about him.

The fact that he says there’s nothing he can do after WWX absconds with the Wen remnants says... something else. Now, I’m terrible with politics; while he definitely should have supported his brother in a perfect world, with a sect to look after and JGS hunting for weak points I genuinely don’t know if he could have at that point. (Again, I really do think he should’ve tried to step in before things got to this point, but... well, he didn’t. No use crying over spilled milk and all that.) So okay, he couldn’t do anything. I’ll take him at his word; if nothing else, I can believe he was too bad with both politics and people and too inexperienced to find a way to step in. But he then takes his brother’s request to remove him from the Jiang sect to avoid any trouble coming to their doorstep and goes off and tells the sects that his brother is a traitor. Let me put that another way. He tells the people who are looking for an excuse to murder his brother and take his writings and inventions for themselves that his brother has betrayed them. I think we have reached the point where malice and stupidity become impossible to tell apart. Honestly, I can only see two possible thought processes for this: Either he actually wants to bring the sects down on WWX’s heads (unlikely) or he’s so terrible at politics that he genuinely didn’t realize what the logical result of his words would be (more likely, but means his parents did a terrible job of teaching him how to be a sect leader). Although, given he apparently spent enough of the 13 years between WWX’s death and resurrection spending so much time torturing demonic cultivators to death because either he thought they might be WWX or they just reminded him of him that most of the citizens in his territory are too scared to go to Lotus Pier for help unless they’re in imminent life-threatening danger I don’t think you can argue he was a good sect leader by any stretch...

Oh! Speaking of parents and teaching: Jin Ling. Now, part of this might be a cultural thing that I’m not familiar with, but JC is an absolutely god-awful guardian. Pretty much all he does is insult JL, belittle him, or threaten him. Yeah, he cares in his own way, but take it from me: When your parents (or uncle, in this case) spend most of their time insulting you but also keep you safe from any external danger and do their best to help you grow, you don’t end up a happy, well-adjusted adult; you end up miserable and confused because you can’t hate or like the person raising you and get stuck between love and resentment. JL is clearly desperate for affection, but he can’t admit that to anyone. It’s no surprise he mourns for JGY so deeply even after everything; the guy was pretty much the only one in the poor kid’s life to treat him with open, honest affection before he met WWX! The comparison between him and Sizhui (as the only other child raised by the main cast) is striking; even though LWJ seems like he should be just as bad a parent, he raises Sizhui with love and kindness, and so did WWX before him. And the result is... so very different. Sizhui is the very goodest of boys and I love him with all my heart. Anyway, it’s no wonder JL gravitates towards WWX and defends him once he’s gotten past his initial reaction of stabbing the guy; WWX is so open and explicit with his affection! Is he a perfect parent? No, probably not. But he focuses more on making it clear to his army of juniors that he loves them and respects them as people and wants them to be happy with where they end up in life than he does on making them fit his image of what they should be. Of course someone who’d be raised with JC copying his mother and constantly getting on their case about not being good enough would gravitate towards someone like that.

Okay, this is getting long. Last point: WWX has to put in so much emotional labour in their relationship even before everything goes tits up? The best example for me is the scene where WWX promises they’ll be together forever, Twin Heroes of Yunmeng, the huge promise that both JC and an annoyingly large portion of the audience think he should’ve kept no matter what. Yeah, out of context it’s very sweet, but in context? WWX has just barely recovered from the fight with the Xuanwu. He’s been conscious for... maybe an hour, at most? He nearly died. And yet he has to drag himself out of bed to chase JC through Lotus Pier to comfort him because JFM was paying more attention to WWX. Who, again, almost died. JC is so busy being pissy about this that he forces his brother, still recovering, to chase him through Lotus Pier to comfort him for something their parents did. Most of the time, JC has a right to be upset that JFM so obviously prefers WWX. Looking in from the outside the situation is clearly more complicated than he paints it, but I don’t blame him for not seeing how bad things are for the rest of the family. ...I know that sounds sarcastic, but I do mean it. His siblings are very good at hiding how badly their family situation has hurt them. Anyway, though, on this one occasion I am entirely on JFM’s side here. WWX threw himself into danger so JC wouldn’t have to go to the indoctrination camp alone even though he didn’t have to, then some time later JC returns alone and informs him that WWX is trapped in a cave with the Xuanwu of Slaughter, then when JFM finally manages to reach him the Xuanwu is dead and WWX is all but dead. I 100% do not blame him for focusing on WWX in this situation! He did something fully-grown cultivators with far more experience failed at and almost died in the process! Given JC must be... what, 16 at the youngest, probably older by this point? I would expect him to grasp that. He’s old enough to have developed empathy. Hell, he should be right there with his father and sister, proud of WWX’s accomplishments and relieved to see him awake and recovering. Instead, WWX has to drag himself through Lotus Pier and swear to stay by JC’s side for the rest of their lives just to get him to stop sulking because WWX was better than him yet again.

...Yeah, as you might have grasped, I don’t think WWX had any obligation to uphold that promise. He shouldn’t have been expected to be tied to Lotus Pier by a vow he made as a teenager to get his brother to cheer up. In fact, a very large part of me wishes he’d broken it sooner. Comparing the way JC treats him to the way the Wens and LWJ treat him (setting aside that those are of course very different kinds of love) I can’t help but think things might have gone infinitely better for him if he’d found a different family a lot earlier.

#anyway no discourse on this post pls #this is just me screaming into the void about my deepseated dislike of all this stuff acting like he's a flawless character #grapehate

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trying-write-fanfics · 4 years

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OverhaulXReader part 43 (O)

There is an implied sex scene just for warning.

“Thanks again for driving me.” Y/n said. “Those doctors were really in my business.”

“They just want you to be safe.” Tai told her. “Why didn’t you call your friend to pick you up?”

“She’s 84.” Y/n told him. “We met in choir. She’ll take care of me for the next couple days.”

“An old lady? What is she gonna do when you faint?”

“Life alert.” She joked. “I can’t stay with you, Mr-pro-hero. Don’t wanna ruin your reputation.” She told him. “Why did they release you yesterday anyway?”

“I had some more paperwork to fill out.” He lied.

“The cops weren’t really asking me much. I thought there would be more. I listened to you and told them that stuff. I didn’t think it would be that easy.”

“I told you to trust me.”

“I just have to get something and I’ll be ready.” She told him.

Y/n gathered more of her things from the hospital room. She wanted to forget her stay here. Not only did she cry for the sins of her boyfriend, but then later that fateful day, he lost his arms. There would be no trial. He would be locked away forever, gone. The police were not on her case and was surprised she was looking at houses worked. She figured having a pro hero helping her worked. She walked out of the room and immediately dropped what she gathered when she ran into someone.

Her eyes widened seeing that green hair. Everyone told her how strong this kid was, how proud they were, Deku. He beat Overhaul and protected the child, Eri. Y/n was able to piece together what had happened in the battle from the murmurs, Tai, and his interns.

“Sorry, let me help you with that.” The teen said.

He gathered her things as she watched him. She hated the boy, but knew it was the right thing. It had to be done. Overhaul was no longer the prince of her past, but an abuser, a liar of her present. Y/n was trying to have her body and mind understand Overhaul did hurt her and used her. There was evidence, but she couldn’t totally understand it. She was special to him, she knew she was, so why did he do that.

“You did a good job, I heard.” Y/n told the teen.

“Oh- well I’m sorry you got caught up in all of it. Have your injuries been healing?”

“Yes, it’s been going quite smoothly.” She told the boy, taking her things back. “You’re so young.”

“Ah, it was my first big mission.”

“And you got to be the star of it.” She told him.

“I wouldn’t say star…” Deku sighed.

“Keep your chin up, people are gonna be looking up to you now.”

Yes, she hated the kid, but she knew it was wrong of her. Overhaul did horrible things, but she still worried for him. Deku did the right thing….Y/n would just need therapy. It had been a rough couple of years, but she had always had her love, but now apparently he was adding to it.

“Thanks for waiting.” She told Tai.

“Of course.”

“I didn’t know you had a car. Especially a sedan.” She told him.

“I’ll be renting it. While I’m working back to my fat form and recovering I won’t be running as much.” Tai told her. “Now that we’re alone, I need to know, are you in danger?”

“I don’t think I am, I think. Overhaul was always keeping me away from his work.”

She didn’t know.

“I think you you need a bodyguard.”

“You think I’ll be dragged down?”

“Yes.”

“Who to hire?” She mused.

“I could”

“You’re injured.” She told him.

“I had to look deep in your record and you’ve been to the hospital a lot. You’re free from the police having their suspicions about you, but you’re in danger now. I just think you need extra protection.” Tai told her.

Tai was flip flopping on his stance on Y/n. Yes he wanted to protect her, but he knew his lenses were clouded, and she was vulnerable. He convinced himself that despite his feelings, she was in danger whether he liked it or not. They took down one of the biggest organized crime groups in the area, but there’s a new threat rising and they might wanna twist Overhaul’s wound back open.

“You don’t think Gladys can keep me safe?”

“I’m being serious, Y/n. Chisaki has many active enemies.” Tai told her.

“I can’t think about all of that right now.” She told him honestly.

The last few days were hard, but Tai supported both interns and Y/n. His interns weren’t too emotionally injured, and their families came to visit their kids. Y/n on the other hand had a different recovery experience. Her parents never showed. Her boss came in to offer her more time off, but was a little distant with her. She suffered anxiety attacks and stress vomit. She knew she would get the answers she wanted while in the hospital, but Kai did a number on her. It hurt Tai watching her go through this. She felt loved by him, cared by him, but now was she just a mere piece in his plan and she fell for the siren song of nostalgia? She gave up her relationship with her parents for him.

Tai did feel guilty for the enjoyment he got out of seeing Kai. Defenseless, unable to fight, disabled quirk, helpless, alone, rotting in prison. He abused Eri, the poor child. Cutting her open and putting her back together like she was just some toy. He also hurt someone who loves him and compromised on continuing loving him. But his last words “make sure she is protected” rang too many times in his head. He wasn’t doing it for Chisaki, but for Y/n. Chisaki ruined Y/n.

“I don’t know if you have that kind of luxury.” Tai told her.

“You know me, I’ll just land back in the hospital like I always do!” She laughed.

Please just listen to me, Tai was internally begging. He already knows how dangerous the league was, blue flames, touch into dust, and a woman who can slash about anything. Y/n was no match for any of them.

Tai helped Y/n get her bags and walked to the porch of the small house. Gladys didn’t know what time they were going to arrive and Y/n was just going to knock on the door. Tai set the bag down and with his hand he cupped her fist. With his other hand he pulled a more bold move and turned her waist to face him. He was desperate to keep her alive. His tired eyes explored her widened (colored) ones. Was she scared of him? Did he go too far? Yeah it was early to do something like this, but Gladys didn’t sound like someone who can fend for Y/n against a fire blast.

Was Overhaul ever like this with her? It was a known fact now that he hated touch. Would he break his fear for Y/n or was this completely forgein to her? How could Overhaul have someone so beautiful by his side and would avoid her touch? She was bruised and bandaged, but to Tai she was the most gorgeous. He wanted her safe and protected. If she would let him, he would want to love her right.

“Please, just think about it.” He said no louder than a whisper.

“I will…” she breathed.

She took her things and knocked on the door. The old women with scales on her neck answered. Gladys thanked Tainfor driving Y/n and she would make sure she would be monitored. It worked both ways, Gladys also wanted a human companion to watch over her just in case she slipped or fell. She even told Tai she taught her cats how to dial 911. Though it was hard Tai was able to leave.

At 6 o’clock Gladys went to bed and that’s when the thoughts began to unhinge. Y/n tried watching TV, but it only caused her headache to get worse. She tried showering, but remembered the day Kai walked in on her sleeping in the tub. She jumped out and threw up. She brushed her teeth and tried to calm down. She told herself it didn’t matter whether Kai had loved her not, he used her and abused a child. She tried not to blame herself but she did anyway. She should have known the signs that he was abusing a child. She wasn’t allowed at his place freely but he could come to her house whenever he please. Did he please that much? Sure he was in the yakuza so it could have to do with that why she wasn’t allowed over. Despite all that maybe she should have never came back. She always knew the yakuza was dangerous, she knew he was dealing drugs but she stayed with him and seemed him out! It was a fairytale she was following only with the worst ending. She should have known and listened to her parents to not rejoin the yakuza that they were so desperately trying to break ties from.

Gladys was sleeping. Y/n was alone and desperate. She wanted to feel anything else than what she was. She needed to stop thinking about Kai, but how? She had wanted him for over a decade, got with him and he destroyed her!

It wasn’t totally unthinkable what she did next. She wasn’t thinking, just following an instinct. She took the subway and found herself at Tai’s door.

Covered in sweat, the two were panting. It was like being pulled back to reality as Tai had really realized what he was doing. He should have been a hero, but instead he felt like he had manipulated her in to this position. Half of him felt amazing, was he sticking it to a child abuser, a domestic abuser, or was it that he had these feelings for Y/n.

“Keep going, what wrong?” Y/n panted.

His consciousness faded. He listened to his ID. Even if she was using him and didn’t even feel anything for him, he wanted to enjoy this moment. He was aggressive. She felt heavenly to him. When it was over they laid on the bed.

Y/n’s back was turned to him. Was it instant regret? Her bandages were still on her body, just like his own. The guilt began to hit his reality once more. He wasn’t much better than Overhaul. Sure Tai didn’t destroy a neighborhood, indirectly hurt his girlfriend, and sold drugs with people’s blood, but he was too impulsive. He listened to pleasure. He could have just told Y/n it wasn’t right, but instead he let her in and let their hands roam each other’s bodies’. He knew her weaknesses subconsciously. He knew how badly she was yearning for connection, warmth, and care. Since he done the deed, he would go through with it all the way. He pulled the sheet over her frame and spooned her. He wasn’t gonna let her feel like this was only a conquest. If she was going to be up for it, he’d do it again for her. If she wanted to be something more, he would accept, but right now, he promised himself he wouldn’t ask for anything yet.

At some point that night, Tai was awoken by the sound of sniffles. His face was in Y/n’s hair, but he checked her face. The moonlight revealed she was crying. They had alright been asleep, did she wake up feeling regretful? He delicately brushed her hair out of her face. With his thumb he wiped her tears and realized she was crying in her sleep. Tai kissed her temple. She did have a lot to cry about.

However Tai woke up alone. Though it was a somber gray morning, he tried not to feel too bad about it. He promised himself he would be fine with whatever happened between them next because he felt wrong with what he did. It wasn’t all terrible. She made him thank you pancakes. Though he loved food, deep down he did want to spend the morning together.

#overhaulxreader #overhaul #chisaki kai #chisaki kaixreader #xreader #bnha #bnha fanfiction

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growingstronglikeahighgardenrose · 4 years

Text

The Greatest Gift

The last part of my ‘The Holiday’ series, and with it also my last entry for the 12 Days of Sanditon challenge (albeit four days late). It’s been a wild ride between past and present, I had a blast exploring all characters in all kinds of settings, and I hope you did too!

Pairings: Charlotte/Sidney, Esther/Babington, Georgiana/Crowe

Characters: Charlotte, Sidney, Esther, Babington, Crowe, Georgiana, Susan, James

Prompt: The Gift/Tis the season to be jolly, for the 12 Days of Sanditon hosted by @sanditoncreative

Synopsis: Charlotte finally arrives to the holiday home as everyone is preparing for the New Year's Eve Party. She realizes with shock she has much catching up to do.

Available on AO3 (please drop a like if you enjoyed)

Over mountains cold, and rivers frozen, lay a house amidst the woods. The house was neither large nor small, it was just perfect for the amount of occupants who spent their days there. Before they’d entered the house, they’d been two separate groups of friends, acquainted but not familiar with the other. But after spending days together filled with fun excursions to Inverness and the surrounding woods, and nights drowned in alcohol, friendships were established, and relationships blossomed underneath the star filled sky.

When the missing link, one part of the reason as to why these friend groups had come together, Charlotte Heywood arrived on the thirtieth of December, she had a lot to catch up with. In just eight days, Esther, who had always been keen on keeping her personal space, had shed her old habits which had been developed through years of living in a cold household devoid of love, and was now always touching Babington in some way. She rarely sat on a chair anymore, finding the lap of her newly acquired boyfriend much preferable. Charlotte had sometimes wondered how her friend would be if she were to enter a relationship, but never had she thought that she’d dive into a relationship after just a couple of weeks of knowing someone, and get comfortable with being in a relationship so easily. But then again, no one was aware of how Esther and Babington had regarded each other with certain fondness and interest since Esther’s first year at Sanditon Uni.

James, Georgiana and Crowe boasted it had been their ‘Mistletoe Madness’ scheme which had brought the mom friend and dad friend together. Babington and Esther didn’t care to tell them anything about how it had actually happened.

But then Sidney and James laughed how Georgiana and Crowe had used their mistletoes a lot as well, always accidentally finding themselves underneath them, and regularly disappearing together. Susan smirked that James, despite mocking the four new lovers, had actually appointed her as the official proof-reader of all text messages he sent towards a girl she was interested in.

Sidney had sorely missed his girlfriend, and couldn’t be parted from her for any prolonged period of time. Now nine, the group revelled in the haze of the period between Christmas and the New Year, happy and relaxed despite the approaching finals.

It was the season to be jolly, and no sadness or dark thoughts were allowed in their holiday home.

December thirtieth passed, and everyone was looking forward to celebrate the start of the new decade. Was it to be the sweet ten years in which the world would recover from the past decade? Would stocks reach record peaks, and Wall Street boom a steady golden roar as everyone celebrated life?

The next decade was as much a mystery as the paths their lives would take after this year. Within less than a year, they would all graduate. They would never be students again. The era of absolute freedom came to an end. The real world was quickly approaching. The twenties were the decade of their twenties, and they would end ’29 in their thirties: they would find employment, get engaged, get children and pay taxes. It was a bittersweet day as they accepted the prospect, and some were more heavily affected by nostalgia for years gone by than others. But united they stood strong, encouraging each other with smiles, hugs and words of kindness.

They had no clue what would happen to their friendship in the next decade, but they were determined to at least celebrate the last day of the year, sliding into the new year Gatsby style, clanking crystal and dancing with reckless abandon. The day was spent with ice-skating, a snowman competition and preparing appetizers and desert for the festive meal. There was little work to be done for the main meal since they’d all be using the electric grills on the table to bake their own pieces of meat and vegetables, yakiniku style, the only thing they had to do was to chop some vegetables and prepare a pot of pasta salad.

After all was prepared, the girls took two bottles of fizzy martini to their bedrooms to prepare for dinner together. The men remained behind, deciding to watch the new Witcher series and start drinking as well. If the preparations for the Christmas dinner were anything to go by, the girls would take up to two hours to get ready.

Make up your mind sweet baby, right here, right now's all we got

A little party never killed nobody, so we gon' dance until we drop

A little party never killed nobody, right here, right now's all we got

In the largest bed chamber, The Great Gatsby soundtrack was playing. Esther was in the shower, Susan was doing her makeup, and Georgiana was doing Charlotte’s hair. Esther returned, starting to paint Susan’s nails a deep red, but putting a golden topcoat over her ring finger. Afterwards, the favour was returned. They all kept changing places, drinking martini and laughing, until they were all washed, their nails painted and their hair was done up in some kind of 20s style with decorative glittering hair combs and lacey headbands.

The playlist was switched to one of Georgiana’s after the album was done.

We go together

Better than birds of a feather, you and me

We change the weather, yeah

I'm feeling heat in December when you're 'round me

‘Oh, that’s our song’, Georgiana sighed happily as she plopped down on the bed, Esther crying out that she had to be careful with her hairdo.

‘That shall be one hell of a opening song on your wedding’, Susan laughed.

‘You have a song already?’ Charlotte asked with amusement.

‘Of course, don’t you?’ Georgiana asked, turning onto her belly to look at Charlotte.

‘Well, we’ve only been together for a month.’

‘And honeyboo and me have only been together for a couple of days, yet we have one. Was there never a song you two had a moment to, or which reminded you of your relationship?’

Charlotte bit her lip. Was there a song which reminded her of him? She could still remember the song they first danced to years ago. But it wasn’t representative for their relationship. Yet, yet she couldn’t help but think of him every time she heard it in the years since.

‘I have one’, Susan admitted to give Charlotte some more time.

‘Oh, which one?’ Georgiana asked.

‘It’s a bit cliché, but it’s Waterloo. It’s the song I chose as my swan song on the evening my achievements as a student representative were celebrated. It’s always been one of my favourite songs, and well, he was always there with me when it was put on. And, after all, he did have a hard time conquering me.’

‘How long have you been together with Alexander?’

‘Almost my entire studies. I think I can expect an engagement before I turn twenty-five at the pace we’re going.’

‘And you’re of course going to accept’, Georgiana smiled.

Susan nodded.

‘How… do you know? It’s easy to know you love someone, but when do you know it can be forever?’

‘When, even way past that first sweet period has passed, you still feel butterflies thinking of them. But that’s not all, that’s how you know you’re still in love. But I knew we had a real chance at staying together when, amidst all the craziness of the year in which I combined seven councils, simply receiving a text or a hug from him felt like a good night’s rest after a particularly exhausting day. All my worries and all my burdens still lay heavy on my shoulders, but he made me feel calm and strong.’

‘Oh, that sounds so wonderful. He sounds so sweet’, Esther breathed.

‘It does’, Charlotte admitted.

‘He isn’t sweet by no means. He never says everything will be alright, he never says it’s okay if I fail. He tells me what I have to hear instead, but he’s a good, supportive and capable man, and he understands that I need someone who encourages me, not someone who tells me sweet things. But I love him.’ She shook her head, as if, after all these years, she was still amazed by the love she felt.

‘I have a song, by the way’, Charlotte admitted.

‘Tell!’

‘It’s the song that played at least thrice the evening we first met. Halsey’s song: Closer.’

‘Oh, that’s cute! And it fits as well!’

‘It does?’ Charlotte asked as she put on her red velvet dress. Esther snuck to her room to get her dress and shoes.

‘Yeah! You look as good as the day I met you. I forget just why I left you, I was insane… And four years, no call… And then you met and hit it off again!’ Georgiana smiled.

‘Well it’s only been about three years and we only hit it off again after a month of weekly meetings.’

‘Details!’ Georgiana cried before finishing her glass.

‘So, Esther, how bout you and Babbers hmm?’ Georgiana asked as Esther entered the room again, glittering 20s style Mary Janes and blue flapper dress in hands.

‘Why so curious?’

‘So you have one’, Charlotte smiled.

‘Maybe I do.’

‘Oh come on Esther, you already keep secret how you two have gotten together, you can at least tell us the name of the song.’

‘Fine. I Want To Know What Love Is, satisfied?’

‘Why Esther, I never took you for a Foreigner fan’, Susan exclaimed.

‘Coincidence. Can we now stop discussing love, I’m not planning on being emotional before midnight.’

Georgiana laughed and handed Esther her glass once she’d finished zipping her dress.

‘Alright then ladies, let’s go to the living room and have some fun.’

In dark suits the men sat gathered on the couches, hair groomed and smelling good. But their preparations didn’t compare to the flurry of glittering glimmering festival to their eyes the girls presented as they descended upon them with their curled hair and sparkly jewellery and bright red lipstick. Their cheeks and beards were covered in bright lipstick, and champagne was popped.

‘You all really came prepared’, Princey laughed as he trailed his fingers down Susan’s long white gloves.

‘We agreed upon celebrating Gatsby style. We simply did as agreed upon.’

‘I’d say you did more than just that’, Crowe breathed as Georgiana rubbed her cheek against his shoulder. He wasn’t sure he’d make it till midnight without a short heated intermezzo.

She jumped upright with a smile. ‘Excuse me as I try to capture the moment.’

She photographed him like that, sat in the couch with arms raised in question, a glass of champagne filled with water in hand – he wanted to remember every minute, at least until midnight.

‘Do you like it?’ Esther purred softly as the others were occupied.

‘You have no idea.’

‘Enlighten me.’

‘You look extraordinary… Magnificent.’

‘Do I?’ she smirked as she traced his stubble with her gloved hand.

‘Miss Denham, I must beg you to spare me. I’m not afraid I’ll last the night otherwise.’

‘Who says I intend you to?’ she laughed as she readjusted her weight on his lap. He could only just supress a groan and press his lips against hers.

A flash went off, the screen presenting a figure with flaming red curls with her arms around the brown haired man she sat on top off, his hands almost reverently placed on her upper back.

Another flash captured James and Princey pointing their tongue at each other in mock disgusted of the kissing.

There's glitter on the floor after the party

Girls carrying their shoes down in the lobby

Candle wax and Polaroids on the hardwood floor

You and me from the night before but

‘I’m still so confused as to how it all happened. I don’t know what to think about it’, Charlotte confessed to Sidney as they gazed at their friends.

‘I think this would be a so called… Christmas miracle’, he laughed.

‘I believe the entrance of this house must have been a portal to a Hallmark movie. It all just went so quickly.’

‘Didn’t we go quickly as well?’ Sidney asked, burying his nose against her sweet smelling neck.

‘It was different.’

‘How do we know they’re not different as well?’

‘Well, with Esther and Babington I dare not judge, but Georgie and Crowe?’

‘Hmm, two dramatic extroverted personalities seeking enjoyment together? I don’t think they’re that odd together.’

‘Perhaps not.’

‘Let us not worry. Before we worried it would be awkward introducing our friends to each other. Our fears turned out to be utterly unfounded. Let’s just enjoy this.’

Charlotte agreed, pressing her lips against his.

‘Let’s. I just can’t believe it all. I’m so happy, this is perfect. I just… Look at everyone having fun and being happy and laughing so much! And it isn’t just because they’re drunk. I’ve never seen all my friends in such a pure state of happiness for so long. I haven’t seen any of them smile so much. I think no one has gone half an hour without smiling once I arrived.’

Don't read the last page

But I stay when you're lost and I'm scared and you're turning away

I want your midnights

But I'll be cleaning up bottles with you on New Year's Day

The night was filled with laughter, and the hours slid past at record speed.

Heels were kicked off and dancing took place. It really wasn’t good, and they would be divided between loathing their embarrassing postures in the pictures, and loving the photographs because of the memories they contained.

You squeeze my hand three times in the back of the taxi I can tell that it's going to be a long road I'll be there if you're the toast of the town babe Or if you strike out and you're crawling home

Midnight was approaching. Shoes were put back on again, and the girls were provided with the blazers of the men. The Final Countdown was put on – James’ final joke of 2019 – as the group started counting down. The new decade was approaching, and they all stood outside united in the snow, bottles of champagne in hand.

Ten seconds to go and the bottles were shaken, ready to be popped at midnight. They screamed and laughed their way through the countdown, and then the moment was there.

Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you And I will hold on to you

Corks went flying and lips were kissed as firework shot into the sky. Streams of champagne reached for the sky as friends embraced. They could see the explosions of gold, red, purple, green and blue from the nearby city perfectly above the lake, it was even reflected on the lake. Champagne was drunk from the bottle, and group pictures were taken of all of them in the snow, with fireworks artfully exploding in the distance.

All loneliness and heartache of the past years, and all insecurity about the future was left in the old year, obliterated by the happiness of the past few days.

A new era in their lives was approaching, and they were ready for it, together, united.

Please don't ever become a stranger whose laugh I could recognize anywhere Please don't ever become a stranger whose laugh I could recognize anywhere

They would always remember the first New Year they celebrated together. Even as responsibilities started entering their lives, they always fought to keep the week between Christmas and the New Year free for each other to capture the feeling of old, and create new ones.

Slowly, people were added to the celebrations. Susan and James brought their partners with them the following year, and Princey his first serious girlfriend the year after. And then, a ring was added to the company around Susan’s finger. Esther and Babington were up next, at the ages of twenty-seven and thirty, to tie the knot. Then followed a round belly for Charlotte, who was surprised when Susan announced her flat belly contained a baby as well. And at the end of the decade, Esther announced her pregnancy and Georgiana and Crowe who hadn’t been meant to last the first time around, reunited after finally accepting all that came along with growing up, and this time they decided to put in the serious work. Crowe admitted himself to an AA program the day after New Year, they were wed the day after he got his One Year degree.

They exited the decade with a big Gatsby Party, and though they had indeed had a bigger financial strain on their backs and uncorked non-alcoholic champagne like they would’ve had it been the 1920’s, they were all still just as happy and rich in friends as they had started the decade. Their friendship had been the best gift they could’ve ever received.

____________________________________________________________

71263 words, 12 works, you guys! I'm 4 days late (10 if we count the official deadline of December 25) but I've finally wrapped up the 12 Days of Sanditon.

I want to thank everyone for reading, liking and commenting! It has been such a delight and your words of encouragement kept me convinced to persevere and wrap up the challenge even as I found myself uninspired or tired. It hasn't been my best work, I probably skipped over a lot of typo's and grammar mistakes, and the wordings and stories probably weren't always as good but I haven't written as consistently as this since I was 15! I could've probably spared myself a lot of trouble by not making my works as long (some are well over twenty pages on word), but I had a blast and I hope you did too! I love this fandom, tiny and young as it is (and it won’t get a lot better since the show’s been cancelled) and all the active people in it <3

Much love, Lynn

#12 days of sanditon

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queenmorgawse · 5 years

Text

transmigration for dummies

a mdzs scum villain au, based on @lee-luca‘s art. read on ao3. ( warning : implied car accident. )

Jingyi’s first thought upon waking up is ugh, it’s still dark outside. He’s lucky enough to live fairly close to school, so he doesn’t have to wake up anytime before seven, so why—

Memories from last night (?) hit. Thus, his second thought is shit, mom’s going to kill me.

Figuratively, of course. Besides the fact she’d miss him too much (pro tip : as long as your mom still brings you plates of sliced fruit, she still loves you), Jingyi’s fairly sure he’s already dead.

The question of how, though, remains mostly unanswered. Of course, that’s the point : he might have avoided dying if he’d been paying attention. But as things are, and try as he may to remember anything at all, there’s only the screech of tires and someone’s blood-curdling scream and then nothing. The thought makes his skin crawl.

He blinks at the ceiling blearily. There are probably other people right in this room, because he can hear quiet shuffling and whispers and the unmistakable sound of early morning yawns. Is this some kind of dorm? Did he flash back in time and wake up in his old boarding school?

No way. He hated the place, and it apparently hated him back, but at least the pillows there didn’t feel like they were made of wood. Jingyi sits up, rubbing at his neck with a wince, and the sight that greets him knocks the breath right out of him.

All around him, young boys are getting out of bed, shrugging out of their sleeping clothes and into white robes, occasionally shoving at each other until another friend shushes them into behaving, all of it in almost perfect silence. The scene looks like it was lifted straight out of some wuxia movie he used to watch on school nights to procrastinate homework.

Nobody seems to notice him staring (yet), so Jingyi keeps at it. Their clothes look kind of familiar. Maybe it’s cosplay? Wait, I know! Cloud-patterned robes and forehead ribbons, that’s it ⎯ these guys look exactly like Lan Wangji from ‘Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation’! The art’s everywhere on his Twitter feed, it’s hard not to catch the reference.

As soon as the thought crosses his mind, something rings right next to his ear. He almost screams, right before he’s cut off by a cheerful mechanical voice.

【Activation Code：「Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation」. Automatically triggering system.】

Okay, what the hell?

Jingyi glances around. No one else seems to have heard anything. The oddest reaction he gets is from some of the boys, who stare at him, somewhat bewildered, before blinking it off and turning away, as if deciding it really isn’t any of their business if he decides to laze around in bed a little longer.

【We welcome your entrance into the System. This system is based on the developing concept of 「I wish school wasn’t that boring」. We hope to provide you with the best experience. It is our sincere hope that during the course of your experience, you can achieve what you desired. We pray for your happiness. 】

System? He can practically feel gears turning in his head before they click to a conclusion. Seems like all this time spent reading novels on his phone during class is paying off. He’s not that fond of transmigration novels, but damn if he’s not glad he’s read at least a few now. What does this entail, though? Is there any way to go back?

Mom’s going to miss me.

Even as concern clouds his mind, some little part of Jingyi knows there’s probably no turning back from here. What if he comes to in a hospital, bedridden forever, unable to even move his pinkie finger? What if the other him - if there’s another him at all - really is dead, and going home just means fading?

“Oi.” He grabs the nearest teenager by the sleeve and - by the looks of it - almost startles the soul out of him. “Where are we?”

The other looks at him like he’s grown a second head. “What do you mean, where are we?”

“A-Ming, be kind, Shui-jie just allowed him out of the infirmary yesterday night,” another voice chides gently. Someone lays a warm hand on his forehead. “Jingyi, are you feeling better?”

He rubs his eyes. A kind-eyed face comes into focus. The newcomer’s hair is already neatly tied back with a cloud-patterned band, and his blue-gray eyes gaze down at him with enough benevolence that Jingyi feels his breakdown step back a little. “I’m alright,” he says, if only he can’t think of anything else that won’t sound weird.

“These are the Cloud Recesses,” Pretty Boy continues, with all the patience of a saint. He misinterprets Jingyi’s widened eyes wildly. “Don’t strain yourself, you’ve hit your head pretty hard, and Shui-jie said you might be a little confused when you wake up. But you remember me, right? Sizhui? We were together on that night-hunt.”

As Sizhui speaks, another screen has materialized. The AI, or whatever it is exactly, barrels on with renewed enthusiasm.

【System activation successful! Binding your role: Gusu Lan Sect, junior disciple ‘Lan Jingyi’. Starting B Points: 100】

Sizhui is still staring at him, looking increasingly worried. Jingyi’s brain short-circuits in more ways than one. He manages a weak “Huh”, clearly not at top eloquence.

Hey, man, Alexa, whatever you are, what the fuck?

As if reading his mind, the disembodied voice chirped, 【You initiated the command for the system’s implementation and are already bound to the account ‘Lan Jingyi.’】

I heard you the first time! To be honest, he’s still trying to process the implications. This is, as he suspected, the plot of ‘Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation’, plagiarized by this insane system down to a T, and Sizhui is Lan Sizhui, the protagonist’s kid. Not that either of them know that. If there’s even a smidgen of logic in this whole endeavor, he can assume he’s starting from the beginning, when everyone’s clueless about their relationship to everyone.

At least, if Lan Jingyi’s still alive, this must be before the Yi City arc. He can make it there too, right? Provided he doesn’t die from snorting corpse powder in the creepiest town in Fantasy Ancient China. Cool, cool, cool, cool. This is absolutely fine.

Jeez, he even thought it was funny that one of the side characters in the novel shared his first name. If he could go back, he’d punch his past self in the face then beg him to think about anyone else⎯ like someone cooler, or just someone who doesn’t die a stupid death as cannon fodder just to be forgotten in the next five chapters.

He buries his face in his hands, takes a deep breath and tries to calm down. So, what do I do now...System? Can I call you Alexa?

【You may not. As the plot progresses, there will be many point-giving missions gradually opened. Please make sure that the points obtained for each mission are not less than zero. Otherwise, the system will automatically give punishment. 】

Punishment? Doesn’t sound ominous at all. Just for that, he might be tempted to call it Alexa anyway. As if latching onto his train of thoughts, the System chides, 【Failure to keep your points value above zero will result in automatic deportation back to your original world. 】

Note to self : don’t complain too much. As it turns out, things can always get worse.

He digs through his brain to remember everything he can about Lan Jingyi. Not that there’s much to go off of in canon, given the page time he was allotted before his untimely death, some thirty-something chapters in.

Okay, be methodical about this. It’s easy enough to place himself within Gusu Lan sect : even if his brain had somehow glossed over such an obvious piece of information, his surroundings would have reminded him soon enough. Jingyi’s fairly sure that the original was even part of the main clan. Does this mean he’s got other relatives now, maybe even a new set of parents? The moment the thought crosses his mind, he pushes it down. This deserves its own, separate freak-out.

Moving on to Lan Jingyi himself. In retrospect, Jingyi regrets not paying more attention to him, but why would he? The guy had been a background fixture, mildly important as a supporting character in the junior disciples’ group but still removed from the rest of them because - he’s not going to lieto himself - this dude was kind of a jerk. He remembers Lan Sizhui was nice to the original, but Lan Sizhui’s nice to basically everyone, even Jin Ling at his whiniest. It’s not much of a criteria. Even now, he’s shown nothing but patience to New-Jingyi. Some of it may be due to the fact he apparently just recovered from a pretty serious injury, but he’ll take whatever he can get.

The more he thinks about it, the more chaotic Jingyi’s thoughts get. How is he supposed to keep living here? It’s not his world, it’s not even real. And what if someone realizes he’s an impostor? If he gets thrown out of the sect on grounds of...possession or something, what’s he going to do?

He grunts, pressing his hands against his temples. Breathe in, breathe out. He can do this. Here’s the plan.

Step one : integrate. Make friends where the original guy didn’t manage (or didn’t want to). Besides potentially coming in handy later, Jingyi’s always hated being lonely.

Step two : learn everything he can. If he’d known, he would have spent more time reading up on ‘Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation’’s lore, but there’s no use crying over spilled milk. Keep it up at least until the plot begins. Then, he’s got to assume either the original plot or the System will show him the way. It did mention missions, right?

Step three : reach the end of Yi City arc alive, and then keep surviving. Maybe he won’t ever be the protagonist, but he can at least avoid kicking the bucket like some random extra. Best case scenario, the System will drop-kick him into another story (can you imagine landing in Proud Immortal Demon Way? ugh). Worst case scenario, he’ll just fade into the void, like some permanent game over.

Unpleasant. But at least, either way, he’s never going to spend a fortune in college funds.

“Jingyi?” Someone’s waving a tentative hand in front of his face. Jingyi blinks a few times, realizing he must have looked pretty spaced out. “Do you need any help getting ready?”

Sizhui again. The guy really is too sweet for his own good, Jingyi reflects, but as long as he’s out of his depth, he could do with a bit of help. So he does as any normal polite classmate would do : he smiles at the other and goes, “Yeah, if you don’t mind. Thanks.”

Almost immediately, the System blares out, 【Warning. Your current attitude constitutes a violation of behavior, please remain careful. In the event of another breach, the system will automatically give punishment. 】

Oh, come on!

read chapter 2.

hi guys! i hope you liked reading this piece of crack as much as i liked writing it. i don't plan on having a regular update schedule for this fic, as it's a rather light work and uni's kicking my ass on the daily, but i definitely plan to write more of it as soon as i can. some notes : - i took the liberty to make modern!jingyi a second gen kid, if only because he's going to keep making references (at least in his inner monologue) to his 'previous life' and i don't trust myself to be accurate if it was still set in china. and also because i do have a tendency to Project. - some of the system's 'standard' lines are from bcnovels' translation of scum villain.

#mdzs #mo dao zu shi #grandmaster of demonic cultivation #mdzs fic #lan jingyi #lan sizhui #zhuiyi #kim's fics #transmigrator!ljy

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lovemesomerafael · 5 years

Text

EL AMOR TODO LO PUEDE Chapter 26: Find Me A Find

Chapters 1-25

Occasional strains of music and tantalizing aromas wafted up to Laura’s apartment, spurring her to hurry. Amazingly, on a Saturday when she wasn’t working, the early fall weather was perfect and there was a Latino street fair happening just a block from her apartment. She tossed a faded jean jacket over a sleeveless dress of soft white cotton, tied on tattered Keds that had been red at one time, and headed out. Her hair was still damp from the shower, since she’d gone to an early class at the gym. Feeling virtuous for getting up early and doing what she needed to do, she was ready for a sunny day of doing nothing but enjoying the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes of the street fair.

She took the stairs to the street and followed the music. The city had blocked off ten blocks of the street, and vendors and fairgoers had pushed the boundaries into some of the side streets. There was a grassy park at one end with a bandstand on each side, the lawn full of blankets with couples and families relaxing and enjoying the music and sunshine. Even in the happy crowd, Laura was vigilant, and felt a little naked not being armed. She thought that was probably permanent now. She did have her shield. You never knew.

As she stood admiring handmade copper jewelry in a booth and chatting casually with the wizened abuela whose daughter was the artist, Laura heard her name called. She turned toward the voice to see Lucia Barba rushing toward her, arms out, an elated smile on her face. Señora Barba grabbed her into a bear hug, excitedly greeting her.

“Laura, it’s so good to see you! I didn’t get a chance to thank you for what you did for Rafael, and I’m so grateful. I knew something was wrong. Thank you for keeping my son safe.”

Laura laughingly hugged her back, thinking again how much she liked Señora Barba.

“El gusto es mio, Señora. Gracias por dejarme ayudar.”[1]

“And I was right, wasn’t I? He complained, but he let you help him.”

Laura smiled, looking past Lucia to see Rafael standing, trying to look annoyed behind his Ray-Bans.

“You called it,” she said to Lucia. “And it was a brilliant move to call Ramón. He was the one who pulled it all together. Which means it was you who really saved Rafael. All I did was hide him.”

“And pull a gun before that matón[2] could pull his. I wish I could have seen that.”

“Yeah, well. That’s what friends are for.”

Laura smiled at Rafael, who grinned back uncomfortably. He preferred not to be the topic of his mami’s conversation. You never knew what she might say.

“Well, we’re both grateful, aren’t we, Rafi?”

“We are,” he answered. “Thank you again, Detective.”

Laura tilted her head.

“Laura.”

Her smile brightened. She got a little thrill hearing him say her name, and was somewhat dazzled by how good he looked there in the sunshine, relaxed and casual in jeans and a white polo shirt. He hadn’t shaved. She wondered whether he knew how good that slight scruff looked on him.

“How are your bruises?” She asked.

“All but gone. Can we talk about something else?”

“What are you doing in Manhattan, Lucia?”

“If I want to see Rafi more than once a year, I have to come to him. Anyway, we love this fair. We come every year. You should let me introduce you to my friend Inez. Her daughter in law has a booth just down there and she makes the most beautiful Colombian polleras coloras.[3] I don’t know where you’d wear them, but they’re gorgeous. It’s just down here…”

Laura looked back at Rafael for help as she was enveloped in Lucia’s arm, and voice, and persona. Much more comfortable now that he had recovered from the initial shock of seeing Laura here, and that he was no longer the subject of conversation, he was perfectly happy to simply follow, smiling broadly, as Laura experienced the force of nature that was his mother. And though he would never say it, he was ecstatic that his mother appeared to have conscripted Laura to experience the fair with them. This way, he could enjoy her company, without having to be the one to risk proposing that himself.

A few booths further down the street, they reached one that was a riot of brilliant colors and flowing fabrics, trimmed ruffled skirts moving gracefully in the breeze. Lucia saw her friend, a short, squat Colombian woman with a brilliant smile, and introduced Laura to her. Soon several women were crowding in to greet Lucia. Aside from a few that had no translation, every word was in Spanish. Laura had all she could do to follow the discussion. Between the different accents and overlapping conversations, she was too busy listening to offer much comment herself.

After several minutes of animated conversation, she felt Rafael move up just behind her, close enough to quietly murmur into her ear in English, “Let me know if you need rescuing.”

She leaned into him as much as she dared. “I may take you up on that.”

“It’s my turn.”

Something about the tone of his voice bothered her. She turned a bit to look up into his face. “You OK?”

When he put an arm lightly around her shoulder, she felt it throughout her entire body. A shadow over his face told her he was not entirely over the experience he’d just come through. “Just glad it’s over.”

“If you need to talk…”

He squeezed her shoulder, turning her back toward the group of women, all of whom were watching their quiet exchange with great interest. “Later.”

The older women began to cluck and fuss over “Rafi”, the way they spoke to (and about) him making clear they had known him from childhood. It was also obvious they were intensely curious about Laura’s relationship to him.

Lucia Barba was nothing if not savvy. As the three wandered down the crowded street, they eventually came to a very busy booth selling empanadas, owned by a family Rafael had known his entire life. Lucia quite calculatedly got herself “talked into” helping the family tend the booth, leaving Rafael and Laura on their own.

“Vaya[4], Rafael… Show Laura a good time. Enjoy the day together,” she called cheerfully, tying on an apron.

Laura strongly suspected she was matchmaking, and Rafael knew for sure that’s what she was doing. He pretended to be annoyed with her, but Lucia wasn’t fooled for a second.

“Mami, usted es un entrometido,”[5] he whispered to her as he kissed her cheek before leaving the booth.

She pulled him into a hug to cover her reply. “Solo te estoy cuidando, mijo. Ella es linda. Ella te gusta. Y ella está loca por ti.”[6]

“Puedo encontrar mis propias citas.”[7]

“Pero no lo harás. Entonces lo haré por ti.”[8]

Rafael and Laura stepped out into the sunshine, joining the busy throng of fairgoers. This was the part Laura was absolutely useless at. She wanted nothing more than to spend time – the whole day, if she could – just walking around with Rafael enjoying the street fair. But precisely because it was so important to her, she had no idea how to let him know that without embarrassing herself. She stood, completely unable to think of a thing to say.

Rafael was too consumed with his own thoughts to notice. He was thinking that, since his mother had gone to so much trouble to arrange this golden opportunity, he wasn’t about to waste it. At the same time, his internal alarms were in overdrive. His mami had done this to him more than once, but never with a woman he was in any danger of truly caring about. He felt suspended, perfectly balanced between wanting to make an excuse to leave the fair and wanting to take Laura’s hand and show her everything.

They might have stood there forever, never making a move, had a stray breeze not blown a streamer from a neighboring booth. Its motion caught Rafael’s eye. He turned to see Laura, a lock of her hair caught by the same breeze, pushing it behind her ear. She looked at him as he looked at her, and gave him a smile that made his decision for him.

“Come with me,” he said, putting a hand on her lower back to steer her into the flow of the crowd. “I want to show you something.”

Laura shivered, feeling him touch her in such a proprietary way. Rafael wondered how she would react if he kept his hand on her, or even put an arm around her. He talked himself out of doing either.

As they made their way through the crowd, Rafael asked as casually as he could, “How was your date with Ramón?”

“Short.”

“Oh? What did he do?” For a man who had no intention of getting involved, Rafael was surprisingly relieved to hear that Laura’s date with his cousin hadn’t gone well.

“He was fine. There’s just… nothing there.” Her nonchalance seemed genuine to him. “We ran out of things to say by the end of the first drink.”

“Too bad.”

She shrugged. “It’s O.K. So what are you going to show me?”

“Something I know Ramón didn’t tell you.”

They walked about a block, not hurrying, just seeing the sights, watching the crowd and trying to get used to the lovely surprise gift Lucia had given them: an entire day to enjoy together. They pointed out interesting booths or people to one another and tried to make each other laugh. Spanish being by far the most prevalent language around them, and as much Rafael’s first language as English, they naturally fell into speaking Spanish. Although she clearly tried, Laura would always have a fairly heavy American accent. She had trouble with verb tenses, like everyone who learns a new language as an adult, and once or twice he had to stifle a laugh at the way she expressed something. Not that the words were wrong, exactly, just in an odd order and sometimes descriptive of something that she didn’t know the Spanish word for. He found it endearing.

Often, they would be jostled or separated by the milling crowd, and Rafael wondered whether he should, or could, take Laura’s hand. He wanted to – very much wanted to – but wasn’t sure he could pass it off as mere logistical necessity rather than the affectionate gesture it would actually have been. Wrestling with the decision, he hadn’t done it by the time they reached his destination.

A stage had been set up at the back of a vacant lot at the end of the block they’d walked, with a fair number of people standing before it watching a group of dancers. The men wore close-fitting black pants and chest-baring shirts in white, and the women wore brightly colored, very sexy dresses with short, ruffled skirts that bared their legs with every move and twirl.

“I’m related to about half the people on that stage,” Rafael told her.

“Seriously? What’s that dance?”

“It’s the cha-cha-chá in Cuba, but here we just call it the cha-cha. And the third guy from the left is Ramón. With the girl in the red dress?”

Laura squinted and watched Ramón for a moment. “Wow! He’s amazing! Why would he not tell me he’s such a great dancer? That seems like a pretty good pick-up line.”

“He’s private about it. He’s proud of it, but a lot of the guys on his squad don’t even know he dances.”

“Who’s the girl?”

“Well, that’s another reason he doesn’t talk about it much. That’s his sister, Selena.”

Rafael and Laura watched the dancers for about half an hour, as they performed a number of different dances, all beautiful and fascinating to Laura. He pointed out which of the dancers were relatives and it was, in fact, about half of them.

“So, do you dance?”

“Oh, hell no. My father wouldn’t hear of it. My ex-wife did, though.”

Laura was glad they were focusing on the stage when he said that. It had never occurred to her that Rafael might have been married, although it probably should have. The distraction of the dancers gave her the chance to react without him watching her while she did.

“Oh, you were married?” She tried to sound merely casually interested.

“Single worst experience of my life, and that includes two root canals and the New York State bar exam.”

“Ouch. How long were you married?”

“Interesting question. I was married for seven years. She was married for a somewhat shorter period of time.”

“Oh, man. I’m sorry.”

“Yeah. Have you had about enough of the dancing Barbas? I’m getting hungry.”

“I could watch this all day. But food sounds good.”

As they made their way through the crowd that had piled up behind them watching the dancers, he reached back and took her hand. He didn’t intertwine his fingers with hers, but held her hand in his as they snaked through the knots of onlookers. His hand felt strong and warm, and Laura allowed herself an inner shriek of glee. So what if she had a dorky grin on her face? He was leading her through the crowd; he couldn’t see it.

When they reached the street again, he let her hand fall. She was disappointed, but tried to play it cool.

“And you?” He continued the conversation when they were again side by side, walking down the street, shoulders barely touching. “Ever been married?”

“I was engaged once. God and José Cuervo had other ideas. We’re still good friends, but… some things you just don’t come back from.”

“I’m sorry. Would I be right in guessing that the groom-that-wasn’t is Peter Stone?”

“Got it in one.”

“I have another very important question that will determine the future of our friendship. What is your political position on churros?”

“Pro. I am firmly pro-churro.”

“Good, I don’t have to shun you. C’mon, let me buy you some.”

They found a small patch of grass in front of one of the stages in the park, where a group of musicians were doing their best to play salsa music. A number of people danced in front of the stage, apparently determined to enjoy the music, however bad.

Sitting down next to Rafael and accepting the churro he offered her, Laura gestured toward the stage. “Should I try to guess how many of those guys you’re related to?”

“You think all Hispanics are related? That’s racist.”

“Mmm-hmm. How many?”

Rafael looked carefully at the stage. “Two.”

Laura whooped with laughter. It had been a lucky guess. She had heard Rafael’s mother and her friends discussing one woman’s daughters who played percussion instruments in a salsa band.

For a long time after that, they sat companionably and people-watched, talking casually about Rafael’s huge extended family, people they both knew, and the differences between New York and Chicago. At some point, Rafael laid down on his side, his head on his hand, looking up at Laura. He looked suave yet casual, all sunglasses and stubble and thick, dark hair blowing slightly in the breeze. She wanted nothing more than to stretch out beside him and pull him on top of her. She realized just a moment too late that she was staring.

“Something wrong, Detective?”

“N- no, I’m just… wondering whether you want to talk about what happened with Judge Renseau. I don’t want to ruin a nice day, but I do want to, you know, be supportive.” Whew. Nice save.

To her surprise, he told her candidly how frightened he’d been, how helpless he’d felt, and how comforted he’d been by her visit to his office.

“I know I didn’t say it, but I really appreciated that. I felt pretty alone.”

“You weren’t.”

“I know that now.” His mischievous grin told her he was about to make fun of her. “I wish you could have seen your face. You expected me to read you the riot act and throw you out of my office.”

“Pretty much. But I had no choice. I get the feeling nobody says no to your mother.”

“You would be right about that.” He looked down at the grass, pulling a blade and staring at it in apparent fascination. “It must’ve taken some guts for you to come to my office.”

She smirked at him. “I’m not afraid of you. Unfortunately for you.”

“Desafortunadamente.”[9]

“What?”

“It’s a tongue twister, I know. Try it again. Desafortunadamente.” He wondered how she would take him correcting her Spanish, half expecting her to take offense. That would have been uncomfortable, but what she did instead made him even more uncomfortable.

She became very serious as she asked him to say it again, looking at his mouth and trying very hard to imitate his pronunciation. It was so cute and inexplicably hot he found himself repositioning his legs to hide his reaction. She had no ego about it. She understood that she would always speak Spanish with an American accent and probably always make mistakes. Despite that, or maybe because of that, she really wanted to improve. She was willing to be entirely instructed by him and repeat the syllables, and the word, as many times as she had to until he was satisfied. He imagined her looking like that, so intent and serious, eager to get it right and win his approval, when he asked her to do other things with her mouth.

“That’s it. You got it. Let’s walk.” He popped up from his position on the grass so fast she wondered if she’d done something wrong. Angling his body away from her, he held a hand out to her and helped her up from the ground.

As they walked the street, going back in the direction of their apartment building, their conversation seemed to stay on more serious topics. Not deeply philosophical, just subjects more personal than observations about people around them or the booths they passed. As Rafael was explaining the reasons he had become a Prosecutor, he turned toward her to say something, and found that she wasn’t there.

Turning back the way they had come, he saw her about 5 steps behind him, in the act of twisting a greasy young man’s arm behind his back.

“NYPD! On your knees, Sparky,” she told him in a commanding voice. He had no choice; with the angle at which she held his fingers, it was the only way to release the pressure. As he hit the ground, she used her free hand to pull her shield from an inside pocket of her jacket and show it to him.

“Look, man, I’ll give it back! Just take it, man!” He held up a wallet in a creamy, fine black leather. Rafael’s wallet.

Laura plucked it out of his hand and, seeing Rafael step up next to her, handed it to him. “So, Harvard? You’re the boss. What do you want to do?”

Rafael couldn’t have hidden his smile if he’d wanted to. He actually laughed. “It’s a party. Let him go.”

“You sure?” She asked, not releasing the pickpocket.

“Hey, listen to him, Lady, he’s the boss.”

“Shut up,” she bawled, shooting a disgusted look at the kid on his knees at her feet and, had she known it, sounding exactly like Fin.

“Let him go, Detective. I don’t want to spoil our day doing paperwork.”

Laura helped the kid to his feet, but didn’t release his arm immediately. She looked up at him as he towered over her. “Get out of here. And I mean all the way out. I see you again today and we are gonna be doing that paperwork, you got that? Do you realize you just pickpocketed a D.A?”

The kid lost it. His eyes went huge and he bolted to the side, between two booths and into a side street.

For what had to be the twentieth time that day, Rafael was enchanted. As they both laughed uncontrollably, he unconsciously put an arm around her shoulder and they started back down the street.

“How did that happen?”

“I saw him pick your pocket.”

“You saw… my wallet was in my back pocket. What, exactly, were you looking at?”

Laura blushed furiously, causing Rafael to laugh even harder and squeeze her to him. He couldn’t help it. The look on her face was so adorable he simply had to hug her as he shook with laughter.

“I wasn’t… I saw movement behind you.”

“You saw movement? Please. You better hope for a particularly impressionable jury.”

Holy shit, how am I even walking right now? If he hugs me again, or smiles like that, I’m just going to throw him to the ground and do him right here. And then I’ll be the one being arrested.

“You know, you could try being a little grateful. I did you a favor.”

“You did, and I am grateful. I’m not sure whether I’m happier that I still have my wallet or that you were checking out my ass.”

“I was so not checking – forget it. Next time, Sparky gets to keep your wallet.” All I have to do is look up, just put my face somewhere in the kissing zone… Laura was completely frustrated by her inability to make smooth passes at men she really liked. This was about the fifth time she’d felt like, if she just leaned a bit more toward him, or stepped a little closer… But the moment would pass without either of them making a move. She was sure she was the only one feeling those moments. She was wrong.

They found a small stage in a side street where a scruffy band of people played a Peruvian-flavored music heavy on charangos, bandurrias, and pan flutes, with several different hand-held drums and other percussion instruments. There was a core of players, but others appeared simply to be joining from time to time, just jamming. The music was great. Both Laura and Rafael wanted to stay and listen, so they found a spot on the grass to sit. Once Laura was settled, Rafael went in search of something to eat for dinner while they listened.

As he walked back to the street and tried to choose among all the delicious foods available, Rafael thought back over the day. He knew he was in trouble. He could not remember spending a more enjoyable day. He tried to think of a word to describe how he was feeling about Laura, even aside from his serious sexual attraction to her. He felt extremely… fond of her. He liked her immensely, looked forward to what she was going to say or do next, and just generally wanted to be around her. Fond. Yes, that was the word. Extremely fond.

He decided that, since they’d been sampling foods from assorted Latin American countries throughout the day, he wanted to bring her something Cuban. He chose a booth from which a mouthwatering aroma was permeating the air, bring back boxes of ropa vieja with black beans, yellow rice, and plantains, with big cups of lemonade. It wasn’t easy to eat sitting on the grass and, since both of them were wearing white, they laughed through the challenge of trying to spill as little as possible. The music was so good, they stayed listening and talking for a long time after they finished eating.

They were both sorry to see the light fading. Vendors were beginning to pack up their wares, and the crowd was thinning. When the band announced that they were playing their last song, Rafael and Laura looked regretfully at one another and gathered up the debris of their dinner.

Laura never thought about what she was doing until she had already reached out and taken Rafael’s hand as they walked. If she had, she would never have had the courage to do it. The action was simply an extension of her happiness at being with him, and her deep attraction to him. His heart gave a lurch as he felt her put her small hand in his and, this time, he entwined his fingers with hers. Neither gave any indication that they noticed anything unusual, although they were both thinking of nothing else.

“Rafael, this has been the best day. I really had fun. Thanks for everything,” she said as they approached their building. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Yes, she was matchmaking.”

Laura laughed. She wondered if he would say anything else, and was vaguely disappointed when he didn’t. She’d given him an opening big enough to drive a truck through.

He wished she hadn’t. Her delicate but hard to miss hint was so inviting he could hardly keep from abandoning all his stupid rules and asking her to marry him. Like he had been the night he’d built her cabinet, he was actually looking forward to getting away from her. It was too hard to be around her, with her ratty Keds and her adorably bad accent and her musical laugh, and remember his promise to himself.

“I’m going to hate going to the office tomorrow, especially if it’s another beautiful day,” he offered, hoping like hell to get the conversation to safer territory.

“It’s Sunday. Do you have to go in?” The weather? Really? That’s what you want to talk about?

“Unfortunately, I do. I have no wifi, and I’ve got a lot to get done for Monday.”

“What’s wrong with your wifi?”

“Above my pay grade. All I know is it’s out and my guy can’t get here until Wednesday.”

He opened the door for her, and she stepped past him.

“My wifi works fine. Use mine.”

“Your wifi isn’t going to reach up to my apartment.”

“Then come to mine. I actually have a table now, so you’ll have a surface to work on. I’m on duty, so I’m afraid you’ll be on your own, but you’re welcome to work at my place. I’ll give you a key.”

They walked across the lobby toward the elevators. “Laura, this is New York. You can’t just give your keys to anyone and say, ‘hey, come hang out in my apartment while I’m not there’.”

“I just did.”

“I could be a serial killer.”

“Are you?”

“Of course not.”

“Then we’re good. Stop off with me. I’ll give you a key.”

The elevator doors opened and they stepped in as he smiled and shook his head. This woman…

He followed her into her dark apartment and stood while she went into her kitchen, flipped on the light and took a key from a drawer. She stepped back around the counter and handed it to him.

“Use it, or don’t. But you really are welcome to, so you don’t have to go in to the office.”

“Thank you. I might do that.”

With that, they’d reached the moment that had been on both their minds for at least the last half hour. Rafael wanted to be as kind and natural as possible as he made his escape. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt Laura’s feelings, especially after such a magical day. Laura’s thoughts were entirely different. I know I’m gonna jack this up. But as God is my witness, that man is not walking out of here unkissed.

“Listen, Laura… There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you,” he said, quiet in the half light from the kitchen. “You know, the night with your Ikea cabinet… That was fun. And I’m sure you got whiplash from the way I’ve treated you since then.”

“You don’t have to say anything. You don’t owe me any explanations.”

“That’s good, because I don’t have any. But I do want to apologize. I treated you badly, and still when you heard I was in trouble, there you were, ready to do battle for me. So… I enjoyed that night we built that cabinet. I really did.”

“So did I.”

“And I’m sorry that I went right back to being a dick.”

“I didn’t say – “

“Detective, I’m apologizing. Doesn’t happen often. Try to keep up.”

They chuckled in their mutual discomfort.

“Apology accepted. And for the record? I do not think you’re a dick, and anytime a friend of mine is in trouble, I’m gonna be there. It’s kind of my thing.”

“So we’re friends then?”

“Try to keep up.”

With another of his sexy half-smiles, Rafael said, “It was a great day. I really enjoyed spending it with you. Thanks.”

Awkwardly, hesitantly, they fumbled their way into a hug that wasn’t what either of them wanted, but it was warm and affectionate, and it was enough.

[1] My pleasure. Thank you for letting me help.

[2] Thug, goon

[3] Traditional Colombian skirt that is long and made of a lot of fabric so it flows when the wearer dances

[4] Go

[5] Mami, you’re a busybody.

[6] I'm just looking out for you, my son. She's cute. You like her. And she's crazy about you.

[7] I can find my own dates.

[8] But you won’t. So I’ll do it for you.

[9] Unfortunately

#law & order svu #law & order: special victims unit #rafael barba #raul esparza #chicago pd #chicago fire #chicago med #peter stone #philip winchester

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magic-and-moonlit-wings · 5 years

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Hi, what are your thoughts on Strickler/Barbara? How would Claire get the Decimar Blade to break it's hold on Gunmar's army? Also, due to a string of days where my mum and dad get mad at me, I feel emotionally worn out and stressed. It's nothing too serious, and I love my family but I'm tired of always keeping my head down and letting them walk all over me, I'm 20, and this shit needs to stop. I'm not asking that you play psychiatrist, but do you have any advice or encouragement for me?

Stricklake:

I ship it, partially because I was first introduced to the show via some pro-Stricklake content and so it became a key aspect of my understanding of how the show worked before I’d even seen a single episode, and partially because I find the character dynamics really interesting.

(That first point, learning the ship before the show, also influenced me regarding Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The first episode I saw in it’s entirety was Something Blue, where Buffy and Spike are magically compelled to get engaged for most of the episode. Seeing that with no knowledge that the characters actually hated each other at the time, and then discovering later episodes where Spike was in love/obsessed with Buffy, meant I accepted them eventually getting together as a given.

That episode also left me under the impression that Buffy was a comedy series in a horror-style setting, so … that was a learning curve.

Interestingly, the same concept of ship-before-show had the opposite effect in my watching of Voltron: Legendary Defender.

I had seen so much Lance/Keith shipping content before I got around to watching the show that I began under the impression they were an established couple. Therefore, it was really confusing when the first episodes had Lance viewing Keith as his rival and Keith barely noticing Lance’s existence.

I never was able to see their supposed chemistry in canon sources, only in fic and fan art. Of course, I also quit watching after Season Six - I was starting to lose interest in the show by then and decided to stop while I was still having fun.)

In Season One of Trollhunters, there’s a lot of dramatic irony in Strickler and Barbara’s interactions, because the audience knows he’s a Changeling and can catch the double-speak, which makes their scenes interesting to watch. (Except for some people, whose past experience being manipulated meant those scenes were triggering instead and drove them away from the show. Shipping is very subjective that way.)

Barbara is obviously drawn to Walter. Literally moments after she meets him, she asks Jim whether he knows if his teacher is single. Walter, I don’t think, ever intended specifically to flirt with Barbara - the charm and charisma is just a Changeling thing, “yes, human, you should like me, you should trust me,” - and initially him dating her was taking an opportunity to put the Trollhunter in a vulnerable position. Developing actual feelings for Barbara caught him off-guard.

Barbara had a lot more agency and took more initiative in their relationship in the first season, both in starting their relationship (“Coffee? Dinner? Appendix removal?”) and in ending it. (“Don’t talk to me. You’re the one thing I’m looking forward to forgetting.”)

Yeah, while we’re on this subject: from my perspective, they broke up at the end of Season One, and whatever’s going on as of Season Three is a new relationship.

When they meet again in the third season, Barbara’s mostly reactionary, and Walter stumbles a lot because the writers seemed to be treating him like he was already finished his redemption arc by the time they met again in Parental Guidance, rather than still midway through it.

I’ve written before, I believe, that their Season Three dynamic would be much improved by the following two things:

1) If Walter actually apologized at some point; and

2) If Barbara had contacted him after getting her memories back in Parental Guidance, rather than him showing up at her house uninvited after the events of Bad Coffee. This would give him the chance to confess and apologize for his past misdeeds while confirming the truth of her recovered memories.

He could then either back her up when she contacts Nana and the Nuñezes, or convince her to approach the Trollhunter team first, which would give the kids a safe human adult to go to about troll stuff. Forcing the reveals had potential to go a lot worse than it did.

Having Barbara and Walter’s next contact be on her terms would have also balanced out their power dynamic a little. It’s always been skewed in his favour because he has more information than she does. Having him demonstrate basic respect for her boundaries, by not approaching her after the last thing she said to him was basically that she never wanted to see him again, would be more palatable as well as making her more proactive in their Season Three interactions.

So in my opinion, canon portrayal of this ship started strong but ended clumsily, which is where fanfiction comes in.

Trollhunter Claire and the Decimaar Blade:

I had assumed, or rather guessed, that the Eclipse Armour would let the Trollhunter steal and use the Decimaar Blade, which seems to be magically tied to Gunmar similarly to how Daylight is tied to the Trollhunter. (See: Gunmar conjuring his sword; Daylight vanishing when Draal tried to wield it.)

The spinoff novels Welcome to the Darklands and Age of the Amulet state that the Decimaar Blade used to belong to Orlagk the Oppressor, who was the Gumm-Gumm Warlord before Gunmar killed him and took his position. Therefore, we can conclude the sword is tied to the position of Gumm-Gumm ruler, and that rulership of the Gumm-Gumms is passed down by right of conquest.

I figured Gunmar would be killed by his own sword and the Trollhunter would get full control of the Decimaar Blade automatically. (I guess the Trollhunter could’ve still gotten the sword even with Gunmar killed by Eclipse if the writers had gone for this option.)

I don’t know how controlling the Decimaar Blade would work, but I assume it’s at least semi-intuitive.

It might be a burst where the Trollhunter frees every mind-controlled troll all at once, or Claire might have to go through all the Gumm-Gumms freeing their minds one-by-one and … dealing with any that weren’t actually mind-controlled.

Regarding family stuff:

That sounds like it sucks a lot and I’m sorry you’re going through it.

I don’t know how reasonable or unreasonable your parents and other family members are, so I don’t know how well it would go over if you were to say, “The way you’re treating me is exhausting and stressful and I need you to stop [doing specific thing that’s distressing me] and try [less hurtful/more constructive thing] instead.”

I also don’t know your job prospects or state of health or financial situation (because those are all facets of personal information you should not be sharing with a stranger on the internet), and so I do not feel able to offer the reassurance “You won’t have to live with them forever,” because for all I know moving out is not a feasible option for you.

However, if that does sound like something you can say to your parents and moving out is in your hypothetical eventual future, those are probably the best reassurances I can offer that are actually relevant, as opposed to abstract comfort like “so long as there is Internet, you can look at pictures of baby penguins whenever you have a connection.”

#ask me anything #Stricklake #Walter Strickler #Dr Barbara Lake #shipping #narrative #Characterization #Trollhunters #Tales of Arcadia #alternate universe #Claire Nuñez #swords #mind control #Anonymous asks about Trollhunter!Claire #also #family #relationships #Penguin

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tvhnc · 5 years

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TAHNEE; TRAGEDY//ROMANCE (ALBUM) (2019.)

in the wake of a terrible break up with former girlfriend, Margo Massey, and a highly followed romance with break out Australian star Matthew Harris comes the anticipated album from lyrical wonder Tahnee Bianchi. a two part cinematic. dramatic and sonically explosive masterpiece. you get an inside into the bombastic life of a superstar. a raw, honest but very tahnee narrative that beautifully explains the hardships of love in an industry that thrives on fallout.

CHAPTER ONE

1) HAUNTED

❝ in the opening song you are greeted by a heart racing and anxiety driven track that beautifully implies the scared feeling of running from danger with no idea where you’re going. YOU AND I WALK A FRAGILE LINE I HAVE KNOWN IT ALL THIS TIME BUT I NEVER THOUGHT I’D LIVE TO SEE IT BREAK. tahnee explicitly confessing she never saw the end coming in this relationship despite knowing they were travelling a road where it was easy to crash. the song is hauntingly beautiful and horrifying honest, with the next verse conveying desperation for something to fill the void. THEY WILL TRY TO TAKE AWAY MY PAIN AND THEY JUST MIGHT MAKE ME SMILE BUT THE WHOLE TIME I WISHING THEY WERE YOU INSTEAD. a drum driven song, not accidentally influenced by margos career choice in ghost galleries. a blatant parallel telling the tv show host she can’t go back from her relationship with her she’s HAUNTED. ❞ @ofcmargos

2) DANCING WITH OUR HANDS TIED

❝ another dramatic track that tacks a softer take on the heart beat inducing backing. a sadder song where we get a look into margo and tahnees relationship. MY LOVE HAD BEEN FROZEN DEEP BLUE BUT YOU PAINTED ME GOLDEN. and for anyone that follows the singer-song writer you’ll be well aware she’s a very cold person but in these lyrics we get a candid view of someone who managed to bring a golden glow into her life. possibly the most upsetting line being; I KNEW THERE WAS NO ONE IN THE WORLD WHO COULD TAKE IT I HAD A BAD FEELING. where she confesses she’s always had a hunch no one would be able to deal with her, a rare look inside a stoic mind. dancing with our hands tied insinuates that what they had was freeing and beautiful and yet there was always something holding them back. tahnee adressing that she LOVED YOU IN SPITE OF DEEP FEARS THAT THE WORLD WOULD DIVIDE US even though ultimately they can crashing down. ❞ . @ofcmargos

3) THE WAY I LOVED YOU

❝ coming in to track three is seemingly a little easier, not as stress ridden and bombastic. in fact at first we’re treated to what is seemingly a perfect romance (possibly about matthew harris). HE IS SENSIBLE AND SO INCREDIBLE AND ALL MY SINGLE FRIENDS ARE JEALOUS. she explains how perfect and easy it is, most specifically in the second verse where she explains it’s too easy it’s in fact boring. HE’S CHARMING AND ENDEARING AND I’M COMFORTABLE. comfortable but not happy. because you’re soon to find out that what she misses is the rollercoaster ride of dating someone that can actually handle her someone that challenges her and makes her someone she never thought she could be. I NEVER KNEW I COULD FEEL THAT MUCH AND THAT’S THE WAY I LOVE YOU. a simple lyric that hits hard because tahnee isn’t the emotive person in every day life and to know someone so deadpan could be cracked open by someone is one hell of a feat on margos end. ❞ @ofcmargos

4) WONDERLAND

❝ once again we’re treated to something more magical sounding. almost as if the suns coming out again in this track, alas through all the magic- a metaphor to how it feels to be in love- you’re hit with reality WE TOOK A WRONG TURN AND WE FELL DOWN THE RABIT HOLE. tahnee taking an alice in wonderland themed approach to the feeling of being TOO IN LOVE TO THINK STRAIGHT and yet having danger all around you. STRANGERS WATCHING WHISPERS TURNED TO TALKING AND TALKING TURNED TO SCREAMS. it’s hard to stay in a relationship in an industry so heavily focused on the downfall and fallout of their stars. and the major theme of this first part of the album is a love that was stolen from her because of who she is in the music business. ❞ @ofcmargos

5) OUT OF THE WOOD

❝ following wonderland seems to be the dark side of the magically written fallout. the nitty gritty truth that you don’t wanna hear. tahnee opening the song with what we all think looking on past relationships IT ALL SEEMED SO SIMPLE. looking in hindsight everything was in place and it should’ve been easier than it was all made out to be. the repetitive and desperate chorus sounds like begging to know if they’re finally OUT OF THE WOODS? // IN THE CLEAR YET? are they finally safe? is there finally no more road bumps to endure. LOOKING AT IT NOW LAST DECEMBER WE WERE BUILT TO FALL APART AND FALL BACK TOGETHER an obvious reference to their first breakup. WHEN YOU STARTED CRYING BABY I DID TOO the whole bridge a dramatic and heartfelt speech about how when things went wrong there always seemed to be a simple solution- the other person there for them. ❞ @ofcmargos

6) THE STORY OF US

❝ I USED TO THINK ONE DAY WE’D TELL THE STORY OF US HOW WE MET AND THE SPARKS FLEW INSTANTLY AND PEOPLE WOULD SAY THEY’RE THE LUCKY ONES. another incredibly telling opening line, one of honesty and heartbreak. to have something in your hands that felt so right and so fitting and so forever to only be wrong about it is truly one of the worst things to have to recover from. A SIMPLE COMPLICATION, MISCOMMUNICATION LEADS TO FALL OUT THERE’S SO MANY THINGS THAT I WISH YOU SO MANY WALLS UP I CAN’T BREAK THROUGH. when you fight with someone and you’re both stubborn and set in your ways there are things you find it hard to express to the other person for them to understand and this is perfectly depicted all throughout this song. I’D TELL YOU I MISS YOU BUT I DON’T KNOW HOW I’VE NEVER HEARD SILENCE QUITE THIS LOUD. hearing how the other person is doing, on both end, hearing they’re moving on when inside you know you’re not is a heated blade cutting through your heart. how is it so easy for them to walk away? it says more than any words could. THIS IS LOOKING LIKE A CONTEST OF WHO CAN ACT LIKE THEY CARE LESS // THE BATTLES IN YOUR HANDS NOW I WILL LAY MY ARMOUR DOWN. not exactly something tahnee ever does, one for fighting her battles until death this is possibly the only time we have ever heard the singe to confess defeat. ❞ @ofcmargos

7) BREATHE

❝ this is where we come down from the angst and the bombastic dramatics of falling out with someone you love. this is the soft heartbreak that wakes you up and makes you realise you really did lose something worth crying over. MUSIC STARTS PLAYING LIKE THE END OF A SAD MOVIE IT’S THE KIND OF ENDING YOU DON’T REALLY WANNA SEE BECAUSE IT’S TRAGEDY AND IT’LL ONLY BRING YOU DOWN. a soft spoken, acoustic piece that portrays the emptiness and hopelessness of losing someone in such a way you never saw coming. NEVER WANTED THIS NEVER WANNA SEE YOU HURT EVERY LITTLE BUMP IN THE ROAD I TRIED TO SWERVE. an honest moment where tahnee tells that she tried to stop herself time and time again from doing things she knew would ultimately add forks in the road of their relationship. she tried to dodge every little thing that could go wrong. the hardest piece of the song to listen to is the outro where you hear the singer repeat I’M SORRY over and over again in a heart shattering apology. something you never quite get from tahnee. ❞ @ofcmargos

8) HOLY GROUND

❝ a reminiscent look back on what was good BACK TO A FIRST GLANCE FEELING ON NEW YORK TIME, where the couple met quite some time ago in new york city. the song is upbeat and hopeful in the way falling in love with someone for the first time normally feels. WE BLOCKED THE NOISE WITH THE SOUND OF I NEED YOU AND FOR THE FIRST TIME I HAD SOMETHING TO LOSE. the noise being everyone talking, all of the drama that comes with this industry, she had something to block the noise out with. she had love. and compared to all of her other failing loves this was the first time she had someone that would hurt to lose. it seems the singer hasn’t a bad word to say about exgirlfriend considering the worst of the songs are only depicting heartbreak and not her faults, flaws and wrong doings like many of her songs previous. TONIGHT I’M GONNA DANCE FOR ALL THAT WE WENT THROUGH. is this her way of saying that getting over what was once beautiful is dancing in celebration that she had for a moment something worth fighting for. ❞ @ofcmargos

CHAPTER TWO

9) ENCHANTED

❝ a soft and ethereal welcome to chapter two of her two part album. this is where we’re shown the new side to love, meeting someone when all you know is FORCING LAUGHTER FAKING SMILES the SAME OLD TIRED LONELY PLACE being that place without the one person you thought you’d be with forever. the forcing laughter and faking smiles is actually at matthew and chance and how she had to force herself to accept a fake relationship despite not being over one that was very real and very hard to leave behind. meeting someone you where THE PLAYFUL CONVERSATION STARTS COUNTER ALL YOUR QUICK REMARKS. the truth behind this lyric is tahnee countering everything matthew says because she finds him annoying, it’s not playful she’s trying to shut him up. the song is a pretty and gentle love song to prove to show how in love you can be after heartbreak. ❞ @ofcmattys

10) STAY, STAY, STAY

❝ I’M PRETTY SURE WE ALMOST BROKE UP LAST NIGHT I THREW MY PHONE ACROSS THE ROOM AT YOU I WAS EXPECTING SOME DRAMATIC TURN AWAY BUT YOU STAYED. tahnee is someone who expresses dramatically, that’s not unknown, she’s someone who writes songs that showcase how vivid and intense you can feel things and have her songs perfectly sound the way that feels. he stayed because he has to, they’re under contract no matter how hard she tries to get this to be over and done with. the truth is tahnee has a knack for spinning her songs to perfectly fit what she needs. little inside jokes if you will that are stabs if you know what’s going on but sound like love songs to the general public. I JUST LIKE HANGING OUT WITH YOU ALL THE TIME is this bright and almost innocent sounding lyric that says this love is just fun and she likes being around him. it’s genuinely sarcasm. like she’s being the most sarcastic ever. ❞ @ofcmattys

11) CRAZIER

❝ this song was actually written a wine drunken night in the hopes one day she’d be able to play it for margo at their wedding. a tender look into how someone, one single person can make you CRAZIER with every little thing they do. was chosen because mattew does indeed drive her crazy, not in a good way. EVERY SKY WAS YOUR OWN KIND OF BLUE AND I WANTED TO KNOW HOW THAT WOULD FEEL. it’s known that matthew harris is one hell of a positive and romantic boy, the lyrics in this song show how soft and sweet love can be and how beautifully you can feel things when someone has a rose colour haze over life. that lyric is actually about margo. BABY YOU SHOWED ME WHAT LIVING IS FOR I DON’T WANNA HIDE ANYMORE. she wants to be in love, she doesn’t wanna hide behind the facade of a stoic emotionless woman anymore. this is her freedom song. margo showed her what being happy and confident in yourself was about. margo showed her not hiding her emotions, not hiding her sexuality, not hiding behind this dead eyed gaze. ❞ @ofcmattys

12) HEY MATTHEW

❝ wonder who this is about?? in one of the last songs to appear on the album HEY MATTHEW is a soft, gentle and very obvious love song about current boyfriend. HEY MATTHEW I KNOW LOOKS CAN BE DECEIVING BUT I KNOW I SAW A LIGHT IN YOU. we’re all aware of tahnees reputation and how she looks to the general public but she knows she saw something different in him, a willingness to love her. the light is actually his naivety because he’s doing this stupid PR romance with her and she’s thanking the gods she can clean up her image. the song is a standout for the album because it has all the obviousness she normally places into songs but it’s the dawn of a new chapter, one we haven’t seen before. ❞ @ofcmattys

13) TODAY WAS A FAIRYTALE

❝ the true princess, disney vibe we’ve wondered if tahnee would ever return to after her childstar days. upon falling in love with someone so full of light we see the return of ‘old’ tahnee, the one that couldn’t come to the phone. YOU WERE THE PRINCE I USED TO BE A DAMZEL IN DISTRESS. the song is a light, airy and happy tune about love saving your heart. truthfully it was the innocence of ingrid and matthew that she saw in glimpses that influenced her on what this song should be. tahnee taking inspiration from the real love of her fake romance and reusing it as her own feelings towards matthew. ❞ @ofcmattys @ofcingrid

14) LOVE STORY

❝ in the theme of tragedy and romance we’ve seen many a Shakespeare reference and this one is no different. ROMEO AND JULIET can be equated to tahnee and matthew and how their romance is one not a lot of people have approved of. but all that matters is their LOVE STORY BABY JUST SAY YES. because no one elses opinions matter. again truthfully, this one is also influenced by ingrid and matthew, tahnee actually listening to matthew talking about his real girlfriend and how they met and how they have to hide their true love. tahnee is a bitch but she knows what it’s like to hide the person you love and this song is for them. I SNEAK OUT TO THE GARDEN TO SEE YOU WE KEEP QUIET CAUSE WE’RE DEAD IF THEY KNEW. tahnee is expressing how scary bringing a new relationship is into the public eye. it’s actually about how ingrid and matthew have to sneak around. THEY’RE TRYIN’ TO TELL ME HOW TO FEEL THIS LOVE IS DIFFICULT BUT IT’S REAL DON’T BE AFRAID WE’LL MAKE IT OUT OF THIS MESS. the world is against anyone with tahnee, it’s hard for people to allow someone like her to be in love but she’s promising her boyfriend they’ll get through this no matter what people are saying. again this is actually tahnee commenting on her team are telling her who to be in love with and how to feel and what to show the world and lowkey tahnee being nice and telling matthew that this mess will end and he’ll be able to have true love when this all over. ❞ @ofcmattys

#( career. )#soooooo yeah this is a thing #that took me a really long time #and i'm sad #okay bye

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delicrieux · 6 years

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anon 🌻 said: Hello. Can I please request a Draco malfoy one where the reader finds out he is in a abusive relationship both physical and mental. So she helps him get out of it as well recover. If possible can you make it really long. Take your time I don’t mind the wait. a/n: i literally don’t know anything about abusive relationships and i don’t feel comfortable going into intense detail, so i hope this is good enough ^^

masterlist | ko-fi

Relationships are never easy. Love is a complex emotion that ties one human to another and allows something magical to happen. Caring, selflessness, intimacy all comes with love. But relationships are not always like hat. They make the most caring people cold, the most selfless selfish. Toxicity often brews when one partner is more taken than the other. But it is tough to spot the one you love acting out, as they often make you feel as if it is your fault. Peering in from the outside is easy. Commenting and spewing advice is even easier. Believing said advice and noticing the problem itself is…not.

It took years for Draco Malfoy to realise that he was being mistreated. Abused. That he was more of an object than an actual human to his lover. You had been standing by, from the start to the end of their relationship, watching as he cried, comforting him when he chose to confide in you, letting him stay over when he felt that he could not go back. The relationship finally ended when you encouraged him to speak out. He was in shambles when you saw him again. He really loved them, you knew this. But Draco had realised that they did not love him at all.

“It will take time.” You mumble into his shirt, your arms protective and comforting around him. He nods stiffly, not really believing you. You pull away, just enough to catch his torn gaze, “But you will heal. And you will be better.” Your fingers gently graze his pale cheeks as you give him a tender smile, one that is nothing but loving and sincere. Your heart beats for him; your heart breaks for him. Your touch must have broken past his shell because he pulls you close again, squeezing you to him as if he wished to melt into you, hide forever. His shoulders tremble; your smile falls, “I won’t leave you, Draco, I promise. We’ll get through this. Together.”

requests are open but will take a long time to complete because i have many! :)

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damelicorne · 5 years

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Operation: Pink Cupid (chapter 8)

Hello @cataclysme-noire! Here’s the 8th chapter of your gift for the Valentine’s Day Gift Exchange of the ML Ship Fleet on Discord @mlshipfleet.

First chapter | Previous chapter | AO3 | Next chapter

Adrien was dumbstruck. His face suddenly burnt as he turned red. Marinette… It was Marinette. Oh, wow. Marinette. Was. Ladybug. His Lady. His Lady was Marinette. All along. He felt speechless, amazed, stunned. Marinette. The amazing Marinette. The one and unique Marinette. His friend. And she was Ladybug. The super heroine. His partner. His Lady.

“My Lady… I… Wow…” She melted. Meanwhile, Adrien was struggling with his words. “I knew you were amazing. I’ve always known it. But… Wow! I didn’t know you were actually twice as amazing!” She blushed and gulped, deeply touched by his words. “Err… Can I turn around, now? Since… since we now know each other’s ident… each other’s name…?”

“Oh, err… yes, you’re right…” She suddenly felt afraid of his reaction. But he was right. They couldn’t stay like that forever. Marinette took a deep breath. “Okay, c… come on…” He smiled fondly to her stuttering, before turning towards her. He put her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles, before making eye contact with her. Then, he blushed furiously. And rubbed his neck.

She was blushing as much as he did. “Well, Kitty… guess the cat’s out of the bag, now.” She smirked when he blushed even more to her words.

“You’re so awesome!” he blurted out.

She giggled. “My, my, I thought that I would have been so bashful, if I eventually found out that Chat Noir was Adrien…”

He gasped and blushed even more. “Is it… Is it really that easy to guess me?” he asked, worried.

She paused to think it through. “No, it’s not. Even though we all noticed you look like Chat Noir… since you really have two different behaviors with and without the mask, we all quickly gave up the idea. Even Alya, and you know how she becomes when she thinks she has a scoop about any of us… Besides, since your mask colors your sclera, it could also color your iris. So…”

He rubbed his neck. “Yeah… I didn’t want to be recognized, because of my fame… So I’m glad Plagg gave you guys reasons to doubt… Well… To be honest, I wish you had guessed sooner. I would have loved it. Knowing who you are since day one. We could have hanged out and discovered everything about our powers together, and all that stuff.”

She sighed. “Kitty…”

He interrupted her. “I know. You really want me not to hang out too much with you, that’s it?”

“No!” She shouted. “Errm… We need to… to improve our relationship, err, our partnership. We’re a team, aren’t we?”

He swallowed, clearly disappointed. “Of course we are, M'lady. You and me against the whole world.”

“I’m sorry I can’t change the past.” She sighed. “But yes, we should hang out more now. You’re not only my partner, you’re my friend on both sides of our masks.”

He squeezed her hand. Despite any logic, her hand was still in his and, to his awe, she seemed okay with it. But he knew he had to let go of his hopes once and for all. He couldn’t hurt her. He turned perfectly serious, before replying. “I know, Marinette. And I know there will be no more flirting now.”

She frowned, a hint of pain on her face. “What… What makes you say so?” she stuttered.

“Well… Luka, of course…” he said, looking away from her, scared he might let a tear out.

She sounded absolutly confused as she asked, “Luka? What’s the matter with him?”

“Well… He is the boy you like…”

Her eyes widened and she blurted a laugh. “Luka? Really? Oh… Adrien, no, he’s not! Not at all! He’s just a friend!”

It was his turn to frown. “But… but you went on a date with him to the ice rink…”

Marinette lost her smile. “If I remember well, we were there because you asked me some advice to help you on a date with Kagami.” Her voice was bitter, and he blushed furiously.

Adrien rubbed his neck. “Oh… Crap… I actually asked advice to Ladybug to… Oh my… What a moron! Well, I suppose you find that very funny…”

She swallowed and shrugged, looking away from him. “No, I don’t. But… If you like Kagami, why do you keep on coming on me? Ladybug-me, I mean.”

He pinched his lips and bowed his head, miserably staring at the ground. “I don’t like her. Err, not that way. She’s a pretty good swordswoman and she’s becoming a friend, but it’s definitely nothing more than that.”

Marinette frowned. “I can’t understand… Why did you… why did you want to go on a date with her? I mean… Before that, when you described her to me, you seemed to really be into her…”

“Oh my… That talk… Can we… Can we just pretend it never happened?” Adrien bit his lip, waiting for Marinette to understand what he meant. But she was obviously waiting for an explanation. He sighed. “I wasn’t describing her, I was describing you…”

“Oh.” She felt silent, amazed by his words. “That’s what I first thought… I thought you were describing me… Err… But you were describing Ladybug-me, not Marinette-me, right?”

Adrien put his free hand on his face, blushing furiously. “I wish I had recognized you, My Lady…” Marinette’s heart missed a beating. Was she imagining things, or was his ‘My Lady’ something else than just a Ladybug nickname? “I would have asked you out before anything, of course… Even if I know you would have say no anyway…”

“What? No!” She shouted, her eyes wide. “Err… Why do you think so?”

“Well, you told me you’re not interested that way, after Troublemaker.” Even though her hand was still in his, even though she wasn’t rejecting him for the moment, he didn’t dare hoping. His heart was thumping loudly, as if to tell him he was wrong. But, now that he knew Ladybug was Marinette, he knew he had no chance. Repressing his tears, he kept on talking. “Remember? You told me that you really love fashion, you’re pretty good at that by the way, and since I’m a model, that’s why you’ve got photos of my father’s work on your walls and…” She blushed furiously.

“Didn’t think things could be getting any worse…” She whispered to herself. “Well, I do love fashion, that’s true, but… eeerrrr… That was just awkward, after everyone had seen my bedroom on television… I told you the first thing that crossed my mind.” Marinette felt terrible. “And, hey, you didn’t explain why you asked Kagami on a date if you were thinking about me!” She added, in an attempt to change the topic.

He gave her a sheepish smile. “In fact, she’s the one who suggested I asked her out, and I thought that since you liked another guy… I could give her a chance. Which turned out to be a bad idea, I reckon.”

Marinette gulped. “Oh wow. What a mess… And… now that you know who I am, you really don’t know who that famous boy is?”

He shrugged. “Well, if it isn’t Luka, I really don’t know.”

She chuckled at his obliviousness. All their classmates knew who she loved… beside him. And it wasn’t as if she had just given him another hint. But even while knowing he were her long time crime fighting partner, it was still difficult to confess her feelings towards him. She swallowed, hoping not to mess everything. How would he react? Would he really want her to love him back? Would he love Marinette-her as much as Ladybug-her?

“I didn’t have any of these photos on my walls before knowing you. I didn’t even recognize you at first. If you remember, I even despised you when I thought you were putting gum on my place. Then… you told me the truth, and you offered me your umbrella. I saw how kind you really are and… and then, I became a mess around you, always tongue tied, and ridiculizing me…” She sighed. “No wonder you didn’t recognize Ladybug in awkward Marinette…”

He suddenly turned his head back to her and stared at her in disbelief. “You mean awesome Marinette! The smart and talented class president that everyone loves! Well, in fact, you’re twice awesome. You’re so out of my league…” He sighed, looking away again as she stared at him with wide eyes.

“No, I’m not…” She whispered. “Remember, this one time when Ladybug told Chat Noir that she couldn’t imagine a world without this boy? She was actually looking at an ad for his perfume…”

He swallowed hard. “You… You mean… my ad?” His voice cracked. She noded. “Oh. Err. So… I really was my own rival?”

She sighed and squeezed his hand. “As I told you, you seemed to be two different, two very different boys… I didn’t recognize you either. If I had, I would have never turned my partner down…”

Adrien took both her hands in his, his heart thumping even more furiously than before. If that was even possible. “And… and now, Marinette, now that you know there’s only one boy… would you be willing to consider… to consider also Chat Noir? To date me?”

She bit her lip, a lump in her throat. “Well, I… I’d love too…” She whispered.

“Next wednesday ?”

“Next wednesday. But feel free to stop by whenever you can, Kitty.”

Perched on a shelf above the two lovers, Tikki was recovering from Plagg’s camembert. As usual, Plagg had found a reason to complain. “We should be heading home, now. I need more cheese!”

Tikki let out a little sigh. “Come on, Plagg! Leave them alone, will you? You checked what’s around yourself, and didn’t find any danger. You can wait a little while longer.”

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inevitably-johnlocked · 6 years

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Hey there :) I was wondering if you have any fics where Moriarty (or any villain really) kidnaps John/Sherlock and the other has to try to find them?

Anonymous said to inevitably-johnlocked: hi! do you have any fic recs where sherlock is the one that’s captured for something and john has to save him?

Hi Nonnies!!

Oh, I don’t have many, so I’ll give you all the kidnapping & related fics I have! Most of them are on FFnet, since that’s when I used to read a lot of angst, LOL. Hope these satisfy! Feel free to add your own, all!

KIDNAPPING, HOSTAGE, & STALKING

Imminent by LoyalPaddler (K+, 1K+w || Kidnapping, Open Ending) – What did it say about a person if he recognized the feeling of waking up concussed, blindfolded, and handcuffed to a chair? Probably not good, that.

Not a Soldier by LoyalPaddler (T, 1K+ w. || HC / Pre-S3, Nice!Mary, Hostage Situation) – A day on the battlefield with Sherlock Holmes.

Odd and Even by katkin (K+, 1K+w. || Post-TBB, Friendship) – Sherlock helps John to come to terms with the ordeal of his kidnapping.

Persuasion by Januscars (K+, 1K+ w. || Friendship, Crime, Angry Sherlock, Hostage John) – A gunman holds a gun to John’s head, and Sherlock proves to be very persuasive when he wants to be…

In Which John is a BAMFy MoFo, OMG! by Kantayra (T, 1,835 w. || Humour) – John’s BAMFness and Sherlock’s damsel-in-distress act are caught forever on camera. So Scotland Yard can mock. A lot.

All in a Day by chappysmom (K+, 2K+ w. || Kidnapping, Sherlock POV) – Oddly enough, it seemed like this time, Sherlock had been kidnapped for no other reason than to pressure John. In other words, this had nothing to do with him. Really, this on top of the blow to the head was enough to make him dizzy.

It’s All Fine by AkoyaMizuno (T, 2K+ w. || Post-TGG, Introspection, Mild Angst, Friendship) – Sherlock never asked what happened in the hours between John being kidnapped and the events at the pool. It occurs to him, days after the fact, that he probably should have.

Doesn’t Follow Me Everywhere by Janec Shannon (T, 3K+ w. || Humour and Friendship) – "He doesn’t follow me everywhere, you know.“ Silly John, of course he does what with your penchant for getting kidnapped.

For Thou Art With Me by Ultra-Geek (T, 3K+ w. || Hurt/Comfort, Friendship) – It is a normal day. Boring, routine. Right up until John Watson walks out the door and off the face of the earth. Companion to ’And I Shall Fear No Evil’, but can stand alone

Fortune Favours the Wet by CaffieneKitty (K+, 3K+w. || Adventure, Trapped John) – There was something to be said about the quiet of the bottom of a well… Things go wrong for John during a case.

And I Shall Fear No Evil by Ultra-Geek (T, 4K+ w. || Angst, Hurt/Comfort) – John’s been taken by an unknown enemy who will stop at nothing to find out more about one Mr. Sherlock Holmes. Companion to ‘For Thou Art With Me’, but can stand alone.

Nursery Rhymes by macrauchenia (T, 4K+ || Angst, Suspense, MCD, Unhappy Ending, Kidnapping) – “Hickory dickery dock. Sherlock’s against the clock. When the wick is gone, so will be John. Hickory dickery dock.” - John is in a struggle for his life in a warehouse rigged to blow by Moriarty.

Things Unseen and Left Unsaid by Ultra-Geek (T, 4K+ w. || Friendship, Drama, Kidnapping) – Sherlock can’t crack the riddle that is John Watson. But that’s going to have to be put on hold, as said riddle has currently been kidnapped and buried alive, and Sherlock only has seven hours to find him.

Carry On by Mazarin221b (M, 4,647 w. || 5 and Ones, H/C, Afghanistan, Frottage, Hand Jobs, First Time, Whump) – Five times John didn’t want to be carried, and one time he did.

when Harry met Sally (and then Sherlock Holmes) by Etharei (T, 5,443 w. || POV Outsider, Kidnapped John) – Harry Watson hadn’t expected the Met, and possibly the British government, to be this keen on locating her missing brother.

The Death of Doubt by Gingerhermit (E, 6,584 w. || Alternate Canon, BAMF John, POV Sherlock, Sherlock’s Mind Palace, Hurt/Comfort, Angst/Drama, Meddling Mycroft) – Mycroft asks for John’s help in rescuing Sherlock from his Serbian captors.

Drowning in Darkness by chappysmom (T, 7K+w. || Hurt/Comfort, Kidnapped John, Post-TRF Hiatus / Reunion, John Whump, Angst with Happy Ending, Depressed John, Background Case Fic) – He couldn’t decide if it was a relief or a curse that he’d been left completely, absolutely alone. You couldn’t fight darkness with your fists, and no matter how strong your will-power, it could be beaten down by the constant monotony of nothingness. Nobody needed John.

The Hours Before Midnight by Lady Sam Mallory (T, 7K+w. || Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Violence, TGG Fic) – Moriarty doesn’t play fair. John must deal with hours of torment from Moriarty before going to meet Sherlock at the Pool at the end of the Great Game and Sherlock must deal with the consequences of his boredom.

Sibling Rivalry Or Fighting Over John Watson By Jessa7 (T, 8,085 w. || Romance / Humour) – Mycroft is just as much of a genius as Sherlock is. He keeps randomly kidnapping John for chats, and the locations get better. Cue Sherlock’s younger sibling complex rearing up and jealousy ensues.

Riddles in the Dark by Starlight05 (T, 9K+ w. || Suspense & Friendship, Torture) - When Sherlock is kidnapped by an old nemesis, it’s up to John to find him and save his life. But can he find a way to get the detective out of this mess? And will they be found in time?

To See You Again by Arisprite (T, 11K+ w. || Suspense, H/C, Supernatural) – When John wakes to a world where no one can see or hear him, it takes everything he has, including the upheaval of past mistakes to find out what happened in time to save his own life. No slash.

Fear Itself by KCS (K+, 12K+ w. || Suspense, Friendship) – John is accustomed to being kidnapped by now, but he never expected a criminal to adopt Mycroft’s method of doing so, to ensure he comes along without a fight.

The Haze by Ulura (T, 15K+ w. || Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, Whump, Turmoil, Mystery, Worried Sherlock, Mycroft Helps Sherlock, Flashbacks, Blood, Kidnapped John) – Sherlock wakes up, injured and confused on the floor of 221b, the last two days a complete blank. He must struggle not only to recover but to figure out what happened to him and most importantly, find his missing friend John Watson.

Pressure Points by Starlight05 (T, 17K+w. || Suspense & Friendship, Intense Themes, Torture) - SEQUEL TO ‘RIDDLES IN THE DARK’ – Sebastian Moran is locked away in prison, but he plots to escape and seek revenge on Mycroft Holmes. Meanwhile, Sherlock and John are dealing with a change in their relationship, trying not to fall apart. And as ties are tested and allegiances altered, events unfold in the streets of London that threaten both the Holmes brothers and everyone they care for.

Couples Retreat by Madam_Fandom (E, 18,717 w. || Fake Relationship, Undercover Couple, Case Fic, Angst, Kidnapping, Fake Marriage, Cross Dressing) – Couples are turning up missing at a very high class couples retreat; and the only way to get to the bottom of it is for John and Sherlock to go under cover as a couple. {{Haven’t read this yet, so read at your discretion}}

Too Visible by chappysmom (K+, 23K+ w. || John Becomes Invisible, THoB Rewrite, Friends, Kidnapping, Angst) – With his gift of being invisible, John has always worried about being locked away in an experimental government lab … but what do you do when it’s your best friend who locks you up? Baskerville is quite literally John’s worst nightmare-and the Hound has nothing to do with it. It’s all Sherlock’s fault, but will he realize that? Sequel to Invisible & Still Invisible

Maintaining A Personal Life by Gingerhermit (E, 24,284 w. || Alternating POV’s, Bisexuality, BAMF!John, Romance / Drama, Sort-of Case Fic, Peril & Angst, Love Confessions, Toplock, Soft Idiots in Love, Post S3) – Sherlock and John discover some interesting revelations about each other’s sexuality, which lead them both to question the assumptions they’ve made about one another for years. In the midst of their mutual discoveries, a dangerous psychopath looms on the side-lines who threatens to destroy their new beginning.

26 Pieces by Lanning (E, 28,236 w. || H/C, Schmoop, Torture) – Mycroft gives Sherlock the apparently simple task of solving a puzzle box containing a stolen microchip. It isn’t simple.

M Is For Moriarty by ElvendorkInfinity (T, 29K+ w. || Suspense, Mystery, Case Fic, Worried Sherlock, No Slash, Whump) – A figure at the end of the hospital bed; a needle in the dark…Moriarty has John, and Sherlock must follow the paper trail through London to find him before time runs out. Sequel to BANG.

Jack In The Box by Liketheriver (T, 30,785 w. || Romance, Case Fic, H/C, Lestrade First POV) – John’s been kidnapped, Mycroft has rules, and Lestrade has to do his best to keep up with Sherlock as they deal with a returning foe. Lestrade POV as he and Sherlock work to find John, even though that’s the last thing John seems to want. Part 2 of Bedtime Universe

Bloody But Unbowed by BeautifulFiction (E, 43,211 w. || Abduction, John Whump, Mild Torture, Background Case Fic, Friends to Lovers, Post-TRF / S3 Rewrite, Hurt/Comfort) – When a familiar argument threatens to destroy the last remnants of John and Sherlock’s failing friendship, both men are left questioning their worth to one another. Before either of them has the chance to make amends, circumstance intervenes. John is left at the mercy of his abductors, and this time, he’s not sure Sherlock will bother coming to his rescue.

A Promise Made to Be Broken by PlantsAreNeat (E, 37,018 w. || Fake Relationship, Pining, Slow Burn, RST, Eventual Relationship, POV Sherlock) – A young John makes an ‘if we’re still single at 40, we’ll get together’ pledge to a woman who ends up all wrong for him. She keeps reminding him of the promise, and won’t let go of it. John asks Sherlock to pose as his boyfriend at a family wedding, so as to dash her hopes permanently. Sherlock, who has at last acknowledged his feelings for John, reluctantly agrees despite knowing how painful it will be to ‘have’ John, but not keep him.

The Case of the Vanishing Pants by SwissMiss (E, 44,025 w. || Five and Ones, Friends to Lovers, Case Fic, Homophobia, UST, Post-TRF) – Five times John and Sherlock lost their pants in the course of a case.

Lost Without My Blogger by starrysummernights (E, 52,155 w. || Rev. Reich, PTSD, Hurt / Comfort, Fluff / Angst, Psychological Torture, Reunion Fic, Friends to Lovers) – John is abducted and declared dead. How will Sherlock cope without his blogger? How will he react when John comes back from the “dead?” Drama and angst with a healthy dose of romance. Part 1 of I’d Be Lost Without My Blogger

Fan Mail by scullyseviltwin (E, 53,942 w. || Stalking, Obsessive Fans, Angst) – “WatsonChick143 has been rather maniacal in her commenting as of late… she’s left comments on everything you’ve posted John, something so obvious can’t have escaped even your attention.“

Wars We Fought, Things We’re Not by blueink3 (M, 55,204 w. || Parentlock, Fluff & Angst, Kidnapping, Whump, Post-TAB, UST, Slow Burn, Couple for a Case) – Five months after John’s world has fallen apart, Mycroft sends the consulting detective and his doctor on a case that neither is prepared for.

Secrets and Revelations by Hisstah (E, 85,535 w. || Sentinel / Guides AU, Omegaverse, Aventure, Violence, Anal / Oral, Omega!John / Alpha!Sherlock, Case Fic, Politics, Mild DubCon) – Dr John Watson has some major secrets that he’s kept from his flatmate, Alpha Sentinel Sherlock Holmes. Now the Sentinel Tower is after him. Can John stay out of their hands until he can reveal his secrets to Sherlock? Part 1 of Secrets and Revelations

Shatter the Darkness (Let the Light In) by MojoFlower (E, 109,683 w. || Genie/Djinn AU || Magical Realism, H/C, Kidnapping, Genie Sherlock, First Kiss / Time, Case Fic, H/C, Angst, Clubs, John Whump) – Fairy tales are for those who remember how to dream; not John Watson, broken and hiding from his bleak future in a beige bedsit. But then he discovers a lamp and finds himself in the dangerous riptide of an enigmatic man whose very existence is unbelievable, murder charges against his sister, and the growing pains of feeling alive once more.

THERE BUT FOR THE GRACE OF JOHN WATSON by skyefullofstars (T, 110,758 w. || H/C, Kidnapping, Angst, Violence, Whump, Nightmares, Murder, Drug Addiction, Torture) – While Sherlock grapples with his new-found feelings for John Watson, he faces a very real threat: John’s kidnapping and shooting at the hands of James Moriarty. And the knowledge that the love of his life is being used to test an addictive drug - at the risk of John’s sanity and life. Prequel to THE BOYS OF BAKER STREET. Part 1 of THERE BUT FOR THE GRACE OF JOHN WATSON

The Swan Triad by Pennin_Ink (T, 121,660 w. across 3 works || Swan Lake AU || Magical / Fairy Tale AU, Romance, Falling in Love, Pining, Psychological Torture, Transformation) – Sherlock and John grow up spending every summer together. Their mothers’ attempts to play matchmaker only fuel their mutual resentment and scorn. But then, one summer.

Ten Days by Engazed (E, 137,208 w. || Rape/Non-Con, Post-TRF, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Torture, Case Fic) – Sherlock Holmes has been dead for forty months, and John is at last beginning to live his life again. But just when he believes he might be happy, his world crashes back down around him.John is named a missing person. Someone is pointing DI Lestrade in the wrong direction. And as the days pass, his situation only grows more dire. It seems like the disappearance of his best friend is the only thing that can bring Sherlock Holmes back from the dead. Part 1 of The Fallen {{I haven’t read this one yet so heed the tags}}

Midnight Blue Serenity by BeautifulFiction (E, 151,907 w. || Friends to Lovers, Gay Bar / For a Case, Drugs, Pining, Case Fic, UST) – When Sherlock infiltrates a club in order to track down a serial killer, his altered appearance is enough to make John question his assumption that Sherlock is beyond his reach. However, is he the only one who appreciates his flatmate’s charms, or is Sherlock at risk of becoming the next victim?

#steph replies #johnlock fic recs #my fic recs #kidnap fics #Anonymous #hostage fics #stalking fics

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