#I kept seeing it on my feed it felt appropriate for him | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

mountttmase · 1 year

Text

The Mixup

Note - not a request this week, I spawned this from my own brain. It’s actually very old and I wrote it around the time of the World Cup so let’s think back to how pretty Mase looked back then 🫠 but I hope you enjoy and feed back is very much appreciated 🩷

Pairing - Mason Mount x Reader

Word count - 7.4k

Warnings - fluff & angst

You knew the players were arriving downstairs but you thought it was best to keep yourself out of the way for now even though you were eager to see them. well most of them anyway.

You needed to work up the confidence as you hadn’t seen most of them in a while, so you kept to yourself for now until Violet flopped down on the sofa that was in your shared office.

‘That was a lot’ she sighed. ‘They’re all here now though so at least that parts over’ you smiled and nodded but it didn’t reach your eyes. ‘A couple of the boys were asking after you, they’re excited to have you back’ she said softly and you finally looked up to meet her eyes with a sigh.

‘I’ll go make the rounds soon’ you promised and she sent you a sympathetic smile. She knew why you were apprehensive but she was sworn to secrecy so with a final nod, she heaved herself up and made her way over to her desk.

It’s not like you didn’t want to see the boys, you’d been excited for weeks about meeting up with everyone again but memories from earlier on in the year kept you glued to your desk.

You had never imagined yourself in a job like this, but bored with your 9-5 you wanted to try something new and this seemed to tick all the boxes. Getting to do something new most days, meeting lots of interesting people kept you busy and you haven’t thought about doing anything else since.

You didn’t know much about football and no matter how much you tried to learn it never stuck too much. You tried to use this to your advantage when getting to know the players, trying to make them feel like you didn’t care about what they did, you were here for them as a person. You wanted to be someone they could come and share their troubles with and just feel normal around in a very different environment.

It seemed to work and you were very close with all the boys. They always seemed happy to see you and you loved coming to work. You tried not to have favourites but some of the boys you were closer with than others, Mason Mount being one of those. He never failed to brighten your day with his cheeky smile and silly jokes and you obviously found him attractive but you know you could never go there with him. Even if you knew he would always look at you for longer than was deemed appropriate sometimes, or when you spoke to him he’d stare at your lips and lick his own. You’d only spend a week or two together tops usually, but when the Euros came around and you’d all been forced together for over a month you couldn’t help falling for him even more.

He was so unlike anyone you’d ever met before, and nothing like you thought a typical footballer would be. He was so kind, always checking you were okay and bringing you drinks and snacks to your office. He made sure to bring Violet a little something too to try and make it seem normal but you knew it was for you.

It was you he always came to first after a win, throwing his arms around you and kissing your head. He was very touchy with you in general, his hands always touching some part of you when you were together It was so hard to not take things further but you were both aware of the consequences.

That was until the final was over and you spent the the hours after the final whistle trying to comfort him. It was like he no longer cared who was looking and just needed you to make him feel better. He was distraught and you felt so helpless so when the time came for everyone to go to bed and he told you he wasn’t ready to let go of you yet, you couldn’t deny him. Both spending the night in his room where he finally plucked up the courage to kiss you. One kiss turned into two which turned into the pair of you spending the night between the sheets.

You woke up before him that morning, and not wanting to cause a scene later on, you thought it would be best to make your way back to your room. You realised your phone was dead so with no other option you wrote him a quick note that you left by his phone and snuck back to your own room. You told him to text you when he woke up but the text never came. You tried not to let it effect you in anyway, knowing he had a lot on his mind but when you found out from Dec that he’d gone without saying goodbye, you tried not to let your heartbreak show on your face.

You didn’t hear from him again until you saw him at the next camp a few months later and after a slightly awkward hello, he kept out of your way. You were beyond confused by his actions but finally settled on the fact he only liked you cause you were there giving him attention and once he got what he wanted, things were now done in his eyes. You couldn’t deny you were hurt, spending the free time in your office trying to stop the tears so you could be somewhat normal in front of everyone but his coldness hurt you every time you saw him.

You never thought it would end up like this so when Mason had to miss the next camp due to him having some teeth out, you couldn’t say you weren’t relieved. Everything seemed easier and when you were sat talking with Ben one evening after dinner, you didn’t realise how much it had shown.

‘You seem a lot happier this camp, was everything alright last time?’

‘Was it that obvious’ you chuckled but he was looking back at you with sympathetic eyes.

‘Listen I know it’s none of my business’ he started and your blood ran cold. You knew he was close with mason but you didn’t know how much he knew about what went on between the both of you. You held your breath as he continued ‘but I know something happened after the Euros. Mason never told me what but I know he’s been down about it too’

You gave him a confused look, your heart beating frantically. What did he have to be down about? He was the one that ghosted you after everything that happened yet he was upset?

‘I’m sorry chilly, but I don’t know what he’s got to be sad about’ you weren’t going to continue but the look on his face made you want to keep talking. You knew it was stupid with him being one of masons best friends but you’d kept everything so close to your chest it was bound to spill out at some point. ‘Can you keep this between us?’ You said quietly and he gave you a small nod. ‘Mase and I slept with each other after the final’ you breathed, the weight on your shoulders finally releasing ‘I know we shouldn’t have done it but it happened. But it was the morning after he just completely blanked me and went home without saying bye or anything like just completely ghosted me. I left him a note to message me and just got nothing’. You finally met he eyes and a look of disappointment mixed with confusion flashed across his face.

‘I’m so sorry y/n, he shouldn’t of done that to you’

‘I’ve made peace with it, it’s just a bit awkward to be around him sometimes that’s all’

‘I get it’ he nodded, tapping your knee. ‘Don’t worry we don’t have to speak about it again. And I promise my lips are sealed.’

You nodded at him appreciatively and he moved on to talk about something else and as he promised, you both never spoke about it again.

Due to some luck on your part, you thankfully got to skip the next few camps, covering some maternity leave work at headquarters in London full time meaning you never had to travel up and see Mason. You managed to get to games when they were playing at Wembley but were able to sneak out without him noticing you.

It wasn’t until the World Cup when you had to go back to be with the team. You’d been specially selected to travel with everyone and even though you knew mason would be going you didn’t want to miss out on this opportunity because of him.

So here you were, filling out forms when you could have been saying hello to all the boys, but your nerves got the better of you. You knew there was a team meeting in an hour and a half and you told yourself you’d be ready for then, hopefully all the boys being together meant you could blend in and not have to speak to him directly but you also knew you had to get on with him for the sake of the group.

‘Come on then you’ violet suddenly piped up, ‘let’s get this show on the road’ she laughed and as you checked the time you saw it was close to the meeting and after putting all you stuff away, you followed her out the room and to the main meeting area.

Your eyes found him immediately, stood on the other side of the room in deep conversation with Declan, but you couldn’t look for too long as all the other boys started to recognise you. You said your hellos, slowly making your way around to everyone and it was only him and Dec left to talk to when the meeting began. You took your seat towards the back with the other staff and watched as he sat a few rows in front of you. you had no idea if he’d seen you yet and as hard as you tried to keep your eyes off him you couldn’t. You were only broken out of your trance when Gareth started speaking about you, letting everyone know you had returned and only then did you feel his eyes on you. You didn’t look back at him, just kept facing forwards and hoping he would look away soon to which he did but you always felt his eyes wandering back to you.

You were thankful when the meeting had finished so you could escape back to your room, but when you heard dec call your name, you turned to face him.

‘There you are, it’s so good to see you’ he told you, pulling you into a hug. You could see from over his shoulder that Mason was leaving the room and you breathed a sigh of relief that you wouldn’t have to talk to him now. ‘How have you been?’

‘Yeah I’ve been good thanks’ you smiled back as you pulled away from each other ‘it’s really good to be back. How are you?’

‘Yeah really good thanks, just excited to get going now’ he beamed at you, walking slowly with you over to the door that everyone else had left from. His phone started to ring and when he saw who it was he nodded to the door ‘sorry y/n I need to take this. I’ll see you at dinner though yeah?’

You nodded as he ran out and you were just about to follow him when you realised you’d left you phone on your seat. You quickly retrieved it and made your way out the door but the sound of someone’s voice stopped you in your tracks.

‘Y/n?’

You turned slowly and we’re met with Mason. He’d stood behind the door to catch you on your way out, hoping he could get you alone. Now you were face to face with him after all this time you could feel heat run to your face and your eyes could no longer look into his so you looked at your hands.

‘Hi Mason’ you said weakly, wrapping your arms around yourself as if they would protect you. You felt exposed being in front of him now.

‘Hey’ he breathed, taking a cautious step towards you. ‘Its so good to see you’

Was it?

You didn’t know what to say back so you just nodded your head once, hoping he was done and you could walk away, however it wasn’t your lucky day and he took another step towards you ‘I was hoping maybe we could talk?’ He questioned and you couldn’t help but furrow your eyebrows.

Talk? He really wanted to talk now? He was months too late for that and you stepped back as he moved towards you. You didn’t have to look at him to see the hurt that flashed across his face.

‘I don’t think that’s a good idea’

‘Please y/n I need to explain-’

‘No Mason it’s fine, you’ve got nothing to explain really’ you gave him a weak smile, finally looking at him again and his eyebrows were drawn together in frustration. ‘I want this trip to be normal for everyone, I think we owe it to the team and everyone else to get along so if we do need to speak to each other then I’ll be civil but I think it’s best we keep out of each others way’

‘No you’ve got to let me-‘

‘I’m sorry Mason’ you cut him off and you heard him let out a deep sigh ‘I can’t have it any other way right now’ you explained and to this he just nodded, biting the inside of his cheek out of frustration before walking past you and joining the others. You felt awful for not letting him speak but you weren’t sure you could handle what he had to say.

You followed into the room just after him, looking around for a free seat but as you were the last one in there wasn’t much to choose from. You saw a hand raise in the air and when you looked, Dec was waving you over.

‘I saved you a seat’ he smiled as you approached him and you thanked him as you sat down on his left. You were at the end of the table so you had no one next to you the other side, but opposite you sat Mason who gave you a barely there smile before turning to Luke who was sat beside him.

You and dec spoke throughout most of dinner, before getting Mason and Luke to join in on your conversation. You tried to act normal and you could tell mason was trying too but he never tried to talk to just you and you were thankful for it. It wasn’t hard to pretend you liked Mason because deep down you knew that you did but you were conscious of not wanting him to think the two of you were suddenly friends again.

You knew him well enough to see the disappointment behind his eyes but you tried not to let it sway you in anyway. Being around him was difficult though and you’d forgotten how good it felt to be in his company but you weren’t in a position to fall back under his spell so quickly. So in a bid to shut down what was currently going on in your head, you let the boys know you were off to your room for the night so you could get ready for the flight tomorrow. They all wished you good night and the doors were just about to close on the lift when you heard footsteps running towards you and a hand on the door stopping it from closing fully. The doors opened to reveal Mason who jumped in the lift with you, pressing the button to shut the door a few times and it closed as quickly as it opened.

‘I’m sorry y/n but I need to talk to you. If you wanna tell me to piss off after I’ve explained then fine but I need you to hear me out’ he said in a panic, looking at you with wild eyes, begging you to accept his plea.

You thought it over for a few seconds, finally thinking it might be nice to get a bit of closure on the whole situation so you reluctantly agreed. He let out a sigh of relief and mumbled a quiet thank you before the lift stopped on your floor and the doors opened with a ping.

‘I guess we can talk in my room’ you murmured before leading him down to the end of the hall where you room was. You opened the door and let him pass through before shutting the door behind you, silently thanking yourself for keeping the room tidy and when you turned to face him he was sitting down on the chair near your bedside table. You followed him over and took a seat on the end of your bed, keeping your hands in your lap and looking down at your fingers.

You heard him let out a little sigh and when you looked up he was looking down at his fingers too, clearly just as nervous as you were.

‘Ive had so much time to think about what to say to you but now I’m here my minds blank’ he laughed quietly, his big brown eyes now coming up to meet yours. He let out a breath before continuing ‘I think there’s been a bit of a mix up’ he said with a slight smile.

‘Yeah, you can say that again’ you mumbled under your breath but he heard you, looking at you with a confused expression. The little smirk on his face had infuriated you and you no longer wanted be polite.

‘What?’

‘The fact that you’re smiling tells me everything I need to know’ you said and his face dropped, turning his head to the side in confusion. You’d finally had enough of him acting dumb, months of pent up hurt and anger now coming to the surface as you were looking at him. You had always wanted to be civil with him but the uncontrollable desire to tell him exactly what you thought of him was bubbling up and you had to get it all out at him. Make him hurt like you had and made him understand since he seemed to be fine. ‘I get it okay? We were on two different pages with our feelings and got mixed up. Why are you here, just to rub it in my face? I mean what is this Mason? Just trying to stick a few more knives in? It’s not funny at all so don’t insult me by laughing at me’

‘What? no what are you say-‘

‘No Mason’ you exploded, standing to you feet and he was looking at you in shock. You’ve always been so placid around him so he wasn’t used to you like this. ‘You really fucking hurt me, completely embarrassed me and now you’re here trying to taunt me saying there was a mix up when really you just weren’t honest with me. You made me think you actually liked me as much as I like you when you were after one thing. Well congratulations Mason you got it. Well done’

You felt your eyes sting and the first few tears of frustration fall. You turned away from him standing in the other side of the room so you could wipe your eyes and try and calm down. You heard him sigh quietly before getting up and slowly making his way over to you, stopping just short of you as to not invade your space.

‘That’s not what happed’ he told you quietly. You could hear the hurt in his voice but you tired not to let it affect you since you’d been hurting for months. ‘If you’d just let me explain, you’ve got it all wrong’.

You slowly turned to face him, your now bloodshot eyes meeting his glazed ones. He looked heartbroken and frustrated which surprised you. You swallowed the lump in your throat and sat on the end of the bed. You heard him take a big deep breath before sitting down next to you, his thigh almost touching yours.

‘That camp last year when I wasn’t here? When chilly came back to chels he was absolutely furious with me for weeks and wouldn’t tell me why’ he said and you thought back to the conversation all those months ago where you finally got your feelings off your chest. ‘I tried to talk to him but he told me he couldn’t say but I figured it was about you. Had to do a bit of reverse psychology in the end and pretend I didn’t care so he’d tell me’

Deep down you always figured chilly would tell mason at some point. You were actually surprised he kept it in for as long as he had.

‘He promised he wouldn’t tell’ you whispered, looking down at your hands in your lap, trying desperately to hold your tears in.

‘I’m glad he did, but before I get into that I just wanted to say I’m so sorry. I never meant to make you feel like shit it or upset you in any way. I really liked you, still do’ he admitted and your eyes flew up to look at him.

‘Don’t Mason’ you breathed, looking away again, thinking you weren’t sure if you were strong enough for him to keep playing you like this.

‘What?’

‘Please just get to the point, I don’t want to keep going round in circles. You said you wanted to explain so what happened?’

‘That morning after…. Well… you know’ he mumbled with a blush on his cheeks and you just nodded, feeling your own face heat up at the memory. ‘Well I woke up and you were gone. I checked my phone and there was no text and nothing in my room left of you, almost like it didn’t happen. I thought you’d regretted what happened between us and ran away. After the heartbreak of the day before and then waking up to that, I just wanted to go home like it was all too much’

You looked up to him, ready to tell him he was wrong and you hadn’t just left but he was looking at you with a knowing smile, making you fall silent again.

‘Ben told me you left a note?’ He questioned and all you could do was nod. He let out a humourless chuckle and rubbed his forehead. ‘I didn’t see it. I thought you’d had second thoughts’

‘No’ you whispered, your head falling into your hands. ‘I didn’t want people asking unnecessary questions so I thought it would be better to head back to my room but my phone had died so I wrote you a note and left it next to your phone so you’d see it. Then when I never heard from you and Dec told me you’d gone I thought you didn’t want anything to do with me’

You tried not to get upset again but you knew your voice broke at the end. Mason wanted to comfort you in some way but wasn’t sure what you were ready for yet so he carefully placed his hand on your knee, slowly stroking this thumb over you and when you didn’t flinch or push him off, he took it as a sign to keep talking.

‘I’m so sorry you thought that. I’ve never thought that about you I promise’ he told you with a soft smile. ‘I can’t believe I let a little bit of paper cause all this’. You gave him a small smile back, understanding now his point of view.

‘I should of left it somewhere else where you could of seen it better, sorry’

‘No no, don’t apologise please it’s me’ he said with a squeeze of your knee, his heart nearly bursting from his chest when you placed your hand on top of his and locked your fingers together. ‘Thinking back I’m pretty sure I woke up in a bit of a panic when you weren’t there and dropped my phone when I grabbed it half asleep. I probably dropped the note with it and left it on the floor’ he said, shaking his head slightly ‘I should of just come and spoken to you though, not ran off like a big baby’

You let out a little giggle and it warmed his heart that he’d managed to make you smile.

‘I get it now, it was an emotional few days. I don’t think any of us were acting rationally’ you said and you saw his face drop from the corner of your eye, thinking you were referring to what happened between you both. You quickly carried on so you could put his mind at ease. ‘I don’t mean that about what we did by the way’ you whispered and his face eased slightly, a slight smile tugging at the corner of his lip.

‘So you don’t regret what happened?’

‘Of course not’ you breathed ‘well not now I know what happened I guess’ you laughed and he sighed dramatically.

‘I don’t regret what happened either. But I regret the way things went down after’

‘It was just a bit of mixed up communication Mase, it’s okay’

‘I hope so’ he smiled, and you rested your head on his shoulder, him resting his head on top of yours. A sense of relief flooded through you now you had the full story, you mind feeling more settled that it had in months but the relief was outweighed by an overwhelming urge to cry. Mason felt you turn a little ridged and the slight shake of your shoulders as you began to let it all go. ‘Hey come on, it’s okay’ he said quietly, removing his hand from your knee and placing his arm around you. He pulled you into his chest, both arms around you and you clung onto him for dear life. ‘Please don’t cry baby’ He whispered as he gently rocked you but the feeling of him and the sound of him and the pet name only made you cry harder. You cried into his shoulder and as he felt you calm down a little after a few minutes, he shifted and laid down, pulling you with him.

You lay in silence, his hand rubbing comforting circles on your back, the other hand lost in your hair as he scratched your scalp gently. You were curled into him, your face in his neck as you breathed in his scent and tried to stop crying. Your hand was draped over his chest and you could feel his heartbeat steady under your fingers, grounding you slightly. He smelt the same as you remembered and you felt yourself melting into him, your eyes growing heavy and your breathing deepened and you felt yourself slowly drifting off but you shook yourself awake, looking up at him with blurry eyes.

He looked down at you and you could see the tear marks down his cheeks so you instinctively reached up and stroked his face. He smiled and quickly turned his head, kissing your palm and you let out a small giggle which in turn made him smile.

‘You alright?’ He whispered and you nodded gently before he kissed your forehead. ‘Good, I hate seeing you cry’ he breathed as he gave you a sympathetic smile. ‘Come up here’ he motioned with his head before shuffling up the bed and laying his head on the pillow. You crawled up to meet him and settled yourself back in his open arms. After a few moments you moved so you could put your head on the pillow next to him, both turning to face each other.

He gave you a gentle smile and it made your whole body feel warm. He looked so good, his hair now pretty much back to what it was the last time you saw him after a run of styles he kept changing. He had more facial hair now though and looked more mature but he was still as handsome as ever.

You had so many thoughts rushing around your head but the only one you were focusing on at the moment was the thought of his lips on yours again, so you reached over and kissed him. You could sense his shock at first, but he quickly reciprocated, kissing you back softly, his arms pulling you even closer to him.

It felt so good to be back close to him like this and you couldn’t help but smile as he kissed you which in turn made him smile. You both pulled back and when you looked at him again he had that cheeky glint in his eye you loved so much and you couldn’t help but kiss him again. He kept things soft, not wanting to over step the mark with you as he was just happy to be back in your arms again. Although he knew it would have to be short lived. He sighed, pressing a kiss to your nose before speaking.

‘I’ll probably have to head back to my room soon’ he said lowly, and you could hear the disappointment in his voice. ‘I guess we have a long flight tomorrow though. Maybe you can come sit with me for a bit? So we can have a proper talk and catch up?’

‘Yeah, I’d really like that’ you smiled and he squeezed you a little tighter.

You eventually walked him to the door, but stopped just before it. You turned you slid your arms around his shoulders and pulled him into you. He held you against him as tight as he could, nestling into your neck and pressing little kisses against you. You pulled away and he dipped his head to kiss you immediately. You both kept it light as the previous kisses you’d shared and he broke away before it got any heavier.

‘I’ll see you tomorrow yeah?’ He winked at you and smiled up at him, nodding your head. With one final kiss to your cheek he was gone.

The next morning you woke up feeling refreshed after having one of the better nights sleep you’d had it a while. The weight of having to be around mason now lifted and you were feeling more optimistic about the whole trip.

You grabbed an early breakfast with Violet who commented on how happier you seemed than yesterday but you put it down to getting over the nerves of seeing everyone again and after you made you way to the airport so you could get there before the boys. It was both your jobs to make sure they were in the correct seats and when Violet noticed Mason was missing from her list she offered to swap sides with you.

‘Oh no it’s fine, I can handle him’ you said with a slight smile and she gave you a knowing look.

‘Oh yeah?’ She laughed. ‘I saw the two of you at dinner yesterday come to think of it. Something you need to tell me?’ Your laugh told her everything she needed to know but she had no time to question you further and the boys started filing in. ‘You wait till this plane takes off, you have a lot of explaining to do’ she winked before directing some of the medical staff towards the back of the plane.

You’d just pointed Dec to his seat when you turned and were met with the smiling face of Mason.

‘Fancy seeing you here’ he winked and you couldn’t help but laugh. ‘So where am I sat?’

‘Just here’ you pointed to his right. He was in a window seat like most of the boys that could be closed off should they want a nap or some privacy. He nodded and chucked his bag on the seat before turning back to you.

‘And where are you sitting?’ He questioned with a raised brow and you pointed to a seat in the middle aisle a few rows up from him. He dropped his lip when you looked back at him, clearly upset you were sat so far away ‘make sure you come see me like we said yeah?’

‘I will’

‘Promise?’ He questioned, raising his pinkie finger to which you wrapped yours around.

‘I promise. Now go sit down you’re holding up the line’ you laughed and he smiled back before walking over to his seat, only letting go of your finger at the very last second.

You carried on sorting everyone else out, but you kept your eye on him, watching as he got himself comfortable, unpacking his pillow all his things to keep him entertained. It made you smile and you were smiling when you eventually took your seat next to Violet. She immediately wanted details and the both of you giggled as you explained what happened.

‘So it was just a big misunderstanding?’ She whispered and you nodded with a sad smile. ‘I feel bad for being a bit of a dick to him now’ she laughed and you shook your head at her admission. ‘We best go make the rounds’ she huffed and the both of you stood up, taking one half of the place each to check everyone was okay and didn’t need anything. You left a mason till last, noticing he was reading so he didn’t see you come past but when you popped your head into his little cubicle his face face lit up at the sight of you.

‘Hey’ I was beginning to wonder where you were’ he smiled, closing his book and popping it on the table. He made grabby hands towards you but you didn’t know where he was expecting you to go as the only seat available appeared to be his lap. You saw him pout when you didn’t move so he reached over and pulled you in between his legs . ‘You said you’d come speak to me, why aren’t you sitting down?’

‘There’s nowhere for me to go Mase’

‘Sure there is, close that bloody door for a start’ he told you. Gesturing to the sliding door that closed his little pod meaning the two of you would be trapped inside. You raised a brow at him and he gave you a cheeky smile before closing it for you.

‘I swear to god Mount, if you get me in trouble’

‘Oh shush, come here’ he told you moving around on his chair a bit so you could sit on his lap. ‘Is this alright? Shall I lay the chair back so it comfier?’

‘I’m good like this’ you told him quietly as you wrapped an arm around his shoulders, aware that others might be able to hear you.

‘Missed you’ he whispered, pressing his lips to your cheek while holding you a little tighter as you giggled at him.

‘I saw you last night’

‘Doesn’t mean I can’t miss you’ he told you before turning your face towards his and kissing you softly. ‘I’ve gone months without you, let me make up for lost time’

‘Mason’ you warned as he kissed your neck and let his hands wander over your legs and waist. ‘Mason, we’ll get caught’

‘Be quiet then’ he whispered, attaching his lips back to yours. You tried not to melt under his touch but it felt so good to have his lips back on yours so you let him have his way for a bit, threading your fingers through his hair so he couldn’t pull away, before you both started to smile and you had to lean back.

‘I’m supposed to be here so we can talk properly, not suck face’ you teased and he laughed before settling back in his chair. ‘Why don’t we go sit by the bar? No one’s there and it’ll be a bit more comfortable.

‘But I won’t be able to kiss you there’ he pouted so you gave him a final peck before leaving his pod and making your way to the sofas. No one was around thankfully and once you’d settled down with two bottles of water, Mason followed in behind and took a seat next to you.

You sat and talked for what felt like 20 minutes, when in reality it had been hours. You only knew this because Dec wanted a game of Mario Cart with Mason but he told him he was busy. To anyone else it just looked like two friends catching up but he was holding your hand under the table and slowly rubbing circles onto the back of it.

‘You mean to tell me you’ve been to all the Wembley games this past year?’ He asked you, looking at you with a shocked face. You nodded shyly and he laughed whilst squeezing your hand.

‘Saw you score against Germany’ you told him and his face softened a little. ‘I was so close to coming to find you but I couldn’t work up the courage’

‘It’s fine’ he nodded. ‘You’re here now. I’ve been wanting to message you for ages but I didn’t wanna get shot down’ he laughed but you could tell there was a bit of hurt behind his eyes. You had an quick look around and once you noticed no one was about, you cupped his jaw and gave him a gentle kiss which he smiled into.

‘I’m here now’ you winked as you pulled away just in time for Dec and Luke to wonder into the back where you were.

‘You two have been sat here for ages, something you’re not telling me?’ Dec teased as he ruffled mason hair and you both laughed nervously. In the end they came to join you for a while before you told them you were going for a nap, knowing you needed to be fresh for when you landed.

Once at the hotel you assigned the boys their rooms and made sure to stay somewhere where they boys could find you if they needed to. It wasn��t long before Mason came wondering in with a small pout but his eyes brightened at the sight of you.

‘Can you help me? I can’t get phone to connect to that weird docking station thing in my room’ he asked and Violet just winked as you started to stand up.

‘I won’t be long’ you told her but she just laughed at you quietly.

‘Take all the time you need’ she teased and you rolled your eyes before following him. He motioned for you to go in first and once you had he shut the door behind you both. His phone was sat in the docking station and it was working perfectly as you looked at it, but when you felt his hands settle on you hips behind you, you realised he’d lured you here under false pretences.

‘I swear to god, Mase’ you huffed, but you relaxed into his touch knowing that you were completely alone. His hands had traveled up to your waist and he pulled you against him whilst kissing you neck which made you let out a deep breath.

‘Just relax, baby’ he whispered against your neck ‘I just needed some alone time with you. Not sure how much I’ll get over the next few weeks’

You nodded as your whole body erupted in goosebumps at his touches. He was being so soft and gentle with you like he was savouring every touch but you turned in his arms, wanting his lips on yours as soon as possible.

He smiled as soon as you kissed him, pulling you impossibly closer as he gently rubbed his hands up and down your back. You couldn’t get over how good it felt being back in his arms and he hummed into your mouth as you gently stroked up and down his neck with your thumbs as your hands settled on his shoulders. He pulled back slightly, bumping his nose against yours before kissing you again. It was slow and lazy and you could of quite happily stayed in this moment with him forever, showering each other with affection.

‘How long is an acceptable time for me to keep you here?’ He laughed quietly, resting his forehead on yours as you both shut your eyes to fully enjoy the moment.

‘I think I can stay a little longer’ you murmured back and you opened your eyes to find him smiling at you, his bottom lip trapped between his teeth as you smiled back.

‘You wait till we’re back home, and we’ve got all the time in the world. You’re gonna get sick of me’ he laughed before kissing your cheek at looking at you adoringly. ‘If that’s what you want of course’

‘Is that what you want?’ You questioned and he nodded at you with a serious look on his face.

‘Definitely. I know it might be a bit complicated but we can work it out’ he told you, his fingers stroking over your back soothingly. ‘I don’t want to let you slip through my fingers again’

‘I don’t either’ you whispered with a smile, letting him kiss you again before you pulled back with a serious look on your face. ‘But whilst we’re here, I think we should set some ground rules’

‘Booooo’ he moaned and you slapped his chest lightly before sitting down on the end of his bed and pulling him down next to you.

‘I’m serious Mase’

‘I know, I’m sorry. I’m just being a prat. Whatever makes you comfortable I’m willing to do’

‘Well first of all, no more faking technical difficulties to get me alone. No one’s gonna believe I helped you fix anything when I can barely use my phone as it is’

‘Yeah I didn’t really think that one through’ he laughed, playing with your fingers as he looked at you adoringly.

‘I know we’re both excited that things are working themselves out but you’re here to do a job and I don’t want to be a distraction’

‘You’re the most beautiful distraction I’ve ever seen’ he whispered, kissing you again a bit deeper this time and you couldn’t help but moan into his mouth.

‘You’re a menace, I swear. I’m trying to be serious with you’ you laughed against his lips but he just winked at you before holding your face gently.

‘Look don’t worry about me. I can be professional, yeah? I’ve had a crush on you since we first met and I’ve always behaved myself around everyone else. No one suspects a thing, not even Dec’

‘Yeah but we hadn’t slept with each other then’ you told him, your cheeks feeling as though they were on fire. ‘It was easier back then as we were both in denial ourselves’

‘I know, but I can still pretend. This trip you’re just like any other member of staff and I’ll treat you the same as i do the others in front of everyone else’ he told you but you raised your brow as his use of phrase in front of everyone else. ‘But if there’s a chance for us to be alone you best believe I’m taking it. And then when we go home you’re coming to stay with me for a few days so we can make up for lost time and figure everything out. Deal?’

‘Deal’ you breathed, your heart hammering at the thought of getting to be with him after this was all over and by the cheeky smirk of his face he was clearly thinking the same.

‘Perfect. Now I think it’s fine for me to keep you for another ten minutes or so, yeah? So if you can keep quiet for me I’ll make it worth your while’ he laughed before laying you down and slipping himself off the end of the bed so he could place himself in between your legs. You didn’t have it in you to argue about it anymore so you did as he told you and kept quiet as he started to make up for lost time earlier than he’d promised.

#mason mount #mason mount fluff #mason mount fan fiction #mason mount blurb #mason mount concept #mason mount fanfic #mason mount story #mason mount imagine #mason mount angst #mason mount smut #mason mount x reader #mason mount x y/n #footballer x reader #footballer x y/n

472 notes · View notes

redyarns · 4 months

Text

resist much, obey little (ch 1)

Alastor had a noose around his neck.

There was only one person who could loosen it.

--------

Temptation had never strung Lucifer along. He was an angel of Heaven no matter what anyone else said, and he had never fallen whim to any of the sins that humans were so eager to do.

And Alastor, a demon and a sinner who had fallen even further after death, was the most forbidden fruit of all.

He was the very embodiment of blasphemy.

But by God, did Lucifer want him.

--------

Knock-knock.

Lucifer let out a weak groan as he slowly let his arm slide off his eyes and off the side of the couch. Red starlight drifted through the torn curtains of a nearby window and nearly blinded him even with his eyes closed, and he had to squint and blink half a dozen times before he raised a hand and scrubbed at his face.

Knock-knock.

“Give me a second,” he called to the idiot who kept banging on his door.

He felt like, well. He felt like someone had take a grinder, stuffed him inside, made him into a sausage, and then shoved said sausage into all their orifices.

He hadn't felt this tired, this pained, in a very long time, and he liked to think he had a high pain tolerance. Nothing had hurt him quite as much as the Fall, or when Lilith left, or when he had to acknowledge his subjects, but he still couldn't quite shake the bone-aching exhaustion as there was a small rustle beside him along with a coo.

Knock-knock-knock.

“I said in a minute!” Lucifer barked again, the infuriating sound pacified at least for now as his tone shifted into something far more gentle while he curled around the small bundle of warmth that he had fallen asleep with. “My little princess, did you sleep well?”

Charlotte Morningstar was the apple of his eye and she was all the more beautiful because of it. She was tucked carefully in between the solid back of the couch and his own body. There was no one in Hell or even the Heavens that would try to defy him and dare to harm her, but it quelled at least some of the constant anxiety in him to know she was near him.

She waved her chubby fists in the air, her eyes already crinkled at the edges with her delighted smile, and he couldn't help it as he gathered her even closer and buried his nose into her soft, beautiful hair and inhale the smell of baby powder.

“Well, starshine, I guess it's time to see who wants to bother our peace so early in the morning,” Lucifer sighed.

Honestly, what kind of fool knocked on anyone's door this early, much less the devil's himself? He dreamed of strangling the idiot who was standing outside his house; maybe it was a stupid imp who wandered somewhere they shouldn't have, or Asmodeus coming to whine to him again, or even worse, Lili -

KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK.

“How dare you disturb your king's slumber?” Lucifer roared, now fully enraged as he ripped open the door so forcefully that it was torn off the hinges completely.

Bits of wood and debris rained around him as his tail lashed in anger, his horns spontaneously grown out of the crown of his head, and he was only a second away from turning this worthless demon into a husk, only for a piece of paper to suddenly be shoved into his face.

“What the - “ Lucifer said, and he squinted to read the blurry text, a result of staying up far too many nights in a row and refusing to do anything about it.

Hey, Idiot!

Want a job no other can fulfill? Do you want some light shed in your otherwise pitifully empty life?

Are you capable of destroying the very atoms who dare to disturb my own?

Then this is the job for you!

Your King of Hell is in need of assistance!

(Fail and I will rip out your intestines, stuff them with your liver and kidneys, and make you eat your meat sausages while gouging out your eyes to prepare you jelly on toast.)

Details include:

-Changing and checking diapers

-Feeding and napping at appropriate times

-Obliterating anyone who dares to harm Charlie or make her cry

-Entertaining her and keeping her away from that blasted thing called a television

-Keeping me, your boss (and overlord and King of Hell) updated on every activity she does

-Schedule appointments and calls accordingly

-And anything else I ask you because I said so

Contact the number below to get in touch with me, Lucifer Morningstar, to schedule an interview today!

666-666-6666

Lucifer had to read it once, twice, before he managed to dig up some fuzzy memory from about at least four months ago.

He remembered it in pieces; how exhausted he was as he tried to cope with the loss of his wife and the sudden gain of a child; his madness as he tried his best to coax Charlie into sleep, even as she refused and wailed; his internal grief as he tried to understand what to do or how to do it.

He had summoned a succubus and demanded that they put up all of his haphazardly made fliers all around hell. In complete honesty, he had forgotten all about it as soon as the papers disappeared from his desk, as Charlie had proceeded to vomit over his button-up and was wailing again. She'd developed a fever and the night had dissolved into a frenzy to better her as quickly as possible.

He hadn't expected anyone to read the flier, much less even give it a second thought, and his horns and tail slowly disappeared as he pushed aside the paper and glared at the demon who dared to show up right at his doorstep.

The demon was a sinner. He had a soul unlike the hellborne, and seemed to enjoy it, too. He grinned too widely and seemed way too into the dress-red-for-Hell theme, and when he spoke, his voice crackled with the poor frequency of an old timey radio as he said, “well hello to you, my liege! I suppose I might have troubled you this morning, but I’m here about your curious job offer!”

“Why are you here at all?” Lucifer snapped, balancing Charlie on his hip and bouncing her when she began to fuss. She drooled on the lapel of his jacket, but as long as she wasn't crying, that was fine by him, so he allowed her to continue as he snarled, “the flier says to call me at the number on the bottom! Are you as blind as you are disobedient?”

The demon's grin widened just by a fraction of an inch, and he bent down into a deep, sarcastic bow. “My apologies, Your Majesty. That was not an oversight on my part; I just don't have a fondness for those… things.”

“Things?”

“Cellphones,” the demon said slowly, like the word was clunky and ill-fitting in his mouth. He rubbed his chin with clawed fingers in thought and said, “I'm rather old fashioned, you could say, and those little devices with their tiny buttons are beyond my time.”

“Huh,” Lucifer grunted, less than a little interested in whatever the demon was saying. He had most of his attention on Charlie, who was now gnawing on his finger with her gums, and he said, “yeah, whatever you say, grandpa. If you want an interview then come in. But touch anything and I'll kill you.”

“I wouldn't dream of it, sire!” The demon trilled happily as he stepped over the threshold and, bizarrely enough, summoned a microphone staff and used it like a cane.

This demon was an unusual one, even among Lucifer's bunch of vile and annoying little shits he called his subjects, and he wondered if he made a mistake letting him in as he pointed at the now broken pieces of the door and said, “that's your first question. If you really aren't illiterate and you read that flier, then you know I don't want some useless little wimp. Show me how powerful you are and then I'll - “

Magic swelled in the air like a sudden puff of air, and Lucifer blinked as the door was suddenly fixed and placed back on its hinges. Why, the smug asshole even decorated the damn thing with little carvings of microphones all around the edges.

“You didn't let me finish,” Lucifer snarled.

“No need to, Your Majesty,” the demon said, looking rather pleased with his handiwork as he observed the wood. “What kind of assistant would I be if I couldn't at least predict your basic wants or needs?”

Lucifer stared, tilting his head slightly.

The demon didn’t say the words in contempt. In fact, he seemed excited about it, which further solidified the idea that he was a weirdo.

Lucifer was the leader of the Pride Ring, after all, so he was excellent at evoking hilarious reactions by poking at people's sensitive prides, but this demon didn't seem at all offended over the demeaning job of being an assistant.

And to think a powerful demon like this existed at all… his magic from just now was similarly no joke. It was the kind of stuff that tingled across Lucifer's skin and nearly down his back and to his wings, which rustled restlessly when he thought too hard about it.

He always had them tucked away for several reasons, but to think a sinner had the ability to create enough power to have him move even a single feather was… impressive.

It was impressive and he was annoyed about it, which probably showed on his face as he clicked his tongue and said, “show off. Fine. Charlie has to have breakfast now, so come on.”

Lucifer ignored the way the demon's smile crinkled at the edges as he turned on his heel and marched to the kitchen.

It pinched the edge of his mind to see just how destroyed the place was. Various toys, baby contraptions, clothes, and uneaten food littered the place.

It also smelled vaguely like baby powder and oil, and Lucifer himself probably looked like an actual disaster with how his hair was unkempt and he hadn't changed his clothes in three days, but he was too tired to care as he stepped over a mountain of stuffed animals.

The kitchen was no less of a messy tornado than the living room, but at least the high-top was clean.

Lucifer cooed to his daughter as she kicked her legs and squealed in delight when he lifted her into the air and kissed her bare belly, distracting her from destroying yet another piece of furniture.

“She doesn't like sitting,” Lucifer sing-songed, keeping his voice as high-pitched and sweet as possible while slowly starting to lower her into the cushion of the chair. “But as long as you keep her distracted, she can do it with minimum fuss! Right, Charlie? Right, starshine? My wonderful wittie bittie girl, look how good you are!”

Lucifer let out a huge, admittedly rather relieved sigh when she let her chubby legs stick through the opening of the high-too while she bashed her tiny fists onto the table. She only made small, little displeased noises when he tied a bib around her neck and she blew a raspberry, but that was it.

This was turning out to be a great morning, then.

“Go on,” Lucifer said, turning around and crossing his arms as he tried to look as intimidating as possible. It was then that he realized the demon was at least a foot taller than him; the audacity! “Feed her. That's your second question; if you really want this job, you should know how to take care of a baby.”

“Hmm,” the demon hummed. He didn't seem at all perturbed by the hostility nor the near harassment of demands, and he merely waltzed over to the fridge, opening it and bending at the waist to observe what was inside.

After only a moment of looking, he reached in and grabbed several apples, all bright red and crisp. He took care to avoid any of the ones with spots on them, Lucifer realized, and the demon whistled a cheery tune as he juggled four apples easily and then threw them all up at once.

He snapped his fingers and a blender popped into existence, taking the fruits with ease and floating in the air as it blended them into a sauce.

“There,” he said, smug and satisfied as the blender poured out several mini jars of perfectly liquified apples. “Nutritious and well-processed to avoid any chunks.”

“Anyone can blend apples, smarta - smarty-pants,” Lucifer snapped. “I mean feed her. I don't give a shi - crud if you’re powerful and if you've read every single parenting book in the realm. If she doesn't like you, I’ll crush you here and now.”

That was the barest truth of all of this. Lucifer was the most powerful of them all, could destroy any single one of them into dust if he truly wanted, so what did it matter if this single demon was slightly stronger than average?

All demons had the potential to grow just as much as he had, but Lucifer didn’t give a flying rat's ass about that. It simply boiled down to if Charlie liked them.

He refused to have someone be her caretaker if she hated them. She needed love, warmth, compassion - all the things no regular demon could give. She deserved those things, and Lucifer had already given his whole heart to her, but he knew it wasn't enough.

For the first time since he got there, the demon hesitated. His smile waned only by a centimeter, but it was noticeable enough, and he eyed Charlie apprehensively.

After another second of contemplation, he approached her slowly, and Lucifer watched from only a few feet away, his wings threatening to burst out of his back from how tense he was.

He didn't know this demon, couldn't trust him as far as he could throw him, and if there was even the slightest chance that he would hurt Charlie, Lucifer had to intervene and make him eat his own intestines.

Luckily, the demon didn't do such a thing.

He set aside his microphone, leaning it against the counter, and he bent slightly so that he was eye-level with the baby.

Charlie gurgled, a noise of curiosity more than apprehension or fear, and she drooled a little as she stared at him and blinked in question when he curled a finger and a jar of applesauce floated towards him.

“Your Highness, although I know it must be very early in the morning for you, it's imperative to a young demon's health to eat well in order to grow and ascend to their rightful place,” the demon said. “In your case, it's your throne. It would be a tremendous help if you didn't make a fuss.”

Lucifer watched in bewilderment.

This man talked to his Charlie like she could understand a word that he just said. On good days, she could comprehend basic commands of no or stop , but that was the absolute limit.

She didn't even know what her hands were, or had any sort of object permanence! How could this stupid demon expect her to understand any of that?

But instead of flinging applesauce into his face like Lucifer expected, Charlie merely popped her lips, grumbled for a few seconds, and then opened her mouth obediently.

Lucifer's jaw dropped as the demon laughed from his throat.

“Well done, Princess,” the demon said, his eyes crescent-shaped from how pleased he was. He even spoon-fed her with his hand, not his magic, and he continued to speak like she was a grown woman instead of a baby who dribbled most of the applesauce down her chin and to her bib. “You are exceeding my expectations already. I have no doubt you will continue to do so.”

He hummed as she continued to eat, slowly making her way through the jar of fruit. Anytime some of the sauce spilled out of the corner of her lips, he patiently wiped it away with a summoned handkerchief, and he even allowed her to grip onto one of his fingers as he fed her.

Charlie loved grabbing things. It was her way of seeking comfort or validation when she was doing something new, and she had never eaten apples before this. She always loved to tug on Lucifer's hair or his clothes with an iron grip, but she seemed completely at ease as she licked at the spoon and smiled gummily at the demon when he tutted.

“Your Highness, etiquette is important to proper young ladies like yourself,” he said, but his voice was gentle and not admonishing as he rubbed at her cheek again with his napkin. She beamed at the touch and giggled. “Yes, yes. You are forgiven. Now, let's make sure you don't regret your breakfast, shall we?”

Before Lucifer even had a chance to say anything, the demon scooped Charlie up and out of her chair. Her legs kicked like she always did whenever she realized she was about to be carried, and she snuggled against his shoulder as he properly secured her to his chest and began patting her back.

He was burping her.

He had managed to feed her, soothe her, indulge her habit of grabbing things, and he was now burping her.

Lucifer felt like a puppet whose strings were just cut as he sagged suddenly against the counter and had to grip it tightly to make sure he didn't crumble to the ground.

For the first time ever since Charlie's birth, he had a moment of freedom, a moment to breathe, and he inhaled deeply as he ran a hand through his disheveled hair and hysterically thought to himself that he now had a chance to shower.

“Demon,” he commanded as best as he could, but it really sounded like he was on the brink of toppling over as he continued to watch the pair.

“Hmm?” The demon replied, never stopping as he continued to pat Charlie's back while walking in a circle, bouncing slightly with each step so she wouldn't grow bored.

“Your name,” Lucifer said.

The demon grinned at him. It was a disturbing smile, really, and Lucifer had half the mind to wipe it off his smug little face for daring to look so triumphant, but he refrained.

After all, the demon seemed to understand the hidden meaning of his question, and when he spoke, his voice crackled at the edges of his pleasure as he bowed slightly and said, “Alastor.”

“Well, Alastor,” Lucifer said, hauling himself up to his feet and trying to blink away the spots in his eyes. “I hope you know what you're getting yourself into.”

Alastor purred.

“I look forward to working with you, Your Majesty.”

#radioapple #appleradio #hazbin hotel #lucifer morningstar #alastor #charlie morningstar #resist much obey little

96 notes · View notes

rainydaymiscellaneous · 4 months

Text

“Little Light” (Astarion x Fem reader)

Note: sorry for me being gone, I now have two jobs and I also kind of fell down the BG3 rabbit hole. So. Yeaaahhh. Don’t worry you guys, I am still writing for Into the Fire I just am trying to work on the other chapters so it’s actually complete and I don’t have to worry about it being incomplete.

But in the mean time if you have any astarion related requests feel free to send them bishes in.

It was a dark night when Tav came into camp. A night no one expected to remember but gods, it would forever be seared into Astarion’s mind. It was different from the average night of his work. You see, he brought back a girl. Not unusual for the hero after saving the grove but it was unusual this night.

Bloodshed seemed to naturally follow the ragtag group of chaotic heroes. It was something they all got used to after a while, typically resulting in them washing their armor in a river trying to get the crimson stains out and the metallic smell to leave.

Tav said he was going to a tavern, which no one batted an eye at. Hells, Karlach joined him so he’d have a drinking buddy. But now they had come back with an unconscious woman in Karlach’s arms.

She was bleeding, that alone alerted Astarion to her presence from the mouth watering smell. He could control the urges, he never let them go out of control since he escaped the clutches of Cazador. Around blood, though, Astarion would become aware of his teeth. Like his senses would overwhelm him. Typically this would result in his little looks to Tav to quietly let him go off and find a willing victim, which he’d give a nod to so he could subtly slip away.

This night was different. Tav seemed more panicked than usual. He was asking Karlach to be careful. He kept trying to keep the girl’s eyes open. Karlach kept shooting Astarion a panicked “help” look. He walked over confused as Karlach laid her down.

And there was you. A girl who had been stabbed that he had never seen before. But why did Tav care? There was a difference between him worrying for random strangers versus this girl. There was a clear familiarity between the two but considering the tense situation, Astarion wasn’t asking right now.

“Y/n, keep your eyes open.” Tav demanded.

“I-I’m trying..” he heard you say quietly. Your eyelids felt like lead.

“Is magic not working?” Astarion asked.

“His powers are shot from the battle earlier!” Karlach says. You lazily looked at the unfamiliar voice.

“Red… eyes…” You muttered.

“Halsin! Make yourself useful!” Astarion yelled. You saw the fangs when he yelled. Most people when bleeding out would be freaked the fuck out by a vampire lingering so close. But you felt weirdly safer with him being the one to help.

Halsin rushed over, muttering incantations. A blue glow engulfed your vision and you finally succumbed to the urge to sleep. Halsin let out a small breath of relief.

“The girl will be fine. She needs to rest, regain her energy.” He says. Tav looked relieved by this.

Finally, Astarion felt it appropriate for some questions.

“Tav, who is this?” He asked. Tav sighed, looking down at your resting face.

“My sister. Y/n. She wanted to travel with us, which I said yes to. But then we were ambushed and Y/n took a stab meant for me.” He said. He sounded guilt ridden. Like he wished it was himself lying there instead of you.

Tav rarely mentioned his family. When he did, the only positive light seemed to be about you, his sister. Though in his tales of his childhood, he never mentioned a name. It was always “my little sister” or “my sister” instead of “Y/n”.

Astarion saw the emergency end, him standing up fully. “I need to feed.” He said before dismissing himself.

Hours passed, he finally returned to camp and you were fully awake. You were sipping on tea, Karlach wrapping a blanket around your body. “Thank you, Karlach.” You said softly. Your voice was light. Like a breeze on a summers day in a meadow.

“So you’re the sister?” Astarion asked, sauntering over in his usual manner. You gave a warm smile to him, something he hadn’t seen from anyone.

“I suppose that is me.” You nodded. Something was different about you.

“And you’re fine? Traveling with a vampire?” Astarion asked.

“Should I not be?” You asked.

“Most would be off put by it.” Astarion said. You simply shrugged, sipping your tea before saying

“I’m not most, I suppose.”

He rose a brow at this. He noticed the new staff, off to the side. “You’re a wizard?” He asked.

“Cleric.” You said. He chuckled.

“Tav’s sister is a cleric?” He asked.

“Indeed.” You nodded.

“I suppose that must mean you’re devoted to a deity.” Astarion said.

“Eilistraee.” You answered.

“Oh gods, you’re not like Halsin are you? Constantly speaking about the ‘joys of nature’s gifts’” he asks. You let out a snort at his tone before laughing.

“No! No. Though I understand him, I don’t believe us to be the same. I don’t operate on the Oakfather, that would be Silvanus. I have less strict rules on good and evil compared to followers of the oak father.” You shrugged.

“Ah. So if I pickpocketed an evil man, you’d allow it?” He asked.

“Of course, if he was truly evil. Think of it as balancing the scales. With unconventional revenge.” You shrugged making him chuckle.

“I think I’ll enjoy having you around.” He said with a smile. You smiled back.

“You are different.” A voice said. Astarion jolted, looking behind him to see Withers, the confusing undead creature that hung around camp.

“You must be Withers.” You said not turning around.

“Indeed. You see things others cannot.” He said. You nodded. “Pasts. Present. Futures. All you can peer into. Yet you do not bear the tadpole as your brother does.” Astarion looked over at you.

“I’ve always been able to. Hear things others can’t. See things, others can’t.” You said.

“You’re a seer?” Astarion asked. You nodded.

“Unfortunately.” You said.

“Oh? What do you see in our futures? Do we get this wretched thing away from us?” He asked, pointing to his head. You chuckled.

“I’m afraid it doesn’t work that way. I must touch the person to see.” You said.

“Ah. Well consider me an experiment.” He said. You paused, setting down your cup.

“Are you comfortable with this? I must see everything before being able to see the future. You’d be sharing your past.” You warned. He hesitated but found himself nodded. Everyone in camp already knew the extent of Cazador. One more person didn’t make a difference, right?

You held out your hands, him slowly putting his over yours. You closed your eyes inhaling. As if nature itself was speaking, there was a breeze, petals of pear blossoms flowing in it. The sweet smell filled his nose as he slowly relaxed.

“You suffered. Made a choice that landed an attack from angry people. You made a deal with a vampire… you were his… Six others fell victim as well. His reign was a terror. You would feed from whatever you could. You were frightened. Scared that that was what your immorality would amount to.” You muttered. Your grip on his hands grew stronger as Astarion noticed your expression with your closed eyes.

Empathy. Sadness. Sadness for his experiences.

“You were captured while looking for prey by mindflayers. You don’t remember much from it but you were almost… grateful. Something would finally drag you out from his clutches. The tadpole, it did something. Severed that urge to follow his command. To obey his will. To your surprise you find a friend in my brother.” You spoke softly.

Your fingers slid into his, him seeing a light yellow glow from your hands. “Your future is…” you jolted opening your eyes, the light of your abilities dying. Your face flooded with a blush staring at the vampire shocked.

“Are you alright?” He asked, concerned by the almost alarmed look in your eyes.

“Y-yes I… Erm. Aha. Took a lot out of me. Never did a reading on a 200 year old vampire.” You chuckled nervously. “I should go! Tav wanted me to help him with something!” You said getting up and almost sprinting away.

Withers cocked his head looking over. “She has seen something in you.” He says. Astarion seemed confused by the statement. Why lie to him about what you saw..?

This was a question that Astarion wanted to ask, but held off on it. But you seemed to wiggle your way into his heart over the course of a few weeks of traveling. He loved how chaotic you were, cracking jokes about imminent death and “if Tav dies, I call dibs on his sword.”

Shadowheart of course was disturbed by your odd nature but put up with it, due to your relation with Tav. You had made Astarion smile, laugh a few times as well. All in all, you seemed to be a light in darkness. Which was quickly turning his perspective ironic once they had all made their way into the shadowy parts of the forest, touched by a curse.

You seemed deeply drained as you walked, despite holding a torch. Everyone else seemed fine but you seemed so tired. You were walking when you stumbled, Astarion catching you. He passed his torch off to Karlach.

“Y/n? What’s wrong?” Astarion asked.

“The nature here. It-It hurts. Like a f-fever that won’t die out.” You winced.

“Gods… Y/n, the harper is taking us somewhere safe, do you think you’re able to make it?” Tav asked clearly concerned.

“It’s- It’s getting harder to walk.” You said, panting from trying to fight off the dark energies of the forest. Astarion lifted you onto his back.

“I’ve got you, little light. Don’t worry.” He assured. That little nickname. That sweet tone. You knew when the cocky bastard was joking. But that tone had been more sincere than anything anyone in the group had heard.

They followed the Harper into the darkness, torches in hand as they eventually reached the last light inn. You held onto Astarion, feeling the cold skin of the undead man. You put your forehead on his back, him feeling the warmth of your body. It was too warm for this to be normal. Whatever plagued the forest was making you sick.

“Stop! Who are you?” A woman halted as they crossed the bridge.

“My name is Tav- look, my sister is sick, something is-is wrong she needs help!” Tav said stepping forward. The woman drew her sword.

“Jaheira! They saved my life, they’re not the enemy.” The harper guide said. She hesitated.

“Is this true?” She asked. She heard the coughing of you, walking closer and seeing your newly feverish state. She noticed the symbol on your arm.

“Cleric…? Your sister is a Cleric?” She asked.

“Yes! Please, we don’t mean harm, we need help!” Tav practically begged.

“…Speak to Isobel upstairs in the Inn. She can help you.” She said. Tav nodded, motioning for Astarion to go. Astarion practically sprinted up the stairs to the room, finding the woman.

Isobel turned around. “who is this?” She asked.

“She’s my friend, please- something is wrong.” He said. She paused noticing the vampiric appearance. Why did a presumably blood thirsty monster care?

“Lay her down, I will see what I can do.” She said motioning to a bed. Astarion obeyed, watching as Isobel hovered her hands over your body as you writhed in your feverish state.

He felt nervous, watching you slowly relax. “She will be fine. As long as she stays here.” Isobel said. “She will be protected by the magic in the field but if she leaves it while the curse still stands, it will prove lethal within days.” She said.

Tav had found his way into the room, looking at you. “…We could use Shadowheart until we fix this.” He said, watching you slowly fall asleep.

“I want to stay.” Astarion said. Karlach looked over.

“Are you sure?” She asked.

“You can use whoever, hell use Withers but I am not moving.” Astarion said.

“Alright. Alright I hear you. I feel safer with someone staying with her anyway.” Tav said.

So there he sat by you for days. The goal was for you to fight off the fever so your body could adjust to the corruption. They moved you downstairs next to a man who was constantly singing in his unconscious state. Honestly made Astarion debate on shoving a blade through the man’s neck but thankfully he shut up after Halsin managed wake the bastard up with a lute.

Tav was preparing for a battle on the moonrise towers, finally gaining a lantern (that swore vengeance on him for not releasing the pixie stuck inside it)

You slept soundly in bed. Astarion would rarely move. All came to ahead when he heard a very loud thud and screaming “TO ARMS” from Jaheira.

Astarion stood up, unsure on if he should see what the hell was going on but there stood a winged creature in the doorway. It seemed set on killing anything in its path. Astarion drew his blades, staring at the thing before him.

It pounced like a cat to a mouse, Astarion stabbing it repeatedly. He kept trying to get it to possibly run off at least but it kept scratching, screaming that awful screeching noise. He struck again, when the creature managed to knock him down pouncing on him and drawing its claws out ready to tear out his heart.

That’s when a blade stabbed through its head, killing it instantly. He looked up, seeing you with his dagger that was knocked out of his hand when it pounced. You stood there, shaking as you shoved the creature’s corpse off of Astarion and he took your hand, standing up.

“When did you wake up?” He asked.

“When you started fighting that thing.” You said panting. “Are you okay-“ he gently wiped the blood off of your cheek, ignoring your concerned tone “I-I saw the thing on top of you and I-I thought you were-“

He cupped your cheeks. “I am fine, Little Light.” He said softly. You looked in his eyes, dropping the blade. “You’re shaking.” He noticed.

“My legs haven’t left the bed in days…” you said softly.

“Mm.” He nodded. You couldn’t move. You found yourself enraptured in those crimson eyes. He kissed your forehead and hugged you. “I’m alright. I promise.” He assured. You slowly hugged him back, surprised by the man’s manner. He hadn’t been affectionate before. What changed?

You let out a relieved breath, feeling his hand travel into your hair, gently moving his fingers as if to soothe you. He kept whispering reassurances. “I’m alright, I promise” or “We’re safe. It’s okay.”

You had never felt this amount of safety, especially since the entire separation from your brother and the dark forest. But here you were. Safe in the arms of the one you knew you’d come to love.

You loved him. You knew this would come to happen. When you saw his future, you saw yourself with him. Loving him, with yourself on his arm with a smile that was almost glowing. You pulled back because when you saw his future and he asked for his reading, it was technically the first time you had spoken. You didn’t want to come across as flirting, you didn’t want it to seem like you were almost manifesting that you two would come to love one another. You kept this secret to yourself. You didn’t want to make him uncomfortable.

Sometimes when you gave readings, people would become cross, claiming you took the autonomy of their choices away because you knew the outcomes. They didn’t understand that you had no ability to control what you saw. That that wasn’t your intention. But to many it came across as rude, especially when the readings were negative.

You knew after seeing the visions of Cazador’s evil acts upon him, that he must’ve struggled with feeling like he was never in control. To say that you saw him with you, you felt as though it’d almost seem like you’re forcing yourself onto him. You could never do that to him. Never.

You pulled away looking into his eyes. You also felt that by keeping this to yourself, you were robbing him of his right to know what he asked. “Astarion I-“

The door flew open, Tav standing there panting. His armor was covered in blood, though it was clear it wasn’t his own. “Some flaming fist bastard tried to kidnap Isobel!” He said.

“Did they succeed?” Astarion asked.

“We’d all be dead if they did.” Tav said sheathing his sword. He looked down, seeing the dead creature.

“We saw one of them go down stairs. We thought for sure that you were-“

“Y/n had it handled.” Astarion assured. Tav nods, noticing Astarion’s hands on your waist. He rose a brow, looking at the hand on his chest.

“…Did I interrupt something?” He asked.

“Aha! Uh- n-no—“

“Oh yes you did. I was just about to ask your sister for some blood but noooo! Someone had to enter without knocking!” Astarion joked. Even with the with the obvious sexual tension, you started laughing, rolling your eyes.

Gods he loved that sound. It was like music every time he heard your laugh. He smiled, not removing his hands from your waist as he looked down at you. Tav was increasingly suspicious.

“Right. Well. Uhm. We’re going to head off.” Tav said.

“Stay safe.” You said. He nodded before leaving, closing the door behind him. He paused, seeing Karlach.

“Wow, damn. That was crazy.” She breathed, clearly still dealing with the aftermath of the battle.

“Have you noticed anything with Y/n and Astarion?” Tav asked. Karlach looked confused.

“No? Why? Walk in on something?” Karlach asked.

“I don’t know.” Tav muttered.

“Were they like… doing it?” Karlach asked and Tav grimaced with a snort.

“What!? No! No it’s… Astarion had his hands on her waist. And her hands were on his chest.” He explained.

“Well how close were they?” Karlach asked. Tav sighed, pulling Karlach over. Ever since they made the temporary fix with the infernal engine, he had touched her hands quite a bit. This was going to be quite the difference…

He pulled her close, pulling her hand to his chest and put his hands on her waist. “Like this. This close.” He said looking up at the tall tiefling. She paused and once he realized how close they were he made the same expression.

“Well. You definitely must’ve walked in on something!” She said with a nervous laugh. Due to her red tone, it was hard to tell if the woman was blushing. But he did take notice in the glowing pattering of her engine speeding up.

He chuckled nervously back in response nodding. “I figured.” He said.

“Well would it be so bad? Ari is a good man. Wouldn’t hurt her.” Karlach shrugged.

“I just… She’s never showed an interest in men before. Honest. Never any childhood crushes, no secret boyfriends as a teenager. She said romance was dull and didn’t interest her.” He said.

“Maybe something changed.” Karlach said.

“I don’t know… Maybe.” He said. She nodded mindlessly.

“We should go to camp. She can’t leave the inn until the curse is lifted and I have a feeling that even though she’s awake, Ari’s not leaving her side.” Karlach said.

“Good point. Maybe it’s time to put Wyll back out there.” He said walking with Karlach.

You finally separated from Astarion after Tav left, getting back into bed as Harpers carried the creature’s body back.

“Do you want food? You’ve been out for days, maybe it’ll do you some good.” Astarion said.

“Soup..” you muttered. He rose a brow.

“Soup? You want soup?” He asked. You nodded sheepishly, feeling as though it was a dumb request.

“I will get you soup then,” he said softly. You watched him get up, leaving and returning with soup in hand. “It was too warm but I cooled it. And I brought bread, you need something else on your stomach.” He said.

You nodded, slowly eating the foods he got for you. You seemed to relax when you finished your food, laying in the bed.

“Why do you call me ‘Little Light’?” You asked after a moment.

“Ah. Right.” Astarion nodded mindlessly. “There’s a bit of hopelessness going around. Like the world itself is being consumed by darkness. But you, my dear, are a little light in the darkest parts of it. Normally I’d roll my eyes at your heroic nature. But the way you handle yourself compared to Tav? It’s entertaining. It’s nice. You don’t just see black and white, you can see the grays in it too. You know when a situation is tricky and you don’t try to avoid it. You make light where there is one. Hence ‘Little Light’.” He shrugged.

“Well now after hearing all of that it’s only fair that I give you a nickname too.” You said. He chuckled, shrugging. “Hmm. I’m thinking on this.” You pondered. He chuckled, watching you. “I could call you chompers,” you said. He blinked. “cause of the teeth.” You said before biting down loudly making him shake his head with a laugh.

“Call me that and I might be forced to bite you.” He teased. You chuckled thinking.

“Oldie?” You suggested. He rose a brow with an amused look on his face.

“Are you trying to make me suffocate you with your pillow?” He asked making you laugh.

“Middlemist.” You said. He looked confused. “It’s a rare flower. It can withstand many things, some have even seen battles. And they’re red. Like… Like your eyes.” You said. He smiled nodding.

“Much better.” He said.

“And they need a little light to grow.” You added. That made him pause. “Not that you need me or anything-“

“I do.” He said. You stopped, swallowing hard. “I have changed since I have met you. Into what I think is a better man. I’ve grown. I didn’t think I could do that again. But I did.” He said softly. You looked in his eyes. “Can I ask you something?” He asked. You nodded.

“What did I look like in my past? I can’t remember how I looked before I was turned.” He asked. You smiled, looking at him. “You had brown hair that was almost black. Your eyes were a deep green. Just like your mother’s.” You said softly. His mother. Oh how he forgotten that sweet woman. She died when he was young but he could remember her kindness. How far from it he must’ve strayed.

He seemed almost sad by your words. He must’ve been such a disappointment for his mother. For him to become a conniving little bat that really didn’t care about other people as long as he gained something in return.

“She would be proud.” You said. He paused hearing this. “You overcame everything that monster put you through. For that she would be proud of you.” You said. His gaze softened, looking at you.

“I’ve hurt so many people-“

“You did what you had to, to survive.” You said. “You are not a monster.”

He had never heard someone say that. In all of his 200 years of life. Someone gave him the reassurance that he wasn’t a monster.

His lips connected with yours in an instant. You were shocked of course. You froze in place but once you registered what was happening, you relaxed, your hands cupping his cheeks. He pulled away after a moment, it dawning on him who he was kissing.

“Shit. Shit shit shit-“

“Are you alright?” You asked.

“You’re Tav’s sister! I-I shouldn’t have—“

Then it sunk in. Astarion was your brother’s closest friend. Oh gods. Oh Gods.

“Shit.” you muttered. “We shouldn’t do this- We should act like this didn’t happen, right?” You asked.

“…If that is what you want.” He muttered. You saw that expression. Almost hurt. Like what just happened didn’t mean anything. But it did. Gods it did. It meant the world. The stars themselves.

“It isn’t but… I don’t want to hurt Tav when he helped me.” You said. Astarion rose a brow. What did you mean “helped you”? He knew there must’ve been a reason you had been with Karlach and Tav. Maybe you meant the medical attention you received but… Something in your eyes seemed to say otherwise. Whatever your brother did, made you feel as though you owed him. Something less trivial than Tav’s typical heroics.

“What did he do?” Astarion asked. You seemed to halt, closing your mouth. You felt as though if he knew your truth, he might see you as less than. Course that was ridiculous, you two suffered in similar ways. But you didn’t know how to even begin to talk about what was done to you in the “Name of the Absolute”.

You looked down, away from his gaze. What happened before you ended up with them? What exactly went on that made you so tight lipped that you wouldn’t even talk to him?

You hesitated but kept closing your mouth. “Those monsters didn’t just want Isobel.” You muttered. Astarion looked even more confused. What the hell did they want with you.

“The Absolute has been tracking me. Trying to find me, they want me to ensure their victory. The natural abilities I have can be weaponized. But Halsin… I know him, he was my teacher. And he told me that if I used them at full power it’d kill me. Destroy my body. I wouldn’t be able to withstand that much power.” You muttered. Astarion blinked.

“Tav had heard my name mentioned by one of the goblins apparently. They had plans to kidnap me and drag me to the towers. By the time he had found me, so did the Absolute’s lackeys. They tried to maim me just enough so that I could be dragged unconscious.” You said. He couldn’t believe this. Tav didn’t go out to drink that night. He went to actively find you.

“He saved me from that group. I was surprised Tav even wanted me here in the first place all things considered but I think he feels that the safest option is to have me nearby. Astarion you mean so much to me but I can’t betray my brother’s trust. Not like this.” You muttered. Astarion felt so many things at once. Sadness. Anger for the fact that they hurt you so badly you nearly died at camp. But understanding to your emotions.

So you ignored them. The feelings that were bubbling like water in a hot pot they were just there. You two tried to ignore it. Over the next two days, Tav returned with a lantern, clipping it to your side.

“LET ME OUUUUTT!”

“Tav why is your lantern screaming at me?” You asked.

“It’s a pissed off pixie.” He said.

“I WILL END YOU ASSHOLE!”

“She sounds beyond pissed.” You said staring at the pixie inside. She was clearly fuming. “It’s like a pissed off pet.” You snorted. Astarion chuckled, finding it funny.

“PET!? I AM NOT A PET! FUCK YOU!”

“I wonder if I can give it something to make it chill out.” You said looking into the lantern.

“Dunno. She’s mad though.” Tav shrugged.

“Thanks but why this?” You asked.

“Isobel said that the reason you’re unable to handle the lands was because mere torchlight wasn’t enough. This should be the best thing.” He said.

“Tav, we both know I can’t go into those towers.” You warned.

“I know. But at least this way, you can travel around without fear of death.” He said. You nodded.

“Thanks.” You said.

“Of course.” He nodded.

So you started joining everyone back at camp. Tav noticed a newfound sadness in Astarion. Staring of longing for you. But he wouldn’t go near you. Tav finally decided to start asking questions.

“Hey, Ari. Can I ask you something?” Tav asked.

“What’s on your mind?” Astarion asked, clearing his throat.

“I’ve noticed something. Between you and Y/n.” He said. Astarion tensed up.

“Wh..what do you mean?” He asked.

“I mean you seem to really like her.” He said.

“Well… Uh… I-I… I don’t want to disrespect you Tav.” He coughed out.

“Do you intend on hurting her?” Tav asked.

“No! Never.” Astarion said quickly.

“Do you intend on drinking her blood and leaving her to die?” He asked.

“No- Gods no Tav!” Astarion said.

“Do you love her?” Tav asked. Astarion paused. He froze. He watched you laughing with Karlach, smiling as you sat next to her.

“…How could I not.” He said.

“Then how is you falling in love disrespectful?” Tav asked. Astarion looked at Tav surprised. He approved? He wanted this?

“You wouldn’t hate me?” Astarion asked.

“No- Gods no. Astarion, Y/n doesn’t like people easily. I’ve never seen her take interest in someone. Ever. But she likes you. And if you like her too, you need to say something. Especially if this whole battle plan Jaheira has goes south.” He said.

Astarion’s gaze went back to you. “Talk to her. Tell her it’s okay with me.” He said. Astarion nodded getting up.

You stood up, walking over to your tent when you noticed Astarion behind you. You jumped. “Gods! You scared me.” You gasped.

“Oh! Sorry I-“

“No-no it’s okay!” You said.

“I wanted to talk to you.” He said.

“Oh… erm… About what?” You asked.

“Tav spoke to me.” He said. You blinked.

“About what?” You asked.

“You. And me. Us.” He said.

“…Oh.” You breathed. He felt already that he might’ve misread everything. Maybe the kiss was something that you didn’t like and you were using Tav as an excuse as to not hurt his feelings. Maybe you didn’t like him at all, maybe he read too much into this. “what did he say?” You asked.

“That… He doesn’t want to be what sets us back. That if we feel… strongly for one another we should pursue it.” He said.

You looked relieved. You didn’t hesitate, you just hugged him. “Thank the gods.” You muttered into his chest. Relief hit him instantly as he hugged you back. You felt safe again in those arms.

He kissed your head and you looked in his eyes as you pulled away slightly. “Stay with me tonight? Please?” You asked quietly. He smiled gently.

“Of course my dear.” He said, kissing your nose.

That night, he stepped into your tent, pausing as he saw your back. It was like his almost. Not infernal writings but something different. Writings of preachings of Shar. Which was odd. Because he knew you didn’t hold high opinions of Shar. You turned, jumping.

“Gods! I need to put a bell on you or something, you scared me!” You said. He shook himself out of the focus of the preachings on your back. You turned back, your shirt clutched in your fingers. “I suppose you’re wondering why Shar’s preaches are on my back?” You asked.

“…You don’t have to indulge my curiosity.” He said gently.

“I was kidnapped years ago when I was a child. Tav and I were playing in our village, I lost my ball and I went to grab it. I was known as the druid magic girl. So one of Shar’s followers grabbed me. Branded me with Shar’s words against my will to remind me that Shar would be superior.” You said.

He stopped, staring with wide eyes. He couldn’t believe that someone would brand someone like that because of their beliefs, much less a child. “It’s why I bathe alone. Last time I was with the girls, Shadowheart kept making remarks about it.” You muttered. He frowned.

“Shadowheart will have my fangs in her neck if she opens her mouth about it again.” He said. You sighed.

“You shouldn’t turn against her just because I have a problem with it.” You said.

“I would do it anyways. The girl is far too chatty.” He shrugged making you chuckle.

“I feel… hideous sometimes. With these scars. I hate them. It’s like I become painfully aware of my skin.” You muttered. Gods they really were two sides of the same coin.

He walked over, gently wrapping his arms around you from behind. He kissed the back of your neck. “I know how you feel.” He said softly. You dropped your shirt after a couple of seconds slowly turned in his arms.

“Cazador branded me. Though I don’t have a mirror. Don’t know what exactly is written.” He said. You looked at him sympathetically. You never wanted anyone to know that kind of pain. But there was someone who did. You rested your forehead on his.

“We truly are fucked up individuals, aren’t we?” You muttered.

“Indeed my dear. Pained by others.” He muttered.

You held his cheek, kissing him. “No harm will come to you as long as I am near.” You assured. He chuckled.

“I should be saying this to you.” He said. You felt a familiar tinge of pain, wincing and gripping your head.

A vision. Something in the strings of fate was near. You gripped Astarion’s arm, closing your eyes. What was fate telling you?

You saw yourself, in Astarion’s arms. Dead. With vines everywhere. The shadow curse lifted. You pulled away, panting.

“What happened? Are you alright?” He asked. You frowned looking down. This didn’t make any sense. You were perfectly alive in your first vision with Astarion. Something was going to happen, something so large it changed the strings of fate themselves. You panted, trying to catch your breath.

“Love, are you alright?” He asked again.

“I’m okay. I’m okay. Just a vision.” You breathed. He looked at you concerned. “It’s okay. It’ll be okay,” you said looking in his eyes. He looked confused.

The next morning you woke up in Astarion’s arms. Completely naked of course. Your legs felt… well they felt sore. Like your core muscles had been pushed past your typical limit. You were the first to wake up and you took your time to yourself thinking on what the vision meant.

Was it meant to happen? Was it a warning? No, anytime a vision like that occurred spontaneously, it meant it was fate. So what was Astarion’s future if you were dead? How were you going to live out your days if you were destined to die?

Your thoughts were interrupted by the red eyes looking into yours. “Morning, my love.” He said softly.

“Morning my darling.” You said back, kissing his forehead.

“You’re thinking. I can tell.” He said.

“I am.” You nodded mindlessly.

“About? Do indulge me.”

“… How much longer do you think we have before Tav attacks the towers?” You asked.

“I’m uncertain. He hasn’t had me with him that much, he wants me to look after you.” He said.

You nodded again. “I have questions for him… I’ll be right back.” You said getting up. Astarion seemed confused. Last night you seemed like this too. I mean, not entirely, eventually your focus went to him. A lot. Which surprised him. He had no idea a tongue could even do that but that was beside the point. Something had claimed your attention this morning, judging by the look in your eyes it was serious.

You got dressed, walking out of your tent. “Tav, I need to talk to you.” You said.

“Well you sound serious- wow you’re shaking.” He noticed your legs wobbling a bit. Damn it Astarion. Damn it.

“Aha. Well…. that’s not… important.” You coughed out.

“Uh huh. Sure. What’s going on?” He asked.

You looked back at your tent. You looked around the camp. “Not… not here.” You said. You grabbed your lantern next to the back. “Come.”

Tav followed you away from the camp, wondering what had you so serious. “When do you think you’re attacking Moonrise?” You asked. He paused.

“What?” He asked.

“Moonrise. When do you plan on attacking?” You asked.

“…I just got the Nightsong. So probably soon.” He said.

“I need to be there.” You said. He rose a brow.

“You want to be there or you had a vision where you are there and I need to take you before I piss off a nature god?” He asked.

“The second one.” You said.

“You had a vision,” he said.

“Yeah.” You nodded.

“Gonna tell me what it was?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Because if I do, you will try to stop me.” You said. He frowned.

“Y/n, what did you see?” He asked.

“I will not tell you.”

“What did you see?” He asked again.

“Tav-”

“Y/n. What. Did. You. See?” he asked.

“I died. I was dead. But you succeeded. The only way this succeeds is if I-”

“No.”

“Tav. We both know what happens when you try to change fate.” You said. He sighed running a hand over his face.

“…Okay. Okay. You seem serious about this. I’ll respect it. Does Astarion know?” He asked.

“No.” You said.

“You haven’t told him?” He asked.

“No. Please don’t say anything. I… I don’t want him to try to stop it,” you said. Tav sighed. But he nodded.

You didn’t realize Tav planned on leaving for the towers soon. Or that he’d do it without you. He couldn’t lose you. Not like that. Not in a place like the dark forest. He already almost lost you twice. Three times if you include the massive event that happened when you were kids that got his clan killed because he tried to change fate. He did. But at the cost of everyone else. The two of you promised to never try that again. But Tav was too stubborn for his own good.

The next week, it was decided. Gale, Astarion and Karlach would go with him. You, Lae’zel, Shadowheart and Halsin would stay behind. You were gathering water into a bucket when you realized they left.

“Where’d Tav go?” You asked Shadowheart.

“Dunno. Said he had things to handle before the towers.” She shrugged reading a book.

You shrugged it off but then realized Astarion was gone. Whatever your brother was doing wasn’t small. He took Astarion with him when he had to hide. You noticed the heavier armor Tav wore before handling large fights was gone. Shit. Shit shit shit shit shit.

“Tav, I thought you told Y/n that she’d be here for this.” Karlach said walking next to Tav.

“I lied. I can’t…” even if he did go back on one promise, he couldn’t let the other one go. That’d be hurting you twice over. “The lands make her weaker. I just felt like she’d be better off at camp.” Tav shrugged.

Astarion knew when Tav was lying. There was another reason you weren’t here. But for whatever reason, he wasn’t saying it.

“Gale, do your powers feel okay?” He asked.

“Yes, I’m alright for now,” Gale shrugged.

“Good. Want you feeling alright for this.” Tav nodded. Astarion sighed. This was going to be a long fight, he could feel it.

Sure enough it was. He fought through hoards of angry and pissed off creatures. He pushed through though, thanks to Tav’s insistence that Gale learn a healing spell or two a while back. Then came Ketheric. Who was pissed by Tav’s interference with the Nightsong.

He stood face to face with Tav, glaring at the man with contempt. Tav hoped that if he died instead of you, the fates would be satisfied. They wouldn’t need your life any longer. But that isn’t the way fate works.

Long were the waves of battle that Ketheric threw at them. Each one knocked everyone down. The first wave, took out Gale. The second was Karlach. Astarion was knocked to his knees as Tav bared his teeth at the bastard with his sword in hand with enemy blood on his face.

“You will die, little boy. You will die a heretic. A non believer in the Absolute.” Ketheric said.

“I will die knowing you died with me.” Tav growled back.

Astarion gripped his dagger, coughing from being winded.

Then he noticed. The moss slowly growing up from the stones. The small little blooms that were rising from the cracks of the ground.

He heard something. Your voice. And suddenly it was like he breathed in fresh air. Everyone felt better within an instant. Karlach slowly got up, gripping her war hammer as Gale used his staff to rise.

“Lay a hand on my brother and I cut you where you stand, Ketheric.” Your voice said. Everyone turned to you standing behind them all. You looked different. Your eyes were glowing green, your bird tattoos on your cheek were glowing white. You looked as though a celestial being had touched you.

You stepped forward Tav showing a new kind of fear in his eyes. Astarion had never seen Tav this scared. Not even as he was facing Ketheric did he seem scared. But right now, this man seemed terrified.

“No! Y/n-“ you flicked your wrist, ensnaring Tav. You couldn’t let him stop you. Tav struggled in your vines as you stepped forward with an incredibly calm look.

“You have turned this land. Corrupted it. Eilistraee is unhappy with you. I am unhappy with you.” You said walking. Karlach looked at Astarion with a surprised look, almost questioning if they were seeing the same thing.

Y/n, their sweet chaotic little cleric was walking towards a man that nearly killed them mere seconds ago as if he was a child about to be scolded. But something was different.

“Do you know what happens when the balance of nature is disturbed?” You asked, picking up a dead foot soldier’s sword from the ground. “it does anything it wants” You walked, dragging the sword across the stone of the tower. “For as long as it takes” your eyes glowed brighter. “To set the scales back.”

“Was this supposed to scare me, child?” Ketheric spat. You gave the most unsettling smile anyone in the group had ever seen.

“Oh no, Ketheric.” You said.

“And you expect to just stab me?” He scoffed.

“Oh you’re once again wrong, Ketheric. This is your grave marker.” You said, slamming the sword into the ground. “My words aren’t meant to scare you.” You said.

“Mine are.” It was if you were speaking. But it wasn’t your voice. This was different entirely. Tav struggled harder.

“You wanted her powers? Fine. Here they are.”

Within an instant vines erupted through the ground, the glow of your eyes becoming brighter as you began floating.

“Y/N NO!” Tav screamed. This was what Ketheric wanted you for. This is what he wanted to use. Astarion’s eyes widened as it seemed like wings made of pure light formed behind you. With a flick of your wrist, Ketheric was obliterated. But that didn’t end there.

You let out a loud scream, light erupting from your chest blinding everyone for seconds before finally they all heard a thud. Astarion blinked a few times to regain sight. He thought whatever had been going on was still happening until he realized… that was the sun.

He gaped turning to look at you before he realized you were the thud. You had served Eilistraee‘s purpose. Now, you were dead. Astarion dropped his daggers sprinting over as Tav, Gale and Karlach all did the same.

“No no no no, Y/n- darling don’t do this to me don’t you fucking do this to me!” Astarion said frantically shaking you.

Nothing. Not a stir.

Tears flooded his eyes, him holding your body close. “Y/n wake up. Please fucking wake up.” He begged. Cold. You were so cold.

Tav looked at Gale “Isn’t there something you can do!?” He asked.

“I-I can’t— when someone takes this much power from a god it-it destroys the vessel— I’ve never even witnessed a god possess a human like this!” Gale said.

“Withers c-can bring her back right!?” Tav asked.

“Her soul had to be what costed all of this…” Gale said.

“Damn it Gale! Can’t you do anything useful!?” Tav snapped.

“Tav I don’t think there’s anything we can do-“

“Unless you have something useful to say, shut up!” Tav snapped.

“Stop snapping at him like he’s nothing!” Karlach defended

“I don’t see you trying to help—“

“EVERYONE SHUT UP!” Astarion yelled. Everyone turned. “Would one of you assholes just fucking help me bury her so she can rest, or do you all plan on being heartless fucks just screaming at each other when you know damn well that she wouldn’t want this!?” Astarion asked. Silence. Haunting silence.

Tav looked down at his baby sister in Astarion’s arms, cold and lifeless. She truly was gone. He collapsed to his knees in front of Astarion in tears, gripping the moss that was now growing. Karlach slowly kneeled, holding Tav as he cried. Gale bowed his head as Astarion pressed a kiss to your cold forehead, gently laying you on the ground.

Then Gale noticed it. The moss was still growing. At rapid speed. Like nature was claiming it fast. Only druid magic could do that. He didn’t want to build hope but Halsin was at camp. And the only other Druid was you.

He felt it. A surge of life.

Astarion wiped his eyes, when he heard metal clinking of armor. He looked up to see your body levitating slowly.

“Balance is restored through my vessel, her heart pure. May it be a use in destroying the Absolute.” A voice said. Everyone was confused as a pink speck of light hit your body. Then a blue one. Then a green one. Then yellow. Honestly it was beginning to look like a glitter bomb exploded onto your body before it glowed brightly

Your body dropped, Astarion catching you. Your eyes were still closed. You still seemed very dead. So what the fuck was that?

Then you gasped for air, coughing. Tav let out a relieved breath as you looked around.

“Did it work!? Is Ketheric dead!?” You asked. Astarion wasted no second in kissing you the moment you spoke.

“Okay that’s nice and all but is he dead!?” Yeah. You were definitely back.

“He’s gone.” Astarion said. Tav hugged you as he set you down.

“You fucking idiot! You died!” He said hugging you tightly.

“Well with the grip you have right now I might die again.” You wheezed. Tav let go wiping his eyes.

“Gave us quite the scare there, fire cracker.” Karlach chuckled.

“I still have no idea how you’re alive. I mean Eilistraee herself was in your body using the entirety of your magic, that should’ve killed you.” Gale gaped.

“I suppose she saw more use for me.” You said.

“I’m not complaining.” Astarion said, gently caressing your hair.

“Neither am I.” Tav said relieved.

“Remind me never to piss you off.” Karlach said making you laugh.

“No, you were pretty terrifying out there actually. I’ve never seen anyone just waltz up to anyone and fucking use a celestial blast like it was a normal Tuesday before.” Gale said.

“Well, Eilistraee doesn’t take kindly to people interfering with nature.” You shrugged.

“That’s an understatement of the century.” Karlach chuckled.

You slowly stood up, Astarion gently helping you rise as you leaned on him.

“Let’s go back to camp.” You said. Everyone nodded.

“Let’s have a fucking celebration. You deserve it.” Tav nods. You smiled slightly was Astarion pulled your arm over his neck to help you walk. You all towards the stairs but you stopped, Astarion looked over with a confused glance. He followed your eyes to the remains of Ketheric with the embedded sword at his feet. Astarion looked down at you as your gaze changed to the sunset.

“We wouldn’t have won without you, you know.” He said gently. You said nothing, looking into his eyes. “But if you scare me like that again, I might actually die.” He said making you chuckle before kissing him.

“I’m being serious, don’t do that again.” He said. You slipped your arm off of him.

“No promises.” You shrugged walking.

“Wha- no that’s not a good enough answer little light- get back here!” He groaned. You kept walking and he grinned, scooping you into his arms.

“Oh get a fucking room!” Tav groaned.

“Yeah? Maybe you and Karlach can finally get a room too!” You teased.

“Hey!”

“I mean it’s not a bad idea Tav.” Karlach said.

“See even she’s- wait what?!” Tav said making everyone laugh.

#astarion #astarion x reader #astarion x you #astarion x oc #astarion x female reader

58 notes · View notes

venerawrites · 29 days

Note

Your works are so amazing. Could you do a Gaara x daughter fluff. I feel that he would definitely be wrapped around his daughter’s finger as a father. Also if you could show their bond through the different stages of his daughter’s life as she grows up.

Have a lovely day

author's note: I love this idea so much - I totally see Gaara as a girl's dad and he will be a good one too! I really enjoyed writing this one and I hope you like reading it! Thank you for your request! <3

➤ Infant

After his daughter was born, it took a while for Gaara to settle fully in his role as a father.

In the first few months he would still work from morning to evening, leaving only a few hours to spend with both his spouse and daughter.

Naturally, his child was more attached to her other parent and would cry every time Gaara tried to pick her up or feed her.

Having your own child cry every time they see you hurt... A LOT.

Gaara knew changes had to be made and soon he started to take at least two days off every week, leaving Kankuro in charge of the office as a "shadow Kazekage".

His s/o encouraged a closer bond between him and his baby by bringing it during his working days either for late breakfast or lunch.

It wouldn't take long for his child to start loving him - within a week she would be so used to be in his arms, that every time his lover tried to pull her away so they can leave, she would start screaming.

As a Kazekage, he knew it was not appropriate to have his baby with him while he was signing documents or receiving mission briefs. But how can he let her go, when she kept looking at him with her big blue eyes and grinning with her toothless smile, while gripping his robe in her tiny hand?

After a month, he would officially replace his partner as the "favourite parent" - his daughter absolutely adored him!

So much that she would always get jealous if she witness her parents sharing a kiss or cuddling without her.

"I've packed your lunch and I've put it in your bag! Do not forget to eat it this time!", his s/o said, passing him the leather backpack. Smiling he took it with his free hand, his other one holding their daughter.

"What I am going to do without you, my love?", he smiled, his gaze softening. He often felt guilty of how little time he was spending with his family, but he hoped that once the Chunin exams in Suna were over, his brother would be open to replace him at least one more extra day in the office.

"Hopefully not starve", his lover's hands made their way to his collar, straightening the fabric, before they lifted themselves on their toes and pressed a soft kiss on his lips. His eyes immediately closed and his head leaned forward in order to deepen it, when he suddenly felt a small chubby hand making their way between their faces. Pulling away, they both looked at their daughter, who had her arms wrapped around Gaara's neck while glaring funnily at his spouse.

"Hey, that was my man first", his s/o joked, pinching her cheeks. Almost as if trying to prove her opposite, the baby nuzzled his head in Gaara's chest, while maintaining eye contact. She never looked away, even when she heard the low laughter rumbling from her father's chest. Pressing a small kiss to her head, he rubbed her back, while rocking her up and down.

"No need to be jealous, little one! You are always going to be my number one girl!"

➤ Toddler

Once the first word to come out of her mouth was "dada", Gaara knew there was not a single thing he wouldn't give his daughter.

Done with good intentions, he would start spoiling her quite early - every toy she showed even the tiniest interest in, was immediately bought and put in her room. He would also shower her with attention and often allow her to play in his office, while he was working.

His partner would definitely had to be the one to step up and take over the discipline of their child, because if it was up to Gaara, she would have the world at her little feet.

While he loved to show her off in front of the council and his closest friends, he would be a bit paranoid to go out in public with her. Given all the enemies that he had both in and out of the country, he wouldn't want to risk anything happening to her.

That being said if a threat is made to his family, the war council would immediately be summoned and all Suna shinobi would be mobilized.

His daughter is absolutely obsessed with her father - while she will be behaving quite well while she is away from him in the house, the moment he walks through the front door, she will be clinging to his legs, waiting for him to pick her up.

While she has her own room and bed, she loves sleeping between her parents, gripping each of their fingers in her small hands.

Not so jealous as a toddler compared to when she was a baby, but if Gaara is spending too much time with his partner, she would start throwing a tantrum.

Overall, Gaara is a big softie and his babygirl would be raised as his little princess. To everyone's surprise (mostly Kankuro), all would come very natural to him.

➤ Pre-teen

If someone asked him about his daughter, Gaara would say she was growing too fast for his liking.

It felt almost like yesterday when he was holding her hands, teaching her how to walk, and here she was, starting her first day of the Academy. (He kept blaming the sand in his eyes, but he cried a lot that day!)

He is not one to abuse his position as a leader of Suna, but that afternoon he would gather all of his daughters teachers in his office and inform them of his baby girl’s likes, dislikes and also current level of skills.

Initially, he would want to influence the team pairings and ensure his child is assigned to Kankuro’s team, but after a long talk with his s/o, he would reluctantly agree not to intervene.

He would send a few shinobi with his daughter in every mission, even if it was just cutting grass or gathering flowers.

I feel at this stage his daughter would still see her father as the greatest man to ever walk this earth, but she will be a bit embarrassed by the extra security and the fact he is so overprotective. She would try and explain this to him, but after a few unsuccessful attempts, she would turn to her other parent for help.

Gaara didn’t see anything wrong with his behaviour - he may be a Kazekage, but most importantly he was a father. It will take many discussions and maybe even an argument between him and his s/o, for him to accept the idea his girl is growing and he cannot shield her forever.

His favourite thing in the world was the little "father-daughter" dates they organised every week. He would often take her to the little bakery next to Kazekage's building, where they served her favourite lemon tarts.

When she had to enrol for the Chunin Exams, he almost had a panic attack. The man tried to work with his Council regarding the planned challenges and change them to less risky ones, but after a while they had to ban him from attending their meetings.

When he watched his daughter fight, he had to grip the edge of his chair in order to stop his sand from flying from the Kage's tribune toward her opponent.

Noticing the slight twitch in the sand near their feet, Kankuro quickly gripped his brother's tense shoulder, bringing him back to reality.

"He is being too rough with her", he hissed through gritted teeth, narrowing his eyes, "This is an exam, not a war. Look at this!" Kankuro let out a small laugh, one of his painted brows arching.

"You literally killed people during our Chunin exams."

The words made Gaara's head whip back, a harsh expression written over his face.

"Oh, you are in a mood for jokes now?", he let out an angry huff through his nose and was ready to give his brother a piece of his mind, when the sound of a bell brought his attention back to the arena.

There, with a lifted hand high in the air, was his daughter. She smiled brightly at the clapping crowd, before turning her attention to him, and giving a small nod. Pressing her hand to her chest, where her heart would be, she tapped twice, letting even a wider smile once Gaara returned the gesture.

➤ Teen

The teenage years of his child's life were probably the hardest period for Gaara.

Due to them being quite spoiled by him as a kid, I imagine that as a teenager his daughter would be quite... a wild card.

Gaara’s spouse would be the one that would often tell her "no", but that doesn't mean she won't go and seek permission from her father. He always allowed her to do what she wanted, even when he wasn't fully on board with it.

There will be a few times when she would get in trouble (nothing too serious, just normal teenage pranks) and this is when he would realise he need to put his foot down and has a serious talk with her. After all, as the daughter of the Kazekage, she needed to have a good behaviour in the society.

The girl would probably try and rebel against him at the beginning, but during her later teen years, she would start listening to him.

I think that when she is 17-18, she would mature more and try to actively help the citizens of Suna, instead of making jokes of them. She would volunteer a lot during her free time and would quickly gain a reputation as a very respectful and sweet girl.

She would also have her first boyfriend during that time... and oh well, let's just say Gaara was not impressed a bit.

During the first time of meeting him, he would extensively question his background, his dreams for the future, his intentions with his daughter etc., to the point his s/o would has to ask the red haired man to come and "help them in the kitchen" every 5 minutes, just so the poor boy can have a break.

Overall, the puberty of their child was quite rocky in the beginning, but it was definitely not the worst.

cc artwork: Pengzhen Zhang

#sabaku no gaara #gaara imagine #gaara headcanons #gaara x reader #gaara of the sand #naruto imagines #naruto headcanons

48 notes · View notes

neopuff · 2 months

Text

ALWAYS ON MY MIND

chapter ten: made up my mind ships: sasha/milla characters: milla, sasha, oleander, ford, lili word count: 4787 ao3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/53435410/chapters/137330335

[chap 1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]

“You’re better at this than I thought you’d be, Nein,” Oleander said to his fellow counselor over dinner on the first day of camp.

“Uh…thanks,” Sasha responded. He wasn’t used to getting compliments from his coworker, even if it was a bit backhanded. Something was better than nothing, he supposed, and Milla made him promise to try and get along with Oleander while the children were around. He was, after all, nothing if not accommodating. Especially when she was sitting right next to him. “It helps that there’s only ten of them. I thought there’d be more.”

“Yeah, well, there’ll be more next summer!” Oleander responded while still chewing his food. “So don’t start thinkin’ being a counselor is easy! More kids means more heads to count and more mouths to feed!”

Sasha rolled his eyes at that comment, glad neither of the people he was eating with could see behind his sunglasses. He wasn’t involved in feeding the kids and counting fifteen instead of ten wasn’t exactly the trial and tribulation that Oleander described it as.

If Sasha wanted to be honest with himself, there were two elements to this camp counselor business that he was struggling with. The first was that the Grand Head’s young daughter, Lili, recognized him from the Motherlobe and kept speaking to him with much more familiarity than he felt was appropriate. She called him Sasha instead of Agent Nein. She also called him green bean, and she kept telling the other children that he was ‘a big softie.’ He’d never realized he made such an impression on her during their limited interactions in Grand Head Zanotto’s office.

The second thing he took issue with was a bit embarrassing. He was trying not to think about it too much. The dinner he was having with Oleander and Milla was the first time since waking up that he’d gotten to see his partner. And he was finding that he didn’t enjoy the camp as much when she wasn’t by his side.

He still reached out to her telepathically throughout the day, but Milla was almost always busy with one of the campers. She’d fallen back into childcare as easily and naturally as he’d expected, and Sasha was happy for her, he really was. But he’d gotten used to talking to her all the time and felt a bit empty without her thoughts in his head.

While they ate dinner - burgers, again - Sasha took note that Milla wasn’t focused on her food at all. She was watching the campers while they ate and chatted with one another and she looked very happy that they were all having a good time.

He turned to look at Morceau again since the man had quieted down, and was met with a knowing smirk and a repetitive glance between Milla and Sasha. Yes, sure, he’d just been staring at Milla. For a few seconds. Sasha didn’t think that was worthy of an annoying, suggestive stare. Telepathically, he reminded Oleander of his promise to stop, which led to the shorter man frowning and rolling his eyes.

Sasha spent the rest of dinner focused on his burger rather than conversation. He’d had a long day, after all.

Milla was really enjoying being a camp counselor.

It wasn’t like working at the orphanage, not really. A small part of her was worried that the experience might be triggering, which was the main reason why she’d hesitated about signing up. As much as she enjoyed being around children and teaching them new things, she didn’t want to put them in danger on the off chance that she had some sort of…episode.

It’d been a very long time since she’d experienced any of those particular issues. And with Sasha by her side, she felt confident that she’d be fine.

Unfortunately, Sasha wasn’t by her side as much as she’d hoped.

They were on the second day of camp, and she only really saw him at meals for the past two days. And it wasn’t as nice as their first two days on the grounds where they were by themselves, wandering and having a nice time. It’d felt almost like the romantic vacation that Morry had joked about. But he was right - once the kids had arrived, their free time was gone.

She really enjoyed working with the children. They were all so energetic and eager to learn and Milla was happy to teach them the basics about levitation. They also seemed to enjoy the music she played in her head, which was more than she could say for her partner.

Truman’s daughter stressed her out though - the little girl was now six years old, as her birthday had recently passed, and she really, really loved to play with fire.

Milla considered it a personal challenge to not focus too intensely on it. Lili wasn’t setting any other campers on fire and she was mostly just creating small balls of fire in the air and watching them dissipate, so it wasn’t as bad as it could’ve been. The previous camp counselors complained that she was attacking fellow campers, so either she’d learned from her mistakes or Truman gave her a talking-to.

Either way, Milla was focusing on deep breathing and levitation. And enjoying the beautiful lake, of course. She held her levitation classes on some docks floating on the water so even if she didn’t get a chance to swim, she’d be able to soak up the smell. It was very nice.

After a long day of training and an equally long dinner (thanks to Morry telling a story about his time on the battlefield, though he never specified exactly what battlefield that was), Milla found herself feeling a bit restless.

The children were all in their cabins, hopefully getting to sleep, but she didn’t feel like going back to her own. She wanted a little break from childcare - it’d been a long time since she worked with kids, after all. It took some time to get used to it again. And she assumed that Sasha was struggling, even if he refused to show it. So before he could wander back to their cabin, Milla reached out telepathically to see if he wanted to go talk to Agent Cruller.

Sasha sent back an affirmative.

Milla had discovered the locations of a few other hollow tree stumps that led to Agent Cruller’s sanctuary. Not wanting to make Sasha uncomfortable with another tight squeeze, she headed there by herself and let him know to meet her. They’d planned to visit Ford on the first day of camp, but everything was so crazy with all the children arriving that they hadn’t had an opportunity.

She levitated out of the stump and into Ford’s sanctuary; Sasha following a few seconds later.

“Good to see you two again!” Cruller said with a toothy grin. “Camp’s a little crazier than you would’ve thought, huh?”

Sasha pushed up his sunglasses and shrugged. “It’s about what I predicted.”

“You said you needed help with some projects?” Milla asked, stepping closer. “What kind of projects?”

“Missions, mostly.” Ford scanned over some of the floating screens around them and pointed to one in particular. “I’ve got access to some real top-secret information down here. But if I try to send it off to HQ, well…they’ll throw it out.” He sighed deeply. “But you two are senior agents! If you bring the mission specs back to Truman, he’ll have no choice but to hear you out!”

Milla glanced at Sasha. It was true, as senior agents they had full access to investigate and dedicate their time to missions not assigned by the Grand Head. She wondered if it was a good idea to get involved in whatever Agent Cruller was working on, though. He seemed almost completely sane while underground, but things weren’t always as they appeared. She couldn’t get a read on the man’s mind, either, which didn’t ease her nerves.

“I get why you might hesitate,” Cruller said, reminding Milla that he was able to read her thoughts without trying. “We can start off with something light. Something small! If my lead goes nowhere, then you can ignore the ramblings of a crazy old man. But if I’m right and the Noodler is back on the prowl like I think he is…well, then you two could really help me out!”

“The Noodler? Again?” Sasha stepped forward and looked at the screen that Ford was pointing to. He took a minute to read through the document carefully. “I can’t deny that it looks like a promising lead. But why wouldn’t the Motherlobe have access to this?”

“The Motherlobe has too many checks and balances to go through,” Ford mumbled, scrolling through the article on the screen. “My sanctuary here is untraceably accessing data from around the world!”

Untraceably? Milla frowned. That didn’t sound legal or safe.

Sasha looked back at her and adjusted his sunglasses, silently telling her that he understood the same risks that she did.

Still…the Noodler was a dangerous man. If they could stop him, they should.

“We’ll do it,” Sasha said. “After the end of camp, we’ll head back to the Motherlobe and get to work on this assignment.” He looked at Milla again. “If you agree, of course.”

She was a little nervous about the situation, but saving lives and taking down dangerous criminals was important. “Yes. We’ll help you, Agent Cruller.”

They spent another hour down in Ford’s sanctuary, discussing various details of the Noodler case and other missions he was preparing for them. It seemed that Ford didn’t get much sleep - whether it was due to his mental break or the psitanium overload, he worked nonstop through the night. It was no wonder he was able to build his sanctum and railway system in just over two months.

Sasha and Milla made their way back onto the campgrounds once they realized how much time had passed. Time felt like it passed differently underground.

“Hey! Where the hell have you two been?”

The agents had levitated out of the stump near Oleander’s treehouse, and he seemed very unhappy to see them. Morry was lighting the path with a fireball held in the air near his head, and he glared at them like they’d really done something wrong by staying out a little later than usual.

“Um…” Milla started, not sure what to say.

“Jesus Christ, forget about it. I don’t wanna know,” Oleander grumbled, shaking his head.

It was pretty obvious what he’d concluded, but neither Sasha nor Milla could think of a better explanation for their disappearance, so they decided to leave it alone.

“You two can’t just wander off whenever you want!” Morry continued to glare, the fireball next to him glowing hotter every time he growled. “Just because the kids are in bed doesn’t mean they’re asleep! You should know better - especially you, Vodello!”

Milla frowned. Of course she knew that. But she also knew she couldn’t watch them every second of every day - especially not when several of the campers knew how to temporarily turn invisible. But of course, Morceau had to continue exhaling the air of superiority he felt over them simply because the camp was his idea. “We just went for a walk, Morry. Calm down.”

“Weren’t you here watching the cabins?” Sasha added, offended on her behalf.

Morry shook his head disapprovingly. “Of course I was! That’s how I noticed you two were gone!” He glanced all around him, his eyes landing on something in the distance behind Sasha and Milla. “Now you two get back to the cabin. I’m gonna go fight off that psychic bear!”

He bounced past the two of them and into the darkness; the light from his little fireball was the only thing either of them could see after a few seconds.

“...that was annoying,” Sasha commented dryly, running a hand through his hair.

Milla reached down and grabbed his free hand, tugging him along behind her as she marched towards the cabin. “Come on, let’s try and get to sleep before he comes back.”

Sasha didn’t explicitly, purposefully try to piss Oleander off. It just happened. Especially when he specifically did the opposite of what the shorter man told him to do.

But he couldn’t help it. Oleander wasn’t his boss. Sasha had, in fact, been a part of the Psychonauts for longer than Oleander, even if it was only by a few months. It didn’t matter that Oleander was older and had battlefield experience (however that could possibly be relevant to the camp). Sasha was not his employee and would only do as asked if it made sense for him to do it.

This dynamic led to a tiring handful of days at Whispering Rock. In his efforts to avoid spending any extra time with Morry, Sasha dove into his work as a counselor. He showed the campers around his mental cube and showed them how to PSI-blast censors into oblivion. It was good practice and he found it relaxing to feel censors being destroyed. It was certainly a win-win situation. The children didn’t seem to like Sasha all that much on a personal level - he definitely overheard one of the older campers call him intimidating - but no one could deny that they were learning.

After a long day of training, Sasha was looking forward to chatting with Milla and perhaps going to see Agent Cruller again. But when he sat down to eat (another goddamn burger), she was nowhere to be found.

“Where’s Milla?” he asked when Oleander sat across from him.

Morry shrugged. “She said something about not being hungry and then floated over that way,” he answered, pointing towards the reception area where they held regular campfire ceremonies.

Sasha frowned at the burger in front of him. Suddenly he wasn’t hungry, either. “I’ll go check on her.”

“Leaving all the kids in my care again, huh?” Morceau shook his head. “Not surprising.”

“Take my food and we’ll call it even.”

Oleander grabbed the burger greedily and plopped it onto his own tray. “Works for me! Have fun smooching.”

He didn’t bother to argue against that and quickly made his way towards the fire pit. Sasha had attempted to reach out to her telepathically, but found that she had closed her mind off to him. Most likely she’d closed off her mind to everyone, which left Sasha very concerned. It was rare that she felt bad enough to do that.

Sasha could smell the campfire, and as he turned a corner in the woods, he could clearly see Milla sitting alone on a log across from the flames. She was staring at them intensely, looking like she’d been hypnotized. He walked over, making sure to step on a twig or two so she’d know he was coming. It wouldn’t benefit either of them if he surprised her.

“Hi,” she said quietly as he sat down on the log next to her.

“Are you alright?” Sasha asked, ignoring the nudging at the back of his brain that said he was sitting too close.

“Fine.” She paused, then sighed. “No. Sorry. Not fine.”

He leaned his arms onto his knees and clasped his hands together. “If you’d like to talk about it, I’m happy to listen.”

Milla chewed on her bottom lip for a moment, then closed her eyes and sighed again. “Lili really enjoys fire.”

Ah. He wasn’t surprised to find out that that was the source of her anxieties. “She does.”

“She accidentally, um…well, I think it was accidental.” Milla stumbled over her words a bit, rolling her hands around in the air. “Set one of the boats on fire. I put it out right away and gave her a stern talking-to about it, but…” She sighed again and ran her fingers through her hair. “It’s still difficult sometimes.”

Sasha watched her carefully. It’d been a long time since they’d had a discussion about Milla’s issues with fire, especially since she’d been doing so well in avoiding triggers. They both knew going into the camp that there was a possibility she’d experience something that might remind her of harder times. “It’s always going to be at least a little difficult,” he said softly.

Milla took a deep breath, trilled her lips, then leaned over and plopped her head against Sasha’s shoulder. “Yeah, probably. A girl can dream, though.”

He closed his eyes and tried to will his heart into beating normally, especially when he noticed that Milla had scooted slightly closer to him on the log. It was very obvious to him, even in all his lack of social graces, that his partner was looking for some modicum of physical comfort. He was perfectly capable of providing such a thing, even if he’d have to work himself up to it.

So Sasha raised his left arm under her long hair and grabbed her left shoulder, holding her against him. That felt right. Sort of. It felt like the right thing to do.

Part of him realized the irony that he was doing exactly what Morceau had joked about, but he didn’t particularly care.

She reached out and grabbed his other hand with hers, absentmindedly stroking her fingers along his palm. The feeling was slightly intoxicating, but he knew that was just because it was Milla doing it.

“It’s true that these sorts of things will happen,” Sasha started. “What matters is how you react to them. It sounds like you did everything right, and hopefully Miss Zanotto won’t make that mistake again. But if she does…you’ll be there to help her.”

Milla squeezed his hand and leaned her head back just a little so she could look directly at him. “You always give such good pep talks, darling. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.”

Sasha glanced down at her, nervously making eye contact. This was an extremely intimate moment for them that he knew he’d be filing away once it was over. If he was a different man, in a different time or place, maybe he’d even think that this was a perfect moment to kiss her. He would not be doing that, of course, since it would be insanely inappropriate. But the thought lingered in his mind nonetheless.

He did allow his hand on her shoulder to travel upwards and he lightly ran his fingers through her bangs. He’d noticed Milla doing that to herself when she felt nervous and thought it might be helpful.

She didn’t say anything about it for a moment before finally speaking up. “Mmm. That’s nice.”

If that wasn’t encouragement, he didn’t know what was. Sasha continued to run his fingers through her hair, gently stroking the side of her head while he did so. He didn’t want to stop, especially not when she was enjoying it. And he had every intention of keeping this information for the future…for the next time she was having a bad day.

She hummed satisfactorily as he continued his ministrations, and Sasha was suddenly even more aware of how close the top of her head was to his. He thought about how nice it was to hug her and hold her and play with her hair.

The crackling of the campfire and the chirping of crickets were the only noises in the reception area - far enough from the main lodge to block out the sounds of campers eating and chatting. Sasha could sense that there were no other minds nearby. He could sense that her mind was as relaxed as she said.

He leaned over and very lightly placed a gentle kiss against the top of her head.

It wasn’t anything special, especially not when she kissed him on the head or cheek anytime she wanted. But it was significant for him, as Sasha had not kissed anyone in a very long time. Not since he was extremely young.

It felt…nice.

Milla paused in rubbing her fingers against his palm for just a second - maybe even a half-second, hardly noticeable if he wasn’t paying such close attention - and then the relaxed aura radiating from her mind completely disappeared. He was about ready to let go of her and apologize when Milla pulled away and stared at his face, one of her hands still cradling his own.

“You’re such a sweet man,” she said softly.

Then, without a moment of hesitation, Milla wrapped her hands around Sasha’s head and pulled him closer to her. He’d gotten used to it (sort of), knowing that she was about to place a kiss on his cheek.

It was slightly different than usual, though. Milla’s lips came to an interesting part of Sasha’s face - technically on his cheek, but so close to his lips it made him feel more nervous than ever. He could feel the corner of her lips caress the corner of his own and he knew it didn’t quite count as a real kiss, but it was certainly something more. It was certainly something different.

Milla lingered there for a moment longer than usual and then pulled back, smiling brightly.

Sasha stared at her, not sure what to do or say. Her hands were still on the sides of his head and he knew that if he was going to kiss her, there would be no better opportunity. It felt right. It felt like she wanted him to. It felt really, really perfect.

But then she giggled and let go of his face and Sasha felt any semblance of confidence fade away. Not that there was much to begin with.

“I’m sorry, darling, I shouldn’t have worn such a dark shade of lipstick today!” She took off one of her gloves and pulled a handkerchief out of her pocket, giving it a lick before rubbing it against Sasha’s face. Right where she’d kissed him.

He pouted. “That’s not-” He paused as she swiped the handkerchief over his mouth for a second. “-...sanitary.”

“I think you’d rather have a little spit on your face than let Morry see you with a giant lipstick stain,” she said playfully.

Sasha couldn’t argue with that. He didn’t want to argue with that. He wanted to just sit and stare at her for an hour without interruption. But they had jobs to do and he needed to focus. Once she removed the stain, the goosebumps on his arms and sweat down the back of his neck would be the only evidence that anything had happened between them.

And his memories, of course. He would have to take a few minutes before falling asleep to do some mental organizing.

Milla pulled her handkerchief away from him and smiled. “There we go, handsome as always.” She put it away and stood up, brushing dirt off her legs and butt. “I’m actually feeling a little hungry now. Want to go back to the lodge?”

He stood up with her and adjusted his sunglasses. Hopefully she got the entire stain and not just part of it. The light of the campfire wasn’t the brightest, after all. “Sure. I could eat.”

She smiled and started levitating towards the lodge - Sasha quickly followed after her. He was glad she seemed to be feeling better.

Milla had an excellent last few days of camp.

After her little intimate - and undoubtedly romantic - moment with Sasha, the rest of the week had gone by like a breeze. Everything felt lighter. Lili didn’t set anything else on fire, the other children were excitable but falling in line and paying attention. It was great! Only one semi-disaster in an entire week of camp? That felt like a win.

The parents were arriving to pick everyone up - Truman picked up Lili, though Milla knew that he’d be taking her to the airport soon to spend the rest of the summer with her mother. Most of the other parents were fellow Psychonauts so she had a nice, brief conversation with Agent Bubai before he left with his daughter.

Milla waved goodbye to everyone as they got in their vehicles, then turned to see Sasha and Morry chatting off to the side. She hadn’t heard most of their conversation, but managed to catch the end.

“Alright, alright. You did a decent job. I’ll back off. Happy?”

“Delighted.”

Milla floated over and smiled at them. “It’s so sad to see everyone go.”

Morry nodded thoughtfully and Sasha shrugged, which was about the response that she expected.

“It looks like everyone had a nice time, at least,” she added, hoping to get a little more conversation out of the two of them.

“You bet they did! And I’ll-hey!” Oleander interrupted himself when he noticed Truman in the parking lot. “Zanotto! Wait a sec!” He rushed away from the two other counselors, almost slamming into Truman’s car as he tried to stop him.

Milla chuckled and glanced over at Sasha. “What were you two talking about?”

“Something idiotic,” he answered, adjusting his sunglasses again. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette. “It’s always something stupid with him.”

“That’s not very nice, darling,” Milla responded. She chose not to comment on the cigarette - he’d been smoking a lot less since they came to the campgrounds. Maybe the fresh air really was good for him.

He shrugged, taking a long drag.

Milla watched him standing there and suddenly felt very nervous. Sometimes it was hard to get a read of what Sasha was thinking, even when she had full access to his mind. She wanted to tell him something very important that could potentially alter their partnership for the foreseeable future, but she felt very strongly about it and the longer she put it off, the worse it would be.

She took a deep breath and tugged her hair behind her ears. She was probably overthinking things.

“Um, Sasha…” she started, then took a deep breath to calm herself down. “I need to talk to you.”

Milla could feel him start to get nervous, probably feeding off of her own nervousness. And then that made her even more nervous.

“About what?” he asked, though there was a slight hesitation in his question.

She clasped her hands together in front of her and stared out at the parking lot, not at Sasha’s face. Just in case he was unhappy with what she was going to say, she didn’t want to see his expression. “I…I would like to keep coming here. Regularly. Maybe even full-time, I don’t know. It depends how often the camp runs next summer. And I…I hope you do, too, but if not, then…” She tugged at the end of her hair. “Then we’ll have to put our partnership on hold during the summers so I can focus on the camp. I really feel like I can do a lot of good here and I’d like to pursue it.”

Having spoken her mind, Milla squeezed her eyes shut and hoped he wouldn’t be mad. Or worse, be sad.

“Camilla.”

She opened one eye to find him looking at her with a semi-confused expression. That certainly wasn’t what she’d expected.

“I’d be happy to come back here, too. I had a good time this week,” Sasha said, taking another drag of his cigarette. “With you. And the campers. It feels…rewarding, I suppose, to teach young minds.”

Milla smiled brightly. She’d been so pessimistic about what his response might be that she hadn’t even considered the possibility of him wanting to come back with her. Despite all of his bickering with Morceau, it seemed like the children and the outdoors had a very positive effect on him. “I’m so happy to hear that!”

He cleared his throat awkwardly and turned away from her. “It’s also nice to get away from the Motherlobe every once in a while. It can get noisy over there. Too many people bothering me. I could see myself building a small lab out here.” He paused and looked back towards the rest of the camp. “Maybe somewhere underground.”

She reached over and locked arms with Sasha, squeezing tight. “That sounds perfect, darling. Like a little home away from home.”

Sasha smiled at her. “So long as you’re here, too,” he said softly, almost too soft for her to hear.

But she did hear it, and she loved hearing it, and she wanted to hug and kiss him so badly it hurt. Instead, since she was a rational adult who did rational things and would not make everyone uncomfortable by smooching her partner in front of their coworkers and campers, she simply leaned into him and enjoyed the feeling of being so close to him.

Morceau was right. Whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp was a great idea.

#psychonauts #sasha nein #milla vodello #morceau oleander #ford cruller #lili zanotto #sashamilla #lunchtime yoga #science party #carrofics

11 notes · View notes

atamascolily · 7 months

Text

princess tutu re-watch, episode 16

Lilie is STILL trying to get Pike and Ahiru to fight for drama, hahahaha

Pike: Mytho is so overrated! I'm in my bad boy era, which means I'm on Team Fakir now!

Lilie: Pssht, he's just depressed and emo. Hey, maybe WE should fight--

Ahiru: NO!!!!! NO FIGHTING! FIGHTING IS BAD!!!

Pike: Ohohohoho, sounds like Ahiru is in her Fakir era, too--

Ahiru: I said I don't like FIGHTING, not FAKIR, get your ears checked--

cut to Mytho cradling Rue in a bridal carry over the cooing of schoolgirls

but she's faking her injury so Mytho can select an appropriate next victim

Ahiru meets the Kinkan Academy version of the Rose Bride, lolololol, and her name is Freya

Mytho: that's the one! the power to revolutionize the world feed the raven is contained inside her!

meanwhile, Edel has been reborn as a skirt-chasing Little Drummer Boy with a linguistic tic named Uzura.

Mytho (lying through his teeth): Of course I love flowers! I love YOU, don't I?

Ahiru: Oh, no you don't! PRINCESS TUTU TO THE RESCUE!

Ahiru: that was easy… oh, shit, there's still half an episode left, this was just the warm-up.

Lilie is in her ELEMENT watching the ballet contest, lol.

Ahiru sneaks out of the competition to find Fakir, only to accidentally transform into a duck and back in front of him thanks to Uzura's "help"

Fakir: NOOOOOOO, I'M AVERTING MY EYES, OH LORD!

omg, Fakir brought the rose from his dorm room home with him, because he is that much of a NERD LOLOLOLOL

Charon made Uzura out of Edel's burned corpse (presumably at Fakir's request because he felt bad for not being able to save her after she helped Ahiru?) AAAAAAA MY HEART HE DOES CARE

Uzura's favorite prank is to startled Ahiru so she turns into a duck, then "help" transform her back, thus embarrassing both Ahiru and Fakir repeatedly. Kids.

I SEE YOU LYING TO SPARE AHIRU'S FEELINGS, FAKIR, YOU'RE NOT FOOLING ANYONE

(Fakir is also back in his edgy asymmetrical sleeve ensemble today because he doesn't have to be in uniform)

Mytho: Okay, heart-stealing, take two! Now that we've got Tutu out of the way, she'll never show up a second time in a single episode--

Ahiru: YOU RANG?

Fakir says, "screw caution, I got this", and grabs Mytho and starts shaking him on the grounds that it has always worked before.

Fakir: LOOK AT THE BALLERINA, YOU STUPID FOOL!

(he does not got this)

Tutu helps the Rose Bride out of her coffin and everything goes back to normal

Ahiru is angry that Fakir kept the truth from her, and Fakir actually apologizes! You know what this is? GROWTH! (For both of them: Ahiru for not being a doormat, and Fakir for admitting he fucked up!)

forget Team Fakir, they're on the same team, and that's what matters

Drosselmeyer: Knowledge is power… or is it? PSYCH! IGNORANCE IS BLISS BECAUSE I SAID SO!

#princess tutu #lily liveblogs

14 notes · View notes

whetstonefires · 7 months

Note

Hmm 18 and 29?

18) What’s one of your favorite lines you’ve written in a fic?

Oh gracious. I honestly like my own stuff quite a lot, as a rule, or I wouldn't work on it long enough to finish anything. Fortunately it says 'one of.' Asking for a very favorite always paralyzes me aslkdjadfs. This is hard.

Is the word 'line' here meant to be 'pieces of dialogue' or 'sentences' or what, do you think?

I decided to pick something from my 'Jason Todd getting parented' era and then couldn't find the time to reread the like 30k of All the Roofs of Uncertainty that involve Bruce to pick out a line, so I'm going to nominate something from the fic where Talon!Jason and the Jokester have a heart-to-heart on a roof.

Hm. It has fewer good bits than roofs, being shorter, but they're all kind of interdependent, they don't stand alone very well. Hm.

"And remember, no matter what, you still have us." Jason wasn't sure what he gave away, but there must have been some kind of surprise, or doubt, because J pulled his hand away and frowned. "What, you thought…? You're one of us. Even if you leave. We love you, JJ. That's not gonna just stop." Jason opened his mouth to say something scathing, or dismissive, or defensive, but (maybe because he hadn't quite decided what tack to take) what came out was, "Why?" To be honest, it sounded more like 'whhyyyyyy?' Half whine, half word, a long syllable dragging itself out of his throat as he tried to take it back. Jokester stared at him for a split second, his hand moving like he wanted to reach out and grab Jason again but decided not to, twitched a little like he couldn't find any words that would fit out his mouth, and said, "Because!" Jason was pretty sure he said something like "that's a stupid reason why are you so stupid all the time," but honestly he wasn't sure because his body had gone into full scale mutiny and decided that it wanted to cry.

(It's the 'that's a stupid reason why are you so stupid' bit I'm so fond of; Jokester got a lot of the series' themes put into his dialogue here and they did a lot of emotional lifting, so including that bit that made me laugh felt like it made the whole fic work better.)

29) Share a bit from a fic you’ll never post OR from a scene that was cut from an already posted fic.

Oh this is fun, I have so many abandoned fics.

Ah! Here! A bit I had a lot of fun writing from near the end of a fic I abandoned at 65k because both the characterization and narrative had too many structural flaws to be worth the effort of an overhaul.

“Uh, Lan Zhan? What is this?” Lan Wangji glanced away from the growing stack of rice long enough to see Wei Ying’s baffled, nervous smile, then went back to counting and stacking. “Inadequate,” he said, and kept drawing out baskets from his qiankun bag. “Uh,” said Wei Ying, which was amusing, but not enough for Lan Wangji to let himself lose focus and lose count. Wei Ying sidled over and pried up the lid of a basket; stared at the contents. Uttered a stifled oath, stepping back and taking in the growing wall of rice. Mentally, Lan Wangji calculated. One dou of rice could make a single, small meal for the whole Burial Mounds population; to feed them all well, say four dou a day. Lan Wangji had appropriated well over a thousand dou of rice from the Lan—perhaps two weeks’ food, there. Here, a thousand dou would last nearly a year if they relied on it entirely and did not stint, which seemed unlikely—but it would not keep so long, in these conditions, probably even in a qiankun pouch, so some of it would have to be sold, so it would not go to mold and waste. A year of life. That was all he could offer. Such a paltry recompense, but at least it answered a real need, rather than offering merely what he thought should be wanted. Lan Wangji could learn. “Lan Zhan,” Wei Ying said more sharply, when he was finally done with the rice and started unloading pickles. They had collected an audience now, a dozen of the Wen grouped together in the cave mouth. This was entirely undignified, but Lan Wangji could not think of any other way it could be done. Privacy wouldn’t be appropriate either, even if it was easily obtained. “Lan Zhan, what is this?” “Rice,” said Lan Wangji. Someone laughed. Wei Ying rubbed his forehead; many hours of Wangji’s aggravation in their youth were avenged. “I can see that.” Wangji finished lining up the pickled vegetables, and handed Wei Ying the single sealed jar of ginger. Wei Ying frowned at it, a little wrinkle between his eyebrows. He was adorable. He sighed, and bent to put the pickled ginger next to the pickled cabbage. “Lan Zhan,” he said. “Really. What is this?”

Lan Wangji reached into his final pouch and pulled out the bolt of deep blue silk. He could not press it into Wei Ying’s hands; they were covered in dirt. He set it across the top of one of the stacks of rice baskets. A hush had fallen over the Wen. Wanji stepped closer to Wei Ying, and sought his eyes now that he had been evading. “Gifts,” he said, and felt that the way he said it left no question of his intent.

It was a pathetic offering—nothing compared to what would have been given if he had made a match approved by his sect and clan, what would have been brought forth to honor his bride. But it was what he had been able to bring, without that approval. A dowry he had assigned himself, as it were.

And far more valuable to Wei Ying and the people he had chosen to protect than treasures would have been.

Wei Ying’s mouth and hands worked emptily for a moment, and he made several stifled sounds, as though the silence spell had somehow been cast on him without sealing his lips shut. “You,” he managed. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, let it hiss out. Turned to their audience and pointed, jauntiness back in his motions, the slant of his eyebrows, the tilt of his head. “Okay, everybody scram.”

The Wen laughed at him, but they did go. Fourth Uncle called congratulations and someone whooped; Wei Ying rolled his eyes and shooed them off.

When he turned back to Wangji he was subdued again. His smile small and unreal. “Lan Zhan,” he said, “you can’t do this.”

“These are nothing.”

The linen and cotton, the other bolt of silk, the shirts, the little clothes for A-Yuan, he should unpack all of those as well. But he could not stop looking back at Wei Ying.

Wei Ying blew out another breath, puffing out his lips as it went this time. “Thank you for the rice,” he said, unhappily. “I—I don’t want to refuse it on behalf of everybody, and I….”

There was a struggle on his face that sent a chill through Lan Wangji. Wei Ying, trying to refuse a marriage, with a pile of a little more life lying at his feet as a bribe he could not ignore.

Could he never escape becoming his father.

“No,” Lan Wangji said sharply. “No, even if Wei Ying sends me away in disgrace, these things will stay here. It is not.” He stopped, gathered his thoughts. “I am not trying to buy you.” As though a year’s worth of rice and some decent silk could begin to add up to the value of Wei Ying.

“The disgrace is staying here!�� Wei Ying said, shockingly direct. He seemed startled by it as well, as Wangji studied his face. “Lan Zhan, you don’t deserve this.”

Lan Wangji tilted his head. He could choose to agree, to say he didn’t deserve Wei Ying, never could, but wanted him anyway. He would like to see how Wei Ying responded to that—probably by recoiling, but in the way that made Wangji’s chest ache for Wei Ying rather than for himself. “You do?” He flicked his eyes the way the Wens had gone. “They do?”

“Lan Zhan. You could have anything and anyone. I can’t—tie you to a heap of corpses.” Wei Ying made a face and glanced sourly at the wall of rice again. “The rice was a good move,” he acknowledged. “I keep wanting to say something mean to make you leave, but most of them sound stupid now.”

Wei Ying should not have admitted to that tactic aloud, Lan Wangji thought to himself, but he didn’t point out the error. “Not tied to the corpses,” he said. “Tied to Wei Ying.” Oh, how he wanted to be tied to Wei Ying. Oh, how bound he was already.

Wei Ying laughed, the unpleasant sound Lan Wangji had gotten used to during the war, but without the thick layering of pride that had covered it then. “Do you really think there’s a difference?” He shook his head and spread one hand, palm up, taking in all their surroundings. “This is a place for the doomed, Lan Wangji. You don’t belong here.”

“I came here doomed, and had my life returned to me.” Lan Wangji took a step forward, pinning Wei Ying under his attention. “Wei Ying. Do not refuse me for my sake. I—”

Lan Wangji had tormented himself so selfishly over Wei Ying leaving him behind, all this time. As though following were wholly beyond his power, as though Wei Ying were the only one who could choose to alter his path—because he had been so sure his own was right, that Wei Ying must return to his side on it, or be counted lost.

His love had not been strong enough. He had not been brave enough. He had mourned their parting. A child deprived of a toy. “There will be no one else. There is nothing else for me, now.”

To give up Wei Ying, after having had him—to turn away from that whispered affection, or the consuming addiction of desire now whetted by knowledge—impossible. He wanted to say, if I was willing to make love to you within sight of your horrible blood pool in full possession of my faculties, why do you think there is anything that would turn me away now, but he did not think it would resonate with Wei Ying the way he wanted, since it admitted to the repulsiveness of the blood pool. Wei Ying had to be aware of the repulsiveness of the blood pool, but Lan Wangji could attempt to be diplomatic in his own marriage negotiations, unorthodox as they were.

Wei Ying’s face twisted, but it passed through anger into grief. “Lan Zhan,” he said, with tears in his voice though not in his eyes. “Don’t say that. Don’t tell me I’ve ruined you.”

“Not ruined.” Lan Wangji finally drew close, and for a moment it seemed Wei Ying would allow it, but then he spun and danced away sideways, in the only direction allowed by the wall of rice baskets, and was again too far away to kiss.

“I had Jiang Cheng throw me out of the Sect to avoid dragging anyone else down with me. Lan Zhan, you can’t—”

“Stupid.” Lan Wangji frowned. He supposed he should have known that was Wei Ying’s idea. Jiang Wanyin had never impressed Wangji particularly, but among the virtues he did have, courage and loyalty must surely be counted foremost, judging by what Wangji had seen in the war and particularly those three months together, searching for Wei Ying.

Left to his own devices, Sect Leader Jiang would have taken longer to disavow his head disciple, whose unorthodox cultivation he had championed on the battlefield, even if he was too politically cowed by the Jin to defend him properly, either. But Wei Ying, of course, had hastened to make himself a sacrifice.

Wei Ying snorted. “Oh, and you’re planning to bring the whole support of the Lan behind you?”

Of course, he clearly wasn’t. And if any disciple other than himself had staged such a shameless robbery, he would be a wanted criminal. But unless they expelled him, which his brother and uncle would, he felt, after the way he had parted with them, fight with all their considerable power, his affiliation with the sect would still be valuable. To all of them. “Wei Ying does not always have to be the shield. Sometimes, he should be protected also.”

“Lan Zhan.” As easily as that, Wei Ying was looking at him shattered. The vulnerability on his face hurt to witness even as Lan Wangji reveled in it. He was learning Wei Ying, how to love him for his sake, rather than for Lan Wangji’s own.

“Do you not want me?” he asked, bracing himself for an affirmative. Wei Ying might say it and lie; Wei Ying might say it and, despite everything before, actually mean it. He had had time to think, while Lan Wangji was gone.

“I don’t want your pity.” The word curdled on Wei Ying’s tongue and in the air, and his face wore an ugly look again. “We will live as we may. We have survived this long without you, Hanguang-jun, and we will live after you grow sick of the foul air and poisoned earth and leave again. This place is beyond the reach of the cultivation world, why bring it here with you?”

“Even though you do not need me,” Lan Wangji said carefully, letting the sharp edge of those words break over him like a wave because Wei Ying had admitted outright he said these things to drive people away; because declaring everyone here doomed even the little child, and then saying they would live despite him, was too much contradiction to bother with. “Do you want me?”

“If I say no will you go?”

The refusal to say it at once was an answer in itself. “If I believe you.”

Wei Ying snorted, less disgust than acknowledging Lan Wangji’s point scored. He smiled unhappily. “Lan Zhan, I’ve made my choices. I would make them again, even knowing where they’ve led me. That doesn’t mean I want to bring you down with me. You don’t owe me anything. You do realize you don’t owe me?”

Lan Wangji hesitated. It was a difficult question. He did not, precisely, feel indebted to Wei Wuxian, not the way Wei Ying meant or the way his brother had, though he was acutely aware of the gift of his life and the cost Wei Ying had borne to give it. But he did feel obligation toward him, a duty, which was a kind of owing as well. “Wei Ying deserves better,” he said. “And I owe you—courtesy, at least.”

“Courtesy,” Wei Ying echoed, abstract, scornful. His eyes flicked down, past Lan Wangji’s eyes to his mouth.

“You never answered my question,” Lan Wangji said.

“Which one? Oh. Lan Zhan. Who would ever not want you?” Wei Ying shook his head, but there was a smile there now, one that caught in the corners as though pain and fondness were the selfsame emotion.

Once again, he spoke of it like he spoke of natural law.

Lan Wangji ached. “Wei Ying.”

Wei Ying sighed, and glanced at the wall of rice, the silk. Lan Wangji’s perhaps pathetic offering of something, anything more valuable than merely himself. A little life. “I really don’t understand,” he said. “When you left, I thought—”

“You didn’t expect me to return.”

“No. I thought you’d listened.” Wei Ying shook his head. “I don’t want to—I know what they say about me, but I never wanted to…” He took a breath, and tried again. “You’re so brilliant, Hanguang-jun, so good, they named you well, and I would never want to be the reason that light was stolen from the world.”

“Already done.”

Wei Ying winced, and looked at him with his eyebrows knit, annoyed.

Lan Wangji said, “You took the light from my world when you went into the dark.”

#ask #hoc est meum #brawltogethernow #i had fun with the dialogue in that cql au #i can also see inspiration from 1) my strong feelings about Food and starvation themes #2) hearing that the stepped-up antigay censorship rules in chinese TV forbade exchanges of gifts between male characters #because that could be courting behavior #there's a cathartic bit before this where lwj robs the lan sect storehouses #and then talks to his brother and uncle about ethics and shit on the way out #i had him ask lqr if he would rather they'd never been born if it meant he kept his brother #because i think it would be cool if he wondered that #earth-3 #the untamed #ask game #writing #fanfic

13 notes · View notes

simpliao · 1 year

Note

i know u wrote ‘let you break my heart again’ quite a while ago but it would b so cool if u wrote a part two where schlatt wonders why y/n had stopped attempting to hang out with him and ect and it ends in fluff maybe?

good person at heart ; (irl) schlatt x reader

summary : we do bad things even if at heart we're good people.

info : angst hehe, (kinda) cheating, semi-fluff (not really), smoking, disordered eating, hospital, depressive inner monologue,

a/n : I don't know if I'm gonna post after this but I hope this feeds you guys for the next handful of months ! I know the request was for it to be more fluffy... and sweet. but because of what this is based off of I couldn't do that. Thank you so much for 200+ followers even if I literally have not posted since last year. I love you guys, pro-tip, never fall in love.

"So, next week same time?"

"Yeah, sure. See you then."

Routine, as it's become. Another woman to pass through his life, momentarily fulfil selfish desires, to have nameless faces leave to come again like clockwork. Distantly he could make out her footsteps, and the almost silent opening and shutting of his front door. Letting eyelids fall and leaning back to rest against the bed frame, a heavy sigh left his lips. When did it get this bad? When was the last time he'd felt... Whole.

Since Y/n, likely. Taking in another inhale of heavy smoke, lips clenched between the cigarette twitched at the thought of her. So... Damn sweet. Thinking about her, knowing how she'd react to seeing him like this, a mess, had him practically spit out the smoke. Putting it out carelessly at the ashtray that sat by his side.

So real. Unbelievable how real she felt, unlike any of the other women he's kept around him. Kept for a night, if kept is an appropriate word at all. They were blurs that served as gaps in his memory, hours if them amounted to no more than a handful of fuzzy colours and lights. That woman, no, who once was his woman he couldn't for the life of him forget a second in her arms, of her in his life.

So vividly he could make out hazy mornings of watching her chest rise and fall as her relaxed features radiated in the warm luster from early rays. Almost as serene as the specs of dust that wafted the air only visible by yellow dawn. Time with her was so eventful, so easy to find yourself in the present moment and just feel... In love.

But that was the fear wasn't it? Breaking out of thoughts his eyes fell to his illuminated phone, a notification. Curious, it was Ted. He was in town at the moment, but as far as he was concerned he was out with Shae... Shit, had he forgotten more plans today? This wouldn't be the first time.

'Jeremiah Schlatt call me back as soon as possible.'

That, accompanied with an hour's worth of missed calls, had his back straighten and rush of energy flood his body. Wasting no time dealing back, it couldn't have been more than three rings before the phone was picked up.

"Where the hell are you? I've been calling you for an hour– this is..!" His voice gruff and loud enough to resonate in his ears, consequently contributing to the growing of a dull pain within his frontal lobe. "I'm at home, sorry. Did we have plans today?" There was murmuring following his question, two voices discussing in a much softer, uneasy tone from what he could make out.

"Jesus, you sound out of it. Get some sleep I'll call you back tomorrow morning." There was the overly worrisome Ted he was more accustomed to, his voice returning to the phone with a complete one-eighty of tones. It practically sent him into whiplash, a twinge in his gut telling him something wasn't quite right. "Ted, what the fuck is going on? You don't just call people like that, where are you?" Hesitation highlighted the silence, he could practically hear him gulp as a reassuring female voice was at his side.

"I'm with Shae and..." His voice caught up in his chest, his girlfriend's murmurings being heard from the other end of the line even if unintelligible. "...We're at the hospital on 51st Street." I could feel my heart sink in my chest, "I'm on my way."

"Wait, wait, wait..!" He cleared his throat and halted in his steps, half naked and feeling the chill of the room after throwing himself out of bed. "...neither me or Shae are sick. I, I figured you had the right to know what's going on, but it's a delicate situation. I don't think it's smart for you to just show up out of the blue–" "Ted, what the fuck is going on?"

A breath was drawn, and the following words made it seem like his whole world had fallen apart. "It's Y/n. She just... Collapsed. She hasn't been eating I just... I didn't know who to call she's still stubborn but I don't think–" "I'm on my way." Before any protests could have been made the phone was hung up and the previously languid Schlatt was dashing round the place for his misplaced articles of clothing and his car keys.

The rest was a blur, with a conscious heavy with worry and thoughts centred around only her there were only flashes of memory of driving to the previously mentioned hospital (how he remembered he didn't know in that state); his brain was on autopilot.

And yet someway, somehow, he blinked and before him was the woman he once (and likely still) adored. Her skin paler than her usual tone, sunken and sullen. Her head tilted to the side, gaze pivoted towards the window. Her monotonous heart rate was barely audible, it was like he was underwater. Throat dry, neither said a word, his palms sweaty and pulse feeling as if it could burst his veins open.

"Y/n..." His voice low, knowing he had no place here, not after everything. He stood closer to the door than her, she seemed tense with him being there and he wasn't exactly relaxed either. Just as he spoke those words, he could visibly see her grip at her arms slightly tighter, her body at a slight tremble he recognized she would do before she cried. He hesitated to say anything else if his voice alone had already done so much.

"..what are you doing here..?" Her head slowly spun towards him, fully in view he could see just how worn down and tired she appeared. She was frail, eyes once filled with so much life now dreary with eyelids relaxed and harsh shadows under them; tears brimming and threatening to fall. Chapped lips with every lethargic movement seemed as if they were so heavy, as if she struggled to even open them. "...I heard. You..." Schlatt hesitated on his words, a little lost to find them.

"Save it." Whatever force she had left she used it to spit out those words, "I'm alright..." "Obviously not." He let out softly, carefully making his way over to sit at the chair by the foot of the hospital bed. "I just..." "Why did you come here?" Her voice strained asked with such desperation, confusion evident with tears ever present. He took a breath, "I came because I still care." And that was what it took to cause the surface tension to break and tears fully roll down her cheeks, unable to even manage reaching to wipe them away. "You came to lie to me." She choked out between broken sobs, he held such a gentle, caring look while she fought to not completely break down into ugly crying.

"No, no I didn't–" "cause if you cared I wouldn't be feeling this way." Her words spoke such conviction, eyes once saddened had an edge of power. The wrath and justified venom dripping from her words was enough to have the air catch in Schlatt's chest.

"You're right." He wouldn't deny it, everything that's happened up till now was a result of his own selfishness, never having the slightest thought about her. "I'm not here to make things right between us."

"...then..?"

"Y/n, I'm sorry." His head quickly dipped downwards, a prolonged pause was taken before a sharp inhale could be heard. "I'm not worth destroying yourself over." He didn't dare raise his gaze, knowing he'd be heartbroken at the sight that would lay before him.

"...why wasn't I enough for you..?" Hiccups between cries tearing at his heart, he clenched his teeth and shut his eyes tight. "You were more than I could have ever imagined." "I'm not... I couldn't be... I've seen the women you're around now..."

"And yet you're more beautiful then all of them." "...then why have you been so... cold?"

Cold, and cold was what he meant to be; pushing her away to save himself. Yes, she was too real; just like every other person he kept too close. One by one, they all did what he did to her: disappear.

He wanted so desperately to explain himself. Tell her stories of how other lovers had done a similarly cruel trick, family issues, people that were supposed to be there for him to rely on... But he couldn't. He was as bad as them, he hurt her tooth's extent because he couldn't handle commitment or trust.

She was the victim, no doubt in anyone's mind. Who was he to make this all about himself?

"I'm just not a relationship kind of guy, I... I should of said something, and for that I'm sorry. But please, please don't beat yourself up about this. If what we were is what's causing this."

She deserved to thrive, not to be weighed down by him.

At heart he was a good person, even if his actions didn't show as much. She didn't need to know, and he wasn't ready to get better.

82 notes · View notes

teddyniffler · 2 months

Text

Chapter 26: An assortment of Gaunts and Garreth Weasley.

Ominis left the hospital wing two days later, Nurse Blainey had kept him in a day longer, due to his eyes not following her finger when she did the appropriate tests on him.

“I am blind!” Ominis had protested in outrage when the nurse suggested keeping him in a third night. “I would very well imagine that’s why my eyes do not move to match your finger!”

He was extra snappy today, having only realized he had missed the twins’ birthday, days after the event. He hadn’t sent an owl order to Zonkos yet because of his overwhelming homework. Now due to other people’s incompetence towards his condition, he now had to wait another day to check up on Poppy and to feed Snakey, whom would be growing hungrier by the second. Friendly or not, a hungry snake would bite.

Fifth rule of the Gaunt family: Feed your snakes well.

“I am very sorry, I overlooked it, I will-“

“Obviously!” Ominis snapped at her. “Well, I am feeling better after my accident. Thank you very much.”

They all knew it wasn’t an ‘accident’, Black had attacked him, after he himself had threatened the headmaster.

He left the Hospital and stomped his way through the corridors. He was never this tightly wound up, but everything felt like it was crashing him on him. He didn't know if Sebastian was safe, he had been attacked and Marvolo may have hurt somebody he knew well. Twice his wand led him into a wall due to his rage interfering with it’s focus and he shook it violently, clearly expressing his outrage that his one trusted tool would let him down too.

“Mr Gaunt! I would advise you to practice caution. You may take out an eye.”

A stern voice reprehended him as Ominis continued to wave his wand around. He had almost taken out an unseen teacher.

“What!” He yelled, his rage spilling over. There was a pause, in those moments he could hear whispers all around him, he must have walked into a busy part of the school without knowing it, too lost in his own thoughts and maybe the after effects of his concussion was confounding his sense of location.

He was likely in the tea area of the defense against the dark arts corridor, he had been meaning to go feed Snakey before trying to find Poppy. Had he already arrived near to the Undercroft?

“I am sorry, I’m just very frustrated.” He said apologetically “Professor…?”

“Sharp” Came the voice of his potions master.

“Oh yes, sorry Professor Sharp.”

“If I may advise, wands are dangerous tools, one must always remember that, you cannot see it, but your wand is currently throwing out red sparks. That is not a happy wand right now. Please take control of your emotions Mr Gaunt.”

“I shall Professor.”

“Good day to you, Gaunt.”

He heard Sharp move off.

Mutters, mutters, all around him.

He moved away from them, he always got mutterings just for the surname he carried, so it wasn’t really a new thing. However, since the Daily Prophet had released the plea for Sebastian to return to St Mungos after vanishing without any trace, some in the school believed Ominis was hiding him somewhere in the castle. The once innocent Sallow, victim to the dark arts, had clearly sought sanctuary with the boy who had taught him such magic in the first place. Well, Sebastian wasn’t in the Undercroft as much as Ominis knew, so that rumour was ridiculous.

“I’m sorry” Ominis said to the repeats of ‘Where you been, where you been, where you been?’

He hurried over to the wall where Snakey now took up residence and felt around all the branches, leaves and hides he had conquered for his snake until he felt a cold leather-like body.

“Oh you’re freezing, haven’t you been in the heat?” Ominis asked.

‘Waiting to see you’

That made him feel worse.

“Sorry” He hissed back. “Tried to help a friend, but it made things worse, it didn’t go well.”

‘No?’

“Not at all” Ominis took out his wand and started conquering a small mouse, he knew he had done it as Snakey suddenly grew excited and started trying to strike.

“That’s my wand!” Ominis cried as something small hit his wand.

“So my friend, he can’t come back here as the headmaster won’t allow him to, I tried to threaten the headmaster as Marvolo – ‘Bad, bad, bad’ – advised me too and it went very wrong. I woke up in the hospital.”

He waited until he was sure his snake was eating.

“Will you be ok eating that? I need to go check up on somebody.”

Something came that sounded like a farewell from Snakey with his mouth full of food.

Ominis quicky turned around and left the room.

It didn’t take him long to find Poppy.

He walked into the Great Hall and made his way up the Hufflepuff table.

“Is Poppy Sweeting here?” He asked as he went up.

“Yes, she is indeed” Came a voice and an arm reached for him, making him stop. “you’re wasting your time though, everybody wants to know about the mysterious man she was with, an older man too! My my! Miss Sweeting isn’t the quiet, innocent chase girl we all thought she was, turns out she likes the company of older men. Sorry whoever you are, but it appears you are too young for our Miss Sweeting.”

As the girl laughed, Ominis thought he recognized her as Sacharissa Tugwood, he mostly avoided her since she offered him a potion to make his eyes more bearable for her to look at in his first year.

Ominis continued up the table.

“Poppy?” He asked.

“Oh, over here Ominis.” Her voice came to him.

“Hello” He said awkwardly, not sure he was looking at Poppy at all. “Poppy, that guy you were with in Hogsmeade was my older brother, he’s not who you think he is Poppy. He’s not interested in you, he’s dangerous and -.”

All around him came giggles.

“Dangerous? Dangerously handsome!”

That was Lenora Everleigh for sure. A few other giggles followed.

“He bowed to me and conjured a flower just because I said hello to Poppy.” Came Adelaide’s voice. “He is a gentleman like the one we all ought to marry.”

Poppy smiled at Ominis and took his arm. Ominis felt her touch and blinked.

“Ominis, it’s ok. I’m not dating your brother formally, we just met for the first time, we are just acquaintances. However, I do confess, we do have another date planned to meet, the next Hogsmeade trip-“

The little group cheered, all around Ominis were girls screaming. Next came hushing noises.

“- And I’m keeping mum on the subject. A lady doesn’t gossip, that’s what gran says.” Poppy ended.

“Poppy” Ominis stuttered “Please, my brother is a killer.”

“Lady Killer.” Giggled Lenora.

“He is!” Ominis cried. However the girls before him didn’t seem to pick up on his warnings.

“Poppy, I don’t-“ Ominis started.

“Oooh back to your table, you snake.” Lenora’s said, not entirely unkind, but in a way that told Ominis she was only half joking. “Poppy can court your brother if she wants, it’s not against the law you know.”

Poppy smiled apologetically to Ominis, then remembered he couldn’t see it.

“Ominis, it’s ok, it’s just a second date, it may not even go anywhere, I mean, he is slightly older-“

Poppy’s words were drowned out by more good will cheering.

“Shush!” Poppy protested. “I mean, we may decide to just be friends. Marvolo is such a gentleman though, I am in safe hands with him, I see he is gentle and is as passionate about beasts as I.”

“No, Poppy, I ask you-“

“Bye bye snake” Leanora said, now pushing slightly on his arm.

Knowing he was no longer welcome there at the Hufflepuff table, he moved away, his insides tight with the growing number of people he had to be concerned for.

A week had passed since Ominis had woken in the Hospital Wing.

That morning, Professor Black shocked the entire school by limping into the Great Hall. He had last been seen looking immaculate as always a few days ago, but after a short disappearance he had returned, limping in through the doors, with multiple bruises neither the teachers or Nurse Blainey had been able to heal. His physical appearance to the whole school population had been a shock. Parts of his perfectly groomed mustache had been ripped out, forcing Black to tearfully shave it off. His left eye was swelled and bruised, with a deep vivid purple that was framed more by his dark hair. No amount of bruise cream had worked on him and his lip was torn and would not heal by magical means, making his mouth puffy. They had tried healing him in the muggle fashion, with tape. A tooth had been knocked out, with Black clutching the side of his mouth as it slowly grew back in. He had the appearance of somebody who had, unfortunately, flew their broom into the path of a Hippogriff.

After he had pushed Ominis down the stairs, the little brat had indeed informed his father, there was no doubt about it. Master Gaunt had wasted no time in paying him a visit, bringing the horror that was Marvolo Gaunt with him. Within seconds of them entering the room, all the past heads of the school had been covered up, the door locked from the inside, at the same time the door to Black’s own personal chambers had slammed shut. Gaunt himself had not touched him, it had been the son, the lunatic himself. Master Gaunt had explained to Black that the Gaunts wanted to see how Marvolo was progressing in the Dark Arts.

“Not to worry. Not to worry. I know I have looked better, this job is much, much harder than what you students could ever imagine, so I hope you are all more the grateful for the work I do for you. Both for you and this historic school.”

He winched as he sat down, slowly got up again, keeping one leg up he conjured a cushion and sat back down on his chair.

His eyes flickered over to Ominis Gaunt who had his wand held to the Daily Prophet over at the Slytherin table, then he looked away again, back down at his plate of toast. Another one of his teeth was loose, he could only eat with his front teeth. No Wiggenweld potion had worked, not even Episkey. He could simply pull the tooth out and regrow it like the new one, but so far it was enough regrowing just one.

He had been cursed with dark magic.

As he sat, feeling sorry for himself, rage also cursed through him. He had tried making his stand against the Gaunts, and now everybody in the room before him could see the results, although they didn’t know why he bore those injuries.

Phineas Black, from the proud House of Black, had been a sobbing mess on the floor within half an hour of Marvolo’s brutality.

“I can’t believe you called me an ‘Inbreed’ Phineas, I thought we were friends!” Master Gaunt had called over the sounds, flashes and thumps on flesh, while Marvolo cried in joy. Mr Gaunt had taken his seat in the headmaster’s chair, his legs up on the desk after kicking all of Black's items to the floor.

He had watched as his son reduced Black to a blooded mess, before he called his attack dog off. He had gotten to his feet and walked slowly around the desk. In that moment, Professor Black had thought he was going to be murdered within his own office, cowering like a child with his hand stretched out before him.

“You could have seriously hurt my boy.” Gaunt said, looking down at Black with his pale silvery blue eyes.

“A Gaunt. One whose life is worth ten times that of a Black. Do you need a reminder of who we are? Who we are descendant from? You could have harmed my families’ survival. Slytherin’s survival. ”

“Crucio” Master Gaunt didn’t even blink as Phineas started to thrash around on the floor. The spell had lifted before Black even noticed.

Master Gaunt had kneeled down and prodded Black in the shoulder, all friendly, as if they were the best of friends.

“Touch my son again and the Black family shall be a male down. I’m so happy we are friends again Phineas! Don’t break our friendship again, I will miss you should you die, whoever shall I talk to?”

They had both left, together, with Gaunt praising Marvolo for his work, praising his son's level of devotion to his studies, leaving Phineas Black a blooded, beaten mess on the floor and the office in tatters. It had taken hours for Black to stop shaking. He had crawled to the door to peer out to make sure they had really gone.

Then he had crawled down to the hospital wing. He had told them he had had an accident of sorts, in the forest, absolutely, no, he didn’t see what had attacked him, it had been too dark.

Now, sitting in the hall again, the chatter of noise all around him, Professor Black wondered if all of this really was worth the pay check.

He had been roped into a conspiracy he wanted no part of, he had done everything correctly. If somebody preformed an Unforgiveable Curse, they were to be reported. It was standard wizarding law and it had been this way for almost two hundred years.

He had done everything lawful, but all it had resulted in was every member of the Gaunts family using him, from the son to the father. He picked up his toast and tore some off before placing a tiny amount into his mouth. It was so close to Easter now, could he simply go home to his family and never return here? He glanced sidewards at Professor Weasley in bitter hatred, no doubt she would take over after him.

She had nothing to fear from the Gaunts, she may be pureblood, but nobody wanted to work with Blood Traitors.

His tooth wobbled dangerously in his mouth and he stopped eating at once, his hunger all gone.

-“It’s ready! May I present ‘G.R.O.IN’ my health and pamering range for men. It stands for ‘Garreth’s Revolutionary, Organic, INcreaser!’ For all your hair woes. Can you see my face? It’s as smooth as a Golden Snitch, but with three drops of my elixir, applied to my face, I can grow a full range of facial hair, turning me from the smooth 17 year old boy to the growth of a 27 year old man in moments, watch!”-

“Professor Weasley, see the students to the train for those going home. I am leaving earlier, I need some time to recover from my, um, my accident!”

Professor Weasley glanced at the Headmaster. He had said he had walked along the forest at dusk and was attacked by something within. She doubted that story very much, there was nothing in there that would attack somebody just walking along the edge, no centaur would come this close to humans and the worst beasts were very deep in the trees. It made no sense and it certainly didn’t explain why none of his wounds would heal by magic. These wounds were not from a creature, but a wand. The timing of Ominis’ ‘accident’ also was too much of a coincidence.

She pressed her lips together. The Gaunts. It was them.

“Sure Headmaster. I shall be escorting Garreth to his home personally, so I shall see to the students, as I always do.”

“Good. Good” Black said, ignoring her sarcasm. “Yes, well, I shall be off early-“

“I hope you recover well.” Professor Weasley said, she wanted to tell him to be careful, but she didn’t want to let on how much she really knew. It was best to keep quiet in these circumstances, especially considering who was currently living in her brother’s home.

- “Oh my, it’s working. Watch closely” -

Natty blocked out the cheering and excited Gryffindors all around her as she tried helping Leander free his nose from the enchanted clamps a group of Slytherins had placed on him. The camps were so tight Leander’s nose had turned blue, there was some blood leaking from his nostrils.

“This is so cruel. Who did this, did you see their faces?”

Leander tried to speak but his voice was so distorted Natty couldn’t hear him.

“I am sure this spell shall work.” Natty said, as she aimed carefully at Leander’s face. Thinking of the spell non vocally, a second later the clamps sprang free from Leander’s noise with a cry of pain. His eyes streaming and blood poured from his nose.

“Here.” Natty said, holding the tissues to his nose for him to clean himself up.

-“Oh NO!” -

Hysterical laughter rang out from across the common room. Natty looked over to see Garreth Weasley vanishing rapidly under-

“Disgusting!” Cried Lucan Brattleby in his high pitch voice. “Is that arm pit hair?”

“Somebody get me a razor! PLEASE” Came Garreth’s voice under all the hair.

Natty shook her head, Garreth was always doing something silly.

“No” Leander answered her “There were Slytherins who I’ve never spoken too. The whole house is still blaming me for that interview over Christmas. It really wasn’t me.”

Natty hesitated as she took out more tissues.

“It was me who give that interview to the Prophet.” She confessed

“What!” Leander gasped, lowering his voice. “I- I thought you and Sallow got along?”

“We did and I thought I knew him, but last year opened my eyes to the real Sebastian. I knew he had been getting into trouble, we all knew that, but to hear he had been using the Dark Arts, and that he had killed his poor Uncle, led me into action. Now I don’t know what I believe, the Daily Prophet says he’s innocent, but still, something feels not right to me. I chose to speak as last year I was hunting down Harlow to stop people getting hurt, just like my father, only to discover somebody I respected was doing the same thing, right under all our noses. Somebody had to speak out, only now I wish I never, because I’ve gotten you hurt. You can tell people it was me, if you want.”

Leander took a breath, this was a lot to take in, but finally the truth.

“It’s ok, I won’t say anything. It’s not secret me and Sallow never got along, no matter what I say, people will still think it was me, but thank you for telling me.”

As Garreth was engulfed in rapid growing hair, he turned and quickly made a run for the boys dorm to loud laughter.

Natty and Leander sat in silence.

The next day, the train was due to take students home for Easter. Ominis had tried sending his parents an owl saying he had so much work to do over the holidays, he thought it would be best to stay at school and study. His parents had quicky replied, informing him he was to come home, least they could support him with his work. He had hesitantly packed Snakey into his cloak as he made his way to Hogsmeade station. He had also packed all of his homework, for he was planning on spending the fortnight in the study at home. Thankfully, the Gaunt household did not celebrate Easter with half the enthusiasm they showed New Year, so he was hopeful his family would not be murdering Muggles this time.

“Have a happy Easter, Ominis.” Came Professor Weasley’s voice when he came to the station.

“You too Professor.”

“By the way, you haven’t seen my nephew, have you? He was to meet me here.”

The irony of her words was not lost on Ominis, nor was it Professor Weasley as she appeared to pause for a moment in horror.

“I mean have you heard him, I am sorry, it’s just it’s important I talk with him before he goes home.” She sounded troubled. “Oh, where has he got too?”

The train rolled into the station with its normal vibration and sounds, cutting Professor Weasley quiet, Ominis climbed aboard, feeling the usual dread that came with going home.

Professor Weasley watched as all the student returning home boarded the train, absent among them was a red haired, lanky boy.

“Where has he got to?” Professor Weasley grumbled as the train pulled away from Hogsmeade Station.

The young Weasley in question had just apparated into his family yard.

No way as Garreth getting onto that train, not with his diabolical hair problem. The hairs from under his armpit had increased in size until it looked like he was walking around with two garden hedges under each arm, the look was not flattering at all and he was not going to show his face ever again in the Gryffindor common room. All he had wanted was a good fashioned mustache, one that arched around to his face, he would look great like that, but so far his beauty tonics for men had only failed. Aunt Matilda had wanted to meet him, but he couldn’t face her looking like this, the best thing he could do was discreetly enter his house through the backdoor, creep up to the bathroom and shave with his father’s razors, the old man had plenty.

He opened the door slowly, his mother was in the kitchen talking to somebody, no doubt his sister in the living room. He crept up the stairs slowly, home was just as it always had been, weird and chaotic. Steps ended at landings, steps went to rooms and more steps went to higher floors. His room was right at the very top, he loved looking out at the meadows in the morning. He opened the bathroom door, it was thankfully not in use and locked the door behind him.

It took ages, he hoped he wouldn’t have to shout to his father for some help as this was mortifying, finally he was hair free, but he had made a terrible mess upon the floor.

There was a small tap on the door.

Finally, his little sister had learned some manners and learned how to knock, rather than barging her way in.

He took out his wand and vanished the evidence of his latest mishap, the bathroom was all tidy again.

He was grinning now, no doubt his little sister thought one of their parents were in here, he would surprise her so much when she seen him home hours earlier than expected!

He threw open the door

“Boo!!-“

He stopped dead mid speech.

There was no mistaken who was standing before him, but the sight of him made Garreth’s mouth drop open.

“Holy Merlin…!” Garreth gasped.

Brown eyes, brown hair, loads of freckles. He looked somehow smaller than Garreth remembered him looking and not as healthy looking. Azkaban had certain done something to him, and not for the best. He was currently wearing very loose-fitting clothing with braces holding his clothing up. All of it did nothing to hide how skinny he had become.

“Holy Hell. Sebastian? Whoa. Why, why are you in my house?” Garreth asked, shock flooding him. “Wait. Wait…My auntie, she wanted to talk to me- Oh my word! OH MY WORD!”

Garreth’s full face was lit up, he looked excited. He looked horrified. He looked delighted.

“Why is Sebastian Sallow in my house?” Garreth asked the empty bathroom as Sebastian winched slightly.

“I-need to-use” Sebastian pointed to the bathroom.

“Oh sure. I’m finished. Hi. Erm. Hey Sebastian, um, nice to see you again” he said as he ran down the stairs. When did his parents and Aunt become prisoner smugglers? He needed answers.

“Mum? Dad?” He called to them. He could not believe it, he never guessed his parents were capable of such high adventures.

“You have something to tell me?”

Sebastian Sallow was in his house. His family were hiding Sebastian Sallow. The boy everybody was looking for was currently in his family bathroom!

“Mum, Dad!”

This would be so interesting.

#ITSOFF26 #Hogwarts Legacy #Sebastian Sallow #Ominis Gaunt #Hogwarts Legacy fic #Professor Black #phineas nigellus black #Master Gaunt #Marvolo Gaunt

2 notes · View notes

volturiwolf · 2 years

Text

Exiles - A Felix Volturi x vampire!fem!reader - part 4

Felix Volturi Tag List:

@xxx-wounded-angel-xxx @venusdelaroix @justsvtmxaddicted @iloveslasher @paisley-37 @heartrise

Felix’s POV

What was currently happening to us was absolutely embarrassing. We used to rule the vampire world by forcing our laws and power on others; we used to take everything we wanted by force; we used to exterminate whole clans and covens, and we were feared by everyone.

And now, we were forced to negotiate with a coven we would have never guessed the true size and power of. The Greek coven Aro, Marcus, Caius, and their mates used to be a part of was considerably different from what Aro remembered when he sent us to deal with the vampire clans in Crete. The coven was much larger than ours, and we were not properly and appropriately prepared for what we had to face.

We were now forced to face Nettie’s coven as the 49 vampires in front of us demanded from the 25 of us - including Sulpicia and Athenadora - to surrender our power and authority to them. By threatening Aro to kill the 7 of us who survived the conflict between us and them, they managed to force him to make the trip to Greece, along with “every single Volturi vampire there is”, as they demanded. If Aro didn’t need us, I knew he wouldn’t have come.

The Greeks had the upper hand: not only they had managed to “disarm” and paralyze us, but they could also very much do the same thing to the others. There was no chance we could get out of this unless Aro finally agreed to their terms. The negotiations lasted for a few days in the course of which we were held in the coven’s prison cells.

It wouldn’t have been as bad - for me, at least - if all the vampires of the Greek coven were here. The now 49 vampires used to be 50, but that was not the case ever since that day on Crete. I couldn’t hear what exactly was happening because they had taken our hearing away, and I couldn’t really move and see around better because they had paralyzed us.

But, I could feel (Y/N)’s presence running away from me, and I was completely certain when they brought us back here, and I saw every single one from the mission, along with more vampires, but no (Y/N) around. (Y/N). Such a beautiful name for such a beautiful woman. I was craving her presence; I felt the hole in my undead heart grow with each day she was away.

I didn’t know what went down between her and her coven mates, but, by the way they all kept looking at me, I could tell that it had to do with us meeting each other. They looked bitter and hostile, and I could tell we were all in trouble because of me. They agreed to let us feed but they didn’t let us choose who we could feed from; they brought the food to us, as they refused to let us leave the premises until the negotiations were over.

I didn’t mind their choice of food, though it wasn’t “locally sourced”. Just like we did in Volterra, they, too, had been always “importing” people to feed from. They informed us that it was their policy that, no matter what happened, they would never consume blood from people living around the area, and they also preferred to kill non-Greeks if they were away on a mission. I didn’t see the reason why, but I didn’t care to question their motives anymore, concerned about their reactions if I did.

“It’s mostly because of (Y/N).” A man with light brown hair addressed me.

“What?” I was lost. Did something happen to (Y/N)?

“It’s because of (Y/N) that we don’t kill Greeks for food.” He answered the question I knew I didn’t ask out loud. “I can read your mind.” He simply replied.

That made a lot of sense. “So, why is it because of her that you don’t kill locals?”

“Because when (Y/N) became part of Nettie’s coven, it wasn’t Nettie who changed her. Nettie only took (Y/N) under her wings, supported her, and taught her about this life. Nettie found (Y/N) running through the woods as if she was trying to get away from something or someone. Turned out that she was running away from her home, after having been turned by a rogue vampire that was passing by, close to her home. She ran away so that she couldn’t hurt her family. Nettie promised her that if she joined, we would never hunt locals, for fear that one of them would turn out to be one of (Y/N)’s relatives.”

“And how did you hunt before starting the tours?”

“We’d travel to, where is now, Albania and Sicilia, maybe even further. The furthest, the better. We only wanted to make sure that we would not attack any Greek for her sake. I joined much later, but I knew from the start that this was Nettie’s main rule for the coven. And if anyone broke her law, they were severely punished. Because they knew what it was all about; they always knew. Neither (Y/N) nor Nettie ever hid the truth. We knew that if we wanted to stay here, our duty was to respect Nettie’s laws.”

“That’s a big sacrifice you had to make for (Y/N).”

“It was worth it if it meant she was part of the coven, and happy about it. But now, she's gone. I don't think she's ever coming back. I, personally, treated her really badly when it came to you. Now I don't think she'll ever forgive me - forgive any of us - for how we reacted to your mate bond."

I had truly no idea what went down between (Y/N) and her coven mates, but it must have been serious if it meant that she left her coven forever. I thought it was because of me exclusively; I had no idea that her coven mates offended her in any way.

"I questioned her loyalty to the coven. I asked her if she would be willing to exterminate you, in case we came down to this. In her thoughts, I saw she would stay loyal to us, but I still questioned her actual intentions, not sure if I could believe what she promised. Everyone did. (Y/N) has been one of the oldest vampires in the coven; she had given everything for this coven. And we, like newbies, questioned her intentions and her position in the coven that she helped build before the majority of us joined.”

I could now understand her frustration and disappointment at her coven mates; if I was in her position, I would have probably - most likely - teared up the whole place down, until it was nothing but ruins. It was unfair of them to assume she wouldn’t stay loyal to her coven because of me, although I would definitely want her by my side. I just didn't know if I would want her to stay trapped in the Volturi headquarters.

“We wouldn’t want her there either, no matter what she chose to do for her life.”

“Can you, please, stay out of my head?” I groaned with frustration.

“I can’t help it. Your mind is like an open book, though pretty empty if you ask me.” His snarky comment angered me, and I went to grab him through my prison’s bars but he must have either read my thoughts or he knew what I was going to do, and he ran further away from me.

“Told you. Empty.” He smiled evilly and ran up the stairs and out of the dungeons.

I banged the cell bars in frustration. Normally, I could have just cracked the cell open and gotten out. But I knew I would not withstand whatever gift they projected on me, considering what happened in Crete. So, I stood there, patiently, waiting for the outcome of the negotiations.

The only thing I could think of was (Y/N); her image never left my mind, like it was engraved there forever. The way her red eyes sparkled; the way she, so expertly, tore the lower guards’ heads off; the way she commanded everyone else, and the way she made me shiver all over my body, despite being undead and seemingly not feeling anything else. I had never met such a woman in my life before, and I doubt I wouldn’t have noticed her even if we weren’t mates.

Speaking of mates, the mate bond was calling me to run away and be with her, though I didn’t know her whereabouts. Normally, Demetri would have known by the very first moment where she would be. However, just like Jane, Alec, Chelsea, and Afton, he too had temporarily lost his gift. Our captors had stolen their gifts - or “diminished them, for now”, as they said - until the negotiations were over.

That left us helpless and hopeless. Despite Santiago and I being able to use our strength, but choosing not to, the others were depending on their gifts for their survival and everyday life. Not being able to use them meant they had lost part of themselves, and that was taking a toll on them; especially Jane, who was using her gift pretty much all the time, either whenever she was ordered to, or just to mess with the rest of us.

Sometimes, we’d start seeing strange things happening around us - probably courtesy of one of the vampires here. Other times we’d feel so sick and disturbed, we could swear we would vomit if we were humans. Other times we’d have our worst fears projected on us. I didn’t fear anything, until now.

Now, my worst fear was anything happening to (Y/N), as I didn’t know where she was or what she was doing. The vampire who caused fears had realized that and was using it against me, even if it was about her ex-coven mate.

I didn’t know if (Y/N) would come back soon or at all, so I considered her to be their ex-coven mate. If I were her; if I had the kind of power she did, I doubt I could return back to my coven if they treated me that way, disrespecting and doubting me. I was disrespected plenty of times in my own coven, but I could never leave them because I had no better alternative; I had no choice, no option, nothing to ensure my survival if I were ever to leave the Volturi.

“Get up, suckers! The decision has been made!” Someone yelled and we started hearing commotion outside, and around the dungeons.

A vampire came by my cell and unlocked the door. “Don’t try anything stupid, or you’ll be the first one we get rid of.”

I nodded, not out of fear or respect for the vampire or their coven, but because I had no other choice but to agree with whatever they decided. We stopped before the stairs that led up to the ground floor. “We’ll be waiting for the others.” I nodded again.

Soon, each of the imprisoned Volturi guards started coming, one by one, accompanied by at least one of the others. These vampires knew what to do in every situation; they were careful and organized, and apparently knew where each of their own would be needed for each of our own.

Jane looked terrible. Despite her being quite young when she was turned, she looked so old and abused right now. Her eyes were looking straight ahead, but they were sunken, empty, and emotionless, though not Jane’s usually emotionless look. She now looked like she had been through the roughest times of her life, and I had no idea what she had endured these past few days. Alec noticed his sister’s face immediately and walked by her side to comfort her.

“Keep a distance between you!” The same guy who called my mind empty yelled, giving orders around the other vampires as if he was the leader of them now. “Oh, but I am!” He was looking at me right now. “Ever since (Y/N) left, I had to be the coordinator of everyone and everything around. So, yeah, that does make me their leader. Second to Nettie, of course.” He smiled evilly, and I got so mad so quickly.

I ran towards him, not thinking straight, but knowing I was gonna make him pay for the pleasure he took in taking (Y/N)’s place, showing absolute disrespect for my mate. I managed to punch him a few times, cracking up his face when I suddenly felt electricity running all over my body, and it felt like my insides were burning. I couldn’t help but scream in pain.

“I told you to not try and pull anything on us!” The vampire beneath me mumbled, still in pain but also enjoying my own pain.

“Stop! You’re hurting him!” Demetri yelled, trying to move toward me. “You need all of us for your negotiations! You need Felix if you want (Y/N) to come back!”

At the sound of her name, the pain stopped and I finally let my body fall to the floor, next to the other vampire. I was breathing heavily, still feeling the electricity through me, though the pain was slowly numbing me all over my body.

We heard stomping coming from the stairs, and a tall pale woman with long black hair appeared. She looked angry and ready to start kicking asses. “Stop acting like children! Nettie has been waiting for you, and you cannot stop acting irresponsibly! Stop whatever nonsense is happening right here, and come upstairs! NOW!”

I didn’t know what her deal here was, but she must have been important, as all the other vampires stood still at her words, and then followed her slowly upstairs, grabbing us by our arms as we all walked up the stairs. The mind reader was still laying on the floor, trying to pick up his broken pieces, letting them slowly heal and reconstruct his face.

None of us, or the others, spoke a word as we were walking up the stairs, through a long hallway, and into a room that seemed like it came out of the Middle Ages. There was a long wooden table in the middle of the room, like the ones people used to dine on, and it was surrounded by 20 wooden chairs covered in red velvet cushions.

The tall woman was already sitting at the end of the table, while a woman with auburn hair was sitting at the head of the table - I assumed that was their coven leader. She had two vampires of her coven on each side already to establish her distance between us, as well as her superiority.

Aro was sitting on the left side of the table, with Sulpicia beside him, and Marcus sat on the chair next to her. Caius was sitting across from Aro, with Athenadora right beside him. Jane decided to sit beside Athenadora, and Alec went to sit beside his sister. Demetri, who always liked Marcus the most, went to sit beside his master, and I went to sit beside him. Santiago sat beside me to allow Chelsea and Afton to sit across from us, beside each other.

The asshole who challenged me a few minutes ago was already back, sitting beside the tall black-haired woman, on the left side of the table, so he could watch me directly. Another female vampire came towards the table, sitting beside the woman, so there were no more free seats left. The rest of their coven surrounded the table but kept some distance from us, standing closer to the walls.

“Now that we are all here, we can get directly to our main issue. To sum up, for the ones who weren’t here before, the Volturi agreed to give up the role they had assumed, on their own, all these centuries ago, meaning they will no longer be “vampire royalty”. Also, they have no right to recruit any more vampires than they currently have.” There were a few gasps coming from us, but both Demetri and I remained frozen in our seats, not believing what was happening.

“And, now, for the most important thing: one of your own caused one of our own to abandon us.”

“You forced (Y/N) to leave you!” I burst out, banging my hand on the table.

Their response was immediate, as I felt really sick, really quickly. It felt like my insides were squeezed and my head was killing me as if it was on fire.

“Radmir, Dima.” The leader ordered calmly, and the pain and the twist on my insides stopped. “I am aware that my coven did not treat (Y/N) the best way, especially since she was our most important, valuable, and among the oldest members of our coven.” Her austere gaze scanned every single member of her coven, as they looked down, embarrassed for their behavior.

“Nevertheless, (Y/N) is gone, and I doubt she’ll ever come back. As retaliation, we have suggested, and the Volturi agreed, that one of you has to be exiled from your coven.”

We did not expect that. I felt Demetri freeze beside me, though his eyes were already popping. Across from us, it looked like Jane was filled with panic; beside her, Alec wasn’t any better. The Twins knew that their abilities were too important for the Volturi, so it was most likely that one of them would have to be exiled from the coven. Same for Chelsea, who was the one piece that bound us all together in the coven.

“Felix.” The leader simply said, and everyone’s eyes turned to look at me. What? Why me?

“Because (Y/N) left because of you, idiot!” The asshole spat, and I was ready to pop his head open if it weren’t for Demetri holding me into place the second I stood up from my chair.

“Not now, Felix, please.” Dem was looking apologetic, but also desperate.

If I got exiled, I would lose my best friend. I would lose all my friends; Santiago; Alec; Jane; Heidi - the only one who was secretly left behind, in Volterra; Chelsea; even Afton who was annoying me most of the time. If I got exiled, I’d be on my own. I’d have nobody to go back to.

“That’s what we’re counting on.” The asshole smirked evilly, and I could no longer control myself when I jumped on the table, running towards him and sending him across the room. The pain came once again, more intense than before, but it quickly stopped once again under their leader’s command.

“Enough! All of you! Nabil, you had it coming! Stop commenting on everything and pull yourself together!” She then turned to look at me. “As for you, I certainly do not condone your approach, but I see your point. Believe me when I say that I did not mean for this to happen to you. But, (Y/N) is gone and we need to get even. You are her mate, so you are the one to be excused from your duties in the Volturi. I will not force you to join our coven, because that’s not who we are, and I know you don't want to be part of our coven. So, I’m giving you the choice and setting you free to choose whatever you wish for yourself.”

She stood up from the table, and ran towards the exit, but not before turning around once again. “You all have 24 hours to leave. After that, if you’re still here, we will exterminate you. Good luck.”

#felix volturi #felix volturi x reader #felix volturi imagine #felix volturi x fem!reader #the volturi #volturi #twilight renessaince #twilight saga #twilight post #twilight #the twilight saga

39 notes · View notes

liyazaki · 2 years

Note

Mor darling 💓 want to ask you about Minato's Laundromat now that it's over, please don't take negatively, a genuine question!! i was very annoyed at the show's existence at first bc one thing i can't tolerate is underage stuff, and i'm of strong belief that adults must not look at minors and if a minor is hitting on them they must firmly end all the attempts of that, but as i see main character actually did that with the teen and let some time pass for him to grow older, or am i wrong?? the main question is if i have this kind of standpoint and watch the show, will it satisfy me? cause that's what i gathered from tumblr feed

thanks for this, Vlada- I'll take any and all opportunities to gush about this expertly-executed little gem of a show.

Minato's Laundromat accomplished exactly what you described: it covered a really touchy topic with nuance and care. I get the aversion to anything having to do with underage themes, but the age gap was never romanticized or fetishized for a second.

instead, it became the touchstone for the entire plot- the driving force that kept our mains at an appropriate distance while they grew and matured individually. and those growing pains were fantastic to watch: Shin coming into his own and through their friendship, Minato (the older lead) finally reckoning with the ghosts of his past.

it felt incredibly real, relatable and was injected with so much humor and love throughout. the majority of the show focused on the enormous impact their friendship had on each other's lives, and it was beautiful to watch. and it was just SO well written- not a second was wasted and every scene felt necessary.

personally, there are few tough or taboo themes I shy away from in my media, provided it's handled with thoughtful intention (or, in the case of toxic trash watches, we're at least fully cognizant of the problematic aspects of what we're watching). Minato's Laundromat delivered on the first plus some. all in all, I highly recommend and please come yell at me if/when you watch it!

#mor answers #vlada tag #minato shouji coin laundry #minato's laundromat #lord how i'll miss them

25 notes · View notes

oldguy56-world · 2 years

Text

The New Interns

Well I have a problem that I created myself. If you recall last week I said I was going to reward my interns with Crypto. By the time they received it the value for each of them was about 80 cents. They did not appreciate the notion that it is better to give than receive so they walked out en masse. (All of them except Old Hank. When it got cold he went into hibernation mode. He looks so cute sleeping over there in the corner.) This forced me to go find some replacements and after some careful planning and diligence (all in less than a week) I have assembled a new crack team. (Sorry I promised not to use that moniker as two of them are in recovery right now)

I feel it is only fitting to provide a profile for them. There will be no pictures included as several have requested that due to potential outstanding wants and warrants. I promised to honor their wishes.

Toothless Tom. He has the most precious smile but his biggest asset is his ability to lick the flap on envelopes rapidly. If I ever have to mail something he is the man.

Homeless Henry (and I hope I don't confuse his name with Old Hank too often). I met him in the park where I go to feed squirrels. He appeared to be waiting for me. When I arrived he asked for some peanuts (which is appropriate because now that is what he will be paid). He said he knew I would come because the squirrels told him about me. He has some very unique ideas for blogs that will be coming down the road.

John Smith. That's what he said his name was. One of those refusing to have his photo taken. All he asked was if he could sleep on the couch 'for a time'. I did catch him scooping up some of my traitorous hair that sheds all over the condo. I believe he is using it to build a nest. Nice quiet guy.

Ted Toke. He was a brilliant physicist until they started opening up all of those Cannabis shops in the neighborhood. Sees colors and images beyond my spectrum so he will be a source for inspiration.

Wendy Weed. She was a brilliant doctor until she met Ted. They came as a package deal. Between them they are building something in the spare bedroom. They told me not to ask so I won't.

Loincloth Larry. A fine fellow, just don't be behind him when he bends over. My wife made him a pair of shorts but he is wearing them as a hat right now. Felt bad for him because it is getting cold so he is now a part of the team as well.

Cross-eyed Kurt. He likes to type and can keep up with any dictation we throw his way. Any future typos are completely his fault.

If you are wondering why there is only one woman in my new group of eight so am I. Several were asked to join but for some reason when they met the others they fled in tears. One kept saying 'Not again, not again'. With a fresh new team the pressure is on to produce more blogs. Perhaps I should have thought more carefully about this.

THOUGHT OF THE WEEK: A successful team is one that works well together regardless of their differences. Diversity is an asset.

3 notes · View notes

overlysensitiverobot · 2 years

Text

Last night my Nana died

She the best Person in the world. Theres not a soul who didn’t love her. I never heard her speak a cruel word, or put anyone down, ever. She had nothing but goodness in her heart.

She been in palliative care for a few days and I put off seeing her because it seemed more appropriate for this to be a time for her kids to be with her, so I just sent in the single scented rose that was growing in my garden, and mum sent me a photo, saying she just kept wanting to smell it and it was a big hit.

In the photo Nannas hair was all flat, which it’s been for a while now, but she’d always loved to have it curled and set, and so I got it into my head that she would want her hair done, and decided to do it for her. And since I was going in, I thought maybe I’d bring in some music too, something that would add a little euphoria to the morphine she was on so I made a little playlist up just incase

Whilst I was at Kmart getting the hair products I decided to get a little tapestry kit too, as my Nana and Auntie Magda spent many hours with my sister and I, teaching us tapestry on holidays, and then my brother called. He couldn’t find the Ute key, so I had to go to the factory to help him find it. Whilst there I took the opportunity to grab a Bluetooth speaker.

When I arrived Nannas could no longer communicate. Her breathing was short and rattled, so I just set the music up and at the start we had it down real low and I spent the first hour just feeding her thickened water with a sponge tip. She really loved it. It was quite fun actually, and I was so glad to have that moment with her. She had to do all kinds of weird stuff to get me to eat as a kid, and she’d always made it fun for me, so it felt appropriate

She locked her eyes onto mine, and would not look away, I hadn’t expected that. She tried to say my name but she couldn’t. She wasn’t in a state to have her hair done, so I pulled out the tapestry and began to that instead.

She wanted to speak to me so badly, but she was too short of breath. So I just held her gaze and did slow steady deliberate breaths because I read somewhere once it can help to subconsciously help calm someone struggling to breathe. I don’t know if it helped her much but it’s how we spent the next few hours

We added a Andre Rieu song to the playlist as mum said she loved him, and I read out a few song names to find one she wanted. ‘Love Theme’ was chosen, and we turned the music up and began to listen to it and as we listened to the playlist we let the violins sweep across the room and free our tears, and speak our souls. I got to tell her what a wonderful grandmother she’d been, share my favourite memories, and tell her I how much I loved her. I hugged her tight and in my final goodbye I spoke my heart into her ear, I swear I felt her relax and she looked at me with like what she’d been trying to say had finally got to be said, but I honestly can’t even remember the words I even spoke in that moment

She died an hour after I left, and it hit me that what we had just shared was her final experience on this world, and I can’t believe it happened like that. It was so intense, beautiful but intense. She made me feel so special, like it had been so important to her that I was there and honestly I don’t feel like I deserved for it to be like that, but I’m so bloody grateful that it was

Thank you Nannas ,I will love you forever and ever and ever

#Spotify

1 note · View note

ramp-it-up · 3 years

Text

It Takes Two

Pairing: Soft Dark!Chris Evans x Reader

Warnings: 18+, Minors DNI. Curate your own experience. Cursing, drinking, cheating, breakups, rehab, recovery, deception, lies, celibacy, manipulation, wedding planning, semi-public explicit, rough, sex, oral sex (m receiving), degradation kink, breeding kink, choking, dubiuous con (b/c of deception). Darkish! Scott Evans. This is not proofread!

A/N: @lovebittenbyevans gave me a great idea about still dealing with Chris when commenting on The One. I thought that the Chris in that fic could really go left and get pretty Dark and dirty. And then....

Anonymous asked:

Imagine Chris cheating on Y/N …

That made me think up this fic. It is a sequel to The One. I hope you like it!

-----

You left him.

You flew to Montreal to surprise him on set, trench coat and lingerie and everything, and when you opened the door to his trailer, you saw Heidi on her knees giving Chris a blowjob.

You cussed him out, threw the ring back in his face and turned around and left.

You blocked his number, moved out of his house and cut off all contact. You were done.

The audacity of Chris being indignant about your warnings about Heidi when he was boning her all along.

You loved Scott, but you had to cut him off too after he tried to explain that Chris was drunk when you found him, and was going to rehab to deal with his issues.

It was classic celebrity bullshit and you didn’t have time for it.

You decided to center yourself, and swear off all relationships and sex. You wanted to purge your mind of all that weighed you down.

You concluded that love, sex, and Chris Evans made you feel heavy as fuck.

You moved to New York City. It was far enough away from Chris and your folks in Houston to give you some peace.

You could still run your business and even think about a storefront. It was the perfect location to live your best life, eat healthy, exercise, socialize and network.

You fell in love with yourself, and you didn’t think much about Christopher Robert Evans at all.

Only every time you went on IG or Twitter, even though you blocked him and his hashtags. And every time you went to Target, because his fucking movies and merchandise were everywhere.

But you were cool, because you were doing you. You weren’t looking for love.

Of course, that’s when it found you.

Six months after you left Boston, you were at a natural beauty products expo in Brooklyn hawking your wares.

Your business had taken off, with almost a half million dollars in sales, and you were being interviewed by a major news outlet of color when one of the correspondents caught your eye.

You flirted, exchanged numbers and ended up going on a date. In another three months you were engaged to him.

Kevin Watts made you feel safe, protected and loved. And he wasn’t just after sex. He was well off, and secure in himself and you. It just felt right.

When Kevin proposed, it was just you and him at your favorite restaurant. So romantic.

Not like the rowdy family 4th of July party at which Chris asked you to marry him last year, in front of both your parents.

The laughter and the joy was just a little much.

This was perfect. You didn’t miss Chris at all. You set about planning your wedding with a profound sense of peace and safety.

You and Kevin were meant to be.

----

Chris was nothing without you.

Nothing but an award winning actor and producer, a multi-millionaire and founder of a major organization dedicated to bringing opposing political viewpoints together.

All of that was cool, and it kept him going, but when he lost you, he lost his motivation.

Chris didn’t take any more roles after the sequel with Heidi, and he dumped her post haste. He did enter rehab and realized that he depended way too much on alcohol to dull his emotions.

He got drunk off his ass when he was away from you because he missed you so much, and that led to him letting Heidi think that she could have him.

She’d had him physically, but never his heart. Or his mind. You owned those.

Chris followed your business closely, and was proud of your success.

Of course he followed your social media on burner accounts and saw that you were doing well.

You looked like you enjoyed being single and seemed healthy and happy.

He couldn’t ask for anything more for you.

Except to be his again.

Chris was just biding his time for your reunion, deciding to give you a year before he made his move.

Now he felt every emotion, and he knew that you must still love him too.

You just needed to realize that your life would be even better with him back in it.

The year apart would be just punishment for what he’d done to you, and when you came back together, it would be better than before.

Everyone speculated on his bachelorhood, wondering if he would settle down, speculating and gossiping about who he was with, but he just played coy and kept quiet.

No one would know that he was yours and yours alone, and that you were still his.

You just didn’t know it.

But you weren’t going along with the plan that you didn’t know about.

About seven months into his self-imposed purgatory, a complication started popping up on Chris’s feed.

Kevin.

And a couple of months after that, a post of a proposal, in a restaurant.

The asshole probably didn’t even ask or involve your folks. Chris was in a rage for a week.

He almost started drinking again, but as he got ready to drive to the liquor store, Kevin’s face flashed on his screen doing a report on the election.

Instead of making him even more angry, he smiled, elated at the thought that came to him.

Chris had a new plan, and it was going to be even better than before.

-----

The last three months had been a whirlwind, and you never thought it would turn out this way.

You were planning your wedding with your mother, discussing the seating at the reception, and you deciding where Chris Evans and his date would sit.

What a time to be alive.

Your mother only let it slip a couple of times that you should be marrying Chris, but for the most part, she kept it cute.

You explained to her that everything was squashed between you and Chris, and that he and Kevin had a great relationship, were friends, even.

They’d bonded over politics when Kevin interviewed him, and became buds before Chris even realized that you and he were together.

Kevin knew, but he wasn’t the jealous type, and he didn’t want to make things awkward. Surprisingly, Kevin insisted that he be at the wedding.

You thought about it and decided it would be the ultimate closure for Chris to watch you marry someone else.

You were pleasantly surprised at Chris. He was handling this very well. He never tried to contact you, and according to Kevin, never even mentioned you. That was growth.

Maybe you too could be friends.

You felt good about it. So much so that you unblocked him and started a dialogue.

-----

Hi.

Chris saw your number come across his apple watch and he practically did a dance. It was 9:24 pm. He picked up his phone and stared at the word, forcing himself to wait and not respond. He went to work out.

47 minutes later, he responded.

Hello?

This time, he sat and waited for your response, which came 7 minutes later.

I just wanted to say, I appreciate the way you're handling this.

Chris bit his lip, imagining you sitting there, thinking of what to say and staring down at your phone.

I’m sorry, I don't know who this is. You may have reached a wrong number?

He grinned at the play.

-----

Your heart dropped. Did he no longer have your contact?

Why would he do that?

You don’t know why you felt some kinda way; you’d blocked him.

Maybe he had changed his number and this was no longer his. Your heart was beating fast when you texted back.

Is this Chris? This is Y/N. I was just texting about Kevin Watts.

You anxiously watched the thought bubbles on imessage.

----

Even though you’d texted back almost immediately, Chris kept you hanging for just a couple of minutes. His dick was hard at the thought of communicating with you.

Fuck, you were such an aphrodesiac.

Oh shit! Y/N I’m sorry. I got a new phone.. You know how it is…

He knew you wouldn’t believe that. That’s why he said it.

You just stared at the phone. That was bullshit. You can easily port your contacts into a new phone. You just never believed that Chris would really move on. And you didn’t know why.

You had.

You took a deep breath and continued.

Lol, No worries! Just wanna say thank you for being cool with my Boo. I’m gonna turn in now. Check you later.

You tried to keep it light.

Chris ignored the ‘my Boo’ comment and focused on the thought of you in bed.

You usually slept in a tank top or t-shirt and panties, and the top would invariably come off because you got hot.

And then things would invariably get hotter if he was in bed with you….

Cool! Sweet dreams. Check you later. 😉

Chris made sure to exit your message thread and come back so that you wouldn’t see the thought bubbles that he saw when you kept staring at the text.

You were lost in the times that Chris always used to say that to you, and when he whispered “Sweet Dreams” in your ear when he was far away, you always had wet dreams about him.

And that wink.

How could a fucking yellow emoji turn you the fuck on?

You reached for your bullet vibrator as you continued to stare at the interaction.

Chis had already started stroking himself when you told him you were going to bed.

Knowing that you were thinking exactly what he wanted you to got him close, and he didn’t even have to pull up your old videos to get off.

Not tonight.

-----

Over the next few weeks. you’d texted a few times, Chris ‘made amends’ and you accepted his apology.

Then, you started texting more regularly, mainly joking around about sports, your Celtics/Rockets rivalry ever raging.

From your perspective, Chris was always appropriate and respected your relationship with Kevin. You were glad because you’d missed your friendship with him.

You felt giddy that your life was working out so well, and you traveled to your weekend getaway in the mountains for your bridal shower with a light heart.

Chris attended Kevin’s bachelor festivities with only a week to go until the wedding.

——

From Chris’s perspective, things were working out better than he’d hoped.

Scoring an invite to the wedding was more than he’d imagined, and Kevin inviting him out to his Bachelor party was just icing on the cake.

Maybe he could make Kevin slip up enough so that you would dump him before the wedding. Chris was hopeful.

If not, Plan B was the nuclear option.

-------

Kevin was following the stripper’s ass like a puppy. He was lit on booze and pills (that Chris provided) and his guard was down.

Kevin considered Chris a friend.

Chris just wanted to keep Kevin close because he was the enemy.

They were talking about you.

“She’s so fucking innocent. A sweeter angel there never was. I’ll have to teach her how to fuck.”

Chris almost choked on his water.

“I'm sorry. What now?”

Kevin just barreled on, ignoring the question.

“That's how I know I need to wife her.” He was talking to Chris, but still staring at the stripper.

“She would never chase the D. Hell, she won’t even touch mine. You know, her being celibate and all.”

Chris raised his eyebrow and smiled, which Kevin never noticed. Chris shook his head at your antics. His little beautiful love.

“That’s why I was never pressed that you are her ex. I mean, I’m impressed you were with her as long as you were.”

Chris just smiled and nodded, curious as to where this was leading.

“A man like you don’t have to put up with that. You must have punani lined up for days, bro.”

Chris’s heart lept. This dullard did not have access to your pussy. HIS pussy. Never has.

Chris could fuck a lot of people a million ways from Sunday with one text. Except for you. And you were all that mattered.

“I don’t know about all that.” Chris put on his best, ‘aw shucks’ act.

Chris was over the moon. You were still his. In every way.

Kevin kept tipping the stripper and was trying to call her over. He asked her about a private lap dance. Chris’s eyes lit up. This asshole was making it too easy.

The stripper nodded and went back to finish up her set. Chris walked over to the bar.

“Aye!” Chris summoned tha bartender over.

“What can I get you, Sir.”

“I don’t need a drink. I wanna take care of my friend over there. He’s gonna have a lap dance with Star. It’s his bachelor party. I need it to be extra special.”

Chris started peeling off hundreds so the barkeep could see.

“And I need him to have some keepsakes, so he’ll remember it always.”

More hundreds came off. The bartender’s eyes got bigger and bigger. “That’s no problem.”

Chris flashed his famous smile.

“Great, let me tell you where to send them. Wanna make them a wedding present.” He wrote down an address on a napkin.

He was now on Plan C. And it was perfect.

------

A week later and the rehearsal at the church was more fun than you thought it would be. You weren’t allowed to participate, just watch, as the result of an old wives tale.

The church secretary found you in the pews. She handed you a manila envelope.

“This was mailed here yesterday, probably an invoice of something for the wedding, I put it aside for you, sweetie.”

You smiled back at her and tucked it into your purse, not wanting to distract yourself with more wedding bills.

Later, when you and Kevin were in the back of the car to the restaurant for the Rehearsal Dinner, you pulled it out and opened it. You couldn’t believe your eyes.

“What the ENTIRE FUCK KEVIN!”

You threw the pictures of him fucking a stripper in his face, startling him out of staring at his phone.

He picked one up, his mouth dropped open and started talking.

“Look, Baby, Baby! I can explain!...”

“DO NOT FUCKING LIE TO ME KEVIN! WE HAVE OVER 300 PEOPLE HERE FOR OUR WEDDING TOMORROW MORNING.”

Kevin was on his knees in the back of the suburban.

“Listen to me.. Listen. I’m a man. I have needs…”

“Kevin, I swear to god….”

“Okay, okay… I admit it…”

You listened to him and your heart went silent. You couldn’t even absorb what he said.

When you pulled up to the restaurant, you straightened your dress and looked at him coolly.

“I am NOT going to deal with this tonight. Tonight was supposed to be a fun celebration of our wedding. I will decide later if it's still going to happen.”

Kevin was terrified.

“Right now, you and I will go into this place, greet our friends arm in arm and pretend that you are not a fucking narcissitic asshole who just ripped my heart to shreds. Got it?”

“Yes, but I-”

“Do NOT speak to me unless I speak to you first. Or it's automatically off.”

Kevin just nodded and cleared his throat.

You raised your chin and said, “Let’s go.”

-----

Two hours later, dinner was over, and you were lit on your way to TURNT.

Chris observed you, from the moment you entered holding hands with Kevin to the second you dropped his hand in disgust, to the way you held yourself away from him at dinner, but then put on a sweet face when everyone spoke, to Kevin, who was an absolute mess.

He figured you got the pictures. He suppressed the glee that was coursing through him.

But he couldn’t figure out why you were still going on with the charade.

Chris didn’t make a beeline for you like he wanted to, he just let the natural flow of the party lead you to him. He was talking to your cousin when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around.

“Hey you.”

You cocked your head at him in that way and looked up at him, your smile brightening your face. Damn, he had to plant his feet. You smiling at him like that made him feel faint.

You both heard your cousin say something, but you didn’t pay attention, caught up in your own orbit.

“Hey.”

Chris crossed his arms, and you swore that he was recalling the time when you told him your forearms made you horny. Fuck. Chris made you wet and you were fresh out of fucks tonight.

“So, I can’t have a hug?”

Chris shook his head at your line and opened his arms to embrace you, keeping a respectable pressure and distance until you hugged him tight and pressed close.

He couldn’t help but pick you up, but he put you down immediately, cleared his throat and backed up, looking uncomfortable.

That wouldn’t do. You wanted more of his scent, his warmth, his HIM. You pouted unconsciously in your buzzed state.

Chris’s cock stirred. That fucking mouth had haunted his dreams for almost a year. He was pleased that you were flirting, but he had to work the plan. Couldn’t go too fast.

“You look… great. I can’t wait to see you tomorrow in your wedding dress. You will be a beautiful bride.”

Chris broke his voice in just the right place to convey a wistfulness, making you think that he thought he lost you.

You felt bad. Chris was so sweet. You thought about him and you thought about Kevin.

What was the difference between what Chris did and what Kevin did?

And who did you have more chemistry with? Chris.

Why were you even marrying Kevin?

You looked over at him looking at you and Chris like a lost dog.

You had no idea why you were marrying him.

“You look… Like Chris fucking Evans.” You two laughed.

“I bet you’re fighting them off with a stick.” You sideyed him.

Chris reveled in your interest in his sex life.

“Well, you know. After rehab, I’ve laid off the... physical part of my life. It only brought chaos, you know. I’m trying to be more… zen. Haven’t really had… that for the better part of a year.”

He watched your eyes get big.

“Word?” You smirked. “So you…”

Chris held up his hand. The one you knew he jacked off with. You grabbed it and started drawing on his palm. Chis pulled it back and cleared his throat again.

You pouted again. Him being hard to get made you wet.

And Chris knew that.

“So… you ready to marry the love of your life?”

Chris’s sea blues looked you deep into your cocoa browns. You were transported back in time.

“Yes.”

Then you snapped out of it.

“I mean… the church is set up, the dress is bought, everyone’s here. I guess so.”

Chris laughed as if you were telling a joke.

“I miss your sense of humor.”

You all made small talk and you caught up a little before you asked what you wanted to know.

“So what are you up to tonight?”

Chris looked at his watch.

“I’m actually about to go to my condo an turn in. I get up early to work out.” He felt your eyes sweep up and down his body, and he flexed even though he was fully dressed. It was true. Working out was a regimen. He wanted you drooling for him.

“It’s the Marvel condo in Brooklyn?”

You nodded, remembering good times.

“So you have a car picking you up?” Your mind was whirring.

“I actually have a rental.”

You gulped your drink down, not daring to look in his eyes. Now, not only was your pussy wet, your nipples were hard as hell.

“It’s in the parking garage down the block.”

“Well, I need to clear my head. I’ll walk you there, and you can drop me back?”

Chris looked down at your cute face, and then around the room, spotted Kevin and gave him a nod.

“You sure that’s a good idea?”

You looked at Kevin, too. You wanted to stick your tongue out, but you just took Chris by the arm and headed toward the door.

“I’m a big girl. Nobody owns me.”

You looked up into Chris’s eyes and instantly regretted that statement. You played it off and pulled him through the door.

You didn’t talk at all the entire way, both of your heads deep in the clouds of you and him. The chemistry was crackling the air between you.

You held on to his arm, and he let you, reveling in your touch.

When you reached the parking garage, Chris pressed the button with his knuckle and you got in, headed for the top deck.

You just stared at each other, both thinking the same thing. Chris chuckled.

“You’re dangerous, night before your wedding, you probably have cold feet, I’m here. Maybe you want to be sure that you’re sure…”

You cocked your head. “Who said I wanted to fuck you, Chris Evans?”

Chris cocked his head too, mirroring you. “Who said ‘fuck?’ I was thinking you wanted to talk.”

He smirked and you scowled as the door opened.

Chris left you in the elevator stewing as he walked over to the black Tesla he’d rented. There was no other car on the deck.

You scoffed, and followed him out.

He was about to walk around to the driver's side door when you grabbed his arm before he made it. He stopped directly in front of the car.

“Do you mean to tell me that you don’t want me?” You were hot, in more ways than one.

Chris leaned back against the hood.

“That’s not what we’re talking about, y/n. You’re getting married tomorrow. To someone else.”

You smiled and reached up, fingers grazing his neck and playing with the hair at his nape. You ran your fingers through his beard. Kevin’s couldn’t compare.

“That’s tomorrow. Tonight I’m single as fuck.”

You stood on your tip toes and brushed your lips against his, reveling in the moan that came from his throat.

Chris fought to control his urge and continued with his act. His fingers tightened around your waist and you thought this was it. He turned you around in front of the car and then let you go, stepping back to pace back and forth.

“What? What is this? You’ve had almost a year. Kevin’s my friend. What do you want from me?”

He advanced on you, and you had to remember to breathe. He knew what you wanted.

“You. I want you, Chris.”

Chris attacked your lips with his own. He took two seconds to savor them before he ravaged your mouth with his tongue. You moaned and he broke from your mouth to re-discover your face, your neck, your cleavage. He had to control himself not to rip the bodice of your blush pink chiffon dress.

He had a raging hard on, which you were feeling up, remembering how you always struggled to take him. You wanted him to hurt you with it now.

“Give me this Chris… please…”

You were reaching into his pants, thumb caressing his wet, thick tip. He was leaking for you.

“Remember when you told me that I would meet you in a parking lot, and let you fuck me over the hood of your rental car? Even if I was with someone else?”

You pulled your hand out and started sucking your thumb, closing your eyes at the taste of Chris after so long. You pulled it out with a pop.

“You were so right.”

Chris practically growled, grabbed your arm and spun you, pushing your back until your chest hit the hood of the Model X. He leaned over you, pushing his covered crotch into the back of your dress, you moaned, wanting more. His mouth was at your ear.

“Oh, so you want to be my cock whore on the eve of your wedding to someone else.” You moaned because it was true.

“It’s been so long, Chris…”

He reached down in between you and flipped the flouncy skirt of your dress up, exposing you to the wind of New York City. He looked at it for a minute, your ass always his favorite.

He caressed it with both hands, pressing into you with his thumbs.

“So you want me to feel you up?” He pulled his hand back and sucked one of them, practically jumping for joy when he tasted you.

“You want me to pull your panties to the side….” and he did so, seeing your slick shine in the moonlight, and playing in it for a minute, tracing your lips and making you quiver around nothing.

The way you were moaning his name was everything right now.

Your face was pressed against the cool metal of the car, and it was the only thing tying you to the earth.

“Oh yes, Chris…. Please please yesss...fuck me… damn...stretch me out…”

Chris’s dick pulsed and he needed you around him. He moved close again and unzipped his pants, the sound making your knees weak.

He teased your cunt with his tip, collecting your arousal and smearing it not only around your pussy, but around your asshole.

“I know you’ve fucked him, but have you let him have your ass? Am I still the only one…?”

Chris was still playing the game.

“No, no, no… I haven’t let him… I haven’t given him anything. I’ve been celibate, too. It’s still yours Chris. All of me is still yours.”

Chris almost came just hearing you say it out loud. He already knew, but hearing you say it was the shit.

He pushed into you with a grunt, and it was difficult. He didn’t make it. Your cunt squeezed him out.

“Ffffuck, y/n. You’re practically closed down. Is it true?”

He started rocking his tip into your pussy slowly, both regretting and reveling in the fact that he didn’t stretch you out with his fingers beforehand. Then he decided that he wanted you to feel this fully.

You couldn’t answer, only responding with moans has he painfully breached you. You welcomed it, though.

“Ah, ah, ah, ah… yes Chris. Only you.. Since you and I….” Talking about it and the fact that you were taking him again made you wetter, and eased Chris’s way, although your pussy was already stinging with his girth. Your eyes rolled back in your head.

You would never get over this and were so grateful for the feeling again.

Chris watched you and had to grit his teeth to hold back from the reality that he was taking you again.

He leaned over you, hot breath huffing in your ear, puffing and groaning as he fucked you slowly. He was trying to feel every sensation. He wanted you to know that each and every millimeter of your glorious wet, tight pussy was his.

‘Ohhhh. Fuck Chris… YESSSS!” Your voice echoed off the concrete walls, and Chris wanted you louder.

“This what you wanted? You wanted your thick cock inside you again. Hunh? You wanted me to stretch your walls and fuck you raw, hunh?” He started speeding up in time with your moans.

“Such a fucking filthy cockslut for me, baby.” Chris grabbed your neck from the back. “Why didn’t you let Kevin hit, hunh?”

You didn’t answer, you just moaned and Chris smacked your ass, hard.

“Chris! Fuck!”

You screamed. You missed his ruthlessness when you fucked, you missed him making sure that you knew that he knew that you knew. You belonged to him.

“Please!”

“I know why.”

Chris stopped fucking you and pressed down harder on your back, reaching around to find your clit. He swirled around it once, then started to press down slowly.

“Because you would never beg him for that subpar dick that he has. You’re MY whore. You belong to me.”

He pressed down roughly, and you detonated around his dick. He didn’t have to move. Chris pulled out, leaving you cold and bereft.

You turned around and leaned up against the hood, panting and still desperate for him. He stood there in front of you, dick sticking out of his pants, which were ruined, and still rock hard and ready. He was in a quiet rage.

“Why did you leave me?”

You searched his face. He sounded like he was about to cry. You couldn’t quite see his entire face, but his eyes shone, bright with liquid. You went toward him.

“You hurt me Chris. I couldn’t stay. But let me take care of you now.”

You got on your knees in front of him, the hard concrete of the parking structure digging into your knees.

Again, you welcomed the physical pain, distracting you from what you were doing to Kevin, to Chris, and to yourself.

Chris felt like he could fly. You on your knees for him again was a dream.

He took his cock in his hand, stroking it, while moving close to you. In no time, the back of your head was in his palm, and you opened wide to accept him, hand coming up to stroke what you couldn’t fit.

“Ah, ah. Let me.”

You looked up at him to see an evil grin shine down on you.

Chris looked down on an angel trying to swallow him whole. He brushed the tears away from your eyes as you struggled to breathe. You were perfection.

Moaning around him, you relaxed your mouth and throat and let him use you. It was difficult, because you were out of practice, but you welcomed the letting go of all thought.

You dripped down your thighs as Chris pumped into you, ready to accept what he had to give.

After a few minutes, he stopped, and pulled out, grabbing you up to your feet.

Then he bent down and grabbed you by the back of your thighs and you wrapped your legs around his waist, kissing him and trying to grind down on his still-erect cock as he backed you to the car.

Your ass hit the hood, and Chris reached between you to first tear your panties off. He put them in his pocket as he swiped his dick up and down your dripping wet folds.

He looked back up to watch your face as he pushed inside you, now, an easier path to nirvana.

He pulsed as he watched the pleasure take over your face, with your mouth slack and your eyes glassed over. This was his main purpose in life and he almost lost it.

He brought his hand up to bring you closer, breathed into your mouth as he squeezed your throat. You were high instantly, and clamped down on his cock as your body was wracked with waves of pleasure.

Chris let your body descend back down to the car as he pumped his seed into you, his mind fantasizing that he was impregnating you.

He shook your body as the last ropes of cum spurted out of him. He ran his hand down your body as he pulled out, zipping up his pants as you came back to your senses on the hood of the car.

You stared at the stars as you realized what you had done. You sat up and adjusted your dress, gingerly climbing back down to the ground.

Chris kissed you on the forehead, and this time you let him get into the driver’s seat. You got in the passenger side and Chris reached into the glovebox and handed you some wet wipes.

“Fix your face. And your knees.”

He nodded down to your legs, which were dirty from the parking structure floor. He watched you wipe your knees off, but stopped you as you went higher.

“No. I want you to feel me all night long.”

You wanted to be a brat, but you didn’t feel like sass right about now. You felt kinda terrible.

You got another wet wipe and fixed your makeup as best you could as Chris drove you back to the restaurant.

“Chris, I…”

“I know. None of that meant that we’re back together. That was for some kind of something, I dunno, something Kevin might have done?”

You looked down, ashamed. Chris lifted your chin up with his hand.

“I want you to come to me on your own. You’ve gotten that out of your system, and I’m glad to be of service.” You looked up into his eyes and at his wry smile.

“But remember, you still have a choice. I’m here if you choose me.”

He leaned over and gave you a tender kiss in front of the restaurant.

You smiled at him and climbed out of the car, watching as he drove off.

Chris’s heart was beating out of his chest as he watched you turn and go back inside. He fought the urge to turn around. It was better this way.

----

You walked in the restaurant, and pulled Kevin over to the side of the restaurant in dark alcove.

“Listen. Do you still want to marry me?”

He looked you up and down, taking in your state, from the faint marks on your neck to your scuffed knees. He knew exactly what was up.

You raised an eyebrow at him.

-----

Three hours later, a sleepy Chris answered the doorbell in Brooklyn.

He smiled at you, in the Captain America t-shirt and jeans that you’d stolen from him after a photoshoot, looking like his favorite Disney princess. You.

You took him in, clad in grey sweatpants that hung off his magnificently cut body. He blinked at you sleepily.

“The wedding is off. Chris, I….”

He reached out and grabbed you, pulling you in the brownstone and shutting the door behind you. He had you pinned up against the wall as you tried to speak.

“Shut up and let me taste you.”

You grinned and wrapped your legs around his waist as he carried you upstairs.

---

The next morning, Chris was on the phone with Scott.

“Yes, tell the workers at the warehouse to dump all the products….I don’t care, the river, the landfill…. Y/N can’t find out that I bought up all her stock…. We’re going to be married..... I know what the fuck I’m doing Scott. We leave for Aruba this afternoon. Listen, I’ll call you later.”

Chris hung up and turned to find you in the doorway, frowning and rubbing your eyes.

“We’re going to Aruba?”

You smiled and yawned, sleepily stretching. That was all that you’d heard of the conversation.

Chris gave you his stunner smile.

“Yes. It was going to be a surprise.”

He reached down and swung you up in his arms, carrying you into the bathroom bridal style.

“Now let’s get in the shower. You’ve been very naughty, gotta get you clean for your wedding day.”

You giggled as you relaxed in Chris’s arms. “It takes two to be naughty, Chris.”

He winked at you as he turned on the shower. “Don’t I know it.”

-----

I know it’s different. Let me know if you like it. Like, comment, reblog!

Tags:

@olyvoyl @summerofsnowflakes @sillyteecup @riiyy @honeysucklechocolatedrippin @theselilwonders @lonelydance @chattykathysquietsister @anh1020 @nissameta1782 @afriendlyblackhottie @betterkeepmewetterthanabayou @jbrizzywrites @stilltoyou @donutloverxo @my-soulmate-is-mycroft @kiwisa @food8me @aiikaa @marvelfansworld @london-grunge @pheebsyells @thesecretlifeofdaydreams-bl-blog @douxtille @ximaginexx @fofisstilinski @bertieandberries @ladystrawberry @bit-of-a-timelord @chesca-791 @calimoi @fangirlfree @bbaengtan @karolsboo @aliceforbes @insertpithyusername @sickknik @photmath @whorekneebrain @anacrcarvalho @iconicshit @spicybibimbap @chaoticsteverogers@txtsfromyourex @sadthotsonlylove @ikatieebabyy@nerdymugsharkempath @maroonsunrise83

#Chris Evans #chris evans x female reader #chris evans x black reader #soft dark! chris evans #chris evans smut #chris evans imagine #chris evans fan fiction #Chris Evans angst #chris evans fanfiction #chris evans reader insert #chris evans x you #chris evans x reader #Chris Evans 40th #chris evans birthday celebration 2021

769 notes · View notes