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quintessencewrites · 1 year

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Vanish pt. 2

ShuRiri x Wakandan! fem! reader

“Aneka, you will lead this mission.

General,” the word comes off her tongue like a tease, knowing she’s driving a spear through Okoye’s heart. “Fall back.”

Warnings: ANGST! Explicit language, some violence, toxic!Shuri, mentions of blood, mentions of death.

Word Count: 4.3k+

Tags: @yvxmpire @zestgodtj @k3nn3dyxo @mlmilani @letitias-fav @doms-fav @sweetalittleselfish-honey @g4yforu @widowmakker @becauseimswagman1 @zayswriting @inmyheadimobsessed @laurensmabel1 @malltake12 @msudaku @faeriah-thv @fetchyourlife @mbakuetshurisprincess @sinsikoxo @honey-teaaaaaaaa @rxcently @pinkcorns @takeyaki @yamsthoughts @thethickerside @0hshoot1tsl4ni @shurisbathwater @shurismainbxtch @luvrzhearts @sadfreakx @shuri-my-love @justariellove @heartsforjojo @blackgirlfariy @tuesdaylovesu @chocoflagcutii @taiiunknown @zhanylai @ziayamikaelson @verachii @taiiunknown @beautybyfire @soearthquakequeen @remwritess @pinkwright @jenlouvre @letitiasleftfoot @christinabae

A/N: This is too good, yall! I wasn't originally gonna do a part 2, but then I got to writing and by the time I finished part one, the ideas for a sequel got to flowing. Translations are in the text. As always, ENJOY <3

Vanish Pt. 1 here

A moment of silence passed.

Riri stood frozen in place, shocked at her own words, knowing she didn’t mean them.

Shuri sobbed on her knees, silently pleading for Bast to not take another person out of her life.

Hell, even Griot was quiet, not announcing your departure as he was programmed to do.

“What are you waiting for?” Shuri stood and approached Riri so quickly, the smaller girl flinched. “Why are you standing here? Go after her!”

“Shuri, I-”

“Go get her!” The Queen growled, voice cracking as she begged.

Riri’s mouth opened and closed, her brain working double time for anything to say. “She-I didn’t-”

Her responses weren’t quick enough to extinguish Shuri’s anger. The Black Panther lifted Riri’s entire workstation in one hand and threw the table and all its contents.

Iron Heart ducked, praying the impact of the desk wouldn’t take her head off. It didn't; it hadn’t even hit her, instead crashing to the wall mere inches away from her body.

“Shuri, what the fu-”

But Shuri was already on her way out of the lab, ignoring Riri and shouting orders, “Griot!”

“Yes, My Queen?”

“Do I have any visuals on y/n’s location?”

“No, My Queen. Queen Y/n has abandoned her kimoyo bracelet here in the lab.”

“What about her earrings?”

“Left behind in your bedroom, Queen Shuri.”

“FUCK,” the explicit echoed in the lab, causing Riri to retreat into herself.

“Griot, summon Nakia, Okoye, Ayo, and Aneka. I need all hands for this mission. Tell them to meet me in the throne room.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Wait,” Riri called out, grimacing at how small her voice suddenly sounded. “What can I do?”

The doors to the lab’s entrance parted, letting Shuri leave without so much as opening her mouth to address Riri. The only sound then was that of dainty metal coming in contact with the steel floors.

Riri approached the door slowly to investigate what Shuri had left behind.

It was her wedding band.

“What is this about, My Queen?” Okoye asked, being the first to enter the throne room. Ayo and Aneka followed closely behind, their spears drawn at an unknown attacker.

Nakia was absent.

Shuri’s eyes were still puddled with tears and the anger radiating from her produced a heat the other girls could feel as soon as they approached.

Aneka looked down at Shuri’s hand, eyes searching for the wedding ring that never left it. Of course, it wasn’t there.

“Y/n is gone. We need to bring her back.”

“Gone?” Okoye mimicked. “Gone where? Who has taken her? What are we up against?”

“Sh-she left. She left us. Left behind her beads, even the earrings and her-”

“Her wedding band…” Aneka finished. “But, where is yours?”

Shuri looked down at her bare finger, unable to speak.

“My Queen,” Okoye started gently. “With all due respect, you are asking me to convene my army and explain to them our threat… Are your relationship issues?”

The Queen rose from her throne, so slowly, it gave Okoye ample time to retract her words; her steps shaking the mostly empty room.

“I am asking you to convene your army, General,” the words came out hot, burning Okoye to the core, even causing the couple standing behind her to wince.

“To ensure the safety and safe return of your Queen.”

“Shuri, she took her band off,” Okoye was a brave soul, not backing down.

“She is still your Queen! Regardless of the ring she wears. Mine is off, does that not make me your Queen, Okoye?”

“It’s not the same, Princess, and you know-”

“Queen.” Shuri’s thin body is shaking with the rage that fills it. She looks away from Okoye, even past Ayo to her friend Aneka.

“Aneka, you will lead this mission. General,” the word comes off her tongue like a tease, knowing she’s driving a spear through Okoye’s heart. “Fall back.”

The General’s eyes are wide but she nods at the command. Aneka steps forward, poised tall, and in stance. “Yes, My Queen.”

She offers a small smile to the royal, a sad, knowing one, but Shuri doesn’t return it. “Find y/n. I don’t care what it takes; resources, money, you have it all. Ensure she is safe. Br-” her voice finally breaks and the tears descend her cheeks. “Bring her home to me.”

“My Queen,” Ayo offers slowly. “What-what if she does not wish to return?”

Shuri’s chest retracts, all the air leaving her body. She hadn’t considered that; you not wanting to come home, not to Riri, nor even to her.

“I said bring her home.”

The command came out in a whisper, the Queen no longer being able to talk at a volume above that.

The Wakandan warriors brought their arms across their chest and back down, saluting their Queen before leaving the room. Only Aneka lingered.

When it was just the two of them, she rushed to Shuri, pulling her into a hug she clearly needed. “What happened?”

Shuri’s sobs swept her feet from under her and she fell to the floor, still arm-in-arm with her friend.

“She left us, Aneka. Sh-she left me.”

“Why?”

Shame rushed through the royal’s veins. “We-” she paused a beat, deciding herself unable to speak on Riri’s behalf. “I,” she corrected. “I haven’t been very supportive lately. I broke many promises. I let my work in the lab and with Riri take precedence and she felt forgotten… I even forgot her birthday…”

Aneka gasped “My Queen…”

Shuri nodded. “I’d been distracted. I let that get in the way, and now she’s gone.”

Aneka took Shuri’s left, ringless hand in her own. “That explains why she left her ring behind, but my Shuri, where is yours?”

A sinful scoff left Shuri’s lips “Probably still in the lab with Ri-Miss Williams, where I left it.”

“Miss Williams? Shuri, my dear friend, what is going on?”

Shuri is silent.

Aneka sighs “So when we bring y/n home, My Queen, will she be returning to you and Miss Williams?”

“No,” Shuri stands, tapping her necklace twice and allowing the Black Panther mask to swallow her face. “Just me.”

It’s been weeks.

Three weeks since the search for you began.

Shuri stormed into the lab, mask retracting as she entered.

“Queen Shuri has arrived.”

Riri’s head shot up from her new workstation; she hadn’t seen Shuri in days. She rarely came home anymore, spending days and nights looking for you and coming up short each time.

“Griot!” the agitated queen bellowed.

“Yes, My Queen?”

“Have we any updates via satellite? Has y/n been seen anywhere?”

“Unfortunately not, My Queen.”

Shuri’s shoulders slumped, weighing heavy with another defeat. “What about Nakia?”

“I’m afraid not, My Queen.”

“Bast!” Shuri allowed herself a second to rest her head in her hands before starting to mask up again.

“Wait!” Riri called out, approaching the Queen. “Wait, Shuri, let me help. Please, I want to find her too; I wanna know she's safe just as bad as you do.”

The Black Panther’s posture stiffened, though she didn’t speak. Riri tried again “Y-You don’t have Nakia. You need an extra pair of hands. I can help.”

Shuri laughed, an evil-sounding chuckle coming from her. “I do not need your help.” She approached Riri. “I would not even be searching for her, had you been able to hold your stupid tongue, hm?”

Riri cringed at the words Shuri spoke but didn’t shy away. “I want to help. She’s just as much my wife as she is yours, and I miss her.”

Shuri shook her head, but never let her eyes leave Riri’s face. “She is not. She will not be. When she comes home, she will be coming home to me. Damned to you.”

That rocked Riri to her core. “Shuri, come on, you don’t mean that.”

“I mean it. I mean it in the same way you meant it when you called her the forgotten wife.”

The smaller girl grimaced when her words were thrown back at her. She had been thinking over those words for weeks; losing sleep over how she spoke to you.

Before she could utter another word, Shuri left, leaving Riri where she stood, but not before the Queen noticed something that tugged at her stoned heart, only slightly.

Riri was still wearing her wedding ring.

Two weeks since Nakia returned.

“Queen Shuri, you are being summoned to the throne room.”

Shuri lifted her head, not realizing she’d dozed off in the Talon Fighter while on patrol. “Summoned? By who?” The girl asked, rubbing sleep from her eyes.

“Nakia of The River Tribe,” Griot responded.

“Nakia? She is in the throne room? At the palace?”

“Yes, My Queen.”

“Griot, return me at once.”

“Yes, My Queen.”

Moments later, Shuri crashed through the doors to the sacred room. Nakia stood on the furthest side of the room, glancing sadly out the windows. The sight of her fueled the Queen’s anger. “Where the hell have you been?!”

The former spy didn’t even attempt a fake smile. “Hello to you too, sister,” she stated smoothly, turning to face the vexed royal.

“Where is she, Nakia?”

“She is safe. That is all you need to know; it is all that she requested I share with you.”

Shuri approached her brother’s lover with claws drawn. “Nakia, Bast help you, where is she?”

“Oy? Am I to tell you? Y/n came to me, crying, your majesty. She told me her wives wanted her no longer. Rejection from one partner hurts, can you imagine that from two partners?”

The Queen couldn’t speak; The warrior continued.

“I watched, as the two of you fell out of love with her. Prioritized each other over her. You didn’t even attend the school’s opening. We’d worked on that for years, Shuri. And her birthday?” she scoffed. “You were supposed to be better than that.”

Nakia closed the gap between her and Shuri, grabbing her claw-clad hands. “You must have forgotten. You’ve forgotten who you spent your childhood with. Who grew up alongside you,” she tapped Shuri’s temple as if to bring the memories to the forefront. “You seem to have trouble recalling who was there for you when Baba died. When T’Challa died. All before Miss Riri even came into the picture.”

Shuri’s head fell, shame a feeling she was all too familiar with these days. “I had forgotten. I am trying to fix it,” she whispered, recollections of the two of you flooding her. “But I can not fix it if I do not know where she is.”

Her eyes climbed to the smaller girl’s hopeful, begging, but when Nakia closed her lips tight and shook her head, Shuri’s anger reignited.

“Demethi wena (Damn you), Nakia!”

“Yehlisa umoya, sisi (Calm down, sister). Uzofika ekhaya xa sele elugile (She will come home when she is ready)-”

“Hayi, hayi (No, no)! Ndiyamdinga (I need her). Ndiyamdinga ekhaya ngoku (I need her home now)!”

“Uya kuba nethamsanqa ukuba angafika ekhaya (You will be lucky if she comes home at all)!”

Shuri spun, Nakia’s words recoiling against her. “Intoni (What)?”

When Nakia looks away, rather than speaking, Shuri marches toward her. “INTONI (WHAT)?!” she repeats.

She takes Nakia’s face in her hands, roughly. A line of scarlet flashes from Nakia’s cheek, where Shuri’s claw is digging, but neither girl moves. “Wena (You)-” the Queen croaks. “Wena undincedile ukumkanikazi wam ukuba andisindise (You have helped my queen escape me for good)?”

“Hayi, sisi (No, sister). Ndamncedisa wahmba ade alunge (I helped her leave until she is ready).”

Shuri extends her arm, throwing Nakia forcefully into the window. The thud of her sister’s body does nothing to calm her. Nakia is barely on her feet when Shuri speaks. “Hamba (Leave). Kwaye ungabuyi ade abuye umkam (And do not return until my wife does).”

The River Tribe Warrior is shocked. “Shuri, uthini (What are you saying)?”

The Queen’s lips curl around her next words. “ Elubhacweni (Exile).”

Nakia crumbles. “Sisi, ndiyacela (Sister, please). Likhaya lam eli (This is my home).”

“Was this your home when you missed my brother’s last days? His funeral? Was it your home when you hid my nephew from me for six years, the same way you hide my wife now?” Shuri questioned, switching tongues.

“Shuri, oko akufani (That is not the same)! It was my home when I saved you and your lover’s asses from Namor! When I risked my life, though I had a son to live for. It was my home when I laid there,” Nakia pointed to the now repaired spot on the throne room floor, the events of Queen Ramonda’s death no longer staining the place. “Resuscitating your wife! Trying to save umama (mama)!”

“Lishiye ibhotwe lam, Nakia (Leave my palace, Nakia).”

One week since Riri started her own search for you.

Shuri wasn’t speaking to her, ordering Okoye, Ayo, and Aneka to do the same. Riri’s communication was cut off, even Griot subjecting her to silence.

One night, she decided enough was enough. She hadn’t been able to sleep since you left and she was growing tired of being left in the dark.

If anyone needed to find you, it was Riri. She needed to be the one to locate you and retract her vile words. There wouldn’t be an apology great enough, but she sure would try.

So Iron Heart suited up and quietly left the palace. She didn’t bother removing her kimoyo beads, knowing Shuri was no longer keeping track of her. The realization stung, but it was well-deserved. She let her frustrations get to her and that Chicago attitude and pride presented themselves.

The words spilled from her big mouth before she had time to realize what she was saying. Riri was just as hurt as you were; feeling as though the love she and Shuri showed you were going unappreciated. Their time dedicated to the lab, their sleepless nights, and their repeat failures were just to keep you safe.

“C’mon baby, where’d you go?” Riri spoke lowly to no one, navigating the suit towards Haiti. It’d be a dumb place for you to hide; Shuri would have surely checked there already.

And of course, you weren’t there.

The following day, Riri searched the States. You had no reason to be in America, but that’s exactly why you’d seek refuge there. Again, her search came up short.

Today, Riri was ready to give up. She’d spent many days, many hours looking for you all alone. If Shuri and her team hadn’t found you yet, surely Riri wouldn’t all by her lonesome.

She sauntered through the village, sadness dragging in each of her steps. “Uxolo (Excuse us)!” children’s voices called as they ran across her path. Riri stopped short, avoiding running the tikes down. “Oh, um, sorry!” the girl spoke, understanding their simple word, yet still not knowing how to respond in their language.

One child, a young girl whose hair was adorned in barrettes, turned to give Riri a wave. When she skipped back to her group of friends, she spoke “Yiza, khawuleza (Come, hurry)! Utitshala Y/n ndiza kubuya namhlanje (Teacher Y/n is to return today).”

Riri understood not a single word from the girl’s sentence as they disappeared into your school. None except your name. So she followed.

“Uh, excuse me,” she called once she entered the building, searching desperately for an adult. “Uxolo (Excuse me)?”

“Hello, Your Majesty,” a tall gentleman spoke up, approaching the short royal.

Riri cringed, her royal title sounding foreign to her these days. “Mholweni (Hello), um, hi.”

“What can we do for you? We are very blessed to be acquainted with your presence, though we were not expecting you.”

“Yeah, um, I-” Riri stuttered, unable to form a sentence, the words scrambling around her mind too fast for her lips to keep up.

“My wife,” she finally choked out. “My wife, Y/n. Is she here?”

The older man’s eyes were saddened. “No, Your Majesty. She is not set to come back today.”

“Please,” Riri was close to tears as she begged. “Um, ndiyacela (please). I heard the children mention her name. I just-” The tears flowed. “I just want to know she’s safe.”

The man must’ve felt some pity for the lonely queen, crying in his hallway, pleading. A genuine chuckle released from his chest. “Your Xhosa is not very good.” His words shocked Riri and for the first time in weeks, she laughed a real, hearty laugh. “No, it’s not,” she sniffled.

“But you are trying.”

Her head bobs as she nods a confirmation to his words.

He sighs, grabbing Riri’s hands and pulling her out of reach of passing ears. “Your majesty, tonight the school is having an event. A banquet; to raise money for the Haiti institution. The Queen has promised her return for the event. She will be here then.”

More tears flow from the small girl’s pretty brown eyes. Her queen would be back, tonight.

Did Shuri know?

With a gentle squeeze, the fellow started to leave. “Wait,” Riri called. “Enkosi, mhlekazi (Thank you, sir). What is your name?”

“Emmanuel, Your Majesty.”

“Thank you, Emmanuel.”

Riri raced back to the palace on foot, too excited to wait for the Talon Fighter, though it would have been quicker. She sprinted into the throne room, hopeful that Shuri would be there.

She was, with Aneka. “Kufuneka sijonge iHaiti kwakhona (We need to check Haiti again). Ndiyazi Nakia umfihle apho (I know Nakia is hiding her there).”

“I found her!” Riri interrupts.

Aneka turns to the girl first, then back to her queen, who refuses to look up. “Aneka, sishiye (Leave us). Enkosi, mhlobo (Thank you, friend).”

With a nod and a salute, Aneka leaves the throne room, leaving the two queens who haven’t spoken in days.

“Shuri, baby, I found her.”

“Where is she?” the panther asks, still not making eye contact.

“She’ll be here tonight,” Riri takes slow, careful steps to Shuri, unable to gauge her emotions and not wanting to set her off. “The school’s having a fundraiser. She’ll be here.”

Shuri glances at her wife “How do you know this?”

“I went to the school.”

With a bite of her lip and a swift nod, Shuri dismisses Riri. “Thank you for the information. You may leave.”

“Leave? Shuri, what the hell do you mean leave?”

A deep, impatient sigh is brought forth by the Queen. “I know you know what leave means.”

“Nah, to hell with that, Shuri! I’m not leaving. I’m the one who gave you the intel. Imma be there with you. I’m a part of this mission now. I should have been from the start.”

Shuri steps closer to Riri, seemingly to intimidate her, though the girl doesn’t appear scared. “A mission that would have never come to pass had you not said what you did.”

Riri’s heart thumps hard in her chest. “And I’m trying to make up for it, Shuri. How am I supposed to apologize if you keep shutting me out?”

The question is rhetorical; Ri keeps talking. “You not entirely innocent in this either. You broke promises too. Ignored her just as much as I did. You,” she stabs a finger into Shuri’s armorless chest. “Forgot her birthday too, princess. Your shit stink too, Shuri. So forget that shit; y/n is my wife. That’s my girl and I been missing her heavy. So I’m coming tonight.”

A smirk sneaks its way across Shuri’s face. “There you go with that mouth again.”

“Yeah, here I go with my mouth again, a mouth I don’t know how to close and a mouth that don’t know how to hold its tongue. That’s why y’all was supposed to do it for me.”

Shuri shakes her head, frizzy curls swaying across her face. A bright smile, her first in weeks stretches her lips. “Alright, let’s bring our girl home.”

The night comes quickly and as present as you’re trying to appear at your function, anxiety is running through you. Being home brings forth a mix of emotions; excitement for the banquet, and familiarity at the faces you’ve missed. And worry that somehow word of the event that you swore your staff to secrecy over hadn’t remained confidential during your absence.

Nakia was at your side, acting as both a friend and a bodyguard. “You did not have to come,” you spoke to her. “I didn’t need protection. The queens; they will not hurt me. Shuri will be more upset at your presence than mine.”

The small scar on her cheek marked evidence of Shuri’s anger in the passing weeks. You’d apologized repeatedly to your dear friend, but she didn’t blame you. “Your wife has a temper. She always has. I’ll be fine, she just needs some time to calm down.”

Her eyes move towards the entrance of the school as the doors part and Aneka, along with Ayo and Okoye precede your wives. “Speaking of the queens…”

Hayi, akukho ndlela imbi (No, no fucking way). When you turn, the breath escapes you. Shuri and Riri. The Black Panther and Iron Heart. Their eyes locked intensely on you.

You look around at your staff, wondering which one had loose lips. “Nakia,” Shuri greeted when they approached. Nakia stays silent and Shuri continues. “I owe you an apology, for our disagreement those weeks ago. I am sorry, sisi.” To you, she switches tongues as she asks “Ikumkani wam (My queen), singathetha (can we talk)?” with an outstretched hand.

No, your heart screams, but your movements betray you. Placing your palm in hers, you allow Her Majesty to guide you outside, where the Royal Talon Fighter awaits, with Riri in tow.

None of you speak until the ship’s doors were encapsulated, providing all the privacy in the world. When they did, it was you to break the silence. A loud slap echoed in everyone’s ears, your hand coming in contact with Riri’s cheek. Breathing hard, you voiced “I’ve been waiting to do that for weeks. Sorry, Riri, I didn’t find a bitch to give your wishes of luck to.”

Shuri stood, slightly amused until her cheek was the next to be assaulted. “And you. You’re lucky I’m not skilled with any weapons for the way you returned my Nakia to me. Her face bloody, her ribs broken. What the hell is wrong with you?”

Though her face stung, Riri’s ears perked up. “Your Nakia?”

Shuri stared at you, her brain wondering the same.

“Put your petty jealousy to rest. It has been three weeks, do the two of you really think so little of me to find another lover in that short time, especially one who is so close to you, Shuri? We’ve known Nakia since we were kids.”

Shuri nods, clearing her head, and starts to open her mouth, but Riri beats her to it. She comes at you fast, throwing her arms around you so tightly, it steals your breaths. “I’m sorry, ma. I’m so fucking sorry.” The tears are already spilling down her cheeks. “I don’t know how I could have said those things to you.”

You unwrap her hold on you. “You said them because you meant them.”

Riri’s head shakes furiously. “I didn’t, y/n, my love. I swear I didn’t.”

Her eyes are swimming with sincerity and it breaks the cement that had formed around your heart. You grab her face. “You swear?”

She leans into your touch. “I will spend the rest of my life showing you I didn’t mean it, ma.”

You nod slowly. “You know I owe you more than just a slap, right? For speaking to me like I’m some bitch on the streets and not your wife of four years?”

A tiny smile crosses Riri’s features. “Let me suit up and you can take all the shots you want at me.”

“Uh, uh. You don’t get the suit.”

Your words bring a laugh from the small girl, one that passes onto you.

Shuri stands back, hands in her pocket, just watching. She’s silently wiping her own tears, but when you finally look upon her, she takes it as an in.

“Yiza apha, usana (Come here, baby).”

You obey, releasing Riri from your hold as you glide over to your queen. She pulls you in by your waist, holding your body tightly against hers. “Uyakhumbula xa ndivuma iimvakalelo zam ngawe (Do you remember when I confessed my feelings for you)?”

Your head bobs. “We were children; only about 12 years old.”

“Ewe, kukanikazi wam (Yes, my queen). And what did you tell me?”

A giggle escapes you as you recall. “Nditshate, ukuba uyandithanda (Marry me if you love me).”

Shuri shares your laughter. “Ewe, nkosazana (Yes, princess). Bendikuxelele ukuba ndizakwenza kamsinya kangangoko ndinako (I told you I would as soon as I could).”

“Kwaye wenze (And you did).”

“Nda (I did).”

The tears in Shuri’s eyes threaten to spill over. “I made that promise to you at 12 years old, and I kept it. However, for some reason, at our grown age, I made promises to you weeks ago that I did not keep.”

Your head drops just as the tears do, unable to look your wife in her face. Shuri’s having none of that though, gently grabbing your chin and pulling your gazes back into unison.

“Uxolo, sthandwa (I’m sorry, my love). Ndingu (I am). I’ve been slacking, but I won’t continue to. Please, come home. Ukukukhanya kwan (You are my light), and my world has been so dark these past few days. I can not bare it anymore.”

Her words crack any further hardening of your heart. “Ewe, sthandwa (Yes, my love). I’ll come home.”

Shuri buries her head in your neck, kissing and crying, “Enkosi,” repeating from her lips. Riri stands back, weeping harder at the display before her. You reach your hand out to her, “Yiza, ntombazana sisidenge.”

Riri stands still, eyebrows raised, brown, hopeful eyes piercing your own loving ones. “Translate?”

“Come here, silly girl.”

595 notes · View notes

shurisbathwater · 1 year

Text

𝖥𝖤𝖤𝖫 𝖬𝖤 𝖨𝖨𝖨. ✫

*last part*

Toxic!shuri x black fem! reader

❝ 𝖨 𝖻𝖾𝖺𝗍 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝖺𝗍 𝗒𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝗈𝗐𝗇 𝗀𝖺𝗆𝖾.❞

w a r n i n g s

None really, js alot of arguing and shuri being crazy lmao.

X t r a s

I decided to make it a good ending 😛 this is the last part so don't ask for more 🙄

T a g s

@ziayamikaelson @letitias-fav @honey-teaaaaaaaa @mxyx-rx444

-𝐘𝐎𝐔 tiptoed into the house slowly. It was pitch black so you had assumed Shuri went to bed and just gave up. It was about 4am in the morning anyway. Surprisingly, that experience with Riri was..the best you've ever felt in a while.

Even after, she took care of you instead of just putting her pants on and leaving like some people did. You switched the lights on to see Shuri sitting on the couch, manspread with a drink in her hand. You jumped at her. Maybe giving her the key to your apartment wasn't the best idea.

"You scared me! Damn."

"Where were you?" Her grills shone as she spoke. "Iut." You grumbled as you kicked your shoes off. "You think you funny? Is that what it is?" She chuckled lightly as she glanced at your neck, full of hickeys.You ignore her and try to walk past, but she gets up and stands in your way.

She towers over you and looks you in the eye. "I said..where were you?" she says, the smell of her whiskey hitting your nose. You look away and glance at something behind her.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you mama." She licked her lips as she said it. She grabs your chin to make you look up at her. You stare up at her, not saying a word.

"Answer the question."

You bat your lashes, no response present.She lets go of your chin and clenches her jaw. "I guess we're equal now." You shrug your shoulders casually.

"You know it didn't mean anything."

"Yet you saw her...a couple hours ago?"

"Stop dragging it." She scoffs.

"Oh please, fyck you."

"Somebody else clearly did." She mutters. You roll your eyes as you push past her, heading to your bedroom. You put your phone on the bed in the bedroom and head into your en suite bathroom.

ᘛ ᘚ

After showering, you expected Shuri to be gone home, but yet you heard her walking around your house. What is going on? You put on your silk pajamas and a satin scarf to protect your hair.

The first thing you looked for was your phone. You left it on the bed, right? Well it wasn't there. You checked under the bed, under the covers, it still wasn't there.

You sighed and went out to the living to see Shuri, still sitting there- with your phone on the counter.

"Riri Williams huh?"

"Why were you-"

"You'd really stoop that low?"

"Lets get this straight, she treats me better than you ever could." You snap back. She rolls her eyes. "If you say so." She says sarcastically.

"You know what? I dont ever want to see you again. Get out." You raise your voice slightly. Shuri's eyes widen, you never, ever shout.

"What?" She replies. "Get. Out before I loose it on you." You say to her. "Ma...can't we just..." her voice trails off. She gets up from her seat and grabs your waist, rubbing it in circular motions.

"I said GET out- and leave my apartment keys here." You commanded as you push her off of you.

She got up with no problems and left through the door.

"You gone regret this one."

"Shut up and get out of my house."

"She'll be running right back to me." She thought.

But yet you never came back.

2 𝗆𝗈𝗇𝗍𝗁𝗌 𝗅𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗋

It was now almost two months since you had seen Shuri or talked to Shuri. She still tries to reach you but shes blocked on everything. You lay your head on Riri's lap as you both had talked. You and Riri had been together and happy since that night.

Riri secretly took her phone out to get pictures of you. You grinned at her, then realised what she was doing. "Baby, stop!" You giggled as you put your hand at the camera to block the capture.

She laughed along with you as she bent down to give you a kiss on your lips. "I hate you sometimes." You groan.

"Fasho." She said, smirking. "Riri- No-" before you can finish your sentence she picks you up and throws you on her shoulder.

"Let me down!" You whine as you hit her muscular toned back.

She throws you on your bed. "You know you love me. Cmon now."

"-especially when I do this" she kisses your neck softly.

You roll your eyes and grin at her.

"I knew it." She grins back as she showers you with kisses.

𝐄𝐍𝐃.

#toxic!shuri #i love u #shuri angst #shuri x you #shuri fluff #shuri x reader #shuri black panther #shuri imagine #shuri udaku #spotify #shuri smut #SoundCloud #riri williams #riri x reader #x fem reader #princess shuri

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xchoxix · 7 months

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This can’t be. JUST LOOK HOW MANY CHAPTERS AND WORDS GUYS. IM LOSING IT. AND ITS ALL SHURIRI

#shuri #shuri x riri #black panther #shuriri #shuri udaku #riri williams #shuri angst

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letitiaslabyrinth · 1 year

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SOMETHING NEW

warnings: shuri x plus size!y/n, angst, insecurities, Shuri's toxic, relationship issues, toxic relationshis, body image issues, attachment issues, riri x y/n, riri treats y/n so much better, comfort (just a lil) word count: a lil over 1k I think pairing: Riri x y/n A/N: this is 100% just me projecting but we not gon talk bout that. also I didn't proofread this so ignore the mistakes if you find any

You wake up in you and Shuri's place in Wakanda. You look over and Shuri's not there. You brush it off and get up to start your morning. It's not like this is the first time she's left without saying anything beforehand. You deserve an explanation at least but you knew you wouldn't be able to get one out of her when she reached without an argument taking place.

You go into your shared bathroom and start brushing your teeth when you hear the front door open and slam shut.

She doesn't call for you when she steps inside.

You come out the bathroom and go to the living room. "Morning." You say, staring at Shuri with your arms crossed.

Shuri notices your stance and huffs. She's annoyed. "Morning."

You stand there for another minute or two before deciding that since she wouldn't address her absence then you would. "So, we're not gonna talk about the fact that you just up and left, again, this morning?"

Shuri shrugs and sits down on the couch. "What sense does it make? You ask, I ignore you and the cycle repeats? No thanks."

"Why can't you communicate with me?"

"For Bast's sake, y/n." Shuri groans and rolls her eyes. "Here you go, again."

"Oh, I'm sorry for actually giving a fuck about where my girlfriend is? I'm sorry that I'm not like the other bitches you've been who are okay with you just up and disappearing early in the morning without even saying anything. It's not my fault that you have fucking communication issues and can't have a conversation with me without it turning into a fight."

Shuri stands up and looks at you. "See, that's the thing, y/n, you wouldn't know what it's like to be with somebody else since I'm the first person you've been with. You barely understand how relationships even work and I actually sympathize with that because who in their right fucking mind would wanna date you of all people," She keeps going, her voice getting harsher and meaner, "You are so fucking insecure about our relationship and your body and it's tiring having to reassure you every fucking day. You are so fucking boring, any girl who says that she's interested in you, beyond just fucking you, is full of shit. You're too fucking attached to me—you act like we're supposed to be joined at the hip just because we're dating. You act like I have to tell you everything and everywhere I go just because we're dating and honestly? I'm sick of it—I'm sick of you, I'm sick of having to explain myself to you because I don't. I don't have to say shit to you or do shit to you just because you think I do-"

"Fuck you, Shuri." You say, cutting her off and quickly wipe the tears that fell from your eyes. You don't listen to anything else she has to say, even when she's following you into your formally shared bedroom while you pack your things. This isn't the first time you've left but you were gonna make sure it was gonna be the last. You couldn't deal with her constant degrading and acting like the two of you weren't dating just because she's the princess of Wakanda.

"Awe, the big baby's gonna leave again? Her laugh was mocking. "You gon come back soon enough."

But you didn't.

Once your shit was packed you left for good. You didn't call Shuri again, you didn't try to reach out to her, you made sure to leave her and your relationship in the past. She got the hint after the first two weeks of your separation and eventually stopped calling.

It had been months now and in all honesty? You were glad you left Shuri when you did. You were happy that you didn't have to deal with her any more but the memories still hurt.

Riri treats you better. She doesn't make you feel bad about anything you do or anything you don't. She actually makes you feel loved, which you never thought you could actually feel again seeing as how your last relationship went.

"Mama?“ Riri says softly, shaking you out of your thoughts. She looks at you with worry in her eyes and wipes away the tears you didn't even feel falling.

You put your hand on hers and lean into her. You close your eyes and let her touch settle you. "I'm okay, ri." You open your eyes, smiling. "I'm good."

Riri kisses you on the forehead and leaves her lips there for an extra two seconds before sitting back down to look you in your eyes. "You wanna talk about it?"

Your breath freezes in your lungs. You shake your head, tears forming in your eyes. Your voice breaks as you speak, "No."

Riri brings you into a hug. She whispers comforting words in your ear to try and calm you down.

Your mind just keeps racing about the amount of crap you let Shuri put on you, the amount of hate, the amount of empty promises, and no communication. You let yourself go through that. You were never strong enough to deal with her—she always had countermeasures to whatever you said or did and it was exhausting. And you wonder why you let yourself go through that, why you didn't leave sooner. You blame yourself for her actions. You know you shouldn't but you do.

As if on cue, Riri whispers to you, "Nothing that happened to you in the past was your fault, y/n. She shouldn't have treated you like that."

"I should've left sooner." You mumble into her shirt.

Riri shakes her head. "No. No, you left when you felt you could. You did good, okay? You hear me, y/n? You did good. You stood up for yourself and you made sure to get that hell out of there. And you were strong enough to get into another relationship, mama. That takes a lot for some people."

You stay quiet and let Riri's voice wash over you. It's comforting and you fall asleep in her arms. You know you're safe. You know she's gonna take care of you the way Shuri never did.

#shuri udaku #shuri x y/n #Shuri's a little shit #shes mean #black wlw #lesbian #y/ns insecure #overly attached girlfriend #angst #shuri angst #riri treats y/n better #like way better #riri wiliams x reader #riri williams #fluff #black panther #black panther wakanda forever #letitiaslabyrinth

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desswright29 · 7 months

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New Fic Alert!

Welcome to Chicago! Here you’ll meet Y/n and Roman Clark, Riri Williams, and Shuri Udaku. A gritty tale of greed and manipulation. Take a look into Chicago’s night life and dance scene, as well as their corporate mogules in a fic collab with @desswright29 & @imjusthere2readbruv! Let us introduce our characters……..

The Golden Boy, a title he wore too proudly and took way too seriously. It was something that wasn’t his own, but the facade of it being his entire existence is definitely an understatement when it came to all of the major components of his life. He had to have the best clothes, cars, house, and most of all, the most wanted woman in the elite world! All of these things he took for granted, but he couldn’t help it…Roman “Rome” Clark, the co-CEO of Clark Realty was in for a rude awakening when his wife, the infamous, most sought after, gorgeous, and mischievous, Y/N Clark, seeks a new source of happiness in plain sight. What will he become when he is stripped of his ego that is replaced in the space that he used to keep his trophy wife?

A hell of a dancer, a total knockout,and everyone’s favorite Chicago native, RiRi Williams has a journey that no one else could ever claim as their own. She is an artist who loves her art and exudes greatness at every twist and turn that she can manage to bring to the dancefloor. As Shuri’s new addition to her life, and voice of reason, the web that holds Shuri captive becomes a part of her journey as well. Is she wise and graceful enough to get herself out of this one? One can only hope!

Y/N Clark, Co-CEO and founder of Clark Realty. The definition of “got it out the mud”. Her dreams of being a performer had been crushed at a young age, when she was forced to take on the responsibility of her family. She learned to hustle and quickly became one of the most sought after individuals in the financial industry. She’s sexy, intelligent, and everything she touches turns to gold. It made since for her to marry the “GOLDEN BOY” of Chicago. But, is she truly happy? When faced with a magnetic temptation, and what she truly wants coming into question; will she be able to resist?

Shuri Udaku, Wakanda native, Super Genius and one of the best in the HipHop Dance world. Alluring was an understatement. New to Chicago and struggling financially, she knew that one day she would be a force to be reckoned with. It was that confidence and tenacity that placed her quickly on Chicago’s up and coming list, and allowed her to have any woman that she wanted at her disposal. But, there was only one that she’d recently set her sights on. Once connected with the most powerful woman in Chicago, will she get too caught up in her scandalous affair to come to terms with her reality? Will her persistency come back to bite her in the end? Can she win once up against one of the most powerful men in the city?

We introduce to you

Coming Soon! We hope you enjoy!!

#letitia wright #letitiawright #shuri udaku #spotify #shuri x reader #shuri fanfiction #shuri x you #shuri fic #shuri smut #shuri angst #shuri imagine #Spotify #Riri Williams

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percsane · 1 year

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— jealousy, jealousy ☆

pairing: shuri udaku x blk afab reader

content: jealous reader , lil bit of angst , fluff , suggestive , cussing.

summary: you feel as if riri is getting more attention from your girlfriend than you are.

kendall’s note: it’s y’all i literally got sick the week before christmas. i’m gonna kms. BUT IM STILL WRITING SINCE IAN GOT SHIT ELSE TO DO 🙇🏾‍♀️ also this is kinda short i’m sorry loves.

(♡) or rb! :)

xhosa translations: usana - baby | sithandwa sam - my love

you woke up, feeling an empty space next to you again, you already knew where shuri was and with who.

riri williams.

now you didn’t hate her, you just hated how she was getting more attention from your own girlfriend than you. so you hopped in the shower and got dressed in a simple tee and shorts.

you left from your shared room to go to shuri’s lab, only to see shuri and riri laughing and giggling together.

though, she wasn’t cheating and she was allowed to have friends, you felt your heart sink. you stared at the two who haven’t noticed you and sighed. you felt tears stream into your eyes.

hiccuping, you started to head back up the steps to go to sleep again.

when you woke up, shuri was on the bed rubbing your leg.

“hey.” she murmurs with a smile, brushing the curls out of your face.

“hi.” you murmur back, with the same smile.

“are you.. okay?” she hesitates, scared to make you more upset than you already were.

“i’m fine? why.” you shrug sitting up.

“i saw you, come down to the lab. well, i saw you leave and heard you crying..” she confesses, making you sit in silence.

“you know you can tell me if riri makes you uncomfortable right?” she whispers to you, tilting your head up to look at her.

your breath hitches, you should probably be mad at her, but you can’t when she looks so good.

“i’m not uncomfortable with riri, she’s a very sweet girl, i just.. you spend so much time with her and it makes me … jealous.” you speak softly, playing with the blanket.

shuri’s eyes soften as you confess how you’ve been feeling.

“usana.. i’m so sorry, i know i’ve been busy, it was never my intention to make you feel this way. you have nothing to worry about. i promise you that.” she says grabbing your hands and looking at you in your eyes.

“you know…” you start. “you should show me how sorry you really are..” you whisper to her, leaning over to her and looking her in her eyes.

she looks from your eyes to your lips with a smirk.

“don’t have to tell me twice, sithandwa sam.”

#shuri x reader #riri williams #shuri fanfiction #shuri x y/n #shuri udaku #shuri x black!reader #shuri x fem!reader #shuri black panther #shuri fluff #shuri angst #shuri #black panther wakanda forever #black panther #wakanda forever #black panther 2 #princess shuri #black panther fluff #x black fem reader

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redrubyslayer · 14 days

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Trust Issues

this is my first time writing so enjoy,,

also Riri Williams x reader

mad angst❤️

maybe grammatical errors

She is working on three things right now

herself

her life

her happiness

she is you and always will be

________________________________________

It always started like this.. you and her… her coming to you when She gets into a fight with the person you despised the most. Fiona Philips. Riri Williams girlfriend as everyone knew. What did you expect.. would she ever love you? probably not. Not while Fiona was around. despite their off and on relationship they were perfect, the golden lgbtq relationship.

—————— Start from the beginning?———

You and Riri have always been close, y’all against the world, till she came. Fiona, you didn’t like Fiona philips, she used to tease you elementary school for your fascination with giving your mom pet rocks. She teased you in middle school for liking girls, then in highschool, she came to you and you thought she changed, you let her get close, closer than Riri had ever been at the time. you regretted it when you found pictures of you naked like a slut posted on small posters over school saying “Want a slut? CALL : XXX-XXX-XXXX”

Never had you been so ashamed. You left without looking back, Riri followed, she never knew what happened that day only seeing you running from school and followed you, running with you, running away. Watching you run along the train tracks trying to get away and following not wanting you to be alone.

Years later you found yourself opening the door to your dorm room to and upset Riri almost every other week, it grew tiring, but you would never say no. you loved her… more than you should have.

You would sit there and listen to her complain about Fiona, not that you payed much attention. Always sipping on the bourbon you poured yourself nodding and humming in acknowledgement listening to the music playing the background, the lights a dark purple.

Today was no different you especially had a low tolerance today after a bad date but you would always let her in. You had a cup of bourbon in hand a bowl of fruit in your lap, head layed back against the couch listening to every word spilling from her lips.

“-… I can’t believe she thought I was cheating cause i was just talking to this chick- can you believe her? She’s so…” Riri paused not able to find the word to describe her without coming off as an asshole. You on the other hand could list of countless names but decide against it. You stay silent you lift you head lazily and look at her.

“Let me get this straight, she’s accused you of cheating several times and you stayed…” You asked, she nodded and you let out and annoyed sigh letting your head fall back against the couch again “alright.”. She continued complaining. You could feel your temper rising but stay silent beside the occasional “Uh-huh” and “I get it” taking a sip of your bourbon every now and then.

She grew quiet looking at you “What’s wrong, Y/N?” she asked.

“Nothing in just peachy” you say lowly listening to the music silently hoping she was done, but she wasn’t. Riri began to complain about how Fiona said Riri didn’t spend enough time with her.

Something in you just wished she would shut up or go find someone else to complain too but never would you turn her down. you say there and listened like the good girl you were. Sipping the bourbon feeling the familiar burn down your throat.

“-. And Fiona just keeps saying i don’t spend enough time with her, like im sorry i have classes to get to” Riri drags on longer than she need to. Your eyes drift around your room. You were fortunate to not have to share a room, otherwise your sure your roommate would be tired of the complaint as much as you are right now. Your room had a pretty chill vibe a constant vibe of purple your favorite color. You were going to groan but felt a familiar gaze on you and you looked at Riri “Are you done?” You said but it came out harsher than intended

“I- yes.” She said confused

“Thank you lord” you mutter under your breath, getting up and putting your fruit in your mini fridge having lost you appetite

You felt a presence behind you, you looked back and gasped as you felt lips on yours, your eyes frantically looking between your connected lips and Riri, you slowly but surely melt into the kiss, why did it feel so good? You felt her push you onto your bed and it got heated quickly her hand up your shirt but you pushed Riri off breathing heavily

“what?” Riri asks.

You quickly realized what was happening and you looked at her “what are you doing”

“I’m kissing you?” She laughs and try’s to kiss you but you pull away giving her a look of panic

“Get out” You said shortly

She looks at you stunned “What?”

“Get. Out” You said harshly before continuing “I grew up in a house of dis function but I will not be the other women nor the rebound”

Riri hesitated but got up and left

You began to tear up and cried till you couldn’t anymore….

———————————

I don’t know how i feel about it should i continue it?

#riri x reader #riri williams #riri wiliams x reader #light angst #Spotify

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acommonwhor3 · 1 year

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I don't have a title picked out for this one quite yet. But for right now we are gonna call it Ur Best Friend.

I'm sorry I haven't been active, I've been so busy with school and dance, my life has been hectic. I'm really trying to write again it's just I want to give y'all the best. I want to sit down and actually write something worthy enough for y'all. I really appreciate all the support and love I get from you guys. I hope you enjoy this.

I wrote this within a couple of hours..sooo ntm.

Recommended Songs: Ur Best Friend- Kehlani and Kiana Léde

Translation: sithandwa-sweetheart

Seems like things are better when forbidden... And that's why I hate that..I hate that you ain't your best friend.

“Babe, you ready?” Your boyfriend Josh asked as he walked into your bathroom. “Yeah, I just help with my necklace.” You say as you gesture for him to come over. “You look so good, my love.” He said as he kissed your neck before stopping staring at the necklace. “Who bought you this?” He said as he put it on. “Um…. Shuri did. Riri picked it out for her. Why do you ask?” You said turning around to face him. “It's just a little weird because they’re my best friend and coworkers. He said as he walked toward the kitchen. “Josh....Shuri, Riri, and I have been friends for 6 months now.” You said as you raised your voice. “Honey, I get that, but y’all are always together. Y’all are all over each other all the time. I just don’t think it was very appropriate.” Josh said as he started to grab the keys. “Josh, girls are gonna be touchy, that’s just how we are. I also hang out with them all the time because you never have time. So, are you saying you’re jealous? They're dating each other Josh.” You said annoyed. “No, it's not that it's just- Never mind, we’ll talk about it later. He said as he exited the door. You rolled your eyes as you exited the house.

As your boyfriend drove you started to think about what he said. You can’t deny, you have a slight crush on both of them, but he doesn’t need to know that. The way they carry themselves and the way they treated you, just made you slowly fall for them. I wonder if they’re gonna be there tonight. You thought as your boyfriend pulled up to his coworkers' house. “We’re here, babe.” He said as pulled into their driveway. “Time to put on our fake smiles, and “I’m better than you” demeanors.” You said with air quotes. “Babe!” Josh said while laughing. “I’m just saying josh, they honestly don’t like us. Why did they even invite you?” You said as you exited the car. “No idea, but free food right?” He said with a shrug. You chuckled while knocking on the door.

“Y/N Josh, how are you two?” Josh’s coworkers asked as she answer the door. “Michelle, it’s so pleasant to see you.” You said with a forced smile. I can’t stand you, bitch. You started to take off your shoes as you entered her house. “You have such a lovely house, Michelle. You should invite us over more often.” You said with a smile. “Oh well, I’ll have to plan more parties.” She said while showing where the rest of her guests were. As you walked into the room, your face lit up when you saw Shuri and Riri. They look so good, oh my gosh. Shuri was wearing a blue button-up, and brown pants, with new balances. While Riri was wearing a black crop top with flare arms, white pants, and white Jordans. As you walked over to them, Riri stood up from her girlfriend's lap to hug you. “Y/N honey, you look amazing. She said while hugging you. You wearing a white crop-top wife beater, beige cargo, with brown Jordans. “Thank you, darling.” You say as she pulls away. “Shuri, how are you?” You asked as she stood up. “Why are we acting like we haven’t seen each in months? We saw each other last week.” Shuri said as she pulled into a tight hug. “Oh, shut up.” You said as y’all laughed. “Well the party is about to start, we’re just waiting for everyone to show up.” Michelle said.

*Play Ur Best Friend*

As you dance with your boyfriend, you locked eyes with Riri as she danced with Shuri. She gave you a quick wink before whispering something in her girlfriend's ear. Shuri looked up at you after and smirked. You quickly looked away trying not to make it obvious how nervous they make you. I have a loving boyfriend. Who cares for me, treats me like a queen, and loves me. Stop thinking of them in any other way than friends. You peek back over at them and Riri gestures for you to follow them. “Babe, I’m gonna go get some air for a little.” You said as you turned around to face your boyfriend. “Ok, want me to come with you?” He asked. “No, you have fun with your friends.” You said as you pulled out your phone to check yourself. “Ok, text me if you need me.” He said as you walked off.

You made sure to take your time making your way outside to continue to fix yourself. How does my makeup look? You thought as you started to reapply your perfume. Gotta smell good. Now for my makeup. You begin re-applying lip gloss before you stop thinking: Why am I stressing over my looks for them? We're just friends... You excited the back door to find them chatting on the porch. “Now, why did y'all call me out here?” You say as you walked to them. “We wanted to talk to you, sithandwa .” Shuri says glancing at you over her shoulder. “And that party blows!” Riri said chuckling. “Oh, well what's up?” You say leaning on the rail. “You need to stop looking at us like that, ma.” Riri said turning to face you fully. “What do you mean?” You say giggling quietly. “Don’t act naive Y/N. We can't be doing this, you have a boyfriend. Isn't that right Y/N?” Shuri said looking at you with low eyes. “I-” “It's ok, we already know the answer.” Riri says cutting you off. Why are they acting like this out of nowhere? They are never this direct about it. “Hey, Y/N, why don't we have one of our “famous” sleepovers, yeah?” Shuri says walking toward the entrance. You look at Riri who started to follow after Shuri chuckling. I can't do this. This is wrong. I love Josh....its just...them. Why me? Why can't they be their best friend?

Taglist: @melodykisses @chidinma @rxcently @beautybyfire @kofforever @zestgodtj @sundownimup-1 @shurisnewbabymomma @nightlife-things @kya-rose @percsane @shuri-my-love @mocha-aya @doms_fav

~JM ❤️

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axailslink · 1 year

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Dominique please one chance my God

Also I know this clip sucks because of the quality

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unnecessary-sobbing · 1 year

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going to sleep after posting this, but does anyone want a part 2 to ‘all i wanted’ (my riri angst)? originally i was just gonna leave it the way it is but some ppl have been asking lmao

#shut up dee #riri williams angst #riri williams x reader

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quintessencewrites · 1 year

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Escapism Shuri x Riri

Shuri brought her hand up between their too-close bodies, tapping at Riri’s chin, then her cheeks. “Alright, alright. You’ve proven yourself. Breathe before you pass out.”

Warnings: Explicit language, angst, elicit drug use, mention of death, implied smut, fluff

Word Count: 2.7k+

Tags:

@percsane @zestgodtj @k3nn3dyxo @mlmilani @letitias-fav @doms-fav @sweetalittleselfish-honey @g4yforu @widowmakker @becauseimswagman1 @zayswriting @inmyheadimobsessed @laurensmabel1 @malltake12 @msudaku @faeriah-thv @fetchyourlife @mbakuetshurisprincess @sinsikoxo @honey-teaaaaaaaa @rxcently @pinkcorns @takeyaki @yamsthoughts @thethickerside @0hshoot1tsl4ni @shurisbathwater @shurismainbxtch @luvrzhearts @sadfreakx @shuri-my-love @justariellove @heartsforjojo @blackgirlfariy @tuesdaylovesu @chocoflagcutii @taiiunknown @zhanylai @ziayamikaelson @verachii @taiiunknown @beautybyfire @soearthquakequeen @remwritess @pinkwright @jenlouvre @letitiasleftfoot @6-noir @kya-rose @saintwrld @someshuriposts @jessiap @ilikegecos @iiluvl4n @katymae12344 @shurismainbxtch @crookedsaladlover @motheroffae @saintwrld @marsolgy @ogbells16 @verachii @shuriszn @playgurlxoxoo @ashleighshaw @te-23 @dominquesheart @shuridefenselawyer @iminlovewithdomandtish @limbozqueen @cansah2002-blog

A/N: Huge, huge shoutout and dedication to @inmyheadimobsessed for even planting this idea in my brain. I hope I did you justice, baby🫶🏾

Not as sexy as the rest of the series so far, but I have so much smut coming soon, yall are gonna be sick of it. AU, T'Chaka is dead, T'Challa isn't (Yet... Haven't decided if imma go that route or not...) Anyways, Enjoy, my loves 🤍

Grief is a funny thing, they said, but in reality, ain’t shit funny about it. What was funny about the way somebody could just cease to exist, to be here one day and gone the next? It was an incomprehensible thing, death. He was here, Riri knew he was. He was breathing, laughing, living. Except he wasn’t. Why wasn’t he? Why was she?

There wasn’t shit funny about the way Riri’s heart stopped, right in her chest, and felt like it wouldn’t start again. Nothing funny about the rain of bullets that cascaded around them and her mother’s painfully haunting cries. Nobody giggled at the funeral, not a single chuckle when her father’s body descended into the ground, in a hollow grave where he didn’t belong.

She couldn’t feel. She couldn’t feel the swarm of tears that pooled down her cheeks, stinging her eyes and pairing grimly with the sobs that pounded her little body. Riri couldn’t feel the icy metal locker when her back slammed against it or when her already shaky legs finally collapsed under her weight. Her miserable frame was so tiny, so helpless as she crumbled to the ground, curled over and heaving.

She didn’t feel. She didn’t feel when the body of another slid to the ground next to her, their warmth entering her space. Riri didn’t feel when they scoot just a little bit closer, brushing her arm, but not touching her.

She could hear them though. She heard their breathing, shaky and shattered. She heard the rasp in their voice, their deep African accent prevalent through their words. The softness, the understanding in the way they spoke swaddled Riri’s heart when they declared: “I’m sorry.”

Riri could barely lift her head, it was far too heavy.

“I was told grief sneaks up on you. It’s a bitch, isn’t it?”

Riri couldn’t speak, her throat was far too scratchy.

“Yours chose a hell of a time to creep up. I don’t think the school hallway is a fit place to feel a pain like the one you are.”

Riri could barely listen, everything was far too muffled.

“We can go to my car if you’d like. The windows are tinted enough to offer some solitude and I have a fat blunt we can pass.”

Riri could feel, just barely. She could feel a thousand tiny needles pierce her esophagus when the tightness in her vocal cords snapped and she spoke. “I don’t even know you.” The air surrounding them was hushed, Riri’s words floating in a whisper.

Their fingers were long and thin, covered in black ink and exquisite art. They stretched even further when she extended her hand to the still girl, awaiting her acceptance. “Shuri Udaku.”

Silence passed with the blunt in their hands, the smoke clouding the thoughts Riri didn’t dare to think. The vibe was mellow, music echoing in the smoke that wrapped around their heads. Her heart didn’t hurt as much, the tightness that she’d gotten so used to finally dissipating. Dry streaks where her tears once were lined her cheeks and chin, the ash stark and out of place on her mocha-colored face. Riri’s glossed-over eyes were scarlet-hued, vision blurred.

“Where you from, Shuri Udaku?”

Shuri’s slender fingers gestured for the blunt, pulling the wrap to her parted lips. Her deep inhale was skilled, the smoke expanding in her lungs. Riri’s gazed lazily at the foreigner, watching her exhale slowly before she answered, “Wakanda.”

“Wait, Wakanda, Wakanda? Shit, nigga, why the hell you here?”

A deep chuckle reverted through the air, lasting longer than it would have if the girls were in sober minds. Riri felt a goofy smile grow across her face at the sound, both rows of perfect white teeth shining at Shuri through the smoke.

“Y-you really don’t know who I am?”

The gaze Riri had on the Wakandan intensified, her beautiful brain trying to think so hard. Shuri shifted her weight, adjusting her seat until it reclined, pulling Riri’s eyes down with her. She tried and tried to think but the weed in her system didn’t do much to help her already distracted mind. Shuri couldn’t look away when Riri’s curls bounced around her framed face, shaking with her answer. “No, am I supposed to?”

Who knew a smile could be contagious? From Shuri’s own face spread a grin too wide with teeth too white, the gold adornments covering her canines contrasting with the rest of her. “Nah, I guess not.” Her shoulders relaxed into the back of the seat and she reached for the blunt once more.

Their silence was comfortable and lazy and they both fell back into it blissfully. Another question danced on the tip of Riri’s tongue and she sat, analyzing it. It would be unseemly for her to ask, but her clouded mind offered up no restraint. “Who died?”

“What?’

“What you said in the hall, sounded like you was speaking from experience.”

Shuri’s ribs expanded around her lungs. She needed another deep inhale to get the words out. It had been years since his death and she still had trouble saying it, thinking about it, even believing it.

“My father.”

Riri wasn’t sure what she had been expecting, but it wasn’t that. How deep of a confession to spill off the lips of a stranger? To another stranger?

“Mine too… Well, my stepdad, but he was the only dad I ever knew.”

Their eye contact was understanding. They understood each other. For such a long time, Shuri hadn’t come across a single person who fucking got it. Even in her own country, her mother, her own brother didn’t fucking get it. There was no way the ancestors needed her baba more than she did.

“How?” Curiosity was at the forefront of Shuri’s mind and the bluntness of her ask was promptly followed by her body drawing back on itself. She opened her mouth to apologize, but Riri cut her off, unfazed.

She thought the tears would descend like they normally did, but they didn’t. She was stunned the words came out so easily. “They shot him up.”

“They who?”

“Nigga, I grew up in Chicago. ‘They’ could be a 13-year-old walking down the street.”

Shuri’s pretty, brown eyes widened three sizes, but her lips remained sealed. She could count a full ten seconds pass before Riri opened her mouth again. “We was in the park, just chilling, grilling, and unsuspecting. ‘They’ drove by and shots rang out. He dived in front of me and mama and next thing I knew, we were covering his casket in wet dirt.”

‘I’m sorry’ didn’t feel appropriate to repeat, so Shuri didn’t. She allowed another moment of silence to blanket them before speaking her own truth. “They blew mine up.”

“They who?”

“You heard about the building explosion at the Vienna International Center? It happened years ago; I guess you would have been in American high school at the time?”

“Y-yeah,” Riri’s voice was small, her memory muddled. “It was all over the news. Came home and ma dukes was glued to the TV, tears in her eyes. Pop was too, angry. He kept screaming it was an assassination. They killed the king of somewhere, Tuh-something.”

“T’Chaka Udaku,” Shuri said proudly. “King of Wakanda.”

It didn’t take long for cognizance to pass over Riri’s features, high or not. “Oh, shit. Wait, shit! Nigga, you’re a princess?!”

Princess Shuri winced, pained by the sudden change in pitch in the girl’s voice. “You always throw that slur around like it's nothing?”

Her words flowed in one ear and out the other, completely disregarded. “You’re a fucking princess!”

“Yeah, guess I am.”

“Wh-why the hell are you here? What the fuck MIT got to offer you that your royal title don’t?”

“A normal fucking experience for the first time in my life?” Shuri’s voice stayed as level as her high, while Riri’s kept climbing octaves. “Not dwelling in a place where my father doesn’t come home.”

Riri let the plush seats swallow her, sitting back and sinking in. She understood all too well. “Yeah. that’s why I left Chicago.”

Shuri shifted in her seat, her right arm leaning against the armrest that separated the two. Her eyes fixated on the little Chicago native, studying her features and burning Riri underneath her stare. “Then you get it.”

Riri squirmed under the princess’s gaze, intimidation creeping on her slowly. She followed Shuri’s lead, leaning over until their warmth mixed. “I get it, but why college? I’m sure they would have just handed you a degree, why go through with the classes and the homework?”

“What part of ‘normal experience’ don’t you understand?”

Any of it, really. Riri was enduring a normal college experience and it sucked. The coursework, the teachers, the piles and piles of homework that she could never seem to come out on top of. Throw in her dad’s death, and it was too much. It was all really too fucking much.

Shuri could read the poor girl like a book. The beset reaction climbed Riri’s features, starting in her toes and working its way up, entangling her like a vine. The intoxication in her veins wasn’t doing enough to mask those emotions anymore and Shuri deemed it her job to help the ill-fated girl escape those feelings the same way she wished someone had for her.

The blunt was burned thin at this point, no longer the fat thing Shuri had promised, but still too good to be wasted. She relit the dimly burning bud, dragging a long hit before pointing the wrapped piece in Riri’s direction.

Riri’s nod was small, barely noticeable, and her small hand dragged upward to pull the blunt from between Shuri’s fingers, but she was stopped short. Shuri’s hand fell atop Ri’s, covering and cradling it, so small compared to her own. The blunt stayed laced in the princess’s thin fingers when she brought it up to Riri’s lips and tapped them with the unlit end. “Open.”

The surprise on Riri’s stoned face was laughable and Shuri’s stifled giggles prompted the small girl to obey. Her plump lips parted and Shuri slipped the blunt in, watching Riri’s lips close around it. Her chest rose, her lungs expanding, the drag deep, bravura, almost seductive.

She inhaled until her lungs couldn’t hold anymore. Shuri pulled the blunt away and Riri’s lips stayed pursed. “Gonna hold it?” Shuri’s thin brow was poised in a sexy arch, dancing atop her playful eyes.

Riri nodded, head feeling airy when she took on Shuri’s challenge. Her chest burned and her lungs begged, but they went ignored. Shuri leaned closer, slipping into Ri’s personal space with ease. Her eyes frolicked about Riri’s face, excited, pleased. “For how long?” She pushed even further, testing Riri’s limits.

However long Shuri wanted. Riri had never been bested by anybody and she hadn’t planned on starting now. Daddy hadn’t raised no bitch.

The seconds ticked on, Shuri’s eyes bouncing back and forth between her watch and Riri’s gaze. Her cheeks puffed, the air, the smoke in her lungs crying to escape. The princess’s tongue rolled over the inside of her cheek, enticement burning in her own chest.

Seconds turned into a minute and Riri’s breath was still caught in her throat. A minute and thirty seconds rounded out and Shuri brought her hand up between their too-close bodies, tapping at Riri’s chin, then her cheeks. “Alright, alright. You’ve proven yourself. Breathe before you pass out.”

Riri’s exhale was wheezing, her eventual inhale panting. She watched Shuri sit back in her seat, reluctant to do the same, reluctant to escape Shuri’s space. Something about this girl, this princess, this foreigner was fucking alluring.

Her high regained control, of her thoughts, of her actions. She wouldn’t, she decided. She wouldn’t sit back, she wouldn’t escape. Instead, she leaned over the armrest even further, grabbing Shuri’s chin and pulling their gazes together.

Shuri couldn’t control the breath escaping her that stuttered a little bit. Riri’s face was so close, her hands so soft, lips pouted nice and soft. Bast did Shuri try to restart her heart, to regain control, but the weed in her system, the fog in her mind made an already hard task Herculean.

“You into girls, princess?” Riri’s congested mind didn’t conceal a single thought running through her pretty little head. Shuri’s smirk was sly and sultry, daring to tease the girl before her.

“Take a good damn look at me and tell me I look straight.” Riri’s eyes wandered down, fully taking in the young royal. Shuri felt heat everywhere Ri laid her eyes and found herself wanting more. Those little glances, the oh-so-slow glances, were painstaking.

“Not a damn thing straight about that fucking flannel. And the shaved sides? You making studs everywhere look bad, being a walking stereotype like that.” The words rolled off Riri’s tongue, uncensored and true. Shuri knew it was true, the laughter that escaped her lips knew it was true.

“You one to talk, gold chain.”

Riri didn’t back down, she didn’t back away. Her words were smooth when she responded, “It was my dad’s.” And she didn’t cry. Instead, she smiled, the memory of her father placing the gold piece over her head and dangling it ‘round her neck playing in her mind like a movie.

“It looks good on you,” Shuri’s already soft voice dropped lower, her eyes stuck on Riri’s, hypnotized by the coffee-bean-hued orbs that flickered between her lips and her gaze.

“Nigga, can I kiss you?” Riri’s question was gentle, falling into Shuri’s lap with ease.

“Not til you stop calling me that,” Shuri’s words were playful, her eyes just as jubilant. Yes, she wanted to say. Yes, please, you can kiss me.

“Princess,” Riri corrected while Shuri’s eyes rolled. “Can I kiss you?”

Shuri was already leaning in to close the gap between their needy bodies before she answered. “That’s not any better.”

Riri didn’t get a chance to respond. Shuri’s lips pressed into hers, igniting a spark (really a moan) as she leaned in closer, sinking into the delicate feel.

Their lips molded together like a perfect fit. Shuri couldn’t explain away the feeling that overtook her. Science wouldn’t have a solution and Bast forbid she turned to the ancestors for clarity. Instead, she gave in, mind cloudy, no clearness in sight.

Riri thought Shuri’s tongue was just as soft as her hellish mouth. They danced and twirled, tasting and shivering under the nip of Shuri’s grill. Neither of them wanted to be the first to pull away, and Riri had already proven that she wouldn’t need to for at least a minute and a half.

Ninety seconds. A section of Shuri’s brain was counting, the rest of her mind too consumed, too mesmerized by the unfamiliar girl with whom she didn’t want to part.

The air in Riri’s lungs suddenly wasn’t enough, and with Shuri’s tongue, she swallowed her pride and cut off the kiss with abruptness. They panted, eyes glued to the thin string of saliva still connecting their love-swollen lips. “Demethi (Damn),” Shuri’s breathy whispers drifted to Riri’s ears, the Wakandan’s native tongue causing a shiver to run down her spine.

“Run that by me in English?” Riri could barely get the words out, titillated stutters littering her sentence.

Shuri’s smirk made a comeback, the golden grills gleaming at the smaller girl. “You go with me, you gotta learn my language, usana. I’ll teach you, yeah?”

“Who said I go with you?” The way Riri’s brows arched on her face and those dimples appeared on her cheeks made the butterflies in Shuri’s stomach swarm.

“You might not go with me yet, but you will.” Shuri stuck her thumb and index finger in Riri’s dimples. With a gentleness that almost caused Ri to swoon, their faces were brought together again, Shuri’s lips brushing over Riri’s.

“Demethi,” Shuri’s voice was but a whisper, her lips on Ri’s, their mouths together. “Demethi,” she repeated. “It means damn.” Riri fell into Shuri’s touch, into the feel of her. “D-demethi,” she absorbed the words and threw them right back at the princess.

“Good, usana. Usana,” Shuri’s lips dragged across Riri’s, every syllable playing out right on her mouth. “Usana means baby.”

“Usana,” Riri’s voice dropped to a whisper of her own, the intimacy of the moment engulfing her.

“Usana,” Shuri let the word fall from her a third and final time. “You might not go with me yet, but you will,” she parroted.

Riri’s bottom lip was tucked between her teeth, the smile on her face as brilliant as her mind. “We’ll see.”

#quintessencewrites #quintessence writes #shuri x riri #riri x shuri #shuri udaku #riri williams #princess shuri #black panther #18+#shuri angst #riri angst #shuri smut #riri smut

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blacksapphhicmaddonna · 7 months

Text

CHAPTER ONE - WHAT I HAVE TO DO.

a/n: hey y'all! so, I tried to post this in response to the anon who asked for a snippet but I saved it as a draft and Tumblr ate it😭 SO THIS IS DEDICATED TO YOU, ANON, WHOEVER YOU ARE!! sorry babes!💔💖💖💖💖

its been a minute since I've written anything fully, this was fun!!! as always, please ignore any grammar/syntax/spelling. I proof read it but you feel me. I'm super excited to be writing something so long and multi chaptered and definitely out of my comfort zone! am I an action girly now? LMFAO but anyway, I'm super open to any feedback and 👀 as always, if you wanna see sum, say sum.

anyway, I love my science gays and I will stan shuriri forever. this is pretty much all angst at this point❤️‍🩹, but I truly hope you enjoy LMFAOOO. lmk how you feel.💗 (and yes, I love a good flashback real bad and ima do it every time if I can. not too much on me LMFAO)

✮ taglist: @mybonafidefeelings@zeezeecave@gr00vyminibus@lppriceisright@darkangelchronicles@princessmel-1995@xenaizogie@nanii2x, and tagging a few folks that enjoyed the sneak peak and a few shuriri/shuri/riri folks who might! @karimwillia @inmyheadimobsessed@mal-urameshi@somethingcleaverandwhitty@imjusthere2readbruv@imagineandwrite there's more but my computer glitching so we gonna get this show on the road! lmk if you'd like to join the taglist or check the link in my tagged post! love y'all, muah

✮ word count: 11,193

✮ panther divider: @firefly-graphics

✮ some of the xhosa translations are from @iinkonde! here's where you can find some of their amazing resources: 1 2 3

Shuri paced the room that seemed to be growing smaller by the millisecond around her, searching for something - anything - inside of the brain most people considered the smartest in the universe to offer the scientist in front of her. She found nothing but the desperation she had been pushing down since the moment they met.

A desperation that mirrored the effects of the herb she had reproduced, also made from the desperation to save something that she felt was slipping through her fingers at the time. Just like the herb had found its way through her body when she first took it, this feeling spread from her throat as she choked when their eyes met as she pushed herself into the dorm room she was once again standing in. Down to her chest, pulling heart strings she didn’t know she had. Plucking them in a rhythm that felt intrinsic, ancestral, almost painful in the way that they made everything feel superimposed. She resisted, but she felt her toes and she felt her finger tips and she felt the curls framing her face dance above her eyes ever so gently. It spread through every atom that comprised the panther and she could barely breathe. She felt everything and she felt nothing, like she was sinking in an ocean of clouds. She could barely look at the woman who was staring back at her with a look of confusion, and an equal desperation that she couldn't explain.

Shuri still had nothing to offer in terms of speech. She paced at a speed that had only just registered as super fucking fast, clearly adding to the concern building in Riri's eyes.

"Shuri-" Riri started, but couldn't even try to finish as her voice had triggered the awaiting and building eruption in Shuri that it always did. Riri, if she did anything to Shuri, she made her feel things she wasn't used to feeling.

"Anything you want, just name it. It's yours. I'll make it happen. I'll build it myself. Just please don't do this. Please." Shuri froze in her place, finding herself begging for something she couldn't explain. She knew she was almost yelling at the other woman, which she would never do but she couldn't find the part of her that could compose herself. She was thankful for the kimoyo beads she had scattered in the room when she entered, enabling a silencing mode and cutting through anything that the government had tapped in Riri's room.

Riri froze too, only moving to fumble with her fingers nervously. She didn't have anything to offer the panther, the queen standing in front of her. She didn't have anything to comfort her friend. The woman she loved more than she could explain. More than almost anything.

"I don't... I don't want anything from you, Shuri... We both knew this day was coming. You had to have thought about it. I thought you were.. I don’t know... It almost felt like-"

"Please, Ri. Please. Just find something and I'll do it. I'll make it myself if I have to. Please just find something else."

"I don't want... I don't understand, Shuri. We only talked about this like twice, I didn't even think you cared that much or even had time to care about it... or me, really. Just... lets just sit down for a second." Riri tried to redirect, trying to give herself time to figure out what was going on. She felt her mind trying to run back through memories and conversations the two had shared in the past year and some change, but it was few and far between that they ever really had time to talk about their lives in depth lately. At first, they talked a lot after they had finally reconnected. They had even spent a few nights together. But lately, Shuri had been working a lot and it seemed like their connection was running dry. Riri had shared her plans a few months ago and hadn't really heard much back from the woman standing in front of her looking like she was fighting a battle she wasn't sure she'd win. Riri had committed herself to this, to showing up and doing what she felt she needed to do to make up for all the ruin she had caused - or at least what she thinks she caused. And now Shuri was trying to offer her a chance out of it. She didn't know what to do or what to think. That's something she felt often with the panther, she figured out. She had zoned out for only a split second before Shuri was grabbing her wrists and looking in her eyes.

"Riri, I'm begging you." Shuri stared into the Iron Heart's eyes, searching for something she knew she was missing. Something she needed the way she needed air, she felt. Riri searched back, trying to decipher something Shuri wasn't ready to let her see.

"Shuri, you know I feel responsible... But, I just.. I don't understand what's going on. What's wrong? Please just talk to me. It's okay." Riri tried to pull them closer, tried to grab the Panther's hand but her grip was too tight around her wrists. Shuri relaxed it, she hadn't intentionally been holding on so tight but she wasn't ready to let go. She's never been ready to let go of who she loves. She saw that same resolute look in Riri's eyes that was always there when she was sure about something. It broke something in Shuri that she knew she couldn't mend on her own. One final try, she told herself.

"I will give you anything under the sun. Please just don't go to them. Don’t go to him. I- I know you're trying to help and change things for the better, and you will. But not like this. Not until it's safe. He will find you, Riri. He will do anything to get to you and to get back at me. You know this and you still choose to go? You don’t have to make this easy for him. We can figure this out a different way. Please. I will give you access to all the technology Wakanda has to offer, just please find something else to focus on, to take place of this. Please."

Riri tried to pull her closer again but the panther moved back, sending a shiver of rejection up Riri's spine.

"I don't want anything from you, Shuri... I just want you. I- I mean I just want you to-"

Shuri felt her body getting hot and somehow freezing at the same time. Riri just wanted her? But she also wanted to go on this suicide mission, which is what it was regardless of what Riri thought of it. She fought back the defensiveness she felt crawling up her throat like it always did when she was hurt. She didn't want to lash out on Riri, she only wanted to protect her. She only wanted her to be safe, alive. She only wanted her. But it was to no avail. She felt the ferocious beast pull itself through her. She scorned herself as her words burned their way through her skin, landing on Riri's.

"You just want whatever you want. You just want to fight whatever moral war you have going on because you're the one who survived! You would give up your life for what? For who? Not for my mother! Not for me!"

Riri hadn't noticed the tears stinging down her cheeks until she saw the ones pouring out of Shuri's. It was something she had never seen before. She had seen Shuri lash out, though. She knew this was just the first wall of defense the panther had when she felt hurt, afraid, abandoned. She couldn't take this personally, though she had to fight back the sting of the words as they came at her. She reached out to try and touch the woman in front of her.

"Shuri, please. Let's just ta-"

"What?! Sit and talk? For what? For you to tell me again why you have to do this, why you have to go and die? Do you care so little for me? For yourself?"

"You know that's not true!"

"Why wouldn't it be true?! Ungayenza njani le nto kum!?"

"Please just listen to me! I don't know what's going on but we can talk about it! I'm right here, I'm right here!"

"But you won't be after this! You don't have to do this! Just let me try, let me show you that there's other things to give you purpose, there’s other ways we can handle this! PLEASE!" Shuri felt herself starting to cave in, her chest becoming a cavern filled with the screams of the orphaned girl inside of her. The girl who needed her family. The girl who couldn't save her brother. The girl who was held back from her mother as she drowned. The woman who loves women, specifically the woman in front of her who was planning to give herself up. She couldn't keep it together. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't think.

"That's not for you to decide, Shuri!" Riri shot back, starting to feel the same layer of armor pull itself over her. She didn't like being yelled at. It triggered something in her that she herself had pushed back as far as it would go. She just needed to get Shuri to listen to her.

"I don't care! You can't do this Riri!"

"Please stop yelling at me!" Riri gave in, covering her ears and turning her back to the panther, who felt herself go still. She hadn't meant to unleash this part of herself. She felt embarrassment mixing with her desperation, afraid she had only made things worse. Who was she to be trying to control the actions of a woman she only met a little over a year ago? Who she was just friends with, and barely that if you based it off what normal friendships looked like. They rarely even spoke for longer than a few minutes every couple days and that wasn’t even true anymore. Shuri scorned herself for the time she hadn’t spent with her, for the time she had been forced to spend trying to fix, defend or save her country. She resented her royal blood now more than ever, wishing she could be nothing more than a girl again. Maybe a student. Maybe just different. Shuri felt herself starting to crack, she felt like she would disintegrate if she stood there any longer. She had done enough damage. She and Wakanda and the Talokan had put Riri through enough and she knew that. She could see why Riri would think this guilt was hers to bare but Shuri knew better, knew more secrets. She knew that her father and his father and so on hadn’t handled things right, and no matter the good T’Challa had tried to do - maybe he didn’t do it right either. So now it laid in her hands, forced once again to stand in the way of something she wasn’t ready for. She felt bad for herself, but she felt worse for Riri. She wishes she had never sent her home with the beads, that they had never touched hands, that they had never even met. Maybe if no one ever knew about Vibranium, no one would be trying to take it. Or maybe if the world had always known, if her ancestors had done things differently, this wouldn’t be Riri’s life. She was part of the lost tribe, as N’Jadaka would call it. Maybe he was right. She didn’t know what to think, but she also knew who she was, herself. She was the most powerful person on the surface world and she was the Queen of the most powerful nation in the world. And she was in love, helplessly, with Riri Williams. She would not let her go again.

"I am sorry for coming here and making you upset." Shuri said blankly, masking any emotions she had just shattered into the room as best as she could to regain any self control she had left.

Riri turned around, tears still swelling in her eyes. She hiccuped and it made Shuri's heart pound.

"I-it's okay. I just don't like b-being yelled at. Can we just sit and talk?"

Shuri nodded, knowing Riri needed a minute. Riri turned to grab a blanket off her bed to wrap herself in as she took a seat on the floor in front of her bed. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths before motioning to Shuri to sit next to her. Shuri stared at her for a moment too long, before kneeling down next to her. They sat in silence that wasn't comfortable for the first time in a long time. Neither missed this feeling, the feeling of such uncertainty between them. Sure, it was always there, biting at the backs of their minds and hearts. But they had both worked hard to be comfortable with just having what they had. But now more than ever, neither was sure what was really going on. Shuri mirrored Riri, taking a few deep breaths. Riri felt herself relax, misreading the quiet sigh Shuri let out.

"Are we okay? I don't want us to fight. I just... need you to help me understand why you're so upset. It didn't seem like you even really cared about this. I know you've been busy with what you have going on so I just figured this... I.. wasn't really on your radar anymore."

Shuri stayed silent, fighting that feeling nudging her.

"Please say something." Riri pleaded quietly after a few too many more moments of silence. She couldn't stand it. Neither could Shuri. She needed to escape. Get out of the room, out of America. She needed to run and scream and break something. She needed to kill Namor. That was her only option, once again. She knew it would come. She knew the fate of her country would be in the air again, and part of her knew she shouldn’t do it. Equal parts yes and no. Blood on either hand, regardless of what choice she made. But she also knew that Riri's life was once again in question and there was only one answer Shuri would accept. She would deal with the aftermath the same way she had been. She would accept whatever came. She knew she wasn't thinking clearly, that maybe she would be exiled or worse, but she also knew she couldn't live with herself if Riri wasn't alive tomorrow, and that was enough for her right now. If Riri wouldn't listen, then there was only one choice.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you, Riri. It won't ever happen again."

Riri was startled at the sincerity in the Panther's voice. She was confused why that was what Shuri felt she had to focus on in the midst of whatever the hell was going on.

"It's okay, I promise. I'm not mad at you for yelling at me. I'm just confused..."

"It's not okay. This, whatever you're planning, whatever he's planning... None of this is okay." Shuri said, pinching between her eyes as she tried to swallow the same beast from just a few minutes ago.

"Shuri... it's not like before. It's not about him. It's not even just about what happened in Wakanda. You know I'm Iron Heart. You knew I was going to start doing these things at some point. Missions that weren’t just flying around Chicago and Boston stopping robberies. And you know that something has to be done. And I can’t let this go on again when we all know it’s my fault.” Riri sighed. “We all know it is. So, please just try to hear me..."

"I have always heard you, Riri."

Riri digested that sentence with a gulp. She replied after a moment.

"Then let me hear you, for once. Tell me why you're here. Tell me why you're reacting like this. Tell me who you are and what you're feeling. Let me in, Shuri." She said, reaching out to grab Shuri's hand again. The Panther's hand was hot, almost burning. She didn't pull away this time.

"I'm here because I lo-.. Because I won't let this happen." Shuri caught herself before she said something she couldn't explain. Riri looked into Shuri's eyes with a pleading, less sure look. Shuri couldn't hold it this time. She couldn't freeze. She couldn't tell Riri. She reminded herself what happens every time she loves someone. She reminded herself of what she was capable of and what needed to be done. Regardless if Riri ever shared her feelings or not, she would swear her life to protecting the woman until the day she met the ancestors and maybe after if she could. She would do whatever it took, every time, no matter what, she resigned to herself. She squeezed Riri's hand.

"What're you gonna do? Lock me in my room, Shuri? I don't get what's going on!" Riri pleaded.

"I would never. You are not a prisoner or someone I want to control. You are free to do as you please, just as I am. Please understand that much."

"What does that mean... Wait, please don't go!" Riri tugged back at Shuri's hand again as the Panther got up to leave. Shuri looked down at their hands touching, taking in every second that their skin touched. She remembered what it felt like to reconnect after a long time apart. She wishes she could live in it like she had before. She brought their foreheads together and closed her eyes.

"I will protect you with every part of me. The cost will never be too much."

"Shuri, please don't do what I think you're about to do..." Riri pulled Shuri's hands into hers and brought them to the sides of their faces. They were so close they could feel each other's breath on their lips. Riri prayed in her head that Shuri would listen to her, knowing the strength and power the woman in front of her wielded. Shuri choked out a pained laugh before kissing Riri's forehead and pulling away, taking in the scent of Ghanian Shea Butter and the sweet scent Riri always had.

"Andizukuphulukana nawe. Impilo yami ngeke ibe lutho ngaphandle kwakho, Riri Williams."

Before Riri could open her eyes, the Black Panther was gone, the sound of a closing door shaking Riri to her core. She felt like she was in shock, having nothing to do but curl into a ball and pull the blanket around her body, covering her face as she let the rest of the tears fall silently. She laid there for what felt like an eternity until she heard a familiar voice call out to her.

"Miss Williams?" Riri jumped up, running around her room tracking down the voice. She picked up a purple and black kimoyo bead and held it up, suddenly seeing several others connect like magnets from across the other corners of the room.

"Griot?!" Riri both yelled and whispered.

"Hello, Miss Williams. Are you feeling alright?" Griot asked as the AI began taking a scan of her body to check her vitals.

"I've been better... what's going on? Why are you here? Not that it's not nice to... well you get what I mean!"

"It seems you have suffered a panic attack of sorts. Please get some water and take a seat before I proceed."

Riri rolled her eyes with a tired huff, giving in because she knew Griot wouldn't budge until she obliged. She grabbed a half empty bottle of water from her desk and sat back down near her bed, pulling the blanket up around her. She suddenly felt the absence of Shuri in her space and fought back the tears threatening to make way through her as she pulled the bracelet on, watching it activate. She had felt this way before, but it was different now.

"Feeling better, Miss Williams?"

"Just Riri is fine, and I guess. Can you explain what's going on now, please Griot?"

"Yes, Miss Riri." Griot replied as a hologram of Stark Tech floated in front of the scientist. She felt even more confused.

"Why are you showing me Stark Tech?"

"The panther has created and assigned your own AI for you, it's name is VIV. It is nearly identical to the JARVIS, or Vision, that Tony Stark had. It has been being developed for over a year, and seems to have just finished."

"What the fu-"

"The Panther also has an updated version of your vibranium Iron Heart suit on it's way to your lab location, or garage currently. She has given you access to me as well, with some restrictions. She has instructed me to inform you of this when the AI download is complete."

Riri sat in even more shock than she was in before. She was even more confused about Shuri's intentions now. More confused about her feelings, than anything. She replayed the words the panther had said to her before she left, she knew some Xhosa but it wasn’t great.

"Can you translate what Shuri said to me in Xhosa before she left, Griot?" Riri asked, hoping for some clarity. Griot calculated for a moment, before answering.

"It would seem I am not permitted to complete that task at this time, Miss Riri."

Riri felt a pang of frustration rise in her, as she let out a laugh.

"Of course not... Can you tell me where the panther is right now?"

Griot took a moment again before answering.

"The Queen was on her way back towards Wakanda as of her last status, but it would seem she has powered off her location devices. Would you like me to contact her for you?"

Riri sat for a moment, considering her options and her own feelings.

"No, that's alright Griot. We're going to my lab. Can you help me boot up VIV when we get there? We're going on a trip."

"As you wish, Miss Riri."

Riri stood up, grabbing a hoodie and sliding on some J's. Before she walked out the door, she slid on the kimoyo beads and asked a final question.

"Oh, one last thing Griot. Can you turn on privacy mode? I would like my location hidden from everyone, including the Panther. Can you do that?"

"It seems I can, but I would not advise that action Miss Riri. There are safety protocols in place that the Panther can activate for you remotely."

"That's fine, just turn it on. I have my own safety protocols."

"As you wish, Miss Riri."

"Thank you, Griot."

Riri made her way to her garage in no time, paying no mind to the world around her or the messages on her phone from MJ about their project. When she got there, she did decide to shoot her a quick text explaining that she was heading home to Chicago for a family emergency, that MJ could find her portion already done on a small drive in her room and that she had permission to break in, and that she would make it up to her later. MJ did reply, but Riri didn’t have time for that. She got to work, with the help of Griot, or the portion of him that she was allowed to operate, and booted up her own AI and implemented it into her nano suit. The one from wakanda was on its way but wouldn’t be there in time. Thankfully, she didn’t have to meet with Namor for another day and a half. She needed to think quickly but after working everything out with her suit, she was unsure where to go from there.

“Griot, can I use both you and VIV?”

“Yes, but you likely will not need me once the AI is turned on. I will be there when you need me, though Miss Riri.”

“Thank you Griot.” Riri smiled to herself, always fond of Griot and their robot voice. It made her think about the time she spent in the lab with Shuri, where they would borderline argue and Riri would laugh at them. This brought back that pang in her stomach and chest. She got to work on turning on and engaging with the AI so that it could mold to her needs, voice and patterns. After about an hour, she felt ready to head off. Except she had no idea how to get to Wakanda, let alone how to get in. She ruffled through her bookbag to find the information Namor had sent for her. A small teal envelope with her name on it, looking like it was written with a quill and ink. She shuddered at the thought of how old this man was and how intentional he had been to get this note to her. She opened it and read over it again, hoping to find more information than last time. Then, an idea came to mind.

“Hey VIV, and Griot, not that I don’t think you can handle it by yourself VIV. But uh, can you both scan this for me? I don’t have my Black light. Look for anything and everything. Cross reference what you find, if anything. Please.”

“Yes IronHeart.” “Yes, Miss Riri.” They both answered in tandem. While they got to work, Riri sat down finally to think about what she could do. She couldn’t exactly call up the avengers to help her figure this out. She had to be lowkey, she had to be smart, and she needed it to work. She had only been to Wakanda once, and wasn’t really in the know about how to travel there let alone get through the border forcefield. As she went over all she did know, trying to remember any details that would help, the AI duo alerted her.

Griot speaking first, since VIV seemed to sense a deeper trust from the IronHeart’s patterns.

“There are markings on the back that would indicate a geolocation where Namor would like you to meet.”

“So, coordinates? I can work with that.” Riri said out loud, still trying to figure out exactly how she could work with that. Until she looked over at her father’s red car, in pristine condition thanks to Shuri. And it dawned on her.

“Griot, do you have contact information for anybody besides Shuri?”

“I have contact information for Queen Shuri, and Okoye, former general of the Dora Milage.”

“Perfect. Please contact her now.”

“Yes, Miss Riri.”

“Wait, before you do, please transfer this contact information over to VIV. I’m not sure if Shuri knows that I have VIV yet, but in case she does, I don’t doubt that she would shut you down.” Riri explains to her favorite robot as if they needed it. Griot complied and sent a call out to Okoye.

Riri waited, holding her breath. She wasn’t sure is Okoye would answer, or even be willing to help. But this is what she had to work with.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Okoye answered.

“Small girl. Is everything alright?” Okoye answered seeming cheerful enough to hear from the girl but not without worry for the cause. Riri took a deep breath and explained the situation, truthfully, to the best of her ability. Somehow, as a surprise to both of them, Okoye was on her way in a matter of minutes as a Midnight Angel, with a jet that Shuri had let her keep. They both knew Shuri would be upset, but somehow it didn’t matter enough to let her get to Namor. They both knew what could happen, and what Shuri would likely do.

No time was wasted when Okoye arrived, Riri running in the open hatch as fast as she could. Okoye pulled off without a trace, both of them hoping they hadn’t alerted any American law enforcement this time.

Okoye charted course for Wakanda and they both sat in near silence for most of the ride, only sharing a few words when Riri boarded, Riri showing Okoye the letter before she began piloting. They would make it in time. Riri sat near the back, not feeling like she belonged at the mantle of the machine. She had always liked these, having begged Shuri to teach her how to fly one before they set off for war. Riri sunk into her feelings that she had been trying to keep at bay since finding out about the AI. Before Shuri came, she honestly really wasn’t sure what she was going to do or how she was going to do it. But it seemed like the timing would suggest that she was supposed to, whether she really wanted to believe that or not. She didn’t want to believe that she was this horrible monster who brought death and destruction with her everywhere she went, but sometimes she really did. She tried to fight those thoughts back and began to feel the weight of her body, sinking into the seat. Sinking was a familiar feeling to her. She tried to remember how to swim in her own thoughts. She remembered how Shuri would talk her through her episodes. How she would call right away when she sensed anything off, even if Riri wasn’t wearing her beads. She remembered how it felt to think everything would be okay, and how often that was proved to be untrue.

It was too easy to remember. Too easy to feel like it was just yesterday. Riri couldn't keep her mind from wandering back in time while the Wakandan jet made its way through the air. Trying to focus on anything else, trying to pay attention to the Dora silently flying or guarding the exit, trying to watch the sky around her. Anything. She couldn't bite down hard enough on the inside of her cheek, leaving a sore mark wasn't enough to keep her mind from its current occupation.

"What are you doing here?!" The shorter of the two screamed, almost screeched as she ran into the panther's arms.

"I had some time to myself finally. Where else would I go?" Shuri chuckled as she picked the scientist up.

"You could literally go anywhere in the world and probably... out of the world? At this point with Wakandan tech." Riri explained, seriously, as she hung onto the slim but toned body holding her off the ground with ease, not realizing she was holding on as tight as she was. Not realizing there was nowhere else Shuri would have gone. Nowhere.

"You're so... anyway, what should we do?"

"How long do we have?" Riri asked as she pulled back, not even trying to contain her wide grin that was plastered across her face. Shuri recorded it to memory, as she always did with the smaller woman's features.

"96 hours. Well, 96-ish, less now that we've been standing here debating where I could've gone." Shuri jokes as she lets go, making sure Riri found her footing.

"Shut up! Four days?! We have so much to do!" Riri definitely screeched this time, pretending to slap Shuri's arm. Fighting the urge to grab it and pull her in, Shuri picks up Riri's book bag from where she dropped it and places it in her desk chair as she walks to the bed and pulls her own bag out from under the bed.

"Exactly how long have you been here? You seem comfortable." Riri jokes as she grabs two waters from her mini fridge and hops up on her bed.

"I am." Shuri chuckles at the sight of the shorter woman having to jump to get on the bed. "And since your first class."

"Are you serious?! Why didn't you say anything dickhead?!"

"Ouch!" Shuri feigns pain as she catches the pillow Riri throws at her head and plops on the bed next to her. "I had a few things to handle, and needed to secure the dorm building. I didn't want to disrupt your day, I know midterms are coming up no?"

"Yeah, they are but you could've let a bitch know! I would've cleaned!" Riri states, noticing that she sounds much like her mother.

"I like your mess." Shuri smiles.

"Shut up. How did you secure the whole dorm building?"

"Well, I hope you don't mind. I have beads in every corner of the building. And a few around campus as well. Including in here. Is that alright with you?"

"Sheesh. Do I have a choice?" Riri jokes, but Shuri nervously answers.

"Yes of course! If it's not comfortable for you, I can sleep at a hotel. I should've asked, I'm sorry about that. Next time I'll-"

"There's a next time too?"

"Well, if you'd li-"

"Are you crazy?! Of course! And yeah yeah, that's all fine with me. I get it. Don't start worrying about it or nun. I was just curious."

Shuri's smile returns and she relaxes back into the bed. It was oddly comfortable, being that the last time she was here was before the war. Sure, they'd been talking for months over facetimes and calls. And texts. And letters.. oddly, but not to them. They were both truly as desperate as they felt, but excused it since it seemed mutual - opting to call it a mutual interest in friendship, as opposed to what it really was in the bigger picture. And sure, they had seen each other one other time, but it was so brief that it shouldn't really count - although it did, to both of them.

Shuri had arrived at an American event in Boston, forced to show face by the elders after the uproar surrounding her mother and everything. She felt it was too soon and didn't make sense to attend a tech gala when none of it was even touching Wakandan tech. But regardless, she put on her best suit and went, disregarding the elder's request for her to wear traditional royal attire. She sat there, wishing she hadn't come, while big investors droned on. The only part that peaked her interest was listening to the stories of young inventors. They reminded her of herself, so excited and in a hurry. They reminded her of someone else too. Someone she had been longing to see since she left Wakanda only a few months ago at the time.

Shuri muddled around the thought of calling Riri, or just showing up at her dorm. She knew she had responsibilities to attend to the next afternoon after she returned home, and it really hadn't been that long. Maybe Riri wasn't ready to see her yet? Or maybe she never would be. Or maybe Shuri had really made their connection up in her own mind. Or maybe she didn't? And maybe she should just call her, or maybe send her a quick text to keep it more casual? Keep what, casual exactly? She wasn't sure. She paced around her own mind anxiously the entire night, not realizing it was her turn to speak until the Doras were next to her asking if she was alright. She collected herself and headed to the stage, performing a speech much like her brother had about the importance of innovation, supporting the youth - especially the Black and Brown youth, etc. She meant what she said but she hardly felt as connected or present with it as she was when she wrote it. Still circling her mind was her favorite innovator, the scientist who made everything make sense to her. Pining so badly, by the end of her speech she had resolved to call Riri. Faking her smiles through the eruption of clapping and handshakes as she left the stage, she made her way back to her seat while the closing speech began - only to lose her resolve when Ayo bent down to whisper a reminder of their exit plan and their intended arrival time back in Wakanda.

She had known it was a foolish thought. Who even knew what the small scientist would be doing at this time? She could be working, studying, partying. God, Shuri hoped not but recoiled at her own thoughts. She wasn't heteronormative and she wasn't the toxic type. She just also felt jealous of anybody and anything that got to be around Riri when she wasn't. Which was most times. Essentially all the time. Really, she reasoned with herself, she had only been around Riri for a few days and it had been against her will anyway. Maybe she really was making all of this up in her head.

The Queen of Wakanda continued her mental pace as she made her exit, later than most guests and certainly not from the front entrance. She walked through the beautiful building with the Doras who were talking amongst themselves about logistics, seemingly all having caught onto another one of Shuri's "moods". Shuri paid them no mind, as they expected, while she began brooding. What was the point of coming to America, aside from like... the actual point, politically - if not to see her scientist? She caught herself scoffing at "her scientist", making fun of herself in her head as they headed outside and around the back when the Doras suddenly stood alert around her. Shuri looked around her and back at her beads quickly, doing a quick scan of their surroundings, only to hear a small, out of breath "Hey" from her left.

"Williams?"

"Yeah, yeah.. haha. Hoo. Crazy catching you here." Riri joked awkwardly as she tried to catch her breath from clearing having run.

"Yes, well I was-"

"Giving a speech. I saw on tv. Just happened to be in the neighborhood myself so I figured I'd uh, say hi." Riri cut the Panther off as she caught her bearings and finally made eye contact. Shuri made contact back, silently signaling for the Dora to drop their guard. Ayo looked between them but of course followed command. Shuri stepped between them and closer to the scientist, who was now twiddling her fingers and looking anywhere but at Shuri. Just like she did in Wakanda. Just like Shuri had replayed in her head a billion times over. While Shuri took the absence of eye contact as a chance to damn near gawk at the smaller woman, Riri was doing her own mental laps.

She also questioned her intentions and if she had been making this all up. She also questioned how crazy she must look, showing up here like this. She couldn't stop herself, leaving MJ, Peter and Ned in her OWN room after they had been flipping through channels and Riri caught a glimpse. That was all it took, one, maybe two seconds and she was out the door. And granted, she kind of was in the neighborhood. If you consider being four miles away in the neighborhood. She had considered grabbing her car from the garage but figured it would take too long, so she jumped in her nano suit her and Peter had been working on (that definitely still needed some work), and flew over. Of course she couldn't land in front of everyone, so she landed in a park a few blocks away and took off on foot. None of which she will EVER tell anybody, although she could barely remember her excuse to the three friends she left in her dorm as she forced herself to look back up and meet Shuri's eyes.

"In the neighborhood?"

"You could say that." Riri joked awkwardly again.

This made Shuri laugh. Riri had that effect on her, she had learned during their late night lab sessions. Even in the midst of the grimmest of days and a literal war, Riri had Shuri laughing so hard she cried a few times. They both seemed to be thinking back while they laughed together and smiled at each other shyly until Ayo cleared her throat.

"We must get going, Kumkanikazi." Both women seemed to jump a bit, having been pulled out of their staring contest. Riri shuddered at hearing Shuri be called that, she recognized it from when Okoye would speak about Queen Ramonda. She had done her best to pick up on as much of the language as she could when she was there, for some reason unknown to her - she just figured it would come in handy. But now, hearing it and knowing it meant Queen, shook her to her core. She remembered why she hadn't reached out, the guilt that sat in her bones about it. She nearly turned on her heels until she heard Shuri speak.

"One moment please."

"My Queen, we really must-" Ayo begun speaking in Xhosa but was cut off by the Panther Queen.

"Please. One moment." Shuri said, a command but almost begging, not turning to face the general one step to the side of her. She pulled at the necklace around her neck and Ayo nodded silently.

"I will ready the jet." Ayo answered and turned around, her and the two other Dora briskly walking to the jet that was just now coming into Riri's focus. She assumed it was using the new camouflage tech she had heard mentioned before she left Wakanda.

"Those things get cooler every time."

"Yeah, I suppose they do." Shuri laughed half heartedly. They both tried to speak but cut each other off.

"So-"

"I do-"

"You first." They both sheepishly smiled as they spoke in unison. but Riri insisted. "Go ahead, please."

Shuri would've resisted if she wasn't so desperate and struggling against showing it.

"How have you been? I've mis- I've been wondering. We haven't spoken since you left." Shuri caught herself, suddenly feeling like twiddling her fingers and looking at her shoes too but she resisted that too. She was good at resisting.

"Oh.. well yeah. I've been. You know, school, work. Just been trying to get through the semester. I wanted to re- well I wondered how you've been too."

"I've been, too." Shuri shrugged with a smile. She wanted to know more, everything. To devour the stories Riri could tell her, even the most mundane. She wanted to know what pencils she used to write equations and what she thought of the food in her cafeteria. Riri just smiled, feeling the weight again. She knew Shuri hadn't been good, and she knew she hadn't either.

"Can I ask you-" They both spoke in unison again.

"You first." Riri insisted again, before Shuri could. Shuri didn't like it but she also didn't have much time to waste.

"Why didn't you reach out?" She asked, leaving Riri out of breath all over again. After a second that seemed like a million, Riri answered.

"I didn't know how." She said truthfully.

"I left you beads. Maybe I should've left a note too. I'm sorry, I figured you'd-"

"No, no. Not like that. I figured that out, it was actually pretty easy." Riri smiled, thinking about how much fun it was to try to get the beads to work. Fun until it wasn't. Fun until she heard Shuri's voice message and left it for months.

"Then you didn't want to?"

"No, I did. I just didn't know... how. I didn't know what to say, or how to say it. But trust me, I wanted to. I really wanted to." Riri said earnestly and more quiet than she intended. Shuri believed her and took her answer, even if she didn't like it. Again resisting herself. Resisting Riri.

"I understand. Thank you for letting me know. Well..." She looked back at the Jet and sighed. They made eye contact before Shuri decided it would be best to count her losses in her own country, turning to leave.

"Wait, I still have a question!" Riri almost shouted. "If that's okay... of course." She said more quiet. Shuri turned around eager to hear. Hoping. Resisting. But hoping. She nodded her head.

"Well..." Riri twisted her fingers around in her hands. She still didn't know what to say or how to say it. But she didn't have much time to waste.

"Well?" Shuri asked, trying not to sound pushy but anxious to know.

"Is it too late?" Riri asked, looking back up at the woman in front of her. The face she had committed to memory, but a bit different. More mature. Somehow even more beautiful. Shuri said nothing.

"...To reach out... To talk?" Riri finally drove it home, sending a silent prayer to whoever would answer that she wouldn't further embarrass herself.

Startling the both of them, Shuri's beads lit up and Ayo's face appeared.

"My apologies my Queen, but if we do not leave in the next three minutes, you may be late to your engagements tomorrow."

"Yes, thank you. I'm coming." Shuri said back, eyes still on Riri.

Riri felt defeated as she watched the panther tuck her beads back up her sleeve. It probably was too late. And who knows. Maybe it was the right thing to do to not stay in contact. Maybe that's what was best for Wakanda or Shuri. She remembered her mother always telling her that sometimes "doing the right thing feels like shit". In this case, she thought, it felt worse than shitty.

That was until Shuri grabbed her hand. Softly, almost too soft in comparison to what you'd expect from a super powered panther. It was so soft yet sent a shiver through Riri, like electricity was coursing through her. Like her heart was beating for the first time. The eye contact was somehow not as awkward as it was a second ago when they were standing a few feet apart. It was like they were all alone.

"Use the beads. If they need to charge, just set them in the sun but they shouldn't."

"Oh- Okay. I will. I will." Riri said twice, almost like she was confirming with herself first and the Shuri.

"Good." Shuri smiled. She took a step closer before she heard another beep on her own beads. Before the General could speak, Shuri was already responding.

"I heard you. I'm coming."

She looked at Riri again and sighed, and suddenly Riri saw just how exhausted the Panther really was. And maybe something else too. Shuri stepped back again, not wanting to let go of Riri's hand.

"It'll never be too late. I'll see you soon?" Shuri said, finally letting go and letting the physical distance regrow between them, hoping that the emotional distance wouldn't grow again too.

Riri watched as the panther walked back to the jet and boarded, looking back only once, only long enough to catch Riri's small wave but not return it. The younger scientist stood there feeling disassociated, unsure of what to do next. Really, she knew she had to go back to her dorm and go back to living her real life just like she had after she left Wakanda. Although, as dreary as that still seemed to her, this time felt different. Like there was something to look forward to, if she had the balls to actually use the beads like Shuri had said. She mulled over whether or not it was an instruction or a question from the Panther as she chose not to watch the jet fly off behind her. She heard the media start to buzz again when they heard the jet, upset that they had missed the person they were waiting for. Yet, Riri stood there and stared at the ground where Shuri was just standing. She still felt that pathetic feeling, and worried that she hadn't had a chance to explain how she found Shuri or even knew she would be there. She felt the weight of grief again, after seeing how tired Shuri looked when you really looked at her. And she felt guilty, for feeling excited. For feeling the butterflies she always pretended she didn't feel. She wondered, briefly, how Shuri was feeling right now but per usual, tried not to wonder too much as to not become delusional. She knew better than anybody that assuming to know how someone else thinks is the worst mistake you can make.

Shuri, back in the jet that was flying faster than she would like, was afflicted by similar thoughts. She wondered how Riri had found her and wondered if she really was as lucky as that just felt. She wondered why the girl even came. She wondered if she thinks about her too. She wondered if Riri would use the beads. She sat awake, replaying every moment of their time together since their first encounter over and over until they arrived in Wakanda, despite the Doras concerns for her not getting rest. Shuri would rest when things were well enough for her to rest, she told herself, but even she was starting to notice the cracks. She knew she could only stay awake for so many days until her body would shut down. She had secretly tried some of the elixirs and teas that both Nakia and Aneka had sent her, and she had read what Okoye sent her after hearing everything. She had slept every now and then, but it was never restful. It was never without torment from some figment of her mind taking shape of someone she wasn't ready to face - whether that be Namor, N'jdaka, or her mother. She always prayed for T'Challa to appear, who she wasn't sure if she was ready to see but longed for the comfort of his voice or face, but each time her body fell asleep, her mind fell into a well pit of despair.

That is, until later that night. Shuri had been through her daily responsibilities after making it back to Wakanda. Once her meetings were over, she made her way to the lab. She did her best to avoid checking the status of Riri's beads, trying to keep her mind busy as she usually did. It was harder this time, knowing that she'd actually spoken to the girl. After bopping around a bit, her body started to feel the weight of the past few days. She hadn't been physically training as much as she should've the past few weeks, because she knew it would knock her out but she was starting to feel stiff. She finally let up and sat down at one of her desks in a back room of the lab after Griot had let her know her vitals. She didn't usually sit in this room, so she hadn't been aware of what was placed in there. As she lazily sifted through the papers on the desk to try to keep her mind occupied, she saw blueprints for Riri's Iron Heart suit. The same feeling of nervousness and excitement rose in her as she more hurriedly looked over them. Despite all the work they did together, she never really got to see too much of Riri's initial process from scratch. She ran her slender fingers over Riri's pencil marks, reading over all her notes to herself.

With a yawn, Shuri sat back and relished in the fact that Riri actually existed. Sometimes, when Shuri was really out of it, she couldn't believe that everything really happened. She was sometimes convinced she would wake up and her mother would still be here, or that Riri was just a figment of her desperate imagination. Sure, having her mother back would be... well, everything. But it scared Shuri to think Riri might not have been real, that she didn't really happen. She felt selfish for this, knowing that Riri's life would probably be better without the trauma she endured in Wakanda. But nevertheless, Shuri held on tight to the memories she had of the woman, hoping that they would be enough for her.

She thought about how it felt to hold Riri's hand, to touch her skin again. It was just as soft and delicate as it had been when they parted ways a few months ago. Her face looked the same, maybe more mature in some ways. She looked tired too, underneath the face she put on for other people. They had gotten past that with each other during their long nights alone working together in the lab.

She thought about what it would feel like to fall asleep in Riri's bed. The mattress probably wasn't super comfortable but she remembers all the colorful pillows she has, messily strewn across the surface. The different colored blankets would probably fit them both well, even with the little space a twin bed supplies. They would have to be close, touching. Shuri imagined breathing in sync, feeling Riri's ribcage rise and fall in her arms while they were pressed against each other. She thought about how Riri smells. She's been trying to replicate it for months. She thought about breathing her in, laying her face in the crook of her neck and sleeping. Not thinking. Sleeping. Not even having to dream. She thought about waking up next to her, seeing her sleeping still until Shuri shifted too much by accident. Riri waking up and no doubt saying something funny. Or soft. Or just saying hello. How her eyes would look. She thought about not being afraid to make it real, that in her thoughts she didn't have to pretend that these touches were by accident or out of necessity. That they could spend an eternity, wrapped in colorful blankets, sleeping and touching skin to skin. That maybe Riri would feel the same, and they would laugh about how long it took to figure it out. That they would laugh until they couldn't, and talk until they couldn't, and then they would kiss. And everything would melt away, and neither would know where their skin would begin or end. And they would kiss until they couldn't. And they'd sleep.

She hadn't realized she had fallen asleep at the desk until she heard Griot's voice.

"Sorry to startle you, Panther. But, Miss Williams is trying to contact you. How would you like me to proceed?"

Shuri was shook, unsure of what she looked like or even what time it was. She felt nervous. She felt groggy, not even sure if this was real either. Nevertheless, she answered.

"Patch me through, please."

She waited a moment with bated breath, hoping this wasn't a dream or some fluke. Until she heard a familiar voice.

"Hello?" Riri asked, sounding nervous herself. Shuri wondered what time it was there, too.

"Hey." She said, in a more relaxed tone. Even if this wasn't real, it was still the best dream she'd had in months. Maybe ever.

And they talked, for a long time. Eventually working through any awkwardness. Riri never explained how she made it to the Panther, and the Panther never asked. She did explain, however, why it took so long for her to call. Shuri just listened and let herself laugh, like she'd been dreaming about. Finally feeling free for a little bit, even if it was just for a little bit.

On the other side of things, once Riri had cleared everyone out of her room when she got back and promising to explain to MJ later, she had sat down and thought about what to do. That turned into pacing and talking outloud. She had been avoiding the beads like the plague for months, unsure of what to do. Unsure of what choice would cause the least harm, since she already felt guilty for what she had caused. She found herself awake all night feeling anxious. She left for class that morning, deciding that she would get through her day and take a nap. She would figure it out after that. What she didn't tell Shuri, is how hard its been to sleep since she left Wakanda, or really even how hard it was while she was there. But when she tried to take a nap, she realized that all she dreamed about this time was Shuri and how soft her hand was when they had touched and how peaceful it felt to talk to her, even if only for a few moments and only a few words. She decided when she woke up that even if they ended up never talking again, she would keep her promise and use the beads.

And that's what she did. And that's what they kept doing, for weeks and months. They talked, they listened, they laughed, and on rare occasion, fell asleep. Both free from nightmares, even if just for a little while. Until Shuri finally arrived.

And finally, they had some time to really figure things out. Shuri promised she wasn't missing anything important by being there, and that she had allotted enough time. Riri was still unsure about it but couldn't resist the opportunity to finally see the woman she had been pining over for months - as a friend, of course.

As Riri remembered back fondly, she had forgotten what was ahead of her until she was jolted by turbulence that was usually well controlled by the Wakandan tech in the fighter jet. She couldn't process how she could possibly be on her way to confront the man that almost killed her and did actually kill the Queen of Wakanda. She couldn't fathom that she was racing there, against her love, her best friend, to make sure she didn't kill him first. Suddenly her clothes all felt too tight, and her suit felt heavy despite being nano. Suddenly the air felt hot and her lungs felt empty and she felt dizzy. She had felt all of this before, a panic attack. Riri Williams was no stranger to a panic attack. Not before Wakanda, and definitely not after. Though, for the past few months, she had always had Shuri to help ground her. Now, she was floating in the air, literally and figuratively. Everything was moving so fast. She felt herself spiraling and cursing herself in the process, unable to stop it but ashamed nonetheless. She had worked hard, since she was younger, to have a control over her emotions and thoughts. She needed to, especially if she was going to take this super hero shit serious. Especially if she was going to be there for her mom and sister after her dad passed. Especially if she was going to make it. But she felt that control slowly ripping itself to shreds, doing a number on all the mental blocks she had in place. She couldn't lose Shuri. She couldn't be the cause of another war in Wakanda. She couldn't live with the guilt. She couldn't let Shuri get hurt, or worse, for her again. Even if it meant confronting a man much more powerful than her. Even if it meant losing. Even if it meant drowning all over again.

Suddenly, she felt a cool hand grace the side of her cheek. She felt her suit dematerialize around her until it was just a bracelet again. She felt Okoye kneel down in front of her, eyes kinder than they usually were. She felt her pull her in close and squeeze. The pressure of the embrace bringing Riri back into her body. They stayed like that until Riri could breathe again.

She went to apologize as Okoye pulled back silently, just as she had appeared, but she was cut off.

"Aht aht. There is no need." Okoye softly but firmly let her know, sitting down next to her. They had never been this close before. Riri looked over to see the jet flying itself. The first time she saw that happen she was crazy nervous, but she's grown to trust both Wakandan tech and Okoye. After a few moments of silence, Okoye spoke again.

"I know what she means to you, you know."

Riri looked at her finally, noticing how somber her eyes really looked. She had seen those eyes before, but not like this. Okoye continued, looking back out the windows.

"I was T'Challa's right hand. I saw it all, from the beginning to the end. I saw him be the panther, I saw him be the king. I saw him be Shuri's brother." Riri felt a pang in her at the use of Shuri's name. She listened.

"And I saw him fall in love. I saw him devote himself to Nakia, and I saw her unravel at the loss of him - until she left. I saw it all, as much as I could. And I often wondered why I didn't feel the way they seemed to feel when my husband betrayed me and Wakanda. But their love... it was pure. It was something out of this world, it was something built into them." Okoye sighed, feeling grief in many directions. Riri found herself fighting back tears again until Okoye looked at her with different eyes, almost loving eyes this time.

"I have seen that kind of love before and that is how I know you have it. Both of you. And that is how I know we will figure this out." Okoye looked at her and squeezed her hand again, affirming what she said. They both heard the AI tell them they were approaching in the next 5 minutes. Through her tears that were now shamelessly falling down her face, Riri gulped out a question, in true Riri fashion.

"Do you think you will ever love like that?"

"I already do." Okoye said, getting up and adjusting herself to get back to the front of the plane to chart their secret entrance into Wakanda. Riri looked confused.

"Ngudade wethu." Okoye answered again, before sitting down and being who she needed to be. Riri knew what she said, and knew that she was right. About all of it.

As they prepared themselves, Riri suited up and made her way to the front of the plane.

"Where did he say to meet?" The midnight angel asked Riri. She sent the coordinates to the jet and looked at them wistfully. She hadn't really thought about where she might actually be going to "talk" to him when she was rushing to get herself to Wakanda. She jumped when Okoye gasped.

"What?! What is it?!" Worry filled her from head to toe again, hoping it had nothing to do with Shuri.

"That bastard... We are going to have to find a way to break into the palace. He wants to meet in the throne room."

Riri was speechless, knowing that this was a tactic to try to make her feel weak. She also couldn't deny that it was working. She felt her heart rate increase at the thought of being back in there. Of seeing the place where she almost died. Of... all of it. She had visited many times in her dreams, all against her will. And now she would face him there, against her will. She knew he was doing this to weaken her resolve, much like her and Shuri did with the dehydrating jet. She knew his intent all along, but this certainly solidified it.

Riri tried to make peace with dying in Wakanda. Once again, her mom wouldn't know where she was or how any of this happened. She wondered what lie they would tell her. She wondered if she would fight or just give herself to him. She wondered what Shuri would do, knowing this wouldn't end well no matter what she did. But she held her mind together as best as she could. She knew she had to meet him before she did. She knew she had to do what she could to prevent a second war. Okoye knew too, looking at her and then pulling up her own beads to try and locate Shuri.

"The Panther's location services are currently offline." The Ai spoke to them.

"Let us pray she is behind us and not ahead of us."

"Will she know where to find us?"

"We are about to break into the most secure place on the planet earth. I'm sure everyone will know where to find us in a matter of moments." Okoye answered and they shared a look.

"I hope you know, I will fight until the end with you. I have stood with the Wakandan throne my whole life. I have stood with Shuri and those that came before her. I have stood for the safety of my people as best as possible, but I have made my own mistakes before. I will stand with you, now, Riri. No matter the outcome."

Riri felt the pull of her tear ducts again but different this time. Okoye reminded her of her own sister, and of her own mistakes. She reached out a hand and found Okoye's. They held hands until it was time to land.

Once they had maneuvered their way into the country using Okoye's knowledge as former general and her new disguising tech, which Riri made a note to recreate if she made it out of this, Riri followed Okoye into the dense jungle around them.

"The best chance we have is to stay low until we can't anymore, and then charge in. The Doras won't see it coming but they will react, with their full might as they've been trained to do. Even to me. Our goal is not to harm any Wakandans, but we have to get to the throne room before he does. I will do my best to reason with Ayo and Aneka but they will resist a meeting with him there. Once we spot him, we must draw him away from the palace. Even if it means drawing him to the sea. Remember that he is most powerful near water."

Riri nods as she listens. Okoye wishes there were another way.

"Remember that if we see Shuri, we may already be too late. We must keep them separate. I do not know if she will choose peace a second time. Not when it concerns you."

"I don't want her to do this, I hope you know. You were right. You were right about it all. I love her. But I don't want her to risk everything for me. You all already have and I can't live with that. I can't live with any of this. I don't want to die but... But I can't let everyone else die for me either." Riri spits out, hoping she's being believed. She means it. Okoye looks at her and hears Nakia's voice in her head. "I just know his spirit. It is simple in that way for me."

"Ndiyawazi umoya wakho. I believe you. And I will fight to make sure no one has to die today, unfortunately even him if it means peace."

"Thank you."

"Thank you, small girl."

"For what?" Riri asked, genuinely surprised since most of the mayhem the past few months has been a result of her actions - intentional or not.

"For giving her something to hold onto again. Something to believe in." Okoye answered truthfully. Riri didn't know what to say but she took in what the older woman said, against trusting her. After a few moments of silence, it was time.

"Stand behind me and do not fly until I tell you. If you enter the air space anywhere near the palace, you will be shot down before you can count to one. Do you understand?" Riri nodded.

She did understand. Now, more clearly than ever.

🖤

#black sapphic #riri williams #Shuri Udaku #iron heart #black panther #black panther wakanda forever #black wlw #marvel #SHURIRI #SCIENCE GAYS #SORRY FOR THE ANGST BUT I HAD TO

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