#Fallen and Risen AU

[icefir-windbreaker]

Welcome to How To Make Friends In Other Universes! Step One: Get into a fight and be shocked to see a fallen angelic version of yourself. (With a original version of yourself watching this) Original (I did say I wanted to digitalize this!)

@muzzleroars's Fallen Gabriel is trying to give the Archangel-to-Fallen-Archangel talk with my Gabe but he is taking it much harder than he realizes. And Canon Ultrakill Gabriel is shocked to see this crap go down.

Again. I hope it goes well!

#ULTRAKILL #Gabriel #Fallen Gabriel #Canon Gabriel #Fallen Angel #Fallen and Risen AU #All-Star -Story Mode- Rewritten #Original universe #Ultrakill Gabriel #My Art #Digital Art #Microsoft Paint #GIMP #Drawing Tablet

[muzzleroars]

taking a tour of heaven before finally heading home

#ultrakill #v1 #gabriel #gabv1el #i wasn't kidding about how much 'if i could become a comet' is destroying me!! #thinking about gabe being able to show v1 what was his home after all this time....UAAGHH #like to think this is the view from venus....the sphere of lovers... #i uh. also need a tag for this au.....'rise and fall' working title #fallen gabriel #risen v1 #rise and fall au #doodle tag

[the-one-who-lambs]

when you watch the past god of death try to kill the current one so he can get his powers back but he's a little too gay to actually commit and he's too fucking stupid to realize it

#hannah's rambles #cult of the lamb #Risen Lamb/Fallen God chapter 8 spoilers without context but i made the image generic so y'all can use this for your narilamb aus too

[bonefall]

It would be funny if people channeled aither Appledusk or Frecklewish for protection against Mapleshade SPECIFICALLY. They protect cats that are haunted by her for no other reason then petty spite.

I lean towards Frecklewish on a more general level because she is spiteful in the dark forest

With Apple I got the idea that it is a sort of unspoken dark secret in river clan since that's where his bloodline is. It just exists as an old ghost story that is told "If you are ever haunted by a ghostly Calico Cat, go to the old apple tree and say a damned man's name three times." And everyone just thinks it as a weird folk story.

Anyways, main point is that ghost curse horror movie Mapleshade is a really good idea

Frecklewish would RELISH the chance the beat the snot out of Mapleshade. Mostly the thing that would stand in the way is that Frecklewish shares no relation to the Applekin and even has a bit of a grudge of her own, but she is totally the sort of person who would put that aside for the chance to beat Maple's face in.

Appledusk could probably be channeled easily, just find a crabapple tree and strip its bark at sunset, but BB!Apple is kind of a pushover. He has a lot of regrets about his life, and hopes for atonement so that he may one day join StarClan. He may have mixed feelings on granting requests.

I'd say that he's good for undoing Maple's curses, but not going to town with her.

Frecklewish is DEFINITELY hard to get ahold of for some reason. You probably need something that adders produce... but if you call for her, she's there immediately.

Not to mention, though, the StarClan cats who are open for invocation. Maybe I should give Stormpaw's Demon a bit of a theme of "information loss" between generations as a result of neglect... Duskwater taught Rainflower how to cope with her curse, but Rainflower did not pass on the information to her own children, and they have to "re-discover" the wisdom that she should have given them.

Will make for a pretty awesome moment when one of them is able to get the attention of Petalstar.

#Maple @ Crooked SECONDS before Freckle turns her white spots red and her red spots white: #''ugh here you go pitting two bad bitches against each other 🙄'' #Stormpaw's Demon #Better Bones AU #The Goetia is a big inspiration for BB!Dark Forest cats #I really like how they all have their own little motivations. I've always been fascinated by Marchosias in particular #A demon ''deceived'' by the hope of redemption. Fallen angels but no risen demons

[arkos404]

i dont think yall understand how much i love the other souls, your honor

#undertale #undertale fanart #ut frisk #frisk #the other 6 humans #god how do i tag them #they deserve it #the 8 humans #god the other souls wouldve been such great siblings #i have an au for this actually #7 risen humans #yknow since they were the fallen humans but now theyve risen

[clownqueenofprom]

Royal Christening (A Hero is Born, #1)

I found this Risen Shadow/Fallen Sun au by @lavender-descendentheart wherein Lady Bone Demon finds Sun Wukong under the mountain and frees him, so Tripitaka is forced to settle for Macaque when about to go on the journey, that just REACHED my heart, so I had to write out like… like a first chapter for it.

Whatever this is. MK will be referred to as Xiaotian because what else do you want from me? You want me to call him SK for “Shadow Kid”? I’m not calling him SK. I’m not a vsco girl. And Xiaojiao Long for Mei because I just like that better than “Mei Dragon” to be completely honest. This note is because authors be writing these fanfics, using the Chinese names and then expecting people to just… KNOW who everyone is.

Qi Xiaotian was just a delivery boy. Nothing more, nothing less.

He was an orphan, with no memory of his life before meeting the noodle shop’s owner, who’d taken him in- of course, not without grumbling about how he’d have to pull his weight around the shop in exchange.

Xiaotian didn’t have any complaints. It was sometimes a hassle, but it was fun sometimes and it was certainly heaps better than being on the streets without a thing to his name. He was happy to do anything asked of him.

But a delivery to an unfinished construction site- that was halfway underground? He had to draw the line somewhere, right?

“An order’s an order, kid,” His boss, and as far as he was concerned, surrogate father “Pigsy” (that wasn’t his real name, but that didn’t make it any less fitting.) had told him gruffly, pointing his spoon matter-of-factly.

“I can’t have a costumer giving me a bad review! That’s exactly what the competition wants.”

“Oh, don’t be so dramatic, Pigsy,” Tang had said, leaning on the pig demon’s shoulder without a care, spinning around a chopstick with his free hand. “It’s raining cats and dogs! You can’t make Xiaotian go out in all that! Your noodles are the best in town!”

A cartoonish vein popped up on Pigsy’s forehead as he shoved Tang off of his shoulder. “Yeah, I bet!” He’d barked. “That’s why you’re always around here freeloading, ain’t it!?”

The moment another one of their typical childish arguments began, it became apparent to Xiaotian that he wasn’t getting out of this strange request- for noodles… underground.

Unfortunately, his little delivery boy cart wasn’t exactly accommodated to rides underground, especially considering the seemingly constant poor weather in Megapolis.

No matter the season, it was either foggy, raining, or snowing, which made it especially hard for a delivery boy such as Xiaotian. Scientists yet to have come up with an official theory for why the whether was so bizarre despite the location and season, but there’s been talk of a constructing a weather station to control it.

Matter of fact, he thought as he finally came across his destination, ready to climb down underneath the unfinished building and deliver his boss’ noodles, that was the very building he would be trespassing beneath this afternoon.

“Hoo boy,” he said aloud, a little bead of sweat rolling down his face at the sight of the undone building in front of him.

The heavy rain helped nothing, and since none of the workers were out, perhaps because of the violent storm, it looked throughly abandoned, thoroughly unstable, and thoroughly creepy.

He cracked a nervous smile, hesitantly walking forward and ducking underneath a wooden scaffolding, crawling into a hole that looked like it was about to become a basement.

He checked the directions on his phone (all of which had been manufactured waterproof, as the constant rain called for a lot of accommodations.) and hummed unsurely before taking a left, poking his head through a recently dug out hole.

As for what he saw- well, he wasn’t really sure what he expected in the first place.

It was just a cave, with pipelines for the unfinished building above lining the ceiling- but inside that cave was an entire squadron of mechanic-seeming… bull demons, all of which looked exactly the same, as if they’d been mass produced.

A tiny squeak of surprise escaped him, but none of the bull… robots seemed to notice.

Their appearance reminded him of one of the many stories Tang had told him while he cleaned up the shop- the story about the Demon Bull King.

It was no more than historical fiction, of course, but it described an epic battle, a raw display of aggression between two demons, the Monkey King and the Demon Bull King.

Monkey King emerged victorious, sealing the Bull King underneath a mountain with his staff before he vanished, never to be seen again until finally being defeated by the famed Six-Eared Macaque. (The details of that second battle were unknown to him until Tang got another bowl of free noodles.)

He shook away his thoughts, scrambling to find his phone. He hoped with all his heart that he’d found the wrong underground hideout beneath an unfinished business.

Of course, that was not the case.

At a genuine loss for what to do next, Xiaotian just sat there for a moment, awkwardly wedged in between an unfinished bathroom and a freaking underground lair.

”It feels like I’ve waited an eternity for this moment,” Over everything else, the sound of a feminine voice stood out to him. “Is everything in order?”

“Just making the final adjustments, mother.”

Xiaotian flinched, turning his eyes in the direction of the female voice, which was then followed by a male’s.

The woman was tall and dark haired, with an impractical but impressive horned headset and a traditional dress you wouldn’t see on anyone in the modern day.

The boy was much younger, her son, he inferred, and had red hair tied into a high ponytail and small glasses, along with a random scar on his upper cheek.

He didn’t recognize either of them, but one of them had ordered noodles, and Megapolis was a big city after all. Most of Pigsy’s shoppers were regulars. First time for everything, he guesses.

He used his teeth to hold the bag, laying both hands flat against the stone to force himself out of the hole. With an alarming lack of grace, he fell, rolling into the dirt.

He quickly recovered, however, pushing himself off the ground. “Hey!” He yelled, dusting the dirt off of his red hoodie.

“Huh?” The boy’s expression contorted into disgust at the sight of Xiaotian. “What are you supposed to be?” He demanded, as if Xiaotian were some creature that just crawled out from underneath the bed.

“Oh! Uh, I’m Xiaotian.” He smiled sheepishly, holding up the bag of noodles. “Here from Pigsy’s Noodles? Order for two classic bowls, right?”

“Not right, you oaf!” The redhead seethed, slapping the noodles to the ground. “Nobody here ordered your peasant food.”

In the corner of his eye, Xiaotian noticed one of the Bull robots start to seemingly sweat nervously, but the redhead didn’t see it. Instead, he pointed an accusatory finger at Xiaotian.

“Do you know who we are?” He hissed. “I am Red Son, the one and only son of the Demon Bull King, and I-”

“Enough of this,” The mother hissed, tired of her son’s rambling. “We’ve no time for games. Be on your way, peasant boy.”

She narrowed her eyes at Xiaotian, who broke into a sweat as he spared her a nervous chuckle.

She turned away, training her eyes on a little hill filled with dead grass, and a similarly wilted tree. In he middle of tiny hill was a staff. “We must focus all our energy on lifting the staff.”

Xiaotian furrowed his brow. Lifting a staff didn’t seem like it would be that hard.

A Bull robot, the same one that he suspected ordered those noodles, quickly scrambled up the top of the hill, pulling on the staff.

Instead of running like he probably should have, Xiaotian watched intently as the Bull robot heaved and heaved, pulling on the staff, but in the end, his arms gave flying off instead.

The Bull’s body landed at… Red Son(?)’s feet. “You fool!” The redhead said smugly. “You think we didn’t try that already? It’s going to take more than a few robots to lift the Monkey King’s staff. Only those deemed worthy can wield-”

Xiaotian cut him off, shoving his palm into the redhead’s cheek to move him aside. “Monkey King’s staff? That is a really realistic model, but that staff isn’t real, you know.” He said lightheartedly, ignoring Red Son’s cries of umbrage as he walked up to the hill, smiling until he reached the staff.

“You just have to twist and pull. Righty tighty, lefty loosey!” He said, quoting the old rhyme.

As he wrapped his hand around the hilt of the staff, a shudder went down his spine- not a chill, but rather a sweltering heat.

“You idiot,” Red Son said, rubbing his cheek. “Get down from there immediately, peasant! Someone must teach you your pla-”

The arrogant boy was immediately silenced when Xiaotian tugged on the staff, pulling it out of it’s spot situated in the ground. As far as he knew, it wasn’t even in there that tight.

The mother gasped as the staff can free, and Xiaotian held it in his hand, above his head in a mock victorious pose. Whispers aligned into an odd term as he held it, brushing against his ears.

“Sun Wukong,”; they told him.

“He did it…!” The mother gasped aloud, but the son wasn’t very amused.

“Then why is nothing happening!?” He demanded, before looking at his mother flatly.

“Mother, are you sure this is the right mountain?”

“No,” The mother said in annoyance, holding her palm to her forehead. “Maybe it was that other mountain with the magical staff, sealing away my husband!”

Xiaotian glanced down at the staff in his hands. There was no way that thing was the Monkey King’s staff, right?

His thoughts were proved wrong in a flash of erupting green light from the ground beneath him, tossing him across the room, clutching onto the staff for dear life.

Out of the ashes of what used to be ground, a giant bull- who could only be the Demon Bull King- the real Demon Bull King, even with a broken horn and a body and face that was riddled with scars from his head to his toe, the demon exuded power that Xiaotian had never seen before.

“Flesh,” he utters, “Bone…” He stared down at his clawed hands, clenching them, simply to test out movement. “I have returned to the realm of the living!”

“Demon Bull King!” The woman said, a wicked grin on her face. “How I’ve missed you.”

“Princess Iron Fan,” The King greeted in return. crossing his arms with what can only be described as ‘something kind of like a smile’. “The years have been kind. How did you free me?”

In response to the King’s question, Xiaotian’s body was quickly kicked away by Red Son, explaining what had happened in quick recession that was barely understandable.

“I-It doesn’t matter though, Father!” The boy sputtered. “If we have the noodle boy, we have the staff, and we have them both right here!”

The Bull King glared at Xiaotian, who backed up in fear and alarm, clutching onto the staff for dear life as Red Son continued.

“Together, we, the Demon Bull Family, will plunge the world into eternal darkness!”

Oh jeez, The supposed Demon Bull Family, along with their little gofers, the robots, turned to give Xiaotian a glaring look, their eyes gleaming in the darkness. Xiaotian stared at the staff in his hands, sweat rolling off his forehead.

This was all his fault, wasn’t it?

Next? 👀

#lego monkie kid #canon divergent au #six eared macaque #Risen Shadow/Fallen Sun au #qi xiaotian #long xiaojiao #lmk au #lmk macaque #alternate universe

[m1lkt00th]

very messy idea but it’s been in my thoughts for a while. dream and nightmare with swapped pallets and additional limbs (wings/tentacles)

i about doing the whole “they also have their respective ideologies swapped” but.. nah. (pretty sure shattered and dreamswap already does that lol)

okay i only remembered this because “fallen angel & ascended demon” which immediately made me think of the apple twins

i cant think of anything else off the top of my head and im leaving in less than two minutes so

#imagine posting #undertale #undertale au #nightmare sans #dream sans #fallen & risen #tooth rambles

[lavender-descendentheart]

thought I’d try my hand at writing for my Au so yeah guess it’s here doubt you will but hope you enjoy my latest piece of garbage

a cold game

She has always been cold, the monkey king thought, it was sort of her thing conjuring ice and all but this was a sort of coldness he would never get used to. The stale dead air in his lungs, the ever present whispering around him. And most of all HER, she had changed so much, and to such a extent that if it wasn’t for the familiar glow in her eyes he wouldn’t be able to tell it was her at all.

blue moves bishop forward

She looks up at him,”you seem troubled” she asks with what he could easily mistake for a sign that everything was normal. that she was intact he was intact,”I’m perfectly fine just thinking about how you got the decorations up in here ya know” he lies

Gold takes rook of blue

he knows she knows but she doesn’t comment on it and neither does he.” So” he opens prompting her attention” why are you not yourself?” He asks bringing attention to the proverbial elephant in the room.” What do you mean?” The spirit replies.” You know exactly what I mean, why are you not yourself? Why are you in the body of a child?” He asks firmer this time,” this host had proven quite useful so I fail to see the harm in keeping them around a little while longer”

blue takes pawn of gold

“your dodging” he states she knew she always knew what he mean’s the demon sighs,” what would I dodge? There is nothing to avoid” the lady replies. His eyes narrow” besides the smell of rot and ash coming from you” He says, she stiffens” show me, please” he asks and much to his relief she obliges casting off her host for the moment. Black locks turns to white, blue gaze becomes red and whispers grow louder. And he sees her.

She’s different, her form looks mutilated compared to his last memory of it. Her cheeks were now lined with ashen fangs. Her sclerae had become a deep black, her waist was lined in broken chains. She had cracks emanating flickers of blue coming from her eyes, Her face vaguely resembled a jackal now. He had thought her imprisonment would be kinder then his, it appeared he had been gravely mistaken. The silence is deafening as the smell of rot and death fills the room.

blue takes bishop of gold

she’s not looking at him anymore driving her blood colored eyes to the board, the little game they play still.” I still don’t see why you didn’t show me before it’s not bad really” he says in hopes of grabbing her gaze.

blue moves two spaces

she’s silent, stiller then the dead.” What will you do?” He asks. Now that grabs her attention, her eyes snap towards him” I will continue on as my destiny foretells” she says robotically the whispers grow louder yet still he can’t understand them, unlike before so long ago.” That’s not what I meant, what will YOU do?” He asks hoping he will receive answer he worries for her, he could handle imprisonment it was something he was familiar with but her? He had no idea what has happened to her.

CHECKMATE Blue wins

she flickers, warping back into the visage of her host, then she turns to the monkey she called friend” I very much enjoyed this opportunity to catch up with you peachling, we should do this again in the future goodbye sun” she says before making her leave from their shared space. He grimaces but quickly puts forth a smile” it’s been nice to see ya too blue” he says with a crafted smile

much to his suprise she smiles back with warmth he thought she had long forgotten,” I don’t know” she says.”wha-“ he begins to ask what she means before she leaves and their space shatters. And he’s left alone once again,” don’t worry Blue I’ll find a way to fix you, but I need to check up on the Cub first” he says to no one in particular before calling his cloud. He takes a breath, and makes his way to his destination.

Yep that’s it here’s my garbage The Risen Shadow and Fallen Sun AU everyone! Misery for everyone involved

#monkie kid #lego monkie kid #lady bone demon #lmk lbd #sun wukong #white bone spirit #monkey king #monkie kid sun wukong #lmk sun wukong #lego sun wukong #my writing #fuck erlang #Risen shadow AU #Fallen Sun AU #Don’t worry there will be a happy ending… #Eventually #lmk wukong #wukong lying to make things better not working on a almost emotionless husk who knew #Yeah she’s worse then in the show #Did I feel sad while writing this yes I did #Incoming asskicking #Wukong here be like incoming adoption and macaque abuse

[pawnshopsouls]

In the short amount of time the Salem has been on the Spider’s Skiff, it wasn’t unusual for there to be a fight or two; some pirates thinking they had what it take to take down this crew, but they were always proved wrong.

At least. That was the case before this.

Sivik’s crew made short work of the extra hands, but, the giant Kell-sized Eliksni had called them off before they slaughtered everyone. No, the rest were to be hostages.

And the lumbering figure of Siviks was making his way right towards Salem.

The blue-clad eliksni let out a tremendous war cry as he peeled through a small crowd of invading pirates, taking no time in cutting through them with the energy spear, two hands working furiously to cut while the other two blocked and stabbed at the surrounding pirates. But even with his efforts, blades and gunfire pierced his body, forcing him to back until there was nowhere else to retreat. Salem flicked one of his lower hands, dropping a healing well as the looming figure of the enemy captain—kell?—whoever it was, approached.

Pressing a hand to a wound in his abdomen, Salem held his position, spear and handcanon at the ready—fallen weaponry be hanged. “Don’t come out yet, Chance,” he whispered, ether hissing through the tubes on his mask.

“But I’ve got to heal you—”

“That baron or whatever will squish you flat. If worst comes to worst, wait until you get a chance to revive me. I don’t want them hurtin’ yeh.”

The ghost took a moment before giving a hesitant reply. “Alright,” he said reluctantly, “But no second later!”

Salem gave a smirk before looking up at the approaching Eliksni and crew. “Come back fer more death?” the blue-clad vandal asked, brandishing his spear. “My blade’s still goin’ if yeh wanna wet it.”

It wasn’t what he’d usually say but in desperate times, sometimes you have to play the part to make a bluff believable. At least that’s what Rikis would say.

#¢::Passin'Gossip::¢ #eliksni!salem #risen eliksni #//Hhhh au where Salem actually does get turned into a fallen with no extra bells and whistles attached :3c #skifflight reference

[giveemhales]

🦇 My Top 25 Batfam Fics of 2023 🦇

I try to maintain an annual tradition of shouting out some of my top fanfics of the year so that new/current writers can get some love and appreciation. This year I got really into Batfam and read literally hundreds of fics, so here is my first ever Batfam fic rec list! I read so many incredible fics, and these are just a few of my fav to come out in 2023. Most of these are Tim Drake-centric because he’s my fav, but there’s also a lot of Jason, Dick, Damian, and Bruce. If you like any of these fics, make sure to show the author some love! And from the bottom of my heart, thank you to all fic writers for making the world a bit more beautiful. Happy new year ❤️

Ordered by word count:

New Traditions by @kgraces (2.3k, tim & bruce, angst with a happy ending, bruce revives a family tradition only tim was unaware of)

Every Letter Counts by @laynaneedstherapy (2.4k, tim & jason, fluff and humor, tim asks robin to help him with his english homework) (i also recommend the rest of the series, which is very angsty but very good)

Owl Song by @ghost-bird (2.5k, dick & jason, fluff, talon!dick decides he’s going to take care of jason) (first part of a very sweet series)

“Thanks, Dad” by @selkienight60 + beautiful art by @ky-landfill (2.6k, tim & bruce, angst with a happy ending, tim accidentally calls bruce dad and it leads to revelations for both of them)

the back corner booth by @tarvek-sturmvoraus (4.1k, tim & jason, angst with a happy ending, tim asks the red hood to kill his parents) *READ TAGS FOR WARNINGS

heat-seeking missile by @green-eyedfirework (4.1k, tim & jason (& bruce & dick), a/b/o dynamics, basically all fluff, tim is having a heat when jason comes to attack him at titan’s tower and this changes things)

A New Brother by @sishal01 (4.3k, tim & jason & bruce, angst with a happy ending, jason survives the joker’s attack but tim still joins the batfam) (also has an adorable little sequel)

what’s in a name by @envysparkler (4.5k, dick-centric, angst with a happy ending, dick and jason are kidnapped at a gala)

Maybe with a Shift in Planets by @sunflowersandink (4.5k, cass-centric, tim and cass join the batfam early, mute cass, fluff and angst, cass decides she will protect tim and bruce decides he will protect both of them)

all the small weights by @sparkysomething (6.4k, bruce & jason, hurt/comfort and some humor, bruce is hit with fear toxin and jason is the only one available to help)

Another Mirror by @byrambles (6.5k, damian-centric, reverse robins au, angst with a happy ending, good bruce saves the bat kids from evil bruce in an alternate dimension but mistakenly believes damian is evil) (i also highly recommend the sequel- the whole series is phenomenal and an all time fav) *READ TAGS FOR WARNINGS

Refuge of Last Resort by @wildsofmarch (7.4k, jason & tim, angst with a hopeful ending, tim goes to jason after killing the joker)

fallen angel//risen demon by @call-me-quill (7.6k, tim & bruce, fluff and angst, demon hunter!bruce adopts demon!tim) (i recommend reading the whole series which largely focuses on alfred and the rest of the batfam)

rafter of satin, roof of stone by @sardonic-sprite (8.1k, tim & jason, angst with a happy ending, tim is buried alive and only jason can save him)

In Love With Justice by Jedi_Olympian (9.7k, dick & bruce (+ dick/wally and bruce/clark), fluff and humor, misunderstandings, the justice league think batman and nightwing are together)

Forgiveness by L_autore_Passionale (9.9k, jason & dick (& tim & bruce), angst with a happy ending, jason goes to attack tim at titan’s tower not realizing he switched bodies with dick)

Stranger than Fiction by @fox-muldest (11.8k, tim-centric, fluff and humor, tim writes fanfic about batman but wasn’t prepared for the batfam to actually find it) (this fic actually made me cackle)

oh my god are you guys homophobes? by @antebunny (14.3k, tim-centric, angst with a happy ending, jason arrives to save tim from the league of assassins but unfortunately tim has no memory of jason or his past life) (update: the fic has new scenes and is now 26.6k)

Luminous Beings by @banditywrites (15.8k, tim & jason, angst with a happy ending, jason can see light surrounding people about to die and tim glows particularly bright)

the butler’s neighbor by @dear-galileo (16.6k, alfred & tim, fluff and angst with a happy ending, alfred begins taking care of the neighbor kid) (also has two very wholesome sequels)

Where sorrows live and raptures die by @dark-nymphs-fanfiction (22.5k, jason & tim, angst with a happy ending, tim is afraid of jason after the titan’s tower attack and jason struggles to forgive himself)

So…Rock, Paper, Scissors? by @misstuesday9 (24.7k, jason & tim & dick & damian, angst with a happy ending, jason is told to pick one of his brothers to kill)

All Things to All Men by @motleyfam (30.8k, tim & jason & dick & bruce, angst and fluff, jason gets sick and tim thinks he hates him but dick is there to save the day) (this is the fifth part of a series where tim joins the batfam early bc his parents suck, this can be read alone but I def recommend reading the whole series)

Signed Red Robin by Xrea354 (46k, tim-centric, angst with a happy ending, tim attempts to resign from the batfam but the bats are not okay with that)

A Stalker on the Rooftop by @stormpilot-obsessed (88.9k, tim & jason (and eventual tim/jason), tim joins the batfam early, fluff and angst, tim and jason become friends before jason goes to ethiopia) (the whole series is great and still ongoing, it is mostly focused on batfam but please be aware that tim and jason start as friends and develop romantic feelings for each other, so don’t read if you don’t like that)

+10 WIPs I hope to see more of in 2024!

Finders Keepers by @taralaurel (12k, tim & jason, fluff and angst, tim gets lost in crime alley and jason takes him home and then ends up staying)

Damian Drake by InkpotSprite (16.5k, damian & tim, mostly fluff and humor, damian is sent to gotham and mistakenly believes his father is jack drake leading to tim becoming his brother)

something just like this by @tarvek-sturmvoraus (19.5k, tim-centric, angst and fluff, tim is bruce and selina’s kid)

Christened by StoriesAreMagic (20.6k, tim-centric, angst with a happy ending, tim is joker junior and is there when the joker tries to kill jason)

To be Loved is to be Known by @loreoftheforgotten (27.2k, tim & jason & dick, tim joins the batfam early, fluff and angst and humor, tim is a wolf shifter kept in captivity until the batfam saves him)

In Gotham, Even The Birds Are Street Rats by @ao3time (57.1k, dick & jason & tim, angst and fluff, the boys live together on the streets until bruce adopts all three of them)

Tangled Web (and how it unraveled) by Covenyt2950 (61.9k, bruce-centric, angst with (presumably) a happy ending, bruce hides from his sons that he’s a vampire and this has dangerous consequences later on)

cards on the table by @wesslan (67k, tim-centric, angst and fluff and humor, tim is a fortune teller scamming the gotham elite when he gets mixed up with the batfam) (there’s only one chapter left to go, so i recommend reading even if you typically avoid WIPs!)

children of the stars by @silk-scarlet-ribbons (93.4k, tim & jason, angst with a happy ending and hurt/comfort, the red hood basically adopts tim) (jason and tim have more of a father-son relationship than brother but it’s so fucking cute i highly recommend)

The Big Road Home by @crumpetz (119.5k, tim & jason, angst and fluff and humor and anything else you could want, tim and jason are homeless together before joining the batfam) (an all time fav)

#Batman #batfam #batfamily #batfam fic #batfam fic rec #tim drake #jason todd #bruce wayne #dick grayson #damian wayne #dcu #batfam fanfiction #fic rec #Robin #red hood #red robin #nightwing #my fic rec list #my stuff

[yuutx]

ೀ ׅ ۫ . 𝐈 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔. . 𝐈 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐘 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔. . (𝒮𝒞𝒜𝑅𝒜𝑀𝒪𝒰𝒞𝐻𝐸)

coworker! scaramouche x f!reader ﾉ sfw content. ﾉ sfw + confession ﾉ modern au ﾉ coworker au ﾉ friends -> lovers ﾉ pure fluffy content ﾉ not proofread ! ꒰ᐢ˵´ ˆ `˵ᐢ꒱

i havent written something fluffy in soo longg . . i missed writing pure, soft fics . . art credits go to @/yakumon_ on tiktok ! ! ♡ + ↻ are rlly appreciated ! !

The night was still young, the hour only barely creeping into the early hours of the morning, and yet Scaramouche found himself already exhausted. He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, the beginnings of a headache starting to throb at his temples. The day had been long, his work seemingly endless, and his energy was dissipating. He had a mountain of paperwork waiting for him, a stack of forms and contracts and proposals sitting on his desk, untouched, the documents left abandoned for weeks. The pile was nearly toppling over, the edges curling up, and he frowned, a look of distaste flickering across his features. His gaze shifted towards the window, the view overlooking the cityscape. The lights from the buildings stretched up into the sky, the city aglow, the sight captivating. His frown softened, the irritation draining from his expression, the anger melting away. His gaze swept across the horizon, taking in the sight. There was a sense of awe, a sense of wonder, a sense of pride, the view reminding him just how far he had come, how far he had risen. He was on top of the world, the world at his fingertips, and he had done it all himself. His accomplishments had been hard won, the climb to the top a steep one, the path to success a difficult one. But his efforts had paid off, and he was rewarded with a lavish lifestyle, a comfortable existence. Yet, there was one thing missing. Someone special.

He didn't know when it had started, didn't know exactly when his feelings had changed. At some point, she had gone from a nuisance, an annoyance, a thorn in his side, to something.. more. Her presence was no longer an unwelcome one, the sound of her voice no longer grating, the sight of her no longer irritating. If anything, her company was welcome, her voice a soothing one, her smile brightening his mood. It was a gradual shift, his perception of her changing. One day, he found himself looking forward to seeing her, and the next, he realized that he couldn't picture his life without her. She had become a staple in his life, a fixture in his routine, a constant, someone he could always depend on. It was an odd feeling, an unfamiliar one, but he found that he didn't mind it. He liked her, he really did. It had been a long time since he had cared about someone, a long time since he had trusted anyone, a long time since he had let anyone close. But he had fallen for her, became entangled in her, and now, he found himself in a dilemma. He knew what he wanted, he knew how he felt, and yet, he couldn't bring himself to admit it. It was frustrating, the feelings swirling around inside him, the emotions clouding his judgment, and the confusion was driving him crazy.

"Why is it so fucking complicated?" he muttered, the words spilling out.

He let out a huff, shaking his head, trying to clear his mind. He turned away from the window, the view no longer a comfort. He couldn't focus, couldn't concentrate, his thoughts always seemed to drift towards her. She was all he could think about, and he scowled, the feeling of helplessness irritating him.

"Fuck it.. I need a drink.." He muttered, running a hand through his hair.

He stalked towards the kitchen, his strides quick and purposeful, his footsteps echoing through the penthouse. He entered the room, his gaze sweeping over the contents. There was an array of alcohol, the cabinets and shelves well stocked. His eyes fell upon the wine rack, the bottles arranged by color and vintage, and he plucked a bottle from the rack. It was a red, the dark liquid swirling around the inside of the glass. He uncorked the bottle, pouring himself a generous amount, before setting the glass down onto the counter. He raised the glass to his lips, the aroma hitting him first. It was a deep, earthy smell, the scent rich and fragrant. The taste was full bodied, the flavor heavy, the liquid rolling over his tongue. It was smooth, the alcohol burning pleasantly as it slid down his throat, the sensation warm and comforting. He took another sip, savoring the taste, letting the flavor linger on his tongue. He closed his eyes, allowing the wine to soothe his nerves, the tension slowly leaving his shoulders. He leaned against the counter, his mind wandering.

"Y/N.." he murmured, her name rolling off his tongue. "Mm.. I wonder what she's doing right now.."

A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips, a soft look appearing in his eyes.

"I wish she was here.. I wish.." He trailed off, catching himself. "What the fuck am I doing?.." he muttered, shaking his head. "Get a hold of yourself.."

He took another sip, his fingers tracing the rim of the glass.

"..But I want her.." he admitted, the words leaving his mouth before he could stop himself.

The realization hit him like a punch to the gut, his breath hitching, his chest tightening.

"I.. I want her..?.."

He had never said it aloud, never voiced his thoughts, his feelings, but the words were out there now, hanging in the air, and they rang true. He wanted her, more than anything. He wanted her so badly, the urge almost overwhelming, and the need for her burned in his chest, the ache making him dizzy. He couldn't deny it any longer, couldn't fight it, couldn't resist. He was falling, falling fast, and he knew there was no turning back. Not now. His feelings were written all over his face, his emotions clear, and he couldn't hide it anymore. He had to tell her, had to confess, and the thought of rejection terrified him. But the thought of never knowing what could've been was even more terrifying, and he knew he had to do something. He had to risk it all. For her.

With a sigh, he drained the glass, his fingers tightening around the stem, the crystal creaking under the pressure. He placed the glass down, the sound echoing through the room, before striding towards the door. His feet carried him through the hallway, his steps hurried, his mind racing. His heart was pounding, his pulse quickening, his palms growing clammy. His nerves were getting the better of him, his anxiety spiking, the prospect of facing her nerve-wracking. He stopped in front of the door, the wood smooth under his fingertips, the handle cold. He could feel his stomach twisting into knots, the butterflies fluttering in his chest, and his breath caught in his throat. He closed his eyes, steeling himself, before opening the door and leaving the penthouse.

After some time, he reached her apartment, the number engraved on the brass plate, and he hesitated, his hand hovering over the bell. The seconds ticked by, the seconds feeling like hours, the moments stretching into an eternity, and his apprehension grew, his fear building. But, his need for her was stronger, his desire for her outweighing his doubt, and he took a deep breath, ringing the doorbell. There was a moment of silence, a moment of stillness, and then, the door swung open.

You stood in the doorway, your eyes wide, a look of surprise on your face. Your hair was slightly disheveled, your cheeks flushed, your clothes rumpled. You must've been sleeping, he thought. You stared at him, your mouth opening and closing, before letting out a nervous laugh. He cleared his throat, the awkwardness of the situation making him fidget, before speaking.

"Um, hey.." he started, his voice low, his tone hesitant. "Listen, I uh.. I needed to see you."

You cocked your head, your brow furrowing, confusion washing over your features. He continued, the words tumbling out. "I know it's late, and I know it's probably weird, but I had to tell you.." he paused, swallowing, before continuing. ".. I-I like you. Like, really like you. And.. I just needed to get that off my chest."

His words hung in the air, the silence thick, the tension palpable. Your expression was unreadable, the emotions flickering across your face indecipherable. You were frozen, rooted to the spot, your body stiff, the shock making your limbs heavy. He looked down, his gaze dropping, before muttering, "Shit, I shouldn't have said that.." His face burned, the humiliation setting in, and he turned away, starting to walk off, his hands clenched into fists. But, before he could go, you grabbed his wrist, stopping him. He glanced back, your grip firm, your expression serious.

"Stay." You whispered, your voice soft. He looked at you, his gaze meeting yours, his eyes searching your face. "Stay.." You repeated, the words barely a whisper, and he nodded, his hand sliding into yours.

"Okay." He replied, his tone matching yours.

With that, you led him into the apartment, the door closing behind you. The room was dim, the lights off, the curtains drawn. You made your way through the living room, his hand still in yours, the floorboards creaking underfoot. You stopped in front of the sofa, your fingers intertwining with his, and you sat down, the cushions sinking beneath your weight. The silence was heavy, the quietness suffocating, the tension rising. You stared at him, your gaze intent, and he swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing.

"Scara..?" you murmured, breaking the silence. "Tell me.."

He looked at you, his brow furrowed, his expression thoughtful.

"What do you mean?" He asked, his tone confused.

"Tell me.." you repeated, your eyes meeting his. ".. tell me how you feel."

He let out a breath, the sound shaky, his nerves getting the better of him. "I.. I don't know.." he said, his voice barely a whisper. "I don't know how to put it into words."

"Then, show me.." you breathed, leaning in, your face mere inches from his.

He froze, his body stiffening, his mind racing. His thoughts were jumbled, the feelings overwhelming, and he swallowed, his mouth suddenly dry.

"I.." he started, his words faltering. "Oh, god.." Scaramouche muttered, the frustration building. "I can't, I can't." He shook his head, the movement jerky, his hands balling into fists. "I'm sorry, I'm so fucking sorry.. I've been trying to hold back for weeks, months, and now.." he trailed off, his gaze falling to the floor, the shame written all over his face. "..And now, I'm ruining it, aren't I? I'm ruining our friendship, I'm fucking it all up, just like I always do.." he muttered, his words laced with self-loathing.

You stared at him, his outburst surprising you, the sudden change in his demeanor jarring. You reached out, your palm cupping his cheek, his skin warm beneath your touch. You could feel him trembling, his muscles tense, his body rigid. He looked up, his eyes meeting yours, the guilt in his expression making your heart ache.

"Hey.." you murmured, your voice soft. "Hey, it's okay.." You brushed your thumb along his cheekbone, the contact soothing. "You're not ruining anything."

He took a shaky breath, his shoulders slumping, the tension easing. "Y/N.." he said, his tone pained. "I can't keep pretending, I can't keep lying to myself. I-I want you, more than anything." His hand covered yours, his grip firm, his fingers lacing with yours. "I know this is probably a lot, and I know it's selfish of me, but.." he paused, swallowing, before continuing. ".. but, I want you. And, I think you feel the same." He searched your face, his gaze searching yours. ".. Tell me, tell me if I'm wrong." He implored, his voice laced with desperation. "Please."

Your breath caught in your throat, the sincerity in his voice taking you by surprise. You stared at him. You had never seen him like this, his emotions laid bare, his vulnerability on full display. He was raw, vulnerable, his armor stripped away. And, it was beautiful. You took a deep breath, the air filling your lungs, before exhaling, the sound shaky. Your heart was hammering in your chest. The feelings were mutual, the attraction obvious, the chemistry electric. But, the implications were daunting. You were friends, coworkers, and a relationship between you was risky, the repercussions potentially devastating. But, you knew you had to take the chance. The opportunity was too good, the timing too perfect, the feeling too right. So, with a nod, you leaned in, your lips crashing against his. The kiss was rough, the contact desperate, the need for each other all-consuming. His arms wrapped around you, his hands sliding up your back, pulling you closer. The kiss deepened, the passion igniting, the fire burning. The moment was charged, the feelings intense, the emotions overpowering. It was everything, and more. It was perfect. After what seemed like an eternity, the kiss broke, the two of you breathless, your foreheads touching.

A tear fell from his eye. He was crying. You kissed his tears, and he let out a shaky breath, the sound filled with emotion. "You.." he started, his voice cracking. "You feel the same.." he murmured, his eyes widening, the realization setting in. "I-I don't know what to say.." You chuckled, wiping the tears from his eyes, before placing a soft kiss on his lips. "You don't have to say anything.." you whispered, your smile warm. He smiled back, the sight making your heart skip a beat, and he pulled you into a hug, his arms encircling you. You rested your head on his shoulder, the moment tender, the closeness comforting. It felt right, the closeness, the intimacy, and you sighed, the sound content. It was the beginning of something new, something wonderful, and you knew you were in for a wild ride. But, you were ready. You had been ready. After all, what's life without a little bit of risk?

With that, you closed your eyes, a smile on your lips, the love in your heart growing stronger. And, as the night drew to a close, and the first rays of sunlight crept over the horizon, you drifted off, the man of your dreams by your side. And, when you awoke, the memories of the previous night would remain, the moments engraved in your heart, the feelings lingering. It was the start of something special, the beginning of a new chapter, and you were ready.

You were ready for it all.

#୧ ‧₊˚ ☆ athena's creations ! #genshin x reader #scaramouche imagines #scaramouche fluff #kabukimono imagines #wanderer imagines #kunikuzushi imagines #scaramouche x you #kabukimono x you #wanderer x you #kunikuzushi x you #scaramouche x reader #scara x reader #kabukimono x reader #kunikuzushi x reader #wanderer x reader #wanderer smut #scaramouche #scara #kunikuzushi #kabukimono #wanderer #scaramouche x y/n #kabukimono x y/n #kunikuzushi x y/n #genshin impact x reader #genshin fluff #kabukimono fluff #kunikuzushi fluff #wanderer fluff

[maggie44paint]

I ABSOLUTELY ADORE @muzzleroars 's Rise and Fall AU, for some reason Fallen Gabriel gives me huge Beast vibes from Disney's Beauty and the Beast so I just had to draw a little screenshot redraw with him and Risen V1 haha!

They were so fun to draw and I adore their designs sm!

Reference below!

#ultrakill #ultrakill gabriel #ultrakill v1 #gabv1el #rise and fall au

[muzzleroars]

Not a question, but i wanted to say that i love the poetry of Gabriel now having to help the newly angelic V1 to get used to its new form, just like V1 helped fallen Gabriel all those years ago.

(Also love the how they basically inverted roles, Gabriel became demonic, and V1 angelic)

it's one of my favorite parts of the au too ;o; i just really love the idea of both of them getting the chance to be cared for in a way they very rarely ever had been, if at all - gabriel shouldered so many burdens all on his own, his "sin" had to be hidden and if he made mistakes, he paid for them without receiving an ounce of sympathy from those surrounding him. in his fall, v1 saw his disgrace, saw how he had been condemned and damned through perceived treachery, it saw all the ugliness made manifest that heaven hated in him...and it cared for him then. it grew in understanding of gentleness, it learned how to be caring just for his sake because it saw suffering, suffering he believed in so many ways he brought on himself, but it chose to still treat him with kindness so antithetical to its nature. gabriel couldn't comprehend that, believed so thoroughly he didn't deserve it, yet he could never change its mind. his light had been ripped from him, he has branded a traitor of god, but he was met with care.

in a similar way, v1 is a machine, a new prototype never before seen - it underwent so many modifications, it was constantly torn apart in body and mind without its consent, without its understanding of what they were changing about it. it would simply wake up with parts added, parts taken, code rearranged and mind altered so many times that it died over and over in the testing phases. but it had to take those changes, it had to adapt to them even if they could stripped from it in an instant and it had to start all over again learning its new body, new mind. so when it's resurrected, it's used to this in a way, it understands it must adjust because this is just what it is now. it is a tool at its core, and a tool must be made most efficient. and it's happy to be most efficient. but then gabriel comes to it, he apologizes for so altering it even if that very altering saved its life. he helps it adjust to the changes, he uses his knowledge because he can understand what he did and what's happening to v1 unlike experimenting engineers in its past. he lets it take its time, he doesn't criticize it or express disappointment as it struggles with some of its new power. he's just as gentle, just as kind as v1 once was in his fall, and for the first time...it can feel fully confident, fully safe in the changes that were made

#IM SILLY ABOUT THEM....SAPPY SILLY..... #and yes omg i love angel v1 and demon gabe.... #like they took the other into themselves in some way #how to be loved is to be changed....ETC...... #GOOFY....i love them so bad..... #cake answers #risen v1 #fallen gabriel #rise and fall au

[horangare]

Heyy!!! Just saw that your requests are open... Can I please request a fic?

Something like slow burn (nsfw) arranged marriage with Dino...

(You don't have to do it if you're not comfortable ♡)

Btw, love your fics a lot!! 💖❤️💕✨💞

for the good of the kingdom (and the good of my heart)

pairing : prince!dino x princess!reader

content : angst, fluff, smut (more towards the end, mdni), modern-ish royalty au (sorry but i cannot keep up with that old formal talk), slowburn

in which : where there is a winner, there is always a loser. your country losing the great war was the worst thing that could’ve happened, at least that’s what you thought before you learned you were going to have to marry the prince of the one nation that still kept its alliance with yours.

warnings : dino is totally in love but y/n is totally stubborn, y/n has some personal issues, itzy is mentioned to work for your family, arguments and misunderstandings, fingering, oral (m receiving), handjobs, unprotected sex (be safe), doggy style, creampies, praise, dirty talk, declarations of love during sex, a poor description of a wedding (probably, idk)

wc : 12.3K words

note : aaah omg my first request i’m so excited 😆 also i’m so happy you enjoy my fics, that means so much to me 🥹🩷 (also, i’m sorry this took me a lil minute, this is my time writing slowburn 😭😭)

“I am not marrying him!”

Ever since you were little, the Kingdom of Sokoto has always been the best. The most prosperous, the most powerful, the most influential, all of it. At the mere mention of the name “Sokoto,” people trembled. Hell, just being in the presence of someone from your family or even your court would have the most refined commoner on edge. Needless to say, you were important, and you knew it.

If only it wasn’t for that damned war.

To be fair, the Kingdom of Sokoto hadn’t risen to the top by being kind and loving. Many of the past rulers had been cold and self-serving, but never to the extent that the current ruling family, your family, had been. That was exactly what caused problems back then, and it was exactly what caused problems now.

This had all started in the Kingdom of Hisia, when your father broke a decade long alliance with their people. In his words, Hisia was an “acceptable loss,” because as a kingdom they were too soft-hearted to do anything about it. The only problem about Hisia’s people (other than being too soft-hearted) is that they were notorious gossips. When the common folk got word of this news, they told anyone and everyone who would listen. And soon, almost every kingdom in the nation knew what had happened. From Ilorus to Umbris to Kano, everyone was scrambling to break their alliances with Sokoto. Well, almost everyone.

Of course, the problem didn’t stop with your allies just leaving. No no, leaving wasn’t enough. Sokoto had reigned far too powerful for far too long. Too many things had gone overlooked. Too many injustices unpunished. Apparently, they all had their own personal grievances against the kingdom that had just been waiting to be brought to light. So how exactly did they decide to let you know that? Declaring a war, obviously.

And of course your parents were too stubborn to back down. Sokoto had never lost, never ran away from any sort of threat, never surrendered. After all, there was never a problem this kingdom couldn’t handle, with or without support from the other kingdoms. There wasn’t any need for them anyway. Your army was the most feared and well trained in all the land.

Your army alone, however, hadn’t been enough. Not in the first year of the war. Not in the second. Not in the third. When your father realized that he couldn’t continue on like this, sending the few remaining poor young men of your country to fight a losing battle, watching the rest of his people suffer, he knew had to do the one thing nobody in your family had ever done: he had to surrender.

And now that it had ended, things couldn’t be worse. Sokoto had drastically fallen in status, going from the most revered kingdom to the most despised. Oh, and the gossip never stopped, not even after things had been settled. You heard what they said about your family, every rumor, every exaggeration. You couldn’t stand them.

The only thing that remained the same after the war was your family’s relationship with the Kingdom of Kasmira. The only ones who hadn’t abandoned or betrayed you, even after the initial shock with the Hisians, even after the other kingdoms had broken their alliances, and even after the war. Nobody knew why the Kasmiran royal family still bothered to keep connections with you, but you think you were getting a few ideas.

“[Y/n], I know this is sudden,” Your father said, his arms crossed over his chest. “But given the state of the kingdom, your mother and I have both agreed that a marriage between you and Prince Dino is a good thing for the kingdom.”

“What about what I’ve agreed on, Father?” You argued. “Really…as if losing that war wasn’t enough of an embarrassment.”

Your mother stood up and took a step towards you, pointing a finger in your face. “We do not speak of the war, young lady.” When you backed away, she sighed, and placed her hands on both your shoulders. “Don’t worry. You will have plenty of time to get to know him. Prince Dino is a nice boy. I’m sure the two of you will do good things for both of the Kingdoms.”

You couldn’t help but roll your eyes, but for now you chose to bite your tongue. There was a lot you could say, a lot you wanted to say, but it wouldn’t do you any good to argue with your parents when the decision had already been made for you.

So you were getting married. Lucky you.

The day you got the news of your sudden engagement, you went back to your room and didn’t come out for the rest of the day. Really, who did your parents think they were, making such decisions on your behalf? And then saying that you’ll “grow to like it,” was just the icing on the cake. Who were they to speak for you? Who were they to decide who you would marry? God, you hated this family.

Come sunrise the next day, you lied in bed silently and stared at the ceiling. When you were bored of the ceiling, you stared at the wall. And when you were birds if the wall, you stared at the window. No, not out of the window, at the window. There was nothing to look at, anyway.

“Good morning, [Y/n],” The voice of your lady in waiting, Ryujin, drew your attention to the one place in your room you hadn’t looked at yet; the door. “Wow, you look awful.”

You smiled a little and shook your head. Ryujin had always spoken in a way that was a little bit…less than formal than she should have, but it was only really ever around you. Not that you cared. Ryujin and you had a close bond, and she felt more like family to you than the actual people you were related to, so you could find yourself putting up with the way she talked.

“You wouldn’t believe what my parents are making me do this time, Ryujin.” You started, letting out a heavy sigh. “You know Prince Dino? From Kasmira?”

Ryujin stepped closer, tilting her head to the side. “I know of him. Why?”

“They’re making the two of us get married.”

Ryujin gasped, her mouth hanging open. “Really? And they didn’t even tell you until now?”

“No! Can you believe it!” You huffed. “Honestly, why do I even bother with them? They seriously make me sick.”

Ryujin frowned, reaching under the blanket to grab your hand and pull you into an upright sitting position. Suddenly, her face lit up, as if she was remembering something. “Hey, you know what? Someone is actually here to see you, they’re waiting in the garden now.”

Now it was your turn to frown. “Who? Tell them that I’m busy.”

“Busy staring at the ceiling and the wall?”

“And the window.”

Ryujin shook her head, grabbing onto you again but this time to pull you out of bed, much to your displeasure. “Do you really want to stay in bed all day, [Y/n]?”

“I don’t see why I can’t.” You crossed your arms over your chest. At this, Ryujin scoffed. You were definitely your family’s daughter, even as much as you wished you weren’t.

“Oh come now, Your Highness, you could use some sun and fresh air. If you don’t get any now, you might wither away and die.”

“Is that an option?”

With a short laugh, Ryujin dragged you to your wardrobe, picking out what to put you in for today. “Oh [Y/n], you’re unbelievable.”

“I’m serious though.”

Once Ryujin had made you “look presentable” (her words) she led you to the gardens, arm in arm, where she had said this mysterious someone was waiting for you.

“Ryujin, are you sure there was actually someone here and you weren’t just drunk? Again?” You asked, looking around the gardens for any sign of life other than you and your friend.

“Of course I wasn’t drunk! I’m sure he was here…” She mumbled, looking around with you. “Oh! There he is!” She pointed to the left, and you turned your head in the direction she was pointing in.

Standing in a more secluded part of the garden was a tall blonde man with a slightly lost look on his foot. He looked to be your age and was clothed in robes of soft yellow, the royal Kasmiran colors. Wait a minute…this man wasn’t a stranger, this was—

“Oh my god, Prince Dino…” You mumbled. Ryujin lowered her finger, alternating her gaze between you and him in disbelief.

“What? He’s the prince? [Y/n], I swear I didn’t know…he didn’t tell me.” Ryujin stammered, letting you drag her away towards the entrance and back to the castle. “Where are we going? He came here for you and he’s expecting you to be here.”

“Then he’ll be disappointed to know that I won’t be able to see him today. Or any other day.” You told her. The nerve of him, to show up here and telling your lady in waiting that he wanted to see you without even letting himself be known.

“Princess?” He called out from where he was standing, and you gripped Ryujin’s arm tighter. He just had to notice you, didn’t he?

If only Ryujin didn’t know how to deal with your stubbornness so well. You would’ve much preferred rotting in your room as you stared at the ceiling. Or maybe the window.

You turned around with a sigh, shamefully making your way closer to Dino while Ryujin trailed behind, having let go of your arm when you bruised it with that grip of yours. “Hello, Your Highness.” You greeted him formally, which seemed to confuse him.

“Your highness?” He asked with a laugh. “Princess, please. There’s no need to act like that. Not since we’re supposed to be getting married, after all.”

Oh please.

“I’m sorry, your highness. But considering the fact that we are meant to be married, I think this is exactly how we should be speaking to each other.”

“[Y/n], maybe Prince Dino has a point. And anyway you don’t really talk like that all the time—” Ryujin tried to reason with you, but you elbowed her in the side before she could continue. Clearing your throat, you looked back at the prince.

“So, what exactly are you doing here?” You asked him. Despite your formality, Dino seemed amused at your question. He took a few steps closer before stopping, realizing that you were backing away from him.

“Sorry.” He smiled. “My parents told me it would be a good idea to come here and get to know you since…well y’know.” He laughed, hoping you would too, but when he saw you looking more serious than ever, he stopped and looked away.

“So you’re only here because your parents told you to come?”

No response.

“Wow,” You scoffed in reply. You leaned closer to Ryujin, bringing your mouth to her ear. “I can’t believe my parents are this desperate.”

Forcing a smile, Ryujin leaned in closer to you. “Come on, he’s really trying here. Give him a chance. He’s basically your husband, after all.”

“He is not my husband!” You hissed, which caused Ryujin to stifle her laughter behind her hand.

“Yeah yeah, maybe not for now~” She teased, turning to bow for Dino before excusing herself back to the castle. And leaving you here. With him.

“The two of you seem close,” He said.

“Oh my, how on earth did you figure that out?” Dino’s lips formed a faint pout at your sarcasm.

“[Y/n], I’m sorry. I know that this is all very sudden, and I can tell you don’t like me very much,” He sighed. “But I just want to at least get along with you. I’ll really do anything.”

Smiling, you leaned in a bit closer to him. “Really? Anything?” When he nodded, you beckoned him closer with your finger. “Get lost, pretty boy.” Like Ryujin had done just moments ago, you bowed to him before turning away as you quickly retreated to the castle, but Dino followed you anyway with a grin on his face.

“You think I’m pretty?”

You turned your head to glare at him.

“It wasn’t a compliment.”

For the rest of the week, Dino continued to come over every day and seek you out, while you continued to avoid him at every turn. It would have been easier if he wasn’t so insistent, going as far as to ask Ryujin or other castle workers for your whereabouts. Dammit, why couldn’t he just let you avoid him? It’s not like the two of you were actually meant to be together. This was all just a convenient little ploy by your parents to repair their royal status. It wasn’t real, and you wished he would stop treating it like it was.

You really couldn’t believe the lengths he went to with some of these attempts to get closer to you either. The bouquets of white roses in the most intricate porcelain vases? The hand-written letters—front and back? The jewelry carved from only the finest of gemstones? All very sweet sentiments, yes, but to say you were uninterested would be an understatement.

On Friday, much to your embarrassment, Ryujin found you hiding from him underneath one of the tables in the kitchen. When she realized it was you, she shook her head and sighed.

“[Y/n], this is just sad.”

You shushed her, trying to squeeze yourself farther into the corner underneath the table. “Be quiet. He could be listening.”

“You have got to stop running from that boy. I mean really, what’s the big deal. He’s actually really nice.”

“The big deal is that I don’t need him following me around like a stray dog.” You scoffed. “Seriously, why couldn’t we just be a normal family of shunned royalty?”

“You don’t mean that.” She said. “And besides, it’s only a matter of time before he finds you. He’s really not giving up either, [Y/n].”

Realizing she was right, you crawled out from under the table, muttering a few curses under your breath. “Believe me, I know. He won’t stop sending me gifts.” Ryujin smiled when you said that.

“Wow, isn’t he charming.” Ryujin chuckled. “And speaking of him, he told me to tell you to meet him in the gardens again today.”

“Why is he always telling you all this stuff and not me?”

Ryujin looked at you incredulously. “Because you avoid him like the damn plague.”

Oh, right. She did have a point. Whatever, it’s not like you were going to go. You had managed to avoid him all week, and absolutely nothing would convince you to go.

Ryujin seemed to sense this, and she smirked. “He made you a picnic.”

“I’m so happy you actually came,” Dino smiled at you. You sat across from him, holding the bowl of strawberries he had set out before him on the blanket. You looked up at him, pulling the strawberry you had been eating away from your mouth so you could respond to him.

“I just came because Ryujin told me about the picnic.” You curtly responded, bringing the strawberry back to your mouth. You thought he would’ve stopped smiling when you said that, but his smile only grew wider.

“So that’s all it takes then.” He mumbled. “Is that why you didn’t care for the gifts I sent before?”

You looked him up and down, sneering. “No, it was because I just didn’t care for them. It’s not wise to spend your money so carelessly on things that don’t matter.”

Dino leaned back, bracing himself up with his hands. “Trying to please my future wife doesn’t matter?”

You stiffened, gripping the bowl tighter in your hands. “Stop saying things like that.” You warned, yet he still seemed unphased as he watched you devour the rest of the strawberries. When the bowl had been emptied, you stared down into it with a frown and began to regret your greed for the little red fruit, because now you were all out.

Dino picked up the bowl once you had tossed it aside. “Should I ask someone to get you some more? I didn’t realize you would eat the entire bowl.”

“No.” You dismissively waved your hand, pushing away the thoughts of the strawberries, even though the offer of more was tempting. You hadn’t had strawberries since before the war. They didn’t grow in Sokoto, which is a fact that devastated you when you found out, and you always relied on a fresh monthly shipment of them from the Hisians and now…well…you’ve just gone a long time without strawberries. “No, It’s fine.”

Dino, however, was as insistent as ever. He picked up the bowl and started walking back to the castle. “I’ll ask Ryujin for more strawberries. Don’t disappear on me, okay?”

You spared him a single glance before looking elsewhere. “No promises.”

Dino laughed to himself, the words almost escaping his ears as he marched back to the castle with a little extra speed. He knew you wouldn’t leave—at least he hoped he knew. He wanted to trust himself, to trust you, but you were unpredictable. Thankfully, a little unpredictability was hardly an issue for him.

Though honestly, if you wanted to leave at any time, you definitely would. But with the promise of your favorite fruit, the urge to leave was just a bit short of overwhelming at the moment. Shifting yourself to lie on your stomach, you started to take notice of all the different things that Dino had packed with him on this picnic. All of your favorites…even the things you hadn’t gotten to taste in years. How could he know about any of this? You grumbled at the thought of Ryujin or any of the chefs selling you out.

You also took notice of the white rose sticking out of the basket. While they were the official flower of Kasmira, you were sure he must’ve had a secret stash of these somewhere because to be honest, you were getting tired of seeing them. But this one looked especially delicate, you couldn’t help but reach forward and take it in your hands, twirling it around and even holding it to your nose to take in the faint scent.

The sound of Dino’s footsteps on the gravel path had you looking over your shoulder, noticing he came back with an even bigger bowl of strawberries than he had left with. His classic smile returned to his face when he saw that your eyes had widened.

“I hope you don’t mind, but Ryujin insisted on giving you a bigger bowl. Said that you’d have no problem finishing the entire thing.” Him saying that had you coming back to your senses. Ryujin was just asking to be put out of a job going and telling those things to Dino.

You turned away, gazing down at the bowl when Dino set it in front of you. He sat himself down next to you, choosing to stay silent as he watched you set the rose to the side and pull the bowl closer to you.

“How did you know I liked all this stuff?” You asked quietly. Dino let out some sort of confused dound, and you sighed. “The food, I mean. Like…the strawberries. I haven’t had them in ages.”

Dino nodded, having understood what you meant. “When I told Ryujin I wanted to do this for you, she told me about all of the foods you always eat.” He laughed. “Really, I didn’t realize that you could be so choosy with your food. Do you know how hard it is to get fresh strawberries at this time if the year?”

“Oh fuck off.” Dino gasped, his mouth falling open at your sudden vulgarity. You were surprised too, covering your mouth with one of your hands once the words you had said sunk in. “I didn’t mean to say that.”

“I didn’t know the Princess of Sokoto had such a filthy mouth,” He mumbled. For a brief moment, you were actually wondering if he was serious, but the smirk that slowly appeared on his face gave him away. Unable to fight the urges telling you not to, you hit him in the arm, biting back grin when he winced. “I didn’t know you hit so hard, either.”

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me, Your Highness.” You stared at the strawberry in your hand, taking one bite before placing it back in the bowl. “I shouldn’t eat any more. The chefs will be preparing dinner soon.”

“Leaving so soon?” He asked, and you nodded. “Alright then, should I escort you back?” He extended one of his hands towards you, and you stared at it for a moment, but still ended up declining. You didn’t miss the glint of disappointment in his eyes, either.

“We should do this again sometime.” You noted. “And I’m not saying that because I want to be around you, but because I enjoyed the food.”

Ah, there it was again, that classic bright smile.

“Also, you smile too much. I don’t like it.”

You had been right about the strawberries. They did end up spoiling your appetite. You stared down at your plate, many of the contents on your plate going uneaten before you excused yourself to your room, Ryujin trailing behind as usual.

“[Y/n], what’s the matter? Was something wrong at dinner?” She asked, following you around as you threw yourself into bed. “Is it so bad you’re not even going to bother to change out of your outfit from today? Seriously, it’s going to get all wrinkled, and that’s just extra work for Yeji to do later.”

“I ate too many strawberries.” You stated. “Though I’m sure you know about that, right?”

Ryujin looked away, shrugging and shaking her head. “I’m not sure that I do, actually,” She mumbled, pairing it with an awkward laugh when she noticed you glaring at her. “Anyway, how was your little date with Prince Dino?”

“Ryujin, it was not a date. And even if it was, it would’ve been a pretty shitty date considering he left me in the middle of it.”

“Ah, c’mon, he came back! And he came bearing gifts!” She tried to reason with you, which you found both pointless and confusing.

You rolled your eyes, burying your head under the blankets, despite Ryujin’s protests that you would mess up your hair and get more wrinkles in your clothes. It wasn’t really a date, was it? Is that what dates were? Just being around another person, having them close by, talking (or not talking) to each other about whatever crossed your mind? That was a date? No way, you knew what a date was and whatever you and Dino had going on definitely wasn’t that. People went on dates when they loved each other, when there was romance budding and underlying tension. Yeah, that definitely wasn’t a date.

“Are you seriously not going to change out of that?” Ryujin asked, trying to pull down the blankets, but you were, unsurprisingly, stronger. With a sigh, she backed away. “Fine, but if Yeji asks me why your outfits are so wrinkled, I’m telling her.” You lowered the blanket just low enough to see her march out of the room and slam your door shut.

Normally, you would’ve fallen asleep after just a few minutes with your eyes closed. However, your stomach still felt funny and you tossed and turned every few minutes. We’re those strawberries really fresh? Would Dino serve you rotten strawberries? No, of course not…they were too red to be out of season. Not only that, but there was little chance Dino would do anything like that to you. He was too nice. The reason your parents ever think you two were some sort of match made and heaven was beyond you.

You couldn’t sleep yet. Not like this. Not with the ache in your stomach and the thoughts racing around in your head. Sighing, you gathered the little strength you had left to roll yourself out of bed, wandering through the halls and corridors until you needed up outside, at the front of the castle. A deep breath, followed by a slow exhale, and your head fell back towards the sky. The night sky was clear and vast and full of stars, and you felt your lips curl into a smile.

The stars understood you. When everyone else had abandoned you, abandoned your family, you sought comfort in the starry night sky. The stars never turned you away. The stars never betrayed you. The stars never forced you to do anything you couldn’t decide on. When you died, you hoped you became a star. They would surely accept you with open arms, like a real family.

You were so caught up in your thoughts, you hadn’t even noticed someone approaching you. A tall, blonde, someone.

“So you like the stars?” Dino asked, and you jumped a little. He took a step back, feeling bad for having startled you. “Sorry, [Y/n]. It’s just me.”

You furrowed your eyebrows and stared at him, but turned your attention quickly back to the sky. “What are you doing out here?”

“I could ask you that too.” He said, following your gaze and looking up. “It’s late for a princess to be alone outside at night.”

“My stomach hurts.” You told him. “From the strawberries. A walk always helps.”

“That was hours ago.” He said. “That’s weird. They were definitely fresh. Are you sure it was the strawberries?”

“What else could it have been?” You asked, your tone a bit harsher than you intended. You sighed, deciding to change the subject. “What about you? Why are you out here? I thought you went back home.”

“It’s not like I live far.” He had a point…kind of. Kasmira was your closest neighbor, only being about a few hundred miles to the east. You were seriously wondering how he managed to get here every day and still have so much time to spend entertaining the hope of getting to coax you out of your room to spend time with him. “Aww, are you worried about me?”

“Don’t go talking like that.” You told him. “Unless you want me to hit you again.”

Dino chuckled, breaking his eyes away from the sky to look at you. “You never answered my question from earlier.”

“Which one? I’m not keeping count.”

“Do you like the stars?”

You managed to look away from the stars to allow your eyes to meet Dino’s, even if only for a second. “Yeah. I always have.”

He stepped closer. “Why?”

“Because…” You hesitated. Why were you hesitating? “I just do.”

You froze, feeling something wet and warm sliding down your cheek. Dino gasped, coming even closer to see you clearly.

“You just ‘do?’ Is that really all there is to it?”

“Why do you keep asking me so many questions?” When you came out here, you had been hoping for a moment of peace and quiet. A chance to vent your frustrations to the sky, like you had done since you could talk. This was your one chance for a little bit of solitude, and you hadn’t wanted anyone intruding on it.

“I was thinking about what you said before,” He said. “When you told me there was a lot I didn’t know about you. You were right, I don’t know a lot about you.”

Okay, great. Now you were starting to feel bad about getting so upset. You sighed, lowering your head and looking at the ground. “I’ve always liked the stars. I just…find comfort in them.”

Dino wondered if you were going to say more, but you kept your lips pursed, and he figured there was more to it that you weren’t saying. That was fine, he wouldn’t push an answer out of you if you weren’t ready, he was just grateful you had confided in him. This was progress, even if it was only a small step forward.

The two of you continued to stand there in silence, looking everywhere but at each other. There was a strange feeling in the air, and it made you uncomfortable. Was this tension? Could Dino feel it too?

“Um, I should probably get back to bed.” You said, noticing Dino nod out of the corner of your eye. Like before, he extended his hand to you, and once again you declined. “Good night, Your Highness.”

“Good night, [Y/n].”

The next morning, you did something you hadn’t done in a long time.

You shocked Ryujin.

“What are you doing awake already?” She questioned. “Is it opposite day? Am I still dreaming?”

“Oh you’re so funny, Ryujin.” You said, sliding past her and out of the door.

“Where are you going? And how are you already dressed? You did my job for me…am I getting fired?”

You laughed. “Relax. I’m just going to the orchard.” Ryujin narrowed her eyes at how casual you seemed, not even trying to hide her skepticism.

“The orchard? For what? We have plenty of apples here. Too many, if I’m being honest. Where are you really going?”

“Ryujin, really, what reason do you have not to trust me?”

“I have several. An entire list, actually.” She said. “Seems like I’ll be making an addition to it today.

“Ryujin, I’m giving you a day off, don’t you get it?” You asked her. “Now I suggest you take it before I make you do your job.”

Her demeanor changed in an instant.

“You are most gracious, Your Highness.” She bowed to you and then ran off to who knows where, probably the maids quarters, no doubt. Whatever, that was her business. Just like your trip to the orchard with Prince Dino was yours.

Since the picnic, he had stopped with the other gifts—well, he still sent you the flowers—and had started planning on bringing you out, starting with Kasmira’s renowned apple orchard. Kasmiran apples were spoken about in every corner of every kingdom, known for their distinctive flavor and sweetness. You’d be lying if you said you never wanted to try one for yourself, and now you would finally get the chance.

He was waiting for you with a carriage, which he offered to help you into.

You raised one of your eyebrows. “What, you think I need your help to sit down?” When he pouted, you gave him a light shove. “I’m only kidding. But really, I’ve got it.”

“That was a joke?” He asked, climbing in and sitting across from you. “I’m shocked. I didn’t know you even had a sense of humor.”

“Excuse me?”

“Ah, no, I didn’t mean it like that. You’re just normally so…serious. If you hadn’t told me, I wouldn’t have known you were kidding.”

You tilted your head back, resting it on the solid interior of the carriage. “The only person I ever joke with is Ryujin.” You explained to him. “She gets me. It’s easy to laugh with her.”

“You laugh too?” He just couldn’t stop. “I’ll believe it when I hear it.” He teased.

You glared at him, opening your mouth to say something, but decided against it. Instead, you turned your head to look out of the window, watching the landscape as it came into view and faded out of sight with the movement with the carriage.

“Will we be there soon?” You asked, wanting nothing more than to get to Kasmira as fast as possible to get your hands on one (or five) of those apples you had heard so much about.

“Yeah…” Dino nodded, then stopped and shook his head. “No, it’ll be about fifty minutes.”

Great, fifty minutes until you got to taste the rumored honey and heaven apples. Fifty minutes left riding inside this tiny little compartment with too little space keeping you and Dino apart. Just great.

To your surprise, the ride had been faster than you expected. It might’ve had something to do to the nap you took on the way, but that was neither here nor there. Dino placed a hand on your shoulder, softly shaking you awake.

“Hm?” You hummed, the clutches of sleep still gripping your brain. You blinked yourself awake, gasping when you saw the field of trees from the carriage window. “We’re here!”

Dino opened the door, sliding out of the seat and holding the door open for you. You practically jumped out, an awestruck smile on your face as you stared up at the trees littered with the soft pink apples.

Dino smiled softly at your enthusiasm, watching as you stood up as tall as you could and plucked an apple off a branch, happily bringing it to your mouth to take a bite.

Oh god, the rumors did no justice to describe the taste of these apples. You had never tasted anything as fresh and crisp in your entire life. Giving Dino a quick glance, you continued to bite into the apple over and over again until he pulled it away from you, laughing.

“So, what do you think?”

You covered your mouth with one hand, trying to chew and swallow what was in your mouth, before nodding with a smile. “They’re amazing! I’ve never tasted anything so good in my life!” You took the apple back from Dino’s hands, taking the last few bites before you had finished it off.

“Then let’s get you a few more, hmm?” He said, pressing a hand against the small of your back while he reached up to grab a few more apples and drop them into the basket he had brought with him in his other hand. You froze, your skin burning at the feeling of his hands on your body.

“Um…Prince Dino?” You mumbled, catching his attention. You had never called him by anything other than “Your Highness” since the two of you first met, and he was definitely shocked to hear you say those words.

“Yes, [Y/n]?” He said, looking down at you but never moving his hand from your back.

“Your—your hand…” Dino looked down at his hand was, immediately pulling it away from where it had been, and in an instant you felt the warmth that had been there fade away.

“Oh, I’m so sorry [Y/n], I didn’t even realize.” He apologized. Without another word, he leaned down to pick up the basket and handed it to you. “Here you go, [Y/n]. Should I come with you to—”

“No!” You shouted, though you hadn’t meant to raise your voice. “No, no. There’s no need. I’ll go back on my own.”

Dino wanted to say something, but you had already turned your back to him, rushing back to the carriage and telling the driver to bring you back to Sokoto before he could. Glancing out of the window, you noticed him standing under the tree, watching you get farther and farther away, his arms limp at his sides.

You brought a hand to your chest, feeling your heart beat twice as fast than it should have been. This shouldn’t have been happening. This was exactly the reason you didn’t want him touching you, the reason you had refused to touch him, because you knew that if it happened, you wouldn’t be able to control how it would affect you. Even though it had been such a harmless, domestic, innocent touch, if it could get this much of a reaction out of you, maybe you should get stricter on the “no touching” rule.

This is not at all how you thought today would turn out.

The next day things had gone back to the way they had been in the beginning; with you holed up in your room, avoiding Dino. And it was like that for the next day, and the day after that, and the day after that. Ryujin had tried to get you outside, or at the very least to the dinner table, but her persistence couldn’t stand a chance against your stubbornness. Once a week had passed since the apple incident, Ryujin couldn’t take it any more.

“Enough is enough [Y/n]. You haven’t left your room in a week. Dino won’t stop hounding me with questions about where you are every day, and I can’t take it anymore!” She huffed. “You need to get up and go see him so I don’t have to.”

“Ryujin, I can’t.” You said with a heavy sigh. “It’s just…complicated.”

“How complicated could things really be?”

More complicated than you would’ve liked. “I just can’t see him right now.”

“Well that’s too bad, because I told him you would.” Ryujin shrugged. “He’ll be here later, so we have to make you look…like you again, now.”

“Ryujin, I’m tired of you trying to play matchmaker. Are my parents paying you to do this to me?” You asked, your tone nothing short of accusatory.

“I’m doing this because you don’t need to be locked up in this room all day. Not only that, but I can tell how much you and Dino like spending time with each other.”

The rebuttal in your mind died in your throat at the last sentence Ryujin had said. The time you had spend with Dino recently hadn’t been all bad…but what did she know?

“Now get up. Unless you want Dino to come over and see you like…that.” She gestured to your overall disheveled appearance, a grimace on her face.

“Oh yeah, like you’re not a sight for sore eyes.” You hissed, then broke out into laughter along with Ryujin a second later. “Fine, whatever, I’m getting up.”

The next hour consisted of a long, soapy bubble bath, followed by Ryujin washing and doing your hair, and finally her picking out the finest outfit for you to wear just in time for Dino’s arrival in his favorite rendezvous point: the Sokoto castle gardens.

Fuck, you were so nervous.

Dino arrived with a single white rose in his hand and a smile, thrilled to be able to see you again. Ryujin bowed and wandered off, leaving with. Alone. Again.

“For you.” He said, handing the rose to you. You looked down at it before you gingerly took it from him and thanked him with a fleeting smile.

“Thank you.”

Awkward silence. The worst type of silence. This is exactly why you wanted to avoid him, to prevent all of these unnecessary feelings.

“I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable that day…at the orchard.” He said. “And my apology was so shitty, I—”

“Dino, stop. Don’t apologize. It’s…It’s okay. I shouldn’t have run off on you like that. It was rude of me.”

Dino stepped closer, noticing the way your body tensed up when he did. “[Y/n], what’s going on?”

“I…I don’t want you to touch me.” You whispered. The grip you had on the rose was starting to hurt your hand. Dino gave you a curious and worried look.

“Why?”

“…Because when you touched me at the orchard, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I don’t think I’ve ever felt that way before in my life.”

You expected many different reactions from Dino. You expected him to back away, to call you strange or disgusting. You expected him to go running back to Kasmira as fast has his feet would carry him, to start avoiding you like you had been avoiding him. You even expected him to ask to call off the marriage agreement and find someone better, or nicer, or prettier.

You never expected him to pull you close, cursing under his breath and pulling your face up to look at him.

“Really, baby?” He asked, his voice suddenly soft, a direct contract to the way his eyes darkened. “Is that why you’ve been so adamant on not letting me touch you?”

A tentative nod of your head had Dino chuckling. “Now it all makes sense. Don’t worry baby, I’ll make you feel a thousand times better…only if you want to, though.”

“Yes, please,” your words came out hushed and breathy and shaky, allowing Dino to guide you you backwards onto the grass and gently push you backwards while he hovered above you.

Dino slid his hands down your body, seemingly pleased at the way you shivered when his fingers traced over your underwear, pushing up the button of your dress to see how drenched they were.

“Oh, baby,” Dino sucked in a sharp breath, pulling them to the side and biting his lip once he had seen how wet you actually were. “Is this all because of me?”

You nodded, covering your mouth to keep any noise from escaping. “Couldn’t stop thinking about you.” You mumbled from behind your hand, making sure your voice was loud enough for him to hear you clearly.

He ran two of his fingers up and down your slit before pushing one of them inside of you, pressing the pad of his thumb against your clit, all the while you squirmed beneath him, working hard to trap the moans that threatened to spill out of your lips.

“Baby, don’t be so nervous,” he said, adding a second finger inside of you and curling them just enough so that you finally let your hands fall away from your mouth and let your moans out. “That’s it, keep moaning like that for me. Fuck, you sound so pretty.”

“Dino…f-fuck. Don’t stop…” You ground your hips up into his hand, your mind growing foggy with pleasure as Dino increased the speed of his fingers. You were embarrassed at how easily his fingers slid in and out of you from how wet you continued to get.

Dino lowered his head, bringing his lips to your neck, kissing and sucking at any exposed skin he could find. He thrived at the way your moans grew louder and more urgent, switching the position of his fingers, opting for a scissoring motion and pressing his lips together to keep in a moan of his own. “Your thighs are starting to shake, love. Gonna cum for me?”

You nodded weakly, arching your back when you felt Dino add a third finger inside of you. Your skin felt hot and sticky and sweaty all over, and the only thing you could say when you felt your orgasm hit you like an earthquake was “Dino, Dino, Dino,” over and over again.

“That’s my girl,” Dino mumbled, fingering you through your high, pulling them out of you once you wrapped a hand around his wrist. You watched with wide eyes as he brought them to his lips, sucking them clean and moaning at the taste of you. “You taste so sweet, baby.”

“Don’t say thatttttt.” You whined, pushing him down onto the grass while you sat yourself upright. Wasting no time, you immediately brought one of your hands to his crotch, palming over the bulge that had been growing inside of his pants. “Ooh, what’s this? Is this all because of me?” You mimicked the words he had said to you earlier, grinning when he nodded and pushed his hips up into your hand.

“Baby, come on, you’re really gonna tease me right now?” Dino asked, unable to stop his hips from moving. As much as you wanted to tease him, there would be plenty of opportunities to do that another time. Right now, you wanted so badly to taste him, to feel him in your mouth and hear him moan for you like you had done for him.

You tugged down his pants and underwear, just enough so that his cock could spring free, and you drooled at the sight, noticing the bead of pre cum that had collected at his tip, and now it was time for Dino to be the embarrassed one.

“So…big.” You mumbled, wrapping your hand around him and giving him a few slow pumps, squeezing him once to see what his reaction would be. A hoarse groan served as your answer. “Can I…use my mouth on you?”

“Of course you can baby,” Dino nodded all too eagerly, watching with rapt attention as you brought your lips closer and closer to his cock. You have his tip a few kitten licks, the slightly salty taste spreading onto your taste buds. To be honest, you really didn’t know how to do this, the request coming from a carnal place inside of you. You were stalking for time so you could recall the words in a book you once read that had a scene similar to this moment in it. Once you had the faintest idea of how to proceed, you wrapped your lips firmly around his cock, feeling him rest his hands on the top of your head for stability.

Feeling you swirl your tongue around him, flicking your tongue across the slit as your head bobbed up and down had Dino absolutely reeling beneath you. He gripped your hair, shoving it all the way down to the base as he thrust his hips up into your mouth, gagging as a few tears starting to form in your eyes. “S-Sorry baby, shit, I can’t help myself…you’re s-so good with this cute little mouth of y-yours, fuck. Gonna fuckin’ cum already.”

You hummed in acknowledgment, letting Dino continue to fuck your mouth. He had pulled you back slightly when he registered your gagging, allowing you to wrap your hands around what didn’t fit in your mouth. You stroked him as fast as he tugged your head up and down, feeling your saliva trickle down your lips, chin, and all the way down Dino’s cock. When his hips stilled, you thought for a slight second that something was wrong, but the next second you felt his cum shoot into your mouth and down your throat, and he released his grip on your hair as he laid back and panted.

Recalling the words in the book once again, you swallowed—unfortunately you had done so a bit too fast, and you coughed and patted your chest to keep yourself from choking. The last thing you wanted to do right now was die in front of Dino after you had just sucked him off after he had just fingered you. Dino helped you by patting your back. Once your breathing had gone back to normal, he smiled at you, and you returned the gesture.

“Wow, you were right,” You mumbled. “I do feel a thousand times better.”

“Does this mean we can ban the no touching rule?”

You narrowed your eyes at him with a grin, giving him a pinch on his thigh. Dino hissed in pain, scrambling to pull up his underwear and pants. “Consider that a yes.”

The next few weeks were nothing short of amazing. There was a minuscule, growing spark between you and Dino now, and it resided inside of your heart, and you felt no desire to let it die out or even to extinguish it.

Dino took you on several dates, yes, dates, in this time frame, always with an added personal touch. He brought you to a local Kasmiran bakery and then let you ride his thigh on the carriage ride home. He took you to a winery in Vaelia then ate you out behind the building. He asked you to tag along while he went sightseeing in Sokoto and had you cockwarm him in the carriage the whole time. With each of these, the spark in your heart continued to grow. 

At this rate, it was only a jagged of time before it grew to become a fire.

You were up early again this morning, having thought of the most wonderful idea in bed the night before. Today, you were going to Kasmira all on your own to surprise Dino. Sure, yes, you had been to Kasmira before, but never had you been to the castle. You would even bring him some tarts made from the tangerines you had picked in the Sokotoan tangerine fields on Tuesday with Dino before he asked you to sit on his face. That was a good day.

Ryujin couldn’t be happier for you, though at some times during this new stage in the relationship between you and Dino she felt like she couldn’t keep up with the new you. Though recently, you had been giving her more days to herself as you insisted on doing all the work for yourself.

You were getting ready to go, opening the door of your room, shocked to see Chaeryeong already standing there, seemingly spacing out again with a round golden container in her hands.

“Um…Chaeryeong?” You mumbled, waving a hand in front of her face. That seemed enough to snap her out of it, and she focused her gaze on you with a smile.

“Ah, sorry Your Highness! Here are the tarts, freshly baked just for you. Lia was going to deliver them, but then she remembered she had something to do with Ryujin at the last minute.”

You took the container from her and smiled. “Thank you. Oh, and tell the cooks I said thank you as well.” Chaeryeong nodded, bowing to you before excusing herself. You shut your door behind you, making your way out of the castle and to a carriage as fast as you could. When the driver asked where to, you happily chirped out “Kasmira, please,” and asked him to get you there as quick as he could. For all fifty minutes, you couldn’t sit still for longer than a few seconds. You just couldn’t wait to see Dino again, to hold him close and feed him your tarts. He’d probably ask if you made them, and even though you hadn’t, he’d still say they were the best things he’d ever tasted second to you. Then you’d get flustered, hit him, and let him bury himself between your thighs for as long as he wanted.

Long story short, you really wanted to see Dino. Really badly.

Upon your arrival to the Kasmiran castle, you rushed out of the carriage and into the castle, asking around until you found out that Dino was in the Kasmiran royal gardens. Thanking them, you hurried your way there, smiling when you took notice of his signature blonde hair. You were just about to call his name when he laughed, leaning his head back, and you saw a woman sitting beside him, looking at him with a smile on her face.

You felt your mouth go dry as it fell open in disbelief.

Princess Miyoung, the Princess of Hisia, was here in Kasmira. She was sitting next to Dino. Laughing with him. Touching his arm. You let out a shaky breath, a tightening feeling growing in your chest. What was she doing here? Why was she with him? What had she said to make him laugh like that? Fuck, you couldn’t take this. You had to get out of here. You turned around, having your third shock of the day to see Dino’s parents standing in the hallway behind you.

“Oh! Princess [Y/n],” His mother said, obviously surprised to see you standing there. “I wasn’t aware you were here. Is there something you need, honey?”

You shook your head, squeezing your eyes shut with your head to the ground. There was no way you were making a scene, not in front of Dino’s parents. “N-No, uh…I just came to drop off these…tarts. For Dino.” You mumbled, pushing the container into the hands of the King.

“Well, what a lovely sentiment! We’ll be sure to give these to him then dear. I’m sure he’ll be happy to—”

“[Y/n]?” Dino’s smooth voice filled your ears and you squeezed your eyes shut tighter. You didn’t turn to face him, you couldn’t, not if when you opened them you would see Miyoung standing there beside him, her presence alone enough to taunt you. “[Y/n], what wrong?”

“I have to go.” You said, scurrying out of the castle and back to the carriage. Dino chased after you, managing to catch up just before the carriage could start moving.

“What’s the matter? You just got here and now you’re leaving? Stay.” He reached through the open window to hold your hand, but you pulled it away and glared at him.

“Why? You shouldn’t need me when you have Miyoung here to entertain you in my place.” You retorted. Dino’s face fell, and you could only beat yourself up mentally for letting yourself get roped in by him. Of course he didn’t care about you. There was no way he could ever feel the same way about you as you did about him. You were fooling yourself for even thinking that for a second, Dino’s feelings were the same as yours.

“[Y/n], it isn’t like that, please just let me explain—”

You brought your hand up, placing it in front of his face to signal him to stop talking. “Don’t bother, Your Highness.”

For the second time, Dino watched you disappear from him, to let you slip through his hands like grains of sand, and stand to the side powerless as you faded away.

This cycle seemed impossible to break.

For the umpteenth time, here you were, locked away in your room, refusing to see Dino no matter how many times he had begged. You cried every day, drowning your sorrows in bottles upon bottles of wine, dragging yourself to the window to sob to the stars once night had come. You kept the door lock, adamant on not letting anyone see you in such a state. Unfortunately, Ryujin had picked the lock of your bedroom door with a handmade lock pick she got from Yeji because you “needed to eat” so you wouldn’t die before the wedding.

To hell with that wedding, and to hell with the groom.

You sat up in bed, your hands still gripping the nearly empty wine bottle and your cheeks still stained with last nights tears. You brought the bottle to your lips, finishing it off and tossing it aside into the bed. With heavy feet, you dragged yourself to the vanity in the corner of the room, sitting down to take in your reflection.

What have I become, you asked yourself. Who am I? Sighing, you smoothed out the wrinkles in your clothes and tried to make your hair look less unkempt. You wished Yuna was here, she was the hair expert. Ryujin always preferred to keep it simple whenever she did your hair, but she had admitted to you that she learned everything she knew from the younger girl.

A knock at the door had you rolling your eyes.

“Go away, Ryujin. I don’t want breakfast.”

The door opened slightly, and you turned around with a scowl on your face. But then your face changed—softened. Ryujin wasn’t at the door.

“Sorry, I’m not Ryujin.” Dino mumbled, cautiously entering your room before shutting it behind him. “Can we…talk? I haven’t seen you in weeks, [Y/n]. I’m really worried.”

His tone of voice was so gentle and sincere you almost forgot why you were mad at him. Almost. The reason why came flooding back to your brain instantly, and you turned away from him.

“I have nothing to say to you.” You said to him, crossing your arms over your chest.

“[Y/n], please don’t be like that. You left before I had the chance to explain back at the castle.”

“Explain what?” You stood up, whipping around to face him. “Explain what you were doing with the Princess of Hisia? You know what they did to us.” Your last sentence came out quieter—sadder.

“Who is ‘us’?”

“Me! My family! The rest of Sokoto! That is who ‘us’ is, Dino!”

“Why are you grouping yourself with them?” As hard as Dino tried to understand you, in this moment he just…couldn’t. “The war wasn’t your fault, and there was nothing you could’ve done to change what had already happened.”

“That doesn’t change the fact that Hisia stabbed us in the back. And there you were, with the Princess of the first nation that decided to betray us.” You pointed your finger at him. “You’re a traitor.”

“I’m sorry that I have friends, [Y/n], and you don’t. But when your kingdom decides to stay out of unnecessary political affairs that you aren’t a part of, you get keep your allies. I’m sorry if that’s something you or your parents don’t realize because you’re so insistent on being cold and unfeeling, but that’s not what we do in Kasmira.”

Everything he said hurt more because not one part of it was false. But you couldn’t back down now. You had to do something to regain control over the argument.

Even if it meant sending him away.

“Get out.”

Dino raked his hands through his hair, and you could tell that his patience with you was running thin. “No, [Y/n]. I’m not leaving you while you’re like this.”

You glared at him. “I said get out! I don’t ever want to see you again! Go marry somebody else!”

As soon as the words came out of your mouth, the look on Dino’s face was enough to make you regret saying them. You had never seen him go from looking so shocked and heartbroken before, not even the slightest bit. But now…now you had. At it was all because of you.

“Why would I want to marry someone else?”

Silence. Long, heavy, painful silence. Neither one of you looked away from the other or spoke, until finally, after what felt like forever, you found an answer.

“Because I know someone out there is a better match for you than I am.”

“What? [Y/n], what are you talking about? That’s not what I want at all.”

“You…you don’t mean that.” You couldn’t even look at him right now, not if you wanted to believe what you were saying no matter how untrue it was.

“I do, [Y/n]. I mean it. I’ve wanted to marry you since the first time I saw you. Even if you kept running from me. Even if you pushed me away. Even if I could only see you on your time.” Nothing could prepare you for the words he said next. “Because I love you, [Y/n].”

You stiffened, finally finding the strength to raise your head to look at him “What did you say?”

“I said I love you.” He repeated. “Should I say it again, baby?”

“N-No, you can’t…” You whimpered, leaning into Dino’s chest as you felt tears brimming at your waterline. “Please take it back…”

“Take it back? No, why would I ever do that? I really mean it. I’d never say I love you and not mean it, [Y/n].”

“Why do you love me? What is there to love, Dino?”

Dino frowned, wrapping his arms around you and hugging you tightly.

“You have the most beautiful smile I’ve ever seen. Every time you laugh, I laugh, because it’s so infectious. You’re such a good friend to Ryujin. When you eat something you like, you can’t stop until you’ve finished it all. You don’t make the best jokes ever, but you’re learning.” He said, laughing a little once he had finished. “And those are just my favorite things about you.”

You wrapped your arms around Dino, running your hands up and down his back, forcing yourself to believe that yes, this was reality. He was here, he was real, and he loved you. “I’m sorry.” You mumbled, the sound of your voice quiet.

“What was that?”

“I said I’m sorry.” You pulled back slightly so that he could hear your voice clearly. “I shouldn’t have ignored you, or run from you, or any of it. I…” Deep breath, you could do it. “I love you too.”

“Is all that true, baby?” You nodded, and Dino immediately pulled you back to his chest, hugging you even tighter. “You don’t know how long I’ve been waiting to hear you say that.”

“You mean it?” You asked, wanting to make sure that he was serious. “Not just ‘cause we’re supposed to get married, right?”

His laughter was music to your ears. “Of course not, baby. I love you either way.”

You smiled, tilting your head up so Dino could wipe away your stray tears.

Dino nodded, pulling you back again so he could look you in the eyes. “Yeah, I love you, baby.” His eyes flickered down to your lips before coming back to your eyes. “Can I kiss you?”

A nod of your head is all it takes before he’s pressing his lips to yours. You had never been kissed by anyone before, but the way Dino kissed you was enough to make you glad that this was the first kiss you had ever gotten. The kiss was slow and tender, and you unconsciously chased his lips when he attempted to pull away, wrapping your arms around his neck to keep him in place. Dino smiled against your lips, the two of you only pulling away once the need for air went from mild to severe.

“Again?” You asked, and Dino immediately pulled you in again. The kiss was different this time, it was faster and sloppier, the initial tenderness of the first being replaced by a newfound desperation now that you two knew that what you were feeling was the same. Dino loved you, and you loved Dino.

You didn’t fight it when Dino started to guide you backwards, your body hitting the bed with a bounce. Dino slipped his hands under your thighs, flipping up the bottom of your silk nightgown and pulling down your underwear and tossing it onto the floor. He cupped your cunt with one hand, the palm of his hand pressed flat against your clit.

“Dino, please…”

“Please what, baby? Don’t you want me to play with this cute little pussy like always?” He asked, feeling the way your arousal stuck to his hand as he circles your entrance with one of his fingers. You shook your head, holding onto his wrist with your hand.

“Just want you to fuck me.”

Dino groaned, resting his hands on your hips and pushing your nightgown up even further. “Yeah? You sure, baby?”

You nodded, your skin flushed with heat. “Mhm, want your cock, Dino.”

God, just when he thought you couldn’t get any more beautiful, and that he couldn’t get any harder, you just continued to surprise him.

“Who am I to deny the Princess?” He smirked, making quick work of removing his clothes. While he was doing that, you pulled off your nightgown and threw it and your bra aside, both of them landing somewhere on the floor with the rest of your clothes. Dino laid you back down on the bed, climbing on top of you while he ran his hands all over your body, grinning at the way you moaned and trembled when he teased your nipples.

“Dino, please,” You whined, and he chuckled softly.

“Okay, okay, sorry. I just can’t help myself,” He mumbled, reaching down to pump his cock a few times before lining it up at your entrance. “Ready, baby?”

“Yeah,” you nodded. “Ready.”

Dino eased into your cunt slowly, giving you the chance to adjust to him, all the while he swallowed your whimpers and whines by kissing you. When he had pushed himself all the way inside, he tore his lips away from yours to bite down on your shoulder, resisting the urge to start moving his hips already. The two of you stayed like that for a little while before you  told him it was alright to start moving.

“So perfect, so pretty,” Dino mumbled, holding one of his hands holding onto your hip while the other had both of your wrists pinned above your head. He thrusted into you slowly, pulling himself out almost all the way before slamming back inside of you. “I can’t believe I get to have you like this, baby, fuck.”

“M-me too.” You shuddered, your body slowly traveling further up the bed each time he thrusted into you. “Love it, love you, love your cock, shit…”

“Love you too baby, so much,” He whispered, speeding up the speed of his thrusts, a quiet grunt coming out of his mouth when he felt your walls clenching around him. “Fuck…gonna cum for me already baby? Hm?”

Your response was lost in a series of strangled noises of pleasure as you felt your orgasm creeping up on you. Dino pulled the hand pinning your wrists away and brought it down to the point where your bodies were connected, rubbing your clit in quick circles. You cried out, rolling your hips against him, your eyes rolling back into your head as you came undone beneath him.

“That’s it baby, I’ve got you,” He groaned, speeding up even more as he continued to thrust through your high. Once you had caught your breath, his hips jerked forward one last time before you felt his hit cum filling you up. You tried to pull him closer, figuring that he was done, but Dino flipped you over and ran the head of his cock along your slit, making you whine from the overstimulation.

“Just one more, baby. I cant get enough of this sweet little pussy,” He pushed in without warning, and you screamed, shocked at yourself for just how loud you were being.

“Ngh, Dino, c-can’t take it,” You whined, your head falling down onto the pillows and your mouth hanging open as you surrendered yourself to the pleasure.

“Shh, I know you can take it baby,” Dino whispered, pulling you up so your back was flush against his chest, bringing his head to the crook of your neck, taking a long deep inhale and sighing with content. “You smell so fucking good.”

You can feel his pounding in his chest against your back, your head falling backwards as you felt your second orgasm approaching. “G-Gonna cum again…” Dino couldn’t even brace himself before your walls clamped down against his cock, whispering curses against your skin, and felt his own release envelop him for the second time today too.

You fell forward onto the bed, your eyes closed as you steadied your breathing once again. Dino collapsed beside you, draping an arm over your waist and pulling you close. You turned your head over your shoulder to look at him and smiled.

“That was amazing.”

“Not as amazing as you, baby,” He murmured, stroking your hair with his hand. “I love you.”

“I love you more.”

“I love you most.”

You gripped Ryujin’s shoulders, much to her pain, because she was trying desperately to pry them away.

“[Y/n], your nails are digging into my skin,” She groaned, and only then did you pull your hands away.

“Sorry, Ryujin.” You ran your down the front of your dress, taking deep breaths to steady your nerves. “I just don’t know if I’m ready for this.”

“Of course you are,” Yeji shook her head with a smile on her face. “You look beautiful, [Y/n]. You just go out there, walk down the aisle, and tell Dino those two words that will join you forever.”

“Cum inside?” Ryujin asked, earning her a smack from Lia.

“No, I do.” Lia sighed, then turned to look at you. “I’m so glad you chose us to be your bridesmaids.”

“Yeah!” Yuna agreed, then shuffled around Chaeryeong and Yeji so she was next to you. “By the way, when you throw the bouquet, is there any chance you can sum it towards me?”

“She won’t see us, Yuna. There’s no way she’ll know who she’s throwing at.” Chaeryeong said with a quiet sigh. “I’m really so happy for you, [Y/n]. Dino is the perfect match for you.”

Yeah, if you heard her say that a few months ago, you would not have believed her. You might have even questioned why she would say such a thing. But after everything you and Dino have been through, you could finally agree.

Your father approached you and the girls, a smile on his face as he looked at you. “Oh honey, you look so beautiful. I never thought this day would come.” This was the first time you had seen your dad smile in years.

“What a gorgeous bride. Oh dear, I’m so happy for you,” Your mother cried, holding your head in your hands and pressing a kiss to your forehead. You couldn’t help but smile seeing your parents so happy, and all because of you.

“Thank you Mother, thank you Father.”

Yuna gasped, and everyone turned to look at her. “It’s starting!”

Your father looked at you, nodding. “Alright honey. Are you ready?”

You let out the breath you had been keeping in for a while. “Ready as I’ll ever be.” He pulled your veil over your head, intertwining his arm with yours. The two of you walked down the aisle, and you could hear the gasps and murmurs of everyone in the audience as you walked past them, all eyes on you in that present moment, especially Dino’s

Once you felt your father’s arm leave yours, you turned yourself to the right, faintly making out Dino’s face behind your veil. He reached forward, flipping the veil behind your head, his eyes softening when he got a look at your face.

“You look so gorgeous,” he whispered, and you smiled even brighter.

“And you look so handsome,” you whispered back, Dino trying to bite back the smile that continued to grow on his face.

The ceremony was beautiful, a bit longer than you had thought it would be, but it was fine with you, because Dino looked really good in that tuxedo.

“Prince Dino, do you take Princess [Y/n] to be your lawfully wedded wife? To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for to love and to cherish; from this day forward?”

Dino’s hands gripped yours tighter as he nodded, staring deeply into your eyes. “I do.”

“And do you, Princess [Y/n], take Dino to be your lawfully wedded husband, in good times and bad, in joy as well as sorry, till death do you part?”

You nodded, looking back at Dino with just as much love in your eyes as he was doing with you. “I do.”

“Then by the power vested in me, I nor pronounce you, husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride.”

The crowd before you all cheered as Dino cupped your head in his hands and pulled you forward for a kiss. This kiss felt different from the way he had kissed you before, again. This one was passionate, loving, now the two of you were complete. It was perfect.

Later on, after much cake a little drinking, and watching Lia and Yuna fight over the bouquet after you threw it between both of them, you and Dino were still waltzing on the dance floor in the middle of the rest of the guests, holding each other impossibly close, that longing love-struck look still in both of your eyes.

“I can’t believe I get to call you my wife, now,” Dino mumbled, spinning you around. You hummed, pressing a quick kiss to his lips. “My perfect, pretty, sweet wife.”

“Oh stop it,” You laughed. “Sweet is a bit of a stretch, isn’t it?”

“Not at all, baby. I think you’re very sweet.” He said, then pulled you closer. “In more ways than one. Speaking of which, I can’t wait to have you all to myself tonight.”

“Again?” You asked, but you still anticipated what he would have in store for you. “You’re insatiable.”

“Well now that you’re all mine, how am I supposed to help myself?”

You just smiled and shook your head. He should be so lucky that he loved you. But then again, maybe he didn’t need to be. Not when you loved him back just as much. Forever and always, till death do you part.

#seventeen #svt #seventeen smut #seventeen x reader #svt smut #svt x reader #lee chan #svt lee chan #svt dino #seventeen dino #dino smut #lee chan smut #lee chan fluff #lee chan angst #dino fluff #dino angst #svt fluff #seventeen imagines

[sturniozo]

Savage Love Part Thirteen

Matt Sturniolo x Reader Mafia AU

Masterlist

Emma was adamant on releasing the article. After the phone call got hung up I began panicking. I can’t tell Matt or else he could do something drastic about this.

I lay down for a moment to catch my breath and think about what to do. But I’ve got nothing.

I’ll have to tell Matt, but he’s busy tonight. He told me he wouldn’t be able to answer any calls tonight at all and the story publishes tomorrow morning. I shake my head and sit up. I need a drink.

I get to my small kitchen and open my cabinet to grab a glass and pour myself some wine. I’ve only just turned 20, and my older friend, Steph, brought it to my apartment a few weeks before I met Matt.

Steph works on the paper too, as a photographer. She knows every big club and party, much like Emma, but Steph has access to the guest lists. She’s how Emma knew Matt was going to be there in the first place.

I take a sip of the wine. It’s not for my taste, but it’s something. I just need to take my mind off of this and rest. I’ll tell Matt first thing in the morning before the paper comes out.

~

I couldn’t sleep the whole night. At around five in the morning I found myself getting out of bed and getting in my car, which is how I’m now on my way to Matt’s house.

I don’t even know the address, just the path to get there. He’s had me driven from my place to his and back so many times now, I’ve gotten used to the path.

I take the last turn that leads up the driveway to Matt’s house. I park in his driveway behind all of his cars, and I walk to the door. The door is locked so I knock. I answer.

I bite my lip and turn around. His car isn’t gone. I ring the doorbell but no answer once again.

I sigh and sit down on the step in front of his door. I lean my head against the railing of the steps. The darkness is just starting to fade away as the sun rises. I close my eyes for a moment, tired from the lack of sleep.

I must have fallen asleep because I wake up to the sound of a car pulling up and the sun has risen a good bit. Matt steps out of the car and has a scowl on his face.

“Matt!” I jump up and run quickly to him. I go to hug him and he pushes me away.

“Matt? What’s wrong?” I ask. He glares at me

“Go home.” He says in a low voice.

“No, I have something to tell you.” I step closer to him and he walks off. “Matt!” I yell to him.

Matt turns around and angerly walks back to me. “I fucking trusted you.” He spits at me.

“What do you mean?” I ask.

Matt goes to his car and pulls out a newspaper, throwing it in my face. “Fired, really? Cos that article is under your name.”

I open the paper and see it. The article Emma wrote but published under my pseudonym. “No, Matt, that’s what I came here to tell you.”

“That you betrayed me?”

“No!”

“Did you do this just to get your job back?”

“No, Matt I-“

“Or were you even fucking fired in the first place?”

“I was Matt!” Tears form in my eyes.

“Get the fuck out of here!”

“Matt, please!” I sob

“Y/n.”

I look down as tears stream down my cheeks. “Matt, I wouldn’t do this to you.”

“I don’t believe that, look at it! It’s your pseudonym!”

“It wasn’t me, it was Emma!”

“And how would she have known any of that shit, huh? You told her that shit.”

"No, I didn’t mean to- it isn’t like that.”

“Then what is it like?”

“I called her when I saw what was in that room, I was just scared.”

“And you told her to run the article about me? The one you quit. The one that got you fired?”

“How did you know about that?” I ask.

“I know everything.”

“Matt, please listen to me.”

“No you listen to me!” He yells as he steps closer to me. “Get the fuck away from me now.” He spits.

Tears stream down my face. “Matt, please.”

“Go. I don’t want to see you.”

“Matt, I love you.”

Matt just stares at me. I bite my lip and sniffle lightly. “Go.” He says again.

“Please.” I beg in a whisper as the tears pour out of my eyes.

“Just go.” He whispers to me before turning around and walking away.

I swallow the saliva building in my mouth and look down, sniffling. I get back to my car and lean my head against the steering wheel. More tears flow out of my eyes and down my cheeks.

I take a deep breath and start my car, pulling out of his driveway and leaving. I start driving through New York City until I reach the highway that leads back to my home.

Tears blur my eyes and I wasn’t focused enough to see the car that’s been following me since I left Matt’s house. I wipe my tears away, and as I do the car behind me speeds up and crashes against my bumper. I yelp and look into my rear view mirror to see the car ram against my car again.

I’m pushed forward and my head hits the wheel. The week turn and I’m run off the road and crash in the ditch. The airbag goes off and smacks me in the face, forcing my head backwards harshly against the head of my seat.

I catch my breath and groggily move the airbag out of my way, going to undo my seatbelt and open the car door.

But the door opens before I can do it myself, and someone tanks me out of my car. I yelp again and scream, trying to get away.

“I’ve been waiting for something that Sturniolo cares about to come along.” The man says.

“Let me go!” I scream.

“Not until I get what I want.”

“And what’s that?”

“Matt Sturniolos brains scattered on the floor.”

~

The room is dark and cold. The floor is damp and the chair I’m tied to is right in a puddle. I struggle against the binds and let out screams muffled by the gag in my mouth. The man who took me stood in the corner, on the phone with someone.

He walks up to me, the phone to his ear. “Is this Matt Sturniolo?” He asks. After a reply he smiles and puts the phone on speaker.

“I said what do you want?” Matt’s voice says through the phone call.

“I’ve got something of yours, someone, say hello.” The man pulls the gag from my mouth and I gasp for air.

“Matt don’t listen to him, he’ll kill you, don’t do whatever he mmph!” The man shoves the gag back in my mouth.

“Let her go.” Matt demands.

“No, no no no. You will come here and get her.” The man says.

“I’m warning you-“

“No I’m warning you. Come get her, be here in three hours or she’s dead.”

“And where exactly is here?” Matt asks.

“The same place you had my brother killed.”

“Who are you?”

“Sean Cassidy.”

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[lyaswriting]

A Second Chance

Childe x Female!God!reader Reincarnation AU

Trigger Warnings: Blood, death, no beta we die like Rex Lapis

„I will return to you. Pinky promise.“

The whispered promise still lingered in her mind, where it had been for centuries, as Y/N walked through the park outside of a changed Mondstadt, quickly looking before crossing the street so she wouldn‘t be hit by a car, while taking a sip from her coffee. So she entered the park, that looked like it was a bit of a window into a past she sometimes barely remembered for how long it had been. Yet here she could still sometimes sit down and remember, occasionally still having to defend from a few slimes or other elemental beings, but to Y/N it was worth it, if only for the memories. Y/N had watched, as the times had changed after the fall of Celestia, after visions were no longer necessary to control elemental powers and after humanity decided to take matters into their own hands. She had watched as civilizations had risen and fallen, as people had embarked on journeys greater than they could imagine, as lovers had found their way back to each other, proving themselves that true love does exist.

And yet, Y/N thought, mine is the exception. As her lover had never returned, even though he promised. But he had tried, oh how he had fought to come back to her, but in the end it hadn‘t been enough.

And so, to make peace with the past or to not forget it, she didn‘t really know, she began writing down the stories, and adventures she had seen and lived. And she had written many about her once friends, as she felt each of their stories deserved to be told. And yet, as if to mock her once more, none sold better than the Story about the True Love between the Harbinger and the Goddess of Dreams. Although people often complained about the story having such a grim ending. But that was the harsh truth, that some stories did not have a happy ending.

If she listened into herself she could still remember their first meeting as if it had been merely days ago. She had just awoken from a slumber the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles had put her under, so she had decided to join Aether, the brave outlander, in his cause and traveled the world. That was when she had met the ginger haired Harbinger in Liyue, before the Rite of Descension.

In the Guili Plains she had fought some vishaps that had attacked her, she remembered, and was close to winning the fight, growing confident in her powers, as someone jumped into the middle of the fight, flashing two identical hydro blades, and before she knew it, the vishaps lay dead before them.

„Excuse me, but I had that under control!“, Y/N told the young man a bit rudely, who in return only put away the blades, and turned around slowly, grinning.

„Is that so?“, he said, looking her over before looking at her mildly enraged face.

„Yes. I was testing my fighting abilities, not to mention cutting in, jumping in without asking if I need help is rude.“

„I‘m sorry then. I can see now that you are perfectly capable of handling yourself. Maybe I can take you out to dinner, as an apology?“, he offered, while trying to look guilty, and failing.

„Do you always ask out women this way? Try to charm them after saving their lives?“

„So you do admit I saved your life?“, and he‘d smirked, oh that smirk.

„I did not mean it that way.“

„Of course you didn‘t“

„You didn‘t even tell me your name yet“, she bit back then, which he countered„And you didn‘t give me an answer“

„Fine, if you insist.“

„Perfect, I‘m Ajax by the way.“, he said, a dashing smile on his face, and equally smiling she answered,„Y/N“.

A little smile snuck onto her face, before it faded and she remembered how the whole story had ended. It had been centuries, and yet her heart had not healed. Some people you love so much that they leave a mark behind when they go, Zhongli had once said after the Battle against Celestia, familiar of the pain Y/N felt. And sometimes, he had said, they refuse to leave either, returning one way or another. But that was only wishful thinking, she knew, as she looked down at her hands, still almost seeing the blood that had stained them so long ago.

She‘d found the Harbinger after the battle, but instead of being fine like he promised, there was a gaping wound in his stomach, leaking blood just like the dozens of cuts on his body. His eyes had lighted up at seeing her, even if his smile was more melancholic as she kneeled next to him.

„Hey girlie.“

„What… you‘ll be fine. We‘ll get you to Barbara or Baizhu. You‘ll be fine.“

At that, he raised a hand to cup her cheek, making her look at him.

„Girlie, it‘s too late. Even if you…“, he coughed at this moment, she remembered, and he‘d coughed up blood, „even if they come… I used Foul Legacy for too long… my life is spent.“

„No, no, no… This cannot be. There has to be a way, I‘m a goddess, that has to count for something… I can figure something out, I just need time…“, Tears streamed down her face at this point violently shaking her, as she felt his breathing slow down, his voice raspy, „I wish we‘d have that time. But you, Y/N, were the best thing I could have hoped for. You were my dream.“

„Please don‘t leave me, I can‘t… I can‘t…“

„I will return to you. Pinky promise.“

Those had been the last words the Harbinger had ever said. And since then, every year she had returned to the park, to the same tree he had leaned against in his final moments, as if it could somehow make her feel closer to him.

That was when she heard it in the distance by the lake, fighting noices near the lake.

„If it is those damn hydro slimes again, I swear…“, she muttered under her breath, as she ran to the lake, already summoning her powers in her hand, throwing it at the slimes as soon as she saw them, apparently much to the dismay of their opponent.

„And here I thought I‘d get a little practice, but I guess not…“, the guy muttered.

That voice, that voice she had heard in her own dreams for a few hundred years now. It couldn‘t be, could it?

Y/N turned around, her heart beating so fast she would be scared if she weren‘t a goddess. And there he stood, as if he had never been gone, ginger hair tousled from the fight, hydro blades still in his hands.

„Anything particular you are staring at? Wanna spar perhaps after you destroyed my guinea pigs?“

He still had a playful tone, she noticed, but one look told her, that he didn‘t know who she was. Her heart sank a bit, before she caught herself, nearly laughing at the irony of their meeting.

„I… I‘m sorry, that was rude. I just thought someone might need help again and then I jumped in, completely disregarding your apparent dislike for help… I‘m sorry.“

„Apology accepted.“

„Even though, with those blades you wouldn‘t have gotten far against them, you know that right? Hydro vs Hydro and all.“

„Opinion noted.“

She laughed at that, an idea forming in her head.

„Opinion? You‘re welcome. But if you insist, may I take you out on dinner, to make it up?“

He studied her then, something seemingly pulling him in.

„I‘m sorry, I didn‘t get your name, did I? I‘m Ajax.“, and with that he stretched out his hand to her, which she shook, and smiled.

„I‘m Y/N“.

Ajax paused for a second, a feeling gnawing at him, as if he should remember something he doesn‘t, it was easy to read for Y/N, after all she had known him once before.

„Have we met once before?“, he asked, staring at her curiously.

„We kind of did. But I think you wouldn‘t believe me if I told you, it‘s apparently kind of a neverending story…“, she answered truthfully, looking into his blue eyes, full of life this time, and more mesmerizing than ever.

„Try me“, he said then, „maybe at that dinner you offered?“

And he smirked, oh that smirk.

And Y/N smiled too.

Maybe Zhongli had been right, that some people are bound to each other, and maybe Ajax had kept his promise too, he had found a way to return to Y/N.

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