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fayes-fics · 4 months

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Moments: 'Twas The Nights Before Christmas...

Moments Masterpost

Pairing: Benedict Bridgerton x fem!reader

Summary: It’s Christmas, and once again, the Bridgerton clan are gathering at Aubrey Hall to celebrate together. However, all Benedict can think about is conceiving a fifth child... if only he and his wife can get a moment of privacy.

Warnings: 18+ smut, minors DNI, semi-public sex, vaginal sex, breeding kink. Fluff & humour, thwarted intimacy, kids being kids, Viscounts being Viscounts.

Word Count: 2.6k

Author’s Note: Sorry this is about 2 weeks late, but here is the latest festive one-shot for Moments. It is set 6 years after the main story/their marriage and is based on an idea from the lovely @colettebronte (Request: Benedict and Reader want some adult alone time but keep getting interrupted/foiled because of holidays, family, and SO MANY KIDS), who also beta read an early version. I hope you all enjoy <3

23rd December, 11:04pm

“Was your evening agreeable, Mrs Bridgerton?” His voice is silky as he trails hot kisses down your throat.

“You know it was,” you reply, hand sinking into his lush hair, directing his lips where you want them as he smirks knowingly against your skin. He always enjoys it when you lead him, pushing into his warm body, clad only in a white ruffled shirt and trousers.

This is you finding a moment of intimacy with your husband as you get ready for bed in your guest room in Aubrey Hall. It’s two days before Christmas, and the entire Bridgerton clan have gathered at the family’s country seat to celebrate the holiday, a large house now packed with many children. You and Benedict are here with your brood of four.

Just as your fingers toy with the buttons on his shirt and his land on the bow of your gown…

“Mummy, I cannot sleep,” a little voice cuts in from across the room.

You twist around to see your youngest, two-year-old Thomas, standing in the doorway, his little fist clinging to the door handle at head height.

“One moment, lovely,” you call, watching him nod drowsily and toddle back into the adjoining nursery.

You bury your forehead into Benedict’s shoulder, knowing the possible romantic interlude is lost but unwilling to admit it out loud.

“Why do you have to be so damn handsome?” you grouse.

You feel his quiet laugh quaking his body as much as you hear it. “Thank you, my love. But that seems a non sequitur to this particular dilemma?”

“Quite the contrary,” you counter, raising your head. “We would not have these offspring interrupting us if I could resist you,” you sigh, shooting him a mock pout.

He breaks into a full belly laugh that creases his whole face. “How about I deal with the children I am responsible for, and you get some well-deserved rest, hmm?” he suggests chivalrously, nuzzling your cheek.

“You know, such wonderous things make me open to persuasion about more children, Mr Bridgerton,” you jest lightheartedly, swatting his bicep playfully.

His responding chuckle is rich. “Why do you think I do it, Mrs Bridgerton?” he hums, his lips grazing your temple, his flirtatious tone causing that flutter low in your belly. He has been quite enthused by the idea of a fifth child for a while now.

“Mummyyyyyy,” Thomas reappears at the door, his tone more whiney this time.

“You get Daddy this time, Thomas,” Benedict responds over your shoulder, releasing his hold on you, walking over to the doorway and hauling his infant son into his arms. “I hope I prove an acceptable substitute; Mummy needs to rest. Now, how about a Christmassy bedtime story…?”

Before he disappears into the nursery, Benedict shoots you a devoted but heated look that makes you want to strip him bare.

—

24th December, 7:14am

“Good morning, beautiful,” Benedict breathes into your ear as you awaken.

Last you remember, when you stirred in the early hours, you were alone in the bed. You had padded to the nursery and clutched your chest at the sight of Benedict, and the little ones all curled up on a mass of pillows and blankets on the fireplace rug, just visible in the ember glow, an open book in his hand. After a few beats of staring at the adorable pile of sleeping Bridgertons, you closed the door quietly and snuck back to bed. He must have awoken at some subsequent point and joined you.

“Good morning,” your reply is scratchy from sleep, burrowing back into your husband's embrace, reluctant to throw off the covers just yet.

“I think I would like to persuade you this morning…” his opening gambit as his hand slides down over your thin silk nightgown, rucking the hem up your thighs.

“To do what?” you obfuscate, an unseen smile toying on your lips. You know precisely what he refers to, but you want to see how he will broach it.

“I do believe you may be amenable to more children, my love,” he rumbles into the nape of your neck, dropping a kiss there as his warm fingertips swirl on your thigh.

“Am I?” you feign ignorance, that smile growing wider, a flush spreading through your being at how your husband can be when babymaking is on the cards. “But this is not a family wedding, and that is your usual milieu,” you tease, flipping over to capture a brief, chaste kiss.

“A family gathering is close enough,” he counters over your lips, then swallows your noise of bemused derision with a passionate kiss that has you arching up and pulling him on top of you as your tongues tangle.

“IS IT CHRISTMAS?!?”

Amelia barges through the nursery door, a ball of enthusiasm and jumping excitement.

“I thought I locked that blasted door...” Benedict grumbles tacitly over your cupid's bow as you giggle.

“Not today, Amelia, that is tomorrow,” you respond placatingly, turning your head to look at her and stroking your husband’s arm as he sighs deeply into your neck, knowing your intimate moment is gone.

Your tiny entertainer climbs onto the bed as your husband rolls away defeated, a triumphant look on her face as she claims a prime spot among her favourite audience, her parents.

Isobel then appears in the nursery doorway holding Thomas’ hand. “It is only fair we get to join too,” she appeals.

“Fine, yes, come join us, my sweet,” Benedict calls genially if a touch reluctant.

“I brought the story, Daddy,” Isobel adds as all three settle between you, handing over the book he had been reading the previous night. “I thought you and Mummy could read the rest to us; we do so need to know how it ends, do we not…?”

Amelia and Thomas nod along, enthused, and you have the creeping suspicion your children have somehow conspired to get their way. Especially when eldest James wanders in and casually perches at the end of the bed, a lopsided smirk identical to Benedict’s as he pointedly gestures for you both to begin reading.

“I do believe we may have been hoodwinked by our children,” you sidebar quietly to your husband as he opens the book to locate where he had left off.

“I suspect so,” he responds sotto voce, but there is such contentment in his tone as he surveys the gaggle of children filling your bed—you just know he could not be any happier about it.

—

24th December, 9:57pm

You are taking some fresh air on the terrace after another busy family day, rounded off with a convivial dinner when strong arms wrap around your middle.

“The children are in bed, sleeping this time. Should we resume our plans?” he rumbles as he pulls you back into his solid frame.

You scoff bemused. “Here on the terrace? Where any of the family could wander out?”

“You didn't seem to mind all those years ago when you were pregnant with Isobel,” he points out, both of your eyes cutting off to the pillar where, indeed, you had taken your husband into your mouth right there after the family Christmas dinner.

“You cannot hold me responsible for my behaviour when I am pregnant; you know how I get,” you shoot back, lacing your fingers with his hand at your waist and swaying gently.

“Oh, I think it simply delightful. Why do you think I want you pregnant again, my love? Hmmm? We could take a walk somewhere. Perhaps the woods?” His voice is low and skitters over your collarbone pitched at that cadence he knows always makes you weak.

“‘Tis late December and close to freezing,” you point out feebly, your reticence ebbing as his warm lips land on your shoulder, right by the neckline of your dress.

“I will keep you warm,” he vows, sucking your skin insistently, a damp heat that invariably ignites a flame in your gut.

“You are so very persuasive, husband,” you mutter, pushing your bottom back against the nascent swelling in his britches and guiding one of his hands from your waist up to your mouth, kissing his knuckles.

“I do so enjoy persuading you,” he purrs before opening his mouth wider and gently grazing the edge of his teeth over your flesh, your arm reaching up to wrap around his neck, grinding back against him insistently now and sucking his fingertips into your mouth.

“Benedict! I was wonde….” the Viscount’s voice rings out.

Anthony bustles onto the terrace but stops short at the sight of you both in an ardent cinch. You immediately slide away from your husband but know it’s too late, both of your clothing slightly dishevelled and a bloom on the top of your collarbone from your husband’s zealous attentions, your saliva glistening on Benedict's fingers.

“Sorry…”Anthony stumbles, his cheeks heating at the obvious interruption.

“I apologise, my lord,” you lower your head, embarrassed.

“Perhaps it would be wise to keep your… amorous activities… to more private spaces,” he chastises gently, recovering.

“Was that not you and Kate I saw against the stable wall yesterday?” Benedict challenges, wrapping his arm around your waist, defiantly pulling you back into him, his tone full of sibling goading.

Anthony flushes claret red. “Well… I…” You can feel Benedict smirking as his older brother flounders. “That is no matter. But I wish to discuss something with you if you do not mind,” he finishes pointedly with a brusque nod, firmly changing the topic.

Sensing there is something Anthony would like to broach now, you twist your head to whisper to Benedict. “It sounds as if it would be best you do as your brother wishes, my love. We will resume later, I promise,” you pledge, your voice intentionally laden.

“I do believe you are right, as ever,” he concurs reticently, squeezing your waist. “I shall see you anon,” his whisper thrillingly auspicious.

—

25th December, 2:17am

“Do you think the Viscount will mind?” You murmur, your lips on his ear as you rise and fall. Pressing yourself into him as much as possible.

“That we are fucking in his dining room in the dead of night?” Benedict checks, his hands banded around your waist, encouraging your movements. The moonlight streams through the large windows, throwing everything into sharp relief, the room bathed in streaks of light and shadow.

You giggle and gently teeth the shell of his ear, slightly breathy with exertion. “Yes.”

“Yes, I think he will mind,” he chuckles, splaying his large hand wide, hooking his thumb onto your clit even as his fingers crest your hips. It makes you groan loudly, your hardened nipples dragging against his chest, adding to the sensation as you ride his cock. “But I say this is apt payback for his interruption earlier. So make all the noise you want, darling.”

“He can watch for all I care,” you stutter, leaning away from him and grasping the large, sturdy banquet table behind your back, using it as leverage to fuck him harder.

Benedict groans at the idea you would fuck him even with an audience. His eyes are on your face as you look down, watching his solid cock disappear inside you by the pale glow of the room. It’s a sight you always enjoy, feeling him push you open inside as you sink.

“Do you like what you see?” He murmurs his voice buttery, his thumb on your clit circling more insistently now.

You tear your eyes away from the hypnotic sight and raise your head to meet his hooded, amorous gaze. “Always,” you affirm.

It’s a daring thing to do in the early hours of Christmas Day while the rest of the gathered Bridgerton clan sleeps. But after two days of thwarted intimacy, this was almost inevitable.

You had retired as Anthony detained Benedict in his study discussing business matters. However, you awoke thirsty sometime after midnight and came downstairs for a drink. Benedict had followed soon after and found you—sipping a glass of water and staring out across the moonlit grounds.

One kiss led to another and another, and then you were both peeling off nightwear. The look on his face as you pushed him into a dining chair and straddled his lap was priceless. And now here you are. Riding him with your feet hooked onto the crossbar of the chair gives you the leverage you need to go so hard that the sturdy chair squeaks in objection.

He utters words of encouragement as you tighten your arms around him and sit back upright, wanting to feel all his skin against yours.

“What shall we call this child?” he murmurs. “Perhaps Joy as it is Christmas?”

“We cannot conceive a child here!” you protest huskily, even as an excited quiver wracks your frame, so very needy after so many denied attempts at intimacy since you arrived.

“Oh yes, we bloody can,” he growls and surges his hips upwards, his cock grazing so deep you go limp at the sensation of being plundered so thoroughly.

“What if it is a boy?” you gasp as he takes over, his grip on your hips vicelike as he lifts you and then pulls you back down into his lap in forceful strokes.

“Noel, of course,” he chimes, jubilant, not missing a beat with his movements.

You just nod weakly, too drunk on the sensations coursing in your body to disagree. His mouth is back on that same spot he bothered earlier, no doubt leaving a dark mark you already know he won't care for you to conceal. He loves it when you bear his love bites, even in front of his family.

“Unhook your feet,” he mumbles, and as you do so, he stands up, still buried inside you and lays your back upon the table.

Then it's a blur of swallowed moans and dewy skin as he fucks you hard, your nails scraping down his back as his hands band under your shoulders, tugging your whole being down onto his cock relentlessly, the table now squeaking louder than the chair had.

You babble a litany of encouraging words into his hair and hold on tight, your heels digging into his rear, skating the edge of that enthralling abyss that is so addictive.

“Come for me, my love,” he pleads, those fingers back between your bodies, catching your clit. And then you are away, breaking and tumbling over the edge, trying desperately to muffle your ecstatic cries, face buried in his neck as your whole body spasms and bliss radiates out from where you clench hard around his cock.

His movements become erratic, and his grasp on you so tight before he growls and freezes, a groan wracking his body, his seed spilling deep inside as you still float away, writhing under him as he pins you down.

And, a few minutes later, after re-dressing, you both creep back upstairs to your room, giggling and wrapped in each other's arms, grateful it seems no one has stirred (yes, not even a mouse) on this magical night before Christmas.

Some Moments are indeed best uninterrupted.

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apothe-roses · 4 months

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Dance of the Sugarplum Prince

Nutcracker!Aemond x Clara!Reader

Word Count: 2.3k

Warnings: violence, character death, smut, tiddy sucking, oral (f-receiving), uncle-niece incest, unprotected sex, piv sex, breeding kink, possessive Aemond, obsessed Aemond

A/N: I may not be the first nor the last to do a nutcracker au, but I’m doin it anyways! Merry Christmas to those who celebrate!

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters. All rights go to HBO and George RR Martin

The snow falls heavy and thick outside the window. You watch the snowflakes dance to the ground while your family makes a ruckus behind you. The adults Gossip amongst themselves while your brothers laugh and joke amongst themselves. You love your family, but you’ve grown tired of your overbearing aunties trying to set you up with “nice boys” they know.

You notice a figure making their way towards the front door, making your own way towards it to greet them. Right after the doorbell rings, you open the door, smiling at the woman on the other side.

“Aunt Alys,” you smile and embrace the older woman.

“Forgive me for my tardiness, but it’s nearly impossible to make one’s way through that,” she replies, indicating to the storm outside. Other family members come to greet Alys, so you move to the side and let them. She pulls a large case out from under her coat. She reveals several beautifully made dolls, winding them up and letting them dance across the carpet. Your family is in awe. While they’re distracted, Alys approaches you.

“I have a special gift for you,” Alys says. She opens her bag, gingerly pulling out a final doll. He was a beautiful man with long silver hair and black armor accentuated with gold.

“This,” you aunt explains, “is no ordinary knight. He is a prince of a faraway land.”

“Oh Alys, she’s too old for dolls!” your mother calls from across the room.

“Oh, but he’s so beautiful!” you rebut. “Couldn’t I just put on on my shelf and admire him?”

“You can put these dirty dishes in the kitchen,” your mother tells you. You sigh, setting your doll on the windowsill. Alys follows you into the kitchen.

“Perhaps you should’ve brought me a real prince. That would’ve made mother happy,” you laugh. Alys simply smiles at that.

Suddenly, a loud crash sounds from the sitting room, followed by your mother shouting “Luke!” You rush into the room. Your doll is lying on the floor at your brother’s feet.

“It was an accident!” Luke explains. “I only wanted to get a closer look!”

You rush over, picking your doll up off the ground. One of his eyes is broken. Luke apologizes profusely while you carefully extract the broken pieces. Alys approaches.

“I couldn’t find a spare eye, but this should fit,” she says, handing you a small sapphire. You slip it into his empty socket; it fits perfectly. She provides a small strip of black fabric that you use as a makeshift eyepatch.

“Thank you, Alys,” you say, giving the older woman a hug. You don’t notice the worried look she gives your doll.

BONG

Was it midnight already? You must have nodded off at some point. You look down at your prince, admiring his handsome face. Perhaps it’s the dim light, but it looks as though his mouth twitches.

You’re about to go to bed when something moves at the edge of your vision. A small man walks out from under your Christmas tree! For a moment, you think it’s your prince. However, this man has two eyes and looks older. He wears a crown that looks like it’s made of wood. He’s looking around, clearly searching for something. You stay as still as possible, hoping he doesn’t notice you. Theres a possibility you’re still dreaming, but you’re not willing to take that risk.

“Looking for someone, Daemon?” a voice calls out. Both your heads snap to the corner where it came from. Your mouth falls open. It’s your prince! But he’s alive! He approaches the man, sword drawn.

“Aemond,” Daemon greets. “It appears you’ve suffered a horrible accident. Shame. I was hoping for a fair fight.”

“And you’ll get one,” Aemond snaps. At that moment, more figures storm into view. You recognize them as your brothers’ toy soldiers.

“Alright. Two can play at that game,” Daemon raises a hand, and several mice scurry out from nowhere. You clap a hand over your mouth, trying not to scream. Daemon and Aemond draw their swords, circling one another. Daemon strikes first, but Aemond is quick to block. The mice and toys launch at each other. You’re enthralled. Though bloodless, the battle is intense.

Suddenly, Daemon strikes Aemond’s blind side. He’s sent flying to the floor, his sword clattering away. Daemon smiles viciously, standing over his nephew. He raises his sword to strike the killing blow and—

WHAM!

A giant slipper knocks him off his feet. Aemond glances at you, noting you are now missing a slipper. He grins, then springs into action. He draws a dagger, races to his uncle, and plunges the blade into his neck. Daemon never had time to regain his senses before he bleeds out, choking and clasping at his throat. The battle stops. The now leaderless mice scurry off, and the toy soldiers return to where your brothers left them originally. Aemond walks over to you. As he does, he grows until he’s the height of a normal man. You stare up at him, lips parted. He’s tall, and even more handsome as a man.

“You saved me,” he states, kneeling at your side.

“I-it was nothing,” you stammer, blushing. “I didn’t want him to…kill you.”

Aemond’s lips curl into a smirk. “Such a sweet thing you are,” he muses. He reaches out, winding a lock on your hair around his finger. “It’s not every day a man can say he was saved by someone so beautiful or kind.”

Your blush deepens. “You’re too kind,” you whisper.

“You must come back to the castle with me. My family will want to meet the girl who helped defeat my wicked uncle and his wretched mouse army,” he stands, extending a hand to you. You look around the empty sitting room, wondering what to do.

“It’s only for tonight. I promise to have you back by morning,” he assures you. You bite your lip, not noticing the way his gaze darkens. Then, you smile and take his hand. When you stand, you notice how much taller he is. you look down shyly, but he tucks a finger under your chin and tilts your face up to his. For a moment, you think he’s going to kiss you. But then he says, “let’s be off then,” and leads you to the Christmas tree. With each step, you shrink until you can easily walk under the branches.

You spot a castle in the distance. A beautiful red fortress perched on the edge of a cliff, overlooking a sprawling city. The faint ringing of bells can be heard.

“It seems word of our victory has spread,” Aemond observes. “I imagine the celebration is well underway.

“Oh, but I’m not dressed!” you realize.

“Look down, little one,” Aemond replies. You do, and you gasp. Your simple nightgown had been replaced with a beautiful white dress, tied by a large red ribbon. The skirt floats in light layers down to your calves. Your feet are covered by red slippers with ribbons wrapped around your legs.

“How…?” you start to ask, the question dying on your lips when you look up and see Aemond had changed as well. He’s wearing a black and red jacket adorned with golden epaulettes, and also matching breeches and shiny black boots. His hair is loose, and the swath of ribbon covering his eye is replaced with a proper eyepatch.

“Come,” he requests, extending his hand. “We don’t want to miss out on the festivities.”

The walk to the castle is filled with merriment as the small folk throw flowers over your heads and dance and cheer. Inside the castle is even more merry as ball is in full swing. You spy the king and queen at the end of the hall, their matching silver hair catching the light.

Aemond leads you to the middle of the dance floor and leads you in a waltz. The night passes in a series of twirls and lifts, until a hush falls over the crowd.

The king leads his queen off the dais into the center of the crowd. Everyone pushes back, forming a wide berth around them as they lead a solitary waltz. You feel a large hand on the small of your back.

“Come with me,” Aemond whispers. His breath tickles your ear.

He leads you out of the room. The two of you race down the halls. You haven’t felt this exhilarated since you were a child chasing your brothers outdoors.

You’re lead into a bedroom that you presume is his. You don’t have time to take in the decor, as he grabs your face and kisses you hungrily. You kiss him back, hands tangling in his soft hair.

He deftly undoes the bow on your back. He tries to untie the laces, but he gets impatient and just tears your dress open. You gasp as your dress falls from your body.

Aemond scoops you up and lays you on the bed. He looks over you like a lion about to devour his kill.

“Have you ever been with a man before little one?”

“N-no,” you stutter, causing him to chuckle.

“Well,” he starts, “allow me to show you.”

He tears the rest of your underthings off, leaving you bare before him. Without breaking eye contact, he takes one of your nipples into his mouth. Your head rolls back as he sucks on the sensitive flesh, kneading your other side.

“So beautiful,” he gasps, switching to the other tit.

“So perfect.” He trails kisses down your torso. He fingers swipe through your folds. He brings them to his lips and sucks them clean; his eyes roll back and he groans.

“I knew you’d taste sweet,” he purrs. He lowers his head to your mound and drags his tongue through your folds. You gasp and instinctually shy away, but he pins you with this hands on your hips. You can only moan as he relentlessly devours your cunt.

“M-my prince…”

“Aemond. Call me Aemond,” he breathes, sending a shiver through you. You feel your peak approaching, closer and closer. It’s just about to wash over you when he pulls away. You whine at the loss of stimulation.

“The first time I make you come, it will be on my cock,” Aemond states, once again leaning over you. He sheds his clothing with ease. He’s truly one of the most beautiful men you’ve ever seen. His cock is long and thick, and already leaking. He strokes himself as he gets into position.

“What if it doesn’t fit?” You ask innocently.

“It will fit.” He replies. “I’ll make it fit.”

He angles his cock and enters you with one sure thrust. You gasp loudly, clinging to his shoulders.

“Gods you’re tight,” he whispers. He begins to rock in and out of you, setting a steady pace.

“So wet, and I’ve barely touched you. Such a needy little thing. Absolutely begging to be fucked.”

You babble incoherently in response. Aemond chuckles and starts playing with your pearl.

“Already cockdumb are we?”

He pinches your pearl.

“I could keep you here you know. Fuck you—breed you— day and night, until your belly swells with my child. You’d like that wouldn’t you? My perfect little princess. My broodmare. Mine.”

You’re a little frightened by his declaration, but you’re to overwhelmed by pleasure to do anything about it. You can only lay there as you climax, the pleasure melting your bones and heating your blood.

“That’s my girl. That’s my good girl,” he groans, and you feel his cock pulse followed by a sense of warmth. He keeps his cock plugged inside until he starts to soften, then he pulls out. You feel a mixture of your fluid and his seed leak out. He hold your legs open, admiring the sight. Then, he lays down, pulling you into his arms.

“You’ll want for nothing. I’ll make sure of it,” he whispers, pressing a kiss to your hair.

You lay against his chest, and it isn’t long before sleep claims you.

“Sweetheart, wake up!” you hear your mother call. You reluctantly open your eyes. You’re in your own bed, in your own room.

“I don’t mean to rush you, but we have some surprise guests waiting downstairs,” she pulls open the curtains, and you wince at the sudden brightness.

“Get dressed quickly! I need to get back downstairs!” she rushes out of your room, closing the door behind you.

At first, you don’t move. There was a heaviness in your chest. It had all been a dream. Of course it had been a dream. Mice soldiers, living dolls, and princes could only be the product of dreams. This is the real world, and there are guests waiting for you.

As you get dressed, you realize your prince doll is nowhere to be found. You must have left him downstairs.

Voices could be heard in the sitting room as you make your way downstairs. Unfamiliar voices. You round the corner and freeze. Sitting around the room are three very familiar faces.

“Darling, these are my half-siblings.” She leads you to the Sugarplum King. “This is Aegon,” then to the Queen, who smiles sweetly at you, “Helaena,” then finally to the most familiar of them all, “and this is Aemond.”

He takes your hand in his, planting a kiss on your knuckles. You stare up at him with wide eyes. He’s wearing an eyepatch. Over the same eye your brother broke. Was he hiding a sapphire under there?

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” you breathe.

“Please, the pleasure is all mine, niece,” he purrs, looking at you in a way an uncle should never look at a niece.

“What happened to your eye?” Luke asked abruptly. Jace whacks him on the shoulder, admonishing him.

“Ow!”

“It’s alright. It was an accident long ago,” Aemond replies.

“Oh, let’s not dwell on unhappy memories,” your mother says, turning to Helaena. “How is Alicent? It’s been too long since I’ve heard from her.”

The conversation carries on, but you’ve stopped paying attention. You’re not looking at him, but you feel his gaze on you. Just as intense as it had been when he made love to you in your dream.

A dream.

It had only been a dream.

Right?

#aemond targaryen #ewan mitchell #aemond targaryen x reader #aemond targaryen fanfiction #aemond targaryen smut #house of the dragon aemond #aemond fanfiction #aemond smut

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bagopucks · 1 year

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Q. Hughes - Softly, Sweetly

✄————————————

Quinn Hughes x Fem!reader

Requested✨

Word Count: 2.8k

Warning(s): Just some making out, proofread once <3

—————————————

“And you’re sure they’re not coming home?” I asked softly, slowly stepping out of the car Quinn had picked me up in. The car that his parents didn’t use to take Luke and Jack out.

Quinn and I didn’t have plans to hang out. We’d skipped out on making plans specifically because he was going to go to Jack’s hockey game with his family. I knew things had changed when he texted me two hours after school saying, ‘I’ll pick you up for a movie?’

I knew what that meant. Quinn was a homebody. It meant we were going to lay on the couch, curled up under a million blankets, and watch a cheesy Christmas movie. I was all in.

“Hockey games take like.. three hours with all the breaks and stopping. We have a lot of time.” Quinn assured me, and I knew we had even more time considering the rink Jack was playing at, was an hour away. He rushed over to my place to get me the second he knew his parents hadn’t turned around to come back after forgetting something.

Quinn grabbed his house keys and unlocked the front door, letting me step inside first and shed the winter coat I’d been wearing. I hung it on the coat rack next to the door. When I looked back at Quinn, he was smiling at me. The simple sight of his lips turned upward made me blush. Especially when I knew it was something I did to make him so happy.

“You walk around here like you own the place,” Quinn teased, pushing the door shut and wrapping his arms around my torso to hug me.

“I’m sorry?” I wasn’t sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing.

“No.. no I love it. I want you to walk around our house like this some day.” His words caught me off guard, but it wasn’t the first time Quinn had mentioned something of the sort. I did at times too.

Being seniors in high school, we both had individual paths we wanted to take. One thing we knew for sure though, was that we wanted to stay together. But Quinn and I were practical people. We were both afraid it might not work out like that. So we counted our blessings while we had them, and decided to cherish the time knew we had together.

“What’s on the agenda tonight, Quintin?” I asked softly, sighing as the dark haired boy pulled away from me. He began to step out of the entryway before I grabbed his wrist. “Shoes.”

My simple reminder had Quinn quickly kicking his wet shoes off before I released his hand and let him go. I kneeled over to untie and take off my own shoes. I set them aside before stepping further into the house.

“I thought.. maybe a blanket fort?” Quinn’s voice grew distant as he wandered down the hall. I heard a door open, then a quiet grunt.

“I’ve been told I’m a professional at those!” I responded loud enough for him to hear, my eyes lit up when Quinn returned with a large folded comforter.

“Really? That’s good..” a nervous laugh fell from his lips. “Jack says I suck at them.” His words made me laugh quietly. Jack always criticized his brothers. Ever the loud and opinionated middle child. “Come help me get the rest of the blankets off my bed.”

It was clear Quinn thought nothing of the offer, but I’d never been in his room before. It was a rule: no girls in the bedrooms. It made me wonder if Quinn simply forgot, or chose to ignore it since we were alone.

I followed behind him, hesitant but excited as I stepped through the door of his room. It was painted a deep blue, decorated with hockey items and knickknacks. I allowed myself time to look everything over before my eyes landed on Quinn. Just in time to see him tossing blankets at me.

“Quinn Hughes!” I chastised through another laugh. I did my best to hold what I could, while Quinn gathered the rest and led me back out of his room.

I almost fell down the steps on the way back to the living room. I didn’t find it funny, but Quinn certainly did.

Once we got to the living area, we dropped our blankets on the floor and stood side by side. Ready to put our heads together and construct the best blanket fort known to man kind.

I’d give Jack credit where credit is due… Quinn really did suck at blanket forts.

I’d get something draped or situated, and a moment later I’d see the blanket completely fall. Only to look up at the guilty culprit.

“Q.. I love you.. I really do,” I began at one point, staring him down. He immediately pulled his hands away from the light blue sheet he was trying to situate over one of the barstools he’d brought up from the basement.

“You’ve gotta stop messing shit up. We’ll never get to the movie.”

After that, Quinn didn’t touch anything unless I told him to. Once I had things somewhat situated, I allowed him to set up the inside. That, he was much better at. When I finished the outer shell, I knelt down in front of the opening and spotted him setting up a few pillows. Blankets covered the floor too, and the throw pillows from the couch were placed around for extra padding on the sides.

Quinn seemed in his own world, so I let him do his thing, watching. He paused at one point, examining his work, biting his lip, before he went in to fluff one of the pillows. When he turned to call me, he practically jumped out of his skin.

“Dude!”

Ah yes, so affectionate.

“It looks good in here.” I sat on my knees, still outside of the fort. We were missing a few things. I didn’t want to get comfy yet.

“Thanks.” Quinn flashed me a brief smile before slipping out from beneath the fort. I stood with him. “Do you want to grab snacks? And I’ll grab the iPad?”

It sounded like a good compromise to me. I nodded.

“Maybe two bottles of water too!” I heard Quinn call as we went our separate was.

We joined up again outside of the fort, my arms full of various chip bags and a box of goldfish. Quinn’s only held his iPad. He helped by taking a few of the snacks from my hands.

Quinn directed me to the side of the fort where the pillow he previously fluffed was. I was the first to get comfortable and lay out snacks, while he had gone to turn off the lights in the living room. When Quinn came back, I was already scrolling through his iPad for movies to watch. He was quick to take up the empty space next to me, leaning on his elbow to see the screen so he could help.

“What are we in the mood for?” I asked quietly, eyeing the comedy section of the streaming service.

“What about The Mighty Ducks?” A different request than usual, but I could cope with that. It was a good movie.

“You got it, Quinny.” I moved one of my hands from the iPad, and subconsciously reached to rest my hand on the back of his head. I carded my fingers gently through his hair.

After I found the movie, Quinn and I got the iPad set up between us. We both laid on our sides, arms tucked beneath our heads for better elevation.

For the good first half of the film, we were pretty occupied. But after a while, I started to notice Quinn stealing occasional glances at me.

I tried to play oblivious. Part of me was really enjoying the movie. But it was impossible to ignore Quinn when he hoisted himself up on all fours and climbed over both the iPad and my body.

“Quinn.” I mumbled, turning my head to watch him settle on his side behind me, wrapping an arm around me. “What are you doing?”

“Wasn’t comfortable.” It was the only response he would offer before his gaze had fallen on the iPad again. My eyes followed shortly after.

Silence fell upon us again. I had to admit I enjoyed being in his arms like this a lot more than across from him.

Quinn’s head eventually dropped to the pillow beside mine. I assumed he’d gotten uncomfortable holding it up, but those assumptions were proven wrong when I felt his warm lips press against the nape of my neck. My heart fluttered.

“Quinn. The movie,” I whispered. I reached back to gently push his head away. I wouldn’t have minded a little fun, but I had to give him some trouble first.

“Come on,” he mumbled, moving his hand to my hip. “We’ve seen it a million times.” His words caused me to chuckle.

I finally rolled over. “Yeah.. I wonder why.” I was quick to shoot back. Quinn deadpanned, then rolled his eyes.

“You’re so mean sometimes.” This time it was my turn to roll my eyes. I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his own, then ended our chaste kiss with a sigh. Quinn didn’t look particularly satisfied. He was in one of those moods.

It wasn’t long before he reconnected our lips, his hand gently rested against my cheek. There’s something so exciting and yet so intimate about kissing Quinn when I wasn’t even supposed to be around him. We were alone together and nobody knew. It’s like we were finally adults in some form or another.

I shifted my body closer to his, our legs tangling together. My hand found the hem of Quinn’s shirt, and slipped beneath it. I giggled into the kiss at the sound of his quiet gasp. My hands must have still been cold.

“You could have warned me,” Quinn whispered quietly as he parted our lips. At first I wasn’t certain what he was talking about.

“My hands?” I smirked and slowly slid them up his chest beneath his shirt. A shiver befell Quinn. “Too cold for Mr. ice hockey?” My taunting earned a sarcastic, ‘ha-ha’ from him.

“I’d ask to take your shirt off, but wouldn’t want you to freeze to death.” Quinn’s eyes never left me. His brow rose as if to ask if I was serious. I gave him a ‘duh’ look in response.

“Have at it.” His words made me snicker. I was careful when I sat up, and tossed one of my legs over his side to straddle him and rest on his hips.

Quinn’s hands found my thighs. He rested them there and smiled up at me as I removed my own hands from beneath his shirt. I leaned forward to reconnect our lips in a much deeper kiss than before. There was a nip at my lip, and I had responded appropriately with one to his own. Still screwing with Quinn even though he was trying to have an intimate moment.

“C’mon,” I parted our lips to whisper. I pushed Quinn’s hands away from my hips, and slipped my own back beneath his shirt to pull it off over his head. A few strands of his beautiful dark hair had been pulled out of place. I tossed his shirt aside, covering the iPad and dimming the only light we had. I could just barely see Quinn, but he looked excited anyway.

My hands ran the expanse of his chest, down to his stomach, up his sides. Quinn’s eyes had fallen at some point to watch my hands. Even as they had travelled up to his shoulders and down his arms, eventually stopping to grab his hands and place them back on my hips. But he had other plans when they slipped to grip my ass.

“You’re the most magnificent person I have ever met.” My words came out as whispers. I leaned forward and reconnected our lips, Quinn‘s hands squeezed in response. It only took a moment before his tongue dragged across my bottom lip, and who was I to deny him access?

I parted my lips for him as one of Quinn’s hands had moved and slipped beneath my shirt to hold onto my hip. He hummed. From what I assumed was pleasure. I carefully dragged my hips against his own, and earned a groan in response. Quinn’s hands ventured further up beneath my shirt, slipping behind my back in hopes of finding my bra clip. His hands halted in their tracks when his phone began to ring. That distinct tone he had set for one person in particular. We stared each other down before I shook my head.

“Answer it.” I knew it was his mom.

He lazily reached for his phone, mumbling something about his mother before answering the call and placing it on speaker.

“Hey, sweetie. I just wanted to let you know we might be back a little later. Traffic was bad on the drive up here. Your father thinks it’ll be worse on the way back.” Ellen’s voice made me smile. The woman was always so kind and personable.

“It’s alright, mom. I think I can keep myself entertained.” I had to cover my mouth to conceal my giggles at his words.

“I know. I know. I just worry leaving you home alone sometimes.” I gently hooked a finger in the waistband of Quinn’s shorts. A surprised gasp left his lips.

“Quinn?”

“I’m okay mom.. sorry- I was just.. I’m okay.” Quinn tried to push my hand away as he spoke, but I gave him a hard time nonetheless, wiggling my hips. His eyes closed tightly, and he drew his bottom lip between his teeth to silence the noise that threatened to escape.

“Sweetie, you promise you’re okay?” Ellen’s concern was endearing, but something neither of us wanted at the moment.

“I’m fine.” His voice was strained, and silence followed his words. Then the screen lit up and Quinn and I both looked down at his phone. Ellen was trying to FaceTime him.

“Holy shit-“ I mumbled out as I climbed off his lap, scrambling to get out of the blanket fort while he grabbed his phone and answered the call.

“Quinn.” His mother sounded suspicious. “Did you hurt yourself? Is everything okay?” Quinn sat up as his mother spoke.

“I’m okay mom. I promise! I just had- it’s nothing.” He adjusted his shorts, glancing up at me before looking back at the phone. I tried to remain as still and quiet as possible.

“Honey..” Ellen sighed, “I swear to god if you have your girlfriend over..” She sounded concerned.

“Mom!” Quinn combated her tone with offense in his own. “You know that’s not me. That’s all Jack.”

My brow rose in a silent, ‘seriously?’ This might have been the first time Quinn had me over without permission, but it certainly wasn’t the first time we’d been together without somebody knowing. Silence followed. Ellen seemed to be deciding whether or not she believed him. Then she sighed.

“Alright.. alright.. I’m sorry honey. I just- after that last incident.. can’t blame me for being a little nervous.” I had to cover my mouth once again not to laugh.

The ‘last’ incident was more like a horror story. Jack had been in trouble for weeks over the whole situation. His mother still got tense about leaving him home alone because of it.

“It’s okay mom. We’re fine.” Quinn spoke, too carefree after assuming he was in the clear.

“We?”

I was sure both of our hearts dropped to our stomachs at the same time.

“You idiot!” I mouthed.

“Quintin.” Ellen spoke sternly. She didn’t have to snap or yell at him to get him to give in. She knew that.

Quinn hung up. My eyes went as wide as they could have possibly gone.

“Quinn! Did you just hang up on her?” I had never seen Ellen when she was furious, nor did I want to.

“I hung up on her.” Quinn confirmed before his phone lit up again.

“You hung up on your mother!” I scolded, and the realization of his actions finally dawned on him.

“Do I answer her again?” Quinn questioned frantically. I gave him a ‘duh’ face before placing my hands on my hips. I would have hated to see Quinn in trouble, but at the same time, it was his mother.. and I didn’t know what else to do aside from encouraging him to turn himself in.

Quinn looked down at his phone and answered the call once again.

It wasn’t on speakerphone.

I still heard Ellen yell his full name at the top of her lungs.

Quinn and I both crossed ourselves when we heard the sound of his mother’s voice.

I knew one thing… I wanted to be home with every door and window locked before Ellen got back to her son. Lest her wrath fall upon me as well.

✾❀✾❀✾❀✾❀✾❀✾❀✾❀✾❀✾❀✾❀✾

#nhl imagine #nhl x reader #quinn hughes #quinn hughes x reader #quinn hughes imagine #trevor zegras #jack hughes #luke hughes

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thetriplets3 · 5 months

Note

hi lovely! i have a request!!! could you do one where matt and reader are secretly dating and they go out on a date and someone catches them? like fan and they post it or something?? thx girl love ur work!!!

❝𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐞 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰❞

this is the jet lag and the covid brewing in my body that wrote this, not me. i have no idea if any of this is coherent or makes sense but i hope it’s okay

matt and i have been dating for nearly 2 years now having been friends since highschool. and we decided it was best for both of us to keep our relationship a secret public eye. his brothers, nate, and madi know but that’s it. just a few people we know would never say anything. their fans know of me and that i went to school with them so it’s no surprise to see me with them all but that’s the extent of it. matt posts a few soft launch photos of us but keeping me private. i don’t follow the boys from my main account so no fans have been able to dig through his followers to find who the mystery girl is.

matt and i rarely go out alone, always with his brothers or friends. there’s a small part of me that hurts that we decided to do this. not being able to spend time together in public without making things look very platonic, having to keep distance when we’re with friends who don’t know about us, or not being able to show my love openly for my boyfriend. i often turn down going to big events because i find them overwhelming, too loud, too many different things going on at once, it’s just too much for me especially when i can’t be with matt, my security blanket making me feel safe and comfortable.

it’s a blizzard outside, roads too icy for anyone to brace except those working. not to mention it’s the kind of cold that makes your nose hairs instantly feel frozen. using this weather to our advantage, matt and i carefully headed to our favorite little family run bakery down the road. one thing i hate is being cold. dressed in my comfiest thickest sweats, a fleece sweatshirt, a puffy jacket with a scarf just about covering my whole face you could hardly tell who i was, but i was warm and comfy.

we grab a table in the corner of the bakery decorated with warm christmas lights hung above the plush couch with a variety of plants aesthetically placed around the space. the atmosphere was beautiful, soft and gentle lighting, a fireplace adorned with christmas decorations and garland, instrumental music played quietly over the speakers, and to make it even better there wasn’t anyone in here other than the odd person that came in briefly here and there.

i leaned into matt’s side resting my head on his shoulder and his arm holding me closer to him. we sat there facing the large bay window soaking in the peace and beauty of the snow falling. we sat quietly in silence for a while before something out the window caught our eye. 2 teenage girls quickly putting their phones away once they saw us watching them, giggling as they ran away.

“matt” my voice falters, worried about what might be posted.

“i know it’s okay try not to worry, im sure you can’t even tell it’s us through all that spray on snow on the window. plus you’re so bundled up you look like cousin itt. no one will recognize who you are and if they do, they do. it’s out of our control love,” he tries to reassure me. he pulls his phone out and take a photo of us. “see? we’re good don’t worry”.

“omg i do look like cousin itt” i giggled.

“whatever happens, happens okay? sure they’ll know we’re dating but that’s all they know. we can still keep our relationship private just like we are now nothing has to change. i mean is it so bad that they know? i can take you on proper dates without having to hide you. so what if people see us? they only see a sliver of our relationship, they’ll see us together but that’s all they know. they don’t know our favorite song, the moment i fell in love with you, how you fit right into our family, how much my parents love you, mom’s told me you’re like the daughter she’s always wanted, nick and chris love you, everyone does. so i don’t care if they see us together, they only see the outside of our relationship. i know without a doubt in my mind that i’m gonna marry you one day. what they know doesn’t affect our relationship. i love you pretty girl”.

“i didn’t know you had a thing for cousin itt” i giggled earning a nudge to my shoulder from matt at my lack of seriousness. “i’m kidding, you’re right they can see the outside of our relationship and make their own assumptions. all that matters is we know our relationship. i love you”.

squeezing me closer to his side he rests his head on mine planting kisses to my head. “who doesn’t have a thing for cousin itt?” he joked making me laugh.

“i can’t wait to marry that laugh”.

taglist:

@antisocialties @iluvmatt @dwntwn-strnlo @fake-coolbeans @opheliaofficial07 @angelcake-222 @oneirophobic @strniolo @ssturniolo @20nugs @abbie13sworld @strniolo @luvsturniolo

#matt sturniolo #matt sturniolo x reader #sturniolo triplets #readers pov #not edited #not sure what the whole cousin itt thing is about. again this isn’t me writing

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livelaughlovesubs · 3 months

Text

Rara’s unholy board story

(But I don’t have his artefact so only the first half-)

Anyway, I made this into a fic and connected some sentences. But I changed some wordings too, cuz they just made no sense or were difficult to read. Hopefully you don’t mind. Also, it could be that I made mistakes cuz it’s so long

Dom!reader x sub!raphael (that’s the direction the story took)

!Warning!: CNC (rape play), Bondage, chocking, SM play, marking, biting, punching, spitting, exhibition kink (he is being displayed in a club) and tell me if I forgot somehting

Word count: 8.5k (can’t believe I actually read through all that, multiple times ;-;)

“Phew...”Minhyeok's sighed, the warm breath formed something white and disappeared into the sky. Although Minhyeok didn't know, there were many eyes watching him nearby. One of the passengers whispered to their friend, “So handsome, is he alone?” “There's no way a handsome guy like that would be alone on Christmas.”A young woman's excited voice scattered throughout the cold, clear air.

“Uncle Minhyeok!!”Between voices of the conversing pair, a particularly loud and lovely voice reached him. The owner of the voice energetically made his way to Minhyeok, a black haired child ran into his arms.

Soon, another familiar voice reached his ears. “I made you wait.” Minhyeok smiled gently: “It's alright.” A man who looked like the child's father spoke to Minhyeok. The father and son also breathed out white air as they stood leisurely next to him. “Brother! You're here! What about your wife?” Minkyeok asked while patting his nephews head. His older brother responded, “Your sister-in-law is preparing Christmas presents at home. She told me to leave quickly before I get in her way.”

Now, it was the man whom Minhyeok called 'brother' who patted the head of the boy who was still hanging on to Minhyeok. That’s right, your best friend also had a married older brother who lived far apart from his parents who lived overseas. Minhyeok's brother was always concerned about leaving his studying little sibling at home alone, and brought his own family and Minhyeok to his wife's family this Christmas. Since Minhyeok knew that his brother was kind, accepted it gratefully. The three had come to a large, nearby park to see a 5-meter tall Christmas tree. It was completely dark and the lights on the trees seemed to shine unusually brightly.

“Is y/n alright?” The slightly taller male asked, turning to look at Minhyeok without even looking at the tree. “Yeah.”Minhyeok answered shortly. “I haven't seen them for a while now. Where did they go on a day like this? That y/n, without saying anything to me.” His tone was more that of a worried parent than disappointmentYou had also hung out with Minhyeok's brother like a childhood friend when they were young, so Minhyeok's brother thought of you as part of his family.

The little brother said, “She has a job to do. Still. She'll be sure to be back soon.”For some reason, Minhyeok couldn't meet his brother's eyes and lowered his own, then took his 5-year-old nephew who was under his legs into his arms as if to hide it. When his nephew's small palms hung around Minhyeok's neck, the child's characteristic warmth moved onto him. “Is she studying abroad or something..?”Minhyeok didn't answer and instead turned to look at the tree, until the little kid in his arms questioned him again, “Uncle Minhyeok, what did you ask for from Santa??”His nephew asked with expectation eyes, his uncle looked right back into the eyes of his adorable nephew, and stroked his flowing cheek with his index finger. “Although I probably can't get anything from Santa now... If I can, l'd like to ask him for the peace of someone precious to me.””Peace? What is peace? Does it mean you get stronger? How can you be at peace?”Those innocent eyes further questioned the male.

Minhyeok smiled gently, “This is peace. Where no one around you becomes hurt or dies, where everyone understands each other, and people can do what they want.” After finishing his explanation, his eyes turned to the star at the top of the tree. The stars were shining under a separate set of lights from the tree itself. “I want her to live like that where she is right now.”Minhyeok's voice seemed wistful. His brother stared wordlessly at him, but his nephew loosened his flowing cheeks into a huge smile. “Let's ask Santa! I hope your wish comes true!” The innocent smile made Minhyeok's eyes into a brighten. “Yeah. I hope it does.”Said Minhyeok, patting his nephew on his head. The star on top of the tree in front of him continues shining brightly.

Abyssos was flourishingly packed on this day of Christmas as well. In Abyssos, a country of gourmet food and a nation of revelers, it was natural to want to do anything that involves drinking and talking. The streets were alive with dancers in samba-like costumes even in the cold, and the smell of delicious food wafted through the air. Loud music was playing and the sounds of drinking and enjoyment echoed here and there.

‘Samba has nothing to do with Christmas though…’ was what passed your mind. It wasn't like Christmas, but it was befitting of Abyssos. In that place of such atmosphere, you felt dumbfounded but relieved at the same time. You came here under the invitation of devils from Abyssos and upon hearing that the Christmas parties in Abyssos were held splendidly, you just had to come.

“You just thought that the atmosphere in the streets have nothing to do with Christmas, right?”Said Naberius, bringing a roast turkey on a skewer he'd bought from a stall to your mouth. He was by no means offended by what you said, since he simply said it because he read your thoughts, but you felt somehow guilty and denied it hard. “No, I wasn't, nope.” But you accepted the skewer, realizing in hindsight that Naberius didn't mean it as a finger wag, but as a sincere meaning of telling you to "eat". Then, Naberius also nibbled on the turkey. “Ooh, this turkey surely feels like Christmas. It's delicious!” You said, after trying it. “I had this prepared as soon as I knew you were coming. I found out that humans eat things like chicken or turkey on Christmas.”Naberius offered the skewered turkey to your mouth again. You lifted it to your mouth and glanced at Naberius, wiping some of the sauce from the corner of your mouth. It was a little embarrassed in retrospect, because it didn't seem at all lover-like... But more like he was treating you like a child.

“Hey! Don't take my juice!!” “Huh? Did this belong to Stolas? I thought it was mine because it was in front oh me.” “I was holding on to it, how is it yours?!”On the other side next to you, Amon and Stolas were fighting over juice made from a bowl of fruit from the stall. Sandwiched between Naberius, Stolas, and Amon, you walked through the streets of Abyssos, barely making any progress as they kept stopping at every stall.

Eventually, you got curious about the well-being of the acting king, “How's Bael?”You felt rather melancholy at the shadow who alone wasn't here, although you wanted to meet everyone you wanted since you were here. “Working. As always. It's sad, although it's Christmas.” Amon responded, a hint of pity flashed across his features. “You have jobs to do too. I'm the only one who was ordered to guide.” Naberious said. Amon only answered out of pity for Bael, but Naberius looked dumbfounded.

“So what? It's been a while since I last went out for Christmas too.”Stolas dug into the meat happily. “Stolas, do you normally not celebrate Christmas?”When you asked dubiously to Stolas, he shook his head. “Hmm. Everyone is simply happy by the fact that it's Christmas for some reason. That annoys me and makes me want to kill them, so I don't go outside.” The black haired male took another bite from his skewer. “Stolas normally shuts himself in a dark room at this time. He's quite mature, unlike his looks.”

Amon said with a smile while recalling Stolas in his normal years, but it seemed to have triggered Stolas' inferiority complex as he yelled back. “What?! I'm an adult! Are you complaining about my looks too?! Shall I kill you then?!”

‘Dissatisfied at people who enjoy Christmas... I think I understand him a little.’ You didn't hate them to the point you wanted to kill them, but you could sympathize with Stolas to some extent. “I also don’t have many memories about Christmas. Y/n, make good memories with me today!” The devil with the unicorn horn nudged your shoulder. Just as you were about to feel compassion for Amon's lack of memories, Naberius slapped the back of Amon's head with a loud thud. “That's because you always hide and sleep, regardless of whether it's Christmas or not! Christmas is noisy like this every year so we have to go and patrol the place!”Even when Naberius blamed Amon, Amon didn't even make eye contact with him, and just took your hand and put it next to his cheek.

“Ha ha... Oh, anyway. You celebrate Christmas in Hell too.”You felt a little embarrassed at Amon's action and spoke up as if to hide it. Naberius walked next to you and looked around. “We're not exactly celebrating anything. We just need a reason to chat. Before the war broke out, everyone was celebrating every day, even the birthdays of people they didn't even know. I honestly think it's good that things are a little more subdued now.”Said Naberius, but he was actually hiding a degree of loneliness.

You hastily changed the subject again at his expression, “Is there no such thing as Santa?” Then, something warm climbed on your shoulder before waiting for Naberius to reply.

“Satan’s here.”Before you could react to the familiar voice, Naberius reacted first. “Your Majesty...!”It was Beelzebub, the king of Abyssos who stood behind the four of you and placed his hand on your shoulder. “You're back?!” “It's his Majesty...! It's his real Majesty...!!”The devils spoke without hiding their joy. When Beelzebub was in front of them, they looked like young men and not soldiers.

“I heard y/n was coming. But humans need Santa on Christmas!”Beelzebub winked, with a white bag over his shoulder. “So, here. Take this. A present for our y/n. I thought you would need it. This is for Naberius. I have something for you too.”the tanned man took presents out of his white bag like a real Santa and passed things around. “Thank you!!”Naberius thanked him, then opened the adorably wrapped small box he was given, he found a doll of a dog with glasses. The doll had a horizontal crack in the center, and you could open it up like a box, which you could open again to reveal a smaller doll of a dog, and you could open it up to reveal an even smaller doll of a dog...

‘A dog Matryoshka?’ You thought to yourself, you had seen similar ones in souvenir shops on Earth. Beelzebub grinned brightly, “I found it while wandering around other countries. It seemed to resemble you.”Afterwards he gave Amon an unicorn keyring, a pendant to Stolas, a T-shirt of the country flag for Bael...

“They all suit them.”Beelzebub smiled like an innocent boy. “Your Majesty! I am elated!! Thank you!!” Naberius stared at the small doll. Stolas hold the pendant in his hand and eyed it up and down, “Ooooh, it's nice. I'll decorate my room with this!”The subjects who received presents were most honored and happy. If they had tails, they would be wagging them like crazy. “I will treasure it until my next life...!” Amon whispered, which you thought was a little over the top.

“Ha ha ha, sure. Y/n, open yours too.” Beelzbub seemed eager to see your reaction and handed the bag to you. “Okay!” You were quite exited too, wondering if your present was a souvenir from another country too. When you opened the wrappings and put your hand inside the envelope, it seemed like there were more than one thing inside. Suspicious, you reached inside and find a devil's red horned headband in your hand. Other than that, there were red wings of a devil, a red leash with collar, a red ball gag, and a devil's tail.

“…What's this?” You hesitated, holding the items carefully. Beelzebub smiled in satisfaction as you grabbed the devil's tail, which had breads at the end to insert into your bottom, and uttered in disbelief. “I thought it would suit you perfectly! You can role-playing a devil with this, or just use and enjoy it comfortably as you want. He winked at you as he spoke, as if he had just purchased a very convenient piece of furniture. ‘It’s certainly something you can only see in hell, getting adult toys for Christmas…’ It was different from the souvenir you imagined, but since beel looked so proud of himself, you decided to protect his ego.

“Yeah, thanks for the thoughts, i’ll…use it well.” You thanked Beelzebub with a small smile, then put his presents back inside the bag and put it between your armpits. “Is this a Christmas miracle that I met his Majesty?!” Said Amon in delight, holding the unicorn keyring to his eyes. “Christmas miracle?” Thanks to Amon, you were able to change the topic at hand. When you returned his unfamiliar words with a question mark, Naberius answered. “Ever since long ago, mysterious things happened to this world on Christmas. So it's natural for strange things to happen on Christmas to us.” He said, hugging the doll-dog he preciously got and nudging his glasses back up.

Beelzebub stroked the back of your head and continued. “According to the rumors, they're phenomenon from a human wish being fulfilled or the work of God... But I also think there's no need to think about things you don't know too.”The tanned man spoke lightly, but his words always seemed to be half joking half truth. ‘I don't think anything can surprise me in Hell now...’ after the extraordinary presents you got, this didn’t seem that strange anymore. You were already aware of the fantasy like connection between Hell and earth, so you were ready to accept anything.

“Y/n, go on a date with me on Christmas too.”Said Beelzebub, bringing his face closer to yours. Your heart instantly sped up at the sudden closeness, maybe because of that handsome face, or because you were feelingly slightly uncomfortable. “Wait for me, I'm going to give presents to the others as well...”Said Beelzebub, before he suddenly stopped talking. Then, he turned immediately and looked up at the sky. “Beelzebub? What's going on?”As you turned with him, wondering what was going on, the sky lit up and some of the clouds that had been spread out opened up. Then a flash of light connected heaven and earth, like a path of light in the air.

BAM!!!

Immediately after you perceived it, a deafening explosion erupted at the end of your sight and pummeled your ears. Devils screamed near the place the sound seemed to originate from. It shook the ground, even though it had happened earlier, and wind rustled with the impact.

“What's that.?!”While you widened your eyes and froze with surprise, the two devils moved on right away. “Shall we go?” The king asked his subordinates. “Yes!”Responded the man with glasses. “We'll go first. Your Majesty, please take care of y/n.”At Beelzebub's single sentence, the devils instantly disappeared in the direction of the sound in unison.

You and beelzbub arrived a little later, since he walked with you out of consideration. There it was, the source of the loud sound, you couldn’t make out the figure because it was dusty. The ground on which he had fallen had caved in with many cracks. A shattered stall was covered in rubble nearby, and a devil stood with several meat skewers in his hands.

“Ahh..! Your Majesty! You're here!”The panicked devil in an apron turned pale and ran to Beelzebub. “That guy just fell out of the sky and...! He's been eating my meat and destroying the stalls! He did the same to other stalls, so the neighborhood was pretty much decimated...!”The owner of the stall gestured and pointed to the figure in question that had fallen from the sky. “I see, alright. It's dangerous so you should stay away.”Beelzebub said to the owner and moved closer to the scene.

It was the middle of a street lined with food stalls, and the figure was eating whatever meat he could get his hands on. The devils who were nearby were being protected behind Naberius who had arrived earlier. Naberius bared his teeth and raised his eyebrows to threaten the mysterious figure, while Amon and Stolas stood stern and ready to strike.

“My, this is surprising.” Said Beelzebub, although he wasn't too surprised. ‘Huh? Could that be...!’ You had seen the man in the center of everyone's attention. A blond man with an eye patch and band aids covering the cuts on his face was in the center of the attention. You wanted to ask beelzbub who that was, then your questions got answered by the surrounding Devils.

“I-it's Raphael...!” “Raphael!? Are you talking about Raphael, agent of heavenly punishment!?” “I heard that he annihilated hundreds of devils in armies alone, saying that it's divine punishment...!” “Not only devils...! I heard that he even beheads colleagues if he doesn't like them..!” “He's the Red Angel because he's always soaked in blood!?” “Eek, is that really the angel of carnage? We'll be killed...!!”

The nearby devils stirred with rumors about Raphael and clamored. Standing alone in the center of Abyssos, unperturbed by the chaos around him, the man slowly glared in your direction and bit into the meat skewer in his hand.

“You scum, why are you here? Do you want to die at our hands?”Naberius bared his teeth and snarled with wariness and hatred. Despite his threats, Raphael didn't flinch in the slightest, nonchalantly fiddling with one of his finished skewers. “What for...? Weren't you guys the ones who called me?” Said Raphael, and wiped the gravy from his mouth with the top of his hand. And then, he pointed at each of the destroyed stalls. “It was pretty good, but there were small amounts. That stall is slow in giving me the meat, too clumsy. And that stall over there doesn't have the sauce I want.” Raphael said slowly, folding the skewers in half. “Can you give me what I want?” The blond angel had a threatening aura, he seemed like a beast you couldn't talk to. In contrary to you, Beelzebub stepped in front of you and stroked his chin in observation.

‘What's happening? What is that angel talking about?’ You looked bewildered and said nothing, but so did the devils around you. “Looks like you're not here to have fun. Then... Are you here to have me murder you?” When Beelzebub said with a smile but a murderous look in his eyes, the tension only tightened. “Oh? Do you wish for me to punish you?” A slight smile appeared on Raphael's face. Then, he spat out the meatbone he was chewing at Beelzebub. The bone straight flew at terrifying speed toward Beelzebub, but it missed and hit the wall behind him with a bang.

“You scum, what are you doing to his Majesty!!” Amon put his hand inside his clothes and swiftly drew out a small gun.

Bang bang bang!!!!

Bullet shots could be heard echoing thought the place, but the bullets he shot at Raphael missed him, and dug into the wall precariously behind him. “It missed...!?” Amon looked dubious as though his bullets could never miss, and Beelzebub only stared at him. ‘No way, Amon missed...!’ You winced with nervousness and absentmindedly hugged the bag of gifts Beelzebub had given you.

“Move!!” Ка-ka-ka-ka-ka-ka-ka-ka!! Stolas hugged his beloved Thompsons in both his arms and shot them in quick succession at Raphael. Although Raphael had barely moved, the bullet went off track and dodged him. “Ha!? Why is this happening!!” “Stolas, you should consider the surroundings too!” Naberius warned him. Stolas's bullets hit the stalls around Raphael in turn, creating a honeycomb where there had been no damage before. Just then, Beelzebub who had been watching pulled a whip out of nowhere and attacked Raphael. The curving tip of the whip bounced in front of Raphael like a magnet repelling the same poles.

“Huh...!?” You couldn’t help but gasp out. The definitely strange movement made not only you but also the surrounding devils stir. You were watching nervously in case Raphael used his powers to counterattack. ‘Is there anything | can do...!?’ While you racked your brains in panic, Beelzbub looked deep in thoughts, “Hmm. It looks like that.” The avatar of gluttony murmured and lowered his whip. You stared at Beelzebub's back in puzzlement, as if he had given up the fight. “Beelzebub, what is the meaning of this...? What's like that?” “I told you that strange things happen on Christmas.” “No way... Is it indeed the Christmas miracle?” Wise Naberius seemed vaguely aware of it, though he spoke without as much agitation as you. “Must be. It's a Christmas miracle.” Beelzbub said and turned to look at you. Something clicked in your head, now it made sense, ‘oh…!’

[Ever since long ago, mysterious things happen to this world on Christmas.]

‘Someone's wish must have been granted. But those wishes are always granted in unexpected ways. That's a Christmas miracle.’ That was when you finally recalled Naberius' words. “Does that mean... That's why your attacks won't work?” Raphael frowned and covered his ears with his fingers as you widened your eyes in surprise and spoke in a loud voice. “Shut up... Speak loudly only when you're about to die, human.” At Raphael's lazy, sullen tone, Beelzebub walked slowly toward him and continued. “I think that's why you fell out of the sky. Or, were you banished from Heaven?” Beelzebub sneered.

The angel pointed an uneaten skewer from his hand at the king, “A Christmas miracle...? Shall I try it out? I can keep fighting and kill each other until my attacks do.” Raphael was angry at Beelzebub's behavior and was acting provocatively, while beel didn't hesitate to open his mouth wide in response to Raphael's insolence. Instead, he jammed the skewer Raphael was pointing at him deep into his throat and bit down on it, skewer and all, before Raphael withdrew his hand. The crackle of breaking the thick wooden skewer mixed with the sound of chewing meat. Raphael looked satisfied, and beel swallowed the whole thing, then opened his sauce-covered mouth.

“Alright, follow me. I know a good place. Shall we do it somewhere we can enjoy Abyssos while we're at it?” Beelzebub's smiling face and black aura sent chills down the spines of the devils around him.

“Here.” A few hours after this happened, Bael led you to a store. When Beelzebub said they should go somewhere else, you said you would follow. But Beelzebub looked like he had other plans, “Come here with Bael at night.” And left with those words. He and Naberius helped clean up the wreckage, then returned to the palace to tell Bael about it... And so it came to pass. Anyway, he had left before you could ask him about the location, and it took you some time to find the place he meant. In the end, it was deep into the night when you two arrived.

“That idiot...! He should tell us where if he's going to tell us to come...!” Bael had to figure out where Beelzebub was using only the information he left behind: 'A place to enjoy Abyssos.' The man with the crown opened the door with a trembling hand, as if he was afraid this was the wrong place in the end. “Bael, what kind of store is this?” You ponded, the sign in front of the entrance wasn’t very informative. As you walked through the door and into the store, you were greeted by loud, erotic music and reddish lights. The deeper you went in, the more you heard the customers' devilish cheers.

“Ah, this is the Abyssos SM club.” “Ooh... An SM club... Huhhh..?! An SM club?!” You were startled by Bael's nonchalant reply. “Yeah. Have you never been to one before? That's interesting.” Bael suddenly walked on coolly as though he had entered a karaoke, as if he was used to it, but you in turn felt excited. ‘I always wanted to try. A SM club...! I look forward to it!’ Because you advanced with anticipation, you almost forgot about your original goal. Until you saw a shocking sight in the middle of the room when you entered the spacious interior of the store.

Surrounding Devils were screaming, cheering and laughing, all while pointing their phones in one direction. “Ha ha ha ha! Yeah!” “Resist some more!!” “Look into the camera!” There was a writhing someone chained to a standing seat surrounded by customer devils. His hands were chained together behind his head, and his legs were also bound together tightly. The only thing holding him up was a single leg, and the rest of his body was tangled in multiple chains, immobilized. The bound person was..

“R-Raphael...!!” The angel Raphael who had fallen to Abyssos a while ago. Raphael's pale skin was stained red with chain marks, which seemed to dig into his flesh with every twist and turn of his body. The reddish lights were all on him, he was definitely the highlight of the club.

“W-what's going on?” You widened your eyes at the incomprehensible sight and headed toward the center of the store. Even though he was restricted, he swayed and rattled his chains, looking like a defeated beast in your eyes. “I will kill you!!! Come here!!!”While Raphael groaned and spat, leaving himself to the rage, Beelzebub stood in front of him with a whip and a satisfied look on his face. The moment you and Bael saw Beelzebub, you both ran towards him.

“Beel!” Surprised and confused, Bael reached Beelzebub through the throng of audience devils, and Beelzebub briskly greeted him. “Oh, you're here. Bael, it's been a while. I was waiting. You're late.” “You. What is all this? I thought your attacks didn't work because of the Christmas miracle?” Even though they hadn't seen each other in a long time, Bael was unable to respond to Beelzebub's light tone, as he asked Beelzebub in confusion about what you told him. “We weren't the only ones who couldn't attack, he couldn't attack either. This is probably that wish. I hope everyone can get along or something like that. Anyway, it's a good opportunity, right? If he can't attack, then he can't handle power coming from great numbers, and he went wild as soon as he came so we tied him up, but since we already went through the trouble to tie him up, we might as well teach him about our favorite role-play and have some fun. It was hard tying him up here!”

The carefree man spoke gleefully and struck the floor with a single crack of his whip, the impact of which produced a crackling sound. It wasn't the kind of whip he usually used in attack, but the kind he used for role-play in this shop, with the words [Who the Hell is God?] engraved on the hilt. Now that you looked, the inside of the store was a mess, proof that Raphael had already thrown a huge tantrum.

“The descendant of Solomon is here too!!! Perfect! I will sweep this place at once and bestow divine punishment on both human and devils!!” Raphael exhaled white murderous energy and shook his chained body vigorously, causing a rattling, clanking sound. He was like a furious dog on a leash, and somehow you thought his angry from was pretty adorable. ‘Maybe because this is an SM club... Even when he rebels with wrath, it looks cute.’

“Ha ha ha. How cheerful. True, since he's here, we might as well teach him the fun, devil way or role-play.” Bael laughed at Raphael as though it was funny. He was always gentlemanly and soft toward you, but a devil was indeed a devil. “Right?”Beel also curled the corners of his lips in amusement. “Alright, y/n. I'll leave it to you.” Your heart skipped a beat in surprise at the sudden mention of your name. “Huh? Leave what to me?” “Are you pretending that you don't know?” Beelzebub leaned in close to you and spoke to you in a suggestive manner, his index finger brushing across your chest.

“What we devils all want and like to do, let's have a Christmas party here.” The king standing in front of you closed in, signed into your ear with a low voice, and that alone send a shiver down your spine. For good or bad reasons. “I think you have something we could put to use as well.” He pointed at the bag in your arms. It was the gift you received from Beelzebub earlier, the one you still held in your hand as you ran out of the palace in a panic.

‘Right, I had this...!’ You pulled out the ornaments from your pocket: a devil's red horn, red wings, a ball gag, a necklace, and a red collar. A stereotypical devil cosplay set. Raphael began to struggle more furiously at the sight of the adult toys. “You..!! What are you trying to do to me with that!! Let there be divine punishment!!! No, even if it isn't divine punishment, I-I'll...!!” While Raphael desperately struggled, devils around you laughed and took pictures with their cell phones, you felt a little sympathetic to him. ‘What should I do... Can I do this to an angel...? I wasn’t even planning on using those on him…anyway, SM-play? So I have to take the lead…?’ You fitted the ball gag on Raphael's cursing, yelling mouth. “Shut up.” Your tone was harsh, way more than you intended, you could feel your blood rush at this change of events.

“Mmm-! Mmmph!” Raphael kept yelling under the gag, but you couldn't understand him. While Raphael flailed in all directions, you also put the devil horns on him as well. Damn it, the blondie thought, wondering if he could do anything to the leery chains clinging to his body. Raphael struggled desperately, but whenever he moved, the chains clinked over each other more firmly and tightly. Thanks to them tightening, his movements were even more restrained, you were able to fit the devil wings on him with ease. And when you looked around the club, the sign 'Who the Hell is God?' decorating the walls caught your eyes. It seemed to be the name of the store, which had also been carved on the whip earlier, and the sign was displayed high up as a symbole of this SM club.

“You found something good.” Bael noticed your gaze and took the sign down with his hand. He was also enjoying this strange situation very much. “Thanks.” You took the sign and was about to hang it on Raphael's neck. “Mmm!!! Mmmph!!”The man you were planning on decorating shook his head in displeasure, but the placard which looked like a sign eventually decorated his chest. He glowered even more at you. The look in his eyes said he would never forgive you, a growing and burning hatred present in those red pupils. But that didn't matter to you right now. The devils around you were watching you with expectant eyes, and you had no choice but to do something. Even though you were still baffled by the situation, it didn't stop you from feeling some kind of excitement. What horrible thoughts you were having, to think you weren’t even surprised by the situation. Next, you picked up the necklace and put it on your index finger, twirling it as if to show it to Raphael.

“This will suit you nicely too.” You snickered. “Mmmm-!!” Unlike you, who was in a good mood, Raphael resisted and shook his head vigorously. ‘Don't make me laugh. Do you think I would do anything as disgusting as that?!’ He thought to himself, unable to voice out his opinion. Raphael still growled under the gag, and his spit was already flowing down the ball and his chin. The now furious looking man flailed and struggled to kick you, but his feet obviously never touched you. You took no offence and simply dodged Raphael who kept trying to kick you away. Tugging on the golden cross that adorned Raphael's ear and making him bow his head, then you pressed your lips to his ear.

“Today’s Christmas, isn’t it? Let’s do something fun.”Before he could register your words, you bared your teeth and bit Raphael’s ear. Crunch!! When you set your teeth on Raphael's white, thin ear and bit down, the ear cartilage crunched in your mouth. You receded and blew in his ear. “Ughhh!”Raphael shook his head at your action, and you drew away. His ear had turned red and had distinct teeth marks on it. You looked at the indentation, like the marks of a healed earring hole, and felt a little sad. “I must have not bit hard enough...”

You were deep in thought and looked at Raphael's reddened ear, while he was floundering his chains. “Mmmm!!!! Aghhhh!!” With rage dominating his mind, Raphael was bellowing and groaning like an animal in captivity.

How many humans on Earth would consider him to be an angel?

He looked ready to rip your throat out if only his chains were broken. In particular, he was a Seraph who believed that his beloved God had disappeared because of Hell and humans. This situation where he was a spectacle to humans or devils he considered to be vermin evoked woe and fury Raphael had never felt before. ‘I will do anything to exterminate you!!!’ The angel thought.

Your heart leapt at the sight of Raphael's neat and always scarred face, glaring at you and the devils around you as he glowered at you with murderous intent. The feeling of training and taming a beast who knew nothing other than the feeling of rage filled you, anticipation began to swell in your heart.

‘He really is like a beast...’ That thought flashed your mind multiple times. Even if you felt overwhelmed by Raphael's rage, you thought you would feel like you were losing if you stepped back here.

‘I don't know what exactly I have to do... But let's do what I like first.’ You determined yourself. “I think you need this...” After finishing your sentence, you could feel his eyes wander to your hand. You were unbuckling the red leash and unraveled it completely to loop it into a round shape. Then, you took it behind Raphael's neck while he struggled and kicked, trying to keep you from putting the buckle over him. You payed him no mind, and pulled the end of the belt to make the ring of the collar smaller and smaller before putting it through the hole that fit the size of his neck.

“Ugh, urghhh...”Raphael was being slowly strangled, his scarred face slowly turned red and his resistance weakened. ‘What a pretty expression..!’ You ran your tongue over your lips, your heart pounding at the sight of Raphael being like that. The faster your heart beat, the harder you unconsciously pulled. His consciousness slowly faded as his oxygen was being cut off, but you relaxed your grip at the right time. Then, air began to fill Raphael's body again.

You repeated your actions, chocking him repeatedly. It was addicting, you liked his pitiful expression so much that you felt bad. This continued until you were satisfied, and Raphael's eyes began to bead with tears from physiological reaction.

‘This human... And the devils... I will condemn them with the worst punishment...’ This was the thought Raphael held on to, despite his white, fading consciousness. For you, it was purely an act of mutual pleasure, but for Raphael, it was pure torture. Unlike you and the devils who envied Raphael for his suffering, Raphael's thoughts were filled with humiliation and bitterness. He felt dirty, he felt fury and angry like never before. At least, that’s what he believed.

‘How painful, how pleasant it would feel...!’ You were excited to see him staring at you with tears in his eyes even as he struggled to breathe, it was erotic and fuelled your twisted desires. The uncertainly you once had was now replaced with new confidence. So you smiled at him, all while you felt yourself getting wet between your legs.

“Yeah! He's beginning to make lewd expressions!” The surrounding devils turned feverish at Raphael's pain. Regarding a devil glancing at bills in happiness, you let go of Raphael's neck. “Ha! Cough, cough, huff... puff...”Raphael was collecting oxygen desperately like a drowning man. He wanted more than anything to articulate even under the ball gag, but he couldn't do anything about his body’s survival instinct. You smiled at Raphael who had turned slightly more docile.

“Did you feel good? Everyone is having fun watching you, Raphael. If you make a prettier face, you'll receive even more compliments.”Watching Raphael contort his face in pain made a whirlpool of dark thoughts within you. It’s true that you warmly praised Raphael, but you also wanted to turn him into a complete mess. You reached for Raphael's shirt and slowly pulled it up. Both you and the raucous devils were dazzled by the skin that showed from his abdomen.

‘Pretty...!’ It was a smooth, beautiful one, the reddish lights of the club reflected on his perfect skin. One had no choice but to believe that God made it, a perfection only God could creat.

“Mmmmm!!” Raphael screamed his protests loudly, even to the point of stopping his rapid breathing, but all he could manage was a groan under the ball gag. When his upper body began to emerge from beneath his clothes, it revealed his toned abs, which served as proof of his strength. But what caught your eyes more than his muscles were the numerous body piercings. Chains, buttons, dozens of crosses… all that metal on his body showed his love and loyalty to God, his body was a canvas of his dedication.

“Wow, you have many piercings... It's really sexy.”On Raphael's lightly pigmented body, the silver chain on his belly glistened and looked bewitching in your eyes. Even his devotion to God was only a source of excitement for you here and now, should you feel bad for being a sinner? Raphael had been exposed to the devils and humans he wanted to destroy, and now even his love for God was being watched with an evil eye. This made him feel rage and violation he had never felt before spread throughout his body. “Mmmmm-!!!”The angel groaned endlessly, but you only pulled his clothes up higher. Once you passed the piercings that seemed to be driven into his body, you saw his light pink nipples, and those also had piercings of crosses hanging from them.

“Wow, you even have piercings here!”The excitement was immense, you couldn’t wait and pushed his clothes up to the top, then fixed it under the sign you hung from his neck. ‘Stop!!! Don't touch me!!’ Raphael begged to god in his mind, each time he writhed and struggled, the piercings on his chest also shook. ‘Lovely. Did you... Pierce them yourself?’ You ran your fingers over the piercings that jiggled on Raphael's nipple with a look of pure admiration.

Piercings he wasn't wearing to show anyone, since he never revealed any skin. Watching the hidden thing made you feel as though you saw something special and it bobbed and swayed, the nipples pouted and rose under its weight. Seeing something he obviously had no intention of showing you only turned you on even more. ‘There are piercings on a pretty body. That's so lewd...! I want to make more holes on it...’ This was truly hypnotising, you were drawn into him and bit his nipple, piercings and all. ‘Urgh...!’ Raphael bent over even more. He was chained, so the angle was slight, but if he hadn't been restrained, he would have arched his back further.

‘Damn it..!! Stop it!!!’ Raphael never even contemplated the possibility of anyone other than God or himself touching his naked body. There was a clink of chains hitting each other. You held his waist tightly so he wouldn't buckle and wobble. The grip you had on his was rough, it felt weird and unfamiliar for the angel. You rolled your tongue over his buds, the feeling of Raphael's hard and erect nipple, as well as his cross piercing made you most ecstatic.

‘It's me who's licking, but his reactions are amazing… and the feeling of cold metal is pretty good too…I want to bite it more…I want to lick it more...’ Once you thought so, you couldn't stop yourself. You began to lick his entire body as if washing it with your tongue, teasing him all over. Your tongue traveling from his nipples to his navel then his lower body. At the same time, just thinking about the pleasure he must be feeling made you feel wet between your legs without even stimulating it.

Your tongue quickly reached the soles of his chained feet. He kicked his bound legs as you licked each pierced toe down to the sole of his foot. “Mmmmm-!!!” Licking the soles of someone's feet must be a humiliating act, yet you did it so effortlessly with a look of ecstasy on your face. And Raphael shuddered with disgust and some fear. “There are still many more parts that look delicious.” You whispered quietly. Regardless of his thoughts, you were feeling interested in Raphael’s other body parts. Spinning a thread of saliva, you lifted your tongue from the sole of his foot and tore at the arm of his shirt with all your might. You also tore his pants at the thighs, which had been lifted by the chains. After they ripped, you bit down on his body without hesitation.

‘Don't touch me!!!’ Raphael thought, then squirmed, but you took hold of his foot and bit into it like a fruit. At the same time, you tugged on the piercing at the end of his nipple hard enough to make the pale pink nipple turn red. “Ahhh..!”The poor angel shook in a reaction that was part protest, part pleasure. This sight of a pretty angel being defiled was a work of art. Watching his white skin stain red, his upper body still untouched by anyone's hands, writhing about was so lascivious that it fed your fetishes.

Raphael's reactions heated up the devils in the SM club. One of the devils was licking the end of the whip, as though he wanted to do it as well. Another devil flapped his bills in front of his face and approached Raphael. The surrounding devils started to cheer again, “You really are an obscene angel, I envy you, but thank you that you did this for us.” Then, he tossed the bills in Raphael's face and twisted it in the torn arm of his shirt. Afterwards, a few other devils also approached to add their bills between his torn clothes. Even when Raphael tried to kick them away, it was of no use. He glared at each and every one of them, looking as if he might shed tears of blood. ‘I shall never forget this humiliation..! I will punish them with my life!’

He couldn't believe he'd fallen into Abyssos without knowing why, and he was being punished for it when he was normally the one doing the punishing. Rage dominated to the top of his head, and he unconsciously shuddered. Then, the halo behind Raphael's head began to shine brightly. The light seemed to be shining to purify this store, or to erase everything. But Raphael's reaction only made you happier. ‘What is this...! A phenomenon neither devils nor humans can cause...Looks like there are more fun things lying in wait...!’ You felt your heart thump out of anticipation of what would happen now.

Your eyes moved from the shining halo to stare at Raphael’s side profile as he glared at the devil with the bills in hand. Ptui. Your spit hit the band aid on his cheek and slowly slid down. ‘Look over here too.’

Was all you had to say, you wanted to keep his attention on you, to have Raphael turn to you, rather than the surrounding devils. His gaze did wander to you, glaring at you menacingly, his eyes showed a hint of confusion mixed with anger. Raphael's terrifyingly white, murderous energy was swallowing you whole. You knew the angel, who had been on a rampage up to this point was quietly raging, and the murderous intent was dedicated at only you. When Raphael's halo shone particularly brightly and tried to wallow you…

Slam!!

You hit his stomach with all your might. Although you never hit anyone on Earth or in Hell, you saw Satan use violence with love (you weren't sure, but it looked like it to you) to his colleagues. Since you recalled it, you copied him and punched Raphael. It wasn't an attack. You were striking Raphael's stomach with love like an instructor. While you did that, your eyes were shining red like Satan's.

“Argh...!!”The vigor made both the piercings on his upper body and body quake. When his piercings swayed, you were turned on again. “You shouldn't think of standing up to me.” Whack!! “I just want you to enjoy it.” Thump!! With each sentence, you punched him in the gut. Bruises were forming on his stomach.

‘Ugh, if only I had more power in my arms...! If only | had more power to punish them...!!’ Raphael was feeling nervous, that he couldn't do anything about being overwhelmed for the first time, about his helplessness and vulnerability. You, on the other hand, were tormenting Raphael with your mouth and hands, and yet you were rejoicing in the return of his attention to you.

You pulled the piercing on his belly button and bit the upper half of his body. “Ugh, ughhh...” followed with your fangs which bared and bit into the flesh as if to tear a larger hole in his pierced body. Meanwhile, you stroked Raphael's groin over his pants. “Ughh..!” And his body flinched at that very harshly. His nerves and senses which had only been focused on being bitten by you a moment ago were now focused on his lower part. The unexpected touch of his intime part suddenly added an additional stimulus to the sensations whirling inside his body. It felt even more intense, because he had only been paying attention to your bites. The reaction made the surrounding devils cheer loudly.

Meanwhile, Beelzebub and Bael were biting their lips to stop themselves from laughing with quaking shoulders. “Ahhhhhhh..! That's a cute reaction, even though they only touched it for a second, hahaha!” Beelzbub declared with an amused tone. “Huhuhu, don't laugh too much. Beel. He's an angel so there's nothing he can do about it. Hehe...”

The booing reaction of the two devils made Raphael feel ashamed for the first time since he was made by God. ‘What was that... Feeling just now...!’ He panicked at the stimulation he'd never felt before and the way his body reacted. You had little regard for the surrounding cheers, and the fact that Raphael was panicking was unbeknownst to you. In contrary, you were glad that Raphael was reacting, so you nibbled on him and groped his lower body more feverishly.

“Mmm, mmmh...” Accustomed to the pain of having his body pierced, Raphael began to feel strange at the gentle treatment. Somehow he took a little pleasure in conjunction with the stimulation of his lower body. His member which had grown harder and more erect than when you first touched it began to clearly announce its existence. ‘Why... Why are you getting harder!’ Raphael was crying internally. ‘I'm reacting to it, so does this mean that God brought this pleasure to me…!?’ He couldn’t help but stare at his ever-growing lower body in bewilderment, thinking that there couldn’t be anything meaningless about the body created by the God he worshipped.

“Is it your first time touching it?” You smiled pleasantly at Raphael's novice-like reaction and asked. “I'm presented with your first time? What a great Christmas present...” Almost wanting to hum to yourself, you unbuttoned Raphael's pants and unzipped it.

“Ooooh...!” “Finally...” The surrounding devils gulped as though they were the ones violating Raphael. Their hands were slowly massaging themselves at the sight of the pretty angel. When you unbuttoned his pants, his underwear appeared, and those were stained with his fluids. Your hand cupped his bulge gently, caressing it even. Raphael’s face finally catches colours and flushed, his figure kept trembling and squirming around.

“Mmmm-!” To touch somewhere neither God nor himself had touched… being humiliated like this by devils and the descendant of Solomon who must be the reason God disappeared… moreover, his lower body was reacting regardless of his intentions...!

Raphael felt like he was going crazy.

The despair and terror of losing control of his body was an emotion he hadn't felt since God disappeared. ‘My body turning strange!! It’s all because I touched this filthy being!!!’ In the end, the blond man blamed you for everything.

Touching Raphael's lower body and watching it get wet, you felt like you were looking at a painting that was getting closer to completion, and your excitement heightened. The thought filling your mind gradually got lewder and more perverted. ‘I want to see more of Raphael's body!’ Your excitement and curiosity gained momentum, and with nervous fingers you pulled down Raphael's underwear. Then, it was revealed that a chastity belt forged in Heaven from heavy metal, surrounded Raphael's cock. You widened your eyes at the chastity belt you had never seen before.

“Is this...” You ran your hand hesitantly around the heavy, metallic chastity belt. “It was true what they say about angels wearing chastity belts.” Beelzebub was watching with amusement, before continuing, “Dedicating oneself to God and continuing celibacy for billions of years. And wearing a chastity belt to keep from breaking it. Hah, angels were doing such strange things, they truly were.” Your gaze clung to the chastity belt at Beelzebub's words. Then you shuddered and felt a rush of excitement as you saw Raphael wearing a chastity belt, as proof of his purity. He seemed so aggressive and eccentric at first glance, but that wasn’t his true colours at all?

The devils around him studied the chastity belt, pretending to approach to insert the bills. Raphael's erect, hard dick was writhing inside the chastity belt, ready to burst, and something was leaking out of the hole at the end. It was transparent, white and milky, but it glowed and had a viscosity. ‘What..Is this...?’ Your cheeks blushed slightly. ‘Could this shining liquid possibly be an angel's cum...?! Is it… his precum? I want to try licking it!!!’ You felt curiosity mingled with excitement at the liquid that was unique to that holy angel. The glowing, melting liquid drew the admiration of the surrounding devils.

#sub character #sub!character #dom reader #dom!reader #sub whb #sub what in hell is bad #whb #rara whb #whb rara #whb raphael #Raphael whb #what in hell is bad rara #what in hell is bad raphael

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deathmetalunicorn1 · 5 months

Note

Christmas Special with Eri!Reader? Reader is celebrating her very first Christmas Together with her large family, as she came in next to Odin wearing the cutest little Santa Outfit (With a lot of her family members squealing and cooing over how cute she is and taking a bunch of pictures) and Reader asks “I’m supposed to say… Trick or Treat?” (Everyone fell to the ground from having heart attacks)

Thor tells her ‘Not quite… Wrong Holiday’ and she keeps getting it wrong, as she gifts Shiva some eggs she painted and telling everyone ‘In sickness and in health’ as she throws some rice (She’s wrong again, but no one is chastising her for it, rather they find it precious)

Zerofuku excitedly and rapidly told Reader all in one go about all the types of Holidays and Celebrations, resulting in her getting them mixed up

How does everyone react to Reader’s gift being a gigantic toy sword (She’s holding it up and smiling excitedly at her Big Brother Thor because now they match! (This makes Loki and other relatives *The men* a little jealous because she’s not trying to match with them!)

Reader calls Loki who’s wearing an Elf Outfit a ‘Leprechaun’ (Making some of her family members cackle and try to keep in their snickers) which Loki is sulking in the corner, but Reader hugs him, making him instantly feel better

Reader’s in awe of meeting ‘Santa’ (Zeus dressed as Santa) as she gifts him the Cookies she made with Mama Eve (Everyone is taking pictures)

-It was your first-time celebrating Christmas with your new family- it was your first time celebrating it period and everyone was excited, wanting to make it extra special for you.

-When Loki entered, wearing an elf costume, “We’re here!” eyes quickly turned, seeing you dressed up in the cutest little Santa dress, peeking out from behind Loki, “I’m supposed to say trick or treat, right?”

-Instant heart attacks from cuteness had several of your family members collapsing to the floor as Thor came over, giving you a soft smile, ruffling your hair gently, “Wrong holiday.”

-It was so cute how you kept mixing up the holidays, mainly because Zerofuku had confused you after he had told you about all the different holidays, as he wanted to share the joy of all of them with you.

-Everyone thought it was cute, not having the heart to correct you, as you seemed so happy handing Shiva some painted eggs you had made with Loki and Buddha before tossing rice around, “In sickness and in health.”

-Apollo held you on his lap after you have him some chocolate hearts, “You look so cute dressed up like the Y/N- you match with Loki!”

-You looked up, a bit confused, “Does Santa and a leprechaun match?” Roaring laughter took over the room as Loki couldn’t help but pout lightly, he was an elf- not a leprechaun!

-You presented your present for the gift exchange: a stuffed Santa bear Loki helped you pick out that was almost as big as you were- you looked so adorable!

-Everyone was gawking only moments later as you were holding a giant toy sword, your prize in the gift exchange, but instead of looking scared or upset, you were smiling, looking up at Thor, who had been the one to bring it, “Now I match with you!”

-That wasn’t fair! The others all wanted to match with you!

-“Ho-ho-ho!!” you flinched at the loud voice before you turned, seeing Santa himself, not realizing it was Zeus dressed up and your eyes went sparkly, “It’s Santa!”

-Round two of cuteness related heart attacks!

-You were a little shy approaching him, not knowing him, which everyone thought was adorable as you were holding a bag of cookies you had made with Eve, as Eve had told you that Santa loves cookies.

-Zeus was struggling not to keel over from cuteness when you gifted him the cookies before he picked you up, asking you what you wanted for Christmas, “I want to celebrate like this with everyone all the time.”

-Oh sweet sprinkles you were too precious! You were going to kill all of them as everyone was quickly cheering, promising you that they would always celebrate with you, making you smile warmly, it’s all you ever wanted- to see everyone happy too!

#record of ragnarok #ror x reader #ror loki #ror thor #ror zeus #ror eve

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prolix-yuy · 1 year

Text

A Bearable Weight

Pairing: Javi Gutierrez x F!Reader

Summary: New Years Eve is the holiday of new beginnings, and you take a leap to see if Javi might be one of them.

Word Count: 3k

Story Warnings: T, plenty of sweetness, more ridiculousness because I can't help myself, some lightly spicy kisses. While this story is not explicit, my blog and the content shared on it is 18+ so MINORS DNI.

Notes: I had to get these two to New Years. They were just too cute to leave hanging. I hope each and every one of you reading this waves goodbye to anything that made your 2022 difficult and enters 2023 with open arms and excitement. Now let's see where the new year takes Javi and Conejita!

Cross-posted on AO3

The restaurant is smaller than you thought it might be, unassuming in a strip of businesses. The sign for it is understated, white lettering on a black rectangle with a thin gold border - Aperitif. You’ve been studying the sign, and the door below it, for well over ten minutes, the chill night air creeping up your bare legs. The new dress you bought for the occasion - black, tasteful but a little sexy, an amount you’re comfortable with - weaves around your knees when a breeze makes you shiver. You look down at your heels again, still torn between whether the glittery gold is too loud for your personality or loving that they make you feel festive. Your hair is styled, your makeup is perfect, everything is ready for you to go inside.

And you’re still rooted on the damn spot.

Javi texted you a few times since the first voice message. Every new phone alert made your heart jump, evolving to a flutter when it actually was from him. He sent you photos of his friends’ Christmas tree, their dog plopping her head in his lap, the snow outside a fogged up window. He also asked you things about yourself, some that you expected and others that made you stop and smile.

What food will you eat if you’re having a bad day?

Best movies adapted from books?

Did your sister like the message?

Your sister did indeed, and after catching you grinning at your phone several times throughout the long weekend finally made you confess how you got it. Her elation over the serendipitous meeting was only eclipsed by your hesitation over seeing Javi again.

“Are you serious right now? Cute, funny, probably loaded, a dork, sweet, and definitely into you? I will drive you there and drop your ass on the sidewalk if you don’t do it yourself.”

So you accepted the invitation, which was accompanied by a string of excited texts filled with details and one that made you tingle from head to toe.

Thank you for accepting. I hope you will consider what I asked you in my first message. But only if you’re comfortable. I really like talking to you, no matter what.

A beat, then…

If you’d like to be mine, this year.

You did. Holy hell, you did. But you were also a classically trained overthinker, and the days leading up to New Years Eve were spent Googling and riding the rollercoaster of excitement and dread. The Gutierrez family had an online presence, and not all of it was good. Luckily it seemed like Javi wasn’t in the crosshairs, but the more you learned the more convinced you became that this was going to be a shitshow. Wealthy, influential, a lover of the arts and gorgeous in every photo you find, your hopes got buried a little deeper with each word.

He told you it was going to be a party, nothing large, but the idea of being in your department store dress among the elite of society made you want to cancel. Go out for coffee instead. Let yourself down gently when you realize how different your worlds are.

But then you find a voicemail - a missed call from Javi:

“Hi conejita, I hope all the texts have not been too much. I realize that you barely know me, and I am maybe moving a little too fast. I get…ah, well, I get excited. You have made me very excited, and I want to be, you know, ‘cool’ about it, but I am not so great at that. Anyways, I am…hah, yeah, excited to see you tomorrow. It will be a lot of fun. And, um…we don’t…I only want what you want, conejita. So let’s just…see where the night takes us. I know what I feel, but I…I only want you to…to know…agh! I am messing this all up. Sorry, this message is so long now. I’ll see you tomorrow. I’m…I’m really happy to see you tomorrow. Okay, bye.”

What’s the harm, you thought after listening to the message three times. If it’s terrible you never have to see him again.

Another breeze ripples over your skin, finally making you move towards the door.

And if it’s amazing?

You smile to yourself and enter the warmth of the restaurant.

Aperitif looked small from the exterior, and the interior is about what you expected. It could maybe seat 30 fully booked, but the dining room has been cleared out in favor of buffet servers against the walls, the ivory bar lined with champagne glasses and eager bartenders shaking cocktails. The handful of people chatting inside don’t look like heiresses or oil barons. Your shoulders relax a fraction.

“Name?” the man at the door asks, a short list in his hand. You give yours and are ushered in, a drink immediately put in your hand and a string of metallic gold beads tossed over your head by a waitress.

“Happy New Year!” she says, taking your coat. You slip into the crowd looking for the only person you came here for - Javi. But his caramel curls and exuberant laugh haven’t reached you yet.

“I love what they’ve done with the decorations!” a cheery voice exclaims over your shoulder. You look around, then up to see a delicate web of black and gold streamers holding balloons precariously above you. One single streamer hangs to the floor behind the bar, which an olive-skinned hand points to. “I think at midnight they pull that.” You turn to see the woman speaking to you, and she’s...normal-looking. Peppy brunette with a sharply cut bob, sparkling brown eyes, and a glittery top with black slacks. Maybe you had nothing to worry about.

“That’s fun, I haven’t been out on New Years in ages,” you say, taking a sip of champagne. The bubbles tickle your tongue pleasantly. It’s good, much better than any champagne you’ve had at parties.

“Oh then you’ve come to the perfect place! Who invited you?” she asks, finishing off her glass and placing it on a waiter’s tray as it floats by.

“Javi,” you say, a little shyly. He mentioned that he was hosting it, but you had no clue who the other guests were. How long could you keep up the facade?

“Of course! How do you know him? I’m a long-lost cousin myself, been out of the loop for a while, but it’s nice to see him again.” She waits expectantly, and if you didn’t feel like throwing up before you definitely do now.

“Uhhh, we met…on a flight…” you start to say, working through how the hell you were going to explain the circumstances of your meeting to a stranger, when her eyes light up.

“Oh my GOD, it’s you!” she gasps, grabbing on to both your shoulders. “Javi told me about the girl on the plane on his way here. That story, the way he tells it, it’s the cutest thing I’ve ever heard. And you’re here! Now! I have to find him, he’ll be so excited!” She squeezes your shoulders again with a little squeal before darting through the crowd, a nervous giggle smothered in your hand.

He told people about you.

He told people about you in a way that made him sound happy.

You could burst, the light inside you is so expansive.

You’re about to follow when a large palm circles your bicep, turning you gently around in the crowd.

“You came.”

Javi says it like a prayer, like he believed but never thought a miracle would grace him. His curls are swept back from his face in tantalizing waves. He’s in a gray blazer, a navy button-up with some abstract patterning hanging onto his broad chest for dear life. The top three buttons already gave up the fight, chest dewy with the humidity in the room. But it’s his face that melts your anxieties away. His eyes drape warmth over you, fondness in their depths that he only hinted at in his messages. His soft smile lashes your heart into a gallop, breaking into one of your own.

“Of course. How could I miss it?” you say, winking when his grin widens. He leans forward to place a chaste kiss on your cheek, hand spreading across your lower back.

“I am so happy to see you, conejita,” he whispers, raising goosebumps along the nape of your neck.

Oh, you’re in it deep now.

As the night continues more people file in, filling the small space with chattering conversation. You find the bubbly brunette again, who introduces herself as Julia, and get to talking about houseplant care and aggravations. She’s unpretentious, passionate, and makes you feel like you belong. Honestly, most of the people do. As the night wears on and you shake more hands and spark more conversations, it dawns on you why these people are all together tonight. This is Javi’s circle, people who understand him and bring him joy.

Bashful happiness that you might bring him joy settles in your chest.

Javi scoops you up every few minutes, guiding you to new groups or asking you if you’ve tried something. The upscale pigs in a blanket are your personal favorite, snagging a whole tray for yourself when a waiter walks by. You’re almost embarrassed, but Javi’s crinkled smile as he tries to steal one and gets his hand slapped is worth it.

A murmuring begins by the entrance, a flocking to the door. Javi comes to your elbow, leaning on one foot and placing his warm hand on your lower back. He’s been doing it to you all night, every time you stand beside him, but it’s never less thrilling.

“What’s that all about?” you ask, your third glass of champagne fizzing delightfully under your skin. He catches someone’s eye in the crowd, gesturing them over.

“Just a good friend who came to visit.”

You almost choke on your sip of bubbles.

“Nicolas. Fucking. Cage,” you scoff to Javi under your breath as the man himself emerges out of the crowd. He’s bee-lining your way but stops to shake hands and engage in polite conversation. His emerald velvet jacket contrasts the burgundy button-up underneath nicely, but the faded Dad jeans and white tennis shoes clash adorably with the ensemble. “You could have warned me!”

“Your reaction was well worth your annoyance,” Javi placates, pressing you forward as the crowd falls back.

“How are you doing Nic? How’s the family?” Javi asks, pulling the famous actor in for a hug. They give brief updates, you standing back a step awkwardly. Debating on slipping away, Javi introduces you to Nic and pulls you back into the conversation.

“The girl on the plane,” Nic says, and if you ever thought his speaking affect was fake you’re certain now it’s genuine. He takes your hand in both of his, shaking it earnestly. “I heard your sister is a big fan. I hope she liked the message, I know it was a little rushed but, last minute on the holidays, you know…” You shake your head, fighting back your sister’s scream in the back of your mind.

“She was over the moon. Thank you again for doing that, it was very kind of you,” you say, trading a secret smirk with Javi. It’s a harmless lie, but the fact that he’s perpetuating it makes you even giddier.

“Well next time you’re at one of Javi’s parties you should bring her. I love meeting fans,” Nic says, giving you a pat on the shoulder and peeling off to get himself a drink. Javi slides back to your side, the laughter you’d been suppressing squeaking out of the corners of your mouth.

“Clara’s gonna die. I’ll have to lie to her to get her in the same room as Nic,” you sputter, leaning into Javi’s side as he puts an arm around your shoulders. Frenetic energy dissipating, you savor the solid breadth of his chest, that delicious citrus bite of his scent. He holds you there, and after a moment his cheek presses against the side of your head. He inhales, your face burning when you realize he’s smelling you.

“That’s it, you’re a wizard or something. No one can grant as many wishes as you,” you tease, twisting to look into Javi’s face. The crows feet and wrinkles smooth as he looks at you, eyes darting from your own to your lips and back again. “Thank you,” you finally say, letting him slide his arm down to pull you into his chest.

“It is I who should be thanking you, conejita. I’ve been living a full life, a better life in recent times, but it feels that much brighter when you’re close to me.” His touch is hesitant when his fingers graze your jaw, his hold loosening on your back. It’s all broadcasting only what you want. He would chase you if you let him, though if you stepped away now he’d let you. But in those touches are the longing to be more than acquaintances. And in this room you thought you’d never belong in, you feel safe, and seen.

Over the chatter and laughter swirling past, you talk. About Javi’s life, and your own. Your work and what you love to do. His love of movies, your love of old houses and national parks. Your mutual dislike of overused CGI elements and predictable jumpscares. He strokes your back, your arm, as you speak, sometimes needing to break away to say hello or answer a question, but unfailingly coming back to you.

As the final minutes near, you voice the question burning in the back of your mind.

“Javi, you’re so…” you gesture at this posh, gorgeous man standing beside you. “You’re so far out of my league I can’t even see you. And I know I’m a catch,” you interject, gesturing at yourself now with amusement. “I’m a snack, I’m a whole meal, I don’t deny it. But I’m more like…Applebees than Wolfgang Puck.” You wave your hands, banishing the jumble away. “I guess I just don’t understand why…me. Here. Tonight.”

Javi’s brow furrows, his mouth tightening into a pout as he casts his gaze down. Waiting is torture, needing to know if this is just a little thank-you or something more.

“One minute!” someone shouts, the excitement in the room ratcheting up another series of degrees as everyone gathers in the center of the restaurant. Javi leads you to the middle, the throng of people parting enough to give you some space inside it. Once your feet stop, he sweeps you into another embrace, this one firmer. His eyes roam your face, searching for something before he speaks.

“As much as I love the old movies, I do not believe in love at first sight. I believe in attraction, and common interests, and support. I believe in two people finding each other in the most unusual way and taking it as a sign. And when the universe gives you another chance and it only makes you want that person more, well…” Javi trails off, one hand coming up to curl around your head, his thumb stroking the hinge of your parted jaw. Your eyes must be hopeful because he barrels on.

“Well, I am not one to overlook lightning striking twice. And you are…you are not an…apple bee?” he asks, confusion twisting the words. You shake your head and pat his chest.

“It’s a, like, chain restaurant. Sorry, doesn’t make a lot of sense if you haven’t heard of it,” you murmur, stroking a finger along his lapel.

“But that’s just it, because I don’t agree with that. You are so much more than I wished. I feel like…not like a puzzle, but like…two rivers meeting. Both strong on their own, but together, mingled, are in harmony.”

“Okay everyone, get ready, on ten!”

“Javi, what are you…”

“Nine!”

“I want more of this, conejita. I want more of you. If you’ll have me too.”

“Eight!”

“I…do, but I just…it…it feels so…complicated.”

“Seven!”

“We do not need all of the answers now. Just one.”

“Six!”

“Which one is that?”

“Five!”

“Will you let me kiss you tomorrow?”

“Four!”

“Three!”

“Two!”

“One!”

“Yes, Javi.”

The restaurant erupts in cheers of “Happy New Year!” as people hug and kiss and celebrate. One of the waiters pulls the crepe paper cord and balloons tumble from the ceiling, packets of foil confetti dumping and exploding over the crowd. If you were paying attention you’d laugh, reach your hands up to the ceiling and try to catch handfuls of the glittering shower, but you’re preoccupied with Javi’s gentle smile before he pulls your lips to his.

If this kiss was a precursor to how your next year would go, magical might be a good descriptor. Or explosive. Swoon-worthy maybe. But perfect might be the best. Javi’s first chaste press is followed by deeper kisses, his full lips covering your own with quiet little pants. When he pulls back enough to see your kiss-drunk face his whole demeanor lights up, lacing his fingers with yours and pulling you through the crowd.

Once tucked away on a bench in the back of the restaurant, he proceeds to kiss you with more fervor, tongue slipping against yours tentatively. He only interrupts the worshipful makeout with touches to your face like he still can’t believe you’re here. Covering his hands with your own, you tilt your head to one side.

“I feel like this is going to be a very good year.”

Javi’s sweet smile turns just a fraction devilish, and your heart flutters with it.

“Better than I could have wished for."

END

Part 3: A Gift of Light and Joy

#javi gutierrez x you #javi gutierrez x reader #javi gutierrez x f!reader #javi g x reader #javi g x f!reader #prolix fics

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hoedamn-eron · 4 months

Text

baby, please - part 18

It's time for your 'surprise' baby shower (that Santi did not give away at all).

Warnings: Mentions of unsupportive family members. Like two swear words. Mentions of Santi being absent. Reader calls her friends 'guys', as a collective. A bit emotional but all around good vibes. Absolutely not proofread (surprise), so there will probably be mistakes. Word count: 3,802 F!Reader, no use of Y/N.

It’s come to light recently that my partner has been reading this 😂 Hi Dom!

Part 17 ● Series Masterlist ● Part 19

“We’re going to be late!”

“I know, I know, I'm coming!” you call, fixing your make up in the mirror. You double – triple – check your appearance before you leave Courtney’s bathroom.

Your friends were still under the impression you knew nothing about the baby shower, since no-one (including yourself) had ever said anything about organising one. You would have been okay with or without – but you’re secretly happy that something was arranged. You’d been looking forward to the shower since Santi had accidentally given away on Christmas day.

You’re wearing a baby blue dress (you weren’t sure if it was hinting at the gender, but you highly doubted Santi told anyone – or maybe he did…you’re not going to get into it), with a low V-neck and ruffles along the edges. At 8 months pregnant, not many things made you feel ‘pretty’ anymore; you felt like you’d eaten a watermelon. But this dress was cute, and when Beth gave it to you to wear for your ‘last hurrah lunch’, you had burst into tears at how cutely pregnant you looked.

Your hormones were still all over the place.

Andy and Courtney were waiting by the front door as you meet them, smiling shyly at Courtney. “Sorry. I’m ready to go now.”

“You look lovely,” Andy said, smiling at your, spinning his car keys in his hand. Andy was such a good guy. He reminded you a little of Benny, in the way that he was like a golden retriever. He was so willing to drop you guys off at the restaurant.

“Thank you, Andy,” you say, smiling back.

“Come on, Beth and Gabs are already there waiting for us,” Courtney said, frowning at her phone.

You follow the two to Andy’s car, sitting in the back seat before Andy drives off towards the restaurant. You’re talking about what kind of food you’re going to get, what desserts you wanted, and how you’re going to eat all you like with no judgement. You didn’t miss the grins Courtney and Andy sent to each other.

After Andy parks the car outside the restaurant, Courtney helps you out, holding your hand for steadiness. You thanked her before you all make your way into the restaurant, where you were led by a hostess through towards the back. You grinned as Courtney and Andy talked quicker, more excited, the further you made your way in.

You were glad that you hadn’t said anything about knowing of the baby shower. They were obviously so excited they had managed to pull it off.

As you were lead through some double doors, before you freeze as a loud, “SURPRISE!” overtakes your senses. Although you were expecting something, it still caught you off guard.

You look around the room with wide eyes, almost laughing. You were expecting a baby shower, sure, but not with this many people. You spotted Beth and Georgia, with Gabrielle and Matthew, smiling widely by the front. Then you spotted Emily from work, with Harriet, who looked like she wanted to be anywhere but here. Then you spotted Santi with Frankie and Sarah, and Benny was with Will and Claire (Benny, in true Benny fashion, was the loudest and held his arms out wide, a big smile on his face).

There were typical baby decorations – balloons in the shape of pacifiers, pink and blue banners around the room, tables covered in matching pink and blue tablecloths – and the tables were filled with all sorts of food (you did not miss the large bowl of Sourpatch watermelon pieces). The central table was laden with tempting treats, and cupcakes with pastel-coloured frosting, and a tiered cake adorned with baby booties, and an assortment of finger foods invite everyone to indulge in the celebration. There was a pile of gifts towards the back of the room, and piles and piles of diapers. Everyone must have spent a fortune.

You look at everyone before laughing. “There’s so many people here.”

“Did we surprise you?” Courtney asked excitedly.

You give a quick glance to Santi before nodding. “Yes, you did. I had no idea!”

“Liar,” joked Beth, as she gave you a hug. “But thanks for letting us think that you didn’t know.”

“In my defence, I only found out two weeks ago, so you did fairly well until then.”

“Santiago can’t keep a secret for shit,” muttered Courtney, giving him a glare at said man, who was chatting away to Frankie and Benny, laughing at something Benny said.

“How did you even pull all of this off?” you ask, looking around at everything.

“Benny and I came up with it at the Halloween party!” said Gabrielle, smiling widely. “We exchanged numbers and we’ve all been in cahoots trying to get it organised.”

“I cannot believe you didn’t tell me it was Santiago who was your baby daddy!”

You cringe as you turn to Emily, who was stood with a flute of champagne in her hand, Harriet at her side, texting on her phone, her own champagne flute in her hand. “Surprise?”

“Oh, oh! ‘Surprise’!” said Emily, scoffing and rolling her eyes. “I am shocked! Betrayed – “

“Did you not do the math to figure it out?” you ask, grinning.

Emily goes quiet and stares at you before she suddenly burst into tears. “I can’t believe that I’m the one who set you guys up!”

She pulls you into a hug, and you awkwardly pat her on the back at you give your friends a wide-eyed look. “There, there,” you say.

“Let her go, Emily, she needs to mingle,” muttered Harriet. She finally put her phone away and gives you a tight smile as Emily lets you go, wiping her eyes before Gabrielle tends to her. “Congratulations, again.”

“Thank you,” you say. “I know you’re busy, you don’t have to stay – “

“Yeah, I’m meeting with the big bosses, so I’ll have to dash, but thanks again for the invite,” Harriet said quickly, placing her glass on a table. “Just thought I’d show my face. I’ll see you on Monday.”

She was gone before you could blink.

“What a…fun person,” said Beth, raising her eyebrows at you.

You roll your eyes. “She’s always like that.” You say, before smiling. “So what’s first?”

“First,” Gabrielle says, shoving a glass of Diet Coke in your hands. “Is that you sit down and let all of us tell you how amazing you are.”

“Then,” said Beth, leading you over to a cutely decorated table, sitting you down. “We’ll play some games, the really cheesy stuff. Like guess the weight of the babies, guess the length of the bump, all that stuff. Including prizes, which you are exempt from since you have an advantage.”

“Being pregnant?”

“Being pregnant.”

“Then some lunch,” said Courtney, grinning. “Then presents.”

“Always the best part of any occasion,” you joke, sipping your drink.

You sat with your friends, Sarah and Claire soon joining you and introducing themselves to Beth, Georgia, Courtney, and Emily. They blend in with the group with ease, and soon you’re laughing and joking together like you’ve been friends for years. Sarah tells them all that she never thought Santiago would ever have kids or stick around for anyone.

“It’s nearly been a year since he’s come back,” said Sarah. “He usually bolts by month one or two. Santiago Garcia can’t stay in one place for too long.”

You ignore the way the panic blossoms in your chest and disappears just as quickly as it reared its ugly head. She was only joking; Santiago has made it abundantly clear that he wasn’t going anywhere. You were weeks away from giving birth and he was still here, still celebrating with you and your friends. You’d finally agreed on names, after spending months and months disagreeing with every name you threw at each other. However, you were not quite ready to share with the world just yet, wanting to keep them to yourself until your babies finally arrived.

You gave a soft smile as Sarah still talked. No, Santi wasn’t leaving. He was here for good.

“You bad mouthing me?” Santi suddenly asked, appearing at your side as he throws a teasing grin to Sarah.

“Oh please, your attack dog will have something to say about it if I dare say a bad thing about you,” Sarah says, rolling her eyes good naturedly as she nods at Frankie, who was still talking to Benny.

“You gotta talk me up, Morales, these guys are important,” Santi replied, laughing as he motioned to your friends.

You reach over to pat his arm and give him a mock sympathetic look as Sarah teased him, before you turn to your friends. “Shall we play some games then?”

Gabrielle grins widely as Courtney nods.

Courtney calls everyone over to the table, before producing a ball of yarn. “We’re going to guess how big your bump is by measuring a string.”

“Santiago, you’re immediately disqualified, you probably have the bump mapped out,” said Beth, causing everyone to laugh.

You laugh along with them, but you realise something. Santi has never actually…touched your bump. Or if he had, it’s been a while since. You frown a little at the thought. When was the last time? Didn’t dad’s usually want to feel their kids moving? You think back and the only time you can remember was when you called him frantically because you had felt their first kicks and he wasn’t there. He’d come rushing over and you were both say in silence for what felt like hours with his hands on your belly as you both waited for it to happen again. That was months ago. What did that mean? Did he feel awkward doing it again? You were good friends, and you were pregnant with his kids, you wouldn’t have a problem with him wanting to feel the bump whenever he wanted.

You were looking into this too hard. Maybe has was just respecting your boundaries, that you don’t want to always be touched. Maybe you should let him know that he’s okay to do it. Not now, but later.

Courtney went around the group, letting everyone estimate how your bump measured. When it was Matthew’s turn, he looked between you and Gabrielle before he asked his wife, “How big were you with Luna?”

You wince at the question, and you noticed a few other people pull a face. Gabrielle had some self-esteem issues when she was pregnant with Luna, which was a different pregnancy with Theodore.

Gabrielle just gives him a tight smile. “Not as big as someone with twins, thank you very much. No offence.”

You shake your head. “None taken.”

Matthew, shaking his head, measured out a piece of string, looking at you a few times before finally cutting it.

Courtney makes her way around the group, where everyone made their measurements. Benny got into a spat with Frankie about how big his string was, before making one much bigger than Frankie’s.

“Hey!” you cried at Benny. “That’s offensive!”

“There’s two in there!” he cried, pointing to your bump, and holding up his string. “And I know that Garcia’s make big babies! Pope was eleven pounds when he was born!”

Your eyes widened as you look back at Santi. “You never told me that.”

He merely smirked at you.

“Would have been nice to know before I got pregnant.”

“Wasn’t intending to get you pregnant, didn’t think it was worth mentioning.”

You pull a face before nodding. “Okay, fair. Anyway, twins are usually smaller than average, so you might be off, Benny.”

“Damn,” Benny muttered as he passed the string over to Will and Claire.

Benny, in fact, ends up winning the string game.

“Are you kidding!?” you cry, mouth hanging open as Emily measures your bump with Benny’s perfect string.

Benny, with his arms raised and hands curled into fists in celebration, parades around the room like a peacock. Frankie and Will throw over some friendly insults as he picks a prize (oddly, he chose a cute little succulent).

The games continue with baby shower bingo, adding an element of friendly competition to the atmosphere. A Gabrielle shouted the words on the bingo cards, you enjoy joining in, getting competitive with Courtney, trying to shove her card away whenever she was searching for a word, only for her to keep stamping the wrong words on your own card. You glance at Santi who wasn’t taking too much of a part of this game, choosing to talk intensely with Frankie and Will, Benny playing bingo with Claire and Sarah. You frown lightly at him with worry before turning back to the game before Claire lets out a cry of joy, and calls out, "Bingo!"

She won a Lush voucher, which she was very happy about.

Next, Claire arranged a table with an array of dolls laid out, and a row of diapers, baby wipes, and baby talc. Gabrielle took lead on this one also, explaining that the dolls needed changing, and you had to use all the tools on the table. The one with the quickest time won.

You didn’t take part, claiming you’d be changing diapers for what felt like the rest of time when the babies arrived, so you sat back and watched in amusement as the chaos began. You were crying laughing everyone frantically tried to change the doll’s diapers; there was a suspiciously odd number of resources available, which meant a few people were scrambling and shouting at each other for cheating and hogging the wipes, or the talc. You were sure Santi and Benny were about to wrestle on the floor.

In the end, Will won, but graciously gave his prize of the collection of Hershey’s chocolate to Emily, who’d had her eye on it the moment she walked into the venue.

After Beth announced a small break for some lunch, you mosey your way on over to Santi, who finally had a moment alone. “Hi,” you say as you take a seat next to him.

“Hi,” he said, grinning back at you.

“How you doing?”

He gives a short snort of laughter, taking a sip of his water. “I’m doing good.”

“Good,” you say, nodding. “Saw you and Frankie and Will talking earlier. You were a bit...off, is everything okay?”

Santi frowned at you for a small moment, so brief you almost miss it, before shaking his head. “Everything’s fine.”

You raise your eyebrows at him pointedly. “You sure?”

He nodded, placing his drink back on the table. “Yeah.”

“If you say so,” you say.

You drop it. You can tell something is bothering him, but you’re sure he’ll tell you when he’s ready. You look around the room, smiling at all your friends mingling, Benny talking to Matthew and Gabrielle (or at least listening to something Matthew was talking about), Frankie and Sarah were chatting with Beth and Georgia, and Courtney was talking with Claire and helping set up the next activity (from what you could see, it looked like onesie decorating), as Andy and Will were getting some more drinks.

“So how do you find my friends?” you ask him.

Santi gives a chuckle before looking at you, grinning. “Beth scares the shit out of me.”

You laugh. “She’s an angel, what do you mean?”

“She’s very protective over you,” he says.

“She’s protective of anyone she loves. You’re the same,” you say, waving over to his friends. “You’d take a bullet for any of them. You probably have taken a bullet for them.”

“One or two,” Santi quips, sipping again at his drink.

“Exactly,” you say, nudging his shoulder with yours.

He stays silent for a moment before he takes a breath and places his drink back on the table. “I know we’re doing gifts later, but I wanted to give you this now.”

He digs around in his pocket, pulling out a small, wrapped box. He hands it to you, and you take it after a moment before unwrapping it. You pause as you look at the small white box, before giving a wide smile at Santiago and opening it. You give a giggle at the new charm for your bracelet, a baby carriage.

“To commemorate your baby shower,” Santi says.

“Our baby shower,” you say, before lifting the charm gently. “Put it on, put it on!”

You hold it out to Santi before offering your wrist, where the bracelet he gave you for Christmas still lay. You hardly take it off. He smiles as he holds your arm gently, moving it so he could place the charm on. He makes sure it’s secure before giving your hand a small pat, and you bring your wrist to your eyes to get a good look at it.

“It’s beautiful,” you say. “Thank you, Santi. It’s an amazing addition.”

“I’m glad you like it.” He gives you another smile before glancing around the room. “Let’s get some food. I’m starving.”

After lunch, you sit with your friends and start decorating some onesies. You attempt to stick to a jungle theme, to match Santi’s nursery (from what you could tell). You laugh at your poor attempt of a tiger and panda that you tried to draw on the onesies, and you and Emily try to fix it with some patterns and some more colour, but you eventually decided it was a lost cause, that they were as good as they were going to get.

You decided you were going to pack them in your hospital bag.

Throughout the rest of the celebration, snippets of conversation, shared memories, and well-wishes fill the air. Gabrielle and Matthew swap parenting tips and recount their own experiences with you, Santi, and Frankie and Sarah, leaving you with some laughs and new worries, which you would be able to conquer with the love and support from everyone.

You open your presents with excitement, oohing and ahhing at the new clothes, the crib sheets, even down to teething toys and pacifiers. You thanked everyone profusely, sharing some smiles with Santi. You were already picturing the presents scattered around your new house, where you would store them away when they weren’t being used, where all the small, teeny-tiny clothes were going to go.

You might start crying.

More games are played, and more prizes are won between the group, and you pack away a stack of cards with baby predictions on them. You giggle to yourself as you read through some of them.

Soon after, you realise the day is ending and the venue had been subtly hinting for a while that they were ready to close. You start loading the car with the gifts and many, many packs of diapers, with the help of your friends, old and new. You hover outside the venue once everyone starts to disperse, sending goodbyes and sharing hugs.

“We’ll help you get settled into your new place over the next week, yeah?” Frankie asked you, placing his hands on his hips as you came out of a hug with Sarah.

You nod at him. “Yes, please, I would really appreciate it. The house could do with a fresh coat of paint, and I still need to build all of my furniture – “

“Don’t worry about all’a that, we’ve got it,” said Santi, looking at you with a slight frown.

Benny nodded, grinning. “Just let us know when.”

You smile widely before nodding. “Thanks again for today, really.”

“We’ll see you soon, okay?” said Sarah, giving you a pointed look. “Don’t be a stranger.”

“I won’t,” you say, before you watch them walk to their cars. You waved them off, watching them leave before sighing and turning to Santi. “So I’ll see you next week, yeah?”

He nods, arms folded over his chest. “Yup, I’ll take a few half days. You started maternity yet?”

You shake your head. “Nope, week after next. But I’m using some PTO so I don’t have to use all of my maternity leave.”

“Smart,” he says, grinning before turning to Emily, who just joined you after going to the bathroom. “Ready to go?”

“Sure,” Emily replied before giving you a hug, smiling widely. “Today was so much fun. I am still amazed that Santiago is the baby daddy we’ve been talking about.”

“Thanks for coming, Em,” you say, coming out of the hug. “Next time I see you, I’ll probably be a mom.”

“I know! It’s crazy!” she cried, before looking at Santi. “Let’s go.”

“I’ll see you later, cariño,” said Santi, bringing you into a hug before pecking you on the cheek.

You ignore the way your skin tingles afterward. “See you later.”

You both linger for a moment before coming out of the hug. You look at him and he’s already meeting your gaze, a soft smile on his face before he gives you a nod and turns to leave with Emily.

You wave as they hop in the truck and drive away before sighing, and once they were out of view, you turn back and walk into the venue, grabbing the last few gifts and thanking the staff again for being so accommodating, before you stop at Courtney’s car, where you friends are already gathered.

“Thanks for this guys, really,” you say, smiling at them as you load the last diaper pack into Courtney’s trunk. “I really enjoyed it today.”

“I’m glad you did,” said Gabrielle.

“I’m just sorry it was…” Beth says, before trailing off.

“What?” you ask after a moment.

Beth gives a sigh before looking at you. “I’m sorry that your family couldn’t celebrate this with you. I tried to contact them, but…”

You heart skips a beat at the mention of your family. Tears spring to your eyes as you try and wave it off nonchalantly. “Don’t feel bad.”

“No, Beth’s right, they should be here – “ said Courtney.

But you shake your head, cutting her off. “No, no, they’ve made their choice. Besides, I have all I need right here.”

There was a moment before your friends gather you in their arms, the tears finally falling from your eyes. You feel safe, warm, and valued. The baby shower showed that you were surrounded by love and laughter, despite the absence of your family. The memories created on this special day will forever be etched in your heart, a testament to the incredible support and love from your chosen family, and you couldn’t wait to share this journey with your children.

“We love you,” Gabrielle muttered into the group hug.

You give a small, watery laugh. “I love you guys too.”

You all came out of the hug, before subtly wiping at your eyes. Courtney sighed before closing her trunk. “We taking all of this to your new house?”

You nod. “Yup. My next adventure begins!”

Tagged - @khonsulockley, @superficialfeelings, @othersideoftheparadise, @beezusvreeland, @itsmytimetoodream

#triple frontier #santiago garcia x reader #santiago x reader #santiago garcia #oscar isaac #pregnant!reader #santiago garcia x f!reader #frankie morales #william miller #benny miller

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morgansunflower · 5 months

Text

Merry Christmas

Jason Todd X Wife! Reader

Warnings:suggestive content, explicit language, angst.

Words:1220

Arthur's notes! I don't know if someone can actually anonymously recommend someone for adoption but in this story it's possible. Pic below is not mine! It's from webtoon only used to help set the theme.

Tyler ask Y/N a question which leads to Jason finding out what his brother did for him.

Jason and Tyler get back into the car having just gotten the papers for his wife to sign. Tyler smiled to himself hoping it would make her happy. Jason sees his son was obviously anxiously thinking about her reaction.

"you think she'll cry?" Jason asked Tyler

"oh yeah. You bawled for hours when I asked you to adopt me" Tyler reminded him

"I did.. Not bawl. It was just a few tears"

"if you call sobbing a few tears" Tyler laughed at his dad's denial.

Jason rolled his eyes. He, really was emotional that day. He still barely could believe that Tyler is his son. That he had all he ever wanted.

Christmas eve. The Todd family made their way to Wayne Manor. Jason parks the car by the other's.

She smiled to Tyler as he quickly left the car to run inside. Both her husband and her son avoided her completely. She wondered why. Unaware they both can't stand to lie or keep secrets from her.

"what are you two up to?" she casually asked

"sorry babe. I can't say a word. I made a promise and no matter how much I hate not telling you I gotta keep these lips you love sealed"

She chuckled softly kissing his lips she genuinely did love. The couple come inside greeted by everyone. Presents were being opened with hugs and loving words. Y/N sits beside her husband holding his hand. Tyler looks to Jason. He winked to his son.

"I got you something" Tyler said to Y/N giving her a, envelope

"oh sweetie you didn't have to get me anything" she sweetly said

Everyone suddenly became quiet as she opens it.

"read it out loud!" Tyler said watching intently

"ok.... Dear Y/N. I hope this means a lot to you, as you mean a lot to me. You make me laugh when I'm upset. You love me even when I lash out or do something I know I shouldn't. I was happy that you made my dad happy, but overtime you also made me happy. You helped me heal after losing my mom. You made cookies with me. You care about me and take care of me--" Y/N's eyes shake, she clears her throat "you are always there for me and you look out for me. I love you so very much Mom-" Y/N begins to cry, Jason holds her hand "with all of that said, that isn't enough to describe how amazing you are. I really want to ask you. Will you adopt me?"

Y/N dramatically nodded unable to keep still as she cried. Tyler hugs her tightly. She wraps her arms around him gently rocking side to side. She kissed his head. Jason smiled nearly crying himself. Everyone smiled to the family.

"merry Christmas Mom" Tyler said with a tear in his eye

"merry Christmas baby" she cried

After the papers had been officially signed. Tyler sat beside his mom holding onto her still. Jason made his way to the kitchen to grab a handful of snacks.

"you've been quiet" Bruce said to his oldest son

"I'm just glad it all worked out for him" Dick softly smiled eating a few chips

Jason stopped mid step listening intently, without being noticed by them

"you had a large hand in ensuring it would" Bruce said proudly to Dick

"it was just a little letter encouraging the adoption agency he'd be a good father..." Dick humbled himself.

"that letter you wrote helped more than you realize. You never told Jason?" Bruce asked

"no I didn't.. I doubt he even knows there was a letter written for his behalf.. But I don't need him to know.. He's happy and he's OK.. He's not suffering that's what matters"

"that's what matters for all of you" Bruce smiled to his son

"I know Dad" Dick said with a small smile.

Jason couldn't breath. He swallows hardly and steps to the balcony. He shuts the doors, as the cold wind touches his face. Dick cared. He really cared about him.

Jason sighed heavily, knowing all he had done to his brother. He yelled at him. He even said he hated him. Dick didn't do his best in welcoming him back. Neither one made much effort until recent years and even then.. It wasn't the same.

Dick sees Jason outside by himself his arms folded tightly over his tightening chest. Dick opens the door, hoping Jason wouldn't shut him out. Jason quickly tried to force himself to relax but Dick knew something was definitely bothering him...

"hey, Jay. You ok?" he asked shutting the door behind him

"yeah.. Time to watch movie's?" Jason casually asked

"just a, few minutes.. Alfred sent me to rally everyone and you're the lucky last"

"lucky huh?" Jason scoffed to himself

"you're sure you're alright Little-wing?" he asked again

Just then Jason flashbacks to being Robin. He had ran off on patrol by himself without a word to Bruce or Alfred. Nightwing came home once the search had gone on for a few hours. Dick found his little brother holding his bleeding wound. It was the first moment they had together without arguing with each other. As Dick bandaged his wounds

"why do you care?" he remembers asking "you want to prove your better than me"

To which his older brother replied "Jay I do care. I know I've been a, lousy big brother mainly because Bruce didn't... Tell me about you at all and I guess.. I didn't know how to be a, big brother but I'm learning.. Just like you're learning going out on patrol by yourself is a VERY, VERY bad idea. Plus just so you know I was not the best Robin as you may think.. If you want to we can try this, again Little-Wing?"

Dick looks to Jason seeing that familiar guilted expression.. The same when he, was Robin...

"Jason talk to me" Dick pleads

"why didn't you tell me?" he sighed with dread, hating to sound emotional in front of his brother.

The detective then realized he had overhead his conversation with their Dad...

"I thought if I did you'd think it was only out of guilt but that was only a, slimmer of it.. I just.. I want you to be OK and to have the joy that I do.. Whether if you knew what I did or not didn't matter to me.. So long as you were OK"

"guess I owe you" Jason scoffed

"you don't owe me anything Little-Wing.. C'mon let's get in before they start looking for us" Dick encouraged "or start my favorite Christmas movie without me!"

"Dick every Christmas movie is your favorite Christmas movie" Jason accused

The brothers walk inside together headed for the family room. Jason playfully shoves Dick against the doorframe walking ahead into the room. Dick kicked Jason's ankle nearly tripping him. Dick was still startled as Jason moved to punch him but Jay stopped. Only wanting to joke around with him. The two brothers softly laugh, both making their way to their families.

"there you are big guy" Y/N greets to her husband as he sits beside her and he ruffled Tyler's hair "where were you?" she asked whispering

He shrugged with a small smile "just talking with my brother"

Requested taglist@too-strong-to-losee @asrainterstellar

#tyler blue hood #tyler todd #batfamily #Jason Todd X Reader #jason todd x wife! reader

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zafirosreverie · 4 months

Text

The Brightest Star (North x F!Reader)

Every year since I have this blog I have written at least one fanfic for North when Christmas is close, I couldn't let this one be the exception, so I hope you like it.

______________________________

You sighed as you tried to control your shaking hands, you really didn't want to ruin another machine, but nothing seemed to work. You couldn't help it, not when he was so close, even if you couldn't see him, you could feel it in your bones, that terrible, ancient fear that stabbed into your skin like a million needles, seeming to inject those horrible shadows into your being.

You shuddered when the memory of that terrible day suddenly came to your mind. You had blocked out most of the details, but you remembered perfectly the feeling of a deathly cold hand wrapping around your throat, stealing all the air from your body, the darkness slowly filling your senses and the screams of children echoing in your ears.

Pitch Black had escaped, but you could still feel his grip on you.

"Are you ok?"

You jumped when you felt a large but warm hand on your shoulder and thanked everything in your mind that you hadn't screamed when you saw blue eyes filled with concern staring at you.

“Yeah, I’m fine” you lied.

The man didn't seem to believe you, but he was kind enough not to push, so he just gave you a gentle squeeze and took a seat next to you. Internally you were grateful that he was so easy to work with, because you were sure that your teacher would already be questioning you.

You silently passed him the toolbox and returned to your own project, allowing muscle memory to take the reins and letting your memory wander back to that day, though not to Pitch's terrible memories, but to the bright light that you had next to you.

Nicholas St. North, retired bandit, loud but kind man, Santoff Claussen's savior. Again, you didn't remember the details, but you did remember the way the blanket of darkness around you was suddenly broken with the clean cut of a sword, and the cold that seeped into your bones slowly melted with the warmth of a pair of big arms. You felt safe even without knowing who the man holding you was.

North had saved you, he had saved your home, your children, magic, and because of that he had not only earned a place as Ombric's apprentice, but, without knowing it (and you wouldn't admit it), he had earned a permanent place in your heart.

He was a brilliant man, with surprising ingenuity, his inventions surpassed anything that had been created before in the town, and a heart of gold. Ombric had given him a place in his house, and since you were also technically his apprentice, it was a matter of time before you struck up a friendship with the former bandit, to the point that your teacher joked that you couldn't live without him anymore.

Not that you cared, you liked North more than you were willing to admit, and the man in the moon knew that man needed a family, a home to belong to, and you hoped, deep down, that somehow you could be part of it.

You just wished he could see how special he was, that he could see himself the way you and Katerine saw him. Despite his carefree attitude and the confidence he projected in front of others, especially in front of children or Ombric, you knew that guilt and memories of his past life still haunted him, that he often questioned whether he really deserved a place as a guardian.

"Do you think I'm worthy?" he asked

"You are" you smiled, reassuring him "you're a really bright star"

________________________________

You smiled as you watched the elves running around, getting between the tables and getting in the Yetis’ way, who were already too used to it to really bother with them. You loved this time of year, the bright lights, the decorated trees, the colors, the warmth of the fireplaces, the cookies, the gifts, and in the middle of it all, him.

In the end, Ombric had been right, you couldn't stay away from North, so when he formed his alliance with the Yetis, moved to the North Pole and built his magnificent city where his inventions brought joy to everyone, you had naturally been at his side.

It had been a long time since you had finally admitted your feelings for the man, and with Manny's blessing (who had made you age as slowly as North did), you had sworn to share his mission of protecting wonder in children for whatever centuries you had left.

"Mrs. Claus" a cheerful voice sounded behind you.

You smiled as you turned to him. In front of you was Santa Claus himself, as imposing as the legends said, with the years reflected in his face, which still retained its childish warmth and as handsome as the day you met him.

"Mr. Claus" you replied "ready for your big night?"

Christmas Eve was always a busy and difficult night for North, but you knew that, like you, he would never change the children's joy at seeing that Santa had visited them for anything.

He simply smiled and offered his hand to you, escorting you down the hallway as you headed to the reindeer shed. You never accompanied him on deliveries, preferring to wait for him with a cup of hot chocolate and freshly baked cookies, but you were always there to watch him leave. He had said you gave him luck, and you never questioned it.

"Tell me, darling" he whispered "do you still think I'm worthy?"

Oh, so it was one of those nights. Despite everything he had experienced, despite how much he had done for children and for the world, there were still echoes of his ghosts walking through his mind. It wasn't as frequent anymore, maybe once every few years, but sometimes, he still needed you to remind him how special he was.

"North" you said softly "look around you. Look at everything you've created, the wonderful ideas you've made come true, look how much this place has grown"

Carefully, you let go of his arm so you could take his hands instead, making him look at you with an intensity and fragility reserved for you.

"But most of all, look at what you have become, everything you represent" you said "You are not only the guardian of wonder, you are more. Christmas is not only about gifts and beautiful lights, it is the memories that are created, the love that is strengthened, the joy that is shared, the illusion that is reborn even in adults. You represent all that. Even when the magic seems lost, people find it again in your figure, in your celebration"

North smiled and closed his eyes, savoring the feel of your palm as you caressed his cheek gently.

"You are the most important guardian, protector of magic" you continued "and you are the brightest star of Manny's new golden age."

#x reader #reader insert #imagine #rotg north #north x reader #rotg north x reader #nicholas st. north #nicholas st north x reader #rotg x reader #rise of the guardians x reader #guardians of childhood #rise of the guardians #rotg

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angel-of-the-moons · 5 months

Text

A Rose Under The Moon

Moon Knight System (Marc/Jake/Steven) x Fem!Reader

TW/CW: Pet death, grief

A/N: Yeah I cried writing this btw. I love cats so much and like this shit hurted :'D

Taglist: @bad4amficideas @my-secret-shame-but-fanfiction @shirukitsune @lokisremainingsanity @mundivagantsoul @furblrwurblr @zoleea-exultant @latenightcravingz @daygirl26 @thelastemzy @leahnicole1219 @marsmallow433 @crazyunsexycool

🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒🌒

Chapter 8:

Everybody Loves Cats!

It was a full day after Puck made her miraculous reappearance, and you were delighted for her sweet fluffy company. She was such a cuddly little bed partner, and whenever the stress of the day became too much, she knew exactly what you needed.

She would roll over and show her belly, stick her tongue out at you with her eyes as large as saucers, or do… that weird thing cats do where they’re chill one second and just hurl themselves off into who-knows-what and it never failed to make you smile and cheer you up. Puck was more than content to receive chin scratches and some of her chicken-flavored dreamies that she went nuts for.

Oh, and her mouse stuffed with catnip. She adored that little thing. She would carry it around and make little noises with it (when she wasn’t sitting in the windows chirping at birds) and bat it around like she was playing her own private sports-game. Ah, cats.

They always had a way of making you feel close to your parents; your dad in particular. He always had cats around, as long as you can remember. You remember seeing his eyes light up when he would bring home a fresh little stray after he brought them home.

Your father had a particular soft spot for elderly cats. As a little girl, you once asked him, “Daddy, why don’t you ever get kittens? They like to play! Old kitties just sleep.”

You remember him smiling as he pet one of the said elderly cats, Cleo, he named her. She was a large, fluffy monstrosity who seemed to eat up snuggles like you saw squirrels eat acorns.

He gave you a look that had infinite depths of patience for your little girl questions; and chuckled. “Well, honey. You have to think of it from their point of view.”

Cleo stretched her paws up to his shoulder and bumped her head against his jaw with a tone-deaf purr.

“A lot of people abandon their older pets in favor of new ones.” He held up a finger as he educated you. “For example, say one family wanted to gift their son or daughter a cat for Christmas, but they already had one. That cat was older, couldn’t keep up, and had no teeth and the child just didn’t engage with that cat as much as they used to. So… they take their old cat to a shelter and leave them so they can get a newer or younger cat. Just to do it again when the same situation arises… or worse.”

“What could be badder than that?” You asked, already feeling sad for the metaphorical cat your dad was speaking about.

“Some people are extra mean to their pets.” Your father sighed, stroking Cleo’s fur as she turned in his lap, rubbing her whole body against his belly as he twisted his desk chair to fully face you. “Some people, who are like that, will take their kitties and just… leave them somewhere. So they get lost and can’t find their way home.”

“That’s so mean!” You whined, already feeling tears of frustration at such a mean thought. Were people really that mean to their kitties? And their puppies?

Your dad nods with a soft hum, smiling softly as Cleo leans into your face, sniffing you. Her creamy orange fur begging to be touched, you give in and sink your short, pudgy fingers into her soft fur, giggling when she made a loud “mrrp” noise and leaned into your touch.

“Someone did the same thing to Cleo, y’know?” He says to you quietly. “They were mean. They taped her up in a box and just left her by a dumpster.”

You gasped, offended; because Cleo was a good kitty! Why would anyone do that to Cleo? Yeah she was silly and didn’t play very much, but she was nice! She liked kisses, and even stranger, she liked to hop in the shower with your dad! Kitties don’t normally like water!

“But why?” You ask, your tiny voice squeaking with emotion as Cleo happily cuddled into your awkward pets.

“I don’t know. Maybe they got a new cat and didn’t want her. Or maybe the partner of somebody didn’t want her around. Or… they’re just not a nice person, honey. We just don’t know.” He sighed deeply, looking down at you with a saddened expression. He hated having to explain others’ cruelty to you. You shouldn't be so exposed to these things, but… it was better than lying to you. And that hurt him worse.

“But. It worked out in Cleo’s favor.” He smiled again at you as you leaned into his lap, tipping your head forward with a giggle as Cleo headbutted you softly, rubbing her fluffy cheek on yours.

“She’s got us, she’s got a belly full of food, and a nice cuddly home.”

“Is that why we have Chester, too?” You asked him.

Your dad nodded, looking over at the black cat who slept soundly in the windowsill, his fur almost glowing orange as the sun’s rays hit him. He wasn’t as old as Cleo, but he was getting up there in kitty years. “Yeah. We especially love black cats, okay? They’re very special because people are mean to them, too.”

You frowned up at him. “But why?”

“Some people consider them bad luck, or evil. So people hurt them… or just abandon them, like Cleo. Somebody left Chester in his carrier outside the pound. They were…” His mouth twisted as he tried to think of a way to explain what was going to happen to one of his furry companions. You were so young, you shouldn’t have to grasp the concept of death, but he had to find a way to explain it.

“They were going to put him to sleep if nobody adopted him.”

“But why? He can sleep by himselfs.” You retort.

You dad rests his hand on the top of your head, a pained smile on his face at your innocence.

“Putting an animals to sleep means…” He sighed. “They go to sleep forever. They don’t get to wake up again.”

“But don’t they get hungry? Chester always wakes up when he’s hungry…”

“They don’t feel anything anymore. They just get sleepy, fall asleep… and don’t wake up.” Cleo hopped onto your father’s desk, casually batting his mouse off the pad so she could sit on it for whatever reason as your father scooped you up and pulled you into his lap.

“But why?” You ask again.

Oh, the endless who’s, what’s, and why’s of a learning mind. He loved talking to you, but it was hard to, on this subject.

“Do you remember when your grandma passed away? When we had to put her in the casket and in the ground?” He slowly asked.

“Yeah…” You frowned, clinging to his shirt. You barely remembered it. You were little when it happened. Sure, you weren’t that much older, now. You were a whole eight years old, now. Grandma passed away when you were four.

“You remember how I told you she couldn’t come back?”

“Yeah…”

“It’s like that. Only for pets. And it’s not… it’s not natural.”

“But why do they have to do it? Why can’t they find homes?” You ask, looking up at him with watery eyes.

That almost happened to Chester? Chester was your best friend, he snuggled you to sleep every night, gave you kisses with his scratchy tongue, would sit on the bathroom counter when you took a bath… and would sometimes help you sneak snacks when you weren’t supposed to.

“Some places can’t afford to take care of an animal for a long time. Or, if the animal is very sick and won’t get better, it’s the more humane option instead of just leaving them in a cage.” He says gently, rubbing your back. “Or… if they’re old. Like Chester and Cleo.”

“I don’t like that.” You say stubbornly.

“I know, baby.” He chuckles softly. “So, now do you understand? Why we love old kitties?”

“Yeah! Just cuz they don’t do the flippies that the kittens do doesn’t make ‘em boring.” You pout. “And they don’t bite.”

“Some of them do.” Your dad reminds you with a chuckle.

You watch as Cleo licks her paws, a rather happy and content look on her face as her fluffy tail flicks around. Suddenly, another question pops into your head.

“Daddy, why do you like kitties so much?” You ask, reaching out to scratch Cleo on her chin, earning a happy noise from her.

“Well, it’s just… in the family, kiddo. My mom always had cats, my grandma always had cats… your great auntie, Ellen, she has cats.” He chuckled. “I don’t know why so much as I just do. Always have. And now, I adopt older cats so they can live their old fluffy lives in peace.”

“Yeah… okay.” You say, satisfied with that answer.

“And remember what I said, Lil’ Bit?” Your father asked, pulling a book from the edge of his desk. On the cover of this book, there were pictures of a thing that looked like an alligator, there was a kitty, and pictures of different kinds of fish on it. You can make out a few words, "Myths and Beliefs".

He flipped the pages until it opened to a page with pictures of different kinds of cats, including…

“Daddy!” You gasp, pointing at the book. “That’s a kitty mummy!”

Your father chuckles. “Yeah, the ancient Egyptians believed cats to be protectors and good luck charms. They would even dress their cats in jewelry. The reason that cat was mummified was probably because their owner wanted their pet to come with them to the afterlife.” His finger scans the page to a highlighted passage.

“Some of them believed that their gods could inhabit cats and other animals to check in on humans.”

“That’s weird.” You pout stubbornly, not understanding.

Your father, ever the patient man, laughed softly as he kissed the crown of your head. “Maybe so. But I like to think that owners loved their pets so much, that their pets are probably happy and waiting for them to meet them in the afterlife later.”

“...So will I see Cleo one day?” You asked.

The moment the words left your mouth, your father felt his heart lurch in his chest. He certainly didn’t expect that question to come out of your mouth. The weight of it almost knocked him out of his chair, if it weren't for your weight grounding him, he would have. He couldn’t even fathom being in a world without you, he didn’t dare imagine what it would be like to lose you.

But… he couldn’t leave your question unanswered.

“Yeah. One day, in a very long time. I’m sure Cleo, when she’s there, will be waiting for more scratches. Chester too. So remember, even if they pass away… you’ll see them again. It’ll just take a while.”

“What are my two favorite scholars discussing today?” Your mother’s voice rang out as she kicked the snow off her boots and set them in front of the fireplace to dry.

You slid off your dad’s lap and ran to your mom as she put her coat on the peg by the door. She turned and caught you mid-leap and spun you around, planting ice-cold kisses all over your face, leaving her bright red lipstick marks in their wake.

“So! What were you two talking about?” She hummed, walking over to your dad as she balanced you on her hip.

Your father adjusted his glasses and set the book down, leaning up to give your mother a sweet kiss.

“Oh, you know. Just about cats and the afterlife.” He grinned.

“Oh, but of course!” Your mother snorted. “A totally normal and reasonable topic for a child to learn about at eight years old.”

“Mommy!” You say, tugging her sweater impatiently.

“Yes, my love?” Your mother smiled down at you, her smeared lipstick at the corner of her lips. The rest of it was currently on you and four father’s faces and lips.

“Did you know that ‘gyptians mummied kitties?” You say, bouncing as you explained. “Oh! And–and that they gave ‘em fancy necklaces?”

“Why, yes. I did know about that. But why don’t you give me a refresher course while your dad and I start making dinner?” She hummed.

“Okay!” You chirped, hopping back down onto the floor, stopping to pet Chester as he slowly sidled up next to you, his sleek black tail wrapping around your small leg as he looked up at you, giving you a very slow blink.

“And daddy said I can see Chester and Cleo one day in the aff–after–afterlife, too!” You stumble the words out innocently as Chester walks with you into the kitchen.

“Oh… did he, now.” Your mother said, squinting as she slowly turned her head to look at your father.

You didn’t hear the rough swallow he made, but he definitely flushed and tugged at his shirt collar awkwardly.

“Ah.. well… you see...”

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You sighed nostalgically as the memory finished playing out. You gently held the book in your hands as you remembered that day. It was the very same book your father had read to you that day. Newer, and less-used of course, but it was still the same one.

God, you remembered how sad you were when Cleo died. You were only ten years old when she passed. You’d come home from school to your dad, his eyes red and puffy, holding onto you tight as your mother spoke to you softly, telling you that Cleo had “left”. You knew what that meant. You remember telling your dad what he told you, about seeing them again one day, and that seemed to make him smile at last.

But when Chester died? Oh, how that broke your heart. You had just turned sixteen, three days after your birthday, to be precise. You were sitting in your bed, legs crossed as you read your textbooks and jotted down notes for your schoolwork.

You didn’t think twice when Chester curled up next to you, purring as he closed his eyes.

You were so engrossed in your work, that you didn’t notice when he stopped purring. You only realized something was amiss when you reached down to pet him, only to find him still. Deathly still... but still warm.

You panicked and tried to wake him up, before shouting for your parents. Nothing could have been done. Chester decided to spend his last breaths snuggling you in your bed, his favorite cuddle spot. He wanted you to know that he loved you that much.

You were beside yourself for months. Until one day, on your walk home, you found a little cat. Small, but not a kitten; she was very malnourished and flea-infested. Solid black, just like Chester.

She was snuggled up tight against an old mailbox, shivering and wet from the rain, meowing in such a heartbreaking tone. You scooped her up on instinct and whisked her home.

You’d named her Nibbles. On account that she liked to nibble on people’s shoelaces.

You had Nibbles for several more years, until she passed away from feline leukemia, just before you moved to London. You loved her well, and she was with you when you lost your parents, comforting you when you were at your lowest.

You swallowed the lump in your chest and sucked in a breath as you put the book back into place on the shelf. You didn’t even notice your eyes were filling with tears until your vision blurred, and when you blinked, fat tears rolled down your cheeks.

Puck sat at your feet, a paw on your shoe and meowed up at you questioningly.

You sniffed hard and scooped up the furry little critter, nuzzling into her fur as you tried to push the feelings of grief away.

Puck leaned up and licked your salty tears, her tongue scraping your skin in a comforting way as she purred unusually loudly.

It takes a few minutes and you finally smile, kissing Puck on her tiny furry forehead. “I needed that. Thanks, you fluffy little terrorist.”

Puck purred happily and hopped out of your arms, satisfied at her job well-done and scampered off to the front of the store as the front door’s bell rang.

You take a deep breath and make sure your face is clean of any evidence of your tears and headed up front to see a young man, looking around curiously.

“Hi! Welcome to Here Today Books!” You chirp, “What can I help you with, today?”

“Um…” He says awkwardly. “I’m looking for a book.”

You can’t help but chuckle, hands on your hips. “That checks out!” You joke playfully.

“Oh! I… right.” He says, rubbing the back of his neck shyly. Aw, was he blushing? “I’m… I’m studying and, uhm…”

“Well, I have plenty of textbooks on a myriad of subjects. You looking for anything in particular?” You ask him politely.

He nods twice, “Yeah, um. It’s… for a history course. My professor told us to pick a civilization to write an essay on. And, it’s kind of hard to find the books on the subject I need because of the topics…”

You smile politely and wait for him to finish. Something about this young man told you he was painfully shy, and didn’t like much social interaction. Not unlike Marc, but he carried himself with a few degrees more of anxiety and social awkwardness than Steven did.

“Er…” He floundered.

“Let me guess… it’s ancient Egypt, isn’t it?” You grin.

“H-How’d you know?” He said, blinking at you.

“I have a friend who’s obsessed with it. I know quite a bit about it, myself. Is there a specific topic in particular you want to start with?”

He nods eagerly, “Yeah! Uh, I wouldn’t mind stuff on their myths, legends, and religions, if you got them?”

“Sure! I’ll just be a minute. Go on ahead and wait up front by the counter, for me.” You hum, turning to disappear into the depths of your shop.

He didn’t go stand by the counter, he just awkwardly stared at Puck, who looked at him from her cozy sweater-nest, looking at him through slitted pupils as the tip of her tail thrashed.

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You came back to see the man looking through random clearance books and upon noticing you, he smiled widely.

“Are those it?” He asked, gesturing to the two books in your arms.

“Yep!” You chirp, walking behind the counter. “Will these work?”

He slowly walks up to the counter, eyeing Puck nervously. “Uh–yeah. Definitely.”

“Perfect… that’ll be… ten pounds.” You say, typing it all in on the register.

The young man fishes out the notes and all too quickly shoves them into your waiting hand. He still hadn’t taken his eyes off Puck, whose fur was beginning to bristle as she stared at the man.

“Okie dokie. Come back anytime. I got plenty of books like this just gathering dust.” You chuckle, putting his “new” books into a canvas bag and handing it over to him.

His sleeve rolled up and you noticed a mark on his forearm. It was strange, but not the strangest you’ve ever seen. It looked almost like a–

Your thoughts were interrupted when Puck lunged at him, hissing and spitting, swiping her paws at him with claws fully out and open, her tail puffed out and stiff.

You gasp in shock. “Puck! Bad girl!”

You panic; trying to reach for Puck as the man frantically pulls away, now sporting a red scratch to the back of his hand.

“I’m so sorry! She’s not normally… She never does this!” You apologize profusely, afraid of the ramifications a complaint could bring should he report this little “incident”. Sure, it was minor, but if he was the type to make a big something out of nothing…

“It–It’s okay.” He says quickly, stepping away. “Cats don’t normally l-like me, for some reason…”

Puck thrashed in your arms, leaving small welts in your arms as she growled lowly in her little chest, staring at the man, her usually sweet and docile eyes full of malice.

“Puck!” You wince, trying to calm her down. “Stop! What’s gotten into you?”

The man scurries out of your shop finally, and Puck starts to calm down in your arms.

It takes a few minutes until the black ball of rage begins to settle, and you set her back onto the counter.

Her ears pin back and her eyes get large as she looks up at you, seemingly full of guilt at what she’d unintentionally done to you.

Her little nose touches the scratches she left on your arms and you sigh; “They’re just scratches, Puck… I know you didn’t mean it.”

You rub her chin to help ease her poor feelings at scratching her human. “Okay, okay… I forgive you. But no dreamies for you tonight, missy!”

Puck leaps off the counter, slinking off into the shadows of your shop and you're left with throbbing injuries to tend to with your tiny first-aid kit. You just couldn’t figure out why Puck was so upset about that guy. He mentioned cats didn’t like him, but why? You’ve never met a cat that didn’t like you.

What was his deal?

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Elsewhere, in their flat, Marc winced and dropped his glass of water, the ceramic shattering on the floor, making Layla jump.

“Gah! Marc! What’s wrong?” She asked him, carefully avoiding the broken glass as she moved closer.

“My fucking…” He groaned, looking down at his arms. He was wearing a simple cotton t-shirt today, so it left his thick forearms fully visible. “My arms! I don’t know!”

And Layla certainly saw the thin red marks up and down his arms. She clamped her jaw shut.

Oh, she knew all right. He just wasn’t ready to know.

Not yet, as Taweret told her.

Not yet.

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Chapter 9: Link

#a rose under the moon #moon knight #marc spector x reader #marc spector x you #soulmate au #layla el faouly

73 notes · View notes

illubean · 4 months

Note

headcanons about spending Christmas with kny characters (the masterlist ones) please❤️

Spending Christmas With Them

Characters: Tanjiro Kamado, Inosuke Hashibara, Zenitsu Atsugama, Giyuu Tomioka, Kyojuro Rengoku, Shinobu Kocho, Tengen Uzui, Tokito Muichiro, Mitsuri Kanroji, Obanai Iguro, Sanemi Shinazugawa

Type: Fluff, Headcanons, Gn!reader

I don't really celebrate christmas to the same extent as a lot of people so bear with me >_<

Warnings: none

Tanjiro Kamado

he invited you to spend christmas with him and Nezuko

he doesn't have much family left so he wants to cherish the time he has with other loved ones :((

to him it's less about gifts and more about being close to each other

that doesn't mean he didn't get you something though!

he gets you something more sentimental or handmade, he wants it to be special <3

Inosuke Hashibara

bro had no clue what you were talking about 💀

when you explain it to him though he kind of understands it

he made it a competition to see who could decorate the fastest

100% makes you a gift with things he found outside, declaring it the best gift you'll ever receive

if you bake christmas cookies with him expect a mess 😭

Zenitsu Atsugama

he probably cried when you mentioned wanting to spend christmas with him tbh

he made it his mission to find you the perfect gift, even if he couldn't afford something super fancy

when you mention getting him a gift he goes off about how you didn't need to and being around you is enough <3

would cry genuine tears of joy at any gift you give him, even if it's a stick you found on the ground

Giyuu Tomioka

he invited you to spend christmas with him when no one else was around to hear

poor guy has no one to spend it with and actually trusts you enough to ask D:

he doesn't express it very well but he's really happy when you say yes!

he takes you to walk around the city, wrapped up warmly in scarves and layers

you guys had a very lowkey christmas together

if you point out something at a shop he'd remember to get it for you later ^__^

Kyojuro Rengoku

very loud and proud when inviting you to spend time with him and his family

and if you're the one who invited him to spend christmas with YOUR family? his answer is yes with no hesitation

he is a family man so I think it would mean a lot to him

especially if you get gifts for Senjuro

it warms his heart (dare i say...sets it ablaze) seeing two of the most important people in his life get along

Shinobu Kocho

I don't think she puts too much thought into celebrating christmas

but if you express wanting to spend it with her she wouldn't say no

let's you decorate the butterfly estate as much as you want

i think christmas with shinobu is just her watching you enjoy yourself

Tengen Uzui

he showers you and the wives with different luxurious items

chrisrmas parties at the estate are flashy just like everything else this man does

first he likes to have a large party for all of the hashira with lots of food and drinking

then he settles down to have quality time with you and the wives later

Tokito Muichiro

probably forgot it was christmas until you brought him a gift

questions why you even put effort into getting him something

even if he doesn't remember things it's ok, he deserves to be cared for and thought of anyways <3

Mitsuri Kanroji

very excited about spending christmas with you, especially if you're the one who asks first

bakes and decorates lots of christmas sweets with you!

you guys end up making too much for just the two of you so she goes around with you delivering some to the other hashira

Obanai Iguro

another one I don't think is big on christmas but doesn't mind celebrating if you ask

he would do christmasy crafts with you if you insist on teaching him

you guys end up making things for each other, kaburamaru even got a little snake sized christmas hat ^__^

Sanemi Shinazugawa

tbh i have no clue how to write for him but i will do it anyways

I think Sanemi has better things to think about than celebrating christmas

but if you bring him a gift and offer to spend time with him?

he wouldn't let anyone see it but he's flustered about it

no matter how hard he tries denying it he has a soft spot for you

he takes the gift with a small "tsk..thanks"

later on you find a box on your porch with nothing but a small note on top that says "merry christmas" in rugged handwriting

there's no name on it but you know who its from <3

139 notes · View notes

skzdreams · 1 year

Text

Wrapping Gifts with Lee Know

pairings: fem reader x lee know

summary: you and your boyfriend try your best to keep your hands off eachother and actually get an important task done

warnings: nipple play, neck kissing, hickeys, rough sex, unprotected sex (please practice safe sex!!), lmk if i missed anything

word count: 1.5k

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“I know we are…a bit behind schedule, but let’s get started.” You huffed, exhausted from the absolute railing you just got from Minho.

You were literally about to fall asleep as you both layed there, Minho cradling you like a big baby, kissing your forehead, basically giving you his oh so perfect aftercare that you love a little too much.

You and your boyfriend Minho were supposed to be all ready for the holidays. Gifts wrapped and ready to be given out to friends and family.

It was already the 27th and you guys haven’t touched the amazon boxes in the foyer.

To be fair…you did have a few setbacks.

Like on the 22nd when you guys were supposed to be wrapping gifts, you were bent over the kitchen counter, getting your back blown out by your oh so precious boyfriend.

After you guys were done with that it was still fairly early so there definitely could have been time to wrap gifts.

But thennn you found yourself in the shower with Minho, going right back at it.

By the time you both were finished fucking like bunnies, it was already past midnight and god knows no one was touching any wrapping paper.

That next morning, you both planned on getting started. You were determined, actually. But then Minho got to kissing your neck, then collar bone.

Then somehow your shirt was off and he was sucking on those sensitive nipples of yours.

Next thing you knew he was under the comforter, eating you out like he hasn’t had a meal in days.

And you guys….getting distracted like this kept happening all the way up until right now. The morning of December 27th.

And you both still haven’t learned your lesson, obviously.

You got up, got halfway dressed and went to the kitchen to grab a bite to eat.

Minho’s lazy ass was still in bed groaning and moaning about not feeling like getting up and wrapping anything yet.

You looked over and saw all of those boxes that needed wrapping and you intended on getting it done today.

There were at least over 7 boxes because Minho has a pretty large but very close friend group, consisting of 8 guys including him. You bought a few things for your friends as well.

Of course you and Minho opened your gifts for each other on Christmas Day but you guys didn’t give a single thought about wrapping anyone else’s gifts.

So there was a lot of work to be done and you needed to get it done, and you needed Mr. Sleepyhead in the bedroom to get up and help you.

You opened your mouth to call for your boyfriend but before you said anything, Minho walked in, dressed in a black t-shirt and flannel pjs, hair a fluffy brown pile on his head.

“Well don’t you look adorable.” You said, playfully. “We really need to get to work baby.”

He walked closer to you, yawning loud and obnoxiously in a way that should get on your nerves but it never does.

He leaned in and gave you a kiss on your lips, tasting so sweet.

You hummed into the kiss, getting lost a bit.

“Mmmm baby do we have to?” Minho asked, pulling away from the kiss. His voice was so raspy and that was the only thing you focused on, barely registering what he’d just said.

You just stared up at him looking into his eyes, admiring his perfect facial structure.

You were finally brought back down to Earth when Minho looked at you confused, eyebrows furrowed.

“Oh..uh…ye- yea we do.” You said, smiling up at him.

“I mean I guess so. People are going to be so confused if we give them Christmas gifts in April, right?” He laughed.

You smiled, amused. “Exactlyyyy so let’s get started, hm?”

He rolled his eyes dramatically. “Fineeeee.”

You both worked together hauling boxes from the front door to the living room.

When all of your supplies were all set up, you guys got to work.

Cutting, taping, wrapping. It was like a two-man factory in your living room.

“I’m gonna go get some water, I’ll be right back.” He said getting up and heading toward the kitchen.

You turned around for a second to say “Okay!” Then snapped back around and got straight back to work.

Then you felt Minho behind you.

You were sitting on your knees and Minho came behind you, copying the position you were in.

He held your hips in his hands and began kissing your neck.

He knew what that did to you. How him pressing kissing into your neck drove you crazy.

“Minho.” He kept kissing your neck, his breath picking up. “Minho.” You repeated. “We really shouldn’t.” But you didn’t stop him.

He hummed and whispered into your ear “And why not.” You moaned at the way his warm breath hit your skin, making your ear and side of your neck tingle.

He lifted your shirt off, exposing your breasts. “Oh baby.” He whispered again.

He cupped your breasts in his hands from behind you which made you arch your back against him.

You felt his boner growing in his pants. You couldn’t help but grind against it.

You were both growing needier by the second. He was grinding back up into your ass, probably trying to get some type of relief from that throbbing boner of his.

There you guys were, a pile of dry humping, moaning and heavy breathing on the living room floor. You guys were getting “distracted”. Again.

Can’t you guys control yourselves? I mean seriously, you can’t even take out an hour, two at most to get something done.

He turned you around and pinned you to the floor as gently as he could. But he was so desperate, he was getting a bit rough.

He went back to kissing your neck, but this time, 10x more aggressive. He was licking, sucking, and even left a few marks on your collarbone.

Your chest was smack against his.Your nipples got hard from the friction. He noticed that, which made your tits hard to ignore. Not like he was going to ignore them anyway.

He kissed his way down until your entire right nipple was in his mouth. You arched your back against the carpet, yelping in pleasure. He then switched to your left nipple, feeling the air hit the wet coldness of your right one.

He picked you up off the floor abruptly and threw you on the couch.

You both giggled as he came in and kissed you again.

By now, his dick was rock hard. It was to the point where his bulge looked like it was about to pierce through his pajamas.

He couldn’t control himself. He pulled down your white lace panties with all his force.

Your pussy was glistening with wetness.

You looked at Minho who was basically drooling.

You both exchanged this….look. You both knew what you wanted right now. And you needed it badly. “Take me. Fuck me and just use me like I’m your toy. Please Minho.” You said, already out of breath at the thought of it.

In one swift movement, his cock was out. The tip was already leaking so much precum and was a hot pinkish red color. He was so hard and big. Even though you have seen it before, many, many times before, it looked so good. And you wanted it buried deep inside you.

He looked into your eyes as he pushed his cock deep inside of you. Both of you let out a huge gasp, getting used to the delicious stretch.

He was already breathing so hard and moaning like crazy.

And you were….a mess. You were moaning, squealing, arching your back, rolling your eyes back, literally going crazy.

He began to pick up his pace until he was rutting into you hard and fast.

You both were a screaming, sweating mess right there on the couch. “Ohhhh my god, baby you feel so fucking good oh my fucking goodddd.” He groaned out, voice strained. You felt your core clench around him. You were getting so close and needed to cum. “Minho ugh I- I’m gonna cumm.” That was all he needed.

He started pounding into you harder and faster than he ever has before. He was grunting with every thrust, trying so hard to make you cum.

You wrapped your arms and legs around him, trying to pull yourself as close to him as possible.

You let go around his cock. But he wasn’t stopping. He kept fucking into you like he had lost his mind or something. “L- let me- let me cum in you please please y/n please please oh my god.” All you could do was nod your head because words just would not come out. With a loud moan, Minho came into your pussy.

You felt the warm liquid fill up your pussy which made your legs weak.

Minho flipped you on top of him, and started rubbing your back, whispering sweet nothings trying to calm you down. You both just layed there on the couch, not caring about the mess you made or the 5 still unwrapped on the floor.

#kpop #skz smut #skz x reader #stray kids #stray kids smut #skz x female reader #skz imagines #skz scenarios #stray kids imagines #skz lee know #stray kids lee know #lee know #lee minho smut #stray kids lino #skz lino

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spacesquidlings · 4 months

Text

Thorns

Description: Connecting with family can be wondrous, but it can also cause heartache and strife. And when she's caught in a fight, he saves her

Pairing: Astarion x Female Tav (Aspen)

Warnings: Threats of physical violence

A/N: Although being with family over the holidays is supposed to be full of love and warmth, it very rarely is. I've been lucky the past number of years that my holidays have usually been fun and joyous, and I've looked forward to the parties and gatherings. As I've gotten older though, things have become more and more difficult, and this year especially has been much harder in a lot of ways (I won't bore you all with the details but it's been difficult to say the least). I've simplified this fic a bit so as not to bore anyone with the complexities of a very large extended family unit, and paired it down to feature mentions of a more condensed family. Please forgive me this indulgence, but writing this brought me some comfort and closure after a difficult situation on Christmas eve. I hope it can give someone else even a little bit of comfort and safety and the knowledge that you are loved, and that you are good as you are. Happy holidays you guys I am sending my love <3

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Fights happened, that’s just the way families were. At least that’s what she’d been told.

She’d been told a lot of things. That she could be terribly angry, that she was always angry, that she often screamed, that she was always horribly loud, that she could be thorny and sharp. And although she never tried to be a creature of wrath and noise, it seemed that such a beast was forever lurking beneath her skin, waiting to unsheath its claws.

So too had she been told that she could be too much. That she needed to dampen her voice as one extinguished a flame, leaving only smoke to show it had been there at all.

And some of it was true, she was certain. In the back of her mind she knew she could be loud, that she could be a bit much. She would lose herself in her excitement, her passions. The flurry of emotions, as raging as a hurricane, would overtake her. Whether it be in joy or excitement or heartache or anger, she would lose herself, and sometimes it took a steadying hand to bring her back.

She did not have a steadying hand that night.

It had been years since she had seen her family, absconding from their home with the intent to make a life for herself in Baldur’s Gate before being stolen by the mind flayers. She had written letters to them since, but she had settled nicely into her life with Astarion, finding joy and contentment like nothing she had felt before. So it had been ages since she had seen them, so focused was she on the moments of excitement and the moments of repose with her lover.

But with the holidays coming up, she’d wanted to see them. She had wanted to see her family again. She was on good terms with nearly all of them, although there was a strange distance that had grown between herself and her father. Yet that surely would not matter, not when she wanted to see everyone, when she wanted to reconnect and laugh and be in their company once more.

Astarion had obliged, musing about how he’d like to meet the people she had grown up with, and perhaps take a peek at old paintings of her as a child, and look for old beloved toys and books to tease her about later.

So they had sent a letter to her mother, and they had packed their belongings, and they had headed out to the village she had grown up in.

It was not a backwater by any means, but when they first arrived she gazed upon the central market, the rows of quaint houses that skirted the village borders, and felt strange. It was all as familiar to her as a recurring dream, and unknown as an uncharted land unmarked on any map.

It had been her home, but it was not her home any longer. She was a piece of a puzzle that no longer fit, this small world shifting around her absence, filling in the gaps as surely as she had filled in the gaps that had been left in her.

She’d spent the day with Astarion, clutching his hand tightly, the ring that allowed him to walk in the daylight glittering like a star plucked from the night sky on his finger. They’d gone through all of her favourite shops, had paused in restaurants to enjoy some of the foods she hadn’t had in ages, before finally arriving at her parents’ home.

Her heart had fluttered like an injured bird, and she considered turning tail and running. But with Astarion’s hand in hers she felt brave, felt safe as she knocked on the door, as she was greeted by the delighted shouts of her mother, of her siblings, of her grandparents.

The reunion was not without its awkwardness, exacerbated by Astarion delighting in stories of when she’d been in a child, and finding old paintings that had gathered dust of her childhood self. He’d even managed to find his way to her old room, the one she had occupied barely a week before she had first met him.

Laughing, he had wiggled beloved stuffed dolls above her head, teasing her as he pretended to play, eliciting annoyed shouts at first, and then laughter as she’d tickled his sides until he’d conceded.

She’d been able to fall into a comfortable routine with her family, and with her lover at her side. The years of adventuring had not diminished her love for them, nor had it made theirs falter. She no longer fit within the village, but she was still welcomed, still accepted.

Their plan had been to stay for a few weeks, touring the village and some of the larger cities nearby, and catching up with family and old friends. Most days Aspen and Astarion would spend their mornings together, Astarion lying on her chest like a weighted blanket, murmuring that he was too comfortable to move even as the sun made its way across the sky. Then they would dress, invite one of her siblings or her mother along with them, and they would head out into the world.

In the evenings they would return, and he would roll up his sleeves and offer to help with the cooking and cleaning her mother often did. It added to the strange delightfulness of everything, Astarion offering to do something he had often whined about at length when their relationship was still new as spring blooms.

It felt almost blissful, a strange sort of dream she found herself walking in. A scrap of domesticity, a glimpse into what life with him would be like if they ever settled down. If they ever decided to put down roots.

But as much as those days warmed Aspen’s heart, they could not last. It was all too good to be true, the softest, most magical part of the dream right before she awoke. The calm before the rage of a storm.

She loved her family, so entirely she did not always have the words to explain it. But as much as she loved them, they frustrated her beyond belief, beyond words or understanding. The little words that cut like a knife into her heart, picking at her life, at her interests and hobbies, at her choices.

The only difference now was that she no longer wandered her family’s home and the village roads with open wounds, dripping blood into the snow-covered cobblestones. When they wounded her with sharpened words, Astarion was there to stitch her back together, to hold her until the tightness in her chest began to loosen, knots coming undone.

There was never any true malice behind their words and actions, but that did not mean that it hurt her any less.

She loved them, but they frustrated her. The more time she spent with them the more things weighed her down, the more things chipped away at her confidence, at the slivers of courage she had found travelling Faerûn, at her own heart. She could feel parts of herself fading away, withering like flowers in a storm, like dying leaves falling from ashen branches.

Aspen was reminded of how difficult family could be, and none were more difficult than the man who called himself her father.

Just as surely as she’d been told she could be too much, she’d been told she needed to be careful around this man. To dance delicately around things that triggered his rage, to tiptoe through a field of eggshells to ensure nothing cracked.

But Aspen was not a rogue, not like her beloved, able to slink silently through shadows, able to dance through fields of fire, able to whisper honeyed words that calmed most people before aggravation could explode.

How could she, when there was a monster beneath her skin? And though she’d thought it finally tamed, it returned in a fury easily, far too easily for her liking.

It was a night when Astarion was not with her, when they were a hairsbreadth from the holidays and she was helping to cook and bake. Grating cheese and chopping veggies, measuring out chocolate and stirring batter.

Astarion had slipped out earlier in search of something he would not divulge. He would only grin in mischief, tap her nose playfully, and promise he wouldn’t be out too late.

And without him nearby, she’d had nothing but her songs and stories to while away her time with. So she had volunteered to help cook and bake with her mother, taking part in what had been a little tradition between the two of them when she’d still lived with her family.

Things had gone well enough, and they’d successfully prepared many treats for the holidays and the revelry everyone would be taking part in.

It had come as a surprise when her father had entered, forcing his way into their comfortable space. He’d started doing something else entirely, plates and bowls clashing in a discordant clattering that had her ears ringing.

Although her ire had been stoked initially, she’d had no reason to pay it any heed. What he was doing was no crime, and her mother was forever asking her to strengthen the bonds between the two of them, to close the strange chasm separating them that neither was ever able to fully cross.

And it had been fine, at first. Casual conversation shared between the three of them, her younger siblings having retired to bed already, and Astarion still lost to the night and whatever wicked surprise he was searching for.

But then it had been not fine, and too late did Aspen realize the claws of the monster in her blood had come out.

Her voice raised, her heart thundering in her chest, a plea to be listened to, to be seen and understood as the adult she had become. That she was not a fool, that the aches in her heart for things he refused to believe were valid, were just, if only he would listen.

They’d had many shouting matches in the past, leaving open wounds that had pushed them further apart the older she grew. So when his voice rose she’d thought perhaps it would be the same as the others, words thrown like rocks back and forth until it fizzled out.

But she’d said that he’d been talking down to her, that he’d been talking to her like she were clueless, a child.

And that apparently, was too far.

The escalation was abrupt. Sudden movement, the man squaring his shoulders to seem larger as spit had flown from his mouth as his voice had risen further. His words had turned cruel, derogatory. How stupid she was, how childish, how she was no adult and spoke like a fool, and words so much crueler that had made her eyes burn.

He paced, shouting loud enough to rattle the ceiling. And she had raised her voice in kind, shrieking now, shrill and enraged at him, at herself for being hurt, for thinking they could mend the rift between them.

And then the threat, a threat heavy with certainty. That he would hit her for her impertinence if she did not stop.

Hit her as a parent hit a child, beat her as a parent who did not know how to navigate their emotions beat a child that misbehaved.

Red had filled her vision, her heart as good as stopped for she could no longer feel it. Her blood had boiled and she had flung her anger back at him, a furious reaction to such a threat.

Her mother had promised he would never hurt her, but her mother seemed oblivious to the times he had, when she’d been little. No more than a parent punishing a child, keeping a troublemaker in line. But she remembered the sharp pain, she remembered the stark cold of the tub, she remembered the acrid taste of soap and the way she had heaved as she’d been forced forward.

Not many times, but enough to burn themselves in her memory, enough that she shrunk whenever a man’s voice was raised. Enough that she shook despite her best efforts when senseless rage was directed at her.

Such a threat was not something she would abide. Not now, not anymore. She was no defenseless child, she had lived, she would not be threatened in a place she was meant to be safe.

She said as much, thinking she was safe.

But she was not. He moved swiftly, looming over her like a monster, so close his forehead pressed against hers. Spit flew into her face, her ears rang, as he screamed and screamed, deep rage like that of the flames of Avernus, directed at her, so close she could smell nothing but the rankness of his breath.

She screamed in return, demanding he move, to get away. But he did not, still pouring his fury against her.

In the back of her mind fear sprung forth, slick and oily as disease. Her body trembled, not that she noticed, and she knew, deep within herself, that he was nearing his limit. That he would hurt her if she did not keep pushing.

But how could she not? Until he used those damned ears to listen, to acknowledge she was not some thing he could use as he pleased.

She tensed in anticipation, knowing the blow would come sooner rather than later.

But what she did not expect was the new shout that erupted behind her father, a figure blocked from her view from the hulking mass of the man who had pressed his face into hers and would not move.

Astarion dug his fingers into the collar of the man’s shirt, yanking him back.

He stumbled, whirling on Astarion, hand raised.

And Astarion bared his teeth, a knife pointed at the man’s throat.

“Make one move and I slit your throat.”

A snort, over-confident and haughty. “You wouldn’t dare.”

Another flash of Astarion’s fangs, his eyes seeming to brighten to a bloody crimson. “I would hate to waste warm blood, but in this case I could make an exception.”

Wild eyes turned to her, fists clenching as hands fell to his sides. “What kind of monster have you brought into our home?”

“Eyes on me,” Astarion cooed, deadly soft. “Lower those hands and go somewhere to cool off and I won’t spill any blood.”

The man swore, shooting Aspen one more murderous look before stalking away, muscles tensed like he was still looking to fight.

Astarion sheathed his knife, a ferocious predator for only a moment longer before he turned to her. His eyes softened then, his lips murmuring soft words as he moved towards her, catching her shaking body before she could fall over.

“You’re alright, darling,” he murmured, pressing his lips to her brow. “You’re safe. You’re safe.”

Tears burned, but they did not fall. She was shivering like a dying tree in a windstorm, and she clutched at him, words choked by the sob that was lodged in her throat.

“Let’s find somewhere for you to sit down, shall we?” He guided her to the kitchen table, settled her into one of the chairs.

In the aftermath, as the fury leached from her skin, she felt cold. Cold as a winter’s night, cold as the darkest moments of a snow-storm, cold as the frozen lake at the border of the village, drowning in the darkened waters.

It was only then that her mother stepped forward, having seemed to have disappeared during the fight. She’d nearly forgotten she’d been there, helping her to bake before everything had unravelled.

“You know you’re both just so similar,” her mother said, letting out a breathy laugh. There was no humour in the sound, and her expression was pinched.

Astarion turned to peer at her mother over his shoulder, his expression inscrutable. “Excuse me?”

She shrugged, wringing her hands. “They provoke each other so much. And you know you did start it, Aspen. You know that’s a trigger for him.”

Astarion leaned back as though he’d been slapped. He blinked, not seeming to understand what he’d just heard. “What do you mean?”

Her mother didn’t hear the edge to his tone, but Aspen did, just as she saw the twitch of his brow, the slight downturn of his lips.

“She should have just agreed to disagree, that’s all.” Another shrug. “What he did was unacceptable, and he shouldn’t have acted like that. But you know you can be just like that, too.”

At her mother’s words Aspen shuddered, for an entirely new reason this time.

She knew of the creature beneath her skin, knew she had to keep it in check, but never had she felt like such a monster as she did now. Her mother softly berating her for provoking the man supposed to be her father.

She could feel it in her veins, roiling like the rage of a storming sea. The monster in her blood, the one that used her skin.

Had she minded her tongue this would not have happened, had she minded her tongue they would still be joyfully cooking, and Astarion would not have had to reveal his vampirism to her parents.

As her mother came forward to comfort her as well tears began to spill, streaking down her cheeks in rivers of flame.

She hardly noticed through the silver blur the room around her drowned in from her tears, the way Astarion’s expression tightened. She didn’t even notice the way his hands tightened on her shoulders, giving her mother almost no room to kneel beside her.

She wanted to cry to her mother, to be comforted, to be told it was not her fault.

But it was her fault, wasn’t it? A horrible monster ruining the holidays, ruining their family gathering on the eve of their celebrations. Ruining things just as she always did, tearing apart the delicate happiness that had been in the air.

“Absolutely not.”

The sharpness in Astarion’s tone made Aspen look up, searching for his eyes in the haze of tears. She made to wipe her eyes, but he gently pushed her hands away, the pads of his thumbs soft as they gently brushed away her tears.

She sniffed, her throat raw as she spoke. “What are you talking about?”

“I will not stand for such slander,” he said, gentle, but firm. “I will not allow for you to be slandered after such a threat.”

Her mother shot Astarion an incredulous look. “That’s hardly fair, and I don’t appreciate you sticking your nose in our business. He’s her father, he would never hurt her.”

“Wouldn’t he?” Astarion sounded eerily calm, his brow arching in bemusement. “Because that looked quite aggressive. That looked like someone on the verge of hitting someone else.”

Her mother opened her mouth to retort, but Astarion stood suddenly, cutting her off.

“No, this is not acceptable.” He offered Aspen his hand, his expression softening for half a breath until he returned his gaze to her mother. “From what I saw he nearly hurt her. He threatened to hurt her. And while my beloved can handle much, being threatened by her own father is not something she should never tolerate.”

His gaze was sharp as he gave her mother a once over. “Nor should she tolerate such nonsense from her mother.”

“You weren’t here at the beginning of the argument, you didn’t hear-”

“No, you’re right.” He cut her off, no humour in his smirk. “But I know her well, so I can guess well enough what happened. And raising her voice and saying a thoughtless comment does not deserve such a response.” Then, quieter. “Nothing does.”

Wordlessly, Aspen took his hand. He drew her to her feet, wrapping his arm around her waist. “We’re leaving, darling.”

Her legs shook, and she feared her knees would give out on her soon. “Where?”

“We’ll find an inn for the night,” he said, not sparing her mother a second glance. “Then we’ll head back to Baldur’s Gate at first light.”

Her mother got to her feet, regret in her eyes. “But the holidays start tomorrow, and we planned-”

Astarion’s response was a snarl. “You stood by and did nothing. You didn’t want to choose a side, but you did all the same.”

They packed quickly, Aspen in such a daze that Astarion packed her things for her, murmuring softly that she was okay, that she was safe, that he would make sure she was always safe.

It wasn’t until they had headed into the night, until they’d checked into the first inn they found, until Astarion guided her to the rickety bed and she fell back, that she truly began to sob.

“It’s alright,” he murmured, taking her into his arms. He tucked her head against his shoulder, not making a comment as she stained the fine fabric with snot and tears. “You’re safe.”

“I’m sorry!” She cried, squeezing her eyes shut against the pain, hands finding his shirt, balling the fabric up in her fists. “I’m sorry! I ruin everything!”

“Nonsense,” he breathed, smoothing her hair back from her face. “You don’t ruin anything.”

“Yes I do!” Her voice was a shrill shriek, and she nearly doubled over from the force of the sudden sobs that ripped from her throat. “I ruin everything. I ruin every friendship, I ruin my family’s happiness, one day I’ll ruin this.”

She pressed her face against his shoulder, her sobs muffled, if only barely. “I’m a monster. I’m a horrid beast, always so angry and I can’t even stop it. I can’t stop myself!”

“Aspen.” The steadiness of his voice gave her pause. He kept his voice soft, but there was a firmness to it, like iron, that quieted her cries.

“Aspen, darling, look at me.”

She sniffed, shaking her head. “I look horrible.”

A soft chuckle, his fingers running through her hair. “I don’t think that’s even possible, my love. Even drenched in gore you are beautiful. A few tears and snot will hardly stifle your beauty.”

She pulled away then, fixing a glower to her face. “Are you sure about that?”

He smiled, cupping her cheeks with such gentleness that a soft gasp escaped her lips. Did she deserve tenderness? Did she deserve even a scrap of his affection when she was a beast? When she would hurt him as surely as she hurt her father, her family?

“You are radiant,” he said, no sign of teasing in his eyes. “Beautiful as always.”

She couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it all. The screaming, the rage, being whisked away so late at night. “Astarion, you just watched me scream my lungs out at my father and then sob so hard I’m pretty sure I bruised my ribs.”

He tapped her cheek, his brow arching. “Don’t forget staining my shirt, too. This was silk, you know.”

“Oh Astarion, I’m so sorry.” The tears began all over again, spilling like she might drown in her misery. “I’ve ruined everything.”

“Darling, darling,” he clicked his tongue softly, brushing her tears away as he stroked her cheeks. “You have not ruined anything, and you are no monster.”

“But I-”

“Hush.” He could have spoken sharply, but his tone was whisper soft. His brows drew together, his lips tilting down. “You are not to blame.”

How did she explain to him? How did she explain the monster in her body, the beast beneath her skin?

“You don’t understand.” Her voice wobbled, thick and rough from tears and screaming and the sobs still caught in her throat.

He was being so soft, so gentle in the face of the catastrophe made flesh that she was. “Then help me to understand, my love.”

Her bottom lip quivered and she drew in deep breaths, her nose clogged with snot. “I ruin everything, I make a mess of everything. I push him too far, trigger him and make him angry. I don’t even try to, I don’t look for a fight but everyone tells me I do. I’m told I’m too loud, I’m too angry, and I don’t even know I am until it’s too late. I’ve ruined my most precious relationships, I ruined the holiday by making my father mad.”

Astarion listened quietly, brushing away her tears as they fell, until they had all spilled, and there was nothing but dried salt on her cheeks.

When she was done pouring out her fears, her terror of what she could be, he nodded, silent still. She wished he would speak, was desperate for him to say something.

Maybe he would push her away, tell her that he had made a mistake, that she was not who he’d thought she was. Maybe he would tell her that she truly was a beast just as she thought.

But what he did surprised her more.

He drew her face close, brought his lips to the corner of hers.

“You are no monster,” he said, soft as a lullaby. “You can be loud, and you can be a bit overzealous.”

At that he smirked, tapping her cheek. “But a monster you are not. If you’re truly scared, then when we return home we can find someone to help, so that what you feel is truly tamed.”

She sniffed, pulling at his shirt. “But I ruin so many things! What happens when I ruin us?”

He rolled his eyes, tucking loose strands of hair behind her ear. “My love, you have not ruined anything. You’ve told me of those friendships, and it sounds like those people were rotten from the start.”

“But what about-”

He brought a finger to her lips, silencing her.

“My love,” he murmured, exasperation in his sigh. “I’ve held my tongue far longer than I’ve cared to tonight. Let me speak.”

She nodded, wilting, and he withdrew his hand.

“You did not ruin the holidays for your family either,” he continued, cupping her face again. “Your father had no business reacting that way, no matter what. As much as I delight in a little violence, there is nothing that anyone could have said that would deserve such a response.”

She sniffled again, wiping at her nose as she felt snot dribble out. She looked disgusting, she was sure, and yet Astarion had insisted she was beautiful. How strange he could be.

“If anything was ruined, it was because of him,” he said, kissing her cheek again. “He should learn to control himself, and he was very lucky that I have so much self control.”

At that Aspen couldn’t help giggling, memories of all the times Astarion could not help himself brimming in her mind. But she held her tongue, not wanting to cut him off, not when he was being sweet as spun sugar.

“And you will not ruin us,” he said at last, firm, unwavering. “I want you, I want every part of you. Even your thorns.”

“Thorns?” She furrowed her brow. “Am I a flower to you?”

He grinned, twirling her hair around his finger. “The most beautiful and rarest of all flowers. But I don’t mind the thorns.” His smile grew, fangs catching the light as they came into view. “I’d let you prick me if it meant getting to stay with you.”

“I would never prick you,” she cried, horrified at the idea of hurting him. “I would never ever hurt you. At least not intentionally.”

His smile softened, and he brought his lips to her chest, above where her heart thrummed, finally beating a steady rhythm once more. “See? You have a sweet heart, you are no monster.”

“But-”

“No buts,” he interrupted. “I have met monsters, my love, and you are not one.”

He sighed, releasing the tendril of hair he’d been toying with. “And I plan to stay at your side for a long, long time. So long as you’ll have me.”

Her heart, a poor fractured thing, ached from his words. She felt like she were splintered glass, and she would shatter at any moment now. The only thing holding her together was Astarion’s hands, keeping her in the moment.

“I want you to stay with me,” she said, her voice soft as breath. “I want you to always stay with me.”

“Then I shall.”

Astarion’s arms slid around her waist, drawing her close. Aspen could think of nothing else to say, so instead she curled against his chest, feeling like she might fall apart at any moment now.

He pressed a kiss to the top of her head, murmuring softly into her hair. “You’re safe. I will keep you safe, my love.”

Although her trembling had stopped, it still took her a long while to truly settle. Her mind could not seem to rest, and it took Astarion singing her favourite songs off-key and reading from one of the books she’d packed for their trip for her mind to finally ease.

He was patient with her as she clung to him, murmuring soft praises, whispering that she was good, that he loved her. He sang and read to her, he stroked her hair, rubbed gentle circles into her back.

A stray sob would slip from between her lips every few moments, and she would absently wipe her nose on the back of her sleeve before nestling closer again. Astarion would press another kiss to her brow, her temple, his arms tightening around her, with every sob that escaped.

And slowly, so painfully slowly it might have taken her a century, she finally began to feel… She wasn’t sure entirely, but it was safer, comforted.

Not entirely better, but it was a start.

“I feel tired,” she murmured against his chest, her tears finally dried up, the last of her sobs lost to the night.

The shadows had grown so long, deepening until there was no light keeping them at bay but for the candles they had lit in their room.

“Why don’t we get you into a bath,” he suggested, tipping her head back until their eyes met. “You always like that.”

“I do…” She trailed off, even the miniscule effort needed to summon words to her lips exhausting her. “But it’s so late, and I feel so tired.”

“Leave it to me,” he murmured, smoothing back her hair.

Things were a blur after that, fatigue rushing through her all at once. Astarion carrying her to the bath, gently settling her into the steaming water like she were a delicate, precious thing. His fingers running through her hair, massaging soap and scented oils into her skin. His lips over her skin, scattering kisses in the wake of his hands as he rinsed the suds from her body.

When he was done he stepped free from the water first so he could help her out, holding her hands as she climbed over the high lip of the tub. He wrapped her in a soft towel, half-carrying her back into their room to help her dress and comb her hair.

Astarion’s lithe fingers twisted her hair into twin braids that fell down her back, much longer than she usually kept it. She made a comment to him that she would need to get it cut when they returned, and he pressed his lips to the nape of her neck, promising he would make an appointment for her with their favourite hairdresser.

“And then perhaps we can spend the rest of the day out,” he suggested as he helped her into bed, going so far to fluff the pillows, spoiling her like she were a princess in a fairytale.

“We can pick out some new fabrics, perhaps commission some new clothes,” he continued, brow quirked as he grinned. “You can never have too many new gowns, especially now that we’ve started getting invited to parties. And-” He let the final word hang in the air, quivering like a music note held at the climax of a song.

“And?”

“And I love seeing you in pretty things.”

She held out her arms, wanting him to hold her even now. He’d had his hands on her for hours now, her fingers wrinkled from how long they’d spent in the bath. But it was not enough, and she wanted to be held still.

Astarion obliged, lying beside her and drawing her into his arms. She tucked her head beneath his chin, breathing in the smell of bergamot and rosemary, and the faint smell of her own favourite perfumes and soaps, lavender and rose and the touch of citrus.

“Could we go to the bookstore, too?” She asked, yawning as he trailed his fingers down the back of her neck.

“We can go wherever you would like,” he promised. “But first you must sleep, my love. We’ll make the trek back home tomorrow when you wake.”

He didn’t have to tell her twice, and she quickly fell into a dreamless sleep, safe in his arms.

The morning came far too soon, but Astarion let her sleep late, until the sunlight was a golden glow that seeped through the curtains of their room and breakfast had long since passed.

They didn’t take the time to bid anyone a proper farewell, instead heading for the winding road that would lead them home.

Aspen didn’t anticipate spending her favourite holiday travelling on the road, but she found she did not mind. Even when silence blanketed the both of them, she was comforted in his presence. Astarion could be melodramatic, petulant, and overly confident. But he also showed her gentleness, kindness, an affection that warmed her like the gentle flicker of candle flames.

He took care of her as surely as she took care of him, and as eagerly as she had accepted him for all his virtues and flaws, so he had with her. Perhaps more so, because she’d kept them quiet for as long as she could, and she was certain anyone else would have left her in the cold for such deception.

The winds picked up as they travelled, reaching frozen fingers into her hair, tearing at her cloak and skirts. She tugged her hood over her head, although it did little as the wind snatched her hood back, tearing it from her head.

Astarion snickered, sliding a hand to her cheek. “I have to admit I am glad that your face is not hidden by your hood.”

“Astarion, I’m cold,” she whined, not caring how her voice pitched high, joining the keening of the freezing winds.

A roll of his eyes, followed by a delicate kiss to her cheek. “Here, I have an idea of what can help.”

He draped the side of his cloak over her, his arm slipping around her waist.

“Won’t this make walking hard?” She asked, turning to him. He was close now, his breath ghosting against her cheek.

“I don’t mind,” he said, his voice a warm tenor that caressed her skin like a kiss. “I’ll take any excuse to be closer to you, darling.”

She sighed, but it wasn’t sad, or even bittersweet. It felt the precursor to a laugh, that promised delight would follow in its wake. “You’re so sweet, did you know that?”

“I did,” he said, doing a poor job of trying not to preen. “But it sounds best when it comes from your lips.”

Now she did laugh, and there really was a little happiness in it, soft as the laughter was, freshly fallen snow that filled the world with glitter. “I’ll have to say it more, then.”

“I’ll hold you to that, my love.”

Walking as they did, Astarion’s cloak wrapped around her, slowed them down considerably, but they still made good time, and as the sun sank beneath the horizon, setting the slate-grey of the sky ablaze in fiery red and burning oranges, they arrived back in Baldur’s Gate.

The feeling she felt as they hurried through the streets, fatigue heavy in their bones, was something entirely different from when they’d arrived in her childhood home.

There she had felt like a piece that no longer fit, accepted but not entirely right. She had ignored it, because that had been where she’d grown up. That had been her home, it was where her family lived still.

But stumbling through the streets, thinking of the warmth of her own home, the heat of a bath, the crackle of a fire stoked high, and all the snacks in the cupboards of their kitchen, she felt something click into place.

The bustle of this city, that bakery she loved to visit, the darkened storefront of their favourite tailor, the merry lights and open doors of the bookstore that sold warm drinks in the winter months. All the parts of the city she hadn’t yet seen, so occupied were they both with travelling, adventuring to different lands.

This felt right. Being here felt right. She didn’t feel like a misplaced puzzle piece, a lost toy that did not match with the rest of the set. She didn’t feel like a puzzle piece at all, something that had to match everything that surrounded it.

She felt whole, she felt like she belonged, felt like she was home.

The wind had not let up since earlier that day, heavy storm-clouds chasing in their wake. As they walked up the steps to their home, windows dark and curtains drawn, waiting for them to bring life back into the empty building, she felt something cold touch her cheek.

She looked up, beamed at the flurry of white swirling through the air, caught up in the ice of the wind.

“Astarion, look,” she murmured, pointing skyward. “It’s snowing.”

He paused, barely a foot from their door, to gaze up at the sky, a soft smile beginning to stretch across his face. “So it is.”

He gave her hand a tug, attention already sliding from the snow and back to the promise of warmth and comfort only a foot away. But Aspen found herself frozen in place, staring up at the snowflakes cascading to the ground. Like the sky itself had opened up in welcome of her returning, of her finding somewhere she was safe.

As Astarion tugged her harder she obliged, following him into the house, the door closing with a soft click behind them. It blocked the snow from sight, but still she could see it in her mind’s eye, swirling in an ivory ballet overhead, covering the world in a pallid pearlescence, wiping away the stain that had grown from the day behind them.

She shivered, snapping back to the present as Astarion’s cool fingers glided over her cheeks, his voice teasing as he commented on how flushed she looked.

They helped each other with their cloaks, tossed their packs to the side to be emptied once they were properly warmed. All the while Aspen’s eyes flitted over their home, the familiar shapes of the furniture, the familiar smell of the cleaners and soaps and candles they preferred, the familiar twists and turns of the halls and stairways.

Astarion’s arms slipped around her waist, his chin perching on her shoulder. “What are you thinking of, darling? You’ve hardly said more than a few words.”

She leaned into his embrace, covering her hands with his. “I’m just thinking that something felt strange when we’d gone to visit my family. And that something feels right now that we’re back.”

He peeled away from her, giving her an amused smile. “Of course something feels right, my love. We’re home.”

Home.

She’d known she was coming home as she’d stepped into the city once more, the word seemed to hold a different weight now.

Home, where she had chosen to lay down her heart, where she had chosen to share space with the person most precious to her. Where she was safe.

She smiled, turning around to draw him into an embrace, pressing her face into his shoulder, breathing in the smell of pine and cold winds, and the smell of his perfumes that he so loved.

“You’re right,” she said, her words partially muffled as she nestled closer. “It feels better because I’m home.”

Astarion snorted, but she could imagine the tender smile curling over his lips like a crescent moon shining silver in the sky. He ran a hand over her hair, fingers toying with the soft baby curls at the nape of her neck. “You’re safe here. You’re safe with me, my love. I swear it.”

“I know.” Tears pricked at her eyes as she held him tighter.

“I will never hurt you, I will never raise a hand to you, or even threaten to do so.”

She clung to him, as surely as his perfumes clung to his skin, even a hint of their smell giving her comfort. “I know, Astarion. I’m not afraid of you.”

“I only want you to know,” he murmured, lowering his head until it rested against hers. “I want you to know that you’re safe. I’ll make sure you’re always safe.”

She squeezed her eyes shut, a futile attempt to stop the flow of the tears that slipped from the corners of her eyes. “Astarion, you’re making me cry.”

He clicked his tongue, stroking the back of her neck. “I didn’t mean to make you cry, my dear.”

“Too late.”

A sigh, a kiss to the top of her head. “Then allow me to make it up to you, darling.”

She sank further into his embrace, listening to the slowed beat of his heart. Her love, her shining star.

“I love you,” she whispered. “I love you so much.”

A moment of silence, the slow rhythm, of his heart seeming to stammer for a moment, beat a little faster. “And I love you.”

Aspen would have been content to stay there for the rest of the night, wrapped in his arms. But Astarion clearly had other plans, and after a few moments he pulled away, tapping her cheek playfully when she pouted.

“Don’t look at me like that, darling. I want to clean up and change into something warmer.” He sighed, taking her hands and running his thumbs over the backs of them. “And I want you to change into something warmer too, before you turn entirely to ice.”

“If I turned to ice would you find a way to rescue me?” She gave him a sly smile, a glimmer of mischief in her heart.

“Without a doubt,” he said, eyes bright with devilry. “Although I might have to tell you that I told you so, since if you turned to ice it would be because you ignored my request to warm up.”

“Well then I’ll make sure to heed your advice,” she said. “I wouldn’t want to upset you.”

He patted her hand. “An excellent choice, my love.”

She squeezed his hand, unwilling yet to let go. “Would you help me? I still feel so tired, and I would like to stay close, if you’ll allow me.”

Sorrow flashed in his eyes, the mischief in his smile softening. “Of course, my love. You need only ask.”

“And then we can mull that wine we bought before we left.”

He chuckled, tugging her from the entry, deeper into the heart of their home. “We can. But you’ll have to keep your wits about you, my darling, because I still have that surprise I had prepared for you before that little scuffle.”

She frowned, only now remembering that he’d vanished in search of something he would not tell her about just before the fight had begun. “What is it?”

He shot her a roguish grin. “You’ll just have to wait and see, darling.”

He was teasing her, and while normally she would at least pretend to get upset, in this moment all she could do was smile and laugh. There was no tension in the air, no fear of shattering eggshells beneath her feet.

Astarion accepted her, all of her, and he would not rage against her for saying the wrong thing, for being too loud. He loved her as she was, thorns and all.

They spent the evening together, and she fell asleep tangled in his arms, warm and safe, not feeling quite as hollow as she had the night before.

Aspen had hoped she would bounce back after their return to Baldur’s Gate, but of course things were not perfect, and little more than a week later, a letter arrived addressed to her, scrawled in her mother’s neat hand.

‘You should apologize. I believe you both should apologize, you both-’

She did not get a chance to finish reading before Astarion plucked it from her hand, tossed it into the fire.

A voice in the back of her head told she should probably be annoyed, angry even, that he took the first piece of correspondence she’d received from her family since and fed it to the flames. But there was no rage left inside of her, and even if there was, it would not spark, would not catch on the kindling forever in her heart, waiting to turn to a blaze.

She was thankful to him, for not forcing her to read such a letter. That blamed her as equally as the man who had threatened her. Who teetered on the edge of inflicting violence on her for the sin of disobedience.

“That’s utter rubbish,” he muttered, drawing her into his arms. And for that she was so painfully grateful that she burst into tears all over again, another bout in endless weeks of tears.

“It’s alright, darling.” He had said the words so many times over the past few days, comforting her in the morning when she awoke, trembling from dreams of screaming, from the fractures in her heart, the knowledge that there was no real going back, no crossing the distance between her and that man.

“You are not to blame,” he murmured, stroking her hair. “Your heart is good, darling, and it is not your job to please other people so they do not threaten you. Not even your own family.”

Aspen nodded silently, burying her face against his neck.

They could not hurt her here, they could not even slice her with their callous words. Here in her home, with her lover, she was safe.

“You’re sure?” She asked, sniffling. “You’re sure that I will not ruin us?”

He chuckled, warm and soft, nearly a sigh. “Do roses ruin a garden? Does a hawthorn tree ruin a forest?”

She peeked up from her hiding place, wrinkling her nose. “Pardon?”

“Roses have thorns, do they not?”

She nodded slowly. “They do.”

“But they’re everywhere, are they not? In gardens, in songs and poems, in bouquets given to lovers.” He tipped his head to the side, searching her face as he spoke.

Again she nodded, still unsure of what he was talking about. “I know that. They’re some of the most popular flowers.”

“Even though they have thorns?”

“I… Guess?” He was teasing her now, she was sure of it.

“And did you know,” he continued, toying with her hair. “That hawthorns, with their red fruits used in wines and jellies, and the pretty flowers that bloom on their branches, have thorns too?”

She shook her head, completely lost now. “I didn’t.”

He let go of her hair, settling his hands on her waist. “Well they do. And still they are not seen as something ruinous, but something people adore.”

When she didn’t respond, Astarion sighed, making a show of rolling his eyes. “My darling, you will not ruin us. I love you, I adore you. And I would choose you over all of the thornless, soft-hearted fools in the world.”

“I love you too,” she said, feeling small. “I love you, and I want you to stay with me.”

“And so I shall, darling,” he murmured, lowering his head, nuzzling his nose against hers. “I love you, thorns and all. I’m not going anywhere.”

Tears burned at her eyes, a stray few slipping down her cheeks, and she quickly wiped them away, smiling softly.

“You ought to become a poet,” she said, peeking up at him. “Especially after saying such pretty things.”

He snorted, pulling away to wave his hand languidly through the air. “What can I say? You bring out the romantic in me.”

“Thank you, my love,” she spoke earnestly, wanting him to know she was not joking around, that she meant it with her whole heart. “Thank you, for how kind you are to me.”

Astarion froze, the softest touch of pink blooming in his cheeks. What little blood stayed in his veins was rushing to his face, warming him, if only slightly.

“Yes, well…” He trailed off, stammering. “You make it so terribly easy. I hate the idea of your sweet heart being in pain.”

She smirked, teasing him now. “You know you’re pretty sweet, yourself.”

“Alright.” With a roll of his eyes he turned away. “Were we not planning to go out before we got that letter? We should hurry if we want to stop at the bookstore before heading to the performance.”

“Oh yes,” Aspen beamed, hurrying to his side, standing on her toes to press a kiss to his cheek before going in search of her cloak. “Right as always, my love. We must make haste.”

Laughter chased after her as she found where she’d last discarded her cloak, a deep deep the colour of a sunset, a perfect contrast to the powder pink of her gown and the coral-coloured ribbons that laced up the front of her bodice. She tossed it over her shoulders, clicking the clasps into place before heading to the entry, where Astarion waited for her, grinning brighter when he saw her.

“Beautiful as always,” he cooed, straightening the clasps of her cloak, disentangling the corners of her ribbons so the bows laid flat.

She beamed, pushing the letter from her mind, pushing the whole terrible event from her mind. What lurked in her skin was no monster, not a beast that destroyed everything that was dear. It was only her thorns, a part of her as surely as the blood in her veins.

Astarion had promised to help her soften them, so they did not draw blood when someone got too close. But there would likely always be a few that were a little sharp, despite her best efforts.

But he would love her anyways, acknowledging that they were a part of her, and he loved all of her, even the sharpest parts.

That knowledge settled in her heart, warmth kindling in her chest. Not the violent fire of rage, but the gentle warmth of love, of contentment, the kind of warmth that kept her safe.

He offered her his arm, and she took it, heading out into the snow-flecked world beyond their door. Into the city that she was not a missing puzzle piece in, with someone who loved her as she was, who was her home. And like the sun to a blooming flower, to a tree with flowers and fruits blossoming along its thorny branches, their love kept her warm the entire day.

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