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#I still don’t know how to draw furries but we’re getting there
showtoonzfan · 10 months
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New but old? info: In a Q&A call on Viv’s Patreon back in December she said Leviathan would be a super chill, surfer bro-type, ya know the ones you’ll see in those old Beach movies? Yeah Like that. And Mammon was also designed as large to be a middle finger to the people who say she can only design one body. 
I don’t really have anything to say about Leviathan, (again, her interpretation) but if the Mammon stuff is true? First of all….I’m honestly not even hyping his design up that much like others are. We’ve only seen this dude’s silhouette and it could still be ass for all we know when it drops, second…sorry Viv but I’m not giving you a cookie just for drawing a circle for once. Like…wow, you have canonically now……2……plus sized characters in an endless world of twinks? (Slow claps). And what? Now you’re saying she only did it just out of spite? Yeah okay, so professional Viv, flipping off the people who give you constructive criticism.
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Also I’m sorry but….I’m getting into nitpick territory, but this body shape ain’t all that to me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m finally fucking glad we’re getting a character that I can’t snap in half, but with all the hype, this is a very standard body shape, it’s literally just, a circle, 4 stick arms and 2 stick ish legs. I’ve seen Viv do this kind of design way back when, it’s really just…not all that to me I’m sorry.
He is only a silhouette still, but I ain’t giving Viv the benefit of the doubt, sorry, I’ve done that multiple times and look where we are now, a furry OC that’s supposed to be Beezlebub. We all remember how Viv said she’s afraid of everyone’s reaction to Mammon since he’s big and “ugly” and not what people are going to think, (also saying he has Grimace from McDonald’s vibes) but….we’re talking about the same Vivziepop who’s afraid of drawing more wrinkles on her characters. The same Vivziepop who makes her middled age men look like teenaged twinks. The same Vivziepop who said herself that she doesn’t even like muscular men. The same Vivziepop that’s afraid of making one single character look un-fuckable or unattractive, since that’s what this entire show hinges on. Not ganna fall for it lol.
Also regarding the “she can only draw one body type” how much you wanna bet she got help by a crew member with this design?
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magecrafts · 2 years
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KATE BISHOP headcanons.
RATED E FOR EXPLICIT SEXUAL CONTENT — 18+ — MINORS DNI.
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a/n: the first of a few things i wrote in rehab. lil fluff, lil smut (but mostly smut). forgive me if it reads a bit messy, i'm a little out of practice. enjoy!
kate bishop x reader ; congrats! you're dating a sort-of avenger!
warnings: nsfw, explicit smut, daddy kink, humiliation, big big straps, light anal play, cnc, no aftercare ; reader is biologically female but no pronouns are used so could be read as ftm, nb, cis, or whatever tf else you want.
i am not currently fulfilling requests, but any made will be consdiered for future writing things...?
For your first date she takes you to an archery range. Mostly to show off but also to put a bow in your hands and touch you a little bit while she shows you how to draw properly.
The second is a Central Park picnic with pizza and champagne. “Say what you will about my mother,” Kate says as she frees a slice for the golden retriever at her side, “but her wine cellar slaps.” After a look at the label and quick web search: “Kate,” you tell her, “this is a forty-five-hundred dollar bottle of champagne from nineteen-eighty-one, and—“ “And we’re eating it with fifteen dollar pizza from nineteen minutes ago,” she says. “But. To be fair, that’s basically what she makes in an hour.” A beat. “She’s gonna cut me off again.”
You start sleeping with Kate on date six. She has tickets to an exhibit at the Museum of Natural History but she turns up in a gray plaid pantsuit and Docs and the two of you don’t even make it out the door (so, yeah, okay, you sleeping with Kate is date six). 
Kate has trouble focusing when there’s no underlying adventure, no chaos, no bad guys chasing her down the street in vans and tracksuits. She’s gotten used to the hero's life, the kind of life where danger lurks around every corner and life or death decisions are plentiful. Kate thrives on the mayhem and gets lost in the mundanity. Clint calls it adrenaline addiction. Yelena says Kate’s got Avenger blood (“She’s not an Avenger,” Clint says. “Too dangerous.”). Sometimes, even when she’s happy, even when she wouldn’t rather be anywhere else, it still happens. Her eyes will gloss over and she’ll retreat into herself and, “Where’d you go?” and “Earth to Kate,” are two things you catch yourself saying a lot during downtime.
“Kate.” “…Yes?” “Why is your bag moving?” The bag barks. “No reason,” Kate says, stepping in front of the wriggling duffel bag as a little black nose pushes through the open zipper, followed by a furry golden head. “Hear me out,” she says, crouching down to pull the wiggling golden retriever into her arms. “His name is Pepperoni.” The other dog, the big dog—Pizza Dog—bounds into the room and sniffs at the puppy in Kate’s arms. He yips once and sits on his haunches and the moment Kate puts the little dog down in front of him you know there’s not a chance in hell she’s letting that puppy go.
Kate thinks she’s the best thing since sliced bread. And in bed? Yeah, she probably is. She’s eager, adaptive, and curious no matter how many times she’s explored every last inch of your body. She spends a lot of time on your tits—squeezing and biting and licking and sucking—and when she isn’t too distracted, when she remembers that she has hands and can use them for something other than digging her dull nails into your skin, she’ll reach up and push her fingers past your lips while she closes her mouth over your skin and sucks until you choke on her fingers and push her head away and beg for a moment to catch your breath.
It took a month to get her anywhere near macaroni and cheese after Yelena rolled into town. That they’re constantly attached at the hip nowadays still blows your mind, but you can’t deny that something magical happens when they’re in the same room. It’s a lot like the little girls in the schoolyard at recess who mix potions in puddles with twigs and run cackling away when anyone asks what they’re doing.
She doesn’t like when you’re quiet. She’ll get vocal enough for the both of you if you’re really not up for it (or if you can’t, which has been happening a lot since she saw that one clip of a girl getting panty-gagged), but she doesn’t like to do anything in silence. It’s not tinnitus, and she's not going the way of Barton, you know, because you’ve asked, and she says she can exist in silence, says the quiet isn’t debilitating or anything, it’s just that she doesn’t like it. She blames it on the city, says no one in Manhattan knows how to operate without twenty-four-hour background noise, which is probably true, but you think she might just like the sound of her own voice. Yours will do when she can’t listen to herself, sure, but sometimes you like to keep quiet just so she’ll push you further and fuck you harder and tell you she needs to hear you. The one time you called it begging she got all huffy and red in the face and insisted that she’s never once begged in her entire life.
Kate likes you on your belly. She likes watching your thighs shake, likes watching the muscles in your back tense and relax as you prop your hips up and offer yourself to her. She likes palming your ass and pulling your cheeks apart and the little sighs of anticipation and excitement you make when she spreads you wide and holds you open just to look, just to keep you on edge. “Are you nervous?” she’ll ask, and you can always hear the cocky grin in her voice, because she knows you are and knows it makes you bubble up with shame when she points it out. “Don’t be nervous,” she’ll say, “we’ve done this before,” which doesn’t help, and she’ll rub her thumb over the pucker of your asshole until you shudder and your hips cant forward. Then she’ll sigh and yank you back by your thighs until your muscles are pulled taut and your cunt practically spreads open on its own. “Move and I’ll shoot,” she likes to say, and she won’t, not really, because she’d step in front of a subway train before she actually hurt you, but she likes to throw that threat around when she hasn’t had a good fight in a while.
“It’s new,” she says when you come home and find her strapped up and looking at herself in the mirror. When your eyes go wide and you swallow hard and tell her, “That’s…big,” she just grins and turns her focus back to the mirror. “I know, right?” she says, considering for a moment before she drops her hand and fists the silicone cock. She can’t even wrap her hand all the way around it. “And purple,” you say, dumbly, because you aren’t sure what else you’re supposed to do or say. “Impressive observations,” Kate says, catching your eye in the mirror and tossing you a smirk. “Think you can take it?” You honestly have no idea.
Once she gets that first strap she just—will not stop. Cannot be stopped. She’ll wake you up in the morning with her mouth on your chest and her hand sneaking down the front of your panties. She’ll tell you to hush and claim your mouth with her own while she nudges your legs open and drags the tip of her big purple cock between the slick lips of your cunt, mumbling, “Just relax, baby, I know you can take it,” even though you just woke up and you’re barely coherent and she hasn’t fucked you in days int he name of building blissful anticipation and wanting it to feel new again. You’re not sure that logic tracks but you’re absolutely certain you don’t ever want anyone else to touch you like this and when she pushes into you—fucks into you—you forget the sweet embrace of sleep and slip into the role she wants you to play.
Kate likes to walk around the apartment in boxers and a sports bra. More comfy that way, she says, even though you have a hard time keeping it together when she does. It’s worse when she abandons the bra altogether. She says it’s freeing. You think it’s maddening. Like when she parks herself on the couch all laid back with her legs propped open and an arm over the back of the couch. She’ll tilt her head and ask you why you’ve gone all red while you just look at her and do your best not to drool. It’s just, shit, that her tits are perfect—even handfuls, pert, rosy nipples, and soft all over—and you swear you could lose yourself in them for days. “Problem?” she’ll ask when you get all tripped up on your words, blushing so hard it creeps down your neck. Then she’ll just grin.
The worst of it is when she starts calling herself daddy. At first you think it’s stupid, self-indulgent, like she’s pandering to herself, but it gets intense. Fast. Like when she cozies up behind you while you’re cooking dinner, slipping her arms around your middle and sneaking her hands beneath your shirt, saying, “You take care of me so well,” and, “daddy’s gonna repay the favor,” and you’re not sure what you’re supposed to say to that but you can feel her pressing up against your ass and her hands are creeping closer and closer to your chest and you know good and well that the moment she palms your tits and ruts against you that it’s all over. Dinner burns on the stove while she strips your bottoms off and lays you out on the kitchen table and pushes your legs open and slaps your cunt just to remind you that she’s needy and she needs you to indulge her every whim because sometimes she doesn’t know what to do when you aren’t actively falling to pieces beneath her. You don’t know when you stopped finding it stupid, self-indulgent, like she needs another reason to think she’s hot shit, but it happened. And you’ve changed your mind: the worst of it is when she realized how much you drip with want when she calls herself daddy.
Nope, that's a lie, the worst of it is the moment she figures out you like it a lot more when she isn’t so nice
Kate strokes the length of her thick strap with one hand and drags the other down the length of your spine, curling her fingers to let her nails catch against your sweat-slicked skin. She nudges your legs apart with her knee and drags the tip of her cock through the lips of your cunt and laughs as you start to squirm. She curses under her breath and notches the tip of the massive fucking thing against your needy hole. “Relax, little angel,” she says, words dripping with condescension. “It’s gonna hurt a hell of a lot more if you don’t calm down and let me in, and isn’t that what you want? If it isn’t, you’d better tell me, ’cause I thought you wanted daddy to fuck your stupid little pussy ’til it’s all gaping and sloppy.” That does it. You’re helpless and your moan doesn’t help, and as the noise rips from your throat Kate fucks into your slippery hole in one rough thrust, and, “Oh—my god—shit—Kate, please—it hurts,” you gasp out between breaths. “I don’t care,” she says, tucking an arm around your middle to keep you from wriggling away. “Please.” You clench helplessly around her massive, heavy cock. “What, you don’t like this?” she asks, false hurt lining her voice. She leans in close again, lips parted against your ear as she stills herself inside of you. “You don’t want this? You want me to stop?” she asks, just to tease, and stifles a laugh as you nod. She doesn’t move. It’s big, too big, stretching your cunt as wide as you think it’ll ever be. Fear of her splitting you open keeps you still. And then she draws her hips back, nice and slow, and for a moment you flood with relief. She pulls out of your leaking hole until all that’s left inside is the tip. And then she eases back in, watching as best as she can in the dim light as her purple cock disappears into your needy pussy. “Pathetic,” she mumbles, and you can hear the smirk in her voice. “Lie to me all you like, but I know a dumb fucking slut when I see one.” “Kate—” “Unless you’re going to tell me you’ve changed your mind—that you’ve had a change of heart and you want this—don’t open your fucking mouth until I ask for another place to put my cock.”
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emersonfreepress · 2 years
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Team Murder does Adoption Day
What: Team Murder at a pet adoption event When: 12th grade Words: 2.9k
commissioned by and written for @liquorcanthropy
“Please just — Just repeat it back to me.”
Kile sucks his teeth and you roll your eyes.
“Dude, come on,” Kile groans.
“Gabe,” you snap. “We draw twice as much attention the longer you make us stand around like this.”
“What she said.”
“Just–” Gabe sighs, hard. “Fine. Manny, I saw someone with shirts that way. Kile, don’t disappear. We’ll need you in case she–”
Kile’s already off, long strides taking him in the direction of the dog tents. Gabe exhales tightly before facing you, a mild frown on his face. You don’t bother holding back a snicker.
“We both knew that would happen.” 
Kile ditching you for the dogs was inevitable and you guys shouldn’t even need him if things go perfectly. Maybe that’s why Gabe doesn’t look as mad as he could. It should help that your mission today is in Emerson's town square on a bright, sunny afternoon instead of someone’s creepy basement or public property in the dead of night. Gabe surveys the square, posture still but his eyes darting with observation. 
Then he catches you watching him.
“What?”
“Nothing.” You raise your hands up. “Just wondering what bug crawled up your butt this fine morning.” Gabe’s arms cross and his eyes narrow but you answer his scowl with a smile.
“We’re not here for fun,” Gabe reminds you, finally getting a move on. You walk beside him.
“Well sure, but that’s not really the purpose of this sort of thing anyway.” 
“You say that but ninety percent of these people are here to gawk at animals, not adopt.”
“I’m sure it’s less than ninety.”
“And I’m sure it isn’t unless they’re hiding the purebreds somewhere. It doesn’t matter.” He’s probably right about this cadre of pups not being a ‘dignified’ enough bunch for the locals to go crazy over. But surely this many people wouldn’t come down if none of them intended to adopt, right? “Why are you following me anyway?” Gabe stops abruptly, eyeing you with suspicion. “You’re supposed to be–”
“I know, I know. Finding a shirt. I have my methods, don’t worry.”
“Fine. I'm just…” He sighs, then runs a hand through his hair. “On edge."
“You don’t say,” you snicker, amused that he said it like it isn't obvious. Before he gets upset at that, you add, “Don’t sweat it, Gabe — you do your thing and I’ll go bamboozle a shirt out of these suckers. It’ll be perfect, you’ll love it.”
“You sound completely unreliable right now,” Gabe grumbles, mostly to himself, before his attention is diverted. “There.” It takes you a moment to catch on to what he means, but you see him watching a girl around your age headed to one of the tents. 
“That her?" Gabe said he knew a girl who helped organize this event.
It must be from the way Gabe relaxes his shoulders. He confirms your question with a nod, then hooks a thumb in his pocket while the other rakes through his hair again. “Alright, see ya.”
And just like that, Gabe is off to talk to his target. It baffles you a little, how focused on work he is even on a sunny day surrounded by precious, furry distractions on all sides. You figured he'd at least be a cat person or something… Oh, well. Gabe's working that volunteer and Kile is on stand-by. 
Time to play your part.
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Mere minutes later, the white t-shirt in your hands feels like premium-grade cotton and reads SAVE A LIFE, CHANGE A LIFE in cheerful, blue lettering. You nabbed it during a rather rewarding session of playing with the cats up for adoption; their tent's proximity to the volunteers' break station made that child’s play. You aren’t sure yet how you feel about your rapidly improving theft skills. Your sigh is something akin to exasperation as you pull the simple disguise over your head in the relative privacy of the space between a tent and a portapotty, but there is no denying how comfortable it is. Damn. Maybe you’ll keep it.
You step back out into the main plaza and survey the area. Gabe is still chatting up the organizer near the steps, leaning against the concrete railing in that classic wow-that’s-interesting pose of his. The organizer, for her part, has a pleasant smile on and looks relaxed. Your eyes scan for your next stop: the sign-out booth. Sure enough, the person sitting there looks antsy, annoyed, and impatient — and is staring daggers at the organizer chatting with Gabe.
The perfect time for you to step in, then.
“Hi!” Your cheeriness causes the guy at the sign-in to jump in his seat, but he recovers quickly enough and plasters on a smile for you.
“Hi there! I’m — oh. You’re a volunteer?”
“Yep!” 
The real volunteer eyes you with skepticism, clearly aware that you weren’t around for any of the preparation. You raise a hand and wave the suspicion away with a bashful grin. 
“Overslept, missed the whole set up. Michael’s so mad.”
The volunteer’s demeanor calms down at the mention of some name you’d randomly heard a couple of volunteers bad-mouthing while you waited for your moment to nab a shirt. 
"Oh." He winces, sympathetic. “So rough morning, then.”
"The roughest." You sigh dramatically, shoulders slumping for a moment before perking up again. "But don’t sweat it — that’s just what I get for trusting the snooze button.”
Polite laughter follows. How quaint! Time to strike.
“Anyway, sure looks like she’s preoccupied…” You make a show out of raising your brows in vague judgment, then pointedly looking in the direction of Gabe and his mark. The volunteer (Adam, according to the sticker on his t-shirt) lets out a groan of frustration.
“Seriously. Kara's over there flirting while I'm just meant to wait for her to be ready to work, I guess.”
Ah, righteous indignation. Perfect. You huff out a sigh of sympathy as the two of you continue observing for a moment. Then you turn to Adam, feigning serious thought.
“How long have you been on sign-out duty?”
“Since opening…”
“Yikes. Well… I could take over? Until Kara remembers to take over, anyway.” 
Adam looks skeptical again. “I don't know… Don’t you have…” He’s right on the verge of realizing he doesn’t know what you’re meant to be doing here, so you nip that thought process right in the bud with another dismissive wave.
“Please. When the alternative is you missing lunch so Kara can get some action? Over my dead body." You gently gesture for him to get up.
“Are you sure?” Adam looks around anxiously, possibly for another organizer to deem this okay. “I don’t want–”
“Yes, I’m sure,” you say, continuously shooing him with your hands until he finally rises from his seat. Victory. “Kara will come to her senses and take over soon enough, so don’t worry.”
Adam does get up, but eyes you questioningly. Maybe wondering what you are supposed to be doing, but luckily he doesn’t resist any further.
“Fine, but… this wasn’t my idea.”
“Absolutely not!” you chirp, butt firmly settled in the seat of an actual volunteer. You officially look like the real deal. And it wasn’t even hard! You shrug and add, “Besides, if Kara wasn’t so distracted…”
Adam sighs and that seems to be the last push he needed. “True. Alright, I’ll see you around. Thanks…” His eyes search for a name tag and come up short.
“Jennifer!” You pat at a non-existent sticker, then feign surprise. “Oh — I think my sticker fell off…”
Adam grins, amused. “I’ll make sure to find you a new one.”
Ugh. Don’t do that. 
“Thanks, Adam!” You hope he’s just being polite about that offer as he walks away.
…Alright, then. You’re exactly where you need to be. Now you get to… sit and wait.
Or that’s what you think until a tired woman and two bouncing, smiling children stop in front of your booth with their new forever friend in tow. You look down at the forms and other supplies at your desk and then up at the woman's impatient face.
Oh, crap. This is actual work…
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This is bullshit. Gabe gets to flirt, Kile gets to play with dogs (you’re sure, even if you haven’t visually confirmed it yet), and you get to collect names and signatures — for FREE. Utter bullshit.
Why do you always get stuck with the most boring job?
Just when your mood is threatening to sour for real, you notice that Gabe now faces you for the first time since you've split up. Is he trying to get your attention? You can’t tell what it is he wants to convey but… you get the feeling you should be on alert. Why?
Your question is answered by the next guest that approaches your table — the guest of honor, of sorts. 
“Hello… there,” greets an unassuming woman in a pair of jeans and sweater that blends into event's the casual atmosphere. What stands out about her is the rigid, dignified way she carries herself. You spot a relaxed Pomeranian-mix by her side on a lead. “Eileen Weber.”
Oh. Oh! This is her! The whole reason you're sat here collecting signatures in the first place. You quickly put on your best smile — you’ll need it for how much you’re about to inconvenience her.
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In the end, you somehow managed to wrangle three signatures out of the Weber woman. One on the ‘wrong’ sign-out sheet, a second on the actual sign-out sheet, and another on a spare slip of paper when the pen ran out of ink between fiascos. That one especially felt like a stroke of good luck.
You’ve already taken off your volunteer disguise but can’t help but feel a little bad at the line beginning to form at your abandoned station. Hopefully you’ll be out of here before Adam returns from his break. For now, you’ve decided to hide out in the dog tent — where you easily, immediately, spot Kile.
Well, first you spot the exasperated volunteers working the station. Then you spot Kile, blatantly sat on the ground, pampering no less than four giant canines. A volunteer eyes you, tired. 
“Is that your friend?”
"Yeah..." You shrug, a helpless grin making your answer obvious.
He sighs. “Could you get him out of there, please? This isn’t a petting zoo and he’s been hanging out for an hour.”
Part of you feels oddly defensive, to the point where you have to stop yourself from asking why no one working here can just tell him themselves. It's a silly question; you know from experience that most people avoid telling Kile what to do. You assure the guy that you’re on your way to do just that before entering the dog pen yourself.
A bunch of good boys and girls greet you, causing Kile to notice your arrival. You coo at the puppies for a bit as you make your way over, then give the sociable dogs proper greetings. You really wish you could stay, but it's only a matter of time before Adam spots you or Kara finally gets back to work. Then you’re over by Kile — two of the dogs by his side acknowledge you while the other two seem too absorbed in the pets they’re receiving to notice you yet. Big hands have perks, if these dogs' lazy smiles are any indication.
You wave the papers you've acquired at Kile.
“Got it?”
“Yep. It was easy.”
“You need me to copy it now?”
“Nope! I’m as competent as ever.” 
Kile smirks, looking about to say something before his attention is drawn back to the dogs at his lap.
“You've really been here the whole time?”
Kile shrugs and hums a non-answer, intently focused on the old mutt getting a scalp massage. It pants happily, tongue lolling. “Spent a minute with the puppies, but yeah.” Ignoring the glare from the volunteer who wants Kile gone, you sit on the ground beside him and join in with the rubs, quickly gaining all of the dogs’ attention.
“Puppies too much energy for ya?”
Kile smirks again, his laughs little more than a huff as he shakes his head.
“They’re just gonna get adopted. These guys probably won’t.”
Confused, you're about to ask why — but all at once, it's obvious. These dogs that Kile has ingratiated himself to are... well, old. Greying fur, slow on their feet, heavy on their flanks when they sit down. You spot a the profile for one of them and your thoughts are confirmed. 
“You sought out the old, sick ones?”
The look Kile sends you seems borderline offended, though you doubt he's feeling that strongly. 
“I didn’t seek 'em out. This just happened.”
“Sure, it did...” As unconvincing as that sounds, you leave it alone. You almost end up glaring back at the guy who wants to kick Kile out — if no one else is giving the old dogs love, what does it matter if he does?
Alright, maybe you do throw that volunteer a glare.
"Well… we got what we came for, so as much as I'd love to keep petting dogs with you..."
"I know. Just one more minute."
Can you spare a minute? Maybe? You've got a bad feeling that you're liable to get caught out if you hang around much longer. As if on cue, your third partner arrives. Kile grunts unhappily as soon as Gabe is in sight, causing you to snicker.
"Hey." Gabe greets you from outside of the tent, standing close to the barrier. His eyes fall to the papers in your hand. "Did you..."
"You know," you interrupt. "'Hey' is way too casual to sound natural coming from you." Kile huffs another laugh and Gabe gives you a dirty look; exactly the reactions you wanted. Gabe ignores the comment and continues, leaning over the short wall.
"Did you get everything?"
"Yes, Dad," you whine. He rolls his eyes at the sarcasm.
"Everything? We don't need to make a copy and—"
"No," Kile grumbles. Uh-oh, he's annoyed. Even the dogs notice and — are you imagining them crowding around him in support? What?
Luckily, your competence seems to have left Gabe mostly speechless.
"Oh. Huh." He stares at the paper again, then at you. "Nice work." You only get about two seconds to bask in the moment before Gabe is right back to killing vibes. "Let's go, then."
Kile sighs loud and hard in response... but doesn't budge. You can see that one volunteer getting antsy. Gabe slumps over the fence at his reaction.
"Kile, come on…"
"I heard you the first fuckin' time."
"Hey..." you chide, bumping lightly against Kile's arm. You'll never get out of here without extra attention if they start fighting. Kile rolls his eyes at you and pulls away.
"I'm coming."
Gabe sighs, on the verge of complaining, before he just says, "Okay." Then he shoots you a pleading look. This is becoming more of a thing lately: Gabe turning to you to get Kile to do… well, not the impossible. But it's pretty undeniable at this point that sometimes Kile won't do things just because Gabe's annoyed him. 
So fine. You can't help but chuckle to yourself at how hopeless the two of them can be, though. You finish petting the old dog that had just settled its head in your lap, then get to your feet. Kile barely reacts, but you don't miss him shifting again. Just barely getting more comfortable. 
Worse than a stubborn old dog.
"Come on. Time to say bye to your new friends." When he ignores you, pretending that it takes all of one's attention to scratch floppy ears, you look around for some sort of motivation.
A-ha.
"Look. You're scaring off the kids." That does get Kile's attention, in the form of an irritated stare. Why the hell would I care about that, is what you're reading in it. So you point at, indeed, the one little kid in the dog tent whose eyes are glued to one of the old friends at your feet. Their gaze only breaks to nervously dart over you and Kile as they clutch their mom's skirt. Kile sees where you're pointing.
…And finally stands up.
"Gracias, Señor," Gabe sighs out, relieved.
"Thank you, Kile," you sing.
"Whatever, Manny. Let's go." Before either of you can stop him, he's pushed a barrier aside to leave right then and there, either to avoid the volunteers on the way out or just to make the quickest exit. You slip through the space provided and Kile follows — but stops abruptly.
"What are you—" You turn back, but your heart sinks and your eyes go wide at the sight before you.
All four senior dogs, on their feet, tails swaying and ready to follow you both home.
"Oh, no," you whimper.
"Stay."
A couple of the dogs heed Kile's command and sit, while the other two remain clueless. You might imagine it, but the sigh Kile makes as he closes the barrier back up sounds forlorn.
Gabe sighs and mutters something to himself. You shoot him a dirty look.
"I know you're lacking in a heart, but can the grumbling wait?"
"I have a heart. I also have a cat allergy, so give me a break." He runs a hand through his hair. "I swear you're just as bad as each other."
"You say that like it's a bad thing," you reply, half-paying attention. You're a little more interested in the prolonged farewell Kile appears to be having with the senior dogs. What could he possibly be saying to them? You miss Gabe scoffing.
"I never said it was a bad thing."
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alligatorjesie · 1 year
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I’m a black woman & reylos like you have been sending me death threats for years. Telling me they want to lynch me for years. Calling me racial slurs for YEARS just because your ship & community is racist & I call it out. So honestly? I don’t feel sorry for you. I think you’re getting exactly what you deserve. How does it feel to get just a tiny fraction of what I get almost daily for the first time in your white life?
Reylos Like Me? Bitch, there ain't no reylos like me.
Anon... Man...
I’ll admit something here, I wish you guys would send me this shit using your real accounts every once in a while. I understand it’s hard to use your real face when you type out the words ‘You deserve those death threats you get’ and still feel like you’re on the moral high ground, but before you take one step further up that hill you've made into a mountain and trip on that stone then tumble backwards ass over teakettle into the fucking ditch you deserve to live in until forevermore, I want you to stop and think real hard for a second what you just typed out and why the fuck that shit is fucked beyond explanation.
I want you to consider the thought process of telling someone that you have received death threats yourself from people in a fandom, then continue with zero fucking awareness to tell a whole new person you've never fucking interacted with before and know fucking nothing about other than they're a reylo that they deserves death threats for... being a reylo?
Like telling that to someone else removes your old wounds or some fucking shit. Does telling me I deserve to die make you feel fucking better?
I don’t fucking know you since you're obviously too fucking cowardly to use your real account to say shit like you just fucking said, because you know it's wrong enough you 'ought not use your real account to say it but not enough to stop you from doing it.
I can only assume who you are because there’s only 3ish people like you I’ve come into contact with in the reylo fandom space with your tune. It’s a pretty small world here, I don’t know if you’ve noticed. The furry fandom is much larger and I’m fully aware of the problematic people in that fandom.
The first user liked to bring up race as an issue when it was never was an issue and blocked me instantly when I brought this up.
The second one, only after deciding I was racist because I had the fucking gull to talk about the very real and harsh reality of Police Brutally as a fucking American, took that information and somehow assumed I wanted them to die via cop?
Beats the shit out of me.
This is the same group that seamed to struggle with associations because they also kept conflating that mentioning nazis meant you were automatically Also talking about the holocaust? IDK. They’re fucking stupid children.
The 3rd one is Stitch and I sure as fuck hope that cunt ain’t sending me anons sayin’ I deserve fucking death threats, because that would be stupid of them on every fucking optic.
We’re just gonna hop over the whole assumption that I’m white because I present online as a fucking alligator so first off bitch as far as you know I’m fucking green and yellow, we ain’t got time for that shit right now, scolding for another day, Continuing:
We are gonna spend a moment on the incorrect assumption that I, A Furry, have in fact Not been receiving death threats since childhood.
Well let me set that record straight for you right now and tell you I Have, As A Furry, Been Told To Die A Lot In Fact.
And not just told, but attempts on furry lives has in fact been made.
I have been being told to die since I was 9.
I was 9 years old the first time someone online told me to go die in a fire because I was drawing myself as a cat.
No one is nice to furries. It’s literally an online joke. Furries are at the bottom of every internet culture tier.
So as someone who has also been dealing with death threats since a very young age unlike what you wrongly fucking assumed, you can and should understand my complete fucking befuddlement of this same person who took the time to sit down and dictate a message to me describing in graphic fucking detail the Absolutely Horrendous Things Said To Them As Death Threats then:
Made A Fucking Choice to Further Perpetuate It,
without a fucking HINT of irony.
You send me this anon telling I deserve death threats because I told someone who was harassing my friends in their own fandom spaces to leave that space if they were going to continue being assholes to my friends? That in your book is what deserves someone getting a death threat? You think I deserve to be told I should die because I told a harasser to fucking leave?
YOU, person who was also recited death threats for defending your own however fucking twisted idea of mortality, think it’s fine someone else gets them for essentially defending their friends from harassment via people like you?
Well that’s fucked up. I know a lot of reylos, being a reylo, and most of them just want to read smut and make art of the thing they love. We’re very insular. What we are not a fucking hive mentality so I just fucking don’t know were you got the idea that if one reylo acts like a fucking shithead then ALL the reylos most be equally shitheads.
Most reylos don’t speak for me. Quite a few very well know and popular reylos have blocked me because of the shit I say to antis in this fandom, not many of them want to read the word 'cunt ' that often in a day and I understand. Now if those reylos have that kind of reaction to me simply telling people off in graphic detail you can understand my disbelief when you tell me you've been given death threats by Multiple Reylos.
I just have a really fucking hard time believing you without some fucking proof.
Reylos are more chill than furries and I didn't fucking think that could happen. I've never met such a big group of genuinely sincere people in my fucking life and I've been in a lot of fandoms.
They spent 7 years just quietly dealing with death threats and harassment for guessing a ship correctly rather than fight back from you fucknuts. They're very pacifistic. Literally just here for the smut and the character development.
But just because a handful of fucking horrible human beings who just so happen to be reylos sent you death threats don’t suddenly make it alright for all reylos to receive death threats you daffy fucking cunt.
You've been getting death threats from reylos for years? I question the authenticity of that but fucking news flash chucklefuck, so have the reylos.
Oh yeah, there are bad actors in this fandom. Fuck me, I’m one of them. I’ll bet you good fucking money most of the reylos here fucking hate seeing my posts pop up if the zero interaction is any indicator.
‘There’s the fucking cunt of an alligator again making all the reylos look bad’ and you know, that’s fair. I ain’t the fucking belle of the reylo ball let me tell you that right now, But Goddammit, I just have a real hard time keeping my trap shut when people who hate this fandom rear their ugly fucking heads to pop into our space and tell us the thing we love is wrong for ‘X’ reason.
I get it, you’re black and offended by space nazis in the galaxy battles saga.
But we’ve had this conversation Many Fucking Times Now about the character of Ben Solo and how we’ve deduced he’s not a fucking nazi with all the context clues provided in the source material of the books, comics, and movies.
I can’t help you understand any more that we reylos hear your complaint.
We see it.
We're painfully aware of it.
We get why you’re mad, but every single fucking time we try to show you why you’re mad for the wrong reasons you wont fucking have it and I'm not gonna hold your hand and help dumb-dumb mcshitty-pants-head here understand how basic fucking plot structure and character drives works in a movie so fucking easy to follow literal children understand it better than you.
But you know what you can do if you flat fucking out refuse to be fucking civil in our fandom space?
You can fucking leave.
You ain't a fucking fan that's for sure. Not with the crazy fucking shit ya'll spout. So why the fuck you here? Fuckin' leave.
I can not make you understand any more that your continued harassment of people in this fandom over this tired and proven incorrect belief about a character that we care for deeply and have explained to you time and fucking time again isn’t a fucking nazi isn’t going to change hearts or minds in this fandom.
You are not helping your cause every time you post in the reylo tag with another Hot Take™ about Kylo Ren and why you think he’s a soulless monster. Just like you probably wouldn’t be making a lot of friends if you showed up at a Black Panther party and started going on about how you think Malcolm X is a domestic terrorist.
Wrong fucking place man.
You’re not saving us from a nazi character.
You’re not convincing us that Ben Solo doesn't deserve redemption.
You’re not teaching us the errors of our smooth brained ways because you think we're stupid fangirls who can’t tell reality from fucking fiction and might also accidentally become nazis by enjoying what is honestly the most fucking vanilla enemies to lovers trope on the fucking market rather than the truth which is we just really wanting to see the redeemed son of Leia Organa and Han Solo make hot fucking love to Rey from Jakku and watch them both grow old and happy together with dozens of kids.
Don't like that idea? Fuckin' Great My Cunt, Never go into reylo fandom tag again and you'll never fucking see it again.
It's just that fucking easy!
Listen, You don’t deserve death threats no one fucking does, but you should understand why the reylos get mad at you with your fucking constant harassment of a ship that just isn’t as problematic as you’d fucking wish it was.
But speaking of reylos sending you death threats;
You point me in the direction of these reylos and I will fucking personally chew them three new assholes. That shit ain’t fucking alright man. No one should be fucking telling you to go kill yourself and if someone I know says shit like that you’ll bet your sweet fucking ass I’ll be the first fucking cunt in line to tell that stupid fucking bitch right the fuck off.
I don’t want them in my fucking fandom and I'll fucking tell them to leave just like I tell you stupid fucks. Just like I don’t want nazis in the furry fandom.
And you know what we tell nazis trying to get into the furry fandom? We tell them to fuck off too.
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I don’t like that you were told you should die. That shit is fucked up.
But my horrible fucking anon, you should do the most fucking basic courtesy as a fucking human being who has gone through that yourself and understand why it’s not alright to wish death on others.
You should take a break from tumblr, light up a fat fucking doobie, put on some Radiohead Kid A, and do some internal reflection on why the fuck you think someone you've maybe only interacted with once before deserves death threats while also reflecting on why you might be getting so many yourself.
If you’re so ready to tell ME I deserve to die, then you’ve likely told other this too.
You get out of life what you put in. If you’re an asshole and you put that out there, assholes will find you. God knows that’s true, look at us two giant fucking assholes now. I put my whole huge asshole out there and now I get at least 5 asks a day that are either some fun variation of ‘go kill yourself’ or ‘you like fucking nazis you whore’ to the person who was once chlorine bombed by a nazi at a furcon.
Do you not want to receive death threats? Maybe don’t send them yourself.
God knows I don’t send death threats, yet I still get plenty of them just for being a cunt for rightful reasons.
But I’ll tell you what I’ll never fucking do is send you a death threat.
You can be an asshole, fine man that’s your fucking right. God fucking knows I can and fucking will call you everything from a rotten jizz sock or a bloated condom filled with piss, and on a good day I may also describe in detail how hard and raw I love to fuck both your parents that anyone who screws them after can just shove their whole leg up in there and they wouldn't feel a goddamn thing, but stop for one fucking second the next time you type out the words ‘you deserve death threats’ and consider this simple fact of life:
You get back what you put in.
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niqhtlord01 · 3 years
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Well howdy holy shit we’re still alive! 
Honestly it’s a bit surprising we’ve lasted this long in a world that’s either on fire, in the grips of a deadly plague, or about to be over run by giant murder hornets! 
Safe to say we need a break from all this violence and madness, by watching our favorite characters commit violence and go mad in another round of ROOSTHER TEETH CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!
Julian: *Hologram appears* Felix: Lieutenant Dan! You ain’t got no legs no more! Julian: Seriously? Felix: *Draws knife and gun* Couldn’t resist; it cracks me up every time.   ------------------------------------------  
Tucker: *Draws energy sword*  Jaune: So your weapon is just a sword?  Tucker: Hey! Don’t go talking shit about swords! Jaune: *Merges sword and shield to make claymore* I would never. ----------------------------------------------
Roman: *Walks in, throws cigar on the ground and stomps on it*  US: Awe, is the minor villain getting upset over their death? Roman: Remind me again, how many seasons you were in? Oh right, you barely lasted an episode. US: *Flips coin, turns to nano tech* Come here you clockwork orange rip off. 
----------------------------------------------
Cinder: *Levitates in on fire* Nemesis: Kill the copy. Cinder: I’m no ones copy. Nemesis: *Nano tech cloud flickers* You steal powers of others. Y-y-you use their p-power. You ar-ar-are a copy. KILL THE COPY! ----------------------------------------------
Nomad: *Walks in with wind blowing poncho* Sun: So if I punch you, will I get magic powers and wishes? Nomad: *Thinks for moment, shrugs*  Sun: *Extends staff* For my first wish I think I’ll make you crack a smile. ---------------------------------------------
Church: *Hologram appears*  Rufus: Computer disable hologram, I’m too busy for this nonsense.  Church: I’m sorry but I couldn’t hear that; could you try speaking without my fucking fist shoved down your god damn mouth!? Rufus: *Caliban activates and stands up* A violent hologram? Gods I can hear the 90′s calling all over again. --------------------------------------------
Toth: *Sheathes blade*  Locus: Do you fight for glory?  Toth: I fight for something much larger than petty glory.  Locus: *Activates stealth* Right answer.  -------------------------------------------
Blake: *Swings in* Grif: So If I gave you catnip is that like giving a minor drugs?  Blake: I don’t know if I should be more surprised or angry right now.  Grif: *Hefts bruteshot* If I put your catnip freak out up on youtube maybe I could make some of that sweet furry money; those sick fucks are always loaded. ------------------------------------------
Ironwood: *Walks in loading pistol* Caboose: Did you get your hand stuck in a vending machine too?  Ironwood: ....... Caboose: *Draws freckles* That’s okay, I really wanted those skittles too.  -----------------------------------------
Penny: *Super hero landing* Don: Well you’re no nomad, but one magical person is as good as another. Penny: Oh I’m not magic, I’m a product of science!  Don: *Draws sword* Science, magic, whatever; you are my meal ticket out of this hell hole! -----------------------------------------
Ruby: *Twirls scythe* Dr. Grey: I hear you have a nice set of silver eyes.  Ruby: Are you hear to take them as well? Dr. Grey: *Pulls out scalpel* In a manner of speaking.  -----------------------------------------
 Salem: *Grim part to allow her through* Valentina: So are you into kinky things or do you normally dress like that? Salem: I am a goddess of this world and you shall bow before me.  Valentina: *activates cloak* Kinky it is then. 
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jungkxook · 4 years
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—moonstruck. (m)
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⟶ pairing: taehyung x reader
⟶ genre: werewolf!taehyung au / arranged marriage au / smut with a sprinkle of fluff
⟶ words: 7,421
⟶ rating: 18+
⟶ summary: in hindsight, being friends with a pack of werewolves and, thus, suddenly being thrown into a world of supernatural furries and other inhuman beings isn’t something you would recommend but it was too late to back out now, especially when you consider the fact that apparently you’re now being “hunted” and the only way to save you is to be mated with taehyung. whatever that means.
⟶ warnings: multiple smut scenes, first time (virgin!taehyung), clumsy sex, soft and gentle sex, sort of rough sex, all the sex, cunnilingus, riding, hair pulling, knotting, buckets of cum, biting kink, slight impregnation kink, unprotected sex, creampie
⟶ disclaimer: first fic back after a long hiatus and i’m suddenly v nervous to post this!! also this is shamelessly and 100% inspired by an episode of the show outlander (to be exact, the wedding episode). i couldn’t help myself!! 
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“Are you serious right now?”
In hindsight, being friends with a pack of werewolves and, thus, suddenly being thrown into a world of supernatural furries and other inhuman beings isn’t something you would recommend but it was too late to back out now, especially when you consider the fact that apparently you’re now being “hunted.” Whatever that means.
Had you heard yourself speak a year ago before meeting Taehyung and having your life turned upside down, you would have surely thought you were insane, and you would have definitely thought Taehyung is insane, and the rest of his friends who are, subsequently, now yours ━ each of whom are all currently splayed out before you in Namjoon’s spacious country-side home with similar grave looks staring back at you.
“Dead serious,” Hoseok takes the liberty of breaking the odd silence saturating the kitchen. He’s made it a point to be on time for once, which you consider great and all if it wasn’t basically to dispute your current death sentence. “Always thought Jaebum’s pack were sons of bitches ━ glad to know it’s still true.”
“Hoseok,” Yoongi scolds. “Be a little more compassionate.”
“Am I wrong?” Hoseok refutes.
From off to the side, Jimin pushes himself forward with a frustrated groan, shaking his head. “Tae, I told you this was a dumb fucking idea ━ bringing Y/N into the pack━”
“I didn’t think this would happen,” Taehyung protests hotly. He’s leaning against the wall somewhere behind you, arms crossed over his chest and a deep frown darkening his face.
“How could you not think this would happen?” Jungkook retorts bitterly.
“Shut up, Jungkook.”
“She’s a human,” Jungkook says. “Jaebum wants her gone, but if he were to get his hands on her, then who knows what could happen━”
“I said shut up, Jungkook,” Taehyung snarls, an odd vehement tone dripping from his every word that is out of the place for the usually tranquil boy. Jungkook’s mouth clamps shut at once, though you suspect it’s not to do with defeat more so than because he’s the newest addition to the pack and, while Namjoon is their leader (or Alpha, as you’ve heard being thrown around before), Taehyung was something of a second-in-command. You could only imagine the consequences of crossing either Namjoon or Taehyung within the pack.
“Hold on a second,” You try to sputter for air, lungs wheezing. Your mind has since been spinning, struggling to keep up. At first you thought they were joking when they had told you, but now you were beginning to understand the severity at the very least. “I’m being hunted? Why?”
Now, Namjoon looks from Taehyung, then to you, and back again. Taehyung hesitates to answer at first, and Jungkook scowls. “Well, tell her, Tae. You dragged her into this mess. She deserves to hear it from you.”
As you twist in your seat to look up at Taehyung, your eyes locking briefly with his, the boy grimaces and then has to look away. He takes a deep breath before responding. “Okay, look. You know that pack I told you about? Jaebum’s?”
You nod, though the memory is vague. You’ve heard the name in passing before, but you could only gather that there was some sort of animosity between his and Taehyung’s pack.
“He found out about you, and I don’t know how,” Taehyung explains. “And now he wants you gone, and he’ll do anything to see it through.”
You blink once, dumbfounded. Terrified, even. Taehyung can certainly hear it in your voice and it makes him flinch again, as if being striked across the face. “Why?”
“Because you’re not one of us,” Taehyung says. “Because you’re human. When I first told you about us, I was risking everything. It’s uncommon for one of us to bring a human into the pack just because, and often even frowned upon. There’s a fear you’ll expose us to the human world or the hunters. Jaebum’s threatening to start war if we don’t deal with this situation ourselves.”
It’s only then that the dread begins to creep upon you, chilling you to the bone. “Deal with it… how?”
“The ultimatum is either kill you ourselves, or give you over to Jaebum to deal with, as a sort of peace offering,” Namjoon says carefully.
“Which probably also results in death,” Hoseok points out morbidly.
Jin scoffs. “Or worse.”
“Is there any option that doesn’t result in death?” You ask warily. At this, the group falls silent once more.
“Well, there is one.” Namjoon glances fleetingly around at his brethren, then sighs. “You become one of us.”
“I━” You stammer, face suddenly hot. “You mean, like, a werewolf?”
“I mean, a wedding.”
“A wedding?” You gasp. “How is that going to save me?”
“Not a wedding like you think,” Namjoon says. “More of a bonding. A handfasting. Right now, as a human, you’re vulnerable and exposed. We have no claim over you. But if you become one of us ━ without being turned ━ then Jaebum shouldn’t be able to touch you.”
Slowly, you begin to piece together the fragment of your dilemma. “Marry who?”
A beat of silence passes amongst the group in which time you spot Namjoon nod in the direction of Taehyung’s figure beyond you, a wordless yet clear gesture. Suddenly, a stubborn warmth of a blush pinches at your cheeks. You wonder if they can notice, if Taehyung can notice. You start, “Taehyung━?”
“He offered to be the one,” Namjoon says. “And Jaebum knows Taehyung’s role in the pack. If he knows you’re mated to Tae, Jaebum would be absolutely insane to try and come for you. It’s the only way, Y/N, and it ensures your safety.”
“Marrying Taehyung?” You ask shrilly, voice dangerously thin. “How is marrying Taehyung going to ensure my safety?”
“It’s not just a marriage,” Jimin explains.
But of course you already know this, werewolf laws a strange and intricate jumble of rules that you’ve long since grown accustomed to. When he speaks next, you already know it’s much more than a marriage; and, when he speaks next, you fear you’ve already had your fate decided for you.
“It’s not just a marriage,” Namjoon repeats, matter-of-fact, “because we’re making you Taehyung’s mate.”
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“You didn’t have to do this.”
You try not to think about it. Admittedly, marrying your friend who you have only known for a year isn’t something you had been expecting. But, as Namjoon had explained it, it wasn’t necessarily a legal unification between you and Taehyung, though you suppose it’s as valid now as any marriage with the ritualistic handfasting ceremony making it official. That, and you favoured living to see another day instead of becoming a werewolf’s next meal or ripped to shreds by one.
Only a day after your conversation with the boys of Taehyung’s pack, you’ve come to your ultimate decision which has led you to where you are now, returning to Namjoon’s home for a wedding. Your wedding. You hadn’t very long to decide your own fate anyway, with the boys grimly warning you it was now or never. But you trust them, despite this crazed ludicrous situation you find yourself in ━ and you trust Taehyung more than anything, your friendship with him having quickly blossomed into something so sincerely profound over the year that you’ve known him.
If you’re being honest, Namjoon’s pack had at least made an effort for the occasion because despite how unconventional it is, it was still a celebration. A celebration for your marriage, and a celebration for their hopeful victory over Jaebum. Still, the underlying threat of the evening remains, made more prevalent by the fact that it was required to invite at least another pack (of which you’ve met the leader, Jisoo, a handful of times before) as witnesses. It’s a simple ceremony too, quaint and cute if you weren’t clinging to life. You had made it a point to dress up, digging a pretty white dress from the depths of your closet with flowing butterfly-like sleeves; Taehyung had forgone a suit but was still handsomely dressed too, leaving you to feel like less of an idiot. Namjoon had officiated it, standing before you and Taehyung as you held one another’s hand, wrapped delicately in ribbon, listening to the vows being proclaimed that talked about true love, and the passion and yearning involved.
When the handfasting finally draws to a close, you’re shoved into a room alone with Taehyung for a moment of privacy by Hoseok, who can be heard quipping wolfishly, “Get it over with quick!” before vanishing behind the closed door. You wager he’s left to join with the rest of the festivities outside where, no doubt, every werewolf is currently drinking themselves blind.
Finally alone with Taehyung, a saturated silence fills the air that has you wringing your hands anxiously in front of you. You sit on the edge of the bed in the center of the room. “What other choice was there, Tae?”
Taehyung takes a moment to respond, and even he knows the thought is a useless one when it crosses his mind before voicing it aloud. “We could have ran away.”
“How far would we get?” You sigh. Still, the sorrow earnest in his voice and riddling his face is enough to make you look up at him sympathetically. “I’m no use to you if Jaebum or someone worse finds us by ourselves. Besides, the boys need you.”
“No, you need me,” Taehyung insists. “Jungkook’s right. I dragged you and the pack into this mess. It’s my responsibility to fix this.”
He drags his feet towards the bed, then flops down onto his back on the mattress. A troubled groan punctuates the air, and you sneak a glance behind you to see him rubbing warily at his eyes.
You decide now would be the best time to ask the one question that has been on your mind since the night before when you were sitting in Namjoon’s kitchen to discuss Jaebum’s scorn. “Is that why… Is that why you offered to be my mate?”
“Yes,” Taehyung admits meekly. “Sort of. Think we’d all rather it be me than Joon, anyway.”
You don’t argue with this. The reasons as to why it had to be Taehyung satisfied you well enough. That, and aside from having befriended the pack over the months, you’re much closer to Taehyung than you are with the others.
“So…” You trail off, clearing your throat. At this point, you’re simply speaking for the sake of filling the void. “What now?”
Taehyung shrugs. He looks around the room. “Nothing.”
“Well, what did Hoseok mean just now? Get what over with?”
“Erm━” Taehyung opens his mouth, as if preparing to explain, then decides otherwise. “It’s nothing.”
“Taehyung, we literally just got married and you’re already keeping secrets from me,” You retort. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong,” he insists. “It’s just that… Well…” He sits up from the bed, meeting your curious gaze. “This was essentially a mating, and every mating needs to be seen through to the end to be considered valid. The pack can tell when it’s… uh… done.”
Oh.
Now it hits you. It’s the way he awkwardly trails off, hand ruffling through his long locks, that has you immediately understanding what he’s trying to imply. You gawk upward at him. “Are you asking me to sleep with you?”
Suddenly, Taehyung looks flustered and he shakes his head frantically. “I mean, they expect it, but I would never force it on you.” Then, he straightens up, as if captivated by a newfound confidence. The smallest of smirks dances upon his lips that you don’t miss. “Besides, I never said it had to be between you and me. As long as they can sense it, I’d say your hand would do just fine instead ━ but you have all night for that.”
“Oh my god.”
The smirk widens into a devious look now. “You said you wanted honesty.”
As he dissolves into a fit of stifled chuckles, you scowl but you wager it’s mostly an attempt to hide the frazzled look on your face. Then, hurrying to change the topic, ask, “Is every mating like that then?”
“Yeah,” Taehyung admits. “If two mates want to stay together forever, they complete the process with marking, usually by a bite. It strengthens the mating bond.”
Taehyung notices you squirm in your spot, crossing your knee over the other and squeezing your thighs together. He can sense you’re uncomfortable, understandably with your current situation, but can’t quite pinpoint what else seems to make you sit so rigidly.
“What was it like for you?” He decides to ask. “The handfasting?”
The question takes you by surprise, though his sincere intrigue makes you smile smally to yourself. “I’ve never experienced anything like that before, but it was… It was nice.” You think back to nearly an hour ago, and the way Taehyung had looked standing before you. While you were marrying him out of necessity, there was something candidly beautiful about the entire ceremony. At the very least, you were glad it had been with Taehyung of all people. “Can I be honest with you, Tae?”
“Of course,” Taehyung says. “At this point, you can pretty much tell me anything. Don’t think anything’s as shocking as coming out as a werewolf.”
An innocent giggle bubbles at your throat. Suddenly, you look sheepish. “I might have had one too many glasses of wine before coming.”
“Ah.” Despite the interested hum of noise, he looks genuinely entertained. “So you’re drunk?”
“Not quite. Pleasantly buzzed,” You say. “Well, can you blame me? The occasion called for it considering a bunch of wolves want to kill me and I’m being arranged into a marriage.”
“So you don’t remember anything about your own wedding?”
You pull a face, though Taehyung gathers it’s because of the blunt mention of the word. “I do. Just… not all of it. Some things are clearer than others, but I think that’s mostly because I was nervous.”
“I remember every moment,” Taehyung muses thoughtfully. “I remember seeing you there, in your dress, and everything felt right despite it all.” His stare hardens in that moment, as if probed by the harsh reminder of the reasoning behind the night in the first place. “You know I’ll do anything to keep you safe, right? We haven’t had time to sit back and talk it over but you really do mean the world to me.”
A muffled groan eclipses your lips. You dig the heels of your palms against your eyes as you bemoan, “Don’t say those kinds of things, Tae.”
“Why?”
“Because… Because…” Your eyes shoot open, though suddenly you refuse to meet his curious wandering gaze.
But Taehyung doesn’t even need you to finish your thought. You wonder if it’s one of the many keen abilities possessed by these shapeshifters or if it’s simply a Taehyung thing, being that he’s quickly become one of your closest friends over the year that you’ve known him.  
“You’re still nervous,” he hums as delicately as possible. It’s not an accusation, but a simple fact of the matter. He pushes himself to sit on the edge of the bed beside you, leaving an appropriate amount of space between the two of you. “Are you nervous because of me?”
“No.”
“That’s a lie,” Taehyung snorts. When you don’t respond immediately, a small inkling of a doubt makes him question apprehensively, “Are you scared of me then? I wouldn’t blame you, especially after everything that’s been going on━”
“What?” You finally turn to look at him, a look of incredulousness contorting your face. “No! No, I’m not scared of you, Tae. I could never be scared of you.” You don’t dare turn to face him, instead keeping your eyes fixed on your hands as you continue. “You make me nervous, but not in a bad way. Does that make any sense?”
“Yeah. Yeah, it does.” When you chance a look at him, you find him smiling softly to himself. “It’s the same way I felt when I saw you earlier tonight.”
Your heart quickens in pace against your chest, and you’re almost positive he can surely hear it. Now, you finally lift your timid stare to meet his pensive look, and you have to bite back the smile that threatens to form on your face. He looks distracted, though not in a way where his mind is elsewhere entirely; instead, he seems besotted, dark eyes shimmering gently, and there’s a palpable shift of energy in the atmosphere.
Without even realizing it, the pair of you begin to gravitate towards one another, leaning in close enough to shorten the distance between the two of you. You pause, lingering near enough to feel his warm breath fanning against your neck. He can’t help himself, and reaches out with his hand to brush his fingers along your shoulder to the base of your throat, sending chills down your spine. His hand comes to rest against your neck, fingers stretching outward to cradle the back of your head. He guides you toward him this time, closer and closer.
“Taehyung…” You whisper.
He stops at once, clamps his mouth shut and squeezes his eyes closed. His restraint seems to be not without labour, judging by the sobering small shake of his head, and the way he leans his forehead against yours, tendons in his jaw fluttering as he clenches his teeth. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t.”
“I want you to.”
He’s startled when you’re the one that moves first, catching his lips onto yours. He’s unmoving at first, basking in the feel and taste of your mouth smoothing over his. It’s slow, steady, but then he’s craning his neck to deepen the kiss and something feverish overtakes the both of you. You clamber onto his lap at once, swinging one leg over his and settling back onto him, your dress bunching up at your thighs. He’s taken aback for a moment, though his hands instinctively come to grip at your waist and you try not to focus on how large and warm they feel, burning against the material of your dress. In fact, every inch of him radiates a thermal energy that is both comforting and excites you. You chase his lips, yearning for another kiss, but he hesitates at the last moment, jerking his head away. He doesn’t move very far at first, then he drops his head into the crook of your neck. His nose burrows against the base of your throat, his lips brushing against your skin as he moves along your neck to your shoulder, then back again. You can tell he’s holding himself back, not quite allowing himself to enjoy this. To enjoy you.
“You said we have all night, didn’t you?” You rasp. “So why not start now?”
“I also said it didn’t have to be between you and me if you didn’t want it to be.” Taehyung finds his voice at long last, however hoarse it may be. You’re already driving him crazy, just by your smell alone. “Are you sure? You said you wanted honesty, so be honest with me, Y/N. Don’t just say it’s because it has to be done. I don’t want you to regret anything.”
“Well, don’t you want this?” You question.
“Fuck, yes.” He groans against your neck. Something feral seems to stir within him, and you can feel his canines bare against your skin. “But only if you do.”
You aren’t quite sure what seems to possess you all of a sudden. He’s intoxicating, you think. Your hands tug at his hair now, desperation wearing your own voice thin. “Yes, Tae. Please. I want you inside me so badly.”
Finally, he presses his mouth against your throat, tonguing hot open-mouthed kisses there. His grip tightens around your waist, tugging you harder against him, and the feeling of him growing harder against your inner thigh in a matter of seconds has you both enraptured by a newfound heated ferocity.
Grasping at a moment of clarity, you ask meekly, “Isn’t this your first time?”
“Is it that obvious?”
You want to tell him anything but, the way his hands and lips move across you an indicator of that. “I thought you wolves are all about sex. Don’t you, like, go into heat or something?”
It’s a feeble attempt at a snarky joke, judging by the way your lips unfurl into a languid smirk. “Typically. But I never wanted sex for the sake of fucking. The boys make fun of me all the time for it.”
You snicker, but the delightful noise is lost in a simper as he continues to kiss upward to the underside of your jaw. He grips tightly at your waist and moves, shifting the two of you around, until your back is splayed out on the edge of the bed and he’s hovering directly over you.
“Taehyung…” He grunts in response, though you don’t blame him for not responding. The way his cock bulges against your core now, the way you press your hips up into his instinctively, is enough to drive you insane, let alone the boy. Still, you manage to rasp, “Tae, just don’t bite me. Promise me.”
“I won’t,” he assures, though now he certainly seems preoccupied. He inhales deeply, nostrils flaring, and whines aloud, “God, I can already smell you. So fucking good.”
His head falls into the crook of your neck as his hips dig harshly into yours in a way that makes you aware of what his words seem to mean. Slick arousal already begins to form between your legs, pooling into a mess on your underwear that has you squirming beneath him. The thought of him being able to smell you makes your face heat, but he doesn’t seem to notice. He kisses down to your collarbones, then, without warning, flips you over at once. Rough hands grasp at your waist, pulling you to your knees and your ass off the edge of the bed. As he fumbles to tear your panties from your hips, then lifts the skirt of your dress up with one hand, he hurries to undo his belt and the button of his pants with the other.
“Wait, Tae━” You gasp. Before he can push himself into you, you heave yourself up with your hands and twist just enough to place your palm above his waist on his abdomen, stopping him in his place. “What are you doing?”
“What’s wrong?” he asks, brows creasing with concern. “Isn’t this how it’s done? I’m not totally helpless.”
You bite back your abrupt grin, swallowing your amusement when you realize he’s genuinely confused. It’s hard to grasp how he can look so innocent even despite his leaking cock still in his hand. “Well, yeah, but not always.”
“I just thought it was like how dogs go at it, y’know?” Taehyung says. “The guys all seem to say so anyway.”
You can’t help it now when this newfound information has you keeling over with laughter. You’re fortunate he doesn’t seem offended by your delight, instead grinning sheepishly to himself as he watches you wipe tears away from your eyes.
“What?” he asks promptly, and then as if to nudge you back to reality, tightens his grip on your waist and yanks you towards him gingerly. Pressing his front flush against your back, he catches your ear lobe between his teeth and nibbles on it.
“Then I feel sorry for their mates,” You manage to choke out. “It’s not bad, but I want to be able to see you the first time around. It’s better that way. More intimate.”
You squirm out from beneath him, turning to face him properly. Still sprawled out before him, you prop yourself up on your elbow and then reach out with your other hand to grab at his face and pull him down to you.
“Noted,” he hums into your mouth. “Anything else I should know?”
“Nothing that I can think of at the moment,” You admit, though maybe that’s simply because your mind is spinning at the sight of his length.
He’s much, much bigger than you imagined, tip irritated and swollen red already, glistening with precum as he swipes his palm over himself a handful of times. You hike your dress up further around your waist as he guides himself towards you.
“Stop me if it hurts,” he says.
You nod, though you trust him well enough to know he’ll treat you right in the best way possible. As he pushes the tip of his length against your folds and into you, your reactions are almost immediate. He ceases above you, face scrunching up at the feeling of your slickness around him. You notice his furrowed brows, the way he bares his teeth. A guttural growl sounds deep within his chest that has you shuddering in anticipation.
“Oh, fuck,” he moans. “You’re so fucking wet. You take me so well, baby. I don’t think I’ll last long.”
“Don’t care,” You whimper. “Just wanna feel you.”
He pushes himself in further, slowly and carefully, inch-by-inch, in just a way that has the both of you feeling how he stretches you open every single step of the way. You wonder how much further you can go until he’s stopping, bottoming out within you. He sputters for air, collapsing against your chest entirely as you fall back onto the bed. He waits just enough for you to adjust to the girth of his weight in you, then rolls his hips into yours. Then again, and again, until he’s grinding into you with such measured and deep strokes that you melt beneath him entirely. You kick your legs up to wrap around his waist, head lolling back at the feeling of his mouth sucking against your throat.
“I’m gonna━” His voice splinters off then into an abrupt cry. “Fuck, I’m gonna cum━”
He’s quick to dissolve into shambles, grunting and moaning every time you clench around him and every thrust of his hips. Just when you think you’ve lost yourself to the moment, he cums much faster than you thought and entirely unexpected for him too, in hot waves that have you still writhing beneath him. When he’s spent, his weight falls slack against you, crushing you beneath him but in a comforting manner. It’s silently peaceful for a few moments as he settles, heart thundering in his chest and against yours. Your fingers smooth over his sweaty long locks, scratching at his head. Then━
“That was terrible, wasn’t it?” he mutters wretchedly.
“Not terrible,” You confess. “What was that? Three minutes, top? For your first time, I’m honestly surprised you lasted more than a minute.”
“Fuck off.” His fingers poke at your sides teasingly as you burst out into laughter. He lifts his head to meet yours, perhaps a little embarrassed. “Don’t tell the guys. They’ll never let me live it down.”
“Doesn’t matter,” You hum, tracing your finger down to his lips. “We can practice whenever you want. I’ll make you into a lover so good, you’ll want me to brag to them.”
“Practice, huh?” His eyes sparkle mischievously. He pulls himself from your core and you hiss at the sudden loss, tugging at his chest as if to keep him close to you but he seems to have other plans. “Why stop now?”
You watch him curiously. “Easy there, boy. Don’t wear yourself out.”
“Well, I have to make it up to you,” he points out. “Especially on your wedding night. It’s only fair. What kind of lousy mate would I be to call it a night without having you cum on my face?”
“Romantic.” You roll your eyes but you marvel at the way you had shuddered at the word only moments ago and now, under such a different circumstance, the way he utters it makes your heart flutter in your chest. “Is this the first time you’ve eaten a girl out?”
“I said I was a virgin,” he says. Your eyes stay trained on the boy as he shifts himself further down your body to wedge himself between your thighs, throwing one leg over his shoulder. He kisses at your navel, then down to your core. He takes his time as he reaches out with his fingers to swipe at your folds, admiring the way his cum leaks from you; then, with his forefinger, he wipes at a stray bead of his arousal and pushes it back into your cunt slowly. The simple action is enough to have your back arching off the bed, hands flying out to brace yourself by gripping at his hair. “I never said I didn’t know how to please a woman elsewhere.”
“Enlighten me.”
“Gladly.”
He sinks lower to your core and out of sight, leaving hot open mouthed kisses along the way. His finger never once leaves its spot within you, and instead is joined by another that spreads you wide in absence of his cock.
“Do you know how hard it is to focus on anything other than your beautiful cunt?” he asks, voice low and sultry. “From the moment I could smell you, I wanted a taste.”
His tongue probes against your clit, the wet muscle a sudden startle that has you slackening against him. He flicks it back and forth, mouth wrapping around the bundle of nerves and sucking hard. A moan threatens to fall from your lips but an intrusive thought crossing your mind has you swallowing it with much difficulty.
“Can’t the boys hear us from down there?” You ask. You wonder how the celebration for your “wedding” has unfolded over the night without you or Taehyung there, or if they even notice your prolonged absence.
“No.” His voice is a deep mumble, rattling you from your core outward. “We learn how to tune out sounds nearby unless we really want to pay attention. The new ones struggle a bit, though.”
He curls his fingers inside you, stretching them upward. You pant, “Isn’t Jungkook still new?”
You can feel his smirk unfurling against you even before he pokes his head up to look at you with devious, hooded eyes. “Yeah, well, it’s a bit of a hazing process.”
You hardly have time to register the thought, though it doesn’t matter much. You’re far too overwhelmed by the way Taehyung is making you feel to even care. He drops his mouth from your clit to your folds, tongue swirling against your aching core. He laps at your cunt like a mangy dog as his fingers continue to work within you. The further he burrows into you, the harder his nose digs against your clit and sends you over the edge. You try to hold on just a little longer but your core is already achingly sensitive from when his length had made it home.
“Cum for me,” he murmurs. “Don’t hold back, baby. Let me taste you.”
Fingers twisting in his hair, he growls roughly against you, basking in the way you mewl and moan his name. Time seems to blur and, before you know it, you’ve reached your high. You’re embarrassingly wet, soaking his chin and nose which glistens with a mixture of yours and his arousal. Taehyung doesn’t hold back, instead licking you clean of every last drop, a muffled moan of content emitting from him.
“So good,” he says. “All mine.”
When he finally pulls away from you, he licks at his lips as if not quite finished with your every taste. From where he sits, you’re an entire mess, brows scrunched in concentration, teeth tugging at your lower lip. Needy hands yank at his hair and he obliges, kissing his way up your body to meet your mouth. His tongue pokes through to lav at your lips and wedges itself beyond, and you suck delightfully at the taste of you and him mingling on it. His own hands caress your body, bringing you back down from your high gradually but you can still feel his straining dick against your thigh and it invigorates you even further despite the beginning hints of exhaustion starting to creep upon you.
“Want more,” Taehyung growls with a newfound intensity, catching you off guard. “Need your cunt. M’gonna make it mine. Need to make you mine. Gonna fill you with my cum till you’re bursting with my pups, how does that sound?”
Mind spinning, you nod eagerly at the thought. Your words form in the shape of a moan. “Yes, please.”
“Gotta get this dress off first,” he mutters, greedy palms wandering up beneath the hem of your dress.
You scurry to obey, helping him slide the dress off your arms and toss it away on the floor. He’s more than pleased to see that you had decided to forgo wearing a bra earlier in the day, and reaches out at once to grasp at your perked breasts in his large palm. He buries his face into your chest, catching one of your nipples between his teeth. He busies himself by marking your chest red with small nibbles until you grow impatient, tugging at the shirt he’s still wearing. He’s quick to oblige, shedding himself of his clothes; then, his nails are digging viciously into your hips as he flips the two of you over with incredible ease.
“Sit on my cock,” he snarls into your ear. “Need to feel you again.”
Legs weak from your past orgasm and the huskiness of his voice, you sidle onto his lap, tossing one thigh over his. He sits up to join you and helps push himself past your folds, though you finish by settling back on his length carefully until you’re filled to the brim. Despite already knowing what to expect from the first time around, you still shudder at the feeling, mouth unhinging as you roll your hips leisurely against his. He hardly strays from your body, instead continuing to kiss between the valley of your breasts and up to the underside of your jaw and back again. Fingers poke and prod at your body as they follow his lips, then grasp at your ass to push you closer to him each time you grind against him.
Just when you begin grinding against him in a new angle that makes you moan into his ear, a sudden noise startles the both of you but only just. It takes you both a moment to register it’s the sound of knocking on the other side of the bedroom door (that you can’t remember if Taehyung had locked, because you certainly hadn’t), followed by Jimin’s familiar voice. “Joon said he wanted us to check in on you!”
Taehyung immediately groans into your neck out of frustration, though you suspect it’s because your pace starts to stutter and not because of his bothersome friends.
“Taehyung,” You bite at your lip in an attempt to hide your moans. You tug at his hair, as if to portray what your words fail to do, but he can hear it plainly riddling your voice. The concern, and the sudden shyness, as if fearing Jimin may walk in. But part of you is thrilled at the thought, and judging by the way your unabashed cry of glee slips from your lips without much hiding is proof of that. “Oh, Tae━”
“Shit,” Taehyung’s muffled grunts of pleasure and the way his hips continue to dig into yours to meet your efforts makes you aware Jimin is the least of his current troubles. “Fucking hell━ Don’t stop.”
“Are you guys okay in there?” Now comes Hoseok’s voice, a little faint but undeniably there. Can they hear you? Do they care? They must know what’s happening beyond the door.
“They’re doing it on purpose. Fucking idiots,” Taehyung snarls as he slams his hips up into yours. A contented whimper falls from your mouth, and you cling to him tighter as you quicken your pace. Taehyung grabs at your chin, forcing you to keep your eyes fixed on him despite wandering to the door. “Look at you fucking yourself on me still even with them listening. Such a good girl, huh? So desperate for my cock, aren’t you? Gonna breed so well.”
You think Hoseok and Jimin give up and leave at some point, though you don’t recall when. Instead, in the next moment, something primitive seems to awaken in Taehyung once more and he’s shoving you onto your back on the bed. Kneeling before you, he pummels his hips into yours again and again until you’re only crying his name.
“Mine. All mine,” he growls. “Wanna feel you cum on my cock.”
So wearied from your first high, you tumble easily to your second, coming undone in a matter of seconds, spurred on by the lewd wet noises of his length thrusting into you.
“That’s it, baby,” he mutters, basking in the sound of your moans. “Fuck━ Let them all know who you belong to━��
But just when you think Taehyung has reached his own orgasm ━ sputtering for air and crescendoing in moans of your names, panting hot breath into your ear as he leans against your chest ━ he doesn’t. His thrusts become desperate and sloppy, bordering on frantic, that the soreness between your legs begins to burn. It’s an amalgamation of stubborn yet bearable pain and something harshly pleasant that has your head lolling back.
“What’s wrong?” You moan, blindly tugging at his hair. “Taehyung?”
“I can’t━” He cries out. “I can’t━ I’m so fucking hard, it hurts. I don’t know what’s wrong━”
Confused yet too tired to keep up, you reach out to smooth your fingers across his back. “It’s okay. Just let go, baby. Cum for me, Tae. Please.”
“I’m trying,” he chokes out. “I just can’t━”
Your mind works in a haze to understand what’s happening, but through it all you’re able to discern one reasonable thought. What had Taehyung said about matings and bonds? Aside from the obvious of sleeping with a mate, he had said that typically certain bonds require marking. But he had also said that marking proved to be almost irreversible, resulting in a connection so close that a pair of mates would be together forever. It was a troublesome concept to think about, especially when considering you didn’t think you were a fit match for Taehyung if only because you’re human.
But is that what he needed? The physical strain he puts himself under now to reach his high is almost unbearable to watch. So, you settle on a whim of a decision and conclude that you won’t think of any consequences until after the fact, only wanting to see the poor boy in relief.
“Tae,” You whisper. “What if you bite me?”
“I won’t,” Taehyung says through gritted teeth. His pace has slowed as he slumps against your chest in nearing defeat. “You told me not to.”
“I don’t care,” You retort. “Just bite me.”
He hesitates, lifting his gaze to look at you. When he sees your earnest zeal, he grimaces as if despising that this is his only option. Still, the look of relief that crosses his face is undeniably there. He presses his mouth against your throat, lips brushing faintly against your flesh as he grazes the smooth expanse for a spot, sharp canines poking against you. You brace yourself for the bite, though the pain isn’t as bad as you had thought. A sharp jolt runs down your spine as he sinks his teeth into your skin, and his reaction is immediate, crumbling into pitiful moans of glory.
“Fuck!” he wails. With one final slam of his hips into yours, he finally reaches his high and it’s unlike anything you have felt before. As if he begins to swell within you, his length pulsates as he cums in you to the point where you can’t help but feel so full. It overflows and leaks from your core and onto the sheets, a sticky mess that lingers even long after he’s done. Your mouth pops open at the foreign feeling, whimpering his name.
“I’m sorry,” he flinches. “I’m sorry, does it hurt?”
“No,” You manage to say. “It just… It feels so good━”
He sluggishly rides out the rest of his high until you both physically can’t take anymore. When he hears you hiss his name in a soft reminder, he apologizes once more. Then, as the room falls oddly silent, he slumps against you. He lavs his tongue over the fresh mark on your neck, the gentle motion alleviating the sting left behind. As Taehyung settles finally, he shifts his head to look up at you. You note the faint yellow hue lingering in his eyes, fading now.
“I’m sorry,” he says again. “We might have to stay like this for a while.”
“Can’t say I’m mad about that,” You croon sleepily. “You better draw me a bath after this.”
He laughs, rubbing gentle circles against your hips. “Of course. I’ll do anything for you.”
You believe him wholeheartedly when he says it, smiling against his mouth when he leans in for a kiss. His tender wandering hands over your body does wonders in calming your shrill heart, the stretch between your legs, and the bite on your neck. He nuzzles his face into your collarbones, the tip of his nose tickling against you. As your fingers rake through his hair and scratch at his head, he mewls in content.
“Is it always like that?” You ask through a stifled yawn. “You had so much energy, I could barely keep up.”
“No,” he admits groggily. “It’s only like that when you’re mated with someone.”
“What does that even mean anyway?” You ask. “To be mated with someone?”
“Well, it’s━ It’s not really a conscious decision. It sort of just happens,” Taehyung says. “It’s a connection. You gravitate towards one another. You can’t live without the other. We call it imprinting. Sometimes you’re mated to a person who doesn’t even want you, but those are rare instances.”
“So we’re the exception?”
“I thought we were,” Taehyung trails off now. He finally lifts his head to look at you, perhaps a little embarrassed. “I━ Well━ All of this, and especially the bite, doesn’t just happen ━ and definitely not with humans.”
“Oh.” You blush now, face warming under the boy’s introspective stare. “So you’re saying we’re…”
“I always thought there was a connection, but I didn’t think it meant this,” Taehyung murmurs to himself. “As crazy as it sounds, I think we were meant to be.”
“So the bite…”
You don’t finish your thought, instead already having pieced it together in your mind. It does sound crazy, but even you have felt it before. A strange connection to Taehyung, far more exceptional than simply having feelings for him. And the bite is what draws it all together, proving his point and your previous speculations about some sort of affection between the two of you.  
“Are you starting to regret this now?” Taehyung asks sheepishly, a weak attempt at a joke to what he had asked you earlier in the night.  
He braces himself, as if waiting for your outburst of annoyance or anger. To push him off of you and leave forever. But you do neither, instead reaching out to grasp at his face in both of your hands. You delicately lift his head, meeting his docile stare, entirely and utterly bewitched by him.
“No,” You say earnestly. “I couldn’t have asked for a better night.” A smile forms on his face, innocent and ardent in nature. “I’m just wondering how I’ll hide the mark.”
“I think there’s little to hide now after tonight,” Taehyung grins wolfishly. “Especially with the boys.” 
He quivers with laughter at the sight of your scowling face and fingers poking at his sides. As he settles, he leans into your ear to hum, “I’ll make it up to you. Everything. Jaebum, the bite, the boys. But I think you should rest now. We’ll deal with all of that later.”
You don’t argue with that. You’ve already begun to fight the beginnings of sleep, eyelids drooping and itching with a need to just close them ━ and with Taehyung’s arms wrapped around you, his body emitting a pleasurable heat, you decide there’s no place else you’d rather be, moonstruck and in love.
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sunshineandaisies · 3 years
Text
Dirty Paws & Wet Kisses
Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader (Modern AU)
Words: ~3.7k
Warnings: language, floofs and fluff
Note: if you ever read anything written by me that includes dogs, their names will always be kinda extra or related to historical figures (i.e. my dog is actually named Theodore Roosevelt) and I will try my best to make their names increasingly extra with every fic that involves dogs
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You’d argue that your four year old sheperd mix was the most well behaved dog in all of New York until your dying breath.
Most days.
During your weekly trips to the park on Sunday afternoons, she would sit at your feet, lounging in the sun as she watched joggers go by and playfully saying hello to anyone - be they human or dog - that stopped by to pet the pretty pup while you read whatever book you’d picked up from the bookstore earlier that week.
Sure, there were a few times that she would whine and stare down any squirrel that strayed too close to her, but she never left your side.
Maybe that’s why you had grown so complacent, why you’d stopped looping her leash around the bench to secure her to your side and simply kept the leash within your reach beside you on the seat of the bench.
And it was because of that complacency that you were sprinting across the park, chasing your naughty dog and drawing judgemental stares from other park-goers.
“Hazel!” you called after her. “Hazel, I swear to god I’m taking all your toys away when we get home!” Right after you took a nice long bath to soothe your aching muscles. When was the last time you’d run this much?
You lost sight of her when she disappeared around a hedge, and the internal panic that set in was almost worse than the time that you accidentally emailed your creative writing professor the Harry Potter fanfiction you’d written instead of your final paper. (You still got an A on the assignment, but that’s besides the point).
You see her as soon as you round the corner, happily licking at a stranger’s face as she sat between his legs, and-
Holy shit, your dog led you to the most attractive man you’ve ever seen.
The stranger took note of you before you had a chance to say anything, and he raised his brow at you while angling his face away from Hazel’s kisses. “Does this belong to you?” he asked, pinching the tags on Hazel’s collar between his thumb and two fingers. “Hazelnut Mocha.” He snorted. “Is that your dog’s name or your Starbucks order?”
You weren’t sure if it was the amused smile that curled his lips or the quirk of his brow, but his teasing made you feel personally attacked. You crossed your arms across your chest. “Maybe it’s both.”
He shrugged, scratching the spot behind Hazel’s ear. “I suppose that’s one way to never forget your dog’s name or your coffee order.”
You hummed noncommittally before approaching and tugging Hazel away from the handsome stranger. It took considerably more effort than you had thought it would. “I’m really sorry about her,” you apologized. “She’s never like this. I don’t really know what happened.”
He brushed your apology off with a smile. “Don’t worry about it. If a cute girl wants to give me kisses, I certainly won’t complain.” He winked at you, and you wanted to just melt on the spot.
“Well, uh, I should, um-” You cleared your throat, stepping away and dragging a disappointed Hazel along with you. “Again, I’m really sorry. Even if you didn’t mind.”
You turned and hurried away before his smile made your mind any more frazzled.
Two weeks passed before you decided to show your face at the park again, and this time, you were sure to secure Hazel’s leash to your bench, ensuring that there would be no chases across the park and embarrassing encounters with handsome strangers.
The pup resigned herself to her fate and laid at your feet in the grass, her tongue lolling out of her mouth and her golden eyes shining in the sunlight. She greeted the other dogs that passed, and you thought nothing of it until you heard someone call her name.
Well, shit. You knew that voice. That voice had haunted your dreams for three nights straight after the incident two weeks ago.
“How have you been, pretty girl?” he asked, and you hesitantly lifted your gaze from your book to see him knelt in front of you, patting Hazel’s head as she yipped happily and dragged her tongue over his face in sloppy kisses.
Despite your proclivity to stare at handsome men that showered your dog with attention, your eyes were dragged away from the pair when a wet nose nudged your leg. “Well hello there,” you greeted the brown and white dog that sought your attention. You quickly marked your page and returned your book to your bag before petting your newest furry companion. “What’s your name, handsome?”
“Bucky,” the stranger answered.
You glanced up at him briefly before turning your attention back to the brown and white dog. “Aren’t you a handsome boy, Bucky. Yes, you’re so handsome,” you cooed. The stranger chuckled, and you glanced up expecting to see Hazel mauling him with more sloppy kisses, but instead, he was staring at you, amusement dancing in his blue eyes. “What?”
“I’m Bucky,” he clarified before nodding towards the dog. “That’s Dodger.”
“And you just assumed that I was talking about you when I called him handsome?”
And in complete contrast to how he had acted in your previous interaction, he actually looked embarrassed, nervously scratching the back of his neck while fending off even more kisses from Hazel. “I seem like a complete asshole, don’t I?” he asked sheepishly.
You laughed. “Well, I mean… Don’t let this go to your head or anything, but I suppose you are kind of handsome, too. You know, in a handsome stranger kind of way.” You felt your cheeks flood with warmth, and you averted your gaze, hoping he didn’t see just how flustered you were after your admission. You tried to breeze past it altogether by giving all of your attention to Dodger once again, petting him and praising him for being such a sweet boy.
After a moment of you and Bucky speaking only to each other’s dogs, you cleared your throat and commented, “I didn’t realize you had a dog. Was he at the park with you the day that Hazel practically assaulted you?”
“He’s not my dog.”
You blinked. “Oh. Is he your girlfriend’s dog?”
And just like that, all hints of embarrassment disappeared from his face. He quirked a brow and smirked at you. “My girlfriend?”
“Or boyfriend,” you added hastily.
He snorted and shook his head. “It depends on who you ask.”
You cocked your head to the side, and the action conjured up an image of Hazel doing the same whenever you would try to hold an actual conversation with her. “Uh, what?”
His gaze flitted to the ground as he smiled an amused little smile that had you biting your lip and shamelessly staring at the man. “It’s a bit of a joke among my friends,” he began. “Dodger is my buddy Steve’s dog. Some of our friends like to make it seem like we’re dating, but we definitely aren’t. We just know each other way too well.” His smile widened when he looked back up at you. “So to answer the question that you indirectly asked-”
You furrowed your brows in confusion. “What?”
“-I’m single, sweetheart.”
You gaped at him, trying to form an appropriate response. This man was frustrating - frustratingly handsome, frustratingly smug, frustratingly able to read you like a goddamn open book. How dare he correctly assume you were trying to figure out if he was single or not?
The sound of a phone ringing interrupted your thought process, and Bucky gave you an apologetic look after glancing down at his phone. “I gotta take this,” he told you. You heard him greet the other person on the other end of the call before calling for Dodger. As he turned to go, he paused for a moment, pressed the phone against the front of his shirt to muffle the receiver, and called over his shoulder. “See you around, Hazel and Hazel’s mom.”
Right. You never gave him your name.
You were cursing yourself for nearly a month for not getting his phone number before he disappeared, and you’d be lying if you didn’t admit that you had a smidge of hope that you’d run into him at the park again... But alas, no luck.
You were starting to think that you’d never see your handsome park stranger - although, he wasn’t really a stranger anymore, was he? - but exactly 37 days after your last encounter with Bucky (aka handsome park stranger), Hazel brought you back together in the most heart attack inducing way she could manage.
You’d been sitting on the patio of your favorite little cafe, catching up with Carol and Val over coffee and fluffy pastries, and Hazel had been behaving herself aside from the occasionally whining and begging when any of you would touch your food.
She was behaving until she wasn’t.
You still don’t really know what set her off, but one moment she was sitting prettily and staring up at you with her golden eyes and the next she was breaking free from her leash and sprinting down the street and out of your sight.
You posted on social media asking everyone to be on the lookout for your Hazel and called your friends to help you search for her. You spent hours walking up and down the city streets and through the park that you frequented with Hazel. You called all of the shelters and animal control to see if anyone had brought Hazel to them instead of calling you. You talked to anyone and everyone that you passed on the street, asking if they’d seen your girl.
You tried so much to get your girl back, but nothing panned out.
You were in tears and your feet were sore from walking all over the goddamn city by the time you and the others returned to your apartment, resigned to wait for someone to contact you. Just as you were about to say goodnight to everyone and turn in for the night (read: cry yourself to sleep), your phone rang, and an unfamiliar number flashed across the screen. You shushed your friends and answered the phone.
Please be someone who found Hazel. Please be someone who found Hazel. Please be someone who found Hazel.
“Hey, sweetheart.” Your heart leapt into your throat at the sound of his voice, and for a moment you forgot that you had just been on the verge of a panic attack. “Take a deep breath for me, okay. I can practically feel you panicking through the phone. I have Hazel. She’s okay.”
“Thank you,” you breathed, nodding at your friends in response to their questioning looks. “Thank you so much, Bucky. Is she okay? Where did you find her? Should I meet you somewhere?”
He chuckled. “She’s fine. A little dirty, but she’s fine. As for where I found here...Well, I think your dog has a little crush on me, sweetheart.”
You grabbed your jacket from the coat rack and slipped it on before grabbing your keys. “What does that mean?”
“I came home and found her wandering around the courtyard at my apartment.” He sounded far too amused with the situation, and you definitely weren’t feeling up to dealing with his smug attitude. “She certainly made herself at home here. I may need to fight for shared custody after this.”
You rolled your eyes. “Just tell me where I should meet you.”
“I’ll send you my address.”
And just as he had told you, as soon as you ended the call, he shared his location with you. You swiftly assured Carol and Val that Hazel was okay, and you asked them to lock up when they left before beginning your walk to Bucky’s apartment.
Ten minutes later, you were sat on the floor of his living room, holding Hazel close to you and alternating between scolding her and telling her how much you love her as you tried to hold your tears at bay. Bucky sat on the couch, arms rested on his knees as he watched the teary-eyed reunion with a small smile curling his lips.
“You know, sweetheart,” he spoke up, drawing your attention away from Hazel, and you finally noticed the muddy paw prints on the front of his white tee. “I’m not much of a dog-person but-”
You gasped, covering Hazel’s floppy ears. “How dare you say such nonsense in front of Hazel!” You pressed a kiss between her eyes, whispering, “It’s okay, girl. Bucky didn’t mean it.”
“I did,” he countered, chuckling when you glared at him. “I’m more of a cat-person, but I suppose I can make an exception for Hazel. After all, she seems pretty attached to me. Not that I can blame her.”
You snorted and rolled your eyes. “She has awful taste in men,” you teased.
“I don’t know,” he argued. “People say that dogs are impeccable judges of character.”
You stood, dusting your jeans off and turned to face Bucky. “Thank you,” you told him, the sincerity clear in your voice. “I don’t know what I would have done if I couldn’t find her. I- I seriously owe you. Whatever you want, just name it.”
His blue eyes twinkled with mischief, and you immediately regretted your offer. “What about shared custody of Hazel?”
“Whatever you want that’s not that, just name it,” you amended.
“What about a date?” he asked instead.
Your eyes widened in surprise and you gaped like a fish, mouth opening and closing, opening and closing, over and over again as you tried to form a response. You certainly hadn’t been expecting that. He watched you with curious eyes, waiting patiently for your answer. Finally, the gears in your brain began to turn again and you answered, “As flattered as I am, I’m not really looking to date right now.”
Disappointment flashed across his features, but he smiled and all trace of disappointment was gone in an instant. “Don’t worry about it, sweetheart. You don’t owe me anything for being a decent person and making sure Hazel got back to you.”
You smiled softly at him, your fingers carding through Hazel’s fur. “Thank you, Bucky. Really.”
“You’re welcome, sweetheart.”
After that night - and after you and Bucky officially had each other’s numbers - you and he would text throughout the week, and you often sent him pictures of Hazel being increasingly goofy as the days wore on. You’d even invited him to the park one Sunday to see Hazel again, but he’d quickly turned you down, asking for a rain check.
He had a date, after all.
So instead, you took Hazel to the park and sent him pictures of the pretty pup lounging in the sunshine, greeting other dogs that passed by, and even licking the camera lens on your phone when she finally noticed you holding your phone out towards her to get the perfect angle. A smile never failed to appear on your face every time he sent a heart eyes meme in response.
Despite the near constant texting, you didn’t see Bucky again for over three weeks, and you’d only seen him because you had run into his friend Steve at the dog park.
It took a moment for you to realize that the brown and white dog that Hazel had instantly greeted once she’d been released from her leash was Dodger, but as soon as the realization sunk in, you looked around for Bucky.
There weren’t many people present, but you couldn’t find Bucky among the dog parents that lingered around the edges of the dog park.
You crouched down to greet Dodger, scratching him behind the ears and happily accepting his greeting kisses. “Hello, handsome. Is your uncle Bucky here?”
“Y/N?”
You turned your head in the direction of the voice, and you furrowed your brows when you saw a tall blond man that you didn’t recognize. Holy shit, was Hazel a handsome stranger magnet? “Do I know you?” you asked, doing your absolute best to keep your voice steady.
“Right, sorry,” he laughed. “I’m Steve. Bucky’s mentioned you a few times.”
You put two and two together quickly. “You’re Dodger’s dad!”
You spent the better part of the next hour chatting with Steve as Dodger and Hazel chased one another around the enclosed area, and you sent a picture of you and Steve to Bucky, happily claiming that Steve was telling you all of Bucky’s most embarrassing stories. (Bucky had sent a text to Steve within seconds of reading your text, but Steve refused to tell you what Bucky had said all while laughing so hard he nearly cried).
By the time Hazel and Dodger were laying at yours and Steve’s feet, panting and entirely worn out from an afternoon of playing, you were ready to say your goodbyes, but Steve quickly caught your attention before you could go.
“I’m meeting Bucky and a few other friends at the bar in about an hour. Would you be interested in getting a drink?” he asked, smiling so widely at you that you just couldn’t say no.
And that was how, after dropping Hazel off at home and making sure she was fed and had a full bowl of water, you found yourself at a sports bar, slinking through the Friday night crowd towards a table in the back.
You spotted Bucky immediately, and you smiled widely when his eyes widened and he choked on his beer before promptly standing to greet you. “What are you doing here, sweetheart?”
“Sweetheart?” you heard one of the men you didn’t recognize ask the others.
“Y/N,” Steve explained, and as if that was all they needed to know, the other two nodded. Steve smiled up at you, greeting, “Glad you found the place okay.”
Bucky quickly ushered you into the booth, sticking you between him and the only other woman present. As he introduced you to the others - Clint, Sam, and Nat - his arm snaked around your shoulders casually.
“So you’re the famous Y/N,” Sam asked, a teasing smile on his face as his gaze flitted from you to Bucky, and Bucky groaned in response.
You chuckled. “I wouldn’t necessarily say ‘famous’.”
“Oh, trust me,” Sam said, “as much as this guy talks about you, I’d say you’re pretty damn famous in our circle.”
You glanced at Bucky, biting your lip in a futile attempt to hide your amused smile. “Is that right?”
He huffed. “Hazel’s the real famous one, sweetheart.”
“Liar,” Nat accused. She turned to you, one perfectly shaped brow raising. “For weeks, it was Hazel’s mom this and Hazel’s mom that, and after that it was Y/N sent me this picture and Y/N told me this joke. I feel like I already know you, and I just met you.”
“So how’s Hazel?” Bucky asked in a clear attempt to change the topic. “Did she have a fun day with Dodger?”
You spent your evening getting to know Bucky’s friends better, sharing stories about Hazel, and listening intently anytime one of them told you a story about Bucky that had your sides aching from laughter. At the end of the evening, you had four new contacts in your phone and plans to meet up with Nat for lunch the following week.
“Need me to walk you home, sweetheart?” Bucky asked when you walked out together, but you shook your head.
“Nah.” You held up your phone, showing him the screen. “I got an Uber.”
He shoved his hands in his pockets, nodding. “Okay. Text me when you get home?”
“Of course.” A red Toyota Camry pulled up to the curb, and after confirming it was the car that was supposed to pick you up, you stepped towards it. Ever the gentleman, Bucky opened the door for you, and you slid into the backseat. “Good night, Bucky.”
It was while you laid in bed that night, unable to sleep while Hazel snored beside you, that you realized that the handsome park stranger - the one that was more of a cat-person but would make an exception for Hazel; the one that was dating Steve depending on who you asked; the one that was constantly talking about you to his friends so much that they felt like they already knew you - had wormed his way into your heart.
Did that make Hazel your wing-woman? She certainly did have a proclivity for bringing you and Bucky together, even in indirect ways.
He was on your mind all night and throughout the following day, and by the time your customary trip to the park rolled around on Sunday afternoon, you were buzzing with anticipation. Would he be there again? Would Hazel inexplicably get loose from her leash and lead you straight to the man that had you feeling like a teenager with a crush again?
As romantic as it might have been, you didn’t want to leave those answers up to fate. Instead, you sent him a text not long after you woke up, letting him know where he could find you if he wanted to see Hazel that afternoon.
Unsurprisingly, it was Hazel that saw Bucky first that afternoon when he arrived at the park, and unsurprisingly, she tore her leash from your grip and sprinted towards him, nearly tackling him as he crouched closer to the ground to greet her.
Surprisingly, you were actually jealous of your dog as you watched her give him sloppy, wet kisses.
“What’s that look for, sweetheart?” Bucky asked, angling his face away from Hazel. “Everything okay?”
“Quick question,” you told him. “Is that date still on the table?”
He grinned at you with that smug grin that you had scoffed at the day you first met, that same smug grin that made your heart flutter in your chest and made your breath catch in your throat and made you want to press kisses to his face and-
“I was wondering when you’d take me up on the offer, sweetheart.”
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coffee--writes · 3 years
Text
The Message on the Wall
Pairing: James Potter x gn!Reader - Marauders x Reader Content
Word Count: 5.9k (jdklfdh im sorry) 
Warnings: Underage Drinking, Implications of... yeah. I think that’s about it. 
Requested: Yes, a long time (i feel bad for only getting to it but i hope the nonnie stuck around to see this piece) by an anon who asked for James x Reader with childhood best friends to lovers trope. 
Summary: In which, James Potter was busy writing himself a message on the wall but was too blind to read what he had to say. 
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Pictures. 
In actuality they were only images. For Muggles, they stood stagnant, for James Potter they moved slightly. 
But in deeper meaning pictures were moments in time captured in a frame. They were a personal reminder of things that were, things that used to be and anything else that didn’t fall into one of the other two categories. 
James Potter adored pictures. His room was littered with them. A handful were of Quidditch players and Tutshill Tornados merchandise. One picture of him and his parents sat on the nightstand beside his bed. But adjourned on the wall to the left was a mostly blank wall. One small Tornados banner was pinned against the soft red paint and in the middle a picture he was particularly fond of. 
The film captured James at the age of four. A broom was clutched in his left hand and a toothy smile on his face as the wind rustled his hair causing it to stick up more than it already did. Beside him was you, your eyes crossed and your tongue licking a swirled lolly. 
When his mother had shown him the picture you had just left for home, making a young James quite sad that his friend couldn’t stay just a little longer. Euphemia Potter had smiled, handing the picture to her son. “It’s okay, my love. Now you have a piece of Y/N with you.” 
“How?” James had asked, his lower lip jutting out in a frown. 
Euphemia laughed. “The picture captures you together. Look how happy the two of you look!” she points at her son’s smile in the photo. “You can do whatever you’d like with it.” 
James grinned, his eyes lighting up once more. “I want to hang it, mum!” he dragged her hand into the bedroom with him, climbing on top of his bedsheets and pressing the picture to the wall. “Here. That way I can say goodnight to them even when they're not here.” 
Euphemia Potter smiled watching as her son tucked himself under the covers. “That’s a brilliant idea, James.” With a wave of her wand, two pins fastened themself to the wall, the photo beneath. 
That was the beginning of James’s love for pictures. More pictures would accumulate such as the one of him and his father at a Tornados game. Drawings you would give him of flowers and Kneazles. The pictures would come and go but yours stayed the same. An additional picture of you and James would later be added three years later when the two of you were seven. James’s broom no longer sat in one hand, instead was gripped with two and hovering five feet off the ground. He had a wicked smile on his face, his glasses slightly falling down his nose. You sat behind him, your small fingers clutching to his waist as the picture captured you mid-squeal. 
Time went on yet the pictures of the two of you stayed the same. Along with your drawings, which had improved dramatically since you were seven, he’d occasionally find a Hollyhead Harpies banner plastered to his wall. When he came to scold you, pink banners adjourned in his hand, you’d laugh at the pout on his lips. He could never stay angry at you and always joined in on your laughter. 
The final year before things would slightly change was the year before going to Hogwarts.  A third picture was added at the age of ten. The Potter family had accompanied your family on a trip to Diagon Alley in which you had bought your screech owl, Juniper. James had one arm wrapped around you. His hair was untidy and a goofy smile was on his face as his other hand flicked your forehead. Your eyes were closed mid-laugh as one hand pushed his face away and the other perched with Juniper who screeched happily on your available arm. 
Again, time went on quickly and changes were made in James Potter’s room but you were not one of them. He packed up his Hogwarts things the night of August 31st, leaving his room full of pictures with a soft smile. 
You rode on the train with him, both of you waving goodbye to your loved ones. You grinned at him wickedly, “Excited?” you ask. 
“Definitely.” he responded. “Do you have money for the trolley?” 
You slide into a train compartment, one small boy already sitting there. “Yeah. Do you need to borrow some?” 
James nodded and you rolled your eyes, handing money over to the kind witch who passed by, grabbing pumpkin pasties for you and Bertie Botts for James. 
The ride was life-changing as you made acquaintances with similar mindsets. Two more boys entered your compartment and along with the scrawny boy from before, all of you made it to Gryffindor. “Where dwell the brave at heart” as James liked to put it. 
First year was an interesting feat with James quickly falling head over heels for Lily Evans. Your friendship never faltered although the thought of her in his life made you feel odd. However, you were sure she wouldn’t be in his life for quite some time seeing as his persistent efforts were met with an equally stubborn rejection. 
“She’s a firecracker, that one.” he sighed, walking beside you down the hall after another devastating encounter with Lily. 
“You’re just embarrassing yourself now, my boy.” you reply, dubbing his nickname to ease the comment. 
He smirked. “Then why do you hang out with me?” 
“Because, I’m the one who makes sure you don’t cross the line from embarrassing to mortifying.” 
He shakes his head with a silly grin. “I doubt that. You love me. That’s why.” 
You laugh, an effective way of avoiding the curious ideas that ran through your young mind. “Don’t throw around the l- word so quickly! You’ve got to mean it.” 
James bumped your side. “But I’ve known you for years.” 
You ruffle his hair, making it messier than it already was. “Save it for Evans.” 
---
The year ended and the two of you went home to Northern England hands overflowing with Gryffindor red, spirits high with a drive for Quidditch practice and addresses from Remus, Peter, and Sirius tucked away in your pockets. 
James’s room changed tremendously that first year. Alongside the Tutshill Tornados merchandise were small Gryffindor banners, lions enchanted to roar at the touch. You had given him one of your sketches from the school year, one of Sirius and him laughing in Transfiguration, another of him and Peter skipping stones. The pictures of the two of you still remained, a small collection of dust coating the edges which he wiped away with a smile. 
Second year was merry and full of high spirits. James had acquired his father’s invisibility cloak which gave cause to a number of nighttime rendezvous and adventures in the kitchens. Suspicion arose on Remus, whose monthly disappearances came to your attention. With the help of Sirius and Peter, the group soon discovered Remus’s guarded secret and accepted the furry little problem with open arms. 
The Lily Evans situation did not get any better with James’s persistence holding up fiercely and her hatred toward him even more harsh. As Sirius had dubbed it, “Mate, at this point you’re never getting married.” Remus and Peter whole-heartedly agreed, sending James into an adolescent spiral. 
“What if I don’t get married, Y/N/N?” he confided in you by the shores of the Black Lake. 
You chuckled, his delirium quite adorable. “You’re going to get married, James. Trust me.” 
He sighed, snapping a twig between his fingers. “It’s not definite.” 
“Nothing is.” you counter. 
James groaned. “I know. I know. But I would like it to be. Wouldn’t you?” 
You contemplated the idea, a thought coming to your head. “What if it could be?” 
He stared at you curiously. Your eyes lit up and James grinned. “Hit me.” 
“If by the time we are thirty neither of us are married then we should get married to each other.” you propose, a proud smile on your face. “That way we can have a definite of our own.” 
James grinned. “I like that idea. But what if one of us gets married before that?”
You frown. “Then I guess it’d be a flop. But it’s better than nothing, right?” 
He agreed quickly. The sun was setting into a pond of pink. The wind rustled and birds chirped and the moment seemed picture perfect and James wished a camera would magically pop up and capture the moment so he’d be able to hang it on his wall for years to come. It did not work that way, instead, he turned to you with a smirk. “I don’t have anything to propose with.” 
You looked down in embarrassment and gave him a shove. “We’re not getting married yet! It’s just a deal not the real thing.” 
He rolled his eyes at you. “I know but it feels as though something special should happen. How about we seal with a spit swear?” 
You stick your tongue out and pretend to gag. “Ew! No.” you flick his forehead causing him to wince. He grins before flicking you back, watching as you fall back onto the grass. 
“I guess a flick works as well.” he sighs. “Y/N Potter has a nice ring to it.” 
Your head falls against his shoulder. “I can’t believe I might be a Potter one day. Sounds disgusting.” 
James laughs, the weight of your head feeling oddly familiar against his shoulder. “Oh, shut it!” 
--- 
The years came and went. Third year, James made the Quidditch team and he quickly became a ladies man despite his obvious pining over Evans. You made sure to keep his feet on the ground as you didn’t want his ego to get larger than it already was. You came to all his games, occasionally bringing a camera so that James could add his moments of glory onto his beloved room wall. There was the time he tried dedicating a shot to you and ended up getting knocked off his broom by a Beater. 
He made the next one thankfully. 
On the other hand, you had earned the title of master dueler amongst the third years for your quick arm and sharp spellcasting. While James was at Quidditch practice: you, Peter, Remus, and Sirius would practice in empty classrooms although after a while they became rather bored as you would always win. James would cheer you on, even when you beat him there was a compliment of your skill and he was more than anything, proud. 
The summer between third and fourth year was the year the Marauders got their first group picture together. Everyone had met up at the Potter residence, Euphemia Potter snapping the photo with Sirius and James to the left, Peter and Remus on the right, and you in the middle. James hung the picture on his wall as it was routine by now. The whole gang got to see his famous wall of pictures, his life an open storybook to anyone who looked closely. 
Fourth year sparked love, pranks, and new ideas. Peter went on his first date, flaming at the cheeks as his friends waved him off embarrassingly. Group pranks ensued upon Snape whose oily hair was dyed all colors of the rainbow by the end of the first semester. You had gone on your first date as well, Steven Goldstein from Hufflepuff whom James threatened to beat up and Sirius who gave him “a talk”. 
Most importantly, the group addressed Remus’s furry little problem seeing as each year he came back with more and more scars than before. Two ideas sparked up from the meeting and both were large feats that every member of the group was willing to take. 
“So wait..” Peter asked. “You want to make a map… that tracks everyone in Hogwarts?” 
James nodded and Remus shook his head. “That’s exactly what I’m saying. Don’t look at me that way, Remus.” 
Remus shoved him lightly. “How would that even work though? Isn’t it a little invasive?” 
You smiled. “It most certainly is invasive but think about how awesome it’d be to have something like that. All we would need is…” 
“A complex locator spell.” you and Sirius said together. 
Everyone grinned. “Pete can do the drawing and sketching. He’s good at that stuff. We should check for secret passageways. All of us could do the magic. We’ve got the brains.” 
“I don’t think someone with brilliant magic technique would use the word brain to describe their intelligence.” you point out. James simply flicked you in the head. 
“And there’s the Animagi thing…” Sirius added. 
“That’s a reach.” Remus replied. 
“More than the map?” Peter questioned. 
Remus sighed. “You guys don’t have to do that for me. I’ve been transforming on my own for years. No need to have buddies now.” 
“Nonsense.” you say. “Anything for you, Rem. This is what you deserve.” 
The friends looked at each other silently. “Are we ready to pull off the biggest student feat in Hogwarts history?” Sirius whispered. 
“Aye, aye.” Everyone cheered. 
Peter grinned. “We’re up to no good.” 
James smiled back. “Then let us manage our mischief well.” 
WIth that the group commenced, exiting the abandoned classroom they used and taking off to class. James walked by your side as you headed to astronomy together. 
“I can’t wait till we pin this down. It’s going to be an epic year.” he grinned. 
You chuckle. “I know you’ll end up stalking someone, Potter. Evans by the looks of it.” 
He shook his head, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “Nope. I’m gonna stalk you instead. See if you’re hiding any secrets from me.” 
You smile. “What secrets could I possibly be hiding from you, my boy?” 
James nudged your side with a smirk. “You’re telling me a good-looking fellow like yourself isn’t sneaking off with some other lad other than their best friends.” 
You shook your head, the word “good-looking” repeating itself in your mind. “No. If I did I would tell you.” 
“Good.” he said, starting up the stairs to the Astronomy tower. “I don’t need some arsehole stealing you away from me.” 
You roll your eyes. “No one could ever steal me from you, James. I’m not a Quaffle.” 
He nods with a grin. “Yeah. I suppose you’re more of a Snitch.” 
You laugh, dashing up the stairs in hopes that you wouldn’t be late for your Astronomy lesson.
--- 
As one could guess more pictures and sketches made their home on James Potter’s wall. It was a cluttered mess but beautiful nonetheless. It was as though the wall had an expression of its own with its array of Quidditch jerseys, photographs, art, and ticket stubs. Nobody touched the wall except James as he liked having every picture in place. His wall organized the way he liked it best… messy. 
Fifth year was the first year you didn’t see James every week. He had eagerly signed up for Quidditch camp and had left for Wales with promises that’d you write about the boys and the progress on the map and Animagi projects. The projects went well with Peter completing the outline sketches of the maps, Remus filling piles of papers on Animagi transformations and finally Sirius and you gathering the needed ingredients for the Animagi process. 
You had grown taller over the summer, hair lightening and your features more accentuated. Eagerly you awaited James’s return and when the time did come you had woken up early in the morning to see him arrive by Portkey on the hill. The second he appeared you had rushed over, engulfing him in a hug. You had missed his touch, his constant nagging and overall  the James Potterness that followed him around that would never fade with time. 
Meanwhile, he was left out of breath, a couple of inches taller and a smile on his face as he squeezed you back. “Y/N/N! I missed you, you lazy hag.” 
You laughed, messing up his hair that sat more neatly than in previous years. “And I missed you, my boy.” 
The next days before school were spent catching him up on the map and at the pond by your house. With each swim you noticed the changes in James such as the six-pack the tedious trials at Quidditch camp had given him. 
“Oi!” you shouted, splashing him in the face. “Whatever happened to the skinny twig that was my friend?” 
He smirked. “Oi! Why are you looking?” 
You bit your lip, not allowing him to see you flustered. “I’m sorry. You’re my best friend and it’s a very noticeable change!” you pointed at his toned stomach. 
James tapped your nose and you stared at him in annoyance. “It’s only noticeable if you want to notice it.” 
He turned around, making to walk back to the shore of the pond. You didn’t remember when James had gotten so cheeky although he’d always been that way, just never with you. Wickedly, you took the bucket that floated beside you and dunked it in the water. With a mischievous grin, you snuck up behind him, dumping the bucket of water on his head. 
James turned around with a gasp, jaw dropped. You laughed, a wide smile on your lips at the sight of him drenched in his swim trunks. It wasn’t until his arms tucked along your waist, dragging you to the deeper ends of the pond did the smile drop and his return. 
“Why you little…” you seethed. “James Fleamont Potter if you-” 
It was too late by then, your body submerged in the water and you swam up, his laughter the first noticeable sound. You scowled as he doubled over with laughter on the shore. “I’m never letting you go to Quidditch camp again.” 
The two of you walked home as the sun set, many flicks to the forehead ensuing as you did. 
---
Fifth year was by far the most epic year of your Hogwarts experience. Everything was prepared for the Animagi transformation and phase two of the map project was ready to launch with Remus having gained access to the restricted section of the library. 
It seemed as though the whole student body had recognized the change in James’s physique which only led to an inflation of his ego. The worst part was that Lily Evans just so happened to be one of those said noticers and while her defiance toward him was still strong, she could be caught staring in class much to James’s delight. 
The Animagi process began as soon as the September full moon. While Remus suffered in the Shrieking Shack, the four other Marauders set their Mandrake leaves into their mouths preparing for an uncomfortable month of bitterness on their tongues. The leaves were held under their tongues when talking in class and for the rest of the time they resorted to note passing leaving the entirety of Hogwarts wondering why the Marauders went quiet so suddenly. 
During the period between moons, they worked on their map. Stacks of books, both regular and restricted, lay among them. Each had a quill and parchment used to take note of spells or pass messages back and forth. As you worked you received a message from James in the form of a crumpled ball of parchment. You smoothed it out with a sigh. 
I hate this thing. It tastes like piss and lime. 
You held back a chuckle, writing your own message next to his. 
You’re not backing out of this, Potter. It’s for Remus. 
He stuck the leaf under his tongue in order to stick it out at you and you rolled your eyes. He scribbled a message back. 
I know. I know. Doesn’t mean I can’t complain about it. 
You smirked, tossing the parchment back to him. 
If your scrawny arse can come back from Quidditch camp with abs then you can stomach keeping a leaf in your mouth for a month. 
He smoothed it out and you went back to your work only getting in a minute's reading before the parchment bounced off your head. You scowled at his antics but he only looked at his book with a smirk. Unfolding the paper, James’s messy handwriting took up the last blank space on the parchment. 
Nice to know you still think about my abs. 
Your stomach squirmed at the feeling that inflamed from his words and the smirk that was on his face. You flicked him on the head, throwing the parchment into the fire before Sirius could ask what it was. 
--- 
It took moon soaked leaves, untouched morning dew and a lightning storm to finally complete the transformations. It was on a late November night that a lightning storm finally struck and in the fifth corridor bathroom the Marauders made their first transformations. For Peter, a small rat with a wriggling tail. For Sirius, a pure black dog. For James, a large stag with mighty horns. For you, a sly fox with sleek orange fur. 
Thus that night began the use of the nicknames: Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, Prongs and Vixen. Dubbed by James and agreed upon all around. The final full moons of fifth year were spent prancing around Hogsmeade alongside Remus whose scars diminished with each transformation spent with his friends. 
The downside of it all was the building tension in the school. With Lord Voldemort on the rise, more and more of your classmates were showing their true colors. Select Slytherins no longer wore short sleeves, their wrists always covered even in the heat of summer. Watchful eyes and protective glares, you went home for summer in worry. 
Over the summer, Prongs lost his Pronginess. He wrote to Lily Evans most days of the week and now the things she sent him hung on his wall alongside you and the Marauders. An anticipated change but a scary one still. Every outing with James became more about Lily and less about anything else. You could feel your best friend slipping away and you told him so the night before the start of sixth year. 
The two of you sat together in the branches of a tree. The sun hit your skin in rays and clouds passed by over your heads. James’s voice droned on about his darling Lily flower and with an unknowing malice you snapped at him. “Shut it!” you groaned. 
His eyes looked over at you, hands holding your head in remorse. “Aren’t you happy for me? You’ve been acting off all summer.” 
“I’ve been acting off because you’ve been acting off. I am happy for you but Evans is the only thing you talk about these days. What happened to talking about the Tornados or sneaking out together for milkshakes?” 
He sighed, running a hand through his hair. “It’s different now.” 
“Well, it shouldn’t be.” you exclaim. “I’m not saying you shouldn’t grow up. I support the idea of you no longer being a cheeky bastard. If you’re happy with Evans then I am happy for you. But being with Evans doesn’t mean you have to forget about me or the Marauders or everything else.” 
James nodded, a leaf spinning between his fingers as he frowned. “I’m sorry, Y/N/N.” 
You shake your head. “I am too. Sorry I snapped at you, my boy.” your head fell onto his shoulder the same way it had done for years only this time things had changed. The weight still felt perfect on his shoulder but now his stomach turned and his breath hitched at the close proximity. Things were indeed changing although the two of you only danced around it, not wanting to address the mess you two had made. 
Your head was still against his shoulder as you spoke quietly. “Just remember you’re not a Quaffle.” 
He chuckled, stroking your hair affectionately. “I guess I’ll be the snitch then.” 
You smiled, swimming in the feel of the James Potter you knew so well. Later that night, the two of you snuck out like old times, sharing a chocolate milkshake and sending each other glances the whole way home. 
--- 
Sixth year was a rollercoaster. The map was finished, all the efforts poured out finally receiving an equally impressive outcome with the parchment branded with the names of the Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, Prongs and Vixen. Remus had his first kiss and Sirius decided on leaving home and James welcomed him with open arms. 
The other Marauders were not impartial to the changes in your and James’s behavior. The miniscule changes in his face when you napped on his lap or the flush of your skin when he rustled your hair. In all honesty, it was as though the two of you were finally waking up and seeing what they’d been seeing all along. However, your own defiance was strong and love wasn’t simple. James was still under the impression that his heart beat for Lily Evans and you flirted around your feelings as opposed to finally confronting them. 
When Gryffindor won the Quidditch season, you were the first one in James’s arms to congratulate him. He spun you around, a large grin on his face. “We won!” 
You smiled. “That you did, my boy. Celebration calls and are you thinking what I’m thinking?” 
He tucked a stray piece of hair behind your ear. “Hmm? Let me guess… Firewhiskey?” 
“That’s my boy.” you cheer, linking your arm in his and dragging him off the field as Lily Evans watched the boy she had taken a chance on run off with someone else.
---
Firewhiskey made for a fine celebration and resulted in James and you collapsed on the floor of the Gryffindor common room at two in the morning. His glasses were crooked as he stared up at the ceiling and your hair fell in waves on the floorboards. 
“Blimey, I can’t believe we won.” James chuckled, his words slurring together slightly. 
“You deserve it, my boy.” you say, lightly punching his arm. “How are you feeling on this fine evening?” 
His cheeks went pink but a smile overtook his features making for a hilarious expression when he shouted out. “Randy!”  
You doubled over with laughter. “Gosh, James. I don’t need to hear about this.” you shove his grinning face with your palm. 
“What, you've never felt randy before?” he asked, a childlike expression on his face juxtaposing such an intrusive question. 
You hide your embarrassment behind a grin. “Yes, but I’m not going around telling you about it.” 
He tapped your nose with the tip of his finger and your stomach swirled. “And why not?” 
You turned over to your side. “I’m not sure best friends tell each other about being randy, Prongs.” 
James sighed. “I guess not. But how are you feeling, my little vixen?” 
With a swig of your drink and a grin you reply. “Randy.” 
The two of you erupt into fits of laughter. James pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “I suppose it’s the whiskey then.” 
You stare up at the ceiling. “Yeah, I suppose so.” 
Both of you knew that wasn’t the case. You knew that despite the whiskey slowing the gears of your mind you still noticed James’s hand laying by your waist. You could still trace the outline of his chin and the bridge of his nose. James could still see the curve of your lips and the rise of your chest. Firewhiskey was most definitely not the cause of your randiness. 
But it was the easiest thing to blame. 
--- 
Your birthday came soon after with the Marauders celebrating in joy. Presents were exchanged with Remus giving you some books, Peter knitted (with the help of his mother) a pair of mittens for you and Sirius had gifted you a record to play on your stereo. 
But James had to be extravagant. It wasn’t everyday his best friend turned seventeen and he marked the occasion with something expensive yet meaningful. When you opened the small box inside had been a silver fox ring. It’s eyes sparkling gems that twinkled as if blinking. 
“James, I’m going to kill you.” you seethed. “This is way too expensive. I’m turning seventeen not fifty.” 
He laughed. “Oi, woman! It’s fine. Nothing I couldn’t handle. Besides, only the best for you.” 
You stared at it once more before engulfing him in a hug. “It’s beautiful, my boy. Thank you.” 
His arms squeezed your waist, breathing you in and remembering the sweet smells of childhood and friendship rolled into one. His eyes closed and it was as if he had drifted off into a pleasant dream. “Of course, my little vixen.”
You made certain to flick his head after. 
He was starting to regret giving it to you already. 
---
Sixth year came to a close with an even more devastating end than the last. The war only continued to rage with Muggles being murdered miles away from the school, Muggle-borns driving into hiding. Sirius’s brother was slowly falling into line with the other Slytherins, devoting their hours to the torture of Muggleborns, Lord Voldemort and the likes. 
James left Hogwarts heart-broken when Lily Evans broke up with him on the last day of term. “Look around!” Lily had told him. “You’re blind, James. I’m not the person you want and it’d be clear if you’d stop and take a look.” 
He hadn’t known what she meant and the first week of summer was spent crying and eating ice cream on the sofa with you by his side. His room had become a mess and Lily’s letters no longer remained on the wall instead crumbled up in a ball in the trash. 
Euphemia Potter couldn’t dread to see her son in the dumps any longer and she made sure to tell him so one evening after you had left. 
“James, you need to get your life together, my love.” she whispered, rubbing her sons back reassuringly. 
His words came out muffled into her neck. “It’s hard.” 
“I know.” she soothed. “And I’m always going to be there for you.” 
“Promise?” he asked. 
“Promise.” she smiled. “Now how about you go clean your room. It’s become quite dirty.” 
He nodded, trudging to his room with a broom. Lily’s words repeated in his mind as he entered. “You’re blind, James. Look around!” But there was nothing to look for. All he saw was his wall and a soft smile came to his face as he approached it. The Tutshill Tornado banners clung loosely to the paint and drawings of Kneazles and landscapes and trees. Pictures of the Marauders and Gryffindor lions. 
And finally the ones of you. 
His fingers ran across the picture in the middle. Four-year old James grinning and you licking a lolly. His eyes moved to the next one, seven years old and flying together on a broomstick. A grin broke out on his face as he saw the one with your owl in Diagon Alley, his fingers flicking your forehead. James’s mind was on hyperdrive as he examined each picture, one common factor in almost all of them. 
You. 
You were in many of the photos, a smile adorned on your face. If you weren’t in the photos you were the one taking them, knowing how much he adored them. Any pictures that hung were sketched by your hands. Here was James Potter’s open story, the story of his life all plastered to the wall as though it was an empty canvas. Present in every moment, every aspect, had been you. You had been the start of his book, the picture of the two of you as tots still smacked in the middle of the wall. Yes, he realized. You had started his book and had remained in it for quite some time. 
Lily Evans must’ve noticed and maybe everyone else had too. 
James had been blind to the message that was sprawled across his wall. He had been the one writing it, maybe not knowingly but writing it out all the same. Everyone had seen it except the writer and his subject, the message painstakingly clear years prior to its conception. 
He quickly removed all the pictures from the wall, grabbing each one that hung and piling them up in his hand. The door swung open as he dashed out of his room yelling, “I’ve got to go, mum!” before running out the front door. The hills of green were illuminated by the night sky, the stars burned for James as he hopped over branches and boulders to get to you. 
Your house was in the distance, your figure standing a few feet away from the home. He called out to you, your eyes turned to meet his. When he reached you, he paused, catching his breath. 
“James, what on Earth are you doing here?” you laugh, placing a hand on his shoulder as he breathed. 
He stood up straight, panting as he held up a photo. “This is us when we were four. The first photo we ever took together.” 
You squinted at him. “Right?” 
He shuffled through the pictures, fingers tracing each one. “And this is from when we were seven. That one from when we were ten. You gave me this drawing when we were six because you loved Kneazles and wanted one as a pet. That drawing was from the first year when we went skipping stones at the Black Lake and you sketched me and Peter.” 
Your face melts slowly. “James, I don’t understand. You’ve had these for years.” 
He exhaled, his eyes lighting up. “That’s the thing. I never saw it till now but Lily said I was blind and that she wasn’t the person I wanted.” You nod, wiping the sweat from his forehead with your sleeve and he grinned. “See that right there. That’s what I want.” 
The night air bit at your spine. “You want me to wipe the sweat from your forehead?” 
He shook his head with a soft chuckle. “Not exactly. I want you to wipe the sweat from my forehead for the next year and the next ten and then the next fifty. You’ve been doing it for years already and the thing is… I don’t think I want anyone else doing it for me.” 
You blinked as he came closer, his palms cradling your cheek as you gazed into his eyes. “You’ve been in my life for as long as I could remember and I want you to stay in it for as long as I live. You told me once to not throw around the l-word and I said…” 
“But I’ve known you my whole life.” you mutter. 
“I think I’ve loved you for a while. I just didn’t know it yet.” 
You shook your head as the wind rustled the branches, the windchime on your porch creating soft melodies. A large grin spread across your lips yet you continued to shake your head. “There’s a war, James.” 
He smiled. “Only more the reason to be with me.” 
“But I’ve been with you my whole life.” you tease. 
“Oh, shut up!” he chuckles, before leaning down to capture your lips. At that moment everything made sense. All the pieces of the puzzle sifted into place and the stars applauded you from the sky and the night gale created a ruckus at your shed blindfold. 
“Be my Snitch?” he asked. 
You rolled your eyes, “That’s the cringiest thing you’ve ever said, my boy.” 
He smirked. “Oh, but you love it.” 
“Perhaps I do.” you replied, flicking his forehead for good measure. 
---
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jayz4dayz · 3 years
Text
Kakegurui character headcanons that are canon in my eyes (Part 3)
Midari: 
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You already know this bitch has done hard drugs. She’s probably a dealer at Hyakkaou too ngl
Actually very intelligent and could get all A’s if she cared enough to
Canonly lesbian
She/they vibes 
Hardcore energy drink consumer. Monster and Redbull cans are all over the floor of her dorm room
If you simp for her… ya got mommy and daddy issues, luv-
Is physically touchy toward everyone, but lowkey recoils when someone she doesn’t know or trust touches her
Actively tries to annoy the shit out of both Sayaka and Yuriko as her way of showing her affection 
Night person
I can see her actively practicing witchcraft 
Favorite holiday is Halloween 
Probably has a glass eye somewhere but doesn’t bother putting it in because the eyepatch is a ✨look✨
Was the kid in school who ate glue or play dough 
Is best friends with Sayaka. Do not fight me on this
Needs to go to therapy. Honestly, who doesn’t in that school
Weapon of choice is her revolver, of course <3
Will often lay in Yuriko’s lap because Yuriko actually lets her. It’s one of her favorite things to do when she needs to unwind
Slytherin. 100% a Slytherin. 
Has at least one tattoo somewhere and nipple piercings too if we’re being honest
Can’t stand hot weather and prefers the cold 
Avid fan and listener of the band Mother Mother
Canonly almost shot a person on accident or on purpose with her revolver
Will flirt with Kirari just to piss off Sayaka 
Will flirt with Yuriko just to see her get flustered 
(Y’all can come after me all you want for this one) Has a crush on Yuriko
ESTP-A personality type
Has a pet tarantula
Most likely had a pen explode in her mouth while she was chewing on it in class at some point
Everyone asks “where is Midari?” but no one asks “how is Midari?” 
Favorite color is black or purple 
For SURE owns at least one choker 
Yuriko: 
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Refuses to take hard drugs but has accidentally gotten high off her ass from an edible. Midari’s edible, mind you
Is the mom friend of the group 
Owns a minivan and drives Midari and Runa places
Has a dent on the side of the same minivan because Midari hit the side of it with a shopping cart that Runa was in
Nurse vibes tbh
Keeps her eyes closed because she’s lowkey blind and can’t see much anyway 
Ravenclaw all the way
Was a horse girl in elementary school 
Has either really beautiful emerald green eyes or average Hudson-river colored brown eyes. Will we ever know?
Is secretly a cat girl. Why else do you think I used that image in particular for her
Easily flustered 
Has a crush on Midari but is still confused about her sexuality 
She sure as hell ain’t straight tho. Not in that school...
An only child
Is struggling, but wears a smile regardless 
Stepped on a butterfly once and sobbed
Ya know... say what you want, but I get vegetarian/vegan vibes from her 
Avid hot tea drinker 
Has pollen allergies
Morning person 
Prefers warmer weather and hates the rain
Has spa days with Yumemi once and a while
Can’t lift anything heavier than twenty pounds probably 
Would be on the Volley ball team if she wasn’t head of the Culture Club 
Several girls in her club have a huge crush on her and compete against Midari to gain her affection and attention 
Has straight A’s 
Idk why, but I can’t see her knowing how to swim
Gets cold easily 
Wears kimonos even when she’s at home 
Enjoys reading classical literature
Also enjoys listening to classical music
Would never admit this, but she listens to K-pop 
Has a hidden talent for drawing 
ISFJ-T personality type 
Weapon of choice is a bo-staff (which is really just a broom stick)  or Midari
Can speak Japanese, Korean, and Mandarin 
Runa: 
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Has absolutely done crack and likely a handful of other drugs 
Has a sugar addiction, but we already knew that one
G R E M L I N     E N E R G Y
Most likely has ADHD or ADD or both even 
I saw somewhere that said she’s 18?? Like, what?? She looks like she’s 12 tf... 
Asexual/Aromatic icon 
Hufflepuff vibes, but I can also kinda see her as a Slytherin
Jokingly homophobic towards Kirasaya and Yuridari 
Will drink nothing aside from soda or energy drinks 
Not a furry, contrary to popular belief. Just enjoys her onesies. Let her live her life jeez
Canonly a baddie 
Short, but will not hesitate in destroying your kneecaps 
Actually really close to the Momobami and Ikishima family
Plays video games with Midari almost every day after school since Aoi left 
Ironically uses “UwU” and “Ara, ara” but does not ironically call people a simp. Can you blame her? She’s surrounded by wlw
Will beat you in Mario Cart. Yes she will. I don’t care how good you think you are
Has managed to not break a single bone in her body despite her size 
Is good at every subject except for geography
Can’t drive, but owns a scooter which she’ll use to get to school if Yuriko is unable to drive her
Owns a pair of Heely’s with wheels  
Unironically wears socks with sandals 
Also wears crocs 
Listens to rap 
Is fast af. “Zoom, zoom, bitches!” 
Secretly a badass gambler
Gets approximately 2-5 hours of sleep each night because she stays up playing video games
Naps during her classes 
Listens and ignores whenever Kirari is pining over Sayaka and talking to her about it
ENFP-A personality type
I can see her owning a hedgehog for some reason, but also a rabbit 
Would probably get away with murder if we’re being honest 
Is not a natural blonde 
Two faced. Like seriously, don’t get on this bitch’s bad side. She’ll destroy you
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floydig · 3 years
Text
Guess I’m Jaded
CW: homophobia, homophobic language, pureblood ideology
“The Manor’s new groundskeeper won’t cause you any trouble this time, Draco,” Father said over family dinner.
“Who is he, Father?” Draco had been expecting this conversation ever since he returned home from university, yet his chest still grew heavy.
Father laughed. “He’s a half-blood orphan, twenty-one, and dirt-poor. Crabbe and Goyle ran a background check, and there’s nothing unnatural about him,” Father said approvingly. His gaze darkened. “What was our last groundskeeper’s name?”
Draco’s mouth felt very, very dry. “Dean Thomas.” He swallowed. Dean had been very gentle, kind, and understanding about Draco’s lack of experience and need to keep their relationship a secret.
“Right. My campaign forced me to hire that mudblood queer for diversity publicity,” Father scoffed. “Bloody disgusting. When I caught him with you like that—in your own bedroom…” He shuddered. “We’re fortunate that Mind Healer Umbridge helped sort you out after what he did.”
“I agree, Father.” Draco took a deep breath in. He did not agree; he had never gone to see that bloody hack of a Mind Healer.
“Yes, that Thomas bloke was probably touched as a young child. It’s what happened to your cousin Sirius on your mother’s side. Turned him into a queer mongrel-lover.” Father smiled and continued, “No matter, I know you’ll make me proud, Draco. And the Greengrass Family awaits your decision.”
Mother remained quiet as usual.
Draco did not go searching for the Manor’s new groundskeeper, but he found him all the same.
The bloke was blasting some Weird Sisters in a storage shed out back—shaking his arse and circling his hips off-beat as he cradled something fluffy in his arms. Several fluffy somethings, actually.
Draco stood there and watched him for a long moment.
When the bloke twirled, he did a double take as his eyes landed on Draco, and he paused the music with a quick wandless spell. “Hey,” he grinned, face shiny with sweat. “Sorry about all this; I’m on break, and I wasn’t expecting to see anyone out here.”
“It’s alright, I suppose,” Draco said, hesitant. He really didn’t mind at all, but he knew Father would. And it seemed as if Father was always in Draco’s head, though Draco often wished he wasn’t.
“Brilliant,” the bloke smiled, easy. He paused to adjust the small, furry creatures in his arms. “I’m Harry, the new groundskeeper.”
“What have you got there?” Draco gestured to the fluffy, squirming bundles.
“Kneazle kittens,” Harry said. “I found five in a box on the side of a road.” He frowned. “I think they miss their mum. I’ve been feeding them scraps the best I could, but only four survived.”
“I’m sorry,” Draco said, because he didn’t know what else to say. He didn’t have time to think of something better before two kittens were unceremoniously dropped into his arms.
“Hold these two.” Harry’s eyes were clear and bright with dark bags underneath them.
The kittens were small and warm and soft. They mewled, and Draco felt very large, but also very insignificant. It was nice, he thought, to take care of something that wasn’t himself. He looked at Harry. “I’m Draco, by the way.”
“Oh,” Harry said, mouth twisting. “I’m supposed to kill you, you know.”
Before Draco could respond, Harry laughed. “Not really. Dean’s one of my mates, though. We dance at the White Swallow together. The pay is awful.” Harry paused to let a kitten nibble on his finger. “Dean flinches every time someone draws their wand now. But he’ll be alright.”
“Fuck,” Draco muttered, his head starting to dully throb. “How did you get past my father’s background check?”
Harry did not seem all too bothered. “One of my mates can fix up anything. She goes to your fancy university, too.” Harry started stroking a kitten’s tiny head. “On scholarship.” His mouth twitched.
“I’m sorry,” Draco said again, because he really, really was. Yet he loved his father, and he hated his father, and he didn’t know how to only feel one thing. You can hate that you care, but it doesn’t stop you from caring.
Maybe Draco was scared; he didn’t know. Draco didn’t know a lot of things, and he wasn’t sure he wanted to learn them. “Why are you telling me all this?”
Harry smiled wryly. “You don’t seem all bad.”
@drarrymicrofic prompt: Guess I’m Jaded
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writersrealmbts · 3 years
Text
A Natural: Part 7/Finale
Description: Hybrid!Taehyung x Reader: You’re a single mom, and your son is your entire world. When you take him to get his first hybrid, his choice is pretty bewildering, until you realize that he was picking out a dad.
Posted: 04/09/2021
Tags: Taehyung, Hybrid Taehyung, Human Reader
Wordcount: 3,673
A/N: Yay! Another series finished! Thanks for loving this story!
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Theo was talking animatedly with Taehyung as he was wheeled toward the house, but he got quieter as you approached the front door to unlock it, looking down at the ramp beneath the wheels of the wheelchair.
Tae pushed him through the front door, his conversation also lulling.
Theo looked around, a bit of a smile on his face. “I get to stay now, right?”
You nodded, kissing his forehead. “You get to stay now and forever. We do have to go back for checkups and therapy but you’re home and you’re safe and I’m making roast beef and mashed potatoes.”
“Yummy! Can we go play, Dad?” Theo asked, brightening instantly and sort of bouncing in his wheelchair.
“Sure!” Tae pushed the wheelchair through at a speed that made you nervous. But you knew he would never purposely endanger Theo: Theo was his pup. That was evident in all of his actions, in his conversation, and in the effort he had made to get certified so that he could be there when Theo was released.
You went into the kitchen to baste your roast and then start peeling the mashed potatoes, trying to calm your heart because your baby was finally home again. Finally, finally home again, after weeks and months of too little patience and not enough answers, and a whole sea of tears. Therapy, rehab, tests, more tests, and after all of that, you had your baby home—less mobile than before, but still your baby.
You watched Theo playing on the bed with Tae, fighting the tears and hopelessly losing because he was back where he belonged.
Peace, comfort, and everything right in the world. Nothing intruding, just your little family.
So, of course, your phone rang.
You groaned and answered it. “Yoongi? Really? We just got Theo home.”
“It happened. We’re out of a job,” Yoongi answered, sighing. “They closed the company down.”
“Ugh. You could have texted me that,” You huffed, heading back to the kitchen. The two of you had basically considered everything going on and known that the company was going to collapse. You’d almost been told as much when the two of you went in to talk to an IRS agent who wanted you to walk her through your jobs and some files and go over the discrepancies that had led to the audits.
“Yeah, well, I also had to tell you that the paperwork came in the mail today, and we close on the building next week.”
“Okay, that was worth calling me,” You said, hopping onto the counter. “What’s next on the list?”
“Fixing the building? Getting the classes organized. You finish the certification class tomorrow?”
“Yeah, it’s kind of pathetic,” You said, shrugging. “Too easy. Let’s make our classes thorough, yeah?”
“Agreed. Jin is already writing a teaching plan. He’s got it halfway done—at least, I hope that’s the halfway point. Jungkook’s been helping, which makes hyung happy. And he’s finished the dog-training next week. The teacher was really excited to hear about what we’re doing, by the way, and gave Jin a bunch of things. She asked Jin to sit in on her next couple of classes as her helper.”
“That’s really great. Jimin?”
“He’s hitting garage sales to celebrate getting the building, hoping to find some cheap stuff to get us started. How’s Theo?”
“He’s fine. He’s bright and happy and playing with Taehyung right now. He’s taking things well and I’m making his favorite, and he’s looking forward to everyone coming over tomorrow.” You checked your timer, then sighed. “We’re totally doing pizza, though. I’m already exhausted.”
“Okay. I can pick it up on my way over.”
“Thanks. I’ve got to go. Need to get the rest of dinner started.”
“Tell Theo we’re looking forward to playing games with him tomorrow.”
“You got it. Eat well.”
“You too.”
You slipped off of the counter, and started putzing around the kitchen making some side dishes to go with dinner.
Tae came out. “How long until dinner?”
“Twenty minutes?”
“Better keep it warm, he fell asleep.”
You nodded, letting him stop you and hold you still. “He okay?”
“Very okay. He’s so happy he’s home that he just sort of passed out.” He kissed your cheek, then sighed. “I’m so happy too. I finally get to see him and hold him. I just want to hold him and cry.”
“I’ve almost been in tears for the entire day,” You told him. “I figure once he’s in bed for the night, I’ll cry my little heart out.”
“Can I cry with you?”
“Of course you can. I would never ask you not to cry when you wanted to.” You turned to meet his gaze, gently touching one of his furry ears. “It’s been hard for both of us. It’s still going to be hard. I’m terrified of the next few days.”
“Me too. Even if they told us what to expect and how to care for him, there’re still a lot of mistakes we’re going to make and that scares the fur off me.”
You nodded. “I wouldn’t be able to make it through all this if I hadn’t had you, you know.”
Taehyung nodded. “I know.”
“Mommy! Look! I made it in my chair and through the house!” Theo called, managing the last push through to the kitchen and raising his arms in victory.
“My baby! Look at you!” You hurried over bending to kiss his face all over. “Excellent job!”
“It’s exhau…it’s tiring,” Theo finished, nodding firmly to cover for his lost word.
“Exhausting, fatiguing, tiresome, or draining,” You supplied, sharing a smile with him and moving around to the back of the chair, bringing him over to the table. “What do you want to drink?”
“Water. It smells really good, mommy.” Theo smiled up at you.
You dropped a couple kisses on his face before going to get him his drink.
Tae was bringing over the side dishes. “You want to stay in your wheelchair, or you want to sit on the chair?”
“Chair, it’s a little too high,” Theo said, touching the table edge, which was practically to his chin.
Tae nodded and pulled the wheelchair back. “Arms around my neck.”
Theo did as he was told and the two of them moved him to the dining chair.
“You okay, baby?” You asked, noticing the way Theo was sort of fidgeting in the chair as you brought the roast over.
Theo looked up at you. “It’s still weird.”
“Your legs?” You guessed, resting your hand on his cheek.
He nodded, leaning into your touch. “I don’t like it.”
“I know. Neither do we. But…there are some things in life that are out of our control.” You pressed a kiss to his forehead. “And we’re going to be with you every moment of the way.”
Theo nodded, sighing. “I missed you, mommy.”
“I was with you,” You teased gently, but you understood exactly what he meant. It had always been the two of you, three once Tae had joined, and while he was in the hospital everything felt wrong. You didn’t get to hold him like you wanted, and it seemed like every time you had him in your arms and both of you were comfortable a nurse would come in to do something or other.
“But we weren’t home,” He said, watching Tae put the bowl of mashed potatoes down. “I really, really missed you daddy.”
Tae came over and nuzzled Theo. “I missed you more.”
“I missed you most,” Theo responded easily.
You hummed softly. “Come on. Time to eat, boys, before it gets cold.”
Theo hummed happily as you filled his plate, immediately trying to cut his own food first before ultimately letting Tae do it. “Too tired. Too hard.”
“That’s fine, kiddo,” Tae answered easily. “We all need help sometimes. And cutting things can be hard. At least you try.”
Theo nodded. “Mommy said that as long as I try, I can make it through the world.”
“Your mom is really smart,” Tae said, smiling at you. “She’s got a good history of trying her best at everything, including taking care of you and me. You chose her well.”
Theo laughed. “I didn’t choose her!”
“What?! Of course you did!” Tae objected, grinning himself. “Every kid chooses their parents!”
Theo and Tae launched into a playful debate and storytime about how every kid chooses their parent while you ate, quietly listening and just enjoying the fact that you were home.
Theo was home.
“Uncle Hobi said that he’d help me catch up to the rest of the class over the summer. I don’t want to do school work in the summer, but I don’t want to be behind. Kevin and Jun were close to being my friends, and they sent more drawings and letters than the other kids.”
“They wanted to visit, too, but they didn’t want to tire you out,” You told him. “We told them that they could come play with you once you were home.”
He grinned. “When? Tomorrow? Tuesday?”
“I’ll talk to their moms and arrange it all, and let you know. But, let’s have a couple days just our family.”
Theo nodded, but then looked back up. “Wait, does that include my uncles?”
“Of course. We’re working on projects together so they’re over quite a bit lately. And they’re coming over tomorrow, remember?” Tae nuzzled Theo, then added more potatoes to his plate. “Eat up.”
“More food?”
Tae nodded. “You need to eat well to recover.”
“Oh. Okay.” Theo started eating the extra food on his plate.
“Only eat until you’re full, though,” You instructed.
“Yes, mommy,” Theo answered, smiling at you.
Your baby was home.
——
“Woohoo!” Theo cheered as he rolled down the ramp at a speed carefully controlled by Jungkook.
You finished edging the window and set your brush aside.
The building for the training center was almost finished, and all of the licensing and training that you all needed, and the first classes were slated to start in three days.
“Over here is our obstacle course, which we think will help those training with us, as well as those in physical therapy, learn how to maneuver around things that they’ll come across on a regular day. As you can see, our happy tester is enjoying going down the ramp after he was working on trying to get up it on his own for a while.” Jimin high-fived Theo as he led the group past. “We’re also finishing painting, so try not to touch the walls unless you like paint on you.”
The people chuckled, fascinated by Jimin’s enthusiastic tour. He was showing some hybrid-shelter owners through the facility to sell them the idea of sending hybrids there for training to increase adoption rates. He’d given multiple tours so far, because he was by-far the best at it, aside from Taehyung, but Taehyung had the disadvantage of being a hybrid.
Hoseok was trailing the group, but split off to join you. “They’re practically eating out of his hand.”
“Good. We have bills coming eventually.”
“Yeah.” He sat down next to you. “But this place is amazing. You guys are going to do really well.”
“I hope so.”
Hoseok handed you the folder. “So, I looked things over.”
“Good news, then?” You asked sarcastically.
“Not bad news. He’s learning more slowly, but he’s still learning. As he grows stronger, I think he’ll be okay. He just gets tired so easily that I think it’s causing his trouble. So, once he gets stronger and isn’t as tired, I think he’ll catch up just fine. But for now, he’s going to stay just a little behind. I’m moving up with the class as part of the new program, so I can keep following his progress and helping him.” He patted your shoulder. “I already talked to the higher-ups about it. They agreed that it was important for him to be with his friends. Especially since we’re working on catching him up. And he’s still a bright kid, that catches on quickly. Tired equals distracted, distracted equals slower learning.”
“Thanks for the crayons, teach,” You answered dryly.
He grinned at you. “Hey, there’s a reason I teach kids.”
“Because you are one?”
He laughed and the two of you watched as Jungkook helped Theo work his way up the easiest ramp so he could go down the hardest again.
“He really likes this place. After we left yesterday, it was all he could talk about,” You told him, smiling as Theo cheered on his way down the ramp again.
“His friends are coming to play here, aren’t they?”
You nodded. “They’ll be here soon. Taehyung is waiting to show them in. Their mom’s were excited to hear that this was practically a playground, rainy days are hard.”
“You could market day-passes and make that one room into a playroom for kids, that’d help bring in more income. I know several sets of parents that would bring their younger kids in, especially on rainy days. And if hybrid rights ever get reestablished, you could make it hybrid friendly which would really help.”
Yoongi paused in the doorway and looked at you.
You looked back, then at Hoseok. “So, we told you you’re a shareholder, right?”
Hoseok nodded.
Yoongi pulled out a notebook and wrote the idea down. “I’ll start pricing things and we can discuss it.”
“Theo!”
You looked over as Kevin and Jun ran over.
“Hi!” Theo greeted them enthusiastically and they started talking.
Taehyung was leading in their mothers.
“I should go talk with them,” You excused yourself and headed over.
“Y/n, it’s so good to see you. Thanks for letting the kids play here, it looks great,” Jun’s mother (Debby?) said, sounding genuinely enthusiastic.
“And safe. Kevin has a habit of hitting his head on everything so I’m glad to see everything is padded. Lumps are easy, cuts are hard,” Kevin’s mother (Jamie?) added. “Plus the rain.”
You nodded. “They’re little balls of energy, but I’m really grateful for you two bringing them. Theo was so excited to hear he would get to see them.”
“Jun’s been asking about Theo almost every week. These past months must have been so hard. I don’t think I could have handled it.”
“I have a really good support system,” You answered easily, turning with them to watch the three boys playing, Jungkook keeping an eye on them to help if Theo got stuck.
The other two boys were being really thoughtful and kind and they saw the wheelchair and Theo being stuck in it as a challenge and a game, which would definitely help. They listened when Jungkook did have to help them and they already seemed to be having fun.
“Are you sure you don’t want us to hang around and keep track of them?” Kevin’s mom asked after giving you her husband’s number as well as Kevin’s backpack.
“We’d be happy to help,” Debby added.
You shook your head. “Go home, relax. Or clean, or whatever you need to get done. I’ve got several helpers on hand if I need them, including their favorite teachers. That is, as long as you’re okay with Jin and Taehyung helping out.”
“Of course, this whole law is ridiculous. It won’t last.” Debby waved a hand as if dismissing the law.
“Can’t last, more like. My favorite babysitter is a golden retriever hybrid, she’s been living in our basement ever since this happened. She was really excited to hear about this place, though, so I told her I would bring her once it was open.”
You smiled. “She’d be very welcome, and just let me know if she wants to take any of the classes.”
They nodded and left after telling their boys to behave and listen to you and the other adults.
You went into different rooms, double-checking the painting and making sure everything looked nice and correct.
Namjoon was sorting through the area rugs, placing them in order by thickness and type. This would make it easier to not only determine what carpets might be easier for people in wheelchairs, but help them and those helping them grow accustomed to the type of challenges that different carpets could present.
Yoongi was going through and making notes of different things that still needed to be finished, or other things that came to mind, as well as double checking some of the safety parameters.
Jimin was still talking with the people he was giving the tour to.
Hoseok was sorting through the spare office supplies that all of you had managed to scrounge up (a lot of yours came from your college years, like the dozen or so sticky note pads, the handful of highlighters, a plethora of paperclips and binder clips, push pins, pencils, pens, erasers, loose-leaf lined paper, binders, folders, and index cards—so many index cards), while keeping the kids in his sight should Tae or Jungkook get distracted.
And Seokjin was setting up the kitchen, which was going to be teaching cooking classes as part of companion training, but also used to show the difficulties a person in a wheelchair would face on one side of the kitchen while the other side was made for people in wheelchairs. He really liked the kitchen, and it was his pet project
Which meant you could go and look at the room that wasn’t being used yet.
Hoseok was right, it would make a really good room for kids playing. Something that would be easy to sanitize, but still allow for the kids to play. A slide would easily fit there, some rock wall-type of holds on the wall there….
You backed out of the room and stuck a sticky-note to the door, labeling it the Jungle room.
Yoongi joined you, giving you a questioning look.
“If we’re going to make a room for all kids to play in, we should have a theme for it. Kids like themes. Jungle is a good theme.”
He nodded. “That cafe I told you about, they said if we get busy enough, they’d love to partner with us and open in the cafeteria.”
“That’d be perfect. For now we’re just going to have to offer snacks by the front desk, though.”
“Jimin is on the phone with the local paper.”
You slowly turned toward him again. “What?”
He nodded. “They called, wanting to talk to someone about this place and Jimin saw me starting to stumble so I pretended I was just an assistant and told them I was handing the phone over to one of the founding members. He’s good at the talking thing. Between him, Jimin, and Tae, we should never need to talk on the phone.”
“I’ll believe that when I see it,” You answered, hurrying to find Jimin because you wanted to know how the interview went.
“Yes, thank you so much for your inquiries. You have a nice day as well.” Jimin hung up, and grinned at you. “Well, we’re definitely getting some attention!”
“What did they ask? What did you say?”
“Well, they asked why we started this, when we were opening, what we were offering—I added on hybrid companion training for the elderly, but I didn’t think you two would mind—and I gave them the answers, I didn’t divulge first names or anything. I used strictly last names, because even that lends us more anonymity and autonomy. I told them we wanted to help our community and those who were currently suffering—I even added that our training areas worked great for kids playing when it was raining outside because they could hear the boys laughing. They asked if we had considered opening it as a playground for the kids as well when it wasn’t being used for training and I answered yes—but I also added that we’d need another permit or two that we haven’t filed for yet. We have considered that, right?”
“We have, actually, we were talking about turning one of the rooms into a kids playroom specifically. Then if we have hybrids who have kids, the kids can play while their parents are in classes,” Yoongi said, definitely adding that to his notebook, as well as the elderly thing. “This is going to be a life-long project, isn’t it?”
“If we’re lucky,” Jimin answered cheerfully.
You left Yoongi grumbling to go check on the boys, noticing that Theo wasn’t playing as much, but he was still laughing with them and apparently they were rescuing him from pirates or something.
Taehyung wrapped an arm around your waist. “You know…I’m really proud of you.”
You relaxed into his hold, resting your head on his shoulder. “I’m really happy Theo chose you as his father.”
“I’m really happy you let him,” He whispered, then tilted your chin up to gaze into your eyes for a moment.
Then he leaned in and kissed you, softly and gently, a silent promise for forever.
“I knew it!” Theo yelled happily, definitely staring at you two when you looked over. “YES!”
“Whoops,” You whispered, trying not to laugh. It seemed an age ago that you told Theo not to expect the two of you fall in love. Told him he could call Taehyung his father if he really wanted to.
An age since Taehyung first kissed you.
A lifetime since you told Theo he could adopt a hybrid.
Taehyung laughed and kissed you again. “Thank you for my family.”
“Does that mean you don’t want more pups?” You asked cheekily.
He shrugged. “I’m satisfied with whatever I get in life. If that’s more kids, then I’m not going to complain. But Theo’s enough for me.”
You kissed his cheek and rested in his arms, knowing everything in your future was going to be worth the trials. But he was a natural at helping you through it.
You couldn’t ask for anything better than this.
Previous.
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heliads · 3 years
Text
Curiosities
You feel that life can be divided up into a select set of curiosities- rules by which you live and breathe, that explain away everything in your life as a mutant. You’re doing fine until a certain boy named Peter Maximoff throws everything into disarray.
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If you try hard enough, everything that happens to you can be sorted out into a list of curiosities. You’re not sure how long you’d been thinking about it this way, but it made enough sense if you really thought about it. Your life was different, ever-changing, and if you kept it locked away within the list of curiosities, you could get a handle on it long enough to peek through the chest of memories that would otherwise fly open and swallow you whole.
Curiosity #1: You were a mutant.
This in itself was relatively easy to explain. When you were about ten, maybe twelve, you started to show the first signs of your power. A faint stirring in the shade in the corner of the room, the fact that you were never afraid of the dark. You waved to your shadow with your left hand, it responded by moving the ankle on its right. By the time you were about fourteen, your powers had fully come into being: you were able to control the shadows. You could bring them into existence, spooling black fog around your fingers and forcing it to your will. 
Curiosity #2: Even among mutants, you were an outcast.
You had come to Professor Xavier’s school when the building itself was fairly uninhabited. Xavier understood you; but then again, he was able to look past the dark furrow of your brow and into the sunny spaces of your head; he could tell that you didn’t wish to hurt anybody. None of the other students shared that same gift, except perhaps Jean, but she didn’t particularly wish to go probing into your skull.
When the school was still new and lacking in students, you were able to grow and flourish as a mutant. The Professor taught you how to use your powers himself, and you had full reign over the grounds. Then, more students started to appear, and they took up more and more of Xavier’s time. Before long, he barely saw you at all.
The other students didn’t know what to make of you. They could understand mutants with cool, interesting powers, like Storm with her weather manipulation or Mystique with her ability to change forms. Furry, blue teachers were acceptable; you were not. They were afraid of how you could control the shadows, how you seemed part darkness yourself. They drew away from you, huddling in the hallways and not making eye contact when you walked by. Slowly, a hated nickname surfaced: Suffocator. They were terrified that you would reach out a hand, call the darkness to you, make it cover their mouth and nose and choke out all air from their desperate lungs. You hated it, but it didn’t matter. Suffocator you were, and suffocator you would always be.
One night, a few of the mutants your age were bored and wanted to throw a party. Someone, maybe Jubilee, had heard of this thing called a masquerade party on one of her trips to the mall or somewhere outside of the school. She was desperate to try it out, and so Xavier’s School had posters everywhere across campus advertising the party.
When you first heard of it, you weren’t planning on going. Nobody wanted you there, not the girl who lurked in the shadows and didn’t speak to anyone. Then you realized that everyone would be wearing a mask and intentionally disguising their identity- nobody would know who you were. It almost seemed too good to be true.
A few days later, the day of the masquerade party arrived. You had donned a sapphire blue mask, one that shimmered like the lake just outside the school when the sun crossed its waves. The glittering, twinkling sea would hide your face from those who would otherwise distrust you. You had glanced at yourself in the mirror before you went; you did not look like yourself. You smiled in satisfaction, and headed out.
The party was being held in one of the empty halls of the school, and you blended in seamlessly with the other mutants. You talked and laughed with them, and they had no idea that they were speaking with the girl they’d avoided just a few hours earlier. You found yourself smiling and having more fun than you’d had in months.
Then, you became aware of one student heading towards you. Tall, overbearing Natalie: she had always hated you for some unknown reason. She glanced once at the group of friends you were speaking with, then folded her arms across her chest. “Do you know who you’re talking to?” She said, and the group looked from her to you and shook their heads. Natalie donned a gleeful smirk. “That’s Y/N. I’m not sure you really want to be spending that much time with her.”
The group of mutants cast you fearful looks once they realize it’s you, and start to walk away. Natalie is the only one who remains, and she crosses the final few feet to stand in front of you. Her voice comes in a loud hiss that seems to echo around the room. “Suffocator.”
A blur of silver flashes around you, and then a boy suddenly appears in front of you. “Those are strong words for someone who can’t even figure out empathy. I mean, come on- yesterday someone was crying in front of you and it took you half an hour to figure out they were sad.” Natalie draws back, angry. “Rude, Maximoff! Hasn’t Xavier told you not to make fun of people’s powers? Empathy is hard.” The silver-haired boy laughs. “Not making fun of people’s powers? I think you’re the one who needs to work on that, not me.”
Natalie rolls her eyes, trying to hide her annoyance at the fact that she’s losing this argument. “Whatever. I’m bored of this already.” She stomps away to hang out with her other friends, leaving you to stare at the boy who’d suddenly come to your defense. Of all the mutants, why would it be Peter?
Curiosity #3: Peter Maximoff.
Nobody at Xavier’s school trusted you. Nobody, it seemed, except for Peter. Ever since that day, he’d been relentless in his task to befriend you. You’re not sure why- everyone else had given up on you long ago. It’s not like you didn’t want friends, or that you were that strange a person. You were like everyone else: happy, laughing, friendly. It’s just the threat of your powers, so strange and unnatural, that forced everyone else away.
But not him. No, Peter refused to let your powers daunt him in the slightest. He’d be there after class, walking nonchalantly beside you. It didn’t seem like a friendship borne of pity- no, he teased you and made the same jokes as he would with everyone else. He even called you Suffocator once, that dreaded nickname, although it didn’t have that same barb as it did before. Maybe that’s because the other students used it as a knife to stab at you before running away. Instead, Peter tossed it like a paper plane, letting it float through the air as the two of you laughed from a joke. He didn’t want anything more than friendship, and so the two of you hung out after class, fighting mock battles with your powers and enjoying the time to be two simple teenagers in the otherwise strange world of mutants.
Curiosity #4: The quiet.
You’re not sure when you notice the silence at first. It’s just another day, ordinary in its dullness. You’re in the back of the grounds, away from the large groups of people in an attempt to study for a test you have later. You look up, once, fishing for a sticky note to mark the end of the chapter, but your eyes stay searching even after your hands close around the pad of paper.
You can’t hear anything. Well, that’s not entirely true. The birds still chirp, although with odd hesitation, as if afraid to sing too loudly. The wind still rustles the trees, but slowly, as if trying not to be noticed. The everlasting din of the students, though, that is gone. You push your books into your bag, standing up quietly. Even the zip of your backpack seems to echo in the silence.
This is strange. What happened to make the air so tense, the students shut their mouths for once to stand together in quiet? You sling your backpack over your shoulder, heading quickly to the front of the school to see what the fuss (or lack of, rather) is about.
There’s nothing at the front of the school, either. In fact, there aren’t that many people there. The only mutants out are Jean, Peter, Storm, Scott, and Nightcrawler. You watch as Jean presses her fingers to her temples, sending out a message that you only now pick up in your head. Go inside now. Don’t look out. Get the Professor. It echoes on a loop inside your brain, appearing only now that you’re close enough to the sender.
You glance around you, searching for some trouble that would cause Jean to send out such a message. Then, you see it- three large armored trucks headed your way, military logos emblazoned on the sides. This sort of thing happens every few years or so- some military higher-up decides that the mutants are too dangerous to be kept alive, and they attempt to round up everyone at the school. Xavier is usually there to put a stop to it, but today he’s out in some big city doing official business, so he’s not here to protect you. In fact, the only ones here to protect you are yourselves.
You watch as the trucks roll closer. Once they reach the gate, they stop, and soldiers start to stream out of it. Storm shouts over to Jean. “Are we doing anything about this?” Jean nods, her hair flicking out behind her like tongues of flame. “We’re stopping them. They want a fight, I can hear it. That’s just what they’ll get.” She says, and the mutants around her prepare themselves for a battle.
Curiosity #5: You stay to fight.
Why are you still here? Jean told everyone who wasn’t one of Xavier’s hand picked team to go inside, and yet you’re still cracking your knuckles out in front of the school just like everyone else. Maybe it’s because you want a taste for just how much damage your powers can deal out, or maybe it’s because you finally have a chance to prove yourself to be a hero, to fight like the others and make a name for yourself as someone who’s in it to protect the other students, even if they wouldn’t protect her. Regardless of the reason, the outcome stays the same. You’re here to fight.
When the men start running forward, you realize with sickening dread that they’ve brought guns, and dangerous ones at that. You’re not sure why they thought they’d need military grade rifles at a school, but they’re out and loaded nonetheless. They raise them towards you, launching a volley of bullets, but you throw up your arms and a wall of shadow appears in between the mutants and the guns, blocking the bullets and forcing them to the ground.
Jean turns to you, amazed. “Actually, I think it would be better if you stayed with us.” You grin slightly at that, turning your attention back to the soldiers. You and the other mutants fight in unison, powers working together as fluidly as a well oiled machine. You seem to compliment them, understanding their hurried motions as if you’d been working with them your entire life. 
Before you know it, the soldiers are hurrying back to the armored trucks, gesturing frantically at the drivers to get them out of here before they are killed by a bunch of kids with magic powers. The mutants look happily amongst yourselves, proud that you’d managed to defend the school against the soldiers. Together, you’d protected everyone here.
The night is starting to grow late, and everyone is out on the grounds in celebration. It’s not everyday that a bunch of teenagers fight back against the military and win, you know. You idle near a group of mutants, red plastic cup in hand just like them. Something feels odd, and it takes you a moment to notice what it is. Nobody’s scared of you. There aren’t any students huddled together, looking at you through nervous eyes that flick away when you catch sight of them. No pointed fingers, no hushed whispers. Maybe you’ve finally been accepted as one of them.
Jean approaches from across the field, stopping at a group of mutants only a few feet away from you. She leans towards Storm, tapping her on the shoulder. “Scott, Peter, Kurt, and I are hanging out in another corner of the woods. You know, victory party and all that? Come with us.” Her voice is a low whisper, but you can’t help smiling at it. You wait for her to nod at you, to ask you the same question, but strangely enough, she just slings an arm around Storm’s shoulder and the two of them walk away into the woods, leaving you behind.
She saw you. You know she saw you- her eyes glanced over you before they left. Her eyes weren’t glinting with hatred, some ill-concealed malice or anything. This wasn’t a plot to intentionally leave you out, she just didn’t see you as someone to invite, even though you’d been a key part of that victory group she seems so keen to celebrate. The realization hits you like a ton of bricks- no matter how hard you try, how many times you fight to protect them, they will never see you as a friend. All because they don’t understand your powers.
Dazedly, you leave the grounds where the rest of the mutants are celebrating. You find some quiet corner of the woods, a place that’s tucked away where nobody will notice you. The ‘victory party’ is on the opposite side of the grounds, so you know that you don’t have to fear anyone accidentally stumbling across you.
You slide to the ground, leaning back against the sturdy trunk of one of the many trees that stand tall and proud around the school’s forest. You cover your face in your hands, feeling all of your emotions finally catch up with you. You wish you could prove yourself in some way, that your powers may physically be dark but that you weren’t a monster, but it doesn’t matter how hard you try. You’ll never be anything more than a villain to them.
Silent tears course down your cheeks. You don’t think you’ve ever felt more alone than this night, even when things seemed impossible. No matter how bad things were before, this night manages to take the cake. There’s a cracking sound behind you, and you wipe your tears away hurriedly as you realize someone’s walking up to you.
“What are you doing all alone? Don’t you know we’re celebrating?” It’s Peter. Of course it is. You turn to face him, hoping the darkness will obscure the puffiness in your eyes. “Guess I was just tired.” You plaster on a smile, praying that he’ll get bored and go rejoin the others, but no such luck. He plops down in the grass next to you, arms stretched back behind him.
“Why aren’t you with Jean and the rest?” He says, and you frown at him. “What do you mean?” You ask. Peter furrows his brow. “You know, the victory party. You were there when the soldiers attacked, and you saved our skins like a dozen times over. Why aren’t you with them?” You look at him, willing him to be observant for just this once. “I just didn’t feel like going.” Peter rolls his eyes. “Oh, come on. Stop being your dramatic little self and just come on. The rest will be happy to see you.” 
He extends an arm as if to drag you there himself. You sigh frustratedly. “Fine, Peter. I’m not being dramatic. I know there’s a party, and I also know that they very much do not want me there. I was there when Jean asked Storm to hang out with Scott, Kurt, and the rest. She knew I was there, she saw me, and she didn’t ask the same of me.” Your voice breaks off. “It’s pretty obvious that no one here wants me to be there. Hell, no one here wants me to be at this school at all, and the only one who can’t see that is you.”
Peter’s silent for a second, and you curse inwardly. Now you’ve gone and made Peter, the one person who’s been here for you, feel bad about himself. You wouldn’t be surprised if he just gets up and leaves now. But he doesn’t. In fact, a smile flashes across his face. “That’s because they’re idiots.” You look at him, confused. “What?” He laughs. “They’re idiots, and you’re an idiot for listening to them.” 
He gestures absentmindedly at you. “Y/N, you’ve got one of the coolest powers I’ve ever seen, and for what, so you can be sad about it? Are you really telling me you’d rather be an empath than control the shadows? That’s like, the neatest thing ever.” His words, spoken with such conviction, bring a laugh to your face as well. Peter’s eyes light up when he sees it. “See, there you go. Come on, let’s have some fun. We don’t need them if they’re being weird.”
Your laugh dies off quietly as you look back at him. “Why are you doing this? Why are you taking the time to make me feel better? You make fun of your own friends and rob convenience stores when you’re bored. Since when has Quicksilver gone this far out of his way to make somebody laugh?” Peter smiles at you, then leans forward. His lips are on yours, suddenly, his hand gently cupped against your cheek. Just as you’ve realized what’s happening, he’s back in his spot a few feet away again. He smirks at you. “That’s why.”
You laugh in spite of yourself. “That’s why. Well, I guess that’s an acceptable reason.” Peter smiles. “Only acceptable? That’s not the best thing I’ve heard, but I suppose it’ll be okay for now.” He stands up, offering a hand to you. You take it. “So, are you coming with me or not? I intend to cause all sorts of chaos.” You look over at him, laughter dancing in your eyes. “Of course I am.”
Curiosity #6: Peter Maximoff loves you. And you love him.
peter maximoff tag list @amourtentiaa​
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lovemeleo · 3 years
Note
I would love to see Sirius Remus and Asher going to Nuny's to check up on Jackson and then Asher is all adorable with the cats
Thanks so much for this prompt, anon! I got so excited as soon as I saw it. Get to combine my baby Asher with my favorite Nuny boys. I hope you enjoy it! These characters and their world (except for Asher) belong to the always amazing @lumosinlove. 
If you haven’t read the rest of the Asher Pascal series, here’s the link!
***
“Now remember Ash, just because Uncle Nado doesn’t have the cast anymore doesn’t mean you can jump all over him.” Sirius said, glancing back at his son through the rearview mirror.
Asher nodded, clutching at his Lions stuffie as he stared out the window, “‘Cause he’s still hurtin’.” 
Smiling, Remus reached back to pat the little boy’s foot, “That’s right, bub.” 
Asher had been there for the game when Nado got hurt, and had been worried ever since. They’d already talked to him about how a lot of his family played hockey, and sometimes they got hurt. He had understood that but talking about it is a lot different than seeing it in front of your very eyes. The almost two year old had been itching to visit Jackson, but Sirius and Remus wanted to give him more time to heal up. So Asher video chatted with Nado whenever he could, going on about his day and whatever other things happened to pop into his head. He also gave Kuny drawings and get well cards, as well as one of his favorite stuffed animals to give to Nado until he could visit. Jackson teared up a bit when Kuny brought the gifts home, but he’ll deny it.
Now after two months, today was finally the day. Jackson had gotten his cast off a few days before and the Black-Lupin clan was given the OK to come visit.
Asher was wiggling in his seat as soon as Sirius put the car in park, a new drawing clutched in his hands, “C’monnnn. Time to get out!”
“Alright, let me get my seatbelt off first, jeez.” Remus said with a laugh before he climbed out. As soon as Asher was unbuckled, he made a break for the door but Sirius grabbed him quickly, throwing him over his shoulder. Wild giggles came from Asher as he held onto his daddy, dangling upside down over his back.
Remus let out an exasperated sigh, but it was mostly fond, “Be careful. We don’t need anyone else in casts.” Sirius looked back at him with a smile, blowing the other man a kiss before knocking on the door.
After a brief pause, there was some talking from behind the door before Kuny swung open, “Sorry, I should have asked. Do you have allergies?” 
“Like food allergies?” Sirius asked, his eyebrows furrowed at the strange greeting as he moved Asher onto his hip.
Kuny shook his head as he pushed something behind the door away with his foot, “No, no food. Like animals.”
Then a voice came from inside the house, “Cats. He wants to know if you’re allergic to cats!” Nado yelled. Kuny glanced back, giving him a look.
“You got a cat?” Remus asked, peeking behind Kuny curiously. “And no, we’re not allergic to cats. Asher has a habit of trying to steal them though when we help at the shelter.”
Nodding, Kuny moved back to let them in, “We got cats. And I would steal too.” He said with a grin as he stole Asher from Sirius’s arms, leading them to the living room where Nado was waiting. Asher clung to him happily, his arms wrapping around the giant man’s neck.
Nado grinned, holding Milo up like he was Simba in the Lion King, “Kuny took me to a cat café after I got my cast off, and we ended up getting attached.” He said, bringing the kitten back down so he could nuzzle him back into his neck.
“Uncle Nadooooooooo!” Asher squealed as soon as he saw his other uncle. Kuny set him down next to the couch. “I drew you this picture, it’s got me and you and Uncle Zhenya!”
Carefully taking the drawing, Jackson smiled as he ruffled Asher’s hair, “It’s great, dude. Can’t wait to hang it up.”
Asher smiled big, but his eyes quickly scanned over his Uncle as if to check him over, “You ‘kay?” He asked, looking up from the boot.
“I’m doing much better now. The boot’s a lot more comfy than the cast.” Nado said with a soft smile, pulling Asher onto the couch next to him. Milo peered down at the new little person and started to scamper his way down Nado’s chest. “Seems like Milo wants to meet you.”
Remus leaned forward from his spot on the opposite couch, smiling as the small gray ball of fluff sniffed curiously at Asher, “He’s so cute.”
The kitten nuzzled into Asher’s hand, letting out a soft purr as he made himself comfortable on the small boy’s lap.
“Wait… did you say cats? As in plural?” Sirius asked, glancing around the room.
Kuny nodded, before he got up, “I grab Pumpkin. One second.” He said before heading to their room.
Petting his hand gently down the small kitten’s back, Asher looked up at his dads with a big smile, “He’s so soft. And tiny!”
“Yeah, Milo is the smallest of the bunch. He’s our little guy.” Jackson smiled, gently scratching under the kitten’s chin before he handed Asher one of the toys, it had a long stick with a string attached that had a small fish toy on the end.  “He likes this one. If you just drag it back and forth, he’ll chase it.”
Asher took the toy, trailing the small fish toy back and forth. Milo scampered after it, stumbling a bit as he tried to keep up with the fish toy.
Kuny came out of their bedroom not long after, carrying what looked to be a mass of orange fluff in his arms, “This is my Pumpkin.” He may have been smiling but the entirety of his face was covered by Pumpkin’s fluff.
Remus couldn’t help but laugh as he watched his friend try to sit next to his boyfriend when he very obviously couldn’t see. 
“To the left a bit, babe.” Nado said, a fond smile spreading on his face as he pulled Kuny to sit down next to him before looking at their friends. “He got attached to her so we couldn’t leave her behind.”
Pumpkin let out an indignant meow as Kuny set her down on the floor by his feet, her tail swishing behind her as she made her way to where Sirius and Remus sat.
“You guys know you don’t have to take the cats with you when you visit cat cafes right?” Sirius teased, gently running his fingers through Pumpkin’s soft fur as she brushed against his legs.
Kuny laughed, resting his arm behind Nado as he leaned back into the couch, “They choose us, we just can’t refuse them.” He said, a soft smile spreading on his face.
Shaking his head, Remus reached to pet Pumpkin who had sprawled across Sirius’s lap, “So we leave you guys alone for a couple weeks and come back to you adopting two cats.”
“Three.” 
Their heads whipped up to look at Nado who was smirking, “We got three cats.. And well the last one. It was more like he adopted us.”
Asher looked up from where he was nuzzling into Milo’s fur, “Where’s the other kitty?”
As if he heard them talking about him, Loki let out a loud meow from the kitchen, followed by another long one.
Kuny and Nado sighed, sharing a glance as Kuny got up, “Probably stuck on fridge. Again.” 
“You spoil him, Zhenya. He’s big enough to get down by himself, but he knows you’ll come get him.” Nado said, shaking his head.
Eyebrows furrowed, they watched Kuny wander into the kitchen. Remus could hear soft whispering, but it was in Russian so he had no clue what the man was saying.
Nado looked over at them, “Loki jumps on the fridge if he feels that he’s not getting enough attention from Zhenya. And he stays up there until he comes and gets him.” 
Kuny came back in, followed by a massive cat who was trailing as close to the Russian as possible without stepping on his feet. 
“Jesus Fu-..” Sirius said, cutting himself off with a glance at his son.
Asher’s eyes were wide as he looked at the new cat, “Uncle Nado, you got a jaguar?!”
Laughing, Kuny picked Loki up, cradling him in his arms like a massive furry baby, “No jaguar, Ash. Just big kitty.” The massive cat nuzzled into Kuny’s chest as he sat back on the couch, letting out a loud purr now that he finally had his human’s attention. 
“He’s a maine coon cat actually, they think he’s around one or two years old.” Jackson said, reaching over to scratch at Loki’s head.
Remus raised an eyebrow, “So he’s still growing?” He asked as the giant cat stretched out, sprawling across Nado and Kuny’s laps but his eyes were on the newcomers. “I’m feeling vaguely threatened.”
Kuny shook his head, “Nah, Loops, no threat. He's a big cuddle bug. You can pet him, Ash. Let him sniff you.” He said, as the little boy handed Milo off to Nado. 
Asher moved slowly, holding his hand out for Loki to smell his hand. The big cat watched the tiny human curiously, sniffing at his hand before he got up. The tiny human had a small lap but it would have to do. Loki flopped down into Asher’s lap, almost covering him completely as the cat let out a loud purr. Asher’s face lit up as he looked between his parents and his uncles.
“He likes me!” Asher said happily as Loki curled up, nuzzling up into the little boy’s neck. Remus couldn’t help himself as he pulled out his phone, snapping pictures of Asher and Loki. 
Smiling, Nado set Milo back onto his shoulder, “Well, I’m not surprised he likes you, dude. Loki’s a good judge of character.” Asher held the giant cat closer, his massive grin partially hidden in Loki’s fur.
Sirius couldn’t help but let out a sigh as he saw the happiness on Asher’s face, “Dammit… now we’re gonna have to get a cat.”
Letting out a laugh, Remus pressed a kiss to Sirius’s head. He couldn’t even disagree at this point.
Guess they should start looking at shelters. 
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hrina · 4 years
Text
In The Ring, Pt. II - Cross
PAIRING: Harry x Reader RATING: M WORD COUNT: 7k REQUESTED: highly lol!
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hi again! here’s PART 2 of boxer!harry :) thank u all for such a wonderful response on the first part, i can’t explain how much it means to me. i worked really hard on this chapter, so i hope u guys love it! if u do, reblogs and feedback are very much appreciated, and i’ll probably ask for ur hand in marriage in return.
warning: parts of this fic will contain mentions of blood, violence, mild stalking, and sexual content. if any of that makes you uncomfortable, please take care of yourself and keep scrolling <3
u can find the rest of this series on my masterlist, which is linked in my bio! my inbox is also there if you wanna spare a few thoughts about this part. love u guys sm, stay safe out there 💛💛💛
~*~
    January 19, 2021
It’s ten at night, and you’re curled up in bed, scrolling through social media. You should be doing the assigned readings for your anatomy class, but you’re procrastinating. Besides, watching video after video of cute kittens peeking their furry little heads out of cardboard boxes is a much better way to pass the time.
Your relaxation period is interrupted when a notification banner descends from the top of your screen. It’s an unknown number, but the content of the message makes your eyes widen in surprise.
Hi. It’s Harry. I’m at the gym.
You tap on the text immediately, waiting with bated breath as you’re taken to a different app. You chew on your bottom lip for a moment, thumbs hovering over the screen before they begin to type.
Hey! I’ll be there in twenty minutes.
Harry’s reply is short, concise, to-the-point—just like him. Oddly enough, it makes you smile.
Okay. See you soon.
~*~
The first thing that Harry notices when you walk through the door is that you’re slightly out of breath. He’s standing in the middle of the ring, his eyes fixated on the opposite side of the room as you enter. Your hair is tied up in a high ponytail, and you’re wearing a pair of leggings and a tank top under your jacket. Your sneakers squeak against the floor as you stride over to him, fingers wiggling in a friendly wave.
“Hi!” you call out, shooting him a kind smile.
Harry leans against the ropes circling the ring, careful not to put too much of his weight on the barriers lest he flip over and fall to the floor. It’s happened once or twice, and each time, he ended up with a bruised tailbone afterward.
“Hi,” he replies.
You shrug your coat from your shoulders as you draw nearer. “How are you?” you ask, peering up at him curiously.
“Good, thanks,” he says. His fingers toy absentmindedly with the silver cross pendant dangling from his neck. “Er…did you run here?”
“What? Oh, no,” you answer with a breathless laugh. “I drove. But I was hurrying—I didn’t want to keep you waiting.”
You’re so fucking sweet. He’s going to throw up.
“It’s alright.” He shrugs. “I don’t mind.”
“Still,” you say, tightening your ponytail with both hands. “You’re going out of your way to do this for me. And while we’re on the subject of that—thank you, again. I really appreciate it.”
“No problem,” Harry says. He slips between the ropes and hops down from the platform. “Shall we start?”
“We shall,” you agree, biting back a teasing smile. “Am I going up against you?”
Despite himself, Harry chuckles. He shakes his head. “Not yet. First, you need to learn the basics.”
“Basics,” you echo, nodding once. “Right.”
He leads you over to the side of the ring, where a pair of punching bags have been strung up near the wall. The arrangement is nothing special—twin leather bags, one brown and one black, filled with sand and stitched together with strong, coarse thread. Reflexively, you reach out, running your fingertips along the black bag and giving it a gentle push. It swings outward before returning back to you. Harry watches you closely, examining the gentle crease between your brows and the slight glaze that smooths over your pupils. He clears his throat quietly, and you seem to snap out of your trance.
“Do you know how to punch?” he asks.
You purse your lips, looking unsure of yourself. “Um…I think so.”
He nods. “Show me, then.”
The blow that you deliver to the bag is weak at best. Harry immediately notices a handful of things that you’re doing wrong. When you pull your arm back and peer up at him, he’s trying his hardest to hold back a smirk.
“What?” You frown.
“Nothing.” He snickers softly, shaking his head again. “It’s just…that was cute.”
“‘Cute’?” you parrot, narrowing your eyes. You scoff good-naturedly, stepping back and holding your arm out in invitation. “You do it, then.”
Harry’s lips twitch. “Gladly.”
The chain hanging from the ceiling rattles when his fist makes contact with the leather. The punching bag itself swings forward in an extraordinary arc before hurtling back in your direction. You gasp when Harry stops it with his palms. He grunts quietly, stilling it before turning around to face you. There’s a small smile playing on his lips, and he’s sure that his eyes are gleaming with a smug sparkle. You just cross your arms over your chest, gazing at him evenly with your chin held high.
“Fine,” you say. “Tell me what to do.”
Harry gets you situated back in front of the bag, standing beside you and studying your posture.
“First of all,” he starts, “you need to make sure that the position of your feet matches the position of your arms.”
“What do you mean?” you ask, shooting him a confused pout.
“Like this—,” Harry reaches for your shoulders before pausing, his fingers only inches away from your skin. “Er,” he clears his throat, fixing you with inquisitive eyes, “is it alright if I touch you?”
You nod wordlessly. Harry swallows down the lump in his throat as his hands close the distance between your bodies. He slants your torso to the side before reaching for your arms, bending them at the elbow so that your fingers—now curled into loose fists—are suspended in front of your face.
“If you’re angling yourself this way,” Harry starts, mimicking your stance, “you need to make sure that your right foot is leading you. But if you stand in the opposite direction—,” he changes sides, adopting a mirror image of his previous position, “—then it has to be your left foot. Got it?”
“Got it,” you say confidently. That same crease is digging into the space between your eyebrows; Harry aches to reach out and flatten it with the pad of his thumb.
“Also,” he says, delicately wrapping his fingers around your wrists, “when you punch, you can’t drop your other hand. Keep it up at all times—you need to guard your face.”
“Guard my face,” you murmur, mostly to yourself. “Okay, cool.”
You throw an experimental punch at the bag, and Harry doesn’t miss the shadow of pain that flashes across your features. His eyes trail down the length of your arm, lingering on your fist. Before you can deliver another blow, he stops you, catching your knuckles in the calloused valley of his palm and halting your movements.
“Keep your thumb on the outside,” he says, peeling your fingers open and freeing your thumb from beneath them. “You’ll break it, otherwise.”
He curls the digits back up, this time so that your hand is settled in the proper arrangement. He then steps back, jerking his head toward the bag and encouraging you to take another swing. “Try it, now.”
The third blow is better than the past two. You beam up at Harry when a promising smack! echoes through the air. He smiles reassuringly at you, nodding his head and tugging at the collar of his t-shirt. “Good. That’s a start.”
“Put me in, Coach,” you tease, bringing your fists up to your face and bouncing playfully on the balls of your feet. Your eyes shimmer as you peek at him from behind your knuckles. Harry presses his lips together to keep himself composed, but he can’t stop the faint snort that slips out of his nose. You laugh cheerfully, dropping your arms back to your sides.
“Okay, so I know how to punch,” you say. “What’s next?”
“There’s four main punches in boxing,” Harry replies. He steadies himself in front of the bag, his left foot extended to provide balance.
“The jab—”
He punches with his left fist, pointed and forceful.
“—the cross—”
He strikes with his right hand, driving the weight of his body into the blow.
“—the hook—”
He curves his arm, angling it accordingly so that he can deliver a hit to the side of the bag.
“—and finally, the uppercut.”
He bends his elbow, scooping upward so that his fist makes contact with the bottom half of the bag. The sand inside shifts audibly as it rattles around, looping in every direction and gathering momentum. Harry turns back to you as it continues to swing in circles, cracking his knuckles loudly and seeking you out.
Your eyes are wide. If he didn’t know any better, he’d think that you look a bit…enthralled. His brow furrows in confusion.
“You alright?”
“Yes,” you say immediately, and he’s taken aback by the breathless quality of your voice. You clear your throat quickly, scratching at your hairline and looking away. “You’re just very…dedicated. That’s all.”
“I’ve got to be,” Harry hums. He turns back to the punching bag and ceases its movements. “This is how I make a living.” His lips quirk up with the hint of a smile. “We can’t all go to medical school and become doctors.”
A weak laugh tumbles from your mouth. “I haven’t even gotten in yet,” you say from behind him.
“But you will,” he murmurs, the reply slipping out before he can weigh it on his tongue. “Without a doubt.”
He pauses when the words finally sink in, his shoulders stiffening and his eyes stamping shut. If you weren’t standing so close, he would have leaned forward and crushed his forehead into the rough leather of the punching bag. His lips mould around unspoken curses as a heavy silence descends upon the two of you.
At last, you finally choke out, “I—thank you, Harry. That’s really nice of you to say.”
“No problem,” he grunts. He steps back, spinning on his heel but refusing to meet your gaze. You’re probably looking at him like that—with soft, glimmering irises and earnestness woven through every cell in your body. If your eyes lock, he knows that he’ll be overrun with the urge to kiss you.
And he knows that if that happens, he might not be able to hold himself back.
“What time do you have to be home?” Harry asks, subtly trying to change the topic.
You lift one eyebrow challengingly, like you know exactly what he’s doing. Still, though, you humour him.
“I told my dad I was going to a friend’s house,” you say, shrugging lightly. “We have time, don’t worry.” You smile as a thought crosses your mind. “Just make sure you don’t get me too sweaty by the end of the night, okay? I can’t go home looking like I’ve just run a marathon.”
Harry’s cock twitches in his shorts at the thought of rendering you sticky and speechless. Of watching you walk away from him with wobbly knees and messy hair. Of dropping you off at home and nibbling on your neck one last time for good measure. He quickly shoos the temptations away, clearing his throat and nodding in accord.
“Minimal sweating,” he concedes. “I’ll try my best.”
Deep down, he knows that you’ll most likely be drenched with perspiration once he’s through with you. You’ll figure that out soon enough, though.
Harry makes his way over to the ring, snatching up a pair of gloves lying on the platform. He turns back around, tossing them to you and fighting a smile when you yelp in surprise. With an awkward flail, you manage to catch them in your arms. You shoot him a questioning look, lifting your eyebrows and waiting for an explanation.
“Put those on,” he orders, clapping his hands together once. “We’re gonna try to perfect your stance, tonight.”
“Why do I need to wear them, then?” you ask, gazing down blankly at the gloves nestled against your chest.
“You don’t need to, I suppose,” Harry says, shrugging. “But your knuckles will probably be destroyed by the end of the night.”
“Oh.” You make a face, wrinkling your nose up in distaste. “Okay, yeah—I’ll use them.”
He smirks, folding his arms over his chest. “We want to be careful, don’t we? Those are the steady hands of a future surgeon.”
You scoff, laughing gently at his quip. “Hopefully,” you say, a sweet smile playing on your lips. “Let’s just pray that I get the right grades.”
You will, Harry thinks, but this time, he bites his tongue to keep the sentiment contained. You’re smart, and you’re beautiful, and you’re kind. You’re perfect. I can’t stop thinking about you. I want to kiss you. I want to fuck you. I want to sleep next to you at night and prepare you breakfast in the morning. I want to make you laugh. I want to make you smile. I want to—
“Harry?”
He blinks. “Yeah?”
You fix him with a benevolent look. “Zoning out on me?”
“No.” He shakes his head, approaching you as you struggle to tug on one of the boxing gloves. His eyes fall to your hands and he reaches out, halting your movements with a gentle, “Let me.”
You peek up at him shyly as he guides your fingers into the glove. He keeps his gaze trained downward, avoiding your eyes. One of his rough palms grasps your elbow as he tugs the Velcro strip tight around your wrist. Once he’s done the same with the other one, he releases you and steps back.
“Thank you,” you say softly. He just nods in response.
“Make sure your feet are shoulder-width apart,” he says, and you spread your legs according to his command.
For a brief moment, the image of you separating your thighs to accommodate his hips flashes through his mind, but he squeezes his eyes shut and wills it away.
The rest of the night is painful—his cock grows stiffer and stiffer by the hour, spurred on by each sweet smile that you send his way. By the time you’re through with the session and bidding him goodnight as he locks up, he’s half-hard beneath his black shorts. He hopes that you don’t notice.
You shoot him a cheerful wave and drive away, and he watches before toddling over to his own vehicle. As soon as he slides into the driver’s seat, he releases a heavy, guttural groan, slouching forward and pressing his forehead to the crest of the steering wheel. Blindly, he sticks his key into the ignition and turns it, and the truck rumbles to life. A quick glance at the dashboard reveals that it’s well past midnight. Only then does he realise the extent of his exhaustion.
He backs out of the parking lot, pulling onto the main street and training his eyes on the road ahead. If he squints, he can still make out the red taillights of your car.
The journey back to his apartment passes in no time. Harry climbs sluggishly up four flights of stairs, tumbling into his home and pressing the door shut with one hand. He drags his feet down the hall and past the threshold of his bedroom, pausing only to rip his t-shirt from his torso before collapsing onto his mattress. Obscure silhouettes dance across his eyelids as they drift shut.
The last thing on his mind before sleep overtakes him is the gentle slope of your smile.
    February 21, 2021
One month and a handful of late-night sessions later, Harry finds himself inundated with guilt. He’s constantly plagued by memories of your virtual conversations—short, brief little interactions consisting primarily of him letting you know that he’s free to train that evening. Your responses, ripe with exclamation marks and prattles of gratitude. You’ve taken up the habit of texting him after each lesson, too, composing a quick thank-you message before shutting your phone for the night.
And Harry regrets everything—agreeing to teach you how to box, letting you know when he’s available to meet, encouraging you as your technique progresses. On several occasions, he’s considered breaking things off, telling you that he’s too busy, that you should be focussing exclusively on school instead of on how to throw a right hook.
But then you look at him like that. With bright, trusting eyes and open features and that easy, dazzling smile. And the wall that he’s been trying so hard to build back up—not that it was particularly robust to begin with—comes crashing down.
His match is set to start in fifteen minutes, and you’re not here. You have a midterm tomorrow—your father had mentioned it in passing. You’ve been holed up in your room all weekend, he said, permanently absorbed in the pages of your textbook.
And Harry’s nervous, because you’re his lucky charm. What the fuck is he supposed to do, now?
The minutes seem to fly by—before he knows it, he’s stepping out into the ring with the crowd’s thundering screams echoing in his ears. His opponent isn’t the biggest man he’s ever gone up against, but he’s definitely not scrawny. Harry’s maybe two inches shorter than him—under normal circumstances, the height difference wouldn’t have fazed him. But he’s already on edge due to your absence, so even the smallest observations are proving to be exceedingly disconcerting.
Looking back, he supposes that he should’ve known.
Doomed from the start, destined to fail—whatever you want to call it.
Point being, he loses. Horrendously.
And he’s not quite sure when they bring the stretcher out and peel him off of the floor of the ring, but he knows that it’s sometime after the second round. He blinks rapidly, fading in and out of consciousness as moisture trickles down the side of his face. Somewhere beneath the wooziness, he’s well aware that the match is over. Your father is standing over him, walking at a brisk pace to keep up with the two men carrying him out of the arena.
“What do you mean, he called in sick?” your father spits, his eyes alight with anger. “You couldn’t find anybody else?”
The man behind Harry’s head says something that he can’t quite discern. His response makes your father grit his teeth and pinch the bridge of his nose. He fishes his phone out of his pocket, punching in a number and bringing the device up to his ear.
A few moments later, his expression lights up, relief flooding his features. “Gioia? Yeah, hi…”
Harry’s vision fades to black.
~*~
“…going to have some strong words with the bastard that did this—”
“Gioia, please. That’s how the sport works.”
An outraged scoff. “Who the hell kicks a man while he’s down?”
No reply.
Harry drifts off once more.
~*~
When his eyelids flutter open, it takes a moment for him to regain his bearings. Through the blurriness of his vision, he sees a dim light hanging from the ceiling, bathing his surroundings in a pale white glow. He blinks rapidly, hoping that his sight will sharpen with each flutter of his lashes. There’s a dull pain throbbing against the right side of his torso, battering against his ribcage and pulling an agonized groan from his lips.
The low sound is met with a high gasp. Seconds later, a face is looming over his own. Harry forces himself to concentrate on the person’s features—kind, worried eyes, raised brows, and pretty, parted lips. His heart begins to gallop in his chest.
“Harry,” you breathe. A few gentle fingers card through his hair. The sensation of your nails against his scalp makes him shiver. “How are you feeling?”
“Peachy,” he croaks, his voice hoarse.
Despite the worry swimming around in your irises, you emit a shy laugh.
“Are you able to sit up?” you ask, pulling your hand out of his hair. He nearly whines at the loss.
“Think so,” he mutters. He places his palms flat against the surface beneath him—a bed, perhaps?—and pushes himself onto his elbows. The muted pain in his side flares fiercely, making him choke on his own breath. You reach out for him, setting one hand down on his shoulder while the other wraps delicately around his bicep.
“Easy, easy,” you soothe, tutting disapprovingly. “Be careful.”
“’M always careful,” Harry says.
“Yeah,” you reply sarcastically, nodding your head. “And that’s how you ended up like this, right?”
A short, wheezing laugh punches its way out of his lungs. “Touché.”
Once he’s sitting up, he takes note of the room—well, it’s not really a room. The only thing separating the two of you from whatever lies outside is a thin curtain drawn over what he presumes to be the exit. To his left, a single cabinet with multiple drawers stands only a few feet away. You’re both tucked into a little alcove in the wall, no bigger than a standard bedroom. Harry glances around, his gaze landing on a single plastic chair facing the bed. Everything is set up like a hospital room (but far less comfortable, and severely lacking in terms of medical equipment).
“Where’s Coach?” he asks, creases forming along his forehead.
“He went to go grab us some coffee,” you explain, your eyes scanning his face. “It’s late.”
“How late?”
“Nearly two.”
“Fuck.” His head snaps toward you. “Don’t you have a midterm tomorrow?”
“Yeah.” You chew nervously on your bottom lip. “But it’s fine.”
“No, it’s not,” he says, gritting his teeth and glaring at you sharply. “What the hell are you doing here?”
You recoil a bit at his harsh tone. “Your stupid medic took a sick day,” you tell him, your voice hard. “And my dad asked me to come in and have a look at you. Who knows where you’d be if I hadn’t shown up.”
Regret washes over him. He slouches back against the bed—it’s more of a cot, really—and blows out a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have—”
“It’s okay.” You wave his apology away with a quick flick of your fingers. “Just…be quiet for a second, alright? I need to examine you.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he mutters under his breath. He doesn’t miss the way your lips twitch as the words sink in.
“Can you move to the edge of the bed?” you ask, gnawing on the inside of your cheek. “I need to see you properly, but I don’t want to make you stand just yet.”
“Sure.”
He shifts his body to the right, slowly dragging his legs off of the cot with a distressed wince. The floor is cold when his feet make contact with the ground, but he pays it no attention. He’s shirtless, clad only in the shorts he’d been wearing when he first stepped into the ring. He purses his lips and feels something stiff realign against his cheek. When he brings his hand up to his face, he finds a cottony piece of fabric taped onto his skin.
“What—?” He looks up at you in confusion.
“It was bleeding pretty badly,” you tell him. “I had to stop it, somehow.”
For the first time that night, he takes you in properly. You’re wearing a baggy t-shirt and a pair of grey sweatpants—it looks like the type of outfit that one would shrug on if they were in a rush to leave the house. Another pang of guilt jolts through his chest.
“What happened?” Harry croaks, pulling his hand away from his cheek.
“My dad told me that the other guy was wearing a bracelet,” you say; frustration drips from your words. “He didn’t take it off before the match started. It’s not a big cut, but it’s deep. You’ll probably need a few stitches.”
“And you know how to do that?” he asks, watching as you circle around the bed and approach the cabinet on the opposite side. He twists in an attempt to keep his eyes on you, but then grunts lowly at the ache that thrums against his side. When he looks down at his torso, he discovers a large splotch of blue and purple decorating the skin covering his ribs.
“I watched my mom do it back when my dad used to coach Artie,” you say absentmindedly, rifling through a few drawers and collecting the supplies that you need. You pause, your eyes clouding over with something forlorn. “Now that I think about it, that’s probably why I want to go into medicine. I think…it would’ve made her proud.”
“It would’ve,” Harry agrees.
He watches you carefully as you make your way back over to him, afraid of prying or saying the wrong thing. Your mother’s death had hit your family hard; he rarely hears you or your father mention her. But maybe that’s for the best—wounds can’t heal if they’re being ripped open time after time again. He would know.
You dump a handful of materials down onto the bed—disinfectant, cotton swabs, tissues, gauze, a needle, thread, and a pack of medical sutures. Harry swallows heavily.
“Do you mind if I…?” you trail off, pursing your lips timidly. Somehow, he understands exactly what you’re referring to.
“No, not at all,” he says. The words fall from his mouth a bit too quickly.
With no further preamble, he spreads his legs, and you step into the space made available between his knees. You lean to the side, reaching for the disinfectant and cotton swabs on the bed, but then nearly lose your balance in the process. Harry’s hand flies upward reflexively, settling on your hip to keep you steady.
You glance down at him with wide eyes, and he hastily removes his palm from your body. “Sorry,” he mutters, looking away.
“It’s okay,” you tell him, and is it just his imagination, or do you sound a bit…breathless?
“You’ve got a couple of scrapes on your face,” you continue. You clear your throat, uncapping the antiseptic and dipping a cotton swab into the bottle. “This’ll hurt a little.”
“It’s alright—fuck!” he swears, scowling deeply at the sting that blooms across his chin. You chew on your bottom lip, dragging the swab over his injuries with practiced, nimble fingers. His toes curl against the cold, concrete floor.
Once you’ve finished sterilising his minor wounds, you turn your attention to the massive bruise on his torso.
“Can I?” you ask softly, extending your arm but pausing only inches away from his skin.
He nods, not trusting himself to speak.
He fights back against a shudder when your fingertips ghost over his ribs. You hesitate, applying a bit more pressure and cringing when he groans. “Sorry,” you whisper, making a move to pull away.
“No,” Harry breathes quickly. He catches your hand in his, trapping your palm back against his side. Briefly, he notes the unmistakable softness of your knuckles, so different from his own. “’S okay. Do what you need to do.”  
You nod tautly, pressing your fingers against the bruise once more. Harry grinds his teeth together, trying his best to withstand the pain. You prod around for a few seconds, your brow furrowed in concentration. When you don’t appear to find anything worrisome, you sigh in relief and drop your arm so that it rests limply at your side.
“No broken ribs,” you announce quietly. “At least, not as far as I can tell.”
“That’s reassuring,” he jokes.
A weak laugh falls from your mouth. “I haven’t gotten into med school yet, remember?”
He chuckles. Your eyes suddenly darken, and an angry scowl curls along your lips.
“He kicked you while you were knocked out,” you murmur, shaking your head in disbelief. “Fucking asshole.”
Harry’s eyebrows fly upward, his mouth twitching at your vulgar words. You catch sight of his amused expression, but instead of mirroring it, your frown only deepens.
“It’s not funny,” you say. “He fought dirty.”
“This whole setup is illegal, baby,” he says. Neither of you comment on the pet name that slips out of his mouth. He hopes that you view it as part of an expression, and not a proclamation of his affection. “Fighting dirty—they don’t care about that. If anything, it just gives them one hell of a show.”
“Still,” you mutter, gluing your eyes to the discoloured skin covering his ribs. “He shouldn’t have done it.”
Harry smiles softly, reaching out and tucking two fingers beneath your chin. Your lips part in surprise, and he tilts your face up so that he can look at you properly.
“Thank you,” he says, his tone entirely sincere, “for taking care of me.”
Your throat bobs with a hefty swallow—he can feel it against his knuckles. You lift your hand up to his face, and for a moment, he thinks that you mean to stroke his cheek lovingly. But then you scrape your thumb over the bandage covering his cut, and he’s reminded that this doesn’t mean anything.
You’re here to stitch him back up—nothing less, and certainly nothing more.
“I’m not done yet,” you say.
The two of your drop your fingers at the same time. Harry clears his throat, trying to absolve the tension in the air. You seize some of the other supplies still strewn across the bed, laying them out properly before getting to work.
You’re diligent, removing the bandage on his cheek and using a few tissues to mop up the blood that immediately begins to drip downward, rolling over the jut of his jaw. He curses when you pass another cotton swab over his injury, screwing his face up at the smarting prickle of the antiseptic.
“I’m sorry,” you murmur absentmindedly, keeping your eyes trained on the wound. “We definitely don’t want this one to get infected.”
“Yeah,” he grunts, because he can’t exactly nod with your fingers probing around.
“This is going to be the worst part,” you warn, pulling back and opening the pack of stitches.
You unwind a piece of thread from its spool, taking the string between your lips and severing it with your teeth. Harry watches you closely, anxiety frothing in the pit of his stomach. In all of his years spent boxing, he’s only needed stitches once—the procedure hurt like a bitch, especially since there had been no anaesthetic available. He remembers the pain like it was yesterday, and he’s not looking forward to having to endure it again.
When you guide the first stitch through his skin, he balls his hands into tight fists. His lips tuck themselves into a thin line, and an agonized moan bubbles up in his chest. You squeeze your eyes shut for a brief moment; upon reopening, they glisten with unshed tears.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” you whisper. Your voice shakes.
“It’s okay,” Harry grits out. His blunt nails dig into his palms. “Keep…keep going.”
“A few more,” you babble; he’s not sure whether you’re trying to comfort him or yourself. “Just a few more.”
It takes you roughly fifteen minutes (you haven’t really had much practice, after all) to sew his wound closed with five stitches. It is by no means the cleanest application, but it’s not bad. You retrieve another cotton swab and dip it into the bottle of disinfectant, running it along the seam of his injury one last time. After that, you finally blow out the stale air that has accumulated in your lungs.
“Thank you,” Harry mutters. “Truly.”
“No problem,” you breathe. You busy yourself with gathering up all of the supplies, cradling them to your chest and making your way around the bed. As you dump everything back into the top drawer of the cabinet, you say, “Harry. Can I ask you something?”
“Go for it,” he hums. He’s nervous about speaking too animatedly, afraid to disrupt the work you’ve just done on his cheek.
“How long have you been boxing?”
He peers at you from over his shoulder, eyes following your movements as you return to his side of the cot and sit down next to him. “Er…,” he pauses, thinking, “…about ten years, now.”
“You started at sixteen?” you say, blinking in surprise.
“Yeah.”
“Oh.”
He smiles softly before remembering the sutures sewn into his skin. A beat of silence passes.
“Can I ask you something?” he questions.
You nod. “Of course.”
“Why did you want me to teach you how to box?” he says. You open your mouth—to feed him another lie, surely—but he carries on before you get the chance to speak. “And don’t say it’s because you were just curious, or some bullshit like that. I want the truth.”
“Harry…,” you begin softly, looking at him with pleading eyes. He shakes his head, adamant and unmoved.
“The truth.”
Your shoulders slump in defeat. Instinctively, you reach for your throat, tugging at the rose-gold chain hanging there and fiddling nervously with the pendant nestled between your collarbones. It looks like you’re trying to figure out what to say, how to approach the situation without revealing something that could potentially make it any worse.
“Do you remember that guy I was seeing a few months ago?” you say, your voice small. “James?”
And oh, Harry remembers. He remembers watching the two of you swap spit on top of the bleachers at one of his matches. He remembers imagining James in the place of his opponent, and then making sure to aim all of his punches directly for the face (he won, that night.) He remembers seeing the sparkle in your eyes slowly start to dim the longer you stayed with him. He remembers the aftermath of your breakup, when James had shown up at the gym and screamed at you to come outside, deterred only after Portia threatened to call the police.
He fucking remembers.
“Yeah,” he spits. The affirmation is coated in a thick layer of venom. “What about him?”
His eyes widen a touch when it all clicks, then, like pieces of a puzzle falling perfectly into place.
“What did he do?” he demands immediately, fixing you with a stern glare. “Did he fucking touch you?”
“No!” you exclaim, shaking your head quickly. “No, no, it’s just…I’ve been seeing him around. A lot. And I’m not sure if I’m just being paranoid, maybe, but—,” you inhale deeply, “—it feels like he’s following me.”
Your name slips past Harry’s lips in a hard, firm tenor. When you look up at him warily, he stares straight into your eyes, leaving no room for you to break away.
“You need to tell someone about this,” he says steadfastly. “You need to go to the police.”
“I don’t even know if I’m right,” you tell him. Your mouth curls down into an apprehensive frown. “I don’t want to cause a fuss, especially if it all just turns out to be one big coincidence.”
“When was the last time you saw him?” Harry asks. A bitter taste settles on his tongue. “How often has this been happening?”
You tilt your head to the side, lost in thought. “Two days ago,” you finally say, shrugging helplessly. “And…I don’t know. I’ve seen him, like, nine or ten times in total.”
“Ten times,” he hisses, “in a few months? That’s not normal, and you know it.”
“Harry,” you plead, tugging nervously at the hem of your t-shirt. “Please. Don’t turn this into something it’s not.”
“How can you—?” he starts, but then you lurch forward, putting a dainty hand on his thigh.
“Please,” you repeat, shaking your head softly. “Just…keep this between us, okay? The last thing I want is for my dad to find out.”
And maybe it’s the tenderness brewing in your eyes when you meet his gaze. Maybe it’s the wilt in your voice, the feeblest he’s ever heard. Maybe it’s the feeling of your fingers on his leg, burning a hole through his shorts and searing a mark—a brand—into his skin. Harry sighs, looking away from you and running his fingers anxiously through his curly hair.
“You’re bloody stupid, you know that?” he asks, scoffing quietly.
“Yeah,” you reply, the corners of your mouth kinking up into a half-hearted smile. “I know.”
“Got you a latte, gioia—”
The dinky curtain in front of you is pulled back by none other than your father, who is holding a tray of coffee in his right hand. He blinks at the scene laid out before him—you and Harry on the small cot, sitting a bit too close for comfort. Your hand on his thigh. You both jump, breaking away from each other and inhaling sharply. Harry clears his throat as you cough into your elbow, standing up and reaching for one of the drinks nestled in the tray.
“Thank you,” you murmur quietly, pressing a gentle kiss to your father’s cheek.
His eyes bounce between the two of you, forehead wrinkling in curiosity as he asks, “What’d I miss?”
You peer down at Harry from over the rim of your cup, panicked and beseeching. He just shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly; the tattoos inked into his skin ripple with the act. His tone is steady when he meets your father’s gaze.
“I’ve got some bruised ribs and a wicked headache, but aside from that—,” he lies, “—nothing at all.”
~*~
Your father ends up driving him home.
He parks the car just in front of Harry’s apartment complex, watching with worried eyes as he slips out of the passenger door.
“You sure you’ll be alright?” he asks.
Harry just nods, waving away his concerns. “I’m fine, Coach, really. Thanks for the ride.”
Your father nods—still looking a little unsure—before speeding off.
Climbing up four flights of stairs with bruised ribs is hell, Harry soon learns. By the time he reaches his floor, he’s panting and wiping a thin sheen of sweat from his brow. He pulls his keys out of his coat pocket, unlocking the front door and staggering into his apartment. A pained whimper slips out of his mouth as he shrugs the jacket from his shoulders.
He slowly makes his way into the bathroom, cupping his battered side over the material of his t-shirt. The water is cold when he first turns the shower on. He grits his teeth, fiddling with the temperature and meticulously removing his clothes as it warms.
The moment the first droplet hits his skin, he lets out a deep, guttural groan. He hadn’t realised just how tense he was until now. He stands under the spray of the water, tipping his head back and letting it wash away every trace of dirt and grime on his body. His hair grows heavy with moisture, sticking to his scalp and his forehead. He leans against the wall of the shower, inhaling deeply. His eyelids flutter shut, and your smiling face appears amidst the darkness.
Almost subconsciously, his hand finds its way to his cock.
Part of him is disgusted with himself. He shouldn’t be thinking of you. He shouldn’t be thinking of you. He shouldn’t be—
He moans.
In the realm of his perverse imagination, you’re straddling him, your arms looped leisurely around his neck and your whimpers echoing into the cavern of his mouth. Your hips roll against his, unhurried and languid and deep. So fucking deep. Harry reaches down with one hand, squeezing greedily at the curve of your ass, and you whine in response, encouraging him to do it again.
He pumps his length in the shower, panting quietly.
Your fronts are pressed together as you rut into his lap, your nipples brushing against the ebony birds on his chest and your silky walls wrapped around him like a vice. He grunts; you swallow the sound down, your hot, heavy breaths wafting out onto his chin. His fingers dig into your thighs when you steady yourself on your knees, doing your best to bounce up and down on him properly. It’s frantic, it’s uncoordinated, it’s sloppy, but…it’s perfect.
Your nails scrape down his back as the two of you move together, a steady series of push and pull, like water under a bridge. If you’re the moon, then he’s the tides, bending and swirling under your gentle light. Every time you rock forward, he meets you there, your bodies connecting with faint slaps of skin on skin. You gaze at him with hooded eyes, lust simmering beneath your lashes. Electricity tingles across his shoulders.
The noises that you emit are music to his ears. Delicate sighs when he nips at your breasts, earthy groans when he hits that special spot inside of you. And woven between them, imploring pleas, murmurs of right there and oh, yes and so good.
It’s embarrassing, how quickly he finishes.
He stands there, leaning against the tiles with his cock in his hand and his release dripping from his fingertips. He has the decency to feel appalled by his actions, at the very least. If you were aware of what he had just done, he knows for a fact that you would never speak to him again.
He cleans himself up, shampooing his hair and scrubbing down every inch of his body. When he steps out of the shower and shuts the water, a wave of exhaustion washes over him, making him sway on his feet. His lips vibrate with a soft sigh.
His phone chimes from where it’s perched on the bathroom counter. When he taps on it, he finds a message from you.
Feel better soon, it reads. The guilt festering in his chest increases tenfold.
Thank you, he says back, shoving the remorse down. Good luck on your midterm tomorrow.
A moment later, your reply comes through.
Thanks! Goodnight, Harry.
Goodnight, he types. He pauses for a moment, debating over whether he should include a little red heart after the word. But then he shakes his head, rolling his eyes at his own insolence and sending the text without a second thought.
He doesn’t even bother drying himself off before padding across the hall and into his bedroom. He collapses onto his mattress, still covered in tiny droplets that bead along his shoulders and trail downward, wetting the duvet. He doesn’t care. It’ll dry, and so will he.
He falls asleep moments later, the repaired skin of his cheek tingling in the dark.
~*~
PART III: Hook
PART IV: Uppercut
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