Tumgik
#This is the author himself getting confused for a moment over his own book!character who’s lived in his head for 10+ years
theothermaidoftarth · 3 months
Text
From Rick Riodran himself (via Goodreads):
Tumblr media
73 notes · View notes
casasupernovas · 2 years
Text
so many harry potter fans completely erase snape's past and write it over to make him a snobby rich kid who speaks like he's a 40 year old count and i think it is so interesting.
because it proves to me that the reality of snape being a kid living in a poverty stricken and abusive household on spinner's end makes you all uncomfortable.
i sure know it made me uncomfortable to re-read the books for the first time and see all the comments about his greasy hair and sallow skin with the new knowledge that these were markers of his poor upbringing. we've heard the saying how being poor never really goes away. snape keeping these two markers as an adult is the author's way of doing it. he's an adult with a better income now but he never quite shakes off spinner's end.
he also stays there as an adult as a way to punish himself, if the front room described as a 'padded cell" is any indicator. he can't move on and he won't allow himself to, and dumbledore won't allow it either. it is he who twists the knife with harry's eyes and tells him this is the only thing he can do to prove he truly loved lily. despite you know, dumbledore apparently not believing this due to his shock at snape's patronus 17 years later.
both times in snape's past when he butts heads with petunia is because she insults his background, something he cannot control. she calls him the 'snape boy' from spinner's end, a clearly 'turn up my nose' moment. harry goes through most books referring to snape as 'snape' because snape is a bully and therefore does not have harry's respect. many times adults correct him to say professor. and his first name isn't said often. so this puts a distance to him, almost others him to this 2D character. but 'snape' is an actual person, with feelings and a past, present and future. so severus snape doesn't take kindly to people insulting his family which is why he claps back at petunia.
we also know snape is a muggle name, his muggle father tobias' name. we only find out in book 6 that snape is a half blood. because what wizarding family do you know with the name 'snape'. and prince isn't part of the sacred 28 either. when harry breaks into snape's memories accidentally in occlumency, seeing those three quick snapshots of his life, it's the first time snape starts to become a real person to harry.
moreover, 8 year old snape is described as dirty, unwashed, wearing clothes that are so mismatched it looks deliberate. he hasn't got clothes of his own, wearing an adults jacket and a woman's smock. snape's family either cannot afford to properly clothe or wash their child or they simply don't care too. when petunia insults him again, this time instead of his father she goes for his mother, as she points out snape wearing his mother's blouse, we get another example of underage magic as he causes a tree branch to fall on her.
now despite this, we know it is likely snape really did want to cause her harm due to her insult. snape already is shown to have poor social skills and snaps rather quickly at any point of animosity, but he was also raised in an abusive household. his father whipped him, and shouted at his mother and god knows what else. makes sense that an 8 year old responds to tension with either insults or violence, mirroring his home. snape is also very reluctant to talk about his homelife at all, ending the conversation very pointedly with "he doesn't like anything much." so it's not surprising that a child raised in this kind of environment would respond violently. even worse, he does it without really realising what he has done considering he looked confused when petunia and lily ran away.
on platform 9 and 3/4, snape is eager to get out of his muggle clothes and when put next to james potter, the stark difference between someone who has been loved and adored and someone who hasn't is explicitly put in the books. and lastly when snape calls lily a mudblood after being yanked upside down exposing dirty underwear, lily points that out. her way of saying 'don't you dare say you are better than me - im filthy? how about you wash your clothes.'
all in all, i think the fans write over this backstory because people do not want to give snape any sympathy. he's not the right kind of sympathetic character. he's an unpleasant adult who made terrible decisions. therefore his tragedy doesn't count. it's much easier to hate him when in your head, snape is a rich, snobby supremacist, rather than a penniless, neglected and woefully misguided teenager.
odd that peope can understand the impact of certain characters childhoods like sirius, regulus, draco or harry and how it affected their actions as teens and later adults...
but not snape.
in fact, snape is probably the poorest character in the entire series apart from maybe voldemort, although the orphanage didn't seem underfunded or anything. fans characterise lupin as poor but there is little evidence for him being poor as a child, more as an adult. i've seen people say this was because of the fact that his father worked at the ministry and arthur weasley worked there and he is not rich but the weasley's are poor because there are 7 of them living on one income. and we can assume lupin's muggle mother worked. if anything, lupin's childhood was comfortable but became unstable due to them constantly moving after he was bitten.
and that's pretty much it, we don't know too much about anyone else. the dursleys are middle class as are hemrione's dentist parents and while the weasley's are poor, they are not poverty stricken - ron never goes hungry. snape also never really adresses his muggle past either. he doesnt bring it up ever. for all his 'life is unfair', he never speaks about that part of his life, choosing to solely reference the marauders. and the two main bullies, james and sirius both being rich kids bullying the poor boy is not lost on me. especially when they constantly reference his greasy hair all the time.
poverty greatly affects a person well into adulthood and we see with snape; it never really goes away. sure he's well spoken now, and doesn't wear mismatched muggle clothing but the remnants are still there. in fact, one of the reasons he hates harry intially is because he thinks the boy has been pampered. quite unlike his upbringing. so i think it's telling how many people refuse to acknowledge its very existence or the how it shaped snape as a person.
because i think it all makes you feel really uncomfortable. why else would you ignore or completely erase it?
1K notes · View notes
valenteal · 4 months
Text
I’ve been posting a lot about my thoughts on Dazai’s characterization and motivations but honestly I’ve been dedicating a lot more energy to trying to understand Oda. Dazai is an amazingly complex character but he’s a constant in the story and we know quite a lot about him, comparatively. Oda is incredibly mysterious and much harder to understand. My breakthrough earlier figuring out that Oda had the book has really helped me open my mind to another side of Oda I hadn’t yet considered.
The things is, authors have to be a bit cruel. Oda’s reasoning for not killing because he wanted to be a writer doesn’t make sense, we kill our own characters all the time. We put them through hell over and over for entertainment/to convey a deeper meaning. I think maybe one of the conditions of having the book is not killing directly, or maybe a certain level of removal from the storyline. Like, if you control reality and others lives with the book you’re giving up a certain amount of control physically in the moment.
Oda is a killer. He is friends with killers. And if I’m right about him being the author of the Dark Era he wrote the deaths of the kids. I think his reaction was genuine, I think he really felt like he shouldn’t have the book, that he didn’t deserve to be its author anymore, but I really think that he wrote the story to give Dazai the opportunity and the motivation to get a better life. I mean, I’ve made myself cry with my writing. The most compelling stories are full of tragedy.
Oda was a child assassin. He was a writer. He was a mafioso. But most of all he was Dazai’s friend.
Wait! Holy shit idea!
Okay so Natsume had the book before Oda, but he was definitely following Dazai around before he got the book so we know there’s already a connection there. I’ve been wondering why Oda was so attached to Dazai. But Natsume wrote the story he adored, the third installment which Oda finished was The Book. But what did Natsume write about? What exactly were the books Oda loved? What if it was Dazai’s story? What if Oda knows Dazai so well because he read his life story over and over and yearned to give him a happy ending? What if his whole motivation was to finish the story in a satisfying way? And everything from the orphan’s existence to Ango’s betrayal was to create an open ended story in which Dazai could potentially have have a better life?
Oda is such an incredible character. He’s full of contradictions until you actually start thinking of him as an author. We authors have strange minds, we love our characters but we put them through so much. Because we wouldn’t love them if we didn’t make them struggle, make them realistic and deep and meaningful. Oda knew the kids were going to die, he wrote it. But he got attached like anyone would. But he was done writing the story, all that was left was for it to play out. So he passed ownership of the book to Dazai and went to play his role.
Fuck I’m getting emotional omg Odasaku is wonderful. I don’t even care if the entire theory is wrong, I’ve figured Oda out with the information I was given and filled in the blanks. Asagiri himself wouldn’t be able to make me give this theory up.
Oda isn’t a good person with strong morals the way he presents himself. He does that to fill the mentor roll for Dazai and to get Dazai to make the desired decisions. He just a fan who was given control of the story by the original author and basically used all the writing tools ever to create a story in which the character he loved but who was tragically doomed and seeped in darkness could find some happiness. Just like anyone writing a fix-it fic. Accept his fix is canon.
Holy shit I’m a genius.
Don’t come at me you have no idea how proud I am of this! Either I figured out the most confusing character ever written or I have created a genius explanation that nothing will ever top (for me anyway).
27 notes · View notes
glitxhwayventeen · 3 months
Text
The Smart One: Part Two
Yeonjun
Tumblr media
Characters: Yeonjun x female reader
Warnings: violence (fight scene where YJ kinda loses it tbh), mentions of- death, drinking, smoking, sleeping around (but it’s all consensual so i don’t see a problem with it. But i know some people do so TW ig), name calling (but they don’t actually mean it and none of them think they do, they’re loving nicknames), crying, pining/angsty love, blood, another pack’s fight, Yeonjun being dumb basically poor baby
Author’s Note: So Yeonjun will have either three or four parts depending on how much i can cut it all down.
Please remember that all of these chapters and the content within them are a work of fiction! They’re just for fun/entertainment!
There Will Be Blood Masterlist
The Smart One: Part One, Part Three, Part Four
🥀
Bold- Dialogue Italics- Thoughts
Tag list-
Once he found out he could get quite literally no one else to pick him up, Yeonjun’s original plan was to just stay by his bike and text Huening he was in the parking lot when it was time for him to take him home. He originally had no plans of going inside the library. But before Yeonjun’s brain could stop them, his legs threw themselves over the seat of his motorcycle and made their way through the library’s double doors.
He knew immediately it was a bad idea. For every quickening beat of his heart he felt, he felt more dread and guilt slip into his body. But he knew the pup had already seen his figure in the building when he lifted his head up from his book to see who had walked through the door, a maneuver in which you followed suit. He knew it would be suspicious if he just back tracked and bolted through the entrance, so Yeonjun had to play it off like nothing bothered him.
He promised himself he would not get any closer to you than he already was. He promised himself he wouldn’t even speak to you to prevent himself from getting attached. But of course his little brother had other plans.
Kai hurriedly shoved all his things into his book bag, threw it over his shoulder, grabbed your very confused and unprepared hand, and rushed to where Yeonjun was standing with you stumbling behind him in an attempt to keep up.
The elder boy panicked internally. How was he going to play it cool when you’d soon be standing in front of him close enough to overwhelm him? How was he supposed to remain calm and collected when your sweet scent got heavier in his nose? How the hell could he hold a conversation with you when all he wanted to do was get lost in your warm sparkling eyes-
“Hyung!” Huening choked out, finally getting to the doorway Yeonjun had moments ago found himself prancing through, “Before we go, I wanted you to meet ____! You’re the only one of the guys that hasn’t yet.”
The pup proudly pulled you forward and presented you to Yeonjun as if you were a prize he had worked incredibly hard to win. The act made a hot blush appear across your face and had you playing with the hem of your pleated skirt nervously.
From the second you had seen him earlier in the day, your stomach instantly developed butterflies. Because of course your favorite tutoring student just happened to have the prettiest man on earth as his best friend. So to say you were anxious was a bit of an understatement.
It wasn't that you didn’t know how to speak to people, you had learned how to have appropriate conversations with people outside your family a long time ago and had gotten pretty good at it. But that didn’t mean socializing was something you did regularly.
Sure you had some friends and acquaintances you’d grown fond of during your stay in Korea for university. And sure everyone around you, regardless of if they liked you as a person or not, usually respected and admired you for your intelligence and dedication.
But you’d never felt genuinely attracted to someone before. At least you were pretty sure you hadn’t, you weren’t always the best at understanding your own feelings. You just knew the butterflies were definitely new and that the second you made eye contact with the boy it felt like your breathing hitched in your chest, neither of which you had experienced before.
So you were walking into new territory. Usually you’d attempt to introduce yourself and shake his hand because you’d learned that was the social norm. Though the man’s sharp facial features and piercing eyes had your heart racing too fast to go through the motions you’d gone through countless therapy sessions to be able to do relatively comfortably.
Luckily for you, your student got the hint that neither of you were planning on saying anything and started the conversation for you, “So hyung, this is ____. And ____ this is Yeonjun-ah. He’s one of my roommates,” the younger boy led, hoping to get one of you to say something.
That’s when it all clicked in your head. You had been told about the boy in front of you before by your eager student. He’d called him his loving hyung who’d do anything for him and his friends at the turn of a time. But the rumors you’d heard around campus about him told a completely different story. So much so that you weren’t even sure how they could be friends, the two seemed like polar opposites to you.
Where Kai was rather shy and reserved around people he didn’t know, Choi Yeonjun was blunt and always spoke his mind. Where the younger boy was inexperienced with the world and loving, the elder boy was far too experienced with… many things and could be quite distant emotionally from his peers.
Yeonjun was infamous around campus as being the guy who sleeps with anyone he wanted to, never having had a real girlfriend. Kai was infamous around campus as the guy who everyone was betting never had slept with anyone before, or had a girlfriend.
The boy in front of you had a thing for getting wasted at parties and getting into trouble with the law. The boy to your side had hardly been to any parties, never really drank, and probably didn’t even know what a rap sheet was.
As far as you knew, the only real thing the two had in common was that they both struggled in school, though Huening Kai was the only one wanting to do something about it.
“I know who she is.” The boy, Yeonjun apparently, monotonously cut through the silence, no emotion to be seen on his face as the words left his plump lips.
It was true that most people around your university knew who you were. There weren’t many people like you in South Korea at all, let alone going to your school. British-Kenyan students weren’t as easy to find as Chinese, Vietnamese, or American ones. At least, you for sure couldn’t name one off the top of your head.
Sure he could’ve maybe known you as the girl who was set to graduate number one in her graduating class, but you doubted he cared too much about class ranking. He could’ve also known you as the girl who tutored a sizeable portion of the student population but, as he had never asked for any, you didn’t think he would’ve known about you that way either.
It was likely he knew you as the African girl. The girl who got bullied for her accents and her skin color on the daily. The girl who never spoke unless she was spoken to. The girl that disliked being around people and was rather quite awkward with them. That way would’ve made more sense.
And, while you had gotten rather good at reading social cues over your years of having to deal with the general public, you knew you still had times where you couldn’t read between the lines. But this time, the tension seemed so thick even you were able to swiftly pick up on the boy’s negative attitude.
His arms crossed over his broad chest indicated he was closed off and non-reciprocating. His tapping foot meant he was in a hurry or wanted to be done with the conversation. His flat vocal tone said he either hated you or was over having to deal with you. And his lifted brow meant that he was probably fairly annoyed with you and Kai for having taken up his time.
All those small facts seemed to make the nerves in your body strike at your heart. The only guy you ever found remotely interesting romantically, even if it was only Choi Yeonjun, and he hated you without having ever even spoken to you before. How wonderful.
But you weren’t gonna let that deter you. Kai was much like you in that he didn’t have many friends. But the friends he did have were important to him, that’s why he wanted to introduce you to all of them. And you weren’t one to let your students down.
So you decided to power through as best as you could, “It’s very nice to meet you Yeonjun. Huening Kai talks about his friends a lot, so it’s nice to finally be able to put a face to your name!” You replied with a kind smile in perfect Korean, extending your slightly shaky hand to him intending for him to do the same.
Though your polite gesture was unreciprocated, the boy in front of you leaving your hand hanging through the air as his gaze bypassed you and went to the younger boy beside you.
“Are you ready to go yet Hyuka? We really need to get going,” Yeonjun cold heartedly questioned his friend, jaw clenched as he awaited an answer.
Even though you could see the shock in Kai’s eyes from such an unexpected answer from the elder boy, he hurriedly pulled his composure together and nodded, you assumed to keep you from having to deal with his emotionally distant friend any longer.
“Y-Yeah! We can go,” Your student turned in his heels to give you a hug and say goodbye, “Thanks again ____. Same time tomorrow?”
Nodding fiercely, you tried your best to put up a brave front as you patted his back, “Of course! Text me if you end up having trouble with the problems I gave you to work on okay?”
You didn’t want him to feel bad about the interaction you had with his roommate. Kai was a sweet, albeit easily distractible, kid. He just wanted everyone important to him to get along or at least be able to civilly interact with one another when needed, it was one of the reasons you got along so much. Having parents that bitterly divorced, you never wanted conflict around you either. In your eyes, he was as close to a true friend as you had made during your time in Korea.
That was because Kai wasn’t judgmental or rude. He wasn’t intentionally cruel. He, like you, was a constant target for bullying and ridicule because he was considered a foreigner in the eyes of Koreans. You had bonded a lot because of that.
You had grown so fond of him that now, the idea of something upsetting him, like his friends not getting along, stung your heart almost as much as Yeonjun ignoring you did. So you wanted to assure him everything was fine with you, even if it currently felt like you had a gaping hole in your chest.
With one last little wave and a nape of his shirt collar grab from his friend, your student was off and you were left alone with your thoughts. Usually you wouldn’t mind, you had actually preferred to be alone.
Tonight though, you felt as if you needed to go home and cry into your pillow at the sudden unexpected rejection you felt from a total stranger.
Why couldn’t you just be normal? Why couldn’t you just shake something like a simple introduction gone wrong off like everyone else without feeling so overwhelmed? What in the hell was wrong with you? But most importantly, what had you done to piss someone off without having ever even met him in person before?
————
“What the hell hyung?!” Huening demanded as soon as they walked through the door of their shared apartment, his bag being thrown somewhere across the room in anger because he sensed none of his other brothers had made their way home yet to yell at him for it.
Yeonjun found himself plopping down on the living room couch with a defeated sigh, “What the hell was what Ningning?”
The eldest boy knew exactly what the pup was referring to. He just didn’t have it in him to discuss the matter any further if he could help it.
Yeonjun knew he was unnecessarily mean to you today and he hated himself more than anyone could possibly ever know for it. Because the reality of the matter was that the promise he made to himself and, inadvertently you as well, was already hard as fuck to keep.
Because it was hard walking away from you today. The second he saw you, it felt like time stood still and his heart stopped beating all over again. Like once again he just wanted to go up to you, spin you around, and kiss away the space between your lips.
He wanted to stay and speak to you about your day, maybe even tease you on why you got so nervous when he first walked in the room.
It was also hard to finally get a closer look at your lightly freckled face and your, what he once thought were curls but were actually, twisted locs and not be able to compliment you on how gorgeous you were.
But it was even harder pretending he wanted nothing to do with you, especially once he saw the light in your eyes drain away when he ignored your hand.
Huening growled at his elder brother unintentionally, clenching his fists in anger, “Don’t ‘what the hell was what Ningning?’ Me! Why were you being a dick to ____? What in the hell did she ever do to you?!”
“Nothing,” Yeonjun answered, seeming as cool as a cucumber on the outside but slowly feeling his heart break on the inside.
That was the only answer the eldest in the pack could come up with. Anything else would’ve been suspicious. Anything else would’ve gave it away.
The pup stomped to stand in front of him, eyes spotting crimson red as more rage filled his body, “What the hell do you mean nothing?!” He questioned, quickly leaning over Yeonjun’s frame over the couch to get him to look at him face to face, “You’re telling me you were a jackass to one of the only friends i managed to make outside of the pack for no good fucking reason?!”
Yeonjun had never seen the younger boy so mad before. Truthfully, Kai usually just put up with whatever it was his older brothers did and didn’t complain. He always had a smile on his face and laughed it away. He was someone that the whole pack had come to know as a ‘suffer and cry in silence’ type of person. So his behavior did freak him out slightly.
Because the elder boy wasn’t sure he had ever heard the pup even raise his voice to someone else before. But now, Yeonjun had gotten him so mad he was screaming in his face, eyes blood red, nearly shifting in their living room.
He figured that Huening felt the need to defend you as you were the one friend he made on his own whose feelings got hurt because he introduced you to his asshole of a brother. He couldn’t blame him though, he wanted to rip his own heart out for doing it to you too.
Even so, his younger brother getting into his face in a threatening manner over you sent his instincts flying, immediately making him feel as though he needed to put him in his place for coming to your aide.
“Hyuka, I know you can’t understand this with your little pea sized brain, but believe it or not I was doing the girl a favor!” Yeonjun snarled, jumping up from his place on the couch and forcing Huening to stumble backwards slightly to cope with the sudden loss of dominance.
But instead of the young wolf backing down as Yeonjun had expected, he went right back to getting into his face, forcing their foreheads to nearly touch as he too began to snarl, “What fucking favor do you think you were doing for her?! The only thing you did was make sure she went home and cried!”
“Shut up Huening!” Yeonjun could feel his eyes get hotter, signaling that he was worked up enough to also melt through his contacts and begin shifting his eye color in anger.
It wasn’t Huening Kai’s place to say what upset you. It wasn’t his place to speak for you. And it sure as shit wasn’t his place to make Yeonjun feel bad about trying to protect you.
“No fuck you!” Huening protested, doing his very best to hold off from shifting in their living room as he screamed at his eldest brother, “____’s a good person! She’s nothing but kind and fair to everyone regardless of how they treat her! In fact, she’s the best person I know!-”
Fuck Kai. He didn’t get to talk about you like you walked on water, not when Yeonjun couldn’t talk to you at all.
Now it was Yeonjun’s turn to clench his fists with rage, “I said shut the fuck up!” He seethed, getting even closer to his brother’s face to try and get him to back off.
But the pup wouldn’t budge and continued on, “No you shut the fuck up! ____ has issues with people as is! She already has issues making friends and socializing! She already gets bullied! She didn’t need you coming in making her think she’s done something wrong!”
But he didn’t know you had issues with people. He never wanted you to feel like that. He never wanted to hurt you. He was just trying to protect you the only way he knew how.
Yeonjun could see a cloud of tears begin to form at his water line, causing him to close his eyes and clench his jaw, “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”
He just wanted you safe. Safe from him and his pack. Safe from all the things that came with being attached to them. Safe from him. He didn’t know you were getting bullied.
“The hell I don’t!” Hyuka exclaimed, feeling his claws begin to elongate but refusing to care, “I know her better than anyone here! I know her better than you! And I know what she goes through on a daily basis and how hard her fucking life is! I know that she feels completely and utterly alone!”
Yeonjun didn’t care if it meant he’d have to spend the rest of his life alone. He didn’t care if it meant he’d never feel whole or loved. He didn’t care if he ended up dying from his self induced rejection of you as his mate. All he cared about was you.
“Kai stop.” The elder boy warned, his younger brother’s words piercing into his chest like a knife through butter.
All he cared about was that you’d get to be happy. That you’d get to have a normal human life. That you’d get to be healthy and unharmed. That you’d get to keep breathing. He didn’t know your life was hard. He didn’t know you felt alone in Korea.
Hearing his brother’s warning only seemed to urge him on, “People are awful to her here! They bully her worse than they bully me! Do you know how many times a day she calls her parents crying? Do you know how many times a day she wishes she could just disappear into thin air? Do you know how many times she’s gotten the hell beat out of her because some fucking students don’t think she belongs he-”
But before Huening could finish his rant, Yeonjun socked him in the face, causing him to fall back to the floor in shock.
“Do you think I wanted to do that to her?!” He spit, instantly throwing himself on top of the pup and throwing another punch into his left cheek.
The younger wolf tried to fight back but it was no use, Yeonjun was stronger. And he had lost more today than Hyuka did. Except he couldn’t do a thing about it.
“Do you think I wanted to hurt her?!” Yeonjun demanded as he jammed his fist against his brother’s rib cage, causing him to cry out in pain.
He hated Huening Kai. He hated the words he was saying about you. He hated that he was bringing ugly truths about you he didn’t previously know to light. But mostly, he hated himself for it all.
“Do you think that was what I wanted for her?!”
For ignoring you. For not going up to you and hugging your sadness away the second he saw you. For not being able to go and comfort you. For not being able to tell you everything was going to be okay and that you weren’t alone, you had him.
“Is that what you actually fucking think?!” Yeonjun was so lost in hashing out his feelings with his fists, he didn’t even notice when the tears started coming down his face. Or when the front door opened.
“You didn’t stop to think for one second that maybe I had a valid reason for staying away from her?!” Yeonjun punched Kai up his jaw.
He didn’t want to tell anyone. He knew the moment he did they’d try to change his mind. But his mind couldn’t change. It was too dangerous. Just the other day Beomgyu’s brother’s pack got attacked by another pack and a kid got hurt. He couldn’t let that happen to you.
“That maybe I was thinking of what’s best for her?!” Yeonjun’s knuckles were sore and raw now, not that he cared when he popped the pup in the eye.
He wasn’t gonna tell anyone really. But after Kai kept going on and on about how good you were and how horrible the world around you was he couldn’t take it anymore. He snapped.
“She’s my fucking mate do you really think I wanted to hurt her?! I was protecting her!” The eldest finally lets out with a choked sob wracking through his body, leaving just enough time for Taehyun to wrap his arms around his biceps and dive with him off the pup to the floor.
From the corner of his eye, Yeonjun could see Soobin helping a very shocked and bruised Kai off the ground. But he didn’t care.
He had finally given into his tears and began crying harshly against Taehyun’s hold. He was just trying to protect you. Now he wasn’t sure what he did to you.
“What the actual fuck is going on here?!” Beomgyu questioned as he stood in the doorway watch his brothers, one bloodied and limping, another with cuts all over his hands as he wailed violently, and his other two doing their best to keep them apart.
(Edited 2/5/2024)
15 notes · View notes
antheiantics · 2 years
Text
I just finished If We Were Villians by M.L.Rio and I have to vent
First, I am heartbroken. At the same time I feel healed and nurtured. I'm supposed to be sad, its over, but I also know the story has a continuation I'm not allowed to experience. It pisses me off, but I can't find the strength to be mad either.
The characters... Fuck these characters. They were all so multi-layered and fucking relatable, all of them, in different aspects.
Honestly I just added the book to my TBR because I liked the title. I found it in a site around 10 months ago and it said it was signed by the author. I had no idea who M.L.Rio(I thought she was a man) was, but there was something in this book that just drew me in so I purchased and ordered it. It came. I was enamored with it, but being my slumpish bibliophile self, I just put it in a center place of my bookshelf, not quite ready to read it yet. Almost a month before now, I struggled to pick books for my summer vacation and without so much as a passing thought, I grabbed IWWV and realized what I had done, when I was already on my vacation. I started it two days ago and finished it no more than 20 minutes ago. Brilliant. Fed my dark academia obsession to fulfilment. Fed my heart and my brain with the gruesome images and portrayals of human nature. Helped me recover from my book hangover after The Captive Prince Trilogy.
The funny thing is it's not quite the same as emotional intensity as what a reader might get from another good book. There's some lingering feeling of both disappointment and anger rather than joy of fulfillment. It ended both happily and tragically. The characters all suffered in their own way, some overcame it, other were still in the process of it by the time one reaches the epilogue and others... Well, they might suffer until the end of their lives. Oh, who am I lying to? They were all fucked up. Will die fucked up. That's the truth of it and I am trying to soften it, but I can't.
Spoilers from down here, read at your own risk
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Let's start with Richard:
GODS, I HATED HIM SO MUCH. But he was endearing. Endearing in some twisted freakish way. He was a narcissist to the core, openly boasting about himself as if he needed to showcase his power even though everyone knew just how talented and beautiful he was. He is one of those characters you hate to love. His death felt deserved, it was the only way to soothe his aggression towards everyone. He was... A lot to take. Not only he intimidated the space of the book, but also the mind of the reader. He might have been the antagonist of some sort but I caught myself (back when he was still alive) wondering "Where is Richard?" whenever the group assembled. Whether we as readers liked it or not, Richard was important. Not as much as he himself thought he was, but he was indeed an indispensable part of the narration, of the school, of the gang. Him constantly appearing as a ghost through the eyes of Oliver after his real death, much like his role in Caesar was a magnificent parallel. Even in death he will forever haunt them, remind them what they didn't do and how much to blame they are for everything that happened as much as he is. Still, can't figure out if he is the tragic hero or tragic villain in the story. Before his death I would have said the latter, but as the book progresses, I fail to commit to one definition of Richard and I think its best if I never do, actually. I would rather see him as the dictator, gotten drunk on his own power and fallen off the pedestal he had single-handedly built for himself. I can go on for days. The one that died first turned out to have much deeper significance than what I had anticipated.
Oliver:
Such. A. Sweetheart.
So cute, so kind, so thoughtful, so naive, so confused and...
So so so fucked up.
I had a moment during reading when I thought he was the villain all along and that there would be a major plot twist, saying he rightfully took the blame and had decieved the readers with his thorough retelling of the story. But, no. He started being and ended being the sweetest of them all.
The only thing that pissed me off was him (and James for that matter) being so queer for each other and never acknowledging it (until the end of the book that is) From the first scene with them together, I knew. You would have to be blind not to know. It was obvious. And yet they didn't admit it, didn't want to. Not for some "OH, shit I'm gay but I want to be straight" reason, no. I'm sure they were both afraid to lose each other if they so much as admitted what they felt. I hope that they both enjoy that lost time now. They deserve it.
Meredith:
It's safe to say I hated her more than Richard but I also loved her more than him. She was right to want him dead, they all were, but she was the one that was in a relationship with this major aggressor.
She is so insecure, so smashed by all that attention she got throughout the whole book. There was a moment where I wondered if she would kill herself, but she's a tough bitch and I respect that in her.
She deserved better than this. Both as a person and as an actress.
I didn't like her most of the time. How she clung to Richard and then how she clung to Oliver and every other boy between that. She treated herself as a rag and wondered why everyone else were doing the same. She blamed it on the fact, she was treated like that from the start, but she let it be that way. Had she not been so insecure of her talent and self things would have turned out differently, I suppose.
Philippa/Pip:
A QUEEN.
She's me and I am she in terms of friendship. She's always there, always ready to help, always ready for everything, even murder.
Pip is also honest, unapologetically real.
I have not much to say about her as I am fully convinced that she, Oliver and James were my favorite characters and when a favorite character is in the equation my brain is like "Nope, just scream it out, they'll understand so-"
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAKSKSNDNENDNDNDNDJDJDJDNENBEBDJDJDJDKJEND
I would have liked her to be more goal-oriented and determined to get what she deserved, but I suppose the plot wouldn't have developed the way it did.
Her and Camilo. Muah. Chef's Kiss. Didn't expect it, but I should have from the moment I read she called him Milo.
Wren:
Well, I don't have much to say about her except that she was sweet as fuck and the whole book fucked up a perfectly acceptable Tinkerbell character and made her broken puff of feathers and spilled ink. A waste of potential, in some ways. She's the typical gentle character that couldn't take the pressure of, anything, now that I think about it.
I liked her, but not quite. She was lovable but too innocent and good for me. She got fucked up by all those prematurely fucked up characters and she deserved better.
Alexander:
A mood. Hands down the biggest mood in the whole book. Save for the drug overdose he was an absolute icon, slaying through the plot like no other. I waited patiently for all of his appearances and none disappointed. He may think that Caesar was what fucked them up but I don't think so. As Philippa said, they were all more or less fucked up before Dellecher.
I was sad not to find out how it went between him and Collin because the boy did seem to care for him even though, Alexander didn't appear to think much further than sex 90% of the time. Such a diva.
James:
Now, now. He's my boy. No touchy touchy.
Beautiful.
Gorgeous.
A brilliant ice cube melting and becoming a blue fire on the stage. That's what he is. He felt double natured. He felt like the sparrow. There was this idea of him being unapproachable and distant even when he was with his friends. That's what made him so well suited for Oliver, because Oliver just KNEW him. He just knew that underneath this cold beautiful exterior lay a sweet boy who just wanted to do what he loved and he wanted to be the best in it,but his life got fucked up enough for him to break completely.
No one actually managed to underatand him except Oliver and Philippa. This is partly why those two are in my top 3. They knew James. Oliver knew him because he loved him and Philippa straight up knew every single one of them, how they operated and how they felt but she didn't think it was her place to say or meddle.
James didn't love Wren. I believed it for a couple of chapters but it just didn't add up. He loved her like a sister but pretend to love her as something more just because he wanted to escape the thoughts of Oliver.
I knew he was the one that hurt (he didn't kill him, they all did) Richard. The way he panicked and wanted to help when he saw Richard moving and how desperate he was to help. Because he was sorry and because he was terrified. I saw him for the real person he was at that moment. I saw the gears twisting and turning in his head as he was always thinking.
He's alive. That's what I like to believe. I'd like to also believe that he and Oliver got together at last when Oliver found him or if not, I'd be happy to just know that James is alive and well.
This book is a major 10/10 for me. I'm still not over the fact that it's over, I haven't processed it. I don't feel empty, but I feel spent and more accepting of what's to come. Let be.
My love for Shakespeare is fueled even more now. I'm off to read some classics before I decide if I want to continue with other books or let this one just... Sink in.
26 notes · View notes
laura491 · 1 year
Text
Book Review: An Ember in the Ashes
Book title: An Ember in the Ashes
Author: Sabaa Tahir
Pages: 450
Year of publication: 2015
Publishing House: HarperVoyager
1. Contents
The book is set in a fantasy world where the Martials are ruling over the Scholar and have built an Empire. It is told from the perspectives of Laia, a Scholar girl, and Elias, a Martial who is about to finish his time at Blackcliff, the military academy of the Empire. At the beginning of the book, Laia’s brother is taken captive by the Empire whilst his grandparents are murdered. Laia runs away and into the arms of the Resistance who promise help in exchange for Laia spying on the commandant of Blackcliff. In the meantime, Elias learns that he and three others are supposed to fight trials in order to become the new Emperor. In the end, both Laia and Elias end up being supposed to make great decisions that affect the other.
2. Characters
2.1 Laia
At the beginning of the book, Laia appears like a big coward. She always decides against going against the Empire for fear for her own life. After her brother is taken captive, the reader finds that she is hearing her brother’s voice in her head telling her to be brave and to go through certain actions that may help saving him. When she finds the Resistance, she is even too afraid at first to tell them that her parents were the heads of that Resistance before being executed for that.
However, things change once she is in Blackcliff Academy. It is clear that most people from the Resistance doubt she’d make it, since the commandant is a cruel woman who punishes her slaves severely for the smallest mistake and for torturing people when she finds someone was a spy or in any way connected to the Resistance. Laia herself has to go through physical punishment when the commandant burns her initials into her skin. Still, that seems to be exactly the moment Laia later on gains strength from. She has made it through that, what worse could happen to her? She actually begins taking risks to gather the intel she needs to fulfil her mission. She also becomes friends with Izzi, a slave working for the commandant. Her concerns from there on mostly revolve around her brother, while also considering Izzi, so she doesn’t get punished for anything Laia may do.
In the end, Laia learns that the leader of the Resistance had been using her as a distraction to keep the Resistance together and never intended to free her brother from prison. At the beginning of the book, she might have become desperate over this and forsaken everything. That is not what happens though. Instead, she prepares a plan to get Izzi out of the commandant’s clutches and to also release Elias, who is supposed to be executed for having refused to kill Laia in one of the trials. In the end, she succeeds and is the one who is bound to freeing her brother herself.
2.2 Elias
Elias’s situation in the beginning seems to be very contrary to that of Laia. He is about to finish his school time as one of the best of his year. However, he is about to run himself, not happy to start a life as one of the Empire’s soldiers. Before he can get away, he is talked out of it by an Augur, a sort of spiritual being with a high rank in the Empire, that he will gain true freedom if he stays. Confused, Elias obliges, only to learn that he, his best friend Helene and their enemies Marcus and Zak are supposed to compete in trials to decide who is becoming the new Emperor, since the current one cannot offer an heir.
For Elias, most things appear to revolve around getting away from the Empire. The reader learns that the commandant of Blackcliff is his mother who gave him up after he had been born. He was raised by the Tribesmen who don’t have a lot to do with the Empire, but the Augurs and his grandfather eventually made sure he attended Blackcliff, and he is not happy with that. It being a school, especially in a potentially magic fantasy world, it sucks ass and he and his schoolmates are put through some severe punishments as well. In fact, one of the first chapters of the book has a pupil being whipped to death by the commandant for trying to escape.
Still, his close connections to his classmates also become clear, in a way. He is not clear about Helene, who is his best friend, but there is some romantic tension between them as well. With the rest of his classmates, it comes to the thought of, “you go through so much shit with someone, you cannot not be close as shit afterwards.” In the first trial, he is facing an illusion of what he fears the most and sees a field covered with the dead bodies of his friends, while being told that he’d be the one to kill them. This gets real in the 3rd trial, when he has to fight a group led by Helene, while seeing that if not fighting for life and death, his opponents would just be killed by the Augurs. And in that group, there is quite a number of his friends. However, in the end he is ready to kill Helene in order to stop anyone else from killing. Only the armour she is wearing (which is against the rules) keeps her from being killed by Elias.
Now one cannot keep silent about the relationship between Laia and Elias. He only gets to know her as his mother’s slave. By the way, if that hasn’t become clear yet, he despises his mother. He immediately considers her attractive and warns her from being to outstanding, since many students have a history of raping slaves. Over the course of the story, he witnesses the wounds she’s got from his mother’s treatment and tries to help her by getting medicine or making sure she’s taken care of by the other slaves. He also goes out of his way to get her back to the school before she is being discovered away from it and to protect her from being raped by Marcus. One might understand this as a little rebellion against both his mother and the school and the Empire itself. Laia being a Scholar means she is considered inferior by the Martials in power. A closer connection becomes clearer after the 3rd trial, though. As a reward for winning that trial, Elias is being locked up in a room with Laia for a night. They realise they both have suffered by the hands of the Empire. Laia there also is the first one in his life to ask him about his childhood with the Tribesmen. In return, he is honest to her and tells her that he had intended to run away and even dug a tunnel.
The day after, the aspirants for becoming Emperor are faced with Laia and are told to kill her because she was a spy – the one killing her would become Emperor. This is the breaking point for Elias though, who gets in the way of Helene, who has already knocked out Marcus. He protects Laia and is willing to face the consequences, which are him being sentenced to die. Marcus apparently does kill Laia (in fact, the Augur holding her takes the blow and gets her into safety after) and is announced Emperor right after getting the news that the former Emperor died during an ambush of the Resistance.
Whilst waiting for his execution, Elias realises that he is free of mind now, since he has made his peace with himself. He has stood up against the Empire by refusing to kill Laia, who in the end also releases his body. Now he really is free to leave Blackcliff and get away from everything.
3. Magic
Whilst being a fantasy setting, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of magic going on in this world. The Augurs are supposed to be immortal and able to read thoughts, which Elias in the beginning regards as nonsense. Still, both Laia and Elias face several mysterious beings over the course of the book. Whilst spying on the commandant, Laia even sees a creature called “Nightbringer”, supposedly the king of magical beings. The Augurs, who have brought some beings into the trials, also tell Elias that they have not awaken them because they had already been awake. This raises the opportunity at least for more magic happening in the remaining books of the series.
4. Personal note
All in all, I enjoyed reading this book. It started a bit slow, but the second half completely caught me, especially since the two perspectives of Laia and Elias became more connected there. The violent scenes are rather graphic, but more in a way that you worry for the characters and are engrossed with the ones doing the violence. In total, 4/5 stars on my end.
1 note · View note
ramzawrites · 3 years
Note
Ok I have coffeed up 🦀🦀🦀
Could I request a fic about a Male Reader Border Collie Hybridbeing hired to look after the pets of the Syndicate while theyre at a meeting? Having to feed every single dog, Ranboos cat, Carl, the parrots, Steve the bear, etc? Trying to wrangle the foxes because theyre trying to eat poison potatoes, shooing zombies off the turtle eggs? -🌱🌟
Tumblr media
The Syndicate’s Pet Sitter - BorderCollie!Hybrid!Reader
Male
Pairings: none
Characters included: Technoblade, Philza, Ranboo, Nihachu
Warnings: n/a
Series: A request for my beloved 🌱🌟<3
Summary: The Syndicate is meeting up early in the morning and didn’t have the chance to feed their pets yet. Luckily Y/N who lives there as well but isn’t part of the Syndicate can take care of them. And no that is totally not because Border Collies are good herding dogs.
Words count: 4732
Authors Note: I just noticed I missed the foxes oh no ;_; Why do the Syndicate have so many pets I swear! I hope you guys enjoy this! Esp you 🌱🌟 since you requested it! I also haven’t had the chance to properly look over it look for typos, I apologize! I’ll deal with that as soon as I can! Also thanks for the prompt 😌 I have a weakness for animals and dogs
The chest let out a strained creak as Technoblade closed it for what felt like the hundredth time. He was preparing for the next meeting of the Syndicate and this time he, as well as Phil, had actually planned a few things other than just showing the newest members where the headquarters were and setting up the rules for the organization.
While both men were busy running from chest to chest collecting materials and writing down information into books, they were accompanied by a soft rhythmic thud as well.
That sound came from Y/N. More specifically his tail swishing up and down as he was sitting in front of a window on the windowsill. Watching peacefully as the two went about their business.
Y/N was a Dog Hybrid. A Border Collie Hybrid to be specific. He has been technically living with Techno and Philza for a while now but Techno liked to act as if he was just some stranger to him.
When Y/N first came to the SMP Philza and Techno were the first people he met and ever since then he has gotten quite attached to them.
At first Techno tried to get rid off him, especially since he always gave him wishy washy answers concerning his opinions on governments but Y/N wouldn’t let himself get spooked off that easily and even begun building his own little home close to them without asking. At that point Techno had to accept defeat and let him begrudgingly stay.
Philza liked to poke fun at that fact but he also understood Techno’s caution. Though over time Y/N has shown to be a trusty ally that could keep secrets, even once leading people astray since they became dangerously close to their home. Because of that Philza brought once the idea up that maybe they should let Y/N join the Syndicate after all as well.
Of course Techno immediately shut down the idea for the simple fact that not once has Y/N ever clearly stated that he was against any kind of government. There was no point in arguing with the Pig Hybrid about this particular topic so Philza just dropped the issue altogether.
That said after Niki came over to join the Syndicate and Ranboo got roped in it as well, Y/N managed to at least learn of the name of the organization.
He even asked to join to which Techno just said “Prove to us you are an anarchist and maybe I will think about it.”
“So you are saying you just want me to tell you the things you want to hear in order to get in? Doesn’t seem that smart to me.”
Y/N would always pull out these snide remarks whenever that topic came up.
For some reason Y/N woke up early and found that both Philza and Techno got up early as well so he just let himself in, sat down next to the window and begun happily munching on some cold steak for breakfast.
Techno made a point of ignoring him only muttering something about a “damn mutt” under his breath while Philza was chuckling to himself. Y/N’s fluffy dog ears obviously picked up on it but the happy swags of his tail continued on, knowing that if Techno really was annoyed by him, he would have already intervened way back when he begun building his home.
Phil was rummaging through a chest, trying to find some extra paper only to suddenly stop moving and turn around to look at Y/N, his arms still in the chest.
“Y/N?” adding a whistle to ensure that he would gain his attention.
As a response the Dog Hybrid looked absolutely aghast “Did you just-? Did you just whistle at me? Did you, Philza, just whistle at me to get my attention? Like a dog?”
“Sorry, just kind of happened but since you are here I have a request for you.”
Now Technoblade stopped whatever he was doing as well to observe what was happening in front of him, curious what he was proposing. A smirk adorning his features knowing full well that Philza probably whistled on purpose seeing how Y/N was kind of an unwelcome guest right now.
“You can request but no guarantee I will fulfill your request, old man.” Y/N spoke through an exaggerated pout.
This only earned him a tired sigh from Philza “Yeah, Yeah. As you can see we are up early for a reason but this also means we didn’t have the chance yet to feed the animals. Could you feed them all and make sure they’ll be alright while we are gone? You know how this place can get with pets.”
“All? Like all the pets? Like you want me to feed all the pets and take care of them?” Y/N was obviously intimated by the idea of the task judging with how his voice jumped up an octave to the end of the question. But who could blame him. Over time the group managed to amass a comical amount of pets which included a full hound army, polar bears, turtles, cows, Carl the Horse and in Ranboo’s case even parrots.
That reminded him.
“Does that include Ranboo’s bird and cat?”
“Does what include my bird and cat?” Suddenly the door swung open as Ranboo stepped inside Techno’s home. Cramping up the small cabin even more. The cold winter air only managing to sneak in for a short moment before he made sure to close the wooden door again.
Techno chuckled “We are asking Y/N here to feed our pets while we are busy at our meeting and to make sure they are safe while we are gone. He has time after all.”
Y/N’s shocked expression turned to a frown. Oh they did that deliberately alright.
Ranboo took a moment to take in the scene before he slowly nodded “Oh, if that is the case then I would actually really appreciate it if you could take a look at my parrot and cat. I haven’t had the chance to feed them yet since I ran out of seeds for the bird. Actually the reason I came over here was because I wanted to ask you guys if you had some extra.”
Techno’s smirk was ever present on his face as he motioned with his hand towards his mass of chests “Somewhere in there we have some but I’m sure Y/N will find them and take care of your pets as well.”
“Would you?”
Ranboo sounded so genuine and almost surprised by this that Y/N couldn’t come up with a snarky response but instead he looked defeated.
“I- alright. I will take care of your pets while you do your stupid Syndicate meeting.”
“We trained him well, Techno.”
“That we did, old friend.”
Now Y/N’s happy tail wagging did finally stop and he jumped up away from the window, surprising Ranboo in the process “You didn’t train me! I’m not one of your dogs!”
He knew they were joking but he still couldn’t let that stand.
Philza stepped closer to Y/N and put one of his hands on his head between his ears. Giving a short pat only to remove his hand again “Yes, we know. If that was true you would be listening to us at all times. Anyways, I spotted Niki outside and we are ready, so, we’ll be going. Make sure nothing happens to the animals! We are putting our trust in you!”
Before Y/N could protest or retract his agreement the group made sure to leave the little hut as fast as possible. Ranboo was very confused but still followed the others outside to loudly greet Niki.
Y/N himself was so bewildered by this whole situation he didn’t even make the effort to run out to greet Niki as well. Instead his thoughts begun to swirl around his new responsibilities.
What do Polar Bears eat? How is he going to feed all of the dogs? By Ender he hoped that Techno had all the necessary things in one of his chests.
That’s when a stray thought hit him “Did they hire me as pet sitter because I’m a Border Collie Hybrid? Did they seriously make me the pet sitter because Border Collie’s are stereotypically good herding dogs?”
That thought had to set in for a moment as he was asking himself if this seriously could be the case and knowing them that might have very well been a thought that crossed their minds. They all joked around about their hybrid parts but this was just ridiculous.
He didn’t know how yet but somehow he will make sure that the damn Pig and the Birdbrain will get this back tenfold. Ranboo was okay in Y/N’s book since he mostly got pulled into this by the others but even then he was still on thin ice.
“I better get going.” He whispered in order to try to pull himself out of his thoughts.
First on the agenda were the Polar Bears. Mostly since he wasn’t exactly sure how to go about it and just wanted to get it over with but also one of the Bears was laying inside the hut. Snuggling close to the fire place.
That polar bear was Steve and Techno often made comments of him being his emotional support animal and at this point Y/N just believed him. With Techno who knew at this point.
Well what would Steve eat? Just some meat?
“Fish!”
How he didn’t immediately come to that conclusion he didn’t know but better late than never.
Y/N excitedly rubbed his hands together. Time to snoop through Techno’s things. No way in hell is he going to use his own resources to feed their pets. Hence why he begun looking through Techno’s chests. Taking note of things like stray armor, golden apples and enchantment books.
Somewhere in a corner he found some cooked fish. Should be fine, right?
Taking a couple of fish he moved over to Steve who was still lazily draped on the ground enjoying the heat from the fire. Carefully and slowly Y/N put down a couple of fish in front of his big snout. His dog ears pressed down on his head as he stared rigidly at the bear. Hoping for the best.
Steve’s black nose begun to twitch. He slowly opened up his eyes and lazily begun nudging the food closer to his snout with his big paw. Snacking on the pile of fish.
“Okay? I’m guessing that’s fine? I think?”
Just to make sure he still threw more fish towards him and then made his way with a second pile outside where Ed was waiting for his food as well. Ed was way more active and often enough obstructs the way up the stairs that lead to both Philza’s and Techno’s house.
Philza was always annoyed at Ed because of that particular reason. Though today he was a good Polar Bear that was sitting next to the stairs staring at Ender knows what.
Y/N threw him his pile of fish and watched for a second as he happily begun munching on them.
“Guess I’m doing alright after all.”
Almost as if to answer the bear suddenly begun to move towards Y/N which made him panic. Stepping back, trying to understand what he was doing now. Sure the bears are cute but also big and dangerous if they wanted to be.
But Ed bowed his head down and softly pressed his head against Y/N’s chest.
“Is this a thanks, buddy? Aw, no problem.”
Tentatively Y/N placed his hand on the bear’s head to give him one or two scritches. To which Ed then let out a deep puff of air through his nose and immediately moved back to his food to continue his breakfast.
All the Polar Bears are fed. Now only the whole hound army, cows, parrot, Carl the Horse, Turtles and Enderchest the Cat were left. Oh by Ender. That is still a lot.
Y/N immediately ran back into Techno’s hut and begun to search through his chests again. Grabbing things like Seeds, Sea Grass, more fish and some steak.
The parrot and cat were the easiest to deal with first so he decided to run into Ranboo’s house. Even if just to avoid the cold outside for a tiny bit longer.
He climbed down the ladder and found the parrot patiently waiting for him. Excitedly squawking as soon as he saw him.
Placing the seeds in front of the animal Y/N took a good look at the colorful bird.
“How are you doing? Keeping Ranboo company? Making sure he isn’t feeling too lonely?”
“Company! Company!” Ranbird answered in a shrill voice only to continue picking up the seeds off the ground.
Y/N liked spending time with Ranboo. He was a bit of an enigma with his memory issues and interesting behavior at points but Y/N loved hanging out with him. He would always try to offer to play pranks on Techno but Ranboo was too apprehensive about it, not wanting to make the scary Pig Hybrid mad at him.
The two had a bit of a running joke going on where both Ranboo and Y/N would call the other weird. Ranboo for his weird behavior and Y/N for the simple fact that he apparently didn’t fear Techno at all. Philza and Ranboo having to mostly hold him back before he could seriously upset Techno.
“Enderchest? Come here!” Y/N called out and continued to do the typical mouth noises to attract cats. Luckily he did come around a corner.
Happily meowing when Enderchest saw Y/N. Chirping as he pressed his body against Y/N’s legs.
“See, you are a kitty and I am a dog hybrid but we like each other.” Was he still a bit salty about the fact that they most certainly chose him to take care of the pets due to his Hybrid side?
Yes. Definitely.
Sure, no one else was there who could deal with it but on the other hand normally they were always so prepared for everything so this must have been planned beforehand. They didn’t feed the animals on purpose because obviously he was there and had time.
A loud meow pulled Y/N back out of his thoughts again.
“Sorry, Enderchest. You are right it’s food time.”
He then took out two fish and placed it in front of the cat who immediately put them in his mouth and ran off with them. Probably to eat in peace.
Next on the list was Carl. If Y/N didn’t make sure that Carl was absolutely doing alright and was fed Techno would kill him. And while Y/N liked to joke with Techno and pretend that he wasn’t as dangerous as everyone else is treating him like, he also knew that Carl is so important to him that Techno let him get himself kidnapped by the Butcher Army for the horse’s safety.
Technoblade hid his horse behind a wall but Philza one day accidentally found it. Y/N immediately took the chance to build an actual hidden entrance. He liked being a bit of an annoyance for Techno but if he can somehow help out, he will.
Pressing a button on the stone wall gave away to the little stable he and Philza made for Carl.
“Breakfast!”
Some Hay and other food was always ready for Carl so all Y/N had to do was put some of it in the tray and make sure he still had water. Everything seemed fine so Y/N took a second to pet him.
“No idea why Techno is so attached to you but you do seem like a good one. He protects you so you better make sure to not disappoint him as well.”
Carl neighed and nuzzled his nose into Y/N’s shoulder. Softly nabbing on the clothes which made the man laugh in return and softly shoved Carl’s face away from him.
“My clothes aren’t food, buddy!”
Luckily Carl didn’t continue to screw around and instead concentrated on his actual food.
The next pit stop were the turtles and cows. It was easy feeding them since you just placed down the food and then let them go about their day. No, the dog army would be a problem later. They might be war dogs but they were still playful dogs.
Y/N closed up the stable for Carl and made his way through the snow towards the cows first. Opening up a chest that stood close by. He placed it there a few days back with a ton of wheat. It was meant as way to help with the feeding. It was meant for the others since these cows didn’t belong to him but now he was stuck with the responsibility after all.
The cows were happily chewing on the food that Y/N threw into their enclosure and seemed to be doing alright as well so he moved on to the turtles.
For the turtles he actually had to get into the enclosure. Putting the kelp down near the water so the turtles inside the water could see him placing the food down as well. All the while he had to make sure to not accidentally walk on top of the eggs that some of these turtles have laid.
The animals themselves seemed to ignore Y/N. Just slowly crawling along the coarse sand or floating inside the water.
That’s when Y/N heard a groan from behind him. A groan he knew too well.
“Oh no you don’t!”
Y/N swiveled around and pulled out his netherite sword. A sword he made with the help of Philza. During his travels in the nether he found some ancient debris but since he never worked with that material he asked Phil for help. Which was also the reason why the purple sword was called Swordza.
“You helped me make it, I’m naming it after you.” He said to Philza’s dismay.
Right now though the reason why he turned around so fast was that he heard the familiar retching sound of a zombie. It was still early in the morning no surprise there that a loose zombie might be around the place.
Also no surprise that the zombie appeared around the turtle enclosure. For some reason they loved trampling down turtle eggs which was really just barbaric if you really thought about it. Beings that seemingly just wandered around the overworld with no goal but as soon as they spot turtle eggs they suddenly know exactly where to go. Well, besides when they find a human to attack.
The zombie limped towards the turtles.
Y/N didn’t wait long to react. He immediately took a running start and jumped over the fence. Striking down with his sword while he was landing, giving the attack a little more oomph. Together with the enchantments on the sword the zombie fell down into a burning mess. Gurgling sounds escaping it only to die down. A growl escaped Y/N’s throat as he stared at the dead mob.
“Nothing will happen to the little ones while I have anything to say about it!”
He took another sweeping look around the place but found nothing out of the ordinary. With a relieved sigh he put his sword back. The turtles were fed and safe.
Though as he looked around his eyes fell unto the hoard of dogs. All fenced in under a self-made roof. Most of the dogs were laying around either in a small pile or alone. Some were trotting around or even playing but it seemed like the dogs were still tired.
It was time to deal with them.
Y/N walked over to the dogs and as he stepped closer the animals immediately took notice of him. A few running over to him while others just patiently stared. As he got closer to the fence the nearest dogs put their front paws on the fence. Barking excitedly.
If Y/N went in like this some will run out and that was not something he wanted to deal with. There was still some adrenaline pumping through his veins from back when he spotted the zombie but he was still slowly beginning to freeze. Honestly he wanted to get through this fast so he can go back into his cabin and enjoy the warmth of his hearth.
Maybe even begin to plot on how to get back at the Syndicate for doing this to him.
But this wasn’t important right now.
Y/N let out a sharp and loud whistle “Away! Come one! Move out of the way!” He pointed to a corner and surprisingly the dogs seemed to understand that he wanted them away from the gates.
When he opened said gate the dogs patiently waited for him to move in and close it again before they suddenly begun to swarm him. Jumping up trying to lick his face or they began sniffing him out.
“Hey! Stop! I can’t feed you like that!”
He had a frown on his face but his tail was happily swinging from side to side as the dogs greeted him.
“Okay, stop! Sit!”
Luckily the dogs were well trained since they immediately sat down. Still panting in excitement and whining but now they weren’t trying to pull Y/N down to play with him.
In return Y/N got out the steaks out of his inventory and walked past the dogs. Giving each one of them their share. Whenever some dogs begun to scuffle over the food all Y/N had to do was to whistle or yell “Stop!” and they would listen.
Truthfully he feared that feeding the dogs would be the most difficult task of all the animals but as it turned out they listened to him rather well. It’s probably only because Techno trained them so well but still, maybe there is a way Y/N could use this power for himself.
It didn’t take long for Y/N to feed all the dogs but once he reached the last one the first dogs were already done eating and happily following Y/N around the fenced off area. Sometimes barking, hoping to get his attention. While his ears would always move in the direction of the barking dogs, he made  appoint to concentrate on the dogs that he was actually interacting with.
Though when he was done he finally turned around to look at the happy dogs “You guys are needy, did you know that?”
As if to answer a dog right in front of him sat down and woofed at him.
Y/N rolled his eyes and knelt down, scratching that one particular dog behind his ear “You little pooch.”
That was a mistake. A huge mistake.
As he went down and balanced on the front of his feet the other dogs saw their chance as he went down to their height, practically jumping on.
Startled the Hybrid let out a yelp as the dogs pushed him on his back. Licking his face or tugging on his clothes.
He tried pushing the dogs away from his face but it he was unsuccessful. For every dog he pushed away two new dogs would try to jump into that new space. Sadly also pushing the dogs away seemed to be something fun for them.
At some point Y/N managed to get back up but still got swarmed by the dogs. All the dogs now in a happy playful mood after having eaten. Y/N could just tell them off but everyone on the outside could see that he had fun as well playing and tussling with the dogs.
Over time that tussling just became the dogs jumping into Y/N arms so he could throw them a few feet away while simultaneously trying to not fall down as some dogs begun tugging on his clothes again. The longer it kept going the more tired he got which was hi downfall. Quite literally.
He fell over again and while the dogs swarmed around him they too were getting tired and just laid down next to him. Framing his body or just straight up laying on top of him, one dog even snuggled up to his head, ending up more as a pillow for him.
At first Y/N tried to struggle against being buried alive by the animals but as soon as he noticed the warmth engulfing his body instead of the cold harsh wind he accepted his fate.
After all he was done with feeding the pets.
“Horrible. Techno would be proud with how relentless you all are.” A yawn escaped his lips which seemed to infect a few of the dogs as well.
It really didn’t take long for him to fall asleep. It was warm, soft and he felt safe.
The meeting for the Syndicate took longer than expected. They spent way too much time trying to find a common goal to start with. They didn’t want to do something huge at the beginning but start small, something that would test their cooperation and teamwork.
Though after they finally found something and started planning a few hours had past and since both Ranboo and Niki apparently had people to meet they had to stop the meeting early.
“You think the animals will be fine?” Ranboo asked Philza as they stepped out of their hidden headquarters.
The older man just waved off his question “Ah, they will be fine! We rag on Y/N often but we can trust him with things like these. He’s a good one even if he absolutely refuses to give Techno a straight answer when it comes to governments. I do believe he is only doing that to annoy him though.”
As the group approached their home again everyone took a good look around.
“Well, everything seems normal.” Techno noted.
Niki scowled “Aw I had hoped to see him. I couldn’t even say hello when I got here.”
That’s when Ranboo stopped dead in his track. He wanted to go home to get ready for Snowchester but something inside the dog pen caught his attention “Oh by Ender! There is an arm! The dogs have an arm!”
The other three ran over, confused with what the hell he was talking about only to see he was right. There was an arm sticking outside of the dogpile. Why did the dogs pile up in the first place though?
Out of nowhere Phil snorted and pressed his hand against his chest and mouth. Trying to stifle a laugh.
Niki still looked shocked and worried, confused with Phil’s reaction “What? Philza, why are you laughing?”
“Let me show you. Y/N! Are you awake, mate?”
At first nothing happened but then suddenly the arm moved and retreated back inside the dogpile. Now the others understood what happened.
Both Niki and Ranboo looked a bit embarrassed that they genuinely thought that these dogs might have ripped off an arm and were now cuddling with it.
Techno stayed stoic as always. Folding his arms in front of his chest, waiting for Y/N to properly react.
“Y/N, come on!” Phil called out again.
A muffled groan came from the pile of dogs and Y/N’s head appeared as he sat up “What?” He whined “I was having such a nice dream!”
“Oh my- Y/N! Good morning!” Niki greeted the Hybrid happily.
In response Y/N got a bit out of his furry burial but still pulled one of the ferocious war dogs closer to himself, hugging it. His tail now out as well showing the others his happy mood as he slowly drifted off again.
“Hello, Niki.” He sounded still half asleep. At least the others assumed since his face was buried in the dogs grey fur.
“Y/N please get away from my hound army. They are bred to fight and kill not for hugs and naps.” Techno grumbled.
“Then why are they so comfy and love me so much. They love me so much more than you” He made sure to drawl out the word “love” to really hammer that fact in.
“Let’s make Y/N then our go to pet sitter.” Phil noted.
This seemed to wake up Y/N, he immediately looked up with a scowl “No! I am not going to be your pet sitter! You put me in that role in the first place because I’m a Border Collie Hybrid, or am I wrong? If it’s true that’s seriously screwed up, by the way!”
Techno sighed “Yep, there he is. Now he is awake alright.”
1K notes · View notes
avnkin · 4 years
Text
Shake On It [ d. malfoy ]
Tumblr media
Author’s Note: I originally planned on posting this as just one long fic buuut instead i’m going to do a mini series, ya know torture you guys just just a lil bit (gif is not mine) also I got all the information about the potions and the ingredients from harry potter wiki and of course I do not own harry potter or the storyline/characters.
Word Count: 8k
Summary: There’s little to nothing Draco values more than his reputation so when he sees it slipping, he’ll do anything in his power to catch it.
Pairing: Draco Malfoy x Fem!Reader
Warnings: angst, foul language, some bullying and asshole!draco.
This is an AU so all the information doesn’t exactly line up with the hp storyline for example it takes place in sixth year but there’s no Voldemort so Dumbledore doesn’t die etc.
You’d never been much for the ‘social scene’ you just didn’t find enjoyment in the same things your classmates did, so you never really had a big friend group, your only acquaintance having been Irma Prince… The librarian.
That was until your second year when Hermione Granger came into your life like a ray of sunshine brightening up the dark loneliness that had consumed you your first year.
She introduced you to Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, although you were never as close with them as you were with Hermione you still couldn’t be more grateful for your newfound friend group, especially since you now didn’t have to endure Draco’s and his fellow Slytherin classmates torment alone.
You were and had always been an easy target for Draco and his entourage since you never really stood up for yourself, instead choosing to ignore how he continuously called you ‘a blood traitor’ for hanging out with ‘the likes of Hermione’ which you never understood, how was someone different from him just because they didn’t have magical parents?
It was a well-known fact that Draco’s father Lucius Malfoy was the cause of his attitude towards muggle-borns, you truly believed that man didn’t have a kind bone in his body.
You remembered once when you’d arrived at platform 9¾ after your third year Draco went to greet his parents and whilst Narcissa (his mother) gave him a big welcoming hug, embracing her son after not having seen him for many months Lucius simply stared down at him with a glare that could only be described as disgust and disappointment before turning and walking away without as much as a greeting to the platinum blond.
Still, that didn’t excuse Draco’s foul behaviour, he was old enough now to have his own opinions and morals and he didn’t seem to be planning on changing them anytime soon.
You were now in your sixth year and unsurprisingly nothing had changed, Draco was still the same arse he’d always been, but as the years went on it was getting progressively easier to ignore him since you’d gotten so used to it.
It almost felt like it had become a part of your daily routine for him to yell something degrading in the hallways, mostly directed at you or Hermione or whatever Gryffindor he felt like bullying that day.
Intently focusing on the potions book that laid opened before you, you carefully followed the detailed instructions, not wanting to get a single thing wrong since you needed at least an outstanding in this class to keep up your average.
The last part was to add: ‘One drop of Unicorn blood’
You grabbed the flask that contained the silver liquid and as steadily as possible you leaned the bottle over your cauldron, letting a small drop slip past the edge and into the black water, but as you began leaning back Pansy Parkinson ‘accidentally’ bumped into you causing the entirety of the bottle to spill into your potion.
You glared up at her as you watched the black liquid turn sickly green instead of sparkly blue as it should. She shrugged her shoulders innocently, before walking back to the station she shared with Draco who greeted her with an amused smirk before turning back to his work.
“Try not to think too much about it” Hermione’s comforting voice sounded from beside you. “I’m so sick of those two” you argued pouring the remaining containments of the cauldron into a sink, now having to start the entire potion all over again.
“I know, I am too” Hermione frowned glaring at the two Slytherins who didn’t even bother to look over at her.
“Miss Y/L/N weren’t you nearly finished a couple of minutes ago?” Professor Slughorn’s voice could be heard from behind you as he looked over your shoulder, an unimpressed look on his face.
“Uh- yes sir it’s just I accidentally put too much Unicorns blood and had to start over again” you lied looking into the now-empty cauldron before you, glaring at Pansy once you heard her quiet laughter from the other side of the classroom.
“Well alright, but I’d hurry if I were you, I’m afraid you’re running a bit short on time” he smiled before moving on to the students sat in front of you.
“Why didn’t you say anything?” Hermione frowned once Slughorn was out of earshot, you gave her a knowing look having had this conversation with her on more than one occasion.
Tattling on them wouldn’t change anything it would simply make their torments increase and you didn’t need that, especially with the N.E.W.T.S coming up you didn’t want anything distracting your studies.
Despite having been interrupted by Pansy you managed to be the only one who brewed the potion right and the displeased scowl placed on Pansy’s face as she watched you get praised by the teacher and the rest of the class was nothing but amusing.
Once you were finally dismissed, you were walking alongside Hermione down the long corridors leading to the Great Hall when someone again bumped into you causing all the books you’d been clutching between your arms to go flying towards the ground and you along with them.
“What a klutz” you heard the familiar squeaky voice of Pansy Parkinson, you hurriedly got back up onto your feet whilst Hermione picked up the remaining books that had sprawled all across the stone floor.
“You did that on purpose” you growled charging at Pansy who cowered away from you as you neared her but once she noticed Draco was watching she stopped dead in her tracks, a side smirk resting on her lips before she tilted her head to the side.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about” she innocently smiled before walking around you and back to Draco who held an emotionless expression on his face as he walked with her down the hall.
“Bitch” you mumbled underneath your breath just before Hermione came running up to you. “Are you okay?” she faintly smiled before handing you your things.
“Fine” you deadpanned before the two of you began walking back down the hallway again.
Once you’d made it into the Great Hall you immediately spotted Harry and Ron a smile on your face as you took a seat next to Harry, and Hermione the one next to Ron the previous events being long forgotten as you distracted yourself with the comforting company of your friends.  
“Since when did Y/L/N and Potter become so close?” Draco’s face held a scowl as he watched the two of you interact from afar, he truly didn’t know why it bothered him, but for some reason it did.
“Why do you care?” Pansy replied as she began shifting in her seat to move closer to Draco who almost instinctively moved away causing a bright red tint to appear on her cheeks as she hurriedly moved back to her original seat.
“I don’t” he simply replied tearing his eyes away from you and Harry as he began playing with his food.
“You know what I think” Blaise raised an eyebrow as he daringly stared Draco down, “I think Malfoy’s gone soft” Blaise finished, the words earning loud snickers from the students sat next to them.
Draco’s stomach churned in anger at the words of his best friend throwing the boy a nasty glare before turning back to his food, but Blaise didn’t intend to stop there.
“Don’t think I haven’t noticed you never pick on her anymore and you always get really defensive whenever- “
“Shut the hell up Blaise” Draco commanded and even though Blaise knew he was skating on thin ice, Draco’s fury only seemed to egg him on further as his eyes wandered towards the Gryffindor table to look at you.
"You know what Malfoy since you claim you have no feelings for her at all I dare you to break her heart"
"What?" Draco questioned genuinely confused at his friends' statement. "Make her fall in love with you and then dump her" Draco looked over at Pansy who seemed almost giddy at the suggestion, of course she'd be happy about this.
Draco thought about it for a moment, he knew that if he didn't do this he'd never hear the end of it, and keeping up his 'I don't care about anyone but myself' attitude had served him well over the years so as he weighed out the pros and the cons it seemed the cons were outnumbered and without a second thought he reached his hand out to Blaise.
"You've got yourself a deal" Draco spoke as they shook hands "and when I win, you'll be my personal servant for the rest of the year" Draco finished as he pulled his hand back causing Blaise's cocky facial expression to quickly drop.
"Fine but when I win, you have to do my homework for Defence Against the Dark Arts till we graduate" Draco rolled his eyes but nodded as he let his hand fall back into his lap.
He stared at you watching as you laughed at something Harry said and couldn't help but feel a tinge of guilt knowing what he was about to do, but he shook the feeling away engaging back in the conversation of his friends, pushing all thoughts of you into the back of his mind.
The following week Draco still had yet to make his move on you. He was brainstorming ideas as he made his way to Potions, none of them good enough to follow through with but when he’d finally made his way into the classroom, he went to walk over to Blaise like he usually would but instead he found himself staring at the empty seat next to you.
He looked over at Blaise who was already quizzically staring at him. Draco mouthed a ‘watch this’ in return before he made his way towards you, grabbing a hold of the chair next to yours he stared down at you before asking.
"Is this seat taken?"
You looked up from your book turning to greet who you thought would have been Harry or Ron but instead, you were met with a pair of grey eyes you were not expecting to see, your mouth slightly parting as you stared wide-eyed at him.
"Yes actually-" you began but he had already sat down before you'd been able to reply, placing his backpack on the floor below him.
You raised an eyebrow at the blond, to which he replied by smiling over at you acting as if him sitting there was the most normal thing in the world.
"Do you mind?" you finally managed to choke out as he turned to face you.
"No, not at all" your eyes went wide at his words as you frantically began looking around the classroom for Hermione.
Once you made eye contact with her, you gave her a pleading look silently begging for her to help you, but she only took a hesitant seat next to Neville shrugging her shoulders indicating that there wasn't much she could do.
You grabbed the handle of your backpack beginning to stand up when you felt a hand wrap around your wrist preventing you from moving any further.
"Seems like all the other seats are taken Y/L/N" you frowned at his words turning your head to look around the classroom and sure enough there wasn't a single seat available.
You glared at him before ripping your hand out of his grasp and reluctantly sitting back down.
"Good morning" Slughorn's voice could be heard as he made his way towards the front of the classroom.
"Today we'll be working in pairs so whoever you're sitting next to is your partner for this assignment" your eyes widened in horror at his words as you glanced over at the Slytherin clad boy next to you.
"You're going to be writing an essay on the properties of Moonstone and its uses in Potion making" why did he have to announce this assignment today of all days?
You again looked over at Draco who seemed to be smiling, why was he happy about this? You placed your head in your hands as your mind began to wander, this was probably some stupid plan he and his friends had made to get you to fail the class.
"Professor" you eagerly raised your hand "is it too late to change partners?" you asked, silently begging for him to say no so you could work with Hermione or anyone else for that matter.
"Well I'm afraid everyone else seems to be taken Miss Y/L/N, I'm sure you and Mister Malfoy will be just fine together" you felt a flash off anger as you turned to look at the boy sat next to you.
"I swear if this is your idea of some sort of sick joke Malfoy, I'll hex you into oblivion" you threatened not daring to break eye contact with him, smirking once you noticed his taken aback expression.
"Y/L/N calm down, It's not a joke? You're the best at Potions in our year so I wanted to see if you'd be willing to work together but doesn't look like you have much of a choice now" he shrugged his shoulders; something was definitely off about this.
"So, you couldn't just ask me before we got to class?" his eyes seemed to widen a bit as he thought of a response but you continued before he had the chance to say anything "because I would have said no" and with that, you turned away from him pulling a piece of parchment out of your backpack along with your quill so you could start planning the next few weeks.
As it was nearing the end of the class you and Draco hadn't spoken a word to each other since you'd shut down all his attempts of starting a conversation, not having been interested in anything he had to say.
When class was over you handed Draco the piece of parchment that had a very detailed description of what his part in the project would be, so you'd be able to spend as little time together as possible, although he seemed to be quite displeased at this beginning to protest that you should work together so you'd get a better grade.
"I'm not spending any more time with you than I have to Malfoy so if you'll excuse me" you stood up pushing him out of the way before making your way to Neville's station where Hermione stood shoving her books into her bag.
Once you finally reached her you grabbed her by the arm, quickly pulling her after you out of the classroom. Ignoring her protests until you finally reached an empty corridor, void of any students and teachers.
"Please tell me you saw all that" you pleaded as you let go of her arm.
“You mean Malfoy?” Hermione replied, “yes Malfoy! He’s acting like we’re all of a sudden, the best of friends? Like he didn’t just call me a ‘blood traitor’ last week” you exasperated a scowl on your face.
“I think that was Zabini” Hermione acknowledged making you furrow your brows your mind wandering back to the encounter and sure enough she was right, Zabini had been the one to hurl the insult.
“What does it matter who said it, he’s one of them!” you protested, angrily turning to look at Hermione once you heard her stifled laughter from beside you.
“This isn’t funny! I’m stuck with him for the next- who knows how many weeks on this stupid project” you complained letting your head fall back as you let out a groan.
“Its okay Y/N don’t worry… I reckon he just fancies you” Hermione teased wiggling her eyebrows as she lightly nudged you in the shoulder.
“Have you gone mad?” you practically gasped although you couldn’t help the unfamiliar heat that began rushing to your cheeks at her words.
“Merlin Y/N you’re blushing! You like him?” you frantically covered her mouth as you noticed students beginning to fill the previously empty hallways.
“Would you hush! And no! I do not like Draco Malfoy, I could never like someone like him” you hissed your anger only growing once you noticed the same smile still linger on her lips.
“Whatever you say” Hermione jokingly sing sang, and in response you lightly hit her across the head with a piece of parchment you’d been holding unfortunately not getting the results you wanted since it only seemed to be egging her laughter on more.
“Alright calm down you lunatic I’m only joking” Hermione frowned rubbing the spot on her head you’d begun repeatedly hitting her, “you better be” you hummed, again pulling her after you as you two began walking down the hallways blending into the crowd of students.
“You know I can walk by myself” Hermione frowned once you’d found yourself standing out in the courtyard, your eyes searching for your two other friends since when you had Potions they had a free period which they spent most of their time here.
You finally spotted them sitting on a bench below a large brown oak tree, Seamus and Dean stood in front of them.
It was now Hermione’s turn to pull you away and in mere seconds you were standing next to the four Gryffindor clad boys who all turned their heads towards the two of you.
“Hello” you smiled before looking over at Harry who had already begun scooting over gesturing for you to come and sit down next to him, to which you happily obliged.
They all greeted you and Hermione before continuing their conversation about the upcoming Quidditch game they had against Slytherin next week.
“Yeah well Malfoy hasn’t caught the snitch when competing against Harry once, so I think we’re going to be okay” Ron assured Seamus who didn’t seem to be all that convinced but still began to make his way back into school Dean following behind him shortly after.
“Speaking of Malfoy” Hermione knowingly smirked at you before turning towards the two boys.
“Hermione no-“ you began but it was already too late, “seems he as a little crush” and there it was, you inwardly face palmed feeling the now-familiar heat in your face as you turned away from the confused glances of your two friends.
“Malfoy fancies Y/N?” Ron seemed to be more disgusted rather than confused as he scrunched up his nose.
“Hermione first of all I’m going to kill you! And second of all, he doesn’t like me! He just wanted to be partners on some stupid assignment in Potions” you assured them.
“And you said yes?” Harry perplexed.
“No! Of course not, he- he didn’t give me much of a choice” you rambled scratching the back of your head before glaring over at Hermione.
“What? He forced you to work with him?” Harry again furrowed his brows, “No- or well he sat next to me in class and I couldn’t move anywhere else since all of the other seats were taken and when Professor Slughorn arrived he immediately announced that we’d be working on our essays with whoever sat next to us” you began rambling, causing your three friends to share amused glances, unbeknownst to you.
Harry seemed to understand slowly nodding before claiming him and Ron had quidditch practice pulling the ginger boy along with him out of the courtyard, leaving just you and Hermione.
After a few minutes of silence, you turned to face her, “I think I’m going to go to the library, care to join me?” Hermione shook her head at your words pointing at the book she had just opened already beginning to make herself comfortable on the little bench you’d been sitting on.
You rolled your eyes “suit yourself” you breathed out offering her a small wave as you stood up, which she returned before you began walking back into the crowded hallways.
As you neared the library you began to hear footsteps behind you, smirking since you thought Hermione had changed her mind about joining you.
You turned around expecting to see your best friend but instead, you were met with Draco who now stood still a few feet away from you.
“Are you following me?” you crossed your arms raising an eyebrow at the boy.
He shook his head now walking towards you “just wanted to see if you’d like some company and since you’re heading towards the library we can work on our essay”
“So, you were following me” you accused but before he could answer you continued, “I thought I already told you I’m not spending any more time with you than I have too so if you’ll excuse me” you turned your back to him continuing your way to the library.
“Your loss Y/L/N” you heard him teasingly call after you making a smile appear on your lips which you tried to the best of your ability to contain.
-
Your next Potions class was one you’d been dreading, knowing that the people who were paired together on the essay had also been assigned to sit next to each other, very much to your dismay.
Professor Slughorn had asked all of you to join him at the front of the classroom so he could show you a couple of the potions you’d be brewing for the next couple of weeks and of course the one you’d be working on today.
“And this one right here is-” Slughorn was abruptly cut off by the sound of the classroom door swinging open. You quizzically looked past Slughorn’s shoulder and furrowed your brows at the two boys who had entered.
“Harry?” you asked a bit louder than you intended to causing the attention of the class to turn to Harry and Ron rather than Professor Slughorn.
“Ah! Harry my boy I was beginning to worry, and you’ve brought someone with you I see, what’s your name then?” Slughorn asked, brightly smiling at the two Gryffindors.
“Ron Weasley sir, but I’m dead awful at potions- a menace actually so I’m probably just gonna-“  Ron’s voice wavered as he began to turn around but Harry quickly put his arm out in front of him pushing him back into the classroom.
“Oh, don’t be silly, we’ll sort you out! There are some books in the cupboard over there if you need them” Slughorn pointed towards the end of the classroom where Ron and Harry quickly began fighting over the last book in there.
You and Hermione both gave each other confused glances before your attention was back on the Professor stood in front of you.
“As I was saying I’ve prepared some concoctions this morning. Any ideas what these may be?” you quickly raised your hand Hermione copying your actions as Slughorn’s eyes wandered between the two of you before he eventually pointed at you.
“Yes, miss Y/L/N” Slughorn stepped out of the way as you took a step forward towards the two pots that rested on the table.
“This one is Veritaserum a truth-telling serum and that one over there is Amortentia the most powerful love potion in the world. It’s rumoured to smell differently to each person according to what attracts them” you smiled proudly at yourself before taking a step back towards the other students.
You heard Pansy scoff causing you to quickly turn around to glare at her and just as you did you saw Draco elbow her in the side whispering something in her ear before shaking his head at her actions.
You quickly looked away before Draco’s eyes could catch yours since you felt the annoying feeling of warmth rush up into your cheeks and a smile replace the frown you’d indented to direct at Pansy.
“Very good Miss Y/L/N” Slughorn smiled before beginning to tell the students that whoever managed to brew an acceptable Draught of Living Death would be walking out of the classroom with one vile of Liquid Luck.
You quickly walked over to your station Draco following in suit behind you as you both turned to page 10 on your ‘advanced potion making’ books.
Your eyes wandered over the page before you spotted the instructions.
1. Cut up one Sopophorus bean.
You frowned down at the text as you glanced between it and the bean, it didn’t look like it was meant to be cut, and your suspicions were right as you began noticing your fellow classmates struggle around you.
Your eyes widened as Draco’s bean came hurling at your face at an ungodly speed, you practically had to throw yourself to the floor so it wouldn’t hit you in the face.
“Bloody hell Y/N are you okay!?” Draco panicked as he rushed to your side offering his hand to help you up which you ignored to distracted by the fact he’d called you by your first name.
You quickly got up onto your feet still ignoring his outstretched hand. You’d never in all your years at Hogwarts heard him call anyone by their first name, let alone you, a Gryffindor he’d hated since the first year.
“What did you just call me?” you asked although it came out a bit harsher then you intended it too. You didn’t mind that he was using your first name you just found it incredibly odd especially for someone like him.
“What, Y/L/N? that’s your name isn’t it” he was acting clueless as he walked back around the table to attend to his potion.
“No, you said Y/N” you raised an eyebrow as you watched him grab another bean now simply resorting to ignoring you, whatever you thought, brewing this potion was more important than what name Draco decided to call you.
As you continued to observe the students around you, you noticed Harry grab a silver knife and slowly press it onto the bean. You mirrored his actions and to your delight, it worked.
“How did you do that?” Draco could be heard from opposite you as he furiously looked between the instructions in his book and the crushed bean in your hand.
“Crush it don’t cut it” you shrugged, your finger traveling further down the page and stopping at the second step.
2. Pour in 250 fl.oz. of Standard potioning water and add 5 oz. of African Sea Salt to the beaker. Set the beaker aside after all the water has been added. Be very careful not to shake or move the beaker now.
The rest of the lesson had gone by in a flash and even though you felt like you’d be the one rewarded with the Liquid Luck, it ended up being Harry and you couldn’t help but wonder how the hell he managed to brew something better than you.
You remembered Harry continuously failing all his Potions classes never getting more than a poor or an acceptable on any of his assignments or tests.
After class you immediately cornered him, and it didn’t take long for him to confess to the book he’d found. Property of the half-blood prince it read and as you flipped through the many pages it had all the ‘correct’ recipes to every single potion you’d be brewing throughout the term.
“I knew it! You’ve always been dreadful at potions” you finally felt at ease knowing that Harry had only won you by cheating, shaking your head as you placed the book back into his arms.
“Hey! I am not ‘dreadful’ at potions” he imitated you his hands making air quotes at the word dreadful, a laugh slipping past your lips as you remembered a certain incident from when you were younger.
“Oh really? Don’t you remember third year when Snape told us to make a shrinking solution and you poured it all over Hermione-“ you began but Harry quickly cut you off.
“Alright! Alright! You’ve made your point now shove off I don’t feel like listening to this story right now” you threw your head back in laughter as you thought back to a tiny Hermione who hadn’t spoken to Harry a whole week after the incident.
“Doesn’t seem like you’re doing a great job with Y/L/N, I reckon Potter’s in there more than you” Blaise sounded amused as he came up behind Draco who was watching yours and Harry’s exchange from afar.
“Don’t worry Blaise, I’m only getting started”
Later in the day you, Harry, Ron and Hermione had all decided to take a little trip down to Hogsmeade for a much needed break from your studies.
“No sit beside me” Harry insisted as the four of you made your way into the Three Broomsticks, you gave him a confused glance but nevertheless dragged the chair out from underneath the table and sat down next to him.
You went to ask why but quickly managed to put two and two together once you noticed professor Slughorn sat at the bar, a beer in his hand as he talked with one of the other professors.
“What’s your deal with Slughorn?” you questioned as Harry began waving the professor over. “I need to get into the slug club” you furrowed your brows but before you could question it any further Slughorn had arrived at your table.
“Ah! Mister Potter lovely to see you, you as well Miss Y/L/N” Slughorn smiled completely disregarding Hermione and Ron who sat opposite you.
“Likewise, Professor” you smiled as he and Harry began talking about something you couldn’t be less interested in, instead your eyes began to wander around the small tavern until they finally landed on Draco who was already staring intently at you.
“You’d be welcomed to Y/L/N” your gaze diverted from the platinum blond towards Slughorn who was smiling brightly down at you. “I’d love too!” you agreed having faintly heard him mention a christmas dinner.
“Wonderful! Look for my owl” you couldn’t help but let out a laugh at Hermione’s face who seemed to be more than distraught that she hadn’t received an invitation of her own.
“Oh, how silly of me Granger, I hope I’ll also be seeing you there” Hermione’s face lit up at his words as she repeatedly nodded, Slughorn awkwardly looking over at Ron before speaking, “good to see you Wallenby”.
You were finally able to let out the laugh you’d been holding in as Slughorn exited the tavern. “Oh, shut up Y/N” Ron frowned crossing his arms over his chest as he leaned back into his chair.
When your laughter had finally died down you offered to go and order your drinks since the waiter had yet to make an appearance at your table.
“Four butter beers please” you smiled at the worker as you leaned onto the bar going to turn around but instead you were met with a black suit your eyes wandering upwards to see Draco towering over you.
You cleared your throat causing him to take a step back, “anything I can help you with?” you questioned as Draco stood motionless in front of you.
“Yes, would you like to join me?” Draco asked gesturing to an empty table at the far end of the tavern. You looked over to where he was pointing causing you to quickly spot his friends who were all sat at another table, their eyes set on you.
“Uhm- I think they’d loved to join you” you pointed towards them causing Draco to quickly snap his head in their direction, making them all quickly turn to each other acting as nonchalant as they could.
“But I’d much rather spend time with you” you felt a weird tingly feeling at his words but nonetheless you didn’t dare act on it your eyes going to your friend’s who were all staring quizzically at you.
“Sorry I- Uhm I can’t I came here with them” you gestured towards your table Draco’s eyes following in the direction you pointed before they were back on you.
“Well alright, but you owe me a date then” he winked before turning around and going back to join his Slytherin friends.
Your mouth hung open as you watched him walk away, did he just say date?
You power walked back towards your friends hastily taking a seat next to Harry who already had his eyes glued on you.
“What the bloody hell was that?” Ron asked as soon as you’d fully sat down.
“Oh- Uhm, he just wanted to ask me about our assignment” they all looked skeptical at your reply but didn’t question it any further another topic quickly consuming your table.
“Do any of you have a date to the Jingle Ball?” Hermione’s question rang throughout the table, causing both boys shook their heads and you along with them, in all honesty, you didn’t expect to get asked so you’d probably just end up going with Harry like last year.
“Guess we know who Ginny’s going with” you giggled gesturing towards her and Dean who were currently taking a seat at a table not so far from yours, their fingers wrapped around each other’s.
“I’d like to leave” Ron shifted in his seat uncomfortably as he stared at his sister and who he had once considered a close friend. “Honestly Ron they’re only holding hands” Hermione rolled her eyes.
“And snogging” you added on as Ginny connected her lips with Dean’s. “Yep that’s it we’re leaving” Ron stood up grabbing the coat that hung on the chair beside him.
“Oh come on we haven’t even gotten our orders yet!” you protested as all your friends began to stand up, maybe you should have joined Draco before.
“Fine” you huffed once you noticed they had no intention of staying any longer. “Why don’t you just ask Malfoy to come join you, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind” Ron teased causing you to quickly hit him in the arm.
“Shut up Ron!”
Once you’d all made it back to Hogwarts you and Hermione separated from Ron and Harry since they claimed to have yet another quidditch practice although you figured it was code for going to scout possible dates for the Jingle Ball.
“So, what did Draco really want earlier?” Hermione gave you a knowing look as she lightly bumped you in the shoulder.
“It was so weird he-he said that I owe him a date” your voice was hesitant as you turned your head to look at Hermione who didn’t seem at all surprised.
“Well, now you know who you can go to the Jingle Ball with” she stated matter of factly causing your eyes to widen as you gaped at her.
“Hermione, I love you but have you gone mad? Me and Draco? I don’t think so” you denied but there was still the lingering feeling of hope deep down in your stomach that you tried with all your might to suppress.
“Well he obviously has a thing for you, and I mean he’s not too bad to look at”
“Shove off”
-
You had been actively avoiding Draco ever since the Hogsmeade trip, something about the entire ordeal just felt weird to you, why was he all of a sudden so bold about his apparent feelings towards you when a couple of weeks ago he wouldn’t even look your way.
But it seemed your luck had run out since he now stood in front of you, hand outstretched as he leaned it against the stone wall preventing you from continuing your way to your Transfigurations class.
“I’ve been meaning to ask you something” Draco breathed out. He was getting desperate, it was unbearable, the teasing he’d been receiving from his friends once they’d noticed he wasn’t making any progress with you, and he knew if he didn’t do something soon he was going to lose the bet.
“Well can it wait? I need to get to class” you huffed watching as he pushed himself off the wall to come and stand in front of you, causing your body to turn with him, your back eventually colliding with the wall behind you.
“I was wondering” Draco smirked placing a hand next to your head as he leaned in closer towards you, you now only realizing how much taller he was then you as you found yourself craning your neck upwards to meet his eyes.
“Would you like to be my date for the Jingle Ball” the words made your stomach flip and you felt the sudden urge to let out a squeal, but you somehow managed to keep yourself together, taking in a deep breath before you took a step forward his hand slipping from the wall your faces mere centimeters from each other.
“No” you stated watching as his eyes went wide, clearly, he wasn’t anticipating that answer.
“If you want me to even consider going out with you after all the shit you’ve done over the years, you’re going to have to work for it.”
He watched your ascending figure before you fully left his sight and when you did he angrily kicked the wall cursing underneath his breath, he was used to getting everything and anything he ever wanted without as much as a snap of his finger so this was something he wasn’t used too.
The stakes were high, his entire reputation was on the line and he did not intend to give Blaise the satisfaction of being right or his housemates a reason to tease him for what would probably be the rest of his life.
All the girls at this school would practically fall at his feet, why couldn’t you be like those girls? Make this easy for him, not once in his life had Draco Malfoy had a real challenge when it came to girls but now it seemed the tables had turned, he was going to play your game and he was going to win.
-
It was now the day of the Slytherin versus Gryffindor quidditch game. You, Harry and Hermione, were all sat in the Great Hall watching as Ron entered in his Quidditch gear, helmet, and everything.
You had yet to tell Hermione about Draco asking you to the ball since you didn’t really know how you felt about it yourself and also because he probably wouldn’t be asking you out again, you having let him down quite harshly.
You glared over at the Slytherin table once you heard them beginning to yell things along the lines of ‘Ron you’re a loser’, ‘he doesn’t stand a chance’ and ‘nice hat Weasley’.
“Ignore them, Ron, I know you’ll do great” you reassuringly smiled up at your friend as he took a seat opposite you, his face contorted in worry as he looked over at the Slytherin table who continued to laugh at him.
“Yeah, thanks” he gulped once he turned back to face you, this had to have been the first time you’d ever seen Ron leave his food untouched.
“You look dreadful Ron” Luna’s voice could be heard from the other end of the table, your eyes widening as you looked over at her, “Is that why you put something in his drink” she finished, the last part of her sentence directed at Harry.
You looked over at the boy sat next to you and faintly managed to see a glimmer of light before it disappeared fully into his pocket.
“Liquid Luck?” Hermione sounded from opposite you and you finally managed to put two and two together.
“Are you mental Harry? You’ll get in so much trouble if you’re caught” your eyes widened as you watched him pass Ron the cup of pumpkin juice he’d poured his one vile of Liquid Luck into moments ago, well according to Luna at least.
“Don’t drink it Ron” Hermione scolded, before you both gasped as you watched Ron without a moment’s thought chug the remaining juice in his cup.
You watched intently as his frown was turned upside down and he slammed the cup back onto the table, a sly smirk now playing on his lips.
“You could be expelled for that” Hermione pointed out glaring at Harry who innocently smiled at her before shrugging and stating that he had no idea what she was talking about.
“Come on Harry we’ve got a game to win” Ron’s sudden aura of confidence was radiating off of him as he quickly pushed himself away from the table and began exiting the Great Hall.
“We’ll see you guys there?” Harry questioned as he looked between the two of you also beginning to stand up.
“We wouldn’t miss it” Hermione assured him as you both watched him awkwardly wave before he turned to follow Ron.
“This is going to be interesting”
-
Loud screams and chants began filling your ears as you watched the two teams make their way out onto the Quidditch pitch, you and Hermione quickly joined in beginning to clap and cheer as you made eye contact with Ron who looked as ready as ever.
A particular blond seemed to have caught your eye since before you knew it Madame Hooch was announcing the start of the game causing you to snap out of your trance, when you looked back at Draco he was already smirking up at you making you quickly look away as your cheeks turned bright red, pulling your Gryffindor patterned scarf up over your face in hopes that he wouldn’t notice the crimson colour.
“Seekers shake hands!” you watched as Harry and Draco walked up to each other clasping each other’s arms before Draco retorted something in Harry’s direction causing him to quickly pull his hand away from his the game now officially beginning.
It had been almost an hour now and so far Gryffindor was in the lead the score being 23-45. You were beginning to think you’d lost your voice but nevertheless you still raised your hands high in the air and cheered Harry on as he dove towards the snitch with Draco hot on his heels.
You anxiously began biting your nails as the two continuously bumped into each other both their arms outstretched as they neared the golden object.
“Come on Harry” you whispered the anticipation was killing you, but you didn’t have to wait much longer since the two boys suddenly crashed into each other sending them both flying off of their brooms and hurling towards the grass below.
You gasped as you stood up beginning to lean over the railing to get a better look at the two seekers who now both laid on the grass clutching their stomachs, but you widely smiled once you noticed a familiar shimmer coming from Harry’s hand.
“Yes!” you screamed as he carefully sat himself up raising the golden object up into the air for the rest of the stadium to see. Your happiness was quickly replaced with worry once you noticed the Slytherin boy laid next to Harry wasn’t moving.
“Is Malfoy okay?” you frantically shook Hermione as you pointed down at him but Hermione paid you no mind her eyes trained on Ron who was proudly raising his hands in the air as it was announced that Harry had caught the snitch.
Since everybody seemed to be too caught up with themselves you again leaned over the railing before screaming Draco’s name hoping it would at least capture the attention of someone from his team so they could help him.
You felt a wave of relieve wash over you as you watched his previously limp body turn over before he placed his hands on the grass pushing himself to sit up, the hand that wasn’t holding him up immediately going to rub his forehead.
He sent a glare Harry’s way before he grabbed his broom and began storming off the field his teammates following shortly after, for some odd reason you began to feel bad for him as you watched the disapproved glances from his fellow Slytherin’s being thrown his way but you decided to push the feeling away joining in on the celebration of your house.
Once you arrived at the Gryffindor common room a celebration had quickly ensued the hollering of Ron’s last name began sounding all around the room as you began clapping in rhythm to all of their chants, you and Hermione watching as Ron got pushed in the middle of the crowd.
Before you knew it a girl you didn’t know the name of had wrapped her arms around his neck, harshly pulling him down to meet her lips, you gasped as you faintly remembered a conversation between you and Hermione where she’d admitted to harboring a crush on the ginger boy.
You quickly turned to see Hermione pushing her way through the crowd and out of the common room. You began following her but quickly lost sight of her as you tried your best to squeeze through the teenagers who had now begun lifting Ron into the air.
“Hermione!” you called out but it was impossible to hear anything over the celebrations so you gave up on calling out to her simply resorting to pushing the students that stood in your way.
Once you finally managed to reach the door that led out into the hallway you frantically pushed it open beginning to search the corridors for your best friend.
When you rounded a particular corner, you came crashing into a much taller figure then yourself sending you flying towards the ground at the impact.
“Watch where you’re goin-“ the familiar voice of Draco Malfoy sounded from above you but stopped once he made eye contact with you. “Y/L/N?” he questioned before reaching his hand out to you which you accepted letting him pull you back up onto your feet.
“What are you doing out here, shouldn’t you be celebrating?” there was a defiant malice to his tone as he scowled in the direction of your common room where chants could still be faintly heard.
“I could ask you the same thing Malfoy” you raised an eyebrow since you weren’t anywhere near the dungeons where the Slytherin common room was.
“Just needed some air, some people aren’t exactly thrilled with the outcome of today’s game” Draco shrugged causing your stomach to drop slightly at his obvious disappointment. He sat himself down on a bench a heavy sigh leaving his lips as he let his head fall back onto the wall.
You slowly sat down next to him carefully contemplating your next words. “Not that it would mean anything to you but I thought you were really good” you tried to comfort him as you watched a faint smile appear on his lips before he turned his head towards you.
You didn’t realize just how close you were to each other until his eyes quickly looked down to your lips and back into your eyes. You suddenly remembered why you were out here in the first place, your thoughts traveling back to Hermione who had disappeared only moments ago.
“I’m sorry but I really need to go, uh- I’ll uh see you in class” you excused yourself before standing up and continuing your search for your best friend, but a hand wrapping around your wrist stopped you dead in your tracks as you were turned back around.
Your eyes slowly travelled up from Draco’s tight grip on you and back into his icy grey eyes. You carried a confused glance on your face which Draco seemed to notice since he quickly let go of your wrist.
“Thank you” is all he said before he swiftly turned back around and began walking down the corridor, disappearing out of sight.
next part
5K notes · View notes
aquamarinescarlet · 3 years
Text
The Psychology of Us
Pairing: Wanda Maximoff x Reader
Word count: ~3.5k
Warnings: mentions of smut (nothing explicit)
Summary: It seems like you’ll never get the answers you want, but little did you know…
Author’s note: This is probably my favorite story yet. It got a little steamier than I originally planned, but I think it turned out okay. I hope the explanation makes sense, it’s something I do use in real life so I thought it’d be fun to write about. Anyhow, thank you for everyone who read, and have fun with the last part :D
Taglist: @helloalycia @gingerbreadcookieforlife @xastrydx @trikruismybitch @b0mbdotc0m @ima-gi--na-tion @cristin-rjd @arealearp @1-800-maximoff @zarriaza329
Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3
Tumblr media
“I know, I know, I’ll be at your place at seven.” You said to Angie as soon as she reached you.
The hallway was packed, yet you were still able to notice her presence.
“About that,” she sounded unsure, “I came to tell you about this small gathering Pietro is doing at his place tonight, and I was wondering if you’d come with me?”
“So I can be a third wheel? No thank you.”
“He will have other friends over too, don’t worry.”
“Then why can’t you go by yourself?”
“Because I don’t know any of them and I don’t want to be there all by myself.” She reasoned.
“Just stick by Pietro and you’ll be fine.”
“Please!” She pleaded, giving you her best puppy eyes.
You weren’t opposed to the idea of going to Pietro’s house, a small gathering would be a nice change of pace from your usual Friday night parties. But your mind was in a different place right now and a party wasn’t exactly on your plans. You couldn’t say no to her though, maybe you could sneak out early, who knows.
“Fine, I’ll go.” You gave in.
She cheered, hugging you eagerly, and walked away before you could change your mind.
It was Friday again and you were still stuck on the girl and her puzzle. You’d seen her seven more times in the past two weeks. Now you had compulsively read eight books in the span of one month. Eight books all due to her, it was more than Diego reads in the same time.
Even your family was starting to question this sudden new hobby. Aalways keeping yourself locked in your room or with your nose deep down into a different book wasn’t normal.
Despite that, you were no closer to solving the mystery that was the girl from the library. She refused to give you her name when you asked her for it. She refused to explain the logic behind her recommendations. She just had fun watching you drown in frustration.
You were close to giving up, to start avoiding her until you forgot completely about the whole situation. But you enjoyed these moments. You were excited at the prospect of seeing her, not that you’d ever admit it out loud.
Of course, all this excitment died down the moment she started to mock you for nothing, with that annoying smirk painting those perfect stupid lips of hers, growing your desire to wipe it off of her.
There was something, though, that caught your attention, something about the books she recommended. You enjoyed them, you savoured every story, every plot, every character. Diego always tried to get you to read some of his favourite books and you gave up after a few pages. But not these ones, you liked them, and you had to figure out what kind of spell she used to make you like them so much.
“I think I’m going insane.” You muttered while staring at the ‘map’ you had created on your bedroom wall.
It contained post-its, notes, the title of all eight books and the answers that earned you each recommendation. A pathetic attempt to find a connection between this whole thing.
“You are getting too worked up on this, I mean, look at your wall,” Diego, who had been hanging out with you this afternoon, gestured towards it, “it looks like something right out of a detective movie.”
“It’s not that bad,” you said exasperatedly, “I just need to figure this out.”
“Okay, two things,” he put up both his index and middle finger, “first: it is that bad, it’s just a bunch of books; and second: why are you so desperate to figure this out?”
“I’m not desperate,” you argued.
“Yes, you are.” You heard him mumble.
“And aren’t you even a little bit curious?”
“Not that curious.”
“I just want to prove her wrong,” you explained.
“Because you care about what she thinks?” He seemed genuinely confused.
“No, I-”
“Look,” he interrupted, “I know you. I’ve known you for a long time. You have never been one to care about what other people think of you. So why her?”
“I-,” you were at a loss for words.
Why did you care? It bothered when she insulted you, even though you knew it wasn’t true, and you’ve never been bothered by such things before. It bothered that she knew nothing about you and still had the nerve to deem herself better than you, even though this was all the more reason to not care about her opinion at all.
Was it really a bother though? Or was that just an excuse? And if it is an excuse, then what were you excusing? Why were you still doing this? You’ve been dragging this out for a month. Why were you so keen on proving her wrong after all this time?
You don’t need to prove to her that you’re smart: you get good grades, you’re the captain of the football team, you even have a scholarship in one of the best colleges in the area. Of course she doesn’t know any of this, but that’s not enough motivation for you to spend a month trying to prove her she’s wrong about you.
For all you know that crazy scheme of hers to recommend books could be fake. She could just recommend books she likes and hide the reasons behind those questions. But then why did you enjoy those stories? And why would she put up a whole facade to recommend some books to a random stranger she met in a library?
“Do you like her?” Diego’s voice brought you out of your own thoughts.
The look you gave him was one of disbelief. You almost wanted to laugh at his words.
“Like her? How can I like someone who pisses me off so much?”
“Then why do you keep going back?”
“Why I- because- I- I’m curious.” You didn’t sound as confident as you wished. It wasn’t a lie. You were curious. But curiosity was not the only reason you kept going back, although you couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was.
“I don’t believe you.”
You didn’t answer. You didn’t know how to answer. Thankfully you didn’t have to when, with a quick glance at the clock, you were able to change the subject.
“We’re late.” You simply stated.
“For what?”
“I told Angie I was going to meet her at her place at seven,” you gestured towards the time, “it’s seven thirty.”
“I didn’t agree to this.”
“C’mon, please,” you pleaded, “it’s going to be a small, like, get together or something, and I know Angie will leave me alone at some point to makeout with her boyfriend.”
“Okay fine,” he gave in and you made a little celebratory dance, dragging him out of the house.
Since this was supposed to be casual and between friends, you didn’t waste any time at Angie’s, where you’d usually spend hours getting dressed and ready.
Pietro’s place wasn’t far, which you were slightly thankful for since Angie wouldn’t stop talking about him the whole ride. He’s such a good kisser. He’s so cute. Did you know he plays soccer? He looks so hot in his uniform… You love your friend, but that’s just too much.
As always you weren’t the first one’s, and by the amount of people it was far from a “small gathering between friends”. The apartment wasn’t small, but sure felt like it with the almost fifty people crammed in there.
You were greeted by Pietro himself, who offered you each a beer before pulling Angie in for a kiss, causing you and Diego to roll your eyes. You gladly took the beer, if you had to endure this, might as well have some alcohol to help.
Two beers later and your mind was no longer fixating on the girl-from-the-library problem. Instead you were having a friendly debate with some of Pietro’s friends about which college was the best, the typical rivalry. Having only Angie to back you up was making the whole thing harder.
“Hey Piet,” a tall blonde boy called out, interrupting the conversation, “is Wanda going to join us?”
“Doubtful, you know how she is…”
“Who’s Wanda?” Angie’s voice was laced with jealousy causing the boy to laugh dramatically, which only seemed to make her madder.
“She’s my sister, don’t worry,” he reassured her. It made sense, he had mentioned he lived with his twin sister.
You watched as he pulled Angie away from the group, probably to makeout, as you had predicted, and you looked at Diego, to stop him from commenting anything, only to find his place empty.
You left the group as well to search for him, and was surprised to find him shoving his tongue down some girl’s throat. You could’ve left them alone? Yes, you could. But did you? Of course not.
“Y’know,” you tapped on his shoulder, earning his attention, “when I bring you to a party so I can have someone when Angie left me, I expect you not to leave me as well.” You teased.
“Shut up.” He tried to sound serious, but the smirk gave it away.
“You owe me one.”
Feeling a sudden need to go to the bathroom, you let them be and went in search of one. You opened a door you thought led to a bathroom, but found yourself in a corridor which had other four doors that probably led to bedrooms, at least one must lead to a bathroom.
“Pietro, I already told you, keep that door closed!” You heard someone scream from one of them.
It wasn’t just anyone though. That was a voice that had been haunting you for a whole month now. Okay, haunting was an exaggeration, but still. You quickly closed the door, muffling the music and chatter.
As you rested your back against the wall, a surge of power took over you. The new information taking over all your thoughts. You had the upper hand now on this little game of hers. It was your turn to play.
Her door was easy to identify, being the only one with light seeping through the cracks, and you made no effort to be quiet or discreet when opening it.
She was sitting in her bed, long red hair loose over her shoulders, a book in hands. Her expression was soft despite the interruption, she hadn’t looked up, so she had no idea it was you who was standing there.
“What do you want Piet?” A mischievous smirk grew on your face.
“Wanda,” you uttered as if trying it on your tongue for the first time, earning the girl’s attention.
The shock that took over her features did wonders to your confidence.
“A beautiful name,” you continued, daring to take a few steps inside her room, “I see you favourite color is red,” you referred to the endless amount of details on her walls, shelves, bedsheets, all a different shade of red.
You walked further into the room, exploring everything in sight. She followed your every move with her eyes, too stunned to say anything. Were you crossing a line? Probably. Should you be invading her personal space like that, without a warning? Probably not. But she has been invading your personal space for weeks, so you couldn’t care less.
“Ah, you play the guitar,” you grazed your fingers over the instrument sitting on the corner of the room, “I didn’t think you had any talents other than insulting me for no reason.”
You were enjoying this too much. Your eyes landed on some pictures and notes clinging to a wall.
“Sokovia,” you said after reading one of the notes, “so you are Sokovian, that’s interesting.” Your gaze fell to her desk, a pile of textbooks stacked there. “Psychology,” you laughed, not because it was funny, but because it was going to piss her off even further, “you are more likely to drive your patients crazy than to actually help them.”
“How…,” you turned towards her, “did you…,”
“Get in here? Learn your name?” You offered some suggestions since she didn’t seem capable of finishing that sentence herself. “Pietro.” You simply stated and watched as her face went from stunned to mad.
“How do you know my brother?”
Was that jealousy you were sensing? Or was she just upset that he had told you stuff about her? You decided to play with it a little bit.
“He is a sweet boy isn’t he? So hot and so nice,” you teased and she advanced towards you, making you a little frightened, but not enough to back down, “it’s hard to believe you two share the same genes.”
Your face was mere inches from hers and you suddenly felt like the air was growing thick, making it hard to breathe. A feeling of warmth taking over your chest and stomach. In spite of all the discomfort, you managed to keep your composure.
“I so want to wipe that pretentious smirk off of your face right now,” she growled. Oh, how the tables have turned.
“Why don’t you?” You challenged.
Football had given you fast reflexes (except for that particular event a few weeks ago), you were ready to catch her hand if she tried anything. Instead of her fist or her palm, you were met with her lips attacking yours furiously.
The kiss was needy, hungry, desperate even. Your hands made their way to her waist, pulling her impossibly closer. It was a battle, a fight neither of you were willing to lose. Tongues fighting for dominance, teeth biting lips, jaw, neck, hands pulling on skin in such a way it would definitely leave marks.
Clothes fell to the floor as you backed her to her bed, pushing her onto the mattress, this feeling, a necessity for her, on the pit of your stomach growing ever more.
Tumblr media
Safe to say your plans of leaving early were postponed. At some point during the night you had managed to find Diego and let him know you wouldn’t be needing a ride back home. Your disheveled state and red marks, which were already showing up on your neck, didn’t go unnoticed by him, but he didn’t have time to comment on it. You mentally dreaded the moment he would start with the questioning.
Some shifting on the bed caught your attention. Slowly opening your eyes, you were able to catch Wanda staring at you with a soft smile. Your back was facing her, so she didn’t know you were awake, but you could see her clearly from her bedroom mirror.
And what a sight it was.
“You’re staring.” You called out, and watched her face turn three shades redder out of embarrassment from being caught.
You turned around so you’re now facing her, although she wouldn’t meet your gaze.
“What’s on your mind?” She kept quiet. “Okay, wanna know what’s on my mind?” She nodded lightly. “Well, I’m thinking that I would have never, not in a million years, pegged you as being shy.” She tried to stifle a laugh while bringing her hand up to playfully hit you on the arm. “That’s more like it,” you teased.
“I’m not shy,” she defended.
“Then why won’t you look at me?”
“Because… “ she lost it mid sentence.
“... you’re shy and sweet, just like your brother said,” you recalled from the day you spent together in the arcade.
She hit you, yet again, on the arm, slightly harder this time, but not enough to hurt.
“Tell me this then,” you finally reached the topic that has been bugging you for weeks, “what was all this for? The mystery, the games?”
She fell silent, seemingly in deep thought and you got scared you had killed the moment.
“Okay, so maybe I’m a little shy,” she admitted and you celebrated internally while your face remained unfazed, “and that makes me scared of…”
“Talking to people?” You helped out, but she covered her face with her hands in embarrassment.
“Please, don’t laugh at me, I know it’s stupid-”
“It’s not,” you interrupted, uncovering her face, “go on.”
She took a deep breath before continuing.
“I’m scared of talking to people… especially people that I like.” Although it sounded like a confession, you weren’t exactly sure what it was about.
“So you liked me?” You asked in disbelief. “From the beginning?”
Her already red face was growing darker by the second.
“I had seen you before, with Diego, in the library, always complaining, always stating how boring it was,” she shook her hands in the air for the purpose of drama, “and it was annoying, but it was also cute and- and I always wanted to talk to you, but I never found courage to do it.”
To say you were shocked at the new information was an understatement. She liked you all this time? And you just thought she hated your guts for no reason? Wow, that’s precious.
“Okay, so…” you tried to say in the stunned state you found yourself, “how- why- the- why did you do all that then?”
“Because I had like, this sudden flow of confidence, and since you had this cocky personality I thought you would like someone who was the same, so I said what I said, and I did what I did and-”
“I started to hate you.” The way you acted when you first met must’ve hurt her.
“Exactly, and I thought I had screwed up completely, until you showed up again, and my stupid brain associated that to the idea that the way I had acted worked. So I kept it up. A persona, in a sense.”
“What were you planning to do then? Keep that act up forever?” The question made her slightly frustrated.
“I don’t know, I didn’t think that far, I just enjoyed your presence, even though you still seemed to hate my guts.” You laughed and moved closer to her, wrapping your arms around her waist.
“I did,” you whispered close to her ear, “I hated your guts, but I also enjoyed it, the games, the mystery, that’s why I kept coming back.”
“So it worked,” she said excitedly.
“It sort of did.” You stared into her green eyes, for a few seconds. “There’s something else in my mind too that I’ve been meaning to ask.”
“Ask away.”
“So… about the recommendations-”
“Oh my god,” she didn’t let you finish, “you haven’t figured that out yet?!” She exclaimed in disbelief, when she opened her mouth again you knew what was coming.
“Don’t say it.” You warned.
“You really are slow.” She said it anyways, a mischievous grin painting her lips.
“Damn, I hate you,” you said jokingly, unwrapping yourself from her and making a move to leave the bed.
She stopped you short, wrapping her arms around your shoulders and pulling you back, causing you to fall on the bed laughing hysterically.
“Okay, okay, I’m sorry, I won’t say it anymore.”
She let you go and sat up and across from you.
“Good, so are you going to explain it to me or not?” You questioned and she rolled her eyes playfully. “And don’t you dare tell me there is no logic behind it, there has to be one.”
“Yes, there is a logic,” she mocked, “it’s quite simple actually, the ‘color’ is what sets the mood for the book.”
“How so?”
“Uhm, like, we associate colors with stuff, like black is associated with death and evil and white is associated with peace and purity,” you nodded, “it also works for feelings, associating those with colors, so when a person says a color I can pick a book that has elements that are associated with that color, or that causes a feeling that we associate with that color.” She explained.
“That explains the psychology major thing.” She seemed happy you remembered, even though it was mere hours ago.
“Basically,” she agreed, “so, ‘person’ is what defines the relationships that surround the main character, so either romances, friendships, families, strangers, y’know?”
“Yeah okay,” you tried to follow along.
“And ‘place’ is to decide how far from reality the story should be, if the person says a place that’s close to their home, they tend to prefer stuff closer to their comfort zone, so no fantasy or sci-fi, and vice-versa.”
“That’s it?”
“Yep,” she beamed a smile, “simple isn’t it?”
“Does it always work?”
“No, it’s a really subjective thing, the more I know the person the better, but sometimes it just doesn’t work.” She admitted. “It worked on you like a charm though,” she teased.
“That it did,” you couldn't deny. “Okay, so if I got it right, color sets the mood, right?”
“Right.”
“Then what is red associated with?” You looked around her room, filled with several details in red.
“Anger, love, passion-,” she stopped talking when she met your eyes, a mischievous smirk on your lips.
You slowly rose from your position and crawled forward, never losing her gaze. You quirked an eyebrow suggestively as you got closer. You sat on her lap, faces inches from another.
“Well, I can show you some passion.”
456 notes · View notes
wkemeup · 3 years
Text
Sunrise (5)
Tumblr media
summary: After an explosion takes his arm and his only sense of belonging, Bucky is content to live out the rest of his days in the hollow comfort of the dark. This is, until Sam drags him down to the local VA and he meets you. (Modern AU) pairings: bucky x reader chapter word count: 4.3k warnings: really flippin sweet fluff, more book recs a/n: to avoid confusion - the manner in which Bucky lost his arm is different in this series than in canon  🧡 series masterlist / series playlist
Tumblr media
For the first time since Bucky was discharged from active duty, he had a routine again.  
The curtains were open before he took a shower in the morning; sunlight streaming in through the windows and casting a gentle glow over the apartment. It touched over books piled high on the coffee table, pillows neatly lined on the sofa, and blankets folded over the arm rest. Steve had nearly done a double take the first time he made his usual beeline to whip open the curtains to expose a dusty and unkempt apartment, only to find Bucky making coffee in the kitchen, freshly showered, and the sun shining high in the sky.  
It had been almost a month since his first attendance at book club and he’d gone through nearly a book a week just to have the excuse to visit you at the library again for another. You’d given him your number after his first trip to the library with a binding promise to text you if he was held up in his apartment in pain again. You’d sworn to bring books straight to him and read them aloud if you had to.  
You had laughed as you said it, like it was only a joke. Bucky had nodded along, but if he were honest, he would have liked that very much.  
He’d arrange for times to meet you at the library at the end of your shift where you’d always have a book waiting for him. There’d be a few sitting on the shelf you’d set aside, but without fail, he always opted for the first one you presented to him. You hadn’t led him wrong so far.  
After, though neither of you directly proposed it, you’d often find yourselves back at Luciana’s. It was like your feet simply carried you there, a silent agreement to spend as much time together as you could, even if you were both too afraid to admit it out loud.  
He came to understand why Sunday was your favorite day of the week. Bucky started to take it upon himself to meet you at the library to walk you to the VA where he fulfilled his word to help move the couches before the usual members arrived. The look of surprise on your face when you bounced down the library steps and caught sight of him leaning on the pillar a few steps away from the busy sidewalk had been enough to convince him to never leave your side again. 
Your smile was one he’d learned to memorize. He conjured it when the strangers bumped into him on the sidewalk threatened to collapse his racing heart entirely and it pushed him further. It was enough to convince him to keep going beyond the safety of his apartment walls and it was worth it every time. Just to see you smile at him like that.  
***
“Have you started it yet?”
Bucky blinked a few times, reminding himself of his surroundings. You stood on his right side in line at Luciana’s behind a couple of tourists who were having a hard time discerning the difference between a cappuccino and an americano. He raised an eyebrow, confused, and you gestured to the book in his bag.  
“Oh, I just flipped through the pages so far,” Bucky said, pulling the book from his bag; thick black cover with a small white illustrated creature staring up at the stars. Everyone's a Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too written by an author that seemed to go by a name as misspelled as the title, Jomny Sun. “It looks like a children’s book?”
You grinned and your shoulders lifted in a shrug. “It’s somewhere in between. You have to trust me on this one. It may seem young on the surface but it’ll tug at your heart strings. Hold your judgement until you’ve actually read it, Barnes.”
Bucky chuckled, nodding. “Hey, I never said I didn’t trust you. Just curious where you’re leading me on this one.”
“Be blind, Bucky,” you sang, teasing him. “I won’t guide you into a creepy forest or the bottom of the ocean, I promise.”
“Oh good. I was starting to worry.”  
It was strange to feel so light again, but there was something about your presence that allowed him to let go of all the weight he carried. He could set down his baggage at his feet for just a minute to give his back a break, to stretch out his muscles and find relief in the solace. You would have offered to carry some of it yourself if he’d asked— of that he was certain. But it was a heavy load, and he wasn’t sure he was ready for you to see what was inside just yet.
The bell to the café rang behind him and a mother and her young son walked inside. The little boy held the woman’s hand as he scrunched his nose at the smell of the coffee, pouting up at her. A bright red backpack hung off his shoulders, Velcro ties over his tiny sneakers. The soles lit up as he walked.  
“Mommy, I want to go to the playground,” the kid whined and Bucky watched you laugh to yourself from the corner of his eye.  
“We will, sweetness,” the mother replied calmly. She bent down to brush the hair from the boy’s eyes. “Mommy just needs a bit of caffeine before we—”
“Whoa! What happened to that guy’s arm?” the kid gasped, a mixture of shock and amazement in his tiny little voice.  
Bucky tensed up immediately, every muscle in his body turning to stone. When strangers noticed his arm, he was usually met with unwanted stares and hushed whispered, but children were a whole different story. They had no filter, no sense of the unspoken rules garnered by society; they were driven by their own curiosity and something as trivial as politeness did not get in the way of that.  
“Oh, honey,” the mother gripped tight to the boy’s arm, lowing her voice in hopes Bucky hadn’t heard him, “you can’t ask things like that.”
“Why not?” the boy replied innocently. “Where’d it go?”
Bucky could feel your eyes on him, studying for his reaction, but he couldn’t offer one. He was stone, after all. A frown tugged at your lips to see the sudden distress wash over him and he felt an aching puncture of embarrassment deep into his stomach. It only took the mere mention of his arm to wipe him to a blank slate, to throw him back to the battlefield where it was torn from his body. Any unexpected reminder of it usually did.  
You nodded at him, offered a small smile, like you were trying to tell him it would be alright. Then slowly, you turned around and knelt in front of the boy.  
“Hi,” you said sweetly, catching the mother off guard.  
“Do you know what happened to his arm?” the boy asked, must to the dismay of his mother.
“Mason! Oh God, I am so very sorry,” the mother quickly apologized, flustered as she desperately tried to hush the boy. He pressed his face into his mother’s arm.  
Bucky stole a glance over his shoulder to find you kneeling on the floor beside the boy, smiling at him as he clutched a plush triceratops to his chest. You tilted your head at him, trying to get a better look at the boy.  
“You want to know what happened?” you asked softly. He nodded, arms wrapped tight around his stuffed toy. You glanced up at Bucky and his eyes narrowed on you, heart beating a little faster, stomach twisting, before you turned back to the boy. “He did something really brave.”
Fuck. 
Did you know? 
Did Sam tell you? 
Bucky’s legs started to feel weak.  
“You like superheroes, huh?” you continued, pointing at the image of a man in a red cape flying on the boy’s t-shirt. The boy nodded shyly. “They swoop in and save the day with their super strength or magic powers, right?”
The boy started laughing, he was smiling again, standing free from his mother’s hold. She was staring at you like you were akin to one of the characters on the boy’s shirt. Bucky felt the stones cracking around his body, freeing him from their grip.  
“Is he Super Man?” Mason whispered, glancing up at Bucky with such wonder, it took him by surprise. The boy was so small, no older than four years old. Bucky didn’t know the last time he’d even talked to a kid that young and yet here you were, at the boy’s level, making him laugh and smile and easing the concerns of his mother.  
“No, he’s not,” you laughed for a moment. Then, you softened, gathering the boy’s attention again. “My friend here doesn’t have super powers. So, when he saved someone, he got hurt. But I think that makes him very brave, don’t you?”
The boy nodded enthusiastically, grinning so wide Bucky wondered how it was possible your smile could be so infectious. The mother mouthed a soft ‘thank you’ in your direction as the boy quickly changed subjects to the sprinkled donut he was going to eat for snack. She caught Bucky’s eye for a minute and nodded at him, almost in appreciation. He pressed his lips to a thin line. He wasn’t sure if he was supposed to say anything back.  
You ordered his usual coffee and one of the freshly baked muffins, then a drink and a pastry for yourself. In Bucky’s distraction with the kid, he hadn’t noticed you pay before he had a chance. He felt like he was in a bit of a trance as you led him back to a table in the far corner of the shop, away from the windows and the customers.  
“You alright?” you asked as you slid into your chair opposite him.  
“Did Sam tell you?” Bucky blurted out before he had a chance to bite his tongue. It was the last thing he wanted you to know about and he had half a mind to storm up to the VA just to rip Sam a new one before he shut himself off in his apartment for a few weeks.  
It was the reason for the reoccurring nightmares that hadn’t let up in the last month, even when he’d started to have more good days than bad. They’d celebrated him for what he’d done, given him a medal, and thanked him for his service. The very thought of it made him want to vomit.  
“Hey, hey, Bucky look at me,” you called gently, your voice at the end of a dark tunnel. He blinked, adjusting to the light. “Sam didn’t say a word about what happened. I had a theory and I made a guess. You’re clearly a good man. It didn’t feel like much of a stretch. That’s all.”
Bucky clenched his jaw, staring down at the muffin as he picked at the paper cup. He heard you sigh, surprised that he couldn’t find a single sliver of impatience in your voice. When he looked up again, you smiled sweetly at him and asked him about Alien – Aliebn? – book; quickly lost in tangent of your favorite pages and moments you were excited for him to read.  
He was grateful for the change in subject, but more than that, it gave him a chance to just admire you. There was nothing strange about watching a woman, studying the intricacies on her face and the passion in her voice, when she was speaking right to him. He nodded along, doing his best to actually take in what you were saying, but he was so easily distracted by the brush of steam touching your nose, the press of your lips into your cheeks, the lines on your forehead, and the way your eyes seemed to light up the entire city block.  
The kid, his arm, and nearly six years of combat were quickly forgotten when he had the chance to watch you like that. You hardly let him get a word on, too caught up in your own excitement for the novels you placed in his hand, but he didn’t mind. He preferred to listen to you anyway. Your voice had a calming presence about it; soothing and gentle, loving and joyous. If it weren’t for the clock hanging on the wall above your head, he might have sat there all night with you.
“We should probably head over,” he pointed out reluctantly, gesturing to the clock as it approached six.  
You frowned, following his gaze to see the time had slipped by quicker than you realized. As you began to clear off the table, throwing the scraps in the garbage and setting the mugs on the counter for Luciana, Bucky began to wonder if maybe you would have sat there all night with him, too. If only he could find the courage to ask.
***
Bucky removed the clip from the book, closed the back binding, and slumped back into the cushions. The room was still pretty quiet, everyone’s noses still down in their books as the soft strum of Simon & Garfunkel played from the speaker by the coffee table. He glanced over at you as you sat beside him, a little closer than usual, though he didn’t mind. Your hip brushed his every so often when you adjusted position. It was a kind of closeness that left him wanting more.  
You were only halfway through your own book, but you could clearly sense him watching you because you slowly looked up in his direction, a pointed smile on your face.  
“You were right,” he admitted, his voice a hushed whisper in effort not to disturb the other members. “Surprisingly deep considering it’s a children’s book for adults.”  
“Hey maybe we need pictures on our pages, too,” you whispered back, teasing him with a nudged to his right shoulder. He laughed, leaning back comfortably against the couch as Tony’s eyes glared over in his direction from the top of his book. He pressed his lips together to keep quiet.
You snickered into Bucky’s shoulder, lips pressing against the sleeve of his jacket and he had never wanted to remove that layer more in his life; to actually feel the imprint of your mouth instead of just the press of your face, to feel the heat in your breath breathe through the thin layer of his t-shirt. He shivered.  
“Alright kids,” you said aloud, setting your book on the table. “Times up for today.”
“Oh, come on, Y/n! I’ve only got one chapter left!” Clint whined, stretching out dramatically along the table he was laying across.  
“Glad to hear it, Clint,” you smirked, hands planted firm on your hips. “Finish on your own time.”
A couple of ‘ooo’s rang out and it reminded Bucky of his days sitting behind a desk in class in grade school and a kid would get called up to the principal's office. Clint took it in stride though and seemed to bask in it, throwing up a pose in face of the chorus.  
The crowd quickly dispersed after that, though a few of the older members lingered behind to update you on how far they’d gotten in their books. Bucky watched you from a distance as he started to move the couches back into place, mesmerized by the glimmer in your eye as you spoke to them, a soft hand resting on the crook of their arm, nodding along with a smile on your face – always so genuine in every interaction, in every bone in your body.  
Bucky had practically finished arranging the entire room by the time you walked back inside. Your jaw dropped, wide eyes meeting his.  
“You didn’t have to do all that by yourself!”  
Bucky shrugged. “How long were you doing it on your own before I came along? Take the help when it’s offered, Y/n.”
You smiled at that. “Still. I appreciate it.”
“It’s really nothing,” Bucky said simply.
He hadn’t felt a drive like this is years. Not even before his final tour and the destruction that came with it. He hadn’t remembered what it felt like to want to lift even the smallest of burdens for someone else just to see the weight slip from their shoulders, just to see them smile. He found himself wanting to carry everything you had, even if it started with arranging the heavy furniture of the empty VA library.  
You chewed on the edge of your lip as you watched him approach the door, your jacket in his hand. He had wanted to hold it open for you, to let you turn your back and slip your arms through the sleeves, but it just wasn’t something he could do with one hand, and instead, he placed it to hang over your forearm. 
A longing for a world in which you met him before his body had been put through the shredder ached deep into his gut. It started to push a frown onto his lips, but then your voice broke through and he shook it away.  
“Ready?” you asked, gesturing to the door and he nodded, following closely behind.  
There was a sudden nervous energy in the air he didn’t expect, and for once, it wasn’t coming from him. He glanced over at you as you walked in line with him to find you fidgeting with the zipper of your jacket, hands wringing into the fabric, and hair falling out of place and down into your eyes. You exhaled a few tense breaths as Bucky opened the main door for you, following behind as you stepped out onto the side walk.  
The two of you stood there for a minute, neither one making a move to leave. You kept glancing back at the VA, then to your watch, barely able to look in Bucky’s direction and he started to feel that familiar twist of anxiety in his stomach.  
“Hey, are you oka—”
“Do you want to go for a walk?” you blurted out before he could finish, biting down quickly on your lip as if to stop yourself from saying more.  
Bucky froze, confused. He glanced down at his watch. It would be dark soon. “Now?”  
A flash of embarrassment quickly passed over your features and Bucky’s stomach dropped. 
Was it possible that you just wanted to spend more time with him? That maybe you could crave his presence the same way he did yours?  
“N-No, no, you’re right. It’s late. I’m sorry,” you muttered quickly, arms folding protectively over your chest. You kicked at a stone on the sidewalk, watching as it rolled over on its side. “I should, uh, I should head home then. I’ll see you later, Bucky.”
“There’s a park nearby,” Bucky offered before you could turn away. You lifted your head.  
“Yeah?” A cautious smile hung on your lips as you stepped closer to him.  
Bucky nodded, trying to push away the shaking in his hand. “Yeah, come on.”
A couple minutes passed by in silence as you walked along his side. Every so often, your knuckles would brush up against his hand, a nervous laughter between you as you pulled away. It happened so quickly each time, he never had a chance to respond. Even if he did, he wasn’t sure he would have had the courage to twist his fingers into yours, hold your hand tight to his own, feel the warmth of your palm and guide you along the cobblestones to the small space of greenery amongst brick and steel and concrete.  
“I hope you don’t mind me keeping you out late,” you said slowly, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear as you waited at the intersection to cross the street.  
“Not at all,” Bucky replied sincerely, offering you a small smile in hopes to ease your nervousness. Part of him wished he said more, maybe told you that spending time with you was the best part of his day or that you were the reason he was getting out of bed most mornings, but it was too big of an admission. It could scare you away and that was the last thing he wanted. Before he had a chance to decide, the light turned and you stepped out onto the street. Bucky followed closely behind.  
The entrance to the park was bordered with a dark metal fence, an arch way carrying over the brick walkway decorated with flowers and vines. You crossed underneath, pausing to stare up the twisting of the leaved through the pattern in the arch, a delicate finger reaching out to touch the tip of a petal. You looked back at Bucky with a smile twice as wide on your face and he hung his head, a breath of a laugh in his chest.  
The park was mostly empty for a Sunday evening. The last remaining streams of sunlight lit up the greenery, touching over the flowers and the reflecting into the pond at the center where a family of ducks were waddling along the edge. You seemed to like that, watching how the babies followed the mama along the rim of the water. Bucky turned to his right to find you imitating their walk, chasing after them until they stepped into the water.  
Meanwhile, Bucky found a bench sitting under an old oak tree. Its branches hung draped over the bench enough to provide a shadow from the closing sun. It faced the west side of the park, where the sun was setting just over the tops of the buildings and illuminating the sky in brilliant shades of golden orange and vibrant reds.  
“You want to sit for a bit?” Bucky asked, gesturing to the bench. His feet were a little tired from walking through Brooklyn all day with the library, the VA, and now this. It was more than he usually did these days – not that he minded. He’d happily allow his legs to be a little sore if it meant more time with you. He’d walk through busy streets for miles if it was you he was walking towards.  
You plopped down on the bench on his right, sinking into the old wood. You glanced over at him, hiding behind a strand of hair that had fallen down into your face.  
“Thanks for amusing me.”
Bucky raised an eyebrow, chuckling to himself. “You act like I don’t want to be here.”
“I know, I know,” you laughed, swinging your feet off the side of the bench. “It’s just... and I hope this isn’t a strange thing to say but... I just like spending time with you. Wanted a little more of it today, I suppose.”
Bucky swallowed, his throat feeling suddenly very dry. His heart stammered a bit inside his chest, butterflies causing chaos in his stomach, but it didn’t make him want to run. He felt no drive to escape, to push those sensations so far out of reach he turned back to the numbed and empty version of himself he’d been occupied by for months before he met you. They were frightening feelings, yes, but they were pleasant ones, ones he welcomed and invited inside.  
“You can have as much of my time as you want,” Bucky said as the words fell off his tongue. No filter, no second guessing. No chance to bite his tongue. You looked up at him with a kind of hope in your eyes that made his cheeks start to hurt from how much he was smiling.  
You settled back in on the bench, gazing up at the sunset as it lowered behind the buildings. Brush strokes of softer tones blended into the fading blues in the sky, giving way to the moon and stars as they emerged beyond the clouds.  
He glanced down at your hand as it rested on the bench by your thigh. There was hardly even a breath of air between his pinky to yours. You were so close; it would only take one instant of courage to bar the space between you.  
Be brave, Barnes.
Testing the waters, Bucky allowed the very edge of his fingers to brush over your knuckles. Your skin was softer than he’d remembered from that first handshake in the VA nearly a month earlier. He felt your breath hitch like a jolt of electricity had rushed though you, though you didn’t tear your eyes away from the sunset. Your thumb ran a tender line along his hand as you turned your palm up. Bucky swallowed.  
He slipped his hand into yours, curling his fingers to the space between your own, and for a moment he just let himself feel.
He felt for the slight give in your hand, the twitch in your movements as you settled in against him. He felt the gentle sway of your thumb as it painted a line along his, comforting sweeps like you were reminding him you were there. He felt the chill in your skin – cold hands, like he remembered from before – and the heat of his own.  
Then, your head on his shoulder. Your legs crossed towards him as you leaned in closer and he made no efforts to move. A gesture like that would have thrown him in a tailspin before he met you; to be this close to someone, to anyone, to sit in the vulnerability of allowing someone to know and feel him.  
He looked back up at the sunset. It had nearly dipped below the horizon now; only a few glimpses of color remaining in the sky and the shine of the lamppost just a few feet away.  
You sighed in a contented hum, circling your free hand to rest on the inside of his bicep, hooked around his arm. You held him against you like a teddy bear, just wanting to feel more of him. 
It was a strange sensation, he thought; this new urge to want to give you as much as his body could offer.  
1K notes · View notes
aminiatureworld · 3 years
Text
Injury
Characters: Albedo, Childe, Diluc, gn!reader
Word Count: 3,657
Warnings: Blood, injury, slight violence, minor villain death 
 Premise: Sometimes the pain of others can hurt even more than one’s own. In which the reader is injured. 
Author’s Note: Week 3 of keeping up my writing schedule let’s go! This week is a bit angsty, my forte (I think?) As usual part one – with Albedo, Childe, and Diluc – will be posted tonight and part two – Kaeya, Xiao and Zhongli – tomorrow.
At first this was going to be both your injury and your recovery but then the first character hit over 1.5k words so I guess this is going to be a pseudo-series. I really don’t know the definition of concise lol.
In the first part of my last fic I realize I gendered a word. I’m super sorry about that, and I promise to fix it and tag properly next time. Childe gets to go into the stone forest cause I say he can. I’m not sure if waypoints are diegetic or nondiegetic. I decided to make them so. Also the first hospital in China was opened in the early 1800s, and I know hospitals aren’t very “fantasy” but Teyvat has good medical science in my book.
Albedo
Throughout his life the one thing that Albedo never truly understood was peoples’ obsession with modesty, even when it was false.
There was a lot that Albedo was proud of in regards to himself; his intellect for one, his curiosity, his abilities as an alchemist, the fact that he feared little in the world. Above all perhaps was the pride he held in carrying himself without falling into hysteria, his grip on his emotions was impeccable and whenever he was unfortunate enough to see others gripped with a heavy emotion he was always left with a sour feeling in his mouth – a disgust for someone who had so little sense they couldn’t even control themselves.
This was a pride that left him quickly enough upon seeing you injured.
It wasn’t meant to be a dangerous expedition. It’d merely been a check of the vast network of caves and tunnels that could be found in Dragonspine. A route affair, mundane even in how simple it supposedly was. There was nothing to be afraid of. Albedo had told you that back at home and you’d smiled in agreement. Yes, there was nothing to be worried of, a few hilichurls at most and a temperature that could be easily kept in check with the right preparation. You’d be there and back in less than a day, no problem.
Everything, however, had gone horribly wrong. The cave that you two intended to explore turned out to be a vast network, full of tight tunnels and half submerged under freezing water. You two had managed that well enough, although once Albedo had almost slipped and fallen into the underground river, the whole outlook of the expedition was looking drearier and drearier.
Eventually you’d reached what had seemed to be the heart of the cave, floor after floor of ice with a hole in the middle, all lit up by crystal and scarlet quartz. It was an impressive sight to be sure and you’d stood a little ways away from the edge, observing the way the light refracted off the ice coated walls, waiting for Albedo to be finished with his sampling, enjoying the awesome sight in front of you.
Albedo had just finished when you’d let out a yelp. Whirling around he saw what had captured your attention – a wild snowboar who’d managed to wander in. The two of you watched the very confused creature in awe, only staring as it stomped the ground and charged right into the wall.
That was a mistake.
All of the sudden the cavern started shaking violently. Cursing the boar for its terrible – or maybe impeccable – aim the two of you sprinted towards the exit. You’d managed to gain the lead, not bogged down by Albedo’s extensive equipment, and had turned around near the beginning of the tunnel in order to help him. Just as you were heading back one of the many icicles that lined the roof of the cave came undone, landing with a sickening thud right where your collarbone met your spine.
You’d dropped like a rock, and Albedo felt his stomach to turn water and his mind turn to static, as suddenly all logic seemed to leave him, instead replaced by dread so overpowering he seemed to lose track of his surroundings, chained to the ground by something greater than himself.
You groaned and time seemed to unfreeze itself, instead accelerating at a breakneck pace. Leaping into action Albedo immediately dropped all of his equipment, the sound of glass vials shattering muffled by the cases that held them and the panic that was gripping him. Hauling you over his back he ran through the tunnels, wincing every time you made a sound and biting his tongue every time he shimmied through a particularly tight spot and it seemed it might not let the two of you pass as you were.
He could feel the blood seeping through his gloves. Your blood. Only a few minutes ago he wasn’t even sure that icicles could make one bleed. Now he wished he’d never found out, wished that he’d never asked to explore the caves of Dragonspine, wished that you’d never agreed to it. How could he have been so foolish, so blind to the dangers that waited in vast caverns of ice and snow, where the slightest wrong movement could spell your death.
Albedo could’ve cried when he sighted the camp. Indeed he might’ve, realizing that there were frozen tears on his cheeks only after you’d been taking to the medical tent. He hadn’t noticed, hadn’t noticed anything really in those terrifying moments between when you’d gotten hurt and when he’d made it to the camp. It all seemed not to exist in his mind, washed away by the emotions that had wracked his mind and body. Even now he couldn’t stop shaking, couldn’t stop the tide of emotions that was crashing into him like a wave, utterly helpless as he was thrown this way and that.
The pride that he’d clung to was in tatters, and Albedo looked upon it now in disgust. He’d been so innocent, so foolish, perhaps mercifully so. But all that was gone, and his certainty had gone with it. There was nothing left of him almost; nothing except fear and anger and worry, and Albedo wondered when he might ever feel sure of everything again.
It was cloudy when you were released, arm in a sling, brace around your shoulders. Albedo wasn’t sure how much time had passed, it had seemed like an eternity. The urge to run up to you and wrap you in the tightest hug imaginable was intense, but the sight of the brace held him back. Instead he brought you hand up to his face, kissing your palm before holding it against his cheek. You smiled at that, but there was fatigue in your eyes and you said nothing. Albedo couldn’t blame you. He moved to let go and turn towards the path, somehow feeling unworthy of holding your hand after being the cause of your predicament, but you quickly grasped his hand once more. He smiled a slightly shocked smile, but made no move to let go.
As you two walked back to Mondstadt Albedo felt himself once more flooded by negative thoughts. Lowering his gaze so he was looking at the ground he paused for a moment.
“I’m sorry.”
Albedo found his voice cracking, tears welling his eyes even as he chastised himself for how stupid he must’ve looked. You were safe, you were going to be alright, the head of the clinic had said so himself. Why then did he still feel like he might crumble any minute? Shaking his head he moved to cover his face with his hand.
“Hey.” There was still fatigue in your voice, but there was also an urgency in it. You squeezed the hand you were holding, moving so you were facing him. “Hey, is it okay if you look at me?”
Albedo moved his head up slowly. He was truly crying by now, having given up all efforts to do so otherwise. You smiled softly as his eyes met yours.
“I’m alright, okay? And you shouldn’t blame yourself for this. I doubt that even the drunkest man in Monstadt could’ve guessed a wild boar would wander in a cavern and start a cave in. You can’t control fate you know.”
“I know.” Albedo forced the words out, although more and more it seemed impossible, his throat was too constricted to be anything more than barely coherent. “Still. I should’ve known. And I should’ve kept it together. I, why am I crying? Why wasn’t I in control? Why, why am I still not in control?”
“Because you’re human Albedo.” You replied, shaking your head slightly. “You’re the most wonderful human alive, but you’re still human. You mustn’t beat yourself up for what you are. I’d rather you cry anyways. There’s nothing noble in hiding your emotions, they must come out one way or another. So please, please cry all you want, long and hard. And tomorrow you can start your penance, alright?”
“Penance?” Albedo mumbled, still crying. You nodded, smile still nothing but fondness and understanding.
“Well someone’s going to have to help me for the next two months. And I know you’re too much a gentleman to make me stumble along myself.”
“Of course.” Albedo’s answer came fast and sure. He paused then, realizing that, by distracting him with the weeks to come, you’d managed to give him a pocket of time to calm himself, to feel himself once more firmly planted on the ground. Love mixed with anger and sadness in his mind, and for a moment he could only marvel at you.
Albedo leaned down to kiss you on the forehead. He’d do whatever he could to help you, this he promised himself. And this too he promised himself; you’d never ever be hurt on his watch again.
Childe
If there was anything that Childe hated it was a lack of control. The feeling of everything slipping through his fingers was something he’d felt often as a child, and that feeling had haunted him. When he’d signed up as a member of the Fatui he’d promised himself that he’d never feel that way again. He’d protect those he loved and he’d keep his life from falling apart. It was a promise he was determined to keep, no matter what.
You two had decided to go hiking. Or rather it was less of a hike and more of a rock climb. Childe had long bragged that the Huaguang Stone Forest was the most beautiful place to watch the sunset, and you’d finally gotten a free weekend. Waypointing your way there initially, your partner had taken an almost childlike joy from choosing which mountain was the highest.
“Childe have you decided yet? The sun is almost at the horizon.” You called out at the Harbinger. Childe was, much to your dismay, the stronger climber, and had taken to scouting ahead of time to see if the spot you were climbing to was any good. Now he glanced down at you, mischief written all over his face, his smirk flashier than usual. He put his hand on his chin and looked outward once more.
“Hmm… I don’t know…”
“Childe!” You exclaimed, your arms slightly killing you. You really wish that you’d convinced Childe to bring a roped and belay. Unfortunately that request had been met with a whine and an accusation of “that’s cheating!” You’d laughed it off at the time, but now you were starting to regret your partner’s recklessness. As much as you were enjoying your time – being alone with Childe always felt intensely special and you cherished every moment of it – you were also impatient to actually watch the sunset, and in your hurry you wondered if it might not be faster to climb back down and watch from the bridge.
“I do believe that we’ve found the tallest one!”
“Thank the Seven.” You groaned, hurrying to get to the top. Childe chuckled, watching you scale up the mountain.
“Oh come now, I had to make sure it was perfect! Besides you looked so comfortable perched there, it almost hurt to disrupt you.”
“When I get up there I’m killing you.” You shot back, reaching towards the ledge. Still laughing Childe stuck out his hand and you moved to grab it, pushing off with your feet as much as possible, determined to make it up the mountain in the next move.
The laughter died from Childe’s lips the moment your hand missed. Instead it was replaced by fear, cold and sharp as a knife, plunging straight through his heart. Time seemed to slow down, but you were falling so fast, falling, falling, falling. Catapulting himself off the top of the mountain Childe reached out for you. In his mind he was screaming. Glide. Oh please, for the love of the Seven glide. Please, don’t fall, it’s so high up. I couldn’t bear it. Please.
Still the words were stuck in his mouth, and his throat only constricted more when you hit the bridge with a sickening thud. Releasing his own wings at the last moment he landed on the bridge too, only a few meters away from where you were now crumpled up. Running over he scooped you up. You’d managed to right yourself at the last moment in the air so that you were landing feet first, but though you’d managed to protect your head your legs dragged limply, and one was bent at an awkward angle. Looking at your mangled form, listening to you as you screamed and whimpered in pain, Child felt overwhelmed by his vast helplessness. There was nothing he could do. Burying his head in your neck he sobbed.
“I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.”
The journey to Liyue was excruciating, both for you and for Childe. Although there was no external bleeding the initial adrenaline of falling had no worn off and you felt every jolt and movement as Childe slung you on his back, wrapping his arms around your thighs and carrying you to the nearest waypoint and then to the Liyue doctor. Even when Childe was standing still you thought you might die from the sheer pain. So intense it was that sometimes you gave up, blacking out only to wake up feeling like you were drowning, the burning air around you almost too hot and too heavy to breathe.
Childe willed himself to numbness throughout the journey, only allowing him to collapse once you’d reached the hospital, practically ramming into the nearest chair in the waiting room, the situation washing over him.
How could he have let this happen? Hadn’t he made a promise? A promise that he’d protect those he’d love, that he’d never lose control of a situation again, that he’d never let those he cared about suffer? Where was that promise now? His whole world seemed to collapse in on itself now. He hadn’t been able to protect you. Despite his training, his reflexes, his vision, his everything. You’d still fallen. And as powerful as Childe liked to think he was, he still couldn’t turn back time and stop your suffering.
Finally the doctor opened the door and Childe was let in to see you. After informing him that you were on painkillers the doctor left you two alone. Faced with you laying on the hospital bed Childe sank into the nearest chair. Lacing his fingers through yours he drew circles on your hand over and over. For a moment you two said nothing, then Childe let his head rest on your hands. “I’m sorry.” He whispered, voice raw.
“I know.” You replied, mind a bit hazy from the painkillers, the magic infused herbs luring you to sleep. Still you pushed forward, needing to say something before Childe let himself be carried away. “I know, but it’s not your fault. And it’s not irreversible. The doctor says in 8 weeks I’ll be fine. Until then, we’ll just have to improvise.”
“But what about your adventuring? Your commissions? How can you do those if you can’t –”
“I’ll figure it out. Adventuring isn’t just monster slaying you know. And there’s no catastrophe in being in a wheelchair or on crutches.” You shook your head. Childe was still crying, and you could feel his tears running down your linked hands.
“Ajax.” Childe’s head shot up, surprised. He loved when you called him by his true name, it always seemed like a song falling from your lips. And now that song was filled with understanding, if not a bit of sadness. “I want you to not blame yourself.” You continued. “I know it’ll be hard, I know that these feelings won’t go away. And I’m not blaming you for them. I’m not happy about this either, of course I’m not, I just went through a world of pain. But I won’t be able to stand watching you beat yourself up for 8 weeks, I won’t be able to stand that look in your eyes every time you look at me. So please, please stop. If not for yourself then for me.”
Childe stared at your for a while. You waited, not wanting to rush his thought process. Eventually though he shook his head, a small smile finally breaking his expression.
“You’re too good for me you know. Alright. I promise to try. It’s the least I could do.”
“Thank you.” You smiled. Childe smiled back. He didn’t know how you managed to do it, how you managed to take his fears and look them in the face. All he knew at that moment was that he loved you. And for now, that was enough.
 Diluc
Diluc stared in horror as the Fatui Bracer aimed a Geo projectile right at you, his horror multiplying into rage and terror as the concentrated energy flew through the air and landed right at the base of your ribcage. You crumpled at the impact, wheezing heavily, apparently stunned from the power and speed of the attack.
How could this have happened? Diluc knew that the Fatui were gathering in Mondstadt, something that the winery owner turned Darknight Hero couldn’t stand. But never did he think to see Fatui skirmishers right outside the walls of Monstadt, strolling along the beach of Cider Lake as if it were Snezhnaya. Never did he think he’d have to see another loved one felled by a member of the Fatui, and never did he think that he could bear the emotions coursing through him now.
He made quick work of the Bracer, hacking and swinging without rhyme or reason, barely able to comprehend what was going on. Everything felt oddly separated from him, as if he were watching through someone else’s eyes, watching as he burned through the Bracer’s shields as easily as if it were made of wax, leaving the man groaning and screaming in pain before silencing him altogether.
The feeling of separation only grew more powerful as he ran over to you. You seemed to be conscious, but your breathing was shallow and ragged, and the place where the Fatui’s attack had hit seemed mangled, one of your ribs having seemingly been broken. You were screaming, though it was hoarse and low and tired. Still if you were screaming you were alive, and at least Diluc could hold onto that.
Carrying you in his arms Diluc winced as you let out another shriek of pain. You two weren’t far from the gates of Monstadt, but every step seemed to be a thousand steps and what was surely only a few hundred meters instead felt like tens of thousands of miles.
You were going to be alright. At least the doctor had said you were going to be alright. Surely Diluc could be grateful for that? But he didn’t feel grateful, instead he felt anger and hatred welling up inside of him. He’d told himself it was no good to be an angry or hateful person, that doing so would only push you away, would only destroy the fragile bonds he’d managed to build between you and a selection of others. But still the anger and the hatred lingered, refusing to be quelled or stuffed away.
He wanted revenge. Revenge on the Fatui, on the Tsaritsa, on the uncaring world that let him be so tormented, and that so tormented the ones he loved. How could this have happened to you? You who were made of goodness, more goodness than he’d found in the world beforehand. How was this a fitting reward?
It was decided that you could stay at the Winery during the 6 grueling weeks that was to be your convalescence. Diluc said nothing on the way there. He was afraid what would happened if he opened his mouth. Already he knew his face was betraying the feelings welling within him. He didn’t need to make it worse, not now.
Arriving at the Winery Diluc carried you to his room, the nicest room there was. Up to this point you’d said nothing, and Diluc wondered if you weren’t too groggy to do so. However when you spoke up there was an urgency in your voice, one he simply couldn’t ignore.
“You’re angry. You’re trying to hide it but I know it.”
“I’m not the one in pain right now.” Came a curt reply. Diluc was looking at you with what others might’ve mistaken as a glare. Perhaps it was even that, but there was something beneath it, and you knew it ultimately wasn’t directed at you.
“I am. And I’m upset too. But I’ve accepted it. You need to accept that you’re angry too. Burying it won’t help, it’ll only make it worse you know. You have to acknowledge your emotions. You don’t have to hide them. At least not in front of me.”
The expression on Diluc’s face finally broke. The anger there was raw and palapable, but there was also something else, something he’d also buried.
“I was… terrified.” Diluc finally let out. “I was so terrified it frightened me. I… I thought I was going to lose you.”
“And you shouldn’t have to hide that either.” You prodded softly. “But I’ll be alright, I promise. So please, just be open with me and then we’ll go from there.”
Diluc nodded, finding himself unable to speak. Walking over to where you were laying down he peppered kisses all over your face, light and ethereal as butterflies.
He’d do right by you. That’s what he promised himself, after all the hiding and the pain. He’d do right by you. But he’d also not forgive the Fatui for what they’d done, and tonight when Monstadt was asleep the Darknight would be watching. And for any Snezhnayan roaming the streets and lurking in the shadows, there’d be no forgiveness.
699 notes · View notes
Text
Absurd ideas [Sirius Black x Reader]
Tumblr media
Title: Absurd ideas Pairing: Sirius Black x Female!Reader and Remus Lupin x Own Character Word count: 4.7k Published: 12 January 2021 Author: Heloise Daphne Brightmore  Notes: Not my best work, but I hope some of you will enjoy it. Summary: Sirius’ jealousy causes a misunderstanding which inevitably ends up with him getting worked up and everyone else being confused. Most of all you, when you realise he thinks he knows what you feel, but he couldn’t be farther from the truth. Bingo: [x] This is part of my Make me feel Bingo Card by @girl-next-door-writes​​
Square filled: Mutual Pinning
Harry Potter Characters Masterlist | Masterlists
Make me feel Bingo Masterlist
If you enjoy my stories, please consider donating and supporting me on Ko-fi. Of course, it’s completely your choice, I will continue updating for free anyway :) Thank you <3
Tumblr media
You were seated in a room, rubbing your tired eyes on a bed that didn’t even belong to you. It wasn't just any room with any bed though. You were in the male dormitory of the Gryffindor House of Hogwarts, seated in the marauder's bedroom, specifically on Sirius Black's bed. Just like on every full moon, you waited for the boys impatiently, to make sure that they were in one piece as they arrived back from their wild adventures.
It was about 5am when the sun started to rise. You barely slept an hour or two, waking up almost every half an hour, concern and worry taking over you with a pinch of insomnia that you were used to on a daily basis. The boys should have been back already, but they took their sweet time, making you even more anxious, than you dared to admit. You took deep breaths to calm yourself down, just as the door opened with a loud thud hitting the wall behind it.
Looking at the entrance, you saw James first, holding up a barely conscious Remus, whose arm hung off his friend's shoulder, before you saw Sirius on his other side, helping James carrying the boy. You ran up to them and hurried them over to Remus' bed, wanting to check on the boy as soon as you could. They placed him on his bed as gently as they could and stood back, giving you just enough space. They stood silently with hunched backs, visible dark circles under their eyes and tired expressions across their face as they watched you.
You ran to the bathroom to fill up a bowl with lukewarm water and took a face cloth off the towel rack. You walked back to the room, balancing the water in your hands, the bowl wobbling unsteadily, splashing a bit of water on the floor. Silly you didn't bring your wand, so you had to improvise.
By the time you arrived back in the room, James and Sirius already undressed Remus and threw his clothes on the floor, on the other side of the bed.
You set the items down on the nightstand next to Remus and turned towards the other boys. Peter was already in bed, slightly snoring, which caused you to shake your head with a gentle smile. He must have been exhausted and you didn’t blame him for it. You couldn’t have imagined what they were going through each full moon, but from the stories you’ve heard and the state they always returned in, you understood most of it.
James was sitting on his bed, his back hunched, his neck hiding in between his shoulders, his face hidden behind his palms. The deep, tired sighs and the posture he took on screamed for a well-deserved rest, but the boy was restless until he knew his friend was safe.
Sirius however didn’t return to his side of the dorm. He was still standing next to Remus' bed with an exhausted expression, but more of a concern for his friend. He seemed to be the most worn out of all the boys, except for Remus. You knew he wouldn’t listen, but you wanted nothing but for them to finally rest.
"Sirius, Remus is going to be fine. So just go ahead and rest. Get some sleep," you told him as you nudged his shoulder, tilting your head towards his bed. “You too Mister, you need to recharge,” you pointed at James who let out a silent and exhausted laughter.
"It's fine, we have to take care of Remus,” Sirius turned back to you, but you had no intention of taking no for an answer. You got hold of his shoulder and started gently nudging him to his bed. He chuckled at your attempt, but you didn’t find it funny, not in the situation you were in. You pushed him down on his bed, in a sitting position and placed your hands on your hips, giving him a deadly glare.
"I get it, you are worried, but leave him to me. You need to sleep. It’s written all over your faces how exhausting tonight has been. So, please, just listen to me,” you didn’t wait for them to agree, you turned around and walked back to Remus. You started off by cleaning the injuries on his face first, before you continued with his arms and then legs as you crouched down next to his bed. Blood was still dripping from his body from some of the more serious injuries. He involuntarily hissed each time you cleaned an open wound and you apologised every time you caused him even more pain. You looked up at his face, feeling guilty for hurting him even more, but you knew it was necessary.
"It’s been very hard to handle him tonight. Even before sundown he said he felt anxious and restless," James spoke up as he took off his trousers and got comfortable in his bed.
"It's over now, so don't think about it, guys. Get some sleep and by the time you wake up, all of you will be just fine," you smiled gently as you continued to apply a cream on Remus' wounds that Madam Pomfrey gave to the boy. You were so focused on your task to take care of Remus, you couldn’t even sense a presence behind you.
"Thank you for helping us," you heard and turned around to meet the most beautiful grey eyes. Sirius leaned down to you, his long black locks falling into his face and hinted a small kiss on the top of your head.
"You don't have to thank me. I feel better knowing my friends are in good hands," you replied with a tender smile. "And now go to bed, before I force you myself," you laughed softly.
"Now that makes me want to stay and wait it out," he chuckled playfully as you pushed his chest away from you.
"Shush, just get some rest, Sirius," you smiled, shaking your head, before turning back to Remus to continue his treatment.
You stole Remus’ wand to perform a couple of easier healing spells to speed up his recovery, before placing it back on the nightstand beside him.
It took you only a couple of minutes to finish taking care of him, but by the time you were done, you could hear mixed sounds of snoring coming from all over the room. You smiled at the idyllic moment, giving you a certain warm feeling to be able to see one of the most important people in your life being so peaceful.
You looked up at Remus’ face, whose painful expression has finally disappeared and has become more relaxed, somewhat content. You sat on the floor, beside his bed and laid your head on the edge, feeling exhausted. You could barely keep your eyes open anymore and before you knew it, they closed on their own.
However, you didn't realise the saddened grey pair of eyes gazing at you, as you decided to stay by his friend's side. He didn't want to be jealous, especially not in a situation where he knew his friend needed you more, but your presence so close to someone else beside himself made him feel uneasy. He shook the thoughts off as soon as he could, feeling guilty about his own emotions and tried to sleep, rolling from left to right. Exhausting, he was more than ever, but sleep didn’t take him immediately. Your sleeping beside his friend didn’t let him rest.
He got out of his bed and picked up the blanket laying at the foot of his bed, before he walked behind you and gently placed the cover over your shoulders. You sniffled in your sleep and scrunched up your nose, making him smile at your adorable expression. He removed a loose piece of hair from your face, adoring your sleeping form, before he went back to his bed and finally fell asleep. Your adorable expression being the last thing he saw before he fell into slumber left a small smile across his face.
*
You were seated in the Gryffindor common room, legs hanging over the arm of your chair as you looked over to the sofa from time to time, ignoring the book in your hands. You didn’t necessarily want to eavesdrop, but you were in the same space, so you couldn’t pretend not to hear the conversation between Remus, Sirius and James.
"When are you going to tell her?" James asked Remus. The boy’s face turned red, heavily blushing under his friends’ intense gaze.
"Can we just leave this subject?" He asked frowning, clearly unhappy about the conversation his friend initiated.
"No, we can’t. It couldn’t be more obvious that you like her. You can't keep avoiding it," James shook his head, heaving a deep sigh.
"I am not avoiding it. I can't tell her," Remus whispered, but his tone seemed agitated.
"And why in Godric's name is that?" James pushed, being tired of the same conversation over and over again. You have heard about Remus’ crush before, it wasn’t anything new, but Remus always found a reason, a fault within him that he used as an excuse not to confess his feelings.
"Because I would risk her life. Even if I took the necessary precautions, how would I explain to her that I had to disappear on every full moon? It's just impossible, James," he replied, heaving a sigh in defeat. “And why would she even like me? It’s just a lost cause, guys, so let’s just forget it,” seeing his pain, you couldn't stop the apologetic expression from spreading across your face. You felt sorry for him, for not having enough confidence in himself, for thinking so lowly of his personality and looks. He was an amazing person and you just didn’t understand how he couldn’t see that.
Without your knowledge though, someone else realised the change in your demeanour. He thought he was over feeling uneasy about you and his friend’s relationship, but to see you being upset about his friend talking about another girl, made his heart clench. He didn’t want to admit how badly your reactions to Remus affected him, but he couldn’t ignore the pain in his chest whenever he caught your eyes focused on his friend. He felt guilty, he knew he shouldn’t have felt the way he did, but he couldn’t control his feelings.
He knew you felt empathetic towards his friend, he knew you had a very close friendship, but from his point of view, he thought your side of the friendship was beyond what you should feel for a friend. He felt as if you were closer to his friend as if he was only second on an invisible list. He was hurt by the realisation that he came to find. That maybe, just maybe, you had feelings for his friend.
"Hi Remus,” a blonde girl walked down the stairs of the female dormitory, heading towards the exit of the Gryffindor common room with a shy smile across her face, eyes focused only on Remus. “Hey, guys,” she quickly added as she realised they weren’t the only one in the room.
"Hi Jane." Remus replied with a slight blush, watching as the girl offered him a soft smile.
"And there it is again," James quipped in as the girl left. He threw his hands in the air, worked up about his friend’s obliviousness. You giggled at the dramatic moment, finding James’ reaction funny. "Just do something already. She barely even realised our existence,” James groaned playfully, but before Remus could have replied, you interrupted.
"Let’s say that I know if she likes you or not. Would that change anything?” you asked as three pairs of curious eyes focused on you.
“Yes, it would,” James replied, making you giggle.
“I asked Remus,” you shook your head playfully.
“It wouldn’t change the fact that I have a couple of problems on my own,” he grimaced, clearly repeating all his faults in his head over and over again.
“You deserve happiness, Remus. We accepted your furry little problem, we love you the way you are. Do you really think no one else can accept that?” you raised a questioning brow, waiting for a reply, which never came. “So, would it change anything if you knew how she felt?” you pushed his buttons.
“Maybe- I think so-“ his unsure answer didn’t convince you, but the fact that he didn’t give you a straight up no, was a positive step ahead for you.
“Well, if it helps, she likes you,” a tender smile spread across your face as the words left your lips.
"As if," Remus shook his head with a gloomy whisper, once again trying to write himself down.
"Oh, I might have misunderstood the love letter she wrote you a couple of days ago. My bad," you shrugged acting as if it was your fault, trying to lift the negative mood.
"Wait what?" Remus looked at you in disbelief.
"Oh, now you care, huh?" you chuckled at his sudden interest.
"I mean..." He scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. You placed your hand in the pocket of your robe and pulled out a green envelope. You might have accidentally stolen the letter from your shared room, before Jane could have realised that it was undelivered. You weren’t necessarily friends, but she did ask you about Remus most of the time and you had quite pleasant conversations at times.
“It’s here,” you held the envelope in the air, between your index and middle finger, looking at it as if it was the most interesting object you have ever seen. Remus furrowed his brows looking at the letter, clearly concerned.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea. I shouldn’t open it unless she gives it to me,” he argued, but you just shook your head.
“I would agree, if she didn’t send this letter already. You see, technically she sent this letter to you 2 days ago and she thinks you already got it. But when her owl brought it back undelivered, she was out of the room, so I took the envelope from her owl. It, kind of skipped my mind until now,” you explained, trying to reassure him. He debated his options, before he jumped up from the couch, grabbed the letter out of your hand and ran upstairs. You chuckled at his eager behaviour which grew into a laughter as a curious James followed Remus up the stairs.
"Why would you do that?" Sirius asked, shaking his head, which made you confused.
"What do you mean?" you asked, trying to understand your friend. "I want him to be happy," you chuckled as you walked up to the couch he was seated on and sat down beside him.
"Isn't it painful?" he frowned, which caused you to return his expression, feeling as if you were supposed to know about something that you didn’t.
"Why would it be? I don't understand you Sirius," you shook your head. “Hey, what are you on about?” you tried again, but instead of talking Sirius seemed as if he was in pain. You threw your arms around his neck and pulled him into a hug, one that he has not given you for a while.
He has been rather distant, and you didn’t know how to interpret his behaviour. The boy was the closest to your heart, you could always share everything with him. If you were down and needed a shoulder to cry on, he was there. If you were excited and happy, having the best day of your life, he was the one who was beside you, enjoying your happiness first-hand.
He hid his face in the crook of your neck, pulling you closer to him, enjoying your warm embrace. He wished he could hug you more often, but it hurt him to think he was just a replacement instead of his friend.
“Hey, Sirius, talk to me,” you tried again to understand what was going on in his mind, but he just shook his head and heaved a heavy sigh. You kept running your hands through his soft hair, soothing the boy. “You know you can talk to me about anything, right?” you asked, which he responded to with a nod.
"Just forget it. Don’t mind me,” he spoke as he let go of your embrace and leaned back. “I was talking nonsense,” he smiled at you, but you could see through it. It wasn’t a genuine, happy smile; it was phony and forced. “I will go and check up on the boys,” he said and after placing a small kiss on the top of your head, he walked over to the stairs leading up to the male dormitory and disappeared behind the wall, leaving you with an utterly confused expression.
You have had a crush on Sirius for as long as you could remember and the thought of him distancing himself from you hurt. He was the only person you felt accepted you with all your faults and weaknesses, even more so than your friends and to think he was pushing you away felt like a stab in your chest.
*
Days passed by and Sirius' unusual behaviour didn't stop.
Remus and Jane finally started dating and you couldn't have been happier for them. Remus decided to push his worries aside, give it a go and experience love. What he didn’t expect was to feel content, relaxed, recharged as if he was always in a happy bubble. You were proud of him for choosing happiness.
However, as much as you wanted to see the new couple and sit down with them, have a fun little conversation, tease them a bit about being so oblivious to each other’s feelings, you didn't have much opportunity to do so. Sirius made it his mission to drag you away from the couple every single time you were in the same place or anywhere near them.
Whilst you loved spending time with Sirius, his usually slightly cocky and playful behaviour became dull and mostly upset. You tried to talk to him about it, but he didn’t give in. He always tried to shake you off with a ‘whatever’, ‘never mind’ or ‘doesn’t matter’. As if he was incapable of opening up to you. Which has never happened before.
You were sitting beside the Black lake, leaning against the trunk of a tree with Sirius next to you and the happy couple cuddled up to each other in front of you. It could have been a romantic little double date if you dared to confess your feelings for Sirius and if he didn’t wear that dark, dissatisfied expression of his.
Sirius sat beside you with a book in his hands, which in itself made you feel strange. Not that you had a problem with him reading, it was just a slightly unusual sight to see.
You leaned your head on his shoulder and looked up at him, wandering your gaze over his long, dark lashes, plump pink lips and unusual frown in between his brows. He was a beautiful man, but as much as you wished to be able to look at him as a friend, you just couldn’t.
Occasionally you caught his gaze wondering to Remus and Jane with his frown growing deeper, his jaw clenching as if the happy couple disturbed him in some sort of way.
"Is everything okay?" you asked him, lifting your head, placing your palms on his shoulder and crossing your fingers, laying your chin on the top of your hands. "You seem troubled," you concluded.  
"I'm fine," he replied, shaking his head, once again looking at the couple as they giggled happily about something. "Are you okay?" he asked as he looked into your eyes, as if he was trying to read you. You nodded in reply, a small smile spread across your face, feeling happy about being so close to him once again. You turned towards Remus and Jane, their happiness making you feel even more content.
"I'm all good," you replied looking back at his handsome features. His eyes however left you once again as the couple chuckled at something funny.
"Can you stop?" he growled in anger, causing you to pull back from your position, your eyes wandering between him and Remus. Jane and Remus looked just as confused as you, unable to understand Sirius’ problem.
"What is wrong with you?" Remus asked, but Sirius shook his head.
"You! I’m just fed up with you!” he groaned, clearly agitated. “Can’t you see how much pain and suffering you’re causing?" he hissed in anger. You’ve never seen Sirius act in such manner with his friends and from what you could read off Remus’ face, he was unfamiliar with this side of him too. Sirius seemed to be disappointed in his friend, which further confused you all. You looked at Remus, who also glanced at you, but both of you seemed to be clueless about what he was talking about.  
"Who is suffering because of me?" Remus asked, trying to understand his friend.
"You really are dumb, mate," Sirius retorted. "You’re cuddling your little girlfriend, while Y/n is suffering because of your ignorant behaviour," Sirius gestured towards you, causing your eyes to widen in surprise. “You should feel ashamed. How oblivious can you be? How long are you going to keep hurting her?” you were lost by his words. You had no idea what was going on and by the look on Remus' face, he was as confused as you.
"Wait, me? Am I suffering?" you interrupted your fuming friend.
"Don’t act like you know nothing. I understand you didn’t want to tell him about your feelings, but I can’t watch you being hurt over and over again, whilst he is cuddling with his new girlfriend,” he replied as if he knew your feelings more than you did yourself.
"Oh..." your eyes grew wider at the realisation, before you turned to Remus, whose facial expression changed and soon started laughing at the scenario. You didn’t mean to join him, but in the end, you couldn’t stop giggling about Sirius' absurd thoughts, leaving the boy with a dumbfounded expression.
As soon as the laughter died down, Remus stood up, gently pulling Jane into a standing position beside him and turned to you with a determined expression. "I think now it's your turn to clear things up," Remus offered you an apologetic smile and left you behind with a frowning Sirius.
You silently sat beside each other for a good few minutes, before you gathered the courage to finally open your mouth and talk. "Why would you think that I like Remus? How did you end up with such an absurd idea?" you asked as you turned your whole body towards him, playing with the grass under you, fearing to establish eye contact.
"Well, you seemed different around him," he answered, but you could still hear in the tone of his voice that he didn't understand what was going on.
“What do you mean?” you tilted your head in confusion.
“When we were talking about Moony and Jane in the common room and he talked about his crush on Jane, you seemed so upset,” he attempted to explain.
“You are going to have to be more specific. It was a quite common occurrence that we talked about Remus and Jane in the common room,” you raised a questioning brow.
“When you gave him the letter,” he added.
“Oh,” you paused for a second to recall what he could have misunderstood, when it finally all clicked in. “Wait, is about me getting upset, when he said he didn’t deserve to be loved?” you asked with wide eyes as if everything finally made sense.
“Exactly. I saw how upset you were and that’s why I asked why you decided to give him the letter,” he explained. As if the weight fell off your shoulder, a wide grin appeared across your face as you massaged your temple.
“Sirius, you can be really daft sometimes,” you chuckled. “I don’t like Remus like that. He is like a brother to me. I was upset, because every time he talks about himself, he doesn’t seem to see his good qualities, only his flaws, his problems. It upset me,” you shook your head and offered a tender smile to Sirius as you leaned closer and pulled him into a hug. “You owe him an apology,” you chuckled as he scrunched up his nose. “Thank you for worrying about me, Sirius, but it’s honestly not what you thought,” you added, pulling away.
"So, then you don't like him?" he asked, waiting for further reassurance.
"No, I like someone else," you answered emotionless, waiting for his reaction.
"Oh-" he breathed with a heavy tone.
"You seem disappointed. Should I like Remus?" you teased with an innocent look.
"No!" he replied way too quickly. As you connected the dots and realised Sirius might just feel something for you, you decided to push his buttons.
"Do you maybe want to know who I like?" you asked with a fake curiosity, playing your part. He didn't know how to reply and for the first time you saw him searching for words. He wanted you to be happy, to be loved, to be treated like the most precious person, but he didn't want to see, didn't want to hear about you getting close to someone else beside him.
"Erm-“ he was not the cocky Sirius anymore. He wasn't as confident as he usually acted and Godric knows how much you enjoyed the situation.
"Maybe I should ask him out," you said more to yourself and stood up, wearing a determined expression. Before you could have even taken a step, Sirius jumped up from his place and got hold of your wrist, pulling you flush against his chest. His sudden attack surprised you, but you certainly didn’t complain. You enjoyed being close to him and you were somewhat glad to be in such proximity with him.
"No," he whispered, looking at your face, his breath fanning your lips, slightly tickling you. “I don’t want to see you with anyone else, but me,” he confessed, but from the blank expression across his face, you weren’t sure if he realised his own words. The only thing he seemed to be concentrating on were your lips and you certainly found his just as intriguing.
"Are you sure you don't want me to ask him out?" you smiled softly, your voice hitching as he pulled you impossibly close to him, his lips almost touching yours.
"No- Wasn't I clear enough?" he asked, seemingly defeated.
"I think you would be really happy if I asked him out," you added, crossing your arms behind his neck, completely confusing him with your actions as a deep frown grew across his brows. You silently giggled at his expression, before you gave him the last push. "Would you like to go out with me, Sirius?" you asked, placing a small peck on his lips, but he didn't react, his initial shock leaving him frozen. His eyes were wide open, his jaw hung low, his lips parted in disbelief. "Should I perhaps take that as a no?" you raised a questioning brow as you ran your fingers through his soft hair.
"You’re such a tease," he exhaled finally as a small smirk spread across his handsome and relieved face. His eyes wandered down to your lips, gazing at your mouth for an impossibly long time, before attaching his lips to yours while running his hands along the small of your back, pulling you closer. You chuckled into the kiss welcoming his usual confidence back, missing his cockiness. However, before you could have even given yourself into the kiss, Sirius pulled away and with a swift movement grabbed you under your butt and threw you over his shoulder, making you squeal.
"Hey, put me down, it's not fair," you started hitting his back, but he didn't budge.
"Your little game wasn't either," he grinned, slapping your butt as he walked towards the castle with your swearing form hanging over his shoulder. "By the way, yes I would love to go out with you," he added, making you grin at his reply. Although you were cursing him, hitting him, kicking him wherever you could and as much as you could, you were still the happiest person and even the fact that you were hanging upside down couldn’t ruin it.
Notes: If you enjoyed reading this little piece, please don’t forget to leave a like, comment and/or reblog. Your opinion matters and gives us motivation. Thank you ^^
Harry Potter general taglist:
@awritingtree​ @chloer1275​ @emmaev​ @haphazardhufflepuff​​ @inkhearthes​ @pregnant-piggy​ @anchy-bananchy​ @sreidswhore​ @levylovegood​​ @fific7​​ @harrypotter289​​ @moatsnow​​ @pandaxnienke​​ @leelovegood​​ @nebulablakemurphy​​ @sarcasticallywitty15​​ @iliveiloveiwrite​​ @acuunaa​​ @nuttytani​​ @audreythehufflepuff​​ @the-unmanaged-mischief​​ @mesmerisedangel​ @crowleysqueenofhell​ 
If you enjoy my stories, please consider donating and supporting me on Ko-fi. Of course, it’s completely your choice, I will continue updating for free anyway :) Thank you <3
913 notes · View notes
rpd-rookie · 3 years
Text
The One Who Runs Away, The One Who Runs Back (Leon S. Kennedy x Reader)
Author’s note: This is a sequel to “A PAST WITH HER, A FUTURE WITH YOU” and the end of my three-parts fan fiction "I TRUSTED YOU WITH MY HEART" I decided to write after so many of you asked for it. Sorry it took so long but I was navigating from one fandom to another. (BTW, if there are any Devil May Cry fans up here, you can read my DMC fan fictions here) PS: Even if I said it before, I have no hate whatsoever towards Ada or Aeon.
Tagged: Angst, Fluff, Romance, Post-Break up, Sexual Content 
Part 1 / Part 2
***
Do you remember? We started this story by quoting some sitcom character that was clueless about love. Well, here’s a suggestion. Why not ending it by quoting someone who knew a little more on such matter.
William Shakespeare - you know that English dude expert on tragic ‘drink this poison, stab yourself’ kind of love - apparently once said ‘Love runs away from those chasing her, and those who run away, she throws herself on his neck’. I say ‘apparently’ cause, even though I have a master in English lit, this quote is from the internet, and also … who knows what the guy truly said?
But it’s the quote that’s important. Not the author. The quote it’s important because it sums up perfectly how this story is gonna end. However, before starting, let me tell you this quote is going to be the only Shakespeare-worthy sentence in this final chapter. You’ve been warned.
Love runs away from those chasing her.          Well, this part was definitely written for someone like Ada Wong. Owner of countless gold medals and possibly a world record at this point, that woman is basically the Usain Bolt of the ‘Running from Leon S. Kennedy’ competition. Unchallenged winner since the creation of this sultry version of cat and mouse game, it’s better not to think about the number of times she successfully ran away from her favourite agent.  But this year, this formidable titleholder in a gorgeous red dress will have to face her Nemesis in the championship. You. Though the comparison to the hideous bio-organic killing machine might not be very complimentary to you but you get the idea.  This year you enter the Kennedy Olympics. And this year you run like Sonic the Hedgehog and you win the damn competition (screw you Usain Bold!). And you do this with your head high and without an ounce of regret. Ignore all the texts and flowers Leon might send on your track Mario Kart style. His gifts are not as slippery as banana peels and they can easily be dodged, I promise. Well, most of the time, when you’re not lying on your bed in the middle of the night crying and sobbing while reading his messages or playing his voice in your voicemail again and again until you’re nothing more but a giant mess with puffy red eyes drowning in a puddle of your own tears.        Screw those messages too! And screw his broken yet terribly sexy voice as well!
Tumblr media
Being a man of word, Leon kept his promise. And for months you kept on running peacefully, marathoning away from this past relationship that had destroyed you like no other before while tranquilly fixing your broken heart on the way. That run was a good cardio.
But sometimes, cardio is not enough, and even just the small sight of an overpriced whisky bottle or the smell of Leon’s perfume on some guy’s clothes is enough to reopen your wounds.           And when it happens, you always do the same thing, you break the damn bottle - and run cause damn! it’s expensive! -  or you tell the guy his perfume smells like cheap cologne and that he should definitely change it, which is an improvement on your past destructive behaviour, since there was a time shortly after the break up when you would have simply dragged the guy to your place to let him fuck you senseless while imagining he was Leon. All that just for the illusion to feel him again and for the sake to kick him out the next morning, screaming like a hysterical psycho.
So imagine, for a small second, the wave of intense feelings surging out of your healing heart when, in the middle of a cafe, you hear some dude sitting behind you ordering Leon’s favourite whisky while wearing the same bloody perfume. “It’s got to be relentless persecution at that point!” You sigh, already annoyed, closing your book more violently than intended. Hope you’re ready, stranger! Because you’re not in the mood to deal with this right now.            You turn around with a fake smile that reflects perfectly your irritation, ready to give him hell, your sharpest riposte already burning your tongue. After all, he deserves it and you can’t help it.         But when you meet familiar – and freaking gorgeous - baby blue eyes you freeze and stare, suddenly confused and lost and refusing to believe that in spite of the intense running, love just jumped at your neck after all and it was sitting there, taking the shape of Leon S(tupid) Kennedy.
You should have stood up and left, run for your life, run for your heart. And yet, you didn’t.    You stayed there staring at him looking at you, allowing all your memories, the good ones and the bad ones, all your buried feelings to come back from the dead, embracing them as if you had missed them, which, let’s be honest, you probably had.            You tried to scream to yourself “Come on, Y/N! Shake a leg!” but it seemed that what you brain understood was something like “Cum on him! Open your legs!” as a couple of blurry hours later, you were on Leon’s bed, legs wide open, screaming his name and begging him not to stop his amazing thrusts.
Six months, you ran for six months … Well, looks like the run ends here and now. After a minute-long deep stare, an afternoon of amazing sex and two hours long of something blurry in between.
“I missed you.” And there you were! The moment all couples that broke up have after one of them (in this case Leon with the infamous ‘I missed you line’) starts to believe they miraculously rekindled their love. The fatal post-coital cuddling session that you don’t know how to react to, as you think of all the possibilities before you.      Possibility Number 1) You tell Leon you missed him too and cuddle, enjoying that embrace you secretly yearned for months. But that includes forgetting what he has done or pretending that nothing happened.     Possibility Number 2) You push him away, get dressed, leave again and act as if this afternoon never happened. But if Leon doesn’t remind you of it, the ache between your legs will, that’s for sure!   Possibility Number 3) You jump him again until you sore even more and hope that you’ll be able to leave afterwards.         Frankly, all possibilities suck because, in all cases, it seems like you lose. Since,       with Possibility Number 1) you lose the run forever, with Possibility Number 2) you lose him again and with Possibility Number 3) well it’s result 1 or 2 + your body aching like crazy for days. I suck at math but no need to be Einstein to know the result of this calculation looks unpleasant.    So what do you choose?
You see a triangular dice rolling in your head, showing a never-ending succession of 1, 2 and 3 that doesn’t make any sense and that confuse you even more than you already are. 1, 2, 3, 2, 1, 3, 2 ! Oh for fuck’s sake!
You grimace, angry and pissed at Leon and probably even more at yourself, and finally leaves his bed and his strong warm arms, feeling the tears furiously forming in your eyes. “I can’t” You can’t look at him in the eyes. You don’t want to see his confusion, don’t want to see his pain as he witnesses all his hopes shatter to pieces.         “ What do you mean?” You can hear the sheets crease behind you, alerting you of Leon’s agitation, so you hurry and pick up all your clothes scattered in his room. You must leave, now. 2! 2 it is!  “This! All This! This afternoon never happened.” You tell him, putting on your clothes with sudden clumsy and trembling hands, not caring if your bra is correctly hooked or if you put your shirt on back to front. Your heart. You have to think of your poor heart first.          “Hey, hey, hey.” You feel Leon’s hand softly grabbing your arms and you let go of whatever you were holding right now. His voice is sweet and trying to be comforting. Don’t look at him Y/N! Don’t look at him! “Look at me.” You do. Damn it! And you see his gorgeous blue eyes staring at you, studying your flustered face and the tears slowly drowning your (colour) look. You missed those eyes. You missed them so.damn.much ! As much as you missed his hands cupping your face and his thumbs wiping up your tears. God! How many tears those thumbs have missed recently. “It’s alright.”
You want to believe him. You really do. But there is this voice screaming in your head and very clearly this time. A voice shouting, forcing you to remember that night, that awful nightmarish night, the one when you felt your heart break and your dreams turn to ashes. All that because of him and his obsession for her.
“No, it’s not alright, Leon.” You shake your head and miraculously manage to take a small step back. You never thought you could. But you had to. You can’t stay close to him. You can’t let him touch you, feel you. Not if you want to run away. And you have to run away. Like her! Like Ada. Ada! “I told you. For as long as you have feelings for Ada, I can’t … we can’t…”     “Please don’t talk about her.” He begs and rubs his hand over his face. Is he trying to chase her away from his mind? Is she still in here? Please, let her not be in here.    “But she’s the reason we’re in this situation now. She’s the reason why we’re in this mess.” You insist only for the sake to see his reaction when you mention Ada, to see if she’s still under his skin, somewhere. “Ada is not the reason. I am!” Leon corrects you, a finger directed at his heavy chest as he is putting the full blame on himself for the first time since that night. “I am the one who went after Ada when I shouldn’t have! I am the reason why we broke up! I am the reason why we are so miserable!”         “But I was fine!” You shouted back in an attempt to show him he was wrong refusing to listen to that part of you who knew he was completely right. You were miserable without him. “I was doing fine until you came back and fucked everything up! I was healing goddamnit!”             You felt new tears rolling along your red cheeks and quickly wipe them off with the back of your hand that felt so callous and rough in comparison to Leon’s gentle touch. “You can’t just jump back into my life like this and expect me to forget!”
Leon nods, agreeing with you in a certain way. But the truth is, he doesn’t want you to forget. He doesn’t expect you to erase his mistake. He just wants you to forgive him … No, he just wants you to come back to him. Period. And that’s got to be what you want to. It has to!   “So why did you have sex with me, huh?” He finally asks even though he already knows your answer. “Tell me!” You’re not the kind of person who has meaningless sex, not the kind of person who worships one’s body with divine kisses and devoted caresses if they mean nothing. “Why did you have sex with me?” And yet the answer he wishes to hear doesn’t come out. “For fuck’s sake Y/N! Answer me! Why?” He shouts making you shiver and cry even more.    “Because I LOVE YOU!” You finally scream. And it hurts. It hurts but it feels good too. Like a weight lifted off your chest. “Because I missed you too! Because those months without you have been terrible! Because I don’t know how to handle even just the thought of you or the sound of your voice in my voicemail. Because each time I see something that makes me think of you, I’m a mess and I do things that normal me would never do! You fucked me up, Leon! You fucked me up but I love you! And I hate to love you!” You grunt in pain and relief, enraged but happy that you finally let everything out. And Leon listens in silence, frozen by your powerful honest confession. But he doesn’t know how to react. He doesn’t know what to say. Part of him is overjoyed, ecstatic that you still love him but there is another part that just feels terrible, sorry for the pain your love for him caused you even in his absence.   “But you see—“ You continue “That’s the problem in our relationship, Leon! I love you in ways that are so intense, that go beyond sanity. And you love me by half.”    You see him crumple, his horrified face looking suddenly very pale as if he had just heard some dreadful news. Is that really how you feel? Is that how you see his love for you? Is that what he has made you believe?         “Goodbye Leon.”
With the full intention to leave Leon’s place for good and never come back, you grab you bag on your way out of the bedroom while carelessly shoving your underwear inside of it since you forgot to put them on in the midst of panic and precipitation. Get out of here, Y/N! Now! A reasonable voice encourages you. Listen to me!    But this not what Leon wants.
“I never loved you by half.” He declares and you abruptly stop, asking God if he’s some kind of sadist that loves seeing you in pain from the comfort of his divine sofa somewhere in heaven. “Never.” But it’s not God and his sadism that makes you turn around. It’s you, and your masochist love for that blue-eyed man before you.     “I don’t believe you” Your voice almost doesn’t leave your throat as you try not to sob.           “But it’s the truth.” He says with a calm soothing voice as he slowly approaches you. “I never imagined my future with Ada. I never wished to grow old with her or build a home with her.” You want to tell Leon to stop talking, to stay where he is but your body doesn’t seem to respond. And when you feel him grabbing your hands in his and the comforting warmth that goes with that simple touch, you know that leaving is now an almost impossible task. “Yes. I admit it. My feelings for her were real.” Even when his honesty hurts you, you don’t know how to leave anymore. “But they were nothing in comparison to what I feel for you.”     You try to let go, pulling your hands away from his loving grip but he holds you back. And you’re not strong enough. Or maybe, you just don’t want to be strong. Everything is so confusing. Everything is tearing you apart.     “But they’re still here, aren’t they?” You question, hoping his answer might give you a clue, might give you the strength to make the correct decision. Do you leave? Or do you stay? “And they’ll keep coming back each she goes back into your life. You can’t let go of her.”    “You’re maybe right.” His words hurt you more than you thought they would. They hurt like hell because you realise there are not the ones you wanted to hear. You wanted to hear him say that he would let go of Ada, for good, for you. You wanted to hear that because deep down … YOU WANTED TO FUCKING STAY! “But can you let go of your past?” He continues and you shake your head refusing to hear any other word coming out of Leon’s mouth.       “Don’t!” You beg, weary.           “No! Listen to me this time. Ada is my past, Y/N. She’s my past. And you … you’re my future. You’re my life, damn it!” He doesn’t cry but you don’t need his tears to sense how emotional and how honest he is. And suddenly, you just want to listen to him. “And I was a fool not to see it sooner. When you left me, I felt a void I had never felt in my entire life. I felt like a part of me was missing. And then, the bombing in Washington happened, and it was like I had nothing left. I needed you. I wanted you. You. Not Ada.”      “Leon” You whisper and he cups your face again, blue eyes staring deep into yours, allowing you to see everything in him, his strong love for you and all the weaknesses he hated to admit. “It was you in my mind. Only you. And it will always be you. Because I love you. Now. Today. And I will always love you.”
You cry even more, uncertain if those tears are tears of sorrow, tears of joy or a mix of both. God, how can your emotions be such a mess right now? How can you be wishing to shout at him with all the anger you’ve accumulated and, at the same time, willing to kiss him with all love you’ve got?
“If you got to believe something. Believe that. And if that’s not enough and you think you can be happy with someone else. Then go. I won’t hold you back.” You frown. He is fucking lying. You’re sure of it. “You can’t stop running after me and you know it.” He smiles and scoffs, sensing that hint of sudden defiance in your tone he enjoys a lot.  “True. I can’t sop running after you. But I’ll do my best not to catch you if that’s what you want. But you got to tell me. Is that what you truly want?” You don’t reply. Truth is, you’re not sure what to say not because you’re not sure that’s what you want but because you’re not sure you can trust him if you let him in again.                        “No.” You whisper. “No, that’s not what I want. I want you. All of you.” You can see Leon struggle to contain his growing joy as it starts to glimmer brighter and brighter in his irises. He doesn’t want to cry victory just yet. He is cautious and rightfully so. “But can I?”        “Want me?” He smiles. “ Have you completely?” You correct, searching for a promise in his eyes, one you hope, you wish he would not break this time.     “Trust me with your heart again and find out.”
This better not hurt this time…
114 notes · View notes
Text
Jealousy
Hey hey hey!!!
How are y'all doing? Here's another one, hope you enjoy reading it just as much as i enjoyed writing it!! Just a heads up, this is filthy, long, intense... but it gets a little cute at the very end ;)
Thank you @wickedazriel​ for this request! IT IS AWESOME!!!
✨don’t forget to make your own request✨
• I don’t own any of Sarah J. Mass’ characters or any of her plots, I’m just a fan having fun. Also I do not own the images. This is story is mine though, so please do not copy •
WARNING! cursing, sex... this is a hatefuck one
∞ I see red - Everybody loves an outlaw
Tumblr media
Author’s P.O.V.
Y/N was sick and tired of that bullshit. Ever since Elain arrived in Velaris to visit her sisters, Feyre and Nesta, Az was with her. They went to shops, restaurants and pretty much everywhere else. All the damn time.
To worsen it, this last month was rough on their relationship. Loads of work, constant arguments and sleeping on different beds was their new routine, and honestly, Y/N was so done with it. She tried time after time to get him to open up and share what left him so disturbed, like he had other times, but it was in vain. He became more distant, and was currently avoiding her. 
Tonight, she wanted a change. She missed her mate, and just wished it was over. Determined to go talk to Azriel, she headed to Feyre’s house, knowing that he would be there. 
As she walked the streets of the city, the sun was setting and an ocean breeze stirred lightly. It reminded her of when they met, years ago, and their first kiss. Smiling, she remembered those sweet moments, of glimmering glances and tentative touches.
Eventually, she arrived at the house and started to look for Azriel, hoping that the Inner Circle’s meeting was done. Roaming through the corridors, she caught his scent. And Elain’s, she realized with an exasperated sigh. Following it led to the main living room, and she would never be prepared to witness what happened before her eyes. 
Elain and Azriel. 
Kissing.
“What’s going on?”
Azriel turned around, startled. Shit. Holy shit. This is the last thing he needed. Looking into his mate’s eyes, he was panicking. Elain had kissed him, caught him by surprise, hoping he had feelings for her. But he did not want her. Elain has a mate. Elain is not Y/N. 
“Y/N, wait. This is not what you think, just let —
Y/N's bitter laugh cut him off. Stepping closer, she glared at him. “It makes sense now. You acting distant and harsh, ignoring me all this time. How long has this happened.” Her cold voice tugged at his guts. “Actually, don’t answer me. You know, if you didn’t want me around anymore, you should’ve said it. But now it’s crystal clear.” She turned on her heels, and stormed out of the room.
Az moved, holding her wrist.
“Do not dare touch me.” Poison laced her voice, as she met his eyes at last. The anger there was enough to make him flinch, and he let go.
Desperate to get out of there, she stomped away from that place, hair whipping furiously. Tears came to her eyes, but she blinked them away. She had never been this angry, or heartbroken. Hungry for revenge, an idea came to her. Her smirk was devilish. She arrived home, put on his favorite dress, fixed her hair and painted her lips a bloodred tint. And like this, she went out seeking for the main part of the plan. Ace.
Now, Ace was a fae male who worked in the Rainbow. Handsome and with a talent for music, he was a charming male straight out of one of those smutty books Y/N owned. Azriel made sure she knew how much he hated the guy’s guts (with those green eyes and oh so perfect blond hair), even when she never had feelings for Ace.
With a killer look, she walked around Velaris and spotted tonight’s target. She reached him, asked if he wanted to have a drink and dance for a while, and he agreed without hesitance.
So they drank into the night, and he eventually invited her for a dance. She obliged, but as soon as the music started YN regretted it. It felt wrong, like it was missing something.  This wasn’t Az. And she hated herself for being so foolish, in believing that the pain would go away this easy. That his presence would just vanish from her heart, even when it was burned into her soul.
Walking home, she wanted the day to be done. Y/N barely remembered bidding goodbye to a very confused Ace, her mind still clouded with everything that happened. She never expected anything like that from Az, even after years of relationship and many problems faced together.
Y/N reached her apartment, opened the door and found Az waiting for her. Seeing him made her anger rise to the brim, and she wasn’t the only one that was mad.
“You were with Ace?” He seethed, standing up from the couch. His blood boiled at her scent mixed with his.
“Yes.” 
“Why?”
She stilled, drunk in jealousy. 
“Why?! Oh I wonder why. Maybe” walking towards him, pressing his back against a wall “it was because you were kissing dear sweet Elain in the middle of a fucking living room.” They stood closely now “Maybe it’s because I feel like a fucking idiot for falling in love.” Their breaths mingled, and Y/N’s gaze burned him. With anger, with panic, with… desire.
She glanced at his lips. The room was filled by their aroused scent. 
She pounced on him. His lips met her with unwavering hunger, devouring her, and she equaled him. A delightful heat started between her legs and clouded her mind, enhanced by his now roaming hands all over her. A moan left her lips, and she felt him grow hard against her stomach. She palmed him through his pants, and his hips jerked.
Grabbing her wrists, he pushed her against the opposite wall and pinned them above her head. She whined in protest, and pushed her body into his. He went crazy with desire, her dress made her look like a goddess. All he wanted was to put his scent over that male’s.
“Jump” He ordered.
She did, wrapping her legs around him, with his hands now supporting her, fingers digging on her ass.
The kisses now were more important than air itself, their lips greedy for each other. Taking them to the bedroom, the shadowsinger was going mad for her. Y/N was on her own path to insanity, as her hands struggled with the buttons of his shirt and her body begged for more attention. 
He set her down and their kissing halted, overtaken by the need to shed their clothes. Fast. Mere seconds later, the pieces of clothing were discarded on the floor and the frenzy returned.
His mouth was on her lips, her neck, her breasts. Her nipples were rock hard, begging for attention as he wrapped his lips around one, licked, sucked and bit down. Her moans got out of control, thighs clenched together. Moving on to the other nipple, her hands (who had been wandering around his wings) suddenly gripped his throbbing cock, and surprised, he moaned into her chest as he thrust forward against her hand.
Her other hand grabbed his shoulder, and pushed him into the bed. He let himself fall into his back, and she got onto her knees. He will go crazy tonight, she thought, I’ll make him. 
The feeling of her mouth around him made him moan loudly. The view of her hand touching herself as she sucked him off almost made him cum. He gritted his teeth, and tried to hold it. But, with exceptional expertise, she teased him to the edge. And denied him right after. Twice.
Now, ready for more, Y/N stood up, straddled him, guided his shaft to her entrance… and lowered herself. Their moans sounded, and she started to move. Up and down at first, and then she ground into his cock. She pinned him to the bed, as he did with her against the wall.
Azriel lost any scrape of sanity after this. 
Y/N couldn’t control herself, and said
“Does she ride you like this? Do you fuck her like this?”
His eyes glittered with the challenge. Getting out her grip, he freed his arms, slid out of her and flipped them over. Then he flipped her, positioning her on all fours. Slid back in. Grabbed her hair. Pressed his fingers on her clit. And whispered on her ear 
“Does he make you feel this, Y/N?”
Her response was only a sequence of squeals and screams, pleasure crashing into her with violent waves. Their release was close, and the thrusting became faster, sloppier, desperate. Azriel thrust one last time, deep and strong, as pinched her nub, and she came around him. He followed her, getting squeezed by her muscles, tightly and uncontrollably. 
Their exhausted bodies lay entangled on each other, neither daring to move. Azriel slid out of her after a few minutes, and she whimpered softly. Still on the bed with her back to him, Y/N worked up the courage to ask.
“Az, what happened there?” 
He took a deep breath.
“Elain is having trouble with Lucien and their relationship, she talked to me a lot about it. There’s a lot of crap going on between them, and I advised her as a friend. Exclusively as someone who wants the best for her.” His mate remained in silence, and that quiet despair started to take over him once again.
“Y/N," he touched her exposed back gently, “turn around and talk to me. Please.”
A beat of silence went by. Two. On the third she moved, and their eyes met. His bared nothing but honesty and love.
“I love you, Y/N. My mate, my best friend, my everything. I truly did not expect a kiss from Elain, and I have no interest in another. I’m yours.”
And hers bared nothing but thankfulness and adoration.
“Thank you for being honest with me, Az. I believe you,” he let out a breath of relief at the words, “ and I’m sorry. I acted wrongly in going to Ace, in not hearing you and in dumping my insecurities on this.” 
“What went on between the two of you?”
“We had drinks, he asked me to dance. I said yes, and lasted for half a song. Because it wasn’t you.”
Azriel said nothing, and her heart broke a little more. 
"Can you forgive me?”, she asked, her voice nothing more than a whisper.
He looked into her eyes, and thanked the Mother for such a stunning, courageous and honest female in his life.
“Yes.” She smiled brightly at his reply, touching their foreheads. “Can you forgive me? For making you feel insecure and for staying so distant? I shouldn’t have shut you out”
“I can, Az. And please, let’s not do this again.”
“Oh absolutely, it was dreadful” the shadowsinger agreed, and leaned in to kiss her lips, the trouble now forgotten.
And so they kissed.
Once.
Twice.
Their hands started to–
Well, you know what happens next...
-From A.
Ps: talk to me, make some requests 😁 my box is open
258 notes · View notes
rrasado · 3 years
Note
Hello! Its me hearts-chan! Hope your having a wonderful day rras ❤❤
May i request a headcannon for the first years with an mc who is pretty much a grim reaper (like ones in black butler if you have watched it) and make it platonic 😊
Again have a great day! 💘💝💖💗💓💞💕❣❤🧡💛💚💙💜💟
Met at Scythe point
I’ve only ever watched book of circus from Black butler so I’m gonna rely on my research for the accuracy of these headcanons kddkn. BE PREPARED-
When you’re a reaper
Tumblr media
The guy was probably on another routine for the sake of the rules of the queen of hearts. The gardens of Heartslabyul needed tending to and it just so happened he saw the tool he needed- well goddamit it ace you should know by now that there is more to what meets the eye-
Suffice it to say, the way you just seemingly come out of nowhere to snatch back your precious weapon made him realize a lot of things on the spot. One of them being how you’ve always been faster than most.
Whether you tell him yourself or not, Ace is gonna figure out on his own how you’re not...purely human. But hey- If you do tell him yourself- he’s gonna ask you one thing and one thing in particular-
“Oi...who’s gonna die soon-“
and then you hit him. It’s not like you’re actually there specifically for someone heck you just winded up here after a mistake in the dispatching process. But overall ace would go from care free to careful.
He’ll try to goof around less and use that energy to just- observe you as much as he can, because admit it or not yknow he himself has more than meets the eye. Friend or foe which one are you to eachother I wonder...
Tumblr media
Deuce well...oddly enough he’s already noticed something from you from the start.
Call it solidarity or whatever- but he’s sensed that air of subdued superiority on you since day one, that’s coming from someone who’s surrounded himself with a diverse bunch of people in his ruffian days.
But he never dared question your hyphened abilities, maybe you were just like him or the others who are born athletic? No there’s really something irking him whenever you jump...as if defying gravity itself.
“Trey senpai said there was a mower in need of fixing...ah-“
...wrong mower deuce- no even better the way you just swung the mower out of his reach over your head like it’s nothing is just- please explain before the bb gets even more confused about the laws of life, he doesn't trust himself about anything anymore after the egg incident-
Hm...you broke him. No but on a serious note- he’s gonna have a hard time wrapping his head around the concept of...his friend being a supervisor of death. But hey, you’re both learning in the process right? He’ll try too maintain the prior dynamic you already had but...god remind him to be cautious around gardening tools-
Tumblr media
It was fine he was fine we were all fine- great seven did you just leap off the school building- wait you’re fine? You were just reviewing something? WHAT IN GREAT SEVEN’S NAME DO YOU NEED TO REVIEW ON THE CASTLE SPIRAL-
Jack takes it the hardest in terms of accepting it. By that I meant- you...keep tabs on the cycle of life and death... he does not hear he does not hear-
The first year savanaclaw student takes a good few days to process the news. In that duration he wonders whether his view on who is good and who is bad kinda...topples. But when he talks to you again and continues your already established friendship, he’ll learn that one’s character doesn’t always align with what they do.
“Hey...do you enjoy your duty.?”
It was an innocent question one he meant well in, he just wanted to confirm many things but the way you became reluctant just...told him that it’s not a good conversation topic in broad daylight.
Overall, he’s gonna put his faith in you as he continues to stay by your side, you are after all still his friend...despite being probably able to surmise the lives of those near their end but- that's Not something he should be worrying right now.
Tumblr media
Epel...took it the wrong way- No dear, as much as it seems cool it’s not...all power and glory.
The initial admiration quickly turns into abstract fear when it finally sinks into him how you’re not...a glorified guide to the afterlife with a cool oversized blade. The stories painted your kind wrong in this world huh?
In short- be prepared for having to catch him before he stumbles to the ground- fully denying his terror when you ask him if he’s alright while shaking a bit in your arms. You’ll have to explain it very slowly and lightly to him how no you’re also not the type of reaper that forcefully reaps out souls from bodies in a spur of crimson
“E-eh-...you’re still our friend right?”
Assurance is key with him, so treat him slowly but surely whilst not hiding every single fact from him. It’s a fickle balance but it’s definitely something that’ll pay off once he comes into terms with the fact.
And when he does...you can bet he’ll use your status as a cool threat to others. Not everybody has a Grim Reaper as a buddy right? Take that you cunts-
Tumblr media
I pray for this boy’s soul, literally- the moment you accidentally reveal your true status he just- instantly feels the need to channel all his faith into his one and only waka sama.
Like Epel, sebek would take it the wrong way...thinking of your revelation as a pathetic attempt at a prank, he's seen how most students at school do such childish ministrations. How would you be any different?
By all means you are on every level different, the diasominan resident's denial diminishes when he slowly recounts every instance with you. You weren't his everyday ruffian were you...there's certainty in every action you execute, and when you act on your goals your drive is unstoppable.
"Huma- n-no...you..."
The way he attempts to keep up his boisterous personality with you is both amusing and pitiful. Honestly...his perception of those with power and those beneath become blurry. Heck he wonders where you truly stand compared to the young master.
You're gonna have to assure him that despite your inhumane nature you aren't some omnipotent being like he thinks... Omnipotence born from tragedy is not a blessing of authority, at least.. that's what you thinks anyways.
134 notes · View notes
ramzawrites · 3 years
Note
Hello Ramza my beloved! \ (⌒▽⌒)/ Could i request a fic where reader is ranboo's younger sibling? Y'know endermen kiddos doing cute lil' endermen things; i thought that'd be a cute idea! :]
BigBrother!Ranboo and Reader - Useless Enchantment
GN
Pairings: none
Characters included: Ranboo
Warnings: n/a
Series: a request by my beloved anon <3
Summary: Y/N ran away after Ranboo insulted their enchantment they have worked on, calling it useless. They just wanted to help out!
Words count: 1548
Authors Note: I apologize for this short one and I turned this around a bit into a different direction. I hope it’s fine! I do like the idea of Big Brother Ranboo though and would love to write more for him but at the moment this was the only thing that came into my mind! Still, thank you for the good prompt! :]
A young child was carefully stalking through the dark forest. The gaze from his red and green eyes always attentively roaming between the trees and fauna. One of his hands resting on the hilt of his worn out iron sword. Glistening with a simple sharpness enchantment that the boy managed to put on there with the help of an old book.
It was currently the dead of night and therefore being outside was dangerous. Mobs were now prowling around attacking everything on sight only to later retreat or burn to ashes once the sun come back around again.
Now, it wasn’t Ranboo’s choice that he was outside during the night but he had to look for someone. His younger sibling Y/N.
After a particular heated argument Y/N stormed outside of the old broken hut that the two have reappropriated as their own home. Of course Ranboo immediately tried to follow them but he wanted to make sure to at least grab the sword before following them in case anything happened. Unfortunately this also gave Y/N the time to get out of his vision
“Y/N! Please come home!” he yelled out for the what felt like the hundredth time.
Truth be told he didn’t full remember already what they were arguing about. Either it was just that stupid or his faulty memory was acting up again.
During his life his memory had been a huge problem of his and something he didn’t feel too comfortable relying on. The only definite thing he could and will unequivocally rely on was his trust in his sibling.
They were always there for him to either help him through his confusion or they would cheer him up, no matter the situation.
“Come on! Y/N! It’s dangerous!”
“Go away!” The voice came from above him. Sniffling and stifled sobs accompanying it.
Confused Ranboo looked up at the treetops only to see Y/N sitting on a particular thick branch. They were hugging their own legs and viciously rubbing their eyes, trying to make sure that none of their tears would hit their skin but Ranboo could see a few bright red lines and splotches on their cheeks.
His eyes widened “Come down and let’s go home! What if a skeleton sees you! Or a spider!”
But Y/N just tightly shut their mismatched colored eyes and shook their head “Nuh uh! Just so you can make fun of my enchanting again? I was trying to help!”
Oh, that was what happened. The house had an enchanting table, which was one of the deciding factors for why they moved in there for the time being and Y/N tried to enchant a piece of armor to help their brother out but accidentally managed to put on a what Ranboo described as a “useless” enchantment.
Ranboo looked around himself, making sure that no mobs have caught on to them yet “I’m, uh, sure we can find a use for an aqua affinity helmet. How about we go home and talk about it!”
Y/N slowly opened their eyes again, they were still busy trying to dry their tears. Wincing whenever their tears still managed to escape and making an uncomfortable sizzling sounds as it touched their skin.
“You think so?”
He nodded, getting more and more nervous just standing around in the forest like this “Yes, of course I’m sure. Why would I lie to you? You have to come down the tree though.”
Y/N hesitantly let go off their legs and let them dangle off the tree. Taking a deep breath in they just jumped off the branch.
This Ranboo didn’t expect. Scared for their well being he ran over to them trying to catch them somehow. It might have not been a huge drop but it was still long enough to definitely end up in some sort of injury if Y/N didn’t land correctly.
Ranboo opened up his arms but Y/N still just crashed into him. Falling off the tree only to disappear and reappear right on top of him in a cloud of purple particles. Knocking all the air out of his lungs as he fell over with his younger sibling in his arms.
While he could pick things up without destroying them, Y/N inherited the ability to teleport even if the range at the moment is only a few feet at best.
On one hand he was happy Y/N was finally down the tree but on the other hand he was now busy coughing as he tried to fill his lungs with much needed air again. It also didn’t help that Y/N didn’t immediately jump off of him and instead took a second regaining their own bearings.
Once they did jump off him though, they helped him back up. Y/N then immediately wrapped their arms around his body. Pushing their wet face into his chest. A few painful and muffled whimpers escaped them as they essentially pushed their wounded face into Ranboo’s shirt.
Still coughing Ranboo softly put his hand on Y/N’s head. Trying to calm them down even more as he carefully caressed their head in between their two white and black horns. The least he could do right now is try to stop their tears so they wouldn’t be in pain on the walk home.
It seemed to work somewhat. When Y/N looked back up into their brother’s face their eyes were still looking glassy but it didn’t look like more tears were rolling down their face.
Happy with this Ranboo took Y/N’s hand in his and together the two begun walking home. Y/N’s gaze always directed on the ground, only occasionally jumping towards noises around them. All the while Ranboo took the lead, his sword in is other hand.
Y/N’s hand sometimes flew up to their face. Tracing along old tear scars and the new once. Grimacing every time their fingers got too close.
Ranboo too was sensitive and got hurt by water as well but for the longest time now he suspected that Y/N showed a more stronger reaction to it than he ever did.
Guilt swept in as he realized that if he never made fun of their enchanting they wouldn’t be in pain right now. His grip on Y/N’s hand strengthened. He wanted to say something but when he opened his mouth his words left him. So he just concentrated on the walk home for now.
It didn’t take long for the two to reach their home. As soon as Ranboo opened the door the light of the fire places greeted them. It was just a run down little hut. Most rooms were almost unusable. Either too broken down over the years or filled with debris. So the two spent most of their time only in the living room. Even made makeshift beds around the fire place so they could keep warm while sleeping.
“Y/N, sit down on the chair over there.” Ranboo pointed at one of the chairs next to dinner table that stood close by.
Y/N didn’t wait and immediately moved towards the chair to do as Ranboo told them. While they did so Ranboo put his sword away and got out a rag and a spare potion they managed to scrounge up out of a chest.
He then moved another chair in front of his little sibling so he could sit in front of them. Putting some of the potion on the rag. Moving it close to their face only to see them preemptively wince.
“I’m sorry Y/N. This is my fault. I shouldn’t have made fun of you. You did good!”
It surprised them when Y/N smiled at him “It’s alright. You didn’t mean to. Also you promised to find a good way to use for the enchantment anyhow.”
They looked smug when they said the last part. As if them running away was all a plan to make him promise that.
A pout appeared on his face and he sighed “Are you sure you are my sibling and not just annoying endermites in a trench coat?”
They stuck out their tongue “I don’t see any other Hybrid around here that is half Enderman and whatever our other half is.”
They were right. Both of them showed the same markings of their Hybrid sides. Including having the same eye colors of green and red. Ranboo may not have all of his memories and both didn’t know where they came from but he knew that Y/N was his sibling. He just knew it.
All of his memories had them in there as well. They were always there with him., survived together.
“Anyway I will clean up the wounds a bit so the scars won’t be too noticeable, alright? The rest you gotta drink.”
Y/N nodded. Closing their eyes waiting for Ranboo to touch up the wounds. It’s not the first time they did this after all. They knew how this would go.
Ranboo softly touched their face with the wet cloth. As soon as he did so he could already see Y/N’s skin repairing itself a little bit. The bright red lines getting darker and in the case of the face side with the enderman skin it turned into white lines.
Wincing at every touch but they managed to stay still.
He then pushed the bottle into Y/N’s hands who happily downed the liquid since it also helped to suppress the pain.
Relived Y/N let out a few happy chirps similar to the sounds that of actual endermen.
“Ranboo?”
“Yeah, Y/N?”
“Can you teach me how to enchant things properly? You are way better at it this than me.” They sounded a bit sheepish.
312 notes · View notes